Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site. 0108263 License for publishing multimedia online Registration Number: 130349 Registration Number: 130349 Regular flights from Shenzhen to Mexico open 08:34, May 13, 2024 By Cheng Si ( Chinadaily.com.cn The flight route from Shenzhen, South China's Guangdong province, to Mexico City in Mexico was opened on Saturday, as reported by the Xinhua News Agency. The route is so far China's longest nonstop route for commercial flights, with its length reaching over 14,000 km and a duration of 16 hours. The route will operate twice every week using Airbus A350 aircraft. The route will shorten Chinese people's travel time to Mexico, China's second-largest trading partner in Latin America, and boost cooperation between the two countries. (Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun) 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: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain The primitive asteroids that UCF physics doctoral student Brittany Harvison studies carry with them traces of their origins and billions of years of our solar system's history. Harvison pored through a library of infrared telescope data to analyze the spectral composition of 25 members of the Erigone family of primitive asteroids and help fill in the gaps in our understanding of the creation of our solar system. The data on the Erigone asteroids, which are located in the main asteroid belt found between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter, was collected as part of the PRIMitive Asteroid Spectroscopic Survey (PRIMASS) project co-led by UCF planetary scientist Noemi Pinilla-Alonso. Harvison's work, which was published in the journal Icarus, lays the foundation for future research, and may get scientists closer to concluding if asteroids brought water to Earth and if so, how much. "There are theories that the Earth could have received a fraction of its water from primitive asteroids in the early solar system," says Harvison, who is also a researcher at the Florida Space Institute (FSI). "A big portion of these theories is understanding how these primitive asteroids were transported into Earth's path. So, exploring primitive asteroids in the solar system today could help paint a picture of what was going on all those years ago." Some of these cosmic travelers, including the asteroids within the Erigone family, have hydrated silicates. The existing hydrated bodies that continue to move throughout our solar system could tell us more about those that collided with Earth. It is one of the many outstanding questions that Harvison's work is hoping to address. "We mainly wanted to see if there were primitive asteroid families similar to the Erigone and Polana asteroid families," Harvison says. "We used spectroscopy to study what kinds of minerals were on the surface to understand their composition." From the study, Harvison and her co-authors saw that the Erigone and Polana families are different from one another in the near infrared but that the other primitive families have their own levels of red color in their spectral distribution along with their own unique levels of hydration. In other words, the primitive families in the inner solar system show a variety of redness and hydration. The analysis and comparison show evidence that these families are not linked to the proposed Erigone-like or Polana-like groups, challenging the previously held theories as to where they fit in. Also, one particular asteroid, (52246) Donaldjohanson, seems to belong to the Erigone family based on its spectrum. Piecing together history Due to the importance of understanding the nature of primitive objects, numerous spacecraft have targeted primitive asteroids, such as JAXA's Hayabusa2 and NASA's OSIRIS-REx, which visited, studied, and returned samples from Ryugu and Bennu, respectively. Bennu and Ryugu prompted researchers to further study primitive asteroids and figure out where they came from, Harvison says. Erigone was one of the final pieces of the large library of PRIMASS data that existed, but had yet to be studied, Harvison says. PRIMASS aims to understand the diversity of surface properties among primitive collisional families in the asteroid belt and map their composition. A collisional family of asteroids refers to a group of asteroids that are believed to have originated from the breakup of a larger parent body due to a collision. The members of a collisional family provide information about the interior of the intact body they were part of before the impact. The PRIMASS project is characterizing the collisional families of primitive asteroids in the main belt, and particularly those that could be the origin of the primitive near-Earth asteroids such as Bennu and Ryugu. The conclusions drawn by studying collisional families like Erigone are critical puzzle pieces in the greater endeavor of understanding the creation of our solar system. "The larger scope was to look at primitive families in the inner part of the main asteroid belt, where Ryugu and Bennu are thought to have likely originated," she says. "The Erigone family was the last piece of the puzzle to be placed into the PRIMASS library to provide full context on primitive asteroids in this region and allow other scientists to analyze the data." Harvison's research provides supplemental context for the upcoming NASA Lucy mission, which will have the eponymous spacecraft visiting (52246) Donaldjohanson in Spring 2025 before it moves on to examine eight Trojan objects (space rocks trapped in Jupiter's orbit) in 2027 through 2033. Looking to the future Study co-author Mario De Pra, an assistant scientist at FSI, served as a research assistant and Harvison's co-supervisor. Co-author Pinilla-Alonso is Harvison's research advisor and assisted Harvison in her research. Pinilla-Alonso says she's delighted to assist Harvison and see her growth. "For me, it was a pleasure to see the process and the end result," she says. "She contacted me early during the pandemic when we were all working at home to express her interest in pursuing a Ph.D. degree here at UCF. Here we are about three years later: she has done an awesome job and there is more to come." Pinilla-Alonso and Harvison say they were surprised that no one had studied the spectroscopy of the Erigone family. "When Brittany landed on this project, we saw there was one piece of information we were missing," Pinilla-Alonso says. "PRIMASS had completed the analysis of the visible and near-infrared of all the primitive families in the inner belt but there was one missing family: Erigone. That was very important because it was the family that could give closure to learning about the inner [asteroid] belt families. Until you ask the right question or have the tools, sometimes you don't seek that answer. But, in this case, we had the observations done and it was clear that we needed to analyze it." The knowledge gained from studying Bennu, Ryugu, and the Erigone and Polana primitive asteroid families will serve as a springboard for future James Webb Space Telescope observations and NASA missions. "It is very exciting times going through all of this new data with more to come with the James Webb Space Telescope," Pinilla-Alonso says. "I really think the biggest discovery is yet to come. The data we can collect from Earth is limited. Now, we have the best tool in space to keep learning more." Pinilla-Alonso, Harvison and other researchers at FSI are slated to begin using the JWST as early as this summer to observe Erigone and other primitive asteroids, and, over a span of about two years, evaluate the collected spectra. Harvison maintains her enthusiasm as she looks forward to building upon her analyses and further unraveling the origins of these primitive asteroids. "There's this fascination when I'm looking at this data and I'm examining something that's millions of miles away," Harvison says. "We can look back billions of years and learn the initial structure and composition of the early solar system by studying the surface of these asteroids. That's always been something that excites me." More information: Brittany Harvison et al, PRIMASS near-infrared study of the Erigone collisional family, Icarus (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.icarus.2024.115973 Journal information: Icarus 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: The conventional population on the left and the organic barley on the right: Only experts can spot the differences with the naked eye. However, huge differences can be identified using molecular genetics. Credit: AG Prof. Leon/University of Bonn Plants adapt genetically over time to the special conditions of organic farming. This has been demonstrated in a long-term study conducted at the University of Bonn. The researchers planted barley plants on two neighboring fields and used conventional farming methods on one and organic methods on the other. Over the course of more than 20 years, the organic barley was enriched with specific genetic material that differed from the comparative culture. Among other things, the results demonstrate how important it is to cultivate varieties especially for organic farming. The results have now been published in the journal Agronomy for Sustainable Development. At the end of the 1990s, Prof. Dr. Jens Leon started an experiment at the University of Bonn that he knew would run for a long period of time. His research group wanted to investigate the effects that farming conditions have on genetic material in plants. To this end, they carried out a complex long-term study over a period of 23 years at the Institute of Crop Science and Resource Conservation (INRES). "We first crossed high-yield barley with a wild form to increase genetic variation," says Leon. "We then planted these populations on two neighboring fields so that the barley grew in the same soil and under the same climatic conditions." The only difference was the farming method. Conventional farming was used in one of the fields where the researchers used pesticides to combat pests, chemical agents to eliminate weeds and mineral fertilizers to help ensure a good supply of nutrients. The researchers took a more ecological sound approach in the other field: no pesticides, combating weeds using mechanical methods and fertilizing the soil with manure from stables. Some of the grains were retained every fall to sow the fields the following springusing the organic grains on the organic field and the barley grown under conventional conditions on the comparative field. "We didn't choose the grains based on any particular characteristics, however, but simply selected a small part of the harvest at random," emphasizes Leon's colleague Dr. Michael Schneider. Analyzing genome development in time lapse The researchers also analyzed the genomes of the conventionally and organically farmed plants on a yearly basis. Every single gene can exist in a variety of different forms called alleles. For example, the human gene responsible for eye color exists in the alleles "brown" and "blue." The frequency with which certain alleles arise in a population can change over generations. Environmental conditions are one factor that plays a role in this process: Alleles that ensure plants thrive in their current environment are usually found more and more frequently. The researchers identified two interesting trends in their genetic tests: In the first 12 years, the allele frequency in the barley changed in the same way on both fields. "Our interpretation of this finding is that the very diverse populations caused by a cross with wild barley were adapting to the local conditions," says Dr. Agim Ballvora, who also participated in the study. "After all, factors such as the climate, soil and especially length of day were identical for both populations." However, the allele frequencies of both cultures diverged increasingly in subsequent years. In particular, the barley grown using organic farming methods developed gene variants that were less sensitive to a nutrient deficit or lack of wateri.e., alleles that influenced the structure of the roots. "One reason for this is presumably the strong variations in the availability of nutrients in organic farming," says Leon. Genetic heterogeneity facilitates the adaptation process The conventionally farmed barley also became more genetically uniform over time, meaning that the genetic material in the individual plants grown on the field became more and more similar from year to year. However, the organic barley remained more heterogeneous. The allele frequencies of the organic culture also varied more widely over time. This resulted in some years being extremely favorable or unfavorable for some alleles. This could be because the environmental conditions fluctuate much more in organic farming than with conventional framing methods: If certain plant diseases take hold in one year, for example, the plants will rely most on those alleles that will protect them. The variability of the environmental forces acting on the plants seems to lead to greater genetic heterogeneity. "As a result, the plants are better able to adapt to these types of changes," says Leon. Overall, the results demonstrate the importance of cultivating varieties optimized for organic farming. As their genetic makeup has adapted to these conditions, they will be more robust and deliver higher yields. "Furthermore, it seems to make sense when cultivating plants to cross breed them with older or even wild varieties," explains Leon. "Our data also indicate that this could even benefit conventional high-yield varieties." More information: Michael Schneider et al, Deep genotyping reveals specific adaptation footprints of conventional and organic farming in barley populationsan evolutionary plant breeding approach, Agronomy for Sustainable Development (2024). DOI: 10.1007/s13593-024-00962-8 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: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain Wendella engineer Miguel Chavez climbed down a ladder and over a small dock to pull up a trap floating in the Chicago River near the Michigan Avenue Bridge. The size of a standard garbage can, the trap is designed to collect trash and can hold up to 44 pounds. Chavez tapped the bin three times to release the contents into a trash bag. At first glance, it looked like a brownish, wet pile of leaves and twigs. "Once you start sifting through it, it's a lot easier to see the trash," he said. While large trash is not as big of a threat, plastic debris from food and product packaging and the smaller bits from when it breaks down has emerged as a persistent problem that affects wildlife, water quality and public health. "It's no longer the dumping ground it wasit's more of this incidental, wind-blown picnic, restaurant, parking lot pollution," said Margaret Frisbie, executive director of the nonprofit Friends of the Chicago River. "What we used to find was shopping carts and sofas and tires and old pipes. It was big and messy, but not the way that we see litter today. Today, the litter is smaller, it's food-related. It's breaking down because it's plastic, and so it's never really going away." In 2023, the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District collected 675 tons of debris from the river using skimmer boats; on average they pick up 745 tons annually, according to a spokesperson. City of Chicago skimmer boats also remove trash regularly along the Riverwalk downtown. Between 75% and 95% of debris collected in the river is plastic, and 58% of identifiable, non-fragmented trash is food-related, according to research led by Tim Hoellein, an aquatic ecologist at Loyola University Chicago, and undergraduate student Caitlin Hyatt. Shortly after the trap's deployment last summer, Mike McElroy, director of marine operations at Wendella Tours and Cruises, discovered a plastic toy dinosaur when he emptied the trap one day. Now the trap's official mascot, Trappy the Dinosaur has become an emblem for all the different kinds of things that pollute the river. The Trash Trap is the first technology of its kind used in the Chicago River to remove litter and learn where it's coming from and what it's made of. Contraptions like this are typically used in marinas where tides rise slowly, but this one was modified to withstand rapid changes in river levels from heavy rainfall. It works by drawing in water and debris from the surface using a submersible pump, trapping litter inside a catch bin and pumping the water back out. "From day one, it was pulling trash out of the river, even things that we couldn't see readily with (our) eyes," McElroy said. "The things we've pulled out have been very interesting. We've had a shoe, Dorito bags, Styrofoam in numbers and quantities that are just astounding." A common thread Flowing from the Great Lakes and into the Mississippi River, the Chicago River connects the region to the rest of the country and the world. And plastic litter is a common thread that runs through these diverse water systems. "That's happening in our rivers too, it's just not happening in the oceans," Frisbie said. "It's just not happening far away, it's happening here too." Unsurprisingly, the composition of litter in the Chicago River mirrors that of the region's lakes. In a recent report using data from over 14,000 beach cleanups over 20 years, the regional nonprofit Alliance for the Great Lakes found that 86% of trash entering the Great Lakes in a given year is either partially or fully composed of plastic. "The other day I saw someone throw a bag of their leftover lunch over the wall from Wacker Drive," Frisbie said. Large plastic products such as single-use bags, straws, wrappers, takeout containers and utensils eventually break down into smaller plastic particles. The tiniest of these particlesless than 5 millimeters long or the size of a pencil eraserare called microplastics and have been found in Great Lakes bony fish and drinking water, as well as human blood, organs and breast milk. "A lot of what we find is fragments," Hoellein said of river litter collected by the Trash Trap, which students at Loyola help sort and characterize. Most of these fragments are generally smaller than an inch. Lentil-sized pellets used in plastic production called "nurdles" account for 5% to 20% of their weekly findings. Bits of Styrofoam broken down from food containers also present a ubiquitous problem. "Sometimes there's too many to count and we have to estimate," Hoellein said. "We also find a lot of these things," Hoellein said, holding up a green dental floss pick. "I hate tooth flossers." He soon found another green one, its color markedly faded. In his research, he said, almost every fish he has looked at in the Chicago-Calumet River system has some form of microplastics inside them. Despite these findings, advocates say that in an "amazing renaissance," the Chicago-Calumet River system is healthier now than in the past 150 years. The river is home to all kinds of animals, including migratory birds, beavers and turtles, as well as 80 species of fishup from less than 10 in the 1970s. "That's telling us that Mother Nature is healing herself," said McElroy, who will lead a Saturday cleanup at Lucas Berg Nature Preserve in Palos Hills. "I think, through the efforts of the Friends of the Chicago River and others, that's how we got to this point, as well as (through) the Clean Water Act. What would we do without that?" When he started working with another boat tour company in 1988, McElroy said he couldn't even see the bottom of the river on a sunny day. Now, he can. "It's incredible," he said. "The water has become so much clearer." Restoring the health of the river has required a multipronged approach, Frisbie said, starting with the enforcement of a 2029 deadline to complete the Tunnel and Reservoir Plana system of deep tunnels and wide reservoirs for flood controlthat will reduce combined sewer overflows, which occur when city pipes for stormwater runoff and sewage are overwhelmed with rains, pouring untreated human waste into the river. The second step entails improving the disinfecting process of sewage effluent, or treated water, using chlorination or ultraviolet light to remove pathogens and bacteria. The nonprofit has also focused on championing nature-based solutions such as planting trees and creating parks that absorb stormwater and reduce runoff into waterways. In April, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency issued a new National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit to the city which will govern 184 city-owned outfalls that discharge into the Chicago-Calumet River system and the Des Plaines River. The new permit is more stringent and requires additional strategies to reduce pollution from sewage and litter. "The last piece is this litter piece," Frisbie said, which is where river cleanups come in. Frisbie said the new permit issued to the city also includes the expansion of litter-control technologies such as skimmer boats and trash traps to remove plastic pollution along the 156-mile stretch of the river. Researchers, organizations and companies are also looking to deploy more trash traps along the river. McElroy said Wendella plans to install one at the Chinatown water taxi stop in Ping Tom Memorial Park, and Hoellein is hoping to expand the scope of the research by partnering with other companies with riverfront locations. Chicago River Day Since 1992, volunteers with Friends of the Chicago River have picked up nearly 2 million pounds of trash from the river and its banks to help restore its aquatic ecosystems. At the organization's 32nd signature annual event Saturday, over 2,000 citizens, politicians and corporate teams will fan out across 87 locations in the city and suburbs, up from 80 sites last year and 77 the year before. "People are starting to really understand the problem," Frisbie said. "They are demanding that the places they live (in) are healthy and cared for." Registration for Saturday cleanups is required online at chicagoriver.org and will remain open for each site until it is full. Walk-up volunteers might be able to participate, though the organization cautions that space is limited. Volunteers will also remove invasive plants such as garlic mustard, buckthorn and honeysuckle from Chicago Park District and the Forest Preserves locations as needed. But river restoration efforts should not be a one-and-done thing, advocates say. Saturday will kick off a new season of the nonprofit's Litter Free Chicago-Calumet River initiative. Individuals and organizations can host community cleanups through the nonprofit's Litter Free Supply Stations network, of which there are 13 across the watershed. Each station has tools such as litter grabbers, buckets, bags and gloves, as well as toolkit guidance in English and Spanish. Environmental organizations use data gathered by volunteer citizens and research scientists to inform their advocacy, which then could become the foundation for policies that curb overproduction and overreliance on plastic products. "The increase in individual use of disposable items in the last 20 to 30 years has skyrocketed. Everyone's got a to-go cup of coffee every day, and sometimes three. I think our relationship with plastic is forced upon us," Frisbie said. "We can fight back. We turned the river around again, metaphorically. We can turn single-use plastic around as well, I believe." 2024 Chicago Tribune. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. 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: Two 3U CubeSats orbit around Earth. Credit: NASA CubeSats are satellites constructed of cubic units, or U, a bit smaller than a square tissue box, or about 10 centimeters (about 4 inches) on each side. (A 2U CubeSat, for instance, is about the size of a rectangular tissue box.) Initially developed two decades ago as an inexpensive platform for students to learn about satellite development, CubeSats weren't thought of as devices for collecting valuable data. However, these tiny satellites can capture high-quality information and measurements that make them useful for students and scientists alike. Xinlin Li describes two student-led research projects that used CubeSats to collect data about the near-Earth space environment in a recent article published in AGU Advances. The Colorado Student Space Weather Experiment (CSSWE), supported by the National Science Foundation, began in 2010 as a University of Colorado Boulder graduate course. Its focus was on designing and building a CubeSat and accompanying ground station to measure the flux of solar protons and Earth's radiation belt electrons. Students kept detailed documentation to ensure the project's continuity as their peers completed the course, and their 3U satellite with an electron and proton telescope launched on 13 September 2012 as a secondary payload. Their ground station in Boulder received information from it as it first passed overhead. Graduate students were responsible for continued mission operations, eventually developing an automated operation system. The CSSWE project affected the academic and professional careers of more than 65 studentstheir research with the CubeSat contributed to numerous dissertations, peer-reviewed papers, and even scientific breakthroughs: The data gathered from the CSSWE helped resolve a long-standing mystery about the source and behavior of energetic electrons in Earth's radiation belts. The second CubeSat project, supported by NASA, built upon this knowledge. With a bigger budget and continued student interest, the Colorado Inner Radiation Belt Experiment (CIRBE) team developed another 3U CubeSat, this one more advanced than its predecessor, to gather more information about radiation belt electron dynamics and behavior. The CIRBE was launched in April 2023 and has been providing data ever since. Both projects have contributed to the research and understanding of the near-Earth space environment and may offer valuable insights into how to conduct high-quality space research at a low cost. More information: Xinlin Li, Unveiling Energetic Particle Dynamics in the NearEarth Environment From CubeSat Missions, AGU Advances (2024). DOI: 10.1029/2024AV001256 Journal information: AGU Advances Provided by Eos This story is republished courtesy of Eos, hosted by the American Geophysical Union. Read the original story here. 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: A sea turtle getting an ultrasound at Oceanografic as part of a veterinary procedure. Credit: Katherine Eltz Six out of seven sea turtle species are endangered, and humans are primarily responsible. Commercial fishing activities are the largest human-caused disturbance to sea turtles due to accidental capture. Fishers are typically unaware if a sea turtle is caught in their net until it's completely pulled out of the water. However, releasing sea turtles without veterinary evaluations can be harmful. When accidentally caught, the turtles' normal diving processes are interrupted, which can cause abnormal gas, gas emboli, to form in their organs. Veterinarians around the globe are working to understand the possible consequences of this pathology and determine the best treatment for turtles depending on when they surface. Here, they used ultrasound imaging to get a closer look at sea turtles' bodies in real time, focusing on the heart, liver, and kidney. Katherine Eltz, a first-year doctoral student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, has determined that there are ways to differentiate gas levels over time in sea turtles. Eltz, whose home laboratory focuses on ultrasound imaging for decompression sickness mitigation in humans, collaborated with veterinarians who measured gas emboli in turtles in real time on fishing boats. She presented her work Monday, May 13 as part of a joint meeting of the Acoustical Society of America and the Canadian Acoustical Association, running May 13-17 at the Shaw Centre located in downtown Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. "Veterinarians can examine whole-body MRI or X-ray scans and find specific bubbles in a variety of different organs," said Eltz. "The benefit of ultrasound is that we can see bubbles flowing through vessels or stationary in tissues. The portability of ultrasound means that it can be brought onto fishing boats, which we took advantage of to collect half of the data used in this project." Her collaborators from the Oceanografic Foundation were the first to report decompression sickness in turtles. Eltz examined ultrasound data collected from sea turtles found off the coast of Brazil, Italy, and Spain, though this issue is found in sea turtles worldwide. The data collection from Eltz's collaborators at Oceanografic comes from veterinarians who joined fishers off the coasts of these countries and imaged the turtles immediately to monitor their bubbles after surfacing. Eltz's results come from two experimental groups with different circumstances regarding time and gas severity. The brightness from the ultrasounds taken from the groups is a valuable quantitative metric to separate each ultrasound by grade. These findings can help veterinarians better treat sea turtles presenting with gas embolism. Ultrasound brightness could become a quantitative metric for veterinarians to determine which turtles need hyperbaric oxygen treatment and which can be released. "The largest task still at hand is to work towards standardizing the acquisition of the ultrasound data collected for this project," said Eltz. "Now, I can work with veterinarians to help adjust their methods, including improved image processing to standardize the data in post-processing." With a rich dataset from Oceanografic at her disposal, Eltz hopes to examine other possible factors that may be related to gas severity. These insights all help lead to better prediction of the outcomes for bycaught sea turtles. Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. SPRINGFIELD Stateville Correctional Center could close as early as September under a plan laid out by Gov. J.B. Pritzkers administration on Friday. Top officials with the Illinois Department of Corrections testified in front of a key panel of state lawmakers. The 12 members on the General Assemblys Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability face a mid-June deadline to make a recommendation on the governors plan to close and rebuild a pair of prisons in central Illinois and in Chicagos south suburbs. But no matter what the panel decides, the Pritzker administration can go ahead with its plans so long as money is built into the states next budget. I want everybody to understand that (any) recommendation that comes from this commission here is advisory, COGFA Co-Chair Dave Koehler, a Democratic state senator from Peoria, said after an hour and a half of testimony on the matter in front of his panel Friday. Yes sir, I do understand that, replied Mike Newman, the deputy director of AFSCME Council 31, the union that represents some 80,000 state workers including most employees within the Department of Corrections. Newman, along with several members of the panel, expressed strong reservations about Pritzkers plan to close Stateville Correctional Center in Crest Hill and Logan Correctional Center in Lincoln. The governor announced the plan in March, and late last month his administration provided more details on the plan, revealing Logan Correctional Center one of only two womens prisons in Illinois may be rebuilt on the grounds of Stateville, which would expand the states current operations into a multi-functional campus. Local elected officials have joined organized labor in pushing back against the plan for Logan CC, citing economic impact on the rural area north of Springfield. Asked about that pushback this week, Pritzker said state and local officials should focus more on attracting great new private sector jobs like those in the new Ferrero Rocher factory in Bloomington, where the governor traveled Tuesday for a ribbon cutting. And I think that really is the future for most places across the state, to not rely upon a state-run facility thats a prison, he said. That cant be a great economic growth strategy for the area. The governor announced the prison closure plan in March, 10 months after the administration received a report it had commissioned on the deferred maintenance of state prisons. The report detailed deteriorating buildings, compromised water supplies, infestations and all manner of recommended repairs and upgrades including to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The total price tag to fully address those deficiencies would cost an estimated $2.5 billion to fully address, according to the report by Atlanta-based CGL Companies, a consulting firm that specializes in buildings and maintenance. The costly repairs needed to remedy all of the issues identified by the CGL report and the structural engineering survey still will not resolve the design deficiencies present in the 1920s structure, IDOC Acting Director Latoya Hughes said of Stateville during testimony to the panel Friday. Hughes and her deputies did not dispute lawmakers assertions that the agency is aiming to close Stateville in September, though they did acknowledge the five-year timeline to fully phase out the dilapidated prisons could be in flux. Logan Correctional Center, meanwhile, would be kept open as long as possible, Hughes said, in order to accommodate both current inmates and staff. When inmates are moved out of their current facilities whenever that might be IDOC will have to spend nearly $7 million to place them elsewhere, according to a report the agency filed recently. "We want to be clear that the department will not reclassify the security level of individuals in custody, Hughes told the panel Friday. Rather, we will look at their medical, mental health, programmatic and educational needs, along with their security level, to identify a proper placement for them in a facility that security designation. AFSCME has pushed back on the plan since it was announced in March, and Friday was no different. Newman, the unions deputy director, repeatedly cast doubt on IDOCs internal estimates of both costs and jobs. He threw cold water on the agencys assurances that current prison employees would be guaranteed job transfers with minimal disruption to their lives, citing the long distances some may need to drive to a new facility. And even if there are vacancies at facilities like Sheridan or Pontiac, those are very likely too difficult a commute for Stateville employees, given especially that many are already traveling from Chicago and its suburbs, that most are frequently working overtime, which can make their workday as long as 16 hours, he said. Koehler told both IDOC and AFSCME representatives that he would be seeking an extension for convening a pair of legally mandated community hearings on the closures. Under state law, COGFA would be required to organize those hearings by June a nearly impossible task, Koehler said, given the General Assemblys typical end-of-May adjournment for its spring legislative session. Luana Stoltenberg is a Republican who resides in Davenport and represents House District 81. She is a pro-life activist and author in her first term in the Iowa House. Stoltenberg is not running for re-election. Last year, Stoltenberg said she was proud of passing the private school choice program. Read her thoughts on this year's session below. Key votes Area education agency overhaul: Yes. Income tax cut: Yes. Illegal immigration enforcement: Yes. Allowing school staff to carry guns: Yes. Post-partum Medicaid extension: Yes. Bills sponsored House File 2617: Requires schools to show anti-abortion video similar to Meet Baby Olivia in class (did not pass). House File 2480: Requires primary elections for city and school elections (did not pass). Successes of the session "As with everything, this was a difficult but rewarding legislative session. One of the greatest successes we accomplished was passing RFRA, Religious Freedom Restoration Act. This bill protects peoples religious freedoms, as is granted by our constitution. Many legislators have worked on this for many years and all their hard work paid off. "Another bill we were excited to pass was raising teachers salaries. Teachers pay in Iowa will now be the 5th highest in the nation. A beginning salary for teachers will be $47,500, and minimum standard for a teacher with 12 years experience will start at $62,000. We also allocated an additional $14 million for paraprofessionals. "A great success I was very proud of is we passed a bill that would prioritize standards for history, civics, and holocaust education in K-12 grade. While directing the Department of Education to do a thorough review of all curriculum standards to ensure we are setting teachers and students up for success." Disappointments from the session "Some of the disappointments of this session were knowing I was not running for re-election, and would not be back next year. I will miss the people I have gotten to know and worked with. I have grown to love them, as they feel like family. I am also disappointed that I wont be able to complete the projects that I worked on over the last couple years, but I will make myself available to help in any way I can." In 2024, 180 state legislators are facing term limits. Here's everything you need to know about which states will be most impacted In 2024, 180 state legislators are facing term limits. Here's everything you need to know about which states will be most impacted Democratic and Republican term-limited incumbents Term-limited state legislators by year As smoke from Canadian wildfires pushes into the Black Hills, Rapid City officials are reminding the public of a city website feature that monitors daily and hourly air quality conditions in Rapid City. The Air Quality Index link has been on the citys website since 2021 and can be found at two locations on its home page at rcgov.org: in the Community Bookmark and Whats News in the City sections. The online feature displays the current air quality in Rapid City areas, and any community in the nation, by simply inputting the zip code, city or state. The reading for Rapid City at 6 a.m. Monday, May 13 was listed as 103 in the orange category with the description Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups. The site is updated hourly and alerts the public to pollutants and allergens in the air for a selected area. The site also provides recommendations for sensitive groups, an advisory on outdoor activities, and other important data concerning air conditions. The Air Quality Index is convenient and provides online visitors with a great opportunity to monitor the air conditions in our area, said city environmental planner Morgan Twombly. The site is updated hourly and provides useful information, especially for those who have health conditions, issues or sensitivities to pollutants or specific allergens." Online visitors checking the Air Quality Index are taken to AirNow, a one-stop source for air quality data. AirNow reports air quality using the official US Air Quality Index. AirNow is a partnership of the US Environmental Protection Agency, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Park Service, NASA, Centers for Disease Control and tribal, state and local air quality agencies. For Rapid City, the Air Quality Index displays a color-coded scale from 0-500, ranging from good to hazardous designations. Other features of the page include a color-coded map matching the color scale to show the air quality of the region. Mexico receives first direct flight from China since 2020 Mexico City, Mexico Mexico has received its first direct flight from China since the beginning of the pandemic four years ago. China Southern Airlines landed at the Mexico City International Airport shortly before midnight Saturday. Flight CZ 8031 landed at the Benito Juarez International Airport in Mexico City for the first time since 2020 after commercial flights from China were suspended due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The plane landed at Mexico City after leaving Shenzhen, China nearly 16 hours earlier. Its landing Saturday night officially resumed flights between the two countries. With the arrival of flight number CZ 8031 at the Benito Juarez International Airport in Mexico City, starting this Saturday, May 11, the largest airline in the Asian country, China Southern Airlines, officially resumed direct flights between Mexico and China after a pause period due to the contingency caused by the pandemic in 2020, Aeropuerto Internacional Benito Juarez Ciudad de Mexico (AICM) reported in a social media post. The Secretary of Tourism, Miguel Torruco Marques and the Ambassadors of the Peoples Republic of China in Mexico, His Excellency. Mr. Zhang Run and from Mexico in China, His Excellency. Mr. Jesus Seade Kuri, participated in the arrival ceremony of this new and historic flight operated by China Southern Airlines. According to a statement by the Secretary of Tourism, the flight Saturday night is the longest route in Chinas history. In 2019, Mexico received 167,145 Chinese tourists by air. In 2023, 161,316 tourists arrived from China. Dignitaries were on hand for the late night landing. Photo: Secretario de Turismo May 11, 2024. China is a key player in international tourism as a source and destination market on a global and regional scale, ranking first in Asia in terms of tourists traveling to Mexico. It is also positioned in the UN Tourism world ranking, formerly UNWTO, as second place in tourist spending after the United States, according to 2022 data, Torruo said. The flight arrived from Shenzhen, China around midnight Saturday. Photo: AICM May 11, 2024. He said that the direct flight leaves from the city of Shenzhen, China, to the Mexico City International Airport with a stopover on the return flight in Tijuana. The renewed flight will have two weekly frequencies. Paramedics rush victims to Bacalar hospital after late night crash Bacalar, Q.R. Five people were rushed to a community hospital after a head on highway crash in Bacalar. Police arrived to a scene of at least one completely destroyed car Saturday night. While authorities did not provide information on how the accident happened, they did confirm five injured in the two vehicle crash between a private car and a public taxi. Paramedics rushed to injured to a Bacalar hospital. The private car involved in the crash was completely destroyed. It is not known how many people were inside that vehicle at the time of the crash. Photo: May 11, 2024. Excessive speed has been factored into the late night highway accident. Young tourist rushed to Cancun hospital after near-drowning incident Cancun, Q.R. A young tourist was pulled from the sea off a Cancun Hotel Zone beach Sunday from where he was rushed to hospital. The 17-year-old was rescued from the rough waters around 6:30 p.m. by on-duty lifeguards. Other swimmers requested help for the young man after seeing him struggling in the water. Gustavo Angel A, a tourist from Guatemala, was returned to the sand unconscious. Medical personnel at the beach performed CPR until an ambulance arrived. He was accompanied to hospital by his mother Veronica in serious condition. The young swimmer was on vacation in Cancun at the time of the incident. He was swimming in the sea near an area at the front of the Cancun Hotel Zone when he was carried out by the strong currents. SINGAPORE, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The ACCA Asia Pacific Dialogue 2024 is ACCA's upcoming inaugural regional conference that will bring together accounting and finance leaders, experts and visionaries for two days of knowledge exchange and discussions. Happening on 28 and 29 May 2024 at the prestigious JW Marriott Hotel in Hanoi, Vietnam, the conference will focus on technology and innovation as catalysts for the future of the accountancy and finance profession. With the aim of 'Weaving the Fabric of Tomorrow's Success Together', the ACCA Asia Pacific Dialogue 2024 will dive into collaboration and bold initiatives to shape a brighter future. Close to 30 leaders and educators will take the stage to discuss how Asia Pacific is reshaping global narratives, navigating change, and fostering economic vitality against the backdrop of an increasingly volatile global landscape. They will also share insights on how finance and business leaders can overcome challenges and leverage opportunities in the region to drive economic resilience for their companies and the profession. The event theme, 'Giao', explores the interconnected threads that bind Asia Pacific's diverse cultures, industries and aspirations. The sessions have been meticulously designed to benefit C-suite executives, including CEOs and CFOs, decision-makers and leaders from professional services firms, the public sector, academia, and various industries. Finance and accounting educators will also find this conference beneficial for gaining valuable insights and expanding their connections. "At ACCA, our goal is to be a force for public good that leads the global accountancy profession. We create opportunities that will develop finance professionals the world needs, and the ACCA Asia Pacific Dialogue 2024 aligns perfectly with that," said Pulkit Abrol, Managing Director, ACCA Asia Pacific. "This conference isn't just for one-off learning it's a dedicated platform to facilitate crucial conversations and foster collaboration. The topics have been specifically curated to spark meaningful discussions that matter now and in the future. Through interactive panel discussions, engaging keynotes, and dedicated networking sessions, delegates will be able to share best practices, brainstorm innovative solutions, and develop actionable strategies that will ensure the profession thrives in the face of change." On Day 1, the focus of 'Bytes and greens: Igniting growth through digital and sustainable innovations' will be on leveraging technology to build an innovative and sustainable economy. Key sessions include a panel on 'Policy innovation for a green and digital Asia Pacific' and keynotes on 'Exciting potential in the Asia Pacific' and 'Being human in a digital world'. There will also be a power networking cocktail session for delegates interested in establishing professional connections across the Asia Pacific region. Story continues Day 2 will focus on 'The talent equation: Driving the future of learning through technology and innovation'. Delegates will gain insights on leveraging the latest technological innovations to build a strong talent pool and leverage ACCA to meet the evolving learning needs of the younger generation today. Key sessions include 'Presentation: Exploring the sustainable and ethical application of Generative AI in education' and 'Micro credentials: Empowering the next generation of learners through mini credentials'. Key speakers include: Helen Brand , Chief Executive, ACCA Eric Yeo, Country General Director AWS Vietnam, Amazon Web Services Noel Clehane , Global Head of Public Policy, BDO Julia Tay, Asia-Pacific Public Policy Leader, EY Warrick Cleine, CEO, KPMG Vietnam and Cambodia Ziad Haider, Global Director of Geopolitical Risk, McKinsey & Company The ACCA Asia Pacific Dialogue 2024 will take place from 9:00am to 5:00pm on 28 and 29 May 2024 at the JW Marriott Hotel in Hanoi, Vietnam. Please visit the event website for more information and to register your attendance: https://acca-apac-dialogue.com/ About ACCA We are ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants), a globally recognised professional accountancy body providing qualifications and advancing standards in accountancy worldwide. Founded in 1904 to widen access to the accountancy profession, we've long championed inclusion and today proudly support a diverse community of over 247,000 members and 526,000 future members in 181 countries. Our forward-looking qualifications, continuous learning and insights are respected and valued by employers in every sector. They equip individuals with the business and finance expertise and ethical judgment to create, protect, and report the sustainable value delivered by organisations and economies. Guided by our purpose and values, our vision is to develop the accountancy profession the world needs. Partnering with policymakers, standard setters, the donor community, educators and other accountancy bodies, we're strengthening and building a profession that drives a sustainable future for all. Find out more at: www.accaglobal.com Cision View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/acca-asia-pacific-dialogue-2024-empowers-business-and-education-leaders-for-the-future-302143246.html SOURCE ACCA ORANGE CITY, Iowa An Alvord, Iowa, man has pleaded guilty of vehicular homicide for the death of Rock Valley, Iowa, woman who was a passenger in his car. As part of a plea agreement, Kaleb DeBey, 22, entered his written pleas in Sioux County District Court to charges of vehicular homicide -- reckless driving and first-offense operating while intoxicated. The plea agreement does not include his sentence, and state and defense lawyers will make their recommendations at sentencing, which was scheduled for Aug. 19. DeBey faces up to 11 years in prison. A charge of vehicular homicide -- operating while intoxicated will be dismissed as part of the plea agreement. DeBey was driving an Audi A4 west on 300th Street near Filmore Avenue northeast of Rock Valley at approximately 12:35 a.m. July 30, when he failed to negotiate a curve, left the road and struck a culvert, causing the car to become airborne. Halee Bliek, 35, was not wearing a seat belt and was ejected through the windshield, and the car came to rest on top of her. She was pronounced dead at a local hospital, and DeBey was treated for injuries. According to court documents, DeBey was driving at least 126 mph at the time of the crash. Testing of DeBey's blood showed a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.157 percent, nearly double the legal limit, and the presence of controlled substances. DeBey was arrested Sept. 1 in an unrelated drunk driving case in Rock Valley. He has pleaded guilty to operating while intoxicated and will be sentenced at the Aug. 19 hearing. Of the many things that are debilitating after the death of a child, celebrating my own birthday was one of the most challenging. But in the summer of 2014, I had to do just that. The thought was daunting. How was I supposed to celebrate 45 years on Earth when my daughter Alice was only granted 2 years and 11 days? The previous August, Alice had died during a nap. The cause was undeterminedSudden Unexplained Death in Childhood, or SUDC, they called it. A few months later, my marriage collapsed, and I had to relocate. My will to live was slippery at best, but I knew I had to keep afloat for my eldest daughter, Grace, who loves birthdays, parties, and merriment. I had to fake it until you make it for her sake. At a small birthday party with the dear friends who supported me during this agonizing life chapter, I was surprised with a $1,000 Visa gift card to help with moving expenses. I was moved all right. Although I felt horrible that I required this type of assistance, I was grateful for the help. So, when I followed the instructions to register the card, only to find it had a balance of zero, I panicked. Had I done something wrong? Had I entered the numbers incorrectly? Was the card ever out of my possession? Maybe I was finally losing my mind. Advertisement The good news: I was not insane. The bad news: My friends and I were the victims of card draining, which happens when thieves steal gift cards, copy or alter the card numbers offsite, use the available funds, and then return the worthless cards to the sales rack, unbeknownst to the store or potential purchaser. By the time the owner attempts to use the card, the money is long gone. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Once I caught my breath after discovering the theft, I called the support number on the back of the card. Many option menus later, I finally got a human on the line. They told me they couldnt do anything for me without the receipt. It was already a grueling time in my life. I felt like a burden and was embarrassed to tell my friends the card had a zero balance. The last thing I wanted to do was create more work for them, and I knew they would feel bad I couldnt use the funds immediatelyand may never get them back. Maybe I wouldnt tell them, and just call it yet another loss? Advertisement But then I became angry. I felt violated. I cried. Eventually, I told my friend Catie. She was horrified, but luckily, shed kept the receipt. Still, it took us over four months of back-and-forth with Visa to replace the funds. Others arent so lucky. A 2022 AARP study found that 1 in 4 U.S. adults has been the victim of card draining, and more than half the victims reported they were unable to recoup the funds. Companies have different rules regarding fraud on their gift cards, but for most, unless you have the receipt and report the fraud within 60 days, you may not get your money back. Advertisement At the time, I did not know to report the fraud to the Federal Trade Commission, but now I know it would be my second phone call, immediately after I called the number on the back of the card, receipt in hand. Advertisement An FTC report found that 48,000 cases of gift card draining occurred in 2022, totaling $228 million in losses. The Department of Homeland Security recently began investigating gift card fraud and the potential involvement of Chinese organized crime rings, ProPublica reported. Investigators believe the funds obtained from card draining are being used to fund other criminal activities, such as drug and human trafficking. Advertisement Because Catie kept the receipt and I had not attempted to check the balance on a third-party site, we were able to eventually recover the funds. The third-party sites are often created by thieves to capture gift card details. Had I known how common this fraud was, I would have registered the card the second I received it. It is possible the funds were already drained, but the faster the theft is reported to the issuing company, the better. Advertisement While my gift card did not show signs of tearing, opening, or tampering, its package design left the barcode and PIN sticker visible. I no longer purchase gift cards in this type of packaging. Ideally, any important numbers are concealed within the packaging or have clear, additional security features noted on the packaging. When possible, I avoid purchasing cards that are on open racks in the middle of a store, instead choosing cards that are kept behind the counter or glass. Purchasing gift cards with a credit card that has fraud protection can add an additional layer of support. Americans purchase roughly $200 billion worth of gift cards a year. Until better protections are in placeeither by the card companies or the governmenteveryone faces the possibility of getting scammed. I thought this was safer than giving you cash, Catie lamented, admitting her mistake. For now, were both swearing off of them for good. Everyone remembers their last trip before COVID shut the world down, but my February 2020 ski vacation stands out for a very specific reason. My boyfriend (now husband) and I flew to Bozeman, Montana, to attend the wedding of one of his ski racing friends. As the location and connection might suggest, the weekend was centered on the sportwe all hit the local mountain Saturday morning, before heading home to prep for the apres-ski-themed reception. This is where the story gets embarrassing, but here goes: I decided that the winter boots I had brought would not actually work for the party and insisted on going to the local strip mall to find a more appropriate pair. My partner was not into this choice and sent me on my own. I found exactly what I was looking for pretty quickly. Then, as I was departing said strip mall, I made a left-hand turn across four lanes of traffic and hit another carit was worse than a fender bender, but no one was hurt. This was bad. But worse, I wasnt listed as a driver on the rental car. Which meant that the insurance situation was unclear. Because I couldnt figure out what insurance was covering me in that carafter realizing I couldnt use the insurance on the car, I tried to find the card for the insurance that covered me back home but wasnt able to find that on my phone eitherI left the scene of the collision with not just a ticket but a summons to show up in the Bozeman municipal courthouse that Monday morning. Advertisement It put a damper on the weekend, to say the least. After making a pact to tell no one at the wedding what had happenedtoo big a bummer of a story for thatwe tried to celebrate but ended up leaving without even trying the vodka ice luge. I was unbelievably nervous throughout the next day. I didnt really understand the range of punishments, I was nervous about being on the hook for potentially thousands of dollars in repairs, and the idea of being in trouble just generally freaks me out. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement When we showed up in court, I kept feeling worse. Even though every single person was kind to us, the system was confusing, I was terrified of being late, and I felt an incredible amount of shame. Why had I driven that car without being an approved driver? Why had I been so stupid as to insist that I needed those shoes? No one was going to care what was on my feet at a wedding in a community center with an ice luge! Never mind all of the ruminating on exactly what had happened when Id made that left turn: The car coming toward me had been turning right, and I hadnt seen the car behind it. Advertisement I still remember the courtroom: the dingy tile floors that looked like the ones in my elementary school, the totally unfamiliar organization of the system and room numbers, the harsh fluorescent lighting, the general consensus among every person in the building, minus the employees, that it would be a lot better if we did not have to be there. That consensus manifested in different ways, but it was universal. Sitting in the actual room that would serve as my court, waiting for the woman who would be my judge to call my case, I felt sick and scared. Advertisement What happened when I was called is a blur. But I do remember that I was told that I had some amount of time to gather my documents and submit them to the court for assessment. And that, when she called my name, and my boyfriend, then in his second year of law school but, well, certainly not a lawyer, stood up to accompany me, she told him to sit back down so fast my shame tripled, if that was possible. How dumb were we, thinking I could bring my boyfriend to the stand to hold my hand (or, really, answer a technical legal question)? Advertisement Advertisement I thought a lot about all those emotions on Thursday, when I went to court for the second time in my life. (My pandemic upside? Because the world was shut down, my case was resolved over Zoom, meaning I didnt have to go back to Montana for the follow-up. Eventually we did sort out some insurance and everything ended up OKno crazy expense, not even a ticket in the end.) My feelings came up all over again because the dingy tan tile floor reminded me of elementary school. The lighting was terrible. The courtrooms ceiling was at least two stories tall, with high windows on one side, and yet the shades were fully drawn. There was paneled wood around the whole room, which had the exact same energy as the previous courtroom Id visitedthe vibe of this is not a place you want to end up. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement A lot has been said about how satisfying it is that Donald Trump is stuck in this courtroom, that hes in the same type of building as every other person who has to go through a criminal case in the United States of America. (Also, his case is being heard in the same courtroom that Harvey Weinsteins New York criminal trial was heard.) Trump has to show up every day no matter what, even if hed rather be on the campaign trail or attending his sons high school graduation (though he did get permission from the judge to do the latter). What Ive been wondering about is how Donald Trump feels being stuck in this courtroom. Does he feel nervous? Does he feel shame? Does he think, What if I had just done the paperwork differently, just like the zillion times I wondered why I hadnt just added my name to the rental car and paid for the extra insurance? Advertisement Advertisement The media has been closely monitoring Trumps state in the courtroom so far, a story that kicked off when reports surfaced that he was asleep on his very first day on trial. But I dont think hes actually ever sleeping in the courtroom, and thats not only because hes denied it, posting instead that I simply close my beautiful blue eyes, sometimes, listen intensely, and take it ALL IN!!! Earlier this week, Trump beat reporter Maggie Haberman noted on the New York Times liveblog that shed heard that Trump closes his eyes as a way of coping with his anger and that on Tuesday, the first day Stormy Daniels testified, he was looking like his face was going to crack from tension. Advertisement Advertisement I was curious to see this facial expression for myself Thursday in court. Not to get too psychodrama about it, but I wondered what it would feel like to be in the same room as this guy, who has dominated so much of Americas news and therefore my professional and occasionally emotional life for almost a decade. I felt a bit like I was one of the jurors whod figured out how to get through enough of the process to still be invited to court and allowed the opportunity to insult Trump to his face, as several did in response to being asked their opinions of him during voir dire. (No wonder he was closing his eyes early on.) Those jurors responses were so relatable. Weve all lived through these past eight years! Remember the time this man told us that we should put bleach in our veins when we were in a deadly pandemic?? Advertisement The things about Trumps demeanor in the courtroom that didnt surprise me: that he made a show about entering and exiting, obviously scanning through the reporters to see if anyone he knew and liked was there, and acknowledging them when he did. (When I was in court, this included a thumbs-up and subsequent finger-gun kind of gesture at a reporter from Newsmax and a smile and wave at CNNs Kaitlan Collins; on Friday he even reached out and touched Jeanine Pirros shoulder and later whispered to her to meet him outside court.) He still sauntered in and out, making the most of his entrances and exits, appreciating being the star of the hallway to which the television cameras were confined. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The thing about Trumps demeanor in the courtroom that did surprise me: He looked as if he was trying to disappear. As soon as I put my binoculars up to look at the TV that was broadcasting his face to the room (yes, this is what all those reporters are doing in there), I could see that the tension that was notable in his chin and mouth when he was walking by metension that has shown up in so many of the courtroom sketches, where he often looks frowny and toadlikewas even more intense once he was sitting up at his seat. Its like the face that Dorothy makes when she clenches her eyes shut and clicks her ruby red slippers to transport herself home. Advertisement This frowny face seemed to intensify around certain details: anytime Stormy Daniels was talking, basically, but particularly about sexand every time the Access Hollywood tape came up. Years ago, before Trump won the presidency and probably right around the time the hush money deal that has landed him in this courtroom was taking place, I wrote about one of the main topics of those panicked days: whether Trump might actually be mentally ill, afflicted, most likely, with narcissistic personality disorder (and whether this might be a thing to disqualify him from the presidency, whichha!). I wrote: Advertisement He lives in an alternative reality, one in which the widespread backlash against him simply doesnt exist. What could make someone so disturbingly unaware? So confident in his right to the presidency? Could it be that he is actually unable to grasp objective truth? Might he actually be mentally ill? Advertisement After going through a lot of evidence that the man is a narcissistmore of which has accumulated in the intervening yearsI concluded my assessment by noting that the real problem with trying to figure out how mentally ill Donald Trump is is that Donald Trump doesnt care how mentally ill Donald Trump is. Hes certainly pathological, but he is not bothered by it: Advertisement I think the privilege into which Trump was born has exempted him from the operating rules of civilized society. Whether hes bragging about sexual assault, denying reality during the debates, or promising to reject the democratic process itself if it does not happen to favor him, the thread that connects them all is privilege. The impunity he has enjoyed is chilling, and so is his blithe certainty that it will always be there for him. Advertisement This is so interesting now: His courtroom feels like maybe the only time in his life when Trump has not gotten to enjoy the impunity he has grown so used to and where he is forced to actually face the consequences of his actions. He has to show up every day, and he has to walk down the center of the aisle like all other criminal defendants do, as much as he tries to make it a show. He must adhere to the gag order enforced by the judge unless he wants to risk jail. He has to sit there within direct earshot as witness after witness testifies over loudspeaker about his alleged criminality (and to his being a sex pest, to put it mildly). And in a few weeks, when a verdict is reached, if its a guilty one, hell have to face a judges sentence and whatever that might mean for his freedom. I understand how he feels because when I had to stand up and answer to the judge for my stupid little crime, I also wanted to disappear. I wanted it not to be what was really happening. Unfortunately for Trump, this may be the only time when he cant just will these bad things away. But no one can make him open those blue eyes and face it either. The problem with all the peace plans for Gaza that U.S., Egyptian, and other foreign diplomats have offered in the past few months is that the parties fighting the warIsrael and Hamashave very different requirements for stopping it, and therefore they wont stop it unless and until some allied power forces them to do so. The question is whether those allies have the leverage and the will to make them stop. Seven months into this war, it doesnt seem that they do. The horrible irony is that neither Israel nor Hamas could keep fighting for long without the material support of their allies. The alliessome of whom are the ones tirelessly but fruitlessly negotiating the terms of a cease-fireclearly want the war to stop. So, whats the hang-up? Many news reports have focused on the disputes over how many Israeli hostages will be freed for how many Palestinian prisoners, during a cease-fire lasting how many days. But these matters are trivial. The crucial, much harder issue to resolve is what happens next. Hamas is demanding that, in tandem with the exchange of hostages and prisoners, Israeli troops pull out of Gaza entirely and that the cease-fire turns into a permanent truce. Israel is saying it will resume the war after the hostages come home until Hamas is destroyed as a political and military force. Meanwhile, some of the outside powersmainly the U.S., Egypt, and Saudi Arabia, as well as vocal observers in Europe and the United Nationsare pushing for a peaceful settlement of the wider, long-standing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, preferably through the creation of a demilitarized Palestinian state. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he will never stand for such a state. The leaders of Hamas dont want one, either; they want to keep fighting their war of resistance until Israel and its 7 million Jews are wiped out. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Thats the problem in a nutshell. Hamas and Israel have opposing war aims. (This is why most wars throughout history begin and keep raging, despite unspeakable carnage and destruction.) And neither side, for different reasons, has any interest in the outside would-be peacemakers vision of a postwar settlement. There are only three ways out of this impasse. One side wins; both sides, exhausted, limp to an armistice; or outside powers impose a peace upon them. In this case, each combatant thinks it can win, so neither is inclined to make concessions. In this sense they share a delusional frame of mind. Hamas delusion is rooted in millenarian fantasy, bolstered by the fervent wish that their fellow jihadists in the region will join the war. When Hamas plowed across Israels southern border on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 Jews, most of them civilians, its leaders hopedperhaps theyd been led to expectthat Hezbollah would simultaneously launch massive missile strikes from the north and Iran would do the same from the east. Israel would thus be enveloped in a three-front war far more perilous than the last such war, in 1973, which Israel just barely won. Advertisement Advertisement For various reasons, Hamas dream didnt materialize. But what did happen served Hamas interests nearly as well. Israels leaders, in their understandable rage, overreacted, razed whole neighborhoods all across Gaza, mainly with 2,000-pound bombs, before collecting intelligence on the precise whereabouts of Hamas leaders. In a bigger failure still, they sent tanks and infantry rolling into Gaza without first devising a plan on how to pacify the area after the war is over. (In recent days, Israeli military officers have begun to criticize Netanyahu openly about this failure.) Finally, the Israelis neglected to reach out diplomatically to their Sunni Arab allies, especially the leaders of Saudi Arabia and Egypt, who want to pursue good relations with Israel (which they see as a potent ally in their struggle against Iran and its Shiite militias) but who also have to worry about alienating radicals in their own countries. Advertisement Advertisement And so, as Palestinian casualties inevitably mounted (the Gazan health ministry puts the death toll now at 35,000; Israel estimates that a third of them were armed militiamen, not civilians), world opinion turned against Israel. Some of the more vocal Western protesters not only assailed Israels excesses, but also hailed Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis (who were shelling commercial vessels in the Mediterranean) as heroes. Advertisement Advertisement The more extreme protesters are driven by propaganda, antisemitism, and ignorance of Middle East history, but many others are motivated by Israels insensitivity to the plight of Palestinian civilians. And the Israeli government has done itself no favors by waving off all its critics. Israelis have long had a problem with hasbara, the Hebrew word for public diplomacy. They are aware that much of the world is hostile toward their country and their religion, but rather than try to deal with the hatred, they tend to sneer at it, defy it, and proudly proclaim a determination to go it alone, bolstered by a pride in how they transformed their land into an economic powerhouse and improbably won a series of multifront wars. A widespread attitude emerged: If the world cant sympathize with us after Oct. 7, when more Jews were killed in a single day than any time since the Holocaust, then to hell with what the world thinks. Advertisement And so, as even President Joe Bidenthe most pro-Israel occupant of the White House eversteps up his criticism of Israels war policy, threatening to suspend the shipment of certain weapons if it mounts an all-out offensive against the southern Gazan town of Rafah, where more than 1 million Gazan refugees have settled and as many of them starve, Netanyahu gives him the finger. Israel will go into Rafah, he declares, no matter what the world says or how many civilians are killed in the process. And, if America pulls back its support, Israel will stand alone and fight with fingernails, if necessary. Advertisement Advertisement This sort of rhetoric helps nobody. It is particularly inappropriate, even preposterous, coming just weeks after a massive Iranian air strikemore than 300 missiles and drones, including 110 ballistic missiles, all in the air at the same time, headed toward Israeli targetswas staved off, thanks to a combined, coordinated air-defense campaign mounted by Israel, the U.S., England, France, and Jordan. If Israel had tried to repel the attack on its own, manywell over 100of those Iranian weapons would have pierced the shields and wreaked a lot of damage. Advertisement The fact is, Israel cannot fight alone, and has never been able to do so. In the 1948 war, it depended heavily on weapons provided by Czechoslovakia. And in all the wars since, it depended heavily on weaponsand intelligenceprovided by the United States. Similarly, Hamas cannot fight alone. It receives weapons, training, and technical assistance from Iran and its proxy militias. It also receives economic and political support from Qatar, which also hosts many of its political leaders in luxury. The Qatari connection is strange, since the tiny, oil-rich Gulf state also hosts the largest U.S. military base in the Middle East, as a result of which it has been declared a major non-NATO ally. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Related From Slate Congress Perpetual Coup Machine Is Merely Resting Read More In any case, neither side in this war can achieve the total victory that its leaders say they seek. Hamas cant drive Jews out of Israel, especially if Iran is unwilling to join in. Israelis cant destroy Palestinian militancy, even if they wipe out Hamas last battalion, especially if they keep killing civilians and have no plan to rebuild Gazaor reform Palestinian political authorityafter the war is over. (Even as troops close in on Rafah, hoping to kill Hamas last holdouts, Israeli officials told the Times of Israel that Hamas leader, Yahya Sinwar, isnt in Rafah, as the government has publicly claimed, but is still hiding in Khan Younis, which was heavily bombarded, apparently to little strategic effect.) Advertisement Advertisement One lesson of history is that all of the Israeli-Arab wars over the past 76 yearssince Israels founding as a statehave been ended by pressure from outside powers. In some cases, it was the U.S. pressuring Israel; in other cases, during the Cold War, it was the Soviet Union pressuring Syria or Egypt; in some cases, it was the United Nations pressuring all the combatants. In those earlier wars, at least one outside powerin some cases all of them, working jointlyhad the leverage and legitimacy to exert that pressure. But in crucial ways, they no longer do. The Soviet Union and its empire folded long ago. Some thought that the U.S. would thus emerge as the sole superpower, but in fact, it lost influence; some countries felt they could go their own way, no longer needing to tie their fates to the U.S. in exchange for protection from the Red Bear across the horizon. Israel, meanwhile, built up a powerful lobbying organization that made it much harder for American presidents to apply pressure. (President Ronald Reagans administration, hardly anti-Israel, cut off weapons to Israel on a few occasions and voted in favor of seven U.N. resolutions condemning Israel for some action or another. Reagan was never accused of being anti-Israel or antisemitic. Now presidents are lambasted on the few occasions they abstain from, rather than veto, critical resolutions.) Advertisement Meanwhile, the Sunni Arab leaders in the region have never stepped up to a leadership role in creating or preserving peacethough its time they do so. The Saudi royals very much want to normalize relations with Israel, but fear the response from their own people if they get too close while Israel is still bombing Gaza and refusing even to pay lip service to the idea of resuming negotiations toward a Palestinian state. Egypt tries to play it both ways. Its leaders never wanted any part in dealing with Palestinians; they have erected a wall on Egypts border with southern Gaza much higher than the wall Israel built on the northern border. They allowed Israeli troops to enter the GazaEgypt border on their way to Rafahthe troops couldnt have crossed the border without Egypts active cooperation. And yet Egyptian officials now say they might rip up their peace treaty with Israelwhich has been in effect for 50 yearsif those same troops invade the town of Rafah outright. The first casualty when war comes is truth, as the old saw has it. This goes to the nth degree when it comes to war in this region, where illusion, hypocrisy, and mendacity reign as in few others. The players that have the power to exercise leadership need to start acting like leaders. A celebration of the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in Chicago's Chinatown attracted thousands of visitors on Saturday. Performances including the dragon dance, folk dances and Chinese songs were staged on a make-shift platform. At neighboring tables, children painted the Lord Rabbit figurine, a centuries-old toy in Beijing, and do paper folding, Chinese character jigsaw puzzles and movable type printing. More than 70 local organizations and businesses sponsored and participated in the event, which consisted of three simultaneous parts, namely the Chinese Character Carnival, arts performance and health services, and was organized by the Midwest Asian Health Association, a non-profit health organization, to entertain local communities and promote Chinese culture. "As an important member of Asian Americans, Chinese Americans uphold the traditional Chinese virtues of perseverance and diligence, and have made important contributions to the prosperity of the Asian American community in Chicago and the development of Sino-American relations," said Deputy Consul General of China in Chicago Huang Liming at the opening ceremony. Huang urged the overseas Chinese community to continue uniting the Asian communities in making more contributions to the development and prosperity of the local community, and to promote friendly exchanges and cooperation between the Chinese and American people. "Beautiful culture," said Ryan B, who, with his wheelchaired mother, came from Las Vegas and was sightseeing in Chicago when bumping into the event. "They (Chinese families) have a strong sense of being together, all generations coming together," Akua Mason, who grew up in New York and went to a Chinese and Korean community high school, told Xinhua. Mason loves Chinese dance and music, and is deeply impressed by the strong Chinese family bond. The highlight of the event, the Chinese Character Carnival comprised a series of cultural activities including Chinese calligraphy, Chinese poetry recitations, Chinese character jigsaw puzzle competitions, and Chinese idioms and allusions. Unique System Skills strives to empower GRE aspirants with robust technical training before studying abroad, ensuring informed decisions & future success in global education From Java, .NET, Python, Cloud programing, networing to business analysis and robotics, these courses are designed to elevate skill sets and career prospects within India's job market.We also extend our expertise to corporate clients, providing tailored training solutions to keep their workforce abreast of evolving technologies and software products. Recently certified by the National Skill Development Council (NSDC), we are poised to make a significant impact by leveraging government schemes to impart skill development training in rural and under-served areas", asserts Santosh Salvi, Founder and CEO, Unique System Skills.Aspiring candidates contemplating a career move would find Unique System Skills an enticing prospect for multifaceted reasons. Beyond the company's impressive growth trajectory, expanding globally with offices across India, the US, Bahrain, and soon Canada, lies a wealth of opportunities for driven individuals. The company's commitment to sales expansion in key regions such as the Gulf, Asia-Pacific, Canada, and the UK presents a ripe environment for sales professionals seeking avenues for exponential growth. With a licensed technical institute in the US and partnerships with industry giants such as Pearson, COMPTIA, and Sales force, Unique System Skills offers comprehensive training programs that boast impressive job placement rates.Furthermore, the company's foray into consulting services, particularly in Salesforce and QA domains, opens up avenues for career diversification and professional advancement. What sets Unique System Skills apart is its bootstrapped nature, free from external investors and guided by a positive cash flow. This affords employees the autonomy to drive innovation and spearhead initiatives aligned with the company's mission and objectives.In its endeavor to retain employees, Unique System Skills adopts a comprehensive strategy focused on three core principles. Firstly, the company ensures financial stability by offering competitive compensation packages and consistently delivering payments on time, instilling trust and confidence among its workforce. Secondly, fostering an inclusive work culture where collaboration and mutual growth are prioritized, employees are encouraged to compete for collective betterment, fostering unity and a shared sense of purpose. Moreover, the company provides abundant opportunities for professional growth and development, aligning individual aspirations with the company's exponential trajectory.At Unique System Skills, we prioritize openness and transparency, fostering an inclusive culture where every voice is heard through our open-door policy. We invest in our employees' growth with comprehensive training programs and celebrate diversity to foster unity and effective communication. We prioritize employee well-being by offering generous leave policies, life insurance, medical coverage, and financial benefits such as PF deductions and gratuity provisions. Our company also accommodates employees' personal needs, allowing remote work options and supporting work-life balance initiatives. Additionally, performance reviews and incentives recognize and reward top performers, while initiatives like cash awards and certificates acknowledge contributions that go above and beyond", adds Santosh.My vision for creating the best workplace revolves around prioritizing the welfare of our employees and fostering a culture of social responsibility. Our future plans focus on initiatives that not only enhance employee well-being but also contribute positively to the community. For instance, we are exploring partnerships with old age homes in Pune to facilitate volunteer opportunities for our employees during office hours, accompanied by company donations based on volunteer hours. This initiative aligns with our values of giving back to society while providing meaningful experiences for our team members, concludes Santosh. Similar incidents elsewhere in the region have been seen as elements of a hybrid war. Police patrolled around schools last Thursday after bomb scare two days before. (Source: TASR) Font size: A - | A + Comments disabled Share Welcome to your weekly commentary and overview of news from Slovakia. An eventful week for schools, after multiple bomb threats. After a far-right MEP released a dove in the European parliament, Fico and fellow Smer ministers have been getting in on the avian act. If you have a suggestion on how to make this overview better, let me know at michaela.terenzani@spectator.sk. Bomb scare at Slovak schools raises questions May 8 was Slovaks second consecutive Wednesday off, as the country marked a public holiday, Victory over Fascism Day, to commemorate the end of World War II. For many pupils around the country, however, it was not the only extraordinary day last week. On the day before the national holiday, Tuesday, a rather incoherent email, typed in all-caps and containing bomb threats and ISIS-style rhetoric, emptied hundreds of primary schools around Slovakia. Pupils were sent home or evacuated into other public buildings, and police spent all day checking schools. The chaos that ensued affected tens of thousands of families. The incident sparked fear in children and their parents, revealed gaps in evacuation plans and security measures and had many in the country thinking about new security challenges in a time of hybrid war. Complications around the threat A similar incident had occurred the Friday before, when dozens of schools in Bratislava received an emailed bomb threat. The bomb scares affected a total of 1,544 schools, plus 110 bank buildings and a further 40 shops belonging to an electronics retailer. The police are working on the theory that the two incidents may have the same background. In both cases, the offending emails originated from addresses run from Russian domains on Friday, it was seyfulllah@mail.ru, on Tuesday arealll@list.ru. We are in your country now, the email that schools received on Tuesday read in Slovak. Students not interested in working as electrical mechanics. Font size: A - | A + Comments disabled Share What if your television or vacuum cleaner has experienced a malfunction and the warranty period has already expired? The European Union has come up with a solution for all EU citizens. A recent European Union directive mandates that manufacturers furnish affordable repair services within a reasonable period of time during the two-year warranty period and one year after the warranty expiration, if goods were repaired under warranty. After this legal guarantee is over, the manufacturer is still obligated to repair common household appliances, provided that they are repairable, according to a press release. "Consumers' right to repair products will now become a reality," said MEP Rene Repasi. The goal is to prevent consumers from having to buy new products. The premature disposal of goods generates 35 million tonnes of waste in the EU every year, and consumers also lose 12 billion each year by replacing goods rather than repairing them, according to the European Commission. The Council is yet to approve the law passed in the European Parliament. Directive is said to be a challenge However, Slovakia is struggling with a shortage of repairers. The situation could get even worse, according to Andrej Lasz, the general secretary of Association of Industrial Unions and Transport. Thus, the implementation of the directive will be complicated, reports SITA newswire. In Slovakia, appliance repairs are, for example, carried out by an electrical mechanic. Unfortunately, since the 2019-2020 school year, when 51 were admitted to schools, their numbers have been dwindling ever since. Only 21 have been admitted in the current school year. The labour market needs a minimum of 45 new graduates a year and this does not account for the new directive. "The directive is therefore a challenge not only for the electrical engineering industry, but also for the labour market in Slovakia," says the association. The lack may become apparent in the Bratislava, Trnava, Trencin and Zilina Regions. Since 2019, no new students have been admitted to schools that teach the craft in these four regions. Going to a repair cafe The EU also plans to launch a website where EU citizens could find a repair shop or a repair cafe near their area. Furthermore, the EU wants its member states to promote the right to repair. It suggests several tips. It recommends launching information campaigns, supporting local initiatives to create repair laboratories, providing repair vouchers and funds, and supporting training programs to help people acquire skills in repair. More laid-back events surrounding trade shows and industry events, please. The landscape of coffee parties around industry gatherings has undoubtedly changed over the last decade-plus, and I am thoroughly enjoying this shift. I remember my first throwdowns; they were often the only coffee event in a city. Instagram had recently introduced a set of filters, and Twitter launched a mobile app. The baristas were hyped up to compete for the big cash prize pool, and everyone was excited to cheer them on. Kegs were tapped to keep the beer flowing. For one of the events I attended, you had to shotgun a beer before you steamed your milk and poured it, and while I was not competing, I wondered how someone who didnt drink would be able to do this. Would they chug a glass of water or Topo Chico? Ive gone to, and even helped organize many throwdowns since then. It was rare for anyone to get completely trashed, but it was also rare for anyone to abstain from drinking. Once upon a time at Expo and World of Coffee trade shows, there might only be a handful of big parties. Im not here to point fingers. Big names hosted big ragers; some were even officially tied to the industry show. Id see people the next day, bleary-eyed and hungover, asking, Did you hear what happened at the party last night? Theyd recount how someone blacked out or how someone crossed a line. The whisper network was in effect, but no one was ever punished. When you mix alcohol with the casual atmosphere of the specialty coffee industry, the professional-personal lines get blurred. I went because these were one of the only options for socializing outside the convention center. After all, networking and creating lasting relationships are important in coffee. I rarely made a connectionit was too loud to hear anyone, and Id immediately lose my voice over the noise. I completely understand why one would want to dance the night away after a stressful weekend. But there werent many other options for those who wanted a quieter place to connect. And so, in 2017 I decided to take matters into my own hands and host a board game night. You could purchase alcohol or bring your own, but it turned out that no one did. It was, hands down, the most chill public party of Expo weekend. I was not the only one who noticed the bounty of alcohol-centric events surrounding trade shows. Noah Namowicz, COO and partner at Cafe Imports, has organized a sober morning run during Expo for a few years. He explains, The sober meetups basically were created to offer some support to anyone choosing to test this lifestyle out or enjoying long-term recovery, knowing full well that some folks lives depend on it. I did not grow up around alcohol, and my high school friend group was quite straight-edged. I was also SO anxious that someone would find out about my underage drinking that my first sips were in New Zealand, where the drinking age is 18, and my first actual drink was on my 21st birthday. Can you imagine going through undergrad at a Big Ten school and not drinking? People thought I was too good for them or that I was too restrained. US drinking culture equates a good time to alcohol, but youre not an alcoholic until youre out of college. After a bit, I learned about how I was missing vital enzymes that process alcohol. Unlike some of my peers, who could combat their Asian flush with antihistamines, that never worked for me. Post-graduation, it was still a strange time to avoid drinking. Going to a bar seemed like the most acceptable social activity, and while I was not against that, I got tired of sipping Sprite with a slice of lime. Im not sober by choice but by genetic design. Im also not fully sober; Ill have a sip of something to taste it, but I cant have too much more. And no, it doesnt matter what kind of drink it is. If it has an OH alcohol compound in it, I cant process it. People can get weird when you dont drink. Theyd ask me, Are you okay if I have a glass of wine? or Are you going to judge me? Then there are snide asides like, I dont want to drink by myself, or, Youre not fun. I wouldnt be in a bar if I couldnt be around alcohol. With time, I learned that their response was more about their relationship with alcohol than about me not drinking. This also carried over into coffee when no alcohol was involvedspecifically, at cuppings! Someone posited that a coffee tasted like hops, or theres a hint of red wine, and if it was one of three notes: red wine, bergamot, apple, what the hell was I supposed to do with that? Not only did I not know what bergamot tasted like (tasting notes are subjective), but I also went to college in Michigan, where loads of wildly different apples are grown. It was no coincidence that this was the peak of the snobby, hipster barista stereotype. Im fortunate to feel much more confident in my (lack of) drinking habits. Perhaps because of the higher attendance rate or more people wanting quieter moments, there are far more events than ever surrounding Expo. At my last count, there were around 45 public events at this years Expo in Chicago, the highest number Ive seen yet. Weve gone from about four loud bangers to a wide variety: panel discussions, movie screenings, a pitch competition, meet-the-producer talks and cuppings, and more. There are events with DJs and ones with laid-back vibes. You may still get FOMO, but its only because you cant be in five places simultaneously. There are many reasons for people to be sober, and I understand why one would not want to mix alcohol with work. Thirty-eight percent of US adults abstain from alcohol, and the most common reason given is that they dont want to. Plus, NA cocktails and spirits are readily available in many bars and stores. Its been an adventure tasting the different concoctions, and I genuinely believe that if you consider yourself someone who likes to try new food and drinks, youll be pleasantly surprised by how good an NA cocktail could be. Its about time we started having more events that are not centered on alcohol. Lets keep this momentum of wider, interesting events going into future trade shows and industry gatherings. For those who are sober, know that youre not alone. There is a great network of sober folks in coffee, adds Namowicz. Seek us out and build up that network to strengthen your protective layer going into these events and you are going to be in a great spot. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240512/israeli-whistleblowers-reveal-disturbing-and-inhumane-conditions-palestinians-are-held-in-1118402853.html Israeli Whistleblowers Reveal Disturbing and Inhumane Conditions Palestinians Are Held In Israeli Whistleblowers Reveal Disturbing and Inhumane Conditions Palestinians Are Held In Sputnik International Three Israeli whistleblowers and former prisoners are alleging disturbing and inhumane treatment of Palestinian prisoners at an Israeli military base. 2024-05-12T22:22+0000 2024-05-12T22:22+0000 2024-05-13T19:27+0000 palestinians israel palestine israel defense forces (idf) hamas gaza strip israel-gaza conflict world palestine-israel conflict war crimes https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/05/0c/1118402696_0:161:3070:1888_1920x0_80_0_0_d5fff354e3af570e16eabd98cf331e0a.jpg The whistleblowers quoted by CNN said that the base has two parts, one which includes intense physical restraint and the other acting as a field hospital where prisoners are strapped to beds, blindfolded, put in diapers and fed through a tube.Prisoners were routinely beaten by guards the whistleblowers say, but the torture wasnt a part of any kind of interrogation program, according to the news agency. (The beatings) were not done to gather intelligence. They were done out of revenge, the whistleblower claimed. It was punishment for what they did on October 7 and punishment for behavior in the camp.A prisoner from the camp claimed that even talking to another prisoner was enough to earn a beating by Israeli guards.Israel purportedly holds thousands of Palestinians in its custody, many of them are held under a recently amended law that allows them to be held indefinitely and without trial.One released prisoner, Dr. Mohammed Al-Ran, said he was held for weeks after Israel cleared him of any connections with Hamas so that he could serve as a liaison and translator between guards and prisoners. The IDF has denied holding prisoners for longer than necessary.The Palestinian doctor also described his experience of being brought to the facility, saying he was stripped down to his underwear, handcuffed, blindfolded and thrown on top of other nearly naked prisoners in the back of a truck.Al-Ran and a whistleblower also claimed the guards unleashed large dogs on sleeping prisoners while performing routine searches and lobbed a sound grenade into the enclosure before entering.Sde Teiman is one of three military facilities that Israel has admitted to converting into a detention camp for Palestinians. Satellite photos show that Sde Teiman has been significantly expanded since October 7. Civilian hospitals refuse to treat injured Gazans, according to US media.The problem is, Gazans who are brought in are labeled as terrorists, a whistleblower explained and it is very popular opinion over here that terrorists deserve to die. So, they do not deserve the same medical care as everyone else.The field hospital has also gained a reputation as a paradise for interns because they are allowed to learn by using Palestinian prisoners as guinea pigs, the article claimed.I was asked to learn how to do things on the patients, performing minor medical procedures that are totally outside my expertise, a whistleblower said, noting that the procedures frequently were performed without anesthesia. He also alleged that he was told not to fill out any medical forms while working there, a practice that helps authority figures at the hospital avoid accountability.The accusations by the whistleblowers and prisoners match the accusations made in a letter addressed to top Israeli officials by an Israeli doctor who worked at the facility. He described a facility where limb amputations caused by consistent handcuffing were unfortunately a routine event.The IDF said that it handcuffs prisoners until they are determined not to be a security threat.Al-Ran said that before he left, a fellow prisoner asked him to find his family in Gaza and warn them that it is better to become a martyr than be captured and held at Sde Teiman. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240512/us-may-halt-high-precision-munition-supplies-to-israel-amid-rafah-operation-1118399984.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20240510/palestinian-leader-welcomes-unga-resolution-granting-palestine-new-rights---reports-1118380406.html israel palestine gaza strip Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Ian DeMartino Ian DeMartino News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 Ian DeMartino sde teiman military base, israeli abuse of palestinian prisoners, palestinian detainees, human rights abuses in israel, genocide, war crime, ethnic cleansing, detained palestinians, palestinian prisoners, israeli abuse, abused palestinians, abused prisoners, humanitarian disaster, humanitarian catastrophe, israel-hamas conflict, gaza strip crisis, shelling of gaza, gaza devastation, israel-palestine conflict, palestine-israel conflict, israeli-palestinian conflict, palestinian-israeli, zionist regime, zionists https://sputnikglobe.com/20240513/are-nato-members-testing-the-waters-for-no-fly-zone-over-ukraine-1118413765.html Are NATO Members Testing the Waters for No-Fly Zone Over Ukraine? Are NATO Members Testing the Waters for No-Fly Zone Over Ukraine? Sputnik International German lawmakers have discussed the possibility of creating a no-fly zone over portions of western Ukraine, marking a new escalation in its rhetoric amid the conflict. 2024-05-13T18:42+0000 2024-05-13T18:42+0000 2024-05-14T04:57+0000 nato jens stoltenberg ukraine europe russia poland article 5 opinion us air defense https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/03/0d/1117296767_0:89:3326:1960_1920x0_80_0_0_e9bbb75504187ef1ba2ae3e59eef394e.jpg Members of Germanys ruling coalition, including the Free Democratic Party (FDP) and the Greens, have proposed creating a no-fly zone extending up to 70 kilometers into Ukrainian territory by using air defense systems deployed in Poland and Romania. The proposal was aimed to help shoulder Ukraine's air defense burden, allowing them to focus on protecting frontline areas. The lawmakers cited NATO's downing of Iranian missiles targeting Israel last month as a precedent.The German government spokesperson, nonetheless, stated on May 13 day that NATO would not enforce a no-fly zone over Ukraine, citing the alliance's Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg's decision from March 2022.However, the discussion surrounding the potential establishment of a no-fly zone over Ukraine amid the Ukrainian army's retreat suggests that Western leaders are exploring options for potential engagement in the conflict, according to Russian political analyst Sergey Poletaev.The expert noted that it's not a coincidence that Poland and Romania were picked as possible sites to enforce any no-fly zone. First, the two aren't seen as independent players, according to Sputnik's interlocutor. Second, Western politicians appear to be ready to sacrifice them in the event of a potential conflict with Russia. The question is whether NATO would come to their rescue under Article 5, stipulating the military bloc's collective defense, if a conflict with Russia were to erupt, Poletaev said.Are Romania and Poland Ready to Protect Ukraine?While German lawmakers did not bother to ask what Romanians and Poles think about the proposed no-fly zone, the plan appears to contradict Romania's law and Poland's actual capabilities.Romanian Chief of Defense Staff Gheorghita Vlad told US press on February 1 that the Romanian Army cannot conduct military operations in peacetime. To shoot down Russian drones or other aerial targets, Bucharest would have to introduce a state of emergency, siege or martial law, Vlad explained.Poland doesn't seem strained by the law to the same extent as Romania, but it needs full NATO backing and political will to extend its air defense umbrella to Ukraine. Poland's former Minister of National Defense Janusz Onyszkiewicz told a Ukrainian broadcaster last month that the Polish air defense system now has the ability to respond to Russian missile threats at the eleventh hour, when it may be too late to shoot them down. To empower Polish air defense systems to shield Western Ukraine, political decisions should be made at the level of NATO and Kiev, he said, adding that the Polish military should also be provided with full access to Ukrainian airspace information. Apparently, Poland wants to shift the responsibility to NATO to get guarantees that it would be protected if a hypothetical no-fly zone is implemented.NATO Downing Iran's Missiles Not a Precedent for UkraineGerman politicians' reference to NATO shooting down Iranian missiles and drones targeting Israel as a precedent for creating a no-fly zone over western Ukraine doesn't hold water, Poletaev continued.He went on to say that NATO member states intercepted Iranian missiles and drones over the territories of third countries with their approval."By and large, Iran's attack was more of a media attack," the expert said. Tehran's warning about its retaliation strike, following Israel's attack on the Iranian embassy in Syria, appeared to be a significant factor allowing Iran to avenge the death of its generals while evading further escalation.When it comes to the Russia-Ukraine conflict, stakes are much higher, and hitting Russia's missiles and aircraft is fraught with a risk of a nuclear conflict, Poletaev noted. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240512/no-game-changer-for-ukraine-patriot-systems-fail-against-russian-ballistic-missiles-1118400251.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20240506/poland-not-preparing-will-not-send-troops-to-ukraine--defense-minister-1118288256.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20240513/russian-air-defense-destroys-dozens-of-ukraines-drones-storm-shadow-missiles-1118404874.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20240509/nato-soldiers-present-in-ukraine---polish-prime-minister-1118363141.html ukraine russia poland Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Ekaterina Blinova Ekaterina Blinova News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 Ekaterina Blinova no-fly zone over ukraine, nato no-fly zone over ukraine, poland and romania air defense systems, german lawmakers discussed a no-fly zone over ukraine, ukraine war, special military operation zone, russia's nuclear capabilities https://sputnikglobe.com/20240513/attractive-museum-piece-aging-us-b-2-stealth-bombers-outdated-in-every-respect-1118414594.html 'Attractive Museum Piece': Aging US B-2 Stealth Bombers Outdated in Every Respect 'Attractive Museum Piece': Aging US B-2 Stealth Bombers Outdated in Every Respect Sputnik International The US has recalled its second B-2 Spirit aircraft since 2008, reducing its fleet of secretive stealth bombers to 19. What message does the incident send about the US Air Force's capabilities? 2024-05-13T19:06+0000 2024-05-13T19:06+0000 2024-05-14T05:08+0000 us military & intelligence karen kwiatkowski missouri guam pentagon us air force icbms soviet union f-35 https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/105864/74/1058647474_178:0:1814:920_1920x0_80_0_0_b9a850cba80ea6c68338eb30496aee13.jpg The US Air Force has announced that it won't repair its Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit stealth bomber damaged in an accident at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri. This is the second of its type to be lost to the Pentagon after another B-2 suffered a severe crash at Andersen Air Force Base in Guam in 2008. In addition, the planes have seen repeated mishaps, raising questions about their operability and maintenance.The B-2A Spirit was designed to stealthily deliver both conventional and nuclear munitions deep into the enemy territory. The warplane is one of the most expensive US weapon systems with a price tag of around $4 billion per piece, according to some estimates. Between 1988 and 1997, aerospace manufacturer Northrop Grumman built 21 B-2s, meaning that the US Air Force's fleet has been recently reduced to 19 stealth bombers."In the late 1970s and 1980s, the Soviet Union led the US in both land and sea-based ICBM capability, and the US had the lead in strategic bombers. Thus, the Soviets developed defenses against those bombers, driving the US Air Force to propose both supersonic and stealthy bomber aircraft to get through the Soviet defenses. Computing and materials science seemed to be an area the US was leading and would be able to master and yet the complexity and cost of these designs proved to limit both their ability to be deployed, and the number the American taxpayer could afford."According to Kwiatkowski, the B-2 program is a "classic example of experience and sunk cost biases." She added that "this arc of decision-making" continues with the similarly expensive, outdated upon deployment, and high-maintenance B-21.The former Pentagon analyst continued that the B-2 has been utilized rarely and became infamous for bombing the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade 25 years ago.Meanwhile, the concept of manned bombers appears to be no longer relevant, the retired lieutenant colonel remarked, referring to the modern idea of completely computer-dependent aircraft that do not need actual pilots or any of their value-added combat decision-making value. Given this, the aging B-2 is also conceptually outdated, according to Sputnik's interlocutor.Kwiatkowski is highly skeptical about the B-2's future. She presumed it would be "a good sacrifice aircraft to deliver payload and then crash into a facility or target" or a plane for "domestic surveillance and attacks in case of a civil conflict." https://sputnikglobe.com/20221220/us-air-force-grounds-b-2-stealth-bombers-after-emergency-landing-fire-1105635179.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20221203/leaner-meaner-costlier-all-you-need-to-know-about-the-b-21-raider-1105004615.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20240509/calling-the-bluff-aging-us-fleet-and-drained-stockpiles-no-match-for-china-and-russia-1118362489.html missouri guam soviet union Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Ekaterina Blinova Ekaterina Blinova News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 Ekaterina Blinova b-2 bomber, us lost its second b-2 bomber, b-2 spirit strategic bomber is outdated, us-made b-2 bomber is one of the most expensive weapon systems, us air force's b-2s fleet reduced to 19, b-2 has never been cost effective, b-21 bomber, f-35 fighter jet https://sputnikglobe.com/20240513/biden-only-bluffing-in-threat-to-halt-weapons-flow-to-israel---veteran-diplomats-1118411446.html Biden Only Bluffing in Threat to Halt Weapons Flow to Israel - Veteran Diplomats Biden Only Bluffing in Threat to Halt Weapons Flow to Israel - Veteran Diplomats Sputnik International US President Joe Biden's threat to withhold weapons from Israel if it goes ahead with a major offensive in Rafah is an election bluff to prevent defections from the Democratic Party amid plunging public support for the Gaza war, two former Western ambassadors to Arab nations and an ex-CIA station chief in Syria told Sputnik. 2024-05-13T15:53+0000 2024-05-13T15:53+0000 2024-05-13T15:53+0000 analysis joe biden benjamin netanyahu us israel palestine-israel conflict israeli-palestinian conflict israel-gaza conflict https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/03/13/1117417429_0:0:2117:1191_1920x0_80_0_0_b48aefcc19f16521bcc6cd4f669fb65a.jpg Last week, Biden said Washington would restrict the supply of weapons to Israel if the latter launched a major military incursion into Rafah. The warning came as the Israeli army started a military operation in the eastern parts of Rafah and took control of the Gaza side of the Rafah crossing with Egypt. The US has also paused one shipment of weapons for Israel consisting of 1,800 2,000-pound bombs and 1,700 500-pound bombs. A State Department report published on Friday found that it is "reasonable to assess" that US-provided defense articles have been used by Israeli security forces since October 7 "in instances inconsistent with its IHL obligations or with established best practices for mitigating civilian harm," but stopped short of reaching any definitive conclusion. Political Stunt"[Biden's warning] must be seen as a political stunt rather than a change in policy," former US ambassador to Saudi Arabia Chas Freeman said. "This is part of a slow administration retreat from all-out support for the genocide in Gaza, but it is limited to certain particularly inhumane weapons, tentative, temporary, and offset by continuing grants of military aid of other sorts to Israel," Freeman said. Biden recognized the erosion of his support over the Gaza issue but had acted too little and too late to end or reverse that process, Freeman observed. "The retreat is a half-hearted and grudging response to the rising demands of young voters and other previous constituents for an end to the US enablement of genocide in Palestine," he said. Significant portions of the Democratic Party base had already been alienated from President Biden, Freeman pointed out. Nor would Biden's actions succeed in influencing or restraining Israeli policy, Freeman predicted. "Few imagine that will have a serious effect on Israeli policies aimed at eliminating the Palestinian presence in Palestine," he said. Changes NothingFormer UK Ambassador to Syria and veteran diplomat Peter Ford agreed that Biden's maneuvers in reality changed nothing. "The move to restrict military supplies to Israel is cosmetic, a fake gesture by a flailing and failing President. Its aim is more to buy off a US public increasingly revolted by the US-supported savagery they see with their own eyes, than to restrain America's Middle East attack dog," he said. The practical effect on the Israeli military of withholding 2,000-pound bombs will be negligible, Ford pointed out. "Israel has stockpiles enough of bombs not to need more of a vile US weapon for which causing massive civilian suffering is not a flaw but a feature. It also has phalanxes of tanks ready to flatten what is left of East Rafah after the waves of bombing," he said. Biden had taken no action to restrain the Israeli military when they had inflicted thousands of civilian casualties in their previous operations in Gaza City and Khan Yunis, Ford pointed out. Increasing OutrageHowever, now Biden is reacting not to Israel but to the rapidly changing political conditions and increasing outrage over the war back in the United States, Ford pointed out. Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu were in reality cooperating in a balancing act to satisfy their conflicting domestic constituencies, Ford believes. Operating in that incremental way could allow Netanyahu to fall short of the "major incursion" that the US government has portrayed as some sort of red line, without saying what the consequence would be for crossing it, Ford noted. It's All About Election"I think this is a scam with Biden pretending to do something to satisfy those in his party and the electorate who are disgusted with what is going on in Gaza while at the same time continuing the secret flow of whatever Israel wants [and] needs to Netanyahu," Philip Giraldi, CIAs former Damascus station chief and chair of the Council for the National Interest, said. Giraldi also assessed Biden's maneuvers as a ploy to maintain a credible base for his reelection campaign this fall. "It is little more than a gesture that is really all about the upcoming election!" he said. Veteran Middle East analyst Sam Husseini agreed with the former diplomats and intelligence officer that Biden had not dared to change US policy toward Israel in any significant way. "I don't think this is a serious move. US government support for Israel is still overwhelming," he said. Husseini agreed that Biden was simply maneuvering tactically in order to continue supporting Israel fully while pretending to the American public that he was not. "This may be an election maneuver given how deeply unpopular Biden's backing of Israel's genocide is with the public and esp among Democrats. He has to pretend to distance himself from Netanyahu," he said. However, the move might also be the start of a more complex US maneuver to allow Israel to ultimately destroy Gaza, Husseini suggested. "It may even be more insidious. It may be an attempt by the US government to try to pretend to be a mediator to try to get Hamas to fork over the captives so that Israel can more completely destroy Gaza," Husseini said. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240511/the-zionist-project-doomed-itself-by-rejecting-peace-advocates-1118381341.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20240509/hapless-president-biden-caught-between-unhappy-base-unrepentant-israel-1118344791.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20240505/is-power-sharing-deal-on-postwar-gaza-between-israel-and-arab-states-feasible-1118265728.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20240430/with-walls-closing-in-around-him-netanyahu-may-start-even-larger-regional-war-1118197325.html israel Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International joe biden, biden netanyahu, us-israel ties, palestine-israel conflict, israel gaza violence, zionism, jewish lobby us, arab-israel conflict Director David Leitch revealed that Chinese kung fu megastar Jackie Chan is an inspiration for him and his new movie "The Fall Guy," which opens in China on May 17. A photo shows actors, from left, Ryan Gosling and Aaron Taylor-Johnson, with stunt actors Ben Jenkin, Logan Holladay and Justin Eaton, posing with director David Leitch on the set of "The Fall Guy." [Photo courtesy of Universal Pictures] Leitch, who started his career as a stuntman, made this movie to pay homage to the unsung heroes behind the scenes. "The Fall Guy," starring Ryan Gosling, Emily Blunt and Aaron Taylor-Johnson, is loosely based on the 1980s TV series about stunt performers of the same name. The film follows Colt Seavers, a stuntman working on his ex-girlfriend's directorial debut sci-fi action film, who finds himself involved in a conspiracy surrounding the film's lead actor. Leitch candidly admitted that he is a fan of Jackie Chan, Bruce Lee and the Shaw Brothers Studio, which produced many martial arts movies. The director also acknowledged his debt to kung fu legend and choreographer Yuen Woo-ping, from whom he learned a great deal while working with on "The Matrix." And Jackie Chan, Leitch said, is his biggest influence. "Actually, I had a Jackie Chan clip tape that I watched over and over again," he said. "Jackie was a huge inspiration for me to become a stunt performer. He is a legendary figure, not only as a stunt performer but also as a filmmaker, and he studied under the classics, Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd, Charlie Chaplin, from the beginning of cinema. He is sort of the master of nonverbal storytelling with action, whether it's drama or comedy." Leitch noted that watching Chan's career evolve from a stuntman to a director to a prolific producer has been inspiration for him. "I think the tone of 'The Fall Guy' really aligns with Jackie's sensibilities. It's a lot of fun for the audience. We're putting our main protagonist in a lot of peril, and we're watching him fight his way through it. And Colt, just like a lot of Jackie's classic characters, is an everyman who is fighting against the bigger bad. We get to watch him overcome, not unlike Jackie's characters or Rocky in the 'Rocky' movies. He's definitely an underdog hero," he said. An IMAX poster for "The Fall Guy." [Image courtesy of IMAX China] "The Fall Guy" also represents a milestone in the industry as it marks the first time the Screen Actors Guild and the Directors Guild of America have recognized the role of "stunt designer." This credit will make its debut in the film, with Chris O'Hara, a veteran stunt coordinator, second unit director and president of Stunts Unlimited, being the recipient of this inaugural film credit. "This movie is really personal for me, because I have been a stunt performer for over 20 years," Leitch said. "I have many stunt brothers and sisters in the industry, all over the world. I've worked all over the world. It's important that we did justice to the movie and really portrayed that world with reverence, fun, and the energy that they have as people. Because it's something so near and dear to us. It's really a tribute to the crew, the stunt performers and all the behind-the-scenes heroes who make the cinema that we love so much." The making of "The Fall Guy" attracted the best in the stunt performer family, including stunt driver Logan Holladay, who achieved a Guinness World Record for executing eight and a half cannon rolls in a modified Jeep Grand Cherokee while doubling for Gosling in the film. At the Beijing premiere on May 7, Leitch acknowledged his long-time collaborator, Chinese choreographer Sun Nuo, for his contribution as the fight coordinator in "The Fall Guy." Sun, a Beijing native and veteran action designer who has been integrating Chinese kung fu into many international blockbusters for years, designed high-energy action sequences for the film. These include a thrilling scene featuring Gosling's character being dragged in an extended chase through Sydney in a garbage truck, a sequence that required the synchronized efforts of 50 stunt drivers to film. Director David Leitch and his wife and producer Kelly McCormick speak to the audience via video link at the Chinese premiere of "The Fall Guy" in an IMAX theater in Beijing, May 7, 2024. [Photo courtesy of Universal Pictures] Besides being an action comedy, "The Fall Guy" is also "a love bomb," as David Leitch called it. He and his wife and production partner, Kelly McCormick have a romance that sort of mirrors the romantic storyline in "The Fall Guy." "As we are a couple and we are filmmakers, we made this film with a lot of love for our audience as well as for each other," McCormick said. "In my opinion, it's honestly more romantic than it is an action movie. I think that everyone will be saying 'I love you' at the end of the movie to each other and hopefully to the world." https://sputnikglobe.com/20240513/defying-sanctions-russias-s7-masters-overhauling-of-airbus-and-boeing-engines-1118405791.html Defying Sanctions: Russias S7 Masters Overhauling of Airbus and Boeing Engines Defying Sanctions: Russias S7 Masters Overhauling of Airbus and Boeing Engines Sputnik International The A320neo and Boeing 737NG families currently form the basis of the narrow-body civil aircraft fleet of the Russian Federation. 2024-05-13T07:52+0000 2024-05-13T07:52+0000 2024-05-13T07:52+0000 economy russia fleet engines passenger jet boeing 737 a320 sanctions overhaul https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/05/0d/1118404713_0:17:3503:1987_1920x0_80_0_0_e17d3706c6fe10e79ec4daec4fa16480.jpg Russia's S7 Technics engineering company has embarked on a comprehensive overhaul of engines installed on Airbus A320 and Boeing 737 passenger jets, which are commonly used by Russian air carriers. This complex type of maintenance is aimed at enhancing the performance and reliability of these aircraft, sources told the Kommersant daily.Western sanctions prevented the air carriers from transporting the CFM56-5B and 7B engines abroad for repairs, prompting them to purchase used equipment, according to the sources.Although some types of overhaul have traditionally been carried out in Russia, the most complex work related to restoration of the engines hot sections has not been mastered before.A hot section refers to the portion of a gas turbine engine that operates at high temperatures. It includes the combustion, turbine, and exhaust parts.In total, there are about 800 CFM56 engines in Russia, with the Aeroflot air carrier remaining the key customer.Western countries imposed a whole slew of crippling sanctions on various sectors of the Russian economy shortly after the beginning of Moscows special military operation. Last year, Russian President Vladimir Putin stressed that the situation with the economy was stable and sustainable, and that the country had overcome all the sanctions-related problems, moving on to "the next stage of development." https://sputnikglobe.com/20240331/sanctions-you-say-russia-becomes-g20s-fifth-fastest-growing-economy-1117673410.html russia Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Oleg Burunov https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e4/09/0b/1080424846_0:0:2048:2048_100x100_80_0_0_3d7b461f8a98586fa3fe739930816aea.jpg Oleg Burunov https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e4/09/0b/1080424846_0:0:2048:2048_100x100_80_0_0_3d7b461f8a98586fa3fe739930816aea.jpg News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 Oleg Burunov https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e4/09/0b/1080424846_0:0:2048:2048_100x100_80_0_0_3d7b461f8a98586fa3fe739930816aea.jpg the a320neo and boeing 737ng families, the narrow-body civil aircraft fleet of the russian federation, russias s7 technics engineering company, major overhaul of engines installed on airbus a320 and boeing 737 passenger jets, western sanctins against russia https://sputnikglobe.com/20240513/egypt-to-join-south-africas-genocide-case-against-israel-1118403153.html Egypt to Join South Africa's Genocide Case Against Israel Egypt to Join South Africa's Genocide Case Against Israel Sputnik International The Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Sunday that it will seek permission to join South Africa in its case accusing Israel of genocide in Gaza. 2024-05-13T03:56+0000 2024-05-13T03:56+0000 2024-05-13T03:56+0000 world israel-gaza conflict palestinians ahmed abu zeid middle east israel egypt south africa international court of justice egyptian foreign ministry https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/05/07/1118301913_0:160:3072:1888_1920x0_80_0_0_ab7986a690082a1ae47096035a24110f.jpg Egypt says it will seek permission to join South Africas case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which accuses Israel of violating its obligations under the Genocide Convention, the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Sunday.The announcement by Egypt marks the third country to ask to join the South African case, which was brought in January. Earlier this year, Colombia and Turkiye also asked the court to join the case.In the announcement, Egypt blamed escalating aggression by Israel against Palestinian civilians.Last week, Israel seized the Palestinian side of the Rafah border crossing, which sits between Gaza and Egypt and was the only entry port into Gaza that was not controlled by Israel and was the primary entry point for aid flowing into Gaza. According to Palestinian authorities, Israel has held up aid at that point since. Egypts Ministry of Foreign Affairs called the action a perilous escalation [and] a threat to the lives of more than one million Palestinians who majorly depend on that crossing.However, the ministry also said that the decision to join South Africas case was already being studied before Israel started preparing to invade Rafah against the warnings of several countries including Egypt and Jordan, two key strategic partners of Israel in the region.Egypt was the first country to normalize relations with Israel in 1979, with Jordan following in 1994. Turkiye, while not considered an Arab state, has a majority Muslim population and has normalized relations with Israel since 1950. That two of those nations, Turkiye and Egypt, have now formally accused Israel of genocide is a major blow to Israel's diplomatic goals.Speaking, to local media, Egyptian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ahmed Abu Zeid said that Israels actions in Gaza led to an unprecedented humanitarian crisis, creating unlivable conditions in the Gaza Strip, blatantly violating international law, international humanitarian law, and the Fourth Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War.South Africa brought its case against Israel in January, accusing Israel of committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza. In a preliminary hearing, the ICJ ruled that there was enough evidence of a plausible risk of genocide to order Israel to take actions to prevent genocide, though it did not order an immediate ceasefire. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240509/its-indescribable-humanitarian-crisis-in-rafah-rapidly-unfolds-as-us-pauses-arms-shipment--1118343345.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20240321/saudi-arabia-to-allocate-40mln-to-unrwa-for-humanitarian-aid-to-gaza-strip-1117460228.html israel egypt south africa Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Ian DeMartino Ian DeMartino News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 Ian DeMartino genocide in gaza, egypt joins icj case against israel, egypt says israel committing genocide, israel losing allies, war crime, zionists, zionism, ethnic cleansing, humanitarian disaster, humanitarian catastrophe, humanitarian ceasefire, israel-hamas conflict, gaza strip crisis, shelling of gaza, gaza devastation, israel-palestine conflict, palestine-israel conflict, israeli-palestinian conflict, palestinian-israeli, mass starvation, famine https://sputnikglobe.com/20240513/iran-discussing-use-of-rial-in-trade-with-russia-iraq-afghanistan-1118409444.html Iran Discussing Use of Rial in Trade With Russia, Iraq, Afghanistan Iran Discussing Use of Rial in Trade With Russia, Iraq, Afghanistan Sputnik International The Central Bank of Iran is working on a scheme that will allow it to use the national currency in financial exchanges with Russia, Iraq and Afghanistan, the regulator's deputy governor, Mohsen Karimi, said on Monday. 2024-05-13T13:14+0000 2024-05-13T13:14+0000 2024-05-13T13:14+0000 economy russian economy under sanctions central bank of iran russia isna elvira nabiullina iraq iran afghanistan https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/17974/21/179742186_0:313:4854:3043_1920x0_80_0_0_11d0baea69f66abf2572b2e75d920838.jpg Karimi said Iran was looking to pay for non-essential Russian imports using the rial pegged at an agreed exchange rate. He estimated potential trade exchanges in this category at between $1 billion and $1.5 billion.The Iranian Embassy in Russia said in March that Russian Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina hosted Iranian Ambassador Kazem Jalali for talks on banking cooperation. The two countries linked their banking messaging systems in January in a bid to increase financial transactions amid Western sanctions. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240509/brics-blocs-bullion-buy-up-buoys-trend-toward-dedollarization-1118365980.html russia iraq iran afghanistan Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International russian economy under sanctions, rials trade, rials, russia-iran trade, isna, central bank of iran, iraq, iran https://sputnikglobe.com/20240513/iran-launches-virtual-embassy-of-palestine-foreign-minister-1118414238.html Iran Launches Virtual Embassy of Palestine - Foreign Minister Iran Launches Virtual Embassy of Palestine - Foreign Minister Sputnik International Tehran has launched an experimental virtual Palestinian Embassy within the Iranian Foreign Ministry's web system to support Palestine amid Israel's military operation in the Gaza Strip, Iranian Foreign Minister Nasser Kanaani said on Monday. 2024-05-13T18:28+0000 2024-05-13T18:28+0000 2024-05-13T18:28+0000 world middle east iran palestinians embassy https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/102029/07/1020290730_0:260:5000:3073_1920x0_80_0_0_1541468512b37882298ad30294f2f68a.jpg "This virtual embassy was created in the system of the foreign ministry at an experimental level so that we could study the technical problems and other aspects associated with it better and more," Kanaani was quoted by Iranian state-run IRNA news agency as saying at a daily conference. Iran's diplomatic staff implemented a number of legal, consular and administrative measures and requested the opinion of Palestinian resistance groups before launching the embassy, the spokesman added. Last Monday, the IDF launched what it called a counterterrorist operation in Rafah, on the border with Egypt. The IDF initially invaded the city's east and took control of the Gaza side of the Rafah border crossing. On Friday, Israeli media reported that Israel's military cabinet had approved expanding the ground operation. Israeli authorities say the operation is aimed at eliminating the remaining battalions of Palestinian movement Hamas in the Gaza Strip. On October 7, 2023, Hamas launched a large-scale rocket attack against Israel and breached the border, attacking both civilian neighborhoods and military bases. Nearly 1,200 people in Israel were killed and some 240 others abducted during the attack. Israel launched retaliatory strikes, ordered a complete blockade of Gaza, and started a ground incursion into the Palestinian enclave with the declared goal of eliminating Hamas fighters and rescuing the hostages. Over 35,000 people have been killed so far by Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip, local authorities said. More than 100 hostages are still believed to be held by Hamas in Gaza. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240511/uae-rejects-israels-plan-to-take-part-in-post-war-gaza-administration-1118382987.html iran Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International iran palestine relations, palestine embassy https://sputnikglobe.com/20240513/israel-killed-more-civilians-than-hamas-fighters---blinken-1118404170.html Israel Killed More Civilians Than Hamas Fighters - Blinken Israel Killed More Civilians Than Hamas Fighters - Blinken Sputnik International US Secretary of State Antony Blinken admitted Israel has killed more civilians than Hamas fighters, responding to the reporters question about the National Security Memorandum 20 which he submitted to Congress on May 10. 2024-05-13T04:50+0000 2024-05-13T04:50+0000 2024-05-13T04:50+0000 world palestine-israel conflict palestine antony blinken israel hamas gaza strip war crimes genocide ethnic cleansing https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/02/1b/1117003071_0:160:3072:1888_1920x0_80_0_0_0faf02522c4e1d8fce703f7490fdea6c.jpg In an interview with the CBS News broadcaster Blinken was asked "The prime minister himself said Israel assesses the IDF killed 14,000 terrorists and 16,000 civilians. Does the US share the Israeli assessment that more civilians have been killed than actual terrorists?"The US State Secretary responded with a resolute "Yes, we do."It's reasonable to assessthere have been acts that have been inconsistent with Israel's obligations under international humanitarian law, Blinken clarified, adding that "there are hundreds of ongoing inquiries looking at different incidents."Nevertheless, he responded negatively when asked if the State Department had been able to identify Israels possible violations of "US laws and weapons-sharing agreements." Blinken added that Washington does not prevent the transfer of any weapons to Israel, with the exception of one batch of 3,500 bombs. On October 7, 2023, Hamas launched a large-scale rocket attack against Israel and breached the border, attacking both civilian neighborhoods and military bases. Nearly 1,200 people in Israel were killed and some 240 others abducted during the attack. Israel launched retaliatory strikes, ordered a complete blockade of Gaza, and started a ground incursion into the Palestinian enclave with the declared goal of eliminating Hamas fighters and rescuing the hostages. Over 35,000 people have been killed so far by Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip, local authorities said. More than 100 hostages are still believed to be held by Hamas in Gaza. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240307/us-exploited-loophole-to-sell-weapons-to-israel---report-1117177133.html palestine israel gaza strip Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International genocide, ethnic cleansing, humanitarian disaster, humanitarian catastrophe, humanitarian ceasefire, israel-hamas conflict, gaza strip crisis, shelling of gaza, gaza devastation, israel-palestine conflict, palestine-israel conflict, israeli-palestinian conflict, palestinian-israeli, zionist regime, zionists, hamas attack, israeli strikes, israeli forces, hostages, israeli military, hamas fighters, hamas soldiers, hamas military, killings of civilians, civilian infrastructure, civilians dead, civilians die, israel kills civilians, civilian casualties, civilian deaths, indiscriminate shelling, indiscriminate killing, war crimes https://sputnikglobe.com/20240513/poland-planning-to-allocate-375mln-to-strengthen-fence-on-border-with-belarus-1118403561.html Poland Planning to Allocate $375Mln to Strengthen Fence on Border With Belarus Poland Planning to Allocate $375Mln to Strengthen Fence on Border With Belarus Sputnik International Poland plans to allocate about $375 million to strengthen the fence on the border with Belarus, Polish Deputy Defense Minister Cezary Tomczyk said. 2024-05-13T04:16+0000 2024-05-13T04:16+0000 2024-05-13T04:16+0000 world belarus poland migrant crisis european union (eu) https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/102881/32/1028813212_0:122:3210:1928_1920x0_80_0_0_4eb68683a9e08cfabbf507ad6aa31acc.jpg He added that the border fence is currently not effective enough to deter undocumented migrants. At the same time, he admitted that Polish border guards are pushing migrants caught directly at the border back into Belarus.Earlier Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that Warsaw hopes to attract EU money to fund these developments, dubbing it an investment into European security.In mid-2021, tens of thousands of migrants crowded the border between Belarus and Poland, as well as neighboring Latvia and Lithuania in an attempt to enter the European Union. Polish authorities tightened border controls, deployed troops, and accused Belarus of orchestrating a migrant crisis. Minsk rejected the accusation, saying Warsaw was abusing the migrant crisis narrative to aggressively push migrants into Belarusian territory. belarus poland Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International poland, belarus, boder guards, poland borders, belarus borders, migrant crisis https://sputnikglobe.com/20240513/russian-military-industrial-complex-worlds-most-powerful--acting-deputy-prime-minister-1118406506.html Russian Military-Industrial Complex World's Most Powerful - Acting Deputy Prime Minister Russian Military-Industrial Complex World's Most Powerful - Acting Deputy Prime Minister Sputnik International The Russian military-industrial complex is the most powerful in the world when it comes to production of major types of arms and military equipment, acting Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov said on Monday. 2024-05-13T09:13+0000 2024-05-13T09:13+0000 2024-05-13T09:45+0000 military russian armed forces russian army russia-nato showdown denis manturov sergey lavrov nato https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/101638/92/1016389268_0:171:2948:1829_1920x0_80_0_0_5b66a5a205af23322bb4bce7c0d99276.jpg The current geopolitical situation dictates the need to permanently improve the technical characteristics of weapons and military equipment, and increase the production of arms, the official added.Western countries, including the US, have been providing massive military and financial aid to Kiev since the start of Russia's military operation in Ukraine in February 2022. The Kremlin has consistently warned against continued arms deliveries to Kiev, saying it would lead to further escalation of the conflict. In April 2022, Russia sent a diplomatic note to all NATO countries on the issue of arms supplies to Ukraine. Acting Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warned that any cargo containing weapons for Ukraine would become a legitimate target for Russia. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240401/not-cut-out-for-real-warfare-german-marder-ifvs-exposed-as-weak-unfit-for-battlefield-1117678093.html Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International russian armed forces, russian military-industrial complex, russia-nato showdown, denis manturov, sergey lavrov, nato https://sputnikglobe.com/20240513/russian-un-envoy-says-israeli-operation-in-rafah-will-have-negative-impact-on-red-sea-1118414095.html Russian UN Envoy Says Israeli Operation in Rafah Will Have Negative Impact on Red Sea Russian UN Envoy Says Israeli Operation in Rafah Will Have Negative Impact on Red Sea Sputnik International Israels planned operations in Rafah could harm the situation in the Red Sea, Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said on Monday. 2024-05-13T18:16+0000 2024-05-13T18:16+0000 2024-05-13T18:16+0000 world israel russia yemen middle east houthi un security council (unsc) the united nations (un) palestine-israel conflict red sea crisis https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/05/08/1118329569_0:160:3073:1889_1920x0_80_0_0_ab228e38509c00ed278489635dfe92cc.jpg " Knowing the fundamental position of the Houthis condemning Israeli actions against Palestinian civilians, there is no doubt that this will have an impact on the situation in Yemen's surrounding waters," Nebenzia said in the UN Security Council chamber during a meeting on Yemen. In addition, Nebenzia said that Russia is in favor of "free and safe" navigation. Nebenzia also said that Western states disregard international law by advancing their agendas purely based on profit. "Through their actions, they are just bolstering their reputation as total wheeler-dealers, who have no compunction about trampling on international law if it prevents them from making a profit or implementing their mercenary, geopolitical agenda," Nebenzia said in the UN Security Council chamber during a meeting on Yemen. Last week, Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the movement was ready to attack any ships heading to Israel from the Mediterranean Sea, as well as expand operations in the Red and Arabian Seas and the Indian Ocean against ships linked to Israel or bound for its ports if the Jewish state launches an offensive in the city of Rafah. Yemen's Houthi rebels vowed in November 2023 to attack any ships associated with Israel until it halts military actions in the Gaza Strip. The attacks prompted the US to form a multinational coalition to protect shipping in the area, as well as to strike Houthi targets on the ground. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240226/red-sea-crisis-triggers-shortage-of-oil-tankers-1116986040.html israel russia yemen red sea Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International gaza war, gaza strip, israeli operation in rafah, idf, vassily nebenzia, rafah, red sea, red sea crisis, houthis https://sputnikglobe.com/20240513/shoigu-will-monitor-work-of-russias-service-for-military-technical-cooperation-1118413190.html Shoigu Will Monitor Work of Russia's Service for Military-Technical Cooperation Shoigu Will Monitor Work of Russia's Service for Military-Technical Cooperation Sputnik International Secretary of the Russian Security Council Sergei Shoigu will oversee the work of the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation, but will not become the head of the service, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday. 2024-05-13T17:04+0000 2024-05-13T17:04+0000 2024-05-13T17:04+0000 russia dmitry peskov sergei shoigu russia russian security council russian federal service for military-technical cooperation (fsmtc) https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/05/0d/1118413029_0:0:2938:1654_1920x0_80_0_0_769b033eb95f49c5ad207ef5801dbafd.jpg "Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation Sergei Shoigu will oversee the work of the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation. He will not be the direct head of this service," Peskov told reporters. The current head of the Russian Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation is Dmitry Shugaev, the spokesman added. On Sunday, Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed to appoint Shoigu as the Secretary of the Russian Security Council. Later, Peskov added that Shoigu will continue to be in charge of the Russian Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation and serve as the president's deputy at the country's Military Industrial Commission. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240420/shoigu-inspects-drones-and-small-arms-at-firing-range-in-moscow-military-district-1118024303.html russia Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International sergei shoigu, dmitry peskov, kremlin, russia, government reshuffle, russian federal service for military-technical cooperation, russian defense ministry, russian security council https://sputnikglobe.com/20240513/sweden-not-ruling-out-deployment-of-nuclear-weapons-in-wartime-1118407443.html Sweden Not Ruling Out Deployment of Nuclear Weapons in Wartime Sweden Not Ruling Out Deployment of Nuclear Weapons in Wartime Sputnik International Sweden does not exclude a possibility of deploying nuclear weapons on its territory during wartime, while there is no such necessity in times of peace, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said on Monday. 2024-05-13T11:14+0000 2024-05-13T11:14+0000 2024-05-13T11:14+0000 military sweden russia nato ulf kristersson nuclear weapons https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/19381/67/193816708_0:44:2896:1673_1920x0_80_0_0_e4c490380a6a915b03d1d748dcc7d535.jpg We have two draft legislation prepared. According to them, Sweden says that we will not have permanent [NATO] troops or nuclear weapons deployed on Swedish territory in the time of peace It is another thing during wartime. In this case, all NATO members will benefit from the nuclear umbrella, which should exist as long as Russia possesses nuclear weapons, the prime minister told Sveriges Radio. The democratic states should be capable of defending themselves from those countries who threaten them with the use of nuclear weapons, Kristersson said. Our NATO membership and all the Swedish defense is aimed at preventing such a situation, Kristersson said, adding that there would have been no conflict right now in case of Ukraine's NATO membership. In June, the Swedish parliament is expected to vote on the Defense Cooperation Agreement (DCA) with the United States which was signed in December 2023. The agreement provides the US with access to the Swedish training grounds, military camps, ports, air bases and airports in 17 Swedish settlements throughout the country. Sweden and Finland simultaneously submitted applications to join NATO in May 2022. Finland became the 31st member of the alliance on April 4, 2023. Sweden officially became the 32nd NATO member state on March 7. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240413/russia-shames-kishida-over-nuclear-threat-rhetoric-as-he-conveniently-forgets-who-nuked-japan-1117912123.html sweden russia Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International sweden, swedish army, nuclear weapon, swedish prime minister ulf kristersson, nukes in sweden, nuclear weapons in sweden, nuclear weapons You are here: Business Visitors are seen at the exhibition area of Chinese NEV manufacturer BYD during the 2024 Beijing International Automotive Exhibition in Beijing, capital of China, May 4, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua] Chinese-brand passenger vehicle sales soared 26.7 percent year on year in the first four months of the year, industry data showed. More than 4.66 million domestic-brand passenger vehicles were sold during the period, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. The market share of such vehicles rose to 60.7 percent, up 7.7 percentage points from the same period last year. In April alone, the sales of these vehicles surged 27.3 percent year on year to top 1.27 million units, the data also revealed. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240513/tehran-says-no-changes-made-to-irans-nuclear-doctrine-1118414757.html Tehran Says No Changes Made to Iran's Nuclear Doctrine Tehran Says No Changes Made to Iran's Nuclear Doctrine Sputnik International Iran has not made any changes to its nuclear doctrine, with the country's position on the matter expressed by its leadership more than once, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said on Monday. 2024-05-13T18:56+0000 2024-05-13T18:56+0000 2024-05-13T18:56+0000 world tehran middle east iran joint comprehensive plan of action (jcpoa) https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/106041/61/1060416175_0:107:2875:1724_1920x0_80_0_0_0b00c8bbb3141c9bfa48bf35d6852ff8.jpg Last week, the head of the Iranian Strategic Council on Foreign Relations, Seyed Kamal Kharrazi, told Qatari broadcaster Al Jazeera that Tehran did not plan to build an atomic bomb. However, if the country's existence is threatened, the Iranian authorities will be forced to change their doctrine, he added. In 2015, Iran signed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) with China, France, Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States, with the involvement of the European Union. The deal committed Iran to scaling back its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief. The US withdrew from the deal in 2018 under then-President Donald Trump but resumed talks with Iran in a bid to revive the deal under incumbent President Joe Biden. The talks have since hit a deadlock. Tehran maintains that its nuclear program is solely intended for peaceful purposes. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240117/irans-top-diplomat-reiterates-tehrans-readiness-for-all-parties-to-return-to-jcpoa-1116212566.html tehran iran Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International iran, iranian nuclear doctrine, iranian foreign ministry spokesman nasser kanaani, no nuclear weapons in iran https://sputnikglobe.com/20240513/ukraine-replaces-commander-of-kharkov-battlegroup-amid-russian-offensive---reports-1118407065.html Ukraine Replaces Commander of Kharkov Battlegroup Amid Russian Offensive - Reports Ukraine Replaces Commander of Kharkov Battlegroup Amid Russian Offensive - Reports Sputnik International Ukraine shifted its military leaders to the north-eastern area after Moscow made considerable gains, the RBC-Ukraine news agency reported on Monday. 2024-05-13T10:46+0000 2024-05-13T10:46+0000 2024-05-13T10:49+0000 kharkov world ukraine russia https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/05/0d/1118407173_0:0:2898:1631_1920x0_80_0_0_4d559207d9b9519098f3403d7f6969a6.jpg Mykhailo Drapatyi has reportedly replaced Yuriy Galushkin as Ukraine's Kharkov Battlegroup's commander. This is the second time in two months that the Ukrainian military leadership has made changes in the group.Galushkin had been leading the Kharkov Operational Tactical Group since early April 2024 after replacing Andrey Gritskov. Drapatyi previously participated in what Kiev calls an "anti-terrorist operations" in Donbass. Last September, the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs issued a warrant for Drapatyi and another Ukrainian general, Viktor Nikolyuk, accusing them of causing the death and injury of over 150 people. The head of the Kharkov regional military administration, Oleg Sinegubov, earlier acknowledged a real threat of the zone of combat expanding to various areas in the region. Recently, Russian military forces reported significant advances in Kharkov Oblast, capturing several locations. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240219/how-euromaidan-triggered-ukraines-nine-year-war-on-donbass-1116864693.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20240511/scott-ritter-predicts-how-ukraine-will-end-1118382169.html kharkov ukraine russia Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International russian special military operation, ukrainian armed forces, kharkov region, kharkov offensive https://sputnikglobe.com/20240513/us-sabotaging-agreement-with-russia-on-legal-assistance---russian-prosecutor-general-1118406632.html US Sabotaging Agreement With Russia on Legal Assistance - Russian Prosecutor General US Sabotaging Agreement With Russia on Legal Assistance - Russian Prosecutor General Sputnik International The United States is sabotaging the agreement with Russia on mutual legal assistance in criminal matters, Russian Prosecutor General Igor Krasnov said in an interview with Sputnik. 2024-05-13T09:20+0000 2024-05-13T09:20+0000 2024-05-13T09:20+0000 world russia us us hegemony russian prosecutor generals office us department of justice canada https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e6/0b/1d/1104835583_0:320:3072:2048_1920x0_80_0_0_0389033d5e2ad2c25b25ddac7ad925ad.jpg "The treaty on mutual legal assistance in criminal matters with the United States, as well as with Canada, is still formally in force. The Russian Prosecutor Generals Office, along with the US Department of Justice, is also the central body ensuring its implementation. However, the American side neglects its international obligations under the treaty, actually sabotaging its implementation," Krasnov said. Since March 2022, Washington has not practically responded to requests for legal assistance sent by Russia, the official said, noting that "the Russian-US cooperation has not been interrupted officially." russia canada Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International russia, us, russia-us legal cooperation, russian prosecutor's general office, us department of justice, canada, prosecution Fresh off a gutsy 1:50.2 win in second-round preliminary action last week, 2023 North America Cup and Little Brown Jug winner Its My Show will seek the Kentucky Sire Stakes title for four-year-old male pacers in Monday's $100,000 USD final at Oak Grove. The millionaire gelded son of Sweet Lou-Put On A Show dug deep in the stretch to parry Blue Lou and win the first start of his 2024 campaign, and he has been installed as the 2-1 morning line favourite from post seven in Monday's final. Scott Zeron will again drive the Richard and Joanne Young homebred for trainer Linda Toscano. Among Its My Show's seven rivals are Admiral Hill, who swept his preliminary divisions in 1:50.2 and 1:51.3, and is the 5-2 second choice. The Sweet Lou-Laura Hill gelding is undefeated in four starts since being transferred to trainer Per Engblom, having also won a $37,162 Winners-Over event at The Meadowlands in April before shipping to Kentucky. Yannick Gingras retains the drive. The four-year-old pace, carded as race seven, is the last of the four $100,000 USD Kentucky Sire Stakes finals on Monday's 13-race program. In the mare pace, carded as race one, Nancy Takter trainee Always B Naughty (2-1, Andy McCarthy, post two) and Anette Lorentzon pupil Keep My Secret (5-2, Tony Hall, post six) will face off as the only two entrants to finish in the top three in both preliminary rounds. Breeders Crown elimination winner Strong Poison (7-2, Gingras, post one) and first-round winner Zanatta (9-2, Andy Miller, post seven) round out the top four morning line favourites. Takter will have a second chance at a Kentucky Sire Stakes title in the male trot, carded as race four. Her Bestfriend Volo staved off multiple challengers en route to a 1:52.3 second-leg win after sweeping the New Jersey Maturity. Dexter Dunn drives the Walner-Bank Of Newport gelding, who is the 8-5 morning line choice, from post four. French Wine, who won in round one before lifting from the pocket to just miss Bestfriend Volo last week, is the 2-1 second choice from post seven for driver Andy Miller and trainer Julie Miller. The mare trot likely goes through Mambacita, who is the 3-5 early choice in the six-horse field after sweeping the preliminary rounds with a pair of open-length victories. Dunn retains the drive on the Tactical Landing-Bills Lady mare for trainer Tony Alagna. In total, more than $540,000 USD will be at stake on the Monday card at Oak Grove. First post is 3 p.m. CDT. Free past-performance pages and The Players' Guide, featuring commentary from racing analyst Ray Cotolo, are available on the Oak Grove website at oakgrovegaming.com. (With files from Oak Grove) The first Standardbreds stepped onto the newly expanded five-eighths-of-a-mile racetrack ahead of the launch of Grand River Raceway's 2024 harness season next month. Grand River Raceway, a former a half-mile racetrack, hosted its first training session since the reconfiguration with three sets of trainers taking to the Elora, Ont. oval last Thursday, May 9. Intial reactions to the new racing surface from the horsepeople and track management were positive. Norm Dunstan's homebred two-year-old trotting colt Lexus Legacy was the first horse on the track for the Arthur, Ont. husband and wife, driving and training team of Trevor and Shannon Henry. The unraced son of Trixton seemed to handle the outing well and didn't appear to be too phased by the construction trucks moving around the outside of the track completing work. "I think it's great," said Trevor Henry, commenting on the new track in a social media video posted by Grand River Raceway. "It's a lot bigger, the turns are certainly bigger than they were before and the surface seems really good. It seems like it's gonna be a great idea and should work great." "Usually we go to Mohawk to train them down, but you never get anything done at the barns, so coming here is way better for us -- we're only 20 minutes away," added Shannon Henry. "And it's good experience for [the horses] and, you know, we'll bring them here to race because, you know, a bigger track... trotters... it's good for everybody." "Thursday was an exciting day for us at Grand River Raceway, horses trained on the new track for the first time, and everything went off without a hitch," Jenna MacDonell, Raceway Manager at Grand River Raceway, told Trot Insider. "The plan for the new five-eighths-mile track has been in the works for several years, and it was amazing to witness the first horse enter the track. "We have a large harness racing community in this area, so it is incredible for the horsepeople to have this larger track available so close by. With the new track, I expect we will see many more young horses racing here, along with those who previously could not race on a half-mile track. In past years, the team at Grand River has done an amazing job creating a facility where the public can get excited about racing. The new track means we can offer a great product for both visitors on-site and those viewing via simulcast. Work on Grand River Raceway's reconfiguration began last August. MacDonell reported that timer boxes are being hooked up this week along with the judges PA and emergency light system. Racing over Grand River's new five-eighths-of-a-mile raceway will begin as scheduled on opening day of the 2024 harness racing season next month on Wednesday, June 5. Grand River will host 48 race dates from June through the end of September, with racing on Monday, Wednesday and Friday nights. Post time will be 6:30 p.m., except on Monday, Aug. 5 when the tracks signature Industry Day program will begin at 12:30 p.m. For a complete racing schedule, click here. (Standardbred Canada) Scottsbluff Public Schools is asking for the communitys help in naming the former SWBC Building. The school district purchased the building in December 2024 as part of its early childhood programming expansion. The building will be utilized by Bear Cub Preschool, Sixpence Birth to Three Program, additional childcare programs, various district operations and more. Interested individuals can submit ideas online at sbps.net/name or in person at the District Office. There is no limit to the number of submissions that can be made, but all submissions must include a rationale as to why the committee should consider the name as well as contact information for the person submitting. All submissions that meet the criteria are welcome and encouraged. School officials encouraged the community to seek inspiration from local landmarks, directions, nature, local individuals and local history. Full criteria can be found on the submission form. Ideas will be collected through July 1 and a committee comprised of school board members, district staff and community members will review submissions and make a recommendation to the Board of Education for adoption in the Fall of 2024. Yang Yang, a male giant panda at Zoo Atlanta in the United States, is in good health, the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding said over the weekend, addressing online rumors that he had been seen gnawing on walls due to hunger. Concerns were raised recently after videos of Yang Yang, one of a pair of pandas sent to the US in 1999, spread online. They showed him foaming at the mouth, vomiting and gnawing on walls, and led some people to ask whether Yang Yang was being treated improperly. In a detailed response posted on social media on Saturday that explained panda behavior, the panda research base in Chengdu, Sichuan province, denied rumors that Yang Yang had been fainting or lacked food. It said foaming at the mouth is a normal physiological response for giant pandas during extensive movement, and vomiting is a natural way for the animals to expel mucous. The base also said that gnawing and scratching are common behaviors when giant pandas explore their environment. It said the giant pandas at Zoo Atlanta are adequately provided for and are not experiencing any issues related to insufficient food intake. Each animal is offered over 40 kilograms of bamboo or bamboo shoots a day, with small amounts of fruits and vegetables and high-fiber biscuits as supplements. Chinese and US teams had confirmed that what online rumors had described as diarrhea was in fact a mix of bamboo shoot feces and urine, the base said. Since their arrival in Atlanta, Yang Yang and Lun Lun have produced seven offspring. In accordance with agreements between China and the US, the pair's repatriation is being prepared. The base said it has established a stable and effective communication channel with Zoo Atlanta to ensure regular exchanges on the care and medical treatment of the giant pandas. "Each giant panda residing overseas serves not only as an adorable 'ambassador of friendship' but also as a precious national treasure, with their every action touching our hearts," it said. The base closely monitors the living conditions of each overseas giant panda, provides guidance to their foreign caretakers and sends experts to conduct annual on-site inspections in collaboration with foreign teams, it said. Based on an international conservation and research cooperation signed by China and the US in February, two giant pandas Yun Chuan and Xin Bao will be sent to San Diego Zoo in California. Beijing sent the first pair of giant pandas to the US in 1972, just weeks after then-US president Richard Nixon's historic visit to China. Kalama High School students are planning a walk-out protest in support of Palestine at 1:50 p.m. Wednesday. Participating students will march from the school to the intersection of First and Elm streets, where they are expected to demonstrate for about 30 minutes. Kalama Police Department officers will provide traffic control and manage crosswalks. A Facebook post by the police department asked residents to refrain from harassing the students or attempting to assist with "keeping the community safe." Student organizer Reese Hollingsworth, a senior, said he was inspired by a walk out at Columbia University and wanted to provide additional support for their cause. He originally suggested holding the walk out at 9:40 a.m., but moved the time after speaking with Kalama High School Principal Heidi Bunker and Kalama Police Chief Ralph Herrera. Holding the protest near the end of the school day would be less disruptive to student learning and provide more visibility as parents gather to pick up students, he said. Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect Reese Hollingsworth's pronouns. 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: The EU wants to build up its renewable energy to reduce greenhouse gas emmissions. Two Chinese-owned solar panel manufacturers have withdrawn from a public procurement tender in Romania after the EU launched a foreign subsidies probe, Brussels said Monday. Brussels is both seeking to ramp up Europe's renewable energy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, while simultaneously moving away from excessive reliance on cheaper Chinese wind and solar technology. More broadly, the EU wants to defend European industry against growing threats from China and the United States, and has launched multiple probes into Chinese firms over state subsidies. The European Commission started an investigation in April into two consortiums suspected of receiving subsidies that Brussels feared undercut rivals in Europe. After the Chinese-owned firms withdrew their bid, the commission said it would "close its in-depth investigation". The probe was launched under new rules that came into force last year and seek to prevent foreign subsidies from undermining fair competition in the EU. "We are massively investing in the installation of solar panels to decrease our carbon emissions and energy billsbut this should not come at the expense of our energy security, our industrial competitiveness and European jobs," the EU's internal market commissioner, Thierry Breton, said. The new rules ensure "foreign companies which participate in the European economy do so by abiding to our rules on fair competition and transparency", he added. But the China Chamber of Commerce to the EU slammed the rules "as a tool of economic coercion" which left the Chinese companies with "no commercially prudent options but to withdraw". The CCCEU claimed the Chinese companies faced more scrutiny than other non-EU firms, and said the withdrawal "hampers" the EU's "green transformation efforts". Rising trade tensions One of the two consortiums targeted in the probe includes the Enevo group in Romania and a German subsidiary of Chinese parent company Longi Green Energy Technology. Longithe world's biggest solar panel manufacturersaid it remained "fully committed to working with its partners in Europe" to ensure the continent "can meet its ambitious renewable energy and climate goals." The second consortium was made up of two subsidiaries both fully controlled by Chinese state-owned firm, Shanghai Electric group. They had applied to design, construct and operate a photovoltaic park in Romania, partly financed by EU funds. The estimated value of the contract was around 375 million euros ($405 million). Europe relies heavily on foreign solar panels. More than 97 percent of the panels in Europe are imported, mainly from China, according to Brussels. Other EU probes have been opened into Chinese subsidies for electric cars and trains, and wind turbines as trade tensions escalate between the two sides. A fight over solar panels is nothing new for the EU. In 2013, the EU imposed anti-dumping duties after European manufacturers said Chinese panel imports were undercutting their firms, though they were scrapped five years later. 2024 AFP 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: Human-machine interaction by eye-tracking using smart contact lens. b) shows a photograph of the lens. Credit: Nature Communications (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-47851-y Scientists from Nanjing, China, have developed eye-tracking smart content lenses based on radio frequency tags that can be used for various applications, including health care and augmented reality (AR). The lenses are biocompatible and imperceptible, requiring no battery or conventional silicon chips. Smart contact lenses that can keep track of various health factors and can be used for human-machine interaction (HMI) are a relatively new technology. These rely on tracking eye movements using methods like pupil center corneal reflection and electrooculography (EOG). While these methods have shown some success, they lack accuracy and are susceptible to interference. Additionally, EOG, which uses skin electrodes for collecting data, has been shown to pose a risk to the skin. The new study published in Nature Communications aims to overcome the challenges posed by traditional eye-tracking methods. One of the co-authors of the study, Prof. Fei Xu from the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Nanjing University, spoke to Tech Xplore about the work. Speaking of what inspired him to develop smart contact lenses, he spoke about how science fiction can drive scientists' imaginations and creativity. "Mission: Impossible 4 proposed a smart contact lens with a facial recognition function. If small contact lenses can achieve a seamless combination of the virtual and real worlds, it will be the ultimate form of AR technology. The human-computer interaction technology based on eye tracking is one of the more important components," he said. Human-machine interaction The interaction of humans and machines is the next step or challenge in the technological world, and HMI is at the heart of this. HMI is a study of how humans and machines interact and how to make this communication smoother and more efficient. It has the potential to impact several domains, including gaming, health care, AR, and robotics. Eye-tracking using smart contact lenses is one of the ways in which we can facilitate HMI. It can help to monitor various health parameters, make it easier to communicate with robots, and give a more immersive AR experience. However, as mentioned before, present eye-tracking methods have challenges, which has required scientists to take a new approach. The researchers propose a frequency-encoding approach to overcome these challenges. Frequency-encoding The frequency encoding method used by the researchers for the smart contact lens involves encoding information about eye movements into radio frequency or RF signals. The RF signals are generated by RF tags which have been embedded within the contact lens. RF tags, which are also known as RFID chips, are also used in things like credit cards. They are completely wireless and require no battery source to work, making them ideal for eye-tracking applications using contact lenses. Each tag emits a unique frequency signal corresponding to different eye movements or positions. As the eye moves, the relative positions of the RF tags change, which alters the frequency of the emitted signal. By detecting and analyzing these frequency changes, the system (or machine) can determine the direction and extent of eye movements in real time. This frequency encoding strategy allows for precise and accurate tracking of eye movements without the need for conventional silicon chips or batteries, making smart contact lenses more compact, lightweight, and biocompatible. Additionally, it is very secure. Prof. Xu explained, "The implementation of this technology eliminates the possibility of the leakage of iris and other biometric information. Human eye information contains the attention mechanism of the human brain, and human intention can be analyzed by tracking eye movement. User authorization is required to use the eye-tracking information." Making and testing the smart contact lens The researchers used four RF tags and embedded them in a silicone elastomer. Silicone is what regular contact lenses are made from, making these smart contact lenses biocompatible. This setup was tested to minimize toxicity to the cornea, which could lead to corneal inflammation. A portable sweeping frequency reader was kept nearby to record and analyze the signals from the RF tags (it serves as the machine part of HMI). The researchers demonstrated that their smart contact lenses can detect gazing directions and real-time gazing points, which could be used for robot control and software interaction. Further, they showed that the lenses are very stable and can be worn for up to 12 hours in different environmental conditions. They have also shown that the lenses can detect eye closure. One of the key aspects of these smart contact lenses is their high angular accuracy, which enables eye command recognition for broader HMI applications. "Our eye-tracking contact lenses are highly accurate, with an eye movement angle accuracy of less than 0.5 degrees, even smaller than the viewing angle provided by the fovea. The fovea is the densest area of cones in the retina, providing high-definition imaging and where attention is focused," said Prof. Xu. They also showed how eye commands can control games like Gluttonous Snake and can be used for web browsing. Moreover, they conducted in-vivo experiments in rabbits to verify the lenses' function and safety. The smart contact lens is very similar to the commercially available contact lenses and was proven to be hydrated, safe, and biocompatible with the eye. "In situ, eye tracking can be achieved through contact lenses, which are small and lightweight, not easy to detect, compatible with fashion, and do not affect interpersonal social interaction," added Prof. Xu. Potential applications Since the launch of the Apple Vision Pro, it has prompted researchers and the public to explore the potential applications of computer and human interaction using the eyes. "Contact lenses are the ultimate form of AR. The seamless integration of the virtual world and the real world through contact lenses has been depicted in many science fiction works." "With the development of optoelectronic technology and the improvement of the flexible integration of optoelectronic devices, contact lenses will realize more and more functions in human-computer interaction and medical health," concluded Prof. Xu. This will not only promote technological innovation but have a positive impact on people's quality of life. More information: Hengtian Zhu et al, Frequency-encoded eye tracking smart contact lens for humanmachine interaction, Nature Communications (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-47851-y Journal information: Nature Communications 2024 Science X Network 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: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain Solar power, widely seen as humanity's best hope for avoiding catastrophic climate change, can carry a heavy environmental cost, depending on where panels and transmission lines are built. Some of that infrastructureproviding electricity to millions of Californiansis going into places it should not, says San Jose State University environmental studies professor and sustainable energy expert, Dustin Mulvaney. Killing plants and animals, of course, is not a goal for solar developers, but the collateral damage has sparked bitter debate over where panels and lines belong. California has done a good job of protecting its public lands while facilitating solar development, Mulvaney says. But many residents are powering their homes with electricity from Nevada, where pristine natural areas are taking an increasingly hard hit, and from private, California projects in important animal and plant habitats, he says. Several "aggregators"community-based alternatives to utility giants that are often marketed as "clean"have contracts for power from a Southern California project that would see 4,000 Joshua trees leveled, he says. Other projects feeding aggregators bring significant loss of wildlife habitat. Mulvaney believes sacrificing nature for solar is unnecessary. California could meet its electricity needs by putting solar panels on just a tenth of its contaminated sites, old mines, unusable former farmlands, parking lots and other disturbed areas, he says. "We need to be building out our electricity transmission infrastructure toward those sites," Mulvaney says. The more solar close to major urban areas, the better, he adds. Every home and Amazon warehouse presents another rooftop-solar opportunity, he says. This news organization sat down with Mulvaney recently to discuss solar power. The interview has been edited for length and clarity. Describe the controversy over where to put solar generation facilities? Most big solar farms are not controversial. They get controversial when they go onto landscapes that are of significance, either ecological significance or cultural significancesometimes there are important cultural resources for tribes. Do we have need for both rooftop solar and utility-scale solar? We should have more rooftop, but we're going to need more utility scale based on the way our grid is built. Why do we have solar developments and proposals for pristine areas, when already-altered land is available? Transmission lines are why we see projects where they are. Back in the '60s we built transmission lines to connect to coal-fired power plants in the western United States. As those coal-fired power plants are turning off, those transmission lines suddenly have power availability. The (planned new) Greenlink transmission line which is going to connect Las Vegas and Reno goes through a Native American site and through a bunch of sensitive ecosystems. And we're already seeing applications for solar farms along that transmission corridor. That's going to be power that goes to California, probably. Nevada has fewer protections for its public lands. What roles do the big utilities like PG&E and Southern California Edison play in where solar farms go up? The community choice aggregators are playing a bigger role than the utilities in determining these development patterns now. The community choice aggregators are doing much of the (power) purchasing. For the Yellow Pine solar farm on the Nevada border (to produce electricity for Silicon Valley Clean Energy and Central Coast Community Energy), lots of desert tortoises had to be removed from that site. Forty-something of those tortoises were eaten by badgers right away. Could we meet our electricity needs without big solar farms? There's nothing theoretically prohibiting rooftop solar and batteries from powering a community. Do you have enough sun? We get those back to back to back to back cyclones in the winter. Sometimes the cloud cover's all the way across the Central Valley. Do you have enough batteries? The battery storage probably makes that prohibitively expensive at this stage. It would require rethinking how we move power around. What do we stand to lose by putting big solar farms in the wilderness? All sorts of species, old-growth barrel cactus, desert tortoise, kit fox. The desert tortoise just last week was up-listed by the California Department of Fish and Game to be endangered. That species has lost 90% of its population since 1980. Bighorn sheep and pronghorn antelope are impacted by solar farms because their habitat gets fragmented by them. Their populations get more isolated, they have inbreeding. Could we meet all our needs without putting solar on undisturbed wilderness? There's a great study. You can avoid important lands to conservation and it would only increase the cost of power by 3%, based on their estimates. Where are some places where you could put reasonable amounts of solar generation to help avoid bringing power in from the desert or Nevada? On the western side of the Central Valley a lot of those soils are contaminated with selenium. That would be an area where you could have less impact. That's where you could put pretty big utility scale projects that would be really close to the Bay Area, and above the bottleneckCalifornia has a (power line capacity) bottleneck for the power, around Los Banos. We have to build more renewables above the bottleneck in northern California to help the Bay Area. What about Southern California? You have a lot of renewables in Southern California already. Southern California just needs more rooftop solar on their warehouses and things like that. What should Californians know about disputes over the solar power they are increasingly consuming? This is a very solvable problem. You can get a lot of benefits out of projects if you start thinking about these projects as multi-functional: growing food and solar on the same landscape. Aquaculture underneath some floating solar. Apiariespeople are bringing honeybees into solar farms. This is a pretty neat technology that could be used to solve multiple problems at once. Now we're thinking about climate change, so we don't think about land. We need to be really thinking about holistic solutions. MediaNews Group, Inc. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. 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: A Seagull electric vehicle from Chinese automaker BYD for test driving is parked outside a showroom in Beijing, Wednesday, April 10, 2024. The tiny, low-priced electric vehicle called the Seagull has American automakers and politicians trembling. The car, launched last year by Chinese automaker BYD, sells for around $12,000 in China. But it drives well and is put together with craftsmanship that rivals U.S.-made electric vehicles that cost three times as much. Tariffs on imported Chinese vehicles probably will keep the Seagull away from Americas shores for now.Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan A tiny, low-priced electric car called the Seagull has American automakers and politicians trembling. The car, launched last year by Chinese automaker BYD, sells for around $12,000 in China, but drives well and is put together with craftsmanship that rivals U.S.-made electric vehicles that cost three times as much. A shorter-range version costs under $10,000. Tariffs on imported Chinese vehicles probably will keep the Seagull away from America's shores for now, and it likely would sell for more than 12 grand if imported. But the rapid emergence of low-priced EVs from China could shake up the global auto industry in ways not seen since Japanese makers exploded on the scene during the oil crises of the 1970s. BYD, which stands for "Build Your Dreams," could be a nightmare for the U.S. auto industry. "Any car company that's not paying attention to them as a competitor is going to be lost when they hit their market," said Sam Fiorani, a vice president at AutoForecast Solutions near Philadelphia. "BYD's entry into the U.S. market isn't an if. It's a when." U.S. politicians and manufacturers already see Chinese EVs as a serious threat. The Biden administration on Tuesday is expected to announce 100% tariffs on electric vehicles imported from China, saying they pose a threat to U.S. jobs and national security. The Alliance for American Manufacturing says in a paper that government subsidized Chinese EVs "could end up being an extinction-level event for the U.S. auto sector." Earlier this year, Tesla CEO Elon Musk told industry analysts Chinese EVs are so good that without trade barriers, "they will pretty much demolish most other car companies in the world." Outside of China, EVs are often pricey, aimed at a higher-income niche market. But Chinese brands that are not yet global household names are offering affordable options that will appeal to the massesjust as the U.S., European and many other governments are encouraging a shift away from gasoline-powered vehicles to fight climate change. The Seagull electric vehicle from Chinese automaker BYD is displayed at a showroom in Beijing, Wednesday, April 10, 2024. The tiny, low-priced electric vehicle called the Seagull has American automakers and politicians trembling. The car, launched last year by Chinese automaker BYD, sells for around $12,000 in China. But it drives well and is put together with craftsmanship that rivals U.S.-made electric vehicles that cost three times as much. Tariffs on imported Chinese vehicles probably will keep the Seagull away from Americas shores for now.Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan "The Western markets did not democratize EVs. They gentrified EVs," said Bill Russo, the founder of the Automobility Ltd. consultancy in Shanghai. "And when you gentrify, you limit the size of the market. China is all about democratizing EVs, and that's what will ultimately lead Chinese companies to be successful as they go global." Inside a huge garage in an industrial area west of Detroit, a company called Caresoft Global tore apart a Seagull that its China office purchased and shipped to the U.S. Company President Terry Woychowski, a former chief engineer on General Motors' big pickup trucks, said the car is a "clarion call" for the U.S. auto industry, which is years behind China in designing low-cost EVs. After the teardown, Woychowski, who has been in the auto business for 45 years, said he was left wondering if U.S. automakers can adjust. "Things will have to change in some radical ways in order to be able to compete," he said. There's no single miracle that explains how BYD can manufacture the Seagull for so little. Instead, Woychowski said the entire car, which can go 252 miles (405 kilometers) per charge, is "an exercise in efficiency." Higher U.S. labor costs are a part of the equation. BYD can keep costs down because of its expertise in making batterieslargely for consumer productsthat use lithium iron phosphate chemistry. They cost less but have lower range than most current lithium-ion batteries. Americans are still learning how to make cheaper batteries, Woychowski said. Ford is building a lithium iron phosphate battery factory, using technology from China's CATL. BYD makes many of its own parts, including electric motors, dashboards, bodies and even headlights. It also has the advantage of its huge scale3 million vehicles sold worldwide last year. "By having that all in-house and vertically integrated, there's an incredible advantage that they have," Woychowski said. Residents past by a Seagull electric vehicle from Chinese automaker BYD parked at a showroom in Beijing, Wednesday, April 10, 2024. The tiny, low-priced electric vehicle called the Seagull has American automakers and politicians trembling. The car, launched last year by Chinese automaker BYD, sells for around $12,000 in China. But it drives well and is put together with craftsmanship that rivals U.S.-made electric vehicles that cost three times as much. Tariffs on imported Chinese vehicles probably will keep the Seagull away from Americas shores for now.Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan BYD designs all aspects of its vehicles with cost and efficiency in mind. For instance, the Seagull has only one windshield wiper, eliminating one motor and one arm, saving on weight, cost and labor to install. U.S. automakers don't often design vehicles this way and incur excess engineering costs, Woychowski said. Hoses, for instance, have to meet longstanding requirements in combustion engines for strength and ability to carry fluid under high pressure, many of which aren't needed for electric vehicles, he added. The weight savings add up, allowing the Seagull to travel farther per charge on a smaller battery. For example, the Seagull that Caresoft tested weighs 2,734 pounds (1,240 kilograms), about 900 pounds less than a Chevrolet Bolt, a slightly larger electric vehicle made by GM. So Detroit needs to quickly re-learn a lot of design and engineering to keep up while shedding practices from a century of building vehicles. The trick will be determining which procedures to keep for safety and quality, and which to jettison because they aren't needed, he said. "You're going to have to come and be extremely serious about this, and you better park your paradigms at the door," Woychowski said. "Because you're going to have to do things differently." Even with its minimalist design, the Seagull still has a quality feel. The doors close solidly. The gray synthetic leather seats have stitching that matches the bright green body color, a feature usually found in more expensive cars. The Seagull "Flying Edition" tested by Caresoft has six air bags, rear disc brakes and electronic stability control. A brief drive through some connected parking lots by a reporter showed that it runs quietly and handles curves and bumps as well as more costly electric vehicles. While the acceleration isn't head-snapping like other EVs, the Seagull is peppy and would have no problems entering a freeway in heavy traffic. Woychowski says its top speed is limited to 81 mph, (130 kilometers per hour). BYD would have to modify its cars to meet U.S. safety standards, which are more stringent than in China. Woychowski says Caresoft hasn't done crash tests, but he estimated that would add a couple thousand dollars to the cost. Sales staff stand near the Seagull electric vehicle from Chinese automaker BYD at a showroom in Beijing, Wednesday, April 10, 2024. The tiny, low-priced electric vehicle called the Seagull has American automakers and politicians trembling. The car, launched last year by Chinese automaker BYD, sells for around $12,000 in China. But it drives well and is put together with craftsmanship that rivals U.S.-made electric vehicles that cost three times as much. Tariffs on imported Chinese vehicles probably will keep the Seagull away from Americas shores for now.Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan BYD sells the Seagull, rebranded as the Dolphin Mini in some overseas markets, in four Latin American countries for about $21,000, twice what it costs at home. The higher price includes transportation costs, but also reflects the higher profits possible in less cutthroat markets than China. In Europe, BYD offers larger models such as the Seal, which starts at 46,990 euros ($50,000), in France. The Chinese maker's top two overseas markets were Thailand and Brazil in the first two months of this year, according to the China Passenger Car Association. BYD builds electric buses in California and told The Associated Press last year that it is "still in the process" of deciding whether to sell autos in the U.S. It is weighing sites for a factory in Mexico, but that would be for the Mexican market, two company executives said in media interviews earlier this year. The company's CEO said at a conference in May that it has no plans to sell EVs in the U.S. BYD EVs aren't being sold in the U.S. now largely because of 27.5% tariffs on the sale price of Chinese vehicles when they arrive at ports. Donald Trump slapped on the bulk of the tariff, 25%, when he was president, and it was kept in place under Joe Biden. Trump contends that the rise of EVs backed by Biden will cost U.S. factory jobs, sending the work to China. The Biden administration has backed legislation and policies to build a U.S. EV manufacturing base. The administration also is investigating cars made in China that can gather sensitive information. Some members of Congress are urging Biden to ban imports of Chinese vehicles, while others have proposed even steeper tariffs. This includes vehicles made in Mexico by Chinese companies that now would come in largely without tariffs. Ford CEO Jim Farley has seen Caresoft's work on the Seagull and observed BYD's rapid growth across the globe, especially in Europe, where he used to run Ford's operations. He's moving to change his company. A small "skunkworks" team is designing a new, small EV from the ground up to keep costs down and quality high, he told analysts earlier this year. Chinese makers, Farley said, sold almost no EVs in Europe two years ago, but now they have 10% of the electric vehicle market. It's likely they'll export around the globe and possibly sell in the U.S. Ford is preparing to counter that. "Don't take anything for granted," Farley said. "This CEO doesn't." 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. You are here: World Flash More than 4,000 people have been evacuated in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region since Russia launched the latest round of missile attacks on Friday, regional governor Oleg Synegubov said Sunday. Among them, 2,097 people from the Kharkiv district, 1,377 from the Chuguev district, 29 from the Bogoduhiv district, and 570 others have been evacuated, Synegubov wrote on social media Telegram. The Ukrainian authorities have provided temporary accommodation, as well as humanitarian, medical, psychological and legal assistance to the evacuees, the governor said. In the past 24 hours, Russia struck 27 settlements in the Kharkiv region with artillery and mortars, killing three people, while the Ukrainian military repelled 31 attacks, he said. On Friday, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said battles were underway in the Kharkiv region after Russia launched a fresh offensive. Private lender Eximbank, telecom giant Viettel ink five-year cooperation pact By An Nhien, Minh Hue Mon, May 13, 2024 | 4:45 pm GMT+7 Vietnamese private lender Eximbank will provide banking products and services to military-run telecom giant Viettel, its employees and customers under a five-year (2024-2028) agreement signed recently by both sides. Representatives of Eximbank and Viettel sign a five-year (2024-2028) comprehensive cooperation agreement, Hanoi, May 10, 2024. Photo courtesy of the bank. Under the comprehensive cooperation agreement inked last Friday, Eximbank and Viettel will work as partners, cooperating in fields suitable with respective capabilities, business strategies and strengths while committing to maintaining long-term, effective cooperation in their development process to optimally tap domestic and foreign market potentials. Eximbank will ensure delivery of appropriate credit and financial services for Viettel, while the latter, with its strengths, reputation and experience in telecommunications, information technology and digital transformation, will provide the former with appropriate solutions, helping the lender formulate and implement an overall and comprehensive digital transformation plan. Speaking at the signing ceremony, Eximbank acting CEO Nguyen Hoang Hai said the lender wished to cooperate with Viettel on the basis of equality, mutual benefit, efficiency, safety and respect for law. During their five-year cooperation deal, the two sides will coordinate on building and developing products and services associated with digital transformation, meeting the strong development needs of the fourth Industrial Revolution, he said. With a sustainable development strategy that takes innovation in technological thinking as its core, the bank will strive to create special landmarks in cooperation with Viettel, he said. Currently, Eximbank was focusing on investing in systems, people, and asset quality with the goal of regaining its previous position in the financial market, he stated, expressing the hope that the agreement will form a premise for both parties to set more specific and effective goals. Nguyen Thanh Nam, deputy CEO of Viettel, said that telecom giant was now the No. 1 network service provider, accounting for 56.5% of the domestic mobile market share and held the largest market share in six international markets. It was also affirming its key role in national digital transformation through cooperation agreements with more than 100 agencies/organizations. Construction will soon begin for 10 new Orangeburg-Calhoun Technical College classrooms in Holly Hill. Officials donned hard hats and hoisted gold-colored shovels to symbolically break ground for the project on Monday. The classrooms will be located at the Holly Hill Municipal Complex, located at 8423 Old State Road. Specifically, the classrooms will be built on the second floor of the right wing of the complex. The project includes the addition of an elevator, new drop ceilings and new floors. The first floor of the wing is occupied by the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control. The cost of the project is $2.2 million, with $1 million coming from a plutonium settlement South Carolina reached with the U.S. Department of Energy. Then $1.2 million came from local and county funds. Pyramid Contracting is doing the work. This is a great day for eastern Orangeburg County, Orangeburg County Council Chair Johnnie Wright Sr. said. This is a big, big, big deal, as far as Im concerned, he added. Wright explained that the addition of OCtech classrooms at the site has been a goal since 2011, but the funds just werent available. Everything that is done is a team effort, Wright said. It takes all of us to get it done, he added, noting that former Holly Hill Mayor William Johnson was part of the planning efforts. OCtech President Dr. Walt Tobin said, It has been a long time coming. We are the drivers of economic development and the primary provider for the workforce in this region of South Carolina, Tobin said. He said, Today, as we break ground, we are also planting seeds of potential growth and transformation. We look forward to seeing these seeds blossom into the successful futures of our students. Tobin said the classrooms are expected to open in the fall of 2025. Were in discussions, amongst my staff and members of the faculty and staff at the college, about the programs that we think meet the needs of the citizens and address economic development needs of this region of the county, he said. Sen. Brad Hutto, D-Orangeburg, said, Its a collaborative effort to make sure that our young people and people who need to be retrained will have a closer educational opportunity than driving all the way to Orangeburg. Orangeburg is going to be a growing county and the growth is going to come in Santee, Eutawville and Holly Hill because its coming out of Charleston, Hutto said. Weve got to be prepared for that growth. Rep. Gilda Cobb-Hunter, D-Orangeburg, noted that leaders from MUSC Health-Orangeburg were also in attendance at the event. This is about partnerships. This is about collaboration, she said. OCtech, MUSC Health-Orangeburg, theyve got a great partnership as far as workforce development, health care workforce, all of that, she added. This facility is not just a facility in the town of Holly Hill. This facility is for all of eastern Orangeburg County, she said. Having it here wont mean a thing if we dont use it, she cautioned. We want to encourage everybody in the eastern part of Orangeburg County to recognize that we now have a facility that you dont have to drive all the way to Orangeburg in order to access it, she said. After the event, local mayors commented about the project. Holly Hill Mayor Billy Chavis said bringing OCtech classes to the town will improve education for future generations and bring training opportunities closer to where industries will be locating. It will serve the citizens of this end of the county tremendously, Santee Mayor Donnie Hilliard said. The tech system can create classes to accommodate their needs, especially with the workforce area, he said. Eutawville Mayor Brandon Weatherford said, This is huge. Its right down the road from us. Its a place where someone can come to learn something and they dont have far to travel. This is going to be great for everybody. (TBTCO) - Thi truong bat ong san, nhat la can ho tai cua ngo khu Tay TP. Ho Chi Minh ang tro thanh tam iem thu hut su quan tam cua nhieu nha au tu va nguoi mua o. Suc hut chinh la do ha tang giao thong trong iem ngay cang uoc chu trong nang cap va mo rong. Qua o, thi truong nay khong chi gop phan thuc ay giao thuong va phat trien kinh te trong khu vuc ma con giup gia tang gia tri bat ong san. Man City eye swoop for highly-regarded Everton academy keeper 13/05/2024 Manchester City are the latest club to be linked with a move for Everton U18s keeper Douglas Lukjanciks. The 16-year-old, who is a dual Latvian national, has only made a handful of appearances for Leighton Baines's side but he is already an England U-17 international and has been attracting attention from potential suitors this season. In March, there was talk of a host of clubs including Bayer Leverkusen, RB Leipzig, Marseille and Southampton eyeing a move for Lukjanciks and now Manchester City are reportedly lining up a 10m part-exchange bid for this summer. The report is from former Sun journalist, Alan Nixon, whose track record is pretty poor on this stuff, but it does indicate the fact that Lukjanciks is being looked at by other clubs. Article continues below video content Everton's need to sell players to ease their financial woes means that there will be plenty of stories like this and no shortage of eyes on the pick of Club's young talent. Note: the following content is not moderated or vetted by the site owners at the time of submission. Comments are the responsibility of the poster. Disclaimer () How to get rid of these ads and support TW ToffeeWeb China improves nursing to meet rising demand for elderly care Xinhua) 08:41, May 13, 2024 BEIJING, May 12 (Xinhua) -- China has been improving gerontological nursing services in hospitals and communities to meet the growing demand for elderly care among its aging population, an official of the country's National Health Commission (NHC) said ahead of International Nurses Day, which falls on Sunday this year. Xing Ruoqi, deputy director of the commission's medical administration department, said at a press conference on Saturday that the majority of China's elderly people live with multiple chronic conditions, leading to rising demand for gerontological care and age-related chronic disease care. Extending survival periods for chronic diseases are also increasing the demand for nursing and rehabilitation services, Xing noted. Professional gerontological nursing training has been reinforced nationwide as part of China's efforts to improve the work of its 5.63 million registered nurses, Xing said. "We aim to ensure that at least 90 percent of gerontological nurses in the country will have received skills training by 2025," she added. She noted that China launched a pilot program in 2021 to promote elderly care in 15 provincial-level regions, including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangdong and Sichuan. The number of health institutions providing elderly care services has since increased by an approximate average of 16 percent in these regions. "Elderly care capacities at the community level need to be improved continuously," said Peng Bin, vice president of Beijing's Peking Union Medical College Hospital (PUMCH). As one of China's leading hospitals, PUMCH provides regular training for nurses at community healthcare institutions, Peng said. The hospital's gerontological nursing team provides hands-on guidance on common practices for elderly patients, such as the placement of nasogastric tubes, effectively reducing risks in community nursing and ensuring patient safety, he added. The PUMCH gerontological nursing team also makes regular visits to community hospitals and health centers to provide health education for the elderly, covering the prevention of and interventions for health issues such as cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, which are prevalent among older people, and the prevention of older adult falls, Peng said. To expand access to healthcare services for older people and other population groups with limited mobility, the NHC has been promoting an internet-based healthcare model that allows patients to place orders for door-to-door nursing services online, Xing said. The theme of this year's International Nurses Day in China is "Promoting the development of nurses and improving nursing services," as the public has been calling for more high-quality and personalized nursing services, according to the NHC. Many elderly patients with relatively mild conditions experience anxiety, depression or other psychological issues, said Zhang Haiqin, a gerontological nurse with 10 years of experience at Dalian Friendship Hospital in northeast China's Liaoning Province. "They require patient inquiries related to their feelings and needs, and attention to their emotional changes," she said. Zhang works with about 10 patients every day and usually, three to five of those patients have disabilities. She said that as elderly patients often have multiple chronic diseases and complications, they require comprehensive treatment and care, which means her work is high-pressure and full of challenges. Hospitals have taken measures to relieve the stress experienced by nurses so that nurses can provide services while maintaining supportive relationships with those in their care. According to Peng Bin, PUMCH has employed nearly 600 medical care assistants and auxiliary personnel to assist with basic tasks and patient care. The hospital has also realized a centralized distribution of medicines and supplies to save nurses time, he said. It has also established a centralized intravenous fluid preparation center to shorten the preparation time, and optimized its information systems to relieve nurses of manual record-keeping work, Peng added. "These measures have alleviated the burdens of paperwork and non-nursing tasks placed on nurses, bringing nurses back to patients and allowing them to spend more time observing, caring for and providing health guidance to their patients, and communicating with patients and their families," Peng said. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Flash People inspect destroyed buildings after Israeli bombardment at Al-Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza Strip, May 11, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua] The Palestinian death toll from ongoing Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip has exceeded 35,000, health authorities in Gaza said in a press statement on Sunday. During the past 24 hours, the Israeli army killed 63 Palestinians and wounded 114 others, bringing the total death toll to 35,034 and injuries to 78,755 since the Palestinian-Israeli conflict broke out last October, it said. The statement noted that a number of victims are still under the rubble, and ambulance and civil defense crews cannot reach them. Israel has been launching a large-scale offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip to retaliate against a Hamas rampage through the southern Israeli border on Oct. 7, 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and around 250 were taken hostage. You have reached a premium content area of Transitions. To read this entire article please login if you are already a Transitions subscriber. Not a subscriber? Subscribe today for access to: Full access to the website, including premium articles videos, country reports and searchable archives (containing over 25,000 articles). Amid cries to boycott Wyoming or to relist wolves as endangered following the torture of a wolf run down and captured by a snowmobiler in April, the states wildlife agency published its annual report noting the animals continue to thrive where their existence is managed. The Wyoming Game and Fish Department reported an estimated 352 wolves in 43 packs, which included 24 breeding pairs at the end of last year. The majority of the states wolves 192 animals in 27 packs live within the states Wolf Trophy Game Management Area where hunting is controlled. This area in the northwest corner of the state includes Yellowstone (124 wolves in 11 packs) and Grand Teton national parks, the National Elk Refuge as well as large swaths of national forest and rugged mountain ranges. The documented increase in wolves is attributed to increased recruitment of young wolves entering the population and lower mortality than noted in previous monitoring years, the agency noted. In the rest of the state, where wolves are labeled predators and can be killed any time of the year without a license, an estimated 24 wolves in three packs were counted. Outside the protection of the trophy management area, 59 wolf mortalities were recorded, 51 of which were killed by the public. Inside the trophy management area, hunters killed 47 wolves. The departments robust monitoring program and data set provides insight into population dynamics and tells the story of wolf conservation and management, said Game and Fish Director Brian Nesvik in a press release. Wyoming has a proven track record of successfully managing our gray wolf population, and we will continue that approach into the future. The department highlighted Wyoming has met goals for recovery of wolves under the Endangered Species Act 22 years in a row. The animals were first reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park in 1995. Wyoming Game and Fish also noted that despite an increase in the states wolf population, the state recorded the lowest number of verified livestock conflicts since 2010. Forty-one cattle, three sheep, four goats and a horse were confirmed to have been killed by wolves. Eighteen wolves were killed by the wildlife agency or the public to reduce livestock losses, including five on the Wind River Reservation. Of 37 wolf-livestock conflicts in the WTGMA in 2025, 58% were on public land (21 cattle) and 42% were on private land (15 cattle and one colt), the department reported. Wolf hunt area 1 (Clarks Fork) had the highest confirmed wolf-cattle conflicts, while conflicts in other hunt areas were significantly lower. To compensate landowners, WGFD paid out $270,710 to 14 livestock producers for animals that were killed or injured. Last year, the state set a wolf hunting harvest target of 40 animals across 13 hunt units in the trophy management area, but only 27 animals were killed. The goal was to cut the population to 160 animals. The wolf season extended from Sept. 15 to Dec. 31, with the exception of two hunting areas hunting in the Alpine area opened in October, and the Whiskey Mountain area hunt extended to the end of March. The number of wolves that died in the WTGMA in 2023 (47 wolves) was the lowest recorded since 2010 and was less than the average number of mortalities from 2012-2022 (average = 73.5 wolves), according to Wyoming Game and Fishs annual report. For comparison, Montana hunters and trappers killed 286 wolves during the 2023-24 season. The Montana Fish and Game Commission had set a quota of 313 wolves. In Idaho, 389 wolves were killed last year, a 10% drop compared to 2022, according to reporting by Boise Public Radio. As of 2022, Montana counted an estimated 1,087 wolves. Idahos estimated population is 1,340. The wildlife agencies in Wyoming, Montana and Idaho have managed wolf populations since they were delisted and state management plans were approved by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. For Idaho that occurred in 2008, in Montana it wasnt until 2011 and in Wyoming, due to lawsuits, it wasnt until 2012. All three states allow hunting under their own regulatory systems. The news of the abuse of the wolf in Wyoming has spread internationally, prompting calls from conservation and animal rights groups for changes to Wyomings regulations. The wolf, a female that was injured after being run down by a snowmobile, was then taken to a bar before being shot. Because the incident occurred outside the states trophy management area, the only charge levied against the man was possession of a living wild animal, a $250 fine. Wyoming wolf management ignores and defies science and is based instead on politics driven by fear-mongering myths and misconceptions about wolves, helping perpetuate irrational hatred towards these native animals, said Kristin Combs, executive director of Wyoming Wildlife Advocates. State wildlife managers are focused on populations of animals and often turn a blind-eye or ignore the welfare of individuals. This gives silent permission to those who would commit acts of cruelty that it is ok to torture animals as long as it isnt hurting the overall population. State officials have denounced the wolfs treatment while defending management of the large carnivores. How you want this to go? You want me to kill you and your son, or you want me just kill you alone? This was the question posed to 40-year-old Anna Ellis yesterday, when she was attacked by a man known to her at her home on Dibe Road, St James. Ellis, who was stabbed multiple times, was able to speak with reporters yesterday afternoon while police were conducting a search for her 12-year-old son, who was kidnapped following the confrontation. PHOENIX Librarians have a lot to think about now that artificial intelligence has entered the picture. Not only could the technology fundamentally change the way they do their jobs, but it also affects areas such as patron privacy and information literacy. But librarians also see AIs potential for good. Cataloging and research are major areas in librarianship that artificial intelligence can automate and potentially improve. The promise of AI in libraries Kira Smith is a librarian who works with Ask a Librarian, a Florida-based virtual reference service where local residents can connect with librarians via text message, live chat or email. She said that some AI tools, like chatbots, can answer common questions from patrons, easing the workload on librarians. If people want to know what time the library is open, a chatbot can easily answer that, which would then free me up to answer the longer questions, Smith said. Integrating AI into library services may also fundamentally change the way information is retrieved and categorized. Nicole Hennig, an e-learning developer at the University of Arizona Libraries, said AI can help with keyword search, a method where a user types the most relevant words of a topic or question into the search box of a database. Specifically, it can generate keywords users would not have otherwise come up with. But Hennig said libraries may transition to a new type of technology called semantic search, which draws from the meaning of the words in a search to find results. By contrast, keyword search results contain direct word matches or related words. Libraries have always been about adding keywords and subject headings and then applying them to things so that people can find them. Thats been since the beginning, she said. But semantic searching is more about using the statistical math behind these models that can know what objects are similar to each other conceptually. Hennig said a shift to semantic search will be slow and that it wouldnt fully replace traditional cataloging techniques. But if libraries do use it, she said, it can be a net positive. There will always be some need for cataloging and adding tags and things for some collections maybe just not everything. And it will help us make stuff available that we dont have the labor to make available now, she said, noting semantic search lets researchers find sources that dont have certain keyword tags. The changing role of librarians Martin Fricke, University of Arizona professor emeritus and author of Artificial Intelligence and Librarianship: Notes for Teaching, said that historically, librarians have acted as intermediaries between patrons and needed information. AI tools may change that. Perplexity, for example, is an AI-powered search engine that can generate answers to research questions, search for sources and summarize articles. If youve got something like Perplexity on a grand scale, often you wont need a librarian at all, Fricke said. Thats why he said librarians will need to adjust their intermediary role. This isnt the first time libraries have dealt with disruptive technology, though, and librarians can look to the past to prepare for the future. When the search engine started to have a big impact, more than a few librarians and particularly the reference librarians became absolute experts at using Google search, Fricke said. Theyre completely on top of Boolean search and things like that, which a lot of ordinary people just dont understand. Boolean search is a technique where a user enters terms such as and, or and not to get the exact results they want. Fricke said its possible for librarians to transform from experts in regular search engines to experts in engineering prompts for large language models. That way, librarians could be a go-to resource for researchers wanting to find information using AI. AI and patron privacy Hennig said the main way libraries access any new technology is through large vendors, which are already looking into adding AI into their services. Im sure that whatever vendor we have, theyre going to come to us and say, Do you want to be a beta tester? Do you want to test this natural language search thing that we have? she said. And we can try it and decide whether we want to include it. There are several factors librarians must consider when deciding whether to purchase a service. One of them is patron privacy, which is a top priority for librarians like Smith. I think that its important to protect patrons privacy because its nobody elses business what you like to read, Smith said. So I would think long and hard before sharing that kind of circulation data with any sort of AI or other system. According to a guide Hennig created for librarians to evaluate AI tools, privacy policies which tell users what information about them is collected and how services use that data are important to take into account. Information literacy considerations AI is transforming another important area: information literacy. Those who are information literate are able to identify when information is necessary plus locate, evaluate and use effectively the needed information, according to the American Library Association. Now this area, information literacy, has almost been blown apart by artificial intelligence, Fricke said, pointing to deepfakes, hallucinations when AI misinterprets data and presents something untrue as fact and other errors attributable to the technology. Henning said librarians have a role to play in keeping everyone up to speed. Because theres such a big lack of awareness and because we already have done information literacy training for years now, this just kind of adds to it, she said. And we quickly need to learn about AI so we can include that in our information literacy training. Smith said that after finding out students were using tools like ChatGPT to write papers, she realized the importance of responsible use. Flash China and the United States will hold the first meeting of the inter-governmental dialogue on artificial intelligence (AI) in Geneva on May 14 local time, according to the Chinese foreign ministry. As agreed by the two sides, China and the United States will exchange views on the technological risks of AI, global governance and other issues of respective concern. The meeting is held to implement the consensus reached at the San Francisco summit between the two heads of state, the ministry said. Geronimo! It was the battle cry shouted by paratroopers as they leaped from airplanes to fight the Nazis during World War II. It was a name that sent fear into white settlers in the early west as well as in Mexicans along the border. In both cases, it meant "jump," either out of an airplane or to the safety of a shelter. Yelling "Geronimo!" as a motivational shout apparently began in 1940 when the Army's airborne branch was new. The practice spread and continues today -- although the enemy on the ground wouldn't be able to hear the yell and be frightened by it. There's reason the word sent chills up the spines of homesteaders. It was the name of a Chiricahua Apache warrior who had become synonymous with warfare and cruelty, who had killed so many men and women that the U.S. government had spent $1 million trying to capture him and the Mexican government had put a price on the heads of all Apaches. Geronimo's cruelty stemmed from his seeking revenge for the death of his wife, Alope, who was killed when a hunting party of Apaches was attacked by Mexican soldiers while on an excursion south of the border. His hatred of Mexicans expanded to include white settlers. Geronimo, who is buried at Fort Sill where he was held captive for the last 15 years of his life, was born in 1829 near where the city of Globe, Ariz., now stands. He spent his childhood in a mountainous area on the Gila River, learning to grow corn, beans and other crops and supported his mother after his father died. He was peaceful as a boy named Ga-khala-yea and was admitted to the tribal council when he was 17, having killed sufficient game to qualify for membership. After his wife was killed, his name was changed by his tribe to Geronimo. Apache Chief Cochise made peace with the Army in 1872 and the Apaches were given a 3,000-square-mile reservation in Arizona. But after Cochise died, the reservation was closed and the Chiricahua Apaches were sent to the East Coast. Geronimo and a small band of warriors refused to go and fought the Army for 10 years in an attempt to regain the Arizona land. Geronimo and his followers finally surrendered and were held captive first in Florida, later in Alabama and finally moved to Fort Sill in 1894. They were much healthier and better satisfied at Fort Sill but still made escape attempts. Geronimo spent the rest of his life living in a tepee near Medicine Creek just west of Fort Sill Boulevard and continued begging to be allowed to return to Arizona and to be allowed to die as a free man. When Theodore Roosevelt was inaugurated as president in 1905, he had Geronimo and several of his followers taken to Washington to ride in the inaugural parade "to give the people a good show." In Washington, Geronimo apologized to Roosevelt for killing so many in defense of his homeland and added, "Great White Chief, the place where I and my people are kept (Fort Sill) is bad for us. Let my people go home. Let me die and be buried in my country (Arizona)." But Roosevelt refused, telling Geronimo "there would be more war and more bloodshed. It is best you stay where you are." The remaining 237 Apaches held at Fort Sill were freed in 1913 and were given their choice of land in Oklahoma or in New Mexico. Eighty-seven chose Oklahoma and became successful farmers and businessmen. In his latter days, Geronimo became a drunk and was placed in the guardhouse to sober up so many times that the building became known as the "Geronimo Guardhouse." The building later became the field artillery museum and continued to bear the Indian's name. Only a few old women attended Geronimo's funeral when he died Feb. 17, 1909. He had lost all influence with the men of the tribe. Even after his death there were attempts to move the Indian's body to Arizona. The last attempt was made by Arizona Apache leaders in 1984 but was rebuffed by Oklahoma Apaches. The bones remain at Fort Sill. Historian Angie Debo noted in her biography of Geronimo that he was buried in an elaborately decorated hearse with his riding whip, blanket and other posses- sions. A monument of stone topped by a stone eagle was erected over the grave in 1931. Photograph research by Rachele Vaughan Like this column? Read all the columns in the Only in Oklahoma series from the Tulsa World Archive. The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport in coordination with relevant units launched a new express boat service linking the citys Nha Be District and Con Dao Island off the southern province of Ba Ria - Vung Tau on Monday morning to meet growing travel demand. The launch of the service is expected to enhance the connectivity between the city and the southeastern provinces, Bui Hoang An, deputy director of the department, said at the launching ceremony. It also offers passengers another mode of transportation to travel between the southern metropolis and Con Dao, a popular tourist destination home to pristine beaches and stunning natural landscapes. Passengers can opt to visit Con Dao from Saigon - Hiep Phuoc Port in Ho Chi Minh Citys Nha Be via the express boat service in around four hours, according to Vu Van Khuong, deputy general director of Phu Quoc Express JSC, the operator of the service. The operator runs the service using the Thang Long boat, which is over 77 meters long and nearly 9.5 meters wide. It is able to transport up to 1,017 passengers and can travel at 35 nautical miles per hour, featuring modern equipment and ensuring ultimate safety for the passengers. One-way tickets on the route fetch between VND615,000 (US$24) and VND1.1 million ($43). The operator offers a transit bus service from the September 23 Park in Ho Chi Minh Citys District 1 to the Saigon - Hiep Phuoc Port in the outlying district of Nha Be from 5:00 am to those who want to use the express boat service. A Thang Long boat plies the route linking Ho Chi Minh Citys Nha Be District with Con Dao Island off Ba Ria - Vung Tau Province in southern Vietnam, May 13, 2024. Photo: Chau Tuan / Tuoi Tre A Thang Long boat departs from Saigon - Hiep Phuoc Port in Ho Chi Minh City, May 13, 2024. Photo: Thu Dung / Tuoi Tre The express boat is able to transport more than 1,000 passengers. Photo: Chau Tuan / Tuoi Tre Officials board the Thang Long boat at Saigon - Hiep Phuoc Port in Ho Chi Minh City, May 13, 2024. Photo: Thu Dung / Tuoi Tre Officials and other delegates explore the Thang Long boat, May 13, 2024. Photo: Chau Tuan / Tuoi Tre Delegates and local people tour the Thang Long boat, May 13, 2024. Photo: Thu Dung / Tuoi Tre Staff are on duty in different areas on the express boat, May 13, 2024. Photo: Chau Tuan / Tuoi Tre Staff are on duty in different areas on the express boat, May 13, 2024. Photo: Chau Tuan / Tuoi Tre Staff are on duty in different areas on the express boat, May 13, 2024. Photo: Chau Tuan / Tuoi Tre The second floor of the express boat houses a canteen. Photo: Thu Dung / Tuoi Tre Passengers can enjoy the view outside through the windows or on the balcony of the express boat. Photo: Chau Tuan / Tuoi Tre The boat was designed to be able to operate normally and safely amid wind gusts at level eight. Photo: Tuoi Tre The express boat was designed to be able to operate normally and safely amid wind gusts at level eight. Photo: Tuoi Tre Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Tourism businesses in Phu Quoc City, off Kien Giang Province, southern Vietnam, are ramping up efforts to stimulate tourism demand for the upcoming summer, after tourist arrivals to the island city during the recent five-day holiday fell short of their expectations. Diep Nguyen Quoc, director at Minh Huy Phu Quoc Tourism Trading Company, said on Sunday that his hotel's occupancy rate just reached some 40 percent during the five-day holiday in celebration of Vietnams Reunification Day (April 30) and International Workers Day (May 1). Another tourist site operated by the company in Hon May Rut Ngoai Island, located in Phu Quoc, served around 700 visitors per day during the holiday, lasting from April 27 to May 1, Quoc added. Given the lower-than-expected travel demand during the recent holiday, many other tourism operators in the island city voiced their concerns over a possible weak demand this summer. Tran Van Phuoc, owner of an eatery in Duong Dong Ward, feared that tourism-related household businesses could experience hardship if the number of visitors to the island dwindles. Quoc said that he would work with tourism service providers to revise tour prices to boost the summer travel demand. The director underlined the need for local authorities and airlines to set airfares more appropriately, explaining that the current high prices of tickets for flights to Phu Quoc would drive tourists away. Nguyen Thi Bich Dieu, vice-president of the Kien Giang Tourism Association and director at Dong Noi Tourism Company, said that travel agencies in Phu Quoc had launched a tourism promotion program called Happy Phu Quoc,' offering multiple promotions. The program includes tours to explore primeval forests, tours in the Duong Dong River and Rach Tram River, and road tours to visit the Mekong Delta region. Phu Quoc City, off Kien Giang Province, southern Vietnam, remains among the top favorite island destinations among international visitors to Vietnam. Photo: Chi Cong / Tuoi Tre Local tourism businesses also made efforts to regularly enhance their products and services, invite travel agencies to Phu Quoc to explore the island city, and host tourism promotion events to woo more domestic and international visitors to the island, Dieu elaborated. The Kien Giang Center for Trade Investment and Tourism Promotion revealed that it set up booths to promote Phu Quoc tourism at travel trade fairs held in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. The center called on local tourism businesses to partner with carriers and high-speed boat operators to offer special deals to attract tourists. The administration of Phu Quoc coordinated with relevant agencies and travel companies to organize tourism promotion events as well. Phu Quoc is seeking the green light from the central government and ministries to consider offering visa exemption for 90 days to international visitors to the island, said Huynh Quang Hung, chairman of the Phu Quoc administration. During the five-day holiday, Kien Giang welcomed more than 270,000 tourist arrivals. Domestic tourist arrivals accounted for over 248,000, dipping 3.6 percent over the same period last year. Phu Quoc served an estimated 125,860 tourist arrivals. Kien Giang recorded a 55.3 percent room occupancy rate and booked close to VND590 billion (US$23 million) in tourism revenue, according to data released by the provincial Department of Tourism. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) on Sunday started working with the Ho Chi Minh City Peoples Committee to take drastic action to manage the gold market and control gold prices in accordance with the prime ministers directive. The move was aimed at eliminating potential manipulation and speculation on the domestic gold market. To boost the efficiency in governing the gold market in the coming time, the SBV and the municipal administration agreed on several solutions, according to the central bank. In particular, the city will team up with the central bank and other relevant agencies to closely and effectively manage the gold market and stabilize prices in line with prevailing regulations to prevent an upsurge of gold prices, manipulation, and speculation. The municipal administration was requested to apply technology and optimize digitalization during their management process, while asking gold trading firms to issue e-invoices when buying or selling gold. The central bank will keep organizing auctions of gold bars to meet the demand of the local market, said an SBV representative. The SBV also advised residents to carefully trade gold amid uncertainties in prices in the global gold market and increased efforts in managing the domestic market. Over the past few months, the prices of gold at Saigon Jewelry Company (SJC), the largest gold firm in Vietnam, have soared to new highs. The price of SJC-branded gold bullion reached a peak of VND92.4 million (US$3,632) per tael on Friday last week, nearly VND20 million ($785) higher than the global price. A tael is equivalent to 37.5 grams or 1.21 troy ounces. The Government Office in Hanoi on Saturday issued an announcement on Deputy Prime Minister Le Minh Khais conclusion about a meeting centering around gold market management. The deputy prime minister urged investigators to launch a probe into gold traders and producers in a bid to ensure stability in the local gold market. Though the central bank adopted several measures to manage the gold market, the outcome was not positive, and gold prices continued to soar. In addition, the gap in gold prices between Vietnam and the world remains wide, according to the announcement. Therefore, the SBV was assigned to cooperate with multiple ministries and agencies to strictly manage the gold market in both short and long terms. After the order, the prices of SJC gold bullion plunged. SJC quoted a selling price at VND91.3 million ($3,588) per tael on Saturday, down VND1.1 million ($43.2) against the previous peak. Expert Tran Duy Phuong predicted that with the determination from the government and the central bank, the prices of SJC-branded gold bullion could fall to VND84-85 million ($3,288 - $3,338) per tael shortly. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! European Union (EU) diplomats participated in a waste collection drive on a beach in Quang Ninh Province, northern Vietnam on Sunday. The 'Vietnam - EU Joining Hands for a Clean Environment drive was jointly organized onBai Chay Beach in the province's Ha Long City by the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the EU Delegation to Vietnam, the Quang Ninh administration, and Vietnamese conglomerate Sun Group. Joining the event were the ministrys leaders, ambassadors of EU countries to Vietnam and their relatives, officials of the EU Delegation to Vietnam, and representatives of Quang Ninh authorities. After the event launching ceremony, nearly 200 delegates, along with local residents and tourists, started collecting garbage of various types along Bai Chay Beach, about one kilometer long, on the shore of Ha Long Bay, according to the Vietnam News Agency. They later moved to the Ha Long International Cruise Port area nearby for the same garbage collection drive. All the waste was transported to designated places for appropriate treatment. Every year, the EU Delegation to Vietnam and EU countries embassies in Vietnam conduct a series of activities to celebrate Europe Day (May 9), which marks the establishment of the European Union, the most successful model of international integration. This year, the waste collection campaign in Ha Long has spread the message of joint efforts to preserve and protect the blue, clean, and beautiful marine environment for everyone and for future generations, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang said at the event. Such an event not only helps strengthen the friendship, mutual understanding, and bilateral cooperation between the EU and Vietnam in general and Quang Ninh in particular, but also contributes to raising the publics awareness of environmental protection, Hang stated. She further expressed Vietnam's desire to maintain fruitful cooperation and assistance from the EU and its member states in safeguarding the environment and restoring soil, forest, and marine ecosystems throughout the country. Ambassador and head of the EU Delegation to Vietnam Julien Guerrier underscored the drives significance, saying it reflected Vietnams constant efforts toward green and sustainable development. By joining the waste collection program, the EU Delegation members wish to contribute to protecting the charming beauty of Ha Long Bay, a UNESCO-recognized world natural heritage site in Ha Long City, Guerrier added. He also affirmed that the EU always supports Vietnam to fulfill its commitments to building a green and circular economy and achieving the target of net-zero emissions by 2050. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Police in Hanoi are verifying a case in which a taxi driver was accused of charging a French couple US$19.5 for a 200-meter ride and also forcing them to pay the same for getting back the wallet and passport they left in the cab. The administration of Hanois Hoan Kiem District on Sunday said local police were clarifying the case which had been spread on social media on the same day, Tien Phong (Vanguard) newspaper reported. M., a Frenchwoman, recounted that she and her husband caught a taxi for a trip from 114 Tran Nhat Duat Street in the district to 9 Cho Gao Street, only about 200 meters away, on Sunday morning. When reaching the destination, the cabbie locked the rear door of the cab and forced the couple to pay VND500,000 ($19.5) before they could get off the vehicle, M. narrated. VND500,000 for a 200-meter distance seems excessively high, as Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper understands. Presently, open-door taxi fares in Hanoi typically range from VND6,000 to VND9,000, while charges for the initial 30 kilometers vary from VND10,500 to VND16,000 per kilometer, contingent upon the type of vehicle. After paying the hefty fare and leaving the cab, M.'s husband found he left his wallet and passport in the vehicle. A short moment later, the taxi driver drove back and asked the couple to pay another VND500,000 to return their belongings. After paying the driver to recover the items, the couple experienced genuine frustration. The Frenchwoman emphasized that the ordeal had a significant psychological impact on them, especially since it occurred during their inaugural trip to Vietnam. They then had a tour guide refer the case, along with a photo of the cab, to local authorities. They said they had finished their trip to Sa Pa Town in northern Lao Cai Province and were sent back to 114 Tran Nhat Duat early on Sunday morning in Hanoi, from where they were scheduled to embark on a new tour. In talking with Tuoi Tre, S., from a travel firm in Hanoi, who posted details of the incident on social media, said that the couple were gearing up for their upcoming tour arranged by his firm when the incident occurred. We carefully told the couple to stay at 114 Tran Nhat Duat while waiting for us to send a vehicle there to pick them up and drove them to 9 Cho Gao Street, the departure point of their new tour," S. said. "Nevertheless, they opted to travel to the location by taxi of their own volition." Commenting on what had happened to them, the couple said they had undergone a bad experience in which they felt they had been swindled, S. narrated. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Iridescent clouds appeared in the sky of Ho Chi Minh City on Sunday afternoon, prompting many to share images of the phenomenon online, playfully dubbing it Aurora borealis in Saigon. Saigon is the old name of the city but it is still in popular use. The magnificent clouds emerged between 3:30 pm and 4:20 pm. The phenomenon is called cloud iridescence or irisation, a colorful optical phenomenon that occurs in clouds and appears in the general proximity of the sun or moon. This occurs when water droplets or ice crystals in the cloud diffract the light around the outside of the droplet, as opposed to bending the light through it. The clouds featured blue, red, yellow, pink, and purple colors mingled together, forming a stunning scene. The clouds looked like silk bands hung in the air. Iridescent clouds are like colorful silk bands in the sky over Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Ai Nhan / Tuoi Tre Many people uploaded photos of the phenomenon to social media while expressing their excitement. Hoang, a resident in Thu Duc City, said he saw the iridescent clouds when he unintentionally looked at the sky. The clouds were like a rainbow but with a bright halo. Huynh Phu Vinh, another local resident, shared that he was in Go Vap District when spotting the phenomenon. There were many strange clouds with outstandingly beautiful colors in the sky. He immediately took photos of the clouds and shared them with his friends. These clouds changed their shapes and colors within 20 minutes before disappearing, Vinh noted. Iridescent clouds are seen in the sky over District 4, Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Nga Nguyen / Tuoi Tre Plenty of netizens have shared photos of the cloud iridescence in Ho Chi Minh City on Facebook. According to meteorological experts, the phenomenon is not very rare. Le Thi Xuan Lan, former deputy head of the forecasting department under the Southern Region Hydro-meteorological Station, likened cloud iridescence to a rainbow. Such clouds are signs of thunderstorms and rain, Lan added. Many people have shared images of the phenomenon online. Photo: Dinh Thuong / Tuoi Tre Iridescent clouds are seen in the sky over Binh Tan District, Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Le Thanh Huy / Tuoi Tre Iridescent clouds in the Ho Chi Minh City sky. Photo: Facebook page of 'Toi Yeu Thien Van Hoc' (I Love Astronomy) Iridescent clouds in the Ho Chi Minh City sky. Photo: Phung Quan / Tuoi Tre Meteorological experts say that the phenomenon is not very rare. Photo: Minh Hoa / Tuoi Tre Iridescent clouds are the edge of the clouds shone by the sun. Photo: Minh Hoa / Tuoi Tre Many people are excited about the cloud iridescence in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Facebook page of artist Hong Van Iridescent clouds are seen in the sky over Thu Duc City, Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Minh Hoa / Tuoi Tre Iridescent clouds are seen in the sky over Go Vap District, Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Huynh Phu Vinh / Tuoi Tre Iridescent clouds are seen in the sky over Go Vap District, Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Huynh Phu Vinh / Tuoi Tre Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! A group of young men have conquered the Hon Chuong Mountain peak in Binh Dinh Province, located in south-central Vietnam, by scaling a vertical rock face with a rope. A Facebook account, called H.N.B., on Saturday posted several photos and videos capturing the group of daredevils performing their rope climbing skills at Hon Chuong Mountain, situated in Cat Tai Commune, Phu Cat District, in Facebook group Binh Dinh Thong Tin. They climbed without protection gear, scaring social media users. After these photos and videos went viral, many were terrified by their action, supposing that they were doing a life-threatening activity. A man scales a vertical mountain without safety harnesses in Binh Dinh Province, south-central Vietnam. Photo: Facebook These climbers wore casual clothes and were not equipped with safety harnesses, but they completed the feat. The peak is dozens of meters high above sea level. Nguyen Ba Quang, chairman of the Cat Tai Commune Peoples Committee, said that the mountain is far from the locales residential areas. I have watched a video showing some young people scaling the steep mountain slope," Quang said. "This was a dangerous challenge. The commune will warn the group of their risky action to prevent these death-defying climbers from repeating it." A man scales a vertical mountain without safety harnesses in Binh Dinh Province, south-central Vietnam. Photo: Facebook Tourists can visit Hon Chuong Mountain and Cham Tower on the peak, but they must not organize solo climbing, he stressed. Except for groups of researchers and surveyors entering the mountain, the rope-climbing group was the first to conquer the peak, said Nguyen Van Hung, chairman of the administration of Phu Cat District. I was frightened when watching it [the video capturing the group climbing the rock face," Hung said. Such a reckless action is prohibited at Hon Chuong Mountain. Pham Anh Tuan, chairman of the provincial Peoples Committee, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on Sunday afternoon that the province would promptly address the situation. Such a risky activity not only endangers climers, but also defaces the image of the province, he asserted. According to Research Book titled 'Hoai Nhon, Qui Nhon, Qui Ninh, Binh Dinh - Land and People' by researcher Nguyen Thanh Quang, Cham Tower stands on Hon Chuong Mountain 727 meters above sea level, and some 50 kilometers from Quy Nhon City, the capital of Binh Dinh Province. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Nestled on Tran Phu Street in District 5, commonly known as the bustling heart of Ho Chi Minh Citys China Town, the renowned Xoi Man (Savory Sticky Rice) 409 shop has become a local household name, with intriguing tales surrounding its monikers, including the spooky, yet most used one morgue sticky rice.' Sharing the shops history with Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper, Luu Bao Minh, son of its founder, revealed that the name morgue sticky rice was coined by loyal customers. Previously, Minhs parents operated a sticky rice cart at the intersection of Nguyen Tri Phuong and Tran Phu Streets. Over time, their family relocated to the current location on Tran Phu Street. The renowned Xoi Man (Savory Sticky Rice) 409 shop on Tran Phu Street in District 5, Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Ho Lam / Tuoi Tre The sticky rice eatery has stood for nearly half a century on Tran Phu Street, which boats two funeral homes, surrounded by hospitals, coffin vendors, and votive paper sellers, hence earning the moniker morgue sticky rice. It's just stuck, and now everyone refers to our shop as morgue sticky rice, Minh said. However, our shop has also been known by many other names over the years. As the night falls, the shop teems with patrons. Three staff members diligently prepare sticky rice, swiftly serving eager customers. Roasted ground peanuts top the surface of the sticky rice. Photo: Ho Lam / Tuoi Tre Amid a lull in business, Minh reflected on the various appellations of his familys establishment. At one point, it was dubbed Bouncing Sticky Rice because we sold sticky rice from a wooden cart that bounced whenever it was touched, Minh said. Then, it became Clattering Sticky Rice due to the rhythmic clattering of the spoon against the pot." For the regular theatergoers of the past, Minhs sticky rice shop was affectionately called Xoi Hao Hue as it was situated near the Hao Hue theater, frequented by renowned troupes. Many theatergoers would stop by after shows, as well as famed local comedians like Bao Quoc and Duy Phuong, who would stop over for a portion," Minh reminisced. A pot of sticky rice releases billowing steam at the renowned Xoi Man (Savory Sticky Rice) 409 shop on Tran Phu Street in District 5, Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Ho Lam / Tuoi Tre Savory ingredients Reflecting on his familys hardships, Minh recalled his parents raising their five children by vending sticky rice on the sidewalk. Despite the difficulties, my parents toiled diligently every day to make ends meet, Minh said. I joined them in selling sticky rice when I was a student. I cherish and miss them dearly, which is perhaps why Ive continued this profession. Minh recounted the traditional approach to cooking sticky rice, employing charcoal and wrapping it in banana leaves, a method passed down from his parents. He continues to uphold this practice, appreciating its rustic charm and eco-friendly nature. Meat floss is made by the owner of the renowned Xoi Man (Savory Sticky Rice) 409 shop on Tran Phu Street in District 5, Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Ho Lam / Tuoi Tre The shop opens at 3:00 pm, with Minh commencing the steaming of sticky rice from noon onward. With portions priced at VND20,000-30,000 (US$0.8-1.2) apiece, the nightly sales volume fluctuates unpredictably, sometimes bustling with activity, while other times quiet and subdued. He sources raw sticky rice from a trusted supplier, ensuring uniformity in grain size and optimal steaming for a delectable texture. Most patrons favor the savory sticky rice dish, featuring scallion oil, crispy fried shallots, roasted peanuts, and meat floss, all freshly prepared by Minh daily. I prepare scallion oil and crispy fried shallots in small batches to maintain freshness, Minh said. The peanuts are roasted and ground to a smooth powder, ensuring even distribution when mixed with the rice." The dish also features lap xuong (Chinese sausage), procured from a longstanding contact in the Mekong Delta province of Soc Trang. Photo: Ho Lam / Tuoi Tre The dish also features lap xuong (Chinese sausage), procured from a longstanding contact in the Mekong Delta province of Soc Trang and renowned for its traditional flavor. As the clock neared 9:00 pm, the steam from the pot of sticky rice lingered, awaiting service to the eager queue of customers, predominantly elderly Chinese residents of District 5, with whom Minh converses fluently in Chinese. Weve known many of these Chinese customers for decades, Minh said. Theyve been regulars since my parents time. Even after living abroad for 30-40 years, when they return to Saigon, they visit us. Nearly half a century since its inception, evolving from a humble cart to a proper eatery, the morgue sticky rice shop has undoubtedly left an indelible mark on the cultural and culinary scenes of District 5. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! A design inspired by the Vietnamese to he (toy figurines) claimed the best traditional costume prize at the Miss & Mister Fitness Supermodel World 2024, held at the Ho May tourist area in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province, southern Vietnam from May 10 to 20. In the national costume competition of the supermodel pageant on Sunday, 34 contestants from various countries and territories showcased their unique cultural expressions. Each participant brought forth creative ensembles reflecting their heritage. Tuyet Mai wins the best traditional costume prize with a 'to he'-inspired design at the Miss & Mister Fitness Supermodel World 2024 in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province, southern Vietnam, May 12, 2024. Photo: Missosology Representing Vietnam were Tuyet Mai and Thai Bui, runners-up of the Miss & Mister Fitness Supermodel Vietnam 2023 contest, respectively. Tuyet Mai adorned herself in to he attire crafted by designer Khac Hoang. Besides being a toy, to he embodies cultural significance as a symbol of luck, prosperity, and happiness. Thai Bui is stunning in a Hung Kings-inspired ensemble at the Miss & Mister Fitness Supermodel World 2024 in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province, southern Vietnam, May 12, 2024. Photo: Missosology Meanwhile, Thai Bui donned a regal outfit representing resilience and valor by designer Tuan Hai, paying homage to Hung Kings, the title given to the ancient Vietnamese rulers of the Hong Bang period (2879-258 BC). Their performances earned Vietnam the top spots for the most beautiful national costumes. Sri Lankas outfit, inspired by King Ravana, clinches the best national costume award at the Miss & Mister Fitness Supermodel World 2024 in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province, southern Vietnam, May 12, 2024. Photo: Missosology The to he design ultimately won the best traditional costume prize for the Miss Fitness Supermodel World 2024 category. In the Mister Fitness Supermodel World 2024 category, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, and the Philippines received recognition for their striking ensembles, with Sri Lanka claiming the title. The final round of the pageant is scheduled for May 18 in Vung Tau City of Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province. A vibrant Taiwanese design showcases ceramic and brocade motifs at the Miss & Mister Fitness Supermodel World 2024 in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province, southern Vietnam, May 12, 2024. Photo: Missosology Taiwan's vibrant costume design flaunts festive colors at the Miss & Mister Fitness Supermodel World 2024 in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province, southern Vietnam, May 12, 2024. Photo: Missosology An Australian design secures a spot in the overall top three at the Miss & Mister Fitness Supermodel World 2024 in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province, southern Vietnam, May 12, 2024. Photo: Missosology The Philippines cultural richness shines through their sophisticated design at the Miss & Mister Fitness Supermodel World 2024 in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province, southern Vietnam, May 12, 2024. Photo: Missosology A Japanese contestant poses in her traditional attire at the Miss & Mister Fitness Supermodel World 2024 in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province, southern Vietnam, May 12, 2024. Photo: Missosology A South Korean traditional costume exudes elegance at the Miss & Mister Fitness Supermodel World 2024 in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province, southern Vietnam, May 12, 2024. Photo: Missosology Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Sunrise presenters Matt Shirvington and Natalie Barr will play themselves in a guest appearance on Home & Away when Hollywood actor Stevie Marlow (Catherine Van-Davies) visits Summer Bay. Also this week a new relationship is on the rocks and a shocking turn of events leaves Dana (Ally Harris) and Harper (Jessica Redmayne) reeling. Heres how the Sunrise hosts are woven into the storyline, with Shirvo on set and Natalie Barr in the Sunrise studio. Since her arrival in town, the A-lister has made waves in the Bay, bringing with her a troupe of loyal fans and unprecedented media interest in the seaside community. After hiring ex-cop Cash (Nicholas Cartwright) as her personal bodyguard, Stevie selects Summer Bay as the perfect backdrop for her new romcom. Before long, the Bay is abuzz with the excitement of movie magic and the media circus that comes with it. On the first day of production, the PR machine is in full swing as Stevie gears up for a live Sunrise cross from the set. But when John Palmer (Shane Withington) gets a case of stage fright before his big morning TV debut, its up to none other than Summer Bay icon, Alf Stewart (Ray Meagher), to step up and escort Stevie to the interview. The fun scene sees Shirvo interviewing the famous starlet, and crossing back to Nat who is live from Sunrises new, state of the art studio in Sydney. Wednesday, 7.00pm on Seven. ZURICH (Reuters) - UBS on Monday said almost $5 billion worth of Additional Tier 1 (AT1) bonds, a form of debt, have been made available for equity conversion following a decision by shareholders of the Swiss bank last month. The bank said that as of May 10, the decision covers four outstanding AT1 issuances made since November 2023, three worth a total of $4.5 billion and one more with a value of 650 million Singapore dollars ($480 million). "As a result, as from such date, these instruments are subject to equity conversion (and no longer subject to write-down) upon the occurrence of a trigger event or a viability event," UBS said in a statement. Last year, Swiss regulator FINMA sparked a crisis in the banks debt market when it wrote down about $17 billion of Credit Suisse' AT1s as part of its rescue. In a sale in November, the first since its takeover of Credit Suisse, UBS saw strong demand as it made the terms of the bonds more appealing, including promising a conversion into shares in case of trouble. AT1 bonds, which act as a shock absorber if a bank's capital levels fall below a certain threshold, have been encouraged by regulators since the 2008-09 global financial crisis. ($1 = 1.3542 Singapore dollars) (Writing by Dave Graham; Editing my Noele Illien and Jan Harvey) FILE PHOTO: FILE PHOTO: Ben & Jerry's ice cream on display in a store in Manhattan, New York City, U.S. By Jessica DiNapoli NEW YORK (Reuters) - The board of Ben & Jerry's ice cream, a brand owned by Unilever, said that the pro-Palestinian protests sweeping U.S. college campuses and graduation ceremonies are "essential" to democracy. The Vermont-based frozen dairy dessert maker, sold on some college campuses, called for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza in January. Lunch counter sit-ins, student-led protests against the Vietnam War and Apartheid South Africa, and now the campus protests in solidarity with Gaza, all are part of our rich history of free speech and non-violent protest that makes change and is essential to a strong democracy, the independent board said in a statement. Three years ago, Ben & Jerry's announced it would stop selling its ice cream in the Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories, saying it was "inconsistent" with its values, and leading parent company Unilever to look for a "new arrangement" for selling the ice cream in Israel. Unilever then offloaded its Israeli Ben & Jerry's business to a local licensee, keeping the ice cream for sale in the country. The Ben & Jerry's board sued to try to block the sale, and the lawsuit was later "resolved." Unilever is now planning to spin out its ice cream unit by 2025 in an effort to simplify its business. London-based Unilever did not immediately return a request for comment. Although many companies and executives initially condemned Hamas' attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, few have said much about the specific conduct of the war since, although some have supported charity efforts to send aid to the region. Ben & Jerry's has spoken out on a number of issues, including gay marriage, prison reform and abortion rights. (Reporting by Jessica DiNapoli in New York; additional reporting by Ross Kerber; Editing by Susan Fenton) By Joan Faus BARCELONA (Reuters) - Catalonia's outgoing president said on Monday he would quit politics after his separatist party's disastrous showing in the region's election that saw Spain's Socialists deliver an historic upset to the independence movement. Pere Aragones's moderate Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya (ERC) remains the best hope for the Socialists, who won the most votes in Sunday's election but fell short of a majority, to form government in the prosperous northeastern region. Aragones, who has led Catalonia for three years, said his party would not back the Socialists, telling them to call on hardline separatist party Junts instead. "ERC will remain in opposition, which is where citizens have placed us," he told reporters. The Socialists, led locally by Salvador Illa, had 42 seats in Catalonia's 135-seat chamber with more than 99% of the vote counted, while its habitual coalition partner, far-left Sumar, won six. Junts had 35 seats, and ERC had 20. To win an investiture vote to form government, parties must have 68 seats in the first round and a simple majority in the second. Senior Socialist official Nuria Parlon told reporters their preferred option was a leftist agreement with ERC and Sumar, with a minority government backed by other parties as an alternative. The regional vote also has implications for the stability of the national government. ERC has presided over a period of calming tensions with Spain's Socialist-led central government following the turbulent years after Catalonia held an illegal independence referendum in 2017 and briefly declared independence, sparking a constitutional crisis. PARDONS Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has pardoned separatist leaders convicted over the independence drive and offered a controversial amnesty to others still being prosecuted. ERC has in turn backed Sanchez's minority government nationally. The fruits of that more conciliatory approach were reflected in Sunday night's good result for the Socialists, while the ERC lost significant support. Now, it must decide whether to remain firm in rejecting the Socialists' overtures to support it to form a government, potentially forcing a fresh vote. Ignacio Jurado, a political scientist from Carlos III University in Madrid, said ERC may decide its voters may have punished it for having too friendly relations with Madrid, and up the price of its support both at a regional and national level. Demands have in the past included control of the region's train network and taxes. The more hardline separatist Junts party has also backed the minority Socialist national government. But its leader Carles Puigdemont told reporters on Monday that he would not support the formation of a regional Socialist government and if the Socialists turned instead to the conservative People's Party, Junts would withdraw its backing for national government too. Cristina Monge, an independent political analyst, said the continued support of the ERC and Junts was crucial for the stability of Spain's national government. "If one of them, Puigdemont probably, is not included in any way in the Catalonia agreement, he could put the Spanish government in a very difficult position," she said. (Reporting by Joan Faus and Belen Carreno, Writing by Aislinn Laing,; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne) (Reuters) -U.S. crews in Baltimore set off controlled explosions on Monday to allow them to remove a portion of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge from the bow of the massive container ship that toppled the span in March. The detonations were meant to break the bridge's truss into small sections, enabling salvage crews to use cranes and barges to haul away the twisted metal wreckage, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said. The work, originally planned for Sunday, was delayed because of weather conditions. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and state officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment on how successful the detonations were. In the early morning of March 26, the ship, the Dali, lost power and crashed into a bridge support, sending the span into the Patapsco River, with a major portion draped over the Dali's bow. Six construction workers were killed. The incident initially halted traffic at the Port of Baltimore, which ranks first in the U.S. in several cargo categories, including autos and light trucks, farm and construction machinery, imported sugar and imported gypsum, according to the state of Maryland. Since the crash, four temporary channels have been opened, allowing for some shipping to resume. The Corps said it aims to restore port access to full capacity by the end of May. Maryland estimates it will cost $1.7 billion to $1.9 billion to rebuild the bridge and anticipates completion by fall 2028. In April, the FBI opened a criminal probe into the collapse. Safety investigators recovered the ship's "black box" recorder, which provides data on its position, speed, heading, radar, and bridge audio and radio communications, as well as alarms. (Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Chicago and Brad Brooks in Longmont, Colorado; Editing by Frank McGurty, Josie Kao and David Gregorio) By Elke Ahlswede MUENSTER, Germany (Reuters) -A German high court on Monday ruled that domestic security services could continue to treat the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) as a potentially extremist party, meaning they retain the right to keep it under surveillance. The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV), charged with protecting Germany's democratic order from extremist threats, has classified the AfD as potentially extreme since 2021. Judges at the higher administrative court in Muenster upheld a lower court's 2022 finding that the designation was proportionate and did not violate the constitution, or European or domestic civil law. "The court finds there is sufficient evidence that the AfD pursues goals that run against the human dignity of certain groups and against democracy," the judges wrote. "There are grounds to suspect at least part of the party wants to accord second-rank status to German citizens with a migration background." The party, which tops polls in several eastern states that hold elections later this year, has recently faced harsher scrutiny over racist remarks by members and allegations that it harbours spies and agents for Russia and China. "The establishment of this state - and that includes the BfV and the media - is being used to exclude us from democratic competition," said the AfD's co-leader, Alice Weidel, adding that the AfD would appeal. Monday's ruling settles the facts of the case: an appeal could only involve questioning the way lower courts applied the law. Few experts had expected the AfD's challenge of the lower court's ruling to succeed. The party presented no fresh evidence, instead taking up hours of court time with lengthy submissions demanding senior government officials be summoned as witnesses. That led some experts to suggest the court challenge was as much part of a communications strategy and a plan to gum up the institutions of the state as it was a legal strategy. "This ruling shows that our democracy can defend itself," said Interior Minister Nancy Faeser in a statement. "It has tools that protect it from internal threats." The potentially extremist designation means security services can wiretap the party and recruit informants inside it. The AfD was vying with the opposition conservatives to top nationwide polls earlier this year when revelations about a meeting at which senior members discussed deportations of non-ethnic German citizens prompted months of street protests. (Reporting by Elke Ahlswede, writing by Thomas Escritt, editing by Friederike Heine and Nick Macfie) By Nidal al-Mughrabi CAIRO (Reuters) -Israeli forces pushed deep into the ruins of Gaza's northern edge on Monday to recapture an area from Hamas fighters, while in the south tanks and troops pushed across a highway into Rafah, leaving Palestinian civilians scrambling to find safety. Some of the most intense fighting for weeks is raging in both the north and south. Israeli operations in Rafah, which borders Egypt, have closed a main crossing point for aid. Humanitarian groups say this has worsened an already dire situation. Hundreds of thousands of people are fleeing again. Around half of Gaza's population took sanctuary there after Israel ordered evacuations from northern Gaza in October. Gaza's health authority appealed for international pressure to reopen access via the southern border to allow in aid, medical supplies and fuel to power generators and ambulances. "The wounded and sick suffer a slow death because there is no treatment and supplies and they cannot travel," it said. A foreign U.N. security staff member was killed on Monday when a U.N.-marked vehicle travelling to a hospital in Rafah was struck - the first international U.N. fatality in the Gaza war, a U.N. spokesperson said, bringing the total death toll of U.N. personnel to around 190. In northern Gaza's Jabalia, a sprawling refugee camp built for displaced Palestinians 75 years ago, Israeli forces pushed into an area where they claimed to have dismantled Hamas months ago. Residents fled along rubble-strewn streets carrying bags of belongings. Tank shells landed in the centre of the camp and health officials said they had recovered 20 bodies from overnight airstrikes. "We don't know where to go. We have been displaced from one place to the next... We are running in the streets. I saw it with my own eyes. I saw the tank and the bulldozer. It is on that street," said one woman, who did not give her name. An Israeli air strike on a house in Al-Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza Strip killed at least eight people, said Mahmoud Basal, a spokesperson of the Gaza Civil Emergency Service. He said several other people were wounded and missing. The Palestinian death toll in the war has now surpassed 35,000, with 57 killed in the past 24 hours, according to Gaza health officials, whose figures do not differentiate between civilians and fighters. Israeli troops are seeking to wipe out Hamas. A senior U.S. State Department official on Monday said Washington did not think that goal of total victory was "likely or possible." The militant group, which has said it is committed to Israel's destruction, burst into Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 and taking more than 250 hostages, by Israeli tallies. Hamas' armed wing said because of Israeli bombardments it had lost contact with militants guarding four Israeli hostages, including U.S.-Israeli citizen Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who appeared in a video released by Hamas in late April. Attending a Memorial Day ceremony on Monday to mark Israel's fallen soldiers, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the war against Hamas was a struggle to secure Israel's "existence, liberty, security and prosperity". "Our war of independence is not over yet," he said. In Rafah, Israel stepped up aerial and ground bombardments on eastern areas, killing people in an airstrike on a house in the Brazil neighbourhood. Residents said Israeli air and ground bombardments were intensifying and tanks had cut off the main north-south Salahuddin road. "The tanks cut the Salahuddin road east of the city, the forces are now in the southeast side, building up near the built-up area. The situation is dreadful and the sounds of explosions never stopped," said Bassam, 57, from the Shaboura neighbourhood in Rafah. "People continue to leave Rafah ... no place looks safe now and people do not want to escape at the last minute," he told Reuters via a chat app. RAFAH ASSAULT SPLITS U.S. AND ISRAEL UNRWA, the main U.N. aid agency in Gaza, estimated that about 360,000 people had fled the southern city since the Israeli military gave its first evacuation order a week ago. They are moving to empty tracts of land, including Al-Mawasi, a small strip along the coast, designated as an expanded humanitarian area by Israel. But Shaina Low of the Norwegian Refugee Council aid agency said it was not set up to receive uprooted families. There was "no space to install latrines or water points. There are huge piles of solid waste. My colleague spoke about seeing donkey carcasses on top of trash, so there are all sorts of health concerns," Low said. The assault on Rafah has caused one of the biggest splits in decades between Israel and its main ally the U.S., which paused some deliveries of weapons. U.S. President Joe Biden, who is running for reelection this year, has faced heavy criticism from his own supporters domestically for his support of Israel. Some of those critics have accused Israel of committing genocide, a claim dismissed by the White House and Israel. "We do not believe what is happening in Gaza is a genocide," U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters. Washington says Israel must not assault Rafah without a plan to protect civilians, which it has yet to see. Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant's office said on Monday he had briefed U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on the "precise operation" in the Rafah area. The State Department said Blinken spoke with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry on Monday and reaffirmed that Washington does not support a major military ground operation by Israel in Rafah. Hamas' armed wing said its fighters were engaged in gun battles with Israeli forces in one of the streets east of Rafah, and in the east of Jabalia. In Israel, the military sounded sirens several times in areas near Gaza, warning of potential Palestinian cross-border rocket and or mortar launches. Israeli protesters blocked aid trucks headed for Gaza, strewing food packages on the road at Tarqumiya checkpoint, west of Hebron in the Israeli occupied West Bank. Sullivan expressed concern about reports of Israeli settlers attacking a humanitarian aid convoy on its way to Erez Crossing in northern Gaza, the second such incident in less than a week. "It is a total outrage that there are people who are attacking and looting these conveys," Sullivan said. "It is completely and utterly unacceptable behavior." (Reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi in Cairo; Additional reporting by Dan Williams, Tala Ramadan, Emily Rose, Ali Sawafta, Humeyra Pamuk, Trevor Hunnicutt, Jeff Mason, Michelle Nichols; Emma Farge in Geneva; Writing by Sharon Singleton, Ros Russell and Phil Stewart; Editing by Peter Graff, Alison Williams, Josie Kao and David Gregorio) BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The Eurovision Song Contest's ban of the European Union flag was a "completely regrettable" mistake that should be rectified next year, the European Commission said on Monday. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which operates Eurovision, said Swedish host broadcaster SVT chose to limit flags among participants and the audience at the venue in Malmo to those of the participating countries, along with the rainbow flag. This meant the EU flag, often waved at the 2023 contest, was banned. Several attendees wrote on social media that security denied them entry with the flag. The European Commission said flag of blue with 12 yellow stars was a flag for all EU members as well as being part of the symbol for the 46-nation Council of Europe stretching from Iceland to Azerbaijan. "It is certainly completely regrettable that the flag of all the EU members taking part in the competition as well as other states belonging to the Council of Europe.... could not be shown," Commission spokesperson Eric Mamer said. "We can certainly encourage the EBU to understand that this is a mistake and then it is their decision on how to proceed." Margaritas Schinas, the Commission vice president overseeing culture, would raise the issue with EBU on Monday in what the spokesperson said was likely to be a "very lively discussion". The EBU said that the flag policy was more rigorously enforced by security at this year's event due to heightened geopolitical tensions. Several thousand demonstrators waving Palestinian flags gathered in central Malmo to protest against Israel's participation over the Israeli military campaign in Gaza. "We will look again at the flag policy for 2025 in conjunction with our new host broadcaster SRG SSR," EBU said of the next contest, due to be held in Switzerland. (Reporting by Philip Blenkinsop; Editing by Alex Richardson) Nominee for Russian defence minister underlines need to take better care of soldiers MOSCOW (Reuters) - Andrei Belousov, the surprise choice of President Vladimir Putin to become Russia's new defence minister, said on Monday that soldiers needed better access to housing, hospitals and welfare benefits. Belousov, an economist who previously served as deputy prime minister, underlined the need to take better care of Russia's soldiers in comments to a parliamentary committee, his first since Putin named him on Sunday to replace Sergei Shoigu. State media quoted him as saying there was too much bureaucracy surrounding the payment of benefits to military personnel. There were also issues with housing and medical treatment. "I think its a mess when participants in the special military operation who come back on vacation are driven from civilian medical institutions to hospitals which are often simply overcrowded. This issue needs to be resolved," Belousov said. The comments by Belousov, who has no military background, appeared aimed at demonstrating to members of the armed forces that he understands their concerns and will work to improve their conditions. He was addressing the defence and security committee of parliament's upper house, the Federation Council, as part of a confirmation process for a new government line-up after Putin started his fifth term as president earlier this month. (Reporting by Reuters, writing by Mark Trevelyan, editing by Timothy Heritage) Force of nature Georg Ismar/DPA/PA Images From flooding, forest fires and landslides, to hurricanes, dangerous waves and global warming, the weather has ruined some beautiful places in the world. Here are some parts of our planet that have fallen victim to severe weather. Chacaltaya Glacier, Bolivia Bernard Gagnon/Wikimedia/CC BY-SA 3.0 Once the highest ski resort in the world, the notoriously tough Chacaltaya mountain lured daring skiers to take on its snowy slopes. The ancient glacier, which sits within it, spanned 0.085 square miles (0.22sq km) back in 1940 but rapidly decreased in size over the years until 2009, when it completely melted away. Chacaltaya Glacier, Bolivia Aizar Raldes/AFP/Getty Images In 1998, experts predicted the glacier would survive until 2015 but due to climate change, it melted six years earlier than estimated. This entire area was once covered in snow but now there are just a few patches of ice near its summit. The loss of the glacier has been a blow to the tourist industry in Chacaltaya, as well as threatening the local freshwater supply and the future use of hydropower which provides much of Bolivia's electricity. The Bahamas pics721/Shutterstock Hurricane Dorian unleashed mass destruction across the Bahamas in September 2019 with current estimates placing the costs at billions of dollars. Entire neighborhoods were destroyed by the catastrophic rainfall, winds and storm surges that inundated the idyllic Caribbean archipelago. The Abaco Islands (including the resort Treasure Cay, pictured here before the storm) and Grand Bahama were hardest hit. The Bahamas ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP/Getty Images The death toll was at least 70 with many hundreds more people missing. The deadly 200-mile-per-hour winds and 24-foot (7.3m) storm surge severely damaged or destroyed around 45% of the homes on Grand Bahama and Abaco. Luxury resort Treasure Cay was completely devastated by the violent storm as winds ripped off roofs and tossed boats ashore. The UN estimates that 76,000 people were left homeless by the powerful Category 5 storm. West Pier, Brighton, UK Francis Frith/Hulton Archive/Getty Images Brightons West Pier opened to great fanfare in 1866 during the Victorian boom for beach vacations. An archetypal example of UK seaside architecture, the pier was added to over the years and at its prime featured a concert hall, funfair and tearoom. It was extremely popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and became a much-loved landmark on the Brighton seafront. The West Pier fell into financial decline in the 1960s, before closing in 1975 and falling into disrepair. West Pier, Brighton, UK Mike Hewitt/Getty Images After decades of being pounded by the waves, the crumbling structure succumbed to heavy seas and strong winds in 2002, which caused a walkway to collapse and felled part of the concert hall. The remains of the once iconic pier caught fire the following year, in a suspected act of arson. Part of the derelict Grade I-listed structure's eastern side crumbled into the sea in January 2013 following winter storms. However the evocative ruins remain a striking landmark on the seafront. Old Man of the Mountain, New Hampshire, USA Ken Lund/Flickr/CC BY-SA 2.0 Seen from a distance, this piece of rock jutting out from Franconia Notch might not have looked like much. But when seen from the north, the rock once resembled the profile of an old man, with a clearly-defined forehead, nose, lips and chin. It became known as the Old Man of the Mountain, an iconic symbol in New Hampshire. Old Man of the Mountain, New Hampshire, USA Dmoore5556/Wikimedia/CC BY-SA 4.0 After existing for an estimated 12,000 years, the poor Old Man fell off the mountain one fateful night in May 2003. Despite steps being taken to weatherproof the beloved rock formation since the 1920s (which was vulnerable due to freezing and thawing, opening fissures in the rock), the old man finally succumbed to natural causes. Local people mourned the loss of their mascot, creating a memorial in Profiler Plaza at the base of the mountain. Otuquis National Park, Bolivia DEPLANQUE JOEL/Shutterstock Remote and rich in wildlife, Bolivias little known Otuquis National Park is part of the Pantanal, the worlds largest wetland. Sat on the border with Paraguay, this incredible network of lagoons, wetlands and rivers is home to many rare species including ocelots, pumas, jaguars, caiman, anteaters, lizards and tapirs. Sadly, in 2019, dry weather and strong winds spread voracious wildfires and decimated great swathes of the precious nature preserve. Otuquis National Park, Bolivia PABLO COZZAGLIO/AFP/Getty Images The fires in Bolivia have devastated more than 1.7 million hectares (4.2 million acres) of land and killed scores of wildlife. While the government has attributed it to the hot, dry weather, environmentalists blame the government who enacted laws that encouraged the burning of forest and pasture land for agricultural production. It is one of a record number of fires that have consumed the Amazon region this year and devastated vast areas of the worlds largest tropical forest. The Dolomites, Italy Gianluca Piccin/Shutterstock Severe storms and winds up to 125mph ripped across parts of Italy's north and west in late 2018, killing at least 18 people, many by falling trees. The violent weather conditions caused catastrophic damage to ancient mountainside forests in the stunning Dolomites range, uprooting trees and snapping branches. The Serrai Di Sottoguda, one of the mountain ranges most scenic steep-sided canyons, was one place affected by the extreme weather. The Dolomites, Italy NurPhoto/NurPhoto/PA Images The heavy rains and gales, which buffeted the Dolomites as well as other parts of Italy for five days, also caused mudslides and flooding. The narrow and winding road that follows the Pettorina river through the Sottoguda gorge, a popular tourist attraction, was totally demolished by the flooding (pictured). It is thought that around 14 million pine trees and red spruces were also razed by the storms. Okjokull glacier, Iceland NASA Renowned for its pristine and otherworldly icy landscapes, Iceland's topography is being dramatically affected by climate change. The Okjokull glacier (pictured by satellite here in 1986), on top of the Ok volcano in western Iceland, covered 6.2 square miles (16sq km) in 1890. By 2012, it measured just 0.2 square miles (0.7sq km), according to a report from the University of Iceland. The glacier was officially declared dead in 2014 the first in the country to lose its status. Okjokull glacier, Iceland JEREMIE RICHARD/AFP/Getty Images In 2019, the nation marked its loss with a ceremony to raise awareness about the effects of climate change. A bronze plaque was mounted on the now barren terrain titled A letter to the future. It reads: In the next 200 years all our glaciers are expected to follow the same path. This monument is to acknowledge that we know what is happening and what needs to be done. Only you know if we did it. Porthcothan Bay, Cornwall, UK Andrew/Flickr/CC BY 2.0 This age-old rock arch in Porthcothan Bay, near Newquay in Cornwall, UK, was reduced to rubble after being battered by huge waves during a winter storm in January 2014. The surf beachs famed stone archway, known locally as The Anchor or Jan Leverton's Rock, was a landmark on the Cornish coast but could not withstand the 30-foot (9m) waves and 70mph winds that battered it. Porthcothan Bay, Cornwall, UK Keith Murray/Flickr/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 The violent winter storms of 2014, some of the worst to hit Britain in decades, not only obliterated Porthcothan Bays natural arch but damaged other areas of the British coastline including parts of the UNESCO-listed Jurassic Coast in Dorset. Sections of Chesil Beach were lost and the 150-million-year-old Pom Pom Rock, a stack formation on the southern edge of Portland, also collapsed during the bad weather. Glacier National Park, Montana, USA Alexey Kamenskiy/Shutterstock Characterized by its towering granite peaks and glaciers, the landscape of Glacier National Park in northern Montanas Rocky Mountains was shaped by glacial forces over millions of years. However, as temperatures continue to rise, its glaciers are dwindling. Of the 150 glaciers that existed in the park in the late 19th century, only 26 now remain. Glacier National Park, Montana, USA Jen-nifer/Shutterstock The warmer winters are bringing more rain, rather than glacier-forming snow, to Montana and other parts of North America. In 2017, the US Geological Survey published an analysis of Montana's glaciers using aerial and satellite imagery stretching back to 1966. It revealed that all glaciers had reduced in area since 1966 with some glaciers having been reduced by as much as 85% by 2015. Scientists estimate that its glaciers will disappear entirely if current climate patterns persist. Azure window, Malta View Apart/Shutterstock A limestone arch known as the Azure Window was one of Maltas top tourist spots and featured in numerous films and TV series such as Game of Thrones. The spectacular sea arch, near Dwejra Bay on the gorgeous island of Gozo, was shaped by centuries of natural coastal erosion. Azure window, Malta Indegerd9/Shutterstock Sadly in March 2017, heavy storms hit the Maltese archipelago and the striking rock formation, also known as known as Tieqa tad-Dwejra, collapsed dramatically into the rough seas. The rock still usually draws tourists who now come to scuba dive to see its submerged boulders beneath the waves. Lake Poopo, Bolivia NASA Johnson/Flickr/CC BY-NC 2.0 Set high in the Altiplano Mountains in southwest Bolivia, Lake Poopo was once the countrys second largest lake. It sustained fishing communities and numerous species of birds, mammals and fish including three species of flamingos. However, due to a range of environmental factors, including increasingly dry weather and rising temperatures, the saline lake dried up in 2015 and is now a stark salt flat. Lake Poopo, Bolivia Georg Ismar/DPA/PA Images In 2014 and 2015, the ever-shrinking lakes temperature rose dramatically, causing a mass death of its fish. While climate change played a significant role in the high-altitude lakes disappearance, its rapid and dramatic recession has also been widely attributed to misuse of the lakes water supply. Upstream water diversions, including some from its prime source the Desaguadero River, for agriculture and mining are also why this once vast lake has transformed into a dry and barren place. Stockton Beach, New South Wales, Australia AussieLegend/Wikimedia/Public Domain Community life centered around the lovely sandy beach of Stockton near Newcastle in New South Wales, Australia but intense coastal erosion and recent heavy seas have changed the face of the coastal town forever. Strong waves and big swells saw the beachs sand completely swept away in September 2019, leaving just bare rocks. Stockton Beach, New South Wales, Australia Save Stockton Beach/Facebook The ruined beach has now been closed indefinitely after forceful weather battered the coast and left dangerous drops. The seabed at Stockton has apparently dropped more than 23 feet (7m) over the past century, causing significant damage to the areas marine life habitat. A resident campaign group says the dramatic erosion has been escalated by the infrastructure at the Port of Newcastle which has affected wave patterns and stopped replacement sand from coming onto the beach. Tropical forests of Puerto Rico Dennis van de Water/Shutterstock Puerto Rico is known for its beautiful beaches and lush forested hills. However, when Hurricane Maria barreled across the island in September 2017, it not only caused deaths and damage to infrastructure but it also transformed the natural landscape. With winds of up to 155 miles per hour and intense rain, Maria was the strongest storm to ever hit Puerto Rico. The stunning El Yunque National Forest (pictured) in the northeast, the USAs only rainforest, took a big hit. Tropical forests of Puerto Rico Joe Raedle/Getty Images Vast swathes of the forest were stripped of their leaves and uprooted. A NASA research team found that 40% to 60% of the tall trees that formed the canopy of the forests either lost large branches, were snapped in half or were uprooted. Doug Morton, an ecologist at NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center, said: The island lost so many large trees that forests were shortened by one-third. We basically saw 60 years worth of natural treefall disturbances happen in one day. London Bridge, Victoria, Australia gjee/Shutterstock The London Arch is one of many striking rock formations that can be seen along the sweep of Australia's magnificent Great Ocean Road. However, the much-photographed landmark used to be known as London Bridge until the rock connecting it to the mainland collapsed into the Southern Ocean in 1990. Two terrified tourists were left stranded on the remaining stack as the strong waves lashed below until they were rescued by helicopter hours later. It's now known as the London Arch. London Bridge, Victoria, Australia Philiphist/Wikimedia/CC BY 3.0 The natural arch in the Port Campbell National Park remains a popular tourist spot, although it's now appreciated from afar. The waves have carved out unique formations all along the limestone and sandstone coastline and continue to do so. It's something which onlookers were powerfully reminded of in 2005 when one of its most famous rock formations, the Twelve Apostles, succumbed to erosion. One of the nine giant limestone pillars collapsed into the sea as tourists looked on. Villa Epecuen, Argentina Wikimedia/Public Domain Set on the banks of the Lake Epecuen, Villa Epecuen was a popular spa town in the Buenos Aires province, drawing tourists to soak in its mineral-rich waters. However, a sinister fate was to befall the lakeside resort in November 1985 after torrential downpours caused a major flood. Villa Epecuen, Argentina Anibal6226/Shutterstock The heavy rainstorm came on the back of years of wet winters that caused the lake to overflow its banks and inundate the town. Incredibly no one died, but the entire community evacuated and Villa Epecuen vanished beneath the deluge for 25 years. The water began to recede in 2007 after a period of dry weather and now the eerie remains of Villa Epecuen are a tourist destination once again, albeit a more sinister one. Now discover the world's landmarks under threat from climate change Welcome Guest! You are here: Home Mumbai: 8 dead as dust storm, heavy rains cause billboard collapse in Ghatkopar Dust storm followed by heavy rains lashed Mumbai on Monday May 14, 2024 causing a big hoarding collapsing onto a petrol pump in Ghatkopar area of the metropolis. Tuesday May 14, 2024 0:52 AM , ummid.com News Network Mumbai: Dust storm followed by heavy rains lashed Mumbai on Monday May 14, 2024 causing a big hoarding collapsing onto a petrol pump in Ghatkopar area of the metropolis. As many as 8 people have died and 60 others were injured after the billboard collapsed onto the fuel pump, officials said. Ghatkopar hoarding collapse incident is deeply tragic. BMC Comm. reports that 64 people have been admitted to Rajawadi Hospital, with one critical & four fatalities. Our hearts go out to the affected families. Urgent action & accountability are imperative.#Mumbai #Ghatkopar pic.twitter.com/tDHdVQHkn6 Mumbai Congress (@INCMumbai) May 13, 2024 Around 20-25 people are still trapped even as the recue team is at work. The Maharashtra government has announced Rs 5 lakh compensation for the family of those who have lost their lives. Hoarding was illegal The Mumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said the hoarding was illegal and was installed on Railways Land. The BMC officials further said that the permissible size for hoarding is 4040 whereas the size of the collapsed hoarding was 120 120. The BMC said it will file a case against the Railways and the ad agency. The Indian Railways in a quick response denied the claim that the land is of Railways. The incident occurred around 04:30 pm Monday, according to the Mumbai Fire Brigade, at the Police Ground Petrol Pump situated on the Eastern Express Highway, Ghatkopar East. Unseasoned Rains Meanwhile, a huge rush of commuters is seen in the Mumbai local trains following the unseasoned rains as monsoon is still two weeks away. Commuters said a number of trains are running late resulting in chaos at various railway stations. Mumbai and other parts of Maharashtra are witnessing tough weather since the last two weeks when temperature crossed 44 mark in some areas. The sizzling heat was followed by unseasoned heavy rains and storm in Malegaon, Satana and other parts of Maharashtra Sunday night. Following the rains in Mumbai and other parts of the state an orange alert has been issued for Pune, Satara, Sangli, Nashik, Kolhapur, Ahmednagar, Aurangabad, Jalna and Parbhani districts. Select Language To Read in Urdu, Hindi, Marathi or Arabic. Mustafa Suleyman A Beacon for Muslim Youth Mustafa Suleyman is a Syrian-born British citizen, about whom Microsofts former chief Bill Gates said: "Watch his work, he can become a big name in the world of technology. Monday May 13, 2024 2:04 PM , Asad Mirza [Mustafa Suleyman in TED Talk. (Screenshot)] Most people may ask, who is Mustafa Suleyman? Well, Mustafa is a Syrian-born British citizen, about whom Microsofts former chief Bill Gates said: "Watch his work, he can become a big name in the world of technology. If Bill Gates said it, then we should also give Mustafa, a second to review what he has achieved. Mustafa Suleyman's Syrian father worked as a taxi driver and his English mother as a nurse. He grew up off Caledonian Road in the London Borough of Islington, where he lived with his parents and his two younger brothers. Suleyman went to Thornhill Primary School, a state school in Islington, followed by Queen Elizabeth's School, a boys' grammar school in Barnet. Around that time, he met his DeepMind co-founder, Demis Hassabis, through his best friend, Demis's younger brother. Suleyman initially attended Mansfield College, Oxford, before dropping out at 19. Mustafa's practical life began when he started the Muslim Youth Helpline with his friends at the age of 19. In fact, the situation of the Muslim youth in Britain was very similar to the dictum: "Faith has stopped me, which has drawn me to disbelief". That is, on the one hand, it was their (Muslim youths) compulsion to blend into the British society; on the other hand, they had to avoid the drug culture and immorality. This phone helpline service was for their guidance. Coincidentally, this service started around when 9/11 happened , as a result the incidents of Islamophobia started to increase and the Muslim youth came under more pressure. So in that era this service helped Muslim youth to get out of social isolation. It has become the largest mental health service for Muslims in the UK today. Suleyman subsequently worked as a policy officer on human rights for Ken Livingstone, the Mayor of London, before going on to start Reos Partners, a systemic change consultancy that uses methods from conflict resolution to navigate social problems. As a negotiator and facilitator, Mustafa worked for a wide range of clients such as the United Nations, the Dutch government, and the World Wide Fund for Nature. But for Mustafa Suleyman , essentially a philosopher and brilliant manager, this was just the beginning. The turning point in his life came in 2009. An environmental conference was being held in Copenhagen. Mustafa was also among the organisers. His effort was to get the delegates to the conference to agree on a common strategy against deforestation. He was very disappointed when he saw that they could not agree on a common strategy. But there was a new way out of that despair. This was the year 2009. Facebook was emerging as a huge company. In those days, Mustafa read somewhere that the number of active Facebook users has reached one hundred million. This thing stuck in his mind. He realised that not even a few people could be brought together on a common goal at the Copenhagen Conference; on the other hand, it takes only a few days for millions of like-minded people to connect on social media. That day Mustafa realised that in the future it would be technology that would bring people together. Thus he entered the computer field from the world of philosophy and ideas. The very next year he started a company called DeepMind along with his friends. It was an artificial intelligence research firm. What was the goal of DeepMind ? Making decisions that humans might have to think about for an infinite amount of time, better prepare computers to make them in a much shorter amount of time! Just think, in 2023, most of us were being introduced to the world of artificial intelligence for the first time, but Mustafa Suleyman and his friends were creating AI algorithms 13-14 years ago, when even in the West very few people were aware of this field. In one of his interviews Mustafa said that at times he had to hide his work from people because people started laughing when they used to hear about artificial intelligence/AI; as it seemed to them like a silly dream of children reading science fiction, which is impossible to interpret. "Deep Mind" must have been hidden from the eyes of the general public, but the people of the tech world were watching its rise very carefully. Several big names including Tesla's Elon Musk and PayPal's Peter Thiel started investing in it. Then in 2014, Google bought DeepMind for sixty five million dollars. It was Google's largest and most expensive acquisition outside the US at the time. The achievements of DeepMind could be the topic of a separate discussion. For now a simple anecdote would suffice. Google has data centres around the world that require a lot of electricity to keep cool. Mustafa was given the task of finding a solution. He applied DeepMind's algorithm to find the optimal solution. Now such solutions are actually a large combination of many decisions. Finding the perfect combination that gives the best results is a very time-consuming task. Take an example of biryani. Everyone is aware of the 12 to 15 different spices in it, but still there are only a few shops where there is huge rush. This is because they have found the perfect combination of spices and the perfect time to add them to the pot, to bring out the flavour. So, if this project of saving electricity at the Google data centres was given to a person, he might not have been able to find the best and ideal situation even in ten years. However, after considering not hundreds of thousands or millions, but billions of combinations, DeepMind proposed the best solution that reduced the power consumption of Google's data centres by forty percent. Mustafa wanted to use the same solution in buildings around the world to reduce global electricity consumption and environmental pollution. This same Mustafa Suleyman has become a part of Microsoft last month . In March 2024, Microsoft appointed Suleyman as EVP and CEO of its newly created consumer AI unit, Microsoft AI. Now, as the chief executive of Microsoft AI; he has a wide world to conquer and limitless skies to soar. Let's see to what heights he takes the field of AI. The number of Muslims in the tech world is very small. In such a situation, if a genius, a layman basically, comes forward and reaches for the sky, we should also be happy about it and it should motivate our youth to become like him. Today we need such heroes to inspire and motivate our youth to emulate him. [The writer, Asad Mirza, is a Delhi-based senior political and international affairs commentator.] Select Language To Read in Urdu, Hindi, Marathi or Arabic. "Politicians and media make us believe that we're polarized. The reality is that those are the fringe, crazy people. The majority of them are in the middle. I think everyone was coming back to find common ground to know that we are not on an island on the far right or far left and the world is coming to an end. It was a great opportunity for people to come together and to look for a common ground," Muller said. Sophomore Anita Lopez a Dahlonega, Georgia, resident pursuing a degree in political science with a pre-law concentration. Lopez currently handles the group's social media. She encourages others to participate in the weekly discussions. "I think it helps prepare any student with civil political discussion. It has helped me with public speaking and helped prepare me for my future of law school and a career in law, Lopez said. Lopez used the event as an opportunity to network with alumna Rachel Schneeberg, who offered great advice about the transition from undergraduate studies to law school. Schneeberg is a legal assistant and currently attending law school. She earned a bachelor's degree in political science in 2018 and a Master of Public Administration in 2021. Attorney Meredith Shea, '19, holds a political science degree and a double minor in philosophy and sociology. She received her Juris Doctor in 2022 and was one of two students to serve as president for two full years (2017-2019). "Being involved in Crossroads throughout my college career assisted me in being aware of different perspectives on major issues. I learned how to be a better public speaker and to listen to what was being said. This has had a direct impact on my career as an attorney because these are skills that I am utilizing every day," Shea said. Discussion topics focus on political issues ranging from elections to current events. The first session topic, "Does Congress Work," was revived for the anniversary discussion. Although the name has changed over the years, its adviser has not. "The group was a new idea for what was then a very small department (Political Science and Criminal Justice) of only seven faculty. I was eager to get involved, so I agreed when I was offered the opportunity to become the faculty advisor. We've been going ever since," Dr. Carl Cavalli said. "The first one or two were known as Brown Bag Lunches, but by the end of April 1994, we adopted the name Crossfire. That name lasted until 2019, when we adopted the current Crossroads name." HA NOI Domestic travel firms are still hungry for visitors despite the significant increase in foreign travellers to Viet Nam. That is a paradox of the Vietnamese hospitality sector, insiders have said. According to tourism experts, a large number of foreign visitors do not book package tours or rarely use services provided by travel agencies except small-valued ones. That results in the low profitability of Vietnamese travel agencies. Vo Viet Hoa, director of the Outbound Tourism Division of Saigontourist Travel Services, said statistics indicated a rise in South Korean visitors to Viet Nam. However, Vietnamese businesses have yet to benefit from this surge because they fail to provide comprehensive package services. For example, Saigontourist only offers car rental services which is called a 'difficult' segment. Regarding Japanese tourists, they are tightening their budgets, and Viet Nam is not their top choice destination. Similarly, Chinese tourists are shifting away from Southeast Asian countries, including Viet Nam, in their travel preferences, Hoa said. The current visa policy is already quite relaxed but should be made even more appealing. Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore have waived visas for Chinese tourists, so Hoa said Viet Nam should have similar visa exemption policies for tourists from key markets. Chairman of the Vietnam Tourism Association Vu The Binh said while the overall numbers are rising, a significant increase in tour bookings has not been seen. Binh said Viet Nam has all the conditions in terms of natural resources, environment and other factors to develop tourism but this sector has failed to develop remarkably. In the last two decades, Korean and Japanese tourists have pursued their distinct preferences, while there has been a moderate resurgence in Chinese visitors, though not substantial. Affordable tours for Chinese tourists have made a comeback. Binh emphasised the importance of developing suitable products to attract tourists, which requires appropriate policies. He added that many localities that host festivals have confused between attracting domestic and international visitors. Foreign travellers do not have enough time and attention to participate in festivals that localities are organising everywhere, therefore, it is necessary to have a national tourism promotion strategy. At the same time, localities need to set aside funds to carry out promotion campaigns under that strategy to attract international visitors, Binh said. Meanwhile, Hoa suggested the launch of tourism promotion offices in Europe, America, ASEAN, and China. These offices will help better promote the country's hospitality sector and attract international visitors to Viet Nam. The country's tourism sector served over 6.2 million foreign visitors and 40.5 million domestic tourists over the first four months of this year, earning VN271.4 trillion (nearly US$10.7 billion) in revenue, according to the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism (VNAT). The number of international visitors increased by 68.3 per cent over the same period in 2023, statistics showed. South Korea remained the largest foreign tourist source with 1.6 million arrivals, accounting for 25.8 per cent of the total international arrivals in Viet Nam. It was followed by mainland China, Taiwan, the US and Japan. The number of Asians coming to Viet Nam soared 77.2 per cent year-on-year, making Asia the leading regional source of visitors. At the same time, tourists from Europe continued to rise strongly thanks to the favourable visa policy applied since August 15, 2023, including such main markets as the UK (35.2 per cent), France (41.7 per cent), Germany (36.9 per cent), Italy (77.4 per cent), Spain (48.5 per cent), and Russia (74 per cent). VNS HA NOI People and businesses are looking forward to the Government's proposal on extending VAT reduction in the last six months being considered and approved by the National Assembly. In its recent submission to the National Assembly, the Government assessed that the VAT reduction from 10 per cent to 8 per cent is being implemented according to Resolution No. 110/2023/QH15, from January 1 to June 30, 2024. It has helped decrease input cost pressure for businesses and stimulate consumption, creating a driving force for economic growth. This has supported companies and people to stabilise production and business and improve living standards, contributed to macro-economic stability and also created favourable conditions to promote economic recovery and growth post COVID. The Government believes that by the end of this year, the world and regional situation will continue to evolve rapidly and complicatedly, and be difficult to forecast. The recovery of Viet Nam's major trading partners is still slow and there is a risk of disruption in global supply and value chains. Continuing the VAT reduction for some groups of goods and services until December 31, 2024 is one of the important solutions to support for the people and businesses. Bui Thu Nguyet, a resident in Nam Tu Liem District, Ha Noi, said that from 2023 until now, the reduction of VAT to 8 per cent on many goods items has made her save expenditure for shopping at supermarkets. The tax incentive reduced the Government revenues by VN25 trillion (nearly US$994.7 million) in the first six months of this year, according to the Ministry of Finance. With the 2 per cent tax cut in the second half of the year, the State budget will be slashed by some VN24 trillion, or around VN4 trillion per month. Minister of Finance Ho uc Phoc said this proposal on extending the VAT cut until the year end is hoped to be approved at the National Assembly meeting that will open on May 20. Economist Le ang Doanh said this policy will directly impact people and stimulate consumption. This has great significance, because along with investment and export, the domestic consumption is one of three important driving forces to promote economic growth. According to Doanh, the reduced amount at each invoice will stimulate people to buy goods and services. So, production and business activities of enterprises have recovered and grown strongly, and people have also benefited from having more jobs. Besides that, the enterprises' input costs will also decrease due to the lower VAT, thereby production costs will be lower. Mac Quoc Anh, deputy chairman of the Hanoi Association of Small and Medium Enterprises, also supports the policy of continuing to reduce VAT. He said the tax cut will help reduce goods and service prices, stimulating the domestic consumption, and promoting production. Le Nguyen Minh Tuan, general director of Move New City JSC, told the Nguoi lao ong (Workers) newspaper, that in the context of low car consumption due to economic difficulties, the automobile industry really needs support from tax and fee policies. The automobile industry currently only enjoys VAT reduction incentives on some components and services and is hoping for reductions in more categories, making car prices lower. VNS HA NOI The recent approval for Viet Nams eighth national power development plan (PDP8) has heated up discussions around business strategies of energy giants in the race to gain advantages in energy transition towards the countrys net-zero goals. Approved in early April, the plan sets the foundation for the transition of traditional power sources such as coal-fired to cleaner energy. Renewable energy will make up for 30.9-39.2 per cent in 2030 and 67.5-71.5 per cent in 2050. Under the PDP8, on-shore wind power will grow at an annual compound rate of 25 per cent in the 2021-30 period and 6 per cent in 2030-50 to account for 14 per cent and 13 per cent of the countrys total power capacity, respectively. Offshore wind power is expected to reach 600MW by 2030 then grow at 15 per cent by 2050 to account for 16 per cent of the totals power capacity. LNG-fired power will account for 27 per cent of the total power capacity by 2030 and 15 per cent by 2050. Besides, biomass power is expected to reach 1,088MW and waste-to-energy 1,182MW. The development of solar power is slowing down after a robust growth in the 2020-21 period, but is expected to make up for 33 per cent of the total power capacity. Companies are planning investments in renewable energy to capture the opportunities from the transition toward net-zero goals. Refrigeration Electrical Engineering Corporation (REE) plans to focus on wind energy. Its wind power plant in Tra Vinh is operating at 90 per cent of its capacity. Seeing wind power a spearhead in Viet Nams energy transition process, REA will continue to seek cooperation with foreign partners with experiences and financial capacity. PC1 Group Joint Stock Company will focus on optimising the operation of its existing wind power plants. Bamboo Capital also put wind power at the centre of its energy business. BCG Energy in charge of managing the energy business of Bamboo Capital, now owns eight onshore wind power projects with a total capacity of 925MW. The company is also hastening the implementation of on-shore and off-shore wind power projects with a total capacity of 550MW, including ong Thanh 1, ong Thanh 2 and Khai Long which are expected to be put into operation within this year. With solar power, although there is not much room left for development, it still remains attractive and along with wind power, is considered a growth driver for Bamboo Capital. The documents at the shareholders meeting of Bamboo Capital this year pointed out that the first phase of 21MW Krong Pa 2 solar project is completed. The price negotiations for Krong Pa 2 and 114MW Phu My are set to be completed this year. BCG Energy is also implementing another 23 rooftop solar power projects with a goal of doubling the total capacity by the end of this year. Sao Mai Group set the goal of doubling the revenue from renewable energies in 2024 to reach VN1 trillion per year with the focus on developing new solar and wind power projects. Sao Mai is operating 210-Mwp An Hao solar plant in Tinh Bien District, An Giang Province and 50-Mwp Euriplast Long An in uc Hue District, Long An Province. Helio Energy planned to buy a maximum of 60 per cent of stakes of SD Truong Thanh Joint Stock Company, developers of Thuan Minh 2 solar power project with a capacity of 50 Mwp in Binh Thuan Province. REE Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Mai Thanh said that investment in solar power requires careful consideration because of the Governments intention of offering zero Vietnamese ong pricing for excessed rooftop solar power. Thanh said that the company is starting to get into hydrogen, but more consideration is needed. Bamboo Company is eyeing waste-to-energy with a portfolio of five plants in Cu Chi, Long An, Kien Giang, Hue and Ha Nam. The company planned to build the first waste-to-energy plan in Cu Chi, HCM City this year which will have a total investment of VN5 trillion to treat 2,000 tonnes of waste per day and generate 40MW. The plant in Long An will have an investment of VN1.586 trillion to treat 500 tonnes of waste per day, equivalent to a capacity of 10MW. Le Xuan Nghia, a member of the National Financial and Monetary Advisory Council, pointed out that one of the major challenges to renewable energy development is the infrastructure system and high costs. Viet Nam needs a comprehensive strategy, which might include the foundation of environment standards, appropriate infrastructure development and policies to encourage investments from both domestic and foreign sources. According to VnDirect Securities Company, Viet Nam has a large potential for wind and solar power development. However, it is necessary to invest in the transmission and storage systems and speed up the construction of the grid systems in the context that renewable power sources are increasing rapidly. VNS HA NOI Viet Nam's wood industry has many opportunities for recovery in 2024, with the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification seen as essential mark for accessing global markets. Tran Duy Khanh, head of Marketing and Market Analysis at KNA Certification Company Limited (KNA Cert), highlighted the US as the largest wood product consumer, importing US$24-25 billion annually, with Vietnamese products accounting for 37 per cent of all US imports and nearly 50 per cent of Viet Nam's wood export turnover. However, evolving US standards emphasise sustainability so Vietnamese enterprises will need to align to these requirements. In the EU market, Vietnamese wood products account for just 1.9 per cent of the total EU wood imports and 3.2 per cent of Viet Nam's export turnover, due to customer preferences and stringent EU Timber Regulation (EUTR) enforcement. The European Commission (EC) continues to enforce EU Timber Regulation (EUTR) legislation which presents a notable challenge for the Vietnamese wood industry as of the close of 2024. Khanh said that FSC certification offers a competitive advantage in the EU market, facilitated by the free trade agreement between Viet Nam and the EU, providing tax reductions and export incentives. He emphasised how it was important that the Vietnamese wood industry adapt to meet evolving global standards, particularly in terms of sustainable forest development and transparent supply chains and to capitalise on lucrative market opportunities. Multi-faceted benefits Vu Thi Que Anh, a representative of FSC in Viet Nam, reported that there are currently approximately 310,000 hectares of FSC-certified forests in Viet Nam. This includes over 20,000 hectares of untouched natural forests and planted forests. The number of Forest Stewardship Council Chain of Custody (FSC/CoC) certifications in Viet Nam is rapidly increasing, with 1,730 units currently certified. Additionally, Viet Nam has various other certified FSC raw material sources, such as over 9,000 hectares of bamboo and 6,000 hectares of rubber, with rubberwood as a vital export material in the global market. "For FSC-certified wood, the area is merely one aspect. More crucially, the products must ensure sustainability," Anh told Nong Nghiep (Agriculture) newspaper. In Viet Nam, FSC-certified raw materials command a higher price, ranging from 10 to 15 per cent compared to non-certified wood. "Premium buyers in the global market are willing to pay extra for products made from FSC-certified materials. They recognise the social and environmental values that products derived from FSC-certified materials bring to sustainable forest development," said Anh. FSC is the standard of choice for global consumers when selecting products for consumption, according to Pham inh Suc, chief evaluator of KNA Cert. While most wood processing and exporting enterprises in Viet Nam are currently certified due to customer demand, proactive FSC certification can lead to many benefits. FSC operates in 123 markets worldwide, providing an official website where participating enterprises can update contact information and connect with potential customers. By joining FSC, small enterprises can also access ways to collaborate with global partners. To Xuan Phuc, executive director of the Policy, Trade, and Finance Programme of Forest Trends, emphasised two core requirements for wood products to circulate in the EU market: avoiding deforestation and ensuring legality. Currently, many customers in the region adhere to various voluntary sustainable production and consumption standards, including the necessity for FSC sustainable forest management certification. Under the Voluntary Partnership Agreement between Viet Nam and the EU on forest law enforcement, governance, and trade in timber products (VPA/FLEGT Agreement), Viet Nam has agreed that all wood products exported to the EU are legal, necessitating enterprises to adjust and comply accordingly. The EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) came into force in June 2023 and the new rules will become applicable as of December 30, 2024. This development brings fresh challenges for Viet Nam's wood industry. Effective from December 30, 2024, agricultural imports originating from Viet Nam, particularly wood products and destined for EU will necessitate certification verifying their origins are free from deforestation. Consequently, the majority of wood processing enterprises in Viet Nam are keenly watching evolving EUDR regulations. According to Anh, the core requirement of the EUDR is that the listed products must originate from legal sources, extracted from areas without deforestation or forest degradation. Products produced on converted land after December 31, 2020, will not be accepted by the EU market. Before being exported to European countries, these products will undergo rigorous scrutiny by the EU to determine if they are linked to deforestation or forest degradation. Anh said :"The essence of the EUDR regulation is to curb the influx of unregulated or illicitly sourced timber and wood products into the European market. The time from June 2023 to December 2024 marks a crucial period for Vietnamese enterprises to gear up and align with the EUDR regulations." Turning challenges into opportunities Ngo Sy Hoai, deputy chairman of the Viet Nam Timber and Forest Products Association (VIFOREST), said wood, coffee and rubber are the three commodities directly affected by the EUDR regulation, with the wood industry having more advantages due to the implementation of the Forest Law Enforcement Governance and Trade Voluntary Partnership Agreement (FLEGT-VPA). This bilateral trade pact between Viet Nam and the EU is aimed at providing a legal framework for Viet Nam's wood and wood product exports to the EU market. The Vietnamese wood industry perceives the EUDR regulation as more of a gateway than a hurdle and a well-executed approach could lead to a significant surge in Vietnamese wood products entering the under-served European market. Presently, Vietnamese wood products account for a mere 1.9 per cent of the total value of wood imports in the EU. Furthermore, with opposition to the EUDR from neighbouring countries, Viet Nam's compliance could facilitate smoother market access for its goods in the EU. Hoai said that there are still many obstacles for enterprises to comply with the EUDR regulations so that they need specific guidance. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is actively negotiating with the EU to address these obstacles and the Forestry Department is preparing a forest soft map of Viet Nam before December 30, 2020, to serve as a reference basis. Sustainable raw material sources According to the Forestry Department, the global furniture market, valued at approximately $405 billion annually, will create a demand for wood and wood products totaling around $230 billion. Viet Nam's wood and wood product exports currently hold a mere 6 per cent of the global market share, indicating significant opportunities for expansion and market development. In wood processing for export, raw materials account for 40-60 per cent of a product's cost structure. Between 2017 and 2021, Viet Nam's demand for raw wood increased from over 34 to 41 million cubic metres annually, with domestic timber extraction accounting for approximately 77.4 per cent of the supply. However, Viet Nam still imports 5-6 million cubic metres of round wood annually to meet production needs, showing a heavy reliance on imported raw materials, said o Xuan Lap, chairman of VIFOREST. With over 5,000 wood processing enterprises exporting to 140 countries and territories worldwide, Viet Nam's wood industry heavily depends on imported raw materials, especially since the ban on natural forest logging in 2016. By 2023, Viet Nam had reduced its raw wood imports to just over $2.1 billion, a 28.3 per cent decrease from 2022, implementing systems to ensure the legality of imported wood, particularly in preparation for EUDR regulations. With over a million households participating in the timber supply chain from planted forests, efforts are underway to help smaller-scale forest owners, often with less than a hectare, meet EU regulatory standards. According to Hoai, the motivation for forest planting in Viet Nam has been supported by land use reform in forestry, resulting in between three and four million hectares of additional planted forests. With over 3.93 million hectares of planted forests, Viet Nam can provide over 30 million cubic meters of wood annually for processing and export, contributing significantly to the industry's growth and sustainability efforts, Hoai said. VNS HA NOI Nearly 17,500 online fraud cases targeting Vietnamese internet users have been reported on the information security warning portal operated by the Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC). The total losses from the frauds amount to more than VN300 billion (US$12.24 million). A conference discussing fraud prevention and how to combat crimes in cyberspace took place in Ha Noi on Monday. The event, organised by the National Cybersecurity Association (NCA), under the sponsorship of the Ministry of Public Security (MPS), sought to clarify the strategic and comprehensive vision of the law, solutions and responsibilities of each agency through exchange and discussion between State management agencies, organisations and businesses. The conference is also a forum for State management agencies, businesses, social organisations and individuals to connect, discuss, unify awareness and solutions and work together to promote opportunities and minimise challenges from cyberspace for the development of each agency, business and individual. Speaking at the opening, NCA Chairman Luong Tam Quang emphasised that fraud in cyberspace had become very complicated in recent times, causing serious consequences for organisations and individuals, and harming development. It required early and thorough assessment and comprehensive solutions for effective prevention and containment, he added. Cyber criminals have continuously changed their methods and tactics, thoroughly taking advantage of new technology to attack, infiltrate, and commit large-scale fraud, causing huge economic losses and adversely affecting social order and safety, threatening people's lives in Viet Nam last year, heard at the conference. Statistics show that the rate of users receiving fraudulent messages and calls is 73 per cent. Data from the MPS shows that 1,500 cases were prosecuted for cyber fraud last year, with the total amount of money defrauded by people being VN8 10 trillion. The fight against crime using high technology showed that the activities of criminals were very professional, said Quang. The NCA representative said: The targets of online fraud are mainly the elderly, students, workers with unstable jobs, low income and even children. "These are people who already use smartphones and have the conditions to participate in the online environment, but their ability to perceive signs and acts of fraud is low, making them susceptible to take advantage of their gullibility and greed to commit fraud." The NCA representative also said that starting from the current situation of preventing fraud crimes in cyberspace, there was an urgent need to soon unify awareness and action in all agencies and organisations and individuals. From the MIC perspective, the State management agency for network information security, Tran Quang Hung, deputy director of the Department of Digital Economy and Digital Society, commented that in the period when the Government was accelerating digital transformation, bad actors were constantly taking advantage of the technology boom to defraud and appropriate people's property online. Hung said: The problem of fraud in cyberspace is becoming more and more common, complex and causing increasingly greater consequences. "Preventing fraud in cyberspace is not only the responsibility of State management agencies but also the common responsibility of the entire society, especially of organisations and businesses doing business and providing services in cyberspace. "Organisations and businesses must be responsible for taking all feasible measures to protect people and customers using their services safely in cyberspace," he said. VNS ONG NAI ong Nai Province, an industrial hub in the southern region, has set up the Japan Desk at the headquarters of the ong Nai Industrial Zones Authority to assist Japanese investors operating here. It is tasked with connecting Japanese businesses with departments, sectors and localities in ong Nai so as to handle issues emerging during investment and project implementation. It also receives and provides information while giving advice to Japanese investors. ong Nai is currently home to 1,606 foreign direct investment (FDI) projects totalling US$34.65 billion from 46 countries and territories. Japan ranks second among the foreign investors in terms of the project number, 276, and third in terms of the registered capital, $5.22 billion, according to the provincial Peoples Committee. The administration said Japanese businesses have significantly contributed to local socioeconomic development and job creation. They have also helped promote the development of industrial, trade and service sectors, especially supporting industries. VNS HA NOI Vietnamese internet company VNG Corp has become the official publisher for Roblox, a popular online game and virtual world creator platform. The joint venture solidifies VNG's reputation in the Vietnamese market with the highly-anticipated release of Roblox in Viet Nam scheduled for this summer on both iOS and Android platforms. The announcement was made during the Vietnam GameVerse 2024, a festival for gamers held over the weekend in HCM City. The collaboration between VNG and Roblox aims to provide Vietnamese users with access to millions of virtual experiences across the Roblox platform. Roblox has a vast global user base, including a substantial following in Viet Nam and is committed to delivering quality experiences to its users. VNG is renowned for its exceptional management structure and other successful collaborations with major global partners, while Roblox is committed to fostering a creative community and cultivating game developments on the platform in line with software programming trends among young people. "This collaboration signifies a significant milestone, showcasing Vietnam as an attractive destination for leading global gaming companies like Roblox,"said La Xuan Thang, Director of Online Game Publishing at VNG Joint Stock Company. The gaming industry is poised to become a key sector driving Viet Nam's economy with official figures showing rapid growth with revenues expected to exceed US$500 million, placing Viet Nam fifth in terms of market dominance across all Southeast Asia. More than half of all people in Viet Nam engage in some kind of gaming. According to Le Quang Tu Do, Director of the Department of Radio - Television and Electronic Information at the Ministry of Information and Communications, this year's Viet Nam Game Festival includes GameHub activities and a chance for startups to get seed capital and support for their new projects. Startups at the festival include professional companies and students still in school. VNS LONDON Artworks by 14 Vietnamese artists were on display at Affordable Art Fair 2024 held in London from May 8-12, impressing British and international art lovers. A popular international commercial art fair in the UK with a 25-year history, Affordable Art Fair this year attracted over 100 exhibiting galleries from all over the world, showcasing around 1,000 artworks from paintings and sculptures to cutting-edge photography, printmaking and mixed-media artworks. With prices ranging between 50 GBP (US$62.6) and 7,500 GBP, the fair offered pieces of art suitable to all tastes and budgets. At the fair, three galleries, namely Hanoi Art House, Thang Long Art Gallery va ArtBlue Studio showcased Vietnamese artworks, including lacquer, oil on canvas, water colour and wood-burn paintings, drawing attention from local and foreign collectors and visitors. The artists having works on display are Thanh Chuong, Phuong Binh, Bui Trong Du, Hoang uc Dzung, Nguyen Minh Son, Thanh Nguyen, inh Ngoc Thang, Ngo Van Sac, Vu Thu Hien, Le Quan, Nguyen Lam, Phuong Quoc Tri, Lieu Nguyen Huong Duong and Bui Van Hoan. Present at the fair, Ngo Van Sac said Affordable Art Fair in London where art lovers from all over the world gathered was a wonderful opportunity to promote Vietnamese art. Sac brought to the fair wood-burn paintings, and was happy to receive positive feedback on this new form of art from Viet Nam. The fair started 25 years ago with the aim to make it an accessible, easy place and joyful place for people to come and purchase art, Jennifer Conner, UK Regional Managing Director, Affordable Art Fair, told Vietnam News Agency (VNA) correspondents in the UK. She said the fair always ensures at least 30 per cent of the exhibiting galleries having an international flavour, and at the same time is a place where young, new businesses and emerging artists can show and sell their art, thus creating good opportunities for international artists, including Viet Nam, to promote their artworks. According to Hoa Angie, director of Hanoi Art House, to be present at the fair, the artworks must be approved by curators of the Fair Organising Board, which is a proof of the high quality of Vietnamese paintings showcased at the Fair. She pointed to the potential for commercialising Vietnamese paintings in the UK and the world, saying participating in big events like Affordable Art Fair is a good chance to introduce Vietnamese paintings to foreign art lovers. Speaking with the VNA correspondents in the UK, Geoff Carr, a collector from London, said his love for Vietnamese art started about 10 years ago when he visited a small exhibition near London and was so impressed by a painting named The Girl by Phuong Binh. Since then, he has collected over 10 Vietnamese artworks, saying Vietnamese art is truly inspiring to him. Carr does not collect Vietnamese art for profit, but buys it because it enhances his home and his life, speaking to his soul and enriching him as a person. He believed Vietnamese art will make an important breakthrough on the global stage, and in a few years, the prices and values of Vietnamese art will rise substantially in the West, including in the UK and the US. According to him, Vietnamese artists are on the brink of breaking through but need to push harder to promote themselves to the world. VNA/VNS HA NOI The Viet Nam Department of Peacekeeping Operations under the Ministry of National Defence on Monday opened a training course for United Nations staff officers with the support of the US Global Peace Operations Initiative (GPOI). The course, taking place from May 13-29, aims to equip UN staff officers of the Viet Nam People's Army and partner countries with knowledge and skills within the framework of the GPOI programme who are preparing to deploy tasks in UN peacekeeping missions, or those working in this field. It is designed to prepare Vietnamese trainees who are about to join UN peacekeeping missions. This is also a chance to strengthen friendship and cooperation between Viet Nam and the US and international partners in the peacekeeping field. Lee Seck Weng, head of the GPOI Lecturer Team, said Viet Nam has come a long way in contributing to UN peacekeeping missions with the deployment of military personnel since 2014. Viet Nam's peacekeeping force has not only created a significant impact on the ground but also inspired others to join in the noble cause of maintaining peace in areas affected by conflicts and disasters, Lee added. VNS HA NOI The police of Hang Buom Ward (Hoan Kiem District, Ha Noi) on Monday morning said that the taxi driver who allegedly overcharged two French tourists has presented himself to the police for questioning. Lieut. Col. inh uc Hanh, Chief of Police of Hang Buom Ward, stated that after receiving reports from the media and other channels, the People's Committee and Police of Hoan Kiem has directed the ward's police to urgently coordinate with relevant parties to investigate the incident. Previously, posts were circulating on Facebook, seeking information about the taxi driver extorting Western passengers in Ha Noi, claiming that the driver charged VN500,000 (US$20) from a foreign passenger for a short 200m ride by taxi from Tran Nhat Duat to Cho Gao Street. Later, as the passenger accidently left their passport in the car, the driver attempted to demand an additional VN500,000 to return it to the owner. The tourists reportedly told their encounter to the Vietnamese tour operator who met with them later to bring them to Cat Ba (Hai Phong). The photo of the licence plate was also included in these social media posts. After working with the taxi company, the police determined that the reported vehicle had indeed operated for the company. However, it had been transferred to someone else two years ago and is no longer in service for the company. VNS WARSAW The Warsaw capital administration is continuously updating on the developments regarding the fire incident that occurred on Sunday at the Shopping Centre No 44 Marywilska, where hundreds of Vietnamese stalls are located, and assistance is readily available. Monika Beuth, spokesperson for the Warsaw Capital City Hall, said aiding the small traders was essential. However, the first priority was to ensure the security of the area and completely extinguish the fire. The administration would hold discussions regarding solutions that could assist the small traders since Monday. The cause of the fire has not yet been determined, and there is no information on casualties. Apart from the rescue forces, specialised personnel in chemicals have been dispatched to the scene to monitor the air quality post-fire. The monitoring equipment indicates heavy air pollution, but residents are not required to evacuate, they are only asked to close all windows and limit outdoor activities temporarily. On Sunday, the Vietnamese Ambassador to Poland, Ha Hoang Hai announced that preliminary information suggested no casualties, but almost all properties had been destroyed by the fire. Hai said the shopping centre at No 44 Marywilska was a large retail centre in Poland with approximately 1,400 stalls, of which about one-third are owned by Vietnamese. The fire broke out in the early hours of Sunday. Approximately 10 minutes after receiving the alert, the first firefighting team arrived at the scene. However, due to the abundance of goods, including clothing items, coupled with dry weather, the flames spread rapidly. Almost the entire shopping centre was devastated by the fire. A Vietnamese small trader at the market said that the fire occurred before 4am. Upon receiving the news, he immediately went to the scene and saw flames engulfing many rows of houses. The capital's firefighting forces, with nearly 200 rescue personnel, joined the firefighting operation, but the fire spread rapidly. Within five to 10 minutes, it quickly engulfed the entire market area due to the presence of many flammable materials and textiles, he said. After receiving the information, the Vietnamese Embassy in Poland dispatched a task force to the scene and coordinated with the Vietnamese Community Association in Poland to assess the situation and promptly implement citizen protection work. The Vietnamese Embassy in Poland has posted hotlines for citizen protection to gather information from overseas Vietnamese and is ready to support them in working with relevant authorities, the shopping centres Management Board, firefighting forces, and insurance agencies to minimise the consequences of the fire. Additionally, for those who lost documents in the fire, the Vietnamese Embassy in Poland is ready to provide maximum support for the timely issuance of new documents. The embassy has also received directives from the Viet Nams Ministry of Foreign Affairs to continue working with local authorities to find optimal solutions to ensure the rights and interests of the affected individuals. Also on the morning of Sunday, speaking to a Vietnam News Agency correspondent in the central and eastern Europe region, Chairman of the Vietnamese Community Association in Poland, Tran Tuan Anh, said that the association was actively coordinating with the embassy to gather information, provide encouragement and visit affected individuals with damaged stalls, and mobilise initial support contributions. VNS HA NOI In the wake of a devastating fire that ripped through the Marywilska 44 shopping centre in Warsaw, Poland, on Sunday, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang, who also serves as Chairwoman of the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese, has extended her heartfelt sympathy to Vietnamese nationals impacted by the blaze. Through a letter sent on Monday, Hang expressed her most profound sympathy to the affected families. She conveyed her belief that during this challenging time, overseas Vietnamese, businesses and organisations in Poland and across the world as well, will come together in a spirit of solidarity and compassion. This unified front will be crucial in assisting the affected families in overcoming their hardships and finding solutions to rebuild their lives and businesses. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has instructed the Vietnamese Embassy in Poland to promptly work with the host authorities to ensure the protection of legitimate rights and interests of those impacted by the fire. The embassy will prioritise expediting assistance with essential documents, allowing the affected families to regain normalcy as quickly as possible. The Marywilska 44 shopping centre housed an estimated 400 Vietnamese small traders with nearly 600 stalls. Additionally, hundreds of Vietnamese workers found employment in stalls, nail salons, and restaurants within the complex. Vietnamese Ambassador to Poland Ha Hoang Hai announced that the embassy will be taking additional steps to support the affected community. This includes opening an extra reception session each week specifically dedicated to receiving and processing consular documents for Vietnamese citizens who lost their documents in the fire. The embassy will also convene meetings with Warsaw's leaders to discuss potential support measures, including document issuance, financial aid, job placement, and a thorough investigation into the cause of the fire. The Vietnamese Embassy in Poland can be reached via the following hotlines: +48 782 257 359 and +48 601 925 288. Several Vietnamese enterprises in Poland said they will receive those who lost their jobs after the fire and help the affected establishments to shift their business models. The Vietnamese associations in the European country has set up a community-support board to help the citizens recover from the incident. VNS Losing competitive edge due to poor data management In the world of modern business, data is often regarded as the lifeblood of organisations. When harnessed effectively, data can substantially contribute to a company's rapid growth. However, even the slightest inaccuracies in data handling can cause significant harm. Data fragmentation As the leader of a team responsible for developing the HexaSync Integration Platform, Le Huu Hoang Gia, co-founder, and CTO of Beehexa, has observed that many companies are grappling with the challenge of managing data. He remarked that business data is scattered across multiple locations. For example, mid-sized to large businesses, that are clients of Sapo Enterprise, not only utilise Sapo's solutions but also depend on various other data-containing systems, including ERP, CRM, CDP, accounting software, and internal work management tools. Despite the presence of similar features, these systems often exhibit variations in the way they handle data. In 2022, MuleSoft, a platform akin to HexaSync and acquired by Salesforce in 2018 for $6.5 billion, was surveyed to investigate software usage patterns. The survey revealed that, on average, medium-sized enterprises make use of approximately 976 software applications. However, only about 28 per cent of these applications are integrated, and the effectiveness of these connections remains unclear. Nguyen My Linh, business development manager at Sapo Enterprise said, We've come across companies dealing with extensive but dispersed data, requiring weeks to compile a coherent and actionable consolidated report. Linh believes that businesses frequently encounter challenges when it comes to ensuring accurate, timely, cost-effective, and secure data collection. Besides data fragmentation, companies are grappling with inconsistent data arising from various application development platforms and incomplete or inconsistent user inputs, as pointed out by Ngo Xuan Bang, MIS director at SeedCom. Bang emphasises that while security and data protection have always been important issues, they still present ongoing risks to organisations such as external attacks, software malfunctions, data errors, and human errors in data operations. Numerous factors and barriers contribute to challenges related to data, including outdated API integration systems, inadequate human resources and procedures for data collection and analysis, as well as insufficient resources dedicated to ensuring information security and data protection. Furthermore, the processes of data collection, processing, and analysis are fragmented and involve numerous intermediaries, leading to vulnerabilities. Many businesses have not fully recognised the significance of real-time data and reports in the context of digital transformation. Data integrity Utilising data correctly can drive a business towards rapid growth, as emphasised by Gia. However, even minor errors in data management can precipitate swift and serious consequences. An illustrative example of data-related issues is the presence of discrepancies in product information across different systems. For instance, on an e-commerce platform, it may show that there is inventory in stock, when, in reality, the stock has been depleted. Such disparities, including pricing inconsistencies and inventory mismatches, can have a significant and detrimental impact, leading to substantial financial losses. When product information data is improperly structured, it can hinder technology's ability to assist businesses in accurately assessing product trends and timing their business activities effectively. Data-related challenges exert a substantial influence on business operations. When data and application systems crucial for business operations face issues, it results in the slowdown or even halting of production and business activities. Often, resolving these problems can incur significant time and financial costs, Bang said. While business owners may possess a strong grasp of their company's operations and the significance of data consolidation and accuracy, they may not always be well-versed in effectively utilising software to guarantee seamless data flow across the system. Generally, businesses often need to recruit personnel responsible for data input and export, data cleansing, and ensuring efficient data utilisation. However, business owners may have concerns about whether their employees truly comprehend the company's objectives and vision for the correct utilisation of software. This is why Gia emphasises the importance of leveraging AI for data verification. Nonetheless, the majority of AI products in the current landscape tend to prioritise larger tasks, including product recommendations, customer demand prediction, customer segmentation, customer service automation, spam detection, and more advanced functionalities such as natural language processing and virtual assistants. In contrast, while AI has made significant strides in handling larger tasks, fundamental processes such as data input, cleaning, and refinement remain predominantly at the algorithmic level, and there's a shortage of practical software applications in this specific domain. "As businesses embark on digital transformation initiatives, they often find themselves walking a precarious tightrope, where any misstep can have significant consequences," said Gia. Offering guidance to businesses, business development manager at Sapo Enterprise emphasises the critical importance of cultivating the right mindset concerning data and its role in business operations. This encompasses adopting a holistic perspective on data, examining it from various perspectives, exercising caution, and consistently referencing data, all while giving paramount attention to data security and information safety. According to experts at Seedcom, businesses are advised to actively explore, and leverage technology platforms to establish efficient connections, and centralise, and standardise their data. Utilising technology solutions with open-API connections is vital for building robust data collection, processing, analysis, and data connection processes. When it comes to in-house application development, businesses need to prioritise standardisation and simplicity in their applications to prevent the unnecessary complexity of user experiences and data utilisation. To safeguard data quality, businesses are advised to store their data in secure cloud platforms and implement stringent operating procedures and robust security measures to minimise the risks of incidents. Moreover, business leaders need to foster the right mindset across their entire team. Businesses should focus on developing and strengthening the skills of their personnel in data extraction, data operation, and data analysis. Additionally, bringing in experienced professionals to support the analysis, appraisal, and standardisation of source data during the data warehouse construction process can be beneficial. "Before making substantial investments in software, business leaders must ascertain the potential of their data to yield measurable value for AI learning. This understanding is crucial for enabling effective data exploration and utilisation while minimising the risk of even minor errors that could result in business losses or erroneous decisions," said Beehexa's CTO. More efficiency via data management Leading international enterprise data management firm Orchestra Networks will host an event to share a glimpse with Vietnamese enterprises into what they can gain from optimising the wealth of data flowing through their fingers every day. Pierre Bonnet, co-founder of Orchestra Networks, shared with VIRs Hai Yen how the company rose along with the need for data management across the globe. Data Management the new challenge beyond Industry 4.0 Big Data and artificial intelligence, with their never-before-seen growth, are having a strong impact on society. Data has the potential to contribute to the development of humanity, but also poses unpredictable risks without proper governance. At the end of last month, Japanese trading company Sojitz invested in Finviet Technology Corporation, a software-as-a-service company introducing cashless payment smartphone apps and an online ordering platform for small-scale retail stores in Vietnam. This is the latest deal following Sojitzs acquisition of Dai Tan Viet, Vietnams largest wholesale distributor of food to businesses, last November. Fertile ground for Japans wholesalers - illustration photo Finviets app aims to improve convenience for distributors and consumers with an online ordering platform that connects the entire supply chain, combined with functions such as cashless payment and loans. This investment is part of Sojitzs broad strategy to enhance the purchasing power of Vietnams consumers and develop value chains for manufacturing, distribution, and retail. Besides the acquisition of Dai Tan Viet, Sojitz is working alongside its consolidated subsidiary and major consumer goods wholesaler, Huong Thuy Manufacture Service Trading Corporation, to expand sales channels to create a broadline wholesale food distribution business that supplies independently owned retail stores, mass merchandisers, and mid- to high-end hotels and restaurants. Sojitz is also considering joint projects with Finviet, which possesses strong online tech platform networks, to further expand Sojitzs value chain in Vietnam. In the same month, Mitsubishi Shokunin invested $1.87 million in the Vietnamese food chain Homefarm, which offers meat, imported seafood, and fresh salmon. Homefarm has quickly expanded its chain from 10 outlets at the end of 2017 to over 160 outlets as of March. The startup has the flexibility to open small stores of about 30-40 square metres in a short period of time in prime locations near wet markets or residential areas. Vietnam is positioned as one of the pillars of our long-term strategy. We consider the country a promising market and are looking for opportunities to expand our footprint here, said a Mitsubishi Shokunin representative. Masataka "Sam" Yoshida, head of the Cross-border Division of RECOF Corporation, told VIR, Japanese companies like Sojitz and Mitsubishi Shokuhin act as wholesalers and facilitate the distribution, logistics, and settlement between manufacturers and retailers. Indeed, Japanese food manufacturers entered Vietnam in the late 1990s and early 2000s, establishing a strong presence in the modern trade sector. However, their challenge as foreign companies lies in expanding beyond modern trade to tap into the local traditional trade market and explore new avenues such as imported products and e-commerce. These emerging markets cater to the demand for healthier, more luxurious, and unique products, Yoshida added. Vietnam has been recognised by prominent organisations, including the World Bank, as the fastest-growing country in the IT and technology sectors in Southeast Asia. The widespread use of smartphones has made technology indispensable in connecting consumers with product sources, particularly in the food industry. According to a report by RECOF, the Vietnam-Japan merger and acquisition market in 2023 revealed a clear concentration in two sectors, namely food wholesale and IT software, with five transactions each out of 19 transactions for the year. This trend shows Japanese companies high interest in growing consumption and a highly skilled IT workforce in Vietnam. Some of the notable deals in food wholesale include Kato Sangyos acquisition of Nam Khai Phu Service Trading, Morinaga Milks acquisition of Morinaga Le May, Daireis investment in TBM Consumer, Marubenis deal with AIG Asia Ingredients, and Sojitzs acquisition of Dai Tan Viet. Vietnamese companies in food and technology garner significant interest from Japanese investors and funds. Elsewhere, Vietnam-based business-to-business food sourcing platform Kamereo also raised $2.1 million, co-led by Reazon Holdings, Quest Ventures, and Foodison CEO Thoru Yamamoto in March. Kamereo founder Taku Tanaka said, We differentiate ourselves by developing a comprehensive supply chain that spans from upstream to downstream within the country. Building such a system is time-intensive and capital-heavy, which deters many from undertaking it. However, this investment in our supply chain is a strategic advantage, providing us with cost benefits and stable supply and pricing over time. Kamereo plans to deepen its cooperation with Japanese businesses to strengthen its ability to build efficient supply chains in Vietnam, and it has launched a ready-to-eat product following Japanese technology and standards. Despite its size, the Japanese market is saturated, with limited growth potential in the future. Consequently, its natural for major Japanese wholesale companies to turn their attention to the Vietnam market, Tanaka said. Satoshi Kuriga, head of global investments at Reazon Capital said, The food supply chain in Vietnam is not yet fully developed, presenting substantial unmet needs and pain points that new players can capitalise on. There are no major conglomerates dominating the local market, and most existing players are smaller enterprises. This allows for potential differentiation through operational capabilities, technological advancements, and investment. For food trading, operational capabilities and trading volume are currently crucial because the food supply chain in Vietnam is still in its developmental stage, Kuriga added. Therefore, having extensive coverage of the food supply chain and a solid client base is vital to succeeding in this market, like the dominance of major players in other countries, he said. Japanese retailer Takashimaya to advance project in Hanoi Japanese retailer Takashimaya is strengthening its foothold in Vietnam with a plan to launch a shopping centre in Hanoi by 2026. Dong Nai woos Japanese investors More than 100 Japanese investors, with 200 more Vietnamese and Japanese attending online, participated in a conference to promote investment in the southern province of Dong Nai held in Tokyo on April 24. Japanese leaders hold further talks to make North Hanoi Smart City a reality Japanese government agencies have held meetings with leaders of a consortium between Vietnam's BRG Group and Japan's Sumitomo Corporation to push progress on the North Hanoi Smart City project. The information was shared by Lee Sang Woon, co-vice chairman and COO of Hyosung Corporation, at a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Le Minh Khai on May 10. Accordingly, Hyosung plans to build a data centre in SHTP to tap into the growing demand for digital infrastructure in the region. Vietnam is currently home to 32 small- and medium-sized data centres. Among them, there are four major local suppliers, namely Viettel, VNPT, FPT, and CMC, which account for 97 per cent of the market share. Vietnam's data centre market remains smaller than that of regional peers like Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and the Philippines. However, Vietnam is one of the world's ten largest emerging data centre markets. According to Research and Markets, the data centre market in Vietnam is forecast to reach $1 billion by 2028, with a compound annual growth rate of nearly 11 per cent. At the meeting, Woon added that Hyosung, the world's third-largest ATM manufacturer, is looking to invest in a factory manufacturing ATMs in Vietnam. In response, DPM Khai said the government is focused on improving the investment climate and creating stronger conditions for the groups. He proposed that Hyosung pay attention to protecting the environment, enhancing linkages with local companies, using locally-made materials, and ensuring employee welfare. Vietnam has attracted 10,000 projects from South Korean companies, with total registered capital of $87 billion. Among them, Hyosung is the third-largest South Korean investor in Vietnam, trailing behind Samsung and LG. Since 2007, the corporation has invested $4 billion in Vietnam, including in raw materials, textiles, chemicals, and industrial electrical systems. Most of the corporation's South Korean-based factories have been relocated to Vietnam. In March, Hyosung TNC also received investment approval for the Hyosung BDO project from Ba Ria-Vung Tau People's Committee to build the largest bio-spandex factory in Vietnam. Hyosung Group unveils $720 million investment in Vietnam Hyosung Group, a South Korean industrial conglomerate, has announced plans to invest $720 million in a biotech fiber manufacturing plant in Vietnam. Hyosung to invest an additional $2 billion in Vietnam in 2024 South Korean industrial conglomerate Hyosung Group has just unveiled its intention to inject an additional investment of $2 billion into Vietnam in 2024. Rescuers search for people missing due to floods and cold lava from a volcano in West Sumatra, Indonesia (Photo: XINHUA) Hanoi - The number of people killed by flash floods and cold lava flow from a volcano in western Indonesia over the weekend has risen to 41 with 17 more missing, West Sumatra disaster mitigation agency reported on May 13. As of May 12 evening, the agency recorded 37 dead victims but the figure reached 41 on May 13 morning. Rescuers were searching for the missing people, it added. Hours of heavy rain caused flooding in two districts on Sumatra island on May 11 evening, threatening thousands of people after the downpours swept ash and large rocks down Mount Marapi, the most active volcano on the island. Those missing include three in Agam district and 14 in Tanah Datar, both the worst-hit areas of the flood and home to hundreds of thousands of people. Indonesia is prone to landslides and floods during the rainy season. In 2022, about 24,000 people were evacuated, and two children were killed in floods on Sumatra island, with environmental campaigners blaming deforestation caused by logging for worsening the disaster. Indonesia"s first thermal power plant stops operating Indonesia's Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (MMAF) has held a press conference to inform about the countrys progress in the early decommissioning of the Cirebon-1 thermal power plant. A clerk checks USD banknotes at the headquarters of Hana Bank in Seoul. (Photo: Yonhap) Kuala Lumpur The Central Bank of Malaysia (BNM) announced that it has signed an agreement with its counterpart from the Republic of Korea (RoK) to extend a bilateral swap arrangement by another three years. The size of this arrangement is maintained at 15 billion RM (3.65 billion USD), the BNM said in a statement. It noted that the swap arrangement can be extended by mutual agreement between the two central banks. The swap agreement, which allows both parties to exchange their local currencies to boost their use in trade and investment, is aimed at further promoting bilateral trade and strengthening the financial cooperation between the two countries. Apart from RoK, Malaysia has swap agreements with its biggest trading partners and major neighbours including China, Japan, Indonesia and Thailand. Malaysian official urges collective efforts in plastic waste fight A Malaysian official has underlined the importance of collective efforts, particularly by the public, in promoting the use of reusable bags and reducing single-use plastics in the fight against plastic waste. A new lake has been discovered inside the pristine Thung Cave within the Worlds Natural Heritage Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park in Quang Binh province. (Photo courtesy of Quangbinh Tourism) Quang Binh (VNS/VNA) - A mysterious lake has been discovered in Thung Cave within the Worlds Natural Heritage Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, in the central province of Quang Binh. It was discovered during an expedition by the Junglee Boss adventure tourism company and announced by Director of the company Le Luu Dung. The lake is located around one kilometre from the entrance of the cave, in one of the most pristine caverns in the area, situated deep within a strictly protected zone of the national park. It was found in an area about 15 metres higher than the main underground river branch inside the cave, making it look like it was 'floating' on the cave wall. The lake is surrounded by stalactite columns with an underground river system underneath it. The newly-discovered lake has a transparent emerald green colour and has been tentatively named Lo Lung (floating) lake due to its unique location. The source of water flowing into the lake has not yet been determined, with the exploration team also discovering a passage along the cave wall of Thung Cave that traverses the main underground river branch. According to Dung, the team members were unable to determine the lake's water source due to a lack of the necessary depth-sensing equipment, but plan on returning for further surveys and explorations in the area in the near future, he added. The Phong Nha Ke Bang National Park, which covers over 123,000ha, is home to many terrestrial and aquatic habitats, primary and secondary forests, sites of natural regeneration and tropical dense forests. It is also rich in large, often spectacular and scientifically significant caves, including Son Doong - the world's largest cave. The area has twice been named as a world natural heritage site, first in July 2003, when UNESCO recognised the park for its exceptional global value in terms of geology and geomorphology. Twelve years later, in July 2015, the park was once again honoured, this time for its outstanding value in terms of evolutionary and development processes of terrestrial ecosystems which provide meaningful natural habitats for biodiversity conservation. Quang Binh tourism branding can set central province apart Quang Binh province is aiming to leverage tourism to turn it into the most attractive destination in Vietnam, and a lucrative adventure centre in Asia. Thien Duong Cave - An underground maze in Quang Binh Hidden in a vast forest in the western reaches of the central province of Quang Binh, Thien Duong (Paradise) Cave has been described as a beautiful natural masterpiece that never fails to enchant visitors. New cave discovered in Quang Binh A cave with magnificent and pristine limestone formations has been freshly discovered in the central province of Quang Binh, which is often dubbed the "kingdom of caves" in Vietnam. The groundbreaking ceremony of the Ecovance high-tech biodegradable materials factory project was held on May 11. Covering an area of 32,000 square metres in Dinh Vu Industrial Park, the project has an initial investment of $100 million. By 2030, Ecovance Co. Ltd., under SK Group, plans to raise the investment capital to $500 million. Under its plan, the construction of the factory is slated to be completed in June 2025. The factory will be put into operation in September 2025, following a trial operation in July. The project has the goal of producing biodegradable materials such as PBAT, PBS, and PBATS. Once fully operated, the project will reach an annual capacity of 70,000 tonnes of PBAT biodegradable plastic products, 59,500 tonnes of PBS biodegradable plastic products, and 6,300 tonnes of THF solvent products. Speaking at the ceremony, Le Anh Quan, Deputy Chairman of Haiphong Peoples Committee, said the project was of great significance as plastic waste pollution is a pressing global issue. The project contributes to reducing environmental pollution and protecting biodiversity while opening up a new path for the plastics industry towards a green and circular economy. The project also marks an important milestone in Haiphongs efforts to engage foreign direct investment (FDI) in the high-tech, eco-friendly material fields. In 2023, Haiphong lured $3.5 billion in FDI, 1.75 times higher than the years target, ranking second in FDI attraction nationwide. In 2024, Haiphong aims to draw in $2.5 billion in FDI. In the first four months of the year, the city has reported nearly $700 million. SK Ecoplant ties up with BCG Energy to co-develop 700MW of renewable energy SK Ecoplant, the environment and energy arm of SK Group, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with BCG Energy, a subsidiary of Bamboo Capital Group, on March 22 to jointly develop renewable energy projects in Vietnam. SK E&S and T&T Group research LNG project in Quang Tri A consortium of investors, including South Korea's SK E&S and Vietnam's T&T Group, have made a proposal to research the development of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in the central province of Quang Tri. The province enticed seven new foreign-invested projects, and three existing projects increased registered capital by $478 million, placing Thai Nguyen in the fourth place nationwide in foreign direct investment attraction in Q1. Cumulatively as of now, the province is home to 218 foreign ventures with a total registered capital reaching $11.2 billion. The Trina Solar project in Thai Nguyen province In late February, Thai Nguyen Industrial Parks Management Authority approved a project on the production of monocrystalline silicon ingots, monocrystalline silicon panels, and solar energy panels for Trina Solar Cell Vietnam, a unit belonging to Chinese solar panel manufacturer Trina Solar, at Yen Binh Industrial Park (IP), with a total investment value surpassing $450 million. This is the third project involving Trina Solar in Thai Nguyen, bringing its total investment in the province to $932 million. The project is slated to kick-off construction this month and commence operation from next spring, creating employment for more than 4,300 labourers. Earlier, Trina Solar expedited two similar projects also at Yen Binh IP worth $478 million. Both projects are powered by high-tech and eco-friendly technology, aligned with the provinces investment attraction direction. Last month, Nguyen Thanh Hai, Secretary of Thai Nguyen Party Committee, worked with a delegation from Japans Kawasaki city and Japanese investors led by Norio Aoki, mayor of the City Council, who visited to learn about investment opportunities in the province. Hai expressed the desire to welcome more foreign investors, and Japanese ones in particular, to set up shop in the province and asserted the commitment to continue expediting preferential policies within the legal framework. The province also wants to improve the quality of administrative reform and digital transformation, and grasp the difficulties facing investors and resolve them swiftly. The Japanese delegation also expressed the desire to invest in a number of fields, especially healthcare. Trinh Viet Hung, Chairman of Thai Nguyen Peoples Committee, noted that this year is of particular importance for localities in expediting and completing economic growth targets in the context the economy is forecast to gain rebound momentum. Of note, Thai Nguyen is the fifth locality nationwide in which the prime minister approved provincial planning for the rest of the decade and with a vision towards 2050, which regulates the planning of 12 IZs and over 40 industrial clusters with a total area surpassing 6,300 hectares. Le Quang Tien, Vice Chairman of Thai Nguyen Peoples Committee, said, To further improve the local investment climate, the province has established a task force in charge of helping businesses and investors swiftly remove issues when implementing projects in the area, as well as organising monthly dialogue meetings with businesses and investors to facilitate production and business activities. Thai Nguyen ranked second nationwide in the satisfaction index of individuals and businesses in public administrative services in the Vietnam Provincial Governance and Public Administration Performance Index for 2023. The results were unveiled last month. Chairman Hung believes the province renders multiple opportunities to attract foreign investment, particularly the fresh planning scheme for the rest of this decade would be the premise for the province to open up new development and investment space. Therefore, strengthening and innovating investment promotion activities, especially foreign investment promotion, will help the province best avail of the opportunities, increasing cooperation with global investors, contributing to propelling the provinces socioeconomic development quickly and sustainably, said Hung. Meanwhile, Le Kim Phuc, director of Thai Nguyen Industrial Parks Management Authority, noted that Thai Nguyen commits to taking specific actions to best support investors. Top priority shall be given to high-tech, electronics, and semiconductor projects, and projects that create high added value and embrace modern and effective governance, having spillover effects and connecting global production and supply chains, said Phuc. Quality, technological efficiency, and environmental resource protection are Thai Nguyens main evaluation criteria in investment attraction. VITAS said that Vietnam was home to around 3,500 foreign-invested textile and garment projects worth $37 billion, boosting the sectors production capacity and making a significant contribution to export turnover. The foreign-invested enterprises play an important role in the textile and garment sector, contributing 65 per cent to the sectors total export turnover. Major investors mainly come from South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and China. Among them, South Korea is the largest foreign investor in Vietnams textile and garment sector. The expansion of foreign direct investment (FDI) has boosted both the scale and capacity of the local textile and garment sector. Vietnam is still the third-largest textile and garment exporter worldwide, trailing behind China and Bangladesh. In 2022, the country's textile and garment export turnover surpassed $44 billion, a huge leap from $2 billion in 2000. In 2023, Vietnams textile industry posted an export turnover of $40.3 billion, down 10 per cent from the previous year due to shrinking demand from major markets like the United States and EU. In the first four months of 2024, textile and garment orders have shown signs of improvement, with an export turnover of $10.3 billion, up 6.3 per cent on-year. The US is the top export market for Vietnams textile and garment products, followed by the EU, South Korea, China, and Japan. The industry currently imports nearly all of its cotton and spends tens of billions of dollars on raw fabric each year. Over the past four months, cotton imports reached over $1 billion, an increase of 20.2 per cent on-year. The import value of fabric was up 6.5 per cent to $4.34 billion. The figure for textile yarn was $833 million, an increase of 22.5 per cent. Meanwhile, $2.24 was spent to import raw materials for textiles, garments, and footwear, a rise of 18.9 per cent against last years period. The leading localities in FDI attraction in the textile and garment sector are Dong Nai, Binh Duong, Tay Ninh, Long An, Nam Dinh, Hai Duong, and Binh Phuoc. Vietnam's garment and textile companies eye sustainable products Companies seek to diversify supply chains to tap into opportunities from a wide range of new-generation free trade agreements and an increasing flow of investments into the local market. Textile and garment industry awaiting fresh drive in order to reverse fortunes Despite its continued reliance on traditional markets, the garments and textiles industry in Vietnam is gaining momentum for a gradual recovery in 2024 due to the diversification of its consumer base, products, and markets. WATERLOO When Leticia Roberts was released from the Black Hawk County Jail in 2022, she thought her debt to society was paid up. But two years later, she is still struggling to settle room-and-board fees charged by the jail for her stay. Upon her discharge, the 40-year-old mother of three signed papers, including a confession of judgment where she agreed to pay $730. Unknown to her, that document waived her right to challenge the jail bill. I only signed it because I didnt think I had a choice, said Roberts, who is on a fixed income. Now civil rights groups are taking up Roberts cause and the cause of others who were billed for their jail stays and alleging the sheriffs office is improperly using the money paid by her and other inmates. As a regular citizen, and being involved within the community, it makes me upset because a sheriffs office is supposed to uphold the law, not bend it, Roberts said Monday during a press conference announcing the suit. As a mom, it makes me upset because that is money that could be going towards feeding my children. But instead it was put towards things such as cotton candy and ice cream machines for fun. In a class action suit filed Monday in U.S. District Court for Northern Iowa, Public Justice, the ACLU of Iowa, Fredrikson & Byron PA, and Frerichs Law Office of Waterloo are asking the court to block the Black Hawk County Sheriffs Office from extracting money from people before being released from jail for room, board and other fees. Sheriff Tony Thompson said the room and board fees are appropriate, and said he has nothing to hide when it comes to how he spends the money. At the heart of the matter is money used for the Raymond Shooting Range a training facility for deputies and neighboring agencies and an annual event that gives people a peek at the inner workings of law enforcement. The civil rights groups say the shooting range is for enjoyment of department employees and families, including rentals of ice cream and cotton candy machines and laser tag. Thompson said the range events create dialogue and relationships and build commonality amongst neighbors. He defends the fun. Further, it also seems disingenuous to have these very programs be paid for by the hard-working taxpayers when they are the ones who are already victimized by the offender, Thompson said. When they pay for their stay in jail, they are helping fund training for the law enforcement profession, families, and our communities by providing programming that destigmatizes the profession of law enforcement just a bit. The jail charges a $25 booking fee for each stay along with $70 per day for room and board. The fees only pertain to people serving a sentence following a conviction, not for people awaiting trial. The suit alleges Thompson and his office are requiring people, before they are released from jail, to sign a confession of judgment. Critics say people end up giving away their rights without an opportunity to consult with an attorney or negotiate the terms of the form. Deputies also use the document to seize any money, even small amounts like cash they had in their wallets when prisoners were booked in, with no way to get it returned. Counties are required by law to follow a process that gives a person being released from jail an opportunity to appear in court when the county attempts to collect the fees. In that hearing, they can raise defenses, including that they simply do not have the ability to pay. Black Hawk County bypasses that legal process. The sheriff can use the confession to garnish peoples wages without asking a court for permission. Most of the people paying are trying to get their lives together and under extreme financial stress, so wrongfully extracting money from them at that difficult point is particularly heartless, said Charles Moore, staff attorney for Public Justices Debtors Prison Project. And the sheriffs program has been incredibly profitable, pocketing roughly $300,000 a year by collecting these fees. Thompson said people can leave jail without signing the documents. Upon release, inmates receive a statement as to what is owed and are given the option to sign a confession of judgment and enter into a payment plan but they are not required. Upon the advice of counsel, and pursuant to a change to the law in 2020, the state of Iowa amended the manner in which county sheriffs offices enforce inmate payment of administrative costs for room and board, Thompson said. Rather, a county sheriff is now required to file a claim with the clerk of court. This claim must be filed as a civil action. Several counties in Iowa do not charge room and board. And while other Iowa counties may also charge such fees, Black Hawk County stands out because it takes in significantly more than comparably sized counties, according to the suit. This practice needs to stop, said Rita Bettis Austen, ACLU of Iowa legal director. The sheriff is getting people to sign away money they dont have and give up rights they shouldnt give up by asking them to do so when they have completed their sentence but before they are released from jail, when they are not yet free. Roberts said she is participating in the suit because she wants to take a stand. It also makes me upset as a Black woman because I know that Black people do not always receive equality in the justice system, especially in Waterloo, Iowa, where Black people make up just 17% of the general population but around 50% of the county jail population, Roberts said. Moore says county jails in other states often use similar tactics to squeeze money out of those being held. But the situation in Black Hawk County is even worse, Moore says. In Black Hawk County, the sheriff decides who owes money and how much they owe without any court ever reviewing those decisions. He acts as the judge, jury, and debt collector. Its a classic conflict of interest. The lawsuit asks that the court declare the practice of collecting money unconstitutional as a violation of due process and because it is a conflict of interest for the sheriffs office to collect fees that it then can spend however it likes. Bettis Austen said Sheriff Thompson is aware of the problems caused by current practices used to collect fees. The county board of supervisors has raised concerns about the way the funds are spent. Also, she said, documents obtained by our firms show that the sheriff knows that the confessions of judgment result in many people owing money that a judge would never have made them pay, given their low incomes. Under Iowa law, 60% of the jail fees are to go toward courthouse security equipment and law enforcement personnel costs, infrastructure improvements of a jail, infrastructure improvements at juvenile detention facilities, and medical and prescription drug costs of inmates in jail. The remaining 40% is unallocated. In Black Hawk County, the remaining 40% goes to a fund controlled by the sheriffs office, which the suit alleges goes to fund superfluous expenses entirely unrelated to the upkeep of the jail or the wellbeing of those in custody at the jail. Court records indicate much of that money goes to fund the Raymond Shooting Range, a training facility for the sheriffs office and neighboring agencies. Once a year, the sheriffs office hosts a family day that includes a jail tour, seminars in defensive tactics and demonstrations by the K-9 as well as refreshments. The event started as a way to familiarize deputies spouses and children with facets of the sheriffs office and learn about safety, but a few years ago it was expanded to include the general public. It seems ironic that the ACLU would call this practice into question when these are the very actions and the law enforcement model that they have been demanding since George Floyd, Michael Brown, Breonna Taylor, and beyond, Thompson said in a response to the suit. Control over the 40 Percent Fund was the subject of a dustup between the sheriffs office and the Black Hawk County Board of Supervisors in 2019 and again in 2022. Supervisors questioned the use of the fund for cotton candy, ice cream and laser tag and voted to take control of the fund, which had amassed $227,000. The sheriff then indicated he would no longer collect the jail fees until the board reached an agreement where range improvements over $5,000 would require board approval, but the sheriff would otherwise retain control of the fund. The 40 Percent Fund also funds the sheriffs offices 20-person tactical team, the Water Safety Patrol, an Aerial Response Team and an Honor Guard, according to the suit. Even in the best of circumstances, selling a home is typically several months of prolonged stress. But selling a late parents home a transaction potentially fraught with grief, financial urgency and family drama? That takes the difficulties to a whole other level. It just makes your head spin, says Jacyln Tannazzo of Commack, New York, who in July 2023, as the executor for her late parents, sold the house they had lived in for 50 years. You know its going to be a lot to handle, but you dont realize how much its really going to be. Youre taking care of your own home, and then youre being asked to know when did my parents get an oil burner? How old is the roof? Be aware that the emotional pain of clearing your parents possessions may be an obstacle to preparing the home for sale. Here, Jaclyn Tannazzo and her sister are in the middle of organizing the possessions. Courtesy Jaclyn Tannazzo Tannazzos task was one that a growing number of families face. Older Americans hold more than $23 trillion of their wealth in real estate, according to the Federal Reserve; for homeowners, those homes are usually one of their largest financial assets. Ideally, parents share their wishes and plans with their family about what to do with their home, or second home, after theyre gone. And ideally, they have a will indicating who should inherit their property. But often they dont; a recent study by LawDepot found that less than 30 percent of respondents 55 and older had a will. If you and other heirs, if thats applicable dont already have a plan in place, heres one to follow. Clarify roles Unless theres a will or trust specifying the next steps for example, I bequeath my house at 125 West Ninth Street to my daughter Lisa Carol youll have to decide the fate of the house. If youre the sole heir, you have the right to do whatever you see fit, whether thats selling it, keeping it, living there or renting it out. When no specific instructions are given and other heirs are involved, things can get more complicated. The estates executor the person formally assigned to administer the dead persons property and distribute assets in the legal process known as probate ultimately has sole authority to determine the homes disposition, says Crystal West Edwards, an elder law attorney in Morristown, New Jersey, and principal at Porzio, Bromberg & Newman. Members only Even if you were named the executor, youre also a family member, and your siblings may have their opinions. Some may want to hold on to the property as an investment, while others financial circumstances might benefit from the proceeds of a fast sale. Making these decisions and coming to an agreement are tough to do while youre in mourning, says Michael Gifford, CEO and cofounder of Splitero, a financial technology company in San Diego. As soon as its reasonable, after people have had time to grieve, you may want to call a family meeting, making sure that any out-of-town siblings are part of the decision-making process. Be gentle with each other, says Maureen McDermut, a senior global real estate adviser for Sothebys International Realty in Santa Barbara, California. Every sibling is going to have a different emotional reaction to their parents house that theyre selling. Whatever your decision, keep in mind that as an executor, you have a responsibility to your fellow heirs. For this reason, it is always good practice to maintain an open dialogue between the representative and the beneficiaries to minimize the likelihood of a challenge at the conclusion of the estate administration, Edwards says. Binding 200KT Toll Milling Agreement Executed with FMR Perth, May 13, 2024 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Horizon Minerals Limited ( ASX:HRZ ) is pleased to announce that it has entered into a binding Toll Milling Agreement ("TMA") with FMR Investments Pty Ltd ("FMR") to treat 200kt of Horizon ore from the Cannon underground project, or other deposit, commencing in the December 2024 Quarter. HIGHLIGHTS - Binding TMA has been executed with FMR, which owns the Greenfields Mill located northeast of Coolgardie and 30km southwest of Kalgoorlie-Boulder in WA - Horizon will arrange contract mining and hauling of ore from Cannon for ore processing at FMR's 1.0Mtpa Greenfields Mill, located ~67km by road from the Cannon Project - An agreed 200kt of ore will be processed over a period of eight months, commencing in the December 2024 Quarter - The TMA contains competitive ore treatment rates with the payment structure as follows: o Horizon is responsible for delivery of each stockpile to the Greenfields Mill ROM near Coolgardie o Payment of processing costs must be made before the value of the processed and refined gold at the Perth Mint is transferred from FMR's metal account to Horizon o If the delivery schedule is missed Horizon will forfeit its allocated tonnes for that month and from the overall 200kt allocation - An Ore Reserve for Cannon has already been established including forecast economics for the ore to be processed via a Toll Milling Agreement - Cannon is fully environmentally permitted (with last mining in 2017) with pre-production activities are already underway, including dewatering of the open pit in preparation for underground mining - The TMA has flexibility that Horizon can treat Horizon ore other than Cannon, including Horizon's own current resources or those acquired through the proposed merger with Greenstone Resources Limited, provided sufficient notice is provided to FMR Commenting on the toll milling agreement, Chief Executive Officer Mr Grant Haywood said: "We are very pleased to have converted our 200,000 tonne allocation with FMR into a formal Toll Milling Agreement, and look forward to working closely with them as ore deliveries will commence later this calendar year. This agreement is in addition to our 1.4Mt ore sale agreement with Paddington announced a week ago. Together this will see us generating cash flow from two fronts in this fantastic gold price environment before the end of 2024." Next Steps - AMC Consultants has been engaged and undertaken a review of the Cannon Ore Reserve and will progress the revised key financial outcomes for the June 2024 Quarter - Finalise engagement with underground mining and haulage contractors to finalise tenders for Cannon - Complete the proposed merger with Greenstone Resources to enhance the long-term production profile with development ready high-grade projects *To view tables and figures, please visit: https://abnnewswire.net/lnk/WUABZYMW 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. Related Companies Melbourne, May 13, 2024 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Lithium Universe Limited ( ASX:LU7 ) ( ESMAF:OTCMKTS ) is pleased to announce that the ongoing testwork program shows that battery-grade (>99.5% Li2CO3) lithium carbonate can be produced from the various types of spodumene concentrate from around the world using the Becancour Lithium Refinery (Becancour) design. Recently, the Company's key lithium Board members and CEO visited the Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) metallurgical testing at the Linyi University Lithium Research Centre (Linyi), a world-class research centre with in-house analysis facilities. The ongoing test work program of various spodumene ores is an integral component of the DFS being conducted by Hatch Ltd (Hatch) for the Company's Becancour Lithium Refinery. The Refinery is a multi-purpose battery-grade lithium carbonate refinery designed to a production capacity of 16,000 metric tons per annum, assuming a spodumene feed grade of approximately 5.5% Li2O. Within the scope of this program, spodumene samples, ranging from 5.0% to 6.0% Li2O with diverse particle sizes (See Photo 1*), are being subjected to comprehensive testing. The objective of establishing a downstream standalone lithium refinery is to design it with the robust capability to process spodumene feedstock from any part of the world. Samples from Australia, Brazil, and Africa, featuring various lithium grades, were sourced and are currently undergoing process testing at Linyi. The proposed refinery will have the capability to efficiently process spodumene feedstock from diverse sources worldwide. This adaptability ensures that the lithium production operation remains robust and flexible, offering optionality in spodumene feedstock while the Canadian supply chain continues to develop. This strategic approach positions the Becancour Lithium Refinery to navigate fluctuations in the global spodumene market, maintaining operational continuity and stability. LU7 is pleased to announce that the second batch of lithium batteries tested at the Linyi has successfully met battery-grade specifications. Furthermore, all streams involved in the testing process have been fully analyzed, ensuring a comprehensive understanding of the lithium extraction and battery production processes. So far, test work shows that the Becancour Lithium Refinery design can handle all types of spodumene concentrate. The design has cyclone preheaters at the feed to the calcination kiln which will allow the process to handle these finer ore types. Cyclone preheating, alike Jiangsu, will improve the calcination of fine spodumene feed, enhancing the efficiency of the extraction process. In addition to the spodumene samples displaying different particle sizing, the samples also presented varying levels of key impurities including magnesium, calcium, and iron. The Jiangsu plant (on which the Becancour design is based upon) was the first plant to implement ion exchange technology for the removal of calcium impurities, a groundbreaking achievement that has set new standards in lithium purification. Additionally, the utilization of a CO2 purification circuit has resulted in remarkably low levels of sodium and sulfate impurities, well below industry cutoff thresholds. Metallurgical studies so far, have demonstrated that the Becancour process is highly robust, capable of handling various spodumene ore types from around the world with ease, resulting in the production of battery-grade lithium carbonate. Discussion of Results The primary concern in battery-grade lithium carbonate is sodium, with a specification of less than 250 ppm. The Becancour process demonstrates its capability to yield an even higher quality product, boasting sodium levels below 100 ppm. Additionally, calcium content is notably low, below 13 ppm compared to the 50 ppm specification. Another significant advantage of lithium carbonate derived from hard rock sources over brine-based alternatives is its remarkably low chloride levels, measuring less than 2 ppm as opposed to the 200 ppm found in brine grades. Commenting on the test work, Chairman, Iggy Tan said that "Based on the Lithium Dream Team's experience and network, the Company is able to use one of the best lithium research and test facility in the world. One of the Professors (Dr Jie Gao) who heads the research institute started her lithium career at the Jiangsu Lithium Carbonate plant under the guidance of LU7's Non-executive Director, Dr Jingyuan Liu. We are very pleased with the one-pass success of producing battery-grade lithium carbonate. Our experience with other laboratories around the world is that they cannot achieve such a result in such a short time period. "The results demonstrate the validity of the process design when processing multiple types of spodumene feedstock from all around the world. This places LU7 in a unique position; due to the design not being tied solely to a single spodumene mine but having the flexibility to produce battery-grade lithium carbonate from spodumene feedstocks all around the world." *To view photographs, please visit: https://abnnewswire.net/lnk/56BW83JX About Lithium Universe Ltd Lithium Universe Ltd (ASX:LU7) (FRA:KU00) (OTCMKTS:LUVSF), headed by industry trail blazer, Iggy Tan, and the Lithium Universe team has a proven track record of fast-tracking lithium projects, demonstrated by the successful development of the Mt Cattlin spodumene project for Galaxy Resources Limited. Instead of exploring for the sake of exploration, Lithium Universe's mission is to quickly obtain a resource and construct a spodumene-producing mine in Quebec, Canada. Unlike many other Lithium exploration companies, Lithium Universe possesses the essential expertise and skills to develop and construct profitable projects. Related Companies Placement Perth, May 13, 2024 AEST (ABN Newswire) - BPH Energy Limited ( ASX:BPH ) is pleased to announce that it has received binding commitments to raise $1 million (before costs) ("Placement"). The Placement will comprise the issue of 50,000,000 new fully paid ordinary shares ("Placement Shares") in the Company at an issue price of $0.02 per share. Placement participants will receive one (1) free Attaching Option (BPHOB) for every two (2) Placement Shares subscribed for under the Placement, exercisable at $0.03 each with an expiry date of 30 September 2024 ("Attaching Options"). Oakley Capital Partners Pty Limited ("Oakley Capital") and 62 Capital Limited ("62 Capital" acted as Joint Lead Managers for the Placement. Oakley Capital and 62 Capital will be paid a cash fee of 5% on funds raised under the Placement and 12,000,000 BHPOB Broker Options ("Broker Options") exercisable at $0.03 each with an expiry date of 30 September 2024 pro-rata to their participation in the Placement. The Placement (including the free Attaching Options and Broker Options) will be undertaken pursuant to the Company's existing placement capacity under ASX Listing Rule 7.1 and ASX Listing Rule 7.1A. Commenting on the capital raising, Executive Director Mr David Breeze said: "We were pleased with the strong support in the Placement and will see the introduction of several new sophisticated investors, including high net worth, family office and resource funds to our register. The funding allows BPH to accelerate the exploration programs to unlock the potential on our gas projects especially with the current gas supply crisis as well as assist the next phase of associate Cortical Dynamic Limited's expansion. USE OF FUNDS The proceeds raised under the Placement provide BPH with a strong cash position to fund its hydrocarbon projects and to assist in the continued development of Cortical Dynamics. The intended use of funds will be for: - $0.75 million - Funding for exploration and development of oil and gas investments - $0.1 million - For working capital including costs of the offer - $0.15 million - Funding for Cortical Dynamics PLACEMENT DETAILS The Placement offer price of $0.02 per share represents a 16.7% discount to BPH's closing price of $0.024 per share on Thursday, 9 May 2024, and a 16.7 % discount to the 10-day VWAP of $0.024 per share. Settlement of the Placement is expected to be completed on or around 15 May 2024. The Placement has been conducted pursuant to the Company's existing Placement capacity under ASX Listing Rule 7.1 and ASX Listing Rule 7.1A. A total of 5,200,000 Placement Shares, 25,000,000 Attaching Options, and 12,000,000 Broker Options will be issued under ASX Listing Rule 7.1. A total of 44,800,000 Placement Shares will be issued under ASX Listing Rule 7.1A. Placement Shares will rank equally with existing fully paid ordinary shares. About BPH Energy Limited BPH Energy Limited (ASX:BPH) is an Australian Securities Exchange listed company developing biomedical research and technologies within Australian Universities and Hospital Institutes. The company provides early stage funding, project management and commercialisation strategies for a direct collaboration, a spin out company or to secure a license. BPH provides funding for commercial strategies for proof of concept, research and product development, whilst the institutional partner provides infrastructure and the core scientific expertise. BPH currently partners with several academic institutions including The Harry Perkins Institute for Medical Research and Swinburne University of Technology (SUT). Related Companies In the latest episode of The Barbershop with Shantanu, popular podcast host and Founder of Bombay Shaving Company, Shantanu Deshpande, welcomes renowned ad legend Piyush Pandey. The exclusive conversation between the two legends covered a range of topics, including Pandeys personal and professional life experiences, how he learned advertising, the iconic ad campaigns, and his optimistic outlook on the advertising industry. During the podcast, Pandey, the creative genius behind some of India's most iconic advertisements, shared insightful anecdotes and lessons from his life. He also emphasized on his journey to becoming the Ad man of India and the evolution of advertising. Watch the episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APU6KeQAANU From the ads for Dairy Milk, Vodafone, Fewikwik to iconic taglines such as Har Ghar Kuch Kehta Hai, Pandey takes everyone on a journey through his illustrious career, offering valuable insights into the art of storytelling and brand building. Whether one is an aspiring marketer or simply curious about the magic behind Indias biggest ads, this episode is sure to inspire and captivate. In his closing remarks, Pandey emphasizes on the value of learning from the younger generation. Reflecting on his experience playing in the Kanga League in Mumbai during the monsoon, where he once faced Sunil Gavaskar, Pandey recalls a poignant saying: Dont think too much about the wicket, otherwise you will be half out before you start batting. Addressing the youth directly, he encourages them with a simple yet powerful message: If you have the urge to bat, dont hesitate. Take your stance and swing without fear. The Barbershop with Shantanu features exclusive conversations with some of the most prominent personalities from various fields and provides insights into their personal and professional lives. Even though facing muted funding trends for some time now, the Indian start-up ecosystem is a thriving one. As per Statista, the sector received around $861 million in funding in 2023. The Indian start-up ecosystem is expected to rebound in 2024, translating into increased funding, public listings, and profitability. Though the start-up movement started in Bangalore with a plethora of infotech and e-commerce entrepreneurships, Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities are increasingly claiming the spotlight from their metropolitan counterparts, becoming the favoured investment destinations in India, as per Statista. Among all the regions in India, East is usually considered lagging behind in terms of start-up growth, however, given the vibrant and conducive market ecosystem in the East and North East, a highly aspirational youth population, strong government push to promote local enterprises, and a rapid transition to digital, it is only a matter of time when the start-up ecosystem in the Eastern part will see accelerated growth. Adgully spoke to Gaurav Jalan, Founder & CEO, mPokket; Shromon Ghosh, Head of Marketing, EzeRx; and Waqas Lasania, Founder, Europe Girl Cosmetics, to understand the growth opportunities, extent, as well as the challenges impacting the entrepreneurial landscape in the East. They offer key insights into effective marketing tactics, government support initiatives, and the potential for growth and innovation. Their perspectives provide a holistic view of the evolving startup ecosystem in East India, highlighting both the promises and the pitfalls awaiting aspiring entrepreneurs. Insights into the Eastern Startup Ecosystem Gaurav Jalan paints a picture of a steadily maturing start-up ecosystem in East India. He emphasizes the role of government support, such as initiatives like Startup India, in fostering a conducive environment for entrepreneurial endeavours. He also highlights the regions unique cultural identity and increasing demand for digital solutions as factors contributing to its growth. At the same time, he also acknowledges challenges like limited access to funding and infrastructure, suggesting that concerted efforts are needed to address these barriers for further development. With a focus on leveraging regional strengths and addressing existing barriers, East Indias startup ecosystem is poised for further development and contribution to the nations overall entrepreneurial landscape, Jalan emphasized. While describing the start-up sector in Eastern India as bright, with a diverse range of ventures, notably Kolkata, Shromon Ghosh also acknowledges the challenges stemming from the ecosystems nascency, particularly in terms of limited talent and infrastructure. Ghosh underscores the need to overcome these obstacles for long-term success, despite the existing unrealized potential. Waqas Lasania provides a broader view, depicting the Eastern start-up ecosystem as rapidly growing and gaining prominence in recent years. He highlights its strategic geographic location, business-friendly regulations, and strong government support as key factors contributing to its success. He also emphasizes on the presence of world-class infrastructure, access to capital through various investment funds, and a diverse pool of talent attracted by the cosmopolitan lifestyle of the region. According to Lasania, the key sectors driving the start-up ecosystem include technology, finance, logistics, e-commerce, and tourism. Additionally, he draws comparisons to Dubais start-up ecosystem, noting unique advantages such as its strategic location as a gateway between East and West. He also highlights the Easts reputation as a global business hub, attracting multinational corporations, investors, and entrepreneurs seeking opportunities in the region. Effective marketing strategies in East markets Jalan sheds light on the nuanced approach successful start-ups in East Indian markets employ to connect with their diverse audience. He emphasizes the importance of tailored marketing strategies, leveraging local influencers, and understanding regional nuances. Jalan advocates a balanced blend of traditional and digital media, with a focus on creating content in regional languages to resonate better with the local audience. Research indicates that 70% of Indian consumers trust local language digital content more and 88% are more likely to engage with digital ads in their native language, compared to English, he informed. Adding further, he said, Platforms such as Facebook and Instagram offer start-ups valuable opportunities to engage with their target audience by providing localized content and encouraging community-driven interactions. Leveraging these platforms enables startups to enhance their visibility, deepen engagement within the local community and foster stronger relationships and brand loyalty. Ghosh adds depth to the discussion by highlighting specific marketing strategies favoured by start-ups in the East. He mentions below-the-line (BTL) activities, peer-to-peer marketing, and digital and influencer marketing as successful tactics. Ghosh emphasizes the preference for big display advertisements, radio, and multiplex promotions in BTL activities, catering to the local populations penchant for personal interaction and peer recommendations. Additionally, he mentions the effectiveness of celebrity and influencer collaborations in increasing brand visibility, citing the success of such strategies during the Durga Puja celebrations in West Bengal. In 2023, Durga Puja celebrations in West Bengal are estimated to have generated over Rs 80,000 crore in business, with a 20% increase compared to 2022 through these strategies, he informed. Entrepreneurial ventures in the East: Opportunities & Challenges Highlighting the remarkable increase in start-up recognition since 2016, Jalan underscores the role of government support programs like Startup Assam in fostering a conducive environment for start-ups. Despite challenges such as limited infrastructure and resource accessibility, Jalan remains optimistic about the Easts emergence as a center of innovation and inclusive economic growth through flourishing entrepreneurial ventures. Ghosh, too, emphasizes on the immense potential of the Eastern start-up scene, fueled by factors like land availability, electricity, water, and supportive government policies. He acknowledges positive signs such as increased government initiatives and a diverse range of MSME businesses. However, Ghosh also cautions that to fully prosper, the East must establish a firmer foundation compared to more developed regions of India. Providing a comprehensive overview of entrepreneurial ventures in the East, Lasania emphasized on their rise amidst growing economies and supportive policies. He highlights the opportunities presented by large consumer bases, access to talent, and technological advancements. However, he doesnt shy away from addressing challenges such as competition, regulatory complexities, and limited funding. He emphasizes the importance of innovation, differentiation, and strategic planning for startups to leverage opportunities and overcome obstacles in the dynamic East entrepreneurial landscape. Moms are the epitome of strength, and this Mother's Day, Himalaya Wellness Company, India's leading wellness brand, unveils a touching film. Titled #StrengthOfLove, this film is a heartfelt tribute to the incredible resilience of moms and intends to celebrate the natural strength and love that mothers embody, showcased through everyday tasks and challenges they handle while managing their little ones. Through this beautiful digital film, Himalaya highlights a mother's subtle and understated yet profound and enduring strength, symbolized by her ability to nurture her little one with love, dedication, and resilience. The film captures the true sentiment behind Mother's Day and takes viewers on a journey that explores the concept of multitasking through a series of fun challenges. Participants from various backgrounds are tasked with holding seemingly simple objects while engaging in their hobbies. However, the real test takes place when they're asked to multitask replicating the daily realities of motherhood. While others struggle to hold their objects while performing their usual activities, one participant, a mother, remains undeterred. We see her effortlessly organize a room while holding a flowerpot, showcasing the unmatched strength mothers possess. The emotional climax reveals the secret of her resilience her 1.5-year-old child. As the camera pans out, the audience realizes the significance of a mothers strength of love. Commenting on the film, Mr. Chakravarthi N V, Director BabyCare, Himalaya Wellness Company, said, "At Himalaya Wellness Company, we are proud to support mothers on their incredible journey. Motherhood is not just a role, but a life-changing experience filled with love, sacrifice, and unparalleled strength. Beyond a tribute, our #StrengthOfLove campaign is a heartfelt acknowledgment to all the mothers who grace our lives with sheer dedication and boundless love for children. These women are the silent pillars of strength in our families and communities, embodying a spirit that uplifts and inspires us all. Talking about #StrengthOfLove, Himanshu Arora, Co-founder of Social Panga says, "For Mother's Day, we wanted to honor it by showcasing the extraordinary resilience of motherhood. Our campaign celebrates the inner strength of a mother who prioritizes her child without fretting, complaining, and leaving anything unattended - a true symbol of her strength and love. Himalaya BabyCare is dedicated to supporting moms/parents through their parenting journey towards ensuring the healthy growth of babies and a worry-free baby care experience for moms/parents. Carefully crafted keeping the specific needs of babies in mind and their safety at the forefront, Himalaya BabyCare products are clinically tested, gentle, effective, infused with the goodness of natural ingredients, and safe for babies. This film reinforces the company's commitment to supporting mothers and understanding and celebrating their remarkable strength. Come, let's unite in recognizing the #StrengthOfLove that makes every mother exceptional. Philip Morris International's India affiliate, IPM India Wholesale Trading Private Limited (IPM India), lauds the supermoms who are driving innovation in the organisation. The company pays a tribute to the unfaltering dedication and love that mothers bring to their families, while also throwing a light on their exceptional ability for thriving and adapting in the face of a digital landscape which is continually evolving. Technology has revolutionised the traditional work-life balance, providing new levels of flexibility. Mothers, who often juggle both home and professional responsibilities, need new avenues to maintain their well-being and manage their ever-growing responsibilities. IPM Indias innovative and digital support ecosystem is committed to creating a supportive environment where talented mothers can thrive. Its focus on inclusion and diversity is imbibed in the culture & the organisations transformation prioritises programs that empowers them. For instance, the Circle In Platform & ERGs like Global Parents @PMI offer resources and support to employees with caregiving responsibilities, caters to every stage of parenthood. Mother's rooms, childcare support programs, and other initiatives demonstrate IPM India's commitment to a supportive & diverse work environment. Talking about the importance of taking out time for children, Misha Mehta, Manager, Digital Transformation, Marketing, shared, As a mother of a young child, it is imperative for me to be a constant support to their growth & evolution in this crucial stage. I feel fortunate, whether it is coordinating projects, managing administrative tasks, or balancing work and home life, IPM initiatives have empowered me to support my child consistently. My colleagues & leadership further reinforce my commitment to achieving a harmonious work-life balance. Sharing her thoughts on managing multiple roles, Akil Bawa, Lead Workplace Experience & MD's Office, said, We often wear several hats and juggle with our commitments on personal and professional front at multiple levels. We often hear that we multitask however that is only possible due to policies, culture, and an overall ecosystem at work. As a mother, I am no different prioritising and juggling has now become like a core DNA, thanks to policies like smart work, flexi hours, work from home blend extremely well making an environment for us to outperform every single day. Speaking on how IPM India creates an environment of mutual respect, Ashima Khanna, Sr. Tax Analyst, Finance & Planning said, Motherhood comes with lot of soul-fulfilling experiences, from listening your babys first cooing to them taking first independent steps. However, to experience and cherish these precious life moments, every working new-mom longs for work-life balance. IPM India and its culture has always extended the flexibility to manage work. Our DNA of We Care can be truly seen when colleagues who are sensitive and aware of our personal phases, give due space and flexibility for us to grow & balance our commitments to our families. Narrating how supportive initiatives helped her, Amandeep Saggu, Specialist People Engagement & Int Comms, People & Culture, said, In today's dynamic professional environment, working mothers have to depend on a synergy between new digital tools, internal company initiatives, and comprehensive support ecosystems to ensure a balance between being a mother and a resolute employee. At IPM India, I have experienced first-hand how these three elements converged to empowered me to achieve a better work-life balance, prioritise my well-being, and pursue my personal and professional goals with confidence. This partnership with SVF Brands aims to increase MPJs brand awareness, footprint and to execute strategic media and advertising spends across TV, Digital, Cinema, OTT & Content. A Collaboration for a New Era in Jewellery Advertising This partnership marks a significant milestone for MPJ Jewellers as it embarks on a journey to create a fresh and dynamic approach of the brand. SVF Brands' expertise in strategic media buying and content creation will help MPJ Jewellers to amplify its brand narrative and reach new audiences. Subhashree Ganguly Joins as Brand Ambassador A key highlight of the collaboration is the appointment of Bengali superstar Subhashree Ganguly as the new brand ambassador for MPJ Jewellers. Embodying elegance and grace, Subhashree is seen as a perfect representative for the brand and is expected to resonate with audiences across demographics. Mr. Soumik Roychowdhury, Managing Director (MPJ) : We are thrilled to announce our partnership with SVF Brands as our Media and Creative Agency. We at MPJ Jewellers have always taken the road less travelled, we have believe the best ideas can come from a team that believes in your journey and shall remain a part of your growth in the industry. This partnership is a significant milestone for us as we begin to redefine the way jewellery is perceived and experienced. With Subhashree Ganguly on board, we are confident in our ability to capture eyeballs." A Commitment to Innovation Mr. Arindam Biswas, Vice President (SVF) : We are delighted to partner with MPJ Jewellers on this exciting venture. At SVF Brands, we believe in the power of storytelling to create meaningful connections, and we are eager to leverage our expertise to elevate MPJ Jewellers to new heights of success. Together, we aim to deliver experiences that resonate with audiences on a deeper level. The partnership also launches our new division of media buying and a full service creative agency, combining our expertise in content and technology. Both MPJ Jewellers and SVF Brands are committed to breaking away from traditional jewellery advertising tropes. Audiences can expect a fresh and dynamic approach that transcends the boundaries of conventional marketing and advertising. The world has been fast evolving to go virtual on many fronts. the new stage brings new avenues for individuals into motivational speaking, where words hold the power to ignite mass minds and inspire change in society. Once restricted to physical auditoriums and conference halls, seeking motivation has now lurked into the digital space, wherein subject matter experts and motivational speakers can humour audiences globally at the click of a button. With the world becoming increasingly interconnected through technology, motivational speakers have adopted the need for a strong online presence, leveraging digital platforms to echo their messages of empowerment and enlightenment. Vinayak Burman, the visionary founder of VERTICES PARTNERS a leading law firm, is well-versed in the power of digital media. With a deep understanding of the entrepreneurial psyche, he recognized the potential of online platforms early on, harnessing the reach of YouTube to connect with aspiring entrepreneurs worldwide. Through his popular podcast, "The Lifeboat," Vinayak imparts invaluable wisdom collected from his entrepreneurial journey, serving as a torchbearer in jittery seas of entrepreneurship. In an era where startups benefit from digital innovation, Vinayak's online presence is just in time to nurture the next generation of disruptors and innovators. Speaking on this digital revolution, Vinayak says, "The digital wave has democratized access to knowledge and inspiration, diminishing geographical boundaries and socioeconomic barriers. As motivational speakers, it's our responsibility to meet audiences where they are, and in today's digital age, that means being present online in real-time." Venkatesh Maheshwari, the bold mountaineer and corporate visionary, agrees with Vinayak's sentiments, recognizing the noteworthy impact of digital platforms in intensifying his message of resilience and determination. Having dominated the literal heights of Mount Everest, Venkatesh impeccably translates his mountaineering feats into management lessons for the corporate world, captivating audiences with his gripping tales. "Technology has allowed us to share our stories with a global audience, disrupting the limitations of time and space," Venkatesh highlights. "In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, where physical gatherings became unsound, the digital sphere emerged as a lifeline, enabling us to continue inspiring and motivating individuals from all walks of life." Jaya Row, the respected spiritual guru who founded Vedanta Vision, confirms the transformative power of online engagement in broadcasting ancient wisdom to the modern global audience. With a deep-rooted understanding of the scriptures and a global outreach spanning significant forums and platforms, Jaya has seamlessly transitioned her teachings onto digital platforms, hosting webinars and podcasts that seekers of all ages are able to connect to. "In times of uncertainty and turmoil, people turn to philosophy for consolation and guidance," Jaya Row underscores. "Digital platforms have enabled us to reach people in the comfort of their homes, offering spiritual upliftment and real-life wisdom to overcome life's challenges." Indeed, the transition from physical podiums to digital screens dictates a new era of accessibility and inclusivity in the motivational speaking area. Technology advancements along with the long-lasting effect of the COVID-19 pandemic have fueled this transformation, democratizing access to knowledge and inspiration on an extraordinary scale. Yet, amidst the enthusiasm for digital transformation, questions keep surfacing about the authenticity of virtual engagements. Can a screen replicate the intimacy and energy of a live audience? Does the digital realm nurture genuine connections and transformative experiences? In the digital sphere, the challenge lies in the development of genuine connections and engagement amidst the wide range of distractions. "While physical events offer the immediacy of human interaction and the energy of a live audience," remarks Vinayak Burman, "online platforms demand innovative strategies to fascinate and inspire amidst the virtual noise." Transitioning from the physical stage to the digital screen poses unique challenges in conveying the raw emotion and instinctive experience of Venkatesh Maheshwari's Everest journey. "While technology enables us to reach a broader audience," Venkatesh explains, "the absence of tangible presence makes it challenging to evoke the same sense of awe and inspiration that a live audience imparts." The challenge in the digital world also lies in maintaining the depth and authenticity of philosophical discourse amidst the passing nature of online interactions. Jaya Row echoes, "While technology facilitates access to timeless wisdom, it also requires a delicate balance to ensure that the essence of spiritual teachings isn't lost in the virtual fibre." Building meaningful connections in a digital landscape calls for innovative approaches that resonate with seekers amidst the disharmony of digital distractions. As motivational speakers navigate these tricky waters, grappling with the nuances of online engagement, one thing remains clear the digital stage is here to stay. Whether the transition from physical to digital is good or bad is a matter of perspective. While some may lament the loss of face-to-face interactions and the tangible energy of live events, others cherish the newfound accessibility and global reach supported by digital platforms. As motivational speakers continue to adapt and evolve in this new digital world, one thing is certain the power of words surpasses the bounds of space and time, reverberating across screens and souls likewise. Third Wave Coffee, Indias leading coffee QSR (Quick Service Restaurant) just concluded its week-long Mother's Day campaign - a heartfelt tribute to the unsung heroes of our lives mothers. As part of its commitment to fostering community and celebrating the spirit of motherhood in all its manifestations, Third Wave Coffee embarked on a multifaceted journey to express gratitude for the extraordinary love and resilience that mothers bring into our lives and the multiple hats they wear. Starting by celebrating the extraordinary women in our lives with the launch of Mamas Brew Crew, a Coffee recipe book curated by the Third Wave Coffee community, this heartwarming collection features coffee and coffee-inspired recipes for food and beverages. Compiled with love, the recipe book is a testament to the cherished memories and culinary legacies passed down through generations. More than just a collection of recipes, Mamas Brew Crew offers a glimpse into the special coffee rituals and traditions passed down through generations, and celebrates the timeless bond between mothers and their loved ones. We were overwhelmed by the incredible response to our call for submissions," said Ayush Bathwal, co-founder at Third Wave Coffee. "The stories and recipes we received are a beautiful testament to the important role moms and mom figures play in our lives. This book is a tribute to them, and a perfect culmination of our mothers day celebrations." Featuring a diverse collection of recipes collected directly from customers through an open call across Third Wave Coffees social media channels. Of the total of 45 entries, 5 were shortlisted by the in-house Chef through a rigorous selection process which emphasized quality, nostalgia and innovation among the recipes received. The brand also collaborated with luxury skincare brand Kama Ayurveda for Mukhaabhyanga Masterclass, a one-of-a-kind guided face yoga session across select outlets in Mumbai, Delhi, and Bangalore exclusively for mothers of children, pets, and plants alike! The sessions saw an overwhelming participation of over 60 mother figures and included coffee tasting sessions to sign off the session. Third Wave Coffee engaged its audience throughout the week with various activities, from heartfelt social media campaigns #DearMama to in-store celebrations. The in-store celebrations involved fun painting workshops for mothers and their children where they all painted depictions of the mother-child bond. Additionally, the brand also signed off with the release of a poignant reel that pays homage to the female baristas within the Third Wave Coffee family while extending gratitude to all mothers. As part of its commitment to fostering community and celebrating the spirit of motherhood in all its manifestations, Third Wave Coffee embarked on a multifaceted journey to express gratitude for the extraordinary love and resilience that mothers bring into our lives and the multiple hats they wear. As Third Wave Coffee continues to champion inclusivity, diversity, and community engagement, the brand remains committed to uplifting voices and celebrating the extraordinary contributions of individuals from all walks of life. Third Wave Coffee has been growing rapidly since 2016, from being a roastery with a single store in Koramangala to now having over 100 stores across 8 cities in the country. In a short span of time, the company has catapulted to one of Indias leading coffee brands, directly competing with global players in this space. Most recently, the company raised US$ 35 million in Series C funding from Creaegis and existing investor WestBridge Capital. The leading platform-first martech network, Wondrlab Network, has today made the announcement of the appointment of Ritika Malhotra as the Head of Digital, further solidifying its leadership team. Ritika is bringing more than a decade of indispensable experience in digital advertising, which is marked by an exceptional track record of success and innovation with famed Indian and global brands. Her last stint was at FCB Kinnect as VP West, where she was overseeing the P&L for their largest region and pioneering solutioning for the brands which are managed from the region. An experienced professional, with 9 Cannes Lions under her belt, Ritika has worked with some of the biggest brands - Future Group, P&G, Google, Shiseido, Amazon and HDFC Bank to name a few. Shes been instrumental in driving the digital transformation for brands, helping them transition from offline-centric approaches to digital-forward strategies. Shes also worked on marketing new-age platforms like TikTok and Disney+ Hotstar to enhance their digital presence and drive meaningful engagement. On the appointment, Sanju Menon, Chief Operating Officer, Wondrlab said, We are thrilled to welcome Ritika to the Wondrlab Network. Her impressive track record, forward-thinking approach and leadership skills make her the perfect fit to lead our platform first thinking. Her key focus areas would be to create phenomenal value for our existing clients and shape the digital practice of Wondrlab to set new benchmarks. Her addition strengthens our team's capabilities and reinforces our dedication to pushing boundaries in the digital landscape by unleashing and delivering full-funnel solutions for our partners. Commenting on her new role, Ritika said, "I am thrilled to join the Wondrlab Network and lead its digital efforts in this dynamic landscape. Driving innovation, creating exceptional value for our clients, adding momentum to Wondrlab's digital practice to set new benchmarks of excellence is what I am going to focus on. Harnessing the power of technology and creativity to deliver impactful solutions that propel our clients' businesses forward is going to be my core area of focus. The power of the Wondrlab Network with its full stack offering excites me, and Im so looking forward it . Ten people have been indicted on charges of theft of federal program funding from Tuskegee University. The university, located in Macon County, receives more than $10,000 annually in federal funding. Those indicted are: Wanda Tyner Hairston, 51, of Auburn; Lora Regina Baker, 52, of Montgomery; Keyonn Dalarrion Cannon, 26, of Tuskegee; Lanequia Shanice Cooper, 29, of Auburn; Ledaryl Tremayne Johnson, 27, of Tuskegee; Jeanette Moss-Smith, 50, of Auburn; Cassandra Harris Parker, 61, of Tuskegee; Phyllis Vanessa Tyner, 57, of Auburn; Morris Gene Welch, of Auburn, Abraham Torbert Wright, Jr., 23, of Tuskegee. All ten are charged with conspiracy to commit federal program theft. Authorities did not disclose the amount of money reportedly stolen in the scheme. The indictments were announced Monday by Middle District of Alabama U.S. Attorney Jonathan S. Ross. According to the indictment, Cassandra Harris Parker, Lora Regina Baker, Jeanette Moss-Smith, and Wanda Tyner Hairston were Tuskegee University employees during the time frame of the alleged conspiracy, which began at an unknown date and continued until 2020. As purchasing manager, Ross said, Parker created purchase orders indicating money was owed to co-conspirators so that checks would be issued to them. Baker worked in the Accounts Payable Department and entered the check requests into the universitys accounting system, causing the checks to be issued. Moss-Smith signed the check request forms and Hairston assigned grant codes to the forms confirming sufficient funds existed to cover the checks. Once issued, Parker delivered the checks to the co-conspirators. The indictment alleges that Cannon, Cooper, Johnson, Tyner, Welch, and Wright, Jr., each cashed checks provided to them as part of the scheme. Additionally, the indictment states the 10 suspects conspired to steal federal program funds through the wrongful issuance of these checks. Parker, Baker, Moss-Smith, and Hairston are also charged with theft concerning programs receiving federal funds. Tuskegee University officials released this statement: Tuskegee University learned today that 10 individuals were indicted with federal charges as part of a theft scheme. Four are former employees who were terminated immediately upon discovery in 2021. The university worked with law enforcement during that time and has implemented a variety of measures to ensure that this kind of activity does not take place again. The university does not tolerate theft in any form and employees found to participate in such will be terminated immediately. The conspiracy to commit federal program theft charge carries a potential sentence of up to five years in prison. Parker, Baker, Moss-Smith, and Hairston, also face sentences of up to 10 years for the charge of theft concerning programs receiving federal funds if convicted. A trial date has been set for Aug. 12, 2024. The U.S. Department of Agriculture - Office of Inspector General, the Department of Health and Human Services - Office of Inspector General, and the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher P. Moore is prosecuting. The United States Attorneys Office considers the theft of federal dollars to be a serious crime, Ross said. My office will continue to prosecute those who exploit federal programs and who exploit the institutions, like Tuskegee University, entrusted with using federal program funds for their intended purposes. This constitutes a flagrant misuse of federal grant funds for personal use, said Special Agent in Charge Tamala Miles with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General. A 14-year-old boy was rushed to the hospital Sunday night after he was shot in the Center Point area. Center Point Fire medics and Jefferson County sheriffs deputies were dispatched just after 10 p.m. to the 2400 block of Fifth Street N.W. Medics transported the boy to Childrens of Alabama with several gunshot wounds, at least one of them to the side. His condition was not immediately available. Jefferson County sheriffs officials said the boy may have been accidentally shot by a relative. Friends and family of the boy gathered outside of the hospital late Sunday night waiting for word on his condition. He was expected to be taken into surgery. The teen is one of three children shot in Jefferson County on Sunday. An 11-year-old boy and his father were seriously wounded when someone opened fire on them Sunday afternoon on Cullman Avenue in west Birmingham. Both were hospitalized with life-threatening injuries. Then, about 9 p.m., an 8-year-old girl was shot multiple times when she was in a vehicle with one of her parents and got caught in crossfire during which at least 70 rounds were fired. She was taken to Childrens of Alabama with serious injuries. Police radio communications indicated she was shot in the head, but authorities did not confirm the location of her wounds. No arrests have been made in any of the shootings. An 8-year-old girl was shot several times when at least 70 rounds were fired in Birminghams Gate City community Sunday night. The girl was one of two children shot in Birmingham Sunday. An 11-year-old boy was seriously injured in a shooting that also wounded his father on the citys westside. Birmingham police about 9 p.m. began receiving multiple Shot Spotter alerts from Marks Village public housing community. . Those shots included nine rounds fired at 68th Street and Kimberly Avenue, 16 rounds at 67th Street and Joppa Avenue, three rounds at 68th Street and Oporto-Madrid Boulevard, four rounds at 68th Street and Joppa Avenue, 20 rounds at 67th Street and Kimberly Avenue, and nine rounds in the 400 block of Interlaken Court. Officer Truman Fitzgerald said officers learned the girl had shown up by private vehicle at Birmingham Fire and Rescue Service Station 12 on First Avenue North. She was taken to Childrens of Alabama, according to police and fire officials. A woman was also found injured in Gate City, but police believe she hurt her knee running from the gunfire. Fitzgerald said the young victim is expected to survive but said she was shot at least twice. According to the initial dispatch of the shooting, the child was shot in the head, but Fitzgerald did not confirm the location of her wounds. Investigators believe a shootout was taking place when the 8-year-old was caught in the crossfire while in a vehicle with one of her parents. No one in the vehicle was involved in the shootout, Fitzgerald said. Fitzgerald 60 to 70 people were gathered outside in the public housing community at numerous Mothers Day or family gatherings. We have a suspect or suspects who chose to fire up to 70 rounds with this many people around, he said. Fitzgerald described the scene as traumatic for many. Pure panic, he said. Anytime you have that many rounds fired, bullets do not have a name. People were just trying not to be a victim themselves, he said. We are blessed that we have not lost anyone when you have this many rounds fired in such a crowded area. Weve got multiple officers here from different precincts to help us out with crowd control and to help preserve the scene, he said. No arrests have been made. Police are asking anyone with information to come forward. Give us whatever you have, whatever you find out, Fitzgerald said. Again, this 8-year-old depends on your information. The little girl is the second child shot in Birmingham on Mothers Day. Earlier Sunday, an 11-year-old boy and his father were wounded when someone opened fire on them on the citys west side. Police said at least 25 rounds were fired in that targeted attack. Though seriously injured, both father and son are expected to survive. Your information is key to getting these people responsible for shooting these babies off our streets, he said. Anyone with information is asked to call Birmingham police at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777. An Amber Alert issued Monday morning for a child abducted from Forestdale has been canceled after the child was found safe and his father taken into custody. The investigation began about 12:30 a.m. Monday when Jefferson County sheriffs deputies were dispatched to the 100 block of Dewberry Lane on a report of a person shot. Sheriffs spokesman Henry Irby said a 31-year-old woman had walked to a fire station seeking help for a gunshot wound. She was taken by paramedics to UAB Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Authorities the learned that the victim was shot by her husband, 49-year-old Willie Edward McClain, Irby said, and their 3-year-old son had been abducted. Authorities said the child was believed to be in extreme danger, according to the alert. Sheriffs officials announced just before 10:30 a.m. that the child was located and is safe. McClain was taken into custody without incident. It was not immediately clear where the father and son were located. Court records show McClain was arrested earlier this month on a domestic violence charge after he reportedly struck his wife in the face. He was out of jail on $10,000 bond when authorities say he committed this mornings crimes. The investigation is ongoing. A Montgomery-based coalition that advocates for the legalization of marijuana, says it is extremely disappointed in state lawmakers for not taking steps needed toward getting a medical marijuana program started in Alabama. The statement from the Alabama Cannabis Coalition comes more than three years after the Alabama Legislature, in 2021, passed legislation authorizing a medical marijuana program in Alabama under a state law signed by Gov. Kay Ivey. Alabama, at the time, joined 36 other states in doing legalizing marijuana use for medical purposes. As of this spring, there are 41 states with a medical marijuana program. The sick, suffering and dying citizens of Alabama continue to be denied access and they do not have the luxury to wait for that access, said H. Marty Schelper, founder/president of the Cannabis Coalition, and founder/president of the Alabama Republicans Against Marijuana Prohibition. Schelper, in a news release Monday, called the lack of implementing a medical marijuana program as a quagmire, and requested an update on how and when this quagmire will be resolved. The concern, Schelper said, was the lack of attention on getting the program implemented by state lawmakers. His comments come after lawmakers adjourned their spring legislative session on Thursday. We were hopeful that on February 6, 2024, at the beginning of the 2024 legislative session, that medical cannabis would be first and foremost in the hearts and minds of our Legislature, Schelper said. We were sorely mistaken. Schelper said that only one bill was passed dealing with the issue -- HB390, sponsored by Rep. Danny Crawford, R-Athens. That legislation removes the Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries from the shared responsibilities for the regulation and enforcement of the program. Frustrations Sen. David Sessions, third from left, leads a meeting of the Alabama Senate's Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry Committee at a public hearing on a bill intended to resolve the delay of the medical cannabis industry in the state.(Mike Cason/mcason@al.com) Not mentioned in the news release was SB276, sponsored by Sen. David Sessions, R-Mobile. That bill intended to resolve the stalemate by increasing the number of business licenses issued by the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission. Were three years into the program and there is a lot of frustrations, Sessions said. His bill did not advance out of the Senate, despite a lengthy public hearing on it and the programs stalemate during an April 3 meeting of the Alabama Senate Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Committee. Most states have had to come back with some type of legislative fix (to get similar programs going), Sessions said. This was our first attempt this year. I believe we will be here next year and hopefully we can something figured out and get the program (implemented). Under SB296, the AMCC would have been required to award 15 integrated licenses, up from five in the 2021 law. An integrated license allows a company to cultivate, process, transport and dispense medical marijuana in Alabama. The legislation was criticized during the April 3 by those who felt it was unfair to change the state program three years after the initial law was passed. I think at some point, the commission will have to basically start over on (the number of) integrated licenses, Sessions said. There were mistakes made and unfortunately politics may have gotten involved in it. Its made a difficult situation. Stalled program Progress toward getting the program going is stalled due to legal action. The issuance of licenses is on hold because of multiple lawsuits based on Open Meetings Act violations by the AMCC, and disputes over issuing licenses for dispensaries and integrated facilities. The AMCC issued licenses for cultivators, processors, transporters and a testing lab last year. But those licenses are not good enough to officially initiate the program because of a stalemate over the other licenses, and because of the looming litigation. Sessions said he is uncertain the program can get up and running until the lawsuits are addressed. He admitted that because of the lawsuits, and other unresolved matters, there was not much of a desire to address the program. When I first dropped (SB296), I had colleagues coming to me asking why I was fooling with it, Sessions said. It wasnt on a lot of peoples radar until we dropped (the legislation). The Cannabis Coalition had been hoping Ivey would call a special session to focus on the issue. Sessions said he doesnt believe a special session would be helpful, given the lack of interest in pushing a bill through the spring. Ivey has already decided she is uninterested in calling for a special session to get a gambling and lottery package approved, after a comprehensive plan fell just one vote shy of passage. Gina Maiola, spokeswoman for Ivey, acknowledged the lack of activity by the legislature and noted they will have an opportunity to readdress the issue next session in 2025, if they decide to do so. As the governor has said many times, we must get this done right for the people that need it the most, she said. Schelper said that Coalition members and the citizens of Alabama received a reply/form letter from the governor saying, she is closely monitoring the status of the AMCC and its work to oversee the medical Cannabis industry in Alabama. Ivey signed the medical marijuana program into law on May 17, 2021. When the product is available, patients certified by participating physicians will be able to use medical marijuana for 15 conditions, including cancer, chronic pain, depression, autism, PTSD, and Parkinsons Disease. Patients will have to apply for a card to obtain medical marijuana from licensed dispensers. The law bans smoking or consuming it in food. Product will be available in tablets, capsules, gelatins like gummies, oils, gels, creams, suppositories, transdermal patches, or inhalable oils or liquids. The gummies will only be allowed to be peach-flavored. Patients also have to be age 19 and older to receive a medical marijuana card. The competition for the integrated licenses appears to be the main topic of concern. Critics have said that had Alabama lawmakers taken into consideration programs in other states and not focused on establishing a restrictive program with limited licenses, the process may not have been as delayed. More than 30 companies, some of whom have filed a lawsuit against the AMCC, have seen been denied one of the five integrated licenses spelled out in the 2021 law. This story was updated at 2:55 p.m. on May 13, 2024, to include a statement from the governors office. China's automobile manufacturing industry logs steady growth in Q1 Xinhua) 08:42, May 13, 2024 Workers work at an assembly line of Voyah, a Chinese luxury electric auto brand, in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, April 1, 2024. (Xinhua/Xiao Yijiu) BEIJING, May 12 (Xinhua) -- China's automobile manufacturing industry registered strong expansion in the first quarter (Q1) of this year, the latest data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers showed. During the period, the sector's industrial added value rose 9.7 percent year on year, 3 percentage points higher than that for China's overall manufacturing industry, according to the association. The combined operating revenue of this sector came in at 2.25 trillion yuan (about 316.85 billion U.S. dollars), up 6.2 percent from the same period last year. The total profits of companies in the sector jumped 32 percent on a yearly basis to 103.95 billion yuan, the data revealed. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Voting begins today at Mercedes-Benzs Vance automotive plant as its 6,000 employees choose whether to make it the first vehicle factory in Alabama represented by the United Auto Workers. Vote totals are expected to be available Friday in the historic election that follows a whirlwind five months as union organizers signed up a majority of workers at the factory, which has been long resistant to union activity. Mercedes-Benz was the first auto plant to locate in the state more than 30 years ago, and has powered Alabamas ascent to becoming the No. 1 automotive exporting state in the U.S. Just 10 years ago, in 2014, the UAW called off an unsuccessful union campaign at the plant, acting on the request of workers. Here is full coverage of the fight over unionizing the Vance plant Now, the UAW hopes to continue the momentum it built following last months successful union vote at Volkswagens Chattanooga plant, and its Stand Up strike last year against the Big Three of the U.S. automotive industry. How did a once-daunting goal for the union grow within reach in less than a year? Workers inside the plant, and long-time observers, say it was a shift from top-down organizing to signing up employees on the floor. That probably allowed the plain to shift quickly in favor of the union. What will it mean - for Mercedes, for Alabama and for the national labor movement - if workers vote to join the UAW? Fireworks lit up the sky over Vance in May 1997 as the Mercedes-Benz plant celebrated its grand opening.bn It would show workers across all different industries that they can stand up together and fight for more, said Haeden Wright, a senior organizer for Jobs to Move America. We in Alabama have been painted as an exploitable workforce. (Car companies) think they can come here and get massive incentives with the promise of cheap labor. This is letting people know their work is worth more than that and they can do something about it. Thats powerful. Which side will win? Stephen Silvia is a professor in the department of politics, governance and economics at American University. Hes also the author of The UAWs Southern Gamble, which looked into the unions attempt to organize in the South since 1989. Until April, it was a story of persistent failure in deeply red, right-to-work states. Silvia said the UAW targeted three auto plants in the South - Mercedes being one - for union organizing. Volkswagen narrowly voted down the union in Chattanooga in 2014 and 2019, while a Mississippi Nissan plant also voted it down. This weeks vote at Mercedes will be the factorys first. Im not sure what the outcome is going to be, Silvia said of the vote at the Vance plant, which also includes the Mercedes electric battery plant in nearby Bibb County. It was pretty clear the UAW was going to win in Chattanooga. The oppositional side was not as well-organized. The traditional opponents in business and government spoke up, but it wasnt nearly the way it had been in the past. The vote comes as the number of union members in Alabama is growing, although it still lags behind other states. In 2023, 156,000 Alabama workers were union members -- up from 149,000 a year earlier, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Still, only 7.5% of the states workers belonged to a union as of 2023, according to the BLS. Alabama officials attack union as corrupt, shifty As in other Southern, Republican-led states targeted by the UAW efforts, Alabama government and business leaders have been deeply critical of the effort to union the Vance plant. Gov. Kay Ivey called the union a looming threat to Alabamas economy, corrupt, shifty and a dangerous leech. Robots work at he Mercedes auto manufacturing plant in Vance in 2014. (Joe Songer/jsonger@al.com).Joe Songer Ivey also joined governors of five other Southern states in a statement blasting the UAWs efforts. Other leaders have referred to the union as an outside force between employees and the company. The legislature this session passed a bill that would withhold economic incentives from companies that voluntarily recognize unions or do not hold secret ballots in union elections. The bill, which would require companies that violate its terms to pay back economic incentives received before Jan. 1, 2025, was still awaiting Iveys signature as of last week. Pro-union workers at Mercedes have said the states rhetoric has not changed their mind. Thats an attack on myself and all the workers who are organizing, Wright said. This is their state. Theyre Alabamians, and theyre making a choice. The union didnt tell them that they had to join. Mercedes-Benz, for its part, has made public statements that it respects its employees right to choose whether to join a union, and has denied allegations made by the UAW that it had interfered with or retaliated against any employee over union activity. In this Oct. 3, 2014, file photo, Mercedes workers sign up for a United Auto Workers local aimed at gaining representation at the Mercedes plant in Vance. (AP Photo/Erik Schelzig, File)AP Last month, the automaker said it looks forward to participating in the election process to ensure every Team Member has a chance to cast their own secret-ballot vote, as well as having access to the information necessary to make an informed choice. But former CEO Michael Gobel was recorded telling workers he didnt believe the UAW can help us to be better. Gobel was replaced last month by the company. What do pro-union workers want? Wright said many workers interested in unions are not necessary seeking only higher wages. A lot of it is work-life balance, and safety, and insurance, she said. Its about quality of life and having what you need to live. You can have a well-paying job and it still not be a good job, or a safe job. Austin Brooks, an employee at the companys battery plant for the past two years, said he was swayed toward the union, in part, by the response of the company to the union fight. He also said concerns about medical bills swayed him. I basically have no immune system, he said. Im on two or three allergy meds a day. My medical expenses are covered, but most of it is coming out of my pocket. Mercedes is a billion dollar company. Austin Brooks speaks Saturday, May 11, 2024 at Brock's Gap Brewing Co. in Hoover, Ala. in support of the UAW at a pro-union rally.William Thornton Brooks also said one talking point making the rounds at the plant is to see what happens with Volkswagen in a years time and then decide if you still want a union. He said the unions approach has been different. UAW never grabbed me and said vote yes, he said. They said, do your research and see if you want to vote. If you dont want to, theres no bad feelings. Stand up for what you think. Silvia said he feels Mercedes is pretty determined to stop the union drive. It should be noted that Mercedes employees in Germany are covered by a union contract, have representatives on the companys board, and elect members to a works council. The biggest contrast between these two elections, at Chattanooga and Vance, will be what happens if an employer doesnt come out hard against a union, and what happens if they come out against unionization, Silvia said. Among complaints of pro-union employees has been two-tier pay in recent years, something Mercedes has told employees it would end. The issue was one used by the union to illustrate the need for collective bargaining. Compensation at Mercedes went from being above the others to shifting downward, Silvia said. If you didnt have anything to begin with, it doesnt tick you off as much as if you had it and its taken away from you. What happens after the vote? If the UAW wins the election, it will be another victory it can use as it continues a $40 million campaign to organize in auto plants, particularly the South. Earlier this year, the union announced 30% of workers at Hyundai in Montgomery had signed union cards. It would also continue momentum for organized labor in general, which has seen landmark - though still unresolved - union elections at Amazons Bessemer facility, and the longest strike in Alabama history at Warrior Met Coal. What the vote could portend beyond Alabama probably wont mean much to the employees at Mercedes-Benz, Silvia said. I think, ultimately, the most important thing for these folks is what is happening locally, he said. What do their friends in the plant say, what do their relatives say? If the employees at Chattanooga had voted against the union, it would have been a blow to this campaign, but it certainly would not have determined it. U.S. Senators Katie Britt and Tommy Tuberville are joining other lawmakers in urging Mexicos Secretary of Foreign Affairs to prevent actions they say are illegal against Birmingham-based Vulcan Materials. The two Alabama senators, along with Sens. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), and Tim Kaine (D-Va.), last week sent a letter to Alicia Barcena, Secretary of Foreign Affairs of Mexico. In it, they observed the anniversary of Mexico shutting down Vulcans operations in Quintana Roo, Mexico. They also promised to respond if Mexico carries out similar action. If Vulcans land and port are seized, we will be forced to consider all available remedies at our disposal to ensure no entity or individual benefits from the theft of this property, the letter reads. Vulcan maintains the Punta Venado deep-water port facility that it estimates at a value of more than $1 billion. In March 2023, the Mexican government seized the facility, despite a court ordered stay on any government action to confiscate the property. Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador threatened to declare the property a natural protected area or seize it by force if Vulcan doesnt accept a $360 million offer for the gravel pits before he leaves office next year. Lopez Obrador has accused the company of extracting materials without the proper permit. Britt, in a statement, said Lopez Obradors conduct has consistently been unacceptable and illegitimate under Mexican law and international law. Key infrastructure projects in Alabama and across the Southeastern United States continue to be in jeopardy because of this Mexican presidential administrations lawlessness, Britt said. I will always stand up for Alabamas and Americas economic and security interests, and I urge the Mexican government to find a constructive path forward that will not threaten further degradation in the U.S.-Mexico bilateral relationship. Tuberville said Vulcan has has provided good-paying jobs to thousands of Americans since its founding more than 100 years ago. Vulcan has operated an environmentally award-winning business in Mexico for more than three decades, boosting economic growth in the region. The Mexican governments hostility toward Vulcan is unwarranted, and jeopardizes the long-standing bilateral relationship between Mexico and the U.S. I will continue fighting for the prosperity of American businesses, and I hope this situation will be resolved quickly and fairly, Tuberville said. A man convicted in the stabbing death of a Coosa County woman more than three decades ago has died in prison. James Clark Jr., 55, was convicted of murder in the 1990 slaying of Melissa Buckner during a robbery. He was serving a life sentence at William Donaldson Correctional Facility in western Jefferson County. According to the Jefferson County Coroners Office, Clark was found unresponsive in his cell at 6:42 a.m. Sunday. He was pronounced dead at 6:55 a.m. An autopsy performed Monday morning showed no signs of trauma or foul play. The cause of death is pending additional laboratory studies. The Alabama Department of Corrections Law Enforcement Services Division is investigating the circumstances surrounding his death. Authorities are asking for the publics help in identifying the suspect in a Sunday shooting in Birmingham. The shooting happened before 7 p.m. in the 6800 block of First Avenue North, at or near the Sunoco gas station. The male victim was shot multiple times. He was taken to UAB Hospital with life-threatening injuries. Anyone with information on the identity of the suspect is asked to call Birmingham detectives at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777. A 36-year-old man is in Mobile Metro Jail, charged with murdering his uncle during a domestic dispute which turned into a 4 1/2 hour standoff between the suspect and law enforcement. According to Prichard police, officers and SWAT team personnel from the Mobile County Sheriffs Office responded to a report of a man barricaded inside his mothers home, with others being held inside, about 5 p.m. Friday. The suspect, Destin Levan Conner of Eight Mile, was ultimately taken into custody without further incident. When questioned by police, Conner reportedly told investigators he had stabbed and killed his uncle, 70-year-old Albert Conner. The body was later recovered from inside the residence and transported to the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences for an autopsy. In addition to murder, Destin Conner is charged with kidnapping, menacing and domestic violence. Destin Conner, who is listed in state court records as both Destin Levan Conner and Destin Levar Conner, is a convicted felon, having pleaded guilty in 2013 to 2nd-degree assault. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison, but that sentence was suspended and he was placed on three years probation. In 2016, that probation was revoked after he pleaded guilty to 2nd-degree assault, cocaine possession and obstruction of justice. He was sentenced to five years in prison and was paroled in 2018. The U.S. Air Forces Thunderbirds will join the U.S. Navys Blue Angels for the Blue Angels annual homecoming show at NAS Pensacola in Florida, the base announced Monday morning. Having our militarys top flight demonstration teams perform at the Cradle of Naval Aviation will undoubtedly be an experience you wont want to miss! said NAS Pensacola Commanding Officer Capt. Terry Village Shashaty. The Blue Angels and the Homecoming Airshow are most certainly ingrained in the identity of Pensacola and the surrounding communities, and we are proud to be able to host a family-friendly event showcasing the capabilities and precision of both the Navy and Air Force teams as well as our civilian performers. The homecoming show traditionally closes the Blue Angels performance schedule for the year. The 2024 schedule includes 33 shows which began in March. The Navys Flight Demonstration Team performed at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery in early April and will perform as part of the Pensacola Beach Air Show in mid-July. The Thunderbirds, founded in 1953 -- seven years after the Blue Angels and six years after the Air Force became an independent branch of the military -- also had a 33-performance schedule for 2024, which is now 34 with the addition of the November show at Pensacola NAS. Alabama U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville and Attorney General Steve Marshall were in court this morning with other Republican lawmakers for a day of testimony in former President Donald Trumps ongoing trial for falsifying business records. Tuberville and Marshall were joined by Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) and Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY). They could be seen in the background as Trump addressed the media before entering court. Im proud to be in New York today to support my friend and president, Donald Trump, Tuberville tweeted. Tuberville: I'm disappointed in the courtroom. I'm hearing Mr. Trump, Mr. Trump. He is former President Trump. Give him some respect. pic.twitter.com/unQyPayPJx Acyn (@Acyn) May 13, 2024 Americans see this case for what it isa political circus. The left can lie about President Trump all they want, but the American people arent buying it. Later in the morning, Vance and Tuberville spoke with reporters outside the courtroom. Tuberville said referring to Mr. Trump rather than former President Trump in court was disrespectful. Im disappointed in the courtroom. Im hearing Mr. Trump, Mr. Trump. He is former President Trump. Give him some respect, Tuberville said. Thats what that place is in there, its no respect. Tuberville also described the courtroom as depressing. This is New York City. Icon of our country, Tuberville said. Weve got a courtroom thats the most depressing thing Ive ever been in. Tuberville added that mental anguish is trying to be pushed on (the) Republican candidate for president of the United States. The trial is in its 16th day. Cohen s testimony implicated Trump in efforts to buy and then suppress news stories about sex that he feared could hurt his 2016 White House campaign. You handle it, Cohen quoted Trump as telling him after learning that a doorman had come forward with a false claim that Trump had fathered a child out-of-wedlock. The Trump Tower doorman was paid $30,000 to keep the story out of the press. A similar episode occurred after Cohen alerted Trump that Playboy model Karen McDougal had alleged that she and Trump had an extramarital affair. Cohen said Trump ordered him to make sure it doesnt get released. As he worked to secure funding for the $150,000 payment, Cohen said he received guidance from Allen Weisselberg, then the Trump Organizations CFO. Allen then said to me, if we do it from a Trump entity that kind of defeats the purpose because the point is not to have the Trump name affiliated with this at all, Cohen said he was told. The conversation with Weisselberg happened right after he briefed Trump about the deal to acquire McDougals story from the National Enquirer, Cohen testified. Trump is accused of falsifying internal business records to cover up hush money payments that Cohen made as part of efforts to buy and bury stories that might hurt the former presidents 2016 campaign. Trump: Including the fact that we have thousands of people, 100,000 people in New Jersey. They would like to show their support. It is like an armed camp outside. You can't get one person within three blocks of this courthouse. pic.twitter.com/ILBnyExylR Acyn (@Acyn) May 13, 2024 Text messages, audio recordings, notes and more have all been introduced or shown to jurors in recent weeks to illustrate what prosecutors say was a scheme to illegally influence the election that year. And sometimes dramatic testimony from witnesses that included former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker, ex-Trump staffers and porn actor Stormy Daniels added to the intrigue. Also here with Trump: AL AG Steve Marshall, IA AG Brenna Bird and Sen. Tommy Tuberville https://t.co/v7NzhMLD39 Jill Colvin (@colvinj) May 13, 2024 The prosecution could wrap its case this week after telling the judge on Friday that they expected to call just two more witnesses. The Associated Press contributed to this report. An investigation is underway after a volunteer was reportedly attacked outside the Limestone County GOP Trump Headquarters over the weekend in north Alabama. The Alabama Republican Party on Monday said Tara Johnson was attacked Saturday afternoon while leaving the headquarters at 1117 U.S. Highway 72 East in Athens. Athens police, however, said the only altercation they are investigating from Saturday stemmed from a road rage incident. ALGOP Communications Director Jeannie Negron Burniston said Johnson serves as the lead volunteer, despite facing physical mobility challenges due to health issues. Johnson was in her vehicle, Burniston said, when the attacker grabbed her by the hair, repeatedly punched her in the face and slammed her head against the door of her truck. A press release announcing the attack said the Alabama Republican Party condemns in the strongest terms the apparent politically motivated attack and said it has left members of the Limestone County GOP shaken. The attack on Tara Johnson is a disgraceful act of violence that has no place in our society. Having served alongside Tara on the Limestone County Executive Committee for many years, this is very personal to me, said Chairman John Wahl of the Alabama Republican Party. Tara is not just a volunteer; she is a kind and generous person who is always willing to lend a helping hand to anyone in need. We are heartbroken and outraged by this senseless act of violence against her. The Athens Police Department is currently investigating the assault, and we urge anyone with information to come forward and assist in bringing the perpetrators to justice, Wahl said. Violence has no place in our political discourse, and those responsible should be held accountable for their actions. In times of political adversity, it is important that we come together and reaffirm our commitment to civility, respect, and peaceful political engagement, Wahl said. I call on the Democratic Party and mainstream media to cease their inflammatory rhetoric, which incites individuals against Donald Trump and his supporters. The relentless demonization and vilification of political opponents only serves to sow division and discord within our society, he said. We can and should do better. Asked about the incident, Athens police Chief Anthony Pressnell said the department is investigating what appears to be a road rage incident that occurred on Saturday, May 11, at 5:50 p.m. as two vehicles met at the entrance of Lowes at U.S. 72. One driver was at a stop sign on a side street that parallels U.S. 72, and a second driver was turning from U.S. 72 into Lowes at that intersection. The altercation ended in the Lowes parking lot. The investigation is ongoing, the chief said. Time to claim part of a $45 million settlement related to the purchase of certain types of food items at Walmart is getting near. The settlement covers Walmart shoppers who purchased meat, seafood or bagged citrus that was sold by the pound from Oct. 19, 2018 to Jan. 19, 2024. Meat products include beef, chicken, pork, turkey and other meats; seafood includes various types of fish, crab, lobster and more. The settlement also covers bagged citrus, including organic oranges, grapefruit, tangerines and navel oranges sold in bulk in mesh or plastic bags. According to a 2023 class action lawsuit, Walmarts point-of-sale machines would artificially raise the weight of the goods when they were marked at a discounted Rollback price, meaning the total price would be more than the advertised discount. Also, the suit alleged goods that were nearing expiration date and marked with a yellow sticker were sold at a higher price than the per-unit price indicated. Walmart has denied the claims. Under the terms of the settlement, shoppers can receive: $10 If you bought up to 50 weighted goods and/or bagged citrus but dont have proof of purchase $15 If you bought between 51-75 weighted goods and/or bagged citrus but dont have proof of purchase $20 - If you bought up to 76-100 weighted goods and/or bagged citrus but dont have proof of purchase $25 - If you bought 101 weighted goods and/or bagged citrus but dont have proof of purchase Up to $500 If you have proof of purchase for each weighted good and/or bagged citrus that was purchased during the settlement period and have the amount you paid for each item, you can receive 2% of the total cost, up to $500. Claimants may be able to obtain copies of their receipts on Walmarts website. The amount of the final payment will depend on how many people opt to participate in the settlement. The deadline to opt out of the settlement is May 22 with an approval hearing set for June 12. The deadline to submit claim forms is June 5. You can see more on the settlement here. BEIJING, May 13 (Xinhua) -- The absence of Taiwan from the upcoming World Health Assembly (WHA) is solely caused by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities, a mainland spokesperson said Monday. Registration for the 77th WHA closes on Monday. "Our position is consistent and clear regarding the Taiwan region's participation in the activities of the World Health Organization. It must be dealt with under the one-China principle, which is also a basic principle enshrined in the UNGA Resolution 2758 and WHA Resolution 25.1," said Chen Binhua, spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office. The DPP authorities have stubbornly stuck to the separatist position of "Taiwan independence," and have refused to recognize the 1992 Consensus. Thus, the political foundation for the Taiwan region's participation in the WHA no longer exists, he said. The central government has always been concerned about the health and well-being of Taiwan compatriots, and has made appropriate arrangements for the Taiwan region's participation in global health endeavors, with 21 batches of Taiwan experts able to take part in the WHO's technical activities over the past year; and the region can promptly access health emergency information from the WHO, the spokesperson said. It is thus obvious that the channels for the region's participation in the WHO's technical communication and cooperation are fully clear, its access to health emergency information and assistance is fully effective, and Taiwan compatriots' rights to health are protected, Chen said. The true intention of the DPP authorities' manipulation of issues concerning Taiwan's participation in the WHA is to highlight the so-called "sovereign status" and seek independence under the guise of health, he added. "The deceitful and provocative actions of the DPP authorities have been exposed by compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Strait and the international community, and they are bound to fail," Chen said. When my adult children were young, a favorite read-along book was called If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. It was a cute story with the premise, If a hungry little traveler shows up at your house, you might want to give him a cookie. If you give him a cookie, he's going to ask for a glass of milk. He'll want to look in a mirror to make sure he doesn't have a milk mustache, and then he'll ask for a pair of scissors to give himself a trim... Illegal migrants to Denver have done just that. Last week they submitted a list of 13 demands to Mayor Mike Johnston that they insist the city must meet before they vacate their tent city encampments and move into city-provided shelters. These migrant families are currently living under bridges and near train tracks. Let's look at some of their demands. Migrants will cook their own food with fresh, culturally appropriate ingredients provided by the city instead of premade meals -- rice, chicken, flour, oil, butter, tomatoes, onions, etc. Also, people will not be punished for bringing in & eating outside food. Im surprised they dont also want proper kitchens and a chef to prepare their culturally appropriate meals. And culturally appropriate for whom? While most illegal migrants are coming from central and South America there are still a significant number arriving from Russia, China, India, Turkey, and Africa. What about their culturally appropriate foods? In the name of diversity, inclusion, and equity, will Denver have to supply ingredients from each and every country to satisfy migrants from every culture? Shower access will be available without time limits & can be accessed whenever -- we are not in the military, were civilians. Anyone who has grown up with a large family with a limited number of bathrooms and showers knows that shower access is not unlimited. In my college fraternity we had 40 or 50 guys sharing a half dozen showers and time limits were essential. Besides, Colorado faces a water shortage and unlimited showers certainly go against water conservation. I'm surprised environmental groups are not speaking out against unlimited showers as they would against suburbanites watering their lawns or washing their cars. Medical professional visits will happen regularly & referrals/connections for specialty care will be made as needed. Aside from the matter of who is going to pay for all this health care on demand, there is little capacity. Many Colorado residents with good insurance wait months for a specialist appointment. How fast will patients with Medicaid or no insurance expect to be seen? Denver Health, the city's safety net hospital, is already drowning to the annual tune of $130 million due to uncompensated care provided largely to illegal migrants. All will receive the same housing support that has been offered to others. They cannot kick people out in 30 days without something stable established. Once again there is a supply and demand problem. Where will the migrants live? Colorado currently faces a shortfall of 100,000 homes and apartments, the second worst deficit of any state after California. With at least 40,000 new migrants in Denver the math simply doesn't work. Consultations for each person/family with a free immigration lawyer must be arranged to discuss/progress their cases, & then the City will provide on-going legal support in the form of immigration document clinics & including transportation to relevant court dates. Just like medical specialists, lawyers do not grow on trees. Where will all these demanded immigration lawyers come from? Colorado public defenders already acknowledge that they need at least 230 more attorneys to provide necessary legal services in Colorado. No more verbal or physical or mental abuse will be permitted from the staff, including no sheriff sleeping inside & monitoring 24/7 -- we are not criminals & wont be treated as such. Of course, abuse should not be tolerated. But there is indeed crime at shelters and a law enforcement presence might save lives. Two people were recently found dead at a Denver hotel turned shelter, with homicide suspected. Crime calls have risen 2900% at a Denver hotel converted to a shelter. And dont forget that anyone entering the country not following existing immigration law is by definition a criminal. Whats wrong with criminals being treated as such? Just because the Biden administration refuses to enforce existing law does not erase the law. Transportation for all children to & from their schools will be provided until they finish in 3 weeks. How many Colorado parents dont currently have that luxury based on school start time, work schedules, location, and other factors? Will the city be paying Uber drivers to bring migrant children to and from school if the school bus doesnt stop at the underpass? The City must provide all residents with a document signed by a City official in English & Spanish with all of these demands that includes a number to call to report mistreatment. Under President Bidens watch, illegal migrants from over 160 countries have arrived in the U.S. Most of those countries are non-Spanish-speaking. Will the city be providing documents in every language to be inclusive? Over 7000 languages are spoken around the world, not just Spanish and English. Documents in 7000 different languages could be stored in one of the Denver-area public libraries closed due to meth contamination. Denver is getting what it deserves. And asked for. Denver is a proud sanctuary city: In 2017, the Denver City Council codified Denvers status as a sanctuary city with an ordinance that prohibits city employees from collecting information on immigration or citizenship status, or prohibits the sharing of any other information about individuals for purposes of immigration enforcement. Colorado governor Jared Polis also rolled out the welcome mat. In 2021, In a letter to the President Joe Biden, Gov. Jared Polis says Colorado is ready to help refugees and immigrants from Afghanistan resettle. Denver will be spending at least $90 million this year on migrant services slashing the budgets from all city agencies, including police defunding, to pay for migrant support. What about taxpaying residents of Denver? Then again most of them voted for this -- 80% of Denver county voted for Biden. Denver has enough problems as it is. Aggravated assaults have doubled over the past decade, the fastest growth of any city of more than half a million residents. Homicides have tripled in the past decade. Colorado leads the nation in auto thefts. Once it was John Denvers Rocky Mountain High where you can See it rainin fire in the sky, the shadow from the starlight softer than a lullaby. Not so much now. As Denver residents and elected officials are starting to realize, virtue signalling has a cost. Being a sanctuary city makes for virtuous conversation at trendy Cherry Creek bars and restaurants, but in reality, is creating a dangerous clown show in Denver. Denver gave the migrant mice a cookie and now they want the kitchen and entire house. Brian C Joondeph, MD, is a physician and writer. Follow me on Twitter @retinaldoctor Substack Dr. Brians Substack Truth Social @BrianJoondeph LinkedIn @Brian Joondeph Image: Graywalls As I walked around taking photographs of the Anti-Israel encampment at Cornell University, one of the participants kept calling after me -- Julie! Julie, right? Havent we met before? It was one of the appointed mediators for the student activists. She wore a yellow vest, carried a walkie-talkie, and used any pretense she could think of to strike up a conversation with non-students to quickly discern their intentions. A week before I visited, twenty-two students and two staff members had been arrested for staging a sit-in in Day Hall, the administrative center for Cornell. Shortly before that, multiple suspensions had been handed down to students for participating in protests, which included an encampment set up on the well-known art quad. School administrators had met with activists to request they move to a less disruptive part of the campus -- theyd refused. And so they stayed in the art quad where statues of two great Americans -- Cornell cofounders Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White -- stared silently down at a campus obsessed with the latest political statement and fashion fad -- the black and white keffiyeh. There are many who still associate the black and white keffiyeh with former Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) head Yasser Arafat. Its a statement of solidarity thats hard to stomach when transposed onto American campuses; especially for those of us old enough to remember its long history of turmoil and terrorism. Academy award winning British actress Vanessa Redgrave (well-known to American audiences by the 1970s) may have been the first celebrity to add the keffiyeh scarf to her wardrobe not long after funding, producing and narrating the 1977 documentary, The Palestinian. After a lengthy interview with Yasser Arafat, the documentary shows Miss Redgrave dancing with a rifle as she gleefully celebrates her visit with the self-professed freedom fighters. It had been less than three years since Arab forces -- led by Syria and Egypt -- had led a surprise attack on Israel during their holiest day Yom Kippur. The following year she helped take antisemitism mainstream with an Academy Awards acceptance speech in which she referenced Zionist hoodlums. The flawed ideology of that speech posited that one could oppose antisemitism if one wasnt talking about those Zionist hoodlums that have the chutzpah to claim a right to their homeland which basically means everyone in Israel. Nearly fifty years on, everyones favorite contemporary activist, Greta Thunberg, has similarly been filmed chanting crush Zionism, and was recently detained for protesting Israels participation in a European song competition while wrapped in a keffiyeh thats almost larger than she is. Back at Cornell, Im watching similarly deluded ivy league college students dancing and laughing as they adjust their keffiyehs and fervently pound nails into a large Hands off Rafah sign theyve been building. I ask one of the leaders of the group if she knows where Rafah is; I can tell by the confused look on her face that she doesnt have a clue. The only thing she can tell me is that theyve evacuated innocent Palestinians there and Israel is going to attack it and kill them. Obviously these students are ignorant or dont care that Rafah is considered the final outpost of Hamas; its where the terror masterminds are suspected to be holed up with their fighting brigades, and where the remaining hostages (including Americans) both alive and dead are believed to be held. (Hope Forum, a group which represents some of the hostage families, has criticized Prime Minister Netanyahu for his delay in conquering Rafah and rescuing [their] loved ones) Its clear that Israel cannot win the war without going into Rafah. And sadly, thats a fact that President Biden knows too, so why would his administration decide to stop sending weapons to the Jewish state? Esteemed Israeli journalist Caroline Glick wondered the same thing as she concluded that Bidens recent actions were symbolically saying: I have totally betrayed Israel and I am totally betraying the Jews. She added, It also tells all of the antisemitic rioters on campus that violence pays not only will you not be punished for it you will be rewarded. I am going to answer your demands that the United States betray Israel and stand with the people who massacred [on October 7]. As I sat under a tree by the Cornell anti-Israel encampment, I watched the ebb and flow of students wearing (mostly black), green, red and white clothing in support of the Palestinian flag that proudly took center stage. The only American flag to be seen was on my own shirt. I hadnt worn it intentionally, but I immediately became aware that it wasnt acceptable attire. Only later did I learn that a man that dared to carry an American flag onto the City University of New York (CUNY) campus claims to have been physically attacked and forced to leave. As I walked by the young student protestors singing and chanting, I couldnt help but think of the similar young innocents at the Nova Music Festival, celebrating being young and alive just before their sudden and gruesome deaths. I recall the footage of the Hamas paragliders, possibly drug-fueled, swooping down to rape, torture and kill. I think of the young woman being abducted by terrorists as she screams, Please dont kill me! I think of another woman whose pants were so soaked with blood that everyone was afraid to say out loud what they suspected had happened to her. And what about the broken body of a 23-year-old German-Israeli woman paraded through the streets and thrown in the back of a truck and spit on like trash? What of terrified people begging for their lives and being burned alive; what of the slaughtered children and babies? These stories are just a fraction of a ghastly narrative that is historic, collective, unprecedented, and overwhelmingly evil to anyone with a soul. (Disturbingly, one Cornell protestor openly wore a shirt that read The power of evil and curse.) The Cornell encampment shamefully paid no tribute to Israels tortured dead or damaged living. Instead, theyd only painted a large mural depicting Palestinian facts and figures that no one can verify. How can so many take the side of Hamas terrorists -- including believing whatever flawed casualty numbers they decide to throw out to the world? The answer of course lies in the rise of antisemitism. As Franklin Graham said recently: [T]o watch what's happening on our college campuses -- that antisemitism after 80 years has come back, the evil, the hatred that's in the human heart As we watch what's happening on these college campuses We have spent billions of dollars for the Department of Education to educate our young people, and all we've done is educate them to hate and it's sad to see what's happening in our country. Worse yet, one thing we never thought wed see in America is the rise of antisemitism on the right. As American journalist Jonathan Tobin pointed out, with conservatives like Candace Owens who has essentially mainstreamed antisemitism in her own way and Tucker Carlson who seems to be willing to platform Israel haters -- we are entering uncharted and dangerous territory. Libs of Tiktok founder Chaya Raichik summed it up best when she said, The lack of moral clarity on this issue is really terrifying The difference is that on the left [antisemitism] is institutionalized, whereas on the right its not -- yet. Susan D. Harris can be reached at www.susandharris.com Images: Susan D. Harris, by permission The war that began on October 7, 2023, as a result of the Hamas massacre is not a localized, Middle East war, but increasingly looms as total support for the radical Islamists' attack on Jews in various places around the globe. The movement for the "liberation of Palestine," with its open call for the establishment of an Arab state "from the river to the sea" in place of the Jewish state, is an activity in preparation for the genocide of the Jewish people. In fact, there has been a legitimization of the anti-Jewish pogrom, with the consequences of which there is a sluggish struggle. This struggle is of little intensity because the ruling Democrat party in the United States is afraid to risk the votes of pro-Palestine voters. President Biden is clearly concerned about the student protests and predictions that he could lose the support of progressives and some Muslim voters because of his stance on Israel. By some monstrous political calculation, the Oct. 7, 2023 massacre resonated with the Palestinian problem. Instead of condemning the terrorists, a powerful movement emerged condemning the terror fighters and calling for the genocide of Israelis under the slogan of liberating Palestine. Instead of genuinely combating antisemitism, which has increased dramatically as a result of the struggle for liberation, the current American administration has begun correcting Israelis. On Sept. 11, 2001, Islamic extremists attacked the U.S. The Democrat party administration is ignoring the lessons of that attack on the U.S. It doesn't want to see the similarities between that attack and the Oct. 7, 2023 massacre in Israel. Islamic extremists didn't just attack Israelis then. That was an attack on democracy in Israel and the United States, and on American Jews. The pogrom in the Middle East created a chain reaction of antisemitism. Europe has a long tradition of antisemitism, but the U.S. has accumulated less experience on the subject. Statistics on antisemitic incidents show that states that vote for the Democrat party have the highest number of antisemitic attacks in 2023 -- California (1,266, percentage of Jews in the state's population 3.18%), New York (1,218, percentage of Jews in state population 8.91%), New Jersey (830, percentage of Jews in state population 5.86%), Florida (463, percentage of Jews in state population 3.28%) and Massachusetts (440, percentage of Jews in state population 4.07%), i.e., 3,754 attacks vs. 463, a ratio of about 8 to 1. Some 42% of American Jews live in two states, New York and California. In total, five states accounted for 48% of the total number of incidents. Most of the data is from before the events of Oct. 7, 2023. Consequently, antisemitic activity in the U.S. is even stronger after October 7. The United States, which at the beginning of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries was a refuge for Jews of the Russian empire fleeing pogroms, is becoming a territory dangerous for Jews. Antisemitism has the ability to spread with tremendous speed. Such rapidity is due to the fact that humanity has long been familiar with this topic and is perfectly prepared to perceive Jews as negative heroes, with their demonization. President Biden has stated that he will not provide Israel with sustained offensive military support if it seeks the complete defeat of Hamas in Rafah. He demands that Israel not seize Rafah for humanitarian reasons, that is, he wants to keep Hamas as the ruler of Gaza and let it continue to attack Israelis, which is contrary to humanitarian considerations of preserving Israeli lives. He presents his policy as protecting the lives of Palestinian Arabs, but in reality it is a policy of devaluing Israeli lives. In doing so, he supports the slogans of Israel's enemies, Hands off Rafah! which means demanding that Israel put its hands up and accept the pogromists. This is not a call for peace, but a demand that Israel continue to live under the threat of more Hamas attacks. President Biden's refusal to supply offensive weapons to Israel is his retreat to Islamic extremists. In Iran, in Lebanon, in Syria, in Yemen, Islamic extremists are celebrating the U.S. disengagement from Israel and the weakening of the Jewish state in the face of its enemies. This U.S. behavior encourages Israel's enemies to attack the Jewish state. Biden motivates his "caution" by his desire to protect the civilians of Gaza. Quod licet Iovi (Jovi), non licet bovi (Latin for "What is allowed to Jupiter is not allowed to the bull") is a Latin expression whose meaning is that if something is allowed to a person or a group of people, it is not necessarily allowed to everyone else. In the Vietnam War under Democratic President Lyndon Johnson, 65,000 civilians died from American bombing. Munitions were often supplied with napalm and white phosphorus, which scorched jungles and agricultural fields. Unlike Israel, the U.S. did not fight a war of existence in Vietnam. Biden presents himself as a great moralist and moral teacher to Israel while his country, his party committed war crimes. The Biden administration is cutting aid to its only democratic ally in the Middle East in favor of radical Jihadists calling for the destruction of America for the sake of Muslim votes for president. The Biden administration's policies harm U.S. interests because they demonstrate that this country is an unreliable ally. For America's longtime allies Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, the American world order is receding into the background. President Biden is showing himself to be a weak and unreliable foreign policy leader. The effects of the withdrawal from Afghanistan continue to reverberate, Iran is steadily moving toward nuclear weapons, and the U.S. is not responding. Leading Arab countries have signed the so-called Abraham Accords and strengthened defense cooperation with both Israel and the U.S. But as the weakness and unreliability of the current U.S. administration manifests itself, these Arab countries are coordinating energy policy with Russia, reestablishing ties with Iran and Syria, and cooperating more closely with China. Writing at The Atlantic, Anne Applebaum stated: "We will convince millions of Europeans that we cannot be trusted. We will also send a signal to Russia and China, confirming their oft-stated view that the U.S. is a degenerate, dying power. [...] The U.S. is not just an untrustworthy ally, but an unserious ally. A foolish ally." The Democrat party has repeatedly abandoned friends in hard times in the past. In 1975, cutting off aid to South Vietnam resulted in millions of people being sent to "re-education camps" or killed. The current U.S. administration seems to be shooting its friends in the back as well. In chess, there is the term "gambit." "Gambit" comes from the Italian language: dare il gambetto -- to put a footstool. A gambit is an opening in which a chess player sacrifices a pawn or piece to improve his position. He sacrifices an ally for a few extra ballots in the election. Biden leaves Hamas in power to come to power. The Biden administration is tripping Israel, sacrificing them to improve their chances of winning the presidential election. The U.S. is betraying not only Israel, but also American Jews, who apparently do not yet realize the significance of their country's turn away from Israel. Do they feel that this administration is actually turning its back on them as well, that it wants to win elections at any cost, even if that cost is Israel, even if that cost is allowing "free speech" for antisemites, Islamist sympathizers? Perhaps for the first time since World War II, American Jews felt more Jewish than American. Image: Screen shot from CBS video, via YouTube There are times when large wars produces miniscule results, waged only to re-arrange pieces on a chessboard (War of the Spanish Succession) -- and times when small scuffles will make or break a civilization (The battle of Thermopylae). This is what we are seeing now. Recognizing such instances is no mean feat. At the battle of Thermopylae, were the Spartans really morally preferable to the Persians? Both had Indo-European leadership, so this was not about race. The Persians were an autocratic tyranny with a semi-divine king, yet the Spartans were a totalitarian monstrosity. So which side was right? The key lay in the underlying Greek culture. While Sparta was a nightmare, the rest of Greece was not. Other Greek city-states had a concept of the worth of the individual, and a nascent sense of democracy. And even Sparta had a concept of rights for women. By todays false standards, Persia was a multicultural wonderland which included autonomously semi-empowered ethnicities of color, while Sparta was elitistly white. (Early 20th century racists thought the Spartans were close to the Nordic ideal. Argh!). The Spartan character, if that be any test of race ... would indicate northern rather than Mediterranean antecedents. -- The Passing of the Great Race Yet, it would be multicultural Persia which would descend into historical despotism while ancient Greece (hopelessly white) would invent Western civilization (and Orthodox civilization as well). Had one been a neutral observer in 480 B.C., it would have taken some discernment to comprehend that. Yet, even though Sparta was a flawed representative of Greece, overall the battle was a struggle between light and dark, good and evil, freedom and tyranny. It is around this time that Western history becomes clear and starts to emerge from the mists of myth, thanks in no small part to those Greeks. A century and a half after the battle of Thermopylae, Greek (Western) civilization would collide with the Jews, when Alexander the Great would capture Jerusalem. It was from this collision that world civilization (not merely Greek or Jewish) would begin. Unlike the prior Assyrians who looted and carried away the ten northern tribes of Israel, and unlike the Babylonians who looted Jerusalem, the Greeks (Westerners) had an appreciation for high civilization. Indeed, they saw their mission as one of civilizing the barbarian, which sounds suspiciously colonialist. Alexander was persuaded to spare the temple and supposedly made a token offering to the God of Israel. Alexander is next taken into Jerusalem where he offers a sacrifice to God at the Temple, according to the high-priests direction." -- When Alexander the Great came to Jerusalem It is not clear if the story is apocryphal; but if true, it has to be remembered that Alexander was starting to see himself as a god also, and may only have been acting out of professional courtesy. He was starting to pick up the bad habits of the Eastern world. What is also clear is that the Greeks were not like Israels other enemies (at least, not at first). The Egyptians, the Assyrians, the Babylonians were genuinely deranged. The Egyptians worshiped frogs. The Assyrians and Babylonians were mindlessly violent. The Hebrews were blindsided by a Greek culture that could compete with their own. The Greeks had higher math, music theory, impressive architecture, wonderful literature, great art, and the Olympics. It was easy to look down on the Egyptians, but one could not do that with the Greeks (Westerners). The rabbis went nuts as Jewish youth started embracing Greek culture. They called this the crisis of Hellenization. [James Mitchener also described this phenomena in "The Source." -ed.] Had the rabbis not panicked, they would have noticed that the influence ran both ways. Hebrew Scriptures were translated into Greek, and were read by the Greeks. The only real blot on this process was the madness of Antiochus IV (around 168 B.C.) who tried to wipe out Jewish culture, thus inspiring the Maccabean revolt. But the process of Hellenization (of the Jews) and Judaization (of the Greeks) was only temporarily halted. Even the Maccabees, who had fought the Greeks, would go on to adopt Greek names and practices. Many Greeks eventually adopted Judaism, or at least its morality. By the first century, a significant portion of the Greeks had become Jewish or Judeophilic. In the book of Acts, Paul the Apostle would bring the Gospel to both Jews and Greeks in the synagogues. Act 18:4 And he [Paul] reasoned in the synagogue every sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks. And it is no accident that the New Testament is written in Greek. This meeting of European and Hebrew is the real beginning of world civilization. I am going to state it bluntly, true world civilization begins when the West meets the Jews. Other civilizations leave their imprint. Certainly the Chinese did, the Indians did. Technologies went back and forth. But none of these had major effects outside of their adjacent realms. Confucianism is primarily Chinese. Hinduism is almost limited to the Indian subcontinent. Even Buddism (which is a sort of Reformed Hinduism) was dying out, until British archaeologists gave Buddism a second wind by restoring the Bodhi Tree. Believed to be a descendant of the original Bodhi tree, the ficus religiosa currently on this spot was planted in 1881, by British archaeologist Alexander Cunningham, and then later restored and cared for by monks. -- The Bodhi Tree the Buddha Sat Under is Dead And Islam was dying out, until the last Kaiser of what is now Germany, Wilhelm II, reinvigorated it. The Kaisers embrace of Islam began with an 1889 visit to Turkey, ... A later visit to Jerusalem, left the impressionable Kaiser declaring that, had he arrived agnostic, I certainly would have turned Mahometan! Soon the Kaiser was styling himself Hajji Wilhelm, the Protector of Muslims. -- Daily Express Wilhelm just loved Islam. So the British resurrected Buddism and the Germans resurrected Islam, both of which would have died out naturally, had they not been subsidized by the misapplication of Western tolerance. What is clear is that Christianity (the religion of the West) did not need such subsidy. Christianity impelled Western civilization, indeed defined it. And with Christian civilization came liberty and representative government, etc. Science sprang from the idea that God was a God of order, not capricious as Islam and the pagans believed. Progress could be made, unlike the hopeless Karmic cycle that Hindus and Buddists believed in. For God is not the author of confusion 1 Cor 14:33 Without the West, Judaism would have been confined to the Holy Land. Without Christianity (an outgrowth of Judaism), the West would have remained barbaric, and civilization would not have moved much beyond that of early Rome. The Jews and the West needed each other. Of course this could have been gleaned from the blessings given to Japheth and Shem in Genesis 9, where Japheth is given as the progenitor of the European whites, and Shem is the progenitor of the Semites, ultimately the Jews. I am Christian. So I do not agree with everything in Judaism or Zionism. I do not subscribe to antisemitism, but neither do I believe that antisemitism is always and everywhere totally the fault of the Gentiles either. (The early church was persecuted by some Jews and this did not help). The West has produced its share of villains, and so have the Jews. [W]e demand the right to have our own villains, exactly as other people have them. -- Zeev Jabotinsky But when the West and the Jews get in sync, the results are amazing. World civilization (not local) is chiefly the product of Europeans and Jews. This is politically incorrect but absolutely true. The vast majority of what is good and worth living for comes from either the West or the Jews - or the admixture of both. This does not make Africans or Asians inferior, but it does mean that there is something in either the West or Israel that produces world-shaking truth: Truth that radiates globally not locally. Contrary-wise, Islam is the product of a pedophilic, violent thug named Mohammed. It has nothing good to offer, but is actually destructive of whatever civilization it captures. V.S. Naipaul called it worse than colonialism and "the greatest calamity that befell [India]." What is going on in the Mideast is much deeper than an ethnic, colonial, or national struggle. Should Israel fail, world civilization will fall accordingly. This is why I support Israel, and why the West should continue to do so. Let Hamas be destroyed. Image: Pixabay / Pixabay License Yogi Berra said, You can observe a lot by watching. My corollary to Yogis quote is, You can learn a lot by reading. You can especially learn a lot about Dems by reading what they write and the questions they ask. With Georgias May 21st primary elections approaching, I wanted to view the sample ballots. To do so, log on to the Georgia Secretary of States My Voter Page and fill out the required voter information. Youll be able to see sample Democrat, Republican, and non-partisan ballots. Being a primary election, the Democrat, Republican, and non-partisan ballots are each different. The Dems and GOPs ballots each ask eight different Yes-No questions. Responses to the questions help to shape that partys political platform. Reading the questions on the Dems ballot allows us to learn a great deal about their Marxist/Socialist/anti-American mindset. The Dems first question is, Should the United States, and the state of Georgia, protect Georgians from gun violence by banning assault weapons and large-capacity magazines, closing background check loopholes, and passing other common-sense gun safety reforms. Seriously, do Dems really need to ask that question to know what their voters think about guns? Of course, the answer is Yes. Of course, every Dem blames assault "weapons" and large-capacity magazines for gun violence. They do so to avoid addressing the real causes of violence. A gun is no more responsible for violence than cars are responsible for drunk-driving deaths. Its whats in the heart and soul of the offender that matters. But a good Dem always blames society, not the individual. The reason they blame society is because Dems believe in the collective not in the individual. Their belief in the collective (over the individual) is why few practicing Christians are Dems, and explains why Dems are vehemently anti-Christian. Christianity preaches that salvation is an individual responsibility. No one else can do it for you. To receive eternal salvation, each individual must personally accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Such individual responsibility goes against every tenet of their Marxist/Socialist beliefs. Let me help you Dems and reword the question for you. It should read, Should the U.S. and Georgia, protect Georgians from violence by implementing long-term prison sentences for violent, repeat offenders? And should district attorneys and sheriffs, be held responsible for crimes committed by violent criminals whom they release early and/or fail to charge for crimes they commit? There, much better. With the question properly reworded (Im sure a lawyer could word it better for legal purposes.) your question now places blame for violence on the individual -- where it must be placed. Actually, the question should go one step further and include something about parents failures, and schools failures, to properly discipline their children. I say that because sociologists tell us by age 14 they have a firm idea if a youth will be a criminal or not. The Dems Question 2 reads, Should the state of Georgia incentivize clean energy production as part of a climate policy that recognizes the urgent threat that climate change poses to Georgians health, lives, and futures. As fanatical as Dems are about climate change, Im surprised this wasnt Question #1. Even though the premise of this question is 100% wrong, of course every Dem will answer Yes; and thats because every Dem thinks exactly alike. As I said before, very few Dems are Christians. Their religion is Liberalism/Marxism and their god is Gaia or Mother Earth. Think of the fanaticism of Muslims toward the Prophet Mohammed and Allah. They kill people who disrespect either. Dems are no different. Their pastors (Obama, Pelosi, Hillary, Biden, Bernie Sanders, etc.) and worship leaders (CNN, MSNBC, PBS, colleges and universities, The View, etc.) have preached climate change for decades to the point that Dems actually believe everything about climate catastrophes, especially that mankind is responsible for altering the climate. Their hubris knows no bounds. Question 3 reads, Should the State of Georgia expand voter access by allowing same-day voter registration, removing obstacles to voting by mail, and making secure ballot drop boxes accessible at all times through Election Day? Once again, of course every Dem will vote Yes. The Dems saw how easily, in 2020, they concocted and sold a phony emergency (COVID), and used the emergency to change voter laws and regulations in every state. Today, many states (Georgia, Michigan, Arizona, and Wisconsin for starters) are still discovering the fraudulent means that Dems used to steal the 2020 election. Why did the Dems insist on changes to 2020 voter laws, especially those pertaining to mail-in and absentee ballots? Because those areas (mail-in and absentee) are the easiest ways to create election fraud. After the controversial 2000 Bush/Gore election, former president Jimmy Carter and former secretary of state James Baker led a commission to look into election security. Their commission wrote a White Paper (WP) with a number of recommended procedures that should be followed to ensure better election security. Two areas the WP specifically addressed were mail-in and absentee ballots -- areas that are rife to election fraud. The commission found that mail-in and absentee voting made elections less secure. However, Dems want to use all means possible to reduce election security, so it makes perfect sense that they would insist on same-day registration/voting and expanding mail-in voting. Questions 4 through 8 are similar. They deal with other failed Dem policies and ideas to include: #4 asks about expanding abortion (Dems favor baby-killing throughout a pregnancy. And a womans right to choice (kill) her eight-month old fetus must be protected.); #5 asks about school choice (Dems are against school choice which severely impacts black education opportunities. Dems want to keep their voters ignorant.); #6 asks about government-mandated hourly wages (Dems want the government to impose wage rates because theyre against the free market setting the rates.); #7 asks to halt prisoner chain gangs (Dems want to eliminate chain gangs. Theres nothing wrong with chain gangs. Seeing prisoners outside working, overseen by gun-toting guards, reminds everyone that prison life isnt easy. We need to keep chain gangs as a crime deterrent.) #8 asks about government control of housing (This question proves that Dems want government to control the housing market. Government has control of health care -- it makes sense the Dems want government to completely control the housing market as well.) A final thought: Georgias primary election is May 21st. Hopefully, youve learned enough about Dems to never vote for them, ever. Image: Klearchos Kapoutsis Prince Andrew, whose involvement with Jeffrey Epstein's underaged girls has disgraced the U.K. royal family, is now causing other problems for them. According to Fox News: Prince Andrew is reportedly facing eviction from his brother, King Charles III, after neglecting to pay the annual $503,000 upkeep of his $37 million Royal Lodge mansion. The claim was made by Us Weekly, which alleged that the Duke of York is unable to keep up with the expenses to maintain the sprawling 19th-century property, which the monarchs estate owns. A spokesperson for Buckingham Palace didnt immediately respond to Fox News Digitals request for comment. British royal expert Ian Pelham Turner alleged to Fox News Digital that the king, 75, is struggling to hand out an eviction notice to his disgraced sibling. Apparently these Brits have royal allowances, and Andrew found some other way to spend his. With no royal duties, it's hard to say what. The article says he does have a lot of Arab sheikh-type friends with a lot of money, but none of them seem to want to bail him out. And the result is that the palace, which has got to be big and lavish, given its $37 million price tag, is falling apart. According to the outlet, the property is faced with dampness issues, as well as "wear and tear" that is ravaging the building. It noted that "cracks are becoming worse on the brickwork," and there is peeling paint, along with plaster falling off. One wonders what the state of the interior is beyond the peeling paint, given Prince Andrew's personal habits and proclivities. His wife, Sarah Ferguson, with whom he still lives, is no Princess Diana always helping the help wash up and put away the dishes after meals. (Diana Spencer actually did that.) By reputation, Fergie is more of a slob, too. And they are famous for their rudeness to the help, so it wouldn't be surprising that they can't get any, or must pay premium prices for the abuse they dish to the service personnel. Was the place a mess? Was the money spent on drugs instead of rent? Did he rack up gambling debts? Was there trash all over the place or drug paraphernalia? Oodles of booze? More girls, high priced hookers leaving their underwear lying around? Half-eaten sandwiches? Rats? One can only guess, but the story has gotten out that the palace is a mess. What a sense of entitlement, though, in believing that one is entitled to disgrace the British royal family but still live high on the hog in one of the king's prime palaces, and better still, run out on one's tab to him. King Charles has reportedly offered him the much-smaller Frogmore Cottage as a substitute, in keeping with what reportedly were the late Queen Elizabeth II's wishes that he be looked after. Frogmore is a nice offer, given that the disgraced Sussexes reportedly renovated it at high cost, but Prince Andrew thinks that's not good enough. The Tower of London ought to be the upkeep King Charles offers. It's outrageous, really, because poor King Charles is struggling, and maybe dying, of cancer. Now he gets a problem like Andrew. Andrew can't show his brother Charles some kind of consideration for his delicate health condition and move to smaller quarters so that he can live within his means and Charles can focus on his kingly duties as well as recovery? It just comes off as the height of selfishness, entitlement, me-first-ism, and in a family supposedly dedicated to service, it's not a pretty picture. Now he's a deadbeat, with a messy, tumbledown palace with the king now trying to throw him out. It resembles nothing so much as the loathesome Hunter Biden, who got thrown out of his Venice Beach digs for not paying his rent, left an absolute pigpen behind for the owner to clean up after, and has since moved from mansion to mansion, funded by the odd funding coming from his "art" as well as his wretched father. There's nothing worse than an entitled princeling and it wouldn't be surprising to eventually find that Hunter and Andrew are BFF, birds of a feather. Image: Chatham House, via Wikimedia Commons // CC BY 2.0 DEED Up to now, there is a winner and a loser out of this Manhattan trial. The winner is President Trump, who keeps getting stronger. The loser is New York, or the perception that the Empire State is a banana republic. Using the legal system to target political opponents is Banana Republic 101. This is from Jonathan Turley: Cohens testimony will be the culmination of this travesty of a trial. But Bragg already jumped the shark with Daniels. After three weeks, legal experts are still debating what the crime was that Trump was seeking to conceal by recording payments for a standard non-disclosure agreement as a legal expense. (That is the same characterization used by Hillary Clintons campaign for its funding for the infamous Steele dossier.) It is still unclear that Trump even knew how the payments were characterized, and the alleged false record was not even created until after the election was over. Yet he stands accused of using the false business records to somehow steal or rig an election that was already over. After this circus with Cohen is complete, Trump will be allowed to testify. He would be insane to do so. Merchan has already said that he will allow a broad scope to cross-examination, making any appearance unlikely. That is when Merchan will face a key test of judicial ethics. He has failed to protect the rights of the defendant from a baseless, politically motivated prosecution. He could insist that he simply felt Bragg had a right to present his case. He will soon be done and, as expected, it is entirely based on Cohen, a disbarred perjurer who will ask for his former client to be sent to prison for following his own legal advice. After Bragg closes the prosecutions case, the defense will make a standard motion for dismissal. Merchan should grant that motion. There has been no showing of an actual crime, let alone a clear record tying Trump to key decisions or actions. Merchan will then have to decide whether he has the courage that Bragg lacked. Bragg knew that this case was ridiculous. The Justice Department had declined any prosecution for a federal campaign finance violation, the theory referenced in the case. Indeed, it did not even seek a civil fine over the payments. Braggs predecessor had also rejected the prosecution. Merchan having courage? Dont bet on it. At the same time, he may be getting a call any day from an adult Democrat telling him to pull the plug and end this travesty of a trial. The Trump trials are not going as planned. Down in Georgia, Fani and Nathan messed it up. In Florida, the documents case ran into a judge who understands the law. More than that, how can you hold Trump accountable when nothing happened to Mrs. Clinton and the special counsel concluded that Biden has a bad memory? The January 6 case is tied up in courts, and no trial will happen before November or the political target (Trump) is otherwise destroyed. Back in New York, the fraud case cant find anyone who got defrauded. The he raped me 30 years ago is so phony that it makes everyone laugh. So Trump is winning, and New Yorks judicial system smells like rotten bananas. Again, there must be an adult there calling on the judge to stop and start going after the people making the streets so dangerous. P.S. Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos. Image by AI. The U.S. learns a lot about who its friends are and aren't with Joe Biden's open-borders migrant crisis. Now we learn that Panama, which has just elected Jose Raul Mulino, a center-right president, has plans to shut down the Darien Gap, which serves as a dangerous superhighway for all the migrant traffic making its way into the states from South America. Mulino actually ran for office on a vow to shut down the Darien Gap to migrant travel, saying they weren't a transit country for everyone else. He takes office in July. If he succeeds -- and leftist analysts say it can't be done -- a critical stopgap in the pan-global migrant trade will come to a halt, meaning South America won't be shipping migrants from countries all over the world with South America as their launching point. Mexico will become the main problem, which raises the spotlight and U.S. leverage on Mexico. Some half a million migrants have already traversed the Darien Gap's treacherous jungle swamp-and-mountain region filled with crocodiles, leopards, drug dealers, powerful rivers, snakes, poisonous frogs, thorns, toxic plants, slippery rocks, and dead bodies, where no roads have ever been carved out. Panama is a small country, so half a million unvetted migrants, including much of Venezuela's criminal class, tramping through and leaving a lot of garbage and social problems on the fragile ecosystem, where native peoples are known to be angry about the human traffic waves, was obviously an issue for many voters. The press said it wasn't because the government bused migrants through the country to Costa Rica once they crossed the Gap, but there are definitely indicators that it was. According to El Pais of Spain, it wasn't a publicly discussed issue very much. Here's a Google translation: The humanitarian emergency represented by the massive flow of migrants through the inhospitable Darien jungle that marks the Colombian-Panamanian border is not perceived in Panama City, nor has it been one of the important topics in the electoral debate of the Central American country, which attends this Sunday to the polls. And yet, the discourse against immigration has found a way to sneak into the presidential race, in the mouth, among others, of the poll favorite, former Security Minister Jose Raul Mulino, who replaced the disqualified former president Ricardo Martinelli. We are going to close Darien and we are going to repatriate all these people accordingly, he said in statements reported by the Efe agency. Mulino, considered a champion of the heavy hand, assured that he would ask for support from the countries in the region involved in the migratory flow, such as Colombia and the United States, understanding that Panama is not a transit country and that many migrants are victims. of trafficking. The chart of crossings seen on Foreign Policy's website is startling and tells a lot about the kinds of problems Panama (and other transit countries north of Panama) have been enduring. So the reality is, the voters said 'no.' The backstory to how Mulino got elected, as described in Foreign Policy, is useful, too. He was the security minister of former president Ricardo Martinelli, a conservative who got knocked out of the race by his political enemies on a money-laundering charge. He was the frontrunner, very popular because voters remembered his previous term (they don't allow successive terms in Panama), and Mulino, a strong loyalist to Martinelli, was put in his place at the last minute, winning by surprise. So obviously, if it wasn't the open border that was driving this, it was the banana-republic maneuvers of the Panamanian left, which knocked out a president who brought prosperity to the country through lawfare, and voters could see it and send a message. Sound like any countries you know? The bottom line for us is that Panama is proving to be a friend of the U.S. with this move. In placing Panama First on the migrant surge, they also proved to be a friend of the U.S. as well. That's quite the opposite of what the socialist countries in the region are doing. Nicaragua, for one, run by communist "little dictator" Daniel Ortega, has chosen to throw accelerator fuel onto the migrant crisis by facilitating flights from all over the world into Nicaragua as a money-making venture for itself, and sending them up north. Venezuela has emptied its prisons of criminals, not political prisoners, perhaps to make more room for political prisoners, but in the main, to stick it to gringo. Cuba has directed both socialist hellholes in their efforts to take down the U.S. with their poor man's weapon, illegal migration, which they learned to use as a tool to Get Gringo back in 1980. Mexico has used the opportunity to attempt to extort the U.S. into dropping sanctions against Cuba and Venezuela, hand over a $20 billion "development" payment, and handing out amnesty to 10 million illegals. Mexico's aims may be dishonest and dishonorable, and certainly not the activity of a good neighbor, but its government knows a fool when it sees one. The same harm that came to Panama from Biden's open border also comes to these countries (including the U.S.), yet the governments of nearly all of these countries on the migrant superhighways let that harm happen to themselves just to Get Uncle Sam. Obviously, Panama is different. The voters there chose Panama first to save itself and its land from destruction. Panama just threw the spanner into that Get Gringo-fest, and its actions to shut down that human trafficking highway of death and horrors is not only a means of standing for itself first but a service to humanity. Sound like any countries you know? Image: Gail Hampshire, via Wikimedia Commons // CC BY-SA 2.0 I was in Barbados earlier this year. During our tour, the guide proudly boasted that Barbadoss all-female government had mandated that the whole island will go completely solar by 2035 or something. I commented to my companion that this seemed like an idiotic idea for a nation that lives in a hurricane zone. Well, my prediction about combining wind zones and solar panels came true, although not in Barbados (yet) but in India. The Lokmat Times has the story (emphasis mine): A summer storm on Tuesday damaged a floating solar plant at Madhya Pradeshs Omkareshwar dam. The floating solar plant, situated in the backwater of the dam, is the biggest of its kind in the world. [snip] The project near the village of Kelwa Khurd, aimed at generation 100 MW of electricity, with additional capacities of 88 MW at Indawadi and 90 MW at Ekhand village. However, on Tuesday, summer storms with the speed of 50 kmph hit the project and threw the solar panels all around the place. The video of the resulting ruination is impressive: AL GORE please pick up the red emergency phone. Storm destroys the world's largest floating Solar Panel Farm. What Valedictorian engineer signed off on this stupidity.pic.twitter.com/zRBOREibGi Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) May 5, 2024 Green energy isnt green. Its a hobby for a few rich people. Solar panels are filthy to make and impossible to recycle. Forests and farms are laid waste to house these monstrosities. Birds get flash roasted on them. Modern windmills are not only hideously ugly compared to the charming windmills of history (in, say, Holland), but theyre also filthy to make and impossible to recycle. As with solar panels, forests and farms are decimated to create wind farms. Birds and bats get sliced and diced. Water energy is clean and efficient if you dont mind building dams that destroy valleys and the communities within them. Also, when there are droughts, they stop working. Electric cars have no exhaust coming out of their batteries, but those batteries are filthy to make and impossible to recycle. In addition, those cars still need energy for those batteries, and that same energy often comes from electrical plants that rely on fossil fuels. Theres also the amount of rubber thats burned from tires bearing the burden of those hungry, dirty, non-recyclable batteries. In addition to their downsides, all these clean energy sources are limited. Even under the most optimistic predictions, they will never provide the amount of energy the world needs today, let alone the increased amounts the world will demand in the future. As the clean air in America demonstrates, especially when, compared to the filthy air in India and China, wealthy nations have the technology and reserves to burn fossil fuels cleanly. And if people really want unlimited clean energy, nuclear power is the way. But unlimited clean energy isnt what the climatistas want. Their true vision is pre-modern, pre-capitalist, green, pastoral land, one in which the select few who earned a reprieve from the coming population culling frolic through flowered fields, somehow remarkably untouched by the omnipresent premodern specters of famine, disease, darkness, pain, war, and, always, early death. Meanwhile, even as the climatistas pursue their anti-humanist vision, poor nations like India will come up with wasteful and silly ideas like floating solar panels that turn into useless plastic squares strewn across the land and waterscape. Image from X. Do any of the Democrats engaged in lawfare against President Trump read the news about leftists south of the border who do the same things they are doing? Maybe Panama's election a week ago would be useful for them to know. According to Foreign Policy, which has a good, if somewhat left-slanted overview of what went on there: The winner, Jose Raul Mulino, was a stand-in candidate for former President Ricardo Martinelli, who was disqualified due to a money laundering conviction. (Outgoing center-left President Laurentino Cortizo was barred from running due to a ban on immediate reelection.) Martinelli governed Panama from 2009 to 2014, during an economic boom. Despite his legal woes, many Panamanians remain loyal to Martinelli. Mulino, who served as Martinellis security minister and referenced the economic abundance of Martinellis tenure on the campaign trail, earned around 34 percent of votes on Sundayenough for victory in Panamas one-round presidential race. Sure, every country is different. But the parallels here are quite striking. A former president who brought prosperity to his country through conservative and free market values from 2009 to 2014, Ricardo Martinelli, was running for a non-consecutive term as president. (Panama law doesn't permit consecutive terms). The left, which took power after him, made a hash of the economy, and turned Panama into an illegal alien superhighway, leaving voters with only the memory of how good things were during Martinelli's administration. The Associated Press seemed to think the voters remembered: While he lacks Martinellis charisma, the economic boom seen under his ally pushed many voters to support Mulino at a time that Panamas economy has lagged. Foreign Policy put out its excusemaking for the left's miserable record in power this way: Since the COVID-19 pandemic, however, Panama has entered more uncertain political and economic terrain. A drought has reduced activity in the Panama Canal. Increasing numbers of migrants traveling through the Darien Gap, Panamas jungle border with Colombia, have strained humanitarian services. Last year, authorities shuttered the countrys most profitable copper mine, which accounted for an estimated 3.5 percent of Panamas GDP in 2021. Ah, COVID. It's always COVID-19, isn't it? I think the word the writer is looking for is 'lockdowns,' as this study by economist Steve Hanke and several others found. The mining shutdown probably had more to do with it -- and the lingering memory of how good things were earlier. The Associated Press also noted that as a former security minister in the Martinelli administration, Mulino actually did shut down the Darien Gap passage to narcoguerrillas who were infesting the jungles at the time and vowed to do it again. Foreign Policy added: Ahh, but the left had a solution to this: Lawfare, they'd pin a corruption charge on Martinelli, in this case, money-laundering, while ignoring the corruption in their own camp. And sure enough, suddenly concerned about money-laundering, they succeeded. Here's the New York Times headline from March 2024: Panama Bars Ex-Leader Martinelli From Presidential Election The electoral tribunal disqualified Ricardo Martinelli, saying he was ineligible to run because of his conviction for money laundering and sentencing to more than five years in prison. So with two months to run and no political charisma to speak of, Martinelli's designated successor, Jose Raul Mulino, ran in his place. Net result? A huge victory, with Mulino winning 35 percent of the vote in a three-way race, nine points ahead of his nearest challenger. That had to be a surprise to the left, which thought it had solved its 'Martinelli problem' and the problem of its own execrable governing record through lawfare and by disqualifying Martinelli and sticking the man in jail. The guy has since taken refuge in the Nicaraguan embassy (no idea what the politics of that are) but the stunning bottom line is, Mulino won. They thought they had him, they thought lawfare would fix things for them -- and all it did was get them thrown out of office harder. Voters don't like this kind of crap, and they respond by supporting the wounded party with more intensity. They did so in Panama, and it's out there for all to see. Now it's time for elections in the U.S. with a full menu of ginned-up lawfare directed at frontrunner President Trump. (Silvio Canto today has an excellent post on the scope of it). We've seen this movie before. Too bad Democrats haven't. Image: Pixabay / Pixabay License NANNING, May 13 (Xinhua) -- The Cataract Blindness Eradication Project, funded by the Hong Kong-based charity GX Foundation, aims to complete its work of delivering free operations to cataract patients in Prey Veng Province of Cambodia by the middle of this year. The announcement was made at a work conference held on Monday in Nanning, capital of south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Guangxi signed a cooperation memorandum with the GX Foundation in 2021 for the Cataract Blindness Eradication Project, making it the first partner of the project. Since the launch of the project, Guangxi has dispatched 13 teams of ophthalmologists to Laos and Cambodia, who have performed over 7,000 vision-restoring operations free of charge for local cataract patients. As the project in Prey Veng nears completion, the charity is considering extending its efforts to other provinces in Cambodia, according to the GX Foundation. GX Foundation has facilitated nearly 12,000 free cataract operations for people in Laos, Cambodia, Djibouti, Senegal and Mauritania. Europe is planning to lay more antitrust charges on Microsoft Teams. The European Union seems concerned Microsoft could be using its industry dominance to undermine competition. Why is the EU slapping more antitrust charges on Microsoft Teams? Although its not official yet, the European Commission would soon slap on additional charges in an already long charge sheet against Microsoft. The Commission is concerned about Microsoft Teams. Europe is reportedly concerned Microsoft is unfairly positioning the popular office productivity and remote collaboration platform. The EU is expected to submit a charge sheet, which could mention Microsoft is restricting competition in the sector. Microsoft Teams rivals, including Slack and others, are concerned the Windows OS maker will somehow boost Teams compatibility and reliability with its bouquet of platforms and software. Microsoft is now selling Office without Teams worldwide following EU antitrust concerns. This means more choice for businesses buy Office standalone or Teams separately, similar to the option already available in Europe. This change addresses complaints from rivals like Slack pic.twitter.com/4yRO0XQpxW Dave Augustus (@davetweetlive) May 9, 2024 Theres a consensus about increased complexities not just about interoperability, but also data migration. In other words, rivals claim Microsoft may make data portability a tedious task. This could significantly dissuade current users from migrating to other platforms. Multiple reports suggest Microsofts competition could meet with the European Commission this week to discuss the case. The commission may prepare an early draft of the charge sheet this week. In other words, the commission may officially file the charges against Microsoft, particularly regarding Teams, in the next few weeks. However, in the meantime, Microsoft could throw in an additional olive branch. Hasnt Microsoft done enough to promote healthy competition? Europe has been keeping tabs on Microsoft, and its Teams software, for quite a few years. Specifically speaking, Slack, a Salesforce subsidiary, submitted a formal complaint over Microsofts Teams back in 2020. After a lot of legal paperwork and arguments, Microsoft offered to unbundle Teams from Microsoft 365 in Europe. Moreover, the company could separate the collaboration platform from other software such as Office. Interestingly, Microsoft could gradually detach Teams from Office not just in Europe but across the world. Exclusive: @Microsoft to separate @MicrosoftTeams and @Office globally amid antitrust scrutinyhttps://t.co/j6KIkdGGFu After unbundling the two in Europe six months ago, the #tech giant will do this worldwide in a bid to ward off antitrust actions. My take: Good for choice. pic.twitter.com/dJ072uGlZ7 Dion Hinchcliffe (@dhinchcliffe) May 13, 2024 The European Commission reportedly feels Microsoft hasnt done enough. The EU has opinioned that Microsoft must do more to facilitate fairness in the market. Microsoft currently faces potential fines of up to 10 percent of its global annual turnover if the EU finds it breached the regional competition law. However, Microsoft isnt alone. The EU is also keeping other tech giants including Meta, Apple, and Google in its crosshairs. Google made a lot of profit this year. However, despite the continuous growth, the employees accused the firm of declining morale as they were not happy with the companys treatment. In another turn of events, Google seems to taking an exit from its massive San Fransico waterfront office tower. This is one of the most premium and important business offices of the tech giant. Google will take an exit from its massive San Fransico office Google has officially confirmed to the San Francisco Chronicle that they are moving out from its office located near the San Fransico waterfront. The firm will exit from its massive 300,000-square-foot office in One Market Plazas Spear Tower within the next year. Google has already informed the property owners that it will not renew its lease next year. There has been a problem related to public relations in San Fransico as multiple firms continue to exit the city. Well, that, or decrease their presence there. Google is now also a part of it. The company leased the property back in 2018 and the operations began in the same year itself. It was among one of the most important offices of the firm and a lot of employees were working over there. Google will remain present in San Fransico over time One of the spokespersons of Google said Were focused on investing in real estate efficiently to meet the current and future needs of our hybrid workforce. We remain committed to our long-term presence in San Francisco. This confirms that Google wont be completely moving out of the city. Google is relocating all employees currently working in the One Market Plazas Spear Tower office to different offices. The exact reason behind this big step by the brand remains unknown as they have chosen not to disclose it. It remains to be seen if Google will share some additional info at a later date. Last week, the US government revoked certain licenses that allowed American semiconductor companies to supply chips to Huawei. While the Commerce Department didnt name the affected companies, Qualcomm and Intel were the two names on everyones mind. They have just confirmed the same. The firms revealed in their financial filing that Huawei is no longer purchasing advanced chips from them. Qualcomm and Intel confirm the end of business with Huawei After placing Huawei on the Entity List in 2019, putting it under strict trade regulations, the US government issued special export licenses to some semiconductor companies to continue business with the Chinese technology titan. However, last week, the US Department of Commerce revoked certain licenses for exports to Huawei. The department cited the same national security concerns as before. We continuously assess how our controls can best protect our national security and foreign policy interests, taking into consideration a constantly changing threat environment and technological landscape. As part of this process, as we have done in the past, we sometimes revoke export licenses, an official statement read. Huawei and Intel were expected to be the two most affected companies. The firms confirmed that in their latest financial filing. Qualcomm said this license revocation ceases its supply of 4G and certain other integrated circuit products, including Wi-Fi products, to Huawei and its affiliates and subsidiaries. The company doesnt expect product revenue from the beleaguered Chinese conglomerate beyond 2024, confirming the end of business with it. Intels filing says the Commerce Department has revoked certain licenses for export of consumer-related items to its customers in China. Since Intel doesnt make smartphone chips, this likely applies to processors used in Huaweis laptops. As GizmoChina points out, the chip giant may still be able to supply chips for non-consumer applications such as data center servers to the Chinese firm. China has objected to these tightening trade restrictions on Huawei The US government has always labeled Huawei a national security threat over its potential ties with the Chinese Communist Party, the sole ruling party in China. Unsurprisingly, the company has refuted the claims. It says the CCP doesnt have any backdoors to its consumer data. However, the Biden administration continues to tighten trade restrictions on Huawei and China isnt happy about it. Following recent developments, the Chinese foreign ministry issued a statement saying, China resolutely opposes the United States overstretching the concept of national security and abusing export controls to suppress Chinese companies without justification. The US government is also planning a nationwide ban on TikTok, another Chinese firm. It will be interesting to see how Beijing reacts if it moves ahead with the plan. Microsoft will pay a hefty $242 million fine for patent infringement in a lawsuit related to the companys virtual assistant, Cortana. According to the jury verdict, Microsofts technology violated a patent owned by IPA Technologies, a subsidiary of Wi-LAN. Consequently, the jury awarded IPA $242 million in damages. The lawsuit centered on voice recognition technology used in Cortana. IPA claimed that Microsofts virtual assistant infringed on a patent acquired from SRI Internationals Siri Inc., the developers behind Apples Siri virtual assistant. Microsoft contested these claims, arguing their technology didnt violate the patent and that the patent itself was invalid. This isnt IPAs first patent lawsuit against tech giants. Previously, they sued both Google and Amazon for alleged infringements of similar patents. While Amazon successfully defended itself in 2021, the case against Google continues. What this means for Microsoft and the future of Cortana In late 2023, Microsoft announced ending support for Cortana as a standalone app. While Cortana functionality remains integrated with Windows and other Microsoft products, the company seems to be shifting away from dedicated virtual assistants. Its unclear how this $242 million fine will impact Cortanas future development within the Microsoft ecosystem. Microsoft plans to appeal the decision. An appeal could take months or even years to resolve, and the final outcome remains uncertain. If the verdict is upheld, the company could be forced to modify Cortana or potentially enter into licensing agreements with IPA. While the lawsuit itself is technical, it highlights ongoing legal battles surrounding intellectual property in the tech industry. Companies like IPA play a role in enforcing patent rights, and their lawsuits can have a significant financial impact on major tech corporations, as evidenced by Microsofts case. Additionally, IPAs targeting of multiple tech giants with similar lawsuits suggests a trend of patent enforcement within the virtual assistant space, potentially impacting how these technologies develop in the future. A district court in Germany has imposed a sales ban on the smartphones manufactured by Lenovo and Motorola over a legal dispute. Motorola was doing very well in the EU market and its recently announced Motorola Edge 50 series was also performing very well. But this sudden judgment by the legal body has forced the brand to completely stop the sale of its devices in a major EU market. A German court has banned Motorola from selling smartphones in the state Motorola was facing a legal dispute with a US technology firm InterDigital over the reported accusation of patent infringement. The Munich district court has issued its judgment in the case. The judgment bans Motorola and Lenovo from selling their smartphones in Germany, including the Edge 50 series. The actual dispute was between the parent company of Motorola i.e., Lenovo against InterDigital. InterDigital filed a case in the court against Lenovo for patent infringement regarding the WWAN module. This module is responsible for wireless communication across smartphones and other gadgets. The court realized that Lenovo broke the rules The court ruled, following a series of hearings, to ban the sale of all Lenovo and Motorola smartphones in Germany that utilize the WWAN module. This ban prohibits the sale of any device in the country that uses GSM, UMTS, LTE, or 5G networks. Lenovo replies to this by saying that the terms and conditions of InterDigital arent fair. Anyway, as a result of the ruling, Motorola has taken down all the smartphones from its official website and is selling only some selected accessories. Lenovo, on the other hand, will continue to sell the products but only until the stock lasts. The court placed provisional enforcement on Lenovo after the US-based firm deposited more than four million euros on May 8th. This means Lenovo is prohibited from selling or importing allegedly patent-infringing devices in Germany. In addition, damages must be paid, a court spokesman told Wirtschaftswoche. Samsungs One UI 6.1 update has landed on a few more Galaxy devices in the US. The Galaxy Z Fold 3, Galaxy Z Flip 3, and Galaxy S21 FE are the latest recipients of the new One UI version. The company previously updated its fourth and fifth-gen foldables and all other eligible S series flagships (launched in 2021 and beyond). Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Flip 3 get One UI 6.1 in the US Samsung has been pushing One UI 6.1 to eligible Galaxy devices since the end of March. It first updated the Galaxy Z Fold 5, Galaxy Z Flip 5, Galaxy S23 series, Galaxy S23 FE, and Galaxy Tab S9 series. The company extended the rollout to cover other eligible flagships at the start of May. Following an international release, the update reached the US last week. The US versions of the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3 are now getting it. The One UI 6.1 update is currently available for the carrier-locked variants of the 2021 foldable duo. The new firmware build numbers are F926USQU5IXDB and F711USQU6IXDB, respectively. As expected, the foldables arent getting many AI features with this update. Samsung is only pushing Circle to Search, which is essentially a Google feature. It lets you run a Google search for anything on the screen by drawing a circle around it. Like the Galaxy S21 series, the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3 have missed out on Galaxy AI due to compatibility issues. The only other AI feature mentioned in Samsungs official changelog is the AI-powered edit suggestions for photos. Get special AI recommendations for enhancing your photos and videos. Youll find options for adding star trails, colorizing, and more. Suggestions appear when you tap the i button in Gallery, the company explains. However, the foldables are also receiving other features like the ability to move subjects from one image to another, wallpaper customizations, new lock screen widgets, improved multitasking, enhanced Samsung Health, and more. Samsung has kept the duo at the April security patch, though. It didnt bundle the May release with One UI 6.1. The devices should get the latest security patch with a separate update in a few weeks. Galaxy S21 FE has also started receiving the update The Galaxy S21 FE is another Samsung smartphone getting One UI 6.1 in the US. The updated build number for the phone is G990USQUAGXDE. The Fan Edition (FE) model hasnt received this update anywhere else. However, it shouldnt be long before Samsung takes the update global. As expected, the Galaxy S21 FE also misses out on Galaxy AI, including CIrcle to Search and AI edit suggests. Samsungs Battery AI tool may arrive sooner than expected. The company reportedly plans to introduce it with the Galaxy Z Fold 6, and presumably the Galaxy Z Flip 6, in a couple of months. Designed to improve its phones battery performance using AI, the tool was initially expected to arrive with the Galaxy S25 series early next year. Samsung plans to launch Battery AI with the Galaxy Z Fold 6 & Flip 6 Last week, a rumor surfaced that Samsung is working on a new AI feature called Battery AI for Galaxy phones. It helps improve the battery life of devices by intelligently managing various system processes. Details were scarce but the source said the tool extends the battery life by 5-10% without affecting the performance. The same source has now shed more light on Samsungs Battery AI. They can confirm that the company plans to offer the tool on the Galaxy Z Fold 6. It will extend the battery backup of the new foldable by up to 30 minutes. The Galaxy Z Flip 6 might also feature the tool. Since the Flip model has a smaller battery, it may get a smaller extension of battery life. We still dont have details about how Battery AI will work. Software programs to improve the battery life of devices arent new. Even Samsungs Galaxy phones boast such tools. However, most of those limit the devices performance. They prevent the device from operating at its full potential, thus lowering its power consumption and extending the battery life. Samsungs Battery AI will seemingly work differently. It will likely use AI to eliminate unnecessary background tasks and optimize the performance to lower power consumption. If the company plans to include the feature on the new foldables, we may soon hear more about it. Older Galaxy devices may also get this feature Battery AI may be part of Samsungs Galaxy AI suite of on-device AI features for flagship smartphones and tablets. The company introduced Galaxy AI with One UI 6.1 on the Galaxy S24 series. Several older models picked up the new AI features with the One UI 6.1 update. The Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Galaxy Z Flip 6 should run One UI 6.1.1 out of the box, with Battery AI and possibly a few more additions. Samsung will probably bring the new battery-saving tool to the likes of Galaxy Z Fold 5, Galaxy Z Flip 5, and Galaxy S24 series with the One UI 6.1.1 update. The Galaxy S25 series should also have Battery AI out of the box. TSMC is a company that could send the world into disarray if China were to take its control, and the US is very concerned about it. During a recent House hearing, the US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said that such an event would be absolutely devastating for the American economy. Thats because of its overreliance on the Taiwanese semiconductor company. The US buys 92% of its leading edge chips from TSMC, Raimondo revealed. China seizing TSMC would be devastating for the US economy With a market share of over 60%, TSMC is the worlds largest semiconductor foundry by a huge margin (the second-biggest foundry is Samsung with a market share of about 10%). The Taiwanese firm manufactures semiconductor chips for many leading global tech companies, including American giants like Qualcomm, Apple, AMD, Intel, and NVIDIA. TSMC supplies pretty much the entire demand for advanced semiconductors in the US. This overreliance on the Taiwanese company could put the US economy in trouble should China invade Taiwan and take control of TSMC. The geopolitical tensions between the worlds top two largest economies are well-known to everyone. The US government paralyzed Chinas then largest tech company Huawei by placing it on the Entity List in 2019. It is also mulling a nationwide ban on popular social media app TikTok. China would be itching for revenge. Raimondo declined to comment on the likelihood of such an invasion from China. However, she made it clear that the US would find itself in a dire situation if it were to happen. Unfortunately, it doesnt have a choice. Apart from TSMC, Samsung is the only other foundry that is currently mass-producing the most advanced 3nm chips. The Korean firms production capacity may be too low to handle the US demand if it loses access to TSMCs foundry. TSMC recently received over $11 billion from the US government The US government is putting in efforts to boost the domestic semiconductor industry. It has announced tens of billions of dollars in grants and incentives for several chip companies to expand their production in the country. TSMC has pledged to build a third chip fabrication plant in Arizona by 2030, increasing its investment from $40 billion to $65 billion. In return, it received a grant of $6.6 billion and up to $5 billion in low-cost government loans. Samsung will also receive up to $6.4 billion in grants for its chip investments in the US. The Korean firm is currently constructing its second chip factory in the country and plans to add a third one in the coming years. It will also set up a semiconductor R&D (research and development) center in the US. All of these plans would take time to materialize. Until then, the US would be hoping that China stays away from TSMC. In 2023, a US government paper estimated a 59% increase in the US price of logic chips in the event of a major manufacturing disruption in Taiwan. Interestingly, a few years ago, an American security publication said that if China seizes TSMC, the US military will destroy the firms Taiwan-based factories to keep its advanced equipment out of Chinas hands. Taiwan, on the other hand, has vowed to protect TSMCs fabs from a US attack in the event of a war with China. Samsung may be planning massive hardware changes for the Galaxy S25 Ultras camera. A wild rumor says the 2025 flagship might lack a 3x zoom lens. The phone could only feature three cameras on the back, the main sensor, an ultrawide lens, and a zoom camera with variable focal length. Galaxy S25 Ultra to feature only one zoom camera, 3 cameras on the back With the Galaxy S24 Ultra this year, Samsung removed a 10x zoom camera and replaced it with a 5x lens (resolution also changed from 10MP to 50MP). It kept the rest of the setup unchanged. Like the Galaxy S23 Ultra, the new flagship has a 200MP main shooter, a 12MP ultrawide lens, and a 10MP 3x zoom camera. According to X user @ISAQUES81, Samsung has started testing the Galaxy S25 Ultra cameras on a prototype, and there are more hardware changes for the zoom camera. The prototype in question doesnt have four cameras on the back. The company removed the 3x lens, keeping only one zoom camera. It is neither a 5x lens from the Galaxy S24 Ultra nor the 2023 models 10x lens. Instead, Samsung is testing a new camera with variable zoom. The new camera has a larger optical footprint (the current models 50MP 5x lens is 1/2.52 inches). The precise size is not known, nor is its zoom range. But the course says the camera wont offer continuous zoom like the Sony Xperia 1 V which boasts optical zoom between 3.5x and 5.2x. It will reportedly have two fixed focal lengths, i.e., optical zoom levels. The first fixed focal length will be between 4x and 5x magnification, while the second will be between 6x and 7x magnification. Samsung is still evaluating the ideal focal lengths. You will get optical zoom at those two levels but no continuous optical zoom between them. The phone will digitally zoom in between those two levels. The main sensor will capture lossless photos up to 3x zoom The current Galaxy S25 Ultra prototype has the same 200MP main camera and 12MP ultrawide lens. However, the former has been optimized to capture more light. Effectively, it can capture better photos up to 3x, hence Samsung decided to ditch a dedicated 3x zoom camera. The company believes it can achieve lossless photos up to 3x zoom with the main camera. It already does up to 2x zoom, so the firm has some expertise in it. Since this is a prototype we are talking about, the final version of the Galaxy S25 Ultra could still keep two separate zoom cameras. After all, the device is still several months away and a lot could change by then. But if Samsung decides to keep a single zoom camera with variable focal length, it must test it thoroughly and ensure excellent performance from day one. The Galaxy S24 Ultras upgraded camera system has a lot of shortcomings. Samsung has addressed a few with software updates but there is still work to be done. A new Sony Xperia 1 VI teaser is available and hints at one of the biggest changes in the series history. It seems that the Japanese brand will stop betting on the cinematic 21:9 aspect ratio and will resort to a more traditional one. The device will be officially launched on May 15. Sonys Xperia 1 smartphones have been using the 21:9 aspect ratio for several years. The format allowed the screen to be ideal for enjoying movies. It also made the screen more comfortable to hold with one hand. However, it has some drawbacks, such as noticeable black bands in content from platforms that do not support that format. Xperia 1 VI teaser suggests a new display aspect ratio; potential new screen technology Some leaked images of the flagship showed that Sony would move to a more traditional aspect ratio of 19.5:9. Now, a new Xperia 1 VI teaser suggests this again. The company may also implement a new screen technology derived from the BRAVIA engine that is also present in its latest line of smart TVs. The aspect ratio and a new screen technology would not be the only important changes in this section. Sony may also have discarded the 4K resolution that it had used on all Xperia 1 devices since the first generation. This resolution on the screen of a smartphone has been the source of debate among fans about whether it was necessary or not. In any case, it is noteworthy that 4K resolution is not always available, but in certain apps or usage scenarios. Still, Xperia device fans will be happy to know that the company is not ruling out dual-front speakers. This has been one of the most differentiating aspects of Xperia phones for a long time. The front speakers offer a better audio experience compared to the side speakers. The teaser shows the silhouette of the phone, and there is still space in the upper and lower areas for them. People wearing traditional garments participate in an event of SIMAD University's cultural week in Mogadishu, Somalia, on May 11, 2024. (Photo by Hassan Bashi/Xinhua) MOGADISHU, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Amid the vibrant colors and rhythmic beats at SIMAD University's main campus, a group of boys dressed in traditional white danced energetically, their movements in sync with the heart-pounding drumbeats of Somali folk music. The scene unfolded against a backdrop of traditional Somali food and horses as part of the university's cultural week, which began Saturday. Dahir Hassan Arab, rector of SIMAD University, a non-profit university based in the Somali capital of Mogadishu, highlighted the significance of the event in his opening remarks, noting that the cultural week is designed to deepen students' appreciation and understanding of Somali culture. "We aim to instill pride in our students and remind them of the richness of Somali heritage. There is no nation superior to another; it is the hard work and preservation of culture that distinguishes us," Arab told the audience of students and faculty. He added that the week-long event is both a celebration and an educational experience. Hassan Abdifatah, president of the Student Government Association of SIMAD University, explained the importance of reviving and preserving Somali culture. "As Somalis, we have a rich and unique culture. It would be shameful to see it fade away. It is our responsibility to remind our peers of our cultural heritage. This week is exceptional for all of us," Abdifatah told Xinhua. The students are key participants and beneficiaries of the event. Zakariye Mohamed, one of the students, expressed his enthusiasm for showcasing the cultural diversity of Somalia. "We are presenting various aspects of our culture from all regions of Somalia. We can't let the current generation forget the beautiful traditions that we inherited from our grandfathers," he said. Mohamed added that as a young man, he has benefited from learning things he did not know before, like how to perform Somali folk dances. Maryama Yusuf, a student from the law faculty, was also thrilled about her participation in the cultural week. "This is my first time attending the cultural week at SIMAD, and it has been truly enlightening. I have learned about the various traditional foods and even how to use eating utensils that are specific to our countryside," she said. As the cultural week continues, students feel like they have learned something new that will make them appreciate their customs even more. The event is an immersive experience where the air is filled with the aromas of Somalia's national dishes, together with the sounds of folk music and cheerful conversations, creating a vibrant and unified atmosphere. By preserving their culture through such events, the students of SIMAD University ensure that the beauty and history of Somalia will continue to inspire generations to come. People wearing traditional garments participate in an event of SIMAD University's cultural week in Mogadishu, Somalia, on May 11, 2024. (Photo by Hassan Bashi/Xinhua) People wearing traditional garments participate in an event of SIMAD University's cultural week in Mogadishu, Somalia, on May 11, 2024. (Photo by Hassan Bashi/Xinhua) People wearing traditional garments participate in an event of SIMAD University's cultural week in Mogadishu, Somalia, on May 11, 2024. (Photo by Hassan Bashi/Xinhua) People wearing traditional garments participate in an event of SIMAD University's cultural week in Mogadishu, Somalia, on May 11, 2024. (Photo by Hassan Bashi/Xinhua) Downing Street staff threatens to throw Clarkson's Farm stars Kaleb and Charlie out. (Getty) (James Manning - PA Images via Getty Images) What did you miss? A member of Downing Street staff threatened to kick Kaleb Cooper and Charlie Ireland out of No10 after knocking on the door too loudly. The Clarkson's Farm stars received a special invitation to No10, in London to speak to prime minister Rishi Sunak about his back British Farm to Fork initiative in May last year. Their adventure to the capital from the Cotswolds was captured on camera for Clarkson's Farm season three, now streaming on Prime Video and the new episodes were released on 10 May. However, it got off to a rocky start when the farm manager and the land agent got a telling off from the man manning the No10 door because they had knocked too loudly. Quickly Cooper apologised and tried to explain they weren't used to the city - saying: "Sorry, we're farmers." What, how and why? The Clarkson's Farm stars received a special invitation to No10 to speak to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. (Getty) (Carl Court via Getty Images) The hilarious sequence played out in Clarkson's Farm season three episode six. The person who opened the door at No10 started off the conversation in a friendly way asking how they were doing. He said: "Hi guys, you alright?" Cooper responded with a, "how are you doing?" However as Cooper and Ireland had stepped into No10, the tone changed. The Downing Street staff member could be heard giving the duo a bit of a telling off. He told them: "If you knock that loud again, I'll throw you out." The farm manager pressed the person manning the door with the words: "Say that again!" The No10 staff member, whose face was blurred, responded: "Don't knock so loud." Cooper told them: "Sorry, we're farmers." The man responded: "I don't care." Cooper then said: "OK!" Once inside, Cooper then could be heard speaking to Ireland. He told him: "He told us." Kaleb Cooper and Charlie Ireland were at No10 in May last year. (Getty) (Carl Court via Getty Images) In the voiceover, Jeremy Clarkson poked fun at the situation that unfolded at No10 Downing Street. He said: "Kaleb and Charlie were being told off by Downing Street's door police." Meanwhile, Clarkson got to work on Diddly Squat farm with the goats he had newly purchased. Yahoo has reached out to Downing Street's representatives. Ahead of their meeting with Mr Sunak, the Clarkson's Farm stars had a meeting in a cafe. Accidentally Cooper called Rishi "Ricky" in a funny moment filmed for the show, plus he called him the "president". "Jeremy told me to say," he said. "Kaleb if you want any talking points, just tell Ricky you aren't going to be prime minister anymore." "Rishi," Ireland corrected him. "Rishi," agreed Cooper. "The President, the prime minister sorry." Ireland said: "That'll be a great place to start. I would definitely go, 'Oh hello Mr President, how are you Ricky? You're not going to be prime minister next time." How did Rishi and Kaleb's meeting go? Kaleb Cooper and Charlie Ireland being filmed for Clarkson's Farm at Downing Street. (Getty) (Carl Court via Getty Images) Clarkson said Cooper speaking to Mr Sunak gave him a "big moment" to try attract youngsters into farming. The farm manager broke the ice with a compliment. "What lovely hair," he told the prime minster. "I just like hair." Once Mr Sunak and Cooper sit down to discuss, Clarkson poked fun at the farm manager for taking too long to get to the point. Cooper was bursting with enthusiasm and love for his farming job. He said: "Farming is not a job. It's a way of life. That is it. There is no other option there. It's a way of life. You don't get out there and say oh got to go work today. I never say, 'Oh I've got to go to work today. I've got an 8-5 job. I can't wait to finish. Halfway through the day you have your lunch and you want to go home.' "I never do that. I wake up and think, 'What am I doing today?' Yesterday I was outside milking..." Clarkson's Farm was edited with some hilarious thought bubbles above Mr Sunak with Clarkson speculating what the prime minster could be thinking, including: "For the love of god man, get on with it" and "please I have a country to run". What did Rishi Sunak say about meeting Kaleb Cooper? In May last year, Mr Sunak and Cooper shared photos of them laughing in the grounds outside No10 when they met to discuss farming. The Prime Minister said on Instagram on 16 May last year: "Farming isnt just a job. Its a way of life. And it doesnt matter how young you are, theres a role for you in farming. Anyone can do it. And farming businesses really thrive from having young entrepreneurial spirit. Enjoyed meeting at 10 Downing Street today to discuss how to get more young people into farmingand compare hairstyles." The Prime Minister's spokesman told journalists at the time about Cooper attending the conference: "Obviously that programme (Clarksons Farm) has been important in raising some of the issues that farmers face. And I think some of the policies set out today will support the farming sector." All of Clarkson's Farm season three is available to stream on Prime Video now. New episodes were released on 10 May. Read more: Clarkson's Farm This article originally appeared on Yahoo TV UK at https://uk.news.yahoo.com/clarksons-farm-kaleb-charlie-downing-street-101509415.html A young deaf woman has become the first person to deliver a British Sign Language (BSL) speech at Buckingham Palace in front of thousands of Duke of Edinburghs Award recipients. Hafwen Clarke, 19, from Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, Wales, told about 2,000 other recipients how she achieved the gold award, alongside Edward, the Duke of Edinburgh. Ms Clarke, a youth helper at St John Ambulance Cymru, said: Im very proud to be here so I can show the world what deaf people can do. Deaf people can do anything hearing people can do, except hear. We may communicate in a different language, but we are still able to communicate. For my volunteering section, I chose to teach other people BSL. I want to raise awareness of BSL and encourage everyone to learn just a little bit because it means deaf BSL users will have less anxiety in the community. She said at St John Ambulance Cymru she teaches children BSL, which she enjoys as it allows her to share her language. I am now a Duke of Edinburgh Cymrus ambassador and I want to be a voice for young people with disabilities. I want to give other young people courage, hope and happiness, leading by example, she said. Duke of Edinburgh taught me that if the skies get rough, I wont give up or let my deafness stop me. Thank you Duke of Edinburgh for making me feel happy, proud and ready for anything. Edward with Tim Peake and Hafwen Clarke on West Terrace (Ian Smithers/DofE/PA) Ms Clarke told the PA news agency she was surprised and lost for words while talking to Edward. To achieve a gold award, participants must complete 12 months of volunteering, a four-day expedition, and various physical, skill-based and residential challenges. The youngest brother of the King extended very hearty congratulations to the awardees. He said: I hope on the whole the experience of doing your award was a good one, and added jokingly: Im pretty sure that there were moments when you were wondering why you were doing it. And if it was anything like doing mine, it was about halfway through in the expedition. It is a fantastic feeling that youll go on experiencing throughout your life. Edward received his gold award from his father Philip, the late Duke of Edinburgh, at St Jamess Palace in 1986. He also spoke with two awardees from Kyiv, Ukraine, and said: Im very sorry for whats happening in your country at the moment. British astronaut Tim Peake also delivered a speech, recalling the skills that helped him deal with an emergency during a spacewalk with a fellow astronaut. Tim Kopra had a leak in his space suits cooling system something that could rapidly turn into a life-threatening drowning situation. Despite this, we kept calm, he said. Communicating every step of the way with not just each other but Mission Control, we monitored the size of the water bubble and successfully returned to the station within half an hour. It was a testament to our teamwork, communication and followership the very same skills youve been honing through your Duke of Edinburghs Award that allowed us to keep safe, calm and collected. Tim Peake gives a speech at Buckingham Palace (Ian Smithers/DofE/PA) Content creator Fats Timbo, author and journalist Frank Gardner, TV chef Cherish Finden, firefighter Sabrina Cohen-Hatton, stylist Ellis Ranson and McFly drummer Harry Judd and his mother Emma were also present, delivering inspirational talks on careers and life skills. Edward became patron of the DofE award in 2023 when the King handed him the title of Duke of Edinburgh. Philip founded the award in 1956 and held the patronage until his death in 2021. The DofE award is open to all young people aged between 14 and 24. It is run in schools, youth clubs and other social spaces across the UK. The King officially handed over the role of Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps to the Prince of Wales during a visit to its Hampshire airfield. Charles who became the inaugural holder of the title 32 years ago met with his eldest son in a rare joint official engagement at the Middle Wallop base on Monday afternoon to transfer the role. The Army Air Corps is the Duke of Sussexs old unit, in which he served as an Apache helicopter commander and co-pilot gunner during his second tour to Afghanistan in 2012. The Kings decision to hand the role to William was seen as a blow to Harry when it was announced last year. The King made the handover to the Prince of Wales in front of an Apache helicopter (Kin Cheung/PA) The King said it was a great joy to meet servicemen, their families and veterans at an earlier visit to the Army Flying Museum but added the handover was tinged with great sadness. He said: I do hope youll go from strength to strength in the future with the Prince of Wales as your new Colonel-in-Chief. The great thing is hes a very good pilot indeed so thats encouraging. Photo from 2008 of the Prince of Wales on the flight deck of a helicopter during a visit to the Army Air Corps (Kensington Palace/PA) He unveiled a plaque commemorating an Apache AH Mk.1 going on display, the first of its kind to be installed at a UK museum. The aircraft was one of four involved in a rescue mission during the Battle of Jugroom Fort in 2007. The King said: Let me just say what a great joy it is to be with you even briefly on this occasion but also it is tinged with great sadness after 32 years of knowing you all, admiring your many activities and achievements through the time that Ive been lucky enough to be Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps. General Nick Barton, who took part in the rescue operation, said it was a unique honour to meet the King who served as an important figurehead for the soldiers. Charles spoke to service personnel during his visit to the Army Aviation Centre (Kin Cheung/PA) Charles spoke to one veteran who had recently undergone chemotherapy for testicular cancer, discussing losing the sense of taste as a result of the treatment. William embarked on his first engagement with the Army Air Corps after the King left, receiving a briefing on its work and inspecting training and operational aircraft as well as talking to soldiers. Charles and William posed for photographs with members of the military during their visit (Ben Birchall/PA) He was presented with gifts on behalf of the corps a tartan scarf for the prince, a wrap for his wife Kate and three wooden helicopter models for each of the couples children. He then left the base in an Apache as part of a capability flight. Kensington Palace posted two images of the prince during his military service on X, showing a young William in 1998 and 2009 standing next to a helicopter in one picture and smiling at the controls in another. Time flies! the caption read. Time flies! Looking back at the last two visits to @ArmyAirCorps in 1999 and 2008 ahead of todays handover at Middle Wallop. pic.twitter.com/JUbFHxRZ6Q The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) May 13, 2024 Mondays visit comes just days after Harry travelled to the UK to mark 10 years of the Invictus Games, without meeting up with his father and brother. The King trained with the RAF while in his second year at the University of Cambridge and was given his wings in August 1971. William served in the Army with the Blues and Royals and was an RAF search and rescue pilot for three years at RAF Valley in Anglesey, Wales. A Labour government would have an ironclad commitment to backing Ukraine against the Russian invasion, two shadow ministers have promised. David Lammy and John Healey visited Kyiv on Monday to stress the party fully backs Britains increased military aid for the war-torn country as Moscow intensifies its attack in Kharkiv. European security will be a Labour governments first foreign and defence priority and there would be no change in the support offered to Ukraine, they said. It comes after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak claimed giving Sir Keir Starmer the keys to No 10 would leave the country less safe and embolden Russian President Vladimir Putin. Mr Lammy and Mr Healey met head of the Ukrainian presidents office Andriy Yermak and defence minister Rustem Umerov on Monday as they pledged to stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes. In a joint statement, the shadow foreign secretary and shadow defence secretary said: As Putin seeks to divide the West, we visited Kyiv together to send a clear message that a change in government in the UK would mean no change in our military, diplomatic, financial and political support to Ukraine. Moscows deepened co-operation with Beijing, Tehran and Pyongyang requires us to deepen our co-operation with Britains allies to demonstrate that our commitment to Ukraine will outlast Vladmir Putins imperial invasion. The next Labour governments commitment to Ukraine will be ironclad and European security will be our first foreign and defence priority. Labours action plan lays out a wide-ranging approach to stand with Ukraine, confront Russian aggression and pursue Putin for his war crimes. We will stand with Ukraine until it wins. John Healey with Sir Keir Starmner (Victoria Jones/PA) Labour said its plan for Ukraine would include five priorities: fast-tracking military support, deepening diplomatic efforts, targeting Russian aggression, boosting industrial production and supporting recovery and reconstruction. Earlier on Monday, Mr Sunak used a wide-ranging speech to attack the Oppositions refusal to adopt the Governments pledge to spend 2.5% of gross domestic product (GDP) on defence by 2030. Labour has said it would meet the same target when economic conditions allow. In a pre-election pitch to voters as the Tories languish more than 20 points behind in opinion polls, the Prime Minister said the ruling party will keep Britain safe as the world endures one of the most dangerous periods weve ever known. Sir Keir rejected the accusations, saying the Tories offered chaos and division and we cant afford another five years of that. He told reporters in Wolverhampton: The first duty of any government, particularly an incoming Labour government, is national security, the security of the country, and that would be my first priority. Cannes 2024 has a lot of interesting films to watch, including Megalopolis and Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga. (Getty/20th Century Studios/Warner Bros.) The dust has only just settled on awards season for the films released in 2023, but that means that it's time to look ahead at the movies that will dominate the next one and their campaign starts in one place: the Cannes film festival. Cannes has always been the best spot for the public to get their first look at the most exciting titles ahead of their official release, and this year's event which runs from 14 to 25 May will be no different. From George Miller's epic return to the Mad Max franchise to Francis Ford Coppola's highly anticipated science fiction drama, there's a lot to look forward to at the prestigious event. With that in mind, here are the films that you should be looking out for at the festival, and the films that are likely to generate the most buzz amongst critics. The most exciting films screening at Cannes 2024 Megalopolis Adam Driver and Nathalie Emmanuel in the first look at Megalopolis. (American Zoetrope/Megalopolis/Mihai Malaimare Jr.) Starring an A-list cast including Adam Driver, Nathalie Emmanuel, and Giancarlo Esposito, Megalopolis is a long-standing passion project for Coppola who first conceived of the story in 1977. The Godfather filmmaker first began working on the film in 1983 and it is only now, more than four decades later, that we are getting the chance to watch it. The movie is set in a dystopian universe where architect Cesar Catilina (Driver) hopes to use his ability to control time to rebuild a decaying metropolis into a new utopia, but he faces opposition from Mayor Franklyn Cicero (Esposito) who would rather keep the status quo. In between them is Franklyn's daughter Julia (Emmanuel), who is searching for meaning in her life. Megalopolis is competing for the Palme d'Or and will likely be one of the big titles at Cannes. Kinds of Kindness Margaret Qualley, Jesse Plemons and Willem Dafoe in Kinds of Kindness. (Searchlight) (Album, Album) Yorgos Lanthimos' follow-up to his Oscar-winning movie Poor Things is Kinds of Kindness, which is in competition at the prestigious festival. The film is described as a "triptych fable", with the narrative focusing on three stories that are loosely connected one about a man taking charge of his own destiny, another about a man who believes his spouse is an imposter, and another around a woman's quest to find a cult leader. The narrative sounds suitably trippy for what's expected of Lanthimos, and the film will see him reunite with Emily "Emma" Stone and Willem Dafoe. Other actors set to appear in the movie include Margaret Qualley, Jesse Plemons, and Joe Alwyn. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, starring Anya Taylor-Joy and Chris Hemsworth, is coming to cinemas in 2024. (Warner Bros.) George Miller is bringing Mad Max fans a film centred on Furiosa, Charlize Theron's breakout character from Fury Road now being played by Anya Taylor-Joy. The prequel is set almost two decades before the 2015 film and follows a young Furiosa as she is taken from her home by warlord Dementus (Chris Hemsworth) and his gang. So begins Furiosa's quest to return to her home, all whilst two villains compete to gain dominance over the Citadel. The film is receiving its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, meaning those waiting to know more about the movie will get to hear all about critics reaction after. The Apprentice Jeremy Strong and Sebastian Stan in The Apprentice. (Mongrel Media) There's a biopic for everyone and everything these days, so perhaps it is unsurprising that there is now a film centred on Donald Trump. The Apprentice not to be confused with the BBC series stars Sebastian Stan as Trump, and it follows how he came to build his real estate empire with the help of lawyer Roy Cohn (Jeremy Strong). Directed by Ali Abbasi, The Apprentice is being screened in competition, and because of its subject matter it will likely generate a lot of buzz. Oh, Canada Richard Gere is reuniting with Paul Schrader for his new film Oh Canada. (Getty Images) (Variety via Getty Images) Paul Schrader, the creative mind behind classics like American Gigolo, is returning to the director's chair for the period drama Oh, Canada. The film sees him reunite with Richard Gere, who takes on the role of Leonard Fife one of the country's 60,000 draft evaders who avoided serving in the Vietnam war, and who is now sharing his secrets. The film features an exciting cast alongside Gere, such as Uma Thurman and Jacob Elordi, and the film is also being shown at Cannes in competition. The Shrouds Vincent Cassel stars in David Cronenberg's The Shrouds. (Getty Images) (Marc Piasecki via Getty Images) Another prolific director heading to Cannes this year is David Cronenberg, who is presenting his film The Shrouds in competition. The film stars Vincent Cassel, Diane Kruger, and Guy Pearce, and it follows a grieving businessman Karsh (Cassel) who invents a machine that will allow the living to monitor their dearly departed shrouds. When his wife's grave, and multiple others, are targeted, Karsh sets out to find the culprit. I, The Executioner South Korean director Ryoo Seung-wan and actor Hwang Jung-min pictured in 2017 promoting The Battleship Island, the pair are reuniting for film I, The Executioner. (Getty Images) (Young Ho, Sipa US) Korean cinema has established itself well in the international market in recent years, particularly with the success of films like Parasite (which won the Palme d'Or at Cannes). The 2024 edition of the festival will see an exciting Korean blockbuster be given time to shine Ryoo Seung-wan's I, The Executioner. Starring prolific Korean actor Hwang Jung-min, the movie follows his character Detective Seo Do-cheol as he and the Violent Crimes Investigation Division face a new threat in the form of an unnamed character played by K-Drama favourite Jung Hae-in. I, The Executioner is a follow-up to 2015 film Veteran, a intense but surprisingly fun cop drama but don't worry you won't have had to see that film to enjoy this one, which is being shown as part of the Midnight screenings. The Substance Demi Moore in The Substance. (Mubi) Demi Moore, Margaret Qualley and Dennis Quad star in The Substance, a body horror film written and directed by Coralie Fargeat which has already gained a lot of interest after the success of her first film Revenge. The movie is said to be about a product that "can generate another version of yourself, younger, more beautiful, more perfect". The Substance is competing for the Palme d'Or at this year's Cannes. Bird Barry Keoghan will lead Bird, which will have its world premiere at Cannes. (Getty Images) (ANGELA WEISS via Getty Images) Barry Keoghan is certainly the man of the moment after his star-turning role in Saltburn, and he is following up the provocative film with another intriguing drama Bird. Directed by Andrea Arnold, the film stars Keoghan opposite Franz Rogowski and Nykiya Adams. They take on the roles of Bug, Bird, and Bailey, but little is known about the film's story aside from that. The mystery around the narrative, as well as the general buzz around the cast, has made Bird one of the film's to watch at the festival, where it is getting its world premiere. The 77th Cannes Film Festival will take place from 14-25 May, 2024. A murder mystery puzzle book has become the first puzzle collection to be named book of the year at the British Book Awards. Murdle by GT Karber was announced as overall book of the year at a ceremony at Grosvenor House in London, where Rory Stewarts Politics On The Edge pipped memoirs by the Duke of Sussex and Britney Spears to win in the non-fiction category. (Penguin) Murdle is the first puzzle book to win the award, with previous winners including EL James Fifty Shades of Grey, David Nicholls One Day, and Sally Rooneys acclaimed romantic novel, Normal People. The go-to gift for armchair detectives everywhere, Karbers non-fiction book is described as 100 simple to impossible mysteries to solve using logic, skill, and the power of deduction and smashed sales expectations last year when it topped the UK charts in December, taking the Christmas number one spot. The American author and computer programmer created a website, also called Murdle, which featured daily murder-mystery games after being inspired by Wordle, the web-based word game. Murdle (Macmillan) He went on to publish the first volume of Murdle in book form in 2023. It also won the non-fiction: lifestyle and illustrated book of the year prize at the ceremony. Former MP Stewart won the non fiction: narrative book of the year prize for his tell-all insider account of UK Parliament, defeating Prince Harrys Spare and Spearss The Woman In Me. It was a good night for childrens publishing as Katherine Rundell was named author of the year, making her the first childrens writer to be awarded the title since Philip Pullman in 2018. She joins fellow winners from previous years: Marian Keyes, Richard Osman, Bernardine Evaristo and Bonnie Garmus. Rundells Impossible Creatures won the award for childrens fiction book of the year and was nominated for a further four awards. (HarperCollins) Rebecca F Kuang won the fiction book of the year prize for the second year in a row, this time taking the gong for Yellowface, a story of a failed writer who, after witnessing her rival die in a freak accident, uses her death to engineer her own success. Last year, her speculative fiction Babel was awarded the prize. Another female winner was comedian Fern Brady, whose Strong Female Character, beat offerings by Alan Partridge and David Mitchell to win the audiobook non-fiction award. The memoir charts the comedians life through the lens of her autism diagnosis. KUALA LUMPUR, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Bursa Carbon Exchange (BCX), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Malaysian stock exchange Bursa, will host an auction of its first Malaysian carbon credits on July 25 this year. Bursa Malaysia said in a statement on Monday that the auction of carbon credits from the Kuamut rainforest conservation project marks a significant milestone for BCX on the offering of its first Malaysia Nature-based Carbon Credits Plus (MNC+) generated via a domestic forestry project. The expansion of the BCX's product offering to include local carbon credits in addition to global carbon credits. Located in the Tongod and Kinabatangan districts in Sabah, Malaysia, the Kuamut project protects and restores 83,381 hectares of tropical forest. The project is a public-private partnership between Sabah Forestry Department, Rakyat Berjaya, Yayasan Sabah and Permian Malaysia, which is the project proponent. "Given the importance of the voluntary carbon market (VCM) in the nation's climate agenda, the offering of the Kuamut project carbon credits is a significant milestone, indicating the country's environmental leadership," said Muhamad Umar Swift, chief executive officer of Bursa Malaysia. He said it signals to the world that Malaysia is serious about climate action and its climate ambition. "It is hoped that this auction will generate greater interest among domestic and international business communities to invest in more carbon projects in Malaysia, given the rich potential for both nature and technology-based carbon project development in this country," he added. Former chancellor Nadhim Zahawi has been appointed chairman of online retailer Very Group, which owns Very and Littlewoods. The Conservative MP, who last week said he would stand down at the next election, will replace interim chairman Aidan Barclay at the company which is part of the Barclay familys business empire. The Barclays have owned Very Group since 2002, but the business recently swung to a half-year loss and was forced to secure 125 million in new debt funding from Carlyle Global Credit and IMI. The Very Group said in a statement that Mr Zahawi would work with the directors and management team to explore expanding the business in new areas. Mr Zahawi served in senior roles under the last four prime ministers (Kirsty OConnor/PA) It also said he would work with shareholders on the strategic options for the business, possibly including fresh investment in the short to medium term. Mr Zahawi has previously been linked with helping the Barclay family on their attempts to regain control of the Telegraph newspaper, which was placed into receivership by its lender Lloyds in June 2023. The Financial Times reported last year that he had emerged as a middle man between the family and a group of Middle Eastern funds which had been singled out as backers of the media group. A few months later, United Arab Emirates-based consortium Redbird IMI effectively took control of the newspaper when it repaid the Barclay familys debts, including a 600 million loan. But Redbird IMI walked away from a takeover after it said new government legislation meant the acquisition was no longer feasible, sparking a fresh auction of the newspaper group. Mr Zahawi said of his new role with The Very Group: As one of the UKs largest digital retailers and flexible payments providers, the company has an important role to play in helping families get more out of life. With a heritage of over 100 years, Very has an unrivalled knowledge and understanding of its customer, demonstrating resilience even in the face of challenging conditions. Mr Zahawi, who co-founded the polling company YouGov in 2000, has held ministerial positions under the last four prime ministers Theresa May, Boris Johnson, Liz Truss, and Rishi Sunak. He had a short-lived stint as chancellor in the final days of Mr Johnsons government. Other positions included Covid-19 vaccines minister, Conservative Party chairman and education secretary. Last week, he announced he would not run in the next election. Mr Zahawi was sacked as Conservative Party chairman in January 2023 after an inquiry found he had failed to disclose that HMRC was investigating his tax affairs. Over the weekend, he told the BBC he paid nearly 5 million to authorities to settle his tax affairs, and apologised for not being more explicit in his ministerial declaration on the settlement. He called it a careless mistake. Mr Zahawi was born in Baghdad, from where he and his family fled Saddam Husseins regime to the UK when he was 11. Aidan Barclay added: I am delighted to welcome Nadhim to the Board of the Very Group. With a proven track record in digital growth and innovation, and highly respected in the UK and global markets, he is ideally suited to lead our Board as the company enters its next stage of strategic development and growth. Philosopher AC Grayling, founder of the New College of the Humanities in London, was born and educated in Africa - Jay Williams I was born in Africa and didnt leave until I was 18, so all my schooling was there. My father was a bank manager; we were living in what is now Zambia in a big old colonial bungalow on the Copperbelt, just a couple of miles from the Congo border. My parents were rather remote individuals and I never had a close relationship with either of them, especially my mother. She was a bit of a landmine, really, and didnt particularly like children, so I kept away from her as much as I could. Although my mother hated Africa, we lived a very comfortable life with lots of servants, which was the reason she put up with it, although she was a dreadful racist. She was frightened of Africans, called them black bastards and so on. But Johnny Penze, our head servant, used to sleep on the stone floor next to my bed when I had night terrors, which was very often, and I loved him, and his wife, who was my nanny. They inhabited the kitchen, which was where the nice food was, and the fun and the laughter too. The rest of the house wasnt like that. I suppose the salient memory of that time of my life was the immense pleasure that reading gave me. There wasnt any telly then and you couldnt go for a walk as you would have been eaten by lions, so I would read about Plato and Aristotle and Socrates in these encyclopaedias we had, bound in dimpled red faux leather, which I spent many hours paging through, lying on my stomach on the cool flags of the verandah during school holidays. Many were the discoveries and sensations provided by those volumes and I longed to understand what these works were about. A photo of AC Grayling as a teenager in Africa, around the time he developed an interest in philosophy In the heat of the tropics, junior school started at seven in the morning and ended at midday, so we went home at lunch time, and the afternoons were so hot that everything then just stopped. My father would be at the office, my mother would take to her bed, the servants would have a nap, and so for several hours there was nothing to do but read. In the rainy season there would be this spectacular sequence of events in which the storm clouds would build up and this fantastic storm would develop: a deluge of rain accompanied by great thunder and lightning, and then for a little while after the air would be fresh and the birds would sound as if they were delighted at the very smell of the air. Those were the times I read. I read vast amounts, and those were the happiest of times, losing any sense of myself. That was where I had my education, not really from school. My first boarding school was in what is now Zimbabwe, a school called Falcon College, located on the site of a disused mine. My brother and sister were considerably older than I and, when I got to Falcon College, my brother was chief prefect and head of my house. I was full of admiration for my brother: he was a great sportsman and a very good prefect. All the boys liked him, so I was proud of him. And we are still the best of friends and as close as you can imagine, although, all through our childhood and even now, all these decades later, we still call each other by our surnames, as a result of being at boarding school together. At the beginning of each term my brother and I would travel to the school by train. It took four days to cross Africa, but the train journey was terrific, I absolutely loved it. For one thing it was a narrow gauge railway, so the speed at which the train went was just perfect for being lulled to sleep. Also, these trains were full of schoolboys, and schoolgirls too, although in separate carriages, all running amok. It was just hilarious and great fun, and when we got to Victoria Falls we all waited with the carriages leather bolsters in our hands, and as we crossed we would hurl them out of the window. 'It was hilarious and great fun': Grayling's train journey to his boarding school took four days - Mark Bourdillon/Alamy Falcon College was a boarding school which ran itself along English boarding school lines. I have no memory of any teacher at that school who was in any way impressive or made an impact on me, other than one, negatively. That was my housemaster, a dreadful man called Montgomery Woolley who I believe to be dead, but if he isnt let us libel the hell out of him because I would like to be able to do him an injury. A week never went by without two or three beatings administered by him. I was being caned for every misdemeanour, and I was frightened and terrified of him, and in pain a lot of the time. I mean, this was a pretty serious case of abuse, really. It got to the point where I had blood blisters, bruises and stripes all over my backside was an awful mess. One morning I couldnt get my pyjama trousers off, they were sticking to me as all the blisters had burst, and that is when I decided, right, thats enough, Im off. I ran away to get away from all the thrashings and beatings. I made it to a railway station hoping to catch a train going north but I was caught by the police and taken back to the school. The headmaster, a deity who was held in great dread and awe, wanted to see me. I went to his study and was immediately ushered in. My dear boy, what is this all about? he purred, in the gentlest of tones. Now, had I been more on the ball, I couldve said, What is it worth for you not to have it told that I was beaten to the extent I ran away? and held him to ransom. But he was there before me. There will be no more beatings this term, he declared. When I got home in the holidays I told my parents what had happened, and my mother, who was a very unsympathetic character, said, Well if youve been caned so much its probably because you deserved it. For many many years I dreamt of Falcon and the brutality there, and the dream would involve being told that I would have to go back, and not wanting to go back because I was in the presence of an enemy, a hostile force, this awful man, Montgomery Woolley. Anyway, my parents finally took me out of that school, and I then went to a place called Llewellyn for a year. But some lights were turned on for me at my next school, St Andrews in Blantyre, because there were two teachers who really did spark some things. One was a man called Jim Marshall who taught English. He taught it with great relish, and had a love for poetry and language, and was very at home with Shakespeare and quoted him all the time. His classes were the vestibule to revelations, introducing a brilliant sense of possibilities. And they turned me on; I was always the kind of boy that, if I got interested in something, I wanted to know everything about it. And, as a result, I read every single word Shakespeare had written and completely fell in love with his works. AC Grayling founded the New College of the Humanities (now Northeastern University London) in 2011 - David Rose/The Telegraph There was also another teacher named Peter Williams who was a great big fat man with a lisp and a withered left arm as hed had polio as a child. He was teaching in Africa because, being gay, he couldnt be in England before homosexuality had been decriminalised. He was a marvellous character. He had a very smelly dog called Nietzsche, and he drove a Mercedes one-handed: as the gear shift was on the side of his withered arm, he had a very distinctive way of driving around the town. He was a marvel; reading aloud Virgil, Ovid, or even Livy, his lisp turned the ancient tongue into a magical incantation. Williams also talked about philosophers like Wittgenstein and Heidegger and French philosophers like Sartre. I was ravenous to get my hands on their works but, being in the middle of Africa, there were very few resources, apart from an eccentric library in NDola, so I wasnt able to get hold of any contemporary philosophy. I only could when I went to England for university at the age of 18. But Williams kept those fires alight. And so I honour those two men, Williams and Marshall, for being the kind of teachers that I think a teacher should be: a teacher who inspires a student to want to find out for themselves. Thats real teaching. Angela Merkel has reportedly spent much of her time since standing aside as chancellor in 2021 holed up writing. Photograph: Urban Zintel Angela Merkel will release her long-awaited memoirs in November under the title Freedom: Memories 1954-2021, sketching her journey from life behind the Berlin Wall to the top echelons of power more intimately than ever before. Merkel, whose image in Germany and abroad has been tarnished by Russias invasion of Ukraine, will turn 70 in July. She notes that her life can be neatly cleaved into experiences in two German states 35 years in the German Democratic Republic, 35 years in reunited Germany, according to the books English publisher, Pan Macmillan. The 700-page tome was written with Merkels longtime political adviser Beate Baumann. It covers Merkels childhood in East Germany, improbable political rise after the collapse of the communist regime, and 16 years as chancellor. Merkel said in a statement from her publishers that the book would ask and answer the question: What does freedom mean to me?, which she said has occupied me my entire life. Freedom, for me, is finding out where my own limits are and pushing myself to those limits, she said. Freedom, for me, is to never stop learning, to never stand still, to continue moving forward, even after leaving politics. The book promises to offer recollections and insights from her meetings and conversations with the worlds most powerful people, often as the only woman in the room, while recounting significant national, European and international turning points how the decisions were made that shaped our times. The memoirs, whose hardback edition is priced at 35 or 42, will go on sale worldwide on 26 November, in time to catch the December holiday wave of book sales. The German audiobook will be read by the acclaimed actor Corinna Harfouch, who also grew up in the communist east. Since leaving politics two and a half years ago, Merkels strong popularity and status as a global icon of liberal values have taken a heavy knock over allegations that she weakened Germany by increasing its dependence on Russia and on China during her long tenure. Critics say she has failed to reckon with the damaging impact of those policies in the ensuing years despite repeated public appearances to discuss her legacy. Roderich Kiesewetter, a longtime Merkel ally from her Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and a defence affairs expert, accused her of making fateful mistakes in continuing to pursue the Nord Stream gas pipeline project with Russia even after its 2014 annexation of Crimea. Merkel has her accomplishments but we have got to come to terms with her closeness with Russia, he said on public television last month. If the former chancellors recent public statements are anything to go by, however, readers should not expect apologies in Freedom. Merkel has reportedly spent much of her time since handing over the keys to the chancellery to Olaf Scholz in December 2021 holed up with Baumann writing a task that has provided a useful excuse to skip potentially awkward events such as last weeks congress of her CDU, now run by her frequent nemesis Friedrich Merz. Merz has since broken with Merkels centrist course and steered the party rightward, particularly on migration an issue on which Merkel, during the 2015-16 refugee influx, won widespread admiration as a compassionate conservative for keeping Germanys borders open. Leading CDU officials have accused Merkel of helping to fuel the rise of the far-right AfD party with her welcoming stance toward migrants another issue sure to get a thorough airing in her memoir. Merkels disillusionment with her own party can be seen in another item in her diary on the day of her book announcement: on Tuesday evening she will deliver a keynote speech in tribute to Jurgen Trittin, a Green party stalwart and her leftist predecessor as environment minister, as he leaves the political stage after four decades in politics. More than 100,000 Palestinians fled Rafah on 11 May after Israeli warnings to evacuate before an imminent military assault. Photograph: Hatem Khaled/Reuters The US may block more weapons systems to Israel if it goes ahead with a ground offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, has said. The US has already suspended the shipment of 3,500 2,000lb (907kg) and 500lb (227kg) high-payload bombs following concerns over the scale of civilian casualties in Israels war in the territory. In some of the Biden administrations strongest public criticism yet of Israels conduct in Gaza, Blinken highlighted the horrible loss of life of innocent civilians. The secretary of state added that he was concerned that any further ground captured by Israel would create a vacuum thats likely to be filled by chaos, by anarchy, and ultimately by Hamas again. Related: Terrified families flee Rafah as Israel set to open all-out assault Blinkens remarks suggest Washington will not back down in the face of Israeli defiance over its plan to force the evacuation of Rafah, but it is an open question whether the USs increasingly hardening tone will be enough to deter the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. Speaking to NBC and CBS News, Blinken said the US president, Joe Biden, remained determined to help Israel defend itself, adding that the high-payload bombs were the only US weapons package currently being withheld. But that could change, he warned, if Israel launched a full-scale attack on Rafah. Biden has made clear to Israel that if it launches this major military operation to Rafah, then there are certain systems that were not going to be supporting and supplying for that operation, said Blinken. We have real concerns about the way theyre used. Blinken also echoed the findings of a new US report that said Israels use of US-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law, but that wartime conditions prevented American officials from determining that for certain in specific airstrikes. When it comes to the use of weapons, concerns about incidents where given the totality of the damage thats been done to children, women, men, it was reasonable to assess that, in certain instances, Israel acted in ways that are not consistent with international humanitarian law, Blinken said. Israel needed, he said, to have a clear, credible plan to protect civilians, which we havent seen. He warned that Hamas was already seeing a resurgence due to the lack of a coherent, durable plan for Gaza. Weve been working for many, many weeks on developing credible plans for security, for governance, for rebuilding, he said. We havent seen that come from Israel. The US national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, also warned that with more than 1 million civilians crowded in Rafah, you would have really significant civilian casualties Many Hamas folks would melt away because they are terrorists. The president did not want to see US weapons used in that kind of operation, he said. There was further condemnation of a Rafah offensive from elsewhere, as the UN human rights high commissioner, Volker Turk, said it would breach international law. I can see no way that the latest evacuation orders, much less a full assault, in an area with an extremely dense presence of civilians, can be reconciled with the binding requirements of international humanitarian law and with the two sets of binding provisional measures ordered by the International Court of Justice, he said. The EUs top diplomat, Josep Borrell, condemned the forced evacuation of Rafah as intolerable, while the Unwra chief, Philippe Lazzarini, said the claim of safe zones was false and misleading. The UK foreign secretary, David Cameron, refused to restrict British arms supplies at this stage even as he joined calls opposing a major offensive in Rafah. The six-week cycle under which arms sales to Israel are currently being considered by the Foreign Office suggests Cameron should be making a further recommendation later this week. Cameron would have an assessment in front of him that for the first time takes into account Israels killing of three British aid workers on 1 April. The Foreign Office refused to confirm this timetable, saying decisions were made on a rolling basis. Cameron said on Sunday that banning arms exports to Israel would help Hamas, but the Labour party set up a rare dividing line with the government on Gaza, saying that the UK should stop sending arms to Israel if it went ahead with the Rafah offensive, given the risk of a breach of international humanitarian law. The shadow paymaster general, Jonathan Ashworth, told Sky News that the UK should pause arms sales to Israel and said a full-scale offensive into Rafah would be catastrophic beyond description. Related: US finds Israels use of weapons in Gaza inconsistent with human rights law, but will not cut flow of arms Cameron said: For there to be a major offensive in Rafah, there would have to be an absolutely clear plan about how you save lives, how you move people out the way, how you make sure theyre fed, you make sure that they have medicine and shelter and everything. We have seen no such plan so we dont support an offensive in that way. He said he had made these points in a call with Ron Dermer, a close adviser to the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, on Friday. Cameron also framed the imminent offensive in the context of Hamas failing to accept a ceasefire deal, saying the real pressure should be on the militant group. Hamas says it has accepted the deal, but Israel counters that the group altered the terms of the deal in unacceptable ways last week, including by making the ceasefire permanent. One source had predicted privately that a UK ban on the sale of offensive weapons had been imminent, but was subject to debate within Downing Street. Cameron sought to justify the UK taking a different decision from the US, saying: The United States is a massive, bulk, state supplier of weapons to Israel, including 1,000lb [454kg] bombs and all the rest of it. The UK provides less than 1% of Israels weapons and its not a state supplier. Cameron said he could give no updates on Hamass claim that the British-Israeli hostage Nadav Popplewell had died in Gaza. Like everyone else, I watched the video on Twitter, X, last night, put out by Hamas of Nadav answering a question as to who he was, he said. And I watched that video and you just think, What callous people they are to do that, to play with the familys emotions in that way. Weatherbys ePassport Cheshire Oaks at Chester Racecourse There is currently a wall of silence around the most important negotiation that this industry will have for a decade: how much bookmakers should pay back to horse racing. Imagine the following hypothetical scenario and decide who you would back to be the winner in this contest. One of the combatants is fatally divided into a flock of doves and a few lonely hawks, while the other negotiating party is a bunch of ruthlessly single-minded, disingenuous sharks who some consider to have stepped over the line from being tough business negotiators to mafia-style hoodlums. Both sides are fighting it out under the watchful eye of the media, who seem reluctant to criticise the sharks because they do not want to lose their advertising spend. It is, however, an exaggeration to say that racing is now fighting for anything other than a paltry offer because the doves are driving out the hawks in the face of opposition that is overwhelming them. The doves are erroneously arguing that any deal is better than no deal. But nothing could be further from the truth, because any agreement now will be left in place by the next government, possibly for eight years. There are arguments on both sides of the fence as to what percentage of bookmakers profits should be paid back to racing; the current rate is 10 per cent of profit. The real issue, however, is whether the bookmakers should have to pay racing a levy on bets they take on foreign racing, as happens in all other major racing jurisdictions. Should the Government sanction such a change, which would be worth in excess of 15-20 million per annum to British racing and the jobs and tax revenues it creates, the bookmakers have threatened to demand a judicial review as to the legality of that decision. So extreme is their position, they will not even consider a reduced rate that has been offered. As ever with such matters, there will be lawyers happy to argue either side of that argument. But it is hard to think of any other industry where imported goods are not subject to import levies whilst the very same goods created in this country are subject to one. In fact, it is normally the other way round, to protect jobs and prosperity in this country. Given the current iniquitous status quo, bookmakers will obviously promote foreign racing to their punters more enthusiastically than British racing whilst they keep 10 per cent more of the profit. The bookmakers think they are holding all of the cards in this game, but they have forgotten one. There are some very senior former government ministers who have the best interests of racing at heart. Not only are they about to leave politics, and so are happy to swing the bat, they are also still very well respected in Washington. The Holy Grail for the big UK betting operators is now the opportunities opening up in America. But to get licences there, bookmakers will have to be deemed to be desirable and law abiding. Keeping their noses clean with the UK regulator is precisely why bookmakers have recently been implementing affordability checks over and above that demanded by our Government. How will it play out for the bookmakers if respected British politicians are doing the rounds in Washington asking their regulators why they want to do business with bookmakers who will be happy to take legal action against them? Why would they want to grant licences to bookmakers who have a bad working relationship with horse racing, having built their businesses on the back of that sport? Bring in heart monitors for horses and jockeys After City of Troy blew out in the 2,000 Guineas last weekend, his trainer Aidan OBrien gave us his fascinating view point. He got down to the start grand, but the minute he got into the stalls he started jumping around when a horse starts panicking like that, their heart rate rises up straight away so his heart rate was probably 200 beats a minute. When you start off a race with a heart rate that high, you really only get halfway in a race City of Troy blew out in the 2,000 Guineas at Newmarket at the start of May due to a high heart rate - David Davies/PA For years I have been arguing that racing could be much more interesting to a wider, more analytical audience if horses and jockeys wore heart monitors. Many have dismissed this as a gimmick, but OBriens insight would suggest not. It also implies that heart monitors are not a new phenomenon to OBrien. So all the more reason to share a whole new stream of fascinating live data with the public. GDPR wine We all see them: those annoying pop-up boxes that appear on our screens, asking us to consent to websites privacy and digital cookie policies. Likely you dont read them, instead frantically hurrying the messages away by clicking yes, I accept without a second thought. In fact, it appears actually engaging with the jargon is so rare that free wine goes unclaimed for months on end, buried deep in the particulars. It emerged last week that Tax Policy Associates, a think-tank, had since February hidden a clause in their website privacy policy offering a complimentary bottle of good wine to the first person to notice it. But it wasnt until this month that somebody stepped forward to claim the prize, highlighting how little we all engage with the reams of legal red tape that have increasingly come to define our digital lives. We know nobody reads this, because we added in February that wed send a bottle of good wine to the first person to contact us, and it was only in May that we got a response, a sentence in the non-profit organisations updated privacy policy now spells out. The think-tanks founder, Dan Neidle, says the experiment involving a 30 bottle of 2014 Chateau de Sales Pomerol was a personal, childish protest against regulations that dictate all businesses have to have a privacy policy when no one reads it. Our ongoing experiment into whether anyone reads website T&Cs continues. We put this in our terms back in February. Just got claimed. pic.twitter.com/N7k3weTuA9 Dan Neidle (@DanNeidle) May 9, 2024 I had an email out of the blue from a chap named Arthur. He was writing a privacy policy for his own website, and so was researching other ones. Thats how he found it, Neidle says, adding Arthur unfortunately turned out to be intolerant to alcohol and so was unable to enjoy his reward. It shows that no one reads this stuff normally. A normal person doesnt have the slightest reason in the world to do so. Burdensome bureaucracy All firms that process and store customer information like names and email addresses must provide an online privacy policy as part of their obligations under the 2018 General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), according to the Information Commissioners Office. Those who fail to comply face the prospect of hefty fines and reputational damage. But adhering to the directives is often an onerous task for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and charities, costing them energy and resources that could be allocated elsewhere. As the complexity has risen, so too has the time such companies spend on ensuring they conform with the regulations, which is up by 46 per cent over the past year alone, according to new research from data and analytics firm Dun & Bradstreet. Meanwhile, a 2021 study by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) saw two-in-five of its members describe data protection as the most burdensome regulation to grapple with. These regulations create a disproportionate effect for companies with fewer resources to devote to compliance than their larger counterparts, says Tina McKenzie, policy chair at the FSB. Neidle points out that even small, community coffee shops, for example, need to have privacy policies to comply with GDPR, adding this incurs costs that mean money [is] being wasted. Dan Neidle, who placed a clause involving free wine in his privacy policy, is in favour of simplified GDPR rules for small businesses - South West News Service/South West News Service He argues the solution is to simplify - by reverting to standard privacy conditions that apply as a default to typical small businesses that dont handle client data. These shouldnt require cookie policies and would help businesses save money and save consumers from annoying clicking, he says. McKenzie, for her part, acknowledges data protection laws are a vital part of life in the 21st century. However, their complex and sensitive nature means small businesses often need greater support and understanding from regulatory bodies not only to ensure compliance but also to reduce the financial and time costs of doing so, she says. Regulators should be proportionate in enforcing these rules, McKenzie adds, focusing on education and support in the first instance. Having reams of text required by law, which, in practice, very few people actually read, undermines the consumer protection we all want to have in place. It also costs small firms time and money they can ill afford, she says. In effect, stringent requirements can distract entrepreneurs from important priorities like increasing profits, growing their businesses and generating jobs for their local communities. Starting a business isnt about just doing the fun stuff theres a lot of compliance that cant be ignored but this all contributes to the long hours and sense of feeling like youre taking on the world when trying to build traction and momentum, says Gareth Jones, CEO of small business and coworking experts Town Square Spaces Ltd. Hours of reading time On the consumer end, theres precious little appetite to sift through tens of thousands of words of policy, regardless of what it costs businesses to produce them. Not only are they hugely complex, theyre also getting longer all the time. A 2021 study by De Montfort University found that the average length of privacy policies had increased from more than 1,000 words in 2000 to over 4,000 words in 2021. Dr Isabel Wagner, an associate professor in computer science who conducted the research, found that their average word count increased following the European Unions implementation of GDPR in 2018 and, again in 2020, when California adopted its own privacy policies. As a researcher who works on privacy, I find myself agreeing to privacy policies but not reading them, she told the New Scientist in 2022, admitting her study of some 50,000 texts was triggered by a recognition of her own habits. Typical policies require university education to understand, Wagner said, and take at least an hour to read. If you were to stop and digest each one, it would effectively amount to a part-time job. A study of the most popular websites in 19 different countries conducted by NordVPN in October last year revealed that the average privacy policy was 6,461 words long. In the UK, reading every word of every policy on each of the 20 most visited websites would take nearly 11 hours, the study found, based on assumptions that people read at approximately 238 words per minute on average. And over the course of a month, the typical Brit would clock up something like 53 hours of reading time were they to peruse every privacy policy in full on each website they visited nearly 20 hours more than the length of the average working week nationwide. Calls for a rethink The apparent absurdity of the situation has prompted calls for policymakers to make adjustments. McKenzie, of the FSB, says there is a need for a rethink on how the system works so that legislation is easier for everyone to navigate. This should be done in a way that preserves the data adequacy we need to keep business flowing between the UK and other international jurisdictions with their own sets of rules, she says. Jordan Phillips, founder of food delivery startup Tin Can Kitchen, agrees that existing data protection regulations can be confusing for consumers and small businesses alike, arguing that a new approach is needed. He says the regulations wording is verbose and should be condensed to make them easier to understand. This, I feel, should definitely be the case for small businesses that do not have the money or resources of large businesses, he says. How this translates into real-world cases remains to be seen. Austin Walters, director of website design firm Triplesnap Technologies, recommends that regulators take a tiered approach that simplifies requirements for smaller businesses that dont handle highly sensitive data. Meanwhile, companies which possess more personal, or sensitive, information about their customers would need to continue following stricter controls. Simplifying legal jargon and making policies more accessible could increase consumer trust and understanding without compromising data security, ultimately improving user interaction with these important documents, he says. Others contend companies have a part to play themselves too. Andrew Wilson-Bushell, an associate at the law firm Simkins LLP, says firms should ensure theyre only providing customers with information they genuinely need to engage with. But, lengthy and unloved as they are, privacy policies do ultimately have an important purpose, he acknowledges. The exercise of writing the privacy policy requires a business to understand its use of personal data, and map that out in a relatively comprehensible way. That might often feel like overkill - until a serious data breach occurs. Neidle, for his part, remains sceptical in the extreme about the demands GDPR has placed on SMEs. Thats despite a historic uptick in engagement with his think-tanks smallprint on the back of the wine stunt. In the last 72 hours we have had 1,000 people read our privacy policy, but in the whole of April, nobody looked at it, Neidle says, citing web traffic data. It just seems crazy to me that my local coffee shop has to deal with the same rules as Facebook does, he adds. Why cant there be a simplified version of the rules for small businesses and non-profits? Esther McVey has civil service wokery in her sights - Tayfun Salci/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock Its hard to keep a straight face when reading the words common sense minister in a headline. Are we really at a point where cabinet ministers are needed to represent and enforce basic, positive, human attributes? Have we lost sight of those attributes to such an extent that we need a physical embodiment, Mr. Men-style, for things like logic, integrity, and resilience? The answer, sadly, is a resounding yes, and yesterday common sense minister Esther McVey took a major step in delivering on the promise she made six months ago when the veteran Tory MP was given the unofficial title in Rishi Sunaks cabinet reshuffle and vowed to ensure all parts of the public sector embrace common sense instead of political correctness. Yesterday, McVey took aim at the flabbiest, feeblest and least common-sensical of those public sectors: the civil service. Over the past decade the supposedly impartial body that describes its core values as honesty, integrity, impartiality and objectivity and its core aims as setting direction, engaging people and delivering results has become a shell of its former self, so focused on empty woke ideologies and evangelism that it seems to have forgotten who it is there to serve, let alone the results it exists to deliver. Enough. In her speech on Monday, McVey announced a ban on the civil service jobs dedicated to diversity, equality and inclusion (DEI) and an end to the money wasted on woke hobby horses, warning that the public sector must not become a pointless job creation scheme for the politically correct. That ship has sailed although better late than never and we can still turn it around. Were talking about a sector that employs an estimated 10,000 diversity officials with an average salary of 42,000, putting the annual cost of those evangelicals alone at 557 million. But if you were looking to join, say, a Menopause Network, a Vegan and Vegetarian Network, or a Cross-Government Introverts Network, the civil service was the place to go. If you wanted to spend your days immersed in gender pay audits, unconscious bias training courses and equality impact assessments, youd come to the right place. And how gratifying it must be to have such lofty focal points? After all, who wants to get bogged down with benefits and pensions or the running of employment services and prisons when you could be spending public money on defending the rights of vegan chocolate and building a supportive community that helps bring introverts out of themselves? Detailing how new guidance on third-party expenditure also means that officials will be banned from spending their departments budget on external DEI campaign groups, experts or consultants, McVey made two crucially important points. First, that the benefits of these endless DEI campaigns, programmes and incentives are unproven to say the least. Which hasnt mattered until now, because its all about optics. And second, that diversity in the Civil Service should never just be measured in terms of race and sex. That its not enough, again, to be seen to do the right thing, if youre not actually doing the right thing. This goes for every public sector. Because if youre filling positions according to a quota defined by a persons race or sex, youre ironically proving yourself to be guilty of every ism. When it should also be about background and differences of opinion and perspective, says McVey, adding: Above all it should be about merit. A classic example of where this patronising and reductive brand of groupthink gets us is the reaction to Zadie Smiths New Yorker essay, published last week. In it, the writer praised the brave students demanding Israel ends its military attacks on Gaza at Columbia University but made the grievous error of stating that Jewish students should not be made to feel unsafe on university campuses. Cue the Twitter/X backlash, much of which either covertly or overtly seems to be saying that Smith had, as one Times columnist put it yesterday, betrayed her racial identity. By saying her opinions are only valid if they cohere with those of other people like her, she is being reduced from an intelligent voice to an emblem of her race. The parallels are clear. Where diversity of any form becomes tokenistic, where it takes the focus off the matter at hand and places it firmly on ideological groupthink, it has zero value. Its a waste of breath, space, energy and in the case of the civil service, hard-earned taxpayers cash. Time to bring back common sense. I think well all find that a little goes a long way. Cold lava landslides left lots of devastation in their wake in the Indonesian province of West Sumatra - AFP/Rezan Soleh Dozens of people have been killed in Indonesia after heavy rains triggered landslides and sent cold lava flowing down the side of a volcano. A downpour on Saturday caused large boulders to tumble down the slopes of Mount Marapi, one of the countrys most-active volcanoes, while floodwaters inundated homes in two districts of Sumatra. The death toll from the flash flooding has risen to 41, disaster relief officials said. At least 17 other people are still missing. Data as of last night, we recorded 37 dead victims... But from this morning it has grown again, the figure reached 41 [dead], Ilham Wahab, a West Sumatra disaster mitigation agency official, told AFP. What is cold lava? Cold lava flow is a mud-like mixture of volcanic ash, rock debris and water that flows down a volcanos slopes in the rain. It is also known in Indonesia as a lahar. Rescuers were still searching for 17 missing people in two districts Agam and Tanah Datar that were the worst hit by the floods and home to hundreds of thousands of people. Thousands of people have been affected by the cold lava mudslide with rescuers still looking for as many as 17 missing - Reuters/Antara Foto Residents said they heard rocks thundering down roads outside their homes when the heavy rains struck. My house was vibrating, said Budi Rahmat, a 44-year-old farmer in Agam. I heard the thunder and the sound similar to boiling water. It was the sound of big rocks falling, housewife Rina Devina told AFP, adding that three of her neighbours were killed. It was pitch black, so I used my cellphone as a flashlight. The road was muddy, so I chanted God, have mercy! over and over again, she said of her evacuation to a local officials office. Dwikorita Karnawati, head of Indonesias meteorology, climatology and geophysics Agency (BMKG), told reporters on Monday that West Sumatra was a unique location because in parts of the province, rain could fall almost all year round. So the potential for flood and landslide are always present, she said. Roads in Tanah Datar were damaged in the aftermath of the landslides - AFP/Rezan Soleh Tanah Datar was one of the worst affected areas by the torrents of cold lava - AP/Ali Nayaka Mount Ibu sends ash three miles into the sky Separately, Indonesias Mount Ibu volcano erupted on Monday morning, firing thick plumes of grey ash more than three miles into the sky, the southeast Asian nations volcanology agency reported. The volcano on the remote island of Halmahera, located some 1,550 miles east of the Indonesian capital Jakarta, erupted at 9.12am for about five minutes. No damage or casualties have been reported so far but all activities within a three-mile radius of the volcano have been prohibited and the alert status raised to the second-highest level of a four-tier system. The grey-black ash column was observed with thick intensity, leaning towards the west, Geology Agency head Muhammad Wafid said in a statement. Residents on the island have not been evacuated but Hendra Gunawan, head of Indonesias Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation Centre, warned that: If it starts to rain ash, we recommend people who are near the volcano to wear a mask and glasses. Exposure to volcanic ash which is pulverised rock and can sometimes be gritty or contain corrosive particles can cause irritation to the eyes as well as the respiratory system. The volcano also erupted on Saturday on a smaller scale, spewing lava and ash and causing a dramatic display of lightning. As many as 58 eruptions a day Halmahera island has the largest density of active volcanoes of any region in Indonesia, among them Mount Ibu, which can be visited by tourists during calmer periods of seismic activity. In 2023, a total of 21,100 eruptions an average of 58 eruptions per day were recorded from the volcano, making it one of the most active in Indonesia. Indonesia, which sits on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, experiences frequent earthquakes and volcanic activity. Last month, Mount Ruang in North Sulawesi province erupted more than half a dozen times, forcing thousands of residents of nearby islands to evacuate and closing a nearby international airport. It remains at the highest alert level. All of the 800 or so residents of Ruang island will be permanently relocated. Michael Cohen is questioned by prosecutor Susan Hoffinger before Justice Juan Merchan as Donald Trump watches on 13 May, in this courtroom sketch. Photograph: Jane Rosenberg/Reuters Michael Cohen, the former lawyer to Donald Trump whose $130,000 payment to the adult film star Stormy Daniels is at the heart of the criminal case against the former president, provided the first testimony on Monday that ensnared Trump in an alleged illicit repayment scheme. Just do it, Cohen recalled Trump told him in pressing him to pay Daniels, before later approving the plan to reimburse him. Trump was intimately involved in the hush-money deal and was concerned the Daniels story would hurt his approval among women voters. Here are the takeaways from day 16 of Trumps criminal trial: Trump knew about the sham repayment scheme Trump was in his office in Trump Tower in January 2017 when he and Allen Weisselberg discussed how to structure the plan to repay the $130,000 hush money wired to Stormy Daniels, Cohen testified adding that Trump personally gave his approval then and there. Good, good Cohen recalled Trump as saying. Trump was also present in the meeting when Weisselberg turned to Cohen and told him the reimbursement would come in 12 monthly checks, and be described as legal fees as part of a retainer agreement for Cohen supposedly working as personal attorney to Trump. But, Cohen testified, everyone in the meeting knew that the money had nothing to do with legal fees. After all, Weisselberg had developed the repayment plan himself, using numbers that he wrote out on a bank statement for the shell company Cohen had used to wire the hush money to Daniels. Under New York state law, a person is guilty of falsifying business records the underlying charges against Trump if he makes or causes a false entry to be made into business records. The testimony from Cohen was important because it was evidence that Trump knew the payments to Cohen were hush-money reimbursements and Trump approved the plans details and logistics suggested by Weisselberg, sign-off that Cohen testified Weisselberg needed. In that sense, Cohens testimony appeared to go some way to implicate Trump for the misdemeanor charges for falsifying business records. Prosecutors need to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Trump falsified records to conceal an election law violation to get convictions for felonies. Trumps lawyers now face an uphill struggle to undercut Cohens testimony, despite his track record of perjury, since both Cohen and former Trump Organization controller Jeffrey McConney have testified it was Weisselbergs handwriting on the bank statement outlining the repayment schedule. Trump had real-time updates about Daniels Trump was apprised of every development with the Daniels catch-and-kill scheme in the weeks leading up to the 2016 election, Cohen repeatedly testified, in large part because Cohen was desperate to get credit for dealing with the matter. The testimony about Cohen acknowledging he wanted to get recognition for resolving the Daniels situation further undercut the Trump defense argument that he was detached from the situation because he was busy with the 2016 campaign and later, being the president-elect. Cohen reinforced his testimony by adding he told Trump immediately once he had resolved the Stormy Daniels hush-money deal. Trump knew deadline was the election To get to a felony, prosecutors have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Trump falsified records with an intent to violate election law, either to conceal he exceeded campaign contributions or ran afoul of a New York state law barring the use of unlawful means to promote a campaign. Cohen did not testify on Monday that Trump intended to commit a second crime. But he laid the groundwork, saying he slow-walked paying Daniels with Trumps permission in the hope that they could delay it until after the election. Cohen says Trump told him to push it out as long as you can, past the election, because if I win, Ill be president, and if I lose, I wont really care. Either way, Cohen suggested Trump knew the 2016 election was his deadline. The sight of Erik ten Hag drenched at the final whistle seemed somehow appropriate - Peter Powell/Shutterstock It took an evening deluge to throw Manchester Uniteds malaise into the sharpest relief. The Old Trafford roof leaked with such violence that fans in the South Stand were left watching a veritable waterfall. Ethan Wheatley and Omari Forson, two academy products promoted to the bench, forlornly chased a lost cause against an error-strewn Arsenal side who should have been ripe for the kill. And in the midst of this soggy scene stood Erik ten Hag in a drenched pale suit, barking instructions to nobody in particular, knowing that a record-extending 14th defeat of this Premier League season all but condemned him to a summer sacking. Rarely had the mood here felt so fatalistic. Even Ten Hags choice of suit carried a certain pathos. It was identical to the beige number he had worn to his United unveiling in 2022, when he boldly declared that he could break the Liverpool-Manchester City duopoly. On that occasion, those sceptical of his abilities mischievously dubbed him Erik ten Months. So far he has lasted 24, but the appetite for any more of the shapeless torpor he has overseen is dwindling fast. At a personal level, it is mortifying for the Dutchman. He entered this job radiating optimism, proclaiming his ambition to restore United to their rightful spot at the summit. He threatens to end it in a state of helplessness, reduced to deploying Casemiro as a makeshift centre-back, only to witness the Brazilian commit a second unforgivable error in six days. The players trajectory from five-time Champions League winner to lame carthorse mirrors the managers own downward spiral. Ten Hag was the future once. Now, finally, the putrefaction at United has engulfed him. This was quite the day for Sir Jim Ratcliffe to have hosted his Wembley of the North talks with Sir Keir Starmer. There is nothing like discussing a Trafford Park regeneration with the probable next Prime Minister while the full horror of your stadiums deterioration plays out in front of you. Few could dispute the logic of the project, with United supporters liable to receive more of a soaking under the ramshackle old roof than from the springtime downpours. But he needed no clearer signal than this match to realise that an Ineos-led makeover would require far more than a remodelling of Old Trafford. In the 11 years since Sir Alex Fergusons retirement, has there even been a United line-up as limited as this? Shorn of Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford, they resembled lambs to the slaughter as Arsenal sought to sustain their quest for a first league title in 20 years. It did not pan out as such, with United avoiding the rank humiliation that many supporters had feared. This owed far more, though, to Arsenals profligacy than to the hosts resilience. A less tormented team would not have needed this many invitations to derail Mikel Artetas dreams. Uniteds finishing was woeful: no sooner had Alejandro Garnacho finally escaped the shackles of William Saliba than he sliced hopelessly wide, burying his head in his hands. You could detect a similar reaction from Roy Keane as United, the palest shadow of the sides he had captained, toiled in vain to summon a late salvo. Alejandro Garnacho squandered one of United's few chances - Ash Donelon/Getty Images The disappointment for me in the last half an hour was United, Keane said. Arsenal have come to Old Trafford over the years, but I bet they couldnt believe how bad United were. Whatever bits of possession they had, look at the end product and the lack of quality. You talk about the great teams United have had over the years. But no decision-making, nobody digging anyone out, making mistakes, falling over, not putting demands on each other? That United team theretheyre so bad. Lest Keanes comments be dismissed as a reflexive diatribe, the statistics support his anguish, with United under Ten Hag discovering fresh extremes of ineptitude. On 54 points, they are in danger of surpassing their lowest ever points tally, the 58 achieved under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer during the Norwegians wretched final campaign. Should they succumb to Newcastle on Wednesday night, they will reach a record number of home defeats in a single season, with 10. The 82 goals they have conceded in all competitions represents their most dismal return in 53 years. To cap it all, their goal difference in the league stands at minus four, a nadir not endured since the Tommy Docherty era in 1974. That year, they were relegated. You wanted to see some stirring of life, a sense that United understood the necessity of a response after their 4-0 humbling at Crystal Palace. Amad Diallo did the most to provide it with his quicksilver movement, but the outlook beyond was bleak. United were too lumpen, too bereft of imagination, to pounce on Arsenals inadequacies. The very least any would-be champions should expect when they come here is a ferocious late surge, but it never materialised, with fans streaming for the exits before the final whistle blew. The storm offered a reflection on Uniteds mood, as a pristine May afternoon dissolved in a puddle, with ominous thunderclaps overhead. Ratcliffe insisted he did not underestimate the scale of the challenge when he bought into his childhood club last December. But surely, five months on, it was not too much to ask to see the odd green shoot of recovery? Instead, as the water cascaded down the stadium steps, he surveyed only the steady drip of decrepitude. TOKYO, May 13 (Xinhua) -- A sightseeing helicopter made an emergency landing on Monday afternoon in the mountains in the southwestern Japanese prefecture of Kumamoto, injuring three people, local media reported. The incident took place in the mountains of Kurokawa, Aso City, Kumamoto. The pilot and two passengers who were injured were taken to the hospital, public broadcaster NHK reported, citing the local fire department. The three were conscious and able to communicate, it added. The helicopter's engine appeared to have stopped in the sky. Police are investigating the details of the accident. McVey said civil servants should be leaving their political views at the building entrance. Photograph: Isabel Infantes/Reuters Esther McVey, the minister for common sense, has said she will crack down on diversity initiatives in the civil service, including banning the wearing of rainbow lanyards. McVey, who was appointed to Rishi Sunaks cabinet as a minister without portfolio, said civil servants should be leaving their political views at the building entrance and that there should not be a random pick and mix of causes on security lanyards. They should be a standard design reflecting that we are all members of the government delivering for the citizens of the UK, she said in a speech to the Centre for Policy Studies. We need to stop the inappropriate back-door politicisation of the civil service, which diverts time and resources from that focus on the public. Related: What will Esther McVey bring to cabinet as the commonsense tsar? We have too often seen them distracted by fashionable hobbyhorses. Especially when it comes to issues like equality and diversity. People want the public servants to be getting on with the job of making their lives better, not engaging in endless internal discussions about ideology, and Im not prepared to see pointless job creation schemes for the politically correct. McVey said the government would no longer offer contracts for external diversity spending unless they were signed off by a government minister, including those with current contracts, such as Stonewall. The minister said she aimed to abolish civil service networks for staff, such as those for Muslim staff or LGBTQ+ civil servants. The Civil Service Muslim Network has been suspended after reports that speakers at its events had encouraged officials to lobby ministers over the Gaza conflict. Managing these networks cannot become a full-time job, she said. Many may have started with good intentions, but some have moved to a place of political and religious activism Civil servants should not be distracted by issues unrelated to their ultimate role. McVey said the changes were aimed at delivering value for the taxpayer. Last year the chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, launched a review of spending on EDI initiatives, which is being examined by the Cabinet Office. She said: At the heart of these changes are value for money for the taxpayer and better customer service for the public. Any equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) roles would be moved into human resources and focused exclusively on statutory requirements, she said, adding that there were the equivalent of about 400 full-time employees working on EDI across the civil service. In her speech, McVey praised Sunak for changing the governments approach on a variety of culture war issues, including trans rights, immigration, the climate crisis and welfare. The shadow Cabinet Office minister, Pat McFadden, said: With over seven million people on NHS waiting lists and homeowners still paying the price for the Tories crashing the economy, no amount of blaming civil servants for the Tories lack of delivery will wash. They should focus on the day job, rather than looking for other people to blame. Ms McVey has launched a crackdown on 'woke' state spending - MARTYN WHEATLEY/I-IMAGES Rainbow lanyards are to be banned in the Civil Service, Esther McVey has announced. The minister for common sense warned mandarins they should not try to express political views by the back door through rainbow-coloured lanyards that are worn to demonstrate support for LGBT rights. Ms McVey said the Government would instead introduce a standard design for all Whitehall and departmental staff to show a commitment to delivering for the citizens of the UK. Rainbow lanyards were banned by the Scottish Parliament in March over concerns that the design could lead to accusations of bias. In a speech for the Centre for Policy Studies think tank, Ms McVey said: We want work to be a happy, inclusive place, not one where division can be sowed and people feel pressured. I want a very simple but visible change to occur too. The lanyards worn to carry security passes shouldnt be a random pick and mix, they should be a standard design reflecting that we are all members of the Government, delivering for the citizens of the UK. Working in the Civil Service is all about leaving your political views at the building entrance. Trying to introduce them by the back door via lanyards should not happen. Asked what would happen if a civil servant turned up with a Palestinian flag or a rainbow lanyard, Ms McVey replied: Why would you wear that lanyard? The Civil Service is not political. You dont need political activism in a visible way. Consequences Pressed on whether there would be a consequence for staff who flouted the new rules, she said: That would be for the permanent secretary to do, she believes people will comply, and of course we will have provided the new lanyards so people can wear them. But as I said, people need to think to themselves why they would be doing that rather than promoting where they work. Ms McVeys announcement comes after The Telegraph revealed that Civil Service diversity jobs will also be banned as part of her crackdown on woke state spending, meaning there will no longer be any jobs in Whitehall devoted solely to diversity. Managers will be banned from hiring third-party diversity, equality and inclusion (DEI) contractors, while officials whose roles focus on diversity will be transferred elsewhere with broader remits. Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg, a former business secretary, said he was fully supportive of Ms McVeys plans, while Elliot Keck, head of campaigns at the TaxPayers Alliance, added: Esther McVey deserves praise for tackling the DEI leviathan seemingly single-handedly. And shes absolutely right to get rid of politicised lanyards, which do little other than cause controversy, while costing taxpayers more. Ms McVey insisted her party had absolutely been conservative enough during its time in office but went on to accuse Rishi Sunaks predecessors of being in hock to religious-type zealtory. Thank goodness the prime minister has stopped the race to gold-plated net zero and started to view energy through the lens of pragmatism and cost on the public. Rainbow lanyards were banned by the Scottish Parliament in March over concerns the design could lead to accusations of bias - THOMAS FAULL/ISTOCKPHOTO He is the first political leader to stand up to the religious-type zealotry which has consumed politicians and the state sector, with a tiny minority of extremists like Just Stop Oil and Extinction Rebellion exerting way too much sway on the energy agenda. Praising Mr Sunak for having reset the dial on the issue by delaying a ban on petrol and diesel cars by five years, the minister said previous political leaders were caught up in the ideology of green activists. Theyd been setting timelines that would just seem to be politically sort of pulled out, Id say, from a figure in the air. Why 2030 and not 2035? We look at security, affordability and reliability as being the key thing Labour are trying to race to a date they cannot achieve. Ms McVey also hailed the Mr Sunak as an intellectual giant in response to an audience question which claimed there was a dearth of impressive thinkers in Tory ranks. And responding to criticisms of the Governments crackdown on visas for foreign students, she said: So big are these cuts to the immigration numbers he has made, universities are now complaining that their finances are being stretched due to the severity of the reductions in international students they are seeing. I have no sympathy. For too long, these universities have been selling immigration to international students, rather than an education, and the PM has been right to put a stop to that. Last year, Mr Sunak banned overseas students other than those doing PhD research work from bringing dependants to join them in the UK. Ms McVey was appointed as a Cabinet Office minister without portfolio at Mr Sunaks reshuffle in November in an olive branch to the Right of the party following the sacking of Suella Braverman as home secretary. Dr Tim Bradshaw, chief executive of the Russell Group of universities, led a backlash to Ms McVeys remarks about student visas. He said: International students are hugely valued as part of our university community, not only for their overwhelming contribution to our local and national economies, but also their significant social and cultural benefits including long-lasting soft power on the global stage. Placing further restrictions on them doesnt make economic sense and will have a direct, negative impact on UK students. Meanwhile Helen Joyce, director of advocacy at the campaign group Sex Matters, welcomed her move to acknowledge the degree of ideological capture in the public service. Some staff in the public sector have sought to embed workplace cultures and outward-facing policies that are hostile to sex-based human rights. Efforts to increase diversity and inclusion, while well-intentioned, have been co-opted by activists with a fringe agenda. British Antarctic Territory According to evidence given to the Commons Environment Audit Committee (EAC) last week, Russia has discovered an oil field in Antarctica roughly ten times the size of the North Seas entire 50 year output. Much of the field is believed to be in the Weddell sea, just to the east of the Antarctic peninsula and very much in the middle of the UKs cheese slice down there the British Antarctic Territory. In Antarctica, boundaries are just claims rather than solidly owned, but it is of note that Britains claims in the region overlap with those of Chile and Argentina. Its a perfect chance for Vladimir Putin to start causing trouble and it may have made the Falklands islands the most valuable real estate on earth. Understanding why means understanding what its like in Antarctica. In my experience, operating down there is a mix of wonderment at the vast bleakness of it and having to be on top of your game as the weather does its best to catch you out. The trope that you get all four seasons in a day is not quite correct. You get three the bad ones. Occasionally the sun comes out, presenting a fleeting opportunity for the most perfect photos, but that is invariably just a tease freezing gales are imminent. Having said that, the location of these oil fields in the Weddell Sea is not the hardest place to work. You are protected to an extent from the oceanic swell that endlessly circles the continent by the Antarctic Peninsula, and also by the sea ice that further dampens it. But the further south you go, the thicker that ice becomes, and by the time you get to the UK base in Halley, you need to be on your ice game. The irony of working down there in HMS Endurance, named after Shackletons ship that got stuck in thick ice and crushed in that exact sea, was not lost on us. The point is, working down there is ultimately demanding and to a large extent, the reason the non-exploitative component of the Antarctic treaty which which works to maintain the region as a natural reserve devoted to peace and science has been upheld. Until now. In addition to invading Ukraine, Russia is involved in any number of maritime grey zone activities around the world. Smuggling oil through the Baltic and elsewhere using the uninsured and poorly maintained dark fleet tankers is one. Ongoing submarine activity around the undersea cables on which the functioning of our economy depends is another. Blockading the Black Sea is another, although this has been beaten back for now. The Russian presence in western Yemen around the time the undersea cables were cut is another, as is the military installation building with China in the High North, and on, and on, and on. These activities are all designed to be hard to (legally) counter and, should you decide to counter them, produce with what? as a swift response. In the case of its activities in Antarctica, Russia, of course, claims to be conducting scientific research rather than prospecting for oil. As Klauss Dodds put it, Russias activities need to be understood as a decision to undermine the norms associated with seismic survey research, and ultimately a precursor for forthcoming resource extraction. Saying they are looking to extract resources is a world away from actually doing so, but the direction of travel is clear. The next step in the Russian grey zone playbook will surely be to involve Argentina. With their cheese slice of territory overlapping ours, collaboration down there is all but a given and on a diplomatic level will bear fruit more quickly than the oil itself. The ebb and flow of Argentinian rhetoric professing an interest in retaking the Falklands has been steady since 1982 although a combination of our defences there and their ageing military stops most people from taking it seriously. But were they to be emboldened by Russian diplomatic and possibly military assistance, with the added temptation of having las malvinas available as a forward base for the new oil in Antarctica, its not hard to imagine them having another go. At which point, if we have to defend them, the with what issue comes back. The Royal Navy is at a low point, with both hull and personnel numbers creating tension at every turn. Whatever form the Defence Review takes after the election, this issue should be higher up the list than it has been in recent years. Promises of 2.5% of GDP by 2030 or whenever conditions suit need to be shelved for cold, hard cash now. From left, Kimberly Guilfoyle, Donald Trump Jr, Tiffany Trump, Donald Trump, Melania Trump and Barron Trump at the White House on 27 August 2020. Photograph: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images In practical terms, Barron Trumps truncated stint on the political stage as a Florida delegate to the Republican partys national convention was little more than symbolic. His father Donald Trumps third successive presidential campaign as the Republican nominee was all but certain anyway, and the names of those who will confirm it are essentially inconsequential. It did affirm to many analysts, however, how the former president has maneuvered to seize almost total control of the partys state apparatus nationwide. Nowhere is that more apparent than Florida, where the capitulation was completed by the choice of delegates for Julys convention in Milwaukee. Related: Barron Trump will not be a delegate at Republican Nation Convention after all Even though 18-year-old Barron Trump now stepped down, ostensibly after his mother, former first lady Melania Trump, discovered a pressing prior engagement, there will be plenty of other family members as representatives. Barrons step-siblings Don Jr, Eric and Tiffany are named, along with Kimberly Guilfoyle, Don Jrs fiancee. Tiffanys husband, Michael Boulos, and an assorted slew of other notable Trump acolytes and loyalists, are also on the list. The parallels in Trumps subjugation of the national Republican party, and the installation of Lara Trump, Erics wife, as its co-chair, are hard to miss especially as it was Floridas hard-right governor, Ron DeSantis, who was once seen as a potential Trump killer in the partys nomination race until, of course, Trump quickly vanquished him. The big, sort of under-the-radar story in American politics over the last couple of years was the way Trump and his people had taken over state parties across the country, said Dan Judy, a senior analyst for North Star Opinion Research, a Republican guidance and consultancy company based in Virginia. Even early in the primary process, a year and a half ago when Ron DeSantis was riding high and leading a lot of the polls, I was always thinking: Trump has control of the state parties, hes got his people in, and they are, for lack of a better word, going to attempt to rig the process in favor of Donald Trump. If you look at it, thats exactly what happened. A lot of state parties changed their rules to make their primaries winner-takes-all, which absolutely helped Trump, especially as it came down to a one-on-one with Nikki Haley. It was clear that she was going to have to win some of these things outright to get any delegates at all, and she couldnt do it. The fact that the Florida GOP has also been completely taken over by Trump folks is really indicative of a trend that has happened everywhere. Judy pointed to how easily Trump took down DeSantis in the primary race, humiliating the governor he disparaged as Meatball Ron in his own state. DeSantiss efforts to cajole Floridas congressional delegation was ultimately futile, and he dropped out in January to avoid a spanking in the states March primary. As high as he was riding after his huge re-election victory, just any hope that he would have had of continuing to be top dog in the Florida GOP went out the window when he failed to get any traction at all in the presidential race, said Judy, who has worked for the winning campaigns of several Republican politicians, including DeSantis and Florida senator Marco Rubio. Hes not the kind of person who cultivates relationships, who builds relationships, who builds a party, an organization, and an apparatus. Hes just not that guy, and if youre going around Florida looking for Ron DeSantis people, there are shockingly few of them. But if Donald Trump is re-elected, there might be a place in the administration for him. If he wants to have a future in the current Republican party, he cannot be an enemy of Donald Trump, and youre seeing him do the things that he needs to do to remain in good standing. Those actions include a full-throated endorsement of the man who repeatedly demeaned and insulted him, and cozying up to him at a breakfast meeting near Miami last month, in which Trump claimed DeSantis pledged total fealty. In a similar vein, a succession of other senior state Republicans have fallen in line. Junior senator Rick Scott, a former Florida governor who faces a potentially tricky re-election battle in November, appeared last week alongside Trump to support him at his hush-money trial in Manhattan. And an elected member of the Florida cabinet, chief financial officer Jimmy Patronis, seemingly cannot do enough to champion the twice-impeached former president currently facing dozens of criminal charges in cases around the country. Patronis, who was thwarted by DeSantis in January when he floated a bill to hand $5m of Florida taxpayers money to Trump for his legal bills, returned last week with an alternative proposal: he wrote to Trump announcing he was due $54,000 in unclaimed property that Patronis hoped he would use to fight some very, very nasty people coming after you. To observers of Florida politics, all of this, and particularly the surfeit of Trumps among the slate of delegates, is telling. It does illustrate in pretty stark terms how effectively the former president has his hand on the state Republican party, and his influence on what goes on, said Kevin Wagner, associate dean of Florida Atlantic Universitys Dorothy F Schmidt college of arts and letters. Its not unexpected that the likely presidential nominee has significant influence in his home state, but even by that standard theres a level of control over the party thats pretty distinctive. As a practical matter, the party is going to be united behind a former president, at least through an election year. And I think youll see that in the way that political leaders on the Republican side are behaving in Florida. Wagner said voters were unlikely to care about Trumps children carrying the state partys flag in Milwaukee, with or without Barron Trump. Among the Republican base that is very supportive of the former president, I dont think any of this matters. In fact, they probably would approve, he said. Some Republicans might be bothered, but theres no evidence in Florida right now that this is a particularly close race so it probably doesnt matter a whole lot. The caveat is we are in May and the elections in November. But right now, Id say that Donald Trump has a very strong position in the state of Florida, and thats reflected by how political leaders in the state are responding to him, and also by the amount of deference that the party gives. Russian rockets are launched against Ukraine from the Belgorod region - EVGENIY MALOLETKA/AP A cross-party group of German MPs has called for a 70km Nato air defence zone to be set up over Ukraine to protect it against Russian missile and drone attacks. Top members of the opposition Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party, as well the coalition members Free Democratic Party (FDP) and the Greens, have discussed setting up a safe zone around Ukraines borders with Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania, modelled on the Western alliance which intercepted Irans recent assault on Israel. Roderich Kiesewetter, the CDUs crisis prevention spokesman, told German newspaper FAZ that the initiative would help free up Ukrainian forces in the east, where a fresh Russian offensive is underway. This would ease the burden on Ukrainian air defences and allow it to protect the front, Mr Kiesewetter told the newspaper. Marcus Faber, a member of the liberal FDP party, has also backed the plan as possible, while the Greens deputy leader Agnieszka Brugger has said she is in favour of setting up Nato air defence systems at the borders of the neighboring states to defend western Ukraine. The proposal would reportedly take inspiration from how the West intercepted hundreds of missiles and drones launched by Iran towards Israel last month. During that crisis, British, French and American air forces, among others, shot down incoming Iranian missiles from Western-allied bases dotted around the region, and from Jordanian airspace. Their intervention stopped short of a direct confrontation with Iran, something that Germany is extremely anxious to avoid in the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. However, the German proposal was on Monday rejected by a senior figure in the Social Democratic Party (SPD), Chancellor Olaf Scholzs ruling party, who said it was irresponsible and a fire hazard. Protecting Ukrainian airspace via a Nato deployment would go against the principle of not becoming actively engaged in the war, Rolf Mutzenich, the head of the SPDs parliamentary group, said. If a motion to back the Nato air zone plan were put to a vote in the Bundestag, it would risk falling short without the support of the SPD, which has also rejected similar proposals from cross-party groups on how to best support Ukraine, such as by delivering powerful Taurus missiles. Hair Pieces installation view, Heide Museum of Modern Art, photograph: Clytie Meredith Photograph: Clytie Meredith Sometimes the most ordinary objects hold the richest meaning. Human hair that most primal extension of our bodies, both revered and reviled has long fascinated artists, and a new exhibition at Heide museum, Hair Pieces, brings together 38 artists from eight countries who feature hair as their medium and their central theme, exploring its peculiarity and power through sculpture, photography, conceptual and performance art. Its weird. Its even a little creepy. Its also utterly engrossing. Curator Melissa Keys first had the idea for the show a decade ago she had friends who ran a commercial gallery that was located in an old hair studio and ideally would like to program more exhibitions involving hair. Its a massive topic, she says as we walk around the space. So many artists work with this material, so theres an opportunity for a number of shows. I wanted this one to be open and suggestive, rather than exhaustive. While Hair Pieces initially seems like an oddity, a kooky cabinet of curiosities, it quickly becomes clear that hair has a lot to say about human history, race and gender. Hairstyles, JD Okhai Ojeikeres series of photographs depicting Nigerian womens intricate and elaborate hair, captures the years of triumph after the country won its independence from the British empire. Grandly sculptural hairstyles are refracted through the history of colonialism and act as a potent symbol of reclamation and pride. Johannesburg-based artist Kemang Wa Lehuleres 2012 video installation Pencil Test 2 interrogates taxonomy and racial classification, in a video loop of the artist sliding pencils through his hair that seems lighthearted but for its context. In South Africa in 1950, authorities used the pencil test to enforce racial hierarchies if a pencil inserted into a persons hair fell out easily they were classified as white, but if it remained in place they would be categorised as either black, Indian or coloured and denied basic human rights. Gender and feminism figure strongly in much of the artwork, perhaps inevitably with a material so contested and objectified. Wiradjuri artist Karla Dickens has crafted a collection of codpieces and aluminium underpants she titles Warrior Woman, one with a massive phallus of human hair protruding from the crotch. They brilliantly subvert gender expectations. Julie Rraps Horses Tale, from her 1999 series Porous Bodies, cleverly evokes Lee Miller. And Louise Weaver and Peter Ellis fold Kim Novaks hairstyle from Hitchcocks Vertigo into a potent sculptural installation titled Leonardos Dream. Given that films obsessive fetishisation of hair, a receptacle of male control and desire, it is highly charged. There is a fascinating tension in many works between hair as an expression of individuality and a kind of disembodied anonymity. Rosslynd Piggotts Unknown Woman From China to Brixton and Elsewhere is a brooch made of a strand of a womans hair bought by the artist in Londons Brixton Market. Jim Dines Braid is a detailed drawing of a plait cut from an unknown womans head. Charlie Sofo and Debris Facility have created a gorgeously coloured collection of found and discarded combs, some with strands of hair still stuck to them, in a macabre but poignant ode to self-care. The surrealists, and the symbolists before them, understood and embraced the eerie, freakish quality of using human hair. Works by Man Ray and Dorothea Tanning depicted hair as uncontrollable and wilful, almost sentient. Hair Pieces taps into this surrealist vein, with many artists leaning deliberately into the uncanny: Hypnagogia, the shows opening work by Melbourne artist Christina May Carey, is a series of screens and monitors showing hair braiding mixed with footage of rats tails, linked by black cables resembling strands of hair, as a large photograph of the artists eye looks over the scene. It draws from Careys own struggles with sleep paralysis, and clearly evokes Andre Bretons savage eye, the disembodied pupil that haunts surrealists from Dali to Magritte. Perth-based artist Tarryn Gills Guardian depicts a small figure covered in thick layers of blond hair from which a set of teeth emerges, simultaneously endearing and repulsive. This piece has a kind of inverted twin in John Meades Self-portrait as Mary Magdalene; thick black hair covers a diminutive figure, its hands and feet moulded from the artists own in a material called Reducit, which shrinks as it dries. Both bring to mind Cousin It. Hair Pieces wades into some dark territory: Wes Placeks Hair of Murdered Women, one of a series of photographs taken in Auschwitz in 1975, and Edith Dekyndts Indigenous Shadow, depicting a flag of human hair solemnising the slave ships in Martinique, are particularly brutal. But its also playful. Taiwanese artist Shih Yung-Chuns Braid Cabinet is a vintage dresser filled with detached animal and human heads, thick woollen hair cascading out the back as they stare unblinking out at the viewer. And Lou Hubbards hilarious absurdist art books obsessively cut and paste the coifs of disgraced Japanese prime minister Ryutaro Hashimoto and Monica Lewinsky. There are also works by major artists such as Patricia Piccinini and Marina Abramovic, but its the odd affiliations between works in Hair Pieces that feel most successful. Its an exhibition that unravels and braids our most fundamental and unconscious memories of hair its psychological, mythical and even spiritual dimensions. Itll make you think twice before booking that next haircut. Mr Erdogan said 1,000 members of the terror group are being treated in Turkey Turkeys president has said that more than 1,000 members of Hamas are being treated in Turkish hospitals. Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has railed against Israel since the outbreak of war, described Hamas as a resistance organisation. So many Hamas members have been killed. The whole of the West is attacking them with all sorts of arms and munitions, he said. Calling Hamas ... a terrorist organisation would be cruel, Mr Erdogan said, adding that it was a very important question. Hamas is classed as a terrorist organisation by Israel, the United States and the European Union, among others. It is not clear how 1,000 Hamas members would have come to Turkey from Gaza, which has been sealed off by Israel and Egypt since the war began. However, not all Hamas members are militant fighters, and some badly injured civilians are know to have been evacuated for treatment. Turkey is known to host Hamas members and has turned a blind eye in the past to the groups activities. Gilad Erdan, Israel's UN ambassador, holding a picture of Yahya Sinwar, the Hamas leader - Eduardo Munoz/Reuters Mr Erdogan has cut trade links with Israel and at the weekend said the states genocidal methods would make Hitler jealous. Mr Erdogans intervention comes after US officials said the leader of Hamas is not hiding in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where Israel is poised to mount a major offensive. Yahya Sinwar, the terror groups leader and a mastermind of the October 7 attack on Israel, is likely to be hiding in tunnels under the city of Khan Younis to the north, they said. The intelligence, reported by the New York Times on Monday, raises further questions over Israels plan to invade Rafah, which has alienated its staunchest allies, including the US. Israel has insisted it must enter Rafah, the last Gazan city untouched by fierce fighting and now home to 1.4 million people, to dismantle the remaining Hamas units there and catch the groups leaders. Sinwar has become a looming figure in the Israeli national psyche since Oct 7, particularly among politicians and media demanding revenge for the multiple terror attacks that day. He reportedly retained a veto in recent ceasefire talks with Israel, rejecting any major compromises. Joe Biden indicated last week that Israel would be crossing a red line by invading Rafah as he halted some arms shipments to Israel. It is not clear whether IDF operations there have already crossed that red line. Sinwar has been a growing presence in the Israeli psyche since Oct 7 - Mahmud Hams/AFP via Getty In an overnight call with Antony Blinken, the US secretary of state, Yoav Gallant, Israels defence minister, described his countrys mission in Rafah as a precise operation against remaining Hamas battalions. Mr Blinken reiterated Washingtons opposition to a major offensive in the southern city. On Monday, heavy fighting was reported in the eastern edge of Rafah. Israeli tanks and infantry reportedly crossed a key highway on the outskirts of the city. And in a sign of escalating fighting in the area, the IDF reported 50 soldiers injured in 24 hours, a high number for Israeli operations during this war. At least 360,000 Palestinians have fled Rafah since the IDF issued evacuation orders last Monday, according to the UNs agency for Palestinian refugees. The Hamas-controlled health ministry in Gaza said on Monday the local health system was hours away from collapse as the key crossing used for aid deliveries remained shut. Egypt warns of Rafah invasion risks On Monday afternoon, the Egyptian foreign minister warned Mr Blinken of grave security risks entailed by Israels manoeuvres in Rafah, which borders his country. Sameh Shoukry also stressed the need to resume aid deliveries as soon as possible. Earlier on Monday, an unnamed Egyptian official told the Associated Press the Egyptians have been privately warning Israel that the Rafah operation would put into jeopardy the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty, a cornerstone of regional security. Mr Shoukry has publicly denied any intention on the part of Egypt to pull out of the treaty. There was also heavy fighting on Monday in the once-densely populated Jabaliya neighbourhood of Gaza City, an area the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) had captured at the end of last year. Israeli tanks, backed by air and artillery cover, tried to advance deep into Jabaliya as local residents told Reuters of tank shells landing in the centre of the area. Paramedics responded to reports of deaths and injuries. Israeli forces pushed locals to evacuate from six UN-funded schools in Jabaliya towards the west of the neighbourhood, according to Al Jazeera. Also on Monday, Israel marked Memorial Day, a sombre occasion commemorating fallen soldiers, which is even more poignant this year with fresh memories of the October 7 attack and 132 hostages still in Hamas captivity. Crowds gathered in Jerusalem to mark the Memorial Day - EUTERS/Ronen Zvulun At Israels main commemoration ceremony at Jerusalems Western Wall on Sunday night, Herzl Halevi, the IDF chief of staff, assumed responsibility for security failures on October 7, saying he feels the weight on my shoulders every day. In Jerusalem on Monday morning, one protester stood and held up a poster saying 7/10, referring to the day of the massacre as Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister, took the stage at the main Memorial Day event to commemorate the dead and promise that his government was working non-stop to bring everyone back. In videos from the ceremony on Mount Herzl, one person can be heard yelling trash and another man shouts: He took my kids! At other memorial events, Israelis took their anger out on the countrys hard-Right politicians, accusing them of betraying the hostages at the expense of the war in Gaza. When Itamar Ben-Gvir, the national security minister, arrived at the military cemetery in the southern city of Ashdod, mourners shouted: Get out of here, criminal! Trash, you havent been in the army for a minute! Police had put up security barriers and fences to prevent altercations. In Ofakim, where Hamas fighters went on a rampage for almost 24 hours on October 7, the mother of hostage Matan Zangauker confronted Bezalel Smotrich, Israels finance minister, outside the military cemetery, asking him to put the hostages first those who are still alive, who can still be saved. Matthew Trickett, 37, Chung Biu Yuen, 63, and Chi Leung Wai, 38, are accused of spying for Hong Kong It was in the run-up to last Christmas that Hong Kong police began offering generous financial gifts with a twist. The police force on the island, once a British overseas territory and now under Beijings control, issued rewards of a million Hong Kong dollars (about 100,000) for information that would lead to the arrests of pro-democracy activists. It was a new low in the assault on democracy in the quarter of a century since the UK handed back the island. The HK$1 million bounty was put on the heads of five activists including Simon Cheng, a former UK consulate employee who had been detained by China in 2019, freed after two weeks and subsequently able to claim asylum in the UK. The other four activists also are thought to reside either in Britain or the US. They sold their country and Hong Kong, and neglected Hongkongers interests, Li Kwai-wah, the national security department chief superintendent, said. The national security department will pursue them until the end. Mr Cheng was sanguine. Being hunted by China (Hong Kong)s secret police, under a one-million-dollar bounty, is a lifelong honour, he posted on X, formerly Twitter. If the government deems the quest for democracy and freedom a crime, we embrace the charges to reveal the genuine face of social justice, unyielding to authority. Simon Cheng has claimed asylum in the UK - Heathcliff O'Malley Lord Cameron, the Foreign Secretary, accused Hong Kong police of posing a threat to our democracy and fundamental human rights in a statement issued in response to the HK police bounty. Lord Cameron went on: We will not tolerate any attempt by any foreign power to intimidate, harass or harm individuals or communities in the UK. In a tit-for-tat response China accused Britain of the sheltering of persons on the wanted list and interfering in Hong Kongs affairs. But in recent years China has grown increasingly belligerent, the issuing of bounties being just the latest upping of the ante. In October 2022, Bob Chan, a Hong Kong dissident, was dragged from a protest outside the Chinese consulate in Manchester and into the grounds where he was beaten by a group of men, leaving him with injuries needing hospital treatment. An officer with Greater Manchester Police intervened to pull him to safety. A HK$1 million bounty has been put on the heads of five Chinese activists - TYRONE SIU/REUTERS Two months after the attack, China removed six officials from Britain, including Zheng Xiyuan, the consul-general in charge of the Manchester outpost, who had been accused of and had denied beating up Mr Chan. Ever since the Hong Kong protests that began in March 2019 and were crushed by the following spring with hundreds detained, China and by extension Hong Kong has seemingly grown increasingly intolerant of dissent. It is estimated that 125,000 Hong Kongers have come to Britain since Dominic Raab announced that anyone with a British National Overseas (BNO) passport would be allowed to emigrate here. Protests in Hong Kong started in 2019 - Chris McGrath/Getty Images AsiaPac In November 2019, a Chinese student was photographed in Edinburgh with a sign supporting Hong Kong citizens demands for free elections. The following day, he was secretly photographed at Edinburgh Airport while escorting his mother to her flight. Both pictures were circulated on Weibo, the Chinese social media site, by someone who believed he was returning to Chengdu, his home town. The post entitled Brothers from Chengdu, beat him to death contained the flight number and a call for him to be arrested by police or assaulted by citizens. It was shared 10,000 times. A parliamentary report by the Intelligence and Security Committee warned that academics and students were facing intimidation from Chinese state authorities. University campuses are increasingly fraught. Also in November 2019, flash mobs allegedly organised by the Chinese authorities confronted Hong Kong demonstrations. One Hong Kong student said: There is Chinese embassy involvement in these demonstrations They surrounded us in a circle, waving Chinese flags, singing the national anthem and being hostile. Hong Kong students in Sheffield found themselves surrounded when they started handing out pro-democracy leaflets, the incident detailed in the MPs report. In Sheffield for example there are 4,000 Chinese students and a few hundred from Hong Kong. More generally Chinas spying agencies have also become more aggressive. MI5 has reported a seven-fold investigation in recent years into Chinese operations in the UK. Beijings cyber war on the West is escalating while only last week, the Ministry of Defences payroll was hacked by a gang operating out of China. The UK has not taken these growing incidents lying down, calling China out when it can. China has seemingly grown increasingly intolerant of dissent - Anthony Kwan/Getty Images AsiaPac But the Chinese state has been unafraid to complain about those who take a hard line. Tom Tugendhat, the security minister, who has championed a tougher stance on Beijing since entering government in 2022, addressed the UK-Hong Kong Symposium in April. However the Chinese embassy made clear their disapproval about the appearance both before and after the speech to the Foreign Office, according to a well-placed UK government source. The embassy were very unhappy about the fact of Tom attending and then they complained about the content of the speech afterwards, the source told The Telegraph. The speech saw Mr Tugendhat talk up the merits of taking a firm line: I often say that the Chinese Communist Party is a fearful regime. Their attempts to silence you betray how scared they are of criticism. And as we here in this country know, silencing criticism is not a sign of strength. Its a sign of weakness. Thats why its so important that we dont let Chinas malign behaviour go unchallenged. Why we cant afford to bury our heads in the sand. The introduction of the National Security Act, which came into law last year, makes it easier for Britain to pursue alleged wrongdoers. The three men who appeared in court on Monday charged with assisting the Hong Kong intelligence service and foreign interference were all detained under the new act. A worker clears spilled goods from damaged trailer trucks that were carrying humanitarian aid on the Israeli side of the Tarqumiyah crossing with the West Bank, on Monday - OREN ZIV/AFP Hardline Israeli activists ransacked a convoy of lorries bringing vital aid to the sealed-off Gaza Strip, on Monday. About 100 protesters from the Tzav 9 movement, which comprises settlers, demobilised reservists and families of some of those taken hostage by Hamas, on Monday afternoon blocked a convoy of lorries near the Hebron area in the occupied West Bank, en route from Jordan to Gaza. Several dozen people, mostly young men, then ransacked the lorries, hurling out their contents. In one video, they were seen throwing out bags of sugar from the back of the vehicles on to the road just outside the wall separating the West Bank from Israel. Sugar spilled onto the road. In another video, teenagers trampled on food parcels, kicking them on to the road and hurling them out. No security presence was seen nearby but Israeli police said on Monday that authorities were called in to clear the area, arresting four people for obstructing traffic. Police also said they could not have prevented the incident as the Israel Defense Forces had not informed them of the incoming convoy. Tzav 9 activists have been blocking deliveries and vandalising lorries for several weeks after Israel allowed more aid into Gaza, including from Jordan, to the east of the West Bank. A youth walks near the damaged trailer trucks on Monday, after they were vandalised by Israeli activists - OREN ZIV/AFP Last week, the same group staged a sit-in at the Allenby crossing between the West Bank and Jordan and later ransacked some of the lorries. The incident coincided with the visit of Antony Blinken, United States secretary of state, who condemned the disruption as unacceptable. A vandalised and abandoned humanitarian aid truck at the separation wall - Ilia Yefimovich/Avalon Protesters from Tzav 9 claim it is unfair of Israel to allow more aid to be delivered into Gaza while the Israeli hostages in Hamas captivity are unlikely to receive any food parcels or the most basic medical treatment. Israelis look at the damaged trailer trucks - OREN ZIV/AFP Israeli police have been accused of turning a blind eye to the violent disruption of aid supplies on Israel-controlled territories while peace activists march towards the Gaza border, carrying symbolic supplies of food have been repeatedly arrested. Kamala Harris speaks at Salus University in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, last week. Photograph: Ryan Collerd/AFP/Getty Images Twelve minutes into a health forum discussion for Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander organizations, Kamala Harris on Monday offered a punchy piece of advice to younger members of the audience. We have to know that sometimes people will open the door for you and leave it open, the US vice-president said. Sometimes they wont, and then you need to kick that fucking door down. Harris, who is out front for the Biden-Harris re-election campaign on womens and reproductive rights, made the remarks at a leadership summit at which she also described how her parents had met at a civil rights march. Harriss remark came as she was describing the importance of breaking down barriers and being the first to do it. Heres the thing about breaking down barriers. It does not mean that you start on one side of the barrier and end up on another, she said. Theres breaking involved. And when you break things you get cut and you may bleed. And it is worth it every time. But while presidents and vice-presidents do not customarily use profanity, it is becoming more common, though often in private or leaked conversations. Joe Biden recently referred to rival Donald Trump as a sick fuck, and to the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, as a bad fucking guy and an asshole. Harry Truman once explained his firing of the insubordinate but popular Gen Douglas MacArthur by saying, I didnt fire him because he was a dumb son of a bitch, although he was, but thats not against the law for generals. Lyndon Johnson swore so much that it would be impossible to document all of it, according to a recent essay by the historian Tevi Troy in the City Journal, including the lament: I dont know what the fuck to do about Vietnam. According to the survey, US presidential cursing is common when referring to Netanyahu. In 1996, Bill Clinton once fumed, Whos the fucking leader of the free world? Trump said fuck him, after Netanyahu acknowledged Bidens election victory in 2020. But few of those were meant as calls to action, leaving Harris, as she said in her discussion, breaking down barriers. As many as 3,000 communities representing more than 200 million people remain with little or no knowledge of Jesus and little to no visible and indigenous church presence. The majority of these Unreached and Unengaged People Groups (UUPGs) live in parts of the world where Christian faith is prohibited, restricted, or suppressed. This usually occurs because of government restrictions or the predominance of another major faith. Sharing the gospel in these environments is challenging at best. However, persistent, quiet, and creative strategies continue to spread the good news of Jesus in seemingly impossible places. Mission focused networks play a critical role in these challenging contexts, facilitating collaboration among local and global organizations and believers, helping them overcome barriers that no individual or single organization could surmount on their own. They provide an understanding of difficult areas to the global mission movement. They also encourage local believers and ensure their voice is heard and respected. The Beginnings The first mission focused network began in the late 1980s. Interdev, the predecessor organization of visionSynergy and International Partnering Associates, organized meetings bringing together representatives from several ministries working in North Africa. Each person was experienced, but all worked independently of one another. Even though they came from evangelical denominations, some had organizational policies that prevented engagement with others who had certain doctrinal differences. Over more than a century, hundreds gave their lives to share the gospel in the region with little fruit. Even though a small and committed Church existed, growth eluded it. The meetings gave space for the group to consider growth hindrances and to pray together. Over several months of discussions and prayer, they discovered not only ways working together would eliminate obstacles, but also core protocols which would build a foundation for continued collaboration. As duplication reduced and coordination expanded, opportunities opened for more ministries. Then, improved support to local churches helped multiply local believers. This breakthrough continues to give energy to ongoing area cooperation. The slowly, steadily growing Church increasingly takes the lead in regional initiatives. And while the region remains one of the worlds least reached, collaboration fosters a ministry culture that equips both local and foreign believers to serve side-by-side more effectively. Stay informed with The Christian Daily Newsletter Sign up Building on successes like this, additional mission focus networks started in the 1990s and 2000s. By 2005 more than twenty of these networks brought together organizations in challenging settings. Today, there are more than one hundred mission focus networks that have launched thousands of partnerships. Staying Secure In many hard-to-reach places, isolation characterized evangelism efforts. Deeply embedded foreign workers often engage in tent-making jobs that provide them a presence in a country to cultivate gospel-sharing relationships with local people. Any organized connections with other workers or local churches could expel foreign workers from the country. They could expose underground churches. They could restrict visible churches or trigger the destruction of their properties. They could also land local believers in prison or cause their torture or death. In one place, decades of collaboration attempts repeatedly failed. Staying separate provided protection and attaining enough trust to do otherwise seemed unattainable. In 2011 a partnership facilitator made one more effort to bring workers together. He says the group fell prey to a common false dichotomy. They believed sharing everything or nothing were their only choices. Through a series of meetings, he worked with the group to move beyond this false assumption. Building trust required agreed-to protocols. Together they created more than ten practices for information sharing ways to protect data like names, organizations, locations, etc. that everyone could agree on. Since then, the group has met every ninety days. Security protocols like this are an operational standard for mission focused networks. Information-sharing practices allow content exchange with reduced risk. These networks universally require anyone attending their meetings to be recommended and vetted. Another network uses an app at its meetings to help participants to connect anonymously, if they desire. Shifting Focus For many years people prayed fervently for God to open the Soviet Union to the gospel. In the 1980s, one prayer movement focused on Soviet countries within Asia. As the empire crumbled in 1989, this prayer movement became a network. As more workers started to enter the region, the network provided a platform for working together. Church planting was the highest priority, and as people worked together the number of local congregations increased. Collaborative efforts also brought notable progress to Scripture translation, medical ministry, and theological education. However, as the community of local believers in the region grew, so did their participation in the network. Today, believers from the region lead the network and make up more than half of this group which was once almost entirely foreigners. Network meetings are also now conducted in Russian along with English. The change of network constituents shifted priorities. While church planting is still important, local concerns such as developing youth ministries, organizing Christian business leaders, and supporting pastors have become leading issues for the network. In another network, a partnership facilitator explains that increased local involvement unexpectedly shifted a meeting agenda. As local church leaders presented reports on the state of Christianity in their nations, they began to weep. The leaders spontaneously came together to confess, pray, hug, and restore their relationships with one another. Reconciliation wasnt slotted into the program, but it was clearly a plan deviation led by the Holy Spirit. Amplifying the Local Voice In 2004, an American businessman, John, went to a war-torn area in East Africa on a short-term medical mission trip. He witnessed first-hand the impact of the conflicts destruction. He described the area as bereft of infrastructure and observed people surviving on insects and bark. He came home motivated to give more help. Over the next ten years, John continued researching, connecting with others in or from the region, and returning to bring humanitarian aid including food and medicine. His desire to do more gospel work in the region strengthened, and God connected him with local and international partners who wanted to join him. In 2014 they launched GNAC (gnac4nuba.com). The network brings together missionaries, church leaders, and humanitarian workers, including foreigners and local people as well as diaspora. Nearly seventy percent of the networks participants are pastors and evangelists from the region, and a local pastor leads the network on the ground. Regular conferences enable these scattered and persecuted believers the chance to encourage each other, meet, and plan. Foreign participants learn from the local community, listen to their needs, and can then engage in ways the community feels are most beneficial. In other networks, leaders confirm that high levels of local involvement in networks amplify the voice of local communities to the global Church. When foreigners attending network events come with a teachable and humble attitude, they gain contextual understanding and develop local relationships that enable them to participate helpfully in the region. Some churches enter foreign countries with the goal of spreading their own ecclesial DNA. They use money to manipulate local pastors into using foreign strategies, curriculum, or church models. Bruce Huseby, a pastor from the US with long-term network involvement, notes that from his observation, this method consistently fails and fractures the local Christian body. Beram Kumar, a network leader in Asia, describes an approach like this as a moon-landing because churches and agencies come into a foreign place with a strategy that has no input from local believers as if they dont exist. Their good intentions disrupt the work of local congregations and cause pain to fellow believers who know the culture better than outsiders. Through networks, foreign individuals, agencies, and churches can gain exposure to the context and develop local connections. When they come to network events to learn and not to push their own agendas, opportunities for ministry arise through relationships and are locally infused. In fact, the best networks cultivate sharing economies where all parties can give and receive from one another. Getting Involved Most mission focused networks do not advertise. Engagement begins with research and prayer. For those looking to enter a new region, the websites peoplegroups.org and joshuaproject.net provide information about unreached and unengaged people groups around the world. Prayercast.com has videos to facilitate prayer for nations. Ask God where he wants your organization or church to serve and see where he leads. Connecting with mission focused networks comes through personal relationships. An entry could come through a missionary serving in a strategic location or an agency already at work there. Many network leaders also present their networks at large mission conferences. For a more direct connection, the GENMobile App and LinkingGlobalVoices.com include directories of hundreds of networks including their contact details. They list some, but not all, mission focused networks. Attend a meeting to learn, explore, and form relationships. Develop plans slowly in collaboration with local believers and discover together how you can give and receive from one another. Keep in mind that persecution is real and honoring security protocols may mean limiting what can be reported publicly. And, finally, remember that work in sensitive places usually produces few immediate results. Focus on how God is growing you with others as you labor together to sow seeds for a future harvest. Heather Pubols, is a global communications consultant and founder of LeMotif (lemotif.org), a ministry focused on helping organizations and networks tell their collective stories effectively. In October 2021, she became the editor of Evangelical Missions Quarterly. She also serves as Christian Daily International's Acting Managing Editor. 2023 Evangelical Missions Quarterly, emqonline.com. This article was originally published in January 2020 in EMQ, Volume 56, Issue 1. Republished with permission. Lithuanias president, Gitanas Nauseda, casts his ballot in an election that has pitted him against prime minister Ingrida Simonyte. Photograph: Petras Malukas/AFP/Getty Images Lithuanias president, Gitanas Nauseda, appears on course for a second term after a first round of voting, following a campaign dominated by the war in Ukraine and fears over neighbouring Russia. Nauseda won 44% of votes cast in Sundays election, electoral commission data showed, while prime minister Ingrida Simonyte won 20%. As no candidate won more than 50% the pair will head to a run-off election on 26 May. Speaking to reporters after voting ended, Nauseda pledged to keep up pressure on the countrys western allies for increased military support for Ukraine. Related: Western military trainers could go to Ukraine, Lithuania minister says Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy already said it all. They dont need our declarations of good will, they are of no use in a fight they need air defences Until they have air defences, Ukraine will stay vulnerable, he said. The 59-year-old former banker said he was confident of victory in the second round and would require no strategy to campaign against Simonyte. Simonyte, the current prime minister and the only woman among the seven candidates who ran, is a 49-year-old fiscal conservative with liberal views on social issues. Nausedas campaign focused on Russias war in Ukraine and its impact on Lithuanias national security, including the prospect of a potential act of aggression by Russia on Lithuanian territory. Just over half of Lithuanians believe a Russian attack is possible or very likely, an Elta/Baltijos Tyrimai poll has found; this is a common feeling across the Baltics. Last week the countrys foreign minister, Gabrielius Landsbergis, raised the prospect of an ad hoc coalition of western countries sending military training personnel into Ukraine backed by ground-based air defence, lending support to ideas mooted by the French president, Emmanuel Macron. Most of the candidates running in Sundays election, including Simonyte and Nauseda, told the national broadcaster they kept food stockpiles at home ready in case of a military conflict. I am doing all I can to make sure it will not be needed, Nauseda said during a televised debate. Nauseda and Simonyte support increasing defence spending to at least 3% of Lithuanias GDP, higher than the expected 2024 average in the EU of 2%, and a fraction of the estimated 30% of GDP the Kremlin is putting in Russias war economy. The Baltic states feel exceptionally vulnerable to the threat from Russia, with the first of 4,800 German troops arriving last month as part of a Nato plan to strengthen security between now and 2027. European leaders believe that even if a peace deal were struck in Ukraine, Putin would regroup with the aim of launching further incursions in the next decade. The aim is to pay for the modernisation of Lithuanias army and infrastructure to support a brigade of German troops and their families that will be deployed in Lithuania and combat-ready from 2027. While agreeing on Russia policy, the two top candidates in the election differ on issues such as same-sex civil partnerships, which Nauseda opposes, and have a history of acrimonious bickering and refusing to speak to each other. Lithuanias president has a semi-executive role, which includes heading the armed forces and chairing the supreme defence and national security policy body, and representing the country at EU and Nato summits. Reuters and Agence France-Presse contributed to this report Migrants crossing the Channel Asylum seekers cannot be deported to Rwanda from Northern Ireland, a high court judge has ruled. Mr Justice Humphreys said the Governments law allowing asylum seekers to be deported to Rwanda should be disapplied in Northern Ireland as it undermined human rights protections guaranteed in the region under post-Brexit arrangements. The judge also said that aspects of the Illegal Migration Act were incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The Act, introduced last year, gives ministers powers to detain asylum seekers who have arrived illegally in the UK and deport them to a safe third country such as Rwanda. The post-Brexit Windsor Framework jointly agreed by the UK and EU includes a stipulation that there can be no diminution of the rights provisions contained within Northern Irelands Good Friday peace agreement of 1998. Mr Justice Humphreys found that several elements of the Act caused a significant diminution of the rights enjoyed by asylum seekers residing in Northern Ireland under the terms of the Good Friday Agreement. We must start the flights The legal challenge was brought by the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission on behalf of a 16-year-old asylum seeker from Iran, who arrived in the UK from France by small boat as a child and is now living in the region. The Government vowed to appeal the ruling in the Northern Irish courts while Rishi Sunak insisted the court judgment would not derail or delay his Rwanda scheme and plans for deportation flights by July. Hundreds of migrants have been detained in the past two weeks ahead of their removal. This judgment changes nothing about our operational plans to send illegal migrants to Rwanda this July or the lawfulness of our illegal migration act, said the Prime Minister. We continue to work to get regular flights off to Rwanda in the coming weeks and nothing will distract us from that or delivering to the timetable I set out. We must start the flights to stop the boats. I have been consistently clear that the commitments in the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement should be interpreted as they were always intended, and not expanded to cover issues like illegal migration. We will take all steps to defend that position, including through appeal. Pave the way for legal challenge Immigration lawyers said the decision was potentially very significant but they did not believe it would affect the initial flights as the migrants earmarked for deportation on the planes entered the UK before the Illegal Migration Act got royal assent. However, they believed it could pave the way for a legal challenge in England and Wales if and when the Government activated the provisions of the Illegal Migration Act and sought to deport them under that piece of legislation. Government lawyers had argued it was inappropriate to declare parts of uncommenced legislation as being incompatible with the Human Rights Act, which puts the ECHR into UK law. But the court said, given the Governments repeated statements it was bringing the Rwanda plan into force, that it would. It found the Illegal Migration Act broke human rights rules on the treatment of children, potential victims of modern slavery and the removal of migrants to Rwanda before their claims were determined. Gavin Robinson, the DUP leader, said his party had repeatedly warned that the Governments efforts on immigration would not apply in Northern Ireland but it had not listened. Whilst todays judgment does not come as a surprise, it does blow the Governments irrational claims that the Rwanda scheme could extend equally to Northern Ireland completely out of the water, he said. Mr Robinson said the ruling had to be a watershed moment. Ignoring the courts would be sleepwalking into the creation of immigration border in the Irish Sea, he added. Israeli soldiers with an armoured personnel carrier near the Israel-Gaza border on Saturday. Photograph: Amir Cohen/Reuters The parents of more than 900 Israeli soldiers deployed in Gaza have signed a letter urging the military to call off its ongoing offensive in Rafah, calling it a deadly trap for their children. It is evident to anyone with common sense that after months of warnings and announcements regarding an incursion into Rafah, there are forces on the other side actively preparing to strike our troops, says the letter, sent on 2 May. Our sons are physically and mentally exhausted, adds the letter, addressed to the defence minister, Yoav Gallant, and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) chief of staff, Lt Gen Herzi Halevi. And now, you intend to send them into this perilous situation? This appears to be nothing short of recklessness. The letter was initially signed by the parents of about 600 soldiers but in recent days the parents of another 300 have signed it. Between 360,000 and 500,000 Palestinians have fled Rafah in the past week after Israeli warnings to evacuate eastern and central neighbourhoods before new assaults that look set to open a bloody new phase of the eight-month conflict. The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has suggested he will reject US pressure to hold off on a full-scale attack on the city, where about 1 million Palestinians sought shelter after fleeing fighting earlier in the conflict. Related: No safe place: people in Rafah describe terror as Israeli assault begins Any fighting in Rafah is likely to be complex and difficult. Hamas have had months to reinforce defences there and tunnel complexes under the city are thought to be largely intact. Rafah is a death trap, said Anat, the mother of an Israeli special forces soldier deployed in Gaza. Hamas had a lot of time to prepare the place for the killing of our soldiers. We are very concerned and worried. Israel has portrayed the city as Hamass last stronghold, saying it must invade in order to succeed in its goals of dismantling the group, killing its leadership and returning the 132 hostages that remain missing. Elsewhere in the war-ravaged territory Hamas has been able to reimpose its authority after IDF operations. Our apprehensions have materialised as we witness the military withdrawing promptly from an area, only for Hamas to swiftly regain control over it, Anat said. In the first months of the war we backed the whole operation. There was no other choice but to fight and get rid of Hamas in Gaza. But in the last months, we understand there is no clear plan. The IDF initially called up 350,000 reservists for the military offensive against Hamas launched in the aftermath of the October surprise attack launched by the extremist Islamist organisation into southern Israel, which killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians . Most were released from service in January, though some have now been mobilised again for the Rafah offensive. Three divisions of the IDF are now active in Gaza, the largest force for several months. Idit, the mother of an Israeli commander, said: My son sent me a message on WhatsApp a few minutes ago. They are on the move to Rafah, he told me. And Im terrified. We are not against the mission to fight Hamas, but entering Rafah does not justify this mission. Idit said her son did not want to enter Rafah, but he will, because he is loyal to the army. More than 34,500 Palestinians have died during the Israeli offensive, which has caused massive destruction of housing, hospitals, mosques and schools. The war began in October when Hamas attacked southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people, about a quarter of them soldiers. More than 270 Israeli soldiers have been killed in the offensive in Gaza, bringing the total military losses to at least 600, including those who died in October . The Israeli authorities have not responded to the letter from the soldiers parents. However, speaking at a Memorial Day ceremony at the Western Wall in Jerusalem on Sunday, Halevi said he was responsible for providing answers to the families of troops who had been killed. I am the commander who sent your sons and daughters to the battle from which they did not return, and to the posts from which they were kidnapped, Halevi said. I carry with me every day the memory of the fallen, and I am responsible for answering the sharp questions that keep you awake. Support for the aims of the war in Israel remains strong, but there is growing anger at senior policymakers as the conflict goes on. There were widespread protests over the weekend, with thousands taking to the streets to call for the resignation of Netanyahu and immediate elections for a new government. Other demonstrations called for Netanyahu to do more to secure the return of the hostages still held by Hamas. About 250 Israelis and other nationals were taken to Gaza on 7 October, and 80 released in return for 240 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails during a short-lived truce in November. Relatives of hostages walked out of a speech by Netanyahu during a ceremony in Jerusalem to mark Israels Memorial Day, which commemorates Israels war dead and civilian victims of terrorism, on Monday. In the southern city of Ofakim, at a similar ceremony, the mother of a hostage confronted a far-right minister who has fiercely opposed concessions to Hamas in return for a ceasefire deal. In Tel Aviv, protest signs were waved with the slogan Their blood is on your hands before a speech by Yoav Gallant, the defence minister. Additional reporting by Shady Giorgio A small plane has performed a successful emergency landing without its landing gear lowered at Newcastle airport in New South Wales. The authorities who guided the aircraft down burst into applause as it safely landed on its belly on Monday afternoon. The plane had been circling above Newcastle for almost four hours with three people onboard, including the pilot, after discovering the mechanical issue almost immediately after departing for a flight to Port Macquarie. Authorities had been bracing for a fiery emergency, with more than a dozen crews including fire trucks, police, the State Emergency Service and ambulances at Newcastle airport. An operations room had been set up at a nearby defence base at Williamtown. Related: What makes someone rich? Find out how your income and wealth compares Onlookers gathered at the airport with the crowd erupting in cheers as the plane landed on its belly without significant damage at about 12.20pm. The pilot and passengers walked away from the plane. Pilot Peter Schott said the ordeal was just another day in the air. I learnt to fly before I could drive, he said. Everything was thrown at us: bad weather, the storm, there was about 20 pelicans downwind ... so bird hazards Supt Wayne Humphrey said 53-year-old Schott, from Queensland, realised there was a mechanical issue after taking off and began circling while he tried to resolve it. The pilot later determined the landing gear would not come back down. He stayed here and burned off fuel, Humphrey said of the planes time in the air above Newcastle. I could hear him on the air. He sounded very calm to me. Humphrey said that after about 90 minutes of burning off fuel the pilot performed a textbook wheels-up landing which I was very happy to see. Neither the pilot nor his two passengers a 60-year-old man and a 65-year-old woman were injured. Humphrey said that after landing, the two passengers jumped in a car and drove home to Tuggerawong, where they live, roughly an hours drive south of the airport. Authorities in the operations room applauded when the plane landed. We applauded, of course we did, nobody got hurt, were very happy. Everybody applauded, Humphrey said. Initial indications suggested the issue was a mechanical failure and that nothing untoward occurred, Humphrey said. Newcastle airport was to remain closed for about 24 hours as recovery tasks were conducted. The flight was the most-watched service on major flight tracking websites on Monday morning as observers across the globe followed developments. The Beechcraft B200 Super King Air turboprop plane, which is normally configured to seat about 13 passengers, flies private charter routes out of Eastern Air Services base in Port Macquarie. It departed Newcastle airport at about 8.30am on Monday but did not appear to fly towards Port Macquarie, immediately entering a circling holding pattern before emergency services were alerted at about 9.30am. Newcastle airport shares runway facilities with the neighbouring Royal Australian Air Force base at Williamtown. A defence spokesperson said a civilian King Air aircraft reported in-flight technical issues to air traffic control at RAAF Base Williamtown. Defence and emergency services at RAAF Base Williamtown are providing support to the aircraft, the defence spokesperson said. A NSW police spokesperson said authorities responded to reports of a plane with inoperative landing gear. About 9.30am today, emergency services were called to Newcastle airport following reports of an aircraft with mechanical issues, NSW police said in a statement. Officers attached Port Stephens Hunter police district are on scene. No further details are known at this stage. While the plane was in the air, Doug Drury, a professor of aviation at Central Queensland University, said the pilot would probably be in constant contact with maintenance teams troubleshooting the problem. My guess would be its not so much burning off fuel as it is trying to figure out what the problem is and if there is anything they can do to fix it prior to having put it on the ground, Drury said as the plane was circling. If youre landing without your landing gear youre going to do quite a bit of damage to the engines as well as the belly of the aircraft. I would imagine they would also attempt to do a grass landing if possible, but with all the rain weve experienced lately that might make it difficult. However, Drury said if there were fire crews on the ground waiting Id imagine they could also put in on a runway. They would be in contact with a maintenance team to go through as many trials as they can, like pull this circuit breaker, pull this switch, try this, try that, he said. James Cleverly, the Home Secretary, said nobody should be criminalised for having nowhere to live, but the legislation was aimed at antisocial or intimidating behaviour - Victoria Jones Plans to criminalise homelessness have been dropped in the face of a Conservative backbench rebellion. Rough sleepers will only be prosecuted if they harass people, engage in anti-social behaviour or intimidate the public under government concessions to head off the revolt. James Cleverly, the Home Secretary, has dropped plans that would have given police powers to fine or move on rough sleepers for any nuisance, including having an excessive smell. More than 40 Tory MPs had threatened to rebel over the plans originally put forward by Suella Braverman, his predecessor, claiming they were so broadly drawn that a homeless person could be prosecuted simply for sleeping in a doorway. The concessions will be laid out by the Government in amendments to the Criminal Justice Bill ahead of a vote on Wednesday scrapping the Vagrancy Act, which criminalises people who sleep rough. Mr Cleverly said: Nobody should be criminalised for having nowhere to live, but as we have always said, we will not accept behaviour that is antisocial or intimidating to the public, such as rough sleeping in a way that blocks a local business or fire escape. Police guidance Police will be issued with guidance stipulating that they should aim first to engage with homeless people and offer them support rather than criminalising them. If an individual is causing antisocial behaviour or intimidating the public, they could be served with a notice that could require them to stop behaving in that way or move on. If they ignore such a notice without reasonable excuse, it could be prosecuted as a criminal offence and lead to the imposition of a court order for which they could be fined and ordered to attend drug treatment. The Government will also remove references to smells which had been taken to open the way for prosecuting a rough sleeper not able to wash. The Home Office said it had been intended to tackle dumped rubbish or human waste. Ministers are also rewriting the Bill to remove suggestions that rough sleepers could be handed court orders if they were felt by police to be capable of causing damage or distress or intended to sleep rough or gave the appearance of sleeping rough. Maximum fine dropped Fines will be at the discretion of courts instead of setting a benchmark maximum of 2,000 which critics had claimed was an unrealistic amount for a homeless person. A rebel MP source said the Government had made significant concessions while accepting the need to scrap the Vagrancy Act. Mr Cleverly and Chris Philp, the policing minister, both insisted that the Government remains committed to ending rough sleeping although the latest snapshot figures for England released earlier this year showed the number of people recorded sleeping rough on a given night had risen by 27 per cent in one year to 3,898. Expert group The Kerslake Commission on Homelessness and Rough Sleeping last year predicted that the Government will not meet its target to end rough sleeping by the end of this Parliament, which was a 2019 Conservative manifesto commitment. Mr Philp said: Ending rough sleeping is a key priority for the Government and is why we have a plan to tackle the root causes of why people end up on the streets, backed by an unprecedented 2.4 billion. Powers not needed Crisis, the homelessness charity, said it was pleased to see the Government has removed some of the more outrageous measures contained in the Bill. But Matt Downie, the organisations chief executive, said that sadly the premise of the proposed laws remains the same. He said: People forced to sleep rough will continue to be viewed as a nuisance and they will remain at risk of fines and prison sentences. This is unacceptable. We have said time and time again that these powers are not needed. Carles Puigdemont addresses the audience after the Catalan election results at Junts headquarters in Argeles sur Mer, south-west France, on Sunday - MATTHIEU RONDEL/AFP Carles Puigdemont, the Catalan separatist leader, has said he will seek to form a government in the region, despite Sundays election failing to give a majority to independence parties. Mr Puigdemont, an MEP who campaigned for his Junts party on French soil to avoid being arrested for leading an unlawful attempt to launch an independent Catalonia in 2017, said he would go to the regional parliament in Barcelona to present himself as a candidate for president. I am not going to put on a show, Mr Puigdemont said. There are genuine options to obtain enough votes, he added. Junts was second in Sundays election, with 35 seats in the 135-member Catalan parliament. The Socialist Party of Catalonia (PSC) came first with 42, while ERC, another separatist party, came third with 20 seats. It is the first time since 1984 that Catalan nationalist parties do not form a majority in the parliament. Analysts say the Socialists could ally with the radical-Left Comuns Sumar, which won six seats, and moderate independence party ERC, which won 20, to govern. Pere Aragones holds a press conference to announce he's quitting frontline politics following ERC's poor results in Sunday's Catalan elections - Quique Garcia/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock The most logical pathway to power would require ERC to support Socialist leader Salvador Illa in his bid to forge a government that would abandon the separatists push for independence. However, Pere Aragones, ERCs leader and Catalonias outgoing president, said he wanted to go into opposition, potentially ruling out governing with either the Socialists or Junts. But there remains a possibility the party could abstain and allow the Socialists to govern in minority. Mr Puigdemont insisted that he had a stronger claim than Mr Illa to preside over the regions next government, apparently taking for granted that ERC would rally to his call for unity among pro-independence forces. Mr Illa has indicated that he wishes to open a new era as Catalonias president. Spains government relies on ERC and Junts Spains government, led by socialist prime minister Pedro Sanchez, Mr Illas political boss, relies on the support of both ERC and Junts in the national parliament. Mr Puigdemont warned the Socialists that an attempt to make Mr Illa president of Catalonia by seeking the support of the conservative Peoples Party, which quintupled its seats in Catalonia to 15, would lead Junts to withdraw its support for Mr Sanchez. This year Mr Sanchezs government agreed to pass an amnesty law that will allow Mr Puigdemont to avoid going on trial in Spain on charges relating to 2017s secession attempt. Representatives of the Socialist Party and Junts are engaged in talks being held in Switzerland on the future of Catalonia, although Mr Sanchez has publicly ruled out allowing a referendum on independence. Rachel Roddys panna cotta topped with frozen fruit compote. Photograph: Rachel Roddy/The Guardian In her book of English puddings, and in the delightful chapter about jellies, blancmanges and flummeries, Mary Norwak notes that the art of thickening began in medieval times. Fruit pectin had long been used as a way of preserving and thickening, but it was the practice of extracting collagen from fish or meat bones that, in the 1300s, allowed for new ways of setting jellies first savoury, then sweet in (privileged) kitchens. Then, in the 16th century, isinglass, made from the dried swim bladders of sturgeon, made its way from Russia to England via Dutch traders. Primarily used for the clarification of beer, isinglass provided another means of setting, until the process was revolutionised again in the early 1700s by the invention of the pressure cooker. Denis Papins digester, as it was called, meant that bones could be boiled down efficiently, paving the way for powders, capsules, blocks and, eventually, leaves and latticed sheets of gelatine, which opened to everyone a world of puddings that wobble. In his Gran Dizionario Della Gastronomia Del Piemonte, Sandro Doglio makes reference to the story that a Hungarian woman introduced panna cotta to Piedmont in the early 19th century; Anna Del Conte, meanwhile, suggests it has been served there for centuries. Either way, it is a lovely pudding; tender and slightly amusing. I do think Panna-leggermente-riscaldata (gently warmed cream) or panna-leggermente-impostata (gently set cream) are more accurate descriptions than panna-cotta (cooked cream), but somehow I dont think either of my suggestions will catch on. How many leaves of gelatine, though? It depends on how you like your set, and on how long you leave it in the fridge. Based on half a litre of single cream and 2g dry leaves: if you want the consistency of a car tyre, use five sheets (which, incidentally, is the quantity my packet of Italian gelatine suggests for 500ml). If you want a firm consistency with a swaying wobble when nudged, use four sheets. For a softer set into which a spoon will sink, take my friend Gaias advice and use three. And if you want a risky set that means you worry it wont turn out and, when it does, it sinks slightly, but which is also tender and, for me, most enjoyable to eat (its such a personal thing), use two-and-a-half sheets. After leaving the freezer door open due to over-stuffing it recently, I have made a commitment to eating everything in our (not very big) freezer over the next few weeks. This includes a bag of frozen mixed berries, which, like peas, are a food that both freezes well and provides convenient, undemanding pleasure. Mixed berries are also the perfect partner for panna cotta, both for their tart sharpness and for their colour: defiant lipstick for a pudding. Panna cotta with (frozen) fruit compote Prep 15 min Cook 10 min Set 2 hr + Serves 4-6 500ml single cream 1 vanilla pod 50g icing sugar, plus 1 level tbsp for the compote 2 gelatine sheets 200g frozen fruit Put the cream in a pan. Split the vanilla pod, scrape out the seeds with the blade of a knife, then put the pod, seeds and icing sugar in the cream pan and bring slowly to a simmer. Once it is warm, pull out the pod. Meanwhile, soak the gelatine in a little cold water until soft. Squeeze out the excess water, add the leaves to the pan, take off the heat, immediately add the gelatine leaves and stir until they dissolve. Divide the mixture between four to six ramekins or little glasses (or metal ramekins or dariole moulds if you want to invert the set creams later), leave to cool, then put in the fridge to set two hours seems optimal to me, but they can stay in there for much longer. While it sets, warm the fruit with a tablespoon of icing sugar until the sugar dissolves. Remove half the fruit, pass it through a sieve, then return the puree to the pan with the rest of the fruit. To serve, invert the panna cottas on to plates (in which case, dip the bases in boiling water to loosen them first) and serve with fruit poured over; alternatively, spoon a layer of fruit directly on top of the creams in their ramekins/glasses for a two-tone, gently warmed, softly set pudding. The ships are designed to rapidly transport the Royal Marines Commando Force from sea to shore around the world - Anthony Upton The Royal Marines are to get up to six new ships which can launch drones and fire laser weapons, The Telegraph can reveal. Grant Shapps has announced that development has begun on the new Multi Role Support Ships (MRSS), which will be specialist warships designed to rapidly transport the Royal Marines Commando Force from sea to shore around the world. In an interview with The Telegraph, the Defence Secretary said he was investing money into the support ships because Britain will need to fight and win future battles with China at sea. Were making these critical investments in shipbuilding to build the future Royal Navy needed to deter our adversaries, and then win if they are not deterred, Mr Shapps said. As nations like China and Russia invest heavily in their militaries we must make sure the UK leads our allies so that the West is not left behind. An image of what the Multi Role Support Ship will look like - BMT Mr Shapps will make the announcement for the new MRSS at the First Sea Lords Sea Power Conference at Lancaster House on Tuesday. His comments come after the Prime Minister committed 75 billion in new funding to the Ministry of Defence, taking the defence budget to 2.5 per cent of national wealth by the start of 2030. The MRSS are the first piece of new equipment Mr Shapps has pledged to buy with his increased budget. The new vessels will feature docks for landing craft, a hangar that can take a Chinook as well as a launch pad for helicopters and will crucially have the ability to host and launch attack drones from a dock that can be lowered into the water. It is also hoped that DragonFire, a high-powered laser beam that can shoot down enemy drones and missiles, will be fitted on ships. Earlier this year DragonFire achieved the UKs first high-power firing of a laser weapon against aerial targets. Although the range of DragonFire is classified, it is a line-of-sight weapon and can engage with any visible target at only 10 a shot. It has been developed to hit missiles, drones and other enemy targets and runs on electric power, as opposed to ammunition. Mr Shapps, who in his role as Defence Secretary is also the shipbuilding tsar, said the new vessels, which will replace the ageing HMS Albion and HMS Bulwark amphibious assault ships, as well as RFA Lyme Bay, Mounts Bay and Cardigan Bay, had ensured a secure future for the marines. This is the thing which secures the Commandos future, Mr Shapps said on a visit to a shipyard in Scotland. The Royal Marines, in decades to come, are secure in their future with the new fleet of ships being built. The DragonFire laser weapon can hit missiles, drones and other enemy targets and could be fitted on the ships - Ministry of Defence/Crown copyright/PA He said the Navy had learnt lessons from the conflict in Ukraine and that as the nature of sea warfare has evolved, so has the types of ships needed for the marines. Obviously we are a Blue Sea Navy, we go everywhere around the entire world, he said. But we also know we need to be flexible enough to incorporate the lessons of, for example, the way that the Black Sea fleet has been immobilised, in many cases sunk, without firing torpedoes from conventional large ships. These multirole ships will be able to be much more flexible in their approach and allow us to operate at both those levels. The vessels will also be spacious with the view to housing shipping containers inside, which enable the space to be transformed and able to carry a wide variety of cargo depending on its mission. A senior Navy source said: The whole point of the MRSS, which we call non-complex warships, is to build an adaptable hull. Its the next iteration of Bay Class because today you need to build ships that have got space in them. These will be better than the ships they replace as they will be cheaper to run and have greater adaptability with hangers to take helicopters and landing craft. They will also be more environmentally friendly as they will be designed to use adaptable fuels. The MRSS are the first piece of new equipment Grant Shapps has pledged to buy with his increased budget - Jeff Gilbert Mr Shapps added the fact that the new MRSS ships literally have multiple roles is crucial to the future of warfare at sea. Were not building a ship that can only ever go and storm the beach and nothing else. Were building a ship that could be as useful offshore, were building a ship that could launch drones in the air and on the sea. Were building a ship that could send commandos beneath the sea to their final location. Asked how to prepare the UK to be able to fight Russia in 10 years time, Mr Shapps, who became Defence Secretary in August last year, said it was impossible to answer. Its the thing that every Defence Secretary stays awake at night thinking about, he said. Weve all had this thought in the depths of night because the hardest thing in military strategy is to work out how the next war is going to look. You will, by definition, never get that right. However, he said one thing he remained certain would be used in the future was drones. When I became Defence Secretary, there would have been a very limited number of drones within our entire Armed Forces. Now, in the month, were probably producing more than existed in the Armed Forces stock when I became Defence Secretary. Laser weapons, but also radio wave denial weapons technologies like that werent even a thing. So there are things you definitely want in your stockpile. I dont think we will ever go wrong by having higher levels of stockpiles. The Robert W Scherer Power Plant, a coal-fired electricity plant in Georgia. There's little chance of retiring such plants with demand growing at current rates - Christopher Aluka Berry/Reuters Concerns are growing among energy analysts, executives, and media outlets covering the energy space about the feasibility of the Biden administrations efforts to subsidize an energy transition from fossil fuels to renewables into reality. Big power demands to supply electric vehicle (EV) recharging, crypto mining operations, and renewable industrial growth needs were already straining the capacities of Americas regional power grids. But now, the explosive growth of AI and its insatiable thirst for electricity threatens to overwhelm them. These factors put at risk the central planning conceit that the government can overrule market forces through a combination of heavy debt-funded subsidies for renewables and electric cars combined with a withering flood of regulations designed to limit the energy choices of manufacturers and consumers. Despite the federal, state, and local governments having poured hundreds of billions of subsidy dollars into renewables and EVs over the past quarter century, the growth pace of those alternatives has never managed even to match incremental increases in demand. The advent of new technologies like AI and the power demands of their own industries now threaten to not just overwhelm renewables growth, but also derail Biden administration efforts to force more coal and natural gas power plants into retirement via costly new regulations. Grid managers and state regulators are already working to extend permits to extend the lives of these reliable baseload plants to accommodate the growth of AI-related data centers in their jurisdictions. Officials at Dominion Energy informed investors in their quarterly earnings announcement that both the number and the size of new data centers are rapidly expanding. Dominion pointed out that it has entered into power supply agreements for 84 data centers comprising 4 GW of power needs since 2019. But this year, the company is working to meet the needs of 15 new data centers in Northern Virginia alone whose power demands will equal or exceed that level of capacity. Baltimore-based Constellation Energy says it is planning to build modular nuclear units at some of its existing plant locations in its efforts to meet soaring demand driven by new data centers. As quoted by Reuters, Constellation CEO Joseph Dominguez told investors during the companys Q1 earnings call that, Were seeing interest in developing projects that are on a size and scale that presently dont exist. On his earnings call, American Electric Power (AEP) interim CEO Ben Fowkes said his company is developing plans to meet at least 15 GW of additional power demands by 2030, driven largely by new data centers. I see the need to increase capital spend in the future, including incremental investment related to commercial load growth from data centers and resiliency spend, Fowkes said. In a December, 2023 report, the firm Grid Strategies estimated that demand will grow by 4.7 per cent annually over the next 5 years. But, the report warns, while Grid planners forecast peak demand growth of 38 gigawatts (GW) through 2028This is likely an underestimateNext years forecast is likely to show an even higher nationwide growth rate. Grid Strategies also warns that, The US electric grid is not prepared for significant load growth, noting that The US installed 1,700 miles of new high-voltage transmission miles per year on average in the first half of the 2010s but dropped to only 645 miles per year on average in the second half of the 2010s. Grid Strategies joins many others in pointing to archaic and overly-complex permitting requirements as a major inhibitor to growth. What it all means is that, rather than being embarked on a government-forced march to replace one form of power generation (fossil fuels) with other forms preferred by the government (wind and solar), grid managers will need all forms of generation just to keep pace with skyrocketing demand which, as Grid Strategies says, is most likely being underestimated by current reports. I have been fortunate to conduct a series of interviews over the past two years with Dan Yergin, Vice Chairman at S&P Global and best-selling author of The New Map. Across those two years, Yergin has consistently voiced his view that the world is not currently engaged in any real sort of an energy transition. He contends that instead, a massive exercise in energy innovation and energy addition is taking place, views he re-emphasized in our most recent discussion in March. Even as Yergins views are proving prescient, the Biden energy and climate policies increasingly look to be coming down on the wrong side of history and Americas real energy needs. Market demands are dictating that a major re-thinking of these policies is in order; unfortunately, no one in the Biden administration seems to be paying attention. This is a recipe for a real energy crisis, probably sooner than anyone expects. From left: Chung Biu Yuen, 63, Chi Leung Wai, 38, Matthew Trickett, 37 A Border Force officer and a Home Office immigration official were among three people charged on Monday with spying for Hong Kong. Chi Leung Wai, 38, Matthew Trickett, 37, and Chung Biu Yuen, 63, are accused of spying on pro-democracy activists living in the UK. China reacted angrily to the charges. Its London embassy said: We strongly condemn the UKs unwarranted accusation against the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government. Mr Wai, also known as Peter, works at Heathrow Airport for Border Force UK, and is alleged to have carried out surveillance and hostile reconnaissance on behalf of the Hong Kong intelligence service. He is also a volunteer special constable with the City of London Police. Mr Trickett is a Home Office immigration enforcement officer, who had spent six years as a commando in the Royal Marines. Matthew Trickett works for the Home Office as an immigration enforcement officer The third man charged, Mr Yuen, is a retired Hong Kong police officer, who is employed as a Hong Kong trade official based in London. The men were detained following an investigation by counter-terrorism police in which 11 people were arrested under the National Security Act, which was introduced last year to tackle the threat to the UK posed by hostile states. The Telegraph understands that the Home Office has ordered a review of Border Force and Immigration Enforcement recruitment, vetting and supervision procedures in the wake of the police investigation. Tom Tugendhat, the security minister, said: The National Security Act is a game-changer for our ability to crack down on foreign intelligence services and hostile actors. We will not tolerate attempts to threaten, harass or silence people in the UK. Our commitment to defending the rights and freedoms we hold dear is absolute. We will continue to put protecting the British people and our national security first. The three men were charged with two offences after trying to break into the home of a Hong Kong dissident living in Pontefract in West Yorkshire on May 1. The trio appeared at a brief hearing at Westminster Magistrates Court on Monday shortly after the Metropolitan Police said its investigation had been crucial to disrupting the spy network. A court sketch of Chung Biu Yuen, Chi Leung Wai and Matthew Trickett at Westminster magistrates' court on Monday - Elizabeth Cook/PA The men were charged with assisting a foreign intelligence service to undertake information gathering, surveillance and acts of deception between December 20 last year and May 2. They were also charged with assisting a foreign intelligence service by forcing entry into a UK residential address. Mr Wai, who lives in Staines, Surrey, and is both a UK and Hong Kong national, also runs D5, a security company. On its website, he boasts of having over 20 years experience in the British military, police and private security sector. A social media picture shows 'Peter' Wai in the uniform of the Metropolitan Police On his Facebook page, he describes himself as a Hong Konger living in the UK, who had joined the Royal Navy after school and then saw active service in Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya. Mr Trickett, from Maidenhead, Berks, served as a commando in the Royal Marines between 2007 and 2013. He was also formerly employed by the UK Border Force at Heathrow before joining Home Office Immigration Enforcement in February this year. He is also listed as the sole director of MTR Consultancy, which he founded in 2021, and describes himself as a security consultant. A neighbour described him as nice and polite but said he was out of the country more than he was in it. The neighbour, who did not wish to be named, said that police had raided Mr Tricketts flat on May 2, with officers breaking down the door with a battering ram. Mr Yuen, 63, known also as Billy Yuen, from Dalston, east London, is listed as the office manager for the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in central London. He declined to speak to The Telegraph after returning to his flat following his court appearance. Neighbours of Mr Yuen described him as a model citizen and expressed astonishment at his arrest, insisting it must have been a mistake. Hong Kong leader John Lee on Tuesday called for full information from British authorities on the arrests of the three men, including Mr Yuen. Mr Lee confirmed that Mr Yuen was a university classmate and he was photographed with him in a group graduation photo from 2002. Mr Lee cited a statement from the Chinese embassy in London, rejecting what it called the UKs fabrication of the so-called case and its unwarranted accusation against the Hong Kong government. Chung Big Yuen returns to his flat in east London following his court appearance - Andrew Baker The men were released on bail after District Judge Louisa Cieciora said they must abide by a 10pm to 5am curfew, report weekly to police, not travel abroad and inform police of devices used to access the internet. A further seven men and a woman arrested in raids in Yorkshire and London have been released without charge. Commander Dominic Murphy, head of Scotland Yards Counter-Terrorism Command, said: A number of arrests were made and searches carried out across England as part of this investigation. While led from London, the Counter-Terrorism Policing network has been crucial to disrupting this activity and we have worked closely with the Crown Prosecution Service since the start of the investigation. A Home Office source said: We take all cases of potential internal misconduct incredibly seriously, immediate steps are always taken to ensure that risks are managed swiftly. As is normal practice for cases like these we are reviewing our processes. Chi Leung Wai (right) leaves Westminster Magistrates' Court on Monday - Yui Mok Since the crackdown on pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong in 2019, there have been concerns that Beijing is harassing dissidents in the UK. The Government gave almost three million residents of Hong Kong the right to move to the UK permanently in 2020. The ruling, which represented the biggest opening of the UK borders since the 1948 British Nationality Act, applied to Hong Kongers who held a British National Overseas (BNO) passport. Dominic Raab, then deputy prime minister, said at the time the UK was honouring its historic responsibility to the people of Hong Kong Since then, it is estimated that 125,000 Hong Kongers have entered the UK, making it one of the largest migrant waves modern Britain has ever seen. Mr Tugendhat, in his brief as security minister, is preparing to order new guidance to police on how to spot Chinese repression campaigns being conducted against dissidents in the UK. In an interview with The Telegraph, Grant Shapps, the Defence Secretary, announced investment for six new ships to counteract Chinese aggression in the Indo-Pacific region. Suella Braverman, the former home secretary, said in response to yesterdays charges: If we are serious about national security we must declare China a hostile state. Bob Seely, a senior Tory MP and prominent China critic, said: Its quite clear that there is a significant uptick in espionage operations from both Russia and China, as well as subversive work from Iran too. He raised concerns that MI5s resources would be spread too thinly if the Labour as it intended to do deployed the intelligence agency to police our borders. The Korean World Missionary Fellowship (KWMF) hosted the mission conference on the theme of Next Generation Mission Leadership at the Korea Theological Seminary based in Cheonan from the 24th to the 27th of April. About 400 missionaries attended the conference where leadership transition and raising the next generation of missionaries were key topics. Pastors Seong-jun Go from Suwon Hana Church and Ju-bong Yeo from Vine Church were among the keynote speakers. Pastor Go shared his own testimony as he spoke on 'Era and Mission' (Esther 4:13-16), saying, I first encountered Jesus through the Navigator organization. When I met Jesus Christ in college, living a life of preaching, prayer, and fellowship with brothers brought me great happiness. And the prayer I made to live such a life eventually came true. At first I decided to dedicate myself to campus ministry as a professor and earned a doctoral degree in mathematics from the University of California, Berkeley. However, during my study abroad, I met my current teacher missionary Yi Jae-wan and decided to dedicate myself to missions. After arriving in Korea for mission preparation, I briefly attended a church where an acquaintance from Berkeley was serving as a pastor. However, he had to leave for the United States and asked me to take care of the church. That became the starting point of my pastoral ministry. At that time, a church elder conveyed God's voice to me, saying, 'Your calling is not to be a missionary but to serve the next generation.' So, I eventually obeyed and decided to serve as the senior pastor of that church. I served the church not as the senior pastor but as the senior deacon. At the same time, I supported a seminary affiliated with the Baptist Church and received pastoral training. Stay informed with The Christian Daily Newsletter Sign up God's work is done through co-working with people. God works through us. As long as our actions do not hinder God's work, we just need to do what we do. We have our own customs in thinking and acting. However, sometimes, these customs may hinder God's work. In 2005, I started a youth church mainly for college students. As I learned from the Navigators and UBF, I preached to college students and trained disciples according to their methods. However, God gave me discomfort about this method. I decided to spend a month in prayer, and during that time, God said to me, 'I am with you, but your ministry target is Muslims.' On another day, after having a meal with an acquaintance, and as they had prayed for me, they interceded the same message from God that I heard in my prayer before. It was, 'I am with you, but your ministry target is Muslims.' In response to this, in 2006, I was sent as a missionary to the Middle East. Then, I gathered local coworkers and people who would participate in missions from Korea and devised plans for successful missions. From 2008, I went to Syria with a team of college students. We decided to prepare for missions through prayer for three hours each day instead of rushing to evangelize. The first month in the mission field is usually enjoyable, but after five months, it becomes monotonous. Young missionaries sometimes become isolated, leading them to indulge in watching inappropriate content or dramas at home. The conclusion we reached was that college students should learn the local language, enjoy friendships with local youth, and expand missionary opportunities through these relationships. Focusing on this, our missionary team handed over the abundant missionary fruits we bore over a year to a local church established by locals. Mission can be approached from horizontal and vertical perspectives. The horizontal perspective is preaching the gospel to all nations. The vertical perspective is devolving missionary tasks to the next generation. This is also mission work. The amazing missionary legacy given to the Korean church by God is to transfer it to the next generation. Korea is the only nation in the world that has achieved missionary revival in 100 years after the gospel entered the land. We must pass on this proud legacy to the next generation. The Bible can be divided into ministries that continue through generations and those that only last for a generation. Samuel and David were great biblical figures, but they did not pass on missionary tasks to their descendants. However, Elijah and Elisha, Moses and Joshua, passed on missionary tasks to the next generation. The commonality of each of Elisha and Joshua's names is that it contains the meaning my God has (is my) saved (salvation/deliverance). Unprecedented history occurs when generations are connected. That's victory, conquest, breakthrough. The gospel is empowered when generations are connected. But the devil divides generations because he knows this power. Younger generations curse the older generations. However, the younger generation should respect the older generation. Conversely, the older generation should not try to restrict the missionary methods of the younger generation with their own methods. When generations are connected, the next generation accomplishes even greater things. Nurturing a God-centered value system and the gospel of the cross In the subsequent keynote lecture, Pastor Yeo Ju-bong talked about 'The Next Generation's Recovery Project through the 2+2 Intern Missionary Platform (Short-term missions tailored to the younger generation)' and shared the strategies of the Youth Missionary Inc. of the church he pastors. Pastor Yeo said, ''Do Dream Two-gether' is a significant ministry of the Youth Missionary Inc. It is a youth-tailored mission movement that aims to turn the youth of our country back to God and send them to the nations as a youth-oriented mission movement. Two youths are dispatched as a team for a year, with four youths continuously dispatched to the same place every six months, forming a team of four youths to receive training and serve in the mission field. The ultimate goal of this movement is not simply to send youth on overseas missions but to focus on 'youth talent development and training.' They experience the life of a complete missionary and learn in-depth. They learn language and culture, relationships and leadership, grow in their faith, and discover their talents. They look to God's vision and gain the strength to live a missionary life. In this way, four youths armed with a God-centered value system and the gospel of the cross receive training and live together for a year, experiencing natural mission work. 'Do Dream Two-gether' supports a maximum of 600,000 won (USD440 or GBP350) per month for living expenses. It focuses on cultivating consideration and cooperation among youths in teams. It also pursues faith training through life experiences with local missionaries. Through this, they learn missionary life and experience practical companionship with God, discovering the vision God gives. Pastor Yeojubong said, ''I want young people to live a missionary life here and now rather than living as local missionaries. Above all, we educate them to have a Jesus Christ-centered mindset and heart over having them focus on the fruits in ministry work. We teach young people how to love God sincerely and trust Him. When they do, they can experience God's work that goes beyond our imagination. The youths who have experienced the 2+2 Intern Missionary Program will return to their respective positions, living out God's vision and mission in local churches, campuses, workplaces, and homes. They will become the generation that restores the Korean church and prepares for the revival of the next generation.The testimonies of the young adults who return from the 2+2 Intern Missionary Program reveal instances where in a country in the Middle East, children's ministries and youth missions flourished: a Sunday school that began with one child saw a revival, growing to over 100 attendees. Additionally, there were instances where young adults formed study groups and worship teams. Young adults who participated in the program testified, 'Idols within me were shattered,' 'Ministry is not what I do, but what God does through me,' 'I learned who I am, what worship is, and how precious each soul is.'" Young people who have experienced the 2+2 Intern Missionary Program are dreaming of God's kingdom in various fields such as NGO professionals, mission organization staff, local church workers, and alternative school teachers, rather than living as local missionaries. Our goal is to send 1,000 intern missionaries annually to 250 countries or regions worldwide. Following the lectures, Missionary Sung-chun No, General Affairs Manager of the KWMA Cooperative, affirmed the centrality of the cross in mission work, saying, Pastor Yeo emphasizes the most important point in this ministry as the faith of the cross. He said that the Korean Church in this era is similar to the religion of the Kingdom Judah. The Kingdom of Judah strictly adhered to the law and religious forms but failed to live out such lives. Faith lived without faith in the cross is like putting fake gasoline in a car. Such a car may move, but it will eventually break down. Perhaps the success of the youth missionary revival at the Vine Church lies in educating faith in the cross. That is, living life through the gospel, Missionary No added. Communicating with the next generation During the afternoon sessions, two missionaries, Jang-saeng Kim and Sung-gyu Jo, introduced the characteristics of generations in the field and emphasized that the ultimate way to communicate with them is to show life examples with the heart, not nagging. They also mentioned how the legacy of senior missionaries should be passed on. The missionaries said, ''The problem in the mission field is not the lack of prospective missionaries from the next generation but that there will be no future missionaries if they do not directly visit the field where the next generation lies. Recognizing this, Korean churches and field missionaries must prepare for the nurturing of the next generation of missionaries.'' KWMF emphasized, ''There is a solution to overcome the crisis by directly communicating with the next generation, understanding their orientation, and helping them reflect missionary life in their lives through collaboration, rather than simply waiting for churches to give bread to the next generations as in the past.'' Leading President Missionary Do-ho Bang and Secretary-General Geun-hee Lee said, ''This conference has become a starting point for changing Korean missions in the future,'' emphasizing that the conference has become a success as it opened the way for the next generation and pledged to collaborate to inherit the legacy of the previous generation.'' Original reporting by Christian Daily Korea, translated and edited by CDI staff. Donald Trump brandishes a print out from a new poll from The New York Times, which shows him ahead in five swing states - Seth Wenig Donald Trump is leading Joe Biden in five battleground states that could decide the US election, as young, black and Latino voters desert the Democrats. A new poll shows Mr Trump ahead of the US president in Michigan, Arizona, Nevada, Georgia and Pennsylvania, while Mr Biden leads in Wisconsin. The states are among the battleground areas that are likely to decide a close election, with national polls putting the two men almost neck-and-neck less than six months before polling day on Nov 5. The poll, conducted by Siena College for The New York Times, suggests Mr Biden is struggling to retain voters who supported him at the last election. All six of the states surveyed voted for him in 2020. The demographic groups where support for the Democrats is falling include young liberals and American Muslims, who are thought to have been discouraged by Mr Bidens support for Israel during the war in Gaza. Some Latino voters, who historically skew towards the Democrats, are also abandoning Mr Bidens campaign in favour of Mr Trumps. The results of the poll show Mr Trump is leading by 10 points in Georgia the closest state in the 2020 election, where Mr Biden won by just 0.2 percentage points. Mr Trumps lead comes despite his criminal trial in New York, where he is fighting charges that he falsified business records to disguise a hush money payment to Stormy Daniels, an adult actress. On Saturday, The Telegraphs own poll of the US swing states found that support for Mr Trump in several battlegrounds would increase if he was found guilty. Mondays Siena poll also shows a challenge for the Republican nominee on the issue of abortion, where voters are more aligned with the Democrat position of providing greater access to terminations for pregnant women. Across the six states polled, almost two thirds of respondents said that abortion should be always or mostly legal, including 44 per cent of Republicans. Facing calls from key figures in his own party to take a hardline stance on abortion, Mr Trump has defended the Supreme Courts decision to overturn the Roe v. Wade ruling in 2022, and said the rules on abortions should be decided by individual states. Democrats are thought to be concerned about the impact of the war in Gaza on Mr Bidens ratings, after weeks of demonstrations against the Israeli government from young liberal voters and Muslim Americans. US president Joe Biden on the campaign trail in Wisconsin - KEVIN LAMARQUE/REUTERS Mr Biden has paused some weapons shipments to Israel, but insists that the White Houses support for Israeli security is iron clad. He is facing opposition to that stance from some Americans who say the humanitarian cost of the war has been too high. The latest poll found that about 13 per cent of 2020 Biden voters say they do not intend to support him again because of his foreign policy in the Middle East. Strategists in both main parties previously told Axios, a news website, that they expect the result of the presidential election to be decided by about six per cent of voters in six states. Mr Trump celebrated the results of the poll at his trial on Monday morning. Speaking outside the Manhattan courthouse, he said: The New York Times just came out with a poll that shows us leading everywhere by a lot. This is a cover story, and I think you all will find it very interesting. Im sure youve all read it. Leading in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Michigan, Georgia and Nevada. Nevada were leading actually by 12 points, which is generally a Democratic state. Donald Trump speaks to the media upon arriving at Manhattan criminal court in New York, on Monday - Seth Wenig/AP Donald Trump feared a lot of women would come forward with stories about him after he announced his presidential campaign in 2015, according to his former lawyer. Michael Cohen, the star witness in the former presidents hush money criminal trial, suggested on Monday that the former president had encounters with many women who may have upset his run for the White House. During his first day on the stand, Mr Cohen, 57, who once described himself as Mr Trumps spokesman, thug, pit bull and lawless lawyer, described how he went to great lengths to protect his former employer. His testimony is crucial for the Manhattan district attorney offices case, which hinges on a $130,000 (103,500) payment he made to silence porn star Stormy Daniels about an alleged tryst with Mr Trump in the run-up to the election. Mr Trump is charged with 34 counts of falsifying business documents for allegedly covering up reimbursement payments to Mr Cohen. Mondays testimony saw Mr Cohen and Mr Trump, two men who despise and continually attack one another on social media, reunited in a stuffy, wood-panelled courtroom. Donald Trump with Stormy Daniels - MySpace.com Appearing to avoid looking in Mr Trumps direction, Mr Cohen described how he was paid $525,000 a year including bonuses to work as Mr Trumps fixer for a decade. He said before Mr Trump launched his presidential campaign in 2015, the former president told him: You know that when this comes out, meaning the announcement, just be prepared, theres going to be a lot of women coming forward. Mr Trump leaned back in his chair with his eyes closed, occasionally shifting in his chair while Mr Cohen recounted how they had met with tabloid boss David Pecker in August 2015 to hatch a catch and kill scheme to bury negative stories about Mr Trump. The former lawyer described how he would strive for recognition from Mr Trump, who congratulated him, saying fantastic, great job when he managed to arrange pay-offs to silence women. Mr Cohen also lifted the curtain on how Mr Trumps response to the now-infamous video of him boasting about how he could grab [women] by the p---y was led by his wife, Melania Trump. We needed to put a spin on this, Mr Cohen said. This spin he wanted was, This is locker-room talk. This is something Melania had recommended. Or at least he told me this is what Melania thought. He added: He wasnt thinking about Melania, this was all about the campaign. Mr Cohen said that it would have been catastrophic had Ms Daniels gone public with her story shortly after the Access Hollywood tape leaked. Mr Trump urged Mr Cohen to kill the story over fears it would be a disaster for his election hopes, telling him to get control over it. He said Mr Trump told him: Women will hate me. Guys theyll think its cool. But this is going to be a disaster for the campaign. Mr Cohen, who pleaded guilty in 2018 to a string of federal crimes, also said that Mr Trump was not concerned about his wifes opinion, but was focused on the political impact the story could have. He said that Mr Trump had told him to push it out [Ms Daniels deal] for as long as you can. Mr Cohen added: What hed said to me is... Just get past the election. If I win, itll have no relevance [as] Im president. And if I lose, I dont really care. Michael Cohen is questioned by prosecutor Susan Hoffinger as Donald Trump sits with his eyes closed, on Monday - Jane Rosenberg/REUTERS Mr Cohen told the court that Mr Trump had instructed him to make the $130,000 payment to Ms Daniels to keep her quiet about their alleged 2006 affair, telling him: just do it. Everything required Mr Trumps sign-off, Mr Cohen said. Mr Cohen said he resisted paying out of his own pocket but was reassured by Mr Trump, who insisted: Youll get the money back. Mr Cohen said he was then left beyond angry when his bonus that year was cut by two thirds and he had still not been repaid. He and Allen Weisselberg, the former Trump Organisation chief financial officer, later thrashed out a plan to reimburse Cohen. He said he would receive the fee in monthly installments marked for legal services rendered. Mr Trump later gave the green light for the proposed plan, Mr Cohen said. He approved it and he said this is gonna be one heck of a ride in DC. Following Mondays court session, Mr Trump shouted at reporters as he railed against the corrupt judge overseeing the trial. Mr Trump has pleaded not guilty to all charges. He has denied ever having had sex with Ms Daniels. The trial continues. Rishi Sunak said the next five years would be some of the most difficult and dangerous in the UKs history. Photograph: Carl Court/AP Rishi Sunak has vowed to fight the next election on the UKs security, attacking Labour and Keir Starmer in a fiercely political speech in which he said: The choice at the next election is: who do you trust to keep you safe? The prime minister said in his speech he would frame the Conservatives as the party of the future, but also defended the partys record over the past 14 years, and said Starmers past actions meant the Labour leader would not be able to keep the country safe. The attacks drew a rebuff from Starmer: This is the seventh reset in 18 months. I know first-hand the importance of national security but in order for that to happen you need a credible plan. Whats his record? Hes hollowed out our armed forces, hes wasted billions of pounds on procurement. In his wide-ranging speech at the Policy Exchange thinktank, Sunak rejected the opportunity to name an election date, but said he would debate Starmer as many times as he likes during the campaign. Keir Starmers gone from embracing Jeremy Corbyn to Natalie Elphicke, all in the cynical pursuit of power at any price, Sunak said. Related: Rishi Sunak to face pressure to shift right after disastrous election results The speech comes at the end of a difficult fortnight for the prime minister after a series of defeats at the local elections including losing the Conservative mayor of the West Midlands, Andy Street, as well as the defection of Elphicke, one of his backbench MPs, who joined Labour to criticise his failure to tackle migrant arrivals on small boats. Sunak said the next five years would be some of the most difficult and dangerous in the UKs history, with threats from an axis of authoritarian states like Russia, Iran, North Korea and China, as well as the challenges of illegal migration, divisive cultural issues and the transformational consequences of artificial intelligence. Extremists are also exploiting these global conflicts to divide us. People are abusing our liberal democratic values the freedom of speech and right of protest to intimidate, threaten and assault others, to sing antisemitic chants on our streets, he said. And from gender activists hijacking childrens sex education to cancel culture, vocal and aggressive fringe groups are trying to impose their views on the rest of us. But the prime minister said he was optimistic about the future, and he would frame the next election as a choice between parties with a plan for the future versus dwelling on the past. He said the Conservatives had plans on a broad range of issues, from a smoking ban and cancer diagnostics to extending maths to all 18-year-olds. Acknowledging the dire position of his own party in the polls, Sunak said the Labour party was fighting the election with a purely negative agenda. Im clear-eyed enough to admit that yes, maybe they can depress their way to victory with all their talk of doom loops and gaslighting and scaremongering about pensions. But I dont think it will work, he said. Labour have no ideas. What they did have theyve U-turned on. They have just one thing: a calculation that they can make you feel so bad about your country that you wont have the energy to ask what they might do with the incredible power that they seek to wield. In a shift from his party conference speech when he said he would end the 30 years of status quo, Sunak launched into a defence of his partys record in government. He named the creation of 4 million jobs, delivering the Covid vaccine rollout, NHS funding, pensions triple lock, universal credit and cutting carbon emissions as key achievements. Creative UK cited Jimmy Choo as an example of how UK colleges and universities attract creative talent from around the world. Photograph: Stefania DAlessandro/Getty Images Universities are reporting a steep drop in international students applying to come to the UK, amid warnings that further restrictions on student visas would torpedo a vital flow of talent for Britains creative industries. University and industry leaders fear that the graduate visa entitlement, which allows international graduates to work in the UK for up to three years, could be axed or curtailed, depending on the findings of a report by the migration advisory committee (MAC) due to be delivered to the government on Tuesday. Creative UK, which represents the creative industries, says removing the ability for international students to stay and work in the UK after graduation would be a powerful disincentive to study here, damaging a sector worth 108bn a year. Related: Foreign students may be undermining UK higher education, says Cleverly Restrictions on international students imposed earlier this year may already have caused a decline in students applying from overseas, and uncertainty over the fate of the graduate visa appears to have set off a further fall, according to a survey of UK universities. The poll of 75 institutions by the British Universities International Liaison Association found that nine out of 10 had fewer international applications for the next academic year, and there had been a 27% fall in total applications for taught postgraduate courses compared with last year. A joint letter by Creative UK and Universities UK, which represents vice-chancellors, urges the government to reject plans to abolish or restrict the graduate visa route, arguing that international graduates are integral to the creative industries, which are now more significant than the UKs aerospace, life sciences and automotive industries combined. Following further increases to visa fees and salary thresholds, the graduate visa represents one of the few routes left which enables talented graduates to remain in the UK and contribute to our growing creative industries, the letter states. Whether its a young Jimmy Choo developing his craft at Cordwainers or world-renowned DJ Peggy Gou, who studied at London College of Fashion, the role our universities play in attracting the best creative talent from around the world goes to show the soft-power influence of our institutions. Sally Mapstone, the vice-chancellor of St Andrews University and president of Universities UK, told Sky News on Sunday: International students are incredibly important to UK culture. They contribute a huge amount to universities, to the economy, to skills and jobs and we think it would be a tragedy calamitous not just for institutions but actually for the UK as a whole if the government took what would actually be quite unnecessary further action to restrict the number of international students. The British Academy has told the MAC that removing the graduate visa would stifle the vibrancy of the UKs academic and research landscape, with a continuing fall in international student numbers threatening the financial sustainability of universities, triggering course closures and staff redundancies. Fears for the future of the visa have grown since March when the home secretary, James Cleverly, commissioned the MAC to ensure the graduate route is not being abused. In particular, that some of the demand for study visas is not being driven more by a desire for immigration. Last week Robert Jenrick, a former immigration minister, published a report with the Centre for Policy Studies thinktank that called for the graduate visa to be abolished, claiming it allowed people to come and work in the gig economy and on very low wages. A government spokesperson said: We are fully focused on striking the right balance between acting decisively to tackle net migration and attracting the brightest students to our universities, recognising the significant contribution they make to the UK. Protesters wave Georgian and EU flags outside the Georgian parliament. Four out of five Georgians are in favour of EU accession. Photograph: Giorgi Arjevanidze/AFP/Getty Images As the foreign influence bill was being nodded through the Georgian parliaments legal committee at 9am on Monday, a wet and tired Zviad Tsetskhladze, 18, and Luka Natsvlishvili, 17, were among thousands of protesters left with little option other than to shout chants at a grim wall of riot police. An overnight vigil designed to block the governing partys MPs from accessing the parliamentary estate had failed. Meanwhile, the opposition leader in the parliament, Tina Bokuchava, 40, had barely made it past the entrance of the imposing stone building. Her colleagues on the committee only got as far as the corridor outside. In the end, it took just 67 seconds for the new law to be approved after a path through the protest for MPs from the governing party, Georgian Dream, was made by the serried ranks of masked police officers bristling with water cannon and teargas canisters. A full and final vote of the parliament has been announced for Tuesday, which is also expected to be a simple affair. The governing party has the votes. The expected veto of the anti-government president, Salome Zourabichvili, can be overruled by a parliamentary majority. There appears to be little to stop the progress of a bill that, if passed, will oblige media or civil society groups in Georgia that receive more than 20% of their funding from abroad to register themselves as organisations serving the interests of a foreign power. The draft bill has been described by the US state department as a Kremlin-inspired tool to hound independent media and opposition voices in a country that has long teetered between the Russian and western spheres of influence but whose government now appears to be leaning towards Moscow. Brussels has made it crystal-clear that the legislation will be an obstacle to Georgias accession to the 27-member state bloc. But with brutal efficiency, the bill continues on its way. That brutality was exemplified by the sight of individual protesters being dragged into the ranks of riot police to be beaten and kicked. An investigation into excessive force by officers has been launched. Despite all this, Tsetskhladze and Natsvlishvili, the two young men who are organisers of Dafioni (Sunset), a 55,000 strong liberal-nationalist youth movement, had smiles on their faces later on Monday. The opposition is chaotic. It is predominantly young. But with that comes a confidence that the demands of the hundreds of thousands of people on the streets of Tbilisi will ultimately be met, somehow. Not that any of this is easy. I have some health issues and for me its very problematic, but I stay as much as I can, said Tsetskhladze, of the long nights of protest outside the parliament. The police are brutal but they want to do worse. They are calling our parents. They say: It will end very bad for you and your family. But the protesters have seen the change they need in their own families outlook, and have to believe it is more widespread. Georgian Dream has governed Georgia for 12 years. It emerged out of disappointment with the administration of Mikheil Saakashvili, who led the countrys 2003 nonviolent Rose Revolution against Soviet-style rule, but who left power with a reputation for authoritarianism. My parents were supporting this government until everything happened, said Tsetskhladze. With a tired smile, Natsvlishvili added: They are afraid, but they support us. Georgia will go to the polls in October but the two young men, one still at school and the other at university, where Tsetskhladze is taught constitutional law by the current prime minister, Irakli Kobakhidze, believe strikes that have started among university lecturers and students could roll into something more. Its going in a way that the whole country will strike, said Tsetskhladze. The last time I saw the prime minister, he ran away from us. We were just protesting with a banner. Bokuchava, chair of the United National Movement (UNM), the party founded by Saakashvili, which is today the largest among the opposition, was also cheered by talk of strikes on Monday. But she sees another route to success. She had just left a meeting with a delegation of MPs from foreign affairs committees across Europe, including Germany, while the US assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs, James OBrien, will arrive in Tbilisi on Tuesday to speak to ministers. Should a host of government figures and high-profile characters such as the honorary chair of Georgian Dream, the billionaire oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili, face sanctions, it would send a message to the Georgian public, she said. I know for a fact that individualised sanctions are being discussed in the United States, she said. It is a measure of last resort, but if that is the only way they can save Georgias Euro-Atlantic trajectory and communicate clearly to the Georgian public that, yes, the door is open for Georgias Euro-Atlantic integration, but that this government has derailed that trajectory and that this government and specific people within this government are responsible for it, that, I think, is needed. The latest polling suggests that the opposition is not coalescing around any single party. According to one of the latest polls, from March, 20% would vote for Georgian Dream, 5% for UNM, 34% would not vote for any party, and 6% would vote for other parties. The largest proportion were undecided. Most observers believe the events of recent weeks have chipped away at Georgian Dreams polling. This is a country in which four out of five voters favour EU accession. Bokuchava said she would favour a pre-election coalition with fellow pro-European parties. I hope that what were seeing in the streets will be an impetus for everyone in the opposition front to see public demand for unity at this stage, she said. Tsetskhladze and Natsvlishvili, while doubtful of the old politics they see in UNM, said they could reluctantly lend their vote for such a coalition. Out of the chaos, they say, could come unity. Its young people gen Z who started protesting and it feels like the new generation can, and will, and must change something in our country, said Tsetskhladze. We will not stop until Russian influence is ended in Georgia. Demonstrators with Georgian national and EU flags shout anti-government slogans near the parliament building in the centre of Tbilisi. Photograph: Zurab Tsertsvadze/AP Georgia has been rocked for weeks by demonstrations against a bill that would force non-governmental groups and media to register as organisations serving the interest of a foreign power if more than 20% of their funding comes from overseas. Overnight on Sunday and into Monday protesters were engaged in a last-stand demonstration against the bill before a final vote in parliament on Tuesday. Riot police armed with water cannon and teargas were accused of beating protesters picketing outside parliament. Why are Georgians protesting? Thousands of Georgians have been demonstrating since 17 April, when the countrys parliament approved a first reading of the bill Protesters, largely young people, say it will sabotage the Caucasus countrys hopes of joining the EU and stifle civil society. It has been described as the Russian law by critics as it resembles repressive legislation used by the Kremlin. Georgia, with a population of 3.7 million, joined countries trying to gain accession to the EU when it was granted official candidate status last December. The political crisis comes at a time when many Georgians fear their country is moving away from the west. Everyone clearly understood that the purpose of the adoption of the Russian law is not the notorious transparency, but the change of the countrys foreign course and the completion of Russification, Transparency International Georgia said at the end of April. What has the government been saying? The government, which has been in power for 12 years, claims to be pro-EU but it has avoided placing sanctions on Russia over the war in Ukraine and critics claim it has been seeking to strengthen ties with the Kremlin. The ruling Georgian Dream partys founder, Bidzina Ivanishvili, has defended the bill and lashed out at the west. In a recent speech heavy with conspiracy theories, the billionaire hit out at a global party of war and suggested the countrys pro-western opposition was controlled by foreign intelligence services. The comments further fuelled fears among the governments critics that the ruling Georgian Dream party, which has been in power since 2012, could crack down on dissent before parliamentary elections later this year. How have authorities responded? Police have used teargas and water cannons to disperse the crowds, acting at times with disproportionate force, according to watchdogs. The Georgian Young Lawyers Association said that peaceful protest is a mechanism for promoting democratic processes in the hands of citizens, and any attempt to suppress it is an anti-constitutional act. Salome Zourabichvili, the president of Georgia whose role is primarily ceremonial criticised what she said was a totally unwarranted, unprovoked and out-of-proportion use of force ongoing in Tbilisi against peaceful protesters. Full responsibility falls entirely on the government. Right of peaceful protest is denied to the Georgian people, she said, adding the hashtag #notoRussianlaw. What has the international community said and what will it mean for Georgias hopes of joining the EU? The crackdown on protesters has prompted criticism from Brussels. I strongly condemn the violence against protesters in Georgia who were peacefully demonstrating against the law on foreign influence, the EUs foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, said on 1 May. Georgia is an EU candidate country. I call on its authorities to ensure the right to peaceful assembly. Use of force to suppress it is unacceptable. David McAllister, the chair of the European parliaments foreign affairs committee, said the brutal crackdown underlined the very concerning direction the Georgian government has taken with regard to democratic freedoms. This law has the potential to seriously derail Georgias path towards EU membership, he said. The US state department has also expressed concern about the legislation. Jim OBrien, the departments assistant secretary for European and Eurasian affairs, said he had an important conversation with Georgian MPs about our bilateral relationship, including our strong concerns over the draft Kremlin-inspired foreign influence law and its negative impact on Georgias European aspirations. The Duke of Westminster and Olivia Henson's engagement photograph - Grosvenor2023 Shes about to marry one of the richest men in the country in a lavish aristocratic wedding, yet the future Duchess of Westminster remains remarkably low-key. Last week, Olivia Henson, 31, made her first public appearance when she visited three charities in Chester that her fiance Hugh Grosvenors Westminster Foundation is supporting. As she chatted to charity workers with her long brown hair, slim, willowy frame, perfect teeth and stylish Sandro floral-print trousers and &OtherStories jacket, Henson drew comparisons with a young Catherine, Princess of Wales. And her wedding next month at Chester Cathedral has been almost as talked about as that royal wedding. The Duke of Westminster and Olivia Henson visited three charities in Chester that the Westminster Foundation supports, including Studio by Storyhouse Henson's first public engagement, above, drew comparisons with Catherine, Princess of Wales (pictured with the Prince of Wales at The Rainbow Centre in 2022) - CHRIS JACKSON/AFP As the Duke is close friends with both the Prince and Princess of Wales and Prince Harry he is godfather to Prince George and Archie, and the godson of King Charles it was rumoured that Hugh and Olivias nuptials on June 7 could be the event to bring the warring brothers back together. But depending on who you believe, either the Duke of Sussex turned down his save the date to avoid an awkward encounter with the other members of the royal family, or the Sussexes were NFI to avoid overshadowing Hughs big day. So what do we know about the woman who has won the heart of the man known as the most eligible bachelor in England? Just like the Princess of Wales, Henson studied at Marlborough College (she was contemporaries with Princess Eugenie) but unlike the Princess of Wales shes no commoner. She is of aristocratic stock, descended from the Hoare banking family, the Marquesses of Bristol and the Dukes of Rutland. Her uncle, Charles Wolrige Gordon, is the Grand Master of Scottish freemasons, Scotlands senior freemason. Her father, Rupert Henson, is a stockbroker and she has two siblings 29-year-old Jasper, who works in asset management for a property company, and 26-year-old Emilia, who is a brand relationships manager at the beauty box company Latest In Beauty. Henson speaks Spanish and Italian, having studied Hispanic Studies and Italian at Trinity College, Dublin (she got a 2:1) and before Marlborough she attended the prestigious Dragon School, Oxford, which she attended alongside Emma Watson. After stints working for drinks companies such as Daily Dose Juices and No.1 Rosemary Water, she is now a senior account manager at Belazu, an environmentally friendly B-corp which imports chef-quality, sustainably-sourced ingredients from across Europe. Pictures on the companys website show her on a trip to Morocco in printed harem pants and dancing to Take Thats Never Forget in sunglasses. She met Grosvenor, who is worth 10 billion and known as Hughie, in October 2021 through mutual friends. When Henson and Grosvenor released their official engagement photo in April last year, taken in the grounds of his family home of Eaton Hall in Cheshire, eyebrows were raised at how casual it was. One commentator remarked that Henson hadnt brushed her hair and appeared to be wearing pyjamas. But, says royal expert Victoria Murphy, that sums up the couples low-maintenance, relaxed approach. Despite the billions in the bank, they seem like a normal, modern, young couple, says Murphy, who met them last week as they toured Chester charities. They both seem very invested and committed to their foundation and making a difference in the community. She was very composed and confident, especially considering it was her first public appearance. She remembered peoples names and was very chatty and natural. I got the impression shes very passionate about food she made a comment about restaurants being in her wheelhouse and how good the restaurants are in Chester. 'They seem like a normal, modern, young couple': the pair were in good spirits as they made a rare public appearance together in Chester The couple plan to live in the cathedral city for most of the time, with Henson saying: Its obviously a place where we will live, where well be building our lives together. And were slowly transitioning to move up from London and be much more permanent here and really putting roots down. So actually, yes it was a really easy decision in the end. Their wedding next month will be held at Chester Cathedral, with the reception at Eaton Hall. No other details have been revealed, but its thought it will be a low-key, casual and sustainable affair. Although theyre obviously high-profile they seem very guarded and private and humble, adds Murphy, who said Olivias engagement ring was a silver pillowy style but nothing flashy. Henson notably didnt show it in the engagement photo. Last time the Duke of Westminster had a big party at Eaton Hall was a neon-themed bash for his 21st back in 2012, where 800 guests (including the Duke of Sussex) partied with entertainers including Michael McIntyre and Rizzle Kicks. It cost a reported 5 million. When Hughs sister Lady Tamara Grosvenor wed Edward van Cutsem at Chester Cathedral in November 2004, thousands of onlookers lined the streets, and the city is expecting a similar turnout next month. The wedding reception will take place at Eaton Hall, the Grosvenor family's ancestral seat, situated just a few miles outside of Chester - David Goddard/Getty Although after all the speculation about which royals will attend, it looks as though it may just be William. I dont know if Charles and Camilla will be there, says Ingrid Seward, royal commentator. Friday is not the day they enjoy having engagements especially as far away as Chester which would mean an un-environmentally friendly helicopter. But they might have to go as Charles is a godfather to Hugh. Otherwise, I think William will have to carry the royal can. The Prince of Wales is hotly-tipped to be Hughs Best Man, but its unlikely the Princess of Wales will attend due to health issues. Other notable names in attendance will be Hughs older sister Lady Edwina Grosvenor, who is married to TV presenter Dan Snow, and the British Skeet Shooting team the 7th Duke of Westminster is an avid skeet shooter and represented Britain in the Olympics. The Prince of Wales is hotly tipped to be Hugh's Best Man (the pair pictured in 2004 at the wedding of Edward van Cutsem and Lady Tamara Grosvenor) - Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Its not yet known where the couple will honeymoon, although the Duke has a 37,000-acre hunting estate near Seville, Spain where guests can lawfully shoot boar and partridge. Prince William once sparked controversy when it was discovered he had been there just before launching an appeal to stop illegal wildlife hunting. With just weeks to go until the big day, Hugh has said he is incredibly excited about the wedding which will be nerve-wracking. Its the start of a new life for them in Chester and a new life for Olivia Henson as a Duchess. Lets hope she manages to brush her hair. Rylan and Rob Rinder break down over heartbreaks. (Getty) (Kate Green/BAFTA via Getty Images) What did you miss? Rylan and Rob Rinder opened up to each other while discussing their heartbreaks on new BBC show Rob and Rylan's Grand Tour. The TV stars are brought closer together as friends while filming their BBC show. Rinder quoted Lord Byron saying their "friendship grows into love" and Rylan called his friend "family" now in sweet Instagram posts ahead of the show airing on Sunday. Sat having a drink in the beautiful city of Venice, the British criminal barrister wiped away his tears as the two friends discussed their romances that hadn't worked out in the past. It was an open and honest discussion with Rylan also sharing about how he went on a "downward spiral" following his painful divorce from Dan Neal. Rylan has started dating again after his marriage broke down in 2021 following six years together. What, how and why? Rylan and Rob Rinder address their divorces in show Rob and Rylan's Grand Tour. (BBC) (BBC/Rex TV/Zinc Media/Lana Salah) Reflecting, the Eurovision presenter revealed how his marriage ending forced him to slow down and he "sunk". He told his friend: "I think it was a culmination of my marriage breaking down and actually me stopping for the first time in 10 years. Read more He explained: "Then, all of a sudden, I hit quite a big speed bump instead of carrying on, I just sunk. It was the worst experience of my life. I just went on a downward spiral. I tried to end it, I tried to finish myself off. I didn't eat, I went down to nine stone. I'm 6ft 4 Rob, like I looked horrendous." What caused Rylan the most pain out of all of it was what he put his mum Linda through. So much so, the TV star he would "give it all up" if it meant he could have spared his mum the hurt. Rylan with his mother Linda on Celebrity Gogglebox. (Channel 4) He said: "I'm so grateful for what I've got. I come from a council estate. I'm not saying we were on the breadline because we were not on the breadline but we didn't have a lot. But in those moments and even to this day, if I had to give it all up to not have to put my mum through what I put her through when I got ill." Visibly emotional, the star paused to shake his head and reflect further. "Fine, take it," he concluded. "It's horrendous, she's a seventy year old woman she had to watch her successful son disintegrate." In turn, Rinder shared his own failed experiences with love with his friend. He said: "I don't talk about my marriage 'cause he's a private person. But we're in Venice which is a place about passion, I was once so in love when I was in my early twenties but it wasn't reciprocated. And it never has been." Rob and Rylan's Grand Tour started on BBC on Sunday. (BBC) (BBC/Rex TV/Zinc Media/Lana Salah) Rylan reassured his friend that no romance is forever unless it is the right one. He said: "Do you know what, Rob? We're here once, we've been through quite a lot of s***. What's it taught us? Nothing's forever unless it's right." Rinder was moved to tears by his friend's words as they captured the intimate conversation on camera for their BBC show. Before it got too sad, Rylan changed tact. Known for his fun persona, it's no surprise the Hot Mess Summer presenter tried to lighten the mood following their deep conversation about love. "He's fit!" He shouted out, prompting his friend to laugh. 'Friendship grows into love' Rylan and Rob Rinder hit the red carpet together. (Getty) (Kate Green/BAFTA via Getty Images) Ahead of the show airing, Rylan and Rinder took to social media to tell fans about their beautiful friendship and how it blossomed. The two friends also attended the BAFTAs together. Rinder quoted Lord Byron's poetry when reflecting on his close bond and friendship with Rylan. He wrote: "'Friendship may and often does, grow into love.' Byron... See you alongside him 9pm tonight." Rylan also shared their experience was "special" and that they had become "family" to one another. He wrote: "Tonight our new show starts at 9pm on BBC Two and iPlayer. It was so special. This man has become family to me because of this experience. It really is a show like no other and were so proud of it. Hope you enjoy x." After the show, Rylan tweeted: "Wow, we never expected this reaction to the show. Thank you so much for the love. Its so welcome x." Friendship may and often does, grow into love. Byron .. See you alongside him 9pm tonight @BBCTwo https://t.co/NCwIMz6AgH Rob Rinder (@RobbieRinder) May 12, 2024 For confidential emotional support contact The Samaritans at any time by calling 116 123 or emailing jo@samaritans.org Watch all three episodes of Rob and Rylan's Grand Tour on BBC iPlayer. This article originally appeared on Yahoo TV UK at https://uk.news.yahoo.com/rylan-rob-rinder-heartbreak-divorce-084138739.html Steven Moffat has written a new episode for Doctor Who, and some of the show's scariest episodes have been written by him. (BBC) Steven Moffat is returning to Doctor Who, and judging by recent remarks made by stars Ncuti Gatwa and Millie Gibson, as well as showrunner Russell T Davies, it promises to be another emotional rollercoaster. Moffat, who helmed the BBC series during Matt Smith and Peter Capaldi's eras as the Doctor, has been an integral part of the franchise for decades, not only as showrunner but also as a screenwriter as he is behind some of the most terrifying episodes of Modern Who. And he will hope to repeat this with the forthcoming episode Boom, which premieres on Saturday, 18 May. Read more: Doctor Who's Russell T Davies says fans will talk about Steven Moffat's new episode "for years" But before viewers are left on the edge of their seats, or cowering behind sofa cushions, with that episode, let's look back at Moffat's scariest episodes to date. Steven Moffat's scariest Doctor Who episodes Steven Moffat has a long history with Doctor Who, writing for it when it was rebooted in 2005 and going on to be showrunner for Matt Smith and Peter Capaldi's tenures as the Doctor. (Getty Images) (Albert L. Ortega via Getty Images) Moffat has written for Doctor Who since its first reboot back in 2005, writing episodes for Christopher Eccleston, David Tennant, Smith and Capaldi's respective Doctors. In total he has written 49 episodes and 4 specials, and Boom marks his return to the series since leaving the role of showrunner in 2017. For each of the Doctors he wrote for there has been an episode to stand out, if not more than one. 5 | Asylum of the Daleks Matt Smith in Asylum of the Daleks, which originally aired in 2012. (BBC) (BBC/Courtesy Everett Collection, Everett Collection Inc) During Smith's tenure as the Eleventh Doctor, viewers were left terrified by Asylum of the Daleks which brought a new meaning to the Time Lord's most formidable enemies. The episode begins with the Doctor and companions Amy (Karen Gillan) and Rory (Arthur Darvill) being transported to Skaro, the Dalek's home world, where they reveal they don't want to exterminate the Time Lord but ask for his help. It is revealed that the Daleks are at risk of unleashing a horde of insane counterparts, and in order to stop them from wreaking havoc across the galaxy the Daleks need the Doctor's help to deactivate the force shield so they can destroy the others. When the Doctor agrees to do so and enters the asylum he encounters a human named Oswin who was trapped there, and thus begins the chilling tale Moffat laid out for viewers. The story culminates in one of the most shocking plot twists in the franchise, in an episode that was purposefully made to make the Daleks scary again. 4 | Listen Peter Capaldi as the Doctor, during his tenure there were several scary episodes including Listen. (BBC) (Everett Collection, Everett Collection Inc) Capaldi's Twelfth Doctor also had a few gripping episodes in his time, and the scariest that was written by Moffat is Listen. More of a suspense thriller than in-your-face horror, the episode sees the Doctor try and face a monster that has perfected the ability to hide. Read more: Every Doctor Who Easter egg in Space Babies and The Devil's Chord Listen explores the fear of what the creature hiding under the bed might be. The episode is all about what can't be seen, with the story building tension slowly so that it becomes an excruciating watch. 3 | Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead Alex Kingston and David Tennant in Silence In The Library, which began a long-running story about River Song and the Doctor. (BBC) (BBC/Courtesy Everett Collection, Everett Collection Inc) Moffat is known for his sweeping story arcs that take multiple episodes, and multiple seasons to pay off and the first example of this was the appearance of River Song (Alex Kingston). The character was introduced to Tennant's Tenth Doctor in the episodes Silence in the Library and Forest of the Dead, which on its own proved terrifying because of its villain which is the embodiment of darkness. The creature gave new meaning to the idea of being scared of the dark, and the episode sees the Doctor try and help River Song who has known him for years whereas this is his first time meeting her as she is terrorised in an abandoned library. The episode is creepy, and tense, and when combined with every other episode featuring River Song proves an emotional end to their story. Why, you ask? Spoilers. 2 | The Empty Child Doctor Who's Modern era has many great episodes, and The Empty Child is one of them. (BBC) No quote in Doctor Who has become quite so traumatic as the question "are you my mummy?", which is a key part of Moffat's first episode for the franchise: The Empty Child. The episode and its follow-up The Doctor Dances are part of Eccleston's era as the Ninth Doctor, and is still to this day seen as one of the scariest episodes of the franchise. Set during the London Blitz, the Doctor and Rose Tyler (Billie Piper) investigate a time travelling object only to discover a child in a gas mask who has been terrorising people across the city. There's something off about the child though, and this soon becomes apparent when people start having their faces turn into gas masks and they start asking the same questions. It's creepy, frightening and every word you can think of to describe a perfect horror story. 1 | Blink Blink is without a doubt Steven Moffat's scariest episode of Doctor Who. (BBC) Moffat's best episode for Doctor Who though is hands down Blink, an episode that funnily enough gives the least screen time to the Time Lord himself (played by Tennant). Blink introduced fans to the Weeping Angels, an entirely new villain to the franchise that only moves when you're not looking at them. The episode follows Sally (Carey Mulligan), whose best friend has mysteriously disappeared in an abandoned house and decides to investigate with her friend's brother Larry (Finlay Robertson). There they comes across strange statues, and are guided by the Doctor who only appears via video link and warns them to never look away, to never blink, or the Weeping Angels will get them. There's a lot of things that make Blink one of the best, if not the best, episode of the Modern Who era, but first foremost it is thanks to the strength of the writing. Moffat's script skilfully weaves a terrifying fable that features genuinely horrifying monsters that left viewers cowering for days. New episodes of Doctor Who season one premiere on BBC iPlayer at midnight every Saturday, and Boom will air at 6.50pm on BBC One. This article originally appeared on Yahoo TV UK at https://uk.news.yahoo.com/doctor-who-steven-moffat-scariest-episodes-140835374.html Opportunities to improve the resilience of the health system in Northern Ireland ahead of the Covid pandemic were lost because Stormont was suspended for three years, Health Minister Robin Swann has said. He told the Covid-19 Inquiry sitting in Belfast that health workers were in a fragile, under-valued state even before Covid had struck Northern Ireland in 2020. A three-year political impasse had collapsed the powersharing institutions until they were restored in January 2020. Mr Swann told the inquiry that his immediate challenge on assuming office then had been dealing with industrial action by nurses. He said: That had broken down relationships across health and social care. It had also had a dramatic effect on the morale of our health staff and health workers in regards to what needed to be done. We did find our health service workers in a very fragile, under-valued state. Mr Swann said three years of non-recurrent single-year budgets for health between 2017-2020 had meant reform of services had not been possible. He said: If we had had a minister in place through 2017-2020, and the strategic direction, the funding, we could have had some of those opportunities, those transformational pieces of healthcare in place. So when it came to the steps we needed to take during lockdown we could have had some green-site hospitals already established in Northern Ireland, where we could have designated those for the procedures we needed to do that were normal red-flag emergency procedures, while designating other hospitals to be Covid centres. We didnt have the opportunity to do that in the period between 2017-2020, so there was a lot of opportunity lost. He added: The fragility just wasnt how we were able to react, it was that lack of investment in our core service, that lack of investment in our healthcare workers and that had been 10 years in the making. A local official and his Muslim family last week disrupted house church worship in an area of Java island, Indonesia where it has never happened before. In East Java Provinces Betiting village, in Cerme Sub-Regency of Gresik Regency, the head of the citizen association (Ketua Rukun Warga, or RW) in the Benowo area along with his wife and son on Wednesday (May 8) stood outside a house church at about 7 p.m. shouting for the 30 members to stop worshiping, according to video footage and news reports. One of the worshippers, identified only as Gabriella, said the father, mother and their son came to the house screaming, yelling and calling them bad names as they demanded the worship stop, according to news outlet Infogresik in a story by Akurat.co. The West Indonesia Protestant Church (Gereja Protestan di Indonesia Bagian Barat, or GPIB) congregation meeting at the house in Cerme Indah Real Estate, Block P/36 RT 11 RW 03, halted their service. They came shouting at us to stop worship, Gabriella said. The situation attracted residents to come, including the head of RT 11, who tried to calm the situation down. The worship was not loud and has been taking place regularly without incident for 10 years, she said. Stay informed with The Christian Daily Newsletter Sign up In a video of the altercation posted on social media, the narrator identifies the citizen association head as Yayak Hari Subagio. In video footage, a family was seen immediately disturbing the activity of GPIB members in Benowo, the narrator states. A family, Yayak Hari Subagio and his wife Yayik Susilowati, a public servant at the Cerme 1 Public High School, with their son started yelling. The situation attracted the attention of the residents. They tried to calm the situation down. The narrator states that 30 members of the house church were worshipping as the family outside yelled at them, demanding they to stop the service. Cerme Police Chief Andik Asworo confirmed that the altercation took place on Wednesday evening (May 8), according to Beritasatu.com. It was a dismissal, not a disbanding, Andik said, adding that police are investigating and trying to mediate the conflict. We are still waiting for confirmation from the local RT. Sirojul Munir, former chairman of the Lamongan Branch of the Association of Indonesia Islamic Students (Persatuan Mahasiswa Islam Indonesia, or PMII) and now heading an Ansor branch in Lamongan Regency, East Java, said it was unusual that the local official disrupting the service, though overseeing several neighborhoods in the area, was not from the immediate neighborhood. It is strange enough because the perpetrators are not the local community/RT membersand thus triggering a conflict that shocked residents, Sirojul told Morning Star News. Its a shame that this happened, let alone such a thing never happened in the local community in the last 10 years. The altercation and other such incidents should be addressed, he said. Maybe this is a reminder that the Inter-Religious Harmony Forum (Forum Komunikasi Umat Beragama, or FKUB) needs to continue to socialize and promote the values of religious moderation that encourage harmony and tolerance between various elements of the society, Sirojul said. Indonesia, which has largest Muslim population in the world at 231 million people, has seen a stream of such disruptions of Christian worship in the past 25 years, including a knife attack on Java island on May 5. Indonesia ranked 42nd on Open Doors 2024 World Watch List of the 50 countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian. Rishi Sunak warned giving Sir Keir Starmer the keys to No 10 would leave the country less safe and embolden Russias Vladimir Putin, in an early indication of bitter general election battles to come. The Prime Minister claimed Labours refusal to adopt the Governments plan to spend 2.5% of gross domestic product (GDP) on defence sent the wrong message at a time when the world was facing one of the most dangerous periods weve ever known. The highly personal attack on Sir Keir Starmer came as Mr Sunak attempted to revive Tory hopes with his party more than 20 points behind in the opinion polls and licking its wounds after a local election mauling. Sir Keir rejected the attack, saying I know first-hand the importance of national security from his role as director of public prosecutions. Rishi Sunak speaking at the Policy Exchange think tank in central London (Carl Court/PA) Mr Sunak said that despite the dangers over the coming years, there was also opportunity and voters will have a choice between the Conservatives optimistic view of the future and Labours doomsterism. In a speech to the Policy Exchange think tank Mr Sunak said he remained confident that his party could win the general election as it was the only party really talking about the future and offering bold ideas and a clear plan rather than lofty platitudes. The Prime Ministers wide-ranging address warned of threats over the next five years from an axis of authoritarian powers including China, Russia, Iran and North Korea, extremists seeking to sow division at home, fears about new technologies such as artificial intelligence and global forces imperilling peoples financial security. He said: People want to know that they have got someone in charge who understands these dangers, because only if you understand whats happening can you be trusted to keep us safe. (PA Graphics) Mr Sunak has set out a plan to spend 2.5% of GDP on defence by 2030, with the money largely coming from slashing the size of the Civil Service. Labour has said it wants to raise defence spending to 2.5% of GDP, but has not set a date for achieving that target and would carry out a defence review if it wins the election. Mr Sunak said: I believe that we will keep this country safe and Keir Starmers actions demonstrate that he wont be able to do that. He added: The Labour Party and Keir Starmer not matching our investment on defence spending emboldens our adversaries. What do you think Putin thinks when he sees that? That he thinks the West isnt prepared to make the tough choices to invest in their security? Because Russias economy has mobilised for war, he is continuing to be aggressive, we need to meet that aggression with strength. Mr Sunak also accused the opposition of attempting to depress their way to victory with talk of doom loops and gaslighting and scaremongering about pensions. He said: They have just one thing: a calculation that they can make you feel so bad about your country, that you wont have the energy to ask what they might do with the incredible power that they seek to yield. (PA Graphics) Mr Sunak acknowledged that the public felt anxious and uncertain, but denied that this was all due to 14 years of Conservative government. But while he painted a picture of a difficult period ahead, the Prime Minister also pointed to significant opportunities presented by transformational technologies such as AI, adding it was incumbent upon us to make this a period not just of great danger but of great progress too. In his speech and question and answer session, Mr Sunak: Stressed he would not let the European Court of Human Rights derail his Rwanda asylum plan, saying if the Strasbourg court make me choose between the ECHR and this countrys security, I will choose our countrys security every single time. Kept the door open for Boris Johnson to play a role during the election, saying the party was a broad church and the election was not a choice between this Conservative and that Conservative but against Labour. Again refused to rule out a July election, saying he did not want a debate about process and timing. Mr Sunak concluded: There are storms ahead. The dangers are all too real, but Britain can feel proud again, Britain can feel confident again, because with bold action and a clear plan, we can and we will create a secure future. The Prime Minister suggested Britain would be less safe under Sir Keir Starmer and a win for the opposition would embolden Vladimir Putin (Owen Humphreys/PA) Sir Keir said the Tories offered chaos and division and we cant afford another five years of that. He told reporters in Wolverhampton: The first duty of any government, particularly an incoming Labour government, is national security, the security of the country, and that would be my first priority. Sir Keir said Mr Sunaks speech was his seventh reset in 18 months. That really shows you that the choice as we go into this election is now pretty clear: Its a choice between a changed Labour Party that puts the country first and party second, or continuing with this government, the chaos and division thats been going on for so long, caused so much hardship. Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said: This Conservative Government is out of touch and out of time and Rishi Sunak must do the right thing and give the people a general election. Rishi Sunak hit out at unprincipled Sir Keir Starmer over the defection of MP Natalie Elphicke. The former Tory MP switched to Labour but Sir Keir has faced a backlash over her previous actions, including criticism of her anti-strike stance and allegations she lobbied a minister to interfere in her then-husbands sex offences trial. The Prime Minister said the defection shows less about her and its more about Keir Starmer. It shows him to be completely and utterly unprincipled. This is someone who went from embracing Jeremy Corbyn to embracing Natalie Elphicke, he said. It just tells you that you cant trust what the guy says. If you are trying to be everything to everyone, fundamentally you dont stand for anything. Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer with Natalie Elphicke, during a visit to Dover (Gareth Fuller/PA) Dover MP Ms Elphicke quit the Tories in a protest over housing policy and the failure to curb small boat crossings of the English Channel. But Mr Sunak told reporters following a speech in London: As Natalie Elphicke herself said, in the not-too-distant past, Labour are an open borders, pro-immigration party that doesnt want to stop the boats. Her words, not mine. Meanwhile, unease within Labour and the unions over Ms Elphickes defection continued. Sir Keir Starmer with Labours metro mayors on Monday (Stefan Rousseau/PA) The president of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) described Labours decision to welcome Ms Elphicke as alarming because of her vocal support for the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act, which curbs the impact that industrial action can have on some key services. Matt Wrack, who is also the general secretary of Fire Brigades Union, denounced comments she made in March blaming firefighters for the deaths of three people during a past national strike. This is a disgraceful attack on firefighters, who protect the public and save lives every day, sometimes at great personal cost, he wrote in a letter to the Labour leader. The Labour Party is the political wing of the Labour movement. It exists to fight for the interests of working people in Parliament. Attacking trade union members in this way to justify support for draconian anti-worker laws ought to be incompatible with membership of the parliamentary Labour Party. He added: Natalie Elphicke should never have been given the Labour whip, but these remarks further undermine the decision to accept her into the party. There appears to have been little, if any, due diligence. Meanwhile, a Labour MP said there should be an independent investigation into allegations that Ms Elphicke in 2020 asked then-justice secretary Sir Robert Buckland to intervene in her then-husband Charlie Elphickes case. Labour has said Ms Elphicke totally rejects that characterisation of the meeting. Sir Keir Starmer said on Monday: Natalie Elphicke has disputed and denies the allegations. He added: If the Tories put as much time and energy into running the country properly as they do into attacking Natalie Elphicke we wouldnt be in the mess that were in. Tory former justice secretary Sir Robert Buckland (Liam McBurney/PA) Former shadow minister for tackling domestic violence Jess Phillips told LBC: I think questions have to be answered now. I dont know how one would prove if two people are saying two different things, its not my wheelhouse, its not my pay grade, there are questions to be answered, there are apologies to be made and there is work to do and I maintain that position. Health minister Maria Caulfield also said there should be an investigation into Sir Roberts claims, but added it was up to the Labour Party to carry one out. Senior Labour figures have been forced to defend their new colleague. Party chairwoman Anneliese Dodds questioned why Conservatives calling for a probe did not do so when Ms Elphicke was said to have approached Sir Robert. Ms Dodds told the BBCs Westminster Hour: Natalie Elphicke has said that these allegations are not true. And I think if the Conservative Party now says that it wishes to launch an investigation, the big question is for the Conservatives, because they maintain that this took place four years ago, there was no investigation, nothing done about it when she was a Conservative MP. I think many people will be scratching their heads and saying if this is the serious matter that they state it is, why did they not act on this four years ago? Shadow education minister Catherine McKinnell told Sky News on Monday she was baffled as to why Sir Robert had sat on the allegations and said his reasons for doing so should be looked into. Natalie Elphicke defended her husband after the allegations emerged and accompanied him to Southwark Crown Court throughout the trial (Dominic Lipinski/PA) Tory former minister Sir Conor Burns told the same programme: I dont believe that Robert Buckland spoke about this formally at the time, I dont know. But if he had done, there should have been an inquiry. Ms Elphickes former husband, her predecessor as Dover MP, was convicted of sexually assaulting two women and jailed for two years in 2020. She ended the marriage after his conviction but supported his unsuccessful appeal, saying Mr Elphicke had been attractive, and attracted to women and an easy target for dirty politics and false allegations. Ms Elphicke was forced to apologise for the comments backing her ex-husband following criticism from her new party colleagues. Rishi Sunak will face stiff competition from Sir Keir Starmer during the next general election. (PA) ((PA)) The prime minister has once again dodged questions about when the next general election will be held, repeating his assertion that the country will go to the polls "in the second half of the year". Asked if he could confirm there would not be an election in July following his 13 May speech at the Policy Exchange about the country's future, Rishi Sunak replied: "At some point in the second half of this year, we will all go to the polls and make a choice. "Not just about Conservatives versus Labour or Sunak versus Starmer, it will be a choice between the future and the past." His comments came after one the countrys most respected election gurus dismissed rumours of a summer general election as clickbait. Several media reports have raised the likelihood of Rishi Sunak going to the polls in July after he refused to rule it out to reporters following the vote on the Rwanda policy in the Commons. Sunak has previously insisted an election would take place in the second half of the year with many experts assuming he is referencing to either an October or November polling day. But polling expert Sir John Curtice, who previously predicted that Labour has a 99% chance of forming the next government, insists the rumours of an election in July are way off the mark. He said that the poor Tory polling would not hasten any trip to the polls. Curtuce told ITVs Peston previously: Its clearly in the interests of the government to create an air of uncertainty. They would like their opponents to spend their money now, rather than when the election is later. It is in the interest of the media to report those stories because it creates quite good clickbait and helps attract the interest of their potential audience. Curtice still believes the election will be held in November, adding: The Conservatives are still 19 points behind in opinion polls, there is no sign of any significant recovery so far. I do not see how any government could anticipate a recovery on the scale required to be able to form the next government between now and July. When is the next general election? Speculation has been rife on when an election could be. Sunak could technically wait until January 2025 to hold a general election, but has confirmed that 2024 will be an election year. There was previously speculation in Westminster that he was preparing to call a general election to coincide with the local elections, seeking to reap an advantage at the ballot box from the national insurance cut announced at the budget. Labour had been particularly keen to talk up the prospect of a general election in May, with shadow Cabinet Office minister Jonathan Ashworth betting Sky News presenter Kay Burley 10 that the election would take place then. The Tories are some way behind Labour in the voting intention tracker. (YouGov) But Sunak's comments on 14 March dismissed the possibility of a May polling day, and indeed the last date for him to call a May election (parliament would have needed to be dissolved by 26 March) has long passed, as rules in the UK require a general election to be held 25 days after asking the King to dissolve parliament. Some Westminster commenters still believe Sunaks hand could be forced if the local elections prove disastrous for the Tories. In that instance, Sunak may face pressure to go to the polls early if his own MPs call for him to stand down or he may choose to avoid a leadership challenge. Oddschecker has the likelihood of an election held between July to September as 13/2 meaning it is relatively unlikely in the eyes of bookmakers. The odds are overwhelmingly in favour of an October to December election, with odds of 1/4. The 2019 election was unique in modern times due to being held in December most general elections are held in late spring or early summer. This means the five-year term of the government can be stretched to December 2024, which means polling day could take place the following month in theory. Boris Johnson casts his vote in the 2019 general election. (PA) (Kirsty Wigglesworth, Associated Press) In the past, governments have only called elections early when confident of victory, so Sunak was previously thought to be likely to hold off for as long as he can. That seems to be his more likely strategy now. A late autumn election could, however, be unpopular with campaigners, who disliked being forced to campaign in the cold and dark ahead of the 2019 polling day. Cabinet ministers have also been warned that holding a general election that coincides with the US presidential election in November would be a security risk, according to The Times. When do people want the next election? A YouGov poll released in February 2024 suggested that a May 2024 general election was the "most palatable" option to voters however, this option is no longer viable. Two-thirds of respondents (68%) said this would be acceptable, compared to just 13% who would find it unacceptable. The next most popular months were June (64%) and April (61%). December 2024 and January 2025 were the least preferred months to go to the polls, with only 30% and 32% respectively considering these options to be acceptable. In January, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer accused Sunak of "dithering and delaying" over an early election "while the country wants change", as Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey claimed the prime minister was "running scared" by refusing to commit to a spring poll. Now, it seems Sunak seems likely to push the election to the autumn, having dodged questions about the country going to the polls in July. The early budget was mistakenly taken by some as a sign of a potential early election. (Alamy) (PAUL GROVER) How can a snap election be called? Only the King can trigger an election by dissolving parliament, but he does so on advice from the PM. Once parliament is dissolved every seat in the House of Commons becomes vacant and MPs cease to represent their seats meaning no new laws can be passed. Between 2011 and 2022 the PM needed permission of parliament to ask the monarch to dissolve parliament, but this was scrapped with the Dissolution and Calling of Parliaments Act 2022. The new powers mean effectively only Sunak can trigger an election at any time he chooses by simply recommending it to the King. Read more: Who can call a general election? (Yahoo News UK) Parliamentary terms run for five years and the current parliament met for the first time on 17 December 2019, meaning it must dissolve on 17 December 2024. With general election campaigns taking 25 days, the Electoral Commission has said the latest date for the election can be 28 January 2025. However, it is seen as extremely unlikely the government will call for an election over the Christmas and New Year period. When was the last election? The last election was held on 12 December 2019 with Boris Johnson winning a landslide victory over Jeremy Corbyn's Labour Party. The election was dominated by the issue of Brexit and finishing the UK's exit from the EU, a process which had begun with the referendum in 2016. Polling stations open at 7am and this time you'll need to show photo ID to cast a vote. (PA) (IMAGO/Jon Super, Imago) The Conservatives won 365 seats, their highest number since 1987 and Labour won 202 seats, its lowest proportion since 1935. How can I register to vote? You can register online on the government's website, you need to be over the age of 16 and a British citizen. The form takes five minutes and you will need your national insurance number. Despite being able to register to vote at 16 you must be 18 to vote in a general election. How can I vote? There are three ways to vote in a UK general election, in person, by post or by proxy. Most people vote in person at a polling station. At the time of the election, you will be able to find where you should go to vote on the government's website. You'll also be sent a polling card which will tell you where you should vote, you can take this along with you when voting but it isn't necessary. You will also need to show a photo ID to confirm your identity, you can find out what IDs are accepted on the government's website. It is usually clear who has won a general election by 6am the following morning. (PA) (Xinhua, Imago) To vote by post need to apply to do it before election day, but you do not need to give a reason as to why you wish to. You must be registered to vote before you apply and you can apply no later than 5pm 11 working days before the election you want to vote in. You will be sent a postal vote in the post which you will then need to return before the specified date. If you pass the specified time and date before posting it then you can still take it to the local polling station by 10pm on election day. The final way to vote is by proxy, getting someone trusted to cast your vote. You need to provide a valid reason for voting by proxy, whether that is you are away on the day, have a medical issue or disability or are unable to due to work. You must apply six working days before the election. When do polls open? Polling stations open from 7am to 10pm on polling day. Who's standing in my area? You will be able to check the candidates standing in your area online. All of the major political parties select their candidates a considerable amount of time before general elections and you can see on their website who they have selected for what constituency. Health Minister Robin Swann has said he wishes he had been approached about concerns around the information coming from his department at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. He said he only became aware of the concerns of former first minister Arlene Foster and former deputy first minister Michelle ONeill when it emerged during evidence given to the Covid-19 Inquiry. The inquiry previously heard that a civil servant had suggested potentially moving Mr Swann, an Ulster Unionist, to another department, and having a health minister from one of the larger parties, the DUP or Sinn Fein. In an email exchange between civil servants in March 2020, then head of the Northern Ireland Civil Service, Sir David Sterling, noted Ms ONeills frustration at having little power or influence over the health service. He wrote that Ms Foster recognised the operational independence of the health minister but was also frustrated at the lack of information coming out of the Department of Health and frequent surprises, such as an announcement about hospital visits ending. A senior official in the Department of Finance at the time, Hugh Widdis, suggested a ministerial reshuffle, with a view to a health minister from Sinn Fein or the DUP, the two largest parties in Northern Ireland, to which Ms ONeill and Ms Foster respectively belonged. He described this as one of the more radical options at the time. Giving evidence to the inquiry on Monday, Mr Swann said he became aware of the frustrations of the first and deputy first minister through the inquiry. I only wish that they had expressed them at the time to myself, he said. I think by this stage I had an open and honest enough relationship with the first and deputy first minister, if they had these concerns, I only wish theyd come to me and said. More than two decades after authorities discovered a University of Georgia law students body at her apartment, where they say a fire was set intentionally, a man has been arrested and charged in connection with the cold case. Tara Louise Baker was found dead in her Athens, Georgia, home by Athens-Clarke County firefighters on January 19, 2001, a day before her 24th birthday, according to a news release from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. On Thursday, state and county investigators said Edrick Lamont Faust, 48, was arrested and faced several charges in connection with Bakers death, including felony murder, aggravated assault, arson and aggravated sodomy, the news release says. Faust, a resident of Athens, remains in jail on a $15,000 bond, according to Clarke County Sheriffs Office jail records. CNN could not determine whether Faust has an attorney. Biological evidence and DNA science led to the arrest, Chris Hosey, director of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, said at a press conference Monday. Hosey declined to comment on what led them to Faust, only saying, investigative work by the cold case unit and local investigators led to this update. No connection was discovered between the victim and suspect, he added. Tara Louise Baker was a hardworking student with a bright future ahead of her, Hosey said in a statement Thursday. Taras life was stolen from her in a horrific act of violence. Baker, a first-year law student from East Point, Georgia, was last seen alive by a friend at the UGA Law School Library on January 18, 2001, around 7:30 p.m., according to GBIs unsolved homicide webpage on the case. Authorities say Baker, while still at the library, called the same friend around 9:46 p.m. to make sure they had arrived home safely. Baker told her friend she planned to leave the library around 10 p.m. The homicide investigation into Bakers death ran cold for 23 years. The victims mother, Virginia Baker, speaking through tears, with a large photo of her deceased daughter just behind her, said she was so grateful for the arrest. I am Taras mother. I always will be Taras mother, she said Monday. She thanked everyone for their prayers and told other families whose loved ones have been killed to hold onto hope. The GBIs Cold Case Unit partnered with the Athens-Clarke County Police Department in September 2023 to conduct an in-depth review and analysis of the ongoing investigation into Bakers death, according to the news release. Athens-Clarke County police chief Jerry Saulters, who was an officer at the crime scene in January 2001, said in a statement that hed hoped for years Bakers family would find justice. I remember being there during that horrific time, Saulters said. Seeing this case now full circle, I appreciate the hard work of the detectives, from then and now. Knowing that the evidence collected at that time contributed to the arrest today gives me tremendous pride in all the officers who worked this case over the years. Meredith Schroeder, Tara Baker's sister, speaks at her memorial service the UGA campus on Jan. 20, 2021. - Joshua Jones/Athens Banner-Herald/USA Today Network 2023 act named for Baker helps her case The Baker family says they have long waited for an arrest announcement, but it is not a day without grief and unanswered questions, they said in a statement provided by Athens true crime podcast host Cameron Jay Harrelson, who covered the students story in a series on the Classic City Crime podcast. Our family is eternally grateful to the Cold Case Unit with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the Athens-Clarke County Police Department and Federal Bureau of Investigation for their dedication and diligence in bringing us closer to the truth that has eluded us for 23 years, the familys statement read. Harrelson, who connected with Bakers family four years ago through a mutual friend with Bakers sister, said the family has long advocated for progress in the cold case. A mothers heart never gives up, she never gave up on seeking the truth, Harrelson told CNN of Virginia Baker, Tara Louise Bakers mother. The late law student, who in May 2003 was posthumously awarded her law degree from UGAs School of Law, is remembered by family, friends, colleagues and classmates as a champion of justice who was fiercely loyal, according to Harrelson, who said he interviewed hundreds of those who knew Baker for the podcast series. She believed in the application of the law. She believed in fighting for people that were less fortunate or whose society might consider to be underdogs, or the left behind and forgotten, Harrelson said. Ive heard many stories of how she was never afraid to say what she felt, but always with kindness, he added. Georgias Coleman-Baker Act, which established a new cold case unit within the GBI, according to CNN affiliate WRDW, was passed last year and named in honor of Baker and Rhonda Sue Coleman, an 18-year-old high school student who was killed in Jeff Davis County, Georgia, in 1990. The arrest of Faust in Bakers case makes it the first case solved by the GBIs new cold case unit, a GBI spokesperson told CNN on Saturday. Loved ones of Tara Louise Baker honored her in Athens, Georgia, with a flower memorial on January 20, 2021. - Joshua Jones/Athens Banner-Herald/USA Today Network Harrelson says he along with the Baker and Coleman families advocated for the law. We did not have any knowledge that this bill would ever affect change for the Baker family themselves, Harrelson said. The way we spoke about it often was that even if this doesnt help Taras case, there are countless families out there that with a second look, (the bill) could help. He added: I could not have thought of a better way to honor Tara Bakers life and legacy, a legacy of fighting for justice and believing in the law, than for this bill to have not only been named after her but to have brought about justice for her. CNNs Devon M. Sayers and Christina Zdanowicz contributed to this report. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com A longtime senior adviser to former President Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton hit the Biden campaign over its strategy in a New York Times op-ed Sunday, arguing the president is siding too much with his base and leaving moderates behind. Mark Penn, who served as an adviser to the Clintons from 1995 to 2008 and now runs the Harris Poll, said focusing on the left wing of the Democratic Party instead of independent voters could cost him in November. If Mr. Biden wants to serve another four years, he has to stop being dragged to the left and chart a different course closer to the center that appeals to those voters who favor bipartisan compromises to our core issues, fiscal discipline and a strong America, Penn wrote in the op-ed. Bipartisanship and fiscal responsibility were the core tenets of Clintons 1996 reelection campaign, which Penn advised. He said Biden is like a scared candidate, convinced to appeal to his left-leaning base to ensure turnout instead of focusing on drawing new voters. I believe most of the 101,000 uncommitted votes that Mr. Biden lost in Michigan will come home in the end because they have nowhere else to go, and the threat Mr. Trump poses will become clearer and scarier in the next six months, he wrote, referring to progressive protest votes in state primaries. But regardless, theres a much bigger opportunity for Mr. Biden if he looks in the other direction. The path to victory, Penn argued, is through former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haleys moderate Republican base. Biden has repeatedly reached out to Haley voters since she dropped out of the GOP primary, attempting to bridge the gap for Republicans turned off by former President Trump. These people are in the moderate center, and many of them could be persuaded to vote for Mr. Biden if he fine-tuned his message to bring them in, he said of Haley voters. Penn said that Biden should instead reinvent his entire policy platform to more closely match what he believes moderates want by being hard on crime and immigration, doubling down on support for Israel and backing off of key promises toward combating climate change all recommendations that would align with many conservatives preferences. The 2024 election is a rematch, but Mr. Biden should not assume that he will get the same result as he did in 2020 in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Georgia and other battleground states by running the same playbook, he wrote. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. BALTIMORE (AP) Kentucky Derby winner Mystik Dan drew the No. 5 post position in the Preakness on Monday looking to sweep the first two legs of horse racings Triple Crown, though he's not favored to do so. Bob Baffert-trained Muth, just inside Mystik Dan in the No. 4 post, opened as the 8-5 morning line favorite Monday. Baffert, who was barred from the Derby because of Churchill Downs' ban on him that was extended, is also saddling No. 9 Imagination (6-1) as he goes for a record-extending ninth Preakness victory and second in a row after National Treasure won for him last year. Mystik Dan is the 5-2 second choice in the nine-horse field for the 149th rendition of the 1 3/16-mile, $2 million second jewel of the Triple Crown on Saturday. Muth beat Mystik Dan the last time they raced against each other: March 30 in the Arkansas Derby. With all the success Bob Baffert has had in the Preakness and the name recognition he brings, as well, it all adds up to Muth being a pretty solid favorite, Maryland Jockey Club linemaker Brian Nadeau said. Mystik Dan was 18-1 in the Derby, and when a long shot wins, sometimes the betting public is a bit slow to come around or believe. Mystik Dan is one of three heading to Pimlico Race Course after running in the Derby, joined by Brad Cox's Catching Freedom (No. 3, 6-1), who finished fourth, and D. Wayne Lukas' Just Steel, who faded to 17th, and opened at 15-1 leaving from the No. 7 post. Two-time Preakness-winning jockey Robby Albarado, who has been riding Mystik Dan in the mornings for trainer Kenny McPeek, was hoping for No. 4 because his victories in the race were from that post. The most recent of which came for McPeek with Swiss Skydiver in 2020, when he and the filly beat Baffert-trained Authentic. But, all in all, Mystik Dan's camp was happy with how the draw went down. "Perfect couldnt have asked for a better one," assistant trainer Ray Bryner said. Hes right in the middle of nine horses. We have the favorite inside us. Muth better look out. It's the first time since 2012 that the Derby winner did not open as the Preakness favorite. It takes the pressure off, Albarado said. No pressure not being the favorite. McPeek is hoping Mystik Dan can be the first horse since Baffert's Justify in 2018 to win the Derby and Preakness. There is hope, post-position draw emcee Britney Eurton said. There is hope of a Triple Crown. McPeek had not committed to bringing him back on a two-week turnaround until Saturday, when he was satisfied the colt bounced back well from his run to win by a nose over Sierra Leone and Forever Young in the closest Derby finish in half a century. He came back from the Derby just fine, Bryner said. The first day, a little tired, just a little quiet, but thats normal. ... You go out and go run a marathon tomorrow and see how you feel the next day. Youre going to need a day or two to rest up. Hes done everything. Hes checked every box. Jockey Brian Hernandez Jr., whose elite ride got the job done May 4 in the Derby, will again be aboard Mystik Dan. Also running in the Preakness are Lukas' Seize the Grey (No. 6, 15-1), No. 2 Uncle Heavy (20-1), No. 8 Tuscan Gold (8-1) and No. 5 Mugatu (20-1). ___ AP horse racing: https://apnews.com/hub/horse-racing Eva Longoria is aiming to give a star-studded push at mobilizing Latina support for President Bidens reelection bid, headlining a campaign event in Phoenix. The Monday gathering in swing state Arizona featuring the Flamin Hot director will include a group of mothers and young Latinas, a campaign official told ITK. The goal of the event, according to the Biden campaign, is to emphasize that Latinas of all generations in Arizona will be critical in motivating their family members and their community to stop [former President] Trump, who has demonized Latinos throughout his political career and is pursuing an agenda that would be particularly devastating for Latino families. Its not the first time that Longoria has used her platform to attempt to give a boost to Democratic presidential candidates. In 2012, she served as one of several national co-chairs of then-President Obamas reelection campaign. Longoria spoke out against Mike Pence during the 2016 White House race, saying in a video released by the Democratic National Committee that Mexicans arent a thing, after the then-GOP vice presidential candidate had said Democrats whipped out that Mexican thing again. The 49-year-old former Desperate Housewives star, who was born in Texas, also delivered remarks at the 2016 and 2020 Democratic National Conventions. Last year, the Bidens hosted a showing of Longorias directorial debut, Flamin Hot, at the White House. A poll released last month found that Trumps favorability had risen among Latinos, while Bidens had fallen. Bidens favorability among Latinos has fallen 6 points since last summer 47 percent in June 2023 to 41 percent last month, according to the survey from Axios/Ipsos. Trumps favorability among Latinos in the same time period rose from 29 percent to 32 percent. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for CinemaCon Kevin Costner is finally weighing in on those Yellowstone rumors, explaining the real truth of what went down with the show. I have taken a beating from those fking guys and I know a lot of times where its coming from. I just elected not to get into that. But if you know me well enough, I made Yellowstone the first priority, and to insinuate anything else would be wrong. I did not initiate any of those things. They did, Costner, 69, told Deadline in a profile published on Monday, May 13, noting that he could go through his current Horizon: An American Saga press tour saying no comment but wont. I will address it. They should have known that there was going to be an opportunity for me to say something, Costner continued. I didnt have to answer the slings and arrows over the last year and a half, because Ive just been busy working. Theyve been pretty slick about keeping their hands off; nobody was ever on the record. Discussing the Yellowstone drama, Costner said he hasnt felt good about it the last year, noting that the ongoing speculation about the show wasnt truthful. The actor explained that he had negotiated a contract for three more seasons five, six and seven but the powers that be made another contract which turned into season 5A and 5B. Ian Bohen Says 'Yellowstone' Will Have the Best Series Finale in History At the time, Yellowstone was in first position and his Horizon film series fit into the gaps. Costner added, They just kept moving their gaps. Costner called bullst on rumors he couldnt be on the Yellowstone set because he was too busy with Horizon. His account of the so-called drama is straight up, the Hollywood veteran added. Thats not true, he declared when asked whether Horizon cut into his Yellowstone filming time. Thats a lie. Thats not correct. They sent me away for seven days to go to London, to go to England during Covid, to do [promotion]. They made the contract, and they picked the days. Costner said there were blocks of time that 10 episodes were not filmed, and he only worked 43 days. It was widely reported that alleged tension between Costner and Yellowstone cocreator Taylor Sheridan delayed the shows return. Season 5A aired its final episode in January 2023 with the second part set to air that summer but the episodes have yet to air. Costner told Deadline that he lived up to the contract he signed. (The actor has played the role of John Dutton since the Yellowstone series premiere, which aired in 2018.) I gave them 25 of my days for this B thing in November and December [2022]. What they called 5B. The whole month of March [2023], he continued. I didnt shoot 5B. There was no script. And then things imploded. According to Costner, he left Horizon to film season 5B. The biggest issue, it seemed which Costner kept repeating was that there were no scripts for the final Yellowstone episodes. I left exactly when they wanted, and it made it hard on me. It turns out they didnt have the scripts for 5B. They needed four more days just to complete the first eight episodes, he claimed. I left early to give them what they needed to have a complete eight, and I felt bad that the audience didnt get 10. A Guide to 'Yellowstone' and Its Many Spinoffs Thats when he decided to offer a week to Yellowstone. I really didnt have that week to give them, but I said, Ill do that. And then they [spun that] into, I only wanted to work a week, Costner added. Do you think thats who I am? Ive never missed a day of work. Ive never left before fulfilling my contractual obligations, the actor continued. A lot of times, I stay as much as I can. In fact, I worked the nine-day stretch just to try to help them in July [2022], when I was starting [Horizon] August 1. I worked a Saturday and Sunday for them, and they still needed four more days. I gave it to them, when I thought, we were going to do this so-called B, but there was no B thing. Costner is very open to coming back to Yellowstone. If the writings there and Im happy with it. Im open to that. But I took a beating over these guys not speaking up for me and allowing crazy stories to come out, he added. Im not happy about that. But if the writing is there, I will be there too. They had first position. I didnt do Horizon because I was tired of doing Yellowstone. Thats a bullst story. I didnt do Horizon to compete with Yellowstone. This [project] is something Ive had a long time. The first half of Yellowstones fifth season ended with John (Costner) seemingly teaming up with his daughter, Beth (Kelly Reilly), to murder his son Jamie (Wes Bentley). Jamie, meanwhile, called for Johns impeachment. The second half of Yellowstones fifth and final season is now set to premiere in November. Horizon: Chapter 1, meanwhile, hits theaters on June 28. Jeff Fountain, a journalist by trade, is the founder and director of the The Schuman Centre for European Studies. Originally from New Zealand and now living in Holland, he led Youth With A Mission (YWAM) in Europe for 20 years. He also helped create Hope for Europe, an umbrella initiative for evangelical groups on the continent. In a three-part series by Christian Daily International, Fountain shares his perspectives for evangelicals on the spiritual landscape driving Europe, both past, present and future. In this second of three articles, the former YWAM leader explains why Evangelicals need Bible-reading glasses to understand Europe. The gospels deep influence within the formation and politics of modern Europe needs to be better understood and reclaimed by evangelicals. That is the view of Jeff Fountain, director of the Schuman Centre for European Studies, who emphasizes that the Jesus story has shaped the European story. According to Fountain, European history is prejudiced towards nationalistic points of view. Yet historically, it is the gospel of Jesus Christ, which actually led to the creation of modern Europe. Stay informed with The Christian Daily Newsletter Sign up It is the coming of the story of Jesus brought by Paul to the Greeks and Romans, and then brought by Patrick to the Irish, and brought by Boniface to the Germans, and so on, said Fountain. The people hearing the gospel in the first millennium basically embraced a Christian understanding and worldview of one good Creator, a forgiving God and a human being created in his image. Human rights rooted in Christian understanding That is why, in Fountains perspective, the gospel value that every human being has dignity should be recognised as forming the background to the European Convention on Human Rights, the international treaty between nations within the Council of Europe, adopted on September 3, 1953. Human rights are totally rooted in a Christian understanding, said Fountain. Without that, there would not have been any concept of human rights because you cannot draw human rights from a godless understanding, a materialistic evolution where only the fittest survive. There's no basis for equality there. There's no basis for the rights of the poor. And so, we've got to recognize that the whole of Europe, the character of Europe, the culture, the values, the story of Europe has been shaped by the gospel. Fountain concedes some very dark chapters in the history of the Church in Europe at times, being a very bad representative of its founder. He sees a paradox in Europe as a continent most shaped by the gospel story at the same time as it rejects the gospel in postmodern society. This is seen in the sequences of some historical events: We get to the Enlightenment, we get to the autonomy of man separated from the creator, and out of this comes deism and then agnosticism, and then atheism. Freedom under God or freedom from God? Amsterdam, where Fountain has lived for many years, represents this paradox of the contrast between the dark and light. Its a city of a thousand contradictions, we often say. And that comes from the tension between two different kinds of freedom. Freedom under God or freedom from God, freedom to do what you ought to do or freedom to do what you want to do. That same tension is felt throughout Europe too, Fountain opines, but even so we cannot really understand Europe without understanding something about Christianity and the Bible. That is a direct quote from evolution biologist Richard Dawkins. That's why we need to tell the story. That's why we need to also insist that actually the lack of biblical knowledge is undermining our European culture. It undermines British culture, it undermines Dutch culture. And just on that basis alone, we should be having Bible courses in our schools and universities, not as evangelistic tools, but to explain: Where did these ideas come from? Where did these values come from? Where did these expressions come from? European literature, for example, draws heavily from the Bible, and so we need to tell that story, according to Fountain. Sitting in a 3D cinema without 3D glasses The problem is that it's like we're sitting in a 3D cinema theater waiting for the film to start. The manager comes in and says, We hope you enjoy the movie. Unfortunately, somebody stole all the 3D glasses, but enjoy the movie. In Fountains view, European leaders in education, politics, and media dont have the glasses on. They are biblically illiterate, he believes, adding: They are spiritually tone deaf, and therefore are giving two-dimensional education and politics and so forth. This leads to a proper challenge for the body of Christ to be able to put the glasses back on to help interpret history again. That means looking at the development of the European Union in a whole different light. Fountain points out this does not mean he says the EU is just a wonderful blessing. There's a battle going on for the soul of Europe. It's a tug of war, and we have abdicated in that battle. We, as evangelical Christians, have too often stood on the sideline. We are captive to a theology that is too small As highlighted in the earlier part of the article series, Fountain has spoken of the difficulty in finding evangelicals thinking about Europe. His surprise is finding that people who did think biblically about Europe came from a part of the church that I was always led to have suspicions about, and that was the Catholic church. Fountain did a research paper interviewing 20 evangelical leaders from different countries, mainly from Western Europe, about evangelical attitudes towards European integration. He also examined the curricular of the International Council for Evangelical Theological Education. I could hardly find anything in that area [about Europe]. Now, I think what that says to me is that we evangelicals are very quick to say Jesus is Lord of all but very slow to even teach that to our potential pastors. We dont teach it to our theological seminaries, therefore I dont think we really believe it. Were still captive to a theology thats too small and thats a Lutheran theology of justification by faith, which is necessary. But we miss out on the Calvinistic emphasis of the sovereignty of God over every area of life. Full engagement rather than fear Fountain, in his questioning of evangelical leaders, also saw that the idea of Europe being the beast had become less popular with younger people, despite a boost from literature such as the Tim La Hayes Left Behind series about the End Times. But among the young, [these ideas] are not so popular anymore. They dont have so much traction. There are signs of more engagement: Fountain highlights an upcoming meeting in early May between Christian academics presenting papers at an academic event called Blueprints of Hope in Utrecht, Holland, showing how the Church engaged in Europe at the end of the First World War, with the formation of the League of Nations. People like William Temple, the Archbishop of Canterbury, were part of this whole process of thinking through what would lead to a just, peaceful Europe. A Europe that would reflect some of the four freedoms that U.S. President Roosevelt talked about. Summarizing the war aims of the U.S. entering the Second World War in his Annual Message to Congress (State of the Union Address) on January 6, 1941, Roosevelt spoke about the freedom of speech, the freedom of worship, the freedom from want, and the freedom from fear. Even so, Fountain pinpoints this lack of attention by some evangelicals as being the reason why they currently miss full engagement in the European situation. Theres lots of very good things happening in evangelical circles but we still have some serious blind spots. SILVER SPRING, Md. Marylands Senate race was supposed to be a battle for the soul of the Democratic Party. Instead, its turned into something else: a key race in the battle for the Senate majority. Former GOP Gov. Larry Hogans decision to run for the states open Senate seat scrambled the stakes, and now Democrats competing in Tuesdays primary arent just making the case about what type of Democrat should be in the Senate. Theyre each arguing that theyre the better candidate to take on Hogan in November if Hogan wins his own primary on Tuesday. Democratic Rep. David Trone has spent more than $60 million of his own personal fortune on the primary as he takes on Prince Georges County Executive Angela Alsobrooks, who is vying to become the states first Black senator and one of the few Black women to ever serve in the upper chamber. The big argument you hear for Trone being better positioned is his resources, said Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., who has endorsed Alsobrooks. And the big argument you hear for Alsobrooks being better positioned is that shes building a coalition of people across the state who could conceivably beat that kind of money. So in some sense, the primary is a good testing ground for both of those theories, Raskin added. Millions hit the Maryland airwaves Trone, the co-founder of the alcohol retailer Total Wine & More, has built out a sprawling campaign using his wealth. Its not just the more than $47 million hes spent on campaign ads compared to Alsobrooks $4 million, according to the ad-tracking firm AdImpact. Campaign finance records show Trones campaign payroll included three times more staffers than Alsobrooks. Some Trone campaign workers outside early voting locations told NBC News they were paid as much as $350 a day, though others said they were not. (Alsobrooks campaign says she doesnt pay volunteers.) Battling a massive spending disparity, Alsobrooks has accused Trone of trying to buy the Senate seat. This is not what democracy looks like in this country, she said in an interview during a campaign stop in Silver Spring. Trone argues that his wealth means special interests have no sway over him. Its the No. 1 thing voters really like and appreciate, the fact that you came from nothing, and started with zero, became successful. Everyone likes success. Thats the American dream, he said in an interview last week, adding: We can be truly independent. Voters gave mixed reviews to Trones cash blast. I dont think hes really given us a reason to vote for him other than that hes rich and has the money, said Julia House, a 60 year-old retiree from Mitchellville, as she went to cast her ballot for Alsobrooks at an early voting site in Landover last week. Brett Zurer, a Silver Spring resident who voted for Trone, said he was focused on which candidate could beat Hogan in November. Asked whether he was concerned about Trones self-funding, Zurer replied: Not at all. Image: Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (Julio Cortez / AP file) His positions are the positions that I agree with, he added. While Trone has been dominating the spending, thanks to his self-funding, Alsobrooks got some last minute help from EMILYs List, an organization which supports female Democrats who back abortion rights, which has spent $2.2 million on ads in the race so far. The money helped to close the massive ad-spending gap in Trones favor from 14-to-1 before EMILYs List started spending to 2-to-1 in Trones favor in the final days of the campaign. But some Alsobrooks supporters wondered if the spending came too late. Targeting Black voters Some Democratic voters said they are voting for Alsobrooks, in part, because they hope to elect another Black woman to the Senate in November, where only three have ever served. Alsobrooks, a Prince Georges County native, leads Marylands second-largest county, previously having served as its domestic violence prosecutor and later its first Black woman states attorney. I feel every person should be able to look in the Senate and see themselves, Alsobrooks told NBC News. Im not in this race because Im Black and a woman, but I am proud to be a Black woman. But I am also proud that I have the kind of experience that will help bring home the results for Maryland. Trone has attempted to appeal to the states Black voters, who are an important voting bloc in the Democratic primary. But Trone has also stumbled on the subject of race, grabbing headlines earlier this year for using a racial slur during a congressional hearing, which he said was an inadvertent slip when addressing Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young, who is Black. While attempting to use the word bugaboo in a hearing, I used a phrase that is offensive, he said at the time. That word has a long, dark, terrible history. It should never be used any time, anywhere, in any conversation. I recognize that as a white man, I have privilege. Asked about his campaigns outreach to Black voters, Trone told NBC News that he supports diversity and has financially supported diverse candidates, and he referenced his childhood on a 200-acre chicken and hog farm in Pennsylvania along the Maryland border, which his family lost to bankruptcy after his parents divorced, noting that he didnt come from wealth and saying he could relate to voters. But at the end of the day, what we hear from so many diverse voters is we need someone who actually speaks for us, somebody who has our values, Trone said. I went to public school, [Alsobrooks] went to private school. Someone who lived the life they did, Trone continued. I didnt even have indoor plumbing. We had an outhouse. And I grew up in a family that was destroyed by alcoholism, destroyed. So we grew up in a tough circumstance, and things werent easy. But at the end of the day, we became successful and said, OK now I got to give back. Trone is touting support from politicians including state Attorney General Anthony Brown, Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger and Prince Georges County States Attorney Aisha Braveboy (from Alsobrooks home county), as well as dozens of his Democratic peers in Congress. Alsobrooks backers include Gov. Wes Moore and Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller, as well as Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott, key state legislative leaders and six members of the Maryland congressional delegation. A looming fight in November The prospect of running against Hogan has loomed large in the Democratic primary, with Trones closing ads stressing that hell use every resource to defeat the Republican. Its a point Trones allies, and even his opponents, admit could help him Trones massive wallet could allow Democrats to spend money defending their slim Senate majority in other states. Alsobrooks allies, though, believe she can rally the coalition necessary to beat Hogan and provide a sharper contrast as a female candidate in a year in which abortion is expected to be a top issue. Of course, Hogan still has to win the GOP primary on Tuesday. A vocal Trump critic, Hogan is facing Robin Ficker, a perennial candidate who is self-funding his campaign and has outspent Hogan on the airwaves, launching ads saying Ficker will stand with President Trump. The National Republican Senatorial Committee has teamed up with Hogan for ads ahead of the primary, launching spots focused on immigration, a top issue to GOP primary voters. Hogan acknowledges he faces a tough path to victory in the fall, assuming he wins his primary. President Joe Biden won Maryland by 33 points in 2020, and the state hasnt sent a Republican to the Senate since 1987. Its really, really difficult, Hogan told NBC News in an interview at a campaign fundraiser in Davidsonville last week. The top of the ticket is probably not going to do that well. If Hogan wins his primary, Democrats plan to tie him to the broader Republican Party, especially on the issue of abortion. Hogan vowed to leave abortion rights up to the states. When I announced this race, I was attacked by both of the other challengers saying Im going to be the deciding vote on the national abortion ban. I said, No, I would never vote for the national abortion ban. Hogan said. But the abortion issue could turn off some of his former supporters, like Laurie Whiting, a Davidsonville resident who twice voted for Hogan for governor. She said she doesnt trust Hogan to represent her on the federal level and is supporting Trone in the Democratic primary. I know that [Hogan]s telling us he would stay the way he was before, he supported Maryland, but Im a little concerned about the Republican ticket, Whiting said. The threat of Hogans candidacy has some Democrats nervous about November. I wish he wasnt [running], said House, the Alsobrooks supporter from Mitchellville. People love him. So its going to be hard. That tough fight against Hogan weighed heavily on Coleen, a 68 year-old retiree from Bowie who declined to give her last name and cast her ballot for Trone at the same polling place in Landover. I dont think Alsobrooks can beat Hogan in a statewide race, said Coleen, a Black woman, explaining that she believes a white candidate can have more appeal in rural counties. I want the Democrat to win, she said. So its all strategic on my part. Billionaire philanthropist Melinda French Gates is stepping down from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the charitable organization that she co-founded in 2000 with her now ex-husband, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates. French Gates said in a social media post that her last day at the foundation will be June 7, adding that she plans to move onto "the next chapter" of her philanthropic work. In a separate statement, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation CEO Mark Suzman said the organization would be changing its name to the Gates Foundation. In departing the foundation, French Gates said her plan is to focus on "women and girls in the U.S. and around the world." She noted that as part of her departure agreement from the foundation she'll receive $12.5 billion to commit to those goals. "[T]hose fighting to protect and advance equality are in urgent need of support," French Gates wrote in her statement. Melinda French Gates and Bill Gates were married for 27 years before announcing their divorce in May 2021, a decision that she described to "CBS Mornings" anchor Gayle King in 2022 as "painful." She added at the time that the pair intended to continue working together on their foundation. Gates Foundation CEO Suzman described her departure as "very sad news." "I want to reassure you that the millions of people our work serves and the thousands of partners we work alongside can continue to count on the foundation," he added. At the end of 2023, the foundation had $75.2 billion in assets, according to its website. Congress defies its own law, fails to install plaque honoring Jan. 6 police officers Cracker Barrel announces changes to restaurant chain Pope Francis apologizes after being quoted using homophobic slur Nobody has anything nice to say about Michael Cohen. Donald Trumps former fixer and lawyer is expected to take the stand Monday as the key witness in the Manhattan district attorneys case against the former president, prepared to give testimony connecting to Trump the $130,000 hush money payment Cohen made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election. Through three weeks of testimony, jurors have already heard plenty about Cohen through numerous witnesses, who have painted an unflattering portrait of an aggressive, impulsive and unlikeable attorney. David Pecker, former head of National Enquirer parent company American Media Inc., said Cohen was prone to exaggeration. Former Trump aide Hope Hicks said Cohen liked to call himself a fixer a role she said was possible only because he first broke it. And Daniels former attorney Keith Davidson said he only worked with Cohen because he was a jerk whom Daniels then-manager Gina Rodriguez along with everyone else didnt want to deal with. Gina called me up to tell me that: Some jerk called me and was very, very aggressive and threatened to sue me. And I, um, would like you, Keith, to call this jerk back, Davidson testified in the third week of the trial. I hate to ask it this way, but who was that jerk? asked Assistant District Attorney Joshua Steinglass. It was Michael Cohen, Davidson responded. Now Cohen is the witness whom prosecutors are relying on to deliver testimony that can help them prove Trump falsified business records when he allegedly reimbursed Cohen for the $130,000 to Daniels to keep her from going public about a past encounter ahead of the 2016 election. Trump has pleaded not guilty and denied the affair. Cohen is the only witness who will testify about Trumps alleged involvement in both the decision to pay Daniels and the plan to reimburse Cohen for advancing the money. Cohen will likely serve as the narrator for the prosecution and take the jury from the initial meeting in which Pecker, Cohen and Trump allegedly agreed to buy negative stories that could hurt Trumps presidential run to the payment made to Daniels just days before Election Day to an Oval Office meeting in February 2017, just weeks after Trump was sworn in. Prosecutors allege that during the February meeting, Trump and Cohen agreed how Cohen would be paid back. That arrangement, prosecutors say, included a false story that Cohen was working under a retainer agreement. The paperwork, from the invoices and general ledger entries to the checks signed by Trump, make up the 34 criminal charges in the case. Witnesses who come with baggage Prosecutors have waited to call Cohen until the end of their case, after introducing phone records, emails, text messages and bank records that they hope bolster his credibility with the jury. They have not tried to hide from the jury that he and other witnesses have plenty of problems. We are going to be very up-front about the fact that several of the witnesses in this case have what you made might consider to be some baggage, Steinglass told a panel of prospective jurors during jury selection. The testimony will pit Trump against Cohen, who once said he would take a bullet for the former president. They last saw each other when Cohen testified in Trumps New York civil fraud trial last fall. Cohens testimony was brief, but the showdown was tense. This week the stakes are higher, with a potential criminal conviction and possible jail sentence on the line for Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee. It brings to a close a long journey for Cohen, who is still aggrieved that he served three years in prison and home confinement after pleading guilty to federal campaign finance charges related to the payoff, among other crimes. Cohen met with prosecutors more than a dozen times and testified before the grand jury in the hush money trial. He has immunity on state charges for his role in the alleged conspiracy. He will also face blistering cross-examination by Trump attorney Todd Blanche. The former presidents lawyers are expected to hammer at Cohens credibility, including digging into his past, and suggest to the jury that Trump had no idea what deal Cohen struck or how it was recorded on the books of his company. Even before he takes the stand, Cohen has been attacked and undermined by the prosecutions own witnesses. On one hand, he could be damaged goods before he takes the stand. But he also might benefit from low expectations if the jury finds him to be better than advertised, said Elie Honig, a CNN senior legal analyst and former state and federal prosecutor. After jail sentence, Cohen released books and podcast attacking Trump The charges filed against Trump date to events that transpired during the 2016 election. But in many ways, the case against Trump stems from his former fixers decision to plead guilty in 2018 in federal court to two counts of making unlawful campaign contributions in violation of federal campaign finance laws. He implicated Trump directly in the scheme and admitted that he orchestrated to pay Daniels on Trumps behalf. Cohen also pleaded guilty to tax charges and to lying to Congress about Trumps business venture to build a Trump Tower in Moscow. Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison, which he served behind bars and under house arrest. Cohens plea prompted the Manhattan District Attorneys Office to launch the investigation surrounding the hush money payments that led to Trumps indictment last year. Cohen became dedicated to antagonizing Trump. He published two books, Disloyal in 2020 and Revenge in 2022, and launched a podcast, Mea Culpa all of which spent plenty of time bashing Trump and cheering on his prosecution. On social media, Cohen continued to attack Trump in the weeks leading up to the trial, and even after it began. The social media jabs reached the point that Judge Juan Merchan told prosecutors Friday to give Cohen a message from the bench that he should stop speaking about the case. (Merchan has said he cannot legally gag a witness.) Trump has often punched right back in interviews and on social media, including in several instances that violated the judges gag order on the former president barring discussion of witnesses in the case. No one wanted to talk to Cohen Beginning with the first witness in the case, Pecker, jurors have heard criticisms from witness after witness of Cohen ahead of his own expected testimony. Pecker, who met with Cohen and Trump at a key Trump Tower meeting in 2015, was asked by Trump attorney Emil Bove whether Cohen was prone to exaggeration. Yes, Pecker said. Bove then asked Pecker whether he could not trust everything Cohen said. The judge sustained an objection to the question, telling Trumps attorney in a sidebar discussion that it was not the right place to impeach Cohens credibility. More witnesses would keep doing so anyway. Cohens former banker, Gary Farro, then testified that he was specifically given Cohens account because he could be firm with individuals who may be a little challenging. Farro said it was fair to call Cohen an aggressive guy. Anything he did need, he called me, and it was always something that was urgent, the banker said. Arguably the most negative assessment of Cohen came from Davidson, who negotiated the hush money deal with Cohen on Daniels behalf in 2016. Davidson described a 2011 conversation about a blog post on Daniels and Trump on thedirty.com, where Cohen unleashed a barrage of insults and insinuations and allegations. I dont think he was accusing us of anything. He was just screaming, Davidson said. Daniels former attorney went on to explain how he ended up involved in the hush money deal, when Daniels manager asked him to help finalize the deal for a nondisclosure agreement. Asked why he got involved, Davidson said: The moral of the story was: No one wanted to talk to Cohen. Davidson recalled under questioning from Steinglass that after Trump was elected in 2016, he got a call in December from a very despondent and saddened Cohen. He said something to the effect of: Jesus Christ. Can you f**ing believe Im not going to Washington? After everything Ive done for that f**ing guy. I cant believe Im not going to Washington. Ive saved that guys a** so many times, you dont even know. Others who didnt interact with Cohen as much as Davidson didnt have much better things to say. Jeff McConney, the former Trump Organization controller, was asked what Cohens position was at the company. He said he was a lawyer, McConney responded. Did he work in the legal department? asked prosecutor Matthew Colangelo. I guess so, McConney said derisively. And Hicks, who worked at the Trump Organization before becoming a key aide on the 2016 campaign, described to jurors how Cohen Trumps fixer was prone to inflate his influence on the campaign. There were times where Mr. Cohen did things that you felt were not helpful to what you were trying to accomplish, right? Bove asked Trumps 2016 campaign press secretary. Yes, Hicks responded. I used to say that he liked to call himself a fixer or Mr. Fix It, and it was only because he first broke it that he was able to come and fix it. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Minnesota raised its new state flag over its capitol on Saturday. The flag was unfurled on the state's "Statehood Day" holiday and features a stylized outline of the state, an eight-pointed star and a field of light blue. The unveiling is the culmination of a competition to redesign the flag and state seal to replace one that showed native peoples being driven off their land. The final design for the flag was modified from a submission by Andrew Prekker. "The new flag and seal reflect all Minnesotans and showcase the features of our state that we can all recognize the water, the land, the North Star, and of course - the loon," Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon said in a press release. "We can all unite around these common images that help our state stand apart from the rest." The retired flag was delivered to the Minnesota State Historical Society to be preserved. Loons to Labs: submissions that didn't make the cut A handout photo of the new Minnesota state flag flown over the capitol on Saturday. The Minnesota State Emblems Redesign Commission announced that it received over 2,000 submissions for its call for ideas to change the state's flag in November. The entries ranged from the traditional to the absurd. Here are some of the entries that didn't make the cut: This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Minnesota unfurls new state flag, see unused submissions People with private health insurance might pay higher prices for procedures or tests at a hospital. A report published Monday by the research group Rand Corp. found that in 2022, the prices hospitals charged to private and employer-based insurance providers were, on average, 254% higher than what Medicare would have paid for the same services. These very high payments ultimately result in higher premiums for health insurance coverage and can result in those needing care having to pay high prices to get it, said Stacie Dusetzina, a health policy professor at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, who wasnt involved with the report. The new findings were based on an analysis of health insurance claims data from more than 4,000 hospitals in 49 states and Washington, D.C., from 2020 through 2022. It included both inpatient and outpatient services. In total, the study analyzed about 6% of what private insurance paid out to hospitals during the time period. Brian Briscombe, a health care cost analyst at Rand Corp. who led the report, said the high prices charged to private insurers mean patients will also end up paying more, either directly, in the form of higher copays or out-of-pocket payments, or indirectly, in the form of a smaller paycheck. About 160 million people in the U.S. get their health insurance through their jobs, Briscombe said. When you think about it in the way of an economist, all of it is paid by the patient. I mean, if it cost my job half as much to have health care, my salary would go up, he said. In 2022, hospital services accounted for 42% of health care spending for people with private health insurance, and price hikes from hospitals were a significant contributor to the rise in the average amount spent per person. The report found wide variation in hospital prices among states. Hospitals in Arkansas, Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan and Mississippi charged private insurance prices below 200% of what Medicare would pay. California, Florida, Georgia, New York, South Carolina, West Virginia and Wisconsin charged private insurance prices that were above 300% of what Medicare would pay. The report also found that hospitals often charged higher prices for prescription drugs administered by a health care worker, compared to prices charged for the same drugs given in a similar setting, such as a physicians office. Briscombe attributed the price discrepancies to the enormous pricing power hospitals wield. If a hospital has limited competition in a given region, for example, it can often charge patients and insurers whatever it wants. Obviously, some hospitals cost more because theyre better, he said. But as you get more market share, you kind of become the big game in town and it becomes very hard for an employer to say, We wont use that hospital. Meanwhile, Medicare often pays less in part because it has more negotiating power with hospitals, said Cynthia Cox, a vice president at KFF, a group that researches health policy issues. Most people on Medicare are older adults with underlying health conditions and represent a large portion of hospital revenue. Molly Smith, group vice president for policy at the American Hospital Association, the hospital industrys trade group, called the reports findings a skewed and incomplete picture of hospital spending. An AHA report published in January found that in 2022 Medicare significantly underpaid hospitals for the cost of providing care to patients. For every dollar hospitals spent caring for Medicare patients, they were only reimbursed 82 cents, according to the report. In all, Medicare underpayments totaled $99.2 billion, it said. In benchmarking against woefully inadequate Medicare payments, Rand makes an apples-to-oranges comparison that presents an inflated impression of what hospitals are actually getting paid for delivering care while facing continued financial and other operational challenges, Smith said. Dusetzina, from Vanderbilt University, said the Rand reports findings are consistent with earlier studies showing that private insurance often pays higher prices. The one benefit for commercially insured individuals is that they do have out-of-pocket limits for in-network care, so even if the prices are very high, as long as the systems where they are getting care are in-network, there is an upper limit on what they would pay, she noted. Cox said there has been a push for more pricing transparency from hospitals, which would allow insurers to negotiate for lower rates and patients to shop around for a better deal. A federal rule from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services requires hospitals to post their prices. However, reports have shown that very few hospitals comply with the rule. Cox added that pricing transparency can be a bit complicated because its not always obvious how much a service will cost and for what reason. Its not always clear from looking at price transparency data exactly how much someones being paid, she said. For example, you might see that an MRI looks like it costs 20 cents, but really its 20% of some other numbers. Briscombe said the Rand report is intended to empower and inform employers and patients. When you think about the price of anything, whether youre buying a Lamborghini, you think, Is it overpriced? he said. Well, the only person who can decide that is the person buying it. Sean "Diddy" Combs has filed to dismiss a lawsuit alleging he and former Bad Boy Entertainment executive Harve Pierre gang raped a 17-year-old girl in a New York music studio in 2003. Combs' legal team filed the motion to dismiss on Friday in a New York federal court, calling the allegations "false and hideous" and claiming the suit was filed too late under the law. Combs' lawyer, Jonathan Davis, called the suit a "stunt" and said it "fails to state any viable claim." The Jane Doe "cannot allege what day or time of year the alleged incident occurred, yet purports to miraculously recall the most prurient details with specificity," the motion claims. Sean "Diddy" Combs is requesting a judge dismiss a lawsuit filed by a Jane Doe in December, accusing him and two others of rape. The lawsuit, first filed by Doe in December and amended in March, accused Combs, Pierre and a third unnamed assailant of raping her when she was a junior in high school. While at a lounge in Michigan, she said she met Pierre, who told her he was "best friends" with Combs. After calling Combs to prove their relationship, the woman alleged Pierre and Combs convinced her to take a private jet to Daddys House Recording Studio, owned and operated by Diddy. Combs, Pierre and the unnamed third assailant then plied her with drugs and alcohol, the suit claimed, and "viciously" gang raped her. The complaint included photos of Doe that she claimed were taken at the studio that night, including one where she's seen sitting on the lap of Combs, then 34. Diddy investigated for sex trafficking: A timeline of allegations and the rapper's life, career The lawsuit is one of several filed against the music mogul in recent months, including suits by ex-girlfriend Cassie and "The Love Album" producer Rodney "Lil Rod" Jones Jr. Doe's claim is "time-barred" and expired in 2010 because it was filed under New York City's Gender-Motivated Violence Protection Law, which has a "seven-year statute of limitations," Diddy's latest filing says. Combs' filing requests that the case be "dismissed now, with prejudice," meaning it cannot be refiled, in order to protect Combs and his companies "from further reputational injury and before more party and judicial resources are squandered." In March, a New York federal judge denied Doe's request to remain anonymous in her lawsuit against Combs and Pierre if the lawsuit were to move forward. The judge said the accuser did not provide specific examples of how she would be affected, thus the court cannot "rely on generalized, uncorroborated claims" of how disclosing her identity would have consequences. Contributing: Anika Reed and Naledi Ushe This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Diddy requests dismissal of lawsuit alleging rape of 17-year-old girl Things may not be as simple as they used to be, but Nicole Richie and Paris Hilton may be ready to take another swing at reality TV. Seventeen years after "The Simple Life," Richie and Hilton's iconic 2000s reality TV show, the two friends announced their return to a TV screen near you in a nostalgic teaser video on Instagram. "New Era. Same Besties. Coming soon to Peacock," Hilton captioned the video, in a post collaboration with the streamer. In it, Richie and Hilton can be heard singing their memorable "sanasa" bit. 20 years after the iconic 2000s reality show "The Simple Life" first premiered, Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie may be returning for a new series on Peacock. On Wednesday, Richie posted a collage of photos of the long-time friends, from their childhood, teen years and young adulthood. "From Day 1: Sill and Bill" Richie captioned the post. "Sanasaaaa " Hilton commented. "The Simple Life" ran for five seasons from 2003 to 2007 on Fox and later E! network. The series followed the childhood friends and socialites as they ventured to rural America and worked odd jobs, including as waitresses and farmers. Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie on Fox's "The Simple Life 3: Interns," Dec. 29, 2004. Though the pair have had public falling outs, they've remained close in recent years. Their lives have also changed significantly, as both are now married with children. Hilton is married to venture capitalist Carter Reum and the pair share two young children: London and Phoenix. Richie is married to Good Charlotte frontman Joel Madden, and they share two children: Sparrow and Harlow. In November, Hilton told Andy Cohen on "Watch What Happens Live" that she and Richie had "surprises in store" in regards to the 20th anniversary of the show's premiere. The duo have remained active in reality TV. Richie most recently starred in the Quibi reality series "Nikki Fre$h" in 2020 and Amazon Prime Video's "Making the Cut" from 2020 to 2022. Hilton hosted the short-lived Netflix cooking reality show "Cooking with Paris" in 2021 and has starred in "Paris in Love" on Peacock since 2021. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie tease new series after 'The Simple Life' Steve Buscemi was the victim of an assault in New York City earlier this week, a representative for the actor has confirmed. The "Boardwalk Empire" star was attacked during a walk in the Kips Bay neighborhood of NYC on Wednesday, Buscemi's publicist told USA TODAY in an email Sunday. Buscemi was punched in the face by an unidentified individual. "Steve Buscemi was assaulted in midtown Manhattan, another victim of a random act of violence in the city," the representative said. "He is OK and appreciates everyone's well wishes, though incredibly sad for everyone that this has happened to while also walking the streets of (New York)." During a walk in New York City earlier this week, "Boardwalk Empire" actor Steve Buscemi was attacked when an individual punched the actor in the face. Buscemi's assailant fled the scene and has yet to be apprehended by authorities, police told the New York Post. The actor was reportedly taken to the hospital following the attack and treated for "swelling to his face and left eye." USA TODAY reached out to the New York City Police Department for comment. Its still with me': Steve Buscemi talks trauma of volunteering at Ground Zero on 9/11 Steve Buscemi's co-star Michael Stuhlbarg also reportedly attacked in New York City Michael Stuhlbarg, who starred with Buscemi on the HBO crime drama "Boardwalk Empire," was allegedly the victim of an assault in New York City in late March. Police responded to an assault in progress on March 31 after a 55-year-old man was walking near 90th Street and East Drive when "he was struck in the head by an unknown object," the New York City Police Department confirmed in a statement to USA TODAY at the time. Reports from CNN and The New York Times identified the victim as Stuhlbarg. Michael Stuhlbarg assaulted: Actor attacked with a rock in New York City, performs on Broadway the next day Authorities said a preliminary investigation determined that a 27-year-old man, identified as Xavier Israel, threw a rock at Stuhlbarg, which struck him in the back of the neck and caused an abrasion. The actor subsequently "chased" Israel to 9 East 91st Street, where officers took the alleged attacker into custody, according to police. Stuhlbarg "refused medical attention at the scene," police also said. Israel was charged with assault. The incident occurred before Stuhlbarg was set to perform in the Broadway show "Patriots." The actor took the stage as planned on April 1, just one day after the assault occurred. Contributing: Brendan Morrow, USA TODAY This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Steve Buscemi is 'OK' after assault during walk in New York City Israel presses on after UN vote calling for Palestinian membership 08:43, May 13, 2024 By Jan Yumul ( China Daily In an act seen by many as symbolizing Israel's continued disregard for United Nations resolutions and calls for a cease-fire in Gaza, Gilad Erdan, Israel's ambassador to the UN, shredded a small copy of the UN Charter on Friday during a live broadcast of a special session of the UN General Assembly. To the Palestinians who are suffering, "this clownish behavior of the Israeli envoy at the UN is a promising sign that Israel is more isolated than ever in the eyes of the international community", Muslim Imran, director of the Malaysia-based Asia Middle East Center for Research and Dialogue, told China Daily. Erdan's action came just before the General Assembly voted overwhelmingly for a resolution asking the UN Security Council to make Palestine a full UN member. He also strongly criticized his peers for supporting the resolution. The resolution was passed at the 10th Emergency Special Session of the General Assembly, with 143 votes in favor and nine against, including the United States and Israel, and 25 countries abstaining. Israel ordered new evacuations in Gaza's southern city of Rafah on Saturday, forcing tens of thousands more to leave, as it prepared to expand military operations deeper into the last haven for more than 1 million refugees. Imran said that, as Israel itself was created and recognized by the UN, Israel publicly going against the UN only meant that the feeling of isolation was growing in Tel Aviv, and that Israel was breaking off whatever relations it had with the international community by its seizure of Gaza. China, which voted in favor of the resolution, expressed its support on Friday for the Security Council to reconsider Palestine's application to join the UN. Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the UN, emphasized the need for Palestine to be granted full UN membership, Xinhua News Agency reported. Fu stressed that "independent statehood has been a long-cherished aspiration of the Palestinian people", and full UN membership is a crucial step in this historic process. Gulf Cooperation Council Secretary-General Jassim Mohammed Al-Budaiwi welcomed the outcome of the UN vote, according to Emirates News Agency. He stressed the GCC's firm support for the Palestinian cause as well as for reaching a solution based on "ending the Israeli occupation and establishing an independent Palestinian state on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital, in accordance with relevant UN resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative". Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit was quoted by Xinhua as saying on Saturday that the resolution "clearly indicates the compass of global will and direction of international public opinion on Palestine". Meanwhile, Israel Defense Forces spokesman Daniel Hagari said in a video released on social media platform X on Sunday that the IDF was continuing its operations against Hamas in Rafah as part of Israel's efforts to "achieve an enduring defeat of Hamas" and "bring our hostages home". Palestinian news agency WAFA reported that a number of civilians, mostly children, had been killed and others were injured early on Sunday as Israeli warplanes targeted various areas across Gaza. The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East said that around 300,000 people have now fled Rafah "as the forced and inhumane displacement of Palestinians continues". (Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun) Biden Administration Weaponizes and Politicizes the Department of Justice Against Peaceful Pro-Life Activities NEWS PROVIDED BY Christian Defense Coalition May 13, 2024 WASHINGTON, May 13, 2024 /Christian Newswire/ -- Nine pro-life activists are facing up to 11 years in federal prison for a peaceful sit-in at a late-term abortion center in Washington, D.C. in 2020. The Garland 9 will face sentencing in the Washington, D.C. federal court between May 14 and 31. They have been in jail since September of 2023. The Christian Defense Coalition calls upon Congress to hold hearings on this misuse of power by President Biden and the Department of Justice against the pro-life community. What makes the actions of the Biden Administration even more troubling is the double standard of justice Palestinian protesters are receiving after their arrests in comparison to the Garland 9. Many of the 2,800 Palestinian protesters were involved in attacking police officers, destroying property, causing graduation commencement ceremonies to be cancelled and threatening and attacking Jewish students. Yet, the overwhelming majority of these demonstrations will face no criminal charges or lengthy stays in jail. If President Biden can weaponize and politicize the Department of Justice, then all Americans are in grave danger if they have differing views and beliefs from the current Administration, especially the pro-life community. Rev. Patrick Mahoney, Director of the Christian Defense Coalition based in Washington, D.C., comments; There is no justice or freedom in America if the Biden Administration can target pro-life activists with the potential of 11 years in federal prison for their peaceful sit-in at a late term abortion center and yet turn a blind eye to violent Palestinian protesters across America. If President Biden can weaponize and politicize the Department of Justice against their political enemies, then all Americans are in grave danger if they have differing views and beliefs from the current Administration, especially the pro-life community. We call upon Congress to hold immediate hearings on this misuse of power by the Biden Administration and the Department of Justice against the pro-life community. As national spokesperson for Operation Rescue, Rev. Mahoney was arrested numerous times for his peaceful pro-life work and faced millions of dollars in fines. For more information or interviews call Rev. Patrick Mahoney at 540.538.4741 SOURCE Christian Defense Coalition CONTACT: Rev. Patrick Mahoney, 540-538-4741 Former President Donald Trump risks a trip to jail if he attacks witnesses in his New York hush-money trial. But his allies aren't covered by the gag order he has repeatedly violated, and they're increasingly launching the broadsides that Trump can't. On Monday, as former Trump "fixer" Michael Cohen testified that Trump was directly involved in a scheme to kill negative stories about him during the 2016 election, Sens. JD Vance, R-Ohio, and Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., ripped into Cohen. "Hes a convicted felon," Tuberville said of Cohen at a press conference outside the courthouse. "I mean this guy is giving an acting scene." "Cohen cant remember how old his son is or how old he was when he started to work for Trump but Im sure he remembers extremely small details from years ago!" Vance, who is in contention to be picked as Trump's running mate, wrote in a sarcasm-laden tweetstorm on X. "Michael Cohen admitting he secretly recorded his employer. Just totally normal conduct, right? The best part is he said he did it only once and only for Trumps benefit. A standup guy!" Follow live trial coverage here. In 2018, Cohen pleaded guilty to lying to Congress about a Trump project in Moscow. At the time of his testimony, he remained loyal to his longtime employer. The friends-and-family loophole has been exploited by lawmakers and by Trump's sons, Donald Jr. and Eric, the latter of whom has attended portions of the trial. Neither of them has been accused of any wrongdoing in the case, which centers on whether the former president falsified business records in order to help his 2016 election chances by covering up alleged affairs that he denies occurred. Trump has frequently denounced the gag order, portraying it as an effort to silence his political speech as he campaigns for a return to the Oval Office. Merchan has found him in violation of the order 10 times, fined him and warned him, in no uncertain terms, that further transgressions could result in incarceration. That's why Trump supporters say it is crucial for his defenders to give his claims voice in the public arena. J.D. Vance looks on as Donald Trump speaks to the media. (Sarah Yenesel / Pool via Getty Images) "It's more important than normal that all of Trump's allies speak out loudly against this sham prosecution, given the unconstitutional gag order President Trump is being forced to abide by," one Trump ally said. "They are not allowing Trump to speak out about the connections the judge and prosecution have to the Democrat[ic] Party and Joe Biden, so it's incumbent upon his biggest supporters to carry that vital message on his behalf." Trump has said that he is ready to testify in his own defense at the trial, but many legal experts note that his lawyers are likely to advise against that. In addition to the two senators, Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., and the Republican attorneys general of Iowa and Alabama Brenna Bird and Steve Marshall went to the courthouse Monday to support Trump. I have been a prosecutor for 30 years and have never witnessed a greater perversion of the criminal justice system than I did this morning," Marshall said in a statement to NBC News. "This reeks of desperation from a party that has clearly lost all confidence in its nominee, but even this circus wont distract Americans from recognizing the failures of this administration." Malliotakis, who represents Staten Island and part of Brooklyn, said Trump is being subjected to a "sham trial" that depends on the testimony of a "convicted disbarred perjurer" in Cohen. Though prosecutors used Cohen to introduce new evidence including a recording of Trump telling Cohen to use cash to purchase Playboy model Karen McDougal's story of an alleged affair prior witnesses had already testified about key details of the catch-and-kill scheme and how payments were made. Deploying allies points to the two-pronged nature of Trump's current fight: inside the courtroom, his lawyers must convince at least one juror that the prosecution failed to prove he is guilty; outside it, he must convince voters that he should be elected president, regardless of the outcome of the trial. And without cameras to capture the trial, the Trump campaign has also been twisting the truth of what's happening to supporters, at times telling them versions of developments that don't completely line up with what's going on in the room. Could your EVOO be hiding other things? Getty Images/LordHenriVoton Olive oil is nothing short of a healthy pantry stapleboth for its use while cooking on the stovetop or in the oven, as well as its versatility when used on its own for dressing salads and drizzling over dips. The rich, peppery flavor and pure quality is unmatched, allowing a good extra virgin olive oil to be a standout ingredient unlike other oils. However, once it became asserted that some bottles of extra virgin olive oil on the market could be counterfeit in some way, people started wondering just how to tell if their extra virgin olive oil was, in fact, real or fakeparticularly since they are paying for it and ingesting it. While that can be a difficult task, some home cooks have tried an at-home method, called the olive oil fridge test. Heres how it works, and if it works, for telling the authenticity of your EVOO. Related: What's The Difference Between Olive Oil And Extra Virgin Olive Oil? What Is the Olive Oil Fridge Test? The basis of this testing method (which has been popularized on social media and television) stems from the fact that authentic EVOO should be composed of mostly monounsaturated fats, which would coagulate and solidify at refrigerated temperatures, unlike polyunsaturated oils such as vegetable, nut, and seed oils. (These lesser-quality oils have been accused of being used to dilute some olive oils.) Therefore, by placing your bottle of extra virgin olive oil in the refrigerator overnight, it should theoretically solidify, showing that your bottle is made up of monounsaturated olive oil and nothing else. If it does not solidify, it would potentially indicate that there might be polyunsaturated oils, such as vegetable or seed oils, mixed in. While the simplicity of this "test" might be appealing, it still leaves much to desire in terms of proof for those who seriously want to know about the authenticity of their olive oil. While if you perform this test on a bottle of what appears to be an authentic oil, and it works, you might be tempted to rest assuredis the olive oil fridge test actually reliable? Perhaps not so much. Related: Are You Using Your Olive Oil Wrong? Does the Olive Oil Fridge Test Work? While the premise of the olive oil fridge test seems to make sense at first glance, the makeup of olive oils can be drastically different depending on where they come from and how they were produced. For example, some producers filter out the natural waxes in olive skin to help winterize the olive oil to be less prone to coagulating, even though it could be 100 percent authentic, thus nullifying the tests veracity. In short, the olive oil fridge test is not proven to work when telling true authenticity, and most olive oil producers or experts would urge caution, instead recommending other ways to tell if your EVOO is real or fake. Related: Whats The Difference Between Olive Oil And Vegetable Oil? Other Ways To Tell If Your Olive Oil Is Real Check the Harvest Date and Location As a rule of thumb, most producers recommend that a harvest or best-by date should be stated on the bottle, and if the olive oil has a best-by date no more than 24 months from bottling, it is a good indicator that it is fresh and not degraded of flavor and quality. Additionally, if there is no indicator of where your olive is from or it does not denote extra virgin on the bottle, that might be a red flag. Check the Bottle Color While certainly not the most foolproof method, it is common knowledge that EVOO is best stored and preserved in darker (such as dark green) or opaque glass bottles. Therefore, start by staying away from clear plastic bottles boasting authentic olive oil, because most producers would not prefer for olive oil to be stored that way due to sunlight speeding up degradation. It's not an obvious answer, but a good place to start. Buy Local A great way to know exactly where your olive oil is from and what it is made of is to purchase local olive oil. While not as prevalent in all states, you might be able to find a local producer at your farmers market somewhere in your region. For example, in Texas you can stock up on oils at Texas Hill Country Olive Co. or Texas Olive Ranch. In Georgia, you can find small-batch olive oil from Georgia Olive Farms. (They also ship.) Ask questions about local producers' processes, and feel good about supporting local businesses! For more Southern Living news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on Southern Living. YEREVAN, MAY 13, ARMENPRESS. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia is hosting an expanded meeting between Foreign Minister of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan and Foreign Minister of Malta Ian Borg, which will be followed by a joint press conference. This was reported by the press secretary of the Armenian Foreign Ministry Ani Badalyan. Before the expanded meeting, a private conversation between the ministers took place. YEREVAN, MAY 13, ARMENPRESS. The number of people killed by flash floods and cold lava flow from a volcano in western Indonesia over the weekend has risen to 41 with 17 more missing, France24 reports citing AFP. Hours of heavy rain caused large volcanic rocks to roll down one of Indonesia's most active volcanos into two districts on Sumatra Island Saturday evening, while flooding inundated roads, homes and mosques. Rescuers were searching for 17 still missing. Heavy rains inundated neighbourhoods with muddy flood waters and swept vehicles into a nearby river, while volcanicash and large rocks rumbled down Mount Marapi, the report adds. The national disaster mitigation agency, or BNPB, said 84 homes, 16 bridges and two mosques were damaged in Tanah Datar, as well as 20 hectares of rice fields. YEREVAN, MAY 13, ARMENPRESS. On May 13, the Armenia National Assembly President Alen Simonyan received the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Argentine Republic to the Republic of Armenia Rafael Enrique Gonzalez Aleman. Congratulating the Ambassador on the occasion of his appointment, Alen Simonyan wished Rafael Enrique Gonzalez Aleman success in the implementation of the assumed high mission and expressed conviction that it will promote the rapprochement and strengthening of the relations between Armenia and Argentina, reported National Assembly. I am glad to record that there is a high level of political dialogue between Armenia and Argentina. An atmosphere of mutual respect and trust is formed between our countries, and Armenia is interested in deepening relations with Argentina in all directions, the Head of Parliament noted. Rafael Enrique Gonzalez Aleman documented about the old friendly relations between two countries, highlighting the role of the Armenian community of Argentina in the cultural and public life of the Argentine Republic. Touching upon the Armenia-Argentina inter-parliamentary relations, the interlocutors highlighted the role of the Friendship Groups and bilateral visits in the development of interaction of two countries. At the meeting the security situation in the South Caucasus and the settlement process of the Armenia-Azerbaijan relations were discussed. Alen Simonyan noted that Armenia does its best for the establishment of peace in the region and relies on all international partners support in this issue. Argentina sees the efforts of the Republic of Armenia in establishing peace in the South Caucasus. We certainly support this process, and we hope that it will be implemented soon, the Ambassador mentioned. YEREVAN, MAY 13, ARMENPRESS. India signed a 10-year contract with Iran on Monday to develop and operate the Iranian port of Chabahar, the Narendra Modi-led government said, strengthening relations with a strategic Middle Eastern nation, Reuters reports. India has been developing the port in Chabahar on Iran's south-eastern coast along the Gulf of Oman as a way to transport goods to Iran, Afghanistan and central Asian countries, bypassing the port of Karachi and Gwadar in its rival Pakistan, the report adds. U.S. sanctions on Iran, however, slowed the port's development. India's Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal was in Tehran to sign the agreement. The long-term deal was signed between Indian Ports Global Limited (IPGL) and the Port & Maritime Organisation of Iran, authorities in both countries said. Under the agreement, IPGL will invest about $120 million while there will be an additional $250 million in financing, bringing the contract's value to $370 million, said Iranian Minister of Roads and Urban Development Mehrdad Bazrpash. My Wall Street Journal review of Kurt Jensens new Rouben Mamoulian biography takes stock of a unique near-genius, perhaps the least known and appreciated American theater and film director of consequence. I came to Mamoulian (1897-1987) while writing my book on immigrants in the performing arts: Artists in Exile. The juxtaposed magnitude of his successes and failures confounded comprehension. Because Mamoulian was chronically meddlesome, it became obvious to me that more could be learned about his role in directing the premiere of Porgy and Bess on Broadway in 1935. When the Library of Congress finished cataloguing its vast Mamoulian Archive in 2007, I felt certain to find a smoking gun. And I did, almost immediately. It was the working script for the precursor to Gershwins opera: the Dorothy and DuBose Heyward play Porgy, directed by Mamoulian in 1927. All published versions of that script, I realized, omitted Mamoulians crucial changes. The outcome of my discovery was a book: On My Way: The Untold Story of Rouben Mamoulian, George Gershwin, and Porgy and Bess. One of those changes was the ending, where Porgy picks himself up and exclaims Bring my goat! It was entirely Mamoulians. In effect, Mamoulian rewrote the character Porgy to make him an agent of redemption. (The Heywards Porgy sinks into obscurity.) Many blogs in this space have pondered the ramifications of this discovery on how to understand Porgy and Bess; on how to (and not to) perform it. As I write in my review of the new Jensen biography: We wind up with a different Porgy altogether: hes become the moral compass of the community. And so he remains in Gershwins opera. In fact, Mamoulian wrote the words for the ending of play and opera both. Though the Gershwin Estate insists that Porgy and Bess be billed as the Gershwins, Ira Gershwin shared the lyrics with DuBose Heyward. And Rouben Mamoulian was no mere director. I also write: Mr. Jensens biography is to date the fullest account of his life and career. He has assiduously scoured the sources at hand. He has scrutinized the self-serving reminiscences Mamoulian recorded and re-recorded in retirement. He has amassed a trove of anecdotes deftly told and judgments reasonably rendered. He calls Mamoulian a loner who constructed a sturdy veneer of imperturbable sangfroid, a man mostly hidden, occasionally revealing himself in bitter recollections of being pushed aside in Hollywood. The bitterest of Mamoulians recollections were of Sam Goldwyn, who crudely removed him from the 1959 film version of Porgy and Bess in favor of Otto Preminger. Mamoulians elaborate Catfish Row set and detailed script revisions were mis-utilized; he deserved to have masterminded this abandoned labor of love. Then came Cleopatra (1963), whose producer, Walter Wanger, blamed Mamoulian for a series of legendary delays. Mr. Jensen, however, blames bad weather complicated by the moodiness and ill health of Elizabeth Taylor. Mamoulian was ousted and never directed for Hollywood again. Mr. Jensens detailed accounts of these twin debacles make painful reading. . . . In Rochester [where he directed at the Eastman Theatre], Mamoulian had registered as a precocious genius. Somehow his genius dissipated in the decades to come. What happened? Was he corrupted by Hollywood banality and glamour? Was he the victim of a socialite spouse who succumbed to alcohol and dementia? Mr. Jensen is the right person to ask and he supplies plenty of possible answers without volunteering finished verdicts. Another question: how would a Mamoulian production play today? In Peerless, we can revisit his once famous rhythmic staging of I got plenty o nuttin, with its soap bubbles, rug-beating, shoe hammering, and knife sharpening not to mention vacant rocking chairs controlled by invisible threads. Startling in 1935, this rendering memorably compared by Mr. Jensen to the casual syncopation of a Disney cartoon would nowadays likely seem artifice run amok. Mamoulians most tangible legacy was the integrated musical an art in which he tutored Richard Rodgers, whom he instructed to write both songs and an abundance of incidental music for [the subversive 1932 film musical] Love Me Tonight. But when Oklahoma! and Carousel came along, Rodgers, Hammerstein, and Agnes de Mille got all the credit for using music and dance as dramatic engines. And Rouben Mamoulian, who always kept score, more than knew it. by Sumon Corraya Milton Samadder, a 36-year-old nurse and founder of a charity for the disabled and elderly, was arrested after getting caught up in a media storm. Voices from the Christian community call for a fair and transparent investigation, urging the authorities to avoid sensationalising the case. Dhaka (AsiaNews) Bangladeshi police have arrested a Baptist Christian accused of a series of serious crimes, ranging from organ trafficking to falsifying death certificates and embezzlement. Milton Samadder, a 36-year-old male nurse, opened a centre in Mirpur in 2014 called Child and Old Age Care, for people with physical and mental disabilities and homeless people who need a shelter and health care. Samadder had previously set up a nursing home service company called Milton Home Pvt Care, an experience that opened his eyes to the plight of the poor and sick in Bangladesh. Eventually, he developed a following of 16 million people on Facebook, the main channel by which donations were made to his charity. Over the years, he received several awards, including, the Sheikh Hasina Youth Volunteer Award in 2022, by the Ministry of Youth and Sports. On 25 April, however, Samadder found himself in the eye of a storm when a local newspaper reported a series of accusations against him, the most serious being trafficking in organs harvested directly from patients. In addition, media reports claim that out of 900 people who died at his facility, he could not identify the burial place of 835. Samadder denied the allegations on his Facebook page after the news broke, noting his willingness to submit to an investigation. Following growing media coverage, he was remanded into custody on 1 May. His bail application was also rejected. Speaking to reporters, Dhaka Metropolitan Detective Police Additional Commissioner Mohammad Harun-or-Rashid provided shocking details about the case, saying that Samadder "took sadistic pleasure in mutilating individuals" under the guise of medical treatment. Several doctors have raised doubts about this accusation. Qualified doctors, nurses, and technicians, as well as modern operating theatres, are required for kidney and other organ transfers. Samadder does not seem to have had any of these at his disposal. Commissioner Harun-or-Rashid explained that funds amounting to 18.5 million taka (around US$ 158,000) were found in the accuseds bank account. According to investigators, donations solicited through social media were not always used for people in Samadders care. Within the Christian community, voices have been raised in the Christian mans defence, with demands for a fair and impartial investigation. Catholic journalist Aldrick Biswas describes Samadder as a philanthropist, suggesting that someone is trying to shut down his charity for the disabled and that people engaged in charitable work are often easy targets. Similarly, Fr Albert Rozario, parish priest of Ramna Cathedral, went to the police and asked the authorities involved in the case to carry out a thorough investigation while avoiding sensationalising the allegations. Samadders family also want a transparent investigation. Milton Samadder's lawyer, Ohiduzzaman Biplab, argues that the allegations stem from problems related to land and road issues regarding the facility in Savar. For the latter, these matters have led to a media frenzy against his client, noting that the affair is characterised by conflicting narratives that do not help understand the complexity of the case. Today's news: The death toll in Afghanistan has risen to over 300 from floods in the north; New tensions over some arrests in the Indian state of Manipur; The Myanmar military junta bombs a monastery where civilians had gathered; The number of Chinese cities that have joined the programme to visit Hong Kong individually has risen to 51. INDONESIA At least 40 people have been killed due to flash floods: two days ago heavy rains created torrents of ash and rocks around Mount Marapi, Sumatra's most active volcano. Cold lava mud flows inundated two districts, damaging more than 100 structures. According to experts, this type of disaster repeats itself every year with increasing frequency. INDIA In the north-eastern state of Manipur, police arrested two people accused of attacking and kidnapping four police officers in the Imphal district. Based on initial reconstructions, it seems that the officers were then released still blindfolded. This is the third attack on security forces in recent weeks: according to police officials, some ethnic Kuki militants may be behind it. AFGHANISTAN The death toll has risen to more than 300 people with more than 1,600 injured after the floods that hit the northern districts of Afghanistan. We have no food, no drinking water, no shelter, no blankets, no nothing, the floods have destroyed everything, said Muhammad Yahqoob, a local resident who lost 13 members of his family. The population harshly criticized the Taliban for neglecting the situation and not carrying out rescues. MYANMAR In recent days, the Burmese military junta bombed the monastery in the village of Akyi Pan Malun, in the municipality of Saw, in the Magwe region, killing at least 14 people and wounding 30. According to residents, civilians had gathered in the monastery to establish transport links within the municipality. For a few days the area had been deprived of internet connections, an event that usually precedes air force bombings. CHINA HONG KONG Eight more Chinese cities have joined a program that allows mainland Chinese residents to travel to Hong Kong alone and not as part of a group, an attempt by Chinese authorities to boost the former colony's economy. The Individual Visit Scheme (IVS) was created in 2003 as part of a cooperation agreement between mainland China and Hong Kong: so far 51 Chinese cities are part of it. NAGORNO - KARABAKH The first refugees caused by the 40-day war in 2020 between Azerbaijan and Armenia were returned to the city of Susa in Nagorno Karabakh, a group of 20 families for 88 people, and another 20 families with 75 people returned to the village of Sus of Lachin area, where last year's clashes ended with total Azeri occupation. RUSSIA In 2023, Russia exported its vodka for almost 60 million dollars, and just under half, 29.7 million, was purchased by Kazakhstan, already a leader in the consumption of the Russian national liqueur in 2022, when the numbers were even higher high in general for trade in Europe, while in Kazakhstan the increases depend on the large number of Russian emigrants. The Oscar and Tony-Award-winning actor Eddie Redmayne will be returning to Broadway musical this season. He was trying to figure out how to get around New York City with his family throughout his six-month stay on the show. Redmayne chuckles, "I'm compiling a little handbook of 'The Survivor's Guide to Broadway." "Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club, which opened on April 21 at the August Wilson Theatre, is a pretty good excuse to come here-I'm thrilled. I'm a passionate lover of New York." In the revival of the beloved musical starring John Kander, Fred Ebb, and Joe Masteroff, Redmayne plays 'The Emcee' again. The production, a West End transfer that took home seven Olivier Awards in 2022, including one for Redmayne's performance, is directed by Rebecca Fracknell. The show is still going strong in London because of its success. Although he is the only West End cast member bringing the show to Broadway at the August Wilson. He is accompanied by Steven Skybell as Herr Schultz, Bebe Neuwirth as Fraulein Schneider, Gayle Rankin as Sally Bowles, and Ato Blankson-Wood as Clifford Bradshaw. Rankin and Redmayne have received Tony nominations, and the production has received nine nominations overall, including Best Revival of a Musical. Redmayne said that it has been such a unique experience because it has been starting anew and fresh while, at the same time, having this character sitting in his stomach and meditating for three years now. He claimed that his journey and the relationship with the character have lasted for 30 years, from when he first played it as a schoolboy. Furthermore, he shared that great joy comes from each time getting to re-mine the character and re-look at it in a different context and with a different inspiration. Zhang Zhan, 40, was a leading human rights advocate in Shanghai. The Christian woman was supposed to be freed today after four years in prison, but her fate remains unknown while her family has been forced into silence. Activist groups following her case fear that, as in other cases, she might be detained under a different form. Shanghai (AsiaNews/Agencies) After serving a four-year sentence for picking quarrels and stirring up trouble, Zhang Zhan, was supposed to be free today. In February 2020, the Shanghai-based Christian blogger travelled to Wuhan, the city at the centre of the COVID-19 pandemic, where she engaged in citizen journalism for three months and reported on what was happening. But nothing was reported today from the Shanghai women's prison where she purged her prison sentence. This has set off alarm bells among human rights groups who fear that she might still be denied her freedom by other means. Zhang, 40, a graduate of Southwestern University of Finance and Economics (SWUFE) in Chengdu, worked as a lawyer but her licence was suspended in Shanghai because of her fight for human rights. She was arrested for the first time in September 2019 for marching with an umbrella on Nanjing Road in Shanghai in support of the Hong Kong protests. When the first news about pandemic filtered out, she went to Wuhan to document what was going on, posting online about a hundred videos in three months, and answering questions from international media. Arrested in May 2020, she became the first blogger to be convicted for spreading news about the pandemic. In a statement released this evening at 7:30 pm (Beijing time), the UK-based Free Zhang Zhan campaign, which has kept the spotlight on her case, could not confirm her release and return home. We understand that Zhang Zhans family have been under enormous pressure and warned severely not to give media interviews, reads a campaign statement. Friends calls have also been left without answers. At least one Shanghai-based activist has been summoned by police for talking about getting Zhang Zhan from prison on 13 May with her mother. A Henan-based activist has been intercepted at a train station en route to Shanghai; she wanted to greet Zhang Zhan or at least show solidarity with her outside Shanghai Womens Prison. [. . .] These are extremely worrying signs, the statement goes on to say. If Zhang Zhan faces the same situation as her fellow rights activist Chen Jianfang (who has been placed under house arrest by Shanghai authorities since October 2023, when she was released from prison), she will have little chance of getting urgently needed, long-overdue medical treatment and recuperation. It is totally unacceptable that the Chinese government subject many human rights defenders and their families to this kind of cruelty. Even after their release from prison, they are still deprived of their basic rights. For some, its like theyve been given a life sentence. Zhang Zhan should have regained her freedom. We should have heard from her or her family by now. Instead, we are left wondering where she is, how she is doing physically and mentally, whats happened to her family, and what the future holds for her: A prisoner in her own home (like Chen Jianfang)? Detention in a medical facility without access to her family (like Hubei-based activist Yin Xuan)? Forced disappearance (like human rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng)? The silence speaks volumes. We call on the international society to hold the Chinese Communist regime accountable for its horrendous practice of soft detention or non-release release of former political prisoners. Fighting between the Israeli army and the Palestinian Hamas movement continued in the Gaza Strip on Monday, mainly in Rafah, despite US warnings against an offensive in the overcrowded city that could unleash "chaos". AFP correspondents and several witnesses report violent clashes between Israeli soldiers and Hamas fighters in different sectors of Gaza. "Our war of independence is not over yet. It continues even today (...) We are determined to win this struggle," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said during a Remembrance Day celebration, which commemorates those killed in the conflict each year. Nearly a week after the start of the Israeli army's operation in Rafah, an Egyptian border town in the southern Gaza Strip where 1.4 million Palestinians are crowded, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said an offensive in the overcrowded city would not achieve the stated goal of eliminating Hamas. AFP correspondents reported helicopter gunfire and shelling in eastern Rafah. Netanyahu is threatening to launch a major ground offensive to attack the last Hamas battalions he says are holed up there. In recent days there has also been fighting between Israeli forces and Palestinian militiamen in the northern Gaza Strip, where, according to an Israeli army spokesman, Hamas is "trying to reconstitute its military capabilities". There were also clashes in Zeitun and Jabalia, respectively in the central and northern Gaza Strip, according to AFP correspondents and witnesses. Last week, Israeli forces ordered the population to evacuate east of Rafah and 300,000 Palestinians did so, according to the army. But according to Blinken, a major operation in Rafah would risk creating "chaos", "anarchy" and "enormous damage" to the civilian population "without solving the Hamas problem", he said in an interview with NBC. "We have seen Hamas return to areas that Israel liberated in the north, including Khan Younis," a ruined town near Rafah, he said. An image taken from southern Israel near the border with the Gaza Strip on December 4, 2023, shows an Israeli tank firing into Palestinian territory amid ongoing fighting between Israel and the militant group Hamas - PHOTO/AFP/JACK GUEZ "An inferno" On foot, in vehicles or on tricycles, thousands of Palestinians continue to flee Rafah in an attempt to find refuge elsewhere in Gaza. "We have lived through hell for three days and the worst nights since the start of the war," Mohamed Hamad, 24, who fled shelling-hit eastern Rafah following army evacuation orders, told AFP. "Talk of safe zones is false and misleading. No place is safe in Gaza" for its approximately 2.4 million inhabitants, the head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (Unrwa), Philippe Lazzarini, wrote on the social networking site. Hamas accused Israel on Sunday of wanting to "derail" talks on a truce and the release of hostages held in Gaza, so far to no avail, with its offensive on Rafah. The war was sparked by the 7 October attack by Hamas militiamen infiltrating from Gaza into southern Israel, which left more than 1,170 people dead, mostly civilians, according to AFP figures based on official Israeli data. More than 250 people were abducted during the attack and 128 remain captive in Gaza, of whom 36 are believed to have been killed, according to the army. In response, the army launched heavy shelling followed by a ground offensive on October 27, which devastated Gaza, displaced most of the population and caused a humanitarian disaster, with an imminent threat of famine, according to the UN. Hamas warned on Monday that the health system in the Palestinian territory is "hours away from collapse" because of a lack of fuel to run hospital generators, ambulances and personnel transport. According to the Hamas health ministry, 35,034 people have died since the war broke out, mostly civilians. The Israeli army has reported the death of 272 of its soldiers since the start of the conflict. On Saturday, Foo Fighters pulled a prank on the Welcome to Rockville crowd at Daytona Beach, Florida, pretending to play a pair of Van Halen classics, only to reveal Mammoth Wolfgang Van Halen was performing in the wings. The gag happened during the standard mid-show medley of drummer Josh Freese's songs during the headlining set. Following a mashup of 'Sabotage' by the Beastie Boys, 'Blitzkrieg Bop' by the Ramones, and 'March of the Pigs' by Nine Inch Nails, frontman Dave Grohl whined to the audience, saying, "You know who never gets a fuckin' solo? I never get a fucking solo, me, goddammit! I'm going to do a fuckin' solo since this is the last fuckin' night of [our run of spring US shows]. What say you about that? "That guy can't play a fuckin' solo," you might be thinking. Would you like to watch me perform a guitar solo right now?" The legendary Van Halen instrumental song 'Eruption' was then played by Grohl, who seemed to be playing it flawlessly. However, things took a strange turn as the music continued after the Foo Fighters frontman raised both arms in the air. Wolfgang played on the sidelines, as shown on the large screens. "Dude, I told you to keep that cool, Wolfie! What the fuck you doin' right now?" Grohl shouted. "Everybody, give it up for Wolfgang Van Halen," he added. Wolfgang then played the guitar solo from Van Halen's 'Hot for Teacher,' to which Grohl insisted that part was not planned. Wolfgang had played a concert with his band Mammoth WVH earlier in the day. Foo Fighters' short spring tour came to an end with the Welcome to Rockville show, but the band will be returning to the road in June and early July for a UK/European tour, then starting on July 17 at City Field in Queens, New York, a month-long US stadium tour. 13 May 2024 08:30 (UTC+04:00) Ulviyya Shahin Read more In the first quarter of this year, operations at the Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli (ACG) oil field received significant financial allocations, as reported by Azernews citing bp's quarterly report on Azerbaijan operations. Approximately $115 million was earmarked for operating costs, while $347 million was allocated for capital expenses, totaling $462 million for ACG activities during the quarter. This expenditure reflects a commitment to advancing operations in the region. The report emphasizes the sustained and secure production from ACG throughout the first three months of 2024. With an average daily production of 339,000 barrels, equivalent to around 31 million barrels (4 million tons) for the quarter, production was sourced from multiple platforms including Chirag, Central Azeri, West Azeri, East Azeri, Deepwater Guneshli, and West Chirag. At the end of the quarter, ACG operated 139 oil production wells, 43 water injection wells, and 8 gas injection wells, showcasing the robustness and operational efficiency of its infrastructure. Furthermore, the report highlights the completion of three oil production wells and one water injector well during the first quarter, indicating ongoing efforts to enhance production capabilities and optimize reservoir management strategies within the ACG field. The Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli (ACG) oil field, located in the Caspian Sea offshore Azerbaijan, is one of the largest and most significant oil-producing assets in the region. Discovered in the early 1990s, the field has been a key driver of Azerbaijan's oil and gas industry, contributing significantly to the country's economy and energy security. Since its inception, the ACG field has been developed and operated by a consortium of international oil companies, with BP being the operator. The consortium includes leading energy companies such as Chevron, INPEX, Equinor, ExxonMobil, and SOCAR, Azerbaijan's state oil company. Over the years, the ACG field has undergone extensive development and expansion efforts, involving the deployment of advanced drilling and production technologies to maximize oil recovery and optimize operational efficiency. The field encompasses multiple platforms and infrastructure installations spread across various sectors of the Caspian Sea. As one of the flagship projects in Azerbaijan's energy portfolio, the ACG field has played a pivotal role in driving economic growth and attracting foreign investment to the country. Revenue generated from oil production at ACG has been instrumental in supporting infrastructure development, social programs, and economic diversification initiatives in Azerbaijan. Against this backdrop, the recent financial allocations and operational achievements in the initial quarter of 2024 underscore the ongoing importance of the ACG field in Azerbaijan's oil and gas sector. The substantial investments in operating costs and capital expenses reflect the consortium's commitment to maintaining and enhancing production levels at ACG, ensuring continued revenue generation and economic prosperity for Azerbaijan. Furthermore, the sustained production levels and operational efficiency demonstrated during the first quarter of 2024 highlight the ACG field's resilience and long-term viability as a key asset in Azerbaijan's energy landscape. With ongoing efforts to optimize reservoir management strategies and enhance production capabilities, the ACG field is poised to remain a cornerstone of Azerbaijan's oil and gas industry for years to come. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 May 2024 13:18 (UTC+04:00) Elnur Enveroglu Read more Arms and clubs are not important tools to create anarchy and panic in Armenia. In a country that does not have an information filter, everyone makes baseless predictions. The point is that everything started to happen at the last moment, that is, on the eve of the delimitation and demarcation of the borders of Armenia with Azerbaijan, followed by the signing of the peace agreement. In the 1980s and 1990s, some infamous politicians who made the plan of "greater Armenia" thought that they would be able to easily absorb the territories of Azerbaijan by expanding into the leading positions in the Soviet empire. They could not even imagine that after the collapse of the Soviet regime, they would be extremely backward in the military and economic spheres. The fact that the Armenian military units were able to occupy the territories of Azerbaijan in the First Garabagh War was precisely the positive influence of the remnants of the recently collapsed Soviet empire on Armenia. According to the conditions of that time, the Armenian army felt seriously at the forefront with those weapons. However, the rapidly changing and developing era did not allow Armenia to renew its arsenal or separate from obsolete soviet ideas. Igor Muradyan, an Armenian political scientist who grew up in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, but who, like many well-known Armenians, was totally against Azerbaijan, can be considered one of the people who both brought the end of the empire and stuck to the old Soviet traditions. As mentioned earlier, Muradyan, who was born in Odesa, Ukraine, and grew up in Baku, was neither able to speak his native Armenian nor Azerbaijan, where he grew up. Even though the Armenian journalist asked him questions in Armenian, he never answered questions and made speeches in his native language. Igor Muradyan was one of the earliest leaders of the Karabakh movement, along with Zori Balayan, Silva Kaputikyan, and Viktor Hambardzumyan. Muradyan is also known as one of the personalities who broke the backbone of the USSR. In 1994, an article about him was published in the newspaper Rossiyskie Vesti, entitled "The Man Who Destroyed the USSR." The article is entirely dedicated to the Armenian political scientist. His speeches mostly reflect the propaganda of separatism and revanchism. Muradyan believed that Russia was allegedly arming Azerbaijan against Armenia and that one day Russia would definitely become the dominant force in the region. However, although Muradyan was not lucky enough to see the Patriotic War in 2020, his wrong predictions were underlined. It should be recalled that during the Second Garabagh War, the territories of Azerbaijan were fired with obsolete Russian weapons, cannons, and missiles. To this day, Armenian-made mines and unexploded rockets belonging to Russia are found in the affected areas. This once again clarifies the issue that Armenia was trying to fully own the territories it occupied in the Second Garabagh War with the weapons it bought from Russia. In general, politicians like Muradyan in Armenia are unable to evaluate the current processes correctly, as they have never shown a tendency towards development. For example, the delimitation and demarcation between Armenia and Azerbaijan led to many wrong ideas in Armenia. They believe that defining the borders determines the end of Armenia. This, on the other hand, ensures that Armenia contributes to the security of the South Caucasus region along with its own future. --- Elnur Enveroglu is AzerNews Deputy Editor-in-Chief; follow him on @ElnurMammadli1 Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 May 2024 16:55 (UTC+04:00) Fatima Latifova Read more In Armenia, opposition-oriented protests have become widespread in recent days. The protesters, under the leadership of Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, still demonstrate their dissatisfaction with the recent border delimitation process between Armenia and Azerbaijan. As a result of the action, 12 people were detained by local police in Yerevan who are believed to be violent. It is interesting that these acts are incited by the church while the ruling classes avoid harsh intervention. On the other hand, this poses a question about forces that support a religious institution to create such a disturbance in the country. Political scientist Asif Narimanli, commenting on the topic for Azernews, said that the Armenian Church has always been interested in getting involved in politics. The expert said that this church laid the foundation of Armenian terrorism in the world. "Clergymen and the Armenian Church have always had a place in politics in Armenia, and they were able to interfere in the administration of the state. Even when there was no Armenian statehood, this church was the main centre where Armenian ideology spread to the world. The source of Armenian terrorism in the world is actually the Armenian Church. However, the church has never joined politics in this way," he said. The political scientist recalled that there have always been conflicts between the Armenian Church and the current government. He noted that the church keeps the Armenian people under its influence with lies. "There was a conflict between the church and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan from the beginning. It is not in the interests of the church that the prime minister does not stop the policy of waking up the Armenian people. Because throughout history, this church has controlled the Armenians in this way, that is, it has tried to create a history based on myths and deceive the Armenian people with lies. Pashinyan's current peace-oriented policy causes the Armenian Church to lose its influence, and they don't want to accept it," the expert said. Asif Narimanli said that currently the Armenian opposition is "suffering" from the lack of "leaders" in the country. "It is interesting that the church could act on political figures, standing in the background as usual. However, currently, the Armenian opposition does not have a leader who can direct Armenian public opinion and gain support. The protests held so far after the 44-day Patriotic War have shown that the Armenian public opinion does not provide enough support," he added. The expert drew attention to the distrust of the Armenian people towards the opposition groups. "Two main figures in Armenia still have the influence of the opposition. If Armenian society changes power, either Robert Kocharyan or Serzh Sargsyan will come to power. The Armenian people also saw their rule for many years and had a bitter experience. That's why they don't want them to return," the political scientist said. Asif Narimanli added that this is exactly the reason why the church interfered in politics so hard. "The church actively joined the process due to the lack of a leader in the opposition and distrust. Because the vast majority of Armenians have faith in the church. The church leadership also calculates that it will gain great support from the Armenian community," he said. The expert explained why Pashinyan does not intervene harshly in the current processes. He said that if the protests increase, punitive measures will be inevitable. "The reason why Pashinyan's government did not intervene in the process, in my opinion, is that the incident was kept under control. The prime minister's current lack of major punitive measures against the church lays the groundwork for the future. That is, in the future, Pashinyan can use these protests as a basis and say that the church is trying to destroy the government. As a result, the Armenian church may be subjected to more severe punishments. The political scientist listed the forces that can support these protests. "One of the main stakeholders in these protests is Russia. In my opinion, Robert's involvement in the process confirms this. It is true that the main goal of Robert Kocharyan is to get out of the process profitably because, as a political figure, he recedes into the background and brings his son Levon Kocharyan to the fore," the expert said. He also said that France and the Armenian lobby in France could have a hand in these protests. "Another interested party could be France in the West. Of course, although the current government in France is close to Pashinyan's government, Pashinyan's current policy is somewhat contradictory to France's aspirations in the region. For example, France does not support Armenia's negotiations with Azerbaijan in a bilateral format. France is also the main base of the Armenian diaspora in the West. Armenians here can also take this step to oppose the signing of peace," the expert concluded. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 May 2024 12:09 (UTC+04:00) Ulviyya Shahin Read more The Summit of Supply Chain Leaders is being held for the first time in Azerbaijan, Azernews reports. The purpose of the event organised in Baku is to share knowledge and experiences in the direction of supply chain development and management, to find cost-effective solutions for supply chain processes, and to offer digital tools to simplify procurement processes and increase efficiency. Up to 600 professionals, including supply managers, purchasing managers, manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers, retailers, and consumers from the public and private sectors, participated in the event. The event aims to support the development of the procurement and supply sectors in our country and the further improvement of local personnel in the field. At the summit, the panels "Government Procurement: Transparency in Competition," "Strategic Supply Chain Management," and "Supply Chain: Designing the Future" will discuss supply chain risk management, supply chain strategic pillars, logistics, digital transformation and application of artificial intelligence, and other topics related to the field. discussions will be held. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 May 2024 16:48 (UTC+04:00) Nazrin Abdul Read more Mammad Abbasbeyli, head of the State Service for Antimonopoly and Consumer Market Control under the Ministry of Economy, underscored the pivotal role of competition in elevating Azerbaijan's economy to global standards at the Summit of Supply Chain Leaders, Azernews reports. Highlighting that economic stability rests on fostering a fiercely competitive environment, Abbasbeyli emphasised the potential of such an environment to fuel entrepreneurship. "Azerbaijan has taken significant strides towards this goal. Thus, the Competition Code has been adopted in our country, and important steps are being taken in the direction of improving the business environment and transparency. Competition is an important factor in turning Azerbaijan's economy into a world-class economy and ensuring that small companies reach the level of major companies," he stated. Abbasbeyli further noted the inclusion of nine companies in Azerbaijan's registry of unreliable suppliers this year, barring them from government procurement for up to three years. "I urge these blacklisted companies not to perceive this as punitive but as an opportunity for self-improvement. This period should be utilised to rectify deficiencies and enhance operational efficacy," he added. Abbasbeyli also highlighted the increased activity of Azerbaijani companies in tenders for operations in liberated areas. He mentioned that the number of companies participating in competitions held in the territories freed from occupation ranges between 12 and 17. "This is a very positive development. We are encouraged by the interest in activities in the liberated areas. We anticipate further growth in this activity, which will in turn inspire other entrepreneurs to engage in this direction. Abbasbeyli stated that the total value of state procurement in Azerbaijan for this year is projected to reach nearly 8 billion manats. He highlighted that last year saw an 11.3% increase in state procurement compared to 2022, amounting to 7 billion, 545.5 million manats. "We anticipate further growth this year, with significant advancements in electronic procurement," he added. Abbasbeyli said that with procurement now fully electronic, its volume for this year is expected to be 100%. It should be noted that on May 13, 2024, the Summit of Supply Chain Leaders is being held for the first time in Azerbaijan. The purpose of this event, organised in Baku, is to facilitate the exchange of knowledge and experiences in supply chain development and management, identify cost-effective solutions for supply chain processes, and introduce digital tools aimed at streamlining procurement processes and enhancing efficiency. The event has attracted participation from up to 600 professionals, including supply and purchasing managers, manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers, retailers, and consumers from both the public and private sectors. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 May 2024 13:57 (UTC+04:00) Nazrin Abdul Read more Deputy Minister of Economy of Azerbaijan, Sahib Mammadov, disclosed that from 1995 to 2023, Latvian investment in Azerbaijan amounted to $166 million, matching Azerbaijan's investment in Latvia, Azernews reports. Addressing the Azerbaijan-Latvia business forum, Mammadov emphasised the progress of relations between the two countries. He highlighted the growing trade turnover, noting that in 2023 alone, trade between Azerbaijan and Latvia reached $65 million, with Azerbaijani exports to Latvia surging by 64% to $45 million. Updating on recent figures, Mammadov stated that in January-February of the current year, trade turnover reached $6 million. "In the first quarter of 2024, the trade turnover reached $6 million, with imports totaling $4 million and exports standing at $2 million. However, this volume does not meet the existing potential of the two countries, so we are not satisfied. We should make an effort to expand the range of goods for import and export." Furthermore, Mammadov reported the presence of 69 Latvian-capital companies in Azerbaijan as of February, spanning industries such as manufacturing, transportation, trade, and services, with 48 currently operational. Raivis Kronber, State Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture of Latvia, affirmed Latvia's commitment to enhancing agricultural cooperation with Azerbaijan. Highlighting specific areas of interest, Kronber emphasised the importance of developing enterprises focusing on milk and fish products. "We aim to establish a new memorandum aimed at bolstering collaboration through the exchange of expertise in agricultural business and education, as well as fostering innovative business solutions," he remarked. Yusif Abdullayev, executive director of the Azerbaijan Export and Investment Promotion Agency (AZPROMO), said that a business forum will be held in Baku regarding the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29), on May 17, 2024. According to him, important issues will be discussed at the forum: "We would be glad to see partners from Latvia at this event." Mammadov also invited Latvian companies to participate in projects on the development of agriculture and the restoration of occupied territories of Azerbaijan in general, as well as to participate in the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) to be held in Baku in November this year. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 May 2024 17:09 (UTC+04:00) Nazrin Abdul Read more Mansur Piriyev, Head of the Department of Information Assurance and Innovative Solutions at the Azerbaijan Food Safety Agency (AFSA), highlighted the significant increase in the export of several food products from the country, achieving record results in production and export, Azernews reports. "In recent years, reforms in food safety, alongside advancements in other sectors, have paved the way for expanded export opportunities, ensuring safer food products for the population," Piriyev remarked. He noted that permits have been secured for exporting caviar produced in aquaculture, various marine products, wool, and leather to the European Union. Furthermore, the export of horses to Kazakhstan has resumed, and approvals have been obtained for exporting edible eggs to Russia. Simplified procedures for exporting hazelnuts to the EU and poultry meat and products to China have also been achieved. Piriyev attributed these successes to food industry entities aligning their activities with international standards and enhancing the safety and quality of their products. The AFSA consistently provides methodological support to entrepreneurs and implements regulatory measures to ensure effective compliance within the framework of legislation. Additionally, Piriyev mentioned the agency's innovative corner at an upcoming exhibition, inviting participants to engage and inquire about food safety-related issues. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 May 2024 17:42 (UTC+04:00) Nazrin Abdul Read more More than 20 Azerbaijani companies are set to embark on a visit to Latvia, Estonia, and Finland from May 26 to June 2, Azernews reports, citing Caspian Energy Club International. The primary aim of this visit is to bolster economic and trade relations between Azerbaijan and the Central Baltic countries, fostering stronger business partnerships and bilateral ties. During the visit, a series of business-to-business (B2B) meetings and a Demo Day will be organised, facilitating interaction between Azerbaijani entrepreneurs and their counterparts from Latvia, Estonia, and Finland. The agenda includes plans to sign memoranda and cooperation agreements between Azerbaijani companies and those from the Central Baltic region. Gunel Guliyeva, managing director of Caspian Energy Club International, emphasised the significant interest shown by partners in Azerbaijan's economy within the framework of the LEF Network Azerbaijan project. Previous meetings provided foreign partners with insights into Azerbaijan's business environment, where they commended the country's reforms and favourable conditions for the private sector, foreseeing substantial contributions to bilateral cooperation. Caspian Energy Club International has been selected as an official partner of the LEF Network Azerbaijan project initiated by the "European Union Central Baltic" program. This 3-year project, launched last year, aims to enhance economic cooperation among Azerbaijan, Latvia, Estonia, and Finland. With a focus on "green technologies," information technologies, and education, the project seeks to facilitate contract signings within these fields among companies from Finland, Estonia, and Latvia over the next 36 months. Leading partners of the project include the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Latvia, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Estonia, and the Satakunta University of Applied Sciences in Finland. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 May 2024 14:18 (UTC+04:00) Laman Ismayilova Read more Trabzon Theatre has successfully staged the play "Tarafsz bolge" (Neutral Zone) based on the work of the Azerbaijani writer, playwright, Honoured Artist Firuz Mustafa, Azernews reports. The play was presented as part of the project "Qonaq teatr" (Guest Theatre), implemented by the Azerbaijan Culture Ministry and the Azerbaijan Theatre Workers' Union. The performance of the Turkish theatre team aroused great interest among the Baku audience. The public followed with interest the development of the plot, where the main character is in a neutral zone, has lost his passport, and cannot cross the state border. At this time, at the border, his wives are waiting for him on both sides... After the performance, the Azerbaijan Theatre Workers' Union awarded the actors of the Trabzon Theatre as well as the author of the play with certificates of honour. ---- Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @lmntypewriterrr Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz Slovakian indie-folk-rock songstress Karin Ann has finally released her highly anticipated debut album: "through the telescope," which arrives alongside an official music video release for her single: "i don't believe in God." About Karin Ann's 'i don't believe in God' Ann penned the song amid a pivotal period in her life, as she emerged from a prolonged hiatus from music due to health issues. The single serves as a vulnerable reflection of spiritual dilemmas that were projected from the artist's experience as a queer woman surrounded by a conservative Christian environment. Despite renouncing formal beliefs, Ann grapples with seeking spiritual solace amidst adversity. This similar thematic narrative is echoed by the song's music video, which features an acting cameo from Imogen Heap, the same artist Ann collaborated with for her earlier advanced single: "false gold." While the song by itself projects a more personal narrative touching on Ann's own struggles, the MV broadens its narrative scope and delves into themes of religious persecution and societal injustice, mainly drawing its inspiration from historical "witch hunts." You can watch the "i don't believe in God" MV right below. On Karin Ann's Debut Album 'through the telescope' The new record is Ann's "big entrance" into the global music stage, something she achieved at just 21 years old through her remarkable command of various musical styles and her fearless approach to tackling complex themes of love, identity, and mental health. Co-produced with Benjamin Lazar Davis and Will Graefe of Texas-borne rock band Okkervil River, "through the telescope" showcases Ann's sonic flexibility as she transitions seamlessly from folk and buzzy rock to gothic disco. She also boasts an expansive range of influences from varying luminaries and their respective genres, like Mazzy Star, Stevie Nicks, and David Bowie. That said, Ann's music is principally informed by her childhood fondness for instrumental scores and her musical upbringing that surrounded her with compositions from the Western classical canon, experiencing it through activities like figure skating and ballet. "Before I even considered making this album, I was at a breaking point where I seriously thought about giving up music due to my declining health," said the artist. "Benjamin, my collaborator on the album, unexpectedly entered the scene, and later came Will." "The two of them sparked this whole new wave of creativity, and the album turned out even better than I imagined," she added. Ann also expressed that the new record is "labor of love, free from external pressures" that allowed them to artistically pursue narratives that spoke to them. "I'm so full of pride as I prepare to share this deeply personal piece of work with the world, and I'm hopeful that it resonates with listeners on a profound level," expressed Ann. Stream "through the telescope" now by clicking here. You can also sample all its tracks right below. 13 May 2024 10:43 (UTC+04:00) Nazrin Abdul Read more Azerbaijan hopes for international cooperation to define solutions in combating climate change within COP29, COP29's lead negotiator, Yalchin Rafiyev, said during a workshop on capacity-building in the preparation of biennial transparency documents, Azernews reports. "We recognise the interconnected nature of climate issues and believe that by fostering cooperation and dialogue on a global scale, we can increase our international resources," he said. Rafiyev highlighted the pivotal role COP29 will play in facilitating dialogue and leveraging strategic positioning to ensure that negotiations encompass diverse global perspectives, ultimately leading to a more comprehensive and inclusive outcome. It should be noted that in November of this year, Azerbaijan will host the largest international event - the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29). Azerbaijan's hosting of COP29 can be considered as the most important event of 2024 and a logical continuation of the country's strategy of transitioning to a green economy. COP29 is a crucial global gathering where countries come together to discuss and negotiate actions to combat climate change. With the goal of advancing commitments made under the Paris Agreement and addressing pressing environmental challenges, COP29 is expected to draw significant attention and participation from governments, NGOs, and stakeholders worldwide. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 May 2024 11:36 (UTC+04:00) Nazrin Abdul Read more Umayra Taghiyeva, Deputy Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources, emphasised the necessity for collective measures to limit global warming to below 1.5 degrees Celsius, Azernews reports. Speaking at a workshop on capacity-building in the preparation of biennial transparency reports, Taghiyeva stressed the importance of actively fulfilling obligations outlined in the Paris Agreement. "It is important to take active steps to fulfil our obligations arising from the Paris Agreement," she stressed. She underscored the significance of greenhouse gas emissions reviews, which offer a comprehensive overview of each country's efforts to reduce emissions. Taghiyeva highlighted that these assessments also demonstrate progress in emission reduction, as well as the support provided and received by each nation. "Transparent and current information on emissions risks and the efficacy of mitigation measures is crucial for informed decision-making and fostering trust between nations," she added It should be recalled that the Paris Agreement, signed in 2015 for the first time, united all countries around the common goal of combating climate change. With the Paris Agreement, countries have reached a historic agreement to limit global warming to 2 degrees below pre-industrial levels and to keep it at 1.5 degrees. Since then, negotiations have continued in line with the roadmap and goals set by the Paris Agreement. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz The 2nd ICESCO Ministerial Conference on PISA is underway in Baku, Azernews reports. The international conference dedicated to the topic "Overview of PISA 2022 results: global and regional trends" is co-organised in partnership with the Ministry of Science and Education, the Institute of Education, the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation (ICESCO), and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Over 40 representatives from Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, the Kingdom of Bahrain, Latvia, Nigeria, Malaysia, Morocco, Brunei Darussalam, Lebanon, the Sultanate of Oman, the Gambia, and other countries attended the conference, which aims to identify key points and best practices that can be used to adapt countries' assessment frameworks to their unique educational landscapes and to develop more effective, relevant assessment systems. Significant among the issues addressed by the Director General of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation (ICESCO), Salim bin Muhammed Al-Malik, was the impact of digital devices on the educational system. In his speech, the ICESCO Director-General drew attention to the negative impact of digital devices on low productivity among students. According to him, up to 60 percent of 15-year-old students show low productivity in the assessment process, and special attention must be paid to this. "While integrating digital advancements into education is imperative, concerns arise regarding student distraction through digital devices. Knowledge and skill enhancement, especially in disadvantaged areas, is ICESCO's primary focus. Our efforts are being positively influenced by the growing importance of artificial intelligence. In order to ensure the future success of our youth, education is placing a strong emphasis on digital literacy promotion," he said. Salim bin Muhammed Al-Malik also stressed the importance of the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). To note, PISA is known as a worldwide study by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in member and non-member nations intended to evaluate educational systems by measuring 15-year-old school pupils' scholastic performance on mathematics, science, and reading. It was first performed in 2000 and then repeated every three years in order to provide comparable data with a view to enabling countries to improve their education policies and outcomes. Salim bin Muhammed Al-Malik also touched upon the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the education system. "After exiting the crisis, the main task ahead is the consideration of the educational achievements of students, their emotional and physical aspects. This should be at all levels of education," he added. The ICESCO Director-General stressed the importance of the application of artificial intelligence and digital technology in the education system. He called on participating member countries to contribute in their own aspects. "It is important to establish a group of experts on education assessment. ICESCO is committed to the development of students' knowledge. We are always ready to cooperate to increase financial support and resources for sustainable work in this field," he said. The ICESCO Director-General added that major changes are planned for 2027 and that preparations are ongoing in this direction. "In general, the acquisition of new skills is key. It is necessary to prepare the future workforce according to contemporary requirements. We can have the opportunity to influence the training and education process. The education system should be stable," he concluded. The 2nd ICESCO Ministerial Conference on PISA will last until May 14. ---- Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @lmntypewriterrr Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 May 2024 19:12 (UTC+04:00) By Alimat Aliyeva The military presence of US allies, including Australia, Great Britain, Canada, New Zealand, France and Germany, "under the pretext of monitoring the implementation of UN sanctions against the DPRK, exacerbates the situation in the Asia-Pacific region", Azernews reports. "Recently, US allies, under the pretext of monitoring violations of UN sanctions, have increased efforts to have a military presence in the Asia-Pacific region, thereby further exacerbating the unstable situation in the region," the statement said. In particular, the United Kingdom has deployed naval forces to the waters around the Korean Peninsula and conducted exercises with the Republic of Korea, Canada is "trying to place" a patrol aircraft at a military base in Japan to monitor the waters around the peninsula. The diplomat noted that US allies, including Germany, France and New Zealand, have been transferring warships and aircraft one after another this year and "escalating military tensions, violating the security interests of the countries of the region." "An Australian Navy ship that invaded the waters around the Korean Peninsula lifted a military helicopter into the air and threatened the maritime and air security of the surrounding countries, thereby creating the possibility of a dangerous armed conflict," the DPRK Foreign Ministry said. Pyongyang believes that the military presence of Western countries under the pretext of implementing UN resolutions contradicts the principles and objectives of the charter of this international organization, "the basis of which is equality of sovereignty and non-interference in internal affairs." The DPRK Foreign Ministry expressed serious concern over the "irresponsible behavior of some countries that have joined the hostile policy and hegemonic strategy of the United States." The People's Republic demands to "stop provocations" and is ready to take the necessary measures to protect sovereignty and security. Pyongyang warned Washington's allies that "blind submission to the United States" would undermine their own interests. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 May 2024 20:22 (UTC+04:00) By Alimat Aliyeva In 2023, 56% of the world's population lived in cities. By 2050, the world's population will increase by 1.6 billion people. At least 70% of them will live in cities, Azernews reports. According to the institute's experts, Bombay (India) will take the fifth place among the largest cities in 2050. It is expected that 32,400,000 people will live here. The fourth place is Cairo, the capital of Egypt. It is expected that 32,600,000 people will settle here. The forecast for Tokyo is also interesting. In 2022, the capital of Japan, with a population of 37,300,000, was the largest city in the world. However, it is expected that in 2050 Tokyo will be home to at best 32,600,000 people due to a decrease in the birth rate in the country. Gundogar, the capital of the country, will take the third place in the top five. It is expected that 34,600,000 people will live in the city of Dhaka in Bangladesh, which will take second place. There is currently a serious flow in the city. New Delhi, which is currently the second largest city in the world, is expected to become the largest metropolis in the world in 2050. It is expected that 49,600,000 people will live here by 2050. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 May 2024 21:10 (UTC+04:00) By Alimat Aliyeva The Japanese government will provide a loan of up to 140.7 billion yen (about $900 million) for the construction of a second subway line in Jakarta as part of a project to develop the Indonesian capital's transport system, Azernews reports. A new 84 km long East-West branch line will be built using Japanese technology. The work will take place in two stages. The first one is planned to be carried out from 2026 to 2031, during this period it is necessary to lay about 24.5 km of railway tracks. The first section of the North-South subway line in Jakarta was commissioned in 2019. Its construction was also carried out with the involvement of Japanese financing and technology. Japan regularly provides assistance to Southeast Asian countries in the development of transport systems. A few years ago, Tokyo provided the Philippines with a loan and equipment for tunneling as part of the construction of the first metro line in Manila. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 May 2024 21:45 (UTC+04:00) On the morning of 10 May 2024, clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and forces from the armed movements against the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) renewed in Al Fasher, North Darfur State, Azernews reports citing to the official website of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). The clashes, including airstrikes and the use of heavy weapons, started mid-morning in the eastern part of Al Fasher Town and continued until 6:30 pm. The clashes extended into the centre of the town, the outskirts of the main market, and into neighbourhoods resulting in civilian deaths and injuries. An estimated 850 people (170 families) were displaced to various locations across Al Fasher locality due to the clashes, according to the International Organization for Migration Displacement Tracking Matrix (IOMDTM) Flash Alert: Conflict in Al Fasher locality report. People have reportedly fled from areas to the east and northwest of Al Fasher Town to areas south of the town. Emergency Response Rooms (ERRs) and the Coordination Council on the ground in Al Fasher are trying to respond to the affected people. Although the clashes have stopped, there are concerns they may resume soon. The people wounded have sought treatment at the Al Fasher South Hospital in Al Fasher Town. Unconfirmed reports indicate that at least 27 people have been killed, including women and children, while about 130 people have been injured. The hospital, which has a 100-bed capacity, has surpassed its maximum capacity. During the fighting, the hospital did not have an ambulance to transport the injured people and it has limited medical equipment and medicines needed to treat the injured and no surgical supplies. Humanitarians are currently assessing the situation, the needs, and the capacity to respond to the needs of people affected by the conflict. Between 1 and 18 April, over 40,600 people were reportedly displaced within Al Fasher locality following inter-tribal conflict and clashes between SAF and RSF in multiple locations across Al Fasher, Kebkabiya and Kutum localities, according to the IOM DTM Sudan Focused Flash Alert, North Darfur report. Humanitarian access into Al Fasher has been severely constrained due to disruptions in crossline and cross-border access. So far in 2024, only 39 trucks reached Al Fasher via crossline and cross-border through OCHA-coordinated movements. The trucks transported health, nutrition and food supplies for an estimated 186,000 people. Some 1,500 MT of non-food items (NFIs) at the Tine crossing point have been waiting for approval for onward movement for three weeks, depriving more than 94,000 people of assistance. In addition, the 13 trucks carrying health, nutrition and NFI supplies for over 121,000 people dispatched from Port Sudan on 3 April are still en route to Al Fasher due to delays in getting clearances at checkpoints, and more recently insecurity. Even before these most recent developments, more than a year of conflict and persistent access obstructions hampering the sustained delivery of aid and other basic commodities has exacerbated the humanitarian crisis in Darfur, home to 9 million people in need. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz State Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington Washington D.C. 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If the daughter of a Republican had written that, it would be a constant story in the media, but since it was Biden, the media has hushed it up. Now that it has been authenticated by its author, we will see if the MSM even mentions it. One wonders if Delaware has a statute of limitations on indecent liberties with a minor? https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2024/05/ashley-biden-officially-confirms-her-diary-where-she/ Of course this is the same Joe Biden known for sniffing the hair of young children, and the same Joe Biden who sexually assaulted his senate staffer Tara Reade by sticking hand up her skirt and his finger inside her while asking her to go back to his apartment. Tara Reade came forward and described Biden's attack on her but the Democrat MSM has swept it under the rug. Here is a picture of Joe and Ashley Biden during the time period discussed in the diary: Here are six updates on Walgreens that Becker's has reported on since April 1: 1. Hartford (Conn.) HealthCare opened three of five planned health clinics inside Walgreens retail locations. 2. Select Walgreens pharmacies will host Boehringer Ingelheim's clinical trials, with a focus on recruiting people who are obese, overweight or have Type 2 diabetes. 3. Walgreens is expanding its specialty pharmacy offerings, including gene and cell therapy services. 4. Nearly 900 pharmacists demonstrated at 46 Walgreens locations in the Chicago area. 5. Walgreens CEO Tim Wentworth said the company is continuing its mission to secure provider status for its pharmacists. 6. Walgreens-owned VillageMD plans to exit the state of Nevada, where it has six Village Medical clinics. Healthcare giants Optum, Walmart, Rite Aid and Walgreens have recently announced plans to scale back healthcare offerings, sparking concerns about care access. Optum: Optum, parent company of ASC chain SCA Health, announced it is shuttering its telehealth business, Optum Virtual Care. Launched in 2019, it offers virtual access to providers at any time. "Virtual care has been and will continue to be a core part of our comprehensive, integrated care delivery model designed to provide care to people where, when and how they prefer," an Optum spokesperson told Becker's. "We continually review the capabilities and services we offer to meet the growing and evolving needs of our businesses and the people we serve. As always, we will support affected team members with job placement resources and seek to deploy them where possible to any open roles within the company." Optum is still seeing rapid growth, particularly in physician employment. Optum added nearly 20,000 physicians in 2023, bringing its total to 90,000 affiliated physicians. In March, Optum announced plans to acquire Dallas-based Steward Health Care's physician group and received approval to bypass a state review of its planned purchase of physician-owned Corvallis (Ore.) Clinic Rite Aid: Rite Aid has shuttered more than 520 locations since it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in October. Of the closures, 103 are in Pennsylvania, 101 are in California and 61 are in New York. Although the company is working on a deal with bondholders to exit bankruptcy, the closures are one-fourth of the 2,111 stories it operated in October. "In connection with the court-supervised process, we notified the court of certain underperforming stores we are closing to further reduce rent expense and strengthen overall financial performance," a Rite Aid spokesperson told Becker's in April, when bankruptcy court filings revealed the company had plans to shutter additional locations. "At this time, we have not made or confirmed any decisions on additional specific store closures as part of our financial restructuring process." Walgreens Walgreens' VillageMD has made plans to pull out of several markets in 2024 it has exited Illinois, Indiana and Florida and has plans to leave the Nevada market. It has six clinics in Illinois, which closed April 19, 40 clinics in Florida, which closed in March; 12 clinics in Indiana, which closed earlier this year; and six clinics in Nevada, which will close by the end of the year. Additionally, VillageMD also sold 11 clinics in Rhode Island to Boston-based management company Arches Medical Partners in March. Walgreens bought a majority stake in the primary care company in 2021 for $5.2 billion, but it has since been devalued and is part of Walgreens' strategy to cut $1 billion in costs this year. Walmart Walmart Health is closing all 51 of its clinics, which offer primary care, dental and mental health services, and shutting down its virtual care services. The decision comes amid reimbursement challenges and heightened operating costs. Launched in 2019, Walmart Health has since partnered with Orlando Health, Centene's Ambetter from Sunshine Health and UnitedHealth Group for various deals. The move comes after the company indicated it would expand its healthcare footprint last year, Walmart said it would open 28 new Walmart Health center locations, aiming to have more than 75 health centers across the U.S. by the end of 2024. Donald Salzberg, MD, an ophthalmologist of Avon, Conn., was sentenced to prison for receiving kickbacks in exchange for ordering unnecessary brain scans. From 2014 to 2019, Dr. Salzberg conspired with a principal of a medical diagnostics company, using false patient diagnoses to order medically unnecessary brain scans, according to a May 10 news release from the Justice Department. Dr. Salzberg was paid cash kickbacks of $100 to $125 for each test he ordered. The scheme resulted in bills of more than $3 million to Medicare and private insurance companies. Dr. Salzberg owned and operated an ophthalmology practice in West Hartford, Conn. and was a licensed medical doctor in Connecticut for nearly 40 years. In addition, Dr. Salzberg was ordered to pay $1.34 million in restitution to Medicare, Medicaid and private insurers, the release said. A bill hearing is underway in the New Hampshire Legislature that would allow optometrists to perform certain minor surgeries in the state, according to a May 10 report from ABC affiliate WMUR. Senate Bill 440, which would change the name of the profession's board to the board of optometry, definitionally change the "practice of optometry," and modify prescription and surgical authorities of optometrists in the state, was first proposed in January. It would also allow optometrists to perform some minor surgeries, including laser surgery of the eyeball and scalpel surgery of the eyelid. Currently, only ophthalmologists are able to perform those procedures. While some lawmakers believe that passing the bill would improve access to eye care, especially in rural and underserved areas, others believe that optometrists lack the proper education and training necessary. If the bill were to become law, state representatives say there would be additional guardrails and training requirements put in place for optometrists who want to perform such surgeries. "This is not letting all the optometrists loose as soon as this goes into effect to do whatever they want," state Rep. Tony Lekas told WMUR. New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu is urging optometrists and ophthalmologists to reach a compromise, according to the report. Houston-based Legacy Community Health broke ground on its Legacy Pasadena (Texas) Southmore Clinic May 10, which will be funded in part by a $50 million donation from Houston Methodist. The two-story, 44,000-square-foot clinic is estimated to cost roughly half of the $50 million donation, which is also being used to develop a second Legacy clinic in Houston, a spokesperson from the health system confirmed with Becker's. Legacy Pasadena Southmore Clinic will comprise adult and pediatric care, behavioral health, obstetrical services, dental services, wraparound support services, and dental services, according to a May 10 Legacy Community Health news release. Legacy Community Health comprises more than 57 clinics. Houston Methodist features eight hospitals and more than 32,000 employees, according to the release. Phoenix Children's Hospital has shared plans to open a 44,000-square-foot level five neonatal intensive care unit at its main Thomas Campus in Phoenix on May 15. The new NICU, which will replace the hospital's existing one, comprises 48 private rooms and a multipurpose room for occupational, speech and physical therapy. Patient rooms are also equipped for advanced and emergency treatments, according to a May 9 Phoenix Children's news release. Physicians will be able to easily access patients and transport them to the operating room, radiology, and other hospital ancillary areas. Phoenix Children's Hospital - East Valley in Gilbert, Ariz. will also be getting a level IIIB NICU when it opens in late 2024, according to the release. Becker's has reached out to the hospital for the project cost and will update this story should more information become available. Allentown, Pa.-based Lehigh Valley Health Network has tapped Janelle Alfano as director of finance for hospital operations to cover its Northampton County, Pa., market. In her new role, Ms. Alfano will focus on budgets, strategic plans, growth and capital, she told Becker's. Prior to her new role, Ms. Alfano served as director of perioperative business operations for the health system, according to her LinkedIn page. She also served as strategic sourcing manager for Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. Hospital executives are making the push to move more care, specifically recovery rooms and exams, out of the hospital and into patient homes, to potentially save money and improve finances as the country continues to move out of the pandemic, Politico reported May 11. And Congress is supporting these efforts by introducing legislation that would expand at-home care and to allow Medicare to continue funding telehealth. Here are five findings from the report: 1. John Couris, president and CEO of Florida Health Sciences Center in Tampa, Fla., told the publication bipartisan support from Congress is a game changer and a silver lining that came out of the pandemic. "We're all trying to diversify our revenue streams," he said. 2. A bill was approved by a U.S. House committee on May 8 that would extend the ability for health system's to provide telehealth and hospital-at-home care. U.S. Sens. Tom Carper and Marco Rubio have introduced a bill that would extend rules approved during the pandemic that permit at-home care government reimbursement. Mr. Carper also plans to introduce a measure to make offerings for hospital-at-home programs a permanent solution, Politico reported. 3. Many of the healthcare leaders pushing the move to more remote care come from hospitals that can financially support this movement, which could create a larger divide between "the haves and have-notes," the publication reported. However, the goal is to have at-home patient recovery be less costly for patients than inpatient care. 4. Although at-home care is widely supported by both hospital and political leaders, there remains a divide on how much the services should cost. Hospitals are pushing to charge "the high rates inpatients and their insurers pay," the publication said, regardless of if care has shifted to at-home or an outside clinic where care is offered at a less expensive rate. Lawmakers, on the other hand, are looking to cut hospital rates where the services are given by exploring site-neutral policies to reduce reimbursements paid to physicians who work out of their office. "The reimbursement is getting tougher," Michael Dowling, president and CEO of Northwell Health, told the publication. "Everybody's trying to figure out how to improve operational efficiency." 5. Expanded at-home care comes with adapting to newly developed technologies, with many providers increasing their investment into telehealth and remote care technologies over the last few years. "Almost everybody's thinking about how to make adjustments to embrace new technology," Jiang Li, CEO of Vivalink, a remote care company, told Politico. "This trend definitely will continue it will continue on a global scale, not just the U.S." "As hospitals and health systems across the nation continue juggling increasing patient volumes and staffing challenges, this bottleneck in throughput is harming patient experience and creating barriers to access for patients who urgently require inpatient care," Mr. Couris said in a statement shared with Becker's. "Now, we have a critical opportunity before us to innovate our way out of this problem. We have seen firsthand how hospital care at home is not only effective, but significantly improves patient outcomes. Data from our own hospital-at-home program, TGH at Home, reveals that patients enrolled have lower readmission rates, on average, when compared with patients of similar diagnoses, ages and acuity in a traditional hospital setting. Given the proven success of this model and its untapped potential to alleviate some of the systemic challenges our industry faces, its time to expand patient eligibility." To read the full Politico article, click here. Editor's note: This story has been updated as of May 17 at 10:40 a.m. CT. Lawmakers are considering removing a provision of the Affordable Care Act that limits expansion and opening of physician-owned hospitals, Medscape reported May 13. About 4% of hospitals are owned by physicians, or 250 to 265 nationally. If the current restrictions are lifted, that number could expand dramatically, according to Physician-Led Healthcare for America. Debate between industry groups continues around the healthcare quality, cost and patient access to care. Some physician groups argue that ending the restriction would introduce more competition amid rising hospital mergers and prices, and could give more access to rural communities. However, hospital industry groups say physician-owned hospitals "cherry pick" healthier, better insured patients and don't compete fairly with acute-care hospitals. "They're not providing full service," Chip Kahn, president and CEO of the Federation of American Hospitals, which represents about 1,000 for-profit hospitals, told Medscape. "They're not providing emergency rooms. They're not taking care of uninsured patients." Both sides cite reports and analysis that cannot agree on how many physician-owned hospitals provide general services vs. specialty care. These surveys tend to be funded by the association that commissions them. One 2023 analysis of 2019 Medicare data, commissioned by physician groups, found the cost of care for the 20 most expensive diagnostic-related groups was 8%-15% lower for physician-owned hospitals than traditional hospitals. The price difference could translate to roughly $1.1 billion in Medicare savings in that year. However, another 2023 analysis, commissioned by the American Hospital Association and Federation of American Hospitals, compared patient acuity, insurance coverage and more at 163 physician-owned hospitals and 3,020 traditional hospitals. It found physician-owned hospitals were more likely to have maximum hospital readmission penalties and treat nearly 5% fewer Medicaid patients (3.5% vs 8.4%). The proposed legislation, which is in committee for now, is called the Patient Access to Higher Quality Health Care Act of 2023 (H.R. 977/S. 470). From UPMC settling a whistleblower lawsuit to MultiPlan facing multiple suits over alleged price-fixing, here are 10 lawsuits, settlements and legal developments Becker's has reported since April 29. 1. Pittsburgh-based UPMC agreed to pay $38 million to settle a whistleblower lawsuit filed against the health system and 13 staff neurosurgeons in 2012. 2. Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems is the latest health system to sue MultiPlan over allegations the data analytics firm conspired with major payers to underpay providers by tens of billions annually. 3. The Fair Political Practices Commission rejected a union's complaint that alleges Bakersfield, Calif.-based Kern County Hospital Authority overpaid its executives through their own private consulting firms. 4. Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare faces a lawsuit alleging its Asheville, N.C.-based Mission Health illegally kept pay from at least 1,000 employees. 5. Jacksonville, Fla.-based Baptist Health agreed to pay $1.5 million to address accusations of breaching the False Claims Act. 6. Aetna reached a settlement in a case alleging its fertility coverage policies discriminated against LGBTQ+ couples. 7. Yale New Haven (Conn.) Health is suing Los Angeles-based Prospect Medical Holdings, from whom it is attempting to acquire three Connecticut hospitals, as it seeks to get out of the deal. 8. Johnson & Johnson plans to settle 99.75% of claims alleging its talc-based baby powder products led to ovarian cancer. To resolve the lawsuits, Johnson & Johnson will pay $6.45 billion over 25 years. 9. For $1.1 billion, Philips Respironics will settle personal injury and medical monitoring lawsuits related to the safety of its continuous positive airway pressure machines and respirators. 10. MultiPlan is facing a lawsuit from Shreveport, La.-based Allegiance Health Management alleging that the company conspired with major payers to underpay providers by tens of billions annually. Payers Health Care Service Corp., Aetna, Elevance, Centene, Cigna, UnitedHealth Humana and Kaiser Permanente are also named as defendants in the suit. Kiana Smith joined Northwestern Medicine two years ago as a Panera Bread employee before becoming a security guard in the emergency department. Time around patients sparked her interest in a clinical role, and thanks to a systemwide program, she achieved the career leap. In 2022, the Chicago-based system launched a basic nursing assistant training program in preparation for the growing nursing shortage. The program is geared toward hospital employees in nonclinical roles who are interested in nursing, such as those in environmental services, housekeeping, food services, security and front desk positions. After 16 weeks of training, the students take the Illinois Nurse Aide Competency Certification Exam. The program has graduated 27 people and 11 are in patient care technician roles across the health system, including Ms. Smith, who works on a general medicine floor at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, according to a health system news release. "I have a passion for caring for people, and my next step is nursing school," Ms. Smith said in the release. "I've always had plenty of jobs, but never a career. I'm here today thanks to hard work, determination and this amazing program through Northwestern Medicine." More than 50% of the program's graduates are now in nursing school, according to Northwestern Program Director Tacora Love, MSN, RN. "I think the program ignited a flame," said Ms. Love, an instructor who helped develop the curriculum. Most nursing schools require applicants to be a certified nursing assistant, and CNA programs can cost thousands of dollars and conflict with 40-hour workweeks, Ms. Love told Becker's. At Northwestern, there's no cost and students' managers work with the instructors to accommodate schedules. The program has taught students with ages ranging from 19 to 51 about nursing through weekly lessons in classrooms, labs and clinical settings. The hard and soft skills, including time management and emotional intelligence, have helped empower people looking for their next step, Ms. Love said. On July 26, the program will welcome its first class of external students. Surveyors with the New York State Department of Health issued an immediate jeopardy notice regarding the open-heart surgery program at Wynn Hospital in Utica, N.Y., hours before the hospital announced it was pausing the procedures on May 8. The chief operating officer of Mohawk Valley Health System, which owns Wynn Hospital, confirmed the immediate jeopardy warning in interviews with local news outlets. "They asked us to respond immediately with a plan and we did that," Rick Carvolth, MD, the system's COO, told the Observer-Dispatch. "That happened within the course of several hours. They came in the morning and by the end of the day, they had agreed with the plan that we had presented to them, part of which was to pause the surgery program." Concerns raised by surveyors with the state health department echoed those raised internally several months ago, Dr. Carvolth told the news outlet. "We were seeing a reduction in referrals to our program," he said, "and we were also seeing some complications and some deaths that were of concern." The issues center around the program's management "and some of the clinical decision making," not the facility itself or technology being used, he said. An external organization review of the program "aimed at strengthening the service and reopening as quickly as possible," is being conducted, Mohawk Valley Health System said in a previous statement regarding the suspension of open-heart surgeries. Part of that review will include whether the program should let go of its current cardiothoracic surgeons, according to Dr. Carvolth. Wynn Hospital did not respond to requests for comment. The state's health department said it, "does not comment on matters that are or may be subject to review or investigation." It's unclear when the open-heart surgery program will resume, though Dr. Carvolth anticipates it will likely be at least a few weeks. The hospital had been performing about one open-heart surgery per week prior to the pause, officials told the Observer-Dispatch. The program opened at Mohawk Valley Health System's St. Elizabeth Campus in 1997. It was transferred to Wynn Hospital in October. Wynn Hospital has emphasized that no other cardiac services are being affected. The facility has said it is working with other providers in the region to ensure timely care for all patients requiring open-heart surgeries. "Neary all heart attacks can be treated with procedures being performed at the Wynn," the hospital said in its May 8 statement. "If a patient presents with a case so severe it requires open heart surgery, the staff at the Wynn are fully capable to stabilize the patient and safely transfer them to a higher level of care." Many states require a court order to determine involuntary treatment, but independent committees could be a better way of meeting patients' needs, Sandeep Jauhar, MD, PhD, a cardiologist in New York City-based Northwell Health wrote in an opinion piece published in The New York Times May 13. Dr. Jauhar wrote that in most cases, the law ought to keep care decisions in hospitals and the hands of physicians and medical specialists. Judicial review of involuntary treatment, or "treatment over objection", has been in place for more than four decades. In the 1980s, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court determined a judge could override medical judgments in favoring involuntary psychiatric treatment. It was established to protect patients' rights and avoid "the sort of paternalistic abuses that have characterized too much of medical history" with some exceptions for life-threatening emergencies and when there is pressing societal interest. Judges are not experienced in properly evaluating psychological states, assessing decision-making capacity or determining whether a proposed treatment's benefits outweigh its risks, Dr. Jauhar said. Some estimates say that 95% of requests for treatment over objection are approved by judges who haven't met the patient. "Physicians today are trained in shared decision-making," Dr Jauhar wrote. "Safeguards are now in place to prevent such maltreatment, including multidisciplinary teams in which nurses, social workers and bioethicists have a voice." A better system for safeguarding patients could be a hospital committee of physicians, ethicists and other relevant experts who would be independent of the hospital and not involved in the care of the patient. They could hold hearings on-site with published documents to outline the reasoning for decisions and periodic audits by regulatory bodies to ensure the deliberations meet medical and ethical standards. Such a committee could expedite decisions and minimize treatment delays. In cases where the committee cannot agree on the best course of action, they could appeal to a judge, Dr. Jauhar suggests. On the 50th anniversary of Dungeons and Dragons (1974) -- A dark turn in the pop-culture? (Part Eighteen) By Mark Wegierski web posted May 13, 2024 In earlier installments of this series, the author had focused mostly on fantasy role-playing games. Here, he turns his attention to so-called "dark future" settings in both RPGs and boardgames. What are some of the leading "dark futures" featured in gaming? It may be noted that, with their typical emphasis on planet-wide disintegration and/or corporate control, as well as individual interactions, boardgames on anything above a tactical level are a rarity. The "dark future" also lends itself to miniatures gaming. "Dark futures" may be seen as divided into two broad categories: near-future (often coterminous with cyberpunk); or far-future. Probably the best known example of this kind of far-future is WARHAMMER 40,000 A.D. (or 40K) which is a self-standing system, focused on separate boardgames as well as miniatures, although it also has a roleplaying system based on that "world." WARHAMMER 40,000 A.D. had been discussed in earlier installments of this series. Roleplaying Systems: SHADOWRUN (Chicago, Illinois: FASA Corporation): Shadowrun: Where Man Meets Magic and Machine (FASA) (original edition, 1989) which is one of the more successful cyberpunk (or, actually, cyberpunk-fantasy) RPGs, was discussed in earlier installments of the series. It has been described as a combination of the ideas of William Gibson and J.R.R. Tolkien. CYBERSPACE (Charlottesville, Virginia: ICE - Iron Crown Enterprises): CyberEurope: A Campaign Sourcebook for Cyberspace (1991) Principal Author: Anders Blixt, Editor: Kevin Barrett (112 b & w pages, color front/backcover, 17" x 22" full-color map) This product, put together by a group of Swedish role players, is (with some exceptions) probably the least gruesome of the cyberpunk futures. It is set in the Europe of the 2090s. Some might feel that the European national governments (with their powerful military forces) and the Roman Catholic Church hold greater power in that projected future than they do today. The authors write: "the military's strict code of honor is based on 19th century equivalents from France and Prussia; codes that strongly stress duty, discipline, obedience and self-sacrifice. An officer must always be a gentleman...The officers see themselves as the defenders of Europe's culture and greatness against what they perceive as threats from Europe's corrupt and dishonorable politicians, greedy, unpatriotic and scheming Megacorps and fanatical, incomprehensible Arabs" (p. 74). The Catholic Church is also engaged in active struggle against the Megacorps. The designers, however, could be seen to have misunderstood the internal politics of the Church. The conservative tradition as it exists in the Catholic Church (as represented, for example, by Opus Dei) is, generally-speaking, as fundamentally anti-capitalist as that of the Catholic Left. In a situation of Megacorps world hegemony, insofar as the Church had some freedom of maneuver, conservative Catholics would be just as "radically" in opposition to the prevalent system as the Catholic Left. The emergence of a Russian neotraditionalist, nationalist regime in "The Third Commonwealth of Independent States" is a fair prediction, though it might not necessarily be any larger than current-day Russia (i.e., it would not include Belarus and Ukraine). The notion of Poles in Byelorussia fighting for reunification with Poland is an interesting, if far-fetched, concept. Poland, if it ever departed from its very pacific current-day policies, would be more likely to first claim the area identified in this sourcebook as "Baltia" (i.e., the area around the town currently known as Kaliningrad called Krolewiec in Polish, and Konigsberg in German). The most gruesome aspects of the future world appear in Great Britain, where the projections are clearly meant as parodic and satirical. The aim of the exercise was presumably a bitter spoof (and a rather poorly executed one at that) on Thatcherite policies. Could anyone believe that the Republic of Ireland will in any possible future be in danger from British imperialism? Indeed, in this sourcebook, Great Britain, which has initiated a brutal occupation of all Ireland, is also the most violent, decadent, and polluted of the countries described. A substantial portion of it (the Manchester-Leeds Deletion) is irradiated owing to some grotesquely tragicomic circumstances. Some might suggest that a far different view of the future of the British Isles would be better in keeping with the less obviously dystopic nature of this future. CYPERPUNK 2020 (Berkeley, California: R. Talsorian Games): EuroSource: The EuroTheatre Sourcebook for Cyberpunk (1991) Written By: Mark Galeotti (80 b & w pages, color front/backcover) This sourcebook has some rather interesting touches. Germany is very powerful and looks more traditional than today. France is also a major power. The sociological trend known as "dreampainting" can, of course, be seen as a trend somewhat connected to today's Generation X. (A similar, current-day phenomenon is discussed in Adrienne Miller and Andrew Goldblatt, The Hamlet Syndrome: Overthinkers Who Underachieve (New York: William Morrow, 1989), and in Doug Coupland's Microserfs.) The "hellholes" in this region are the largely irradiated Turkey, North Africa, and Middle East (apart from Israel); the New Central Europe (a place for cheap-labor, heavily-polluting industries and dumping waste); and (as in many cyberpunk scenarios) Great Britain. (One supposes that this is again an ironic commentary on the Thatcher years.) Great Britain is under a military government that uses Orwellian-sounding abbreviations (e.g., LONDURMARLAUTH -- for London Urban Martial Law Authority.) In a rather curious twist, the military has removed both the monarchy and much of the traditional aristocracy, indeed, they have apparently murdered the royal family, and Royalists are among the numerous rebel groups fighting the military. Northern Ireland is in a full-blown civil war, but the Republic of Ireland is largely unaffected. The British situation appears especially parodic and overdone, as is the one in NCE. The resistance movement in NCE, consisting of an alliance of the various nationalists, goes by the rather bland name of '3000'. (One could call it "Wola" -- which means "will" or "freedom" in most Slavic languages.) In any event, that kind of situation is now very unlikely. Near the end of the Communist regimes, there was indeed an instance, where a Polish Communist minister had been bribed into allowing the dumping of several tonnes of radioactive waste into the Polish countryside by a German company. And there was the rather horrendous environmental record of all the East-Central European Communist regimes. However, as the East-Central European economies take off, that will become increasingly unlikely. Some economists have estimated that by the year 2025, the GDP of Poland alone might be approaching that of Russia, if current trends continue. Presumably ever-lighter industries will replace the grimy industrial factories. During an interview with American television in the 1990s, Zhirinovsky had justified his comment of "fanning nuclear waste onto Lithuania" by claiming that the West was dumping nuclear and toxic chemical waste throughout Russia. In fact, the Soviet Union had, throughout its history, an absolutely horrific environmental record, which became widely known only after its fall. Eurosource Plus: The New Eurotheater Sourcebook for Cyberpunk (1995) Writers: Jose Ramos, Florian Merx, Steve Gill (144 b & w pages, color front/backcover) The ink was barely dry on the previous sourcebook, and it was already in many ways out of date. In a somewhat questionable move, the "future past" timeline from 1990 was continued, thereby already making the "near-future", an "alternative-history." The "hellholes" of this region are as in the previous sourcebook, though perhaps slightly less grim. Poland is characterized as a personal dictatorship, with a crime-fighting secret police, called "the Harbingers" (incidentally, the likely Polish term for these would be "Wici"). In a rather ironic commentary on the role of the Roman Catholic Church in Poland, a major, breakaway "Church of Poland" is posited, in protest against the further liberalization of the Roman Catholic Church (after the death of John Paul II). Such a breakaway movement is clearly unlikely. To be continued. Mark Wegierski is a Canadian writer and historical researcher. Home St. Louis-based Ascension confirmed a ransomware attack that happened May 8, the health system said May 11. Ascension is focused on restoring services "as safely as possible" across its 140 hospitals, according to an update. Affected services include electronic health records systems and systems used to order some tests, procedures and medications. As of May 13 there isn't a timeline for restoration. Ascension's investigation of the incident is ongoing. While hospitals and facilities are open, several hospitals are on diversion for emergency care due to downtime procedures, the health system said. The Ascension cyberattack comes months after the sweeping Change Healthcare incident in February. The recovery from that ran to about mid-March. The Change Healthcare incident sparked larger concerns among physicians, and spine and orthopedic surgeons are keeping a close eye. In April OrthoConnecticut reported a network breach possibly affecting thousands of patients to HHS. And Vancouver, Wash.-based Rebound Orthopedics & Neurosurgery filed a notice of a data breach with the attorney general of Montana related to a February breach that left systems offline for weeks. The series of data breaches have spine surgeons thinking about their own cybersecurity measures. "Cyberattacks have become a significant threat to the healthcare industry," Emeka Nwodim, MD, of Bethesda, Md.-based Centers for Advanced Orthopaedics, said. "These threats often pose substantial financial risk to both small and large healthcare institutions. At CAO, there are multiple measures being implemented to try to safeguard our systems, with the understanding that there will always be risk. I believe the primary focus should be educating our members and staff on corporatewide compliance protocols and policies to help avoid scams." Cash Access UK aims to reach 100 hubs by the end of the year The organisation set up to help protect access to cash, Cash Access UK, has said it aims to reach 100 banking hubs around the UK by the end of the year. One has already opened in Kilkeel in Co Down, with another three to launch around the county (Comber, Newcastle, Warrenpoint) and one to open in Portrush in Co Londonderry. The latest hub has now opened in Jedburgh, in the Scottish Borders, bringing the total around the UK to 50. The hubs help to plug gaps for communities as bank branches close and make it easier for small businesses to bank cash. They have a counter service operated by the Post Office, allowing customers to conduct routine banking transactions. Each hub has a private area where customers can consult with staff representing their respective banks for more complex matters. Banks participating in each hub operate on a rotational basis, ensuring the presence of staff from different banks on varying days. Gareth Oakley, CEO at Cash Access UK, said: In a short space of time, were very proud of the difference the hubs are making. If you visit the more established hubs, you will also see how they are bringing energy and life back to these communities too. Ross Borkett, banking director at Post Office, said: This is a significant milestone for both Cash Access UK and all of our postmasters who operate the banking hubs. Bim Afolami, Economic Secretary to the Treasury, said: I look forward to seeing more hubs opening in the coming months. Hubs are recommended by cash access and ATM network Link, which reviews communities based on criteria including number of shops, transport links and deprivation. Recommendations are then delivered by Cash Access UK, a not-for-profit organisation, which is owned and funded by nine major banks. From the day a hub is recommended, it typically takes about 12 months to open. In locations where it proves difficult to find a suitable property, Cash Access UK can open temporary hubs, giving more time to secure a permanent home for the hub. The 50th banking hub has been established as a temporary hub in Exchange Street, Jedburgh. Hubs open from Monday to Friday and each has a counter for cash services. Users can pay in cash and cheques, withdraw cash, check their balance, pay utility bills and top up gas and electricity, while small businesses can access change-giving services. Earlier this month, Finance Minister Caoimhe Archibald urged banks to protect the branch network and ensure communities impacted by branch closures are able to access banking services. She met representatives of high street banks, UK Finance, Link and Cash Access UK to discuss the importance of rolling out banking hubs to areas impacted by branch closures. While there is a trend in many banks towards digital banking, losing a branch, or indeed several, can be a massive blow for any community, urban or rural... I welcome the opportunity to discuss the banking hubs and how they could be further rolled out to other communities right across the north. Bruce Springsteen and E Street Band visit favourite local haunts from Belfast bookshop to Dublin chipper The Boss is playing gigs in Kilkenny, Cork, Dublin and Belfast over a 15-day period Bruce Springsteen pays tribute to Shane MacGowan in Kilkenny with rendition of Pogues song Ralph Riegel Mon 13 May 2024 at 12:01 Bruce Springsteen is indulging his favourite local pastimes during his two-week concert visit to Northern Ireland and the Republic, ranging from linking up with friends to enjoying pints and savouring traditional Dublin fish and chips. A sentence of three years and four months has been handed to a man for his involvement in the ram-raiding of a store in the centre of Belfast. Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald (left) and then deputy first minister Michelle ONeill during the funeral of former leading IRA figure Bobby Storey at Milltown Cemetery in west Belfast in June 2020. (Liam McBurney/PA) Michelle ONeill will appear at the Covid inquiry this week, where she is expected to be grilled about her attendance at the funeral of IRA man Bobby Storey at the height of the pandemic. Leaks from meetings of the Stormont Executive during the pandemic were so common that it was like a live feed, health minister Robin Swann has told the Covid-19 Inquiry. Mr Swann said he believed some ministers were constrained from acting outside of party interests due to constant leaks to the media, adding that it became so endemic it was tolerated rather than challenged. Mr Swann also told the inquiry, sitting in Belfast, that he believed that, as the sole Ulster Unionist minister at the height of the pandemic, he was able to act in the interests of Northern Ireland, while the larger parties were focused on Dublin and Westminster. The current inquiry module is assessing Northern Irelands handling of the Covid emergency. Mr Swann took up the position of health minister when the Stormont powersharing Executive returned in January 2020, following a three-year suspension, just as concerns about the spread of Covid were growing. Lead counsel Clair Dobbin asked the minister if being the sole minister from his party had an impact. Mr Swann said it was a challenging position. But he added: I actually think entering the pandemic it was a strength. I didnt hold either a leadership position within my party at the point I took up minister so I wasnt bound by the constraints of having to answer to party political pressures from outside. Being the sole minister in there allowed me to step outside some of the constitutional challenges that faced the two larger parties where at times they could have seen to be more antagonistic, especially in regards to where they looked for their ultimate direction. Sinn Fein did take a look and keep an eye on what was happening in the Republic of Ireland and, likewise, the DUP were focused on what was happening in Westminster. Whereas being bound by neither of those I believe I was able to take a direction which best suited the response in Northern Ireland. Ms Dobbin asked Mr Swann if he believed his ministerial colleagues were under political pressure external to being in the Executive. He said: I do believe that in regards to ministers coming from those bigger parties, those bigger groupings had to look to party structures and party guidance. Other ministers holding party leadership positions had to be conscious of what was going on elsewhere which I felt I was unencumbered by that. Chairwoman Baroness Heather Hallett asked if devices had been banned from meetings (Jane Barlow/PA) Ms Dobbin then turned to the issue of Executive papers containing recommendations on Covid regulations being leaked to the media in 2020. Mr Swann said: It was one of my largest frustrations in regards to how Executive papers were handled, how they were leaked, when they were leaked because I often felt it was actually deliberate in regards to either conditioning what the conversation was going to be had at the Executive. When those papers were shared with Executive colleagues, often late on the night before, they were already with the media before the Executive had actually met to discuss them so there was already a narrative established in the media to either support or mostly undermine the recommendations that were coming. He added: What could have been robust meetings confidentially had around an Executive table people were already being driven into sides or silos or in support of their stakeholders prior to being able to have the wider conversation or actually receive the presentations or the evidence that was actually coming from the CMO (chief medical officer) or the CSA (chief scientific adviser) as to why those decisions were being asked for or recommended. Ms Dobbin then asked about leaks that took place while Executive meetings were going on. The minister said: At times there was almost a live feed coming from the Executive, especially when it came to those more challenging, more robust decisions that would have to be taken, it was being portrayed live-time on Twitter in regards to who had said what, who was saying what. It left it extremely challenging for some ministers to be clearly open or step outside the bounds of what would have been their party position because there was that perception if they said too much or strayed too far that it was already going to be portrayed in the media. Inquiry chairwoman Baroness Hallett asked if consideration had been given to banning personal devices during Executive meetings. Mr Swann said: There was all sorts of attempts made, but the fact that our Executive meetings were being held remotely by Zoom, there were challenges as well. There were recommendations made by the head of the civil service at one stage even that while ministers were on they should have their cameras on at all times, not just when they were speaking. Ms Dobbin asked if it had got to the stage that the leaks were tolerated. He added: It became a frustration but I also believe at one point it was so endemic that it became tolerated rather than challenged. Mr Swann was also questioned by Ms Dobbin around preparedness. The health minister said that following the restoration of devolved Government in January, the Executive met for the first time on February 3 2020. At that meeting, Covid-19 was listed under any other business. While cases had been confirmed at that point in Great Britain, the first case was not confirmed in Northern Ireland until February 27. Mr Swann said: I dont think we should read too much into where it sat on the agenda, it was the fact that it was on the agenda, and was being talked about, and we were able to raise it and have those conversations in regards to that. He said there may not have been enough of an understanding by ministers of what it meant that the risk of the virus had been raised from low to moderate. I think (it) was our first executive meeting since restoration so Im sure ministers heads were in other places as well having just picked up their own portfolios, he said. The incident took place over the weekend Twelve police officers have been assaulted while arresting a man in Lurgan at the weekend. Officers were responding to a call for assistance to a domestic assault report in the early hours of Saturday, May 11. While arresting the man on suspicion of common assault, he began lashing out at officers, landing kicks to their legs, as well as spitting, punching and attempting to headbutt them. The behaviour continued for some time with assaults to the custody sergeant and civilian detention officers on arrival at Banbridge Custody Suite. In total, 18 police officers and staff were injured during the course of their duties in Armagh Banbridge and Craigavon at the weekend. This was during the three separate arrests of three men. Chief Inspector Brendan Green condemned each attack describing them as "shameful and unacceptable". "In what other job would this happen? Our officers and staff are working hard to keep their communities safe and do not deserve this treatment," he said. While we come to work knowing we could be faced with difficult and dangerous situations, it is completely unacceptable that our officers should be assaulted and verbally berated in the most shocking ways for simply doing their jobs. Our officers have received welfare support and, thankfully, their injuries were not more serious and they felt well enough to remain on duty. But it highlights our message that all assaults on emergency service workers - be that a nurse, doctor, paramedic or police officer - are serious offences and there are serious consequences. Two of these men have been charged to court with one released on police bail to allow for further investigation. "Assaults on our officers are unacceptable, and will not be tolerated." Meanwhile the Police Federation of Northern Ireland the body which represents rank-and-file officers here branded the incident as shameful and appalling. "Thoughts are with our colleagues. Tougher sentences required, they added in a social media post. Police at the scene of a security alert in the Balhome Drive area of Ardoyne in North Belfast on May 13th 2024 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Police at the scene of a security alert in the Balhome Drive area of Ardoyne in North Belfast on May 13th 2024 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Police at the scene of a security alert in the Balhome Drive area of Ardoyne in North Belfast on May 13th 2024 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Police at the scene of a security alert in the Balhome Drive area of Ardoyne in North Belfast on May 13th 2024 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) A viable device has been recovered by police following a security alert in north Belfast on Monday. The Balholm Drive and Brompton Park area of Ardoyne had been closed and homes evacuated following the security alert. Police confirmed the alert has now ended and residents have returned to their homes. PSNI Detective Inspector Alan Fenton said: Police received a report at around 3.55am on Monday morning of a suspicious object located outside a property in the area. The object, which has been declared as a viable device, has been removed and taken away for further forensic examinations. A number of homes in the area were evacuated as officers conducted a public safety operation in the area. Residents have now returned to their homes and all roads have re-opened and police would like to thank everyone for their understanding. Enquiries are continuing to establish the circumstances surrounding the incident and anyone with any information is asked to contact detectives in Musgrave on 101, quoting reference number 149 13/05/24. News Catch Up: Sunday 12th May 2024 This is how we will have to fight cheating in the 2024 election By Rachel Alexander web posted May 13, 2024 We're barreling towards the 2024 election with few safeguards in place to stop the cheating from taking place again. Most politicians aren't even talking about it, even though very few laws have been passed since 2020 to stop the cheating. In Arizona, because the governor is now Democrat Katie Hobbs even though an exit poll from Rasmussen Reports showed Kari Lake beat her by 8 points she vetoes any substantial election integrity bills. The only state that appears to have successfully passed any significant election integrity legislation since the 2020 election is Georgia. Surprisingly, Georgia's RINO Governor Brian Kemp, who has been generally hostile toward election integrity, signed three major bills into law. Instead, states have passed a considerable number of laws this year making it easier to cheat. The massive loosening of election integrity laws since 2020 has been staggering. The left-wing Brennan Center, which actively engages in litigation against election integrity measures, bragged that in 2023, "Expansive laws outpaced the number of restrictive laws passed." Since legislation has been a failure, those concerned about the cheating will need to combat it by having eyes and ears everywhere. This means flooding the polls with observers. Many election integrity experts believe the reason Virginia went red in its 2021 election was because thousands of GOP observers descended on the polls. Start inquiring with election officials well before the primary and general election regarding the parameters so they can't make excuses at the last minute. They are going to try and place observers so far away that they cannot see anything, so this may need to be litigated in advance. Look up the laws regarding poll watching, and if the officials try to weasel out of anything, figure out who can bring a lawsuit before the election state Republican parties and the RNC have been great in this area, and the RNC under its new leadership is championing election integrity. America First Legal has also emerged as a leader in these lawsuits. Republican county and state parties often organize poll watching efforts. This includes watching ballot drop boxes. Observers must be extra careful here, since the left is getting them kicked out by pointing to small technical violations. Look up the laws or regulations here carefully, ask election officials well in advance. Avoid talking to people dropping off ballots since the left will attempt to portray it as harassment or threats. Many election offices have live streams from various cameras so observers can watch from home. Organizations like We the People AZ Alliance in Arizona are very organized here, and even sued Runbeck in order to get access to some of their livestreaming. After Runbeck denied having any video in court, the company finally agreed to turn over coverage from the 2022 election to the Arizona Legislature. No one tried to prosecute the company for perjury, nor were any of the Maricopa County attorneys who argued on its behalf prosecuted or disciplined by the State Bar of Arizona. Another significant way to make a difference is to flood the election offices and companies with employees. Those who have little to no social media presence will need to step up here, since the government agencies and contractors will not hire anyone who appears to be MAGA. Patriots need to apply for jobs at election offices and their contractors, like Dominion Voting Systems and Runbeck Election Services. Election offices hire temporary election workers for the election, especially to work at the polling locations. The number of whistleblowers are steadily increasing, testifying in court cases about the laws officials are brazenly breaking. While most of the judges won't do anything about it, small gains are taking place despite the mainstream media's blackout on covering them. One brave judge in Iowa in particular repeatedly stopped election officials' illegal actions in the 2020 election, and said fraud is hard to discover so it's the wrong standard of proof, and breaking the law makes it even harder to discover. It's important to start litigation well in advance of the election if possible, so election fraud denying judges can't claim that it's too late, known as laches, when they're brought during the election or afterwards. Several judges have ruled that laches didn't bar similar lawsuits in election cases, but they're in the minority. Talk to state legislators about conducting investigations. They can submit public records requests, issue subpoenas and conduct hearings all in advance of the election. The more information that comes out, the better. Eventually some disgruntled employee at an election agency or company is going to see the hype about the corruption and spill the beans. It's important to send messages to election officials in order to hold them accountable. Tag them in posts on X, send them emails and confront them politely in public with questions and concerns. It does have an effect. Just because the courts are letting them get away with breaking the law, doesn't mean the people have to enable it. Finally, organize protests outside election offices calling attention to the cheating and calling officials out for any illegal actions to thwart election integrity. We have a lot of average people to wake up who are unaware of how bad the cheating is getting. There really should have been endless demonstrations after the 2020 election, but unfortunately people are afraid after what happened to the J6 protesters. We just have to be ultra careful not to break any minor law, or they'll crack down with draconian punishments using the left-wing dominated legal system. We need to continue efforts to chase ballots too. But too many politicians and activists are focusing solely on that aspect, while ignoring the elephant in the room. They're getting better and better at cheating the more they do it, so the 2024 election is going to make the 2020 and 2022 elections look like junior varsity cheating. Sadly, the lawfare and mainstream media ridicule have scared people out of talking about election fraud. Rachel Alexander and her brother Andrew are co-Editors of Intellectual Conservative. She has been published in the American Spectator, Townhall.com, Fox News, NewsMax, Accuracy in Media, The Americano, ParcBench, Enter Stage Right and other publications. Home Algae on the surface of Lough Neagh at Ballyronan Marina (Liam McBUrney/PA) Stormonts Environment Minister has asked officials to reallocate resources within his department to ensure prioritisation of efforts to tackle environmental problems in Lough Neagh. Andrew Muir told the Assembly the budget allocation for the lough was disappointing. He said he had received 1.6 million in capital funding and no resource funding for the issues besetting the lough. Lough Neagh is the biggest freshwater lake, by surface area, in the UK and Ireland, supplies 40% of Northern Irelands drinking water and sustains a major eel-fishing industry. Noxious blooms covered large parts of the lough across last summer, and also affected other waterways and beaches in the region. Nitrogen and phosphorus from agricultural fertiliser running off fields were believed to be a major contributory factor. The spread of the invasive zebra mussel species is also understood to have played a role, as they have made the water clearer, allowing more sunlight to penetrate, stimulating more algal photosynthesis. Climate change is another factor cited, with the highest water temperature at Lough Neagh recorded last June. Mr Muir told the Assembly on Monday he was aware of the re-emergence of algae this year, including build-ups below the surface. I received 1.6 million of capital (funding in the budget) but I didnt receive any resource, so the budget allocation to my department was disappointing, but Im not going to just stop there, he said. What Im doing is engaging officials to see how we can reallocate resources within the department so we can put the necessary resources into this area. Hee added: We need to invest in turning the situation round in Lough Neagh. The owner of Lough Neaghs bed, the Earl of Shaftesbury, has stated his openness to exploring future ownership options. Mr Muir said public or community ownership models were being explored for the longer term. He said his personal preference was for a community ownership model, citing successful examples of that approach in Scotland. The minister also told the Assembly he had commissioned scientific research to assess the effect of removing sand from the lough. Last week, members of the Save Lough Neagh campaign group met Mr Muir to discuss issues with the lough. The group issued an update on that meeting on Monday. Broadly, we wanted to receive the departments acknowledgement of the fact that the crisis at Lough Neagh was seen as an emergency and that urgent action would need to be taken but unfortunately this was not forthcoming, the group said. The ministers timescales seem to revolve around years or decades something Lough Neagh does not have. The group said it had not received concrete promises from the minister and called for people power to deliver action. To the people concerned and outraged by this crisis, to lough shore communities our campaign is committed to intensifying this fight and to keeping the pressure on, it said. We have more protests and public meetings planned in the months ahead. When the algae blooms return this summer, maybe then will the minister listen to the people and take the urgent action Lough Neagh needs to survive. The Met Office has issued a new yellow weather warning for rain in Northern Ireland. The latest warning will be in place from 12pm to 9pm on Monday and has been localised to Co Down. It was previously in place until 6am on Tuesday and covered most of NI. Motorists have been told to expect disruption to travel as spells of rain will be heavy in places. A spokesperson for the Met Office said Periods of rain will develop during Monday afternoon, lasting into Tuesday morning. Rain will be heavy and persistent in places, especially across areas exposed to brisk east-southeasterly winds. Widely 15 to 30mm of rain is likely across the warning area, with as much as 50 to 60mm across the Mournes. The meteorological service added: Check if your property could be at risk of flooding. If so, consider preparing a flood plan and an emergency flood kit. Give yourself the best chance of avoiding delays by checking road conditions if driving, or bus and train timetables, amending your travel plans if necessary. People cope better with power cuts when they have prepared for them in advance. Its easy to do; consider gathering torches and batteries, a mobile phone power pack and other essential items. Be prepared for weather warnings to change quickly: the Met Office recommends staying up to date with the weather forecast in your area. Exclusive | Indefensibly, the Covid Inquiry is hiding key Stormont evidence from public and that is not just stupid, but dangerous Ulster Unionist Party leader Doug Beattie said some of the revelations coming out of the inquiry are extraordinary and bizarre (PA) Ulster Unionist Party leader Doug Beattie and former DUP leader Dame Arlene Foster are among the politicians who have condemned social media abuse aimed at a UUP election candidate. Jay Basra was announced as the UUPs candidate for Mid Ulster last week and has said he has since received a number of offensive messages online from a number of accounts. The Government must act to prevent Northern Ireland becoming a magnet for asylum seekers, the interim leader of the DUP has said. Gavin Robinson was commenting after a judge in Belfast ruled that much of the UKs Illegal Migration Act could not apply in Northern Ireland due to rights protections that are guaranteed under the post-Brexit Windsor Framework. Mr Robinson warned the Government that it must not facilitate the creation of an immigration border in the Irish Sea, with different rules applying in Northern Ireland to the rest of the UK. The ruling delivered in the High Court on Monday would disapply large sections of the Act in Northern Ireland. A central plank of the new laws is a scheme that would see asylum seekers deemed to have arrived illegally in the UK detained and removed to Rwanda. Mr Robinson insisted that his party had repeatedly warned the Government that its immigrations laws were incompatible with post-Brexit arrangements contained in the Northern Ireland Protocol/Windsor Framework. TUV MLA Jim Allister (Liam McBUrney/PA) Whilst todays judgment does not come as a surprise, it does blow the Governments irrational claims that the Rwanda scheme could extend equally to Northern Ireland completely out of the water, he said. We presented the Government with an opportunity during the passage of the Safety of Rwanda Bill in the House of Commons and the Lords to accept an amendment which would have put beyond doubt what it claims to be the case around the operation of the scheme. It is telling that it chose not to do so. This ruling must also mark a watershed moment in the Governments approach. For Ministers to ignore what the courts have said would not be merely a case of sleepwalking into the creation of immigration border in the Irish Sea but rather embarking on such a path with eyes wide open. It is imperative that immigration policy applies equally across every part of the United Kingdom. As unionists, we are clear that our national parliament should have the ability to make decisions on immigration that are applicable on a national basis. If that were not the case, it would not only be a constitutional affront but would make Northern Ireland a magnet for asylum seekers seeking to escape enforcement. The Windsor Framework offers a guarantee that there will be no diminution of the rights provided for within the Good Friday peace agreement of 1998. Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly (PA). Delivering his court judgment, Mr Justice Humphreys ruled that a several sections of the Illegal Migration Act would lead to a diminution of the rights of asylum seekers residing in Northern Ireland. DUP deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly told the Stormont Assembly on Monday that the Government needed to ensure that Parliament asserted its sovereignty by addressing the issues raised in the judgment. I think the High Court has been very clear today, she said, noting she was speaking in a personal capacity. The UK government in my view, now this matter may well go to the Supreme Court, but the UK Government must in my view take cognisance of what the High Court has said and move to urgently address these issues. Because the UK Parliament has sovereignty over these issues. They have asserted that sovereignty over these issues, so they should use that sovereignty to address these issues emerging from the no diminution of rights wider scope and implications as set out in the judgment today. TUV leader Jim Allister criticised the DUP for agreeing to return to devolution at Stormont earlier this year on the basis of the Governments Safeguarding the Union command paper a document that insisted that the application of UK immigration policy in Northern Ireland would not be affected by post-Brexit arrangements agreed with Brussels. Yet another humiliation and savaging of UK sovereignty as NI is again found to be an EU colony where the writ of Brussels, not London, runs, said Mr Allister. Here again the DUPs Safeguarding the Union document is exposed as a sham as its promises in paragraph 46 that the Rwanda Bill is untouched by the Protocol are shredded by the High Court. Now we not only have a trade partitioning Irish Sea border, but now an immigration border too, leaving NI wide open as a magnet for asylum seekers. Its time the DUP disavowed its sell out document and got on the side of demanding, not diminishing, British sovereignty. A welcome sign in the village of Creeslough, Co Donegal (Liam McBurney/PA) More than 12 million euro in Government funding has been given to a new community hub in Creeslough, Co Donegal. The Department of Rural and Community Development said the project will create a new central hub for community life that will support the renewal and regeneration of Creeslough. It said it will be transformative for the community and serve as a catalyst for the regeneration of the region. In October 2022 four men, three women and three young people, aged between five and 59, died in an explosion at a service station. Ten people died in the explosion (Brian Lawless/PA) The new centre will replace an already-operating community hub on Main Street in the village. The funding is part of 164 million euro allocated to 30 regeneration projects around the country. The investment is being provided under the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF) with a particular emphasis on the revitalisation of rural town centres. Many of the projects have a focus on combating vacancy and dereliction. Minister for Rural and Community Development Heather Humphreys said: This is a truly transformative level of funding that will make a real and lasting difference in rural communities throughout Ireland. An encampment protest over the Gaza conflict on the grounds of University College Dublin (Niall Carson/PA) Around 100 people are said to have gathered at a pro-Palestine encampment set up over the weekend at University College Dublin (UCD). Since Saturday, students have set up tents and banners around the lake at the Belfield campus in solidarity with Palestinians who are being displaced from their homes in Gaza. The encampment is organised by a Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) group set up by UCD students last autumn, which claims to have between 200-250 members. It follows the end of a student encampment at Trinity College Dublin on Wednesday after the university said it would divest from investments in Israeli companies that have activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and endeavour to divest in other Israeli companies. An encampment protest over the Gaza conflict on the grounds of University College Dublin (UCD) (Niall Carson/PA) Eabha Hughes, a third-year student of history and politics who co-founded the BDS group, said the outcome of the Trinity students encampment definitely helped build the momentum for their own. We just have to work on the momentum that they built, she told the PA news agency. She said a lot of the tents were brought along by students, but some were lent by Trinity students after their protest ended. After our encampment finishes, whenever that may be, whenever they divest, well donate the tents to charities, she said. The UCD encampment has 11 demands, Ms Hughes said, including asking the university to divest from any business, academic or research ties with Israeli institutions. They are also asking for an anti-apartheid policy and campus to be implemented by UCD. (It) means that no institutions or companies or any relationship between UCD and any institution in the future that has ties to occupation, a genocide, a regime of any kind, were really pushing for that policy. Students have set up tents in the grounds of University College Dublin (Niall Carson/PA) Ms Hughes said the reaction to the encampment has been pretty good. Were very welcoming, and I say to everyone whos walking by and were in the middle of exams so the campus is pretty busy to come on in and we do have various activities organised if people want to come down on their lunch break. Today, for example, we have a Q&A session with some Palestinian students who are going to flesh out peoples knowledge. Ms Hughes, who has exams on Wednesday, said that I can take my exams again but people are losing their lives. I study history and politics and so my degree is so heavily based on occupation, a lot of the classes Ive taken have been about the British occupation in Ireland, imperialism, genocide and war. I guess were essentially practising what our educators preach in my classes. I study history and politics, because I think its really important to learn about whats happened in the world so it doesnt happen again and were watching a genocide livestreamed through our phones. Its important to be there because of my degree. Thats not to say that Im not studying, I was in the library earlier today, but thats because we have people holding down the camp. We have students here who have finished their exams or their assignments, and theyre still sticking around in UCD to help out with the encampment. Asked if the encampments could spread to other Irish universities, she said: One hundred per cent. Trinity, Queens (University Belfast), its just the start. She added: We want to work diplomatically with the university, were open to conversation, its a completely peaceful protest but just because its a peaceful protest doesnt mean were not making demands. We have to escalate, we tried to contact them diplomatically in the past. We want to work with the university, not against them, we just want to show them that were not messing around, we care about Palestine. UCD president Orla Feely sent a message to students and staff on Sunday acknowledging the shock and deep distress that the suffering and deaths in Gaza and Israel have caused people at UCD. Emphasising the universitys support of peaceful protest and the importance of students safety, Ms Feely said that all members of the university have the right to be treated with dignity and respect, including freedom from harassment. Students in Ireland have set up tents outside university buildings, replicating the nationwide campus demonstrations which began in the US last month (Niall Carson/PA) Addressing the demands of the protesters, she said the bursar has confirmed to me that UCD has no investments in Israel, so this issue of divestment does not arise for UCD. She also said that there are no formal bilateral partnerships with Israeli institutions, but they do have 11 EU research projects that have Israeli partners. The university participates in EU research projects as a member of a number of multi-partner networks. We currently have 11 active projects that have Israeli partners within these large networks. We fully respect the academic freedom of UCD researchers to continue these research collaborations, most of which are in the areas of health and sustainability. Ms Hughes said justifying academic research with Israeli institutions in the name of health and sustainability, whilst those same institutions are providing technologies for the Israeli Defence Forces, is just reprehensible and unjustifiable in my opinion. Were asking for no relationship with Israeli institutions, no matter what the work is. Ms Feely concluded her message to staff and students: It remains my hope, as I indicated in an email last week, that even through very difficult times UCD can continue to be a place that supports open and constructive debate in an environment of inclusivity and respect, modelling the behaviour and environment that we wish to see in the wider world. Urgent action is needed from the Irish government in order to meet its 2030 electricity capacity targets, the Climate Change Advisory Council has said. In its annual review of the electricity sector, the council made a number of recommendations in order to address the situation. It warned that Irelands renewable electricity generation remains significantly below the required annual increase necessary to meet growing demand and simultaneously comply with the sectoral emissions ceilings. It has made a series of recommendations, including a call to rapidly finalise all elements of planning reform to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy generation, with delays and appeals significantly hindering progress. In addition, the transposition of EU legislation will enable Ireland to avail of flexibility provisions that other European member states are using to roll out renewable projects faster. The council said electricity emissions fell in 2023, driven by a notable rise in imported electricity from the UK coupled with a considerable decline in the use of coal for electricity generation. In order to maintain this trajectory the council has said it is crucial that the use of coal to generate electricity is stopped by 2025 and that the use of oil is phased out as soon as possible. Marie Donnelly, chairwoman of the Climate Change Advisory Council, said there is great opportunity to be grasped. The councils analysis of the electricity sector is a stark reminder of the critical actions that are required to ensure that Ireland stays within its emissions ceiling while providing security of supply for a growing economy, she said. 2023 saw just 0.6GW of new grid-scale onshore renewable connections, well below the 1.6 GW required annually to meet 2030 targets. Marie Donnelly, chairwoman of the Climate Change Advisory Council (Handout/PA) The government must now move urgently to finalise all elements of planning reform that will help accelerate renewable delivery. We have a great opportunity in Ireland to harness our indigenous renewable resources both onshore and offshore, to have control and security over our supply and ensure price stability for consumers while achieving our targets and becoming a world leader in renewable electricity generation. Government must show leadership and take the actions required to ensure that Ireland can quickly capitalise on resources that we know are available but cannot come online due to system blockages. We know the potential we now must have it realised. Ms Donnelly also drew attention to resilience actions that the council has recommended including critical electricity infrastructure. It is important that planning processes are put in place to ensure that new energy infrastructure is developed to withstand future projected climate impacts, she said. Operators must address known flood risks to vital infrastructure and take account of protecting and, where possible enhancing, biodiversity in their developments. Building consumer confidence and understanding in electrification is also an important step. If Ireland is to grasp the opportunity in the electricity sector then it is crucial that we bring consumers and communities with us. A record-breaking quadriplegic sailor is hoping to inspire others with disabilities by taking on the challenge of circumnavigating the UK while raising money for charity. Geoff Holt, 58, told the PA news agency he will set sail from London on Monday May 13 and expects to take at least a month to cover the distance of just under 1,600 miles. Mr Holt said: Im excited but nervous. Im watching the weather forecasts on a daily basis and Im under no illusion, its a huge adventure to undertake. Im excited but I just want to get on with it now. Geoff Holt expects his challenge to take at least a month (Wetwheels/PA) Mr Holt and a small team will travel around the coast clockwise, calling at 17 accessible ports to raise funds for his charity Wetwheels Foundation, which takes disabled people to sea in purpose-built, fully accessible motor boats. The sailor was paralysed in a swimming accident in 1984 and uses a wheelchair. In 2007 he became the first severely disabled person to sail single-handed around Great Britain and in 2009 he sailed across the Atlantic Ocean unassisted. The following year he was made a Member of the British Empire (MBE) by Queen Elizabeth II for services to disabled sailing. Mr Holt said the biggest challenge of his circumnavigation around the UK will be facing rough waters. With bigger waves, particularly up the west coast of the country, with North Atlantic swells, the boat will take a bit of a smashing, and Ill be sitting in a wheelchair being thrown about, he said. I am secured to the boat, Im not going anywhere, but even so its quite an impact. His challenge, called Finishing The Dream, will be Mr Holts final adventure in an accessible Wetwheels boat, and he hopes to inspire other people with disabilities. I think by going around Britain, Ill be raising awareness of what someone with a disability like mine can achieve if you set your mind to it, and also hopefully inspire others to think, I fancy a go at that myself, he said. From a personal point of view, I want people to see someone whos 40-years post severe injury, somebody who needs 24-hour care, and that you can follow your dreams. Mr Holt beside a Wetwheels boat (Wetwheels Foundation/PA) Im promoting the removal of barriers to obstacles, whether its work, transport, or active participation on boats, for example with Wetwheels, its about following your dreams and it takes time. You need determination to do it and hopefully people will see me doing it, and just by seeing me will realise that actually, someone like me, it is possible and it may just help inspire others to do something. It may not be getting on the water of course, some people it may just be getting out of bed in the morning and for me that will be an achievement, if I know that its helping others. To follow Mr Holts progress and donate visit finishingthedream.co.uk. Aid workers are struggling to distribute dwindling food and other supplies to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians displaced by what Israel says is a limited operation in Rafah, as the two main crossings near the southern Gaza city remain closed. The United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees said 360,000 Palestinians have fled Rafah over the past week, out of 1.3 million who were sheltering there before the operation began, most of whom had already fled fighting elsewhere over the course of the seven-month war between Israel and Hamas. Israel has portrayed Rafah as the last stronghold of the militant group, brushing off warnings from the United States and other allies that any major operation there would be catastrophic for civilians. Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike on buildings near the separating wall between Egypt and Rafah (Ramez Habboub/AP) Hamas has meanwhile regrouped in some of the most devastated parts of Gaza that Israel had previously claimed to have cleared with heavy bombardment and ground operations. Thirty-eight trucks of flour arrived through the Western Erez Crossing, a second access point to northern Gaza, Abeer Etefa, a spokeswoman for the UNs World Food Programme, said. Israel had announced the opening of the crossing on Sunday. But no food has entered the two main crossings in southern Gaza for the past week. The Rafah crossing into Egypt has been closed since Israeli troops seized it a week ago. Fighting in Rafah city has made it impossible for aid groups to access the nearby Kerem Shalom crossing with Israel, though Israel says it is allowing supply trucks to enter from its side. For the past week, the Israeli military has intensified bombardment and other operations in Rafah, while ordering the population to evacuate from parts of the city. Israel insists it is a limited operation focused on rooting out tunnels and other militant infrastructure along the border with Egypt. Israeli forces were also battling Palestinian militants in Zeitoun and the urban Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza, areas where the army had launched major operations earlier in the war. (PA Graphics) Ms Etefa said WFP is distributing food from its remaining stocks in the areas of Khan Younis and Deir Balah further north to which many of those escaping Rafah have fled. Inside Rafah, only two organisations partnering with WFP were still able to distribute food, and no bakeries were operating in the city. The majority of distributions have stopped due to the evacuation orders, displacement, and running out of food, she said. The situation is becoming increasingly unsustainable. Almost the entire population of Gaza relies on humanitarian groups distribution of food and other supplies to survive. Amid Israeli restrictions and obstacles to aid distribution from violence, some 1.1 million Palestinians in Gaza face catastrophic levels of hunger, on the brink of starvation, and a full-blown famine is taking place in the north, according to the UN. The director of the Kuwait Hospital, one of the last functioning medical centres in Rafah, said medical staff and residents living near the facility have been told to evacuate. Sohaib al-Hams warned that any evacuation of the hospital itself would have catastrophic consequences. We need your consent to load this Social Media content. We use a number of different Social Media outlets to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review your details and accept them to load the content Israel has also ordered new evacuations in northern Gaza, even after hundreds of thousands of people fled in the opening weeks of the war. Mahmoud Shalabi, the senior programme manager for Medical Aid for Palestinians a UK-based charity, said he was recently ordered to relocate from Beit Lahiya in the far north to Gaza City. I have left my house several times now, along with my parents, who are both older than 70, my three children and my wife, he said. The journey of terror and displacement is beyond words. The war began when Hamas and other militants stormed into southern Israel on October 7, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking another 250 hostage. Militants still hold about 100 captives and the remains of more than 30 after most of the rest were released during a cease-fire last year. Israels offensive has killed more than 35,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gazas Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its figures. Israel says it has killed more than 13,000 militants, without providing evidence. Israel marked an especially sombre Memorial Day on Monday, with ceremonies across the country commemorating fallen soldiers, including the more than 600 killed since October 7, most in the initial attack. During the days opening ceremony at Mount Herzl cemetery on the outskirts of Jerusalem, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed once again to defeat Hamas. We are determined to win this struggle. We exacted and will exact a high price from the enemy for their criminal acts. We will realise the goals of victory and at the centre of them the return of all our hostages home, he said. Newsom 2024 v. Second Amendment Firearm fiction v. facts By Mark Alexander web posted May 13, 2024 The First Civil Right is To Keep and Bear Arms. It is, as James Madison's Supreme Court Justice Joseph Story rightly defined it, "the palladium of the liberties of the republic," the ultimate assurance of all other rights. For this reason, ahead of the hyper-rhetorical gun control claims by socialist Democrat Party candidates at all levels in this presidential election year, I have compiled a few data points that all defenders of American Liberty and its foundational guarantor, the Second Amendment, should know. Yes, you have heard Joe Biden's endless spin on what Hillary Clinton first coined as "commonsense gun laws" I mean, if you have common sense, how can you disagree? While Hillary and Bill Clinton were prolific prevaricators, masterfully obfuscating the truth, Biden is the undisputed champion of "lying dog-faced pony soldiers." However, it is not Biden's assault on the Second Amendment that is of most concern. As a reminder, here is why. As I noted in October 2022, I believe before or at the August Democrat National Convention in Chicago that Biden will remove himself as a candidate and throw his support most likely to Gavin Newsom. I mention this again because Newsom will be a far more formidable candidate against Donald Trump and a far more effective advocate for the Left's gun control agenda. Recall that in October 2023, Biden declared in an interview: "[Gavin Newsom] can be anything he wants. He can have the job I'm looking for." I noted then that if Newsom falls off the political/media radar in the months ahead of the Democrat Convention, that is an indication he is being tapped by Biden and company. So, have you heard from Newsom lately? Me neither. He is ghosting the mainstream media until he is ready to launch. Presidential elections draw more voters at all levels than off years, and if the Demo ticket falls to Newsom, he has already prepped a "28th Amendment to the United States Constitution to End America's Gun Violence Crisis." He knows he can't revoke the Second Amendment, so instead, he proposes to amend it, much to the applause of California's Demos. He plans on rallying the same applause from leftists nationwide. According to Newsom, "In this country, we do have the power to change things. That power is written into the Constitution, and today we're using it to end America's gun violence crisis." While an amendment is a big uphill climb, requiring approval by two-thirds of both the House and Senate, as well as ratification by three-fourths of state legislatures or a ratifying convention, Newsom's proposal is more about optics and rallying presidential votes. For context on the history of the Second Amendment, our Founders' observations about this fundamental right were clear. Suffice it to say, as did James Madison, the author of our Constitution and the inspiration for its Bill of Rights, "The ultimate authority ... resides in the people alone. ... The advantage of being armed, which the Americans possess over the people of almost every other nation ... forms a barrier against the enterprises of ambition, more insurmountable than any." After a recent column detailing the Demos' gun control template of using murdered children as political fodder to advance their gun confiscation agenda, particularly with their largest voter constituency women I updated the data point footnotes that have previously appeared under other Second Amendment columns. The updates are as follows: FOOTNOTE 1: Regarding so-called "gun violence," there were approximately 19,600 homicides involving firearms in the U.S. in the latest year of record, which you can view state by state. Fortunately, there are indications that homicides may be declining after the significant surge of violence unleashed by Biden and his Democrat agitators in 2020. The 2022 homicide rate was 30% higher than in 2019. The Demos ubiquitously and falsely label the generational murderous contagion they have seeded as "gun violence," and they focus exclusively on the infrequent high-profile "mass shootings," which account for only a tiny fraction of all homicides. More than 99% of murders in the U.S. are not the result of mass attacks. (Notably, guns don't commit violence, thugs and sociopaths commit violence.) The oft-cited Gun Violence Archive defines a "mass shooting" as any incident that involves a "minimum of four victims shot, either injured or killed." The vast majority of those violent attacks are the result of drug and gang violence committed in Democrat-controlled urban centers. In a country and culture that ignores the rising generation of sociopathic murderers mostly thugs in violent urban centers who are saturated with cultural violence and indoctrinated with mass-media glorification of violence it is fortunate that the incidence of mass murder is not 10 times higher. Arguably, the only thing keeping that number from being higher is that 125 million Americans are legal and responsible gun owners. Democrats don't focus on the vast majority of murders, particularly the epidemic of black-on-black murders on their decaying urban poverty plantations, because they want to avoid the "inconvenient truth" about race and violence, which is the direct result of failed Democrat social programs. In fact, black people (13% of the population), are 12 times more likely to be murdered, per capita, than white people (62% of the population). That gross racial disparity in murder rates isn't useful for the gun control narrative Democrats invoke to evoke emotional reaction from mostly wealthy white suburban women, who form the Demos' largest voter constituency. FOOTNOTE 2: Regarding so-called "mass shootings," for the record, murders of multiple people by one assailant are very rare in our nation of 335 million people. Less than 1% of all murders nationwide are classified as "mass shootings" and high-profile attacks, such as the 2017 mass murder in Las Vegas, are extremely rare. The FBI defines "active shooter incidents" as "one or more individuals actively engaged in killing or attempting to kill people in a populated area." In 2022, the FBI reported 50 incidents resulting in 313 casualties (100 killed and 213 wounded). That number was up significantly from 2020 when the FBI reported 40 incidents resulting in 164 casualties (38 killed and 126 wounded). A broader record of "mass shooting" data is maintained by the Associated Press and Northeastern University, which uses the Department of Justice definition of mass public shooting: "A multiple homicide incident in which four or more victims are murdered with firearms." These numbers fluctuate significantly year over year, and they range between 20 and 40 incidents. But notably, over the last 30 years, the number of black mass assailants is almost as high as the number of white assailants. Democrats only focus on these rare instances of multiple murders because these high-profile tragedies are political fodder to foment fear most notably when they can toss out their oft-repeated but erroneous claim that "gun violence is the leading cause of death for children." If by "children" they mean gang and drug-associated murders of those primarily between the ages of 16 and 21, then yes. Democrats are experts at fomenting fear and division. The fear and angst Demos intentionally propagate are taking a toll on Americans' mental health. Psychological researcher Dr. Riana Elyse Anderson observes: "Watching it time and time again on your phone or on the headlines can really impact you in ways that I don't think we knew before to be as impactful. It's so 'in our face' all the time and we have access to so much footage, so many pictures, so many videos, so many accounts that we're ingesting it in ways that's really unhealthy for us." The result for many mothers, in particular, is an irrational fear that their children will be shot. That is precisely the fabricated fear Democrats want to perpetuate, especially among their female constituents, in order to advance their gun control agenda. FOOTNOTE 3: Regarding what Democrats and their Leftmedia talkingheads and scribes ubiquitously and falsely label "assault weapons" are not. An assault weapon, a.k.a. "machine gun," is a select-fire weapon that can cycle rounds in fully automatic fashion. For much the same reason, Democrats focus only on rare high-profile "mass shootings" to generate fear and angst. When those attacks involve a semiautomatic rifle versus a handgun, Demos call for an "assault weapons ban." In 1994, Bill Clinton banned the sale of "military-style assault weapons," but that ban was not renewed 10 years later because it was determined the ban had no effect on crime reduction. According to Rand Research, "We found no qualifying studies showing that bans on the sale of assault weapons and high-capacity magazines decreased any of the eight outcomes we investigated." The fact is, rifles and shotguns combined are used in less than 3% of all homicides, but Democrats never let facts get in the way of their "assault weapon ban" political agenda. FOOTNOTE 4: Regarding firearms and violent crime, researcher John Lott reports, "Over 92% of violent crimes in America do not involve firearms." Again, the only thing keeping that number from being much higher is that 125 million Americans are legal and responsible gun owners. FOOTNOTE 5: Regarding firearms and suicide, almost 60% of all deaths involving firearms are suicide, most also involving drugs or alcohol abuse. But the big numbers promoted in "gun violence" reports do not distinguish between murder and suicide, thus implying that homicide rates are much higher. And does this mean that Demo support for assisted suicide is in conflict with their support for gun control? FOOTNOTE 6: Regarding alcohol versus firearm deaths, if Democrats are serious about protecting Americans, they should outlaw alcohol. Alcohol abuse is far more deadly than firearm abuse. More than 178,000 people died from alcohol abuse last year that's NINE times the number of homicides associated with firearms. Drunk drivers are responsible for 37 deaths per day. And notably, it is estimated that alcohol is a key factor in at least 30% of homicides where the assailant uses a firearm. (Include drug dealing or use as a factor and that number jumps to about 60%.) The problem for Democrats is that the vast majority of alcohol users possess and use it legally and responsibly. Likewise, the vast majority of firearm owners possess and use them legally and responsibly. Enacting a prohibition on firearms is tantamount to enacting a prohibition on alcohol. In both cases, only law-abiding users obey the laws, while lawless users don't. Bottom Line: Making good people helpless won't make bad people harmless. Mark Alexander is the executive editor of the Patriot Post. Rescue workers help Liudmila Kalashnik, 88, after evacuation from Vovchansk, Ukraine (Evgeniy Maloletka/AP) Only a few hundred residents remain in the embattled town of Vovchansk in north-east Ukraine, where Kyivs troops are locked in intense battles with the Russian army, according to local officials. The town, whose pre-war population of 17,000 had dwindled to just 2,500 before Russia renewed its ground assault last week, has emerged as a focus point as pitched battles engulf the Kharkiv and Donetsk regions. Ukrainian local officials said they feared Vovchansks fate may mirror that of Bakhmut and Avdiivka, Ukrainian cities where fierce fighting and scorched earth tactics forced Ukrainian withdrawals. (PA Graphics) Only 200-300 people remain in the town, Kharkiv regional governor Oleh Suniehubov said, as Moscows troops advance in an effort to surround it from three directions. Poorly built fortifications and enduring ammunition shortages enabled Russias sweeping advance in the area last week, local officials and soldiers said. In the span of two days, Moscow has captured some 106 square kilometres (40 square miles) and at least seven villages, most of them already depopulated, according to the open source monitoring project DeepState. It is a significant advance that could pin Ukrainian forces in the north-east while heavy fighting continues in the Donetsk region. On Monday, Ukrainian troops were still locked in pitched battles in both regions, President Volodymyr Zelensky said. Fighting is taking place near the border in eastern and north-eastern Ukraine as outgunned and outnumbered Ukrainian soldiers try to hold back a significant Russian ground offensive. Defensive battles are ongoing, fierce battles, on a large part of our border area, Mr Zelensky said in his nightly video address on Sunday. The Kremlins forces are aiming to exploit Ukrainian weaknesses before a big batch of new military aid for Kyiv from the US and European partners arrives on the battlefield in the coming weeks and months, analysts say. People sit in a bus after evacuation from Vovchansk, Ukraine (Evgeniy Maloletka/AP) That makes this period a window of opportunity for Moscow and one of the most dangerous for Kyiv in the two-year war, they say. It is unclear what of the promised aid has arrived to Ukraine. The new Russian push in the north-eastern Kharkiv region, along with the ongoing drive into the eastern Donetsk region, comes after months when the roughly 1,000-kilometre (620-mile) front line barely budged. In the meantime, both sides have used long-range strikes to pursue what became largely a war of attrition. Ukraines general staff said late on Sunday that Russian forces had conducted at least 22 attacks over the previous 24 hours in two parts of the Kharkiv region and had tactical success. The statement did not elaborate. The Kharkiv incursion serves a likely three purposes for Russia. People walk with their belongings to the evacuation point in front of a building that was damaged by a Russian air strike in Vilcha, near Vovchansk, Ukraine (Evgeniy Maloletka/AP) First, the north-east operation will pin Ukrainian forces in the region and potentially draw in precious reserves away from heavy battles in the Avdiivka and Chasiv Yar areas of the Donetsk region, where Russias advance has been far more significant and strategically important. Mr Zelensky said fighting in the Donetsk area is no less intense than in Kharkiv. He said the Kremlin aimed to spread our forces thin by opening a second active front in Kharkiv. Mr Zelensky described the area around the Pokrovsk region, just inside the Ukrainian border in Donetsk, as the most difficult. Pokrovsk was a town of around 60,000 people before the war and was until recently a two-hour drive from the front line. Now it is less than half that. The capture of the Donetsk city of Avdiivka in February opened a door for the Kremlins troops to push westward, deeper into Donetsk. Russia illegally annexed Donetsk and three other regions in 2022 shortly after it invaded Ukraine, and taking control of all of Donetsk is one of the Kremlins main war goals. A partially collapsed block of flats after a missile attack by the Ukrainian armed forces in the Russian city of Belgorod (Belgorod Region Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov Telegram channel via AP) Second, if Ukraine is not able to halt Moscows advance, it could create future conditions for a possible attack on Kharkiv City, Ukraines second largest. Finally, it could create a buffer zone to protect Belgorod, where frequent Ukrainian attacks have embarrassed the Kremlin. In March, Russia announced plans to evacuate about 9,000 children from the Belgorod region because it was being shelled continuously. Russian emergency services on Monday finished clearing the rubble in the regions capital city of Belgorod, where a section of a residential building collapsed following what authorities said was Ukrainian shelling. Fifteen bodies were pulled from the rubble, Belgorod regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said, and 27 other people were wounded. Another three people in the city of Belgorod were killed by shelling late on Sunday, he said. Yevgeny Poddubny, a usually well-connected military correspondent for Russias state TV corporation VGTRK, said in a recent Telegram post that the Kharkiv assault marked the beginning of a new phase. Were pushing the enemy back from the border, destroying the enemy in order to deprive the Kyiv regime of the opportunity to use relatively cheap rockets to attack Belgorod, he said. Michael Cohen on his way to Manhattan criminal court (Julia Nikhinson/AP) Michael Cohen has directly implicated former president Donald Trump in a hush money scheme, telling jurors that his celebrity client approved hefty payouts to stifle stories about sex that he feared could be harmful to his 2016 White House campaign. You handle it, Mr Cohen quoted Trump as telling him after learning that a doorman had come forward with a claim that Trump had fathered a child out-of-wedlock. The Trump Tower doorman was paid 30,000 dollars to keep the story off the market even though the claim was ultimately deemed unfounded. A similar episode occurred after Mr Cohen alerted Trump that a Playboy model alleged that she and Trump had an extramarital affair. Again, the order was clear: Make sure it doesnt get released, Mr Cohen said Trump told him. The woman was paid 150,000 dollars to stay quiet. Former president Donald Trump waits for the start of proceedings (Seth Wenig/AP) Mr Cohen, Trumps former lawyer and personal fixer is by far the Manhattan district attorneys most important witness in the case, and his much-awaited appearance signalled that the first criminal trial of a former American president is entering its final stretch. Prosecutors say they may wrap up their presentation of evidence by the end of the week. The evidence of a witness with such intimate knowledge of Trumps activities could heighten the legal exposure of the presumptive Republican presidential nominee if jurors deem him sufficiently credible. Politically, Trump is likely to seize on prosecutors reliance on a witness with such a chequered past Mr Cohen pleaded guilty to federal charges related to the payments and to lying to Congress as he raises money off his legal woes and paints the case as the product of a tainted criminal justice system. Though jurors have heard from others about the tabloid industry practice of catch-and-kill, in which rights to a story are purchased so it can be quashed, Mr Cohens testimony is especially important to prosecutors because of his proximity to Trump and because he says he was directly co-ordinating with the then-candidate about the payments. Another sum went to porn actor Stormy Daniels, who told jurors last week that the 130,000 dollars she received was meant to prevent her from going public about a sexual encounter she says she had with Trump in a hotel suite a decade earlier. The reimbursements Mr Cohen received from that payment form the basis of the charges against Trump 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. Prosecutors say the reimbursements were logged as legal expenses to conceal the payments true purpose, violating the law. The star prosecution witness in Donald Trumps hush money trial is set to enter the witness box on Monday with evidence that could help shape the outcome of the first criminal case against an American president. Michael Cohen, Trumps former lawyer and personal fixer, is by far the Manhattan district attorneys most important witness in the case and his expected appearance signals that the trial is entering its final stretch. Prosecutors say they may wrap up their presentation of evidence by the end of the week. Stormy Daniels in the witness box in Manhattan Criminal Court last Thursday in New York (Elizabeth Williams via AP) Mr Cohen is expected to give evidence about his role in arranging hush money payments on Trumps behalf during his first presidential campaign, including to adult film actor Stormy Daniels. Ms Daniels told jurors last week that the 130,000 dollars (103,000) that she received in 2016 was meant to prevent her from going public about a sexual encounter she says she had with Trump in a hotel suite a decade earlier. Mr Cohen also matters because the reimbursements he received form the basis of the charges 34 felony counts of falsifying business records against Trump. Prosecutors say the reimbursements were logged as legal expenses to conceal the payments true purpose. Defence lawyers have teed up a bruising cross-examination of Mr Cohen, telling jurors during opening statements that the fixer-turned-foe is an admitted liar with an obsession to get President Trump. The evidence of a witness with such intimate knowledge of Trumps activities could heighten the legal exposure of the presumptive Republican presidential nominee if jurors deem him sufficiently credible. But politically, prosecutors reliance on a witness with such a chequered past Mr Cohen pleaded guilty to federal charges related to the payments and to lying to Congress could be a boon for Trump as he fundraises off his legal woes and paints the case as the product of a tainted criminal justice system. Either way, his role as star prosecution witness further cements the disintegration of a mutually beneficial relationship that was once so close that Mr Cohen famously said he would take a bullet for Trump. After Mr Cohens home and office were raided by the FBI in 2018, Trump showered him with affection on social media, praising him as a fine person with a wonderful family and predicting incorrectly that Mr Cohen would not flip. Months later, Mr Cohen did exactly that, pleading guilty that August to federal campaign finance charges in which he implicated Trump. Donald Trump speaks to the press before leaving for the day at his trial at Manhattan Criminal Court in New York on Friday (Timothy A Clary/Pool Photo via AP) By that point, the relationship was irrevocably broken, with Trump posting on the social media platform then known as Twitter: If anyone is looking for a good lawyer, I would strongly suggest that you dont retain the services of Michael Cohen! Mr Cohen later admitted lying to Congress about a Moscow real estate project that he had pursued on Trumps behalf during the heat of the 2016 Republican campaign. He said he lied to be consistent with Trumps political messaging. Prosecutors are expected to elicit detailed evidence from Mr Cohen about his past crimes in the hopes of blunting the impact of defence lawyers questioning and showing that they are not trying to hide his misdeeds. But it is unclear how effective that will be, given that defence lawyers will be prepared to exploit all the challenges that accompany a witness such as Mr Cohen. In addition to painting Mr Cohen as untrustworthy, they are also expected to cast him as vindictive, vengeful and agenda-driven. Since their fallout, Mr Cohen has emerged as a relentless and sometimes crude critic of Trump, appearing as recently as last week in a live TikTok wearing a shirt featuring a figure resembling Trump with his hands cuffed, behind bars. The judge on Friday urged prosecutors to tell him to refrain from making any more statements about the case or Trump. Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Wildwood, New Jersey, on Saturday (Matt Rourke/AP) He has talked extensively about his desire to see President Trump go to prison, Trump lawyer Todd Blanche said during opening statements. He has talked extensively about his desire to see President Trumps family go to prison. He has talked extensively about President Trump getting convicted in this case. No matter how his evidence unfolds, Mr Cohen is indisputably central to the case, as evidenced by the fact that his name was mentioned in the jurys presence during opening statements more than 130 times more than any other person. Other witnesses, including former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker and former Trump adviser Hope Hicks, have given evidence at length about the role Mr Cohen played in arranging to stifle stories that were feared to be harmful to Trumps 2016 candidacy. And jurors heard an audio recording of Trump and Mr Cohen discussing a plan to purchase the rights to a story of a Playboy model, Karen McDougal, who has said she had an affair with Trump. During a massive rally on Saturday in the southern New Jersey resort town of Wildwood, Trump revived his criticism of the case, wrongly blaming President Joe Biden for orchestrating the New York charges, calling the case a Biden show trial. That argument ignores the reality that the hush money case was filed by local prosecutors in Manhattan who do not work for the Justice Department or any other White House office. The Justice Department has said the White House has had no involvement in the two criminal cases against Trump brought by special counsel Jack Smith. Villagers frontman: Im the John Hume of folk rock Frontman on why he refuses to be drawn to the extremes and finds the culture wars boring Conor O'Brien performing with Villagers (Photo by Ruth Medjber) Lee Campbell Mon 13 May 2024 at 12:00 Villagers Conor OBrien has joked he is the John Hume of indie folk rock because he is refuses to be drawn to the extremes. The Supreme Court frees almost half the people the trial court imposes a death sentence on, some assessments show. Bangladeshi security personnel create a cordon around an ambulance leaving the old Dhaka Central Jail as it carries the body of Jamaat-e-Islami party chief Motiur Rahman Nizami, who was executed at the prison over his conviction for his alleged role in war crimes during Bangladeshs 1971 war of independence from Pakistan, May 11, 2016. A Bangladesh court ruled Monday that it is unconstitutional to keep inmates in solitary confinement on death row before they exhaust their appeals, said an attorney representing three prisoners whose petition secured this historic victory. In its ruling, the High Court in Dhaka observed that keeping a prisoner in solitary confinement while he awaits a Supreme Court decision on his appeal could take 20-25 years, and thats akin to a double sentence, Mohammad Shishir Manir, the lawyer for the petitioners, told BenarNews. Therefore, [all] the accused who [have appeals pending and] are currently in the condemned cell[s] are directed to be placed with the general prisoners within two years, the court directed, according to Manir. Meanwhile, Attorney General A.M. Amin told reporters on Monday that he would discuss the ruling with various ministries to see whether the government would challenge the High Courts ruling. Citing data he analyzed over the years, Manir said he had concluded that almost half of the people condemned to death row by a trial court were acquitted by the High Court and then the Supreme Court. Department of Prisons data shows that there are currently 2,554 inmates on death row in Bangladeshs jails, of whom a majority 2,468 are male. These inmates are confined to 8-foot by 8-foot cells and not allowed to go outside. Each so-called room comes with an attached bathroom, but it isnt private because it lacks a door. Kazi Reazul Hoque, former chairman of the countrys Human Rights Commission, called Mondays ruling historic and said the trial courts needed to be more cautious before imposing the death penalty. Most of the death sentence cases take 10 to 12 years to [even] reach a final stage of trial, he told BenarNews. But keeping the inmate in an isolated place for this long time is very inhuman. Relatives of inmates are gathered as they wait to visit their family members who are in prison, outside the Dhaka Central Jail, Feb. 15, 2024. [Mehdi Rana/BenarNews] The number of inmates on death row has risen sharply in recent years, as more and more judges prefer imposing the death sentence to life in prison, lawyers have told BenarNews over the years. In one week in December 2021, at least 46 people were sentenced to death for their roles in separate murder cases across the country. A program director for Ain-O-Salish Kendra, a human rights group, had told BenarNews then that the cry was for capital punishment, every time a serious crime occurred. This is a dangerous phenomenon, program director Nina Goswami said at the time. Peoples desire for vengeance has gone up as the nature of criminal activities has also gradually turned more horrendous. Attorney Manir, too, had said back then that trial courts were very likely not using judicial protocols correctly, resulting in faulty death sentence judgments that were then eventually overturned. An inmate would have spent more than a decade in solitary confinement by then, because the High Court did not accept bail pleas from death row convicts until now. On Monday, the High Court ruled that bail petitions of death row convicts must be heard like those of any other convict. In fact, these inmates were to be referred to only as convicts, Manir, said. No one can be called a death row convict if a death sentence is only given in judicial [trial] court, the High Court ruled, according to the lawyer. Bangladeshi security personnel stand guard outside a prison in Dhaka, May 10, 2016. [Stringer/AFP] The court, he noted, said that only if all the appeals made by the convict were rejected and the convicts death sentence was upheld, could he or she be condemned to death row and called a death row convict. For this, the [appeal] application made to the High Court Division, Appellate Division and the President should be rejected. And after these processes, the High Court has ruled that only if the death sentence of someone is upheld, he can be kept on death row, he said. The three inmates who had jointly challenged their solitary incarceration were lodged in prisons in Chittagong, Sylhet and Cumilla. They filed their petition in the High Court on Sept. 2, 2021, after which the High Court in April 2022 asked the government why detaining the convicts in solitary cells before the finalization of the trial process should not be declared unlawful. Last December, the inspector general of prisons had submitted a report to the apex court, saying convicts on death row were in the so-called condemned cells for security reasons, the local Daily Star reported. Amnesty International said last July that at least 13 people had been executed, and 912 death sentences were imposed by trial courts between January 2018 and December 2022 in Bangladesh. And between 1991 and 2020, Bangladesh jail authorities executed 101 people, according to a joint study by the University of Dhaka and the Bangladesh Legal and Services Trust, a human rights group. Manila is also alleging that Chinese diplomats illegally recorded a phone conversation with a Philippine military commander. The BRP Sierra Madre is anchored in South China Sea waters off Second Thomas Shoal, known as Ayungin Shoal in the Philippines, March 30, 2014 off South China Sea. The Philippines said Monday it was officially investigating allegations that Chinese embassy staff in Manila had engaged in a disinformation campaign related to the South China Sea. The move followed a call by the Philippine national security adviser urging the government to expel embassy staffers for allegedly recording a phone conversation with a senior Filipino commander about military resupply missions to a disputed shoal. The Department of Foreign Affairs will look into any reports of illegal and unlawful activities by diplomatic officials, and undertake necessary action in line with existing laws and regulations, the department said in a statement Monday. While foreign diplomats are accorded necessary liberties in conducting their duties, they are expected to perform them with the highest standards of integrity and professionalism, it said. Last week, top Philippine defense and security officials demanded an investigation into whether China had violated Manilas wiretapping laws during the alleged phone call between a Chinese official and the Filipino government military commander, Vice Adm. Alberto Carlos, who oversees the defense of Second Thomas (Ayungin) Shoal, among other contested South China Sea features. Carlos, the head of the Philippine militarys Western Command (WESCOM), allegedly agreed with an unidentified Chinese official to a new model for arranging for notifications of resupply missions to Ayungin Shoal, according to a transcript released by the Chinese embassy to select news outlets. Last week, Philippine officials announced that Carlos had gone on leave and was temporarily replaced. Manila maintains the BRP Sierra Madre, an old ship grounded at Ayungin Shoal, to serve as the countrys outpost in the contested region. It is critical because Ayungin lies near Mischief Reef, an artificial island where Beijing built a naval base in the 1990s. WESCOM oversees Manilas defense of the Palawan and Kalayaan islands, including the disputed Spratly chain. On Friday, a spokesman for the Chinese foreign ministry hit back at the call from Eduardo Ano, the Philippine national security adviser, that Chinese embassy staffers be expelled. The Philippines response shows exactly their guilty conscience in the face of facts and evidence and how exasperated and desperate they have become, spokesman Lin Jian said during a regular press conference. We ask the Philippines to ensure that Chinese diplomats can carry out their duty normally, and to stop provocations and infringements, he said. The Philippines needs to quit denying the facts and must not make reckless moves that will only backfire on the Philippines itself. Civilian mission Against the backdrop of this controversy, a civilian coalition, Atin Ito! (This Is Ours!), was preparing for a sea voyage this week where a convoy of boats would deliver supplies to Filipino fishermen at Scarborough Shoal (known as Bajo de Masinloc in the Philippines). The shoal, located 125 nautical miles (232 km) from the west coast of Luzon the largest of the Philippine islands has effectively been under Chinas control since 2012 and despite a 2016 international arbitration ruling that dismissed Beijings sweeping historical claims to most of the South China Sea. Filipino fishermen who venture out into the rich fishing ground at Scarborough Shoal are routinely harassed by the Chinese. Members of the Atin Ito! (This Is Ours!) show the buoys that will be used in Scarborough Shoal, during a press conference in Quezon City, Metro Manila on May 8, 2024. [Jam Sta Rosa/AFP] Rafaela David, chief convenor of the Atin Ito! coalition, said they remained undeterred despite several recent incidents between Philippine and Chinese ships in the disputed waters. Chinas actions are failing to intimidate Filipinos, David said in a statement. Instead, they are only uniting us and inspiring us to go further in defending our rights. Atin Ito! is a broad grouping of nationalist individuals and civilian organizations. It launched its first mission last December to deliver supplies and Christmas gifts to Filipino troops stationed aboard the BRP Sierra Madre at Second Thomas Shoal. That mission was forced to change its route and detour to less controversial parts of the disputed waterway. The convoy was subsequently forced to turn back to shore after four Chinese vessels started shadowing its lead ship. This weeks convoy is scheduled to set sail for Scarborough Shoal on Wednesday morning from Masinloc town in Zambales province, a voyage that is expected to take two days. Ray Powell, who heads Stanford Universitys Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation that monitors activities in the South China Sea, said on X that a huge Chinese force appeared to be preparing to intimidate the Filipino civilian mission. This will be by far the largest blockade Ill have ever tracked at Scarborough, Powell said. The Filipino sea convoy will be escorted by the Philippine Coast Guard. Jonathan Malaya, assistant director general at the National Security Council, said Monday that the upcoming trip to Scarborough Shoal would be civilian in nature. It is the governments responsibility to ensure maritime safety. We need to make sure that our fellow Filipinos who are joining that trip and the foreign nationals that they have invited are safe because that mission is within our 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone, Malaya told a news briefing. The objective of this mission is to help our fishermen in that part of the [West Philippine Sea] thats why they are bringing supplies, Malaya said. Jason Gutierrez and Jojo Rinoza reported from Manila. The Philippines deploys ships to monitor Chinas suspected land reclamation work in its economic zone. Suspected dumped corals on Sabina Shoal, known as Escoda Shoal in the Philippines. The Philippine coast guard has sent ships to monitor what Manila suspects to be Chinas illegal island building in the South China Sea, the Presidential Office said. The office of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said in a statement that since April, the coast guard vessel BRP Teresa Magbanua had been operating near Sabina Shoal, known in the Philippines as Escoda Shoal, to keep a watch on Chinas supposed illegal activities. Sabina Shoal is a low-tide elevation in the Spratly Islands, well inside the Philippines exclusive economic zone (EEZ) but also claimed by China, Taiwan and Vietnam. It is only 75 nautical miles (140km) from the Philippine island of Palawan. An EEZ gives the coastal state exclusive access to natural resources in the waters and in the seabed. Philippine coast guard spokesman Jay Tarriela said in the statement that crushed corals had been dumped on the reef an indication of land reclamation. However, the suspected island building appeared to be at an initial stage, he said. Tarriela also said that besides the BRP Teresa Magbanua, two more coast guard vessels had been deployed on a rotating basis to monitor the area. We are alarmed by this, said Jonathan Malaya, assistant director general of the Philippine National Security Council. Malaya told a press conference on Monday that similar crushed corals were detected earlier on Sandy Cay, another group of low-lying reefs near Philippines-occupied Thitu island, also known as Pag-asa island. These were crushed corals and it was obvious that they came from another place, Malaya said. Suspected dumped corals on Sabina Shoal [Philippine Coast Guard] The Philippines in March launched a scientific research mission on Sandy Cay, prompting China to protest. China on Monday denied Manilas allegation it was trying to build an artificial island at the disputed shoal. The Philippines has repeatedly spread rumors, deliberately vilified China and tried to mislead the international community. None of those attempts will succeed, said Chinese Foreign Ministry Wang Wenbin during a regular press briefing. China urges the Philippines to stop making irresponsible remarks, face up to the facts and return to the right track of properly handling maritime disputes through negotiation and consultation, he added. Monitoring procedure Tarriela explained in a post on the social platform X, formerly Twitter, that the Philippine coast guard had implemented a standard operating procedure to inspect Sabina Shoal for any dumped crushed corals. After more than three weeks of monitoring, the coast guard discovered that crushed corals were dumped and it is highly likely that the maritime features were altered. The force has released some photo evidence of the damaged corals. We must stay vigilant and not lose sight of the illegal activities and aggressive behavior exhibited by China in Escoda (Sabina) Shoal, Tarriela wrote in his post. Not only does this pose a threat to our sovereignty, but it also causes significant damage to our marine environment, the coast guard spokesman wrote. Sabina Shoal. [Google Maps] In a report released last December, the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (AMTI) and the China Ocean Institute both based in the United States said that competing states in the South China Sea had caused the largest active man-made reef destruction in human history. The organizations named China as the most egregious actor by far, having wiped out roughly 4,648 acres (19km2) of reefs in four years between 2013 and 2017. Most destruction was due to dredging and landfill to construct infrastructure on artificial islands. Beijing carried out most of its island building activities during that period and by 2022 had fully militarized the three largest reefs Subi, Mischief and Fiery Cross. Jason Gutierrez in Manila contributed to this report. This story was updated to include the comment of the Chinese foreign ministry on Manilas latest claim against Beijing. If you'd like to leave a comment (or a tip or a question) about this story with the editors, please email us We also welcome letters to the editor for publication; you can do that by filling out our letters form and submitting it to the newsroom. WHITINGHAM At the Fearless Futures Fairs, students are given a glimpse into careers and employment opportunities that organizers hope will stick with them as they make choices about what they want to do with their lives. "I think it's nice to see different options for when you're older," said Lyla Bemis, an eighth grader at Twin Valley Middle High School. About 50 employers, businesses and community partners participated in Brattleboro Development Credit Corporations Pipelines and Pathways Program's second annual Fearless Futures Fair at Twin Valley on May 1. Bemis said she's interested in getting an education by joining the Army National Guard. Christy Betit, program manager, said the fairs have been "really successful" since they started last year. Next up is one at Bellows Falls Union High School on May 19. "We actually have a lot of new folks this year, which I'm really happy about," Betit said. "We haven't really changed much." Betit said a "passport" that students use to document the experience was updated to ensure they're having "meaningful conversations ... and not just collecting candy." "They have to ask a question and answer a question, get a stamp and then have these folks checking them out," she said, referring to staff from her organization. "So if they don't do it, we send them back." Tables with information about careers were attended by staff from Stratton Mountain Resort, Mount Snow, Brattleboro Subaru, Brattleboro Retreat, U.S. Postal Service, Vermont State Police, G.S. Precision, Greenfield Community College, Pettee Memorial Library, town of Wilmington and more. Benefits and career advancement were touted at businesses such as the chimney sweeping business Scott's Clean Sweep in West Dover. Others, such as the Wilmington Police Department, were generating interest. "It's good to light the fire in people," Wilmington Police Chief Matt Murano said. "We let them know the variety of tasks in a police career path." His group hires officers when they reach the age of 20 and older. With some people finding policing unapproachable, Murano said his team seeks to change that. TVMHS Principal Anna Roth called the fair "a great opportunity" to show students what's available to them. So many grow up thinking they must go to college when there are other options, she said, noting the same could be said of the trades. Roth said students also practice making firm handshakes, looking an adult in the eye and asking questions. She said she appreciates all the support from the community for the fair and the large turnout. "It's pretty cool to learn about jobs," said Lyndon Brown, a seventh grader. Brown said the fair also allows employers to gauge interest from youth. He showed interest in hearing about the police and National Guard. Planting ideas about future career paths in students' minds is the point of the fair. "We're trying to promote that any post-secondary pathway that they choose is great," Betit said. "There's nothing wrong with not going to college if you don't want to go. There's other ways to be successful and continue your education." Employees, Betit said, "don't necessarily get an immediate return on investment of their time, you know, getting an employee. But they understand the big picture." Betit said the measure of success for high schools has involved the number of students heading to college. "And that's great but the reality is that around 70 percent of our kids do not complete the whole three or four years after high school graduation," she said. "So that's a lot of kids to be running around without a college degree and no real pathway to success." Betit likes to point out that education can continue with any career path whether that's taking classes, obtaining certifications or learning new skills. She noted incentives are being offered to those taking nursing and trucking jobs due to high demand in the fields. Other events through the Pipelines and Pathways Program include the Reality Fair at Leland & Gray Union Middle and High School, Sophomore Summit, Summer Career Bootcamp and Crash Course Carnival. The program also supports teachers, work-based learning coordinators and guidance counselors in the five area high schools, and arranges job shadows, informational interviews, worksite tours and internships to expose students to the variety of careers available here. A photo provided by SpaceX shows Starlink satellites just before being deployed in May 2019. Various companies are pressing ahead with plans for internet service from space, which has prompted astronomers to voice concerns about the impact on research from telescopes on Earth. SpaceX SpaceXs satellite internet company, Starlink, is projected to generate sky-high revenue this year as its grows its customer base and constellation, according to analysts tracking its progress. The commercial space companys subsidiary, which has a satellite factory in Bastrop and seeks to provide broadband internet connectivity nearly anywhere in the world, has found success since its launch in 2019 amid concerns from some scientists that such proliferation of satellites is cluttering the sky. On Thursday, representatives with Quilty Space, a space economy research and consulting firm, discussed their findings that they say put the privately held Starlink on track to generate $6.6 billion in revenue this year, up from $4.2 billion in 2023. Advertisement Article continues below this ad This 2021 photo shows Starlink satellites passing over Uruguay. MARIANA SUAREZ/AFP via Getty Images Last year marked the first time SpaceXs satellite internet service provider business generated more revenue than its launch business, which brought in $3.5 billion during the same period. What Starlink has achieved in the past three years is really nothing short of mind blowing, said Chris Quilty, co-CEO and president of the firm. By comparison, the combined revenue of Starlinks two largest competitors SES and Intelsat, which announced a merger last month is roughly $4.1 billion, he said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The Quilty analysis said Starlink has positive cash flow and quite profitable earnings before subtracting for interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying Starlink satellites is launched from Kennedy Space Center at Port Canaveral, Fla., in August 2022. Malcolm Denemark, MBR / Associated Press According to Quilty, the idea of building a so-called mega-constellation of low Earth orbit satellites for internet or other communication isnt new, but Starlink is the first company to succeed in the market. People have been talking about mega-constellations since the 1990s, he said. There were a lot of them out there, doing different things. Some were broadband, some were voice, but they all had one thing in common, which is 100% of them went bankrupt. Quick growth Starlink has launched 6,350 small satellites, and 5,935 remain in orbit, with 5,233 of those operational and providing internet for more than 2.7 million subscribers across 75 countries. Advertisement Article continues below this ad More than half of its customers are from the United States, and it has large footprints in Europe, Australia, New Zealand, the Philippines and Japan, said Caleb Henry, director of research at Quilty. Were also seeing a good uptick in Nigeria and in Latin America, he said. Starlink has also found a niche in places of turmoil around the world such as war zones like Ukraine or natural disaster areas. The quick growth came from SpaceXs reusable Falcon 9 rocket being able to carry dozens of the mass-produced, low-cost satellites to orbit frequently. In recent years, Falcon 9s have carried Starlink satellites to orbit every few days. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Version 1 Starlink satellites cost about $200,000, and newer versions cost more, Henry said. A string of SpaceX Starlink satellites crosses the night sky. MARCO LANGBROEK, Contributor / AFP/Getty Images Of SpaceXs roughly 13,000 workers, Starlink has 3,000 employees, Henry said, and the number in Texas is expected to grow. Texas is where we expect to see more growth in terms of head count, thanks to their newest facility in Bastrop where they intend to mass produce even more Starlink kits and terminals than they currently do, he said. Next steps SpaceXs Starship rocket in development at Starbase outside Brownsville is an important part of Starlinks continued expansion. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Starship has been the pacing element for the next generation of the Starlink satellites, Henry said. Were projecting early launches that launch Starlink satellites in 2025. SpaceX, which had planned to use Starship to carry the larger second-generation Starlink satellites to orbit, now expects to launch the third-generation satellites this year. However, much work remains before Starship carries Starlinks satellites to orbit. A string of SpaceX Starlink satellites passes over a house near Florence, Kan. Reed Hoffmann, UGCR / Associated Press Starships next launch is still pending the completion of a mishap investigation for its third test flight in March. Lights in the sky People sometimes see Starlink satellites as they deploy to their orbit. The phenomenon looks like a string of stars streaking across the sky. The growing constellation has sparked concerns from astronomers and scientists who worry the thousands of craft will obstruct their views, create more space junk and increase risk for collisions. Astronomers are lobbying the United Nations for international guidelines, and SpaceX is collaborating with the National Science Foundation to minimize the impacts of the craft. SpaceX uses darker materials and coatings, as well as maneuvering, to minimize the suns reflection off the craft and solar panels. Scientists worldwide are researching ways to manage the growing low Earth orbit economy while also preserving the night sky. This Story in History is selected from the archives by Jeannie Maschino, The Berkshire Eagle. PITTSFIELD Mayor Peter Marchetti is calling his first budget in office a compromise. The mayor sent the City Council the proposed $216.2 million budget, along with a letter, earlier this week, marking the official start to the municipal budgeting process. The proposed financial plan for fiscal 2025, which begins July 1, is about a $10.7 million or 5.1 percent increase over the current budget. To fund this budget, city leaders anticipate theyll need to raise $114.9 million in property taxes which equates to a 5.3 percent or $5.8 million increase over this fiscal year and use $2.5 million in free cash alongside the state aid and local receipts. In the letter to the council, the mayor called the proposal a middle ground between the level-funded budget requested of him by the council early this year and the administration's goals for a level-service budget. "You will continue to hear, 'We need more teachers, we need more police officers, we need more,' but that plea for what we need more of is followed by, 'Don't raise my taxes,'" Marchetti told The Eagle on Friday. "We as a community have to decide what our priorities are." Review of the line item budgets from each department shows that the mayor is seeking a middle point not only from what the council was seeking but from what city departments requested as well. The budget isnt set in stone. While the council met May 6 in a special meeting to officially receive the budget, the real work at refining the city's financial plan starts next week. Over the course of the next month, the council will host several hearings and review the proposal department by department. These meetings serve as an opportunity for councilors to hear from the city staff leading each office and for councilors to suggest their own revisions to proposed spending. Those talks kick off at 6 p.m. Monday in the council chambers at City Hall. At this first meeting, Marchetti is slated to present an overview of the budget and his five-year capital improvement plan. The capital improvement plan, which covers fiscal years 2025 through 2029, calls for $43.4 million in capital investments over 56 projects in the coming fiscal year. Funding for those projects which range from roof repairs to city schools, sidewalk improvements, street resurfacing, a new fire engine, work on sewer and water mains, and more would come from both city coffers, state and federal aid, and borrowing authorizations. THE 'COMPROMISES' The mayor's letter lays out the financial factors he is balancing. On one side there are increasing costs. This year there will be about $3.5 million in increases to the citys fixed costs related to health insurance coverage, retirement contributions, debt service and contractual salary increases. On the other side is decreasing revenue in a smaller increase in state aid than the year before. The mayor has said throughout the creation of the budget that those elements alone keep the city from being able to fully pursue the petition sent to his office by the council for a budget that is close to level funding. Even so, Marchetti had city staff go through the exercise of listing the cuts and impacts that would be required to create such a budget. The mayor presented those findings during the annual joint meeting of the council and Pittsfield School Committee in early April. The picture the mayor painted of a level-funded budget included major staffing and service changes particularly from the citys four largest departments. The school department would have had to eliminate more than 100 staff members, the fire department would have needed to cut its overtime and shut down a firehouse on a rotating basis, the Police Department would have had to cut 11 officers and the Department of Public Services would have had to cut five highway maintenance craftspeople and two park maintenance workers. Marchetti said a level-service budget one that maintains staffing and city services and programs at their current level just isn't in the cards. "After we finalized the level-service budget we were looking where we were and we were still at a place where under the levy we couldn't raise enough taxes to fund the budget," Marchetti said. State law prevent cities from raising taxes to an amount more than 2.5 percent of the community's "full and fair cash value" of the taxable real estate and personal property in the city. The different between Pittsfield's levy limit and the taxes needed to create a level-service budget was quite a gap. The mayor said when he realized the deficit between the numbers, he went back to the department heads for the Fire Department, Police Department and Department of Public Services and asked each to cut another $200,000 each from their budgets. The mayor then requested an additional $100,000 cut from the police budget. His final budget proposal avoids many of the predicted staffing cuts by making reductions to the departments supply and expense budgets. This year, Marchetti received outside of the school department budget requests for $134.5 million in budget requests for city departments. His budget calls for just under $1 million in cuts to those requests. The budget put forth by Marchetti avoids many of those staffing cuts but not all of them. Schools: Kristen Behnke, the assistant superintendent of business and finance for Pittsfield Public Schools, said that had the district maintained the same staffing and programming as this year its budget would have totaled $84.4 million in the coming fiscal year. Instead, the School Committee voted to finalize a budget proposal about $1.5 million shy of that at $82.9 million. School leaders knew no matter what, this year would likely mean staffing cuts due to the sunsetting of COVID-era federal aid to schools. That program, called the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund, funded 44 staff positions which for the large part have not been rolled into the new budget. Earlier in the budget process for the school department, it appeared lower than anticipated state aid would force school leaders to cut an additional 60 full-time employees. The discovery of a technical error on the Department of Elementary and Secondary Educations part delivered an additional $2.4 million, which reduced the number of expected layoffs. District leaders now plan to cut 23 full-time employees in the coming year in order to support the current budget. Fire: The Fire Department submitted a request for an $11 million budget to the mayors office up 5.2 percent from its current $10.5 million budget. Marchettis proposal would give to the department $10.8 million a 3.3 percent increase this year while avoiding the major reduction in overtime that would have forced the weekly closing of a firehouse due to staffing shortages. Rather than completely eliminate the overtime budget, Marchetti is reducing it by $25,000. The reduction gives the budget more space to cover contractual salary and service agreement increases. Police: When Marchetti presented the picture of a level-funded budget, councilors said they were against major staffing changes to both the fire and police departments. Marchettis budget proposal cuts overtime for general policing and drug investigations rather than the number of staff officers. "My focus over the next year and as we finish up this year is to do a deeper dive on our overtime across the city to see if there are ways we can make reductions," he said. "I think one of the conversations off the bat is whether our departments are fully staffed." The departments budget request for fiscal 2025 was for $15.3 million a nearly $934,000 increase from this years budget. Marchettis proposal stops just shy of that at $15 million by making cuts to overtime staffing and supplies. Marchetti is considering whether the city should change the way police staffing of special events is handled. Currently some events are city sponsored and the cost of the police detail and officer overtime is pulled from the city's budget. The mayor said there may need to be a conversation with organizations hosting events about fronting the cost for the police details. The mayors budget would reduce funding for annual training and recertification, uniforms, ammunition and technical equipment while still proposing a roughly $634,00 increase in the departments funding. Those cuts would come alongside department proposed reductions to the budget for officers attending the training academy, the contract for ShotSpotter and body cameras and temporary custodial services. Department of Public Services: The department requested a nearly $487,000 or 4.4 percent increase to its current $11.1 million budget in the coming year. Marchettis proposed budget would instead give the department a $287,000 or 2.6 percent increase if approved. The departments funding request proposes reducing spending on equipment rental, tools and safety equipment for highway maintenance and parks maintenance supplies. The budget put forth by Marchetti goes further and anticipates the acceptance of a proposed contract with Casella Waste Systems for trash pickup. That contract relies on the city switching to a trash program that would give residents a standardized toter and have them pay for additional receptacles. That contract would save the city an estimated $80,000 in its trash collection costs. Other changes: Outside of the largest departments, Marchettis proposed budget attempts to find savings in efficiencies. One example is a $50,000 change being made to the Office of Veterans' Services. Each year the department allocates funds to cover financial and medical assistance programs for veterans and their families. This year the department budget $750,000 for those efforts but as of this week had only spend $632,000. In fiscal 2023, the department budgeted $800,000 for those programs but spent just under $600,000. The mayor said that made him feel comfort that cutting from that budget wouldn't impact the services veterans are seeking. Another example Marchetti gave was a simple change to the city's phone plans. Up until this year, departments like the Health Department, building inspector, Municipal Airport and Cultural Development entered to individual contracts with cell providers for phones for employees. This year, those plans have been bundled together and included in the IT department's budget for an overall savings. Department leaders looked for similar savings in their budgets for office supplies and equipment budgets. "[Department heads] couldn't touch salaries or contractual obligations so they had to make other changes," Marchetti said. "That gave us an opportunity to see where we could make impacts that wouldn't hurt at the end of the day." The inside cover of Hancock's town report won't include this page when it is delivered to the Massachusetts secretary of state, by vote of town meeting. One of the many scary things about the widening world of scams in the information age is that they can target anyone at any time. Unfortunately, a couple of business-owners in Great Barrington learned that lesson the hard way recently when they lost tens of thousands of dollars to a sophisticated cyber-fraud scheme. Onesimus, a name perhaps unfamiliar for many, holds a profound story of redemption and transformation. Onesimus is first introduced to us in the New Testament letter to Philemon, penned by the Apostle Paul during his imprisonment. Within this brief yet profound letter, we glimpse Onesimuss life and the remarkable change that took place within him. Born in the obscurity of slavery, Onesimus was the property of Philemon, a prominent Christian in Colossae. In the Roman Empire during the first century, slaves were considered property, devoid of rights or dignity. Yet, in the eyes of God, every individual regardless of social status possesses inherent worth and is worthy of redemption. Onesimus Salvation Onesimus robbed his master and then fled to Rome, hoping to be lost in the crowded city. But his life takes a dramatic turn when he encounters the Apostle Paul. In the providence of God, he met Paul and accepted Christ as his Savior. Under Pauls guidance and through the power of the Gospel, Onesimus experiences a spiritual awakening. The once wayward slave becomes a devoted follower of Christ. The chains of bondage that once shackled his body are replaced by the freedom found in Christ a freedom that transcends earthly circumstances and societal labels. While in Rome, Onesimus grew in his faith. The Apostle Paul taught him from the Scriptures, and Onesimus ministered to Paul in his imprisonment. As time passed, Paul knew that if Onesimus was to continue to mature in his faith, he needed to seek forgiveness from those he had wronged. Amid the flickering candlelight of his prison cell, Paul crafts a profound plea for forgiveness and reconciliation. Onesimus, whom I have begotten while in my chains, who once was unprofitable to you, but now is profitable to you and to me. I am sending him back. You therefore receive him, that is, my own heart, whom I wished to keep with me, that on your behalf he might minister to me in my chains for the gospel (Philemon 10-13). Onesimus, accompanied by Tychicus, returns to his home carrying the letter to Philemon from the Apostle Paul, along with a letter to the church in Colosse that met in his home (see Colossians 4:7-9). In them, Paul tenderly implored his friend Philemon to receive back his disobedient slave and forgive him. For perhaps he departed for a while for this purpose, that you might receive him forever, no longer as a slave but more than a slave a beloved brother (Philemon 15-16). Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do (Colossians 3:12-13). Memories of Onesimus flooded Philemons thoughts. The runaway slave and thief had caused him financial loss, and bitterness threatened to take root in his heart. The law permitted a master to execute a rebellious slave, but Philemon was a Christian. If he forgave Onesimus, what would the other masters think? Would other slaves follow his lead? But if he punished him, how would it affect his Christian testimony and ministry in Colosse? What a dilemma. Bound by legal and social standards, yet as a believer in Christ, Philemon knew he was called to a higher standard. The parchment scroll carried by Onesimus provided the advice Philemon needed. Pauls profound insights provide timeless lessons for believers about forgiveness, unity, and the life-changing impact of Christ. Scripture does not reveal the fate of Onesimus. However, the inclusion of the book of Philemon in Scripture suggests rather strongly the letter achieved its purpose and Philemon forgave Onesimus. Onesimus Life after Conversion Beyond the pages of Scripture, the early church writings of Ignatius, a disciple of the Apostle John, shed further light on Onesimus life. In his letters to various churches, Ignatius refers to Onesimus as a faithful servant of Christ. Ignatius wrote that Onesimus served as the bishop of Ephesus and was instrumental in producing the first collection of Pauls letters. John Knox stated Onesimus played a major role in ensuring Philemon was included with Pauls letters in Scriptures, and that his voice as a bishop carried weight. Knox continues in The Interpreters Bible, Pauls collected letters were published originally in the form of two papyrus rolls, the first containing Ephesians and I and II Corinthians, the second comprising Romans, I and II Thessalonians, Galatians, Colossians, Philemon, and Philippians. It is almost certain that the original collection was made before A.D. 95. With this publication of the Pauline letters the history of the New Testament, as a fixed collection of books, properly begins. Including Philemon and leaving out the letters to Timothy strengthens the case for Onesimus being the curator of the initial collection, rather than Timothy, as is often assumed today. The Apostle Paul was instrumental in leading Onesimus to Christ, and influential in securing his forgiveness and release from slavery. He dedicated his life to ensuring others could learn from the teachings of Paul that shaped his life. In his paper, How Onesimus Was Heard Eventually, Prof. D.F. Tolmie states, For many centuries, there was, to some degree, consensus on Onesimus status. He then proceeds to demonstrate how during the Abolitionism Debate of the 1800s, people disputed Onesimus status and he became a victim of the slavery issue. During this time, scholars ignored the contributions of Onesimus to early Christianity. His conclusion is, In the academia, Onesimus voice only started being heard approximately twenty or thirty years ago. The reason why this took so long has also become clear: For too long interpreters of the Bible have been unaware of the extent to which their own social location has influenced their reading of texts and often made it impossible for them to listen to the unheard voices in the Bible. Onesimus Legacy Though his life may seem obscure to us, Onesimus left a lasting mark on the early Christian movement. No longer defined by his status as a slave, Onesimus emerged as a devoted servant of Jesus Christ. His newfound faith propelled him to wholeheartedly embrace a life dedicated to following the leading of the Holy Spirit and serving God. The story of Onesimus serves as a timeless reminder of the power of Gods grace. Regardless of our past or present circumstances, Gods love has the power to redeem, restore, and renew. It compels us to extend grace and compassion to those around us, recognizing that in Christ, there is no distinction between slave and free, but all are one in Him. Onesimus was deeply committed to advancing the Gospel and serving the needs of the church. Through his unwavering devotion and selfless service, Onesimus epitomize Christian discipleship a life surrendered to Jesus Christ and dedicated to fulfilling Gods purposes. From a humble beginning as a slave to a revered figure in early church, Onesimus journey stands as a powerful testament to the guiding hand of the Holy Spirit and the power of faith. His journey challenges us to examine our own lives and to consider the depth of our commitment to Christ. Are we prepared to serve God faithfully, wherever He may call us, and to embrace the work He desires to accomplish in and through us? As we reflect on the life of Onesimus, may we be inspired to recommit ourselves to a life of devotion and service. May we follow the leading of the Holy Spirit and seek to fulfill Gods purposes in our generation. And, like Onesimus, may we be living testimonies to the boundless grace and transforming power of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Sources John Knox, Philemon Among the Letters of Paul (Chicago IL: The University of Chicago Press, 1935) 56-57 John Knox, The Interpreters Bible (New York: Abingdon Press, 1954) 357 Photo credit: Getty Images/Moostocker Brad Simon has shared Gods Word for over forty-five years, with a unique blend of storytelling and Bible exposition. He is a retired Master Jeweler and relies on the God-given creativity that won him several national and international jewelry design awards to craft Biblical Narratives and Life Stories that are engaging and thought-provoking. Once a speaker, author, and publisher for the jewelry industry, now he is putting those skills to work to promote the beauty and appeal of Gods Word. Download a free copy of his devotional on prayer. Jem's Birding & Ringing Exploits in the Eastern Province and elsewhere in Saudi Arabia Palace Museum signs agreement to improve accessibility Xinhua) 08:47, May 13, 2024 This photo taken on April 7, 2024 shows blooming flowers at the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, in Beijing, capital of China. (Xinhua/Jin Liangkuai) BEIJING, May 12 (Xinhua) -- China's Palace Museum and the China Disabled Persons Federation on Sunday signed a strategic cooperation agreement to improve the museum's visitor experience for people with disabilities. According to the agreement, the Palace Museum will enhance its accessibility and design routes for visitors with additional needs. The museum will also undertake barrier-free services training. The museum will work with the federation to translate select Palace Museum publications into braille, per the agreement. The two institutions will also work together to display and sell intangible cultural heritage works, cultural and creative products, and products made by people with disabilities in the Palace Museum's store on the e-commerce platform Taobao. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) The SpaceX logo is displayed on a building at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Its operations there will become a focal point for operational missions to the moon and Mars, with its South Texas Starbase primarily an R&D site. David J. Phillip/Associated Press file photo SpaceXs Starship rocket launches from Starbase near Boca Chica during its second test flight on Nov. 18. TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images Starship heads toward space on its second test flight in mid-November. Eric Gay/Associated Press SpaceX's Starship launches for a test flight from Starbase near Boca Chica. The flight ended about 11 minutes later. Eric Gay/Associated Press Elon Musk has long hinted that SpaceXs Starbase outside Brownsville the current focal point for the companys Starship would become primarily a research and testing hub for the revolutionary mega-rocket, with missions to the moon and Mars launching from Florida. Now, two studies of environmental impacts on launch sites back up the notion. On Friday, the Federal Aviation Administration said its conducting an Environmental Impact Study of the effects of as many as 44 Starship launches per year from Floridas Kennedy Space Center. It follows the U.S. Space Force earlier this year starting such a study of the potential effects of Starship operations at sites on Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. During an update last month at Starbase, SpaceX CEO Musk reiterated his vision for Starbase as a research, development, test and production site with launches from Florida. Advertisement Article continues below this ad I think what we should probably expect is that we do the kind of the development launches here at Starbase, he said. Test anything new here, build the rockets and then most of the operational launches would be from the Cape. SpaceX had previously said it plans to launch at least six Starship missions from Starbase this year. By comparison, the FAA said SpaceX wants to build infrastructure at Kennedy Space Center to support about four launches each month. And it adds a new twist: The company wants to land its reusable Starship at the Kennedy launch complex or on floating landing platforms. Its the first mention of having the Super Heavy booster or Starship land on the SpaceX-owned droneships, basically automated barges that already are the primary landing platforms for the companys Falcon 9 rockets that fly from Florida or California every few days. The FAA has scheduled public meetings about the proposal for June and will accept public comments through June 24. But SpaceX has already begun construction of a Starship launch site adjacent to its Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launch pad at Kennedy Space Center. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The Space Forces study of two possible Starship sites on Cape Canaveral began in February. Its proposing a deal to lease one of two existing space launch complexes to the company to ensure capabilities necessary to launch and insert (Department of the Air Force) payloads into space. Space Force said its considering the action to ensure access to space without compromising current launch capabilities and to continue its cooperation with commercial space launch companies. It did not provide an estimated number of launches at either of the sites. The preferred action is turning over a site that was previously used by United Launch Alliance. Its last Delta IV rocket flew from the site in April. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Space Forces first alternative is to let SpaceX construct a new site on undeveloped land. The third option is to not enter into a real property agreement with SpaceX. Its study is slated for completion by fall 2025. When chatter about Starship launches from Florida gained public notice nearly two years ago, Louis Balderas Jr., whos been recording operations at Starbase 24/7 on his LabPadre YouTube channel, said: Anything that goes to the moon or Mars is definitely not happening here," adding, Its not going to be as sexy being R&D. It wont be the true gateway to Mars. And now, with Starbases future firmly in the realm of research and development, the question remains whether Starbase really is the Gateway to Mars, as Musk dubbed it. Advertisement Article continues below this ad For now, test launches continue. The last flight from South Texas on March 14 got Starship further in its flight plan than previous attempts, but the upper-stage Starship and its Super Heavy booster exploded before achieving all the companys goals. Starships fourth test flight from Starbase is being prepared, with a launch expected within three to five weeks, Musk said Saturday. At the same time, SpaceX has been rapidly expanding its operations near Boca Chica Beach. The biggest current project is its million-square-foot Starfactory, a giant structure for production that will include five floors with 329,500 square feet of office space. According to a filing with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, the project will cost at least $100 million. At the Starbase launch site, SpaceX is beginning construction of a second launch tower. The fellows, who include fourteen graduating seniors and a recent alumnus, join a growing Bowdoin cohort. For the past four years, the College has produced more Fulbright fellows than any other college in the US. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken this winter congratulated Bowdoin on this achievement, which he called "a testament to your institution's deep commitment to international exchange and to building lasting connections between the people of the United States and the people of other countries. The Fulbright US Student Program is a prestigious academic exchange program sponsored by the federal government to encourage connections in a complex and changing world. At Bowdoin, it is administered by the Office of Student Fellowships and Research. Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price has sued USAA and others over an alleged scheme to defraud customers whose vehicles are totaled in an accident. The suit echoes earlier actions. Scott Strazzante/The Chronicle A district attorney in California is seeking civil penalties against USAA and others over an alleged scheme to defraud customers whose vehicles are totaled in an accident. Salgu Wissmath/San Antonio Express-News A district attorney in California has sued USAA and others over an alleged fraudulent scheme to defraud customers whose vehicles are totaled in an accident. Shown is a 2018 car wreck in San Antonio. 21 Pro Video An embattled California prosecutor has filed a civil lawsuit against insurance companies USAA and Progressive Corp. alleging that they have carried out a scheme to defraud customers by making lowball offers for vehicles totaled in accidents. Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price says that while the underpayment probably averages three to four thousand dollars for any single vehicle, the collective amount of underpayment affecting the insurers California customers is likely in the billions of dollars. The alleged scheme allowed the insurers to boost profits, she said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Price, who is facing a recall election instigated by critics who view her as soft on crime, wants San Antonio-based USAA, Ohio-based Progressive and two automotive industry data companies including USAA vendor CCC Intelligent Solutions Inc. to pay restitution to customers and turn over any profits from the alleged scheme. In addition, shes seeking statutory penalties of $2,500 for each violation of Californias unfair competition and false advertising laws and separate fines of $2,500 for each violation involving elderly and disabled people, military members and veterans. Public safety includes protecting consumers from powerful companies that seek only to maximize profits, Price said in a statement last week. We are seeking to level the playing field for vehicle owners who face what looks like a rigged game when their car or truck is totaled because a loss of a vehicle can destabilize a persons life. In a statement Monday, USAA said Prices allegations are completely lacking in merit and that it looked forward to disproving them in court. Advertisement Article continues below this ad USAA uses the CCC total loss valuation tool to help provide fast, accurate and fair total loss settlements, USAA said of its vendor. USAA provides insurance, banking and retirement solutions to more than 13 million members of the military, veterans and their families. A Progressive representative didnt respond to a request for comment. Dark incentive Besides USAA, the 69-page complaint filed last month in state court names subsidiaries USAA Casualty Insurance Corp. and USAA General Indemnity Corp. as defendants. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The lawsuit estimates that USAA has accounted for about 5% of the market for private passenger collision insurance in California and that about 30,000 USAA members suffer a total vehicle loss each year. USAA conspired with CCC Intelligent Solutions, which prepares vehicle valuation reports, to manipulate and lower the actual cash value of totaled vehicles, the complaint alleges. Progressive is accused of doing the same with Mitchell International Inc. When a vehicle is totaled, the owner must transfer title to their insurance company. The insurer then sells the vehicle at auction to recoup some of its loss. The nature of this transaction creates a dark incentive for an insurance company, the suit says. If it can minimize the (actual cash value) payment to the insured, but nevertheless total the vehicle and sell the vehicle for scrap, it minimizes the indemnity losses on the claim. Thus the insurance company is incentivized to understate the actual cash value. It also tends to push more vehicles from a repair to total loss, benefiting the insurance company, the suit adds. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Lowball settlements In USAAs case, the complaint says, it relies on CCC to generate a Market Value Report for the totaled vehicle. The reports uses a deceptive array of so-called comparable vehicles and a list of outcome-determinative adjustments to lower the value for total loss vehicles. USAA makes a lowball settlement offer to the insured based on CCCs report, the lawsuit says. USAA leverages its superior bargaining position on that value until the insured capitulates. The suit says CCCs market value report is not objective, accurate or fair with regard to the interests of USAAs insured. But USAA presents the report to its members as a bona fide, genuine, good faith determination of the vehicles actual cash value. An examination of insurance claims will show a Scheme perpetrated against California insureds in a near uniform and consistent way, the lawsuit says. The insureds, meanwhile, remain in the dark, which USAA and CCC use to continue their unlawful, unfair, and fraudulent conduct. Advertisement Article continues below this ad A CCC spokesperson said it does not comment on pending litigation. Previous suits This isnt the first time USAA has been challenged over how it calculates the value of totaled vehicles. In 2019, a North Carolina woman filed a proposed federal class-action lawsuit against USAAs Garrison Property and Casualty Insurance Co. alleging it engaged in unfair and deceptive trade practices in calculating the value of her totaled vehicle. The case never made it to trial. Two years ago, a judge granted Garrisons motion for summary judgment after finding there was no evidence that any state insurance regulator has ever found CCCs evaluations to be improper, illegal, unethical, unfair or otherwise inappropriate. Indeed, the judge added, a number of state regulators have explicitly approved or endorsed the use of CCC to value total loss claims, the judge added. The plaintiff appealed the ruling to the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals but dropped the case in 2022 after reporting that the dispute had been settled. Also in 2019, two Louisiana residents filed a proposed class-action lawsuit against USAA for breach of contract and bad faith, alleging its use of vehicle valuation reports prepared by CCC undervalued their total loss. USAA has denied the allegations. The plaintiffs allege CCC violates Louisiana laws and that they would have been paid more if USAA had used the National Automobile Dealers Association guidebook in valuing their vehicles. A dispute over the laying of services through certain lands as part of the Adamstown Strategic Development Zone in Lucan, Co Dublin, has come before the Commercial Court. The action has been brought by Timothy Crowley, a businessman of Aranmore Road, Dublin 4 and Henry Crowley, a businessman of Coolmore, Finstown, Lucan. Advertisement It had also initially been brought by Mary Crowley, of Deerpark Close, Castleknock, Dublin, who died last February. The court heard an application will be made to appoint Timothy and Henry as personal representatives of Ms Crowley. Their case is against Quintain Developments Ireland Ltd, Adamstown Infrastructure DAC, Clear Real Estate Holdings Ltd and Adamstown Developments DAC. The Crowleys seek declarations, including that certain lands they own at Adamstown have the benefit of easements, rights and/or privileges and that the defendants are required to facilitate them in exercising those rights. This, they claim, is to be done by servicing their lands by laying new service media under, through or over the lands to connect with certain connection points. Advertisement They also seek a permanent injunction restraining the defendants from disturbing and/or interfering with the exercise of easements and rights. On Monday, their case was admitted to the fast track Commercial Court by Mr Justice Denis McDonald on the application of the defendants and with the consent of the plaintiffs. In an affidavit seeking entry of the case to the commercial list, Michael Hynes, chief executive of Quintain, which is the development manager on behalf of the other defendants, said there are a total of 285 residential units in the St Helen's 2 and St Helen's 3 phases of Adamstown. The institution of the Crowley proceedings had come at "a commercially sensitive time insofar as there are an aggregate of 285 units of housing at St Helen's 2 and St Helen's 3 which remain to be developed and/or sold", he said. Advertisement Two legal warnings that litigation is pending (lites pendentes) have also been registered on the land, he said. Negotiations are underway with the Tuath Housing Association to acquire an 80-unit apartment block and the registration of the legal warning could impact on Tuath's willingness to complete the deal until after the warning is lifted, he said. Mr Justice McDonald approved directions for the progress of the case through the Commercial Court and adjourned it to July. Leaks from meetings of the Stormont Executive during the pandemic were so common that it was like a live feed, the North's health minister Robin Swann has told the UK Covid-19 Inquiry. Mr Swann said he believed some ministers were constrained from acting outside of party interests due to constant leaks to the media, adding that it became so endemic it was tolerated rather than challenged. Advertisement Mr Swann also told the inquiry, sitting in Belfast, that he believed that, as the sole Ulster Unionist minister at the height of the pandemic, he was able to act in the interests of Northern Ireland, while the larger parties were focused on Dublin and Westminster. The current inquiry module is assessing the Norths handling of the Covid emergency. Advertisement Mr Swann took up the position of health minister when the Stormont powersharing Executive returned in January 2020, following a three-year suspension, just as concerns about the spread of Covid were growing. Lead counsel Clair Dobbin asked the minister if being the sole minister from his party had an impact. Mr Swann said it was a challenging position. Advertisement But he added: I actually think entering the pandemic it was a strength. I didnt hold either a leadership position within my party at the point I took up minister so I wasnt bound by the constraints of having to answer to party political pressures from outside. Being the sole minister in there allowed me to step outside some of the constitutional challenges that faced the two larger parties where at times they could have seen to be more antagonistic, especially in regards to where they looked for their ultimate direction. Sinn Fein did take a look and keep an eye on what was happening in the Republic of Ireland and, likewise, the DUP were focused on what was happening in Westminster. Advertisement Whereas being bound by neither of those I believe I was able to take a direction which best suited the response in Northern Ireland. Ms Dobbin asked Mr Swann if he believed his ministerial colleagues were under political pressure external to being in the Executive. He said: I do believe that in regards to ministers coming from those bigger parties, those bigger groupings had to look to party structures and party guidance. Other ministers holding party leadership positions had to be conscious of what was going on elsewhere which I felt I was unencumbered by that. Advertisement Chairwoman Heather Hallett asked if devices had been banned from meetings (Jane Barlow/PA) Ms Dobbin then turned to the issue of Executive papers containing recommendations on Covid regulations being leaked to the media in 2020. Mr Swann said: It was one of my largest frustrations in regards to how Executive papers were handled, how they were leaked, when they were leaked because I often felt it was actually deliberate in regards to either conditioning what the conversation was going to be had at the Executive. When those papers were shared with Executive colleagues, often late on the night before, they were already with the media before the Executive had actually met to discuss them so there was already a narrative established in the media to either support or mostly undermine the recommendations that were coming. He added: What could have been robust meetings confidentially had around an Executive table people were already being driven into sides or silos or in support of their stakeholders prior to being able to have the wider conversation or actually receive the presentations or the evidence that was actually coming from the CMO (chief medical officer) or the CSA (chief scientific adviser) as to why those decisions were being asked for or recommended. Ms Dobbin then asked about leaks that took place while Executive meetings were going on. The minister said: At times there was almost a live feed coming from the Executive, especially when it came to those more challenging, more robust decisions that would have to be taken, it was being portrayed live-time on Twitter in regards to who had said what, who was saying what. It left it extremely challenging for some ministers to be clearly open or step outside the bounds of what would have been their party position because there was that perception if they said too much or strayed too far that it was already going to be portrayed in the media. Inquiry chairwoman Heather Hallett asked if consideration had been given to banning personal devices during Executive meetings. Mr Swann said: There was all sorts of attempts made, but the fact that our Executive meetings were being held remotely by Zoom, there were challenges as well. There were recommendations made by the head of the civil service at one stage even that while ministers were on they should have their cameras on at all times, not just when they were speaking. Ms Dobbin asked if it had got to the stage that the leaks were tolerated. He added: It became a frustration but I also believe at one point it was so endemic that it became tolerated rather than challenged. More than 12 million in Government funding has been given to a new community hub in Creeslough, Co Donegal. The Department of Rural and Community Development said the project will create a new central hub for community life that will support the renewal and regeneration of Creeslough. Advertisement It said it will be transformative for the community and serve as a catalyst for the regeneration of the region. In October 2022 four men, three women and three young people, aged between five and 59, died in an explosion at a service station. Ten people died in the explosion (Brian Lawless/PA) Advertisement The new centre will replace an already-operating community hub on Main Street in the village. The funding is part of 164 million allocated to 30 regeneration projects around the country. The investment is being provided under the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF) with a particular emphasis on the revitalisation of rural town centres. Many of the projects have a focus on combating vacancy and dereliction. Advertisement Minister for Rural and Community Development Heather Humphreys said: This is a truly transformative level of funding that will make a real and lasting difference in rural communities throughout Ireland. A man sleeping rough at a Luas station in Dublin suffered a severe head injury after "a lump of granite" was dropped 28 feet onto his head during a "sustained" row with a group of teenagers, a court has heard. Dublin Children's Court was told on Monday that the incident happened on the night of February 16th last year at Kilmacud Luas station, where the man (39) was left in a pool of blood after he suffered a fractured skull. Advertisement Three boys, aged 16 and 17, are accused of violent disorder, and two of the defendants are accused of assault causing harm to the homeless man. The three accused cannot be identified as they are minors. The trio appeared before Judge Brendan Toale for a trial venue ruling on whether the cases would remain in the Children's Court or go forward to the Circuit Court, which has broader sentencing powers. Judge Toale agreed with the Director of Public Prosecutions that the case was too serious to accept jurisdiction for one of the 16-year-old boys who was accused of using a plank to beat the man. He noted that the boy did not inflict the most serious injury, however, he described it as a "sustained interaction with an individual who ultimately became a victim of an assault and violent conduct". Advertisement He also said there was a "level of common purpose". The State must prepare a book of evidence before he is sent to the higher court. Row Detective Garda James Mulligan narrated the evidence while CCTV footage of the 50-minute incident was played in court. He said the man and his partner were sleeping rough in bushes under a gantry bridge at the Luas station. However, they argued about money or where they should stay. Advertisement The court heard the three teens disembarked a tram, overheard the couple's row, and became involved. Detective Garda Mulligan alleged two boys returned to the scene with large planks of wood ripped from a fence across the road. One of the group had a plastic traffic pole. The teen struck the homeless man's head with a plank, which was later recovered, bloodstained. He also threw planks from a gantry bridge down at the man, who picked up a stick to defend himself. However, Detective Garda Mulligan said that the teenager did not inflict the more serious head injury. Advertisement Cross-examined by defence counsel Amy Hughes, the detective agreed that the youth went to school and had no prior criminal convictions. The teen pleaded, via counsel, to have his case kept in the Children's Court. The detective also agreed that the man's girlfriend had asked the boys for help when she was having a row about money with her partner. CCTV footage showed her later using a ticket machine panic button to call for help when she saw the lump of rock hit her boyfriend after being thrown from a 28-foot height. The woman (38) also alerted an on-coming tram to stop when her partner was lying on the tracks with blood on the ground around his head. Advertisement The man was taken to Beaumont Hospital with a fractured skull, and photos of his injuries, including a depression in his skull, were tendered as evidence. The 17-year-old, who allegedly threw the lump of granite, had his preliminary hearing adjourned so the defence could obtain educational reports on him. The three teens are yet to indicate their pleas. The case of the youngest member of the group, who is not accused of assault, will remain in the Children's Court and the matter has been adjourned. A man has appeared in court in Co Donegal after a pedestrian was critically injured in an alleged hit-and-run incident at the weekend. A male pedestrian aged in his 60s was seriously injured after he was involved in a collision with a vehicle on Main Street, Clonmany shortly after midnight on Saturday. Advertisement The injured man was taken to Letterkenny University Hospital but was soon transferred to Beaumont Hospital in Dublin. Gardai have since confirmed he remains in critical condition. Kevin Grant (36), of Pairc Mor, Buncrana, appeared before a special sitting of Letterkenny District Court on Monday evening in connection with the incident. He faces a total of eight charges arising out of the incident, including endangerment, two counts of dangerous driving, refusing to give information, refusing to give a sample and three charges under the Road Traffic Act connected with an alleged hit-and-run incident. The court heard full CCTV footage of the alleged incident has been taken from a number of premises in the immediate area. Advertisement During a follow-up operation, Mr Grant was arrested in Buncrana and detained under section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984. At Monday's hearing, Detective Garda Sergeant Killian Callaghan said gardai were objecting to bail in the case on a number of grounds. He gave evidence of arrest, charge and caution and told the court that the accused made no reply when charged with the offences at 4.42pm on Monday at Buncrana Garda station. Despite the Garda objections, Judge Ciaran Liddy granted bail with a number of conditions. The court heard the accused is currently working for a construction company in Dublin. Judge Liddy remanded the accused on bail to Letterkenny District Court on Thursday. Senior Government figures have signalled that there will be further changes to payments for Ukrainians seeking protection in Ireland. Following Russias invasion of Ukraine, the EU triggered a temporary protection directive to offer assistance for those fleeing the war. Advertisement It places obligations on EU countries to give certain rights to the beneficiaries of temporary protection (BOTPs) including residence permits and access to suitable accommodation. Ireland has granted more than 105,000 temporary protection orders since the start of the war, and almost 72,000 BOTPs are in State-provided accommodation. Advertisement However, the Government changed its offering for new arrivals in March. Under the revised plan, Ukrainian refugees go to designated accommodation centres for up to 90 days and are provided with food, laundry and integration support during this time. They will be paid a 38.80 subsistence allowance per week and an additional 29.80 per child. Advertisement Arrivals had previously been entitled to a jobseekers allowance of 220 per week and unlimited time in State accommodation. Approximately half of arrivals opt for State-provided accommodation. Those who do not are entitled to the full income supports. The changes did not apply to those who arrived before the March deadline. However, Taoiseach Simon Harris has said there should be discussion about a consistency of approach for Ukrainians and BOTPs. Advertisement Speaking on Newstalk, Mr Harris added: It shouldnt be whether you came one month (ago) or not that you get a different level of support. Asked if payments would be cut further, environment minister Eamon Ryan said: I expect that will apply to a wider category of people regardless of when they came to the country. He told RTE radio: So I think there will be some variations and some changes. And we do that at the same time that we know we have to provide additional accommodation for those seeking international protection. Advertisement We have to do both to try to manage this fairly. It comes as the State continues to struggle to provide accommodation for asylum seekers arriving here. Mr Harris has said there are several common sense changes to migration policy that need to be implemented. The Cabinet will discuss the proposals as well as payments to BOTPs on Tuesday. Liz Teitz covers environmental news and the Hill Country for the San Antonio Express-News. She writes about the San Antonio Water System, news in New Braunfels and Comal County and water issues around Central Texas. She can be reached at liz.teitz@express-news.net. Liz joined the Express-News in June 2023. She has been a reporter for eight years, covering housing, government, education and other topics for the Ouray County Plaindealer, Hearst Connecticut Media Group and the Beaumont Enterprise. Liz grew up in Rhode Island and graduated from Georgetown University. A judge has ruled that provisions of the UKs Illegal Migration Act should be disapplied in Northern Ireland, as they undermine human rights protections guaranteed in the region under post-Brexit arrangements. Mr Justice Humphreys also said aspects of the Act were incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Advertisement The post-Brexit Windsor Framework jointly agreed by the UK and EU includes a stipulation that there can be no diminution of the rights provisions contained within Northern Irelands Good Friday peace agreement of 1998. The Illegal Migration Act provides new powers for the British government to detain and remove asylum seekers it deems to have arrived illegally in the UK. Central to the new laws is the scheme to send asylum seekers to Rwanda. Mr Justice Humphreys delivered judgment at Belfast High Court on Monday in two challenges against the Act that focused on the peace process human rights protections guaranteed by the Windsor Framework. Advertisement The judge found that several elements of the Act do cause a significant diminution of the rights enjoyed by asylum seekers residing in Northern Ireland under the terms of the Good Friday Agreement. I have found that there is a relevant diminution of right in each of the areas relied upon by the applicants, he said. Advertisement He added: The applicants primary submission therefore succeeds. Each of the statutory provisions under consideration infringes the protection afforded to RSE (Rights, Safeguards and Equality of Opportunity) in the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement. The judge ruled that the sections of the Act that were the subject of the legal challenges should be disapplied in Northern Ireland. He also declared aspects of the Act incompatible with the ECHR. One of the cases was taken by the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission and the other by a 16-year-old asylum seeker from Iran who is living in Northern Ireland having arrived in the UK as an unaccompanied child. Advertisement The boy, who travelled from France by small boat and claimed asylum in July 2023, has said he would be killed or sent to prison if he returned to Iran. The judge agreed to place a temporary stay on the disapplication ruling until another hearing at the end of May, when the applicants will have an opportunity to respond to the judgment. Dr Tony McGleenan KC, representing the British government, indicated that an appeal may be considered. Well be taking our instructions on the judgment and the position in terms of any further litigation will become clear, my Lord, he said. Advertisement Outside court, solicitor Sinead Marmion, who represented the teenage Iranian asylum seeker applicant, said the judgment was hugely significant. Ms Marmion said the judgment would prevent the Rwanda scheme applying in Northern Ireland. This is a huge thorn in the [British] governments side and it has completely put a spanner in the works, she told the PA news agency. Theres a huge obstacle in the way of them being able to actually implement that in Northern Ireland now, as its been found to be incompatible with the Windsor Framework. A UK man who was caught coming through Dublin Airport with over 16 kilos of cocaine in his luggage en route to London has been jailed for six and a half years. Daniel James Johnson (34), of no fixed abode in Lancashire, UK, pleaded guilty to one count of importing cocaine at Dublin Airport on September 28th last year. Advertisement The street value of the cocaine amounted to 1.1 million, the court heard. Michael Hourigan BL, prosecuting, said that on the day in question, Johnson had flown into the country on a flight from Washington DC in the US. A customs officer apprehended him and his suitcase was searched, with eight blocks of cocaine found within. Johnson was due to fly on to London Gatwick, with the drugs intended for the UK market. The court heard he had flown to the US in order to pick up the drugs and bring them back. He told gardai he did not pack the bag, nor book his flights. He said he was due to be paid a certain amount of money for bringing the drugs in, although the amount was not specified. Advertisement Johnson told gardai he was fearful for the safety of his family as a result of the drugs mission failing. He has nine previous convictions in the UK for minor offences, including theft, criminal damage and being drunk and disorderly. Marc Thompson BL, defending, said his client was essentially a drug mule who had no proprietary interest in the drugs. He said there was a genuine fear on the part of Johnson for the safety of his family. Sentencing Johnson on Monday, Judge Martin Nolan took into account the fact that he is an English national serving time in an Irish prison. He said he believed it was probably unlikely that Johnson will reoffend in the future. He handed down a six-and-a-half year jail term and backdated it to when Johnson went into custody last September. If the West wants to fight for Ukraine on the battlefield, Russia is prepared for it, acting Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov was quoted as saying by the state-run RIA new agency on Monday. The Kremlin said last week that sending Nato troops into Ukraine would potentially be extremely dangerous, and that Moscow was closely watching a Ukrainian petition calling for such an intervention. Advertisement Meanwhile, the Ukrainian commander responsible for the northeastern Kharkiv frontline was replaced during the Russian offensive, a military spokesperson said on Monday. Nazar Voloshyn told RBC-Ukraine media that the decision to appoint brigadier general Mykhailo Drapatyi to the position was taken on May 11th. He gave no reason. Russian troops launched an offensive at the region's border early on May 10th. Ukrainian troops are locked in intense battles with the advancing Russian army in two border areas, president Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said. It comes as the death toll from a Russian apartment building collapse blamed on Ukrainian shelling rose to 15. Advertisement Mr Zelenskiy said fierce battles are taking place near the border in eastern and north-eastern Ukraine as outgunned and outnumbered Ukrainian soldiers try to push back a significant Russian ground offensive. (PA Graphics) Defensive battles are ongoing, fierce battles, on a large part of our border area, he said in his nightly video address on Sunday. Advertisement Ukraines general staff said late on Sunday that Russian forces had conducted at least 22 attacks over the previous 24 hours in two parts of the Kharkiv region and had tactical success. The statement did not elaborate. The Kremlins forces are aiming to exploit Ukrainian weaknesses before a big batch of new military aid for Kyiv from the US and European partners arrives on the battlefield in the coming weeks and months, analysts say. That makes this period a window of opportunity for Moscow and one of the most dangerous for Kyiv in the two-year war, they say. Advertisement The new Russian push in the north-eastern Kharkiv region, along with the ongoing drive into the eastern Donetsk region, comes after months when the about 1,000-kilometre (620-mile) front line barely budged. In the meantime, both sides have used long-range strikes in what largely became a war of attrition. The Kharkiv incursion may be an attempt to create a buffer zone to protect Belgorod, an adjacent Russian border region battered by frequent Ukrainian attacks to the Kremlins embarrassment. In March, Russia announced plans to evacuate about 9,000 children from the Belgorod region because it was being shelled continuously. Advertisement Russian emergency services work at the scene of a partially collapsed block of flats authorities said was hit during an attack by Ukrainian shelling in Belgorod, Russia (Belgorod Region Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov Telegram channel via AP) Russian emergency services on Monday finished clearing the rubble in the regions capital city of Belgorod, where a section of a residential building collapsed following what authorities said was Ukrainian shelling. Fifteen bodies were pulled from the rubble, Belgorod regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said, and 27 other people were wounded. Advertisement Another three people in the city of Belgorod were killed by shelling late on Sunday, he said. Yevgeny Poddubny, a usually well-connected military correspondent for Russias state TV corporation VGTRK, said in a recent Telegram post that the Kharkiv assault marked the beginning of a new phase. Were pushing the enemy back from the border, destroying the enemy in order to deprive the Kyiv regime of the opportunity to use relatively cheap rockets to attack Belgorod, he said. Russian president Vladimir Putin on Sunday replaced Sergei Shoigu as defence minister in a cabinet shake-up. Mr Shoigu was widely seen as a key figure in Mr Putins decision to send Russian troops into Ukraine in February 2022. Russia had expected the operation to quickly overwhelm Ukraines army and for Ukrainians to broadly welcome Russian troops. A police officer takes cover during Russian shelling in Vovchansk, Ukraine (Evgeniy Maloletka/AP) Mr Zelenskiy said fighting in the Donetsk area is no less intense than in Kharkiv. He said the Kremlin aimed to spread our forces thin by opening a second active front in Kharkiv. He described the area around the Pokrovsk region, just inside the Ukrainian border in Donetsk, as the most difficult. Pokrovsk was a town of around 60,000 people before the war and was until recently a two-hour drive from the front line. Now it is less than half that. The capture of the Donetsk city of Avdiivka in February opened a door for the Kremlins troops to push westward, deeper into Donetsk. Russia illegally annexed Donetsk and three other regions in 2022 shortly after it invaded Ukraine, and taking control of all of Donetsk is one of the Kremlins main war goals. Though Ukraine was apparently braced for the Russian onslaught in the Kharkiv region, in some areas it only belatedly began preparing fortifications, an issue that has been a source of criticism by Ukrainian troops of their commanders. Long-haul carrier Emirates has announced it saw record profits of $4.7 billion (4.35 billion) in 2023 as the airline fully took flight after the turbulent years of the coronavirus pandemic disrupted its operations. Emirates, owned by Dubais government, announced revenues of $33 billion, compared with $29.3 billion the year before. Advertisement Profit the year prior had been $2.9 billion. Advertisement The airline carried 51.9 million passengers in its 2023 financial year, compared with 43.6 million the year prior. Throughout the year, we saw high demand for air transport and travel-related services around the world, and because we were able to move quickly to deliver what customers want, we achieved tremendous results, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the chairman and chief executive of Emirates, said in a statement. We are reaping the benefit of years of non-stop investments in our products and services, in building strong partnerships, and in the capabilities of our talented people. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai, praised the airline, noting it took off 39 years ago and the world of aviation is no longer what it was before. Advertisement What is coming will be more beautiful, greater and better, God willing, Sheikh Mohammed wrote on the social platform X. The Emirates results track with those for its base, Dubai International Airport. The worlds busiest airport for international travellers had 86.9 million passengers last year, surpassing numbers for 2019 just before the coronavirus pandemic grounded global aviation. The airport had 89.1 million passengers in 2018 its busiest-ever year before the pandemic. Advertisement The airport now plans to move to the city-states second, sprawling airfield in its southern desert reaches in the next 10 years in a project worth nearly $35 billion. Advertisement The overall Emirates Group, which includes travel company dnata, as well as food, beverage and leisure holdings, reported profits of $5.1 billion off revenues of $37.4 billion. The group declared a dividend to its owner, the sheikhdoms sovereign wealth fund known as the Investment Corporation of Dubai, of $1 billion. It also gave its more than 112,000 employees 20-weeks bonus pay, according to an internal email sent to staff seen by The Associated Press. The city-state, one of seven hereditarily ruled, autocratic sheikhdoms that make up the United Arab Emirates, provided Emirates with some $4 billion in a bailout at the height of the pandemic. The annual report said Emirates had repaid $2.6 billion of that loan during the last financial year. In November, Emirates announced a $52 billion deal to purchase 90 Boeing 777 aircraft, 55 of them 777-9 variants and 35 of them 777-8s. Emirates will also add an additional five 787 Dreamliners to its previous order of 30 aircraft. For years, Emirates has relied on the Boeing 777 and the double-decker Airbus A380 to ferry passengers around the world. That will change in September, when Emirates says it will begin flying the Airbus A350 on routes. The airline has also embarked on a $2 billion retrofit programme for its aircraft. But challenges remain for the carrier. Saudi Arabia plans to push into the market with Riyadh Air, a new carrier that made a jet deal valued at around $37 billion with Boeing just last year with the flagship carrier Saudia. Climate change may be another concern as well the wider UAE saw its heaviest recorded rainfall ever last month, which disrupted Emirates flights for days. Former German chancellor Angela Merkels memoirs will be released in late November, nearly three years after the end of her 16-year tenure at the helm of one of Europes biggest powers, her publisher said. The roughly 700-page volume, titled Freiheit (Freedom), will be published on November 26th, publisher Kiepenheuer & Witsch announced. Advertisement The 69-year-old co-wrote the book with her longtime assistant and adviser Beate Baumann. Advertisement Mrs Merkel, a former scientist who grew up in communist East Germany, became Germanys first female chancellor on November 22nd, 2005. She steered Germany through a succession of crises including the global financial crisis, Europes debt and migration crises and the coronavirus pandemic. The publisher quoted Mrs Merkel in a statement as saying that for me, freedom is not stopping learning, not having to stand still but being able to go further, even after leaving politics. The company said the book will appear worldwide in over 30 countries but did not elaborate. Advertisement Mrs Merkel has generally kept a low profile since handing over to current chancellor Olaf Scholz in December 2021. She has stayed out of the political fray and away from events of her centre-right party, the Christian Democratic Union. Mrs Merkel was named The Worlds Most Powerful Woman by Forbes magazine for 10 years in a row, and was seen as a powerful defender of liberal values in the West and a role model for girls. Advertisement Angela Merkel and Beate Baumann in 2006 (Markus Schreiber/AP) But her record has faced criticism as well since she stepped down, notably her approach to Ukraine and Russia. Mrs Merkel has defended her actions, saying months after Russia launched its full-scale invasion that a much-criticised 2015 peace deal for eastern Ukraine bought Kyiv precious time and she will not apologise for her diplomatic efforts. She has also defended her governments decisions to buy large quantities of natural gas from Russia, which cut off supplies in 2022. Michael Cohen, who once said he would take a bullet for Donald Trump, was poised on Monday to serve as a star prosecution witness in the former US president's criminal trial on charges of covering up hush money paid to a porn star. Mr Cohen was expected to take the stand on day 16 of the trial in New York state court in Manhattan. His testimony marks the culmination of a 15-year arc from a lawyer and fixer for the businessman-turned-politician to an outspoken antagonist. Advertisement "I'm the guy who would take a bullet for the president," Mr Cohen told Vanity Fair in 2017. Two years later, facing a US congressional committee, Mr Cohen testified: "I am ashamed because I know what Mr Trump is. He is a racist. He is a con man. He is a cheat." Stormy Daniels payment The case against Mr Trump stems from Mr Cohen's $130,000 (121,000) payment to porn star Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election for her silence about a sexual encounter she alleges to have had with Mr Trump a decade earlier. Mr Cohen, a top executive at Mr Trump's real estate company before becoming his lawyer, says Mr Trump directed the payment. Advertisement Now 57, Mr Cohen spent more than a year in prison for crimes including a violation of federal election campaign finance laws with the payment to Ms Daniels. In 2020, he published a book about his experience working with Mr Trump called, "Disloyal: A Memoir". Mr Trump, the Republican presidential candidate in the November 5th election, has pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of falsification of business records to conceal the payment. He has also denied the encounter with Ms Daniels, whose given name is Stephanie Clifford, and called Mr Cohen a "serial liar". Mr Cohen turned on Mr Trump midway through his presidency, as federal investigators probed his role in the payment to Ms Daniels and other matters. After Mr Trump's own 2023 indictment, Mr Cohen said his goal in cooperating with authorities was to "speak truth to power". Advertisement "If speaking truth to power makes me Donald's arch-nemesis, so be it," Mr Cohen told Reuters in a 2023 interview. This will not be Mr Cohen's first time testifying in court against Mr Trump. In a civil fraud case over the former president's valuations of his real estate assets, Mr Cohen said on the stand in October he had manipulated the values of Mr Trump's real estate properties to match "whatever number Mr. Trump told us". A judge in February ordered Mr Trump to pay $454 million (420 million) in penalties and interest after finding that he misled lenders and insurers about the Trump Organisation's property values. Mr Trump is appealing. A prison sentence Mr Cohen was hired as the Trump Organisation's executive vice president and special counsel in 2007. Before that, the Long Island native and son of a Holocaust survivor worked as a malpractice lawyer and owned a fleet of yellow taxis. Advertisement He was hired after he had orchestrated the ouster of the board of directors of a condominium where he owned an apartment, which was trying to remove Mr Trump's name from the building's exterior. Mr Cohen later advised Mr Trump's 2016 presidential campaign and, as his personal lawyer, remained close to Mr Trump once he became president, though he did not have an official White House job. In 2018, after the hush money payment to Ms Daniels came to light, Mr Cohen initially said he had paid with his own money and that neither the Trump campaign nor the Trump Organisation reimbursed him. He later pleaded guilty to a federal campaign finance law violation for paying Ms Daniels and then testified in Congress that Mr Trump told him to make the payment. He said he was reimbursed in instalments and displayed a copy of a $35,000 (32,000) check from Mr Trump's personal bank account. Advertisement Mr Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison for the payment and other crimes, including cheating on his personal taxes and lying under oath to Congress about when the Trump Organisation stopped working on a proposed building project in Russia. Mr Cohen served more than a year before being released. 'Part of the playbook' Relying on Mr Cohen's testimony presents risks for Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg, given the disbarred lawyer's history of false statements. Mr Cohen's testimony at the civil fraud trial could provide fertile ground for Mr Trump's defence lawyers during cross-examination at the criminal trial. At the civil trial, he said he lied to the federal judge who took his guilty plea in 2018 by admitting to tax fraud - a crime he now says he did not commit. Mr Cohen, married with two children, has said he has taken responsibility for his wrongdoing. He has said much of his criminal conduct - including the lie to Congress and the Daniels payment - arose out of his blind loyalty to Mr Trump. He told Reuters in the 2023 interview he expected Mr Trump and his allies to attack him. "It's all part of the playbook," Mr Cohen said. One of Europes most notorious human smugglers has been arrested in the semi-autonomous Kurdish region of northern Iraq, security officials said. The regional governments security agency said it had arrested Barzan Majeed, known as the Scorpion, in the area of Sulaymaniyah, upon a request from Interpol and after the exchange of intelligence information. Advertisement He was handed over to the regional justice department, it said. The UKs National Crime Agency announced Majeeds arrest on its X account formerly known as Twitter. The crime agency had issued an appeal for assistance in tracking Majeed down in 2022, after he was convicted in absentia in Belgium of people smuggling crimes, following a joint UK-Belgian investigation. The agency said he had attempted to smuggle 100 migrants to the UK in small boats and trucks. Advertisement The NCA has been informed of the arrest of Barzan Majeed nicknamed Scorpion - in the Kurdish region of Northern Iraq. https://t.co/DMY77IJhiB National Crime Agency (NCA) (@NCA_UK) May 13, 2024 Advertisement The number of migrants crossing the Channel in small boats has soared in recent years as individuals fleeing war, the effects of climate change, and economic uncertainty have sought a better life in Britain. They pay smugglers thousands of dollars for the crossing, hoping to reunite with family members or find work in a country where immigration enforcement is seen as weak and where migrant groups from all over the world can easily blend into society. Last month, the UK parliament approved controversial legislation allowing the government to deport to Rwanda those who enter the country illegally. Advertisement Hours later, five people, including a seven-year-old girl, died while crossing the English Channel in an overloaded inflatable boat. Many of the would-be migrants hail from Iraqis northern Kurdish region. While the region is relatively more prosperous and stable than other parts of the country, increasing unemployment and corruption issues are driving many young Kurds to undertake the dangerous journey. In November 2021, 16 Iraqi Kurds were among a group of 27 people who died while attempting to cross the Channel. Only a few hundred residents remain in the embattled town of Vovchansk in north-east Ukraine, where Kyivs troops are locked in intense battles with the Russian army, according to local officials. The town, whose pre-war population of 17,000 had dwindled to just 2,500 before Russia renewed its ground assault last week, has emerged as a focus point as pitched battles engulf the Kharkiv and Donetsk regions. Advertisement Ukrainian local officials said they feared Vovchansks fate may mirror that of Bakhmut and Avdiivka, Ukrainian cities where fierce fighting and scorched earth tactics forced Ukrainian withdrawals. (PA Graphics) Only 200-300 people remain in the town, Kharkiv regional governor Oleh Suniehubov said, as Moscows troops advance in an effort to surround it from three directions. Advertisement Poorly built fortifications and enduring ammunition shortages enabled Russias sweeping advance in the area last week, local officials and soldiers said. In the span of two days, Moscow has captured some 106 square kilometres (40 square miles) and at least seven villages, most of them already depopulated, according to the open source monitoring project DeepState. It is a significant advance that could pin Ukrainian forces in the north-east while heavy fighting continues in the Donetsk region. On Monday, Ukrainian troops were still locked in pitched battles in both regions, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy said. Advertisement Fighting is taking place near the border in eastern and north-eastern Ukraine as outgunned and outnumbered Ukrainian soldiers try to hold back a significant Russian ground offensive. Defensive battles are ongoing, fierce battles, on a large part of our border area, Mr Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address on Sunday. The Kremlins forces are aiming to exploit Ukrainian weaknesses before a big batch of new military aid for Kyiv from the US and European partners arrives on the battlefield in the coming weeks and months, analysts say. Advertisement People sit in a bus after evacuation from Vovchansk, Ukraine (Evgeniy Maloletka/AP) That makes this period a window of opportunity for Moscow and one of the most dangerous for Kyiv in the two-year war, they say. It is unclear what of the promised aid has arrived to Ukraine. The new Russian push in the north-eastern Kharkiv region, along with the ongoing drive into the eastern Donetsk region, comes after months when the roughly 1,000-kilometre (620-mile) front line barely budged. Advertisement In the meantime, both sides have used long-range strikes to pursue what became largely a war of attrition. Ukraines general staff said late on Sunday that Russian forces had conducted at least 22 attacks over the previous 24 hours in two parts of the Kharkiv region and had tactical success. The statement did not elaborate. The Kharkiv incursion serves a likely three purposes for Russia. People walk with their belongings to the evacuation point in front of a building that was damaged by a Russian air strike in Vilcha, near Vovchansk, Ukraine (Evgeniy Maloletka/AP) First, the north-east operation will pin Ukrainian forces in the region and potentially draw in precious reserves away from heavy battles in the Avdiivka and Chasiv Yar areas of the Donetsk region, where Russias advance has been far more significant and strategically important. Mr Zelenskiy said fighting in the Donetsk area is no less intense than in Kharkiv. He said the Kremlin aimed to spread our forces thin by opening a second active front in Kharkiv. Mr Zelenskiy described the area around the Pokrovsk region, just inside the Ukrainian border in Donetsk, as the most difficult. Pokrovsk was a town of around 60,000 people before the war and was until recently a two-hour drive from the front line. Now it is less than half that. The capture of the Donetsk city of Avdiivka in February opened a door for the Kremlins troops to push westward, deeper into Donetsk. Russia illegally annexed Donetsk and three other regions in 2022 shortly after it invaded Ukraine, and taking control of all of Donetsk is one of the Kremlins main war goals. A partially collapsed block of flats after a missile attack by the Ukrainian armed forces in the Russian city of Belgorod (Belgorod Region Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov Telegram channel via AP) Second, if Ukraine is not able to halt Moscows advance, it could create future conditions for a possible attack on Kharkiv City, Ukraines second largest. Finally, it could create a buffer zone to protect Belgorod, where frequent Ukrainian attacks have embarrassed the Kremlin. In March, Russia announced plans to evacuate about 9,000 children from the Belgorod region because it was being shelled continuously. Russian emergency services on Monday finished clearing the rubble in the regions capital city of Belgorod, where a section of a residential building collapsed following what authorities said was Ukrainian shelling. Fifteen bodies were pulled from the rubble, Belgorod regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said, and 27 other people were wounded. Another three people in the city of Belgorod were killed by shelling late on Sunday, he said. Yevgeny Poddubny, a usually well-connected military correspondent for Russias state TV corporation VGTRK, said in a recent Telegram post that the Kharkiv assault marked the beginning of a new phase. Were pushing the enemy back from the border, destroying the enemy in order to deprive the Kyiv regime of the opportunity to use relatively cheap rockets to attack Belgorod, he said. The star prosecution witness in Donald Trumps hush money trial is set to enter the witness box on Monday with evidence that could help shape the outcome of the first criminal case against an American president. Michael Cohen, Mr Trumps former lawyer and personal fixer, is by far the Manhattan district attorneys most important witness in the case and his expected appearance signals that the trial is entering its final stretch. Advertisement Prosecutors say they may wrap up their presentation of evidence by the end of the week. Stormy Daniels in the witness box in Manhattan Criminal Court last Thursday in New York (Elizabeth Williams via AP) Mr Cohen is expected to give evidence about his role in arranging hush money payments on Mr Trumps behalf during his first presidential campaign, including to adult film actor Stormy Daniels. Advertisement Ms Daniels told jurors last week that the $130,000 (121,000) that she received in 2016 was meant to prevent her from going public about a sexual encounter she says she had with Trump in a hotel suite a decade earlier. Mr Cohen also matters because the reimbursements he received form the basis of the charges 34 felony counts of falsifying business records against Mr Trump. Prosecutors say the reimbursements were logged as legal expenses to conceal the payments true purpose. Defence lawyers have teed up a bruising cross-examination of Mr Cohen, telling jurors during opening statements that the fixer-turned-foe is an admitted liar with an obsession to get President Trump. Advertisement The evidence of a witness with such intimate knowledge of Mr Trumps activities could heighten the legal exposure of the presumptive Republican presidential nominee if jurors deem him sufficiently credible. But politically, prosecutors reliance on a witness with such a chequered past Mr Cohen pleaded guilty to federal charges related to the payments and to lying to Congress could be a boon for Mr Trump as he fundraises off his legal woes and paints the case as the product of a tainted criminal justice system. Either way, his role as star prosecution witness further cements the disintegration of a mutually beneficial relationship that was once so close that Mr Cohen famously said he would take a bullet for Trump. After Mr Cohens home and office were raided by the FBI in 2018, Mr Trump showered him with affection on social media, praising him as a fine person with a wonderful family and predicting incorrectly that Mr Cohen would not flip. Advertisement Months later, Mr Cohen did exactly that, pleading guilty that August to federal campaign finance charges in which he implicated Mr Trump. Donald Trump speaks to the press before leaving for the day at his trial at Manhattan Criminal Court in New York on Friday (Timothy A Clary/Pool Photo via AP) By that point, the relationship was irrevocably broken, with Mr Trump posting on the social media platform then known as Twitter: If anyone is looking for a good lawyer, I would strongly suggest that you dont retain the services of Michael Cohen! Advertisement Mr Cohen later admitted lying to Congress about a Moscow real estate project that he had pursued on Trumps behalf during the heat of the 2016 Republican campaign. He said he lied to be consistent with Mr Trumps political messaging. Prosecutors are expected to elicit detailed evidence from Mr Cohen about his past crimes in the hopes of blunting the impact of defence lawyers questioning and showing that they are not trying to hide his misdeeds. But it is unclear how effective that will be, given that defence lawyers will be prepared to exploit all the challenges that accompany a witness such as Mr Cohen. In addition to painting Mr Cohen as untrustworthy, they are also expected to cast him as vindictive, vengeful and agenda-driven. Since their fallout, Mr Cohen has emerged as a relentless and sometimes crude critic of Mr Trump, appearing as recently as last week in a live TikTok wearing a shirt featuring a figure resembling Mr Trump with his hands cuffed, behind bars. The judge on Friday urged prosecutors to tell him to refrain from making any more statements about the case or Mr Trump. Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Wildwood, New Jersey, on Saturday (Matt Rourke/AP) He has talked extensively about his desire to see President Trump go to prison, Mr Trump lawyer Todd Blanche said during opening statements. He has talked extensively about his desire to see President Trumps family go to prison. He has talked extensively about President Trump getting convicted in this case. No matter how his evidence unfolds, Mr Cohen is indisputably central to the case, as evidenced by the fact that his name was mentioned in the jurys presence during opening statements more than 130 times more than any other person. Other witnesses, including former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker and former Trump adviser Hope Hicks, have given evidence at length about the role Mr Cohen played in arranging to stifle stories that were feared to be harmful to Mr Trumps 2016 candidacy. And jurors heard an audio recording of Mr Trump and Mr Cohen discussing a plan to purchase the rights to a story of a Playboy model, Karen McDougal, who has said she had an affair with Mr Trump. During a massive rally on Saturday in the southern New Jersey resort town of Wildwood, Mr Trump revived his criticism of the case, wrongly blaming president Joe Biden for orchestrating the New York charges, calling the case a Biden show trial. That argument ignores the reality that the hush money case was filed by local prosecutors in Manhattan who do not work for the Justice Department or any other White House office. The Justice Department has said the White House has had no involvement in the two criminal cases against Mr Trump brought by special counsel Jack Smith. Rhyma Castillo is a trending reporter for the Express-News and a member of its Digital Go Team. She can be reached at rhyma.castillo@express-news.net. A native of San Antonio and a Texas A&M University graduate, she is a journalist with nearly a decade of experience. She has reported on politics, immigration, climate change, gun violence, and workers rights. Additionally, she excels in lifestyle and entertainment writing, covering music, television, video games, technology, and relationships. In her free time, she enjoys painting, drawing, cooking, hiking, climbing, gardening, playing video games, cuddling with her cats, and making music with her band. Tasha Cobbs Leonard - Do It Anyway | Shore Fire Media (May 10, 2024) Today, Grammy award-winning Billboard Gospel Artist of the Decade, and now author, Tasha Cobbs Leonard releases new song Do It Anyway. The single serves as the title track for her newly launched book, Do It Anyway: Dont Give Up Before It Gets Good, which hit shelves earlier this week under WaterBrook Publishing. With "Do It Anyway," Cobbs Leonard invites listeners to embark on a journey of self-discovery and resilience, echoing the sentiment of her book's empowering message. Both the single and the book promise to inspire and equip audiences to navigate life's challenges with unwavering faith and determination. Take a listen to Do It Anyway here Known for her powerful voice and infectious positivity, Tasha Cobbs Leonard has amassed a devoted following of over 9 million fans across social media platforms. With her debut book, she reveals a deeply personal journey, sharing moments of struggle including infertility, weight challenges, grief, and depression, all while emphasizing the profound impact of resilient faith and perseverance. On May 10, Tasha Cobbs Leonard will be featured on the Tamron Hall Show to discuss the new single and book for the program's 3rd Annual Mothers Day Extravaganza. Please check your local listings to tune in. Regularly featured on esteemed media outlets such as Good Morning America, Tamron Hall, People, Billboard, and Variety, Cobbs Leonard has touched hearts globally with hit songs like "Break Every Chain," "You Know My Name," and "Fill Me Up." Now, she extends her reach beyond music, empowering readers to dream big, conquer fear, and embrace God's guidance through the power of written word. Connect with Tasha Cobbs Leonard Official Site | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter About Tasha Cobbs Leonard Tasha Cobbs Leonard is one of the most iconic artists in gospel music history. Continually featured by prominent media outlets such as Good Morning America, ABC News, Fox & Friends, The Tamron Hall Show, People, Billboard, and Variety, Tasha was named Billboards Gospel Artist of the Decade, and has won one Grammy Award, three Billboard Music Awards, fourteen GMA Dove Awards, sixteen Stellar Awards, and two RIAA certified Platinum singles. Alongside her husband, Kenneth Leonard Jr., Tasha serves as executive pastor at their church plant, The Purpose Place, in Spartanburg, South Carolina. A successful entrepreneur and owner of several businesses, she is the founder of the mentorship program iLead Escape, which focuses on cultivating and advancing the next generation of worship artists and culture leaders. Tasha lives in Greenville, South Carolina, with her husband and their four children Learn more at Tashacobbsleonard.com. Lendlease has vowed to fight the tax office over a $112 million bill that prompted investors to downgrade its stock at a time when the global property giant is coming under pressure from other major shareholders to restructure its business. In a statement to the ASX, the developer and funds manager said Lendlease was confident of its position and will dispute the amended assessment. The tax bill is the result of capital gains incurred during the sale of Lendleases Retirement Living trust, which the company says was a one-off event that only applies to the 2018 transaction. There were also additional expenses from the sale of units in the joint venture trust, and interest owed. Lendlease chief executive Tony Lombardo faces a major test at a coming investor day. Credit: Oscar Colman Lendlease, a global property developer and fund manager with a market value of $4.3 billion, is one of Australias oldest and most complex listed companies. US Chancery Court Chancellor Kathaleen McCormick found that Musk controlled Tesla and that the process surrounding the boards approval of his compensation was deeply flawed. Put simply, neither the compensation committee nor the board acted in the best interests of the company when negotiating Musks compensation plan. In fact, there is barely any evidence of negotiations at all, her judgment said. Put another way, it was Denholm and her fellow board members who didnt do their jobs. Rather than negotiate against Musk with the mindset of a third party, the compensation committee worked alongside him, almost as an advisory body. McCormick noted that the vast majority of [Denholms] wealth had derived from Tesla. Denholm herself has been quoted as describing the sale of hundreds of millions of dollars of Tesla shares in recent years as life-changing. From my perspective, he is great to work with, Denholm told the Australian Financial Review back in 2021, when she first made the rich list on the back of her Tesla share options. The world would be much better off if we had more Elons, she added. THATS A RAP Its not just sportspeople who have weird little pre-game rituals. As the nation awaits tonights federal budget the grand final for economic and political tragics CBD can reveal the pre-budget rites observed by the three top brains behind the big day. Federal treasurer Jim Chalmers is getting over his 90s rap phase. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen We are indebted to dear colleague James Massola, who has put in the yards to discover how Treasurer Jim Chalmers, Finance Minister Katy Gallagher and Treasury secretary Steven Kennedy prepare for the biggest day of the year. Chalmers, an aficionado of rappers Tupac Shakur, Nas and Biggie Smalls, revealed he no longer pumps out the mid-90s hip-hop on the big days. The treasurer is more likely these days to turn to Sydney trio Rufus du Sol or Melbournes shimmery dream pop quintet Snakadaktal on one of his super-early morning runs. I used to think running music was super hyped-up music, Chalmers told us. After a while you realise what youre trying to do is actually calm [down]... the last thing you want is your heart rate galloping before you do something big. Jim will approach the dispatch box on Tuesday evening with a note in his pocket from his oldest son Leo, a wristband made by daughter Annabel and wearing a pair of dinosaur socks for his youngest son, Jack. Kennedy, the nations top economic mandarin, reckons hell climb into a suit reserved for special occasions for the big day, and once the budget is done and dusted, hell take staff out for a drink at Canberra bar QT. Kennedys song of choice at the moment is Strung Out Johnny, from Iggy Pops 2023 album Every Loser. But its Gallagher who surprised us the most. The no-frills finance minister, who weve spotted in the past shopping for kids pyjamas in the local Target, said on budget day she likes to shut the door for a few hours and just read. Shell wear something of her mums so shes with me on the day and listen to classical music like Bach to get in the zone. Except if I have to go into estimates, then its Lizzo, like Bad Bitch OClock, if I have to work myself up, then thats what Im pumping. STRIFE BOAT While the UK Conservative Party will cling to government until the elections later this year, it wont change the fortunes of ASX-listed Corporate Travel Management and what was meant to be its lucrative role in Britains hardline immigration policy. Corporate Travel was awarded a two-year, 1.6 billion ($3.2 billion) contract in April last year to manage accommodation for UK asylum seekers. This included the accommodation barge, the Bibby Stockholm which has become the flashpoint for Prime Minister Rishi Sunaks Stop the Boats policy. UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has led his government with a hardline immigration policy. Credit: Bloomberg Corporate Travel founder Jamie Pherous admitted that the contract was a bust at the groups December half results announcement, and his most recent update indicates that things have not improved. Increasing costs and an ambitious production of Wagners Ring Cycle have contributed to an operating loss of $4.9m for Opera Australia in 2023. OA chief executive Fiona Allan has pinned much of the loss on the cost of mounting Wagners monumental 16-hour, four-part work in Brisbane which had been twice delayed because of the pandemic. However, she firmly denied the suggestion The Ring had been a financial disaster, instead declaring it an artistic triumph. Last years production of The Ring in Brisbane weighed heavily on Opera Australias balance sheet. Credit: Wallis Media I think it is one of the best collaborations I have been involved in in my career, she said. It was something we really had to see through. Advertisement Review Eating outSydney Does Merivale magic strike again at Good Luck Restaurant Lounge? Hospitality mogul Justin Hemmes latest venue is a high-energy rabbit warren of a space with a menu thats just as super-charged. Terry Durack May 14, 2024 Save Log in , register or subscribe to save recipes for later. You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from your saved list to add more. Save this article for later Add articles to your saved list and come back to them anytime. Got it Share 1 / 9 Energy levels are high across the vast rabbit warren of a space. Edwina Pickles 2 / 9 Go-to dish: Soy-poached chicken with shiso broth. Edwina Pickles 3 / 9 Tuna crudo with watermelon. Edwina Pickles 4 / 9 Pipis in fragrant broth and scattered with finely cut chives. Edwina Pickles 5 / 9 Good Luck is a decadent mix of flaming grills, fish tanks, glittering chandeliers and colourful cocktails. Edwina Pickles 6 / 9 Fire-roasted fish collar with lemongrass and green chilli jam. Edwina Pickles 7 / 9 Smoked pork spring rolls. Edwina Pickles 8 / 9 Meticulously layered Milo cake with Milo ice-cream. Edwina Pickles 9 / 9 Executive chef Mike Eggert. Edwina Pickles Previous Slide Next Slide Good Food hat Good Food hat 16 / 20 How we score Contemporary$$$$ Every hospitality professional I know says the same five words when they walk into the new Good Luck Lounge in the basement of the historic Burns Philp building. How does he do it? How does Justin Hemmes of Merivale put together an A-list team of movers, shakers, designers, builders, imagineers, strategists, lawyers, chefs, back of house, front of house, and out of house? How does he build such high-energy, sizzling, over-the-top environments in which to eat and drink? How does he get it right (almost) every time? Tuna crudo with watermelon, a study in ruby red. Edwina Pickles Advertisement Ill hazard a guess. He thinks long-term, but acts fast. He scouts talent, and keeps it. He alights on a concept, and commits to making it work. He refines and redefines when necessary, and moves on. He makes sure the restaurant will add value to the property (because, generally speaking, he owns the building). So we shouldnt be too surprised when Good Luck Restaurant Lounge appears, fresh as a daisy, as if it hasnt been three years in the making. The most anticipated restaurant opening of 2024 is also Justin Hemmes most intriguing Energy levels are high like, Chin Chin level-high across the vast rabbit warren of a space, divvied up into banquet rooms, booths, bars and a baronial private dining room. A multitude of red-capped chefs in the long open kitchen move like hyperactive Kikkoman soy sauce bottles, fronted by executive chef Mike Eggert of Tottis. Music is loud and nostalgic, in line with the black-and-white telly high on the wall, cheesy Asian-inspired art, Venetian blinds, and the giant Lego panda that dominates the luxurious loos. Designed by Akin Ateliers Kelvin Ho, its a decadent mix of flaming grills, fish tanks, glittering Murano chandeliers, colourful cocktails and cheery staff headed by an irrepressible Anouk Seidenbinder. There are parallels with Tottis you can cover the table with what you want, and eat how you please. Advertisement The menu is just as supercharged, run by head chef Prince Jaganathan from Mr. Wong. Start with PPC three bowls of toasted peanuts, cool, crunchy pickles and cucumber ($16), then hit up the tuna and watermelon ($21). Its a ruby-red study of cured watermelon interleaved with tuna crudo in soy/vinegar juices; a calming balm amid the mayhem. Pipis are cooked with respect, bathed in aromatic broth and scattered with finely cut chives ($26). It might pay to get the pull-apart onion bread ($9) for the juices. Another joy: a simple dish of small, fire-roasted kingfish collars ($28), carpeted with chives and green chilli jam. Go-to dish: Soy-poached chicken with shiso broth. Edwina Pickles The noodle section runs with the in-built conceit that the noodles are actually pasta. Clever, but a spaghetti with shishito pepper, whitebait and shiso ($20) lacks clarity. Belt noodles are more satisfying ($38), the broad but finely rolled pasta twirled around meaty shredded beef shin. Advertisement There are parallels with Tottis you can cover the table with what you want, and eat how you please. And while that sounds casual, you can deep-dive into a serious list of wines that go back to a 2018 Comte Georges de Vogue ($3050), curated by head sommelier Jaqueline Doucette from Geranium in Copenhagen. Live shellfish from the tank run from roughly $120 (mud crab) to $500 (king crab), cooked in red, green or white style and served a la Eggert, with waffles in place of mantou buns. This straight-with-a-twist theme is at its best with a masterly soy-poached chicken with shiso broth (half, $34) that has an appealing smokiness, lacquered skin and great juices. Rice is mounded in Chinese bowls ($5). Milo layer cake with Milo ice-cream. Edwina Pickles Desserts are highly evolved, with a killer milk and chocolate soft-serve ($18) alongside musk cheesecake with raspberry ($18). Milo cake ($17) is a meticulous layering of sponge, sable, praline, butter cream and Milo ganache, with a billiard ball of roasted vanilla ice-cream rolled in crunchy Milo that tucks you into bed and kisses your forehead. Advertisement Its a big top, a gastronomic circus of fun and good times, run with immaculate instinct and a team thats allowed to show a bit of personality, as long as they keep the momentum going. Plus, its bloody delicious. Ah, so thats how he does it. The low-down Go-to dish: Soy-poached chicken with shiso broth, $34 Vibe: Subterranean palace of fun, food and good times Drinks: Whatever tickles your fancy, from Japanese and local beers to gazillions of cocktails and a surprisingly serious list of Old and New World wines Cost: About $200 for two, plus drinks I married at 20 when I was pregnant with my first child. I continued doing part-time study and had another child at 23. By the time I was 25, I was divorced and found work as a TAFE teacher. It was hand to mouth but the children survived, and theyre both responsible citizens. You can muddle through. When did choice become a byword? The right choice, the wrong choice, unhealthy choices; things that were a given for most of human history, like having children, are now personal choices moderated by technologies and the assumption that its your right to have a child when you want to, where none existed before. Speaking last week, the treasurer said he wants to make it easier to make choices about family size. Hes ruled out a baby bonus, and we are yet to hear his proposals. But for a society to survive, reproduction isnt a choice, its primal. Why are humans now having trouble with the most fundamental act of being alive producing the next generation? What do our young adults need to know when they are considering if and when to embark on parenting? While the data on womens educational and work participation have continued to show improvements over the past century, the graph that is unchanged is the one that plots their fertile years. From her early 20s onwards, a womans fertility declines, and for most of us it is very hard to become pregnant when we reach the mid-30s and beyond. Loading Do the young ones seek out this data or do they get swept up in the trends of their cohort? Are all the crew flying to London and getting jobs in pubs, or heading off on European jaunts? Are they seriously dating? Are they too picky? What of the marriage gap, which describes the new educated womens uninterest in available men who dont match their level of education or achievement? Is she, is he, good enough? It seems many simply start too late because in their 20s they believe they face a gauntlet of prerequisites find the right partner, finish studying, buy a house, land a secure job with parental leave. On the occasion of what would have been his 82nd birthday, Melbourne gathered at a state memorial service to farewell a country kid who made it big, as the premier put it. Harold Mitchell was a pioneer of the advertising media buying industry who loomed large over the corporate and philanthropic worlds before he died on February 10 after complications from surgery. He went from a small sawmill in Stawell to some of the biggest boardrooms and businesses in Australia, Premier Jacinta Allan said. And along that journey, he made a remarkable imprint on our state and our country. No fewer than three former premiers Daniel Andrews, Jeff Kennett and Steve Bracks, and their spouses were among the 500-odd people present paying tribute to Mitchell, who ran the independent media and advertising company Mitchell & Partners as it came to dominate the industry. In November 2022, three months after the video was first broadcast, Shanks house was firebombed. An Alameddine foot soldier has since been charged over the arson attack. Jordan Shanks, who publishes FriendlyJordies, addresses media about the fire at his Bondi home. Credit: OnScene Bondi, Sally Rawsthorne Over a week in January, the ABC reporter repeatedly told Langker that hed been communicating with very serious gang figures who were threatening that something bad is going to happen if a FriendlyJordies video, which featured associates of the notorious Alameddine crime family, wasnt deleted from YouTube, Langker told police. I am scared because I am being threatened. These people have serious reputations and I know they have the capacity to carry out these threats, Langker said in his police statement. On January 19, Langker made a statement to the NSW Polices Organised Crime Squad, expressing fears for his and Shanks safety after a series of calls and texts from the Four Corners reporter. These people kill people, Mahmood Fazal, 33, a former outlaw bikie gang member turned Four Corners reporter, is alleged to have told Kristo Langker, a producer and researcher who works with popular YouTube figure Jordan Shanks, known online as FriendlyJordies. An award-winning ABC reporter passed on menacing messages from an organised crime gang to journalists, one of whom became so fearful he reported the matter to police. Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time. Following his departure from the Mongols in 2016, Fazal has parlayed his unique experiences into a successful media career. Fazal, who has described one of his former roles as being an underworld postman, is no stranger to violence and crime, having previously been the sergeant-at-arms of outlaw bikie gang the Mongols, which has been designated an organised crime group by the Australian Federal Police due to its history of murder, money laundering, extortion and ongoing involvement in the drug trade. Fazal claimed he was only acting as a messenger because he too was being threatened. Ive received direct face-to-face threats from very scary people, Fazal is alleged to have told Langker. What the crime gang was demanding, Langker told police, was the removal of the video. In his police statement, Langker said the ABC reporter revealed hed been summoned to a meeting in January with his underworld contacts. I had a guy who just got out of prison for attempted murder, basically tell me what I need to do, Fazal allegedly told Langker. Apart from 20 tit-for-tat murders, the Alameddine and rival Hamzy (also known as Hamze) clans have engaged in kidnapping, arson and torture as they battle for control of Sydneys lucrative drug trade. Ive been around the biggest gangsters in Australia, Huncho said in Fazals story. The article was written by Fazal about his rapper friend, Huncho, whose real name is Ali Younes. In his police statement, Langker explained that the Alameddine crews alleged displeasure about the FriendlyJordies video was because it featured photos of themselves taken for an August 2021 Rolling Stone article titled Australias Most Dangerous Rapper. One of the relationships Fazal forged was with rapper Ay Huncho, 27, a member of the Alameddine crime family. Reporting on a cocaine cartel for Four Corners last year , Fazal explained on camera that underworld figures would normally never speak to the media but before I was a journalist I was involved in the criminal world it allows me to forge relationships with people who are also involved in that world. In September 2022, Four Corners ran The Postcode Wars , a program featuring teenagers in rival street gangs who were being groomed as footsoldiers for organised crime. Regarded by police as the second-in-command of the Alameddine crime clan, Zakaria is currently facing charges of conspiracy to murder a member of the Hamze clan, supply of a prohibited drug and directing a crime group. Last week, Zakaria was charged with two additional murders. Until his recent extradition from Turkey, Zakaria was on the nations most wanted list. Fazal also wrote that joining Huncho in the cold crosswinds of a thug life, was the rappers best friend Masood Zakaria, a member of Australias most violent street gang, Brothers 4 Life. Ay Huncho, also known as Ali Younes, from the Four Corners episode The Postcode Wars. Talal, jailed for supplying the revolver used to kill NSW police accountant Curtis Cheng, was recently described as NSWs most powerful prisoner. Older brother Rafat, understood to be in Lebanon, is alleged to be the clans kingpin. Make it very clear that the Alameddine organised crime network does not exist. Its a police-made thing, instructed the handler. Having secured the interview, Fazal watched as Tobin interviewed the rapper. Its understood that Huncho was not happy with Tobins decision to include footage of a senior member of the Alameddine crime family, who was directing the rappers answers off-camera. But Huncho was not pleased with the final story, which featured a tense interview between the rapper and reporter Grace Tobin. The ABC flipped the script on me hard and made him look bad, Huncho complained on social media. Mahmood Fazal (left) alongside a man whose identity the ABC blurred. Law enforcement sources identified the man as Mohammed Salim Noorzai. They are watching as Grace Tobin (seated) interviews Ay Huncho. Fazal explained that Huncho didnt trust the mainstream media because of the way his family, the Alameddines, had been represented in the news. On camera, Fazal said a lot of his rapport with the rapper was due to Fazals own background. I was mixed in with the streets when I was young. Fazal had facilitated the participation of his friend Huncho in the story. Yep, Huncho replied, before turning back to the camera. Theres no criminal network. Thats something that the police and the media have made up. Theres no such thing. But in his Rolling Stone article, Fazal wrote: This year, the rapper has made headlines as a member of Sydneys most notorious crime family; the Alameddines. Asked by Fazal how his family had ascended the ranks of the underworld, Huncho replied: Ill say it with my whole chest, its because weve never let any outsiders in and weve stuck to a mad code of loyalty. The identity of Hunchos handler on Four Corners was not revealed, but law enforcement sources claim it was Mohammed Salim Noorzai, 29, who survived an assassination attempt outside a Prospect gym in November 2021. Because of the escalating violence between the Alameddine and Hamzy networks, in December 2020 the commissioner of police took court action to ban Noorzai, Huncho, Zakaria and others from having any contact with Hunchos cousin, alleged kingpin Rafat Alameddine. Noorzai, Zakaria and Huncho all featured in the photo shoot for Fazals Rolling Stone story. The same photos were used in the FriendlyJordies video. When Fazals feature on the rapper came out in 2021, Fazal posted a reel on Instagram showing his friend Huncho waving Fazals cover story in front of an armed police officer from the Raptor Squad, which targets organised crime, particularly among outlaw motorcycle gangs. my bro @ayhuncho making sure my @rollingstone feature is read by those that need to read it. #raptorsquad #nswpolice, posted Fazal, accompanied by a rolling-on- the- floor laughing emoji. In March, Huncho was arrested by the Raptor Squad. He is facing serious kidnap charges, which can attract a 25-year jail term. Detective Superintendent Grant Taylor said of Hunchos recent arrest: That person has always been very closely aligned with individuals that we have been investigating in the Alameddine syndicate for time immemorial. Langker purchased the Rolling Stone photos from a freelance photographer for use in the FriendlyJordies video, Coronation, which was broadcast in August 2022. Three months later, Shanks Bondi house was firebombed. Fire investigators at the scene of the fire at Jordan Shanks-Markovinas home in Bondi in 2022. Credit: Steven Siewert An Alameddine associate was arrested at the end of last year, but Langker told police that the threats over the video only increased after the arrest. Jordan has already been firebombed, what more could it take to take the video down, Fazal is alleged to have told Langker, 24, the writer and producer of the video, in a phone call on January 11. In a heated eight-minute call on January 17, Langker told Fazal: Youre a Four Corners journalist. Youve got to decide what you are. Youre not one of them. From biker gangs to prison Fazal has been open about his controversial past as a high-ranking member of the Mongols. I naturally acclimatised to the violence and honoured the criminal code, where your word is everything, Fazal told The Walkley Magazine in 2018 of his time in the outlaw gang. Fazal reassessed gang life after several friends were murdered because of what he described as the brutal treachery of gang politics. I buried my best friend. He was shot in the face, he told the Australian True Crime podcast in June 2019. The string of violent killings, and the fact he had more friends in prison than on the outside, led Fazal to step away from the life of a gangster, he told the podcast. These days my skin is inked with the names of murdered friends, a portrait of Gaddafi, dates of imprisonment, and a 1%er diamond, Fazal wrote in Vice magazine in 2017. A photo from Mahmood Fazals Instagram feed. The one percenter is a reference to 99 per cent of motorcyclists being law-abiding citizens, implying that one percenters operate outside the law. Fazal wrote that his tattoos form a visual portrait of ideas and events that transfigured me. In winning the 2020 Walkley Award for Media Diversity for his podcast, No Gangsters In Paradise, Fazal talked of his journey from biker gangs to prison to now having a mission to amplify the voices of those marginalised by society. Tapping into his underworld contacts, in May 2023, Fazal fronted a Four Corners investigation into an Australian cocaine cartel. In August, he was given a permanent position as an investigative reporter on the ABCs flagship current affairs program. Fazal recently delved into the highly secretive, illicit world of the methamphetamine trade. Its not worth it Late in the afternoon of January 11, Langker, accompanied by his lawyer Mark Davis, also a former journalist, met Fazal at Bambini Trust, a coffee shop outside Davis law firm in Elizabeth Street, in Sydneys CBD. Fazal again agitated for the removal of the video because of the danger it posed to all of them, including himself. Langker and Davis wanted to go to the authorities. Mahmood didnt want to involve the police, said Langker in his police statement. On January 16, Fazal texted Langker, saying that refusing to take the video down after the firebombing wasnt some kind of weird battle. Shanks already has lost, texted Fazal, and these people tried to kill him and now theyre threatening others, its not worth it. Langker replied in a text, Mahmood this is sounding increasingly sinister. Im starting to take your messages as threats and Im considering going to the police. Three days later, Langker did so. Speaking to the police has long been an anathema to the former gang member. We dont talk to police, thats part of the code, Fazal told the podcast The Felon Show in 2021. In response to questions from the Herald, NSW Police said that the investigation into the threats reported by Langker has stalled due to the reluctance of Fazal to provide a statement. As such this impacted any further investigative avenues, said the police in a written response. Neither the ABC nor Fazal would say it was in his capacity as an ABC reporter that led him to attend meetings and take calls with associates of the Alameddine crime family in January or whether he notified his bosses or the police that serious threats were being made against journalists from other organisations as well as against himself. NSW Police said neither Fazal nor the ABC had reported any threats. The police added that they are satisfied that currently there is no risk to Fazal's safety. In response to detailed questions, an ABC spokesperson said, Mahmood Fazal does extremely challenging, impactful and important public interest journalism for the ABC and the ABC stands by his reporting. For obvious reasons, the ABC wont comment on security threats to our employees, measures we take for their safety or any dealings we may have with police. Fazal declined to answer specific questions. Instead, he demanded his lengthy statement, in which he denied any unlawful conduct and complained of ethnic stereotyping, be published in full or not at all. The connections you seek to draw between myself and events are serious and which I find profoundly offensive, Fazal said. I am troubled that you appear to have relied on the ethnic background of the people to whom you refer in order to imply unlawful conduct on my part. This very much appears to be a case of attempting to stereotype me. If you are in possession of any credible information that suggests I have engaged in any unlawful conduct (which I have not), I suggest you provide that information to the police so they can deal with it properly rather than publishing untested allegations in the paper. With Fazal declining to assist police over the FriendlyJordies threats, the investigation went nowhere and, on February 1, Shanks took down the YouTube video. You win. Were taking down the video, said Shanks without naming any person or group in his statement. Congratulations. You run this city. He also said that it was now a year after his house was firebombed, yet these figures are once again venting, threatening dire consequences if the video isnt taken down. Shanks said he couldnt live with the prospect of the death of innocent people hanging over his conscience. The YouTuber also had a subtle dig at Fazal: The real shame in all of this, of course, is that it would have made a great story for self-proclaimed home of investigative journalism Four Corners, that touts that it exists to serve the public interest. The FriendlyJordies video Coronation related to former NSW deputy premier John Barilaros post-politics job as executive director of Sydney property development company Coronation. Barilaro has featured extensively in Shanks videos. The former NSW Nationals leader successfully sued Google, which owns YouTube, over two videos Shanks published in 2020 wrongly accusing Barilaro of corruption. In October 2021, Shanks settled with Barilaro, paying $100,000 in costs. Andy Nahas, 35, is Coronations builder and former company secretary. Coronation, which is run by Nahas older brother Joe, is a major property player with over $5.3 billion in mixed-use projects in the pipeline. Unwelcome headaches Photographs of Andy Nahas on a night out with Huncho and his Alameddine associates, which featured in Fazals Rolling Stone story, caused headaches for the builder. Far left is Stephen Bou-Abbse, second left is Joseph Vokai. Rapper Ay Huncho (real name Ali Younes) is fifth from left, holding a bag. The tall man in the white T-shirt behind him is Masood Zakaria. Immediately to the right of Ay Huncho is John Ray Bayssari, who has his arm around Andy Nahas. Credit: Rolling Stone In December 2021, Rolling Stone received a demand from Andy Nahas lawyers requesting that the image of Nahas be removed as a matter of urgency as the inclusion of the photograph suggested Nahas was associated with criminal activity. In one of the photos, standing next to Huncho and with his arm around Andy Nahas, is John Ray Bayssari. Last week arrest warrants were issued for Bayssari, 33, and Rafat Alameddine, 30, over one of the worst organised crime assassinations weve seen in Australia, according to Assistant Commissioner Michael Fitzgerald. He said the pair, who are overseas, are alleged to have been behind the callous murders of father and son, Toufik and Salim Hamze. Rapper Ay Huncho, real name Ali Younes (left), with Andy Nahas. Credit: Rolling Stone On Wednesday, police also charged Zakaria with the same murders, which occurred in Guildford in 2021. The magazine complied, but the photos were tabled in NSW Parliament less than a fortnight after they were published in August 2022 by the Herald and appeared in the Coronation video. That photograph that Ive provided to you comes from a story that appeared in Rolling Stone magazine about a rapper, Mr Younes [Huncho]. It shows Mr Andy Nahas, who was the secretary of Coronation Property, with a number of other people, said Labors Adam Searle on August 31, 2022. The photo was shown to NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb and her deputy Dave Hudson, who were appearing at a budget estimates hearing. Hudson quipped that many in the photo were known to him due to their alignment with the Alameddine family. Asked if he was concerned about any connection between Coronation and these people? Hudson replied, I am concerned about any people or any organisation that that particular group is associated with. Searle also noted that Barilaro had lobbied planning officials on Andy Nahas behalf during his brief employment with Coronation. The Herald is not suggesting any wrongdoing on the part of Barilaro or Andy or Joe Nahas. Joe Nahas has previously told the Herald: I doubt any Lebanese person in Merrylands doesnt know, or know of, at least one Alameddine. Living in close proximity, of course we have had social interaction with members of the Alameddine family. Nevertheless, we do not have any association with them. Start the day with a summary of the days most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter. Finance Minister Katy Gallagher and Treasury secretary Steven Kennedy in February. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen But its Gallagher who surprised us. The no-frills finance minister, whom weve spotted in the past shopping for kids pyjamas at her local Target, likes to shut the door for a few hours on budget day and just read. Shell wear something of her mums, so shes with me, and listen to classical music, such as Bach, to get in the zone. Except if I have to go into estimates, then its Lizzo, like Bad Bitch OClock if I have to work myself up, then thats what Im pumping. MUSK READ How much is enough? Its the question confronting Tesla billionaire Elon Musk and his Aussie chair, Robyn Denholm, as they try to convince Tesla shareholders to reinstate Musks $US56 billion ($84.8 billion) pay packet, after the package was kicked into touch by a US judge earlier this year. Last week, Denholm cleared her throat by selling $US17 million worth of Tesla shares, which took her total sale of stock to $US52 million this year, according to Bloomberg stats. Robyn Denholm, Teslas Australian-born chair, is trying to convince shareholders to reinstate Elon Musks massive pay package. Credit: Getty Images Denholm then sang Musks praises in a video to Tesla investors about the proposals to re-approve his mammoth bonus the largest in corporate history and move the companys corporate registry from Delaware to Texas. These proposals are absolutely critical to fuel Teslas future growth and the value of our investment, she said. Loading More critical than slashing 10 per cent of its workforce? There was also some trash-talking of the Delaware judges decision to void the bonus. We dont believe one judges opinion should void the will of millions of votes cast by all of the owners of the company, Denholm said. Lets revisit that opinion. Delaware Court of Chancery chancellor Kathaleen McCormick found that Musk controlled Tesla and there was a deeply flawed process surrounding the boards approval of his compensation. Neither the compensation committee nor the board acted in the best interests of the company when negotiating Musks compensation plan. There is barely any evidence of negotiations at all, McCormicks judgment said. Put another way, it was Denholm and her fellow board members who didnt do their jobs. Rather than negotiate against Musk with the mindset of a third party, the compensation committee worked alongside him, almost as an advisory body, the judge found. McCormick noted Denholm had derived the vast majority of her wealth from Tesla. Denholm herself has been quoted as describing the sale of hundreds of millions of dollars of Tesla shares in recent years as life-changing. No wonder she is such a fan of Musk. The world would be much better off if we had more Elons, Denholm told the Australian Financial Review in 2021. Maybe Denholm needs another Elon. After all, she has suffered along with other Tesla investors. She only fleetingly ranked as a billionaire on the 2022 rich list and fell off entirely last year as the stock plunged. Just as well that she has her $27.5 million penthouse, with Sydney Harbour views, to show for her Tesla travails. In 2022, she was awarded share grants worth $US85 million. STRIFE BOAT While the UKs zombie-like Conservative government is likely to stagger as far as a general election later this year, that wont change the fortunes of ASX-listed Corporate Travel Management and what it hoped would be its lucrative role in the Tories hardline immigration policy. UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has led his government with a hardline immigration policy. Credit: Bloomberg The company was awarded a two-year 1.6 billion ($3.2 billion) contract in April last year to house asylum seekers. This included the now notorious accommodation barge, the Bibby Stockholm, which has become the flashpoint for Prime Minister Rishi Sunaks stop the boats policy. Corporate Travel founder Jamie Pherous admitted at the groups December half-year results announcement that the contract was a bust, and his most recent update indicates things have not improved. Victoria has spent $1.2 billion on providing students with small-group tutoring in schools but is keeping parents in the dark about the programs effectiveness. An evaluation of a similar program in NSW found it had minimal effect on academic improvement in literacy and numeracy, but the Victorian Department of Education has repeatedly blocked the release of its own review of the Tutor Learning Initiative. Small-group tutoring has been running in Victorian schools since 2021, but its difficult to gauge its effectiveness. Credit: iStock Since 2021, the only public justification for the billion-dollar spend has been a one-page Word document of 10 key insights made in an evaluation by Deloitte Access Economics. The Age asked the department for evaluations of the program in November and then applied for the full Deloitte report under freedom of information (FOI) laws in January, but both requests were refused. The FOI request was rejected last month on the basis the document contained cabinet material. Perths inner city could face a catastrophic rental crisis in 18 months unless urgent measures are taken to boost housing supply, a property expert warns. Limnios Property Group managing director James Limnios said currently properties advertised to rent in the city attracted huge numbers of people who were finding it difficult to find somewhere to live. He said the Edith Cowan University city campus, which opens in January 2026, would make the problem worse. Perths inner-city suburbs will not be able to cope with increased demand for rentals when the new ECU campus opens, says James Limnios. Property Council research showed the City of Perth already has the highest concentration of rental properties in Perth, with 14.4 per cent taken up by those on temporary student visas. A Perth wife accused of trying to secretly poison her husband to death has had her trial vacated at the eleventh hour after prosecutors realised the solution she was spiking his water with is not capable of killing someone. Bozena Knapinski, 63, was due to stand trial on Monday in the Supreme Court of Western Australia, accused of the attempted murder of her husband of 39 years, Robert Knapinski, 63 over a period of two years. Bozena Knapinski outside court on Monday. Credit: Heather McNeill Instead, prosecutors revealed they had changed their case against the accused on Friday, dropping the attempted murder charge and amending it to four counts of doing an act likely to cause harm. It came after some confusion over the differences between organic selenium and non-organic selenium, one being more toxic than the other. Victorias hospitals wont have their funding topped up if they run over budget as the debt-ridden state government tries to save money, prompting fears among health leaders that jobs will be at risk or services amalgamated. The Allan government has written to the states health services to spruik the $8.8 billion in spending contained in last weeks budget, but also warn that hospitals have a role to play in reining in rising cost blowouts. Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas says her governments $8.8 billion investment in hospitals comes with a new level of accountability. Credit: Penny Stephens One letter, seen by The Age, made clear there would be no further funding provided beyond what was committed in the budget. The governments tough talk has again stoked fears that Victorias hospital funding shake-up will lead to amalgamations and erode patient care. The messages, sent following the budget, also reveal that Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas has invoked powers under the Health Services Act to issue her own hospital service delivery agreements for the remainder of this financial year. A hospitals statement of priorities is usually negotiated and jointly signed off by its board. Stephen boasts extensive connections at that level and enjoys an outstanding reputation. He has adeptly navigated the political landscape, and with his background, he is poised to excel. In August 2023, Rue said he was still energised in his role at NBN Co, arguably one of the public sectors most demanding and highly remunerated jobs. Rue was Australias best-paid public servant, earning a salary of more than $3 million, some five times more than Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Optus does not publish its salary data, but it is assumed that Rues pay packet will take a significant haircut when he joins Optus. Telecommunications analysts estimate the CEO role pays about $2 million in addition to any performance bonuses. As an immigrant to Australia over 30 years ago, its been a real privilege to work for an organisation thats providing so much benefit to Australia, the Irish-born Rue said last August. I started here in 2014, and I was very much part of the team that built out a plan for how were going to build a network by 2020. Theres a lot more to be done. It remains an exciting job, and its a privileged job. Theres almost no better time to be in this industry, and I often say to our people that the best years are ahead of us, and I still think thats the case for NBN. So what changed? A routine software upgrade gone wrong on November 8 roiled not only Optus but the entire telecommunications sector, and it is still doing so six months later. The resulting 13-hour outage, which crippled hospitals, banks, EFTPOS payment systems and calls to emergency services, trashed Optus reputation and cost the jobs of then-CEO Bayer Rosmarin, head of networks Lambo Kanagaratnam and others. Optus also paid a $1.5 million fine after Australias media watchdog said the telco had committed a large-scale public safety breach. Former Optus chief Kelly Bayer Rosmarin being grilled in the Senate in November 2023. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen In Rue, a former News Corp executive, Optus has landed a steady hand. That represents somewhat the antithesis of former boss Bayer Rosmarin, who was quick to get flustered and lash out if she thought she wasnt being treated fairly. In Rue, Optus has also landed someone unafraid to slash jobs or embark on a restructure. Under his leadership, NBN has cut 500 positions on average each year since 2020. At his core, hes a numbers man, a bean counter, said a rival telco executive who was not authorised to speak publicly. Hes a realist when it comes to the financial side of the business, so if Optus was to go through a restructure, hed be a good, pragmatic person to lead that. If tough decisions need to be made, hell make them. Those tough decisions may be necessary if parent company Singtel forges ahead with plans to sell Optus. Singtel has said it would explore all options to maximise shareholder value for Optus, amid discussions with Canadian private equity giant Brookfield to offload a 20 per cent stake in the business. Those talks are believed to be on hold. Optus declined to comment. Telecommunications expert Paul Budde. Credit: Singtel bought Optus in 2001, whose current valuation is estimated to sit between $16 billion and $18 billion. Optus is certainly not the golden child if you look at its earnings performance compared with other Singtel business units, the unnamed rival telco executive said. Analyst Paul Budde agreed, saying Rues appointment could facilitate Singtels desire to sell Optus by priming the company for a sale. A prevalent issue facing all telcos is the decline in their share prices as the market increasingly perceives them as utilities rather than tech companies, he said. Stephens experience in running the NBN as a utility positions him well to bring his expertise to Optus. Rues experience with sport he has chaired the Melbourne Storm rugby league team, helping to resurrect the club will also bode well for Optus aspiration to be a serious player in the bruising and lucrative world of sporting rights. For Rue, the Optus gig in some sense represents his first true crack at a CEO job in which he was the first choice. Loading Rue was second choice to lead NBN Co, after senior government ministers blocked the appointment of J.B. Rousselot, who was the boards preferred candidate. Rousselot co-owned a 1923-built boat with Malcolm Turnbull and was close friends with the former prime minister, leading to perceptions of jobs for mates and effectively ending Rousselots chances for the role. Rousselot now leads New Zealand telco Chorus. And what next for Gladys Berejiklian? The former NSW premier was widely tipped to be an internal frontrunner for Optus CEO, alongside its managing director of customer solutions, Matt Williams. Berejiklian didnt put her hand up for the role, according to sources inside Optus, and was not a part of the CEO selection process. She may never have stood a chance, having been found corrupt by the NSW ICAC last year, a ruling that is still under appeal. Former NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian is a top Optus executive. Credit: Oscar Colman Those inside Optus insist it is business as usual for now for Berejiklian, and that she will continue in her role under the new leadership. The rival telco executive, however, suggested Berejiklian had failed to impress while leading Optus enterprise division, even when putting aside the corruption findings against her. In two years they havent done anything, the unnamed executive said of Optus enterprise arm. They havent gained market share. Its clearly not working. When you think about what a rock-star hire she was, they changed the corporate structure around her to put her into that job, but she has not done a vast amount. And then, if you look at the ICAC stuff, Stephen Rue would have a low level of patience for that sort of thing. He likes quiet achievers and good steady hands. Russian leader Vladimir Putin has removed Sergei Shoigu from his longtime position as defence minister and replaced him with a civilian. He did, however, appoint Shoigu to lead the countrys Security and Defence Council, a consultative body that advises the president, in a major shake-up of the Kremlins security team, the Kremlin said. Putin nominated former vice prime minister Andrei Belousov, an economist who previously served as economic development minister, to replace Shoigu, according to a statement posted by the Federation Council, Russias upper house of parliament, on its official Telegram channel. Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, and then Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu attend a meeting with the top military brass in Moscow, Russia. Credit: AP The choice signalled Putins desire for a defence chief who would assert tight control over giant increases in military spending to finance Russias brutal war against Ukraine, and to curb endemic corruption in the agency, which had appeared to hobble Russian forces early in the invasion when new conscripts often seemed ill-equipped. The appointment, announced on the Sunday of a four-day holiday weekend in Russia, was carefully calibrated in tone to not suggest seismic changes amid the protracted war in Ukraine or to signal the reassignment of Shoigu as a demotion. This major capitulation reflects a new level of political weakness, reflected by reports of deep concerns about the progress of the war among Hamas leaders earlier this year, says Hussein Ibish, a veteran resident scholar at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington. Palestinians in Gaza celebrated when they first heard that this Hamas concession had led to a ceasefire offer, in a proposal brokered by Egypt, Qatar and the US. And when Israel rejected this proposal, the cheering stopped. While the Palestinians of Gaza continue to suffer dreadfully at the hands of Israel, theyre not exactly thanking Hamas for the experience. Opinion polls show that Hamas was not popular as a political entity among Gazans before the war. Its popularity picked up when it attacked Israel, but its support since has fallen back to, or below, pre-war levels. In the case of one well-established survey series, by the Palestinian Centre for Policy and Survey Research, for example, support for Hamas was 38 per cent last September, increased to 42 per cent in December and by March was down to 34 per cent. The same poll showed that 80 per cent of Gazans said a family member had been killed in the fighting. Which probably helps explain why Gazan support for a diplomatic two-state solution surged, from 35 per cent to 62 per cent, between December and March. They want an end to the war. Israels UN ambassador Gilad Erdan theatrically inserted a miniature copy of the UN charter into a transparent paper shredder after three-quarters of the worlds governments have just cast a sympathy vote for the Palestinians at the UN. Credit: YouTube/United Nations This devastation has invited Palestinians to ask: What did Hamas think it was doing?, Ibish writes for Canadas Globe and Mail. What happened to my family, my home, my job, my food, my drinking water? What is to become of us? What have you done? Neither Israel nor Hamas is winning. And, measured against their stated aims, they cannot win. Netanyahu has said that Israel will continue fighting until Hamas is eliminated until absolute victory, and that every last Hamas fighter is a dead man. Hamas is a resistance movement. Its in its name, which is an Arabic acronym for the Islamic Resistance Movement. As long as there is Israel, there will be Hamas. You can kill its fighters, but as long as it has a cause it will regenerate. Three months ago, Netanyahu said that Israels forces has killed most of the estimated 30,000 Hamas fighters, destroyed three-quarters of its battalions 18 of 24. Now he says only four battalions remain, all in the southern city of Rafah. Yet on the weekend Israel said that Hamas fighters had re-emerged in the north of Gaza, where theyd supposedly been eliminated in the earliest phase of the Israeli bombardments. US President Joe Biden and Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Credit: AP Israelis defence force said that it was attacking Hamas terror targets in Jabalia and the Gaza City neighbourhood of Zeitoun. Five Israeli soldiers had been killed in fierce fighting. Credible, independent military analysts have said that Israels forces have been waging just about the most effective urban warfare possible against an entrenched enemy. Yet after seven months of intensive Israeli assaults from the air, ground and sea, Hamas is far from subdued in the north or the south. Hamas short-term aim in the October 7 attack was to goad Israel into over-reacting. Israels relentless and disproportionate reaction, Hamas figured, would turn the world against it. But Hamas ultimate goal is the eradication of Israel and the death of every last Jew. Its charter states that there is no alternative to a fully sovereign Palestinian State on the entire national Palestinian soil, with Jerusalem as its capital. Loading The only way that Hamas could achieve this vision would be if Iran and its proxies launched a full-scale war against Israel and the US decided to sit it out. But weve seen that Iran is not interested, at least not now. And the US would defend Israel against Iran as effectively as it did last month. To be considered for a place on the list, complete the online form and provide your companys settlement volume, headcount and revenue figures from the past two financial years. All figures provided must relate to a brokerages operations across Australia only. Housing is a big priority for the Albanese government, and it will be a big focus of the budget, Chalmers said. Australia needs to build more homes more quickly and thats what this substantial investment will help to deliver. Rep. Henry Cuellar, a Laredo Democrat, is charged with accepting bribes from the government of Azerbaijan and a Mexican bank in return for official favors. Mark Schiefelbein/Associated Press A Houston woman has admitted facilitating payoffs from the government of Azerbaijan to U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar and his wife, the Express-News has learned. Irada Akhoundova, 67, secretly pleaded guilty on May 1 to acting as an agent for Azerbaijan between September 2020 and January 2021 without registering as required by the Foreign Agents Registration Act. In her plea agreement, which was unsealed Monday, she also acknowledged facilitating a $60,000 bribe to Cuellar's wife. The payment was among $360,000 in bribes that Azerbaijan allegedly paid in return for the congressman's assistance in influencing legislation and U.S. policy to benefit Azerbaijan. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Akhoundova, a native of Azerbaijan, faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, but under her plea deal she likely will be sentenced to significantly less in return for cooperating with the Justice Department. She is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 18 in U.S. District Court in Houston. RELATED: Two accused middlemen plead guilty in Henry Cuellar bribery case Akhoundova has long been an advocate for establishing trade and cultural relations between her homeland and the United States. She is president of the Houston-Baku Sister City Association Baku is the capital of Azerbaijan and she has helped diplomats and government officials from that country establish relationships with U.S. lawmakers, according to public records. Asked about her plea and whether she is cooperating with the Justice Department, Louis Anthony Pellegrino III, an attorney for Akhoundova, said: "I wouldn't be able to comment on that." Akhoundova is the third person to plead guilty in the Cuellar investigation. Two longtime associates of the congressman South Texas political consultant Colin Strother and San Antonio businessman Florencio "Lencho" Rendon have admitted to helping Cuellar launder bribes. Both men have agreed to cooperate with the prosecution. Advertisement Article continues below this ad RELATED: Cuellar bribery prosecution might involve classified info Cuellar, 68, and his wife, Imelda, 67, were indicted by a federal grand jury on May 1 in connection with two alleged bribery schemes, one involving Azerbaijan's state-run oil company, the other Banco Azteca in Mexico. The bribes paid by the oil company and the bank from 2014-21 totaled nearly $600,000 according to the indictment. The Cuellars have said they are innocent of the charges. On the same day they were indicted, Akhoundova appeared in federal court in Houston to enter her guilty plea. U.S. Magistrate Judge Dena Palermo accepted the plea during a hearing closed to the public, newly unsealed documents show. Akhoundova was released on her own recognizance and was ordered to have no contact with a list of potential witnesses, whose names were redacted from public documents. Advertisement Article continues below this ad 'Recruiting Henry Cuellar' According to Cuellar's indictment and other documents, the Cuellars flew to Turkey and then to Baku in January 2013 on a trip arranged by the Houston-based Turquoise Council of Americans and Eurasians, which was run by Kemal Oksuz, a businessman of Turkish origin. The trip cost $26,125, and Cuellar obtained approval for it from the House Committee on Ethics Travel Regulations, the indictment states. While they were abroad, the Cuellars met with the president of Azerbaijan and, after lunch, headed to the offices of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic for a briefing and dinner. Shortly after the couple flew home, "Azerbaijani officials discussed recruiting Henry Cuellar to promote Azerbaijan's interests in the United States Congress," the indictment says. A few months later, in May 2013, the Turquoise Council and another nonprofit were involved in arranging a controversial trip to Azerbaijan attended by 10 members of Congress, including some from Texas. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Cuellar didn't go on the second trip, but he did meet with the Azerbaijani ambassador in Washington D.C., Elin Sulemanov, according to a news release Cuellar's office issued at the time. The Laredo Democrat also began expressing greater interest in the former Soviet republic, which is in the Caucasus region bordering the Caspian Sea. 'El Jefe' The indictment says Cuellar struck a deal with the Azerbaijan state oil company to advance its interests in Congress and with the U.S. executive branch. He and his wife allegedly set up a series of "sham" consulting arrangements, using middlemen and front companies to funnel bribes to Imelda Cuellar. The initial payment of $60,000 flowed in 2014 from the Turquoise Council to a shell company controlled by Imelda Cuellar, according to Akhoundova's plea agreement. The congressman's wife supposedly was being paid for strategic consulting and advising services" but in fact did little or no "legitimate work," the indictment states. In November 2014, Imelda Cuellar allegedly submitted a falsified invoice to the Turquoise Council saying, "All work is complete!" The council wired the $60,000 money it had received from the Azerbaijani oil company to her bank account in Laredo the next day, according to the indictment. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Akhoundova believed that disbursing the $60,000 was in the interests of the oil company and the government of Azerbaijan, the plea deal said. In 2017, she facilitated the creation of another company used to steer bribes to the Cuellars, according to her plea deal. The conduct for which Akhoundova pleaded guilty, however, involved a request from Azerbaijani government representatives in 2020 to influence U.S. public opinion in favor of Azerbaijan in its conflict with Armenia over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region. The Azerbaijani government wired her $10,000 for that purpose, and she used it to pay for outdoor advertising, according to her plea deal. This was illegal because she had not registered with the U.S. as an agent of a foreign government. Henry Cuellar is accused of acting as an agent of Azerbaijan with respect to legislation on U.S. security and economic development programs, the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the immigration status of an Azerbaijani citizen, and the public promotion of Azerbaijan as an ally and strategic partner of the United States, the indictment says. Azerbaijani officials were voluble in expressing appreciation, according to the indictment. The Azerbaijan ambassador, Elin Sulemanov, addressed Cuellar in texts and emails as "Boss," and in March 2017, he texted: You are the best El Jefe! Yes sir," Cuellar replied, according to the indictment. In January 2022, FBI agents conducted a search of Cuellar's home and office in Laredo, seeking evidence and ultimately leading to his indictment. Akhoundova 's plea deal links her to the Turquoise Council. Other public documents connect her to the Assembly of the Friends of Azerbaijan, a Houston-based nonprofit that, like the Turquoise Council, came under scrutiny for its role in the May 2013 congressional trip to Azerbaijan. Akhoundova is pictured among those attending the three-day conference in Baku, where the topics discussed included development of natural gas pipelines through the Caucasus region and Turkey. In one photo, she posed with U.S. Rep. James Bridenstine of Oklahoma. That trip was investigated by the nonpartisan Office of Congressional Ethics, which found that the state oil company of Azerbaijan provided hundreds of thousands of dollars to the Turquoise Council and the Assembly of the Friends of Azerbaijan to pay for U.S. lawmakers and their aides to travel to Baku. Oksuz, the Turkish businessman, pleaded guilty in 2018 to lying to a congressional committee when he said the Turquoise Council funded the trip. He admitted the Azerbaijani oil company was the actual source of the money. Oksuz was sentenced to time served about three months plus two years' probation and a $20,000 fine. Akhoundova was not charged in connection with the trip. 'So much like home' Akhoundova holds a bachelor's degree from Baku State University and was a high school counselor and language teacher in Azerbaijan, according to a brief biography on the website of the Houston-Baku Sister City Association. "Her primary professional experience is in education, languages, cross cultural orientation and project/event management," the bio says. "She is fluent in English, Russian and Azeri, and has life and work experience in various countries, including Azerbaijan, Spain, Saudi Arabia and the United States. She is married and has one daughter and two grandchildren." Speaking notes for the Honourable Marc Miller, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship at the closing press conference for the Forum of Ministers Responsible for Immigration Speech Im happy to be joined by Jeremy Harrison from the Government of Saskatchewan [Minister of Trade and Export Development, Immigration and Career Training, Innovation Saskatchewan, and Tourism Saskatchewan], as the co-chair of this forum. Check against delivery. This speech has been translated in accordance with the Government of Canadas official languages policy and edited for posting and distribution in accordance with its communications policy. Bonjour tout le monde. Good afternoon, everyone. I would first like to acknowledge that we are gathered on the traditional, unceded territory of the KanienKeha:ka (Ga-niyen-ge-HAA-ga), which has always been a meeting place for many Indigenous Peoples and other Tiohtia:ke [Joh-jaw-gay] / Mooniyang / Montreal communities. Im happy to be joined by Jeremy Harrison from the Government of Saskatchewan [Minister of Trade and Export Development, Immigration and Career Training, Innovation Saskatchewan, and Tourism Saskatchewan], as the co-chair of this forum. Ive had the pleasure of being back in my hometown and riding for the past couple of days, meeting with my provincial and territorial counterparts from all across the country. We got right down to business today, sharing our experiences and ideas on important topicsmany of which youve been covering extensively lately. We discussed how we plan to get the balance right on different priorities, such as: Factoring temporary residents into immigration levels planning in ways that continue to spread the benefits of immigration across Canada while taking into account capacity pressures on communities; Strengthening Francophone immigration in minority language communities; Reducing the overall number of temporary residents in Canada while acknowledging the important role they play in regional immigration priorities, including the Provincial Nominee Program; Implementing reforms and strengthening the integrity of our International Student Program, so Canada continues to benefit from the social, cultural and economic contributions that international students makein sustainable numbers aligned with planned temporary resident levels; Continuing to offer safe harbour to some of the worlds most vulnerable people and families, as well as those arriving here seeking asylum, through federal supports and closer collaboration across governments. We agreed to having a coordination table on how to best support asylum seekers. To be clear, we are willing to coordinate with our counterparts on transfers and supports, however any movement of asylum seekers will require their consent; Recognizing the importance of having good data to ensure we understand labour market needs and communities capacity to support newcomers. Thats why Ive asked my counterparts to share any data on the TR population in their jurisdiction, rate of TR to PR transitions within the Provincial Nominee Program, and the capacity pressures within their communities. Finally, we discussed better managing Canadas response to humanitarian crises, through the new federal policy framework thats being developed as well as through early communication on initiatives that may impact jurisdictions among other topics. We also discussed how to balance the need to retain temporary workers with in-demand skills and help them transition to permanent residence, with our duty to safeguard job opportunities for Canadians and existing permanent residents. On that issue, weve made significant progress recently. As my department announced this week, were working with Manitoba on a temporary measure to extend the open work permits of approximately 6,700 temporary residents, giving the province more time to process their applications under the Provincial Nominee Program while they bolster their processing capacity. This measure will not only boost Manitobas retention rates and economic prosperitybut it also supports the governments priority of helping workers already in Canada become permanent residents. We are open to exploring options with other provinces and territories to transition a greater portion of current temporary residents to permanent residence and address their labour market needs. The federal government/we are committed to ongoing collaboration with provinces and territories to address immigration opportunities and challenges. Our immigration levels will be finalized in the coming months, and we will communicate the levels for 20252027 accordingly. Stabilizing immigration will require difficult decisions, but were convinced that our goal is important: to preserve the integrity of our system, and ensure that immigrants are properly supported. I appreciate my colleagues thoughtful and helpful comments, and remain committed to working in partnership with the provinces, territories and municipalities. I am / Were happy to take your questions. Friday, May 10, 2024 at 3:44PM The deep-seated disgust many felt towards Apple's latest iPad Pro commercial is understandable. A montage of cherished creative toolsa piano, paints, a record player, etc.being obliterated by a hydraulic press is an alarming image. Especially considering the piano's potential lifespan dwarfs the fleeting relevance of a new gadget. The message we got was this: Apple, a tech giant, is crushing everything beautiful and human in favour of a sleek, but ultimately disposable, device. They wanted us to think about the device's thinnessone of its biggest selling pointsbut it came at a cost of what looked like we're going to destroy everything else you use for creativity and expression. The ad's tone-deafness is compounded by its narrow view of technology. New doesn't always equal better. There's a place for the "crushed" technology: a TV offers a more enjoyable viewing experience than an iPad for stationary use. Record players provide a unique physical experience and foster social interaction at record stores. Arcade games create shared social experiences. The iPad, at its best, complements these experiences, not replaces them. Imagine a professional carpenter relying solely on a multi-tool. While an iPad can be a powerful creative tool, it's unlikely to replace an entire artist's toolkit. This ad reflects a concerning trend in Silicon Valleya disdain for the past, seen as outdated rather than valuable. This mentality is partially driven by the need to constantly sell new products. Building a durable device wouldn't incentivize frequent upgrades. Apple, in fact, has a history of planned obsolescence, like deliberately slowing down older iPhones, and making repairs difficult. The commercial portrays technology as disposable, a sentiment underscored by the lack of reaction from Apple during the ad's creation process. Reza Sixo Safai's reversal of the ad, where creative tools spring from the iPad, highlights the missed opportunity. The iPad's creative potential could have been the ad's focus. Apple eventually apologized, acknowledging they "missed the mark." Creativity has always been central to their brand, and the iPad is designed to empower creators. Unfortunately, the "Crush!" ad did the opposite, alienating a core audience. Source: 1 + 2 A human skull was found by a fisherman in Leon Creek Greenway, according to San Antonio police. Tetra Images/Getty Images/Tetra images RF The Bexar County Medical Examiner's Office is working to determine the identity of a human skull found on the Northwest Side. According to San Antonio police, a person fishing in the Leon Creek Greenway on Sunday discovered the skull submerged in water and reported it to police. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The medical examiner looked at the remains and ruled it a sudden apparent death, police said. The ME also said it looked like the skull belonged to an older person. Titan America to be listed in US equity market Suzanne Starbuck By 13 May 2024 Titan Cement International has announced its intention to proceed with the IPO of its US business (Titan America), with the aim of raising funds that will facilitate the groups and Titan Americas future growth. Titan America, a US$1.6bn sales business, is a leading and fully integrated player in the high-growth economic regions of the US East Coast, with operations and leading market positions across Florida, the Mid-Atlantic, and Metro New York/New Jersey. According to the company, the listing is anticipated to take place on a stock exchange in New York and will be accompanied by an IPO of a minority stake, consistent with the typical percentage of company stock sold in US IPOs, without creating any incremental tax burden. The transaction is expected to be completed in early 2025. Published under A man was arrested Monday after police say he crashed into an SAPD patrol vehicle on the Northwest Side. William Luther A man was arrested Monday after crashing into a San Antonio police patrol car on the Northwest Side, officers said. The crash happened around 6 a.m. in the 5400 block of De Zavala Road. The officer was hit as they were driving through the parking lot of IHOP. A preliminary police report states the officer was broadsided by a Dodge Ram. The driver, 40-year-old Juan Ybarra, admitted to falling asleep behind the wheel and being under the influence, according to the report. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Police said the officer inside the patrol car had some pain from the crash but is expected to be OK. A local family said they have not been given any answers on how 20-year-old Christopher Ayala became near death less than 24 hours after being taken to the Hamilton County Jail. The family is also seeking answers on why charges against him were abruptly dismissed in court the day after he was taken from the jail to Erlanger Hospital. Attorney Neal Pinkston, who represents the Ayala family, said Christopher Ayala is considered brain dead and is not expected to live long. Attorney Pinkston has written letters to District Attorney Coty Wamp and Sheriff Austin Garrett seeking answers. The letter to DA Wamp says: "I represent the family of Christopher Ayala. On April 27, 2024, Christopher Ayala was arrested by HCSO Deputy Cody Widdows #3226 for Improper Use of the 911 system. Less than 24 hours after his arrest, while in custody at the Hamilton County Jail and Detention Center, Ayala was transported to Erlanger Hospital. The Ayala family has never been told what happened to Christopher while in HCSO custody. His doctors have informed the family that he is brain dead and does not have long to live. While he was only arrested on April 27, 2024, Christophers case appeared in Hamilton County General Sessions Court on April 29, 2024, under Case No: 1945085. The case was then dismissed by your office. The Ayala family was never informed why Christophers case suddenly appeared on the docket or why it was abruptly dismissed. On behalf of the family, we would like to be informed why his case was handled in such an odd procedural fashion. More importantly, we ask that an independent law enforcement agency, other than HCSO, be tasked by you to investigate the arrest, detention, and hospitalization of Christopher Ayala. I look forward to your timely response to my correspondence. Letter to Sheriff Garrett: I represent the family of Christopher Ayala. HCSO Deputy Cody Widdows, Badge #3226 arrested Christopher Ayala (DOB: 5/6/2001) for Improper Use of the 911 emergency system. While in custody at the Hamilton County Jail and Detention Center, something happened to Christopher that required his transport to Erlanger Hospital. His family was never notified by your department that he had suffered any medical episode or that he needed immediate medical attention. After being notified by Erlanger management that Christopher was a patient there, Christophers father called the Hamilton County Jail and Detention Center on several occasions trying to obtain vital information as to what happened to his son. One HCSO employee said Christopher had never been booked into the jail and had no idea of his whereabouts. At present, Christopher has been declared brain dead and does not appear to have long to live. I am requesting that your department preserve the following potential evidence, to include but not limited to, the following: 1. Any and all body cam and dash cam footage of all officer(s) on scene at the arrest of Christopher Ayala and his subsequent transport to the Hamilton County Jail and Detention Center; 2. Any and all documents related to the arrest and detention of Christopher Ayala into the Hamilton County Jail and Detention Center; 3. A detailed list of the names and badge numbers of all HCSO Officers and HCSO civilian employees who interacted with Christopher Ayala from the time of his arrest until his hospitalization; 4. Any and all documents related to the time of Christopher Ayalas arrest, time of his presentation to the Hamilton County Jail, time HCSO learned he required immediate medical attention, time EMS was requested to transport Christopher to Erlanger Hospital, and time Christopher left the Hamilton County Jail and Detention Center; 5. Any and all videos from the Hamilton County Jail and Detention Center depicting Christopher Ayalas time in booking and custody until his release to be transported to Erlanger Hospital. From personal experience, I know that in the past HCSO has suffered catastrophic data loss of videos and other materials. Such catastrophic data loss is subject of a current federal lawsuit pending in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee. A federal magistrate as well as a United States District Court Judge have commented in various orders about the catastrophic data loss. I sincerely hope you take this preservation request seriously and that it is treated with due respect and handled by those with the most competence to prevent any data loss. In another odd twist, Christophers case was docketed in the Hamilton County General Sessions Court under Case No: 1945085 less than forty-eight (48) hours after his arrest and then dismissed by the Hamilton County District Attorney Generals Office. As a result, I am requesting your department preserve any communications via text, phone calls, in person communications, or email correspondence with the District Attorney Generals Office, District Attorney General, Assistant District Attorney Generals or other DAs employees about setting this case on the docket and its subsequent dismissal. I look forward to your prompt response to my correspondence. In addition to your office, I will also be sending copies of this correspondence to the Hamilton County Attorneys Office as well as Hamilton County Commission Chairman Jeff Eversole. A series created and produced by UTC students in an honors-level Storytelling with Podcasts course shows that with conversations and sharing stories, you find the humanity in each other. Tennessee Valley Crossroads, comprised of seven edited conversations between UTC students of differing viewpoints and backgrounds, will debut on Monday on WUTC-FM 88.1the National Public Radio station on the UTC campus. The project brought UTC classmates together to have candid, unscripted conversations, fostering empathy and breaking down barriers between students from different cultures and backgrounds. To listen to the podcast on WUTC, tune in to Morning Edition on Mondays at 7:45 a.m. and 9:45 a.m. and All Things Considered at 4:29 p.m. Under the direction of UTC Podlab Manager and course instructor Will Davis, the students came to the UTC PodLab and opened up about their lives, sharing stories of their families, politics and hopes for the future. With conversations and sharing stories, you find the humanity in each other, he said. Youre looking for similarities. If its a debate, youre coming from a place of division and disagreement. Mr. Davis said he saw the value in a podcast that could connect students with one another. Were trying to create a culture of empathy and understanding among studentsand thats what this is about, he said. Its a David and Goliath battle but the idea is that its one small step. The first episode on WUTC features a conversation between communication student Dixie Edmondson and entrepreneurship student Andrew Meert, who discuss the effects of technology on Gen Z and Gen Alpha. When the recording sessions had concluded, Mr. Davis said he noticed a change in his students. After they had done the recordings, the students told me that when they would come to class, they put their computers and phones away, he said. They came in and would talk to each other and be present with one another. According to Mr. Davis, the inspiration behind Tennessee Valley Crossroads was StoryCorps One Small Step, a 2022 initiative. The UTC Podlab was one of six sites nationwide selected to host a project that brought together two strangers with opposing political views for a 50-minute discussion about something other than politics. To listen to the podcast, tune in to the WUTC-FM 88.1 Morning Edition on Mondays at 7:45 a.m. and 9:45 a.m. and All Things Considered at 4:29 p.m. Click the link here to listen to previous episodes. A Red Bank firefighter has been arrested after the Sheriff's Office said he attacked his wife and her parents. Tyler Austyn Traub, 29, was charged with reckless endangerment and three counts of aggravated assault. Deputies responded on Saturday night to 10533 Hunter Trace Dr. on a domestic disorder. A woman had told a dispatcher that her husband came home drunk and choked her. She said she was trying to get a gun away from her husband. The dispatcher then heard what sounded like two shots being fired. As deputies got out of their car, they heard cries of "Help me. Hurry!" They ran to what appeared to be a group of people on the ground fighting. Deputies took Traub into custody after others at the scene said he was on the ground trying to get a gun. A gun was located that appeared to be covered in blood. It was found just a few feet from where the fight took place. His wife said they had been having issues with their marriage for about a year. She said they had been arguing about text messages that night. She said Traub went to his side job mowing yards, then he later called and said he hated her and he was not coming home that night. She said she feared for her safety so she began calling around to try to find him. She said his parents did not know where he was. The wife said Traub showed up about 20 minutes after midnight. She said when he began coming up the steps to the front door, she opened it and told him to leave. She said he eventually was able to kick in the basement door. She said he went to their dresser and began to try to put together his pistol. She said he shoved her into a window after she tried to get the gun from him. She said he then began choking her, almost causing her to black out. She said she got on all fours and was able to call her mother, saying, "Help." The wife said her parents arrived, and her father began walking up the steps while armed with a gun. Traub then punched the father in the face, knocking him onto the sidewalk. She said Traub then jumped on her father and began strangling him. She said the father then pulled the gun from his pocket and fired two shots in the air. She said as the two men struggled for the gun, she and her mother jumped on the two, trying to stop the fight. Deputies then arrived. The couple's young son slept through the entire incident, it was stated. Parkridge Health System announced Caroline F. Burris, MBA, ACHE, as the new chief executive officer for Parkridge East Hospital. Ms. Burris comes to Parkridge East from HCA Florida Ft. Walton-Destin Hospital where she has served as chief operating officer and ethics and compliance officer since 2022. Caroline will bring strategic, valuable leadership to Parkridge East Hospital, said Chris Cosby, president and chief executive officer of Parkridge Health System. Her leadership experience and familiarity with HCA Healthcare, especially in womens services, will help us to continue providing exceptional care for our patients, colleagues and community." Ms. Burris has been part of the HCA Healthcare since 2009 and has served in numerous strategic and leadership roles, including a four-year term as associate administrator and co-ethics and compliance officer for TriStar Summit in Nashville. She has also served as chief operating officer and ethics and compliance officer of HCA Healthcares The Womens Hospital of Texas in Houston. Ms. Burris earned a Master of Business Administration from Northeastern University following her undergraduate studies at Belmont University in Nashville. My Christian faith is paramount for me and is the foundation from which I lead, Ms. Burris said. I am excited for this opportunity to meet the fantastic colleagues and physicians at Parkridge East and to become an active member of the community. Ms. Burris has previously served on numerous civic and faith-based boards and committees, including those whose work focuses on womens health. Springtime is officially here, and many of us are transitioning from our winter to spring and summer wardrobes! This is always the time of year when our closets make the most drastic transitions, replacing some of our long pants with shorts and sweaters with tank tops. Spring weather has us dressing for all kinds of occasions a bit differently, from brunches with friends to family outings. Another occasion you must dress differently for in the springtime is a date! If youre ready to put yourself out there and go on some fun and flirty dates this spring, here are some outfit ideas to get you started. Wide-leg jeans and a halter top I love the look of this outfit, especially for dates out to more casual places like a neighborhood bar. A cute halter top will keep you looking and feeling cool, while the wide-leg jeans add a little extra flair. You can also pair this outfit with a wide array of shoes, from flats to heels. A long sleeve short dress and heels If you and your date will be going somewhere more formal, youll want to bust out your favorite springtime dresses. For this time of year, Id recommend going with a short or midi dress with long sleeves, so you can sport something light and cute and not have to worry about bringing a jacket. Throw on a pair of heels to accentuate your legs, grab a cute bag, and youre good to go. Sign up for Chip Chicks newsletter and get stories like this delivered to your inbox. This 18-year-old girl has a fraternal twin sister, and they decided pretty recently to take a DNA test for fun. They thought the test would be neat and able to tell them more about their similarities as well as differences. Actually, their grandparents had suggested the test to them first, and then bought the test for them too. Their mom and dad were unaware at the time that this all happened. The test results came back, and the results made absolutely no sense to them, as it says she and her sister share no DNA, which means they arent related at all. Her twins background came back as entirely Western and Eastern European, which lined up, as their family members are from Austria, Croatia, and Germany. However, her background said predominantly Scandinavian, which was so puzzling to her, especially since that didnt come up on her twins results. And we had no matched DNA, she explained. Which clearly seemed impossible. We were literally twins, we have to share DNA. My twin said they must have mixed my sample up with someone else. We ended up contacting the company, and my twin and I took a test again. It was the same result. Both my twin and I were really confused. We told our grandparents, and they just said that was interesting and said nothing else. My twin said we should tell our parents and see if they had ever done a genetic test, or if any of our siblings had, and then we could see if somehow ours were still right. Sign up for Chip Chicks newsletter and get stories like this delivered to your inbox. Brent Salter, owner and founder of Amigo Walking Tours, conducts a tour of the Tower Life Building this month. The building will close at the end of May so workers can begin a two-year renovation project to convert a large portion of the historic structure into a 244-unit apartment complex. Robin Jerstad Brent Salter, of Amigo Walking Tours, talks about the historical significance of the Tower Life Building during a recent tour of the iconic downtown structure. For the past few weeks, Salter has led tours of the building, which will close soon for a two-year renovation project to convert it into a multi-use facility that will include apartments, retail space and restaurants. Robin Jerstad Visitors walk through the underground tunnel that can be accessed through the basement of the Tower Life Building and goes underneath South St. Mary's Street. The building's tunnel system closed in 1975, but was reopened recently for the paid public tours organized by Amigo Walking Tours. Robin Jerstad Brent Salter, owner and founder of Amigo Walking Tours, leads a tour of the Tower Life Building recently. The building will close soon for a two-year renovation project to convert it into a multi-use facility that will include apartments, retail space and restaurants. Robin Jerstad The architectural detail of the Tower Life Building is visible from the street level. The iconic office building, which opened in 1929, will close soon for a two-year renovation project to convert it into a multi-use facility that will include apartments, retail space and restaurants. Robin Jerstad The ornate, arched elevator lobby of the Tower Life Building is shown during a recent tour of the historic structure. Paid public tours of the building have been taking place for the past few weeks. The building will close soon for a lengthy renovation project. Robin Jerstad Brent Salter, of Amigo Walking Tours, leads a tour of the Tower Life Building this month. The 95-year-old office building will close at the end of the month so workers can begin a two-year renovation project to convert the historic structure into a multi-use facility. Robin Jerstad Brent Salter conducts a tour of the historic Tower Life Building this month. The building will close at the end of May for a two-year renovation project to convert the iconic structure into a multi-use facility. Robin Jerstad A first floor space of the Tower Life Building facing South St. Mary's Street that once housed the city's first Sears store is now an empty space. The historic downtown building will close at the end of the month for a two-year renovation project to convert it into a multi-use facility. Robin Jerstad Tour guide Brent Salter, of Amigo Walking Tours, shows tour guests an original door handle used in the Tower Life Building when it opened in 1929 as the Smith-Young Tower. Salter said the doorknobs will be repurposed for use on the doors of the building's planned apartment units as a nod to its history. Robin Jerstad Brent Salter, who has conducted tours of the historic Tower Life Building for the past few weeks, shows a tour group a copy of a photograph from the San Antonio Light newspaper earlier this month. The historic downtown office building will close at the end of the month for a two-year renovation project to convert it into a multi-use facility. Robin Jerstad Tour guide Brent Salter, of Amigo Walking Tours, conducts a tour of the Tower Life Building recently. The tours take participants to the buildings basement level, including its old tunnel system underneath South St. Marys Street, and up to its 28th floor to see the buildings panoramic downtown views. Robin Jerstad Guests walk around the 28th floor of the Tower Life Building during a recent tour. The historic office structure will close at the end of the month for a two-year renovation project to convert the bulk of the building into a 244-unit apartment complex. Robin Jerstad Visitors look over the 28th floor of the Tower Life Building during a recent tour of the historic building. Tour participants were encouraged to take photos and shoot video to document their experience. Robin Jerstad The Tower Life Building will close at the end of the month for a two-year renovation project to convert a bulk of the historic structure into a 244-unit apartment complex. Robin Jerstad A nuclear fallout shelter sign is seen on the wall of the South St. Mary's Street tunnel during a recent tour of the 95-year-old Tower Life Building. The building's tunnel system closed in 1975, but was reopened recently for the paid public tours organized by Amigo Walking Tours. Robin Jerstad Visitors look out the windows of the Tower Life Building's 28th floor during a recent tour of the historic structure. The building will close at the end of the month for a two-year renovation project to convert a bulk of the historic structure into a 244-unit apartment complex. Robin Jerstad The Tower Life Building in downtown San Antonio in August 2023. The iconic office building opened June 1, 1929. William Luther/San Antonio Express-News The Tower Life Building gilded elevator lobby is August 2023. The iconic office building opened in 1929 as the Smith-Young Tower. William Luther/San Antonio Express-News The Tower Life Building, formerly known as the Transit Tower, opened in 1929 as the as the Smith-Young Tower. File The Tower Life Building will close at the end of the month for a two-year renovation project to convert a bulk of the historic structure into a 244-unit apartment complex. William Luther, Staff / Staff The Tower Life Building, with its green terra cotta tiled roof and gothic, tiered design, has graced San Antonios skyline for more than nine decades. It opened in 1929. Bob Owen / San Antonio Express-News San Antonios first Sears, Roebuck & Co. department store opened in March 1929 in the newly completed Smith-Young Tower, now the Tower Life Building. Sears occupied the buildings lower floors for 10 years. Pictured is the Sears store in the early 1930s. Courtesy of UTSA Special Collections In this 1958 photo, Betty Fox skips rope on a ledge outside the 22nd floor of the Transit Tower, now known as the Tower Life Building. Fox and her brother Benny performed such stunts as part of a fundraising campaign for San Antonios hospital building fund. UTSA Libraries Special Collections Katy Garza has lived in San Antonio since the late 1970s and has been fascinated with the Tower Life Building for years but had never been inside it. When she heard that the public could tour the historic downtown structure ahead of a lengthy renovation, she was excited for the chance to finally see the majestic 31-story building with its distinctive green roof up close. I always thought it was such a beautiful building, Garza said. Id always see it and wonder if anyone could just go inside and look around. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Garza recently participated in a paid tour of the iconic building, which will close at the end of the month for a two-year renovation project to convert the bulk of the office space into a 244-unit housing complex. A group that includes the McCombs family, local developer Ed Cross and Jon Wiegand of Alamo Capital Advisers bought the Tower Life Building from the Zachry family in May 2022 for an undisclosed price. Plans are to turn the building into a multiuse facility that will include apartments, retail space and restaurants. Estimated costs of the renovations have not been disclosed. The building, with its green terra cotta tiled roof and gothic, tiered design, has graced San Antonios skyline for more than nine decades. When it officially opened its doors June 1, 1929, the building was known as the Smith-Young Tower, named after brothers John H. and F. Albert Smith and lawyer J.W. Young, who worked together to develop the building, spending $2.5 million to $3 million to construct it, according to published reports. Over its 95-year history, the building, at the corner of South St. Marys and Villita streets, has been home to numerous businesses. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Law firms, given the buildings proximity to the Bexar County Courthouse, have been longstanding tenants, said current and past employees who have worked inside Tower Life. A directory posted in the buildings lobby last week listed mostly law firms and a few accounting and technical-type businesses. In 2022, occupancy at Tower Life had dropped to 40%, and it was difficult keeping it fully occupied even before the pandemic changed the way many companies do business, shifting away from traditional workplaces to remote work. By early May, most tenants were no longer conducting business inside Tower Life, having already moved out or packing whatever remained. During a recent afternoon, a security guard monitoring building cameras from his front desk post greeted the occasional passerby. If not for the paid tours of the building that have taken place over the past month, not many visitors would be walking through Tower Lifes gilded lobby as the building ushers in a new chapter. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The stillness of the building is much different than the bustling activity that occurred during Tower Lifes heyday as the tallest building on the citys skyline. Tower Life held that distinction until 1988, when the Marriott Rivercenter surpassed it. Tower Life was the citys tallest structure until 1968, when the Tower of the Americas was built. Tower Life once was home to the San Antonio Transit Authority, now VIA Metropolitan Transit, and for several years the building was known as the Transit Tower, according to historical accounts. The buildings most well-known tenant is the one from which the structure got its current and longest lasting name: Tower Life Insurance. San Antonio native Henry Morales worked in the building from 1981 to 2006, first as an employee of Tower Life Insurance and later for a data processing company. He recently participated in one of the paid tours of the building organized by Amigo Walking Tours, a local company founded in 2018 that provides walking tours along with mini history lessons of various downtown sites. I do recall looking out the windows at night, and it was a pretty nice scene, said Morales, who had not been inside Tower Life since he stopped working there. Its such a big feature in the skyline, he said, adding he remembered the building looking bigger inside. Advertisement Article continues below this ad I guess its bigger with more people and furniture in it, Morales said. The Tower Life tours, which cost $40 per person, with a portion donated to the downtown beautification group Centro San Antonio, offer a final chance to see typically off-limits areas. The tours, touted on the Amigo Walking Tours website as an opportunity to step inside a time capsule and explore both the past and future of San Antonios most iconic neo-gothic skyscraper, began April 12 and conclude Wednesday. The tours have been fully booked since late April, and there is a waiting list, said Brent Salter, Amigo owner and founder and the person conducting its Tower Life tours. Tours take participants to the buildings basement level, including its old tunnel system underneath South St. Marys Street, and up to its 28th floor to bask in the buildings panoramic downtown views. Most floors are not open for the tour because tenants still occupy parts of the building, and other areas are being dismantled as prep work takes place for the renovations to come. Tour participants have been encouraged to take photos and shoot video to document their experience. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The buildings tunnel system, which closed in 1975, once connected people to the Plaza Hotel across the street, where building workers could go for lunch inside the hotels restaurant. The hotel is now Granada Senior Living, an affordable housing building. Most of the boxes and furniture that had been stored in the basement, where fallout shelter signs still hang on the walls, have been cleared in recent weeks. Among the items currently stored in a basement closet are dozens of ornate doorknobs bearing the monogram of Smith-Young Tower, the buildings original name, that were once used in the building. Plans are to repurpose the knobs for use on the doors of the forthcoming apartment units as a nod to the buildings history, Salter said. Wiegand, one of the buildings developers, told the San Antonio Express-News in January 2023 that one of the things were excited to maintain is the historic facade. He added that the new owners need to adhere to preservation standards because the building is on the National Register of Historic Places. The new owners vision of turning the office building into a mixed-use facility is a return to Tower Lifes roots. The buildings original owners embraced the mixed-use design long before it became a popular business concept in recent years. The citys first Sears store took up Tower Lifes first six floors, according to historical accounts. The retailer was the buildings first tenant, opening its doors about three months before the rest of the building officially opened. Sears later moved its downtown location to where the Central Library is today. Salter talked about the retailers place in Tower Lifes history and recounted several other stories of the buildings vast lore during a recent tour. He talked about Tower Life being featured in the 1984 film Cloak & Dagger, starring San Antonio native Henry Thomas of E.T. fame. Another story involved a 1958 stunt with performer Betty Fox jumping rope on a ledge outside the buildings 22nd floor as part of a fundraiser for San Antonios hospital building fund. Some tales Salter shared were stories told to him by tour participants, including two sisters who wanted to walk through the building, which their grandfather, architect Robert M. Ayres, designed. Another tour participant, Salter said, recognized chairs still stored in the basement as ones that filled an employee break room when she worked inside Tower Life in the 1980s. With the current building tenants expected to be gone by the end of May and renovations slated to begin this summer, the end of an era for the storied building is near. Interest in Tower Life and its vast history, especially as it enters a new chapter, doesnt surprise Salter, who had wanted to arrange tours of the building for years. He acknowledges the generosity of the buildings current owners for allowing tours to take place, and he hopes the owners and developers of other historic properties in the city follow suit. Salter said there are many reasons why interest in the Tower Life Building remains decades after it first opened its doors. There are a number of people who havent been inside it and are curious, he said, as well as those with a personal connection to it and who feel nostalgic about its place in San Antonio history. It wasnt only because of missionaries from the West, says a Tongan Australian theologian. Illustration by Elizabeth Kaye / Source Images: Wikimedia Commons Christian overseas missionaries were more successful in Oceaniathe region spanning the Pacific Islands, Australia, Papua New Guinea, and New Zealandthan anywhere else in the world. In particular, people in the Pacific Islands (which include Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Vanuatu, Tonga, and more) were receptive to the gospel because their ancestors strong beliefs in a divine presence and in the afterlife made them very open to Christian faith, wrote Jacqueline Ryle, a contributor to the 2021 reference volume Christianity in Oceania. Tongan Australian theologian Katalina Tahaafe-Williams says her research reveals the same: The growth of Christianity in the region was not because of white Europeans but rather due to Indigenous missionaries who translated Christianity in a way that made sense to locals. Sign up for Moore to the Point Join Russell Moore in thinking through the important questions of the day, along with book and music recommendations he has found formative. Email* Sign Up This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Thanks for signing up. Please click here to see all our newsletters. Sorry, something went wrong. Please try again. Tahaafe-Williams, who lives in Sydney, served as the Indigenous coeditor for the book alongside prominent global Christianity scholars Kenneth R. Ross and Todd M. Johnson. Our goal was to recruit Indigenous writers from all over the region to contribute to this volume, she explained. It was my task to connect with potential authors, theologians, leaders, and church members from the Pacific Islands we were very committed to finding, however challenging it might be, authors who were part of that particular culture, thereby making the work very authentic. CT Global books editor Geethanjali Tupps spoke with Tahaafe-Williams on why Christianity flourished in the Pacific Islands, how migration patterns have impacted the church, and why the region shouldnt serve as the poster child for climate change issues. How did Christianity arrive in the Pacific Islands? Protestant missionaries arrived in the Pacific Islands in the 1700s and 1800s. They had huge success in evangelistic efforts because of the London Missionary Society, which established schools and trained pastors in Samoa and Cook Islands. In Tonga, Methodist missionaries were most successful; in Samoa, the Congregationalists and Presbyterians dominated. Christianitys initial success was in Tahiti, which is part of French Polynesia, though the locals still prefer the original name of Maohi Nui. There, the missionaries not only converted locals but equipped them to take the gospel to other islands. The local missionaries status as Indigenous Pacific Islanders contributed to their success. Did colonization in the Pacific Islands differ from elsewhere in the world? We are small island nations with minimal natural resources. We have beautiful settings, an abundance of fertile soil and food, and materials to build homes. But we dont have precious minerals. So the Europeans had no economic interest in Oceania, except for Australia and New Zealand. As a result, the Pacific Islands were colonized more for religious than political or economic reasons. I believe that fact explains why we are still 90 percent Christian today. What did the Islanders believe in before Christians showed up, and how did Christianity and local cultures interact? The Pacific Islands are classified into three main groups: Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia. All these cultures, like other Indigenous communities, had their own traditional religions before Christianity arrived. Indigenous beliefs were very much connected to nature, the land, the ocean, and the earth. For example, a notion of the divine as Mother Earth is very much part of that spirituality and Indigenous religions across the nations in the Pacific. Of course, when Christianity came, there were clashes in many instances. For example, the faiths focus on individual sin and salvation was, and still is, at odds with our cultures collective existence. Ultimately, however, the success of Christianity in Oceania was unprecedented. Talk about how the Islanders contextualized Christianity and made it their own. Taking my home island of Tonga as an example, I see some remnants of our traditional religion in how we understand Christianity, because some of our myths and legends contained stories of self-sacrificegiving up your life for your friends, family, and loved ones. These legends, in effect, were transferred to Jesus Christ. When the story of Jesus was told in those terms, it was easily understood and contextualized. We still tell the traditional stories today, but strictly within cultural ceremonies. Our spiritual faith is completely rooted in the gospel. But I believe that some of the values I was brought up with, and that we now regard as normatively Christian, like human dignity, justice, compassion, hope, and peace, were also the values that my ancestors lived out in practice. Did Christianity shake up the regions social structures in any way? In the Pacific Islands, there isnt a huge demarcation between powerful nobles or chiefs and the common people because we have such a close kinship structure. It was much more difficult for the people at the top to abuse the people at the bottom, because they would be abusing people they were related to. When Christian missionaries came, it didnt dispel social division but exacerbated it, partly due to the competition between Methodists, Presbyterians, Roman Catholics, and other groups. If tribal tensions were present, the missionaries sometimes deliberately played on those underlying conflicts because it gave them leverage with certain groups. I attribute the success of Christianity to our nobles and our people, who were deeply spiritual and respectful. They found ways to reconcile and unify their people, so that they could receive Western missionaries while preventing civil wars and unrest from developing because of religion. What about womens rights? Did Christians contribute to advancing them here? I wouldnt deny that Christianity has contributed toward advancing womens rights in some ways, but to a large extent, organic change has come from our culture. The missionaries came with their Western, Victorian, patriarchal values and influenced the locals with this mindset. But women enjoy a very high regard and position in our kinship structure, and this is seen in some of the cultural practices that we still continue to enact in our ceremonies. We had female monarchs and female chiefs. The sacredness of womanhood in my Tongan culture seems to me to have been cheapened over the years because of our openness to Western influences. Those of us who are aware of that cultural history are having to critique and unlearn Western ideas. If we had been more fully able to integrate our cultural understandings and worldviews with the Western influences that came with Christianity, I think women would have been ordained earlier in many Pacific Island contexts. In terms of present-day concerns, how are migration patterns into and out of the Pacific Islands impacting the church right now? Migration to the Pacific Islands is transitional, where people come to do ministry or work on a development issue. They come only for a limited time and then go back to the West. More Pacific Islanders are trying to get to Western countries. There are more Tongans living overseas than in Tonga. But some older expatriates are experiencing nostalgia for their homeland and have come back to retire, or at least return for significant periods of time to be with their family members. The church in Tonga, where I am from, continues to thrive. When I visit, I love seeing how actively the younger generation is participating in the church. The older generation is proactive about ensuring that young people are engaged in faith and spirituality. One of the most controversial events in Oceania, with ramifications that persist today, is when the United States, France, and the UK used Micronesia as target practice for nuclear testing after the end of WWII. This forcibly displaced residents in the Marshall Islands, Kiribati, and more, and when people moved back to their island homes, many fell sick with radiation exposure. Where was the church during this crisis? Nuclear armament and proliferation was part of the political agenda for countries like France and the US. Many of us in other islands were not quite aware that these countries had claimed and possessed Micronesia for nuclear testing, until countries like New Zealand drew attention to it in the global arena. Pacific Island nations started mobilizing themselves during this time. Churches were very much part of that effort because of the very close link between church and state in the region. Churches were very active in trying to find ways to fight against nuclear testing. They were standing up and fighting to make their voices heard in political debates and other arenas. But Micronesia wasnt the only region in Oceania that was impacted. Western countries were also conducting nuclear testing in Tahiti, one of the bigger island nations in French Polynesia. France was fully funding the Tahitian government and throwing money all over the place to try and hide the damage that they were doing and the terrible sickness and disfigurement of unborn babies. Western countries are so powerful with their resources and military might. They got away with so much and still do to this day. Do you find that Western privilege also permeates discussion on alleviating the effects of climate change in your region? In recent times, the Oceania-Pacific region has become a lot more visible as the face of climate change in many global ecumenical and sociopolitical circles. While working for the World Council of Churches in Geneva, I was very aware that Pacific Islanders were pushing for the visibility of climate change issues in churches and ecumenical circles, as well as in political settings such as the United Nations. However, it has become too easy to use a Pacific Islander as the face of climate change and its impacts, rather than saying this is a problem for all of us and we need to step up and confront it together. To deal with the environmental problems associated with our carbon footprint, the Pacific Islands need resources that they dont necessarily have. They should be getting resources to help manage the impacts of climate change, given that they are mostly the victims of it, not the cause. When Western resources are accompanied with this sentimentWe have the answers, and you have to just listen to usthe locals are disabled from utilizing what they already know about living sustainably and from offering such knowledge to Westerners as resources. Pacific Islanders, like all Indigenous communities around the globe, can still draw on their centuries-old knowledge of how to live with nature, the land, and the ocean in cohesive and harmonious ways. A patronizing and tokenistic emphasis on resources from the West has obscured the locals contextual knowledge and best practices for sustainable living, so that instead of enhancing such contextual gifts and skills to counter the impacts of climate change, a continuing colonial relationship of dependency is fostered. Daniel Berehulak / Getty / Edits by CT In February, the northern Indian state of Uttarakhand passed a Uniform Civil Code (UCC), which aims to implement a common set of rules governing crucial aspects of life, including marriage, divorce, inheritance, and adoption. This code would supplant existing personal laws that religious groups in India currently ascribe to. Personal laws cover family-related matters such as marriage, divorce, child custody, adoption, property rights, and inheritance. If the ruling Hindu-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has its way, a UCC will eventually be implemented across all of India. (At present, Goa is the only other state with a UCC, derived from the Portuguese-era Civil Code of 1867.) Sign up for The Daily Briefing Get the most recent headlines and stories from Christianity Today delivered to your inbox daily. Email* Sign Up This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Thanks for signing up. Please click here to see all our newsletters. Sorry, something went wrong. Please try again. The BJPs push to implement a national UCC may bring relief for Christians in India, especially in terms of womens inheritance rights. Under existing personal laws, Christian mothers cannot inherit their deceased childrens property. The UCC proposes to eliminate discriminatory provisions that favor male inheritance, potentially leading to more equitable inheritance rights for Christian women. But few of Indias religious minorities trust the BJP, whose policies have often been more harmful than helpful to Christian communities. In Assam, Christian leaders protested the passing of a bill banning magical healing as it unfairly impacted their custom of praying for the sick. Ministries including World Vision and the Evangelical Fellowship of India recently lost government authorization to collect foreign donations. Nine states now have anti-conversion laws in place, and believers have borne the brunt of religious unrest in these areas as a result. As this years general elections seem likely to strengthen the BJPs hold over India and give prime minister Narendra Modi his third term, religious leaders all over the country may soon have to grapple with the reality now playing out in Uttarakhand. This is going to be a milestone in the history of India as far as the life of a citizen or resident is concerned, said Vachan Singh Bhandari, director of the nonprofit Agape Mission in Uttarakhand. Womens inheritance rights Each religious group in India has its own set of personal laws. Most of them are holdovers from colonial rule and were established by the British after consultation with religious leaders. Religious leaders do not have the power to effect changes to personal laws. Permitting religious communities to observe their own laws of marriage, inheritance, adoption, or divorce was the British Rajs way of maintaining social stability, thwarting rebellion, and even earning the favor of a religious community, said a Times of India commentary. As a result, women from different religious groups in India do not have the same inheritance rights. Hindu, Jain, Buddhist, and Sikh women were originally excluded from inheriting ancestral property, and although a 2005 amendment sought to rectify this, they are still often disadvantaged. Muslim sons are granted a double portion of their familys inheritance compared to daughters. Christians are subject to the Indian Succession Act of 1925, which purportedly treats the inheritance rights of sons and daughters equally. But if the fathers will states that he wants to give his property only to his sons, it cannot be contested in court. Syrian Christian women in the southern state of Kerala, for instance, are denied the opportunity to inherit ancestral property. One woman who sought a share of her familys property was derided as a troublemaker by other family members. The idea that giving inheritance rights to women harms her family of origin, since she now belongs to another family and her husband will likely inherit his own property, persists in such communities. In cities like Travancore and Cochin within Kerala, believers have generally followed Hindu laws even though Christian succession laws exist, maintains researcher Archana Mishra. Women were assigned an inferior status which being discriminatory wounded womens equality, Mishra wrote in a 2015 journal article. Males had absolute power to dispose of [their] property and there was no restriction on [their] testamentary capacity. In addition to these difficulties involving ancestral real estate, Christian women are also at a disadvantage with regard to inheriting their childrens assets. Current personal laws deny women the right to inherit their deceased childrens property if there is no will, meaning that all assets go to the father or, if he is not alive, the childs siblings. For this reason, the proposed UCC is a good move and will result in the empowerment of Christian women, contended Vinita Shaw, founder of Disha Foundation, a non-governmental organization that supports women and children through advocacy and community development initiatives. The introduction of a national UCC aims to address the discriminatory impacts of such personal laws. Bhandari, the Uttarakhand-based nonprofit director, is cautiously optimistic. In general, it can be said that this perhaps is going to be in the interests of all the communities for their betterment as far as their marital, familial and property-related matters are concerned, he stated. The threat of Hinduized norms Improving inheritance rights for women is not the only domestic issue that the UCC tackles. Other changes include requiring cohabiting couples to register their status with the government, granting legal rights to children born out of wedlock, and a complete ban on polygamy. The BJP champions the UCC as a modern approach to civil rights that will help India become one nation with one law. But instead of pursuing parliamentary legislation to implement it nationwide, the ruling party has adopted a more circumspect approach, letting state leaders promote the plan so as to avoid political unrest while continuing to appease its core Hindu nationalist base. Opposition political parties such as the Indian National Congress have chosen to adopt a nuanced view on the UCC, recognizing its layered and complex nature according to a report from The Hindu. Regional parties, which operate within a limited geographical area and typically identify with a particular cultural or religious group, have also advocated for wider consultation and consensus building before the introduction of such a far-reaching reform. In their view, a hasty implementation could disrupt established social structures, fuel unrest, and be perceived as an attack on minority communities constitutional rights to freedom of religion and cultural preservation. Despite the UCCs claim to improve gender equality, Christians and other minority religious groups may bear hidden costs if the UCC is implemented nationwide. The consequences may well resemble those that have accompanied anti-conversion laws, said a Christian leader in Assam who wished to remain anonymous because of security issues. The anti-conversion law was meant to be applied equally to all religious communities, and anyone violating the law was supposed to face legal scrutiny. But that did not happen, he said. Specifically, Muslim and Christian communities were targeted under the guise of this law, [and] Hindu mobs have forcibly reconverted people who believe in Christ to Hinduism, yet no action has been taken against these mobs, and no cases of forced conversions have been registered. Rohit Singh, a Christian lawyer in Uttarakhand, draws similar conclusions. Because of the anti-conversion law, churches in Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, and other states have not been allowed to meet and worship together, Singh asserted. In his view, the UCC will be equally biased against believers in practice. The government did not consult or take suggestions from Christians before rolling out the UCC, which was forced upon us, Singh argued. On a wider scale, one of the biggest fears driving widespread resistance to a nationwide UCC is the potential imposition of Hinduized social norms, which would impact how religious minorities practice their faith. Muslim leaders have voiced concerns that the UCC will infringe their individual rights as well as negatively impact religious freedom and societal cohesion in India. Some have criticized the disproportionate power that the BJP may wield as a result of the UCCs adoption. Catholic leaders have questioned how consistently the UCC will be applied across different castes and religious groups. The government is trying to make lives more difficult for the minorities and discriminated sections of society like the indigenous people, Dalits and women, argued A. C. Michael, president of the Federation of Catholic Associations of the Archdiocese of Delhi. Moreover, the UCC could impact the Catholic Churchs non-recognition of divorce. For now, momentum toward adopting the UCC nationwide seems to be growing, with leaders in other states, including Gujarat and Assam, vowing to follow in Uttarakhands footsteps. Even so, evangelicals in India have remained cautious about assessing the UCCs merits and pitfalls publicly. We've consistently underscored the need for a preliminary draft before launching into debates on a national Uniform Civil Code, said Vijayesh Lal, general secretary of the Evangelical Fellowship of India. Delhi-based Christian tribal rights activist Govindra Hunjan, however, is not staying quiet. The UCC will wipe away the identity of the indigenous tribes by vilifying their traditional practices that have been there for centuries, like [the appointment of] village chiefs, settlement of petty matters in community settings, [and] property bequeathals, to name a few, he said. I see no need for such a law, except with the intent to weaken the tribals. Home News California won't force nonprofits to disclose donor names after Supreme Court ruling California has amended its policies to comply with a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that struck down the state's requirement that charities and nonprofits disclose their donors to the state, a Christian conservative legal group that challenged the state in court has announced. In a statement published Wednesday, the Thomas More Law Center announced that the California Attorney General's Office has "quietly" submitted to the decision from the nation's high court in the case of Americans for Prosperity Foundation v. Bonta, Attorney General of California. The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 this month that California's attempt to require nonprofit organizations to share personal information about their donors with the state is unconstitutional. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe The California Attorney Generals Charities homepage has been amended to read, Effective July 1, 2021, the Registry of Charitable Trusts will no longer require the filing of Schedule B to the IRS Form 990 as part of the registration and annual reporting requirements. The Schedule B form asks organizations to list the name, addresses and ZIP codes of every individual who donated more than $5,000 and specify how much they donated. While nonprofit organizations must submit Schedule B forms to the Internal Revenue Service, the information is usually kept confidential and not shared with states. Before the Supreme Courts July 1 ruling, Californias Registry of Charitable Trusts required nonprofit organizations to share that information with the state. According to Bloomberg, California was one of four states with such a law on the books. The others were Hawaii, New Jersey and New York. The litigation against the California law dates back six years when the Thomas More Law Center received a letter from then-Attorney General Kamala Harris stating that failure to turn over information about its donors within the next 30 days would lead to the organization losing its right to solicit donations in California. In addition, the letter warned that the organizations officers and tax preparers could be held personally liable for any penalties. Rather than comply, the Michigan-based religious liberty law firm filed a lawsuit alleging that the policy violated the First Amendment rights of its donors and the company itself by infringing on the parties constitutionally protected free speech, freedom of association and free exercise of religion. While a federal judge sided with the law firm in 2016, the attorney generals office appealed that ruling to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which reversed the lower court decision. The Supreme Court agreed to take up the case earlier this year. The Thomas More Law Center argued that the Supreme Court ruling eliminating the requirement for nonprofit organizations to fill out Schedule B forms means that Americans are free to support nonprofit organizations without fear of harassment. In the Internet Age, where doxing ones opponents has led to job loss, boycotts, ostracization, and violence, the fear of such repercussions should ones charitable contributions become public could be enough to stymy giving, leaving the personal beliefs of many Americans to go unrepresented in the public square, a Thomas More Law Center statement reads. Home News Churchgoers disarm suspect wielding rifle at kids first communion Mass In a swift response hailed as heroic, parishioners at St. Mary Magdalen Catholic Church in Abbeville, Louisiana, disarmed a teenager armed with a rifle, averting a potential tragedy during a First Communion Mass for 60 children. The incident, which took place on Saturday, saw the community and local law enforcement acting quickly to ensure the safety of attendees, Catholic News Agency reported. The suspect, a 16-year-old dressed in black, opened the back door of the church, interrupting the service, CAN said, adding that parishioners immediately confronted and escorted him outside before the police arrived, who subsequently detained him. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe The action likely prevented harm to the children and other attendees. The entire episode was captured during a livestream of the Mass. Around 48 minutes into the service, an individual approached Fr. Nicholas DuPre, the associate pastor presiding over the Mass, and whispered in his ear. Following this, DuPre instructed the congregation to sit and began praying the Hail Mary. Shortly after, law enforcement officers entered the church to conduct a sweep for additional threats, which the suspect had alluded to by claiming another shooter was nearby. However, no other suspects were found. Reports from Fox8 described the chaos during the incident, noting that the suspect was stopped by parishioners before he could walk further into the church. The action took place around 10:35 a.m., during which parishioners and the clergy crouched behind the altar as police swept the building. An officer reassured the congregation, saying the suspect was in custody and urged them to remain calm. Chief Mike Hardy of the Abbeville Police Department praised the parishioners bravery in swiftly dealing with the situation, according to OSV News. The teen was subsequently charged with terrorizing and two counts of possession of a firearm by a juvenile and is being held in the Abbeville General Hospital Behavioral Unit for evaluation. Bishop J. Douglas Deshotel of Lafayette expressed his gratitude for the parishioners and police officers' actions. We are thankful to God that a tragedy was avoided, he was quoted as saying. Let us pray for an end to all threats of violence to innocent human life. In response to the event, the parish has announced that uniformed law enforcement will be present at all upcoming Masses as a precautionary measure. The community has been invited to gather for the next scheduled services. The incident will be further investigated by the Abbeville Police, Vermilion Parish Sheriffs Office and the FBI. Fr. DuPre wrote on social media, Im going back to the safest place on earth, next to His Holy Cross and His Mother, inviting parishioners to join upcoming services and not yield to fear. Home News Gunmen attempt to kidnap students at Catholic school, security guard shot ABUJA, Nigeria Gunmen in an area of Nigeria where Fulani herdsmen are active attacked a Catholic school on the evening of May 7, wounding a security guard in an apparent kidnapping attempt. In Adeke, a suburb of Makurdi, the capital of Benue state, the assailants fired shots at the Father Angus Frazer Memorial High School, wounding the security guard. Civil Defense personnel rushed to the school and foiled the attempt to kidnap students residing at the institution, officials said. The Rev. Moses Iorapuu, spokesman for the Catholic Diocese of Makurdi, said in a press statement that officials closed the school on May 8 as a precaution. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe The principal, Fr. Emmanuel Ogwuche, and the students are all safe, except for a security officer who was badly injured in the attack and is receiving attention at the hospital, Iorapuu said. We also appreciate the professionalism of the Civil Defense officers who provide security at the school. Iorapuu said the assailants shot indiscriminately at both students and staff members asleep at the school, which is managed by the Via Christi Society. Actions by the principal and a team of Civil Defense officers repelled the attack and averted catastrophe, he said. Fulanis have attacked churchgoers, farmers and villagers before, but now they have upped their game, attacking a school, Iorapuu told Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), according to the Catholic Herald. We are not sure what is going to happen next. He said police did not arrive until after the assailants had left. The school is reportedly located in a district notorious for killings and kidnappings by suspected Fulani militants. The Makurdi Diocese has tightened security at church buildings and appealed to authorities to safeguard residents, Iorapuu said, adding that he hopes the state governor will wake up to the reality of what we are facing. The Rev. Wilfred Anagbe, bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Makurdi, expressed sadness over the attacks on Catholic schools in Benue state, saying herdsmen have destroyed most of its Catholic schools and hospitals. Human rights group Defenders of Democracy appealed to the Nigerian government to end such attacks. As a concerned group of citizens of this country and indigenes of Benue state in particular, we have watched with heavy hearts the escalating humanitarian crisis in the state, where armed herders have been ruthlessly attacking and killing innocent people, said Amos Uchiv, president of Defenders of Democracy, in a press statement. This is a stark reminder of the grave situation that has befallen our beloved state. Uchiv said it was heartbreaking to witness so many people displaced from their ancestral lands, living in fear and uncertainty, due to continuous onslaughts by armed invaders who have vowed to take over our lands and occupy them. The fact that the attackers are now coming closer to the extent of attacking a popular school right in Makurdi, the state capital, means that death is knocking at our doors if nothing is done urgently, he said. We appeal to [the] Nigerian government to intervene urgently and prevent Benue state from being overrun by armed assailants. Police said officers and other security personnel have been deployed to the school to protect students and staff. Nigeria remained the deadliest place in the world to follow Christ, with 4,118 people killed for their faith from Oct. 1, 2022, to Sept. 30, 2023, according to Open Doors 2024 World Watch List (WWL) report. More kidnappings of Christians than in any other country also took place in Nigeria, with 3,300. Nigeria was also the third-highest country in number of attacks on churches and other Christian buildings such as hospitals, schools and cemeteries, with 750, according to the report. In the 2024 WWL of the countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian, Nigeria was ranked No. 6, as it was in the previous year. Numbering in the millions across Nigeria and the Sahel, predominantly Muslim Fulani comprise hundreds of clans of many different lineages who do not hold extremist views, but some Fulani do adhere to radical Islamist ideology, the United Kingdoms All-Party Parliamentary Group for International Freedom or Belief (APPG) noted in a 2020 report. They adopt a comparable strategy to Boko Haram and ISWAP and demonstrate a clear intent to target Christians and potent symbols of Christian identity, the APPG report states. Christian leaders in Nigeria have said they believe herdsmen attacks on Christian communities in Nigerias Middle Belt are inspired by their desire to forcefully take over Christians lands and impose Islam as desertification has made it difficult for them to sustain their herds. Originally published at Christian Daily International and Morning Star News Home News Pakistan court denies kidnapped Christian womans request to return to family A court in Pakistan has ruled against a kidnapped Christian womans plea to return to her family. The woman, Adeeba Amjad, was abducted by her former Muslim employer on May 16 from her home, according to the rights group CLAAS-UK. Amjad, a young Christian teacher, was abducted from her home in Pak Colony, Lassi Road, Hub in Baluchistan province, by Muhammad Bashir, her former employer and a local businessman, reads a statement by the group in the U.K., which focuses on the plight of Christians in Pakistan, sent to The Christian Post. She was teaching at a local private school in Hub, which is owned by Bashir. Due to pandemic-induced financial difficulties, many teachers, including Adeeba, lost their jobs. Bashir offered alternative employment within his other businesses to several affected teachers. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe In 2022, Amjads parents arranged her engagement to a Christian young man, leading her to resign from her teaching position. Months later, Bashir abducted her. Three days after the abduction, a police complaint was filed at the Bayroot Hub Police Station. However, the police investigation did not ensure her safe return. Amjads father, Amjad Masih, was quoted as saying that a court has denied his daughters return home despite her confession statement about her abduction, where she expressed her desire to live with her parents. The victims statement was tampered with by a female judge, CLAAS-UK said, adding that the judge, under questionable circumstances, declared her married and thus ineligible to return to her parents. Nasir Saeed, director of CLAAS-UK, expressed grave concerns over the judgment. After Amjads statement in court, imposing a decision against her will is legally unacceptable, he said. Amjad has been in contact with her family, stating that she fears for her life and her familys safety, the group said. Its not an isolated incident but part of a broader pattern that puts Christian and Hindu minor girls at great risk in Pakistan, Saeed said, explaining that they are subjected to abuse and sometimes even prostitution, often with kidnappers escaping punishment. The suffering of victims continues until they are allowed to return home, he stressed. While both the Pakistani government and the courts are aware of this issue, the international community must play a more active role in ending their persecution, Saeed urged. Last June, the parents of a 15-year-old Roman Catholic girl in Punjab province reported a similar abduction. The girls father, Nadeem Masih, a sanitation worker at a textile factory, said his daughter, Saba Masih, was abducted on May 20, 2022, from the Madina Town area of Faisalabad city when she was going to work with her older sister. The family promptly called the police, but there was no progress in the case. A 2014 report by a local group, The Movement for Solidarity and Peace Pakistan, estimated that hundreds of women and girls from Pakistans Hindu and Christian communities are abducted, forcibly married, and converted to Islam every year. The U.S.-based International Christian Concern reported that religion is often injected into cases of sexual assault to place religious minority victims at a disadvantage. Perpetrators play upon religious biases to cover up and justify their crimes by introducing an element of religion. Home News Pakistani Christian girl freed from forced marriage to Muslim abductor In a significant legal victory, a Family Court in Pakistan has annulled the forced marriage of Reeha Saleem, a Christian girl abducted in 2019 on her way home from school. The court ruled that the marriage to her Muslim neighbor, under which she was coerced into converting to Islam, was not valid. Reeha, who was a 17-year-old student at the time of her abduction, testified that her signature on the marriage certificate was obtained through coercion, says legal advocacy group ADF International, which represented her in court through its local allies. The court found that she did not marry her abductor, Muhammad Abbas, willfully. Abbas, who repeatedly failed to appear in court despite several notices, was judged in absentia during ex-parte proceedings. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe Reehas ordeal began when she was forcibly taken by Abbas and pressured into a marriage and religious conversion that she never consented to. During the court proceedings, she reaffirmed her Christian faith and denied having willingly converted to Islam. Parveen Saleem, Reehas mother, expressed profound relief at the courts decision. Weve faced indescribable difficulties during this time, including being forced to go into hiding to escape from Reehas abductor who kept threatening the family to return his wife. We also suffered from an abrupt end to Reehas education, she said. With the annulment, Parveen hopes her daughter can resume her studies and return to a normal life, thanking ADF Internationals allied lawyer, Sumera Shafique, for their support in securing justice. Tehmina Arora, ADF Internationals director of Advocacy in Asia, said, No girl should suffer the horrors of abduction and forced marriage, further being forced to give up their faith. Arora called for systemic change, advocating for the Pakistani government to set the minimum marriage age to 18, to prevent such forced marriages and conversions. Forced marriages are validated by Sharia law in Pakistan. The law permits marriage at puberty, often setting the marriageable age lower than the countrys official limits of 16 to 18 years old. Arora added: These forced conversions and marriages are a tremendous violation of the basic human rights of these young women, who often are fearful for their lives and those of their families, preventing them from denouncing their captors. In Pakistan, where these abuses are prevalent, the government has an opportunity to make a difference by implementing a uniform age for marriage and other safeguards in the law. A 2014 report by a local group, The Movement for Solidarity and Peace Pakistan, estimated that hundreds of women and girls from Pakistans Hindu and Christian communities were abducted, forcibly married and converted to Islam every year. The U.S.-based International Christian Concern has reported that religion is often injected into cases of sexual assault to place religious minority victims at a disadvantage. Perpetrators play upon religious biases to cover up and justify their crimes by introducing an element of religion. Home News Pastor declares miracle after tornado sweeps through church during service and everyone survives A Pennsylvania pastor praised God for what he called a "miracle" after an F1 tornado ripped off the roof of his church as about 100 people worshiped inside on Saturday evening, and everyone survived without any significant injuries. "Folks, I just want you to know last night, I witnessed what I would say is a miracle," Rev. Ken Barner of Crossroads Ministries in Finleyville said in an online address to his congregation on Sunday. "I never thought we'd be coming to you under these circumstances. As most of you are aware by now, our church was hit by a tornado last night," he added, explaining how his wife, Rhonda, was leading praise and worship when the tornado "came up the hill" and ransacked the church with the parishioners inside. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe "We were having Saturday night service. My wife was up there singing and leading worship to the Lord, and we were singing praise to the Almighty, the King of Kings, and the Lord of Lords. And there were 75 to 100 people here last night. We had babies in there for baby dedications. We had several new families that had never been to the church before, and God was with us," Barner said. The pastor described the moment the tornado hit the wing of the church, which housed the restrooms and offices. "The tornado came up the hill at about 6:14 p.m., and it came up, and it took the roof off of that building, and it sent it into the woods," he said. "I just have to tell you God was with us. The steeple got knocked out. Cars were damaged. Nobody was injured. There's a few cuts and bruises and bumps, as you might imagine, but nobody had to be hospitalized that we know of, and we're just thankful for that." A short video from the Saturday services shared on the church's Facebook page shows the moment the congregation began to realize they were in the midst of a tornado. "My wife, Rhonda, was singing, and all of a sudden, you could hear the noise of the storm. You could hear the wind outside. The power jumped once, then the power went out and came back on. I knew there had been a tornado warning for Lawrence County at 5 p.m., so I started evacuating people downstairs where there's a cinder block basement," Barner told The Observer-Reporter. "It was the scariest thing I've ever experienced in my life," Lynn Michigan, who attended the Saturday evening service with her husband, Rob, told the publication. Rob Michigan, a member of the Castle Shannon Volunteer Fire Department, helped lead the parishioners to safety in the church basement. He said he would never want to experience what happened in the tornado again. "I've been with the fire service since 1984, and it's the first time I've ever experienced something like this, and I don't want to experience it again," he told the newspaper. In his address on Sunday, Pastor Barner said all church activities had been canceled this week, and they are currently working to find a new place to worship as they repair the building. "Folks, I just want you to know that we're standing on the promises of God right now. This is a very big moment for our church, and I know that we will get through this," he said. "This is just a building folks. I thank God for it. The people who've gone before us, they have done a good job to hand us what they could do, and we've been doing our best to take care of it and really use it for the honor and glory of God, but folks, this is just a building here, and I know that God is really using us as his church," he added. "I want you to know that by next weekend, we will meet somewhere." Home News Practicing Christians, Scripture engaged more skeptical of AI than general public: poll Practicing Christians and Scripture-engaged believers are more skeptical of artificial intelligence than the American public as a whole, according to a new survey. The American Bible Society released the second installment of its State of the Bible USA 2024 report on Thursday. The second chapter, Faith and Technology, examined respondents views about artificial intelligence and its role in their faith. Data in the survey is based on responses collected from 2,506 adults between Jan. 423, with a margin of error of +/-2.73 percentage points. In a statement, American Bible Society Chief Program Officer and State of the Bible Editor-in-Chief John Farquhar Plake summarized the results as finding that Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe "Americans are more fearful than hopeful about Artificial Intelligence," said American Bible Society Chief Program Officer and State of the Bible Editor-in-Chief John Farquhar Plake said in a statement shared with The Christian Post, summarizing the results. Our survey also shows a great deal of uncertainty, he added. People just dont know how AI will change the culture, but theyre mildly uneasy about it, he added. And how do people of faith feel? The same way uncertain, uneasy but more so. Practicing Christians and those who engage with Scripture are even more concerned about AI than the general public, more likely to say the bad results of AI will outweigh the good. The greatest uncertainty is at the intersection of faith and AI. Majorities of Americans disagreed that artificial intelligence can aid in moral reasoning (58%), that the use of artificial intelligence can enhance my spiritual practices and promote spiritual health (68%), and that artificial intelligence can produce as well written of a sermon as a pastor, priest or minister (57%). On the other hand, a majority of Americans (51%) agreed that an increase in unemployment will result from the use of artificial intelligence. Respondents were more divided on whether the use of AI goes against biblical teaching, with 40% apiece indicating that they agreed with the statement and expressed uncertainty about it. Similarly, 37% of those surveyed disagreed that they were optimistic about the future benefits of using artificial intelligence in our world, while another 37% said they were uncertain about the future benefits of AI. Pluralities of respondents were uncertain about whether the bad that may result from the use of AI outweighs any positive impacts that may be produced (39%) and agreed that they would look unfavorably at a pastor or priest using AI to develop sermons or homilies. When looking at the views of Scripture-engaged respondents compared to Americans as a whole, the survey revealed that scripture-engaged Americans are slightly more concerned about artificial intelligence than their peers. The report defined scripture engaged respondents as those who score 100 or higher on the Scripture Engagement Scale that measures the impact and centrality of the Bibles message on those who engage with Scripture at least three to four times a year outside of church and church events based on their responses to 14 survey items. On a scale of 1 to 5, with a 5 indicating strong agreement with a statement and a 1 illustrating a strong disagreement with it, respondents overall had an average score of 2.8 in response to the declaration that I am optimistic about the future benefits of using artificial intelligence in our world, while the average score dropped to 2.5 among Scripture-engaged believers. Regarding the assertion that Artificial intelligence can aid in moral reasoning, respondents overall had an average score of 2.3 compared to 2.0 among the scripture engaged. Scripture-engaged respondents had an average agreement level of 1.8 when it came to the statement maintaining that the use of artificial intelligence can enhance my spiritual practices and promote spiritual health, which was slightly lower than the overall average agreement level of 2.0. The average agreement level among the Scripture-engaged that artificial intelligence can produce as well written of a sermon as a pastor, priest, or minister (1.9) was lower than the average agreement level among the public as a whole (2.3). Similarly, Scripture-engaged respondents were more likely than their peers to express agreement with negative statements about artificial intelligence. The Scripture engaged had an average agreement score of 3.1 regarding the belief that the use of AI goes against biblical teaching as opposed to 2.7 among the public as a whole. The Scripture engaged were also more likely to agree that the bad that may result from AI outweighs any positive impacts that may be produced (3.4) than the full sample (3.1). A larger share of the Scripture engaged (3.7) believed that an increase in unemployment will result from the use of artificial intelligence than the American public as a whole (3.5). The average agreement that I would look unfavorably at a pastor or priest using AI to develop sermons or homilies was higher among the Scripture engaged (3.5) than the full sample (3.1). The survey also revealed differing beliefs about artificial intelligence between non-Christians, non-practicing Christians and practicing Christians. Non-Christians and non-practicing Christians shared an average agreement level of 2.8 regarding optimism about future benefits of AI, coming in slightly ahead of the average agreement level among practicing Christians (2.6). Non-practicing Christians and non-Christians also shared the same average level of agreement (2.3) that AI can aid in moral reasoning, while agreement was slightly lower among practicing Christians (2.0). Non-practicing Christians had the highest average level of agreement (2.1) that AI can enhance spiritual practices and promote spiritual health, followed by non-Christians (2.0) and practicing Christians (1.8). On the other hand, non-Christians were more likely to agree (2.6) that AI can produce as well-written a sermon as a Pastor, Priest, or Minister than non-practicing Christians (2.3) and practicing Christians (1.9). Practicing Christians had a higher average level of agreement that the use of AI goes against biblical teaching (3.0) than non-practicing Christians (2.8) and non-Christians (2.3). Practicing Christians were also more likely to think the bad outweighs the good when it comes to AI (3.4) than non-practicing Christians (3.1) and non-Christians (2.9). The average level of agreement that AI would lead to increased unemployment was highest among practicing Christians (3.7), followed by non-practicing Christians (3.5) and non-Christians (3.3). A higher level of disgust at the idea of a priest using AI to develop sermons was registered among practicing Christians (3.5) than non-practicing Christians (3.1) and non-Christians (3.0). Home News Pro-life pregnancy center sues New Jersey AG over subpoena demanding donor information A Christian pro-life pregnancy center is suing the New Jersey Attorney Generals Office after the state agency sent a subpoena demanding that the nonprofit release information about its donors and employees. Alliance Defending Freedom announced Monday that it had filed a lawsuit against New Jerseys Democrat Attorney General Matthew Platkin on behalf of First Choice Womens Resource Centers, a network of pro-life pregnancy centers in the state. The complaint, filed in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey's Trenton Vicinage last week, asks a federal judge to issue a preliminary injunction halting the enforcement of a subpoena issued last month that seeks extensive information about First Choice. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe As indicated in the complaint, the Nov. 15 subpoena expressed concern about possible violations of the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act committed by First Choice when providing information about the lawful practice of Abortion Pill Reversal. Specifically, the subpoena cited the attorney generals authority under the NJCF Act, the Charitable Registration and Investigation Act and the state law enforcement agencys "investigative authority regarding Professions and Occupations" to demand a copy of all solicitations and advertisements published by First Choice as well as documents provided to clients and/or donors, documents identifying personnel and outlining donations made to the ministry. Additionally, Platkins subpoena asks First Choice to provide documents outlining where the network of pro-life pregnancy centers sends clients seeking abortion pill reversals, complaints and concerns about the organizations services, as well as copies of statements questioning the efficacy of abortion and promoting the abortion pill reversal process. His office is also demanding that First Choice present documents related to other pro-life groups, including Heartbeat International, Abortion Pill Reversal Network and Care Net. Complying with the Subpoena would bury First Choice in an inordinate amount of work, the lawsuit against Platkin stated. The Ministry estimates that it would take several staff membersincluding the Executive Director, the volunteer Medical Director, the finance department, and all medical staffat least an entire month to produce all requested documents. The complaint also warned that disclosure of documents that identify First Choices donors, as required by the Subpoena, will likely result in a decrease in donations, as donors will be hesitant to associate with the Ministry out of fear of retaliation and public exposure. Disclosure of the identities of First Choices employees will likely cause current employees to leave the already short-staffed Ministry and will deter prospective employees from applying out of the reasonable fear of retaliation and public disclosure, the lawsuit predicted. The lawsuit asserted that Platkin has a well-documented zeal for abortion, strong antipathy toward organizations that protect pregnant women and unborn children from the harms of abortion, and a particular animus toward pregnancy resource centers like those operated by First Choice. The lawsuit also noted that Platkin has worked with abortion provider Planned Parenthood and treats their "comparable secular activity ... more favorably than First Choices religious activity, having declined to serve subpoenas on them despite their well-known failures in data security and misleading statements on their websites." Its unlawful for New Jerseys attorney general to use the authority of his office to harm those with whom he disagrees, said ADF Senior Counsel Lincoln Wilson in a statement Monday. Attorney General Platkin has aligned himself with Planned Parenthoods pro-abortion mission and even enlisted its help to target pro-life pregnancy centers like our client First Choice. An unnamed spokesperson for Platkin's office said in a statement to The Washington Times that "our subpoena does not violate their rights, and we are confident that the courts will agree. "Under longstanding New Jersey law, nonprofits operating in our state cannot engage in deception about the work they do," stated the attorney general spokesperson. "New Jersey law provides the Attorney General clear authority to investigate nonprofits that may be violating those requirements. By filing this lawsuit, First Choice is refusing to even answer questions about its candor and its operations." Platkin was one of 16 Democrat attorneys general who had previously signed a letter accusing pro-life pregnancy centers of spreading misinformation and harm by misleading consumers and delaying access to critical, time-sensitive reproductive healthcare. Endangered China rose species spotted in SW China Xinhua) 08:51, May 13, 2024 This photo taken on April 14, 2024 shows Rosa lucidissima at the Foding Mountain nature reserve in Shiqian County, southwest China's Guizhou Province. (Photo by Wu Xu/Xinhua) GUIYANG, May 12 (Xinhua) -- Chinese researchers have discovered Rosa lucidissima, a critically endangered species of Rosa chinensis, commonly known as China rose, in southwest China's Guizhou Province. A joint expedition team from the Foding Mountain nature reserve administration and the College of Forestry of Guizhou University first discovered the species in the Foding Mountain nature reserve in Shiqian County. "In a field survey in April, we located four plants of Rosa lucidissima at about 700 meters above sea level. The roses swirled up the trees, with eye-catching red flowers hanging from the branches," said Wu Xu, a team member from the College of Forestry of Guizhou University. As an endemic Chinese species, Rosa lucidissima is sporadically distributed in southern and central China and its wild population is extremely rare. It is on China's red list of biodiversity as a critically endangered species. Botanists believe that the national second-class protected wild plant species is the primitive form of China rose. Further study on it would offer an insight into the origin and evolution of the rose plants, which could provide an important reference for rose genetics breeding and ecological protection. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Home News Pro-life activist suffered stroke in solitary confinement under FACE Act charges A Christian woman reportedly suffered a stroke while in solitary confinement in Virginia after facing charges under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act for protesting at abortion clinics. Heather Idoni, 62, who faces up to 50 years in federal prison and more than $1 million in fines for protesting at abortion clinics in Washington, D.C., Michigan and Tennessee, was taken to the hospital for a stroke earlier this month while being held at Northern Neck Regional Jail, according to the pro-life activist group Operation Rescue. Idoni was reportedly stabilized and taken back to jail. She awaits sentencing on May 17. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe Idoni was found guilty last August of a felony conspiracy against rights and a FACE Act offense related to a protest at the Surgi-Clinic abortion clinic in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 22, 2020. Idoni was among the 11 protesters the U.S. Department of Justice slapped with FACE Act charges for protesting outside the Carafem Health Center Clinic near Nashville on March 15, 2021. Accused of intimidating and interfering "with employees of the clinic and a patient who was seeking reproductive health services," Idoni was found guilty in January. Collectively, the charges she faces for her protests at multiple clinics nationwide could see her sentenced to half a century in jail. Idoni said during a recent interview with LifeSiteNews that she was held in solitary confinement for at least 22 days as punishment for sharing food with other prisoners and was permitted to leave her continually lit cell for only two hours in the middle of the night. Calvin Zastrow, another pro-life advocate facing FACE Act charges related to a 2023 pro-life protest at a clinic in Sterling Heights, Michigan, that Idoni attended, told the outlet that the judge in the case was shocked when the U.S. Marshals brought a shackled Idoni into the courtroom during a recent hearing. The marshal reportedly only released Idoni's wrists from her shackles upon protest from the judge but kept her waist and feet restrained. Idoni remains hopeful despite her predicament, expressing her desire that "God is going to be glorified" by her suffering and that she has "never not felt His presence" throughout her imprisonment. Idoni's supporters have called for her release. "During her incarceration and even post stroke, Heather has been denied the insulin she needs to treat her diabetes," progressive pro-life activist and 2024 Democratic presidential hopeful Terrisa Bukovinac wrote in a tweet. "After her surgery she was required to wait two days before indicating she was a diabetic, who just had heart surgery, in order to access her prescriptions." "Every day that Heather spends behind bars puts her in greater danger of death," Bukovinac, founder of the Progressive Anti-Abortion Uprising, added. "Her husband, children, and grandchildren need her home safe. Free Heather Idoni Now!" Other pro-life activists being prosecuted under the FACE Act include Paulette Harlow, 75 who has been under house arrest and barred from attending mass related to her October 2020 activism at the Surgi-Clinic abortion clinic, according to Life Site News. Another is Eva Edl, 88, who grew up under communist rule in Eastern Europe and was imprisoned in a concentration camp. She recently explained that she expects to die in jail for her pro-life advocacy and expressed concern that the totalitarian tactics from which her family fled are emerging in the U.S. In February, former President Donald Trump brought up the DOJ's pursuit of the pro-life protesters in Tennessee, claiming it shows an increasingly evident anti-Christian agenda from the Biden administration that resembles communist regimes of the past. "This is a communist state, just so you understand," Trump said during a speech at the National Religious Broadcasters 2024 International Christian Media Convention in Nashville this past February. "This is the beginning of a communist state, whether it's [my indictments] or any one of another thousand things that are going on," he continued. "This is the only way they're going to be able to stay in office because they're running a regime that is so incompetent. Nobody's ever seen anything like it." Home News Touched by divine hand of God: Sen. Tim Scott, Willie Robertson urge LU grads to stay Gospel-minded At Liberty Universitys commencement ceremony at Williams Stadium, Sen. Tim Scott addressed the 29,000 graduates of the Class of 2024, calling upon them to live lives of boldness and devotion to serving God. Willie Robertson, CEO of Duck Commander and a parent of one of the graduates, concluded the ceremony with a closing prayer, calling the ceremony a slice of Heaven. The festivities spanned from Thursday through Saturday, with 28 separate degree ceremonies leading up to the main event. Fridays main ceremony was highlighted by speeches from several luminaries, including former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Liberty President Dondi Costin, along with Scott and Robertson. Before his prepared remarks, Scott, who was also honored with an honorary Doctor of Humanities, told the graduates, If you dont know how in the world you are here today, I wanna hear you say, Thank you, Jesus. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe He added, I believe there are a lot of graduates sitting here today with tears rolling in their eyes and a heart of gratitude because if we all knew what God had to do to get you to your seats, we would all stand up and give you a standing ovation. I thank God Almighty we live in a country where we are free to praise the living God, the One and the True God. Sharing his personal journey from a challenging upbringing in poverty in North Charleston, South Carolina, to his tenure in the U.S. Senate, Scott said, Failure isnt fatal if you dont quit. He continued: If you want to stand out in life, stand up for those who cannot stand for themselves. I cant think of a better time for the Body of Christ to stand for our Jewish brothers and sisters in the United States of America on college campuses. Im sick and tired of seeing antisemitism on college campuses spread like a cancer. I think its high time we tell the colleges and universities that allow for Jewish genocide to be spoken and the call for mass murder, to those colleges and universities, your federal funding is a privilege; it is not a right. What is a right is for every single Jewish student to walk to their class safely. What is a right is for every Jewish student to study in the library at peace. We should take the money from those universities and colleges that continue to spew hate and give it to a God-fearing place called Liberty University. Scott encouraged the graduates to step out of the boat (to) walk on water. Someone somewhere might need your big dream and your test of faith to deliver them from their circumstances, Scott concluded. Every graduate here has been touched by the divine hand of God, which guided each of you to this moment. In his address, Pompeo spoke about the significance of service and the sacrifices required to maintain freedom. Liberty and faith are sacred things, he said. They are worthy of being defended. Throughout 250 years of American history, our nation has always depended on the willingness of incredible men and women, and their families to sacrifice for it, to fight for it, and even to give their lives for it. More than 2,000 graduates from the Class of 2024 are serving in active duty, while over 6,000 have connections to the military, according to Liberty. President Costin called on the graduates to continue to embody Christian virtues as they step into the next stages of their lives. Its your turn to make a difference in the places God has called and will call you to serve. Its your turn to show the world the difference Jesus Christ makes in a society doing its best to run away from God, he said. Its your turn to demonstrate that everything the Bible says about how to flourish as a human made in Gods image is now and always has been the best way to live. Its your turn to put your faith into action as a Champion for Christ. Chancellor Jonathan Falwell, presiding over the ceremony, provided an invocation and noted that his own daughters were among the graduates. As the ceremony drew to a close, Robertson delivered the benediction. Father, were so grateful it feels like a slice of Heaven being with believers, singing, worshiping, praising You and lifting up Your name above our accomplishments, he prayed. I pray for all the graduates. I pray that they will go out and have the Gospel on their lips above everything else their jobs, their careers, even our families. This was followed by a dramatic fireworks display choreographed by Libertys music students. The sky above Williams Stadium sparkled with colors as the graduates and their families celebrated the culmination of years of hard work and dedication. Graduates also shared their inspirational experiences and the impact Liberty University had on their personal and spiritual growth. Biden Threatens To Cut Off Weapons To Israel, Missouri Defunds Planned Parenthood, NY Abortion Rights Halted link to download the audio instead. link to download the audio instead. 07:36 07:36 CLICK HERE to get FREE ACTIVATION on PATRIOT MOBILE with offer code CHRISTIANPOST Top headlines for Monday, May 13, 2024 In this episode, we start with President Joe Biden's contentious decision to withhold an arms shipment to Israel amid potential conflict in Gaza, sparking debate across the political spectrum. Moving to the domestic front, we discuss Missouri's recent law that cuts public funding to Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers, a significant move impacting reproductive rights. The conversation then shifts to New York, where a judges ruling has temporarily stalled a proposed constitutional amendment for abortion rights, highlighting the legal battles entangling this issue. Lastly, we explore a story of transformation and redemption, featuring a former Latin Kings gang member who found faith and a new path in life after nearly losing it all to addiction and incarceration. Home Opinion The afterlife: Resurrection and other possibilities Jesus said to her, I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die (John 11:25). There is but one world religion based on the resurrection of its crucified and risen founderChristianity. In this, Christians find their hope that they will not cease to exist at their death, but will be with Jesus and will inherit their resurrected bodies in a deathless world, the New Heavens and New Earth (1 Corinthians 15; Revelation 21-22). Without the reality of the resurrection of Jesus from the dead in space-time history, there is no legitimate Christian message at all, as Paul makes clear: And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins (1 Corinthians 15:17). If Jesus is dead, Christianity is dead. But how does the doctrine of Christs resurrection compare with other religious and philosophical options about the afterlife? The possible positions are relatively few, but the stakes could not be higher since how we live affects our eternal destiny. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe Death is the end: The myth of atheism The near-uniform view of atheists is that since we are nothing but material beings whose consciousness is dependent on the workings of our bodies, when our bodies cease to function, we lose consciousness and cease to exist. Or, in simpler language: We die and are eaten by worms. Atheists claim that personal extermination is the scientific perspective that we ought to courageously embrace. Atheism is not supported by modern science. On the contrary, an absolute beginning of the universecalled the Big Banghas been confirmed over decades through cosmology. Since something cannot come from nothing, the beginning of the universe requires a cause outside of it that must be timeless, spaceless, immaterial, personal, and vastly powerful. If so, we have left atheism far behind and must embrace a Transcendent Agent. Scientists have further discovered that the many conditions required for conscious embodied life on earth are vastly improbable without a Mind having fine-tuned them. The odds against our cosmos being alone and without a designing and coordinating Mind are mind-bogglingly infinitesimal. Even more, the biology of life reveals sophisticated molecular machines and information codes in the DNA and RNA that a mindless universe could never achieve. The abundant evidence and careful reasoning behind this summary is found in Stephen Meyers compelling book Return of the God Hypothesis.[1] Therefore, if there is a supernatural and personal Being behind the universe, that means that reality is larger than what materialism can take in. The material universe cannot explain itself by mindless matter. If so, then there is at least one immaterial being in existence who is a Mind and who has a will, and, thus, there is no need to try to account for everything about human beings materialistically. A Being who created the universe could give humans a soul and ensure that they survive their deaths. Moreover, in addition to biblical teaching, good philosophy argues for the existence of the soul. Our physical bodies cannot account for key aspects of our consciousness. Our brains cannot do all the work of being human. There are solid philosophical arguments for this, a view called mind-body dualism. Consider two arguments. First, we experience the world through our physical organs: we see with our eyes and hear with our ears. However, seeing X is not the same as having eyes; nor is hearing Y the same as having ears. When I see a red car and hear it backfire, I am experiencing something uniquely subjective and unique to my awareness. Philosophers call these first-person experiences qualia. Qualia are not explicable on the basis of any physical quality. Seeing red is not identical to what chemicals make something red; nor is hearing a car backfire identical to the sound waves produced. The better explanation of qualia is that we experience it in our minds, which are immaterial but real. Second, when I think about a car or my wife, or anything outside myself, I have an intentional state. My consciousness or awareness is directed toward X. But intentionality, like qualia, is not explicable by or reducible to anything material. No quality in my body is about X or directed toward X. This intentional state is explained by my having a mind in which such states occur. Matter is not up for the job, once again.[2] When we combine arguments for theism from science with philosophical arguments for mind-body dualism, the door opens for the afterlife. God is there, and since our minds are not identical to our bodies, our minds (or souls) can continue to exist after our physical demise. While this argument agrees with biblical teaching, the reasoning does not mean that we presuppose the Bible is true in what it teaches about creation, design, and the soul. Rather, the evidence and argumentation support both claims and set the stage for the fuller biblical revelation. The life and teaching of Jesus Christ add another crucial dimension to the argument for the afterlife, but I will come to that after discussing another option: reincarnation. Reincarnation: The way of Eastern religion Hinduism and Buddhism, despite their doctrinal differences, claim that human existence is not limited to one lifetime.[3] Instead, humans are reincarnated after their deaths as either humans or animals. In previous lifetimes, individuals were humans or animals. The shape of ones life is determined by karmathe moral law of cause and effect. Good karma produces better outcomes and bad karma produces worse outcomes. (This is the moral and metaphysical engine of the caste system of India, although Buddhism denies caste.) However, the religious goal of both Hinduism and Buddhism is not to reincarnate into a better life, but to leave the wheel of suffering entirely to attain a disembodied and impersonal state of enlightenment called nirvana. Belief in reincarnation and karma spiked in America in the 1960s with the influx of Eastern religions and assorted Buddhist and Hindu gurus and today about twenty-five percent of Americans believe in it.[4] The reincarnationist believes that he or she will live on in some form or another or will attain nirvana, but can have no exact knowledge about their life after life. Thus, death is not the end, but the afterlife is not specified. As appealing as reincarnation and karma may be, it suffers from two chief philosophical objections. First, for the mechanism of reincarnation to work, there must be individual souls to come back in some other form after death. While Christianity teaches that we have a soul that survives the death of the body, Buddhism denies it outright (the self is an illusion) and the non-dualistic forms of Hinduism deny this as well (since there is but one Universal Self or Brahman). If there are no souls, then reincarnation is impossible, since it has nothing to work on or work with. If any worldview contains a contradiction in its defining beliefs, then it must be false. In the case of reincarnation these two beliefs are incompatible (1) no soul and (2) reincarnation. Second, in most Hindu and Buddhist views of reincarnation and karma, karmic outcomes are automatic. There is an impersonal law of karma that dispenses karmic rewards and punishments. But the supposed law of karma is not like a natural law, such as gravity, that automatically ensures outcomes given certain physical states. Rather, the law of karma requires (1) moral evaluation and (2) moral administration. But there can be neither moral evaluation nor moral administration without a Mind that evaluates karmic outcomes and administers those outcomes from lifetime to lifetime. Therefore, another contradiction ensues: (1) there is karmic evaluation and administration (2) there is no moral agent in charge of (1).[5] There are further logical problems with reincarnation (such as an infinite regress of souls), but these suffice to refute it. But we now happily turn to history and Christianity. Jesus and history: Good news If science and philosophy testify against the atheists view that death ends human existence and if logic testifies against reincarnation and karma as providing more lives after death, what does Christianity have to offer us all-too-mortal human beings, who know we will die and who want to somehow survive the grave? The brilliant Christian philosopher and scientist, Blaise Pascal (1623-1662), offered a parable that focuses our minds. Imagine a number of men in chains, all under sentence of death, some of whom are each day butchered in the sight of the others; those remaining saw their own condition in that of their fellows, and looking at each other with grief and despair await their turn. This is an image of the human condition.[6] Judaism, Islam, and Christianity all teach that an Almighty Creator exists and will judge each soul after death. They all claim that one might receive or be denied eternal life after death. But which religion makes the best case for being the one true religion? That is a long and involved issue, but the answer is found in Jesus Christin his life, death, and resurrection, ascension, and Second Coming. Our best source of knowledge about Jesus is the New Testament. The Gospels and the letters and Revelation have been passed down the centuries in thousands of Greek and other manuscripts, and they are better attested in manuscript transmission than any other piece of ancient near Eastern literature. What these manuscripts describe was written by people in the know, either disciples of Jesus or those close to him, and they were written only a few decades after the events they describe or elaborate on. Further, certain claims about Jesus and the early church have been corroborated by sources outside the New Testament.[7] The character who dominates the New Testament (and who was prophesied in the Old Testament)[8] was a prophet, a miracle worker, a philosopher, and an exorcist. His words and life have left an indelible mark on the entire world, despite his lack of social status or political might. As church historian Phillip Schaff (1819-1893) wrote: There never was in this world a life so unpretending, modest, and lowly in its outward form and condition, and yet producing such extraordinary effects upon all ages, nations, and classes of men. The annals of history produce no other example of such complete and astonishing success in spite of the absence of those material, social, literary, and artistic powers and influences which are indispensable to success for a mere man. Christ stands, in this respect also, solitary and alone among all the heroes of history, and presents to us an insolvable problem, unless we admit him to be more than man, even the eternal Son of God.[9] How could a crucified Jewish peasant attain such perennial and global influence unless the Christian story is true, unless he, in fact, died and rose from the dead? The best explanation is not that some supernatural story was concocted after the death of Jesus as a kind of posthumous compliment, but, rather, that he did die to atone for our sins (as he said) and rose from the dead (as he said he would). We have already established that a supernatural Creator God exists who would have the ability to work miracles. When we consult the best historical documents about Jesus (the New Testament), we find them testifying to his various miracles and to the grand miracle, as C. S. Lewis called it in his classic, Miracles. As Lewis, a literary scholar, also noted, these stories do not read like myths and legends, but as bona fide history.[10] Our step-by-step argument, while brief, is compelling, and is backed up by more in-depth analysis.[11] 1. Atheisms claim that life ends at physical death is false because of the evidence for a Creator from sciencegiving us a supernatural wordand because of the case for dualism. 2. Reincarnations claim that we have lived before and will live again is false because the central claims of reincarnation are contradictory, and contradictions cannot be true. 3. The New Testament gives us a reliable historical report about the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. 4. Jesus would never have attained the status he achieved in world history had he not been raised from the dead in space-time history. 5. Therefore, Jesus was raised from the dead. The implications of (5) are titanic for us, for history, and for eternity. Jesuss resurrection is the confirmation that his mission as Messiah was accomplished. As Paul writes, Jesus, through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord (Romans 1:4). Because of Jesus resurrection, those who trust in him as Lord and Savior receive eternal life, beginning in this life and continuing forever (John 3:16-18; Ephesians 2:1-10). As Jesus promised: Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life. Very truly I tell you, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live (John 5:24-25). Those who confess Christ as Lord and believe that he rose from the dead pass from death to life because their sins are forgiven and they are adopted into Gods forever family (John 11:25; Romans 10:9). Because of Jesus resurrection, his followers will be raised to eternal life after death. Therefore, this Easter (and always), we should all cry out: He is risen. The Lord is risen indeed. Hallelujah! Notes [1] Steven C. Meyer, Return of the God Hypothesis (New York: HarperOne, 2021). See also the video, The Case for a Creator, Illustra Media (2006), which is available on YouTube. [2] See Douglas Groothuis, The Uniqueness of Humanity: Consciousness and Cognition, Christian Apologetics, 2nd ed. (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity-Academic, 2022). [3] For a discussion of both religions, see Douglas Groothuis, You are That (Hinduism) and Life is Suffering (Buddhism), World Religions in Seven Sentences (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity-Academic, 2022). [4] See Douglas Groothuis, From Counterculture to New Age, Unmasking the New Age (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1986). [5] See Douglas Groothuis, Logical and Biblical Defeaters for Reincarnation, Christian Research Journal, Volume 39, Number 5 (2016). https://www.equip.org/PDF/JAF3395.pdf. [6] Pascal, Blaise. Pensees (Penguin Classics) (p. 137). Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition. On Pascal, see Douglas Groothuis, Beyond the Wager: The Christian Brilliance of Blaise Pascal (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity-Academic, 2024). [7] See Craig L. Blomberg, Jesus of Nazareth: What Historians Can Know About Him, in Douglas Groothuis, Christian Apologetics. [8] See Walter Kaiser, The Messiah of the Old Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Academic, 1995). [9] Philip Schaff, The Person of Christ: The Miracle of History; With a Reply to Strauss and Renan, and a Collection of Testimonies of Unbelievers (New York: Charles Scribner, 1866), www.ccel.org/ccel/s/schaff/person/cache/person.pdf. [10] C. S. Lewis, What Are We To Make of Jesus Christ? God in the Dock (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1970). [11] See the pertinent chapters in Douglas Groothuis, Christian Apologetics. A Christian view of suicide and assisted suicide Recently a debate on 'Assisted Dying' took place in Westminster Hall in response to a petition to Parliament (e-petition 653593). The wording of this petition was as follows: 'This petition calls for the Government to allocate Parliamentary time for assisted dying to be fully debated in the House of Commons and to give MPs a vote on the issue. Terminally ill people who are mentally sound and near the end of their lives should not suffer unbearably against their will. 'We believe dying people in the UK should have the option of requesting medical assistance to end their lives with dignity, through a safe and compassionate system with strict eligibility criteria and safeguards. Without this, too many are taking matters into their own hands with tragic consequences. The Daily Express and Dignity in Dying support Dame Esther Rantzen's call for a free vote. The time has come to Give Us Our Last Rights.' Although the debate did not end with a vote and the current government is neutral on whether there should be a change in the current law on the matter the fact that the debate was held is indicative of the continuing pressure on the UK to follow other jurisdictions such as the Netherlands, Belgium and Canada in legalising the practice of 'assisted dying.' In thinking about the proposal to legalise 'assisted dying' from a Christian perspective there are two preliminary points that need to be noted. The first is that the term 'assisted dying' is a misnomer. This is a point that is helpfully made by Nigel Biggar in his book What's Wrong with Rights?. Commenting on the language of 'physician assisted dying' used by the Canadian Supreme Court, Biggar writes that this language: '....obscures the fact that what is under discussion is the legal permissibility of medical patients being given assistance to bring an end to their suffering by intentionally killing themselves or by having someone else kill them upon request. Intentional self-killing is what we call 'suicide' and intentional killing 'homicide,' because that is what the words literally mean. Whether or not assistance in killing oneself and killing someone else upon request are morally right, they are distinct from assistance in passive dying. Otherwise known as palliative care, that is where a patient is given comfort and pain relief in the process of dying.' As Biggar further notes: 'It is true that there are cases where palliative treatment can increase the probability of dying, and so has the effect of hastening death. Nevertheless, it is a common place of human experience that we cause things we do not intend. And sometimes at least there is an important moral and legal distinction between effects that we cause intentionally, effects we risk but do not intend, and effects we cause accidentally. It matters whether I intended to kill you, or merely risked your life, or killed you by accident. The presence or absence of intention alone might not finally decide the moral or legal status of my action, but it is nevertheless an important factor. This is obscured by the choice to describe assistance in intentionally killing oneself and being killed upon request as 'assistance in dying.' The question before the court was not simply about the legal permissibility of giving help to the dying, but rather about whether or not to enshrine in law the obligation of healthcare professionals to assist patients to commit suicide or to kill them at their request.' What Biggar says in these two quotes highlights the fact that we need to abandon the language of legalising 'assisted dying.' Assisting someone to die as painlessly and peacefully as possible is not a crime and never has been (or else the whole hospice movement would have been illegal). What we are talking about is intentionally killing someone. This might be done legally but without their agreement (as happened in Nazi Germany) in which case we are talking about execution (even if, like the Nazis, we talk about euthanasia). Alternatively, it might be done with their agreement, in which case we are talking about suicide, since it is a case of someone requesting help to kill themselves. Since, fortunately, we have not reached the stage where anyone is arguing for those who are considered unfit to live to be executed (even if they are innocent of any wrongdoing) what we are talking about is legalising the assisting of suicide. The second preliminary point that needs to be noted is that the argument that is now most used against legalising assisted suicide is the 'slippery slope' argument that it will put pressure on vulnerable people to end their lives when they would not otherwise have done so. This point is stressed by the disabled actress and disability rights campaigner Liz Carr in her new documentary Better Off Dead in which she argues against a change in the current law. As the BBC news website explains: 'Carr is afraid that changing the law for terminally ill people could eventually result in those who are poor, disabled or mentally ill being allowed to have an assisted death in the UK - or even feeling compelled to do so.' The actress says the possibility is 'terrifying.' She points to Canada where the law was changed in 2016 to allow those whose death was 'reasonably foreseeable' to have an assisted death, and then changed again in 2021 to include those with a medical condition who were 'suffering unbearably.' The article also quotes the words of the palliative care specialist Dr Katherine Sleeman who, it says, 'is concerned for people who may feel they are a burden to their families.' 'Patients will say to me: "I don't want to go to a care home really, but I know my family want me to do it and I know it will be easier for them, so I think I'm going to say yes,"' Dr Sleeman explains. 'Substitute the words "go to a care home" with "have an assisted death" and I think it's a completely different picture.' The specialist believes no assisted dying law can be completely safe, and that some people who do not really want to die will always 'slip through the net.' These points made by Carr and Sleeman are very powerful and are supported by the experience of all the countries in which assisted suicide has been legalised, not simply Canada. The evidence suggests that a 'slippery slope' is not only a possibility, but practically inevitable. However, let's assume, hypothetically, that a law was introduced in this country to legalise assisted suicide but was so framed and enforced that a 'slippery slope' was avoided, and the only people who died were people who truly and freely wanted to die. Would such a law be acceptable from a Christian point of view? I would argue that the answer still has to be 'no.' This is because suicide as such is morally impermissible, even if it is freely chosen. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church explains, this is because suicide contravenes the love that one ought to have for God as one's creator, for oneself as God's creation and for one's neighbours by breaking the commandment 'Thou shalt not kill' (Exodus 20:13). To quote the Catechism: 'Everyone is responsible for his life before God who has given it to him. It is God who remains the sovereign Master of life. We are obliged to accept life gratefully and preserve it for his honour and the salvation of our souls. We are stewards, not owners, of the life God has entrusted to us. It is not ours to dispose of. 'Suicide contradicts the natural inclination of the human being to preserve and perpetuate his life. It is gravely contrary to the just love of self. It likewise offends love of neighbour because it unjustly breaks the ties of solidarity with family, nation, and other human societies to which we continue to have obligations. Suicide is contrary to love for the living God.' The consequence, argues the Catechism, is that '... an act or omission which, of itself or by intention, causes death in order to eliminate suffering constitutes a murder gravely contrary to the dignity of the human person and to the respect due to the living God, his Creator. The error of judgment into which one can fall in good faith does not change the nature of this murderous act, which must always be forbidden and excluded' (Para 2277). The position taken by the Catechism may seem a very hard line, but it is the position that the Christian Church as a whole has taken throughout its history. Thus, Augustine writes in The City of God that 'we take the command "You shall not kill" as applying to human beings, that is, other persons and oneself. For to kill oneself is to kill a human being.' This position also makes good theological sense. God has given our life on this earth as a gift to us and through us to our neighbours. It is not morally right to reject this gift. As the Catechism says, contrary to the modern secular idea that 'my life is my own', this means that our life 'is not ours to dispose of.' Because assisted suicide must thus be regarded as a breach of the sixth commandment, Christians are under an obligation to refuse to engage in it themselves, and to refuse to help other people to perform it, in the same way that they would refuse to engage in other acts of unjustified killing. In addition, they must do what they can to prevent it taking place, which means not simply declaring that it is wrong, or trying to ensure that it remains illegal, but compassionately helping people tempted to engage in it to understand that it is not necessary because God's command to go on living, however hard it may subjectively seem, is a better alternative. As human beings we are never in a position in which we can rightly second guess God. Aboneaza-te la rubricile dorite si primeste zilnic notificari pe email cu link-uri la articolele care au fost adaugate in ultimele 24 de ore. Notificarile vor fi expediate la adresa indicata mai jos. Daca doresti sa schimbi adresa - o poti modifica editand informatia de profil aici. Former President Donald Trump suffered a setback in a bid to obtain information about Stormy Daniels and his former lawyer Michael Cohen ahead of Cohen's expected testimony against him this week. The judge overseeing Trump's historic "hush money" trial in New York City on Friday blocked his legal team from subpoenaing records from lawyer Mark Pomerantz, who formerly served as a special prosecutor to investigate Trump and gathered information on Daniels and Cohen . In his ruling, Justice Juan Merchan said the March 18 defense subpoena was "far too broad" in its scope and amounted to an "improper fishing expedition" under state law. Merchan also said the amount of evidence that Pomerantz already gave Trump's lawyers meant it was highly unlikely their subpoena would "uncover any information that is relevant and material to the proceedings." Pomerantz abruptly resigned as special prosecutor in February 2022, citing opposition to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's decision to suspend his probe. Pomerantz said he feared the move would "doom any future prospects" of prosecuting Trump, who last year became the first former U.S. president to face criminal charges. The March 18 subpoena issued against Pomerantz sought "all documents" tied to a February 2021 memo that addressed whether Daniels had committed extortion or larceny and whether Trump was a "victim of blackmail" by the porn star. It also demanded records from a 13-month period related to Cohen's interactions with Trump and any "bias or animosity" Cohen expressed toward his former boss. Last week, Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, told the jury she had an affair with Trump in 2006. Cohen is expected to testify starting Monday that Trump directed him to buy Daniels' silence for $130,000 shortly before his 2016 victory over Hillary Clinton. Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee for this year's presidential election, denies that he had sex with Daniels and has pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of falsifying records to allegedly disguise the payment to her as business expenses. Sign up for The Media Today, CJRs daily newsletter. In 2006, I was asleep in a cabin on the Lofoten Islands, in the north of Norway, when my parents woke me up and told me to come outside. I thought a sea eagle must be flying over the house (we had been on a boat tour to watch them earlier in the day), but it was actually the northern lights, the scientific phenomenon known as aurora borealis. They danced across the sky in flashes of vivid greenor maybe thats the wrong metaphor, maybe they pulsed, almost imperceptibly, from one place to another. The effect was hard to describe. It was also magical. We tried to capture it using a digital camera, but the photos didnt do it justice. My dad edited some of them after the fact to draw out the color, but the effect was a grainy simulacrum. On Friday, I was heading to my childhood home near Plymouth, in the far southwest of England, when I got a push notification from the New York Times alerting me to a solar storm that might imminently make the aurora visible even in locations where it is uncommon. I googled stories about the phenomenon in British outlets. The first one I read suggested that it might be visible as far south as the middle of the countryan unusual enough development, but not one that gave me personally much hope. Where I come from, seeing the aurora is practically unheard of. That night, I was in bed scrolling Twitter as users across the UK started to post stunning images of the aurora in their night skies. One user had posted an image from Dartmoor, a national park not far away. According to my dad, the aurora had been spotted there before and still not been visible from my village, where there is generally more light pollution. Still, I went to my window and stared in a northerly direction. After a few minutes, the sky seemed to change color, and what appeared to be columns of white light appeared, arcing above the house. The effect was subtle, but enough to make me wake up my dad and run outside. I took a picture of the sky with my iPhone and was stunned by what its camera had picked up: shocking-pink shards of light variously beaming and twisting, like sand in an hourglass, down into a turquoise haze. I was not alone. As the hours passed, similarly extraordinary photosfrom locations as diverse as Hungary, British Columbia, and Floridaflooded social media; traditional media werent far behind, collating some of the best images into online galleries or putting them on their front pages. (There were also ample online references to an aurora joke from The Simpsons; one made its way into the Times, knowingly or otherwise.) The prevailing effect seemed to be one of unity in awe, cutting, however briefly, through an age of polarization and toxic online debate and disinformation. Its crazy to think, Bill, that this is a blip in the universe, Abby Phillip told her colleague Bill Weir on CNN, which went into special-coverage mode and brought on guests including another BillNye, the Science Guy. Were blips, yeah, Weir responded. It gives us a sense of humble perspective. Were on this little blue-and-green marble, hurtling through space, at the mercy of physics. Phillip also remarked that some imagery of the aurora almost looked like it had been generated by artificial intelligence. We are living through a moment, of course, of rapid technological progress but also of uncertainty as to the reliability of images (even if, as I noted recently, concern about manipulated imagery is far from new). The aurora, at least as I experienced it, entered into this climate in a strange and disconcerting way; if, in 2006, I couldnt digitally capture something my eyes could see, this time the effect was reversed, thanks to the power of the camera now in my pocket. I could still see the aurora with my naked eye: the night sky appeared as if through various light filters; I perceived the same indescribable, almost imperceptible dynamics I saw in Norway. And yet the vivid colors were visible only through my phone. What I was seeing in my photos was the truth. And yet looking at them felt vaguely post-truthy. The same applied onlinelooking at the photos of others, it was hard to tell what they had actually seen, or what that even meant. The world feels more fragile now than it did in 2006 (at least, it does to me), in no small part thanks to all the toxic online discourse and destabilizing effects of new information technology. If the story of the aurora intersected with these dynamics, it also shined its light through other aspects of this perceived fragility. In major outlets, coverage of the phenomenon and all the related excitement was cut up with coverage of the causethe solar storm activityand its less beautiful potential effects: such storms can mess with satellites and GPS systems, and can even disrupt parts of power grids down on Earth. (The recent activity has not wreaked widespread havoc, though it has not been without impact; 404 Media reports that it compromised agricultural equipment used in so-called precision farming.) In 2019, the Federal Emergency Management Agency said that only two possible natural disasters would be able to hamper the entire United States at the same time: a pandemic, or a serious solar storm. Sign up for CJRs daily email If the communications and power infrastructure that such a storm could disrupt is (relatively) new, the storms themselves, of course, are not. News articles about the phenomena often trace their recorded history to the Carrington Event, an 1859 episode, named for a British astronomer, that itself produced dazzling auroras far and wide (and attendant, apparently enthusiastic media coverage of them) while disrupting the telegraph systems used, among other things, as a key node in the communication of news. Over the years, at odd intervals, this pattern kept repeating: brilliant night skies followed by troubling consequences, which changed in concert with evolving technologies, Kathryn Schulz wrote in The New Yorker earlier this year. Teletype machines ceased to operate; or transatlantic cables stopped working; or worldwide radio circuits fell silent; or hundreds of thousands of miles of transmission lines used to send and receive wire stories all went down at the same time. According to the Space Weather Prediction Center, an arm of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (which Schulz profiled in her piece), this weekends storm was the most extreme to reach Earth since 2003. Schulz suggested that the field of space weather has been a mostly marginal subject, even among policymakersat least until 2008, when the National Academy of Sciences published a report warning that a Carrington-size storm could overwhelm American infrastructure. In terms of public awareness and media attention, I would contend that the subject has remained fairly marginalthough stories about it (like Schulzs) pop up from time to time in major outlets, especially during periods (like the present moment) approaching solar maximum, or the point of highest solar activity on an eleven-year cycle. Nearly everything the modern world relies on could fail if disabled by a serious enough solar storm, the Washington Post warned in a flashily illustrated editorial last week, even before the auroras. The good news is, researchers estimate that storms of sufficient magnitude to cause real havoc occur only once every hundred or so years. The bad news is, were probably overdue. The solar cycle, as Schulz put it, is not wholly determinative of activity; a massively disruptive solar storm remains unlikely to hit Earth, and observers differ as to how well prepared we would be if one did. (In its editorial, the Post credited the US government with taking the risks seriously while urging it to go further.) Last year, a group of researchers writing in the journal Space Weather recognized that media interest/coverage of space weather has been increasing as we approach solar maximum, and argued that it is not uncommon for such coverage to indulge in hyperbole, not least in its references to the Carrington Event. (Indeed, past headlines about powerful solar storms have warned of the possibility of the apocalypse or of Earth being blasted back to the Stone Age.) The researchers also noted that the surge in interest is an opportunity to educate the public about a scientific field that is not (yet) the subject of rampant popular conspiracy theories. And they argued that a balance must be found between hyperbole and the contrary instinct to talk down the real impact of space weather, and thus, even if indirectly, the research field as a whole. If FEMA likened the potential disruption of a major solar storm to that of a pandemic, the former strikes me as throwing up similar issues for the media as the latter, which, since FEMA wrote in 2019, is no longer a hypothetical scenario. Back in 2022, I wrote at length for CJR about the medias response to the pandemic and the many challenges it involved, including, but not limited to, a lack of data (especially early on) and attendant huge uncertainty, frayed public trust in experts (and in the media itself), and the difficulty of covering highly complex systems. Even now, coverage of solar activity raises some similar questionsas well as the dilemma, especially acute as the pandemic emerged, of how to balance due urgency in covering mitigation measures against the risk of being seen to cry wolf, and the implications of that for trust. Just because a major pandemic happened, of course, doesnt mean that a mass solar disruption event is imminent. But these sorts of questions are applicable to all sorts of stories. With the pandemic fading, all too quickly, from our collective memory, the present burst of solar activity should be a reminder, at least, that they are worth thinking about in an ongoing way. Another challenge of covering the pandemic was that, in many ways, COVID was not directly visible; its visual language in the media thus became one of masks, and hospitals, and mass gravesall grim symbols, even if some of them were imprecise, or contested, or even stigmatizing. The auroras over the weekend were very visible, through our phone cameras at any rate, even if the feelings aroused by the resulting imagesbeauty, wonder, cosmic-insignificance-via-punditthemselves entailed some dissonance with the underlying risk. Fortunately, much of the coverage filled in the scientific context. And theres nothing wrong, in an often ugly world, with pausing to give a platform to the awesome. When it comes to the potential effects of solar storms, the Post wrote in its editorial, with the right preparation, the real worst-case scenario could be a severe storm striking on a cloudy night. Other notable stories: David Remnick, the editor of The New Yorker, profiled the liberal Israeli newspaper Haaretz, one of the few Hebrew-language institutions that consistently attempt to wrestle, however imperfectly, with the realities of what is going on in Israel, Gaza, and the West Bankand to present multiple truths to readers who might prefer to avoid them. Meanwhile, officials in Tel Aviv reportedly detained and questioned journalists from Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, a London-based outlet, on suspicion that they might be working for Al Jazeera, the Qatar-funded network that Israel banned last weekend. And the Times spoke with pro-Palestinian protesters in the US who have turned to Al Jazeera and other outlets for their coverage of the war in Gaza, valuing the channels on-the-ground reporting and different perspective from that of much of the US media. Jerusalem Demsas, of The Atlantic, makes the case that the US is stuck in a protest feedback loop, with demonstrations becoming more frequent but, on the whole, less effective, in no small part due to the dynamics of the modern media ecosystem. Mass actions no longer require organized groups with members who pay dues, professional staffers who plan targeted actions, and designated leaders who can negotiate with public officials. They just need someone who can make a good Instagram graphic, Demsas argues. But notwithstanding the clear benefits of social media for protest participants, the lure of racking up views on TikTok or X and getting on the homepage of major news sites can overwhelm other strategic goals. Semafors Max Tani reports that Sam Koppelmanthe cofounder of Hunterbrook, a controversial new initiative to play the markets based on original investigative reportingedited a critical story about a drink that claims to sober people up without disclosing a personal investment in a company that could be perceived as a competitor. Koppelman described his investment as old and small, while Hunterbrook denied similarities between the drink and the rival companys products. Still, Tani writes, the case exposes one of the fundamental challenges facing Hunterbrook: that its editorial decisions will be seen through the lens of its aim of making money from investments. For The Ankler, Claire Atkinson explored how David Pecker, the former National Enquirer publisher who recently testified in court to his role in helping Donald Trump conceal embarrassing stories, came to invest in George, a magazine founded by John F. Kennedy Jr. George gave Pecker an entree into elite circles, including Trump, who would feature on the magazines cover, Atkinson writes. If George had fulfilled its early promise, perhaps Pecker would have had a different trajectory in the media world, one that may have made him less famousbut also less infamous. And WABC, a radio station in New York owned by the Republican billionaire John Catsimatidis, suspended Rudy Giuliani and canceled his daily talk show after he disputed the results of the 2020 presidential election on air, in violation of company policy. (Giuliani claimed not to be aware of any such policy.) He did it to himself, Catsimatidis told the New York Post, of Giulianis suspension. I thought he was a great mayor for the city of New York so I always try to support him. But you cant cross the line. New from CJR: After eight years of propaganda, can Polish journalists regain public trust? Jon Allsop is a freelance journalist whose work has appeared in the New York Review of Books, The New Yorker, and The Atlantic, among other outlets. He writes CJRs newsletter The Media Today. Find him on Twitter @Jon_Allsop. Sign up for The Media Today, CJRs daily newsletter. In late December, Polands public broadcaster descended into chaos. Two months earlier, Poles had elected former prime minister Donald Tusk for a third time, voting out a parliamentary slate of right-wing populists who, since 2015, had controlled the levers of government, including the state broadcaster, known as TVP. Under their watch, TVPs news programs repeated government talking points and demonized the opposition, turning the sedate channel into something akin to a taxpayer-funded Fox News. TVPs credibility plummeted: a 2021 study by the Reuters Institute at Oxford found that just over a third of Poles trusted it, the lowest of more than a dozen media outlets measured. Six days after taking office, Tusk turned to public television as Exhibit A of his strategy to sweep out populists with an iron broom. On December 19, the new majority passed a parliamentary resolution demanding that impartiality be restored at public broadcasters. The head of TVP was fired, as were the heads of the state-owned wire and radio services. The next day, the new government ordered TVP Info, the outlets twenty-four-hour news channel, off the air; it remained off for about a week. A few hours later, prominent right-wing figures, including Jarosaw Kaczynski, the most powerful right-wing politician in Poland, entered the TVP building in southern Warsaw and occupied it; more joined, with some forcing their way past police and security guards. Kaczynski denounced the parliaments actions as a coup detat, and vowed to defend what he called media pluralism. The wily Kaczynski, a seventy-four-year-old lifelong bachelor who lives alone with his cats, had stayed at TVP headquarters all night. But the conservative sit-in continued a few miles away, at TVPs central Warsaw bureau. Law and Justice MPs joined for a Christmas Eve dinner. Micha Adamczyk, an anchor during the previous populist government, spent more than three weeks camped out in the offices. I spent one month in a tent in Antarctica, Adamczyk told me. I spent one month in Iraq in a military tent. By comparison, sleeping inside the ornate downtown buildingwhich was going unused by the new managementwas no problem. While right-wing figures gathered in the southern Warsaw building on December 20, Pawe Puska, the newly appointed head of TVPs evening news program, 19:30, arrived there with a small team for his first day of work. Puska and his colleagues soon found themselves on the front lines not only of an intense protest, but of something bigger: a campaign to restore the reputation of the public broadcaster and its main evening newscastand, they hoped, to turn down the temperature of the countrys deep polarization. Inside the building on that first night, a presenter named Marek Czyz recorded a brief statement to air. While protesters chased Czyz and Puska with their smartphone cameras through the halls, another senior staffer quietly delivered the statement to the technical staff. In it, Czyz said, Instead of propaganda soup, we want to offer you clean water. 19:30 used to be called simply Wiadomosci (The News). It began broadcasting in November 1989, a few months after the Communists were defeated in Polands first free election in over forty years. In 1992, Polands parliament, attempting to turn the page on TVPs legacy as a communist propaganda organ, passed a law requiring that the network provide broadcasts that were pluralistic, impartial, well-balanced, independent, and innovative, as well as of high quality and integrity. Sign up for CJRs daily email Despite that law, TVP often favored whichever party was in power. During Tusks second term, from 2011 to 2014, TVP gave his party disproportionate airtime, according to the channels own statistics. Still, Janek Lasocki, who has closely documented the saga at the public broadcaster, wrote on the English-language website Notes from Poland that TVP sometimes showed real independence: for instance, in 1999, it broadcast footage of then-president Aleksander Kwasniewski drunk at a war cemetery. TVP has a captive audience that is disproportionately older and lives outside large cities. Unlike its private competitors, TVPs twenty-four-hour news channel is free to watch. About a third of Poles have access only to the free channel. (Cable packages cost around $13 to $20 per month.) TVP is funded by advertising and licensing fees, but less than 8 percent of households actually pay the feeenforcement is rareso TVP must rely on direct government subsidies. TVPs status as the free broadcaster has led to big ratings: in 2022, it received a 28 percent viewing share among Polish broadcasters, meaning that of all the Poles watching television, nearly a third were watching TVP. In 2015, Law and Justice swept the countrys presidential and parliamentary elections, with the help of older people and those living outside big cities. The party received a simple majorityno coalition partners neededenabling it to remake state institutions in its image. The new government pushed through a law that allowed it to fire TVPs management. Shortly after, the government appointed a new chief, former Law and Justice lawmaker Jacek Kurski, who made no apologies about steering the networks tone in a radically different direction. I dont deny that some of the viewers, especially those with liberal views, have stopped watching us, he said in 2016. At the same time, many conservative viewers from right-wing areas of Poland have returned to TVP. Indeed, as Poland grew more polarized, TVP grew more politicized. News programs frequently ran chyrons accusing Tusk, who had become president of the European Commission, of being a German stooge. The widow of Gdansk mayor Pawe Adamowicz, who was assassinated in 2019, blamed hate speech from TVP for contributing to her husbands death. The 2020 presidential election illustrated how partisan the network had become. A Polish media monitor found that 97 percent of the broadcasts about Andrzej Duda, the incumbent Law and Justice president, were positive, while 87 percent of those about his opponent, Warsaw mayor Rafa Trzaskowski, were negative. Broadcasts depicted Trzaskowski as being associated with a powerful foreign lobby linked to billionaire George Soros and responsible for bringing Muslim migrants to Europe. Other broadcasts suggested that Trzaskowski wanted to give Polish property to Jews for restitution; the American Jewish Committee filed complaints to Polands media ethics council about TVP broadcasts. Trzaskowski lost the race narrowly. Adamczyk, the former anchor whod spent nights sleeping at TVP after the takeover, was one of the public faces of the channel during this time. While he was spending nights in the central Warsaw bureau, the National Media Council, which was createdand remains controlledby the old government, appointed him as TVPs new head. Despite the title, he has no real authority over TVP; he has no work email or key card. In February, I met Adamczyk, dressed in casual clothes, at a quiet restaurant in suburban Warsaw, far from TVPs offices. During a long lunch, he was feisty in his defense of the old TVP. He had two arguments in support of his broadcasts: that TVP had always been politicized by whichever party was in power; and that partisan broadcasts were necessary to counterbalance the popular private channel TVN. (In a broadcast, TVP called TVN a fake-news factory.) The media was dominated by the left, Adamczyk told me, even during the years of Law and Justice rule. He added, Take a look at TVN. Take a look at TVP. Its like Fox News and CNN. TVN has been sharply critical of Law and Justicebut, as a private channel, it is not subject to the law governing broadcaster objectivity. Adamczyk entirely rejected the new governments methods for taking control of TVP. You may have disliked the media before, but you should respect the law about changing the authorities, he said. Adamczyk said his days were spent shuttling between law firms and banks, trying to reverse the governments move to put TVP and state broadcasters into liquidation, which it argued it needs to do to reform the channels. He also thought that the new programming was pro-government: Its only a copy of TVN, and its a bad copy of TVN. Another former TVP official has said the channels right-wing tilt was a mistake. At a conservative post-election gathering in Warsaw, Marcin Wolski, a former director of TVPs culture channel and host of a right-wing satirical political show, said, I say this as an accomplice: we created propaganda at a worse level than in the 1970s. He argued that this content was a waste of time and money because viewers would have voted for Law and Justice anyway. Within TVP, however, the Stalinist logic won: whoever is not with us is against us. When I met Wolski at his house a few months later, he said the old management had taken him off the air because of his remarks. He had imagined he would be thanked for his criticismsinstead, he said, his independent streak had scared his bosses. Wolski had moved his show to YouTube, where he said he had a lot of followers, but less money than at TVP. When I arrived at TVP in February, it looked like it was under siege. Barricades surrounded its imposing headquarters in southern Warsaw. Police guards kept watch outside. IDs were checked at several points and individual key cards were required for entry and exit for each department. Inside, however, it had the rhythm of a normal newsroom. Reporters were making calls, producers were editing footage, editors were meeting to discuss the days stories. There was even a random celebrity guest in the building: Luna, Polands entrant for the upcoming Eurovision, in May. During the campaign, Tusk had promised TVP would be back to public television within twenty-four hours. However, the hard work was just beginning. We are changing the language from hatred and exclusion, Puska, the head of the evening news show, told me when I met him in his office. This is a public broadcaster, not party propaganda. Maciej Czajkowski is Puskas deputy, and has experience both at the old TVP and the BBC, which he holds as something of a model public broadcaster. Czajkowski was one of the first journalists to be fired in 2016 after Law and Justice took control of the network; he moved to London to join the BBC, and returned to Poland after the election. Now he is dreaming big: he told me that he hopes Michelle Obama or Volodymyr Zelensky might sit for an interview with 19:30. He showed me a behind-the-scenes Instagram video, complete with stirring music, chronicling 19:30s December 21 debut news broadcast. I am in charge of the main news bulletin in this country, and I am openly gay, he said. That is the proof that I am no differentmy values are universal values. Czajkowski said changing the system now was even more challenging than when the countrys Communist dictatorship was voted out. Its more difficult than in 1989, because [then] everyone wanted to leave the Communist times behind. Now people are confused. Sitting in the TVP cafeteria, Czajkowski said he is trying to create a news program that will teach people critical thinking and appeal to all. The situation for eight years has been created by politicians, he added. They turned public media into propaganda-tube, which was full of emotions for them. We are delivering a voice. Polands fight over public broadcasting offers a window into the question of whether institutions commandeered by populists can ever go back to normalparticularly once the public sphere has been infected by populist language. Kaczynski, the powerful right-wing politician, called opposition protesters Poles of the worst sort, and Law and Justice described its political program as good change. The late Polish philologist Micha Gowinski compared these phrases to the newspeak of Communist times. In his first term, Donald Trump attempted to take control of Americas international broadcasting operations by putting Steve Bannon ally Michael Pack in charge; should Trump win a second term in 2024, his allies have detailed plans to fill US institutions with loyalists to carry out his agenda. Poland offers a lesson in how tall the task of deprogramming from populism is. Its particularly hard on 19:30s journalists, all of whom are new. Blanka Dzugaj, a reporter, has faced an onslaught of abuse online, including social media posts calling her swine and a party functionary. Nevertheless, she told me, its a huge chance for any journalist in Poland now to make a whole new Polish television after eight years of destruction. In its first statement to viewers, the revamped 19:30 promised a photograph of the world. The broadcast showed straightforward news from Brussels, the capital of the European Union, which the previous management had cast as an enemy. When I was there, the show included segments on the Polish parliament, farmers protests along the border with Ukraine, and Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of longtime Russian dissident Alexei Navalny. It was informative, if appropriately boring. Still, much of TVPs audience seems to have tuned out. Nielsen data shows that for the first four weeks of the rebooted 19:30, it was getting barely half the audience share of the old program. Meanwhile, a right-wing channel called TV Republika has seen its audience nearly double. Micha Rachon, a confrontational conservative former TVP Info host, returned to Republika after TVPs management changed. We spoke as he was being driven around Warsaw to look for new studios to replace the channels cramped offices. We want to be number one in the Polish market, he told me. This will happen. While Tusk won and took control of TVP, his control is not absolute. Duda remains in office through 2025, and he has a veto over legislation passed by parliament. Tusks coalition does not have a large enough majority to override him. At the end of December, after Duda threatened to veto Tusks overhaul of TVP, Tusk put the channel, along with Polands state-owned radio and wire services, into liquidation. This move triggered controversy not only among former government officials, but with some of the same rights groups that had been critical of Law and Justice. Katarzyna Batko-Touc, board director of Watchdog Poland, a government oversight group, told me that while public media was propaganda under Law and Justice, there is no explanation why the whole [takeover] process is not transparent. Some legal experts were more favorable: former Polish ombudsman Ewa etowska wrote that the decision to liquidate the channel was proportional and constitutional. (The whole process remains caught up in litigation. Most recently, a court in Warsaw affirmed the legality of Tusks move.) As with before Law and Justice took power, the new TVP has been accused of favoring the new government. In February, TVP released a promo praising the channels reboot that featuredexclusivelypoliticians from the new government. Demagog, an independent fact-checking group, found that 19:30 criticized President Duda more than private channels and sometimes omitted information critical of the Tusk government. For about two months after the reboot, Law and Justice politicians refused to appear on TVP, but on February 26, TVP Info interviewed a Law and Justice senator. Czajkowski told me that during the run-up to local elections in April, Law and Justice politicians were making their way backat least on TVPs regional news programs. I will be criticized and seen as part of the system, Czajkowski said. I can only say: I am not. He added, This is not black and white. [Law and Justice] created these circumstances. Many TVP employees hold out hope that the government will pass a new media law giving journalists the freedom to do their jobs without worrying who is in power. That remains unlikely under Polands divided government. While they wait, the journalists are universally enthusiastic about delivering high-quality, impartial news programming. Marcin Kowalski is one of them. The news presenter was fired in 2016 under Law and Justice, but came back to TVP under new management after struggling to find a consistent TV job. We took public media from the bad guy, and we gave it to the people, he told me. But we have to prove that we gave it to the people. We have to be open to both sides. Luke Johnson is a Berlin-based journalist who reports frequently from Eastern Europe. He is the author of the newsletter Public Sphere. The Florida Supreme Court has opened the door a little wider to wrongful death claims from people who werent married to victims at the time of injury, upsetting what defense lawyers said was a decades-old common-law practice. In Ripple vs. CBS Corp. the court on Thursday overturned part of a state appeal courts decision and found that a surviving spouse can recover damages, even if she had married the sickened worker after he was diagnosed and just before he died. Floridas 4th District Court of Appeals ruling in 2022 conflicted with the 5th Districts opinion in a 2018 case, Dominos Pizza vs. Wiederhold. The high court sided with the 5th District, potentially paving the way for more claims by companions of mesothelioma and cancer victims. We agree with the Fifth District and hold that a spouse who married the decedent after the injury can recover damages as a surviving spouse under section 768.21(2) of the Florida statutes, the Supreme Court concluded. We reject Respondents argument that, in these circumstances, the common law marriage before injury rule bars recovery under section 768.21(2). Defense attorneys in the case could not be reached for comment Thursday. But in an amicus brief, the Coalition for Litigation Justice, an association of insurance companies, had argued that allowing an unmarried companion to bring wrongful death claims goes against decades of common-law marriage rules observed by courts in Florida and around the country. Courts universally recognize that the marriage-before injury is needed because a line must be drawn somewhere as to liability,' Miami attorney Daniel Rogers wrote in the brief, citing previous court rulings. The long-established rule, requiring a marriage before the injury is known, ensures that a person may not marry into a cause of action. Otherwise, many resources will be spent handling claims that should never have been brought, he noted. But the Supreme Court justices rejected the insurers and the manufacturers arguments, finding that Floridas 1972 Wrongful Death Act allows surviving spouses to seek damages. Period. We conclude that a surviving spouse under section 768.21(2) is a spouse at the time of the decedents death because the ordinary meaning of surviving spouse is a spouse who outlives the other spouse, the justices wrote. Despite previous court decisions and the defense arguments, we do not think that the common law marriage before injury rule bars Ripple from recovering damages. The Coalition for Litigation Justice members include: Century Indemnity Co.; Great American Insurance Co.; Nationwide Indemnity Co.; Allianz Reinsurance America, Inc.; Resolute Management, Inc., a third-party administrator for numerous insurers; and TIG Insurance Co. A wrongful death claim is not simply a continuation of an injury or loss of consortium claim, the court noted. It is not clear that the marriage before injury rule, a common law defense to a cause of action based on loss of consortium, can also serve to eliminate an element of statutory damages, the opinion reads. The case stemmed from the marriage of Ripple and her longtime boyfriend Richard Counter. Counter had worked with asbestos in the 1950s and 1960s, and was diagnosed with mesothelioma on May 22, 2015, the court explained. Less than two months later, Counter married Ripple, the woman he had lived with for years. A few weeks later, Counter filed a personal injury complaint against CBS Corp., an asbestos manufacturer, and others. Four months after that, Counter died. Ripple, representing the estate, then amended the complaint to include a wrongful death claim. The Supreme Court justices agreed that its Ripple ruling now sets up something of an anomaly. Under Florida law, Ripple could not have pursued an action for loss of consortium because the couple was not married at the time of the injury. Yet, because of Counters death from that injury, part of Ripples recovery might include damages for the loss of companionship and protection from the date of the injury. We think it is up to the Legislature, not the courts, to decide whether this is a problem that needs fixing and, if so, how, the justices wrote. Also, a jury can always determine if the late-date wedding was an attempt by Ripple to marry into the claim. The justices remanded the case to the lower courts for further proceedings. Tesla has settled a lawsuit by a former factory employee who says she was fired for complaining about severe sexual harassment, as the electric carmaker faces a series of sex and race discrimination lawsuits. U.S. District Judge William Orrick in San Francisco dismissed Tyonna Turners 2023 lawsuit on Monday, one day after she and Tesla informed the judge of the settlement. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Turner worked at Teslas flagship Fremont, California, assembly plant, where the company is accused in a number of lawsuits of failing to address rampant harassment of Black and female workers. The settlement appears to be the first in a series of sexual harassment cases filed against Tesla since 2021. Tesla, which has denied wrongdoing in those cases, and lawyers for Turner did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Turner in the lawsuit alleged that in the nearly two years she worked at the Fremont plant she was harassed about 100 times, including by a male coworker who followed her around the factory and stalked her. She claimed that when she complained, a supervisor told her, Thats just how people are. Turner was fired in September 2022, which she says was retaliation for reporting the harassment and a workplace injury. Orrick last August rejected Teslas bid to send the case to private arbitration, citing a 2022 federal law that bars mandatory arbitration of sexual harassment and assault claims. Turners allegations are similar to those in at least six other cases pending against Tesla in California state court. Tesla is also facing lawsuits accusing it of tolerating widespread racial discrimination at the Fremont plant and other facilities, including claims from a U.S. anti-discrimination agency, a separate case by its California counterpart, and a class action on behalf of 6,000 Black workers. Those lawsuits claim that Black workers were subjected to constant racial slurs and graffiti, assigned to less desirable jobs and retaliated against for complaining. Tesla has said it does not tolerate discrimination and has fired workers found to have engaged in racist conduct. (Reporting by Wiessner in Albany, New York; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama, Alexia Garamfalvi and Leslie Adler) Tianas Bayou Adventure, the latest thrill ride at the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World in Florida, officially opens this summer. The attraction, a retheming of the Splash Mountain log flume ride, will welcome guests starting on June 28. Tianas Bayou Adventure invites guests to join beloved characters Princess Tiana, Mama Odie, Louis, and all-new friends on a thrilling adventure, all set against the music and excitement of a New Orleans celebration, the theme park said in a press release. This new attraction will feature dozens of Audio-Animatronics figures, a foot-tapping soundtrack, and a celebration where everyones welcome. Tianas Bayou Adventure continues the story of The Princess and the Frog, the 2009 animated film that introduced the first Black Disney princess. The attraction will showcase plenty of new Audio-Animatronics figures including Princess Tiana, Prince Naveen, Mama Odie and Louis the Alligator, all voiced by the original actors. Be prepared also for new and original music by Terence Blanchard and PJ Morton, the sweet smell of freshly baked beignets piped into the queue and, of course, the 50-foot drop that made its predecessor such a beloved E-ticket ride. The grand opening comes four years after Disney first announced that Splash Mountain would get a makeover and more than a year after the ride closed for good. The attraction, which debuted at Magic Kingdom in 1992, was based on Song of the South, a 1946 film that has been criticized for romanticizing life in the Antebellum South and subsequently locked away in the studios vault for decades. Back in 2020, the company said it was seeking a new ride concept that would be more inclusive one that all of our guests can connect with and be inspired by, and it speaks to the diversity of the millions of people who visit our parks each year. Suffice it to say that interest in the new version is high. So, dont necessarily expect to be able to roll up to the Magic Kingdom this summer and simply get in line. The ride will use a virtual queue to prevent excruciatingly long waits. The system currently in place for high-volume attractions such as Tron Lightcycle / Run at Magic Kingdom and Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind at EPCOT requires guests to check in to the My Disney Experience app on the day of their visit to obtain a boarding time. Ride entry will also be available as a Lightning Lane for people who purchase the Disney Genie+ service. In addition, guests without date-based tickets will need a reservation to get into the park. Tianas Bayou Adventure also is scheduled to open at Disneyland in Anaheim, California, this year. EUCLID, Ohio A first-year Euclid police officer in his 20s was shot to death Saturday night in what authorities describe as an ambush after officers responded to a menacing complaint at a home. Late Sunday afternoon, the suspect was found dead after a standoff with police in a Shaker Heights apartment building along Van Aken Boulevard, authorities said. A U.S. Marshals office official, who announced the death of the suspect, did not answer a question as to whether the suspect died of a self-inflicted wound. Shots and what sounded like explosions could be heard from witnesses outside the building. The deceased officer was identified as Jacob Derbin, 23, who had been on the police force for less than a year. Euclid Police Chief Scott Meyer said Derbins father is also a member of the police department. His kind heart and enormous smile were infectious, Derbin told media late Sunday. The world was a better place with him in it. He will be desperately missed by all who knew him. Euclid police officer Jacob Derbin was killed in the line of duty late Saturday night.Euclid Police Department Meyer said police were called to a residence on East 211th Street by a woman who said the father of her child, and her mother were being threatened shortly before 10 p.m. Saturday. She reported to officers that the suspect had fled before police arrived. Police entered the backyard and were ambushed by gunfire, Meyer said. Derbin died later at a hospital. No other officers sustained injuries, Meyer said. During the late afternoon news conference, authorities from Euclid, Shaker Heights and the U.S. Marshals offices provided few details about what happened inside the Shaker Heights apartment building. The suspect found dead in the apartment building was Deshawn Anthony Vaughn, 24, said Pete Elliott, U.S. Marshal for the Northern District of Ohio. Earlier Saturday, the Attorney Generals office released photos of Vaughn as part of a Blue Alert, saying he was at-large and identifying the vehicle involved as a white Volkswagen Passat. Vaughn has an extensive record, a spokesman for the attorney general said, though he was unable to offer specifics. The Ohio Attorney General's Office released these photos of a suspect sought in Saturday's Euclid police shooting, identified as Deshawn Anthony Vaughn.Ohio Attorney General Cuyahoga County court records list a Deshawn Vaughn of Euclid and of the same age as pleading guilty in 2021 to receiving stolen property and having weapons under a disability. He was sentenced to nine months in prison. The Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction said that this Vaughn was wanted for violating the conditions of his supervision, warning on its website: This individual should be considered dangerous and possibly armed. Do not attempt to apprehend this individual. Call your local law enforcement agency or 911. Dawn Marie Derbin, Jacobs mother, shared a photo of her son on her Facebook page captioning it my hero next to a broken heart emoji. It is a cruel irony, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said in a news release, that a mother lost her son on Mothers Day, and that this murder happened just as we prepare to solemnize our fallen during Police Memorial Week. My heart burns with anger at this injustice, for the family of this young officer and the Euclid Police Department. Derbin graduated from the Kent State University police academy, a spokesman for Yost said. He was sworn into the Euclid Police Department on July 23, less than a year ago. Gov. Mike DeWine ordered U.S. and Ohio flags to be flown at half-staff at all public buildings and grounds throughout Cuyahoga County and at the Ohio Statehouse, the Vern Riffe Center, and the Rhodes State Office Tower in Columbus until sunset on the day of the funeral. In the wake of the tragic loss of our dedicated officer, we find ourselves grappling with a profound sense of sorrow and disbelief, Euclid Mayor Kirsten Holzheimer Gail said in a prepared statement. This moment calls for us as a community to come together in solidarity and support, not only to honor a hero who selflessly served and protected us, but also to offer strength to one another in this time of grief. Derbin was engaged to get married this summer, Chief Meyer said. cleveland.com reporters Megan Sims and Molly Walsh and photographer John Kuntz contributed to this story. RUSSELL TOWNSHIP, Ohio Ruffled feathers: Chillicothe Road A man visited the police station at 7:48 p.m. May 8 seeking advice regarding his neighbors roosters that come onto his property. An officer gave him advice and contacted the chickens owner. The owner agreed to work on keeping his roosters on their property. Animals at large: Caves Road Police were dispatched at 10:29 a.m. May 10 on a complaint of Guinea hens running loose in the complainants yard. The complainant gave officers an address where the hens reside. The chickens owner was informed about the issues and was given advice. Suspicious: Hemlock Road While on patrol at 4:42 a.m. April 22, police encountered a vehicle with its fog lights on at the Modroo Farm Preserve parking lot. The driver and her young son were trying to view a meteor shower. She was advised of the park hours. Assistance: Chillicothe Road Police and firefighters visited a resident shortly before 7 p.m. May 4. The resident was concerned about a neighbors non-active backyard fire pit that was filled with mattresses and sofas. Advice was given. Suspicious: Century Lane Police were dispatched at 6:42 p.m. May 7 to an address on a report of a suspicious man wearing green at the front gate. Officers checked the area, but they did not see a person or vehicle near the property, nor was suspicious activity observed. Traffic hazard: Fox Hollow Drive With the help of several residents at 7 p.m. May 8, an officer cut up and removed a fallen tree blocking the road. Get police blotters by email every weekday for free with our new Police Blotter newsletter. Sign up at cleveland.com/newsletters. Read more from the Chagrin Solon Sun. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Sunday that Israel has failed to reveal a "credible" plan to mitigate Palestinian deaths in Rafah, the Gazan city where more than a million civilians are sheltering from bombardment or running for their lives. He also said the bombings may have little real effect on eradicating Hamas. "Right now, the trajectory that Israel is on even if it goes in and takes heavy action in Rafah there will still be thousands of armed Hamas left," he said on NBC's "Meet the Press." "The trajectory right now is that going into Rafah, even to deal with these remaining battalions, especially in the absence of a plan for civilians, risks doing terrible harm to civilians and not solving the problem." WATCH: @SecBlinken says the U.S. has not seen credible plans from Israel on mitigating civilian deaths in Rafah or for what happens when the war ends. Blinken: Even if [Israel] ... takes heavy action in Rafah, there will still be thousands of armed Hamas left. pic.twitter.com/V1qRVlnYBW Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) May 12, 2024 Nevertheless, Blinken claimed there was no "double standard" for Israel and insisted the nation is held to same account as any other nation. WATCH: @SecBlinken says the U.S. does not apply double standards to Israel when it comes to holding the country accountable for actions in Gaza. We treat Israel, one of our closest allies and partners, just as we would treat any other country. pic.twitter.com/xl4VRMFMQw Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) May 12, 2024 The population of Rafah has swelled to more than a million people in recent months, with most fleeing from bombings in other parts of Gaza. President Joe Biden, Blinken and other American officials have repeatedly warned Israel that invading Rafah would be a "mistake" that would endanger the already vulnerable civilian population. More than 34,000 Palestinians have been killed in retaliatory attacks after a Hamas assault early last October on Israel that killed 1,200 people and kidnapped hundreds of hostages. Authorities in Florida say they have finally identified a woman whose remains were found on a beach in St. Johns County in 1985. A group of construction workers digging the footing for a beach walkover discovered the human remains in a shallow grave on Crescent Beach. The initial investigation revealed that the victim was a white woman, possibly between the ages of 30 and 50 at the time of her death. Her death was determined to be homicide. Progress began to be made in the case In 2023 after, detectives sent portions of the remains to a private lab in Texas that specializes in advanced techniques in forensic genetic genealogy. The lab team built a DNA profile for the victim, which was submitted to consumer genealogy databases used by millions. In January, detectives got a confirmed match and were able to identify the victim as Mary Alice Pultz. The mother of two was 25 when she disappeared. She was last seen by her family in 1968 when she left with her boyfriend, John Thomas Fugitt also known as Billy Joe Wallace was sentenced to death in Georgia related to a 1981 murder of a male roommate. He died in prison befroe his execution. "This investigation is a powerful example that we will never give up," St. Johns Sheriff Rob Hardwick said. "The combination of highly skilled detectives and advanced DNA technology has given Mary Alice's family some answers about her disappearance close to 40 years ago." Fugitt is considered a suspect in Pultz's death, but detectives say other possibilities cannot be ruled out and they continue to investigate. The U.S. Army is working to find more people for their psychological operations groups to carry out psychological warfare. Recruiters released a new video called "Ghost in the Machine 2" that has a music industry meets Hollywood name and movie trailer feel as shadowy figures and haunting images fill the screen. The video is the second released in the hopes of raising curiosity about the unit. The effiort attempts to glamorize the kind of work the psyop soldiers do to influence public opinion and wage the war of words overseas, according to the Associated Press. The Army says it is looking for psyop soldiers who are "selected for their intellect, critical and analytical thinking skills, adaptability and mental resilience." The soldiers analyze operational environments, physical targets and target audiences. They also advise the Army on psychological effects, plan influence options, and develop actions and messages targeting psychological vulnerabilities. They also assess influence effectiveness. A member of the 8th Psychological Operations Group based at Fort Liberty, North Carolina made the video. "We're all nerds for sure," the Army major told the Associated Press. "But we're all nerds in different ways." A recent report found there were "burnout" issues among current psyop soldiers. Army Special Operations Command leaders and special forces recruiters hope that the new video will help bring in new recruits to the often unseen and little known job. A proposed policy agenda organized by a conservative think tank for former President Donald Trump's potential second term calls for the expedited execution of all federal inmates on death row and expanded use of capital punishment for what planners consider "heinous crimes." The execution plan, written by former Trump administration lawyer Gene Hamilton, appears on page 554 of the 887-page "Project 2025" policy transition manual in a section devoted to recommendations for the Justice Department, which was first pointed out by HuffPost. Project 2025, organized by the Heritage Foundation, is intended to provide Trump with a "well-conceived, coordinated, unified plan and a trained and committed cadre of personnel to implement it." In the manual, Hamilton, who served as counselor to the attorney general from 2017 to 2021, said enforcement of the federal death penalty should be expedited "where appropriate and applicable" because "the current crime wave makes deterrence vital at the federal, state, and local levels." The "next conservative Administration should therefore do everything possible to obtain finality for the 44 prisoners currently on federal death row," he wrote. "It should also pursue the death penalty for applicable crimes particularly heinous crimes involving violence and sexual abuse of children until Congress says otherwise through legislation," Hamilton added. In a footnote, Hamilton said his plan could require that the Supreme Court reverse its 2008 ruling in Kennedy v. Louisiana, which banned the death penalty for the rape of a child that didn't result, and wasn't intended to result, in the victim's death. The most recent FBI statistics show that violent crimes in the U.S. decreased 1.7% from 2021 to 2022, with murders and non-negligent homicides down 6.1%, while property crimes increased 7.1%. Both the nonprofit Death Penalty Information Center and the court-sponsored Federal Death Penalty Resource Counsel Project list only 40 federal inmates on death row. The most recent federal execution took place four days before Trump left office in January 2021, according to the Bureau of Prisons, and Attorney General Merrick Garland imposed a moratorium on any more in July of that year. In addition to its policy prescriptions, the Project 2025 website includes a portal for job-seekers to be "properly vetted and trained" to join Trump's administration. This cadre would work at largely dismantling the federal government, firing some 50,000 federal workers and replacing the system with a vision concocted by Trump and his rightwing backers. "We need to flood the zone with conservatives," Paul Dans, director of the 2025 Presidential Transition Project and a former Trump administration official, told the Associated Press. 55% of leaders say they're concered about having enough talent to fill roles in the year ahead as AI skills become more relevant than ever before, new study finds. Pixdeluxe | E+ | Getty Images Today's winners are learning how to leverage artificial intelligence to stay competitive and relevant employees and businesses alike. "AI is not going to replace you. You're going to be replaced by someone who uses AI to outperform you," said Laurence Liew, director for AI Innovation at AI Singapore, during a panel discussion at Salesforce's World Tour Essentials event in Singapore. While a lot of professionals (45%) worry AI will replace their job, the majority (55%) of leaders are concerned about a lack of talent to fill roles, according to the 2024 Work Trend Index by Microsoft and LinkedIn. 71% [of leaders] say they'd rather hire a less experienced candidate with AI skills than a more experienced candidate without them. 2024 Microsoft Work Trends Index There is a dearth of talent, and consequently a huge opportunity for people who can learn AI skills, with as many 71% of corporate leaders saying they'd prefer a less experienced candidate with AI skills over a more experienced one without them, according to the report. While AI has been the talk of the town ever since the launch of OpenAI's ChatGPT in November 2022, big companies have been slow to integrate the technology and help upskill their talent pools. There is a gap in the modern workplace between what appears necessary and what is seemingly feasible. While 79% of executives believe their company should adopt AI to stay competitive, the pressure to generate immediate returns on investment has slowed AI transition, according to the Microsoft study. As a result, employees around the world are taking matters into their own hands, learning to use AI tools on their own. While upskilling on AI at home can lead to a competitive edge, it also poses a few problems. The risks of self-learning AI Experts say one of the biggest issues with upskilling on AI at home is that many people don't know how to do it safely and effectively. To the naked eye, there are many "free" AI resources online such as ChatGPT and other tools using large language models (LLMs), but experts say these tools aren't actually free. LLMs are algorithms that can identify, summarize, translate, forecast, and produce information by employing huge datasets. "There's nothing free in this world. Your data is the commodity that you are trading," Liew said. "You should not be using your company data or any of your own personal data [when using free online AI tools]." Doing so can put sensitive personal or company data at risk. Part of upskilling on AI tools is learning how to do so safely and effectively. The must-have AI skill The top skill to learn today is communicating effectively with existing AI-powered LLMs, according to Liew. Open AI's ChatGPT, Microsoft's Copilot and Google's Gemini employ LLMs. You have to give the AI a lot of context treat AI like a very hardworking intern that will make mistakes occasionally. Laurence Liew Director for AI Innovation at AI Singapore Aerial view of United Airlines passenger planes docked in a terminal of Newark Airport in Newark, New Jersey, on May 11, 2024. Major airlines and an industry trade association asked a federal appeals court to toss out a new Department of Transportation rule requiring earlier disclosure of add-on fees during flight booking. The challengers trade group Airlines for America, and Alaska , American , Delta , Hawaiian , JetBlue and United airlines argue the DOT exceeded its legal authority when it published the rule, in late April, and that the rule is "arbitrary, capricious" and an "abuse of discretion." The petition for review was filed in the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals late Friday. The Biden administration introduced the airline fee disclosure rule in September 2022. It requires airlines and online travel agencies to disclose fees for seat selection, checked baggage and other add-ons upfront alongside the airfare, rather than adding the costs at checkout based on a customer's selections. "You should know the full cost of your ticket, right when you're comparison shopping," President Joe Biden said at the time. Airlines for America said in a statement to CNBC on Monday that the rule will "confuse consumers" and "complicate the buying process." "Airlines already provide consumers with complete disclosure of all fees associated with air travel before they purchase a ticket," the group said in the statement. "DOT's attempt to regulate private business operations in a thriving marketplace is beyond its authority ... The DOT ancillary rule is a bad solution in search of a problem." A Microsoft logo seen displayed on a smartphone screen and Amazon logo in the background in Athens, Greece on October 5, 2023. Microsoft and Amazon are ploughing billions of dollars into France. Microsoft said in a statement Monday that it's committing 4 billion euros ($4.3 billion) toward expanding its cloud and AI infrastructure in France, in addition to funding AI skilling and support for France's technology industry. The company said it plans to bring up to 25,000 of the most advanced GPUs, or graphics processing units, to France by the end of 2025. Microsoft will also train 1 million people and support 2,500 AI startups by 2027. The announcement was made during the "Choose France" summit, a gathering dedicated to encouraging foreign investment in France. This major investment demonstrates a steadfast commitment to supporting digital innovation and economic growth in France, said Microsoft's president, Brad Smith, in a statement Monday. We are building state-of-the-art Cloud and AI infrastructure, training people with AI skills, and supporting French startups as they use our technology with confidence to grow in a fair and responsible way. As part of its investment, Microsoft will also open a new data center in the French city of Mulhouse. Amazon, meanwhile, made a commitment of its own to invest 1.2 billion euros in France. The money will go toward creating more than 3,000 jobs in France in addition to the 2,000 new jobs Amazon's already announced for 2024 as well as broadly increasing the company's footprint in the country, according to Frederic Duval, Amazon's country manager. "The expansion of our logistics network supports local economic development, creates quality jobs and allows us to reduce the carbon footprint of our deliveries while improving the overall customer experience," Duval said in a statement Monday. Collectively, the commitments from Microsoft and Amazon to France amount to $5.6 billion of funding. In total, France reportedly bagged a record 15 billion euros of investment commitments from foreign companies at the annual Choose France summit on Monday. French President Emmanuel Macron has been trying to promote France as an artificial intelligence hub. Paris is already a major center of AI research and development, with Facebook having established one of its main AI labs, FAIR, there in 2015. Last year, at the VivaTech technology fair in Paris, Macron announced 500 million euros in fresh funding to create new AI "champions," adding to previous commitments from the government, including a promise to pump 1.5 billion euros into AI before 2022. Microsoft is also on a charm offensive of its own with its commitment to invest billions of euros into France at a time when French officials have expressed concerns with the Redmond, Washington-based tech giant's investment in AI startup Mistral. Microsoft recently invested 15 million euros into Mistral. The deal saw Microsoft getting a stake in Mistral and the latter adding its large language model to the technology giant's Azure cloud computing platform. Microsoft has pushed back on competition concerns surrounding its investment in Mistral, saying that the company remains independent and that its partnership is a minority equity investment and a commercial relationship, not a merger. Britain's competition regulator is seeking feedback on the deal. A Toyota sport-utility vehicle modified by Zoox, a subsidiary of Amazon.com, which combines radars, lidar, and cameras to test its software, drives on a road ahead of the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) of Las Vegas, Nevada on January 3, 2023. U.S. safety regulators have opened a probe into Amazon -owned robotaxi venture Zoox after two of its autonomous SUVs braked suddenly and were rear-ended by motorcyclists. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Monday it initiated an investigation after two Toyota Highlanders equipped with Zoox's automated self-driving braked unexpectedly. In both cases, motorcyclists collided with the Zoox vehicles, which led to minor injuries. NHTSA said it confirmed that each Zoox car had been operating in autonomous mode when the incidents occurred. Both collisions took place during the daytime and within the operational design limits of Zoox's autonomous system. The agency's probe covers about 500 vehicles and focuses on the performance of Zoox's automated driving system, specifically how it behaves near crosswalks and "in other similar rear-end collision scenarios." A Zoox spokesperson told CNBC in a statement that the company is reviewing the request for information from NHTSA, and declined to share further details about the incidents. "Transparency and collaboration with regulators is of the utmost importance, and we remain committed to working closely with NHTSA to answer their questions," the spokesperson added. Amazon acquired Zoox for a reported $1.2 billion in 2020. Zoox, which has largely continued to operate as a standalone unit within Amazon, has been developing an electric, fully driverless vehicle designed for ride-hailing. Zoox has been testing its robotaxis in Las Vegas, Nevada, and Foster City, California. In March, the company said it was expanding its operating routes in those areas to include a larger area, faster speeds, nighttime driving and light rain conditions. This latest news marks at least the second probe into Zoox by the NHTSA. In March 2023, the agency said it would investigate Zoox's 2022 self-certification that its robotaxi met federal safety standards. (This is CNBC Pro's live coverage of Monday's analyst calls and Wall Street chatter. Please refresh every 20-30 minutes to view the latest posts.) Nvidia and three major U.S. airlines were among the top analyst calls Monday. Jefferies raised its price target on the artificial intelligence chipmaker, calling for more than 30% upside. HSBC, meanwhile, initiated coverage on Delta, United and American Airlines with buy ratings. Check out the latest calls and chatter below. All times ET. 8:26 a.m.: Evercore sees tactical trading opportunities in Walmart, Target Investors should tweak their retail exposure to focus more on two leading names and less on a specialist store, according to Evercore ISI. Analyst Greg Melich added Walmart and Target to the firm's tactical outperform list, saying in a series of notes to clients that both retailers are poised to impress Wall Street with their upcoming earnings reports. "Normally Walmart does not raise full year EPS and comp guide in 1Q, but we do see them taking a positive tone with respect to underlying momentum in the business. This may prove especially pronounced in international operations," Melich wrote. For Target, the company could benefit from weak year-over-year comparisons, Melich said. On the negative side, Evercore ISI added a tactical underperform label to AutoZone after the stock's recent rally. "We tactically like the idea of taking those near term AZO profits (Underperform TAP) and moving them in to the laggard ORLY (Fab Five pick) which has already reported a weaker spring trend," Melich wrote. Evercore is still positive on AutoZone over the medium and long terms, Melich said. Jesse Pound 7:44 a.m.: Wells Fargo turns bullish on Nexstar It's time to buy Nexstar , according to Wells Fargo. Analyst Steven Cahall upgraded the media stock to overweight from equal weight adn upped his price target by $31 to $221. Cahall's new target implies 28.3% upside from Friday's closing level. "NXST's financial performance gives us increased confidence in equity returns," Cahall wrote to clients in a Monday note. Cahall called retransmissions of The CW parent "strong" so far in 2024. And he said the company's "industry-leading scale" gives it the best chance of keeping this number stable or up. Advertising sales are also improving, Cahall said. The analyst added that this should only be helped by expanded programming on The CW and at NewsNation, which is Nexstar's news channel. Beyond these trends, Cahall said buybacks can help per-share valuation metrics appear "compelling." Nexstar shares have climbed nearly 10% in 2024, meaning the stock has slightly outperformed the broader market. Alex Harring 7:37 a.m.: BofA downgrades battered Penn Entertainment shares Penn Entertainment's business dynamics have given Bank of America pause amid a tough period. Analyst Shaun Kelley downgraded the sports-betting stock to neutral from buy and chopped down his price target to $17.50 from $28. Kelley's new target reflects just 8.8% in upside over where the stock finished last week. "While sentiment for the stock is at its lows, we see PENN as now more of a deep value turnaround than a growth opportunity which was our initial thesis," Kelley said in a Monday note to clients. "Meanwhile, balance sheet deterioration could take years to recover from and limits strategic flexibility." Kelley said the ESPN Bet product has too high of fixed costs and too low of revenue. While the analyst said the product could improve with the next football season, the company could see increased competition by then. He also noted that increasing balance sheet leverage also heightens the likelihood of execution risk and volatility. At the same time, Kelley warned that core business trends have been "lackluster." Shares dropped nearly 3% before the bell on Monday. It has been a rough year for Penn Entertainment, with the stock price diving more than 38% so far in 2024. Alex Harring 6:57 a.m.: Susquehanna turns neutral on SolarEdge in wake of earnings Susquehanna moved to the sidelines on SolarEdge following the solar stock's latest earnings report. Analyst Biju Perincheril downgraded shares to neutral from positive and slashed his price target by $36 to $56. Perincheril's new target implies 13.2% upside from where the stock ended last week. SolarEdge said it lost $1.90 per share in the first quarter, wider than the consensus loss estimate of $1.55 from analysts polled by FactSet. On the other hand, revenue came in at $204.4 million for the three-month period, above the $195.4 million figure anticipated by Wall Street. But revenue guidance for the current quarter came in well below where analysts thought it would, offering another reason for concern. Perincheril said demand has yet to recover in either the U.S. or Europe, leading to too much channel inventory and a likely trend of under-shipping for at least the rest of this year. With that weak guidance for revenue in mind, he said price reductions can help reduce the overstock and lift consumer interest. "All of this should keep gross margins under pressure, and it's unclear if margins can recover to the company's low-30s target," Perincheril wrote to clients in a Monday note. SolarEdge shares dropped around 1% in Monday premarket trading. The stock has already tumbled more than 47% so far this year. Alex Harring 6:56 a.m.: Micron can jump above trading range, Barclays says Micron shares could finally break above their historical range, according to Barclays. Analyst Tom O'Malley hiked his price target by $25 to $145, which now suggests shares can jump 19.6% in the next year from last week's close. O'Malley also kept his overweight rating on the semi stock. With that target price, O'Malley believes the stock can break above the upper bounds of the range shares have previously stayed within. That optimism stems from structural improvements to the memory market as the need for hardware that can power artificial intelligence drives up demand. O'Malley noted that memory is considered "more critical" to advancing semis than it has ever has been before. He said memory should take up between 25% and 30% of industry spend in the future, an improvement from between 10% and 15% today. "Micron views AI as a generational moment for the company and believes they have the best product in the market," he wrote to clients in a Monday note. Shares added 0.6% in Monday's premarket. The stock has already surged more than 42% in 2024. Alex Harring 6:55 a.m.: JPMorgan: GE Aerospace can keep rallying JPMorgan sees more room for GE Aerospace to run. Analyst Seth Seifman upped his price target by $27 to $175, which now reflects the potential for shares to jump another 7.1% over the next year from Friday's closing price. Seifman has an overweight rating on the aerospace stock. "We've also boosted our target multiples in Aero this earnings season and given our view that GE should trade at a premium, we do the same here," he wrote to clients on Monday. Seifman said investors should continue to expect $4.10 in adjusted earnings per share and $5.4 billion in free cash flow this year. He said aftermarket growth should accelerate at a faster rate than expected, while the company's original equipment manufacturing venture is "off to a big start." Overall, he called GE Aerospace the "premier large-cap" within commercial aerospace, citing the business and its cycle, as well as its balance sheet and management. Seifman said the only challenge to owning the stock is its high valuation. Shares rose slightly before the bell on Monday. The stock, which trades under the classic GE ticker, has already surged more than 60% so far in 2024. Alex Harring 6:14 a.m.: Morgan Stanley analyst calls PepsiCo best name in coverage Morgan Stanley is sticking by PepsiCo . Analyst Dara Mohsenian reiterated her overweight rating for the soft drink maker, calling Pepsi his favorite name covered following the March upgrade. Mohsenian's $190 price target implies shares can add 5.7% from last week's closing level. "We see PEP as the most compelling name in our coverage post our March upgrade, with a clear OSG inflection ahead," he wrote to clients, using an acronym for organic sales growth. That turning point for sales should come after what Mohsenian described as weak results for the fourth quarter of last year and first quarter of this year. Now, he said Pepsi should benefit from easier comparison periods when it reports going forward. Continued strength in international markets can also help the stock, Mohsenian said. Its valuation is currently at "depressed" levels, the analyst added. "Investors should use this a buying opportunity and now look ahead not behind," he said. Pepsi has underperformed the broader market this year, advancing less than 6%. PEP YTD mountain PEP year to date Alex Harring 5:53 a.m.: Mastercard and Visa have upside potential, Piper Sandler says Artificial intelligence and a handful of other growth drivers can boost Mastercard and Visa , according to Piper Sandler. Analyst Arvind Ramnani initiated coverage of both names with an overweight rating. Ramnani's $531 price target implies upside of 16.2% for Mastercard, while he sees Visa shares advancing 14.7% to $322. "Both MA and V are attractive businesses to own, given their scale, hard to replicate network, extensive FinTech ecosystem partnership, and tethered to sustainable secular growth within digital payments," Ramnani told clients. Technology offers a particular edge to the stocks, the analyst said. Ramnani pointed out the proprietary data sets and ability in invest in generative AI as factors that can drive upside to fundamentals. For Mastercard specifically, he said the company should be able to post revenue growth above 12% and have earnings per share increase in the mid-to-high teens percentage range over the next three years. Meanwhile, he said Visa should record top- and bottom-line margins at 11% and 12%, respectively. Mastercard and Visa shares have both climbed more than 7% in 2024. Visa rose slightly before the bell on Monday. Alex Harring 5:39 a.m.: HSBC names top airline ideas As some airline stocks show reason for optimism, HSBC has recommendations on how to play the space. Analyst Achal Kumar initiated coverage on Delta , United and American Airlines with buy ratings. Kumar said Delta was his preferred stock in the sector. These stocks should be helped by a recovery in corporate travel, strength in demand for international vacations and tighter capacity, according to Kumar. Though cost pressures may not recede in the near-term, he said that can be balanced out by profitability increases and "manageable" capital expenditures. "We argue that a better traffic mix ... a tight capacity environment, cost pressure and strong international demand should support better yields," Kumar wrote to clients. "However, most of the indicators favour flag carriers ... while low-cost carriers (LCCs) could face headwinds given rising cost pressures and limited opportunity to pass on the burden." With a price target of $72.80, Kumar expects Delta to see 38.7% upside. His $17.90 target price reflects the potential for 24.3% upside for American, while Kumar thinks United can rally 31.3% to his target price of $69.20 per share. Delta and United have outperformed this year, climbing more than 30% and 27%, respectively. American has lagged, gaining less than 5% in 2024. Alex Harring 5:39 a.m.: Jefferies raises Nvidia price target Nvidia's gains won't stop anytime soon, according to Jefferies. After an analyst change, the firm kept its buy rating and raised its price target to $1,200 from $780. The new forecast implies upside of 33.5% over the next 12 months. Nvidia shares have soared 81% year to date. However, they have struggled in the second quarter, falling slightly in that time. NVDA YTD mountain NVDA year to date "We believe it's too early to sift out winners and losers in the AI basket yet, but NVDA is our favorite," Blayne Curtis wrote. "NVDA maintains control over the entire ecosystem and is taking more pieces of the pie. We expect a strong ramp for the GB200 NVL 36/72, which includes NVDA Arm based CPUs and more networking, which admittedly would come at the expense of others." Curtis added that Nvidia's GB200 chip, which is aimed at artificial intelligence and large language model use, could make up more than 40% of sales volumes next year. That's "important as this would allow NVDA to control even more content decisions, particularly in the early ramp." Nvidia shares ticked slightly higher in the premarket. Fred Imbert In this article GOOGL Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNT watch now Demis Hassabis is a celebrated name in artificial intelligence research. He's a chess master and a neuroscientist. On Wall Street, he's less known. That may not be true for long. Hassabis is emerging as the face of Google's mammoth AI effort and on Tuesday will take the stage at the annual developer's conference, Google I/O, for the first time. For an academic who's credited with some of the most important breakthroughs in AI over the past decade, Hassabis is extremely clear on his task ahead: bring the latest AI technologies to every corner of the Google universe to serve its billions of users. "We're like the engine room of the company," Hassabis told CNBC, speaking about his newly integrated AI unit within Google. Last month, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai merged Hassabis' DeepMind with Google Brain, a separate AI team, and selected Hassabis to lead the group. It's now up to Hassabis to reestablish Google as the leader in generative AI after the company was caught off-guard by the rapid emergence of OpenAI, which is backed by Microsoft . DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis at a 2017 event in China. Source: Alphabet There may be no more important task at Google, especially as new generative AI services give consumers alternative and more creatives ways to search for information online. The business question is can a longtime researcher like Hassabis be the person to ship products that consumers love? Geoffrey Hinton, known as the "Godfather of AI," says there's no questioning Hassabis' will to win. "I don't think I've ever met anybody more competitive," said Hinton, who advised Google to buy DeepMind about a decade ago. "Demis is competitive at the level of people who get gold medals in the Olympics." He formed that trait at any early age. Hassabis was a child chess prodigy who at one point was the No. 2 rated player in the world. He also competed in the World Series of Poker. Hassabis says he has consumer experience on his side, too. At just 17 years old, he shipped a hit video game in the 1990s called "Theme Park." Games at that time had to be fun and easy to navigate in order to succeed, Hassabis said. After Theme Park, he created his own video game company, Elixir Studios. Hassabis would later go on to co-found DeepMind, which became widely recognized as the world's leading AI research lab, attracting some of the most prominent experts in deep learning. When Google acquired the lab for a reported $500 million in 2014, DeepMind was given a long leash to operate independently. Falling behind Under Hassabis, DeepMind was known for developing its technology through games like Breakout and AlphaGo, an AI program that beat the world's top Go player. There was a practical reason for focusing on games. Hassabis told CNBC that "simulations are totally safe, have no consequences, but they can still learn from it." During his career at DeepMind and then at Google, Hassabis dominated the field of AI. Even Tesla CEO Elon Musk would tell OpenAI co-founders in 2018 that they would need billions of dollars to have a chance of competing with Hassabis and Google. Google, however, would lose that edge as rivals like OpenAI and Microsoft brought headline-making products like ChatGPT and Copilot to market. A person who has worked with Hassabis but wanted to remain anonymous said that, for a period of time, Hassabis may have been more interested in winning academic accolades than launching products people could use. Nature magazine, one of the most influential scientific journals in the world, has featured Hassabis' work many times over the past decade. "Accolades were never the end goal," DeepMind said in a statement to CNBC. "They simply reflect the importance and impact of the research they recognized." One of DeepMind's most important products, AlphaFold, was a groundbreaking piece of technology that used AI to help scientists predict the structure of proteins, a massive challenges in biology for decades. DeepMind open sourced AlphaFold, essentially giving it away for free. In 2017, a team of Google researchers, separate from DeepMind, published a breakthrough study on Transformers, a way for AI models to better process the texts used for training. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella (R) speaks as OpenAI CEO Sam Altman (L) looks on during the OpenAI DevDay event in San Francisco on Nov. 6, 2023. Justin Sullivan | Getty Images That jumpstarted the wave of AI innovation that followed, notably at OpenAI. Transformers is the "T" in ChatGPT. Critics have argued that Google was giving away key products and research, and helping its biggest competitors. "They had the lead and they've been very cautious," Hinton said. "They've been very cautious both about generative AI images, and about the large language models. And when OpenAI teamed up with Microsoft and ChatGPT was being used by Microsoft, Google couldn't afford to be cautious anymore." Hassabis and Google went on offense. The Washington Post reported in May 2023 that Google was internally announcing a big departure from previous policy. Employees had to stop sharing their research with the world, only publishing papers after the research had been turned into products. AlphaFold became a huge business opportunity, securing commercial partners like Eli Lilly and Novartis for drug discovery. During a TED talk, Hassabis said the ChatGPT moment demonstrated that the public found value in LLMs and was ready to embrace them. "When we're working on these systems, mostly you're focusing on the flaws and the things they don't do and hallucinations," he said. "We wanted to improve those things first before putting them out. But interestingly, it turned out that even with those flaws, many tens of millions of people still find them very useful." Hassabis said that it was time to bring these products "beyond the rarefied world of science." Now investors are waiting to see if Google can accomplish what they view as the most important feat, and turn that bleeding-edge science into profits. GHAZIABAD INDIA - APRIL 06: Prime Minister Narendra Modi greets supporters at a roadshow on April 06, 2024 in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, India. India's 2024 general election is set to be the world's largest democratic exercise, with over 969 million registered voters, more than the combined population of the EU, US, and Russia. (Photo by Elke Scholiers/Getty Images) India voted on Monday in the fourth phase of a seven-week long general election, as campaign rhetoric became more strident over economic disparities and religious divisions. The world's most populous nation began voting on April 19 in a seven-phase election in which nearly one billion people are eligible to vote, with ballots set to be counted on June 4. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking a rare, third straight term in a vote which pits his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) against an alliance of more than two dozen opposition parties, including main rival Congress. "I appeal to all to vote for a decisive government," said Amit Shah, Modi's powerful aide and the country's interior affairs minister, as voting began. Polling will be held for 96 seats in 10 states and territories on Monday, with 177 million people eligible to cast their ballots. A large number of seats are in the southern and eastern states of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Odisha where the BJP is not as strong as other parts of the country. Turnout is being closely watched as marginally lower numbers in the first three phases has raised concerns about voter disinterest in an election without a strong, central issue. The impact of hot weather on voting is also being watched with maximums in many parts of the country around 40 degrees Celsius (104F) or higher. The lower turnout has raised doubts over whether BJP and its allies can win the landslide predicted by opinion polls. Sen. Robert Menendez arrives at the federal courthouse in Manhattan, New York City, May 13, 2024. A judge on Monday admonished attorneys about playing legal games shortly after they convened for the start of the federal bribery trial of Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J. "There's been too much gamesmanship here," Judge Sidney Stein told prosecutors and defense attorneys before jury selection began for the trial in federal court in Manhattan. "Everybody has to operate in good faith here," Stein said, adding, "I'm not sure I've seen that." Menendez, 70, wearing a dark suit and striped red tie with his gold senator's pin on his lapel, listened silently in the courtroom. Two of his co-defendants, New Jersey businessmen Wael Hana and Fred Daibes, sat behind him. Jose Uribe, a third businessman who was charged in the case, pleaded guilty March 1 and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors. The judge's stern words shut down an exchange about some evidence that could be used in the trial of the once-powerful senator, who is accused of accepting cash, gold bars and other gifts in exchange for official acts. Prosecutors allege Menendez took hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes from New Jersey businessmen to benefit them and the countries of Egypt and Qatar. Menendez was chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee but stepped down from that role following his indictment in September 2023. He has pleaded not guilty to 16 felony counts, including bribery, wire fraud, extortion, acting as a foreign agent and obstruction of justice. His wife, Nadine Menendez, is also charged in the corruption case, but her trial was severed from her husband's due to what her lawyers said were medical issues. Her trial is delayed at least until July; she was not in court with her husband Monday morning. Prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York told Stein that they expect to lay out their case in 4 to 6 weeks. The trial itself could last around six to seven weeks, Stein told dozens of prospective jurors before giving them a rough outline of the 18-count indictment against Menendez and his co-defendants. The senator's federal trial kicked off just a few blocks from Manhattan Supreme Court, where former President Donald Trump is on trial on charges related to a scheme to silence porn star Stormy Daniels with hush money before the 2016 election. This is developing news. Please check back for updates. Melinda Gates, co-founder of the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation arrives at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France on July 01, 2021. Melinda French Gates, the former wife of Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, announced on Monday she would resign as co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation next month. French Gates said in a statement on X that it was a "critical moment" to protect and advance women's rights around the world. The announcement comes almost exactly three years after the Gates' announced their divorce. She said she will have "an additional $12.5 billion to commit to my work on behalf of women and families" as a result of her resignation and the Gates' divorce agreement. The couple divorced in May 2021. Bill Gates said in a separate statement, "I am sorry to see Melinda leave, but I am sure she will have a huge impact in her future philanthropic work." The Gates Foundation's work has focused on worldwide anti-poverty and global health initiatives, including anti-malaria efforts in Africa, and extensive investment across the Indian subcontinent and South Asia. French Gates has also devoted significant amounts of time and money toward gender-equality initiatives worldwide. In 2015, she founded Pivotal Ventures, a separate entity from the Gates Foundation, which is focused on removing barriers to access and opportunity for minorities and women in the U.S. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is welcomed by Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Mike Herzog, as he arrives at Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv, Israel, April 30, 2024. Evelyn Hockstein | Reuters U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken issued harsh words for Israel, criticizing its operations in the Gaza Strip and saying it lacked a plan to protect civilian life ahead of an expected assault on the city of Rafah, where more than 1.2 million displaced Palestinians are sheltering. "We believe two things," Blinken said in an interview with the CBS program "Face The Nation" that aired Sunday. "One, you have to have a clear, credible plan to protect civilians, which we haven't seen. Second, we also need to see a plan for what happens after this conflict in Gaza is over, and we still haven't seen that." The comments came against a backdrop of increasingly tense relations between Israel and its No. 1 ally as the Biden administration last week confirmed it was pausing a shipment of 3,500 heavy-payload bombs to the Jewish state. It was the first ever such move by President Joe Biden, who has long been a staunch supporter of Israel. He confirmed that U.S. support still remains "ironclad." Administration officials say the move stemmed from concern over the use of the weapons 1,000- and 2,000-pound bombs on a densely populated area like Rafah, which is now completely surrounded by Israeli forces as its war-ravaged population grapples with military strikes, hunger, disease and a severe lack of sufficient humanitarian aid. Palestinians living in different parts of Rafah, where Israeli attacks are intense, packed their tents with the belongings they could take with them and migrated to Deir al-Balah city, Gaza on May 10, 2024. Ashraf Amra | Anadolu | Getty Images Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says a Rafah ground assault is the only way to defeat Palestinian militant group Hamas, which governs the Strip and launched a brutal terrorist attack on Israel on Oct. 7 that killed some 1,200 people there and took roughly 250 hostage. Around 130 hostages remain in Gaza, with roughly a quarter believed to be dead. Their release is a key part of a potential cease-fire deal, over which Israeli and Hamas officials along with America, Egyptian and Qatari mediators have been negotiating for months. The Israel-Hamas war has killed more than 34,000 people in Gaza, according to Palestinian health authorities in the besieged enclave. 'Hamas is coming back' The Biden administration has made clear its opposition to a Rafah offensive, and on Sunday Blinken elaborated on its position. "What are we seeing right now? We're seeing parts of Gaza that Israel has cleared of Hamas where Hamas is coming back, including in the north, including in Khan Younis," Blinken said. "As we look at Rafah [Israel] may go in and have some initial success, but potentially at an incredibly high cost to civilians, one that is not durable, one that is not sustainable, and they will be left holding the bag on an enduring insurgency because a lot of armed Hamas will be left no matter what they do in Rafah." Smoke rises after Israeli airstrikes in eastern Rafah, Gaza on May 07, 2024. The Israeli army said that its forces have seized control of the Palestinian side of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt. Abed Rahim Khatib | Anadolu | Getty Images He warned that an insurgency by the militant group will only worsen without a credible "day after" plan for Gaza, which Israel's government has not presented, and that getting out of Gaza is what "we believe they [Israeli forces] need to do." "Israel is on the trajectory potentially to inherit an insurgency with many armed Hamas left, or, if it leaves, a vacuum filled by chaos, filled by anarchy, and probably refilled by Hamas again," the State Department chief said in a separate interview with NBC News. "We've been talking to them about a much better way of getting an enduring result, enduring security." U.S. weapons shipments to Israel continue The administration's criticism has not gone down well among Israel's right-wing leadership. Israeli diplomats have described anger and frustration, while some Israeli lawmakers attacked Biden for the weapons shipment pause, accusing him of being a Hamas supporter. The U.S. is Israel's single biggest supporter and source of military funding, and has provided it with hundreds of billions of dollars in military aid since its founding. Despite the announced pause on the shipment of the 3,500 heavy-payload bombs, the administration noted that other weapons, including precision munitions and those included in a $26.4 billion military assistance package for Israel recently approved by Congress, would continue to be supplied as planned. Children sit back on a truck as Palestinians with their packed belongings, continue to depart from the eastern neighborhoods of the city due to ongoing Israeli attacks in Rafah, Gaza on May 8, 2024. Ali Jadallah | Anadolu | Getty Images Blinken also addressed a recent U.S. national security memorandum which concluded that it was "reasonable to assess" that Israel had violated international law, but said that evidence was still incomplete and the investigation would continue. The report, which Blinken signed, described Israeli civilian harm mitigation efforts as "inconsistent, ineffective and inadequate." Minnesota and Wisconsin have issued air quality alerts as some 40 of 146 active Canadian wildfires were declared out of control over the weekend in an ominous start to fire season. The alerts issued for the entire state of Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin remained in effect Monday morning. Air quality was also being impacted by smoke in Montana and the Dakotas. Some of the Canadian wildfires have already triggered evacuations. This past winter was one of Canada's warmest, with little or no snow in many areas, according to Reuters, and the federal government has warned that the country faced another "catastrophic" wildfire season this year. Last year, smoke from Canadian wildfires spread across the U.S., turning New York City's sky orange and pushing its pollution rating to the worst in the world in early June. Over the weekend, a fast-growing blaze in British Columbia prompted more than 3,000 residents to flee their homes but as many as 150 others were courting danger by ignoring an evacuation order, according to reports Sunday. Northern Rockies Regional Municipality Mayor Rob Fraser said his community was bracing for a "last stand" as high winds were expected to push the flames into Fort Nelson, British Columbia, the Vancouver Sun reported. About 37 households in town and another 28 in the surrounding rural area were attempting to ride out the Parker Lake wildfire, and Fraser urged them to leave immediately, according to the Sun. The blaze erupted Friday when high winds blew a tree onto a power line, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. said. The wildfire nearly doubled in size on Saturday and covered nearly 9.7 miles (25 square kilometers) on Sunday, with flames no more than 1.9 miles (3 kilometers) from Fort Nelson. "If we get winds from the west anything like we did on Friday the day that this fire sparked up it's going to be extremely difficult to keep it from moving into the community," Fraser said. Authorities in the Canadian province of Alberta issued an alert about a wildfire nearly 15.5 miles (25 kilometers) southwest of Fort McMurray, but no evacuations were ordered, the Associated Press said. In 2016, more than 80,000 people had to flee the city in the heart of Canada's oil sands ahead of a wildfire that burned 1,600 homes and other buildings. Nvidia's CEO Jensen Huang knows he's a tough boss and has no regrets about it. In a recent interview with "60 Minutes," employees at the company's Santa Clara headquarters told correspondent Bill Whitaker that the entrepreneur is "demanding," a "perfectionist," and "not easy to work for." Huang, who co-founded the chipmaker in 1993 which is now worth over $2 trillion, said this described him "perfectly." "It should be like that. If you want to do extraordinary things, it shouldn't be easy," he told Whitaker. This isn't the first time Huang's leadership style has come under the spotlight. He previously told CNBC that he has "50 direct reports" to stop unnecessary layers of management developing at the company most CEOs have about 10 direct reports. He said he expects senior executives to operate very independently with little guidance and pampering. In the age of the empathetic leader, Huang's tactics may be a little controversial, but experts say that you have to be relentless to run one of the largest companies in the world. "He is to some degree cutthroat," Wladislaw Rivkin, associate professor of organizational behavior at Trinity Business School, told CNBC Make It. "He is the leader of a trillion-dollar valued company and has gone through a very rough selection process because there are many tech companies which are at the trillion or billion-dollar mark." Many smaller companies have gone bankrupt but Nvidia "survived," Rivkin noted. You must be "resilient" to operate at that level, he added. Additionally, Huang's tenure in Silicon Valley has lasted over three decades which is "quite rare," according to Sankalp Chaturvedi, a professor of organizational behavior and leadership at Imperial College Business School. Workers at a high-profile company like Nvidia generally have other options but "they are choosing to remain for as long as they can," says Chaturvedi, which suggests Huang is doing something right. A truck with a "Fire Gay" message drives through Harvard Square. The congressional testimony of Harvard University president Claudine Gay has caused a stir on campus on Dec 10th. 2023. Pat Greenhouse | Boston Globe | Getty Images A far-right activist group that is doxxing college students who engage in pro-Palestinian protests revealed that it is funded by top Republican political donors and nonprofits backed by wealthy business leaders, a tax return reviewed by CNBC shows. The group, Accuracy in Media, publicly disclosed on its federal tax return a list of donors who combined to contribute nearly $1.9 million to the tax-exempt nonprofit between May 2022 and April of last year. The contributors listed on the tax return include billionaire Republican megadonor Jeff Yass, who Accuracy in Media said gave it $1 million. The family foundation of shipping supply magnate Richard Uihlein is also identified on the tax return, which says the Ed Uihlein Family Foundation gave $10,000. The Milstein Family Foundation, which is run by real estate executive and Republican donor Adam Milstein, gave another $10,000, the group reported to the IRS. According to its tax return, Accuracy in Media said it received $15,000 from the Coors brewing family's charitable foundation. The Adolph Coors Foundation is chaired by former Molson Coors executive Peter H. Coors, according to the foundation's latest tax records. Yass, Uihlein, Milstein and Coors have all donated regularly to Republican campaigns over the past decade. But Yass stands apart from the others. The co-founder of options trading powerhouse Susquehanna International Group and his wife Janine are the biggest political donors of the 2024 election. So far, Yass and his wife have contributed $70 million to dozens of Republican candidates and committees, according to the nonpartisan campaign finance database OpenSecrets. Tents and signs fill Harvard Yard by the John Harvard statue in the Pro-Palestinian encampment at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on May 5, 2024. Joseph Prezioso | Afp | Getty Images Accuracy in Media blamed its accountant when CNBC informed the group that its 2022 federal tax return had been filed with a list of major donors and contribution amounts included. This data is typically meant only for the IRS. Accuracy in Media did not dispute the authenticity of the nonprofit tax return. Nor did it challenge the accuracy of 25 out of the 26 donations listed. But AIM President Adam Guillette told CNBC that Yass had been misidentified, and that he did not give to the organization. Yass' name and his business address appear on two separate pages of AIM's 2022 tax return. The amount it says that Yass gave, $1 million, is the largest contribution listed on the filing for that year. "Jeff Yass is not an AIM donor and never has been. I think our accounting firm made a major, major error," Guillette told CNBC. The accounting firm, JBS & Co., said the information on the tax return was provided by the client, Accuracy in Media. It also said that the return contained an "incorrect donor." But it did not say who the donor was, or who said that it was incorrect. "We filed a Form 990, authorized by our client, and identifying an incorrect donor. We apologize on behalf of our client and to those incorrectly identified as donors to organizations that are not donors too. We have no further comment," Phil Headley, a certified public accountant at JBS, wrote CNBC in an email. A spokesman for Yass did not return a request from CNBC to clarify whether he made the donation or not. Milstein, Uihlein and representatives from the Adolph Coors Foundation did not return requests for comment. CNBC was able to independently confirm the accuracy of the contributions AIM listed from the Uihlein and Coors foundations by cross-checking the amounts against the foundations' publicly available records of donations they made. The Yass entry, however, was reported as coming from an individual, and not a foundation. Nonprofit groups are not required to release their donors' names publicly, but they are required to report to the IRS the names of donors who gave $5,000 or more. Typically, tax-exempt groups redact these major donors' names on the public versions of their tax returns. But in this case, AIM did not. Instead, the organization submitted its 2022 tax return to the IRS earlier this year with the names of major donors still attached. The forms were later posted online on Candid's nonprofit database and ProPublica's Nonprofit Explorer. While it's rare for a tax-exempt group to reveal the names and contribution levels of its donors, this is not the first time a nonprofit appears to have inadvertently posted a tax return that contained this information. The conservative Independent Women's Forum included the names and amounts of its major donors in a 2021 tax return it filed with the South Carolina secretary of state's office. The IWF filing revealed that Amazon had donated $400,000 to the group. The secretary of state's office defended its handling of the records, telling CNBC that the IWF had "failed to redact" its donor names before filing the return. Shortly after CNBC alerted the office that the IWF's donor details were online, the pages were removed. AIM's aggressive tactics The only employee Accuracy in Media reports on its latest tax return is Guillette. A former vice president of Project Veritas, the far-right camera sting group, many of AIM's tactics are similar to those employed by Project Veritas. For months, Accuracy in Media has waged a doxxing campaign against college students and faculty who the group determines are either too supportive of Palestinians, or not supportive enough of Israel. Gaza has been under siege by Israeli forces since Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas attacked Israel. Within days of the attack, Accuracy in Media was driving a mobile billboard around Harvard University, with names and photos of college students who allegedly belonged to groups that signed a letter blaming Israel for Hamas' attack. The students' names and photos had "Harvard's Leading Antisemites" above them. A student protester stands in front of the statue of John Harvard, the first major benefactor of Harvard College, draped in the Palestinian flag, at an encampment of students protesting against the war in Gaza, at Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass., on Thursday, April 25, 2024. Ben Curtis | AP SoftBank's Vision Fund, the brainchild of the company's founder Masayoshi Son, has faced a number of headwinds including a slump in technology stocks as a result of rising interest rates, a tough China market and geopolitics. SoftBank posted a 724.3 billion Japanese yen ($4.6 billion) gain on its Vision Fund in the fiscal year ended in March, the first time the flagship tech investment arm has been in the black since 2021. For the full fiscal year, SoftBank's Vision Fund segment posted a profit of 128.2 billion yen, compared with a 4.3 trillion yen loss the year before. A recovery in the Vision Fund helped SoftBank Group swing to a profit in the fiscal fourth quarter that ended in March. The Vision Fund was helped by the increase in value of some of SoftBank's most high-profile investments, including TikTok owner ByteDance and U.S. food delivery firm DoorDash . However, SoftBank took a hit on some of its other investments such as Chinese ride-hailing firm DiDi as well as office-sharing company WeWork , which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last year. The gain in the Vision Fund was due in large part to the initial public offering of chip designer Arm last year. The Japanese firm said gains associated with the IPO of Arm, which is a subsidiary of Softbank, are not reported in its "consolidated statement of profit or loss." Excluding gains associated with Vision Fund's investments in its subsidiaries, the tech investment arm posted a loss of 167.3 billion yen. Still, there are signs a recovery is underway for SoftBank which has been hit by bad bets on some tech firms as well as volatile markets. Here's how SoftBank did in the March quarter against LSEG estimates: Net sales: 1.75 trillion yen versus 1.84 trillion yen expected. Net profit: 231.1 billion yen versus a 71.64 billion yen loss expected. Still for the full year, SoftBank posted an overall loss of 227.6 billion yen, but that is narrower than the 970.1 billion yen loss from the previous fiscal year. Check out the companies making headlines in midday trading: Walgreens Boots Alliance The stock advanced 5.4% on news that Walgreens is looking for potential buyers for its $8.8 billion Boots drugstore chain in the U.K., Bloomberg reported Monday. Xponential Fitness Xponential Fitness shares were last up nearly 11.3% in volatile trading. The stock earlier Monday had tumbled more than 9%, reaching a 52-week low, after the company's top executive was suspended without a return date. GameStop Shares in the video game retailer soared more than 74.4% on Monday after "Roaring Kitty," the man who fueled the 2021 GameStop mania, posted online on Reddit for the first time in roughly three years. Trading was halted multiple times due to volatility. Reddit , Robinhood Shares of the two companies that were involved with the meme stock mania in 2021 rose on Monday as GameStop surged. Reddit rose more than 8.7%, hitting its highest level since March, while retail brokerage stock Robinhood gained about 4.1%. Squarespace Shares of the website platform company jumped 13.3% after it announced a $6.9 billion deal to go private . Squarespace will be sold to private equity firm Permira for $44 per share, a 15% premium to Friday's close, after its continued underperformance as a public company. Arm Holdings The chipmaker's stock price jumped 7.7% following a Nikkei report that Arm is looking to launch its first artificial intelligence chips next year. Incyte Shares climbed 8.6% after the biopharmaceutical company approved a $2 billion share repurchase program. Nexstar Media Group The Irving, Texas-based television and digital media company added 1.1% following an upgrade to overweight from equal weight by Morgan Stanley. The bank said the owner of 75% of the CW Network is seeing strong retransmissions for 2024 and improved ad sales as programming expands. Intel The chipmaker gained 2.2% after The Wall Street Journal reported that it is in talks for an $11 billion deal with Apollo Global Management to build a factory in Ireland. SolarEdge Technologies The solar stock surged 5.5% despite being downgraded to neutral at Susquehanna, with the firm also slashing its price target over concerns tied to the company's gross margin moving forward. About eight million shares of SEDG are sold short, equal to roughly four days in average trading volume, according to FactSet data. Airlines American Airlines gained 3.7%, while United Airlines and Delta Air Lines added 3.2% and 1%, respectively, after HSBC initiated coverage with buy ratings. HSBC named Delta as its preferred stock in the sector and said demand for international travel, rebounding corporate travel and tighter capacity will boost the stocks. CNBC's Alex Harring, Brian Evans, Hakyung Kim and Jesse Pound contributed reporting. Wolftank Group , an Austria-based company specializing in tank facilities and refueling technologies, could see its stock price soar by as much as 140% over the next 12 months, according to investment bank Metzler. The bank believes as Europe invests heavily in hydrogen infrastructure, with public investment budgets ranging from millions to the billions across various countries, the Germany-listed company is well-positioned to capture a slice of this growing market. Metzler's analysts have a price target of 23 euros ($24.80) for Wolftank, which means the stock could more than double from the current share price of around 9.40 euros. WAH-FF 1Y line The number of hydrogen refueling stations, a key focus for Wolftank, has risen by more than 600% to 178 across Europe over the past decade. Wolftank's business model assumes buses, industrial trucks, and trains will likely use hydrogen in the future, rather than mass-market cars, which are now primarily transitioning toward electric power. The company expects revenues from ongoing hydrogen projects to exceed 16 million euros in 2024, with projected figures for 2025 of around 18 million euros. Additionally, projects currently in the tendering process could add over 80 million euros in revenue for 2025 and beyond if the company is successful, according to Metzler. "The company is seeing a great deal of customer interest in its hydrogen refuelling solutions," said Metzler analyst Guido Hoymann. "In the medium term, there are also major growth opportunities for Wolftank in the areas of environmental and industrial coatings, which should benefit from the fact that conventional tanks and refuelling stations are largely obsolete, leading to an increased need for maintenance, repair, refurbishment and ultimately dismantling." The company recently secured several significant contracts in Italy. Late last year, Wolftank was awarded a major hydrogen refueling station contract with a public transport provider near Lake Iseo in northern Italy. The company also secured a significant order from the Italian public transport company TPER to refuel hydrogen buses in the Emilia Romagna region worth 30 million euros until 2026. Last week, the company also revealed that it was awarded two further contracts totaling 6.7 million euros. "Wolftank continues to keep up the pace and shows with the latest order acquisition that pilot projects can be successfully transferred into follow-up orders," said research analysts Patrick Speck and Miguel Lago Mascato at another broker, Montega, according to a CNBC translation. They added that it "underlines the attractiveness of the equity story." The consensus price target of four analysts polled by FactSet points to a 124% upside for the stock. CNBC's Sophie Kiderlin contributed reporting. Police Force attend a protest against the foreign agents law as two Americans and one Russian citizen are among 20 detained on May 13, 2024 in Tbilisi, Georgia. Thousands of people took to the streets of Georgia's capital on Monday as part of a last-ditch attempt to prevent the country's government from passing a controversial "Kremlin-style" law on foreign influence. In fresh scenes of violence over the proposed bill, hundreds of masked police officers clashed with protesters outside Georgia's Parliament in Tbilisi as some demonstrators sought to block off lawmaker access to the building. Georgia's Interior Ministry said Monday that two American citizens and one Russian national were among 20 people detained at the rally. Separately, Georgia's Special Investigation Service said it had launched a probe into the alleged used of "excessive force" by law enforcement officers against protesters. Security officers have since pulled out of the main square. The foreign influence bill calls for media outlets, nonprofits and other nongovernmental organizations to register as "pursuing the interests of a foreign power" if they receive more than 20% of their funding from abroad. Russia, which occupies about 20% of Georgia's internationally recognized territory, has used similar legislation to crack down on independent news media and activists critical of the Kremlin. Chipmaker Nvidia has dominated headlines over the past year, especially after its shares logged an astronomical 240% rise in 2023. Its popularity shows little sign of abating, and although the stock was flat last week, it is still up by nearly 80% over the year to date. FactSet data shows that most analysts remain bullish on Nvidia. Of the 59 analysts covering the stock, 52 give it a buy or overweight rating, while 7 give it a hold rating. Analysts' average price target is $1004.89, giving it nearly 12% potential upside. The substantial rise in Nvidia's share price has, however, has raised questions about whether those not already invested should buy the stock now, or wait to see if its price drops. CNBC Pro spoke to two fund managers who have differing opinions. Buy Nvidia Trent Masters, portfolio manager at the Sydney-based Alphinity Investment Management, has a buy recommendation on Nvidia, even as he acknowledges that it is "hard to buy a stock that has already gone up a lot." "I personally missed the initial run in Nvidia and only bought the stock when it rose to $390 last May after its results. It's probably one of the hardest things I've done in the last 10 years to buy a stock that's already up so much because it feels like you could be making a mistake. But I think investors just have to view these things objectively," he said. "We've already seen a four-fold expansion in its earnings to $29 per share, which is something we've not seen before." Masters' only concern is that the chipmaker risks losing some market share to competitors like Advanced Micro Devices in the longer term. He remains bullish, however, given demand for the chipmaker's suite of products, strong market share of over 50% in the graphic processing units (GPUs) space, and the sustainability of its earnings. Hold off Nvidia Adam Coons, portfolio manager at the U.S.-based Winthop Investment Management, holds a different view. Acknowledging that Nvidia is a "great company," that is effectively operating a "monopoly" in the AI chipmaker segment, he has been reducing his holdings in the stock "Nvidia is a company that ran too far too fast. We've been holding Nvidia through the rally, but we've started to sell because the current valuations are inflated," Coons said, adding that he still has a position in the stock. He is now waiting for Nvidia's valuation to "normalize" a little before increasing his holdings once again. Metrics he is using to assess this include a normalization in the company's price-to-earnings ratio and the addition of more revenue streams "that can justify the valuation down the road." For instance, he is looking at an annualized revenue growth rate of near 50% over the next five years to justify the stock price. "If it did that, I would absolutely buy more stock. I probably go overweight, but I need to have a little bit more comfort. Even if I do miss on some of the upside, I'm fine with waiting just to be sure that I am paying the right price for the stock," Coons said. For fiscal year 2024, Nvidia's total revenue rose 265% from a year earlier. Despite reducing his position in the stock, Coons remains cautiously optimistic on Nvidia. "Long-term, it is definitely a company or a stock you want to own. I just think you need to be careful in the short term around some higher volatility and some bigger swings," Coons added. Russia's President Vladimir Putin meets with Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov and Head of the Main Operational Directorate of the Armed Forces' General Staff Sergei Rudskoi as he visits the headquarters of the troops involved in the country's military campaign in Ukraine, in Rostov-on-Don, Russia, in this picture released November 10, 2023. Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Kremlin via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. Russian President Vladimir Putin has moved his longtime ally Sergei Shoigu from the defense ministry to Russia's powerful Security Council amid a government reshuffle. Russian economist Andrei Belousov is set to be Russia's new defense minister, while Shoigu will replace Nikolai Patrushev, another long-standing Putin ally, at the Security Council. Patrushev will be given another role, the Kremlin said. Shoigu had headed the defense ministry since 2012, going in to the role with no military experience, and oversaw Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Putin has remained loyal to Shoigu, although Russia's military leadership during the war has been criticized by some Russian commentators, the most high-profile of whom was Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Wagner Group of Russian mercenary fighters. Prigozhin died last August in a plane crash; the Kremlin denied any involvement in his death. The appointment of Belousov, former minister of economic development, is bound to raise eyebrows in military circles but comes as Putin looks to cement Russia's economy on a war footing and defense spending surges. In other news, Russia's Defense Ministry on Sunday claimed more advances in the Kharkiv area of Ukraine after Russian forces launched a new offensive in the northeastern region. NSE Air India CEO Campbell Wilson and Vistara CEO Vinod Kannan will hold a town hall on the merger at 4 pm on Monday, May 13, as the Tata Group-owned airline aims to fully merge by the end of 2024 or early 2025.The two chiefs will address the staff on the proposed merger of the two airlines, PTI quoted officials as saying.The merger of Vistara with Air India as part of the deal, wherein Singapore Airlines is set to acquire a 25.1% stake in Air India, was officially announced in November 2022.Vistara is a joint venture between the Tata Group and Singapore Airlines, while Kannan is also serving as the Chief Integration Officer for the proposed merger.The town hall, scheduled for Monday evening, will be held in the phygital mode. Employees from both Air India as well as Vistara will remain present in the meeting.An official said that the meeting is expected to focus on the broad aspects, providing an overall picture of the merger to the staff members of the two airlines.Air India is said to have around 17,000 employees, while Vistara's strength is about 6,500 people.Earlier, Kannan had said that they are hoping to complete the merger in a smooth manner.Currently, the merger is reportedly awaiting a nod from the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in India.In March this year, the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (CCCS) gave its conditional nod to the proposed merger, while the deal received approval from the Competition Commission of India (CCI) in September last year, subject to certain conditions.This comes at a time when Air India Express is slowly restoring its flights and stabilising services across the country. The cabin crew members, who were on sick leave, are said to have joined duty.All the cabin crew members who reported sick have joined their duty by May 11, 2024, PTI quoted a release by the Air India Express Employees Union on Sunday.However, they stated that due to a glitch in the airline's scheduling software, it is said to have been showing that employees were on sick leave.The airline, which operates around 380 services daily, had to cancel at least 20 flights on Sunday, the official said, adding that it is expecting full normalcy by Tuesday morning.Last week, a strike by cabin crew members against the alleged mismanagement had forced the cancellation of hundreds of flights. However, the strike was later called off. Movie and TV star Steve Buscemi was the victim of a random attack in New York City. Buscemi, 66, was on Third Avenue in Manhattan's Kips Bay neighborhood on Wednesday when a man walked up and punched the "Boardwalk Empire" star in the face. EMS took him to Bellevue Hospital with bleeding, bruising and swelling. "Steve Buscemi was assaulted in Midtown Manhattan, another victim of a random act of violence in the city," Buscemi's publicist confirmed to the New York Post. "He is okay and appreciates everyone's well wishes, though incredibly sad for everyone that this has happened to while also walking the streets of New York." The NYPD has released images of the man wanted in connection with the attack. According to a pollice statement, when officers arrived on the scene they were "informed a 66-year-old male was punched in the face by an unidentified individual." Emergency Medical Services responded and "transported the victim" to Bellevue, where he was listed in stable condition after treatment for " bruising, swelling, and bleeding to his left eye," the NYPD said. "At this time are no arrests, and the investigation remains ongoing," police said. A number of women in the city had previously reported being randomly punched in the face on the street. Buscemi is a New York native and was a firefighter for New York City's Fire Department before he got his break as an actor. Another "Boardwalk Empire" actor was recently assaulted in Manhattan when a homeless man attacked actor Michael Stuhlbarg on March 31 in Central Park. Stuhlbarg suffered a small bruise and said he didn't need any medical attention, according to police. An arrest was made in that case. Neuralink, Elon Musk's brain-chip venture, has encountered a setback with its maiden human implant as the device dislodged from the patient's skull, diminishing data acquisition capabilities, the company disclosed on Wednesday. Noland Arbaugh, a 29-year-old paralyzed from the shoulders down due to a diving accident, became the first recipient of Neuralink's brain-computer interface (BCI) in January. The implant, intended to aid paralysis patients in controlling external technology through neural signals, was part of Neuralink's six-year trial to assess safety and functionality. A recent video demonstrated Arbaugh utilizing the BCI to engage in video gaming, effectively showcasing the capabilities and potential of the technology. "Now I can literally just lie in bed and play to my heart's content," he said, the New York Post reported. However, complications arose when several threads of the implant retracted from Arbaugh's brain, reducing effective electrode connections and impeding data transmission. Neuralink stated in a Wednesday blog post that "a number of threads retracted from [Arbaugh's] brain," resulting in a net decrease in the number of effective electrodes. Neuralink addressed the issue by refining recording algorithms and interface designs to enhance signal sensitivity and accuracy. Despite setbacks, Arbaugh reportedly utilizes the BCI system extensively, expressing enthusiasm for its potential impact. "In response to this change, we modified the recording algorithm to be more sensitive to neural population signals, improved the techniques to translate these signals into cursor movements, and enhanced the user interface," Neuralink added, emphasizing that the refinement will improve the accuracy of Arbaugh's control over the cursor's bits per second (BPS). According to the company, BPS is "the standard measure for speed and accuracy." "These refinements produced a rapid and sustained improvement in BPS, that has now superseded Noland's initial performance," Neuralink said. The company's relocation from Delaware to Nevada, following legal disputes, adds to the narrative surrounding Neuralink's journey. While the malfunction hasn't directly jeopardized Arbaugh's safety, discussions regarding potential explantation highlight ongoing challenges. Neuralink's transparency regarding its technology and human trials remains a subject of scrutiny, with calls for increased openness amid FDA-approved human testing and prior animal trials. First responders badly need professional help for their mental health. In a report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Thursday, the National Institute for Occupational Safety & Health, a CDC entity dedicated to research and training, highlighted the elevated risk of traumatic exposure and stress among first responders. The CDC's comprehensive assessment encompasses firefighters (both structural and wildland), law enforcement officers, EMS clinicians and corrections personnel. The report underscored the crucial need for mental health programs specifically designed for first responders. Captain Welcker Taylor of the Asheville Fire Department, also serving as president of the Asheville Fire Fighters Association, shared insights with News 13 to shed light on the daily challenges encountered by firefighters. "We work a lot of hours. We work 24 hours shifts, and our schedules work out to where we're gone from our families for a whole day," he said. "We don't sleep very much. We deal with a lot of sleep deprivation. Last shift, we were up at 1 o'clock, 3 o'clock, 5 o'clock -- and all of us have families or our partners work. We have kids we need to take care of." For firefighters, the relentless exposure to distressing incidents takes a toll on mental well-being, affecting their operational efficiency. "We're just exposed to all sorts of bad stuff all the time. We are going to people's worst days, and we are the ones who need to bring calm and professionalism," Taylor explained. "We can do that on scene, but all those little things that we see take a toll on us over time. Whether it's a kid who's hurt or in trouble or an old person who reminds us of our grandparents, those things start to add up over time and it wears away at you. We carry that stuff with us, we carry it home with us. We see things." Taylor acknowledged that achieving equilibrium can be challenging at times. He candidly shared the lingering effects of traumatic calls, revealing personal struggles with triggers that evoke vivid recollections of distressing incidents. "There are streets in Asheville that I don't drive down because I went on a terrible call there, and if I drive down that street, it's like it all comes back. I get goose bumps and even get tears in my eyes." Taylor's narrative resonates with a broader trend, as data from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration indicates that approximately 30% of first responders grapple with PTSD and depression. Rick Baker, founder of Responder Support Services, advocates for enhanced mental health provisions, recognizing the nuanced therapeutic needs of first responders. "Everybody that works with us has hidden depths, training in the evidence-based treatments that has shown to be effective for PTSD," Baker said. "The treatment has to be adapted and be a little bit different for them than it is for the general population." Responder Support Services, operational since 2017, offers evidence-based mental health services tailored to first responders across North Carolina's westernmost counties. Recent findings presented at the 26th European Congress of Endocrinology in Stockholm spotlight the nuanced influence of pregnancy stress hormones, notably cortisol, on the cognitive development of children, with notable variations based on gender. The study, delving into the impact of cortisol and its derivative cortisone, unveils significant gender disparities in how these hormones shape children's intellectual trajectories by the age of seven. During pregnancy, cortisol, a stress hormone and steroid essential for stress management, undergoes natural elevation, pivotal for fetal development. Intriguingly, women carrying female fetuses typically exhibit higher cortisol levels compared to those carrying male fetuses. The placenta acts as a crucial regulator, employing the enzyme 11-hydroxysteroid-dehydrogenase type 2 (11-HSD2) to convert cortisol into its inactive form, cortisone, thereby mitigating the fetal impact of stress hormones. Analyzing data from the Odense Child Cohort comprising 943 pregnant women and their offspring, researchers from Odense University Hospital in Denmark scrutinized cortisol and cortisone levels in the third trimester, correlating these with children's IQ scores at age seven. Their findings indicate that boys exposed to heightened maternal cortisol levels exhibit lower IQ scores, whereas girls manifest improved scores with increased maternal urine cortisone levels. Lead researcher Dr. Anja Fenger Dreyer noted the study's pioneering nature, emphasizing its separate analyses for boys and girls and comprehensive consideration of urine and blood samples. "To our knowledge, this is the first study investigating the association between urine cortisone levels during pregnancy and IQ scores in children," Dreyer explained, according to Earth.com. Dr. Dreyer highlighted the shielding role of placental 11-HSD2 activity saying, "Our results show that girls may be more protected by the activity of placental 11-HSD2, whereas boys may be more vulnerable to prenatal exposure of maternal physiological cortisol." Furthermore, the study delved into the differential impacts of prenatal cortisol exposure on cognitive versus language development. Dreyer said, "Although our previous study showed prenatal cortisol exposure was positively associated with language development, in this study prenatal cortisol exposure - directly by serum cortisol and indirectly by urine cortisone - is negatively associated with IQ scores." "The vocabulary in toddlers was reported by parents in our previous study, while child IQ in this study was assessed by trained psychologists." These revelations prompt critical discussions on how prenatal stress hormones uniquely affect male and female fetuses, hinting at gender-specific protective mechanisms within the placenta. New research led by the University of Bristol indicates the effectiveness of innovative measures introduced by the Chinese government to address sedentary behavior among children. Published in the International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, the study highlights the impact of regulations targeting online gaming companies, school activities, and private tutoring businesses. These regulations, unprecedented on a global scale, have led to a 13.8% reduction in daily sedentary time among schoolchildren, marking a pivotal shift towards healthier lifestyles. Lead author Dr. Bai Li, from the University's Center for Exercise, Nutrition, and Health Sciences, emphasized the significance of this regulatory intervention, stating, "The results are exciting as this type of regulatory intervention across multiple settings has never been tried before. Traditionally, children and their parents or caregivers have been guided with education and encouraged to make behavioral changes themselves, which hasn't really worked." "With these regulatory measures, the onus has shifted to online gaming companies, schools and, private tutoring companies to comply. This very different approach appears to be more effective, because it is aimed at improving the environment in which children and adolescents live, supporting a healthier lifestyle." Analyzing data from over 7,000 primary and secondary school students in the Guangxi region, the study observed a substantial decrease in sedentary behavior, with urban areas experiencing a more pronounced effect, Medical Express reported. Screen-viewing time decreased by 6.4%, with students becoming 20% more likely to meet recommended screen time limits. Moreover, adherence to government-recommended homework durations increased significantly across age groups, demonstrating the broad impact of these regulations. Dr. Li emphasized the need for further research to assess the scalability and effectiveness of such interventions beyond the Guangxi region, while Professor Boyd Swinburn from the University of Auckland highlighted the study's implications for global public health policies. He noted, "Further research is needed to assess whether such interventions have a similar impact in other regions of China and internationally." Professor Boyd Swinburn, a distinguished figure in global health hailing from the University of Auckland and serving as Co-Director of the World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Center for Obesity Prevention at Deakin University in Melbourne, provided insights on the study, noting its significance. He remarked, "This is a fascinating study because most interventions to reduce sedentary behaviors have relied on educational approaches rather than the regulatory measures used here. Swinburn acknowledged the potential challenges in replicating similar regulations in countries beyond China but highlighted the pivotal demonstration of how regulatory measures can effectively influence sedentary behaviors, underscoring the profound impact of environmental conditions and governing policies on lifestyle habits. By Dynne C. | Update Date: May 13, 2024 04:13 AM EDT Amidst the digital age, today's kids grapple with unprecedented levels of anxiety and depression. Anxiety and Kids Dr. Johnathan Haidt, a social psychologist at New York University's Stern School of Business, sheds light on the factors contributing to this alarming trend in his latest publication. Haidt, along with lead researcher Zach Rausch, asserts that the proliferation of smartphones exacerbates adolescent mental health issues. Expert Tips Parents or guardians can help curb the anxiety and depression that kids today experience. Here are several tips that could help: Limiting Smartphone Access Rausch, an associate research scientist at NYU-Stern School of Business, underscores the detrimental impact of social media and iPhones on children, particularly during the formative years of puberty. The duo advocates for limiting smartphone access and delaying social media engagement until the age of 16 to mitigate the adverse effects on mental well-being. More Recess Time To foster a healthier environment for children, Haidt and Rausch propose practical solutions. They recommend implementing phone-free policies in schools and advocating for increased recess time and free play. These structural changes aim to reduce the prevalence of bullying, social comparison, and depression among adolescents. Real-Word Interactions Parents play a pivotal role in alleviating their children's anxiety. Rausch emphasizes the importance of fostering offline connections by initiating conversations with other parents. By establishing community norms that prioritize real-world interactions over digital engagement, families can collectively mitigate the adverse effects of excessive smartphone usage. Prioritize Connections Offline In navigating the social pressures surrounding smartphone usage, Rausch acknowledges the challenges faced by both teens and parents. However, by fostering a supportive network of families committed to limiting smartphone usage, parents can empower their children to prioritize meaningful connections offline. Conclusion In an era dominated by digital devices, safeguarding children's mental well-being requires a concerted effort from parents, educators and communities. By implementing practical strategies advocated by experts like Haidt and Rausch, society can pave the way for a generation that thrives both online and offline. If a neighbor asks you to hold on to a mysterious box for them, just say no Many people fantasize about the post-apocalypse, reasoning that such a setting will let each of us live free from neighbors. Youll surround your home with high walls, and if anyone comes by, you can just kill them and thats officially allowed, because theyre a zombie. For now, though, were stuck with neighbors. Were also stuck with a functioning society, which is just as well, because you sometimes have to appeal to wider society to come save you from these terrible neighbors. Neighbors such as 4 The Owner of the Smelly Box Don't Miss In 2019, Maria Merino gave her neighbor a mysterious box for safekeeping. We know what youre thinking weve seen Se7en, too clearly this box held a severed head. But keep in mind that a severed head is not the only dubious item a box can contain. Merino confided to her neighbor that this box held her collection of sex toys, and she needed someone to hold them for her to keep the cops from seeing them. Christopher Bill I need help attending to my box. I also need to store this cardboard container. Merinos live-in boyfriend, Jesus Baranda, had abandoned her recently after seven years together, she told the neighbor. This explained why she needed a whole box of vibrators, and it was also why the police were coming around to interview her. Vibrators werent illegal or anything, but they were too embarrassing to have around where the cops could joke about them. They were also perhaps a bit embarrassing to store for a friend, but the neighbor accepted the request. The summer went by, and the box started to smell. Despite not relishing the thought of examining contents that could smell so bad, the neighbor finally did open the box. It contained a mans severed head. Whoops turns out your Se7eny instincts were right, and we were wrong to ever doubt you. New Line Cinema Technically, the movie doesnt show inside the box. It could be full of sex toys. The head was Barandas. Merino had killed him for his money. Her neighbor, of course, now called the police, and when they confronted Merino, she made up a story (contradicting her earlier account of the mans disappearance), saying someone had left the head on her doorstep, and shed kept it as a memento. This did not hold up, and she wound up sentenced to 15 years for murder. Advertisement We arent entirely sure why she hadnt disposed of the head the same way the did the rest of the body. Perhaps she was telling the truth when she said she kept it as a memento. We just hope she wasnt also telling the truth when she said that was her sex toy collection. 3 The Vegan Who Kept Complaining About Cowbell Nancy Holten came to Switzerland from the Netherlands when she was eight. Still, she never quite embraced her adopted nations values. When she became an adult, she campaigned against the local practices of raising pigs and hunting, as she was a vegan. She also complained about cowbells. Not the musical instrument, which everyone enjoys, but the actual bells that cows wear around their necks. Maria Feofilova Its like the jingle of an ice cream van, for people who like their milk unfrozen. It was an animal welfare issue, said Holten. She may have been right, as reports say this bell ringing can disturb or even deafen cows. Neighbors were more inclined to say she was resistant to local customs. Or, maybe she just didnt like the sound of bells, which was why she also campaigned against loud church bells. Advertisement Advertisement In Switzerland, when an immigrant wants citizenship, locals can vote on whether to approve or reject them. Holtens neighbors successfully blocked her application. She had a big mouth, said one spokesperson, adding, We do not want to give her this gift if she bores us and does not respect our traditions. They killed her application in 2015 and again in 2016. Though, if youre from one of those countries where you embrace immigration and dont punish people for expressing themselves, youll consider the voters to be the evil neighbors in this tale. Higher Swiss authorities overruled the decision and granted her citizenship in 2017. 2 The House Demolisher Advertisement In 2013, a wrecking crew came to a neighborhood outside Detroit, with instructions to knock down the condemned building at 398 Edison Street. Instead, they knocked down the building at 404 Edison Street. This sounds like a blunder for which the crew themselves were wholly responsible, except for the small fact that the building at 404 had a house number on it marking it as 398. Andrew Jameson Heres an unrelated house in the same town. The place has some nice buildings. The theory put forward by police is the owner of 398 switched the house numbers to confuse the crew. His own house now bore the number 390, suggesting this was a three-way swap, to throw us off the scent. Advertisement Anyway, no one investigated the matter too closely. The last we heard, the accused neighbor was later arguing about some separate property matter in front of the local government, having never been charged for the demolition. Other homeowners on the street reasoned that the demolished house was an eyesore, and the people living in there had been squatters, so screw them. The city chalked this one to a case of 404: not found and moved on. Advertisement If theres a better use of five dollars, wed like to hear it Its pretty hard not to dislike Chevy Chase with a fiery passion, thanks to his alleged repeated use of racial slurs, the numerous stories about him physically attacking people, and the mere existence of the movie Modern Problems. So its not all that surprising that some people would want to pull a mean-spirited practical joke on him like the time that Jason Sudeikis, with a little help from Community creator Dan Harmon, left a phone message for Chase pretending to be Joe Biden. But while that phone call was far from soul-crushing, one prank that really messed with Chases head was orchestrated by former Saturday Night Live writer, and frequent Weekend Update performer, A. Whitney Brown. Advertisement Advertisement As Brown recently revealed on WTF with Marc Maron, during his time at SNL, he attended a celebrity-packed New York Yankees game along with Lorne Michaels and Chase, as well as music superstars Paul Simon and Paul McCartney. But sitting six rows ahead of Chase was pigeon-enthusiast Mike Tyson. While fans were lining up to meet Tyson, nobody was paying attention to Chevy. Advertisement Advertisement According to Brown, Chase was getting more and more anxious that he was being overlooked by the public in favor of Tyson, so he got up and briefly joined the boxer just to make sure that everyone in the crowd noticed him, too. At this point, Brown and Kids in the Hall producer Joe Forristal (also Michaels brother-in-law at the time) decided to further screw with Chases ego by asking an 8-year-old kid if he would help them prank the Fletch star for five bucks. The kids response? Hell, yeah. So the kid was given instructions to approach Michaels, asking: Hey arent you Lorne Michaels, creator of Saturday Night Live? Can I have an autograph? All while completely ignoring Chase, who was seated beside Michaels. Advertisement The pair also paid an elderly person and a pretty girl to go through the same routine: recognizing Lorne Michaels for his SNL celebrity, asking for an autograph and pretending that Chase didnt exist. Brown confesses now that, although he and Forristal kept the bit going all day and were in tears throughout, they also realized that they could never ever admit that it was all a prank. While the goal was to mock Chase, it would have been a cruel thing to have done to Lorne, who was clearly tickled by the attention he was getting from all of his fans. Advertisement Well, now hes finally let the cat out of the bag. Hopefully Michaels self-esteem can withstand the revelation that several strangers who asked for his autograph nearly four decades ago didnt actually give a shit who he was. And hopefully Chase doesnt listen to this episode of WTF and feel even slightly better about himself. You (yes, you) should follow JM on Twitter (if it still exists by the time youre reading this). Michael Cohen, the prosecution's star witness in Donald Trump's criminal trial, is on the stand on Monday. Trump's former personal lawyer and so-called fixer, is considered the most important witness for the Manhattan district attorney's criminal case against the former president. Cohen is expected to testify about his role in arranging hush money payments during Trump's first presidential campaign. One of those payments allegedly went to porn actor Stormy Daniels, who testified in detail last week about an alleged sexual encounter with Trump that he denies took place. Daniels was paid $130,000 to keep quiet about her story, according to previous testimony. The accounting of that payment is the heart of the prosecution case. Trump faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in an alleged effort to hide the payment as legal expenses. The defense team is expected to try to paint Cohen as an "admitted liar" who is simply out to get revenge on his former boss. Cohen pleaded guilty to federal charges after lying to Congress. Other witnesses, including former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker have testified about Cohen's role working to kill stories that were thought to be potentially harmful to Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign. Prosecutors say they may wrap up their presentation of evidence by the end of the week. During a rally on Saturday in Wildwood, New Jersey, Trump railed against the case, trying to claim President Joe Biden for his legal woes, calling the case a "Biden show trial." Two-thirds of students enrolled at the country's top 25 schools reportedly say that antisemitism is a problem on their campus. 67% of students at universities ranked by U.S. News & World Report identified antisemitism as a problem. 14% called it a "huge problem." 53% of students called it a "small problem." One-third of students said antisemitism is not a problem on their campuses. The survey was carried out as pro-Palestinian protesters have disrupted colleges across the United States. Some have led to claims of antisemitism. The protests have led to hundreds of arrests and even the canceling of some graduation ceremonies. About an equal number of respondents felt free speech rights on campuses were being protected or violated with about half finding they were neither protected or violated. While a slim majority found that protests are not impacting campus safety, 10% of the students surveyed said they fix "much less safe" on campus. The Anti-Defamation League reported earlier this year that at least 73% of Jewish college students surveyed experienced or witnessed antisemitism con campus during the past school year. The News & World Report survey was conducted by Generation Lab between April 28-May 8 and 926 students took part in the survey. When President Biden is trying to decide how to deal with the wars in Gaza and Ukraine, what do you think is the factor weighing most on his mind? Answer: Tuesday, November 5. That's the day the United States holds its presidential election, to determine whether Biden or his Republican opponent, Donald Trump holds the White House. And it's looking extremely close, which means, under the U.S. electoral college system, that everything could rest on mere thousands of votes in a handful of swing states. Two of those nail-biters are Michigan and Pennsylvania, which contain relatively large numbers of Muslim voters electors normally expected to turn out for the Democrat candidate. But if, enraged by the situation in Gaza, thousands of these voters stay at home, that might, in the closest of races, cost Biden the White House. Risk So it would be naive to think this has nothing to do with Biden's decision last week to cancel the promised delivery of Boeing's Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMs) to Israel. This was ostensibly on the grounds that President Netanyahu's extension of his campaign to bombing Rafah would put the lives of an unconscionable number of Palestinians at risk. It grabbed the headlines in the way Biden would have wanted. Yet it might cause the deaths of more innocents in Gaza. JDAMs are guidance kits that convert 'dumb bombs' into precision-guided 'smart bombs', enabling the user to avoid what is euphemistically termed collateral damage. US President Joe Biden responds to reporters' questions as he leaves St. Edmond's Roman Catholic Church in Rehoboth Beach after attending Mass on Sunday However, in respect of the electoral effect in Michigan and Pennsylvania, President Biden sees, as some have remarked, a 'two-state solution' which has nothing to do with the future of the Middle East. However bitter and all-consuming this issue is for a section of the American public (especially younger voters), in the end, as the former U.S. speaker Tip O'Neill said: All politics is local. And few of those purely domestic considerations count for more, in America, than the cost of filling up your car. The price of gasoline, in other words. This explains the otherwise inexplicable, in terms of the pressure the Biden administration has been putting on Ukraine to stop its highly successful drone attacks on oil refineries and storage facilities in Russia. Strategy Last month the U.S. Secretary of Defence, Lloyd Austin, warned Ukraine that 'those attacks could have a knock-on effect in terms of the global energy situation'. This so delighted the Putin regime, it promoted Austin's remarks via its Tass news agency. As the American military historian Phillips O'Brien observed: 'It is hard to think of a weirder thing for a U.S. Defence Secretary to say. [But] in one way it was honest, in that Austin was admitting that the policy of the U.S. government, in an election year, was being determined by the price of oil.' As he also observed, whenever the U.S. itself has prosecuted military campaigns, not least during World War II, the targeting of the enemies' oil facilities was a vital component of its strategy. It is certainly true of the conduct of Russia's campaign against Ukraine, which has consistently targeted energy infrastructure. Smoke billows after an explosion in northern Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, pictured May 12 2024 The Financial Times, which in March revealed the pressure Washington was bringing on Ukraine to stop its attacks on Russian refineries, commented then that 'oil prices have risen by about 15 per cent this year, pushing up fuel costs just as U.S. President Joe Biden begins his campaign for re-election'. Bob McNally, a former White House energy adviser, told the paper: 'Nothing terrifies a sitting American president more than a surge in pump prices during an election year.' Yes, but there is something especially absurd in complaining about Ukraine's targeting of Russia's oil industry, when Kyiv is doing precisely the sort of thing the West's sanctions policy was meant to achieve, but failed to do. Increase And just as the blocking of a supply of JDAMs to the Israel Defence Forces might only achieve the opposite of its alleged justification, so the Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries are not, actually, the reason for a global increase in oil prices. As the U.S. magazine Foreign Affairs pointed out: 'Washington's criticism is misplaced: attacks on oil refineries will not have the effect U.S. officials fear. 'These strikes reduce Russia's ability to turn its oil into usable products; they do not affect the volume of oil it can extract or export. In fact, with less domestic refining capacity, Russia will be forced to export more of its crude oil, not less, pushing global prices down rather than up.' So, not only do Biden's electioneering-based decisions in Gaza and Ukraine run counter to the interests of nations the U.S. designates as allies in war, they don't make sense in their own terms. They certainly don't impress America's allies, while pleasing only their enemies. AFTER PRICEY TOAST, BEWARE OF RIP-OFF TEA... A scandal! That's what the locals in Port Talbot are saying about the prices charged at Remo's cafe, with its fine views of Aberavon beach. As the Mail reported on Saturday, the charge which most outraged visitors was the 4 for 'two slices of toast'. My view is that the manager, Mr Difrancesco, should be able to charge whatever he wants, since no one is obliged to eat breakfast at Remo's. I did find his justification odd, though: 'We serve only hand-cut doorstep slices of fresh bread from a local bakery that have been toasted and buttered only with real salted butter.' What, as opposed to unreal salted butter? And as any cook will tell you, the freshest butter is generally unsalted, as the salt is used as a preservative. This is one reason salted butter tends to be cheaper (easier for supermarkets to store for long periods). Also, the salt can mask the taste of lower-quality butter. The Mail also reported that a cup of tea at the South Wales cafe costs 3.10. I wonder if this would include Earl Grey, because, as a so-called premium product, that's a time-honoured rip-off. I learned this from my grandfather, a tea merchant, who told me the best tea was from the tips of the leaves. The lower down the plant, the lower the quality. In order to disguise the tastelessness of the lowest quality tea, one trick was to add bergamot flavouring. Which is your Earl Grey, the posh name designed to delude consumers into thinking it's a superior brew. And my grandfather regarded tea bags (as opposed to leaves) as an abomination: not real tea at all. I bet you don't get real tea at Remo's alongside 'toast buttered only with real salted butter'. Tony Blair's silken ex-Machiavelli, Lord Mandelson, has made millions in lobbying after carefully exploiting his experience and contacts as a former Cabinet minister and EU commissioner. At Labour's conference in Liverpool last year, he hosted a lavish reception on behalf of his consultancy Global Counsel and raised eyebrows when he parked himself in a front-row seat for the speech by Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves. Yet it turns out that Mandy's tentacles reach even further into the Starmer project. Global Counsel has seconded and funded to the tune of 36,000 a member of its own staff to Labour MP Tulip Siddiq, who is one of the shadow Treasury team reporting to Reeves. So not only does his lordship have a direct line to Starmer himself, he also has eyes and ears in the team that will be at the heart of fiscal decision-making if Labour wins the next election. The Prince of Darkness has lost none of his old tricks. Lord Mandelson (pictured), has made millions in lobbying after carefully exploiting his experience and contacts as a former Cabinet minister and EU commissioner Labour MP Jess Phillips sums up the views of many having sat through Saturday's Eurovision Song Contest. 'All the songs sound the same. I am old so it's all just noise to me.' Truss still flying high Liz Truss has kept up her taste for the high life, enjoying free use of the lavish VIP 'Windsor Suite' at Heathrow. In March, the ex-PM made two visits to the lounge beloved of plutocrats, worth 1,800 each, according to the MP's register of interests, as she jetted around the world spreading her free-market message. Liz Truss has kept up her taste for the high life, enjoying free use of the lavish VIP 'Windsor Suite' at Heathrow A clever tactic from Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar, who lambasted the SNP at Holyrood for announcing John Swinney as their third First Minister in a single session. Sarwar raged: 'A farce inflicted on Scotland by the SNP . . . the party that promotes its own by making cronyism a way of life.' Cue red faces on the SNP benches. Sarwar was quoting from an identical speech in 2001 by one John Swinney back when Scottish Labour was suffering the same psychodrama. Commons Deputy Speaker Nigel Evans was chairing a debate on the BBC's Charter review when his phone buzzed in his pocket. A bemused Evans told MPs: 'I have received a text from the BBC asking me to do [Radio 4's] Any Questions? How peculiar!' Were Auntie's producers trying to nobble the Deputy Speaker by offering him a gig? If so, they failed. Evans said: 'I had to break the news that, as Deputy Speaker, I am unable to do so.' Commons Deputy Speaker Nigel Evans was chairing a debate on the BBC's Charter review when his phone buzzed in his pocket Socialist magazine Tribune is not impressed Keir Starmer has allowed Tory defector Natalie Elphicke to join Labour. 'Welcoming the Tory Right into his party, Keir Starmer is not demonstrating Labour's ability to change people's opinions,' it thundered. 'He's only emphasising the fact it has none.' Overheard in the Commons: Two Tory MPs reflecting on the latest bleak opinion polls. 'Did I hear Rishi right? Did he say stop the boats or was it stop the votes?' A lesson in selfless service A moving message last week from ex-PM Gordon Brown to mark the 30th anniversary of the death at just 55 of former Labour leader John Smith. 'I remember being with him the night before he died, when he ended his speech with 'all we ask is the opportunity to serve',' said Brown. 'John's whole life was a testimony to the nobility of public service.' How many MPs today could say the same about themselves? Advance briefings suggested Rishi Sunak would give us Project Fear, trying to spook voters in the way Brussels did before the EU referendum. Actually, this speech was more fun than that. Mr Sunak was enjoyably rude about the Labour leader, depicting him as a slippery trimmer who switched his principles as often as some of us change our razor blades. 'Keir Starmer's gone from embracing Jeremy Corbyn to Natalie Elphicke, all in the cynical pursuit of power at any price.' Not Project Fear. This was Project Keir. Zero in on the clunker. Couldn't happen to a nicer chap. At PMQs last Wednesday, Sir Keir accused Mr Sunak of being 'smug' and 'a dodgy salesman'. If you dish it out, you can't complain about return ordure. Rishi Sunak delivers his speech in a boxy room at London 's Policy Exchange think-tank. A few Tory MPs and peers were there to clap feverishly Mr Sunak said: 'Keir Starmer 's gone from embracing Jeremy Corbyn to Natalie Elphicke, all in the cynical pursuit of power at any price'. Pictured: Sir Keir with Natalie Elphicke after her defection on May 10 Mr Sunak, voice still thickened by the cold he caught last week, no longer bothered to call his opponent 'Sir'. It was just 'Keir Starmer', said with a novice's contempt. Rishi is not a natural at sulphurousness. He needs to take lessons from Suella or from that mean hombre Oliver Dowden, the Lee Van Cleef of Hertsmere. Conservatives suspect that 'Sir' makes Starmer sound more decent than he is. Labour people also omit the knighthood - they fear it makes their man sound posh. It might just be easier if the honours committee stopped giving knighthoods to politicians. The venue for this speech was a small, boxy room at London's Policy Exchange think-tank. A few Tory MPs and peers were there to clap feverishly. The PM was introduced by the outfit's director, Lord Godson, nowadays as snowy and plump a figure as Father Christmas. When I first knew Dean Godson he was a wasp-waisted obituarist who did cheeky impersonations of editorial colleagues on the Daily Telegraph. Now I bet his colleagues do impersonations of him. Mr Sunak stood at a lectern made from the sort of wood used for cheap coffins. The last two years have left him greyer at the temples. The voice has lost some of its naivety and he does not do that begging-eyebrows thing so much. He flew straight to electoral considerations. The general election would not just be Tories v Labour and Sunak v Starmer. 'I remain confident that my party can prevail. We will be the only party talking about the future.' Oh, and we were 'at a crossroads'. Political speech-writers love crossroads. A dead-end or a roundabout might be more accurate, given that there is a chance we may be driven back whence we came. 'I feel a profound sense of urgency,' said Mr Sunak. Being 30 points behind in the opinion polls can do that to a man. It was around this point in the speech that a bluebottle hove into view. It did a few circuits of the room, as if stacking over Heathrow, and then engaged in mild aerobatics. Had Boris had been making this speech he would possibly have tried to swat it. If the chameleon Sir Keir had been present, he could have shot forth his limber tongue and gobbled down that fly in one. David Lammy can do the same with Maltesers, one hears. There was plenty of Brexit in this speech. Leaving the EU had seen us become the world's fourth biggest exporter. Not for the first time, Mr Sunak undertook to place national security above any commitments to Strasbourg on human rights. A woman whooped. 'The next few years will be some of the most dangerous yet the most transformational our country has ever known,' said Mr Sunak. Dangerous is a good political word. Transformational is not. Transformational is a word used by policy wonks and mandarins when praising a minister's dull idea. It is not a word you hear in pubs. Sky News's Beth Rigby, that Celia Johnson de nos jours, asked one of her fragrant questions. Rishi hadn't a clue what she was on about. ITV's Robert Peston limited himself to a mere 40 seconds. Is he losing his touch? Rishi Sunak was probably exaggerating when he said in his speech yesterday that 'more will change in the next five years than in the last 30'. But we do live in an age of flux and uncertainty, and the Prime Minister has quite cleverly put his finger on the nation's pulse. I doubt, in fact, that any election has taken place in recent history at a time when there was more disquiet and unease about the way the world is going. Although public alarm was obviously high at the outbreak of war in 1939, there hadn't been an election since 1935, when the prospect of another conflict still seemed distant to many. In 1974, Tory Prime Minister Ted Heath went to the country as Britain was mired in strikes and suffering the economic shocks of an oil crisis. But I doubt there was as much fear about the future as there is today. People are gloomier than ever, and not just because the convulsions of the pandemic are vivid in many minds, and the country is only at last emerging from a long economic malaise. Rishi Sunak (pictured) was probably exaggerating when he said in his speech yesterday that 'more will change in the next five years than in the last 30' Sir Keir Starmer pictured today at the GTG training centre with Angela Rayner (far left), the Mayor of West Yorkshire Tracy Brabin (next left) and West Midlands Mayor Richard Parker (right) There is a sense of unprecedentedly rapid change, and of old values being challenged and undermined. We don't live in a happy country. Mr Sunak focused on three issues that are contributing to public angst: the threat of war, mass migration and artificial intelligence, which he said carries benefits as well as dangers. His message was that the electorate should have more confidence in the Tories than in Labour to steer the nation through turbulent waters. Let's put AI to one side for the moment. Many people will reasonably say that Rishi has an infernal cheek. Given the Conservatives' pretty abysmal record on defence and mass immigration, it's hard to see why voters should have confidence in their ability to do better next time. Admittedly the Government recently announced a modest increase in defence expenditure from around 2.3 to 2.5 per cent of GDP by 2030. But this only repeats a pledge made by Boris Johnson as Prime Minister nearly two years ago. David Cameron, then PM now our lordly Foreign Secretary, slashed the defence budget by 8 per cent. The Tories have underfunded the Army, Navy and RAF for 14 years. It took wars in Europe and the Middle East for Mr Sunak finally to see the light. Even so, it is certain that increasing the defence budget by a fairly small margin to 2.5 per cent won't be enough to address present dangers. As for immigration, the Tories have presided over the largest increase in the number of people arriving here legally in our history. The net figure of 745,000 for 2022 was more than double the pre-Brexit high in 2015. The Prime Minister talked more in his speech about illegal immigration but here too with the numbers crossing the Channel rising and not a single migrant yet packed off to Rwanda he has nothing to boast about. In fact, as a journalist pointed out to Mr Sunak (pictured) after the end of his speech, when the Tories took over in 2010 the proportion of GDP devoted to defence was slightly higher than it is now David Cameron (pictured), then PM now our lordly Foreign Secretary, slashed the defence budget by 8 per cent In view of the Tories' performance on both defence and migration before Rishi came to office and during his 19-month stint in No 10 he might have been well advised not to have banged his drum quite so triumphantly. And yet and this is the paradox I think it's perfectly possible that voters could be convinced that, despite everything, the Conservatives are more to be trusted than Labour on these two defining issues, as well as on much else. The reason is Sir Keir Starmer. I am thinking of his extreme caution, his almost comically transparent calculation, and his lack of abiding principle. Look at Labour's response to the Government's announcement of an increase in defence spending. Instead of doing the obvious thing namely, immediately matching Mr Sunak's pledge Sir Keir merely said that Labour would get to 2.5 per cent when economic conditions allow. Presumably he was afraid that if he undertook to follow the Tories, he would be asked where the extra money is coming from. His timidity was characteristic. At a moment of international crisis, with Russia on a war footing and making advances in Ukraine, Sir Keir lacks the courage and political acumen to commit to doing the right thing. He is similarly vulnerable on immigration. Having berated the Government over its Rwanda scheme, he has failed to produce an intelligible alternative policy capable of convincing voters. Migrants on a boat attempting to cross the English Channel And while the Government seems belatedly to be getting legal immigration under control though there's a long way to go neither Sir Keir nor Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper is likely to persuade the electorate that they would take the issue seriously. The unspoken truth is that many Labour MPs are relaxed about uncontrolled immigration, and indeed favour it. Sir Keir has never given us reason to believe that he shares, or even understands, the public's dislike of it. Disappointing though the Tories' record has been on these two fronts, it's not preposterous for Rishi to maintain that he would do better than Sir Keir Starmer. It's possible that enough voters will believe him. Every time the Russians make a further advance in Ukraine, people will ask themselves: whom do I trust more, Rishi or Sir Keir? When or if migrants are sent to Rwanda, many will say: at least the Tories have a plan that's beginning to work, even if it is incredibly expensive. Of course, there are some issues where it's impossible to imagine the Tories catching up Labour. The NHS would be one. But in some other areas the improving economy, for example Mr Sunak's pitch could be more convincing to many ears than Sir Keir's. I certainly don't think that Rishi's speech was a humdinger. He tried to cram the kitchen sink and too much else into it. Nor is he a great orator. This wasn't Winston Churchill confronting the gathering storm. Labour leader Keir Starmer gives a press conference as he announces Labour's plan to stop illegal small boat crossings on May 10, 2024 But in warning of 'dangerous years ahead' and in saying, rightly, that the world is closer to nuclear war than it has been since the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, the PM touches a nerve. And in invoking the alarming pace of change, he reaches many troubled hearts. On artificial intelligence, he convinced me that he understands its dangers and benefits better than Sir Keir Starmer, who seems scarcely to have thought about it. Rishi called an international conference on AI last November, let's not forget. Mr Sunak is offering himself as a leader who has considered the perils facing us. Yet unlike the chameleon Sir Keir who exudes waves of gloom as he bangs on about decline the PM is a sunny and optimistic soul. This was a foretaste of the election. If they were doctors, Sir Keir would be the one telling you that you have six months to live, and he can't make up his mind which medicines to give you. Mr Sunak would say, having conceded the previous operation didn't go entirely according to plan, that there definitely is a future. And do you know what? Rishi might just pull it off. Contains affiliated content. Products featured in this article are selected by our writers. If you make a purchase using links on this page, Daily Mail Australia will earn an affiliate commission. Click here for more information. Whether it's navigating 'witching hour' with a newborn or attempting to negotiate with a toddler to get them into bed, every parent knows how challenging sleep time with little ones can be. Now, a children's sleep professional has revealed the biggest mistakes that parents make at bedtime and shared her top tip for keeping kids warm overnight as winter approaches. Early parenting expert Jen Hamilton has told Daily Mail Australia how efforts to get little ones to sleep, such as patting or rocking may in fact actually be overstimulating them. Jen, who is the CEO and creator of the WOT Baby Method said: 'In this haste to make your little one sleep with lots of help, you can easily do the opposite and overstimulate them.' Early parenting expert Jen, who is the CEO and creator of the WOT Baby Method has revealed the most common mistake parents make at bedtime 'To help your baby go to sleep you may provide a bedtime implementing rocking, patting, feeding, dummy sucking, a combination of all these things and then repeat.' 'As babies grow and develop, all these things can stop working as they become more stimulating to their little active minds rather than calming them as it did when they were a newborn.' Jen also said that indecision and inconsistency, as well as delaying tactics seen as children grow up can negatively affect their ability to sleep. The kids expert discusses how toddlers try and negotiate at bedtime and what to do about it as well as sharing a tip on keeping kids warm overnight as winter approaches 'To help your child go to sleep bedtime may be full of bedtime stories, drinks of water, brushing teeth, more drinks of water, lots of negotiating about things before you leave their room, a cuddle and a long lay down with them before you leave the room, more drinks of water and more negotiating,' Jen said. 'All this indecision is overstimulating for little ones and what they really need is a healthy bedtime and bedtime routine, where you connect with them before bed and set consistent boundaries around bedtime.' One issue many parents struggle with, is what to dress children in overnight and with winter well on its way, dipping temperatures can provide an extra level of confusion for parents. Jen said that Love to Dream sleep suits are 'a great option for sleep support.' The brand, which is loved by parents in Australia and around the world, has just launched a new winter collection Jen said that Love to Dream sleep suits are 'a great option for sleep support as your child grows and develops.' The brand, which is loved by thousands of Australian parents, has recently released a new Merino wool collection to keep babies and kids warm overnight in winter. The new range of sleep suits and sleeping bags are made with luxuriously soft organic cotton lining and 30 per cent Merino Wool fill. As Jen explained: 'Blankets and loose bedding within a cot is not safe for babies and very small children and is highly discouraged by Red Nose and health professionals. As small children move to a bed for sleep you will find most do not stay under the covers as they are not familiar with, sleeping freely without the feeling of sleeping covered.' The WOT Baby expert says that until your children are old enough to sleep with blankets 'you can be rest assured your little one will be snug and warm all night in a Love to Dream sleep suit.' The Love to Dream sleep sacks and suits are perfect for babies aged six months and onwards and the sleep suits go up to a size 4. Jen said that the legs in the Love To Dream sleep suits are a 'fantastic and practical' feature. Adding: 'Your child can move freely in these and will stay warm and snug when they get up for breakfast in the morning.' Aside from what to dress children in for bedtime, one of the most common issues parents face at bedtime is negotiating tactics. The Sydney based mum said: 'Toddlers are very good at negotiating. And you can negotiate with a terrorist, but you cannot negotiate with a toddler! 'They will ask for one more book, 20 times! they will demand that "Daddy" puts them to bed tonight, they will beg for you to lay with them, they will ask for more water than a camel needs in the dessert, they will ask for the light on, then the light off and then they will repeat their request list. And this is all before they get out of their bed 10 times before demanding another drink of water. Toddlers need to feel connection with you before bed. Cuddling, playing, reading books, drinking water, brushing teeth this all happens before bed. When its bedtime/lights out, they need you, their parent to set the healthy boundary of no more negotiations go to sleep!' The Sydney based mum explains why parents should employ quiet play before bed and the difference between normal play When it comes to playing before bed, Jen explained that there are different type of play and parents should be mindful of how they should engage with their children before bed. 'WOTBaby always recommends quiet playtime before naps and bedtimes. This eliminates sleep associations becoming habits. Your little one is always wide awake when they go into bed for sleep and then can transition through the processes of sleep rather than being put to sleep via association through rocking or patting.' Jen said. 'The WOTBaby resources and routines will guide you with how and when to implement "quiet play" and it is very different to "active play" which we recommend before feeding and after sleep. Implementing the two different types of play show your baby what time it is and will promote healthy sleep.' For more information about WOTBaby click here. There's no denying that Guinness has made an almighty comeback. Walk into any pub across the UK and you'll see pints and pints of the black stuff. Having shaken off its rugby-lad reputation, the brand has seen a 24 per cent rise in women drinking the stout at home and in pubs and it's appealing to Gen Z and millennials the most. Guinness is now the most popular beer in the UK according to YouGov stats and accounts for one in every nine pints pulled - and its popularity among women is helping drive the sales. While there's no denying Guinness's popularity, its thick consistency and hoppy bitterness isn't for everyone. But if you still want to jump on the Guinness trend, fear not, there's been a surge of TikTokers getting creative with how to drink Guinness, from simple hacks to sweeten the flavour to some very interesting cocktails, including sweetening with blackcurrant or for the brave - adding monster. Turns out that Guinness is actually one of TikTok's most fashionable cocktail ingredients, with videos of Guinness cocktails clocking up millions of views on the platform. Olivia Rodrigois reportedly a big Guinness fan and recently wore a t-shirt with the brands original slogan - Guinness is good 4 u - across the front TikTok user tastyuk is flying the flag for a Black Velvet Guinness cocktail Even if you're not big a fan of the black stuff now, we're confident you'll find a way to love it with these innovative ways to drink Guinness. One of the simplest ways to jazz up a pint of Guinness is with a dash of blackcurrant - a method that comes with the seal of approval from drinks TikTokker pubmandan. This combination has divided social media users. Some agree it sweetens the taste, but others are more critical of the addition, with TikTok user Mylo The Cocker writing: 'Arthur Guinness would be turning in his grave.' Other followers shared their own suggestions on what to combine with Guinness, with TikTok user Clair commenting: 'For me, Guinness and Tia Maria'. While TikTok user Cuprasi wrote: 'Try a port in the storm. Guinness and port.' Adding a dash of blackcurrant to a pint of Guinness has divided the internet, but it gets the seal of approval from TikTokker pubmandan Black velvet, which usually means combining Guinness with champagne or prosecco, is another popular choice - and perhaps the classiest way to enjoy it! While TikTok user tastyuk describing the flavour as 'interesting' doesn't fill us with too much confidence, combining stout and sparkling wine has been a popular cocktail since the 19th Century. The term 'black velvet' was coined by a bartender of Brooks's Club in London, who crafted the cocktail to mourn the death of Prince Albert, Queen Victoria's Prince Consort. Part pint, part espresso martini, the Guinness Espresso Float is a sweeter way to enjoy Guinness in a long drink that looks far more luxurious than your average pint. TikTok user mycocktailbible combines vanilla vodka, coffee liqueur, Creme De Cacao and an espresso shot with ice, before shaking and topping with Guinness for a fresh take on the popular cocktail. For a more luxurious take on the trend, try a Guinness Espresso Float which is a twist on the classic Espresso Martini Guinness punch is a classic West Indies and Caribbean recipe that involves combining whole milk, condensed milk and spices. Amassing over 1,000 likes and 300 shares it's clearly a drink that's resonated. Other TikTok users have suggested adding a shot of Guinness in with the usual espresso martini mix for a hint of stout and extra foam. This video was a hit with fans, amassing over 75,000 likes. TikTok user Cassie Noir commented: 'My friends Jamaican mother made this for me a few times. Guinness punch is a popular drink in the Caribbean and West Indies Of course, if you're really not a fan of stout you could always opt for a Baby Guinness, which doesn't actually have any Guinness in it at all. 'I was dubious as I'm not a fan of Guinness but it's absolutely delicious.' While user2640420023797 wrote: 'FINALLY SOME REPRESENTATION!!! My Jamaican mother and Irish father would make this all the time.' The Baby Guinness does still have an Irish connection, consisting of Baileys Irish Cream and Tia Maria. The key is to make sure the Tia Maria floats at the top, as TikTok user mcflyshalifax demonstrates in the video. The beer brand has certainly come a long way since the Mintel consumer report declared Guinness 'no longer cool', blaming the 'rise of trendier craft beers' for its unpopularity. How times have changed. With drinkers shunning the craft beer scene in favour of more down-to-earth lagers like San Miguel and Heineken (the second and third most popular UK beers) Guinness's popularity has sky-rocketed. 'It's the 25-44 year age group that has grown in Guinness drinker numbers most,' Debra Crew, chief executive of Diageo told the Irish Times. Guinness is now the most popular beer in the UK, accounting for one in every nine pints pulled Now everyone from Kim Kardashian and Olivia Rodrigo to the Princess of Wales herself has been pictured enjoying a pint of stout. There's even an Abercrombie & Fitch line based on the beer. So what's the secret to Guinness's roaring success? The popularity of the Guinness factory in Ireland has something to do with it according to Pete Brown, journalist and author of Beer By Design: the art of good beer branding, as well as good, old-fashioned Irish charm. He told Raconteur, 'When we buy a beer, we're buying a little bit of an attitude. The Irish internationally have this reputation for having the craic a really good time. 'Going to an Irish pub or drinking Guinness gives other cultures permission to behave similarly.' The Asunta Case is Netflix's latest gripping true crime drama, which tells the tragic story of a 12-year-old girl who was murdered by her adoptive parents in Spain. Starring Candela Pena and Tristan Ulloa as Alfonso Basterra and Rosario Porto - the killers - the six-part series is the gritty hard-hitting drama set to dominate the most watched list in the UK. But behind the glossy production are harrowing real life events that went down in history as one of the country's most disturbing crimes, which sent shockwaves across the world. To this day, the motives behind the parents' harrowing actions remain a chilling mystery. The young victim, Asunta Fong Yang, was born in China and adopted by a wealthy Spanish couple in 2001 - when she was just nine months old. Candela Pena and Tristan Ulloa star as Alfonso Basterra and Rosario Porto in Netflix's The Asunta Case Basterra worked as a journalist - and Porto as a lawyer. The couple were well respected and connected in their home town of Santiago de Compostela in northwestern Spain. On the surface, Asunta had a bright future to look ahead to with the love and support of her two parents. But behind closed doors, there was a much darker story - and it became clear in the events leading up to her death that something was deeply wrong. The town welcomed Asunta and it originally appeared as if Basterra and Porto were loving parents to their adopted child, encouraging her to pursue her talents in music and dance. The young girl was gifted, excelling in school and her hobbies, and moved ahead of her classmates by the time that she was in secondary school. On September 13 2013, just days before she would have turned 13, Asunta was reported missing by her parents to Santiago police. A few hours later, her lifeless body was discovered on the side of the road. Her parents were arrested shortly after Asunta's body was discovered, with Spanish police finding inconsistencies within Porto's story and suspecting Basterra was also involved. Porto had told the police was that she left Asunta at their family apartment doing schoolwork at 7pm on the evening of her disappearance, and headed to her countryside residence around 20 minutes' drive away. When she returned a few hours later at 9.30pm, she claimed her daughter was gone. However, CCTV footage showed Porto driving away from the apartment with a girl who had the same hair length as Asunta in the passenger seat during the time she had claimed the young girl was at home. Pictured: The real Rosario Porto being arrested at her adopted daughter's funeral after inconsistencies in her account of the night Asunta disappeared came to light Netflix's dramatisation of Asunta's tragic case follows her childhood, where she seemingly enjoyed a happy family dynamic with her parents Alfonso Basterra and Rosario Porto (pictured being played by actors in the show) were well respected in their home town of Santiago de Compostela Porto was arrested at her daughter's funeral. Following suspicions that the lawyer couldn't have acted alone, Basterra was arrested a day later. A harrowing picture of what was potentially going on behind closed doors began to emerge when forensic scientists discovered highly toxic levels of lorazepam - the main ingredient in the Orfidal pills that Porto was taking to ease her anxiety - in Asunta's system. After Asunta's murder, more disturbing details began to emerge about her final months. Teachers at her music academy recalled how she turned up to classes looking spaced out and would often stumble, sometimes appearing as if she couldn't stand up straight. She had also reportedly admitted to 'taking some white powders' when speaking to Isabel Bello who ran one of the academies, according to the Guardian. Asunta allegedly then added: 'I don't know what they are giving me. No one tells me the truth.' Journalist Alfonso Basterra (pictured) was detained on suspicion of murder on September 26 2013 in Santiago de Compostela Rosario Porto was sentenced to 18 years in Brieva prison in Spain (pictured in a file photo), where she died by suicide on November 18 2020 This added to the case against Porto and Basterra, with scientists concluding after testing a strand of Asunta's hair that lorazepam had likely been present in her system for the past three months a least. After Basterra and Porto's arrest, it was two years before the couple appeared on trial for their daughter's murder - a charge they were both found guilty of during a trial by jury. In the years before the trial there was a media furore, with mass speculation over what happened to Asunta - but it was difficult for anyone to conclude exactly why her parents would commit such a heinous crime without an apparent motive. In October 2015, Basterra and Porto appeared before a jury at The High Court of Justice of Galicia. Porto was unable to provide answers for why she lied about the events of December 13 2013, the night her daughter was reported missing. The father was also not able to explain his deeply suspicious actions in the lead-up to his daughter's death, which involved sourcing at least 175 Orfidal pills over 10 weeks. Despite protesting their innocence, both of Asunta's parents were sentenced to 18 years in prison for their daughter's murder. The new Netflix drama explores how investigators pieced together The Asunta Case, a seemingly motiveless crime Rosario Porto maintained her innocence regarding her daughter's murder until her death on November 18 2020. Pictured, a still from the Netflix series Rosario Porto died by suicide on November 18, 2020 while she was imprisoned in the Brieva penitentiary in Avila, Spain. Alfonso Basterra is still serving his sentence in Teixeiro prison in A Coruna, Spain. He is due to be released in 2033 but will be eligible for an 'open regime' within the Spanish prison system in 2025. An open regime allows prisoners to have more contact with the public and leave the prison for several hours a day in order to work and attend personal appointments. In 2017, Basterra sent a cryptic letter from prison to producers of the documentary Lo que la verdad esconde: el caso Asunta, which translates to Where the Truth Goes: the Case of Asunta, Spanish outlet El Correo reports. He wrote: 'When I regain my freedom, I have the firm intention of disappearing, no one will hear from me again, not even Rosario Porto. 'I only have one reason to stay alive, which is none other than to be a free man again and reunite with my girl, never before. There was a media frenzy surrounding The Asunta Case, with various theories on the motives behind Basterra and Porto's incomprehensible act. Pictured, a still from the series While the dramatisation of The Asunta Case reveals details surrounding the case, there are still many questions left unanswered. Pictured, a still from the series 'In fact, I've already thought about how and where, I just don't know when, but everything comes [eventually].' While Netflix's dramatisation of The Asunta Case has been fictionalised in parts, the plot largely stays faithful to the tragic real life story that's at its heart. But while the new show may provide some more insights into the case, it looks likely that there will always be some unanswered questions. To this day, the couple's motives remain unclear, though those involved in the investigation have their theories. 'I think they wanted to project the stereotype of a happy family,' said one investigator working on the case, as reported by the Guardian. 'If she wants something, she thinks she can just buy it. 'And if she doesnt want it, she gets rid of it. He helps her to satisfy her whims. But when she is dependent, he becomes violent.' But without a confession from Basterra and the impossibility of a confession from Porto, any insights into their motivation will largely be speculation. Since Asunta's death, the Guardian reports that the adoption process in Galicia has become much stricter, with an exhaustive selection process for potential parents. All six episodes of The Asunta Case are streaming on Netflix now. Hainan intangible cultural heritage exhibition held in Malta Xinhua) 08:56, May 13, 2024 People view an exhibition of Hainan provincial intangible cultural heritage in Valletta, Malta, May 10, 2024. (Photo by Jonathan Borg/Xinhua) The European tour exhibition of Hainan provincial intangible cultural heritage will also be held in Berlin, Germany, and Sofia, Bulgaria, following Malta. VALLETTA, May 11 (Xinhua) -- The first stop of the European tour exhibition of Hainan provincial intangible cultural heritage kicked off at the China Cultural Center in Malta on Friday evening. Running until May 17, the exhibition features a variety of artifacts and photographs representing cultural heritage from south China's Hainan Province, including Li brocade, Miao embroidery and Qiong opera. For example, the Li brocade, the earliest textile technique created by the Li ethnic minority on Hainan Island, boasts a history of around 3,000 years. The Li brocade tradition, which encompasses spinning, dyeing, weaving, and embroidery, was included in the World Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2009. People view an exhibition of Hainan provincial intangible cultural heritage in Valletta, Malta, May 10, 2024. (Photo by Jonathan Borg/Xinhua) Yuan Yuan, director of the China Cultural Center in Malta, said the exhibition would enrich the interaction of civilizations and cultural exchanges between China and Malta. Cultural exchange activities allow the friendship between the peoples of Malta and China to overcome the obstacles of geographical distance, and promote the steady progress of bilateral relations, said Mary Ann Cauchi, director for Funding and Strategy at the Arts Council Malta. The exhibition aims to promote the unique charm of Hainan's excellent traditional culture and showcase Hainan's open and inclusive cultural atmosphere, said Liu Cheng, deputy director of the Hainan Provincial Department of Culture, Radio, Film, Television, Publications and Sports. This photo taken during a helicopter aerial tour on March 21, 2024 shows Wuzhizhou Island in Sanya, south China's Hainan Province. (Xinhua/Zhou Huimin) Martin Azzopardi, founder of "China Corner" of St. Margaret College Secondary School in Cospicua, Malta, said he was fascinated by the exhibition. Although he has been to China several times, he had known little about Hainan before, he told Xinhua. The first stop of the exhibition was jointly hosted by the China Cultural Center in Malta and the Hainan Provincial Department of Culture, Radio, Film, Television, Publications and Sports. The exhibition will also be held in Berlin, Germany, and Sofia, Bulgaria. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Tens of thousands of Georgians flooded the streets, on Monday, protesting a bill currently before the eastern European country's parliament, that would put "Kremlin-style" restrictions on organizations receiving more than 20% of their funding from foreign sources. In Tbilisi, police officers clashed with protestors, while some activists attempted to block legislators from entering the country's parliament building. Other protestors, braving the rain, waved Georgian, Ukrainian and European Union flags - emphasizing a commitment to joining the EU, rather than aligning with Russia. "We don't want to be part of Russia," a 22-year-old acting student told CNN. We never wanted to be part of Russia. And it has always been and always will be our goal to be part of Europe." Opponents of the bill call it "the Russian law," and argue that requiring media outlets, NGOs and other groups to register as "agents of foreign influence" would be comparable to the restrictions that Vladimir Putin puts on his critics, according to CNBC. The ruling Georgian Dream party argues that the bill will protect Georgians from being used as "cannon fodder" during Western confrontations with Russia, over the invasion of Ukraine. Members of opposition parties, however, warn that the law would jeopardize Georgia's ability to join the EU. The EU granted Georgia candidate status in December but has said that this law would be a significant obstacle to full admission. The United States also expressed concerns about the bill contributing to weakening democracy, in the former Soviet republic. "We are deeply alarmed about democratic backsliding in Georgia," White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. "Georgian parliamentarians face a critical choice - whether to support the Georgian people's Euro-Atlantic aspirations or pass a Kremlin-style foreign agents' law that runs counter to democratic values," he said. "We stand with the Georgian people." The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have concluded their whirlwind 72-hour tour of Nigeria in which they carried out multiple visits - and Meghan showcased her fashion prowess. The 42-year-old Duchess proved she is a style icon as she donned both bright colours and tasteful muted tones throughout the tour - but, touchingly, she also donned plenty of sentimental items which nodded both to the British monarchy and her Nigerian heritage. The mother-of-two appeared to look to her late mother-law, Princess Diana, for inspiration for her accessories as during Diana's own visit to Nigeria in 1990, the royal opted to wear similar earrings and necklace. She also added a bit more glamour by wearing Diana's gold 17,800 Cartier Tank Francaise watch, which was worn by the late royal at a number of occasions before it was gifted to Meghan after her death. Meanwhile on day one of the tour, which had all the markings of a traditional royal engagement, Meghan donned 450 blush silk maxi called the 'Windsor Dress', which could be seen as a nod to her in-laws who are officially titled The House of Windsor. Here, FEMAIL notes Meghan Markle's sentimental nods to the British monarchy on the Sussex's Nigerian tour... White blazer worn at Invictus Games Meghan looked gorgeous in a white suit as she visited the Defence headquarters in Abuja with Prince Harry The Duchess of Sussex is thought to have sported her $1,595 Altuzarra Acacia White Blazer today, which she previously wore to the Invictus Games in Sydney in 2018 (pictured). By then, Meghan was pregnant with the couple's first child, Prince Archie, now five Meghan looked gorgeous in a white suit as she visited the Defence headquarters in Abuja with Prince Harry. Meghan is thought to have sported her $1,595 Altuzarra Acacia White Blazer, which she previously wore to the Invictus Games in Sydney in 2018. By then, Meghan was pregnant with the couple's first child, Prince Archie, now five. Meghan teamed her elegant blazer with matching Altuzarra suit trousers and donned a white T-shirt underneath her jacket. It's not the first time that the mother-of-two, has seemingly paid tribute to some of the special milestones in her life. Adding a touch of glitz to her ensemble, the mother-of-two stunned in her AURate collar necklace and her wedding rings. The 'Windsor' Dress The Duchess of Sussex, 42, looked effortlessly elegant in a sleeveless peach maxi dress titled Windsor from Californian designer Heidi Merrick as she visited a school supported by the couple's Archewell Foundation on Friday Meghan complemented her outfit with a smattering of glamorous makeup, including a pink lip-gloss, plenty of blush and a smokey eyeshadow look The Duchess of Sussex, 42, looked effortlessly elegant in a sleeveless peach maxi dress titled Windsor from Californian designer Heidi Merrick as she visited a school supported by the couple's Archewell Foundation on Friday. The stunning gown was first thought to have been released in 2018, the year of Meghan's royal wedding to Harry. It was not lost on royal fans that the name of the dress also matches Meghan's married surname. Believed to have originally been priced at $572, Meghan's chic silk frock that she wore to her first outing in Nigeria features a dropped hemline, billowing skirt and cinched waist. It's not the first time the Duchess has worn the designer. In April, Meghan opted for a glamorous white Heidi Merrick design, which featured a statement bow and cut out back. Meghan's close friend and former Suits co-star Abigail Spencer also chose the same outfit to celebrate Heidi's anniversary celebrations with her husband Johnny Johnston in September. Abigail looks to be close pals with the Californian designer. Diana-esque jewellery Meghan Markle has seemingly paid a subtle tribute to her late mother-in-law Princess Diana as she joined Prince Harry on a 'three-day royal tour' in Nigeria The jewels resembled those worn by Diana when she visited the country in 1990 with her then-husband Charles, just two years before they separated Meghan seemingly paid a subtle tribute to her late mother-in-law Princess Diana on the tour in Nigeria. She sported chunky gold earrings from Lanvin, her AURate collar necklace and an array of dazzling bracelets, as well as her wedding rings. The jewels resembled those worn by Diana when she visited the country with her then-husband Charles, just two years before they separated. Diana's Cartier watch Meghan added a bit more glamour by wearing Diana's gold Cartier Tank Francaise watch Princess Diana wore the Cartier watch while visited Washington Hyde Centre at the White House, with Hillary Clinton in 1996 Meghan added a bit more glamour by wearing Diana's gold Cartier Tank Francaise watch. The gold 17,800 watch was worn by Diana at a number of occasions, including a 1997 visit to London's Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Hindu Temple and an engagement at the British Lung Foundation that same year. Meghan is known to be a fan of the elegant timepiece and splurged on her own two-tone version back in 2015 when Suits was picked up for a third season. At the time, she told Hello Magazine, 'I've always coveted the Cartier French Tank watch. When I found out Suits had been picked up for our third seasonwhich, at the time, felt like such a milestoneI totally splurged and bought the two-tone version 'I had it engraved on the back, 'To M.M. From M.M.' and I plan to give it to my daughter one day. That's what makes pieces special, the connection you have to them.' Diana's gold cross necklace It appears Meghan also chose to honour her late mother-in-law once again on Saturday by wearing a gold cross necklace that a source tells Page Six actually belonged to Diana It appears Meghan also chose to honour Diana once again on Saturday by wearing a gold cross necklace that a source told Page Six actually belonged to the Princess. The beauty showed off the gold chain by pairing it with a white strapless dress by St. Agni for a reception hosted by Christopher Musa, the chief of the Nigerian defense staff, in honour of military families. Meghan has been gifted several items from Diana's collection. They include Diana's butterfly earrings and gold bracelet which she wore on their Australian tour in 2018. Mother's day yellow dress The Duchess added an elegant silver snake chain necklace and a pair of circular earrings to complete the outfit Meghan last donned the dress in 2021 when she and Prince Harry revealed they were expecting their second child (pictured) Meghan also donned the yellow dress on Archie's (centre) first birthday alongside her mother, Doria Ragland (right), and Harry (far right) - as seen on Netflix's Harry & Meghan To mark Mother's Day in America, Meghan, opted for her Carolina Herrera 'Yellow Silk Overlay Column Gown', which she wore in 2021 when she announced her pregnancy with Princess Lilibet. On Valentine's Day that year, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex revealed they were expecting their second child with a monochrome snap. Taken remotely by long-time friend and photographer Misan Harriman, the loved-up couple posed in nature while Harry cradled Meghan's bump. For today's event, the Duchess looked as elegant as ever as she arrived at the State Governor House in Lagos, in the 3,198 ($3,990) silk dress, which she matched with a classic pair of nude slingback leather sandals. Meghan also donned the Caroline Herrera dress on another special occasion - Prince Archie's first birthday, as shown in the Netflix series, Harry & Meghan, alongside her mother, Doria Ragland, and Prince Harry. Traditional Nigerian skirt Meghan seemed to sport a traditional Nigerian skirt gifted to her during a reception in Abuja on Saturday as she landed in Lagos with Prince Harry The skirt was a gift from Abike Dabiri Erewa, chairman of the Nigerian Diaspora Commission, who presented the Duke and Duchess with his and hers traditional aso oke outfits at a reception at the Nigerian Defence Headquarters Meghan seemed to sport a traditional Nigerian skirt gifted to her during a reception in Abuja on Saturday as she landed in Lagos with Prince Harry. Featuring white and blue stripes, the statement maxi garment was made of aso oke, a hand-woven material from south-west Nigeria, according to the BBC. The skirt was a gift from Abike Dabiri Erewa, chairman of the Nigerian Diaspora Commission, who presented the Duke and Duchess with his and hers traditional aso oke outfits at a reception at the Nigerian Defence Headquarters. Meghan's outfit choice comes after the mother-of-two - who recently discovered she is '43 per cent Nigerian' - thanked an audience in Abuja on Saturday for welcoming her and her husband to 'my country'. Meghan teamed her traditional maxi skirt with a white Carolina Herrera shirt and stylish sunglasses. Adding a touch of glitz to her ensemble, she opted for chunky gold earrings and dazzling sandals. Meghan and Harry travelled to Nigeria for three days on Friday 10 May The Duchess of Sussex mixed sentimental throwback garments with high-end looks during her three-day tour of Nigeria - but still wore nearly 120,000 of jewellery and new clothes. Meghan Markle, 42, has quickly established herself as a fashion inspiration to thousands of fans, known for her love of quiet luxury layered with glittering jewels worth thousands of pounds. While opting for some high-end brands on her whistle-stop tour of Nigeria, such as Carolina Herrera, Altuzarra, and Johanna Ortiz, Meghan also showcased designs from local designers. In representing Nigeria, which she now refers to as 'my country', Meghan looked to Lagos-based womenswear brand Orire, and for her native California, the Duchess supported Santa Barbra designer Heidi Merrick. However, racking up the pounds on Meghan's bill were her jewels, including Princess Diana's 17,800 Cartier watch, a 15,011.84 'Against Evil Eye' bracelet from Lorraine Schwartz, and a pair of hammered disc earrings from Jennifer Meyer for a cool 2,605. Meghan Markle wore a mix of throwback items and high end looks during her three days in 'the motherland' - but still wore nearly 120,000 worth of clothes and jewellery Thanks to her love of quiet luxury, the Duchess, 42, has quickly established herself as a fashion inspiration for many For her final outfit of the whistlestop tour, Meghan slipped into an elegant maxi dress from Johanna Ortiz While a working member of the royal family, the cost of Meghan's clothes for work engagements was covered by then-Prince Charles through the budget he gave the couple from the Duchy of Cornwall. But after the couple said they wanted to be financially independent, it is not clear who is picking up the bill for Meghan's clothes, or whether the Duchess always pays full price for her clothing, or receives discounts from designers. Here, FEMAIL calculates the value of Meghan's wardrobe for her 72-hour tour of Nigeria, only taking into account the cost of items once and not counting recycled pieces. The 38-year-old underwent the procedure due to 'loose skin' above her eye A student nurse who stunned her followers after undergoing an 'invasive' procedure, has revealed she has a limit when it comes to plastic surgery. Nasrin Corfield Smith, 38, from London, previously sparked quite the controversy after she posted her 'cat eye' surgery to social media. After she showcased the painful results of the treatment in a TikTok video last year, some followers even claimed she looked 'deformed'. The surgeon who carried out the 'cat eyes' procedure, Dr Hakan Ozocak, explained: 'This surgery is called cat's eyes and is used to lift the corners of the eyes and do a cheek lift in order to lift the middle of the face and the cheeks.' Viewers flocked to the comments expressing concern for the student nurse, with one quipping: 'It looks like she is suffering from an allergy. Ew.' Student nurse Nasrin Corfield Smith, 38, has revealed the one cosmetic procedure she won't do despite receiving backlash in the past The Londoner had previously shared her 'cat eye' procedure (pictured) to social media, with followers claiming she looked 'deformed' Another added: '[It's] not normal for a doctor to be so invasive.' In another clip, the woman who runs the Aesthetic Clinic in London explained she opted to do the surgery because she 'needed a little tighten'. She added: 'I had a lot of loose skin above my eye and my brows were quite heavy.' However, despite previously taking the plunge and undergoing the cat eye procedure, Nasrin says she will reject clients' requests if she believes they are going overboard with beauty enhancements. In a recent video posted to her TikTok, the nurse sang the lyrics of Somethin' Stupid by Frank and Nancy Sinatra, quipping: 'And then I go and spoilt it all by saying something stupid like... 'I'm really sorry we can't do your lips today and I know you've travelled and you've been so excited, however, I wanna be completely honest with you. 'Your lips are completely full, there is no space in your lips, they [the filler] are gonna migrate, they're gonna distort the shape of your lips and they're not gonna make you look more beautiful.' Explaining that it would be unethical for her to treat a patient in this hypothetical scenario, Nasrin said she would be open to discussing other treatments with clients with too much lip filler - that wouldn't negatively impact their pout. She quipped: 'In a sea of injectable providers, my distinct qualifications set me apart.' Several people flocked to the comments to praise the nurse, with one writing: 'Girl more practitioners should be like this.' 'Love this. If only someone said this to me,' a second quipped. 'My lips migrated and still were getting more added instead of being told its better to dissolve & start again! I have now and love it. Migration is awful.' 'We STAN a responsible injector,' a third said, whilst another said: 'Thats when you know you found a good practitioner.' @aestheticcliniclondon In a sea of injectable providers, my distinct qualifications set me apart. With an extensive background in the field, my years of hands-on experience have led to countless client success stories, reflected in over 700 positive reviews. As a soon-to-be nurse, my approach is rooted in a commitment to your safety and well-being, ensuring every procedure meets the highest ethical standards. With a focus on active listening and understanding, I aim to create a comfortable experience that aligns with your individual aspirations. My practice is built on honest, tailored advice, prioritising treatments that truly benefit you. I place great importance on integrity, often saying "no" when a procedure isn't in your best interestbecause your needs come first, always #fyp #jawfiller #lipfiller #nonsurgical #liquidnosejob Sunrise - Official Sound Studio Several people flooded her comment sections praising her for not treating patients with over-filled lips 'My practitioner spoke to me like this because I wanted my lips filled even though they were fine,' another chimed. 'She literally saved me from lips dysmorphia and overfilled lips for grateful for her rejecting me.' But some did critique the nurse, with one woman pointing out: 'I find this a little hypocritical as you have had so much work that you didnt need? To which Nasrin responded: 'If someone comes to me and I cannot physically add any more filler to their lips as there is no space I will be saying no. 'I choose to do whats in the best interests of my clients. I hope that makes sense.' Thousands in the UK witnessed the spectacular Aurora Borealis on Friday Stargazers throughout the UK were left spellbound by the spectacular sights of the Northern Lights on Friday night - but one unlucky pair were not so fortunate. TikTok user @paakz excitedly filmed himself and a friend walking through the streets of Norwich after spotting the telling purple illuminations in the sky. The duo were clearly thrilled at the prospect of seeing the famous Aurora Borealis, which was visible throughout the UK thanks to an 'extreme' and rare geomagnetic storm. But they were soon met with disappointment as they realised the 'lights' in the distance were actually the signature purple glow from a nearby Premier Inn. Taking to TikTok in a video that has now been viewed nearly six million times, they initially gasped: 'Oh my god!' as they witnessed the beams of light radiating through the night sky. A TikTok user in Norwich was left disappointed after a sighting of the 'Northern Lights' turned out to be a Premier Inn But upon arriving at the entrance of the hotel on Duke Street in the city centre, they said: 'We thought Premier Inn was the northern lights. 'We've been catfished! How have we been catfished? We thought it was the northern lights! It's a f***ing building.' Viewers couldn't contain their laughter at the hilarious mishap, writing: 'Nah Im dead'; 'the fact it's Norwich makes this 10000% better'; 'the sheer excitement and not being able to speak at first, to the utter disappointment'; 'Im cryingggg'; 'Man premier inn think theyre summoning Batman'; 'Same thing happened to me with Asda'; 'This is more commonly known as the phenomenon of the Premier Lights. Happens once a night. Super cool to see.' The duo had seen a telling purple glow in the sky on Friday night, when thousands witnessed the spectacular Aurora Borealis The hilarious video has now gone viral with nearly six million views and counting A Premier Inn spokesperson said: 'Theres no need to search the skies, Premier Inn is a beacon of light and can bring the Auora glow directly to your room, without needing a camera to see it. 'Rest easy under the enchanting purple glow of our light up headboards, knowing that you can experience this wonder every night of the year from the luxury of one of our comfy beds.' On Friday night bands of pink and green light were seen across the UK and in parts of Europe after an 'extreme' geomagnetic storm caused them to be more visible, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The Geomagmetic storm was the first to strike Earth in almost 20 years - making it incredibly rare and leading to a frenzy throughout the country to capture a photograph of the event. Amazing shades of green and purple were captured in the skies above the UK including in Derbyshire, Lincolnshire, Tyne and Wear, Essex, Berkshire and Kent. However when stargazers went outside to see the spectacle again on Saturday night they were met with disappointment, despite experts saying they would be visible again. TYNE AND WEAR: The aurora borealis, also known as the northern lights, glow on the horizon at St Mary's Lighthouse in Whitley Bay on the North East coast NORTHERN IRELAND: An incredible display of the Northern Lights in Dunseverick, County Antrim EDINBURGH: A stunning view of the Northern Lights over the National Monument of Scotland in Edinburgh LIVERPOOL: The northern lights glow on the horizon of Anthony Gormley's Another Place sculpture on Crosby Beach in Liverpool On Thursday, a Severe (G4) Geomagnetic Storm Watch was issued for the first time since January 2005. And the Met Office predicted that stargazers as far south as Cornwall would be able to catch a glimpse of the the light display. Met Office Space Weather Manager Krista Hammond told MailOnline on Friday: 'While short nights at this time of year will limit the visibility window, if conditions are right there's a good chance of sightings on Friday night. 'Aurora visibility may persist through Saturday night, but as it stands this is likely to be less widespread than on Friday night with northern parts of the UK most likely to continue to have the best viewing potential.' Anita Rani stunned last night as she took to the red carpet in a racy 'naked' look dress that left little to the imagination in yet another show-stopping outfit which marks a new glam style for the BBC star. The 46-year-old media personality donned the stylish gown as she attended the BAFTAs in London and showed off her incredible figure in the sheer outline embellished with pearls, and nude bodysuit. Anita opted to wear hair extensions, temporarily swapping her usual bob hair cut for long, flowing raven tresses, which she wore in a high ponytail. Her sultry make up included a smoky eye, nude lipstick and bronzer as she made a splash at the event. Women's Hour presenter Anita Rani (pictured) looked incredible at last night's BAFTAs, donning a daring see-through frock The media personality (pictured in October 2023 at the Glamour Women of The Year Awards in London) has previously said that she feels confident in her 40s Anita's show-stopping red carpet look is the latest in a string of sexy outfits, marking a change in the BBC presenter's style. It comes as one of Radio 4's flagship programmes, Woman's Hour, relaunches its line up following Emma Barnett's departure - with Anita Rani stepping up to host more shows alongside Nuala McGovern. Woman's Hour, which runs for an hour between 10 and 11 am on Radio 4, highlights women's issues and stories, as well as more lighthearted content. While Anita (pictured in October 2023 at the Pride Of Britain Awards in London) alway looks glamorous on the red carpet, her see-through BAFTAs look ramped up her racy style Countryfile viewers may be more used to seeing Anita (pictured) wearing practical garb, like this tweed blazer and denim jacket Anita, who until now has been best known for her role on Countryfile, has presented the Friday and Saturday editions of BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour since 15 January 2021. However, from this week, she will be doubling her presence on the show, taking the reins from Thursday to Sunday. Anita's change in schedule have prompted some to speculate that her ultra glamorous look at last night BAFTAs was somewhat of a relaunch for the star, who is known by many for wearing practical country garb like tweed jackets and walking boots. While it is not her only glamorous public appearance, it was ramped up from her previous outfits when attending events. The 46-year-old has been extremely open about how she wants to present womanhood as 'empowering'. After splitting from her husband last September, she has represented how being single, child-free and fabulous in your 40s can look like. The presenter and her husband, tech company owner partner Bhupi Rehal, broke up after their busy schedules kept them apart after first meeting at a rave in east London and marrying in a traditional Sikh ceremony back in 2009. Following the marriage split, Anita spoke about how she is embracing the 'uncharted territory', saying that she feels more joyful than ever. And this confidence was reflected in her incredible look last night, as well as other chic appearances, and her social media, where she often posts stylish selfies showcasing her glamorous, fun and energetic lifestyle. The media personality (pictured in 2022) represents an empowering image of what being single, child-free and fabulous in your 40s can look like Anita previously told Good Housekeeping magazine that she 'loves' being a 'single, Asian woman with no children' after separating from her husband of 14 years. Speaking candidly, she said she feels like she has a 'blank slate' to start on again in life. Anita revealed she has moved back in to a flat she bought years ago and has decided to transform it into her dream home following her marital split. 'I've sort of got a blank slate in front of me, and that feels really good. I bought a flat about 20 years ago, which I kept for all these years, and I've moved back into it,' she gushed, revealing she has transformed it into a 'Parisienne dream house'. The star added how she has found a place of confidence thanks to 'inner strength and power', while redefining what it means to be 'sexy'. Anita (pictured at last night's BAFTAs) says she is redefining what it means to be 'sexy' following her marital split 'I met this 82-year-old woman recently, who left her husband at 75, and she's one of the most strikingly beautiful women I've ever met,' Anita told the outlet. 'She walks into a room and she has this power about her, and that's very sexy. That's who I want to be. Someone who has bigger things to think about than the size of my nose!' Last November, Anita spoke to The Sun of her new approach to life, explaining: 'I always knew I'd get to my 40s and become who I wanted to be. It's when I'd start blossoming. 'I'm going to get sexier as I get older. It's liberating that people know that I'm single now. Not everything works out and things come to their natural conclusion, and that is absolutely fine. There's no shame attached to being single and living your best life in your 40s. 'I'm single, I'm child-free, I'm in my mid-40s and I have never felt better, sexier, more powerful or more excited about the future.' Jasmine Jobson was the star of Sunday night's BAFTAs, claiming the coveted Best Supporting Actress award for her role as Jacqueline Lawrence in Netflix's Top Boy. She was the surprise success story of the evening, fighting off competition from the likes of Elizabeth Debicki (The Crown), Harriet Walter (Succession) and Siobhan Finneran ('Happy Valley'). The stunning star almost broke down in tears after her win as she commanded attention in a gorgeous white and silver gown. Speaking in a press conference after the awards ceremony, the actress, who has previously been nominated three times before finally claiming her prize, said her role in Top Boy had 'changed her life' and means acting can now 'pay her bills'. Her comments seemed to be a nod to her difficult past, which has seen Jobson face numerous hardships on her journey into acting. Jasmine Jobson was the star of Sunday night's BAFTAs , claiming the coveted Best Supporting Actress award for her role as Jacqueline Lawrence in Netflix 's Top Boy Jasmine, 29, said: 'It's been a job that has changed my life. 'I was just a normal girl from west London that was just trying to do better for myself and was just wishing and hoping for the best. 'And one day I went from working in a bar full time and acting part time to suddenly acting full time and now acting pays my bills. So Top Boy changed my life.' Many had expected Elizabeth Debicki, who plays Princess Diana in The Crown, to claim Best Supporting Actress but the show walked away without an award - despite eight nominations. Jasmine joined Top Boy in series three in 2019 when it moved from Channel 4 to Netflix, as a member of the Summerhouse drug dealers in Hackney. The crime drama series, which features rapper Drake as an executive producer, finished after five series last September with a shocking final scene. Jasmine's rise to fame hasn't been a simple one. She was once known as the 'most difficult child in Westminster' by social services and has previously admitted she got into the 'wrong crowd' as a teenager. As a young girl, Jasmine grew up around the Harrow Road area in London when her mother saw her theatrical potential and put her into the Paddington Arts, a performance group for young children. Glamorous Jasmine, 29, was the surprise winner at Sunday night's BAFTAs - and had previously been nominated for the award three times Jasmine has had a difficult past and put herself into foster care at the age of 14 in a bid for a better life Jasmine joined Top Boy in 2019 when it moved to Netflix as Jacqueline Lawrence Even from such a young age, Jasmine was already a star, playing Mary in her year one Nativity play at school, and later playing Romeo in Romeo and Juliet. But in year eight, circumstances meant she had to move in with her grandmother and she began to get involved with the wrong crowd of people and, like her Top Boy character, began selling cannabis. She previously told The Evening Standard: 'My behaviour used to be what you would call a hood rat. I was selling drugs, causing trouble with police, on the streets but I could see my behaviour was hurting people. Since I've been in care I've been 100 per cent in control. 'I ended up getting my GCSEs, I wasn't going to do them if it hadn't been for my foster carer. I kind of had to put myself into care to save myself. 'I was portrayed as the most difficult child in Westminster, I was told that by social services.' Aged 14, Jasmine made the brave decision to put herself into foster care and moved to West Drayton. There, her foster mother Valerie gave her stability for more than four years. During this time, she was introduced to Maggie Norris, the founder of Big House arts centre in Islington, which works with young people to help them turn their lives around. The centre taught her many skills and helped her work on her acting. She performed in Big House show The Realness - and was signed by an agent within three weeks. The stunning star almost broke down in tears after her win as she commanded attention in a gorgeous white and silver gown (pictured accepting her award) Elizabeth Debicki, who plays Princess Diana in The Crown, had widely been expected to win Best Supporting Actress Jasmine was once known as the 'most difficult child in Westminster' by social services Jasmine is pictured as a teenager when she was involved with Big House theatre company The experiences helped her learn how to channel her emotions into acting instead of taking them out in more damaging ways. This was clearly shown in her final audition for Top Boy: Jasmine has often told the story of how she threw a chair across the room to stand out from the crowd. Valerie died when Jasmine was 19 and she had to go back to the area of London where she'd struggled previously. But a good social worker fought hard on her behalf and managed to get her a council house in Westminster, from which she could focus on her acting. In Top Boy, Jasmine's character Jaq starts a romance with Becks, played by Adwoa Aboah, and takes in her pregnant sister Lauryn to protect her from her abusive boyfriend. But after Lauryn dies from an overdose in the bath, Jaq decides to leave the dealing life and run away with Becks and her nephew. In October last year, Jasmine went Instagram official with her co-star boyfriend Kadeem Ramsay, who plays Kit on the show, but was forced to turn off comments due to trolling on her post. Jasmine shared a photo of the couple kissing during a romantic trip to Champillon, France, captioning her post: 'You can't sit with us.' Jasmine's character Jaq is a lesbian and it appears some fans believed her to be gay in real life too as she emphasised she is an actress playing a role. She wrote: 'I'm an ACTRESS. My job is to play dress-up & pretend. I take a script and make it palatable for your eyes to watch. 'I am also a HUMAN BEING, LIKE ALL OF YOU, just living my life. Be kind'. Top Boy came to an end in September 2023 after five seasons, after Jasmine (pictured on the show) joined in 2019 Jasmine is dating her Top Boy co-star Kadeem Ramsay, who plays Kit on the show (pictured together in November) This year Jasmine is set to star in Bird by Andrea Arnold opposite Saltburn's Barry Keoghan Jasmine is so central to the show that the creator Ronan Bennett has even confirmed he is in talks with Netflix over a spin-off focusing on Jasmine's character, Jaq. The actress has also starred in Good Thanks, You? a short film where she plays a 16-year-old traumatised by a sexual assault. She featured in psychological thriller Surge alongside James Bond's Ben Whishaw as Lily as they both played guards who man X-Ray machines. In a previous interview with the Daily Mail, she said she enjoys projects with a message, especially if that message concerns a subject that's 'taboo', and she described her work ethic as 'grab the bull by the horns ...and sprint with it'. This year Jasmine is set to star in Bird by Andrea Arnold opposite Saltburn's Barry Keoghan. A savvy 21-year-old from the UK decided to spend her day off in the sunshine and booked a flight to Barcelona - because it was cheaper than a day out in London. Manchester-based Jade Taylor swapped the UK's cloudy skies for the beautiful sunshine of Spain after realising a trip down to the UK capital would be a lot more expensive. The university student caught a flight from East Midlands airport at 5:45am last Tuesday, and landed in the Spanish city at 8:55am. Flying with RyanAir, the flights cost her 40 in total. Jade then spent 11 hours exploring the city, touring all the places she wanted to go on her trip. Jade said that the train ticket prices to London soaring to an eye-watering 100 or more encouraged her to go abroad. Jade Taylor, from Manchester, decided to spend a random Tuesday abroad, as she jetted off for an 11 hour holiday to Barcelona On her day trip abroad she visited iconic locations including the Cathedral of Barcelona and the Casa Batllo. She even had the chance to kick back at the beach and soak up the sun whilst having a cocktail. After spending the day in the Spanish sun, Jade caught an 8pm flight back to East Midlands airport. Jade Taylor said: 'It was definitely cheaper than a day out in the UK. A train ticket to London can be over 100. 'This one was my first day trip out of the UK and I definitely will be doing another one, especially when it's nicer weather abroad. 'I spent the day exploring around Barcelona, had some cocktails on the beach, did some shopping and got some lunch. 'I managed to see all the main things in Barcelona I wanted to see. I absolutely loved it.' It comes after a traveller revealed how she travelled to Milan for 50 to enjoy pizza and Aperol spritz - which she says cost her less than a day out in London. She swapped the cloudy cold UK for the beautiful sunshine of Spain because it ended up being cheaper then a day out in London On her day trip abroad she visited iconic locations including the Cathedral of Barcelona and the Casa Batllo (pictured) The university student caught a flight from East Midlands airport at 5:45am last Tuesday and landed in the Spanish city at 8:55am. Flying with RyanAir, the flights cost her 40 in total After spending the day in the Spanish sun, Jade caught an 8pm flight back to East Midlands airport She spent the day exploring around Barcelona, she had some cocktails on the beach and did some shopping before heading back home Dagmara Kedzierska, 30, from Manchester, decided to take the trip abroad because she was put off travelling within the UK due to soaring rail fares. It would have cost her more than 100 alone to get a return train from her home in Manchester to the capital. So, the thrifty traveller decided to fly to Milan Bergamo instead for just 50 return. Arriving at 10:50am in the Italian city, she then set about her day grabbing a coffee with a freshly baked croissant for breakfast. The business owner then caught a 6 train to Varenna to see the beautiful Lake Como and watch the world go by whilst eating pizza and drinking Aperol spritz. Dagmara then got the 6 train back to Milan to hop on the 2 Metro to the Duomo to see the sights including the cathedral. After touring the area she hopped back on the Metro to the station to catch a 11 train to Malpensa airport. Dagmara from Manchester, jetted to Milan for 50 to enjoy pizza and Aperol spritz for less than a day out in London The business owner then caught a 6 train to Varenna to see the beautiful Lake Como and watch the world go by whilst eating pizza and drinking Aperol spritz Catching her flight home, she arrived back home in Manchester at just 1am the next day. Dagmara said: 'The day trips abroad are way more appealing, as most of the time they work out cheaper than staying in the UK. 'My Milan trip cost me less than 200 including the flights, transport, food and drinks. 'The weather abroad is also more likely to be better than here, I live in Manchester and the weather lately hasn't been the greatest! Travelling abroad, even if it's only for one day, gets me in a holiday mood.' She made the trip on 20 April and arrived back early the next day to Manchester airport with no need to stay overnight and pay for a hotel. 'I have done a few day trips abroad for one day and it allows me to go back to work the next day without taking any time off work. 'I also love food and travelling abroad even for one day lets me try new foods. The restaurants in the UK are very basic and most of the time you will eat pre cooked pasta or prebaked pizza.' Prince William showed off his cheeky side while in Cornwall last week - after asking a couple about their 41st wedding anniversary plans. The Prince of Wales, 41, appeared relaxed as he chatted to the well-wishers during a royal visit to Fistral Beach in Newquay on Thursday. A royal fan shared a clip of the moment on to X, formerly known as Twitter, which racked up over 137,000 views. The heir to the British throne can be heard saying: 'Are you guys on holiday or are you local?' After the couple revealed they were from Bristol but taking a trip for their 41st anniversary, William congratulated them. Before cheekily raising his eyebrows and quipping: 'Any smart plans tonight?', to which the man joked: 'That was Tuesday night.' An adorable video of Prince William when he visited Fistral beach : It's our anniversary. : Congratulations! : 41 years. : Got some small plans tonight? It's his cheeky smile for me pic.twitter.com/Ur15tvNvC1 anna (@tokkianami) May 12, 2024 Prince William showed off his cheeky side while in Cornwall last week - after asking a couple about their 41st wedding anniversary plans William looked relaxed in a light-blue shirt and navy chinos. He added a pair of snazzy shades for the laid back outing. Amused fans were delighted by William's interaction with the celebrating couple, with one person writing on Twitter: 'The way he wiggled his eyebrows when he cheekily asked the man if he had any little plans tonight.' Another said: 'I think we know whats on his mind when he asked that question,' while a third added: 'Williams eyebrows and smile were doing all the talking.' A fourth wrote: 'He knew what he was doing with those suggestive facial expressions.' During the visit, the prince met members of the Holywell Bay and Newquay Surf lifesaving clubs and watched demonstrations of training drills, including surfboard skills and cardiopulmonary resuscitation. William showed off his volleyball skills as his serving proved too much as the opposition repeatedly knocked the ball into the net while attempting a return. The beach is popular with surfers and regularly hosts international competitions, as well as the Boardmasters festival. He asked one group of teenagers: 'What is it like out there? Looks good for a few waves.' A royal fan shared a clip of the moment, which racked up over 137,000 views, on X, formerly known as Twitter Reaction: Amused fans were delighted by William's interaction with the celebrating couple 'Can I have a kiss William!' one adoring fan could be heard asking as the crowds gathered around with ice creams in hand and sun hats at the ready. Earlier, he had visited a Duchy of Cornwall housing project at Nansledan in Newquay aimed at giving a home to the homeless. The scheme - in partnership with the Cornish charity St Petrocs - will see 24 homes built on Duchy land for people experiencing homelessness. In addition to having somewhere to live, the project will provide wrap around support, and is inspired by Homewards - a five-year programme led by The Royal Foundation of The Prince and Princess of Wales to show that it is possible to end homelessness. Construction is set to begin in September and the first homes are due for completion in the autumn of next year. William, who is also the Duke of Cornwall, a title inherited from his father after the late Queen's death, runs the Duchy of Cornwall, a portfolio of land, property and investments valued at more than 1 billion, which provide an income for the heir to the throne. William looked relaxed in a light-blue shirt and navy chinos. He added a pair of snazzy shades for the laid back outing William showed off his volleyball skills as his serving proved too much as the opposition repeatedly knocked the ball into the net while attempting a return A Kensington Palace spokesperson said: 'Today marks the first time that the prince will see the site of the new homes. 'He is looking forward to hearing from the Duchy team about how the work is progressing and from St Petrocs about the impact the project will have on people experiencing homelessness locally. 'Both His Royal Highness and the Duchy hope that this project will serve as an inspiration to others.' William's trip to Cornwall was without his wife Kate, who is taking time away from public-facing duties amid her cancer diagnosis. But the Princess of Wales is 'doing well', William revealed on Friday, when discussing his wife's health during a visit to St Mary's Community Hospital on the Isles of Scilly. William is continuing with his royal duties while Kate receives treatment, following her 'shock' announcement in March that she had been diagnosed and was receiving chemotherapy. William said George, Charlotte and Louis are 'very jealous' of his trip away, adding that he might bring them to Cornwall later in the year, according to The Sun. The Prince of Wales has said he 'keeps an eye' on Ukraine after meeting a woman who from the war-torn country. William, 41, was in Cornwall to view a plot of land that he hopes to develop to help the homelessness crisis in the UK. William, who is known as the Duke of Cornwall when in the county and took over the 1.2 billion Duchy of Cornwall estate when his father became King, is in the process of building its first ever housing project in Nansledan. While in the sunny seaside town, he spoke to crowds, including one woman who told him: 'I'm from Ukraine, I'm so happy to meet you, really.' Prince William said he 'keeps an eye' on Ukraine after meeting a woman from the war-torn country in Cornwall last week While in the sunny seaside town, William greeted crowds of fans hoping to catch a glimpse of him when he came across a smiley blonde woman from Ukraine The royal was in Cornwall last week viewing for the first time a plot of land which he hopes will change the face of the homeless crisis in the UK. William then said: 'Ukraine? Are you?' Before asking her whereabouts she hails from in the country. She then replied: 'The western part of Ukraine, thank you so much for helping our country, I'm so proud of you.' William then said, whilst holding her hand: 'I keep an eye on what you guys are up to.' He then thanked her for coming out to visit him before shaking her hand and moving on to chat with others in the seaside town. Announced earlier this year, the project will be delivered alongside Cornish charity, St Petrocs, and will provide 24 homes with wrap around support for local people experiencing homelessness. Land for the homes will be provided by the Duchy of Cornwall which will also use its management expertise to guide the delivery of the project as a whole. The Duchy of Cornwall is the ancient estate that provides public and private income for the heir to the throne. The clip also showed William speaking to other Brits and he could be heard saying: 'We've got a nice day for it. It's not always like this so it's [lovely] to have the sunshine.' He looked dapper for the occasion, dressed in a light blue shirt with a blazer and smart suit trousers The Prince of Wales showed off his skills in an impromptu game of volleyball as crowds gathered round to watch The Prince heard from local organisations who are working to keep the beach safe Royal fans then responded: 'Aw, lovely to see you,' after having a chat with the future King. And William's trip to Cornwall was without his wife Kate, the Princess of Wales, who is taking time away from public-facing duties amid her cancer diagnosis. He looked dapper for the occasion, dressed in a light blue shirt with a blazer and smart suit trousers, complete with a pair of sunglasses. During his trip, William visited a surf beach where he joined in with an impromptu game of volleyball. He competed with teenagers from a local lifesaving club on Fistral Beach in Newquay. The warm spring weather attracted large numbers of the public to the beach to enjoy the sand and waves. William showed off his volleyball skills as his serving proved too much as the opposition repeatedly knocked the ball into the net while attempting a return. A doomsday prepper has revealed what it is really like to live off-grid in the desert after buying a plot of land from Facebook Marketplace. Zani Sunshine, 43, grew up dreaming of living on a large plot of land. Her and her husband Yaseen, 43, a carpenter, did not want to be stuck in their home in Atlanta, Georgia, when the pandemic hit - and so decided to swap city life for something more rural. They soon traded in their car for a truck to tow their trailer and travelled with Zani's son, 11, until they found the perfect location. A doomsday prepper has revealed what it is really like to live off-grid in the desert after buying a plot of land from Facebook Marketplace Zani Sunshine, 43, grew up dreaming of living on a large plot of land. Her and her husband Yaseen, 43, a carpenter, didn't want to be stuck in their home in Atlanta, Georgia They made the quick decision to trade in their car for a truck to tow their trailer and travelled with Zani's son, 11, until they found the perfect location The couple bought 10 acres of land near Albuquerque, New Mexico, for $10,000 four months after setting off - before purchasing a further five acres on their land line on Facebook Marketplace for $7,500. Now the family are in the process of building their own home complete with solar panels for electricity and a septic system. They also want to build an underground geothermal greenhouse to grow their own food so they can be self-sufficient. Zani, a content creator and author, said: 'It's a freeing lifestyle. 'I have so much more of a sense of security to know you have so much more control over things. 'People think I'm living in fear. It's not a fear. There's a possibility, and I want to be prepared. I feel empowered.' Zani had a busy life in Atlanta, working as a health nurse, but had been prepping for the last ten years. She said: 'If something did happen, I wanted to be self-sustaining. They bought 10 acres of land near Albuquerque, New Mexico, for $10,000 four months later, and bought a further five acres on their land line on Facebook Marketplace for $7,500 Now the family are in the process of building their own home and have their own solar panels for electricity and a septic system 'We had water, medical supplies and bug out bags to leave the city quickly. 'The fact we're so dependent on the systems - so many people are not prepared - then there is chaos and violence.' She took the plunge to move off-grid in March 2020. Zani, who is also a consultant, said: 'When the pandemic hit, we didn't want to be in the house. 'We traded in our car for a truck to pull our trailer.' The family travelled 1,300 miles until they found their dream location. They set up their 26ft travel trailer on the land and bought a 40ft destination trailer for $15,000 on Facebook Marketplace to live in while they built their home. Yaseen built a mud room next to their trailer for their muddy boots, wood stove and extra storage. They had septic system installed for their waste. The family currently have a chicken coop and meat rabbits but are hoping to get some mules and sheep. Zani had a busy life in Atlanta working as a health nurse, but had been prepping for the last ten years. She said: 'If something did happen I wanted to be self-sustaining' Zani, a content creator and author, said: 'It's a freeing lifestyle. I have so much more of a sense of security to know you have so much more control over things' The family live in the high desert at 75,000 feet above sea level - meaning their days and nights can vary in temperature. Zani said: 'The growing season is really short. We're trying to build an underground geothermal greenhouse but it will cost $50,000. That's our next goal.' Currently, Zani bulk orders dry food on Amazon - and has six months to a year of prepped food. They get their fresh food from a small town 30 minutes away or from a bigger supermarket an hour and a half away. The family's land is well elevated so they are less likely to experience flooding as it becomes more common due to climate change. She said: 'We don't have tornadoes or hurricanes. There is less of a possibility of it.' Zani's goal isn't to be 100 per cent self sufficient but she wants to be able to live with what she has if something happens. Her recent book Offgrid Planning Workbook is available on Amazon. Before sending a convicted toddler killer to death row, a Mississippi judge asked that God have "mercy" on his soul. Joseph David Heard, 41, was found guilty of first-degree murder for the fatal beating of his 2-year-old stepson, Hayden Lee Bataille, according to the Sun Herald, WXXV-TV, and WLOX-TV. Heard's 24-year-old wife, Hailey Lynn Bataille Heard, who was already convicted of first-degree murder for her son's death and sentenced to life in prison, testified against her husband. "God have mercy on your soul," Judge Larry Bourgeois told Heard, after revealing his fate Friday. "The brutal and heinous killing of Hayden called for the maximum punishment under Mississippi law," Harrison County District Attorney Crosby Parker said, according to the Herald. "We commend the Harrison County jury for agreeing with us." Parker said Hayden was beaten to death for "doing what 2-year-olds do." The little boy was punched in the head and stomach repeatedly at the family's Biloxi, Mississippi, apartment in December 2021 because he defecated in his diaper and took too long to retrieve a juice box, the DA said. Hailey joined in the abuse and suffocated Hayden by covering his mouth with her hand. He became unresponsive and the parents called 911. Heard told responding officers Hayden liked to play rough when they questioned the boy's bruises. Doctors determined Hayden also suffered from swelling in his head and several broken bones when he died. Emergency room physician Dr. Leanne Lee testified it "was one of the most horrific scenes I've witnessed... I had never seen a kid that had sustained so much trauma." It's unclear when Heard will be put to death. Silent Witness actress Liz Carr has claimed that 'as long as there's inequality, it is not safe to legalise' assisted suicide in the UK - after revealing how disabled people are told 'surely it's better to be dead than be you?'. The actress and disability rights campaigner is fronting a new BBC documentary titled Better off Dead? airing on Tuesday, which explores the legalisation of assisted dying and its potential effect on vulnerable or disabled people. Laws in the UK currently prevent people from asking for medical help to die and Liz has been a vocal opponent of assisted dying for more than a decade. Liz suffers from rare genetic condition arthrogryposis multiplex congenita, a condition that affects the joints and muscles, and has been a wheelchair user after falling ill aged seven. Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Womans Hour on Thursday, she claimed 'as long as there's inequality, it is not safe to legalise' assisted suicide, adding: 'No amount of safeguards will prevent us from mistakes and abuse and coercion, that's my belief.' Silent Witness actress Liz Carr has claimed that 'as long as there's inequality, it is not safe to legalise' assisted suicide in the UK - after revealing how disabled people are told 'surely it's better to be dead than be you?'. She told the programme: 'On an everyday basis, disabled people are dealing with a lower expectation and people actually saying to their faces: "Gosh, surely it's better to be dead than be you?" 'That happens. It's shocking. So I wanted that to be the starting point and then let's unravel why that is and how that leads to my fear of legalising assisted suicide.' The British actress added that 'of course we don't want [a person at the end of their life] to suffer'. She continued: 'The problem is, actually, a lot of disabled people do suffer. But what they suffer from are the barriers and the obstacles, the fact they have to fight for support, the fact their isn't social care, the fact of attitudes, the fact of lack of access to so many things. 'You know, we do suffer. So don't then make it legal to end that suffering through assisted suicide, that's the fear.' The actress revealed how she's treated more positively by people who know her as a famous face, compared to those who don't recognise her. She explained: 'From my gaze, from somebody who lives in a world where, you know, if I'm recognised in the street, then people are giddy and excited and it's wonderful. 'If I'm not recognised in the street, then I'm ignored or sometimes I'm glanced at as I'm just trouble and I'm a problem and: 'Oh god, have we got to get the ramp out? Ugh." I'm just a pain. 'So that difference shows me that oftentimes I think disabled people are just tolerated and I think that's the same with ill people and older people, and I think all those groups would be affected by these laws. 'As long as there's that inequality, it is not safe to legalise... no amount of safeguards will prevent us from mistakes and abuse and coercion, that's my belief.' The actress and disability rights campaigner is fronting a new BBC documentary titled Better off Dead? airing on Tuesday, which explores the legalisation of assisted dying and its potential effect on vulnerable or disabled people The 52-year-old actress is known for playing forensic examiner Clarissa Mullery in BBC crime drama Silent Witness (pictured) The 52-year-old actress is known for playing forensic examiner Clarissa Mullery in BBC crime drama Silent Witness. She also joined season two of dark fantasy Netflix series The Witcher starring Superman actor Henry Cavill, as well as BBC NHS comedy drama This Is Going To Hurt and Amazon supernatural series Good Omens alongside David Tennant and Michael Sheen. What is arthrogryposis multiplex congenita? AMC is caused by permanent contractures affecting one or more parts of the body, which means joints become fixed in a bent position. Symptoms are present at birth and contractures usually affect the legs or arms. Symptoms include contractures, abnormally slender or fragile long bones, cleft palate, abnormalities of the nervous system. There is no known reasons why AMC occurs. AMC affects 1 in 3,000 people and an equal number of males and females have the condition. Source: Rarediseases.org Advertisement Liz won a gong at the 2022 Olivier awards for her supporting role as polio survivor and physician Dr Emma Brookner in The Normal Heart, a play about the HIV/Aids epidemic in the 1980s. Promoting her documentary in the Big Issue, Liz also discussed how she was 'told all the time that I wouldn't live to be old, and I believed it'. She said: 'I thought I was going to die as a teenager. I thought I was going to die as a 20-year-old. 'Then I thought I would die by 30 so I'd love to tell my younger self that she won't die young - because I've wasted a lot of my life worrying needlessly. And there's a lot of things we do need to worry about.' Liz said her life 'changed forever' when she met a woman named Sue during a care home course in Ross-on-Wye in Herefordshire. 'She had everything I wanted: lived on her own, had a partner, worked, was funny. Sue took me under her wing,' Liz said. 'Before the course I'd think, I can't get on the bus because I can't walk and that's my problem. They said, what if the buses were all accessible? 'And it was like a celestial moment. My life's lightbulb moment. I don't have to do everything on my own to be dignified and have a good life... That's where activism started for me.' She also revealed how it is painful to think her younger self 'didn't see a future' after her life-changing disability diagnosis. 'From my appearance most people will think I was born disabled, but I wasn't, so I understand what becoming disabled means,' she said in the 'Letter To My Younger Self' section of the magazine. She explained how her mother recently found a diary entry which detailed how her younger self 'wanted to die' when she was aged 12. Your browser does not support iframes. 'During lockdown, my mum would ring most nights... She'd go through old diaries and call with the most harrowing bits. 'It would be, 'What did you have for your tea? Did you know you wanted to die when you were 12?' 'I knew I was miserable but to say I'd rather be dead? It hurts me to hear that my younger self didn't see a future. 'I would love to tell her you'll fall in love, have mates, travel the world and do a job people can only dream of. She wouldn't have believed any of it.' Liz's full 'Letter To My Younger Self' can be read in this week's Big Issue, out now. Find your local vendor to buy a copy, or subscribe online, at bigissue.com. The issue of assisted dying is never far from the news. In recent months, it has been put in the spotlight by a series of high profile cases in The Netherlands. There, two physically healthy young women - but who both suffer from mental health issues - announced that they would be going through with assisted deaths. Jolanda Fun and Zoraya ter Beek both said life had become unbearable due to their mental health struggles, and had chosen to end their lives through legal routes in The Netherlands. Figures show that 138 people suffering with mental health issues were euthanized in 2023 - making up 1.5 percent of euthanasia cases in the Netherlands that year. In the UK, meanwhile, Dame Esther Rantzen led a chorus of dismay after a report by MPs into assisted dying failed to deliver any clear-cut findings or proposals in February. The inquiry, carried out by the Health and Social Care Committee, was set up to provide 'a basis for discussion' into whether the law should be changed. But the committee stopped short of calling for a House of Commons debate, which would have allowed MPs to thrash out their differences on existing legislation before holding a vote. In the UK, Dame Esther Rantzen (pictured) led a chorus of dismay after a report by MPs into assisted dying failed to deliver any clear-cut findings or proposals in February. Your browser does not support iframes. It instead recommended that the Government should consider how to respond if moves are made to bring assisted dying into law in parts of the UK. Dame Esther, who has stage four lung cancer and has signed up for the Dignitas assisted dying clinic in Switzerland, branded the report 'profoundly disappointing'. She said of the report in February: 'Many of us feel it is time this country caught up with the best practices abroad and the only way to achieve that is for a proper debate in Parliament with a free vote at the end of it. 'I am profoundly disappointed that this report - which many of us have been waiting for - does not come up with that recommendation. I am afraid in many ways it was a wasted opportunity.' Euthanasia, or medically assisted death, is currently illegal in both the UK and the wider British Isles, and currently any medic or person who performs euthanasia can face prosecution for manslaughter or murder. Even helping a terminally ill person take their own life, called assisted suicide, is an offence in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and punishable by up to 14 years in prison. While no specific law on assisted suicide exists in Scotland, helping someone end their own life could lead to a prosecution for culpable homicide in circumstances where a court determines a person's death was not entirely voluntary. A former Mormon has lifted the lid on how a cult-like faction of the religion played a role in the 'extremely traumatic' kidnapping of Elizabeth Smart. Beth Magnetic, who was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints for 'nearly 30 years' before she left, now runs a YouTube channel in which she 'explores' famous true crime stories where Mormon 'doctrine and theology played a role.' Most recently, she uploaded a video detailing how Elizabeth's captor used 'extremist Mormon theologies to justify his choices' and manipulate the teen after he abducted her from her Salt Lake City, Utah, home two decades ago. The new analysis comes just weeks after Elizabeth marked the 21st anniversary of her sensational rescue and shared a powerful message about 'true intimacy.' A former Mormon has lifted the lid on how the cult-like religion played a role in the 'extremely traumatic' kidnapping of Elizabeth Smart (seen in 2002) Beth Magnetic, who was a Mormon for 'nearly 30 years,' now runs a YouTube channel in which she 'explores' famous true crime stories where Mormon 'doctrine and theology played a role' Most recently, she uploaded a video detailing how Elizabeth's captor Brian David Mitchell (seen in 2005) used 'extremist Mormon theologies to justify his choices' and manipulate her Back in 2002, the entire world began searching for 14-year-old Mormon Elizabeth after Brian David Mitchell crept into her bedroom in the middle of the night and snatched her at knifepoint. For 18 months, the teen was brutally tortured and sexually assaulted while she was held captive by Brian - who grew up in a Mormon family - and his wife, Wanda Barzee. After she was rescued in March 2003, Elizabeth's harrowing story - as well as her impressive strength and bravery - completely enthralled the nation. While discussing the now infamous story, Beth stated, 'It was an extremely traumatic experience for Elizabeth but there are some interesting pieces of this captivity that have Mormon roots.' Beth pointed out that when Brian first crossed paths with Elizabeth's family outside a Salt Lake City shopping mall, he was begging for money. Elizabeth's mom Lois later said in court that she felt sorry for him and ended up offering him a job inside their home - and Beth believes their Mormon religion was partly to blame. 'In Mormonism, there's the belief in the gift of discernment, that you're going to be able to feel whether someone is good or not, Lois felt good about this guy,' she explained. '[Lois] gave him $5 and she ended up saying, "My husband has some work around the house, if you're handy, we could give you a job." Back in 2002, the entire world began searching for 14-year-old Mormon Elizabeth (seen) after Brian crept into her bedroom in the middle of the night and snatched her at knifepoint For 18 months, the teen was brutally tortured and sexually assaulted while she was held captive by Brian (left) - who grew up in a Mormon family - and his wife, Wanda Barzee (right) 'Jesus said to give to the poor, this seemed like a very logical thing to do. It was just her being a good woman.' In the early hours of the morning on June 5, 2002, Brian broke into their home and forced Elizabeth to come with him by threatening her with a knife. Elizabeth later testified that he took her to a nearby encampment in the woods, where she met his wife, Wanda. She said upon arriving, Wanda wanted to wash Elizabeth - but since the youngster was fighting, she ultimately gave up. Instead, she dressed Elizabeth in a white robe and Brian performed a marriage-like ritual - which Beth said was very similar to Mormon weddings. 'The fact that Wanda was going to wash Elizabeth... Before somebody gets married in the Mormon temple they do what's called a washing and anointing,' she continued. 'It's a ceremony where somebody else washes you. 'They wore white robes - that's something that you get married in in Mormonism. White robes are a Mormon temple thing, they call them the Robes of the Holy priesthood. While discussing the now infamous story, Beth stated, 'There are some interesting pieces of this captivity that have Mormon roots' Since Mormons aren't allowed to have sex before marriage, Beth theorized that Brian used Elizabeth's 'shame' to make her believe that she wouldn't be welcome back home 'Additionally, Mormons believe that what's sealed on Earth is sealed in heaven... In their theology they believe that they'll be with their family forever. 'He said that he was marrying her so they'd be sealed on Earth is sealed in heaven - he used phrases that are used within Mormonism.' Beth explained that Mormons are taught that sex before marriage is almost as bad as murder, and theorized that Brian used Elizabeth's 'shame' to make her believe that she wouldn't be welcome back home to trick her into staying loyal to him. She also pointed out that Brian used another popular Mormon belief to 'force' Elizabeth into drinking alcohol so that he could 'more easily assault her.' 'He would say that they had to use alcohol and drugs to descend below it all. This comes from different verses of scripture within Mormonism,' she revealed. 'Neal A. Maxwell who was an apostle in the LDS church said, "Jesus descended below all things in order to be able to comprehend all things thus he is not only a fully atoning savior but is a fully comprehending savior as well." 'Brian would use that concept and say that they had to experience everything in order to be like Jesus.' Beth also said that Brian specifically targeted 'Mormon girls' because he believed their beliefs made them 'good victims' Beth added: 'He would say that they had to use alcohol and drugs to descend below it all. This comes from different verses of scripture within Mormonism' Beth said Brian specifically targeted 'Mormon girls' because he believed their beliefs made them 'good victims.' In her memoir, Elizabeth later revealed that Brian tried to kidnap another Mormon girl during the time that she was held captive, but was unsuccessful. In the end, she was rescued after people spotted her and recognized her face from the news during an outing with her two captors. Brian was sentenced to life in prison in 2011, while his wife got 15 years behind bars - but she received early parole in 2018. Elizabeth, now 36, has since become a fierce advocate for missing persons and victims of sexual assault. During a Q&A, she later credited her faith with 'helping her to survive.' 'There wasn't a single day I didn't pray,' she said previously. 'It was the hardest time of my life, without a doubt, but at the same time, it was one of the most spiritual times of my life because I felt my Savior's presence so strongly in my life.' READ MORE: Is 'Pookie' cute or cringe ? He's a Wharton-educated M&A boss and she's a southern sorority girl But all eyes were on Campbell's mom, who was dubbed 'Mama Pookie' The power couple showed off their lavish looks for Mother's Day Fans of TikTok star Campbell 'Pookie' Puckett have been left gushing over her 'beautiful' mother. Over the last few months, users of the video-sharing platform may well have found their For You feeds flooded with references to 'Pookie' - a trend that was spawned by ultra-wealthy influencer Campbell and her husband, Jett, whose quirky nickname for his wife has helped to turn the duo into a viral sensation. After becoming embroiled in a fierce scandal, the duo seemed to have captured the hearts of fans once again - this time with a little help from Campbell's mom. On Sunday, Campbell took to TikTok to showcase her mini floral dress for a brunch outing with Jett and her mom. Fans of TikTok star Campbell 'Pookie' Puckett have been left in awe of her 'beautiful' mother Campbell and her husband, Jett, have become TikTok's latest obsession after flaunting their lavish displays of wealth and affection through their date night outfits But all eyes were on 'Mama Pookie,' who fans branded 'absolutely gorgeous.' The viral clip, which has so far amassed more than 1.7 million views, was captioned, 'Grateful to be with my mom on Mother's Day and thinking about those who are struggling today. Love you all.' 'Happy Mother's Day,' Campbell said in the clip as Jett revealed that they were going out for brunch. 'Pookie and Mama Pookie look like a breath of spring. You girls are so elegant today.' Jett added. Campbell - who stood to the left of Jett while her mom stood to the right of him - showed off her flattering mini dress, which is sold by House of CB and retails for $255, and strappy heels. And while Pookie looked 'so cute,' Jett admitted that Mama Pookie 'stole the show.' Campbell's mom stunned in an all-pink pantsuit, which she accessorized with a Chanel purse, which is sold secondhand for $5,600, and a pearl necklace. She also paired the look with a pair of pink pumps that perfectly matched her ensemble. Over the weekend, Campbell shared another clip of her and her mom spending some quality time together as they both showcased their looks 'Love you guys,' Jett said at the end of the clip as he kissed Campbell and her mom's head. And while Campbell's stunning looks didn't go unnoticed, fans couldn't help but to point out the 'stunning' looks of her mom. One person said: 'Two beautiful ladies.' Someone else simply added: 'Stunning.' Another user added: 'That dress was made for Pookie, also mama Pookie looking absolutely gorgeous!' 'Mama Pookie is stunning,' a fourth gushed. A fifth fan wrote: 'This is fantastic!' Over the weekend, Campbell shared another clip of her and her mom spending some quality time together as they both showcased their looks. And while Campbell's stunning looks didn't go unnoticed, fans couldn't help but to point out the stunning looks of her mom Just a few months ago, the designer-clad duo found themselves embroiled in a fierce controversy after images of Campbell 'cosplaying as a slave owner' at a plantation-themed party during her days as an Ole Miss college student emerged. Several unearthed photos of Campbell dressed in 'southern plantation glam' while attending the event were posted on TikTok and Reddit - sparking a wave of backlash against the newly-minted influencer. The images - which were posted on a Reddit 'influencer snark' page - showed Campbell attending what appears to be an Antebellum-themed party, otherwise known as an 'Old South' party, at the University of Mississippi. Antebellum plantation-themed parties take inspiration from the period before the American Civil War, when wealthy white planters wielded the majority of power in the south - and often owned Black slaves. Campbell addressed the controversy on her Instagram account and apologized for her actions. In a post shared on Campbell's Instagram Story, she said: 'As some of you may have seen, some old photos of mine recently resurfaced. At the time these photos were taken, I was 20. I didn't fully understand the impact of my actions the way I do now, 12 years later. Just a few months ago, the designer-clad duo found themselves embroiled in a bitter controversy after images of Campbell 'cosplaying as a slave owner' at a plantation-themed party during her days as an Ole Miss college student emerged Controversy surrounded Campbell after snaps of her posing as in 'Southern plantation glam' were shared on Reddit and TikTok 'I fully apologize for the harm this may have caused for some and take full responsibility. Jett and I love sharing our lives with you all and getting to know our community on such an intimate level. 'Because we live our lives so publicly, everything is on the internet, even my mistakes. We hope to continue to bring you with us on our journey as we continue to learn and grow.' The lovebirds are certainly no strangers to online uproar over their content - with their ascent to online fame sparking a wave of debate from users questioning whether their regular video posts were in fact 'cute'... or far too 'cringe'. A typical video will see Campbell glammed up alongside a beaming Jett as she runs through her outfit choices. The clothes include a selection of designer pieces alongside the odd Amazon find, with Jett also offering the lowdown of his outfits. However, the main talking point has become Jett's now much-memed commentary on his wife's extravagant get ups. 'Pookie is looking absolutely fire tonight,' he states in one video, as Campbell shows off her outfit. Campbell and Jett addressed the controversy on Instagram as people on the web continue to decide if their videos are cringey or cute The couple's videos feature run downs of their outfits which include designer goods such as Campbell's $11,000 Hermes Kelly bag In another, she dons a pink dress from Helsa on Revolve, black La Femme heels and her trademark $11,000 Hermes Kelly bag. 'It's date night and Pookie looks particularly amazing tonight. I would call this a happy dress,' Jett says, prompting giggles from his wife. The video's comments are filled with adoring fans offering their opinion on the outfit and the couple. Campbell currently has more than 800,000 TikTok followers and has gained more than 38.1 million likes. The Atlanta-based couple met at a wine bar in Philadelphia after Jett approached her. They dated for 10 months before getting engaged. Campbell was a former flight attendant. Wharton-educated Jett works in mergers an acquisitions in the dental industry. They have been building their brand since 2020, but have recently taken off in part thanks to the discussion around Campbell's nickname. Fans have been going wild for the couple's relationship, with many praising how much Jett seems to appreciate his wife. While they have thousands of loyal supporters, a few people have taken issue with the couple. 'I can't believe this crap is real,' one viewer wrote in response to a TikTok of the couple showing off their outfits for a day in Paris. 'Y'all actually make me sick to my stomach,' another added. 'Can't convince me there's not an A&E movie with these. Neighbors that you find out are murderers,' one person joked. Hundreds of Americans are using veneer technicians to get their dream smile only to be left with rotten teeth and a big dental bill. For veneers, dentists must clean and file down teeth before supergluing pearl-white coverings to the front at a cost of up to $4,000 per tooth, or $40,000 per smile. The high price makes them unattainable for most. But now a group of 'technicians' has sprung up offering to fit 20 veneers for just $1,500, often operating out the back of hair salons and with nothing more than a certificate and three days of training to their name. The result? Many patients have seen veneers fall out just days later, while others have suffered from swollen mouths and run the risk of gtting bacteria stuck behind their covering which can lead to teeth rotting. Above show two patients who had veneer trouble. One individual had their teeth rot away after getting veneers while another had a veneer pop out shortly before graduation. It was not clear whether either had visited an illegal veneer technician 'Veneer technicians' have popped up in the US offering to fit veneers for the fraction of the cost of a dentist. They include the above who goes by the name theluckysevennn online It is illegal for anyone without a license from their state to operate in dentistry, including the fitting of veneers. The license can only be obtained after attending dental school which takes at least four years and then passing numerous exams to get a degree. But veneer technicians are operating on people's mouths with nothing more than a certificate after attending schools in Atlanta, Georgia, often for just a week. Schools include the Dental Veneers Academy run by Colombian entrepreneur Mauricio Soto. Among so-called veneer technicians is an individual who calls himself theluckysevennn who brags online that he received a certificate after being trained by 'Seven Figure Smiles'. A second, called Tyreka Taylor also known as Princess Kutz and who operates out of a hair salon, got certified after just a week-and-a-half's training before going on a 'tour' of the US hitting cities including Austin and Biloxi, in Mississippi. Dr Huzefa Kapadia, a dentist in Michigan who has made many videos warning people to avoid veneer technicians, said online: 'These are composite veneers, extremely technique sensitive to do. Look at this accuracy! 'Only a certified dentist can do something like this, believe it or not.' He added: 'I know you guys love to go to illegal veneer techs that are popping up all over the US of A, and in everyone's basement. But that is illegal, you are not supposed to see an illegal veneer tech.' Among those to visit an illegal veneer technician was 36-year-old Tyrisha Ragin from Texas. Ms Ragin told The Cut she had to pay $1,500 via a cash app to get 20 veneers from Princess Kutz, well below the $80,000 cost from a dentist. She had them in for two days before one fell out, and then quickly had to have the rest removed by a dentist which cost another $1,300. These women also posted online saying their veneers had fallen out unexpectedly In another case, shown here, teeth have also started to rot underneath veneers - likely leading to further complications. It was unclear whether the above patients had used veneer techs Princess Kutz later refunded the money, but Ms Ragin's dentist said she had had a lucky escape saying the veneers could have led to permanent damage to her teeth if anything became trapped beneath them. Several people have also posted online complaining about rotten teeth after having veneers, where bacteria has eaten away at the enamel beneath the pearly white surface. In one case, a patient also posted an image saying their teeth had rotted down to stubs after spending $50,000 on veneers over the years. In another case, a woman revealed that a veneer technician called the 'Veneer Fairy' left her with a swollen and hurting mouth after inserting veneers. Online, many veneer techs now have comments on their posts warning that it is not legal for them to be offering veneers. On theluckysevennn's main post, one user has commented: 'Can we see the degree and what school did you graduate from since you obviously are a dentist right?' And a second said: 'The fact you still got this up and bout to go to prison for it is crazy.' And for Princess Kutz, several videos have emerged online saying that she should also 'got to jail' for offering the treatments. Veneers have become more popular in recent years, amid a drive to get a pearly white smile with nearly 600,000 people getting them every year. This is in part driven by celebrities getting or being rumored to have got them, including Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez and Taylor Swift. The coverings are normally made from porcelain or resin, and can last for 10 to 15 years according to some sources. Another procedure which has become more popular is crowns, where the teeth are actually filed down before a new tooth is placed over the top. This has become more popular in locations such as Turkey. Six lives every minute. Thats the number saved by vaccines, according to a study by the World Health Organisation and published in the Lancet earlier this year. That equates to 154million people over the past 50 years alone. And the vast majority of lives saved in that half century 101million were those of infants. It was the Englishman Edward Jenner who noted that people infected with cowpox were immune to the more deadly smallpox. In 1786 he created the first vaccine, by using matter from a cowpox sore to inoculate against smallpox. In the 200 odd years since, weve developed and rolled out vaccines for a large number of once deadly or debilitating diseases. Yet we now seem to have become so complacent about the benefits that people are eschewing vaccines entirely. Which makes them and to an extent all of us much more vulnerable to disease. The current whooping cough outbreak has rightly got parents scared. It is the worst we have seen for 40 years. Many adults have also succumbed to it, suffering the so-called 100 day cough. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has confirmed there were 2,793 cases of whooping cough reported as of the end of March and five babies have tragically died from the infection. The current whooping cough outbreak has rightly got parents scared. It is the worst we have seen for 40 years, writes Dr Max There is always a lag between deaths and the publication of official figures, so it seems inevitable the real number will already be higher. It was reported in this paper last week that paediatric intensive care units are on surge capacity because of whooping cough and measles, meaning they are full to bursting. There are several factors at work here. Yes, the problem may be down, in part, to reduced community immunity caused by lockdowns. But theres no doubt that it has also been fuelled by a rise in the number of parents refusing to get their babies and toddlers vaccinated, and some pregnant women declining the jab too. With uptake over the past 12 months not much above 90 per cent for the six-in-one jab given to babies which also protects against diphtheria and polio we are rapidly losing the blanket coverage we need to keep whooping cough at bay. In London its down to 86 per cent. Vaccine refusal has been a problem since the 1990s, when unfounded fears over the MMR triple jab saw uptake slump In fact vaccine refusal has been a problem for many years. It started back in the late 1990s with the panic caused by Andrew Wakefield, a doctor who wrong linked the jab for measles, mumps and rubella with autism. Thats been categorically disproved, of course, and Wakefield was struck off the medical register (although he continues as a vocal anti-vaxxer). But the idea that vaccines can be dangerous persists. Many parents still have a niggling worry. Youd think those who were most hesitant would be from less-educated backgrounds, perhaps because they dont understand the science or are unaware how crucial vaccination is to their childs health. But in fact research suggests the opposite is true. With MMR, for example, some of the lowest rates of uptake of the vaccine are in some of the most wealthy regions. This suggests that groups of people who are typically educated, and otherwise pro-active on health matters, are actively turning their backs on vaccines. This feels to me like part of a wider trend. Ive certainly noticed in middle class patients a growing sense that they know best when it comes to their health. They dont blindly trust doctors or experts anymore, and are often resistant to, or sceptical of, health campaigns because they dont like being told what to do. This lack of trust has been heightened by social media. People are bombarded by misinformation and downright lies online and too many believe them. Its all too easy to get sucked into forums run by people who think they know more than doctors. Add the sense of superiority one sometimes finds among middle class patients a reluctance to defer to those with medical qualifications and youve got a vaccine refuser. Theres another, more nebulous problem: people are tired of vaccines after Covid. Humans tend to have a short attention span and after the monumental push to get people vaccinated back in 2020, they are simply bored with hearing about jabs and how important they are. They arent prioritising it. I worry that scepticism about vaccines will only get worse in the wake of revelations that, while saving millions of lives worldwide, the AstraZeneca Covid jabs have been found to be linked to potentially serious complications. Scientists do test vaccines rigorously pharmaceutical companies cant afford not to. One of mankinds greatest advances was the development of a method of scientific inquiry that tests hypotheses and all new medical treatments in as objective a way as possible. And we know the childhood jab for whooping cough is safe. If we are to avoid further surges in infectious diseases, doctors have to better engage with those who are vaccine sceptics. Its vital that the misinformation and misunderstandings are discussed openly. We should never be scared of debate. While its unlikely to change the view of die-hard anti-vaxxers, it will hopefully expose some of the falsehoods that are circulating about the whooping cough vaccine, and help those who are hesitant or confused make an informed choice about protecting their child. Is it just me, or is this icky? Damian Hurley, 22, had to direct his mother, Elizabeth Hurley, 58, in a sex scene in his new film Most people find the idea of their parents having sex as, well, something theyd rather not think about. But imagine if you not only had to think about it but choreograph the action too? Damian Hurley, 22, had to do just that when he directed his mother, Elizabeth Hurley, 58, in his new film. Talking afterwards, Liz said: Everyone knows its not actually sexy to shoot any kind of intimate scene... Damian made it so comfortable. It was nothing. Im sure shes right, but even so. There is something slightly icky about your child being involved like this. Part of me loves how the two of them are close they seem more like friends than mother and son but Im not totally onboard with him taking racy pictures of her posing in bikinis to promote her beachwear either. I cant help thinking theres something to be said for boundaries. As you get older, a fall can have devastating consequences. As bones become brittle, even a simple trip can result in a fracture. One in three people aged over 65 and half of those aged over 80 will suffer at least one fall a year, costing the UK an estimated 4.4billion annually. Thats why I love a new programme called Finding Your Feet, designed by British Judo. Its a course, taught by judo trainers, which takes 18 different judo techniques and adapts them for elderly people at risk of falling. Theyll be shown how to improve their balance and how to fall safely. Its a brilliant idea. Dr Max Prescribes: Sweet Bee Organics This new range of handmade organic products uses lots of natural ingredients. My favourite is the sweet sleep magnesium butter which you rub on the bottom of your feet 20 minutes before going to bed. Theres evidence to suggest that magnesium improves sleep by acting on certain chemicals in the brain, such as NMDA, GABA and melatonin, which affect how relaxed or tired a person feels. Time off work for obesity-related illness is seriously hampering economic growth, a landmark study warns today. Those who are overweight nearly four in ten Brits are 22 per cent more likely to have taken off at least seven days in a year for illness, according to a data analysis representing 147 million working people across Europe. When combined with those who are obese, it means up to 60 per cent of the nation may be taking sick leave because of weight-related issues, such as diabetes or heart disease. The data showed people with obesity are up to twice as likely to be off sick than those of a healthy weight. In the first detailed breakdown of how sick days vary according to weight, researchers revealed the UK is 'among the worst' of 28 countries examined for obesity absenteeism. Dr Thomas Czypionka (pictured), study co-author has said the problem with obesity is that there are so many health problems related to being obese Record 1.5million women off long-term Long-term sickness is the main reason women are out of the labour market, with poor mental health up by more than a quarter in five years. The number of women who are economically inactive due to long-term sickness soared to a record 1.54million in 2023. This is up 48 per cent since 2018, according to the Office for National Statistics. The number of women aged 16-to-64 who are economically inactive due to depression, anxiety and mental illness has increased by 69,000 (27 per cent) over this period, to 326,000, according to analysis of the figures by the Trades Union Congress. The umbrella organisation blamed the rise on issues such as long NHS waiting lists and cuts to preventive services. Paul Nowak, general secretary of the TUC, said: We need a proper plan for dealing with the sharp rise in long-term sickness. A Government spokesman said its 2.5 billion Back to Work Plan will help women with long-term health conditions. Advertisement Experts said the findings, which are being presented at the European Congress on Obesity in Venice, reinforce how obesity has become the driving force behind 'sick note culture'. They warned it was one of the 'gravest fiscal risks' facing the UK economy, cementing our reputation as the 'sick man of Europe'. The Health Economics and Health Policy Research Group, Institute for Advanced Studies, Vienna, Austria, looked at national survey data from a sample of 122,598 people. It asked those employed for details of work absence due to ill health over the past year. Data for the UK showed that those classed as obese, with a BMI over 30, were almost a quarter (23 per cent) more likely to be absent from work for any period of time. Severely obese people with a BMI over 40 were more than twice as likely (118 per cent) to take time off. Dr Thomas Czypionka, study co-author, said: 'The problem with obesity is that there are so many health consequences that branch from being obese. 'I don't think that it is a good idea to just wait and let people get obese and then pay for the treatment and face all the consequences of them leaving the labour market.' Last month, the Prime Minister announced plans to tackle a 'sick note culture' with sweeping reforms to the benefit system. But experts said the plans stand little chance of success unless ministers tackle obesity. A report in December showed the UK has the third highest proportion of people with obesity in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, with an estimated yearly cost to the UK economy of 98billon. Meanwhile, the latest data shows the number of sick notes issued by the NHS has doubled in a decade to 11 million last year. Time off work for obesity-related illness is seriously hampering economic growth, a landmark study warns today (stock photo) Last week, a report by the Institute for Public Policy Research think tank said obesity was a 'common factor' underpinning all of the top reasons for long-term sickness in the UK, including musculoskeletal problems, heart disease and depression. Katharine Jenner, director of the Obesity Health Alliance, said: 'This research lays it bare high rates of obesity-related disease is driving down economic productivity, with devastating economic impacts.' A Government spokesman said: 'Our 2.5billion Back to Work Plan will help over a million people, including those with long-term health conditions associated with obesity, to break down barriers to work.' Superbugs, pathogens which have evolved resistance to the drugs used to treat them, will make the Covid pandemic look 'minor' in comparison. That's according to Professor Dame Sally Davies, Englands former chief medical officer, for whom the burgeoning crisis is already extremely personal. She is the UKs special envoy on antimicrobial resistance (AMR), when bacteria, viruses, and fungi develop a resistance to medication used to defeat them. AMR could turn everyday injuries and routine surgeries into life and death events, undo decades of medical progress and potentially kill millions every year. Some, like Dame Sally's goddaughter, have already paid the price. Professor Dame Sally Davies, Englands former chief medical officer, warns the threat of antimicrobial resistance could make Covid look 'minor' Dame Sally's goddaughter, Emily Hoyle, 38, died in late 2022 after contracting a drug-resistant lung infection that couldn't be treated An illustration of Bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa, an example of a antibiotic resistant superbug, and estimated to be one of the six biggest global killers Emily Hoyle, 38, died in late 2022 after contracting a drug-resistant lung infection that couldn't be treated. Dame Sally, 74, said AMR was global threat and if nothing was done it would kill more people than climate change and would make aspects of the recent pandemic pale in comparison. 'It looks like a lot of people with untreatable infections, and we would have to move to isolating people who were untreatable in order not to infect their families and communities. So its a really disastrous picture. It would make some of Covid look minor,' she told The Guardian. While AMR has been a growing threat for decades, Dame Sally said the next decade would be critical junction for how well we are equipped to deal with the crisis. 'If we havent made good strides in the next 10 years, then Im really scared,' she said. Figures showed a recent sharp increase in the number of prescriptions for antibiotics following years of decline. According to the UKHSA, 58,224 people in England had an antibiotic-resistant infection in 2022, up four per cent on 2021 And she warned that, unlike Covid, there was little chance of AMR burning out as a population develop immunity from exposure and vaccines, 'Itll grind on for decades and it wont burn out,' she said. 'We know that with viruses, they burn out, you generally develop herd immunity, but this isnt like that.' AMR already kills an estimated 1.2million people globally each year, more than HIV or malaria, and contributes to the deaths of 5million more. The World Health Organization predicts the direct death toll will grow to 10million per year by 2050. Over and inappropriate use of drugs like antibiotics are one of the driving factors behind bugs developing AMR. This includes people taking drugs like antibiotics when they don't need to but also giving them to farm animals on an industrial scale in an attempt to pre-emptively stop infections and boost profits. WHAT IS ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE? Antibiotics have been doled out unnecessarily by GPs and hospital staff for decades, fueling once harmless bacteria to become superbugs. The World Health Organization (WHO) has previously warned if nothing is done the world is heading for a 'post-antibiotic' era. It claimed common infections, such as chlamydia, will become killers without immediate solutions to the growing crisis. Bacteria can become drug resistant when people take incorrect doses of antibiotics or if they are given out unnecessarily. Former chief medical officer Dame Sally Davies claimed in 2016 that the threat of antibiotic resistance is as severe as terrorism. Figures estimate that superbugs will kill 10 million people each year by 2050, with patients succumbing to once harmless bugs. Around 700,000 people already die yearly due to drug-resistant infections including tuberculosis (TB), HIV and malaria across the world. Concerns have repeatedly been raised that medicine will be taken back to the 'dark ages' if antibiotics are rendered ineffective in the coming years. In addition to existing drugs becoming less effective, there have only been one or two new antibiotics developed in the last 30 years. In 2019, the WHO warned antibiotics are 'running out' as a report found a 'serious lack' of new drugs in the development pipeline. Without antibiotics, C-sections, cancer treatments and hip replacements will become incredibly 'risky', it was said at the time. Advertisement The latter allows massive amounts to leak into the environment, where pathogens can develop a resistance. If AMR becomes more widespread it could lead to surgeries like caesareans, as well as treatments that lower the immune system like chemo and organ transplants becoming far more riskier, with potentially deadly consequences. AMR is already thought to kill almost 8,000 Brits a year with many more suffering health consequences of being infected. Dame Sally suspects the death toll is actually much higher, with many cases missed due to medical examiners not mentioning superbugs in death certificates. While she has campaigned on the dangers of AMR for over a decade, the threat became personal when a superbug killed her goddaughter, Emily. The 38-year-old was born with cystic fibrosis, a genetic disease which causes sticky mucus to build up in the lungs. This makes sufferers more susceptible to respiratory illness, a fate that befell Emily in late 2022. Numerous attempts to treat the infection failed and she died in a hospice in 2022. Dame Sally, speaking to the Mail on Sunday earlier this year, said Emily had lived every moment to its fullest. She was always the centre of the party, she said. 'My memories of Emily are of her dancing and laughing. 'Despite the cystic fibrosis, she went to university, had a successful career and advocated for other patients like herself. 'She got married and had a son. I was at her wedding. I still remember how beautiful she looked. Earlier this month the UK Government announced a new 'five year plan' to combat AMR. Measures announced include a fresh commitment to reduce the use of antimicrobial drugs in both people and animals, improved surveillance of superbugs, and investing in the development of new drugs that could be used to treat them. Announcing the new plan health minister Maria Caulfield said: 'In a world recovering from the profound impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, international collaboration and preparedness for global health challenges have taken on an unprecedented level of importance.' Dame Sally is hopeful new treatments can be developed like phage therapy a treatment which involves injecting patients with viruses that hunt out and destroy drug-resistant bacteria as well as new antibiotics. One barrier to developing new drugs is cost. This graph shows the combined direct and associated deaths from antibiotic-resistant bacteria per global region measured in the new research. Africa and South Asia had the greatest number of deaths per 100,000 people, however Western European countries like, the UK, still recorded a significantly high number of fatalities Industry estimates suggest the cost of developing one new antibiotic is 1 billion, far below the estimated revenue of selling one of roughly 35 million a year. Revenue is predicted to be low because health chiefs will only deploy these drugs as a last resort, in a bid to stop, or slow, pathogens developing a new resistance to them and going back to square one. This problem is thought to be one factor why no new type of antibiotic has been developed since the 80s. Different funding models have been suggested to fix this, like a subscription model that pays companies for access for superbug beating drugs on an annual basis regardless of use, but these have yet to bear fruit. Another change championed by Dame Sally is that from last month medical examiners in the UK have now started noting AMR as a cause of death on death certificates. This, she hopes, will not only provide the NHS and experts with a greater idea of the scale and what specific pathogens are driving the problem but also raise awareness, and a drive for change, within the public. Dame Sally, who was Englands chief medical officer between 2010 and 2019, made headlines last year, when she emotionally apologised to families bereaved by Covid as she slammed the UK's failures in preparing for the pandemic. Her voice breaking at one point, she said she was sorry to Brits who lost loved ones and who died 'horrible deaths'. Addressing the Covid Inquiry, she said: 'Maybe this is the moment to say how sorry I am to the relatives who lost their families. 'It wasnt just the deaths, it was the way they died. It was horrible.' Dame Sally also added that the full impact of lockdowns had failed to be considered and acknowledged the impact had 'damaged a generation'. Britain may be forced to accept mandatory lockdowns and vaccines by power-hungry World Health Organization bureaucrats, Nigel Farage has warned. He is calling on MPs to reject a 'terrifying' WHO treaty which may allow foreign officials to impose major policy decisions on all 194 member states in any future pandemic. The former Brexit Party leader says the UK must be prepared to leave the 'failing, expensive, unelected, unaccountable' WHO to prevent it from 'running roughshod' over sovereign countries. Officials at the WHO will vote on the latest draft of the Pandemic Preparedness Treaty in Geneva next week. Nigel Farage says he does not trust the World Health Organisation and wants it to 'stop interfering in people's lives' The WHO will vote on a new pandemic treaty next week Describing the WHO as a 'very dangerous organisation', Mr Farage said: 'The WHO can be a force for good in the world, but only if it returns to its noble principles and core objectives. 'Its role should be to share information and provide guidance, not dictate policies. 'It must reform to respect national sovereignty, stop interfering in people's lives and abandon the frankly terrifying pandemic treaty. 'The WHO can no longer ignore the growing dissatisfaction from people across the world. It either reforms, or countries must leave it altogether.' He added: 'It's shocking that someone in Geneva that we didn't vote for could force us into lockdown.' The current draft of the pandemic treaty has been significantly watered-down from earlier versions. It would require the UK to hand over a fifth of its vaccines and drugs for redistribution to 'countries facing challenges' in a future pandemic, but does not give the WHO to impose vaccine mandates or impose lockdowns. However, Mr Farage and other critics fear that this could be reinstated behind closed doors at a later date, along with other requirements such as higher membership fees. If it is signed next week, the treaty could be amended at the annual Conference of the Parties (COP), said Mr Farage, giving the WHO 'additional powers and money they need to build their global public health empire'. 'This is exactly how the WHO has operated in the past, and it's exactly why I do not trust the people who run it today,' he told the Daily Telegraph. Mr Farage has joined forces with new international pressure group Action on World Health (AWH), which wants to reform the WHO. Its mission is to 'take back control' of health policy and hold the WHO to account for its failings, so future pandemics can be prevented or dealt with more quickly and efficiently. It says the WHO has repeatedly failed to protect the public. Among other things, it wrongly insisted in January 2020 that there was no human-to-human transmission of Covid-19. The AWH also wants to slash the WHO's 5.5billion budget which is mostly paid by the UK, US and the EU and is calling on countries to halve their contributions. It says huge sums are currently 'wasted on luxury travel and thousands of staff'. The Government has insisted it would never hand over authority to the WHO over whether lockdowns should be imposed. But Mr Farage wants Parliament to debate the issue, and reserve the right to leave the WHO in a 'second Brexit' if necessary. Republican senators in the US have also urged President Joe Biden not to sign the pandemic treaty. They said it would be 'unacceptable' to 'expand the WHO's authority over member states' during pandemics, adding that the WHO 'did lasting harm to our country' because of its failures during the pandemic. More than half of England's maternity units are failing, analysis shows. MailOnline's huge audit laid bare in an interactive guide found 53 per cent were ranked as 'inadequate' or 'requires improvement' by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Services slapped with an 'inadequate' rating means there is a high risk of avoidable harm for mothers and babies, under the CQC's criteria. Inspectors at one, Royal Sussex County Hospital, warned there were 'not enough midwifery staff to keep women and babies safe'. Another the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital, one of the NHS hospitals at the centre of Britain's worst ever maternity scandal was found to have a 'cramped' environment that 'posed a fire risk and infection control issue'. The guide is split into an interactive map showing CQC rankings and a searchable table that gives an unrivalled insight into everything from C-section rates to how many babies are delivered by a midwife, allowing you to see the state of play at your local hospital. It comes as a damning report into the 'postcode lottery' of NHS maternity care today ruled good care is 'the exception rather than the rule'. Your browser does not support iframes. Your browser does not support iframes. A hugely-anticipated parliamentary inquiry into birth trauma, which heard evidence from more than 1,300 women, found pregnant women are being treated like a 'slab of meat'. The scathing report detailed how one woman carrying twins who went into premature labour at 19 weeks was told by a consultant to 'stop stressing' after she lost her first baby. Another, dismissed as an 'anxious mother', later lost her baby from complications she warned about. MailOnline's analysis of February CQC ratings showed 24 per cent of ratings had decreased since their previous inspection. WHAT ARE THE 12 RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE INQUIRY INTO BIRTH TRAUMA? 1. Recruit, train and retain more midwives, obstetricians and anaesthetists 2. Provide universal access to specialist maternal mental health services across the UK 3. Offer a separate six-week GP check for all mums after giving birth that include questions on their physical and mental health 4. Roll out and implement the OASI (obstetric and anal sphincter injury) care bundle to all hospital trusts to reduce risk of injuries in childbirth 5. Oversee the national rollout of standardised post birth services, such as Birth Reflections 6. Ensure better education for women on birth choices. All NHS Trusts should offer antenatal classes 7. Respect mums' choices about giving birth and access to pain relief and keep mothers together with their baby as much as possible 8. Provide support for fathers and ensure nominated birth partner is continuously informed and updated during labour and post-delivery 9. Digitise mothers health records 10. Extend the time limit for medical negligence childbirth litigation from three years to five years 11. Commit to tackling inequalities in maternity care among ethnic minorities, particularly Black and Asian women 12. National Institute for Health and Care Research to commission research on the economic impact of birth trauma and injuries Advertisement Just 12 per cent had gone up. CQC rankings score units as being either 'outstanding', 'good', 'requires improvement' or 'inadequate'. Ratings are based on how they perform against markers such as safety, efficiency, care and leadership. Poole Hospital saw its rating drop to 'inadequate' after regulators last March found staffing levels on the ward were so low it was impacting the safety of women and children. Royal Sussex County Hospital was also marked down because inspectors noted there were 'not enough midwifery staff to keep women and babies safe'. Comments CQC inspectors recorded from the workforce included 'staff are exhausted and on their knees', 'I feel it is only a matter of time before something bad happens', 'staff are reduced to tears every day because it is so short staffed' and 'I have a constant sense of dread that something awful will happen'. Some locations in the MailOnline analysis don't have previous ratings available to compare. Frontline midwives have previously warned working in the NHS is like playing a 'warped game of Russian Roulette', as there was a risk of harm or death at any time, partly due to 'dangerously' low staffing levels. The CQCs annual maternity survey, published in February, also revealed women's experiences of care have deteriorated in the past five years, with staff shortages a key reason. The Royal College of Midwives' (RCM) latest calculation is that England is short of 2,500 midwives. It comes as the report from the all-party Birth Trauma Inquiry today found 'poor care is all frequently tolerated as normal, and women are treated as an inconvenience'. It was led by Labour MP Rosie Duffield and Conservative MP Theo Clarke, who herself pushed for the inquiry after revealing she felt she was going to die after giving birth in 2022. Among its 12 recommendations included the creation of a maternity commissioner reporting to the Prime Minister. Other key suggestions are to digitise mother's health records and 'provide support for fathers and ensure [a] nominated birth partner is continuously informed and updated during labour and post-delivery'. The report detailed how one woman who suffered bowel problems after a traumatic birth and took her hospital to a tribunal for neglect after problems during labour was told by a doctor 'why don't I just a stick an anal plug in and get on with my day'. Another described how her severe physical symptoms from birth trauma, including fatigue and tremors, were wrongly diagnosed as psychological, leading her to receive eight sessions of electroconvulsive therapy, which involves sending an electrical current through the brain. A third woman, whose traumatic birth happened in 1990, also told how she has been left with long-term anxiety, flashbacks and intense needle phobia. She said: 'My life is like a never-ending horror show, with triggers every day. It is often unbearable. Your browser does not support iframes. 'I took an overdose in December 2023 out of pure desperation, and I was disappointed that I survived it.' Health Secretary Victoria Atkins labelled testimonies heard in the report 'harrowing' and vowed to improve maternity care for 'women throughout pregnancy, birth and the critical months that follow'. NHS England chief executive Amanda Pritchard also said the experiences outlined in the report 'are simply not good enough'. Asked whether there was an apology to be made, women's health minister Maria Caulfield told Sky News: 'Absolutely. I recognise as women's health minister that maternity services have not been where we want them to be.' Timeline of the NHS maternity scandals A swathe of scandals have hit NHS maternity care. An inquiry into failings at Morecambe Bay NHS Trust where 11 babies and one mother suffered avoidable deaths found a group of midwives' overzealous pursuit of natural childbirth had 'led at times to inappropriate and unsafe care'. The investigation report, published in March 2015, revealed 20 'serious and shocking' major failures had occurred between 2004 and 2013. An October 2021 report revealed that a third of stillborn babies may have survived if there were not serious mistakes at Llantrisant's Royal Glamorgan and Merthyr Tydfil's Prince Charles hospitals in south Wales. The inquiry was launched in 2019 after the maternity services at Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board were put into special measures. Another probe into Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Trust, led by midwifery expert Donna Ockenden, found that 300 babies had died or been left brain-damaged due to 'repeated errors in care'. The two-year investigation, published in March 2022, highlighted staffing and training gaps as well as midwives being determined to keep caesarean section rates low as causes of some deaths. Another report published in October 2022 exposed the failures of two hospitals which are part of East Kent Hospitals Trust. It revealed there were 12 cases where a baby suffered brain damage due to getting insufficient oxygen, but there could have been a different outcome had the baby received better care. An investigation at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, which started in September 2022, is looking into 1,700 similar cases. A final report is due in 2024. Already reports claim there were dozens of deaths, stillbirths and babies left with brain damaged after mistakes. Nottinghamshire police announced in September 2023 that they are launched a criminal probe into failings. Advertisement But she added the Government is already doing much of the work recommended in the report. She told Times Radio: 'We absolutely recognise whats in the report. We are on track with rolling out some of these services to prevent this from happening in the first place but, when it does, better look after women.' Responding to the report, Gill Walton, chief executive of the RCM, said: 'Sadly, not all birth experiences are positive and poor experiences can have a devastating impact on women and should be taken very seriously as a threat to maternal mental and physical health and infant wellbeing. 'Undoubtedly staffing shortages drastically impact the safety and quality of care that midwives can and so want to deliver. 'Our own members tell us they are struggling to give women the time and quality of care they need and deserve.' She added: 'Also, with the rise in more complex pregnancies, having the right skill mix of staff on shift is key. 'Access to appropriate training has also been highlighted in this report and when there aren't enough midwives, crucial training is often postponed and this impacts how prepared staff can be for not only emergency situations, but how improvements in day-to-day maternity care can be achieved.' It comes as former Made in Chelsea star Louise Thompson yesterday revealed the truth behind her traumatic childbirth at NHS Chelsea and Westminster hospital, for first time. In an exert of her new book 'Lucky: Learning to Live Again', published in the Mail on Sunday, the 34-year-old recounted how she was repeatedly refused a C-section despite feeling she was too small at 5ft and with a 6ft 3 partner to give birth naturally. Doctors eventually ordered a C-section after it was found Leo's head was stuck in her pelvis. Unbeknown to her at the time this had actually tore her womb, leading to bleeding that was hard to stop and led to her losing three-and-a-half litres of blood, more than three quarters of the blood in the body. She said she could 'see immense amounts of my blood splattering all over the curtain' and 'splashing on to the floor below'. She added: 'No one gave us any reassurance; it was all like some sick nightmare. 'Everyone in the room looked very distressed, I could feel their shaky hands on my body. If they'd allowed me to have a planned C-section, things could have been very different.' The Birth Trauma Association charity says an estimated 20,000 women a year develop post-natal post traumatic stress disorder, and that as many as 200,000 women may also feel traumatised by childbirth and develop some of the symptoms of PTSD. About 65 per cent of the NHS's budget to cover clinical negligence claims which totalled 69.3billion in 2022-23 related to maternity and neonatal liabilities. One woman, who was awarded damages after her twins were born, told the all-party inquiry how she felt she was treated like a 'birthing vessel' and 'slab of meat' by Britains maternity system. Rachael McGrath, from Cheshire, believed she was bleeding to death when she was taken to hospital with an abrupted placenta. Her twins were born requiring resuscitation and survived, but 'impersonal' care and being met with what she felt was sarcasm or hostility when asking for help left her traumatised. It comes as former Made in Chelsea star Louise Thompson yesterday revealed the truth behind her traumatic childbirth at NHS Chelsea and Westminster hospital, for first time In an exert of her new book 'Lucky: Learning to Live Again', published in the Mail on Sunday, the 34-year-old recounted how she was repeatedly refused a C-section despite feeling she was too small at 5ft and with a 6ft 3 partner to give birth naturally She said: 'After my C-section in the recovery, the midwife just pulled my gown down and said "your baby hasn't eaten for hours, you need to start breastfeeding". And just put her on. 'It continued that way, having really awful care if you could call it care' she went into renal failure after her twins were delivered by caesarean section, and five days after the birth, the scar from the surgery completely disintegrated. 'Nobody treated the fact that my insides were now on the outside,' she said. 'They stuck a sanitary towel over my abdomen and left me there for ten days until eventually I became gravely ill again.' In her evidence Ms McGrath, who is now chairwoman of the Birth Trauma Association, said: 'I would have somebody holding a blood pressure cuff taking my blood pressure and on their phone giggling and texting with the other hand. 'I was in for such a long time and some of the staff would come and get in my room and talk about other patients unkindly and talk about other staff members unkindly.' Divina Johnson, from Erdington in Birmingham, today also told how she though she was 'going to die' giving birth on the NHS. The mum-of-three from Erdington in Birmingham, had a normal first pregnancy and assumed when her waters broke at 41 weeks in 2016, that labour would be the same. Instead, it was the 'most terrifying experience' of her life after a nurse wrongly administered an epidural and she was berated by midwives. She also claimed she felt reduced to a 'vessel that had a baby'. She told ITV's Good Morning Britain: 'I thought I was going to die. I had an epidural done incorrectly by an anesthetist who was over her shift.' 'She then laughed at me when I was in the foetal position and couldn't move and said "people don't normally act that way when I give them an epidural".' After it was removed, the pain 'immediately went away which let me know that something had gone wrong', she added. After nearly two days in labour, she was given a caesarean section. 'After my C-section in the recovery, the midwife just pulled my gown down and said "your baby hasn't eaten for hours, you need to start breastfeeding". And just put her on. 'It continued that way, having really awful care if you could call it care.' Ms Clarke, who pushed for the inquiry after revealing in Parliament that she felt she was going to die after giving birth in 2022, told The Times: 'We have listened to mums carefully and applaud their bravery in coming forward, sometimes with horrific testimony of how the system failed them and the mental, physical and economic cost of that failure' Rachael McGrath, from Cheshire, believed she was bleeding to death when she was taken to hospital with an abrupted placenta. Her twins were born requiring resuscitation and survived, but 'impersonal' care and being met with what she felt was sarcasm or hostility when asking for help left her traumatised Katie Fowler lost her daughter, Abigail Fowler Miller, at only two days old in January 2022, after the maternity unit at the Royal Sussex County Hospital wrongly assured her over the phone that it was fine for her to stay at home when she went into labour Meanwhile, Katie Fowler lost her daughter, Abigail Fowler Miller, at only two days old in January 2022, after the maternity unit at the Royal Sussex County Hospital wrongly assured her over the phone that it was fine for her to stay at home when she went into labour. Over four separate phone calls, Ms Fowler reported bleeding, becoming faint and suffering shortness of breath. It was only after the fourth, that midwives said it was probably a panic attack and told the couple to make their own way to hospital. But in the taxi she went into cardiac arrest after a uterine rupture, when the muscular wall of the uterus tears. Ms Fowler gave birth to Abigail by emergency caesarean in a hospital waiting room and required life-saving emergency surgery. She spent two days in an induced coma and was able to meet her daughter but Abigail died in her parents' arms later that day. An inquest into Abigails death found if Ms Fowler had been given better care by the maternity team, Abigail would have survived for 'significantly longer'. Responding to the report's release she said: 'The Birth Trauma Inquiry report is so important because it highlights that poor maternity care, and with it devastating consequences for mothers and families, is widespread across England, rather than just a few shocking cases or badly performing Trusts. 'The themes of mums not being listened to and of hospitals not being willing to recognise mistakes are familiar to me and I don't believe it is simply a case of hiring more midwives to solve these systemic issues. 'Better mental health care for those that have suffered birth trauma is paramount, but our aim should be to stop trauma occurring in the first place.' The report's publication today also follows a litany of maternity failures including Shrewsbury and Telford and East Kent NHS Trusts, with a record number of services now failing to meet safety standards. Some 201 babies and nine mothers died needlessly during a two-decade spell at Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust. In a landmark 250-page report, investigators who probed the failures cited an obsession with 'normal births'. Women were encouraged to have vaginal deliveries, often when a caesarean would have been a safer option, to keep surgery rates low. Katie Wilkins' baby girl Maddison was stillborn in February 2013 at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital after midwives left her in a side room for 48 hours and failed to properly monitor her. A March 2022 probe into Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Trust found that 300 babies had died or been left brain-damaged due to 'repeated errors in care' Sarah and Tom Richford with their son Harry who died seven days after he was born in November 2017 at the Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Hospital in Margate. East Kent Hospitals admitted failing to provide safe care for the mother and baby and was fined 733,000 in 2021. A 2022 probe into the trust revealed dozens of babies and mothers died or were injured during childbirth A similar scandal at Morecambe Bay NHS trust also referenced the dangers of fixating on natural or 'normal' births. The 2015 inquiry, which found 11 babies and one mother suffered avoidable deaths, ruled a group of midwives overzealously pursued natural childbirth and that 'led at times to inappropriate and unsafe care'. Katie Wilkins' baby girl died at Shrewsbury Hospital after midwives left her in a side room for 48 hours and failed to properly monitor her. Miss Wilkins was 15 days overdue when she arrived at the hospital to be induced in February 2013. There were no beds available on the busy labour ward and Miss Wilkins, claimed she was 'forgotten' in the room for two days and visited by staff just a handful of times. When a midwife did come to check on her progress they realised her babys heartbeat could not be found. Maddie was delivered stillborn in the early hours of the following day. Hospital bosses later admitted the baby would have been born alive had they treated her in a more 'timely' manner. Donna Ockenden, the senior midwife asked by the government and NHS England to investigate serious maternity scandals including Shrewsbury and Telford Hospitals NHS Trust, today backed Ms Clarke's inquiry. She said the report 'highlights the extent of the problem we know exists across maternity services in the UK' She added she had given the government a 'clear blueprint and roadmap' for maternity services but 'progress has been far too slow'. A Wisconsin woman who made history after becoming the first person in the world to survive rabies without a vaccine says it is 'surreal' she is still around today. It was 20 years ago this year that Jeanna Giese was bitten by a bat as she carried it out of her local church in Wisconsin, US, where it had flown in and disrupted a service. There was no blood and the wound on her left index finger was so tiny it was barely visible, so she didn't think much of it. But three weeks later, the then 15-year-old became so tired she couldn't get out of bed, and began vomiting and seeing double-vision. Doctors diagnosed her with rabies, a disease with a 99 percent kill rate, saying the schoolgirl had only days left because she had missed the 72-hour window for the vaccine to be administered. Jeanna Giese was 15 years old when she was bitten by a rabid bat at church. She said the bite was microscopic but, within three weeks, led to her seeing double-vision and ending up in an induced coma in hospital Ms Giese survived after doctors tried something on her that had never been attempted before. In 2014, ten years after the bite in 2004, she married Scot Frassetto The couple first had twins, Carly and Connor, and then a baby boy named Tristan But then her doctor suggested they try something that had never been done before to treat the virus. Ms Giese was placed in a two-week coma to give her immune system time to fight rabies which, miraculously, worked. After spending two years in recovery where she learned to walk and talk again, Ms Giese went on to marry and become a mother of three. Revealing her life following the infection in 2004, she told CBS7: 'It's almost surreal to think, ya know, 20 years. My life changed completely when I got sick.' About 60,000 Americans are bitten by potentially rabid animals every year, which is considered a death sentence if someone doesn't get the vaccine within 72 hours. Rabies is nearly always fatal because it spreads to the brain where it causes inflammation that destroys brain cells. But in Ms Giese's case this was exactly the cycle doctors tried to break. They placed her into an induced coma to suppress brain activity and prevent this deadly build-up of inflammation. Now known as the 'Milwaukee Method', it has since been used to save at least two other patients including then eight-year-old Precious Reynolds who was scratched by a rabies-infested stray cat in 2011. On the day that changed her life, Ms Giese went to pick up a bat in church that had been flying around during the service before being swatted down. While the animal-lover was carrying it outside, however, the animal reached over and sink its fangs into her third index finger on her left hand. There was some blood and it 'hurt a lot', Ms Giese said, but once they cleaned the wound the mark was virtually microscopic. Ms Giese was in an induced coma for two weeks, but when she came back she was 'like a baby' and had to spend two years relearning how to walk, talk and care for herself She is pictured above in a wheelchair during her recovery process at home in Wisconsin Ms Giese said doctors had warned that when she went into the treatment there was a risk she could end up 'like a vegetable' Her mother cleaned the wound with hydrogen peroxide an antiseptic and then the family moved on with their lives. But three weeks later, Ms Giese suddenly became so tired she couldn't get out of bed, had double vision and started vomiting regularly. Her parents rushed her to a nearby hospital, where doctors tested her for a range of diseases including meningitis and Lyme disease but all came back negative. She was then transferred to the Children's Hospital of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, where doctors 'turned white' when her parents said she had a bat bite about a month ago. Samples were sent to the CDC for testing which quickly revealed that she had rabies. Dr Rodney Willoughby, a pediatric physician at the hospital specializing in infectious diseases, said: 'Well, I thought she was going to die. 'That's what they all did, that's about the extent of my knowledge of rabies at the time was that there wasn't much to do. It's really 100 percent fatal.' It was then that Dr Willoughby suggested testing something that had never been tried before, with the parents saying yes eager to save their daughter. She was placed in a coma for 14 days, and when she woke up the virus was gone but she was like a 'newborn baby' and had to relearn everything again. Ms Giese added: 'I was basically a newborn baby at the age of 15. I couldn't do anything. 'The road to recovery was very long and painful. [But] I didn't quit. I guess it's personal stubbornness.' Ms Giese now also works at a Children's Museum (pictured). She reveals her story to raise awareness of treatments for rabies for those who haven't got a vaccine Ms Giese revealed her story again 20 years after her first brush with the disease Dr Rodney Willoughby, pictured, suggested the experimental method to treat the disease Ms Giese was in hospital for another nine weeks and then spent two years attending outpatient therapy. Learning to walk again took two months. At the time, she quickly became a global news sensation as the first person to have ever survived rabies. She then went back to school before graduating and, in 2014, married her husband Scot Frassetto. The pair had twins in March 2016, named Carly and Connor, and then a baby boy in 2018, named Tristan. Ms Giese is now raising her family while also working at the Children's Museum of Fond du Lac in central Wisconsin. Speaking about her experience to The Guardian late last year, she added: 'A few other people have since recovered from rabies using the same method. 'While not every case has had the same positive outcome, it is incredible that there is now a chance of surviving a disease once considered fatal without a vaccination. 'I am overjoyed to know that I helped pave the way for that change.' Terrified clergy members hid behind an altar when a 16-year-old boy with a gun disrupted a Louisiana church during a First Communion ceremony and was confronted by parishioners and arrested by police. The stunning scene was caught on camera during a livestream of the Saturday morning service at St. Mary Magdalen Church in Abbeville, about 125 miles west of New Orleans. Witnesses said the teen was dressed in black and carrying a rifle when he tried to enter the Catholic church, where 60 children were making their first Holy Communion, local TV station KADN reported. The Rev. Nicholas Dupre was about 45 minutes minutes into leading the service when a man approached the altar and whispered into his ear, KADN said. Dupre then told worshippers to sit and began leading them in recitations of the Hail Mary prayer. But after screams and shouts erupted at the rear of the church, Dupre and two other clergy members crouched behind the altar as a police officer with a rifle emerged. "We did apprehend a young man," an officer later told the crowd. "He is in custody. Calm down and get next to your child and just go slowly." The disturbing incident took place less than a week after another gunman allegedly tried to kill the pastor of the Jesus' Dwelling Place church in North Braddock, Pennsylvania, outside Pittsburgh, as he delivered a sermon on May 5. "He pulled the gun; it clicked," the Rev. Glenn Germany said afterward. "God jammed the gun so the bullet didn't come out." In a statement posted on Facebook, Abbeville Police Chief Mike Hardy said the department received a call around 10:35 a.m. about a suspicious person with a gun at the Louisianna church who was "confronted by parishioners and escorted outside." "Upon arrival, officers arrested the suspect and placed him in custody," Hardy wrote. No one was injured and Abbeville officers and deputies from the Vermilion Parish Sheriff's Office swept the church to make sure there were no additional threats. The unidentified teen was questioned by police in the presence of a parent and was taken for evaluation at the Abbeville General Hospital's behavioral unit, Hardy said. The boy is being charged with terrorizing and two counts of possession of a firearm by a juvenile, Hardy said. In a statement, St. Mary Magdalen Church said the incident "understandably caused panic," and said it was "incredibly grateful to both parishioners and police officers for acting quickly to ensure the safety of all." Bishop J. Douglas Deshotel of the Diocese of Lafayette also said: "The quick response of the Abbeville Police Department and alert parishioners is a great example of caring for the most vulnerable in our community. Let us pray for an end to all threats of violence to innocent human life." First, Dr Donna J Cross saw Alzheimers rob her grandmother of her independence, personality, and ultimately her life. Now the disease has taken hold of her father-in-law's brain, who now faces the same slow and heartbreaking decline. It may be too late for them, but Dr Cross wants to save the millions more diagnosed with the mind-wasting disease. She believes she's on the cusp of a breakthrough after a repurposed cancer drug caused the 'complete reversal' of cognitive decline in mice with Alzheimer's. This is my passion. It started out personal to me; it still is, extremely so,' said Dr Cross. Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia and an estimated 6 million Americans have it Dozens of drugs to slow cognitive decline in dementia over the past decade have failed to show a real benefit. Researchers have turned to well-established drugs in the hopes of leveraging what's already available to bring a viable Alzheimer's treatment to patients as soon as possible. Dr Cross honed in on Paclitaxel, a chemotherapy drug that was approved by the FDA in 1992. It works by binding to a protein that makes up the support structures of the cells that help them divide and spread. By shoring up those structures, the drug is able to stop cells from dividing into two new cells, which is how cancer grows. The drug also activates certain pathways that end up killing off damaged cells. Dr Donna Cross discovered that a chemotherapy drug reversed cognitive decline in mice with Alzheimer's disease Research by Dr Cross over the past decade has shown it can also bolster the structures of neurons that can be damaged over time as Alzheimer's disease progresses. The big breakthrough when she administered the drug up the noses of mice with Alzheimer's. The drug caused a complete reversal of their cognitive deficit, according to Deseret News. The finding was a major win for Dr Cross and fellow researchers, especially given the lengthy trail of failed drugs that targeted a long-accepted hallmark of Alzheimer's. Zeroing in on a well-established cancer drug could usher in a new wave of already-approved drugs to treat the disease in a far shorter period of time than it would take to develop a novel drug, that might not even end up working, from scratch. Dr Cross said: Whether that would happen in humans, we have a lot of work still to do, adding that if it did, It would be huge. We would treat not just Alzheimers, but also any kind of dementia: ALS, Parkinsons, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injury, any kind of condition where nerve cells are dying. GOT A HEALTH-RELATED STORY? EMAIL: Health@dailymail.com Advertisement She would need to create a version of the drug that could cross the human blood-brain barrier (BBB), which is no easy feat. The BBB is a network of blood vessels and tissue that serves as a protective layer lining the inside of the brain, shielding it from toxic substances. Many medicines cant cross this protective layer around the human brain, a significant obstacle for cancer drugs, for instance. But Dr Cross discovered that administering the drug up the nose was effective at crossing the BBB in mice, and would presumably do the same in humans. The next step is to prepare the drug for clinical trials, an expensive undertaking with a potentially priceless return on investment. She said: 'Even though its too late for my grandmother and likely too late for my father-in-law, its not too late for vast, vast numbers of people in the world, thats why we have to keep moving forward.' She earned her doctorate in neuroscience at the University of Michigan in pursuit of a cure. She then went to the University of Washington and finally to the University of Utah, where she currently heads the neuroimaging and biotechnology laboratory. The above graph shows how the death rate from Alzheimer's disease has risen in the United States. This may be linked to more older people living longer Thats where Dr Jindrich (Henry) Kopecek and Dr Jiyuan (Jane) Yang came in. Both chemists at the university had offices situated next door to that of Dr Cross, who had been placed there simply because there was space. She began a collaboration with them to develop the drug and get it ready for clinical trials. Dr Cross said: These guys are rock stars. I came to them as a brain person who was interested in treating neurological conditions, and they are the drug developer/drug delivery people. Its a collaboration that is very strong because of our different areas of expertise. An estimated six million Americans have Alzheimers, most of whom are 65 or older. Currently, there is no cure for Alzheimers, though there are treatments that can delay disease progression. Its believed to stem from the build-up of sticky proteins in the brain called beta amyloid. A brain stricken with Alzheimers overproduces the precursor proteins that generate amyloid beta, which come in abnormal shapes that clump together into clusters. These clusters disrupt normal neuronal function and disrupt cell signaling pathways, eventually killing cells. But drugs targeting amyloid have failed repeatedly, showing minor benefit while also raising the risk of brain bleeds, calling into question the general orthodoxy about what causes Alzheimer's and how best to halt its progress in killing off brain cells. Dr Cross will present her research at the Alzheimers & Caregiving Education Conference this week. READ MORE: FDA announce urgent recall of candy brand over salmonella risk A variety of popular sweets have been recalled in California due to concerns about contamination with deadly bacteria. Yogurt covered pretzels sold in major regional stores including Gelson's, Down Home Goods, Thorp Fruit and Smart and Final are thought to carry traces of salmonella - a deadly foodborne bacteria that affects 1.3 million Americans every year. The potentially harmful sweet snacks are produced by both the stores themselves and the confectionary firm, First Street. No illnesses have been reported. The announcement, by the FDA, comes days after Iowa-based Palmer Candy Company urgently recalled its 'White Coated Confectionary Items' due to salmonella risk. The affected products were sold at Gelson's stores in California under the same brand name They were also sold under the First Street brand name The candied pretzels are covered in a sweet yogurt coating that appears white and is packaged in clear tubs. GOT A HEALTH-RELATED STORY? EMAIL: health@dailymail.com Advertisement The company was made aware of the risk via a routine sampling program by the yogurt coating supplier. This revealed that the finished products contained salmonella bacteria. Salmonella is caused by eating foods contaminated with animal feces. It typically causes diarrhea, fever, and stomach cramps that begin six hours to six days after initial infection, according to the CDC. Most people recover within days, though the illness is responsible for more than 26,000 hospitalizations and 400 deaths a year. Western Mixers Produce & Nuts has stopped production and distribution of affected products while the company and the FDA investigate. Health officials urge those with affected products to discard them. Millions of Britons should be prescribed weight-loss jabs to slash their chances of heart attack and stroke, cardiologists said yesterday. The biggest study yet on Ozempic and Wegovy found their key ingredient was a 'game-changer' for heart patients, including those who did not lose weight. It found the weekly shot cut by a fifth their risk of further heart attacks or death. Britain's top cardiologist said it was the most significant development in heart disease since statins in the 1990s and would 'change clinical practice'. John Deanfield of University College London said the study proved semaglutide was more than an obesity drug because it 'targets the underlying biology of chronic diseases'. The findings suggest it could be used to treat everything from cancer to kidney disease. Millions of people should be routinely prescribedN Ozempic weight loss jabs to slash their chances of heart attack and stroke. Pictured: A person uses a Semaglutide pen to deliver an Ozempic injection The biggest study yet on Ozempic and Wegovy found their key ingredient was a 'game-changer' for heart patients, including those who did not lose weight Wegovy and Ozempic work by triggering the body to produce a hormone called GLP-1 that is released naturally from the intestines after meals Professor Deanfield told the European Congress on Obesity in Venice: 'In the 90s when statins came in, we finally figured out that there was a class of drugs that would change the biology of this disease. 'That was a major breakthrough to transform cardiology practice. 'We now have a class of drugs that could equally transform many chronic diseases of ageing. 'We're starting to see with this class of drugs that cardiovascular diseases maybe other diseases we're going to hear about in the next few months get better with this drug. There will be a lot of people who will benefit.' The discovery is set to transform how the NHS treats heart disease with the new class of drugs known as GLP-1 agonists likely to be prescribed by the end of the decade. Experts said they could be dished out to patients in the same way statins or blood pressure pills are given now. Around eight million Britons have heart disease, which the British Heart Foundation estimates costs the economy 25billion a year. The landmark SELECT trial involved 17,604 adults diagnosed with heart problems who were overweight or obese from 41 countries, who took semaglutide medication over three years. Given once weekly at the same dose as Wegovy, the jab was found to have the same heart health benefits to patients, regardless of their weight. Your browser does not support iframes. The proportion of Brits overweight or obese has slowly grown over time, rising to two thirds as of 2021, the latest data available. No data was recorded for 2020 the year of the Covid pandemic This chart shows the mortality rate for cardiovascular disease in the under 75s in England (blue bars) which is the number of deaths per 100,000 people as well as sheer number of deaths (red line). Medical breakthroughs and advanced screening techniques helped lower these figures from 2004, but progress began to stall in the early 2010s before reversing in the last few years of data The group who took it, rather than a placebo, had a 20 per cent lower risk of heart attack, stroke or death from heart disease, and typically lost around 10 per cent of their body weight. This effect was seen regardless of weight loss, suggesting the drugs target an underlying biological mechanism such as inflammation, which is linked to chronic diseases including cancer. READ MORE: Growing numbers of patients are being left disfigured or disabled after taking Ozempic Advertisement Doctors believe this could be due to mechanisms such as improvements to blood sugar, blood pressure or inflammation, as well as direct effects on the heart muscle and blood vessels. Professor Deanfield, who is the Government's champion for personalised prevention, said he would be recommending it to ministers, adding that its use would have to be approved by regulators. About half of his heart disease patients have a body mass index above 27, putting them in the overweight category, and would benefit from semaglutide, he said. Semaglutide could be prescribed as an additional treatment for heart problems alongside statins and blood pressure medication, with almost all of those in the trial already taking statins. The professor added: 'There's much less resistance, I would argue, to these drugs than there is to still taking statins. This is a real change in the way we help with a range of diseases, chronic diseases, which currently the NHS doesn't treat very well. 'This fantastic trial really is a game-changer.' Three Semaglutide pens containing Ozempic, which was initially used to treat type 2 diabetes before later being repurposed as the weight loss drug A social media user posts the results of her drastic weight loss. Mani Ragbir, president of BAPRAS says: 'Excess skin is not simply a nuisance, it can result in severe and even life-threatening infections' Manufactured by Novo Nordisk, semaglutide is the first in a new generation of anti-obesity drugs which work to suppress appetite by mimicking the hormone GLP-1. Known as Ozempic, it was initially used to treat type 2 diabetes before being repurposed as the weight loss drug, Wegovy, which is given at a higher dose. Leading scientists believe the benefits of the drug extend beyond weight loss, with trials ongoing into illnesses including Parkinson's and kidney disease. Heart disease is one of the UK's biggest killers, causing 68,000 deaths and more than 250,000 hospital admissions each year. Professor Jason Halford, president of the European Association for the Study of Obesity, says the new research highlights how GLP-1 drugs will transform medical treatment over the next decade. He added: 'In the next ten years we'll see a radical change in the approach to healthcare.' 'Once the costs come down then the cost savings to the NHS will be significant. 'There are already people in the Treasury thinking about the savings to the economy because of the opportunity to boost productivity. You need to get your workforce as fit as possible.' Rates are particularly higher in older demographics, with as few as 27 per cent of 45-54-year old's in England at a healthy weight While the nation as a whole is too fat, rates are higher in certain groups with Brits living in more deprived areas, lower qualification, of Black ethnicity or disabled more likely to be struggling with their weight Alarming data published revealed that premature deaths from cardiovascular problems, such as heart attacks and strokes, have hit their highest level in more than a decade. But the burden is not being felt equally across the UK. MailOnline revealed in January this year that heart death rates among under-75s are up to three times higher in cities like Glasgow, Manchester and Blackpool than in Rutland. Early heart deaths had tumbled since the 60s thanks to plummeting smoking rates, advanced surgical techniques and breakthroughs such as stents and statins. But six decades of progress have been reversed by the toll of obesity, diabetes and undiagnosed high blood pressure. Long waits for tests and treatment are also fuelling the problem, as are the knock-on effects of the Covid pandemic and recent industrial action by medics. British Heart Foundation analysis showed Glasgow City saw the highest death rate from cardiovascular disease between 2018 and 2020. Some 136.4 people out of every 100,000 died from such ailments, nearly double the UK average. At the other end of the scale, Rutland in the East Midlands had the fewest deaths per 100,000 people (36.8). More than 42million adults in the UK will be overweight or obese by 2040, according to projections by Cancer Research UK HOW TO CALCULATE YOUR BODY MASS INDEX - AND WHAT IT MEANS Body mass index (BMI) is a measure of body fat based on your weight in relation to your height. Standard Formula: BMI = (weight in pounds / (height in inches x height in inches)) x 703 Metric Formula: BMI = (weight in kilograms / (height in meters x height in meters)) Measurements: Under 18.5: Underweight Underweight 18.5 - 24.9: Healthy Healthy 25 - 29.9: Overweight Overweight 30 - 39.9: Obese Obese 40+ : Morbidly obese Advertisement Meanwhile, top plastic surgeons are reporting a surge in patients seeking nip-and-tucks after rapidly losing weight on Ozempic and they warn that without these operations many would be left disfigured or even disabled. Increasing numbers of Ozempic users on social media complain of being left with gaunt facial features, sagging 'melted candle' skin, 'empty' breasts and hair loss which are not thought to be a direct side effect of the medication but a consequence of dramatic slimming. While in some cases these complications are cosmetic, experts speaking to The Mail on Sunday warn that they can often have a profound impact on health. People left with large folds of excess skin can have difficulties with basic hygiene, leading to fungal infections, sores and immobility. Due to unhappiness about their bodies, shame and embarrassment, they are also at increased risk of mental health issues such as depression and anxiety. As the numbers on weight-loss jabs spiral with the Government suggesting 35,000 Britons are currently eligible for treatment on the NHS the cost of tackling these knock-on effects could run into more than 100 million per year, according to analysis shared exclusively with this newspaper. Facial surgeons say that they're now fielding calls from post-Ozempic patients who are devastated their faces are left looking older. Celebrities have been seen looking visibly gaunt after using the slimming jabs, including former X-Factor judge Sharon Osbourne. In a recent interview she admitted that she was unhappy with her appearance and wanted to gain weight again but was unable to. Slide me Sharon Osbourne's Ozempic journey has left her finding it difficult to put weight back on. Right: Before treatment Slide me British actor and television presenter Stephen Fry has also slimmed down as a result of using a weight-loss injection. However he slammed the drug, saying it made him 'violently sick' Slide me Australian actress Rebel Wilson has admitted that Ozempic played a part in her dramatic weight loss in recent years Jaime French, 33, started taking Ozempic in November 2022 to lose weight and prevent diabetes. However, it led to 'agonising' pain and diarrhoea Similarly, Jaime French, a 33-year-old internet personality, last month revealed that she suffered a diarrhoea 'storm' and 'absolute agony' while taking Ozempic. And the worst part about it? She didn't lose any weight. Recent reports have suggested that Ozempic has been linked to a slew of digestive issues. This is because the drug mimics the hormone GLP-1, which causes food to stay in the stomach longer and signal to the body that it's full. In many cases, this has been linked to gastroparesis, or stomach paralysis. Additionally, Ozempic can change the way the body absorbs certain nutrients, which experts say leads to diarrhoea. By the time I set out to find my Irish birth mother back in 2008, she was already 83, and I was 48. I hadnt searched for her earlier because I was afraid of upsetting Betty Pierce, my lovely mum whod adopted me when I was three and changed my name from Patrick to Andrew. After I tracked her down we had our first meeting in more than 45 years, in the BHS cafe in Birmingham not far from her home. It was a strange encounter because shed claimed to have no memory of my birth, my early years, not even the man she had identified as my father in my adoption file which I found impossible to believe. But she opened her arms for a hug, kissed me on the lips, thanked me for making my day, my week, in fact my life and promised to see me again soon. A few months later, as I was about to turn 49, it struck me that my birthday must bring back painful memories for her. After all, how could she forget the horror of giving birth to me in a soulless hospital in Bristol, 100 miles from where she lived and worked as a nurse? Or the weeks shed spent just before and after my arrival under the harsh regime of a Catholic home for fallen women? By the time I set out to find my Irish birth mother Margaret, pictured, back in 2008 she was already 83, and I was 48 Id certainly thought of her on every birthday from my teens onwards, making a silent prayer for her wellbeing and hoping she was no longer tortured by the choices shed felt compelled to make. So I was almost certain shed be in touch when I turned 49. On the day, however, there was no card or phone call. Rather rashly, I called Margaret myself that evening, saying: Its a special date today. Do you recall what it is? There was a long pause before she said: No, Im afraid I dont. Tell me. Its my birthday, I said. Surely you must remember that I was born on February 10, 1961? There was another pause, then she exclaimed: Is that so? Well, happy birthday, Andrew. I was flustered. Margaret, I said softly. Dont you remember? You gave birth to me on that day in Bristol. She halted again before replying: Oh yes, I know. It was me. But I had forgotten when it happened. At least she seemed touched when I said Id thought about her for many years on my birthday. Well, thats a nice thing to know, she said. To think that you were thinking about me especially when neither of us knew anything about each other. I asked if we could arrange a second meeting. Oh, yes, she said. Yes, you deserve that. According to my adoption file, Margaret Connollys story veered wildly from the norm. Instead of becoming pregnant in her teens, like many other Irish girls of her time, shed been a mature woman of 34. After my birth, shed placed me in a Catholic orphanage in Cheltenham, telling the nuns she was getting married a few months later and would reclaim me then. She never did, but continued to visit me at the orphanage, and refused to release me for adoption until I was nearly three. Shed never told a soul, not even her late husband or a priest, about my existence. And, of course, beyond acknowledging me as her son, she couldnt or wouldnt tell me anything about our shared past. My reappearance in Margarets life, I realised, must have been a seismic shock. I needed to proceed slowly, so I kept in touch by writing the odd cheery letter and occasionally giving her a call. My reappearance in Margarets life, pictured, I realised, must have been a seismic shock. I needed to proceed slowly, so I kept in touch by writing the odd cheery letter and occasionally giving her a call She was always friendly, but never asked me anything about my life. Instead, shed chat away about her late husband, Patrick Lennon whom she married while I was still in the orphanage her three children, six grandchildren, little dog and daily visits to church. Then one day she asked me to stop writing to her. Her short note said: I worry that if the good Lord takes me in the night, my children might find one of your letters. They might suspect something. I hope you dont mind? On my way to our second meeting, I bought chocolates and a bunch of flowers. I also called Margaret on my mobile, while on the train from London to Birmingham. Oh, yes, she said. Ill be there at 11am. As I approached Birmingham New Street station, I rehearsed all the questions I wanted to ask. I never got the chance: after waiting for Margaret at BHS for a soul-destroying 80 minutes, I realised she wasnt coming. Nor was she answering her phone. Had something terrible happened? When I finally reached her a few days later on the phone, she explained casually: I had to help out with my little grandchild. I should have called you. Sorry. However, she did add: I said last time that Id see you and I meant it. So thats all right, I thought. Perhaps shed merely mislaid my number. But it happened again. And again. Each time, I called her an hour or so before my arrival to check she really was coming. Each time, there was no sign of her. And afterwards there were belated excuses: the first that one of her sons had turned up for a cup of tea, the second that shed had to take her dog to the vet. It now seemed increasingly likely that I wasnt going to have any kind of relationship with my birth mother at all. Then one day she asked me to stop writing to her. Her short note said: I worry that if the good Lord takes me in the night, my children might find one of your letters' Back in London, I had a long conversation with an old friend, Father Dermot Power. He made a surprising suggestion: why didnt he just turn up on her doorstep? As a devout Catholic, Margaret would be happy to talk to a priest. So Father Dermot called on her, while I waited at a nearby cafe. She was very friendly, and volunteered to walk over to the cafe in ten minutes to meet me. Father Dermot joined me, and we waited. And waited. A neighbour later told us shed seen Margaret speedily walking off in the opposite direction. Clearly, she had no intention of ever seeing her first-born again. I feel sure she was haunted by the idea that her other children might somehow discover her guilty secret. And each time she stood me up, Im quite sure she prayed for forgiveness in church the next day. Frankly, I was heartbroken. Had Margaret deliberately set out to hurt me, purely to deter me from ever coming to see her again? Father Dermot told me it was important to move on. Its obvious Margaret has rejected you all over again, Andrew, so Patrick will be badly hurt, he said, referring to the name Id borne until I was three. Trust me. You need help to deal with it. Id always prided myself on being emotionally resilient, but Margarets rejection had left me feeling troubled. So it was that at the age of almost 50, I found myself agreeing to go into counselling for the first time in my life. Father Peter Burrows, another priest, was also a well-known psychotherapist with extensive experience of working with the adopted. He told me he didnt think Andrew the man I was now was feeling insecure; it was Patrick, the little boy Margaret had given away. He told me he didnt think Andrew the man I was now was feeling insecure; it was Patrick, the little boy Margaret had given away In his view, the four times shed failed to meet me had caused feelings of rejection buried deep for decades to come crashing back up to the surface. He even had a name for this: Deprivation Syndrome. At age two and a half, he said, I would have been deeply hurt when my mother, the only visitor who came to see me at the orphanage, abruptly stopped coming four months before I met the couple who later adopted me. Sometimes, my sessions with Father Peter were very painful. He unlocked memories I thought Id forgotten like how I used to wonder if it was my fault my birth mother had given me away. Or how I used to scan faces in crowds, searching for one similar to mine. Id had the most loving of adoptive parents, yet even they couldnt scrub out the pain of those crucial early years some of it physical. My mum Betty had once said my legs were in a terrible state when she took me home, full of red weals and sores, but I didnt know what had caused them. Sometimes I became overwhelmed by the therapy sessions, almost choking from the large lump in my throat. Maybe, I found myself thinking, Margaret really had managed to bury all her memories, as a protection mechanism. Was it possible Id done something similar? Eventually, Father Peter suggested trying regressive therapy essentially putting me under hypnosis so he could try to take my unconscious mind back to the orphanage. As he counted down and encouraged me to breathe slowly while gazing at a crystal, I drifted into a deep sleep. Suddenly I found myself in a dark and imposing building, so large it could have been built for giants. Was I looking at it from the perspective of a toddler? The scene changed abruptly to having my hair washed at my adoptive parents home in Swindon. Leaning over the kitchen sink for a cold-water rinse, I recalled, always made me scream blue murder. When Father Peter pressed me on this, I found myself transported back to the orphanage again. I could hear a child crying and knew instinctively it was me. There was cloth a sheet? wound so tightly round my legs that I couldnt move them, and the strong smell of urine. (This I discovered later was a method used by some Nazareth House orphanages to discourage bed-wetting.) Then I appeared to be shivering in an icy cold bath, held down by strong hands. Pictured: Ann Cornish (Nanna) with Shirley, Susan, Chris and Andrew Did being wrapped in urine-soaked sheets explain the dreadful sores on my legs? Ive been told since that for many months after leaving the orphanage, I continued to wet the bed and would wake up screaming in fear. And when I later told my adoptive sister about the regressive therapy, she had more to add. When you first came to us and used to sit on the loo, the door had to be kept open. You told us the nuns used to shut you in the cupboard, she said. If you were sick at night, you were sick in the bed. Always in the bed. You were probably in a cot in the orphanage with high sides. You wouldnt have been able to get out. Did the nuns leave me in the cot overnight when Id wet the bed or been sick? Was that part of my punishment? I attended the counselling sessions for about a year and found them helpful. And there was at least one positive, I discovered, to being rejected at such a young age. As Father Peter put it: A well-known consequence of social deprivation can be the need to compensate for the loss of love and affection early on in childhood by becoming an almost unbearable show-off. Its known to be the classic behaviour of an adopted child with Deprivation Syndrome: hell do everything he can to be noticed. Father Peter grinned as he added: Thats why Im not a bit surprised that youre a well-known journalist and broadcaster, Andrew. Its a perfect choice for someone wanting to make their voice heard. Who was my birth father? From two official forms Margaret had signed in my adoption file, I knew his name was James Coffey and that hed died in a road traffic accident in 1961, barely a month after Id entered the orphanage. From two official forms Margaret had signed in my adoption file, I knew my birth father's name was James Coffey and that hed died in a road traffic accident in 1961, barely a month after Id entered the orphanage I also knew hed been a single Irish engineer living in Birmingham, and that bizarrely Margaret hadnt named him as my father until a good two years after my birth. So I started digging. First I obtained his death certificate, which said he was a pipe-layer, not an engineer as Margaret had claimed. Then I found a newspaper report of the fatal accident, in which a van collided with a lorry then swerved into a group of men on the pavement. One of these men, Michael Kilmartin, was still alive at 87. When I phoned him out of the blue one day, he said hed been standing next to Jimmy when he was killed. Theyd both been building labourers, waiting for a lift to take them to work. But thered never been any mention of a girlfriend or a baby, he said Believe me, I worked closely with Jimmy for three years, so I think hed have told me. Later, I tracked down two of Jimmys nieces and his youngest brother, who said more or less the same thing. Strangely, when I met one of the nieces with her brother, they both exclaimed I was the spitting image of their dad Patrick the brother of my supposed father. In 2023, I went to County Galway to look into Jimmys family background and met one of his friends. Again, hed never heard of a girlfriend or baby, but said I definitely looked like a member of the Coffey family yet not like my father. I was now seriously flummoxed. Was I really Jimmy Coffeys son? Or had Margaret been involved with his brother Patrick? Or were both red herrings? Recently I handed over my adoption file to a distinguished priest to see what he made of it. When he came to the part about Jimmys death, not long after I was born, he said: Oh, dear its one of those. A toe-tag father. No. No, hes not your father. Look. Ive seen this so many times. The priests, the nuns, the church and often the doctors, all connive to give the unmarried Catholic mother a toe-tag father. An identity toe-tag, it turned out, is what used to be attached to a dead mans foot. And these convenient corpses were often named as the fathers of illegitimate babies, without any relatives being the wiser. This made adoptions easier, as there was no father to track down for his consent. The church did it again and again. Im well aware of it, said the priest. Frankly, I suspect that in your case, the doctor who arranged this might even prove to be your true birth father, who was almost certainly married. I flew to Ireland to visit the tiny village in County Mayo where shed grown up according to her in a large farmhouse. It turned out to be a two-roomed basic house, without electricity, gas or running water Intriguingly, Jimmys body had been taken to the hospital in Birmingham where Margaret was training as a district nurse. So she might well have concocted the toe-tag plot herself. If so, it was no wonder she was claiming total amnesia for anything related to my birth father. While I was in the therapists chair, there was effectively no contact with Margaret. After that, I started phoning occasionally, just to see if she was OK, but refrained from asking for another meeting. I knew in my heart she was never going to suggest it. She usually chatted about Bobby, her little dog, and of course, her local church. At some point in every call, shed always say the same thing: You have a lovely voice, Andrew. I would know your voice anywhere. I wanted to ask if I sounded like Jimmy Coffey, but resisted the urge to do so. Then, in 2013, I learned through one of her neighbours that Margaret was suffering from Alzheimers and had moved to a nursing home. Told that she welcomed visitors, I turned up one day with my friend Amanda Platell, the Daily Mail columnist. Wed agreed that if we were ever asked, our cover story would be that Amandas Aunty Dee had once worked with Margaret as a nurse. The staff, however, hardly bothered to check our credentials. They also mentioned that Margarets children were regular visitors. I fought a wild impulse to say: Well, Im her child, too. Upstairs, Margaret was chatting and laughing with other residents. Her face lit up when she saw us. In truth, Id only really had one mum and dad Betty and George Pierce whod risked upsetting the balance of their happy family by adopting a lost soul As we walked to a side room, she instinctively linked arms with me. And as we talked, she stared intently up into my eyes, reaching up repeatedly to stroke my face. We seemed to have a powerful connection, far more significant than anything Id experienced with her at our previous meeting and she barely glanced at Amanda. Alzheimers had cancelled all Margarets previous caution and fear, not to mention her Catholic guilt. Totally at ease now, she no longer knew why shed had to protect her secrets so fiercely, or why shed felt the need to be so reticent with me. For my part, I realised it would be morally quite wrong to take advantage of a very confused old lady by asking her more questions. Amanda took photographs of us together the first ever and theyre now among my most treasured possessions. Later, I asked Amanda: Does she realise? Do you think she knows Im her son? With tears stinging her eyes, she said: She is certainly very happy to be with you, and theres clearly a very strong bond between you. Its obvious that Margaret can feel it even if she cant articulate it. I hoped Id at least brought my birth mother some happiness and peace, and carried on seeing her whenever I could. Her condition deteriorated until she could no longer speak, but even then, from beneath the covers her hand would emerge, groping for mine. During the Covid lockdowns I phoned regularly for updates and was told she was always cheerful. Finally, in February 2021, she died at the age of 94 13 years after our first meeting in Birmingham. I was hit by waves of sadness, but they mostly emanated from regret that Id never really got to know her. Unfortunately, she never gave me that chance. Determined to attend the funeral, I slipped discreetly with Amanda into the back of the church Margaret used to attend. I certainly had no intention of intruding on the grief of my half-siblings. I almost yelped when I looked at the order of service and saw a photo of Margaret in her twenties with the same eyes, same cheekbones, same thin angular face as my own. Towards the end of the service, the priest announced that her eldest son Peter Lennon was going to do a reading. Peter! I sat bolt upright, my stomach churning with shock. Margaret had always told me well before she had dementia that she had three children by her marriage and that Sean was the eldest. Now it seemed there were four! So my birth mother had deliberately lied to me about the existence of another son who was fair-haired and looked nothing like me. At the end of the mass, Amanda told me shed been overcome by a mad urge to march to the front of the church and announce: There are not four children of the deceased here there are five! And the firstborn is right there, at the back of the church. She didnt of course. It was just a crazy impulse, waves of which kept sweeping over her during the long service. Had Margaret lied to me about having no memories of my birth, just as shed lied by omission by never mentioning her son Peter? Some time later, I flew to Ireland to visit the tiny village in County Mayo where shed grown up according to her in a large farmhouse. It turned out to be a two-roomed basic house, without electricity, gas or running water. Her parents, Margaret had told me proudly, had been sheep farmers. In fact, theyd had barely three acres on which they raised geese, chickens and a few sheep. Another fib was that one of her brothers had been a lawyer. Why couldnt she tell me the truth? Margaret went to her grave with almost all her secrets intact, so Ill probably never know. Looking back now, I remember her as a woman who radiated Irish warmth and charm, but also as the woman whod unkindly stood me up four times. No, it was more than unkind it was cruel. Running through Margarets veins was a very single-minded streak of self-preservation. Indeed, Im fairly sure that from the moment she agreed to meet me, shed resolved never to open the Pandoras box of my early years. In truth, Id only really had one mum and dad Betty and George Pierce whod risked upsetting the balance of their happy family by adopting a lost soul. To my great good fortune, theyd been wonderful parents. So theres no bitterness. Im simply glad that Margaret gave me up otherwise there would have been no Betty and George. l Adapted from Finding Margaret: Solving The Mystery Of My Birth Mother, by Andrew Pierce (Biteback, 20) to be published May 23. To order a copy for 18 (offer valid to 25/05/24; UK P&P free on orders over 25) go to mailshop.co.uk/books or call 020 3176 2937. The American market for pharma and health products is expansive, the mark-ups generous and any multi-national which sought to ignore it might as well give up the ghost. Yet the United States also exposes corporations to regulatory and litigation banana skins. GSK's shares suffer from the overhang of Zantac, the stomach medicine, which has been claimed despite solid scientific evidence to the contrary to have caused cancer. An even bigger share price overhang faces Britain's Reckitt Benckiser. For many years Reckitt defied gravity. It demonstrated an ability to turn underperforming hygiene and consumer health assets, such as Cillit Bang and Nurofen, into super brands. However, when it moved into baby formula, with a 13billion takeover of Mead Johnson five years ago, it entered trickier territory. Baby formula, while providing nutrition, has long been regarded as controversial and a poor substitute for mother's milk and divides opinion. Tricky territory: Baby formula, while providing nutrition, has long been regarded as controversial and a poor substitute for mother's milk and divides opinion It is often the only food source available to premature babies in prenatal care units before mothers are able to produce their own milk. Plaintiffs are claiming Mead Johnson (and Abbott's baby formula) is responsible for causing the death of prenatal babies. The litigation brought by well-funded specialists was given fuel by an Illinois jury. Earlier this year it ordered Reckitt's Mead Johnson offshoot to pay $60m to the mother of a premature baby who died of an intestinal disease after being fed the Enfamil formula. The case has become a serious problem for Reckitt chief executive Kris Licht. At a time when FTSE100 shares have been advancing Reckitt's stock has declined by 30 per cent over the last year. Broker Barclays estimates that the cost of dealing with the litigation being brought against Mead Johnson still structured as a separate entity could be anything between 500m and 2billion. Suffice it to say US class action suits are a notorious lottery and the outcome unpredictable. Reckitt should have little to worry about. In most intensive care neo-natal units medical experts have no choice but to administer formula to supplement or replace mother or donor milk. GSK's battle over Zantac tells us it doesn't really matter about the underlying truth. In jury cases, even if the evidence is piecemeal, the panel is always going to be more sympathetic to the plaintiff than big corporations. The emotional pull of the death of a baby will be hard to overcome. It may not help that Reckitt has form of being careless, notably over deaths in South Korea caused by a totally unrelated malfunctioning humidifier disinfectant. Reckitt's managerial problem is how best to deal with it and restore investor confidence. One mooted solution is to hive off Mead Johnson into a separate entity. A proposal put forward by analysts at Barclays would call for Reckitt to spin off a majority stake in Mead Johnson and re-list it in the US. The numbers suggest that such a move, with Mead Johnson taking on a share of the debt, could resolve the legal overhang. The formula company generates sufficient cash flows and profits to meet potential liabilities. There are lessons to be learned from Reckitt's downfall. Transforming mergers rarely deliver the growth and dividends that the protagonists promise. A more politically aware Reckitt board should have recognised that involvement in baby formula would be fraught and carry enormous litigation risks. The price is now being paid. There is an assumption that once a bidder shows the colour of its money, the fate of the target company is settled. BHP has made two tilts at Anglo American, first with a 31billion offer and now a second 34billion approach. Both have been robustly rejected. Feedback from Anglos key investors has been negative. No one likes the conditionality of the deal which requires divestment of a minority in two Anglo ventures to the South African stock exchange. There is also uncertainty as to what happens to commodity prices between now and when a dozen regulatory authorities across the globe have their say. Whatever course BHP takes, there is now a belief that the London-listed South African miner will be gobbled up. Anglo will seek to shatter this today when it outlines a go-it-alone strategy. No deal: BHP has made two tilts at Anglo American, first with a 31bn offer and now a second 34bn approach. Both have been robustly rejected Rivals to BHP are circling. Glencore has done nothing to discourage speculation. It shares ownership of the Collahuasi copper mine in Chile with Anglo American. There is speculation that iron ore giant Rio Tinto might be tempted to enter the fray. The belief that the rolling bid bulldozer is unstoppable stems from several factors. Anglo chairman Stuart Chambers has, in the past, shown little inclination to put his shoulder to the wheel to defend UK assets from predators. Listed firms sold on his watch include Pilkington, Rexam and Cambridge-tech trailblazer Arm Holdings. Bids do act as a wake-up call to boards and management. In the 1990s, Lord Hansons tilt at ICI led to the break-up of Britains most established industrial giant which, with the help of Goldman Sachs, saw off the interloper. ICI did the splits and Britains most valuable listed company AstraZeneca was born. Anglo American, so far, looks ready for the fight. The board, together with advisers Centerview, Goldman and Morgan Stanley, has been working on a strategic plan which could release value to existing investors and keep faith with its South African heritage. One idea is to hive off its most alluring offshoot, diamond miner De Beers. Copper is the gem than Anglos competitors seek and it becomes ever more valuable. Prices are rallying and are close to a decade long high of $10,140 a tonne amid demand for green technologies. Anglo has time advantage on its side in reshaping itself, in that bids from BHP, Glencore, Rio or Canadas First Quantum would face long delays for competition approvals. There is a mixed history of mining mergers. JP Morgan reckons that Rio has wasted 43billion on poor M&A decisions. However, bids are always attractive to executives and investors because they provide a route to cashing out. It is going to require enormous determination to prosecute a go-it-alone strategy. Trading places When it comes to attracting foreign investors and trade, Paris knows how to roll out the red carpet. Its Choose France event this week, designed to bring in 14billion or so of new investment, will include champagne receptions at the Elysee Palace and other blandishments. A delegate on a recent UK trade delegation to Singapore tells a different story. When a powerful group of chief executives descended from the Government plane, it was explained that the local embassy lacked the budget to transfer them to their hotels and events. An enterprising trade adviser in the Lords found himself outside the terminal conjuring up a fleet of cars from Grab, an Uber-style car service, amid dismayed mutterings. One trusts this weeks trade assault on Saudi Arabia, led by deputy PM Oliver Dowden, will be better prepared. Unsung genius Jim Simons, who has just died, was an American mathematician and financier most people will never have heard of. Yet the academic, who turned entrepreneur at the age of 40, outshone the long-term performance of the Oracle of Omaha Warren Buffett and George Soros. Using sophisticated maths and employing scientists, his Medallion fund earned $100billion (80billion) in 30 years an average annual return of 66pc per year. At his peak his model was responsible for one third of all Wall Street trading. Who knew? Business leaders have called for a flagship scheme to get young people into work to be overhauled as the system is a 'complete waste of money'. Household names including John Lewis, Tesco and Marks & Spencer say rules around the apprenticeship levy limit them from using the funding pot, even though they pay in millions of pounds. Firms with a wage bill over 3m must pay a levy of 0.5 per cent of their annual payroll into the government fund. The money is meant to help companies, especially smaller ones, hire and train more young people. But critics argue the system is broken as it is too restrictive. For example, firms cannot fund training courses shorter than a year. Mark Selby, co-founder of restaurant chain Wahaca, branded the levy a 'complete waste of money' as the 'ridiculous' restraints mean they pay into it but cannot use it. Around 130m of potential investment in jobs goes to waste due to these limits, according to the British Retail Consortium. The group says the levy is simply an extra cost at a time when firms are already grappling with increases to property bills and wages. 'Waste of money': Firms with a wage bill over 3m must pay a levy of 0.5 per cent of their annual payroll into the government fund Speaking about the levy this month, Tesco boss Ken Murphy said: 'Despite the best intentions, I don't think it's delivering for the youth of this country. 'Businesses like ours are in a position to really influence the training and development and career of young people in this country [but] we need the money to do so.' Every year the Government takes more than 20m from Tesco but returns just under 3m for it to use on training schemes, he said. Ahead of an election this year, bosses have asked the Conservatives and Labour to put the issue on their priority lists. AO World chief executive and founder John Roberts said: 'The apprenticeship levy could be transformative for young people's futures but it's currently failing them on every metric.' Roberts highlighted that since the levy launched in 2016, there are 35 per cent fewer apprentices and over 2billion of potential apprentice funding has been returned to the Government unspent. Alongside firms such as Tesco and B&Q, AO has offered to use its levy contributions to enhance its own scheme as a trial for improving the wider system. Ceira Thom, of the John Lewis Partnership, said the scheme 'could still go further and deliver so much more' but needs to be 'much more flexible'. Asda said it can use only 27 per cent of its levy funding. A spokesman said: 'It is time for the Government to review and reform the restrictive apprenticeship funding rules, to remove any unnecessary obstacles to levy spending.' Businesses were left disappointed by a lack of action at the Budget in March. Last month M&S boss Stuart Machin called on Jeremy Hunt to reform the levy, which he said was mired by 'overly restrictive requirements and bureaucracy'. Although M&S pays 5.6m into the fund, it can use only 1.8m. A Department for Education spokesman said: 'The levy has enabled us to increase investment in apprenticeships to over 2.7billion a year by 2024-25.' The FTSE 100 closed down 18.77 points at 8414.99 - just short of its record closing high of 8433.76 hit last Friday. Among the companies with reports and trading updates today are The Very Group, Diploma, Phoenix Group and Cerillion. Read the Monday 13 May Business Live blog below. > If you are using our app or a third-party site click here to read Business Live Diploma shares were the biggest FTSE 100 riser by Monday afternoon after the technical products supplier hiked its annual guidance. The company, which sells gaskets, cables, and industrial hoses, now anticipates its turnover climbing by 16 per cent at constant currency levels for the financial year, compared to 11 per cent as previously forecast. Diploma also expects an operating margin of 20.5 per cent thanks to recent takeovers and a 'strong underlying performance'. Forecast: Diploma, which sells gaskets, cables, and industrial hoses, now anticipates its turnover climbing by 16 per cent at constant currency levels for the financial year Following this announcement, Diploma's share price jumped 5 per cent to 40.98 by early Monday afternoon, making them the strongest FTSE 100 performer. Over the past five years, the firm's shares have skyrocketed by 170 per cent on the back of consistently rising sales and earnings. In the six months ending March, the London-based firm reported turnover increased by 10 per cent to 638.3million while adjusted operating profits expanded by 14 per cent to 125.4million. Diploma was evenly bolstered by acquisitions, especially within its seals sector division, and volume-led organic growth. It has bought six businesses since last September, such as Plastic and Rubber Group, DICSA, and US-based Peerless Aerospace Fastener, which was acquired for around 236million. Trading has been further lifted by market share gains at its controls division and a robust result from its life sciences arm in Canada and Australia. Demand in the former market was supported by hospitals adopting technologies for use in the urology, gynaecology and endoscopy fields, while the latter territory was boosted by sales of genetic preconception screening. Johnny Thomson, chief executive of Diploma, said: 'Our momentum is encouraging going into the second half, underpinning our upgrade to full-year guidance.' He added: 'Diploma has a long track record of double-digit EPS [earnings per share] growth at healthy returns. Our current performance and upgrade reaffirms our confidence in delivering sustainable quality compounding.' Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: 'Supplying widgets, cables and other technical items to keep factories and laboratories operating may not set the pulses running, but it has underpinned extremely strong returns over the long term for the company. 'A big chunk of its recent growth has come from acquisitions which can ring alarm bells but crucially, this has been a key part of Diploma's successful strategy over a long period.' Anglo American has rejected a second takeover offer from BHP branding the 34billion bid highly unattractive. The London-listed mining giant said the latest proposal from its Australian rival continues to significantly undervalue the company. And Anglo bosses who last month dismissed BHPs first 31billion bid as too low and highly opportunistic will today update investors on their plans for the business to thrive on its own. The latest rejection triggered an angry response from BHP, the worlds biggest miner, which said it was disappointed Anglo had chosen not to engage with the board over the new proposal. It sets the scene for what could be a testy meeting today when BHP boss Mike Henry and his Anglo counterpart Duncan Wanblad cross paths at a mining conference in Miami. Clash: BHP boss Mike Henry, left, and his Anglo counterpart Duncan Wanblad, right, are due to cross paths at a mining conference in Miami The pair are expected to hold talks off-stage. Henry yesterday insisted the new offer is a win-win for shareholders of both companies and said he was disappointed Anglo rebuffed the bid. The revised bid would increase Anglo shareholders ownership of the combined group to 16.6 per cent from the 14.8 per cent outlined in last months offer. But the offer is still 6billion less than the 40billion analysts have said it could take to get a deal over the line. And the new proposal maintains a demand for Anglo to sell its businesses in South Africa which is seen as a major hurdle to a deal. The requirement has received a backlash from the government in Pretoria, which is Anglos second biggest shareholder. Jamie Maddock, an energy analyst at wealth manager Quilter Cheviot, said the new offer still falls some way short of reasonable expectations. It appears to overlook the superior quality and the unique characteristics of Anglos portfolio of assets, he said. Additionally, there are significant questions about the level of political support and the intricate nature of the proposed transaction. Two weeks ago, Henry made an emergency visit to South Africa in an attempt to drum up support. In demand: Australias BHP, which quit London two years ago, is eyeing Anglos coveted copper mines in Chile and Peru It was reported last week that the trip had gone some way to resolving issues, with Anglos key South African shareholders now open to a takeover offer. There has also been speculation that competitors Glencore and Rio Tinto could make bids. A deal would see Anglo leave Londons stock market amid a takeover frenzy in the City. Australias BHP, which quit London two years ago, is eyeing Anglos coveted copper mines in Chile and Peru. There is soaring demand for the metal due to its role in the energy transition and the development of artificial intelligence. Insiders have said previously that BHP would sell Anglos diamond arm De Beers, while the future of the Woodsmith mine in North Yorkshire is in doubt. Anglos board received the proposal on May 7 before rejecting it yesterday. The decision also reflects feedback from shareholders and stakeholders. Dan Coatsworth, investment analyst at AJ Bell, said BHP needs to think on its feet after Anglo brought forward the investor update to today. A Minnesota doctor accused of murdering his pharmacist wife was already calling himself a widower before he killed her, a newly unsealed search warrant suggests. Connor Bowman, 31, has been charged with first- and second-degree murder in connection with the death of Betty Bowman, a 32-year-old pharmacist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, according to authorities. He has not yet entered a plea to the charges. His defense attorney, Michael Schatz, did not immediately respond to Headlines & Global News' request for comment. Investigators allege in August 2023, Bowman, a poison control specialist, killed his wife of two years with a fatal dose of colchicine a drug typically used to treat gout, an autopsy found, the criminal complaint stated. Betty died in the hospital after experiencing heart issues, fluid in her lungs, and organ failure. But by the time Bowman allegedly slipped a deadly amount of colchicine in Betty's smoothie, he was already referring to himself as a widower on the dating app Bumble. A Google inquiry days before her death revealed Bowman allegedly searched, "is widow gender neutral," police wrote in a search warrant made public last week. "These searches, and other conversations identified so far appeared consistent with the statements provided by witnesses during the investigation, that Connor was identifying himself as a widower, even before Betty died," Rochester Police Det. Alex Kendrick wrote, according to NBC News. Within days of Betty's death, Bowman communicated with at least two women on the dating app, telling one woman that his late wife would have wanted him to move on, police said. Betty's close friend, Sarah Leeser, told investigators that a "red flag" was that "Connor had not shown any grief after Betty's death" and he had "even invited her and some other friends out for drinks" two days after she died, the warrant stated. "At the hospital, it [his reaction and behavior] was off," Leeser told NBC Wednesday. "I mean, everyone else was devastated, and he was not." Detectives allege Bowman was motivated to kill Betty for a $450,000 life insurance payout. He was arrested in October 2023, and is scheduled to appear in court in June. Shops are being forced to splash out on store detectives to protect staff because police are not interested in tackling shoplifting, the boss of Marks & Spencers had claimed. M&S chairman Archie Norman said officers offer very little help even though retail theft hit the highest level on record last year. His comments echo complaints from other bosses who claim that a lack of action from police forces effectively means shop crime is decriminalised. Household names including Tesco and Co-op have also sounded the alarm and pleaded with ministers to ensure theft and abuse of workers is taken more seriously. They have said in many cases police officers do not come out to shops when shoplifting is reported. Lack of help: M&S chairman Archie Norman said the police offers 'very little help' to tackle shoplifters even though retail theft hit the highest level on record last year Asked if the polices approach had improved, Norman told LBC radios Nick Ferrari: We get very little help from the police. We have to accept that police are not interested in this sort of crime any more. Shoplifting has risen to alarming levels since the pandemic while the cost-of-living crisis has also been seen as a catalyst for incidents. The number of shoplifting offences recorded by police swelled 37 per cent to a total of 430,104 in 2023. This was the highest since the Office for National Statistics records started in 2002. But Norman said theft at M&S is actually going down mostly because of the retailers own efforts and not those of police. The High Street stalwart has pumped cash into crime prevention measures such as store detectives and camera systems. Retailers spent a record 1.2billion on crime deterrent methods last year, according to industry group the British Retail Consortium. Responding to Normans remarks, Chief Superintendent Alex Goss, the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) lead for retail crime, said officers were committed to doing all we can to reduce thefts and pursue offenders. The NPCC worked with the Government to develop a retail crime plan last year, which was already seeing positive results, he added. Engine, the technology Starling Bank was built on, has been busy - and quietly - launching banks around the world, from Australia to Romania. Engine sells its banking technology to start-ups to launch their own digital banks. This clever move means it is expanding in a relatively risk-free way by taking a small stake in each market. The move, alongside a new boss at Starling, could help it grow internationally, an important step to a potential future Initial Public Offering. This is Money's saving and banking reporter Helen Kirrane speaks to Engine's chief executive Sam Everington about the new banks Engine is launching, how many more could launch and where. Starling Bank's technology business Engine has just launched Salt bank in Romania and is launching a second in Australia. This is Money spoke to Sam Everington, CEO of Engine Starling Bank is selling a slice of its success to banks around the world as the next phase of its growth. Last month, it launched Salt Bank in Romania. This is the first time a bank has launched using its Engine software outside of the UK. The digital challenger, a subsidiary of Banca Transylvania, was built and launched in just under 12 months. Engine is now half way through the process of launching a second bank, this time in Australia, called AMP. It is expected to launch in 2025. Sam Everington CEO of Engine: 'We know it works now. We've launched one bank and are half way through launching a second so it's not just a one off.' With two banks under his belt, Everington is confident about Engine launching more. He tells This is Money: 'We know it works now. We've launched one bank and are half way through launching a second so it's not just a one off. 'I know we can repeat it - and actually, it's a lot easier the second time.' 'Because you're taking patterns, practices technology that we've proven and even the partners, we're working with are building experience in the platform. 'So the delivery time should come in and the risk just gets lower and lower.' The new banks have a 12 month delivery window, which is rapid, but the lead time is reduced by the new banks taking Engine's patterns, practices and technology which have already been established and proven through Starling. Given this trajectory, Engine could be on track to launch a bank a year. Everington says: 'The new banks' sustainable growth is really important, it's very easy to get over ambitious with a tech company. 'If I could have designed the perfect journey, it would have been to have one bank launch, have a kind of six month gap, have another one go live, have another gap and then have another one and we have, by accident, created that. 'Given the negotiation times on these things, I don't have control over it. But now we've done two, we've got a lot more confidence in doing three, four, five, six, seven afterwards.' Salt has real ambitions to become a big bank in Romania and in the region, Everington tells This is Money. It aims to onboard 250,000 customers in one year, a target they have made a dent in having seen 100,000 sign ups in the space of two weeks. It took Starling ten months to reach this numer of sign ups. Salt aims to have 1million customers in three years. Visually, the new banks appear similar to Starling, but the new banks have control over how they look like and which of Starling's features they will have. It is about a 75 per cent split between Starling features and 25 per cent new bank features. This takes time and risk out of the launch process. Look familiar? Romanian bank Salt launched this year using Starling Bank's software from Engine 'Real interest from all over the world' Now that Engine has had the lie of the land in Europe and Australia, it is in talks with banks in Europe and has set its sights on Asia Pacific and the Middle East. In the fast few weeks alone, Engine's offices have had banks in from six different countries come in to scope out partnerships. Everington says: 'There is a real interest from all over the world in Starling as one of the few successful digital banks anywhere that's really profitable, apart from Nubank in Brazil. 'So banks from lots of places turn up. They're fascinated by what Starling has done and they wish it was their product set in their platform.' It's in everyone's interest that the platform is as good as it can be to attract customers to it Sam Everington, CEO of Engine But that is very different to the banks being in the right place to actually make this kind of change and investment, Everington adds. As Engine has the backing of Starling as the profitable organisation, it can afford to be 'choosy' with banks it thinks are really going to do something with Engine's tech, commit to getting it live, see the project through and build a business on top of that, says Everington. He says: 'It's not it's not a small undertaking forming a bank or launching a new digital bank and you have to really set out what you're trying to do. What's the ambition for it? What's the purpose? You need some kind of growth angle underneath.' Success for the new banks will ultimately mean reaching profitability. Engine's growth will not come at the expense of Starling Bank Engine is wholly owned and funded by Starling so all the investment money comes from Starling's Bank board. But the intention is to make Engine independently profitable in its own right. Engine makes money from it's commercial model by charging the banks it works with per customer and per product type they have on the platform. 'As the new banks we launch grow and become more successful, we make more revenue as well. 'It's in everyone's interest that the platform is as good as it can be to attract customers to it. 'We are on a journey and it will take some years to get Engine to independent profitability but that's the aim,' says Everington. Engine's continued growth will have an hand in propelling Starling to IPO but there is not set timing for that. The growth of Engine will not come at the expense of Starling's retail business Everington says - 'the two really benefit from each other.' 'The continued growth of both businesses is our focus and will continue to be,' Everington says What do you do with a chump called Prince Harry? Send him abroad as far away as possible! Like his present-day namesake, Prince Harry, Duke of Gloucester, was a pain in the jaw from start to finish. Nobody knew what to do with him, even though for a time he was just a breath away from occupying the throne. One politician sniped, 'He is nearly half-witted; and he was pilloried in the House of Commons. Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, son of George V in 1906 Prince Henry with his brothers and sister, Princess Mary in 1915. From the left, Bertie (later George VI), John, David (later Edward VIII), Henry, Duke of Gloucester and George, Duke of Kent Prince Harry at the back, right, in his army uniform between Prince Edward Prince of Wales and his mother Queen Mary. King George V stands far right Prince Harry, Duke of Gloucester and Lady Alice Montagu-Douglas-Scott daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Buccleuch and Queensberry announce their betrothal His brother, Prince George thought him 'a hopeless bore'. His butler called him 'lazy' for trying to get out of royal engagements. Even his wife, the long-suffering former Lady Alice Scott, sighed, 'He sometimes doesn't think before he speaks.' He drank, he lost his temper. And he laughed in the most infuriating way described as 'that strange and irritating whinny' by the King's private secretary, and by writer James Pope-Hennessy as 'an hysterical piglet squeal'. Harry was born King George V's third son, and nothing much was expected of him. They thought he'd enter the armed services and disappear in their ranks; so like the present-day Harry he dutifully joined a cavalry regiment. Nothing could have been more appropriate it turned out he was a born soldier, with a soldier's mind. The subtleties of life in the royal court largely passed him by, except where they affected him directly. Yet in December 1936, everything changed. Suddenly, with Edward VIII's abdication, Harry's elder brother Bertie stepped up to become King George VI. And Harry, dim bulb though he was, became Regent-Designate. The new king's heir, Princess Elizabeth, was just ten years old and though she would be instantly pronounced Queen if anything happened to her father, Uncle Harry was the man who would occupy the Throne - as Regent - until her 18th birthday. It was not a prospect which exactly filled courtiers with confidence. In 1939 he was sent off to war with his regiment, but after a life-threatening engagement in France it was decided he was too senior to be in the frontline. He was dispatched instead on a lengthy globe-hopping, troop-cheering mission. When he reached Cairo, according to historian Artemis Cooper, 'Considering all the trouble and expense, the visit was not a success. It was embarrassing Harry grumbled about the discomforts, had no idea what was going on, and never stopped more than to say 'Good morning' to the troops. 'He only perked up at meal-times, when he ate voraciously, saying the desert made him hungry.' When the prince got back to Buckingham Palace it was decided, no surprise, not to use him on further missions of that kind. Instead, plans were laid for him to be sent as far away as possible Australia. Harry was to be the nation's 11th Governor-General, and off he sailed with the Duchess from Portsmouth at the end of 1944. In Canberra, and with a general wartime news blackout, he could do little damage it was reckoned. But historian Michael Davie records: 'The Duke of Gloucester was a bluff, straightforward character; it was observed in polite society that he greatly enjoyed the company of pretty women and copious amounts of drink. 'Well-connected Australian women of a certain age still recall merry tales of how the Duke would rattle their doorknobs after dinner, or even try climbing in through bedroom windows.' This cack-handed approach to women was merely an echo of Harry's hopeless premarital dalliances. One in particular was the famed aviatrix Beryl Markham, whom he set up in a hotel suite situated conveniently close to the Buckingham Palace back gates. When she gave birth to a son, Harry was the first to bring flowers and chocolates. And when told the child was his, he believed Beryl even though at the time of conception she had been in Africa, and he in London. Unable to count the months on the fingers of two hands, chump Harry paid up and supported the boy for the rest of his days. Harry was born King George V's third son, and nothing much was expected of him The pair waved to the crowds on the balcony of Buckingham Palace in November 1935 When he arrived in Canberra, the duke and his wife discovered their intended home had no furniture - but did have lots of rats Prince Harry and the Duchess of Gloucester arriving at Parliament House in Canberra To be fair, being Governor General of Australia the nation's 'uncrowned king' - was no picnic. When he arrived in Canberra, he and Alice discovered their intended home had no furniture, but did have a lot of rats. Nonetheless, Harry worked hard (for him) and travelled the length and breadth of that glorious land. But he was angry to discover that when his two-year term as Governor-General came to an end he was to be replaced by a native Australian previously they'd all been British. 'Then it seems I've wasted my bloody time,' he blasted, and headed for home. His post-war days were no more illustrious. His butler Peter Russell wrote a highly entertaining memoir which recalls Harry's favourite pastime was watching kids' TV, even making the visiting King Olav of Norway wait in an adjoining room while he finished an episode of Popeye. He was 'lazy', said Russell, and did his best to get out of royal engagements which had been arranged months beforehand. And he became increasingly cantankerous as he dipped his beak into the drinks tray, once throwing a dining-fork at the butler because Russell hadn't packed the royal suitcase to Harry's satisfaction. Russell once told me that communications between the Duke and Duchess became sparse and scarce. At dinner in their St James's Palace apartment they would dine full-dress alone, at opposite ends of a long table. Flowers and silver ornaments would obscure the vision of the other, and they resorted to speaking to each other through the butler. 'Russell, tell Her Royal Highness I'm goin' to Scotland tomorrow. Fishin'.' Prince Harry was angry to discover that when his two-year term as Governor-General came to an end he was to be replaced by a native Australian Russell walked the long journey down to the other end of the table and relayed the message. 'Thank you, Russell,' she replied bleakly. 'Kindly tell his Royal Highness I won't join him on this occasion.' Their thrilling dinner-time conversation now exhausted, off the royal couple toddled to their separate beds. Say what you like about the modern-day Prince Harry, he's not as bad as all that.... Voters by a wide margin seek action against National Public Radio (NPR) after a whistleblower last month came forward and accused the station of liberal-biased news coverage, a poll shows. Fully 44 percent of respondents to a DailyMail.com/TIPP survey said the broadcaster should lose its taxpayer cashflows over its political leaning. Another 26 percent of more than 1,400 US adults said it should keep its government support; and 31 percent said they were not sure. NPR was rocked last month when one of its senior editors, Uri Berliner, accused his employer of overly woke news coverage, with a fixation on stories about race and identity. Respondents by a wide margin no longer want to the foot the bill for NPR's 'biased' coverage Berliner argued in his article that NPR has 'lost America's trust' because it was filled almost entirely by Democrats In an open essay for The Free Press, the 25-year NPR veteran slammed it for being heavily dominated by Democrats, sidelining conservative voices, and for having 'lost America's trust.' NPR devoted ample coverage to claims of then-president Donald Trump being a Russian asset, but held back on stories about Hunter Biden's laptop and the Covid lab leak theory, Berliner said. Meanwhile, historic tweets from NPR's new chief executive Katherine Maher resurfaced, in which she embraced liberal causes, praised leading Democrats Black Lives Matter protestors and called Trump a 'racist.' Berliner later resigned, saying he had faced criticism from Maher. Republicans reacted angrily to the revelations, saying they confirmed long-held fears about NPR. Trump on social media called the broadcaster a 'LIBERAL DISINFORMATION MACHINE.' 'NO MORE FUNDING FOR NPR, A TOTAL SCAM!' he posted. NPR directly receives 1 percent of its budget from taxpayers but gets many more times that indirectly through its local member stations, says the American Enterprise Institute, a center-right think tank. NPR whistleblower editor Uri Berliner (pictured) exposed the network's liberal bias officially resigned after he was suspended by the outlets 'divisive' new CEO Old tweets from NPR CEO Katherine Maher included a veiled shot at Trump branding him a 'deranged racist sociopath', and sharing her support for President Biden New York Republican lawmaker Claudia Tenney distilled these concerns into a bill, the Defund NPR Act of 2024, which says no taxpayer dollars can be 'directly or indirectly' sent to the radio network. The network had become a 'partisan propaganda machine,' Tenney said. There are few signs that the bill could make it into law. The Oversight and Investigations subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee held a hearing on May 8 about alleged biases in the public broadcaster's coverage. Our survey of 1,435 adults reveals widespread support for defunding NPR. Men, people aged 65 and above, and adults aged under 25, are especially keen on cutting federal cashflows to the broadcaster. Perhaps understandably, there is a strong partisan leaning more than half of Republican voters want to cut NPR's funding, compared to just a third of Democrats. The nationwide survey has a +/-2.7 percent error margin. It was carried out earlier this month by TIPP, which has been noted for the accuracy of its polls. Many years ago, a teenager called Gavin Hopley was brutally murdered in a part of Oldham reputed to be a no-go zone for white people. In search of a taxi after a visit to a nightclub, he took a wrong turn, became separated from his two friends and unwittingly walked into the Asian area of Glodwick. He suddenly found himself alone, face-to-face with a group of young men in an alleyway.He was hit in the face with a flying kick by a man who used a fence post as support. The impact threw Gavin into the air and he cracked his head on the pavement as he landed, leaving him with fatal head injuries. One of his friends only escaped with his life after an Asian neighbour opened his door and gave him sanctuary. The police investigation into 19-year-old Gavins killing that night in February 2002 collapsed in a style reminiscent of the Stephen Lawrence murder. The police investigation into 19-year-old Gavins killing that night in February 2002 collapsed in a style reminiscent of the Stephen Lawrence murder Even though his attackers were convicted of lesser crimes, including robbing him of his watch and neck chain while he lay dying, no one was punished for his murder. I was reminded of Gavins death and the simmering tensions in Oldham at the time when I saw the footage of Leeds accountant and local imam Mothin Ali celebrating his election as a Green Party councillor this month. His face contorted in anger, he shouted that his win was for the people of Gaza and ended with a cry of Allahu Akbar, Arabic for God is great. Im not suggesting that Mr Alis behaviour is remotely comparable to that of the thugs who set upon Gavin on the opposite side of the Pennines. But it was a vivid illustration of the way British society is splitting along sectarian lines. The divisions I observed two decades ago have now become entrenched, with many Muslims voting in line with their religious beliefs because of their fury over Palestine rather than for any of the traditional parties. After the trials of Gavins attackers had finished, I visited his mother, Lorraine, at the familys small modern house in Rochdale, seven miles from where her son died at the hands of strangers. It was early in the evening when I knocked on the door and Lorraine invited me in. I wanted to talk to her about how and why her eldest son had been slaughtered in what police agreed was a hideous and unprovoked manner. We got on well over the hour we talked, despite the emotional circumstances and the short time we had. She was about to start her night shift as a senior factory supervisor. There was no campaign to get justice for Gavin, in part because of the familys concerns over attempts by the far-Right to exploit his death. A few months before, Britains worst-ever race riots had started in the same suburb in Oldham. Lorraine said at the time: We dont want the National Front or the British National Party [BNP] to turn Gavin into a martyr. This is no cure for our heartbreak. I was reminded of Gavins death and the simmering tensions in Oldham at the time when I saw the footage of Leeds accountant and local imam Mothin Ali celebrating his election as a Green Party councillor this month, writes Sue Reid In the front room with her was Gavins father Gary (from whom she is now amicably divorced), who added that his sons photograph was on BNP street posters, which they hated seeing when they went shopping. It was excruciatingly sad to talk to this hard-working Catholic couple. Gavins parents told me that there were no-go areas for white people in Oldham, certainly after nightfall. The green dome of a huge mosque, open for prayers five times a day, already dominated the skyline alongside the old mill chimneys. I reported, with a sinking heart, that communities of Pakistani and Bangladeshi heritage, invited here to work as low-paid mill labour after World War II, were living segregated lives. They shopped in their own shops, prayed in their own places of worship and, with alcohol banned by their Muslim faith, rarely interacted with other people at the traditional meeting place for a happy English community, the local pub. A succession of head-scratching, government-initiated reports followed the Oldham riots, which had spread to Burnley and to the Yorkshire cities of Leeds and Bradford, which also had sizeable south Asian populations. One, by a senior civil servant, concluded, depressingly, that Oldham was a place where whites and Asians preferred to live with their own kind. What was remarkable about the reports was they barely touched on religion or the divisions it can foster. The then Prime Minister Tony Blair firmly blamed the riots on white extremists stirring up racial conflict despite young Pakistani and Bangladeshi men fighting street battles against young English men with equal ferocity. Oldham, then and for years since, has been a socialist-leaning town. Critics on the Right have accused the council of courting Asian votes while ignoring the white locals who now include a smattering of east Europeans over issues such as the sex grooming of schoolgirls. But earlier this month, the Labour Party lost its majority against the poisonous backdrop of the Israel-Gaza conflict. In search of a taxi after a visit to a nightclub, Gavin took a wrong turn, became separated from his two friends and unwittingly walked into the Asian area of Glodwick Enraged by Labour leader Sir Keir Starmers reluctance to call for a ceasefire, the townsfolk punished the party by voting instead for independent councillors, mainly Muslims with south Asian backgrounds. The Labour leader of Oldhams council, Arooj Shah, told the BBC that Gaza was clearly an issue here for anyone with an ounce of humanity in them. The poverty-blighted town, like others in the North-Wests former cotton belt, faces a toxic divide between communities, added Ms Shah. We have a rise in independent councillors because people think mainstream parties arent the answer. What she said is true. Labour has welcomed Muslim councillors many, of course, hard-working and dedicated in order to boost its voting tally. The Green Party is now following suit in a bid to ramp up troops. Its successful candidate in Leeds, Mothin Ali, said people were fed up with being let down by Labour. We will not be silenced, he added, before finishing with his rallying cry to Allah. He was among dozens of Muslim council candidates across the country who successfully ran on a Gaza ticket, knocking out their Labour rivals in the process. What we witnessed was ballot-box sectarianism, largely on religious lines, which has never happened so publicly or widely in Britain before. Mr Ali, winning for the Green Party (think net zero and vegan), made his election statement in traditional Muslim dress, cheered on by his supporters. But the arrival of Northern Ireland-style sectarianism in English politics did not start with him. That honour goes to George Galloway, a former Labour MP with a chequered past, which includes a stint as leader of the now defunct anti-Zionist Respect Party, who returned to the national scene earlier this year. Galloway, 69, won the parliamentary seat for Rochdale which, as well as being the home of the murdered Gavin Hopley, has 24 mosques or Islamic centres after campaigning on a pro-Palestinian platform as founder of the Workers Party of Britain. Like Oldham at the local elections, independent councillors with an anti-Israel stance have been voted into power all over the country. This may change the secular politics of England and Wales for ever. And nowhere is the shift more apparent than in Tower Hamlets, East London. Soon after the October 7 massacre, when the Palestinian terror group Hamas slaughtered more than 1,100 innocent Israeli civilians and children, pro-Palestinian flags appeared all over Tower Hamlets, where four in ten residents are Muslim, mainly of Bangladeshi heritage. The sectarian symbols were often attached to council-owned property, including scores of lampposts. For the few hundred Jews living nearby, it was a terrifying development. For other residents, many with no faith at all, it was just plain obnoxious. The council, led by an innocent-sounding party called Aspire, did nothing for a long time about the flags. It was only when a Jewish group, UK Lawyers For Israel, threatened legal action that Tower Hamlets agreed to remove them, although a few have returned since alongside anti-Zionist graffiti. Aspire is not sectarian, let it be said. People of any religion or creed can apply to stand for it, under electoral rules, as a councillor. But the party has all the hallmarks of a religiously divisive political group of the sort that could emerge in the future (without piggy-backing on Labour or the Greens) as a national force in its own right. The Green Party's successful candidate in Leeds, Mothin Ali, said people were fed up with being let down by Labour Other organisations are looking to exploit the strength of feeling over the issue too. Just after the Hamas attacks, a new Party of Islam lodged an application to register with the Electoral Commission but was rejected because it did not meet the requirements set out in electoral law. And last week, as the Mail reported, a pro-Gaza political group issued Keir Starmer with 18 demands he must comply with if he is to earn their support at the forthcoming General Election. The Muslim vote presumed to instruct the Labour leader to cut military ties with Israel, allow Islamic prayers in schools and, notably, scrap a long-standing law that says religious leaders in mosques, churches or any place of worship must not tell their congregations how to vote. In Tower Hamlets, Aspire has a majority on the 45-seat council, after winning 24 wards in the 2022 local elections and seizing power from Labour. All of Aspires councillors are male, mainly of Bangladeshi or south Asian background, and share the same religion. The party dominates Tower Hamlets politics. Every head of every key committee is an Aspire councillor, according to one local political analyst. They have the positions of power, Labour as the opposition does not get a look in, he says. This week, the Mail was shown a shocking dossier of vile, anti-Semitic messages written on the boroughs WhatsApp forums, including My Tower Hamlets and Our Tower Hamlets, which are used by residents but also councillors, including those from Aspire. Although it is not known if the content of the messages has been opened or read by busy local politicians, none of them, we have been told, has publicly blown the whistle on their alarming content. It has been left to a former councillor, Andrew Wood, 45, finance officer at a west London borough, to sound the alarm. Mr Wood joined the groups under his own name and then found himself being attacked there himself. He has reported the abuse to the Metropolitan Police and the Governments anti-terror programme Prevent as a hate crime, and has made informal representations to Whitehall-hired inspectors reviewing the intricate workings of Tower Hamlets council on the orders of Levelling Up minister Michael Gove. Some of the anti-Semitic messages are so disgusting they cannot be reprinted. The Jews are behind every turmoil, asserts one, before blaming Jews for the Hamas October 7 invasion on the purported grounds that the Israelis deliberately ignored security systems to encourage it. Another message celebrates the death in February of 87-year-old Jacob Rothschild, the financier and philanthropist with close ties to Israel. Most amazing news! Shame he couldnt get to see river to the sea (a slogan used by anti-Zionists calling for the eradication of Israel). A third proclaims: Bro, you should be happy Iran is pounding Israel. Give credit where its [sic] due. On local matters, a comment says: Zionist power is real . . . core strategy to divide and conquer. The Tower Hamlets council is under pressure to take flags down. We, as individuals, are NOT and we must put them on our windows, doors, and businesses to show solidarity [for Palestinians]. Then the messages get personal as the WhatsApp groups realise they are being read by Mr Wood. After the trials of Gavins attackers had finished, I visited his mother, Lorraine, at the familys small modern house in Rochdale, pictured with Gavin's father Gary Andrew Wood is a filthy Zionist scum, said one. He should be locked up in a mental asylum for his support of war crimes and genocide [in Gaza]. Messages relating to him include a picture of human excrement and malicious and untrue allegations that he is a paedophile. This may appear to be a petty local issue. But the aggressive tone of the messages provides an insight into the religious and racial divisions enveloping Britain. One person who witnessed the beginnings of this nightmare scenario is Lorraine Hopley, the grieving mother I spoke to two decades ago, whose son Gavin was killed by an Asian gang. I said then that Oldham had a no-go area for whites, said Lorraine, 63, last week. If Gavin was alive and as a white man went into the same part of Oldham tonight, he would face the same danger as he did then. It would still be a no-go area for him. Her statement should make our politicians of all persuasions hang their heads in shame. Dawn breaks as my train judders into Pasazhyrskyi station, punctual as always. This time, though, I am greeted neither by a swarm of Russian drones (like my last visit), nor the adenoidal whine of an air raid siren (which happens every visit). It is spring and the sun is out in Kyiv. Februarys frost-encrusted pavements have morphed into sun-drenched avenues filled with flotillas of laughing teenagers. The war remains, but under a cloudless sky. When Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, his generals assured him they would win the war in three days. Some 809 days later, theyre still trying. On Friday, Putin launched a brutal, surprise attack on Ukraines second city of Kharkiv overwhelmingly Russian-speaking and just 19 miles from the border. Conquering the city, held by the Ukrainians for more than a year, would be a huge propaganda coup. After intense fighting, the Russians claim theyve now captured nine villages in the region. Vadym Skibitsky, Ukraines deputy head of military intelligence, was unflinching in a recent interview. Our problem is very simple, he told the Economist magazine. We have no weapons. They always knew April and May would be a difficult time for us. We in the West must take a degree of responsibility for this growing war fatigue. Pictured: A Ukrainian soldier and tank Hes right. Travelling across the country in recent months, I have met many Ukrainians who unashamedly say they now refuse to die in Zelenskys war. Morale is down and along with it, the will to fight. People ask why they should risk their lives when so many are dying without results; when so many are bribing their way out of the draft; and when so many promised Western weapons do not come. They have a point. Without Nato support, Russia would undoubtedly have conquered Ukraine. But as time has passed, getting that aid has become an unceasing struggle. When, last month, the US Congress finally approved a $61billion military aid package to Ukraine that had been logjammed for months due to Republican intransigence, Ukrainian officials I spoke to were relieved. But there was also a sadness. The delay has cost so many lives and the task of pushing Russia back is much harder now. On the front, the troops are pleased but circumspect. This is of course good news, says a soldier friend of mine fighting in the east. But we need to make sure that Kyiv distributes the weapons properly. That it gives the right equipment to the right people fighting in the right places. And that was not always the case previously. Putin understands the West will give Ukraine just about enough weapons to keep him at bay but never enough to actually push his troops back across the border. Pictured: Destroyed buildings in Bakhmut, Ukraine We in the West must take a degree of responsibility for this growing war fatigue. As a Ukrainian officer said to me in late 2022: If our partners had given us what we asked for in April, we could have finished this in June. Had we got in September what we asked for in July, we could have broken through by October. So why didnt we give the Ukrainians everything they needed? The truth is that the West remains strangely unwilling to win wars. We know we must defeat our enemies, but we want to do so while also winning their hearts and minds. In Iraq and Afghanistan, we hoped to defeat Saddam (and then the militias that replaced him) and the Taliban respectively, while bringing the Iraqi and Afghan populations with us. This was naive and we failed on both counts. With Russia, a similar impulse is at play, but it is made worse by something more pernicious. We are being held hostage to what American sources tell me is US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivans near-obsession with escalation management theory. Ukrainian rescuers work in the courtyard of a residential building damaged as a result of a missile attack in Dnipro Simply put, Sullivan believes that any hint of escalation must be managed. He is, accordingly, happy to arm Ukraine, but not to a degree that provokes Putin too much. If this sounds crazy, its because it is. And it is why, even before the Republicans began to oppose aid packages, much Western military aid was both insufficient and late. There are many justifiable criticisms about Israels conduct in Gaza, but one observation I have is that Israel is fighting a traditional form of war in which the goal is total victory. And for this, the enemy Hamas must be utterly defeated, not courted at the same time. This way of fighting has become alien to us. Putin understands the West will give Ukraine just about enough weapons to keep him at bay (until the recent huge delay put even that into doubt) but never enough to actually push his troops back across the border. On Friday, Putin launched a brutal, surprise attack on Ukraine s second city of Kharkiv overwhelmingly Russian-speaking and just 19 miles from the border But we are not giving up on Ukraine yet. Two weeks ago, Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron visited Kyiv to promise that the UK would provide 3billion a year to Ukraine for as long as necessary. More than this, though, he said it was up to Ukraine to decide how to use the British weapons it received including striking targets on Russian territory. Cameron seems to realise that trying to appease Putin only emboldens him. The dictator needs to feel the cost of his murderous imperialism and that cost must be most keenly felt inside Russian territory. For now, however, the momentum remains with the Kremlin. On Tuesday, the Ukrainians uncovered yet another Russian assassination plot against president Volodymyr Zelensky, from within the ranks of his own protection unit. Meanwhile, Russias latest war crime entails forcing Ukrainians in conquered territories to serve in the Russian army under the guise of conscription. With almost no training, these unfortunates often find themselves in a trench on the frontline within a week fighting their own countrymen. We are being held hostage to what American sources tell me is US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivans near-obsession with escalation management theory And who knows what may happen if Donald Trump who has repeatedly signalled his unwillingness to pay for military aid retakes the White House in November. Its time to be realistic. Sadly, thanks to Western pusallinimity, Ukraine may already be past the point of winning this war outright. The latest injection of Western weapons should help them to stem further Russian advances but not to reverse them. The stalemate seems set to continue. It remains politically impossible for Zelensky to publicly offer terms. Would a British prime minister ever agree to hand Manchester or Leeds over to the enemy for the sake of peace? But the status quo is unsustainable. I expect to hear increasing talk in the months to come of a ceasefire. Ahead of any such pause in hostilities, Kyiv must ensure as many favourable facts on the ground as possible both in terms of territory and in the capabilities of its armed forces. Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron, pictured with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky, visited Kyiv to promise that the UK would provide 3billion a year to Ukraine for as long as necessary As I walk through Kyivs Independence Square, close to where I lived during the aftermath of the 2014 revolution against Ukraines pro-Kremlin president Viktor Yanukovych, I am struck by the fact that Ukraine is now the forward battalion of Western deterrence. Never forget that it is not just Putin who is deterred when we send billions of dollars of aid to Kyiv, but Chinas Xi Jinping and Irans mullahs. We are now in a war against transnational autocracy. For now, Ukrainian men are dying on the front so ours dont have to. One day that might change. In the meantime, we must never forget the debt we owe the Ukrainians. And we must not abandon them. Our own future depends on it. Former President Donald Trump ridiculed him and gave him a 'Little' nickname when they were rivals in 2016 but he's turning out to be a big hit with donors this cycle who want to see him picked as VP. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio was 'mobbed' by donors at an event last week at Mar-a-Lago the Financial Times reported Friday, with one GOP strategist saying the lawmaker 'was the one who had the most attention.' The theory among the donor class is that Trump needs to pick a running mate to broaden his appeal - and Rubio could do that by being a more traditional Republican and Latino. That runs counter to the wishes of Trump's most rabid supporters, those who battled the crowds to appear at Saturday's Wildwood, New Jersey rally. There, supporters told DailyMail.com that they'd rather see a different Florida man as Trump's running mate, his former 2024 rival, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. Former President Donald Trump speaks Saturday at a rally in Wildwood, New Jersey. Trump is searching for a VP candidate to replace former Vice President Mike Pence - and his donors and most rabid supporters have different ideas about who it should be Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, seen onstage with Trump during a 2016 primary debate, has attracted the attention of Trump donors who believes he needs to diversify his ticket outside the MAGA base. Rubio is a more traditional Republican and Latino 'I like DeSantis,' said 80-year-old Linda Donnelly, who traveled down to the rally from Long Island. 'Because he's very much like Trump but with a little - I don't want to use the word class - what would be another word? He's Trump but with a little bit better vocabulary.' Donnelly shrugged at the thought of Rubio. 'I like Marco Rubio but I still don't think he's got, you know,' she said, expressing that he lacked the 'it' factor. Jacki Ortiz, a 53-year-old from South Jersey who was standing nearby volunteered 'not Rubio' even before the question was asked. She preferred Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance or entrepreneur and former 2024 presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy. When asked about North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum - who tagged along with Trump to Saturday's rally heightening VP speculation - Ortiz told DailyMail.com, 'Not as bad as Rubio but I like the other two better.' She also joked that she thought South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem's pursuit to be Trump's running mate was shot. Supporters of former President Donald Trump who braved the crowds to attend Saturday's Wildwood, New Jersey rally liked Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis over Florida Sen. Marco Rubio as a potential VP pick Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was the top vice presidential pick for several of former President Donald Trump's supporters at Saturday's large rally on the Jersey Shore. DeSantis was considered more 'America First' than VP hopeful, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio 'No, I like my dog just fine,' Ortiz said. Nancy Martin, a 62-year-old cosmetologist who traveled to the rally from Baltimore, Maryland, also backed DeSantis as veep over Rubio. 'My first pick is DeSantis,' she said. 'Because I love him,' she laughed. 'Because he's a great governor, I think he's fantastic and he's America First.' She said her second choice is Dr. Ben Carson due to his strong Baltimore ties. As for Rubio, he's a 'no.' 'I didn't like him in the first election and he wasn't really - America First always, you don't back down, you stay on the Trump train, you don't back down, that's it, that's how I feel,' Martin said. Martin also expressed that she thought it was a 'weird thing' that DeSantis ran against Trump this time around. 'It wasn't his turn yet,' she said. 'It wasn't his time.' DeSantis' well-funded 2024 campaign ran out of steam in late January, ahead of the New Hampshire primary after he came in a distant second place in Iowa after spending months there on the ground. The Florida governor said on a call in February that he would not want to be Trump's VP. DeSantis struggled, in part, because he didn't want to hit Trump too hard and thus it was difficult to differentiate the Florida governor from the ex-president during the race. He also came across as awkward on the stump and was plagued by reports that he was secretly wearing high heels. During his own 2016 race, Rubio had that in common with DeSantis - as he was accused of wearing lifts. Supporters of former President Donald Trump listen to the national anthem ahead of Saturday's Wildwood, New Jersey rally. Trump is in the middle of picking a ticket-mate with supporters saying they liked Gov. Ron DeSantis, Sen. J.D. Vance, Vivek Ramaswamy and others But Rubio briefly took some pretty big swings at Trump on the trail. After coming in behind Trump in Iowa and New Hampshire the Florida senator went on a week-long tear in February 2016. 'And you know what they say about men with small hands?' Rubio said at one campaign stop. He paused leaving supporters wondering if he was calling attention to the size of Trump's you-know-what. 'You can't trust them, you can't trust them,' Rubio then said. Additionally, Rubio mocked Trump's 'orange' appearance, said he had a 'sweat mustache' during one of the GOP primary debates, while also mocking the real estate tycoon for having 'wet' pants. He later said in a May 2016 interview with CNN's Jake Tapper that he called Trump to apologize for the things he said when they were rivals. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio appeared on Fox News Sunday last week and was asked if he would move away from Florida to satisfy the 12th Amendment requirement to be Trump's VP. He didn't answer the question directly 'I didn't say it in front of the cameras,' the Florida senator said. 'I didn't want any political benefit.' During Trump's four years in office Rubio was an ally on many fronts - and he seems to be interested in the vice presidential job. Though for both Rubio and DeSantis there's a constitutional hitch - the 12th Amendment prevents electors from picking a president and vice president from the same state - so one of the Florida men would have to move. When asked on Fox News Sunday last week if he would move to be VP, Rubio didn't directly answer the question. 'First of all, the vice presidential choice with Donald Trump is going to be made by one person, and that's Donald Trump, and all this other stuff is just speculation. I get it, you know political reporters have to cover political topics. The primary is over, the general is six months away, so then we're going to speculate on the VP thing,' he said. 'He's going to have an extremely talented group of people that can serve this country in multiple roles, and that's a decision he's going to have to make,' the Florida senator added. Vice presidential picks are usually announced directly ahead of the party's political convention, with this year's Republican National Convention slated for mid-July. Convicted murderer Chris Dawson will return to a Sydney court on Monday to appeal his conviction, with a purported phone call from his wife Lynette on the day of her disappearance to play a central role in his case. Dawson was found guilty in August 2022 of murdering his wife Lynette, who vanished suddenly from their home on January 8, 1982. The former Newtown Jets rugby league player and northern beaches high school teacher was sentenced to 24 years in prison, with an 18-year non-parole period, after Supreme Court judge Ian Harrison found him guilty of murder on circumstantial evidence. Justice Harrison found he killed his wife to begin a relationship with a young student, who moved into Dawson's Gilwinga Drive home in the days following. Lynette Simms' body has never been found and she has never contacted her friends or family, including her two children. Dawson, 75, has maintained his innocence and has launched an appeal against his conviction, claiming it cannot be proven that Lynette Simms is even dead. Former rugby league star Chris Dawson will return to a Sydney court on Monday, with a purported phone call from his wife Lynette on the day of her disappearance to play a central role in his bid to be freed from prison The former Newtown Jets rugby league player and northern beaches high school teacher was sentenced to 24 years in prison, with an 18-year non-parole period, after Supreme Court judge Ian Harrison found him guilty of murder During a police interview, Dawson told detectives that he dropped off his wife at a Mona Vale bus stop and she was supposed to meet him later that afternoon at the Northbridge Baths, where he worked as a part-time lifeguard. Dawson told police that while at work he received an STD (interstate) phone call from his wife saying that she needed time away. Central to Dawson's appeal - which will be heard over three days in the Court of Criminal Appeal starting Monday morning - is his claim that he suffered a 'significant forensic disadvantage', owing to the nearly 40 years between his wife's disappearance and the matter going to trial. During that time evidence was lost and several key witnesses died, including Phillip Day. Mr Day was present at the Northbridge Baths on the afternoon Ms Simms did not arrive to meet her family. He gave a statement to police in February 2001 in which he said he saw Dawson being summoned to the pool office and when he returned he said he had received a call from Lynette. In a grounds of appeal, Dawson's lawyers argue that he suffered a 'miscarriage of justice' because Justice Harrison found beyond a reasonable doubt that he did not receive a phone call from his wife. His lawyers also argue that Justice Harrison erred in finding that Dawson told several lies which evidenced his 'consciousness of guilt'. Justice Harrison, in his judgment, said that Dawson had lied about his relationship with the young student, about wanting to resume his relationship with his wife and about receiving phone calls from her after her disappearance. Dawson has sat in a jail cell since August 2022 when he was found guilty of murdering his wife Lynette, who vanished suddenly from their Bayview home in January 1982 CHRIS DAWSONDuring his judgment, Justice Harrison said the case against Dawson was circumstantial, however noted a guilty verdict was the only 'rational inference' he could draw His legal team also argue that there was 'inadequate' evidence to prove that Ms Dawson was not alive after January 9, 1982. During his judgment, Justice Harrison said the case against Dawson was circumstantial, however noted a guilty verdict was the only 'rational inference' he could draw. Justice Harrison found that Dawson harboured a 'possessive infatuation' with his young student, having just weeks before Lynette's disappearance unsuccessfully attempted to run off with the teenage babysitter to start a new life in Queensland. Last year, Dawson was also convicted of one count of carnal knowledge after a judge found he engaged in sexual activities with one of his student at a Sydney high school in 1980. He was sentenced by Judge Sarah Huggett to three years in jail and had one year added onto his non-parole period. His non-parole period is due to expire in August 2041, by which time he will be 93 years old. New 'no body, no parole' laws passed by NSW Parliament - dubbed 'Lyn's law' - mean that Dawson will not be paroled until he reveals where Lynette is buried. Justice Harrison in his sentencing remarks noted that Dawson would 'probably die in jail' before the expiry of his non-parole period. Chinese students in Britain live in fear from the 'long arm of Chinese government', a report warns today. Students are being intimidated, harassed and silenced by Chinese authorities as part of a sinister pattern of 'transnational repression', according to Amnesty International. Interviews with 32 students in eight countries, including the UK, reveal that many are being photographed and followed at university protests, leading to their families being threatened by police in China. Almost a third of students said officials had harassed their families to prevent them from criticising the Chinese government or its policies while overseas. Chinese students in Britain live in fear from the 'long arm of Chinese government', a report warns today (stock photo) Students are being intimidated, harassed and silenced by Chinese authorities as part of a sinister pattern of 'transnational repression', according to Amnesty International (stock photo) Threats made to their families in China included the revoking of passports, having them fired from jobs, preventing promotions or limiting their physical freedom. Chinese police have also pressured family members to cut off financial support to students. Sarah Brooks, Amnesty International's China director, said: 'The testimonies gathered in this report paint a chilling picture of how the Chinese and Hong Kong governments seek to silence students even when they are thousands of miles from home, leaving many students living in fear.' David Cameron's policy of cosying up to China when he was prime minister was 'absolutely pathetic', a former cabinet minister and governor of Hong Kong has said. Lord Patten of Barnes, who was governor of Hong Kong from 1992 to 1997, criticised the so-called 'golden era' of UK-China relations under Lord Cameron, who is now Foreign Secretary. In this period there was a state visit by Chinese premier Xi Jinping, during which he met the late Queen and enjoyed fish and chips in a village pub. Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Shadow War: China and the West programme, which starts tomorrow, Lord Patten said: 'David Cameron introducing Xi Jinping to his pub near Chequers with a warm pint of beer for what? David Cameron's policy of cozying up to China when he was prime minister was 'absolutely pathetic', a former cabinet minister and governor of Hong Kong has said China's Premier Li Keqiang, right, meets former British Prime Minister David Cameron at Zhongnanhai leadership compound, in Beijing, China, in 2018 Lord Patten, Chairman of the BBC Trust, called Lord Cameron's attempts 'pathetic' 'At the same time as they were having a beer together, arrangements were being made with the police to make it difficult for people to protest in the streets of London, in order it might embarrass the Chinese leader... I mean, it was awful stuff. 'At the same time as the golden period, China was starting to turn the screw in Hong Kong. And of course, I'm in favour of us trying to do business with China... I recognise that we need to have a relationship with China. We have to talk to them about big geopolitical issues. 'We want to do business with them. But the idea that you can only do this on your knees I find demeaning and ludicrous.' In the ten-part series, George Osborne, who was Lord Cameron's Chancellor, defended the policy of closer UK-China relations. He said accusations that the policy was naive or greedy was 'very shallow thinking', adding: 'I don't really accept at all this paradigm that you choose between economic partnership with China or sort of a security confrontation with China.' Police in New Hampshire say a woman and child were covered in feces after they were trapped inside a portable toilet a teen knocked it over while they were inside. The Manchester Police Department says it happened in a public park last week. The young mother called 911 stating she and her 4-year-old daughter had been trapped inside a porta-potty at Derryfield Park after a man pushed it over from behind. She said they were both covered in feces and bodily fluids. Heather Hamel of the Manchester Police Department called the incident "traumatizing" for the mother and child. Responding officers spoke with witnesses who said the 18-year-old suspect and the woman had been arguing near the porta-potty. When the woman went inside to assist her daughter, he allegedly pushed it over. It landed with the door on the pavement, trapping them inside. Bystanders quickly ran over to the overturned toilet and stood it up, freeing the two. The mother and child were not physically hurt by the incident. Police say it appears the victims and suspect did not know each other. Officers later identified the suspect as 18-year-old Aiden Studer of Manchester. Studer was arrested and charged with 2 counts of Criminal Restraint and Criminal Mischief. He was also charged with Simple Assault on a Police Officer for throwing something at one of the officers at the time of his arrest. Long-term sickness is now the main reason women are out of the labour market with poor mental health up by more than a quarter in five years. The number of women who are economically inactive due to long-term sickness soared to 1.54million in 2023 - the highest on record. This is up 48 per cent - 503,000 - since 2018, according to the Office for National Statistics. It means women on long-term sick outnumber female students, homemakers, early retirees, and 'discouraged workers' - those who think there are no jobs worth searching for. The number of women aged 16 to 64 who are economically inactive due to depression, anxiety and mental illness has increased by 69,000 (27 per cent) over this period to 326,000, according to analysis of the figures by the Trades Unions Congress. The umbrella organisation blamed issues such as long NHS waiting lists and cuts to preventive services. The number of women who are economically inactive due to long-term sickness soared to 1.54million in 2023 - the highest on record Meanwhile, the number of women economically inactive due to musculoskeletal issues, such as a bad back, increased by 126,000 (47 per cent), and for conditions like cancer the figure rose by 19,000 (15 per cent). Some 1.29million men were also economically inactive due to long-term sickness in 2023, up 347,000 (37 per cent) since 2018. Of these, 344,000 were off with mental health issues, a rise of 63,000 (22 per cent). Rishi Sunak has vowed to clamp down on the nation's 'sick note culture', saying helping people get back to work can improve their health and slash the spiralling benefits bill. Paul Nowak, general secretary of the TUC, said: 'We need a proper plan for dealing with the sharp rise in long-term sickness, not cynical gimmicks. 'Instead of stigmatising people who are too ill to work, the Government should be laser-focused on improving access to treatment and preventing people from becoming too sick to work in the first place. 'That means investing in local preventive services and bringing down our sky-high waiting lists. Paul Nowak, general secretary of the TUC, (pictured) said: 'We need a proper plan for dealing with the sharp rise in long-term sickness, not cynical gimmicks' 'It means dealing with the chronic staffing shortages across the NHS and social care that are delaying patients from being seen when they need to. 'It means improving the quality of work in this country so that women are not disproportionately trapped in low-paid, insecure jobs. 'But instead, the Government is failing growing numbers of women who are unable to work because they can't access the right treatment or support.' A Government spokesperson said: 'Our 2.5 billion Back to Work Plan will help over a million people, including women with long-term health conditions, break down barriers to work. 'We are also reforming the benefits system so that it's fairer on the taxpayer and makes sure those who can work, do work. 'This includes enhancing support for people with health conditions and disabilities through programmes like WorkWell and reforming the Fit Note process so people can return to and stay in employment.' Justice Clarence Thomas denounced Washington as a 'hideous place' filled with 'awful people', claiming he and his wife have been hounded by 'nastiness' and lies. The Supreme Court justice has been the subject of intense public scrutiny over his wife, Virginia Thomas', efforts to overturn the 2020 election and his acceptance of luxury gifts from billionaire friends. In his first extensive public comments since the scandals, at a judicial conference in Alabama on Friday, Thomas said he and his wife had been subjected to 'nastiness' and 'lies'. The New York Times reported he said: 'Especially in Washington, people pride themselves in being awful. It's a hideous place, as far as I'm concerned.' Thomas is one of the most conservative and controversial judges on the Supreme Court and was instrumental in overturning federal abortion rights granted by Roe v Wade. Justice Clarence Thomas was exposed in a series of expenses scandals last year His wife, Virginia Thomas, endorsed false claims that the 2020 election was stolen Thomas came under fire for reports he had borrowed more than a quarter of a million dollars from a friend to buy his RV Thomas made the remarks while being interviewed by former clerk, Kathryn Kimball Mizelle at the 11th Circuit Judicial Conference held at a luxury resort in Mobile Bay. He did not specify who or what he was referring to, but he made sweeping statements about the 'negativity' he has faced in recent years. He said: 'There's certainly been a lot of negativity in our lives, my wife and I, over the last few years, but we choose not to focus on it.' Thomas faced calls for recusal after it was revealed that his wife had attempted to overturn the 2020 election and had endorsed false claims that the election was stolen. Then, last year, a series of investigations revealed that he had failed to declare dozens of lavish trips and expenses paid for by Republican billionaire Harlan Crow. The ensuing scandal called his integrity and impartiality into question, particularly in the wake of the heavily politicized Roe v Wade ruling and his refusal to recuse himself from hearings related to the January 6 insurrection. Thomas did not directly reference the scandals in his comments and instead focused on his career and life before politics. He said: 'I was thinking of getting out of D.C. I had no interest in being in public life. 'I wound up in this job and this is, we pray, to do whatever it was that God wanted me to do, what I was being called to do. But being in public life is not something I would have chosen to do.' He added: 'Especially in Washington, people pride themselves in being awful. It's a hideous place, as far as I'm concerned. 'Because the rest of the country, it's one of the reasons we like R.V-ing, you get to be around regular people who don't pride themselves in doing harmful things, merely because they have the capacity to do it.' He did not mention claims that he had borrowed more than a quarter of a million dollars from a friend to buy his RV. In April last year, ProPublica exposed that Thomas had failed to declare 20 years worth of jet-setting and luxury trips paid for by Crow on financial disclosure forms. They revealed that Thomas had vacationed on Crow's super yacht, flown on his Bombardier Global 5000 jet and holidayed with him in males-only resort in California, Bohemian Grove. Crow also reportedly paid roughly $100,000 in tuition for Thomas' grand-nephew and bought the home that Thomas' mother was living in. Conservative Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas disclosed that Republican billionaire Harlan Crow paid for a trio of his private flights Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse shows a painting of Clarence Thomas (second from right) and Harlan Crow (right) gathered at Crow's Adirondacks resort, Camp Topridge. The painting is on display at the New York property An image of Crow's yacht, the Michaela Rose, which was decked out with a giant inflatable rubber duck during the Thomases 2019 trip to Indonesia They also revealed that Thomas had spent time at Crow's ranch in East Texas and he tended to spend a week every summer at Crow's private resort in New York's Adirondacks, Camp Topridge. Rates for a nearby hotel start at $2,250 a night, but Camp Topridge is even more exclusive, as guests have to be personally invited by Crow. It also has quirky features including a replica of Hagrid from Harry Potter's hut, a 1950s-style soda fountain and bronze statues of gnomes. A 2019 trip that Thomas and his wife Ginni took to Indonesia with Crow - that included private flights and time on board the yacht, named the Michaela Rose and decked out with a giant inflatable rubber duck - would have cost around $500,000, the news organization said. Thomas' annual salary is $285,000. New video captures the harrowing moment a mob of angry citizens surrounded a man suspected of viciously slashing an 11-year-old girl in the head with a box cutter. In the video, Shaquan Cummings, 30, who also allegedly punched a 43-year-old woman during his bloody crime-spree on Friday afternoon, is cornered by a crowd of furious Harlem residents. A legion of NYPD officers rebuff the angry citizens, pushing them back and forming a ring around the alleged slasher, who cowers behind them in fear. Text appears on the screen that says: 'They finally caught him!!!' Desperate cops stand shoulder to shoulder and attempt to shield Cummings, who has more than 20 prior arrests, while the crowd seethes and lunges toward him. Shaquan Cummings, 30, allegedly slashed an 11-year-old girl in the head with a box cutter after punching a woman in a brutal crime-spree on Friday afternoon. Later, Cummings was surrounded by an angry mob, from whom cops had to protect him At one point in the video, an irate citizen jabs Cummings with his cane. 'Back up!' a cop screams at the mob with a hoarse voice. Tired of the crime plaguing their neighborhood, the Harlem residents appear prepared to take justice into their own hands. 'Don't let him go!' someone in the crowd yells. Another cop rushes into the fray, and stands in front of the suspect. 'You're defending a f***ing criminal,' a resident screams. Around 2:18 pm on Friday, Cummings allegedly attacked an 11-year-old girl with a box cutter just outside the 116th Street 6 subway station. A legion of NYPD officers rebuffed the angry citizens, pushing them back and forming a ring around the alleged slasher, who cowered behind them in fear Desperate cops stood shoulder to shoulder and attempted to shield Cummings, who has more than 20 prior arrests Cummings allegedly knifed the child in the back of the head, slashing her ear as she walked down the street and held her mother's hand. The child reportedly felt something on the back of her head, and when her mother, Gorzata Sladek, turned around, she saw 'a box cutter.' Cummings allegedly ducked into a subway following the attack, and escaped even as Sladek pursued the assailant. 'Terrible. It's terrible to see a little girl with her head cut, sliced in half,' the victim's mother told the New York Post. A UPS employee who saw medics treating the injured girl said she was 'scared and crying.' He continued: 'Her head [was] bloody. Bleeding can't stop. [She was] bleeding in her hand and her shirt...she was crying. Scared.' Tired of the crime plaguing their neighborhood, a crowd of Harlem residents appeared prepared to take justice into their own hands After the savage attack, the girl underwent intensive surgery that required myriad staples and stiches to stop the wound. But the emotional scars persist, the mother said. She called the terrifying episode 'traumatizing.' 'She's not doing well emotionally. She doesn't want to go back to school. She doesn't want to go outside anymore,' Sladek said. After allegedly brutally attacking Sladek's 11-year-old child, Cummings was picked up by authorities only a block away, where earlier in the afternoon he had allegedly assaulted a 43-year-old-woman. The woman declined to receive medical treatment. On Friday night, Cummings was charged with two counts of assault and acting in a manner that is injurious to a child. On Friday night, Cummings was charged with two counts of assault and acting in a manner that is injurious to a child Cummings's more than 20 previous arrests include assault, criminal mischief, and fare evasion. His most recent arrest was only two months ago for an assault charge. In a statement to the Post, Sladek expressed frustration with the level of violence on the streets- a sentiment shared by the angry mob that surrounded Cummings. ''You should be able to walk on the street and not worry that somebody will attack you...not event attacking a dog, but a little kid.' A major country show has been spoiled by the threat of violence, with a disturbing 'stabbing list' circulated on social media. The Dubbo Show, held across the weekend at the city's showground in NSW's central west, was plagued by the threat of knife crime. An anonymous list of children's names, some reportedly as young as eight, was shared with the warning that they would be stabbed if they attended. Two boys, aged 11 and 12, were spoken to by police over the post, which was entitled 'Stabbing list 2024' followed by a knife emoji. 'They will be dealt with under the Young Offenders Act,' a NSW Police spokesman said. The Dubbo Show, held across the weekend at the city's showground in NSW's central west (pictured), was plagued by the threat of knife crime after an anonymous list of children's names, some reportedly as young as eight, was shared with the warning that they would be stabbed if they attended Two boys, aged 11 and 12, were spoken to by police over the post, which was entitled 'Stabbing list 2024' followed by a knife emoji (pictured) The list triggered widespread fear on social media among people in the Wellington, Orange and Cowra areas, with one post on the 'Dubbo Mummies' Facebook page warning attendees. 'There is a stab or get stabbed list for the Dubbos show on Sat night, please everyone & their babys (sic) be safe!' one user wrote. The list prompted police to increase patrols at the showground, in addition to a 'high-visibility operation' designed to keep the community safe amid a recent surge in youth crime. A mother also told the Daily Telegraph her 16-year-old son son was held at knifepoint at the show on Friday night. However a NSW Police spokesman said the victim and two friends he was with did not see any weapon. 'About 7.20pm last Friday, a 16-year-old boy reported to police his ear pods and $30 cash had been taken by two other teenaged boys while outside a toilet block at Dubbo Show,' he said. The list triggered widespread fear on social media among people in the Wellington, Orange and Cowra areas, with one post on the 'Dubbo Mummies' Facebook page warning attendees. There were also unconfirmed reports that a 16-year-old was held at knifepoint at the show on Friday night. However, the alleged victim and two friends he was with did not see any weapon 'No weapon was sighted by the victim or two other boys with him at the time.' Police were given a description of two boys who they believe can assist with inquiries into the alleged robbery. 'They are described as being of Aboriginal/Torres Strait Island appearance with a tanned complexion, dark hair, wearing black clothing,' the NSW Police spokesperson added. 'One was described as having a heavy build, while the other had a "rats" tail haircut.' Dubbo MP and NSW Nationals leader Dugald Saunders said police targeted a few kids they knew were causing problems. 'The police were very proactive as a result of both incidents, they had a very significant presence on Saturday ... and they gave ban notices to a few kids they knew might be trouble makers,' he said. Dubbo's chief police officer, Superintendent Tim Chinn, reportedly told Mr Saunders that officers will visit schools this week to warn children of the consequences of online pranks. It comes as the NSW state government is set to introduce a tough new crackdown on knife crime, with police given new powers to scan people for weapons in public places without a warrant following a recent spate of stabbing incidents. The list prompted police to increase patrols at the showground, in addition to a 'high-visibility operation' designed to keep the community safe amid a recent surge in youth crime Premier Chris Minns said that the new legislation is modelled on Queensland's Jack's Law which brought in after the stabbing death of teen Jack Beasley in 2019. It allows police officers in Queensland to use a metal detecting wand in operations in city centre locations, at public transit hubs and on public transport. A similar scheme will be brought in for NSW which will give police powers to 'wand' or 'scan' people for knives without a warrant in designated areas, including transport hubs, shopping centres and other crowded places. South Australia is set to become the first state in Australia to ban teenagers from using social media due to threat to their mental wellbeing. Children aged 13 and under will be banned from using Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok while those aged 14 and 15 will need consent from a parent or guardian. Former High Court chief justice Robert French AC has been appointed to determine how to implement the ban in the state. The move has drawn praise from independent senator Jacqui Lambie who compared social media addiction to smoking an 'ice pipe'. South Australia premier Peter Malinauskas said the government decided to make the drastic move to safeguard the emotional and mental welfare of children, amid concerns over bullying and exploitation. Children under the age of 14 are set to be banned from using Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram under the new rules (pictured teenager using their phone) 'Like most parents, I am concerned about the impact social media is having on children in our community,' he said on Sunday. 'I am determined to ensure as a government we are doing everything that we can to protect our children.' Studies have linked social media use to poor mental health and research has indicated that the popular tech platforms can lead to an increased risk of anxiety and depression. Social media also exposes users, particularly the younger cohort, to harm such as cyberbullying, plus online predators and pornography. Mr Malinauskas said that although a time frame has not been set to introduce the legislation, the government is committed to it. ['This] is a very significant and ambitious move to limit the harm of social media on our children,' he said. 'In addition to imposing a ban on all children under the age of 14 having access to a social media account, South Australia would also require parental consent for children aged 14 and 15.' Social media apps including Facebook and Instagram require users around the world to be at least 13, before they can create an account and use these platforms, but that is hard to police. South Australia Premier Peter Malinauskas (pictured) announced the state will be introducing new laws, to ban young children from using social media Studies have linked social media use to poor mental health and research has indicated that the popular tech platforms can lead to an increased risk of anxiety and depression They do allow children to set up accounts with the consent of a parent or guardian. The US state of Florida passed a bill in March that will make it illegal for children under the age of 14 across the state to have a social media account. Ms Lambie backed the proposal claiming social media was fuelling violence and anti-social behaviour. 'You can't tell me there isn't a connection with the behaviour of our children at the moment and what is going on in social media,' she told Channel Nine's Today program on Monday. 'There is no way, don't tell me because I won't believe you. It's rubbish.' Her comment came as a disturbing new trend takes over high schools in Australia. Students have been caught boasting about performing degrading or explicit acts on each other before posting them online. The trend is known as 'lacking' - a phrase that means to be caught while doing something. In one post, a student was seen pointing a taser at their classmate causing them to scream in terror. Last year, the eSafety Commissioner received 2,383 reports of cyberbullying with two-thirds of these incidents, concerning children aged between 12 to 15. BBC presenter Kasia Madera has returned to the screen after joining three other female journalists in launching legal action against the corporation. Ms Madera, 48, presented BBC News on Sunday morning, and saw her return met with a flood of warm wishes from viewers and colleagues. The broadcaster, along with colleagues Martine Croxall, 55, Karin Giannone, 50 and Annita McVeigh, 55, are taking action against the BBC when they lost their roles after an alleged 'rigged' recruitment exercise. The trio claim they were snubbed for chief presenter roles following the merger of the BBC's News and World News channels. After her appearance, Ms Madera posted on X, formerly Twitter: 'Thanks for all the lovely messages. It's nice to be back.' Kasia Madera, 48, presenting BBC News on Sunday today, after joining three other female journalists in taking legal action against the corporation BBC presenter Kasia Madera's post on 'X' today thanking fans for their well wishes In response, Ms Croxall stated 'There she is!' alongside a screengrab of Ms Madera, with Ms Croxall adding that Ms Giannone 'and I are not far behind'. Ms McVeigh returned to work in March and said at the time, it 'is so good to be bringing you the news again'. Earlier this month, the journalists were seen together as they attended preliminary hearings for their discrimination claims at the Central London Employment Tribunal. They are expected to give evidence during their full employment tribunal which was set for March. Ms Croxall, Ms McVeigh and Ms Madera allege discrimination on the grounds of age, sex, being a union member and wages. Ms Giannone, 50, alleges discrimination based on age, sex and wages. The BBC is resisting the women's legal claim in which they allege they lost their jobs and were kept off air for a year when they challenged the process. The women alleged they have been left to suffer victimisation, harassment and reputational damage. As part of a bigger series of claims against the BBC, the four women believed they have not been paid equally compared with their male counterparts since February 2020. They claim there was a gap of about 36,000 a year in pensionable salary as of February 2023. BBC presenter Martine Croxall (centre) arrives at the London Central Employment Tribunal with colleagues Anita McVeigh (Left) Karin Giannone (second right) and Kasia Madera (right) BBC News presenter Martine Croxall (pictured) when she became emotional during a broadcast about Prince Philip's death in April 2021, has been off air since March last year Karin Giannone, Martine Croxall, Kasia Madera and Annita McVeigh arriving at the Central London Employment Tribunal on May 2 At a preliminary hearing, Judge Sarah Goodman 'dismissed' the journalists' claim for equal pay because the women had already previously agreed equal pay settlements. Responding, a BBC spokesman said: 'We are pleased with the result and that the tribunal has accepted our position. We will not be commenting further at this stage.' It is believed that the BBC's position is that it had complied with equal pay legislation. It is also understood the BBC is confident it applied a rigorous and fair recruitment process, and that all managers conducted that process properly. The women applied for the new roles as BBC News chief presenters but lost out to successful applicants including Matthew Amroliwala. Ms Croxall, who has worked for the BBC since October 1991, has been a chief presenter with the BBC News Channel and BBC World News since 2001. She has also appeared on BBC One network news bulletins. Since March 2012, Ms Madera has been a chief presenter with the BBC News Channel and BBC World News, and also appeared on BBC1 network news bulletins. Ms McVeigh, who has worked for the BBC since October 1995, has been a chief presenter with the BBC News Channel and BBC World News since 2006. She has also appeared on BBC network news. Ms Giannone started working for the BBC in January 2005. She became a permanent staff member in April 2008 and has been a chief presenter on BBC World News and the BBC News Channel. The majority of the claims made by the female journalists will be included in the full three-week tribunal which will begin next March. Aussie teachers are speaking openly about their burnout and frustration with parents in a viral trend that some fear is scaring young people off the profession. TikTok has been flooded with videos from thousands of ex-teachers sharing why they turned their back on the job in their twenties, using the hashtag #TeacherQuitTok. Similar hashtags, such as #TeacherBurnout, highlight issues young teachers face in the classroom, including parents contacting them around the clock, the perils of the career, and the 'lack of respect' from both inside the school and the general public. Young Aussies who walked away after just a few years in the classroom spoke of the 'never-ending' juggle of handling the needs of their 30-plus students, some of whom have behavioural issues. Aussie teachers are speaking openly about their burnout and frustration with parents in a viral trend that some fear is scaring young people off the profession Many teachers said the worst part of the job was mums and dads who are desperate for their child to be the 'smartest' and 'to have the most attention', which adds more pressure. 'Being a teacher is really emotionally draining,' one former educator said. 'You're constantly juggling and being responsible for all these different personalities and different situations, and it's relentless, it's never-ending,' another said. 'The access to you 24/7 [from parents] sometimes it's a lot,' one said. Some teachers from Britain and America are even filming themselves crying in class and having breakdowns in the staff room. University of Newcastle associate professor Rachel Buchanan told The Daily Telegraph she had been researching the popularity of 'QuitTok', and was worried about the impact of these videos on social media users. Prof Buchanan said that while social media can be an important tool to give teachers a voice when they 'feel powerless and unheard', she has concerns about these videos giving the false impression 'everyone's quitting'. TikTok has been flooded with videos from thousands of ex-teachers sharing why they turned their back on their job in their twenties, using the hashtag #TeacherQuitTok (stock image) 'On TikTok it feels inescapable that everyone's quitting, and everyone's burnt out and it can warp your perception of what's really happening,' Prof Buchanan said. '#TeacherQuitTok also reinforces and validates the decision to leave the profession hearing others' stories and joining in feels like participation in a movement or a moment.' The echo chamber can also impact teaching students, with Teneal Broccardo, 29, saying the 'disheartening' viral content made her question her decision to become a primary school teacher. 'I saw all these people working themselves to the ground and I thought, "Do I want to do this to myself too?"' she said. A 2022 Monash University study found only three in every 10 teachers surveyed planned on staying in the profession for the long-term, something state governments are trying to tackle. NSW Education Minister Prue Car said the state was trying to retain educators by focusing on pay rises, more permanent contracts and a ban on mobile phones in the classroom. Mica Miller's estranged pastor husband told her funeral mourners he tried to raise her from the dead when he visited her body after her suicide. Mica, 30, was found dead in Lumbee River State Park in North Carolina on April 27 from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. She took her own life days after serving her husband John Paul Miller, 44, with divorce papers, and police ruled it a suicide. Miller is accused in court documents of grooming Mica for years before they wed, committing her to hospital to steal her car, and cheating on his first wife with underage churchgoers. The pastor gave an emotional 20-minute speech at a memorial service at Solid Rock Ministries in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, on May 5. Solid Rock posted the video of the eulogy almost a week later on Saturday and hundreds of viewers were unnerved by Miller's 'fake and sad act of damage control'. John-Paul Miller, 44, gave an emotional 20-minute speech at a memorial service at Solid Rock Ministries in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, on May 5 His wife Mica, 30, was found dead in Lumbee River State Park in North Carolina on April 27 from a self-inflicted gunshot wound Miller told mourners he visited her body in the morgue four times in the week since she died. 'Each time it still didn't hit me, I thought she was going to wake up - I even tried to raise her from the dead one time this week,' he said. He went to the mall later that day and saw a woman who looked just like Mica with similar clothes and tattoo on her arm and he instinctively yelled 'Mica!' When she turned around it turned out to be was one of her sisters. 'I thought I raised her from the dead... I can't wait to see her again one day,' he said, wiping tears from his eyes. Miller said many people saying how beautiful she was on the outside but 'only a spouse knows how beautiful a person is on the inside'. 'If I had 10 hours it wouldn't be enough to tell you all the great things about her,' he said. Miller wiped away tears as he told mourners he visited her body in the morgue four times in the week since she died and once tried to raise her from the dead Micatook her own life days after serving her husband John Paul Miller, 44, with divorce papers, and police ruled it a suicide He talked about beauty pageants Mica won, from school onwards, and moved on to stories that would help funeralgoers understand a 'more intimate side of her'. The couple married in 2017 and Miller recounted his elaborate proposal where he brought the congregation to the beach under the guise of a baptism. As a plane flew by dragging a 'will you marry me Mica?' banner, he turned her towards the ocean while the church clapped and cheered. But she said 'why is everybody cheering?' because she couldn't read it because she didn't have her contact lenses in. Miller called his estranged wife 'bold, confident, anointed, passionate' at leading worship, with a powerful singing voice he could hear all over their house. He recalled how she sat through the Pitch Perfect movie trilogy '15 times' before finally telling him she didn't like them, and a trip to a karaoke bar on a holiday to Cancun during Spring Break. Mica sang Sunday Morning in the dingy bar, and the locals all stood up, raised their drinks, and sang chorus with her in broken English. They got her to sing five songs in a row. Miller showed photos of her doing adventurous things on holiday that scared him. 'I don't know if this is safe, I'm a lot older than you and I don't know if I should be doing this,' he remembered telling her. 'She loved doing dangerous things, she loved skydiving and she would beg me to do these things with her and I said never, I have children, I can't do this stuff.' Miller is accused in court documents of grooming Mica for years before they wed, committing her to hospital to steal her car, and cheating on his first wife with underage churchgoers Miller stunned his congregants last week when, after a service in which he had laughed and appeared entirely at ease, he announced that his wife had died Miller also recalled how she convinced him to get their marriage vows tattooed on their forearms. 'I can't stand tattoos because they hurt and I don't like pain,' he said. Mica's family boycotted the service and held their own on the beach instead. Footage of the eulogy sparked backlash on Saturday with many shocked at Miller's involvement. 'This man is so close to never being able for redemption. John Paul Miller get on your knees and repent for how you treated this woman,' one wrote. Another added: 'This is such a low level of blasphemy. This man literally has no shame whatsoever.' Others were disgusted that Miller 'stalked' her body four times after being subject to a restraining order in the weeks before her death. 'This is the creepiest service. Those are the fakest tears I've ever seen. Seems like he is glad she is gone and rushing the funeral so he can get on with another life.' Mica called police at least eight times in the weeks leading up to her death, making all manner of accusations against him. Reverend Charles Randall disputed reports he fired Miller as Solid Rock's pastor, insisting he just benched him so he could heal. 'I have released him from ministerial functions for a minute to get some healing, and some counselling and some guidance. You can't go through these things like this and just step right back to same day,' he said during a sermon on Sunday. Pastor John-Paul Miller (right) seen with Reverend Charles Randall (left) at Solid Rock Church in Myrtle Beach on Friday Randall declined to respond to allegations that Miller had sexual encounters with young girls under the age of 16 who he met through the church He declined to respond to allegations that Miller had sexual encounters with young girls under the age of 16 who he met through the church. 'He is grieving and healing at this time. I'm in touch with Pastor Miller every day, and he's healing,' he told DailyMail.com. The claims were revealed by DailyMail.com after obtaining explosive divorce papers filed against Miller by his ex-wife Alison in 2015, where she also said he admitted to being 'addicted to prostitution'. Miller also started an affair with Mica, who at the time was the couple's babysitter and the wife of his best friend Jeremy Deas, his ex, Alison said in an affidavit from 2017 referring to events two years earlier. Alison's affidavit claimed church leaders 'demanded that the defendant seek counseling for sexual addiction', but when he refused the 'majority of our church left the congregation'. Randall told the congregation that Miller is 'progressing', and that he has stepped in to help the 'born-again Christian' navigate the situation. A waitress also claims Miller was sending her flirty messages while his wife planned to kill herself, including calling her 'super hot' and asking for 'bikini pics.' In the days after her death, her friends and family held a rally calling for 'justice for Mica' outside the Solid Rock Church where Pastor Miller works Mica's sister, Sierra, has filed a claim against both the church and Miller following her sister's death. Court documents filed in Horry County Family Court accuse Solid Rock Church of 'colluding and conspiring' with the pastor to 'defraud and deprive' his wife. The couple initially split on September 20 2023, before the divorce was dismissed on February 13. Later that same month Miller filed against his wife for separate support and maintenance in a motion withdrawn March 11. But on April 15, just 12 days before she was found dead, Mica filed for divorce once more and sought a no contact order against her husband. They split for the second time on February 6. DailyMail.com previously revealed how she accused him of posting a nude photograph of her on Facebook just weeks before her death. Miller has since admitted to the malicious act and even claimed he tried to make amends telling NewsNation the act was 'evil'. Later on March 14 and March 26 Mica reported that she had found a tracking device on her car, after discovering it attached by magnets under the chassis. Another police report over the alleged theft of her silver Honda Accord shows the breakdown of their marriage dating back to February 2023. 'When the complainant was discharged from the hospital, hospital staff informed her that her husband picked up her purse and her keys,' the report states. 'The complainant believed that her husband fraudulently initiated her involuntary hospitalization and 'stole' her care while she was in the hospital.' Miller's black Honda is observed traveling on Highway 501 near Four Mile Rd., Conway, South Carolina on April 27 hours before her death Mica met with the cops at Coastal Grand Mall and told them she and her husband had been separated since January of that year. When investigators contacted her husband, he told them that his wife had been suffering from a 'reckless episode' due to poor mental health. He said the incidents were annual crises which would flare up around Christmas and result in Mica spending excessively. Miller told the officer he seized the vehicle to prevent it being sold and would not give it back for a month to allow the episode to pass. As both parties stated they were legally married, the investigator had to consider the car as marital property and therefore 'could not establish a criminal offense'. The most salacious claim in Mica's police reports was that Miller, who is 14 years older than her, 'groomed' her since she was 10, before they married in 2017. 'The complainant stated that she has known her husband since she was ten-years-old and that he 'groomed' her while she worked for him at Solid Rock Church until they were married,' the report added. Miller's lawyer Russel Long said this 'couldn't be farther from the truth. She moved to Myrtle Beach at the age of 15, was married to another man at the age of 18 and divorced at the age of 21'. 'It has come to light that Mica Miller struggled with mental illness, specifically bipolar disorder, which, when not properly managed, led to paranoid episodes and self-destructive behavior,' he said. Long claimed 'some reports made by her in the recent past are nonsensical' in reference to her claims recorded in police documents. Long added that Mica's death being ruled a suicide by police 'completely exonerates Pastor Miller of any wrongdoing'. Mica's sister Sierra Francis told NewsNation she probably meant Miller groomed her since 2010, as her sister told her it began when she was 14 or 15. Miller stunned his congregants last week when, after a service in which he had laughed and appeared entirely at ease, he announced that his wife had died. The pastor's wife was seen on CCTV purchasing a firearm at a pawn shop, she later used the weapon to end her life The pastor, who has a criminal record including multiple counts of aggravated assault and battery to which he pleaded guilty, told his congregation that her death was 'self-induced'. 'You all know she wasn't well mentally and that she needed her medicine and it was hard to get to her,' he said. Before making the announcement, he asked his flock to stand and instructed them to, 'leave church quietly and don't talk about the announcement here in the building.' Evidence released by Robeson County Sheriff's Office as part of their investigation conclusively shows Mica plotting to end her life. She bought the gun just a few hours before her suicide. Weeks before her death, she had shared a video speaking about abuse within marriage as claims emerged, she was being harassed and was 'afraid for her life'. 'Today my heart's a little heavy. I've had lots of women that have reached out to me about situations of abuse, and I just want to tell you what a lot of people have told me lately, because I think I forgot,' she said. 'But you are the bride of Christ before anybody else's, male or female, it doesn't matter what gender you are, abuse is abuse.' As the cost of living crisis bites Australians even harder, a top real estate guru has revealed the depressing reality of home ownership. In a video posted to social media, Tom Panos was sitting in a cafe and referenced the young worker behind him. 'See the guy behind us, I know what he's making $20 or $30 an hour, works his a*** off,' Mr Panos said. 'If this guy starts saving up, he'll be able to get a deposit for a property when he's 63 years of age. 'Yeah, you've got everyone worrying about Brittany Higgins, and this guy is going to have to work for 45 years just to get a deposit.' 'If this guy starts saving up, he'll be able to get a deposit for a property when he's 63 years of age,' Mr Panos said Mr Panos ended his video with a wake-up call to the Albanese government, telling them to get real about how average wage earners will never be able to afford a home. 'Look at what you're making people do to buy real estate. Make the main thing... housing.' Many Aussies agreed with Mr Panos. One said: 'Considering leaving Australia with my wife and three kids so we have a future. The country is cooked. Done paying 70 per cent of our income for housing.' A second added: 'Government has lost the Australian dream.' A third said: 'Government needs to develop and sell land at very low prices for first home buyers. That's the only way price will drop.' The Albanese government pledged to build 1.2million new homes within five years under a plan announced by Treasurer Jim Chalmers, but data shows this is on track to fail. The eye-watering length of time it now takes to save up for a house deposit Australians looking to get into the property market aim to save an average of $67,474 for a deposit, a survey by financial comparison group Mozo found. If someone is able to save $359 a month, it would take them 15 years and eight months to reach that $67,000 figure. For those saving less than $200 a month, setting aside money for a mortgage deposit would take at least 21 years and eight months. Even that saving goal is modest, as it would only be enough for a 10 per cent deposit to buy a $674,737 house, meaning the buyer would need to pay lenders mortgage insurance. While a Sydney house is now almost beyond reach of all but the very wealthy, a 10 per cent mortgage deposit of $67,474 could get an aspiring home buyer something in the outer suburbs of Brisbane or Melbourne. House prices continue to grow out of reach for young Aussies (pictured a cafe worker in Sydney) Advertisement Labor also promised to halve immigration numbers from July, which are contributing to the housing shortage and sky-high rents. However, official data showed that net migration hit an unprecedented 105,000 people in February, which is a nearly 20 per cent increase on the previous record, and there were even more in the month before. Meanwhile, ABC economics guru Alan Kohler highlighted several challenges facing the Albanese government's efforts to address the housing crisis. 'It's too late to deal with the demand surge from immigration because it has already happened, and will take years to work through,' Mr Kohler wrote in an article for The New Daily. 'And no one wants to tackle negative gearing and the capital gains tax discount, and in any case, investors who use those tax concessions are deserting the housing market right now because even with them and sky-high rents the returns from capital gains are unlikely to be good enough because anyone can see house prices can't rise any more. Can they? 'As for the supply of new housing, governments can have all the accords and targets they want, but they don't build houses, or at least not many, developers and builders do, and building houses is a terrible business.' The Albanese government pledged to build 1.2million new homes within five years under a plan announced by Treasurer Jim Chalmers , but data shows this is on track to fail (Pictured: A Sydney rental inspection) ABC economics guru Alan Kohler (pictured) highlighted several challenges facing the Albanese government's efforts to address the housing crisis He called on Minister for Housing and Homelessness and Small Business Julie Collins to protect builders and developers being preyed on by state governments. He said this would lead to an increase in the number of builders and in turn, more houses being built. He wrote the cost of building a house has increased dramatically, as state governments impose huge taxes on new housing, especially in Victoria. Mr Kohler wrote builders are marginal businesses that are unprotected and over-regulated, and the insurance they are required to pay is exorbitant. Builders must agree to a fixed end price for something that takes a year to construct, they have no control of input prices and have to deal with desperate customers, he wrote. A producer for YouTube channel FriendlyJordies says he feared for his safety after a Four Corners reporter allegedly passed on threats made by a notorious organised crime family. Kristo Langker, who works with FriendlyJordies creator Jordan Shanks, claims he received the warnings through ABC investigative journalist Mahmood Fazal. Fazal has strongly denied doing anything wrong, and the ABC - which describes his work as 'extremely challenging, impactful and important public interest journalism - stands by his reporting. The 33-year-old Walkley Award winner insists any warnings that were made by the crime family were directed at him and it was his life that was endangered. Langker was so concerned about the situation the 23-year-old made a statement to the NSW Police Force's Organised Crime Squad seen by Daily Mail Australia. According to that statement, Langker claims he told Fazal in one phone conversation: 'You're a Four Corners journalist. You gotta decide what you are. 'You're not one of them.' A producer for YouTube channel FriendlyJordies says he feared for his safety after Four Corners reporter Mahmood Fazal allegedly passed on threats made by a notorious organised crime family. Fazal is pictured on assignment for the ABC program Fazal is a former bikie who was once sergeant-at-arms of a Mongols chapter and has since turned his hand to telling stories about crime, violence, prison and terrorism. He was made a permanent member of the Four Corners investigative team of reporters alongside journalists including Louise Milligan, Mark Willacy and Angus Grigg last August. Fazal fronted Four Corners episodes Cocaine Nation in June 2023 and Meth Highway in April this year, both of which explored the trade and use of illegal drugs. Those investigations relied heavily upon criminal contacts Fazal has said were prepared to speak with him because he was once part of their world. Fazal's family fled Soviet-occupied Afghanistan in the late 1980s and settled in Victoria where as a young man he fell into a life of crime and drugs. He once explained a piece written for the Walkley Magazine in May 2018 how his membership of the Mongols and the gang's 'bare-knuckle policy on meth' helped him achieve sobriety. 'I naturally acclimatised to the violence and honoured the criminal code, where your word is everything,' he wrote. Kristo Langker, who works with FriendlyJordies creator Jordan Shanks, claims warnings he received through ABC investigative journalist Mahmood Fazal left him fearing for his safety. Fazal is pictured when he was a Mongol Langker became involved with Fazal through his production of a video which was uploaded to the FriendlyJordies channel in August 2022. That video used photographs of a notorious rapper and other alleged associates of a crime family which had first appeared in a Rolling Stone article written by Fazal a year earlier. In Langker's statement to police he claimed Fazal had told him during a lunch in late August or early September 2022 that he was receiving threats about the video. Fazal said he had been meeting with ABC management to organise police protection for himself 'due to the [crime family's] presumed involvement', Langker told detectives on January 19. 'Mahmood [allegedly] said words to the effect, "I was speaking to people who are involved in organised crime", and "You need to watch your back",' Langker said in his statement. Fazal had also allegedly said: 'Your name is in the mouths of serious people', 'I am terrified', and 'I am gravely concerned for my safety'. Kristo Langker was so concerned about the threats Mahmood Fazal allegedly passed onto him he made a statement to the NSW Police Organised Crime Squad. Langker is pictured right Langker told police Fazal had asked him on January 11 this year to take down the FriendlyJordies video 'as there were people threatening his life'. 'He said words to the effect that "If the video didn't come down something very bad could happen to himself",' Langker told police. 'He made it very apparent that Jordan and I were also in danger.' Langker said he met Fazal later that day outside a solicitor's officer in Sydney's central business district, where Fazal again allegedly pleaded for the video to be taken down. On January 17, Langker had an eight-minute phone conversation with Fazal. 'Mahmood said: "I don't understand why you are making this about you. I am the one being threatened."' Langker said in his police statement. 'Mahmood said: "I had a guy who just got out of prison for attempted murder, basically tell me what I need to do. I am the one being threatened here mate not you". Fazal's family fled Soviet-occupied Afghanistan in the late 1980s and settled in Victoria where as a young man he fell into a life of crime and drugs. Fazal is pictured as a Mongol Langker told police that Fazal said he had met face-to-face with one of the men making the alleged threats and was warned he should watch his back. 'I said: "Why were you hanging out with them?"' Langker said. 'He said: "I wasn't I was called to a meeting". 'I said: "You're a Four Corners journalist you gotta decide what you are. You're not one of them. Why would you go do that?" In a statement to The Sydney Morning Herald, which first reported the alleged threats, Fazal accused the publication of attempting to stereotype him due to his ethnic background. 'The connections you seek to draw between myself and events are serious and which I find profoundly offensive,' he told the publication. 'I am troubled that you appear to have relied on the ethnic background of the people to whom you refer in order to imply unlawful conduct on my part. This very much appears to be a case of attempting to stereotype me. 'If you are in possession of any credible information that suggests I have engaged in any unlawful conduct (which I have not), I suggest you provide that information to the police so they can deal with it properly rather than publishing untested allegations in the paper.' Fazal (left) fronted Four Corners episodes Cocaine Nation in June 2023 and Meth Highway in April this year, both of which explored the trade and use of illegal drugs Daily Mail Australia attempted to contact Fazal but an ABC spokeswoman said she understood he did not wish to make any further statement. 'Mahmood Fazal does extremely challenging, impactful and important public interest journalism for the ABC and the ABC stands by his reporting,' she said. 'For obvious reasons, the ABC won't comment on security threats to our employees, measures we take for their safety or any dealings we may have with police. 'Mahmood says that he informed his police contacts about this situation every step of the way.' NSW Police told the Herald their investigation into the threats reported by Langker had stalled because Fazal was reluctant to make a statement. The FriendlyJordies video was taken down in February. Fazal won the Walkley Foundation's 2020 Media Diversity Australia Award for the podcast No Gangsters in Paradise, which examined gang warfare between the Darwiche and Razzak families in Sydney in the early 2000s. His writing has previously been published in The Sydney Morning Herald, The Guardian, VICE, The Saturday Paper, The Monthly, and Rolling Stone. A Kentucky teenager is dead after he was allegedly hit on the head during a fight then sent back to class where he suffered a fatal seizure. Emmanuel Emeka, 17, was just weeks away from his high school graduation when he was rushed to the hospital on Friday. According to some witnesses, a fight broke out at Henry Clay High School when Emeka was struck on the back of the head. Emeka and his peers were all reportedly sent back to class without receiving medical attention. The Fayette County Public Schools administration maintains that there was no fight and that Emeka suffered a medical emergency, according to WLEX. The teen's mother, Irene, said that she received a phone call shortly before 11 a.m. about an emergency but was never contacted again, WLEX reported. "The school is like a second family to him, so they are supposed to take responsibility when she's not around to know," a friend translating for Irene told the outlet. "And she wants to have that communication with them, so they can tell her what happened exactly with her son." Emeka's younger siblings described him as "the best brother," while expressing disbelief that their sibling was gone. "I thought they was lying but then when I came in here I saw everybody crying," his 14-year-old sister, Ndaya, told WLEX. "So then I started crying." Emeka's best friend Modoul Danso told WLEX that even being inside his home or his friend's home is painful now. "Nothing feels the same like it used to," he said. "We just miss him. It don't feel the same anymore." Britain's busiest motorway has reopened ahead of schedule after drivers faced a 19-mile diversion over the weekend while a new bridge was installed. The M25 closed in both directions between junctions 9 and 10 in Surrey from 9pm on Friday while concrete beams for a new bridge were installed. The motorway was expected to reopen at 6am today, but instead both carriageways were reopened overnight, seven hours ahead of schedule. National Highways, in a post on X last night, confirmed that the planned works had been completed and the 'road is now fully open' with traffic 'flowing well in both directions'. The M25 closure was the second of five planned weekend closures which came as part of a 317million project to improve junction 10. Britain's busiest motorway has reopened ahead of scheduled after drivers faced a 19-mile diversion over the weekend while a new bridge was installed. Pictured is a view of the roadway around 7pm last night The M25 closed in both directions between junctions 9 and 10 in Surrey from 9pm on Friday while concrete beams for a new bridge were installed. Pictured is a photo of the M25 shared by National Highways around 6pm yesterday Crews installed 72 beams for the M25 East bridge over the weekend, National Highways confirmed. Workers used specialist lifting gear to move the beams into place, some of which weighed 40 tonnes each. The crews lifted a total of 1,248 tonnes of material Crews installed 72 beams for the M25 East bridge over the weekend, National Highways confirmed last night. Workers used specialist lifting gear to move the beams into place, some of which weighed 40 tonnes each. The crews lifted a total of 1,248 tonnes of material. They also installed a gantry that spans the entire width of the carriageway, the highway authority said. National Highways, in a post on X last night, confirmed that the planned works had been completed and the 'road is now fully open' with traffic 'flowing well in both directions' National Highways thanked motorists for their 'patience' and 'bearing with us during the work'. News that the motorway has reopened comes after the highways agency said earlier yesterday that work along the M25 was 'progressing well'. Officials had also urged drivers to 'please follow the official diversion routes to manage traffic flow effectively'. Surrey Highways reported at about 1.20pm yesterday that there were major delays in West Byfleet along Parvis Road and told drivers to try and avoid the area. Congestion was also reported in Leatherhead, Oxshott and in surrounding areas of Weybridge, Cobham and Walton On Thames. But now, according to National Highways, the road is 'fully open in both directions', without any traffic issues. The M25 closure was the second of five planned weekend closures which came as part of a 317million project to improve junction 10. Pictured is a photo of the worksite shared by National Highways around 7am yesterday National Highways previously urged drivers to 'please follow the official diversion routes to manage traffic flow effectively'. Pictured is a view of the M24 around 10am Sunday News that the motorway has reopened comes after the highways agency said earlier yesterday that work along the M25 was 'progressing well'. Pictured are workers at the site yesterday around noon Surrey Highways reported at about 1.20pm yesterday that there were major delays in West Byfleet along Parvis Road and told drivers to try and avoid the area. Pictured is the road around 1.30pm on Sunday Diversion routes had taken cars on a 19-mile journey on A roads, crossing from Surrey into London's Ulez area, though National Highways assured drivers 'no enforcement action will be taken'. Pictured is the M25 between junction 9 and 10 around 4pm yesterday Diversion routes had taken cars on a 19-mile journey on A roads, crossing from Surrey into London's Ulez area, though National Highways assured drivers 'no enforcement action will be taken'. However, the highways authority said anyone who ignored official diversion signs in an attempt to find shorter alternative routes would have been liable for the 12.50 daily Ulez fee if their vehicle does not meet minimum emissions standards. Failure to pay the charge when required can result in a 180 fine, reduced to 90 if paid within 14 days. National Highways previously urged drivers to only travel the route if necessary, to avoid the closure and to complete their journeys in other ways if possible. An Aboriginal activist told Ben Fordham he had 'put a target' on himself in a tense on-air exchange after the 2GB radio host labelled him a 'pest and a moron'. Paul Silva, a Black Lives Matter campaigner, made headlines last week after he told a police officer the law did not apply to him because he's Aboriginal. Silva was pulled over on March 30 at South Kempsey, on the NSW mid-north coast, for allegedly using his mobile phone while driving. Fordham obtained an audio recording of the subsequent interaction, in which Silva was repeatedly obstructive, telling the officer the 'law doesn't apply to me as an Aboriginal man'. Despite this, he was later charged with two driving infringements. After the radio host labelled him a 'pest and a moron', Silva rang up 2GB on Monday to accuse Fordham of 'poor journalism' for not finding out the 'back story'. Paul Silva (pictured), a Black Lives Matter campaigner and a proud Dunghuttii man, made headlines last week after he told a police officer the law did not apply to him because he's Aboriginal Mr Silva told Ben Fordham (pictured) he had 'put a target' on himself in a threatening on air exchange after the 2GB radio host labelled him a 'pest and a moron' The pair went back-and-forth before Fordham asked Silva if there was anything new. 'I'll see you around,' Mr Silva warned Fordham. 'You've now put a target on yourself, right? For you to sit there and call me a pest and a moron, I'll show you what a pest and a moron does, right? 'I'll be hanging around at 2GB all day today waiting for you to come out. You can go down to the underground car park and find out.' Unfazed, Fordham warned Silva that the police will be listening. 'They'll be saying "hang on a moment, this sounds like a man making threats",' he added. Silva then said that it was not up to him how people interpreted his words. 'If you feel harassed or threatened in any way shape or form, I'm sorry you feel that way,' he said. 'I can't control the way someone feels based off the words that I say, mate.' Fordham told Silva he needed to 'chill out' before ending the call. Last week, Fordham shared audio from the moment Mr Silva had been pulled over by officers The abrupt ending drew to a close a conversation that had been heated from the very start. Silva wanted to know why Fordham had covered the story in the first place. He reiterated his claim that the current laws do not apply to him because they were being 'forced on Aboriginal people' on 'stolen land'. Fordham questioned why Silva was taking the matter to court if that was the case. Last week, Fordham shared audio from the moment Silva had been pulled over by officers. 'So you're from mid-north coast police station, right?' Silva said to the police officer. The officer was heard twice asking Silva for his driver's license. Silva replied 'Don't raise your voice, sir. Activate your body cam, please.' When the officer told him his body camera was already on, Silva again said 'Well, don't raise your voice at me'. The officer told him that all Silva had to do was 'just follow directions', but he again refused to comply. 'No, no, no, no, no, I don't follow your directions. Your law doesn't apply to me as an Aboriginal man,' he said. Despite his claim's that the law does not apply to him, NSW police confirmed that a 26-year-old male driver was issued with two traffic infringement notices (stock image) 'I stopped you for a reason,' the officer responded, getting frustrated at Silva's behaviour. He then asked the activist not to yell at him. 'If you (don't) want to be yelled at, stop yelling at me, I'll yell back at you,' Silva replied. The officer then said: 'Mate, you're getting very close to being arrested.' Despite his claim's that the law does not apply to him, NSW police confirmed that a 26-year-old male driver was issued with two traffic infringement notices. Driver used mobile phone where not permitted and use horn or similar device unnecessarily were the charges brought against the man. He allegedly excessively beeped the vehicle's horn as he drove away. Silva previously made headlines for holding Black Lives Matter demonstrations during the pandemic. A 37-year-old man has been charged with murder after a man was found dead in the stairwell of car park at a regional train station. NSW Police were called after the grim discovery was made on Station Street, next to Wollongong train station around 7.20am on Sunday. The dead man is believed to be a 68-year-old local, but he is yet to be formally identified. A man has been charged with murder after police were called to a carpark next to Wollongong train station on Sunday morning, where they found the body of an elderly man (pictured Wollongong Police Station) A 37-year-old man was arrested at Crown Street at 10.40am on Sunday, and later charged with murder. He was refused bail and was scheduled to appear before Wollongong Local Court on Monday. Officers, alongside homicide squad detectives, set up a crime scene in the area and established Strike Force Alleppo to investigate the death. Dozens of police cars arrived at the Station Street car park next to Wollongong train station (pictured), after police were alerted to the grim discovery Staff at the train station are understood to have found the body of the man on level one, near the western side of the carpark, the Daily Telegraph reported. The area is known to be frequented by people who sleep rough. Dave Myers wooed his wife with a sandwich after the pair first met while he was filming his Hairy Bikers cookery show in Romania, she has revealed. Lili Myers met Dave in 2006 while he and Si King were filming part of their first series, The Hairy Bikers' Cookbook. She had been helping on the production. The pair wrote emails to each other over the years while Dave travelled around the globe, until they were finally able to reconnect at his home in Barrow, where he cooked her a meal. 'He put all his soul into that sandwich,' Lili told BBC Radio Cumbria of their apparent first date. They later married in Barrow in 2011. Dave passed away aged 66 in February with his family and TV partner by his side after battling cancer. Lili misses her husband 'terribly', but says despite it having been a difficult time, they 'made the most of every day' after Dave received his diagnosis. Dave Myers wooed his wife with a sandwich after the pair first met while he was filming his Hairy Bikers cookery show in Romania, Lili Myers has revealed. The couple are pictured in 2018 at the Specsavers Spectacle Wearer of the Year Awards Lili and Dave Myers met while he and Si King were filming part of their first series, The Hairy Bikers' Cookbook. She had been helping on the production. Si and Dave are pictured on their BBC series The Hairy Bikers Go West Lili and Dave wrote emails to each other over the years while the celebrity chef travelled around the globe. They finally were able to reconnect at his home in Barrow, where he cooked her a meal for what was seemingly their first date. Lili (pictured with Dave on their wedding day) said he 'put all his soul into that sandwich' The Hairy Bikers cook up their perfect roast - roast chicken with herby stuffing, roast potatoes, gravy and Yorkshire puddings - on This Morning in November 2018 'It wasn't an easy period of time,' Lili told BBC Radio Cumbria. 'I've watched this man die for a couple of years, every day, little by little.' Despite being sick, Dave continued to film episodes of the Hairy Bikers between his chemotherapy sessions, she revealed. Lili had encouraged him to keep working on the programme because 'it was his life'. She explained that no matter what he was going through, Dave, whom she described as being 'larger than life', always 'made the most of every moment'. 'He always said, "let's make the most of today, we don't know what will come tomorrow",' Lili recalled, adding that she misses him and his 'energy'. Although she continues to mourn him, Lili is looking forward to Dave Day, an event next month that will see thousands of bikers travel along the M6 from London to Barrow in his memory. The ride raises money for the NSPCC children's charity and Cancer Research and will be held on June 8. Lili 'never thought it would be this big' and said the anticipated turnout just shows how Dave 'touched so many lives'. She added that the response to the event has left her feeling not like she is mourning Dave, but instead as if 'I'm celebrating with a nation'. Dave Myers married to Liliana Orzac, whom he met while filming Hairy Bikers in Romania , in 2011 at the star's hometown in Barrow, Cumbria. The couple are pictured together in a photo she shared on Facebook in a tribute post after his death Dave Myers (right) and Lilliana Orzac (centre) are pictured on their wedding day in 2011 alongside his TV sidekick and Best Man Si King (left) Dave married Lilliana Orzac and was a stepfather to her two children, Izabelle and Sergiu, from a previous relationship. The family is pictured together Marrying six years after they first met, Dave never actually proposed to his wife and instead said they decided to tie the knot to secure the relationship logistically. The pair ended up having a huge wedding with 400 people attending and Lili's parents travelling to Britain for the bash. Following his diagnosis, Dave briefly took a break from work before filming his last show with King, which sees them travel west across Britain from Scotland to Devon. The beloved chef spoke before his death of the incredible toll his illness took on his wife, saying that his health battle had been 'all-encompassing'. Lili also spoke of her devastation in the days after his death - thanking his devoted fans and saying she was 'grieving with a whole nation'. After his death, both of his 'heartbroken' stepchildren took to social media to pay tribute to their 'wonderful' father. After Dave's death, both of his 'heartbroken' stepchildren took to social media to pay tribute to their 'wonderful' father. Dave is pictured with his stepson Sergiu, an Alpine F1 aero mechanic Taking to social media a week after Dave's funeral, Sergiu paid tribute to Dave - saying he 'had the honour of calling you my dad' Izabelle changed her profile picture to a sweet photo of herself and Dave grinning into the camera, accompanied by a simple 'heart' emoji Sergiu, an Alpine F1 aero mechanic, wrote a week after Dave's funeral: 'It has taken me a while to write this as it's hard to think about it and still cannot believe you are no longer with us. 'Last week we said our final goodbyes to one of the most wonderful people I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. Furthermore I had the honour of calling you my dad. 'You have always been an inspiration in my life, and will remain so even now that you are not with us anymore; with your infectious zest for life and unmatched passion for any endeavour you set your mind to. 'Without you, I would not be the man I am today.' He added: 'I'll end with a little quote from Renoir that I think is fitting and captures the effect you had not only on your family, but the millions of fans worldwide: "The pain passes, but the beauty remains".' Izabelle, rather, changed her profile picture to a sweet photo of herself and Dave grinning into the camera, accompanied by a simple 'heart' emoji. Dave has previously spoken lovingly about his devoted stepchildren, with Lili having paid tribute to him as a 'wonderful stepdad' in the days following his death. He admitted that he regretted not having children, however when he met Liliana he became part of her children's lives and became their stepfather. He said: 'A major regret of mine for a long time had been not having children. When I married Lil, I had this ready-made family with two stepchildren.' A stalwart of British television, Dave first appeared on our screens in 2006 alongside his TV partner Si King and racked up more than 30 separate projects, also selling 6million copies of their 30 cookery books. Pictured: Si and Dave serve up Crispy Beef in Hoi An, Vietnam, in 2006 Dave Myers and Si King appear on This Morning in October 2019 and were in the kitchen with a midweek Mexican feast. The Hairy Bikers made a delicious one pot Chilli Con Carne Pictured: Si King and Dave Myers in their BBC cooking programme, The Hairy Bikers Go West A stalwart of British television, Dave first appeared on our screens in 2006 alongside his TV partner and racked up more than 30 separate projects, also selling 6million copies of their 30 cookery books. He announced he was receiving treatment for cancer in May 2022 and bravely kept the public up to date with his progress in a series of emotional TV specials. His death was followed by an outpouring of grief from the general public - who mourned the loss of one of the BBC's most popular figures, who also starred in Strictly Come Dancing in 2013. Bikers also took to the streets for a memorial ride to pay tribute - with many wearing t-shirts bearing his image as Si said his friend 'would have loved' the gesture. The Ministry of Defence spent 40,000 removing red paint sprayed on its walls by pro-Palestine protesters last month, MailOnline can reveal. Youth Demand and Palestine Action carried out the stunt in Whitehall as part of its campaign demanding that both the Conservative Party and Labour pledge to impose a ban on selling arms to Israel. With specialist cleaners required to leach the paint out of the stonework and a water supply installed specifically for the work, the repair bill for the MoD hit 40,000, figures released under Freedom of Information laws show. Defence Secretary Grant Shapps hopes to recover the costs through civil prosecutions, which he has ordered his department to pursue. Police officers at the Ministry of Defence in London as a protester gives a speech Defence Secretary Grant Shapps (pictured) arrives in Downing Street for a cabinet meeting on March 6, 2024 Police officers detain a person after members of Youth Demand threw red paint over the outside of the Ministry of Defence building Police officers at the Ministry of Defence in London, after members of Youth Demand threw red paint over the outside of the building. A source said: The taxpayer should not have to pay a penny to clean up the criminal and wholly unpatriotic damage from this childish PR stunt. Thats why the Defence Secretary has ordered the MoD to pursue civil prosecutions of those responsible to recover the entire cost. 'Crimes like this cant go unpunished thats why the perpetrators were right to be arrested and why they must pick up the bill. This was not only a criminal stunt but a self-defeating one as the men and women in our Ministry of Defence have been working night and day to save lives in the region. At the time of the protest, Mr Shapps posted on X/Twitter: Those inside @DefenceHQ stand up to dictators & terrorists every day patriots, many of whom put their lives at risk to protect us all. Those targeting us today are the opposite, cowardly criminals who Im glad to see arrested. Elon Musk has had a victory in an Australian court with a judge shooting down the eSafety Commissioner's request to temporarily ban graphic videos of an alleged violent church attack. The Albanese government and eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant are locked in a bitter standoff with Musk after he failed to comply with an order to remove from his X app violent video of an attack on a bishop during his church service on April 15. During an interlocutory hearing on Friday, Justice Geoffrey Kennett issued a three day extension to an injunction which ordered Musk's social media platform X temporarily remove the footage while the matter played out in court. On Monday morning, he refused the eSafety Commission's application to extend the injunction. The current injunction will lapse at 5pm Monday. A case management hearing is scheduled to take place on Wednesday ahead of proceedings to determine the validity of Ms Inman Grant's order. She wants to see the offending footage wiped from X servers, arguing that simply geoblocking the content to hide it from an Australian audience does not go far enough to protect the community. The court heard on Friday Musk's initial attempts to block Australians from viewing the content were easily thwarted by technology up to 25 per cent of all Aussies use: a VPN. Bret Walker SC, acting for X, told the court the Australian government's request to remove the footage from the app across the globe was an example of overreach 'literally larger than anything else could be'. 'It is at odds with what one would expect or hope for from one national regime,' he said. The Albanese government and eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant are locked in a bitter standoff with Musk (pictured) Meanwhile lawyers acting for the eSafety Commissioner argued that X's move to geoblock disturbing video of the violent crimes - meaning they would be unavailable to Australian users - was unsatisfactory. While Meta moved swifty to remove the content entirely from its services, Musk's X instead simply geoblocked the content from Aussies - 65 posts in total. But lawyer Tim Begbie KC told the court that staff at the eSafety Commissioner's office 'were able to use standard VPNs to access videos banned from Australia'. They did so on multiple occasions 'from an adult's account, a child's account and not logged in at all'. A VPN can mask a user's IP address and re-route a connection so that it appears as though it's coming from anywhere else in the world. Mr Begbie said this proved that the measures X took to protect Australians from violent content did not go far enough. 'To say that the geoblocking system has holes in it... is a profound understatement,' he said. 'The fact that those really not very sophisticated ways of accessing it could immediately be done is something your honour would be troubled about.' Daniel Wild, Deputy Executive Director of the Institute of Public Affairs, told Daily Mail Australia the Federal Court's ruling in Monday 'highlights the dramatic, ideologically driven over-reach by Julie Inman Grant'. 'What this shows is the e-Safety commissioner has complete and total disregard for online freedom of speech, and it reinforces the concern that proposed misinformation laws will be abused for political purposes.' 'The e-Safety Commissioner has proven to be a law unto herself, has no meaningful democratic accountability, and has wasted taxpayers' money on a frivolous ideologically driven lawsuit, for purpose of self-aggrandizement.' Six people were fatally stabbed during a rampage inside Westfield in Sydney 's east, ending only when a brave police officer shot dead attacker Joel Cauchi The eSafety Commission won a temporary injunction in April from the Federal Court to have the footage removed globally while the matter played out in court. Mr Walker, for X, argued the only way to block users in Australia from viewing the content via a VPN would be to effectively remove the footage globally. 'The idea that it's better for the whole world not to see this obviously newsworthy matter... that nobody can see it pending determination following a hearing which has not yet been fixed... that notion is a startling one,' Mr Walker said. 'That is a really remarkable proposition. This is very concerning that this country would take the approach of: 'If this is the only way to control what is available to users in Australia then, yes, we say it is a reasonable step... to deny to everybody on Earth'. X faces daily fines of $785,000 for noncompliance, but Musk has vowed to challenge the ruling on two fronts. Lawyers for X argue the content depicted in these videos should not be banned under Australian law, and that, regardless, the eSafety commissioner should not have the jurisdiction to order footage be removed globally. 'We believe that no government should possess such authority,' the company said. Authorities have also expressed concern that access to such footage could pave the way for copycat attacks. Six people were fatally stabbed at the Westfield shopping centre in Sydney's east during the incident, ending only when a brave police officer shot dead attacker Joel Cauchi. Distressing footage quickly spread via social media platforms - namely X and Facebook - prompting online witch hunts as an innocent person was falsely named as the perpetrator. Beyond that, graphic and violent footage made its way onto newsfeeds and 'For You' pages across the world, prompting an intervention by the government's e-Safety commissioner. Similarly, footage went viral of a 16-year-old boy allegedly stabbing Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel during a live-streamed sermon at the Christ The Good Shepherd Church in Wakeley, with voice notes and Whatsapp messages inflaming the riots. Footage went viral of a 16-year-old boy allegedly stabbing Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel during a live-streamed sermon at the Christ The Good Shepherd Church The eSafety Commission is run by former Twitter Director of Public Policy, Australia & SE Asia, Julie Inman Grant (pictured) Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has been highly critical of social media platforms for failing to act quick enough to protect users from the violent content. 'It shouldn't need the eSafety commissioner to intervene to direct companies, in this case X and [Facebook owner] Meta, to take down violent videos that show people who have lost their lives as result of what occurred with the perpetrator committing that atrocity on Saturday,' he said. 'Social media makes all of us publishers of content, we all have a responsibility.' The PM warned he is 'prepared to take whatever action is necessary to haul these companies into line'. 'We've made that very clear because of the damage that a failure to act can have.' Mr Albanese said onlookers who took the video, and others who later received that footage, should have sent it to police in order to assist in the investigation, rather than posting it online. The eSafety Commission lauds itself as the 'first government agency committed to keeping its citizens safer online'. It is run by former Twitter Director of Public Policy, Australia & SE Asia, Julie Inman Grant, who receives an annual salary of almost $445,000. Almost 500 civil servants are employed by the eSafety Commissioner and the Australian Communications and Media Authority, according to its latest annual report. The two will sell 100m tonnes of 'green' iron to China Former Victorian premier Daniel Andrews has teamed up with Australia's richest man to sell 'green' iron to China. Mr Andrew's consultancy Forty Eight and Partners is partnering with Andrew 'Twiggy' Forrest's company Fortescue, the Sydney Morning Herald reported. The two firms have pledged to deliver 100million tonnes of 'green' iron to China after having recently met at the Boao Forum for Asia in Hainan Province in March. Mr Andrews, who gave a speech at the event, has not shared any specific details regarding the partnership with Mr Forrest, who was also present as a major sponsor. It marks the first high-profile gig Mr Andrews has taken upon himself since stepping down as premier in 2023. Mr Forrest is Australia's richest man with a value of $21.5billion. Former Victorian premier Daniel Andrews' next move has been revealed by sources at the Sydney Morning Herald Mr Andrews' consultancy, Forty Eight and Partners, is teaming up with Andrew 'Twiggy' Forrest's Fortescue to deliver 100m tonnes of 'green' iron to China Sources revealed the pair hope to deliver iron that's had its carbon emissions stripped from the entire extraction, processing and supply chain operations. This extraction process would require eight million tonnes of renewable hydrogen each year. Mr Forrest has enlisted former politicians in the past, hiring ex-South Australian Labor premier Jay Weatherill in 2019. Mr Forrest and Mr Weatherill teamed up to lead the Thrive by Five early childhood education campaign that Mr Forrest had established with his then-wife Nicola. Details of Mr Andrews' arrangement with Mr Forrest are yet to be revealed, and it is not yet know how the business will be run or who will lead it. The former premier spent his career keenly trying to foster closer trade links with China through his cancelled Belt and Road initiatives. Former Prime Minister Scott Morrison's foreign minister Marise Payne used sweeping foreign veto laws to squash the deal between Mr Andrews and China in 2021. Andrews has worked to foster closer ties between Australia and China, and is said to have arranged his newest venture in China in March (pictured Chinese President Xi Jinping) In September last year, Mr Andrews announced he was resigning from the top job with Jacinta Allan to take up the mantle. Mr Andrews spent nine years in the top job, making him Victoria's longest serving Labor premier. He arguably became Australia's most divisive politician - and certainly one of its most iconic - during the Covid pandemic. He made the surprise decision to quit after discussions with his wife Catherine and the couple's three children, Grace, Joseph and Noah. A coalition of media companies has warned ministers of their 'deep concern' over plans by the BBC to run adverts on its podcasts. The group, which includes Sky, ITV and DMG Media, publisher of the Daily Mail, says the move risks having a 'significant adverse impact on fair and effective competition'. In a letter, they call on Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer to review the situation 'as a matter of urgency' and highlight their 'deep concern'. The BBC is looking into 'monetising' its podcasts on third-party platforms such as Spotify and Apple by inserting adverts into them. Pictured: Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Lucy Frazer The BBC is looking into 'monetising' its podcasts on third-party platforms such as Spotify and Apple by inserting adverts into them In a letter, the media companies call on Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer to review the situation 'as a matter of urgency' and highlight their 'deep concern' The phased implementation could begin late this year. Other shows such as The Archers, In Our Time and Desert Island Discs could be included later on. The letter is backed by 20 companies and organisations, which also include Channel 4, News UK, Paramount and Radiocentre, the industry body for commercial radio. They say the BBC's plans 'fundamentally undermine' the 'existing model', where the corporation is funded by the licence fee and is 'provided free of advertising across all platforms'. And they warn: 'The impact of it extracting audio advertising funds from the nascent UK podcasting market would be disastrous, especially for the numerous small independent podcast producers. 'These changes are highly likely to have a significant adverse impact on fair and effective competition in the UK podcast market, while adding little to BBC budgets as a proportion of revenues guaranteed by the licence fee.' The companies point out that total revenues generated by podcast advertising in 2022 were 76million, which is 'dwarfed' by the BBC's 5.7billion total income. The letter is backed by 20 companies and organisations, which also include Channel 4, News UK, Paramount and Radiocentre, the industry body for commercial radio They say the BBC's plans 'fundamentally undermine' the 'existing model', where the corporation is funded by the licence fee and is 'provided free of advertising across all platforms' The companies point out that total revenues generated by podcast advertising in 2022 were 76million, which is 'dwarfed' by the BBC's 5.7billion total income They say that by running commercials the BBC would make it more difficult for producers, broadcasters and publishers to 'generate a reasonable return on their investment'. And they warn the plans would force listeners to 'migrate' to the corporation's own BBC Sounds platform if they wanted to hear its content 'ad-free'. Matt Payton, from Radiocentre, said: 'The BBC receives significant funding from the licence fee and should not be seeking advertising in addition to this. 'We urge the Government to act quickly and engage with Ofcom which has the power to intervene.' A BBC spokesman said: 'We are exploring the opportunity to introduce some adverts on selected non-news podcasts on commercial platforms with the aim of delivering increased value to licence fee payers, our suppliers and our rightsholders. 'There are no plans to introduce adverts on the BBC's own audio platforms. The proposals are subject to an ongoing regulatory assessment and nothing has been confirmed. We will continue to engage with the industry as we shape our plans.' Flash Shelton, known professionally as the 'Squatter Hunter,' revealed the most brazen cases he's encountered in his storied career as a squatter-remover. As squatters continue to hijack homes and buildings across the United States, some are growing so emboldened that they even rent out the captive houses on short-term rental platforms like Airbnb. Hired by embattled homeowners to try to flush illegal residents from their properties, Shelton said has come across squatters who use Airbnb, first to access the house, and then to rent it out. 'I'm seeing squatters taking over [homes on Airbnb] a lot,' he said in a recent interview. 'Matter of fact,' he continued; 'I even see people get into the property and then try to make money by Airbnb-ing it out.' Flash Shelton, known professionally as the 'Squatter Hunter,' warned that Airbnb hosts can fall prey to devious squatters Hired by embattled homeowners to try to flush illegal residents from their properties, Shelton said has come across squatters who use Airbnb, first to access the house, and then to rent it out. Georgia has suffered keenly during the squatting crisis- an estimated 1,200 homes are currently possessed by squatters. In one Georgia home, squatters smashed all the furniture they didn't want Shelton, whose day job is as a handyman in California, said that the squatters' M.O. involves creating new profiles with services such as Airbnb, and then renting out a property for a certain period of time based on a daily fee. Once they have rented the properties, though, the squatters make their move. They insinuate themselves and re-list the homes as if they were their legitimate owners. 'There was one [squatter] recently in Seattle that was doing that,' Shelton said in an interview with the New York Post. 'And there's one in Woodland Hills [California],' he continued, before noting that there was a further example of an Airbnb-related incident in Brentwood. In a statement, Airbnb defended its reputation, dismissing issues with squatters as 'very rare.' Shelton warns against making agreements with guests outside of the Airbnb app. Once business is conducted outside of the app, Airbnb is no longer legally responsible 'We strongly encourage our users to only book and pay on Airbnb where we have measures in place to support our community, including identity verification of booking guests and 24/7 customer support,' the company told the Post. But according to Shelton, wily squatters often convince unsuspecting homeowners to conduct business outside of the app. The 'Squatter Hunter' explained that squatters will book accommodations through the application for a week. Then they will contact the homeowners and provide them with some invented reason for why they need to stay at the property for a few more days. According to Shelton, the squatters offer excuses like, 'I don't have a place to go. I need a couple more days. Or we were leaving but my car broke down, and we can't leave yet. I just need a couple more days to get my car fixed.' Sympathetic homeowners often agree to let the guests remain in their house. But if the homeowner agrees to an extension outside of the app, Shelton said that Airbnb is no longer on the hook and is released from its contract with the two parties. Squatting has plagued cities across the country, but especially in Atlanta, where some squatters removed furniture from a homeowner's house 'So Airbnb walks away, wipes their hands clean [and decides it is] no longer their problem,' Shelton said. And soon after the guest has ensconced themselves in the Airbnb property, squatters' rights are activated. 'Now that homeowner has a squatter,' Shelton observed. The 'Squatter Hunter' believes that Airbnb and services like it should take more initiative and shoulder more responsibility. 'I believe Airbnb should take more responsibility for a screening process,' Shelton said. He continued: 'And I think that Airbnb should vet the [customers] more because homeowners are assuming these people are trusted because they're getting them from Airbnb.' But Shelton deals with all types of squatters, not just those who infiltrate homes using Airbnb. In order to drive illegal tenants out of homes, Shelton often goes under cover and masquerades as a fellow squatter. Then Shelton installs cameras throughout the property and tells the squatters that they are on a reality show in the hopes that it will scare them off. Squatters in one Atlanta home left trash all over the property, leaving the homeowner to pick it up. Shelton, the 'Squatter Hunter' performs a 'lock out' to get rid of squatters. This involves getting the landlord to draw up a lease making him the tenant, allowing him to enter their property legally. An Atlanta homeowner was forced to clean up a mess left by riotous squatters. His favored method, though, is a 'lock out.' This involves getting the landlord to draw up a lease making him the tenant, allowing him to enter their property legally. Shelton then stakes out the home for several days, learning the habits of the squatter through surveillance and interviews with neighbors. When their guard is down, or if they have temporarily left the property, he takes his chance, hurrying inside and changing the locks. He says this works in around 90 per cent of cases. But sometimes the squatter never gives an inch. They get their supplies through online deliveries, or work in a group so that someone is always on duty. The squatters left behind an emaciated pit bull on the deck at the rear of the property. The terrified animal, barking furiously, can be seen eventually being captured by welfare authorities in video obtained by DailyMail.com In these scenarios, Flash goes toe-to-toe with his targets. He becomes their housemate, roommate, worst-nightmare, and starts to out-squat the squatters. He or his team begin by telling the police of their plan in anticipation of a potentially hostile confrontation. Flash then researches everything he can about his targets, from names and ages to criminal histories. Armed with their identities, he enters the home and installs Ring cameras throughout the property to record his every interaction with the squatter. After a day or two, he has usually spooked them sufficiently to force them out. Sheree Bailey is accused of being one of the squatters who invaded the vacant Atlanta area rental home of a man caring for his sick wife. She tilts her head and squints down the sights of a gun in a photo posted to her Instagram While trespassing is illegal in every state, laws concerning squatters' rights vary by state. Many places depend on civil courts to handle property disputes, enabling squatters to game the system. This has culminated in a veritable squatting crisis in cities across the country. According to the National Rental Home Council, Atlanta has been hit the hardest, with 1,200 homes currently illegally occupied. The situation has become so dire that some homeowners offer to pay off squatters to get them out of their homes - rather than risk losing months of rent. In October, an Atlanta home was taken over by squatters who ran an illegal strip club inside on weekends and kept horses on the property. The FBI had to get involved and arrested four people who had taken up residence at 4951 Wewatta Street in South Fulton without permission. The 4,000 square foot five bed home with three bathrooms was trashed by the squatters. In March, some squatters trashed the Stone Mountain home of truck driver Paul Callins, who was away tending his sick wife, Amanda, in the hospital. Paul Callins discovered squatters had unlawfully entered and changed the locks on his recently refurbished home, listed for rent online, while he was away Stone Mountain is 20 miles from downtown Atlanta. Dailymail.com revealed that the identity of one of the squatters was Takisha Bailey, whose social media pictures showed her posing with an apparent machine pistol on her Instagram. Callins's squatters had a starved-looking Pitbull at his home, but callously left it behind when they fled. It was later captured by animal welfare on the home's decking, where it had been abandoned. Before the Squatters abandoned the home, which had originally belonged to Callin's father, they trashed the place and smashed their unwanted furniture out front. New York has also faced its fair share of squatter drama. Last month, Brian Rodriguez, a high-rolling squatter in Queens was charged after allegedly hijacking a $1 million home and renting out its bedrooms. The rightful homeowner, Adele Andaloro, who inherited the property in Flushing, changed the locks in an effort to drive Rodriguez out. The squatter retaliated by claiming he was the actual tenant and had Andaloro escorted off the premises in handcuffs. Brian Rodriguez, seen here, was indicted on Thursday on charges of burglary, grand larceny, criminal possession of stolen property, criminal trespass and criminal mischief Rodriguez had homeowner Andaloro dramatically handcuffed and led off the $1 million property after claiming that he was the legal tenant Rodriguez eventually was indicted on charges of burglary, grand larceny, criminal possession of stolen property, criminal trespass and criminal mischief. If convicted, Rodriguez could face up to 15 years behind bars.' The 'Squatter Hunter' believes the solution to the squatting epidemic lies in tougher laws. 'I want squatters to be treated as criminals,' Shelton said, adding that he wants to see them 'go through criminal courts.' Australia is rushing towards becoming a cashless society but not everyone is ready to wave goodbye to physical currency - and there are good reasons why. The Covid pandemic supercharged a trend toward digital transactions that was already underway, with the use of digital wallet payments on smartphones and watches soaring from $746million in 2018 to more than $93billion in 2022. By the end of 2022 cash only accounted for 13 per cent of Australian consumer payments compared to 70 per cent in 2007. 'The shift towards a cashless society in Australia isn't just a possibility, it's already well underway,' RMIT Associate Professor in Finance Angel Zhong said. While Dr Zhong did not see banknotes disappearing completely, she believed they will become much rarer in day-to-day transactions. 'The functionally cashless society is where we enjoy the convenience of technology - we don't have to go out with a bunch of cash, we can use our phone and smartwatch to make payments,' she told Daily Mail Australia. As more Australians embrace the trend a growing number of retailers are only accepting digital payments. Major banks continue to close branches, shrink ATM numbers and are even opening 'cashless' branches, citing a customer preference for online services. However, going electronic has its own sets of risks and could badly disadvantage some sections of the population. Here are the 10 major concerns of going cashless. 1. It can leave out older Australians or others not digitally connected Dr Zhong said the strongest adopters of digital payments were Australians aged between 18 and 29. 'Two-thirds of them use digital wallets,' she said. However, many older Australians still preferred to pay in physical currency with almost one in five classified as a 'high-cash user'. Dr Zhong said as Australia needed provide 'better support for other age groups to embrace technology, better literacy about systems in technology as well as financial assistance' for those struggling with the transition to digital payments. Those on lower incomes and new migrants also typically rely more on cash. 2. It relies on internet coverage and reliable connectivity Rural areas with slow internet can find digital transactions challenging. However a major Commonwealth Bank outage in July demonstrated the vulnerability of digital finance even in urban areas. Customers were left paralysed by the technical glitch and unable to access their accounts, transfer funds or use their cards to make purchases. Dr Zhong said governments needed to support investment in infrastructure that boosted internet coverage and speeds to smooth the way for the digital revolution. 3. Some areas of the cash economy will suffer Charity donations given on the street are dwindling because fewer people are carrying cash and the those who beg or busk for a living face the same problem, research conducted in 2020 found. 'While retailers and online merchants have benefited from cashless payment options, donation-seekers are left rattling an empty cup,' wrote University of Massachusetts' Spencer M. Ross and Auckland University of Technology's Sommer Kapitan. 'Aside from people carrying less cash, our research suggests another major reason is that people simply don't expect to see beggars or buskers with a swipe machine, or a QR code or Venmo symbol on their signs.' 4. 'Hidden' fees Digital transactions often attract a fee, which might not be obvious at the time of purchase. Warwick Ponder, the former executive manager of corporate affairs and communications at eftpos Payments Australia, told Daily Mail Australia that Paywave devices often levied a delayed credit surcharge. Mr Ponder advised customers to avoid tapping as much as possible, as there could be a significant period of time before the money deducted registers in their account. Banks also typically charge a higher fee for 'tap-and-go' purchases than for EFTPOS, with only cash attracting no extra cost. 5. Hacking and scams It is estimated that Australians lost more than $2billion to online scams in 2021 - but the true figure could be much higher due to many incidents going unreported. Major cybersecurity breaches of Optus and Medibank last year also highlighted the risk of identity theft online. UNSW Institute for Cyber-Security director Nigel Phair told Daily Mail Australia that the nation 'has to do a lot better when it comes to cyber-crime'. ' The Australian Cyber-Security Centre said they had about 63,000 reports (of scams) last year, I reckon that's about a fifth of what the actual number is. 'The ACCC had about $2billion in reported losses from scams. I reckon that's nowhere near the right amount.' 6. Lagging legislation Regulation of electronic payments often lags behind technological and market innovations. Google Pay and Apple Pay are currently not subject to the same rules as credit cards and EFTPOS transactions. Treasurer Jim Chalmers is updating legislation to change this. 'That payments Act is actually out of date,' Dr Zhong said. 'We need to regulate to ensure that we have an industry-wide standard to ensure that consumers' wellbeing and security are protected.' 7. Losing the value of money and less social interaction Finance commentator Sarah Wells told Daily Mail Australia that children won't learn the true value of money and miss out on crucial social interactions if all transactions become digital. 'I believe it is better for children to use cash,' Ms Wells said. 'Giving a child $20 and taking them to a shopping centre or the movies helps them to learn to budget and helps them to make decisions by thinking more carefully. 'There's a responsibility in handing over money and such valuable social interaction - they learn to say 'please' and 'thank you' and look people in the eye.' 8. Loss of independent spending power Ms Wells also warned that having 'a cash-starved society' could be bad news for those whose finances are being controlled or denied by someone else. Ms Wells said young women who were fleeing domestic violence needed to be kept in mind when regulating digital payments. Women in these circumstances risk being tracked by an abusive partner or being cut off from their finances. 'We need to make sure we are not compromising the safety, education and experience of minority groups and young minds in our endeavours to legislate contemporary payment platforms,' she said. 9. Your spending can be tracked The loss of anonymity and privacy is a major concern for many who oppose a 'cashless society'. A change.org petition created by Elizabeth Hynton which rails against the 'discrimination' faced by those who used cash has gathered more than 5000 signatures. 'Cash is private,' the petition states. 'When one pays via credit/debit card, the Government knows: what one spends their money on, how much they spend, where one spends their money and when the purchase was made, which is an invasion of privacy.' Dr Zhong agreed that the concerns were valid. '(With) anything digital there is always a vulnerability it will be tracked,' she said. 10. Loss of your and freedom of choice This is perhaps the over-riding concern of many who oppose the cashless society. The change.org petition argues that cash should always be an option. 'One of the hallmarks of a free society is freedom of choice ... not just what suits an organisation, but also what suits the customer!' the petition states. 'We can't go on forever using COVID as an excuse.' China presents a dystopian vision of how such control can be exercised, where people are subject to a social credit score that accrues or docks points depending on how desirable the individual's behaviour is according to the government. A bad social credit score can mean being blocked from buying items such as plane or train tickets. The Reserve Bank is currently examining the benefits of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) being introduced to to Australia, which would be a 'programmable' currency such as China's. Although the RBA has stated such a currency could improve the 'efficiency and resilience' of payments it said one was not likely to introduced any time soon. 'Given the many issues that are yet to be resolved, any decision on a CBDC in Australia is likely to be some years away,' the RBA said. An award-winning Iranian movie director fled the Islamic republic after being sentenced to eight years in prison, flogging and confiscation of property amid a crackdown on dissent, according to a statement released Monday. "I arrived in Europe a few days ago after a long and complicated journey," Mohammad Rasoulof, 51, said in the statement, according to the Associated Press. Rasoulof's lawyer, Babak Paknia, said last week on X that Rasoulof was punished for "signing statements and making films and documentaries" that the court conisdered "collusion with the intention of committing a crime against the country's security." Monday's revelation of Rasoulof's getaway came less than two weeks before his latest movie, "The Seed of the Sacred Fig," is set to premiere May 24 at the Cannes Film Festival in France. Shortly before the statement was released, Cannes' artistic director Thierry Fremaux said the film was about "how insidiously the Iranian dictatorship creeps into families." "Knowing that the news of my new film would be revealed very soon, I knew that without a doubt, a new sentence would be added to these eight years," Rasoulof said in his statement. "I didn't have much time to make a decision. I had to choose between prison and leaving Iran. "With a heavy heart, I chose exile. The Islamic Republic confiscated my passport in September 2017. Therefore, I had to leave Iran secretly," he added. It's unclear if Rasoulof plans to attend the film's premiere. His 2020 film "There Is No Evil" won the Golden Bear prize for best picture at the Berlin Film Festival in 2020, but he couldn't be there to receive the award due to the travel ban imposed on him. Iranian authorities haven't publicly acknowledged his sentence and there was no immediate comment on his exodus, AP said. Rasoulof was among a group of artists who cosigned an open letter that urged Iranian authorities to put down their weapons during protests over a 2022 building collapse that killed at least 29 people in the southwestern city of Abadan, AP said. His prison sentence marked the latest attempt to suppress criticism of Iran's hard-line religious government following years of mass protests, including over the 2022 death in police custody of Mahsa Amini after she was arrested for not properly wearing the mandatory head covering known as a hijab. California Governor Gavin Newsom was called out by a reporter after he continued to dodge questions about blowing the state's $24 billion spending on the homeless. The Golden State's budget deficit is at least $45 billion, a shortfall so large it prompted Newsom to propose painful spending cuts impacting immigrants, kindergarteners and low-income parents seeking child care in a state often lauded for having the world's fifth-largest economy. California spent $24 billion tackling homelessness over five years but didn't track if the money was helping the state's growing number of unhoused people, a damning report says. At a press conference announcing his plans, he was asked by Angela Hart of KFF Health News if he felt his administration did enough to ensure the money was well spent and if he was worried the appetite for spending was lessening based on the homelessness program. The usually confident Democrat hemmed and hawed for two minutes, to which Hart responded: 'I'm sorry governor, I didn't hear responses to either of those questions.' California Governor Gavin Newsom was called out by a reporter after he continued to dodge questions about blowing the state's $24 billion spending on the homeless The Golden State spent $24 billion tackling homelessness in cities like San Francisco over five years but didn't track if the money was helping the state's growing number of unhoused people, a damning report says The governor said throughout his initial answer that the problem was dealing with local governments but Newsom was clearly chastened by Hart's retort. Newsom finally leveled, saying the audit 'did not surprise me' and he agreed with most of its findings and said that the state has made unprecedented investments and tried to increase accountability from local governments for that spending. 'As it relates to the public mood... more is not always better, the public want to see results,' he added. Hart finally thanked him for his answer, calling it 'thorough' before asking Newsom about cuts to healthcare spending and climate change. The audit slams the state's homelessness tsars for spending billions across 30 programs from 2018-2023, but gathering no data on why the cash wasn't tackling the crisis. It confirms what's clear to many residents the homelessness crisis is out of control, and that tent encampments and troublesome vagrancy across major cities is bad and getting worse. Homelessness jumped 6 percent to more than 180,000 people in California last year, federal data show. Since 2013, the numbers have exploded by 53 percent. California is home to nearly a third of America's entire homeless population. Newsom finally leveled, saying the audit 'did not surprise me' and he agreed with most of its findings and said that the state has made unprecedented investments and tried to increase accountability from local governments for that spending Homeless people wait in line for dinner outside the Midnight Mission in the Skid Row area of Los Angeles State Auditor Grant Parks wrote in a letter to Gov Gavin Newsom and lawmakers that the 'state must do more to assess the cost-effectiveness of its homelessness programs.' Auditors probed five schemes that received a combined $13.7 billion in funding. Only two of them were 'likely cost-effective,' including one that converts hotel and motel rooms into housing and another that helps to prevent families from becoming homeless, they found. The remaining three programs, which have received a total of $9.4 billion since 2020, couldn't be evaluated due to a lack of data. Thomas Wolf, a San Francisco-based consultant and former homeless drug addict, called the findings a 'scandal.' 'The state has spent billions on homelessness, and it's worse,' Wolf posted on X/Twitter. 'Outcomes literally mean everything when it comes to homeless services, and unsurprisingly, they have no data.' For some, the audit confirms fears of a 'homeless industrial complex' a gravy train of funders, officials, shelter owners and charities more keen on swallowing public funds than solving the problem. Thanks to such spending programs, California's budget deficit is at least $45 billion, a shortfall so large it prompted Newsom to propose painful spending cuts impacting immigrants, kindergarteners and low-income parents seeking child care in a state often lauded for having the world's fifth-largest economy Volunteers help to clean up belongings at an encampment of homeless people near the Nimitz Freeway in Oakland after the city ordered a clean up Democratic state Sen. Dave Cortese, who requested the audit last year after touring a large homeless encampment in San Jose, complained of a 'data desert' and lack of transparency. Republican state Sen. Roger Niello called the lack of accountability troubling. 'Despite an exorbitant amount of dollars spent, the state's homeless population is not slowing down,' Niello said in a statement. 'These audit results are a wake-up call for a shift toward solutions that prioritize self-sufficiency and cost-effectiveness.' Newsom has made tackling homelessness a priority, and the growing crisis is sure to dog him should he ever set his sights on a national elected office. The Democrat has pushed for laws that make it easier to force people with behavioral health issues into treatment. He also campaigned hard for a proposition that voters passed in March to make counties spend on housing and drug treatment programs to help fight homelessness. The state auditor also reviewed homelessness spending in two major cities, San Jose and San Diego, and found that both failed to track revenue and spending due to a lack of planning. An encampment rises outside Ojai's stately City Hall. The number of homeless is growing drastic since last year in Ojai and now they are all living in a tent at City Hall More than two thirds of Americans say homelessness, which surged by 12 percent last year, is out of control The report spotlights how officials are battling a surge in homelessness in California and beyond. A recent DailyMail.com/TIPP Poll showed that more than two thirds of US adults said homelessness was out of control and that officials needed to move those sleeping rough into tented encampments outside towns and cities. The survey revealed that 67 percent of Americans are fed up with the country's fast-rising number of homeless people and want mayors to take drastic steps to tackle the scourge. Former President Donald Trump making it part of his re-election campaign. In a video on homelessness released by his campaign, Trump said that 'hardworking, law-abiding citizens' were being sidelines and made to 'suffer for the whims of a deeply unwell few.' He vowed to 'ban urban camping' and create 'tent cities' on 'inexpensive land' for homeless people that will be staffed with doctors and social workers to help people address systemic problems. Chris Dawson denies he had a 'possessive infatuation' with a young schoolgirl when he asked her to call him daily in the lead up to his wife disappearing, a court has heard. Almost two years since he was jailed for the murder of his wife Lynette, Chris Dawson returned to a Sydney courtroom on Monday morning as he fights to be freed from prison. Dawson has sat in a jail cell since August 2022 when he was found guilty of murdering his wife Lynette, who vanished suddenly from their Bayview home in January 1982. Wearing a green prison-issued t-shirt, Dawson, 75, listened intently via videolink from jail as his barrister, Senior Public Defender Belinda Rigg SC, told the Court of Criminal Appeal that his conviction ought to be quashed. The former Newtown Jets rugby league player and northern beaches high school teacher was sentenced to 24 years in prison, with an 18-year non-parole period, after Supreme Court judge Ian Harrison found him guilty of murder. Justice Harrison found he killed his wife to be with a young student, JC, who moved into Dawson's Gilwinga Drive home in the days following. Lynette Simms' body has never been found and she has never contacted her friends or family, including her two children. Dawson, 75, has maintained his innocence and has launched an appeal against his conviction, claiming it cannot be proven that Lynette Simms was not alive after Friday, January 8, 1982. Almost two years since he was jailed for the murder of his wife Lynette, Chris Dawson returned to a Sydney courtroom on Monday morning as he fights to be freed from prison Chris Dawson denies he displayed a 'possessive infatuation' with a young schoolgirl when he asked her to call him daily in the lead up to his wife disappearing, a court has heard Justice Harrison found Dawson killed his wife Lynette (pictured) to be with a young student, JC, who moved into Dawson's Gilwinga Drive home in the days following During a 1991 police interview, Dawson told detectives that he dropped off his wife at a Mona Vale bus stop and she was supposed to meet him later that afternoon at the Northbridge Baths, where he worked as a part-time lifeguard. Dawson told police that while at work he received a long-distance phone call from his wife saying that she needed time away. Justice Harrison found that Dawson harboured a 'possessive infatuation' with his young student, JC, having just weeks before Lynette's disappearance unsuccessfully attempted to run off with the teenage babysitter to start a new life in Queensland. In the days leading up to Christmas 1981, JC and Dawson had packed up his car and headed to Queensland in an attempt to start a new life. However, midway through the drive she became ill, said she missed her family and asked that they return to Sydney. In the summer of 1981-82, JC travelled to South West Rocks, on the NSW Mid North Coast, with her sisters and friends and the court heard that Dawson requested that she call him every day. Ms Rigg told the court on Monday morning that Dawson's request to speak daily was not evidence of his 'possessiveness' or 'jealousy'. Ms Rigg argued that they had recently been in a sexual relationship and it was 'simply a request to call him daily'. She said there was was evidence that in the six months leading up to her disappearance that Lynette Simms had displayed a 'high level of despair' and a 'loss of hope and self esteem'. The court heard during the trial that she had confronted JC and accused her of 'taking liberties with my husband'. The Crown prosecution, during the trial, described Ms Simms as a devoted mother who would not have left her young family. But Ms Rigg pointed to the testimony of Dawson's brother Paul Dawson at trial that Dawson would often change nappies and tend to their young children while socialising. Ms Rigg also said that in the days leading up to her disappearance, Ms Simms and Dawson had organised to leave their children with family and go for a five-day holiday on the beach. 'There was a body of evidence (Dawson) was well known to Ms Dawson as being highly capable of looking after the children,' Ms Rigg said. 'And in our submission it bears upon her preparedness to be away from her children for a period of time.' Student JC pictured on the day she and Dawson packed up his car to start a new life in Queensland Dawson claims he suffered a 'significant forensic disadvantage', owing to the nearly 40 years between his wife's disappearance and the matter going to trial Central to Dawson's appeal - which will be heard over three days in the Court of Criminal Appeal - is his claim that he suffered a 'significant forensic disadvantage', owing to the nearly 40 years between his wife's disappearance and the matter going to trial. During that time evidence was lost and several key witnesses died, including Phillip Day. Mr Day was present at the Northbridge Baths on the afternoon Ms Simms did not arrive to meet her family. He gave a statement to police in February 2001 in which he said he saw Dawson being summoned to the pool office and when he returned he said he had received a call from Lynette. In a grounds of appeal, Dawson's lawyers argue that he suffered a 'miscarriage of justice' because Justice Harrison found beyond a reasonable doubt that he did not receive a phone call from his wife. His lawyers also argue that Justice Harrison erred in finding that Dawson told several lies which evidenced his 'consciousness of guilt'. Justice Harrison, in his judgment, said that Dawson had lied about his relationship with the young girl, about wanting to resume his relationship with his wife and about receiving phone calls from her after her disappearance. During a 1991 police interview, Dawson told detectives that he dropped off his wife Lynette (pictured on their wedding day) at a Mona Vale bus stop Dawson's lawyers argue that he suffered a 'miscarriage of justice' because Justice Harrison found beyond a reasonable doubt that he did not receive a phone call from his wife His legal team also argue that there was 'inadequate' evidence to prove that Ms Dawson was not alive after January 9, 1982. During his judgment, Justice Harrison said the case against Dawson was circumstantial, however noted a guilty verdict was the only 'rational inference' he could draw. Last year, Dawson was also convicted of one count of carnal knowledge after a judge found he engaged in sexual activities with one of his student at a Sydney high school in 1980. He was sentenced by Judge Sarah Huggett to three years in jail and had one year added onto his non-parole period. His non-parole period is due to expire in August 2041, by which time he will be 93 years old. New 'no body, no parole' laws passed by NSW Parliament - dubbed 'Lyn's law' - mean that Dawson will not be paroled until he reveals where Lynette is buried. Justice Harrison in his sentencing remarks noted that Dawson would 'probably die in jail' before the expiry of his non-parole period. The hearing before Justices Julie Ward, Anthony Payne and Christine Adamson continues. A baby girl has died in hospital after she was found unresponsive inside a suburban home. The three-week-old baby was found at a house on Jones Street in Mighell, near Innisfail, about 90km south of Cairns, around 9.30am on Saturday. A baby girl has died in hospital after she was found unresponsive inside a home in Innisfail, south of Cairns, on Saturday morning (pictured stock image) The three-week-old baby girl was rushed to hospital, after she was found inside the home on Jones Street in Mighell, around 9.30am (pictured stock image of an ambulance) The baby was rushed to hospital but Queensland Police have said that she later died. 'An investigation has commenced, and detectives will work to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident,' Queensland Police said in a statement. A spokesperson from Queensland Health declined to comment when contacted by Daily Mail Australia, due to the ongoing police investigation. Queensland Police said in a statement that officers are investigating the incident, to examine the circumstances that led to the death of the girl (pictured stock image of police tape) More to come. The family of an Aussie tourist left fighting for life in Fiji say they are waiting nervously for their loved one to be flown home this week on a medical flight. Clayton Brett, 43, was supposed to fly home after a holiday in Fiji on May 1, but instead of boarding his flight he fronted a hospital with a stab wound to his stomach. Now his family are facing an anxious wait with Mr Brett expected to land in Melbourne on a $140,000 medevac flight on Friday. His stepbrother, Matthew Davis, said he is hoping his sibling makes the flight home and that there are no adverse reactions while in transit. 'Hopefully the flight goes well, we don't know how he's going to react in the air,' he said. Clayton Brett, 43, was supposed to fly home after a holiday in Fiji on May 1, but instead of boarding his flight he fronted a hospital with a stab wound to his stomach Mr Brett quickly became extremely unwell, with the wound becoming infected and leading to septic shock. The infection was so severe he was put into an induced coma in the intensive care unit of the hospital in Nadi. Mr Brett's sudden silence caused his family to worry, with his parents, stepbrother and cousin desperately trying to track him down. Mr Davis said Mr Brett didn't come home when he was meant to and wasn't answering any phone calls. In desperation, the family began to call hospitals in Fiji. 'We had a bad feeling there was something going on, so we called the hospitals to see if by chance he was at any of the hospitals,' Mr Davis said. 'They got news he was there and he actually presented with a stab wound to the stomach.' As soon as they heard the news, Mr Brett's father Terry and stepmother Jenny Davis were on the next flight to Fiji to be by his side. When they arrived, they were told Clayton must remain in 24-hour intensive care to receive treatment. Septic shock is a life-threatening condition that can cause dangerously low blood pressure and organs to shutdown. Clayton now requires dialysis, as his kidneys are failing, but the hospital in Nadi doesn't have a functioning dialysis machine. Mr Brett (pictured) quickly became extremely unwell, with the wound becoming infected and leading to septic shock His parents have now had to make the crucial decision to fly Clayton back to Australia to receive the necessary interventions via medevac. Mr Davis said Clayton's parents had managed to scrape together $140,000 and pay for a medevac flight to bring Clayton back to Melbourne for treatment. 'We've had to find the money and pay upfront before it goes ahead,' Mr Davis said. A GoFundMe has been set up by Mr Davis to alleviate the financial stresses in what he describes as an 'already stressful situation'. 'Funds raised will go towards alleviating some of the financial pressure and stresses from Terry and Jenny and assist in paying the international hospital expenses and the medical repatriation flight costs,' the fundraiser states. A man accused of murdering schoolgirl Charlise Mutten allegedly shot her in the head and back before dumping her in a barrel, a jury panel has been told. Justin Laurens Stein, 33, is facing a trial in the NSW Supreme Court at Parramatta after pleading not guilty to murder. He is accused of murdering Charlise, the daughter of his partner, and dumping her body in a plastic barrel. Stein stood in the dock on Monday, wearing a navy suit with a white button-up shirt and navy tie, when he formally pleaded not guilty to the charge. The nine-year-old's body was found with two gunshot wounds in bushland near the Colo River in NSW's Central Tablelands in January 2022. Charlise Mutten was found dead in January 2022 Justin Stein is accused of murdering nine-year-old Charlise Mutten Crown prosecutor Ken McKay SC told the jury panel on Monday that Stein is accused of murdering the young girl while she was visiting Sydney over the Christmas and New Year break in 2021 to 2022. The panel was told Stein met Charlise's mother, Kallista Mutten, while they were both serving separate prison sentences and their relationship continued once they were released. Mr McKay told the court Stein and Ms Mutten 'broke into a house at Mount Wilson' and stole two firearms, one of which he said is 'of importance in the case' and for the charge of murder. Charlise was living with her grandparents in Tweed Heads at the time, but spent almost a month with her mother and Stein from December 21, who the panel was told was being treated for schizophrenia and a heroin addiction at the time. Stein was in a relationship with Charlises mother, Kallista Mutten (pictured) During her stay in Sydney, the panel was told Ms Mutton called triple-0 at 8.15am on January 14 and reported her daughter missing. Her daughter was found located in a barrel in the Colo River area four days later. 'She suffered two gunshot wounds, entering the right side of her face with a projectile in her head, and a shot to the left lower back,' Mr McKay told the panel. The court was told photographic evidence would be tendered to the court during the trial showing Charlise 'partially appearing in' the barrel in some 'outer plastic items'. Mr McKay said the crown case is that Stein shot Charlise on January 12. The prosecutor is expected to give a formal opening address to the jury later on Monday. Stein's barrister Carolyn Davenport SC will give an opening argument to the jury later in the week. The trial, which is before Justice Helen Wilson and is expected to run for six weeks, continues. The bodies of murdered Perth brothers Callum and Jake Robinson have been moved into the United States, beginning their journey home after they were killed in an attempted carjacking in Baja California. The brother's deaths sparked an outpouring of grief after they disappeared on April 27 while on a surfing trip in the northern Mexican state. They were found at the bottom of a well a week later. Callum and Jake's American friend Jack Carter Rhoad was also killed. On Friday the men's bodies were moved to a funeral home in San Diego, with the bodies are expected to then be transferred back to Perth. The news comes after the infamous Sinaloa Cartel claimed it 'handed' over the alleged killers of the men. The infamous Sinaloa Cartel has claimed it 'handed over' the alleged killers of Perth brothers Callum and Jake Robinson and their American friend Jack Carter Rhoad Jesus Gerardo Garica Cota, also known as 'El Kekas', along with his brother Cristian Alejandro and girlfriend Ari Gisel have since been arrested by Mexican authorities. But in a stunning twist the Sinaloa Cartel - one of the most powerful drug syndicates in the criminal underworld - broke its silence over the trio's deaths and claimed it had turned the alleged killers in. A cartel member said the three were not part of the cartel. 'They were low-level robbers acting alone,' the anonymous member told US outlet The Daily Beast. 'But we handed them over. 'We learned that the cops were looking for the gringos and also began looking for those who were responsible. We called the authorities to let them know where to find them.' The cartel member said the criminal organisation was afraid of getting 'unwanted attention' from Mexican authorities. The three young men shared an eerie final social media posts from their trip, where they were seen drinking coffee on the beach It follows Gerardo fronting a Ensenada court this week, where prosecutors revealed Ms Gisel had become a key witness in the case. So far prosecutors have only charged Gerardo with forced kidnapping but this is expected to be upgraded to murder. Nine News correspondent Alison Piotrowski, who was in the courtroom for the hearing, told 2GB on Thursday it was alleged that Gerardo had told Ms Gisel he 'f. ked up three gringos'. The court heard she had asked, 'What do you mean?' to which he replied, 'I killed them.' Baja California's Attorney-General, Maria Elena Andrade Ramirez, said prosecutors would allege the foreigners were confronted by the Mexican nationalists who intended to rob the trio. 'In response to the victims' reaction, they deprived them of their lives,' a statement from her office read. 'Through the investigations carried out ... the white Chevrolet Colorado vehicle in which the victims were travelling was found burned.' Brothers Jesus Gerardo Garcia Cota and Cristian Alejandro Garcia were two of the three arrested in the suspicious deaths of the trio Ari Gisel Garcia Cota has also been charged Jake and Callum's parents formally identified the brothers' bodies in Mexico this week. Ms Robinson on Tuesday paid tribute to the pair, saying the world had become 'a darker place' for them and that their hearts were broken. 'We also mourn the loss of Carter Rhoad, a close friend. They were young men enjoying their passion of surfing together,' Ms Robinson said. 'Now it's time to bring them home to family and friends - and the ocean waves in Australia. Please live bigger, shine brighter and love harder in their memory.' She also thanked those who had offered their condolences and said they had been 'overwhelmed with the outpouring of emotions and support'. 'We have always been very proud of their academic and sporting achievements and admired their life choices as,' Ms Robinson said. A massive blaze plunged a swimming carnival into chaos with hundreds of school children forced to evacuate a busy aquatic centre. The solar panels on the roof of the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre in Homebush, western Sydney, went up in flames at about 12.30pm on Monday. Children who were attending a swimming carnival inside the facility were forced to evacuate the building in their swimmers. Thick plumes of smoke were seen coming out of the building as emergency services rushed to the scene. Half a dozen NSW Fire and Rescue crews fought the blaze and three ambulance crews were also called to the venue. Hundreds of children were evacuated from the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre on Monday afternoon after the roof of the building caught fire (pictured) The blaze broke out from the solar panels on top of the facility at the major sporting precinct (pictured) Some children were trying to get back into the aquatic centre to try and retrieve their belongings, the Daily Telegraph reported. A NSW Ambulance Service spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia everyone inside the centre was evacuated safely. 'Paramedics treated one female patient with a hip injury at the scene,' the spokeswoman said. A NSW Fire and Rescue spokesman said firefighters managed to extinguish the blaze. 'The centre has been closed until the damage to be building is fixed,' he said. A Kentucky fisherman has reeled in an enormous 200-pound prehistoric alligator snapping turtle and a potentially record-breaking gar at a lake in Texas. Art Weston and his trusted guide, Captain Kirk Kirkland, returned to Sam Rayburn Lake, where they had previously hooked a record-shattering alligator gar in the fall. When the famed fishermen set out on the murky waters last month, they were hoping to find another large alligator gar - one that would break another record. During one strenuous morning on the water, Weston hooked and lost multiple record-breaking fish. Weston and Kirkland intended to clinch a line-class record, which meant they needed to catch an enormous giant alligator gar with four-pound test line in order for it to qualify as a record. While trying to catch an alligator gar, Art Weston reeled in a fearsome, 200lbs. prehistoric alligator snapping turtle Weston was out with his trusted guide, Captain Kirk Kirkland. After failing to reel in a large alligator gar, they caught an alligator snapping turtle. They hooked the prehistoric beast through one of its feet At one point, the intrepid fisherman was locked in a dramatic battle with one prodigious fish, during which their course drifted to the mouth of the Angelina River. Among some flooded timber, Weston and Kirkland lost the fish in 'a stumpy area'. Their world-record swam away. But the fisherman and his guide remained undaunted and dropped another line in the water. Then they reeled in something that shocked them. At the end of the line was a monstrous beast- a prehistoric alligator gar. 'Art hooked something about noon while fishing for gar using a large chunk of carp for bait,' Captain Kirkland. 'I figured it was a turtle for the unusual way it fought. It took Art about 30 minutes to bring the turtle up, and it wasnt very happy,' he told outdoorlife.com. The next day, Weston managed to catch a record-breaking alligator gar after an hour-long battle Weston hooked the gar with four-pound fishing line. The fish weighed 188 pounds The hook was lodged in one of the grim creature's front feet, which proved difficult to remove. 'There's not much to grab, and they're trying to fight, claw, and bite you,' Kirkland said. The men said that while they endeavored to remove the hook, the monstrous turtle observed their every movement and had its mouth open and ready to bite. 'I grabbed him by the shell edge behind its head,' Kirkland recounted. 'Then [I] got ahold of its tail with my other hand. Then I carefully worked it into the boat.' They theorized that the prehistoric beast weighed around 200 pounds, easily making it a contender for one of the heaviest ever caught in Texas, which is 211 pounds. 'We got the hook out of its foot, made a few photos, then let it go because they're protected by law,' Kirkland said. In Texas, alligator snapping turtles are considered a threatened species, and fishermen are required to release the fish as close to the place where they caught them as possible. They day after Weston and Kirkland hooked the impressive alligator snapping turtle, they set out again, still hoping to reel in that elusive record-breaking gar. After an hour long bout with a strong alligator gar, Weston was able to reel it in with a four-pound line, and break the record. They hauled the fish in to the shore, where they used an official scale to weigh their prize and found it came in at a staggering 188 pounds. After they finished weighing the alligator gar, the two men released it in the lake. After hauling the massive gar to shore, Weston and Kirkland released the fish If Weston's record application is approved, this would be the fisherman's 10th gar-related record and his 38th fishing record 'We knew it was a record right away due to its size, and quickly navigated to the shore to weigh and record the catch, so that we could quickly release it alive and well,' Weston told Fox. Weston and Kirkland submitted their record application to the International Game and Fishing Association. If their application is accepted, their 188-pound fish will blow away the previous record of a 117 pound 3-ounce alligator gar. This would mark Weston's tenth world-record for catching alligator gar and his 38th overall fishing record. President-elect Jose Raul Mulino pledged to shut it down during election Surged in popularity despite risk of death, rape, robbery by gangs and floods Panama is on the verge of a dramatic change to its immigration policy that could reverberate from the dense Darien Gap jungle to the US border. President-elect Jose Raul Mulino says he will shut down a migration route used by more than 500,000 people last year. Until now, Panama has helped speedily bus the migrants across its territory so they can continue their journey north. Whether Mulino is able to reduce migration through a sparsely populated region with little government presence remains to be seen, experts say. Migrants cross a river during their journey through the Darien Gap from Colombia into Panama, hoping to reach the US Panamanian President-elect Jose Raul Mulino said he would shut down the migration route used by more than 500,000 people last year 'Panama and our Darien are not a transit route. It is our border,' Mulino said after his victory with 34 per cent of the vote in Sunday's election was formalized. He will take over as president on July 1. As he had suggested during his campaign, the 64-year-old lawyer and former security minister said he would try to end 'the Darien odyssey that does not have a reason to exist'. The migrant route through the narrow isthmus grew exponentially in popularity in recent years with the help of organized crime in Colombia, making it an affordable, if dangerous, land route for hundreds of thousands. It grew as countries like Mexico, under pressure from the US Government, imposed visa restrictions on various nationalities including Venezuelans Just this week it was extended to Peruvians in an attempt to stop migrants flying into the country just to continue on to the US border. But masses of people took the challenge and set out on foot through the jungle-clad Colombian-Panamanian border. A crossing that initially could take a week or more eventually was whittled down to two or three days as the path became more established and entrepreneurial locals established a range of support services. Jose Raul Mulino celebrates his victory after his rivals conceded. He ran on the promise to usher in another wave of economic prosperity It remains a risky route, however. Reports of sexual assaults have continued to rise, some migrants are killed by bandits in robberies and others drown trying to cross rushing rivers. Even so, some 147,000 migrants have already entered Panama through Darien this year. Previous attempts to close routes around the world have simply shifted traffic to riskier paths. 'People migrate for many reasons and frequently don't have safe, orderly and legal ways to do it,' said Giuseppe Loprete, chief of mission in Panama for the UN's International Organization for Immigration. 'When the legal routes are not accessible, migrants run the risk of turning to criminal networks, traffickers and dangerous routes, tricked by disinformation.' Loprete said the UN agency's representatives in Panama would meet with Mulino's team once its member are named to learn the specifics of the president's plans. If Mulino could be even partially effective, it could produce a notable, but likely temporary, impact. As with the visa restrictions that unintentionally steered migrants to the overland route through Panama, if the factors pushing migrants to leave their countries remain they will find other routes. Voters line up outside a polling station during a general election in Panama City Migrants who plan to start walking across the Darien Gap from Colombia to Panama in hopes of reaching the US gather at the trailhead camp in Acandi, Colombia One could be the dangerous sea routes from Colombia to Panama. In a local radio interview Thursday, Mulino said the idea of shutting down the migration flow is more philosophical than a physical obstacle. 'Because when we start to deport people here in an immediate deportation plan the interest for sneaking through Panama will decrease,' he said. By the time the fourth plane loaded with migrants takes off, 'I assure you they are going to say that going through Panama is not attractive because they are deporting you.' Julio Alonso, a Panamanian security expert, said what Mulino could realistically achieve is unknown. 'This would be a radical change to Panamanian policy in terms of migration to avoid more deaths and organized crime using the route,' he said. Among the challenges will be how it would work operationally along such an open and uncontrolled border. 'In Panama, there is no kind of suppression with this situation, just free passage, humanitarian aid that didn't manage to reduce the number of assaults, rapes, homicides and deaths along the Darien route,' Alonso said. A Panamanian flag flies on Ancon hill backdropped by the skyline of Panama City Mulino's proposal is 'a dissuasive measure, yes, (but) whether it can be completely executed we will see'. It's also unlikely that much could be accomplished without a lot of cooperation and coordination with Colombia and other countries, he said. Adam Isacson, an analyst at the Washington Office on Latin America, said that 'without considering the risk of returning migrants to dangerous situations, in mathematical terms I don't know how they hope to massively deport' migrants. 'A daily plane, which would be extremely expensive, would only repatriate around 10 per cent of the flow (about 1,000 to 1,200 per day),' he said. 'The United States only manages to do about 130 flights monthly in the entire world.' EXCLUSIVE A cruise liner passenger who plunged to his death from the ship had racked up a $4,000 casino debt after being lured to spend big by the company's 'high roller' incentives, his family claims. Shane Dixon, 45, died after falling overboard while sailing on the P&O cruise ship Pacific Adventure just after 4am on May 6 as it approached Sydney Harbour. The father-of-three, from Campbelltown in Sydney's west, had been on the three-day Elvis-themed cruise with his mother Sue Dixon, 66, who had saved up to book the trip as a holiday for the pair. His family claim he fell victim to rogue practices used by cruise companies to incentivise gambling under 'international waters' guidelines - which would be considered illegal in Australia. 'Our mother is devastated. Broken,' Shane's brother Scott Dixon told Daily Mail Australia on Monday. Shane Dixon, 45, is pictured with his mother Sue Dixon Shane died after falling from P&O's Pacific Adventure cruise ship on May 6 'She has already buried one son and now she has to bury another one. 'Mum said they were having fun, everything was good. 'But the casino - they use all of these incentives to tell people, 'Come back, come back.'' In Australia, strict laws govern how gaming providers can advertise gambling. Promotions such as giving patrons free booze, gambling vouchers and prizes to encourage them to spend are all banned. However, cruise ships that operate casinos in international waters can bypass these regulations - offering a lucrative loophole to the rules. Punters also don't need to pay upfront and can put their splurge straight on to their room bill - making it easier to spend and harder to track. Ahead of the holiday, Scott said his brother was going through a tough time as he struggled financially and grappled with the ongoing impacts of a series of tragedies, including the breakdown of his marriage and deaths of their brother and father. To let off some steam, Shane went to the cruise's casino on Friday and spent $5,000 as casino staff lavished him with free drinks, a $750 play voucher and a ticket for a future cruise, Scott claims. Shane borrowed $5,000 from his mother to repay the debt, but returned to the casino the following night and amassed a $4,000 bill. Shane has been described as 'bubbly, happy and easy-going' by his devastated loved ones Scott believes Shane would have realised the gravity of his situation as the ship began to make its way back to Australian waters, where cruise casinos shut down. Shane fell from the cruise just 10 nautical miles from Sydney Harbour. 'His brain was probably going 100 miles an hour. He probably thought, 'S***, I've done it again. I can't afford it and I can't ask mum for more money,'' Scott said. He added that P&O staff were amazing and compassionate towards his mother; however, the family feel the company's casino policies are irresponsible. A high-roller who is a member of P&O Cruises' casinos VIP program, the Players Club, said the strategies used to promote gambling are 'predatory'. While he always plans what he spends and only takes cash, he said the methods used would be hard to resist for people who struggle with gambling addiction. 'They are essentially offshore casinos that come and pick people up from shore and take them out to international waters to gamble,' the man, who wished to remain anonymous, said. Pictured: A promotional voucher offered by P&O to casino players, urging them to 'come back and play' 'They provide players with very generous incentives to return which wouldn't be legal in Australia, including unlimited drinks where RSA does not apply. 'If you don't have the means to pay and you have an issue, there is no one to stop you so you can rack up a large amount of debt. 'Then they close them down as the ship returns to shore, because they can't legally operate them in Australia.' Other similar stories have emerged online, with one punter taking to Reddit eight months ago for advice after being 'suckered' into racking up a $5,000 bill they could not pay which was charged to their room. Pictured: Photos of the ill-fated trip that Shane posted online before he boarded the cruise The passenger said he linked the debt to his debit card, but their bank became suspicious of the transaction and blocked their account, leaving him unable to access any more money for the rest of the trip. A person who identified as a former crew member responded, saying: 'They will squeeze you as hard as they can to come up with a way to pay the money.' '[They will get you] to call relatives, ask about other credit cards etc,' the former worker wrote. 'If after a while you still haven't got a way to pay them, they will have to let you go after you sign an agreement where you promise to pay them ASAP.' As Shane's family call for change, a family friend has launched a GoFundMe to help support them as they prepare to farewell the 'hardworking truck driver'. 'He was bubbly, happy and easy-going,' Scott recalled. 'It is terrible [how these casinos operate]. It is wrong. Even local pubs now, they have to limit patrons? Why can't they do that? They check balances first. 'Hopefully this can be addressed to help put mum at ease.' A P&O spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia it would be inappropriate to comment on the tragic death of a guest while a coroner's investigation is carried out. 'We have Responsible Conduct of Gaming Policies in place on all P&O ships and take those policies seriously,' she said. 'We are cooperating fully with the coroner's investigation.' For confidential support 24/7 call Lifeline 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue 1300 224 636 For gambling support 24/7 call the National Gambling Helpline on 1800 858 858 Marissa Luck is a senior real estate reporter at Houston Chronicle. She can be reached at marissa.luck@houstonchronicle.com. Previously, Luck covered commercial real estate in Texas for CoStar News; real estate for Austin Business Journal; energy for Houston Chronicle; and business news for The Daily News in Longview, Wash. Shes won awards from Society of Professional Journalists and National Association of Real Estate Editors, and her byline has appeared in numerous publications nationally. Originally from Hawaii, Luck grew up in the Pacific Northwest and studied international political economy at The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Wash. She now lives in Midtown Houston. Irish pranksters mooned New Yorkers and displayed 9/11 photos on their phones But it didn't take long for some to hijack the project's wholesome intentions Irish pranksters are using the 'portal' between Manhattan and Dublin to troll New Yorkers with 9/11 videos and nudity. The futuristic sculpture forms a 24/7 virtual bridge that livestreams life from across the Atlantic. The New York City Portal is in front of the Flatiron Building on Fifth Avenue and Dublin's on O'Connell Street in front of the GPO and the Spire. When The Portal was activated on May 8, crowds from both countries gathered around with signs saying 'Hello from New York' and 'Welcome to Dublin.' But it didn't take long for those with a different sense of humor to hijack the project's wholesome intentions. Irish pranksters are using the 'portal' between Manhattan and Dublin to troll New Yorkers with 9/11 videos and nudity One Irishman switched the view to a video of the World Trade Center towers burning and billowing with black smoke during the 9/11 attack Social media is flooded with videos of hooligans baring their bottoms to transatlantic strangers - or much worse. The usual view of people waving from the historic Irish capital was interrupted within hours of the portal opening by a closeup of a man's phone. First it displayed 'RIP Popsmoke', referring to American rapper Bashar Barakah Jackson, who was gunned down in a home invasion on February 19, 2020. Five men stormed Jackson's house in Los Angeles demanding jewelry and shot him, three times with a Beretta M92 when he tried to fight them. The Irishman then switched the view to a video of the World Trade Center towers burning and billowing with black smoke during the 9/11 attack. Another video showed a woman being dragged away from the portal by police after grinding against the screen. The NYC / Dublin portal has opened The artist intended for it to help 'bring the world closer together' pic.twitter.com/NjClfyOCIs Culture Crave (@CultureCrave) May 11, 2024 Another video showed a woman being dragged away from the portal by police after grinding against the screen 'Basically she was there for about 20mins very drunk and was slapping and grinding against the portal before guards stepped in,' the person who filmed it explained. Less extreme was an Irishman who waved at the dozens of Americans on the other side, before turning around and mooning them. Another man held up a swastika on his phone, and plenty of middle fingers were exchanged on both sides. The displays will operate through until autumn, but an official end date has not been announced. 'Portals are an invitation to meet people above borders and differences and to experience our world as it really is - united and one,' said Benediktas Gylys, a Lithuanian artist and founder of The Portal. Lord Mayor of Dublin Daithi De Roiste unveiled the portal in Dublin (pictured), showing off people in New York City The Portal offers an unfiltered live stream view from O'Connell Street in Dublin to the Flatiron Building on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan 'The livestream provides a window between distant locations, allowing people to meet outside of their social circles and cultures, transcend geographical boundaries, and embrace the beauty of global interconnectedness.' Lord Mayor of Dublin Daithi De Roiste unveiled the portal in Dublin that included a performance by The Liberties Majorettes as a nod to New York. In the coming months, the two cities will share scheduled programming to celebrate New York Design Week and other cultural performances that have not been released yet. 'Two amazing global cities, connected in real-time and space,' New York City Chief Public Realm Officer Ya-Ting Liu said, adding: 'That is something you do not see every day!' 'We are so excited to have the portal as a public interactive art installation, showcasing the vibrancy of our city streets and providing a new point for human connection between New Yorkers and Dubliners. The Portal was first created in 2021 by Lithuanian artist Benediktas Gylys who also primarily funded them. Pictured: The Dublin portal before it was unveiled today The Portal was first revealed in 2021 by the Benefiktas Gylys Foundation, a non-profit that works to unify nations and has already set up similar portals in Lithuania and Poland. 'One of my key aims as Lord Mayor is to make the city more inclusive,' said De Roiste, who announced that Dublin's portal will also connect to the other Portal locations starting in July. 'I would encourage Dubliners and visitors to the city to come and interact with the sculpture and extend an Irish welcome and kindness to cities all over the world.' The Portal presents a new kind of sculptural art that uses science and technology to connect people from around the world and is a major focus for the Simons Foundation. It worked alongside Dublin, Flatiron NoMad, NYC DOT Art, portals.org and the EU Capital of Smart Tourism to bring The Portal to life. De Roiste announced that Dublin's portal will also connect to the other Portal locations in Poland and Lithuania starting in July. Gylys first thought of the portal in 2016 when a spiritual experience led him to view the planet through a different lens and he developed the need to 'counter polarizing ideas' and find a way for people from different cultures to communicate 'Public spaces are what make New York City so vibrant and exciting,' said David Spergel, president of the Simons Foundation. 'From music to art, the use of public spaces amplifies the collective voice of our city. We're committed to ensuring that science and technology continue to be part of that voice.' Gylys first thought of the concept in 2016 when a spiritual experience led him to view the planet through a different lens and he developed the need to 'counter polarizing ideas' and find a way for people from different cultures to communicate. He provided the majority of the funds needed to build the first two portals in collaboration with a team from VilniusTech University in Lithuania. The first two portals opened in May 2021 in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius and in the Polish city, Lublin. Did YOU see what happened? Please email tom.cotterill@mailonline.co.uk Scotland's scorching weekend ended in tragedy yesterday after a jet skier died following a horror crash at sea. As the country enjoyed two of the hottest days of the year so far after one of the wettest Aprils on record Scots flocked to beaches and parks to soak up the sun. But the glorious weather was marred by a tragic incident when a jet skier was pronounced dead after two of the craft collided off the Kirkcudbrightshire coast. The 42-year-old was airlifted to hospital at around 5.35pm on Saturday after the smash near Auchenlarie Holiday Park, near Gatehouse of Fleet. The man, whose identity has not been released, suffered serious head injuries and was flown to Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow. Did YOU see what happened? Please email tom.cotterill@mailonline.co.uk A man has died in a horror jet ski crash at Auchenlarie Holiday Park, near Gatehouse of Fleet in Scotland The 42-year-old was airlifted to hospital at around 5.35pm on Saturday suffering from serious head injuries (pictured is the holiday resort) Jet skis can weigh up to half a ton and hit speeds of 70mph. Police Scotland last night confirmed he died as a result of his injuries. No one else was injured in the crash. Detective Inspector Graeme Robertson said his thoughts were 'with the man's family and everyone affected by this tragic incident'. Mr Robertson said: 'Our inquiries to establish what led to this collision are ongoing and at an early stage.' He encouraged anyone with information to come forward. Auchenlarie Holiday Park is described as having 'direct access to a secluded beach overlooking picturesque Wigtown Bay'. Just hours after the jet ski crash, a 74-year-old hillwalker fell to his death in the Highlands as he climbed the 2,811ft Beinn a' Chrulaiste in Glen Coe. The alarm was raised at around 7.30pm after he had failed to return from the walk. Fourteen members of Glencoe Mountain Rescue were dispatched and found his body halfway up the peak about an hour later. News of the double tragedy came as Scots enjoyed the last of this weekend's mini-heatwave. Temperatures reached 23.6C in Kinlochewe, Ross-shire, yesterday while Saturday saw Scotland record its hottest day of the year so far when thermometers hit 25.7C in Cassley in Sutherland. The tragedy took place on Saturday, with police in Scotland last night declaring the man had died of his injuries The sunny spell came to a dramatic end yesterday as thunderstorms rolled in. Much of the country was set to see torrential rain as the storm moved east, with more than an inch expected to fall in just an hour in some areas. The Met Office yesterday issued a 13-hour weather warning for thunderstorms over large parts of West and Central Scotland amid flooding fears. The yellow alert was due to end at 3am today, having been put in place from 2pm yesterday. Firefighters will welcome the downpours, which came after the country was placed on high alert for wildfires. Three fire engines had to be sent to Brimmond Hill on the outskirts of Aberdeen late on Saturday after a large gorse fire broke out. While temperatures are expected to remain higher than normal for May for the next several days, the Met Office's Marco Petagna said: 'Later in the week we might need more warnings for heavy showers, which could be thundery on Wednesday and Thursday.' A woman in NSW has had an unwelcome passenger in her ute for a month and it really is taking the hiss. A red-bellied black snake took up residence in Lisa Kournelis' ute over a month ago, and is still there after four unsuccessful attempts to remove it. Lisa continues to drive her ute for work every day and has named her offsider "Fluffy". She believes the venomous visitor first slithered its way into her life and ute a month ago when visiting a worksite. She told the ABC she was quite shocked after putting a box in her car and noticed the snake on the backseat. 'I believe it was in there for a good three weeks before that because I was finding snake poo everywhere,' she said. She said she was alerted to its presence because it kept setting her car alarm off during the day. 'So just random times from about 11 o'clock in the morning, my car alarm will go off. I wasn't sure what it was at first, but then I clued on,' she said. Lisa believes the venomous visitor first slithered its way into her life and ute a month ago when visiting a worksite The red-bellied black snake is one of the most frequently encountered snakes on Australia's east coast and responsible for a number of bites every year Mr Stopford revealed getting Fluffy out may be a big job, as modern cars are well sealed, and the dashboard and seats may need to be removed Lisa said four snake catchers have tried to remove Fluffy, but with no success. The Australian Museum states the red-bellied black snake is one of the most frequently encountered snakes on Australia's east coast and responsible for a number of bites every year. 'Despite the number of bites received every year, very few human deaths have resulted.' Lisa said she now has to wear protective clothing when driving her ute. 'I'm very lucky actually that I haven't been bitten, but if it does bite, these woollen work pants that I wear will take most of the venom.' Matt Stopford from Central Coast Snake Catchers told the ABC it is crucial to remove Fluffy the snake from Lisa's ute as soon as possible before it enters winter dormancy known as brumation. 'The snake will slow down, he will want to stay in the car because it's a nice hiding spot to get warm, it's going to go off its food and probably settle in,' he said. Mr Stopford revealed getting Fluffy out may be a large-scale job, as modern cars are well sealed and the dashboard and seats may need to be removed. A spokesperson from the Australian Reptile Park told Daily Mail Australia the snake hasn't been rescued as yet, but Operations Manager Billy Collett is coordinating with Lisa to assist in removing Fluffy from the ute. This is the shocking moment a brazen thief steals a blue badge from a disabled pensioner's car windscreen. The face mask-wearing hooded crook calmly walks along a residential street in the dead of night when he spots the small hatchback parked in a disabled bay in Southall, west London. He is caught on CCTV on May 6 at around 3.55am brazenly breaking his way into the driver's window before snatching the badge from the dashboard. The footage then captures him scarpering up the road. The victim's anguished daughter said: 'This is my parent's car that was broken into. They are elderly and disabled. 'Ealing Council have issued PCNs when they haven't displayed their badge overnight and this is the result of keeping the badge on display overnight. The face mask-wearing hooded crook calmly walks along a residential street in the dead of night in Southall, west London He is caught on CCTV on May 6 at around 3.55am brazenly breaking his way into the driver's window before snatching the badge from the dashboard 'There is just no winning. It's a disability bay.' Local, Marcus Stefan said: 'I'm sorry, but it should not have been left in the car. You do not leave stuff of high value in cars.' Amira added: 'So how else do you park in a disabled space without a disabled badge!? 'If you don't leave it on display you can't park there.' Another said: 'I genuinely feel that disabled badges need to be reformed. 'Maybe have them the same way they've done with the car tax disc that you use to slap in your window but you don't anymore because it's all digital. 'It's probably the only way to stop s***ty people doing s**t like this.' Nito said: 'Southall used to be a very safe place once upon a time.' In June last year, it was reported that there were 1,484 Blue Badge thefts in the year up to March 2022. This was a rise of 41 per cent compared to the 1,055 the previous year, according to Department for Transport figures. MailOnline has approached the Met Police for comment. Shoppers have been left frustrated at some woolworths stores in Queensland after the supermarkets started running out of key items. Several of the supermarket giant's Queensland stores have seen low-to-no stock available across its fresh sections - including milk, poultry and fruit. While the reason behind the unavailability was initially unclear, Woolworths chief commercial officer Paul Harker confirmed on Monday afternoon that a problem at a major distribution centre was responsible. It's understood a management system upgrade at the Brisbane site resulted in its refrigerated section becoming damaged last week. Mr Harker said the issue had caused 'carnage'. Woolworths chief commercial officer Paul Harker named a problem at one of the grocery giant's Brisbane distribution centres as the reason behind shortages Woolworths customers described the shortages as 'apocalyptic' with several fresh food items running low 'We're not particularly happy about the situation,' Mr Harker said. 'We're working very hard to improve it. We apologise to our customers that we have had issues. 'I might add we're continuing to take the committed stock from our suppliers, even if we can't get it out.' The supermarket chain vowed to work hard to 'resume normal operations as quickly as possible'. But the promise came too little too late for many customers, who took to social media to vent their frustrations. 'Woolies is empty. This is a disgrace it is,' one wrote on X, formerly Twitter, alongside photos showing their local Woolworths' sparse produce section. Another added: 'Not sure what is happening with Woolies but empty shelves happening in both Woolies Banyo and Woolies Nundah.' Mr Harker said: 'We're working very hard to improve it. We apologise to our customers that we have had issues' A third customer posted: 'A trip to Woolies yesterday afternoon had me wondering why the shelves are practically empty. The bread aisle was empty, the only gluten free bread I found was out of date and stale.' 'Woolworths Richlands had 'basically nothing' in terms of vegetables, fruit and deli meats, according to a disappointed customer. 'Have been noticing reduced options in and around Moreton Bay region,' another said. Another added: 'No fresh chicken pieces, very little milk at Logan Hyperdome [Woolies] on Friday. Notices up apologising for lack of stock due to supply issues.' A Woolworths spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia the grocers can 'expect to see improvement in overall supply levels in the coming days' A Woolworths spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia that customers can 'expect to see improvement in overall supply levels in the coming days'. 'Some stores may be stocking less fruit and vegetables, milk and chicken than usual. Product purchase limits are not in place,' they said. 'Were grateful for our customers patience and understanding while our team works to resume normal operations as quickly as possible.' A custody van has arrived at court as three men accused of spying for a Hong Kong intelligence service prepare to face a string of charges under the National Security Act. Chi Leung (Peter) Wai, 38, Matthew Trickett, 37, and Chung Biu Yuen, 63, have also been charged with foreign interference under the same Act, the Metropolitan Police said. It follows an investigation led by officers from the Met's Counter Terrorism Command in which 11 people in total were detained. Eight men and a woman were arrested by officers on May 1 in the Yorkshire area, before a man was arrested in London and another man was arrested in the Yorkshire area the following day, the force said. A custody van has arrived at court as three men accused of spying for a Hong Kong intelligence service prepare to face a string of charges under the National Security Act A court sketch of Chung Biu Yuen (left), 63, Chi Leung (Peter) Wai (centre), 38, and Matthew Trickett (right), 37, at Westminster Magistrates' Court today Wai, of Staines-upon-Thames, Trickett, of Maidenhead, and Yuen, of Hackney, were each charged with assisting a foreign intelligence service, contrary to section 3(1) and (9) of the National Security Act, and with foreign interference, contrary to section 13(2) and (7) of the same Act. The seven men and one woman who were not charged were released from custody on or before May 10. Commander Dominic Murphy, head of the Met's Counter Terrorism Command, said: 'This operation is not connected to a recently reported Counter Terrorism Policing investigation linked to Russia. 'A number of arrests were made and searches carried out across England as part of this investigation. All three men will appear in custody at Westminster Magistrates' Court (pictured) today 'While led from London, the Counter Terrorism Policing network has been crucial to disrupting this activity and we have worked closely with the Crown Prosecution Service since the start of the investigation. 'While these offences are concerning, I want to reassure the public that we do not believe there to be any wider threat to them. 'This investigation remains ongoing, but now that charges have been brought, I urge people not to speculate or comment further in relation to this case.' The three men will appear in custody at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Monday. This is the cringeworthy moment two female British tourists fight each other in a Majorcan tourist resort. One of the women was in a thong but that didn't stop her getting her rival into a chokehold and then having a go at a Good Samaritan trying to separate them before turning her attention back to her rival. Witnesses egged on the pair as they made a spectacle of themselves with their late-night show. A group of British women watching from a safe distance shouted: 'Fight, fight, fight' as the brawlers pushed and slapped each other. The scrap occurred on Saturday night in Cala d'Or on Majorca's south-east coast, in an area packed with bars and restaurants, hours after regional government officials announced a tightening-up of legislation designed to stamp out drunken tourism in party resorts on the island including parts of Magaluf. Witnesses egged on the pair as they made a spectacle of themselves with their late-night show A group of British women watching from a safe distance shouted: 'Fight, fight, fight' as they pushed and slapped each other It was not entirely clear why the brunette involved in the violence, who looked very unsteady on her feet when she was lifted off the ground The scrap occurred on Saturday night in Cala d'Or on Majorca's south-east coast The incident was defused with the help of locals and police are not thought to have been called. Under modified legislation announced on Friday British tourists have been warned they face fines of up to 1,300 if they are caught drinking alcohol on the street in places like Magaluf party strip Punta Ballena. Shops that sell alcohol have also been ordered to close at night-times after 9.30pm. The areas covered by the modification to a four-year-old regional government decree against the so-called 'tourism of excess' are roughly the same as before and include parts of some of Majorca and Ibiza's brashest resorts including Magaluf and San Antonio which are most popular with Brits. Saturday night's incident is also being seized on by campaigners protesting against tourist overcrowding. Demonstrations took place across the Canary Islands last month. On May 25 a demonstration has been called in a central square in the Majorcan capital Palma. Protestors will seek to make their voices heard using the slogan: 'Majorca is not for sale' as they call on their politicians to tackle some of the problems they say are making their lives a misery including congested roads and lack of access to affordable housing. The incident was defused with the help of locals and police are not thought to have been called Three people were killed and at least 12 were left injured Saturday night in southwest Alabama after a May Day party turned violent. Andre Reid with the Baldwin County Investigation Division told WALA-TV that about 1,000 people were attending the celebration near Stockton when an altercation started and gunfire erupted. Reid said most of the victims were 'younger people' but there was no immediate information available on whether any arrests had been made. 'According to witnesses, the event was peaceful until an argument took place, which led to at least one subject shooting multiple rounds into the large crowd, said Reid. Deputies responded to the scene at around 9.30pm after gunshots were reported to the sheriff's office. Three people were left dead and at least 12 were injured following a shooting at an Alabama May Day party on Saturday night Authorities have not yet released any details about the people who were killed nor about those injured, but have confirmed that no law enforcement officers were involved in the fatal incident 'Unfortunately, three of the victims succumbed to their wounds,' the Reid added. Authorities have not released any details about the people who were killed nor about those injured. 'We do believe that there may have been more shooters, and we are following up on those leads,' the office said. After the initial response, the Baldwin County Sheriff's Office requested the assistance of the Baldwin County Major Crimes Unit (BCMCU) to investigate the shocking incident. 'Investigators assigned to the BCMCU are on standby should we need help following up on leads,' Reid added. Reid said no law enforcement officers were involved in the shooting and has asked members of the public who may have information or who captured footage of the event to come forward. 'This is a tragic event that touches many lives in our community. We are working very hard to bring this case to a resolution, but we cannot make arrests or successfully prosecute the offenders without help,' he said. May Day is often a seasonal celebration in anticipation of warmer days ahead - and in some areas of the world, it is a celebration of workers' rights. But the violence witnessed during Saturday's party is a type of tragedy that many communities across America have become familiar with, as the devastating incident is one out at least 155 mass shootings that have taken place across the United States so far this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive. The archive defines a mass shooting as one in which four or more victims are killed or wounded. The mass shooting near Stockton was just one instance of high-profile gun violence seen in the US over the weekend alone. Three Atlanta police officers were left hospitalized with gunshot wounds following an incident that left a suspect dead on Saturday evening, authorities said. Officers responded at 5:15pm to a report of an armed man in a commercial area on Fairbanks Street and encountered a man with a handgun and a knife on Desoto Avenue, Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum said during a news conference. 'During that encounter there was a struggle, there was gunfire that resulted in three of our officers being injured. It also resulted in the death of the individual that was armed with the handgun,' Schierbaum said. And in Euclid, Ohio, a police officer was shot and killed after being 'ambushed by gunfire' while answering a disturbance call, and a suspect was being sought, authorities said Sunday. Officer Jacob Derbin was shot and taken to a hospital, but he succumbed to his injuries later that night, police said. No other officers were injured, according to Euclid Police Chief Scott Meyer. The suspect was found dead in a Shaker Heights home on Sunday, authorities said. Law enforcement officials would not elaborate on how the suspect died or say if officers and the suspect exchanged gunfire. Rishi Sunak will today urge Brits not to trust Keir Starmer with the 'dangers' facing the country. In a speech drawing stark dividing lines ahead of the election, the PM will point to the rise of AI, immigration and hostile states. And he will insist that Labour is not able to deal with the challenges that will overhaul 'almost every aspect' of our everyday lives in the next five years. The intervention comes as the premier sharpens his attack lines with the general election expected by the end of the year. The Tories are struggling to get traction with Labour miles ahead in polls, and after a miserable round of council and mayoral elections earlier this month. Mr Sunak will use the presidential-style address to say that Britain is at a 'crossroads' and 'more will change in the next five years than in the last 30'. He will insist he has a 'profound sense of urgency' about tackling the threats. But the PM is also set to strike a positive tone about the results of responding in the right way, saying he has 'bold ideas' to capitalise on the opportunities. They are understood to include using advances in artificial intelligence and biotech and turning them a force for good, as well as looking outside the box for solutions to mass immigration such as the Rwanda scheme. In a major speech, Rishi Sunak will say he feels a 'profound sense of urgency' to tackle the threats facing the nation while also seizing the opportunities to build a more secure future Mr Sunak will set out 'bold ideas' for 'solutions to mass immigration'. Pictured is group of people thought to be migrants nboard a Border Force vessel Speaking in central London tomorrow, the PM will set out a path to what he believes will create a more prosperous and secure future for families. He is expected to say: 'I have bold ideas that can change our society for the better, and restore people's confidence and pride in our country. 'I feel a profound sense of urgency. Because more will change in the next five years than in the last 30. 'I'm convinced that the next few years will be some of the most dangerous yet most transformational our country has ever known.' He will add: 'Over the next few years, from our democracy to our economy to our society to the hardest questions of war and peace almost every aspect of our lives is going to change. 'How we act in the face of these changes not only to keep people safe and secure but to realise the opportunities too will determine whether or not Britain will succeed in the years to come. And this is the choice facing the country.' Mr Sunak has previously warned the UK is facing an 'axis of authoritarian states with different values to ours', including Russia, Iran, North Korea and China with the countries showing a 'new assertiveness' and increasingly working together. The PM will say 'at heart, we're a nation of optimists' and not 'blind to the challenges or threats we face'. 'We just have an innate belief that whatever they are, we can overcome them as we have done so many times in our history. And create a more secure future for you and your family.' Russian President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a in Beijing last year A government source said: 'The PM will contrast Conservatives who have consistently risen to global challenges to protect Britain, with Labour who would leave the country vulnerable by not matching our defence funding commitment and leave us exposed to the rising tide of illegal immigration across the world.' In a speech in Dover on Friday, Sir Keir vowed to axe the Rwanda deportations policy immediately if he becomes PM, despite signs it is already having a deterrent effect. Instead he suggested that overhauling the asylum processing system could tackle the Channel migrant crisis. However, he refused to say whether Labour would stop the boats altogether, or how much numbers would fall. Labour MP Pat McFadden said tonight: 'Nothing the Prime Minister says will change the fact that over the past 14 years, the Conservatives have brought costly chaos to the country. The Conservatives can't fix the country's problems because they are the problem.' Russia this morning pressed its offensive in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region, bearing down on the town of Vovchansk from three directions and forcing thousands of civilians to flee their homes. The operation, launched last Friday just days after Vladimir Putin's inauguration for a fifth presidential term, saw Russian artillery and airstrikes pound towns and villages in Kharkiv before Moscow's troops surged across the border once again. With Kyiv's resources stretched thin as weary soldiers await sorely-needed Western weaponry, Putin's troops simply 'walked in' because 'there was no first line of defence', according to one Ukrainian commander who spoke to the BBC. Shocking drone footage circulating on social media appears to show Russian soldiers marching through fields just north of Vovchansk that commander Denys Yaroslavskyi lamented had not been mined or defended. Now the Russian units have reportedly seized four towns across the border and are forging a path towards the city roughly three miles further into Kharkiv. A police officer runs in front on burning house destroyed by a Russian airstrike in Vovchansk, Ukraine, on Saturday, May 11, 2024 Military paramedics treat a wounded Ukrainian service member, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the town of Vovchansk in Kharkiv region, Ukraine May 12, 2024 A fire spreads through a forest following shelling on the outskirts of Vovchansk, Kharkiv region, northeastern Ukraine, 12 May 2024 Mass civilian evacuations of border towns in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region are underway amid heavy Russian shelling and troop movements. A destroyed house is pictured following shelling on May 12, 2024 in Vovchansk Shocking footage circulating on social media appears to show Russian soldiers marching through fields just north of Vovchansk By Sunday afternoon, Vovchansk - town with a prewar population of 17,000, emerged as a focal point in the battle with Russian troops seeking to encircle it by taking the nearby settlements of Buhruvatka, Starytsya, and Izbytske. The intense battles have forced at least one Ukrainian unit to withdraw, capitulating more land to Russian forces across the less defended settlements in the so-called contested gray zone along the Russian border. Volodymyr Tymoshko, the head of the Kharkiv regional police, said yesterday evening that Russian forces were on the outskirts of Vovchansk and approaching from three directions. Plumes of smoke were seen rising from the town as Russian forces hurled shells, with images trickling through on local Telegram channels showing how houses and buildings had been destroyed or heavily damaged. Evacuation teams worked nonstop throughout the day to take residents, most of whom were older, out of harm's way, while other photos appeared to show a small number of Ukrainian armoured vehicles heading out of the town toward the fighting. Nearly 6,000 civilians have fled the Kharkiv region since Friday when Moscow's forces launched the operation, regional governor Oleh Synehubov said in a social media statement. Analysts say the Russian push is designed to exploit ammunition shortages before promised Western supplies can reach the front line. Ukrainian soldiers meanwhile said the Kremlin is using the usual Russian tactic of launching a disproportionate amount of fire and infantry assaults to exhaust Kyiv's troops and firepower. By intensifying battles in what was previously a static patch of the front line, Russian forces threaten to pin down Ukrainian forces in the northeast, while carrying out intense battles farther south where Moscow is also gaining ground. It comes after Russia stepped up attacks in March targeting energy infrastructure and settlements in Kharkiv, which analysts predicted were a concerted effort to shape conditions for an offensive. But border towns remained poorly fortified amid the constant heavy shelling and scant resources. Commander Yaroslavskyi, whose forces helped to repel the Russian advance towards Kharkiv in 2022, was enraged by the lack of defence and suspected officials tasked with organising the fortification of the border had not followed through. 'There was no first line of defence. We saw it. The Russians just walked in. They just walked in, without any mined fields' he told the BBC. 'Either it was an act of negligence, or corruption. It wasn't a failure. It was a betrayal'. A man lies on the ground as he watches his burning house destroyed by a Russian airstrike in Vovchansk, Ukraine, on Saturday, May 11, 202 Residential houses on fire after Russian airstrikes in Vovchansk, Ukraine MAY 11: A view of the damaged building after the Russian shelling on Vovchansk in Kharkiv, Ukraine on May 11, 2024 The smoke that rises after hitting an elevator with a guided aerial bomb on May 12, 2024 in Vovchansk Kharkiv Region A view of the damaged building after the Russian shelling on Vovchansk in Kharkiv, Ukraine on May 11 In his nightly address Sunday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky did not recognise Russia's claims to four towns in Kharkiv, but admitted that 'grey zone areas' were being hotly contested. 'Defensive battles and fierce fighting continue on a large part of our border,' Zelensky said. 'There are villages that have actually turned from a 'grey zone' into a combat zone, and the occupier is trying to gain a foothold in some of them, or simply use them for further advancement.' Speaking at an evacuation point near Vovchansk, Oleksiy Kharkivsky, a senior police officer helping to coordinate evacuations, said the area was 'constantly under fire'. 'Everything in the city is being destroyed... You hear constant explosions, artillery, mortars. The enemy is hitting the city with everything they have,' he said. Meanwhile in Kharkiv city - Ukraine's second largest some 25 miles from the border with Russia - mayor Igor Terekhov sought to keep the populace calm. He quoted by the city council yesterday as saying there was no reason for people to leave the city despite Russia's offensive a mere 20 or so miles away. 'Despite all the events that are taking place in the region, Kharkiv is calm. We do not see people leaving,' he said. Russia's assault on Vovchansk and other border towns in Kharkiv comes as Putin replaced his long-suffering Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu in a major cabinet reshuffle. Putin wants Sergei Shoigu, (pictured on May 9, 2024) defence minister since 2012 and a long-standing Putin ally, to become the secretary of Russia's Security Council replacing incumbent Nikolai Patrushev, and for him to also have responsibilities for the military-industrial complex, the Kremlin said The firing appears an astonishing snub to Shoigu, the man Putin put in charge of his Ukraine war, a close ally, and Russia's longest serving minister. Putin and Shoigu are pictured together in December 2023 Putin has proposed Andrei Belousov, 65, to replace Shoigu as defence minister in his new government Shoigu, who had served as the Russian Defence Minister since 2012, was widely seen as a key figure in Putin's decision to send Russian troops into Ukraine in February 2022. For more than two years he managed to escape being fired or transferred, even as multiple commanders were chopped and changed amid a string of Russian strategic errors and battlefield defeats earlier in the war. But now he has been relieved of his duties as Defence Minister and appointed secretary of Russia's Security Council - a somewhat peripheral role in advising the Kremlin on security-related issues. Putin instead proposed Andrei Belousov - an economist with no military experience - to become his nation's new defence minister, a move that analysts said showed the Russian President's desire to populate key positions with trusted and loyal technocrats. It also shows Putin is committed to consolidating Russia's war economy. Belousov, 65, held leading positions in the finances and economic department of the prime minister's office and the Ministry of Economic Development - and it is thought his appointment will aim to tackle corruption in Russia's defence industrial base and improve the defence ministry's efficiency. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Sunday that Putin had decided to give the defence minister role to a civilian because the ministry should be 'open to innovation and cutting-edge ideas.' He also said the increasing defence budget 'must fit into the country's wider economy,' and Belousov, who until recently served as the first deputy prime minister, is the right fit for the job. The land recently sold by Apache is near the BLVD Place development. Whitestone REIT 1750 Post Oak Partners, a new venture formed by Crescent Real Estate, the Schnitzer family and the Doggett family, plans to build a 1.5 million square foot luxury mixed-use development on Post Oak Blvd near BLVD Place. Google Maps Oil exploration company Apache Corp. has sold a prime 6.3-acre parcel on Post Oak in Uptown, where a newly formed real estate venture plans to build a luxury mixed-use development. The land at 1750 Post Oak is across from BLVD Place, home to Whole Foods and restaurants such as North Italia, True Food Kitchen and Ninfas. It was purchased by 1750 Post Oak Partners, which was formed by leaders of real estate firms Crescent Real Estate, Senterra and Doggett Industries, according to Transwestern, the real estate brokerage that represented the buyers. The partnership anticipates breaking ground in late 2025. Plans include 1.5 million square feet of complementary luxury uses including office, retail, hospitality, multifamily and ultra high-end condominiums. Advertisement Article continues below this ad We have long viewed this site as one of the most important and well-located land parcels in Houston, said John Goff, chairman of Crescent. Our venture with the Doggett and Schnitzer families was formed to capitalize on this unique opportunity to develop a mix of best-in-class office, hospitality, residential and retail assets. A new real estate venture has purchase a prime property in the Uptown Houston for a future mixed-use development. Transwestern The property has remained undeveloped for at least a decade after Apache bought the land in 2012 from commercial real estate firm Wulfe & Co, the original developers of BLVD Place, said Bob Sellingsloh, president and principal at Wulfe. Sellingsloh said Apache had planned to build its headquarters on the site. An Apache spokesperson did not provide further details of the Post Oak sale. JLL represented the sellers. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The parcel is one of the remaining undeveloped tracts assembled 20 years ago for the development of BLVD Place by Houston commercial real estate firm Wulfe & Co. and the late Ed Wulfe. Over the years, Wulfe & Co. developed 286,000 square feet in BLVD Place, then sold a mix of completed buildings and some land to Whitestone REIT, in addition to land to multifamily developer Hanover Co. and Apache. (The leaders behind 1750 Post Oak Partners) have a reputation for developing high-quality projects and we are thrilled they are working toward completing the original vision for BLVD Place, Sellingsloh said. The neighborhood around BLVD Place has transformed over the past decade. Hanover built two apartment skyscrapers Hanover Post Oak and Hanover BLVD Place on the acreage it bought from Wulfe. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Across San Felipe from Whole Foods, the 40-story apartment tower Aspire Post Oak opened in 2021. And across Post Oak, the real estate firm Levcor revamped Post Oak Plaza, which includes a Kenny & Ziggys and seafood restaurant Balboa Surf Club. A stylist who owns a boutique favoured by the late Princess Diana and a sprinkling of Hollywood stars wants one of her 'fashionista' customers jailed for not repaying a loan. Bridget Hutchcroft, 63, says her 1.3 million life savings were swindled by Ekaterina Barrett, who introduced herself as a 'connoisseur of high-end couture' in 2017. With Catherine Zeta-Jones and Ava Gardner amongst her clients, Ms Hutchcroft's Pandora Dress Agency is a cornerstone of international glamour found in Knightsbridge, southwest London. Ms Barrett, 67, fell out spectacularly with Ms Hutchcroft when she did not return the 1.3 million lent to her by the businesswoman during her divorce. Even though the High Court ordered Ms Barrett in October 2022 to repay the loan plus interest, she has not done so. Now Ms Hutchcroft's legal team, has told the court that the Monaco based Ms Barrett has shown contempt to the court and should be jailed. Bridget Hutchcroft, 63, at the High Court where she is attempting to jail Ekaterina Barrett The Mail tracked down Ekaterina Barrett to Monaco where she lives in June 2023 James McWilliams, for Ms Hutchcroft claimed aspects of Ms Barrett's evidence are 'false and known by her to be false in several material respects' at a hearing last week. READ MORE: Boss of celebrity clothes boutique which once sold designer wear to Diana, Princess of Wales, sues fashionista former friend who 'fleeced her out of 1.3million in life savings' by claiming to be as 'rich as a Rothschild' Advertisement 'In particular, she gave false evidence in relation to the nature of her interest in and connection to a property in Monaco, referred to throughout the examination as 'Saint Andre' - it being her evidence that it was not her property but her brother's,' he said. Ms Barrett had also insisted she had no other court cases ongoing, although she is in fact 'involved in legal proceedings in multiple different jurisdictions', claimed Mr McWilliams. Mr McWilliams said Ms Barrett should face 'an appropriate custodial sentence' if found in contempt. He added an email sent by Ms Barrett on May 3, in which she claims 'the case had already settled at a meeting between me and Bridget Hutchcroft' for 800,000 with a writen agreement was as an 'obvious forgery'. The Pandora Dress Agency has been a successful fixture in Knightsbridge for in-the-know fashionistas since its establishment more than 70 years ago, just after the end of the Second World War. Based just behind Harrods, the boutique sells second-hand modern designer clothes, all seasonal and less than two years old, from labels such as Chanel, Hermes, Versace and Prada. Ms Hutchcroft at her shop The Pandora Dress Agency whose customers included Diana. Over the decades, the boutique in Knightsbridge has counted Princess Diana (pictured), Catherine Zeta-Jones and Ava Gardner among its clientele Ms Hutchcroft met Ms Barrett when the latter began visiting the Pandora boutique seven years ago - at a time when she was living the high life in London in a 4.2m Mayfair flat and driving around in a Bentley. The pair became friends, with Ms Hutchcroft buying some of her 'valuable collection of items of high-end designer fashion' to sell in her shop and 'taking a shine' to her two greyhounds, she says. But the relationship between the two women turned sour after Ms Hutchcroft lent her then pal 1.3m as she was going through a divorce, which Ms Barrett then failed to pay back. Ms Hutchcroft claimed in court papers prior to winning the judgment in 2022 that she had been the victim of 'fraudulent misrepresentation' on the part of her 'exploitative' former friend, who she claimed posed as a 'multi-multimillionaire' with riches 'equivalent to a Rothschild' in order to induce her to make the loans. Ms Hutchcroft said she was told her friend's grandfather had set up a 'substantial trust for her in Liechtenstein' but that she was temporarily unable to get at the funds, court documents disclosed. She said her new friend did not fully explain where her supposed fortune came from, but added: 'Having visited her apartment in Monaco, I did believe that she had this huge trust fund that she had told me about'. Ms Hutchcroft argued that Ms Barrett has failed to abide by the terms of a court order In her defence, Ms Barrett denied borrowing the cash, insisting that the transactions related to the sale of designer clothes. Ms Barrett failed to attend court to hear the argument or defend her position, with Ms Hutchcroft believing that she is still in Monaco. In a short hearing in June last year, Ms Barrett had been examined about her financial position in relation to her failure to repay the money. She claimed she relies on her family for support and 'that her lifestyle is funded entirely by her family'. A woman was left shocked after one of her neighbours left threatening letters at her apartment door complaining about her dogs barking. Davina Simona, from Sherwood, Brisbane, was taken aback when she received a note last Thursday and another on Sunday from an anonymous local giving her a 'final warning' over her pets' behaviour. 'If you insist on having dogs (especially a big one) in a unit the size of a large toilet get the stupid brainless mutts a barking collar each and have a bit of consideration for others,' one note read. The other note called her XL bully and mini dachshund 'mongrels' and said it was her 'last warning' to get them under control. 'Fix it or get reported to the authorities,' the neighbour scrawled on a notepad. Ms Simona told Daily Mail Australia she had no idea who was behind the furious letters because her direct neighbours 'love our doggos'. A furious neighbour has given a Brisbane woman a 'final warning' over her XL bully and mini dachshund (pictured centre and left) barking while she is away from her home She said she had taken precautions to stop her dogs' barking from bothering her neighbours, including the use of anti-bark collars while she wasn't home. However, a few days before receiving the angry notes, she had tried leaving the collars off for a while to see if her dogs' behaviour had changed at all. 'This obviously did not work so any time I'm away from home I've placed it back on them,' she said. Ms Simona was confused by the notes, so posted them to a neighbourhood Facebook group - which prompted a local to send her an angry message. The local claimed it was their grandfather who had sent the anonymous letters. Ms Simona was baffled by this revelation because, as far as she knew, neither she nor her dogs had ever had any trouble with an older man. 'You've taken to Facebook to threaten an old man who does not use Facebook with your stupid big dogs and those little dachshunds, and the crying child all the time,' the furious local wrote, 'I know all about your backyard and where you live.' Davina Simona told Daily Mail Australia that she had no clue who the neighbour who called her beloved pooches 'brainless mutts' was (pictured) They added that they would report Ms Simona to 'the authorities' if the dogs kept barking Ms Simona said she didn't want to feel like 'we are walking on eggshells in our own homes'. 'The entire situation is just such a mystery and I want to get to the bottom of it,' she said. She also revealed she had been in contact with her direct neighbours and asked them to contact her if they heard the dogs barking so she could come home. Touching on the hurtful comments about the size of her unit, she admitted her 'living circumstances aren't ideal for our biggest boy'. 'I'm a huge animal lover... It's a home nonetheless. We would love a large home within our budget again.' She added that her XL bully, Zeus, was 'the sweetest most affectionate boy' who had been complimented for his behaviour by 'anyone who's crossed paths' with him. Rampaging ram-raiders who stole 650,000 from shops, train stations, post offices and petrol stations across Britain during a 19-month ATM spree have been jailed for nearly 30 years. The network of thugs, coordinated by Patrick Gilheaney, 34, John Smith, 32, and Tali Smith, 34, carried out heists at shops, train stations, post offices and petrol stations across the UK - some worth more than 100,000. A court heard the group used a stolen van and straps to rip the cash machines out of the ground before fleeing in stolen cars with false plates. During a spree of 17 robberies from March 2021 to October 2022, the gang often targeted ATMs inside buildings, smashing through doors with vehicles or forcing them open with power tools. Now ten members of the group have been sentenced to a total of 29 years and eight months behind bars after admitting a range of offences at Leicester Crown Court, with Gilheaney and John Smith each receiving a jail term of seven and a half years. Rampaging ram-raiders who stole 650,000 from shops, train stations, post offices and petrol stations across Britain during a 19-month ATM spree have been jailed for nearly 30 years (pictured: a van smashing through a glass door of a building before robbing an ATM) Two hooded figures then jump out of the vehicle and rush towards a cash machine in the Nottinghamshire building before trying to force it open with heavy tools, in one of the attacks made by the group During a spree of 17 robberies from March 2021 to October 2022, the gang often targeted ATMs inside buildings, smashing through doors with vehicles or forcing them open with power tools Shocking CCTV footage has since emerged of a number of the group's attacks. A clip from a heist in Nottinghamshire sees a dark van smash through the glass doors of a building. Two hooded figures then jump out of the vehicle and rush towards a cash machine before trying to force it open with heavy tools. One man then attaches straps from the van to the ATM before the vehicle drives away, ripping the machine from the ground. The duo load the cash-filled machine back into the van before driving off, smashing through the doors once more. In Southampton, CCTV video shows the thugs park up beside an ATM in a white pick-up truck. They then attach the straps to the machine and carry out the same manoeuvre, forcing its doors to open and heading off with the cash. The crew, which would only communicate using 'burner' phones, was made up of partners, relatives and other associates of Gilheaney and John and Tali Smith and was mainly based in Leicestershire. A court heard the group used a stolen van and straps to rip the cash machines out of the ground before fleeing in stolen cars with false plates The duo load the cash-filled machine back into the van before driving off, smashing through the doors once more, to complete the Nottinghamshire heist The network of thugs, coordinated by Patrick Gilheaney, 34, John Smith, 32, and Tali Smith, 34, carried out heists at shops, train stations, post offices and petrol stations across the UK - some worth more than 100,000 The group also had a contact in Scotland to extend the operation north of the border. Police made a breakthrough in January 2022 when Gilheaney and John Smith travelled from Peterborough to Scotland in a Fiat motorhome and returned a few days later. A blue Saab and a stolen grey Audi RS4, both on false registration plates, made the same journey while four ATM attacks were carried out during that time. Searches of the vehicles linked through Automated Number Plate Reader footage and CCTV led to Scottish bank notes, drills and saws and receipts for items such as face masks, gloves and dark clothing later being recovered. In November 2022, hundreds of officers from across seven forces carried out a number of warrants leading to several arrests. Items seized included stolen high-powered vehicles and car parts, further high-value vehicles and motorhomes, more than 30,000 in cash and two imitation firearms. Sentencing, Judge Brown said: 'These are serious and organised crimes and I have a duty to impose substantial sentences.' Tali Smith was jailed for six years and eight months for the same offences for conspiracy to commit burglary with intent to steal and conspiracy to steal. The group also had a contact in Scotland to extend the operation north of the border Three people are pictured forcing entry into a shop in Scotland Once they get into the shop, they start another ATM robbery Alfie Boswell, 32, was handed a five-year term for conspiracy to steal and assisting an offender. William Boswell, 24 was sentenced to three years imprisonment for conspiracy to steal. Sarah Haynes, 35, and Victoria Smith, 35, were jailed for 12 months, suspended for 24 months, for assisting an offender. Rosie McAllister, 28, and Francis Gilheaney, 33, were also given the same sentences for assisting an offender. Previously, Gordon McPhee, 37, was found guilty of conspiracy to commit burglary with intent to steal and conspiracy to steal after a trial in February. He was sentenced to six years behind bars. Detective Chief Inspector Darren Brown said: 'This was a brash but technically skilled organised group, which found strength as a close-knit, omni-competent criminal community, operating under a clear leadership. 'On the face of it, this type of crime may seem victimless, but in attacking ATMs this group have attacked at the very heart of the community. 'Residents were left without a local means of accessing their cash. 'Many of these attacks also left vital community conveniences, such as Post Offices, petrol stations and "corner" shops out of action while they were repaired. Patrick Gilheaney (pictured, left), 34, John Smith (centre), 32, and Tali Smith (right), 34, ran the group. Gilheaney, 34, received a jail term of seven and a half years, John Smith received the same sentence, while Tali Smith was jailed for six years and eight months Alfie Boswell (pictured, left), 32, was handed a five-year term for conspiracy to steal and assisting an offender. William Boswell (centre), 24 was sentenced to three years imprisonment for conspiracy to steal. Previously, Gordon McPhee (right), 37, was found guilty of conspiracy to commit burglary with intent to steal and conspiracy to steal after a trial in February 'And then there's the associated residential burglaries and thefts of the vehicles used in the crimes. 'The sentences given today reflect how seriously the criminal justice system views this type of organised offending and the harm it inflicts on society. 'Through some expert investigation and concerted effort we have also demonstrated the level at which UK policing can collaborate across county and country borders in order to protect our communities.' A dismembered body has been discovered stuffed in a suitcase left under a bridge in the centre of Paris in a mystery case that has rocked the French capital. The gruesome find was made by firefighters who had been dispatched to extinguish a fire that was sparked in a pile of rubbish under the Austerlitz bridge on Saturday night. Upon putting out the fire, the emergency responders began a sweep of the surrounding area in the early hours of Sunday morning to rule out any other threats and stumbled across the suspicious case. Inside they found a charred, dismembered human body. Prosecutors have launched a murder probe but they are yet to identify the burned and tortured remains. A dismembered body was found on May 11, 2024 at night under the Austerlitz bridge in Paris by firefighters who had come to put out a rubbish fire The gruesome find was made by firefighters who had been dispatched to extinguish a fire that was sparked in a pile of rubbish under the Austerlitz bridge The case containing his remains was found at the foot of the Austerlitz bridge - an area frequented by several homeless people and where rubbish is routinely dumped Hours after firefighters made their shocking discovery, a man walked into Paris' Defense police station in Hauts-de-Seine to hand himself in, sensationally declaring he was behind the horrific murder. The self-declared perpetrator, who is yet to be identified, claimed the dismembered body belonged to a disabled person he was caring for. He said the pair had a falling out and that he decided to kill his charge, according to a report by France's Europe 1 outlet, but provided no other details to police. Now forensic teams are trying to establish exactly how and where the victim was killed, cut up and stuffed in the case. 'The body was complete, but in several pieces,' a source close to the case told Le Parisien yesterday afternoon. Preliminary reports suggested the victim was beaten to death 'with bare hands', according to Le Parisien's sources. He is said to have been a quadriplegic and would have been unable to defend himself. The case containing his remains was found at the foot of the Austerlitz bridge - an area frequented by several homeless people and where rubbish is routinely dumped. It is unclear how the fire was started amid the garbage, or when the case was left there. A homeless man speaking to French reporters said he was not aware of anyone dumping the case. 'It's only us here,' he said. 'We didn't see anything - I have been here since Saturday afternoon.' The discovery comes just months before Paris is set to host the Olympic Games. Health minister Andrea Leadsom is set to lead a revolt against a watering down of plans to ban MPs facing sexual misconduct claims from the House of Commons. MPs are this afternoon due to vote on whether to exclude colleagues who have been charged by police with a violent or sexual offence from the parliamentary estate. But there is anger at the Government for weakening initial proposals that would have seen MPs banned from the Commons as soon as they are arrested. Critics have slammed an apparent resistance to turn Parliament into 'a 21st century workplace'. And some MPs have mounted a bid to toughen the rules to prevent the possibility of arrested colleagues being permitted to continue attending the Commons. Dame Andrea is opposing the Government's push for a lighter-touch approach, having envisaged a 'parliamentary ASBO' for accused MPs when she was Commons Leader. A debate in the Commons this afternoon will come ahead of a 'free' vote for MPs, meaning it will not be whipped by the Government or Labour. Health minister Andrea Leadsom is set to lead a Tory revolt against a watering down of plans to ban MPs facing sexual misconduct claims from the House of Commons MPs are this afternoon due to vote on whether to exclude colleagues who have been charged by police with a violent or sexual offence from the parliamentary estate Liberal Democrat MP Wendy Chamberlain has tabled amendments to a Government motion in a bid to return the point of exclusion for accused MPs to when they are arrested, rather than waiting until they are charged. She told the BBC: 'This motion isn't about the guilt or otherwise of an MP. 'It's about safeguarding. I think the public accept that MPs are not employees and that MPs having the ability to represent their constituents is important. 'But I also think that the public expects that, where possible, MPs are aligned with what happens in other workplaces. 'If a school teacher had been arrested on suspicion of rape, they would be suspended, and I believe it should be the same for MPs. 'That's why I've tabled amendments to return the motion to arrest rather than charge.' Dame Andrea told Politico she was concerned the Government motion was 'more than fair to the accused' but 'does nothing to protect the alleged victim'. She said when she was Commons Leader and considering the matter of what to do when an MP is accused of bullying or harassment 'we had envisaged a sort of 'Parliamentary ASBO', that would apply for the duration of the independent investigation'. 'This would itself be confidential but would prevent the MP from being in the same room/space as their alleged victim and provide a narrow corridor of access between the Chamber, Westminster Hall and their office', she added. 'This would enable them to serve their constituents in Parliament and keep the alleged victim safe; this was fair for both the accuser and the accused. 'Obviously if the MP was subsequently found guilty of the charges, or if a criminal charge was laid, that MP would be excluded from Parliament. 'I am concerned that the motion coming before the House today is more than fair to the accused, however does nothing to protect the alleged victim. 'In my view, the House should set up a procedure (which would be kept confidential) by which the accuser is protected, whilst still ensuring that an MP can still represent their constituents in Parliament. 'Should the accusation be found to have no merit, the MP would have the restrictions lifted.' Labour's Jess Phillips criticised Penny Mordaunt, the current Commons Leader, for having 'capitulated to misguided people on her side' in drafting the Government motion. 'It's a matter of safeguarding and I'm not sure why we would have rules that others in the country don't have to live by,' she said. Mike Clancy, head of the Prospect trade union which represents many parliamentary staff, said: 'We have waited a long time for Parliament to make even a pretence at becoming a 21st century workplace where MPs have been accused of serious misbehaviour. 'It would be hugely disappointing if rather than grab this opportunity to put an appropriate policy in place, MPs instead went for the Government's watered-down version.' But some Tory MPs have voiced concern about banning colleagues from the parliamentary estate 'on the basis of an allegation'. Sir Julian Lewis said in a Commons debate last week: 'I found alarming the suggestion that an MP could be suspended on the basis of an allegation. 'It does not require much imagination to see certain circumstances in which an MP could be targeted by someone making a serious allegation with no factual underpinning whatsoever, and then having to be suspended. 'It is astonishing, frankly, that we could be put into such a situation on so flimsy a basis.' Fellow Conservative backbencher Sir Christopher Chope said: 'One issue is that people can be arrested and not know whether they will be charged for months, if not years. 'During that period, they are in limbo and under suspicion, but are, under the principles of justice in this country, innocent until proven guilty. 'I think it is reasonable, if somebody is charged with an offence, that the matter is moved on, and that their identity is known. 'However, quite often, people may be arrested and their identity will not be known.' Labour are expected to support the Government motion if amendments to toughen the rules fail. Lucy Powell, the shadow Commons leader, said the 'motion to bring in risk-based exclusion of MPs charged with serious sexual or violent offences is welcome and long overdue'. But she added it was 'the bare minimum of what is required'. A teenage girl who was allegedly gang-raped by up to a dozen children aged 11 to 16 screamed 'stop' at her attackers, local media claim, as horrifying new details continue to emerge about the case that has shocked Belgium. The 14-year-old girl was abused by the group of boys on three occasions between April 2 and April 6 over the Easter holidays, prosecutors say. The main suspect - the girl's 14-year-old boyfriend - allegedly took the girl with him to a wooded area called Kabouterbos in Kortrijk, West Flanders, Belgium, around 6pm on April 2 after they spent the day at a fairground. Once there, the boyfriend is said to have raped his young partner in front of the others before he 'loaned her out' to his friends to sexually assault her as well while the youngest of the boys, an 11-year-old, was used as a lookout, reports claim. Prosecutors arrested ten suspects aged between 11 and 16 - all reported by local outlets to be boys of North African or Somali descent - and hauled them in for interrogation, but new reports say up to a dozen boys were involved in the attack. The interrogations revealed that the girl shouted 'stop' when the teenage boys assaulted her, with one 14-year-old suspect saying that she 'grimaced' and that he 'saw she was in pain', local outlet HLN reports. The girl also appeared dizzy during the attack, turned pale and her eyelids seemed to close, according to statements. The 14-year-old girl was abused by ten minors on up to three occasions between April 2 and April 6 over the Easter holidays in a wooded area in Kortrijk (pictured), prosecutors say Citing 'well placed sources', Belgian outlet Nieuwsblad described the boyfriend as a 'loverboy boy' type who deliberately allowed his friends to abuse his young partner. 'Lover boy' in this case is a term used to describe human traffickers who typically operate by trying to make their young victims fall in love with them. But the boy denies that he 'lent out' his girlfriend to the other teenagers, and his lawyer said that 'further research is needed to clarify the facts'. Nieuwsblad said prosecutors turned up 'reprehensible behaviour' on the part of the suspects and 'revenge-mongering facts', citing the sources close to the investigation who said the alleged perpetrators showed 'a complete lack of sense of norms'. The girl is thought to have returned to the forest - a spot popular with mountain bikers - where she was raped, tormented and abused by the gang of minors twice while she was under the 'powerful' influence of her boyfriend, local media report. The group took turns abusing the victim, and all participated 'to a greater or lesser extent,' according to Nieuwsblad. The victim was allegedly raped by at least four of the boys and touched by the others standing around them in a circle, while others filmed the attacks on their smartphones. The footage and images of the alleged attack were also shared on social media, reportedly over Snapchat - an instant messaging app that allows users to easily share pictures and videos. None of the group urged their friends to stop the abuse, sources said. The investigation has been conducted in the utmost secrecy by the West Flanders prosecutor's office to avoid any chance of family members of the victim or members of the public learning the identities of those involved. Although the alleged attack took place in early April, the girl didn't come forward for several days out of fear of telling her parents and the police. It wasn't until April 25 that the police were able to arrest the suspects. In total, ten boys were detained. Six of the suspects were placed in a closed institution, while the other four were placed under house arrest. They have since been questioned - all simultaneously and separately, so that investigators can compare all statements. Citing its sources, Nieuwsblad said many of the statements given by the boys were contradictory, a number of the suspects blaming each other. Some of the six minors placed in the institution appeared in juvenile court on Wednesday afternoon. It was reported that two were released on conditions. Nieuwsblad reported that four more minors are now in custody - including the 14-year-old boyfriend who, it is understood, has been made the main suspect. The main suspect - the girl's 14-year-old boyfriend - is alleged to have taken the girl with him to the wooded area called Kabouterbos in Kortrijk, West Flanders where she was assaulted by up to 10 boys who are reported to have shared footage of the attack on social media Prosecutors are now working to establish what extent each suspect was involved in the assault on the 14-year-old girl, or if any were bystanders. Tom Janssens of the Public Prosecutor's Office said that on account of the age of all those involved, little is being said publicly on their identity. He did confirm that ten suspects had been identified and arrested, and that all were minors. 'Because the perpetrators are so young, we are not releasing much information about their identity,' Janssens told The Brussels Times. According to the boyfriend's lawyer, her client has disputed the events as they have been reported. 'My client also wants the truth to come to light and for the matter to be thoroughly investigated,' lawyer Nur Demirtas told local media. 'He understands that he is now locked up, but this is also traumatising for him. This is also very difficult for his parents, wealthy people who have tried to give their son a good upbringing. They don't understand how this could happen,' Demirtas said. 'It also strikes me that suspects of such crimes are becoming younger and younger. That is very disturbing.' Lawyer Kelly De Caluwe, who is defending a 16-year-old suspect of Somali origin, said the minors had 'all been interrogated simultaneously and the investigators will now test the statements to find out the truth'. 'These are horrible facts,' she said. 'The question is how it is possible that these children have lost all sense of norms. What should we do with this? 'How are we going to solve this? It is a question that should be asked not only to the juvenile judge but also to society as a whole. I have not yet experienced such facts in my fifteen-year career.' Caluwe said her client said things he did not mean during the questioning and has asked for a re-examination. 'I asked for a re-examination because due to the language barrier he said things that did not match what he meant,' she said, according to Nieuwsblad. 'To me he is not a rapist. Although he realises that something very wrong has happened. That realisation comes gradually.' 'To me he is not a rapist. Although he realises that something very wrong has happened. That realisation comes gradually.' Kortrijk mayor Vincent Van Quickenborne said he was shocked when he first learned about the case that he has known about behind closed doors 'for some time'. 'The public prosecutor's office does not allow me to say anything about the facts themselves, but I had been aware of the investigation for some time,' he said. 'These are cra*py acts for which there are no words. I say that not only as a politician, but also as a father of 3 young children.' The criminal age of responsibility in Belgium is 18, meaning the suspected sexual abusers were sent before a juvenile judge and are likely to have been placed into a personal rehabilitation programme in youth facilities. But it is possible the 16-year-old in question could be dealt with under adult criminal law, given the exceptional nature of the case. The victim, meanwhile, is receiving specialist guidance following her ordeal. In Belgium it is possible to lock up children as young as 12 for longer periods if they are found guilty of rape and gang rape, and since 2022, offenders aged 16 and over who committed such crimes can be tried as adults. East Flanders's Justice Minister Zuhal Demir - who advocated for the tightening of juvenile delinquency laws - said parents of children who commit such crimes 'must be held accountable'. 'You simply cannot deal with this kind of violence with lower [sentences],' she said, according to The Brussels Times. 'Such [perpetrators] must be taken off the streets and their parents must be held accountable. Juvenile judges should make more and full use of the recent tightening of juvenile delinquency law.' On why it likely took the 14-year-old girl time to come forward after the early April incident, professor of forensic psychology Frederic Declercq told De Morgen: 'There is always under-reporting of sexual crimes, whether it concerns a gang rape or an individual case. It is a well-known fact that victims usually feel more guilty than the perpetrators.' 'In addition, there is a lot of shame in reporting crime. What also plays a role, for both female and male victims, is stigmatisation. You are no longer who you always were. If you come out, you are a rape victim.' There will be a hearing in juvenile court on May 24, which will determine what happens to the underage suspects. A British chef has had both his legs amputated after his Michelin star restaurateur boss allegedly ran him over with his Land Rover following a boozy party at the start of the year. Sous-chef Joe Claridge, 37, was seriously injured in the car park of The Jane - a two-Michelin-star restaurant in Antwerp, Belgium, at around 6am on Monday, January 8. The horrific incident is said to have occurred after staff emerged from a Sunday night party which went on until the early hours of the morning. The vehicle was driven by 40-year-old celebrity chef Nick Bril, head of The Jane restaurant, who climbed behind the wheel of his Land Rover after the bash. Dutchman Bril was reversing out of the restaurant car park when he is said to have accidentally backed into Claridge, who was behind the vehicle, and crushed him beneath the wheels. The vehicle was driven by 40-year-old celebrity chef Nick Bril, pictured Sous-chef Joe Claridge, 37, was seriously injured in the car park of The Jane - a two-Michelin-star restaurant in Antwerp, Belgium, at around 6am on Monday, January 8 The Land Rover reportedly belonging to Bril is seen being towed away by authorities for examination According to a jogger who witnessed the incident, the celebrity chef did not immediately call emergency services and only did so after onlookers urged him to do so. He also allegedly failed to mention that he had run over the victim. Claridge meanwhile was taken to hospital, seriously injured and in a critical condition, and was kept in an artificial coma for 50 days at Antwerp University Hospital (UZA) in Edegems as surgeons performed multiple operations. Claridge emerged from his coma at the end of February more than six weeks after the incident, but only now - five months after the tragedy - has he been able to speak after a breathing tube was removed. Although his mental functions remained intact, Claridge had to have his two lower limbs amputated, such was the damage caused by the weight of the Land Rover. That vehicle was seen being towed away after the incident by authorities for examination. Bril's lawyer, Omar Souidi, confirmed to Belgian press that his client had not been arrested. He said: 'Nick's thoughts are currently going out to the victim. It's his only concern at the moment. He hopes that things will turn out well for his employee.' Souidi also reportedly confirmed that Bril had given a positive breath test, adding: 'Further investigation will have to show whether there is a causal link between my client's alcohol intoxication and the incident itself.' Bril has written his own cookbook and recently appeared on the reality television show Special Forces: Who Dares Wins on Belgium's VTM. The Jane opened in 2014 in the chapel of a former military hospital and is regarded as one of Antwerp's best restaurants. Prosecutors are currently treating the incident as an accident Dutch cook Nick Bril poses for the photographer during the presentation of the 2023 edition of the French gastronomic guide 'Gault et Millau' for the Benelux region While Bril continues to cook at The Jane, Claridge continues his recovery. In limited comments to Belgian broadcaster ATV carried by Nieuwsblad, the Jersey sous-chef said he had enjoyed his time at The Jane and learned a lot in a short time prior to the accident. He said had taken the job as an assistant chef at the Michelin-star restaurant because he had plans to open his own business in France. But Claridge gave no comment on the incident itself. Prosecutors are currently treating the incident as an accident, with numerous media reports stating Claridge appeared to be lying on the ground before he was struck by the Land Rover, and that the incident was captured on the restaurant's CCTV. The investigation is ongoing. A distraught mom revealed how her teen son almost died after his religious cross necklace electrocuted him 'like a hot coil' in a freak accident that left the jewelry scorched into his flesh. Danielle Davis, 38, was awoken by a piercing scream coming from her son Rayce Ogdahl's room on the night of April 30. The mom-of-six went to investigate, before she was met with the horrific sight of her 16-year-old son covered in 'scorched burns' across his neck. Rayce told his mom that he had been electrocuted by his own necklace after the cross chain came into contact with an exposed prong of a plug. Shocking photos show Rayce's neck and collarbone charred black with the imprint of his chain seared onto his red raw skin. Rayce Ogdahl, 16, was almost killed when his religious cross necklace electrocuted him in a freak accident The necklace was scorched into his skin on the night of April 30, after the cross 'made contact with the prongs from the plug in an extension cord which were just barely exposed,' according to his mom Rayce tore the chain from his neck and dropped it onto his bed where it left a burning three-inch hole in his mattress After ripping the chain from his neck, the cross and necklace left a burning three-inch hole in Rayce's mattress. The teen was rushed to Integris Health Baptist Medical Center's burns unit in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, where he was admitted to the intensive care unit to help treat his injuries. Danielle, who lives in Yukon, Oklahoma, feels lucky she did not lose her son that night - and is urging others to remain vigilant of electrical cords, wires and plugs. The mom said: 'It was a normal night and we'd only been asleep for around an hour when we half heard a noise then heard yelling from Rayce's room. We thought maybe he's playing a video game and getting frustrated. 'Then I heard him shout 'mom' and my son was standing in the hallway. He said 'I've been electrocuted. It was my necklace'. There were scorch necks around his neck. 'And the smell was awful. The whole house smelled like burnt hair and skins and electrical burns. We started calling 911 for an ambulance'. Danielle said her son had explained that he was in bed before rolling over to get comfortable when he heard something fall off the bed. He wanted to make sure his phone was still charging so his alarm would go off for school the next day, but when he leaned over the side, nothing could prepare him for the horror accident that was about to unfold. 'He said he leaned out of the bed and when he did the cross necklace around his neck made contact with the prongs from the plug in an extension cord which were just barely exposed,' Danielle continued. 'He said he was completely conscious through the whole thing and was aware he was being electrocuted. Because everything was metal, it made a complete circuit around his neck. It was like a hot coil. 'And he has burns on his hands from trying to rip his chain around his neck.. It was a thick, heavy chain. The teen was left with second, third and fourth degree burns and will now be scarred for life Rayce was rushed to hospital after the incident where doctors told the family he had endured 'enough amps to kill him' Mom Danielle Davis, 38, pictured with Rayce Ogdahl, 16, before the horrific accident 'The crazy thing was during the electrocution, it welded part of his chain to the charger. And the cross pendant on the chain melted three inches into the mattress through the sheets of his bed. 'He said this all happened within a matter of seconds and he visibly saw sparks coming from his neck. He told me his whole body hurt and he thought he was going to die.' Rayce was rushed to hospital after the incident where doctors told the family he had endured 'enough amps to kill him' - and monitored the function of his heart over the next few days. The teen had suffered from second, third and fourth degree burns and will be left scarred for life from the freak accident. Danielle, a stay-at-home mum, said: 'You can see the pattern of the necklace on his neck. It's left a significant mark. 'He's got a lot of scars. They're speaking about doing a skin graft but Rayce doesn't want that unless it's medically necessary. 'It's almost his entire neck that's covered in scars. It's from his chin to his collarbone. The incident has definitely made Rayce a lot more self-aware. It was very eye-opening. 'We're just so grateful he's okay. He could've easily died that night. It was amazing he was still conscious and could still alert us. It would've been a different story. 'When it comes to your phone, there's not a text message or notification that is important enough to have your phone on your bed. Anything can happen and Rayce is proof of that. 'Pay attention to your cords and I would recommend to anybody don't use extension cords at all.' Fresh off the phenomenal success of his hit Amazon series Clarkson's Farm, Jeremy Clarkson appears to be trying to step into the beauty market by launching a new women's fragrance named Diddly Squat Wet. The presenter, 64, already sells a host of food items and merchandise from his Chipping Norton farm in store and online including honey sold for 12.80 and 22.50 candles. Now the former Top Gear man has his sights set on expanding further and has taken the first steps by trademarking the name of his new perfume brand alongside his 'I am a f***er' slogan in which the f-word stands for farmer. A subsequent video released on the star's social media platform shows what appears to be the finished product, however it is not currently available to buy. Clarkson already sells a range of novelty gifts and locally-produced food like expensive mushrooms and pasta sauce at the popular Chipping Norton store, as well as a candle that reads: 'This Smells Like My B******s' Jeremy Clarkson appears to be trying to step into the beauty market by launching a new women's fragrance A subsequent video released on the star's social media platform shows what appears to be the finished product, however it is not currently available to buy This is how Jeremy Clarkson's new scent could look if he was going to take on the industry The expensive joke gift is a play on the actress Gwyneth Paltrow's notorious 'This smells like my vagina' candle and reportedly smells like the 'unique and leathery scent of [his] car seat, blended with hints of oakmoss and earthy spice.' One of the most expensive items in the store is a 'bundle', consisting of a chopping board, a tea towel an apron and a bamboo 'wooden' spoon, which together sets back punters some 62. What could Jeremy Clarkson's farm perfume smell like? Manure Motor oil Hawkstone lager Hay Freshly mown grass Hot asphalt The fermented tears of a cyclist Advertisement While few similar all-in-one collections appear to be on the market, shoppers can easily pick up all four items for less than a tenner elsewhere, with Tesco selling a chopping board for 4, a tea towel for 2.50 and a wooden spoon for 60p, while aprons are available for just 2 from Ikea. Bacon, sausages, bread, cans of Diddly Squat lager and other produce are all marked up at eye-watering prices at the store. But Clarkson fans are happy to pay up for a souvenir of their visit to the farm shop near the village of Chadlington, Oxfordshire. This year, Clarksons Diddly Squat farm reported currents assets had fallen to 467,829 from 1,146, 587 last year. However in the same period his net assets have actually risen, to 305,941 from 211,254. Among Diddly Squat's cheapest offerings is the chilli chutney, priced at 4.80. A similar jar in Tesco is available for just 1.45. One of the shop's most popular products, according to its website, is a 200g bag of ground coffee, described as a 100% Arabica blend from Colombia, Kenya and Indonesia 'with hints of chocolate, spices and honey'. The most expensive item in the Diddly Squat farm shop is a 'bundle', consisting of a chopping board, a tea towel an apron and a bamboo 'wooden' spoon, which together sets back punters some 62 Among Diddly Squat's cheapest offerings is the chilli chutney (left), priced at 4.80. A similar jar in Tesco is available for just 1.45 (right) One of the shop's most popular products, according to its website, is a 200g bag of ground coffee (left), described as a 100% Arabica blend from Colombia, Kenya and Indonesia 'with hints of chocolate, spices and honey'. It retails at a hefty 6.95 while a similar, slightly larger bag can be bought from Aldi for just 1.69 (right) It retails at a hefty 6.95 while a similar, slightly larger bag can be bought from Aldi for just 1.69. Other products include a 50cl bottle of Vodka selling at 39 - available elsewhere for a mere 9.38 - and a 16 travel cup, similar to one sold in Tesco for 2.50. Meanwhile, two pairs of tractor socks are going for 18.50, compared to Primark's offer of five pairs for as little as 2, while Clarkson charges a whopping 18.50 for his package of a mug and chocolate eggs. Pregnancy was 'miracle baby' after 12 years trying to have a second child Nicola Hinds experienced 'suicidal ideation' after being ignored by her boss A female account manager who was told by her male boss she was being 'very emotional and tearful' during her pregnancy has been awarded nearly 70,000 in compensation. Nicola Hinds was portrayed as 'hormonal' when she raised concerns about her workload, an employment tribunal heard. The 37-year-old was 'inexcusably' ignored by her boss and was so badly treated after she returned to work following the birth of her child she resigned and experienced 'suicidal ideation'. Bosses 'stereotyped' her with 'dismissive and belittling' language by suggesting she was not 'fully in control' of herself, an employment judge ruled. However, she has now been awarded 67,627 after she won claims of pregnancy discrimination and constructive dismissal following a hearing in which she represented herself against the FTSE 250 giant Mitie. Nicola Hinds, who was told by her male boss as 'tearful and emotional' after she raised concerns over her workload during her pregnancy, has now been awarded 70,000 in compensation Employment Judge Roger Tynan said her male boss had 'stereotyped' her as 'an emotional, hormonal pregnant woman and that in the particular circumstances his description of her as emotional and tearful was dismissive and belittling'. 'The inference was that she was not fully in control of her emotions because of the pregnancy and that she was making unreasonable demands as a result,' he said. The hearing in Cambridge heard Mrs Hinds worked for facilities management firm Mitie - which provides services such as security - and was the firm's regional manager for its account with Sainsbury's supermarket. A female manager described her in February 2020 as 'extremely dedicated', always striving to deliver the best possible customer service to her client and as having 'tremendous potential', the tribunal heard. In April that year Mrs Hinds discovered the 'welcome' but 'unplanned and unexpected' news that she was pregnant and informed bosses - with whom she was said to have had a 'good' relationship akin to a friendship. In October, however, she said she was 'really struggling' with her workload after suffering two panic attacks in a week. The tribunal found bosses handled the complaint 'ineptly'. Her male manager, Nav Kalley, did not respond to her at all, and his immediate response was captured in a 'short, unsympathetic and insensitively' email to a fellow colleague. 'I was expecting this email as Nicola has become very emotional and tearful especially over the last week or so,' he wrote. 'I am very frustrated with this as she is certainly not overworked and we have been very supportive in helping her manage her workload. 'Can we please have a chat as I suggest we allow her to go next week if she wants, on unpaid leave until her paid leave kicks in. 'I know we have to deal with this very sensitively and I want to try and support Nicola as much as I can but we need to move this forward.' He added that if Mrs Hinds was to leave others would be able to 'pick this up if required'. The hearing was told that after returning to work after maternity leave, an interview in June 2021 to discuss her needs was 'inadequate' and a risk assessment was never carried out, leading to her resignation in September. Mrs Hind's complaints of constructive dismissal and discrimination in relation to Mr Kalley's description of her and the handling of her complaint were upheld. EJ Tynan was critical of Mr Kalley's suggestion she was being unreasonable when she complained about her workload. 'In fact she was experiencing significant work related stress in the advanced stages of her pregnancy, had suffered two panic attacks in short succession, felt overwhelmed, was worried about letting others down but equally concerned that she might become seriously unwell,' he said. 'During her maternity leave she experienced a significant deterioration in her mental wellbeing. As we have noted already, she experienced suicidal ideation. 'Rather than genuinely wanting to support her as he professed, Mr Kalley instead wanted [Mitie] to be seen to be supportive of her in circumstances where he effectively wanted her out of the way as soon as possible so that others could step up in her place.' Pictured: Mrs Hinds with her husband Gary and their sons Mason, 15 and Tommy, three Of Mr Kalley's attitude, he added: 'We find his denial of any discriminatory intent on his part, as well as his assertion that he was sympathetic to [Ms Hinds] to be unconvincing. 'In responding to the situation, he failed to engage in any meaningful way with the events or issues as described by her. 'Far from his email indicating concern on his part, it evidences frustration, even irritation, with [Mrs Hinds] who he perceived as a problem, pregnant employee who was inconveniencing him.' Judge Tynan said: 'In our judgement [Mitie]'s cumulative treatment of [Mrs Hinds] over the period following her return from maternity leave until September 2021 was of itself sufficiently serious as to be destructive of trust and confidence thereby entitling her to resign from her employment. 'We are satisfied that the failure to undertake a risk assessment, together with Mr Kalley's inaction in October 2020 were material factors in her decision to resign.' As a result, she was handed 20,000 in injury to feelings, 20,125 future mitigation, and further compensation sums bringing a total of 67,627. Speaking afterwards, Mrs Hinds, from Doncaster, south Yorkshire, said the pregnancy was a 'miracle baby' after 12 years of unsuccessfully trying to have a second child. She said: 'My decision to go it alone was not just to rectify the unimaginable pain and suffering they had put me through, but also to give hope to all the other new and expectant mothers out there, to show them that you can do it without the hefty legal fees and with the right support. 'After 12 years of hard work and dedication, I left my career a broken woman, stripped of all my confidence. 'I felt completely worthless at that moment in time. 'Receiving the judgment was emotional - to find out that what I had faced was in fact unlawful, it helped lift a heaviness I'd carried around for more than three years. 'It didn't feel like a win, there were no fist pumps of joy, there were no ecstatic gestures or a rush to celebrate. 'Instead, I felt sad, I felt sad that it had come to this. I felt sad that I had to take it this far just to seek some kind of liability to the wrongdoing. 'I felt sad that I had spent nearly two years having to be a novice legal beagle just so I could navigate the legal system. 'I felt sad that my former employer was still denying any wrongdoing despite all the facts of the case being tested in a court of law.' Mrs Hinds lives with her husband Gary and their two sons. Tommy, now three years old, was born in November 2020 and joined older brother Mason, 15. Her case is supported by campaign group Pregnant Then Screwed. New York Times best-selling author Harlan Coben. Claudio Marinesco This week, Murder By The Book hosts New York Times bestselling author Harlan Coben and Brazos Bookstore and the Texas Civil Rights Project present Damascus James, joined by attorney Molly Petchenik and advocate Alycia Castillo, to discuss "Texas Letters." WEDNESDAY Diana Lopez: The author of the adult novel "Sofia's Saints" as well as of numerous middle-grade novels, including "Confetti Girl" and "Nothing Up My Sleeve," will discuss her new book, "Los Monstruos." 5 p.m.; Blue Willow Bookshop, 14532 Memorial; bluewillowbookshop.com Author Diana Lopez. Kristel Puente MORE ON AUTHORS: University of Houston professor wins Pulitzer Prize in memoir Advertisement Article continues below this ad THURSDAY Sara Filali: The Moroccan American artist and writer will read from her new book "Hajeetek Majeetek." Thousand Mile Coffee Company will be on-site concocting and selling specialty coffee drinks from 5-6:30 p.m. prior to the reading. 6:30 p.m., Brazos Bookstore, 2421 Bissonnet; brazosbookstore.com Author Sara Filali. Courtesy photo SATURDAY Harlan Coben: The New York Times bestselling author of 35 novels, including "Win," "The Boy From the Woods," "Run Away," "Fool Me Once," "Tell No One" and the renowned Myron Bolitar series, will discuss "Think Twice." 3 p.m., Murder By The Book, 2342 Bissonnet; 713-524-8597; murderbooks.com Advertisement Article continues below this ad An Aussie dad who is facing life in a Bali prison for alleged methamphetamine possession has been rushed to hospital in bizarre scenes just hours after his charges were upgraded by Indonesian police. Troy Smith, 49, was taken from his cell at the Bali police headquarters to Bhayangkara Hospital, which is run by Balinese authorities on Monday afternoon. It's understood he suffered a back injury. The father-of-two was seen handcuffed and wearing an orange prison jumpsuit as he was escorted by authorities into the hospital's emergency department. An Adelaide Crows AFL fan, Smith was heard calling out 'go the Power' (his club's crosstown rivals) as he was whisked away. The medical emergency unfolded just hours after Smith's wife of four months Tracy Ijusa tried to visit him in custody but was turned away by authorities. Australian dad Troy Smith (pictured in orange) was escorted to hospital with a back injury on Monday Smith (pictured with his new wife, Tracy Ijusa) is facing life in a Bali prison for alleged methamphetamine possession Smith's lawyer, Ida Bagus Gumilang Galih Sakti, said he became 'sick' while in custody. Smith is facing life in a Bali prison for alleged methamphetamine possession. He allegedly tried to flee police but was caught after warning shots were fired. Details of Smith's arrest emerged at a police press conference on Monday. He and his new wife were holidaying in Bali when Indonesian police raided their room at the Champlung Mas Hotel in Legian, on the island's south, on April 30. They allegedly found 3.14g of methamphetamine concealed in a Colgate toothpaste tube that had been sent to Smith from Cairns, in a package that was labelled as containing private paperwork, photos and lubricant. Troy Smith was admitted to hospital just hours after his wife Tracy Ijusa (pictured) was turned away by authorities when she tried to visit him in custody Police allegedly found a further 0.4g of the drug that had been bought in Bali, along with a bong and a lighter. Ms Ijusa, 31, was arrested alongside her husband on April 30 but was later released without charge She fought back tears while leaving the police station on Monday after being denied access to visit Smith in custody. She has vowed to stand by her husband. Outside a police press conference on Monday, Smith's lawyer Sienny Karmana said his client tried to evade arrest 'because he was scared' Police allegedly fired two warning shots into the air before Smith was detained. 'Police said that he tried to run away, but police got him back. They fired shots into the air, he was surprised and then he fell down and then police got him,' Ms Karmana said. Australian dad Troy Smith (pictured with his wife, Tracy) has been charged with drug possession in Bali Indonesian police allege they found crystal meth in Troy Smith's four-star beach resort hotel room in Bali (pictured with his wife, right) Smith initially was thought to have been facing a maximum penalty of 12 years in jail for possession, but his lawyers have revealed he has also been charged with drug trafficking, which carries a maximum life sentence and a fine of $944,860. Smith's lawyers allege the drug package was sent him from a friend as a thank you for helping with the purchase of a car, and Smith did not know what it contained when he received it. Smith was expected to speak to media today, but Ms Karmana told reporters her client would not front the media because he was 'mentally not that good'. 'Mentally he is not okay he is still struggling,' she said. Smith will remain in custody at Bali police headquarters until his matter is mentioned in court. Once police and prosecutors have the brief of evidence ready for court, it is likely Smith will be sent to Kerobokan Penitentiary Centre - a facility with a history of violence, riots, and gangs. Australian members of the Bali Nine bombers were sent to the prison, along with Queensland woman Schapelle Corby who spent nine years there after marijuana was found in her boogie board bag. Pictured: Tracy Injus in Bali on Monday, who tried to visit her husband Troy Smith in police custody but was turned away Troy Smith married Tracy Ijusa in Kenya in December. He proposed to her in October Pictured: Police outside Kerobokan Penitentiary Centre, where Troy Smith could be sent Another of Smith's lawyers, Ida Bagus Gumilang Galih Sakti, said he was hoping to get him sent to a rehabilitation facility, rather than to a jail. If the rehabilitation option is granted, he could avoid Kerobokan prison altogether. 'I heard from Troy... that this was a present, because the sender knew that he was a user,' Mr Sakti said. Mr Sakti said that Smith was 'very depressed and sorry' about the situation. 'When people get caught by police in another country, they will sulk... and he's quite depressed at the moment,' Mr Sakti said. Smith was originally from Port Lincoln in South Australia but appears to have moved to Cairns within the past two years. He proposed to Ms Ijusa in October last year and they tied the knot in January. She was also arrested after the hotel room raid but was released without charge, and has remained in Bali to support her husband. It is understood Smith's relatives flew to Bali last week. Rishi Sunak today warned Keir Starmer 'can't be trusted' to 'keep Britain safe' with the risk of nuclear war the highest since the 1960s. In a speech putting security at the heart of the looming battle, the PM swiped that the Labour leader would say anything to get power and could not cope with serious challenges such as AI, immigration and hostile states. He appealed for voters not to take a chance on Sir Keir when 'Putin's recklessness has taken us closer to a dangerous nuclear escalation than at any point since the Cuban missile crisis'. Road-testing key campaigning lines, Mr Sunak said the general election will be a 'choice between the future and the past'. He said Sir Keir wanted to make people feel 'so bad about your country' that they hand him a huge majority, stressing that changing the government is not a cure for the country's problems. Despite acknowledging that Labour could win the election, he said he was still 'confident' about turning dire polls around and vowed to take on Sir Keir in as many TV debates as possible. While admitting the Tories' record was 'not perfect', he defended the achievements. 'There are storms ahead... but we can and we will create a secure future,' he said. The intervention comes as the premier sharpens his attack lines with the ballot expected towards the end of the year - although he again refused to rule out July. The Tories are struggling to get traction after a miserable round of council and mayoral elections earlier this month. On a visit, Sir Keir insisted that keeping Britain safe was his 'top priority', dismissing Mr Sunak's speech as his 'seventh reset'. Rishi Sunak warned Keir Starmer 'can't be trusted' to deal with the challenges Britain faces today In a major speech, Rishi Sunak will say he feels a 'profound sense of urgency' to tackle the threats facing the nation while also seizing the opportunities to build a more secure future Russian President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing last year Mr Sunak pointed to the Ukraine war warning that the world was the closest to nuclear escalation since the 1960s Mr Sunak said Sir Keir Starmer's party had 'no plans' despite 'having 14 years with nothing to do but think about the future'. He said: 'I'm clear-eyed enough to admit that, yes, maybe they can depress their way to victory, with all their talk of doom loops and gaslighting and scaremongering about pensions. But I don't think it will work, because at heart we are a nation of optimists.' He accused Sir Keir of having 'no principles', saying he had 'gone from embracing Jeremy Corbyn to Natalie Elphicke, all in the cynical pursuit of power at any price'. 'Labour have no ideas. What they did have they've U-turned on. They have just one thing: a calculation that they can make you feel so bad about your country, that you won't have the energy to ask what they might do with the incredible power that they seek to yield.' Mr Sunak acknowledged 'people are feeling anxious and uncertain, that their sense of confidence and pride in this country has been knocked'. 'I understand that. I accept it, and I want to change it. But what I cannot accept is Labour's idea that all the worries you have are because of 14 years of Conservative government, that all you need to do is change the people in office and these problems will magically disappear.' Asked after the speech whether his message amounted to 'better the devil you know', Mr Sunak said 'yes'. Sir Keir has insisted he will agree to TV debates with Mr Sunak, despite leaders with commanding poll advantages often being nervous to take the risk. The premier confirmed this morning that he is keen for the clashes, saying: 'I am happy to debate Keir Starmer as many times as he would like.' Mr Sunak used the presidential-style address to say that Britain is at a 'crossroads' and 'more will change in the next five years than in the last 30'. He insisted he has a 'profound sense of urgency' about tackling the threats. But the PM also struck a positive tone about the results of responding in the right way, saying he has 'bold ideas' to capitalise on the opportunities. They include using advances in artificial intelligence and biotech and turning them a force for good, as well as looking outside the box for solutions to mass immigration such as the Rwanda scheme. Mr Sunak said: 'I have bold ideas that can change our society for the better, and restore people's confidence and pride in our country. 'I feel a profound sense of urgency. Because more will change in the next five years than in the last 30. 'I'm convinced that the next few years will be some of the most dangerous yet most transformational our country has ever known.' He added: 'Over the next few years, from our democracy to our economy to our society to the hardest questions of war and peace almost every aspect of our lives is going to change. 'How we act in the face of these changes not only to keep people safe and secure but to realise the opportunities too will determine whether or not Britain will succeed in the years to come. And this is the choice facing the country.' Mr Sunak has previously warned the UK is facing an 'axis of authoritarian states with different values to ours', including Russia, Iran, North Korea and China with the countries showing a 'new assertiveness' and increasingly working together. The PM said 'at heart, we're a nation of optimists' and not 'blind to the challenges or threats we face'. Mr Sunak will set out 'bold ideas' for 'solutions to mass immigration'. Pictured is group of people thought to be migrants on board a Border Force vessel 'We just have an innate belief that whatever they are, we can overcome them as we have done so many times in our history. And create a more secure future for you and your family.' In a speech in Dover on Friday, Sir Keir vowed to axe the Rwanda deportations policy immediately if he becomes PM, despite signs it is already having a deterrent effect. Instead he suggested that overhauling the asylum processing system could tackle the Channel migrant crisis. However, he refused to say whether Labour would stop the boats altogether, or how much numbers would fall. A Labour spokeswoman said: 'The Prime Minister's seventh reset in 18-months is as empty as the previous ones. 'Fourteen years of Tory chaos have left Britain less secure, with working people paying the price.' Vladimir Putin's spies are targeting British troops by trying to hack into their mobile phones and steal sensitive data from them. Kremlin agents have been accused of trying to siphon contact details for relatives of British troops as they take part in major land and air assault drills in Estonia. It comes as Nato continues to stage a show of strength against Russian tyrant Putin in one of the biggest military drills since the Cold War, involving 16,000 UK soldiers. The latest military wargame saw almost 100 of the Britain's elite paratroopers leaping into battle during a series of high-octane simulated battles last week. But ahead of the war games, troops were warned Russian spies were on the prowl, seeking to steal 'personal contact details of loved ones' from their smart phones to target families of UK troops back home. It's thought the details could be used to trick relatives or soldiers into inadvertently giving out sensitive data that could be seized upon by spymasters in Moscow. Vladimir Putin 's spies are targeting British troops by trying to hack into their mobile phones and steal sensitive data from them (pictured is a UK Paratrooper in Estonia) Kremlin agents have been accused of trying to steal contact details for relatives of British troops as they take part in major land and air assault drills on Russia 's border (pictured are Paratroopers carrying drills in Estonia, last week) Delivering a warning to personnel taking part in Operation Steadfast Defender - the codename for the six-month Nato war game in the Baltics - Lieutenant Colonel Grant Brown said UK forces must 'expect Russian agents' to target them. 'We must be under no illusions Russia will be watching us as we prepare, as we deploy, and as we are operating in Europe,' he wrote, reported the Times. 'That's a good thing, it is the whole point of this deployment. But it will mean a rigorous approach to things like the use of mobile phones while out in theatre. 'We must expect Russian agents to be conducting an electronic collect on us while there, so the measures we will have in place are designed to protect all of us.' The Kremlin has previously been accused of trying to compromise smartphones of Nato troops during exercises near Russia's border. Earlier this year, it faced claims it launched an electronic attack on an RAF plane carrying Defence Secretary Grant Shapps. And last month, Kremlin troops were suspected of targeting thousands of British holiday flights in an 'extremely dangerous' attack, jamming GPS and navigation systems. Cyber attacks on alliance forces in Poland and the Baltic states aims to gain key operational information, gauge troop strength and intimidate soldiers. The Kremlin has previously been accused of trying to compromise smartphones of Nato troops during exercises near Russia's border (a British Apache gunship takes part in Nato drills last week) Pictured are troops taking part in the Swift Response military exercise at the Nurmsi airfield in Estonia, which involved a number of British Paratroopers Hi-tech drones equipped with state-of-the-art surveillance kit as well as portable ground-based telephone antennas are among the equipment used for such electronic espionage. Speaking to the Times during an exercise in Nurmsi, Estonia, a soldier in the British Army's airborne signal squadron claimed the main threats 'in terms of personal devices' were 'geolocation and also pulling information from mobile phones'. 'Typically what you would see particularly in the Operation Herrick days [the codename for the war in Afghanistan], is them getting access to personal contact details of loved ones at home and just trying to use that against us. Theyre just trying to use any asset that is available to them,' the soldier told the paper. MailOnline understands similar advice has been issued to British troops based in Cyprus. The island is home to RAF Akrotiri, a key military hub used for aerial strikes against terror groups in the middle east. During briefings to the islands, soldiers are warned of the risk Russian agents can pose using social media and dating apps to target troops. In 2022, The Mail revealed Russia had been using phone data captured by its spies operating in the UK to target British former special forces teams in Ukraine. The Kremlin has compiled a database of mobile phone numbers in a top secret operation and this information is being used to decide where to launch missile attacks. British troops march across a field during the drills in Estonia last week as Nato continues with its major series of drills - the biggest since the Cold War British Army's Apache attack helicopters fly over a training field during the Swift Response military exercise at the Nurmsi airfield in Estonia The numbers and accompanying personal data were gathered by spies near some of the UK's most sensitive military sites, including the headquarters of the Special Boat Service (SBS) and Special Air Service (SAS). GRU officers Russia's equivalent of MI6 used the latest scanning technology to detect the smartphones, such as iPhones, which soldiers typically turn on after leaving their bases. Some of these have later appeared on Ukraine's phone network, which has been hacked by Russia. Security experts said Russia's use of this mobile data posed a significant threat. The Mail also obtained an urgent security notice shared among former military personnel with close links to the SBS and SAS. Officially, they no longer belong to these Special Forces units. However, they have been deployed to Ukraine as volunteers to train the country's troops, assist with the delivery of Western weapons and in humanitarian capacities. The notice said: 'If a single phone hits the network in Ukraine that has just once been seen before in the vicinity of Hamworthy, Credenhill (and any number of other establishments), this is instantly visible to Russia. 'If two or more appear, that is an IMMEDIATE missile target. It does not matter if this is an aid camp, it will not appear that way to Russian forces.' Hamworthy in Poole, Dorset, is where the SBS is based, while the SAS is at Credenhill, Herefordshire. The notice added: 'The informality of this deployment means that operational security is out of the window.' It concludes by urging officers not to use a phone that has been used near a UK military or government establishment. Advertisement Around 1,000 protesters were still outside Georgia's parliament Monday morning after an all-night last-stand demonstration against a highly controversial Russian-style 'foreign influence' bill. The ex-Soviet republic has been gripped for weeks by huge protests over the bill, dubbed the 'Russian law' as it resembles repressive legislation used by the Kremlin. Protesters - largely young people - are furious over the bill, saying it will sabotage the Caucasus country's hopes of joining the EU and will end democracy in the country. The ruling Georgian Dream party - which was forced to drop a similar bill last year after a huge backlash - are intent on passing the bill Tuesday, arguing it is all about transparency. The law requires NGOs and media receiving more than 20 percent of their funding from abroad to register as an 'organisation pursuing the interests of a foreign power'. Police Force face protesters during a protest against the foreign agents law as two Americans and one Russian citizen are among 20 detained on May 13, 2024 in Tbilisi, Georgia Police intervene protesters as demonstrators protest the bill on 'transparency of foreign influence' in front of the parliament in Tbilisi, Georgia on May 13, 2024 Police use a spray trying to block demonstrators near the Parliament building during an opposition protest against 'the Russian law' in the center of Tbilisi, Georgia, on Monday, May 13, 2024 The ex-Soviet republic has been gripped for weeks by huge protests (pictured today, May 13) over the bill, dubbed the 'Russian law' as it resembles repressive legislation used by the Kremlin. Protesters - largely young people - are furious over the bill, saying it will sabotage the Caucasus country's hopes of joining the EU and will end democracy in the country Protesters react on pepper spray used by police against the demonstrators who protest against the 'Foreign Agent Bill' in front of the Georgian Parliament Building on May 13, 2024 in Tbilisi, Georgia MPs on Monday pushed the bill through a parliamentary legal committee in minutes. Tens of thousands protested against the bill Sunday, with some staying all night to stop ruling party MPs from entering the parliament building Monday. At dawn, an AFP reporter saw police detain and beat a group of protesters. Hundreds of riot police lined a small street behind parliament, with some scuffling with protesters. Authorities had warned they would arrest people who blocked parliament, but thousands defied the warning and came to the building's gates anyway. The protests in Georgia have been led by students from Tbilisi's universities who declared a strike Monday. 'We are planning to stay here for as long as it takes,' 22-year-old Mariam Kalandadze said. 'This law means not joining Europe.' She added that 'this is something that I have wanted my whole life.' Protesters accuse Georgian Dream of lying when it says it is still committed to Georgia joining the EU. They say the bill will bring Georgia closer to authoritarian Russia. A similar law was passed in Russia in 2012 and has been used to crack down on dissent. Around 1,000 protesters were still outside Georgia's parliament this morning after an all-night last-stand demonstration against the highly controversial Russian-style 'foreign influence' bill MPs on Monday pushed the bill through a parliamentary legal committee in minutes Hundreds of riot police lined a small street behind parliament, with some scuffling with protesters Authorities had warned they would arrest people who blocked parliament, but thousands defied the warning and came to the building's gates anyway The protests in Georgia have been led by students from Tbilisi's universities who declared a strike Monday (pictured: police at today's protest) Protesters accuse Georgian Dream of lying when it says it is still committed to Georgia joining the EU Police intervene protesters as demonstrators protest the bill on 'transparency of foreign influence' in front of the parliament in Tbilisi, Georgia on May 13, 2024 Protesters say the bill will bring Georgia closer to authoritarian Russia. A similar law was passed in Russia in 2012 and has been used to crack down on dissent Demonstrators gather in front of the police that blocked the road towards the Parliament building during an opposition protest against 'the Russian law' in the center of Tbilisi, Georgia, on Monday, May 13, 2024 Police takes security measures as demonstrators protest the bill on 'transparency of foreign influence' near the parliament in Tbilisi, Georgia on May 13, 2024 Protesters shout slogans and wave Georgian national flags during a march against the controversial "foreign influence" bill in Tbilisi, on May 12, 2024 Georgian opposition party supporters attend a rally against a draft bill on 'foreign agents' in downtown of Tbilisi, Georgia, 11 May 2024 The face of Georgian protests has been remarkably young, with people under 30 taking a leading role on the street and some freshly out of school (pictured: Sunday's protest) 'If this law passes we will slowly become Russia. We know what happened there and in Belarus,' said 26-year-old Archil Svanidze. 'We know this scenario.' The face of Georgian protests has been remarkably young, with people under 30 taking a leading role on the street and some freshly out of school. But many said their parents and grandparents supported them. 'We always knew we were part of Europe. Every generation knows about this - not only Gen Zs and millennials,' Svanidze said, proudly adding that his father was at the protest most of the night. Georgian Dream - in power since 2012 - has portrayed the protesters as a violent mob and has defended the law as necessary for Georgian sovereignty. It brought back the bill in a shock move in April, a year after it was dropped due to a massive backlash. Its billionaire backer Bidzina Ivanishvili - who made his fortune in Russia - has declared NGOs as the enemy from within, accusing them of plotting a revolution and of taking orders from foreign countries. Officials often accuse protesters and the opposition of having links with the previous government, which was led by their nemesis Mikheil Saakashvili, who is now in jail. 'The ironic part is that they always criticise the last government as corrupt and brutal,' 18-year-old Salome Lobjanidze said, who did not go to university lectures Monday to stand outside parliament. She was six when Georgia's previous government fell, saying she was tired of these arguments. Lobjanidze, who was at parliament with her friend, said she was 'devastated' by the law. 'If it goes through, many of the people standing here will leave (the country),' she said. The stand-off is one of the most tense in the country's recent political history. Sascha Bailey, the son of celebrated photographer David, 86, has revealed he almost transitioned into a woman after he fell into the 'transmaxxing' scene during the break up his marriage . Former model David, 29, found himself immersed in the unusual sub culture, which is made up of men who believe their life will be easier if they transition into women. Sascha said at this time he was reeling from the end of his marriage to Japanese lawyer Mimi Nishikawa and was planning to return to the UK where he would live as 'Sacha without the s.' So he had a ten-minute interview in a specialist gender clinic in Nagoya where he was immediately prescribed hormone replacement medicine as he believed he was 'born in the wrong body.' Sascha, who is now identifying as a man once more and in a new relationship with photographer Lucy Brown, who previously worked as an assistant to Tommy Robinson, told the paper that historic sexual abuse as well as a suicide attempt led him to question his identity. ' Sascha Bailey, the son of celebrated photographer David, 86, has revealed he almost transitioned into a woman Sascha, who is now identifying as a man once more and in a new relationship with Lucy Brown, who previously worked as an assistant to Tommy Robinson He told told the Times: 'I often found it hard growing up to identify with males and male characters. I used to love Ripley [Played by Sigourney Weaver in Alien] because she was strong and she didnt represent the person who had hurt me - she looked sufficiently different. Certain in his mind, Sascha told his then wife Nishikawa, who he claims was supportive with certain conditions. He explained: 'She tried to make me sign a contract where I agreed that I would give her most of my money while I was transitioning and she could be with anyone she wanted, but I had to stick around and pretend not to be trans for a long time.' What is 'transmaxxing'? 'Transmaxxing' is a relatively new concept on the gender spectrum and evolved on incel internet chat rooms. It is defined by young, celibate men professing a desire to transition into women to make their lives easier. The movement claims that by doing so they 'will escape sexual rejection and improve their lives.' Aside from sexual encounters, the thesis also posits that the transitioned men will enjoy a host of other 'female benefits' - such as cheaper car insurance. Advertisement Sascha says his journey down the trans pathway came when he stumbled across internet forums on 'transmaxxing', a sub culture of men who believe their life will be easier if they transition into women. He recalled: 'It's a form of problem solving. When you think about [transmaxxers] you have to take away all the feelings and the internal stuff because what theyre trying to do is make themselves right for the situation.' After returning to England, Sascha says he was ready to begin the 'project' of transitioning and had his HRT medicine ready to go but delays in securing his second month's prescription from the NHS ultimately gave him time to reconsider. He said: 'I wasnt going to start because the worst thing you can do is to stop and start.' He then says he met Lucy Brown who he also told of his plans, however her response was slightly different. He says: 'She repeated back my reasoning to me and I just started laughing. It all unravelled from that point.' Sascha's father David, now 86, counts famed beauties Catherine Deneuve and Marie Helvin among his ex-wives, and he has a portfolio of extraordinary fashion and celebrity portraiture. Sascha's mother Catherine to whom David remains married today is also a celebrated model. Together with his older siblings Fenton and Paloma, Sascha grew up in bohemian privilege between London and the Bailey country estate in Devon. The family are close. 'Growing up with my parents was fantastic they were both inspirational people,' he says, recalling a household which was no stranger to A-listers. 'I remember Ronnie Wood told me to tie people's shoelaces together at some event, and the shoe designer Manolo Blahnik kicking me, which was well deserved, as I had pulled someone to the floor as a result,' he smiles. Dyslexic, Sascha was educated privately at a specialist London school, leaving at 16. Within a year, having inherited his mother's fine bone structure and brunette colouring, he'd been signed by renowned model agency Storm. Sascha is the son of legendary photographer David Bailey and his model fourth wife Catherine (pictured in 1999 at the Barbican Art Gallery) David, now 86, counts famed beauties Catherine Deneuve and Marie Helvin among his ex-wives, and he has a portfolio of extraordinary fashion and celebrity portraiture By then he was already living with an older girlfriend. 'I was going through a rebellious phase, and just wanted to get out there and do my own thing,' he says. Then, aged 19, having returned from several months of modelling in Japan, he met lawyer Mimi Nishikawa through a mutual friend. She was 20 years his senior, but this was no bar to an instant attraction. 'She was magnetic and charming, and we just bonded,' he says. 'I think we were both a bit lonely, too, and I guess we found each other.' Of the age gap, he says: 'It did raise a few eyebrows, but honestly that part of it was never an issue for me, and still isn't.' In any case, the relationship unfolded with astonishing speed: within three months the couple married at Camden register office with just two witnesses Sascha's best friend and Mimi's roommate despite the misgivings of friends and family. 'Loads of people told me it was a bad idea, but when you are in that sort of zone, you have blinkers on,' he says. 'I know people were worried, although my dad laughed and said: 'Do whatever you want.' He was married at around the same age, so what could he say?' The marriage was happy enough at first, with the couple settling in Whitechapel, East London. Over time, however, it became increasingly toxic. 'It got to the point where it was pretty terrible,' he says. 'There were a multitude of issues.' Increasingly unhappy and isolated, he was unable to confide in family and friends. 'You put yourself in a metaphorical cage when you're in a situation like this because you start coming up with all these reasons why you can't leave,' he says. 'In a way you enslave yourself.' By the end of 2019, Sascha suggested the couple move to Japan for a fresh start. They settled on the outskirts of Tokyo, but things continued to deteriorate. Sascha began transitioning in Tokyo but fled Japan after the collapse of his ten-year marriage to Japanese lawyer Mimi Nishikawa, who is two decades his senior (pictured in 2014) Nurtured by his family and the love of a new partner, 32-year-old photographer Lucy Brown, he has been pulled back from the brink of a life-changing decision (pictured with Lucy in 2023) Shockingly, by September 2022 he confides he was so unhappy that he considered taking his own life. 'I wrote a note,' he reveals. 'I still have it on my phone.' He changed his mind at the last minute. 'After that, I just couldn't get out of bed for ages,' he says. It was at this point that the notion of changing gender started to crystallise. 'I'd already been thinking about it and it's an idea that just grew and grew,' he says. 'It became this way of not having to kill myself, but to become someone new.' An escape, if you like. This possible 'solution' was reinforced on the internet chatrooms that Sascha had been frequenting, where changing gender was talked about as a ticket to a new life. 'It's the ultimate way to solve your problems because you're being told everything about you boils down to this one thing that is wrong, and if you can fix this one thing everything will be perfect,' as Sascha puts it. Having made the decision to transition towards the end of September 2022, he felt liberated. 'When I decided I was trans, I felt great because I felt I was moving towards a goal, towards something achievable. If I followed this path took the hormones, did the surgery then I would end up in the place I needed to be. When you are so lost, this is game-changing.' After meeting a psychiatrist at a private clinic in Japan with whom he communicated through an internet translation forum Sascha was 'diagnosed' as transgender. 'It took ten minutes,' he says. 'He referred me to a surgeon and I was given a box of HRT (hormone replacement therapy) patches and sent on my way. 'I'm never someone to do anything by halves, and my plan was to go quite hard on the surgery,' he says. He envisioned becoming a statuesque blonde. 'The full Barbie cliche,' as he puts it now, adding: 'There's an irony really; you're not allowed to adhere to stereotypes unless you are trans.' It is no small irony that the fact things abruptly came to a head in his marriage was what prevented him going farther down this road: within a couple of days of visiting the clinic, Sascha fled to London. 'I genuinely felt that if I didn't leave, something disastrous was going to happen,' he says. 'So I just got myself out of there. I had a 'go bag' in a cupboard that Mimi didn't know about, and the next morning I just grabbed the bag, went straight to the airport and paid for a plane ticket to London at the terminal.' He sought refuge with his parents, and says that they, along with everyone he knew, were 'unbelievably supportive' when he revealed his plans to change gender: 'They were supportive to a fault.' 'My mum was a bit confused, but definitely supportive, as was my brother, and my sister was super supportive,' he says. 'That's wonderful on one level but I feel like that's another issue it's almost like society has a gun to its head, because if they're not supportive of it, the only choice is to be cancelled. You are either for it, or you're transphobic; there is no middle ground.' Sascha believes his journey has huge resonance in the UK, where mounting numbers of young people are being diagnosed as transgender (pictured in 2018) In fact, Sascha's plans had to be put on pause because, anxious not to start hormone therapy until he could be sure that he had a second month's supply from the NHS, he struggled to get an appointment. 'So I guess you could say that the slowness of the NHS helped to save me,' he says with a smile. Back home, and with space to think, Sascha says he came to a realisation that changing his external identity was not going to resolve the complex feelings he had inside. He has been diagnosed with PTSD as a consequence of experiences within his marriage. He says he realised two things: 'One, there was no actual way I can know what it feels like to be a woman because I'd never been one, so the idea of me saying 'Oh, I feel like a woman' was absurd. 'And the second thing I came to realise was that I didn't actually need to change my outside because of how I felt on the inside. I just needed to come to terms with it.' None of this has been easy: having been suffused with what Sascha calls 'gender euphoria' a sense of having a 'solution' to his unhappiness he now had to face the real world. 'It meant I actually had to face my problems, and it floored me,' he says. It's fair to say that process is ongoing; while Sascha is in a 'much better' place, he confides to still feeling rather lost. 'Going through any traumatic experience takes time,' he says. 'I'm also having to confront the fact that ten years have gone, I've lost my home, we'd built up an art company together and that's gone too.' This is the shocking moment a suspected female morality police officer attacked a screaming teenager and forced her to the ground. It was reported that the teenager was accosted by the officer for refusing to cover her hair, thus breaching Iran's strict laws governing what women can wear. Footage of the incident was captured in what appears to be a busy public park in Iran - reportedly Borujerd - and shared to social media. The clip begins with a group of people crowded together next to a tree and a low brick wall, as bystanders watch on. Screaming is heard coming from a person in the middle of the group, and it is clear that some of the people are struggling against each other. So called Morality Police in Iran violently assaulted a teenager for not wearing a hijab in the city of Borujerd, Iran. The citizen who filmed this incident told me that a hijab police officer attempted to brutally arrest the teenage girl for wearing a T-shirt. However, because pic.twitter.com/gLd77cERpt Masih Alinejad (@AlinejadMasih) May 12, 2024 This is the shocking moment a suspected female morality police officer attacked a screaming teenager and forced her to the ground Footage of the incident was captured in what appears to be a busy public park in Iran - reportedly Borujerd - and shared to social media. The teenager was pushed to the ground by the suspected morality police officer. Her fate was unclear from the footage Suddenly, the teenager girl is seen falling backwards by the wall, with an older women - dressed in a full black hijab - landing on top of her. The older women is said to be an officer of Iran's morality police - a group that enforces the Islamic state's strict dress code on women. The older woman appears to be trying to get the teenager under control, but the youngster continues to scream and fight back against the attempts. She appears to successfully kick the older women off her, who stands up, but then returns to the girl who is lying on the ground and tries to pick her off the floor. Some of the bystanders are also seen getting involved, but by the end of the clip it remains unclear who they are trying to help - the older women or the teenager. According to Masih Alinejad, an Iranian journalist and activist who shared the footage, the person who filmed the video gave her details on the incident. 'So called Morality Police in Iran violently assaulted a teenager for not wearing a hijab in the city of Borujerd, Iran, Alinejad wrote on X along with the video. 'The citizen who filmed this incident told me that a hijab police officer attempted to brutally arrest the teenage girl for wearing a T-shirt,' she said. 'However, because she screamed for help, people gathered and saved her from the police.' 'Watch the video yourself, and you will understand why we call on you all to be #UnitedAgainstGenderApartheid.' According to Masih Alinejad, an Iranian journalist and activist who shared the footage, the person who filmed the video said the teenager was saved by onlookers The clip is the latest in a series to show what appears to be a renewed effort by Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei to enforce his regime's draconian laws. Tehran last month announced the 'Nour Project', according to the Jerusalem Post , which is aimed at 'dealing with anomalies.' This has resulted in the heavy presence of the country's Guidance Patrol, aka the morality police - the Islamic police and vice squad - in several cities. Police have been instructed to focus on 'positive behaviours' and avoid using 'negative behaviours,' according to Iran's Mehr News Agency. However, the Jerusalem Post's report suggests that the crackdown has been violent. It said there have been reports from the country of sexual harassment, beatings, widespread arrests, the breaking of windows and the use of tasers. Iran's crackdown also comes just a week after Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said that wearing the hijab was of the 'utmost importance,' the publication says. He also accused foreigners in the country of 'hiring' women not to wear the hijab. The crackdown also comes 18 months after the death of Mahsa Amini - a 22-year-old woman who, in September 2022, died in custody after being arrested for allegedly violating the Islamic dress code. Amini's death unleashed months of mass protests across Iran, and marked the biggest challenge to Iran's clerical leaders in decades. This footage (pictured) emerged last month showing officers rounding up women and bundling them into white vans as part of Tehran's crackdown on women's dress Suspected morality police are seen having stern words with a woman on the street before leading her over a van - despite the fact that she appears to be wearing a hijab According to reports, more than 500 people were killed as the Tehran regime fought back against the protesters, who gained support from around the world. In March, a fact-finding mission mandated by the United Nations said the death of Ms Amini in custody of Iran's morality police was 'unlawful' and caused by violence and that women in the country remain subjected to wide-ranging discrimination. 'Our investigation established that her death was unlawful and caused by physical violence in the custody of state authorities,' Sara Hossain, chairperson of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran, told the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. She said the protests that followed were marked by 'egregious human rights violations', including extra-judicial executions, arbitrary arrests, torture and ill-treatment, as well as rape and sexual violence. 'These acts were conducted in the context of a widespread and systematic attack against women and girls, and other persons expressing support for human rights,' Hossain said. Iran's crackdown comes just a week after Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said that wearing the hijab was of the 'utmost importance,' the publication says 'Some of these serious violations of human rights thus rose to the level of crimes against humanity.' In response, Kazem Gharib Abadi, secretary general of Iran's High Council for Human Rights, accused the fact-finding mission of a 'glaring lack of independence and impartiality'. Hossain said that since the protests, women and girls in Iran were confronted daily by discrimination 'affecting virtually all aspects of their private and public lives'. 'It is hard to fathom that in the 21st century, women's access to the most basic service and opportunities, such as schools, universities, hospitals, and courts, or to opportunities for employment in government or other sectors, should be subjected to a wholly arbitrary requirement of wearing the mandatory hijab,' she said. A Turkish Airlines flight was forced to make an emergency landing at Manchester Airport - as onlookers claim they saw 'smoke' and smelled 'burning' as the plane made its dramatic descent. The plane's four hour journey from Istanbul to Manchester came to a dramatic end yesterday as the plane was forced to abort its first landing and had to declare an emergency following 'hydraulic issues.' After aborting its first landing, the plane had to perform a 'go around' - a routine flight procedure to ensure a safe landing. This meant flight TK 1995 had to remain in the air, flying as far east as Derbyshire, before it was safe to land. On its second approach the plane appeared to land normally but as it taxied towards the terminal, surrounded by emergency vehicles, onlookers claim to have seen a puff of smoke and smelt burning. A Turkish Airlines flight was forced to make an emergency landing at Manchester Airport due to 'hydraulic issues' The plane was met by fire engines once it finally landed at Manchester Airport Avid plane-spotter Stephen Uden told the Manchester Evening News: 'The plane turned off the runway and then there was a puff of smoke. The plane then just stopped. 'There were fire engines front and back. They were trying to work out if it had hot brakes or hot wheels. After a short while they towed it back to the terminal. It wasn't able to do that under its own steam.' Fellow plane enthusiasts Liam Smith claimed he could smell 'burning' as the plane touched down. Once the plane landed it is understood the pilot turned off the engine and then it was decided that the aircraft would be towed towards the terminal. At 5.21pm passengers were finally able to disembark the plane nearly an hour after the plane made its precarious landing. A spokesman for Manchester Airport told MailOnline that a 'minor hydraulics issues' caused the emergency landing. They also stressed that despite this being an emergency landing there was no danger to life. MailOnline have approached Turkish Airlines for a comment. Howard University was forced to cancel a graduation ceremony after furious relatives began banging on doors and smashing windows after the auditorium hit capacity. The graduation ceremony for the historically black college's College of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences was shut down before the keynote address after space ran out at the Cramton Auditorium in Washington DC. Relatives of some of the graduates were seen on video chanting 'Let us in' as they pounded on the doors as the ceremony began on Thursday. Images showed a shattered glass door as the angry relatives tried to push their way past security. At least one person was hurt in the commotion, according to DC officials. Various reports said the injured person was a student who was treated for a cut. Howard University was forced to cancel a graduation ceremony after furious relatives began banging on doors and smashing windows after the auditorium hit capacity Images showed a shattered glass door as the relatives tried to push their way past security Boo!hundreds of pissed off familiesfightsbroken classgraduates walked outceremony canceled #HowardUniversity pic.twitter.com/DdDzVuScQs MG The Lover (@Dream_Girl_MG) May 10, 2024 Dean of the College of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences Gina Brown made announcement claiming the fire department had shut the ceremony down. 'Because of the size of the room and because our relatives sometimes do not know how to act, the fire department is now here to shut us down,' she said. However, the DC fire department has denied they shut down the graduation. The department said: 'D.C. Fire and EMS did not shut down tonights event... At 6:42 p.m., we responded to the Cramton Auditorium for a medical local at the request of campus police. 'The patient was evaluated and refused transport, and D.C. Fire and EMS departed.' Howard later said in their own statement that someone was removed from the building before the ceremony and they came back and broke a window. The school's statement read: 'This incident led to a disturbance among guests outside of the facility, resulting in a disruption of the program. 'Guests in attendance were immediately dispersed following this incident.' Graduate Halle Ragoonanan told NBC Washington she was heartbroken to not be able to walk to receive her diploma in front of her family, specially because she graduation high school in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic. Howard later said in their own statement that someone was removed from the building before the ceremony and they came back and broke a window Dean of the College of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences Gina Brown made announcement claiming the fire department had shut the ceremony down However, the DC fire department has denied they shut down the graduation Some students expressed heartbreak about not being able to walk at their graduation She said: 'I didnt get to walk. I graduated magna cum laude and I didnt even get to walk. 'Im the class of 2020. I didnt get to walk for my high school graduation and I didnt get to walk for my college graduation.' It comes as other graduation ceremonies have been disturbed over the war in Gaza. Dozens of students stormed out of Duke University's commencement ceremony in protest over guest speaker Jerry Seinfeld who has supported Israel since the October 7 atrocity by Hamas and throughout the war in Gaza. The comedian, 70, was met with a a mix of cheers and boos as he was introduced before students carrying flags and chanting 'free, free Palestine' marched out of the Wallace Wade Stadium on Sunday. The Mother's Day drowning of a little boy in a poorly-fenced suburban lagoon was a tragedy waiting to happen, according to locals. Four-year-old Ali Aminzadah, from Swan Hill in Victoria's north-west, was visiting family in Officer in south-east Melbourne with his parents on Sunday afternoon when he wandered off. Less than 50m across the road from the home is a wetlands area, where Ali was found unresponsive and couldn't be revived. A small wire fence is currently all that stands between the lagoon and suburbia. Ali's family and residents now want the council to improve fencing around the wetlands in the hope a similar tragedy doesn't occur again. Ali Aminzadah (pictured) drowned on Sunday after wandering from his family's home to a nearby wetlands area Ali's parents have remembered Ali as a 'fun-loving' child with a 'big smile'. They also told Nine News they're furious about the lack of fencing around the lagoon. Local Tammy Gauld agreed and described the lack of security around the lagoon as 'an accident waiting to happen'. 'You quite often see kids around the lake,' she told 7News. 'I really think council needs to look at fencing to see what they can do, put something better up than what is there. 'Lots of young families live around here, you often see them walking past every day with their young children, so it's very concerning if a child manages to get away from their parents, there's a big body of water there that attracts them.' Ali's family spent 30 minutes frantically searching before he was found unresponsive in the water. Several neighbours walked past the lagoon during that time. The little boy was unable to be revived and died at the scene. A poorly-kept wire fence (pictured) is the only measure in place to stop children from entering the wetlands The council responsible for the upkeep of the fence surrounding the wetlands, Cardinia Shire Council has offered its condolences to Ali's family. However, it would not comment on any possible investigations into the fence. Daily Mail Australia has contacted Cardinia Shire Council for comment. Victoria Police are not treating Ali's death as suspicious and will prepare a report for the coroner. Former President Donald Trump is leading President Joe Biden in five of six key battleground states new polling found, as the Democrat has lost support among the nonwhite and young voters who formed his winning coalition four years ago. On Monday, The New York Times, Siena College and The Philadelphia Inquirer released the latest series of battleground polls, with the numbers largely unchanged since the last set of polls were published in November. Biden didn't get a boost from the stock market climbing 25 percent or from ads his campaign has run in the six key states: Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. At the same time, Trump hasn't been politically damaged by the Stormy Daniels hush money trial, the surveys found. Instead, Biden is trailing Trump among registered voters by 12 points in Nevada and 10 points in Georgia, and losing to the Republican by smaller margins in Michigan, Arizona and Pennsylvania. Biden is leading Trump by two points in Wisconsin, which is within that survey's plus or minus 4.5 percent margin of error. Former President Donald Trump is beating President Joe Biden in five of six battleground states, New York Times, Philadelphia Inquirer and Siena College polling found. Biden currently only has an edge in Wisconsin after winning all six states in 2020 Former President Donald Trump appears at a rally in Wildwood, New Jersey this weekend. The new polling found that he's eaten into Biden's support among young, Latino and black voters, which make up the Democrat's coalition to best Trump four years ago In the smaller pool of likely voters, Trump still leads Biden in five states - with Biden pulling ahead of Trump in Michigan, but narrowly falling behind the ex-president in Wisconsin. When third party candidates are factored in, independent Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wins about 10 percent of the vote across the six swing states. The other third-party hopefuls combined - independent Cornel West, Green Party candidate Jill Stein and Libertarian Lars Mapstead - soak up about 3 percent. In that scenario, Trump continues to win five of the six battleground states - and Trump and Biden are tied in Wisconsin. Biden won all six of these battleground states in 2020 - but would only need to win Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin in order to stay in the White House. The president is in trouble because he's lost support among young, Latino and black voters. Among age groups, 81-year-old President Joe Biden trails Trump in all the categories except for with voters 65 and older, the polls found. Biden is essentially tied with Trump for the youth vote, which upends decades of Democratic dominance with this group Pollsters found that Biden and Trump are essentially tied among 18-to-29-year-olds - which blows up decades of Democratic dominance of the youth vote. Trump wins 46 percent of the youth vote, while Biden only brings in 43 percent, the polls found across the six states, when the candidates are in a head-to-head match-up. The only age group where Biden beats Trump is those 65 and older - a group Republicans have traditionally won. Additionally, the two candidates are tied among Hispanics - as Trump's team, for years, has tried to make inroads into the Latino community. Biden wins 45 percent to Trump's 42 percent. Black voters are supporting Trump by more than 20 percent - the highest level of support given to a Republican presidential candidate since the enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Times pointed out. The poll found across six states, 63 percent of black voters are for Biden, while 23 percent are for Trump. China's intl humanitarian efforts hailed 09:04, May 13, 2024 By Wang Xiaoyu ( China Daily Pierre Krahenbuhl, director-general of the ICRC [Photo/China Daily] China is an important contributor to global humanitarian efforts and a key partner of the International Committee of the Red Cross in a world of intense conflicts, said a senior official of the organization. "The ICRC is trying to ensure that international humanitarian law is a political priority everywhere in the world," said Pierre Krahenbuhl, director-general of the ICRC, in an exclusive interview with China Daily in Beijing last week. "And when a country like China takes a position on that, we think it's important, and we want every single country in the world to take this very seriously." Krahenbuhl said an important and resonant message from China came when President Xi Jinping highlighted, during a meeting in September with ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric, that humanitarianism is the great consensus that can unite different civilizations. "I find that a voice like China's is heard on the need to respect civilians in times of armed conflict, on the importance of protecting prisoners of war, as well as (the importance of showing) respect to women and children and refugees, displaced persons in times of war," he said. Disrespect for international humanitarian law is documented every day, evidenced by the loss of lives and suffering inflicted by violence in several countries and regions. "We value when states take a leading voice on calling for better respect," Krahenbuhl said, noting that China was among the first signatories to the Geneva Conventions of 1949, which have been the cornerstone for upholding human dignity amid armed conflicts for 75 years. When China ratified the Geneva Conventions in 1956, then premier and foreign minister Zhou Enlai said in his message that the nation recognizes these conventions because it found them to be generally conducive to peace among all countries, Krahenbuhl said. "China is a very important country, and as a state party to the Geneva Conventions, it plays an important role in highlighting the importance of respecting the rules during times of armed conflict." Krahenbuhl made a visit to China last week his first overseas trip since he assumed the role of ICRC director-general in April to hold a series of meetings with Chinese government bodies and attend events including one to celebrate the 120th anniversary of the Red Cross Society of China, which was held in Beijing on Wednesday. "The ICRC is really developing contacts and dialogue in many parts of these Chinese establishments and we welcome that," he said. He noted that the Red Cross Society of China has not only played a significant role at a national level in delivering emergency response to natural disasters, enhancing first-aid capabilities and promoting blood donations, but has also contributed to international humanitarian efforts such as supporting the ICRC's operations in Afghanistan and Ukraine in recent years. "There is another dimension that we value greatly, which is the fact that the Red Cross Society of China has invested a lot of energy and attention in developing its international academy that focuses strongly on the humanitarian principles and international humanitarian law," he said. As the year 2024 marks the 75th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions, Krahenbuhl said that disrespect for the rules of the conventions can lead to increased suffering and greater destruction, while better respecting the rules of international humanitarian law is a step toward resumption of peace talks. Dialogue, which is essential to resolving conflicts and restoring peace, also holds the key to ICRC's cooperation with China since it established its regional delegation for East Asia in Beijing in 2005. "When we opened this delegation here in Beijing, our objective was to deepen our understanding of China's perspective and experiences related to development, to cooperation, to peace," he said. Having observed the "very positive and important" development of such work in China, Krahenbuhl said the ICRC "will always be very interested and I will always be very interested to continue the conversation with the Chinese leadership and with Chinese institutions". (Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun) Joey Guerra is the music critic for the Houston Chronicle. He also covers various aspects of pop culture. He has reviewed hundreds of concerts and interviewed hundreds of celebrities, from Taylor Swift to Dolly Parton to Beyonce. Hes appeared as a regular correspondent on Fox26 and was head judge and director of the Pride Superstar singing competition for a decade. He has been named journalist of the year multiple times by both OutSmart Magazine and the FACE Awards. He also covers various aspects of pop culture, including the local drag scene and "RuPaul's Drag Race." King Charles today revealed he lost his sense of taste during cancer treatment. The 75-year-old monarch was speaking to British Army veteran Aaron Mapplebeck while visiting the Army Flying Museum in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon. Mr Mapplebeck said he underwent chemotherapy last year for testicular cancer and lost his sense of taste - to which the King revealed this had also happened to him. Buckingham Palace has not yet confirmed details of the King's treatment, with royal officials only saying so far that he is being treated for an undisclosed form of cancer. Earlier, Charles arrived by helicopter for a special ceremony with Prince William where he officially handed over command of Prince Harry's former regiment. King Charles III arrives at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, today King Charles III meets staff members and their families at the Army Aviation Centre today King Charles III speaks to veterans at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop today Charles and William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon King Charles III speaks to veterans - including Aaron Mapplebeck (standing left of man seated in wheelchair) - while visiting the Army Flying Museum in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, today King Charles III poses with service personal after he officially handed over the role of Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps to William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop today Prince William sits in an Apache helicopter at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop today Charles and William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon King Charles III meets staff members and their families at the Army Aviation Centre today Charles and William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon King Charles III meets staff members and their families at Army Aviation Centre today Prince William speaks to service personnel at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop today Charles and William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon Today, at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, The King officially handed over the role of Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps - the combat aviation arm of the British Army - to The Prince of Wales. pic.twitter.com/iKLIacuwCX The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) May 13, 2024 Time flies! Looking back at the last two visits to @ArmyAirCorps in 1999 and 2008 ahead of todays handover at Middle Wallop. pic.twitter.com/JUbFHxRZ6Q The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) May 13, 2024 The monarch bestowed the prestigious position of Colonel-in-Chief of The Army Air Corps to his heir at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire. William will represent the Army's airborne wing, including his brother's former unit - 662 Squadron. Harry served in the regiment as an Apache helicopter pilot in Afghanistan, and it was widely thought he would have taken the role until he made the decision to step back from royal life in 2020. The rare joint engagement for Charles and William comes on the same day that Harry is jetting back from his 'quasi-royal' tour in Nigeria with his wife Meghan Markle. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are expected to land at London Heathrow later today before heading back to Los Angeles and their 12million Montecito mansion. King Charles III meets members of the military during a visit to the Army Aviation Centre today Prince William in front of an Apache helicopter at the Army Aviation Centre today King Charles III arrives at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop this afternoon The Prince of Wales (left), in his new role as Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps today Prince William speaks to service personal at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop today Charles and William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon Prince William speaks to service personal at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop today Charles and William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon Prince William in an Apache helicopter at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop today King Charles III meets staff members and their families at the Army Aviation Centre today Prince William speaks to service personal at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop today Charles and William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon Prince William in front of an Apache helicopter at the Army Aviation Centre today King Charles III unveils a plaque during a visit to Army Aviation Centre at Middle Wallop today Charles and William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon Prince William speaks to service personal at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop today Prince William in front of an Apache helicopter at the Army Aviation Centre today King Charles III meets staff members and their families at the Army Aviation Centre today Prince William speaks to service personal at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop today Charles and William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon Last Tuesday, Buckingham Palace announced that Charles would officially hand over the role of Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps to William at the Army Aviation Centre, where Harry previously learnt to fly. The change was announced last August following the coronation in May as part of a number of new military appointments. The King had held the post as Prince of Wales himself for 31 years. Today, the King was met by a Guard of Honour and Lieutenant General Sir Nicholas Borton, Colonel Commandant of the Army Air Corps, before meeting veterans and their families at the base. He handed over the role of Colonel-in-Chief in front of an Apache attack helicopter - the kind co-piloted by Harry in Afghanistan - in front of the Middle Wallop Control Tower. Charles said: 'I do hope you'll go from strength to strength... with the Prince of Wales as your new Colonel-in-Chief. 'The great thing is he's a very good pilot indeed. I can't tell you how proud it has made me to have been involved with you all this time.' Charles and William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon Prince William speaks to troops at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop today King Charles III meets staff members and their families at the Army Aviation Centre today Charles and William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon Charles and William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon Charles and William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon King Charles III unveils a plaque during a visit to Army Aviation Centre at Middle Wallop today Prince William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop today Charles and William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon Prince William speaks to service personal at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop today Charles and William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon King Charles III arrives at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, today Prince William speaks to service personal at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop today Charles and William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon Prince William speaks to service personal at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop today King Charles III arrives at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, today Prince William speaks to service personal at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop today Charles and William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon Prince William speaks to service personal at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop today King Charles III arrives in a helicopter at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop today Together, the King and William also had an opportunity to meet serving aircrew in front of the aircraft. After His Majesty departed, William embarked on his first engagement with the Army Air Corps as Colonel-in-Chief, receiving a briefing on its work, meeting staff, families and inspecting operational aircraft. He also got the opportunity to fly in an Apache helicopter. Also today, William was presented with an Army Air Corps scarf, and a tartan wrap for his wife Kate. He was also given three wooden helicopters for their children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis. William served as a Platoon Commander in The Blues and Royals, before completing flying training in the Royal Air Force and working as an RAF Search and Rescue pilot. The announcement by Buckingham Palace last Tuesday came just two hours after Harry's spokesman said the King was too busy to see his youngest son during his whistlestop trip to the UK to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Invictus Games. The Duke of Sussex was in London for three days last week but was unable to meet his father, saying that this was 'due to His Majesty's full programme'. Prince William on the flight deck of a helicopter during a visit to the Army Air Corps in 2008 Prince William leaning against a helicopter during a visit to the Army Air Corps in 1999 Prince Harry stands in front of an Apache helicopter at Middle Wallop in March 2011 The monarch was given permission by his doctors to return to public duties last month and has been present at various events in recent weeks. Charles is also expected to carry out his first major investiture tomorrow since being diagnosed with cancer. The King will knight the Archbishop of Canterbury for his key role in the Coronation last May, and bestow a damehood on bestselling author Dame Jilly Cooper. It will be the first investiture ceremony the King has conducted for five months, with his last one taking place on December 19, a month before he was admitted to hospital for treatment on his prostate. Economists fear the burden of an aging population will become unmanageable Seniors are set to outnumber children for the first time in American history within six years, as experts warn that the country is about to struggle with a dramatically aging population. The 'silver tsunami' has already seen the burden on working age people double since 1960 when there were six workers for every over-65. And millions now risk having no-one to help them as the poorly-paid care industry is squeezed out by better paid jobs in a tight labor market. 'An already challenging landscape in the elderly care industry is likely to get worse unless action is taken,' Dr Kylie Meyer, assistant professor at Case Western Reserve University in Ohio, told Newsweek. 'More older adults may go without care, or younger family members may be further financially stretched to help older relatives.' There will be more over-65s than under-18s for the first time in US history by 2030 the US Census Bureau predicts, with the trend increasing for the rest of the century A record 4.1 million Americans will turn 65 this year as the last of the Baby Boomer generation reaches retirement and one-in-four Americans will be over 65 in 2060 Dr Kylie Meyer, assistant professor at Case Western Reserve University, warned that the exploding elderly population will struggle to find the care it needs to lead normal lives Economists have been warning about the impacts of the population timebomb for decades, but the situation has become more acute since the Covid-19 pandemic sparked the 'Great Retirement', with an extra two million people deciding to call it a day. Half of the wealth in the US is now held by people born before 1965, a study found last year, helped by decades of surging house prices and falls in relative wages for younger people. But for those without assets or with complex health needs the outlook is bleak. Around 20 million over-55s already need assistance with daily tasks to live an independent life. But a study by the Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis found that almost eight million of them receive no help at all. Actuaries warned last year that Social Security's trust fund is expected to be depleted by 2034, with spending on welfare and Medicare predicted to rise from 9.1 percent of US GDP to 11.5 in just 12 years. And America's changing age profile means there will be just 2.75 working-age people for every dependent-age person by 2030 when children are included. 'As the huge population of Baby Boomers retires we're entering a period when millions of highly experienced, high-performance workers transition from being producers to being consumers,' said economist Ron Hetrick from market analytics firm Lightcast. Americans are turning 65 at a record the rate of 11,200 a day in 2024 'A large number of retirees is not a problem in itself; the proportion of retirees to new workers is the problem. 'That's because when people retire, their demand for goods and services remains high, but now we will have significantly fewer people to provide those goods and services moving forward.' The problem is not confined to the US with most developed nations experiencing an aging population including Japan whose population is expected to shrink 30 percent by 2070 when four-in-ten will be over 65. The situation is so stark in South Korea that Oxford University professor David Coleman predicted the entire country would be extinct at current rates by 2750. And even China, which recently lost its status as the world's most populous nation to India, is now shrinking at a rate of nearly a million people a year. And an older population is generally a sicker population, with greater demands on health as well as care services. 'Thanks to advances in medical technology, people are living longer than ever before,' said Dr Gary Small, of Hackensack University Medical Center in New Jersey. 'Unfortunately, our bodies and brains weren't engineered to function efficiently for the duration of today's average life expectancy, so people are living longer but not necessarily better. 'Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, cancer and numerous other age-related diseases lead to disability and dependence, and relatively fewer adult children than ever before are available to assist with caregiving. 'The economic and emotional burden of these trends are daunting.' Projections by the US Census Bureau predict that one-in-four Americans will be over 65 in 2060, and that the number of people aged 100 or over will top one million by the end of the century. The percentage of the adult population in retirement has soared from 15 percent in 2007 to just under 20 percent, accelerating steeply since 2020 and defying predictions by the Federal Reserve. 'The impending demographic shift, in which older adults in the U.S. will outnumber children for the first time in history, presents significant societal and economic challenges and opportunities,' said Patrick Mish of social work firm SilverStay. 'This shift, often called the 'silver tsunami,' is expected to impact multiple facets of society profoundly. 'As the population ages, the demand for health care services will substantially increase, particularly those related to age-related conditions such as dementia, arthritis, heart disease, and cancer. 'This will require a significant expansion of health care infrastructure and services, including more specialized care facilities and care services.' The US age profile is expected to continue getting older despite a significant dent to life-expectancies during the Covid-19 pandemic But a study last year by the Pew Research Center, found that nearly 20 percent of over-65s were employed in 2023, almost double the figure in in 1990. A record 4.1 million Americans will turn 65 this year, at an average rate of 11,200 a day. 'Peak 65 is a historic moment,' said Cyrus Bamji, chief strategy officer for the Alliance of Lifetime Income. 'The tail end of the Baby Boomer generation is starting to turn 65, and unfortunately, most of them are flying into retirement unprotected, with a safety net full of holes.' The California city saw over 43,000 migrants arrive in a 3 month period Shocking footage captured the moment a boatload of migrants rushed a busy California beach as stunned locals watched on. In a viral video shared to X, crowds gathered on Ocean Beach in San Diego as around a dozen migrants departed a valuable-looking white yacht, without any Coast Guard officials in sight. The migrants were seen hopping into the water before sprinting towards a residential neighborhood, while beachgoers stopped to film them on their phones. It comes as illegal migrant crossings have soared in California in recent months, setting records while crossings in Texas have plummeted. Shocking footage captured the moment a boatload of migrants rushed a busy California beach after landing on an expensive-looking yacht The migrants sprinted from the vessel and towards a residential street Viewers were left stunned at how easily the migrants were able to flee, without a single Coast Guard officer in sight Dozens of beachgoers filmed on their phones and watched on as the migrants departed Viewers of the viral clip in San Diego criticized the ease at which the migrants were able to land on the beach and run away. The lack of police or Coast Guard officers to stop them led one viewer to comment: 'What's the point of having a Coast Guard if they're not gonna guard the coast.' 'I don't know why they bother running, it's not like Biden's admin is allowing anyone to chase them...' said another. The video emerged online a week after police in Hollywood, Florida also shared an image of another sailboat used by migrants to skip the hard border with Mexico. Hollywood Police said that the 30-foot yacht ran ashore before migrants raced to Coolidge Street, leading them to launch a search with Border Patrol to canvass the area. Crossings by boat have become increasingly used by migrants and people traffickers as some states beef up their border security amid record numbers of crossings during the Biden administration. It comes a week after police in Hollywood, Florida also shared an image of another sailboat used by migrants to skip the hard border with Mexico In Texas, Governor Greg Abbott increased patrols and installed razor wire across the Rio Grande River, while Mexican authorities have also stepped up the number of agents south of the border. Crossings have dropped considerably in Texas in recent months, while California's statistics surged. In San Ysidro, California, around 16 miles south of San Diego, crossings increased by a staggering 85 percent in February compared to the previous year. Meanwhile in Texas, border crossings in Del Rio reached only a few hundred per day, whereas in December this figure stood at 2,300 per day, according to Analyzing Market. In San Diego, where the recent footage was shot, a boat full of migrants were also caught on camera racing in from a vessel as they headed for the wealthy La Jolla neighborhood. The footage, shot in January, showed more than 20 migrants storming the beach before disappearing into the southern California enclave, where homes go for a median price of $2.2million. The exclusive footage, shot by NewsNation's National Correspondent Jorge Ventura, came as officials released stats showing more then 42,000 migrants were released in San Diego from October through December 2023. That figure worked out to 637-per-day, a number that does not include migrants who cross illegally, like those seen landing on the La Jolla beach. An Antiques Roadshow guest was left stunned at the price of his 'over the top' Alaskan-themed gold belt buckle. During the PBS series' special visit to Alaska, the guest, presented his massive accessory for appraisal. The expert appraiser, Kevin Zavian, left the guest wide-eyed with excitement as he revealed the belt buckle was worth a whopping five figures. The belt, adorned with remarkable details and craftsmanship, including what could be a mammoth tusk and pure gold nuggets, was bought in an auction a few years ago for approximately $5,700. But the belt, Zavian said, is worth up to $40,000. 'This is so Alaskan that, in the right auction, I think something like this could be $20,000 to $40,000,' he said in the PBS episode. An Antiques Roadshow guest was left stunned at the price of his 'over the top' Alaskan-themed gold belt buckle The belt, adorned with remarkable details and craftsmanship, including what could be mammoth tusk and pure gold nuggets, was bought in an auction a few years ago for approximately $5,700 But the belt, Zavian said, is worth up to $40,000 Zavian joked: 'It's a belt buckle, it's rather large. Of course, I threw it on the scale. You almost broke my scale.' 'There's five troy ounces of gold here. A substantial amount of gold,' he continued. He pointed out the meticulous workmanship, from the carefully soldered nuggets to the tusk embellishment, which he said could very well be a mammoth tusk, indigenous to Alaska. 'These nuggets, they're soldered to a base of gold so even though it looks like they're all just laid in there, it's a lot of work and labour.' 'You got this nice embellishment of a twist wire. I love this part, that this is a mastodon tusk.' He pointed out the meticulous workmanship, from the carefully soldered nuggets to the tusk embellishment, which he said could very well be a mammoth tusk, indigenous to Alaska 'Could be mammoth tusk. At first, I thought it was wood. But tusk is such a thing in Alaska. All the elements here, except for the diamonds, are truly from Alaska.' 'So then you have this beautifully executed frame and it has this nice form and shape. It's riveted on, which shows extra care that the jeweler gave it.' 'I love the little bit of engraving on the corners. Just everywhere you look, it's got this beautiful little sign of quality and that somebody took care making this.' The guest was gleaming when he heard the news. Antiques Roadshow is the longest-running British television series about the appraisal of antiques, beginning its broadcast on February 18, 1979. The program began life as a 1977 BBC documentary about a London auction house doing a tour of the West Country in England. Another Antiques Roadshow guest was stunned to learn that his vast collection of medieval keys was worth thousands, in the latest episode of the BBC show. Another Antiques Roadshow guest was stunned to learn that his vast collection of medieval keys was worth thousands, in the latest episode of the BBC show The episode, which aired on Sunday, saw a guest bring along the huge number of keys he'd accumulated after receiving one from his grandfather when he was a child The episode, which aired on Sunday, saw a guest bring along the huge number of keys he'd accumulated after receiving one from his grandfather when he was a child. Explaining that some of them dated back to the 15th century, he'd built the collection by picking up the keys at car boot sales, before tracking down more selective pieces from private sellers and auctions. As expert Marc Allum perused the collection, sharing that he was impressed at the size of the collection, and made the surprise admission that all of the keys could be worth over $25,000. The guest appeared somewhat surprised by the huge sum, but remained tight-lipped on whether he'd consider selling his huge collection. Rishi Sunak committed to facing Labour's Sir Keir Starmer in live televised debates ahead of the general election today - but continued to refuse to set a date for the vote. The Prime Minister vowed to go head-to-head with his opposite number 'as many times as he likes' after an electioneering speech in London this morning. But Mr Sunak continued to say no more about when that election may take place, other than that he plans to go to the country in the second half of the year - as soon as July. And after a wide-ranging electioneering speech in London this morning he suggested demands to nail down a day were 'games' being orchestrated by Labour. In response to a question from a reporter he said: 'I have been clear since right at the beginning of this year that my working assumption is that we will have an election in the second half of this year. 'This question about election timing is a game the Labour party wants to play. They want to make everything about process and not about substance 'But I think the country deserves a more substantive debate than that. And when that election campaign does come, when people are considering that choice, I am happy to debate Keir Starmer as many times as he would like, on that choice.' The Prime Minister vowed to go head-to-head with his opposite number 'as many times as he likes' after an electioneering speech in London this morning. Sir Keir had already committed to taking part in such debates. On a visit he insisted that keeping Britain safe was his 'top priority', dismissing Mr Sunak's speech as his 'seventh reset'. Sir Keir had already committed to taking part in such debates. Reports in January had suggested his advisers wanted him to duck out of challenging the Tory leader, telling the Sunday Times he had 'nothing to gain' from a televised slanging match. But quizzed at the time he told reporters this morning the report was 'nonsense', adding: 'I've been saying bring it on for a very, very long time. I'm happy to debate any time.' Mr Sunak today warned Sir Keir 'can't be trusted' to 'keep Britain safe' with the risk of nuclear war the highest since the 1960s. In a speech putting security at the heart of the looming battle, the PM swiped that the Labour leader would say anything to get power and could not cope with serious challenges such as AI, immigration and hostile states. He appealed for voters not to take a chance on Sir Keir when 'Putin's recklessness has taken us closer to a dangerous nuclear escalation than at any point since the Cuban missile crisis'. Road-testing key campaigning lines, Mr Sunak said the general election will be a 'choice between the future and the past'. He said Sir Keir wanted to make people feel 'so bad about your country' that they hand him a huge majority, stressing that changing the government is not a cure for the country's problems. Despite acknowledging that Labour could win the election, he said he was still 'confident' about turning dire polls around and vowed to take on Sir Keir in as many TV debates as possible. While admitting the Tories' record was 'not perfect', he defended the achievements. 'There are storms ahead... but we can and we will create a secure future,' he said. The intervention comes as the premier sharpens his attack lines with the ballot expected towards the end of the year - although he again refused to rule out July. The Tories are struggling to get traction after a miserable round of council and mayoral elections earlier this month. On a visit, Sir Keir insisted that keeping Britain safe was his 'top priority', dismissing Mr Sunak's speech as his 'seventh reset'. If the West wants to fight for Ukraine on the battlefield, Russia is prepared for it, the country's foreign minister declared today. 'It's their right - if they want it to be on the battlefield, it will be on the battlefield,' Sergei Lavrov said in comments carried by Russia's RIA Novosti. His statement comes months after French President Emmanuel Macron refused to rule out the possibility that Western troops could one day be sent to Ukraine, and weeks ago said he could send troops if Russian forces break through the front lines. Vladimir Putin earlier this year warned deploying NATO troops into Ukraine could lead to World War Three. The Kremlin has also said any Western equipment used by Kyiv to attack across the border will be seen as a legitimate target, even if it is based in a third country - further raising fears of a direct clash between NATO and Russia. Lavrov made the warning as Sweden's Prime Minister said he would be willing to host Western nuclear weapons should war break out. Leaked German documents have also suggested Berlin may be planning to introduce mandatory military service for men and women aged 18. The war of words between Moscow and the West dialled up as Russian troops pummelled 30 towns in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region after launching a surprise ground offensive over the border last week. Russia's gains have been costly, however, with Ukraine claiming that Sunday saw 1,740 of Putin's troops killed or injured in the fighting - a record daily loss in the war. A Minuteman III ICBM is pictured in its silo prior to launch A Minuteman III nuclear intercontinental ballistic missile is tested at the US' Vandenberg Space Force Base A soldier takes cover as a Ukrainian self-propelled howitzer fires a shell towards Russian positions Ukrainian soldiers unload grad shells in a garage in the direction of Marinka, as the war between Russia and Ukraine continues in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine last week Paramedics treat a wounded Ukrainian service member, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the town of Vovchansk in Kharkiv region, Ukraine, yesterday NATO troops take part in Nordic Response 24 - a phase of the larger NATO exercise Steadfast Defender. The exercise involves air, sea, and land forces, with over 100 fighter jets, 50 ships, and over 20,000 troops practising defensive manoeuvres in cold and harsh weather conditions Lavrov, who has served two decades as foreign minister, said the nation would be ready to meet Western troops on the battlefield during a hearing for his re-nomination to his post in Putin's new government. RIA also cited him as saying that peace talks on Ukraine due to take place in Switzerland next month without Russia's participation amounted to an ultimatum to Moscow. He compared the situation to 'a reprimand for a schoolchild' whose fate was being decided by teachers while he was out of the room. 'You can't talk to anyone like that, especially to us,' Lavrov said. 'The conference... boils down to restating an ultimatum to Russia.' The tension between Russia and the West continues to mount as Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said this morning he was open to allowing nuclear weapons on Swedish soil in wartime - even as critics call for a ban on their deployment. NATO's newest member sensationally abandoned two centuries of military non-alignment to join the security bloc in March this year, after Russia's invasion of Ukraine prompted a dramatic reversal of foreign and defence policy. Now, Sweden's parliament is set to vote on a Defence Cooperation Agreement (DCA) with the United States in June which will give the US access to military bases in Sweden and allow the storage of military equipment and weapons in the Scandinavian country. The Swedish Peace and Arbitration Association, among others, is campaigning for the government to put in writing in the DCA agreement that Sweden will not allow US nuclear weapons on its soil. Kristersson's government has in turn said there is no need to do so, as parliament had already made a decision to bar nuclear weapons in Sweden in peacetime. But the Prime Minister today said that hosting nukes in wartime was a 'different story'. 'In a war situation it's a completely different matter, (it) would depend entirely on what would happen,' he told public broadcaster Swedish Radio. 'In the absolute worst-case scenario, the democratic countries in our part of the world must ultimately be able to defend themselves against countries that could threaten us with nuclear weapons.' He insisted that any such decision to place nuclear weapons in Sweden would be taken by Sweden, not the United States. 'Sweden decides over Swedish territory,' he said. But, he stressed, 'the whole purpose of our NATO membership and our defence is to ensure that that situation does not arise.' If Ukraine had been a NATO member, 'it would not have been attacked by Russia,' he said. Ukrainian servicemen of the 82nd Separate Air Assault Brigade prepare for combat Challenger 2 tank in an undisclosed location near frontline in Zaporizhzhia region Ukrainian soldiers fire a mortar in the direction of Chasiv Yar as Russia-Ukraine war continues in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine on May 7, 2024 Ukrainian soldier preparing mortar shells in the direction of Chasiv Yar as the war between Russia and Ukraine continues in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine on May 7, 2024 A Russian howitzer fires toward Ukrainian positions at an undisclosed location Devastation to houses seen in Vovchansk, Kharkiv region, following Russian attacks this week Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said this morning he was open to allowing nuclear weapons on Swedish soil in wartime In another sign of European nations preparing for the possibility of a monumental clash, Germany could bring back conscription for all 18-year-olds according to leaked military plans revealed this weekend. Military planners are discussing three potential approaches to preparing future generations for large-scale conflict, two of which involve a compulsory military year for all men once they turn 18. It is understood that officials are in the final stages of discussions with German defence minister Boris Pistorius, and are expected to go public with official plans next month, The Sunday Telegraph reported. Meanwhile, Mr Pistorius himself said he was 'convinced' that Germany 'needs a form of military conscription' during a trip to Washington last week. He also previously described the country's decision to suspend compulsory military service in 2011 as a 'mistake'. In one proposal being considered by military planners in Berlin, all men and women would be subject to conscription once they turned 18. Germany's previous policy on compulsory military service only applied to men. Including women in conscription would require a change to the nation's constitution, according to the newspaper, but ministry insiders reportedly believe the change would 'most likely to receive societal approval'. Another proposal, which is viewed by the defence ministry as a 'a strong signal' to both allies and rivals, would only apply to 18-year-old men, but would not see everyone selected, the leaked reports revealed. Young men would be required to complete an online form and could then later be chosen for service. One final option would see defence planners opt against the reintroduction of military service and instead focus on 'optimising' the current military system through more proactive recruitment campaigns. But this would go against the defence minister's own position on the subject. The comments from Sweden and Germany came less than two weeks after French president Emmanuel Macron said he would be prepared to send troops to Ukraine if Putin's forces break through the frontlines. An an interview published on May 2, Macron said the issue of sending troops would 'legitimately' arise if Kyiv and president Volodymyr Zelensky made such a request. 'I'm not ruling anything out, because we are facing someone who is not ruling anything out,' Macron said when asked if he stood by comments earlier this year not excluding the sending of Western troops that sent shockwaves around Europe. Fears are mounting that Russia could soon make significant gains in Ukraine as it today continued to press its offensive in the northeastern Kharkiv region. Moscow's troops are bearing down on the town of Vovchansk from three directions and forcing thousands of civilians to flee their homes. The operation, launched last Friday just days after Putin 's inauguration for a fifth presidential term, saw Russian artillery and airstrikes pound towns and villages in Kharkiv before Moscow 's troops surged across the border once again. With Kyiv's resources stretched thin as weary soldiers await sorely-needed Western weaponry, Putin's troops simply 'walked in' because 'there was no first line of defence', according to one Ukrainian commander who spoke to the BBC . Shocking drone footage circulating on social media appears to show Russian soldiers marching through fields just north of Vovchansk that commander Denys Yaroslavskyi lamented had not been mined or defended. Now the Russian units have reportedly seized four towns across the border and are forging a path towards the city roughly three miles further into Kharkiv. Vovchansk, whose pre-war population of 17,000 had dwindled to just 2,500 before Russia renewed its ground assault last week, has emerged as a focus point as pitched battles engulf the Kharkiv and Donetsk regions. Ukrainian local officials said they feared Vovchansk's fate may mirror that of Bakhmut and Avdiivka, Ukrainian cities where fierce fighting and scorched earth tactics forced Ukrainian withdrawals after months of heavy casualties on both sides. Ukrainian tank-men are seen on a BWP infantry fighting vehicle prepare for combat as the war between Russia and Ukraine continues in the direction of Lyman in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine on March 17, 2024 Germany could bring back conscription for all 18-year-olds amid fears out an all-out NATO war with Russia, leaked military plans reveal. Vladimir Putin last week declared his nuclear forces were at full combat readiness in preparation for a global war. Pictured: Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday in Moscow Tanks conduct live firing exercises during NATO drills in Latvia Germany's Minister of Defense Boris Pistorius takes part in a joint news conference at National Defense Headquarters in Ottawa on Friday, May 10, 2024 Meanwhile in the UK, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak also recognised today the looming threat of a wider war, declaring: 'Putin's recklessness has taken us closer to a dangerous nuclear escalation than at any point since the Cuban missile crisis.' But Sunak also looked beyond the war in Ukraine, warning that Britain faces an increasingly dangerous future due to threats from an 'axis of authoritarian states,' that include Russia, China, Iran and North Korea. 'I'm convinced that the next few years will be some of the most dangerous, yet most transformational, our country has ever known,' Sunak said. The speech today comes weeks after the British Prime Minister announced renewed focus on security, pledging to up defence spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP by 2030. He also said that the world is the 'most volatile' for years and Britain's defence industry must go on a 'war footing' in statements given during a joint appearance with NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg at a military base in the Polish capital last month. Sunak's push to move Britain's defence industry to a war footing came after General Sir Richard Barrons warned the nation is sorely underprepared for a conflict with Russia, and urged the government to invest heavily in reconstituting the armed forces to meet the challenge. 'Russia is clearly angry and rearming so their capability will be restored and when the shooting stops in Ukraine, Russia will blame the outcome on us,' he told MailOnline earlier this year. 'We are already In confrontation with Russia. Right now, we have chosen to do very little about it. 'During the Cold War the Army, at all times, was ready to fight at four hours' notice. When the Cold War ended and there was no sense of existential risk to the UK, all of that was dismantled. 'Now we would need five to 10 years' notice of a Russian surprise attack to manage to deal with it. It's deeply disappointing.' As Putin's forces pressed their advantage in eastern Ukraine, the news broke over the weekend that the despot had fired his bungling defence minister and replaced him with a 'puppet' with zero military experience in a wide-ranging reshuffle. Putin sacked his longtime friend Sergei Shoigu, 68, and instead shifted him into the role of secretary of Russia's national security council. Putin sacked his longtime friend Sergei Shoigu, 68, and instead shifted him into the role of secretary of Russia's national security council A little-known civilian economist Andrey Belousov, 65, has replaced Shoigu as defence minister and is tasked with deploying his number-crunching skills and bureaucratic oversight to secure Russian victory against Ukraine, Kremlin press spokesman Dmitry Peskov, explaining the timing of the decision, said it needed the defence ministry to stay 'innovative' and better utilise defence expenditures to win in Ukraine. The move appears to be an astonishing snub to Shoigu, the man Putin put in charge of his war, a close ally, and Russia's longest serving minister. Until now, Putin had stood by Shoigu despite a string of military setbacks in the first year of the campaign and his public feud with Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin who launched a bloody insurrection last year calling for Shoigu's removal. The reshuffle of the military command is the most significant Putin has undertaken since his full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022. Analysts argue that appointing a civilian economist as defense minister suggests Putin aims to take a closer personal role in war tactics. Meanwhile the UK's Defence Secretary Grant Shapps has predicted the new defence minister will just be another one of Putin's 'puppets'. Billionaire Slack heiress Mint Butterfield underwent an alarming change before the teen was found underneath a mattress after a desperate search by her tech tycoon parents. The only child of Flickr co-founder Caterina Fake and Slack co-founder Stewart Butterfield, the 16-year-old made headlines when she went vanished last month. Mint, who uses they/them pronouns, disappeared from Fake's weekend home in affluent Bolinas, northwest of San Francisco, on April 22, before she was found alive a week later. The mother had brought Mint to the weekend home so they could get away from a 26-year-old man - Christopher Dizefalo- who goes by Kio and has now been arrested for her disappearance. Fake told The Daily Beast that Mint's downward spiral began when she turned 16 and started going to punk and emo clubs in the East Bay. Mint Butterfield is the only child of Flickr co-founder Caterina Fake and Slack co-founder Stewart Butterfield, who are divorced They underwent an alarming change before being found underneath a mattress after a desperate search Fake had brought Mint to their weekend home so they could get away from a 26-year-old man who has has now been arrested for her disappearance Mint met Dizefalo at a club in Oakland, and while they saw something 'magical' in him, one of their friends said they had instead detected something 'disgusting and creepy.' According to their family, the heiress did not have drug problems until they met Dizefalo, who is said to be a fentanyl addict. The teen had also only had romantic relationships with girls before meeting Dizefalo. Fake told The Daily Beast: 'My child became a different person overnight. Starting last fall they became a person I didnt recognize. And I didnt know what was happening and I didnt understand it. Mint is a teenager. Teens are full of empathy and love and hormones.' Fake, who is divorced from Mint's father, said she went into panic mode when she realized the teen was missing, and ran a half mile down the street searching for them, she told The Daily Beast. Mint left their mom a note saying they loved them. The mother said that she gave Kio's phone number to police when she reported Mint missing, and was displeased when the Marin County Sheriffs Office spoke to the media about the case. At the time, she said: 'Why arent the police doing anything? I have given them Kios name and his phone number. Why arent they tracking his phone?' Police initially classified Mint as 'voluntarily missing' as they believed she left the home on her own, which angered her mother who thought her child was in danger. Christopher 'Kio' Dizefalo, seen here, was arrested and booked in the Marin County Jail, with bail set at $50,000. According to their family, the heiress did not have drug problems until they met Dizefalo, who is said to be a fentanyl addict Within days of going missing, Mint was seen outside an Oakland home throwing up blood on the sidewalk, outside a parked van. They were wearing just shorts, a tank top and black boots. A week after they were reported missing, police found the van Dizefalo had been using on its way to the Tenderloin District and arrested him. Police also arrested the 21-year-old woman who owned the van, Sarah Atkins. The Tenderloin is the center of the fentanyl crisis in San Francisco and is known for squalid conditions, homelessness, crime, drug trade, and prostitution. According to the Daily Beast, Atkins has suffered abuse by Dizefalo, who she financially supports. Police did not initially realize that Mint was also in the van, but then discovered her underneath a mattress that was in the back. In a statement, Marin County Sheriff's Office said Butterfield was found uninjured and that she had run away from home voluntarily. After Dizefalo was interviewed by detectives, he was arrested and booked in the Marin County Jail, with bail set at $50,000. Fake is now in a relationship with Jaiku co-founder, Jyri Engestrom Stewart Butterfield speaks at his company's Frontiers conference at Pier 27 & 29 on April 24, 2019, in San Francisco Atkins has also been charged with kidnapping, but Fake told The Daily Beast she believes Atkins is also a victim of Dizefalo. Fake and Butterfield married in 2001 and remained together until 2007, when their child was born. Fake, who started the created the imaging service Flickr with her then partner, Butterfield. They sold the image-hosting website to Yahoo in 2005. Stewart Butterfield, is currently worth $1.6 billion. Slack was acquired by Salesforce in 2021 for $28 billion and Butterfield left the company in 2022. He has since married Jen Rubio, co-founder of Away - an American luggage and travel accessories brand, and the pair have two young children together. Fake is now in a relationship with Jaiku co-founder, Jyri Engestrom, and the couple share three children between them. In 2021, Butterfield purchased a $31.7 million mansion in Aspen, Colorado. The residence sprawls over a five-acre estate overlooking the Castle Creek Valley. The property boasts a generous home gym, a home theatre, a games room, a 500-bottle wine cellar, a tasting room, six en-suite bedrooms and a three-car garage. Butterfield also owns a $19 million home in San Francisco, which has seven bedrooms, eight bathrooms and sits in the posh Presidio Heights neighborhood. The body of a man has been found in the River Thames as police searched for a swimmer who went missing on the hottest day of the year. A huge hunt was underway after a man got 'into difficulty' in the waters Barge Walk, Kingston upon Thames, at around 6.41pm yesterday when temperatures hit 27.5C. Scotland Yard has confirmed the body of a man was recovered from the waters at around 12.20pm on Monday. Although formal identification is yet to take place, officers believe it is the man who entered the water yesterday. Photos from the scene show police and ambulance scouring the side of the river, which was heaving with sun-dwellers soaking up the balmy weather. Search and rescue teams along the Thames in Kingston search for a missing swimmer A huge search was launched which includes the Marine Policing officers, London Ambulance Service, London Fire Brigade, the RNLI and the National Police Air Service A spokesperson for Scotland Yard said: 'Police were called at 6.41pm on Sunday, 12 May to the river at Barge Walk, Kingston. It was reported that a man had got into difficulty after entering the water to swim. 'Marine Policing officers, London Ambulance Service, London Fire Brigade, the RNLI and the National Police Air Service all searched the area. 'At around 12.20pm on Monday, 13 May, the body of a man was recovered by police officers from the river at Barge Walk, Kingston. 'Formal identification awaits, however officers believe this is the man who entered the water on Sunday.' Jadine Brunsdon, who works at a bar near where the man went into the water, was sitting by the river side with a friend watching people swimming at the time. She told BBC News: 'We noticed them going in. Then about half an hour later we saw police cars and ambulances driving down.' The swimmer went missing in the Thames on the hottest day of the year. One eyewitness had been watching a group in the waters when about 30 minutes later police cars and ambulances arrived A man was seen getting into difficulty in the waters off Barge Walk, Kingston upon Thames Britons enjoyed the hottest day of the year yesterday, with record temperatures for 2024 broken three times in the last week, with the mercury peaking at a blistering 27.5C in Chertsey, Surrey. The UK's glorious weekend weather came to a crashing halt with forecasters predicting a two-day washout from today. The forecaster predicted parts of south-west England, south Wales, and Northern Ireland will be worst hit, with some yellow weather warnings in place until tomorrow night. It added local transport networks may face disruption, with up to 8mm of rainfall per hour at times. READ MORE: Alarming reason why the birthrate in one Aussie state has plummeted Former prime minister John Howard has called on Treasurer Jim Chalmers to bring back the baby bonus in response to Australia's dwindling birth rate. Mr Howard applauded Dr Chalmers' hint at a series of incentives for Australians to have more children in the federal budget, which will be handed down on Tuesday night. Dr Chalmers' announcement last week follows news that Australia's birth rate has plummeted to 1.63 in 2022, below the 'replacement rate' of 2.1. It's been 22 years since the then prime minister Mr Howard and his treasurer Peter Costello, introduced a 'baby bonus' in the 2002 budget - a year after Australias birth rate dropped to 1.7. Under the policy, parents were given tax cuts worth thousands of dollars - and then lump sum payments - if they had a child. 'We do need more children and there is high immigration because of a dwindling birth rate,' Mr Howard told The Australian on Monday. Former Australian prime minister John Howard (pictured) has called for Treasurer Jim Chalmers to reintroduce the 'baby bonus' 'I'm delighted to hear Dr Chalmers promote the birth of more children and invite him to reintroduce the suite of Coalition policies introduced in the 1990s which led to the only rise in the birth rate in 50 years.' Mr Costello famously promoted the then-Coalition government's new baby incentives by encouraging women to have one baby for themselves and 'one for the country'. Dr Chalmers was more subtle in his address last week. 'I know that people will make their own choices and I don't pretend for a moment that the government should direct those choices, but we want to make it easier for people to have bigger families if they want to,' the Treasurer said. One aim of increasing the birth rate is to put less pressure on Australia's immigration program, which is currently running at a record high. Dr Chalmers (pictured with daughter Annabel) hinted at incentives for Australians to have more children in the upcoming Federal Budget in response to the country's dwindling birth rate Mr Howard highlighted his government's baby bonus and the introduction of the Family Tax A and B breaks for lifting the country's birth rate. Despite this, Dr Chalmers - who has faced backlash for urging parents to have more children during a cost of living crisis - shot down the idea a baby bonus will be included in this year's budget. 'We found a better way to support people who make that choice,' the treasurer said. Mr Howard remains Australia's second longest serving prime minister who served three terms from 1996 to 2007. The former Howard government's baby bonus scheme initially granted $2,500 in tax cuts per year for parents of newborns. It was amended to a $3,000 lump-sum payment two years later and had risen to $5,000 made in 13 installments by 2013 when then Labor treasurer Wayne Swan announced it would be abolished The scheme ended in March 2014. The mystery of a missing mother-of-two who disappeared with her boyfriend in 1968 when she was just 25 has finally been solved after almost six decades. Mary Alice Pultz, who was raised in Rockville, Maryland, had become estranged from her family after running away with John Thomas Fugitt, according to the St Johns County Sheriff's Office. The last time her family saw her alive was in 1968. But last week, in a stunning turn of events, the sheriff's office revealed skeletal remains that had been discovered on Crescent Beach, Florida, in 1985 by construction workers had now been positively identified as Pultz. An initial investigation determined the remains belonged to a white female between the ages of 30 and 50 - but the case turned cold over the years and the remains were left unidentified until January this year. The chilling mystery of Mary Alice Pultz, who disappeared with her boyfriend in 1968, has finally been solved almost six decades after she vanished aged 25 Pultz's boyfriend John Thomas Fugitt has been named a person of interest in her death, but he died in prison after he was convicted in the 1981 murder of his male roommate in Georgia Mary Pultzs remains were examined by medical examiner Dr. Wendolyn Sneed who found she had suffered multiple injuries. There were also three surgical burr holes drilled into her skull In 2011, the victim's skull and jaw were sent to the Florida Institute for Forensic Anthropology and Applied Science at the University of South Florida, where experts crated a facial reconstruction to see what she may have looked like. The image provided detectives with some leads, but the case hit another dead end and was left unsolved. That was until last year when the remains were sent to Othram, a lab in Texas that specializes in forensic genetic genealogy. Thanks to the hi-tech equipment in the lab, potential relatives of the victim were identified, the sheriff's office explained. Pultz's living relatives - son Norman Jenkins of Yuma, Arizona, and her sister Patricia Allamong of Winchester, Virginia, were found and agreed to undergo DNA sampling. Sergeant Gene Tolbert took a trip to meet with those relatives and after taking more DNA samples and carrying out further tests, and in January 2024 authorities were able to positively identify the remains. Further examinations to remains by medical examiner Dr Wendolyn Sneed revealed the victim had suffered a series of injuries including fractures of the nasal bones, multiple ribs, and on the lower legs - some of which were healed. There were also three surgical burr holes drilled into the mom's skull, according to the sheriff's office. Detectives investigating the case discovered, through conversations with her family, that the holes were likely drilled after she vanished from her home in the late 60s. 'Dr. Sneed advised these injuries, in addition to the surgical burr holes, are indicative of severe trauma that would have required hospitalization such as being involved in a vehicle crash or being struck by a vehicle,' the release said. Skeletal remains found in a shallow grave on Crescent Beach, Florida in 1985 were positively identified as Pultz in January this year St Johns County Sheriff's pictured on the St Augustine beach in 1985 when the remains were first discovered In 2011, the victim's skull and jaw were sent to the Florida Institute for Forensic Anthropology and Applied Science at the University of South Florida, where experts crated a facial reconstruction to see what she may have looked like The details of how the mom died remains unclear but her death is currently being investigated as a homicide and detectives have named boyfriend Fugitt as a person of interest in the chilling case. 'Although a significant amount of time has passed, detectives are hopeful that the information developed so far will result in a lead(s) that brings final closure to the family,' the sheriff's office said. Fugitt, who went by Tommy, also had an alias: Billy Joe Wallace. 'We don't know if Tommy had anything to do with Mary Alice's appearance but he is certainly at the top of our list in terms of persons of interest,' Tolbert said in a video posted to Facebook that the sheriff's office made about the case. But officers learned he was convicted in the 1981 murder of his male roommate in Georgia. He was sentenced to death in that case but died in prison before he could be executed, according to the sheriff's office. It is unclear if Pultz relocated to Florida with Fugitt as there were no recorded addresses or jobs she may have held between 1968 when she left Maryland, and 1985 when her remains were discovered. 'This investigation is a powerful example that we will never give up,' St. Johns County Sheriff Rob Hardwick said in a press release. 'The combination of highly skilled detectives and advanced DNA technology has given Mary Alice's family some answers about her disappearance close to 40 years ago.' Pultz's son, Norman, who was young when she left, said: 'I would just like to know if anyone ever saw her or knew her.' Claire Hao is a reporter on the Houston Chronicle business desk covering the Texas power grid, the clean energy transition and other electricity-related topics. Claire previously spent a year on the climate and environment team of the San Francisco Chronicle. She has written for the news desks of Bloomberg Law and the Chicago Tribune as well as for the editorial board of the Washington Post. Claire graduated from the University of Michigan. A husband allegedly kept his wife in a 'controlling and coercive relationship' after she complained about the smell of his dog. Zakaria Ammi, 34, is accused of limiting Amina Hachimi Alaoui's contact with her friends and family, as well as preventing her from exercising, studying and getting a job. He is said to have criticised her for not completing household chores, including putting his clothes in the right place and forbade her leaving the small studio they rented in Chelsea, save for visiting her mother-in-law. But she also complained about the smell of his dog - and its hair - during a police interview in which she said their marriage had become 'stressful' and she was 'scared' of her husband. Westminster Magistrates' Court heard the couple were married five years ago in Morocco, but only began living together from September to December 2023 when she moved to London. Zakaria Ammi, 34, pictured arriving at Westminster Magistrates' Court, is accused of keeping his wife Amina Hachimi Alaoui in a 'controlling and coercive' relationship Ammi is said to have criticised his wife for not completing household chores and forbade her leaving the small studio they rented in Chelsea, save for visiting her mother-in-law, after complaining about the smell of his dog As soon as she set foot in Britain, Ms Alaoui said she noticed a change in her lover and claimed he threatened to send her back to Morocco during heated arguments. Ms Alaoui complained to the police on 8 December about her husband and said in a recorded interview: 'The fact that he has got a dog and unfortunately I cannot stand the smell of the dog and I am sensitive to the dog hair. 'The smell of the dog affects me and I did tell him about this affecting me. I told him: "You did tell me if I had any problems with the dog you would sort it out."' Prosecutor Aaron McCalister said Ammi is accused of controlling Ms Alaoui in a coercive relationship by threatening to divorce her and send her back to Morocco. District Judge Michael Snow heard how Ms Alaoui was restricted in various ways, including being unable to leave their rented small studio in Chelsea, except when visiting her mother-in-law and was unable to exercise, take a job or study. Ms Alaoui wanted to improve her English with additional study, having passed a test in Morocco before moving over to Britain, and felt it was an important skill to develop. Mr McCalister added: 'Between September 1, 2023, and December last year there are allegations of controlling, coercive behaviour by the defendant towards his wife who is the complainant in the matter. 'Essentially, the allegation covers controlling her life, access to family and psychological abuse.' Ms Alaoui said she was told by her husband: 'You cannot go out alone. It is shameful for a woman to walk alone.' She added the marriage made her feel under pressure from her husband and this distressed her. Ammi denies one count of controlling or coercive behaviour and is on bail. The trial continues. King Charles today held his first joint engagement with Prince William since 2022 and gave him command of Prince Harry's former Army regiment just as the Sussexes landed in the UK from Nigeria. His Majesty has made his eldest son and heir Colonel-in-Chief of The Army Air Corps - the combat aviation arm of the British Army - at a ceremony at the Army Aviation Centre in Hampshire this afternoon. Father and son laughed as Charles handed William an Army Air Corps beret and belt as the Prince of Wales took on his younger brother's former unit - the 662 Squadron - on the day Harry left Nigeria after a three-day pseudo-royal tour with his wife Meghan. The Duke of Sussex served with 662 Sqn as an Apache helicopter pilot in Afghanistan, and it was widely thought he would have taken the role until he made the decision to step back from royal life in 2020 and emigrate to the US. But in a speech in front of an Apache helicopter today, Charles did not mention Harry, who flew the same aircraft in Afghanistan during two tours of duty. Instead he said William was a 'very good pilot indeed' - before sparking laughter by saying: 'So that's encouraging'. The King said: 'I do hope you'll go from strength to strength with the Prince of Wales as your new Colonel-in-Chief. I can't tell you how proud it has made me to have been involved with you all this time'. William then donned his new uniform and blue beret before being handed an Army Air Corp tartan wrap for the Princess of Wales, a scarf for himself and three wooden helicopters for George, Charlotte and Louis. He later left in an Apache. The event was happening as the Sussexes landed at London Heathrow this afternoon on a British Airways flight from Abuja. The couple are expected to board a plane to Los Angeles so they can be reunited with Archie and Lilibet in Montecito late tonight or tomorrow. Last week Harry spent three days in London to mark the ten-year anniversary of the Invictus Games - but was unable to meet with his father because of the King's packed diary. It has reportedly led to briefing and counter-briefing on both sides about why their paths never crossed. One source close to the King redeployed the famous phrase coined by the Queen about Harry and Meghan after Megxit, that 'recollections may vary', after a Sussex source told The Sunday Times: 'I was fully expecting them to meet. I know that's what he [Harry] wanted to happen'. It came as King Charles today revealed he has lost his sense of taste during his ongoing cancer treatment. Prince William, Prince of Wales, speaks to a serviceman as he sits in an Apache helicopter as he prepares to take off Prince William, Prince of Wales walks with service personal at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop after becoming Colonel-in-Chief of The Army Air Corps The Prince of Wales speaks with service personnel after donning his uniform and new blue beret King Charles III makes Prince William Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps today. William took on his younger brother's former unit - the 662 Squadron - just as Harry left Nigeria after a three-day tour with his wife Meghan Prince William, Prince of Wales prepares for boarding William reads instructions before departing the base on an Apache capability flight Charles and William at the Army Aviation Centre for the rare joint ceremony Charles and William were at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon Kensington Palace put out this tweet to mark the occasion today A younger Prince Harry in front of an Apache he flew in Afghanistan Meghan Markle and Prince Harry in Lagos yesterday. The couple landed at Heathrow this afternoon on their way home to the US Harry needed to give 28 days' warning to the King and the Home Office to request security arrangements for his stay, which began last Tuesday and ended on Friday when he met Meghan at Heathrow and flew to Nigeria. The Sunday Times spoke to people close to the Sussexes who said Harry's London visit was 'long on the radar' for the Palace. 'I can't imagine that request [from the Duke] fell through the gaps. Even if they didn't get a request, which I don't believe, could His Majesty not have made a request to see his son? It was widely known he was coming', one insider said. Another source told the newspaper: 'It surprises me a lot. I was fully expecting them to meet. I know that's what he wanted to happen and I don't know when he's next back.' But friends of the King have questioned the analysis from the Sussex camp, using the famous phrase coined by the Queen about the Sussexes, that 'recollections may vary'. 'While it is true that the King is understandably wary about meeting with Harry, given the publicity circus that seems to surround all such visits, he did of course agree to see his son at the most vulnerable moment of his illness and at very short notice,' a source said. Charles arrives by helicopter at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, today Charles and William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon Charles and William smile during the ceremony Britain's King Charles III speaks as he stands by helicopters at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire King Charles III meets staff members and their families at the Army Aviation Centre today King Charles III arrives at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, today Britain's Prince William speaks to service personal at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop William slipped into uniform after Charles III officially handed over the role of Colonel-in-Chief to him 'While he was hardly going to roll out the red carpet the moment this Invictus trip was announced, with doctors advising him to focus on his treatment and recovery, the idea that he refused to find space in his diarywell, let's say recollections may vary once again.' As well as the row over why Harry and Charles failed to meet, there will have been further salt in the wound because today's engagement with the King and William was being confirmed while Harry was in the UK. The King's decision to hand the role to William has been seen as a blow to Harry when it was announced last year. The King said it was a 'great joy' to meet servicemen, their families and veterans at an earlier visit to the Army Flying Museum but added the handover was 'tinged with great sadness'. He said: 'I do hope you'll go from strength to strength in the future with the Prince of Wales as your new Colonel-in-Chief. 'The great thing is he's a very good pilot indeed - so that's encouraging.' He unveiled a plaque commemorating an Apache AH Mk.1 going on display, the first of its kind to be installed at a UK museum. The aircraft was one of four involved in a rescue mission during the Battle of Jugroom Fort in 2007. The King said: 'Let me just say what a great joy it is to be with you even briefly on this occasion but also it is tinged with great sadness after 32 years of knowing you all, admiring your many activities and achievements through the time that I've been lucky enough to be Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps.' General Nick Barton, who took part in the rescue operation, said it was a 'unique honour' to meet the King who served as an important 'figurehead' for the soldiers. King Charles will today meet Prince William at a special ceremony where he will hand over command to his heir of Prince Harry's former regiment (Pictured here in Sandringham on Christmas Day 2023) It comes on the same day the estranged Duke of Sussex will jet back from his 'quasi-royal' tour in Nigeria with his wife Meghan Markle Charles spoke to one veteran who had recently undergone chemotherapy for testicular cancer, discussing losing the sense of taste as a result of the treatment. William embarked on his first engagement with the Army Air Corps after the King left, receiving a briefing on its work and inspecting training and operational aircraft as well as talking to soldiers. He was presented with gifts on behalf of the corps - a tartan scarf for the prince, a wrap for his wife Kate and three wooden helicopter models for each of the couple's children. He will later leave the base in an Apache as part of a capability flight. Kensington Palace posted two images of the prince during his military service on X, showing a young William in 1998 and 2009 - standing next to a helicopter in one picture and smiling at the controls in another. 'Time flies!' the caption read. The rare joint engagement for Charles and William comes on the same day the estranged Harry is jetting back from his 'quasi-royal' tour in Nigeria with his wife Meghan Markle. The Sussexes will head back to their Montecito mansion in California following their 'rock star' tour. Buckingham Palace announced last week that the King would have a joint engagement with William to pass on the role he held for 31 years to his eldest son. Charles announced in August last year that William would be appointed as Colonel-in-Chief, while also granting the Princess of Wales three new roles. A royal spokesperson said: 'At the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, His Majesty The King will officially hand over the role of Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps to His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales. 'In August 2023, following His Majesty's Accession, The King was pleased to announce military appointments including that The Prince of Wales would become Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps. 'The role was previously held by His Majesty The King, as Prince of Wales, for 31 years.' It came just two hours after Harry's spokesman said the King was too busy to see his youngest son during his whistlestop trip to the UK to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Invictus Games. The Duke of Sussex was in London for three days last week but# due to the King's busy schedule was unable to meet his father. Harry's spokesperson confirmed that it was 'unfortunately not possible' for the pair to meet 'due to His Majesty's full programme', as he returns to public duties after undergoing treatment for cancer. Following much speculation over whether the Duke would pop in to visit his father, who he last saw in February following his shocking diagnosis, Harry's spokesperson confirmed there was no time for a reunion. William previously spent three years at the base on Anglesey, taking part in 156 search and rescue missions and saving 149 people. Pictured: The then-Duke of Cambridge at RAF Valley in Anglesey in 2012 Prince William And Prince Harry at Raf Shawbury, Shrewsbury in 2009 The Prince and Princess of Wales have both been given three new military appointments each by King Charles. Pictured: William and Kate on the balcony of Buckingham Palace for the RAF centenary William is taking over as Colonel-in-Chief of The Army Air Corps, which would give him command over Harry's former unit, 662 Squadron. Pictured: Prince Harry at the Founder's Day Parade at Royal Hospital Chelsea in 2019 One royal commentator has claimed Prince Harry could have been in line for the role of Colonel-in-Chief of The Army Air Corps before quitting as a working royal. Pictured: Harry in his apache helicopter in Afghanistan in 2012 'In response to the many inquiries and continued speculation on whether or not The Duke will meet with his father while in the UK this week, it unfortunately will not be possible due to His Majesty's full programme,' he said. 'The Duke of course is understanding of his father's diary of commitments and various other priorities and hopes to see him soon.' Last night, Harry and Meghan completed the last leg of the tour of Nigeria with a trip to Lagos. The couple, visiting Nigeria together for the first time, stood on a red carpet and applauded and gasped as they were greeted with a traditional dance. In scenes reminiscent of a presidential visit, their fourteen car convoy - complete with machine guns mounted on trucks - swept from the airport to a basketball court where they met children from a local school. They were then guests of honour at the State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu's house, before rounded off the three-day tour by attending a charity polo match. The Sussexes visited Nigeria as part of a promotion of Harry's Invictus Games, the sporting event he founded for wounded military veterans. The couple arrived last Friday in the capital Abuja where they visited a school to open an event on mental health for students there in a trip that also saw the prince meet wounded Nigerian soldiers. One royal commentator claimed last August Harry himself could have been in line for the role as Colonel-in-Chief. Harry and Mgehan attending the polo fundraiser event in Lagos yesterday while on their tour of Nigeria There were several large photographs of Harry and Meghan on show Meghan ditched her neutral style in favour of a vibrant red dress in order to 'fit in' with Nigeria 's 'incredible fashion' Mr Sanwo-Olu presented Harry and Meghan with a statue of an Eyo masquerade - which represents the spirits of the dead Meghan appeared to be wearing an outfit made of aso oke - a hand-woven cloth from south-west Nigeria - which she had been gifted at a lavish lunch when the couple arrived in Lagos Harry and Meghan were swept from the airport to a basketball court where they met children from a local school Joe Little, managing editor of Majesty magazine, told the Mirror it was 'quite feasible' that if he hadn't quit life as a working royal - something that saw him stripped of his honorary military appointments - he might have been given the title. He said: 'Had Harry still been around he might well have had more appointments going his way.' William has also become the Royal Honorary Air Commodore at RAF Valley in Wales - he previously spent three years at the base on Anglesey, taking part in 156 search and rescue missions and saving 149 people. The Prince belonged to the RAF's 202 Squadron with colleagues regarding him as an outstanding pilot and as 'one of the family'. Though search and rescue operations were privatised in 2016, RAF Valley remains a training facility for fast jet pilots and crewsHe has also added Colonel-in-Chief of The Mercian Regiment to his growing list of military commitments. A pair of Republican-led House committees will advance resolutions to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress on Thursday, DailyMail.com has learned. The Oversight Committee and the Judiciary Committee will hold dual markups of their contempt resolutions this week. Both Oversight Chairman James Comer and Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan issued subpoenas to Garland for the audio of ex-special counsel Robert Hur's interview with Biden. They say Garland refused to comply with either subpoena, so both committees will move to hold him in contempt. The Justice Department says that it has been more than accommodating to the Republicans' requests for information. It has handed over a transcript of the interview, but not the recording itself. 'There must be consequences for refusing to comply with lawful congressional subpoenas and we will move to hold Attorney General Garland in contempt of Congress,' Comer said in a statement to DailyMail.com Monday. 'These audio recordings are important to our investigation of President Bidens willful retention of classified documents and his fitness to be President of the United States.' A pair of Republican-led House committees will advance resolutions to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress on Thursday, DailyMail.com has learned Both Oversight Chairman James Comer (above) and Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan issued subpoenas to Garland for the audio of ex-special counsel Robert Hur's interview with Biden The attorney general had until April 8 to hand over requested materials from Robert Hur's interviews with Biden that led him to conclude the president is 'elderly' and 'well-meaning' but has a 'poor memory.' They subpoenaed transcripts, notes, audio and video files largely related to Hur's interview. While the DOJ has handed over transcripts of Hur's interviews with Biden as well as the transcripts of an interview with Biden's ghostwriter Mark Zwonitzer, Republicans are unsatisfied. They have insisted they need audio from the Hur and Zwonitzer interviews too. The DOJ, however, said in an April letter to the GOP committee chairmen that the department had already been 'extraordinarily' accommodating in giving up the Biden transcript. They said releasing audio as well might make it harder for prosecutors to secure recorded interviews in the future, with witnesses knowing they could be blasted out into the public. 'The Committees have already received the extraordinary accommodation of the transcripts, which gives you the information you say you need,' the letter, written by assistant attorney general Carlos Uriarte, read. 'To go further by producing the audio files would compound the likelihood that future prosecutors will be unable to secure this level of cooperation. They might have a harder time obtaining consent to an interview at all. It is clearly not in the public interest to render such cooperation with prosecutors and investigators less likely in the future.' The letter said that the Oversight and Judiciary committees have not identified any valid reasoning for needing the audio of the interview in addition to transcripts. Still, the GOP disagreed. Comer clapped back in a statement: 'The Biden Administration does not get to determine what Congress needs and does not need for its oversight of the executive branch.' Hur, in a report explaining his decision not to prosecute Biden over mishandling classified documents, sparked opposition from all sides - Republicans who questioned why he would not charge the president and Democrats who took issue with his description of Biden as a 'sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.' 'The February 27 subpoenas create a legal obligation on you to produce this material,' the GOP lawmakers wrote to Garland. 'If you fail to do so, the Committees will consider taking further action, such as the invocation of contempt of Congress proceedings.' The Justice Department has only said it is conducting an 'interagency review' for classified and confidential information within the material. Hur said he found that Biden had 'willfully' retained classified material but stopped short of filing charges, believing a jury would not convict the president. He explained his decision to make the assessment in the hearing: 'I knew that for my position to be credible. I could not simply announce that there would be no charges, I needed to explain why. I needed to show my work.' 'We identified evidence that the President willfully retained classified materials after the end of his vice presidency, when he was a private citizen,' Hur said during a high-stakes hearing in April. In interviews with investigators, Biden became muddled about the dates he was vice president and could not even remember the year in which his son Beau died, according to the transcript reviewed by DailyMail.com. Biden forgot the year Beau died, when Trump was elected and said 'I don't recall', 'I don't remember' and 'I have no goddamn idea' more than 100 times while cracking jokes and making car noises with the investigators. And it said his cavalier attitude to classified documents, such as his habit of reading sensitive files to a ghostwriter, posed a significant national security risk. One of the reasons they decided not to press charges was because 'at trial, Mr. Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.' This image, contained in the report from special counsel Robert Hur, shows a damaged box where classified documents were found in the garage of President Joe Biden in Wilmington, Del., during a search by the FBI on Dec. 21, 2022 Close-up shot of damaged box containing Biden's classified documents This image, contained in the report from special counsel Robert Hur, shows notebooks in a file cabinet under a printer that were seized in first-floor home office of President Joe Biden in Wilmington, Del., on Jan. 20, 2023, during a search by FBI agents Hur said during testimony that he described Biden this way because of his 'inability to recall certain things' and that he had to be prompted by his lawyers to recall certain dates. According to transcripts of Hur's interviews with Biden on October 8 and October 9, 2023, Biden's lawyer had to tell him what year his son Beau died of brain cancer and the president joked about the special counsel finding pictures of his wife Jill in a swimsuit. I just hope you didnt find any risque pictures of my wife in a bathing suit. Which you probably did. Shes beautiful,' said Biden. 'What month did Beau die?' Biden mused at one point, adding, 'Oh God, May 30th.' 'He did not remember, even within several years, when his son Beau died. And his memory appeared hazy when describing the Afghanistan debate that was once so important to him,' Hur said. A White House lawyer then chimed in with the year, 2015. 'Was it 2015 he died?' Biden asked. A disgraced Kazakh minister slumped in the dock and gasped 'why?' as he was jailed for 24 years in Kazakhstan today over a fatal eight-hour beating of his wife. Saltanat Nukenova, 31, died of brain trauma after the vicious attack by her husband Kuandyk Bishimbayev, 44, a former economy minister in the oil-rich state. He was charged with torturing and murdering his astrologer wife, but he denied he deliberately killed her in a restaurant in Astana, the country's capital. Desperately seeking to avoid a life term, he told judge Ayzhan Kulbayeva: 'I am guilty of intentionally causing grievous harm to her health, which resulted in death through negligence. 'I am guilty, but not of premeditated murder.' He was convicted of 'murder with special cruelty' and 'torture', but the sentence was less than the life term that his wife's family had vociferously demanded. Bishimbayev gasped 'why' and slumped down in the dock with his head in his hands as the verdict was read by the judge. Saltanat Nukenova, 31, died of brain trauma after the vicious attack by her husband Kuandyk Bishimbayev, 44, a former economy minister Bishimbayev pictured with his head in his hands in court today after he was sentenced to 24 years in prison He was charged with torturing and murdering his astrologer wife, but he denied he deliberately killed her in a restaurant in Astana Bishimbayev gasped 'why' as the verdict was read by the judge Saltanat's father said before the verdict: 'I hope this inhuman will get a life term.' A video of the savage beating was so disturbing that members of the jury wept when it was shown in court what became the 'trial of the century' in Kazakhstan. Locals were transfixed to online court broadcasts which heightened demands for tougher curbs on domestic violence. The politician's jail term is a huge fall from being a possible heir to the ex-president Nursultan Nazarbayev, to whom he had been close. As if he had a right to beat his wife he shocked the court by saying 'I was clearly aware that no vital organ should [be hurt].' His mother-in-law shouted in court: 'You were beating her to death for several hours! A 'No to domestic violence' public rally in Kazakhstan in memory of murdered Saltanat Nukenova Footage shows Saltanat Nukenova, 31, being brutally beaten by her husband, Kuandyk Bischimbayev, 43, Kazakhstan's former economy minister, in a restaurant belonging to one of his relatives A second clip, from the restaurant lobby, shows the minister keeping up his brutal attack on his wife. As he grabs her throat, he drags her around a corner and starts to walk away before turning back Local media said that many Kazakhs see Bishimbayev as typical of the country's wealthy and powerful ruling elite. Most fear that even if he is found guilty, he will somehow escape proper punishment, as he did seven years ago in a corruption case Nukenova's older brother, Aitbek Amangeldy (pictured in court), told The Associated Press that he had no doubt his sister's tragic fate has shifted attitudes about domestic violence 'I didn't see my daughter, I didn't bury her, I didn't see her face. 'How did you beat her without particular cruelty?' Saltanat died of head wounds caused by a strike with a 'blunt object' after a night out in a restaurant named BAU, owned by the couple, which was closed to other guests. She sustained horrific injuries from which she died. 'These were not "bruises" on the face, but holes in her skull, at the back of the head and even inside her,' said he relatives. 'Her left eye leaked out,' they said. Saltanat died of head wounds caused by a strike with a 'blunt object' after a night out in a restaurant named BAU In this photo released by The Kazakhstan Supreme Court Press Office's Telegram channel on Friday, April 19, 2024, businessman Kuandyk Bishimbayev, the country's former economy minister, sits in a defendants' cage in court in Astana, Kazakhstan. Bishimbayev is on trial in the killing of his wife, Saltanat Nukenova On April 11, senators approved a bill toughening domestic violence laws and Kazakhstan's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed it four days later. It has been dubbed 'Saltanat's Law' He tried to destroy all CCTV evidence, and send the staff home to avoid witnesses. 'Bishimbayev showed Nukenova pornography and asked if she was in it,' the prosecutor alleged in court. Nukenova tried to leave him multiple times, claiming repeated beatings, according to evidence presented to the court When they met at the restaurant to resolve their problems, he beat her and she hid in a toilet, say reports citing law enforcement. 'Bishimbayev broke down the door, pulled her out, and carried on beating her,' alleged the prosecutor. Nukenova tried to leave him multiple times, claiming repeated beatings, according to evidence At an earlier hearing on April 3, Bishimbayev had pleaded not guilty to a charge of murder with extreme cruelty and instead claimed that his wife had died from 'self-inflicted' injuries After her killing, Bishimbayev reportedly calmly sat down for a meal and instead of calling an ambulance, the minister admitted to the court that he had phoned 'a clairvoyant friend' Bishimbayev was jailed for ten years on corruption charges in 2018 before a pardon by Nazarbayev after serving less than two years 'After dragging her out of the toilet, Bishimbayev grabbed Nukenova by the throat and strangled her, causing her to lose consciousness,' he said. The politician had been seen as a high-flyer in oil-rich Kazakhstan, destined for greatness. But Bishimbayev was jailed for ten years on corruption charges in 2018 before a pardon by Nazarbayev after serving less than two years. He then wed Nukenova, after divorcing his second wife Nazym Bishembayeva, but the relationship was tempestuous. They had met when she provided him with 'astrological services', and the couple married two months afterwards, following his divorce. The country has 100,000 registered cases of domestic violence annually Two women buy flowers in Astana, Kazakhstan, on Sunday, April 21, 2024. A high-profile trial involving the killing of Saltanat Nukenova has raised awareness of spousal abuse in the Central Asian country Saltanat Nukenova (pictured here with her husband) was found dead from a traumatic brain injury the next morning in one of the restaurant's VIP cabins, according to local media His ex-wife Nazym said: 'It's a tragedy 'My sincere condolences to Saltanat's family. 'I didn't even grasp what happened when people started calling me. 'It's so awful, it's utter shock.' Rallies were held in Kazakhstan against domestic violence highlighting the case. The UN estimates some 400 women a year are killed in Kazakhstan in domestic violence crimes. The country has 100,000 registered cases of domestic violence annually. The politician's cousin, Bakytzhan Baizhanov, was jailed for four years forfailure to report a crime in progress. Nazarbayev stepped down in 2019 in favour of Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, his chosen successor. At least eight people were executed after gunmen opened fire at a Mexican beer warehouse. Horrifying surveillance camera footage showed the assailants firing from a close distance and striking a person who was standing outside the distribution shop on Saturday night in Huitzilac, Morelos, just south of Mexico City. Another person could be seen running into the warehouse when they were also struck. The gunmen continue shooting for about 17 seconds before fleeing in two vehicles. WARNING GRAPHIC CONTENT: Gunmen pulled up in two vehicles and massacred eight people at a beer warehouse on Saturday night in Huitzilac, a city in the central Mexico state of Morelos Residents gather in front of a beer warehouse Huitzilac, Mexico where eight people were shot and killed on Saturday night Four men were declared dead on the scene while four other were rushed to hospitals in the municipality of Cuernavaca and died, the Morelos State Attorney General's Office said in a statement Sunday. Police sources told Milenio news outlet that three people were taken to an area hospital with gun shot wounds. No arrests had been reported as of Monday. 'It is a regrettable night for our municipality. The city council condemns all acts of violence. We demand all the support from the (federal) and the state (government) to reduce the rates of violence,' Huitzilac Mayor Rafael Vargas said in a statement. 'The violence must stop. We will denounce all types of defamation and comments that seek to harm our people for political purposes. The support of the federal and state governments is urgent.' Four men were pronounced dead on the scene and four more died in area hospitals after they were shot at a beer warehouse in Huitzilac, Mexico on Saturday Residents stand outside a beer warehouse in the central Mexican state of Morelos following Saturday night's shooting that left eight people dead. The state has reported 371 homicides in the first quarter of 2024 The shooting took place following Thursday's murder of three people inside a restaurant at a rest stop area. One of the victims was identified as the leader of a local criminal organization. Huitzilac police chief Jesus Tello Trejo was wounded in a shooting on Wednesday. The suspects in both incidents were not arrested. According to federal government data, at least 371 homicides have been reported in Morelos in the first quarter of 2024. Figures show that guns were used in 309 of the murders. The state registered 5,228 murders in 2023, an average of 14.3 per day. A UK Border Force officer and an immigration enforcement investigator were charged today with spying for Hong Kong in a landmark case. Chi Leung Wai, 38, who works at Heathrow Airport for UK Border Force and volunteers as a special constable for the City of London Police is accused of allegedly carrying out surveillance and hostile reconnaissance on pro-democracy activists in the UK for the Hong Kong intelligence service. He was charged today alongside former Royal Marine, Matthew Trickett, 37, who currently works as an immigration enforcement officer for the Home Office. A third man, Chung Biu Yuen, 63, a retired Hong Kong police officer now employed as a trade official, is also accused of allegedly assisting the Hong Kong intelligence service. Chi Leung Wai pictured leaving Westminster Magistrates' Court (left) today Chung Biu Yuen pictured leaving court today (left) and pictured on a motorcycle in 2002 (right) Trickett appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court today accused of spying for Hong Kong, he was pictured (left) leaving the court today In an extraordinary espionage case which is the first of its kind, the defendants are alleged to have carried out surveillance operations in the UK on behalf of Hong Kong authorities, allegedly targeting dissidents of the regime. It is the first that anyone has been charged with spying on British soil for the Hong Kong intelligence service. The trio were charged under the new National Security Act brought in last year to target those working secretly for hostile states within the UK. They are accused of hostile activity which includes information-gathering, hostile surveillance, acts of deception and forcing entry into a UK residential address. The primary targets are said to be pro-democracy campaigners from the Hong Kong diaspora now based in the UK. The three men are alleged to have broken into the home of one of their targets in Pontefract, West Yorkshire, on May 1 this year. Heathrow worker Chi Leung Wai, 38, is also accused of carrying out surveillance and hostile reconnaissance on pro-democracy activists in the UK Chi Leung Wai wore a face mask as he left the court building on Monday, charged with two other defendants Today all three appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court for a brief hearing just hours after Scotland Yard announced the charges. Wearing identical grey prison-issue tracksuits, they spoke only to confirm their names, dates of birth and addresses. No pleas were entered during the hearing. They stand charged with allegedly assisting a foreign intelligence service between 20 December 2023 and 2 May 2024 by engaging in conduct, namely agreeing to undertake information-gathering, surveillance and acts of deception. The trio also face a second charge of foreign interference on May 1 2024, by engaging in prohibited conduct, namely, forcing entry into a UK residential address. It can now be revealed that Wai, who is known as Peter, is a joint Hong Kong and British national living in Staines, Surrey, who has posed for photographs on social media wearing a Metropolitan Police uniform. According to his website, he is the founder and director of D5 Security and has over 20 years experience in the British military, police and private security sector. His co-defendant Trickett, 37, from Maidenhead, Berkshire, also served in the military as a Royal Marine between 2007 and 2013. He was formerly employed by the UK Border Force at Heathrow, before joining Home Office Immigration Enforcement on February 21 this year. He is also the director of a security consultancy firm formed in April 2021 called MTR Consultancy. The third defendant Yuen, who is known as Billy, lives in Dalston, East London, and works as the office manager for the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Bloomsbury, Central London. Court sketch of the three defendants appearing at Westminster Magistrates' Court, and, inset, a security van leaves the west London courthouse The home of Hong Kong spy suspect Chi Leung Wai, in Staines, Surrey, who neighbours said kept himself to himself An apartment block where Chung Biu Yuen lives. Neighbours told of their surprise that he had been arrested He refused to discuss the allegations when he returned to the upmarket home following his appearance in court. Dressed casually in corduroy trousers and a grey jacket, Yeun declined to give an explanation for the charges against him. However neighbours told of their surprise that he had been arrested. One said: I could not believe that he was arrested. He is a model neighbour. And there was similar shock in Wai's Surrey neighbourhood. One local, who declined to give his name, said Wai lived a quiet life at the modest two-bedroom terraced house near Heathrow airport. The neighbour said: Wow, I cant believe it. Chi Leung Wai, pictured in a police uniform, volunteers as a special constable for the City of London Police I know who he is but to be honest he keeps himself to himself.' Scotland Yard's Counter-Terrorism Command, supported by colleagues from Counter-Terrorism Policing North East and South East, have arrested a total of 11 people as part of the ongoing investigation. Commander Dominic Murphy, head of the Counter-Terrorism Command, said: A number of arrests were made and searches carried out across England as part of this investigation. While led from London, the Counter-Terrorism Policing network has been crucial to disrupting this activity and we have worked closely with the Crown Prosecution Service since the start of the investigation.' District Judge Louisa Cieciora granted the three men bail on conditions including that they surrender any international travel documents. The next hearing will be at the Old Bailey on May 24. A couple who ran a brothel together and prevented a woman from leaving the premises have been jailed today a judge heard how they made the woman's life a misery by sexual exploitation. Ionut-Alin Dobre, 30, and Nicoleta-Andreeva Zaharia, 33, who were each given a 17 month sentence had previously admitted controlling prostitution for gain prior to their sentencing today. A court heard that on October 5, 2023, Northamptonshire Police received a call from a man in Spain who reported that his former partner had been in touch to say she was being forced to engage in sex work by two people. When police arrived at the property the man gave, they found a woman in her 30s who said she had been detained inside since September 7. In her deeply distressing victim personal statement, which was read out at the hearing, the woman said: 'I keep having nightmares about how I was treated and I wake up afraid and have to check the room. Nicoleta-Andreeva Zaharia, 33, was given a 17 month sentence for her crimes Ionut-Alin Dobre, 30, was given the same sentence after he admitted controlling prostitution for gain 'Daily insignificant things like getting the shopping are hard. I feel like I do not even know if my legs will carry me. I am hesitant to answer the phone because I am not sure who is calling and I am worried that they are trying to contact me. 'They made me feel like I was property and I belonged to them.' A spokesman for the force said: 'Police deployed to the address supplied by the man and found a woman aged in her 30s inside the flat who they immediately safeguarded. 'Upon a search of the premises, officers found evidence to suggest it was being used for sex work and when they spoke to the woman it became clear that she had been unable to freely come and go from the premises since September 7 of that year. 'Dobre and Zaharia were arrested and subsequently charged with arranging/facilitating the travel of another person with a view to exploitation, controlling prostitution for gain and modern slavery. 'The duo admitted controlling prostitution for gain on March 4 and returned to Northampton Crown Court where they were each sentenced to 17 months in prison. 'A restraining order was also granted preventing either from contacting the victim directly until further order.' Lead investigator, Detective Constable Charlotte Orr of Northamptonshire Police CID, said: 'I am really pleased to see Dobre and Zaharia sent to prison. 'They exploited this woman for their own gain - coercing her into more and more sex work as time went on and taking a large proportion of her earnings. 'They made her feel used and stripped her of her freedom, leaving her unable to leave the flat when she wanted to. 'Thankfully she managed to get a message to the person who made the initial report to us and I hope that that the conclusion of this case, and the fact that both Dobre and Zaharia are now in prison, allows her to feel like some of the weight has been lifted off her shoulders.' King Charles and Prince William showed 'sheer joy in each other's company' during a rare joint engagement, with neither looking 'weighed down by the thought of fallouts with Prince Harry', a body language expert has claimed. The 75-year-old monarch arrived by helicopter to meet his eldest son on a Hampshire airfield where he handed over command of the Army Air Corps - the combat aviation arm of the British Army - to the Prince of Wales. His Majesty has made his heir Colonel-in-Chief at a special ceremony at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop this afternoon. As father and son stood together in front of an Apache, they laughed and smiled showing mutual fondness and playful appreciation, Judi James told MailOnline. William appeared to be 'proud and delighted' to see his cancer-stricken father at one point seemingly 'rocking with laughter', while their 'energised walk together' showed a 'sense of ease and familiarity'. King Charles and Prince William today showed 'sheer joy in each other's company' at a rare joint engagement, according to body language expert Judi James Judi James said their 'energised walk together' (pictured) showed a 'sense of ease and familiarity', while they showed no strain from 'any fallouts with Prince Harry' Father and son laughed as Charles handed William an Army Air Corps beret and belt as the Prince of Wales took on his younger brother's former unit - the 662 Squadron - on the day Harry left Nigeria after a three-day pseudo-royal tour with his wife Meghan. Charles had earlier appeared to show some 'inner anxiety' by 'stuffing his hand into the pocket of his jacket' as he stood alone to make a small speech before unveiling a plaque, Ms James said. 'It was when Charles stood with his son William though that we got some gloriously open signals of mutual fondness and playful appreciation. 'This was not the body language of a king and his heir and despite the importance of the moment there was no solemnity or formality. 'What the two men showed us was pure father/son body language and this was almost the first time they have treated us to a glimpse of the true nature of their relationship as it stands today.' Ms James continued that when William was younger he would often be seen 'egging his father on to pose for the press and trying to instigate some smiles from his more reluctant dad'. She added: 'The pair would in later years be seen chatting or standing together but here they showed their capacity for mutual fun and what looked like their sheer joy in one another's company.' Judi continued that when William was younger he would often be seen 'egging his father on to pose for the press and trying to instigate some smiles from his more reluctant dad' (Pictured here celebrating the late Queen Elizabeth II's Golden Jubilee in 2002) She continued that 'it was when Charles stood with his son William though that we got some gloriously open signals of mutual fondness and playful appreciation' Judi says 'this was almost the first time they have treated us to a glimpse of the true nature of their relationship as it stands today' Judi says Charles' touching moment with veteran who has also received cancer treatment shows he 'has developed a new capacity for empathy, thanks sadly to his illness' William 'appeared to look the most relaxed he has been since his wife Catherine's cancer diagnosis' Charles and William's public show of affection comes a week after Harry's spokesperson revealed his father's diary commitments meant he was 'too busy' to see his youngest son during his whistlestop trip to the UK Their public show of affection comes a week after Harry's spokesperson revealed his father's diary commitments meant he was 'too busy' to see his youngest son during his whistlestop trip to the UK to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Invictus Games. But William and Charles did not show any strain from the royal rift within the House of Windsor, Judi claimed, with the Prince of Wales, if anything, looking the most relaxed he has been since his wife Catherine's cancer diagnosis. 'William's body language suggested an air of almost loving relief and delight to be sharing the moment with his father after what must have been worries about his illness that would also have held ramifications for his own role as a royal,' she continued. 'This is perhaps the most relaxed William has looked recently, since Catherine's illness too. His focus here seems to be primarily as a son towards his father and the fact that this is a family moment seems to be pinned up there even higher than the bestowing and accepting of the role. 'William looks confident and capable here and Charles's playful approach does seem to suggest he knows his elder son can handle this new role easily and keenly. 'Neither man looks weighed down by the thought of fallouts that involve Harry, in fact the word "oblivious" springs to mind looking at these poses. 'This behaviour suggests an intensely affectionate relationship that has gained in intensity over the past couple of years and which has now deepened via the shared experience of Charles and Catherine's illnesses. 'They look like two men focused on overcoming those illnesses while repairing the royal Firm and very little else.' Charles shared a touching moment with another cancer patient at the ceremony in which the monarch revealed he had lost his sense of taste during his treatment. His Majesty was speaking to British Army veteran Aaron Mapplebeck who told the King he underwent chemotherapy last year for testicular cancer and that lost his sense of taste - and Charles revealed this had also happened to him. Ms James said Charles 'has developed a new capacity for empathy, thanks sadly to his illness'. 'His body language with this veteran suggests heightened levels of understanding and even bonding as they chat,' she said. 'He is now able to share experience now and his expressions and tone appear much more absorbed and even personal.' Prosecutors say the girl was abused by a dozen boys between April 2 and April 6 A teenage suspect who allegedly took part in a gang-rape of a 14-year-old girl said the victim looked like she was in pain and 'grimaced' during the attack, local media reports. Prosecutors say the girl was abused by a group of 12 boys on three occasions between April 2 and April 6 over the Easter holidays as horrifying new details continue to emerge about the case that has shocked Belgium. Interrogations of the suspects have revealed that the girl shouted 'stop' when the teenage boys assaulted her, with one 14-year-old suspect saying that she 'grimaced' and that he 'saw she was in pain', according to local outlet HLN. The girl also appeared dizzy during the attack, turned pale and her eyelids seemed to close, according to statements. The main suspect - the girl's 14-year-old boyfriend - allegedly took the girl with him to a wooded area called Kabouterbos in Kortrijk, West Flanders, Belgium, around 6pm on April 2 after they spent the day at a fairground. Once there, the boyfriend is said to have raped his young partner in front of the others before he 'loaned her out' to his friends to sexually assault her as well while the youngest of the boys, an 11-year-old, was used as a lookout, reports claim. Prosecutors say the girl was abused by a group of 12 boys on three occasions between April 2 and April 6 over the Easter holidays (pictured: the wooded area where the alleged attack took place) Prosecutors arrested ten suspects aged between 11 and 16 - all reported by local outlets to be boys of North African or Somali descent - and hauled them in for interrogation, but new reports say up to a dozen boys were involved in the attack. Citing 'well placed sources', Belgian outlet Nieuwsblad described the boyfriend as a 'loverboy boy' type who deliberately allowed his friends to abuse his young partner. 'Lover boy' in this case is a term used to describe human traffickers who typically operate by trying to make their young victims fall in love with them. But the boy denies that he 'lent out' his girlfriend to the other teenagers, and his lawyer said that 'further research is needed to clarify the facts'. Nieuwsblad said prosecutors turned up 'reprehensible behaviour' on the part of the suspects and 'revenge-mongering facts', citing the sources close to the investigation who said the alleged perpetrators showed 'a complete lack of sense of norms'. The girl is thought to have returned to the forest - a spot popular with mountain bikers - where she was raped, tormented and abused by the gang of minors twice while she was under the 'powerful' influence of her boyfriend, local media reports. The group took turns abusing the victim, and all participated 'to a greater or lesser extent,' according to Nieuwsblad. The victim was allegedly raped by at least four of the boys and touched by the others standing around them in a circle, while others filmed the attacks on their smartphones. The footage and images of the alleged attack were also shared on social media, reportedly over Snapchat - an instant messaging app that allows users to easily share pictures and videos. None of the group urged their friends to stop the abuse, sources said. The investigation has been conducted in the utmost secrecy by the West Flanders prosecutor's office to avoid any chance of family members of the victim or members of the public learning the identities of those involved. Although the alleged attack took place in early April, the girl didn't come forward for several days out of fear of telling her parents and the police. It wasn't until April 25 that the police were able to arrest the suspects. In total, ten boys were detained. Six of the suspects were placed in a closed institution, while the other four were placed under house arrest. They have since been questioned - all simultaneously and separately, so that investigators can compare all statements. Citing its sources, Nieuwsblad said many of the statements given by the boys were contradictory, a number of the suspects blaming each other. Some of the six minors placed in the institution appeared in juvenile court on Wednesday afternoon. It was reported that two were released on conditions. Nieuwsblad reported that four more minors are now in custody - including the 14-year-old boyfriend who, it is understood, has been made the main suspect. The main suspect - the girl's 14-year-old boyfriend - is alleged to have taken the girl with him to the wooded area called Kabouterbos in Kortrijk, West Flanders where she was assaulted by up to 10 boys who are reported to have shared footage of the attack on social media Prosecutors are now working to establish what extent each suspect was involved in the assault on the 14-year-old girl, or if any were bystanders. Tom Janssens of the Public Prosecutor's Office said that on account of the age of all those involved, little is being said publicly on their identity. He did confirm that ten suspects had been identified and arrested, and that all were minors. 'Because the perpetrators are so young, we are not releasing much information about their identity,' Janssens told The Brussels Times. According to the boyfriend's lawyer, her client has disputed the events as they have been reported. 'My client also wants the truth to come to light and for the matter to be thoroughly investigated,' lawyer Nur Demirtas told local media. 'He understands that he is now locked up, but this is also traumatising for him. This is also very difficult for his parents, wealthy people who have tried to give their son a good upbringing. They don't understand how this could happen,' Demirtas said. 'It also strikes me that suspects of such crimes are becoming younger and younger. That is very disturbing.' Lawyer Kelly De Caluwe, who is defending a 16-year-old suspect of Somali origin, said the minors had 'all been interrogated simultaneously and the investigators will now test the statements to find out the truth'. 'These are horrible facts,' she said. 'The question is how it is possible that these children have lost all sense of norms. What should we do with this? 'How are we going to solve this? It is a question that should be asked not only to the juvenile judge but also to society as a whole. I have not yet experienced such facts in my fifteen-year career.' Caluwe said her client said things he did not mean during the questioning and has asked for a re-examination. 'I asked for a re-examination because due to the language barrier he said things that did not match what he meant,' she said, according to Nieuwsblad. 'To me he is not a rapist. Although he realises that something very wrong has happened. That realisation comes gradually.' 'To me he is not a rapist. Although he realises that something very wrong has happened. That realisation comes gradually.' Kortrijk mayor Vincent Van Quickenborne said he was shocked when he first learned about the case that he has known about behind closed doors 'for some time'. 'The public prosecutor's office does not allow me to say anything about the facts themselves, but I had been aware of the investigation for some time,' he said. 'These are cra*py acts for which there are no words. I say that not only as a politician, but also as a father of 3 young children.' The girl is thought to have returned to the forest - a spot popular with mountain bikers - where she was raped, tormented and abused by the gang of minors twice while she was under the 'powerful' influence of her boyfriend, local media reports The criminal age of responsibility in Belgium is 18, meaning the suspected sexual abusers were sent before a juvenile judge and are likely to have been placed into a personal rehabilitation programme in youth facilities. But it is possible the 16-year-old in question could be dealt with under adult criminal law, given the exceptional nature of the case. The victim, meanwhile, is receiving specialist guidance following her ordeal. In Belgium it is possible to lock up children as young as 12 for longer periods if they are found guilty of rape and gang rape, and since 2022, offenders aged 16 and over who committed such crimes can be tried as adults. East Flanders's Justice Minister Zuhal Demir - who advocated for the tightening of juvenile delinquency laws - said parents of children who commit such crimes 'must be held accountable'. 'You simply cannot deal with this kind of violence with lower [sentences],' she said, according to The Brussels Times. 'Such [perpetrators] must be taken off the streets and their parents must be held accountable. Juvenile judges should make more and full use of the recent tightening of juvenile delinquency law.' On why it likely took the 14-year-old girl time to come forward after the early April incident, professor of forensic psychology Frederic Declercq told De Morgen: 'There is always under-reporting of sexual crimes, whether it concerns a gang rape or an individual case. It is a well-known fact that victims usually feel more guilty than the perpetrators.' 'In addition, there is a lot of shame in reporting crime. What also plays a role, for both female and male victims, is stigmatisation. You are no longer who you always were. If you come out, you are a rape victim.' There will be a hearing in juvenile court on May 24, which will determine what happens to the underage suspects. He slammed criticism of far-right guests: 'This is what I hate about this country' The late night host claimed his approach was to 'keep it real,' not 'tribal' Comedian Bill Maher asserted that he speaks for the 'normies' who are 'tired of partisanship' in politics and defended his decision to platform controversial guests during a sit-down interview. The 68-year-old host of HBO's 'Real Time' appeared on 'CBS News Sunday Morning' ahead of the release of his new book, aptly titled 'What This Comedian Said Will Shock You.' Maher discussed his approach to comedy with correspondent Robert Costa, who noted that he frequently took digs at both sides of the aisle. 'Keep it real. Don't be tribal. Don't say something just because that's going to make the audience of one side applaud, or boo,' Maher said. He claimed that represented 'normies' and 'that vast middle that is tired of the partisanship,' adding, 'I dont want to hate half the country, and I dont hate half the country.' The 68-year-old host of HBO 's 'Real Time' appeared on 'CBS News Sunday Morning' ahead of the release of his new book, aptly titled 'What This Comedian Said Will Shock You' Maher discussed his approach to comedy with correspondent Robert Costa Maher has addressed this rift on 'Real Time.' 'The right response to speech you don't like is more speech, not the lazy, cowardly response of canceling people,' he said during an episode in February 2022. On Sunday he acknowledged that this approach and his decision to host far-right figures like Steve Bannon and Roger Stone have garnered controversy. 'Yeah, this is exactly what I hate about this country,' Maher professed. '"How dare you? How dare you platform someone." 'Youre gonna have to talk to people, and maybe youll find out that they are not the monsters you think they are.' Costa pushed back against Maher's unabating attacks on Democrats - who 'irritate' and 'frustrate' him at most, according to the book - despite claiming to be more 'alarmed' about Republicans. 'Yes, Theyre very alarming. Theyre extremely alarming. More alarming,' Maher affirmed. However, he continued, 'The truth isnt one-sided like that. The Democrats constantly are running against Trump with the idea "You people out there couldnt possibly vote for this guy." And people are saying, "Watch me. Hold my beer. Watch me vote for him again."' He claimed that represented 'normies' and 'that vast middle that is tired of the partisanship,' adding, 'I dont want to hate half the country, and I dont hate half the country' Maher appealed to Democrats to simply address the facts. 'Like, we know he's a liar. He's Donald Trump! He can't help himself. He's crazy,' the 68-year-old said. 'I mean, I think literally crazy. I think there's a kind of a level of malignant narcissism, which is not just a personality quirk, it's diagnosable, and he suffers from it.' 'If you had him on "Real Time," what would you ask him?' Costa asked. 'Would you please go away?' Maher quipped with a laugh, before alluding that former President had received an invitation before. 'Of course, we've asked everybody, I mean, of that stature. He knows he has an open invitation to come on, but I don't think he really hates me, because the amount of times that he goes after me.' While Maher emphasizes the importance of facts and objectivity, he has not shied away from voicing his opinions. These include his distaste for gender-affirming care and his support of Israel amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. 'They say in politics, liberals are the gas pedal and conservatives are the brakes. And I'm generally with the gas pedal, but not if we're driving off a cliff,' Maher said during an episode of his talk show last month. 'On the trans issue, America is no ands, ifs or buts about it, absolutely alone in the world now, an outlier country.' In March, he proclaimed that 'far-left liberals' were 'living in an old paradigm,' as 'Americans dont fit into neat little boxes anymore.' The outspoken host donated $1 million to a super PAC affiliated with Senate Democrats in 2018, according to campaign finance disclosures. Meyerland Performing and Visual Arts Middle School parents and students demonstrate against the resignation notice of Principal Auden Sarabia on Monday, May 13, 2024 in Houston. Sarabia told staff he must either resign by Tuesday or go before the district's Board of Managers. Brett Coomer/Staff photographer Meyerland Performing and Visual Arts Middle School parents and students demonstrate against the resignation notice of Principal Auden Sarabia on Monday, May 13, 2024 in Houston. Sarabia told staff he must either resign by Tuesday or go before the district's Board of Managers. Brett Coomer/Staff photographer Meyerland Performing and Visual Arts Middle School parents and students demonstrate against the resignation notice of Principal Auden Sarabia on Monday, May 13, 2024 in Houston. Sarabia told staff he must either resign by Tuesday or go before the district's Board of Managers. Brett Coomer/Staff photographer Meyerland Performing and Visual Arts Middle School parents and students demonstrate against the resignation notice of Principal Auden Sarabia on Monday, May 13, 2024 in Houston. Sarabia told staff he must either resign by Tuesday or go before the district's Board of Managers. Brett Coomer/Staff photographer Meyerland Performing and Visual Arts Middle School parents and students demonstrate against the resignation notice of Principal Auden Sarabia on Monday, May 13, 2024 in Houston. Sarabia told staff he must either resign by Tuesday or go before the district's Board of Managers. Brett Coomer/Staff photographer Meyerland Performing and Visual Arts Middle School parents and students demonstrate against the resignation notice of Principal Auden Sarabia on Monday, May 13, 2024 in Houston. Sarabia told staff he must either resign by Tuesday or go before the district's Board of Managers. Brett Coomer/Staff photographer Roughly 200 parents and students started their day protesting in front of Meyerland Performing and Visual Arts Middle School, one of many Houston ISD campuses sent into turmoil last week with news that their principal was asked to resign. "Everything going on in the district right now is absolutely ridiculous," said Karina Gates, a Meyerland alum. "I don't even understand. How do you fire the Principal of the Year from last year? I don't get it. It's just politics. And they're screwing with our kids and their futures, and no, no that's not going to happen." SUBSCRIBER EXCLUSIVE: Join our private Zoom event with HISD Superintendent Mike Miles Advertisement Article continues below this ad Gates and Leslie Santamaria wanted their rising sixth graders, attending nearby S.C. Red Elementary, to attend Meyerland PVA because of the magnet school principal's "fantastic reputation," Santamaria said. But Principal Auden Sarabia was among several principals asked to resign or face a termination that he must appeal to HISD's Board of Managers, parents said. Gates and Santamaria said their children at Red started the academic year with a new principal and are under different leadership after that principal's January resignation. They could not weigh in on the selection processes for both principals after asking to do so, they said. Protesters outside the school held signs blasting state-appointed Superintendent Mike Miles and calling for the protection of principals and teachers. The district has not disclosed how many principals have been targeted for alleged low performance. Meyerland Performing and Visual Arts Middle School parents and students demonstrate against the resignation notice of Principal Auden Sarabia on Monday, May 13, 2024 in Houston. Sarabia told staff he must either resign by Tuesday or go before the district's Board of Managers. Brett Coomer/Staff photographer The district also hasn't disclosed the breakdown of employees being let go as part of a $450 million funding gap. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The district's Board of Managers unanimously approved measures Thursday to allow the district to cut dozens of staff and teaching positions, including librarians; counselors; principals; and reading, math and science teachers. Miles said earlier that day teachers and principals received notices based on performance metrics, including instruction and achievement data, but that those cuts were unrelated to the "reduction in force." HISD said in a Monday statement that its decisions regarding principals do not relate to its budget. "All contract non-renewals for principals are unrelated to HISDs overall budget challenges," the spokesperson wrote. "Instead, these contract decisions are being made again with the goal of ensuring every student receives high-quality instruction, every day. In some cases, we hope principals who do not retain their current position for next school year will apply for assistant principal or other roles within HISD that will help the educator grow their instructional leadership." Parent and protest co-organizer Rochelle Cabe noted Sarabia, as well as Neff Elementary School Principal Amanda Wingard who confirmed on Facebook the district asked her to resign, were Principals of the Year in 2023. Advertisement Article continues below this ad "I guess the district believes that in just the period of one year, these people who had years upon years of stellar performance within their careers, have gone from being the best in their organization to fireable," Cabe said. "And I can't believe that's the case. That's insane." Parents at Browning Elementary School and Crockett Elementary School also protested Monday after the district announced Friday their principals will not return next school year. Crockett Elementary School, Browning Elementary School and Mickey Leland College Preparatory Academy for Young Men received written notices announcing principal departures. The principal of Frank Black Middle School also announced leaving relatively recently in an April 25 letter, parent Heather Winter said. The Houston Chronicle is still seeking to confirm principal departures, as several principals appear to have resigned prior to this round of terminations. Meyerland Performing and Visual Arts Middle School parents and students demonstrate against the resignation notice of Principal Auden Sarabia on Monday, May 13, 2024 in Houston. Sarabia told staff he must either resign by Tuesday or go before the district's Board of Managers. Brett Coomer/Staff photographer Teachers asked to resign The district also gave an unknown number of teachers notices to attend what the district calls Conferences for the Record. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Houston Federation of Teachers President Jackie Anderson said that the union, with more than 6,000 members, recommends teachers find out whether they are being asked to leave due to a "reduction in force" tied to the budget or to performance. Teachers called to these meetings either have the option to resign or appeal their termination in what Anderson understood to be a lengthy process. "Employees who are not eligible to continue working in the NES (New Education System) but meet the requirements for non-NES positions in HISD are encouraged to apply for those available roles," HISD's spokesperson wrote. Briargrove Elementary School parents are organizing a districtwide protest Saturday morning by City Hall after the HISD asked some of their teachers to resign, Briargrove parent Tracie Tate said. Parents keep count of affected teachers by word of mouth, Tate said, and the district hasn't sent any written communication on teacher departures. She said her son's second grade teacher was asked to resign. The teacher is planning to appeal the decision. Tate's son, who is on the autism spectrum and has dyslexia, has gone from struggling with reading at the beginning of the year to finishing the Harry Potter series on his own, Tate said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad "She really takes a special interest in each one of her students and fosters their love of learning and reading," Tate said. "She's just been such a wonderful influence on him." HISD said cutting teacher positions was not related to the budget. Principals used data to determine which teachers are eligible to continue working in the NES and will be retained in their current positions based on the schools projected enrollment, HISD administration said. "In our non-NES schools, most decisions to retain or release a teacher are made by the principal and are based on data and classroom evaluation," a spokesperson wrote. "Campuses that saw enrollment declines may have had to adjust their staffing for next school year, but again teaching positions were not cut in the HISD budget." Meyerland Performing and Visual Arts Middle School parents and students demonstrate against the resignation notice of Principal Auden Sarabia on Monday, May 13, 2024 in Houston. Sarabia told staff he must either resign by Tuesday or go before the district's Board of Managers. Brett Coomer/Staff photographer Call for transparency The district's letters to Crockett and Browning families did not say why principals were leaving before moving on to the subject of finding a new one. "Conference for the Record" letters to teachers did not indicate specifics about the meeting, Anderson said. Describing the job loss as "deeply troubling," Houston Council Member Edward Pollard called on the district "to provide immediate, transparent answers" in a Saturday statement. PRINCIPAL TRACKER: Schools with leadership turnover since Mike Miles became superintendent "These layoffs raise serious questions about the decision-making process within HISD," Pollard said. "Why were these employees not given any prior notice? On what basis were the decisions made about who would lose their jobs? Such actions not only disrupt lives but also shake the very foundation of trust that should exist between a school district and its community." HISD administration said it will use surveys, community meetings and summer meetings with incoming principals in its principal hiring process. "The district understands that leadership transitions are disruptive for the impacted school communities, and that the principal is often the most visible and accessible person on a campus," the administration wrote. "Division leaders will work with every impacted campus to identify each communitys priorities for their next school leader." Derek Fincham, father of a Crockett Elementary School kindergartner, called the district's letter "Orwellian in language." Experts slam the move and said the city needs more units for long-term renters Over half of all new condos being built in Miami are specifically for short-term rentals as residents struggle to find affordable long-term housing, a new report found. As droves of new residents arrive in the Sunshine State, many are struggling to find affordable housing as the state's condo market is in the doldrums. Real-estate firm ISG World reported that 31 pre-construction condo buildings in the Miami region are primed to be turned into Airbnbs, according to Business Insider. A total of 10,335 condo units are in the pre-construction phase across Miami-Dade County and nearby Broward County - and more than 50 percent of the total condos are set to be short-term rentals, the firm's first quarter report found. Miami has long been heralded as a top party and beach vacation spot in the US - with its hot weather, luxurious restaurants, and booming nightlife. Real estate firm ISG World reported that a total of 10,335 condo units in the pre-construction phase across Miami-Dade County and nearby Broward County are set to be short-term rentals The Florida city has also become known as a playground for the rich and famous - from billionaires docking their yachts along the coast, to A-listers flocking to Miami for its see-and-be-seen social calendar, including Art Basel each December. 'We've had a development industry that is adding more short-term rentals to South Florida inventory, and that's not what we need,' CEO of ISG World Craig Studnicky said. Studnicky suggested developers should focus on building traditional rentals to meet the demands of the market. In most of Florida's major markets, condo sales are down in January, despite falling prices, according to data from brokerage firm Redfin. Condo sales were down 6.8 percent statewide in Florida from a year ago in January, with pending sales down 3.5 percent on the year. In Miami, for example, condo prices fell 3 percent in January from a year ago, sales dropped 9 percent and new listings rose 27 percent, according to Redfin. Experts said the soaring cost of insurance in Florida, along with rising monthly condo fees, are reducing demand from buyers by making condos more expensive to own. According to the Insurance Information Institute, homeowner's insurance in Florida has jumped 102 percent in the last three years, and costs three times more than the national average. Last year the average cost of home insurance in the Sunshine State was about $6,000, the highest average premium in the US, according to figures from the group cited by WTVT-TV. Miami is found to be lacking lacking affordability and there is currently a $1.5 billion gap to provide adequate, affordable housing for the entirety of Miami-Dade County, according to a study by the nonprofit Miami Homes for All. Experts said the soaring cost of insurance in Florida, along with rising monthly condo fees, are reducing demand from buyers for condos. Pictured: A $259 per night Miami Airbnb condo Miami residents have complained of rowdy partiers staying in short-term rentals. Pictured: A $364 per night Miami Airbnb condo The county is missing over 90,000 affordable units for renters making less than $75,000 a year, the study found. Along with meeting the demand for traditional rentals, other residents have complained of rowdy partiers staying in short-term rentals. Current Miami condo Airbnbs having a going rate between $100 a night to nearly $400. Miami Beach Police cracked down on spring breakers this year by implementing bag checks, restricted beach access, DUI checkpoints, license plate readers, liquor stores shutting at 8pm and heightened police enforcement for consumption of alcohol in public, drug possession and violent behavior. During last year's spring break, a state of emergency was declared when two people were shot dead. About 105 firearms were seized and 488 arrests were made by officials. Former White House press secretary Jen Psaki falsely claimed that President Joe Biden did not look at his watch during the ceremony at Dover for the 13 soldiers killed during the withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021. Psaki wrote in her new book Say More Lessons from Work, the White House, and the World that 'the president looked at his watch only after the ceremony had ended. Moments later, he and the First Lady headed toward their car.' She wrote in her book that claims to the contrary were 'misinformation.' US President Joe Biden looks down alongside First Lady Jill Biden as they attend the dignified transfer of the remains of a fallen service member at Dover Air Force Base in Dover Jen Psaki speaks during a conversation with Kara Swisher about her book 'Say More: Lessons from Work, the White House, and the World' That was incorrect, as multiple fact-checkers noted at the time, pointing out that Biden was caught on news cameras looking at his watch during the ceremony at least twice. Military families voiced their outrage at Biden's apparent disrespect. Some family members attending the ceremony claimed Biden looked at his watch as many as a dozen times. Darin Hoover, the father of Marine Staff Sgt. Taylor Hoover, and Mark Schmitz, the father of Marine Lance Cpl. Jared Schmitz voiced their outrage at Biden during an interview with Fox News. 'They would release the salute and he looked down at his watch on every last one,' Hoover said. 'All 13, he looked down at his watch.' Psaki initially did not respond to controversy but said Monday to Axios that she would update future printings of her book to correct her mistaken claim of misinformation. 'Say More. Lessons from Work, the White House, and the World' by Jen Psaki released on May 7, 2024 by Simon and Schuster Jen Psaki speaks onstage during an event with Lawrence O'Donnell She wrote that the 'detail in a few lines of the book about the exact number of times he looked at his watch will be removed in future reprints and the ebook.' When she was still Biden's press secretary, Psaki was asked about the president looking at his watch during the Dover ceremony by Fox News reporter Jacqui Heinrich in August 2021. At the time, Psaki dodged answering the question, pointing instead to the president's loss of his own son. 'That he knows firsthand what it's like to lose a child and the fact no one can tell you anything, or say anything, that there's no words that are going to fill that hole that is left by that.' Rishi Sunak is facing a fresh legal headache over his Rwanda plan today after a judge ruled that it cannot go ahead in Northern Ireland. The High Court in Belfast has decided that the provisions of the Illegal Migration Act undermine human rights protections under the Windsor Framework agreed with the EU by the PM. Mr Justice Humphreys also said aspects of the Act were incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The PM has played down the impact of the ruling, insisting it 'changes nothing', and vowing the courts will not prevent him defending national security. 'I have been consistently clear that the commitments in the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement should be interpreted as they were always intended, and not expanded to cover issues like illegal migration. We will take all steps to defend that position, including through appeal,' he said. However, there will be fresh concerns about legal wrangling delaying the policy, while the DUP has warned Northern Ireland could become a 'magnet for asylum seekers'. The row comes amid signs the Rwanda scheme is already having a deterrent effect, with Ireland complaining that migrants are crossing the border to avoid being deported to the African state. The post-Brexit framework includes a stipulation that there can be no diminution of the rights provisions contained within Northern Ireland's Good Friday peace agreement of 1998. The Illegal Migration Act provides new powers for the Government to detain and remove asylum seekers it deems to have arrived illegally in the UK. Central to the new laws is the scheme to send asylum seekers to Rwanda. Rishi Sunak is facing a fresh legal headache over his Rwanda plan today after a judge ruled that it cannot go ahead in Northern Ireland There will be fresh concerns about legal wrangling delaying the policy - with signs it is already having a deterrent effect (pictured, a group of migrants crossing the Channel earlier this month) Mr Justice Humphreys delivered judgment at Belfast High Court in two challenges against the Act that focused on the peace process human rights protections guaranteed by the Windsor Framework. The judge found that several elements of the Act do cause a 'significant' diminution of the rights enjoyed by asylum seekers residing in Northern Ireland under the terms of the Good Friday Agreement. 'I have found that there is a relevant diminution of right in each of the areas relied upon by the applicants,' he said. He added: 'The applicants' primary submission therefore succeeds. Each of the statutory provisions under consideration infringes the protection afforded to RSE (Rights, Safeguards and Equality of Opportunity) in the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement.' The judge ruled that the sections of the Act that were the subject of the legal challenges should be 'disapplied' in Northern Ireland. He also declared aspects of the Act incompatible with the ECHR. One of the cases was taken by the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission and the other by a 16-year-old asylum seeker from Iran who is living in Northern Ireland having arrived in the UK as an unaccompanied child. The boy, who travelled from France by small boat and claimed asylum in July 2023, has said he would be killed or sent to prison if he returned to Iran. The judge agreed to place a temporary stay on the disapplication ruling until another hearing at the end of May, when the applicants will have an opportunity to respond to the judgment. Dr Tony McGleenan KC, representing the Government, indicated that an appeal may be considered. 'We'll be taking our instructions on the judgment and the position in terms of any further litigation will become clear, my Lord,' he said. The High Court in Belfast has decided that the provisions of the Illegal Migration Act undermine human rights protections under the Windsor Framework agreed with the EU by the PM Outside court, solicitor Sinead Marmion, who represented the teenage Iranian asylum seeker applicant, said the judgment was 'hugely significant'. Ms Marmion said the judgment would prevent the Rwanda scheme applying in Northern Ireland. 'This is a huge thorn in the Government's side and it has completely put a spanner in the works,' she said. 'There's a huge obstacle in the way of them being able to actually implement that in Northern Ireland now, as it's been found to be incompatible with the Windsor Framework.' DUP leader Gavin Robinson said the party had warned that the Windsor Framework would block the Rwanda plan in the province. 'It is imperative that immigration policy applies equally across every part of the United Kingdom,' he said. 'As Unionists, we are clear that our national parliament should have the ability to make decisions on immigration that are applicable on a national basis. 'If that were not the case, it would not only be a constitutional affront but would make Northern Ireland a magnet for asylum seekers seeking to escape enforcement.' Mr Sunak played down concerns, saying: 'This judgment changes nothing about our operational plans to send illegal migrants to Rwanda this July or the lawfulness of our Safety of Rwanda Act. 'We continue to work to get regular flights off to Rwanda in the coming weeks and nothing will distract us from that or delivering to the timetable I set out. We must start the flights to stop the boats.' During a speech in London this morning, Mr Sunak said: 'When people see that if they come here illegally, they will be swiftly detained and removed, they will be deterred from making that perilous journey, stopping the boats and saving thousands of lives. 'I know that our international frameworks are outdated. So there may be flashpoints ahead with the ECHR. 'And if the Strasbourg Court make me choose between the ECHR and this country's security, I will choose our country's security every single time.' Pubgoers are fighting to stop a Grade-II listed inn run by the wife of TV star Paul Hollywood from being turned into a house. Plans to turn The Chequers Inn in the Kent village of Smarden have sparked fury from locals, with a group now raising money to buy the building and run it for themselves as a community pub because they are worried it could be 'lost forever'. The pub has been owned by the Spalding family for years, including long-serving landlady Melissa Spalding. She married Bake Off judge Hollywood last September - and locals have now appealed directly to him to step in. The pub's owner Glenn Spalding submitted plans in January to turn the 16th-century building into a single-dwelling home, with a decision set to be made on Wednesday. The Chequers Inn pub in Smarden, Kent, has been owned by the Spalding family for years Great British Bake Off judge Paul Hollywood reportedly met his wife Melissa Spalding at the pub Dozens have objected and are instead supporting plans to make it a community venue. One villager said: 'It would be a crying shame. I cannot believe it would be a good idea for us to lose such an asset, which is what the pub provides. 'Surely Paul can get involved and make a difference. The community is right behind plans to keep it the way it is.' Russ Phipps, 60, one of the group's seven members and a regular at The Chequers, said: 'The group came about when we realised we could lose our pub forever. The Chequers Inn pub has seven rooms and a large two-bedroom owner's accommodation Locals in the village of Smarden have now appealed directly to Paul Hollywood to step in 'It's still early days, and we're going through a process, but our prime objective is to save the pub. The village has experience doing this, as we've shown with the community shop. 'At least if it shuts or turns into a house, we can walk past with our heads held high and think we tried everything.' The application for conversion, which is recommended for approval by planning officers, details how the pub struggles to compete with nearby rivals The Flying Horse and The Bell, which are both owned by breweries. It says: 'With three public houses serving such a small community and with a changing approach to drinking in the 20th century, it was always going to be difficult for all three to survive. Russ Phipps, 60, is one of the group's seven members and a regular at The Chequers Inn pub 'There is no obvious other commercial use for the building, so the decision was made to seek a residential use. 'Whilst the business has good Tripadvisor reviews, Smarden is not located in a prime position to capitalise on the tourist trade and the trade there is no longer adequate to maintain the business.' The application adds that three local attractions drawing visitors - Headcorn Aerodrome, the Big Cat Sanctuary and Sissinghurst Castle - now have accommodation options closer to them. Hollywood reportedly met Ms Spalding at the pub four years ago, and she has been the landlady for 16 years. Majorcans have erupted in fury after social media snaps showed a man walking through the centre of Palma with nothing but a pair of Speedos, socks and shoes. The man, who has not yet been identified, was seen strolling through Palma with little on his person, save for a red beach towel. He was seen walking through the busy street, with dozens of people around him in the Jaume III neighbourhood of Palma. Social media users eviscerated the man online, with one saying: 'Another moron that should be banned from the island. 'If the government/police were serious, they could slowly improve Mallorca by banning all these types of idiots.' The man, who has not yet been identified, was seen strolling through Palma with little on his person, save for a red beach towel He was seen walking through the busy street, with dozens of people around him in the Jaume III neighbourhood of Palma Another called for his arrest: 'Please arrest these near naked people. 'Or the shirtless, near nude, bikini wearing morons who wander around markets, towns and shops. Ukkk! Quality tourism can't come soon enough!' According to the UK's FCDO, it is 'illegal to be in the street wearing only a bikini or swimming shorts' in some part of Spain. The department added on its website: 'Being bare-chested is also illegal in some areas in Spain. 'You could be fined if you're caught wearing swimwear on the seafront promenade or adjacent streets.' Partygoers in Palma, Llucmajor and Magaluf in Majorca and San Antonio in Ibiza now face penalties of between 500 and 1,500 (430 and 1,290) if their street drinking 'disrupts coexistence' Locals accused drunken Brits of treating the 'beautiful' island with no respect and claimed the authorities were not doing enough to help The photos are the latest to cause outrage on the Balearic Island, as Magaluf business owners have revealed they are sick of the way British tourists treat their 'beautiful' home. Business owners claimed the authorities were not doing enough to help - despite enforcing stricter drinking rules. Sergio Taltavull, whose family own the Casa Diego restaurant in Magaluf, told MailOnline: 'It's pretty bad. It's all about drinking and partying. There are no families. We need more families. It's all about the culture of getting drunk and partying. 'Most of the tourists treat the island very badly. I have seen the degradation over the years, it's very bad. The 32-year-old, whose restaurant was away from the chaos on the strip, said the government 'had to bring the rules in', adding: 'It's gone on too long and we have to live here. One video showed two female British tourists fighting each other in a Majorcan tourist resort 'I have worked here all my life, I am from Majorca. The island is paradise, but we have to change the tourist culture. 'The government is trying, but let's see if it works. We want more families, tourists and less drunk people and less partying. We want what we had before.' Partygoers in the Majorcan areas of Palma, Llucmajor and Magaluf as well as San Antonio in Ibiza now face penalties of between 500 and 1,500 (430 and 1,290) if their street drinking 'disrupts coexistence, involves crowds or deteriorates the tranquillity of the environment'. Party boats are no longer permitted to get closer than one nautical mile (1.852 km) of the designated areas and they have been banned from picking up or dropping off passengers. In an attempt to toughen up the islands' 2020 legislation, shops selling alcohol in areas of 'excessive tourism' must now completely close between 9.30pm and 8am. The latest crackdown adds to the 2020 law which banned happy hours, pub crawls and the sale of alcohol in shops between 9.30pm and 8am Potential customers are avoiding the area because of its reputation, one business owner said One business owner said of British tourists: 'They leave without paying, they take drugs in the bathroom and they are a little aggressive - but not all of them of course' Last night, as the tougher sanctions came into force, partying Brits vowed to defy the crackdown and accused Majorca of trying to 'kill' Magaluf. Ariana Riesquo-Tomos, who has owned the Restaurant Pizzeria with her Italian husband for ten years, told MailOnline: 'Most of the island is only for tourism. Brits come here for the alcohol and the mess that we offer here in Majorca.' She said she would prefer to see more families and less Brits coming and drinking and taking drugs. Ms Riesquo said the island was beautiful 'but it's not good when you see tourists with alcohol in their hands all day'. She added: 'They leave without paying, they take drugs in the bathroom and they are a little aggressive - but not all of them of course.' Brits have long seen trips to the Balearic Islands as a rite of passage In an attempt to toughen up the islands' 2020 legislation, shops selling alcohol in areas of 'excessive tourism' must now completely close between 9.30pm and 8am Last night as the tougher sanctions came into force, partying Brits vowed to defy the crackdown and accused Majorca of trying to 'kill' Magaluf The restaurant owner said the rules did not go far enough 'but something is better than nothing.' She wants to see drinks limited for tourists and revealed: 'When I come to work I see people drinking or sleeping outside the restaurant at 8am in the morning. It's not nice.' Restaurant owner Sharon Green, who is originally from the UK but has lived and worked in Majorca for 40 years, said: 'The BCM nightclub closes at 6am in the morning and then they all walk past here when they go home. We then come on a Sunday morning and they wee in the corner or they do number two's or they have sex in the corner.' Mica Miller's pastor husband penned a poisonous email to his estranged wife before her death saying he wanted to 'attack and cause pain' as DailyMail.com can reveal that she filed for divorce after discovering he was having multiple affairs. John-Paul Miller, 44, had been accused by Mica of grooming her from the age of 14 when she first joined the church, in recent police reports recently made public. In affidavits filed by Mica's family, they express their concern over her relationship with Miller who has been described as a 'wolf in sheep's clothing' and a 'false prophet' by those who know him. 'When someone hurts me, I try to hurt them back rather than forgive', Miller, the pastor of the Solid Rock Church in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina told his wife in a November 2022 email, according to an affidavit filed by Mica's brother Nathaniel Francis, 32, on May 2. 'Instead of me forgiving you.. I just attack and try to cause pain', he added. Mica Miller is pictured exchanging vows with her pastor husband John-Paul Miller in 2017 a photo DailyMail.com unearthed Pastor John-Paul Miller was seen leaving his lawyer's office last Wednesday after being released from his duties at Solid Rock at Market Common Church in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina Mica bought a gun and drove across the state border before she shot herself dead in Lumber River State Park in North Carolina on April 27. Her family claims John-Paul's actions drove her to suicide. The twisted email is one of Miller's many actions which are in direct contrast with the preacher's teachings of forgiveness with adultery also condemned in the Bible. Miller is also accused of repeatedly cheating on Mica as their relationship broke down. Divorce documents obtained by DailyMail.com reveal that Mica filed for divorce in October last year 'on the grounds of adultery'. 'Plaintiff (Mica) is informed and believes that the defendant (John-Paul) has and is currently engaging in acts of adultery with women whose names are well known to the defendant,' the filings state. 'Plaintiff has not condoned the adultery. The plaintiff would show that she left the marital home due to defendant's philandering as well as defendant's growing hostility towards plaintiff. 'Defendant has threatened to throw plaintiffs belongings into the yard, locked plaintiff out of her own home and has defamed and demeaned the plaintiff before a congregation of people.' Mica's filing says she was a 'faithful and dutiful wife' who was 'devoted to their church and marriage' during their 7 years together. Miller later filed against Mica asking that he be given exclusive use of the family home and a car, as well as demanding that she be banned from making social media posts about him or the church. Mica took her own life not too long after serving her husband John-Paul Miller, 44, with divorce papers, and police ruled it a suicide Mica who was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound on April 27 previously shared a video speaking about abuse within marriage, as claims emerge she was being harassed Miller wiped away tears as he told mourners at her memorial service that he visited her body in the morgue four times in the week since she died and once tried to raise her from the dead John-Paul Miller shocked his congregation when he announced her death as a suicide at the end of a service at Solid Rock in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina His first marriage broke down after it was revealed that he was having an affair with Mica who was regularly babysitting his four children in 2015. DailyMail.com can also reveal that he has a lengthy history with police, including a conviction for assault and battery and at least a dozen traffic violations. His most recent discrepancies include charges of disregarding a stop sign in April and failing to obey traffic control devices in February. Miller was convicted in 1999 of driving his silver pickup truck into Jennifer Garland twice as she was sandbagging near her home because of extreme flooding. The then-19-year-old 'accelerated' into Garland after she gestured to him to slow down, dragging her 100 yards down the road. Garland attempted to file a civil suit against Miller, claiming she suffered 'severe, painful and permanent injuries', but it was dismissed. He was given a suspended four-year prison sentence, probation, a $25 fine and ordered to complete 500 hours of community service. Miller was also convicted in 1998 of driving while suspended, with his parents also settling a lawsuit on his behalf for $6,200 in 1995, aged 17, when he drove his car into the back of another vehicle again causing injury. He applied for a pardon in 2022 with regards to the convictions of assault and battery and driving while suspended, which was approved by South Carolina legislators. The pastor was also embroiled in a bitter custody battle with the mother of his first child, Logan Hardee, with family members and churchgoers writing letters to the court to support his arguments in 1998. His father, Wayne Miller, told the court in his letter that his son's only problem was with his driving, and argued that Logan would be 'better off with his father in a beautiful home'. Miller was seen breaking cover last Wednesday morning, in the wake of his wife's suicide which came just 48 hours after he was served with divorce papers Mica Miller killed herself at Lumber River State Park, North Carolina, weeks after speaking about abuse 'It is with a heavy heart that I see my son having to settle for joint custody when I feel that Logan needs the loving, stable, Christian family that we would give him,' Wayne Miller wrote. He accused Logan's mother of 'dragging him from one man's home to another', adding: 'I hate to see Logan continue to be used as a weapon. 'Logan needs the last name of his father. She will never understand with her lack of education, maturity and knowledge of psychology just how important it will be as a male child for this boy to have the identity of his father.' Miller admitted in the filings that he would 'disrupt' his son's daycare in the middle of the day and was accused of 'refusing to follow' the visitation schedule. It also detailed that he had an 'extensive history of driving offenses' and at that point had lost his license. The couple eventually worked out a joint custody agreement, with Miller marrying his first wife Alison shortly afterwards in 2000. Alison and Miller went on to have four children together. When approached by DailyMail.com the mother of Miller's eldest declined to comment, with a family member saying that she 'didn't want to get involved' as it was all 'over 28 years ago.' Logan, 27, was charged with first degree domestic violence in January of this year, after hitting a woman over the head with a glass bottle and destroying her belongings, according to Horry County Police Department. News of the pastor's previous run-ins with the law come after DailyMail.com revealed that Solid Rock Ministries are planning to allow the pastor back into the pulpit after he has completed a period of 'healing and grieving'. Pressure is mounting on Solid Rock Ministries to answer calls as to why the disgraced pastor was allowed to continue preaching after having alleged 'sexual encounters' with underage girls he met at the church and an 'addiction to prostitutes' in 2015. Mica's death has been ruled a suicide by officials, but those close to her are struggling to believe that she would take her own life, with her family setting up a 'Justice for Mica' campaign. In an emotional Facebook video shared on March 22 (pictured) Mica offered her support to victims of abuse, reminding them that they 'don't have to stay' in dangerous situations In the days after her death, Miller's friends and family held a rally outside the church where her husband previously worked. The pastor initially shocked his congregation when he casually announced her death as a suicide at the end of a service at Solid Rock Church in the Market Common area of Myrtle Beach. He said her passing was 'self-induced'. Then at a memorial service on May 5 the same day he was temporarily relieved of his duties at the church he gave a bizarre eulogy in which he claimed he tried to raise her from the dead. He said he visited her body in the morgue four times. He said he went to the mall later that day and saw a woman who looked just like Mica with similar clothes and tattoo on her arm and he instinctively yelled out her name. When she turned around it turned out to be one of her sisters. 'I thought I raised her from the dead... I can't wait to see her again one day,' he said, wiping tears from his eyes. Miller said many people saying how beautiful she was on the outside but 'only a spouse knows how beautiful a person is on the inside'. 'If I had 10 hours it wouldn't be enough to tell you all the great things about her,' he told the congregation. 'Each time it still didn't hit me, I thought she was going to wake up I even tried to raise her from the dead one time this week,' he said. Miller also talked about beauty pageants Mica had won and moved on to stories that would help funeralgoers understand a 'more intimate side of her'. The couple married in 2017 and Miller recounted his elaborate proposal where he brought the congregation to the beach under the guise of a baptism. As a plane flew by dragging a 'will you marry me Mica?' banner, he turned her towards the ocean while the church clapped and cheered. But she said 'why is everybody cheering?' because she couldn't read it as she didn't have her contact lenses in. 'I thought I raised her from the dead... I can't wait to see her again one day,' he said, wiping tears from his eyes. Miller said many people saying how beautiful she was on the outside but 'only a spouse knows how beautiful a person is on the inside'. 'If I had 10 hours it wouldn't be enough to tell you all the great things about her,' he said. He talked about beauty pageants Mica won, from school onwards, and moved on to stories that would help funeralgoers understand a 'more intimate side of her'. The couple married in 2017 and Miller recounted his elaborate proposal where he brought the congregation to the beach under the guise of a baptism. As a plane flew by dragging a 'will you marry me Mica?' banner, he turned her towards the ocean while the church clapped and cheered. But she said 'why is everybody cheering?' because she couldn't read it because she didn't have her contact lenses in. Mica's family boycotted the service and held their own on the beach instead. Footage of the eulogy was released by the church over the weekend and sparked backlash online. 'This man is so close to never being able for redemption. John Paul Miller get on your knees and repent for how you treated this woman,' one wrote. Another added: 'This is such a low level of blasphemy. This man literally has no shame whatsoever.' Mica's brother Nathaniel said in an affidavit that Miller had sent her an email saying: 'When someone hurts me, i try to hurt them back rather than forgive.' John-Paul Miller's father wrote a letter in 1998 saying his grandson needed a 'Christian life' that only his son could provide Miller was granted a pardon in 2022 for his conviction for driving into a woman who was sandbagging due to extreme flooding Others were disgusted that Miller 'stalked' her body four times after being subject to a restraining order in the weeks before her death. 'This is the creepiest service. Those are the fakest tears I've ever seen. Seems like he is glad she is gone and rushing the funeral so he can get on with another life.' Weeks before her death, Mica had shared a video speaking about abuse within marriage as claims emerged that she was being harassed and was 'afraid for her life'. She said: 'Today my heart's a little heavy. I've had lots of women that have reached out to me about situations of abuse, and I just want to tell you what a lot of people have told me lately, because I think I forgot. 'But you are the bride of Christ before anybody else's, male or female, it doesn't matter what gender you are, abuse is abuse.' If you or a loved one is experiencing suicidal thoughts or actions, please contact the National Suicide Hotline at 988 or 1-800-273-TALK (8255) This is the slasher who stabbed a female Christian charity worker in the neck with a makeshift blade near an O2 venue in Brixton and faces life in jail for murder. Mohammed Nur used the weapon to cut the throat of Johanita Kossiwa Dogbey in broad daylight last May 1. He has now been pictured after the Metropolitan Police released an image of the 34-year-old. Ms Dogbey, 31, had been walking alone in Stockwell Park Walk in Brixton after going into central London to do some shopping. She was attacked from behind by a man wearing all dark clothing and died at the scene. A post-mortem examination identified the cause of death as sharp force trauma to the neck. Pictured: Mohammed Nur used the weapon to cut the throat of Johanita Kossiwa Dogbey in broad daylight last May 1 Johanita Kossiwa Dogbey (pictured), 31, had been walking alone in Stockwell Park Walk in Brixton after going into central London to do some shopping Ms Dogbey was attacked from behind by a man wearing all dark clothing, and died at the scene Nur admitted her murder and having a blade made from scissors on that day as well as having another weapon made from broken glass the following day when he was arrested. He had denied three other slash attacks two days before Ms Dogbey's death in similar circumstances. Nur's Old Bailey trial had centred on the three attacks which happened in quick succession in Brixton at around 11.30pm last April 29. The first victim, Rebecca Wilkes, was approached from behind, grabbed and slashed on her right cheek, causing a 9cm cut. The second victim, Tomasz Kmiecik, suffered a 15cm facial cut and the third victim, Katie Matthews, sustained a 6cm wound to her face. Prosecutor Julian Evans KC told jurors: 'In each case, the victim did nothing to confront or provoke the man who attacked them. Each victim was attacked without warning and for no apparent reason. 'In short, all three attacks were completely random. There is nothing to suggest that the man who carried out the attacks knew anything about any of the three victims.' The attacker was wearing a distinctive jacket and a top with a black hood pulled down over his face. Nur, from Vauxhall, south London, was wearing the same clothes when he attacked Ms Dogbey two days later. Mr Evans told jurors: 'He approached her from behind, and without warning, attacked her from behind with a weapon, which caused her injury.' Nur was arrested last May 2 after being stopped by police in Brixton High Street in possession of a weapon fashioned from a piece of broken mirror. Mr Evans said: 'As far as his case is concerned, it is understood that it boils down to a simple point: identification. 'It is his case that he was not the person who carried out the attacks.' Nur, who declined to attend his Old Bailey trial, was found guilty of three charges of unlawful wounding on Monday. A post-mortem examination identified the cause of death as sharp force trauma to the neck The scene in south London following the stabbing last May. Now Nur faces life in jail for murder Following the verdicts, two jurors were said to be 'shocked' and 'distressed' after being told the woman who was attacked last May 1 had died. A reporting ban on Nur's guilty plea to the murder charge was lifted and Judge Angela Rafferty KC excused the panel from jury service for ten years in light of the revelation. Detective Chief Inspector Matthew Webb, the senior investigating officer who led the investigation into Nur, said: 'Mohammed Nur is guilty of four violent offences, carried out at random in terrifying circumstances. 'I realise nothing can alleviate the pain and suffering that Johanita's family continue to endure, but I hope they and the three other people Nur attacked and injured can take some comfort from the fact he has been convicted and will spend a lengthy period of time in prison.' Nur, who is in custody, will be sentenced at a later date. Russia's army has grown since before the invasion of Ukraine despite sustaining heavy troop losses, and is 'modernising' as it learns how to 'defeat' Western warfare techniques and equipment, a top US general has warned. Lieutenant General Charles Costanza, Commander-in-Chief of the US Army's V Corps, which is stationed in Poland, said the biggest threat to NATO is 'clearly Russia', and that the threat is more imminent than many realise. 'I think that there's a little bit of a misperception that we have time and that Russia is taking a lot of losses and it's going to take them a while to rebuild and reconstituted. I don't have that view,' he told Voice of America. He said that while Vladimir Putin's conscript army 'may not be as well-trained' as the original ranks he sent into Ukraine in 2022, the push for more troops has meant they are a far bigger fighting force than before the war broke out. The top military brass warned that Moscow's forces have also 'modernised, learning the lessons from fighting in Ukraine which is going to be a problem for us in the West because Ukraine is using Western equipment, they are using Western techniques. 'Russia's learning how to defeat that, and I think we need to be ready in the near-term,' he said. Lieutenant General Charles Costanza, Commander-in-Chief of the US Army's V Corps, which is stationed in Poland , said the biggest threat to NATO is 'clearly Russia ' Russian servicemen attend the Victory Day military parade on Red Square in Moscow on May 9, 2024 Discussing a timescale for preparedness, Lt. Gen Costanza said: 'NATO thinks a three to seven year kind of horizon to reconstitute, other people say the same thing. I think it's much more near-term than that.' He added that while the security alliance may not be fully prepared for confrontation yet, he had never before seen such 'a real sense of urgency from NATO to get ready' as the organisation was displaying now. His comments come after the UK Ministry of Defence estimated this month that the number of Russian casualties likely stands at more than 465,000 since Vladimir Putin launched his full-scale invasion in February 2022. Despite significant losses, the Kremlin's forces mounted a renewed ground offensive over the weekend targeting towns and villages Ukraine's Kharkiv region in the northeast of the country, claiming on Sunday The US Army commander's warnings come as the Kremlin continued to issue its own, with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov declaring today that Russia is prepared to engage if the West wants to fight for Ukraine on the battlefield. 'It's their right - if they want it to be on the battlefield, it will be on the battlefield,' Lavrov said in comments carried by Russia's RIA Novosti. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov declared today that Russia is prepared to engage if the West wants to fight for Ukraine on the battlefield. Putin and Lavrov are pictured this week Lt. Gen Costanza said: 'NATO thinks a three to seven year kind of horizon to reconstitute, other people say the same thing. I think it's much more near-term than that' French President Emmanuel Macron has repeatedly refused to rule out the possibility that Western troops could one day be sent to Ukraine. Vladimir Putin warned earlier this year that deploying NATO troops into Ukraine could lead to World War Three, with the Kremlin saying that any Western equipment used by Kyiv to attack will be seen as a legitimate target, even if it is based in a third country. In the UK today, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak also recognised the looming threat of war, declaring: 'Putin's recklessness has taken us closer to a dangerous nuclear escalation than at any point since the Cuban missile crisis.' But Sunak also looked beyond the war in Ukraine, warning that Britain faces an increasingly dangerous future due to threats from an 'axis of authoritarian states,' that include Russia, China, Iran and North Korea. 'I'm convinced that the next few years will be some of the most dangerous, yet most transformational, our country has ever known,' Sunak said. The speech today comes weeks after the British Prime Minister announced renewed focus on security, pledging to up defence spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP by 2030. He also said that the world is the 'most volatile' for years and Britain's defence industry must go on a 'war footing' in statements given during a joint appearance with NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg at a military base in the Polish capital last month. A Russian howitzer fires toward Ukrainian positions at an undisclosed location Sunak's push to move Britain's defence industry to a war footing came after General Sir Richard Barrons warned the nation is sorely underprepared for a conflict with Russia, and urged the government to invest heavily in reconstituting the armed forces to meet the challenge. 'Russia is clearly angry and rearming so their capability will be restored and when the shooting stops in Ukraine, Russia will blame the outcome on us,' he told MailOnline earlier this year. 'We are already In confrontation with Russia. Right now, we have chosen to do very little about it. 'During the Cold War the Army, at all times, was ready to fight at four hours' notice. When the Cold War ended and there was no sense of existential risk to the UK, all of that was dismantled. 'Now we would need five to 10 years' notice of a Russian surprise attack to manage to deal with it. It's deeply disappointing.' Officials say she died after months of abuse by her dad an stepmother Malinda Hoagland was found 'barely alive' by Pennsylvania police on May 4 A Pennsylvania child went thought a heartbreaking physical transformation before she died after months of torture by her father and stepmom, according to officials. Malinda Hoagland, 12, was found 'barely alive' by police on May 4 after her father Rendell Hoagland called 911 claiming she had crashed her bicycle on a tree. The girl, who weighed just 50 pounds, died just hours after arriving at the hospital, where officials were shocked by her condition, which included heavy bruising, half a dozen broken bones and liver damage. Hoagland, 52, and his fiance Cindy Warren, 45, were charged in connection to her death two days later. DailyMail.com reviewed the couple's social media and can reveal that Malinda disappeared from her dad's Facebook in early January, while the couple continued posting images of Warren's nine-year-old Gavin, who police say was not abused. Malinda was found after Hoagland called 911 claiming his daughter hit a tree while riding her bicycle and lost consciousness In the last images her dad posted, Malinda looks gaunt as she shows off what appear to be Christmas gifts. In one image, her hand appears bruised In the last images Rendell posted of the girl, she looks gaunt as she shows off what appear to be Christmas gifts. In one image, her hand appears bruised. Over the last weeks, Hoagland posted images with Gavin at the movies, a car racing event and with the Cub Scouts. Hoagland wrote on March 16: 'Gavin had a great day today at Cub Scouts. Took first place for the Bear Den level. He couldnt be more excited and proud. Congratulations buddy.' Warren almost exclusively posted images of Gavin on Facebook, and only once shared an image of Malinda - in December of 2020. She previously pleaded guilty in 2009 to allowing her ex-husband to beat their son Isaiah, who was three at the time and was sentenced to seven years in prison. Rendell Hoagland, 52, and his fiance Cindy Warren, 45, were charged in the death of his daughter Malinda after officials found her with multiple broken bones and 'barely alive' Hoagland used to often post about his daughter, but completely stopped in January However, Hoagland continued posting images with Wilson's nine-year-old Gavin, who police say was not abused Malinda and Gavin are seen above in a picture shared by her father in 2020 Her ex-husband McKinley Warren Jr. is serving 25 to 50 years for abusing the boy and also for killing his two-year-old daughter from a previous relationship. Warren was the girl's stepmother, as reported by Pocono Record. Police say Malinda was taken out of school in December and often kept shackled to furniture in the basement. Officials said the girl had been showing up on camera for online classes, but was shackled below, away from the camera's view. Deleted videos recovered from the couple's electronic devices allegedly show the extent of the abuse the girl suffered. Some of the videos, from the home's camera system, showed that Malinda was ankle-cuffed to furniture and verbally berated by the couple through that in-camera speaker system. Both are each charged with attempted criminal homicide, assault, and kidnapping among other charges. Investigators say additional charges including murder are possible Hoagland and Warren were avid Facebook users and until last year shared images of the Malinda as well as another young boy named Gavin Warren almost exclusively posted images of Gavin on Facebook, and only once shared an image of Malinda - in December of 2020 Other videos reportedly show Malinda forced to sleep on the floor, while chained, with no pillow or blankets and being told not to expect breakfast, lunch or dinner. The couple also allegedly deleted their texts before calling 911, but recovered messages showed them discussing the girl's worsening condition. In one exchange mentioned in the affidavit, Warren tells Hoagland to 'run' Malinda to the hospital instead of calling 911. Both are each charged with attempted criminal homicide, assault, and kidnapping among other charges. Investigators say additional charges including murder are possible. The last images he shared of Malinda was posted on January 5, as she appeared to be opening Christmas presents with Gavin The home where Malinda was allegedly tortured for months is pictured above They are being held on $1 million cash bail. When asked about Malinda's injuries, the couple reportedly claimed they were from the bike accident and from getting accidentally struck by another child on a water slide. When asked about her emaciation, they claimed she had been steadily losing weight for months and were planning on taking her to a doctor over it. A mother-of-four, and a 24-year-old dad protecting his baby have been identified by their heartbroken families as two of the three victims killed during an Alabama May Day party shooting. Chiquita Ewing, 37, and Christian Bradley, 24, died on Saturday night while attending the celebration near Stockton where around 1,000 revellers partied through the evening. Ewing was a mother of two boys and two girls, and her cousin Martha Tims revealed that the two had attended the May Day party together. 'All of sudden, I just kept hearing multiple gunshots, and everybody started running away. So I went to the first guy I seen laying down, and somebody was like somebody is behind him shot, too,' Tims told WDBJ7. 'So I turned around and when I got over there and noticed it was my cousin. I just lost it, and she was just laying there and wasn't responding or nothing. ... It was just total chaos out there.' Chiquita Ewing, 37, (left) was a mom-of-four who died in Saturday night's Alabama May Day party shooting. Christian Bradley, 24, (right) also died while protecting his baby She revealed that several other people had gathered around her cousin and attempted to help her, but to no avail. 'I wished this didnt happen to her and the other victims. I didnt know them like I knew her, and they didnt deserve this. And I hope that everybody gets justice about what happened yesterday,' she said. Christian Bradley's aunt took to Facebook to share a heartbreaking tribute to her young nephew. 'Christians life was suddenly taken as a result of senseless gun violence, and our family is left with the pain and sorrow of grief. We will NEVER forget this awful time,' she wrote. 'If you have any information, please share it with the investigators - arrangements will be posted as soon as they are available. 'Thank you for the prayers and support during this challenging time,' she added. In a separate post, she revealed: 'His daughter, mother and sister witnessed this horrific incident. There are no words other than, I know that God is a God of justice'. Andre Reid with the Baldwin County Investigation Division told WALA-TV that aside from the three who were killed during the shooting, at least 12 were left injured - most of whom were 'young people'. He said investigators believe they have identified one suspect - claiming there was at least one other shooter, but authorities are not certain about the individual's involvement, reported WDBK7. 'According to witnesses, the event was peaceful until an argument took place, which led to at least one subject shooting multiple rounds into the large crowd, said Reid. Deputies responded to the scene at around 9.30pm after gunshots were reported to the sheriff's office. Three people were left dead and at least 12 were injured following a shooting at an Alabama May Day party on Saturday night Authorities have not yet released any details about the people who were killed nor about those injured, but have confirmed that no law enforcement officers were involved in the fatal incident 'Unfortunately, three of the victims succumbed to their wounds,' the Reid added. 'We do believe that there may have been more shooters, and we are following up on those leads,' the office said. After the initial response, the Baldwin County Sheriff's Office requested the assistance of the Baldwin County Major Crimes Unit (BCMCU) to investigate the shocking incident. 'Investigators assigned to the BCMCU are on standby should we need help following up on leads,' Reid added. Reid said no law enforcement officers were involved in the shooting and has asked members of the public who may have information or who captured footage of the event to come forward. 'This is a tragic event that touches many lives in our community. We are working very hard to bring this case to a resolution, but we cannot make arrests or successfully prosecute the offenders without help,' he said. May Day is often a seasonal celebration in anticipation of warmer days ahead - and in some areas of the world, it is a celebration of workers' rights. But the violence witnessed during Saturday's party is a type of tragedy that many communities across America have become familiar with, as the devastating incident is one out at least 155 mass shootings that have taken place across the United States so far this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive. The archive defines a mass shooting as one in which four or more victims are killed or wounded. The mass shooting near Stockton was just one instance of high-profile gun violence seen in the US over the weekend alone. Three Atlanta police officers were left hospitalized with gunshot wounds following an incident that left a suspect dead on Saturday evening, authorities said. Officers responded at 5:15pm to a report of an armed man in a commercial area on Fairbanks Street and encountered a man with a handgun and a knife on Desoto Avenue, Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum said during a news conference. 'During that encounter there was a struggle, there was gunfire that resulted in three of our officers being injured. It also resulted in the death of the individual that was armed with the handgun,' Schierbaum said. And in Euclid, Ohio, a police officer was shot and killed after being 'ambushed by gunfire' while answering a disturbance call, and a suspect was being sought, authorities said Sunday. Officer Jacob Derbin was shot and taken to a hospital, but he succumbed to his injuries later that night, police said. No other officers were injured, according to Euclid Police Chief Scott Meyer. The suspect was found dead in a Shaker Heights home on Sunday, authorities said. Law enforcement officials would not elaborate on how the suspect died or say if officers and the suspect exchanged gunfire. Octavia Johnson is a general assignment reporter for the Houston Chronicle. She can be reached at octavia.johnson@houstonchronicle.com. Before joining the Chronicle, Octavia worked as a digital content producer at WATE-TV in Knoxville, Tenn., where she became a leader in producing fast paced, audience-focused content. Octavia graduated from UNC Pembroke with a bachelor's degree in journalism before earning her master's degree in media and communications at Norfolk State University. Two grieving Louisiana sisters claim a psychic medium in Wisconsin revealed the location of their mother's body after she vanished over a year ago. Ashley Deese, the daughter of Theresa Jones, 56, said police had been stumped over her mother's disappearance, and criticized their investigation that was seemingly solved once medium Carolyn Clapper stepped in. Theresa went missing on February 2, 2023, and Ashley told KNOE that she spent hours searching for her mother alongside the Union Parish Sheriff's Office's K9 unit. Days later, Ashley and her sister Brittany reached out to Clapper in Wisconsin, who is well known among the psychic community over her claims of finding missing people. Ashley claimed she was able to provide eerily accurate details leading to the body, but remains unsatisfied as cops never spoke to the medium and ruled the death as an accidental drowning caused by methamphetamines. 'Its been a year now since this has happened, and she has so much information pertaining to this case,' she said. Ashley Deese claimed a psychic medium helped lead her to her mother's body when cops were stumped, and slammed their investigation after the death was ruled as an accidental drowning Theresa Jones, 56, disappeared in February 2023, with her daughter still arguing that foul play was a factor Theresa's body was found in a creek only a short distance from her home, and her daughter claims the medium was able to provide step-by-step instructions leading to her remains After contacting Clapper, Ashley said Clapper returned the request with a midnight phone call, and offered to offer her help pro-bono. Over a 45-minute conversation, Ashley claimed that the psychic gave her precise step-by-step instructions as to how to locate her mother's body, which lay in a creek close to her home. It is unexplained how the police's K9 unit and extensive searches did not find the body, which appeared to be only a short distance behind Theresa's property around 200 yards into a wooded area. Describing what her 'psychic visions' apparently told her, Clapper said: 'There would be a log, she kept showing me this pronounced log, a very big log in the woods.' 'It wasnt just little twigs and sticks, it was a log, a huge one,' she continued. 'You know you hit this log is basically what she said, you get to this log and my body will be there. Theres water, I saw a creek.' Following the phone call, Ashley said she went out looking for her mother, and claimed the medium's eerie accuracy even detailed the position of her mother's body and its deteriorating condition. 'I immediately got ill, shaky, and sick, and started vomiting,' Ashley added. Despite her mother's body being found face down in the creek with no undergarments, Ashley criticized the investigation as she said that no rape kits or fingernail scrapings were administered to the remains. 'I'm bothered by that,' she said, claiming that the sheriff's office never contacted Clapper to understand how she allegedly knew details of the case. Carolyn Clapper, who claims to be a psychic medium, said she had visions of a log in a creek that led her to Theresa's body. She said that police did not question her for some time after the eerie find Theresa's body was found just 200 yards into a wooded area close to her home, despite cops enlisting K9 units to find the remains when she disappeared over a year ago Theresa's daughter said although officials ruled the death an accident, she does 'suspect foul play', adding: 'I havent been proved that it wasnt. And I will suspect that until Im proved that its not' The sheriff's office said that it later did contact the medium, but noted that evidence claiming to be discovered through some form of paranormal powers are not legally admissible. Clapper said she found this approach strange, however, as in her past cases helping find missing people she has been questioned by police departments. 'Even if they dont believe in psychics or theyre skeptical, you know, they still follow up on leads, so theyll still question me if I know too much about a case and they cant really explain how I would know the details that I know about a case, its their job to follow up,' she said. KNOE reported that Union Parish Sheriff Dusty Gates confirmed in April that no fingernail scraping or rape kit was administered, but that decision was often left up to medical examiners. He also said that the lack of Theresa's undergarments was likely explained by flowing water taking them off, and the case was ruled as an accidental drowning with methamphetamine intoxication listed as a contributing factor. Theresa was found face down in a creek without her undergarments, which officials said was likely caused by flowing water taking them off An autopsy found Theresa had a high amount of methamphetamine in her system, and her daughter said she had been sober for 20 years The medium said she was drawn to visions of 'a log' that helped her locate the body Ashley said her mother did struggle with addiction over 20 years ago. However, a police report said she told officers her mother recently relapsed and began taking marijuana and cocaine, which Ashley claims she never said. The report also said that Ashley said her mother 'refuses to take her medication like she is supposed to', which she also denied saying. 'It doesnt line up, it doesnt make sense,' she said. 'And if someone can make it make sense, I will sit down and listen.' While the case remains closed as Sheriff Gates said there is no new information and leads to open it with, but Ashley said the investigation into her mother's death has left her still searching for answers. 'I also feel that as soon as it was known that there was drugs involved, and even a history of drugs, I felt like the sobriety didnt matter. And I feel like since there was drugs involved, its just one more off the street,' she said. She concluded: 'I do suspect foul play. I havent been proved that it wasnt. And I will suspect that until Im proved that its not.' US drugs chiefs are warning of deepening ties between Mexico's cartels and China as the fentanyl pills that claim lives from coast to coast are becoming more potent and deadlier. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has found evidence of Chinese middle men laundering more of the profits cartels make from selling narcotics in the United States. Meanwhile, the fentanyl that claims some 70,000 US lives each year has become even more dangerous, so that now some 70 percent of pills contain a fatal dose of the opioid. DEA administrator Anne Milgram warned of America's 'dangerous shift' from plant-based drugs, such as pot and coke, to fentanyl, meth and other synthetics. The carnage of fentanyl deaths on US streets is linked to cooperation between Mexican cartels and Chinese businesspeople, says a damning report The National Drug Assessment 2024 says drug cartels have a major presence in Texas, Arizona, California, and Florida 'This shift has resulted in the most dangerous and deadly drug crisis the United States has ever faced,' Milgram wrote in the National Drug Assessment 2024. 'These synthetic drugs, such as fentanyl and methamphetamine, are responsible for nearly all of the fatal drug poisonings in our nation.' Poll Is the Biden administration doing enough to protect Americans from fentanyl? Yes No Not sure Is the Biden administration doing enough to protect Americans from fentanyl? Yes 22 votes No 303 votes Not sure 10 votes Now share your opinion America suffered more than 111,000 overdose deaths in the year to April 2023 more than 70 percent of them due to fentanyl and other synthetic opioids, says the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Synthetic opioids mostly fentanyl now kill more Americans every year than died in the Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan wars combined. There are signs that the outbreak has plateaued and that overdose deaths could start to fall, but Milgram warns against complacency. Her 57-page annual report shows that fentanyl pills became markedly more dangerous between 2021 and 2023. Fentanyl is commonly mixed with drugs like heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine, or pressed into pills that resemble other prescription opioids. On the street, it is known as everything from 'blues' to China Girl, and Goodfellas. Overdose rates are high because of the drug's potency, with just two milligrams of fentanyl considered a lethal dose. DEA administrator Anne Milgram warns of America's 'dangerous shift' to fentanyl, meth and other synthetic drugs Members of the Sinaloa Cartel preapre drugs for the US market at a safe house in Culiacan The drug was initially produced in India and China and mailed to recipients across North America. Makeshift labs have since sprung up in Mexico to receive the precursor chemicals, mix them or press them into pills, and smuggle them into the US The DEA warns that 'one pill can kill'. In 2021, random tests on pills seized from across the US showed that four in ten of them contained enough fentanyl to kill a user, researchers said. By 2023, that had risen to seven in ten pills. The report also warned of growing cooperation between the Mexican cartels who send drugs across the southern US border and businessmen in China. The DEA has long warned of Chinese firms manufacturer precursor chemicals that are exported to Mexico and turned into fentanyl. The new report says Chinese businesspeople increasingly launder the cartels' profits at the other end of the operation. 'Drug trafficking organizations based in Mexico and South America are increasingly utilizing China-based underground banking systems as their primary money-laundering mechanism,' says Milgram. The report warns of 'China-based underground banking systems,' or CUBS, that help Mexican drug cartels and wealthy Chinese businesspeople move money around without getting caught. Illicit flows enable US-based drug dealers to send profits back to Mexico and Central America, while also helping Chinese people circumvent their government's capital flight laws and get money out of the country. Immigrants seeking asylum in the US are processed by border agents after crossing into Arizona from Mexico. Guards told DailyMail.com that cartels get drugs across the border by using migrants as decoys This image from Mexico's national defense forces shows a makeshift drugs lab in northwest Mexico, where officers discovered precursor chemicals, fentanyl paste, weapons and drug making gear, from November 2021 What is fentanyl and why is it so dangerous? Fentanyl was originally developed in Belgium in the 1950s to aid cancer patients with their pain management. Given its extreme potency it has become popular amongst recreational drug users. Overdose deaths linked to synthetic opioids like fentanyl jumped from nearly 10,000 in 2015 to nearly 20,000 in 2016 - surpassing common opioid painkillers and heroin for the first time. And drug overdoses killed more than 72,000 people in the US in 2017 a record driven by fentanyl. It is often added to heroin because it creates the same high as the drug, with the effects biologically identical. But it can be up to 50 times more potent than heroin, according to officials in the US. In the US, fentanyl is classified as a schedule II drug - indicating it has some medical use but it has a strong potential to be abused and can create psychological and physical dependence. Advertisement 'Money processors who work for CUBS brokers collect cash from transnational drug traffickers operating in the US,' says the report. 'They use the cash collected from drug traffickers to benefit the China-based clients of the CUBS broker who are attempting to circumvent China's capital flight laws.' The groundwork for the US fentanyl epidemic was laid more than 20 years ago, with aggressive over-prescribing of the synthetic opioid oxycodone. As US authorities clamped down on its prescription, users moved to heroin, which the Sinaloa cartel happily supplied. But making its own fentanyl far more potent and versatile than heroin in small, easily concealed labs was a game changer. The cartel went from its first makeshift fentanyl lab to a network of labs concentrated in the northern state of Sinaloa in less than a decade. A single cartel 'cook' can press fentanyl into 100,000 counterfeit pills every day to fool Americans into thinking they're taking Xanax, Percocet or oxycodone. The pills are smuggled over the border to supply drug addicts across the US, including the homeless users seen stumbling around on the streets of San Francisco, New York and other big cities. Fentanyl is so cheap to make that the cartel reaps massive profits even wholesaling the drug at 50 cents per pill, investigators say. The drug's potency makes it particularly dangerous. The narcotic dose of fentanyl is so close to the lethal dose that a pill meant to ensure a high for a habituated user can easily kill a less experienced person taking something they didn't know was fentanyl. Synthetic opioids kill more Americans every year than died in the Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan wars combined DEA officers seized a million fake pills containing fentanyl at a home in Inglewood, California. The drug is so potent that users can easily take a lethal dose The Facebook group Lost Voices of Fentanyl has tens of thousands of members who pay tribute to their loved ones who were claimed by the drug. In Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York and other big cities, the sight of homeless people collapsed on sidewalks, puffing fentanyl smoke and lurching from moments of slumber to bouts of violent shivering have become all too common. The devastation has become so bad that fentanyl flows across the US-Mexico border have become a flash point between Democrats and Republicans. Former president Donald Trump has said he would deploy military assets to fight the fentanyl crisis and 'inflict maximum damage' on Mexican cartel operations if elected in 2024. He would also seek the death penalty to convicted drug dealers and human traffickers, he said. 'Under my leadership, we took the drug and fentanyl crisis head on, and we achieved the first reduction in overdose deaths in more than 30 years,' Trump said in a campaign video. 'Sadly, under Joe Biden, our hard-won progress has been surrendered, along with the surrender of our southern border.' A blind artist and influencer was turned away from a restaurant when a waiter did not believe his seeing-eye dog was a legitimate service animal. Paul Castle, a Seattle-based animator and influencer, posted a video last week describing the unpleasant incident in which he walked into a restaurant where a waiter very quickly approached him to begin his questioning. The waiter, Castle said, told him no pets were allowed in the restaurant, 'only service dogs.' Castle explained that his pup, a large yellow lab, is his service dog, to which the waiter replied with some alleged attitude: 'Emotional support dog?' Castle, who is legally blind and has minimal vision, said Mr. Maple, his dog, was wearing his guide dog harness at the time. Blind influencer Paul Castle posted a video last week about being turned away from a restaurant because of his service dog He explained to the waiter that he is, in fact, blind, which the waiter still did not believe. 'You don't look blind,' he said, according to Castle. The animator explained that he has very limited functional vision, which is why, to the waiter, it looked as though he was making direct eye contact. The restaurant employee then told Castle: 'This isn't my first rodeo,' which left the disabled influencer 'speechless' and defeated. 'Do you see any dogs in this restaurant?' continued the waiter. 'Honestly, no I'm blind. There could be,' Castle recalls responding. Despite what sounds like an incredibly negative experience, Castle has chosen not to drop the name of the local restaurant. In a follow up video, he told his followers that he was able to have a conversation with the waiter and the manager. According to the Americans with Disabilities Act, 'state and local governments, businesses, and nonprofit organizations that serve the public generally must allow service animals to accompany people with disabilities in all areas of the facility where the public is allowed to go.' There is a specific section of the law that states: 'Establishments that sell or prepare food must generally allow service animals in public areas even if state or local health codes prohibit animals on the premises.' The restaurant was, therefore, breaking the law by not allowing Castle to enter with his pup. According to the Americans with Disabilities Act, guide dogs for the blind are allowed virtually everywhere that citizens are Mr. Maple, a 60-pound yellow lab, is trained to help Castle navigate everyday life with severely limited functional vision Paul Castle lives with his dog and partner Matthew in Seattle Guide dogs are generally identifiable by their specialized harnesses and guide dog tags He is pictured with his service animal In his capacity as an animator, Castle has created a line of Mr. Maple inspired cartoons Local outlet KIRO 7 spoke with Chris Benninger who is affiliated with the organization 'Guide Dogs for the Blind.' He said that, despite it being illegal, guide dogs are currently getting turned away at such a high rate some in the blind community are considering opting against getting a guide dog. A recent survey by the organization found that the overwhelming majority of respondents said they had been denied service because of their guide dogs - some said it's happened more than once. Castle confirmed to the outlet that he has been discriminated against because of Mr. Maple on multiple occasions as well. 'Ive had Uber drivers just drive away as soon as they saw my dog. So, it all speaks to a bigger issue. But its not about so much reprimanding people as educating them,' he said. Shocking photos show Manchester University's 137-year-old museum daubed with blood-red paint just opposite a pro-Palestine student camp. The Manchester Museum, which dates back to 1887, was heavily vandalized across its frontage in the early hours of this morning. Photos showed the university's distinctive Queen's Arch, designed by famed architect Alfred Waterhouse, defaced with spray paint. No one has yet claimed responsibility for the damage, but Manchester University said it handed over CCTV footage to police who are now investigating the incident. The Grade-II Listed building is just opposite a large encampment of pro-Palestine supporters at nearby Brunswick Park. Manchester University's 137-year-old museum was covered in red paint Shocking pictures showed the museum building's windows and distinctive Queen's Arched daubed in the blood red paint The Manchester Museum is located just opposite Brunswick Park, where the pro-Palestine protestors have set up their encampment The pro-Palestine demo - which started at university campuses in the US - have recently sprung up at about a dozen universities across the UK, including Manchester. Protestors say they're urging the institutions to fully disclose investments, cut academic ties with Israel and divest from businesses linked to Israel. In November, the university issued a statement denying it had any involvement with the Israeli defence sector. A spokesperson said of today's vandalism: 'In the early hours of the morning, 13 May, the University and Manchester Museum were subject to an act of criminal vandalism. 'If you are coming on to campus today, you may see that there has been some criminal damage primarily to the Manchester Museum and Queens Arch, with paint sprayed over part of the building early this morning. 'We have CCTV footage of the incident and are working with Greater Manchester Police who are investigating the incident. Manchester University said it had sent CCTV footage of the incident to police Specialist paint contractors have been called in to remove the damage to the listed building 'Meanwhile, specialist paint removal contractors have been called and will be dealing with the damage as soon as possible. The Museum will be open as usual.' The vandalism comes after pro-Palestine groups claimed they were responsible for similar protest acts involving putting red paint on buildings with links to Israel. In October last year, the Express Buildings in Manchester, the former headquarters of the national newspapers, was vandalized with red emulsion by Palestine Action. MailOnline has contacted Greater Manchester Police for comment. Duke University has issued a statement after dozens of pro-Palestine students staged a protest during Jerry Seinfeld's graduation ceremony speech. Jewish comedian Seinfeld, 70, was met with a a mix of cheers and boos before flag-waving students marched out of the Wallace Wade Stadium event on Sunday. They were opposed to Seinfeld appearing due to his pro-Israel views. The North Carolina university issued a statement to DailyMail.com in the aftermath. 'Were excited and delighted for the Class of 2024 and their families,' Frank Tramble, vice president for marketing, communications and public affairs at Duke said. 'We understand the depth of feeling in our community, and as we have all year, we respect the right of everyone at Duke to express their views peacefully, without preventing graduates and their families from celebrating their achievement.' Students carrying Palestinian flags and chanting 'free, free Palestine' walked out of Duke University's commencement ceremony when guest speaker Jerry Seinfeld was introduced Seinfeld, who has been described as being 'uncharacteristically vocal' in his support for Jews in Israel, avoided the issue at the centre of the protests during his address Seinfeld has been a staunch supporter of Israel and visited the country to meet with hostage families in the aftermath of the October 7 attack when Hamas invaded and killed 1,200 and abducted 252 more. The comedian and his wife Jessica serve as national chairs of the Duke Parents Committee while their daughter Sascha, 23, graduated from Duke and their middle son Julian, 21, is a current student at the college. Despite the walk-outs as his speech got underway, Seinfeld avoided the topic of the Middle East conflict during his address, instead making jokes about his part in the Bee Movie and giving the graduates light-hearted life advice. At one point, he mentioned his Jewish heritage, with his comments met with applause from the crowd. 'Privilege is a word that has taken quite a beating lately. Privilege today seems to be the worst thing you can have. I would like to take a moment to defend it,' he said. 'Again, a lot of you are thinking: "I can't believe they invited this guy". Too late. I say use your privilege. 'I grew up a Jewish boy from New York, that is a privilege if you want to be a comedian,' he quipped. Concluding his point, telling the students to use the education they had 'earned', he said: 'You went to Duke, that is an unbelievable privilege.' Seinfeld and his wife Jessica have three kids - Sascha, 23, Julian, 21, and Shepherd, 18. Sascha is a Duke alum while Julian is still studying at the college Seinfeld visited Israel and has vocally supported it since the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas Seinfeld also said his three real keys to life are hard work, paying attention and falling in love. 'Whatever you're doing, I don't care if it's your job, your hobby, a relationship, getting a reservation at M Sushi, make an effort,' he said. 'Just pure, stupid, no-real-idea-what-I'm-doing-here effort. Effort always yields a positive value, even if the outcome of the effort is absolute failure of the desired result. 'This is a rule of life. Just swing the bat and pray is not a bad approach to a lot of things.' 'Every chance you get, fall in love with your coffee. Your sneakers. Your Blue Zone parking space. I've had a lot of fun in life falling in love with stupid, meaningless physical objects,' Seinfeld said. 'I have truly spent my life focusing on the smallest things imaginable, completely oblivious to all the big issues of living.' He added that students should remember that 'not enough of life makes sense for you to be able to survive it without humor, and that they should maintain it even as they work hard to 'make the world a better place'. 'When you are done, as I am now, I bet the world because of you will be a much better place,' he said, adding 'It still won't make a whole hell of a lot of sense'. The protest at the Duke commencement echoes similar pro-Palestine demonstrations which have swept college campuses in recent days and weeks. Pro-Palestinian protesters raise flags during the University of Michigan's spring commencement ceremony Columbia University canceled its university-wide graduation ceremony , after weeks of campus protests (pictured) over the ongoing war in Gaza Howard University was forced to shut-down its College of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences graduation in the middle of the ceremony on Thursday. At least one person was injured when chaos erupted after the ceremony reached maximum capacity and guests tried to get into the auditorium, reported FOX 5 DC. 'During the ceremony, a visitor who was not able to enter the facility, which had reached capacity, leaned on the front door, unintentionally applying pressure to a pane causing it to break,' the university said. 'This incident led to a disturbance among guests and a disruption of the program taking place inside. Guests in attendance were immediately dispersed following this incident.' Columbia University canceled its university-wide graduation ceremony, after weeks of campus protests over the ongoing war in Gaza. Instead, Columbia will replace the large-scale commencement, which was set to happen on May 15, with smaller celebrations based in individual colleges within the university. 'Our students emphasized that these smaller-scale, school-based celebrations are most meaningful to them and their families,' the Ivy League said. 'As a result, we will focus our resources on those school ceremonies and on keeping them safe, respectful, and running smoothly.' The New York Police Department burst onto Columbia with riot gear to break up the tent encampment, arrested over 100 people, and took Hamilton Hall back from student occupiers. Protesters chanting anti-war messages and waving flags mobbed the stage at University of Michigan's graduation ceremony on May 4. Many robe-wearing student-demonstrators could be seen waving Palestinian flags and yelling, 'Palestine will live forever,' and 'Disclose, divest, we will not stop, we will not rest,' as the event went on. In one video, people can be heard cheering and clapping for the graduates as their name is called on. University of Southern California administrators canceled the school's main stage commencement ceremony amid pro-Palestine protests (pictured) While in another video, several graduates can be heard yelling, 'Shut the f*** up,' in a sing-song voice while another decries, 'You're ruining our graduation!' as other students chant. University of Southern California administrators canceled the school's main stage commencement ceremony as a result of the extra time needed to process the large number of guests coming to campus who will be subjected to increased safety measures. 'We will not be able to host the main stage ceremony that traditionally brings 65,000 students, families, and friends to our campus all at the same time and during a short window from 8:30am to 10am,' read an announcement from the school dated April 25. The decision follows days of unrest on the sunny SoCal campus in the wake of the cancelation of the class of 2024's valedictorian address, after the honor had been bestowed upon a Muslim student with explicitly anti-Israel views. A TikTok user has gone viral after she used an unlikely payment method at a Whole Foods Market. Lauren Saponara, 23, posted a video under her TikTok handle @laurasaponara on May 11 that shows her purchasing a bag of Cherries at a Whole Foods Market store just by using her hand. 'I'm trying to buy these cherries at Whole Foods, and I can pay with my palm,' she stated. Saponara and another customer were shocked after the payment method went through shortly before they started walking away from the self-checkout. Since then, TikToker's video has received over 1.5 million views, and nearly 700 users have left comments about the payment method. Lauren Saponara, 23, posted a video under her TikTok handle @laurasaponara on May 11 that shows her purchasing a bag of Cherries at a Whole Foods Market store just by using her hand Saponara and another customer were shocked to see that the payment did indeed go through and remained so while they walked away from self-checkout The 23-year-old TikTok user claimed in her profile description that she is an Aruban who currently resides in California. Saponara did not clarify what Whole Foods Market location she went to, but there are currently seven locations in Los Angeles. She appeared to be wearing a dark sweatshirt while she was at the store and she only purchased a bag of Primavera Select cherries. The TikToker then opted to pay for the item using a palm print recognition method called Amazon One. Its website describes the feature as 'a free, contactless service that lets you use your palm to pay, enter, or identify yourself.' The only way Saponara could've been able to use this payment method in her TikTok video was if she created a profile and linked it to her Amazon account. The TikToker was able to pay for the store item with her palm and it only took her about five seconds to do so. This palm print-paying technology first began being implemented in select Whole Foods Market stores after Amazon acquired the grocery store chain for $13.7 billion in 2017. Saponara did not clarify what Whole Foods Market location she went to. There are currently seven Whole Food Markets locations in Los Angeles, which is where she lives The TikToker managed to pay with her palm through an Amazon One account. This pay-by-palm technology is currently in every Whole Foods Market location in the US Officials installed the pay-by-palm technology in Whole Foods Market stores near Amazon's headquarters back in 2021. It is now one of the available payment methods at all of the supermarket chain's US locations and be featured in its upcoming small-format stores. Several TikTokers who commented on Saponara's video were not thrilled about the technology and one person wrote that the payment method made them 'scared & confused.' One user, who claimed to be a Whole Foods Market employee, wrote in their comment that a person has to 'set it up fully for it to work.' Saponara responded to the user's comments that were made after another person questioned her response and explained what Amazon One was. The only way Saponara could've used Amazon One is if she connected the feature to her Amazon account Other TikTok users were surprised by the payment method. Saponara did not respond to many comments, but she wrote a few heated responses 'As an ex Whole Foods worker, I was so scared when they brought those in. I didnt use it either,' a TikToker commented. Other users have explained in their comments how Saponara was able to use Amazon One, but it's continued to scare other Whole Foods Market shoppers. 'Every time I see that at Whole Foods, I get freaked out, but I've never tried it,' one person wrote. A few users asked questions about the method, and one person wanted to know what would happen if some palms were similar to one another. However, more than one TikToker also trashed technology as a whole rather than the pay-by-palm feature. One person wrote: 'I refuse to believe this is in my universe.' Vice President Kamala Harris dropped an f-bomb on stage at an event on Monday, urging Asian-Americans to demand opportunities in their professional lives. 'Sometimes people will open the door for you and leave it open, and sometimes they wont and then you need to kick that f***ing door down,' Harris said during a roundtable discussion with comedian Jimmy O. Yang. Harris then burst into laughter, briefly apologizing for her use of vulgar language as the audience cheered and applauded. Kamala Harris speaks to the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies Legislative Leadership Summit Kamala Harris took a sharply different tone than her interview with Drew Barrymore earlier this month 'We gotta make t-shirts with that saying "kick that f***ing door down,"' Yang marveled as Harris continued laughing. The vice president spoke at the event that was part of the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies Legislative Leadership Summit in Washington, DC. Harris' remark was a sharp contrast to the image she tried to portray on the Drew Barrymore show earlier this month, after the host urged her to be the 'momala' of the country. 'I love Disney. However, Disney kind of messed that up. You know, for a lot of us over the years, you know the evil stepparent,' Harris said laughing while speaking about her stepchildren. 'And their word for me is Momala.' Kamala Harris speaks at the Emily's List Gala But Harris has a history of using and defending the use of vulgar language in public. 'I was told one should not say motherf***ah in these kinds of interviews,' Harris said during a live podcast taping for the show Pod Save America in 2017, when asked to talk about then-President Donald Trump. During her failed presidential campaign, Harris repeatedly referred to her 'favorite curse word' that 'starts with an 'm' and ends with an 'ah.' In 2019, Harris also defended Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) after she proudly promised during a speech to 'impeach the motherf***er,' referring to then-President Donald Trump. Honestly, my candid response is that shes not the first nor will she be the last elected person to curse in public,' Harris said during an interview on The View. During the event in Washington, Harris spoke at length about serving as the first vice president with both black and Asian American heritage. 'Breaking barriers does not mean you start at one side of the barrier and you end up on the other side. There's breaking involved,' she said. 'And when you break things you get cut and you may bleed and it is worth it every time. Every time.' Harris recalled advice from her mother reminding her to never let people tell them who they are. U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and Head Coach Kim Mulkey attend a ceremony for the Louisiana State University Tigers women's basketball team Vice President Kamala Harris delivers a speech to voters in Florida 'You tell them who you are. Don't ever carry as a personal burden your capacity to do whatever you dream and aspire to do based on other people's limited ability to see who can do what,' she added. Harris said that Asian cultures were taught about the value of 'duty.' 'You don't question it, it just is, and part of that is the duty that we feel when we are the first in particular to understand what that means to people who are not us, I mean, everyone else,' she said. Harris described the individual as a core of an onion and cautioned Asians not to minimize the importance of the individual. 'The individual is at the core of the onion and there is the family, and there is the community and there is, and there is, and all of those things are bigger,' she said. She condemned 'anti-Asian hate' in the United States. 'The fear is everywhere, including of course in the Asian community,' she said. An onlooker who encouraged two schoolgirls to batter a 15-year-old black girl in a school attack caught on camera before it went viral has been jailed for 20 months. The 15-year-old victim had her hair pulled out and suffered numerous bruises and cuts as she was reportedly kicked, punched and dragged to the ground, a judge at Guildford Crown Court heard. The judge described the attack as abhorrent and said the ambush after lessons was clearly pre-planned. The video of the disturbing fight outside the Thomas Knyvett College in Ashford, Surrey, circulated on the internet and attracted a huge number of downloads - with a copy seized by the police. One adult at the scene was 40-year-old Winnie Connors, who was recorded on the video shouting encouragement to the brutal attackers - using phrases including 'punch the face off her, kick her face, grab her face,' the court heard. The violent footage shows a group of young girls attacking a teenager outside a school The video of the disturbing fight outside the Thomas Knyvett College in Ashford, Surrey, circulated on the internet and attracted a huge number of downloads The fight happened outside the Thomas Knyvett College in Ashford Today Connors, from Staines-on-Thames, Surrey, received a 20-momnth jail sentence for her encouragement of the fighting. Prosecutor Charles Langley told the court that the vicious assault happened on February 6 last year, outside the Thomas Knyvett College. The video was played to the court, showing a girl pupil being struck by numerous individuals, including being punched, kicked to her body and kicked to the head. Large clumps of the victim's hair was wrenched out as her head was also stamped on. The assault was halted when school staff intervened to stop the incident. Mr Langley told the court the victim suffered a bruised eye, a grazed knee and her hair was ripped from her scalp. He added that despite the 'ferocity' of the attack, the injuries were relatively minor. During the video, Connors could be heard shouting 'punch the face off her, kick her face, grab her face'. The prosecutor told the court that Connors had given instructions of violence to those assaulting the victim. He said: 'This was a group attack and it was a prolonged and persistent assault. 'There was clearly an element of planning in the assault with Ms Connors arriving for what appeared to be a pre-planned fight.' Mr Langley read a victim impact statement from the teenage victim. In it she said: 'I was very embarrassed because it was videoed by someone from the school. The judge described the attack as abhorrent and said the ambush after lessons was clearly pre-planned Protests took place amid the attack on a black girl by several girls outside a school Dozens attended a demonstration outside the school led by activists from the protest group Forever Family, dressed in uniforms and body armour 'The biggest struggle for me was the video and it being all over social media... it was very embarrassing. 'It was horrible for my family to see me being injured in that way.' Mr Langley added that the victim had seen a counsellor after the assault. She had been very stressed in the first week after the assault and was unable to eat. However, the judge heard that the victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has since made a full recovery. Helen Dawson, defence counsel for Connors, said that her client was deeply sorry and deeply regretted what happened. 'She acknowledges that what happened was entirely unpleasant.' The court heard that the defendant disputed that the incident was pre-planned. Miss Recorder Lisa Goddard, sentencing at Guildford Crown Court, told the defendant that her behaviour was abhorrent. She said: 'It is clear to me that a fight was on the cards and you attended on February 6 of last year. 'You started to encourage others to inflict violence on the victim. The words you used were abhorrent... you didn't stop or come to your senses. 'She (the victim) suffered bruising, fractures and some of her hair was pulled out. She was clearly shaken by what happened to her. 'This was to some extent, on your part, a pre-planned attack.' Miss Recorder Goddard told the defendant that despite taking the remorse shown as genuine, the minimum sentence she could impose was custodial. For one count of intentionally encouraging or assisting the commission of an indictable-only offence, namely inflicting grievous bodily harm with intent, Connors was sentenced to 20 months imprisonment. A restraining order was also imposed for the period of five years. Following the fight, Rapper Dave told his 850,000 followers on X: 'So this principal RICHARD BEESON in Ashford's Thomas Knyvett College is gonna stroll in and watch as that black child is ATTACKED by a mob and they think that can run? WE NEED HIM OUT OF THAT JOB ASAP.' Dozens attended a demonstration outside the school led by activists from the protest group Forever Family, dressed in uniforms and body armour. The organisation aims to 'mobilise, organise and centralise our community initiatives to empower and support organisations with similar objectives'. A human trafficker who masterminded an organised crime group that smuggled an estimated 10,000 migrants across the English Channel has been arrested after two years on the run. Barzan Kamal Majeed, nicknamed 'Scorpion', was arrested in Iraq by the Kurdistan Region's security forces (Asayish) on Monday, according to reports. Majeed, a former Nottingham mechanic, had been missing since November 2022 when he failed to appear in court in Belgium for a sentencing hearing after having been convicted of trafficking offences. The human trafficker was arrested following an investigation requested by Interpol, Asayish confirmed, identifying Majeed only by his initials and his nickname. 'Following the launch of an investigation, Asayish forces, based on exchange of intel and upon the request of Interpol and as per a ruling by the judge, a great human trafficker and smuggler was arrested,' Asayish told Rudaw Media Network today. His arrest comes just three days after the release of the final episode of the To Catch a Scorpion podcast which saw Majeed be confronted by a BBC journalist and British aid worker. Barzan Kamal Majeed, (pictured) nicknamed 'Scorpion', was arrested in Iraq by the Kurdistan Region's security forces (Asayish) on Monday, according to reports Majeed (pictured in 2012) had been missing since November 2022 when he failed to appear in court in Belgium for a sentencing hearing Majeed, in his interview with the BBC Radio 4 Intrigue podcast, admitted that between 2016 and 2019 he was one of two people running a people smuggling gang in Belgium and France. The tense final episode of To Catch a Scorpion sees documentary maker Sue Mitchell and volunteer aid worker Rob Lawrie come face-to-face with Majeed in a shopping mall coffee shop in the city of Sulaymaniyah, Iraq. Majeed boasts how '95 to 99 per cent' of illegal crossings to the UK since 2016 can be linked directly to him. He couldn't confirmed how many people he illegally transported across the English Channel, saying it was 'maybe a thousand, maybe 10,000. I don't know, I didn't count.' He did, however, deny being the boss of the operation, alleging that other gang members tried to implicate him to reduce their sentences. 'A couple of people, when they get arrested, they say, "We're working for him". They want to get less sentence,' he said. Majeed denied responsibility for the deaths of migrants who attempted the crossing, alleging he was just the 'money man' who 'just took the money and booked places.' 'I never put anybody in a boat and I never killed anybody,' he said of the operation. 'Nobody forced them. They wanted to, they were begging the smugglers: "Please, please do this for us".' Smugglers charge an estimated 6,000 per person for a boat crossing, according to the broadcaster. Majeed's alleged profits from the operation enabled him to purchase a villa in Marmaris, Turkey, local police claim. Majeed, during the interview, reportedly denied having any current involvement in people smuggling. Majeed, in a face-to-face interview with the BBC, admitted that between 2016 and 2019 he was one of two people running a people smuggling gang in Belgium and France. Majeed is pictured with his brothers. The date and location of the photo is unknown Investigators from the National Crime Agency (NCA) had been working with officers in Belgium to track Majeed down and issued a warrant for his arrest in 2022 But Rob Lawrie, a former soldier who works with refugees and assisted in the BBC's investigation, allegedly saw a reflection of Majeed's phone screen in a mirror as he scrolled through. Mr Lawrie claims he saw lists of passport numbers of the device. The broadcaster's investigation later revealed that smugglers would send the passport data to Iraqi officials and bribe them into issuing false visas so migrants could travel to Turkey. Investigators from the National Crime Agency (NCA) had been working with officers in Belgium to track Majeed down and issued a warrant for his arrest in 2022. The criminal moved to the UK in 2013, living in Nottingham, where he still has connections. He is believed to have smuggled himself into Britain in the back of a lorry when he was just 20 years old. In 2015, he was deported to the Kurdistan region of Northern Iraq after being convicted of drug and gun offences. Majeed, who was on the run at the time, received a 10-year jail sentence for people smuggling at a court in Bruges in October 2022. He was also handed a 968,000 Euro (849,000) fine. His accomplice, Nzar Jabar Mohamad, was convicted and jailed at Hull Crown Court in October 2021. Mohamad was given a 10-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to an attempted people smuggling plot. Majeed is pictured during his meeting with BBC's Sue Mitchell and Rob Lawrie, a former soldier who works with refugees and assisted in the broadcaster's investigation Majeed's accomplice, Nzar Jabar Mohamad, (pictured) was convicted and jailed at Hull Crown Court in October 2021. Mohamad was given a 10-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to an attempted people smuggling plot News of Majeed's arrest comes as migrants have crossed the English Channel by boat for a 10th consecutive day as new arrivals were brought into Dover. There is no suggestion that Majeed was involved in these arrivals. Border Force vessels arrived at the Kent port on Monday with people wearing life jackets disembarking. More than 1,000 people have arrived in the UK by the Channel since May 4, according to Home Office figures. The provisional total for the year so far is 9,455 as of Sunday. Also on Monday, a judge at the High Court in Belfast ruled that a UK law allowing asylum-seekers to be deported to Rwanda should not apply to Northern Ireland on human rights grounds. Political parties in the British-run province, which, like Scotland, has a separate legal system to England and Wales, said the judgement made the controversial Rwanda scheme unworkable. But UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak vowed to press ahead, saying it 'changes nothing' about the government's plans to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda from as early as July. 'Nothing will distract us from that or delivering to the timetable I set out,' he said, announcing an appeal. We must start the flights to stop the boats.' A group of people thought to be migrants are brought in to Dover, Kent, from a Border Force vessel following a small boat incident in the Channel on Monday, May 13, 2024 Border Force vessels arrived at the Kent port on Monday, May 13, 2024 with people wearing life jackets disembarking There have already been a spate of legal challenges to the UK government's efforts to cut record levels of irregular migration, particularly from 'small boats' crossing the Channel from northern France. In November last year, the UK Supreme Court ruled that the deportation plan was illegal under international law. But Mr Sunak pushed through legislation recently in parliament that deems Rwanda a safe country, allowing flights to go ahead and decision-makers to disregard aspects of human rights law. In Belfast, judge Michael Humphreys upheld challenges to the legal powers allowing asylum-seekers to be detained and removed to the African country. The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission argued that the Illegal Migration Act breaches the UK's domestic and international obligations under a deal signed by London and the European Union governing post-Brexit arrangements in Northern Ireland. That deal - the Windsor Framework - guarantees there would be no reduction of rights safeguarded by Northern Ireland's 1998 Belfast/Good Friday Agreement that ended decades of sectarian conflict, even if that meant that the British province's laws differed from the rest of the UK. Two inflatable dinghies carrying apparent migrants make their way towards England in the English Channel on May 4, 2024 Like Scotland, Northern Ireland has its own separate, but similar, legal system to that in England and Wales. The judge found that several parts of the Illegal Migration Act reduced the rights of asylum-seekers in Northern Ireland under the terms of the peace accord. The case brought against the UK also alleged there were violations of a series of rights protected by the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), to which London remains a signatory. Humphreys ruled that sections of the law that were subject to legal challenges should be 'disapplied' in the province. The full boxset of Intrigue: To Catch a Scorpion is available to listen to on BBC Sounds. It will be broadcast weekly on BBC Radio 4 from Wednesday 15th May, 9:30am. An Army Ranger has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after he beat a female security guard to death in a vicious ten-minute drunken assault. Patrick Philip Byrne, 29, pleaded guilty in March to the first-degree murder of Denise Smith, 41, in 2021 in Washington state. Smith was brutally assaulted after she tried to stop Byrne from entering the office building she worked at in downtown Tacoma at around 1am on July 18. Smith - who had only recently been hired - was so badly beaten she was unrecognizable when she was discovered at 6am, according to investigators. He was stationed at Joint Base Lewis-McChord near Tacoma when he killed Smith. Patrick Philip Byrne, 29, pleaded guilty to the first-degree murder of Denise Smith, 41, in 2021 Smith was brutally assaulted after she tried to stop Byrne from entering the office building she worked at in downtown Tacoma at around 1am According to charging papers Byrne was out drinking with friends in downtown Tacoma and got into a bar fight where he was punched in the face. He then left the bar and walked in the direction of the building, apparently believing one of the people involved in the fight had walked inside. Authorities say Byrne opened the building's door to let the ranger know the building was closed, but he forced his way in. 'During that time the defendant repeatedly punched the victim with his fists, and he grabbed her by her braid and 'dragged her around like a rag doll,' prosecutors wrote in charging papers. The ranger also seized Smith's keys and used them to stab her face before choking her until she went limp after an attack lasting eight to 10 minutes, it is alleged. Smith - who had only recently been hired - was so badly beaten she was unrecognizable when it was discovered at 6am (pictured are police by the building) After abandoning her body, Byrne smashed a window in a nearby conference room and began throwing furniture around Byrne apologized to Smith's family at the sentencing, expressing regret for the killing After abandoning her body, Byrne smashed a window in a nearby conference room and began throwing furniture around, reported KING-TV, citing court documents. He then jumped 14 feet from a landing and was seen lying on concrete. A bloodied Byrne was seen by a passer-by crying for help and was taken to hospital after they made a 911 call. He alleged that he had been stabbed and sexually assaulted but there was no evidence of this. Byrne apologized to Smith's family at his sentencing, expressing his regret for the night of the killing. 'I wish I had never gone to that bar, that I had never gone out at all that night,' according to The News Tribune. 'I wish I had never ever even been out here, then none of this would have happened. And Denise Smith, a great and wonderful woman, to be sure, she would still be alive and part of the world for much, much longer.' Byrne's lawyers argued before his sentencing that he had a history of brain injuries and they may have played a role in his lack of judgment. Smith's father Charles E. Reagins, an army veteran, said in a letter to the judge: 'I, myself a US Veteran, recognize that Patrick Philip Byrne is one of the Armys highest trained killers: An "Army Ranger." 'The actions of Byrne toward my daughter were brutal, savage, harsh, cruel, unnecessary and worthless! It was downright cold-blooded murder.' Cars and trucks traverse high water along West Lake Houston Pkwy. near Lakewood Pines Blvd. Monday, May 13, 2024 in Humble Kirk Sides/Staff photographer Storm clouds roll into Houston on Monday, Jan. 8. Stormy skies are expected Monday afternoon as storms could bring a damaging wind and hail risk to the region. Justin Ballard Most of the Houston area is experiencing severe weather with the risk of large hail, damaging winds and the possibility of tornadoes. To support our journalism, please consider subscribing to the Chronicle for unlimited digital access. Interact with our flood tracker for real-time flood updates, live weather radar and storm surge threat Check our power outage tracker for real-time updates across Texas counties. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The severe thunderstorm watch for Harris County has been allowed to expire early, according to the National Weather Service. Galveston and Chambers County have also been taken out of the watch. Tonight's storms were forecasted to lead into a sunny day on Tuesday, with high temperatures approaching 90 degrees. As of 6 p.m., Centerpoint reported more than 21,000 power outages in the Houston area. Friendswood had the most outages, with about 1,300 total. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Flight delays were increasing at Hobby Airport, with average delays reaching 1 hour and 45 minutes with a ground stop in place until 8 p.m., according to FlightAware. A runway at Hobby Airport was shut down for emergency repairs Monday after it was damaged by a lightning strike, the airport announced in a post on X. Runway 13R, one of three runways at the airport, was closed immediately after the strike, the airport said. Departures at the airport have been delayed by more than hour by the passing storms and arrivals are being held at their origins until 7 p.m., according FlightAware, a flight tracking website. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Just after 7 p.m., airport officials said repairs were complete and the runway was back in service. Travelers were asked to check with their airlines for flight status. - John Wayne Ferguson The Harris County Flood District says the heavy rains could lead to the flooding of multiple streets across Harris County, including: Advertisement Article continues below this ad Buffalo Bayou at Peek Road near Cinco Ranch White Oak Bayou at Fairbanks near Woodland Oaks White Oak Bayou at Alabonson near Greater Inwood Greens Bayou at Knobcrest Drive near Greenspoint Vogel Creek at Victory Drive near Greater Inwood Vogel Creek at Gulf Bank Road near Eisenhower High School Brickhouse Gully at Hollister near Spring Branch Buffalo Bayou at Greenbusch Road near Katy Barker Reservoir Dam near George Bush Park Sims Bayou at SH 288 near S. Acres Garners Bayou at Rankin Road near Humble Huffman Repeater near Huffman Lake Houston at FM 1960 near Huffman Greens Bayou at US 59 near Humble Cedar Bayou at FM 1960 Garners Bayou at Beltway 8 near Humble Berry Bayou at Nevada Ave. near S. Houston Vince Bayou at Fairmont near Bayshore Medical Center Luce Bayou at FM 2100 near Huffman E. Fork San Jacinto at FM 1485 near New Caney San Jacinto River at US 90 near Barrett Fire Chief Samuel Pena took to social media Monday to remind drivers to slow down as severe weather hit the area. In his list of tips, he urged Houstonians to avoid distractions while driving, allow plenty of time to get to their destinations and to maintain a safe following distance behind other vehicles. Pena also advised drivers to stay vigilant when it comes to street-level flooding in low-lying areas. Motorists also should avoid flooded roadways and keep their wipers and headlights on during severe weather. -Shakari Briggs Advertisement Article continues below this ad Just before 3 p.m., CenterPoint Energy reported more than 630 outages affecting at least 23,000 customers. And as Monday's storms rolled in they also caused ground stops at George Bush Intercontinental Airport and William P. Hobby Airport. The Chronicle's Texas Power Outage Tracker showed Williamson and Gonzales counties experiencing the greatest number of outages, with 5,921 and 4,135 respectively. -Shakari Briggs A severe thunderstorm warning was in effect for portions of Harris, Montgomery, and Liberty Counties until 2:45 p.m. Monday. As the severe thunderstorm approached Bush Intercontinental Airport, it was producing sustained winds as strong as 45 mph with the capability of producing 60 mph gusts. Damaging winds and small hail are possible. The following locations will be affected by this severe thunderstorm warning: Humble, Aldine, Northside / Northline, Kingwood, Greater Greenspoint, Spring, Near Northside Houston, northeastern Greater Heights, Crosby, Splendora, Patton Village, Roman Forest, Woodbranch, Plum Grove, Bush Intercontinental Airport, Eastex / Jensen Area, Hidden Valley, Acres Home, Independence Heights and Atascocita. The warning had not been extended and was allowed to expire at 2:45 p.m. -Justin Ballard Flights to and from both Bush Intercontinental Airpot and Hobby Airport may be delayed due to the current weather conditions. The San Jacinto River Authority is releasing water from the Lake Conroe dam as rain moves across the area. The current release is 1,590 cubic feet per second. According to the authority, recent rainfall and runoff in the upper San Jacinto River Basin have raised the lake level to 201.28 feet. Normal pool for the lake is 201. With additional rain in the forecast, we continue to monitor rain and runoff in the area, officials said in a news release. We are in coordination with the city of Houston, Coastal Water Authority and Montgomery County Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management. -Catherine Dominguez Houston residents were expected to experience hail with the severe weather. Chris Banaszek took to the social media site X, formerly known as Twitter, to post a video showing marble-sized hail coming down near Alief. The storms will continue through the remainder of the afternoon and into the evening, Houston Chronicle Meteorologist Justin Ballard wrote. The main window for more widespread severe weather arrives between 4 and 6 p.m. Storms were approaching the Houston area from the southwest, meaning the system was expected to hit Fort Bend County, specifically Sugar Land, first. By 1:15 p.m. the skies over the suburb had gone dark and thunder rumbled almost incessantly. In addition, the National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm watch until 8 p.m. According to the weather service, winds as strong as 40 mph and half-inch hail are possible. This is the shocking moment police detain a 'drunken' passenger to cheers after the plane was forced to make an emergency landing. Portuguese police entered the Jet2 aircraft on Friday in Faro after the flight from Manchester landed in the Iberian country having been heading to Fuerteventura, Spain. Passengers delighted as the man was taken from the plane as cheers and whooping can be heard all around. The man with a black North Face fleece grins at passengers as they film him being booted off the plane. He leans into one camera, saying: 'Oi I'm doing this for Manchester, for Oldham.' The man filming ignores him and praises the police, commenting: 'Thanks gents.' This is the shocking moment police detain a 'drunken' passenger to cheers The video begins as three Portuguese policemen come onboard the flight and immediately find the passenger who is out of his seat screaming and clapping. One of the policemen gestures with his head towards the exit of the plane and the man quickly engages in dialogue, saying: 'No manhandling.' The stewardess hands the man his bag as he makes his way towards the exit and tries to throw a friendly arm around one of the police officers who is having none of the man's antics. While the policemen walk past the passengers with a sea of mobile phones in the air, the man makes one attempt to grab onto the back of the plane. However, he is no match for the policeman who grabs his fleece prompting a large wave of cheers from the passengers. One passenger continues to film as the man is escorted down the steps of the plane towards a waiting police car sat on the tarmac of the airport. Passengers delighted as the man was taken from the plane as cheers can be heard all around The video was shared to social media the following day with the caption: 'Drunken passenger leaving the plane after diverting to Portugal yesterday.' The post received over 100 likes with hundreds of comments from social media users who were quick to give their views. One said: 'Shocking behaviour and should be made to pay for all the landing costs, fuel and be banned.' Another added: 'Passport should be revoked.' A third remarked: 'Good for you Jet2, selfish behaviour and risking the safety of others will not be tolerated, good to see.' Another commented: '[They] should not be allowed on the plane, they should breathalyse before boarding.' On Monday, a spokesperson for Jet2 said: 'We can confirm that flight LS997 from Manchester to Fuerteventura diverted to Faro Airport on Friday 10th May, so that police could offload a disruptive passenger. 'As a family friendly airline, we take a zero-tolerance approach to such behaviour and we will fully support the authorities with any subsequent investigations. 'The disruptive passenger has been banned from flying with us for life and we will not hesitate to pursue costs that were incurred as a result of this divert.' The United Nations has dramatically slashed the estimated number of women and children killed in Gaza by 50 percent. Without announcement, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) altered their data on May 8 - reducing almost half the number of women and children previously reported killed in the Gaza conflict. The data which they base their reports on is collected from 'Gaza's Ministry of Health,' run by Hamas, the terror group that started the war on October 7. On May 6, the UN indicated that 34,735 people, including over 9,500 women and over 14,500 children, had reportedly been killed in Gaza since the war began on October 7. But just two days later on May 8, the numbers dramatically decreased with updated data showing that 34,844 people had reportedly been killed, including 4,959 women and 7,797 children. On May 6, the UN indicated that 34,735 people, including over 9,500 women and over 14,500 children, had reportedly been killed in Gaza since the war began on October 7 But just two days later on May 8, the numbers dramatically decreased with updated data showing that 34,844 people had reportedly been killed, including 4,959 women and 7,797 children Farhan Aziz Haq, a spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said the numbers 'can vary based on their own verification process that they undertake' Farhan Aziz Haq, a spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, blamed the discrepancies in the figures on reliance on data from the Ministry of Health in Gaza, which undergoes its verification process. He said those numbers 'can vary based on their own verification process that they undertake.' 'The United Nations teams on the ground in Gaza are unable to independently verify those figures given the prevailing situation on the ground and the sheer volume of fatalities,' he added, addressing Fox News Digital. 'It is for this reason that all figures used by the UN clearly cite the Health Ministry in Gaza as the source.' This comes after reports that multiple UN employees were directly involved in the October 7 terror attack that killed over 1,400 people and took 252 people hostage, including twelve American citizens. Additionally, around 10 percent of all of the UN's Gaza staff have direct ties to Islamist militant groups, according to intelligence reports reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. The data which they base their reports on is collected from 'Gaza's Ministry of Health,' run by Hamas , the terror group that started the war on October 7 (Pictured: women react during funeral at Al-Aqsa hospital) This comes after reports that multiple UN employees were directly involved in the October 7 terror attack that killed over 1,400 people and took 252 people hostage, including twelve American citizens Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA Commissioner-General, (pictured) did not specify how many employees were implicated in the scandal, but the US State Department said that 12 UN employees were involved in the terrorist attack on Oct. 7 In January, the UN's agency for Palestinian refugees launched a probe into 12 UN employees suspected of being involved in the Hamas October 7 terror attacks. Announcing it had opened the investigation, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) said that is had also severed ties with the suspected staff members. While Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA Commissioner-General, did not specify how many employees were implicated in the scandal, the US State Department said that 12 employees were involved. The Israeli authorities have provided UNRWA with information about the alleged involvement of several UNRWA employees in the horrific attacks on Israel on October 7,' said Lazzarini. 'To protect the agency's ability to deliver humanitarian assistance, I have taken the decision to immediately terminate the contracts of these staff members and launch an investigation in order to establish the truth without delay,' he added. Republicans are planning to hold President Biden's feet to the flame for his threat to withhold Congressionally-approved offensive weapons to Israel. As Israel entered Gaza's southern city of Rafah earlier this month the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) appeared poised to root out what they claimed was one of Hamas's last bastions of defense. Days later, Joe Biden sent a strong message to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, warning him not to mount a ground invasion into Rafah - where over one million Palestinians have sought refuge - and pausing a shipment of bombs to the country. Biden's pause on bombs to Israel elicited outrage from GOP lawmakers and even some Israel-supporting Democrats, while garnering applause from pro-Palestinian lawmakers. Now, in a rebuke against Biden, the House is expected to vote this week on a bill that would force the president to provide Israel with the weapons Congress approved. President Joe Biden has been scrutinized for withholding a shipment of bombs to Israel while trying to signal his concerns over an IDF ground operation into Rafah Biden and many Democrat lawmakers have expressed their concern in recent weeks that Palestinian refugees in Rafah - many of whom escaped from other parts of Gaza over security concerns - do not have anywhere else to shelter from IDF military operations Tents for displaced people are crowded west of Deir al-Balah city in the central Gaza Strip after thousands of Palestinians fled Rafah after the Israeli army announced the start of a military operation there 12 May 2024 That legislation, called the Israel Security Assistance Support Act, was announced by the House Appropriations Committee on May 11. The bill would forbid the White House from withholding Congressionally-approved foreign aid to Israel and would require the 'prompt delivery' of the supplies Biden vowed to hold back. If passed, the Biden administration would have 15 days to ship the aid previously withheld. Should the White House not comply, funds for the Department of Defense and State Department would be restricted, including the salaries of certain federal officials. 'Unlike the Administration, House Appropriators will not waver in our ironclad support for Israel,' said a joint statement from House appropriators Reps. Ken Calvert, R-Calif., Tom Cole, R-Okla., Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Fla., and David Joyce, R-Ohio. 'The House and Senate acted on the will of the people, overwhelmingly providing Israel with the firepower to send a message: the U.S. and our allies will not cower to terrorist organizations like Hamas.' 'The Administration is expected to utilize the very aid it requested to equip Israel with what it needs to defend itself, destroy Hamas, and maintain peace in the region.' 'Any actions to withhold resources impede our national and global security and send a dangerous signal that the U.S. cannot be counted on as a partner.' But during the White House press conference Monday, Sullivan reiterated to reporters that Biden's pause only extended to one specific shipment of bombs. 'We have paused the shipment of 2000-pound bombs because we do not believe that should be dropped in densely populated cities,' he said at the White House's daily press conference. 'We're talking to the Israeli Government about this,' he added. 'We still believe it is would be a mistake to launch a major military operation into the heart of Rafah that would put huge numbers of civilians at risk without a clear strategic gain.' Later in the briefing, Press Sec. Karine Jean-Pierre said the White House is against the GOP's Israel Security Assistance Support Act, saying it would restrict the president's authority. 'We strongly strongly oppose attempts to constrain the President's ability to deploy U.S. security assistance consistent with U.S. foreign policy and national security objectives.' The bill is expected to receive a vote as early as Thursday. Still, the Democrat-held Senate is unlikely to take up the Republican-led measure, meaning the bill is largely symbolic. Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has said that Biden is 'defying the will of Congress' by withholding aid to Israel But the expected vote forcing Biden to 'provide for the expeditious delivery' of Israel's military aid could prove a problem for House Democrats. Many in the conference have voiced loud opposition to Israel's handling of its offensive in Gaza. In recent weeks, several far-left progressive 'Squad' members have visited college protests that have advocated for the liberation of Palestinians and the destruction of Israel. 'Squad' members Reps. Cori Bush, D-Mo., and Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., went as far as hosting some pro-Gaza protestors on Capitol Hill last week who were arrested for participating in demonstrations at George Washington University in D.C. However, there is also a contingent of pro-Israel Democrats who have called into question Biden's pause on arms to Israel. On Friday, a group of 26 House Democrats expressed concern over the White House's decision, sent a letter to Biden's National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan. 'We are deeply concerned about the message the Administration is sending to Hamas and other Iranian-backed terrorist proxies by withholding weapons shipments to Israel, during a critical moment in the negotiations,' the Democrats, led by Jewish Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., wrote. Palestinians who fled Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip transport their belongings in the back of a truck as they arrive to take shelter in Khan Yunis 'We have a duty to continue to equip Israel with the resources she needs to defend herself and crush the terrorists who also seek to do America harm, free the hostages including the Americans, continue delivering critical humanitarian aid to innocent civilians in Gaza, and to stand by our democratic allies around the world.' The dueling Democrat factions of pro-Israel and pro-Gaza will surely split on the expected vote on the Israel Security Assistance Support Act. This is the moment travellers staged a sit down protest during a row with a farmer who tried to make his land inaccessible to caravans in the run-up to the annual Appleby Horse Fair. Members of the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller community have started arriving almost a month early for the event in the Cumbrian town which doesn't begin until June 6. The travellers reportedly prevented the farmer from blocking the entrance to his land at Belah, outside Appleby, with boulders using a JCB digger. His machine was surrounded by members of a travelling family - with one man standing directly behind the JCB to stop it reversing. Others - including one woman who said she would be turning 90 this week - took turns to berate the farmer. This is the moment travellers staged a protest during a row with a farmer who tried to make to make his land inaccessible to caravans in the run-up to the annual Appleby Horse Fair The travellers reportedly prevented the farmer from blocking the entrance to his land at Belah, outside Appleby, with boulders using a JCB digger The farmer inside his JCB digger as he tried to but boulders in place And at one stage a woman was told to sit on top of the boulders to stop the farmer from creating the barrier. The incident happened just outside the market town of Kirkby Stephen, which is bracing itself for the annual influx of caravans. There are fears that the spell of warm weather has encouraged the travellers to set off earlier than usual, meaning the town will host them for even longer. One local said: 'It has been the farmer's practice to block off a layby which is the entrance to his fields because in the past the travellers have set up camp there. 'It means he can't access his own land, which means that his livelihood is being damaged for the entire time they are there. 'So in recent years he has carried boulders to the entrance to block it off to caravans so that they must go and find somewhere else to park up. 'However this year they seem to have set off early, some people in town have been surprised by how many have started arriving when there is still almost four weeks before the horse fair actually starts.' Others - including one woman who said she would be turning 90 this week - took turns to berate the farmer Travellers staged a sit down protest during a clash with a farmer as they began arriving almost a month early for the annual Appleby Horse Fair At one stage a woman was told to sit on top of the boulders to stop the farmer from creating the barrier Travellers have traditionally started to congregate around Kirkby Stephen ahead of the ancient horse fair, using the high street to show and trade horses. However, trouble has flared up in recent years. All but one of its licensed premises plan to close for the duration of the horse fair season and it will be made more difficult for travellers to park their caravans along the rural roads leading to the town. The local authority has erected posts along the verge and in some places built up earth berms at popular stopping points on the stretch between Brough and Kirkby Stephen. When it begins next month, the event is expected to see 30,000 visitors, roughly 10,000 of them from the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller community. In its 250 year history the fair has only been cancelled twice, the first in 2001 during the foot and mouth outbreak and the second in 2020 due to the COVID pandemic. The gathering is billed as the biggest traditional gypsy fair in Europe and has developed traditions that take place every year. Gypsy horses are washed in the River Eden in Appleby and trotted up and down the 'flashing lane' - a closed off rural road - before being haggled over and bought. Travellers have traditionally started to congregate around Kirkby Stephen ahead of the ancient horse fair, using the high street to show and trade horses His machine was surrounded by members of a travelling family - with one man standing directly behind the JCB to stop it reversing There is a market on Jimmy Winter's Field with stalls selling everything from fashion to horse-related wares. The fair is held outside the town of Appleby, at the point where the old Roman Road crosses Long Marton Road, on Gallows Hill, which was named after the public hangings that were once carried out there. It was once thought the fair originated from a royal charter to the borough of Appleby from King James II of England in 1685, although more recent research has found the charter was cancelled before it was ever enacted. The gathering is sometimes known as 'the New Fair' because Appleby's medieval borough fair, held at Whitsuntide, ceased in 1885. The 'New Fair' began in 1775 for sheep and cattle drovers and horse dealers to sell their stock. By the 1900s it had evolved into a major Gypsy/Traveller event which brought families from across the UK and Europe. Dozens more migrants have been brought ashore by Border Force as illegal crossings carry on for the tenth consecutive day. A group of mainly male migrants were seen arriving at the Port of Dover aboard Border Force vessels while wearing orange lifejackets, before being taken into the immigration processing centre. The arrivals came as it was confirmed that 77 migrants aboard two vessels were intercepted and processed in the coastal town on Sunday. Official figures show that 9,455 in 193 boats have been recorded making the crossing so far this year - with 1,888 being recorded in the first 12 days of May alone. A group of people thought to be migrants are brought in to Dover, Kent, from a Border Force vessel following a small boat incident in the Channel on Monday, May 13 A group of people, thought to be migrants, being brought into Dover from a Border Force vessel (pictured) on Monday, May 13 It comes just days after the Hone Office said it had paused publishing statistics on the number of migrants prevented from crossing the Channel in small boats. It followed 'consultation with the French', the update said, and the department would 'provide further updates on the publication of prevention data as soon as possible'. Exact reasons for the U-turn have not been disclosed. But the Home Office said the statistics were 'estimates' and prone to 'measurement error'. From May 4 to May 12, 1,177 migrants have been confirmed to have been intercepted, according to the latest Home Office figures. The cumulative number of arrivals by small boats in 2024 now stands at a provisional total of 8,278. This is 34 per cent higher than the total at the equivalent point last year, which was 6,192, and 19% higher than the total at this stage in 2022, which was 6,945. Border Force vessels Hurricane and Ranger have been seen on Search and Rescue duty in the Dover-Calais strait this morning. From May 4 to May 12, 1,177 migrants have been confirmed to have been intercepted, according to the latest Home Office figures A group of migrants crossing the Channel earlier this month on an inflatable dinghy (pictured) A Home Office spokesperson said: 'The unacceptable number of people who continue to cross the Channel demonstrates exactly why we must get flights to Rwanda off the ground as soon as possible. 'We continue to work closely with French police who are facing increasing violence and disruption on their beaches as they work tirelessly to prevent these dangerous, illegal and unnecessary journeys. Last year they stopped 26,000 people from reaching our shores. 'We remain committed to building on the successes that saw arrivals drop by more than a third last year, including tougher legislation and agreements with international partners, in order to save lives and stop the boats.' Channel crossings had already hit a new record high for the first four months of the calendar year. Last year 29,437 migrants arrived in the UK, down 36 per cent on a record 45,774 arrivals in 2022. Meanwhile, Rishi Sunak is facing a fresh legal headache over his Rwanda plan after a judge ruled that it cannot go ahead in Northern Ireland. The High Court in Belfast has decided that the provisions of the Illegal Migration Act undermine human rights protections under the Windsor Framework agreed with the EU by the PM. Mr Justice Humphreys also said aspects of the Act were incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The PM has played down the impact of the ruling, insisting it 'changes nothing', and vowing the courts will not prevent him defending national security. Rishi Sunak is facing a fresh legal headache over his Rwanda plan today after a judge ruled that it cannot go ahead in Northern Ireland The High Court in Belfast has decided that the provisions of the Illegal Migration Act undermine human rights protections under the Windsor Framework agreed with the EU by the PM 'I have been consistently clear that the commitments in the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement should be interpreted as they were always intended, and not expanded to cover issues like illegal migration. We will take all steps to defend that position, including through appeal,' he said. However, there will be fresh concerns about legal wrangling delaying the policy, while the DUP has warned Northern Ireland could become a 'magnet for asylum seekers'. The row comes amid signs the Rwanda scheme is already having a deterrent effect, with Ireland complaining that migrants are crossing the border to avoid being deported to the African state. Famed courtroom TV personality Judge Judy has sued the parent company of the National Enquirer over a 'fabricated' claim that she was on a personal mission to save the Menendez brothers some 35 years after the murder of their parents. Accelerate360 and A360 Media are listed as the defendants in a suit, seen by DailyMail.com, which was filed on behalf of Judy Sheindlin in Collier County, Florida. Lyle and Erik Menendez are currently in jail serving a sentence of life without parole for fatally shooting their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, in the den of the family's Beverly Hills mansion in 1989. The brothers, now both in their fifties, were convicted at trial in 1996 for the double murder. Last month, In Touch Weekly - an American tabloid with the same parent company as the National Enquirer - published an article titled, 'Inside Judge Judy's Quest to Save the Menendez Brothers Nearly 35 Years After Their Parents' Murder. Legendary TV Judge Judy Sheindlin has sued the National Enquirer's parent company for defamation of character after they claimed she's on a mission to save the Menendez brothers Erik, now 53, and his brother Lyle, 56, are serving life without parole for fatally shooting their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, in 1989 in the den of their Beverly Hills mansion Versions of the story were subsequently published elsewhere, including, according to the suit, in the National Enquirer, which published its front pages, 'True crime! Judge Judy's FIGHT FOR LYLE & ERIK!' The article itself was headlined: 'BALONEY! Judge Judy on Warpath to save Menendez bros.' The suit claims that several of the publications owned by A360 Media have damaged the judge's pristine reputation, which she's worked for six decades to establish. 'In one fell swoop, Judge Sheindlin's lifetime-cultivated reputation has taken a body blow in the form of an account replete with 'facts' diminishing her to a rube, a fool - or worse,' reads the suit. 'Defendants were motivated by a desire to generate more headlines, a bigger audience, and more ad revenue through the inclusion of Judge Sheindlin, despite the lack of any basis for doing so.' In a statement to DailyMail.com Monday, Sheindlin said of the necessity of the suit: 'When you fabricate stories about me in order to make money for yourselves with no regard for the truth or the reputation I've spent a lifetime cultivating, it's going to cost you. 'When you've done it multiple times, it's unconscionable and will be expensive. It has to be expensive so that you will stop.' Judge Judy Sheindlin is being represented by attorney Eric George. She is seeking an unspecified amount in damages, but one 'in excess of the minimum jurisdictional limits of this Court.' The judge and her attorneys have additionally demanded a speedy trial by jury. The suit will likely place the American media company's journalistic practices under a magnifying glass, which could be a boon for Sheindlin and her team given that, according to the suit, former chairman and CEO of A360 Media David Pecker has gone on the record saying: 'Making up stories and obsessing with ratings are par for the course for the National Enquirer.' David Parry, the President and CEO of Accelerate360 is implicated in the suit 'In one fell swoop, Judge Sheindlin's lifetime-cultivated reputation has taken a body blow in the form of an account replete with 'facts' diminishing her to a rube, a fool - or worse,' reads the suit In testimony about the National Enquirer, Pecker admitted that the publication, in 2016, made up entirely a story about Senator Ted Cruz's father appearing in a photograph with Lee Harvey Oswald - a story referenced across the internet to this day. Furthermore, Sheindlin's suit claims that this would not be the first time the National Enquirer has seriously fabricated information about her. In 2017, the publication posted a retraction that read as follows: 'The National ENQUIRER and sister publication The National Examiner recently published articles which stated that Judge Judy Sheindlin suffered from 'brain disease,' was 'fighting' both Alzheimer's and depression, and is 'hiding a heartbreaking medical crisis.' 'We also published articles which stated that Judge Judy cheated on her husband, and that her daughter Nicole Sheindlin faced jail time for refusing to serve on a jury. None of these statements are true, and we unequivocally retract them.' The Menendez brothers are currently hoping that new evidence will reopen their case and allow them to walk free after decades in prison Judge Judy Sheindlin was identified by multiple outlets as a defender of the brothers' effort to reopen their case Details of the suit, which was filed in the 20th Judicial Circuit court, reveal that Sheindlin and her attorneys have specifically identified a number of instances where the publications being sued credited Sheindlin for things she's never said and claims she's never made. Some of those listed in the suit include the claim that 'Lyle and Erik Menendez 'gained a powerful ally in their quest for a retrial - Judge Judy Sheindlin.'' Judge Sheindlin was also alleged, by the publications, to have said in a FOX Nation docuseries that 'the proceedings that put the brothers in prison were 'rigged.'' Additionally, the former TV judge says the outlets reported that she 'begged Leslie Abramson - the defense attorney for the accused - to demand Weisberg recuse himself in favor of a new trial judge.' The suit claims that, among other things, the defendants 'entirely misquoted source material, which had properly identified the actual speaker of the challenged statements by a name other than Judy Sheindlin.' Labour MP Rosie Duffield tonight demanded Natalie Elphicke be suspended from the party less than a week after she defected from the Tories. The Canterbury MP urged Labour bosses to take action amid claims Ms Elphicke lobbied ministers over her ex-husband's sexual assault trial. Ms Duffield blasted party leader Sir Keir Starmer as 'hugely hypocritical' and contrasted his warm welcome for Ms Elphicke to his treatment of other MPs. Ms Elphicke, the Dover MP, stunned Westminster by crossing the floor to sit on Labour's benches in the Commons just before Prime Minster's Questions last week. But Sir Keir's decision to allow her to join the party has caused a huge backlash within his own ranks. Labour MPs have cited her right-wing views and past support of her ex-husband, whom she succeeded as Dover MP, after he was found guilty of sexual assaulting two women. At the weekend, it was claimed she attempted to lobby the justice secretary in 2020 to interfere in Charlie Elphicke's criminal trial - although she has hit out at 'nonsense' reports. Labour MP Rosie Duffield tonight demanded Natalie Elphicke be suspended from the party less than a week after she defected from the Tories Dover MP Ms Elphicke, pictured with Sir Keir Starmer, stunned Westminster by crossing the floor to sit on Labour's benches in the Commons just before Prime Minster's Questions Senior Tory MP Sir Robert Buckland has claimed Ms Elphicke approached him when he was justice secretary before the hearing of her ex-husband's case Rishi Sunak branded Sir Keir 'unprincipled' as the Prime Minister attempted to make political capital out of losing one of his own MPs Speaking to the BBC, Ms Duffield called for Ms Elphicke to have the Labour whip withdrawn while an investigation takes place. 'I think that if the shoe was on the other foot, if she was still officially a Conservative MP, we would rightly be calling for this to be thoroughly investigated and that's what should happen in this case,' she said. Ms Duffield drew a comparison with veteran MP Diane Abbott's suspension by Labour over remarks about Jewish people. 'In other serious cases, like sexual allegations, before the investigation is finished the whip is removed and people suspended temporarily,' she added. Ms Duffield said it would be 'hugely hypocritical' for Labour not to investigate the allegations about Ms Elphicke. 'I think anybody watching would think, "well hang on, if that was a Tory MP that's exactly what we'd be calling for from the despatch box" and therefore that should apply when it's one of our own MPs, which apparently Natalie now is,' she continued. Senior Tory MP Sir Robert Buckland has claimed Ms Elphicke approached him when he was justice secretary before the hearing of her ex-husband's case. She allegedly told Sir Robert that it was unfair the case was the first to be heard at Southwark Crown Court after the Covid lockdown and that it was being overseen by Lady Justice Whipple. Her comments were viewed as a bid to have the case moved to a lower-profile court to spare her partner public scrutiny, while another saw it as an attempt to replace the senior judge. Sir Robert rejected her plea, suggesting his intervention could undermine the constitutional doctrine of the separation of powers between Parliament and the judiciary. The former Cabinet minister said: 'She was told in no uncertain terms that it would have been completely inappropriate to speak to the judge about the trial at all.' Ms Elphicke's former husband and predecessor as MP for Dover was later convicted of sexually assaulting two women and jailed for two years. She ended the marriage after his conviction but supported his unsuccessful appeal, saying Mr Elphicke had been 'attractive, and attracted to women' and 'an easy target for dirty politics and false allegations'. Ms Elphicke allegedly also tried to secure him better prison conditions, asking for more comfortable pillows. The new Labour MP denies the characterisation of the meeting with Sir Robert and that she asked for improved jail conditions. A spokesman for Ms Elphicke said: 'This is nonsense. 'It's certainly true that Mr Elphicke continued to be supported after his imprisonment by a large number of Conservative MPs who had known him for a long time, including some who visited him and independently lobbied on his behalf, which was nothing to do with Natalie.' A Labour Party spokesman said: 'Natalie Elphicke totally rejects that characterisation of the meeting. 'If Robert Buckland had any genuine concerns about the meeting, then he should have raised them at the time, rather than making claims to the newspapers now Natalie has chosen to join the Labour Party.' On Thursday, Ms Elphicke said she condemned he ex-husband's 'behaviour towards other women and towards me', adding it was 'right that he was prosecuted' and she was 'sorry for the comments that I made about his victims'. Labour MP Jess Phillips has said there should be an independent investigation into allegations Ms Elphicke asked Sir Robert to intervene in her then-husband's case. The Birmingham Yardley MP, a former shadow minister for tackling domestic violence, told LBC: 'I think questions have to be answered now. 'I don't know how one would prove if two people are saying two different things, it's not my wheelhouse, it's not my pay grade, there are questions to be answered, there are apologies to be made and there is work to do and I maintain that position.' Health minister Maria Caulfield also said there should be an investigation into Sir Robert's claims, but added it was up to the Labour Party to carry one out. Sir Keir is facing attacks from all sides over the defection of Ms Elphicke. He was branded 'unprincipled' by Rishi Sunak earlier today as the Prime Minister attempted to make political capital out of losing one of his own MPs. Speaking in London, Mr Sunak juxtaposed Sir Keir's former role as a shadow minister under leftwinger Jeremy Corbyn with his acceptance of right-winger Ms Elphicke into his ranks. He added: 'If you are trying to be everything to everyone, fundamentally you don't stand for anything.' The PM said Ms Elphicke's defection 'shows less about her and it's more about Keir Starmer'. 'It shows him to be completely and utterly unprincipled. This is someone who went from embracing Jeremy Corbyn to embracing Natalie Elphicke,' Mr Sunak added. 'It just tells you that you can't trust what the guy says.' TUC president Matt Wrack attacked Ms Elphicke's support for the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act, which curbs the effect that industrial action can have on some key services At the same time, Sir Keir was facing pushback from the Left after anti-strike comments made by Ms Elphicke came to light. In March, the Dover MP blamed firefighters for the deaths of three people during a previous national strike. TUC president Matt Wrack, who is also the general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union, also attacked Ms Elphicke's support for the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act, which curbs the effect that industrial action can have on some key services. 'This is a disgraceful attack on firefighters, who protect the public and save lives every day, sometimes at great personal cost,' Mr Wrack wrote in a letter to the Labour leader seen by the Guardian. 'Attacking trade union members in this way to justify support for draconian anti-worker laws ought to be incompatible with membership of the parliamentary Labour party.' Senior Labour figures have been forced to defend their new colleague. Party chairwoman Anneliese Dodds questioned why Conservatives calling for a probe did not do so when Ms Elphicke was said to have approached Sir Robert. Ms Dodds told the BBC's Westminster Hour: 'Natalie Elphicke has said that these allegations are not true. 'And I think if the Conservative Party now says that it wishes to launch an investigation, the big question is for the Conservatives, because they maintain that this took place four years ago, there was no investigation, nothing done about it when she was a Conservative MP. 'I think many people will be scratching their heads and saying 'if this is the serious matter that they state it is, why did they not act on this four years ago?' Shadow education minister Catherine McKinnell told Sky News this morning she was 'baffled' as to why Sir Robert had 'sat on' the allegations and said his reasons for doing so should be 'looked into'. Don Trump Jr. visited Peter Navarro, his father's former economic adviser, in federal prison in Miami next week. Navarro was convicted in September of two counts of contempt of Congress for refusing to provide testimony to the House committee that investigated the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Former President Donald Trump's eldest son told DailyMail.com that he wanted to show his support for Navarro, who he called 'a good man' who was 'wrongfully convicted.' 'Peter was railroaded by the same corrupt system that is trying to railroad my father and so I thought it was important to show my support for him. He's a good man, who was wrongfully convicted,' Trump Jr. said in a statement. 'Even though I just had knee surgery a few days ago, I wanted Peter to know that my entire family is praying for him and will always have his back,' he added. Donald Trump Jr. visited Peter Navarro at federal prison in Miami The visit comes just a few weeks after the Supreme Court rejected Navarro's bid for release while he appeals and as Donald Trump sits in a New York courtroom, waiting to hear his fate in a hush-money case. Navarro, 74, reported to the Miami Federal Correctional Institution in March to begin a four-month sentence for contempt of Congress. He started his stint behind bars after Chief Justice John Roberts rejected his eleventh hour bid to remain free. Now the highest court in the United States has knocked down another bid to be released from the 80-man dormitory for older inmates. His request to Justice Neil Gorsuch was referred to the whole court, who then denied it. Navarro was found guilty of two counts of criminal contempt of Congress last year after he defied a subpoena to testify to the House January 6 committee investigating the Capitol riot. He was sentenced to four months and given a $9,500 fine, but almost immediately appealed. Donald Trump 's former top trade advisor Peter Navarro will have to remain in federal prison after the Supreme Court rejected his bid for release while he appeals Peter Navarro served as trade adviser during Donald Trump's presidency Navarro argues that he was bound by executive privileged when he ignored the subpoena. But the key issue the judge mentioned in court was that there was no evidence it was ever invoked. One of his bids was also rejected by a three-judge U.S. Court of Appeals panel in Washington D.C. They concluded that it was unlikely he could get a new trial or reverse is conviction. Navarro served as trade adviser during Trump's presidency and is the first senior member of his administration to be imprisoned in connection with efforts to overturn the 2020 election results. Before he handed himself over to the prison guards, he told reporters gathered in a parking lot across the street that he would serve his time 'proudly.' 'When I walk in that prison today,' he said, 'the justice system such as it is will have done a crippling blow to the constitutional separation of powers and executive privilege.' After Trump's defeat to Joe Biden, Navarro emerged as an outspoken supporter of conspiracy theories that the election was stolen. He put together dossiers to back up the claims with titles such as 'The Art of the Steal,' and 'The Immaculate Deception.' Navarro, 74, reported to the Miami Federal Correctional Institution in March to begin a four-month sentence for contempt of Congress Before he handed himself over to the prison guards in March, Navarro told reporters gathered in a parking lot across the street that he would serve his time 'proudly' Steve Bannon, a longtime adviser to the former president, also faces jail time for defying a subpoena from the House committee. Bannon was sentenced to four months in jail in 2022 by U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols after a jury convicted him of two counts of contempt of Congress. But Nichols, a Trump appointee, agreed to postpone the jail term while Bannon appealed the decision. Bannon, like Navarro, argued he was protected by immunity and executive privilege. Last week, an appeals court upheld Banno's conviction, paving the way for him to face jail time. Bannon could still appeal to the Supreme Court. Bannon and Navarro worked together on a strategy they called the 'Green Bay Sweep,' a plan to organize objections by members of Congress to electoral votes from states Biden won in 2020, delaying the process and buying time for GOP state legislatures to step in and appoint pro-Trump electors. A female Royal Navy officer says she will 'never be the same person again' after a sickening rape left her suicidal. The sailor, who is being called 'Joanna' to protect her identity, told BBC Women's Hour that she was sexually assaulted and raped twice by her senior officer at a work party. The junior officer told the radio show she tried to tell people about her brutal experience but was dismissed. The mother-of-one also said that the effects of her ordeal have forced her out of the navy and has stopped her from having any more children. She also claims that her attacker continues to work in the Royal Navy after her allegations were dismissed due to a lack of 'concrete evidence'. Joanna said that she attended a party in the officer's mess following a traumatic incident at work. Following the incident, which also affected her male colleague, she had been classed as vulnerable. The junior officer described the officers mess as 'a home' and a place to socialise and feel safe but claims she was not safe there. Joanna described how, at the work social, she had had a lot to drink with friends and colleagues and said hello to her male colleague earlier in the evening. During the meal, the superior officer caught her attention. 'He looked over and caught my eye and mouthed to me 'are you okay' and I nodded and smiled from across the room.' she said. Later on in the evening he approached her and 'expressed words of concern' about her. Sophie Brook (pictured) claims she was abused, both physically and mentally. Called a 'c***' and was often punched and hit by one male colleague while working in the armed forces A senior source has admitted the Navy was aware some women had been affected by 'inappropriate sexualised behaviour'. Pictured: The Royal Navy's Trident-class nuclear submarine Vanguard She told the BBC programme that she was very drunk and 'not in a good mental state' and that she was reluctant to talk to her colleague. She said: 'I remember thinking I've got to talk to 'one of the bosses'. Later on as the party continued, Joanna described how the male office approached her. She said she believed 'he was being a concerned boss, looking for a chat.' The sailor said the two discussed work and the stressful incident that had affected them both. While talking to him, Joanna said she realised she was very drunk and has had to piece the night back together from there. She says there are 'blanks' in her memory for the rest of the evening but she does remember him leading her away in the early hours of the morning after the end of the party. 'He led me away from the party, I was trying to find my room but ended up going to his room for a drink.' she said. 'I don't remember if I agreed or not. I remember being in the room with him and him pouring two glasses of alcohol. 'I remember stumbling as I was walking next to him, he was essentially half carrying me.' she said. Joanna says she was then raped by her male superior officer in his cabin. She said: 'I next remember being on the floor and him on top of me and then in the bed with him on top of me, both naked but have no idea how that happened or when. 'I suspect as strongly as I can he removed my clothes because of the way they were strewn around the room the next day. 'I remember him having sex with me - that's how I described it to the police.' She says he raped her twice and that there had was a separate sexual assault and that she did not consent at any point. 'I don't know when or how long and I had not consented - there had been no conversation.' Ms Brook alleges she was assaulted by a senior male colleague while she slept, as well as being sexually assaulted on multiple occasions An investigation into the UK's best-known display squad has concluded that women regularly faced unwanted physical contact, sexual texts and invitations to engage in sexual activity (File image) 'I remember he finally got off me and I passed out again and that was essentially the end of the night.' The mother-of-one explained that she felt particularly violated as the superior officer is 'responsible to values and standards including sexual consent.' She said: 'His rank meant he was responsible for other careers and military discipline of others and he had the ability to apply military law to others so he needed to have understood them very well himself.' Joanna said that she tried to report the horrific assault the following day but officers were dismissive. She said: 'I tried to report it the next morning to my supporting officer but wasn't even able to get to the story because she got cross with me, she was dismissive. 'I clammed up and I couldn't talk to her, I couldn't trust her.' The former officer also tried to report the incident to her immediate work place boss and she said he was 'horrified' but could only offer limited support. 'He was nice and concerned but I told him I was okay' she said. Joanna says she gave up trying to tell anyone else about her rape after her first two unsuccessful attempts. She said she was concerned that she wouldn't be believed because of the rank of her attacker. The case went to the Service Prosecution Authority - the military's version of the Crown Prosecution Service. Joanna's male colleague was accused of two counts of rape and one of sexual assault by penetration. The former sailor said she was proud to speak out and felt it was important. 'Nobody should have to go through that. I live with it every day and talking about it doesn't make it any worse necessarily.' she said In an exclusive interview with BBC Women's Hour, a junior officer in the Royal Navy claims she was raped twice and sexually assaulted after a party in the offer's mess (File image) 'Joanna' says that her horrific incident is part of a wider culture of sexual abuse within the armed forces (File image) Joanna said she was proud to speak out and felt it was important. 'Nobody should have to go through that. I live with it every day and talking about it doesn't make it any worse necessarily.' she said But the former navy officer says that reactions to her sexual assault story have not always been positive. 'It's incredibly difficult to talk about it and the fact that its not talked about and on this level is why it's like a dirty little secret. 'Within the military in particular because there's a lot of awareness about it but I don't think they want to admit it happens to often particularly between both me and him, the demographic as people who are a bit older, professionals, both commissioned officers.' she said. Joanna added she felt it was important to speak out as she says her attacker 'embellished their story' to make her seem an active and willing participant but she enphasises her terrifying ordeal was not consensual. She said: 'This incident with me was not consensual because I didn't not know what was going on and I was not able to consent and I did not consent and that is rape. That is a crime.' Joanna said her case did not make it to the SPA because they believed there was no 'concrete' evidence. Despite the senior officer later admitting that sex had taken place although he claimed Joanna had been an active and willing participant, which she says is not true. Joanna described her experience as 'like victim blaming' and said she was even suicidal. She described the effects the rape has had on her life as carrer-ending. She siad: 'It's ended my career. I've been medically discharged because of the mental health consequences of this.' 'The physical effects of the assault didn't last very long - the mental side remains,' she said, explaining she lost weight and became 'a different person'. 'I will never be the same person again. And it's changed me mentally, it's changed what I can do,' she said. 'I did not want to leave. I did not want my career to end.' 'I was very close to ending my life and was only stopped because I'm a mother, I strongly believe if I wasn't I wouldn't be here today.' Joanna said the experience has changed how she lives her life. She said: 'I wanted to have another baby but that's been rendered impossible since that happened, it's changed my relationship with my husband. 'It's the worst crime you can survive, i would rather have broken every bone in my body and gone through physical rehab than go through this.' She also says she has been been left in the dark about the outcome - all she knows is that her attacker has not lost his job while she has been forced out of a carrer she loved. 'He will have power and influence over people and their careers. 'My career has ended and his carries on.' But Joanna says her experience is far from abnormal. She said when she first joined the military she was 'very much in the minority' due to far fewer female officers than male. As a result sexual assault and unpleasant behaviour is rife. She said: 'I would almost guarantee that every single women in the military will have been on the receiving end of unwanted and unpleasant behaviour. 'Happened to me several times on very minor levels but the culture was you laugh it off you ignore it, you don't do anything about it.' In a statement, the Royal Navy said: 'Sexual assault and other sexual offences are not tolerated in the Royal Navy and anything which falls short of the highest of standards is totally unacceptable. 'We acknowledge that this incident will have had a significant impact to those involved, and since then we have made significant changes to how incidents are reported and investigated. 'This includes providing specialist help to victims and witnesses of serious crime, independent from the military chain of command.' The Navy has since set up the Defence Serious Crime Command and Victim Witness Care Unit, in 2022, to provide specialist support. Other former officers have also come forward to share their experiences of abuse int he armed forces. Lieutenant Sophie Brook claims she was abused, both physically and mentally. Called a 'c***', at times on an hourly basis, she was often punched and hit by one male colleague, and subjected to vicious sexual harassment by others. One senior officer delighted in inserting his genitals into her pocket. Another exposed himself to her, and another forcibly kissed her. Devastatingly, she discovered she was number six on a so-called 'crush depth rape list', in which male submariners ranked female colleagues in the order they should be raped in the case of a catastrophic event at sea. So sustained was Sophie's alleged mistreatment which usually took place in the claustrophobic enclosure of a submarine, from which there was no escape that she began to self-harm and became suicidal. And so extreme was the abuse that she and other female personnel would allegedly attempt to break their own limbs without success to avoid going on patrol. Sophie found her experiences so horrific she left the Royal Navy and now lives in West Sussex and works in her family's car dealership business. But she is concerned the Royal Navy's submarine service has still not fixed its culture of sexual abuse as another officer faces accusations. Abuse and harassment of women in the armed forces was investigated by the UK's best-known display squad - the Red Arrows. The report concluded that women regularly faced unwanted physical contact, sexual texts and invitations to engage in sexual activity. The Red Arrows chief of the air staff, Sir Richard Knighton, said he was appalled by the findings and 'unreservedly' apologised. The inquiry examined a period of time dating back to 2017. Among the incidents highlighted by the report were two of genital exposure. Authors also found that women were viewed as the 'property' of either the squadron or individual staff members. It also stated that sexual harassment became so normalised that women would 'club together' to form 'shark watches' in order to protect one another on nights out. For confidential support, call Samaritans on 116 123, visit samaritans.org A quick thinking father was caught on home video footage catching his baby daughter as she tumbled out of her pram - and even managed to keep a hold of her bowl. Zhang Jinxia, 28, was feeding his 17-month-old daughter as she sat in her stroller when she suddenly fell sideways, narrowly missing the tiled floor before he quickly grabbed her by her jumper. With the bowl of baby food still in his hand, Mr Jinxia pats his daughters back as she begins to cry from the shock. Zhang Jinxia, 28, was feeding his 17-month-old daughter as she sat in her stroller She suddenly fell sideways, narrowly missing the tiled floor before her dad quickly grabbed her by her jumper Luckily the baby was not hurt but he decided to push the pram away and keep her safe on his lap instead. The video was captured on May 4 in Hefei, southern China, and went viral on Chinese social media. Mr Jinxia was initially mistaken for the girls grandfather because of the clothes he is wearing in the video and Chinese social media users were shocked that an older man had such fast reactions, only to find out he is 28. A car drives through a flooded street during a thunderstorm, Thursday, May 2, 2024, in Kingwood. Jason Fochtman/Staff photographer The potential for severe storms exists Monday and that means you'll want to have a way to get severe weather alerts. Severe storms are going to be most likely in areas that have yet to see storms Monday. This means the severe threat for Greater Houston points north and east should be a bit tempered since a lot of energy was zapped from the atmosphere with earlier storms. This means locations from Galveston to Angleton points southwestward will be most at risk for severe weather through Monday afternoon. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Here's what you need to know. SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH: A severe thunderstorm watch is in effect until 8 p.m. Monday for Houston Hail, wind threat shifts south of Houston Storms first developed west of Houston Monday morning before moving into Houston early in the afternoon. One severe thunderstorm warning was issued for northern portions of Harris, southeast Montgomery, and western Liberty County around 2:15 p.m. Shown is how the High Resolution Rapid Refresh model expects future radar to look across Southeast Texas Monday evening. After storms blew through Houston early Monday afternoon, the primary severe risk will be south of I-10. WeatherBELL Houston's first wave of thunderstorms pushed through early Monday afternoon, but additional thunderstorm development is occurring west of the Brazos River. Additional storms will return to Houston Monday, likely between 4 and 6 p.m. This final round is likely to be just a rain-maker and not necessarily a severe weather maker along and north of I-10. For locations untouched from earlier storms, this line of activity will be most likely to produce large hail and damaging winds. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The potential for severe thunderstorms is still present across Southeast Texas, especially in areas not hit hard with strong thunderstorms early Monday afternoon. Some of the strongest storms could produce hail up to 3 inches in diameter, though the majority of hail reports are likely to fall between 1.5 and 2.5 inches. Regardless, hail to that size is certainly capable of producing damage to roofs, siding, and vehicles. Storms Monday afternoon produced gusts as high as 45 mph at Houston's official climate site, Bush Intercontinental Airport. Additional severe storms through Monday evening south of I-10 could produce wind gusts of up to 80 mph, which could result in power outages. TRACK POWER OUTAGES: With severe storms in the forecast for Southeast Texas Monday, use our interactive map to track power outages. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Tornadoes are possible Monday, though this risk will generally not be as substantial as the hail or wind threat. Drying out Tuesday As the cold front responsible for Monday's unsettled weather presses east through the evening, it will take storms along with it. This results in a mostly sunny Tuesday with northerly winds bringing dew points into the lower 60s. Daytime high temperatures top out between 87 and 89 degrees, which is around normal if not slightly warmer than normal. Shown are forecast high temperatures in Southeast Texas Tuesday, according to the National Blend of Models. Highs top out close to 90 degrees, despite Monday's cold frontal passage. WeatherBELL Wednesday is the last day of completely dry weather this week. Skies remain mostly sunny, with perhaps a few extra clouds when compared to Tuesday. Highs top out in the upper 80s for most areas. Rain chances creep in overnight Wednesday into Thursday. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Clouds amass over power lines follow days of storms on Sunday, May 5, 2024 in Humble. Elizabeth Conley/Staff Photographer More storms by Thursday Storm chances increase again by Thursday as our next weather maker pushes into the region. With several days to monitor forecast trends, it does appear severe weather and flooding will be possible with this next round of storms late in the week. Keep an eye on future forecasts through Thursday as more detailed information on storm timing and storm risks become better understood. For now, plan on being more aware of the weather Monday and again on Thursday. Scots are developing serious illnesses earlier in life than their parents generation did amid a deepening health crisis, alarming new figures have revealed. A state of the nation study has found people are being diagnosed with cancer, high blood pressure and diabetes at increasingly younger ages. Experts say more efforts should be ploughed into improving the health of Scots in middle age. But critics say the SNP is failing to tackle the major health problems facing the nation. People are being diagnosed with high blood pressure and diabetes at younger ages The researchers looked at the NHS records of more than 120,000 Scots born from 1931 to 1971 to see how old they were when they were first diagnosed with a major disease or chronic condition such as cancer, high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes and arthritis. For those born between 1931-1935, the average age was around 73 but for those born between 1956-60 the average age had fallen to around 61. It is too early to calculate the average age for those born after 1961 but the researchers predict the trend will continue. When they looked at the average age Scots were diagnosed with a second health condition or disease known as multimorbidity it fell from around 79 for those born between 1931-1935 to around 74 for those born between 1941-1945. Life expectancy, which had been increasing for decades, has stalled in the last few years and the experts wanted to find out if Scots were suffering from more diseases at an earlier age. It comes amid soaring levels of obesity and concerns about sedentary lifestyles and high levels of alcohol consumption. Scottish Labour health spokesman Dame Jackie Baillie said: This damning study lays bare the scale of the health crisis facing Scotland. It is utterly shameful that instead of making progress tackling ill-health, things are going in reverse. The SNPs woeful failures on public health and the NHS have done lasting damage to Scots wellbeing. Population health expert Dr Katherine Keenan, who led the research, said: As life expectancy increases, and people live longer, it is interesting to understand whether people live these extra years in good or bad health. As we live longer, we are also more likely to pick up multiple diseases and live a longer time with them. This study was conducted to address the question do people born more recently suffer from more diseases, and do they get them at an earlier age? The study used health data from the NHS, and tracked people for almost 20 years to see how many diseases they were diagnosed with, and at what ages. Dr Keenan, of the University of St Andrews, added that the results confirmed people born more recently were more likely to have more diseases at a younger age than those born earlier. She added: Our results suggest that in Scotland the time spent in good health in the life course is shortening, a trend noted in other high-income countries. Factors are likely to include obesity and austerity although some of the increase in disease diagnosis will also be explained by more people getting screened for diseases such as bowel and breast cancer. Dr Keenan said: The findings suggest we need to put more effort into preventing poor health among the working-age population. This underscores the urgent need for public health policies that tackle the root causes of chronic disease. Scottish Conservative health spokesman Dr Sandesh Gulhane said: These deeply alarming findings expose the SNPs overwhelming failures on public health during 17 years in office. On their watch Scotland has become the drug death capital of Europe and alcohol deaths are at their highest level since 2008. A Scottish Government spokesman pointed to public health initiatives including those intended to curb alcohol consumption and action to create a smoke-free generation. By increasing fair access to employment, education and training and improving our physical and social environments, we make peoples lives better, added the spokesman. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has abolished its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion program. UNC Chapel Hill's Board of Trustees voted Monday to cut funding for diversity programs in next years budget - and approved a change that would divert $2.3 million toward public safety and policing. The vote to shift more funding to public safety comes as continued pro-Palestinian protests on UNCs campus have resulted in several arrests in recent weeks. The campus made national headlines after members of the Pi Kappa Phi fraternity took it upon themselves to shield the US flag after protesters replaced it with the Palestinian flag. The budget committee vice-chair Marty Kotis said law enforcement has already been forced to react to protests, but they need more funding to keep the university 'safe from a larger threat.' The campus made national headlines after members of the Pi Kappa Phi fraternity took it upon themselves to shield the US flag during an anti-Israel protest The school approved a change that would divert $2.3 million toward public safety and policing 'Its important to consider the needs of all 30,000 students, not just the 100 or so that may want to disrupt the universitys operations,' Kotis said. 'It takes away resources for others.' Budget chair Dave Boliek said the decision gives the university an 'opportunity to lead on this' and get ahead of the vote by the University of North Carolina Board of Governors on its diversity policy. Last month, the statewide boards Committee on University Governance voted to reverse and replace its DEI policy for 17 schools across the state. The change would alter a 2019 diversity, equity and inclusion regulation that defines the roles of various DEI positions and it would appear to eliminate those jobs if the policy is removed. The full 24-member board is scheduled to vote next week on the policy change. If the alteration is approved, it will take effect immediately. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators clash with police after replacing an American flag with a Palestinian flag on April 30 at UNC In March, the University of Florida eliminated its chief diversity officer position, scrapping the programs staff jobs and halting any contracts involving the subject because of a new law passed last year that was pushed by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis. In that case, the $5 million that had been earmarked for the DEI program will be diverted into a faculty recruitment fund. A conservative quest to limit diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives is gaining momentum in state capitals and college governing boards, with officials in about one-third of the states now taking some sort of action against it. Republican lawmakers in about two dozen states have filed bills seeking to restrict DEI initiatives this year. They are countered by Democrats who have sponsored supportive DEI measures in about 20 states. Altogether, lawmakers have proposed about 150 bills this year that would either restrict or promote DEI efforts, according to an Associated Press analysis. The accommodations have also been embroiled in several legal battles Among the concerns are their impacts on wetlands and wildfire risks The controversial tents at the base of a glitzy ski resort in western Wyoming have been covered with green netting in an attempt to ward off criticism from local leaders. Basecamp Hospitality has begun to drape the white domes in netting, as seen in photos taken by the Cowboy State Daily. Billed as Tammah Jackson Hole, the stark white tents are the epitome of 'glamping,' or glamour camping, stacked with amenities like heating and updated appliances. But they have been the target of lawmakers who claim they are a blemish on the face of an otherwise pristine landscape. Senator Mike Gierau is one critic. 'Thats not the dumbest thing I ever saw, but I guess its in the top three or four,' he said of the camouflage covering. The domed tents at Tammah Jackson Hole have begun to be covered by green netting Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon has been among the most outspoken critic, deeming the tents 'pimples on the landscape' Basecamp Hospitality, LLC. was granted a permit to install domes on nearly 5 acres of state trust land in 2022, drawing other concerns than just appearances Basecamp was granted a permit to install domes on 4.76 acres of state trust land in June 2022, and the development has been nothing short of contentious. Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon blasted the tents during a meeting of the State Board of Land Commissioners last August. 'They are white igloos that are standing like pimples on the landscape,' Gordon said bluntly. 'They are quite prominent and really quite ugly.' The board had convened to decide whether Basecamp should be permitted to apply for a liquor license and install gas fireplaces. Gordon cast the lone vote against the amendment, while his four colleagues all voted in favor. However, his words appeared to carry some weight. Basecamp CEO Jon Hooke told the Cowboy State Daily that the netting had been put up partly in response to the criticism. 'We are doing our best to be good neighbors in the community, so we opted to take this action in response to feedback from community members, as well as the governor,' Hooke wrote in an email. However, opponents say there are bigger issues than aesthetics at stake. The company was given the green light to install gas fireplaces, raising fears about wildfires in a notoriously windy corridor Water quality advocates have filed a lawsuit against the state for allowing the company to build a septic system near the already impaired Fish Creek The tents have also faced criticism for their proximity to Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, a popular ski lodge that brings in around $80 million of public school funding annually The State Board of Trust Land's decision to allow the use of propane or gas tanks increases the risk for wildfires and personal injury, especially in a notoriously windy corridor. Basecamp was also given the green light to begin building a septic system last year, raising concerns about the degradation of Fish Creek, an already impaired stream flowing through the area. The septic tank issue has landed the company in hot water, so to speak. Protect Our Water Jackson Hole sued the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality in 2022 for approving a permit for the septic system. Advocates argued a raised leach field was too close to vulnerable wetlands. Furthermore, they asserted, approving the system through an expedited review process under a 2017 general permit wasnt appropriate. Also in 2022, the Wyoming Board of Land Commissioners sued Teton Countys board of commissioners over a dispute that stemmed partially from Basecamp's activities in the region. The state asked the Laramie County District Court to block the county from enforcing its land-use restrictions against businesses that have secured permits to build on state trust lands. Retired Wyoming Supreme Court Justice Michael Davis, acting as a district court judge in Laramie County District Court, sided with the state in a ruling last week. While Davis himself called the ruling 'troubling,' he said he had no solution without further guidance from the Wyoming Supreme Court or the executive or legislative branch. Teton County plans to appeal. Despite being billed as a high-end accommodation, locals fear the presence of the tents near the entrance will drive visitors away from the ski resort The 540-square-foot domes are currently being listed as Airbnb rentals Among the amenities offered are free breakfast, in-unit AC and heating and an on-site sauna (pictured) A job listing for a part-time 'Glamping Team Member' appeared last week The majority of Wyoming's state trust lands are designated to fund public schools across the state. One of the biggest revenue sources is Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, which generates around $80 million annually. However, the high-end destination is just miles away from Basecamp's unsightly white tents, which have been plunked down near the entrance. Some locals have expressed fears that the presence of the domes will tarnish the resort's appearance, making it less appealing to potential visitors. Basecamp has stressed the tents' proximity to the ski lodge in advertisements, name-dropping Jackson Hole Mountain Resort in online listings and on the Tammah website. 'We are excited to be launching our new location in Jackson Hole, Wyoming!' the company posted on LinkedIn last fall. 'Launching in early 2024 in one of the most beautiful places in America, less than 5 minutes to Grand Teton National Park and Jackson Hole Mountain Resort.' The post included a link to a campaign on crowdfunding service Indiegogo. The 540-square-foot domes are also being listed as Airbnb rentals, featuring professional photos of the tents' interiors and promises of free breakfast and other amenities. Basecamp, which originated in Red Bluff, California, appears to be ramping up operations in Wyoming, even in the face of legal trouble. Just last week, a posting for a part-time 'Glamping Team Member' surfaced on a job board site. It claims the corporate team is based in Utah, but operations staff will be located onsite with the tents. 'Tammah Jackson Hole is looking for adventurous and ambitious hospitality and outdoor recreation professionals to support the operations of its soon-to-be launched location at the foot of the Tetons!' the listing reads. A Washington DC judge has sparked backlash after releasing a teenager accused of spraying a sleepy neighborhood with bullets from an AR-15. Judge Lloyd U. Nolan Jr., a self-described 'woke' magistrate judge on the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, ruled that Amonte Moody, 18, be released on bail ahead of his trial. The 18-year-old allegedly peppered a street with 26 rounds while targeting a car of four people at 2:30am on April 22, with Ring doorbell footage capturing a suspect shooting wildly from the hip with the assault rifle. Nobody was injured or killed in the shooting spree, which unfolded just over a mile from the US Capitol. Despite the chaos he allegedly caused, Nolan granted Moody pre-trial release and home arrest. After his decision raised eyebrows, Fox News reported that his online presence included a post where he said he was 'still woke', and another where he donated to a fundraiser supporting a George Soros-backed professor. Judge Lloyd U. Nolan Jr., a self-described 'woke' magistrate judge on the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, sparked backlash after he released a suspected teen gunman on bail On April 22, a gunman fired 26 rounds from an AR-15 through a sleepy DC neighborhood, shooting wildly from the hip while reportedly aiming at a car Nobody was injured or killed in the shocking shooting spree, which locals said left the neighborhood terrified and furious at the suspect's release After he allegedly opened fire, prosecutors say that Moody rushed back inside a nearby residence and disassembled the AR-15 and hid the pieces in the attic. The concealed gun was only found after several searches by cops, and Moody was later charges with endangerment of a firearm, possession of a weapon and assault. Residents on the street where Moody allegedly opened fire reacted with fury following Nolan's ruling on May 3, which will also see Moody fitted with an ankle monitor and ordered to avoid the people he allegedly aimed at. Former chief counsel for the US Maritime Administration under President Barack Obama, attorney Denise Krepp, said that the ruling is 'insanity.' 'Where are the grownups?' she questioned to Blaze News. 'Where are the real grownups?' 'That kid walked out of the house, took a gun with him, shot up the neighborhood, and then calmly went back into the house,' she continued. 'But for the grace of God, nobody died in my neighborhood that night.' Krepp added that residents on the street have been left 'angered' and 'p***** off' by the news of Moody's release, and said the general mood is one of 'frustration.' '(We are) wondering what the judge was doing,' she said. The US Attorney's Office in DC sought to quickly reverse the suspect's release, filing a petition for an emergency hearing on Monday hoping to put him back in custody. Resident Denise Krepp, the former chief counsel for the US Maritime Administration under President Barack Obama, said her neighbors have been left outraged at Judge Nolan's decision After the shooting spree, Moody is accused of rushing inside a nearby residence and disassembling the AR-15 before hiding the parts in a ceiling In the filing, it was claimed that Moody 'littered the street with shell casings', and 'anyone who happened to walk into that street at that moment could have been killed as an innocent bystander.' 'Everyone in the car the defendant targeted was at risk. Every resident of that street was at risk,' the USAO's filing read. Prosecutors argued that house arrest and GPS monitoring are insufficient for keeping the community safe. The reason for this, the USAO filing noted, is that the Pretrial Services Agency (PSA) 'only works during normal business hours.' Shockingly, this would mean that if a suspect violates their terms at certain times, 'PSA only finds out about violations that occur at night or on weekends after the fact, once normal business hours resume.' The filing also said that while Moody's defense cited his family support system and lack of criminal history, 'those things were true when the defendant' allegedly opened fire. Ahead of a hearing for Moody's pre-trial detention status on Tuesday, scrutiny has fallen on Judge Nolan's past online activity. Judge Nolan's past online activity has come under scrutiny as he faces backlash over the decision Archived images from Judge Nolan's social media showed he didn't shy away from sharing his support for progressive causes, including describing himself as 'woke' According to images from Nolan's Facebook from Fox News, he didn't shy away from his support for progressive causes. The outlet then added that Nolan appeared to switch his Facebook profile to private after they reached out to him for comment on the posts. His posts included sharing an image in November 2020, following months of protests and riots triggered by the murder of George Floyd, promoting Black Lives Matter. Another post showed that he donated to a fundraiser for a professor with ties to billionaire financier George Soros. The judge donated to the group Gideon's Promise, which was reportedly founded via a fellowship from Soros' Open Society Foundation by professor Jonathan Rapping to support legal reforms across the nation. According to the institute's website, it works to tailor support for 'the efficacy of public defenders as a critical part of systemic criminal justice reform.' 'Public defenders are frontline advocates for the accused in this country and we are committed to nurturing and developing their skills at every career level to produce fairer outcomes for Americas most vulnerable citizens,' it said. Krepp said that the terrifying episode sparked chaos, and only by 'the grace of God nobody died in my neighborhood that night' Following the backlash, the DC Court System said that the defense 'relied heavily' on Moody's previously clean rap sheet, and he was provided educational support and community resources. 'Judge Nolan conducted a very thorough hearing and spoke directly with defendant about the consequences of violating any portion of the release conditions,' a spokesperson told Fox News. The court system spokesperson added that all defendants have 'a presumption of innocence', and the judge determined that his conditions 'did ensure the safety of the defendant and the public.' Policing was promised a re-birth more than a decade ago but now exists in a state of seemingly never-ending financial crisis. The boss of the single force, set up by the SNP in 2013, is fighting to prevent it becoming a purely reactive service capable of tackling only serious crime. Jo Farrell is the latest in a series of fall guys to take the top job at a supposedly world-class organisation then discover theres hardly any cash to run it. This means cutbacks, including a proportionate response to crime, which will lead to police refusing to investigate more than 24,000 minor crimes a year. Ms Farrell told me last week that she recognised the concerns of people who feared police were turning their backs on them but the numbers involved were relatively small. Officer numbers in Scotland are at their lowest level since 2008 Its an argument unlikely to wash with victims of theft and vandalism who will be fobbed off when they call 101 assuming that they can get through. But this is the bleak reality of chronically under-funded policing, with officer numbers in a downward spiral now at their lowest level since 2008. A quarter of a century after devolution, the single police force is one of the most startling examples of its failure to reboot and reform failing public services. Swingeing cutbacks are said to have created a leaner, more cost-effective service but have also left it hollowed out, woefully undermanned and falling apart at the seams with clapped-out patrol cars and crumbling stations many of them shut down or earmarked for closure. Now its effectively opting out of the crime-fighting business, or parts of it, while continuing to waste millions on diversity staff, as the Mail revealed last week. Police chiefs arent blameless they could bin these woke distractions overnight but theyre also up against financial constraints which will only become more severe in the coming years. Plenty of euphemisms are bandied around about challenging economic conditions, and naturally Westminster is routinely blamed, despite the fact policing has been Holyroods responsibility since 1999. But behind the rhetoric is the truth that most of us cant remember the last time we saw bobbies on the beat as we walk streets filled with the reek of cannabis and blighted by graffiti and vandalism. Justice ministers like to trot out the specious claim that most of us dont experience crime, an asinine assertion thats of little comfort to victims and ignores the prevalence of unchecked lower-level anti-social behaviour. The South Side of Glasgow has seen a recent spate of teenagers being stabbed, but the last time any cops were visible was during the pandemic, when they were on the lookout for house parties, or maybe people taking more than one walk per day. In March 2020, Police Scotland released helicopter footage of four people being confronted by officers in Pollok Park, Glasgow, for failing to comply with lockdown measures as if they were fugitive criminals. Now were being told that unless youre vulnerable or can come up with a line of inquiry on your own by talking to neighbours or reviewing video doorbell recordings, youre on your own the police arent interested. The message is clear: take your crime number, phone your insurer and try not to bother us again. There are some parallels with the NHS, which churns out texts urging patients not to call their surgery unless its desperately urgent demand must be limited, and expectations managed. But wasnt devolution meant to be about reform of public services which, 25 years on, seem to be largely in a state of disrepair or dysfunction? In 2021, Police Scotland was fined 100,000 for health and safety failings over the M9 tragedy, when a woman was left dying by the roadside for three days. The forces lawyer candidly admitted the service led a hand to mouth existence. The indications are that the situation has deteriorated since then to the point where the Chief Constable is publicly pleading for the survival of the thin blue line. A succession of SNP ministers have watched this slow-motion catastrophe unfolding and have done nothing much about it beyond sitting on their hands and pretending it isnt happening (or blaming the Tories, or Brexit take your pick). Protecting the public and the country should be the primary duty of any government, and the first of these falls squarely within the remit of Holyrood in terms of shaping law, scrutiny and budget approval and within the remit of the SNP government in terms of allocating cash. What have our 129 MSPs been doing while these problems developed? Well, on the government side theyve been parroting a lot of platitudes about Police Scotland as an exemplar for public service reform. If the police can do more with less, then so too can town halls and the NHS, the argument goes so why arent they following suit? But we all know that policing is doing less with less and now (by Police Scotlands own admission) theyre going to be doing even less with even less. John Swinneys inaugural speech on becoming First Minister last week made no mention of policing or justice although he did talk about independence. The short-lived reign of Humza Yousaf, a former justice secretary, saw police saddled with the deeply flawed and illiberal Hate Crime Act. Some 10,000 allegations have flooded in since it came into force on April Fools Day, putting huge pressure on an already overstretched force. Many of the complaints are anonymous and a lot of cops havent been trained on how the legislation works, or at least on how it should work in theory. Against this backdrop, its no wonder that Mr Swinney couldnt bring himself to mention policing in his speech but plenty of others have warned him and his colleagues about the crisis now engulfing the single force. They included Ms Farrells predecessor, Sir Iain Livingstone, who told me in 2020 that Police Scotland may no longer be able to investigate certain crimes if systemic underfunding continued. Those predictions were on the money and now, a mere four years later, a new chief constable is grappling with the same problems (only much worse). Each day, brave and resourceful officers are working hard to keep us safe and they deserve our praise but they are being shamefully let down by their bosses and political masters. A lot of claptrap is spoken about 25 glorious years of devolution but it has been bad news for Scottish policing, which can no longer fulfil its core functions. As the thin blue line becomes ever thinner, the chasm between the early rhetoric of the SNP architects of the single force and the second-class service the public are having to get used to will continue to grow. Gypsy Rose Blanchard said she hopes her mother is 'in heaven' as she delivered a Mother's Day tribute to her, nine years on from her murder. The 32-year-old blocked comments to her TikTok page as she posted her eight-minute message on the first Mother's Day since her release from prison in December last year. 'It does not go without notice that my own biological mother is not here to celebrate Mother's Day,' she pointed out to her 10 million followers. 'And what I choose to feel on Mother's Day regarding my own mother is that I think the best of her. 'I think about the good times. I think about her as not what she did to me, but I think about her as a person. Blanchard was in a reflective mood as she remembered the mother she had murdered Blanchard was the victim of one of America's most notorious cases of Munchausen's-by-proxy at the hands of her abusive mother Clauddine 'Dee Dee' Blanchard (right) Blanchard has turned her life around and gained more than 10 million followers on social media since her release from prison in December of last year 'Was she a good mom? No. Was she the best mom in the world? No. But she was still my mom so what I choose to feel about her, whether that be guilt, anger, grief, resentment; whatever.' Blanchard was the victim of one of America's most notorious cases of Munchausen's-by-proxy at the hands of her abusive mother Clauddine 'Dee Dee' Blanchard. She spent her childhood confined to a wheelchair as her mother shaved her head, pumped her full of unnecessary medications, and convinced the world she was suffering from leukemia and muscular dystrophy. Her stranglehold came to an end in 2015 when Blanchard persuaded a boyfriend she had met online, Nicholas Godejohn, to creep into their home in Springfield, Missouri and stab her mother to death. 'I choose to remember her for the good that was in her heart that I truly believe was there,' she said. 'I have been working for years on forgiveness, and I hope that she is in heaven. 'And I hope that to some degree I make her proud of at least some of the achievements that I've made in my life in growing up and standing on my own two feet, learning through experiences. 'Because in heaven, they say that all mental afflictions, all physical afflictions are gone, right? Blanchard was jailed for second-degree murder after persuading Nicholas Godejohn, a boyfriend she had met online, to creep into their home in Springfield, Missouri and stab her mother to death. Godejohn remains in jail serving a life sentence She shared a photo from her past next to a recent selfie alongside a caption about 'overcoming the past' earlier this month. The ex-con, 32, took to her Instagram to post a throwback photo of herself as a wheelchair-bound teenager juxtaposed against a snap showcasing her plastic surgery transformation In the days following her split with her husband, she was seen out with old flame Ken Urker and the pair were not shy about showing off their matching Husky dog ink She got the tattoos with Urker around the time she filed for divorce from her now-estranged husband Ryan Anderson 'It makes you perfect in heaven, so if you take away the mental afflictions that my mother had, then I think what's left is a good person.' But Blanchard said the real reason for her video was to celebrate the 'really strong and wonderful women that I have in my life that have been mother figures to me over the last eight and a half years'. She singled out her 'step-mother' Kristy Blanchard, as an 'incredible, kicka** woman', and thanked a family friend she identified as 'Aunt Vickie'. She also paid tribute to Raina Williams, the mother of her boyfriend Ken Urker. 'She's been such an accepting person of me, like, I never thought I'd be accepted and loved for who I am,' she explained. 'Take Ken out of the equation, she still loves me for me.' Blanchard married Ryan Anderson, 37, at a Missouri prison in July 2022 where she was serving her sentence, but the couple separated in March when Blanchard told her Facebook followers that she was 'learning to listen to my heart'. Anderson exclusively told DailyMail.com that he and Blanchard separated over her continued relationship with her ex-fiance Ken Urker, and Blanchard filed for divorce shortly afterwards. 'I'm not doing well with it,' Anderson said. 'For me it just came out of the blue. I had no idea she still had such strong feelings for him.' Blanchard was unapologetic about blocking comments to her latest upload, insisting she did not 'want to hear any negative bull****'. 'If you want to talk s*** about me, by all means, I don't give an F. 'Go do it on your own platform, but I'm not going to see it in my comments.' She told her followers that she felt 'no one should be able to have an opinion about my mother except for her family and me because we were the people closest to her'. Massachusetts Democratic Governor Maura Healey has been forced to convert a former prison into a shelter for homeless people, many of whom are migrants. The Bay State Correctional Center in Norfolk will help house the growing number of families on the waitlist for state shelter. Almost 4,000 people were granted asylum in the New England state in 2023 - or 20 percent of those who applied, according to US Custom and Border Protection data. The number of migrants on the Massachusetts emergency shelter system swelled to 3,500 by mid-December, figures show. Many of those without a place to go have been camping out at Logan International Airport in Boston. It comes despite Democrats previously slamming Donald Trump for 'putting kids in cages' after minors were housed in jail-like facilities during his tenure as president. Massachusetts Democrat Governor Maura Healey has been forced to convert a former prison into a shelter for homeless people, many of whom are migrants The number of migrants on the Massachusetts emergency shelter system swelled to 3,500 by mid-December, figures show. Many of those without a place to go have been camping out at Logan International Airport (pictured) The Bay State Correctional Center can accommodate about 140 families in dorm rooms with bathrooms and showers on each floor However, although Trump's policies tore migrant children from their parents at the border, the 'cages' they were kept in were actually a remnant of the Obama era. Massachusetts officials said Monday that the Bay State Correctional Center was decommissioned in 2015 and remains in good condition. It can accommodate about 140 families in dorm rooms with bathrooms and showers on each floor. The facility also has a cafeteria, a gymnasium, a large common room, and offices that will be used for case management and administrative activities. 'The site will be set up with play areas for children, as well as classroom spaces for adults to engage in activities that support pathways to stability such as ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) classes, job training courses, and housing search workshops,' Emergency Assistance Director Scott Rice said in a statement. Leaders in Norfolk, Massachusetts, where the facility is located, said in a statement Monday that they had not been consulted before the decision. Norfolk officials said the town was informed on Friday that the former prison had been designated as temporary shelter. They said the town had no role in the decision and was no consulted ahead of time. Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll spoke to town officials on Saturday and told them the shelter will be managed by a shelter operation named by the state Executive Office of Health and Human Services through a competitive bid process. The site should be up and running by next month, according to the state. The razor wire on the fence surrounding the facility will be removed and the gates will remain open so families will be free to exit and return as needed. The shelter will house up to 140 families - or 450 people in total deemed eligible for emergency assistance - and it will operate from six months to a year. Migrants families use Terminal E at Boston Logan International Airport as a shelter on January 30, 2024, in Boston, Massachusetts A homeless man repacks his belongings on a sidewalk outside South Station, Nov. 15, 2023, in Boston. Massachusetts The Bay State Correctional Center in Norfolk will help house the growing number of families on the waitlist for state shelter The Bay State Correctional Center was decommissioned in 2015 and remains in good condition, officials said Safety-net sites like the former prison are intended for homeless families with children or pregnant women who are eligible for emergency assistance under the state's right to shelter law, but are currently on a waitlist. About half of families in emergency assistance in Massachusetts are newly arrived migrants. Healey officials said the state is providing extra funding to help cover the cost of students suddenly arriving in school districts because of the emergency shelter situation. Norfolk town officials said they plan to have regular conversations with state officials to make sure the town's concerns are heard and to work collaboratively on solutions in the best interests of Norfolk. Massachusetts will begin limiting how long homeless families can stay in shelters as the state continues to grapple with an increase in homeless migrants. Beginning June 1, the total length of stay will be limited to nine months, at the end of which families will be eligible for up to two 90-day extensions, under a supplemental budget approved by state lawmakers and signed by Healey last month. Other facilities turned into temporary shelters include a recreational complex in Boston. Comedians Bill Maher and Bill Burr have called time on Louis CK's #MeToo exile as they claimed that 'no one cares' about cancel culture anymore. On Maher's 'Club Random' podcast, the two comedians agreed that it's time for Louis C.K.'s ostracism from Hollywood to come to an end after falling victim to cancel culture. 'I mean, don't get me started on that,' Maher said to Burr when speaking about C.K. 'Isn't it time everyone just went: 'OK, It wasn't a cool thing to do, but it's been long enough and welcome back. 'Enough! I mean for Christ's sake, it's not the end of the world. People have done so much worse things and gotten less. There's no rhyme or reason to the #MeToo-type punishments.' Maher added. Both comedians argued that Louis C.K.'s punishment as a result of the #MeToo movement was disproportionate to the offense he committed, which included allegations of sexual misconduct. On Maher's 'Club Random' podcast, the two comedians agreed that It's time for Louis C.K.'s exile from Hollywood to come to an end after falling victim to cancel culture Both comedians argued that Louis C.K.'s punishment as a result of the #MeToo movement was disproportionate to the offense he committed, which included allegations of sexual misconduct Louis C.K., although still somewhat shunned by the industry, has been gradually re-emerging in recent years Burr then addressed the financial setbacks Louis C.K. faced, saying 'They took 50 million dollars from him. I think they punished him.' But Burr believes cancel culture might not be as prevalent as it once was, and said that 'no one cares anymore.' On the topic of cancel culture, he said, 'It started off with something everyone could agree on, and then quickly it just spun out of control. I remember whenever that cancel culture got to the point of where it was, 'I don't like some of the topics in your stand up act,' right? That's when it got weird. Cancel culture it's over. No one cares anymore.' 'There's these actors who won't work with him anymore and some of them made movies with him are saying, 'I regret doing that.' What a bunch of pussies!' Maher said. 'First of all, it's a very improbable crime that they're accusing him of. Plainly, the other party had motivation and [was] vindictive,' he added. Louis C.K., although still somewhat shunned by the industry, has been gradually re-emerging in recent years. He won a Grammy for Best Comedy Album in 2022 for his special, 'Sincerely Louis CK,' and received another nomination in 2023 for his work in 'Sorry,' ultimately losing to Dave Chappelle's 'The Closer.' The 68-year-old host of HBO 's 'Real Time' also appeared on 'CBS News Sunday Morning' ahead of the release of his new book, titled 'What This Comedian Said Will Shock You' Maher discussed his approach to comedy with correspondent Robert Costa Also this week, Maher asserted that he speaks for the 'normies' who are 'tired of partisanship' in politics and defended his decision to platform controversial guests during a sit-down interview. The 68-year-old host of HBO's 'Real Time' appeared on appeared on 'CBS News Sunday Morning' ahead of the release of his new book, aptly titled 'What This Comedian Said Will Shock You.' He discussed his approach to comedy with correspondent Robert Costa, who noted that he frequently took digs at both sides of the aisle. 'Keep it real. Don't be tribal. Don't say something just because that's going to make the audience of one side applaud, or boo,' Maher said. He claimed that represented 'normies' and 'that vast middle that is tired of the partisanship,' adding, 'I dont want to hate half the country, and I dont hate half the country.' A Florida man who was attempting to become a cop wound up in jail himself due to his admission during the hiring process - where he revealed he had committed sexual assaults against a nine-year-old girl. Stephen Roland Bodley, 26, seriously incriminated himself during a 2021 interview with the Apopka Police Department, in which he admitted to behavior that led to a felony conviction at trial in Orange County, Florida last week. Bodley was convicted of committing sexual battery of a child under the age of 12 when the defendant was not yet 18. The young man was found guilty largely due to admissions he previously made during his police department application process - though at trial, he denied committing the abuse. Stephen Bodley, 26, will be sentenced next month after being convicted by a jury of sexually abusing a child during his teenage years Prosecutors explained to a jury: 'On June 16, 2021, Bodley was conducting a job interview at the Apopka Police Department for a position that he applied for as a sworn police officer. The certified voice stress analysis examiner performed a voice stress examination on Bodley. 'During the examination, the examiner asked Bodley to expand on concerning answers he provided in a pre-test questionnaire. 'In it, Bodley described sexually abusing a child several years ago. He admitted the same when the examiner asked him to explain further.' Bodley, according to prosecutors, admitted to abusing the juvenile victim on 'three separate occasions.' The abuse, according to an affidavit supporting Bodley's arrest, alleged that the abuse took place between 2012-2016, when the defendant was 12-13 years of age. In a questionnaire Bodley filled out during the application process, he said he had when asked if he'd ever 'sexually assaulted anyone.' He also wrote that the assaults occurred in his home in Apopka. He wrote, according to the affidavit, that, when he was 12-13 years old, he would 'play sex games with [redacted] and she didn't fully understand what was happening.' The 'Voice Stress' analysis examiner asked Bodley to elaborate on the claims he'd made on the questionnaire, which he did. He then described the disturbing 'little sexual games' he would play with a younger female member of his family. 'She didn't know fully what was going on, and I used to watch porn a lot, so I had like a little addiction when I was younger,' he said. He clearly stated over and over again that he knew what he was doing at the time, while the victim did not. Oddly, Bodley made the confession about his criminally sordid past during part of his interview process to work for the Apopka Police Department Bodley was convicted following a jury trial last week. He will be sentenced on June 24 The victim's mother, with whom the police got in touch, said she's known Bodley 'since he was a baby,' and never suspected him of committing such terrible deeds. 'She stated Defendant Bodley took a personal interest in her daughter, but thought it was a normal familial relationship,' read court documents. The victim of the abuse originally said she was unable to remember anything, but eventually 'remembered the assaults, as Bodley described them, in his bedroom when she was around 10 years old.' 'The victim stated it happened multiple times on different days in the Defendants room.' Police officers ultimately concluded that based 'on the disclosure made by the victim, Defendant Bodley was well into his teenage years when he began sexually battering the to child. This behavior continued throughout his teenage years into adulthood. 'A reasonable teenager would know this behavior is unacceptable, which was supported during Defendant Bodleys pre-test interview disclosure that he knew he was taking advantage of his and that she did not or would not have understood what he was doing to her.' Bodley is due back in court for his sentencing hearing on June 24. A jealous husband who beat his wife to death with their son's skateboard in a 'ruthless and cold-blooded' attack has been jailed for a least 17 years. Olubunmi Abodunde wielded the toy with such force on his wife Taiwo that a pathologist was unable to establish how many blows she had sustained. However, police officers who stood outside for 35 minutes while waiting for permission from superiors to enter described hearing nearly 50 'bangs' coming from inside the property. When they finally entered, Mrs Abodunde, 41, was found with her 'skull smashed in'. Jailing the defendant for life with a minimum 17 years behind bars, Judge Martyn Levett told him he was 'ferocious, ruthless, cold-blooded, callous and savage'. Abodunde had said very little about what happened and gave 'no comment' responses during a police interview. But the judge added: 'The simple fact is that you strangled your wife and then beat her to death and used one of the children's skateboards to batter her skull.' Abodunde was jealous and suspicious throughout his marriage and accused his wife of having affairs. Olubunmi Abodunde (pictured) who beat his wife to death with their son's skateboard has been jailed for 17 years Taiwo Abodunde, 41, (pictured right), was found with her 'skull smashed in' Police had been involved with the couple several times over alleged domestic violence incidents before mother-of-three Mrs Abodunde's death on November 28 last year. The day before, Abodunde was arrested after officers arrived at the couple's home in Newmarket, Suffolk, and found his wife with a split lip. He was freed on police bail later the same day with a condition to stay away from the marital home and not to approach his wife. But he went home the following morning after working a night shift at Tesco, claiming he wanted his mobile phone. Two police officers arrived at 9.20am to take a statement about the previous day's incident but didn't enter the property until 9.55am despite the commotion inside - after permission was granted. They immediately confirmed she was 'obviously dead'. A post-mortem examination found she had been throttled until she fell unconscious, then stamped on until her ribs were broken. Her husband used the skateboard to finish off the care home worker with blows that were so violent it was damaged in the process. Police outside the home of Abodunde, in Newmarket, Suffolk, after the body of his wife Taiwo was found inside the house Prosecutor Simon Spence KC told a previous hearing, where the defendant admitted murder after a jury had been sworn in, that the banging the police officers heard was likely to have been Abodunde continuing the attack after his wife was unconscious or dead. The family arrived in the UK from Nigeria in 2022 but clashed over money issues as well as the alleged affairs. Abodunde was a trained civil engineer but had been unable to find work in the sector since relocating here and took shifts at supermarkets and DIY stores. Following his arrest for murder, he told police he had acted in self-defence, saying: 'My wife has subjected me to physical abuse for a number of years. 'On November 28, we got into an argument. She ran at me with a knife. I grabbed the knife and cut my hand. I was defending myself.' A police officer stood outside the home of Abodunde in Newmarket, Suffolk But Ipswich Crown Court heard while he did have an injury to his hand, there wasn't a knife near his wife's body. Nneka Akudolu KC, defending, said the level of violence was 'completely out of character' for her client and might have been affected by medication he was taking. However, no medical evidence was provided to support the claim. Three Suffolk Constabulary officers are under investigation for misconduct after the force referred itself to the Independent Office of Police Conduct. Two face action for potential gross misconduct. Speaking after Abodunde's conviction, Detective Inspector Dan Connick said: 'This was an awful attack on a woman that has had a lasting impact on the community and, most importantly, on the victim's family.' Charlene Ward Johnson (left) and Angeanette Thibodeaux, Democratic candidates for the open House seat in Texas House District 139. Courtesy of the campaigns Charlene Ward Johnson Courtesy This past legislative session was not kind to education. Instead of adequately funding public schools, K-12 became a battleground for Gov. Greg Abbotts misguided school voucher goals. But there was one area of education that fared OK, even well: community colleges. The Legislatures $683 million investment in community colleges is part of an overarching reform of the way Texas funds the low-cost higher education institutions. From her elected board seat with Houston Community College, Charlene Ward Johnson, 56, advocated for the change. It puts less emphasis on enrollment, which had taken a hit during the pandemic, and instead offers incentives for schools based on metrics including students completing degrees, transferring to four-year institutions or earning a credential of value, meaning they earn a degree that readily translates to workforce opportunity. Well need that same type of advocacy and attention to detail to get the Legislature to give the public school funding formula the updates it needs. We believe Ward Johnson offers the right mix of advocacy and experience to replace outgoing state Rep. Jarvis Johnson, who happens to be her ex-husband, for District 139. Advertisement Article continues below this ad I have the leadership experience, dealing with legislation, creating policies, dealing with budgets, being able to bring that to help the community, she told us. With experience in the energy industry, serving in customer-facing roles, Ward Johnson could also help provide an important consumer-focused voice to discussions about the ever-struggling Texas grid. And shes worked to establish relationships that will help her once in office. She protested the state takeover of Houston ISD and earned the endorsement of the Texas American Federation of Teachers union. She has championed higher education opportunities for senior citizens and better workforce preparation, and earned the endorsement of Texas AFL-CIO, as well as former Houston Mayor and state Rep. Sylvester Turner. Her challenger in the runoff, Angeanette Thibodeaux, 52, also has a wealth of experience, having served as president for the Acres Homes Super Neighborhood and worked for decades across the country in the world of affordable housing, helping major corporations invest in communities. In a crowded primary field, Thibodeaux earned the greatest share of votes at 33%. As is often the case in primary races, many of the two remaining candidates' goals overlap: paying teachers more, expanding Medicaid, creating better opportunities for people exiting the criminal justice system, funding affordable housing opportunities across the community and not just in certain areas. Both have campaign donations from pro-charter school groups but say they would not support school vouchers. Ward Johnson was unequivocal: I am against vouchers, strongly against vouchers, because I believe that public funds should stay in the public school, and that our public education is already underfunded. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Thibodeaux agreed, clarifying a statement made in an earlier newsroom interview suggesting she was open to considering school vouchers. I wanted to see what the fascination was, she said, explaining she wanted to better understand the motivation behind the bills. I will never, ever be an advocate or an ally for taking public funds away from the school, she told the editorial board but, as a parent of a public school student with challenges, she reiterated that her priority is making sure every child is in the best possible learning environment, and that includes charter schools. We believe both have important on-the-ground experiences advocating for their communities and a working knowledge of critical systems that affect Houstonians everyday lives. Ward Johnson convinced us that her elected experience and relationships in the Legislature would help boost her effectiveness in the House and Democrats could use any boost they can get there. After the University of Southern California canceled its main stage commencement ceremony, Jewish students held their own graduation event including a celebrity guest speaker. The university canceled its main commencement following days of unrest on the campus from chaotic protests about the ongoing Israeli-Hamas war, ostensibly as a result of the extra time needed to process the large number of guests coming to campus who will be subjected to increased safety measures. USC's valedictorian, Asna Tabassum, was been banned from making a speech during the university's commencement ceremony after she allegedly made anti-Semitic posts on social media calling for the 'complete abolition' of Israel. USC Hillel organized its own graduation ceremony for over 50 students and their families on Friday, ahead of the smaller stage commencements taking place across the university. 'A lot of people have been trying to take these joyful moments away from us. We get to come together as a community in a safe environment, in a healing environment something the university wasn't able to provide,' master's degree graduate Mark Rayant told the Los Angeles Times. After the University of Southern California canceled its main stage commencement ceremony, Jewish students held their own graduation event USC Hillel organized its own graduation ceremony for over 50 students and their families on Friday, ahead of the smaller stage commencements taking place across the university Over 50 students wearing black robes and red sashes and nearly 200 guests gathered at USCs campus Hillel center for the event, while private security guards watched over the event Guest speaker Mayim Bialik, actress and former 'Jeopardy!' host, addressed students by video Over 50 students wearing black robes and red sashes and nearly 200 guests gathered at USCs campus Hillel center for the event, while private security guards watched over the event. Guest speaker Mayim Bialik, actress and former 'Jeopardy!' host, addressed students by video. 'What a four years you've had,' she said. 'This past year in particular has been a real challenge, but this is life. This is your life.' 'You've had to shine brighter than you'd thought you'd have to and you've had to be engaged leaders and defenders.' Executive director of USC Hillel Dave Cohen told The Times the school year ended under a 'very, very dark cloud.' 'No matter how you view these issues as a person of Jewish identity or as a person in general there's no denying this depleted and depressed the atmosphere,' Cohn said. Hillel International highlight the graduation ceremony on their Instagram, sharing photos of the ceremony and the new graduates. 'When USC canceled its main-stage commencement ceremony, USC Hillel stepped up to support Jewish students. 50+ graduating Jewish students were recognized during a well-deserved graduation ceremony, along with 200 family members, friends, professors, and classmates,' the organization said. 'No matter what is happening in the world and on campus, Hillel will ALWAYS put their students first. Mazel Tov to the class of 2024, we cant wait to see all the amazing things you do!' Pro-Palestine protests continued at commencement ceremonies across the country, despite many being canceled in the wake of weeks of clashes between pro-Palestine protestors, administrators and law enforcement. A University of Southern California protester is detained by USC Department of Public Safety officers during a pro-Palestinian occupation at the campus Students carrying Palestinian flags and chanting 'free, free Palestine' walked out of Duke University's commencement ceremony when guest speaker Jerry Seinfeld was introduced Graduating students donned handcuffs, displayed Palestinian flags and tore up diplomas during a graduation ceremony at embattled Columbia University One social work graduate crossed the stage with hands zip-tied above her head as cheers sounded from the audience Graduating students donned handcuffs, displayed Palestinian flags and tore up diplomas during a graduation ceremony at embattled Columbia University. One social work graduate crossed the stage with hands zip-tied above her head as cheers sounded from the audience. As a livestream of the event rolled, she turned to the crowd and ripped up her diploma. Dozens of students stormed out of Duke University's commencement ceremony in protest over guest speaker Jerry Seinfeld who has supported Israel since the Oct 7 atrocity by Hamas and throughout the war in Gaza. The comedian, 70, was met with a mix of cheers and boos as he was introduced before students carrying flags and chanting 'free, free Palestine' marched out of the Wallace Wade Stadium on Sunday. As a wave of antiwar protests grip universities across America a flyer distributed on campus before the ceremony said: 'When you see students walking out, follow them,' WRAL reported. Other graduates shouted 'Jerry! Jerry!' as the actor received an honorary degree and went on to deliver his speech without any further major interruptions. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Monday insisted that young Americans are on President Joe Biden's side - citing climate change as an example - after a dire battleground survey showed him losing 18 to 29-year-olds to former President Donald Trump. On Monday morning, The New York Times, Philadelphia Inquirer and Siena College released its latest six-state swing state poll, which showed Trump leading Biden in five of the six states. Biden's support has diminished among young voters - and also Latino and black voters since 2020, polling found - with Trump beating Biden 46 to 43 percent among the youngest set of voters. In a six-way race Biden still loses to the presumptive Republican nominee, getting 26 percent to Trump's 30 percent - with independent Robert F. Kennedy Jr. gobbling up 18 percent of young people, Green Party hopeful Jill Stein receiving 4 percent, Libertarian Lars Mapstead with 1 percent and Cornel West sitting at zero. Jean-Pierre noted that she was bound by the Hatch Act to talk politics from the podium then added, 'But more broadly, we believe that young Americans support the president's agenda more broadly, right? In an overwhelming way.' White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Monday insisted that young Americans are on President Joe Biden's side after a dire battleground survey showed him losing 18 to 29-year-olds to former President Donald Trump Voters under 30 in Arizona, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Nevada and Michigan said in a new poll that they preferred former President Donald Trump over President Joe Biden - after Democrats have had a lock on the youth vote for decades 'And the president has stood with young Americans on many of the issues that they care about. Because you said beyond, beyond what's happening in the Middle East,' she told the reporter. 'And so when it comes to climate change, right? That's something that he's been very clear about and has been the most progressive president on that particular issue and he's going to continue to do that,' Jean-Pierre noted. Just 2 percent of young people rated climate change their top issue across the six key states - Arizona, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Nevada and Michigan. The top issue for young people, the pollsters found, was the economy. Jean-Pierre said Monday that the White House was on top of that too. 'We understand, as well, that while the economy has been turning around ... we understand that prices are too high and young people, in particular, are feeling that,' she noted. A silver lining for Biden is the second most important topic for young people is abortion. A student walks by demonstrations over the war in Gaza on MIT's campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts. While young people have been protesting all over the country on the issue, just 4 percent over six states said it was their No. 1 voting issue The poll found that Americans view the president more favorably on the issue than Trump, whose appointment of three conservative justices to the Supreme Court turned over Roe v. Wade, which gave constitutional protections to the procedure. Just 4 percent of young people ranked the current war between Israel and Hamas as their top voting issue. 'We understand how painful, this moment, is for them,' Jean-Pierre said, pointing to the situation in Gaza. For decades, Democrats have had a lock on the youth vote, which makes Monday's numbers incredibly surprising. In 2020, Biden bested Trump in the voting bloc 59 percent to 33 percent, Pew Research Center said. Queensland Premier Steven Miles has broken ranks within the Labor Party to demand the Albanese government slash immigration levels to allay the housing crisis. In an unprecedented public challenge from a Labor premier, Mr Miles urged Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to reduce high migration levels to stop the upward spiral in real estate prices and rents. Mr Miles said Queensland's housing market was already struggling to accommodate an influx of arrivals - both migrants and those relocating from other states - and worse was to come if the government did not act now. 'If migration continues at current levels we'll need tens of thousands more homes every year than industry can build,' he said. 'That's a big part of why prices and rents have risen so rapidly. Queensland Premier Steven Miles (pictured) has urged his ally Anthony Albanese to reduce high migration levels to a more reasonable rate A record 518,000 people moved to Australia in the 2022-23 financial year with up to 143,600 people moving to Queensland in the year to September 2023 'The federal government needs to assist us to ensure infrastructure keeps pace with population growth. 'We urge them to consider moderating migration levels to assist with population growth.' A record 518,000 people moved to Australia in the 2022-23 financial year with up to 143,600 people moving to Queensland in the year to September 2023 - almost four times the number that arrived in the Sunshine State as recently as 2019. On that trend, Queensland's population will balloon to 7.4million in a decade unless the government acts. Mr Miles said he was proud of Queensland's multiculturalism and he welcomed a 'manageable rate' of people moving to the state. He also said skilled migration was required in Queensland, with the federal government agreeing to prioritise visas for construction workers. Labor's coming Budget is setting aside $90.6million to boost the number of skilled workers in the construction sector. The bulk of that money will fund 15,000 additional feefree TAFE training places and 5,000 pre-apprenticeship programs over two years from January 2025. But $1.8million is also being set aside to speed up skills assessments for 1,900 potential qualified migrants who want to work in Australia's housing and construction sector. The funding would also give more resources to Trades Recognition Australia to assess 2,600 migrants from developing countries whose skills are not currently recognised by national industry bodies. Mr Albanese, alongside state and territory leaders, earlier this year pledged to build 1.2million houses over five years from July, 2024. Mr Albanese (pictured) alongside state and territory leaders earlier this year pledged to build 1.2million houses over five years from July, 2024 Labor's coming Budget is setting aside $90.6million to boost the number of skilled workers in the construction sector (pictured, a housing estate in Oran Park, Sydney) However supply is failing to keep up with burgeoning demand; private sector approvals plummeted by 9.9 per cent in January. Daniel Wild, the deputy director of the Institute of Public Affairs, said high immigration meant Australia would struggle to house a population influx. 'Governments at all levels are setting Australia up for an economic and humanitarian disaster, as latest dwelling approvals show we are simply not building enough houses for first home buyers and new migrants alike, despite record intakes,' he said. Mr Wild said the plunge in building approvals as many businesses fail due to soaring costs, highlighted 'the real-world consequences of unplanned, record levels of migration'. 'Despite repeated warnings, the federal government continues to push the accelerator on migration at the exact same time as the brakes are being slammed on housing approvals,' he said. In the year to January, just 99,759 new private houses were approved, including 7,461 in the first month of 2024. Concerns are growing for a 14-year-old boy who was last seen almost two weeks ago. Brodie Brien was last seen at a home in Bankstown, in Sydney's western suburbs, at about 12pm on Thursday, May 2. A NSW Police spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia on Tuesday morning that all police inquiries have failed to locate the teenager. Brodie Brien, 14, was last seen at a home in Bankstown, in Sydney 's western suburbs, at about 12pm on Thursday, May 2 Police have appealed for the public's assistance in locating Brodie and say they hold serious concerns for the teen because of his young age. He is known to frequent the Wollongong, Prestons, Liverpool and Bankstown areas. Brodie is described as being white, 150cm-160cm tall, slim with short blonde hair and brown eyes. He was last seen wearing a blue hoodie, black pants and black and white sneakers. Anyone with information has been urged to contact Bankstown Police Area Command or Crime Stoppers. Britain would be 'less safe' under Labour, Rishi Sunak said yesterday as he put security at the heart of his General Election campaign. The Prime Minister warned that Britain is facing the most dangerous global situation since the Cold War and said Labour would leave the UK less well-prepared. Speaking at the Policy Exchange think-tank in London, Mr Sunak said Vladimir Putin would be 'emboldened' by Sir Keir Starmer's refusal to match his pledge to raise defence spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP by 2030. And he warned that the Labour leader's track record of serving in Jeremy Corbyn's shadow cabinet showed he could not be trusted on the issue. 'Keir Starmer supported a former Labour leader who wanted to abolish the Army and withdraw from Nato,' he said. 'And Labour's deputy leader, Shadow Foreign Secretary and many others, voted against our nuclear deterrent. Britain would be 'less safe' under Labour, Rishi Sunak has said. The PM is pictured departing 10 Downing Street in London, Britain, on May 8, 2024 Labour leader Keir Starmer gives a press conference as he announces Labour's plan to stop illegal small boat crossings on May 10, 2024 'Labour want to pretend this is all ancient history, but it is not and it should worry us. Because the defence of our country and our values requires seriousness of purpose, moral clarity, and the willingness to make big choices and sacrifices elsewhere to fund it. 'Either you believe that the world is more dangerous or you don't. Either you have the strength to lead or you don't.' Asked if he believed the UK would be less safe with Sir Keir and Labour, Mr Sunak replied: 'In a word, yes.' The PM also accused Labour of trying to fight the election on the past, trying to 'depress their way to victory'. He added: 'I refuse to accept the doomsterism and the cynical narrative of decline that my opponents hope will depress people into voting for them.' He predicted that Labour's 'talk of doom loops and gaslighting and scaremongering about pensions' would not work 'because we're a nation of optimists'. Mr Sunak's attack came as he warned of an unprecedented period of change and danger. He said that Putin's 'recklessness has taken us closer to a dangerous nuclear escalation than at any point since the Cuban missile crisis'. The PM said Russia was part of an 'axis of authoritarianism' alongside China, North Korea and Iran, which is committed to undermining the West. Russian President Vladimir Putin holds a meeting with members of the Security Council via videoconference at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, on May 13, 2024 Rishi Sunak delivers a speech on national security at the Policy Exchange in London on May 13, 2024 And he said that rapid technological change in areas like artificial intelligence would transform everyday life in the coming years. 'There are storms ahead,' he said. 'The dangers are all too real.' Sir Keir yesterday rejected the PM's claims, saying: 'We would not be less safe. A Labour government has always understood and I know first-hand the importance of national security.' Labour accepts the need to raise defence spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP but says it wants to conduct a review first. But Tory strategists believe defence and security could become a key electoral battleground. Mr Sunak said Labour's failure to match the Government's commitment 'emboldens our adversaries', adding: 'What do you think Putin thinks when he sees that? That the West isn't prepared to make the tough choices to invest in security? 'Because he is continuing to be aggressive, we need to meet that aggression with strength.' Republican firebrand Rep. Lauren Boebert's son still does not have an attorney to represent him in his criminal case over two months after he was arrested, earning a scolding from the judge overseeing his case. Tyler Boebert was arrested in late February in connection to a string of recent vehicle trespasses and property theft in Rifle, Colorado. Tyler, 18, told Judge John F. Neiley last week that he is asking for a public defender to represent him, and had just sent in the paperwork. 'Alright, well, it sounds like we're making some progress,' Neiley told Tyler, before adding, 'I wish you'd turned in that application a little sooner.' 'If you've done that, we just have to wait for the public defender to make their decision,' the judge continued. Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., pictured with her son, Tyler Boebert, then 16-years-old The teen then told Nieley: 'I've gotten a lot closer on working things out with the lawyer to get that figured out, so it seems like I do have options, but I am still waiting to get the 100 percent.' The judge then set a new court date for the Republican's son for June 13. The Republican lawmaker's son is facing nearly two dozen different charges, including four counts of criminal possession of a financial device, three counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor and three counts of theft of under $300. He is also facing four felony counts of criminal possession of ID documents of multiple victims, one felony count of conspiracy to commit a felony and over 15 additional misdemeanor and petty offenses, according to local law enforcement. He and three underage accomplices are accused of breaking into four cars to steal wallets in order to make purchases at local businesses. In a hearing with Judge Nieley in April, Tyler Boebert told the court that he was unable to afford a lawyer for his trial. 'We are working to hire an attorney, but it's just been kind of hard with the prices, but we are working on it,' the teen said at the time. Nieley then pushed the hearing until last week, when again, the teenager did not have legal representation. 9th Judicial District Judge John F. Neiley rebuked Tyler Boebert for still not having legal representation in his criminal case on May 9, a month after the judge extended the case to ensure that the teenager could secure a private attorney or public defender Just days after the teenager's arrest garnered national headlines, a woman came forward alleging Tyler Boebert ransacked her car, taking $75 in cash, two Venmo debit cards and her mother's credit card. '[The woman] informed [police that] she has a brain tumor and now she does not have the money to get her surgery,' cops wrote in the affidavit. The womans drivers license was also inside the stolen wallet, the arresting officer wrote - before revealing that the thieves mailed it back to her a few days after the alleged theft, which occurred on February 21. Rifle Police have said the four involved in the crime spent their ill-gotten gains at McDonald's, Starbucks and local gas stations. The thieves tried to use the brain-tumor-afflicted woman's two Venmo cards at a nearby Kum & Go gas station, court document say, citing transaction records. This image provided by the City of Rifle Police Department shows Tyler Jay Boebert, arrested Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2024 They also attempted to use her mom's credit card, before allegedly using the cash and cards stolen from the four cars to buy food from a nearby McDonald's, though banks soon started declining the charges. They also tried to order $717 worth of merchandise from Shein.com, the cop wrote, as well as $175 at the Kum and Go, and $10.95 from a Starbucks. Rep. Boebert's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Holding hands under the watchful eye of their teacher, frightened Ukrainian children are ushered into a bomb-proof bunker yesterday as Vladimir Putin launches his latest onslaught on their city. With the Kremlin's so-called 'second invasion' of Ukraine gathering pace, pupils at a school in Kharkiv went underground for respite. The major city, where more than a million Ukrainians are once again in fear for their lives, has not been seriously threatened for two years. Back in early 2022, against all odds, the Russian invaders were repelled after bombarding it with rockets and even banned cluster munitions. As the pupils were led down into the air-tight and windowless makeshift school, those closer to the frontline were fleeing the fighting. Holding hands under the watchful eye of their teacher, frightened Ukrainian children are ushered into a bomb-proof bunker With the Kremlin's so-called 'second invasion' of Ukraine gathering pace, pupils at a school in Kharkiv went underground for respite Students in a lesson that is being conducted in one of the air-tight and windowless makeshift classrooms Vovchansk stands around 45 miles north-east of Kharkiv and was yesterday in the sights of Vladimir Putin's forces. As the Russian army advanced, thousands of men, women and children left the town. Only an estimated 2,500 of its 17,000 residents remained yesterday as the fighting intensified and, despite their valiant efforts, out-gunned Ukrainian troops were forced to withdraw. The speed of Russia's advance has been blamed on poorly built fortifications around Vovchansk and enduring issues surrounding a lack of ammunition and weaponry. Younger students in a lesson taking place in the underground bunker whilst their town is under attack A teacher continues to teach her students in the classroom bunker despite Putin's latest attack taking place above them Mass civilian evacuations of border towns in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region are underway amid heavy Russian shelling and troop movements. A destroyed house is pictured following shelling on May 12, 2024 in Vovchansk A fire spreads through a forest following shelling on the outskirts of Vovchansk, Kharkiv region, northeastern Ukraine, 12 May 2024 Frustrated Ukrainian troops suggested the Russians had been able to simply 'walk in'. Local officials fear Vovchansk could become the next Bakhmut the city devastated last year by Russian scorched earth tactics. Ever since Kharkiv Ukraine's second city repelled an assault in early 2022, it has stood as a beacon of resistance. But Russia is once again on the march and its troops are better equipped and more tactically adept. The intensity of the attacks has appeared to take Ukrainian commanders and their Western advisers by surprise after months of little movement on the 620-mile frontline. QUESTION: What is regarded as the worst opening sequence to a Bond film? Having worked on the first five James Bond films, I was shocked at the way Quantum Of Solace was presented and one of its faults was without doubt the opening sequence. Starting a film with a car chase without any storyline to justify it made no sense at all to the audience. All one could do was sit back, watch cars driving at speed and note the occasions when the driver was Bond. What the director was thinking is impossible to imagine, but no other Bond opening has been subjected to such criticism. Norman Wanstall, Burford, Worcs. A still from the James bond film Quantum of Solace starring Daniel Craig and Gemma Arterton The opening of the Quantum of Solace has been subjected to a lot of criticism Ever since the second 007 movie, From Russia With Love (released in 1963), every official James Bond film (those made by Eon Productions Ltd) has featured an opening sequence that comes before the main titles. These scenes are known to Bond fans as the Pre-Credits Sequences (PCSs) and generate much debate about their relative merits. Some of the sequences, such as those in GoldenEye (1995) and Die Another Day (2002), introduce key characters and plot points, while others, for example Goldfinger (1964) and Octopussy (1983), are stand-alone mini-adventures with no relevance to the rest of the film. From 1977 onwards, with the iconic ski-jump/Union Jack parachute opening of The Spy Who Loved Me, the PCSs have tended to be big-budget affairs, featuring thrilling stunts. Consequently, the lower-key scenes from the earlier movies are often less well regarded, particularly by younger 007 fans. Chief among these is probably the opening of Live And Let Die (1973), which features the killing of three MI6 agents and in which Bond does not appear and is not referenced. Of the later movies, some fans felt that the PCSs of both Tomorrow Never Dies (1997) and Quantum Of Solace (2008) were simply generic action sequences, lacking the usual Bond flair. Pictured: The ski jump in the James Bond film The Spy Who Loved Me The use of a cover version of The Beach Boys' California Girls in A View To A Kill (1985) dismayed Bond purists; and the PCS of The World Is Not Enough (1999) was extended to include the boat chase along the Thames, after preview audiences found the initial opening sequence, showing Bond escaping from an office using a cord from the blinds, underwhelming. There are, however, as many ways to rank the James Bond PCSs as there are people on the planet; and plenty of fans can be found who are happy to sing the praises of even the weakest sequence. Tomorrow's questions Q: The opening credits of Keeping Up Appearances feature a Daily Mail book. What is it? B. Phillips, Jaywick, Essex. Q: What was the nature of the argument between Dionysius Lardner and Isambard Kingdom Brunel? Who won? Keith Kitto, Warwick. Q: What was Queen Elizabeth II's favourite perfume? Laura Ashton, Bristol. Advertisement Paul George, St Columb, Cornwall. QUESTION: Which was the first church to be designated a cathedral? A church where the bishop's throne (cathedra) is located is a cathedral. There are various early claimants to the title. Tradition holds that Etchmiadzin Cathedral in Armenia was built in about AD303 by Gregory the Illuminator, the founder and first official Catholicos, or supreme bishop, of the Armenian Apostolic Church. The core of the current building was built in AD483-4 after the cathedral was damaged in a Persian invasion. A case has also been made for Trier Cathedral in Germany. The site has a rich Christian history dating back to at least AD270 and legend has it that a cathedra was established there by Bishop Agritius at some time during the second half of the 3rd century. We know the original St Peter's Basilica in Vatican City was built in AD333 but it is not a cathedral. It is a major basilica overseen by the Pope. The cathedra of the Pope as Bishop of Rome is at the Archbasilica of Saint John Lateran. J. B. Peters, Canterbury, Kent. QUESTION: Where does the saying 'sky-blue pink' come from? The term sky-blue pink is a reference to a non-existent colour. It appears to have American origins, with references dating from the late 1800s: 'I can't tell the colour,' said Binns. 'It was like a sky-blue pink, with a shade of greeny brown, or something like that.' (Arizona Weekly Journal-Miner, 1893). The sense of a non-colour was popularised by the prolific children's author Howard R. Garis, who wrote more than 11,000 Uncle Wiggily stories featuring a rheumatic old rabbit called Uncle Wiggily Longears. Uncle Wiggily would often use the phrase, for example: 'But, in case I don't fall into the washtub with my new suit on, and get it all coloured sky-blue-pink...' Post-war, lots of regional variations of the phrase developed, such as sky-blue pink with yellow dots; and sky-blue pink with a Finny-haddy border. Jim Preece, Durham. Noisy firework displays are being ditched and warnings about strobe lights are to be issued to Cambridge students as the famous May Balls add to their woke credentials. Gender neutral toilets, hearing loops and even personalised 'evacuation plans' are also on offer as colleges ditch the boozy image of their end-of-exam events and compete to offer the most accessible parties. Last year, quiet rooms were introduced and dress codes were relaxed, so male students could party in frocks and women could wear black tie. Emmanuel College, which is charging 170 per head for a standard ticket this year, is one of the colleges to confirm students will have less bang for their buck by cancelling stressful firework displays. It is also issuing the trigger warning about strobe lighting during stage performances at its 'Dreamscape' themed bash, where partygoers will experience 'visions of the surreal and subconscious'. Fireworks at a Cambridge May Ball in 2015. The displays are no longer being shown Cambridge University is ditching firework displays at their lavish May Balls (pictured in 2009) Undergraduates are being offered Halal food, gender neutral toilets, hearing loops and soft drinks as this year's extravagant end-of-exams parties. Pictured is a ball in 2019 Emmanuel College, which is charging 170 per head for a standard ticket this year, is one of the colleges to confirm students will have less bang for their buck by cancelling stressful firework displays. Pictured in 2018 Homerton's 150 'Cupid Psyche' night has also got rid of fireworks and will offer a quiet room with no music or harsh lights,as well as a hearing loop for indoor rooms, gender neutral toilets and soft drinks. Students at Churchill College's 'Year 3000' ball can request a prayer room and ask for the tailored evacuation plan as part of their 149 ticket fee. An insider said the evacuation plan would typically be of use to people with physical disabilities, such as those using crutches or wheelchairs, but requests for other 'personal limitations' are expected to be considered. The ball committee said: 'The committee care deeply about providing all our guests with the best possible experience.' It added: 'We are not anticipating that a dedicated prayer room will be needed, as this was not expressed as a concern at the last Churchill May Ball. 'However, if you do require a prayer room, we will be more than happy to see what we can do.' Cambridge students at a May Ball in 2019. Now a prayer room is part of their 149 ticket fee The first official May Ball was held by the First and Third Trinity Boat Club event in 1866, although soirees had begun back in the 1830s. Pictured in 2012 They used to be held in May, the week before exams started, but are now held in June although the name stuck. Pictured in 2022 Many colleges have signed up to Cambridge Student Union's Disabled Students campaign, which commits them to enhanced accessibility. The first official May Ball was held by the First and Third Trinity Boat Club event in 1866, although soirees had begun back in the 1830s. They used to be held in May, the week before exams started, but are now held in June although the name stuck. 'Stuffy' dance orchestras were phased out from the 1960s in favour of lavish affairs with spectacular firework displays, light shows, bouncy castles and sumptuous dinners, with budgets running into hundreds of thousands of pounds. Now, it seems, many of these attractions are being phased out too. China has furiously condemned the arrests of three suspects charged with spying for Hong Kong in the UK. A UK Border Force officer, a trade official and an immigration enforcement investigator were charged with spying for Hong Kong in a landmark case yesterday. China blasted the charges, with its London embassy saying it 'strongly condemns' the 'unwarranted accusation' against the Hong Kong government. It comes after the Home Office has ordered a review into recruitment and vetting. Chi Leung Wai, 38, who works at Heathrow Airport for UK Border Force and volunteers as a special constable for the City of London Police is accused of allegedly carrying out surveillance and hostile reconnaissance on pro-democracy activists in the UK for the Hong Kong intelligence service. He was charged alongside former Royal Marine, Matthew Trickett, 37, who currently works as an immigration enforcement officer for the Home Office. A third man, Chung Biu Yuen, 63, a retired Hong Kong police officer now employed as a trade official, is also accused of allegedly assisting the Hong Kong intelligence service. Chi Leung Wai pictured leaving Westminster Magistrates' Court (left) yesterday Chung Biu Yuen pictured leaving court yesterday (left) and pictured on a motorcycle in 2002 (right) Trickett appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court yesterday accused of spying for Hong Kong, he was pictured (left) leaving the court yesterday In an extraordinary espionage case which is the first of its kind, the defendants are alleged to have carried out surveillance operations in the UK on behalf of Hong Kong authorities, allegedly targeting dissidents of the regime. It is the first that anyone has been charged with spying on British soil for the Hong Kong intelligence service. The trio were charged under the new National Security Act brought in last year to target those working secretly for hostile states within the UK. They are accused of 'hostile activity which includes information-gathering, hostile surveillance, acts of deception and forcing entry into a UK residential address.' The 'primary targets' are said to be pro-democracy campaigners from the Hong Kong diaspora now based in the UK. But China's London embassy told The Telegraph: 'We strongly condemn the UK's unwarranted accusation against the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government.' Tom Tugendhat, the UK's security minister, is preparing to order new guidance to police on how to spot Chinese campaigns in the country. He told the newspaper they will 'not tolerate attempts to threaten, harass or silence people in the UK'. The Telegraph reported that the Home Office has ordered a review of Border Force and Immigration Enforcement recruitment, vetting and supervision after the allegations came to light. The newspaper reported a source from within the organisation as saying: 'We take all cases of potential internal misconduct incredibly seriously, immediate steps are always taken to ensure that risks are managed swiftly. As is normal practice for cases like these we are reviewing our processes.' Heathrow worker Chi Leung Wai, 38, is also accused of carrying out surveillance and hostile reconnaissance on pro-democracy activists in the UK Chi Leung Wai wore a face mask as he left the court building on Monday The three men are alleged to have broken into the home of one of their targets in Pontefract, West Yorkshire, on May 1 this year. Yesterday, all three appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court for a brief hearing just hours after Scotland Yard announced the charges. No pleas were entered during the hearing. They stand charged with allegedly assisting a foreign intelligence service between 20 December 2023 and 2 May 2024 by engaging in conduct, namely agreeing to undertake information-gathering, surveillance and acts of deception. The trio also face a second charge of foreign interference on May 1 2024, by engaging in 'prohibited conduct, namely, forcing entry into a UK residential address'. It can now be revealed that Wai, who is known as Peter, is a joint Hong Kong and British national living in Staines, Surrey, who has posed for photographs on social media wearing a Metropolitan Police uniform. According to his website, he is the founder and director of D5 Security and has over 20 years' experience in the British military, police and private security sector. His co-defendant Trickett, 37, from Maidenhead, Berkshire, also served in the military as a Royal Marine between 2007 and 2013. He was formerly employed by the UK Border Force at Heathrow, before joining Home Office Immigration Enforcement on February 21 this year. He is also the director of a security consultancy firm formed in April 2021 called MTR Consultancy. The third defendant Yuen, who is known as Billy, lives in Dalston, East London, and works as the office manager for the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Bloomsbury, Central London. Court sketch of the three defendants appearing at Westminster Magistrates' Court, and, inset, a security van leaves the west London courthouse The home of Hong Kong spy suspect Chi Leung Wai, in Staines, Surrey, who neighbours said kept himself to himself An apartment block where Chung Biu Yuen lives. Neighbours told of their surprise that he had been arrested He refused to discuss the allegations when he returned to the upmarket home following his appearance in court. Dressed casually in corduroy trousers and a grey jacket, Yeun declined to give an explanation for the charges against him. However neighbours told of their surprise that he had been arrested. One said: 'I could not believe that he was arrested. He is a model neighbour.' And there was similar shock in Wai's Surrey neighbourhood. One local, who declined to give his name, said Wai lived a quiet life at the modest two-bedroom terraced house near Heathrow airport. The neighbour said: 'Wow, I can't believe it. Chi Leung Wai, pictured in a police uniform, volunteers as a special constable for the City of London Police 'I know who he is but to be honest he keeps himself to himself.' Scotland Yard's Counter-Terrorism Command, supported by colleagues from Counter-Terrorism Policing North East and South East, have arrested a total of 11 people as part of the ongoing investigation. Commander Dominic Murphy, head of the Counter-Terrorism Command, said: 'A number of arrests were made and searches carried out across England as part of this investigation. 'While led from London, the Counter-Terrorism Policing network has been crucial to disrupting this activity and we have worked closely with the Crown Prosecution Service since the start of the investigation.' District Judge Louisa Cieciora granted the three men bail on conditions including that they surrender any international travel documents. The next hearing will be at the Old Bailey on May 24. Houston Mayor John Whitmire answers questions in May. Whitmire's administration is set to unveil its first budget this week. Yi-Chin Lee/Staff photographer Mayor John Whitmires administration is expected to unveil its first City Hall budget this week, offering a peek into how the administration plans to prioritize resources as it seeks to boost public safety. The city has a strained financial outlook after years of operating on a deficit of about $160 million per year. City Hall typically closes those gaps with one-off measures like land sales, maintenance deferrals and other budgetary bandaids. The city was able to avoid that budget crunch in Mayor Sylvester Turners second term, thanks to about $607 million in federal Covid-19 relief. Turner used those funds mostly to build up the city's savings account, which stands at roughly $467.7 million as of March the highest level in at least decades. That will give Whitmire some breathing room to get through this year, before the administration faces a harsher reality in the next two years. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Those reserve funds will likely fade fast, though. The city is looking at a budget gap of about $230 to $280 million this year, and Whitmire will almost certainly use reserves to plug that hole. Here are five things to watch during budget season. New taxes, fees The citys increasingly tight financial picture is likely to hit residents pockets in the near future, but it is not expected to appear in this years spending plan. Though the citys property tax rate has been falling for a decade, that could change soon. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Whitmires team has floated a property tax hike, a garbage collection fee and other user-based revenue sources to help shore up the citys finances. While they may not show up in the budget, there likely will be ample discussion during the hearings about which strategy the administration is leaning toward implementing in coming years. The Whitmire administration could ask voters to increase the tax rate as soon as this November. The cost of the firefighter deal Whitmires $1.5 billion settlement with the firefighters union is one of two external factors looming over the budget and the citys longer-term financial sustainability. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The firefighters worked without a contract for years under Turner, a stalemate that played out in court battles and political fights. Whitmire a longtime union ally in the Legislature announced a framework in March to end that stalemate by giving the firefighters $650 million in backpay, with up to 34% raises over the next five years. The settlement also includes a 10% pay hike in this years budget. The city plans to spread the cost of the settlement over 25 to 30 years. Administration officials have pegged the annual cost of the entire framework at between $72 and $82 million per year. The budget should offer more concrete numbers on those financial effects and provide insight into how much revenue the city will have to generate in future years. Drainage fund surprise The second external factor is a court ruling last month that could punch a $100 million hole in the citys budget. The 14th Court of Appeals found the city has been dramatically shorting the amount of property taxes it is supposed to dedicate to streets and drainage since 2016, and it ordered the city to stop shorting that fund. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Whitmire quickly said the city would appeal the decision, despite a promise during the campaign to stop shorting the drainage fund. It appears that appeal will mean City Hall will not have to fully fund the program in this years budget, while that litigation remains ongoing. In these kinds of cases, state law says higher courts must grant a pause on the ruling when the government requests one during an appeal. That will be unwelcome news to the engineers who have fought a lengthy legal battle to ensure the city dedicates its fair share of dedicated taxes, as well as neighborhood activists who have pushed for more drainage funding generally. Potential department cuts Whitmires team asked all city departments except for police and fire, which collectively make up about half of the citys operating budget to come up with 5% budget cuts ahead of the spending cycle. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Was that a mental exercise, or an effort to actually enact cuts? The spending plan will offer a look at whether Whitmires administration intends to make incremental cuts to services outside public safety. That could include the parks department, which had a $91.7 million budget last year, libraries, which had a $52.3 million budget, and the neighborhoods department, which had a $14.6 million budget. Close followers of Houston budget will recall that most of the citys spending is tied up in personnel, meaning it is difficult to make substantial cuts to departments without laying off employees. Public safety spending Whitmire has been clear that public safety is his top priority. Outside of the firefighters compensation, what will that look like in his first budget? The mayor campaigned on a promise to recruit more officers and drive down police response times. He said he would personally get involved in recruiting. If the objective is to get more officers on the street, Whitmire could try to use money to add extra cadet classes to boost Houston police ranks. The city typically funds five classes per year, at a cost of about $2.6 million each. Downing Street last night insisted that the flagship plan to deport Channel migrants to Rwanda will go ahead as planned despite a court in Northern Ireland putting 'a spanner in the works'. In a bombshell ruling, Belfast High Court said parts of the Illegal Migration Act should be 'disapplied' in Northern Ireland because they undermined post-Brexit human rights protections agreed with the EU. The ruling, which the Government plans to appeal, could make it impossible for the Home Office to deport migrants to Rwanda if they travel to Northern Ireland. The DUP last night warned it could make the province a 'magnet' for illegal migrants and urged ministers to intervene. But Downing Street suggested the court was wrong to 'extend' post-Brexit rules to cover issues such as illegal migration. Migrants pictured on a boat attempting to cross the English Channel near Dunkirk, France in April The ruling, which the Government plans to appeal, could make it impossible for the Home Office to deport migrants to Rwanda if they travel to Northern Ireland. Pictured: Rishi Sunak A source said: 'It shows again that the courts are desperate to frustrate this plan, but in the PM's view it is politicians not the courts who are accountable to the public for addressing concerns on illegal migration. We will not be knocked off course.' The PM's official spokesman said the ruling would have no impact on the first flights to Rwanda planned for this summer as the initial 'cohort' of deportees would be detained under different legislation. 'We continue to work on the timetable that the Prime Minister had previously set out,' he said. 'We've consistently been clear that the commitment to the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement should be interpreted as they were always intended and not expanded to cover issues like illegal migration.' Solicitor Sinead Marmion, who represented a 16-year-old Iranian asylum seeker in the case, said the judgment was 'hugely significant' and would prevent the Rwanda scheme applying in Northern Ireland. 'This is a huge thorn in the Government's side and it has completely put a spanner in the works,' she added. Prince Harry's memoir Spare was beaten at last night's British Book Awards in every category it was nominated. The Duke of Sussex's controversial tell-all work was the UK's bestselling book in 2023, packed with revelations and explosive Royal Family gossip. But during the prestigious ceremony in London last night he lost out to a children's writer, a puzzle book and the memoirs of a former MP. Spare, released last January, missed out on the book of the year award, which went to a puzzle book for the first time Murdle by GT Karber. In the non-fiction narrative category he lost to Politics On The Edge by former international development secretary Rory Stewart. The Duke of Sussex's controversial tell-all work was the UK's bestselling book in 2023, packed with revelations and explosive Royal Family gossip Spare, released last January, missed out on the book of the year award, which went to a puzzle book for the first time Murdle by GT Karber Author GT Karber holding a copy of his puzzle book Murdle which won the book of the year award Harry also missed out on being crowned author of the year, which went to children's writer Katherine Rundell who created the fantasy series Impossible Creatures. Harry's memoir covered a range of intimate topics, including losing his virginity to an older woman, his drug use and private arguments with members of his family, and sold 706,978 copies. The panel of judges, who announced their winners at a ceremony at Park Lane's Grosvenor House, included authors, illustrators and trade professionals, as well as celebrities Adrian Chiles, Lorraine Kelly, Maddie Moate, Janet Ellis, Toby Jones, Nihal Arthanayake and Shappi Khorsandi. The book of the year, GT Karber's Murdle, was Christmas number one and is described as '100 simple to impossible mysteries to solve using logic, skill, and the power of deduction'. Rebecca F Kuang won the fiction book of the year prize for the second year in a row, this time for Yellowface, following last year's win for Babel. Former Jetstar captain Greg Lynn shot one of his alleged victim's in the head, a jury has been told. Police allege Russell Hill, 74, and Carol Clay, 73, were murdered while camping in the remote Wonnangatta Valley, in Victoria's Alpine region, more than four years ago. On Monday, Lynn, 57, appeared in the Supreme Court of Victoria before a jury of 15 - 12 of whom will ultimately decide his fate. Dressed neatly in a suit and spectacles, Lynn casually took notes as 78 prospective jurors entered the courtroom. Lynn has pleaded not guilty to two counts of murder. Greg Lynn outside the Supreme Court of Victoria as his murder trial began on Monday Providing a brief summary of the allegations, Justice Michael Croucher told the jury pool that it was alleged Lynn shot Ms Clay and killed Mr Hill on March 20, 2020. He told the court prosecutors allege Lynn was camping at a site called Bucks Camp at the same time as Mr Hill and Ms Clay. 'It will be alleged that Mr Lynn shot Ms Clay in the head and as a result killed her, and that Mr Lynn killed Mr Hill,' Justice Croucher said. The jury of seven women and eight men heard the trial could take up to six weeks to reach its conclusion. 'It's your role to consider the evidence and decide what the facts are,' Justice Croucher told them. 'It's your view of the facts which matters, not mine or anyone else's.' Police allege Carol Clay was shot in the head and killed in March 2020. Police allege Russell Hill was camping with Ms Clay when they were killed The jury was told they all needed to be satisfied beyond reasonable doubt to convict Lynn of murder. The jury also has the option to find Lynn guilty of the alternative charges of manslaughter - a key distinction being whether death was caused by an unlawful and dangerous act, rather than performed with an intention to kill or seriously injure. 'It's a critical part of the justice system that people are presumed to be innocent unless or until proven guilty,' Justice Croucher said. 'It's not for the accused person to demonstrate his innocence, it's for the prosecution to prove their allegation.' Jurors were sent home shortly after 1.30pm after Justice Croucher concluded his introductory remarks. The trial will return on Tuesday as crown prosecutor Daniel Porceddu details how the prosecution puts its case against Lynn. This will be followed by a response from Lynn's barrister, Dermot Dann KC, outlining what the issues are that the jury will need to decide. Treasurer Jim Chalmers will deliver back-to-back budgets in the black, with fresh forecasts of the nation's finances set to show a surplus of $9.3billion for the current fiscal year. But even with the significant turnaround since the mid-year budget update (MYEFO) forecast a wafer-thin deficit of $1.1billion just six months ago, the budget will slip back into the red from next financial year as surging spending and rising unemployment hammer the bottom line. Each of the following three years will have higher deficits than the government previously projected, thanks to what it is calling 'unavoidable spending'. The exact figures for those deficits is yet to be revealed, however they were forecast in December to be $18.8billion, $35.1billion and $19.5billion. Treasurer Jim Chalmers will deliver back-to-back budgets in the black, with fresh forecasts of the nation's finances set to show a surplus of $9.3bn for the current fiscal year Heralding the result, Mr Chalmers said the projected surplus had not come at the expense of expected cost of living relief. 'Another surplus is a powerful demonstration of Labor's responsible economic management, which makes room for cost-of-living relief and investments in the future,' he added. 'Despite the substantial progress we've made, spending pressures continue to intensify and there's more work to do to clean up the mess left behind by the Coalition.' While the forecasted deficits for the next three financial years are not yet known, they are expected to be in excess of the combined deficits of $73.3billion forecast in MYEFO. Indeed, the soaring cost growth of the NDIS, the interest bill on government debt, health and aged care spending, and record defence spending will place increased strain on the budget bottom line in the near term. The budget position, however, will be stronger in 2027-28 when compared to the December forecasts which showed the budget still remained in the red. 'We've put a premium on responsible economic management that strikes the right balance between strengthening the budget and funding our priorities,' Finance Minister Katy Gallagher said. Buoyed by soaring revenue windfalls due to Australia's red hot labour market, still elevated commodity profits and strong corporate tax receipts, Treasury coffers have swelled since Labor came to office. Had it not been for the Commonwealth's soaring tax take, the budget would have recorded a structural deficit. The lion's share of receipts this financial year will go towards reducing the budget bottom line, with 96 per cent of revenue upgrades set to be banked. The remaining funds will cover increases in government payments. To help rising spending demands, Labor has already announced it will repurpose $23.1billion of previously allocated funds, and will save $1bn from reducing the government's reliance on consultants. An additional, $3.8billion in savings and reprioritisations will be revealed on budget night. Despite the upgrades to the budget bottom line this budget, gross debt is still expected to head north of $1trillion over the four year forward estimates period, a threshold which Mr Chalmers regularly criticised the then-Morrison government for during his time in Opposition. The 18-year-career at the crown jewel of higher learning in Texas ended last week for Professor Richard Heyman, who is accused of breaking police lines, shouting expletives in cops' faces and destroying police property at a pro-Palestine demonstration on campus last month. Heyman, 57, was arrested last week after taking part in the April 29 demonstration, and was terminated by his employer after he was taken into custody. The disgraced educator had worked at the university for almost 18 years and is listed as a lecturer in the English and School of Architecture. During the pro-Palestine protest on campus, Heyman confronted state troopers, yelling in their faces, "F**k you, you don't belong here,' reported the Austin American Statesman. State troopers had used police bikes to create a line to push back protestors. Lecturer Richard Heyman, 57, was fired from the University of Texas at Austin after his arrest last week after taking part in an April 29 protest on campus Texas State troopers in riot gear arrive at a Protect Palestine Rally on the University of Texas at Austin campus on April 29 At Monday's protests, some could be seen yelling insults at police in an attempt to provoke officers Heyman attempted to "breach (the) line" and maintained a "verbally aggressive demeanor." One officer tried to push Heyman back, and the professor responded by putting his finger in cop's face and 'physically started to pull my bike away from me, interfering with my assigned duties,' the arresting document reveals. Heyman, who lists 'critical theory and Marxism' among his interests on his university profile, broke the bell on the bike and was hauled away by police. 'F**k you, I am a f**king professor here,' Heyman yelled. Heyman's lawyer disputes the narrative in the arresting document, stating they have a video of Heyman's interaction with police that shows a different account. 'Mr. Heyman was, no doubt, he was yelling at the police, but the police officer initiated the physical contact,' Attorney Gerry Morris told the local Fox station. Heyman, who was a bystander and not a participant in the protest, according to Morris, became upset after seeing how police were treating protestors. Professor Craig Campbell speaks alongside gathered faculty on the South Lawn at the University of Texas at Austin on May 05, 2024 in Austin, Texas. During a rescheduled May Day rally, students and faculty gathered on the South Lawn to continue calling upon the university to fully divest from Israel Texas Gov. Greg Abbott brought in state troopers from other parts of the Lone Star State to help handle protestors While the professor was yelling at the cops, Morris claims Heyman was pushed and grabbed onto the trooper's bike to keep from falling on the ground. Morris also claimed his client's firing was 'political.' 'I certainly think (the university) should have investigated what happened before taking some sort of action,' the lawyer stated. Heyman is far from the only UT staffer to participate in pro-Gaza rallies on campus. Professor Craig Campbell joined other faculty members on the South Lawn at the University of Texas at Austin last week, calling on the university to fully divest from Israel. As DailyMail.com exclusively revealed, dozens of non-students with zero ties to the school have also infiltrated the Austin protests, as the campus administration hit back at the narrative that police are at war with wide-eyed, youthful protesters demanding justice in Palestine. Six non-students arrested at the University of Texas at Austin protests Monday Julian Manuel Reyes, 55, shown in a 2023 jail booking photo, after being arrested on charges of interfering with public duties, in Austin, Texas 'The University of Texas learned Tuesday that, of the 79 people arrested on our campus Monday, 45 had no affiliation with UT Austin,' the university shared in a statement. 'These numbers validate our concern that much of the disruption on campus over the past week has been orchestrated by people from outside the University, including groups with ties to escalating protests at other universities around the country.' Julian Reyes, 55, is a well-known Austin ankle biter and fixture at pretty much every local protest. On April 24, Reyes was arrested for criminal trespassing, after university police gave protestors a notice to disperse and they refused to leave, according to an arrest warrant for Reyes obtained by DailyMail.com. Reyes' was thrown in jail along with 55 others last week. The 'Lizard King' and 25 others had no UT affiliation, University President Jay Hartzell confirmed. Former elementary school teacher turned arrestee Sophia Deloretto-Chudy, 28, was among the non-students arrested at the University of Texas at Austin Monday, according to charging documents Molly Biggar, 34, who works for an LA production firm, mixed in with students at the University of Texas and was arrested for criminal trespassing Haithem Nasser El-Zabri, 59, runs the Palestine Online Store out of Pflugerville, Texas. He was arrested at Monday's protest Sophia Deloretto-Chudy, 28, was also among them. The former third-grade teacher was fired from her job at Becker Elementary in Austin when she ranted about an administrative review she had with her bosses on her TikTok account. Administrators initially called the first-year teacher in to discuss concerns, including why students were sitting in protest during the national anthem, reported local station KEYE. Molly Kathleen Biggar, 34, a native of Fairfield, Texas, was also arrested. She lists her employment as associate producer at Cardinal Trio Pictures in Los Angeles on her LinkedIn profile. It's unclear what drew them to the protest at UT since they did not respond to DailyMail.com's request for comment. Haithem Nasser El-Zabri, 59, runs the Palestine Online Store out of Pflugerville, an Austin suburb. His social media is filled with his support to Gaza and even confrontations with others over his unbridled support for the cause. He's been previously charged with battery and deceptive practices in Illinois. Another arrestee, Jessica Erin Ennis, 37, also has a rap sheet. Aside from her arrest on Monday for criminal trespassing, she has a 2015 charge for resisting arrest. Tessa Mitternoff, 29, is an activist who works for MOVE Texas, a liberal organization who helps to register new voters, according to her LinkedIn account. Jessica Erin Ennis, 37, was arrested at Monday's protest. She has previously been arrested for resisting arrest in 2015, according to public records Starting with the April 24 protest, people from outside the campus started showing up to the school rallies. Both the university and Gov. Greg Abbott have explicitly said they will not allow protestors to form encampments. On April 29, protestors who chained themselves to tables and barricades meant to set up an encampment, decided they were going to stand their ground, despite receiving multiple warnings from the school police and administration that they would be arrested if they did not leave. The school called in dozens of state troopers in riot gear to start making arrests. Ultimately, 79 protestors were charged for the April 29, but at least 45 of them weren't students. Tessa Austin Mitterhoff, a 29-year-old activist, was among those mixed in with students at what was supposed to be a college only protest Weapons, including five-gallon buckets filled with rocks, where found on the University of Texas at Austin campus Monday after protests Additionally, the university found weapons strategically left on campus after Monday's protest. They included guns, buckets of large rocks, bricks, steel enforced wood planks, mallets and chains. 'On Saturday, the University received extensive online threats from a group organizing today's protests. These threats have been reported to local, state and federal law enforcement,' the school explained. Rival Boeing's Starliner recently had its ISS launch called off due to rocket glitch Dream Chaser spaceplane will eventually transport crew and cargo to the ISS The world's first commercial spaceplane is finally about to liftoff. After more than a decade in development, Sierra Space's 'Dream Chaser' which can land horizontally on a runway like a traditional aircraft has completed testing. The craft will make its maiden trip to the International Space Station (ISS) in low Earth-orbit later this year, carrying over 7,800 pounds (3,540 kilograms) of cargo. Although this first flight will be an unmanned mission, it will eventually carry astronauts to the space station, much like SpaceX's Crew Dragon. Along with SpaceX and Boeing, Sierra Space is one of the companies contracted by NASA a decade ago to send people and equipment to the ISS. The Dream Chaser spaceplane will take people and cargo to low Earth-orbit. Artist's depiction shows what Dream Chaser will look like while docked at the International Space Station (ISS) The first in a fleet of spaceplanes, Dream Chaser is shown stacked inside a thermal vacuum test chamber at NASAs Neil Armstrong Test Facility on April 26, 2024 What is Dream Chaser? Dream Chaser is a reusable spacecraft developed by Colorado firm Sierra Space. The worlds only commercial spaceplane, it's designed to take people and cargo to space (specifically low Earth-orbit). It will make its maiden trip to the International Space Station (ISS) in low Earth-orbit later in 2024, after more than a decade in development. Advertisement However, only SpaceX has done so, as the other two companies have suffered frustrating development delays and costly setbacks. Boeing's Starliner was finally set to send astronauts to the ISS last week before yet another last-minute delay due to a rocket glitch. Just like its rivals, Sierra Space's Dream Chaser will take people and cargo to the ISS in low Earth-orbit although its maiden launch later this year will only transport cargo. According to Sierra Space, which is based in Louisville, Colorado, Dream Chaser has just completed 'rigorous' tests at NASAs Neil Armstrong Test Facility in Sandusky, Ohio. These include intense intense vibration and shock tests that simulate conditions during launch and exposures to extreme temperatures typical of the space environment. It will shortly be shipped to NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida ahead of its inaugural launch to the ISS. A full sized crew model of the Sierra Space Dream Chaser space plane is displayed ahead of the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Nevada on January 4, 2022 It will make its maiden trip to the International Space Station (ISS) in low Earth-orbit later in 2024, after more than a decade in development 'Successful completion of an incredibly rigorous environmental testing campaign in close partnership with NASA is a significant milestone and puts Dream Chaser on track for operations later this year,' Sierra Space CEO Tom Vice said. 'This is the year that we transition from rigorous research and development to regular orbital operations and in doing so transform the way we connect space and Earth.' No specific date has been revealed for the mission although some sources say it could be as soon as next month; MailOnline has contacted Sierra Space for more information. In 2021, the company was secured $1.4 billion for the Dream Chaser project, following initial funding by NASA of 80 million. Although the project is geared towards delivering professional astronauts to space, the company hasn't ruled out using Dream Chaser for tourist trips later in the future. Pictured, artist's impression of the Dream Chaser spacecraft during its descent back towards Earth If all goes to plan, Dream Chaser will re-enter Earths atmosphere and glide to a runway landing at Kennedys Launch and Landing Facility, Florida in the style of NASA's retired Space Shuttle craft (pictured) Boeing's Starliner launches December 2019 First uncrewed flight. Reached orbit but failed to dock with ISS May 2022 Second uncrewed flight. Successfully docked with ISS May 2024? Tentative date for first crewed flight to ISS Advertisement Dream Chaser has to make its journey to space attached to the top of a rocket, largely because it cannot generate the required thrust to get to space alone. But after its ride to space, Dream Chaser will separate from the rocket and deploy its wings from a folded position before it flies to the ISS and docks to unleash cargo. Dream Chaser will remain at the space station for about 45 days before it makes the journey back down to Earth. The spacecraft can land as quickly as 11 to 15 hours after departure, although it needs a window of good weather to attempt the reentry. If all goes to plan, Dream Chaser will re-enter Earths atmosphere and glide to a runway landing at Kennedys Launch and Landing Facility, Florida in the style of NASA's retired Space Shuttle craft from more than a decade ago. Sierra Space is one of three companies participating in NASA's Commercial Crew Program an initiative to fly teams of astronauts to the ISS on behalf of the space agency. Established it 2011, the program was intended for NASA to outsource the development of vessels that can perform the journey, rather than NASA engineers doing it themselves. NASA awarded fixed-price contracts of $4.2 billion to Boeing and $2.6 billion to SpaceX in 2014, during a period when the US had to rely on Russian Soyuz rockets for rides to the ISS. Elon Musk's SpaceX, so far the most successful member of the program, performed its first crewed launch to the ISS back in May 2020, using its Crew Dragon spacecraft. NASA astronauts Bob Behnken (left) and Doug Hurley (right) give a thumbs up inside the Dragon capsule as a flight physician checks their vitals. The team returned to Earth following a two-month mission inside the International Space Station Pictured, SpaceX boss Elon Musk with the firm's Crew Dragon spacecraft. NASA hopes to certify Boeing's Starliner as a second 'taxi' service for its astronauts to the ISS - a role that SpaceX has provided since 2020 Pictured, rival Boeing's Starliner spacecraft at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida - which is still aiming to transport crew to the ISS SpaceX is due to perform its ninth crewed launch to the ISS for NASA in the summer and will perform several more after this as part of the program. Boeing, on the other hand, has long experienced teething trouble with its Starliner vessel, which was originally supposed to be doing crewed flights by 2017. Even though the ISS is due to be commissioned at the start of next decade, NASA said it still wants two competing crew launchers. This weekend the skies above Britain were lit up by the Northern Lights as a rare solar storm swept the planet. But, if you missed out over the last few days, experts say there may still be a chance to see this incredible natural wonder again very soon. Dr Greg Brown, astronomer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich, told MailOnline that the sun is currently in a period of particularly intense activity. While Mr Brown stresses how difficult these events are to predict, this solar activity could fire up the Northern Lights over the UK again this week or early next week. Dr Brown says: 'There are signs of another storm approaching within the next few days, which might boost the aurorae again.' If you missed the stunning display of the Northern Lights over the weekend, as pictured here over Shropshire, experts say there could be a third chance coming soon Although this weekend's solar storm is already fading, Dr Brown says there are early signs that another could be on its way. Dr Brown explains: 'We are currently at solar maximum, when the sun is at its most active and flares, sunspots and coronal mass ejections are at their most common. 'While we remain at the suns peak, the chance of a solar storm remains quite high'. However, it is also 'notoriously difficult' to accurately predict solar storms due to the volatile and complex nature of the sun's outer layers. Dr Brown says this makes it 'all but impossible' to know exactly when the next storm might hit. The solar storm that caused the Northern Lights to be visible as far south as Suffolk (pictured) is already waning, but there are signs another storm could be brewing The brilliant colours of the Northern Lights, or aurora borealis, are caused by charged particles from the sun colliding with the Earth's atmosphere. Normally these particles are swept up by the planet's magnetic field towards the north and south poles so that the lights are only visible at extreme latitudes. However, during events called coronal mass ejections huge amounts of plasma are catapulted out of the Sun's outermost layers. When these waves hit Earth they trigger geomagnetic storms which make the Northern Lights brighter and visible further south - as was the case this weekend. The Earth is currently experiencing more geomagnetic storms due to natural cycles in the Sun's activity. Dr Brown explains: 'Longer term we can use the suns cycle of activity to predict general trends in solar storms. 'The sun goes through a roughly 11-year cycle of changing activity.' Solar activity is notoriously hard to predict. As shown in this extreme ultraviolet image from today, the outer layers of the sun are a complex system of plasma and looping magnetic fields The Northern Lights: A stunning natural light display The Northern and Southern Lights (auroras) are natural light spectacles. The displays light up when electrically charged particles from the sun enter Earth's atmosphere. Usually, the particles are deflected by Earth's magnetic field, but during stronger storms they enter the atmosphere and collide with gas particles such as hydrogen and helium. These collisions emit light in many amazing colours, although pale green and pink are common. Advertisement Since we are currently at the very peak of activity, the kinds of coronal mass ejections which trigger the Northern Lights are more likely. But even at the peak of the sun's 11 year cycle, another spectacular light show is far from guaranteed. G5 class storms, like that over the weekend, are rare even during solar maximums with the last having taken place more than 20 years ago. Dr Brown says: 'The northern lights are a relatively common occurrence for those in the northernmost parts of Scotland with sightings every few months or so, meaning that parts of the UK quite often see the aurorae. 'However, the rarity of the most recent displays comes from how far south they reached and how intense they were.' Meanwhile, the Met Office predicts that a smaller wave of solar material is already on its way towards Earth. Although not a large solar storm like the one over the weekend, this coronal mass ejection may lead to the Northern Lights being visible for a few people this evening. A spokesperson for the Met Office told MailOnline: 'A further coronal mass ejection could impact Earth through the day today which gives the potential for auroral activity during Monday night.' We are currently at a peak of solar activity in the Sun's 11 year cycle so chances of another storm are higher than normal. Even still it is hard to predict when the next storm will be big enough to trigger Northern Lights over the south of England (pictured over Shropshire) However, they add that 'this is likely to be considerably less than recent days, with any potential sightings mainly in the north of Scotland, though rain and cloud will obscure visibility for many here.' As the sun moves away from the peak of its solar cycle, volatile activity and coronal mass ejections will also become less likely. Dr Brown says: 'In a couple of years time, the sun will be well on its way to being quiet again and the chance for extreme auroral events will go down considerably until the next cycle in about a decade.' But while this might be bad news for hopeful sky-watchers, it may be comforting to those who rely on global satellite communication and navigation systems. The Met Office told MailOnline that a smaller coronal mass ejection should hit Earth today making the Northern Lights visible over parts of Scotland. But these will be unlikely to reach as far south as Kingston upon Thames (pictured) as they did on Saturday The same particles which make the sky glow also give an electrical charge to layers of the atmosphere, making it difficult for radio signals to pass through. In some cases this can trigger brief radio blackouts as high-frequency signals are absorbed. The impact of solar storms also causes the atmosphere to expand further into space. This pushes satellites in low-earth orbits into air resistance, slowing them down like athletes trying to run into a sudden headwind. Large storms may even create such large electrical charges that this can flow into power grids on Earth and cause blackouts. In 2003, a G5 (Extreme) solar storm in 2003 caused power outages in Sweden and damaged transformers in South Africa. However, the effect of this weekend's solar activity was fairly limited beyond widespread disruption to the GPS systems of John Deere tractors. Experts say why you can see the phenomenon a lot better through your phone If you struggled to glimpse the Northern Lights at the weekend, you're not alone. Social media users have been sharing their frustration at not being able to see the spectacle, which resulted from an intense solar storm last week. Meanwhile, others have noted that they were only able to notice its array of colours after taking a photo of the skies with their smartphone. One person wrote on X: 'Is there something wrong with my eyeballs that I didnt see the Northern Lights but my phone camera captured an outstanding scene?!' Another posted: 'I couldn't see the Northern Lights unless I used my phone's night mode with the camera. Britons moan they couldn't see the dazzling aurora, pictured in New Brighton, Merseyside,on Friday night Many sky-gazers were only able to notice the aurora after taking a photo of the skies with their smartphone 'Something to do with the amount of colors our eyes are able to pick up in certain levels of light.' According to experts, long exposure on a smartphone camera where it's exposed to light for a longer duration than usual can better capture the spectacle. US photographer Dave Morrow said: 'If the aurora is moving very quickly through the sky, and you take a photo at a 30-second exposure, instead of seeing the instantaneous view that your eyes see, your camera will actually pick up the entire movement of the aurora through the sky over that 30-second time frame.' The Met Office also says people with a good-quality camera can capture vivid shots of the aurora even when it's not visible with the naked eye. Another posted: 'I couldn't see the northern lights unless I used my phones night mode with the camera' 'The naked eye couldn't pick up colours like the camera did': Photographers generally have had more success seeing the display through their device The most powerful solar storm in more than two decades struck Earth, triggering spectacular celestial light shows from Tasmania to Britain. Pictured, people gather at Parliament Hill on Hampstead Heath 'Cameras help as the long exposure allows loads of light in and enhances the colours more than the human eye can see,' a Met Office spokesperson told MailOnline. 'That is why you see pictures as far south as Cornwall sometimes though youre unlikely to ever be able to see it with the naked eye that far south.' However, due to the intensity of the solar storm, some people did see the aurora with the naked eye. Lemuel Lyes, a New Zealander living in Cornwall, posted on X: ' Never seen an aurora display so visible to the naked eye before. 'Such a wonder.' The Northern Lights in Denbighshire, Wales, on Saturday night Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis) illuminate the sky of San Francisco North Bay as seen from China Camp Beach in San Rafael, California What causes aurora? The natural light display is caused by charged particles expelled at top speeds from the sun - a solar storm. When they reach Earth, these particles slam into atoms and molecules in the Earths atmosphere and heat them up. Just like heating a gas to make it glow at school, this creates a colourful light display best viewed towards the poles. The colour display depends in part on what molecules the charged particles interact with. Red and green colours tend to be hallmarks of oxygen, pink and red the signs of nitrogen with blue and purple being the results of hydrogen and helium. Advertisement David Kelham Smith, a professor of chemistry at the University of York, caused controversy by suggesting seeing the aurora through a phone is not an 'authentic experience'. He posted to X: 'If you can only see the aurora through your phone screen with a long exposure setting, have you really seen the aurora? 'What actually *is* an authentic experience?' A furious user replied: 'Yes, you've seen the aurora. 'Greater sensitivity of the phone's sensor and long exposure enhances it beyond the eye's capability, and also, gorgeous phone photos created a really magical shared experience on Friday night, so away with your technophobe clickbait b*******.' Auroras are usually only viewed in countries near the poles, such as Norway and Iceland in the north. The weekend's aurora (which did result in many amazing photos) was caused by a solar storm that was classified as G5 the most 'extreme' rating with aurora as low as Florida and North Africa. Seeing this weekend's aurora was called a 'once in a lifetime opportunity' by ITV meteorologist Chris Page. But according to Royal Observatory Greenwich, the last G5 solar storm occurred in October 2003, but other experts are hopeful another aurora event as prolific will come again soon. David Kelham Smith, a professor of chemistry at the University of York, caused controversy by suggesting seeing the aurora through a phone is not 'authentic experience' The sun is currently in a period of 'solar maximum' meaning expulsions from the sun's surface are most common. In fact, following another solar storm in the next few days, more aurora could be visible late this week or early next week. 'Solar storms are notoriously difficult to predict and the aurorae that accompany them are similarly complicated,' said Royal Observatory Greenwich astronomer Grey Brown. 'Predicting the next solar storm to any accuracy is all but impossible. 'However, there are signs of another storm approaching within the next few days, which might boost the aurorae again.' The aquarium looking after Charlotte the sting ray has released a cryptic update to its Facebook amid fears she may have lost the pups. Not only has the Aquarium & Shark Lab not provided an update on the stingray in two weeks, they have also disabled comments on posts. Fans are growing suspicions of Charlotte's pregnancy due to the typical gestation period for her species being three to four months and the aquarium said in September that she began to 'swell.' The last update, on May 8, also broke away from tradition by excluding a video and only providing a statement that the team is expanding its vet medical teams to care for the stingray - but doesn't say why. The aquarium had promised to update the public every Wednesday and Saturday after attracting the world's attention when they announced it was the first pregnancy in a stingray without a mate. The Aquarium and Shark Lab in Hendersonville, North Carolina turned off the commenting option on Facebook posts as Charlotte's immaculate conception continues In a recent cryptic post, the aquarium said it had hired additional vets to monitor Charlotte's progress People are beginning to voice their frustration on social media, accusing the aquarium of promoting the 'virgin' pregnancy as a hoax. Expert Chris Lowe told DailyMail.com that the embryos could have died, paused development, or the stingray could simply be late The aquarium has not shared any concerns about the pregnancy, but shared an unusual Facebook post as the last update. 'As the care of our animal family is of utmost importance, we have aligned with expanded support and medical teams of qualified veterinarians for additional testing,' the aquarium wrote. 'We continue to work closely with this team sharing any observation changes or notes on Charlotte,' it continued, adding: 'Staff is taking extra care and time with Charlotte as we continue this scientific process.' The post mentioned the unfamiliar nature associated with Charlotte's pregnancy which is unchartered territory. Charlotte gained international fame when she became the first of her species to become pregnant through parthenogenesis - when a mammal clones its own cells to reproduce. The aquarium has previously claimed the gestation period is unknown, experts previously told DailyMail.com that the gestation period for a stingray is three to four months. The aquarium announced the pregnancy in February, and claimed the stingray had likely become pregnant in September 2023 prompting the belief that she would be due any day. They reported that they'd noticed Charlotte was pregnant when she began to swell and initially thought she had cancer. The growth was later identified as eggs and at first, the aquarium reported she might have been impregnated by a shark that was also living in the tank - this was later debunked. Charlotte was expected to give birth in February or early March, but as the gestation has continued into month eight, experts have speculated there might be a scientific reason. Virgin births occur when a stingray has been in isolation for an extended period and clones itself to produce an embryo The aquarium said Charlotte was pregnant with up to four pups but the sonogram (pictured) appeared to show only one Charlotte's pups have died , according to Dr. Christopher Lowe, a professor of marine biology and director of the Shark Lab at California State University There is another option to consider, that Charlotte's pups have died, according to Dr. Christopher Lowe, a professor of marine biology and director of the Shark Lab at California State University. 'It is certainly possible the ray may abort or the embryos have died or be resorbed by the female and she will never give birth,' Lowe previously told DailyMail.com. He said it is also possible the embryos stopped growing until the conditions to reach full-term are better. 'Rays are capable of something known as embryonic diapause, where the embryos cease development until conditions are more suitable,' Lowe said. For example, the embryo can wait until the female has better nutrition for it to develop or if it's too cold to develop in the womb adequately. 'This can stretch out gestation to periods longer than normal,' he said. Team ECCO's most recent post followed two other videos with nearly identical messages, telling Charlotte's followers that she was doing well, there were no changes and her favorite thing to eat that week was scallops. Some people remained unconvinced that Charlotte is pregnant at all, asking the aquarium if she is, indeed, pregnant, and where are the updates that show off her other recent ultrasounds. To date, the aquarium has released only one picture and video of Charlotte's ultrasound in March, reiterating that she should have the pups any day. As the months stretch on, Charlotte's followers are becoming more skeptical of her pregnancy and have accused the aquarium of making it up, claiming it was all a publicity stunt. The aquarium has vehemently denied the claims in response to a comment on April 27 from someone who said they saw Charlotte in person and would be 'extremely shocked if this is a hoax.' Team ECCO thanked Juli Groger, a North Carolina resident, telling her: 'We do care deeply for everything here. 'We are continuously researching and exploring to give our Aquarium family the best lives possible. 'Charlotte is one of our many adoptions that came from private homes,' the team said, adding: 'Again, thank you for visiting and for your willingness to understand our story in a new light.' Scientists may have discovered what has caused hundreds of fish off the coast of the Florida Keys to spin in circles until they die. Reports of the bizarre behavior first surfaced in October 2023, leading to nearly 500 reports of dead fish washing ashore as of May 8. Researchers at Florida Gulf Coast University recently analyzed more than 300 fish tissue samples and tested over 250 chemicals in the area to determine what could be causing this fatal fish spinning. The team has now identified toxic algae on the sea floor in samples, which has suggested a bacteria emerged on the sea floor that is linked to neurological deficits including hyperactivity and twitching. Researchers believe toxic algae growing on the sea floor could be causing hundreds of fish to have neurological issues The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and researchers found six dead smalltooth sawfish washed up on the shores of the Florida Keys last month, which are on the brink of extinction. The sight, month with hundreds of reports, led to them opening an investigation. The team sent the tissue samples to the University of South Alabama for toxin analyses, but reports showed there was no evidence of low oxygen levels, low salinity, pH, odd water temperature or red tide - a type of harmful algae bloom. Although more studies need to be conducted to officially determine the root cause, the tests revealed natural toxins in both the seawater and the fish tissues, and elevated levels of the HAB, Gambierdiscus algae. Gambierdiscus toxicus, loosely attached to algae on coral reefs and are then ingested by sea creatures. 'The hypothesis I'm working on at the moment is really that the combination of these various benthic algal toxins are coming together to create the phenomenon we're seeing,' Alison Robertson, a senior marine scientist at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab, told NBC News. Benthic algae live on the seabed off the shore, about 65 to 131 feet below the surface and can release toxins during algae bloom - when the algae population in the water rapidly increases. Scientists still don't know what caused the population to grow, but are now in a race against the clock to protect the smalltooth sawfish and other species from further exposure. There have been more than 500 reports of spinning fish off the coast of Key West. The smalltooth sawfish is at the greatest risk because it is critically endangered, and already the phenomenon has claimed 47 lives Tissue samples were sent to the University of South Alabama for toxin analyses, but reports showed there was no evidence of low oxygen levels, low salinity, pH, odd water temperature or red tide There have also been reports that smalltooth sawfish are beaching themselves, adding to the growing concerning behavior of other fish that have been seen spinning off the coast of the Florida Keys The cause has continued to baffle scientists who said when they removed the spinning fish from the seawater and placing them in a freshwater tank, some recovered in a span as short as 25 minutes. Michael Parsons, a professor of marine science at Florida Gulf Coast University and an algae expert found the Gambierdiscus levels were four times higher than he'd ever seen or recorded before. Last month, the FWC reported that Florida had seen an excess growth of toxic algae that can get into the mammal's bloodstream through the food they eat, causing erratic swimming and death. The algae have affected several fish species, but marine biologists are most concerned about the smalltooth sawfish, which has been classified as critically endangered since 2003. The FWC reported that 47 sawfish have died, but it's believed that number is much higher. Researchers rescued a distressed smalltooth sawfish that was swimming in circles in Cudjoe Bay on April 5 and brought it to a temporary holding tank at the Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota, Florida. The FWC and Mote hoped that by rehabilitating the smalltooth, they could better understand what caused the event, but when the animal continued to deteriorate, they decided to humanely euthanize the fish on May 2. The smalltooth sawfish is a critically endangered species, believed to be due to habitat loss. The species once lived as far down as the coast of central west Africa up to North Carolina The FWC took blood and tissue samples from the rescued sawfish to determine if it had any toxins in its system 'It was always our cautious hope to be able to utilize the best available science for the rehabilitation and release of the sawfish,' said Dr. Michael P. Crosby, President & CEO of Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium. 'Although heartbreaking, this outcome was not surprising,' he said, adding: 'We worked restlessly for 24 hours a day to provide the most advanced treatment available. 'Sadly, even with our best efforts, the animal was ultimately too compromised to recover.' The FWC is conducting a necropsy - animal autopsy - on the smalltooth and is sending samples to various labs for further analysis. 'I honestly don't think anything can reasonably be ruled out right now,' Crosby told NBC. As of May 6, more than 60 species were reported to have symptoms including the silver mullet, snook, bonefish, southern stingray, Atlantic sharpnose shark and spadefish, among others, according to Bonefish & Tarpon Trust, a marine conservation agency. The organizations are asking the public for help identifying other deaths or abnormal behavior by calling the sawfish hotline: 844-4-SAWFISH. Harris District Attorney Kim Ogg speaks during a news conference to announced the Elevate Strategies case is being handed over to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxtons Office Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Houston. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo, standing with her desk, is photographed during the commissioners court meeting in the new chamber on the first floor Tuesday, April 23, 2024 at Harris County Administration Building in Houston. Yi-Chin Lee/Staff photographer Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg leaves after the memorial service for Harris County Sheriff's Deputy John Coddou Wednesday, May 1, 2024 at Second Baptist Church in Houston. Coddou, who had worked with the sheriff's office for over two decades, died April 20 after he was struck by a truck while helping a motorist. Yi-Chin Lee/Staff photographer By the time an indicted trio of former Lina Hidalgo staffers go to trial, District Attorney Kim Ogg could be out of office and the politically fraught case left to her successor. The prosecution, passed last month to state Attorney General Ken Paxtons office, could go before Harris County jurors as early as November, though state District Court Judge Hazel Jones conceded Monday that next year is more likely. Sounds like a next year trial, Jones said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The fate of the case would then sit with Oggs replacement either Democratic candidate Sean Teare, who pledged to recuse Harris County, or his Republican opponent Dan Simons, both former prosecutors. Simons stood by Oggs decision to bring in the attorney generals office. The staffers are accused of handing Elevate Strategies owner Felicity Pereyra early access to a contract for COVID-19 vaccine outreach and then accepting her $11 million bid. The county judge contends none of her staffers did anything wrong. Ogg, who lost her third reelection bid, recently passed the April 2022 indictments against Alex Triantaphyllis, Aaron Dunn and Wallis Nader to Paxtons prosecutors last month, arguing that Teare, if he wins, could not be trusted with their prosecutions. Oggs decision to not recuse her office allows the next district attorney to remain involved. The new prosecutors were among a legion of lawyers who waited nearly a hour to address the case with Jones in the 174th District Court after docket call. A member of Oggs public corruption division joined them and chimed in during the proceedings, indicating that the district attorneys office still has a stake in the case. Advertisement Article continues below this ad In Oggs words, she allowed Paxtons office to assume jurisdiction in the cases, while the attorney generals office described their role as assisting. From the Houston Chronicle: Unraveling Kim Oggs hiring of a Texas GOP lawyer to dig into Lina Hidalgos office Britni Cooper, a former Harris County and federal prosecutor who recently joined Paxtons criminal prosecutions division, asked for more time to review several terabytes of evidence. Derek Hollingsworth, Dunns lawyer, agreed there are a lot of records to comb through, but some of them have nothing to do with his client. Ive been complaining about that for a while, Hollingsworth said while leaving the courtroom. Were just ready to have somebody finally realize that the evidence and the charges against Dunn are ridiculous and to let them go. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The new prosecutors could not be reached for comment after court. The defense teams, meanwhile, asked the judge to sign orders releasing transcripts from secret grand jury proceedings that led to felony charges of misuse of official information and tampering with government documents against the three county workers. Attorneys for Triantaphyllis and Nader have asked to disqualify Oggs office from the case, contending that Oggs months-long, highly public feud with Hidalgo amounted to a conflict of interest an argument Oggs office called a meritless claim. The motion, filed in 2022, has not been addressed in court. Both parties may return to court in August to address additional issues in the case or hold off until November to work out a trial date. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Judge Jones urged the lawyers to be mindful of her time. A Canadian woman revealed exactly where Australian men fall short in the bedroom on Monday morning. Coco Bae, 37, explained on The Kyle and Jackie O Show she's 'collecting flags' by sleeping with as many men from different countries as possible. But it seems men Down Under have left the experienced lover underwhelmed between the sheets due to their poor hygiene and lack of imagination. Coco has slept with men from several different countries such as America, India, Germany, England, and even Djibouti - a small country in Africa. After sleeping with 'over 100' men from Australia, Coco said Aussie blokes 'need to step it up a little bit' when it comes to sex. Coco Bae, 37, (pictured) revealed exactly where Australian men fall short in the bedroom on Monday morning When KIIS FM host Kyle Sandilands asked what men like him were doing wrong, Coco said: 'You're just not putting in any effort, and you need to wash your hands.' 'What?' host Jackie 'O' Henderson exclaimed. 'What's wrong? Is their hygiene off? I apologise on behalf of Australian men.' 'C'mon, look under your fingernails!' Coco added, prompting Kyle, 52, who shares one son with wife Tegan, to say: 'My fingernails are perfectly clean.' The adult content creator explained on The Kyle and Jackie O Show she's 'collecting flags' by sleeping with as many men from different countries as possible Jackie, 49, told the sex worker: 'Because we have a lot of tradies here, you see. Do you not like a tradie?' But Coco insisted: 'I love a tradie and their hands are so strong, but they really need to scrub under their nails.' 'So dirty fingernails and not putting in enough effort? What do they do? Just go straight to the wham bam?' Jackie asked. But it seems men Down Under have left the experienced lover underwhelmed between the sheets due to their poor hygiene and lack of imagination. Pictured with adult content creator Kay Manuel (right) 'They go straight to doggy,' Coco replied, referencing the popular sex position. The revelation comes just days after several adult content creators came forward to reveal the biggest mistake Australian men make with women in the bedroom. Annie Knight, who claims to be the country's most sexually active woman, said male lovers Down Under have a 'jump straight in' approach to sex. Fellow creators Kay Manuel and Alicia Davis agreed, adding that Aussie men only wanted to 'rush' to reach the finish line and don't focus on their partners' desires. Roxy Jacenko has brushed off her house promotion giveaway drama to enjoy a relaxing Mother's Day outing with her family in Singapore. The Australian PR guru, 44, took to Instagram on Sunday with a photo of herself arriving at Singapore's trendy Orchard Como restaurant ahead of celebratory lunch with her her children. Looking extremely svelte after losing weight due to the stress of her house giveaway, the blonde dressed to impress in a pair of distressed denim cut-offs, black Balenciaga tank top and $1,600 Hermes sneakers. Strung across her shoulders was a black Hermes Birkin bag, worth around $50,000. Roxy completed her look with a slicked-back bun hairstyle and a pair of gold stud earrings. Roxy Jacenko, 44, revealed her very slender figure in a photo of herself arriving at Mothers Day lunch in Singapore on Sunday - after revealing she's dropped to 49kg and has been 'fainting' over her house promotion Earlier in the day, the publicity maven shared a video of her daughter Pixie, 12, and son Hunter, 10, presenting her with a special Mother's Day cake. She also filmed herself receiving a large gift bag from Chanel, exclaiming: 'Um, are you kidding me? Thank you!' Making sure to honour her own mother, Roxy also shared a throwback photo of herself and Pixie posing alongside mum Doreen, adding the caption: 'Happy Mother's Day to this 10/10. From today on in, I undertake that I WILL listen to you, 'cause you are ALWAYS right.' Earlier in the day, the publicity maven shared a video of her daughter Pixie, 12, (left) and son Hunter, 10, (right) presenting her with a special Mother's Day cake She also filmed herself receiving a large gift bag from Chanel , exclaiming: 'Um, are you kidding me? Thank you!' '[Love heart emoji] you Dors,' Roxy added. It comes after Roxy revealed she was anxious about her PR boot camp giveaway that her weight had dropped to just 49 kilos and that she has 'fainted twice'. Posting to Instagram on Sunday, Roxy shared an emotional video insisting she would personally refund all 7000 people who signed up to her boot camp. Making sure to honour her own mother, Roxy also shared a throwback photo of herself and Pixie posing alongside mum Doreen (left), adding the caption: 'Happy Mother's Day to this 10/10. From today on in, I undertake that I WILL listen to you, 'cause you are ALWAYS right' The PR maven informed those who signed up for her online business course, Brand Bootcamp, that they will be reimbursed as she has 'lost control' of the venture. The promotion included a number of prizes, including a luxury home. A $10 million waterfront mansion in Sydney's Cronulla was potentially up for grabs for people who signed up to Brand Bootcamp. It comes after Roxy revealed she was anxious about her PR boot camp giveaway that her weight had dropped to just 49 kilos and that she has 'fainted twice' Punters who paid for the course, which starts at $29, were to be entered in a giveaway to win the house, as well other luxe prizes including $250,000 cash, a Birkin bag and a Rolex watch. But on Friday, Jacenko informed her online followers that she was refunding the fee for anyone who entered, and paying the reimbursements from her own bank account. 'As many of you would know, I launched a promotion on March 8th of this year. That promotion, Roxy's Boot Camp, came about when I was direct messaged on Instagram by someone who I don't know, who had a great idea' she began. Posting to instagram on Sunday, Roxy shared an emotional video insisting she would personally refund all 7000 people who signed up to her boot camp 'And that idea was for me to run my courses and associate a trade promotion with those courses... Basically, we formed a partnership with myself and two people that I don't know. I spruiked it.' Roxy went on to describe the vast media campaign she engaged in to promote the venture, before becoming 'uncomfortable' three days into the process and suggesting at that stage that refunds should be issued. The PR queen says she was willing to cough up $150,000 of her own money to make those refunds to customers, but the suggestion was 'rejected' by her business partners. 'So the promotion carried on going and I carried on with my mindset of, 'we're gonna get this done'. We're gonna make three people's lives different by winning three fantastic prizes throughout the course of the last two months' she continued. Roxy said she was left so 'stressed and distressed' by the process that her weight has dropped to 49 kilos and she has 'fainted twice'. After what she calls 'repeated negotiations' with her business partners, Roxy says she 'cannot protect the $250,000' offered for 'the first prize' and has been 'holding hostage' a Rolex and Birkin that were also part of the prize pool, as she does not 'have access to the company bank account.' She went on: 'I have stepped down as a director. I am now only a shareholder. My hands are tied. I am exhausted. I feel bullied. I feel distressed and I'm embarrassed. 'Now, I can't do any more... Sadly, my name is all over this, but what I want you to know is I did my absolute best. 'I can't be in a position where I'm 49 kilos and I certainly cannot be in a position where walking to the door to answer the intercom, I faint.' Roxy concluded: 'I value each and every one of you... And I want you to know that I did everything humanly possible to ensure that those three prizes were there and available to be given away to each of you.' She returned to Instagram for a second video on Saturday in which the businesswoman offered to refund everyone who had purchased the course. Jenna Dewan enjoyed Mother's Day by cheering on her adorable daughter Everly at a dance competition. The pregnant actress, 43, who recently said she's entitled to ex Channing Tatum's Magic Mike millions was spotted walking alongside the 10-year-old girl as they left a venue in Los Angeles. In a flowing cream dress with long sleeves, the Rookies star exuded elegance, her hand tenderly cradling her blossoming baby bump. Jenna beamed with joy throughout the outing, engaged in lively conversation with Everly, who sported an oversized tiara and adorable plaid sweatpants. The former World of Dance host is expecting her second baby with fiance Steve Kazee, with whom she shares son Callum, four. Jenna Dewan enjoyed Mother's Day by cheering on her adorable daughter Everly at a dance competition The pregnant actress, 43, was spotted walking alongside the 10-year-old girl as they left a venue in Los Angeles The star shares Everly with Channing, whom she was married to for just under 10 years before she filed for divorce in 2018. While Dewan and Tatum were officially divorced in November 2019, issues including Magic Mike earnings, division of assets, spousal support and child support for their daughter Everly remain unresolved despite years of legal battles. The legal battle has gotten uglier with Jenna's rep accusing Tatum of 'bullying' after he objected to her request to bifurcate a trial. In response to Tatum denying claims Dewan made against him in her recently filed Request For Order, her rep told ET: 'Is Channing really calling Jenna a "liar" for trying to get back an asset that he effectively stole from her in clear violation of California family law? 'These latest smears and falsehoods are really just more of the same bullying and gaslighting Jenna has been subjected to for years. Regardless of whether Channing chooses to do the right thing, Jenna is confident that the law and the facts are on her side and she hopes this will soon come to a proper and honest conclusion.' The legal battle has seen Tatum fighting back against Dewan's demands for a bigger slice of the profits from his 'billion dollar' Magic Mike movies and live shows. Six years after they split up, Dewan is claiming that Tatum secretly plotted with others to hide his earning from the sexy male stripper franchise which was created when the two were still married. But in new court documents exclusively discovered by DailyMail.com Tatum vehemently challenges the accusation, saying: 'I have always agreed for her to have an interest in the Magic Mike intellectual property and related entities. Jenna was all smiles during the outing as she chatted with Everly, who rocked an oversized tiara and and cute plaid sweatpants The former World of Dance host is expecting her second baby with fiance Steve Kazee, with whom she shares son Callum, four Jenna and Steve became engaged in February 2020 'I have never denied her share of any community assets or income. Her claims that I have "colluded with third parties" are completely false. 'She has had complete access to all our financial records for all activities during our marriage and since separation. I continue to provide her with updates regarding Magic Mike financial matters.' While the couple were officially divorced in November 2019, issues including Magic Mike earnings, division of assets, spousal support and child support for their 10 year-old daughter Everly remain unresolved despite years of legal battles. Now, Dewan has filed a motion asking LA Superior Court for the Magic Mike revenue issue be 'bifurcated' which means it would be dealt with in a trial separate from the other issues. Tatum meanwhile opposes bifurcation and wants all their disputes settled together, 'to finalize our divorce case without further delay' and accuses his ex of 'delaying tactics to prolong resolution of our financial settlementand to seek a windfall from me.' Now engaged to actress Zoe Kravitz, 35, Tatum is also against paying spousal support to his former wife, saying in his new court filing, 'I do not believe (Dewan's) request for spousal support is appropriate. 'We had a short term marriage of eight years and eight months and separated over six years ago. Dewan started co-habiting with her fiance (Steve Kazee) shortly after our separation five and a half years ago. 'Dewan works, is able to contribute to her own support and will receive one half of the community property, residuals and royalties and income from other investments. 'She will also have substantial investment income fro the cash assets she has received in our divorce. She has received millions of dollars in cash assets. During their marriage, they welcomed daughter Everly together; pictured 2017 'She will receive additional cash assets when the remainder of our estate is divided and post separation accounting is finalized. 'There are not, nor have there ever been, any orders for temporary spousal support. I believe she is now requesting spousal support from me to further delay our financial settlement.' The Magic Mike success story - based on Tatum's own earlier experiences as stripper in Florida - started in 2012 with the first movie. He and the film's director, Steven Soderbergh, co-financed the project. Their $7 million investment turned into a blockbuster, earning $167 million worldwide. Then came two more films, followed by touring striptease shows that have also been a big hit. At a hearing last month, Dewan's attorney, Samantha Spector, described the Magic Mike business as 'a potential billion dollar asset.' Tatum's attorney Jacqueline Combs, insists that the Magic Mike franchise made most of its money after he and Dewan had already separated. And in his 64 pages of new court documents, Tatum says that while he and several third party business partners had invested money, time and effort into making the Magic Mike brand a success, 'Dewan has not contributed any efforts to enhance the Magic Mike intellectual property. 'Contrary to Dewan's allegations, I have only acted in the best interest of the community throughout our marriage and since separation. 'I have expended substantial post-separation efforts to enhance the Magic Mike intellectual property and I have also licensed my name and likeness to the related business. Tatum has since moved on and is now engaged to Zoe Kravitz; pictured 2021 'I believe these post-separation efforts give rise to my separate property claims to those assets but they have also benefitted the community. Without my post-separation efforts, the Magic Mike entities would have failed.' As for Dewan's claim that he was secretly hiding money in a trust, Tatum adds, 'She is wrong. 'Together, Dewan and I established an irrevocable trust to invest in certain businesses and made Everly the sole beneficiary. This was done with Dewan's knowledge and involvement.' The former couple are due back in court May 15 for a judge to hear Dewan's bifurcation motion. A trial is scheduled for December. Farmer Wants A Wife fan-favourite Bert Harris is reportedly set to quit the show. Bert is said to be 'the next farmer to leave', following in the footsteps of Farmer Dean who was successfully paired up with Teegan. Insiders claim Bert felt increasingly manipulated by production tactics, particularly from two male producers who were fresh off the set of FBoy Island and were pushing for heightened drama. 'Farmer Bert was really sweet and it was sad to see him being treated like a prop,' a source told Yahoo Lifestyle. Bert is now said to be secretly seeing Lauren McNeil, a contestant who chose to exit the competition due to intensifying pressures. Farmer Wants A Wife fan-favourite Bert Harris is reportedly set to quit the show Insiders claim Bert felt increasingly manipulated by production tactics, particularly from two two male producers who were fresh off the set of FBoy Island and were pushing for heightened drama According to the report, Seven will explain that Bert's forthcoming exit is due to his 'inability to give the show his full attention'. 'Channel Seven viewers are set to riot as they will see through his decision to leave the show,' a TV insider predicted. The departure narrative scripted for Bert is directly at odds with his clash with producers over the show's authenticity. 'Farmer Bert was really sweet and it was sad to see him being treated like a prop,' one insider told Yahoo Lifestyle (Pictured with fan-favourite Catlin) Lauren, who left the show two weeks prior, was reportedly a significant factor in Bert's decision to leave, with sources suggesting he was coerced into letting her go - a decision he regretted. The couple are expected to reveal their relationship publicly after the show's season concludes in late May. It comes as Farmer Tom, a 22-year-old cattle and crop famer from Tabilk, Central Victoria, faced a tense decision between Sarah C and Krissy on Sunday evening. In the end, it was Sarah C, 23, who stole the youngster's heart. 'It has been an honour having you around the farm. I've absolutely loved every moment of it,' Tom declared to his lady love. 'Sarah, you are the person that I want a relationship with, and I am falling in love with you,' he continued. Farmer Wants A Wife continues Monday at 7:30pm on Channel Seven Matthew Perry was remembered during the BAFTA Television Awards with P&O Cruises on Sunday night. The former 'Friends' star - who died in October 2023 at the age of 54 - was not honoured at the BAFTA Film Awards which took place just after his death despite his successful film career. However the sitcom legend was the final tribute during the section at the annual television ceremony this weekend. Following a slew of awards, host Romesh Ranganathan said: 'Tonight has been an incredible celebration of everything that is special about our industry...' His co-host Rob Beckett added: 'So, now let's take a moment to remember those people who are no longer with us, who played their part.' Matthew Perry who died in October 2023 at the age of 54 was remembered during the BAFTA Television Awards with P&O Cruises on Sunday night Following a slew of awards BAFTA hosts Romesh Ranganathan and Rob Beckett introduced tribute section to those in the industry who had passed away over the past year Matthew won a worldwide fanbase for his role as Chandler Bing in the 90s sitcom, earning him an Emmy nomination in 2002 - but behind the glitz and glamour, he secretly battled substance abuse for decades. The actor was found dead in his home after accidentally drowning in his jacuzzi. Fans took to X to share their thoughts on the BAFTA honour: 'Weeping again at the loss of Matthew Perry absolutely irreplaceable. There could never be a more perfect Chandler Bing #BAFTATVAwards' 'Wow it still hurts so bad to see Matthew Perry in the list of people who have passed #BAFTATVAwards' 'Matthew Perrys passing is still a gut punch. I love him so much'...'Wasnt crying until Matthew Perry #BAFTATVAwards'...'Oh god the Matthew Perry tribute just hit me hard' 'How do I keep forgetting that Matthew Perry is no longer here. What a beautiful moment to end the memories on. Some real legends we lost last year #BAFTATVAwards' 'Was trying to prepare myself for seeing Matthew Perry in the memorial segment butstill crying.' Other stars were also remembered on the night including Sir Michael Parkinson and John Savident. The actor, who shot to fame as the sarcastic Chandler Bing in the 90s sitcom accidentally drowned in his jacuzzi at home Friends, which followed the lives of six friends in their 20s living in New York, was a smash hit across the globe when it aired between 1994 and 2004, and re-runs still remain hugely popular years later Matthew won a worldwide fanbase for his role as Chandler, earning him an Emmy nomination in 2002 - but behind the glitz and glamour, he secretly battled substance abuse for decades The broadcast veteran passed away at the age of 88 towards the end of last year, and was one of the biggest names honoured during the in-memoriam segment of the annual awards ceremony, along with 'Coronation Street' legend John Savident, who starred as butcher Fred Elliot on the ITV1 soap and died in February at the age of 86. 'Hairy Bikers' legend Dave Myers - who passed away at the age of 66 earlier this year after a battle with cancer following decades of TV success with co-star Si King - appeared in an archive clip in which he said: 'I hope you've enjoyed our adventures, too. And the food's not been bad, has it?' Pioneering BBC Radio presenter Anne Nightingale - who passed away in January at the age of 83 following a brief illness - was also remembered, along with 'Strictly Come Dancing' professional Robin Windsor, who tragically died at the age of just 44 earlier this year. 'Hairy Bikers' legend Dave Myers passed away at the age of 66 earlier this year after a battle with cancer (pictured with his co-star Si King at the Basingstoke Festival of Food in 2009) The radio legend Annie Nightingale passed away in January at the age of 83 following a brief illness (pictured signing a copy of her 'Masterpiece' album at Fopp in London on July 17, 2015) Jonnie Irwin - who famously presented 'A Place in the Sun' from 2004 until 2021 - also received a tribute after he lost a long battle with lung cancer in February at the age of 50 Jonnie Irwin - who famously presented 'A Place in the Sun' from 2004 until 2021 - also received a tribute after he lost a long battle with lung cancer in February at the age of 50. Former 'Brookside' Dean Sullivan passed away at the age of 68 in November 2023, whilst 'Yes Minister' star John Nettleton died just a few months earlier at the age of 94. Other stars to have passed away in the last 12 months included Emmerdale legend Steve Halliwell - who played the role of Zak Dingle on the ITV1 soap opera for more than 20 years until his death December at the age of 77 - and Dad's Army legend Ian Lavender, who was the youngest member of the wartime sitcom. Other stars remembered in the poignant moment included Line of Duty actor Brian McCardie - who died at the age of 59 at the start of May - and The Office star Ewen Mackintosh, following his sudden passing at the age of 50. 16 months after her tragic passing, Lisa Marie Presley's youngest daughter Finley Aaron Love Lockwood shared a Mother's Day tribute to her on behalf of herself and her fraternal twin sister Harper on Sunday. 'Happy Mother's Day to the best mom ever,' the 15-year-old daughter of Michael Lockwood captioned a childhood snap. 'Even though we [can't] celebrate with you [I'm] still so grateful for all our memories.' Finley's famous half-sister Riley Keough reposted her Instastory with a double heart emoji. The 34-year-old Emmy nominee became legally responsible for the sub-trusts belonging to Finley and Harper last year after signing on to be the sole trustee of Lisa Marie's estate. 16 months after her tragic passing, Lisa Marie Presley's youngest daughter Finley Aaron Love Lockwood (pictured Saturday) shared a Mother's Day tribute to her on behalf of herself and her fraternal twin sister Harper on Sunday The 15-year-old daughter of Michael Lockwood captioned a childhood snap: 'Happy Mother's Day to the best mom ever. Even though we [can't] celebrate with you [I'm] still so grateful for all our memories' Riley paid a $1M settlement and $400K in legal fees to her grandmother Priscilla Presley to resign from the role, and she spent Mother's Day with her 37-year-old son Navarone Garibaldi (from her relationship with babydaddy Marco Garibaldi) at Le Petit Chez Mimi in Santa Monica. The flame-haired 78-year-old posted a Mother's Day snap of herself with Navarone and Lisa Marie captioned: 'There was nothing like a Mother's Day with both my son and daughter. @nava_rone #lisamariepresley.' The only child of Elvis Presley was 54 years old when she passed away from 'small bowel obstruction' as a result of bariatric surgery, and over 30ft of her small intestine was already dead before she was rushed to the hospital. 'Recent studies have shown that if you're on Ozempic-type [semaglutide injectable] drugs, they can slow down you intestines,' plastic surgeon Dr. Terry Dubrow theorized to TMZ Live last year. 'They can predispose you to intestinal obstruction and there may be the perfect unfortunate storm of previous surgery with intestinal scarring and opioid use, so you can't tell that you're that sick.' However, the 65-year-old Botched star cautioned: 'Now I don't know that she was on that.' Lisa Marie never got over the death of her son Benjamin Keough, at age 27, in 2020 from a self-inflicted shotgun wound inside her $1.8M Calabasas mansion. Last year, Keough finished writing Presley's 272-page autobiography and she's 'honored to help' Random House publish it on October 15. Finley's famous half-sister Riley Keough reposted her Instastory with a double heart emoji The 34-year-old Emmy nominee (M, pictured in 2021) became legally responsible for the sub-trusts belonging to Finley and Harper (R) last year after signing on to be the sole trustee of Lisa Marie's estate Riley paid a $1M settlement and $400K in legal fees to her grandmother Priscilla Presley (2-R) to resign from the role, and she spent Mother's Day with her 37-year-old son Navarone Garibaldi (R) at Le Petit Chez Mimi in Santa Monica The flame-haired 78-year-old posted a Mother's Day snap of herself with Navarone and Lisa Marie captioned: 'There was nothing like a Mother's Day with both my son and daughter. @nava_rone #lisamariepresley' The only child of Elvis Presley was 54 years old when she passed away from 'small bowel obstruction' as a result of bariatric surgery, and over 30ft of her small intestine was already dead before she was rushed to the hospital (pictured January 8, 2023) Lisa Marie never got over the death of her son Benjamin Keough (L), at age 27, in 2020 from a self-inflicted shotgun wound inside her $1.8M Calabasas mansion Last year, Keough finished writing Presley's 272-page autobiography and she's 'honored to help' Random House publish it on October 15 The synopsis read: 'Born to an American myth and raised in the wilds of Graceland, Lisa Marie Presley was never truly understood... until now. Before her death in 2023, she'd been working on a raw, riveting, one-of-a-kind memoir for years, recording countless hours of breathtakingly vulnerable tape, which has finally been put on the page by her daughter, Riley' 'Born to an American myth and raised in the wilds of Graceland, Lisa Marie Presley was never truly understood... until now,' the official synopsis read. 'Before her death in 2023, she'd been working on a raw, riveting, one-of-a-kind memoir for years, recording countless hours of breathtakingly vulnerable tape, which has finally been put on the page by her daughter, Riley Keough.' Riley (born Danielle) has been hard at work in Italy filming Noah Baumbach's coming-of-age Netflix movie - rumored to be titled 'Jay Kelly' - alongside George Clooney, Adam Sandler, Greta Gerwig, Emily Mortimer, Laura Dern, and Billy Crudup. Keough currently executive produces and stars as the late author Rebecca Godfrey in Quinn Shephard's eight-episode true-crime show Under the Bridge, which airs Wednesdays on Hulu. The critically-acclaimed miniseries - also starring Oscar nominee Lily Gladstone - is based upon Godfrey's 2005 book of the same name. The Camera D'Or winner and her husband of nine years - SAG Award-winning stuntman Ben Smith-Petersen - are proud parents of 21-month-old daughter Tupelo Storm Smith-Petersen. As she prepares to welcome her first baby, Hailey Bieber is celebrating previous generations of mothers. The pregnant model, 27, paid tribute to her mother Kennya and grandmother Rute in a Mother's Day post celebrating 'generations of Rhode' on her skincare line's Instagram page. 'Happy Mother's Day,' she wrote on her Instagram Story, sharing a collage of family throwbacks. Rhode's tribute stated, 'One of the biggest inspirations for Rhode was Haileys mom and nana, who taught her all about skincare at an early age. 'Their diligent routines and love for head-to-toe hydration helped shape our approach, creating efficacious, nourishing essentials that make the most of each step in your routine,' the post continued. Hailey Bieber paid tribute to her mother Kennya and grandmother Rute a in a Mother's Day post celebrating 'generations of Rhode' on her skincare line's Instagram page Rhode's tribute stated, 'One of the biggest inspirations for Rhode was Haileys mom and nana, who taught her all about skincare at an early age' The brand also offered 'some of our favorite tips they passed on over the years.' 'Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate,' they wrote. 'Wear SPF every day, it's truly a non-negotiable; don't forget to moisturize your body + slather on lotion head-to-toe; always wash off makeup before bedno matter what!' Hailey and husband Justin Bieber previously announced their first pregnancy in a video from their intimate Hawaii vow renewals. The mother-to-be debuted her baby bump in a custom Saint Laurent lace wedding dress by Anthony Vaccarello with matching veil. She and Justin, 30, privately tied the knot in November 2018 following a brief engagement, having their nuptials in South Carolina a year later. Following their pregnancy news, the couple confirmed to People that they are six months along and are due in late summer. Justin's mother Pattie Mallette celebrated the news that she's 'gonna be a grandma,' sharing her excitement in a video on Instagram. 'CONGRATULATIONS @justinbieber and @haileybieber!! My heart is so full. What an exciting new adventure. Love you so much!' she wrote in the caption. Mallette, 49, said the couple is 'going to be the best parents ever,' before clarifying that they're not having twins. Hailey and husband Justin Bieber previously announced their first pregnancy in a video from their intimate Hawaii vow renewals The mother-to-be debuted her baby bump in a custom Saint Laurent lace wedding dress by Anthony Vaccarello with matching veil She and Justin, 30, privately tied the knot in November 2018 following a brief engagement, having their nuptials in South Carolina a year later Hailey's father Stephen Baldwin previously sparked rumors of marital trouble when posted about 'special challenges' the couple was facing in a since-deleted post on Instagram in February. The Bio-Dome actor, 58, asked for 'a little prayer for them to have wisdom, protection, and draw close to the Lord.' It's now believed that comment was in reference to Hailey's pregnancy, after she revealed an ovarian cyst in 2022, following surgery for a heart defect. 'With both of them having various health struggles, they decided now, as opposed to trying a little later, would be the best time to have children,' a source told DailyMail.com. In recent years, Justin has also opened up about his struggles with Lyme disease and Ramsay Hunt syndrome. 'They are still young and will be able to enjoy being parents,' the insider added. 'As they grow old, they can watch their kids grow old too.' Strictly Come Dancing star Bobby Brazier has addressed the swirling rumours surrounding his love life - specifically his alleged relationship with EastEnders co-star Jazzy Phoenix. Reports suggested that Bobby, 20, had moved on from Ellie Leach to Jazzy, 23, after the pair were spotted together amid Jazzy's return to the soap for filming. Despite Jazzy who plays Nadine Keller describing Bobby as a 'lovely boy' the model-turned-actor revealed all at the BAFTA TV Awards on Sunday. Sporting a sharp black suit and white button-up at the event, Bobby firmly denying any romantic involvement with Jazzy and quipped: 'What new girlfriend?' He clarified to the Daily Express, 'Jazzy's not my new girlfriend,' asserting that they're simply good friends. Bobby Brazier shut down the swirling rumours surrounding his love life as he attended the BAFTA Television Awards 2024 with P&O Cruises on Sunday Despite Jazzy who plays Nadine Keller describing Bobby as a 'lovely boy' he shut down any the rumours confirming that she was not his girlfriend Bobby's dating history includes a reported fling with Ellie Leach, with whom he shared the Strictly dance floor last year. The pair first sparked dating rumours during Strictly Come Dancing in December and grew closer during the BBC show's tour in January to February. However according to reports, decided to split as their busy lives are going in different directions, just weeks after the romance emerged. Bobby returned to his character Freddie Slater in Eastenders and is reportedly exploring a potential career in Hollywood, whilst Ellie is busy touring UK theatres in the Cluedo stage production. The news comes after it was revealed that Ellie had 'moved to London' as her relationship with Bobby blossomed. The Strictly champion is living in the capital where Bobby lives with his dad after sparking up a romance. Ellie was also linked to her professional dance partner Vito Coppola yet despite their victory in the competition, their relationship reportedly cooled off shortly after the end of the tour in February. Reflecting on their time together, Ellie shared insights in an interview with Fabulous magazine, emphasising their strong friendship and the bond they formed during the Strictly tour. Bobby who plays Freddie Slater insisted that the pair were very good friend Bobby had previously been linked to fellow Strictly contestant Ellie Leach back in December as the pair grew closer during the BBC show's tour in January to February Ellie has expressed how fond she is of her professional dance partner Vito for their shared experiences and close friendship She revealed: 'During the series you're with your dance partner 24/7. And when you're in the studio on Friday and Saturday there are time constraints, so you don't really get to spend time with each other. 'On tour, we were able to be together and learn about each other, which we hadn't really had the chance to do.' While their romantic connection may have fizzled, Ellie expressed how fond she is of Vito for their shared experiences and their enduring friendship. She added: 'We're great friends. We got along really well and still do. We've had a great time on tour and we'll always have Strictly in common to fall back on and reminisce over.' Christian Bale took a break from filming his new film The Bride to celebrate Mother's Day with his wife Sibi Blazic. The 50-year-old actor - who tied the knot with Blazic back in 2000 - was spotted out with his 54-year-old wife and their 10-year-old son Joseph on Sunday. The Oscar-winning actor has been spotted filming The Bride in New York City since March, seen kissing co-star Jessie Buckley on set earlier this month. Bale stepped out wearing a black hoodie, with the hood up over his bald head that he shaved for the film. He also rocked dark blue pants and grey sneakers, as he was seen carrying some flowers for his wife. The 50-year-old actor - who tied the knot with Blazic back in 2000 - was spotted out with his 54-year-old wife and their 10-year-old son Joseph on Sunday Bale stepped out wearing a black hoodie, with the hood up over his bald head that he shaved for the film Bale and Blazic first met on the set of 1994's Little Women, which Bale starred in alongside Winona Ryder, who Blazic was working for as her personal assistant. They tied the knot in 2000 and share two children, Emmeline, 19, and Joseph, 10, residing in Los Angeles. Bale leads a diverse cast in director Maggie Gyllenhaal's second film, The Bride, which is filming in New York City. The film takes inspiration from the 1935 film Bride of Frankenstein, which was inspired by Frankenstein creator Mary Shelley's 1818 novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. The story is set in 1935 Chicago, with Dr. Frankenstein enlisting the help of Dr. Euphronius to create a companion for Frankenstein's monster (Bale). They ultimately give new life to a murdered woman, now known just as The Bride (Jessie Buckley). When she comes back to life, she surprises her creators with a new lust for romance and ignites a radical social movement. The cast also includes Penelope Cruz, Annette Bening, Julianne Hough, John Magaro and Peter Sarsagaard, the director's husband, who she tied the knot with in 2009. Bale and Blazic first met on the set of 1994's Little Women, which Bale starred in alongside Winona Ryder, who Blazic was working for as her personal assistant Gyllenhaal directs from a script she wrote, based on characters created by Mary Shelley. The writer-director also produces alongside Emma Tillinger Koskoff, Osnat Handelsman-Keren and Talia Kleinhendler. Warner Bros. has set an October 3, 2025 release date for The Bride, which doesn't have any direct competition as of late. Bale is also attached to star in The Church of Living Dangerously, playing preacher John Lee Bishop, who became ensnared into running drugs for a Mexican cartel. Chrissy Teigen and John Legend graced a charity event in Los Angeles on Mother's Day. The 37-year-old supermodel - who burned her arm grilling corn at her Super Bowl party - and her EGOT-winning husband, 45, looked happy to be supporting Elizabeth House, which raises money for pregnant and parenting women in need. Dressed in a summer-ready shirt dress, Chrissy looked incredible as the adorable couple sold blankets from Chrissy's Cravings line at the pop-up party. The handsome musician, rocking a Hawaiian shirt, flashed his megawatt smile alongside his model wife as they set up shop for a good cause. Lately, the couple has been refining their knack for philanthropic sales, assisting their daughter Luna, seven, in selling her Girl Scout cookies. Chrissy Teigen and John Legend graced a charity event in Los Angeles on Mother's Day Dressed in a summer-ready shirt dress, Chrissy looked incredible The couple assisted Luna in selling cookies both on Melrose Ave and in front of a Beverly Hills grocery store. During the sale, Luna looked absolutely adorable in her Girls Scouts uniform, proudly showcasing the various badges on her sash. Chrissy and John are also parents to Miles, five, Esti, 11 months, and Wren, six months. Their youngest three kids were not spotted on the family outing with them. The cookie sale comes after the cookbook author shared a quirky mishap from her family's Super Bowl get-together. In an Instagram Stories video, she amusingly pointed out, 'This is not a rash.' While revealing her injury, she explained, ''This is the burn that I sustained yesterday from grilling corn.' In the video, she zoomed in on the inside of her upper right arm above the elbow, showcasing several vibrant red welts. The Super Bowl hijinks come after her interview on The Drew Barrymore Show aired, in which she revealed how often her mind wanders during sex. 'Yeah, all the time, yeah!' the Mulligan actress confessed. 'Anywhere. Is the door locked? Is my spray tan coming off? Like, so much.' Chrissy expressed admiration for her Grammy-winning husband, affectionately referring to him as 'my baby bear.' The 37-year-old supermodel and her EGOT-winning husband, 45, looked happy to be supporting Elizabeth House, which raises money for pregnant and parenting women in need The skimpy ensemble put her flawless figure on full display Chrissy looked every inch the glamorous model The handsome musician, rocking a Hawaiian shirt, flashed his megawatt smile alongside his model wife as they set up shop for a good cause The adorable couple sold blankets from Chrissy's Cravings line at the pop-up party The couple flashed showed off their retail skills Chrissy shared a clip of the ride to the charity event on her Instagram The couple are parents of four children - daughter Luna, 7; son Miles, 5; daughter Esti, 1; and son Wren, 7 months; pictured November 23 She praised his exceptional niceness and empathy, describing him as a 'sponge of kindness and goodness.' 'He's really as good and pure as you could imagine a man to be, like, he really is that good,' Teigen said. 'I think one of our fights is actually that we don't fight enough. You know sometimes the passion is there and you want him to get riled up about something and it's just not there but he brings me down to a level where I'm like, 'Okay I'm overreacting a little I'm being a little crazy.' Former President Donald Trump, with attorney Todd Blanche, right, arrives at Manhattan criminal court in New York, on Friday, May 10, 2024. Timothy A. Clary/AP The claim: On the same day Floridas six-week abortion ban took effect, Vice President Kamala Harris visited Jacksonville to blast the law and blame one person: Florida resident and former President Donald Trump. Harris said the Florida ban prohibits abortions before most women know they are pregnant. Then she singled out Trump, citing recent remarks in Time magazine about his stance on policies including reproductive health. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Just this week in an interview, (Trump) said states have the right to monitor pregnant women to enforce these bans and states have the right to punish pregnant women for seeking out abortion care, Harris told campaign supporters. PolitiFact ruling: Mostly true. Her phrasing could make it sound as though Trump spoke in support of the states taking those actions. Rather, he acknowledged that states have the right to do this but would not share his opinion on whether they should. Discussion On April 30, Time published the transcripts of two interviews with Trump with the online rollout of its cover story about his vision for a second term in office. Reporter Eric Cortellessa interviewed Trump twice in April, once at Mar-a-Lago, Trumps West Palm Beach estate, and once by phone. Cortellessa pressed Trump for details about his somewhat murky abortion position, including whether he would veto federal abortion restrictions or a bill that grants full legal rights to embryos. Trumps answers consistently deferred to the states. (Trump also wouldnt say how he planned to vote on Floridas ballot amendment that would allow abortions to the point of fetal viability.) Advertisement Article continues below this ad Then, Cortellessa asked, Do you think states should monitor womens pregnancies so they can know if theyve gotten an abortion after the ban? Trump replied, I think they might do that. Again, youll have to speak to the individual states. As Trump began talking about Roe v. Wade, the legal precedent that allowed federal abortion access until the U.S. Supreme Court overturned it in 2022, Cortellessa jumped in, mentioning states prosecuting women who received illegal abortions and asking Trump if he was comfortable with that. Trump said his comfort was irrelevant. Heres the transcript: Cortellessa: States will decide if theyre comfortable or not " Trump: Yeah the states " Advertisement Article continues below this ad Cortellessa: Prosecuting women for getting abortions after the ban. But are you comfortable with it? Trump: The states are going to say. Its irrelevant whether Im comfortable or not. Its totally irrelevant, because the states are going to make those decisions. And by the way, Texas is going to be different than Ohio. And Ohio is going to be different than Michigan. I see whats happening. Cortellessa gave Trumps abortion comments prominence within the Time story, characterizing them by saying Trump would let red states monitor womens pregnancies and prosecute those who violate abortion bans. He later wrote that Trump said policies such as monitoring womens pregnancies and prosecuting them for illegal abortions should be left to the individual states. Brian Fallon, a communications director for the Biden-Harris campaign, told PolitiFact that Trumps answers may have avoided a direct call for states to monitor pregnant women, but clearly means he thinks individual states are within their rights to do so. Likewise, Fallon said, on punishing women, Trumps deferment to states means he believes it is in their power to make the decision to punish women if they wish. Advertisement Article continues below this ad In recent legislative sessions, lawmakers in states such as Texas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Kansas and South Carolina have offered bills that could potentially allow the prosecution of women who undergo abortions. None has advanced far; Republican leaders have often come out against them as too extreme. PolitiFact was unable to find any bills introduced so far that would require monitoring of pregnancies to prevent abortions. Katie Holmes kept it casual while stepping out in different outfits on Sunday in New York City. The 45-year-old actress was spotted wearing a black leather motorcycle jacket over a white top and faded blue jeans. The Dawson's Creek star completed her outfit with black Gucci loafers and accessorized with brown cat-eye sunglasses and nose ring. Katie had her brown hair pulled back and also carried a black purse. She also was seen wearing a plain yellow sweater along with blue track pants and white PONY sneakers. Katie Holmes was spotted wearing a black leather motorcycle jacket over a white top and faded blue jeans on Sunday in New York City Katie in her sporty outfit also carried an orange purse while out and about on Mother's Day. The Go star has 18-year-old daughter Suri with her ex-husband Tom Cruise, 61. Tom and Katie got married in November 2006 and she filed for divorce in June 2012. It was the first divorce for Katie and the third for Tom. Katie gained custody of Suri, who has been estranged from her father since 2013, one year after he and Katie divorced. Last month, Suri rang in her 18th birthday in New York City while her A-list father was busy shooting the next Mission Impossible film in Europe. Although he missed his daughter's milestone, Tom did find the time to attend Victoria Beckham's star-studded 50th birthday bash in London two days later. Katie made her feature film directorial debut with the 2016 drama All We Had, which she also starred in and co-produced. The 45-year-old actress also was seen wearing a plain yellow sweater along with blue track pants and white sneakers Katie, shown in March in New York City, has 18-year-old daughter Suri with ex Tom Cruise Suri and Katie are shown in May 2018 in New York at the American Ballet Theater spring gala She also starred in, wrote, produce and directed her 2022 film Alone Together and her 2023 movie Rare Objects. Katie gushed in 2020 to InStyle about how much she loves Suri and marveled at how 'very strong' the teen is. 'I love her so much. My biggest goal has always been to nurture her into her individuality,' she told the magazine. 'To make sure she is 100 percent herself and strong, confident, and able. And to know it. She came out very strong she's always been a strong personality.' She described Suri as a 'hard worker' who works tirelessly to master her skills. 'She'll pick an activity and work her butt off until she's really good at it,' Katie said. 'Then she's like, "OK, I'm going to try the next thing." 'She's very focused and a hard worker,' Katie said. BAFTA TV Awards hosts Rob Beckett and Romesh Ranganathan risked sparking a feud with two stars during their opening monologue on Sunday night. The comedians 38 and 46 respectively, poked fun at father-son duo Bradley and Barney Walsh with a very risque quip. The presenters compared them to the family dynamics in drama Succession and hinted that Barney's showbiz career was mostly down to his father opening doors for him. They mocked: 'We were all glued to a gripping drama of Succession, to see who of the next generation would follow in his father's footsteps. Yes, it turns out it was Barney Walsh!' Barney has famously landed a series of TV roles alongside his dad, most notably the Gladiator's reboot. BAFTA TV Awards hosts Rob Beckett and Romesh Ranganathan risked sparking a feud with two stars during their opening monologue on Sunday night The comedians 38 and 46 respectively, poked fun at father-son duo Bradley and Barney Walsh with a very risque quip The pair are best known for starring on Bradley Walsh & Son: Breaking Dad together where they travel the world. More recently Barney, 26, has joined his dad, 63, working on the the Gladiator's reboot on BBC One where they present together. Comedians Rob and Romesh also poked fun at the economy after Liz Truss's spell as prime minister, NHS waiting times and Russian President Vladimir Putin as they hosted the Bafta TV awards. The duo, who hosted the ceremony for the second consecutive time, opened the show with a monologue featuring a host of 'topical' gags. 'Deal Or No Deal returned with Stephen Mulhern as the host, although thanks to Liz Truss the banker hasn't been able to offer him anything lower than a 17% five-year fixed rate,' Ranganathan joked, referencing Britain's shortest-serving prime minister. Last month, Ms Truss again refused to apologise for the banking crisis, pointing out that 'mortgage rates have gone up across the world', and reiterated her criticism of Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey. Beckett continued the opening monologue: 'At the end of last year, Ncuti Gatwa became the 15th incarnation of Doctor Who.' 'At least someone could get a doctor's appointment - am I right guys?' Ranganathan joked. The presenters compared them to the family dynamics in drama Succession and hinted that Barney's showbiz career was mostly down to his father opening doors for him The pair are best known for starring on Bradley Walsh & Son: Breaking Dad together where they travel the world More recently Barney, 26, has joined his dad, 63, working on the the Gladiator's reboot on BBC One where they present together They mocked: 'We were all glued to a gripping drama of Succession, to see who of the next generation would follow in his father's footsteps. Yes, it turns out it was Barney Walsh!' Beckett said 'here we go, did someone order double politics', to which Ranganathan replied: 'A little bit of topical.' Later they introduced two stars of The Responder, a drama about a first response police unit in Merseyside, to announce an award. 'Which unfortunately means they could arrive on stage anywhere between two minutes and five hours,' Ranganathan joked, to which Beckett replied: 'Triple politics.' The duo also made reference to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. 'There's also been loads of great documentaries and current affairs shows this year, such as Putin Vs The West,' Ranganathan said. 'Unfortunately, we've been told that Putin can't make it tonight. But a lot of the West is here,' Beckett joked. Ranganathan closed the monologue saying he hoped the awards go 'some small way to bringing the country together'. 'Like Elton John's set at Glastonbury, the final of The Traitors or Nigel Farage on I'm A Celebrity,' he joked, referencing the British politician placing third on the ITV reality show. The duo also took aim at famous faces including Lorraine Kelly and The Traitors host Claudia Winkleman. 'The brilliant Top Boy has also been nominated for three awards this year. It's a show full of guns, laundered money and drugs. Incidentally all things that are on Lorraine Kelly's rider,' Ranganathan told the audience. He also said he enjoyed the thriller Slow Horses. 'I love Gary Oldman's character, anyone who isn't afraid of farting on national TV is fine by me... speaking of which Claudia Winkleman is here,' Ranganathan joked. Beckett added: 'The producers of The Crown are hoping to take home four Baftas this evening.' 'Which will make up for the fact they are never, ever, ever getting an MBE,' Ranganathan said. The duo kicked off the Bafta TV awards issuing stern instructions to the star-studded audience. Beckett said: 'We are back for a second year as hosts. There were a few mistakes made last year so if you win, we love a good acceptance speech - but keep it tight.' Father-son duo Barney and Bradley are seen on the show Gladiators together which they present The pair are close and have worked on a number of shows together in the past Ranganathan added: 'Actually don't say anything at all. 'Producers, you can come up to the stage if you must, but please stand at the back and let the famous people talk. 'To the actors, it's impossible to 'fall in love with a script' - you read it, you liked it and thought it would make you some money.' Beckett continued: 'If you have got to make a political point remember we have got to follow you, so keep it light.' Julie Bishop ensured all eyes were on her on Monday as she arrived for day one of 2024 Australian Fashion Week. The former foreign minister, 67, stepped out sporting $4,000 worth of designer accessories as she strutted her stuff into event, which kicked off at Carriageworks in Sydney. Wearing a feathery black dress by Rachel Gilbert which retails for $2,000, the ex deputy leader of the Liberal Party looked effortlessly chic ahead of the first runway show, Albus Lumen. Ms. Bishop also showed off her very expensive taste in designer items, toting a $2,900 Louis Vuitton handbag and wearing black $1,490 Dior J'Adior slingback pumps on her feet. She also wore a fine gold necklace and pearl drop earrings, while her blonde hair was styled in a bouffant blow wave and short bangs. Julie Bishop ensured all eyes were on her on Monday as she arrived for day one of 2024 Australian Fashion Week Australian Fashion Week kicked off on Monday, May 13, with showcases from designer labels Albus Lumen, Viktoria & Woods, Rory William Docherty and Carla Zampatti starting the week. Other brands scheduled to take the runway include Pip Edwards' P.E Nation, Bec + Bridge, Acler, Anna Quan and Romance Was Born, to name a few. Last week, Ms. Bishop was awarded Japan's highest honour, the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun. She looked a vision of beauty in a deep purple satin gown as she stepped out at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Thursday. The former foreign minister, 67, stepped out sporting $4,000 worth of designer accessories as she strutted her stuff into event, which kicked off at Carriageworks in Sydney Wearing a feathery black dress by Rachel Gilbert which retails for $2,000, the ex deputy leader of the Liberal Party looked effortlessly chic ahead of the first runway show, Albus Lumen With her new beau Stephen Gray on her arm in a series of Instagram photos, the politician received the award from Prime Minister Kishida Fumio during a very exclusive ceremony. 'Honoured to receive Japan's highest award, Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun, at an investiture ceremony with His Majesty the Emperor and Prime Minister Kishida at the Imperial Palace Tokyo today,' Julie captioned her post. Fans of the 'Minister of Fashion' flocked to her Instagram page to congratulate Julie on the honour and her impeccable fashion sense. Australian Fashion Week kicked off on Monday, May 13, with showcases from designer labels Albus Lumen, Viktoria & Woods, Rory William Docherty and Carla Zampatti starting the week. Pictured: Models walking the runway during Albus Lumen show A model walks the runway during the Albus Lumen show at AFW 'Congratulations,' one person wrote simply, while another commented: 'Oh, how incredibly wonderful, Julie. Congratulations.' A third wrote: 'Love this and the outfit. Congratulations, beautiful.' 'Brilliant brilliant, Julie. What an honour,' yet another said alongside three trophy emojis. The Order of the Rising Sun is a Japanese decoration of honour awarded by the country's government in April each year. It is handed out to individuals from both Japan and abroad who have made distinguished contributions to the advancement of Japan. Julie attended the investiture ceremony with her new partner, Perth man Stephen, by her side after she debuted their romance back in July 2023. While little is known about Stephen, his Facebook profile shows him proudly standing behind a cafe racer style motorcycle, clad in a black leather jacket. The pair have been spotted in several happy snaps on Julie's social accounts since their relationship announcement, and even recently travelled to South Australia for a 'fabulous outback adventure'. Bindi Irwin has shocked with a brand new look, just in time for Mother's Day. The Wildlife Warrior, 25, turned heads as she arrived at the Steve Irwin Gala at the the Bellagio Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas on Saturday with a chic bob haircut, after recently cutting her shoulder-length mane. Looking glamorous with her cropped new 'do, the mother-of-one proudly showcased her transformation on the red carpet as she posed in a khaki tea dress with a plunging neckline. She completed her look with gold strappy heels, a matching pendant necklace and a wrist watch. For makeup, the zookeeper sported peach blush, faux lashes and a slick of taupe lipstick. Bindi Irwin, 25, shocked as she arrived at the Steve Irwin Gala at the the Bellagio Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas on Saturday with a chic bob haircut, after recently cutting her shoulder-length mane. (Pictured left in April, and right on Saturday) Hours later, Bindi shared a flurry of red carpet photos to Instagram, prompting her many fans to praise the star's new look. 'Your hair it's so stunning!' one wrote, as another added: 'Lovin your new look!' 'The most amazing humans! And your new hair looks SO GOOD on you!' someone else added. Looking glamorous with her cropped new 'do, the mother-of-one proudly showcased her transformation on the red carpet as she posed in a khaki tea dress with a plunging neckline Bindi was joined on the red carpet by her glamorous looking mother Terri, 59, (right) and brother Robert, 19, (left) Bindi was joined on the red carpet by her glamorous looking mother Terri, 59, who looked sensational in a slinky, gun-metal grey number that highlighted her sensational figure. Bindi's little brother Robert, 19, meanwhile looked slick in a black suit and champagne bow-tie. It comes after fans were left scratching their heads as to why the Steve Irwin Gala was being held in the US, given that the late Steve Irwin was Australian. Terri looked sensational in a slinky, gun-metal grey number that highlighted her sensational figure. 'Having the Steve Irwin Gala in America instead of Australia is a disappointing to say the least,' one fan wrote on social media. Another user questioned: 'Steve's an Aussie icon why's this in America.' 'Time to change the venue .. your Australian, he was Australian, so bring it home .. no support at all in US,' one commented. However, one pleased US fan wrote: 'Thank you so much for having a gala in America as it makes participating more reachable for many of Steve's fans.' Robert looked dapper indeed in a classic tuxedo paired with a chic bow-tie Other fans were left shocked by the $750 ticket prices. 'If only it weren't $750...I would love to go. That's a pretty hefty price for any gala,' a fan wrote. 'Wish I could afford it. Would love to go and support. Big fan of all the Irwin's, and their work.' A gala honouring the late wildlife warrior's legacy will also take place in Brisbane on November 9. Halle Berry's boyfriend Van Hunt shared a racy snap of the Oscar winner to celebrate Mother's Day. The 54-year-old musician took to his Instagram on Sunday to post a naked photo of the stunning actress, showcasing her derriere as she stood on the bedroom balcony of her home. With her chestnut locks cascading down her back, the X-Men star, 57, glanced over her shoulder, her rear resting against the wrought iron railing. 'Happy Mother's day from the bottom... of my heart,' Hunt cheekily captioned the pic. 'Oh sh**, i wasn't s'posed to post that! butt...u hav to admit thassa bad**s... mutha right there!' As keen-eyed fans may have spotted, the photo bore a striking resemblance to the nude one Halle shared last year, when she caused an internet frenzy with her own saucy snap. Halle Berry 's boyfriend Van Hunt shared a racy snap of the Oscar winner to celebrate Mother's Day The 54-year-old musician took to his Instagram on Sunday to post a naked photo of the actress, 57, showcasing her derriere as she stood on the bedroom balcony of her home 'Happy Mother's day from the bottom... of my heart,' Hunt cheekily captioned the pic The mother-of-two displayed her famous curves while maintaining her modesty as she strategically covered her bits. The Oscar winning performer wrote in the caption to her 8.3 million fans, 'I do what I wanna do.' She added a red lip kiss emoji and wished her fans a 'happy Saturday.' Hunt's eye-popping post comes a few months after Halle celebrated him for his birthday. The Academy Award-winning actress graced Instagram with a collection of snapshots featuring the musician, along with her cherished moments of them together as a couple. The picture-perfect pair unveiled their relationship in September 2020. Halle is mom to two children and Van is dad to one child. The actress shares a 16-year-old daughter, Nahla Ariela, with her ex Gabriel Aubry, and a 10-year-old son, Maceo-Robert, from her marriage to Olivier Martinez. Meanwhile, Hunt is a father to his teenage son, Drake. As keen-eyed fans may recall, the photo bore a striking resemblance to the nude one Halle shared last year, nearly causing an internet sensation Hunt's eye-popping post comes a few months after Halle celebrated him for his birthday In the early months of 2022, Halle opened up to AARP The Magazine, expressing her conviction that she has finally discovered her true partner in Hunt. 'I really believe I've found my person. My son Maceo on his own did this little commitment ceremony for us in the back seat of the car,' she explained. 'I think he finally sees me happy, and it's infectious. It was his way of saying, "This is good. This makes me happy."' She added: 'It was a very real moment for all of us. I teared up, Van was fighting back tears. Even Maceo knew he'd said something poignant.' The Academy Award-winning actress graced Instagram with a collection of snapshots featuring the musician, along with her cherished moments of them together as a couple The couple ultimately made their red carpet debut at the 93rd Academy Awards at Union Station in Los Angeles in April 2021 The ex-Bond girl crossed paths with the Our Love Lingers tunesmith in September 2020, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, managing to nurture their bond virtually. After discreetly hinting at a significant other in her life, Berry unveiled the identity of her mystery man in a social media update. 'Now you know...,"'Berry captioned a snapshot donning a shirt bearing Hunt's name, clutching a drink in hand. Months later, the duo marked their first public appearance together on the red carpet of the 93rd Academy Awards at Union Station in Los Angeles in April 2021. The Sidebar Listen to another sizzling slab of showbiz chat on this weeks episode, covering everything from Eurovision to the BAFTA TV Awards. Tensions flared when the new girl Kelle Mortensen accused Jami Amaro of having a boyfriend back home on Sunday's episode of MILF Manor on TLC. 'I think you are a lovely girl but I just heard you have a boyfriend,' Kelle, 52, said. 'Do you have a boyfriend?' Jami, 51, who was chatting with Anthony, one of the dads, looked stunned when she was confronted. 'It's not fair to us,' Lannette West, 50, said. 'It's not fair to the guys.' 'Let's be nice,' Anthony said. Tensions flared when the new girl Kelle Mortensen accused Jami Amaro of having a boyfriend back home on Sunday's episode of MILF Manor on TLC 'It's about being truthful,' Lanette said. 'Let's do it in a respectful manner,' Anthony said. 'I'm just asking do you have a boyfriend, yes or no,' Kelle said. 'I really don't like when people are in my face,' Jami said. 'So take a step back.' Kelle was upset because she was playing poker when Jami pulled Anthony aside to talk. 'I feel what Jami did was totally unfair,' Kelle said. 'I was feeling something with Anthony.' Christina had moments before pulled Lannette out of the jacuzzi to tell her that Jami told her she was in a relationship. 'It's not only unfair to the women, but it's really unfair to the guys,' Lannette said. 'So do we tell the other women. It's going to come out.' Jami, 51, who was chatting with Anthony, one of the dads, looked stunned when she was confronted 'Let's be nice,' Anthony said 'I think you are a lovely girl but I just heard you have a boyfriend,' Kelle, 52, said. 'Do you have a boyfriend?' Christina had moments before pulled Lannette out of the jacuzzi to tell her that Jami told her she was in a relationship. Lannette gathered the other women and asked them what they would do if one of the women had a boyfriend and wasn't a single person and misrepresented themselves. 'It's disrespectful on so many levels,' Kelle said. 'Do we confront her now?' Lannette said moments before they walked over to do just that. The episode titled She's all MILF opened with former stripper turned marketing executive Barby Garcia Gutierrez Almeida, 45, packing up all her stuff to move out of her room and away from Crystal Jennings, 48. 'I'm concerned that Barby and Crystal will continue to clash,' Lannette said. 'With Barby moving out clearly there are some hard feelings.' The next morning, Darren, 58, one of the dads, a private jet salesman, said he was usually drawn to dramatic women but he was trying to stay away from both Crystal and Barby after their blow up. Crystal instead spent the morning chatting to another dad Stacy about how she grew up in a rough neighborhood and that girls would try to beat her up when she was just walking to school because she looked nice. 'You know how rough it was,' Crystal said. Lannette gathered the other women and asked them what they would do if one of the women had a boyfriend and wasn't a single person and misrepresented themselves 'It's disrespectful on so many levels,' Kelle said The episode titled She's all MILF opened with former stripper turned marketing executive Barby Garcia Gutierrez Almeida, 45, packing up all her stuff to move out of her room and away from Crystal Jennings, 48 Crystal instead spent the morning chatting to another dad Stacy about how she grew up in a rough neighborhood and that girls would try to beat her up when she was just walking to school because she looked nice 'Hopefully we can move past it today,' Stacy said. Jami, 51, a dance instructor said in a confessional that she was having an internal struggle but didn't know how to tell anyone about it. 'We are all here for the same reason, however, my reasons are a bit different,' Jami said. A car pulled up at the manor and Kelle, a realtor, from season one of MILF Manor got out. She said her relationship with Jose did not work out so she came back to try and find someone else.. 'I'm here to find a guy,' Kelle said in a confessional. Kelle got a text that said she could ask out her favorite father-son duo on a date. She pulled Joey and his father aside to talk. Kelle told them she had six kids. 'That is like a lot of kids for one individual,' Joey said. 'That is definitely raising some flags. They're not red or green, just yellow. Proceed with caution.' Kelle then pulled Sam and his father Darren aside. A car pulled up at the manor and Kelle, a realtor, from season one of MILF Manor got out Sam and his father Darren were pulled aside by Kelle for a chat 'Kelle would be fun for a night on the town and it would be interesting just to kind of see the dynamic with my son, Sam, and I with Kelle there,' Darren said in a confessional. Kelle was chatting with Jacob, one of the sons, when Barby walked over and kissed him on the lips. 'Barby that doesn't scare me babe,' Kelle said. 'I can do the same.' Kelle got up and kissed Jacob on the mouth. 'You don't think that's competition?' Crystal said. 'I think she wants it to be,' Barby said. Kelle picked Anthony and Joey to take on a date. 'I'm nervous as hell right now,' Christina said. 'What if she chooses her.' 'I'm here to find a guy,' Kelle said in a confessional Jacob, 23, told Barby that he was a little bit more reserved since his father arrived. He told her would like to pursue things with her. She also said she was interested in him, too. 'The RILFI should be utilized at some point,' Jacob said. 'What are your thoughts about that?' Barby said she felt she needed some alone time. In a confessional she said she wanted to keep her options open. Kelle and Anthony and Joey went to a session to learn tantric yoga. They both put their hands on Kelle. 'It was like we were playing a game of twister,' Anthony said in a confessional. 'I don't know how Joey is feeling about the date or how he feels about Kelle, but with my past history, being cheated on, being heartbroken, you know, I don't want to have that happen again to me,' Christina said in a confessional. Kelle felt she was vibing more with Anthony than his son Joey. Joey and Anthony returned to the villa. 'Guys that was one of the worst nights of my life,' Joey said. 'That was just so up close and personal and oily with my father and her, it was just next level weird.' Joey said 'you all should be happy you didn't go.' 'When he got back to the house, Joey was ignoring me,' Christiana, 46, said. 'He didn't talk to me, which was weird because we were so comfortable around each other. I was confused and honestly my feelings were hurt.' Christina asked Jami who should go on a date with if she could choose. 'If I were to be going on a date with anyone, I think that the person I would go on the date with would be Anthony,' Jami , 51, a dance instructor, said. 'However, I'm having an internal struggle and I don't really want to talk about it with everyone.' Kelle and Anthony and Joey went to a session to learn tantric yoga Kelle was in between father and son during the yoga session Kelle and Anthony smiled during their date with his son Joey 'If I were to be going on a date with anyone, I think that the person I would go on the date with would be Anthony,' Jami , 51, a dance instructor, said. 'However, I'm having an internal struggle and I don't really want to talk about it with everyone.' Jami then told Christina the reason she wasn't having a connection was because she had a boyfriend. 'This is really messed up,' Christina said in a confessional. Christina said she would keep her secret. MILF Manor will return next week on TLC. Chris Pratt spent his Sunday celebrating Mother's Day with his wife Katherine Schwarzenegger, their kids and his mother-in-law Maria Shriver. The 44-year-old actor was seen holding his three-year-old daughter Lyla while heading to church on Sunday. He was spotted with his 11-year-old son Jack, who he shares with ex Anna Faris, Lyla, and his youngest, 1-year-old daughter Eloise. The outing comes just weeks after Pratt and his wife came under fire for bulldozing a historic house to build their dream home together. Pratt was spotted wearing a black dress shirt with no tie under a black suit coat, while holding Lyla in a colorful flower print dress and white cardigan. Chris Pratt spent his Sunday celebrating Mother's Day with his wife Katherine Schwarzenegger, their kids and his mother-in-law Maria Shriver. He was spotted with his 11-year-old son Jack, who he shares with ex Anna Faris, Lyla, and his youngest, 1-year-old daughter Eloise The 44-year-old actor was seen holding his three-year-old daughter Lyla while heading to church on Sunday. He also sported black-framed glasses and completed his look with matching black pants and shoes. He was seen posting with Katherine and his three kids, with son Jack donning a white dress shirt, black pants and black dress shoes. Katherine opted for a light blue dress with a tan shawl and white shoes for the church outing. She was seen greeting her mother Maria Shriver, who opted for a black floral print dress under a black leather jacket and black sandals. Pratt also took to Instagram to share several snaps of Katherine and his own mother Kathy for a Mother's Day tribute. 'Happy Mothers Day to all the mamas out there! Love to my Mom Kathy who set a high bar for her love, patience, humor, and joy in motherhood,' Pratt began. 'And a special thank you my darling Katherine for all you do. Witnessing you be a mom to Lyla and Eloise and a stepmom to Jack makes me fall more and more in love with you every day,' he said. 'The 24/7 job of scheduling, transporting, loving, nurturing, managing calendars, planning activities, the nutrition, the boundaries, the rules, the patience, the gentleness, the firmness, the wisdom, and grace. Its truly a marvel,' he concluded. She was seen greeting her mother Maria Shriver, who opted for a black floral print dress under a black leather jacket and black sandals Pratt also took to Instagram to share several snaps of Katherine and his own mother Kathy for a Mother's Day tribute 'Happy Mothers Day to all the mamas out there! Love to my Mom Kathy who set a high bar for her love, patience, humor, and joy in motherhood,' Pratt began. Last month, however, the family came under fire for razing a historic L.A. home so they could build a new mansion for their family. In images of the construction zone, not a trace remained of the Zimmerman House, designed by Los Angeles-based modernist architect Craig Ellwood, was left standing. A large yellow crane with a wrecking ball, which was used to dismantle the property that the couple purchased for $12.5 million last year, and a white pickup truck were seen parked in the now-vacant plot of land. Over the weekend, the couple sparked outrage after it was revealed that they had torn down the historic mid-century modern house to build a gaudy mansion. On Sunday, Kourtney Kardashian Barker celebrated her first Mother's Day with her fourth child - six-month-old son Rocky Thirteen Barker - who appears to have already sprouted a head of dark hair just like his famous folks. The 45-year-old reality star's neighbor-turned-husband Travis Barker showed his appreciation by filling the grand foyer of their $8.5M six-bedroom mansion, inside Estates at the Oaks, with hundreds of white and pink roses. Kourtney - who boasts 275.7M social media followers - Instastoried a video of the overwhelming floral explosion set to Louis Armstrong's 1950 rendition of La Vie en Rose. 'Happy Mother's Day to my best friend and partner,' the 48-year-old Grammy nominee gushed in his Instagram slideshow. 'Our children are so lucky to have you. Thank you for filling our home with love, laughter, and joy. I love you forever and ever my wife @kourtneykardash!' On Sunday, Kourtney Kardashian Barker celebrated her first Mother's Day with her fourth child - six-month-old son Rocky Thirteen Barker - who appears to have already sprouted a head of dark hair just like his famous folks The 45-year-old reality star's neighbor-turned-husband Travis Barker showed his appreciation by filling the grand foyer of their $8.5M six-bedroom mansion, inside Estates at the Oaks, with hundreds of white and pink roses Travis posted never-before-seen snaps of little Rocky in his crucifix-covered baby carriage and a close-up of Kardashian squeezing his tiny toes. This Wednesday, the Barkers - collectively known as 'Kravis' - will celebrate their second wedding anniversary in their usual PDA-filled, over-the-top style. Also wishing the half-Armenian beauty a Happy Mother's Day was her stepdaughter Alabama Luella Barker. 'And to @kourtneykardash I love you, thank you [for] being another woman in my life to look after me and taking me in as your family,' the 18-year-old aspiring rapper gushed via Instastory. 'You have a such a passion for being a great mom and always showing out for all of your kids. Your grind is so inspiring. [You're] the best!' Kourtney reposted Alabama's Instastory with the caption: 'I love you so much!' Barker also made sure to give a shout out to her 'beautiful' birth mother Shanna Moakler (whom the Blink-182 drummer divorced in 2008) as well as her two 'amazing' nannies Lizzy and Julie. Kardashian's other stepdaughter - 25-year-old Atiana De La Hoya - Instastoried a snap of her, Travis, and baby Rocky captioned: 'The most amazing mom and stepmom to us all. Love you Kourt!' Kourtney - who boasts 275.7M social media followers - Instastoried a video of the overwhelming floral explosion set to Louis Armstrong's 1950 rendition of La Vie en Rose The 48-year-old Grammy nominee gushed: 'Happy Mother's Day to my best friend and partner. Our children are so lucky to have you' 'Thank you for filling our home with love, laughter, and joy. I love you forever and ever my wife @kourtneykardash!' Travis posted never-before-seen snaps of little Rocky in his crucifix-covered baby carriage and a close-up of Kardashian squeezing his tiny toes This Wednesday, the Barkers - collectively known as 'Kravis' - will celebrate their second wedding anniversary in their usual PDA-filled, over-the-top style Also wishing the half-Armenian beauty a Happy Mother's Day was her stepdaughter Alabama Luella Barker (R, pictured last Monday) The 18-year-old aspiring rapper gushed: 'And to @kourtneykardash I love you, thank you [for] being another woman in my life to look after me and taking me in as your family. You have a such a passion for being a great mom and always showing out for all of your kids. Your grind is so inspiring. [You're] the best!' Kourtney reposted Alabama's Instastory with the caption: 'I love you so much!' Kardashian's other stepdaughter - 25-year-old Atiana De La Hoya - Instastoried a snap of her, Travis, and baby Rocky captioned: 'The most amazing mom and stepmom to us all. Love you Kourt!' And while the Calabasas socialite's three older children with babydaddy Scott Disick aren't on social media, she Instastoried a childhood snap with her momager Kris Jenner captioned: 'Thank you @krisjenner for the best childhood I could dream of!' 'Your body is beautiful at all stages during pregnancy as we are glowing and growing, postpartum as we are healing and shrinking, and then that period I find the hardest as our bodies are still adjusting,' Kourtney told Poosh last Wednesday. 'And if you're breastfeeding, that's a whole other part of it. I try to be kind to myself as my body finds a new normal. The pressure put on us to bounce back when everything is new and different isn't realistic.' Kardashian's sugar-filled vitamin and botanical supplement company Lemme will release their first-ever limited edition merch drop this Tuesday. The University of Arizona grad co-founded Lemme with publicist Simon Huck in 2022. Kourtney undergoes 'urgent fetal surgery' in the 10-episode fifth season of The Kardashians - premiering May 23 on Hulu - which she also executive produced with her famous family. On February 19, the Keeping Up with the Kardashians spin-off won reality show of the year at the People's Choice Awards after winning the best docu-reality series trophy at the 2023 MTV Movie & TV Awards. And while the Calabasas socialite's three older children with babydaddy Scott Disick aren't on social media, she Instastoried a childhood snap with her momager Kris Jenner captioned: 'Thank you @krisjenner for the best childhood I could dream of!' Kourtney's sugar-filled vitamin and botanical supplement company Lemme will release their first-ever limited edition merch drop this Tuesday Kardashian undergoes 'urgent fetal surgery' in the 10-episode fifth season of The Kardashians - premiering May 23 on Hulu - which she also executive produced with her famous family Kardashian was technically the first member of her family to star in a reality show - The Simple Life-inspired eight-episode series Filthy Rich: Cattle Drive, which aired in 2005 on E! Travis doesn't resume Blink-182's 91-date 2023-2024 World Tour until August 23 with a concert at the Little John's Farm in Reading, England. It should give the married couple ample opportunity to bond with their first child together. She made a grand entrance at Australian Fashion Week on Monday in a feather dress and Dior heels. But Julie Bishop appeared a little awkward as she took in Day 1 of the event. The 'Minister of Fashion', 67, was spotted sitting alone in the front row of the Viktoria & Woods Show at Carriageworks in Sydney after arriving solo. Guests sitting either side of the former foreign minister appeared engrossed in their own conversations as she shuffled in her seat, pulling faces and expressing her opinions on different outfits displayed on the catwalk. Ms. Bishop found a friend outside, and was spotted chatting with former editor-in-chief of Harper's BAZAAR Kellie Hush. Julie Bishop arrived to Australian Fashion Week in Sydney on Monday solo and looked awkward in the front row as other guests chatted to each other Ms. Bishop, who was not joined by her new beau Stephen Gray at the shows, appeared to make an outfit change during the event, swapping out her $2,000 feathery black Rachel Gilbert dress for a brown coat, black turtleneck and trousers. However, she continued to flaunt her $4,000 worth of designer accessories as she strutted her stuff down the street. The ex deputy leader of the Liberal Party looked effortlessly chic ahead of the first runway show that morning as she toted a $2,900 Louis Vuitton handbag and $1,490 Dior pumps. The 'Minister of Fashion', 67, was spotted sitting alone in the front row of the Viktoria & Woods show Guests sitting either side of the former foreign minister appeared engrossed in their own conversations as she shuffled in her seat Ms. Bishop pulled faces and expressed her opinions on different outfits displayed on the catwalk She also wore a fine gold necklace and pearl drop earrings, while her blonde hair was styled in a bouffant blow wave and short bangs. Australian Fashion Week kicked off on Monday, with showcases from designer labels Albus Lumen, Viktoria & Woods, Rory William Docherty and Carla Zampatti. Other brands scheduled to take the runway include Pip Edwards' P.E Nation, Bec + Bridge, Acler, Anna Quan and Romance Was Born, to name a few. Ms. Bishop found a friend outside, and was spotted chatting with former editor-in-chief of Harper's BAZAAR Kellie Hush Ms. Bishop, who was not joined by her new beau Stephen Gray at the shows, appeared to make an outfit change during the event, swapping out her $2,000 feathery black Rachel Gilbert dress for a brown coat, black turtleneck and trousers She also wore a fine gold necklace and pearl drop earrings, while her blonde hair was styled in a bouffant blow wave and short bangs Last week, Ms. Bishop was awarded Japan's highest honour, the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun. She looked a vision of beauty in a deep purple satin gown as she stepped out at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Thursday. With her new beau Stephen on her arm in a series of Instagram photos, she received the award from Prime Minister Kishida Fumio during a very exclusive ceremony. 'Honoured to receive Japan's highest award, Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun, at an investiture ceremony with His Majesty the Emperor and Prime Minister Kishida at the Imperial Palace Tokyo today,' Julie captioned her post. Ada Nicodemou's ex-partner Adam Rigby has broken his silence following the news she's dating her Home and Away co-star and on-screen lover James Stewart. The former couple reportedly parted ways at the end of last year, but Nicodemou, 47, didn't confirm the end of their relationship until earlier this month. Taking to Instagram just days after the actress' relationship with fellow actor Stewart was exposed, Nicodemou's ex-boyfriend shared a telling social media post. 'Live each moment with integrity,' the post's quote read, referencing Billy Joel's break-up song Honesty. Rigby's post was met with a few comments from friends, who echoed his sentiment. Ada Nicodemou's ex-partner Adam Rigby (left) has broken his silence following the news she's dating her Home and Away co-star and on-screen lover James Stewart 'Isn't that the truth,' one person wrote, while another agreed, writing, 'All the way.' Rigby's Instagram post comes off the back of bombshell photos of Nicodemou and Stewart, 48, packing on the PDA last month on Anzac Day. In the photos, Nicodemou shared a very public embrace with Stewart. The pair - who play lovers on Home and Away - enjoyed a beverage together at The Royal Hotel. They were later seen getting cosy outside the establishment after leaving the venue. Taking to Instagram just days after the actress' relationship with fellow actor Stewart surfaced, Nicodemou's ex-boyfriend shared a social media post that may have expressed his feelings amid the news Rigby's Instagram post comes off the back of bombshell photos emerged of Nicodemou, 47, and Stewart, 48, packing on the PDA last month The sighting came after Stewart was pictured leaving his apartment in Coogee with a suitcase and catching an Uber to the Swissotel Hotel in Sydney's CBD on April 24. There was also a recent sighting of Stewart and Nicodemou at a cinema, where onlookers said they were 'not shy' about displaying their affection publicly. Nicodemou was married to Chrys Xipolitas for nine years. They reportedly split briefly in 2010 before reconciling and welcoming a son, Johnas, in August 2012. The actress, who also starred in '90s soap Heartbreak High, went on to split from Xipolitas for good and dated businessman Rigby for about eight years. Rigby and Nicodemou reportedly parted ways at the end of last year, but the actress didn't confirm the end of their relationship until earlier this month They called it quits sometime in late 2023. The news of Stewart and Nicodemou growing close comes after his ex Sarah Roberts - a Home and Away alum - confirmed to Stellar magazine the pair had divorced. 'I just want to say that I am divorced,' she told the publication. 'Sometimes people grow apart and that's okay... I got to a point where I realised I couldn't grow in the way I wanted to within this particular relationship.' Roberts and Stewart wed in 2019 after getting engaged in November 2018. He had proposed at the restaurant where they'd had their first date a year earlier. The pair tied the knot at Luttrellstown Castle, on the outskirts of Dublin, Ireland, in July 2019. Roberts' divorce confirmation came after years of speculation the couple had split. The rumours first bubbled to the surface after Stewart was absent at the premiere of her film Wog Boys Forever in Melbourne in October 2022. He was 'nowhere to be seen on the red carpet' and was apparently no longer following his wife's Instagram account, reports suggested. At the time, Roberts' agent denied they had broken up. The pair later put rumours to rest when Roberts proudly flashed her wedding ring at the AACTA Awards in December that year. Speaking with Now To Love at the time, she also shot down the break-up rumours. The news of Stewart and Nicodemou growing close comes after his ex Sarah Roberts - a Home and Away alum - confirmed to Stellar magazine the pair had divorced Last month, Sarah Roberts confirmed to Stellar Magazine that her and Stewart had divorced 'We're happy,' she told the website. Roberts added that her husband was as romantic as ever, even picking her up from the airport with a bouquet of flowers after a recent trip to Italy. She starred on Home and Away from 2017 to 2021, before walking away to focus on her film career. Roberts and Stewart wed in 2019 after getting engaged in November 2018. The pair tied the knot at Luttrellstown Castle, on the outskirts of Dublin, Ireland, in July 2019 Stewart is still starring on the Australian soap, in which he plays Justin Morgan. The actor shares daughter Scout, 11, with his ex-fiancee Jessica Marais, whom he met on the set of Packed to the Rafters in 2009. They had announced their engagement in October 2010, and welcomed Scout in May 2012. In 2015, the pair called it quits, with Stewart later saying: 'Our relationship didn't work out because I think hearts go in different directions eventually.' Israel orders new evacuations in Rafah after UN votes in favor of Palestine's membership Xinhua) 09:06, May 13, 2024 A Palestinian woman makes bread at a temporary camp in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, on May 10, 2024. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua) JERUSALEM, May 12 (Xinhua) -- Israel ordered new evacuations on Saturday in Gaza's southern city of Rafah as it prepared to escalate its military operation, a day after the United Nations (UN) passed a resolution endorsing the Palestinian request for full UN membership. LOOMING CRISIS More than 1 million displaced Palestinians are seeking refuge in Rafah, where a severe humanitarian crisis looms large due to shortages of essential supplies such as water, food and medical care. Now, the city is on the brink of a new impending crisis. "The residents of the camps of Shaboura and the Al-Adari, Al-Jeneina, and Khirbet Al-Adas neighborhoods in Blocks 6-9, 17, 25-27, and 31 must leave their houses immediately," Avichai Adraee, spokesperson of the Israeli army, said in a statement. Hamas militants used the mentioned areas for military activities against the Israeli people, which forced the army to expand its military operations there to eliminate Hamas fighters, said Adraee. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, that to continue its precise operations in specific areas of eastern Rafah, it has urged the population from additional areas in eastern Rafah to temporarily evacuate to the expanded humanitarian area in Al-Mawasi. The UN has warned that a Rafah invasion would further exacerbate the humanitarian crisis and lead to a rise in civilian casualties. Palestinian children evacuated from Rafah are seen on a beach in the southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Younis, on May 10, 2024. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua) Georgios Petropoulos, an official with the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Rafah, said the World Food Program will run out of food for distribution in southern Gaza by Saturday. "We simply have no tents, we have no blankets, no bedding," he was quoted as saying. Israel's latest move has caused discontent in the West. U.S. President Joe Biden has said the United States won't supply Israel with weapons if it launches Rafah offensive. His administration said on Friday that there was substantial evidence suggesting that Israel had violated international laws protecting civilians. European Council President Charles Michel also urged Israel not to carry out a military operation in Rafah. "Evacuation orders for civilians trapped in Rafah to unsafe zones are unacceptable," Michel wrote on X on Saturday. HISTORIC RESOLUTION The UN General Assembly on Friday adopted a historic resolution supporting the Palestinian bid to become a full UN member. It showcased increasing support for the Palestinians, with numerous countries expressing outrage over the rising death toll in Gaza and concerns about a potential major Israeli offensive in Rafah. The resolution was adopted with 143 votes in favor and nine against, including the United States and Israel, while 25 countries abstained. It "determines" that a State of Palestine is qualified for membership, dropping the original language that in the UN General Assembly's judgment it is "a peace-loving state." "The overwhelming vote in favor of the resolution clearly indicates the compass of global will and the direction of international public opinion," Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit was cited as saying in a statement released by the Cairo-based, pan-Arab organization. The Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the "historic resolution" recognized the rights of Palestinian people who have suffered for more than seven decades of foreign occupation. Also on Friday, South Africa submitted another urgent request to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), urging the court to persuade Israel to take steps to prevent genocide of the Palestinians, including a demand that Israel withdraw from Rafah immediately. Israel has called on the ICJ to reject the urgent request. "The repeated requests for provisional measures made by South Africa, which are based on false claims and deliberate omissions of fact in order to assist Hamas, are yet another attempt to cynically exploit the ICJ in The Hague," Oren Marmorstein, a spokesman for the Israeli Foreign Ministry, wrote on X. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Google's Bluetooth-enabled "Find My" device network is reportedly prone to stalking and location-tracking crimes, according to The Washington Post analysis. While useful in tracking down people's Android phones and other Bluetooth devices, the report noted that the same network exposes people to potential stalkers and criminals exposing the feature. It is especially dangerous because bad actors do not necessarily need to be close to the victim to hack or infiltrate their phones. There are multiple websites online that allow users to track their phones and delete their content in case it was stolen. However, the same websites are also vulnerable to third-party users from tampering with other devices. Fortunately, users can easily opt out of the feature to better protect their privacy and devices. Also Read : Google No Longer Collecting Users' Location History on Maps App How to Disable Google's 'Find My' Network? Android users can easily opt out of Google's network by going to their phone's settings and open Security & Privacy > Device Finders > Find My Device. Users can then disable the "Find your offline devices" feature to stop the phone from transmitting location to nearby compatible devices when Bluetooth is switched on. According to the Post, Google said it is already collaborating with security experts to improve safety nets for its "Find My" network so that users can access it without risk to their safety. Apple Air Tags Present Worrisome Future for Google 'Find My' Network Concerns for Google's "Find My" network have been a longtime debate by users and cybersecurity experts for its potential danger to people as it did with the Apple AirTags. Just a few months ago, Apple lost its bid to dismiss a lawsuit against AirTags for supposedly enabling stalkers to track down their victims easily Complaints about Apple AirTags have been reported on multiple occasions as people find the small devices hidden in their cars, bags, and even clothing. Apple has since improved the tracking capabilities of iPhone devices to notify users immediately if an AirTag is near them. Several experts have also already voiced opposition to the feature, urging the tech giants to strengthen their security or remove the location-tracking network. A$AP Rocky took his famous babymama Rihanna on a romantic Mother's Day dinner date to the Roxy Bar in Manhattan's Tribeca neighborhood on Sunday night. And while there's been no news of engagement, the 36-year-old mother-of-two noticeably wore a large silver piece of jewelry on her left ring finger over red sheer opera gloves near the Jacob & Co. 'Brilliant Skeleton Northern Lights' timepiece. Rihanna - who relies on stylist Jahleel Weaver - wore a red knotted backwards top emblazoned with the Comme des Garcons logo along with a leggy red maxi-skirt and black stilettos The Bajan pop star - whose hairstylist Yusef lightened her locks 'butter brown' in April - wore waist-length hair extensions and dark black liner over her bright red pout for her special night out. Riri (born Robyn Fenty) was especially tickled to discover the 35-year-old rapper had hired an old-school New York City Yellow Cab to escort them to their meal. A$AP Rocky took his famous babymama Rihanna on a romantic Mother's Day dinner date to the Roxy Bar in Manhattan's Tribeca neighborhood on Sunday night And while there's been no news of engagement, the 36-year-old mother-of-two noticeably wore a large silver piece of jewelry on her left ring finger over red sheer opera gloves near the Jacob & Co. 'Brilliant Skeleton Northern Lights' timepiece The nine-time Grammy winner looked so surprised as she took a seat inside the red-and-black-striped interior beside her black leather handbag. Rihanna and A$AP (born Rakim Athelaston Mayers) originally confirmed their romance in 2020 - nine years after she first enlisted him to rap on her song Cockiness (Love It). The musical power couple will officially celebrate their eldest son RZA Athelaston Mayers' second birthday this Monday. But Rihanna and Rocky - who are also parents of eight-month-old son Riot Rose Mayers - kicked off little RZA's festivities Saturday at the Color Factory in SoHo. The two-time Grammy nominee looked sleek in a snug navy-blue knit cardigan, black dress pants, and matching shoes. All eyes and iPhone cameras were aimed squarely at A$AP and the Lift Me Up songstress as they made their way across the bricked path inside the venue. '[Our sons] have it the best. They're living the greatest life, and the love that they have from everyone,' Rihanna told ET last month. 'They know they're loved. I beam to see it in their eyes, knowing that everybody in this house is at your beck and call.' Rihanna - who relies on stylist Jahleel Weaver - wore a red knotted backwards top emblazoned with the Comme des Garcons logo along with a leggy red maxi-skirt and black stilettos The Bajan pop star - whose hairstylist Yusef lightened her locks 'butter brown' in April - wore waist-length hair extensions and dark black liner over her bright red pout for her special night out Riri (born Robyn Fenty) was especially tickled to discover the 35-year-old rapper had hired an old-school New York City Yellow Cab to escort them to their meal The nine-time Grammy winner looked so surprised as she took a seat inside the red-and-black-striped interior beside her black leather handbag But there didn't appear to be any seatbelts installed in the retro taxi Rihanna and A$AP (born Rakim Athelaston Mayers) originally confirmed their romance in 2020 - nine years after she first enlisted him to rap on her song Cockiness (Love It) The musical power couple will officially celebrate their eldest son RZA Athelaston Mayers' second birthday this Monday But Rihanna and Rocky - who are also parents of eight-month-old son Riot Rose Mayers - kicked off little RZA's festivities Saturday at the Color Factory in SoHo The two-time Grammy nominee looked sleek in a snug navy-blue knit cardigan, black dress pants, and matching shoes All eyes and iPhone cameras were aimed squarely at A$AP and the Lift Me Up songstress as they made their way across the bricked path inside the venue Rihanna told ET last month: '[Our sons] have it the best. They're living the greatest life, and the love that they have from everyone. They know they're loved. I beam to see it in their eyes, knowing that everybody in this house is at your beck and call' The Oscar-nominated songwriter and Rocky 'are trying to figure out who's gonna use what' when it comes to sampling the voices of their children on her long-delayed ninth studio album and his fourth studio album Don't Be Dumb Rihanna - whose last album Anti came out in 2016 - teased: 'I already got stuff that I feel like I could make hits out of' The Puma collaborator is free on bond and his attorney Joe Tacopina (R, pictured January 10) said his criminal assault trial will likely begin in September On January 8, A$AP (L, pictured November 20) plead not guilty to two counts of assault with a semi-automatic firearm stemming from a 2021 shooting of his longtime friend A$AP Relli The Oscar-nominated songwriter and Rocky 'are trying to figure out who's gonna use what' when it comes to sampling the voices of their children on her long-delayed ninth studio album and his fourth studio album Don't Be Dumb. Rihanna - whose last album Anti came out in 2016 - teased: 'I already got stuff that I feel like I could make hits out of.' The Savage X Fenty founder is also producing and voicing Smurfette in Paramount Animation's The Smurfs Movie - hitting UK/US theaters February 14, 2025 - along with writing and recording original songs. Chris Miller and Matt Landon's animated film also features Nick Offerman, Natasha Lyonne, JP Karliak, Dan Levy, Amy Sedaris, Nick Kroll, James Corden, Octavia Spencer, Hannah Waddingham, Sandra Oh, Alex Winter, Billie Lourd, Xolo Mariduena, Kurt Russell, and John Goodman. Meanwhile, the Puma collaborator is free on bond and his attorney Joe Tacopina said his criminal assault trial will likely begin in September. On January 8, A$AP plead not guilty to two counts of assault with a semi-automatic firearm stemming from a 2021 shooting of his longtime friend A$AP Relli (born Terell Ephron). Prosecutors obtained video of Rocky allegedly holding a gun, but there's no video of Ephron being shot through the hand. The native New Yorker's late Bajan father reportedly went to prison when he was only 12, and he spent his teen years moving around homeless shelters with his mother and sister. Olivia Munn opened up about her decision to freeze her eggs in hopes of expanding her family with husband John Mulaney. The X-Men actress, 43, revealed that she and her comedian partner, 41 who share two-year-old son Malcom underwent the procedure following her breast cancer diagnosis as chemotherapy and radiation can affect a person's fertility. 'After my diagnosis, we decided to try one more round of egg retrievals and hoped it was a good month,' she told Vogue on Mother's Day, after revealing she tried the procedure on three different occasions when she was 33, 39 and most recently 42. 'John and I talked about it a lot and we don't feel like we're done growing our family, but didn't know if I would have to do chemotherapy or radiation,' she added. Ultimately, doctors retrieved seven eggs from the procedure, though their viability was questioned, as Olivia shared that only about one in 10 eggs typically yield a healthy embryo for women in her age range. Olivia Munn opened up about her decision to freeze her eggs in hopes of expanding her family with husband John Mulaney; seen in March at Oscars The X-Men actress, 43, revealed that she and her comedian partner, 41 who share two-year-old son Malcom underwent the procedure following her breast cancer diagnosis as chemotherapy and radiation can affect a person's fertility At the time, all Olivia and John could do was wait and see if any of them would successfully develop into a healthy embryo. 'A few hours later, we got the call from my doctor. He shared that we had two healthy embryos,' the actress recalled. 'John and I just started crying. It was just so exciting because not only did we get it in one retrieval, but it also meant that I didn't have to keep putting myself at risk. It was just amazing.' Regarding her embryos, Munn expressed her inclination towards pursuing the surrogacy option in the future. 'I don't have the ability to carry a baby anymore, so if we want to build our family, this is our option,' she explained. In the same interview, Olivia revealed she had a 'full hysterectomy' in her ongoing cancer fight, just two months after revealing she had a double mastectomy. The actress said she underwent the fifth surgery of her breast cancer battle last month in a bid to see more of her two-year-old son's childhood. 'I have now had a full hysterectomy. I took out my uterus, fallopian tubes, and ovaries,' she said. 'After my diagnosis, we decided to try one more round of egg retrievals and hoped it was a good month,' she told Vogue on Mother's Day, after revealing she tried on three different occasions when she was 33, 39 and most recently 42 'John and I talked about it a lot and we don't feel like we're done growing our family, but didn't know if I would have to do chemotherapy or radiation,' she added 'Doing a full hysterectomy was a big decision to make, but it was the best decision for me because I needed to be present for my family.' WHAT IS A HYSTERECTOMY? A hysterectomy is a surgical procedure to remove a woman's uterus. There are three kinds: PARTIAL HYSTERECTOMY: Removes two-thirds of the uterus. Removes two-thirds of the uterus. TOTAL HYSTERECTOMY: Removes uterus and cervix. Removes uterus and cervix. RADICAL HYSTERECTOMY: Removes uterus, cervix and ovaries. The operation is most commonly performed on women between the ages of 40 and 49. More than 20 million American women have had a hysterectomy, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As women approach menopause, the odds that they will develop one of several serious uterine health conditions increases. Doctors may recommend a hysterectomy as a treatment for: fibroids endometriosis uterine (endometrial) cancer chronic uterine pain or bleeding collapsed uterus In some cases, doctors may suggest a hysterectomy as a preventative measure if a woman has significant warning or early signs of developing one or more of these conditions. When necessary, surgeons may also remove the ovaries and fallopian tubes, if these have also been damaged or are at serious risk of damage. The removal of reproductive organs sends a woman's body into menopause, no matter how old she is. This comes with unpleasant side effects like hot flashes, and many women have to start hormone therapy, taking estrogen to balance out their own hormones. Advertisement The Newsroom star said she took the decision after being given a choice between the hysterectomy and taking anti-hormone medicines that would have left her bedridden. 'I did have one real moment of panic,' she said. 'A real breakdown. Because it's just so strange when you've been with this body your entire life, had your period for so long, feel when you're ovulating, and all of a sudden it's gone.' A hysterectomy is a surgical procedure to remove a woman's uterus to treat a range of health conditions. In some cases, doctors may suggest a hysterectomy as a preventative measure if a woman has significant warning or early signs of developing one or more of these conditions. When necessary, surgeons may also remove the ovaries and fallopian tubes, if these have also been damaged or are at serious risk of damage. Munn was diagnosed in April last year, just two months after she and her sister Sara tested negative after a genetic analysis that checks for 90 genes associated with cancer. 'We called each other and high-fived over the phone. The same winter I also had a negative mammogram,' she revealed in March this year. 'In the past ten months I have had four surgeries, so many days spent in bed I can't even count and have learned more about cancer, cancer treatment and hormones than I could ever have imagined.' 'Two months later I was diagnosed with breast cancer,' she revealed. 'The biopsy showed I had Luminal B cancer in both breasts. Luminal B is an aggressive, fast moving cancer. 'Thirty days after that biopsy I had a double mastectomy. 'I went from feeling completely fine one day, to waking up in a hospital bed after a 10-hour surgery the next.' The former Daily Show correspondent was up on her feet for just a few weeks after her latest operation before spraining her ankle, she revealed on Instagram last week. She shared a brief video of her in light blue short shorts and and a matching shirt, with a black brace on her left ankle. The video - set to the Curb Your Enthusiasm theme - shows her zooming in on her ankle, first teasing that she suffered the injury in a much more serious way. 'I sprained my ankle jumping out of a plane today. And by plane I mean I tripped in a CVS parking lot,' she told her followers. 'I don't have the ability to carry a baby anymore, so if we want to build our family, this is our option,' she explained She revealed her cancer diagnosis in March saying she had 'learned more about cancer, cancer treatment and hormones than I could ever have imagined' She revealed last week that a sprained ankle had added another irritant to her cancer battle Munn said she worried about the impact of her illness on her family. 'I had friends try to cheer me up by saying, 'Malcolm's not going to remember this. Don't worry',' she said. 'But I just kept thinking to myself, 'I'm going to remember this, that I missed all these things'. 'It's his childhood, but it's my motherhood, and I don't want to miss any of these parts if I don't have to.' Tori Spelling shared some throwback snaps of her mother Candy Spelling in new Instagram story posts on Mother's Day. The 50-year-old actress thanked Candy, 78, over four separate Instagram story posts on Saturday. The first showed Candy holding young Tori as a baby, while the second was an undated photo as an adult, hitting the red carpet with her mom. Tori wore a black dress with printed sunflower designs, while sporting a unique blonde hairstyle. Candy was donning a black and white ensemble while accessorizing with a thick gold necklace and gold earrings in the undated photos. Tori Spelling shared some throwback snaps of her mother Candy Spelling in new Instagram story posts on Mother's Day Tori wore a black dress with printed sunflower designs, while sporting a unique blonde hairstyle The next slide was another undated throwback snap, with Candy in a strapless white dress with an arm around her daughter as they give each other a look. 'The flower doesn't fall far from the bush... yup think on that one,' Tori added with a laughing emoji. The final slide featured a strip of three throwback photos, along with a final message to her mother. 'Thank you for teaching me strength and resiliency mommy (and, how to set a proper dinner party table and always how to spot a fake purse,' she concluded. Tori's Mother's Day post comes after Candy came under fire for not using the TV fortune her husband Aaron Spelling left behind to help her daughter. Tori is mother to five children with estranged husband Dean McDermott, 56 - Liam, 16, Stella, 15, Hattie, 11, Finn, 11, and Beau, six. Tori grew up immersed in Hollywood luxury, as her late father Aaron Spelling produced hit shows such as Dynasty, Charlie's Angels and The Love Boat, as well as Melrose Place, Charmed and Beverly Hills, 90210. She has had a complicated relationship with Candy over the years: Aaron Spelling passed away in June of 2006, which was less than a year after Tori made headlines in 2005 for her extramarital affair with McDermott while both were married; her to Charlie Shahnaian, and McDermott to Eustace. She and McDermott eloped in Fiji in May of 2006, just a month before Aaron died. Aaron left behind a $500 million empire, with Tori's inheritance coming in at $800,000. The next slide was another undated throwback snap, with Candy in a strapless white dress with an arm around her daughter as they give each other a look The final slide featured a strip of three throwback photos, along with a final message to her mother The first showed Candy holding young Tori as a baby, while the second was an undated photo as an adult, hitting the red carpet with her mom Tori's ex Charlie Shahnaian, 58, revealed in an exclusive DailyMail.com interview last August that Tori's relationship with her mother was quite difficult despite living in luxury Tori's ex Charlie Shahnaian, 58, revealed in an exclusive DailyMail.com interview last August that Tori's relationship with her mother was quite difficult despite living in luxury. 'For me, with Candy, there was conditional love and it felt like conditional love for Tori as well,' Shahnaian said. The actor who was in a relationship with Tori from 2002 to 2005 reflected on the assumptions people often made about his former wifes upbringing as he continued: People have an image of how wonderful her life must have been, especially as a child. Yes, it was wonderful in a sense. To have snow imported on your lawn for Christmas morning, to be able to go on shows that your father created if your dream is to be an actor... but it was not warm and fuzzy. Braless Anya Taylor-Joy cut a casual figure in grey as she left Chateau Marmont on Sunday with her husband Malcolm McRae. The actress, 28, wore a cropped vest and tailored trousers and carried a large red bag in the crook of her arm. She finished her look with black shoes and a peach scrunchie and her larger pieces of luggage were pushed by rocker Malcolm and a member of staff. Musician Malcolm, 30, who is in the band More, looked dapper in a striped shirt which he tucked into blue jeans and a pair of brown boots. Anya has been in LA promoting her upcoming film Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, the fifth in the Mad Max series. Braless Anya Taylor-Joy cut a casual figure in a grey cropped vest as she and her rocker husband Malcolm McRae left Chateau Marmont in LA on Sunday Anya wore a cropped vest and tailored trousers and carried a large red bag in the crook of her arm Musician Malcolm looked dapper in a striped shirt which he tucked into blue jeans and a pair of brown boots Also starring is Chris Hemsworth and the two flew down Hollywood Boulevard in a chariot on Wednesday to promote the film. The actors were on their way to The Jimmy Kimmel Show and a masked man who looked straight out of the Mad Max universe drove the gold vehicle. Anya wowed in an edgy leather dress with a front zip that showcased plenty of leg while Chris looked icy cool in a slick black suit and aviator sunglasses. In order to achieve the spectacle, parts of Hollywood Boulevard were shut down to allow for Anya and Chris' grand entrance. While the full reviews won't be in until closer to the May 24 release date, early reactions to Furiosa from a wide swath of film critics is quite strong. The new film from director George Miller is a prequel to his lauded 2015 blockbuster Mad Max: Fury Road, providing an origin story for the title character, played by Charlize Theron in the previous film. Anya takes over as the younger Furiosa, which is set between 15 and 20 years before the events of Mad Max: Fury Road. She revealed to Variety earlier in the month the surprising request that director George regularly made as they shot the film. Anya has been in LA promoting her upcoming film Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, the fifth in the Mad Max series also starring Chris Hemsworth Anya explained: 'We'd do takes where he'd be like, "Do it again with your mouth closed." He has a thing about my mouth. He thinks when my mouth is open, I look too young.' Though strange, Anya understood his requests, saying: 'This is the wasteland, and any outbreak of emotion is punished by death....any empathy is punished by death any kindness, really. 'It all made sense to me. I think the restrictions that were placed on me by George did create a radiation off the character, because she is being suppressed continuously throughout the film.' In April 2023, Anya married American musician and actor Malcolm McRae in a lavish Italian ceremony after two years of dating. Anya only publicly confirmed their nuptials in April when she took to Instagram to celebrate their two-year anniversary. It was a memorable night for Lorraine Kelly after she received a BAFTA Special Award to mark her 40-years in broadcasting at the BAFTA awards on Sunday evening. However despite the momentous achievement, the night was somewhat overshadowed after Judi Love's awkwardly time eye-roll went viral as she appeared to shun the Scottish presenter. Lorraine also received backlash from fans on social media who mocked the amount of time off she has from the show. However, as the star appeared on her on show on Monday morning she managed to swerve discussing any of the drama as she was interviewed by Ben Shephard. After the This Morning presenter congratulated her on her win, Lorraine soon left him red-faced as she made a very revealing confession about her BAFTA's frock. Lorraine attempted to swerve the BAFTAs drama as she made cheeky jibe to Ben Shephard on Mondau as fans mock the amount of times she is absent from the ITV daytime show amid Judi Love 'beef' As the This Morning presenter congratulated her on her win while wearing a kilt, Lorraine soon left him red-faced as she made a very revealing confession about her BAFTA's frock As Lorraine entered the studio she was welcomed by Ben who was aptly donning a checked kilt for the occasion. Beaming she exclaimed: 'Ben Shephard in a kilt! You look beautiful, fabulous.' Joking Ben replied: 'I don't get my knees out for everyone Lorraine,' before he teased: 'I have to sit demurely as there is a camera right over there.' The pair then began discussing Lorraine's stunning gold dress which she had custom made for her for the prestigious occasion. She explained: 'I have never had a dress made for me before. Sassi Holford made it, she said it should be a hug and not a squeeze, because it's got a lot of stuff going on inside. Like a lovely corset-thing.' Revealing a little too much, she left Ben red-faced as she added: 'And I didn't even have to wear a bra Ben Shephard,' as he let out a laugh. She continued: 'It was all cantilevered.' Slightly taken aback Ben admitted: 'It was! There was some structure in there.' The pair managed to avoid discussing any backlash regarding Lorraine's win, after fans were left in hysterics when Judi appeared to roll her eyes during the momentous moment. Lorraine's win at the BAFTA's was somewhat overshadowed after Judi Love's awkwardly time eye-roll went viral as she appeared to shun the Scottish presenter Lorraine had her gorgeous dress custom made for her, however she revealed a bit too much when she told Ben it was so structured she didn't need to wear a bra She said: 'And I didn't even have to wear a bra Ben Shephard,' as he let out a laugh. She continued: 'It was all cantilevered.' Slightly taken aback Ben admitted: 'It was! There was some structure in there' As Lorraine took to the stage after being awarded the accolade by Brian Cox, cameras then showed Im A Celeb hosts Ant and Dec smiling manically while clapping away and The Sixth Commandment star Anne Reid was also shown politely clapping along. However, as cameras moved to Judi Love, she appeared less than impressed as she seemingly refused to applaud and rolled her eyes. And while the pair have laughed off the awkward moment as they took to social media to make light of the situation, it seems some fans didn't agree with Lorraine's win. Many fans poked fun at the fact Lorraine appears to take rather a lot of time off from her self-titled show, with other presenters such as Christine Lampard and Ranvir Singh often filling in for her. The presenter has been working more Monday to Thursday week's this year in order to visit Scotland more and see her mum, who is unwell. She also takes all school holidays off. However fans now track how many shows Lorraine presents on, and there is even a Twitter account called Where Is Lorraine? which updates followers on whether or not the Scottish star has hosted the show that day. Taking to Twitter, fans wrote: 'That BAFTA should have really gone to Christine and Ranvir'; 'Lorraine Kelly won a bafta for working half an hour a day for the last 100 years.' 'I'm more shocked that Lorraine was there herself to accept it and not Christine Lampard standing in for her'. 'The nation waiting on edge to see if Lorraine Kelly is going to stick to her promise of presenting her own show this morning after the cruel BAFTA win'. 'Lorraine got a BAFTA?? How?? British Mainstream TV needs a massive shake-up'; 'So Lorraine Kelly gets a BAFTA for hardly ever being at work & presenting a load of utter tosh'. Many fans poked fun at the fact Lorraine appears to take rather a lot of time off from her self-titled show, with other presenters such as Christine Lampard and Ranvir Singh often filling in for her However, others defended Lorraine and congratulated her on her win However, others defended Lorraine and congratulated her on her win as they wrote: 'Lorraine deserves her BAFTA. She's been on TV for years and came from nothing: 'Congratulations Lorraine..a well deserved #BAFTATVAwards and you looked bloody amazing' 'Congratulations Lorraine Kelly on her BAFTA Special Award well deserved I can remember you on TVAM'. 'I know I'm no fun but the Lorraine stuff just doesn't humour me anymore. Lorraine won her BAFTA for being on TV for 30 years. Not because she now works 4 days a work and doesn't do the school holidays. Get as much time off as you can hun. We all would xo'. Lorraine spoken out for the first time after she discovered the Twitter account criticising her work ethic back in February as she admitted she was aware of the account. Speaking on Woman's Hour she insisted the account doesn't bother her, as she explained: 'Its fine. I don't mind, I don't care. I probably would have cared before but I really don't now it's absolutely fine. 'But you should never comment on things like that if you don't know what is going on in people's lives but I am having to take quite a few Fridays off because my mum is really not well. 'So I can go home now and spend some more time with her and help her a bit more than I have been able to. So that is happening just now but that will change. 'I have been doing five days a week for 40 years so I am just taking a wee bit of time off and obviously this week is half term which is why I am able to talk to you!' Called Where Is Lorraine?, with the handle @LorraineKWatch, the account updates followers on whether or not the Scottish star has hosted the show that day Judi's eye roll left fans wondering if there was a secret feud brewing between the Loose Women panellist and Lorraine Judi's eye roll left fans wondering if there was a secret feud brewing between the Loose Women panellist and Lorraine - whose show airs on ITV in the slot before. However the pair took to social media together to make light of the situation on Monday - as she claimed it was all the fault of a wardrobe malfunction. Defending her honour, Judi claimed her reaction was as a result of an uncomfortable dress and insisted she later rose to give Lorraine a standing ovation after the camera had panned away. 'Forget the BAFTAs I am the BAFTA,' she said. 'I don't even know. You know my dress was very tight and I was trying to sit like a lady and the camera was right there,' she explained. Rove McManus has made an eye-watering profit from the sale of his Sydney home. The triple Gold Logie winner, 50, and wife Tasma Walton offloaded their stunning Coogee property on Friday for a staggering $7.29m, netting a tidy $3.5million profit. The couple purchased the property in 2021 for $3.76m. The home is described as 'masterpiece' steps away from Coogee and Clovelly beaches in the city's eastern suburbs. The property is spread over three levels and features four bedrooms, three bathrooms and ample living spaces stretched across a specious 285sqm. Rove McManus has made an eye-watering profit from the sale of his Sydney home. Pictured with wife Tasma Walton The triple Gold Logie winner, 50, and wife Tasma Walton offloaded their stunning Coogee property on Friday for a staggering $7.29m, netting a tidy $3.5million profit The home is described as 'masterpiece' steps away from Coogee and Clovelly beaches in the city's eastern suburbs It also comes with a sunny rear entertainers courtyard and pool, and boasts luxurious finishes and exceptional attention to detail. Rove and Tasma sold their previous home in Bronte - just down the road - for $14million in 2021. The couple purchased the home in 2016 for $6.4million, and completed a $4million two-year renovation. It also comes with a sunny rear entertainers courtyard and pool, and boasts luxurious finishes and exceptional attention to detail The couple renovated the property, with no expense spared Rove and Tasma previously lived in America. The couple share a young daughter named Ruby, Rove is best known as the host of long-running Channel 10 talk show Rove Live. He also runs the production company Roving Enterprises, which produces The Project. It was a family affair as the Kidman-Hawley clan attended day one of Australian Fashion Week 2024 on Monday. Journalist and media personality Antonia Kidman, who is the sister of Hollywood superstar Nicole Kidman, brought two of her genetically blessed-brood to sit front row at the Carla Zampatti runway show. Sisters Lucia Hawley, 26, and Sybella Hawley, 17, who bear a striking resemblance to one another and their famous mum, beamed for photos as they took in the show. Newly minted television presenter Lucia was casually cool in a crisp white top under a cropped black blazer paired with bell bottom jeans. She carried a brown snakeskin shoulder bag and finished the look with patent leather heels and a warm-toned but clean makeup palette. It was a family affair as the Kidman-Hawley clan attended day one of Australian Fashion Week 2024 on Monday. Journalist and media personality Antonia Kidman brought daughters Lucia Hawley, 26, and Sybella Hawley, 17, to the Carla Zampatti runway show Antonia, 63, was chic in a maroon dress worn under a black trench coat and paired with patent leather loafers. She kept her makeup natural but for a flush of rosy blush and a nude lipstick while her brunette locks were swept off her face. Sybella was on trend in an olive green utility dress with a drop waist under a grey wool coat. She added a pair of knee high black suede boots and carried a white purse while keeping her makeup glowing and natural. Sisters Lucia and Sybella, who bear a striking resemblance to one another and their famous mum, beamed for photos as they took in the show Lucia is a rising star in the family, having signed with major talent management agency Chic Talent. The company shared the good news on social media, welcoming Hawley to their stable of stars. 'Incredibly excited to announce the signing of [Lucia]to our roster,' they announced. Lucia is the daughter of Antonia Kidman, a former television presenter-turned-lawyer who is the sister of Oscar-winning actress Nicole Kidman. Her grandfather was Antony Kidman, the late Australian psychologist and academic, who died from a heart attack in 2014 at age 75. Newly minted television presenter Lucia was casually cool in a crisp white top under a cropped black blazer paired with bell bottom jeans Lucia is a rising star in the family, having signed with major talent management agency Chic Talent. Antonia, 63, was chic in a maroon dress worn under a black trench coat and paired with patent leather loafers. Sybella was on trend in an olive green utility dress with a drop waist under a grey wool coat and suede boots Lucia recently explained why she shouldn't be labelled a 'nepo baby' despite her enviable showbiz connections. 'I've been working towards this,' she told The Sunday Telegraph. The term 'nepo baby', short for 'nepotism baby', stems from a recent article published by New York magazine calling out U.S. celebrities who used their famous parents and relatives to build their careers. Lucia did admit that her mother's past was helpful for her career, but only because it taught her 'perspective' rather than opening doors. 'Having a mum who had been in the industry, through osmosis you gain that perspective and understanding and I think that's been one of the biggest things that has helped in preparing me for this role, just having watched her and how she has carried herself through everything,' she said. Lucia holds a Bachelor of Arts from the prestigious University of Sydney, where she majored in socio-legal studies. She is currently a host of 7Bravo. Eva Longoria has hopped on the political train just months before the Presidential election by organizing an event in Arizona to mobilize the Latina vote for the Biden-Harris ticket, set for Monday night. The 49-year-old actress - who is quittin Los Angeles and moving to Spain with her family - is set to speak to crowds in Phoenix on Monday and will emphasize stopping Donald Trump. The event is said to slam the former president who the campaign says 'has demonized Latinos throughout his political career.' According to TMZ 'she plans on speaking to moms and young Latinas about the importance of voting - specifically, voting for JB and KH to keep the White House.' The Desperate Housewives star has been a long time supporter of President Biden and her event appearance is said to be one of many celebrity endorsements. Eva Longoria has hopped on the political train just months before the Presidential election by organizing an event in Arizona to mobilize the Latina vote for the Biden-Harris ticket Per TMZ 'she plans on speaking to moms and young Latinas about the importance of voting - specifically, voting for JB and KH to keep the White House'; seen in 2023 with Biden This isn't the first time the brunette beauty has endorsed the Biden-Harris campaign and expressed her support for the incumbent. Just last June, the multihyphenate screened her film 'Flamin' Hot' at the White House with the support of the President. The Democratic activist has kept in touch with her Latina identity and always had plans to make young girls influential force in the U.S. 'I knew I wanted to help Latinas specifically reach their full potential,' she told Hota Kotb on the Today Show as part of NBC's 2023 Inspiration List. 'That's a big idea but just telling people you believe in their potential, it's a big deal. 'I'm the optimist, all my friends are all "can you turn down the optimism," but I'm always saying "this can happen, we can do this,"' she added. According to NBC News, only 7.7% of acting roles go to Latinos despite the group making up 20% of the population. Longoria admitted she felt unprepared for the success she found on Desperate Housewives so she went back to school at age 35 to get her Master's in Chicano Studies. She studied at California State University at Northridge and her thesis was Success STEMS From Diversity: The Value of Latinas in STEM Careers. 'I really needed to figure out where I'm going to have effective, sustainable change even if it's with one family, even if it's with one person,' she said. Longoria took things a step farther at age 40 - she learned Spanish, telling Kotb that 'language is an entryway into understanding a culture in its entirety and I just had this sudden urge - I needed to speak Spanish.' The Democratic activist has kept in touch with her Latina identity and always had plans to make young girls influential force in the U.S.; seen in April Longoria admitted she felt unprepared for the success she found on Desperate Housewives so she went back to school at age 35 to get her Master's in Chicano Studies She and her husband Jose Baston welcomed their son Santiago in 2018 when she was 44 She and her husband Jose Baston welcomed their son Santiago in 2018 when she was 44. Longoria appeared on The Kelly Clarkson Show last June where she revealed that her son makes fun of how she speaks Spanish. His native language is Spanish having grown up in Mexico City. 'He's super fluent and corrects me all the time and he does it with, like, attitude,' she told Clarkson. Longoria explained that her son says, 'Oh my god, Mom!' when she makes a mistake in Spanish and joked that her response to Santiago is to tell him, 'easy, easy!' Kim Kardashian shared a late Mother's Day post to her Instagram account on Sunday evening. In one image the 43-year-old SKIMS founder represented four generations: she was with her grandmother MJ, 89, her mother Kris, 68, and her daughter North, 10. The reality television personality also paid tribute to her mother, Kris, with several old snapshots. The entrepreneur - who recently threw a lavish birthday party for one of her children - was also recognizing the efforts of her siblings in raising their own children. Kourtney, 45, Khloe, 39, and Kylie, 26, were all seen with their kids. Rob and his daughter Dream were left out because the post was for mothers, not fathers. And Kendall was not included because she does not yet have children. Kim Kardashian shared a late Mother's Day post to her Instagram account on Sunday evening. In one image the 43-year-old SKIMS founder represented four generations: she was with her grandmother MJ, 89, her mother Kris, 68, and her daughter North, 10. The social media powerhouse included a pair of throwback shots that had been taken during her younger days with her photoset. Kardashian went on to post a shot showing Kourtney sitting with her eldest son Mason, 14, daughter Penelope, 11, and second son Reign, nine. The entrepreneur also included a selfie that Khloe had taken with her daughter True, five, and son Tatum, one. She shared a photo that showed her younger sister Kylie, 26, posing for a snap with her son Aire, two, and daughter Stormi, six. Kardashian also posted several snaps featuring her own children, including North, Saint, eight, Chicago, six, and Psalm, five. The reality television mainstay shares her kids with her former husband, Kanye West, whom she married in 2014. The former couple started their family with North's birth, which took place in 2013, and they welcomed their younger children in 2015, 2018 and 2019, respectively. Kardashian and the 46-year-old rapper remained married until 2022, when their marriage was dissolved following a lengthy process of divorce. Kardashian is seen here with her momager during their joint fragrance ad The 43-year-old reality television personality flashes this old photo The entrepreneur - who recently threw a lavish birthday party for one of her children - also posted various snaps to both celebrate her motherhood and to recognize the efforts of her siblings in raising their own children The social media powerhouse included a pair of throwback shots that had been taken during her younger days with her photoset Kardashian went on to post a shot showing Kourtney sitting with her eldest son Mason, 14, daughter Penelope, 11, and second son Reign, nine She shared a photo that showed her younger sister Kylie, 26, posing for a snap with her son Aire, two, and daughter Stormi, six Khloe was with True and Tatum, whom she shares with ex Tristan Thompson Kardashian also posted several snaps featuring her own children, including North, Saint, eight, Chicago, six, and Psalm, five The entrepreneur spoke about parenting during an episode of the On Purpose With Jay Shetty podcast, where she described motherhood as 'the most challenging thing' The entrepreneur spoke about parenting during an episode of the On Purpose With Jay Shetty podcast, where she described motherhood as 'the most challenging thing.' She stated: 'There are nights I cry myself to sleep. Like, holy s***, this f***ing tornado in my house. Like, what just happened?' Although Kardashian also stated that being a parent was 'the most rewarding job in the entire world,' she was open about the often hectic nature of raising children. 'There is nothing that can prepare you...I don't care how long you wait. I don't care what you're waiting for. You are never prepared,' she said. The Sidebar Want more celeb goss? Listen to another sizzling slab of showbiz chat on the latest episode of The Mail's weekly podcast, The Sidebar, covering everything from Eurovision to the BAFTAs and the return of Bridgerton. Giovanni Pernice and girlfriend Molly Brown looked more loved-up than ever as they posed for Instagram snaps during a romantic Dubai getaway on Monday. The couple, who first confirmed their romance at the end of February, proved they were still going strong after being hit by rumours they had split. The Strictly star, 33, was seen kissing the model's, 25, cheek as they soaked up the sun at the beach. She showed off her amazing figure in a black bikini as she cooled off in a lavish infinity pool. Coordinating with his girlfriend, Giovanni displayed his toned physique in a pair of black swimming trunks. Giovanni Pernice and girlfriend Molly Brown looked more loved-up than ever as they posed for Instagram snaps during a romantic Dubai getaway on Monday The Strictly star, 33, was seen kissing the model's, 25, cheek as they soaked up the sun at the beach In another picture, the couple cosied up as Molly snapped a mirror selfie as they headed out for dinner one evening. The model stunned in a white cut out dress while the BBC star cut a dapper figure in a blue striped open collar shirt. Giovanni also showed of one of his impressive dancing lifts as he launched Molly into the air performing the iconic Dirty Dancing lift in front of the Dubai Fountains. She wrote: 'Let me tell you about my best friend' Taking to the comments, Giovanni replied: 'I love you like a lot!!' Last month, Giovanni denied that he's engaged to his girlfriend Molly after she was pictured wearing a gold band. It was reported in March that the pair ended their short-lived romance, but days later the Strictly star was spotted with the model leaving his show at the London Palladium. In pictures obtained by The Mirror, Molly sported a gold band on her ring finger as she and Giovanni headed home together, sparking rumours they could be engaged. The couple, who first confirmed their romance at the end of February, proved they were still going strong after being hit by rumours they had split She showed off her amazing figure in a black bikini as she cooled off in a lavish infinity pool Coordinating with his girlfriend, Giovanni displayed his toned physique in a pair of black swimming trunks Giovanni also showed of one of his impressive dancing lifts as he launched Molly into the air performing the iconic Dirty Dancing lift in front of the Dubai Fountains She wrote: 'Let me tell you about my best friend' Taking to the comments, Giovanni replied: 'I love you like a lot!!' However, a representative for Giovanni has told MailOnline that this is not the case. Last month it was reported that Giovanni and Molly had ended their short-lived romance after just three weeks together. The Italian dancer went Instagram official with the model in February, but MailOnline revealed just weeks later that they had unfollowed each other, with Molly deleting a snap alongside Giovanni from her grid. Strictly stallion Giovanni confirmed his new romance with the model at the end of February. Stunning model Molly shared a sweet photo of the two cuddled up with the caption 'Amore Mio', while Giovanni also repeated the Italian phrase in the comments before reposting the snap to his own Instagram Stories. The Sidebar Want more celeb goss? Listen to another sizzling slab of showbiz chat on the latest episode of The Mail's weekly podcast, The Sidebar, covering everything from Eurovision to the BAFTAs and the return of Bridgerton. Toyota may begin production for batteries for electric and hybrid vehicles in its $13.9 billion facility in North Carolina as soon as next year, Automotive News reported. As of writing, several parts of the 1,800-acre complex near Greensboro were already finished with the rest nearing completion. Once production starts, the two-line production plant will provide battery packs for Toyota and Lexus hybrids, generating over 5,000 jobs. The facility is predicted to be at full capacity by 2028, in time for the current administration's proposed plan to shift 30% of the vehicles in the US to zero carbon emission. The industrial complex is among the Japanese EV makers' biggest investments in the US as the country pushes electric cars into mainstream popularity. EV Battery Production Expected to Bring Down Prices of Electric Cars in the US With more companies about to begin mass production of EV batteries, the prices for electric and hybrid cars are expected to go down slightly as resources needed for their manufacturing become more available. Importing EV batteries from other countries largely contribute to hybrid and electric cars' prices. Several gas providers like Exxon have already announced plans to build their production facility in Arkansas, supplying major EV brands by 2030. South Korea's Hyundai also received the government's approval in April last year to build a $5 billion battery assembly in Georgia. Also Read : Exxon to Begin Lithium Assembly for EVs by 2027 EV Future in the US Remains Uncertain Despite the government and the industry's push for EVs, the car's longtime success in the US remains uncertain as legislative pushbacks and slow market growth deter car dealers from fully jumping into the trend. California's New Car Dealers Association reported a slowdown in EV sales in the state last February as most people who plan to buy EVs have already purchased one. California is one of the primary EV markets in the US, boasting nearly 1 million light-duty EVs registered, making the slowdown hurt business sales as evidenced by Tesla. Car dealers have since expressed concerns about the government's aggressive push for the transition despite the lack of necessary facilities, infrastructures, and acceptance needed for the shift. In response, President Joe Biden's administration has eased the policies requiring car dealers to switch a huge number of their gas-powered cars to electric ones. Kaia Gerber took to her Instagram story to show off her support for the Challenger's movie on Monday. The 22-year-old model - who recently revealed she began out-earning her parents at age 18 - wore an oversized grey T-shirt that read 'I told ya', referring to a shirt actress Zendaya wore in the film. In the stunning selfie, she rocked a pair of trendy dark sunglasses while resting her arms on her neck casually. The brunette beauty styled her dark brown locks in a pulled back low bun, letting her face framing pieces fall out. Her skin looked flawless as she donned a light-glam look that showcased her natural beauty. Kaia used to date Zendaya's Euphoria costar Jacob Elordi. Kaia Gerber took to her Instagram story to show off her support for the Challenger's movie on Monday The 22-year-old model - who recently revealed she began out-earning her parents at age 18 - wore an oversized grey T-shirt that read 'I told ya', referring to a shirt actress Zendaya wore in the film Her pink full pout popped while she angled her face for the selfie. She also gave a glimpse of one of her tiny tattoos strategically placed on the outside of her left arm. When she is not modeling new looks, she is glowing in the limelight of her latest drama miniseries Palm Royale. The five foot ten beauty took on the role of Mitzi in the Apple TV+ series, which aired its season finale on Wednesday. The comedic drama - which consisted of a total of 10 episodes - premiered the first episode of the first season a few months earlier in March. Alongside Kaia, other stars that had been cast in the project included Kristen Wiig, Carol Burnett, Laura Dern, Ricky Martin, Leslie Bibb, Josh Lucas, Mindy Cohn and also Bruce Dern. The series was based on the 2018 novel titled Mr. & Mrs. American Pie, which was written by Juliet McDaniel. During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter published earlier this week, the model recalled being cast in the show and reflected on her character of Mitzi. 'I had started reading the book during the audition process, and then director Tate Taylor called me once I got the role and said, "Read the book, it's a great book. But we are very loosely basing our show off of it."' 'So, Mitzi is a fictionalized character that comes in and gets to have this wonderful relationship with Maxine,' she added, referencing to Kristen Wiig's character. Kaia also discussed taking on a role in her first television comedy, and explained that shortly before being cast, she had just finished filming Bottoms - which was a 2023 comedic film. Gerber attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 6 '...So I felt very lucky because I just had a really incredible experience surrounded by comedians that I find so funny and so smart,' Gerber said of working on the movie. 'Getting to then go onto a set, just weeks after, and be surrounded by more comedy legends was very exciting for me.' In regards to the future of her character, the beauty told the outlet, 'I really have no clue how it will progress, if it does progress. I'm really excited for audiences to watch the finale, because I want to know some of their theories.' 'I'm so biased towards Mitzi that I'm not the person to ask, because I have so much empathy for her...' The five foot ten beauty took on the role of Mitzi in the Apple TV+ series Palm Royale, which aired its season finale on Wednesday The series was based on the 2018 novel titled Mr. & Mrs. American Pie, which was written by Juliet McDanie Alongside Kaia, other stars that had been cast in the project included Kristen Wiig, Carol Burnett, Laura Dern, Ricky Martin, Leslie Bibb, Josh Lucas, Mindy Cohn and also Bruce Dern Gerber is currently romancing hunky Elvis actor Austin Butler, who is ten years her senior. The 22-year-old multihyphenate was first spotted with the actor back in December 2021 while attending a yoga session together. Prior to dating Butler, she had been dating actor Jacob Elordi, who went on to play Elvis Presley in the Priscilla biopic. Ncuti Gatwa has admitted that he needed 'thick skin' growing up in one of the only black families on a tough Scottish council estate. The new Doctor Who star, 31, opened up in a candid new interview about his upbringing in Oxgangs - a suburb in the south-west of Edinburgh. The actor was born in Kigali, Rwanda, but fled the 1994 genocide with his parents and they were granted asylum in Scotland when he just three years old. They first lived in Edinburgh University halls due to his father studying for his PhD there - which Ncuti described as a 'very bonny' part of his childhood. After that he told The Times however: 'Then my dad finished studying and we moved to the harsh reality of a council estate. That was an education that you can't get in Oxford.' The new Doctor Who Ncuti Gatwa has admitted that he needed 'thick skin' growing up in one of the only black families on a tough Scottish council estate. The actor, 31, opened up in a candid new interview about his upbringing in Oxgangs - a suburb in the south-west of Edinburgh (seen as a child) 'It was hard to be one of the only black families there. But then it gives you tough, thick skin.' He then joked of what he learned living there, quipping: 'How to throw a punch and run fast!' Doctor Who fans lauded his performance as the 15th Doctor after the BBC show returned for its 14th series last Saturday. Taking to X - formerly known as Twitter - viewers raved that Ncuti was the 'perfect' Doctor and that his 'acting is impressive'. But he also spoke in his Times interview about his anxiety leading to the show being aired and his continued portrayal of the Time Lord. He said of his feelings when filming: 'I really hope I don't f*** this up. It's 60 years' worth of a show that everyone loves. From the moment I woke up to the moment I went to bed my heart was racing. 'My brain went into overdrive. I was calling the execs. 'Is there nothing that we can touch up? I can be a bit of a control freak sometimes.' Fans loved his portrayal of the iconic character as they wrote: 'Ncuti has the perfect energy for The Doctor his perfect!!!!!', He was born in Kigali, Rwanda, but fled the 1994 genocide with his parents and they were granted asylum in Scotland when he just three years old (seen visiting relatives in Rwanda in 2019) Oxgangs in Scotland is seen in a stock image - the area where Ncuti grew up after arriving from Rwanda Ncuti and his mother are pictured together in 2020 'I'm less than five minutes into the new Dr Who and dang Ncuti Gatwa's acting is impressive.' Other fans gushed that the Sex Education star is 'incredible' and they are excited to see him in more episodes. 'They're really good Ncuti is incredible; Okay I'm sold on Ncuti now; Ncuti is so immediately warm & lovable from the jump as the doctor #DrWho; I love Ncuti as the doctor.', 'Actually in love with Ncuti Gatwa as The Doctor. #DoctorWho; I at least feel like they're slightly better written than last season. Ncuti's doing a great job with the character so far too.', 'I really like the new Doctor Who. Ncuti Gatwa plays the role with a confidence that I hadn't seen from Peter Capaldi and Jodie Whittaker. And I liked both of their incarnations as well.' In the eight pacy episodes full of action, we see the Doctor racing across London on a snazzy 60s scooter, narrowly escaping explosions and monsters with his new assistant Ruby Sunday (former Coronation Street actress Millie Gibson). Doctor Who fans lauded his performance as the 15th Doctor after the BBC show returned for its 14th series last Saturday (seen with co-star Millie Gibson) But he also spoke in his Times interview about his anxiety leading to the show being aired and his continued portrayal of the Time Lord The BBC showed the first two episodes as a double bill. Space Babies featured a Tardis of infants in pushchairs. The second part saw the Doctor, who is a Beatles fan, take Ruby back to 1963 to meet his heroes, who are recording at Abbey Road Studios in London. The pair replicate the pedestrian crossing photo from the cover of the Fab Four's album and the Doctor bursts into song. Later, there's a story set in the Regency era which Ncuti and Millie dubbed the Bridgerton episode. Born in Rwanda and raised in Scotland, Ncuti was inspired to become an actor after watching David Tennant in the role. Nicola Coughlan cut a stylish figure in an all black ensemble as she arrived at Good Morning America on Monday to promote the latest series of Bridgerton. The actress, 37, was in good spirits as she rocked a long blouse with a pair of flared trousers and towering boots as she arrived at the studio in New York City. Leaving her long blonde tresses loose, she added a pair of chic sunglasses and carried her belongings in a coordinated crossbody Mulberry Pimlico Satchel handbag. Nicola is known for her role as Penelope Featherington in the Netflix regency drama which season three is set to be released on Thursday. Her co-star Luke Newton also joined her for the TV appearance to promote the show as he cut a dapper figure in a black long sleeved top which he tucked into a pair of grey trousers. Nicola Coughlan cut a stylish figure in an all black ensemble as she arrived at Good Morning America on Monday to promote the latest series of Bridgerton The actress, 37, was in good spirits as she rocked a long blouse with a pair of flared trousers and towering boots as she arrived at the studio in New York City The actor, who plays the third eldest Bridgerton son, Colin, completed his daytime look with a pair of sunglasses and shiny black boots. Meanwhile Simone Ashley looked sensational in a white cropped jumper, matching flared trousers and a bomber jacket from the Hermes AW24 Look 43 as she arrived at the studio. The star elevated her frame in a pair of white boots and accessorised with a pair of chunky gold hoop earrings. Leaving her long dark tresses loose, the actress flashed her gorgeous smile as she waved to waiting fans. For the show, Simone showed off her incredible figure as she slipped into a stunning red T-shirt and matching leather skirt. She wrapped a red jumper around her arms and opted for a pair of pointed toe heels as she exited following the TV appearance. It comes after Luke recently opened up about how he and Nicola dealt with shooting their racy sex scenes. The third series follows his blossoming romance with Penelope Featherington [Nicola Coughlan] as they navigate turning from friends to lovers. Leaving her long blonde tresses loose, she added a pair of chic sunglasses and carried her belongings in a coordinated crossbody handbag Nicola is known for her role as Penelope Featherington in the Netflix regency drama which season three is set to be released on Thursday Her co-star Luke Newton also joined her for the TV appearance to promote the show as he cut a dapper figure in a black long sleeved top which he tucked into a pair of grey trousers Meanwhile Simone Ashley looked sensational in a white cropped jumper, matching flared trousers and a bomber jacket as she arrived at the studio The star elevated her frame in a pair of white boots and accessorised with a pair of chunky gold hoop earrings Opening up on how they dealt with working on sex scenes after years as friends, Luke told High Life, British Airways' magazine, that it was a 'breeze'. Luke explained: 'Looking back, it was a breeze. She's my friend, so we just giggle about it.' 'There are those moments when you come out of your body and go, "Oh, millions of people will see this." But then I've been an actor for many years now. People have seen my performance on stage and other shows, so you feel confident.' Discussing his close friendship with Nicola and how they'd spend time in between scenes, Luke revealed they would enjoy morning singalongs. He said: 'We'd always get ready in the makeup trailer together so we'd be sharing playlists.' Popular choices for the pair apparently included Beyonce, The 1975 and Shania Twain's Man I Feel Like A Woman. During the chat, Luke also revealed the one thing he has to do before filming a scene, which he said has become a 'reset moment'. For the show, Simone showed off her incredible figure as she slipped into a stunning red T-shirt and matching leather skirt She wrapped a red jumper around her arms and opted for a pair of pointed toe heels as she exited following the TV appearance Series three of Bridgerton is set to be released on Thursday - pictured Nicola as Penelope Featherington and Luke as Colin Bridgerton Revealing that he has to brush his teeth before filming, he said: 'It's so random when they call me to travel to set and must be so frustrating for the assistant directors,' he laughs. 'But it's a reset moment.' It comes after Nicola confirmed that she and co-star Luke got 'so comfortable' that they would lounge together naked in between filming sex scenes. Nicola has already teased that series three will be even raunchier than the previous two, which became famous for their racy moments. But despite admitting she was initially nervous about having her own intimate scenes, the Derry Girls star has gushed that she and Luke got to the point where they were able to relax, even while nude. Hugh Hefner's son Marston launched a scathing attack on Crystal Hefner, accusing her of being a 'master manipulator' and even appeared to suggest she took advantage of the Playboy mogul before he died. Marston, 34, made a series of damning claims about his father's widow on the Girls Next Level podcast, suggesting the 38-year-old was hellbent on power and oversaw changes to his father's will when he was mentally fragile. Speaking to hosts Holly Madison and Bridget Marquardt on Monday, he said: 'When Crystal came in [to the mansion], there started to be tribes. And so there were people who were on Crystal's team.' He said she became addicted to the 'idea of control and power,' and would determine who could and could not enter. Marston Hefner made a series of damning claims about his father's widow Crystal on the Girls Next Level podcast, suggesting she was hellbent on power (pictured with Hugh Hefner) Marston (left), 34, accused Crystal of being a 'master manipulator' and appeared to suggest she took advantage of the Playboy mogul before he died (pictured with his brother Cooper) 'She liked controlling the guest list,' he said. 'She liked taking girls off and on the guest list depending on how, whatever the whims were at the time She liked being in that position where you had to go through her or you had to ask her for things.' Marston, who welcomed a child with his wife last year, also accused Crystal of destroying the fun he used to have with his father during games night at the mansion when they would play Uno, claiming she brought a 'dark energy' that dissuaded him from ever returning. Her alleged obsession with control appeared to extend to matters of Hugh's will, with Marston suggesting Crystal oversaw changes when his father was 'sick' and 'dosed with f***ing medication,' which he claims left the businessman unaware of his surroundings. 'He was really sick and that's why she got all these NDA things,' he said. 'According to her, she didn't want people to see him not able to walk, not able to talk.' Marston, whose mother is model Kimberley Conrad, said his father would struggle to remember how to play backgammon with him, owing to strong medication for his back pain. 'The year that he passed away, he changed the will and he gave me, another person, and Crystal more money,' he said. 'And I don't know how much more, I don't remember if Crystal got more than us.... 'I was looking at that when I was getting the inheritance, and I was like, "Why? When he wasn't here, when he didn't know what the f*** was up or down half of the time, why would he change his will?"' He continued: 'And that's why I sent an email saying, "I don't think he's competent anymore, guys, can we agree on this?" And nobody really wanted to address what I perceived as the elephant in the room. Marston questioned some of Crystal's claims in her memoir Only Say Good Things: Surviving Playboy And Finding Myself - as well as her motivation for writing it Marston and his brother, Cooper, pictured with their father Hugh and mother Kimberley Conrad in 1998 Masrston (pictured with his wife) accused Crystal of bringing a 'dark energy' to his father's famous games nights, and as a result he never returned Crystal, pictured right, was the final wife of the Playboy founder - pictured together with Kristina and Karissa Shannon at Hugh's 83rd birthday pool party in 2009 And then more than that, it's like why is it when somebody can't play his favorite thing and doesn't know where he is, why is he changing his f***ing will? Why are people allowing that to happen? Crystal famously wed the magazine publisher in 2012 when she was 26 and he was 86. They were married until his death, aged 91, in 2017 as a result of heart failure and septicemia after contracting a deadly strain of e-coli. He left a reported $43 million fortune. Earlier this year she published her explosive memoir, Only Say Good Things: Surviving Playboy And Finding Myself, in which she made a number of bombshell claims, including that she never loved the late magazine kingpin and she felt imprisoned in their four-year marriage. Marston revealed how he messaged Holly and Bridget, referring to Crystal as a 'master manipulator' after reading her book, and questioned some of her claims - as well as her motivation for writing the memoir. Suggesting she buys Instagram followers, he asked: 'If you're not interested in fame, why are you buying Instagram followers? Crystal (pictured with Hugh on his 84th birthday in 2010) made a series of explosive claims about the notorious libertine in her memoir 'If you're not after money, then why was she hustling as Crystal DJ Hefner? And she said that she was building a real estate empire, but she was building one as a Hefner. So she did need to be there in order to build it, in my opinion.' Marston, who runs an OnlyFans account to fund his love for collecting Pokemon cards and rare comic books, then accused Crystal of allowing Hugh to buy a property for her against the advice of his accountants. 'I heard that it was far beyond his budget,' Marston continued. 'It was not wise. And I heard that his financial advisors were like, "Don't purchase this, dude. You can't afford this...." 'And he said, "I love this person and I'm going to..." This is my own subjective feelings is like, why would you ask your husband who is in debt to purchase you a mansion that he can't really afford if you don't need the money?' DailyMail.com has contacted representatives for Crystal for comment. Crystal was Hugh's third wife. He married her in 2012, two years after his divorce from Kimberley was finalized. They were married for 21 years from 1989 and also share son Cooper, 32. His first wife was Millie Williams with whom he had children Christie and David. Christian Combs, the son of the rapper-turned-record mogul Diddy, is going after one of his father's biggest tormenters. Christian, who also goes by King Combs, took aim at 50 Cent in a new diss track he recorded. The song made its way to the public on Sunday when DJ Akademiks played the tune on his livestream, which was shared widely. The diss track was released in the wake of 50 Cent's continued mockery of Diddy and his associates as the rapper is the subject of an alleged sex trafficking investigation and has been sued by multiple women accusing him of sexual assault. The song opened with Christian, 26, reciting lyrics to the tune of The Itsy Bitsy Spider in a droning tone before the beat kicked in Christian Combs, the son of the rapper-turned-record mogul Diddy , is going after one of his father's biggest tormenters. Christian, who also goes by King Combs, took aim at 50 Cent in a new diss track released Sunday; seen in 2018 in NYC The diss track was released in the wake of 50 Cent's continued mockery of Diddy and his associates; pictured May 1 in NYC Sean 'Diddy' Combs is the subject of an alleged sex trafficking investigation and has been sued by multiple women accusing him of sexual assault; pictured in January 2020 in Beverly Hills 'I dare one of you n****s to scream out "No Diddy" f*** that n****a up!!!' Christian raps once the beat starts. He also references the dual Homeland Security raids on his father's Miami and Los Angeles mansions in March. 'Police raids the cribs like they think we selling crack, but we out here selling tracks,' he raps. 'All that gossip s*** was whack, but all they had was 50 Cent. Who put this city on the map?' he continues, mentioning the rapper by name. Elsewhere, he references his father staying under the radar in the wake of his legal woes. 'Asking where my pops at? / He on a G6 getting a lineup,' Christian raps. He even seemed to taunt the Homeland Security agents who raided the two properties. 'Knock them walls down like when them Feddy boys ran in both our cribs,' he rapped. 'Too bad they ain't know we bought the one next door, 'cause that's the one they missed.' Other lyrics suggested that 50 Cent should be investigated, and he also named dropped 50's longtime collaborator Eminem. Diddy son King Combs drops a diss song towards 50 Cent and people speaking on his father. (: @Akademiks) pic.twitter.com/pnQSkhkrkX The Art Of Dialogue (@ArtOfDialogue_) May 12, 2024 'I dare one of you n****s to scream out "No Diddy" f*** that n****a up!!!' Christian raps once the beat starts He also references the dual Homeland Security raids on his father's Miami and Los Angeles mansions in March; Diddy pictured in May 2022 in Las Vegas 'Police raids the cribs like they think we selling crack, but we out here selling tracks,' he raps; Homeland Security agents pictured on March 25 at Diddy's Miami home 50 Cent was quick to respond to the diss track with a string of posts shared to his Instagram account on Sunday and Monday. The 48-year-old hitmaker jokingly wrote that he was 'so threatened' by Christian lyrics while posting a photo of the younger rapper grinning while dancing with his father Diddy (real name: Sean Combs). 'I feel so threatened by the things Christian is saying on his record. Im afraid for my life, please dont hurt me guys,' wrote 50 Cent. 'I never mentioned or posted anything about puffys kids because KEEFE D said he killed 2Pac LOL.' 50 was reference Duane 'Keefe D' Davis, a gangster who was charged late last year with the murder of Tupac Shakur. Davis had previously claimed that Diddy had offered him $1 million to kill Shakur. 50 Cent then followed that post up with a short clip from the 1992 film Juice, in which Tupac gives Omar Epps a sinister stare just as he closes a locker. Another post featured a short video with photos of Christian and Diddy, along with images from Grace O'Marcaigh, documenting her alleged injuries from Christian. 'Damn @kingcombs that what you told Grace OMarcaigh on that boat huh, gave her the puffy juice with that special sauce in it. LOL BOY OH BOY! BAD BOY FOR LIFE!' 50 taunted in his caption. The alleged event took place in late December of 2022, shortly before Diddy hosted a star-studded yacht party on New Year's Eve. According to TMZ, O'Marcaigh alleges that King tried to kiss and grope her after giving her a shot of liquor she suspects was spiked. The outlet reported that O'Marcaigh also has audio recordings of herself allegedly turning down his advances in the yacht's studio and trying to get away from him. 50 Cent was quick to respond to the diss track with a string of posts shared to his Instagram account on Sunday and Monday; pictured May 11 in NYC He joked about feeling 'so threatened' while sharing a photo of Christian dancing on stage with his father Another post referenced sexual assault allegations against Christian that were revealed in April; seen March 30 in NYC Grace OMarcaigh alleged that Christian tried to kiss and grope her after giving her a shot of liquor she suspects was spiked. She allegedly also has audio recordings of herself turning down his advances in a yacht's studio and trying to get away from him Afterward, King allegedly attempted to force O'Marcaigh to perform oral sex on him; pictured in June 2023 in West Hollywood Afterward, King allegedly attempted to force O'Marcaigh to perform oral sex on him. She included photos of bruises on her arm, which she says she got during the altercation while fighting him off and escaping. 50 Cent included the pictures in his video. Aaron Dyer, a lawyer on Diddy and King's defense team responded to the lawsuit in a statement to Us Weekly in April. 'We have not seen this womans claim but I'm sure we can expect the same kind of manufactured lies we've come to expect from Tyrone Blackburn and his clients, just as we saw in Rodney Jones' lawsuit which has yet to be served,' said Dyer. 'He was just slapped by a federal judge in New York earlier this week for his "pattern of behavior" in "improperly [filing] cases in federal court to garner media attention, embarrass defendants with salacious allegations, and pressure defendants to settle quickly,"' he continued. 'Two days after he was referred to the disciplinary committee in the Southern District of New York, it's interesting he chose to file a new suit in California. 'This is just another page from that same playbook, as we learned of this lawsuit the same way anyone hears about Mr. Blackburn's filings: through the media,' Dyer added. After King and brother Justin, 30, were arrested last month during raids on their father's Los Angeles and Miami homes, they have hired attorney Jeffrey Lichtman, accusing investigators of 'excessive use of force' during the arrest at the Holmby Hills mansion. A lawyer representing Diddy and Christian denied her claims in a statement from April; pictured in January 2020 in LA 50 Cent also poked fun at a line in which Christian claimed that Diddy had bought another mansion next to one of the two that was raided, but the Homeland Security agents allegedly didn't search it The rapper questioned whether Diddy's son was 'stupid' or 'dumb' in his caption 50 Cent returned with another post early in the morning on Monday in which he poked fun at Christian's boastful line in his diss track about federal agents allegedly missing one of Diddy's properties. 'Now why would you say some s*** like this when you know the FEDS are investigating. IS YOU STUPID OR IS YOU DUMB? LOL,' he joked. The Get Rich Or Die Tryin' rapper returned with another post just featuring headlines of news stories referencing Christian's diss track and 50's responses to it. 'I really dont understand why they want to drug women, if she cant remember how good it was the next morning. How do you connect?' he wrote. George Clooney is set to make his Broadway debut at age 63. The E.R. alum, 63, will play journalist Edward R. Murrow in the adaptation of his 2005 film Good Night, and Good Luck, which he also directed. In the film, David Strathairn played Murrow while Clooney portrayed the head of CBS, Fred Friendly. 'I am honored, after all these years, to be coming back to the stage and especially to Broadway, the art form and the venue that every actor aspires to,' the Out of Sight actor said in a statement, per People. Clooney will adapt the screenplay with Tony-winner David Cromer. The film was written by Clooney and Grant Heslov. George Clooney is set to make his Broadway debut at age 63. The E.R. alum, 63, will play journalist Edward R. Murrow in the adaptation of his 2005 film Good Night, and Good Luck, which he also directed The E.R. alum, 63, will play journalist Edward R. Murrow in the play 'Edward R. Murrow operated from a kind of moral clarity that feels vanishingly rare in today's media landscape,' Cromer said. 'There was an immediacy in those early live television broadcasts that today can only be effectively captured on stage, in front of a live audience,' he added. The New York Times described Murrow as: 'the pioneering newscaster whose storied broadcast career in the mid-20th century made him a journalism icon.' The play will be housed at a Shubert theater on the Great White Way that hasn't been announced yet. It is expected to start its run in 2025. The announcement comes after the Ocean's 11 actor celebrated his 63rd birthday in Italy. Clooney is shooting the Untitled Noah Baumbach film with Adam Sandler, 57. and fans gathered near the set of the film on his birthday to share good wishes. The Facts of Life actor replied to his fans in Italian saying, 'sono vecchio', which means 'I am old' in English. Plot details are still secret, but Deadline previously reported the movie was 'a funny and emotional coming-of-age film about adults.' In the film, David Strathairn played Murrow while Clooney portrayed Fred Friendly 'I am honored, after all these years, to be coming back to the stage and especially to Broadway, the art form and the venue that every actor aspires to,' the Out of Sight actor said in a statement, per People Clooney will adapt the screenplay withTony-winner David Cromer. The film was written by Clooney and Grant Heslov The announcement comes after the Ocean's 11 actor celebrated his 63rd birthday in Italy He celebrated his birthday on Monday, May 6 shooting hoops between takes with his co-star Sandler. Sandler and The Boys in the Boat director have never worked together before three-time Oscar nominee Noah Baumbach's untitled film, which is called Jay Kelly - according to World of Reel. 'Noah Baumbach's got an excellent kind of Jerry Maguire-esque, for lack of a better analogy, but a really great life-affirming movie with two big movie stars that's starting to come together,' former Netflix Films chairman Scott Stuber told Collider on November 11. 'So that'll be exciting,' he added. Kyle Sandilands has slammed co-host Jackie 'O' Henderson's taste in men after she was spotted rekindling her romance with an old flame last week. The shock jock, 52, told his Kyle and Jackie O Show co-host, 49, she was 'never going to be able to marry one of these soft, wet hankies that you're dating' during Tuesday morning's show. Kyle doubled down on his comments after Jackie insisted she's 'not dating'. 'You keep away from these cry babies... Crying on the floor every time something happens. No...' he said. 'I've never been with a guy like that,' protested Jackie. Kyle Sandilands has slammed co-host Jackie 'O' Henderson's taste in men after she was spotted rekindling her romance with an old flame last week. Jackie O pictured with Jack Tyerman 'They're all like that. I can tell by the photos. They're all wet hankies,' countered Kyle. The comments come just days after the radio titan was spotted catching up with her 'toy boy tradie' Jack Tyerman. On Thursday night, Henderson stepped out with the handsome hunk for a bite to eat in the inner city suburb of Waterloo. The genetically blessed pair looked at ease during the outing as they joined friends at the Korean BBQ hotspot Galbi, which is famed for its hot pots and noodle dishes. The shock jock, 52, told his Kyle and Jackie O Show co-host, 49, she was 'never going to be able to marry one of these soft, wet hankies that you're dating' during Tuesday morning's show. Pictured: Sandilands Jackie addressed the pair's relationship on Friday morning on KIIS FM's The Kyle and Jackie O show when her co-host Kyle Sandilands questioned her about the date. 'We went together to the restaurant and I didnt want to drive and told him to drive [my car],' she explained, adding that Jack lives close by. 'He is cute but no there is nothing going on... We went out with his sister and her husband. We were just catching up.' Kyle doubled down on his comments after Jackie insisted she's 'not dating' She also spoke about the relationship in August last year. While Jackie admitted she was 'dating' at the time, she said she and Jack were 'just friends'. 'No, Jack is not my boyfriend. We're not in a relationship. He is not my boy toy,' Jackie told her radio co-host Kyle. Jackie was married to British photographer Lee Henderson from 2003 to 2018. The former couple share custody of 12-year-old daughter Kitty. 'Jack is a good friend of mine. I know him through a friend of ours. We didn't meet on a dating app or anything like that.' The media personality went on to say she was ultimately 'to blame' for the romance rumours after she told Daily Mail Australia she was dating someone during a Logies interview. 'In my mind, I'm dating and I've been on a few dates, so I said "maybe" [I'm dating], but I probably should have said, "Maybe, we'll see what happens",' she confessed. Before meeting Lee, Jackie was briefly married to 'Ugly Phil' O'Neil (pictured) in the late '90s Not long after that, Jackie and Jack were seen enjoying what appeared to be a romantic moonlit date on the balcony of her Clovelly mansion. Sydney-based Jack, who stands at a lofty 6'1' and boasts more than 24,000 Instagram followers, has found success both in the construction and modelling industries. Jackie was married to British photographer Lee Henderson from 2003 to 2018. The former couple share custody of 12-year-old daughter Kitty. Lee has meanwhile moved on with jujitsu instructor Gabriella Motta. Before meeting Lee, Jackie was briefly married to 'Ugly Phil' O'Neil in the late '90s. Jono Castano was furious on Monday when an internet troll messaged an LGBTIQ+ support group from a fake account pretending to be him. The celebrity trainer shared a video to Instagram, explaining how the troll contacted the Rainbow Recovery group and told them they weren't welcome at his Acero Gym. 'I'm so f***ing angry that there are people out there writing this and pretending to be Acero gym and writing such a hateful message,' Jono, 33, said. 'Trying to bring a positive community down for absolutely no reason. I will find this person.' 'You do not do things like this. That's f***ed up. You don't do this. I'm an ally, I love the community,' he continued. Jono Castano was furious on Monday when an internet troll messaged an LGBTIQ+ support group from a fake account pretending to be him 'And this is the type of sh*t that happens when you're doing great things. You've got a positive community, you do so many good things and there's people out there that are hating. May advice is keeping smashing it and let them keep hating.' He also shared a photo of the cruel message, which read: 'Friendly reminder that we don't welcome you filthy f****ts near our facility.' 'We served high end customers with connections all over Australia. Remain far away so your disease doesn't make our gym filthy.' He also posted a photo of a message he received from a member of the community, informing him of the cruel email. 'I represent a community group in Surry Hills, a place where the LGBTIQ+ community can meet to discuss addiction. We just received this message from you,' they wrote. The celebrity trainer shared a video to his Instagram page, explaining how the troll contacted the Rainbow Recovery group and told them they weren't welcome at his Acero Gym It comes after Jono opened up about his new journey to fatherhood and confessed it came with a fair bit of anxiety. The celebrity personal trainer was in the delivery room when his model girlfriend Simone Holtznagel gave birth to their daughter Gia last month. 'I was super stressed seeing Sim in labour. I kept swearing,' he told this week's Stellar magazine. It comes after Jono opened up about his new journey to fatherhood and confessed it came with a fair bit of anxiety 'But once [Gia] came out, it was definitely a massive joy and even sitting here with her now, there is no stress of life. Everything else, I'm just like, "f*** it"'. Simone, 30, says the pair wept together once their daughter was in her arms. 'I cried, obviously we all cried. I knew it was going to be hard, but it was nothing like what you could ever prepare for, or at least I felt like that,' she said. 'It was just so overwhelming. It didn't feel real, it felt like a dream. I'm just so glad she's here'. Heidi Klum, Greta Gerwig and Juliette Binoche led the stars touching down in France on Monday, ahead of the 77th Cannes Film Festival kicking off. Heidi commanded attention in a racy black one shoulder gown which featured a daring mesh paneled thigh high split as she stepped out in the French Riviera. The model looked incredible in the number which she teamed with towering heels and chunky gold heels. She seemed in good spirits as she flashed her gorgeous smile while posing for waiting fans. Meanwhile Greta caught the eye as she showed off her amazing figure in a fitted brown sleeveless midi dress. Heidi Klum turns heads as she leads the stars touching down in France on Monday, ahead of the 77th Cannes Film Festival kicking off Greta Gerwig (L) and Juliette Binoche (R) were in high spirits as they stepped out in the French Riviera The director and actress added inches to her frame in a pair of white heels and carried her belongings around in a small matching Chanel handbag. Greta opted for a pair of dark sunglasses as she waved and posed for fans ahead of attending a dinner. Cutting a more low-key look, Juliette opted for a blue patterned shirt under a navy jumper and trousers as she touched down at Nice airport. She added a chic MiuMiu bomber jacket over the outfit and wore a pair of sunglasses and a matching hat. Carrying her belongings in a large black handbag, the French actress was all smiles as she waved to fans before climbing into a waiting car. Elsewhere Taylor Hill stunned in a white semi-sheer crochet dress which boasted ruffled layers and three-quarter sleeves. The former Victoria's Secret Angel added a pop of colour to the ensemble with a green Chanel handbag and added inches to her frame in a pair of woven wedges. Accessorising with simple drop earrings, the model seemed in good spirits as she exited a hotel with two pals. Heidi commanded attention in a racy black one shoulder gown which featured a daring mesh paneled thigh high split as she stepped out in the French Riviera The model looked incredible in the number which she teamed with towering heels and chunky gold heels She seemed in good spirits as she flashed her gorgeous smile while posing for waiting fans Meanwhile Greta caught the eye as she showed off her amazing figure in a fitted brown sleeveless midi dress The director and actress added inches to her frame in a pair of white heels and carried her belongings around in a small matching Chanel handbag Greta opted for a pair of dark sunglasses as she waved and posed for fans ahead of attending a dinner Cutting a more low-key look, Juliette opted for a blue patterned shirt under a navy jumper and trousers as she touched down at Nice airport She added a chic MiuMiu bomber jacket over the outfit and wore a pair of sunglasses and a matching hat Heidi wore a glamorous palette of makeup as she stepped out for dinner The stunner fixed her long blonde tresses Carrying her belongings in a large black handbag, the French actress was all smiles as she waved to fans before climbing into a waiting car Anya Taylor-Joy put on a leggy display in a dark denim button front mini skirt which she teamed with a chic white shirt. She kept comfortable in a pair of silver metallic shoes and wore a pair of eye catching sunglasses. Leaving her long blonde tresses loose, the actress added a pop of colour to the outfit by applying a bold red lipstick. Earlier in the day Anya made a statement in a mustard yellow dress as she touched down in France. The actress wowed in the chic strapless midi dress as she arrived in Nice airport ahead of the madness. Her much anticipated upcoming movie Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is set to premiere at the 77th Film Festival on Wednesday. And starting the week off strong, Anya stunned in an enormous straw hat to ensure she is covered from the sun. She teamed her look with stylish sunglasses and added contrast to her look with a pop of red lipstick. Anya exuded elegance in the French-chic ensemble, elevating her frame with gold high-heels. Meanwhile Eva Green looked cool as she tucked a black T-shirt, which featured a white lace corset on the front, into a pair of black rolled up jeans. Elsewhere Taylor Hill stunned in a white semi-sheer crochet dress which boasted ruffled layers and three-quarter sleeves The former Victoria's Secret Angel added a pop of colour to the ensemble with a green Chanel handbag and added inches to her frame in a pair of woven wedges Accessorising with simple drop earrings, the model seemed in good spirits as she exited a hotel with two pals Anya Taylor-Joy put on a leggy display in a dark denim button front mini skirt which she teamed with a chic white shirt She kept comfortable in a pair of silver metallic shoes and wore a pair of eye catching sunglasses Leaving her long blonde tresses loose, the actress added a pop of colour to the outfit by applying a bold red lipstick Meanwhile Eva Green looked cool as she tucked a black T-shirt, which featured a white lace corset on the front, into a pair of black rolled up jeans She elevated her frame in a pair of black satin heels and toted her belongings in a matching clutch Leaving her dark locks loose, the actress was in good spirits as she exited her hotel and headed to a dinner Eva looked stylish as she arrived at a dinner She elevated her frame in a pair of black satin heels and toted her belongings in a matching clutch. Leaving her dark locks loose, the actress was in good spirits as she exited her hotel and headed to a dinner. Hours earlier, Eva was swarmed by fans as she departed the airport in a faux-leather brown jacket. The French actress cut a casual display in black trousers and a plain T-shirt, teamed with trendy trainers. She attempted to keep a low profile in black-rimmed sunglasses, but was quickly spotted coming out the airport. French actress Lea Seydoux was also spotted at the airport as she arrived in a trendy ensemble. Anya has recently been in LA promoting her upcoming film Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, the fifth in the Mad Max series. Also starring is Chris Hemsworth and the two flew down Hollywood Boulevard in a chariot on Wednesday to promote the film. The actors were on their way to The Jimmy Kimmel Show and a masked man who looked straight out of the Mad Max universe drove the gold vehicle. Hours earlier Anya made a statement in a mustard yellow dress as she touched down in France The actress wowed in the chic strapless midi dress as she arrived in Nice airport ahead of the madness Her much anticipated upcoming movie Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is set to premiere at the 77th Film Festival on Wednesday She teamed her look with stylish sunglasses and added contrast to her look with a pop of red lipstick And starting the week off strong, Anya stunned in an enormous straw hat to ensure she is covered from the sun Anya exuded elegance in the French-chic ensemble, elevating her frame with gold high-heels Meanwhile, Eva was swarmed by fans as she departed the airport in a faux-leather brown jacket earlier in the day The French actress cut a casual display in black trousers and a plain T-shirt, teamed with trendy trainers She attempted to keep a low profile in black-rimmed sunglasses, but was quickly spotted coming out the airport French actress Lea Seydoux was also spotted at the airport as she arrived in a trendy ensemble Anya has been in LA promoting her upcoming film Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, the fifth in the Mad Max series also starring Chris Hemsworth In order to achieve the spectacle, parts of Hollywood Boulevard were shut down to allow for Anya and Chris' grand entrance. While the full reviews won't be in until closer to the May 24 release date, early reactions to Furiosa from a wide swath of film critics is quite strong. The new film from director George Miller is a prequel to his lauded 2015 blockbuster Mad Max: Fury Road, providing an origin story for the title character, played by Charlize Theron in the previous film. Anya takes over as the younger Furiosa, which is set between 15 and 20 years before the events of Mad Max: Fury Road. She revealed to Variety earlier in the month the surprising request that director George regularly made as they shot the film. Anya explained: 'We'd do takes where he'd be like, "Do it again with your mouth closed." He has a thing about my mouth. He thinks when my mouth is open, I look too young.' Sophie Monk may reportedly replace Hamish Blake as the host of Lego Masters Australia as he is said to be considering an exciting new opportunity. Comedian Hamish, 42, has been helming the LEGO building competition ever since its 2018 launch, and has become a firm fan favourite. However, it has been claimed that Hamish is considering moving on in a huge shake-up and is now being considered by Channel Nine for a brand new quiz show. Nine have reportedly secured the Aussie rights for US quiz show The Floor, hosted stateside by Rob Lowe, and are said to be lining up Hamish to front the series. Love Island host Sophie, 44, could step in to replace Hamish as the host of hit show Lego Masters if he secures the exciting new hosting gig, according to Woman's Day. Sophie Monk may reportedly replace Hamish Blake as the host of Lego Masters Australia as he is said to be considering an exciting new opportunity An insider told the publication: 'Sophie Monk is in prime position to front Lego - they used her a lot more this year and many believe it was a ploy to see how she would go without Hamish driving it. 'Hamish has made it clear that if they want him to host The Floor he will not consider taking on two big shows - he wouldn't do that to his young family.' Nine have denied the reports. Hamish shares two children - a son Sonny, 10, and a daughter Rudy, seven - with his wife Zoe Foster, 42. Daily Mail Australia has contacted Sophie and Hamish's representatives for comment. Sophie has made a string of appearances on the 2024 series of Lego Masters as a special guest, offering the teams advice and assisting host Hamish. Comedian Hamish, 42, has been helming the LEGO building competition since its 2018 launch, but is now reportedly being considered to host an Aussie version of quiz show The Floor Sophie is a big fan of Lego herself and even told a recent issue of Woman's Day that while expensive, her hobby is fruitful. 'Buying Lego is actually an investment because they sell for crazy amounts, so it's one of my better financial decisions, I think,' she said. She explained how building Lego sets helps her in coping with her ADHD (Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder) symptoms. 'It is because it keeps you busy with your hands and because you're creating a little world - you can really focus,' she added. There may have been a lot of trouble down the road, but autonomous taxis are starting to expand their operations across cities. Waymo, in particular, is already seeing a significant increase in the number of successful trips it makes in a week. Waymo's Increasing Number of Completed Trips The Google-backed company has been branching out with its operations for a while now, and it has already started testing its vehicles in Atlantal. With cities like San Francisco, Phoenix, and Los Angeles having active Waymo robotaxis, business for the company is booming. Waymo just announced that it is now completing over 50,000 trips per week, which cover three major cities. That's a huge achievement for the robotaxi industry considering the number of issues it has seen in the past such as accidents and inconveniences. "We see people from all walks of life use our service to travel carefree, gain independence, reclaim their commute and more," the company said. "Fully autonomous ride-hailing is a reality and a preferred mobility option for people navigating their cities every day." That's not to say that Waymo has not contributed to the number of reported autonomous ride-hailing incidents in the last few years. Since it is technically still being improved, there are bound to be a few hiccups before it operates with little to no issues. As mentioned in Digital Trends, several of its robotaxis were involved in an incident last month where the vehicles blocked access to a freeway on-ramp. Employees had to manually drive the cars out of the way to resolve the situation. The disruption in traffic lasted for about 30 minutes. For some, that amount of time is more than long enough to cause hassles like being late for work or missing an important meeting, so it goes without saying that some are not too happy about autonomous taxis. Unfortunately, disrupting traffic is not the worst thing that driverless taxis have caused. In other cases such as GM's Cruise, there have been incidents that caused severe injuries, such as the woman who was thrown in the way of the taxi and was dragged for a couple of meters. Read Also : Autonomous Waymo Car Vandalized, Set on Fire in San Francisco Waymo Recalled Its Software for Crashing Into a Truck Like all innovations, there are things that need to be improved before a product or a service is deemed 100% functional. In December last year, two Waymo cars hit the same truck, which resulted in the company having to recall the software. Waymo Chief Safety Officer Mauricio Pena said that the crashes did not cause any harm and were minor, as per Tech Crunch. Still, the company is required to check the software and make some changes to make sure it doesn't happen again. The ride-hailing service also reported the incidents to the Phoenix Police Department and the Arizona Department of Public Safety, as well as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration a few days after the incident. However, two Waymo vehicles hitting the same truck was not the last situation the company was involved in. It was also reported that a Waymo robotaxi hit a cyclist just three months ago. People aren't too happy about the service seeing as one vehicle was severely vandalized in San Francisco. MasterChef Australia star Juan De La Cruz Torales Villarreal has been exposed for already being a reality television veteran. The board game designer, 39, was interrogated by judges on Sunday night's episode when he served up Asado Argentino to save himself from elimination. It was promptly revealed the aspiring chef was a contestant on the Argentinian version of Popstars when he was just 17-years-old. 'I heard a rumour that you used to be a popstar,' judge Poh Ling Yeow said after Juan explained the dish he served up with a side of domino potatoes. 'Many ages ago. When I was 17 I was part of the reality show Popstars,' Juan explained. MasterChef Australia star Juan De La Cruz Torales Villarreal, 39, (pictured) was exposed for already being a reality television veteran on Sunday night when he was up for elimination Food writer Sofia Levin added: 'I cannot wait to Google you.' Channel Ten later shared a throwback photo of Juan to the MasterChef Australia Instagram page, which showed him as a teenager. During his appearance on the reality television franchise Popstars, Juan rocked a much longer haircut and donned aviator sunglasses popular in the early 2000s. It was promptly revealed the aspiring chef was a contestant on the Argentinian version of Popstars when he was just 17-years-old Wearing a pair of dog tags around his neck in the photo, the cook flashed his usual infectious smile. Thankfully, Juan's Asado Argentino dish and Popstar history saved him from elimination, as nurse-turned-home cook Lily Davies was sent home instead. The 30-year-old was the fifth contestant eliminated so far during this season, along with Khristian Walker and Jonathan Hooper who left last week. 'Many ages ago. When I was 17 I was part of the reality show Popstars,' Juan explained. Channel Ten later shared a throwback photo of Juan to the MasterChef Australia Instagram page Steph Griffen was sent home the week before, and James Holmes was the first of the series to be eliminated just days earlier. Season 16 saw a shake-up among the judges this year as several new judges were brought in to replace Melissa Leong and Jock Zonfrillo after his death last year. Andy Allen returned to the Channel Ten cooking show alongside some new faces on the panel lineup, including former contestant 50-year-old Poh. They are joined by Melbourne-based food critic Sofia, 34, and French celebrity chef Jean-Christophe Novelli. Taylor Swift has plans for 'Female Rage: The Musical' - the nickname she coined for the newly-added section of her Eras Tour devoted to her 11th studio album Tortured Poets Department. The 34-year-old pop star officially filed a trademark application for 'Female Rage: The Musical' last week through her limited liability company, TAS Rights Management - according to TMZ. Taylor will likely parlay FRTM into possible future musical recordings, video recordings, merchandise, or perhaps a full-blown musical adaptation as some muse on Reddit. Swift brought up the moniker in her Instagram post Sunday thanking 'everyone who made these memories so magical. To my crew, fellow performers, and band who worked tirelessly in their break to concoct this surprise for you' in Paris. The 14-time Grammy winner added seven brand new songs - rumored to be inspired by her two-month fling with 1975 frontman Matty Healy - as well as costume changes, choreography, a Hollywood sign backdrop, and a large UFO set piece to freshen up the long-running tour. Taylor Swift has plans for 'Female Rage: The Musical' - the nickname she coined for the newly-added section of her Eras Tour devoted to her 11th studio album Tortured Poets Department Taylor is next scheduled to bring her $1.039B-grossing, 152-date The Eras Tour to Sweden's Friends Arena in Stockholm this Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. 'I'm so fired up to play this for every crowd on the tour,' Swift - who boasts 551M social media followers - gushed. 'See you very soon, Stockholm!' The Emmy-winning producer has just two more archival albums (Taylor Swift and Reputation) to re-record after losing the rights to the first six of her master recordings by her underhanded ex-manager Scooter Braun. On the personal front, Taylor and three-time Super Bowl champion Travis Kelce will celebrate their first anniversary of dating this July. Swift's former Eras Tour opener Gracie Abrams announced Monday that she will appear as a featured artist on her new song Us off her debut studio album dropping June 21. 'All I can tell you for now is that some of the most fun I've ever had in my whole entire life was writing this song together,' the 24-year-old Grammy nominee - who's J.J. Abrams' nepo-baby - gushed via Instastory. 'Hands down. I am currently smiling and sweating thinking about it and I'll never get over the shock of seeing this one on the track list. You know how I feel.' The 34-year-old pop star officially filed a trademark application for 'Female Rage: The Musical' last week through her limited liability company, TAS Rights Management Taylor will likely parlay FRTM into possible future musical recordings, video recordings, merchandise, or perhaps a full-blown musical adaptation as some muse on Reddit Swift brought up the moniker in her Instagram post Sunday thanking 'everyone who made these memories so magical. To my crew, fellow performers, and band who worked tirelessly in their break to concoct this surprise for you' in Paris The 14-time Grammy winner added seven brand new songs - rumored to be inspired by her two-month fling with 1975 frontman Matty Healy - as well as costume changes, choreography, a Hollywood sign backdrop, and a large UFO set piece to freshen up the long-running tour Taylor is next scheduled to bring her $1.039B-grossing, 152-date The Eras Tour to Sweden's Friends Arena in Stockholm this Friday, Saturday, and Sunday Swift's former Eras Tour opener Gracie Abrams announced Monday that she will appear as a featured artist on her new song Us off her debut studio album dropping June 21 The price increases do not include the state's existing hefty gas tax An emissions reduction program is forecasted to increase already soaring gas costs by as much as 50 cents per gallon in the next two years in one Democrat-led state. The California Air Resources Board Low Carbon Fuel Standard 2023 amendments impact assessment released in September found the proposed reforms would raise costs that drivers would feel at the pump. Gas prices are estimated to rise by 47 cents per gallon in 2025 and 52 cents in 2026, not including the existing gas tax in the state. They estimated diesel prices could increase by 59 cents per gallon in 2025 and 66 cents in 2026. From 2031 to 2046 the report found gasoline prices could increase by $1.15 per gallon and diesel by $1.50 per gallon. 'No one knows about this. I think people just think it's a tax, so they don't know the difference between the carbon tax versus the state tax. It's almost like a tax on the tax,' California state Senator Janet Nguyen told Fox News Digital. The California Air Resources Board Low Carbon Fuel Standard 2023 amendments impact assessment found the proposed reforms would raise costs that drivers would feel at the pump 'The middle class, the low income, they can't afford gas to go to school, work or grocery or the doctor's office.' The board backtracked on the increase projections calling them 'incomplete' in a December staff letter. The Low Carbon Fuel Standard was created in 2007 by former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to reduce the state's carbon emissions. Currently, the California Air Resources Board is amending the program to align with its plan to reach carbon neutrality by 2045, reported The Sacramento Bee. The board indefinitely postponed a March vote on the proposal. California Republicans have urged Governor Gavin Newsom to suspend the state's gas tax as prices continue to surge. AAA data shows the average cost per gallon in California was $5.286 on Monday, compared to a national average of $3.619. California's gas tax is currently $0.58 per gallon, the highest in the country. But motorists then pay around $0.42 more per gallon towards the state's environmental initiatives, plus added federal tax. Newsom has blamed the huge additional cost to California's drivers on oil companies profiteering. But critics say the state's high tax rate, issues with refineries and environmental taxes are also causing the spike. Soaring gas prices skyrocketed to a whopping $7.29 per gallon in some parts of California in April - which is above the current national hourly minimum wage. While the average price for a gallon of gas varies from state to state - drivers in a certain Silicon Valley town are facing particularly extortionate rates that set them back almost $150 for a full tank. The Chevron gas station in Menlo Park was exposed on April 21 by a bewildered customer who posted on X that the price per gallon was four cents 'above the federal hourly minimum wage.' The federal minimum wage is currently $7.25, while in California it was set to $16 at the beginning of the year. Fast food workers were given a bump to $20 in April. Major US airlines are suing transportation officials over a new rule requiring upfront disclosure of added fees. American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, JetBlue Airways, Hawaiian Airlines and Alaska Airlines filed suit in the US Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals late Friday. This follows the issuance of US Transportation Department's final rules in April requiring airlines and ticket agents to disclose service fees alongside the airfare, saying it would help consumers avoid unneeded or unexpected fees. The department said consumers will save as much as $543 million annually if they are made aware of excess airline fees, which include charges for baggage, picking a seat and changing and cancelling flights. Airlines for Americam, the group that represets the carriers, said the department's rule will confuse consumers and its 'attempt to regulate private business operations in a thriving marketplace is beyond its authority.' Fees for baggage from the biggest gloabal airlines is on the rise All major airlines in the US charge for baggage, indcluding Delta. American Airlines is one of the major airlines to sue One of the biggest fees - and biggest earners for airlines - are baggage fees. A report earlier this year revealed the biggest 20 non-low cost carriers pocketed a staggering $33.3 billion from just baggage fees last year - a sharp 15 percent rise from $29 billion in 2022. Another added charge that annoys Americans is a fee for picking a seat. It is not uncommon to have to pay $20 to $50 to pick seats. USDOT said fees for baggage or flight changes 'must be individually disclosed the first time that fare and schedule information is provided on the airline's online platform - and cannot be displayed through a hyperlink.' The rule requires airlines to inform consumers that seats are guaranteed and that they are not required to pay extra. Airlines must provide the following notice: 'A seat is included in your fare. You are not required to purchase a seat assignment to travel.' Transportation offical said the rule will also end 'bait-and-switch tactics some airlines use to disguise the true cost of discounted flights.' It means airlines are banned from advertising a cheap promotional fare 'that does not include all mandatory carrier-imposed fees.' The airlines' lawsuit calls the rule 'arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion and otherwise contrary to law.' USDOT did not immediately comment. The airline group said the 'rule is a bad solution in search of a problem.' The rules on added fees are part of a wider crackdown on airlines. Carriers will also be forced to offer cash refunds for delayed or cancelled flights without customers having to ask. The new plans, which have been nearly three years in the works, will require airlines to provide automatic refunds within a few days of a flight being cancelled or a 'significant' delay. In a major change for consumers, the regulations will classify a 'significant' delay as lasting at least three hours for domestic flights and six hours for international routes. Under current rules, airlines can set their own standards for what kind of flight change warrants a refund - giving them much more wiggle room. The changes aim to cut out the often-long and frustrating process customers are forced to go through to get a refund, which can involve waiting hours on the phone or filing out 'cumbersome' digital paperwork. Armenian police announced that 151 demonstrators were arrested on Monday, May 13, in the capital, Yerevan, as they protested against the governments decision to cede land to neighboring and arch-rival Azerbaijan as part of peace talks. Earlier, the police had mentioned 88 initial arrests for refusal to comply. According to the same source, no street in Yerevan is currently blocked. Armenia, a country in the Caucasus, has been shaken for several weeks by rallies of this type, with the leader of this movement demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian. The latter agreed to hand over to its neighbor four areas surrounding border villages in the Tavouch region, which Yerevans forces had seized after the first war in Nagorno-Karabakh (1988-1994), which had forced their inhabitants Azerbaijanis to flee. This border region is of strategic interest for Armenia, notably due to the passage of the road axis with Georgia and a Russian gas pipeline. Fears of a new war Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliev assured at the end of April that a peace agreement with Armenia was closer than ever. But fears of a new war remain very strong, fueled by the armed clashes which regularly break out at the border. Nikol Pashinian believes that compromises with Baku are necessary to avoid a new conflagration. Especially since Armenia, in a weak position, can no longer count on help from Russia, its traditional ally, which remained passive during the Azerbaijani offensive in September 2023 in Nagorno-Karabakh and is now considered as having betrayed. In more than thirty years, Armenia and Azerbaijan have fought three wars for control of the disputed enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh, which Armenians consider the cradle of their homeland. After its victory in the first war, Yerevan suffered a crushing defeat in the second, in the fall of 2020. The last, which occurred at the end of Bakus lightning offensive in September 2023, led to the loss of Nagorno-Karabakh and the forced exodus of the approximately 120,000 Armenians who lived there. Democratic spectacle owes its strength and boldness to a series of landmark legal judgments that have fortified its foundations Democratic spectacle owes its strength and boldness to a series of landmark legal judgments that have fortified its foundations Elections, serving as the cornerstone of democracy, offer a platform for citizens to voice their opinions, hold leaders accountable, and actively engage in shaping the future of their nation. In India, elections transcend mere political proceedings; they evolve into grand festivals, embodying the collective will and aspirations of over a billion people. India's electoral odyssey, marked by its vast scale, diversity, and intricacy, has been fortified by a series of seminal legal rulings. These decisions have been instrumental in shaping and reinforcing the democratic framework of India, ensuring fairness, transparency, and inclusivity in the electoral process. Among the plethora of cases that demonstrate the resilience of the legal system, five stand out as pillars that have fortified India's electoral journey. Fundamental Right to Vote: At the core of India's electoral democracy lies the fundamental right to vote, enshrined in the Constitution. Over time, the judiciary has steadfastly upheld and safeguarded this right through various legal pronouncements. In the landmark 1977 case of Mohinder Singh Gill v. The Chief Election Commissioner, the Supreme Court of India unequivocally affirmed that the right to vote is sacrosanct and any arbitrary deprivation of this right is unconstitutional. The crux of this case revolved around assessing the constitutional validity of electoral laws that might encroach upon the fundamental right to vote. Electoral Reforms and Transparency: Ensuring transparency and accountability in the electoral process has been an ongoing endeavour, guided by judicial interventions aimed at curbing malpractices and fostering electoral integrity. The 2002 case of Association for Democratic Reforms v. Union of India marked a significant milestone in this journey. This case presented the challenge of reconciling the right to privacy of political candidates with the public's right to information, necessitating a delicate balance between transparency in electoral processes and individual privacy rights. Inclusive Representation and Minority Rights: The diverse social fabric of India underscores the necessity for inclusive representation and safeguarding minority rights in the electoral arena. Legal judgments have played a pivotal role in upholding these principles and ensuring equitable participation for all segments of society. The 1991 case of Indra Sawhney v. Union of India, commonly known as the Mandal Commission case, stands as a testament to this commitment. This case grappled with the challenge of affirmative action and reservation policies, striking a balance between equitable representation of marginalised communities and the principles of meritocracy enshrined in the Indian Constitution. The landmark judgment underscored the commitment to inclusive representation, empowering marginalised communities and fostering social justice in the electoral process. Effective Electoral Disputes Resolution: Efficient resolution of electoral disputes is indispensable for upholding the sanctity of elections and fostering public trust in the democratic process. This judgment bolstered the credibility of the electoral process, ensuring expeditious and impartial resolution of disputes. Safeguarding Electoral Rights and Freedoms: Preserving electoral rights and freedoms is paramount for the integrity of the electoral process. Legal judgments have been instrumental in protecting these rights and holding authorities accountable for any infringements. The 2015 case of Mohd. Sattar v. State of Rajasthan serves as a poignant example.The judgment reaffirmed the principle of universal suffrage, ensuring that every citizen's voice is heard. (The writer is corporate and legal advisor and founder of AU Corporate Advisory and Legal Services; views are personal) The stigmatisation of Kumari Matas in the Kolam tribe highlights their struggle for social acceptance and economic empowerment Kolam, a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG) of the Dravidian race is known for its unique culture, language, indigenous knowledge and matrilineal society. They reside predominantly in theYavatmal, Chandrapur, some parts of Amravati, Wardha and Nanded districts of Maharashtra and in some parts of Adilabad of Telangana. They have historical roots in Andhra Pradesh and later migrated to the regions of Vidarbha and Marathwada. This Proto- Australoid tribe is often highlighted for its unwed mothers. As per the reports of The Indian Express, there are at least 45 registered unwed mothers and over 450 unregistered unwed mothers only in the three blocks named Maregaon, Pandarkawada and JhariJamini of Yavatmal. Being a matriarchal society, the Kolams of Yavatmalhave always celebrated womanhood. They celebrate the first mensuration of girls; they worship Gabhuri, the mother Goddess as their main deity to uphold their matriarchal societal roots. However, the situation is changing. Though the unwed mothers have been renamed as the KumariMaata due to their assimilation with mainstream society yet due to their rising inclination towards the male-dominated society, patriarchal tenets are growing in these traditions. Therefore, the position of women is also declining consequently and those unwed mothers who used to live a normal life previously are now considered Bad character women. There are various case studies and stories of women of the Kolam tribe where the elite in the society or financially stronger like contractors, outsiders visit the areas for work purposes, establish physical interactions with the women in their communities and refuse to marry them when they are expecting a child. Women are frequently conned by marriage promises because they are socially, emotionally and economically vulnerable. The woman is held liable for the premarital pregnancy, whereas the responsible males are excluded from this process. Most of these Kolam women work as agricultural labourers, construction labourers and other low-wage activities due to which it becomes very easy for the traders and other outsiders to abuse them physically. For example, according to Deshpande (2016) border districts of Maharashtra, such as Chandrapur, Gadchiroli, Bhandara, Buldhana, Amravati, Nagpur and Gondia too have unwed mothers, the numbers in Yavatmal are higher because of its proximity to the chilli fields of Telangana, where work (for the poor) is available throughout the year. A number of unwed mothers say they were lured by neighbouring states men who promise marriage but left when they became pregnant. Some of them get pregnant while being a minor whereas others are due to their backwardness. Though in most tribal societies, giving birth to a child is a biological phenomenon and hence considered pious but yet due to the assimilation with the conventional societies they are also recognizing childbirth as a structural process where the consent of society, kin and kith is necessary. These structural changes are pushing unwed mothers toward various other socio-cultural and economic problems. The most important among these is that unwed mothers are not accepted within the community nor do they find any other groom, as they are considered obscene. As a result, for the entire period of life, they serve as a single mother due to which the pressure of childbearing increases among them. The problems are more serious as being unwed mothers they often face disgrace in the newly constructed norms of patriarchal society. Sometimes they need to leave the village and stay in the outskirts whereas in many cases the other women are not allowed to talk to them or join them for any occasion, as they are believed to be malignant due to their pre-marital physical relations. The consequences are economic and occupational also. As a daily wage labourer, their leisure time is very little but being single mothers they need breaks for breastfeeding and childcare due to which they face pay cuts. Sometimes they need to pay a fine to the panchayats also for their misconduct. These unknown pregnancies among the women of Kolam are a crucial issue. These indicate the lack of awareness about contraceptive measures, education, economic weakness and social vulnerability that often attract these women to fake marriage conversations and other luring proposals. As per the report of Sant Gadge Baba Amravati University (2018-2019) in Yavatmal, 28.84 per cent Kumari Matas are in the age range of 26 to 30 years.36 per centKumariMatas having education up to Fourth standard, 67.30 per cent Kumari Matas are belonging to Kolam caste, 82.69 per cent are homeless. 51.09 per cent are pregnant due to outsiders, 82.07 per cent children of Kumari Matas are admitted in the school by furnishing the name of mother only, 92.30 per cent had delivery at home,61.63 per cent getting help from Government schemes. The subject is more critical as many of them are uncounted because most of them do not come forward to speak due to socio-cultural stigma and thus their stories remain untold. This has again a negative impact on them as their complete family details are not mentioned in the Government records like ration cards, Aadhar cards, etc. which deprives them of getting the benefits of many Government schemes that can make their life easier. As per the report of Pune Times Mirror, a survey of such victims is conducted every year by a woman and child development (WCD) officer with the help of Anganwadi workers and a junior protection officer at the taluka level. Further, the Anganwadi workers help these unwed mothers by teaching them the methods of nutrition and hygiene. The Bombay High Court has already directed the state to the need for the rehabilitation of young unwed mothers among the Kolam tribe. The Government of Kerala is also running a similar kind of scheme called Snehasparsham which offers unwed mothers ?1000/- per month to lessen the financial burden of these economically vulnerable unwed mothers. The need of the hour is to initiate some projects and schemes for them so the Kumari Matas of Yavatmala can be included in the parameters of Government benefits at a large scale. The infrastructural facilities like schools and primary health care centres, are the basic needs of these regions. Endeavours should also be taken to open basic schools and training centres for vocational courses like sewing, beautician, etc. The awareness about Self- Self-help groups can make them financially independent through various micro-level businesses like horticulture, bee-keeping, jelly-making etc. Further, documentation of unwed mothers can give them a social identity and make them live a life of dignity and self-respect. (The writer is Vice Chancellor, Central Tribal University of Andhra Pradesh; views are personal) Misinformation and false narratives are being created about Indian democracy in the West in the middle of an election cycle, a prominent Indian-American community leader has said, asserting that India cannot be deterred by the criticism of some people with the colonial mentality. Referring to the number of news articles and commentaries appearing in the Western press, including that of the US, raising questions about democracy, freedom of expression, and human rights in India, Chicago-based Dr Bharat Barai said: Think of it. People (in India) have been abusing Narendra Modi and so many people. If there was no democracy, if there was dictatorship, how would they be able to do it? "How the election has passed peacefully and more people have exercised their franchise, almost 66 per cent, in India than even in the USA. How can you say that democracy does not work? Dr Barai, a leading oncologist, questioned the critics of Indian democracy. He said that a section of the people is spreading misinformation and creating false narratives about India. I think there is a total misinformation, total false narrative, whether it is deliberate or because of poor information or misinformation, he said in response to a question while asserting that India has a very vibrant democracy. My feeling is that some of the people in the West still have a colonial mentality. They still think that they are the supreme judges of the world. They are the ones who are going to judge what happens in any other country in the world, and they are going to be the Ayatullah (important leader) who will give the ultimate word, Dr Barai, also a prominent leader of the Hindu American community, told PTI in an interview on Sunday. But this is a different India. India has progressed a lot in the last 10 years. It has become the fifth-largest economy in the world. It is also progressing militarily. It is staying truly non-aligned, he said. "It (India) is friends with the USA, with the UK, Australia, and Germany. But it is also friends with Russia. So, India cannot be deterred by this kind of criticism, he said. Fortunately, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has a fairly confident and fairly strong personality to ward off all this kind of unnecessary, unwarranted advice," he said. Barai also hit out at Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for not taking action against Sikh separatists who are openly planning and supporting violence inside India and Indian leaders. "There are guys like (Gurpatwant Singh) Pannun who openly give threats that they are going to put a bomb, they're going to blow up the airliner telling Hindus to get out of Canada. Nothing happens to them. What kind of law and order Mr Trudeau is talking about when not one person has been arrested," he said. The Khalistan problem is only in Canada, maybe a little bit in the US, he said. "If the US government wants to give them a piece of land, let them be happy. After all, they're foreign citizens. They're either citizens of the US or citizens of Canada. What right do they have to interfere in what is happening in India? Dr Barai said. If they want a separate land for them, let (Canadian Prime Minister Justin) Trudeau give it to them. If the US thinks that that's a good idea (let them do so)we are standing right in front of Abraham Lincoln (memorial in Washington DC). What did he do when the South (US) wanted to secede? We had a civil war. In Washington DC, he is being celebrated as the father of the nation, he said. This (Khalistan) is not a problem of India. Indian Sikhs don't want to have anything to do with it. It is the foreign-born or foreign-living Sikhs and only a very tiny fraction of them, Dr Barai said. Stray incidents of violence marked the fourth-phase polling in West Bengals eight constituencies that went to the polls on Monday, with a little more than 75 per cent voter turnout reported by the Election Commission of India. The EC said the polling percentage could increase by a few percentage points in the final count. While Behrampore from where Pradesh Congress president Adhir Chowdhury is contesting against TMCs Yusuf Pathan Krishnagar, Ranaghat and Burdwan East was comparatively peaceful with a couple of incidents of stick-fighting being recorded from Krishnagar. Some areas of Burdwan-Durgapur seat from where former BJP State president Dilip Ghosh is contesting against TMCs Kirti Azad witnessed sporadic violence, sources said. A Trinamool Congress supporter at Monteshwar in Burrdwan-Durgapur seat was hurt after he was allegedly beaten up by the Central forces guarding the booth. A similar incident took place at Burdwan city when Ghosh rushed to a polling booth hearing that the booth had been blocked by the TMC men. After he was returning from the area, local TMC workers resorted to brick-batting. In the melee the back windshield of one of the vehicles in his convoy got smashed and a CAPF jawan sustained injuries, sources said. He was rushed to the hospital. The TMC goons do it every year they capture booths and chase away voters they do not allow people to vote year after year as they are being stopped from doing so this year they are getting hostile, Ghosh said. At Tehatta in Krishnagar, the BJP men fought with their TMC counterparts with bamboos, in which several saffron workers were injured. Elsewhere a CPI(M) worker got a fractured forehead in a clash with TMC men, sources said. Reports from Palashi Para surfaced of defective EVMs where every vote pressed for the TMC was reportedly going to the BJP, sources said. Subsequently the machine was changed but 255 votes that had already been polled would be counted, ECI sources said. A total of 1,45,30,017 voters were eligible to exercise their franchise in 15,507 polling stations. A total of 75.66 per cent voters exercised their franchise till 5 pm. According to latest reports while Bolpur Lok Sabha constituency registered 77.77 per cent, neighbouring Birbhum saw 75.45 per cent voter turnout. This was followed by Ranaghat with 77.46 per cent and neighbouring Krishnagar 77.29 per cent voters casting their votes. While 77.36 per cent voters exercised their franchise at Bardhaman- East, Baharampur from where Chowdhury is contesting witnessed 75.36 per cent polling. Asansol from where Shatrughan Sinha is contesting against SS Ahluwalia witnessed a surprisingly low 69.43 per cent polling. Even as a comparatively low turnout of voters tended to keep all sides guessing experts said things could hurt the Trinamool Congress the most. While in 2019 and 2021 elections the polling was around 82 per cent in panchayat elections, Bengal saw 85 per cent polling of which at least 8-10 per cent was bogus now this is the real percentage and the TMC will have to face it, said PCC leader Ashutosh adding, TMC knows what they will face now. Meanwhile, in a related development Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying his guarantees were all acts of 420 (cheating) and asked him first to fulfill his earlier promises. Modi is giving guarantees after guarantees, but the question is what about the promises that he made in the past 10 years Did anyone of you get Rs 15 lakh in your accounts that he promised did he provide yearly 2 crore and in total 20 crore jobs Is he giving free gas, free ration and free water which he claims we are giving free ration and he is taking the credit he promised free gas but has increased its price so all his guarantees are acts of 420, said Mamata, adding the BJP is going out of power this time round the people have understood this and are voting without fear. She, however, raised the EVM issue once again saying how some machines had been tampered with. Today also I got a report that people are pressing TMCs symbol and the vote is going to the BJP this is the BJP is planning to win the elections, she said adding they will be defeated in any case. Another Boeing 737 passenger plane had to make an emergency landing last week just minutes after it took flight. United Airlines Flight 166 declared an emergency landing back to Fukuoka Airport, Japan, last Friday after noticing an "irregularity in a wing flap" 30 minutes after takeoff, Kyodo News reported. The flight, originally set for Guam, reported no passengers were injured during the emergency landing. The incident in Japan was days after two more accidents involving the 737 aircraft were reported in Senegal and Turkey. At least 11 passengers were reportedly injured in the Senegal flight after the B737-300 plane skidded off the runway just before takeoff. Before the two flights, a 737-800 passenger jet under Southwest Airlines returned to Denver minutes after takeoff after one of its engine panels was removed during the flight. This was after Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 also declared an emergency landing back in January after one of its plug panels blew out midflight, prompting the series of investigations launched against the embattled company. Flight 1282 operated on a Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft. Boeing 737 Under Regulatory Scrutiny Amid Increased Flight Accidents Following the series of incidents revolving around its 737 planes, Boeing is receiving more attention from regulators and media regarding the safety of its vehicles. The Federal Aviation Agency has already reported dozens of production issues with Boeing 737 MAX. The agency noted "multiple instances" that the aerospace company and its manufacturer Spirit Aerosystems failed to comply with safety and quality-control conditions in building the planes. Now, another FAA investigation is being launched after the company admitted to its employees falsifying inspection records of its 787 Dreamliner jets. Also Read : Boeing 737 Max Infested with Production Issues, FAA Audit Reports Boeing Could Face Criminal Charges Over 737 Incidents Regulatory scrutiny is not the only problem Boeing is currently facing from the 737-linked incidents. The US Department of Justice has earlier opened a criminal investigation regarding the Alaska Airlines accident. This is in addition to reports of the Federal Bureau of Investigation telling Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 passengers that they could be "victims of crime." It can be remembered that Boeing promised to improve the production safety of its planes following the two reported 737 MAX crashes in 2019 and 2020 that resulted in 346 passengers' deaths. Amid the fiasco, Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun has announced his resignation as chief executive by the end of this year. The intense voters awareness programmes for increasing the turnout remained futile as the phase four general elections on Monday saw the average plummeting to over 63 per cent till 8.30 pm on Monday. The voter turnout in the first three phases was 66.14 per cent, 66.71 per cent and 65.68 per cent, respectively. Interestingly the good news came in from Jammu and Kashmir which saw voting after abrogation of Article 370. Srinagar recorded 36.88 per cent voter average. This figure is higher than Srinagars turnout in 2019 when it saw a turnout of 14.43 per cent. The figures for 2014, 2009, 2004 and 1999 are 25.86 per cent, 25.55 per cent, 18.57 per cent and 11.93 per cent respectively. Elections were held in 96 constituencies spread over 10 States and UTs amid incidents of violence between Trinamool Congress and BJP workers in West Bengal, while YSRCP and TDP cadres came to blows at multiple locations in Andhra Pradesh as well as reports of poll boycott in some Uttar Pradesh villages. Besides, there were also reports of EVMs malfunctioning at some booths in West Bengal and Odisha. This schedule was a critical round for the Congress and not much for the BJP. According to the Election Commission, polling was held smoothly and peacefully. With the fourth phase, the polling for the 379 out of 543 parliamentary constituencies has been completed. Interestingly, amid the Congress demand to vote for NOTA, voter turnout in Indore was recorded 56.53 per cent, lowest in Madhya Pradesh where the Congress nominated candidate withdrew from the polls. West Bengal witnessed over 76.02 per cent turnout, the highest among all States polling. Among other States, Andhra Pradesh recorded 68.16 per cent polling, Bihar 55.92 per cent, Jharkhand 63.50 per cent, Madhya Pradesh 68.90 per cent, Maharashtra 52.93per cent, Odisha 63.85 per cent, Telangana 61.54 per cent and Uttar Pradesh 58 per cent. In Telangana, Hyderabad which is considered a stronghold of Asaduddin Owaisi, witnessed 39.17 per cent polling which is lowest in the State. In Bengal, where violence marred previous rounds of voting, a Trinamool Congress worker was killed in a crude bomb attack. The incident took place in the Bolpur Lok Sabha constituency, mere hours before polling was scheduled to begin. Amid claims of West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer that voting has been peaceful so far, clashes broke out between supporters of TMC and BJP in Monteswars Susunia area of Bardhaman-Durgapur Lok Sabha seat around noon, as BJP candidate Dilip Ghosh was on his way to a polling booth following complaints of booth jamming. Ghosh was allegedly heckled by the TMC activists, sources claimed. BJP candidate in Telanganas Hyderabad Lok Sabha seat K Madhavi Latha was booked by election authorities after a video clip surfaced online in which she was purportedly seen asking burqa-clad women voters to show their faces to compare with the photo identity cards. Latha and Owaisi are facing off in Hyderabad, which the latter won by a sizeable margin in the last Lok Sabha elections. The YSRCP alleged that party agent Suresh Reddy was stabbed at Mandi Krishnapuram village in Chittoors Gudipala mandal. It also alleged that TDP supporters attacked party member B Anji Reddy at Aravallipadu in the Darsi constituency. Polling for 175 Assembly seats and 25 Lok Sabha constituencies in the coastal state is taking place simultaneously. TDP MLC Mohammed Ahmed Shariff wrote a letter to Chief Electoral Officer Mukesh Kumar Meena, complaining about alleged attacks by YSRCP cadres on TDP supporters at Rentala village in Rentichintala mandal of Palnadu district. In Jharkhand, security forces thwarted an attempt by Maoists to obstruct voter access to polling booths by felling a tree and blocking a road leading to remote Sonapi and Morangponga areas of West Singhbhum district. Khunti in Jharkhand recorded highest voter turnout of 68.40 per cent followed by Singhbhum at 68.00 per cent while Palamau recorded lowest at 60.59 per cent Samastipur seat in Bihar recorded highest voter turnout of 58.32 per cent followed by Ujairpur at 57.50 per cent while Munger recorded lowest at 53.41 per cent Voting was progressing peacefully in Jammu and Kashmir where three generations of the Abdullah family cast their vote in the Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency. However, a number of displaced Kashmiri Pandits in Jammu were unable to cast their vote as their names were missing from the electoral rolls. Even as KPs lined up across special polling stations in Jammu amid tight security, several of them had to return without casting their vote. This is not the first time Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's close aide Bibhav Kumar has been embroiled in controversy. Kumar, who has been referred to as "Kejriwal's Man Friday", is also responsible for the exit of prominent faces like poet Kumar Vishwas, journalists Shazia Ilmi and Ashutosh, psephologist Yogendra Yadav, JNU Professor Anand Kumar and Captain GR Gopinath amongst others. Bibhav is facing ED's scrutiny in the alleged excise policy linked money laundering scam. ED, in February, conducted raids at locations connected to Bibhav Kumar. He was also questioned reportedly to seek some clarifications regarding some documents in the excise probe by ED last month. Thereafter, the Directorate of Vigilance terminated the services of Bibhav Kumar as personal secretary to the Chief Minister of Delhi. Special Secretary Vigilance YVVJ Rajshekhar, who issued the termination order, cited a 2007 case pending against Bibhav Kumar, wherein he was accused of obstructing government work. "It is observed that charges against Bibhav Kumar are grave in nature, including charge of 'assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty' (section 353 IPC), for which the trial against Bibhav Kumar is at the stage of evidence, and therefore Bibhav Kumar is not clear from vigilance angle," it said. Challenging the order, Kumar filed a petition before the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT), which refused to stay the termination, stating that granting such relief would be premature. Kejriwal's close aide was also asked to vacate his government quarter in Civil Lines area till May 10 following the order of Kumar's termination of service. He is also engulfed in alleged irregularities in the Delhi Jal Board. Kumar has been associated with Kejriwal in the early 2000s, when he worked as a video editor for a magazine launched by India Against Corruption's members who subsequently formed the AAP. He is one of the most reliable people in the Delhi CM's circle. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday said he will be back from Tihar jail on June 5 if the INDIA Bloc comes to power after the election results are announced. Arrested in a money laundering case linked to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam, Kejriwal has been granted interim bail by the Supreme Court till June 1 to campaign in the Lok Sabha elections. He will have to surrender and go back to jail on June 2. June 1 is the last day of the seven-phase elections and the votes will be counted on June 4. Addressing his Aam Aadmi Party councillors, Kejriwal alleged that efforts were made to break and humiliate him during judicial custody in Tihar. This was his first meeting with the councillors after his release from jail. He called upon the councillors to engage in the cleanliness work of Delhi with more hard work and dedication. "There were two CCTV cameras inside my cell in Tihar and the feed was monitored by 13 officers. It was said that the CCTV feed was also provided to PMO. Modi ji was monitoring me... I do not know what grudge Modi has against me," he claimed. Kejriwal said the AAP leaders are respected and loved by people and "feared by the BJP because of our work". "I have to go back to jail on June 2. I will be watching the election results inside jail on June 4. If the INDIA bloc comes to power, I will be back on June 5," he told party councillors. The AAP National Convenor said they (BJP-led Central government) tried their best to harass him (Kejriwal) in various ways inside the jail, sometimes used to insult him. "They did not give me insulin for 15 days. I have been suffering from diabetes for 20 years and have been on insulin for 10 years. I have very high sugar levels, and I take 52 units of insulin daily, which is a lot. When I went to jail, my sugar level was increasing daily, sometimes it was 300, sometimes 325. It was then that I started getting worried because if the sugar level remains this high for a long time, then it gradually starts affecting your organs like kidney and liver, and it can lead to permanent damage. I used to keep requesting the doctors to give me insulin, but they kept delaying," he said "Today, people in the country are not betting whether they (BJP) will get over 400 seats, the bet is that whether they will get 250 seats or not. What is this? This is a miracle; this is God's grace. Over 50 schools here received bomb threats via email on Monday morning, triggering panic among students and their parents, police said. However, no explosive or anything suspicious has been found so far in these schools, they added. The threatening emails to schools came 12 days after a similar scare in Delhi-NCR where 150 schools received bomb threat emails from a Russia-based mailing service on May 1, triggering massive evacuations and searches. On Sunday, 20 hospitals, including the IGI Airport and the Northern Railways' CPRO office, in Delhi received similar emails. The authorities declared both the incidents as hoax. The emails to schools in Jaipur also happen to come on the 16th anniversary of the serial bomb blast incident in the Rajasthan capital. A series of blasts had rocked the city on this day in 2008 claiming 71 lives and injuring 180 people. According to the police, 56 schools in Jaipur received emails stating explosives were planted on their premises. On being informed, squads were rushed to these locations to check for suspicious objects or devices. No suspicious objects were found wherever the checks have been completed, the police said. "The locations have been sanitised and marked clear from the security point of view," a police officer said. The first information about the threat was reported from a private school in Tilak Nagar followed by other schools in different localities including Manak chowk, Vaishali Nagar, Vidhyadhar Nagar, Niwaru Road, Tonk Road, and Sanganer among others. Soon after the threatening messages came to notice, students and staff members were evacuated from the schools. Police teams and bomb and dog squads were rushed to these schools, Police Commissioner Biju George Joseph said. "Several schools received threats via email that explosives were there in the schools. Checking in most of the schools has been completed and no explosive was found," he said. Joseph said efforts are on to identify the sender of the emails, adding that all the messages were generated from a single source. The police commissioner said the strictest action would be taken against those involved in the matter. As soon as the news of the bomb threats spread, parents rushed to the schools in panic to pick up their children. However, they took a sigh of relief when authorities told them things were under control and there was no need to worry. Focus will be on skipper KL Rahul as a struggling Lucknow Super Giants look to keep their slim IPL playoff chances alive when they face an equally desperate Delhi Capitals in a must-win game here on Tuesday. There has been a lot of speculations about Rahul's future as LSG skipper after his "public reprimand" by team owner Sanjiv Goenka following their 10-wicket hammering by Sunrisers Hyderabad last Wednesday. Speculations are rife that Rahul may step down as captain or perhaps he will do his duties for the remaining two games before leaving LSG. In either case, the India batter would look to answer with his bat and end things on a high. Rahul hasn't been in the best of form and it's not only cost him a place in India's T20 squad but also left LSG at the 7th spot with 12 points with RCB and SRH, who are also outside the top 4. Five days is a lot of time to introspect and Rahul and Co. Will look to come out all guns blazing when they face DC, who are also on 12 points and are coming into the match after a loss against RCB on Sunday night. Besides Rahul, Quinton De Kock's poor form this season has left LSG struggling in the powerplay, putting pressure on the likes of Marcus Stoinis and Nicholas Pooran, who haven't got the freedom to unleash their big shots. Although Pooran and Ayush Badoni managed to rescue the team in the last match, the bowlers failed miserably against the formidable SRH pair of Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma, who racked up 167 in 9.4 overs, a T20I record by any team. The loss of tearaway pacer Mayank Yadav to injury has left a big hole which Yash Thakur and Naveen-ul-Haq haven't been able to fill. Also Mohsin Khan picked up an injury and didn't play last match. The spin duo of Krunal Pandya and Ravi Bishnoi too have been to do a lot of soul searching after being punished by SRH. Delhi Capitals, on the other hand, will hope the return of skipper Rishabh Pant after a one-match suspension due to slow overrate against Rajasthan Royals will help them to end things on a high. Delhi sans Pant paid the price for their fielding lapses as those drop catches and misfields came back to haunt them against RCB on Sunday night. While the bowlers let RCB off the hook after a good start, the batting once again came unstuck as they lost four wickets inside 4 overs to be bowled out for their lowest innings score this IPL. But this is the same team which scored four 200 plus totals this season and they will have to find their mark in their last game to salvage any slim hopes of a top four. Jack Fraser-McGurk, with 330 runs from seven matches at an impressive strike-rate of 237.41, has been their most impactful batter. While Abhishek Porel (269, 156.39), Pant (413, 156.43) and Tristan Stubbs (321, 185.54) too have been among runs this season. In the bowling department, the spin duo of Kuldeep Yadav (15) and Axar Patel (10) have shared 25 wickets, while pacers Khaleel Ahmed (16 wickets) and Mukesh Kumar (16) too have got them the breakthroughs. Teams (From): Lucknow Super Giants: Quinton de Kock, KL Rahul (c & wk), Deepak Hooda, Ayush Badoni, Marcus Stoinis, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Krunal Pandya, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohsin Khan, Shamar Joseph, Yash Thakur, Manimaran Siddharth, Prerak Mankad, Arshad Khan, Krishnappa Gowtham, Amit Mishra, Kyle Mayers, Ashton Turner, Matt Henry, Naveen-ul-Haq, Devdutt Padikkal, Yudhvir Singh Charak, Mayank Yadav, Arshin Kulkarni. Delhi Capitals: Prithvi Shaw, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Abishek Porel, Shai Hope, Rishabh Pant (wk/c, suspended and unavailable), Sumit Kumar, Tristan Stubbs, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mukesh Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Khaleel Ahmed, Kumar Kushagra, Praveen Dubey, Lalit Yadav, Lizaad Williams, David Warner, Jhye Richardson, Anrich Nortje, Yash Dhull, Mitchell Marsh, Ricky Bhui, Rasikh Dar Salam, Vicky Ostwal, Swastik Chikara. 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Among the AI firms partnered named were OpenAI and the Amazon-backed Anthropic. Each company will reportedly be given $1 to test their technologies in a secured and isolated "sandbox" for six months before being piloted to public use. The Los Angeles Times has earlier reported the California Transportation Department's plans to tap into generative AI back in January amid the governmental push to catch up with Silicon Valley's innovations. Also Read : New York City's AI Chatbot Under Fire for Giving Business Advice to Break Law California Looks for Alternative Solutions to Traffic Problem In the 2023 Traffic Index, California is the only state to have two cities that made it to the top 10 places with the worst traffic in the US with Los Angeles placing ninth and San Francisco in the top three. Only New York City and Washington, D.C. are the only cities recorded with worse traffic jams and carbon emissions than the Golden State. The state government's previous efforts to ease congestion, including road widening projects, have so far had only worsened traffic in major cities and highways. The transition towards AI can be seen as the state's newest plan to address the longstanding issue through alternative methods and technologies. California Taps into AI to Address Longstanding Social Issues Improving traffic jams, road safety, and government services are not the only social problems California seems to be looking for a chance to apply AI. Los Angeles was earlier reported to be looking to use AI to map out which families are at risk of becoming homeless. According to CNBC News, the city's Homelessness Prevention Program will use a predictive AI to offer help to financially vulnerable individuals in advance. The initiative is being touted as one of the city's newest efforts to solve the growing number of homeless people in the city. Microsoft is now surrounded by rumors on whether another price hike will occur for Xbox Game Pass subscribers as rumors suggest that the company is planning to subsidize game releases. Some rumors are also hinting at the possible new subscription tier that will come with ads to avoid price hikes. Xbox Game Pass Subscribers Could Experience Price Hike Several reports have suggested that Xbox could be raising its Game Pass prices soon. The company has been hit with various allegations in just a couple of days, including a price hike for Game Pass Ultimate. Previously, there have been reports about internal discussions on the future of Call of Duty titles on Game Pass Ultimate as a day-one offer. Popular Xbox content creator Rand al Thor 19 also shared some news about hearing a price increase for Game Pass. "I think Tom (Warren) is reporting that there are price hikes coming for Game Pass, and I believe him and that actually is happening... but I have no idea what is involved, what it would be, or what it is," the creator stated during his Xbox Two Podcast. Microsoft Might Consider Debuting Another Subscription Tier On his podcast, the content creator also mentioned a possible new tier for Game Pass. This claim has sparked a rumor that has been circulating on gaming forums that Microsoft is planning to produce an ad-based tier of Game Pass. The possible introduction of ads could mitigate the impending price hike that would used to subsidize the future gaming titles in the subscription. This option could also increase the subscriber count of Game Pass due to its cheaper price. Microsoft announced its most recent price hike for Xbox Game Pass about a year ago. The company has since raised the subscription price by $2. (Photo : Unsplash/Andy Wang) The US could witness its first Apple Store strike as employees in a Baltimore suburb voted late Saturday to authorize a work stoppage. Apple's Baltimore Suburb Slated for Potential Work Stoppage Approximately 100 members of the IAM's Coalition of Organized Retail Employees (IAM CORE) have overwhelmingly voted to authorize a strike at the Apple retail store in Towson, Maryland. The strike will highlight the workers' frustrations with unresolved workplace issues and mark the first unionized US Apple retail store following the June 2022 unionization. READ ALSO: Tesla Restricting Tech Usage at Buffalo, Faces an NLRB Complaint Over Infringement of Employees' Rights Maryland Workers Collectively Demanding for A Meaningful Change After more than a year of negotiations with unsatisfactory outcomes, union members are now expressing their collective demand for significant change within Apple management regarding concerns over work-life balance, unpredictable scheduling practices, and wages that have not matched the area's cost of living, as stated in a news release from the union. This vote marks the initial step in showing solidarity. It sends a clear message to Apple, emphasizing IAM CORE's steadfast dedication to advocating for workers' rights and well-being despite challenges and remaining committed to securing concrete improvements benefiting all employees. Apple issued an emailed statement expressing its intention to engage with the union "respectfully and in good faith," emphasizing the company's high regard for its team members and commitment to offering industry-leading compensation and exceptional benefits. The prospective work stoppage would occur after a strike at Apple stores in France in September 2023, centered on pay and working conditions. Maryland Workers Unionization Efforts Apple workers in Maryland made history by voting to join the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers union, marking the first time retail employees of the tech giant had unionized in the United States. Workers at the store in the Baltimore suburbs voted by almost a 2-to-1 margin to unionize in June 2022, aligning with a broader trend in the US retail, service, and tech sectors to organize for increased workplace protections. Conversely, workers at Apple's Short Hills, New Jersey, store voted against unionizing, as reported by Bloomberg News on Saturday. Addressing Apple's Unlawful Union-Busting Conduct The Communications Workers of America (CWA), which lodged complaints with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) accusing Apple of unlawful union-busting activities at the New Jersey store and elsewhere, attributed the defeat to the company's conduct, as outlined in the report. According to John Nagy, the operations lead at the Short Hills store, and a member of the organizing committee, Apple retail staff at the New Jersey store submitted a union representation request with the CWA on April 8. Apple did not respond to requests for comment regarding the vote against unionization, and the Communications Workers of America (CWA) and the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment regarding the Bloomberg report on the New Jersey workers' vote. Out of approximately 100 employees at the Towson store, 98% voted in favor of the work stoppage, the date of which has not yet been disclosed. RELATED ARTICLE: Hospitality Workers Reached 98% Vote, Ratifying New Contract's Increased Pay and Fair Workload Provisions 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Key Points: President Putin replaces longtime Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu with economist Andrei Belousov, marking a potential shift in Russias war strategy. Belousovs appointment comes amid intensified Russian military operations in Ukraine and a growing need to integrate economic strategies with military efforts. Shoigus reassignment to the Security Council suggests that despite recent challenges, he maintains a prominent role in Russias military-political landscape. Putin Taps Economist to Lead Russian Defense Ministry In a move that has surprised many observers, Russian President Vladimir Putin has appointed Andrey Belousov, a seasoned economist with no prior military experience, as the new head of the Ministry of Defense. Belousov, who previously served as the first deputy prime minister, replaces longtime defense minister Sergei Shoigu, signaling a potential shift in Russias approach to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Get alerts: Economist at the Helm of War This significant reshuffle comes as Russian forces intensify their operations in northern Ukraine, achieving their most rapid territorial gains since the war began in 2022. Belousov, known for his economic expertise, is expected to leverage his skills to bolster Russias military capabilities through enhanced economic measures. Alexandra Prokopenko, a former advisor at Russias Central Bank, highlighted this strategic rationale: Putins priority is war; war of attrition is won by economics. Belousov is in favor of stimulating demand from the budget, which means that military spending will at least not decrease but rather increase. This appointment coincides with acknowledgments from the US and NATO that Russia has outpaced the West in artillery ammunition production, a crucial element in the intensifying Ukrainian conflict. The US Congress has also recently increased military aid to Ukraine, further complicating the regional dynamics. Navigating Economic Challenges Belousovs role extends beyond managing defense; he must also navigate the complexities of a burgeoning military budget, which Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov acknowledged is approaching the scale witnessed during the Soviet era. Peskov emphasized the importance of innovation in wartime management, stating, Today on the battlefield, the winner is the one who is more open to innovation. Experts believe that Putin is tasking Belousov with streamlining military spending and integrating the Russian economy more closely with the war effort. Ben Noble, associate professor of Russian politics at University College London, stated that Putin needs to shift even further to a war economy and efficient military spending and Andrei Belousov is one of his most trusted economic officials. Shoigus Shifting Role While Shoigu has been reassigned as the secretary of Russias Security Council, this move indicates that he retains considerable influence within the Russian military-political landscape. However, his removal as defense minister follows a series of tactical and strategic setbacks in Ukraine, including the recent detention of his deputy, Timur Ivanov, on corruption allegations. A New Phase in the Conflict Analysts believe this reshuffle reflects a new phase in the conflict, with Putin aiming to consolidate and expand territorial gains in Ukraine while grappling with the economic realities of a protracted war. The main takeaway is that Vladimir Putin is hunkering down for a long confrontation with the West, said Noble. Tatyana Stanovaya, founder of the R.Politik consultancy, echoed this sentiment: Putins goal is to enhance arms production effectiveness and optimally meet military needs. In this context, Belousov is a logical choice. This leadership transition underscores the complex interplay between economics and warfare as Russia seeks to leverage its economic resources to achieve its military objectives in Ukraine. (Photo : Unsplash/Damir Kopezhanov) President Biden officially ended the national COVID-19 public health emergency. However, federal agencies have faced difficulties getting employees back to their offices, while some are still figuring out how to monitor those working from home. The White House aims for a 50-50 arrangement, where employees with office jobs spend at least five days out of every 10-day work period in the office. While agency chiefs strive towards this goal, reports of low attendance remain evident otherwise. The Public Buildings Reform Board analyzed cellphone location data to assess the occupancy rates of agency headquarters buildings in Washington from January through September 2023, revealing them only at 30% of their pre-pandemic levels. Meanwhile, department and agency heads are facing scrutiny from lawmakers as they attend hearings on Capitol Hill this spring to justify their budget requests for 2025. Representative James Comer, a Republican from Kentucky and chairman of the House Oversight and Reform Committee challenged a senior official from the White House Office of Management and Budget, questioning the presidential authority as to why civil servants would disobey the president's orders if instructed to return to work. Representative Michael Waltz, a Republican from Florida, underscored the gravity of the situation by stating that lives are on the line. READ ALSO: How The "Return to Office or Else" Mandates Are Causing Cracks on Companies' Success in 2024 "Back to Work Act of 2024" Utah Senator Mitt Romney, a Republican, and West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin, a Democrat, advocate for federal employees to return to their offices. Their proposed legislation, named the "Back to Work Act of 2024," seeks to cap remote work to a maximum of 40% of days within a federal employee's pay period. Agencies are mandated to monitor and report on telework activities, including the potential adverse impacts on productivity, morale, security vulnerabilities, or instances of waste, fraud, or abuse. An issue for Romney and Manchin, who are not seeking reelection, stems from a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report released last fall. The report found that 17 out of 24 federal agency headquarters operated at 25% capacity or less during the first three months of 2023. The GAO recommended establishing new benchmarks for building utilization that consider increased levels of telework. As for Romney, nearly a year has passed since the nation's COVID-19 public health emergency declaration ended. Yet, many federal office buildings remain largely empty, resulting in wasteful expenditure of taxpayer dollars, citing that Americans deserve a federal workforce that is both present and productive. Independent Studies Revealing The Split Stances of Workers According to an article in Federal Times last November, the 2023 annual government-wide survey conducted by the US Office of Personnel Management revealed that nearly 70% of federal employees work remotely at least occasionally. In the survey of over 625,000 employees, approximately one-third stated they do not work remotely due to technological constraints, in-office obligations, or personal preference. Despite pressures from Congress and the White House to step up in-office work, the split remained unchanged from the previous year. Employees and unions have long resisted the push for increased in-office work. The American Federation of Government Employees, representing approximately 750,000 federal and Washington, D.C. government workers, stated in a recent issue paper that telework fosters healthier workers, reduces burnout and sick leave usage, and allows for a better work-life balance. A union spokesperson said that restricting telework could be a serious mistake that could lead to the departure of skilled employees and detrimentally impact the services expected from the federal government. RELATED ARTICLE: Companies Compete Over Flexibility, Now Offering Competitive Paychecks to Workers Opting for a Five-Day Workweek 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A man charged with sexual assault on a female who he gave a lift to has been granted permission to go to London to work on condition he can provide a cash surety of 6,000. Ali Raza (31) of Aberfoyle Terrace in Derry appeared at the local Magistrate's Court today seeking his bail to be varied to allow him to go to London to work. Police objected to the application and an officer said that the alleged offences occurred on December 23 last when the woman was in the city centre. He said she got into a vehicle driven by a man with an Asian accent. The woman said she felt they were driven around 'for a prolonged period of time'. The court heard that the woman claimed that the driver had grabbed her hand and tried to get her to touch him. She also alleged he tried to touch her. The woman said she had been asked to be allowed out of the vehicle but the doors were locked. Eventually the woman said she was allowed to leave the vehicle but claimed the defendant followed her for a period. The woman had made several phone calls to her husband during the incident and the court heard it had been taken for examination. CCTV was examined and the officer said that Raza was observed driving around the city centre before stopping outside the Holiday Inn and speaking to a woman who got into his vehicle. The court heard that Raza had left the jurisdiction three days later but the officer said that had always been the intention. The officer said that Raza was arrested by the Metropolitan Police in April and returned here. When being interviewed he told police about meeting a woman in a bar and driving her to a location but police realised that he was referring to a different woman. As regards the incident under investigation Raza said he had seen her crying and offered to help her. He said she could not say where she lived so he had driven around. Raza denied trying to touch the woman. Police objected to the bail variation because they could not monitor the defendant in London and also to allow him to travel he would have to be given his passport and could flee the jurisdiction. Defence solicitor Jack Quigley said Raza had no record in this jurisdiction. He said he had come here from Pakistan on a student visa and then acquired a work visa. District Judge Barney McElholm said that if Raza was given his passport he could travel anywhere in the world. He said there was 'a degree of risk' but added that these were still only allegations against Raza. He said he would consider granting the application if a cash surety of 6,000 could be found. The case was adjourned until May 20 to see if that surety could be found. One hundred days following the resumption of devolved government in Northern Ireland, the Stormont Executive has been challenged to deliver. Stormont Opposition leader Matthew OToole said while good vibes between ministers in the multi-party coalition are welcome, the public rightly expect delivery. The Executive was reformed at the end of January following almost two years of political instability. On the third Opposition day at Stormont, the official Opposition is set to propose a summer recess deadline for the publication of the Executives programme for government. They are also set to propose a timeline for the establishment of an Independent Environmental Protection Agency and support for the Tourism and Hospitality Sector, which faces an immediate sustainability crisis. Mr OToole described the third Opposition day as being about delivery. The vast majority of people are glad that devolved government has returned and that ministers appear to be, for the most part, working well together. But ask anyone on a hospital waiting list or fighting for an SEN statement for their child and theyll tell you that good vibes and glossy PR dont make life any easier for them, he said. One hundred days into this new administration and people are right to probe ministers priorities. Because despite months of engagement with senior civil servants and now months of direct power, the Executive doesnt really seem to know what its purpose is and thats bad news for people relying on public services that desperately need to be rescued. As a constructive opposition, we dont expect the Executive to have fixed everything, but the problem is that they dont seem to have a plan to do anything. The First Minister recently told us that we shouldnt be in a rush but the truth is that people across our communities are in a rush a rush to be seen by a doctor, a rush to get a home that meets their needs, a rush to get a good job and a good school to support their family. This Opposition Day is about delivery on a Programme for Government, a plan to establish an Independent Environmental Protection Agency and urgent support for the tourism and hospitality industry facing an immediate crisis. Our consistent focus has been on outcomes that can change peoples lives for the better. Were in a rush to change things and the Executive should be too. The Northern Ireland Assembly has backed a motion calling for the powersharing Executive to publish a programme for government before the summer recess. The SDLPs leader of the Opposition, Matthew OToole, said 100 days after the resumption of devolved government in the region that it was now time for delivery in tackling deteriorating public services and financial challenges. Deputy First Minster Emma Little-Pengelly said the Executive wanted to be known for delivery, not for photo ops and pledged work was ongoing to produce the governmental plan ahead of the summer. The powersharing Executive was reformed at the end of January following two years of political instability. On the third Opposition day at Stormont, the SDLP proposed the summer recess deadline for the publication of the Executives programme for government, setting out action plans for the devolved administration. Opening the debate in the Assembly, Mr OToole said his party wanted to be constructive. He said: We recognised that after years of collapse, austerity and deteriorating public services, that not everything could or would be fixed overnight, or indeed fixed in the course of this mandate. The incoming Executive was faced with challenges that arent easily resolved, but are in fact deeply embedded and, in some cases, structural. The Opposition leader added: The public of Northern Ireland arent unreasonable and they arent daft. They know these challenges will take time and effort to resolved. But they do expect a plan. And if the plan itself isnt yet ready, which it doesnt appear to be, the bare minimum they deserve to be told when the plan will be published. One hundred days from the restoration of the institutions, we have now had 28 motions from Executive parties promising action on everything from waiting lists to childcare support to the MOT backlog. In many cases these motions are presented as if they substantively change the law or allocated funding. They dont. A casual observer watching the First Minister (Michelle ONeill) publicise motions calling for improved childcare or support for holiday hunger might naturally assume that since the person speaking is the joint head of government here, that these motions come alongside a meaningful plan involving legislation or allocation of funding. But they dont. Mr OToole said the focus of his partys motions would be on delivery. He said: We would like to see a programme for government delivered soon. Is that so unreasonable? We havent had one in nearly a decade. Alliance Party MLA Paula Bradshaw said there had been two years of wasted time while Stormont was suspended. She said: Never again can we see one party collapsing everything and paralysing our entire system, leaving our population without a functional and locally-elected government. But now we are 100 days in and we must see delivery. There was significant goodwill given towards Sinn Fein and the DUP when devolution was restored, but many of the issues requiring action have mounted up on their desk, with little evidence of real action. The photo opportunities have gone well but actual delivery has been scant. There is a lot of work to catch up on. Two years of paralysis has made the need for transformation and delivery all the more pressing. Its time people got what they voted for. Ms Little-Pengelly listed the achievements of the Executive in its first 100 days, including agreeing a budget, setting a financial package of 688 million for public sector pay, promoting Northern Ireland during a St Patricks Day visit to Washington and attending meetings of the East West and North South Ministerial councils. She said: There have been many things we have secured. While we have been doing that, we have also been working on our programme for government. Of course it is an important and essential step in what we need to do. Yes, we have taken action. This has been an Executive of delivery. And yes, perhaps we do need to explain it more, we need to say it louder. Ms Little-Pengelly added: We are working on it week in and week out and our intention is to get a draft out as soon as possible and certainly before the summer. I want this Executive to be known for delivery. It is not about photographs or photo ops. The DUP introduced an amendment to the wording of the SDLP motion, but one which did not alter the call for the programme for government to be published before the summer recess. The amendment was carried by the Assembly. Mr OToole said while the motion was not binding, the public would view it as a commitment by the Executive to produce the plan. HIGHLIGHTS OpenAI could unveil a new multimodal AI model. This multimodal AI could talk to you and recognise objects. It is expected to be a part of what the company intends to unveil today. For quite some time now, we have been hearing a lot that OpenAI is expected to announce its AI-powered search engine today to compete with Google Search. The timing in particular is pretty interesting. It seems like OpenAI is planning to steal Googles spotlight just before Googles annual event. Now, a new report suggests that OpenAI could unveil a new multimodal AI model. Read along to know what the new AI model is expected to offer. Also read: OpenAIs Google Search competitor could debut next week: All you need to know According to a report by The Information (via The Verge), OpenAIs multimodal AI model can talk to you and recognise objects. This AI model is expected to be a part of what the company intends to unveil on Monday. Also read: OpenAI rumoured to steal Googles thunder by launching its own search engine: Know more The new model will likely provide faster and more precise interpretation of images and audio compared to OpenAIs current separate transcription and text-to-speech models. It seems the model would enable customer service agents to better understand the intonation of callers voices or whether theyre being sarcastic, and theoretically, it could assist students with maths problems or translate real-world signs. The model might surpass GPT-4 Turbo in answering some types of questions, but it remains prone to making confident errors. OpenAI seems to be working on having phone calls inside of chatGPT. This is probably going to be a small part of the event announced on Monday. (1/n) pic.twitter.com/KT8Hb54DwA Ananay (@ananayarora) May 11, 2024 Its possible that OpenAI is also preparing a new integrated feature in ChatGPT for making phone calls, as suggested by Developer Ananay, who shared a screenshot of code related to calls. Arora also noted evidence indicating that OpenAI had provisioned servers for real-time audio and video communication. Given that all these details stem from reports and leaks, its wise to await an official announcement from OpenAI. Whatever OpenAI has in store, will be revealed via livestream on its website on Monday at 10AM PT / 10PM IST. Taiwan's space aspirations face regulatory roadblocks, geopolitical challenges A space industry veteran is spearheading Taiwan's homegrown rocket and satellite ambitions, navigating a complex web of geopolitics and technical challenges. Dr. Chen Yensen, who had joined NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, is on a mission to propel Taiwan into the new space age. As the founder of TiSPACE, a vertically integrated space services company, Chen is leading the charge to develop Taiwan's indigenous rocket and satellite capabilities. TiSPACE's three-pronged business strategy encompasses rocket manufacturing and launch services, aerospace component production for international clients, and the emerging hydrogen energy sector. While the rocket program faces regulatory hurdles in Japan and Australia, Chen remains optimistic about the company's long-term prospects. Credit: TiSPACE "The main focus is on the rocket, but we're also developing our own low-Earth orbit satellites for communication and IoT," Chen explains. TiSPACE currently operates two rocket models, the Hapith and Kestrel series, with plans to transition to larger, liquid-fueled variants in the future to meet the demands of the burgeoning small satellite market. Initially, the company had planned to conduct launches from Hokkaido, Japan. However, the launch process in the country has proven to be a slow and arduous endeavor, requiring TiSPACE to navigate a web of stringent approvals beyond just the launch permit, with the most likely timeframe for a successful launch being around July or August 2024. This timeline poses an additional challenge, as the Hokkaido region typically transitions into the fall and winter seasons after this period, potentially leading to further delays. Should the approvals in Japan be prolonged, TiSPACE may have to wait until April-August 2025 to launch from the country, subject to favorable weather conditions. Credit: TiSPACE Simultaneously, TiSPACE is exploring opportunities in Australia as an alternative launch site. In the country, all launch facilities are currently undergoing rigorous environmental assessments to ensure the launches will not have a negative impact on the surrounding ecosystem. This environmental approval process is also expected to take several months to complete. Unlike the sounding rockets planned for Hokkaido, the rockets TiSPACE intends to launch in Australia are significantly heavier and larger. TiSPACE's rocket of choice in Australia is the Kestrel 1, a two-stage hybrid rocket. Initially, the payload was envisioned to include experiments for local low-Earth orbit satellites, but the time constraints may require the company to explore alternative payload options. The challenges, however, are multifaceted. Taiwan's limited land area and stringent environmental regulations have made it difficult to establish a suitable launch site. The company has found a potential solution in Adelaide, South Australia, where it is building a private launch facility and test site to circumvent the country's strict technology transfer rules. "Australia has invited us to set up there," Chen says. "The tradeoff is that we can't bring the technology back to Taiwan." Credit: TiSPACE This dilemma highlights the broader geopolitical landscape that TiSPACE must navigate. The company's future success could hinge on the outcome of the upcoming US presidential election, as the Republican and Democratic parties hold vastly different views on Taiwan's autonomy. "If the Republicans win, there's a chance Taiwan could get the green light to develop its own launch capabilities," Chen notes. "But with the Democrats, it's the same old story - we have to play by their rules." Despite the hurdles, TiSPACE sees tremendous growth potential in the low-Earth orbit satellite sector, with frequent replacement cycles. Chen believes Taiwan's dominance in semiconductor manufacturing and specialized aerospace components could give the company a competitive edge as a supplier. "We need to first establish ourselves as a reliable supplier of parts and subsystems," Chen says. "The next step is to move up the value chain and develop our own branded products." TiSPACE's other key challenge is the lack of testing opportunities due to regulatory constraints, which has slowed the company's progress compared to players like SpaceX. "We are lacking in test flights," Chen laments. Credit: TiSPACE In terms of regional competition, Chen sees both opportunities and threats. While countries like Indonesia and Thailand have shown interest in developing their own space programs, South Korea stands out as a formidable rival, having invested heavily in its national space efforts. "The progress in South Korea is the fastest," Chen acknowledges. "The whole country is behind their space program, and the funding is on a completely different scale compared to Taiwan." When it comes to China, Chen recognizes the country's technical prowess in space technologies but notes that their approach is more traditional and conservative. "They are good at stable launches, but their payload capacity is much lower than SpaceX," he says. "The new private companies in China are trying to catch up with reusability, but they have a long way to go." Joseph Chou, the Director of Federal Policy at 7StarLake, sheds light on the limitations posed by Taiwan's Space Development Act. He explains that current regulations confine research rocket launches to scientific purposes, creating a disconnect between research and industry demands. Chou argues that for Taiwan to industrialize its space sector, it must align its technology, regulations, and market focus with international standards. Chou sees potential for Taiwan to develop crucial technologies for industries such as aerospace equipment, communication satellites, and drones for communication relays, all of which can be considered part of the space-related sector. He notes that TiSPACE is currently the only company in Taiwan engaged in rocket launches, with much of its work being experimental in nature. Chou emphasizes the importance of investing in this sector, as it will drive technological advancements. He believes Taiwan's strong capabilities in electronics manufacturing could give it a competitive edge in this industry. However, Chou cautions that integrating into the supply chain of established industries is just one aspect of industrialization. The true know-how and control come from leading and developing the industry independently. Credit: TiSPACE TiSPACE has a current capital of NT$800 million(US$24.6 million), entirely from Taiwanese shareholders. The company has reached its B-round of funding and aims to go public by the time of its C-round. Chen expresses cautious optimism about TiSPACE's potential for an IPO within the next five years, contingent on the successful launch of its rockets. As TiSPACE navigates the regulatory landscapes of Japan and Australia, the company's ability to overcome these challenges will be crucial in its quest to establish a foothold in the global space industry. Save my User ID and Password Some subscribers prefer to save their log-in information so they do not have to enter their User ID and Password each time they visit the site. To activate this function, check the 'Save my User ID and Password' box in the log-in section. This will save the password on the computer you're using to access the site. Note: If you choose to use the log-out feature, you will lose your saved information. This means you will be required to log-in the next time you visit our site. India roundup: Lam Research to explore India-based chipmaking tool partners Lam Research is expanding its investments to help India grow a chipmaking ecosystem. India-based Mindgroove Technologies introduced a RISC-V SoC to meet local demands. Lam Research to explore India-based suppliers in chipmaking tool ecosystem Lam Research announced it is exploring India-based suppliers who can collaborate to fulfill the need for precision components, custom parts, high-purity gas delivery systems, and other assemblies that go into cutting-edge semiconductor wafer fabrication equipment. How Indian fabless startup's affordable new SoC will change India and global chip landscape Indian fabless startup Mindgrove Technologies has introduced Secure IoT, a new RISC-V-based system on chip (SoC) to meet the increasing local demand. Tata reportedly progressing rapidly in semiconductor manufacturing Tata Electronics reportedly shipped chip samples it packaged to potential customers in several countries and is in the final stages of tape-out for chips in 28-65nm, indicating the progress the Indian national champion and front-runner in India's chipmaking indigenization made since its chip ambition. Tata Elxsi partners with Arm for SDV solutions According to Tata Elxsi's press release, the company announced a collaboration with Arm to offer advanced solutions on the latest Arm-based chips, which will help Automotive OEMs and tier-1s fast-track their transition to Software-Defined Vehicles (SDVs) Leapmotor reportedly to partner with Stellantis to sell EVs in India The Times of India quoted sources saying that Leapmotor held talks with India-based JSW Group and is posed to unveil its investment plan and strategy for entering India. Sources told the news outlet that Leapmotor will partner with Stellantis. Dixon expands electronics manufacturing partnership with global brands Dixon Technologies, a major EMS and ODM provider in India, is broadening its manufacturing footprint through strategic partnerships. The company has joined forces with Nokia and is reportedly in discussions to produce notebooks for HP, marking a significant expansion in its manufacturing business. Weekly news roundup: Apple sparks speculation of partnership with EV startup These are the most-read DIGITIMES Asia stories in the week of May 6 May 10. Speculation arises about Apple exploring collaboration with EV startup Apple may not have completely abandoned its car ambition. Speculation has surfaced among supply chains that the tech giant is mulling over a partnership with an EV startup and Rivian is a very likely candidate. The form of such a collaboration remains unclear. Rivian, while still under financial pressure, has partnered with Amazon and seen good order visibility for the second half of 2024. China-based semiconductor equipment suppliers continue to see explosive growth Most Chinese semiconductor equipment makers experienced double-digit growth in sales and profits in the past year as the country fostered its semiconductor supply chain. Naura Technology reported a 50% increase in sales and 65% growth in profits in 2023. Zhejiang Jingsheng Mechanical and Electrical's sales surged by nearly 70% and profits rose by almost 60%. Moreover, AMEC saw strong growth in both sales and profits, hitting double-digit figures last year. Speculation arises about Huawei developing Kirin PC chips Huawei has denied online rumors that it plans to launch products equipped with the Kirin X series (tentative name) PC platform sometime in 2024. Supply chain sources revealed that Huawei will release a new PC product, the Qingyun W515x, in May 2024. The PC will launch with an 8-core 12-thread Kirin 9000C processor and support LPDDR5, Wi-Fi 6, and Huawei universal flash storage (UFS) hard drives and solid-state drives (SSD). Huawei's supercharging alliance to push for international standard Huawei has installed 20,000 charging piles across China since launching the fully liquid-cooled SuperCharge charging pile in 2023. The company aims to install 100,000 charging piles in China this year. It recently formed a "supercharging alliance" with prominent EV makers such as BYD, Great Wall Motors, and GAC. Charging pile makers said the alliance can potentially reshape the entire market. TSMC may soon see 3nm capacity supply fall short of demand Industry sources said TSMC has seen utilization rates for its 3nm family climb to more than 95%. As demand for its N3E process from Apple and other customers grows robustly, TSMC's capacity supply at the 3nm node will likely fall short soon. Sources said Apple's latest M4 chip, which powers its newly launched new-generation iPad Pro, is made using TSMC's N3E process. Apple said to have signed pact with Samsung Display for foldable devices Speculation arose among the supply chain that Apple had struck an agreement with South Korean panel supplier Samsung Display (SDC) for foldable devices in April. The US company will likely introduce two foldable devices in 2026. Sources said Apple's foldable panel orders for SDC reportedly will amount to about 34 million units in 2026, 65 million units in 2027, and 100 million units in 2027. Taiwan fab toolmakers eyeing orders from Malaysia As SEMICON Southeast Asia is on track to open in Kuala Lumpur on May 28, Taiwanese semiconductor equipment suppliers said that Malaysia has become one of the major beneficiaries of heightening geopolitical risks. Semiconductor firms are diversifying production bases. In Malaysia, semiconductor clusters are taking shape in Penang and Kuala Lumpur, with the packaging and testing sector seeing the fastest growth. Workplace inspections for migrants working illegally need to increase, the Taoiseach has said. Simon Harris said there are a number of common sense changes to migration policy that need to be implemented in Ireland. The Government has faced criticism for failing to accommodate all asylum seekers amid an increase in the number of arrivals. There are currently more than 1,700 male international-protection applicants who have not yet received an offer of State-provided accommodation. In the last two weeks, the Government has directed multi-agency operations to clear large makeshift migrant encampments from Dublin city. There have also been protests in towns and villages across the country over buildings being selected to house asylum seekers. A number of properties have also been severely damaged in suspected arson attacks. Speaking on Monday, Mr Harris said that there was a need to be honest that Ireland can continue to provide shelter to asylum seekers but may not necessarily be able to provide housing. He said: Irish people are full of compassion, but you know what theyre also full of is common sense. And want what they want to see when it comes to migration policy is compassion and common sense aligning. They want us to be honest to people coming to this country about what we can and cant do. We can absolutely provide shelter but not necessarily housing for people who come here. The Taoiseach said Government needs to do better on accommodating asylum seekers through the use of State land as well as the provision of tents and sanitation facilities. He also said there was a need to focus on faster processing times, effective deportations, and integrating people who have a right to remain in Ireland. Speaking to Newstalk, Mr Harris added: We need to look at welfare consistency, we need to look at a contribution that people who have status make to accommodation. We need to look at making sure that anybody in work is working legally, that there are more workplace inspections. There are a number of common-sense things we should do but crucially we need to work at a European level. (Photo : Unsplash/Colin Lloyd ) Hundreds of Virgin Hotel workers finished a 48-hour strike on Sunday, aiming to push Virgin Hotels Las Vegas into accepting a five-year contract regarding wages and benefits. The Culinary Union's Strike Ted Pappageorge, Culinary Union Local 226's secretary-treasurer, stated that the absence of wage increase proposals in negotiations with Virgin Hotels Las Vegas has prompted union workers to initiate an economic strike. Negotiations with Virgin were stalled for five months because the resort did not present a five-year wage increase plan in any of its proposals. Pappageorge emphasized the significant rise in the workers' cost of living, increased gas expenses, groceries, rent surging by 40%, and housing costs have doubled over the past three or four years. Pappageorge urged big Wall Street banks and Virgin to decide whether they would invest in workers like the rest of Las Vegas, citing that workers' neglect was a cause for the strike. The union advised customers against crossing the picket line and urged potential patrons to cancel reservations that coincided with the strike and book with other union hotels instead. Hotel Workers Concluding a 48-Hour Strike Over 700 workers from Culinary Union Local 226 went on strike at the 1,500-room hotel-casino near the Las Vegas Strip on Friday morning. The strike concluded on Sunday morning, and contract discussions are scheduled to resume on Tuesday. Among those participating in the strike outside Virgin Hotels, formerly the Hard Rock Las Vegas, were room attendants, cocktail and food servers, porters, bellmen, cooks, bartenders, and laundry and kitchen workers. Reaching New Agreement on Pay and Benefits Pappageorge expressed that workers were hopeful the 48-hour strike would accelerate the process of reaching a new agreement with Virgin Hotels, which expired 11 months ago. READ ALSO: Worldwide Flight Attendant Day of Action: Thousands of Attendants Picketing for Better Pay and Working Conditions Earlier this year, union members at other Las Vegas-area properties secured agreements entailing approximately a 32% salary increase over five years, with a 10% raise in the first year. The last instance of Culinary Union members going on strike occurred in 2002 at the Golden Gate Hotel Casino in downtown Las Vegas. Virgin Hotels' Alleged Company Stunt Ahead of the expected strike, Virgin Hotels filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) on Wednesday, alleging that the union failed to negotiate in good faith despite their sincere efforts to meet and negotiate and that union officials were engaged in unlawful 'take it or leave it' bargaining. Because the union has not communicated the necessary agreements to prevent a strike, Virgin Hotels has requested the union to mediate promptly to reach an agreement without disrupting the lives of guests and team members with a work stoppage. Pappageorge informed reporters during a news conference on Thursday that the complaint filed with the NLRB had no validity, describing the charge as merely a company stunt for waiting until the eve of the strike to raise such concerns. RELATED ARTICLE: Hospitality Workers Reached 98% Vote, Ratifying New Contract's Increased Pay and Fair Workload Provisions 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Labour leader, Ivana Bacik enjoyed a whistle-stop visit to County Louth last Friday, where she took the opportunity to canvass with some of the local election candidates for the party in the area, accompanied by Ged Nash TD and Labours European Election candidate for the area, Fergal Landy. The Labour leaders visit to Drogheda began at Drogheda Educate Together Secondary School, accompanied by Louth Labour TD, Ged Nash, Fergal Landy, Cllr Elaine McGinty and Cllr Emma Cutlip. Deputy Bacik took the opportunity to talk with school principal, Susan Campbell and get an update on the schools progress towards getting a new 1,000 student school building. After that, it was time for lunch and the Labour leader made good use of a rare sunny day to eat al fresco at Relish Cafe in Southgate and talk to locals who stopped by for a chat. The big set piece of the day was a visit to The Mill Enterprise Hub to congratulate everyone there on their 10th anniversary. Deputy Nash said he was particularly delighted to welcome the Labour leader to The Mill, which he helped progress to Phase 2 of its development while a minister in government. Before leaving Drogheda and heading to Mid-Louth, the Labour leader took a look at the first phase of the new Port Access Northern Cross Route. In Ardee, new Labour candidate Kate Karpenko was waiting to welcome the Labour leader at NCBI charity shop in the centre of town, where Kate works. Deputy Bacik talked to locals and to Kates dedicated band of volunteers who are helping her take a tilt at getting elected to Louth County Council, in June. The Labour leaders trip around the Wee County ended in Dundalk where new candidate Jamie OHare was waiting to welcome her. The visit came just two days out from the Leinster final between Dublin and Louth and Jamie took the opportunity to try to convince his party leader to switch sides and support the men in red. Reflecting on the visit, Deputy Bacik said: We had a great day travelling around Louth and East Meath with our brilliant Labour candidates. I enjoyed visiting Sonairte and hearing about the wonderful work they are doing on biodiversity there and at Drogheda Educate Together Secondary School, there was a great sense of optimism and excitement about the schools future. I was encouraged by meeting the local business community at the Mill Enterprise Centre and hearing everything that is going on there and looking at the new Port Access Route. It's clear that Drogheda can have a bright future ahead if its given the investment and the government attention that it deserves. I was hugely impressed by our two brand new candidates in Ardee, where Kate Karpenko has managed to harness a huge amount of energy and enthusiasm behind her campaign and in Dundalk where Jamie OHare impressed me with his passion and commitment to being a progressive voice for the area. Senator John McGahon has said that Minister Roderic O'Gorman must prioritise legislation to help mothers dealing with cancer diagnoses while pregnant or post-partum to defer their maternity leave. The local Fine Gael Senator told the Dundalk Democrat that, it is more than six months since Minister for Children Roderic OGorman publicly committed to legislating on the Irish Cancer Societys Leave our Leave campaign, but the Heads of Bill have yet to make it to Cabinet. Senator McGahon continued, I am longtime supporter of the Leave Our Leave campaign, which seeks to amend the Maternity Protection (Amendment) Act 2004 to allow the postponement of maternity leave following a diagnosis of cancer or serious illness. Currently under this legislation anyone diagnosed with cancer or other serious illness during pregnancy will forfeit their maternity leave when they go through treatment. In fact, the only option to postpone maternity leave is in the case of a child being hospitalised. This legislative anomaly affects 60 working mothers in Ireland each year. While the numbers are relatively small, the undue anxiety caused is incredibly significant at what is a vulnerable time for unwell mothers. Working mothers in this acutely unfair situation should not have to wait any longer for change.My wish is that no one with a newborn child would have to use maternity leave to cover their cancer treatment. Many mothers dont even become aware they cannot postpone their leave until they are undergoing treatment. The Irish Cancer Society has been advised that section 14A of the Act will need updating from a right to request the postponement of additional maternity leave to a right to receive the postponement of any maternity leave. I am urging Minister O'Gorman to amend the legislation so that women diagnosed with cancer during pregnancy or postpartum can defer their maternity leave until after treatment and for it to be prioritised during the lifetime of this Government, Senator McGahon concluded. The Department of Creative Arts, Media and Music at Dundalk Institute of Technology (DkIT) will launch their annual Fis exhibition at 6pm on Thursday 30th May at the Carrolls Building on campus. Invitation are extended to all who wish to attend this celebration of students innovative creativity. This years graduate showcase will feature the creative and groundbreaking work of students from the BA Creative Media and BA (Hons) Creative Media. The projects and installations being exhibited and screened will represent the diverse creative skills of DkIT students and are of interest to a wide audience. Curator for Fis 24, JJ Quinlan, Lecturer, Department of Creative Arts, Media and Music, notes, This exhibition allows students the opportunity to showcase their work to family, friends and industry representatives who will be in attendance at the launch. Its an occasion for the public to step into a world where students' dedication and creativity reach new heights as they come together for a remarkable occasion. "This exhibit showcases the culmination of their hard work, reflecting our students unwavering passion for embracing the limitless possibilities of technology. We would love you to join us on this exciting journey as we witness the exceptional talents of these students, eagerly anticipating the impact they will make as they embark on their professional careers. This year the Institute is showcasing a diverse array of projects that highlight the genuine skills of their talented students. Each exhibit offers a unique perspective, providing a glimpse into the innovative minds at work. Some of the fascinating projects on display at Fis 24 include: Butterfly Effect: A Vision of Our Future which uses augmented reality, immersive audio, and captivating visuals to explore the profound impact of humanity's choices on our planet's future. The Green Scheme: This project uses an interactive website, social media and motion graphics designed specifically for college students. This study aims to enlighten students about the significance of sustainable practices that help the environment and how they can be seamlessly incorporated into daily routines. Faces of Drogheda: Exploring Diverse Identities: This project is a captivating exploration of diversity through the lens of a camera. Its a photographic journey into the heart of Drogheda, capturing the unique cultures, subcultures, and identities that make up its vibrant community. Amach: A Coming Out Story: This poignant short animation traces the journey of Eve, an LGBTQ+ individual, as she navigates the complexities of revealing her true self to her loved ones. What You Aut to Know: This documentary photography project offers a profound insight into the world of autism, specifically focusing on women. For further details contact creative.arts@dkit.ie or for information on the full offering of programmes in the Department of Creative Arts, Media and Music at both undergraduate and postgraduate level check out www.dkit.ie/creative-arts-media-music More than 12 million euro in Government funding has been given to a new community hub in Creeslough, Co Donegal. The Department of Rural and Community Development said the project will create a new central hub for community life that will support the renewal and regeneration of Creeslough. It said it will be transformative for the community and serve as a catalyst for the regeneration of the region. In October 2022 four men, three women and three young people, aged between five and 59, died in an explosion at a service station. The new centre will replace an already-operating community hub on Main Street in the village. The funding is part of 164 million euro allocated to 30 regeneration projects around the country. The investment is being provided under the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF) with a particular emphasis on the revitalisation of rural town centres. Many of the projects have a focus on combating vacancy and dereliction. Minister for Rural and Community Development Heather Humphreys said: This is a truly transformative level of funding that will make a real and lasting difference in rural communities throughout Ireland. By Pyo Kyung-min Emerging from Mnet's 2023 survival show "Boys Planet," K-pop boy band ZEROBASEONE (ZB1) has quickly made a name for itself in the industry. The nine-piece act comprised of members Sung Han-bin, Kim Ji-woong, Zhang Hao, Seok Matthew, Kim Tae-rae, Ricky, Kim Gyu-vin, Park Gun-wook and Han Yu-jin is barely a year into its idol journey since debuting last July, but is rewriting the rules of success in the K-pop scene, achieving milestones that defy its rookie status thanks to its massive fanbase. The group's debut mini-album, "YOUTH IN THE SHADE," reached million-seller status within a day, quickly surpassing 2 million in cumulative sales. Its second mini-album, "MELTING POINT," also sold a staggering 1.45 million copies on release day and soared past 2.13 million in the first week alone. Building on this popularity, ZB1 has returned with its third mini-album, "You Had Me at HELLO," aiming to solidify its position as a forerunner among fifth-generation K-pop groups. According to ZB1 members, "You Had Me at HELLO" targets a wider audience while still expressing love for their fans. "Our biggest goal in releasing this album is to have our songs make it to the top 100 on local charts," Kim Gyu-vin said during a press event held to mark the new album's release at Blue Square Mastercard Hall in central Seoul's Yongsan District, Monday. "This time, we aimed for a more mainstream approach, filling the album with everyday music. We hope it becomes a go-to album that everyone enjoys in their daily lives." The album's lead single, "Feel the POP," encapsulates this vision. "Feel the POP" is an energetic pop track infused with diverse rhythms such as D&B, U.K. garage and Jersey club, conveying a hopeful message to let go of worries and seize the moment. "As summer approaches, we aimed for our music to provide moments free from stress," Zhang Hao said. "We imagined instances where worries 'pop' away and vanish, just as the lyrics suggest." The members revealed that they invested much effort into the choreography, ensuring their moves complement the song's infectious nature. "If you pay attention to the choreography, you'll notice how every move is meticulously synchronized, down to the smallest detail. We even took care to perfect the movements of our fingertips," revealed Kim Ji-woong. Zhang Hao chimed in, stating, "We aimed for a choreography that's refreshing yet seductive, showcasing our unique charm." Moreover, the album features a diverse array of tracks including "Solar POWER," "Dear ECLIPSE," the pre-released track, "SWEAT," "Sunday RIDE," "HELLO" and "Feel the POP (Sped UP ver.)." Already having achieved remarkable feats, the members revealed that they are setting their sights on even loftier goals with this album. "Last year, we were grateful to win the Rookie Award. However, this year, we want to make strides in our musicality," said Sung, the band's leader. "Believing in the adage that big dreams yield big achievements, our aim this year is to clinch the Grand Prize at the 2024 MAMA Awards." Xi's Europe visit 'increases mutual trust, charts a course for future development' 09:08, May 13, 2024 By Chen Qingqing ( Global Times Chinese President Xi Jinping attends a welcome ceremony jointly held by Hungarian President Tamas Sulyok and Prime Minister Viktor Orban in Budapest, Hungary, on May 9, 2024 Photo: Xinhua Tens of thousands of Serbian people chant "China! Serbia!" while waving Chinese and Serbian national flags as they welcome the visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping in Belgrade on May 8, 2024. Photo: Xinhua In summarizing the visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to three European countries, the Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Saturday that the visit, taking place in Europe with a global vision, successfully strengthened China-France relations, further solidified China-Serbia relations, enhanced China-Hungary relations, and injected momentum to China-EU cooperation. It was a journey to build on friendships, increase mutual trust, boost confidence, and chart a course for the future, which has concluded in great success, the Chinese top diplomat said. Over the past few years, with the global uncertainties, growing challenges that Europe has been facing, and the twists and turns in China-EU relations, a high-level exchange is necessary to clarify matters, prevent further decline, and stabilize relations, while fostering future-oriented development, some experts said, noting that head-of-state diplomacy, as the highest level of diplomatic exchange, is crucial at this critical moment. During the visit, China and France upheld the original spirit of establishing diplomatic ties, and will advance the bilateral relations by building on past achievements and pioneering new developments, Wang noted. We will continue to sustain our ironclad friendship and embark on a new journey to build a China-Serbia community with a shared future in the new era, and will strengthen traditional ties and guide China-Hungary relations into a "golden voyage," Wang said. On China-EU relations, the two sides should shape correct perceptions and adhere to the positioning of partnership. On global issues, China will demonstrate the responsibility of a major power and contribute to China's solutions for world peace, the Chinese top diplomat noted. This visit demonstrates China's great emphasis on Europe and its special attention to these three countries - France, Serbia and Hungary, Sun Keqin, a research fellow at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, told the Global Times on Sunday. The trip conveyed to Europe and the world China's stance and attitude on China-EU relations, global peace and development, especially on the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and the Israel-Palestine conflict, Sun noted. It also addressed major international issues, such as global governance, and clarified misunderstandings about China's role in the Russia-Ukraine war and debunked the so-called overcapacity in China rhetoric, Sun said. "By positively stating its position, China has effectively countered anti-China forces in Europe and helped more Europeans understand China's perspective on these issues, responded to malicious slander and attacks in some Western media." Memorable moments President Xi's visit to the three European nations left many memorable diplomatic moments, the Xinhua News Agency said on Sunday. From talks at the elysee Palace in Paris to chats at Tourmalet pass in the Pyrenees; from the welcoming crowds in a Serbia Square to the farewell ceremony at the Villa Peace in Belgrade; from the flowers at Budapest Airport to the welcoming ceremony at Buda Castle in Budapest These vivid scenes and remarkable diplomatic stories from President Xi's European visit are unforgettable, Xinhua said. The New York Times said French President Emmanuel Macron "adds a personal touch to his diplomacy with China," as he took Xi to his childhood haunts high, hoping to forge a bond. The AFP described the impressive scene in Belgrade where Xi and Serbia's President Aleksandar Vucic "waved from a balcony to several thousand people." During the visit to Serbia, President Xi and Vucic agreed to build a China-Serbia community with a shared future in the new era, and Xi also announced a range of measures to support the building of China-Serbia community with a shared future. Wang said this decision marks a breakthrough in Europe for the building of a community with a shared future, which will become a new milestone in the history of China-Serbia relations. In all three European nations, from reception protocols to personal interactions between leaders, the warm hospitality showed the host countries' high regard for President Xi's visit and relations with China, Dong Yifan, a research fellow at the Institute of European Studies, China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, told the Global Times on Sunday. "The reception was of the highest standard, underscoring the importance of this visit," Dong said, noting that the visit holds significant diplomatic meaning for China, which reflects Europe's prominent position in shaping global relations and the strategic importance of China-EU relations. On Xi's visit, Wang also noted that "First Lady diplomacy" was a highlight of this visit as Peng Liyuan's charming diplomacy played a positive role in enhancing the foreign public's goodwill toward China and boosting China's soft power. "First Lady diplomacy" has two key characteristics: a feminine touch and a focus on people-to-people and cultural exchanges, Song Luzheng, a Chinese scholar residing in France and a research fellow at the China Institute of Fudan University, told the Global Times on Sunday. These aspects effectively complement the often overly formal and serious discussions between heads of state, emphasizing emotional connections and engagement in areas of consensus such as the humanities, language and culture, helping foster closer ties between people, Song said. Implications for China-EU ties Whether in EU elections or EU affairs, France and Germany play special roles. From the day the EU was founded, France has served as a political leader, acting as a "political engine," some experts said. Meanwhile, Germany remains an irreplaceable economic leader in the EU. Ahead of Xi's visit to Europe, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz also travelled to China in mid-April and had in-depth discussions on bilateral relations, regional as well as global affairs. Over the past few years, China-EU relations have faced various challenges due to geopolitical competition, the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and the expanding influence of the US. France remains committed to strategic autonomy and is the most influential power in the EU, Sun noted. By engaging with France and EU leaders on various issues, we can clarify whether we are partners or systemic rivals. Their perception is critical for the smooth development of China-EU relations, allowing us to understand each other's positions and establish a solid foundation for managing differences and strengthening cooperation, Sun said. Hungary is scheduled to take over the Council of the EU on July 1, and it will use its veto power if necessary once it assumes the rotating presidency, Euronews reported in April. Some experts said that given the unique structures of the EU and NATO, Hungary can play a crucial role, especially in the EU's consensus-based decision-making on major issues, and Hungary has for multiple times exercised its veto power against anti-China resolutions in the European Parliament and the EU. In an exclusive interview with the Global Times recently, Levente Horvath, director of the Eurasia Center at John von Neumann University, said Hungary is expected to play a positive role in China-EU relations during its upcoming EU presidency, hoping to influence the bloc's thinking about China. Some Western media, citing analysts, said the Chinese leader made an impression but no real breakthroughs on trade and Ukraine tensions. And some observers claimed that China "has gradually divided Europe into two groups: those friendly and unfriendly to China," German news outlet DW News said on Saturday in one article. European public opinion is generally pro-US, often making negative interpretations of China, some experts said, noting that however, since the beginning of this year, there have been many exchanges between China and Europe, with visits from Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany. "Therefore, it's not about China seeking to divide Europe but simply normal diplomatic visits. Moreover, the three countries that President Xi visited are relatively friendly toward China," Sun noted. Such friendliness is based on their own interests, objective considerations, and mutually beneficial cooperation. This approach represents European pragmatism and the direction of China-EU relations. "Therefore, it is incorrect to label this form of cooperation as an attempt to divide Europe," Sun said. (Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun) By Yi Whan-woo The National Tax Service (NTS) is conducting a special investigation on Koreas e-commerce giant Coupang, according to industry sources Monday, prompting speculations over the nature of the probe. Coupang acknowledged that the tax watchdog has been looking into its tax records but described it as an audit in ordinary circumstances. The company also said the NTS did not seize or confiscate any data, as it would do when carrying out an investigation into suspicious activities or transactions. Nevertheless, the sources remained doubtful about Coupangs explanation for several reasons. First, they pointed out that the probe has been led by the International Trade Investigation Bureau, which is responsible for investigating offshore tax evasion. Such criminal activity refers to businesses and individuals deliberately underreporting or failing to report income or revenue earned to tax authorities and siphoning the corresponding amount of profit out of the country. The sources also pointed out that cases of offshore tax evasion tend to involve tax havens and that Coupang is wholly owned by Coupang Inc., which is listed in New York and incorporated in Delaware. A tax-free U.S. state, Delaware is also cited by some as one of the worlds biggest tax shelters. Under the circumstances, the NTS investigation is said to be centered on Coupangs tax transactions in connection with Coupang Inc., a source said. A tax audit on a business usually takes place once every four to five years, whereas the ongoing probe on Coupang was abrupt and unexpected, the sources noted. Coupang expanded its presence fast in the conglomerate-dominated distribution industry after it was established in 2010. It posted net losses for years due to massive infrastructure investments but turned to black for the first time in 2023. It reported an annual operating profit of $473 million in 2023 and also posted $24.4 billion in sales, a notable 20 percent jump from the previous year. Meanwhile, the company has been under several separate investigations by the Fair Trade Commission for alleged unfair business practices. THE public are being offered an opportunity to view a series of original and innovative contemporary artworks in one of the most scenic locations in the country - on Sherkin Island. The BA (hons) in Visual Art is a community-based, four-year, honours degree, visual art programme based on Sherkin Island. It is fully accredited, managed and delivered by the Dublin School of Art and Design, Technological University Dublin (TU Dublin) in partnership with Sherkin Island Development Society (SIDS) and Uillinn: West Cork Arts Centre, and is part-funded by the Department of Rural and Community Development and Cork County Council. The current 4th year students completing the BA Visual Art degree will showcase their exhibition Beyond The Frame on Sherkin Island on May 18 and 19, followed by an exhibition for Uillinn: West Cork Arts Centre opening on May 25. Engaging with Sherkin Island as both inspiration and installation space, this unique exhibition takes the form of an island-wide art-trail and offers visitors a fascinating insight into both the work of the graduating students and the island itself. Sherkin Island Picture: Greg Roznawski Ferries will run throughout the weekend from Baltimore. A special price deal will be in place for visitors to Beyond The Frame for the weekend. Following the exhibition on Sherkin Island, BA Visual Art graduating students will show their work at Uillinn: West Cork Arts Centre, Skibbereen, from May 21 to June 15 in an exhibition curated by Director Ann Davoren. This is the ninth group to graduate from the degree programme. This years seven graduating students will join the ranks of 99 alumni of this prestigious and highly successful programme. Graduates have gone on to Masters and PhD level programmes, including the locally-based MA Art and Environment (TU Dublin); have secured work through teaching, lecturing and arts facilitation; and developed careers as successful artists in West Cork and elsewhere. NEW APPLICATIONS Sherkin Island Development Society (SIDS) are delighted to announce that the BA Visual Art Degree Programme is accepting applications for a new intake to the four-year degree on Sherkin Island for the academic year 2024/2025. This full-time, modular, honours degree offers a dynamic and creative programme in contemporary visual art and is fully accredited, managed and delivered by the TU Dublin School of Art and Design. The programme, which began in 2000 and was accredited in 2007, adds huge benefits to the social and economic fabric of Sherkin Island and the West Cork region in general. Aisling Moran, Development Officer for Sherkin, Heir and Long Islands, said; Its great to be able to look to the future and a new group of students commencing in September. This is a strong and unique partnership programme that brings local, regional and national agencies together. The island will welcome a group of new students to begin their journey on this unique third level degree programme in September. And, just as one cohort begins, another exits with its exhibition. For more see: www.tudublin.ie/study/undergraduate/courses/visual-art-(sherkin-island) www.sherkinisland.ie www.westcorkartscentre.com Here is some information on the seven artists set to exhibit their work, Beyound The Frame, on the island on May 18 and 19. Sorcha Browning, film production still, Eden, 2024. Sorcha Browning Originally from Ballydehob, Covid brought Sorcha back from her travels. At a time of such change and self-discovery, she enrolled in BAVA Sherkin Island to align once more with her love of art. She is now rediscovering West Cork as an adult and seeing how it really is one of the best places in the world to be. Her final project is based on the constant online engagement that gets us hooked and forces us to remain, and the elements at play within this online world that is so addictive. Her Alice character is all of us who struggle with visibility and invisibility of the online world. Macha Macha is a multi-disciplinary artist from Cork. As a neurodivergent queer single mother, art has always been a voice for the voiceless, with her keen interests in ecology and colonialism and the indigeneity of Ireland. She felt called to do the course after years of seeking something, to merge her background of dance, circus and music and passion for the wellbeing of her surroundings. Her final project, called The Trial of the Cornered Keen, is a practice which carries the intention of radical and eco-feminism. Sarah Wainwright, Interwoven, 2024, Contemporary Textile Installation Sarah Wainwright Sarah is a former care worker with three children. After completing level 5 and 6 in the West Cork Campus, she applied to BAVA and now classes herself as an emerging artist. Her final project is Interwoven and will be showcased at the Abbey on Sherkin. It looks at how the history of weaving and woven crafts connect to island life and community. Her work also explores the concept of weaving as a spiritual practice which speaks to the Abbey as a sacred place where the spiritual connects with the physical world. Natalie Allen Natalie is 35 years in Ireland and is an art therapist with the HSE, working full time as an art therapist in the community. She is a ceramic artist with a deep love of the islands. The course has stretched her further than she ever thought possible, and her final project Cast is a watery experience of the world of aquatic sounds. Natalie gives water and voice and feel with her sound sculpture casts of the ocean with plaster, glass and sound. Feel the sound of the ocean and all it holds. Hammond, 'Sheela me', 2023, performance. Hammond Journeaux Hammond is originally from New Zealand but living in Ballydehob since 1996. She enrolled as it was her mothers dying wish that she pursue her first love of art. She loves the collaborative elements of the course and the honesty of her tutors. As a cancer survivor, her final project looks at what it means to be female and the sovereignty of body, especially when undergoing cancer treatment. Her focus is on the Sheela na Gig, goddess of life and the female form and stance. Daniel Flynn working in Maria Hernandez' Art Studio in Kenmare Daniel Flynn Daniel is based in Kenmare where he has an arts studio with his partner. He is the father of a young child and BAVA allows him the flexibility to pursue his Visual Arts degree. His final year project is based on the Kerry baby story and the memory of oblivion and suppressed rememberings. It also addresses suicide and death. His show will consist of 10 paintings that will be shown in the community hall on the island. Paula Quirke Paula was living in Dublin, working at the national rehab centre for victims of torture. She has always been drawn to nature and the islands and the structure of the course allowed her to work and complete the degree. She has bought a house on the island and now lives their full time. Her final project, A search for new land, is walking artwork, searching for connectivity and resilience. The project will feature an art book and work in nature on Sherkins headland. Its great to be able to look to the future and a new group of students commencing in September. CORK teenager Megan OBrien has recently completed the inaugural Generation Glas programme, which supports young people from Foroige youth projects to become sustainability ambassadors, so that they can engage underrepresented groups in green issues. A core part of the course is training the young participants, aged 15-18, in sustainability event management. Megan was one of a group of young people from Cork, who co-designed an event that took place in Red Abbey Court in Cork city last month, featuring live music, an art display, a clothes swap, and climate games. Megan loved every minute of the programme and is deeply grateful for the opportunity to get involved in a programme that has changed the way she lives and views the world. Ive been going to my local youth club since I was in fifth class, she said. I attend now on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. A group of us go kayaking in Cork city on Tuesdays and on Wednesdays we write about how our day has been and learn about various things like relationships. We are so lucky to have brilliant youth workers. Brian takes us kayaking and then we have Angela on a Wednesday. They are always there for us. The place feels like a second home. Megan cant imagine life without the support of Foroige. All of us in the youth club would be lost without it. The youth workers are very hard-working; they would help you with anything, and they are always trying to do stuff for us. They are very caring, and they listen. Such is the enthusiasm of Megans youth workers that it was their idea for her to complete the Generation Glas Programme. My youth leader called me and asked if I wanted to do it. At first, I was a little bit apprehensive because I didnt know much about sustainability but then that became a kind of motivation. I thought, if I knew something more about sustainability, I could live more sustainably. The programme ran for eight months. During that time, Megan enjoyed learning new communication skills, became more comfortable with public speaking, and learned about all aspects of sustainability, including food waste, biodiversity, and climate justice. One of the main things I learned is that the climate crisis is unfair. I learned that Ireland doesnt live very sustainably but it also doesnt feel a lot of the impact compared to other countries. I was shocked when I found that out. We are very bad for food waste. People either buy too much or they dont use it in time, or dont use it all. The programme involved a great deal of commitment, another way in which Megan has developed life skills for her future. Eight months feel likes a long time and we had called every two weeks. We also had guest speakers who came in and taught us about whatever area they were involved with in relation to sustainability. We had Eimear Manning visit us both in person and on a call. She was a massive hit. As a marine biologist, she was able to explain how sharks have been affected by climate change. How pollution affects them. The practical side of the course was a particular highlight for the Cork native as she experienced an unprecedented feeling of agency. The event part was a massive part of it. All the organisation was handed down to us. We began by sitting in a circle and brain-stormed. We thought very carefully about what would make a good location and what we most wanted to teach. The events started small. Just four of us visited Brook Lodge National school. We decided together that we were being educated on sustainability, so we wanted to also educate people younger than us, coming up behind us. We wanted them to get on board so they could help too. We ran two days in the school. On the first day, the four of us spoke to two sixth class groups. We spoke in our area of interest, for me that was food waste. The experience taught Megan the importance of teamwork, and how everyone playing to their strengths makes for a good event overall. Ella is very good at fashion, so she spoke about the damage of fast fashion. Oisin loves fishing so he referenced Eimear Manning, and then James spoke about bees. On the second day, the four changemakers brought the children to Dooleys to choose two trees. They planted them and painted stones to go around them, reminding the young ones of their agency in helping and healing nature too. Then came the bigger event in Red Abbey in Cork, involving between ten and 15 ambassadors. We decided to have an event in Cork and Red Abbey Square seemed like a good location. We had live music to bring passers-by in, and then Ella organised a clothes swap as part of her interest in fast fashion. It was great. We were very organised, and we had rails beneath a marquee so the weather wouldnt be an issue. But that wasnt all. We also organised to have a guy who does sustainable games. His message was great and very simple just use what you have. We ended up having a snowball fight with white socks. It was a massive hit. Everyone enjoyed it. People walking past got involved too. It was also a special event for us because our families came, and we had a board of pictures of all the work we had put into the programme. It felt great. Although Megan finds it difficult to pinpoint the highlights on the course, having enjoyed it all, she suspects that event management may play a role in her future. There were so many good elements. I loved the organisation of setting up the event. It was great to see the impact on people. I also loved meeting new people in Cork and getting closer with my own friends in the youth club. Going on trips and sharing a room means you get quite close. I was constantly learning new things, every hour - I was learning so much, from everyone. That was the thing everyone brought something. I also really liked that my social skills and my communication skills got way better. If you told me last year, I would be on a call doing a newspaper article I would have felt sick, but here I am talking to you and Im fine. And its not only Megan who has been changed by the course. We have talked about sustainability in our family. I was bad for taking really long showers. Ive stopped that now. We are also much more conscious of food waste. I help now with the shopping and with what we eat. My mum has always been very good at teaching me that you cant go shopping without a plan, but I actively help with that now. Before, I would have gone shopping, but not really been aware. Megan would recommend the programme to anyone. Even if you know nothing about sustainability, you should go for it. I feel it is very beneficial to learn about it and see what we can do to help. Every one of us. Generation Glas will run for a second time starting in July, 2024, with more information available on www.biorbic.com/generation-glas. Korea will push to set up a package worth over 10 trillion won ($7.29 billion) to support the chip industry as part of efforts to boost the competitiveness of the critical industry and to prop up economic growth, the finance ministry has said. The planned assistance program of more than 10 trillion won aims at supporting facility investment and research and development programs for all sectors of the chip industry from chip materials to manufacturing equipment and components, Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok said during his visit to a local chipmaking company on Friday. The package would be created through a fund to be financed by private entities and public financial institutions, such as the state-run Korea Development Bank. "The indirect way of financial support is meant to prevent risks for chipmakers ... which will focus particularly on the relatively weak fabless sector, as well as the materials, parts and equipment fields," Choi said, stressing the commitment to the creation of an industry ecosystem to enhance competitiveness. Details of the envisioned program will be announced after consultations with relevant entities, according to the ministry. The semiconductor industry is a key growth engine for Korea, which is the world's biggest memory chip producer as the home to Samsung Electronics and SK hynix. (Yonhap) GUSTA Pizza-Grill is a place that has been serving on the same street in Midleton for 14 years. The owner, Alex Sahin, is a Kurdish person who immigrated from Turkey a long time ago, and has been living in Ireland for over 20 years. Alex is someone who has overcome great difficulties and his business is still operating today, thanks to the mobilisation and strong solidarity of the public, most recently due to the floods in Midleton. Perhaps the most crucial part of this story may be Irelands unfailing spirit of solidarity and the flavour that Alex and his staff brought to Midleton with their hard work. Q: The previous name of your business was Anatolia Kebab, now it is Gusta Pizza-Grill. How many years have you been serving Midleton? A: We have been serving on Connolly Street for 14 years, that is, since 2010. As you will appreciate, we encountered various difficulties at first and served people with a slightly more amateur spirit. I can say that our old name, Anatolia, symbolises these first steps a little more. After taking the name Gusta, we switched to a more professional menu, and started thinking about how we could provide better and higher quality service to the people of Midleton. We have a master in our kitchen who knows his job really well, and people can eat really delicious products. I think our customers understand the balance of taste, quality and speed. You also know that as the speed increases, the quality actually starts to decrease at certain rates. We call this fast eating culture anyway. However, here we try to maintain both speed and keep the taste and quality at the highest level as possible. This is a really labor-intensive, stressful job. I think our customers understand the balance of taste quality and speed. We have a good customer base and we always do our best to make them happy. Q: You are a night business, and working at night usually involves some difficulties. What are the difficulties of this job? A: The challenges are undoubtedly diverse, because if you serve people, you know very well that people have unpredictable aspects. You can see serious changes in peoples behaviour, especially when day turns into night. However, the spirit and solidarity of the people of Midleton is very high, and thanks to their co-operation, it makes our job a lot easier. So, when we encounter a difficulty, we establish good communication with our customers and can overcome that problem as quickly as possible. Q: There has been major flooding in Midleton and your business has been directly affected. Was the aid provided by the Government sufficient? Did you encounter any bureaucratic obstacles or problems regarding the aid? A: Of course, there were various disruptions, because what we encountered shocked everyone and all other local business. Despite this, there was a quick reaction in terms of aid and we were able to overcome this devastation quickly, especially thanks to the solidarity of the people of Midleton. Journalist Cagdas Gokbel and Alex Sahin of Gusta Pizza-Grill. Everyone, young and old, who took a shovel in their hands, made a very intense effort to get the town back on its feet. I really want to thank all my Irish friends who stopped by our business and asked if we needed anything and any help. We need to focus on remembering that we are a society able to unite in times of difficulties. I saw and experienced this spirit of Midleton and people of east Cork. This really gives people great courage. So, I think supporting a person you dont know without expecting anything in return is what makes a person human. Yes, we experienced a great disaster, but this reminded us that Ireland has a strong social structure. Q: Immigrants have been the most discussed issue, not only in Ireland but also in European politics for a while. How do you evaluate the public debate on immigration and have you encountered any difficulties, if any, due to this political tension? A: I have personally never encountered direct racism in Ireland. On the contrary, the Irish people are very friendly and even their behaviour is very different compared to most European countries and people. You do not encounter the hatred here that you would see in continental Europe. Of course, this does not mean people do not have experiences that they should not. I say this because I am talking about myself as a person. Frankly, I think that the positive experiences I have had are very related to historical processes. Ireland is a country founded with great sacrifice and poverty. The immigration experience of the Irish people is far greater then any other nation in the world, this is a legacy that increases peoples sense of empathy, and I attach great importance to this legacy. Of course, when we consider global crises, climate crisis and wars, it seems that mass migration is an issue that we need to talk about, and think about more in the future. Politics is the single most effective tool to solve these problems. I believe everyone who has a citizenship bond with Ireland should be sensitive to the problems of this country. In this sense, it is very important for everyone who is an Irish citizen, regardless of where they come from, to be involved in politics. If I need to take responsibility in this sense in the future, I am thinking of getting involved in politics and taking this responsibility. Lets remember what happened during the flood disaster. Everyone living in Midleton came together as one and was doing their best to heal the wounds of our beautiful town. We should never forget this fact that makes us who we are. We can solve our problems, not with hatred, but with more solidarity, respect and love. Ireland has such a spirit. Q: What message would you like to give to those who know you and your customers? We are the sponsor of the youth rugby team. We fulfill our responsibility and do our best to make Midleton a more beautiful and happy place. We will always do our best to give something back to the community that has supported us over the years. We work hard for this with all my employees. We are equally happy when we see a smile on someones face as they leave Gusta Pizza-Grill. Also, if you happen to be in Midleton one day, dont forget to call in to say hi. I have spent years in this beautiful town, I will always be greatful and thankful to the people of Midleton and east Cork for their continued support and loyalty. SOME 58 horses were seized across Cork city and county in 2023, at a total cost of just under 177,000. In Cork city, 16 horses were seized in 2023, with 15 of these being rehomed and one being reclaimed by the owner. During this period, costs of 81,549 were incurred by the local authority in relation to horse seizing. Far more horses were seized in Cork county, however, with 42 animals seized. The countys total expenses for the control of horses service as submitted to the Department of Agriculture, Food, and the Marine was 95,305.72. No horses were euthanised by Cork City Council or Cork County Council in 2023. The co-founder of My Lovely Horse Rescue, Martina Kenny, said that the organisation is seeing an increase in horse welfare issues. Animal welfare in general has gotten worse theres a huge dog crisis in Ireland as well as a horse crisis, said Ms Kenny. Theres always a horse problem coming up to the summer, the kids are off school, they get a cheap horse, tie it up wherever they can every year its the same. Its also foaling season, and weve already seen foals dumped. Her organisation works with councils across Ireland, taking in as many of the horses as they can, and also assists the gardai with horse seizures for welfare reasons where the horse needs medical attention. If they are trying to prosecute, we put everything together for gardai a vet report, dental report, farriers report, [and] information about the health of the horse so they can get a prosecution. Both Kilkenny County Council and Dublin City Council are taking horse welfare very seriously, and other councils should really look at that, Ms Kenny said, explaining that a horse project in Kilkenny has been hugely successful, and they have noticed a huge fall in horse welfare issues. A spokesperson for the Cork County Council told The Echo: [The Department of Agriculture, Food, and the Marine] contribute to a local authority of up to 375 for each horse that is seized and later euthanised. A contribution of up to 200 is made for each horse that is rehomed, and 125 is payable for equines other than horses that are rehomed. No contribution is paid to a local authority if a horse or other equine is reclaimed, adding that they recoup this from the department on a quarterly basis. Sinn Fein TD for Cork North Central Thomas Gould told The Echo that horse welfare in Cork must be taken more seriously. It is very clear that the funding provided by the Department of Agriculture is leaving a serious deficit for local authorities to fill, he said. In 2023, Cork City Council paid over 80,000 for the control of horses but, according to department figures, would have received only 3,000. This funding deficit cannot continue to act as a barrier to properly reinforcing animal welfare in the city and county. Alongside this, we must see the progression of a horse project. Young people should be given the opportunity to learn how to care for horses in a safe environment. We know that the number of horses seized is only a small proportion of those mistreated in Cork, and every possible action should be taken to reduce this. CROWDS gathered at various locations across Cork in the early hours of Saturday to participate in the annual Darkness into Light events in aid of Pieta. Darkness into Light has now become a global movement, dedicated to raising vital funds for Pietas life-saving services. Pieta provides a range of services nationally to people who are experiencing thoughts of suicide, those who engage in self-harm, and those bereaved by suicide. All of the services are provided free of charge, and no referral is needed. Douglas and Mary Black and Sparkles in Cobh after completing the Darkness into Light walk in aid of Pieta Picture: David Keane. Across the city and county, Cork again showed its support for Darkness into Light this year. In the city, the Darkness into Light 5km walk, which started and finished at UCC, drew the largest crowd in years, according to UCC committee member Mick Finn. Thousands walked in Cork for Darkness into Light for Pieta at UCC, in what was one of the most stunning mornings ever for the event, he told The Echo. People seemed to have enjoyed the event which definitely was the biggest in years. The Independent councillor and former Lord Mayor thanked all those who took part or who assisted in any way in running the event. Alex O'Meara, Martha Kelly, Melanie Arias and Ciara Murphy, at the Darkness into Light walk in Cobh in aid of Pieta. Picture: David Keane. Meanwhile, a Darkness into Light event that had previously taken place in Ballyvolane resumed this year following a hiatus since the pandemic. Over 300 attended the Cork northside [event] at Glen Rovers Hurling Club after a five-year break, said committee member John Maher. It was fantastic to see, and the atmosphere was superb. The committee are brilliant and weve learnt so much in the build-up to this event, and we are planning for 2025 already. It was lovely to see the crowds pass through Ballyvolane, Mayfield, the Glen, Blackpool and Dublin Hill, supporting each other and remembering loved ones. Thank you to all who supported the event, Mr Maher, who is also a Labour Party councillor, added. Amanda Benzaken and Morgan O'Callaghan who took part in the Darkness into Light swim in Fountainstown to raise funds for Pieta. Picture: David Keane. In total, 30 Darkness into Light events took place in Cork including in Ballincollig, Blarney, Youghal, Cobh, and Fountainstown. To avail of Pietas services, visit https://www.pieta.ie/ or call 0818 111 126. Cork is set to mark International Day against Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia (IDAHOBIT) on Friday with its annual LGBTI+ Awareness Week which will kick off in Cork today. The 2024 theme, A Safe City for All, has been described as a call to unity and a spokesperson said it was chosen in the shadow of the attacks that have been made on people and organisations in the last year around the country with libraries, migrant accommodations, and other public buildings subjected to pickets, protests, and damage to books and materials. Lord Mayor of Cork Cllr Kieran McCarthy will officially launch LGBTI+ Awareness Week 2024 at City Hall today. Acknowledging the work done by the LGBTI+ InterAgency Group as essential to building a safe city for all, he said: Cork aspires to be a safe harbour for all. Everyone should be safe to live fully as themselves, no matter who we are, where we come from, who we love, or how we look. In recent weeks, the Cork LGBTI+ InterAgency Group were welcomed to City Hall by councillor John Maher, who was deputising for the Lord Mayor, where Mr Maher thanked the InterAgency Group for their work in creating a more inclusive city. You have made it alright for people to acknowledge who they are in public. In an earlier time, we would have hidden that aspect of ourselves, he said. Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration, and Youth Roderic OGorman, who will deliver the keynote speech at the launch today, said: It is by standing together, by supporting each other, by building safe structures in our society, that we enable each other to carry on as our best selves. A range of free events will run throughout the week, with highlights including a seminar entitled A Safe City for All on Wednesday morning at City Hall; a screening of the acclaimed All of Us Strangers on Wednesday evening in the Triskel Arts Centre; Queer+ Elders and Pioneers Rainbow Cities Network photo exhibition on Friday in the Glucksman at UCC; and a rainbow picnic on Sunday afternoon in Fitzgerald Park. See https://www.corkcity.ie/en/council-services/services/community/supporting-community-groups/lgbti-awareness-week-programme-2024.pdf. A Cork cafe chain has been selected to benefit from 20,000 in major advertising funding as part of FBD Insurances small business support campaign. Perry Street, with locations in Cork city centre, Grange and Ringaskiddy, is one of seven companies selected by FBD Insurance to receive funding as part of an advertising package worth 140,000 for Irish SMEs nationwide. Set up by former accountant, Brian Drinan and architect, Paul Coffey in 2012, Perry Street is renowned for its artisan food, fresh coffee and delicious homemade cakes. Delighted Speaking on the investment, Mr Drinan and Mr Coffey said: We are delighted to have been selected to take part in this important advertising campaign which shines a line on the importance of SMEs to the Irish economy. The advertising package is an invaluable contribution to our business and wed like to thank FBD for supporting Irish SMEs. The selected SMEs represent diverse sectors, ranging from food and hospitality to retail, and hail from all corners of the country. Each business is an FBD customer and will benefit from an advertising package placing them in a prime Out of Home (OOH) billboard locations to maximum audience reach. The advertising bundle also includes radio, print and digital advertising. Head of Marketing at FBD Insurance, Sharon Treanor said: We are always ready to support customers and are delighted to take this support one step further through the launch of this targeted advertising package. Advertising is a key way for businesses to tell their story and reach new customers. We look forward to seeing our customer stories featured all across the country as part of this campaign and are confident that this support will have a positive impact on their business growth journey. Six other businesses were selected to take part in the campaign across Waterford, Donegal, Limerick, Sligo, Galway, and Dublin, including Mezze, McKennas Londis, Aibheil, The Beach Bar, Green Earth Organics, and Brew Town Roasters respectively. CORK City North West is a huge ward, covering approximately half of the Cork North Central Dail constituency, and it may well be the frontier for the citys future growth. Heading north from the Opera House into Blackpool, and up to Dublin Hill, the ward extends across into Killeens, and Blarney, out as far as Tower, over to Inniscarra and back along the Lee Road into Sundays Well, and then down to the Christy Ring Bridge. It embraces parts of Blackpool, Farranree, Gurranabraher, Churchfield, Blarney Street, Shandon, Knocknaheeny, Shanakiel, and Hollyhill among other areas. The ward covers a vast area, one which seems likely to face significant growth and development in the years ahead. All six of Cork City North Wests sitting councillors have confirmed to The Echo that they will be contesting the upcoming local elections in June, and the next council will almost certainly face decisions which will see the ward become a key part of the citys future expansion. There have been two changes to the roster of councillors since the 2019 local elections, with two members replaced for different reasons. After 11 years as a councillor, Sinn Feins Thomas Gould was elected to the Dail in the 2020 general election, and Mick Nugent who had run unsuccessfully in the North East ward in 2019 after a term representing Cork North West took his place. Fiona Ryan of Solidarity/People Before Profit stood down last June, citing health issues and family commitments, after seven years in the council. Ms Ryan was replaced by the Socialist Partys Brian McCarthy. Both co-opted councillors told The Echo they will run in June, as have the remaining councillors Fianna Fails Tony Fitzgerald and Dr John Sheehan, Fine Gaels Damian Boylan, and Sinn Feins Kenneth Collins. Challenge Cork City North West absorbed a lot of ground in the 2019 boundary extension, and John Sheehan says it has been something of a challenge to make places like Blarney, Tower, and Cloghroe, feel like they belonged in the expanded city. I think that has worked reasonably well, and I think people, by and large, are happy to be part of the city. I think the next challenge in the new council, with the growth of the city, I think a lot of that growth is going to come this side of the city, because if you look at the other side of the city, you have to go out miles really, he says. Fianna Fail councillor said the 2019 boundary extension has been something of a challenge to make places like Blarney, Tower, and Cloghroe, feel like they belonged in the expanded city. In this side of the city, there is less growth historically, and I think some of that growth will be coming out here and that will probably be one of the big things that will happen in the next council. His Fianna Fail colleague, Tony Fitzgerald, agrees. The north-west is the new city, and that new city will have the opportunities for development, and retail trade, and economic development in and around the Killeens, Blarney, Tower areas, and infrastructure will be key to the development and the success of these important components of the city. Fine Gaels Damian Boylan, who lives in Blarney, sounds a note of caution, however. The north-west has been targeted by Cork City Council as an area for expansion, so were going to see a lot of housing built in the ward. Now, thats fine, and if they want houses built in places like Kerry Pike and Cloghroe and Tower and Blarney, the infrastructure has to be put in place in tandem with the houses, otherwise were going to face people who are going to turn around and say, Dyou knew what, no, were objecting. Sinn Fein councillor Mick Nugent lists priorities as affordable housing across the ward, a primary healthcare centre for Blarney, and regeneration. We have the ongoing regeneration of the citys north-west, with Knocknaheeny at the core of it. Hopefully, we will see a speedier delivery of that over the next five years. Were seeing some progress on the delivery of a north-west regional park, with the council saying its a key objective, and it will be a fantastic amenity when it is complete. Regeneration has to be more than just bricks and mortar, Mr Nugent says. The council needs to focus as well on the regeneration of Blackpool, which is something I think really deserves that focus. Housing Brian McCarthy, Socialist Party councillor, feels the headline issues for the ward in the next council will be housing, housing maintenance, water quality, and the lack of services in the area. The main one is housing. We can see the problems we have with overcrowding, dereliction and vacancy across the ward, he says. If we look at the [Cork Northwest Quarter Regeneration] project, it has been, overall, very positive, but we have some glaring issues there, like for example 2C, which has been left half-built for years. Work started on phase 2C of the project in March 17, 2020, but was stalled due to a complex contractual dispute. However, as recently as last week, it turned a corner. Cork City Council said it had concluded its contractual arrangements with the initial building contractor. It said its housing delivery and regeneration team would immediately re-set the project, with the intention of delivering quality homes on the site in what it said would be a timely manner. Fianna Fail counillor Tony Fitzgerald said pressure stills needs to be put on to develop the northern distributor road and the northern ring road Public transport is, as always, a pressing issue in the ward. The outcome of BusConnects will be of interest to many in the north-west of the city, and roads and maintenance are also very topical, Tony Fitzgerald says. We still need to put pressure to develop the northern distributor road and the northern ring road, because the connectivity to Ballincollig and the western parts of the suburbs is key, and that will be a major challenge for the members of the next council. Public transport Damian Boylan says the council needs to get [its] act together on public transport infrastructure. We need our northern ring road and our northern distributor road, because places like Kerry Pike and Tower and Cloghroe and Clogheen are turning into rat runs. Cars arent going to disappear in the short term, with the best will in the world, in as much as [transport minister and Green Party leader] Eamon Ryan might like to think that, and they certainly wont disappear while we have inadequate public transport, he says. The quality of drinking water has been a very controversial issue in this ward, and in others, since reports of brown water multiplied dramatically in the months since July, 2022, when the then Irish Water opened its new water treatment plant. Weve been doing a lot of work on that, weve had a public meeting, weve had a protest, and were doing work door-to-door at the moment, talking to people again about moving that forward, because public pressure will be key to that, Brian McCarthy says. A lack of services is a huge issue, he adds, citing the closure of the Before 5 preschool as symptomatic of how badly working class communities have been let down by the Government parties. That was a real focal centre of the community, provided a lot of services beyond the pre-school, theres been a hole punched in the local area with all those services gone, and we have no clear idea when theyre going to be brought back, he adds. Sinn Fein's councillor Kenneth Collins said greater investments in the ward is needed. Sinn Feins Kenneth Collins agrees that greater investment in the ward is needed. Its a fantastic area, the north-west of the city, and I was born and reared here. I think obviously way more resources are needed here, especially public parks and amenities, such as the new community building over in Fairhill, more resources need to be put in for the people in the north-west of the city. A young man who sexually assaulted two young girls when he was aged 12 and 14 years old has been jailed for 18 months. The now 21-year-old Co Cork man pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court to sexual assault against two girls on dates in 2015 and 2017. He has no previous convictions and has not come to any further garda attention. The accused man was 12 when he sexually assaulted the first girl, who was 9 years old at the time, on a date in 2015. He was between 14 and 15 when he sexually assaulted the second victim, who was aged between 13 and 14 years old, on a date in 2017. Two separate incidents Passing sentence today, Ms Justice Eileen Creedon said the case involved two separate incidents and complainants two years apart. She noted he was older than both girls. She said the offending has clearly had a significant effect on both girls' mental health. She said they had displayed great courage in coming forward. The judge noted a probation report confirmed he was remorseful, has taken responsibility and has awareness of the effect on the girls. He has no addiction issues and has a supportive family. She set headline sentences totalling seven years, before noting that the accused was a child at the time of the offending which entitled him to significant mitigation. Mr Justice Creedon said it was serious that he had gone on to offend a second time and that the young woman in that case had declined sex and he ignored what she said. She said this warranted a custodial element to sentencing. She imposed concurrent sentences totalling two years and suspended the final six months on strict conditions. She ordered that he be registered as a sex offender for a period of two years. An investigating garda told Tom Creed SC, prosecuting, that the offences came to light in 2020 when the first girl made a disclosure in school that she had been sexually assaulted by the accused in a corn field when she was nine years old. She said the second girl was in their company. She said the sexual assault involved digital anal penetration. The school contacted Tusla and gardai interviewed the accused boy. He told them it had been consensual but accepted what he did was wrong. The second girl was approached regarding the incident and revealed she had also been sexually assaulted by the accused on a later occasion. She said he had asked her to have sex but she declined and he ripped her pants before putting his fingers inside her. The accused was arrested again and told gardai he knew she had not been consenting. He said he thought he had some sort of sex addiction and told gardai: I was thinking with my d**k and not my brain. Victim impact statements In her victim impact statement, the first girl said the sexual assault at nine years old had a massive effect on her. She said she did not truly understand what had happened and the idea she might be pregnant had terrified her. She said she felt she was forced to stop being a child. She outlined the continuing adverse effects the assault has had on her in terms of her mental health and anxiety. She said this part of her life would always be with her and she would never forget it. In her victim impact statement, the second girl said she had known the accused since she very young, he had been in and out of her home and she had no reason not to trust him. She said after the sexual assault, the accused had still been in and out of her home as if nothing happened. Like he didnt even care what he did to me, she said. She said she felt sad all the time, had huge trust issues and it had taken a lot to report it. She said she would never understand why he had done it to her but she had been relieved when he pleaded guilty. She thanked her family and the gardai for their support. Low risk of reoffending Jane Hyland SC, defending, asked the court to take into account that the accused had pleaded guilty at the first opportunity and had never tried to say the offending had not occurred. Counsel handed reports into the court and outlined the accused mans cognitive difficulties described in a psychiatric report. He found school challenging but has a stable employment record. She said he is very remorseful and is assessed as at low risk of reoffending. Ms Hyland said her client had been consuming pornography from a young age. She said his family is shocked at the offending but remain supportive of him. She asked the court to treat him as the child he was at the time of the offending and take into account his efforts to try and take responsibility for his actions. A WOMAN who suffered catastrophic, lifelong injuries after her son attempted to murder her has hit out at inadequate community health services that she said are unable to deal with complex mental illness. Mary Coughlan almost died when her son Gearoid who has been diagnosed with schizophrenia beat her and repeatedly stabbed her. Ms Coughlan has previously said that she was unaware of the risk her son posed to her and her family prior to the near-fatal assault. The Central Criminal Court heard that Gearoid Coughlan is deemed by the Probation Service to be at a high risk of reoffending in a community setting. Ms Coughlan spoke outside court today after Gearoid was sentenced to 10 years in prison. Unfortunately the mental health services in Ireland are inadequate to care for complex mental illnesses in the community, she said. Ms Coughlan said schizophrenia has robbed my son of so much and caused untold sadness in our family. We hope that all families in a similar situation get their required help before it becomes too late, she said. Gearoid Coughlan wanted to go to prison instead of the hospital. Pic: Larry Cummins Last December, Gearoid Coughlan, aged 32, of Ballycoughlan, Inishannon, Co Cork, pleaded guilty to attempting to murder his mother, Mary Coughlan, on June 4, 2021, at her home in Ballycoughlan. When he finishes his 10-year sentence, Coughlan will undergo six years of supervision by probation and psychiatric services. Passing sentence, Mr Justice Paul McDermott, at the Central Criminal Court, said that Coughlan will require further treatment before he can safely be reintroduced into society. Mr Justice McDermott said Coughlan lacks insight into his illness and does not understand that, to avoid further relapses, he needs to take prescribed medication and avoid alcohol and illicit drugs. The judge noted that Coughlan has been aggressive and violent towards numerous people, including his father, mother, and hospital staff. The appalling attempted murder of his mother left her with catastrophic and life-long physical and mental injuries, and she is lucky to be alive, the judge said. Mr Justice McDermott said Gearoid Coughlan had opted not to pursue a defence under the Criminal Law (Insanity) Act, which may have resulted in him being found not guilty by reason of insanity. He said Coughlan had chosen to plead guilty to attempted murder because he would prefer to have a definite prison sentence rather than the indefinite period of detention in the Central Mental Hospital, which would be imposed if he were found not guilty by reason of insanity. The judge noted that it is not possible under Irish law for him to impose a hospital order, and said this is a matter that has yet to be addressed by the Oireachtas. Man asked to be returned to prison Before todays sentencing, Coughlans barrister Alice Fawsitt SC told the court that her client wants to be returned to prison rather than the Central Mental Hospital. His reasons, counsel said, include that he cannot smoke in the hospital and he has only restricted access to the gym. He promised to take his medication and to undergo urinalysis to establish that he is drug-free, Ms Fawsitt said. Mr Justice McDermott said the case gives rise to a number of difficulties posed by Gearoid Coughlans deep, continuing mental health issues. It is up to the prison authorities as to where Coughlan spends his sentence, but Mr Justice McDermott said the Central Mental Hospital appears to be the appropriate place for him. The judge noted that the attempted murder, and other episodes that resulted in involuntary committals to psychiatric wards, were preceded by periods when Gearoid Coughlan reduced his medication and used alcohol and illicit drugs, including cannabis and ketamine. While he has made progress in hospital, Mr Justice McDermott noted a probation report stating that Coughlan is at a high risk of reoffending in a community setting. He has no real insight into his illness and continues to justify the attack on his mother based on delusional reasoning. He does not appreciate the benefits of medication and does not understand that previous failures to take his medication led to relapses. He also believes that cannabis use is beneficial. Mr Justice McDermot said there is a high probability that, on release into the community, Coughlan will deteriorate and pose a risk. 'Deep concerns of a mother' The judge noted Ms Coughlans victim impact statement, which he said showed both the concerns of a victim but also the deep concerns of a mother for her son, and her deep and abiding concern that his problems be addressed in a meaningful way. The judge said the available services did not provide the intensive attention Gearoid Coughlan required. The judge added: Her statement is full of love, forgiveness, positive thoughts for the future, and it is full of the strength she has indicated she derives from her faith and from the care and love of family and friends. Among the aggravating features, the judge noted that the assault took place in the victims home where the defendant was cherished, cared for, and supported. The attack violated Ms Coughlans sense of security in her home, and was a gross breach of trust following decades of support and endeavour. Mr Justice McDermott said the intent was clear from the use of a knife to inflict the most serious injuries possible. In sentencing, Mr Justice McDermott said he wants to protect society, but preventive detention can only be used sparingly. The features of the case, he said, justify a headline sentence of 21 years. Taking into account the guilty plea and Coughlans reduced moral responsibility due to his mental disorder, the judge reduced that to 12 years. He further suspended the final two years for six years with 18 conditions, including that Gearoid Coughlan abides by all directions of the probation and mental health services and takes his prescribed medication. Hearing At a sentencing hearing in March, Detective Garda Peter Nolan told Tom Creed SC, for the DPP, that on June 4, 2021, Ms Coughlans daughter Joanne became concerned after her mother texted her to say that Gearoid was at her house, appeared to be quite down and was saying: Youre not my mother. Joannes husband, a GP, immediately went to Ballycoughlan where he found Ms Coughlan lying face down in a pool of blood on her kitchen floor, grunting, and struggling to breathe. He cleared her airways, stemmed the bleeding, and called emergency services. Det Gda Nolan agreed that an emergency medical consultant said that Ms Coughlan would have died within minutes were it not for the doctors intervention. Gardai found Gearoid at a bus stop about 4km from his mothers home. After being cautioned, he asked twice: Is she dead? During interviews, he repeatedly denied being at the family home that day. However, the garda said, his claims were contradicted by CCTV, mobile phone data, the eyewitness evidence of family and neighbours, and forensic evidence that showed his clothes were stained with his mothers blood. Gardai also retrieved a recording made by Coughlans mother five days prior to the assault, in which Gearoid Coughlan voiced his intention to kill his mother, father, and brother. Det Gda Nolan said Gearoid Coughlan could be heard calmly saying: I will kill all of you. A medical report detailed the injuries to Ms Coughlan, including a 25cm incised wound to the neck and multiple open wounds to the face. When paramedics treated her, she had lost cardiac output and required three weeks of treatment in a critical care unit. She suffered a traumatic brain injury and continues to undergo speech and language therapy. Although she is at an advanced stage of recovery, she will never make a full recovery, said Det Gda Nolan. After his arrest and detention, Gearoid was sent to the Central Mental Hospital, where he remains. At the same hearing, Ms Coughlan said she is frustrated that people with paranoid schizophrenia are allowed to live in the community without the care they need, in particular, to ensure they stick to their prescribed medication. Ms Coughlan said that a lack of communication regarding the level of risk posed by her sons disease left her in an unexpected, dangerous situation where I endured a horrific assault that almost cost me my life, and will continue to impact my life forever. The assault by my son, who I never feared before, resulted in severe injuries, including a traumatic brain injury. Mothers statement In her victim impact statement in March, Ms Coughlan said Gearoid is the youngest of her five children. His struggles with schizophrenia began in his first year at University College in Limerick, and resulted in 11 admissions to the psychiatric unit at Cork University Hospital over a 10-year period. She said: My experience with the mental health services is that it appears effective in certain crises, when an immediate threat to life or limb is present, but it falls short in treating mental health conditions and preventing crises, particularly in schizophrenics, where patients often resist medication. She said she is frustrated that the mental health services allow people with paranoid schizophrenia to live in communities without the care they need to stay well, specifically by sticking to their medication. Ms Coughlan said she understands that the health service is working within the Mental Health Act but, she said, the lack of co-ordination between primary care workers and the hospitals impacted her sons health and her familys safety. She described her survival as a miracle and said without the intervention of her son-in-law, the outcome would have been drastically different. She added: I refuse to let this episode define me. I constantly seek new adventures, drawing strength from my husband, family, friends, neighbours, and my community. Since leaving hospital, she said she has refused to be trapped in my own body. I pushed myself to get about and re-engage with my community, to embrace life once more. Despite the visible wounds, I feel so lucky I am alive. This has been a poignant and humbling reminder that, in the blink of an eye, life can undergo irreversible changes. She finished by saying that she had been asked what she would say if she were sitting with Gearoid in front of her in a safe environment. I replied without hesitating that I would give him a big hug and tell him we all love him. I understand that his illness was the cause of this. BALTIMORE promotes itself as a village of some 400 permanent inhabitants, whose numbers are swelled by visitors in the summer months. It lies about 60 miles west of Cork city in the region known as West Cork, one of the most beautiful parts of Ireland, and the final stop on the 2,500 km (1,500 mile) Wild Atlantic Way. The climate is mild thanks to the nearby Atlantic and the influence of the Gulf Stream. Baltimores large natural harbour is formed partly by islands of the archipelago known as Carberys Hundred Isles, and around the pier, charter boats and pleasure craft jostle with fishing vessels and ferries serving the main islands. The oldest part of the village, with its castle and rows of fishermens cottages, is spread along the eastern shore of the harbour. At its heart is the village Square around which are clustered bars and restaurants looking west over sea and islands towards the Lands End of Ireland, Mizen Head. Sounds idyllic. A nice place to visit, or maybe even a place to spend some time for a holiday with the family or would it? Would you be safe sitting outside the local pub with your pint, admiring the view of the harbour, or could your kids be hauled off by some marauding pirates to a foreign land, never to be seen again? Thats impossible, you say, but can you be certain? After all, it happened before. Granted, it was some time ago, 1631 in fact, when much of the local population was carried off by pirates, during an event known as the Sack of Baltimore. I cant believe Im only finding out about this now. I bought a book by Des Ekin - The Stolen Village: Baltimore And The Barbary Pirates - and after talking to a few buddies about it, it seems that Im the last person to hear about this amazing story. Barbary pirates from north Africa, led by a Dutch captain-turned pirate, known as Murad Reis the Younger, raided Baltimore. The attack was quick and unexpected with the inhabitants taken completely by surprise. More than 200 armed pirates landed in the Cove, torching the thatched roofs of the houses, and carried off with them young and old out of their beds. It started on June 19, 1631, when the raiders gathered off the Old Head of Kinsale. They had already captured two fishing-boats from Dungarvan, one captained by John Hackett, the other by Thomas Carew, both containing five-man crews. The two 12-ton boats, now manned by pirates, joined the little flotilla, which continued westward. Aboard the lead vessel, Captain Morat Rais, a Dutchman with extensive experience in the North Sea, demanded that Hackett pilot them into Kinsale. Perhaps aware of the presence of the Fifth Lions Whelp, under the command of Captain Hooke of the Royal Navy, in the harbour, Hackett allegedly persuaded Rais to continue on to Baltimore. About 10pm on June 19, the ships anchored east of the mouth of Baltimore harbour. At 2am on the 20th, some 230 men, armed with muskets, landed at the Cove. Quickly and silently spreading out, they divided up and waited at the doors of the 26 cottages along the shoreline. At a given signal, brandishing iron bars to break the doors and firebrands to torch the buildings, they launched a simultaneous attack on the sleeping inhabitants. The terror of the population can only be imagined as they were dragged from their beds by strange men speaking a foreign language. The marauders entered 40 houses, rifled 37 of them, and captured more victims. William Harris was disturbed by the noise and quickly established what was happening. He grabbed his musket and ran to a wooded area from where he fired shots into the air to alert the remainder of the villagers. Another of the inhabitants grabbed his drum, ran to join Harris, and began beating the drum. Rais realised that the element of surprise had been lost and he thought soldiers were on the way to challenge them. The pirates retreated quickly to the Cove and returned to their anchored ships. They had captured 20 men, 33 women and 54 children and youths, to add to the crews of the Dartmouth ship and the Dungarvan fishing-boats. That was the end of the raid, but by then more than 100 men, women and children had been taken from the coves of West Cork and forced into slavery. Some were destined to live out their days as galley slaves, which was often a brutal and short life. They would be starved and beaten by slave drivers and forced to work half naked as they powered the ship to their own doom. They were sometimes worked until they dropped dead, at which point their bodies were dumped into the sea. Their destination was a huge slave market in Algiers, where white European slaves were highly sought after. Most women were put to work as domestic slaves while others became concubines of the Ottoman Sultan in Constantinople. Many of the younger women would spend long years in the seclusion of the Sultans harem or within the walls of the Sultans palace as labourers. In his book, Ekin explained that some of the female slaves converted to Islam and got married. They could have had a relatively pleasant life, living with their husbands and families in Algiers, which was a civilised city for the era. A decade and a half after the slaves had been captured, the British government paid their ransom and planned to bring them home. An envoy was sent to Algiers to repay the slave owners the money they spent at the slave market. However, only two out of the 105 slaves wanted to return home. The rest were happy to stay. By David Young, PA A judge has ruled that provisions of the UKs Illegal Migration Act should be disapplied in Northern Ireland, as they undermine human rights protections guaranteed in the region under post-Brexit arrangements. Mr Justice Humphreys also said aspects of the Act were incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The post-Brexit Windsor Framework jointly agreed by the UK and EU includes a stipulation that there can be no diminution of the rights provisions contained within Northern Irelands Good Friday peace agreement of 1998. The Illegal Migration Act provides new powers for the British government to detain and remove asylum seekers it deems to have arrived illegally in the UK. Central to the new laws is the scheme to send asylum seekers to Rwanda. Mr Justice Humphreys delivered judgment at Belfast High Court on Monday in two challenges against the Act that focused on the peace process human rights protections guaranteed by the Windsor Framework. The judge found that several elements of the Act do cause a significant diminution of the rights enjoyed by asylum seekers residing in Northern Ireland under the terms of the Good Friday Agreement. I have found that there is a relevant diminution of right in each of the areas relied upon by the applicants, he said. He added: The applicants primary submission therefore succeeds. Each of the statutory provisions under consideration infringes the protection afforded to RSE (Rights, Safeguards and Equality of Opportunity) in the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement. The judge ruled that the sections of the Act that were the subject of the legal challenges should be disapplied in Northern Ireland. He also declared aspects of the Act incompatible with the ECHR. One of the cases was taken by the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission and the other by a 16-year-old asylum seeker from Iran who is living in Northern Ireland having arrived in the UK as an unaccompanied child. The boy, who travelled from France by small boat and claimed asylum in July 2023, has said he would be killed or sent to prison if he returned to Iran. The judge agreed to place a temporary stay on the disapplication ruling until another hearing at the end of May, when the applicants will have an opportunity to respond to the judgment. Dr Tony McGleenan KC, representing the British government, indicated that an appeal may be considered. Well be taking our instructions on the judgment and the position in terms of any further litigation will become clear, my Lord, he said. Outside court, solicitor Sinead Marmion, who represented the teenage Iranian asylum seeker applicant, said the judgment was hugely significant. Ms Marmion said the judgment would prevent the Rwanda scheme applying in Northern Ireland. This is a huge thorn in the [British] governments side and it has completely put a spanner in the works, she told the PA news agency. Theres a huge obstacle in the way of them being able to actually implement that in Northern Ireland now, as its been found to be incompatible with the Windsor Framework. By Lee Yeon-woo The scale of domestic staking services, where users deposit their coins to receive rewards, has expanded into the trillions of dollars. With service brokerage fees emerging as a new source of income for cryptocurrency exchanges, competition among the exchanges has also heated up. The accumulated amount of staking coins at Upbit, the largest domestic cryptocurrency exchange, exceeded 3 trillion won ($2.1 billion) as of April, according to industry sources. Staking involves using investors' coins to verify the blockchain network. In return for their participation, investors can receive a designated amount of coins as a reward. By staking their coins, investors actively contribute to improving the security of the blockchain network. Although staking is often compared to a bank deposit in terms of holding investors' assets for a period of time, cryptocurrency exchanges do not manage the coins like banks manage money. The coins rewarded are not compensation for management profits. Participating in staking can be difficult for individual investors. Therefore, cryptocurrency exchanges often act as proxies and charge brokerage fees. For instance, Upbit currently offers a service for five coins Ethereum, Cosmos, ADA, Solana and Polygon. The estimated reward rates per year are 3.1 percent, 16.6 percent, 2.6 percent, 6.5 percent and 4.8 percent, respectively. In return for its brokerage service, Upbit deducts 10 percent from the rewards before distribution. Such services have become a breakthrough for domestic cryptocurrency exchanges, which traditionally relied on transaction fees for revenue. With declining profits prompting efforts to diversify income sources, each exchange is noticeably expanding its staking services. Upbit distinguishes itself as the only exchange that directly operates and participates in the entire process without outsourcing. The exchange emphasizes security by storing all staked assets in cold wallets, which are disconnected from the internet. Bithumb and Coinone, the second and the third largest in the market, offer a daily staking service to set themselves apart from Upbit. This service allows investors to deposit and withdraw their coins freely, unlike traditional staking services, which require days to process holds and withdrawals. Bithumb also announced Monday a rebranding of its staking service, along with special events for first-time customers. It currently provides staking services to 15 coins. Despite its popularity, experts warn investors about the inherent risks associated with staking. "Assets in staking services are vulnerable to losses from hacking and technological malfunctions. Moreover, they cannot be 'unstaked' during the designated term. If the value of the coin plunges, customers who have deposited coins can experience significant loss," Korea Capital Market Institute researcher Maeng Ju-hee said. "Korea will need to establish regulatory frameworks for staking, including determinations regarding its status as a security." By Jonathan McCambridge and Rebecca Black, PA Leaks from meetings of the Stormont Executive during the pandemic were so common that it was like a live feed, the North's health minister Robin Swann has told the UK Covid-19 Inquiry. Mr Swann said he believed some ministers were constrained from acting outside of party interests due to constant leaks to the media, adding that it became so endemic it was tolerated rather than challenged. Mr Swann also told the inquiry, sitting in Belfast, that he believed that, as the sole Ulster Unionist minister at the height of the pandemic, he was able to act in the interests of Northern Ireland, while the larger parties were focused on Dublin and Westminster. The current inquiry module is assessing the Norths handling of the Covid emergency. Mr Swann took up the position of health minister when the Stormont powersharing Executive returned in January 2020, following a three-year suspension, just as concerns about the spread of Covid were growing. Lead counsel Clair Dobbin asked the minister if being the sole minister from his party had an impact. Mr Swann said it was a challenging position. But he added: I actually think entering the pandemic it was a strength. I didnt hold either a leadership position within my party at the point I took up minister so I wasnt bound by the constraints of having to answer to party political pressures from outside. Being the sole minister in there allowed me to step outside some of the constitutional challenges that faced the two larger parties where at times they could have seen to be more antagonistic, especially in regards to where they looked for their ultimate direction. Sinn Fein did take a look and keep an eye on what was happening in the Republic of Ireland and, likewise, the DUP were focused on what was happening in Westminster. Whereas being bound by neither of those I believe I was able to take a direction which best suited the response in Northern Ireland. Ms Dobbin asked Mr Swann if he believed his ministerial colleagues were under political pressure external to being in the Executive. He said: I do believe that in regards to ministers coming from those bigger parties, those bigger groupings had to look to party structures and party guidance. Other ministers holding party leadership positions had to be conscious of what was going on elsewhere which I felt I was unencumbered by that. Chairwoman Heather Hallett asked if devices had been banned from meetings (Jane Barlow/PA) Ms Dobbin then turned to the issue of Executive papers containing recommendations on Covid regulations being leaked to the media in 2020. Mr Swann said: It was one of my largest frustrations in regards to how Executive papers were handled, how they were leaked, when they were leaked because I often felt it was actually deliberate in regards to either conditioning what the conversation was going to be had at the Executive. When those papers were shared with Executive colleagues, often late on the night before, they were already with the media before the Executive had actually met to discuss them so there was already a narrative established in the media to either support or mostly undermine the recommendations that were coming. He added: What could have been robust meetings confidentially had around an Executive table people were already being driven into sides or silos or in support of their stakeholders prior to being able to have the wider conversation or actually receive the presentations or the evidence that was actually coming from the CMO (chief medical officer) or the CSA (chief scientific adviser) as to why those decisions were being asked for or recommended. Ms Dobbin then asked about leaks that took place while Executive meetings were going on. The minister said: At times there was almost a live feed coming from the Executive, especially when it came to those more challenging, more robust decisions that would have to be taken, it was being portrayed live-time on Twitter in regards to who had said what, who was saying what. It left it extremely challenging for some ministers to be clearly open or step outside the bounds of what would have been their party position because there was that perception if they said too much or strayed too far that it was already going to be portrayed in the media. Inquiry chairwoman Heather Hallett asked if consideration had been given to banning personal devices during Executive meetings. Mr Swann said: There was all sorts of attempts made, but the fact that our Executive meetings were being held remotely by Zoom, there were challenges as well. There were recommendations made by the head of the civil service at one stage even that while ministers were on they should have their cameras on at all times, not just when they were speaking. Ms Dobbin asked if it had got to the stage that the leaks were tolerated. He added: It became a frustration but I also believe at one point it was so endemic that it became tolerated rather than challenged. High Court reporters A High Court judge has expressed significant concern about a pattern of alleged unlawful conduct by a company at the direction of controversial landlord Marc Godart, who is to be summoned before the court. Mr Justice Brian Cregan said Green Label Short Lets Ltd has unlawfully terminated a womans tenancy, unlawfully evicted her, unlawfully removed her personal belongings from the rental property, ignored two Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) directions to pay her compensation, breached planning and fire safety regulations and refused to company with a District Court order. This is an appalling litany of unlawful conduct, he said, adding that it is clear Mr Godart (35) believes he can defy the laws of this country, including orders of the courts. The judge was satisfied it was appropriate for the court, of its own motion, to compel the Luxembourg national to give evidence to the court under oath about the financial circumstances of Green Label. The judges ruling came in an application by the woman who was unlawfully evicted by Green Label from a property at Vintage Court, Cork Street, Dublin 8. Lizet Pena-Herrera wants to enforce RTB awards of more than 15,000 she secured against the company for a termination notice and an egregious unlawful eviction. She was evicted in 2022 after raising health and safety concerns arising from alleged overcrowding in the premises. The RTB awards were not paid, so she got a District Court order for payment of the debt plus costs. Mr Godart (35), a Luxembourg national with substantial property interests in Ireland, has told the High Court in an affidavit that Green Label has no assets and has effectively ceased operations. Ms Pena-Herrera, a psychologist originally from Bolivia who has been living in Ireland since 2008, asked the High Court to order Mr Godart Green Labels sole director to come to court to give evidence about the financial affairs of the company, with a view to identifying resources that can satisfy the RTB awards. Mr Godarts legal team argued the High Court did not have jurisdiction to hear the case. Accounts Mr Justice Cregan was satisfied the court could, of its own motion, direct Mr Godart to give evidence. He said he would also direct him to produce all relevant accounting records of the company. The judge said he was not satisfied Mr Godart has set out the full truth of matters in affidavit, so it is necessary to question him further. In particular, Mr Justice Cregan was concerned about whom the correct landlord was in this case. Ms Pena-Herrara entered a tenancy agreement with the company, which she thought was the landlord. However, Mr Godart has said this was only a letting agent that did not own any assets. The judge said that Mr Godart solemnly and sincerely declared in the notice to quit served on Ms Pena-Herrera that Green Label owned the property and that he intended to agree to sell the building nine months after termination of the lease. In an affidavit to the High Court, Mr Godart said Green Label was the landlord, the judge said. However, there is no evidence that the company was the owner or that it sold the property or that any proceeds of sale were reflected in the companys accounts, the judge added. Previously, Mr Godarts senior counsel, Gary McCarthy, submitted that the property is owned by a woman living in Enniscorthy, Co Wexford. After delivery of the judgment, Mr McCarthy, with Darragh Haugh BL, instructed by Shields Solicitors, said he needs an opportunity to consider the judgment. He does not yet have instructions from his client (who was not in court) but he may need to seek a pause on the rulings effects if his client elects to appeal the decision. Senior counsel John Kennedy, with Liam Bell BL, instructed by McGrath Mullan Solicitors, for Ms Pena-Herrera, said any application for a stay would be contested. The matter returns to court on Thursday. Fiona Ferguson A young man who sexually assaulted two young girls when he was aged 12 and 14 years old has been jailed for 18 months. The now 21-year-old Cork man pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court to sexual assault against two girls on dates in 2015 and 2017. He has no previous convictions and has not come to any further Garda attention. The accused man was 12 when he sexually assaulted the first girl, who was 9 years old at the time, on a date in 2015. He was between 14 and 15 when he sexually assaulted the second victim, who was aged between 13 and 14, on a date in 2017. Passing sentence on Monday, Ms Justice Eileen Creedon said the case involved two separate incidents and complainants two years apart. She noted he was older than both girls. She said the offending has clearly had a significant effect on both girls' mental health. She said they had displayed great courage in coming forward. The judge noted a probation report confirmed he was remorseful, has taken responsibility and has awareness of the effect on the girls. He has no addiction issues and has a supportive family. She set headline sentences totalling seven years, before noting that the accused was a child at the time of the offending which entitled him to significant mitigation. Mr Justice Creedon said it was serious that he had gone on to offend a second time and that the young woman in that case had declined sex, and he ignored what she said. She said this warranted a custodial element to sentencing. She imposed concurrent sentences totalling two years and suspended the final six months on strict conditions. She ordered that he be registered as a sex offender for a period of two years. An investigating garda told Tom Creed SC, prosecuting, that the offences came to light in 2020 when the first girl made a disclosure in school that she had been sexually assaulted by the accused in a corn field when she was nine years old. She said the second girl was in their company. She said the sexual assault involved digital anal penetration. The school contacted Tusla and gardai interviewed the accused boy. He told them it had been consensual but accepted what he did was wrong. The second girl was approached regarding the incident and revealed she had also been sexually assaulted by the accused on a later occasion. She said he had asked her to have sex, but she declined, and he ripped her pants before putting his fingers inside her. The accused was arrested again and told gardai he knew she had not been consenting. He said he thought he had some sort of sex addiction and told gardai: I was thinking with my dick and not my brain. Like he didnt even care what he did to me In her victim impact statement, the first girl said the sexual assault at nine years old had a massive effect on her. She said she did not truly understand what had happened and the idea she might be pregnant had terrified her. She said she felt she was forced to stop being a child, and outlined the continuing adverse effects the assault has had on her in terms of her mental health and anxiety. She said this part of her life would always be with her, and she would never forget it. In her victim impact statement, the second girl said she had known the accused since she was very young, he had been in and out of her home and she had no reason not to trust him. She said after the sexual assault, the accused had still been in and out of her home as if nothing happened, like he didnt even care what he did to me, she said. She said she felt sad all the time, had huge trust issues, and it had taken a lot to report it. She said she would never understand why he had done it to her, but she had been relieved when he pleaded guilty. She thanked her family and the gardai for their support. Jane Hyland SC, defending, asked the court to take into account that the accused had pleaded guilty at the first opportunity and had never tried to say the offending had not occurred. Counsel handed reports into the court and outlined the accused mans cognitive difficulties described in a psychiatric report. He found school challenging but has a stable employment record. She said he is very remorseful and is assessed as at low risk of reoffending. Ms Hyland said her client had been consuming pornography from a young age. She said his family are shocked at the offending but remain supportive of him. She asked the court to treat him as the child he was at the time of the offending and take into account his efforts to try and take responsibility for his actions. If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can call the national 24-hour Rape Crisis Helpline at 1800-77 8888, access text service and webchat options at drcc.ie/services/helpline/ or visit Rape Crisis Help. Isabel Hayes A UK man who was caught coming through Dublin Airport with over 16 kilos of cocaine in his luggage en route to London has been jailed for six and a half years. Daniel James Johnson (34), of no fixed abode in Lancashire, UK, pleaded guilty to one count of importing cocaine at Dublin Airport on September 28th last year. The street value of the cocaine amounted to 1.1 million, the court heard. Michael Hourigan BL, prosecuting, said that on the day in question, Johnson had flown into the country on a flight from Washington DC in the US. A customs officer apprehended him and his suitcase was searched, with eight blocks of cocaine found within. Johnson was due to fly on to London Gatwick, with the drugs intended for the UK market. The court heard he had flown to the US in order to pick up the drugs and bring them back. He told gardai he did not pack the bag, nor book his flights. He said he was due to be paid a certain amount of money for bringing the drugs in, although the amount was not specified. Johnson told gardai he was fearful for the safety of his family as a result of the drugs mission failing. He has nine previous convictions in the UK for minor offences, including theft, criminal damage and being drunk and disorderly. Marc Thompson BL, defending, said his client was essentially a drug mule who had no proprietary interest in the drugs. He said there was a genuine fear on the part of Johnson for the safety of his family. Sentencing Johnson on Monday, Judge Martin Nolan took into account the fact that he is an English national serving time in an Irish prison. He said he believed it was probably unlikely that Johnson will reoffend in the future. He handed down a six-and-a-half year jail term and backdated it to when Johnson went into custody last September. Founded in 2005 as an Ohio-based environmental newspaper, EcoWatch is a digital platform dedicated to publishing quality, science-based content on environmental issues, causes, and solutions. Protesters gathered outside the JPMorgan Chase headquarters in Manhattan, New York during Chase Banks Investor Day, demanding that the bank end its massive funding of the fossil fuel industry, on Feb. 25, 2020. Erik McGregor / LightRocket via Getty Images According to the new Banking on Climate Chaos Fossil Fuel Finance Report 2024, the largest banks in the world have given $6.9 trillion in fossil fuel funding to the industry since the 2016 Paris Agreement. The goal of the Paris Agreement signed by 196 countries is to limit human-caused global heating to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels by lowering carbon dioxide emissions. However, contrary to their pledges, private interests in many countries have kept funding the operations of fossil fuel companies, which have continued to expand, reported The Guardian. The impacts of climate change most often affect vulnerable communities who are the least responsible for it. Climate change hits the frontlines first and worst. People living on the frontlines of climate chaos and the fossil fuel industry are predominantly Indigenous Peoples, Black and Brown communities, low-wage workers, women, fishers or smallholder farmers, often living in poverty, Banking on Climate Chaos said. For the 15th edition of the report, the researchers looked at the underwriting and lending of the biggest 60 banks globally to more than 4,200 oil, gas and coal firms that were causing environmental destruction in the Arctic and Amazon, The Guardian reported. They discovered that, of the nearly $7 trillion given to the companies, almost half supported the expansion of fossil fuel development. Banks in the United States were the biggest culprits, giving 30 percent of last years $705 billion total. JPMorgan Chases support of fossil fuels was $40.8 billion in 2023 the largest financier. The second largest contributor was Japans Mizuho with $37.1 billion, while Bank of America was third. Europes biggest donor was Barclays with $24.2 billion. A little more than a quarter of the financing last year came from European banks, the report said. Financiers and investors of fossil fuels continue to light the flame of the climate crisis. Paired with generations of colonialism, the fossil fuel industry and banking institutions investment in false solutions create unlivable conditions for all living relatives and humanity on Mother Earth, said Tom BK Goldtooth, Indigenous Environmental Networks executive director, as reported by The Guardian. As Indigenous peoples, we remain on the frontlines of the climate catastrophe, and the fossil fuel industry targets our lands and territories as sacrifice zones to continue their extraction. Representatives of some of the banks Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Barclays, Santander and Deutsche Bank said their companies were supporting the transition of their clients in the energy sector toward more eco-friendly business models. Capitalism and its extraction-based economy will only perpetuate more harm and destruction against our Mother Earth and it must come to an end, Goldtooth said. (Photo: Victoria Emergency Ministries/WCC)Emergency Ministries workers in Victoria state, Australia. Red and smoky skies at night and in the morning* looming in four Australian states indicate a catastrophe of biblical proportions as killer fires engulf towns and communities, leaving tens of thousands of people stranded. Churches have been at the forefront among the responders in both their prayers and deeds as Australians in four states including New South Wales and Victoria reel under flames, with thousands fleeing in the first days of a new decade. The general secretary of the World Council of Churches, Rev. Olav Fykse Tveit, sent a a pastoral letter to Australian churches. "Together with you, WCC member churches around the world are praying for respite from the heat and the flames, for the protection and encouragement of all those fighting the advancing fires, for the preservation of peoples' lives and properties, and of the unique wildlife and environment threatened with destruction," he said. Tveit noted, "Australia has, since time immemorial, been accustomed to fire and drought." The fires had killed 20 people by Friday, destroyed almost 6 million hectares (15 million acres), and gutted more than 2,500 buildings. Some clerics have sharply criticized the Australian government's stance on fighting climate change. Smoke the Australian bushfires is drifting as far as New Zealand, 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) away, triggering a yellowy redish haze and leaving a burnt smell in the air, the BBC reported. The Anglican Diocese of Melbourne has a 'graphic' prayer on its front webpage. Bishop Philip Huggins is president of the National Council of Churches in Australia and director of the Centre for Ecumenical Studies at the Australian Centre for Christianity and Culture, said in a message to the WCC that many people of faith are involved in helping in all kinds of practical ways. Hotter dryer summers "Harder to discuss yet is the anger. Hotter, dryer summers are exactly what have been expected. Political ineptitude has left us more vulnerable than might have been the case," rued Huggins. In 2019, Australia topped its charts for average and maximum temperatures as well as the lowest annual rainfall across the country. The conditions contributed to the unprecedented fires impacting many corners of the country. Emily Evans of the Uniting Church in Australia and a member of the WCC Executive Committee said Australia is in a national crisis. "A state of emergency has been declared in New South Wales, a state of disaster in place in Victoria as both states brace for a weekend of continued bushfires and the largest peacetime evacuation in the nation's history is underway," Evans told the WCC. Australian churches and members through front-line ecumenical organizations, like the Victorian Council of Churches Emergency Ministries and the New South Wales Disaster Recovery Chaplaincy Network, are on the ground. "Chaplains are offering personal care, psychological first aid, and emotional and spiritual support at relief and recovery centres in the impacted areas to those affected by the ongoing situation," said Evans. Churches are also encouraging their members to provide direct financial support to official appeals. Archbishop Glenn Davies, of the Anglican church in Sydney and New South Wales, appealed for Christians to be in fervent prayer. "Our hearts cry out to you for those who have lost loved ones, and those who have lost properties in the wake of these ravaging fires. Father, we pray, in your mercy, restrain the forces of nature from creating catastrophic damage; in your mercy protect human life," the archbishop's prayer reads. 'Guard the volunteers' "Guard those volunteers, rural fire service personnel and emergency services who selflessly step into the breach to fight these fires. Guide police and authorities who help evacuate and shelter those who are displaced. Bring comfort and healing to all who suffer loss," said the Anglican leader. Davies praised the work of Anglican Aid, which continued its drought and bushfire appeal, and the work of Anglicare's Disaster Recovery Response. Teams of trained Anglicare volunteers are giving practical aid such as helping prepare meals, providing clothing, bedding and towels for showers, and helping with displaced pets. The Australian Catholic Bishops Conference extended its national prayer campaign for drought as historically dry conditions continue to affect most parts of Australia. "We can't forget the many suffering through these catastrophic drought conditions, which are very much part of the bushfire crisis we are seeing in large parts of the country," Bishops Conference president Archbishop Mark Coleridge said. The Bishops Conference initiated the prayer campaign held during November 2019 but decided it should run indefinitely until drought conditions ease. "Many parishes and dioceses had local initiatives before the national campaign began and many have continued to focus on the drought and the ongoing bushfires in the weeks since the end of November," Coleridge said. 'Difficult days' Rev. Simon Hansford, moderator of the Uniting Church in Australia, had released a pastoral letter at the turn of the year "in the midst of the bushfires," cautioning, "These are difficult days, and there are more difficult days to come." Hansford said he had been talking with Rev. Stephen Robinson, who coordinates Disaster Response for the whole Uniting Church. "We have chaplains at each evacuation centre, the numbers of which are growing, as people flee their holidays and their homes to comparative safety," said the moderator. He issued a special prayer saying, "God of life and death, our prayers today are where our hearts and minds have been during these last days and where they have been drawn so early in this season; with those communities and individuals whose lives have been damaged in differing ways by the bushfires." God is asked to intervene for all those fighting the fires, Hansford said. "We pray for those who have lost their home and property or are facing such loss: for those who have been forced to leave their memories and belongings; for the fear and disorientation of all involved; Heal them from their nightmare memories," he prayed. Global news media has shown scenes of Australia ravaged by the worst wildfires seen in decades, with large swathes of the country destroyed since the annual fire season began in September. * The old saying, "red sky at night, shepherd's delight. Red sky in the morning, shepherd's warning" is said to have its origins in Matthew's gospel (16:2b3) in a confrontation between Jesus and the Pharisees. Australian flag Australia's newest prime minister Scott Morrison is a church-going evangelical Christian unafraid of standing up for his faith in a country largely viewed as secular. Morrison became prime minister on Aug. 24 Friday when the Liberal Party voted him in as its leader after ousting Malcolm Turnbull, who formerly held the post and was the party leader, Christian Headlines reported. The Liberals are a center-right party in Australia, while the Labor Party is more center-left. Morrison is a member of Horizon Church, a Pentecostal congregation in Sydney where he and his family are involved in ministries. Church had always been a part of Morrison's life and for the past decade, his spiritual home has been a bustling Pentecostal sanctuary with a cross formed from bright lights, The New York Times reported. The new prime minister and his faith show a break with tradition in Australia. He is the first prime minister to come from one of the country's growing evangelical Christian movements, leading many experts and voters to wonder if his Christianity might affect various issues, from foreign policy to social policy. The 50-year-old national leader was raised in a beachside Sydney suburb, and his family was active in the Uniting Church of Australia when he was growing up. He met his wife, Jenny, in church when he was 12. SOCIAL CONSERVATIVE Hugh White, a professor at the Australian National University, told the Times that Morrison is a social conservative, although it remains to be seen how he will governor. "The question is whether Morrison will choose to make his faith part of his political persona or to what extent he will," White said. "At this point, he doesn't seem to have shoved it in people's faces." Morrison opposes same-sex marriage but abstained during a vote on its legalization. The Liberals had promised a vote on the issue if the public supported it in a public survey through the mail. (Photo: Liberal Party, Australia) Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison The bill passed after the survey of 12.7 million people showed 61.6 percent supported it. When Morrison was first elected to the Australian House of Representatives in 2008, he referenced his Christian faith. "My personal faith in Jesus Christ is not a political agenda," he said. "As Lincoln said, our task is not to claim whether God is on our side but to pray earnestly that we are on His. For me, faith is personal, but the implications are social -- as personal and social responsibility are at the heart of the Christian message." Morrison contended that it had become "fashionable" to stereotype Christians as "extreme" and to "suggest that such faith has no place in the political debate of this country." He indicated that his Christian faith impacts his political beliefs. "This presents a significant challenge for those of us ... who seek to follow the example of William Wilberforce or Desmond Tutu, to name just two," he said. "These leaders stood for the immutable truths and principles of the Christian faith. They transformed their nations and, indeed, the world in the process. More importantly, by following the convictions of their faith, they established and reinforced the principles of our liberal democracy upon which our own nation is built." Australia, he said at the time, is not a secular country but rather a "free country." "This is a nation where you have the freedom to follow any belief system you choose. Secularism is just one. It has no greater claim than any other on our society. FREEDOM OF RELIGION "As U.S. Senator Joe Lieberman said, the Constitution guarantees freedom of religion, not from religion. I believe the same is true in this country." Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was quick to call Morrison on Aug. 29 to congratulate him, inviting him and his wife to Jerusalem, The Jerusalem Post reported. According to the Israeli Prime Minister's Office, the two leaders emphasized the excellent relations between the two countries, and agreed to work to further strengthen security and economic ties. Netanyahu and Turnbull had a strong working relationship, with Netanyahu being the first sitting Israeli prime minister to visit Australia, when he did so in February 2017. Nine months later Turnbull visited Israel to take part in the centenary ceremony of the Battle of Beersheba. Morrison is considered a strong supporter of Israel, a country he has visited in the past and no change is expected to happen in the strong relations between the two countries. (Photo; National Museum of Australia)Scott Morrison Former Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison openly displays his Christianity, and he says he wouldn't have been able to lead his country through the COVID-19 pandemic without his faith in God. Morrison was the Prime Minister of Australia from 2018-2022. When he was at the helm, the country was nicknamed "Fortress Australia" due to its tight border controls, which to keep COVID infection rates low, Premier Christian News reports. Morrison told Premier's Babel Undone podcast that he relied on God for peace, wisdom, and guidance leading the country. "My faith said... 'wherever I end up... he's going to be with me, he's going to have prepared me and enabled me in those circumstances,'" he recounted. "Now, I still had to make all the decisions, I still had to... run the government, I still had to make sure we were getting all the right information and be very careful about the decisions we were making. That was up to me." Morrison said faith gave him peace and a calm, giving him confidence that, "I hadn't been thrust into something for which he wouldn't have prepared me." He, who was Australia's 30th prime minister and identifies as an evangelical Christian, has always been vocal about his Christian faith but had to find a balance between how much it influenced his leadership and how much it did not. He noted that talking about his relationship with Jesus wasn't always taken well as the predominantly Catholic, Anglican, and Orthodox country grew intolerant of evangelicalism. In the almost four years Morisson was prime minister, and the nine years he was in the cabinet, he noticed there was an increasing hostility and lack of tolerance towards Christian faith in the society, "and that's true in most Western countries." "I always tried to be quite careful about it. What I mean by that is, as the head of a government, your head of government, for all people, Australians... regardless of what their faith was. PRIME MINISTER, NOT JUST CHRISTIAN He noted that sometimes he felt Christians thought that he was supposed to be just their Prime Minister, as a Christian. "No, I was elected, not as the head of the Christian party; I was elected as the head of the Liberal Party in Australia, and I was a Christian in politics, and there's a difference." "It helped drive my faith, my values, and all of these sorts of things. But I never saw myself as a Christian cause advocate politician." Morrison talks more about faith in his political memoir Plans for Your Good. Separately, Morrison has said he wants to make it clear politicians struggling with mental health can still perform at a high level, according to the BBC. He has revealed he sought treatment for debilitating anxiety while he was in office. In his book, according to the BBC, Morrison cites "pure physical exhaustion" and the "unrelenting and callous brutality of politics" as central to his struggles. He said he was sharing his story to "de-stigmatize" mental illness. "My doctor was amazed I had lasted as long as I had," Morrison wrote in an extract published by The Australian newspaper. "Without this help, serious depression would have manifested. "Politicians are not made of stone, yet they're often treated as though they are, including by each other," he continued. Morisson also told the national broadcaster, ABC News, that he wanted to make clear that politicians experiencing mental illness can still perform at a high level. "Because I sought help, I was fully functional. [It is] important that people understand that this doesn't have to hold you back. I went on to land Aukus in the midst of this," Morrison said, referring to a defense pact with the U.S. and UK," he said. North Korea on Monday denounced efforts by the international community to implement U.N. Security Council (UNSC) sanctions resolutions against the North as "provocations" that spark tension and instability in the region. The North's chief of the external policy section at the foreign ministry claimed that countries, including Australia, Britain, Canada, France, Germany and New Zealand, deployed warships and warplanes to the Asia-Pacific region under the pretext of monitoring UNSC sanctions resolutions. North Korea's foreign ministry "expresses serious concern over the irresponsible behaviors of some countries taking advantage of the U.S. hostile policy and hegemonic strategy against independent sovereign states and urges them to immediately stop the provocations," the official said in a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency. The North appears to point to a joint maritime patrol that South Korea and Britain carried out in April in waters near the Korean Peninsula to enforce UNSC sanctions resolutions against North Korea. North Korea warned of taking "necessary measures" to defend its sovereignty and security against such acts. "If the intervention by force is their policy against the DPRK, it cannot but reconsider its policy stand toward them in line with its interests," the official said. (Yonhap) Apple's first unionized Store in Towson, Maryland has now authorized the first strike against the retail giant. That follows what the union called "over a year of negotiations with Apple management that yielded unsatisfactory outcomes," according to a press release from the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers' retail coalition (IAM CORE). The Maryland store located in a Baltimore mall represents around 100 employees and unionized in 2022, becoming the first Apple Store to do so. The vote concluded last weekend and allows workers to walk out at any time, but no date has been set yet. While the sides have agreed on principle in 25 areas, other key matters remain unresolved. "The issues at the forefront of this action include concerns over work-life balance, unpredictable scheduling practices disrupting personal lives and wages failing to align with the areas cost of living," the union wrote. "We deeply value our team members and were proud to provide them with industry leading compensation and exceptional benefits. As always, we will engage with the union representing our team in Towson respectfully and in good faith," Apple said in a statement. The union previously accused Apple of illegally withholding new benefits including healthcare and other perks from workers at the Towson Store. Last year, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) said Apple violated federal law with anti-union meetings in Atlanta. A New York judge also issued a cease-and-desist order against Apple for abusing employee's rights. Apple and IAM CORE will return to the negotiating table on May 21, according to the union. "This vote today is the first step in demonstrating our solidarity and sends a clear message to Apple," the union said in a statement. "As discussions with Apple management continue, we remain committed to securing tangible improvements that benefit all employees." Secretive military intelligence agency exposed as civilian court handles military secrets case By Kang Hyun-kyung Retired Colonel Cheong Kyu-phil's life was shrouded in secrecy until March 2019 when he retired from the military after completing 37 years of service and transitioned to civilian life. During his military career, he served as both a covert agent and military attache at South Korea's mission in China. Cheong undertook numerous clandestine operations, commonly referred to as "black ops" within the intelligence community, during which he gathered intelligence about North Korea. Everything he did at work was classified, known only to Cheong himself and his unnamed boss at the Korea Defense Intelligence Command (KDIC). Few Koreans are aware of the KDIC, and some have never even heard of it. The KDIC, a military intelligence agency tasked with conducting clandestine operations related to North Korea, is intentionally kept secret from the public. Unlike civilian intelligence agencies, the KDIC does not have a website because all information about the organization is classified. Basic details such as the number of staff employed and the nature of their work remain unknown. The KDIC's strict adherence to secrecy has recently faced challenges, as Cheong became embroiled in a legal battle following his retirement from the military. He was falsely accused of espionage, blamed for selling dozens of military secrets to Chinese and North Korean officials an allegation he deemed ridiculous. Frankly speaking, I didnt understand what was going on because I had never imagined I would face an allegation like that, he said during a recent interview with The Korea Times. But I was confident that such a misunderstanding would go away soon, because I didnt live a life like that. However, events took an unexpected turn. While the espionage charge was cleared, he was indicted and tried for another crime violations of the Military Secrets Protection Act. The retired colonel, now 60, has spent the last five years working with his lawyer to prepare for the legal battle and attending trials. A district court ruled against him and a higher court upheld this decision. He is currently awaiting the final ruling from the Supreme Court, which is expected on May 17. He said he has experienced an emotional rollercoaster over the past five years. At times, I have experienced sudden waves of complex emotions. I felt upset and gripped by deep sadness, he said. What was most difficult for me to endure was the bitterness I felt when I faced sarcastic reactions from people who were close to me. They gave me the cold shoulder and brushed me off. Some even gossiped about me behind my back. I had thought they would be the last people to turn their back on me, but I was wrong. He said he lost 20 kilograms after being accused of espionage. His life was disrupted on May 21, 2019, when around two dozen agents from the National Intelligence Service (NIS) made an unannounced visit to his apartment in Bundang, approximately 20 kilometers south of Seoul. One of the agents presented Cheong with a warrant, demanding his cooperation in searching his home. This occurred a day after he returned home from visiting his newly-wed daughter in Canada, leaving him still affected by jet lag. Uncertain about the situation, Cheong ushered them in and allowed them to proceed with their searches, which lasted over 24 hours. The case was transferred to the prosecution as the NIS does not have the authority to directly indict individuals it investigates. After examining the evidence seized by the NIS, the prosecution concluded that there was no evidence to support Cheong's involvement in the espionage case. In February 2020, Cheong was cleared of the espionage charge. However, on the same day, the prosecution indicted him for another violation of the Military Secrets Protection Act. According to the prosecution, Cheong was accused of unauthorized possession of military secrets, as well as gathering and searching them, which is illegal. This conclusion was based on the results of forensic investigations of a seized floppy disk, where investigators found several deleted files containing classified military secrets. Cheong dismissed the allegation as nonsensical, arguing that if he were guilty, then all Koreans who use computers for work would also be considered guilty. He explained that some of the classified files in question were ones he compiled himself during his tenure as a military attache at the South Korean embassy in Beijing. These files were produced in 2013 and declassified a year later, he said, arguing that the prosecution's claim is baseless. Lee Myung-hyun, Cheongs attorney, highlighted two key issues with the prosecution's indictment of Cheong. First, he claimed that the prosecution charged his client with an offense that was not specified in the warrant. Secondly, he argued that the accusation of violating the Military Secrets Protection Act was based on flawed evidence. The search and seizure warrant issued by the court in 2019 was specifically intended to allow the NIS staff to find evidence related to the allegation that my client sold military secrets to Chinese and North Koreans, he said. But, he said they did not discover any evidence that could substantiate the alleged espionage crime. The lawyer also explained that the NIS conducted computer forensics investigations and uncovered several files that had been deleted many years ago. He argued that the presentation of these "non-existent" files as evidence of Cheong's supposed violations of the Military Secrets Protection Act was problematic. Deleted files cannot be used as evidence in a courtroom. This is because those files no longer exist, but the investigators detected them through forensic investigations and presented them as evidence. So, their conclusion based on this flawed evidence doesnt establish my client did something illegal, he said. However, the court sided with the prosecution. The district court initially ruled against Cheong, sentencing him to a six-month jail term suspended for one year. Cheong appealed the ruling. The higher court upheld the lower court's ruling, but imposed a tougher verdict, sentencing Cheong to a 10-month jail term suspended for two years. Cheong also appealed that ruling. The Supreme Court is scheduled to rule on the case on May 17. The years-long legal battle has not only taken a toll on Cheong's personal life, but also on his former workplace, the KDIC. If the Supreme Court upholds the higher court's decision, Cheong will lose all financial benefits, including his pension. Additionally, he will be required to repay all financial benefits he has received from the government since retiring from the military. The KDIC also faced repercussions from the legal battle. Cheong's identity as a former undercover intelligence agent in northeastern China and his clandestine operations as a military attache at the South Korean embassy in Beijing to gather intelligence about North Korea were revealed to the public. People in the intelligence community expressed concerns about the consequences. They said that South Koreas human intelligence capabilities will be significantly undermined as classified information about the KDIC and its agents was disclosed during the investigations and trials. Cheong was considered the best of the best in the intelligence community, Choe Su-yong, a retired NIS official and director of the private intelligence consultancy, Indo-Pacific Institute in Seoul, told The Korea Times. He was a legendary intelligence official who contributed a lot to South Koreas national security. All his work was classified, so we are not allowed to speak to the media in great detail about his contributions. Choe, who worked with Cheong at the embassy in the mid-2000s, said the retired colonel was an unrivaled military attache who spoke Mandarin fluently and had a deep understanding of Chinese culture. Cheong also formed a strong network with high-ranking Chinese military officials. Through that network, he said Cheong was able to gather valuable intelligence information about North Korea, because Chinese officials are privy to sensitive information about the North. Choe lamented that the legal battle not only harmed South Korea's critical national interests, but also destroyed the life of a patriotic and dedicated military intelligence official who always prioritized his country. Cheong's trial, which focused on the violations of military secrets, was conducted in a public setting. In the same courtroom, judges handling cases involving sexual harassment, fraud, and other crimes deliberated and ruled on Cheong's case. Defendants of sexual harassment cases and their families were present in the courtroom, awaiting their turns, when the judges ruled on Cheong's case. An official from the Supreme Court explained that unlike cases involving drugs or other major crimes, there are no specialized judges to handle military secrets. Therefore, cases related to military secrets are overseen by judges who also rule on other offenses, such as sexual harassment. This is a case for the Supreme Court, she told The Korea Times. Regarding the risks of disclosing classified information related to national security during open trials in civilian courts, she mentioned that the judges of the lower court would have thoroughly considered the sensitive nature of military secrets, indicating that there should be no procedural flaws. "I would prefer not to comment further on this matter as the case is still ongoing," she added. An unanswered question remains regarding the investigation: Why did the NIS take the initiative to investigate Cheong? The NIS is a civilian intelligence agency primarily tasked with espionage investigations back then. In the military, the Defense Counter-Intelligence Command (DCC) is responsible for investigating espionage crimes committed by military personnel. According to media reports, the NIS initiated an investigation in February 2019 when Cheong was still in the military. This investigation was reportedly based on written testimonies from two individuals familiar with Cheong, although there was no concrete evidence available at that time. Conspiracy theories have emerged surrounding the investigation. Some allege that the investigation, which began in 2019 during President Moon Jae-in's administration, was part of a politically motivated plot to undermine the military's human intelligence capabilities. These theories suggest that the progressive Moon government was attempting to appease North Korea by targeting certain elements within the military. Cheong said he has no idea whether the investigation was politically motivated or if it stemmed from a personal attack by someone who envied him. Everything remains speculative because there is no concrete evidence to support these claims. Those involved in the investigation have remained silent and withheld information, so there is no way to ascertain why it began, he said. This reporter sent a questionnaire to the NIS, inquiring why the civilian intelligence agency did not transfer Cheong's case to the DCC. The NIS declined to comment on the case, citing a law. "Under the Public Information Disclosure Act, the NIS is not permitted to comment on ongoing criminal cases," the agency informed The Korea Times. Cheongs lawyer said things would have turned out very differently if the military reviewed the case. If the case had been transferred to the military early on and handled by a military court instead of a civilian court, Cheong might have been cleared without facing indictment, Lee, who served as a military lawyer for 25 years, said. Disclosure of classified information about the military intelligence agency would have not happened, either. Rep. Yoon Sang-hyun urged the Yoon Suk Yeol government to investigate the NIS to find out why the civilian intelligence agency accused Cheong of espionage. During a National Assembly plenary session on September 22, 2022, Yoon characterized the case as an attempt by the NIS during the previous progressive Moon Jae-in government to falsely portray a dedicated military intelligence official as a traitor. Yoon pressured Prime Minister Han Duck-soo to initiate a probe to uncover the truth behind why the NIS took such actions. Han said he was aware of the case, but was not in a position to comment on it due to the ongoing legal proceedings. If necessary, the government can conduct a probe into the NIS. However, I am not discussing this specific case. The trial is ongoing, and I believe it would be inappropriate for me to comment on it. I trust that the truth will come to light in due course, the prime minister said. The clock is ticking for the Supreme Court's final ruling, scheduled for May 17. Cheong tried to remain strong. Ive suffered a lot during the past five years. I also learned a lot while going through the tribulations, he said. I still dont understand why I became mired in a case like this, but I think this is also part of life. Born in 1964 in the southeastern county of Youngil, which is now part of Pohang, Cheong graduated from the Korea Military Academy and joined the Army's special forces, specifically the Headquarters Intelligence Detachment (HID), a black operations unit reportedly tasked with infiltrating North Korea and targeting key military figures. After completing 37 years of military service, he received a medal from the government in recognition of his lifelong dedication to the military. He was also decorated for his exceptional service and designated as a person of merit. Ashley Biden's diary, which contains a passage about "probably not appropriate" showers with her father President Joe Biden, is going viral on social media after it resurfaced over the weekend. Ashley -- President Biden's daughter with wife Dr. Jill Biden -- became a trending topic on X, formerly Twitter Sunday after Snopes verified the authenticity of handwritten pages from her diary that are circulating on the internet. The fact-checking site based its assessment on the first daughter's confirmation that her "personal journal can be viewed online" in a letter she sent to a New York judge last month. In one page from the diary, Ashley wrote about being "hyper-sexualized" at a "young age" and being traumatized by it, according to Snopes. The social worker recalled "being sexualized" alongside a female friend and "not liking" to visit a certain family's house, as seen in an alleged copy posted by an X user. Ashley also wrote about taking "showers with my dad" as a young girl, which she acknowledged was "probably not appropriate." BREAKING: ASHLEY BIDEN'S DIARY FINALLY AUTHENTICATED? Fact-checking site Snopes has updated its assessment of Ashley Biden's diary to "true," confirming its authenticity. This follows Ashley Biden's acknowledgment in a court letter, stating, "I will forever have to deal pic.twitter.com/gPg4cqmHC3 Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) May 12, 2024 RELATED : Joe Biden Ranked 76th In A Class Of 85 While At Syracuse University College of Law Ashley's diary has been used by conservative figures such as Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene to attack President Biden. Pages from Ashley's journal were first published by the right-wing blog The National File in October 2020, during her father's campaign against Donald Trump. A different conservative website, Project Veritas, first obtained the diary from a Florida woman named Aimee Harris, who later admitted to stealing and selling Ashley's journal. Project Veritas did not publish excerpts from the diary because it could not verify they belonged to Ashley, but The Intercept reported that one of the conservative outlet's staffers gave the alleged pages to the National File. In 2022, Harris pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge after stealing Ashley's diary and other belongings from a Florida home and transporting them over state lines, the Associated Press reported. She admitted to receiving $20,000 of the $40,000 paid to her and a man named Robert Kurlander by Project Veritas for the president's daughter's personal items. In a letter asking for jail time for Harris, Ashley requested that the Florida woman be "held accountable" after her "personal private journal was stolen and sold for profit." She wrote that she was "constantly re-traumatized" by the attention her diary drew and that the journal's release has led to her and her loved ones being defamed by "false accusations." In April, Harris was sentenced to one month in prison and three months of home confinement. Kurlander also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to transport stolen property across state lines but has not yet been sentenced. A lawyer used the Australian law and Jetstar's promotions to his advantage. Tyrone Barugh from Wellington found a loophole in the airlines' "Return for Free" deals and is now taking Jetstar to the Disputes Tribunal after booking 58 separate Sydney-Auckland flights at $0 per the promotion, according to Stuff Travel. He first booked a promotional flight from Auckland to Sydney at NZ$285 (~$171) in March 2020, then canceled it in return for a credit voucher. He then used it to book a return flight under the same promotion before canceling it. RELATED : Passenger Booted Off Of Flight For Using The Bathroom Too Much He then repeated the process 57 times. As a result, he was left with over 50 flights he paid $0 for. Barugh is now claiming NZ$3,540 (~$2,126) in passenger movement charges he said he is to be paid under section 10 of Australia's Passenger Movement Collection Act. In the second clause of the Act, it says, "Where an arrangement under subsection (claims for refunds, the allowance or payment of refunds and the recovery of refunds paid incorrectly), applies to a person who departs from Australia for another country, the person shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed to have paid any charge payable in respect of that departure." fuck yeah i did, and what. nothing unlawful about booking 58 separate SYD-AKL $0 flights. now asking @Jetstar_NZ to refund the taxes, but they're having a sook. pic.twitter.com/e59rfJtcAz tyrone barugh (@BarughTyrone) May 9, 2024 "F**k yeah, I did, and what. Nothing unlawful about booking 58 separate SYD-AKL $0 flights. Now asking @Jetstar_NZ to refund the taxes, but they're having a sook," he tweeted. "Jetstar lawyer had a whinge on the phone that I'm not coming with clean hands. Uh, but I'm not asking for anything in equity, just asking [tribunal] to make Jetstar pay me what's mine by virtue of the deeming provision in section 10 (2) of the Passenger Movement Charge Collection Act," he said in a follow-up tweet. RELATED : Black Passenger In First Class Told To Use Restroom At Back Of Plane By AA Flight Attendant Meanwhile, he told Stuff Travel, "I think that there was a real curiosity about how Jetstar would handle this... I also thought that there would be a reasonable prospect of $3500 of passenger movement charge refunded to me." His case appeared before the Tribunal on Thursday. At the time, Jetstar reportedly tried to bring a lawyer, which was not allowed, so the hearing was not able to push through. "Even if I lose, I'm f***in' proud of this effort," he tweeted alongside the numbers of his booked flights. Caregiver and Patient Experiences: Identifying and Responding to Delirium Denver, CO May 14, 2024. Caregivers and patients can struggle to identify the cause of mental confusion and disorientation that is common among loved ones over the age of 65. Being unaware of critical time-sensitive decisions related to the treatment of delirium can pose negative consequences for aging parents or spouses. One day, Mom or Dad is doing great. The next day, they seem confused, are unable to follow a conversation, or are too weak to get out of bed. Persons with Alzheimer's or dementia may have hallucinationsseeing people not there, hearing voices, or believing someone is trying to harm them. These events can be frightening for the person experiencing delirium and for the caregiver who may not recognize the importance of sending a loved one to the emergency room for treatment. Older adults living alone may be too weak or confused to call 911. Advocating for Family Members Living in Community Care Settings Like those living at home, family members living in care communities can experience similar rapid changes in their health. Without explicit instructions to immediately call 911, care community staff may hesitate or make faulty assumptions about the seriousness of health conditions. According to Wilson, "In my experience, care staff at assisted living, memory care, or nursing homes can be equally confused about the seriousness of delirium. When I was professionally managing care, a nursing home called me to advise that my client should be placed on hospice care because she was seeing her dead husband and son. They refused to send her to the hospital emergency room for treatment because they thought she was actively dying. Because I was the client's guardian, I had the legal authoritywithout the agreement of the nursing home staffto send my client to the hospital, where a urinary tract infection was diagnosed and treated. A family member in the same situation without legal authority or the confidence to advocate might not have successfully directed community care staff to call 911. If not, their loved one would have unnecessarily died as the infection quickly progressed to sepsis. Events like these happen more often than one might imagine." Wilson Supports Family Caregivers and Patients to Gain Confidence Managing Unexpected Situations Delirium can result from infections or other health conditions like dehydration, low blood sugar, thyroid problems, or medication interactions. The best step that a caregiver can take is to seek immediate medical care for a loved one instead of delaying. Identifying delirium-related and other chronic health conditions can help family caregivers or patients learn to manage ongoing care. Wilson's online family caregiver support programs, 1:1 consultations, and speaking events help caregivers and patients gain confidence in managing health conditions and coordinating care with healthcare providers. Wilson's Online and In Person Caregiver and Patient Support Programs Offer the Confidence to Advocate Wilson is a caregiving expert with over twenty years of lived experience supporting caregivers and care receivers. Through information on her website, online courses, YouTube Channel, 1:1 consultations, and speaking events, she provides practical, detailed step-by-step education and instructions to guide professional and family caregivers and adults facing change in health and uncertainty about the future. Learn more about Pamela at www.pameladwilson.com. CONTACT: Pamela D. Wilson +1 303-810-1816 Email: Inquiry_For_Pamela@pameladwilson.com # The police have ordered a dog owner to pay out 300 to a farmer after their loose dog killed a lamb in Dorset. The livestock attack happened in Sturminster Newton on 29 March 2024, causing the death of one lamb. Dorset Polices rural crime team the dog owner came forward to provide an account following the sheep worrying incident. Speaking on social media, the team said it was able to deal with the dog owner out of court by way of conditional caution. The owner of the dog was ordered to pay 300 to the farmer to cover the loss suffered. The team said on Facebook: "We were able to deal with this dog owner out of court and they have been ordered to pay back the victim farmer 300. "On this occasion the dog owner did the right thing by coming forward. Cases of sheep worrying can carry a fine of up to 1,000. Sheep are valuable assets to farmers and any harm to them harm a farmers livelihood. Even if you dont believe so, your dog can kill. Please remember to keep your dogs on a lead around livestock. Three men have pleaded guilty to multiple hare coursing offences and have been ordered to pay over 1,000 in fines. On 5 November 2023, Humberside Police officers were called to farmland near Rawcliffe Bridge following reports of a group of men hare coursing. The rural task force was deployed and using a drone and high powered 4x4 vehicles, the men were located with dogs and arrested at the scene. At court, the three men pleaded guilty to hunting wild mammals with dogs and trespassing with intent to search for or to pursue hares with dogs. They also pleaded guilty to being equipped to trespass with intent to search for or to pursue hares with dogs and trespassing on a railway. They appeared at Hull Magistrates Court on 3 April and 5 May in connection with a single incident in November 2023. Farmers and landowners face huge costs when damage is caused to crops and land by hare coursers, particularly when the land has just been seeded or the crops have just started to grow. On occasions, the crime causes thousands of pounds worth of damage, which the landowner has to foot the bill for. Rural Crime Officer PC Sam Blakeborough, who led the investigation, said: I am pleased with the outcome at court as we have continued in our targeted activity to disrupt and combat hare coursing in our communities. For Callaghan, the exclusion from entering the East Riding of Yorkshire is a first for Humberside Police outside any Criminal Behaviour order. I hope this outcome sends a message to those who wish to conduct hare coursing activity that Humberside is a no-go area and that the Rural Task Force seek to take robust action to deter and prosecute those committing these types of offences." Joel Miller, aged 27, of North Wales was fined 199, issued a community order, required to undertake 120 hours unpaid work, and disqualified from driving for 42 days. James Callaghan, aged 46 of Chester, was also fined 199, issued a community order, required to undertake 120 hours unpaid work, excluded from entering the East Riding of Yorkshire for 12 months, as well as a forfeiture order for the destruction of recording devices. Connor Waring, aged 25, of Chester, was fined 624. In October 2023, three men were sentenced following hare coursing offences in December 2022, with one man receiving a custodial sentence. Two men were also recently ordered to pay out more than 12,000 after being charged with the same offences. UK food production could be reduced by nearly a tenth as farmers across the country have been hit by one of the wettest winters on record, new analysis warns. Estimates show that the projected reduction in key arable crops as a result of lower crop area and poor yields will reduce UK self-sufficiency across all farming sectors by 8% when measured by volume. According to the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU), this is a decline from an average of 86% between 2018 and 2022 to 78% this year. The UK could become dependent on foreign imports for around a third of its wheat, with wheat self-sufficiency estimated to decline from 92% in the same period to 68%. With soils too waterlogged and many fields flooded for much of the winter, many farmers have not been able to establish crops. Climate scientists warn that warmer, wetter winters are projected to become increasingly common, raising concerns about the impact of climate change on UK food security. The analysis comes as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak this week hosts farmers and farming representatives at Downing Street for his Farm to Fork Summit. But Tom Lancaster, land analyst at ECIU, said that farmers needed more government support to better cope with climate extremes. In 2021, the government warned that climate change was the biggest medium to long term threat to our food security," he added. "This analysis suggests that it is the biggest risk now, not at some far off point in the future." The report estimates that, compared to the average production between 2018 and 2022, the reduction in wheat self-sufficiency could see imports rise from 1.9m tonnes to 4.8m tonnes. UK flour millers have warned that the higher grade milling wheat harvest could be down by as much as 40%, giving rise to concerns about the price of bread and other baked goods. Although oats and barley will remain stable due to higher anticipated areas of spring planting, self-sufficiency in oilseed rape is estimated to collapse to a historic low of 40%, down from 75% between 2018 and 2022. With other crops that have suffered due to the wet weather not included in the analysis, such as field vegetables, potatoes and sugar beet, ECIU says it is possible that an 8% reduction in headline self-sufficiency is an under-estimate. Last month, ECIU published analysis that showed the harvest this year could be down by as much as a fifth compared to 2023 due to the wet winter. The NFU recently warned that the drastic reduction in crops due to the wet weather had shown just how vulnerable British farms are. The union's election manifesto sets out how more funding is needed by the Environment Agency so it can deliver a plan of management and re-investment in the watercourses and flood defences. The manifesto also urges the next government to commit to an agricultural budget that ensures British farming can meet the challenges of climate change. Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul said Monday he will have "frank and in-depth" talks with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, expecting the meeting will help create fresh momentum for the development of bilateral relations. Cho made the remarks before he headed to Beijing to hold talks with Wang, as South Korea seeks to manage the bilateral relations with its Asian neighbor that have cooled amid its close alignment with the United States. Cho's two-day visit marks the first trip to Beijing by a South Korean foreign minister in more than six years. "I will take an important first step in creating new momentum in the development of South Korea-China relations," Cho told reporters at Gimpo International Airport, in western Seoul. "I will have a frank and in-depth conversation with Director Wang Yi. We'll make our position clear on the issues of principle but focus on areas where we share the great potential for cooperation to lay a solid foundation for the development of bilateral ties," Cho said. Cho will meet one-on-one with Wang late Monday. Wang will host a dinner banquet for Cho and his delegation following the talks, according to sources familiar with the matter. Cho's office said the talks are expected to cover a wide range of issues, from bilateral ties and those related to the Korean Peninsula to regional and global issues. South Korea has been looking to improve the ties with China, its largest trading partner and a key player in nuclear diplomacy with North Korea. During the upcoming talks, the two sides are also expected to discuss a trilateral summit with Japan that is most likely to take place in Seoul at the end of May. Asked whether he will raise the issue of China's forced repatriation of North Korean defectors to Wang at the talks, Cho said he will do so as it's an "important issue of concern" for the government and that he will "listen to the opinion of the Chinese side." Seoul's top diplomat said he plans to discuss ways for the two countries to work together on North Korea's nuclear and missile threats, and call for Beijing's "constructive role" in addressing the growing military cooperation between the North and Russia. On the possibility of Beijing taking an issue with Seoul being a potential partner in the AUKUS security partnership among the U.S., Britain and Australia, Cho said he will "deliver the government's position clearly." While in Beijing, Cho will have a meeting with South Korean businesspeople working in China. He also plans to convene a conference of South Korean consuls general in China and discuss municipal-level exchanges. Cho's trip to Beijing marks the first such visit to the Chinese capital by a South Korean foreign minister since November 2017, when then Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha paid a visit during the previous Moon Jae-in government. The last bilateral talks between the two countries' top diplomats took place in August 2022, between Wang and then Foreign Minister Park Jin, in China's port city of Qingdao in the eastern Shandong Province. (Yonhap) Scientists have identified the optimal sex position for women to achieve orgasm. Scientists have identified the optimal sex position for women to achieve orgasm According to private gynaecology clinic New H Medical in New York, missionary - with a pillow placed below the womans pelvis - is the best position for female orgasms, as it stimulated clitoral blood flow. Researchers conducted the study by recording a volunteer couple, who had sex in five different positions for 10 minutes. Using an ultrasound scanner, the scientists examined which position resulted in the most clitoral blood flow. In the study, which was published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine, leading research physician Dr. Kimberly Lovie wrote: The purported benefits of various coital positions are described in numerous magazines, books, and public forums. However, there is little scientific research that evaluates the association between different coital positions and their ability to produce female orgasm. The objective was to compare clitoral blood flow before and after coitus in each of the five positions, after a standardised period of time. While missionary proved to be the best position, the group, found rear entry positions were the least effective in allowing the woman to achieve orgasm. Dr. Lovie said: The kneeling/rear entry position produces the least amount of direct clitoral contact, and resulted in a negligible increase in blood flow compared to the face-to-face positions. King Charles has praised his son Prince William as a "very good pilot indeed". King Charles and Prince William undertook a rare joint engagement The 75-year-old monarch formally handed the role of Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps to his eldest son on their first official joint engagement since September 2022 at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire on Monday (13.05.24) and though he admitted he had "great sadness" at handing over the post to the Prince of Wales, he knows it is in good hands. Charles - who is still receiving treatment for cancer - said: I did just want to say what a great joy it is to be with you, even briefly, on this occasion. But also, it turns with great sadness after 32 years of knowing you all, and admiring all your many activities and your achievements throughout the time that Ive been lucky enough to be Colonel-in-Chief of the Army over. After stressing his "intense admiration" for their operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, he added: All I can say is that having had the pleasure of knowing you for so long, I do hope youll go from strength to strength in the future with the Prince of Wales as your new Colonel-in-Chief. The great thing is hes a very good pilot indeed, so thats encouraging. So look after yourselves, and I cant tell you how proud it has made me to have been involved with you all this time. William - who served in the Army as a Platoon Commander in The Blues and Royals, and also completed flying training in the Royal Air Force before working as a search-and-rescue pilot for the service - was announced as the new Colonel-in-Chief last August following his father's accession to the throne. He and his father last undertook an official public engagement together when they met members of the public during a walkabout among the crowds following the death of Queen Elizabeth. They have subsequently attended family engagements and semi-private appearances together, such as at the coronation and Christmas at Sandringham, but this was their first public meeting since both the king and William's wife, Catherine, Princess of Wales - who is undergoing chemotherapy after having major abdominal surgery earlier this year - stepped back for medical reasons. Kelly Rowland insisted on watching over her friend give birth. Kelly Rowland insisted on watching her friend give birth in the hospital because she was concerned about the medical staff The 43-year-old pop star revealed that she once accompanied a girlfriend of hers to the hospital once labour had started and was adamant that she had to be there because she was concerned that the hospital were "about to be careless" with her friend's life. She told People: "I just actually watched another girlfriend of mine give birth, and I saw the way a hospital was with her and how she really had to advocate for herself. "I remember going in there, and I was asking questions. I was probably doing the most, but I didn't care because I love her! "If they were about to be careless with her life, I couldn't sit there and watch, you know what I mean? "As women and as black women, we've got to figure this stuff out." The former Destiny's Child star - who has Titan, nine, and three-year-old Noah with husband Tim Weatherspoon - recalled having to enlist the help of a doula both times she gave birth because she felt so "nervous" at the thought of going to the hospital, especially following the death of her own mother, and ended up having a really "smooth" delivery in the end. She said: "I had a doula in the hospital because the sound of the hospital just made me nervous. And the last time I was in the hospital [prior] I'd lost my mother, so I just wanted the hospital experience to be something different. My husband was there just in case something were to happen. "I had a really smooth delivery and I had an opportunity to have a really peaceful birth. And I feel like every woman should experience that. You shouldn't attach the word trauma to birth." Meghan, Duchess of Sussex has been missing her "babies" during her visit to Nigeria. Meghan, Duchess of Sussex has been visiting Nigeria The former actress has been touring the African nation with her husband Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex while the couple's two children - Prince Archie, five, and Princess Lilibet, two - remained at home in the US and Meghan admitted she was struggling to be without the children but she was happy to be surrounded by "family" in Nigeria. During an appearance at Lagos State Government House on Sunday (12.05.24), Meghan explained: "Today is Mother's Day. So it feels appropriate that although of course we are missing our children, I'm missing my babies, it feels very appropriate to be in the motherland and amongst family." At the event, the duchess took part in a naming ceremony and was given a special handwoven piece of Nigerian fabric. She said of the honour: "'Thank you so much for the kindness and for these beautiful names, I'm very grateful. I can't wait to come back." Meghan previously discovered she is 43 per cent Nigerian after taking a genealogy test and she declared she felt "flattered" by the reception she was given during the trip. Speaking on a panel discussion in front of 50 of the country's leading women, People magazine reports she said: "I am just flattered and honoured and inspired. "It has been a whirlwind 24 hours since we arrived, and I very quickly got the memo that I need to wear more colour, so I can fit in with all of you and your incredible fashion! "I am very overwhelmed. So I want to start by saying thank you very much for just how gracious you've all been in welcoming my husband and I to this country ... My country." Meghan told how it was "exciting" for her and her mother Doria Ragland to learn about their Nigerian heritage, adding: "Being African-American, part of it is really not knowing so much about your lineage or background, where you come from specifically. "And it was exciting for both of us to discover more and understand what that really means. Never in a million years would I have understood it as much as I do now. "It's been really eye-opening and humbling to be able to know more about my heritage and to be able to know this is just the beginning of that discovery." Ciaran Hinds plans to "work less" because he worries he's not up to the demands of the job anymore. Ciaran Hinds wants to slow down The 71-year-old actor admitted he has lost confidence in himself over the years because it is no longer as easy to learn new skills and his brain doesn't "work as fast as it used to". He told The Guardian's Saturday magazine: "Ive made a decision to work less. Every time Im booked on to a job, I have to convince myself that I have the ability to do it I dont have an innate confidence, and as I get older, the doubts multiply. "Your brains not working as fast as it used to, nor your ability to learn new things. I dont want to say yes and then not be fit for it. You have to be honest with yourself." Despite working with the greats of filmmaking over the years, Ciaran has still felt he wasn't "quite worthy" of his casting. He said: "Ive worked with Scorsese and Spielberg and they were fantastic experiences. Im there thinking, how the hell did I end up here? Ill think Im not quite worthy, but Ill knuckle down and get on with it." The 'Belfast' star - who has 33-year-old daughter Aoife with wife Helene Patarot - has always been attracted to projects that "excite" him and he's never been ambitious enough to build a Hollywood career for himself. He said: "Im a very day-to-day person. I dont think of my career in terms of a progression. I do projects that excite me. If you want to be a Hollywood star, you have to have that ambition as part of your DNA. I just dont have it. Thats why I bounce from place to place." And the former 'Game of Thrones' actor admitted he isn't "very good" at red carpets and the other "glamorous" aspects of his work. He said: "Being nominated for an Oscar for 'Belfast' was thrilling. Im not very good at the glamorous side of the industry, but it was a great honour, especially because the nomination was for playing Kenneth Branaghs grandfather, who he cared for greatly." The Dutch manufacturing industry has experienced a significant decline in production in March 2024, according to the latest data from Statistics Netherlands (CBS). In March, the calendar-adjusted output was 6 per cent lower compared to the same month in 2023, marking a continued downward trend observed over the last eight months. When seasonal and working-day adjustments are applied, the decline becomes more pronounced with a 1.5 per cent drop in March compared to February. This adjustment method provides a clearer view of short-term output changes and reveals the high volatility typical in manufacturing output. After a steep decline in the spring of 2020, which saw output hitting its lowest in May 2020, there was a recovery that lasted until May 2022. Since then, the trend has reversed, as per CBS. In March 2024, Dutch manufacturing output decreased by 6 per cent YoY and 1.5 per cent from February, indicating a persistent downtrend, as per CBS. Despite these challenges, Dutch manufacturers' sentiment improved in April, feeling more positive about future output. In contrast, German manufacturers reported more negative sentiments in the same period. Despite these challenging conditions, there is a silver lining as the mood among Dutch manufacturers has seen improvement. April brought a less negative outlook compared to March, with manufacturers feeling particularly positive about future output and less negative about their order positions. However, the situation contrasts with sentiments in Germany, a crucial market for Dutch manufacturing. German manufacturers reported more negative sentiments in April, as per Eurostat findings. Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DP) UKs small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have seen stagnation in export growth since the pandemic, with a slight decline observed since the end of 2023, according to the latest Trade Confidence Outlook from the British Chambers of Commerces (BCC) Insights Unit. The findings highlight that fewer SMEs are reporting increased exports compared to the period before the pandemic and Brexit. Data from Q4 2018 shows that 28 per cent of SME exporters saw an increase in overseas sales, which was four points higher than in Q1 2024. Additionally, only 16 per cent reported a decrease in that quarter, a figure that has worsened by seven points in the first quarter of 2024. UK SMEs face stagnant export growth since the pandemic, with a slight decline since late 2023, according to the British Chambers of Commerce. Data from Q1 2024 shows a drop in overseas sales, while domestic demand remains stronger. Brexit uncertainties continue to affect international market performance, with varying impacts across sectors. In a contrasting trend, domestic demand for SME exporters remains relatively robust. In Q1 2024, 35 per cent of SMEs reported an increase in domestic sales, compared to just 24 per cent who experienced growth in overseas sales. This disparity underscores the ongoing challenges faced in international markets, which have been exacerbated by the uncertainties surrounding Brexit. Since the lead-up to Brexit, the proportion of businesses reporting decreased overseas sales has been notably higher and remains persistent, as per the BCC. The impact is uneven across different sectors. SME manufacturers appear to be more affected, with 27 per cent reporting an increase in exports, 46 per cent experiencing no change, and another 27 per cent seeing a decrease. On the other hand, SME service providers to end consumers (B2C) have also faced difficulties, with 22 per cent reporting increased exports, 51 per cent seeing no change, and 27 per cent experiencing a decline. However, firms in the business-to-business (B2B) service sector reported the most stable performance, with 22 per cent experiencing growth in exports, 59 per cent seeing no change, and only 18 per cent reporting a decrease. The outlook remains fragile for 2024, notwithstanding forecasts of stronger global trade growth, due to ongoing geo-political uncertainty and growing concerns about the resilience of supply chains. There is also the spectre of further trade barriers with the EU, as the UKs regulatory divergence increases.?But the UKs brand and competitiveness remain strong, so we must lean more heavily into the advantages we possess, said William Bain, head of trade policy at the BCC. Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DP) The buzz around the prestigious Cannes Film Festival is once again on the rise as the film festival is just around the corner and is slated to take place from May 14 to May 25. The Directors Fortnight is an independent section that runs parallel to the main festival. Not only is the main film festival of importance to us but this year the sidebar also brings in good news for India as Radhika Aptes Sister Midnight is set to premiere. Recently, Radhika took to her social media handle and shared a glimpse of the film. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Radhika (@radhikaofficial) The official synopsis of the movie, as per the Directors Fortnight website, says, An arranged marriage in Mumbai: the husband is limp and spineless and, once the wife arrives in the marital hovel, she assumes a particularly crude form of misanthropy. Trapped in the hell of coupledom, Uma is transformed into a disturbing and ruthless figure, giving free rein to her own feral impulses. Written and directed by Karan Kandhari, the film stars Radhika Apte, Ashok Pathak, Chhaya Kadam, and Smita Tambe in pivotal roles. China's Wang Yi calls for exclusion of interference By Nam Hyun-woo Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul met with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi, Monday, emphasizing the critical need for Seoul and Beijing to sustain "the momentum of cooperation" while carefully managing any differences to prevent "an escalation into conflicts." Cho and Wang met at Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing after South Korea's top diplomat arrived there earlier in the day for a two-day trip to China. While the two had a ministerial meeting in Busan last November, it marked the first time a South Korean foreign minister has visited Beijing in six years and six months, since former Minister Kang Kyung-hwa's visit in 2017 during the liberal Moon Jae-in administration. The Cho-Wang meeting has been widely anticipated as a crucial opportunity to seek a breakthrough in South Korea's relations with China, which have soured amid the deepening rivalry between the United States and China and Seoul's increasingly close alignment with Washington. "South Korea does not view foreign relations as zero-sum games," Cho said during his opening remarks. "To improve the mutual perception of citizens of both countries, which has deteriorated over the past few years, we need to have a reciprocal perspective to acknowledge the differences, understand each other and expand the common grounds." During the meeting, Cho and Wang reportedly discussed arrangements for topics and schedules related to a trilateral summit that also includes Japan, anticipated for May 26 and 27. The trilateral summit is expected to be a crucial moment for the diplomatic landscape in Northeast Asia, particularly as Seoul and Tokyo strengthen their strategic alignment with Washington. Before departing for Beijing, Cho told reporters in Seoul that he will "clearly articulate our position in matters related to principles, but will focus on areas with ample potential for cooperation," implying that the Yoon Suk Yeol administration will keep its strategic alignment with the U.S., but maintain its partnerships with Beijing in potential areas of cooperation. Yoon has been stressing his strong opposition to attempts to change the status quo by force, in an apparent reference to China's claim to Taiwan. In response, Chinese Ambassador to South Korea Xing Haiming has caused controversies by suggesting that Seoul is making "wrong bets," a statement interpreted as possible interference in internal affairs. Against this backdrop, South Korea's possible participation in the AUKUS security partnership between Australia, Britain and the U.S. was discussed during a two-plus-two meeting among the foreign and defense chiefs of South Korea and Australia, though the invitation was limited to high-tech areas such as quantum computing, artificial intelligence and hypersonics. In a meeting with Korean business leaders in Beijing before the ministerial meeting, Cho said, "The two countries' economic relation is now transforming from a complementary partnership to a rivalry," and "this is also becoming a serious challenge for us as well." Wang also acknowledged that the current Seoul-Beijing relations are facing growing difficulties and challenges, adding that such developments are not aligned with the mutual interests of both sides and are not the desired outcome for China. "I hope China and South Korea will uphold the original spirit of diplomatic relations, maintain the direction of mutual friendship, firmly establish mutual benefit and cooperation goals and exclude interference," Wang said. During the meeting, the ministers are believed to have discussed North Korea's strengthening military ties with Russia and Beijing's role in deterring Pyongyang's nuclear and missile ambitions. "Of course, the issue (North Korea's military cooperation with Russia) will be discussed in talks concerning regional and international affairs, and such cooperation represents an obvious violation of United Nations resolutions," Cho said before departing for Beijing. "We have been making efforts to cooperate with the international community to address this cooperation, and of course, I will urge China to play a constructive role in that regard." While China has maintained a distance from the North's nuclear programs, it has neither exerted its influence on Pyongyang to slow down its dangerous ambitions nor joined the U.N.'s efforts to introduce new sanctions or resolutions against the North. "The North Korean nuclear issue has always been a topic of discussion in bilateral talks between South Korea and China because it poses a serious threat to South Korean national security and it requires China's important role," Cho said. "It is true that there are some difficulties due to recent developments in surrounding geopolitical conditions, and I will engage in in-depth conversation (with Wang) on how Seoul and Beijing will cooperate and how China will play a greater role." China's forced repatriation of North Korean escapees is also expected to be discussed during the meeting. The Yoon government has consistently urged Beijing to refrain from repatriating North Korean escapees against their will, but its statements have been significantly toned down even though China recently sent dozens of defectors back to North Korea, where they are likely to face imprisonment, torture or death. This was viewed as Seoul's efforts to maintain the cautious improvement of bilateral ties between Seoul and Beijing, but at the same time invited criticisms among human rights groups. Cho told reporters that he would raise the issue during the ministerial meeting, adding it is an interest of the Yoon administration. BOSTON, May 12, 2024Rapid Patient Recruitment Platform, the only pay-per-enrolled fixed-fee solution powered by AI and algorithms, has been selected as a finalist by Citeline in three key categories: Best use of artificial intelligence in clinical trials Best patient-facing technology initiative Best sponsor-facing technology initiative Try pay-per-enrollment starts in 24 hours TrialWire not only finds highly eligible patients on time but also reduces patient communication delays and friction, cutting the contact and screening time at the sites. In a typical study, up to 50% of patients can be lost due to contact failure. The TrialWire Unified Communications System and real-time alerts and escalations solves this problem and rapidly reboots trials. Sponsors and CROs can see real time progress and are alerted if any patient contact is not progressed. Susan Fitzpatrick-Napier, CEO and Founder of TrialWire, thanked clients and key technology partners for their role in the success of the TrialWire Platform, which is being harnessed by biopharma for both site-based and DCT studies. "We're very pleased to build on the 2023 Citeline Award win and again be recognised as a key industry player in the clinical trial space. We want to thank our CRO and biopharma clients across the globe and our world-leading technology partners including Salesforce Health Cloud, Uber Health, and Twilio that enable us to deliver the most advanced secure, efficient, and trusted services for our clients. "To be recognized across these 3 categories - as a leader in patient recruitment AI and technology, and excellence in patient and sponsor engagement - is exceptional. It highlights our collective ambition to deliver an innovative, patient-centric, and diversity- and accessibility-focused platform." According to Citeline, these awards "showcase excellence in clinical trial design, technological advancements, and results as well as the outstanding achievements of individuals, departments, teams or organisations." The award categories and finalists are as follows: Best Use of Artificial Intelligence in Clinical Trials AI is transforming healthcare, gaining ground in Pharma. It offers novel avenues to enhance drug discovery, clinical development, and new drug adoption. This Award honours those leveraging AI to streamline clinical trial processes or ensure their success. FINALISTS ARE: ICON Medidata Moderna TrialWire Yseop Best Patient-facing Technology Initiative This Award celebrates the transformative impact of digital health tech in clinical trials. Innovators are reshaping patient data collection with diverse digital tools like smartphone apps and mobile health devices. Judges are seeking products elevating patient experience and data quality, from electronic diaries to innovative mobile devices, fostering seamless trial participation. FINALISTS ARE: IQVIA Medidata's eCOA - Medidata, a Dassault Systemes Company Moderna and ProofPilot TrialWire Best Sponsor-facing Technology Initiative This Award acknowledges the crucial role of cutting-edge platforms in maximising clinical trial data. Advanced software drives efficiency across trial stages, aiding sponsors in logistics, monitoring, risk mitigation, and data analysis. Judges seek products enhancing study team management and oversight of trial activities. FINALISTS ARE: Bioforum, The Data Masters Certara CluePoints Cytel Medidata: The Medidata Clinical Data Studio Team Phastar TrialWire With more than 80% of clinical trials failing to recruit patients on time, and 30% of research sites not able to meet enrollment goals (10% of sites don't enroll any patients), TrialWire offers peace of mind and significant cost and time-saving for sites, sponsors, CROs, and investors. TrialWire auto recruitmentcan start and scale quickly, in under 24 hours, as the platform does not require any approvals to begin. The TrialWire Platform built on the secure Salesforce Health Cloud includes: Dedicated secure portal dashboards for each study coordinator (SC) so they can review patient details and medical information and see real-time progress Dashboards for sponsors and CROs so they can view real-time de-identified referral status data Secure Unified Communications System including text, video (telehealth), emails, and phone for SCs within their dashboard for instant communication with patients to book calls, screen and arrange site visits Automated AI-match and algorithm-driven find, screen and enroll system Minute-by-minute metrics for SCs, sponsors and CROs showing the number of patients referred, contacted, screened, and enrolled at each site Study progress data download for sponsors and CROs HIPAA compliance and patient privacy security Unlimited number of sites globally Available in all languages ScreenMatch - the "white glove" SC support system that helps contact and phone screen patients Uber Health for patient transport bookings About TrialWire www.trial-wire.com TrialWire is a privately held technology company that leverages 25 years of experience in the clinical trial patient recruitment sector. TrialWire is solving the patient recruitment crisis which is one of the most serious problems facing the drug development sector, costing billions of dollars a day due to stalled trials. The TrialWire Platform is the most secure service (powered by Salesforce Health Cloud) that uses AI and advanced algorithms to find the right people who are online researching their condition. It uses all available online information including demographics, intent and content to determine eligibility. Patients are invited into the Platform and taken through the AI-Match screener then offered an exact study match. No account sign-up is required. The Platform ingests study data from approved trial registries like ClinicalTrials.Gov. Key to the TrialWire success is that the platform looks for motivated people who are active online trying to find out more about their conditions. They can be connected to a site in under two minutes. These people have consistently high retention rates. Kunstliche Intelligenz hat spatestens nach dem Raketenstart von Chat GPT das Leben aller verandert. Doch der Superzyklus steht nach Meinungen von Experten erst am Anfang. Wahrend Aktien wie Nvidia von der ersten Aufwartsentwicklung stark profitieren konnten, versprechen aussichtsreiche Player aus der zweiten Reihe noch enormes Aufwartspotenzial. Im kostenlosen, exklusiven Spezialreport prasentieren wir ihnen 5 innovative KI-Unternehmen, die bahnbrechende Entwicklungen in diesem Sektor pragen konnten. Warum sollten Sie dabei sein? Trotz der jungsten Erfolge steht die Entwicklung der kunstlichen Intelligenz noch am Beginn eines neuen Superzyklus. Experten gehen davon aus, dass der Sektor bis 2032 global auf 1,3 Billionen US-Dollar explodieren wird, wobei ein groer Teil auf Hardware und Infrastruktur entfallen wird. Nutzen Sie die Chance! Fordern Sie sofort unseren brandneuen Spezialreport an und erfahren Sie, welche 5 KI-Aktien das grote Potenzial zur Vervielfachung besitzen. Dieser Report ist komplett kostenlos und zeigt Ihnen die aussichtsreichsten Investments im KI-Sektor. Handeln Sie jetzt und sichern Sie sich Ihren kostenfreien Report! LONDON, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Stafford Capital Partners is pleased to announce today that a major Korean pension fund has invested USD $200m into the firm's flagship SIT X timberland fund. The investment is accompanied by a further $100m co-investment sidecar vehicle. Commenting on the new mandate, Stafford Capital Partners CEO Angus Whiteley said today that accelerating support for timberland as an asset class illustrated the growing net zero aspirations of forward thing institutional investors globally. "We are experiencing globally significant support for this asset class, with important recent investments into SIT X from the UK, North America, Korea and Europe." "With investor focus on the carbon sequestration potential of commercial timber growing, we expect interest in this asset class to only accelerate, providing a significant potential first mover advantage for institutional investors who are looking at timberland now as part of their alternatives strategy." "We believe we are uniquely positioned to offer impactful, discounted access to timberland assets through pooled investment vehicles and co-investment opportunities." Commitments to the tenth Stafford International Timberland fund (SIT X) have now reached USD $635m, with considerable forward momentum. Over 2023 Stafford raised USD $945m across our secondaries and carbon strategies, a globally significant figure. The Fund was launched in January 2023 with a USD 1bn fundraising target. It achieved first close in March 2023 and is expected to hold a final close during Q3 2024. The fund has already deployed over USD$160m from the raise, illustrating the strong investment pipeline in the space. With over USD 3.7bn AUM across over 100 underlying assets, Stafford's timberland portfolio has provided consistent and strong returns as well as a meaningful contribution towards investors' climate targets and high standards of sustainability. The underlying timberland fund portfolio currently stores more than 316.8 MtCO2e of carbon and sequesters 16.6 MtCO2e of carbon each year on an ongoing basis. About Stafford Capital Partners Stafford is an independent private markets investment and advisory firm with USD 7.9 billion in assets under management and advice for more than 150 institutional clients worldwide. Founded in 2000, Stafford has a global team of 85+ professionals investing in infrastructure, timberland & agriculture, and sustainable private equity through secondaries, primaries, and co-investments. Stafford has been a UN PRI signatory since 2010 and has committed to the Net Zero Asset Managers initiative. It puts sustainability at the centre of its investment process and implements a well-defined ESG program across all strategies. In the UK, Stafford is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (Firm Reference Number: 225586). This is a marketing communication. Please refer to the relevant fund documentation for Stafford Infrastructure Secondaries Fund V (Available in English, in the Fund's Virtual Data Room upon request) before making any final investment decisions. This release neither constitutes an offer to sell nor a solicitation to invest in any of Stafford's funds. It is for information purposes only and is not a recommendation. It does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation to invest in any jurisdiction where the offer or sale would be prohibited or to any person not meeting the required investor criteria. Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1984191/Stafford_Capital_Partners_Logo.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/major-korean-pension-fund-invests-in-carbon-solutions-with-stafford-capital-partners-302142207.html 2023 Revenue of $34.87M and Gross Profit of $11.14M Volatus Aerospace Corp. (TSXV:VOL)(OTCQB:VLTTF) ("Volatus" or "the Company"), a leader in the drone industry, is pleased to announce its financial results for the year ended Dec 31, 2023. The Company generated revenues of $34,872,815 for the year ended Dec 31, 2023, with a 32% gross margin, and adjusted EBITDA improvement of $1,981,972 from ($5,616,940) in 2022 to ($3,634,968) in 2023. The Company announces that it has restated its financial results for the financial years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021. The identification of the need for the restatements arose in the course of the Company's new auditors review of the financials statements for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021. The restatements reflect changes in recognition of contingent consideration, recognition of acquired intangible assets, amortization of intangible assets, creation of deferred tax liability due to acquisition, and recognition of additional goodwill and bargain purchase gain. A summary of the restatements is set forth below. Management is of the view that the restatements do not have a material impact on the Company's revenue, gross profit, adjusted EBITDA and the reported net cash provided by operating activities and does not result in a change to the cash balance for any restated periods. Annual (2023) Performance Highlights: Revenue increased to $34,872,815 from $24,414,418 in 2022, a 43% improvement on a comparative and normalized basis. Gross profit was $11,135,842, an increase of $4,578,391 compared to 2022 on an adjusted basis after excluding charter services. Gross margins increased to 32%, an increase of 4% compared to 2022. Available cash on hand on December 31, 2023 was $1,682,402. Comprehensive loss of ($9,693,626) in 2023 compared to ($5,449,917) restated for 2022. This 2022 restatement includes a bargain purchase gain of $2,112,19. If excluded, the 2022 losses would have been ($7,562,113). Adjusted EBITDA improved by 35% to ($3,634,968) from ($5,616,940) in 2022. Efficiency measures implemented in late Q3 2023 will continue to be realised over the next few quarters. Management feels that adjusted EBITDA is an efficient measure of the performance of the Company. Quarterly (Q4 2023) Performance Highlights: Revenue increased to $10,500,995 from $7,213,129 in Q3 2022, a 46% improvement. Gross Profit increased by $777,964, to $2,800,114 from $2,022,150 in Q4 2022. Adjusted EBITDA improved by 80% to ($769,943) from ($3,768,238) in Q4 2022. Notable Operational Accomplishments During the Year: Continued expansion in the US with the strategic acquisition of Empire Drones of New York and Skyscape Industries of New Jersey. Signed a 3-year Master Service Agreement to provide pipeline right-of-way asset and environmental monitoring throughout Ontario. Signed a multi-year Master Service Agreement worth up to $60 million with a US based power utility. Entered a strategic partnership to automate airborne gas leak detection. Expanding its Scientific Experiential Aerial Research (SEAR) Program in the US. Received regulatory approvals to expand operations in wildfire suppression and to operate heavy spray drones for precision agriculture. Was issued a Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) License for cargo deliveries using drones. SUMMARY OF RESTATEMENTS Consolidated Statement of Financial Position December 31, 2022 Previously reported Adjustments December 31, 2022 As restated Intangible assets 8,815,125 (4,686,451) 4,128,674 Goodwill 689,835 273,769 963,604 Total Assets 33,609,987 (4,412,682) 29,197,305 Other short-term liabilities 373,163 3,165,943 3,539,106 Total current liabilities 6,165,334 3,165,943 9,331,277 Deferred tax liability - 619,511 619,511 Long-term borrowings 10,063,911 (3,165,942) 6,897,969 Contingent consideration 2,356,850 (1,252,307) 1,104,543 Total non-current liabilities 13,246,800 (3,798,739) 9,448,061 Total Liabilities 19,412,133 (632,795) 18,779,338 Deficit (8,971,689) 1,844,287 (7,127,402) Contributed Surplus 2,989,819 (2,777,988) 211,830 Non controlling interest 1,066,963 (2,846,185) (1,779,222) Total Shareholders Equity 14,197,852 (3,779,886) 10,417,966 January 1, 2022 Previously reported Adjustments January 1, 2022 As restated Intangible assets 5,811,929 (4,204,325) 1,607,604 Goodwill 583,188 273,769 856,957 Total Assets 22,668,821 (3,930,556) 18,738,264 Deferred tax liability - 260,319 260,319 Total non-current liabilities 3,788,122 260,319 4,048,441 Total Liabilities Non controlling interest 288,768 (1,254,379) (965,611) Deficit (2,345,515) (158,509) (2,504,024) Contributed Surplus 2,989,819 (2,777,988) 211,831 Total Shareholders Equity 15,260,042 (4,190,876) 11,069,166 Consolidated Statement of Loss and Comprehensive Loss For the year ended December 31, 2022 Previously reported Adjustments For the year ended December 31, 2022 As restated Depreciation and amortization - (482,126) (482,126) Bargain purchase gain - 2,112,197 2,112,197 Fair value changes in contingent consideration (33,846) (33,846) Deferred tax expense - (71,311) (71,311) Net Loss and comprehensive loss 6,974,830 (1,524,914) 5,449,916 Owners of Volatus Aerospace (6,626,174) 2,002,796 (4,623,378) Non-controlling interest (348,656) (477,882) (826,538) EPS - basic and diluted ($0.06) $0.02 ($0.04) Consolidated Statement of Changes in Equity January 1, 2022 Previously reported Adjustments January 1, 2022 As restated Non-controlling interest 288,768 (1,254,379) (965,611) Deficit (2,345,515) (158,509) (2,504,024) Contributed Surplus $2,989,819 (2,777,988) 211,831 December 31, 2022 Previously reported Adjustments December 31, 2022 As restated Non-controlling interest $1,066,963 (2,846,185) (1,779,222) Deficit ($8,971,689) 1,844,287 (7,127,402) Contributed Surplus $2,989,819 (2,777,989) 211,831 Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows For the year ended December 31, 2022 Previously reported Adjustments For the year ended December 31, 2022 As restated Net loss (6,974,830) 1,524,914 (5,449,916) Depreciation and amortization 1,367,503 482,126 1,849,630 Deferred income taxes - 71,311 71,311 Bargain purchase gain - (2,112,197) (2,112,197) Fair value changes on contingent consideration - 33,846 33,846 Total cash outflows from operating activities (7,112,174) - (7,112,174) SUMMARY OF RESULTS Twelve months ended Dec 31 2023 2022 2021 Product and Services Revenue 34,872,815 24,414,418 9,913,953 Aircraft Sale - 5,356,721 - Direct Cost 23,736,973 21,425,786 7,385,243 Gross Profit 11,135,842 8,345,353 2,528,710 32 % 28 % 26 % OPERATING EXPENSES Advertising & marketing 1,856,220 2,225,224 521,250 IT & tech 669,096 512,056 169,571 Personnel 6,984,713 5,660,069 2,080,871 R&D 1,341,377 541,023 - Office cost 2,830,861 1,513,960 425,355 Travel 479,163 419,823 196,998 External partner cost 1,281,121 1,556,278 318,844 Depreciation 4,033,731 1,866,791 637,203 Share based Payments 723,804 1,244,858 459,152 20,200,086 15,540,082 4,809,244 (Loss) from Operations (9,064,243 ) (7,194,729 ) (2,280,534 ) OTHER ITEMS - INCOME/(EXPENSE) Finance cost (1,775,236 ) (526,238 ) (438,954 ) Goodwill Impairment - - (1,399,029 ) Bargain Purchase Gain 221,808 2,112,197 - FV changes in Contingent Consideration 386,731 (33,846 ) Other income (expense) 15,405 411,502 192,963 Gain (Loss) on disposal of drones 92,782 9,969 37,006 Foreign exchange translation (35,089 ) (157,460 ) (25,958 ) Net loss and comprehensive loss before tax (10,157,842 ) (5,378,605 ) (3,914,506 ) Deferred Tax Income/ (Expense) 464,216 (71,311 ) Net loss and comprehensive loss after tax (9,693,626 ) (5,449,916 ) (3,914,506 ) Total comprehensive loss for the period attributable to: Owners of Volatus Aerospace Corp. (9,464,043 ) (4,623,378 ) (2,953,117 ) Non-controlling interest (229,583 ) (826,538 ) (961,389 ) (9,693,626 ) (5,449,916 ) (3,914,506 ) Loss per share Basic and Diluted (0.08 ) (0.04 ) (0.03 ) Weighted average number of common shares outstanding Basic and Diluted 117,887,327 104,932,598 84,447,725 SUMMARY OF QUARTERLY RESULTS Q4 2023 Q3 2023 Q2 2023 Q1 2023 Q4 2022 Q3 2022 Q2 2022 Q1 2022 Revenue 10,500,995 8,274,349 8,684,991 7,412,480 7,213,129 11,120,589 6,629,593 4,807,829 Direct Cost 7,700,881 5,265,775 5,724,516 5,045,802 5,190,979 7791145 4728672.918 3714988.951 Gross Profit 2,800,114 3,008,574 2,960,475 2,366,678 2,022,150 3,329,444 1,900,920 1,092,840 26.67 % 36.36 % 34.09 % 31.93 % 28.03 % 29.94 % 28.67 % 22.73 % OPERATING EXPENSES Advertising & marketing 278,781 541,635 629,686 406,118 575,539 599,285 591,365 459,035 IT & tech 28,439 243,602 211,960 185,095 164,260 140,392 110,775 96,629 Personnel 1,312,983 1,727,086 1,788,347 2,156,297 1,552,913 1,393,606 1,565,456 1,148,094 R&D 771,861 104,832 364,263 100,420 541,023 - - - Office cost 605,396 722,276 610,650 892,539 490,740 378,474 416,589 228,157 Travel 126,710 90,804 167,364 94,285 144,372 140,622 54,456 80,373 External partner cost 436,686 243,443 326,979 274,013 602,171 403,238 168,371 382,497 Depreciation 1,647,364 843,744 797,487 745,136 604,849 270,081 300,511 209,224 Share based Payments 173,671 195,372 178,361 176,401 340,761 330,918 290,103 283,076 5,381,891 4,712,793 5,075,097 5,030,304 5,016,628 3,656,616 3,497,626 2,887,086 (Loss) from Operations (2,581,777 ) (1,704,219 ) (2,114,622 ) (2,663,626 ) (2,994,477 ) (327,172 ) (1,596,707 ) (1,794,246 ) OTHER ITEMS - INCOME/(EXPENSE) - Finance cost (667,949 ) (425,671 ) (368,635 ) (312,982 ) (249,798 ) (121,672 ) (81,239 ) (73,528 ) Bargain Purchase Gain 221,808 2,112,197 - - - Changes in Fair Value of Contingent Consideration 386,731 (33,846 ) - - - Other income (expense) 14,955 (39,229 ) 41,237 (1,558 ) 192,498 79,640 31,576 107,788 Gain (Loss) on disposal of equipment (125,476 ) 228,769 (0 ) (10,511 ) 414 10,566 (1,011 ) - Foreign exchange translation (24,156 ) 19,946 (16,191 ) (14,688 ) (195,277 ) 6,430 20,484 (14,412 ) Net loss and comprehensive loss before tax (2,775,864 ) (1,920,403 ) (2,458,211 ) (3,003,365 ) (1,168,290 ) (352,208 ) (1,626,897 ) (1,774,398 ) Deferred Tax Income/ (Expense) 464,216 (71,311 ) Net Loss and comprehensive loss after tax (2,311,647 ) (1,920,403 ) (2,458,211 ) (3,003,365 ) (1,239,601 ) (352,208 ) (1,626,897 ) (1,774,398 ) Loss per share Basic and Diluted (0.02 ) (0.02 ) (0.03 ) (0.02 ) (0.01 ) (0.01 ) (0.02 ) (0.02 ) RECONCILIATION OF ADJUSTED EBITDA TO NET LOSS Three months ended Dec 31 For the year ended Dec 31 2023 2022 2023 2022 Adjusted EBITDA (loss) (769,943 ) (3,768,238 ) (3,634,968 ) (5,616,940 ) Interest 667,949 249,798 1,775,236 526,238 Depreciation 1,647,364 604,849 4,033,731 1,866,791 Share-based Payments 173,671 340,761 723,804 1,244,858 Loss from LATAM Operations - - 286,423 - Loss from Sale of Drones 125,476 (414 ) (92,782 ) (9,969 ) Lease Termination - - 405,000 - Crewed Revenue - (1,787,902 ) - (1,787,902 ) Bargain Purchase Gain (221,808 ) (2,112,197 ) (221,808 ) (2,112,197 ) FV changes in Contingent Consideration (386,731 ) 33,846 (386,731 ) 33,846 Deferred Tax Income (464,216 ) 71,311 (464,216 ) 71,311 Net Loss (2,311,647 ) (1,168,290 ) (9,693,626 ) (5,449,916 ) Other Corporate Update: Further to the Company's press release dated July 27, 2023, in respect of TSX Venture Exchange's extension of the non-brokered private placement of up to $250,000 of convertible debenture units of the Company, the Company has decided not to pursue this private placement and as such the private placement has been terminated. Further to the Company's press release dated January 9, 2024, the Company announced that it had completed the acquisition of Aerial Motion Pictures Ltd., dba UAVHub and Open Sky Consulting International Ltd., dba The Drone Mentor by issuing 1,680,000 common equity shares instead of 1,575,000 common equity shares of the Company as previously mentioned. About Volatus Aerospace: Volatus Aerospace Corp. is a leading provider of integrated drone solutions throughout North America and growing into Latin America and globally. Volatus serves civil, public safety, and defense markets with imaging and inspection, security and surveillance, equipment sales and support, training, as well as R&D, design, and manufacturing. Through our subsidiary, Volatus Aviation, we are introducing green and innovative drone solutions to supplement and replace traditional aircraft and helicopters for long-linear inspections such as pipeline, energy, rail, and cargo services. Volatus is committed to carbon neutrality; the fostering of a safe, equitable and inclusive workplace; and responsible governance. Note Regarding Non-GAAP Measures In this press release we describe certain income and expense items that are unusual or non-recurring. There are terms not defined by International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). Our usage of these terms may vary from the usage adopted by other companies. Specifically, gross profit, gross margin, and Adjusted EBITDA are undefined terms by IFRS that may be referenced herein. We provide this detail so that readers have a better understanding of the significant events and transactions that have had an impact on our results. Throughout this release, reference is made to "gross profit," "gross margin," and "Adjusted EBITDA" which are non-IFRS measures. Management believes that gross profit, defined as revenue less operating expenses, is a useful supplemental measure of operations. Gross profit helps provide an understanding on the level of costs needed to create revenue. Gross margin illustrates the gross profit as a percentage of revenue. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization ("Adjusted EBITDA"). The Company defines Adjusted EBITDA as IFRS comprehensive loss excluding interest expense, depreciation and amortization expense, share-based payments, income tax expense, integration and due diligence costs, one time profit or loss (non-recurring), and impairment of goodwill, property, plant, and equipment and right-of-use assets (ROU). The Company believes that Adjusted EBITDA is a meaningful financial metric as it measures cash generated from operations which the Company can use to fund working capital requirements, service future interest and principal debt repayments and fund future growth initiatives. Readers are cautioned that these non-IFRS measures may not be comparable to similar measures used by other companies. Readers are also cautioned not to view these non-IFRS financial measures as an alternative to financial measures calculated in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS"). Adjusted EBITDA does not have any standardized meaning under IFRS and therefore may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers and should not be construed as alternatives to comprehensive loss or income determined in accordance with IFRS. For more information with respect to financial measures which have not been defined by GAAP, including reconciliations to the closest comparable GAAP measure, see the "Non-GAAP Measures and Additional GAAP Measures"? section of the Company's most recent MD&A which is available on SEDAR. Forward-Looking Statement This news release contains statements that constitute "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including statements regarding the plans, intentions, beliefs, and current expectations of the Company with respect to future business activities and operating performance. Often, but not always, forward-looking information and forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or "believes" or variations (including negative variations) of such words and phrases, or statements formed in the future tense or indicating that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" (or other variations of the foregoing) be taken, occur, be achieved, or come to pass. Forward-looking information includes information regarding: (i) the business plans and expectations of the Company; and (ii) expectations for other economic, business, and/or competitive factors. Forward-looking information is based on currently available competitive, financial, and economic data and operating plans, strategies, or beliefs as of the date of this news release, but involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. Such factors may be based on information currently available to the Company, including information obtained from third-party industry analysts and other third-party sources, and are based on management's current expectations or beliefs. Any and all forward-looking information contained in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. Investors are cautioned that forward-looking information is not based on historical facts but instead reflects expectations, estimates or projections concerning future results or events based on the opinions, assumptions and estimates of management considered reasonable at the date the statements are made. Forward-looking information and forward-looking statements reflect the Company's current beliefs and is based on information currently available to it and on assumptions it believes to be not unreasonable in light of all of the circumstances. In some instances, material factors or assumptions are discussed in this news release in connection with statements containing forward-looking information. Such material factors and assumptions include, but are not limited to: the commercialization of drone flights beyond visual line of sight and potential benefits to the Company; and meeting the continued listing requirements of the TSXV. 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 to differ from those anticipated, estimated or intended. The forward-looking information contained herein is made as of the date of this news release and, other than as required by law, the Company disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise. There can be no assurance that forward-looking information 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 information. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. TSXV: VOL OTCQB: VLTTF CONTACT DETAILS Abhinav Singhvi Chief Financial officer +1 833-865-2887 abhinav.singhvi@volatusaerospace.com COMPANY WEBSITE https://volatusaerospace.com SOURCE: Volatus Aerospace Corp. View the original press release on accesswire.com Bregal Milestone, a leading European technology and software private equity firm and majority owner of Allshares, a pioneering compensation and long-term incentive software and services provider, today announced the acquisition of Novare Pay and the appointment of Michael Ingelog as Chair of the Allshares Board. Novare Pay, based in Stockholm, is acclaimed for its reputation as a high-growth, high-margin European compensation services provider with a strong Nordic heritage. With an impressive clientele including leading multinational enterprises, Novare Pay's integration into the Allshares ecosystem will translate to an enhanced end-to-end digital turnkey offering to its over 630 clients spanning more than 40 countries worldwide. The acquisition of Novare Pay further fortifies Allshares' leadership position as one of Europe's leading compensation software and services providers, with augmented and strengthened capabilities across compensation data and analytics, incentives, and governance. At closing, Novare Pay will rebrand and operate under the Allshares name. Commenting on the landmark acquisition, Erika Andersson, CEO of Novare Pay, expressed her enthusiasm, stating, "Over the years, we have built a strong and diversified customer footprint and a talented team operating from our strategic hubs in Stockholm, Oslo, and London. Partnering with Allshares presents an exciting opportunity to not only enhance our service delivery with tech-forward compensation software but also to help spearhead a transformative shift in the European compensation landscape." Cyrus Shey, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Bregal Milestone, echoed Andersson's sentiments, saying, "We extend a warm welcome to Erika, Andreas, and the entire Novare Pay team as they join the Allshares family. Leveraging Novare Pay's specialized expertise in pay, remuneration, and compensation, alongside its client-centric approach, this partnership will help propel Allshares to new heights across Europe, re-affirming their steadfast commitment to delivering leading compensation solutions that drive high performance for both private and publicly listed customers. With Michael's appointment as Chair, we are confident in our ability to harness this momentum and further strengthen Allshares' position as an industry leader." As Chairman Michael Ingelog brings his wealth of experience as a seasoned CEO and board executive with deep knowledge of the Nordic and European markets. In response to his appointment and the acquisition of Novare Pay to the Allshares family, Ingelog commented, "Allshares' distinctive solutions built and delivered by industry experts underpinned my decision to join as Chair of the Board. With the recent addition of Novare Pay to the Allshares family, Allshares is poised to enhance its offerings even further and truly transform the European compensation landscape. I'm thrilled to help shape the company's future, alongside management and the board." The terms of the transaction were not disclosed and are subject to customary closing conditions. About Bregal Milestone Bregal Milestone is a leading European software and technology private equity firm with c.1.3 billion of capital raised since inception. The firm provides growth capital and operational support to build market-leading technology companies. Bregal Milestone is part of Bregal Investments, a leading global investment platform with assets under management of over 18 billion. Bregal Milestone was recognised by GrowthCap as one of the Top Growth Equity Firms of 2023. For more information, visit www.bregalmilestone.com or follow us on LinkedIn. About Allshares Allshares is a market leader for equity plan design and administration in the Nordics. Trusted by leading multinational enterprises, Allshares serves approximately 300 multinational public and private enterprise customers in more than 100 countries with an end-to-end digital turnkey solution for equity plan management. Companies and participants can use its proprietary software and services to administer share plans in full compliance with relevant regulations, legal, and tax frameworks, as well as deliver seamless and automated IFRS reporting of share plans to companies. For more information, visit www.allshares.com About Novare Pay Novare Pay is a premier provider of remuneration services to multinationals. With a dedicated team of over 50 seasoned specialists stationed across Stockholm, Oslo, and London, Novare Pay offers bespoke compensation services and analytics tailored to clients' needs. Novare Pay boasts an impressive track record of high-growth, high-margin fundamentals, while serving over 900 clients in more than 60 countries. For more information, visit www.allshares.com View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240512957761/en/ Contacts: Jillian Hazelton Head of Marketing Communications Jillian.hazelton@bregal.com Kupfer wird oft als das Gold der Energiewende bezeichnet, weil es aufgrund seiner hervorragenden elektrischen Leitfahigkeit eine zentrale Rolle in vielen Technologien spielt, die fur nachhaltige Energiesysteme entscheidend sind. Experten gehen aufgrund der Angebotsknappheit von einem Superzyklus aus. Korrektur als Einstiegschance Nach Hochststanden im Mai korrigierte das rote Metall stark. Die Abwartsspirale verstarkte sich in den vergangenen Tagen aufgrund schwacher Konjunkturdaten aus den USA und China. Langfristig konnte sich die aktuell laufende Korrektur als exzellente Einstiegsmoglichkeit herausstellen. 3 Kupferaktien mit hohem Potential Im neuen, kostenlosen Spezialreport stellen wir drei aussichtsreiche Unternehmen vor, die bei einem weiteren Anstieg uberproportional profitieren konnten. Handeln Sie jetzt und sichern Sie sich Ihren kostenfreien Report! A man in his 20s has been arrested in Korea on suspicion of involvement in the murder and abandonment of the body of a Korean tourist in Pattaya, Thailand, police officials said Monday. The suspect was nabbed at his residence in the southwestern city of Jeongeup on Sunday evening and put under emergency arrest, according to the Gyeongnam Provincial Police Agency. Police have been tracing the whereabouts of the suspect, who is one of the three Koreans suspected of kidnapping and murdering a Korean national in his 30s in Pattaya. Over the weekend, Thai police discovered the victim's body inside a black plastic container filled with cement in a reservoir in Pattaya after his mother received a warning from an unknown man that her son would be killed if a ransom was not paid, according to local media and the Korean Embassy in Thailand. The Korean police confirmed that one of the three suspects had returned to his home country from Thailand last week, and through surveillance cameras tracked him down at his home for arrest. The suspect was said to have denied all charges brought against him during an overnight police interrogation. Police plan to request an arrest warrant for the man and look into the whereabouts of the two remaining accomplices in cooperation with Thai police. "Details of the case cannot be disclosed as it is currently under investigation," a police official said. (Yonhap) Blockdaemon Greenlit by ADGM, Paving the Way for UAE Expansion Strategy ABU DHABI, UAE, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Blockdaemon , the leading institutional-grade blockchain infrastructure company, announced today it is further expanding its presence in the UAE, including setting up an office and establishing an entity in Abu Dhabi under Registration Authority of Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM). The expansion to operate and provide Web3 infrastructure solutions in the UAE will include making available its node and validator infrastructure solutions locally, as well as their self-hosted MPC wallet technology. "This marks a significant stride for Blockdaemon in bolstering its presence in the UAE and deepening our partnership with local regulators and clients," said Amor Sexton, COO of Blockdaemon. "With Blockdaemon receiving approval from the Registration Authority of ADGM, we are not only solidifying our foothold in the region as the leading Web3 infrastructure provider but also affirming our commitment to supporting institutions with blockchain infrastructure. This approval underscores our dedication to operating with integrity and trustworthiness." Konstantin Richter, CEO and Founder of Blockdaemon commented, "As we continue to expand our operations and deepen our partnerships across the globe, this milestone paves the way for greater collaboration and innovation in the UAE's vibrant blockchain ecosystem. We are excited about the opportunities ahead and remain steadfast in our mission to empower businesses and organizations with secure and scalable blockchain infrastructure solutions." Arvind Ramamurthy, Chief of Market Development at ADGM said, "We congratulate Blockdaemon on receiving their licensing from ADGM to establish their presence in Abu Dhabi. The decision of a prominent institutional-grade blockchain infrastructure company to expand in this region with ADGM underscores the progressive regulatory environment offered by our international financial centre, as well as the significant potential and demand within the blockchain and Web3 sub-cluster and associated services. ADGM has been a pioneer in creating an ecosystem conducive to the growth and success of companies like Blockdaemon, and we eagerly anticipate the opportunities they can unlock within this region." Blockdaemon was founded by Konstantin Richter in 2017, to bring institutional-grade infrastructure to blockchain protocols, crypto native and traditional financial institutions. Blockdaemon expanded into the Asia-Pacific region in February 2022 and shortly thereafter in March 2022, expanded to the EMEA region. This latest announcement follows significant geographic growth and product innovation at Blockdaemon, with the Builder Vault utilizing our advanced MPC technology in June 2022, Blockdaemon Wallet in April 2023 and Blockdaemon's Indexed-Data Powered API Suite last march. About Blockdaemon Blockdaemon powers the blockchain economy with its suite of industry-leading infrastructure solutions. We are a globally established, ISO-27001 certified partner with extensive protocol coverage, offering technical depth, industry-leading SLAs, 70+ global points of presence through 10+ cloud and bare metal providers, and 24/7 support for an unmatched institutional-grade experience. We provide integrated business solutions to exchanges, custodians, crypto platforms, financial institutions, and developers using our end-to-end suite of blockchain tools, including dedicated nodes, APIs, staking, liquid staking, MPC tech, and more. Blockdaemon provides its customers with the confidence to quickly and easily scale without compromising security or compliance. For more information, please visit https://blockdaemon.com Media Contact: Hanna Tantoco press@blockdaemon.com View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/blockdaemon-expands-presence-in-abu-dhabi-with-established-entity-under-registration-authority-of-abu-dhabi-global-market-adgm-302142232.html (2024-05-13) Kitron ASA initiates a share buyback in connection with remuneration to the board members. Kitron ASA ("Kitron" or the "Company") has decided to initiate a share buyback program of up to 30,000 of its own shares for a total maximum amount of NOK 900,000. The buyback program may be carried out in the period from this announcement and until 16 May 2024. The share buyback program will be carried out in accordance with the EC Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No. 2016/1052 of 8 March 2016 regarding exemptions from market manipulation for share programs. The purpose of the buyback program is to acquire shares that can be used as part of the remuneration to the board members for the period from and including May 2024 to and including April 2025, as resolved by the annual general meeting on 25 April 2024. The Company has engaged Norne Securities AS to carry out the share buybacks. The share buybacks will be made in accordance with the authorisation granted to the board of directors by the Company's annual general meeting held on 25 April 2024. According to the authorisation, up to 19,821,713 shares may be purchased at a minimum of NOK 1 and a maximum of the prevailing market price per share on the day the offer is made, provided, however, that the maximum amount does not exceed NOK 100 per share. The authorisation is valid until the annual general meeting in 2025, however no later than 30 June 2025. All acquisitions under the buyback program will be executed on Euronext Oslo Brs. The execution of any repurchases will depend on market conditions, the buyback program may be discontinued at any time and the Company may resolve to terminate the buyback program before the threshold set out above is reached. Kitron does not hold any own shares in the Company as of the date of this announcement. For further information, please contact: Cathrin Nylander, CFO, tel.: +47 900 43 284 E-mail: investorrelations@kitron.com Kitron is a leading Scandinavian electronics manufacturing services company for the Connectivity, Electrification, Industry, Medical devices and Defence/Aerospace sectors. The group is located in Norway, Sweden, Denmark,Lithuania, Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic, India, Malaysia, China and the United States. Kitron has about 2 800 employees, and revenues were EUR 775 million in 2023 www.kitron.com) This information is made public by the Company pursuant to the EU market abuse regulation article 5, as supplemented by Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/1052, and is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to Section 5-12 the Norwegian Securities Trading Act. Oslo Brs (https://www.euronext.com/nb/markets/oslo) Patron Capital, the pan-European institutional investor focused on property-backed investments, has closed its seventh flagship fund, raising in excess of $920 million, including more than $215 million of Patron discretionary co-investment capital for larger opportunities. Of the capital raised for Patron Capital, L.P. VII ('Fund VII'), 76% came from Patron's existing investor base and existing relationships, with the majority of commitments coming from US investors looking to take advantage of strong value-add investment opportunities in European real estate. Around 61% of the capital raised for Fund VII came from US investors including pension funds, endowments, foundations and family offices. Fund VII will continue the same investment strategy as Patron's previous funds, opportunistically targeting distressed and undervalued investments, directly or indirectly related to property, across Western Europe. The fund will invest across a range of sectors in property-backed corporate investments as well as individual properties. Patron's typical deal size ranges from $30 to $85 million in equity, enabling Patron to deploy its granular approach and target opportunities that are off market or not accessible to other investors, while Patron is able to realise larger opportunities using its co-investment capital. This is the seventh vintage in Patron's flagship series, which targets returns of 17% to 20% gross IRR and a 1.6x-2.0x gross equity multiple on invested capital over a four-to-five-year investment horizon. However, Patron regularly exceeds these numbers, highlighting the firm's ability to add value through asset management and time acquisitions and disposals for the best results. Patron has already started to deploy capital from Fund VII, using approximately 10% of the Fund's investment capacity to complete a number of investments across a range of assets classes in western Europe, and is projecting a 18% return on its investments. Keith Breslauer, Managing Director and founder of Patron Capital, said: "In the 25 years since Patron Capital was founded, we have worked successfully through many cycles and can say with confidence that the current opportunity set in real estate is one of the most exciting I have seen. However, while many can see distressed and undervalued assets coming to the market, few have been able to raise the capital needed to execute. Raising the capital for Fund VII at the pace we have and with a high proportion of re-ups from our longstanding investors the majority of which are US based, is a very strong endorsement of Patron as the manager of choice for value-add and opportunistic real estate in Europe. "Looking ahead, we shall continue deploying this capital using our granular approach, with our deep relationships across Europe providing access to opportunities that others cannot realise, while maintaining conversations with prospective investors who wish to use our expertise to execute on larger transactions through co-investment." Over 25 years Patron Capital has raised seven flagship funds and multiple dedicated discretionary co-invest pools, with 56% of equity for these having come from US investors. Notes to Editors About Patron Capital Partners Patron represents approximately 5.2 billion of capital raised across several funds and related co-investments, investing in property, corporate operating entities whose value is primarily supported by property assets and distressed debt and credit related businesses. Since it was established in 1999, Patron has undertaken more than 200 transactions across 106 investments and programs involving over 9 million square metres in 17 countries, with many of these investments realised. Investors represent a variety of sovereign wealth funds, prominent universities, major institutions, private foundations, and high net worth individuals located throughout North America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. The main investment adviser to the Funds is Patron Capital Advisers LLP, which is based in London, and Patron has other offices across Europe including Barcelona and Luxembourg; the group is comprised of 63 people, including a 37-person investment team. Further information about Patron Capital is available at www.patroncapital.com View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240512637090/en/ Contacts: Henry Columbine Polly Warrack James Carnegie Laurence Hill SEC Newgate t: +44 (0)7808 541191 e: patron@secnewgate.co.uk ZURICH, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Ecolab and HeiQ Chrisal have teamed up to launch the revolutionary Maxx Synbiotic cleaning range at Interclean in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Ecolab, a global sustainability leader offering water, hygiene, and infection prevention solutions and services, and HeiQ Chrisal, a leading biotech innovator, are proudly collaborating to introduce advanced synbiotic cleaning products to the European cleaning industry. At Interclean in Amsterdam, May 14-17, the Maxx Synbiotic range will be introduced to the professional cleaning industry throughout Europe. Harnessing the power of pre- and probiotics, the 50 billion probiotics per liter of Maxx Synbiotic deliver immediate, continuous, and microscopic-level cleaning, highly efficient odor reduction, long-lasting efficacy, and support for a well-balanced microbiome on surfaces. HeiQ's synbiotic cleaning technology was validated in several scientific studies, e.g. the landmark study published in May 2023 in The Lancet by renowned Charite University Hospital Berlin. Learn more about synbiotic cleaning at Interclean We invite you to visit Ecolab's and HeiQ's booths at Interclean 2024 in Amsterdam from May 14-17. Ecolab: Hall 7, booth 402 & 404 (book an appointment) HeiQ: Hall 12, booth 409 (book an appointment) On Thursday, May 16, 13:00-13:45, grab the opportunity to listen to an eye-opening presentation by Thomas Hansen, Vice President RD&E Institutional Europe at Ecolab, and Dr. Robin Temmerman, Head of Business Unit Life Sciences at HeiQ and CEO of HeiQ Chrisal, about "The future of cleaning technologies - a shared look into the crystal ball". Join us on our synbiotic journey towards a cleaner, safer, more sustainable and powerful future! About HeiQ Established in 2005 during a hike through the Swiss Alps, HeiQ was born from a moment of inspiration between co-founders Carlo Centonze and Dr. Murray Height. Motivated by solving everyday challenges through science - like persistent odors in hiking shirts - they embarked on a mission to revolutionize material innovation. As a spin-off from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich (ETH), and listed on the London Stock Exchange Main Market (XLON: HEIQ), HeiQ has evolved into a global leader in biotech ingredients and specialty chemicals for diverse applications such as textiles, flooring, building materials, glass, plastics, probiotic cleaning, cosmetics and more, for 1000+ partners in over 60 countries. Our mission is to infuse ordinary products with extraordinary qualities, offering our co-creation partners sustainable and revolutionary solutions. We've developed over 200 technologies with 300 leading brands and our global team comprises 230 professionals from 30 nationalities across five continents. We're committed to shaping a future where everyday products drive positive change, one innovation at a time. Visit us at: heiq.com About Ecolab A trusted partner for millions of customers, Ecolab (NYSE: ECL) is a global sustainability leader offering water, hygiene and infection prevention solutions and services that protect people and the resources vital to life. The company delivers comprehensive science-based solutions, data-driven insights, and world-class service in more than 170 countries around the world to advance food safety, maintain clean and safe environments, and optimize water and energy use. Ecolab's innovative solutions based on a century of experience, improve operational efficiencies and sustainability for customers in the food, healthcare, life sciences, hospitality, and industrial markets. Visit us at: ecolab.com CONTACTS HeiQ Materials AG www.heiq.com info@heiq.com Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2406855/HeiQ_and_Ecolab.jpg Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2146223/HeiQ_Logo.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/ecolab-and-heiq-introduce-synbiotic-cleaning-products-at-interclean-302143259.html Der Goldpreis haussiert und schwingt sich von Hoch zu Hoch. Getrieben von geopolitischen Unsicherheiten sowie der Aussicht auf eine lockere Geldpolitik der FED gehen Experten aktuell von weiter steigenden Notierungen bis sogar in den Bereich von 3.000 US-Dollar je Unze Gold aus. Im Schatten des Basispreises notieren Goldproduzenten aus der zweiten Reihe sowie Explorationsunternehmen noch weit weg von ihren historischen Hochststanden entfernt und bieten dadurch erhebliches Aufholpotential. In diesem kostenlosen Report geben wir Ihnen Favoriten an die Hand, die aufgrund von Sondersituation die Chance auf eine Kursvervielfachung besitzen. Handeln Sie Jetzt! Fordern Sie jetzt den brandneuen Spezialreport an und profitieren Sie von dem weiter steigenden Kurs des Edelmetalls. Sichern Sie sich jetzt Ihren kostenfreien Report. Contact: Oak Fund Services (Guernsey) Limited Company Administrator Attn: Hannah Crocker Tel: +44 1481 723450 Eurocastle Releases First Quarter 2024 Interim Management Statement and Announces Annual General Meeting to be held on 12 June 2024 Guernsey, 13 May 2024 - Eurocastle Investment Limitedhas released its interim management statement for the quarter ended 31 March 2024. ADJUSTED NET ASSET VALUE ("NAV") 1 of 11.09 million, or 11.11 per share 2 (11.10 million, or 11.12 per share as at Q4 2023). of 11.09 million, or 11.11 per share (11.10 million, or 11.12 per share as at Q4 2023). IFRS NAV of 21.6 million, or 21.66 per share (21.7 million, or 21.77 per share as at Q4 2023). Q4 2023 NAV Q1 FV Movement Q1 2024 NAV 'm p.s. 'm p.s. 'm p.s. New Investment Strategy - Greece 0.10 0.10 - - 0.10 0.10 Legacy Italian Real Estate Funds 0.08 0.08 (0.01) (0.01) 0.07 0.07 Net Corporate Cash3 17.83 17.86 (0.10) (0.10) 17.73 17.76 Legacy German Tax Asset 3.73 3.73 - - 3.73 3.73 IFRS NAV 21.74 21.77 (0.11) (0.11) 21.63 21.66 Additional Reserves4 (10.64) (10.65) 0.10 0.10 (10.54) (10.55) Adjusted NAV 11.10 11.12 (0.01) (0.01) 11.09 11.11 Ordinary shares outstanding 998,555 998,555 As at 31 March 2024, the Company's assets comprise: 17.7 million, or 17.76 per share, of net corporate cash3 which is primarily available to fund new investments under the New Investment Strategy. A deposit of 0.1 million, or 0.10 per share, paid in connection with the Company's first investment under the New Investment Strategy. A tax asset of 3.7 million, or 3.73 per share, representing amounts paid in relation to additional tax assessed against a German property subsidiary. The Company is currently appealing the assessment through the German fiscal court and expects the matter will eventually be resolved in the Company's favour. Residual interests in two legacy Italian Real Estate Fund Investments with an NAV of 0.07 million, or 0.07 per share, where the underlying apartments are now all sold with both funds currently in liquidation. BUSINESS UPDATES New Investment Strategy - Eurocastle remains on track to close its first acquisition under the New Investment Strategy in Q2 2024, subject to certain conditions precedent. As previously announced, Eurocastle has agreed to acquire part of a boutique retail complex in an affluent part of Athens, Greece. The total expected investment is approximately 6.3 million, of which Eurocastle's share is approximately 5.0 million. In parallel with executing this first investment, the Company has been underwriting a number of additional opportunities. - Eurocastle remains on track to close its first acquisition under the New Investment Strategy in Q2 2024, subject to certain conditions precedent. As previously announced, Eurocastle has agreed to acquire part of a boutique retail complex in an affluent part of Athens, Greece. The total expected investment is approximately 6.3 million, of which Eurocastle's share is approximately 5.0 million. In parallel with executing this first investment, the Company has been underwriting a number of additional opportunities. In addition, Eurocastle has made significant progress on establishing an investment structure through which it expects to invest alongside selected external co-investors. The Company has recently commenced the pre-marketing phase of launching a Luxembourg regulated fund with a first close targeted by the end of Q2 2024. In addition to generating attractive risk adjusted returns on its share of any investments made through the fund, Eurocastle anticipates also receiving market standard management and incentive fees from the external investors. Additional Reserves - The Company reduced these reserves from 10.6 million to 10.5 million, or 10.55 per share, during the quarter, with the reduction of 0.1 million reflecting reserves being utilised in line with anticipated costs. As at 31 March 2024, of the total Additional Reserves of 10.5 million, 5.4 million related to the legacy German tax matter with the balance of approximately 5.1 million in place to allow for future costs and potential liabilities while the Company establishes in parallel the New Investment Strategy. Income Statement for the Quarter ended 31 March 2024 and Quarter ended 31 March 2023 (unaudited) Income Statement Income Statement Q1 2024 Q1 2023 Thousands Thousands Portfolio Returns Legacy Italian NPLs & Other Loans realised gain - 2 Legacy Real Estate Funds unrealised fair value movement (10) 13 Fair value movement on Italian investments (10) 15 Other income 4 2 Interest income 146 70 Total income 141 87 Operating Expenses Manager base and incentive fees 20 30 Remaining operating expenses 227 257 Other operating expenses 247 287 Total expenses 247 287 (Loss) for the period (106) (200) per share (0.11) (0.20) Balance Sheet and Adjusted NAV Reconciliation as at 31 March 2024 and as at 31 December 2024 31 March 2024 Total Thousands 31 December 2024 Total Thousands Assets Other assets 171 210 Legacy German tax asset 3,727 3,727 Investments - Legacy Real Estate Funds 72 82 Cash, cash equivalents and treasury investments: Cash and cash equivalents 18,023 13,951 Treasury Investments - 4,236 Total assets 21,993 22,206 Liabilities Trade and other payables 339 425 Manager base and incentive fees 20 41 Total liabilities 359 466 IFRS Net Asset Value 21,634 21,740 Liquidation cash reserve (5,100) (5,185) Legacy German tax cash reserve (1,713) (1,728) Legacy German tax asset reserve (3,727) (3,727) Adjusted NAV 11,094 11,100 Adjusted NAV ( per Share) 11,11 11,12 NOTICE: This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of the Market Abuse Regulation 596/2014. ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING The Company will hold its Annual General Meeting on Wednesday, 12 June 2024, at the Company's registered office at 2:00 pm Guernsey time (3:00 pm CET). Notices and proxy statements will be posted on 28 May 2024 to shareholders of record at close of business on 26 May 2024. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION For investment portfolio information, please refer to the Company's most recent Financial Report, which is available on the Company's website). Terms not otherwise defined in this announcement shall have the meaning given to them in the Circular. ABOUT EUROCASTLE Eurocastle Investment Limited. FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS This release contains statements that constitute forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements may relate to, among other things, future commitments to sell real estate and achievement of disposal targets, availability of investment and divestment opportunities, timing or certainty of completion of acquisitions and disposals, the operating performance of our investments and financing needs. Forward-looking statements are generally identifiable by use of forward-looking terminology such as "may", "will", "should", "potential", "intend", "expect", "endeavour", "seek", "anticipate", "estimate", "overestimate", "underestimate", "believe", "could", "project", "predict", "project", "continue", "plan", "forecast" or other similar words or expressions. Forward-looking statements are based on certain assumptions, discuss future expectations, describe future plans and strategies, contain projections of results of operations or of financial condition or state other forward-looking information. The Company's ability to predict results or the actual effect of future plans or strategies is limited. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, its actual results and performance may differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the Company's actual results in future periods to differ materially from forecasted results or stated expectations including the risks regarding Eurocastle's ability to declare dividends or achieve its targets regarding asset disposals or asset performance. 1 In light of the Realisation Plan announced in 2019, the Adjusted NAV as at 31 March 2024 reflects additional reserves for future costs and potential liabilities, which have not been accounted for under the IFRS NAV. No commitments for these future costs and potential liabilities existed as at 31 March 2024. 2 Per share calculations for Eurocastle throughout this document are based on 998,555 shares, unless otherwise stated. 3 Reflects corporate cash net of accrued liabilities and other assets. 4 Reserves that were put in place when the Company realised the majority of its investment assets in 2019 in order for the Company to continue in operation and fund its future costs and potential liabilities. These reserves are not accounted for under IFRS. Road Town, British Virgin Islands--(Newsfile Corp. - May 13, 2024) - In a significant move for cryptocurrency enthusiasts, LBank Exchange, a premier global digital asset trading platform, has announced the listing of Sinso Filx (FILX) on May 9, 2024. Users of LBank Exchange can brace themselves for the FILX/USDT trading pair, which went live already. FILX listing banner To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/8831/208940_feb89595c456aaa9_001full.jpg Sinso Filx (FILX) is a decentralized edge computing and data processing network that leverages Interplanetary Consensus (IPC) to rebuild the existing Sinsov1 gateway into an IPC subnet of Filecoin, enhancing cache acceleration services and constructing the Layer2 architecture of the Filecoin multi-layer subnet. Introducing Sinso Filx: Enhancing Filecoin with advanced IPC-driven caching and Layer2 solutions LBank Exchange is thrilled to announce the listing of Sinso Filx(FILX), representing an advanced decentralized edge computing and data processing network, part of the broader SINSO ecosystem, which leverages the Filecoin network to enhance data storage and governance solutions. This network uses the Interplanetary Consensus (IPC) and aims to transform the existing Sinsov1 gateway into an IPC subnet. The primary goal of SINSO FILX is to provide cache acceleration and build a robust Layer2 architecture, significantly enhancing the capabilities and efficiency of the Filecoin multi-layer subnet. At the heart of the SINSO FILX system are various components designed to streamline and secure the storage and management of data across decentralized networks. This includes the development of efficient data gateways and layers that ensure quick and secure access and interaction with the Filecoin network. These technologies cater to a wide range of applications, from GameFi and VR to high-speed CDN and DAPP responses, emphasizing versatility and performance in high-demand scenarios. The SINSO FILX token underpins the economic activities within the network, providing a means for transactions, governance, and incentive mechanisms. This token is integral to fostering participation and growth within the SINSO ecosystem, ensuring that developers, content creators, and users engage in a sustainable and mutually beneficial digital economy. As such, SINSO FILX not only facilitates the technological advancement of decentralized storage solutions but also supports a thriving community focused on leveraging blockchain technology for innovative data governance. About FILX Token Based on ERC20, FILX has a total supply of 100 million (i.e. 100,000,000). The FILX token distribution is as follows: 2% for Consumption & Combustion, 10% for Token Sales, 10% allocated to the Team & Advisors, 8% to the Reserve & Foundation, 60% dedicated to the Pool & Ecosystem, and 10% for Marketing & Community. The FILX token is poised for its debut on LBank Exchange at 10:00 UTC on May 9, 2024. Investors who are interested in FILX can easily buy and sell on LBank Exchange now. Learn More about FILX Token: Official Website: https://www.sinso.io/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/sinsonetwork Telegram: https://t.me/filxnetwork Contract: https://etherscan.io/token/0x7D0ce6F744ebfE2Ea039b9a9A77D5c3075F275b9 About LBank LBank is one of the top crypto exchanges, established in 2015. It offers specialized financial derivatives, expert asset management services, and safe crypto trading to its users. The platform holds over 9 million users from more than 210 regions across the world. LBank is a cutting-edge growing platform that ensures the integrity of users' funds and aims to contribute to the global adoption of cryptocurrencies. Start Trading Now: lbank.com Community & Social Media: l Telegram l Twitter l LinkedIn l YouTube Press contact: press@lbank.com Business Contact: LBK Blockchain Co. Limited LBank Exchange marketing@lbank.com business@lbank.com To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/208940 SOURCE: LBank Since its local launch only 5 months ago, Swan's embedded banking platform has rapidly expanded in the Benelux, supporting over 10 local companies across 4 sectors to launch banking products (among 100+ European businesses overall). Embedded banking takes the power of banking away from traditional banks, putting it in the hands of tech companies in diverse sectors like Financial management accounting, HR, Real Estate, B2B lending, and more. Companies that embed banking features with Swan are able to unlock the full potential of their product. They build better, all-in-one user experiences for consumers, while tripling revenue per user. Just five months following its strategic launch in the Netherlands, Swan, a leading European fintech specialized in embedded banking, today announces its first customers in the Benelux. This milestone underscores the rapid market adoption of Swan's platform within the region's already well-developed fintech ecosystem. Ten Benelux companies across four sectors have already developed banking products in partnership with Swan. These partnerships showcase Swan's commitment to supporting a wide array of software companies across different industries, as well as a strong local appetite for embedded banking. "In ten years, big banks will no longer be up against just a handful of neobank innovators. Instead, they'll be up against the 10,000 software companies of all kinds, who have successfully embedded banking. Companies in the Netherlands have understood this. The successful launch of banking features by local companies like Ageras, Fincluded, and Yuki, within just four months of Swan's local launch is a testament to the robust demand for embedded banking services across all sectors," says Nicolas Benady, co-founder and CEO of Swan. Companies that have joined the embedded finance movement, in partnership with Swan, include: Tellow by Ageras , a leading software for small businesses across Europe and the US, embedded banking with Swan to give users access to accounting, banking, and tax services, all in one hub with just one login. , a leading software for small businesses across Europe and the US, embedded banking with Swan to give users access to accounting, banking, and tax services, all in one hub with just one login. Fincluded: embraces financial inclusion and strives to remove the barriers that exclude foreign workers from the payment system. Fincluded partners with Swan and employment agencies to provide payment accounts that empower everyone to fully participate in society. embraces financial inclusion and strives to remove the barriers that exclude foreign workers from the payment system. Fincluded partners with Swan and employment agencies to provide payment accounts that empower everyone to fully participate in society. Syndic Yourself : a Proptech that enables simple and efficient management of co-ownerships in Belgium. A fun and smooth user experience lets co-owners open an account, automize accounting, set up a general assembly, and more. : a Proptech that enables simple and efficient management of co-ownerships in Belgium. A fun and smooth user experience lets co-owners open an account, automize accounting, set up a general assembly, and more. Floryn : a fast-growing Dutch fintech in the B2B lending industry, has leveraged Swan's platform to provide more seamless financial operations for its clients. : a fast-growing Dutch fintech in the B2B lending industry, has leveraged Swan's platform to provide more seamless financial operations for its clients. Visma Software: One of the Dutch software leaders with products such as eAccounting, Visma.net, and AccountView, aiming to take a leading role in combining accounting with banking. One of the Dutch software leaders with products such as eAccounting, Visma.net, and AccountView, aiming to take a leading role in combining accounting with banking. Sprinque: a BNPL provider that is eliminating friction from online and offline transactions, has partnered with Swan to power its pan-European B2B payments solution for merchants and marketplaces. a BNPL provider that is eliminating friction from online and offline transactions, has partnered with Swan to power its pan-European B2B payments solution for merchants and marketplaces. Yuki: A leading provider of accounting software for SMBs in the Netherlands and Belgium, made the strategic move to embed banking to offer users a comprehensive, all-in-one solution. "Together with Swan, we are revolutionizing expense management for entrepreneurs and their accountants through embedded banking solutions. This collaboration aligns perfectly with Yuki's innovative DNA, and we are thrilled to be at the forefront of this transformative journey." Aeyiondy Dorant, Product Owner, Yuki Mobile App. A localized approach As part of its European growth strategy, Swan is committed to hyperlocalization across the continent. This goes beyond launching a local office. For example, in the Netherlands, companies can offer to their own customers: Dutch accounts, with Dutch Terms Conditions, and IBANs that start with "NL." Swan, in relationship with the local regulator, De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB), ensures that all accounts and banking operations comply with local laws and regulations. Swan continues to build additional payment methods and features expected by local consumers. For example, they recently launched a new feature expected by the local market: account verification, which allows you to immediately see if there is a match between an account name and an IBAN. Already a common standard in the Dutch market, this is also a requirement for safer payments included in the upcoming PSD3 regulation. A strategic step in Swan's European expansion Since its 38M Series B fundraising in September 2023, Swan has continuously been boosting its platform with new in-demand features. Companies can now both send and accept payments. In April, Swan will launch international credit transfers in partnership with WISE. Payments will be possible in 20+ currencies, with the lowest FX costs on the market. Product advancements such as these are key for Swan to attract enterprise-level companies, and to help reinforce Swan's position as the embedded banking partner of choice in Europe. About Swan Swan is the leading European fintech specialized in embedded banking.Companies of all kinds can unlock the full potential of their product by embedding Swan's banking features such as accounts, cards, and payments. Founded in 2019, Swan processes over 750 million euros of transactions per month, for 100+ companies, and operates across thirty European countries. The company has received growth capital from leading VC investors such as Lakestar, Accel, Creandum, and Bpifrance. Swan is a Mastercard principal member and a licensed financial institution, regulated by the French banking authority (ACPR Banque de France). View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240513475305/en/ Contacts: Sarah Wachter pr@swan.io Leading blockchain technology company will sponsor the premier industry event Chia Network Inc. ("Chia" or the "Company"), founded by Bram Cohen, inventor of BitTorrent, to provide enterprise-grade software services and applications, today announced a sponsorship with FT Live for the Financial Times Business of Luxury Summit hosted in Venice from May 19-21, 2024. In addition to Chia, other sponsors include Pernod Richard, Christie's, Belmond, Luca Faloni, Ferretti Group, Integra Fragrances, and other prominent brands in the luxury industry. Chia Chief Operating Officer Vishal Kapoor will attend and participate in a private roundtable to discuss issues authenticity, provenance, and proof of ownership impacting the luxury industry with leading executives. Marking its 20th annual gathering, the Business of Luxury Summit returns to Venice, one of Europe's most iconic and celebrated cities. In a country renowned for its luxury goods heritage, the Summit will explore the changes in the industry and trends to watch in innovation, economic and geopolitical uncertainty, increasing demands of consumers, and the next big deals. Speakers at the conference include: Anthea Peers, President of EMEA, Christie's Francesca Amfitheatrof, Artistic Director of Watches and Jewellery, Louis Vuitton Andrea Guerra, CEO, Prada Group Francesca Bellettini, President CEO, Yves Saint Laurent Co-chaired by the FT's editor Roula Khalaf and the HTSI's editor Jo Ellison, the Summit will gather leading executives from the industry across three days of thought-provoking keynotes, lively debates and an exclusive reception and gala dinner. FT Live is the events division of The Financial Times, one of the world's leading business news organizations, recognized internationally for its authority, integrity, and accuracy. ??About Chia Network Chia Network delivers enterprise-grade software services and applications for secure transactions, asset provenance, and workflow compliance. Founded by Bram Cohen, the inventor of BitTorrent, Chia's secure, sustainable, and regulatory-compliant blockchain-based infrastructure is purpose-built to solve today's critical business challenges. For more information, visit: https://chia.net/ View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240513307509/en/ Contacts: Chia Network: FTI Consulting Parveen Singh and Keara Hanlon E: Chia@FTIconsulting.com The rising prevalence of hypertension and cardiovascular diseases across the globe is projected to drive the global cuffless blood pressure monitor market's growth during the forecast period. The North America region is predicted to witness prominent growth by 2032. PORTLAND, Ore., May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Allied Market Research has recently published a report, titled, "Cuffless Blood Pressure Monitor Market Size, Share, Competitive Landscape and Trend Analysis Report by Type, by End-use: Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2023-2032." According to the report, the global cuffless blood pressure monitor market generated $629.1 million in 2022, and is anticipated to generate $1,379.3 million by 2032, rising at a CAGR of 8.2% from 2023 to 2032. Request Sample of the Report on Cuffless Blood Pressure Monitor Market Forecast - https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/request-sample/A323352 Prime Determinants of Growth The rising demand for non-invasive & continuous blood pressure monitoring, growing emphasis on preventive healthcare, and rise in telehealth services are the factors expected to drive the growth of the global cuffless blood pressure monitor market in the forecast period from 2023 to 2032. However, manufacturers face challenges in meeting stringent regulatory requirements concerning accuracy and safety, imposing complexity and high cost, which may restrict market growth in the coming future. On the contrary, technological advancements and the expansion of preventive healthcare are expected to offer remunerative opportunities for the expansion of the cuffless blood pressure monitor market during the forecast period. Report Coverage & Details: Report Coverage Details Forecast Period 2023-2032 Base Year 2022 Market Size in 2022 $629.1 million Market Size in 2032 $1,379.3 million CAGR 8.2 % No. of Pages in Report 305 Segments covered Type, End-use, and Region Drivers Rising prevalence of cardiovascular disease Growing emphasis on preventive healthcare Rise in telehealth services Opportunities Technological advancements Integration of cuffless blood pressure monitoring into wearable devices Restraints Regulatory compliance and safety concerns Want to Explore More, Connect to our Analyst- https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/connect-to-analyst/A323352 Type: Wrist-based Glass Sub-segment to Witness Significant Growth by 2032 The wrist-based sub-segment accounted for the largest global cuffless blood pressure monitor market share of 63.6% in 2022 and is expected to hold major share by 2032. The emergence of wrist-based blood pressure monitors reflects a significant shift in consumer preferences, favoring convenience and comfort over traditional cuff-based devices. With their sleek design and mobility, these monitors offer non-intrusive yet accurate blood pressure monitoring, aligning well with individuals seeking streamlined health solutions. Technological advancements have enhanced their precision, strengthening their status as the preferred choice for many consumers. End-use: Home Healthcare Sub-segment to Flourish Immensely During the Forecast Period The home healthcare sub-segment held the largest market share of 44.4% in 2022 and is predicted to continue to account for the major market share during the forecast period. The dominance of cuffless blood pressure monitors in home healthcare settings reflects a rising trend toward self-care and proactive health management. Offering convenience and seamless integration into daily routines, these monitors foster a holistic approach to wellness. In addition, the preference for home-based solutions signifies a shift toward healthcare decentralization, empowering individuals to manage their health. For Purchase Enquiry - https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/purchase-enquiry/A323352 Region: North America Market to Hold Major Market Share by 2032 The North America cuffless blood pressure monitor market accounted for the largest share of 35.5% in 2022 and is predicted to continue its dominance during the forecast period. This growth is mainly due to technological advancements along with growing health awareness and a proactive approach to preventive healthcare in the region. The cuffless blood pressure monitor devices offer convenience and accuracy, making them increasingly preferred in North America, supported by the region's advanced healthcare infrastructure and higher purchasing power. Moreover, the growing investments in R&D to enhance product accuracy and functionality is driving the regional market growth. Leading Players in the Cuffless Blood Pressure Monitor Market: Fourth Frontier Technologies LLC Equate Health A&D Medical Blumio SOMNOmedics GmbH Huawei Device Co. Ltd. Omron Valencell Inc. CardiacSense Aktiia The report provides a detailed analysis of the key players of the global cuffless blood pressure monitor market. These players are employing various strategies including launching new products, entering collaborations, expanding operations, forming joint ventures, and signing agreements, all aimed at boosting their market share and securing their competitive position across 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. AVENUE- A Subscription-Based Library (Premium on-demand, subscription-based pricing model) Offered by Allied Market Research: AMR introduces its online premium subscription-based library Avenue, designed specifically to offer cost-effective, one-stop solution for enterprises, investors, and universities. With Avenue, subscribers can avail an entire repository of reports on more than 2,000 niche industries and more than 12,000 company profiles. Moreover, users can get an online access to quantitative and qualitative data in PDF and Excel formats along with analyst support, customization, and updated versions of reports. Get an access to the library of reports at any time from any device and anywhere. For more details, follow the link: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/library-access About Allied Market Research: Allied Market Research (AMR) is a full-service market research and business-consulting wing of Allied Analytics LLP based in Wilmington, Delaware. Allied Market Research provides global enterprises as well as medium and small businesses with unmatched quality of "Market Research Reports" and "Business Intelligence Solutions." AMR has a targeted view to provide business insights and consulting to assist its clients to make strategic business decisions and achieve sustainable growth in their respective market domains. AMR offers its services across 11 industry verticals including Life Sciences, Consumer Goods, Materials & Chemicals, Construction & Manufacturing, Food & Beverages, Energy & Power, Semiconductor & Electronics, Automotive & Transportation, ICT & Media, Aerospace & Defense, and BFSI. We are in professional corporate relations with various companies and this helps us in digging out market data that helps us generate accurate research data tables and confirms utmost accuracy in our market forecasting. Allied Market Research CEO Pawan Kumar is instrumental in inspiring and encouraging everyone associated with the company to maintain high quality of data and help clients in every way possible to achieve success. Each and every data presented in the reports published by us is extracted through primary interviews with top officials from leading companies of domain concerned. Our secondary data procurement methodology includes deep online and offline research and discussion with knowledgeable professionals and analysts in the industry. Contact David Correa 1209 Orange Street, Corporation Trust Center, Wilmington, New Castle, Delaware 19801 USA. Toll Free: +1-800-792-5285 Int'l: +1-503-894-6022 UK: +44-845-528-1300 Hong Kong: +852-301-84916 India (Pune): +91-20-66346060 Fax: +1-855-550-5975 help@alliedmarketresearch.com Web: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com Follow Us on: LinkedIn Twitter Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/636519/Allied_Market_Research_Logo.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/cuffless-blood-pressure-monitor-market-to-reach-1-379-3-million-globally-by-2032-at-8-2-cagr-allied-market-research-302143376.html The prosecution on Monday questioned a Korean American pastor who secretly filmed himself handing over a luxury Dior handbag to first lady Kim Keon Hee during their meeting in Seoul in September 2022. The pastor, named Choi Jae-young, appeared at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office in the morning for questioning as a suspect on charges of violation of the anti-graft law, trespassing and obstruction of official duties, officials said. Choi denied the charges, telling reporters that he conducted the undercover news reporting to inform the public about the true nature of President Yoon Suk Yeol and the first lady. "The president who is in charge of state affairs and his spouse are supposed to be clean-handed to a fault but they were not. The true nature of this case is that the first lady privatized the presidential power," the pastor said. Prosecutors grilled Choi about how and why he delivered the luxury bag to the first lady and whether he solicited her favor, they added. His summons came after civic activists filed complaints, claiming that Choi intentionally approached the first lady and secretly filmed the delivery of the handbag worth 3 million won ($2,188) allegedly prepared by Voice of Seoul, an internet news outlet. Voice of Seoul, which was once sued by the first lady for defamation, made public the video filmed by Choi in November last year. Prosecutors already questioned the civic activists last week. The accusers argued that Choi appears to have conspired closely with Voice of Seoul to defame President Yoon and his wife in retaliation for the first lady's defamation suit. Separately, Voice of Seoul has filed a complaint against Yoon and the first lady on suspicions of bribery and anti-graft law violations. Prosecutors are reportedly planning to summon the head of Voice of Seoul as an accuser next week. (Yonhap) TORONTO, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- MolecuLight Inc., the global leader in fluorescence imaging technology for real-time detection of harmful bacteria in wound care, is proud to announce that a groundbreaking study led by Dr. Rosemarie Derwin and colleagues, titled "Integrating Point-of-Care Bacterial Fluorescence Imaging-Guided Care with Continued Wound Measurement for Enhanced Wound Area Reduction Monitoring," has been awarded Best Abstract of the Year at the prestigious European Wound Management Association (EWMA) conference held in London, UK this May 2024. This year's EWMA meeting received an impressive influx of almost 5000 participants, and over 1000 abstract submissions were received from 68 countries spanning 6 continents. Being honored with the Best Abstract of the Year award is a significant acknowledgment of MolecuLight's substantial contribution to the field of wound care and underscores its growing recognition among esteemed thought leaders in the industry. The study upon which this abstract is founded was published earlier this year in the high-impact Diagnostics journal. Its findings underscore the undeniable correlation between the presence of fluorescence signals, detected by MolecuLight imaging devices, and poorer wound healing outcomes evidenced by poor wound area reduction. The study authors also yielded insightful revelations by comparing their manual measurement technique against digital measurement using the MolecuLight device. Manual (ruler) techniques overestimated wound size by approximately 23%, where measurement consistency over time heavily relied on the operator. Consistency could only be maintained when all measurements were conducted by the same individual, employing the same methodology, and under identical conditions - however this scenario seldom reflects real-world practices. This emphasizes the value proposition of MolecuLight's highly accurate, consistent, and repeatable digital wound measurement technology1. Dr. Rosemarie Derwin, lead author of the study remarks, "Our comparison of manual and digital measurement techniques revealed that discrepancies in measurement are a real issue when the same operator isn't involved in the care of a patient throughout. Ideally, all wound care providers would have access to digital measurement tools. MolecuLight provides this capability alongside the critically important visualization of bacteria in wounds at the bedside, a transformative innovation in wound diagnostics." She continues, "We are thrilled to receive this recognition from EWMA, which signifies a resonance of our work with global thought leaders in the field of wound care." "At MolecuLight, we're committed to providing healthcare providers with empowering tools for proactive intervention and enhanced patient care," says Anil Amlani, CEO at MolecuLight Inc., "This award underscores the effectiveness of our platform in revolutionizing global wound management by addressing the challenges posed by unstandardized practices in wound care. We believe that objective bacterial detection and precise digital wound measurement should be the standard at every bedside, enabling clinicians to act decisively, supporting documentation of medical necessity for payers, and aligning with optimal product usage recommendations from skin therapeutic manufacturers." 1 Raizman, R. et al. J Wound Care, 2019, DOI:10.12968/jowc.2019.28.12.824. About MolecuLight Inc. MolecuLight Inc. is a privately owned medical imaging company with global presence that offers fully commercialized point-of-care digital wound measurement and real-time bacterial detection through fluorescence imaging platform technology. MolecuLight's suite of commercial devices, which include the MolecuLight i:X and DX fluorescence imaging and digital wounds measurement systems and their accessories, have scientifically proven capabilities that enhance wound care practices and outcomes across all places of service. MolecuLight procedures performed in the United States benefit from an available reimbursement pathway which includes two CPT codes for physician work to perform "fluorescence imaging for bacterial presence location, and load" and facility payment for Hospital Outpatient Department (HOPD) and Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) settings through an Ambulatory Payment Classification (APC) assignment. For sales, media or other inquiries or further information, please contact Carolina Wuesthoff, MD Global Manager, Medical Engagement & Communications MolecuLight Inc. cwuesthoff@moleculight.com T. +1.647.362.4684 www.moleculight.com Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2410462/MolecuLight_MolecuLight_s_Innovative_Approach_Awarded_Best_Abstr.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/moleculights-innovative-approach-awarded-best-abstract-at-ewma-2024-302143043.html Erinnern Sie sich, als Moderna und BioNTech von unbekannten Unternehmen zu globalen Marktfuhrern wurden und fruhzeitige Investoren reich belohnt haben? Die Branche steht vor einem erneuten Innovationsschub von bahnbrechenden Medikamenten bis hin zu revolutionaren Therapien. Warum sollten Sie dabei sein? Sie sollten jetzt in Biotech-Aktien einsteigen, weil wir am Beginn einer neuen Ara der medizinischen Innovation stehen konnten! Gen- und Zelltherapien, personalisierte Medizin und bahnbrechende Technologien konnten das Gesundheitswesen revolutionieren und die Aktienkurse in die Hohe schieen lassen. Die nachste Erfolgsgeschichte im Biotechbereich warten nur darauf, entdeckt zu werden. Wer jetzt investiert, hat die Chance, von gigantischen Durchbruchen und enormen Renditen zu profitieren. Warten Sie nicht, bis es zu spat ist - der nachste Biotech-Superstar konnte morgen schon durchstarten! Verpassen Sie nicht diese Chance! Fordern Sie sofort unseren brandneuen Biotech-Spezialreport an und erfahren Sie, welche 3 Biotech-Aktien das riesige Potenzial haben, Ihren finanziellen Erfolg zu sichern. Dieser Report ist komplett kostenlos und zeigt Ihnen zukunftstrachtige Investments im Biotech-Sektor. Handeln Sie jetzt und sichern Sie sich Ihren kostenfreien Report! CO2 GRO Inc.. ("CO2" or the "Company") (TSXV:GROW) announces the resignation of Mr. John Archibald as President and Chief Executive Officer and Director of the Company. The Board wishes to thank Mr. Archibald for his service and wishes him the best in his future endeavours. The Board of Directors will be undertaking a search for a new CEO and will provide updates if and when necessary in accordance with applicable securities laws. As announced in it press release dated April 26, 2024, the Company has struck a committee comprised of Rose Marie Gage, Gordon Surgeoner and Michael Boyd, three independent members of its Board of Directors, to oversee all discussions arising with interested parties on future strategic initiatives of the Company, including possible partnerships or sale of assets. 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. About CO2 GRO Inc. CO2 GRO Inc. is a precision ag-tech, clean-tech company with a focus on people, the planet and prosperity. Our vision is to become one of the leading companies enhancing global food production from protected agriculture. By helping our customers sustainably increase yield and profitability, we could help feed up to half a billion people worldwide while reducing our customers' ecological footprint. Forward-Looking Statements and Disclaimer This press release contains statements which constitute "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including statements regarding the plans, intentions, beliefs and current expectations of the Company with respect to future business activities. Forward- looking information is often identified by the words "may," "would," "could," "should," "will," "intend," "plan," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect" or similar expressions and include information regarding: statements regarding the future direction of the Company; the ability of the Company to successfully achieve its business and financial objectives; plans for expansion and the ability of the Company to obtain, develop and foster its business relationships; and expectations for other economic, business, and/or competitive factors. Investors are cautioned that forward-looking information is not based on historical facts but instead reflect the Company's management's expectations, estimates or projections concerning the business of the Company, future results or events based on the opinions, assumptions and estimates that management considered reasonable at the date the statements are made. Such assumptions include but are not limited to: general business and economic conditions; the Company's ability to successfully execute its plans and intentions; successful completion of the Offering; the availability of financing on reasonable terms; the Company's ability to attract and retain skilled staff; market competition; the products and technology offered by the Company's competitors; and that good relationships with business partners will be maintained. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking information are reasonable, such information involves risks and uncertainties, and undue reliance should not be placed on such information, as unknown or unpredictable factors could have material adverse effects on future results, performance or achievements. Among the key factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information are the following: changes in general economic, business and political conditions, including changes in the financial markets; in particular, the ability of the Company to raise debt and equity capital in the amounts and at the costs that it expects; adverse changes in applicable laws or adverse changes in the application or enforcement of current laws; the biotechnology industry and the greenhouse growers market are highly competitive, and technical advances in the industry will impact the success of the Company, and other risks described in the Company's filings that are available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should assumptions underlying the forward-looking information prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described herein as intended, planned, anticipated, believed, estimated or expected. Although the Company has attempted to identify important risks, uncertainties and factors which could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be others that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. The Company does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update this forward-looking information except as otherwise required by applicable law. Neither the TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Contact: Stephen Gledhill, CFO ir@co2gro.ca 888.496.1283 SOURCE: CO2 Gro Inc. View the original press release on accesswire.com Namibia Critical Metals Inc. ("Namibia Critical Metals" or the "Company" or "NCMI") (TSXV:NMI)(OTCQB:NMREF) is pleased to announce key results of the optimization test program in preparation for scale-up hydrometallurgical tests for its "Lofdal 2B-4" heavy rare earth project. Tests were conducted on a 93 kg concentrate sample produced by a flotation pilot plant at SGS Lakefield, using run-of-mine material from the Lofdal Area 4 starter pit. The pilot plant flotation program confirmed the performance of the Lofdal beneficiation flowsheet in a continuous operation and demonstrated the ability to produce an upgrade mineral concentrate. Previous test on bulk flotation concentrate showed promising results in terms of REE extraction and reduced reagent consumption. The current hydrometallurgical testing aims to replicate the previous result using the concentrate produced from the flotation pilot plant. Preliminary confirmatory tests showed consistent high REE dissolution and established a relation between sulphation temperature, REE extraction and iron co-extraction. Key results include: Low (~ 300C) temperature sulphation yields higher REE dissolution, but also higher iron dissolution. High iron dissolution leads to high reagent consumption to remove the iron in the leach solution. High (~ 600C) temperature sulphation proved to be beneficial in suppressing iron dissolution into the leach solution. The process was able to reduce iron dissolution from around 60% (low temperature bake) to around 30%. This leads to a net reduction in MgCO3 consumption. However, some REE losses were observed at these high temperature bake conditions. Impurity removal process was shown to be successful in removing the iron and thorium and at minimum REE losses whether from high temperature or low temperature sulphation conditions. Darrin Campbell, President of Namibia Critical Metals, stated: "I am very pleased to see the hydrometallurgical optimization test work completed with positive results. The unusual primary xenotime mineralization forced us to practically pioneer all beneficiation steps. During our recent visit to the SGS test facilities at Lakefield we were impressed with how our lead consultants at SGS Canada master the optimization of the earlier developed flowsheet. Based on the data, it seems we see further significant reduction of OPEX compared to the previous financial estimations." Optimization of Hydrometallurgical Flowsheet Test-work was conducted at SGS Lakefield from October 2023 to April 2024 in preparation of acid sulphation scale-up test-work planned for Q2 2024. Flotation concentrate samples with varying iron levels (by applying magnetic separation) were used in hydrometallurgical tests. The results showed that higher or lower iron levels in the flotation concentrate were equally manageable in the sulphation process. Low temperature acid sulphation led to higher REE extraction (and high iron dissolution). High temperature sulphation, on the other hand, showed that iron dissolution could be reduced leading to a reduction in magnesium carbonate required for iron precipitation in the impurity removal step. Preliminary confirmatory hydrometallurgical testing at high temperature sulphation using the concentrate produced from flotation pilot plant shows an improved REE dissolution coupled with high iron dissolution. A trade-off study is being conducted by SGS Bateman to identify the optimum route for the upstream hydrometallurgical process. The ongoing test-work program and trade-off study aims to establish the process conditions applied in the scale up program of the acid sulphation and water leach unit operations. This work will be followed by further optimisation of the downstream REE recovery steps to produce a mixed rare earth oxide product. About Namibia Critical Metals Inc. NCMI is developing the Tier-1 Heavy Rare Earth Project, Lofdal, a globally significant deposit of the heavy rare earth metals dysprosium and terbium. Demand for these critical metals used in permanent magnets for electric vehicles, wind turbines and other electronics is driven by innovations linked to energy and technology transformations. The geopolitical risks associated with sourcing many of these metals has become a repeated concern for manufacturers and end users. Namibia is a proven and stable mining jurisdiction. The Lofdal Project is fully permitted with a 25-year Mining License and is under a Joint Venture Agreement with Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security (JOGMEC). The Company filed a robust updated PEA for "Lofdal 2B-4" on November 14, 2022, with a post-tax NPV of USD$391 million and an annual IRR of 28% with a capital expenditure of USD$207 million. The project is projected to generate a life of mine nominal cash flow of USD$698 million post-tax over a 16-year mine life. About Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security (JOGMEC) and the JV JOGMEC is a Japanese government independent administrative agency which seeks to secure stable resource supplies for Japan. JOGMEC has a strong reputation as a long term, strategic partner in mineral projects globally. JOGMEC facilitates opportunities with Japanese private companies to secure supplies of natural resources for the benefit of the country's economic development. Rare earth elements are of critical importance to Japanese industrial interests and JOGMEC has extensive experience with all aspects of the sector. JOGMEC provided Lynas with USD$250,000,000 in loans and equity in 2011 to ensure supplies of the Light Rare Earths metals suite to the Japanese industry. Namibia Critical Metals owns a 95% interest in the Lofdal project with the remaining 5% held for the benefit of historically disadvantaged Namibians. The terms of the JOGMEC joint venture agreement with the Company stipulate that JOGMEC provides C$3,000,000 in Term 1 and C$7,000,000 in Term 2 to earn a 40% interest in the Lofdal project. Term 3 calls for a further C$10,000,000 of expenditures to earn an additional 10% interest. JOGMEC can also purchase another 1% for C$5,000,000 and has first right of refusal to fully fund the project through to commercial production and to purchase all production at market prices. The collective interests of NCMI and historically disadvantaged Namibians cannot be diluted below a 26% carried working interest upon payment of C$5,000,000 to JOGMEC for the dilution protection. NMI may elect to participate up to a maximum of 44% by funding pro rata after the earn in period is completed. To date, JOGMEC has completed Term 2 and earned a 40% interest by reaching the C$10 million expenditure requirement. Total approved project funding to date is C$14,541,000 of the $20,000,000 Earn-In requirement to reach 50% interest. James Brown, Peng. of SGS is a Qualified Person and has reviewed and approved the sections on hydrometallurgical test work in this press release. Rainer Ellmies, PhD, MScGeol, EurGeol, AusIMM and Vice President of Namibia Critical Metals Inc., is the Company's Qualified Person and has reviewed and approved this press release. The common shares of Namibia Critical Metals Inc. trade on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "NMI" and the OTCQB Market under the symbol "NMREF". 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. For more information please contact - Namibia Critical Metals Inc. Darrin Campbell, President Tel: +01 (902) 835-8760 Email: Info@NamibiaCMI.com Web site: www.NamibiaCriticalMetals.com This news release contains certain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward looking information is frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate", "may", "will", "would", "potential", "proposed" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. These statements are only predictions. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the information is provided, and is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information. For a description of the risks and uncertainties facing the Company and its business and affairs, readers should refer to the Company's Management's Discussion and Analysis. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking information if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change, unless required by law. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information. SOURCE: Namibia Critical Metals Inc. View the original press release on accesswire.com ISC24 - SambaNova Systems, makers of the only purpose-built, full-stack AI platform, today announced that "Fugaku-LLM", a Japanese Large Language Model trained on Japan's fastest supercomputer, "Fugaku", and published on Hugging Face on May 10, has been introduced into SambaNova's industry-leading Samba-1 Composition of Experts (CoE) technology. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240513582498/en/ Fugaku-LLM is now a part of Samba-1. Photo featuring Rodrigo Liang, CEO, SambaNova Systems; Matsuoka Satoshi, Director of the RIKEN Center for Computational Science; Marshall Choy, SVP of Product, SambaNova Systems; Toshinori Kujiraoka, General Manager of APAC, SambaNova Systems. (Photo: Business Wire) Matsuoka Satoshi, Director of the RIKEN Center for Computational Science, said, "We are very pleased that Fugaku-LLM, the Japanese Large Language Model trained on a large scale from scratch by the supercomputer 'Fugaku', is introduced into SambaNova's Samba-1 CoE, making the achievements of Fugaku available to many people. The flexibility and scalability of SambaNova's CoE are highly promising as a platform for hosting the results of Large Language Models trained by the world's supercomputers." "Samba-1 employs a best-of-breed strategy from open source, which ensures that we always have access to the world's best and fastest AI models," said Rodrigo Liang, Co-Founder and CEO of SambaNova Systems. "The addition of Fugaku-LLM, a Japanese LLM trained on Japan's renowned supercomputer, 'Fugaku', fits into this strategy. We are delighted to incorporate Fugaku's capabilities into this world-leading model." SambaNova's unique CoE architecture aggregates multiple expert models and improves performance and accuracy by selecting the best expert for each application. The Fugaku-LLM is implemented on CoE architecture and runs optimally on SambaNova's SN40L chip with its 3-tier memory and Dataflow architecture. Fugaku-LLM on Samba-1 is being demonstrated at the SambaNova booth A11, Hall H at ISC24. About SambaNova Systems Customers turn to SambaNova to quickly deploy state-of-the-art generative AI capabilities within the enterprise. Our purpose-built enterprise-scale AI platform is the technology backbone for the next generation of AI computing. Headquartered in Palo Alto, California, SambaNova Systems was founded in 2017 by industry luminaries, and hardware and software design experts from Sun/Oracle and Stanford University. Investors include SoftBank Vision Fund 2, funds and accounts managed by BlackRock, Intel Capital, GV, Walden International, Temasek, GIC, Redline Capital, Atlantic Bridge Ventures, Celesta, and several others. Visit us at sambanova.ai or contact us at info@sambanova.ai. Follow SambaNova Systems on Linkedin and on X. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240513582498/en/ Contacts: Virginia Jamieson 650-279-8619 virginia.jamieson@sambanova.ai Green Bridge Metals Corporation (CNSX:GRBM)(OTCQB:GBMCF)(FWB:J48)(WKN:A3EW4S) ("Green Bridge" or the "Company") is pleased to announce, further to its news release dated February 6, 2024, that it has entered into a definitive agreement with Encampment Minerals Inc. (the "Definitive Agreement") with respect to an option (the "Option") to earn an 80% interest in the 8,460-hectare (84.6 square kilometre (km)) South Contact Zone Project, targeting copper (Cu), nickel (Ni)-platinum group element (PGE) mineralization. The material terms of the Option, as well as a description of the South Contact Zone Project, are contained in the Company's news release dated February 6, 2024. Pursuant to the Definitive Agreement, the Company will acquire the Option upon completion of several conditions, including the satisfactory completion of due diligence, receipt of any regulatory approvals, and the completion of a minimum $3 million in financing. It is anticipated that the forgoing conditions will be met and the Company will acquire the Option on or prior to May 30, 2024. About Green Bridge Metals Green Bridge Metals Corporation (formerly Mich Resources Ltd.) is a Canadian based exploration company focused on acquiring 'battery metal' rich mineral assets and the development of the South Contact Zone (the "Property") along the basal contact of the Duluth Intrusion, north of Duluth, Minnesota. The South Contact Zone contains bulk-tonnage copper-nickel and titanium-vanadium in ilmenite hosted in ultramafic to oxide ultramafic intrusions. The Property has exploration targets for bulk-tonnage Ni mineralization, high grade Ni-Cu-PGE magmatic sulfide mineralization and titanium. ON BEHALF OF GREEN BRIDGE METALS, "David Suda" President and Chief Executive Officer For more information, please contact: David Suda President and Chief Executive Officer Tel: 604.928-3101 investors@greenbridgemetals.com Forward Looking Information Certain statements and information herein, including all statements that are not historical facts, contain forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Such forward-looking statements or information include but are not limited to statements or information with respect to: the exploration and development of the South Contact Zone Properties and the completion of the conditions to acquire the Option. Although management of the Company believe that the assumptions made and the expectations represented by such statements or information are reasonable, there can be no assurance that forward-looking statements or information herein will prove to be accurate. Forward-looking statements and information by their nature are based on assumptions and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause actual results, performance or achievements, or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information. These risk factors include, but are not limited to: the exploration and development of the South Contact Zone Properties may not result in any commercially successful outcome for the Company; the conditions to acquire the Option may not be met as currently contemplated, or at all; risks associated with the business of the Company; business and economic conditions in the mining industry generally; changes in general economic conditions or conditions in the financial markets; changes in laws (including regulations respecting mining concessions); and other risk factors as detailed from time to time. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws. SOURCE: Green Bridge Metals Corporation View the original press release on accesswire.com Analysis conducted on a hierarchical endpoint comprised of mortality, HF hospitalization, and health status shows that patients treated with phrenic nerve stimulation may be nearly five times as likely to experience a clinical benefit compared to those in the control group ZOLL, an Asahi Kasei company that manufactures medical devices and related software solutions, announced today that a new analysis of data from the remede System Pivotal Trial suggests favorable outcomes for heart failure (HF) patients with central sleep apnea (CSA). The analysis was performed post-hoc using a hierarchical endpoint comprised of mortality, HF hospitalization, and health status. The new analysis was presented as a late-breaking clinical trial at the ESC Heart Failure 2024 conference in Lisbon, Portugal by Dr. William T. Abraham, College of Medicine Distinguished Professor, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Columbus, Ohio. The presented analysis re-evaluates the pivotal trial data using a win ratio to compare heart failure patients with central sleep apnea when treated with phrenic nerve stimulation (treatment group) versus patients with untreated CSA (control group). The win ratio of 4.92 (95% confidence interval 2.27-10.63, P<0.0001) suggests that patients in the treatment group were nearly five times more likely to experience a clinical benefit compared to those in the control group.1 "Win-ratio analysis is a valuable tool that is gaining traction in the medical community for more thoroughly assessing the clinical benefit of therapies. Win-ratio analysis goes a step beyond conventional analyses of composite endpoints by taking into consideration both the timing of events and the fact that some endpoints, like mortality, are more severe than others," says Dr. Abraham. "The magnitude of effect reflected by the 4.92 win ratio is astonishing when you look across other studies in the heart failure population; though notably this analysis is post-hoc. Importantly, the concordance of clinical benefit favoring phrenic nerve stimulation across the three components of survival, hospitalization rate, and quality of life supports the main finding." The analysis used three clinical benefit components in the following hierarchical order to compare all treated to all control patients: longest survival, lowest HF hospitalization rate, and =2-category difference in Patient Global Assessment at six months. The treatment group won in 4.1%, 11.6%, and 38.1% of comparisons, respectively, while the control group won in 2.2%, 4.2%, and 4.6% of comparisons. Ties accounted for the remaining pairs.1 "The win-ratio analysis provides new insights into the symptom-burden experienced by our patients with heart failure and central sleep apnea and the positive impact phrenic nerve stimulation has on these symptoms," said Rami Khayat, Director of Sleep Medicine at the University of California-Irvine Health System. "The new analysis also highlights the importance of screening for central sleep apnea in patients with heart failure so effective therapies like phrenic nerve stimulation can be offered." About Win-Ratio Analysis A win-ratio analysis considers both the clinical importance of the components of composite outcomes as well as the relative timing of the component events. This allows for more patients to contribute to the endpoint evaluation to assess clinical benefit. The win-ratio method overcomes some of the shortcomings in conventional trial endpoints, such as a composite endpoint of time to death or HF hospitalization, that equally weight the clinical components. It also allows for the inclusion of other components that are meaningful to patients, such as quality of life. The remede System and Central Sleep Apnea The first-generation remede System was approved by the FDA in 2017. The remede System is an implantable device that activates automatically each night to stimulate a nerve in the chest (phrenic nerve) that sends signals to the breathing muscles (diaphragm) to help restore a normal breathing pattern.2 Central sleep apnea (CSA) is a serious breathing disorder that disrupts the normal breathing pattern during sleep and negatively affects sleep quality, quality of life, and is associated with poor outcomes. CSA results from the brain's inability to send appropriate signals to the respiratory muscles to stimulate breathing. Many patients with CSA also have heart disease, especially heart failure.3 Patients with CSA and heart failure are at increased risk for hospitalizations and even death.4,5 Financial Interest Disclosures The analysis presented at the ESC Heart Failure 2024 conference was sponsored by ZOLL. Dr. William T. Abraham is a paid consultant to ZOLL. About ZOLL Medical Corporation ZOLL, an Asahi Kasei company, develops and markets medical devices and software solutions that help advance emergency care and save lives, while increasing clinical and operational efficiencies. With products for defibrillation and cardiac monitoring, circulation enhancement and CPR feedback, supersaturated oxygen therapy, data management, ventilation, therapeutic temperature management, and sleep apnea diagnosis and treatment, ZOLL provides a comprehensive set of technologies that help clinicians, EMS and fire professionals, as well as lay rescuers, improve patient outcomes in critical cardiopulmonary conditions. For more information, visit www.zoll.com. About Asahi Kasei The Asahi Kasei Group contributes to life and living for people around the world. Since its foundation in 1922 with ammonia and cellulose fiber businesses, Asahi Kasei has consistently grown through the proactive transformation of its business portfolio to meet the evolving needs of every age. With more than 48,000 employees worldwide, the company contributes to a sustainable society by providing solutions to the world's challenges through its three business sectors of Material, Homes, and Health Care. Its health care operations include devices and systems for acute critical care, dialysis, therapeutic apheresis, and manufacture of biotherapeutics, as well as pharmaceuticals and diagnostic reagents. For more information, visit www.asahi-kasei.com. Asahi Kasei is also dedicated to sustainability initiatives and is contributing to reaching a carbon neutral society by 2050. To learn more, visit https://www.asahi-kasei.com/sustainability/. Copyright 2024 ZOLL Medical Corporation. All rights reserved. ZOLL, Respicardia, and remede are registered or unregistered trademarks of ZOLL Medical Corporation and/or its affiliates in the United States and/or other countries. Asahi Kasei is a registered trademark of Asahi Kasei Corporation. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION US Physician Full Statement to be used on physician facing materials in the United States Indications for Use The remede System is an implantable phrenic nerve stimulator indicated for the treatment of moderate to severe central sleep apnea (CSA) in adult patients. Contraindications The remede System is contraindicated for the following: Patients with an active infection Warnings The device is MR Conditional. The conditions and precautions can be found in the remede system manual. Diathermy -Do not use shortwave diathermy, microwave diathermy or therapeutic ultrasound diathermy (collectively referred to as diathermy) on patients implanted with the rem ede System. ede System. Electric Shock -When operating under AC power, the rem ede System Programmer must be connected to a grounded power source to avoid risk of electric shock. ede System Programmer must be connected to a grounded power source to avoid risk of electric shock. Concomitant Active Implantable Devices -Use rem ede System with caution in patients with an active implantable device that may be susceptible to unintended interaction with the remede system. ede System with caution in patients with an active implantable device that may be susceptible to unintended interaction with the remede system. Patients with Evidence of Phrenic Nerve Palsy -Therapy with the rem ede System may be ineffective in patients who have evidence of phrenic nerve palsy. ede System may be ineffective in patients who have evidence of phrenic nerve palsy. Pediatric Use The safety and effectiveness of the remede System has not been established for pediatric use. Precautions It is recommended that testing for oversensing of remede stimulation therapy by the concomitant cardiac device occur at the time of implant and prior to initiating remede System therapy in patients with a concomitantly implanted cardiac device. Use remede System therapy with caution in pacemaker-dependent patients without a physiologic escape rhythm. Device interaction may lead to over or undersensing resulting in a loss of pacing. The safety and effectiveness of the remede System during pregnancy has not been established. See the Device Manual for detailed information regarding the implant procedure, indications, contraindications, warnings, precautions, and potential complications/adverse events. Adverse Effects Possible adverse events which may be associated with the implantation and use of the remede system include, but are not limited to, the following: adverse contrast dye reaction such as allergic reaction, pulmonary edema, or worsening renal function, adverse reaction to radiation exposure, thromboembolism, air embolism, bleeding, cardiac perforation including tamponade, hematoma, seroma, local bruising or swelling, hypotension, local wound healing issues at device implant site including wound dehiscence, pocket erosion, extrusion, movement of implanted device, keloid formation, pneumothorax, hemothorax, vascular damage, e.g., venous dissection, perforation, adverse biocompatibility reaction to the implanted system, infection, lead breakage, lead dislodgement, lead not connected or secured appropriately in device header, implantable device malfunction, requirement for more energy to stimulate the nerve or ineffective stimulation, venous occlusion, crosstalk with another implanted device, disrupted sleep, muscle fatigue or discomfort in diaphragm, chest or abdomen from appropriate stimulation, nerve dysfunction, perturbation of blood gases causing hypoxia, hypercapnea and/or hypocapnea, inappropriate sensations, worsening heart failure, respiratory status or overall health, anxiety, arrhythmia, including ventricular fibrillation, death, depression, hypotension, pain, skin irritation or local allergic reaction, thrombus or embolism, potentially leading to pulmonary embolism or stroke. CAUTION: Rx only. Prior to use, please see the complete "System Implant and Clinician Use Manual" for more information on Indications, Contraindications, Warnings, Precautions, Adverse Events, and Operator's Instructions. The remede System, remede EL System, and remede EL-X System have received FDA approval. The remede System model 1001 has received CE Mark approval. "Transvenous phrenic nerve stimulation to treat central sleep apnea in heart failure." Late-breaking presentation from ESC Heart Failure 2024. Costanzo M.R., et al. The Lancet. 2016;388:974-82. Bekfani T, Abraham WT. Europace. 2016;18(8):1123-34. Epub 2016 May 26. Khayat R, et al. J Card Fail. 2012;18:534-40. Khayat, R et al. European Heart J. 2015;36 1463-69. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240510753453/en/ Contacts: Media: Matt Hogan ZOLL Medical Corporation 978-805-6561 media@zoll.com SouthGobi Resources Ltd. (TSX-V:SGQ)(HK:1878) ("SouthGobi" or the "Company", together with its subsidiaries, the "Group")announces that, on May 13, 2024, it has entered into an amendment agreement (the "Convertible Debenture Amendment") with JD Zhixing Fund L.P. ("JDZF"), the registered holder of the Company's US$250 million Convertible Debenture issued on November 19, 2009 (the "Convertible Debenture") and the Company's largest shareholder, to amend certain terms of the Convertible Debenture. This announcement is made by the Company pursuant to Rule 13.09(2) and Chapter 14A of the Rules Governing the Listing of Securities on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (the "Hong Kong Listing Rules") and the Inside Information Provisions under Part XIVA of the Securities and Futures Ordinance (Chapter 571 of the Laws of Hong Kong). Convertible Debenture Amendment Pursuant to the Convertible Debenture Amendment, the Company may, by resolution of the board of directors of the Company (the "Board"), at any time and from time to time prepay, without penalty, the whole or any part of the principal amount outstanding under the Convertible Debenture, together with accrued cash interest and PIK interest thereon to the date of prepayment, provided that: the Company has, not later than three (3) business days prior to the proposed prepayment date, delivered to JDZF an irrevocable written notice, signed by an independent director of the Company and setting out the terms of the prepayment; the amount of such prepayment reduces the then outstanding principal amount under the Convertible Debenture by an amount that is (I) not less than US$500,000 and (II) if in excess of US$500,000, an integral multiple of US$500,000; and the proposed prepayment date falls on a business day. The Company is not providing any additional form of consideration to JDZF in connection with the Convertible Debenture Amendment. Aside from the aforementioned amendments, the existing terms of the Convertible Debenture continue in full force and effect and unchanged. The effectiveness of the Convertible Debenture Amendment is subject to the Company providing notice to, and obtaining acceptance (if required) from the TSX Venture Exchange ("TSX-V") and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, as well as requisite approval from disinterested shareholders of the Company in accordance with the requirements of applicable securities laws. The aforementioned summary of the principal terms of the Convertible Debenture Amendment is not comprehensive, and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the full text of the Convertible Debenture Amendment, a copy of which has been filed on the Company's profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. General Information of the Parties The Group The Company is an integrated coal mining, development and trading company. SGQ Coal Investment Pte. Ltd. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company incorporated under the laws of Singapore, which is principally engaged in the investment holding business activities. Southgobi Sands LLC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company incorporated under the laws of Mongolia, which is principally engaged in coal mining, development and exploration of properties in Mongolia. JDZF JDZF is an exempt limited partnership formed under the laws of the Cayman Islands, which is principally engaged in investment holding activities. JDZF's general partner and limited partner are JD Dingxing Limited and Inner Mongolia Tianyu Trading Limited, respectively. To the best of the Company's knowledge and belief, the ultimate beneficial owner of the limited partner is Mr. Yong An and the general partner is Ms. Chonglin Zhu. Mr. Yong An is the Chairman and founder of Inner Mongolia Tianyu Innovation Investment Group Co. Ltd.* (?????? ?????????) ("Tianyu Group"), and has conducted business in Inner Mongolia region since 1998. Ms. Chonglin Zhu was the Chief Financial Officer of Tianyu Group from March 2015 to September 2022, and was also responsible for managing JDZF. Ms. Chonglin Zhu has served as an Executive Director of the Company since September 8, 2022. She was the Company's Senior Vice President of Finance from September 8, 2022 to February 2, 2024, and appointed as the Company's Chief Financial Officer on February 2, 2024. Reasons for and Benefits of the Convertible Debenture Amendment In evaluating the terms of the Convertible Debenture Amendment and reaching its conclusion and making its recommendation in support of the Convertible Debenture Amendment, the Board (excluding the Amendment Interested Directors (as defined below)), considered a number of factors, including the following: (i) the Convertible Debenture Amendment is designed to improve the financial position of the Company, as it provides the Company with an ability to repay the principal amount and accrued cash interest or PIK interest, without penalty, at the discretion of the Board, if doing so is in the best interests of the Company; (ii) the Convertible Debenture Amendment improves the financial flexibility of the Company, as the Company did not have a right to prepay the principal amount outstanding under the Convertible Debenture under the original terms of the Convertible Debenture; (iii) the terms of the Convertible Debenture Amendment are reasonable in the circumstances of the Company, in particular given that the Company is not providing any additional form of consideration to JDZF in connection with the Convertible Debenture Amendment; and (iv) the best interests of the Company and shareholders will be served by approving the Convertible Debenture Amendment. Board Review and Approval Based on the above, the Board (excluding (i) the Directors who are appointed by JDZF pursuant to contractual nomination rights contained in the securityholders agreement between the Company, JDZF and a former shareholder of the Company and certain deferral agreements between JDZF, the Company and certain of its subsidiaries relating to the Convertible Debenture, namely, Mr. Ruibin Xu, Ms. Chonglin Zhu and Mr. Chen Shen (collectively, the "Amendment Interested Directors"); and (ii) a special committee of the Board struck to negotiate and consider the terms of the Convertible Debenture Amendment, which consisted solely of independent non-executive Directors, whose views are to be contained in the letter from the independent board committee (the "Independent Board Committee") in the Company's management proxy circular (the "Management Proxy Circular") to be despatched to the Shareholders) are of the view that the Convertible Debenture Amendment and the transaction contemplated thereunder are entered, despite not in the ordinary and usual course of business of the Group, on normal commercial terms (on arm's length basis or terms no less favourable to the Group than terms available from independent third parties), and are fair and reasonable and in the interests of the Company and the Shareholders as a whole. The Amendment Interested Directors who have a material interest in the Convertible Debenture Amendment and the transaction contemplated thereunder were required to abstain from voting on the Board resolutions approving the same. Except for the Amendment Interested Directors, none of the Directors have any material interest in the Convertible Debenture Amendment and the transaction contemplated thereunder, and none of the Directors were required to abstain from voting on the Board resolutions approving the same. Shareholders' Approval Pursuant to MI 61-101 Requirements under applicable Canadian securities laws Pursuant to Part 5 of Multilateral Instrument 61-101 ("MI 61-101") under applicable Canadian securities laws, the Company is required to seek minority shareholder approval of the Convertible Debenture Amendment, excluding the common shares beneficially owned by JDZF (as defined below) (the "Disinterested Shareholders" or the "Independent Shareholders") because: (i) JDZF is a related party of the Company for purposes of MI 61-101 because JDZF has beneficial ownership of more than 10% of the voting rights attached to the outstanding common shares of the Company; and (ii) the Convertible Debenture Amendment is a related party transaction for purposes of MI 61-101 because the Convertible Debenture Amendment materially amends the terms of an outstanding debt or liability owed by the Company to a related party. To the best of the Company's knowledge, as of the date hereof, 85,714,194 common shares, representing approximately 28.98% of the issued and outstanding common shares of the Company, are beneficially owned by JDZF. Accordingly, the 85,714,194 votes attached to the common shares beneficially owned, or over which control or direction is exercised by JDZF will be excluded from the vote to approve the Convertible Debenture Amendment. There is no requirement for the Convertible Debenture Amendment to be the subject of a formal valuation by virtue of not being within the scope of related party transactions set out in Section 5.4 of MI 61 101. Hong Kong Listing Rules implications Pursuant to the Hong Kong Listing Rules, JDZF is a substantial shareholder of the Company holding approximately 28.98% of the Company's issued common shares and therefore a connected person of the Company. The entering into of the Convertible Debenture Amendment constitutes a connected transaction of the Company and is subject to the Independent Shareholders' approval requirements under Chapter 14A of the Hong Kong Listing Rules. According to Rule 28.05 of the Hong Kong Listing Rules, any alterations in the terms of convertible debt securities after issue must be approved by the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, except where the alterations take effect automatically under the existing terms of such convertible debt securities. The Company will apply to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange for approval for the entering into of the Convertible Debenture Amendment pursuant to Rule 28.05 of the Hong Kong Listing Rules. The Meeting and Despatch of Management Proxy Circular The Company will be seeking approval of the Convertible Debenture Amendment from Independent Shareholders at a special meeting of shareholders (the "Meeting") to be held on or before August 30, 2024. The Company will, among other things, propose a resolution for the Independent Shareholders to consider and, if thought fit, approve the Convertible Debenture Amendment and the transaction contemplated thereunder. Given that JDZF is involved in and/or interested in the Convertible Debenture Amendment and the transaction contemplated thereunder, JDZF will abstain from voting at the Meeting on the resolution approving it. Accordingly, the 85,714,194 votes attached to the Common Shares beneficially owned, or over which control or direction is exercised, by JDZF will be excluded from the vote to approve the Convertible Debenture Amendment. Save for the aforesaid and to the Board's best knowledge, information and belief and having made all reasonable enquiries, no other shareholder has a material interest in the Convertible Debenture Amendment and therefore no other shareholder is required to abstain from voting on the relevant resolution at the Meeting. As the Convertible Debenture Amendment and the transaction contemplated thereunder are subject to the approval by the Independent Shareholders, the Independent Board Committee comprising of all the independent non-executive Directors, namely Mr. Yingbin Ian He, Mr. Mao Sun and Ms. Jin Lan Quan, has been established by the Company to advise the Independent Shareholders in respect of the above transaction. The Company has appointed an independent financial adviser (the "Independent Financial Adviser") to advise the Independent Board Committee and the Independent Shareholders in respect of the above transaction. The Management Proxy Circular containing, among other things, (i) details of the Convertible Debenture Amendment; (ii) a letter from the Independent Board Committee to the Independent Shareholders; (iii) the recommendations from the Independent Financial Adviser to the Independent Board Committee and the Independent Shareholders; and (iv) the notice of the Meeting, will be filed under the Company's profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca and despatched to shareholders of the Company in accordance with applicable securities laws on or before August 30, 2024. If there is any inconsistency or discrepancy between the English and Chinese version, the English version shall prevail. About SouthGobi SouthGobi, listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and the TSX Venture Exchange, owns and operates its flagship Ovoot Tolgoi coal mine in Mongolia. It also holds the mining licences of its other metallurgical and thermal coal deposits in South Gobi region of Mongolia. SouthGobi produces and sells coal to customers in China. Contact: Investor Relations Email: info@southgobi.com Mr. Ruibin Xu Chief Executive Officer Office: +1 604 762 6783 (Canada) +852 2156 1438 (Hong Kong) Website: www.southgobi.com Forward-Looking Statements Certain information included in this press release that is not current or historical factual information constitutes forward-looking statements or information within the meaning of applicable securities laws (collectively, "forward-looking statements"), including information about timing with respect to the mailing of the Management Information Circular and convening of the Meeting, and approval of the Convertible Debenture Amendment by Disinterested Shareholders. Forward-looking statements are frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "could", "should", "seek", "likely", "estimate" and other similar words or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. Forward-looking statements are based on certain factors and assumptions including, among other things, the Company providing notice and successfully obtaining acceptance (if any) of the Convertible Debenture Amendment from the TSX-V and the requisite approval from Disinterested Shareholders of the Company of the Convertible Debenture Amendment in accordance with applicable Canadian securities laws and Hong Kong Stock Exchange requirements and other similar factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from what the Company currently expects. Actual results may vary from the forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue importance on forward-looking statements, which speaks only as of the date of this disclosure, and not to rely upon this information as of any other date. While the Company may elect to, it is under no obligation and does not undertake to, update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, further events or otherwise at any particular time, except as required by law. Additional information concerning factors that may cause actual results to materially differ from those in such forward-looking statements is contained in the Company's filings with Canadian securities regulatory authorities and the website of the Hong Kong regulatory filings and disclosures of listed issuer information. These can be found under the Company's profile on SEDAR+ and HKEXnews respectively, at www.sedarplus.ca and www.hkexnews.hk. 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. SOURCE: SouthGobi Resources Ltd. View the original press release on accesswire.com Finsbury Growth & Income Trust Plc - Transaction in Own Shares PR Newswire LONDON, United Kingdom, May 13 For immediate release 13 May 2024 FINSBURY GROWTH & INCOME TRUST PLC (the "Company") MARKET PURCHASE OF COMPANY'S OWN SHARES The Company announce that it has today purchased 132,461 of its own shares ("Ordinary Shares") at a price of 853.41 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 23 January 2024. Following this transaction, the total number of Ordinary Shares held by the Company in treasury is 41,695,804; 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 183,295,499. The figure of 183,295,499 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 Cultural education, adaptation should be continuing process By Jun Ji-hye, Kim Hyun-bin Equal labor standards and Korea's minimum wage should be the bare minimum for Philippine caregivers who will begin working in Seoul later this year, Philippine Ambassador to Korea Maria Theresa B. Dizon-De Vega said, amid ongoing debates over whether they should receive lower wages than other workers in Korea. The ambassador made the comments in a recent exclusive written interview with The Korea Times as Korea plans to bring in 100 workers from the Philippines at the end of July for a pilot program to assess the feasibility of importing foreign caregivers into Korea. Both the Philippines and Korea have ratified international treaties that uphold equal remuneration and non-discrimination, Dizon-De Vega said. Under the existing memorandum of understanding on the Employment Permit System, workers are accorded equal treatment under Koreas labor standards. Koreas minimum wage law specifically provides the equal application of minimum wage, regardless of nationality, among others. The minimum wage will be applied to the 100 Philippine caregivers for the six-month pilot program that will be limited to Seoul. The government is considering extending the pilot program into a full-scale project after analyzing the results. However, suggestions and recommendations to pay foreign caregivers wages below the legal hourly minimum of 9,860 won ($7.2) continue to emerge as part of measures to address the countrys exceptionally low birthrate. Nevertheless, labor groups criticize this idea for undermining the principle of the minimum wage system and exploiting workers. During a seminar co-hosted by the Bank of Korea (BOK) and the Korea Development Institute on March 5, the central bank highlighted the necessity of recruiting foreign caregivers and exempting them from Korea's minimum wage regulations. This initiative aims to address labor shortages in the caregiving industry due to the low birthrate and alleviate the financial strain on working parents. Regarding this, Minister of Employment and Labor Lee Jung-sik told reporters on March 27, We should respect the suggestion as it is an important point of this society, adding that the Minimum Wage Commission will make an acceptable decision. The organization is set to convene its first meeting of the year on May 21 to review the minimum wage for 2025, including the contentious issue of potentially implementing differentiated minimum wages across various industries. If approved, this could allow paying foreign caregivers less than the legal minimum wage. In this context, the ambassador emphasized the importance of recognizing the economic value of care work. Caregivers and other workers in households contribute to society equally or as much as any other worker with skills. They are enablers not only for early child care education but also for optimizing workforce participation, she said. Access to child care allows parents to re-enter the workforce, thereby increasing parental earning and women labor force participation, which ultimately redounds to a positive growth in the economy. As to possible conflicts stemming from cultural differences between Korea and the Philippines, the ambassador said the pilot project includes an intensive pre-departure and post-arrival education program for caregivers, as well as employment orientation for user-households focusing on culture, language and skills to effectively reduce, if not totally eliminate, misunderstanding and conflicts. Nonetheless, we do not expect that it will be easy. Cultural education and adaptation should be a continuing process, she said. Worker and employer education can help achieve a certain level of readiness from both sides, but close monitoring and strong support from the implementing agencies and the community in general will be required. According to the labor ministry, the 100 Philippine caregivers, who will be given non-professional employment visas (E-9), are expected to arrive roughly at the end of July. After entering Korea, they will go through vocational training and cultural education, which will be supervised by the Human Resources Development Service of Korea, for four weeks before actually beginning to work at homes, which means they should be ready to start work in August at the earliest. They will be supplied and managed by two private companies accredited by the government to provide domestic helpers. BH Macro Limited - Transaction in Own Shares PR Newswire LONDON, United Kingdom, May 13 BH Macro Limited (the "Company") (a closed-ended collective investment scheme established as a company with limited liability under the laws of Guernsey with registered number 46235) Transaction in Own Shares 13 May 2024 BH Macro Limited (the Company) announces today it has purchased the following number of its ordinary shares on the London Stock Exchange from J.P. Morgan Securities plc: Ordinary Shares: - Share Class Sterling Date of purchase: 13 May 2024 Number of ordinary shares purchased: 144,492 Lowest price per share (pence) 353 Highest price per share (pence) 356.5 Trading venue LSE Aggregate volume per date per trading venue: 144,492 Weighted average price per day per trading venue (pence): 355.1462 The Company intends to hold the purchased shares in treasury. Following the above share transactions of the relevant US Dollar and Sterling Shares, the total number of shares in issue in each share class of the Company will be as follows: Ordinary Shares in issue (excluding Treasury) Ordinary Shares held in Treasury 358,416,718 Sterling Shares 15,621,747 Sterling Shares 29,235,299 Dollar Shares Nil Dollar Shares From 13 May 2024, the total number of voting rights in the Company (rounded up to the whole number) is 549,467,361. Enquiries: Company website: www.bhmacro.com William Simmonds JPMorgan Cazenove Tel: 020 7588 2828 The Company Secretary Northern Trust International Fund Administration Services (Guernsey) Limited Tel: 01481 745001 NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / Monster Energy Image Courtesy Monster Energy Monster Energy Cares was proud to sponsor a very important event with the Department of Defense: The Enlisted Aide of the Year Award. Enlisted Aides act as the right hand of the United State Military Leadership, assisting Admirals and Generals in day to day operations. The 20th anniversary ceremony, supported by the Veteran's Support Network, the Robert Irvine Foundation and Monster Energy, was held at The Pentagon's Hall of Heroes, attended by many of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Also present were Monster Athlete Ambassadors Rob Gronkowski and Donald Cerrone - aka Gronk and Cowboy - to meet and thank our servicemen and women. Cowboy even picked up an award of his own: a stunning engravement made by Monster's very own master artist Hank "Hanro" Robinson, to mark the MMA legend's retirement from the Octagon. But top honor of the evening went to the Enlisted Aide of the year: Master Sergeant Michael "Bo" Bogle, of the US Army. Bo's operational deployments include Operation Iraqi Freedom (2 tours) and Operation Enduring Freedom (2 tours) in Afghanistan. Bo has earned 2 Bronze stars - possibly a record for a military cook! - and as legend goes, would have also been awarded a Purple Heart but for a technicality, after suffering a battlefield headwound from a rock struck by a bullet (but not the bullet itself - so technically not enemy fire!) Bo's award means the Army now have the most Enlisted Aides of the Year with 6, edging ahead of the Coast Guard with 5, and the Marine Corps with 4, while the Air Force and Navy have 3 each. Congratulations to Master Sergeant Bogle! Learn more about Robert Irvine Foundation View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Monster Energy on 3blmedia.com. Contact Info: Spokesperson: Monster Energy Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/monster-energy Email: info@3blmedia.com SOURCE: Monster Energy View the original press release on accesswire.com NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / Tapestry, Inc. The fashion industry has a vital role to play in finding solutions to critical global issues, like climate change. At Tapestry, we believe that sustainability is a business imperative and we are taking action. The global scientific community has urgently called for limiting global temperature rise to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels, as outlined by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Today, we are proud to announce that the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) has validated Tapestry's near- and long-term greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reductions targets. The SBTi is an international organization that helps businesses set emissions reductions goals that follow the latest climate science. Validation by the SBTi confirms that our targets are in line with what is needed to meet the urgent need to keep global warming to 1.5C. As a result, we are proud to share Tapestry's science-based targets: Reduce absolute Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions 64% by FY2030 from a FY2021 baseline. Reduce absolute Scope 3 Industry GHG emissions 42% by FY2030 from a FY2021 baseline. Reduce absolute Scope 3 Forest, Land and Agriculture (FLAG) GHG emissions 30% by FY2030 from a FY2021 baseline. Achieve net-zero GHG emissions across the value chain by 2050. SBTi's FLAG guidance acknowledges that to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement, the legally binding international treaty on climate change adopted in Paris in 2015, companies in the FLAG sector require specific mitigation measures. Over half of the materials sourced at Tapestry come from land-related materials, such as leather. We know that climate and nature are intertwined, so we have set specific targets according to SBTi's FLAG guidance. Tapestry is one of the first companies in the fashion industry to have validated FLAG emissions reductions targets. Receiving validation of these targets follows Tapestry's commitment in 2021 to the SBTi's Business Ambition for 1.5C, a campaign consisting of over 1,000 companies that represents over $23 trillion in market capitalization. Tapestry's corporate responsibility strategy, The Fabric of Change, is our ambition to make every beautiful choice a responsible choice, built upon our four pillars: Power of Our People, Sustain the Planet, Create Products with Care, and Uplift our Communities. The two pillars dedicated to our planet and product outline Tapestry's strategy to achieve these climate goals. For more information, check out our most recent Annual Corporate Responsibility Report. View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Tapestry, Inc. on 3blmedia.com. Contact Info: Spokesperson: Tapestry, Inc. Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/tapestry-inc Email: info@3blmedia.com SOURCE: Tapestry, Inc. View the original press release on accesswire.com DEA FACES FOUR FEDERAL DISTRICT COURT SUITS CLAIMING DISARRAY and CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS WASHINGTON, D.C. / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / During a recent congressional hearing, Director Anne Milligram of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) passionately addressed the alarming surge in illegal fentanyl-related deaths across the nation. Her plea for action against this epidemic resonated widely. However, amidst this urgency, a significant contradiction emerges - the DEA's hindrance of psychedelic research and drug development. Director Anne Milligram testifying Specifically, MMJ BioPharma Cultivation's efforts to grow pharmaceutical marijuana for FDA-sanctioned trials in treating conditions like Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and Huntington's disease (HD) have faced DEA obstruction. Now, Panacea Plant Sciences (PPS) has taken legal action against the DEA in the U.S. Federal Court for the Western District of Washington. Further investigation reveals that three additional pharmaceutical companies are challenging the DEA, Director Milligram, and other officials over the constitutionality of the agency's administrative processes. Four separate actions in four different federal court districts might lead one to think the DEA has an administrative problem. At the core of these conflicts lies The DEA's failure to comply with presidential action, and congressional mandates in the manner they appoint the Administrative Law Judges. This has led to constitutional rights violations for the affected pharmaceutical companies. The DEA's refusal to ease regulations on researching medical marijuana and psychedelics. Despite growing evidence of their efficacy in treating MS, HD, and PTSD, the DEA's stringent policies hamper progress in these areas. The DEA's staunch opposition to psychedelics has impeded large-scale clinical trials and drug development, depriving patients of potentially life-changing treatments. Director Milligram's impassioned plea for addressing the fentanyl epidemic underscores the urgent need for action. However, the DEA's inconsistent response to other pressing medical and now constitutional issues reveals a troubling double standard. MMJ is represented by Attorney Megan Sheehan and associates. CONTACT: Madison Hisey media@mmjih.com 203-231-8583 SOURCE: MMJ International Holdings View the original press release on accesswire.com Not for distribution to U.S. Newswire Services or for dissemination in the United States of America. Any failure to comply with this restriction may constitute a violation of U.S. Securities laws. TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / Sparta Group (TSXV:SAY) (the "Corporation", the "Company", "Sparta Group", "Sparta Capital", "SAY.V" or "Sparta") is pleased to announce that, subject to regulatory approval, the Corporation intends to complete a non-brokered private placement (the "Private Placement") of up to 50,000,000 units of the Company ("Units") at a price of $0.02 per Unit for gross proceeds of up to $1,000,000. Each Unit is comprised of one (1) common share of the Corporation ("Common Share") and one full Common Share purchase warrant ("Warrant"). Each Warrant entitles the holder to purchase one additional Common Share at a price of $0.10 per Common Share for a period of eighteen (18) months from the date of closing the Offering (the "Warrant Expiry"). The Company intends to use the net proceeds for the launch of TruckSuite Canada's product offering, to cover some general corporate purposes that include, audit, legal, licenses and fees. Following a review of the product offering in Q4 2023, the groundwork was laid for TruckSuite Canada. Sparta management, alongside the team of experts from TruckSuite LLC in the United States, plan to launch TruckSuite Canada this year. TruckSuite Canada requires the funding to cover licencing and specialty insurance registration, sales and marketing materials, brokerage costs, communications planning, as well as initial setup of administration and operational functions. The price per Common Share has been set based on the weighted average and the last trading price on the TSX Venture Exchange prior to the issuance of this press release. If at any time before the Warrant Expiry the volume weighted average trading price of the Common Shares is greater than $0.12 for ten consecutive trading days, the Corporation may, at its sole discretion, accelerate the Warrant Expiry Date by giving 30 days notice to each holder of Warrants. None of the proceeds received will be used to pay non-arm's length parties nor will they be used to pay investor relations activities. Should the maximum Offering not be achieved, the use of proceeds will be adjusted by the Corporation. If Sparta receives total subscriptions pursuant to the existing security holders' exemption, which causes the Offering to exceed $1,000,000, Sparta may accept such subscriptions on a first come, first serve basis. There is no minimum Offering. The Offering is subject to certain conditions including but not limited to, the receipt of all necessary approvals, including the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange Inc. ("TSXV"). Pursuant to applicable securities laws, all securities issued pursuant to the Offering will be subject to a four-month hold period from the date of closing. Furthermore, Sparta will be relying on the existing security holders' exemption as well as other available prospectus exemptions. For those investors relying upon the exemption for existing security holders, the aggregate acquisition cost to a subscribing shareholder of all securities of Sparta cannot exceed $15,000 in the previous 12 months, unless that shareholder has obtained advice regarding the suitability of the investment from a registered investment dealer in the subscriber's jurisdiction. The offer to purchase Units is available to all security holders of Sparta who held Common Shares on November 25, 2022. Shareholders residing in Ontario, Newfoundland and Labrador, and countries other than Canada will need to meet local jurisdiction requirements to participate. About Sparta Sparta Group (a.k.a. Sparta Capital Ltd.) is a technology-based company focused on integrating emerging technologies. It operates with a decentralized business model, with each active business functioning as a separate subsidiary. This structure provides brand recognition, insight, high-level strategic guidance, and financial monitoring. Sparta Group is divided into three operational business segments, each accountable for its day-to-day operations and performance. Those segments are, Environment, Energy, and Innovation. Sparta is a publicly traded company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange Inc. under the symbol "SAY" (TSX.V: SAY). Additional information is available at www.spartagroup.ca or on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. For more information contact: Tony Peticca, President Email: tony@spartagroup.ca Telephone: 416-648-6506 This above may contain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. When used in this address, the words "estimate", "project", "belief", "anticipate", "intend", "expect", "plan", "predict", "may" or "should" and the negative of these words or such variations thereon or comparable terminology are intended to identify forward-looking statements and information. Although the Corporation believes in light of the experience of its officers and directors, current conditions and expected future developments and other factors that have been considered appropriate that the expectations reflected in this forward-looking information are reasonable, readers are cautioned to not place undue reliance on forward-looking information because the Corporation can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements are made based on management's beliefs, estimates and opinions on the date of publication of this information and the Corporation undertakes no obligation to update such forward-looking statements if these beliefs, estimates and opinions or other circumstances should change. Furthermore, the Corporation undertakes no obligation to comment on analyses, expectations or statements made by third parties in respect of the Corporation. All forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary 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 SOURCE: Sparta Group View the original press release on accesswire.com China's commercial vehicle sales up 8.1 pct in first 4 months Xinhua) 09:21, May 13, 2024 BEIJING, May 11 (Xinhua) -- China's commercial vehicle sales rose 8.1 percent year on year in the first four months of the year, industry data shows. A total of 1.39 million commercial vehicles were sold during the period, with 1.1 million units sold domestically and 288,000 units exported, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. The country's commercial vehicle exports jumped 26.5 percent from the same period last year, the association said. Some 1.23 million trucks were sold in the January-April period, up 7.3 percent year on year. The country's bus sales soared 14.7 percent year on year to 158,000 units in the same period. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) By Kwak Yeon-soo The prosecution interrogated a Korean American pastor Monday regarding his gift of a luxury handbag to first lady Kim Keon Hee during their meeting in Seoul in September 2022, four months after President Yoon Suk Yeol's inauguration. The pastor, Choi Jae-young, was summoned after activists alleged he conspired with YouTube-based media outlet Voice of Seoul to secretly film his meeting with Kim and the gifting of the Christian Dior handbag worth 3 million won ($2,192). The media outlet released the footage last November and subsequently filed a complaint with the prosecution the following month against Kim and Yoon for allegedly accepting a bribe and violating the anti-graft law. Choi appeared at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office for questioning as a suspect on charges of violating the anti-graft law, trespassing and obstruction of official duties. The pastor denied the charges, saying he had gone undercover to inform the public about the truth about the president and the first lady. "The essence of the case is that the first lady privatized the presidential power. It all began after I witnessed Kim meddling in personnel appointments and manipulating state affairs. If she hadn't received anything, nothing would have happened," Choi told reporters. Prosecutors grilled Choi about how and why he gifted the luxury handbag to the first lady and whether he solicited her favor. The decision to open the investigation came nearly five months after the allegation was made. The opposition bloc believes that this investigation is aimed at avoiding a special counsel investigation, which it plans to seek in the 22nd National Assembly, scheduled to open on May 30. The issue has been a bone of political contention for nearly half a year and was one of the factors in the ruling bloc's crushing defeat in the April 10 general elections. Legal experts say it may be difficult to charge Kim under the anti-graft law. The law prohibits a public official's spouse from receiving gifts worth more than 1 million won in one sitting, but this must be "in connection with the duties of the public official." And there is no clause about punishment for the spouse in case of violation. In January, Reform Party leader Lee Jun-seok, who also previously chaired the ruling People Power Party, said he would propose a bill that prevents excessive influence of the president's spouse and family in state affairs. The president apologized last week for his wife's acceptance of the bag during a press conference to mark his second year in office. However, he objected to the opposition's push to launch a special counsel to investigate the issue. Separately, prosecutors plan to summon Baek Eun-jong, the head of Voice of Seoul, as a complainant against Yoon and Kim on May 20. Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 13, 2024) - Miramis Mining Corp. (the "Company") is pleased to announce that it intends to complete a non-brokered private placement for gross proceeds of up to $100,000 on a non-flow-through basis (the "Private Placement") together with up to $65,000 on a flow-through basis (the "Flow-Through Private Placement"; and, collectively, with the Private Placement, the "Private Placements"). The Private Placement will be comprised of up to 2,000,000 common shares (each, a "Share") in the capital of the Company, at a subscription price of $0.05 per Share. The Flow-Through Private Placement will be comprised of up to 1,000,000 flow-through common shares in the capital of the Company (each, a "Flow-Through Share") pursuant to the Income Tax Act (Canada) (the "Tax Act") at a subscription price of $0.065 per Flow-Through Share. All securities issued in connection with the Private Placements are subject to a statutory hold period expiring four months and one day after the Date of Issue, as set out in National Instrument 45-102 - Resale of Securities. None of the securities sold in connection with the Private Placements will be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and no such securities may be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements. This news 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 jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. Appointment of new Corporate Secretary The Company would like to announce and welcome Mr. Andrew Brown as its new Corporate Secretary. Mr. Brown joins the Company from Ardent Corporate Services Inc., a full-service corporate secretarial firm that provides corporate secretarial and corporate governance services for public and private companies including go-public transactions, private placements, SEDI, SEDAR, and regulatory reporting. Mr. Brown has over 13 years of experience working in the public markets and has served as Corporate Secretary for multiple publicly traded companies on the TSX Venture Exchange and the Canadian Securities Exchange. ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD "Morgan Good" Morgan Good Chief Executive Officer T: 604-715-4751 E: morgan@miramismining.com Notice Regarding Forward Looking Statements This news release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities laws. Such information includes, without limitation, information regarding the terms of the Private Placements and the intended use of proceeds from the Private Placements. Although the Company believes that such information is reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. 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. The Company cautions investors that any forward-looking information provided by the Company is not a guarantee of future results or performance and that such forward-looking information is based upon a number of estimates and assumptions of management in light of management's experience and perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, as well as other factors that management believes to be relevant and reasonable in the circumstances, as of the date of this news release including, without limitation, that the Private Placements will close and will do so on the proposed terms; that the Company will be able to utilize the net proceeds of the Private Placements in the manner intended; that general business and economic conditions will not change in a material adverse manner; that applicable regulatory approvals will be received; and assumptions regarding political and regulatory stability and stability in financial and capital markets. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Such risks and other factors include, among others: the risk that the Company may not complete the Private Placements; the risk that the Private Placements may not be completed on the anticipated terms; the risk that the Company may not be able to use the proceeds of the Private Placements as intended; the state of the financial markets for the Company's securities; the conflict in Eastern Europe; the Company's ability to raise the necessary capital or to be fully able to implement its business strategies; and other risks and factors that the Company is unaware of at this time The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as of the date of this news release. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/209064 SOURCE: Miramis Mining Corp. This acquisition enables Synechron to enhance its technological capabilities, broaden its service offerings, and expand its coverage to the Australian market. LONDON, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Synechron, a leading global digital transformation consulting firm focused on financial services and technology organizations, announced its acquisition of iGreenData, a modern, data-centric digital solutions company founded in 2018. iGreenData, headquartered in Melbourne with an additional office in India where Synechron has a significant presence, specializes in cloud-enabled data and digital engineering. The company serves a diverse array of blue-chip clients and has high domain expertise in the banking and financial services sectors, along with strengths in full-stack, DevOps, cloud, data engineering, automation, and blockchain. The acquisition of iGreenData was completed on May 13, 2024. This acquisition enhances Synechron's leadership in digital transformation by combining their agile, creative approach with iGreenData's specialized skills in cloud technology and lean data engineering practices. The integration adds to Synechron's payments capabilities in delivering customized solutions that achieve substantial business outcomes, while continuing to swiftly and effectively meet their clients' evolving needs. Moreover, the acquisition expands Synechron's global reach. By leveraging Australia's strategic location, Synechron is better positioned to provide continuous support across time zones in Asia, the Americas, and Europe. Faisal Husain, Synechron Co-Founder and CEO, commented, "We're thrilled to welcome iGreenData into the Synechron family. This acquisition will enable us to continue deepening our payments technological strength and expand our footprint to the Australian market. Together, we will leverage our combined expertise in digital transformation and innovation to deliver value-added solutions that meet the evolving needs of our clients." Max Sundaram, iGreenData Co-Founder and CEO, said, "We're very excited to become part of the Synechron team. With their global reach and our shared commitment to excellence, we're well positioned to provide the best-in-class transformative digital experiences." About Synechron: At Synechron, we believe in the power of digital to transform businesses for the better. Our global consulting firm combines creativity and innovative technology to deliver industry-leading digital solutions. Synechron's progressive technologies and optimization strategies span end-to-end Artificial Intelligence, Consulting, Digital, Cloud & DevOps, Data, and Software Engineering, servicing an array of noteworthy financial services and technology firms. Through research and development initiatives in our FinLabs we develop solutions for modernization, from Artificial Intelligence and Blockchain to Data Science models, Digital Underwriting, mobile-first applications and more. Over the last 20+ years, our company has been honored with multiple employer awards, recognizing our commitment to our talented teams. Synechron has a global workforce of 14,000+ and has 51 offices in 20 countries in key global markets. For more information on the company, please visit our website or LinkedIn community. About iGreenData: Headquartered in Melbourne, Australia, and with presence in India, iGreenData is a fast-growing digital engineering organization with a prime focus on Cloud First, Data-Centric Digital Engineering and Blockchain offerings. The team is at the forefront specializing in cutting-edge modern software engineering technologies with a commitment to ensure our solutions and services bring value to our customers. iGreenData brings deep Banking industry knowledge, with decades of Leadership experience and track record of success in Australia, delivering large complex programs, and a highly capable team to deliver industry-leading experiences for our customers. With close to 200 strong professionals, we set out to bring together talented individuals who are encouraged in their creativity and empower them to deliver new technological solutions to our stakeholders. iGreenData was ranked third in Rising Star category at the prestigious Deloitte Technology Fast 50 Australia awards for 2 years in a row in 2020 & 2021 and also was inducted to nineteenth place at the prestigious CRN Fast 50 Australia 2021 as recognition of the exponential growth over 3 years. For more information on the company, please visit our website. For more information please contact: Rashmi Joshi, Synechron +91-9560694654 Media@synechron.com Rashmi.Joshi@synechron.com OR Zoe Forbes-Pyfrom (+44) 7718 599666 synechron@cognitomedia.com Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1943591/Synechron_Logo.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/synechron-acquires-igreendata-a-digital-engineering-organization-headquartered-in-melbourne-australia-302143544.html This acquisition enables Synechron to enhance its technological capabilities, broaden its service offerings, and expand its coverage to the Australian market. SYDNEY, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Synechron, a leading global digital transformation consulting firm focused on financial services and technology organizations, announced its acquisition of iGreenData, a modern, data-centric digital solutions company founded in 2018. iGreenData, headquartered in Melbourne with an additional office in India where Synechron has a significant presence, specializes in cloud-enabled data and digital engineering. The company serves a diverse array of blue-chip clients and has high domain expertise in the banking and financial services sectors, along with strengths in full-stack, DevOps, cloud, data engineering, automation, and blockchain. The acquisition of iGreenData was completed on May 13, 2024. This acquisition enhances Synechron's leadership in digital transformation by combining their agile, creative approach with iGreenData's specialized skills in cloud technology and lean data engineering practices. The integration adds to Synechron's payments capabilities in delivering customized solutions that achieve substantial business outcomes, while continuing to swiftly and effectively meet their clients' evolving needs. Moreover, the acquisition expands Synechron's global reach. By leveraging Australia's strategic location, Synechron is better positioned to provide continuous support across time zones in Asia, the Americas, and Europe. Faisal Husain, Synechron Co-Founder and CEO, commented, "We're thrilled to welcome iGreenData into the Synechron family. This acquisition will enable us to continue deepening our payments technological strength and expand our footprint to the Australian market. Together, we will leverage our combined expertise in digital transformation and innovation to deliver value-added solutions that meet the evolving needs of our clients." Max Sundaram, iGreenData Co-Founder and CEO, said, "We're very excited to become part of the Synechron team. With their global reach and our shared commitment to excellence, we're well positioned to provide the best-in-class transformative digital experiences." About Synechron: At Synechron, we believe in the power of digital to transform businesses for the better. Our global consulting firm combines creativity and innovative technology to deliver industry-leading digital solutions. Synechron's progressive technologies and optimization strategies span end-to-end Artificial Intelligence, Consulting, Digital, Cloud & DevOps, Data, and Software Engineering, servicing an array of noteworthy financial services and technology firms. Through research and development initiatives in our FinLabs we develop solutions for modernization, from Artificial Intelligence and Blockchain to Data Science models, Digital Underwriting, mobile-first applications and more. Over the last 20+ years, our company has been honored with multiple employer awards, recognizing our commitment to our talented teams. Synechron has a global workforce of 14,000+ and has 51 offices in 20 countries in key global markets. For more information on the company, please visit our website or LinkedIn community. About iGreenData: Headquartered in Melbourne, Australia, and with presence in India, iGreenData is a fast-growing digital engineering organization with a prime focus on Cloud First, Data-Centric Digital Engineering and Blockchain offerings. The team is at the forefront specializing in cutting-edge modern software engineering technologies with a commitment to ensure our solutions and services bring value to our customers. iGreenData brings deep Banking industry knowledge, with decades of Leadership experience and track record of success in Australia, delivering large complex programs, and a highly capable team to deliver industry-leading experiences for our customers. With close to 200 strong professionals, we set out to bring together talented individuals who are encouraged in their creativity and empower them to deliver new technological solutions to our stakeholders. iGreenData was ranked third in Rising Star category at the prestigious Deloitte Technology Fast 50 Australia awards for 2 years in a row in 2020 & 2021 and also was inducted to nineteenth place at the prestigious CRN Fast 50 Australia 2021 as recognition of the exponential growth over 3 years. For more information on the company, please visit our website. For more information please contact: Rashmi Joshi, Synechron +91-9560694654 Media@synechron.com Rashmi.Joshi@synechron.com OR Zoe Forbes-Pyfrom (+44) 7718 599666 synechron@cognitomedia.com Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1943591/Synechron_Logo.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/synechron-acquires-igreendata-a-digital-engineering-organization-headquartered-in-melbourne-australia-302143552.html ACCRA, Ghana, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- New academic research released today from the West African country of Ghana shows that waste in the second hand clothes sector (SHC) is dramatically lower than has been previously claimed. The report released by the Ghana Used Clothing Dealers Association, showed that less than 5% of the second hand clothing imported into Ghana could be considered waste. The data-driven report is the first such academic study and proves that the second-hand clothing market in Ghana is a robust and sustainable ecosystem that contributes towards the global circular economy. Speaking on the report Edward Atobrah Binkley, General Secretary of the Ghana Used Clothing Dealers Association said: "The continued use of inaccurate information circulating in some parts of the media about the second hand clothes trade must stop. "Those who've spent years using and repeating false and inaccurate figures about waste in the trade should apologise now for the damage they have done and the harm they have caused. "This report shows that the trade is low waste and an essential part of the global circular economy, providing a solution to the challenges of climate change and waste the world faces, as well as the over consumption of fast fashion that is wreaking damage on a global scale. "It is also pivotal to Ghana's economy and way of life, providing affordable clothing to millions while supporting livelihoods across the nation and contributing significantly to Ghana's government tax revenues. "Policy makers should be extremely cautious before they further regulate an already well run and regulated, global trade based upon bad data and misleading figures." The report launched today in Accra found that the SHC trade in Ghana serves as a cornerstone of the nation's retail landscape, deeply ingrained in its cultural and economic fabric. The industry has evolved into a dynamic ecosystem, providing affordable clothing options to consumers while also supporting a significant proportion of Ghanaian livelihoods, stimulating economic activity and fostering entrepreneurship. It also found that the trade was a noteworthy example of the circular economy in action; reducing waste, promoting resource efficiency and enabling sustainable consumption. The second hand clothes trade is an antidote to the detrimental effects of the global fast fashion industry which promotes exploitative labour practices, environmental degradation, excessive waste generation, and unsustainable consumption patterns. The report examined the multifaceted nature of Ghana's SHC industry, exploring its economic contributions, demographic dynamics, and socio-environmental implications, while also highlighting opportunities for sustainable growth and development. The research, which found that on average a maximum of 5% of clothing in imported bales could be considered waste, demonstrated that the prevailing international perception is not only wrong, but economically unsound and deeply patronising. It asks significant questions of the prevailing narrative and should lead policy makers in the Global North to re-examine some of the unhelpful cultural assumptions they may have made about the ability of Africans to make informed choices and our agency in the SHC trade. This research dismantles many of the negative perceptions of the SHC trade, while asking serious questions of activists and governments about what has led them to uncritically accept and propagate a misleading narrative around waste. A full copy of the report can be found here . Notes to editors: For media enquiries or more information please contact the Ghana Used Clothing Dealers Association at: events@usedclothinggh.org, +447759764174, +233540946151 The Ghana Used Clothing Dealers Association The Ghana Used Clothing Dealers Association is the representative body for all used clothes, bags and shoes dealers and importers in Ghana and was created to represent all used clothes, bags and shoes traders, independent of any external control or authority. The Association was established to ensure the organisation of all used clothes, bags and shoes importers and dealers in Ghana into a unified association and serve as their advocate and to uphold the dignity and promote the general welfare of importers, wholesalers and retailers of all used clothes, bags and shoes importers and dealers in Ghana. The association provides an effective means of communication between used clothes, bags and shoes importers and dealers and the government as well as various stakeholders. Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2411321/The_Ghana_Used_Clothing_Dealers_Association.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/the-ghana-used-clothing-dealers-association-research-shows-that-waste-within-the-ghanaian-second-hand-clothes-trade-dramatically-lower-than-claimed-302143830.html AimHi Earth, a London, UK-based climate and sustainability training provider, secured 1M in funding. Backers included Nicco Perra, Sam Wisnia and The Climate Planet Foundation. The company intends to use the funds to expand its operations and its business reach. AimHi Earth provides live, online climate training and education, which equips people and organisations with the essential understanding, skills and ideas to overcome the climate and nature crisis and ensure sustainability. It works with multinational corporations including PepsiCo, Unilever and Molson Coors and is supported by Cambridge Zero at the University of Cambridge, the UN Environment Programme, the Eden Project and Nature4Climate. FinSMEs 13/05/2024 Mitra Future Technologies, Inc., a Mountain View, CA-based innovator in North American lithium-ion battery materials, received an investment from Alpha Wave Ventures as part of a Series B funding round. Alpha Wave joined other investors in this round, such as General Motors, Zeon, InQTel, Techmet-Mercuria, and GS Futures. As part of the investment, Elan Frantz joined Mitra Chems Board of Directors. The company intends to use the funds to expand operations and development efforts. Led by CEO Vivas Kumar, Mitra Chem is a lithium-ion battery materials product company that aims to shorten the lab-to-production timeline. Its first product category is iron-based cathodes for Western battery applications. The company takes cathode products from lab to industrial scale by leveraging an in-house artificial intelligence technology advantage to shorten the R&D timeline. Commenting on the news, Vivas Kumar said: The time for battery supply chain innovation in the U.S. is now because of groundbreaking government policies such as the IRA and BIL. Coupling these policies with private capital investors to accelerate the speed to scale is what will define the winners in the industry, and were glad that Alpha Wave chose to partner with us. FinSMEs 13/05/2024 Nowadays, the practices of analysing, recording, and processing data about economic entities play a key role in global economic decision-making. Accounting is vital for making informed economic decisions, such as allocating resources, formulating economic policies, and assessing the overall economic health of the nation, as it provides essential financial information to policymakers, investors, businesses, and other stakeholders, as well as identify and manage financial risks effectively. Transparent and accurate accounting practices enhance investor confidence in the economy, as investors rely on financial reports to evaluate the performance and prospects of companies, which in turn affects investment decisions and capital flows within the country, fosters entrepreneurship, and stimulates economic activity. However, the 21st century brought a strong need for change within the industry. Nowadays, the entire field is facing unprecedented risks threatening the global communitys sustainable economic development. With the increasing digitization of financial data, todays accounting systems are vulnerable to cybersecurity threats, which can compromise the integrity and confidentiality of financial information, leading to financial losses and reputational damage. At the same time, exponential digitalization, and innovations like artificial intelligence, blockchain, and automation are reshaping the accounting profession, which makes traditional accounting practices slowly dying out, while industry professionals are now required to adapt and re-learn or quit. In addition, the exponential globalization has increased the complexity of accounting practices due to cross-border transactions, diverse regulatory frameworks, and currency exchange fluctuations. Today, weve interviewed a leading expert in financial accounting and a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Guyana, Safraz Alli, and asked him to share his insights on the future of global accounting, and ways to turn the aforementioned threats into opportunities, ensuring sustainable economic growth and development on an international level. Spending over a decade solving all the intricate issues of accounting and finance, Safraz Alli has deservedly earned his global-level reputation as a top specialist in all the subtleties of financial accounting, particularly, in the field of manufacturing, distribution, services, and lecturing environments. Currently, Safraz applies his extensive knowledge and expertise at the Demerara Distillers Limited Group where he leads a team of finance & accounting managers, reshaping the sector on an everyday basis. Alli also acts as a member on the Companys Tender Committee, evaluating and assessing tenders for the corporation, which has played an instrumental role in the Demerara Distillers Limited Groups illustrious success in capital projects and global expansion. Serving as the linchpin of financial departments of several major corporations and fostering a positive change within the industry by incorporating new-generation technologies for financial management into the everyday routine, introducing the system of continuing education courses for employees under his supervision, and actively sharing his profound knowledge of international compliance practices gained from attending conferences and forums, Safraz has reshaped the approach to modern accounting not only within Demerara Distillers Limited Group, but also within the global community of leading financial experts. According to Alli, it is essential to treat the emerging challenges of the 21st century not as threats, but as opportunities to reach an entirely new level of accounting practices. The world never stops moving forward, comments Safraz, And neither should we. Alli suggests uniting the efforts of specialists from different sectors and create a common pool of expertise where leading professionals from financial, cybersecurity, legal compliance, and software engineering sectors collaborate and help each other to fill the gap formed by the increased demands of todays industry. Mr. Safraz is also known for advocating for a system of continuing education courses that proposes to make a common norm in the industry to offer every employee an opportunity to spend an hour of working per week completing a new online tutorial on the latest technologies and software that can help accountants to keep up with the demands of the exponentially digitalizing industry, master the principles of compliance with national and international regulations, and get a basic knowledge of cybersecurity practices and tools that can be used to ensure it. It is within our powers to build the future we want to live in, highlights Safraz, So, lets turn our industry into something we take pride in, foster continuous, comprehensive education, and turn our work into the dream job. Additionally, the 2007 subprime crisis stands as a stark reminder of the catastrophic consequences of unethical financial practices. At its core, the crisis was fueled by a lack of integrity and accountability among financial professionals who engaged in risky lending practices, misleading investments, and unchecked speculation. As we reflect on the lessons learned from this tumultuous period in economic history, it becomes abundantly clear that ethical conduct must be prioritized within the financial sector to prevent such crises from recurring. Ethical financial professionals, such as Mr. Alli, play a crucial role in maintaining the stability and integrity of financial markets. They adhere to a code of conduct that prioritizes honesty, transparency, and the best interests of their clients. Instead of chasing short-term gains at the expense of long-term stability, ethical professionals prioritize sustainable and responsible financial practices. One of the key lessons from the 2007 subprime crisis is the importance of thorough risk assessment and due diligence. Ethical financial professionals take the time to thoroughly evaluate the risks associated with financial products and investments, ensuring that their clients are fully informed before making any decisions. They do not succumb to the pressure of maximizing profits at any cost but rather prioritize the preservation of capital and the mitigation of risk. Ethical financial professionals prioritize the principle of fiduciary duty, which requires them to act in the best interests of their clients. This means putting the needs of clients ahead of their own financial gain and avoiding conflicts of interest that could compromise their integrity. By upholding this principle, ethical professionals build trust and credibility with their clients, fostering long-term relationships based on mutual respect and transparency. Regulatory oversight also plays a critical role in promoting ethical conduct within the financial industry. Government agencies and regulatory bodies must enforce strict regulations and standards to hold financial professionals accountable for their actions. Additionally, ongoing education and training programs can help ensure that professionals stay up-to-date on ethical guidelines and industry best practices. Individuals like Safraz Alli are indispensable in the financial sector, especially in the context of preventing another crisis like the 2007 subprime meltdown. Safraz Alli, known for his ethical leadership and commitment to responsible finance, embodies the qualities and principles that are essential for safeguarding the stability and integrity of financial markets. Furthermore, individuals like Safraz Alli possess a deep understanding of risk management and financial prudence. They recognize the importance of conducting thorough due diligence and risk assessments before engaging in any financial transactions or investments. By diligently evaluating the potential risks and rewards associated with various opportunities, they help mitigate the likelihood of catastrophic failures and market disruptions. Moreover, individuals like Safraz Alli prioritize transparency and accountability in their dealings. They believe in open communication and full disclosure, ensuring that their clients are well informed about the risks and implications of their financial decisions. By fostering a culture of transparency and accountability, they help build trust and confidence in the financial system, which is essential for its long-term stability and viability. Mr. Safraz Alli understands the importance of regulatory compliance and adherence to industry standards. In his current role, he works closely with regulatory authorities and government agencies to ensure that they are operating within the bounds of the law and upholding the highest standards of integrity and professionalism. By proactively engaging with regulators and advocating for stronger oversight, they help prevent fraud, misconduct, and other unethical practices that can destabilize financial markets. In essence, individuals like Safraz Alli are indispensable assets to the financial sector, particularly in the aftermath of events like the 2007 subprime crisis. Their unwavering commitment to ethical conduct, risk management, transparency, and regulatory compliance helps mitigate the likelihood of similar crises in the future. By following their example and embracing these principles, the financial industry can move towards a more stable, sustainable, and responsible future. 2024 has not been a good year for those supposed Big ticket entertainers. And one of the major areas of concern for the industry has been the rising costs and overwhelming budgets. And talking to Anupama Chopra on Film Companion, Kriti Sanon, who also turns producer with Netflixs Do Patti, had something to say on this. When told there was a big film where the male superstar had three cooks and two chefs for him, the actress replied, If you are in a film where you need to make a certain kind of body for that particular role, then obviously from the actor a lot of effort goes in achieving that. The expenses then, rightly so, the producer takes care of. So, you need to understand what is needed and what is luxury. The producers have to take a call. Advertisement She added, Apart from that I feel, a trainer or a nutrionist, depending on the role. In my case there have been many situations where my body is of no concern to the producer or the director, so if I am training and taking a trainer, I pay that cost. You have to balance what is needed for the film, what is not. It cant be unnecessary expense. Kriti Sanon has defied the odds, solidifying her position as one of the industrys most bankable actors in this 2024. With her two consecutive films namely Teri Baaton Mein Aisa Uljha Jiya and Crew , reaching the 10O crore milestone, Kriti has become a beacon of success, attracting the praises of the viewers. Now Kriti is all set with her new release of Do Paati alongside Kajol. Recently Kriti Sanon revealed that Do Patti was the most challenging film for her. She said " I think the one that is still not out which is Do Patti. Its hard for me to tell you why because only the teaser has been dropped. But I can say that in the film, I have done something for the first time that I did not play in any of my films earlier. It was really challenging not just physically and in body language but also emotionally a lot. It has got a lot of graph, emotions, drama and a lot of layers. It is a character with a lot of layers so Do Patti has been one of my most challenging so far. According to reports, Meghan Markles rude interaction during her and Prince Harrys royal tour of Nigeria has been exposed, claimed biographer Angela Levin. Her inappropriate dressing to a visit in a Muslim school has also been criticised. read more Where are your MANNERS Meghan Markle? Meghan Markles rude interaction during royal tour of Nigeria has been branded as phoney. But isnt this quite expected considering the person Meghan is and her attention seeking tendencies of her character? Meghan Markle in the past has also been critised for being an attention seeker. Publicity crazy sure she is. Duke and Duchess of Sussex were on a tour of the African nation after receiving an invitation. But Meghan Markles rude interaction with the people didnt go down well. The invitation of Meghan and Harry came from the countrys Chief of Defence Staff. Advertisement According to a report published in GB News, Levin criticised the unofficial royal visit and claimed their appearance is phoney and awful. Her dressing to was inappropriate for a school visit. In discussion with host Nana Akua, Levin said she could barely believe her eyes after witnessing Meghan and Harrys first few appearances, and criticised Meghans choice of dress code for her visit to the Lightway Academy college. Levin said: If you go to a school, a very quiet school that is a religious one, you dont go with a dress thats absolutely no backing to it at all. The royal biographer also revealed that Meghan was awful and rude during a certain interaction on the couples tour. Levin told GB News: She was very rude, because one of the teachers was talking to her and there were two girls there joining in politely. She obviously was bored. She looked up in the air, looked around, she then sort of pulled Harry, as she usually does, because she was bored with it. Harry too was not behaving the way he was expected to behave when in a foreign country. He went to visit some wounded soldiers. He was trying to copy his mother, Diana. But didnt have the softness of his mother! New Delhi is set to enter into a 10-year deal with Tehran to manage the Chabahar Port in southeastern Iran. Experts say the port allows India to cut Pakistan out of the loop while sending its goods directly to Afghanistan and serves its goal of countering Chinas attempts to expand its influence in the region through its Belt and Road Initiative read more The Chabahar Port is located in Irans Sistan-Balochistan province. It is viewed as a crucial cog in linking India to Afghanistan, Central Asia, and the larger Eurasian region. News18 India is getting ready to counter China and Pakistan by tying up with Iran. New Delhi is set to enter into an agreement with Tehran to manage the Chabahar Port in southeastern Iran. Economic Times reported that shipping minister Sarbananda Sonowal will travel to Iran today to ink the 10-year deal. This is the first time India will be managing a port overseas, as per the report. But what is the significance of this port? Can it be Indias answer to Pakistans Gwadar Port and Chinas Belt and Road Initiative? Advertisement Lets take a closer look: What is it? The Chabahar Port is located in Irans Sistan-Balochistan province. According to The Times of India, it is viewed as a crucial cog in linking India to Afghanistan, Central Asia, and the larger Eurasian region. India wants the port to be a key hub in the International North South Transport Corridor (INSTC). The INSTC connects India and Russia via Iran. It is a 7,200-kilometre multi-mode transport project for moving freight among India, Iran, Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Russia, Central Asia and Europe. The INSTC gained importance amid the conflict in Ukraine. New Delhi has been pushing both the INSTC and the Chabahar Port to boost regional connectivity. According to Business Standard, India and Iran first began discussing the port in 2003. It took India another decade to finally invested $100 million in the port. The vital step on the port was finally taken in 2016. This occurred during Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Iran. India at the time also committed to financing the development of the Shahid Beheshti terminal to the tune of $85 million. In 2018, then Iran president Hassan Rouhani had expounded on increasing Indias involvement in the port. Advertisement India and Iran have frequently discussed the port in high-level exchanges, as per Business Standard. Why is it important? Because of its prime location on the Gulf of Oman at the mouth of the Strait of Hormuz. According to The Diplomat, the Chabahar Port is Irans only deep-sea port with direct access to the ocean. Interestingly, it is also exempt from US sanctions which makes it an attractive prospect not just for India but other nations as well. As per The Times of India, central Asian nations such as Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan have articulated their willingness to use Chabahar to get their goods into the Indian Ocean Region and the Indian market. Advertisement It will also help Indian traders and investors get access to central Asia. The Peninsula.org noted that the Chabahar Port allows India to cut the time it takes to send goods to central Asia by a third. As per India Today, the Chabahar Port will boost Indias import of iron ore, sugar and rice. It also gives India access by road to four Afghanistan cities Herat, Kandahar, Kabul, and Mazar-e-Sharif. It stands to reason that better connectivity with Afghanistan could thus lead to improved diplomatic relations. Chabahar Port became even more important for India after China included the Gwadar Port as part of its Belt and Road Initiative. The port can also be used as a pushing off point from which humanitarian operations can be conducted. The development also comes at a time when the crisis in West Asia is reaching a fever pitch. Advertisement Hamas attack on Israel and Jerusalems response has led to key trade routes being disrupted and has shone a light on the need to improve regional connectivity. Counter to Pakistan and China? But arguably the ports most important feature is serving as Indias counter to the Pakistans Gwadar Port and Chinas Belt and Road Initiative. As per India Today, using the port allows India to cut Pakistan out of the loop while sending its goods directly to Afghanistan. Advertisement The easiest routes for India to Central Asia and Russia are through Pakistan and Afghanistan. The next best is through Iran, which borders Central Asia and the Caspian Sea. Even as India sought access to Afghanistan, it was also looking at what was called the INSTC, which would take it to Russia and the European territories_, Indian Express_ quoted Raja Mohan as saying. As The Diplomat piece noted, India has been severely hindered in establishing land-based trading with countries to its west, as virtually all of those routes would have to go through Pakistan, Indias archrival. Establishing a sea-based trade route to Western and Central Asia via Chabahar Port would allow India to bypass Pakistan and establish trade networks with the countries in these regions. The port became even more important for India after China included the Gwadar Port as part of its BRI. The port could also be of use to India if China stations its vessels in Gwadar Port which is less than 400 kilometres away by road and 100 kilometres by sea. The Peninsula.org piece also pointed out that the Chabahar Port also serves Indias goal of countering Chinas attempts to expand its influence in the Indian Ocean. The competition for regional dominance between India and China can be seen in the development of ports in the regions, the piece noted. The Diplomat piece also noted how New Delhi and Tehran coming closer together could prove a counterweight to China and Pakistans all-weather friendship. Indias involvement with Chabahar Port, then, serves as a key strategy to buttress its superpower status by widening its regional market presence and using an Indo-Iranian alliance to buffer China and particularly Sino-Pakistani cooperation, the piece stated. India-Iran can overcome challenges While Indias development of Chabahar Port could be impacted by deteriorating US-Iran ties especially if Donald Trump returns to the White House, opportunities remain. Indian Express quoted Ali Omidi and Gauri Noolkar-Oak of the University of Isfahan in Iran as noting in their paper Geopolitics of Chabahar port for Iran, India and Afghanistan, The Chabahar project comes with its challenges, mainly susceptibility to American sanctions and pressures, the volatility and continuing uncertainties in Afghanistan, and the seeming incompatibility with the BRI. However, through active and visionary diplomacy and efficient implementation and operations of the project, Iran and India can overcome these challenges and should be able to maintain the Chabahar project as a viable transit hub and link. Iranian ambassador Iraj Elahi in February said the development of the port as a golden gateway connecting the countries in the Indian Ocean region to Central Asia is a significant example of India-Iran engagement. The cooperation of the two countries in the development of Chabahar Port, as the golden gateway connecting the countries along the Indian Ocean to Central Asia and the Caucasus, and the cooperation in the INSTC are important examples of the growing cooperation, Elahi said at an event marking the 45th anniversary of the Islamic Republic of Iran. With inputs from agencies By Chun In-bum Koreans have a unique language and alphabet central to their cultural identity. Geographically, the Korean Peninsula serves as a bridge between mainland China and the islands of Japan, linking oceans and continents. Historically, this strategic location placed Korea in a precarious position, often resulting in Korea becoming a vassal state to the dominant Chinese dynasty of the time, a situation that was never satisfactory to Koreans. With the end of World War II, Korea was liberated from Japanese occupation but subsequently divided into North and South Korea. Within five years, a civil war ensued, resulting in the death of 10 percent of the Korean population and the establishment of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) under the Kim-cult dynasty. The DPRK is unique in its strict caste system centered around the Kim family, with a political ideology that deifies the Kims. The regime maintains power through extensive indoctrination and a focus on loyalty to the Kim family. In contrast, South Korea has developed into a liberal democracy, standing in stark opposition to the DPRK's regime. Following the Korean War, both Koreas engaged in frequent conflicts for about twenty years. Since the mid-1970s, efforts have been made to reconcile differences peacefully, but these efforts have consistently failed, leaving the peninsula facing the threat of a nuclear-armed North Korea. South Korea, while committed to its security, cannot match the DPRK's militarization and relies heavily on the United States for deterrence against North Korean aggression and potential Chinese pressures. This alliance has allowed South Korea to achieve economic prosperity and political freedom while the U.S. gains a reliable ally that exemplifies successful U.S. foreign policy. However, the U.S. military presence, while providing stability, has also led to a sense of complacency among South Koreans regarding their own defense responsibilities. This dependency is not ideal for any nation and poses long-term strategic risks, including diminished national sovereignty and the potential erosion of military readiness and innovation. Recently, some potential U.S. policymakers have suggested shifting U.S. policy focus on the Korean peninsula from the defense of Korea to countering China, implying that South Korea should assume greater responsibility for its own defense, which is reasonable, but it sounded like abandonment. This notion has raised concerns, leading some South Koreans to consider developing their own nuclear weapons. While understandable, it is crucial to recognize that nuclear armament alone will not resolve all security challenges for South Korea. The real challenge for South Korea is to take full responsibility for its security, which will require significant sacrifices in social and political freedoms. This includes potentially doubling or tripling defense spending, extending military service terms and incorporating women into the armed forces. Additionally, South Korea may need a nuclear deterrent to counter North Korean threats effectively. Such measures would also necessitate a robust public discourse on the implications of increased militarization and the balance between security and civil liberties. If the U.S. intends to loosen its military ties with South Korea, it should acknowledge South Korea's right to consider nuclear capabilities. North Korea's nuclear status and open threats justify this consideration. A nuclear-armed South Korea would challenge the existing non-proliferation framework, but the Non-Proliferation Treaty may already be losing its effectiveness in addressing contemporary security challenges posed by rogue states and non-state actors. There could also be strategic advantages for the U.S.-South Korea relationship. The U.S. could negotiate with North Korea on nuclear issues and normalization of relations, influencing China's strategic calculations. A nuclear-armed South Korea would also compel China to reassess its regional strategies, particularly concerning Japan and Taiwan. Despite possessing nuclear weapons, South Korea would likely remain closely aligned with the U.S., given the deep-rooted economic, political and cultural ties between the two nations. The political systems in both South Korea and the U.S. provide both opportunities and uncertainties. Actions and decisions by the U.S. and China will significantly impact South Korea's future, raising concerns among Koreans about being sidelined. It is imperative for South Korea to confront these realities, overcome fears, and make decisive choices on critical security matters. Furthermore, South Korea must proactively engage in regional diplomacy to build a coalition of like-minded nations that can collectively address the threats posed by North Korea and maintain regional stability. Chun In-bum (truechun@naver.com) served as a lieutenant general of the ROK Army and commander of Special Forces Korea. A Hong Kong sales ban on some of MDH and Everest products after a cancer-causing pesticide was found has triggered a wave of scrutiny, including in the United States, the Maldives, India and Australia. However, both brands say their products are safe read more MDH and Everest, Indian spice makers, have become essential ingredients in kitchens around the world, adding flavour to chicken, fish curries, and vegetable dishes. Both brands claim their products are safe, but recent regulatory actions have raised concerns. The authorities have discovered levels of ethylene oxide that exceed permissible limits. As a result, Hong Kong has suspended sales of certain MDH and Everest spice blends. The United States Food and Drug Administration is also investigating these allegations. The Australian Food Safety Agency has also been looking into some specific spices from these two brands. Advertisement Ethylene oxide is a known carcinogen that can damage DNA and disrupt cellular function, eventually leading to the development of various types of cancer. Heres what we know about MDH and Everest. What the firms say on the trouble? MDH (Mahashian Di Hatti) Mahashian Di Hatti , also known as MDH, is a New Delhi-based family business founded in 1919. The photo of the old man in the regal red turban on the masala packets distinguishes the brand and contributes to its popularity, along with advertisements and packaging featuring its founder, Dharampal Gulati. Its founder, Dharampal Gulati, who is known as Indias Spice King due to his rags-to-riches story, has made the concept of ready-to-use spices a reality for consumers across the world. Dharampal Gulati, born in 1923 in Sialkot (now in Pakistan), dropped out of school in fifth grade to help his father, Mahashay Chunni Lal Gulati, sell spices in his small shop, before failing to sell mirrors, soaps, and try his hand at carpentry. As the business expanded locally, they became known as Deggi Mirch Wale. However, following Partition in 1947, he was forced to relocate to India, leaving everything behind. He restarted his familys ground spice business in Karol Bagh, Delhi. As word spread about the Sialkots Spicemakers, MDH gained popularity and has never looked back since. Gulati, who was awarded Padma Bhushan in 2019, died in 2020. Advertisement President Ram Nath Kovind confers Padma Bhushan upon Mahashian Di Hatti (MDH) owner Dharampal Gulati during Padma Awards 2019, in New Delhi. File image/PTI CNBC reports that the company now sells more than 65 products and has lakhs of retailers and at least 1,000 wholesale dealers across the country. It sells ground spices as well as spice blends developed after decades of research. MDH has five factories and its products are sold in India and markets such as Australia, the United States, Europe, Canada and the United Kingdom through a network of more than 400,000 retail dealers. MDHs revenue for 2022-2023 stood at $260 million (Rs 2,171crore). Everest Everest Food Products started in 1967 with three products. Its founder Vadilal Bhai Shah started his business from a small 200 square feet spice shop. Advertisement With 52 products, Everest today has global presence in around 80 countries, including in North America, Europe, the West Asia, the Asia Pacific and Africa. Some 20 million households use Everest products every day and 3.7 billion packs of its products are sold each year, according to its website. Around 620,000 outlets sell Everest products in 1,000 small towns and cities of India. With 52 products, Everest today has global presence in around 80 countries, including in North America, Europe, the West Asia, the Asia Pacific and Africa. Image used for representational purpose/Pixabay Indias Bollywood stars Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan are Everest brand ambassadors, appearing together in many TV commercials to promote its products, especially those to make the famous rice dish, biryani. Everests net sales for 2022-23 stood at $365 million (Rs 3,048 crore). Advertisement Trouble facing MDH and Everest At least five countries, including Singapore, Hong Kong, and the United States, have launched an investigation into the possible contamination of spice mixes sold by MDH and Everest. The trouble began on 5 April when Hong Kongs Centre for Food Safety suspended the sale of three MDH spice blends (Madras curry powder, Sambhar masala, and Curry Powder Masala) as well as Everest fish curry masala. The complaints allege that the spice mixes contained high levels of ethylene oxide, a toxic chemical used as a food stabiliser. Days later, Singapore ordered a recall of the Everest spice mix, stating that Ethylene oxide is a pesticide that is not authorised for use in food, adding that the pesticide renders the spices unfit for human consumption and poses a cancer risk if exposed for an extended period, as per a report in The Hindu. In response, Indias Spices Board has mandated product testing for exports and is reportedly collaborating with exporters to determine the source of contamination. The international scrutiny has prompted calls for Indias Food Safety and Standards Authority to conduct stringent quality checks on spices and curry powders sold in domestic markets, according to The Hindu. Advertisement The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) informed Reuters that it is aware of the reports and is gathering additional information about the situation. The FDA has previously rejected food and spice imports from India. Similar plans have been announced by regulatory bodies in Bangladesh, Australia, and the Maldives. Brands speak up Both Everest and MDH have stated that they follow strict hygiene and safety guidelines. Only one of 60 Everest products was held for examination. We assure our customers that our products are safe and of high quality, so there is no cause for concern, Everest said, reports TOI. On the other hand, MDH has said the company has not received any communication from regulatory authorities of Singapore or Hong Kong and such claims are untrue, lacking any substantiating evidence. The controversy comes at a time when the sector is experiencing strong growth. While the sector has previously faced similar issues, the timing of the action is likely to have a long-term impact on sales. According to a TOI report, Indian spices have gathered worldwide fame, and thanks to the Indian diaspora, sales have soared over the years. According to Avendus Capital, spices are the most appealing segment in the food category, with blended spices expected to account for 35 per cent of total organised business by 2025. With inputs from Reuters Smartphone users are expressing concern that their mobile devices are changing the way their little fingers look. When applying pressure on their pinky during regular use, it is creating a mark or indentation. The phenomenon has been dubbed as iPhone finger read more 'iPhone finger' is used to describe a visible mark or indentation on the pinky finger likely caused by extensive usage of your phone. Image used for representational purposes/Pixabay In recent years, the widespread use of smartphones has brought about various changes in our lifestyle but are they even altering the appearance of our hands? Dubbed as iPhone finger, this phenomenon has caught the attention of many, sparking discussions and debates regarding its existence and potential implications. During a March segment of The TJ Show, shared on TikTok, the concept of iPhone finger was elaborated upon by one of the hosts. Advertisement Describing how the weight of the phone often rests on the pinky finger during usage, they explained how this could lead to a visible indentation, altering the appearance of the finger. Viewers were encouraged to check for such indents on their own pinkies, leading to a surprising revelation for many. #FPVideo: Tech enthusiasts and smartphone users fear that their mobile devices are putting pressure and causing an indentation on their little fingers. This phenomenon is termed as "iPhone finger". Watch the video to know more pic.twitter.com/mRCzbUPPVd Firstpost (@firstpost) March 29, 2024 What was the public response? The TikTok video garnered significant attention, amassing over six million views and sparking a flurry of comments. While some found humour in the term iPhone finger, others questioned its validity, citing pre-existing finger indents or alternative smartphone brands. Why iPhone finger and not just phone finger? one user questioned. I got Samsung finger thank God I dont have iPhone finger another one joked. Advertisement Others refuted the theory with one comment saying, Both my pinkies had a bend in them well before iPhones. Also Read: What workers using AI fear the most Another user echoed the segment, writing: This is junk science, every one of my fingers has an indent in the same spot. The phenomenon of iPhone finger drew comparisons to other repetitive strain injuries, such as a writers callus. According to Healthline, a writers callus is an area of accumulated dead skin cells that form as a result of repeated friction against your finger. What is the expert opinion? Andrew Bracken, an occupational therapist who spoke to Fox13, provided insights into the phenomenon. Advertisement While acknowledging the existence of finger indents caused by smartphone usage, he clarified that iPhone finger is not recognised as a medical condition. Its not an official medical diagnosis, Bracken explained to the outlet. Youre using your pinky to stabilise and support your smartphone, and you literally indent the side of your pinky from holding your phone. Also Read: How WhatsApp investing scams are duping people into parting with their savings Despite this, he warned against the potential consequences of prolonged smartphone use, including conditions like Cubital tunnel syndrome and carpal tunnel syndrome. Theyll develop numbness in their pinky finger and along the side of their hand, Bracken told the outlet. Its the angle of their wrist and their elbow that contributes to that numbness and that can lead to some real serious consequences if not addressed. Advertisement Are there any potential health concerns? Bracken emphasised the importance of addressing issues arising from excessive smartphone use, such as numbness and discomfort in the fingers and hand. While smartphones themselves may not cause significant damage, improper usage habits can contribute to long-term health problems, underscoring the need for moderation and ergonomic awareness. Speaking to the New York Post, Dr Peter Evans, an orthopaedic surgeon with Cleveland Clinic, warned that it was also possible that people who think they have smartphone pinky could have an underlying condition. Also Read: Apples iPad Pro ad that crushes creativity draws flak, tech giant issues apology He added, Constant cellphone use can cause a range of joint problems. While some claims of injury might be overstated, others are real and involve serious, long-term damage. Evans also warned that some medical problems include clinodactyly, a genetic finger malformation causing the tip of the pinky to bend close to the ring finger. There is also Dupuytrens contracture, which happens when thick cords form beneath the skin over years and yank fingers close to the palm. Advertisement But none of them have any relation to smartphone use. In response to concerns over iPhone finger, various coping mechanisms were suggested by both experts and commentators. Some advocated for the use of accessories like PopSockets to alleviate pressure on the pinky finger, while others recommended reducing overall screen time as a preventive measure. Also Read: Meet John Ternus, the man most likely to replace Tim Cook as Apples CEO when he steps down With inputs from agencies Former Indian Air Force chief Air Chief Marshal Pradeep Vasant Naik has said that his spouses name was deleted from the voters list in Pune as they went to poll during the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha election. Several people have made similar complaints in the city. Whats going on? read more Voters stand in a queue to cast their votes during the fourth phase of national elections in Jammu on 13 May 2024. AP India is holding the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections, with 96 constituencies across nine states and one Union Territory (UT) polling on Monday (13 May). As per reports, some electors, including the elderly and young, in Maharashtras Pune have complained that they could not exercise their franchise as their names were missing from the voters list. Former Indian Air Force chief Air Chief Marshal Pradeep Vasant Naik also said that his wife Madhubalas name was deleted from the voters list. He told the news agency PTI that he, his wife and their son went to polling booth 26 at Sampling School Baner Road in Pune to cast their ballots. Advertisement ACM Naik said that while he and his son were able to exercise their franchise, my 72-year-old wifes name was found deleted from the voters list. When we brought this to the attention of the official there, he said that there was nothing he could do to help. We had the necessary slips given by the local corporator with us when we reached the polling centre. But it was of no use as my wifes name was not there on the list, the former IAF chief told the news agency. Similar complaints have also been made by other voters in Pune. However, this is not the first time that reports of names missing from the electoral list have emerged. During the third phase of polling on 7 May when parts of Pune voted in the election in the Baramati Lok Sabha constituency, electors who had appeared at their old polling booth did not find their names in the list, reported Indian Express. Last week, members of the National Society of Clean Cities flagged missing names to the Pune Cantonment officials, especially in Koregaon Park and Kalyaninagar. A Koregaon resident, who had voted in previous elections and found his name deleted from the list this time, told Times of India (TOI), How can my name be deleted without following mandatory checks. But why is this happening? Why does a voters name go missing from the electoral list? What can you do if your name is not there? We explain. Advertisement Why did voters names go missing in Pune? According to Punes election officers, as many as 2.39 lakh names were added and 17,749 voters were deleted from the electoral rolls between 23 January and 15 April this year, as per the Indian Express report. This came after the district election office conducted an exercise in October to rationalise polling booths. The election officers said this was needed in view of the total number of votes that one electronic voting machine (EVM) can register, the newspaper reported. According to the Election Commission of India (ECI), a single EVM can hold a maximum of 2,000 votes but is usually approved to store 1,500 votes. Advertisement The electoral rolls were invariably divided among polling stations leading to people flagging that their names were missing in their old polling booths, as per the report. Names have not been deleted. Instead, they might have been shifted from one booth to another. In case the voter is not able to find their names in the list it would be advisable to check in the nearby booths. Deletion of names is an extreme exercise and is rarely done so, an officer told Indian Express. ALSO READ: Lok Sabha elections 2024: FAQs for voters as polls begin Conditions for deleting names There are several rules for deleting an electors name from the voters list. These include the death of a person, if a voter goes missing, if a persons name appears twice, and if a voter shifts from one Assembly constituency to another. Advertisement If an elector is not found during a door-to-door survey, then their name could be deleted, as per Indian Express. If someone has changed their residence and has not updated it with the ECI in the voter ID, their name will not be on the electoral roll of their new constituency. These names may appear in the persons old constituency, noted Indian Express. A list of deleted names is prepared for suggestions and objections before being removed from the electoral list, the newspaper report added. People arrive to cast their votes at a polling station during the fourth phase of national elections in Hyderabad on 13 May 2024. AP What if your name is deleted? The voters whose names have been deleted from the electoral list will not be able to cast their votes in the ongoing Lok Sabha polls. Advertisement However, district officers in Pune told Indian Express that such voters can immediately register by filling out Form 8 so they can exercise their franchise in the Maharashtra Assembly elections slated to be held later this year. ALSO READ: Why low voter turnout is not just a 2024 problem How to check if your name is on the voters list? Any adult who has registered to vote and/or voted in the last time elections took place can find their names in the voters list of their constituency. Those who turned 18 as of 1 April 2024 are also eligible to exercise their franchise in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. They can enrol themselves by filling out Form 6. Before visiting the polling booth, electors must check if their name is on the voters list. This can be done by visiting the ECIs website (electoralsearch.eci.gov.in) or the ECIs Voter Helpline app. On the ECIs website, submit your Voter ID or EPIC (Electors Photo Identification Card) number, state, and language and enter the Captcha Code. Electors search for their names in the voters list in the Lohardaga district in Jharkhand on 13 May. PTI There are other options as well such as entering your registered mobile number with the ECI or submitting your personal details like name, age, gender and so on. If you are a registered voter but cannot find your name in the electoral list, you can fill out the relevant form before the last date of nomination. You can visit voters.eci.gov.in to do that. Notably, the ECI recommends applying for the inclusion of your name in the electoral roll at least seven days before the nomination deadline ends. The last day for filing nominations for the seventh phase is 14 May. The nomination deadline is over for the rest of the phases, meaning voters for the fifth and sixth phases cannot enrol now. With inputs from agencies A dust storm is usually produced by strong winds from a thunderstorm. A wall of dust and debris, it usually occurs in flat regions with few plants and trees. High winds in Mumbai left 3 dead. 59 injured and 100 trapped on Monday after a massive billboard toppled over read more Dust storms kill at a rate similar to hurricanes, wildfires and tornadoes. News18 The citizens of Mumbai were left surprised on Monday after the city was hit by high winds, rain and a massive dust storm. According to multiple reports, three are dead and 59 are injured in the citys Ghatkopar area after a billboard collapsed on a petrol pump due to high winds. Around 100 others are feared trapped. The incident occurred at the Police Ground petrol pump along the Eastern Express Highway in Pantnagar. Advertisement The incident was reported by the Mumbai Fire Brigade (MFB) at 4.30 pm at Police Ground Petrol Pump, Eastern Express Highway, Pantnagar, Ghatkopar East. Police, Mumbai Fire Brigade and other agencies have been mobilised, a civic official told PTI. The injured persons have been rushed to civic-run Rajawadi Hospital, the official added. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) Mumbai issued a nowcast warning predicting a thunderstorm accompanied by lightning and moderate to intense spells of rain for Thane, Palghar and Mumbai. Thunderstorm accompanied with lightning and light to moderate spells of rain with gusty winds reaching 40-50 kmph is very likely to occur at isolated places in Mumbai in the next 3-4 hours, an IMD official said. But what is a dust storm? And what triggered one in Mumbai? Lets take a closer look: According to SciJinks.com, a dust storm is a wall of dust and debris. It is usually produced by strong winds from thunderstorms. The dust storm can be kilometres long and can stretch thousands of feet in the air. Though they can occur anywhere in the world, they mostly happen in West Asia and North Africa. Advertisement An area with certain geography and plant life for example flat regions with few plants and trees are more likely to experience dust storms. This lack of plants and trees lets winds gather energy. According to National Geographic, wind hitting the earth disturbs the layer of dust atop the soil. It then kicks the dust particles high into the air. The dust and wind then meld to create massive dust clouds. Farming practices like tilling in which plants are uprooted and the ground broken up to allow moisture and air to hit the soil contribute to such storms. Dust storms have a few characteristics They can often begin abruptly and can catch people off guard They can cause car accidents by reducing visibility They can cause delays and mechanical issues for airplanes Can cause health issues for people Dust storms are no laughing matter. As per National Geographic, they have left hundreds dead in the US over the past decade. They kill at a rate similar to hurricanes, wildfires and tornadoes. Natalie Mahowald, a professor of atmospheric science at Cornell University, told National Geographic, they can make asthma worse and also damage the lungs. Advertisement dust gets into peoples respiratory systems, said Mahowald. Its not good for humans. If you happen to get caught in a dust storm while driving, the safest course of action is to pull over and wait it out. As per The Week, dust storms have increased due to land degradation and droughts caused by climate change. They can damage crops, kill livestock, and strip topsoil in the areas from which they came while distant areas are affected by atmospheric dust and surface dust deposits, which affect human health as well as disrupt transportation, supply chains, and power networks, as per the report. Advertisement Dust storms also have a negative impact on the climate by keeping the heat in the atmosphere. Around 40 percent of atmospheric aerosols minute particles suspended in the atmosphere come from wind erosion. Scientists are concerned about dust storms because of aerosols. These aerosols, which make global warming worse, perpetuate a feedback loop. Thus the higher temperatures get, the more storms occur, as per The Week. The incident occurred at the Police Ground petrol pump along the Eastern Express Highway in Pantnagar. The injured persons have been rushed to civic-run Rajawadi Hospital. CNBC-TV18 Speaking to Hindustan Times, IMD scientist Sushma Nair chalked up the scenes in Mumbai to a trough over Maharashtra. Nair predicted that this would disperse in the next few hours. Mumbai left reeling Metro services were suspended between Aarey and Andheri East metro stations after a banner landed on the overheard wire due to strong winds, a spokesperson from Metro Rail said. Advertisement Suburban services on Central Railway were affected after an overhead equipment pole between Thane and Mulund stations got bent due to strong winds, an official said. The suburban services on the Main Line have been suspended, the chief spokesperson of Central Railway said. While the unseasonal showers brought some respite from the scorching heat, power outages were reported in Kalwa in Thane district and some other areas. Apart from this, incidents of trees falling were also reported in some places. Rains coupled with gusty winds were witnessed in the suburbs of Dadar, Kurla, Mahim, Ghatkopar, Mulund and Vikhroli, while parts of south Mumbai saw drizzles. The satellite towns of Thane, Ambernath, Badlapur, Kalyan and Ulhasnagar also received moderate showers with gusty winds. As per The Week, operations at the Mumbai airport have been suspended until further notice. With inputs from agencies Spains Balearic Islands are toughening rules on party boats and public drinking as part of modifications to a 2020 decree that addressed excessive tourism. Violators will be fined between 500 (Rs 45,000) and 1,500 (Rs 1,35,025) read more People enjoy the sunny weather on a terrace bar on Magaluf beach, on the Balearic island of Mallorca, Spain. Reuters Europe is implementing an array of anti-tourist rules intended to reduce mass tourism in holiday hotspots. Spains Balearic Islands are the most recent, with tougher laws against party boats and public drinking. This is part of modifications to a 2020 decree that addressed excess tourism. Sant Antoni in Ibiza, Playa de Palma, and Magaluf in Majorca are among the well-known destinations where the government claims the law will be toughened, according to the BBC. Heres all we know about it. Advertisement New rules for responsible tourism Approved on 10 May, the new law sees a total ban of the sale of alcohol between 9.30 pm and 8 am in shops in places with high levels of tourism, as per The Sun. It also bans drinking in the streets in key tourist areas on the islands of Ibiza and Mallorca, with an exception for terraces and other licensed areas. The rule will be implemented in areas of Ibiza that are most impacted by the large number of tourists, including Llucmajor, Palma, Calvia (Magalluf), and Sant Antoni. Violators will be subject to fines between 500 (Rs 45,000) and 1,500 (Rs 1,35,025). The new law would count the penalties imposed on foreign nationals and send the results to the relevant embassies, as per BBC. As per the decree, party boats that serve alcohol on board will not be allowed to be anywhere near the specified regions within a nautical mile (1.852 kilometres). Passengers will not be allowed to board or depart in the affected locations. Tourists chill and take drinks in terrace bars in Paguera beach in Calvia on the Spanish island of Mallorca following Berlins lifted quarantine requirement for travellers returning from the Balearic Islands. Reuters The rule will be in place at least until 31 December 2027, The Sun reported. The government changed its 2020 decree against excess tourism to refer to responsible tourism, even though the new regulations are intended to further curb disruptive behaviour. The update notes that tourism represents more than 45 per cent of the communitys GDP, acknowledging that the original statement ran contradictory to the islands primary sector. Advertisement A sustainable tourist tax of 16 million euros, or around $17.2 million, will be used by the newly amended Responsible Tourism Decree to support projects that promote responsible tourism in the impacted areas. Curbing anti-social behaviour Over the years, the Canary Islands have served as popular gathering places for youthful tourists and worldwide celebrities. According to statistics from the local chamber of commerce, 13.9 million tourists visited the islands in 2023 a 13 per cent increase from the previous year. That is roughly six times the 2.2 million people who live on the islands. Although the islands are also a well-liked travel destination for Spaniards living on the mainland, their largest tourist markets are the UK and Germany. Advertisement According to CNN, initial media reports of uncivil behaviour in specific tourist areas of Mallorca and Ibiza, largely linked to alcohol consumption, prompted the introduction of the original 22-article decree in 2020. The actions had tarnished the reputation of the locations and created a nightlife environment that made the sites less appealing to locals. Year after year news has appeared related to uncivil behaviour by young tourists that has caused deep concern among the rest of the citizens, in the hotel sector and in the administrative involved, the decree said, noting that serious injuries and deaths have occurred. The decree specified rules for lodging, marketing and sale of alcoholic beverages, penalties, and other ways to stop disruptive or harmful behaviour. Advertisement According to Luis Pomar, a press representative for the Balearic Islands Tourism Council, the 2020 regulation has proven effective in reducing antisocial behaviour, as reported by the BBC. He added that he hoped the law would no longer be needed in three to four years, if we instil in people how to behave. According to him, the commission on the Promotion of Civility in Tourist Zones would be expanded to include members from the UK and Germany, whose visitors are most frequently linked to issues. The regional government claimed to be the first in Europe to impose restrictions on the advertising and sale of alcohol in specific tourist areas when the 2020 law was introduced. Advertisement It stated that the new policies would fight excesses and force a real change in those destinations tourism models. Protest against excessive tourism The move from Majorca comes after thousands of people in Tenerife staged protests last month to call for restrictions on vacationers, as per The Sun. In the capital of Santa Cruz, more than 15,000 people let out a deafening roar while waving the flags of the Canary Islands and blowing horns. They blamed tourists for pricing them out of their homes and causing environmental damage as a result of tourist numbers leaping from 11.5 million annually to 16 million over the past decade. People march during a mass demonstration against tourism which affects the local population with inaccessible housing among other things in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain. AP English-language messages were written on walls and seats within the resort, with phrases such as My misery your paradise and Average salary in Canary Islands is 1,200 euros. The National Statistics Institute (INE) estimates that 34 per cent of Canary Islanders were at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2023, which is the second-highest number in Spain after Andalusia. The islands capital, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Chamber of Commerce stated on social media that it believes in the need to reflect on the future of the tourism industry. However, considering that the tourism sector accounts for 40 per cent of jobs and 35 per cent of the archipelagos GDP, it issued a warning against what it called tourism-phobia. The Canary Islands regional president, Fernando Clavijo, highlighted the islands reliance on tourism and called it a successful model. Nevertheless, he acknowledged that there was a chance to revisit that approach because of the demonstrations on 20 April. Anti-tourist measures across Europe In many popular destinations, overcrowding has emerged as the primary issue, and officials are working to find a solution that will satisfy both visitors and locals. Authorities have tried to lessen the effect on tourists by imposing higher tourist taxes or by prohibiting the construction of new hotels, according to The Sun. Venice started charging day-trippers 5 (Rs 450) to enter the ancient Italian centre earlier this year, making it the first city in the world to impose an entry fees for tourists. It was followed by a neighbourhood in Barcelona that, in an attempt to discourage large numbers of visitors from taking the bus, removed a popular bus route from Apple and Google Maps. As per the report, San Sebastian, in northern Spain set a 25-person cap for guided tours to prevent crowding, noise, congestion, and other problems. The construction of new hotels has already been outlawed by the city. In Andalucia, the Spanish government has permitted restaurants to charge more for patrons who choose to sit in the shade. Benidorm has put time limits in place since swimming in the sea between midnight and 7 am may cost as much as 1,000 (Rs 1,04,585), the report added. Greece currently imposes a tourist tax in high season (March to October), with visitors expecting to pay between 1 (~Rs 90) and 4 (Rs 360) each night, depending on the reserved accommodation. To encourage tourists to be considerate of others when travelling, Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, officials want to impose a tax. With inputs from agencies NASA has said that two asteroids, named 2024 JB2 and 2020 JP10, are approaching Earth with fiery speeds. Should we be concerned about them? read more In the vast expanse of our solar system, another celestial close encounter is underway as two massive asteroids are making their way toward our planet, NASA said. The premier US space agency raised a warning that asteroids, one nearly as big as a building, are approaching the Earth and will most likely pass by Earth by today (13 May). While asteroids passing by is not unusual, the fiery speed with which these two are travelling has become a concern. Advertisement But how dangerous are these asteroids and can they strike us? Heres what we know 1. The two celestial visitors are named 2024 JB2 and 2020 JP10, and they measure between 60-130 metres and 52-120 metres wide, respectively. The asteroid 2024 JB2 is a part of the Apollo group of near-earth asteroids that have orbits intersecting with Earths orbit. 2. Asteroid 2024 JB2 is making its way to Earth at an astounding speed of 63,683 kilometres per hour, NASAs Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) data revealed. Whereas, the other space rock is even faster and is heading towards Earth at a staggering 90,000 km per hour. 3. Data from NASA says that during their time of passing Earth, Asteroid 2024 JB2 will be 44.3 lakh km away from Earth whereas the other asteroid will be 72 lakh km from Earth. 4. The space agency constantly monitors known near-Earth objects using data from observatories worldwide, including NASA-funded ones like Pan-STARRS and Catalina Sky Survey. Planetary radar projects like the Goldstone Solar System Radar Group are also employed to track these objects, providing crucial information on their size, speed, and trajectory to evaluate potential impact risks for our planet. 5. While the focus remains on the two sizable asteroids heading towards Earth, theres another celestial visitor set to make a close approach. Named 2024 JQ12, this diminutive asteroid measures between 5 to 12 metres in width. According to projections, it will pass within 800,000 kilometres of Earth during its flyby, hurtling through space at a speed of around 11,000 kilometres per hour. Advertisement 6. As per NASA, while most asteroids steer clear of Earth, a small subset falls under the classification of Potentially Hazardous Asteroids. These asteroids, larger than 140 metres, have orbits that bring them within 75 lakh km of Earths orbit around the Sun. In February a stadium-size asteroid sized between 210 metres and 480 metres similar in size to New York Citys Empire State Building was classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid. 7. NASA explains that asteroids are nothing but remnants from the birth of our solar system approximately 4.6 billion years ago when vast clouds of gas and dust collapsed. Around 994,383 asteroids are known to exist in the solar system, with no two of them alike. Advertisement 8. The asteroids capable of causing a global disaster if they hit the Earth are extremely rare, NASA says. They probably would need to be about a kilometre or more in diameter. Such bodies impact the Earth only once every 100,000 years on average. The last such devastating hit was recorded 11 years ago in Russia, when an asteroid named Chelyabinsk slammed into Earths atmosphere emitting energy equivalent to the detonation of about half a million metric tonnes of TNT. 9. Five years, on April 13, 2029, the near-Earth asteroid Apophis, nicknamed God of Destruction, will make an incredibly close approach to Earth, passing within approximately 48,280 kilometres, NASA says. This historic event which can be visible to the naked eye, will allow the agencys OSIRIS-REx spacecraft to study this 1,000-feet-wide celestial visitor up close. Advertisement With inputs from agencies In one of his biggest Cabinet reshuffles, Russias Vladimir Putin has appointed 65-year-old Andrei Belousov as the new defence minister, replacing Sergei Shoigu. Interestingly, Belousov, an economist, has no experience with defence matters. However, the selection hints at a change in the direction of the ongoing Ukraine war and the Russian presidents frustration read more On 7 May, Vladimir Putin was sworn in as president of Russia for a fifth time amid the ongoing war against Ukraine. A week later, the Russian strongman has replaced his Defence Minister, Sergei Shoigu, in a wide-ranging reshuffle of his most senior leaders. Shoigu, 68, who has been defence minister since 2012, has been moved to become head of Russias security council. And Andrei Belousov, a deputy prime minister and long-time economic adviser to Putin, is set to replace Shoigu. Advertisement Who is Andrei Belousov? Why is this reshuffle important? We explore all this and more. No military experience Russian president Putin on Sunday proposed to replace Shoigu with Andrei Belousov, citing the countrys rising military spending and the need for innovation. Interestingly, the 65-year-old takes up the role despite no previous military experience or having worked in national security. Belousov is, in fact, an economist and his most prominent role was acting-prime minister for three weeks when the PM Mikhail Mishustin had COVID-19 in 2020. Mishustin was reappointed the countrys prime minister last Friday. But who is Belousov? An economist, he graduated from the Faculty of Economics of the Moscow State University in 1981 with distinction. In 2000, Belousov was appointed as a non-staff adviser to the prime minister and joined the economy ministry as deputy minister in 2006. While Putin was prime minister in 2008-2012, he served as director of the department for economics and finance in the government apparatus. Sixty-five-year-old Andrei Belousov takes up the new role in defence despite no previous military experience or having worked in national security. File image/AP In 2012, Belousov was appointed as economics minister and in the following year, he also made adviser to the Russian president. Notably, it is Belousov, according to Russian media outlet RBC, who convinced Putin in 2017 that a digital economy and blockchain were important for the countrys future. I can say that what a country with sovereignty should definitely have is the possession of its own meanings. Who are we, where are we from, where are we going? We have no other option for our country but to acquire or reproduce this identity, Belousov told RBC in an interview in 2023. Advertisement RBC has reported that Belousov did not serve in the armed forces. However, he is believed to be close to Putin. Significance of appointing Belousov But why did Putin then appoint a man with little to no knowledge about defence matters? According to Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, theres a sound reasoning behind it. In a press conference, Peskov said that he was selected by Putin owing to a need for innovation. Today on the battlefield, the winner is the one who is more open to innovation, Peskov said. Therefore, it is natural that at the current stage, the president decided that the Russian ministry of defense should be headed by a civilian. Advertisement This is not just a civilian, but a person who very successfully headed the ministry of economic development of Russia, for a long time he was aide to the president on economic issues, and was also the first deputy chairman of the government in the previous cabinet of ministers, Peskov said. Experts note that the appointment of Belousov as defence minister speaks volumes. According to some, it may mean Putin aims to take a closer personal role in war tactics. In fact, UKs Defence Secretary Grant Shapps has predicted the new defence minister will just be another one of Putins puppets. Russian president Vladimir Putin has moved Sergei Shoigu to head of Russias security council. Many state that the move is owing to criticism against Shoigus handling of the Ukrainian war. File image/Reuters Belousov as new defence minister also points to how Putin wants to take the war forward and if it is economically feasible. As Sky News reports, Russias entire economy is geared towards the military right now. Putin wants to ensure its operating as efficiently as possible, so his war can continue, and for that he needs someone with knowledge of economics. Advertisement Michael Kofman, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment who studies the Russian military, told the Financial Times the shake-up showed it was clear that Russian economic elites performed far better than military elites in this war. However, some note that Belousovs appointment is a clear indicator that Putin was not happy with his long-time ally and Russias longest serving minister Shoigu. Shoigu has faced criticism within Russia amid a number of failures in the long and unpopular war against Ukraine. He faced scathing attacks from mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin , whose Wagner Group had marched on Moscow nearly a year ago to demand the ouster of Shoigu. The rebellion was quickly ended, but signaled growing unrest among Russias military and para-military regarding the war. Advertisement Putins big shakeup Vladimir Putins decision to appoint Belousov as the new defence minister is part of his big shakeup of the Cabinet. In fact, many see it as the most significant reshuffle Putin has undertaken since the start of the Ukraine war in February 2022. As part of his big shakeup, Russias Vladimir Putin has moved Nikolai Patrushev, a hawkish former spy and one of Putins closest aides, from the position of head of Russias security council. It is unclear what his next designation will be. File image/Reuters Shoigu has now been appointed as the head of Russias security council, a position held until now by Nikolai Patrushev, a hawkish former spy and one of Putins closest aides. It is unclear what Patrushevs future looks like, but Peskov told Russian state media late on Sunday that his new role will be announced in the next few days. Putin has also proposed appointing Boris Kovalchuk to become chairman of the Accounts Chamber. His oligarch father, Yury, 72, is seen as Putins wallet. However, some of Putins ministers remain untouched in the reshuffle. Sergei Lavrov will remain as foreign minister. Moreover, Valery Gerasimov , the chief of Russias general staff, will remain in his position as well. With inputs from agencies Greek prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has hit out at North Macedonias new nationalist president after she refused to use her countrys new name when she took her oath of office read more A diplomatic dispute has arisen between Greece and North Macedonia following the swearing-in ceremony of Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova as the latters new president. Siljanovska-Davkova broke the 2018 Prespa Agreement when she referred to her country as Macedonia rather than North Macedonia during her oath. Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the prime minister of Greece, referred to this action as illegal and provocative. It jeopardises bilateral relations and North Macedonias chances of joining the EU, the Greek foreign ministry warned. The issue has caused tensions within Greek politics, with Opposition parties questioning the agreements benefits. Advertisement Lets take a closer look. North Macedonian presidents swearing-in speech Greek prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis hit out Monday at North Macedonias new nationalist president for refusing to use her countrys new name when she took her oath of office. The Balkan nation added North to its title in 2018 to end a long-running dispute with Greece, which for years blocked Skopjes bid to join NATO and the European Union. Greece also has a province called Macedonia, which borders its northern neighbour, and the two countries have also been at loggerheads over the heritage of Alexander the Great, who created one of the largest ancient empires in history. In her oath Sunday, President Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova said she would respect the constitution and the laws and protect the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of Macedonia. President-elect of North Macedonia Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova and President Stevo Pendarovski attend her inauguration ceremony in Skopje, North Macedonia. Reuters It prompted Greeces ambassador to Skopje to walk out of the inauguration ceremony in protest, according to local media reports. And on Monday Mitsotakis rounded on her. The provocative choice of the new president of North Macedonia to violate the official text of her oath and call her country by a different name is an illegal and impermissible initiative, he wrote on X, formerly Twitter. The official written text of Siljanovska-Davkovas address included the official name of North Macedonia, an AFP reporter saw. Advertisement Her country added North to its name following an historic agreement with Mitsotakiss left-wing predecessor, Alexis Tsipras. Bulgaria tensions But Siljanovska-Davkovas party, the nationalist VMRO-DPMNE, opposes the accord and has refused to acknowledge the countrys new name. The right-wing party triumphed in parliamentary and presidential elections on Wednesday, with the ruling Social Democrats (SDSM) conceding defeat even before official results were announced. Skopjes 2018 Prespa Agreement with Athens to add the prefix North to its name ended decades of quarrelling between the neighbours. Greece for years opposed North Macedonia joining NATO it finally became a member of the alliance in 2020 and delayed talks on it eventually joining the European Union over the issue. Advertisement The conservative Mitsotakis, whose party had strongly opposed the 2018 agreement, said Siljanovska-Davkovas speech on Sunday violated both that accord and North Macedonias constitution. North Macedonias biggest opposition party VMRO-DPMNE presidential candidate Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova, votes during the presidential elections in Skopje, North Macedonia. Reuters He warned on Monday that any progress in bilateral relations, as well as any steps taken by Skopje towards Europe, depend on the sincere observance of what was agreed. We will not accept similar slip-ups, the Greek premier added. European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said on X on Sunday that North Macedonia must keep to the path of reforms and full respect for its binding agreements, including the Prespa Agreement, to continue its path towards EU accession. The return to power of the nationalist right in North Macedonia also risks reigniting tensions with Bulgaria, which has long blocked EU accession for Skopje due to linguistic and historical disputes. Advertisement With inputs from AFP Contrary to the common notion, a study has shown that greater internet usage improves the well-being of an individual. The study cautions against one-size-fits-all solutions amid the heated debate over the possible negative effects of internet read more The findings are relevant to the current heated debate over the possible negative effects of social media in particular and the internet on people's well-being. Pixabay/Representative Image Using the internet may be good for you. Contrary to the common notion about internet usage, a global study has said that internet use is linked to increased well-being around the world. The research was published on Monday in the American Psychological Associations Technology, Mind, and Behaviour journal. The findings are relevant to the current heated debate over the possible negative effects of social media in particular and the internet on peoples well-being. Lets take a closer look. Advertisement Internet use = greater wellbeing A team of researchers at the University of Oxford examined data collected over 15 years from 2.4 million individuals, aged 15 to 99, across 168 countries to determine whether frequent internet use and online access had a positive or negative impact on well-being, as per The Guardian. They used over 33,000 statistical models to examine a wide range of potential correlations while accounting for influencing factors like relationship status, wealth, education, and health issues. The findings indicate that higher measures of the various dimensions of wellbeing were typically predicted by internet access, and mobile internet use, with 84.9 per cent of associations between internet connectivity and well-being being positive, 0.4 per cent being negative, and 14.7 per cent not statistically significant. Though the study was unable to establish a cause-and-effect relationship, the researchers did learn that internet users had 8.5 per cent higher life satisfaction scores. Speaking about limitations, the research also did not examine how long participants spent online or what they used it for, and its possible that certain variables that could have explained correlations were overlooked. Eight factors were used in the study to measure wellbeing: life satisfaction, daily good and negative experiences, two measures of social wellbeing (which is related to feeling safe and enjoying your home), physical wellbeing, community wellbeing, and experiences of purpose. Social media use was not examined, other factors such as income, education, and health were taken into account. Advertisement Co-author and professor at University of Oxford, Andrew Przybylski said, Our analysis is the first to test whether or not internet access, mobile internet access and regular use of the internet relates to wellbeing on a global level. Pixabay/Representative Image Its a bit cliche, but extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence, The Independent quoted Andrew Przybylski, professor of human behaviour and technology at the Oxford Internet Institute (OII), as saying. And if were to make the online world safer for young people, we just cant go in guns blazing with strong prior beliefs and one-size-fits-all solutions. We really need to make sure that were sensitive to having our minds changed by data, and I really hope that that message comes through instead of just another volley, in another silly debate, he said. He believes there will come a time when people will be more concerned with the next thing than with the usage of social media and the internet by young people. Advertisement According to Dailymail, assistant professor Matti Vuorre from Tilburg University, and a previous research associate at OII, said, We were surprised to find a positive correlation between wellbeing and internet use across the majority of the thousands of models we used for our analysis. Overall, we found that average associations were consistent across internet adoption predictors and wellbeing outcomes, with those who had access to or actively used the internet reporting meaningfully greater wellbeing than those who did not, Professor Przybylski said, as per The Independent. We hope our findings bring some greater context to the screen time debate, however, further work is still needed in this important area. We urge platform providers to share their detailed data on user behaviour with social scientists working in this field for transparent and independent scientific enquiry, to enable a more comprehensive understanding of internet technologies in our daily lives. Advertisement Also read: New York City declares social media as public health hazard. Is it that harmful? Experts opinion The University of Viennas Tobias Dienlin, a researcher on the impact of social media on wellbeing, told Nature that the study cannot contribute to the recent debate on whether or not social-media use is harmful, or whether or not smartphones should be banned at schools. He added, Different channels and uses of the Internet have vastly different effects on well-being outcomes. Safe internet or safe social media do not yet exist, according to The Guardian, which quoted Dr Shweta Singh, an assistant professor of information systems and management at the University of Warwick who was not engaged in the study. Advertisement She noted reports that cases of sextortion in Canada had reached a new high, with teenage boys being particularly affected. As much as I love to agree with these findings and really wish they are true to totality, there is unfortunately counter-evidence and arguments which suggest that is not necessarily the case, she said. Professor Simeon Yates of the University of Liverpool stated that while there has been a lot of attention paid to the negative aspects of using the internet, there are positive aspects as well, albeit with more nuances in both than the most recent study was able to show. Just because people are quoting a higher level well-being, it doesnt mean therefore that no negative things are happening to them online, he said, as per The Guardian. Professor Kevin McConway, a statistician, described the findings as very broad brush but yet helpful. Its a starting point, and if nothing else it casts very serious doubt on the view, held by some people, that the Internet is bad for us all, he said, according to BBC. With inputs from agencies Former Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) chief Maliwal reached the chief ministers house at 9:10 am on Monday as she wanted to meet Kejriwal but was denied by his personal staff read more The Delhi Police on Monday said that no formal complaint has been filed till now by either AAP MP Swati Maliwal or any other individual after she accused Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwals close aide Bibhav Kumar of assaulting her at the chief ministers residence. We received a PCR call at 9:34 AM wherein the caller said that she has been assaulted inside the CM residence. Accordingly, local police & SHO responded to the call. After some time, MP Swati Maliwal came to the police station civil lines. No complaint was given by her. In this matter, no complaint has been received till now, DCP (North) Manoj Meena said. Advertisement #WATCH | Delhi: DCP (North) Manoj Meena says, "We received a PCR call at 9:34 AM wherein the caller said that she has been assaulted inside the CM residence. Accordingly, local police & SHO responded to the call. After some time, MP Swati Maliwal came to the police station civil pic.twitter.com/6jkJhngASm ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024 One PCR call was made around 9:30 am on May 13 by the former Delhi Commission of Women (DCW) chief Maliwal . A copy of the police entry shows that the caller said that the chief minister instructed Kumar to hit her. What happened with Maliwal? Maliwal reached the chief ministers house at 9:10 am as she wanted to meet Kejriwal but was denied by his personal staff The Rajya Sabha MP reportedly made the call to the PCR at 9:31 am. The call was transferred to the North control room at 9:34 and an entry was made at 9:39 am The Station House Officer (SHO) reached the chief ministers residence in Civil Lines after receiving the call and convinced Maliwal to come to the police station She arrived at the police station a few minutes later How will you protect Delhi women? BJPs New Delhi candidate Bansuri Swaraj slammed the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and said, We want an answer from Arvind Kejriwal that it is his responsibility that one of your party workers who was also the DCW Chief if she is not safe in your presence then how will you protect the women of Delhi? #WATCH | Delhi: BJP candidate from New Delhi, Bansuri Swaraj says, "We want an answer from Arvind Kejriwal that it is his responsibility that one of your party workers who was also the DCW Chief, if she is not safe in your presence then how will you protect the women of pic.twitter.com/odyuQ85F2C ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024 Advertisement AAP, meanwhile, has not yet made any comment on the matter. Who is Bibhav Kumar? This is not the first time Bibhav Kumar has made headlines. Earlier this year, Kumar was sacked from the post of Kejriwals private secretary after the Directorate of Vigilance termed his appointment illegal. Kumar was also questioned by the Enforcement Directorate in April over the Delhi Excise Policy scam that saw Kejriwal imprisoned in Tihar for 50 days before he was released on bail last week. Decisive leadership needed to safeguard Naver The presidential office vowed to decisively address any potential inappropriate actions against domestic companies amid a brewing dispute surrounding LY Corp. (Line Yahoo). "We will provide maximum assistance to protect our enterprises from potential improper treatment by foreign governments," said Director of National Policy Sung Tae-yoon during a press briefing on Monday. Sung's remarks came after the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) vehemently criticized the Yoon Suk Yeol administration for its perceived passivity in the face of Japans recent aggressive move targeting LY Corp. DPK spokesperson Han Min-soo condemned the administrations failure to address Japans attempts to seize control of LY Corp.'s management rights, and called for immediate steps to protect Korea's sovereignty and national interests. Such criticism comes amid intensifying tension sparked by Japans pressure on LY Corp., the operator of Naver's messenger app Line, to restructure its financial ties with Naver. DPK Chairman Lee Jae-myung's direct reference to historical grievances underscores the seriousness of the situation. In a Facebook post, Friday, he wrote, "While Ito Hirobumi [the first Japanese resident general of Korea] plundered our national territory, his descendants are pillaging our cyber territory." Lee was referring to Takeaki Matsumoto, minister of international affairs and communications, who called on LY Corp. to reconfigure its financial ties with Naver. Lee also criticized the Yoon governments inaction regarding the matter, urging more decisive steps to cope with Japans encroachment on Korea's national interests. Lee's reaction may seem excessive, as it seemed to provoke anti-Japan sentiment rather than offering a constructive solution to the issue at hand. However, the opposition's response is understandable as it reflects widespread sentiments among the Korean people regarding the recent issue and dissatisfaction with the Yoon government's perceived lack of assertiveness in addressing the matter. Following the Japanese governments move, LY Corp. has been pressuring Naver to give up its management rights. LY Corp. CEO Takeshi Idezawa said, Wednesday, that the company will gradually address its financial ties with Naver and strive for technical independence. As a subsequent measure, LY Corp. removed its chief product officer, Shin Jung-ho, who was the sole Korean board member. We are strongly demanding the capital realignment of the parent company, the CEO said, amid talks between Naver and SoftBank, each holding a 50 percent stake in A Holdings, the holding firm of LY Corp. The Japanese Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications earlier issued an administrative guideline demanding SoftBank purchase Navers stakes in LY Corp. so the Japanese firm can secure management control over LY Corp. Regarding the rationale behind the demand, the ministry cited a breach of sensitive information that occurred last November. It is understandable for a government to respond proactively to the leak of personal data. However, in this situation, the Japanese government could have addressed the issue by simply asking Naver to strengthen its security measures. It is inappropriate for the Japanese government to make such drastic demands on a prominent internet portal representing Korea. The lack of similar demands directed at Japanese companies highlights the inappropriate nature of Tokyo's actions, emphasizing the need for Korea to assert its interests more aggressively. The more concerning issue is that the Yoon administration has failed to take appropriate action despite the seriousness of the situation, instead attempting to anticipate the intentions of the Japanese side. Science and ICT Minister Lee Jong-ho said, We have been closely consulting with Naver to understand and respect its position. Problems could arise if the government were to intervene abruptly in this matter. Despite the presidential office's recent efforts to address Japan's actions, both the office and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have faced criticism for remaining silent on the matter despite their earlier pledges to support Naver. It is crucial for the government to utilize all available means to protect domestic companies venturing into foreign markets and to uphold national dignity on the global stage. In this vein, Yoon should attentively listen to former lawmaker Yoo Seong-min, who called on the president to telephone Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to solicit cooperation in resolving the matter, via a comment on his Facebook account Saturday. What Yoon needs now is decisive leadership paired with proactive diplomacy. The new agreement is intended to replace the original contract inked in 2016 which only covered operations at the Shahid Beheshti terminal of Chabahar Port and has been renewed on a yearly basis read more India is expected to get into an agreement with Iran on Monday (May 13) to manage its Chabahar Port for the next 10 years. The Iranian port is seen as Indias key connectivity link to Afghanistan, Central Asia, and the broader Eurasian expanse. A report by The Economic Times quoted sources saying Indias shipping minister Sarbananda Sonowal will be travelling to Iran on Monday to sign the deal to manage Chabahar Port for the next decade which will be extendable automatically. Advertisement How the new agreement will be different? The new agreement which will be valid for 10 years is intended to replace the original contract inked in 2016 which only covered operations at the Shahid Beheshti terminal of Chabahar Port and has been renewed on a yearly basis. India which has financed the expansion of Chabahar Port will be able to run it once the deal is agreed upon with Iran. Why is it important? The trip of Indias minister to Iran and a possible signing of the agreement hold a special significance as they come amid the high-octane Lok Sabha 2024 polls. It is crucial as it marks the first instance of India taking over the management of an overseas port. The signing of the agreement comes at a time when the crisis in the West Asia crisis has affected key trade routes. How will it help India? The pact will enable India to operate the port, the expansion of which it has financed. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), April, approved a proposal by India Ports Global to assume operations at Myanmars Sittwe Port in the Bay of Bengal. The report cited experts saying Sonowals visit amid the crucial poll campaign highlights the importance of the agreement, which has been in the works for several years. There are plans to integrate Chabahar with the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) which will help facilitate Indias access to Afghanistan and Central Asia without any dependency on Pakistan. Advertisement For the unversed, Pakistan does not allow India land access for trade with Afghanistan and Central Asia. INSTC is a 7,200-km-long multi-mode transport project for moving freight among India, Iran, Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Russia, Central Asia and Europe. It is Indias vision to economise the movement of cargo between India and Central Asia, and the Chabahar Port would act as a commercial transit centre for the region. Why is Chabahar Port crucial? Chabahar Port is said to have a strategic importance for both Iran and India and it is believed that it can potentially help Iran ward off the effect of Western sanctions as well as offer India an alternative route that bypasses Pakistan Advertisement India has been persistently pushing for the Chabahar Port project to boost regional trade, especially for its connectivity to Afghanistan. Chabahar Port serves as a counterbalance to Pakistans Gwadar Port and Chinas Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The port was also extensively discussed during the talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Iranian President Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi at the BRICS summit in South Africa in August and later in November last year when they spoke on the Gaza crisis. During his visit to Iran in 2016, PM Modi also signed a pact on Chahbahar. It was a tripartite agreement with Iran and Afghanistan to develop the Shahid Beheshti terminal. Advertisement Later in 2018, when the then-Iranian President Hassan Rouhani visited India, the issue of expanding Indias role surfaced prominently. The issue was once again a matter of discussion when Indias External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar was in Tehran in January this year. Significance of Chabahar Port Chabahar Port is Irans first deepwater port and is positioned at the mouth of the Gulf of Oman. Located in Sistan-Balochistan province, it lies to the west of Irans border with Pakistan, about as far as Gwadar, a competing port developed by China in Pakistan which is situated to the east of the border. Indias involvement in Chabahar Port Advertisement It all began in 2002, when Hassan Rouhani, who was serving as the National Security Advisor to then President Syed Mohammad Khatami, held a discussion with his Indian counterpart, Brajesh Mishra. The next year, Khatami visited India and signed a roadmap of a strategic partnership with the then-Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. One of the key projects of the strategic partnership was Chabahar. However, after the 2003 Vajpayee-Khatami agreement, there was little follow-up action as India drew closer to the administration of President George W Bush. The US had put Iran in the so-called axis of evil along with Saddam Husseins Iraq and Kim Jong-Ils North Korea which put pressure on New Delhi to restrict its relationship with Tehran. The sanctions on Iran by the US slowed down the ports development. The Chabahar project became all the more important for India after China began to develop the Gwadar port in Pakistan as part of BRI. The Supreme Court made the observation during the hearing of the petition seeking Kejriwals removal as the Chief Minister of Delhi because of his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate in the liquor policy case read more Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a plea seeking removal of Arvind Kejriwal from the chief ministers post of Delhi after his arrest in ED case related to excise policy scam. It is matter of propriety, but there is no legal right seeking removal of Arvind Kejriwal as chief minister following his arrest. It is up to Delhi L-G to act if he wants to but we will not interfere, the apex court said. Advertisement The Supreme Court made the observation during the hearing of the petition seeking Kejriwals removal as the Chief Minister of Delhi because of his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate in the liquor policy case. Previously, the Delhi High Court had dismissed the petition imposing a cost of Rs 50,000 on the petitioner. Kejriwal lodged a second petition personally contesting the criminal defamation charges arising from his retweet of a video by YouTuber Dhruv Rathee regarding the BJP IT Cell. Faced with the Delhi High Courts refusal to dismiss the proceedings, Kejriwal turned to the Supreme Court for recourse. Earlier, the Supreme Court had stayed the proceedings. Both the petitions are before the bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta, LiveLaw reported. The Supreme Court on Friday gave interim bail to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal till 1 June after he sought a release from jail to campaign for the ongoing Lok Sabha polls. He was arrested in a excise policy case on 21 March. The legal team of Delhi Chief Minister and AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday raised objection to the affidavit filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) opposing his interim bail in the Supreme Court. The team issued a press release revealing that a formal complaint in this regard has been lodged with the Supreme Courts registry. Denouncing the EDs affidavit as a blatant disregard of legal procedures, the release said the affidavit was submitted without taking the SCs approval and issued at a time when the matter is already slated for a final decision in the top court on Friday. Advertisement What EDs latest affidavit says The right to campaign in an election is neither a fundamental nor a constitutional right, the Enforcement Directorate submitted to the apex court on Thursday, a day ahead of the scheduled pronouncement of the courts order on grant of interim bail to Kejriwal in an alleged money laundering case. The agency in its affidavit said, In light of the above factual and legal submissions, the prayer for interim bail deserves to be rejected as it would not only be contrary to settled principles of law but violate the rule of law which is a basic feature of the Constitution. Advertisement It underscored that grant of any special concession to the Delhi chief minister and enlarging him on interim bail for campaigning in the general elections would be anathema to the rule of law and equality and create a precedent. Grant of interim bail merely for political campaigning would militate against and will be discriminatory to the rule of equality as work/business/ profession or activity of every citizen is equally important to him or her, it said, adding it would not be possible to hold that the work of a small farmer or trader is any less important than campaigning by a political leader who admittedly is not contesting. Advertisement It said, This Court would take the call about grant/refusal of interim bail/release after 3-day long arguments of the petitioner. As against this, the respondents (ED) have just begun. On this ground also this court may take a final view about the petition after fully hearing the respondent particularly when there is no medical urgency which requires consideration of interim release without fully hearing the respondents. The agency said if Kejriwal is extended any interim relief on account of him being a politician for campaigning in the Lok Sabha polls for his party, there is no gainsaying that all jailed politicians would seek similar treatment claiming they are in a class of their own. Advertisement A politician can claim no special status higher than that of an ordinary citizen and is as much liable to be arrested and detained for committing offences as any other citizen, it said in its 44-page affidavit. The agency submitted that there is absolutely no principle which justifies giving a differential treatment to a politician for campaigning over a farmer or a businessman who wishes to pursue his vocation. If the right to campaign is treated as a basis for grant of interim bail it would breach the principles of Article 14 for the reason that harvesting for a farmer would be an equally important factor seeking interim bail as would a board meeting or an annual general meeting for a director of a company who commits a crime as these are their respective vocations or professions, it said. Pointing out that Kejriwal has not filed petitions for regular or interim bail before the apex court or any other court, the ED said the consistent approach of this court has been to relegate parties to the remedy of bail under CrPC when they had challenged their arrest claiming it to be illegal. It referred to the orders passed by the court in the cases of former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia, AAP leader Sanjay Singh and Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader K Kavitha, where the court asked them to move bail petitions in the money laundering case related to the Delhi excise policy scam. The agency said such an approach would violate the cherished values of the Constitution which upholds the rule of law as a basic feature meaning thereby that howsoever high you might be you are not above the law. On Wednesday, Justice Sanjiv Khanna, who headed the bench that heard Kejriwals petition against his arrest in the case, said, We will pronounce the interim order (on bail) on Friday. The main matter related to the challenge to arrest will also be taken up on the same day. The Delhi High Court had last month upheld the AAP leaders arrest, saying there was no illegality and the ED was left with little option after his skipping several summonses and refusing to join the investigation. ED charge sheet soon The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is expected to soon file a fresh charge sheet in the Delhi excise policy-linked money laundering case and it may name Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, BRS leader K Kavitha and some others as accused, official sources said on Thursday. The federal agency had arrested Kejriwal from his official residence here on March 21 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) while Kavitha, the MLC daughter of former Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao, was taken into custody from Hyderabad on 15 March. Official sources said a prosecution complaint against half-a-dozen entities, including the two politicians, some linked individuals and companies, has been readied and the agency may file it before a special PMLA court here within the next 4-5 days. The accused will be charged with money laundering and the prosecution complaint will be filed under sections 45 and 44(1) of the PMLA, the sources said. The agency may also name the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in this charge sheet along with attachment of some fresh assets in the case that was registered in 2022. This will be the seventh charge sheet by the ED in this case in which it has arrested 18 people so far including Kejriwals party colleague and former Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia, AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh and others. Singh was granted bail sometime back. AAP sources alleged that the expected complaint was nothing but the BJPs charge sheet and that the party in power at the Centre only intends to defame Kejriwal. The ED sources said the agency is expected to charge Kejriwal with non-cooperation in its investigation and being vicariously liable for the offence committed by the AAP, being the national convenor of the said party and because of his role and active involvement in the day-to-day affairs and the conduct of the business of AAP. It may reiterate its earlier charge made against Kejriwal, before a court, that as the AAP national convenor and member of its national executive, Kejriwal was ultimately responsible for the funds being used in the election expenses including their generation. Kejriwal, 55, has been called by the ED the kingpin and key conspirator of the Delhi excise scam orchestrated in collusion with ministers of the Delhi government, AAP leaders and other persons. The ED has also alleged that Rs 45 crore kickbacks, out of the Rs 100 crore bribe provided by the South Group, were used by the AAP for the Goa assembly election campaign in 2022. The South Group liquor lobby allegedly includes Kavitha, TDP Ongole seat Lok Sabha candidate Magunta Sreenivasulu Reddy, his son Raghav Reddy and others. The excise case pertains to alleged corruption and money laundering in the formulation and execution of the Delhi governments excise policy for 2021-22, which was later scrapped. Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena recommended a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the alleged irregularities. Subsequently, the ED registered a case under the PMLA. The ED filed its money laundering case on 22 August, 2022, taking cognisance of the CBI FIR that was lodged on 17 August, 2022. A day ahead of the scheduled pronouncement of its order on grant of interim bail to Kejriwal in the money laundering case, the ED told the Supreme Court on Thursday that the right to campaign in an election is neither a fundamental nor a constitutional right. The central probe agency said there were numerous examples where politicians contested elections while in judicial custody, and some even won, but were never granted interim bail for campaigning. The matter relates to alleged corruption and money laundering in the formulation and execution of the Delhi governments now-scrapped excise policy for 2021-22. The AAP leader was arrested on 21 March and is currently lodged in Tihar Jail under judicial custody. Police team, along with dog and bomb disposal squads, were rushed to the schools in Jaipur which received bomb threat emails. They were carrying out search operation read more After Delhi and Gujarats Ahmedabad, at least four schools in Rajasthans capital Jaipur received bomb threats on Monday, May 13. The threats were received via email. Soon after the bomb threat mail was received, students and staff members were evacuated. Police team, along with dog and bomb disposal squads, reached the schools and were carrying out search operations. Bomb threat in Jaipur schools Four-five schools have received bomb threats. Police have reached the schools, Jaipur Police Commissioner Biju George Joseph was quoted as saying by PTI. Advertisement Threatening emails have been sent to some schools of the city including Maheshwari School (MPS International School). Currently, the bomb disposal squad is carrying out searches in the school, ANI quoted DCP East Jaipur Kavendra Sagar as saying. Rajasthan: Some schools in Jaipur receive bomb threats via email. The police force and bomb disposal squad have reached the school premises and a search operation is going on. DCP East Jaipur Kavendra Sagar says, "Threatening emails have been sent to some schools of the city ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024 Panic among students & parents There was panic and fear among students when they were asked by the authorities to immediately leave the school after receiving the bomb threat email. Parents too were worried after they got to know that the school in which their children are studying had received a bomb threat and they started to call up authorities as well as some even reached the school to bring their wards back. The Rajasthan police are also working on finding the sender of the bomb threat mail. On May 1, more than 50 schools in different parts of Delhi, including Sanskriti School in Chanakyapuri; Mother Mary School in Mayur Vihar; Delhi Public School of Dwark; DAV School; Amity School, Pushp Vihar, Saket and Noida; and Sanskriti School of New Delhi district, were evacuated after bomb threats were received via email. Advertisement Also Read: Students sent back home after over 50 Delhi-NCR schools receive bomb threats, police say no need to panic In less than a week, on May 6 several schools in Ahmedabad city of Gujarat received similar emails threatening to blow up the premises. Also Read: After Delhi, Ahmedabad schools receive bomb threats from same Russian domain The bomb threat emails sent to schools in Delhi and Ahmedabad were reportedly from a Russian domain mail.ru. Also Read: Russian domain used to send bomb threats in Delhi schools? Emails traced, says LG With inputs from agencies Macron probably wanted to impress the French public with his diplomatic skills before the European elections in June. Unfortunately for him, banners and flags were unfurled by Uyghur, Tibetan and Chinese activists on the streets of Paris read more Chinese President Xi Jinping enjoys a drink in a restaurant, on Tuesday, May 7, 2024, at the Tourmalet pass, in the Pyrenees mountains. Image: REUTERS Observers could see that France was fascinated by China when President Xi Jinping of China paid a three-day visit to France; he was lavishly received by his French counterpart, President Emmanuel Macron. What is strange is that at a time when President Vladimir Putin of Russia is considered to be the supreme villain in France (and in Europe in general), Xi is seen as a decent person that France needs to engage with. Advertisement But is Xi really different from Putin? Does he treat his minorities better? Have the Chinese people more freedom than the Russians? Certainly not. But Europeans and Westerners in general remain fascinated by China and prefer to bury their faces in the sand about the dark side of the Middle Kingdom. Let us not forget that it is thanks to China that, for the past two years, Russia has survived all the US and European sanctions. Putin may not be what one can call a good human being, but unlike India, France has been unable to find a balanced relationship with Russia and China. What were Macrons motivations to receive so elaborately Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan (a major general of the Peoples Liberation Army) with red carpets all over Paris and even in the snows of the Pyrenees mountains? Frances Short Memory In France, as elsewhere, political leadership has a short memory. Who remembers February 23, 2017, when French Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve went to Wuhan to inaugurate a P4 virology laboratory? That day, Cazeneuve declared, France is proud and happy to have contributed to the construction of the first high biological security P4 laboratory in China. The French Prime Minister further explained: This cutting-edge tool is a central element in achieving the 2004 intergovernmental agreement on Franco-Chinese cooperation for the prevention and fight against emerging infectious diseases. Advertisement This investment did not prevent or even foresee the forthcoming disaster, though it showed the level of trust between the two countries. My point is that, despite having a very privileged relationship with India, Paris would not have trusted New Delhi enough to build a P4 lab in India. But thankfully, during the following years, relations between New Delhi and Paris have grown in strength and depth. First Visit to China During his first state visit to China in 2018, the French President brought with him two key messages. One was the huge possibility of cooperation between China and Europe and Frances commitment to that effort. Advertisement The other is a warning to not underestimate growing concern and frustration in Europe and elsewhere with what many regard as Chinas unfair trade practices (such as investment restrictions). At that time, Mathieu Duchatel, deputy director of the Asia and China Programme at the European Council of Foreign Relations, stated: [Macron] wants to present himself as a leader of the EU, but at the same time, I think he wants to send a signal that Europe and the EU are in better shape than many think in China. In 2018, in a speech in Xian, in northwestern Chinas Shaanxi province, Macron admitted that China faced a united front from developed countries against its unfair trade practices. Advertisement Nothing has changed since then. This has become acutely worse after the COVID crisis (made in Wuhan), though today the Chinese leadership desperately needs to be accepted by the world. This explains the Chinese Presidents first outing after five years (to France, Serbia, and Hungary). A Failure? In an article published in Le Figaro (belonging to the Dassault family), President Xi Jinping spoke of carrying forward the spirit that guided the establishment of China-France Diplomatic Relations [in 1964], working together for global peace and development. Xi wrote that he was bringing three messages with him: China will work with France to carry forward the spirit that guided the establishment of their diplomatic ties, build on past achievements, and open new vistas for China-France relations. He further observed: I think its important to have a dialogue, everyone together, so we can all go in the same direction. Its very important for French and Chinese people to communicate. China is a very important country." Advertisement He added that China understands the repercussions of the Ukraine crisis on the people of Europe, adding that the longer the Ukraine crisis drags on, the greater harm it will do to Europe and the world. Good intentions indeed, but will they be followed by resolute action when an economic war is raging between China and the United States? The French Motivations Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, Macron has expressed his desire to play a role, but it was doubtful from the start that he could influence Beijing, which has its own interests with Russia; despite the official declarations, China has always stood firm behind Putin. Further, the French President has stated several times that he does not rule out sending ground troops to Ukraine. Is it compatible with playing a role? In an interview with The Economist earlier this month, Macron reaffirmed his previous statements backing Ukraine: If the Russians were to break through the front lines, if there were a Ukrainian request, which is not the case today, we would legitimately have to ask ourselves this question, he said. Isabelle Lasserre in Le Figaro frankly noted: Emmanuel Macron failed to win over his Chinese counterpart, reflecting Frances lack of clout in the face of China. Speaking of the joint press conference, she wrote: Behind the tense face of the French presidentand that of the Chinese president, uncomfortable and closed, we could not see the friendshipbut the confrontation between two worlds that oppose each other on everything. It is indeed two opposite worlds. Special Friendly Outing In a very special gesture, Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte took Xi Jinping and his wife to the Col du Tourmalet in the Pyrenees, where they watched folk local dancers and enjoyed local gastronomy. Does it remind you of an outing in Mahabalipuram? They had lunch on the spot; on the menu, typical Pyrenean dishes were chosen by Dominique Bouchait, the local chef. For starters, garbure, the traditional local soup. Then shoulder of lamb confit, with ham from Porc Noir de Bigorre cut into pieces, accompanied by Tarbais beans and porcini mushroom heads. After a cheese platter, for dessert, the chef had prepared a pastry known only to the local Bearnais: le russe (the Russian). It is made with an almond-based cookie and praline paste and is said to originate from Crimea. However, in view of the war in Ukraine, this dessert, particularly appreciated by Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron, was at the last minute replaced by a banal blueberry tart. Diplomacy and politics prevailed. Not Much Progress The bilateral negotiations did not see much progress, though China will allow imports of pig origin protein feed as well as pork offal from France. However, European hopes for an Airbus plane order have been dashed, with the two sides only agreeing to expand cooperation. A European diplomat said Xi was the winner of the visit, having cemented his image as the ruler of the world where westerners are begging him to solve European problems in Ukraine. Macron probably wanted to impress the French public with his diplomatic skills before the European elections in June. Unfortunately for him, banners and flags were unfurled by Uyghur, Tibetan, and Chinese activists on the streets of Paris. Free Tibet. Dictator Xi Jingping, your time is up! stated a large white banner that his motorcade had to drive under on the Outer Boulevard. On the top of the banner was the flag of Tibet, a symbol of the Tibetan independence movement. The protesters were joined by Chinese, Taiwanese, Mongolian, and Vietnamese human rights activists, as well as Hong Kong pro-democracy supporters, because after all, France is a democracy and people can express their views. Indo-French Relations More discreet but perhaps more concrete, on May 13 in Versailles, France will host its seventh edition of the Choose France Forum. A French official told Business Today Television: Seven Indian CEOs will meet President Macron on the 13th. There will be a Franco-India forum where the Indian CEOs will interact with the French CEOs." The official objective is to welcome more Indian investments in France and to increase further partnership between both countries. This may not bring votes for the European elections to Macrons party, but it will certainly enhance relations between France and India. The South China Morning Post summarised Xis three-nation tour: Xi Jinping, his tour over, leaves behind a Europe split by how to deal with China, adding: Despite long-standing ties to President Emmanuel Macron, [Xi] made few if any concessions to reduce the flood of Chinese imports into the European Union. And no concession on Ukraine either. But for Xi, these few days must have been a relief from the pressure under which he lives in Beijing. The writer is Distinguished Fellow, Centre of Excellence for Himalayan Studies, Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence (Delhi). Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the writer. They do not necessarily reflect Firstposts views. For Apples Swift Student Challenge, Aayush Singh made a drone simulation app based on augmented reality to help people learn how to fly drones. Jaagrav Seal, made an app called GraphIt, that creates complicated flowcharts and graphs, using plaint text as code read more Its no secret that India has one of the largest and most talented pool of working software engineers. What most people dont know, is that India is also home to some of the largest communities of enthusiast software engineers, people who dont necessarily code for work, but do it because they are passionate about it. Apples iOS, MacOS and iPadOS communities in particular, have many people working on things that one cannot even imagine. Advertisement Take Jaagrav Seal & Aayush Singh, two student enthusiasts who recently won the Apple Swift Student Challenge. Apples Swift Student Challenge is a programme that the tech giant runs to nurture emerging software talents. Over the years, several students have come up with real-life solutions in the form of apps and software to some very real and tangible problems. In an exclusive chat with Firstpost, Jaagrav and Aayush reveal how programmes like Apples Swift Student Challenge encourage more and more students to take up coding, and how Apples hardware and software ecosystem makes it the platform of choice for software engineers and coders. Seal, for his project, created GraphIt, an app that makes complex graphs and flowcharts along with the necessary documentation to go with it, based on text inputs as the form of code. Singh, on the other hand, made a drone simulation app based on augmented reality and has gamified the process of learning to fly drones. Both, are real-life problems that have been solved in a rather unique way. Edited excerpts: Firstpost: Aayush, how did your fascination with drones come about? Instead of flying drones, what made you decide that you wanted to code and create apps for drones? Aayush Singh: Ive always loved drones and finally got one this year. I enjoy exploring different places and capturing great shots to add to my iMovies template. Advertisement So I created a drone simulation app based on augmented reality, which has several unique games to help people learn about drones. It mimics real drone functionalities with fun games and multiple levels. Originally, I wanted to control the drone using the mobile apps but because of time constraints and limited knowledge of IoT, I started exploring a lot it, which eventually evolved into an idea for a cool learning simulation AR drone app. Thanks to RealityKit, I could add 3D objects like drones, obstacles, and sound effects to make the app more lifelike. I often check if my ideas are unique before diving in, which got me creating 7 apps (including my last three WWDC projects). Although theyre not published yet because I hope to refine them and make them better and more engaging, but I would love to release some this year. Advertisement Firstpost: Jaagrav, tell us something about Graphlt, how did the project come to be? Jaagrav Seal: There are multiple reasons why I personally wanted an app like GraphIt. I found use cases for both my college and work life. This app is not a necessity but rather a lifesaver, as it makes creating complex graphs much easier and also helps in learning how to create them with fairly easy and straightforward documentation. In college, we faced issues where teachers would ask us to create flowcharts for the code we wrote and various other diagrams like pie charts, bar graphs, etc., for presentations that required visualisation of metrics. Similarly, at the place I intern, I often have to build flowcharts to explain algorithms to our engineering managers for problem solutions I am working on. Advertisement This became a hassle, especially because existing solutions are over-complicated. You need to sign up to use the app and be familiar with the platforms UI, and you dont even get multiple types of graphs to create on the same platform. Doing the same with a visualisation coding language would make users lives much easier, as with just a few lines of code, they can create complex graphs and flowcharts. FP: Jaagrav, Graphlt is compatible with the iPad, the iPhone, as well as the MacBook. What is it about Apples ecosystem that makes porting apps between these three platforms so easy? JS: With SwiftUIs simple syntax, you can easily alter the UI, and execute code based on the device your app is running in. Advertisement So I wont say its Apples ecosystem that helped me port apps easily but rather the beautifully designed framework, that allows developers to do things that wont be possible on other platforms, and when I say things that wont be possible on other platforms, I really do mean it, like haptics on MacBook touchpad is a genius idea, on iPhones Multipeer connectivity is an amazing framework that I will be using in the next challenge, and on Watches, the Core Motion framework, it gives you access to impressive amounts of data that I am super excited to experiment with. One more cool feature about Xcode that I want to highlight, where Apples ecosystems make porting apps easier is the fact that you can build, test and preview apps on your iPhone wirelessly. I cant express in words how hard my mind was blown when I accidentally found out about this feature. FP: Aayush, the Apple Vision Pro has a lot of potential for drone pilots. How do you plan to integrate your app with VisionOS? AS: Apple Vision Pro opened up more possibilities for the app, like better simulations, fun combat shooting games, and exploring ways to control a drone via a joystick in Vision Pro. Im still figuring it out to ensure users can control the drone comfortably. It will not be helpful for users if they are trying to control a drone using the default gestures of the Vision Pro. I am looking at some possibilities on how to make it more fun and engaging. FP: Aayush, you have won the Swift Student Challenge in 2021, 2022, 2023 and again this year. What would you say makes your ideas click? Whats your secret? AS: I dont have any specific strategy for winning. The only thing can think of is that I like to learn new things, and try using Apples latest APIs. Of course, you need to have a good idea, something that helps you and helps others. If you can crack that, you improve your chances of winning. You need to stand out so dont restrict yourself. When an idea clicks, I write the code and see what happens. If I dont like it, I delete the code. FP: Jaagrav, has Swift Student Challenge helped you grow as a software engineer and coder? How? JS: Yes, definitely, the Swift Student Challenge pushes you to build highly creative and valuable apps, even as a learner. Knowing its approaching next year, once your project gets selected, you feel encouraged to start earlier. Becoming a Swift developer involves a steep learning curve, and Apple offers a vast array of impressive frameworks for each of its devices. So, as a coder, dont wait too long to come up with a perfect idea, because your own idea will never feel perfect. Instead, invest more time at first in exploring frameworks and trying to implement them in your code to gain more knowledge. The more knowledge you acquire, the more problems youll notice, leading to more valuable ideas. Thats what SSC respects, a valuable or a super creative idea; it doesnt restrict you to a certain range of ideas but rather allows you to build anything you want and be recognised for your critical thinking skills as an engineer understanding and building valuable apps for any users out there, unlike other hackathons. In case if its not obvious this is what I learnt from this SSC. You are a student, and SSC treats you as a student for your idea and not coding skills, cause anyone can learn coding and get amazing at it, but coming up with good ideas is the hard part. Its like knowing how to cook versus coming up with the recipe for a dish that doesnt exist. FP: What opportunity do events like WWDC hold for students like yourself? JS: Students like me can only wonder how things are in the real world, as our schools and colleges already do a great job of that. Its one thing to learn how to code in isolation versus meeting up with a group of students like yourself who are also learning, coming up with ideas, and fascinated by technology. Events like WWDC make that happen. Theyre even useful for students unlike myself, who dont already know how to create iOS apps, who dont come from an engineering background, and who are just young users of Apple trying to figure out their career. These events help those kinds of students discover what Apple is building and allow them to become part of Apples journey to building cool products. FP: Will you be attending WWDC this year? What are you looking forward to at WWDC? Jaagrav Seal: I will indeed be attending WWDC virtually this year. Every WWDC means a new look, a new feature, a new change, and the one and only Hair Force One, Craig Federighi. Apples design language has always fascinated me, to the extent, that I use it as an inspiration in some of my other personal projects. And trust me, its not just me stealing Apples design ideas. Other than new updates to the OSes, I am more excited about what they introduce for the developers, the SDKs and APIs that get unveiled after they release a new feature, like the Live Activities or the Dynamic Island SDKs in the past, developers loved it. Every WWDC brings an opportunity for developers that just adds to the UX of every app, every organisation out there has their own list of features in their pipeline, and then WWDC announces a feature so good like Live Activities, that these organisations have to make changes to their plans just to add support for a feature that previously was not even there in their pipeline. Kind of like the integration of LLMs in various apps out there, and speaking of LLMs, I can only wonder if this WWDC would finally get us a first look at the LLM built by Apple. Also now that VisionOS is out in production for a while now, I wonder what updates we have there, I wish playgrounds was also supported by VisionOS devices because Id totally scratch my current idea and build something for VisionOS for the next Swift Student Challenge if it becomes a thing. Plus wouldnt it be amazing if you could learn SwiftUI on VisionOS, I am not sure if its already possible or not, but itd be an awesome addition if its not already. Also, I wonder what the new macOS be called. Theres plenty of stuff I can only wonder now, so super excited for the upcoming WWDC! Aayush Singh: Yes, Ill be attending WWDC in person this year. Im hoping to see Apple get more into AI. I am also hoping to see some massive changes in iOS18 and yes, a calculator app for iPadOS. Im also excited about Apples latest APIs as they unlock new opportunities for developers to create AI-based apps. Lastly, Im looking forward to connecting with my fellow developers and meeting some of the people who really inspire me, Tim Cook and Craig Federighi. I hope I get to showcase my WWDC projects. Its been my dream for the past 3 years to win at WWDC but I havent been able to make it to an in-person Apple event. Finally this year I have a chance and I want to make the most of it. Because of a major goof up involving UniSuper, a major financial player and Googles Cloud division, over 6,20,000 people lost their pension after an account holding $125 billion was deleted by accident read more Other Google Cloud users are starting to wonder if their data is safe too. Google Cloud is doing its best to calm everyone down, promising to beef up security. Image Credit: Reuters Imagine waking up one day to find your entire retirement fund hanging by a thread, all because of a simple mistake in setting up a cloud account. Thats exactly what happened to UniSuper, a major financial player when their private cloud partnership with Google Cloud went up in smoke. For over 6,20,000 UniSuper members, it was a nerve-wracking ordeal. Services were down, leaving them clueless about the state of their hard-earned savings. And when things finally got back on track, the numbers they saw were way off, stuck in a time warp from the previous week. Advertisement In a rare move, UniSuper and Google Cloud stepped up together to say sorry. They owned up to the mess, admitting it was a goof-up on UniSupers end that accidentally wiped out their cloud subscription. Both CEOs promised it was a one-time blunder, something that had never happened before with any other Google Cloud client. But even with backup plans in place, UniSuper got hit hard. Cancelling their cloud deal threw everything into chaos, making it a real headache to get things back in order. They had to call in backup from another provider just to get the ball rolling again. Restoring hundreds of virtual machines, databases, and apps that made up UniSupers cloud world was no small feat. It took a ton of teamwork between UniSuper and Google Cloud to patch things up. Now, folks are understandably rattled. UniSuper members are worried sick, and other Google Cloud users are starting to wonder if their data is safe too. Google Cloud is doing its best to calm everyone down, promising to beef up security and make sure this kind of mess never happens again. But this whole saga is a wake-up call for everyone, not just UniSuper. With billions of dollars on the line, its crystal clear that digital systems need to be rock-solid, especially when it comes to our hard-earned cash. For the record, UniSuper assets worth over $125 billion. UniSupers got its work cut out to fix things up and make sure lightning doesnt strike twice. But for all of us, its a stark reminder of just how fragile our digital world can be, and how crucial it is to keep our financial nest eggs safe and sound. Then Joe Biden administration is targeting key sectors, including EVs, batteries, solar cells, steel, and aluminium. The administration hopes this way, they are able to protect American industries from Chinese imports read more US President Joe Biden wants to protect the US' struggling EV industry from cheaper Chinese EVs. Image Credit: Reuters, Reuters President Joe Biden is set to announce a major increase in tariffs on certain Chinese goods this week, aiming to defend American workers. The move comes after nearly two years of review, during which Biden and his team finalised measures to address concerns about unfair trade practices. The tariff adjustments will see a substantial increase in rates for key sectors. EVs particularly will see the most increase in tariffs, which is set to rise to 102.5% from the present 27.5%, according to sources familiar with the matter. Other tariffs in certain targeted industries are also expected to double or even triple, although the full extent of the changes remains unclear. Advertisement Biden and his staff spent recent weeks refining the tariff measures, carefully considering which items to target and which to spare to support American economic growth. While certain items were excluded from tariff increases, there will be no reductions in tariff rates overall. The administration has indicated its intention to exclude certain items, such as machinery used in solar panel manufacturing, to support Bidens clean-energy supply chain objectives. The move is aimed at addressing concerns raised by equipment manufacturers about the impact of current tariffs on their operations. The timing of the announcement of the increase in tariff is important, with the 2024 presidential race influencing Bidens approach to China. By cracking down on China, Biden aims to distinguish his policies from those of former President Donald Trump while at the same time avoiding the excessive tariff hikes that were proposed by Trump. The administrations measures target key sectors, including EVs, batteries, solar cells, steel, and aluminium. Biden aims to protect American industries from potential disruptions caused by a surge in Chinese imports. While there is bipartisan consensus on the threat posed by Chinese EVs, Bidens approach focuses on preventing disruptions rather than crushing market segments. The administration aims to balance targeting China with preserving a cooperative relationship. In response to the impending tariffs, Zeekr Intelligent Technology Holding Ltd., a high-end EV brand out of China said in a statement, ir remains optimistic about its long-term prospects. The administrations strategic approach to tariffs aligns with its goal of addressing Chinese competition while supporting affected US sectors. Advertisement President Bidens decision to implement tariff increases on Chinese goods reflects a strategic effort to defend American workers and industries while navigating complex dynamics in US-China relations We are deeply worried about the physical and mental exhaustion of our children, the letter states. Sending them into such a perilous situation seems reckless. Initially signed by around 600 parents, the letter has garnered support from an additional 300 parents in recent days, totaling over 900 signatures read more The parents of over 900 Israeli soldiers serving in Gaza have penned a letter urging the military to call off an impending offensive in Rafah, labeling it a dangerous trap for their children. In the letter sent on May 2nd to Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen Herzi Halevi, the parents express grave concerns about the safety of their sons and daughters. They highlight the extensive warnings and announcements preceding the planned incursion into Rafah, suggesting that opposing forces are actively preparing to harm Israeli troops. Advertisement We are deeply worried about the physical and mental exhaustion of our children, the letter states. Sending them into such a perilous situation seems reckless. Initially signed by around 600 parents, the letter has garnered support from an additional 300 parents in recent days, totaling over 900 signatures. The situation in Rafah has escalated in recent weeks, with over 350,000 Palestinians evacuating the area following Israeli warnings of an imminent military assault. Despite pressure from the United States to hold off on a full-scale attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has remained firm in his stance to proceed with the offensive. Anat, the mother of an Israeli special forces soldier deployed in Gaza, voiced concerns about the readiness of Hamas to counter Israeli forces in Rafah. Hamas had ample time to prepare the area to harm our soldiers, she remarked. We are extremely worried about their safety. Israel views Rafah as a critical target in its mission to dismantle Hamas, eliminate its leadership, and secure the release of Israeli hostages. While Hamas has reasserted control in other parts of Gaza following IDF operations, Rafah remains a contentious stronghold. There are twenty-four candidates in the fray in this constituency, but the major contest is between Mohd Ashraf Mir of the J&K Apni Party, Waheed ur Rehman Parra of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and Syed Ruhullah Mehdi of the National Conference (NC) read more The government's ongoing assertion that the region's peace and order situation has improved after Article 370 was repealed is further supported by the impressive voting turnout In a significant sign of the populaces willingness to participate in the democratic process, the Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency had 36.58 percent voter turnout until 8 p.m., significantly above the 2019 election turnout percentage. According to reports, this is the largest turnout of voters in thirty years. The governments ongoing assertion that the regions peace and order situation has improved after Article 370 was repealed is further supported by the impressive voting turnout. Advertisement One of Kashmirs three seats, Srinagar, is one of the 96 seats up for grabs in the fourth round of the Lok Sabha elections taking place nationwide. There are twenty-four candidates in the fray in this constituency, but the major contest is between Mohd Ashraf Mir of the J&K Apni Party, Waheed ur Rehman Parra of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and Syed Ruhullah Mehdi of the National Conference (NC). The delimitation process, which was finished in May 2022 as part of the J&K Reorganisation Act and changed the borders of 90 assembly and five parliamentary constituencies, was a noteworthy development after the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019. With a 37.49% victory margin, Farooq Abdullah of North Carolina emerged victorious in the 2019 parliamentary elections. Aga Syed Mohsin of the PDPJKN was defeated by Farooq Abdullah, and the PDP received votes with corresponding shares of 19.64% and 57.14%. The JKPDPs Tariq Hameed Karra won the elections in 2014, whereas the JKNs Farooq Abdullah was chosen by the Srinagar constituency in 2009. 2019 had 14.43% of voters turn out, followed by 25.55% in 2009, 25.66% in 2014, and 25.66% in 2009. The protest on Sunday comes amid an economic and political crisis and a wave of arrests targeting journalists, lawyers, activists and opponents read more (File) Supporters of Tunisia's Salvation Front opposition coalition carry banners and flags during a protest against Tunisia's President Kais Saied on 25 July, 2023. Reuters Tunis: Hundreds of protesters gathered in the Tunisian capital to demand the release of imprisoned journalists, activists and opposition figures, and the setting of a date for fair presidential elections. The protest on Sunday comes amid an economic and political crisis and a wave of arrests targeting journalists, lawyers, activists and opponents. Tunisian police stormed the building of the Deanship of Lawyers on Saturday and arrested Sonia Dahmani, a lawyer known for her fierce criticism of President Kais Saied. Two journalists were also arrested on the same day. Advertisement The Election Commission said earlier that the elections would be held on time, but with the presidents first term, which lasts for five years, drawing to a close, it has not so far announced a date. Saied took office following free elections in 2019, but two years later seized additional powers when he shut down the elected parliament and moved to rule by decree. He also assumed authority over the judiciary, a step that the opposition called a coup. Saied has repeatedly criticized what he described as the oppositions scramble for the presidency, saying they had boycotted the last round of parliamentary elections while focusing on the presidential vote. The opposition says that the political climate is not currently suitable for holding elections amid restrictions on the press and the imprisonment of prominent opponents and activists. They called on Sunday for a clean political climate for a vote that includes an end to restrictions on press and political freedoms. Today there is no climate for fair elections and there is no date the authorities are repressing politicians, lawyers and journalists, said Imed Khemiri, a senior official in the Ennahda party, a member of the Salvation Front, which is organizing the protest. The storming of the lawyers headquarters yesterday is a dangerous precedent that perpetuates the authoritarian regime, he added. Advertisement Abir Moussa, one of the most prominent candidates, has been in prison for months, while Mondher Zanaidi announced his candidacy for a possible election from France, amid expectations that he would be arrested if he returned to Tunisia. Saied, without specifying to whom he was referring, accused potential candidates of being traitors and seeking protection abroad. Business leaders of Korea, Japan and China plan to convene in Seoul this month to discuss regional economic cooperation and strengthen exchanges, according to industry sources Monday. According to the sources, the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industries, the Japan Business Federation and the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade plan to co-host a trilateral business summit later this month in Seoul. The business communities of the three countries previously held their trilateral gathering in 2019 in Chengdu, China. Organizers are reportedly discussing the participation of key executives of Korean businesses, including Lee Jae-yong of Samsung Electronics, Chey Tae-won of SK Group and Euisun Chung of Hyundai Motor Group. Top executives of major companies from Japan and China are expected to attend the gathering. The gathering has been held since 2009 with the goal of expanding Northeast Asian economic cooperation and exchanges. (Yonhap) Our development is not possible without maintaining good relations with the country (India) with which we have a common border of several thousand kilometers on three sides, he told the reporters here read more Bangladeshs development is not possible without good relations with India as both countries share a common border of several thousand kilometers, Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud said on Monday. Hasan, who is also the joint general secretary of the ruling Awami League party led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, made the remarks while responding to a question regarding a failed campaign by some groups on social media asking people to boycott Indian products. Advertisement Our development is not possible without maintaining good relations with the country (India) with which we have a common border of several thousand kilometers on three sides, he told the reporters here. Mahmud added it would be difficult as well to maintain peace and stability in Bangladesh without good relations with the next-door neighbour. His comments came in response to a question on what he thought regarding an India boycott campaign mainly through social media like Facebook and YouTube, asking people to boycott Indian products, which drew little response. The campaign is widely believed to be backed by ex-premier Khaleda Zias Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) because of New Delhis support to Prime Minister Hasinas ruling Awami League during the January 7 elections. Mahmud, however, attributed directly the campaign to BNP, saying they launched it to create a crisis in the domestic market and destabilise Bangladeshs economy. The minister called the campaign a complete flop and added the BNP would be further isolated if they came up with the call again. Their efforts (call for boycotting Indian products) went unsuccessful. They know it, too. It will be refused by the people of the country again if BNP comes up with the agenda afresh, he told reporters. BNP, however, made no public statement asking people to boycott Indian products while media analysts suggested the campaign was initiated by social media influencers, who are critical of the ruling party and many of them spearhead it from outside Bangladesh. Advertisement Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra last week visited Bangladesh where he called on Prime Minister Hasina and other top leaders and reviewed New Delhis strong bilateral relationship with Dhaka, including in areas such as security, water, trade and investment, power and energy, defence, connectivity, and sub-regional cooperation. In the first official visit of a high-level official to Bangladesh after the formation of the new government in January 2024 here, Kwatra also met Foreign Minister Mahmud and his counterpart Masud Bin Momen. Kwatra invited Prime Minister Hasina to visit New Delhi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the first world leader to congratulate Hasina on her re-election. Erics undercover account draws parallels to Snowdens whistleblowing, shocking the world from the depths of the Dragons lair and expectedly India was not immune to Chinas clandestine espionage activities read more In the world of global espionage, China looms large as a potent force. The recent revelations from an undercover agent for the first time ever, who goes by the alias Eric, offer a rare glimpse into the inner workings of a secretive unit within Chinas Ministry of Public Security (MPS). Operating covertly from 2008 until early 2023, Eric disclosed the tactics employed by this unit in hunting down dissidents living overseas. This expose, featured in a comprehensive investigation by Four Corners, unveils the extent of Chinas reach in international intelligence operations. Advertisement Recent investigations have unearthed an espionage operation within Australian borders as recently as last year, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reported. In his revelations to Four Corners, Eric exposed the inner mechanisms of Chinas feared secret police, a significant arm of the countrys intelligence infrastructure. Supported by extensive secret documents and communications, Four Corners validated Erics accounts of his assignments and targets across various nations including China, India, Cambodia, Thailand, Canada and Australia. His directives from handlers primarily focused on hunting down dissidents worldwide. Eric revealed to Four Corners, which is a long-running and highly credible investigative journalism programme on ABC, that he had his sights set on Edwin Yin, a bold political activist whose online videos directly challenged President Xi Jinping and his daughter. Edwin is unwavering in his assertion that Chinese operatives operate freely and without repercussion within Australias borders. Chinas emboldened spy ring under Xi Jinping Since assuming office as Chinese president in 2012, Xi Jinping elevated the countrys intelligence agencies to unprecedented levels, aiming to tighten the Chinese Communist Partys (CCP) control over the Chinese diaspora. Collaborating closely with the CCPs primary foreign influence entity, the United Front Work Department (UFWD), MPS extended its covert reach worldwide, prioritising areas critical to Chinas interests. The anti-corruption camouflage Since 2014, Xi Jinpings anti-corruption crusades, Fox Hunt and Sky Net, have quietly and forcibly returned over 12,000 alleged fugitives to China, as reported by the ABC. In a chilling example from 2014, two Chinese police officers clandestinely infiltrated Australia to snatch a Melbourne bus driver. When this covert operation was revealed a year later, it ignited a diplomatic firestorm between Australia and China. Advertisement In April of this year, a damning report by NGO Safeguard Defenders exposed more than 280 cases of foreign citizens and residents being extradited to China, many facing accusations of economic crimes. Is Eric Chinas Edward Snowden? The Eric episode which now China has to deal with reminds us of Edward Snowden, a former American intelligence contractor who gained international attention in 2013 when he leaked classified information from the National Security Agency (NSA) to journalists. As a former CIA employee and NSA contractor, Snowden disclosed numerous top-secret documents that revealed the extent of global surveillance programmes operated by the NSA and its international partners, including the mass collection of phone records and internet communications. Advertisement Snowdens disclosures sparked a global debate about privacy, government surveillance and civil liberties. Some hailed him as a whistleblower exposing government overreach, while others criticised him for compromising national security. Following the leaks, Snowden fled to Hong Kong and later sought asylum in Russia, where he currently resides. He faces charges in the United States under the Espionage Act for his actions. Highlighting the importance of upholding the right to protest, the spokesperson called on the authorities in Georgia to ensure this right and to conduct proper investigations into the incidents. They also stressed the expectation that those responsible for the violence will be brought to justice read more In a press briefing Monday, a spokesperson for the EUs chief diplomat Josep Borrell reiterated the EUs concern about the ongoing violent crackdown on pro-western protesters in Georgia. The spokesperson strongly condemned acts of intimidation, threats, and physical assaults against protesters, civil society activists, politicians, journalists, and media workers, highlighting the recent brutal actions overnight. Highlighting the importance of upholding the right to protest, the spokesperson called on the authorities in Georgia to ensure this right and to conduct proper investigations into the incidents. They also stressed the expectation that those responsible for the violence will be brought to justice. Advertisement While closely monitoring the situation, the European Union and its member states have not yet decided on sanctions. The spokesperson noted that Georgia is a candidate country, expressing hope that the authorities will return to the European path. While Noem stirred major headlines due to the proclamations she made in the book, many believe that the book has also reduced Noems chances of being former US President Donald Trumps VP pick for the 2024 US Presidential Elections read more South Dakota Governor Kristi Noems new autobiography faced yet another obstacle after the French government questioned a portion of her book in which she claimed that she allegedly cancelled a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron. The controversial book already had a passage removed after the claim of the Republican governor meeting North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un, remained unverified. While Noem stirred major headlines due to the proclamations she made in the book, many believe that the book has also reduced Noems chances of being former US President Donald Trumps VP pick for the 2024 US Presidential Elections. Advertisement The book stated that Noem and Macron were scheduled to meet last year. However, the meeting was cancelled after the French President allegedly made pro-Hamas comments. While in Paris, I was slated to meet with French president Emmanuel Macron, Noem wrote in her book titled No Going Back. However, the day before we were to meet he made what I considered a very pro-Hamas and anti-Israel comment to the press. So, I decided to cancel, she furthered. What the French Government has to say on the matter? A representative from the Elysee Palace rejected Noems account and made it clear that there is no record of a scheduled meeting between the two politicians. The French official also made it clear no such invitation was extended to Noem. The Governor was invited to sit in President Macrons box for the Armistice Day Parade at Arc de Triomphe, Ian Fury, the governors chief of communications told NBC News, refuting the assertion made by the French government. Following his anti-Israel comments, she chose to cancel, he mentioned adding that Macron did not end up attending, either. Noem visited Paris in November 2023 and during her visit, she spoke at the Worldwide Freedom Initiative conference. While Noem did not specify in her book what anti-Israeli comments Macron made, his office pointed to the French leaders remarks urging Israel to stop bombing Gaza and calling for a cease-fire. Advertisement However, it is important to note that Macron has also condemned Hamas after the terror group conducted the October 7 massacre in Southern Israel and also maintained that Israel has the right to defend itself. Noem on the other hand, received major backlash after she described in her book that she shot and killed her familys 14-month-old dog. Noem repeatedly defended her actions by stating that the dog was aggressive and insisted that it was a working dog and not a puppy. Trump also reacted to the backlash Noem has received in a very dismissive manner. She had a rough couple of days, he told Spectrum News 1 Wisconsin. I will say that. The 62 slide presentiation accessed by NYT illustrate Hamas intolerance of dissent, with security officials closely tracking journalists and individuals suspected of moral misconduct. They also discuss tactics to silence critics on social media and suppress political protests read more For years, Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar has directed a covert police force in Gaza that surveilled ordinary Palestinians, compiled dossiers on individuals including youths, journalists, and dissenters, according to intelligence sources and internal documents reviewed by The New York Times. Known as the General Security Service, this unit relied on a network of informants in Gaza, some of whom reported on their neighbors. People found themselves in security files for participating in protests or publicly criticizing Hamas. The authorities even monitored individuals to determine if they were engaged in extramarital relationships. Advertisement While its widely known that Hamas governs Gaza with an iron fist, a recent presentation detailing the General Security Services activities sheds light on the extent of its intrusion into the lives of Palestinians. This revelation came just weeks before the October 7 attack on Israel. The 62 slide presentiation accessed by NYT illustrate Hamas intolerance of dissent, with security officials closely tracking journalists and individuals suspected of moral misconduct. They also discuss tactics to silence critics on social media and suppress political protests. The situation in Gaza remained dire, with residents caught between Israels blockade and the heavy-handed tactics of the Hamas security apparatus. Despite claims of representing the people, Hamas leaders were and are still unwilling to tolerate any form of opposition. Individuals named in the files corroborated key events and interactions with authorities described in the documents. The trove of intelligence files spans from October 2016 to August 2023 and includes information on at least 10,000 Palestinians. Ehab Fasfous, who was labeled in one report as among the major haters of the Hamas movement, was quoted in NYT report saying, Were facing bombardment by the occupation and thuggery by the local authorities. The said confidential documents reportedly were provided to The Times by officials in Israels military intelligence directorate, who said they had been seized in raids in Gaza. When asked, Basem Naim, a spokesman for Hamas, said the people responsible for the General Security Service were unreachable during the war. Advertisement Records indicate that before the war with Israel, the unit had 856 members and monthly expenses of $120,000. Of them, over 160 were paid to promote Hamas propaganda and conduct cyberattacks against domestic and international rivals. The units current state remains unknown as Israel has severely damaged Hamass military and political capacities. Although formally part of Hamas political structure, the General Security Service operates like a government entity. It is one of three powerful internal security bodies in Gaza, alongside Military Intelligence and the Internal Security Service. Israeli intelligence officials believe Yahya Sinwar directly oversaw the General Security Service, as indicated in a presentation prepared specifically for him. The units mandate includes protecting Hamas interests and silencing dissent. Advertisement While some tactics, such as media manipulation, are routine, others involve intimidation and surveillance. Palestinians in Gaza live in fear and often self-censor to avoid trouble with the authorities. Fasfous alleged that apart from seizing his phone and stopping him from going to an anti-Hamas protest last August, the security officers sent flirtatious text messages from his phone to a female colleague in order to allegedly pin a moral violation on him. The secret documents did not include that detail but does describe ways to deal with Mr. Fasfous. Defame him, it said. The documents highlight Hamas efforts to enforce a conservative social order, with reports of investigations into alleged moral misconduct and suspicions of foreign organisations and journalists. Advertisement Despite the challenging circumstances, some Palestinians continue to speak out against Hamas repressive tactics, underscoring the ongoing struggle for freedom and accountability in Gaza. The request for a budget support of $50 million in form of Treasury bill, was made by Moosa Zameer, on behalf of Mohamed Muizzu-led Maldives government, to Indias External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar during the formers official visit to New Delhi last week read more Mohamed Muizzu-led Maldivian government on Monday (May 13) thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Indian government for extending vital budgetary support to the island nation with the rollover of $50 million Treasury Bill. Indias assistance to the Maldives comes despite bitter diplomatic ties between the neighbouring nations. This is a true gesture of goodwill which signifies the longstanding friendship between Maldives and India, Maldivian Foreign Minister Moosa Zameer said in a post on X (formerly Twitter). Advertisement I thank EAM @DrSJaishankar and the Government of #India for extending vital budgetary support to Maldives with the rollover of USD 50 million Treasury Bill. This is a true gesture of goodwill which signifies the longstanding friendship between #Maldives and #India. @HCIMaldives https://t.co/MKeUbs6C0e Moosa Zameer (@MoosaZameer) May 13, 2024 The request for a budget support of $50 million in the form of a Treasury bill, for an additional year was made by Zameer, on behalf of the Muizzu government, to Indias External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar during the formers official visit to New Delhi from 8-10 May 2024. India provides financial relief to Maldives The State Bank of India (SBI) extended its government treasury bill under a unique government-to-government arrangement at zero cost (interest-free) to the Maldivian government. The State Bank of India has subscribed for one more year the USD 50 million Government Treasury Bill, issued by Ministry of Finance of Maldives, upon maturity of the previous subscription, the High Commission of India in Maldives said. Advertisement These Government Treasury Bills are subscribed by SBI under a unique Government-to-Government arrangement at zero-cost (interest free) to the Government of Maldives. The continuation of subscription has been made at the special request of the Government of Maldives to secure budgetary support from the Government of India, the High Commission said. Advertisement The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maldives, said in a release that a large number of infrastructural developmental projects. High Impact Community Developmental projects are underway with the assistance from the Government of India, which consists of a notable part as grant assistance, it added. The Government of Maldives looks forward to continuing this collaborative partnership for the mutual benefit and prosperity of their people, the Maldivian government said. Efforts to address harassment and bolster the presence of women in the military coincide with Japans grappling with increased security challenges posed by China, North Korea and Russia while confronting the complex legacy of its wartime history amid an ageing population read more The number of women applying to join the Self-Defence Forces (SDF) decreased by 12 per cent in the year ending March 2023. Image courtesy JGSDF As Japan embarks on a major military build-up, its struggling to fill its ranks with the women that its forces need and its policymakers have pledged to recruit. Following a wave of sexual harassment cases, the number of women applying to join the Self-Defence Forces (SDF) decreased by 12 per cent in the year ending March 2023, after several years of steady growth. Some victims have said an entrenched culture of harassment could deter women from signing up. Advertisement But nine months after the defence ministry pledged to take drastic measures, it has no plans to take action on a key recommendation issued by an independent panel of experts - implementing a national system for reviewing anti-harassment training standards - according to two ministry officials responsible for training. The government-appointed panel had identified in a report published in August that the militarys superficial harassment education - which made only limited mention of sexual harassment - and a lack of centralised oversight of such training were contributing factors to cultural problems within the institution. The head of the panel, Makoto Tadaki, said some training sessions - one of which Reuters attended - were at odds with the gravity of the situation. A servicewoman who is suing the government over an alleged sexual harassment incident also said in an interview that the education she received over the past 10 years was ineffective. Calls to root out harassment and increase the number of servicewomen come as aging Japan faces rising threats from China, North Korea and Russia and navigates the burdensome legacy of its wartime past. Women make up just 9% of military personnel in Japan, compared to 17 per cent in the United States, Tokyos key security ally. The SDF referred Reuters questions to the defence ministry, which said in an emailed response that harassment must never be allowed, as it destroys mutual trust between service members and undermines their strength. Advertisement The ministry said it had hosted harassment prevention lectures by external experts since 2023, made sessions more discussion-based and planned to invite specialists to review its training this year. It did not respond to questions on whether it would implement the panels recommendation to centralise oversight of training. After ex-soldier Rina Gonoi went public with allegations of sexual assault in 2022, the defence ministry conducted a survey that year that uncovered more than 170 alleged sexual harassment incidents in the SDF. Another alleged victim was an Okinawa-based servicewoman who accused a senior of making lewd remarks toward her in 2013. She was then publicly named in harassment training materials distributed to her colleagues in 2014, she told Reuters. The alleged perpetrator was not identified in the materials. Advertisement Reuters does not name alleged victims of sexual harassment. Her allegations were corroborated with documents in the lawsuit she filed last year, after she said she exhausted an internal complaints process. Haphazard training The defence ministry offers an annual online module on general harassment. It also provides training materials to officers for in-person sessions, but doesnt offer training on delivering harassment education and doesnt track how or when the officers carry out harassment training, the two defence officials said. The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, justified the existing system as offering flexibility to commanders. The six experts concluded in their review that existing training amounted to generic, superficial statements that were not effective in helping people apply the training in the real world. Advertisement In April, Reuters attended a harassment prevention course delivered by an external instructor to over 100 mid-ranking military officers at a base on the outskirts of Tokyo. Instructor Keiko Yoshimoto presented harassment as a communication issue and focused discussions on generational differences and how they played out in preferences for types of cars and flavours of crisps. Generational differences make it hard for people to communicate, she said, adding that people should understand the basics of communication before they could deal with specifics around sexual harassment. Law professor Tadaki, who separately witnessed part of Yoshimotos session, said it did not feel like the sort of training you would expect against a backdrop of there being so many cases of harassment surfacing. Advertisement He added that it would likely take more time to increase oversight over the quality of training. Two months after the panel issued its report, local media reported that a sailor had in 2022 been ordered against her will to meet a superior that she had accused of sexual harassment. She later quit the SDF. Gonoi and the Okinawa-based servicewoman have criticised the system as inadequate. People would say everyone put up with that kind of behaviour, it was normal back in our time, but these issues are being passed down to my generation because nothing was done to stop it, the servicewoman told Reuters in March. She added that the harassment training she has since received was often poorly conducted and that more centralised oversight was needed: Rather than trying to make a point about sexual harassment, (officers) pick materials that are easy to teach, something that will fit into the time they have. Fear of complaints The defence ministry officials said that training on sexual harassment largely takes place within a broader anti-harassment curriculum. At the two-hour training session attended by Reuters, about two minutes were dedicated to sexual harassment. When Reuters asked about sexual harassment incidents during interviews with the officials, as well as two senior uniformed officers, they responded by speaking about general harassment. The officials said it was challenging to give standardised training on harassment because service members in high-stress environments may give orders in a direct way that is unusual in other circumstances. The two officers said there were concerns within the military that too much focus on harassment could create operational issues and one suggested it might lead to unfair complaints. The defence ministry said in a statement that it does not tolerate abuse and that its training aims to ensure commanders do not hesitate to give necessary guidance on the job because they are concerned about harassment. Tadaki, the professor, said Japan could learn from other militaries. The US, UK, and France have a much clearer focus on preventing harassment from its root causes so its prevention programme is structured around improving the internal climate and culture of its organisation, he said. Trump called the infamous villain a wonderful man before he segued to disparaging immigrants who came without permission read more Former US President Donald Trump stirred yet another media frenzy after he lauded fictional serial killer Hannibal Lecter while talking about people who have illegally immigrated to the United States. In his provocative remarks over the matter, Trump called the infamous villain a wonderful man before he segued to disparaging immigrants who came without permission. The comments from the business-mogul-turned-politician came while he was addressing political rally-goers in Wildwood, New Jersey. In his not-so-subtle rhetoric, Trump described Anthony Hopkins cannibalistic Lecter in Silence of the Lambs as late [and] great while simultaneously condemning people who are being released into our country that we dont want", The Guardian reported. Advertisement Has anyone ever seen The Silence of the Lambs? The late, great Hannibal Lecter. Hes a wonderful man, the Republican presidential hopeful told the charged crowd. He oftentimes would have a friend for dinner. Remember the last scene? Excuse me, Im about to have a friend for dinner, as this poor doctor walked by. Im about to have a friend for dinner. But Hannibal Lecter. Congratulations. The late, great Hannibal Lecter, he furthered. Trumps disdain for illegal immigrants After referencing the movie, he jumped onto the issue of illegal immigrants crossing the US borders. We have people that have been released into our country that we dont want in our country, and theyre coming in totally unchecked, totally unvetted. And we cant let this happen," Trump exclaimed. Theyre destroying our country, and were sitting back and we better damn well win this election, because if we dont, our country is going to be doomed. Its going to be doomed, he continued. Throughout his political journey, the erstwhile commander-in-chief has expressed disdain for immigrants, especially illegal immigrants. During his presidential campaign in 2015, Trump frequently claimed that those crossing the border were violent criminals or mentally ill people who had been sent to the United States by other countries. Throughout his 2024 presidential campaign, Trump also was in all praises for Hannibal Lecter, often calling him legendary and nice fellow. Interestingly, it was not clear what Trump meant by late, great given that neither the character nor the actor who played the role have died, in person, in film or in the books it came from. Advertisement Among a host of provocative remarks, Trump stated that he has been indicted more than the great Alphonse Capone, the violent Prohibition-era Chicago mob boss. Ive been indicted more than the great Alphonse Capone. Scarface, the former president said incredulously. Al Capone was so mean that if you went to dinner with him and he didnt like you, youd be dead the next morning. And I got indicted more than him, he added. Trump is still speaking, but the crowd has been thinning. People have been walking out back to the boardwalk. pic.twitter.com/gPSvZeDFgW Aliya Schneider (@aliyareports) May 11, 2024 Advertisement However, Trumps popularity was also seen dwindling in New Jersey. Locals shared videos on X, in which the crowd attending the rally can be seen thinning. Following the previous subscriptions maturity, the State Bank of India renewed its subscription for an additional year to the USD 50 million Government Treasury Bill issued by the Maldives Ministry of Finance, the High Commission of India announced in a brief statement on Monday read more On Monday, the Maldivian government expressed gratitude to India for its support With the rollover of a USD 50 million Treasury Bill for another year at the Maldivian governments request, India has chosen to provide the Maldives government with critical budgetary help as a goodwill gesture, it was revealed on Monday. Following the previous subscriptions maturity, the State Bank of India renewed its subscription for an additional year to the USD 50 million Government Treasury Bill issued by the Maldives Ministry of Finance, the High Commission of India announced in a brief statement on Monday. Advertisement The decision was made by the Indian government in spite of the tumultuous bilateral ties that have existed since pro-China Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu entered office six months ago. SBI subscribes to these Government Treasury Bills on a government-to-government basis, providing the Maldives government with a special arrangement at no cost (interest-free). According to the statement, the Maldives government submitted a specific request to continue subscription in order to obtain budgetary support from the Indian government. On Monday, the Maldivian government expressed gratitude to India for its support. I thank EAM Dr S Jaishankar and the Government of India for extending vital budgetary support to the Maldives with the rollover of USD 50 million Treasury Bill. This is a true gesture of goodwill which signifies the longstanding friendship between Maldives and India, Foreign Minister Moosa Zameer tweeted. The Government of India has provided budget support of USD 50 million to the Maldives. The support was in the form of a rollover of USD 50 million Treasury Bill, for an additional year, through the State Bank of India, Male, from May 13, 2024, the Maldivian Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Government of Indias decision to rollover the T-Bill came following a request to that effect made by Foreign Minister Moosa Zameer to Indias External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar, during the official bilateral visit to India from May 8-10, the statement said. The Government of Maldives is highly appreciative of the generous support that the Government of India has been providing to the Maldives in the form of budgetary support. A large number of infrastructural developmental projects and High Impact Community Developmental projects are underway with assistance from the Government of India, which consists of a notable part as grant assistance, the statement said. Advertisement The Government of Maldives looks forward to continuing this collaborative partnership for the mutual benefit and prosperity of their people, it said. Zameer after coming back from the visit said that significant strides have been made in expediting India-assisted projects in the Maldives, as he underscored the governments commitment to prioritising the resumption and completion of these projects. It comes amid a downturn in the bilateral ties between the two countries since President Muizzu assumed office in November and immediately asked India to withdraw some 89 Indian military personnel from the country by May 10. The Indian military personnel were operating three aviation platforms in the island nation. Advertisement Zameer on Saturday said 76 Indian military personnel were replaced by civilian employees of the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited which manufactured the two helicopters gifted by India, thus also ending the suspense over the exact number of those repatriated at the insistence of Male. However, the Maldives government has no intention of removing the doctors from India at Senahiya. (With agency inputs) Around 20 per cent, or 13 of MDHs 65 shipments to the United States were rejected after it failed checks for salmonella between October 2023 read more For MDH, the Indian spice brand that has come under the lens for alleged contamination, rejection in the US has not been a new occurrence. According to a Reuters report, MDH has been facing shipment rejections since 2021 due to the presence of bacteria in its spices. MDH and Everest were banned in Singapore and Hong Kong last month after traces of cancer-causing pesticides were found in some of its products. Almost 14.5 per cent of MDH shipments to the US have been rejected as it allegedly contained salmonella, a bacteria that can lead to gastrointestinal illness. Advertisement Around 20 per cent, or 13 of MDHs 65 shipments to the United States were rejected after it failed checks for salmonella between October 2023 - when the current fiscal year started - and May 3, according to the latest available data compiled by Reuters from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The US FDA data, however, does not mention the quantity that was rejected in each shipment but the 13 shipments that were rejected contained mixed spices and seasonings, as well as fenugreek. Meanwhile, between 2022-23, around 15 per cent of 119 MDH shipments were rejected mostly because of the presence of salmonella while the rejections stood at 8.19 per cent during 2021-22, the data showed. On the other hand, the other Indian spice brand in question, Everest, has faced fewer rejections as compared to MDH in the US with just one of 450 shipments in the ongoing 2023-24 year having been rejected so far for salmonella. MDH, Everest say their products are safe MDH, in response to the revelations of the FDA data, said that its products are safe for use. Everest, meanwhile, said it had an exceptional rejection rate of its US shipments of less than 1 per cent in fiscal 2023-2024, adding that their products are safe for consumption. Exports are cleared only after receiving necessary clearances and approval from the laboratories of the Spice Board of India. Singapore held only one of 60 Everest products for examination, the companys director Rajiv Shah said. Advertisement Indian Food Authority comes into action The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is reportedly mulling a way of getting each batch of the spices checked by the company itself. It is still under discussion but we are planning to mandate testing for each batch of spices only for the big manufacturers. There are several vendors who process spices in small quantities and sell it locally, this move would not be applicable to them, a senior government official said. Meanwhile, asking smaller manufacturers to test each batch would be a burden for them, the official said adding that they are unlikely to use ethylene oxide in their products. Advertisement Fumigation of spices is costly and it is done by the big manufacturers to protect large stocks. Neither do smaller manufacturers need it, nor do they use it, the official said. With inputs from Reuters By Baek Byung-yeul Naver, which operates the popular messenger app Line through LY Corp., is facing growing pressure to halt the divestment of its shares to SoftBank, despite mounting calls from the Japanese government and its local partners, according to industry and government officials, Monday. LY Corp. has been under pressure from the Japanese government to reconsider its capital relationship with Naver following a data breach last November involving around 519,000 cases of personal data through Naver Cloud's server. Naver and SoftBank's 50-50 joint venture, A Holdings, owns 64.5 percent of LY Corp. In response to this pressure, LY Corp. CEO Takeshi Idezawa said Wednesday that the company will gradually dissolve its consignment relationship with Naver and pursue technological independence. Similarly, SoftBank announced Friday the initiation of a review of its capital relationship with Naver and said it will make a decision about its capital relationship with Naver by July. Naver also revealed its stance Friday saying it has been in talks with SoftBank, keeping all options open, including the sale of its shares in LY Corp. Following the announcement that Naver is considering giving up control of the messenger app that is popular in Japan, Taiwan and Southeast Asia, Naver's union insisted that its stake in LY Corp. should not be sold. "Protecting Line members and the technology and know-how they have accumulated is the top priority," the union said. It continued, "The sale of (LY Corp.) shares would mean giving up not only the position of the major shareholder but also the possibility of the passion, effort, technology and experience of the members who have strived to gain global recognition for Line, which started as a Naver service, being transferred to the Japanese company SoftBank, and the possibility of employment instability for the members." The union criticized the company's official stance as lacking consideration for the employees who would be most affected because Line is a service that was developed through Naver in 2011. "If even a part of the 50 percent stake goes to SoftBank, then about 2,500 Korean workers, who are members of Line, may fear employment instability as they become part of a subsidiary of SoftBank," the union said. Furthermore, politicians have urged the government to take a more active stance, arguing that the technology and shares of a Korean company should not be allowed to be taken away by a Japanese company. "The Japanese government's behavior is a clear violation of our national interests and an anti-market outrage," Rep. Cho Seung-rae of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea said Sunday during a press conference at the National Assembly in Seoul. "It's time for the National Assembly to do its job, so we demand an immediate standing committee meeting and a parliamentary response." He added, "At a time like this, our government should take a firm stance, but the Yoon Suk Yeol government continues to repeat its incompetence, lack of planning and irresponsibility and shifts all responsibility to Naver. The Japanese government must immediately stop its anti-market outrage." Rep. Yoon Sang-hyun of the ruling People Power Party stressed the need for bipartisan cooperation in response to this situation, emphasizing the need to join forces to protect Korea's national interests. "We urge restraint so that this issue does not escalate into an anti-Japan issue, and as soon as possible, a task force involving the private sector, both ruling and opposition parties and the government should be formed, and efforts should be made to allow both Korea and Japan to conduct a joint investigation," the lawmaker said during a press conference at the National Assembly in Seoul, Monday. A preparatory committee of IT civil solidarity for fairness and justice also called for the formation of a fact-finding committee in the National Assembly, claiming that the Japanese government deceived the Korean government and pressured Naver to sell its shares in LY Corp. "The Japanese government is deceiving us by saying there was no mention of 'share sale' in its administrative guidance," the organization said on Monday. "We are outraged by Japan's duplicity and wordplay, and we can't help but doubt the diplomatic credibility and national dignity of the Japanese government, which claims to be a global leader." In response to these demands from politicians and the public, the government stated that it has been closely communicating with Naver regarding response measures and will continue to provide all necessary support. "The government's consistent stance is to prioritize the interests of our citizens and companies above all else. Under this principle, the government has so far respected Naver's position to the fullest and reflected it in its own response. If Naver has any additional positions, the government will also provide all necessary support at the government level," Sung Tae-yoon, director of national policy at the presidential office, said during a press briefing, Monday. "If Naver decides to maintain its shares in and operation of LY Corp., we will support the implementation of appropriate information security measures. We hope this issue, which has attracted high public interest, will serve as an opportunity for Naver to strengthen its information security." Experts have expressed concerns that if Naver sells its shares in LY Corp. to SoftBank, it could lead to a decline in the competitiveness of the company. Naver was planning to expand into Japan and Southeast Asia through the expansion of services linked to Line, but this development could negatively affect such plans. "If the sale of shares becomes a reality, a short-term stock price adjustment seems inevitable, and the expansion story into Japan and Southeast Asia based on Line would inevitably lose its momentum," said Lim Hee-seok, a researcher at Mirae Asset Securities. French Gates, as part of her separation agreement from former husband Bill Gates, will receive an additional $12.5 billion for her charitable endeavors. She expressed her intention to concentrate her philanthropic efforts on organisations dedicated to empowering women and supporting families read more Melinda French Gates announced Monday her resignation as co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, a role she has held since its inception in 2000. The foundation, which has disbursed nearly $78 billion in grants over 25 years, will undergo a name change to the Gates Foundation, with Bill Gates assuming sole chairmanship. French Gates, as part of her separation agreement from former husband Bill Gates, will receive an additional $12.5 billion for her charitable endeavors. She expressed her intention to concentrate her philanthropic efforts on organisations dedicated to empowering women and supporting families. Advertisement In a statement, French Gates emphasised the significance of her decision, underscoring her pride in the foundations accomplishments in addressing global inequities. Her departure from the foundation is scheduled for June 7, with further details regarding her future charitable initiatives forthcoming. While Bill Gates expressed regret at Melindas departure, he affirmed his commitment to the foundations mission and its ongoing efforts to enhance lives globally. French Gates exit had been anticipated since the announcement of their divorce in May 2021, with a two-year trial period established to assess their continued collaboration within the foundation. The Gates Foundation, which has recently diversified its board of trustees, remains dedicated to its mission of improving healthcare, education, and reducing poverty worldwide. French Gates establishment of Pivotal Ventures in 2015 underscores her commitment to advancing gender and minority equality in the United States. Both Bill and Melinda French Gates have pledged the majority of their wealth to philanthropy, with plans to exhaust their resources within the next two decades. Their contributions, including an estimated $100 billion to date, aim to catalyze positive change and address pressing global challenges. Nepal central banks ex-governor, Chiranjivi Nepal, had reportedly termed the governments decision to print the new map on the notes as an inappropriate move read more Nepal President Ram Chandra Paudels economic advisor, Chiranjivi Nepal, has resigned following his controversial remarks on the governments decision to issue new hundred-rupee notes with a map that includes three Indian territories. As per the press release issued by the Office of the President, Paudel approved Chiranjivis resignation on Sunday. Last week, during a Cabinet meeting in Nepal, it was decided to replace the old map with the new one while printing new notes of Rs 100. Advertisement The new map includes territories such as Kalapani, Lipulekh and Limpiyadhura. India maintains Lipulekh, Kalapani and Limpiyadhura belong to it. Nepal central banks ex-governor, Chiranjivi, had reportedly termed the governments decision to print the new map on the notes as an inappropriate move. What Chiranjivi Nepal said in his resignation letter? I have raised this serious issue to draw the public attention as it might cause practical problems to the people," Chiranjivi said in his resignation letter, PTI quoted an aide to the president saying on condition of anonymity. I have tendered my resignation from the post to maintain the dignity of the honourable President, as attempts were made to unnecessarily drag the president into controversy citing my statement, Chiranjivi Nepal pointed out. A group of civil society leaders had earlier demanded Chiranjivis removal over his remarks against the governments decision to print new hundred-rupee notes with the map of Nepal as per the amended Constitution. They argued that Chiranjivi had gone against national interest and breached decorum while speaking to the national and international media on the matter. When Nepal changed its map? In May 2020, the government led by the prime minister KP Sharma Oli unveiled Nepals new political map with the inclusion of Lipulek, Kalapani and Limpiyadhura areas within its territory. The map was later endorsed by the Parliament unanimously. Soon after the Nepals government started to replace the old map in all the official documents with the new one despite Indias objection. Advertisement How did India object? After Nepal formally accepted its new map, the Indias Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had said: This artificial enlargement of claims is not based on historical fact or evidence and is not tenable. It is also violative of our current understanding to hold talks on outstanding boundary issues. Last week, Indias External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar expressed discontent over the Nepal governments decision to issue the new notes. He said it is not going to change the situation on the ground. Nepal shares a border of over 1,850 km with five Indian states Sikkim, West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. Numerous villagers in Zamfaras Birnin-Magaji local government area were taken hostage by the gunmen on Friday night after they stormed the villages of Gora, Madomawa, and Jambuzu read more Northern Nigeria is still plagued by armed gangs that kidnap drivers, students, and locals and demand ransom Five relatives of those kidnapped by gunmen last week in northwest Nigeria stated on Monday that the men in armed clothing are not seeking ransom payments but rather talks with the Zamfara state government. Northern Nigeria is still plagued by armed gangs that kidnap drivers, students, and locals and demand ransom. Numerous villagers in Zamfaras Birnin-Magaji local government area were taken hostage by the gunmen on Friday night after they stormed the villages of Gora, Madomawa, and Jambuzu. Advertisement Bello Mohammed, whose wife, three children and young brother were among those taken from Gora, said he received a call on Saturday night from people who said they had carried out the attack. They dont need any ransom from us, but said if we need our loved ones back, they asked me and other people to deliver a message to the states governor. The government should reach out to them for negotiations, he told Reuters by phone. The abductors did not state the nature of the negotiations they wanted, but several families told Reuters they had received calls. Wadatau Adamus four daughters were abducted, he said, adding that attacks by gunmen happened frequently in rural and remote villages like Gora, with little or no security forces present. We have passed their message to our leaders. We are looking forward to any decision that will be taken, he said. Three other residents said they also received such calls. Im nothing on earth without my family, said a sobbing Sanusi Musa, whose wife and two children were missing. Zamfaras information commissioner Mannir Kaura could not be reached for comment. But in a statement dated May 11, Kaura criticised unnamed individuals that he said were pushing for negotiations with the kidnapping gangs. He said Zamfara state government has rejected the so-called peace accord initiative with bandits by these groups of individuals. (With agency inputs) While addressing the media following the announcement, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that Shoigu is being relieved of his post, citing the countrys rising military spending and the need for innovation read more In a major cabinet shake-up, Russian President Vladimir Putin removed his longtime ally Sergei Shoigu as the countrys defence minister. The decision is touted as the most significant reshuffle to the military command since the commencement of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. In a surprise announcement, the Kremlin stated that Andrei Belousov will be replacing Shoigu and will assume the office soon. Belousov has served as Russias Deputy Prime Minister in the past and is known to be specialised in economics. Advertisement The decision came just a week after Putin was sworn into his fifth term as Russias president. While addressing the media following the announcement, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that Shoigu is being relieved of his post, citing the countrys rising military spending and the need for innovation, The Guardian reported. However, Peskov also stated that the ex-Russian defence minister has been appointed as the Secretary of Russias Security Council. With this, Shoigu will also become Putins deputy in Russias Military-Industrial Commission. Meanwhile, Nikolai Patrushev, who held the position before the announcement would be transferred to another job. The end of an era It is pertinent to note that Shoigu has been Russias longest-serving minister who assumed the leadership of the defence ministry in 2012. Before this, he was appointed as Russias emergency services minister. As a defence minister of the country, Shoigu was tasked with modernising Russias military and was believed to have direct access to the Russian president. It in not a hidden fact that Shoigu has been a close friend of the Russian leader and is known for going on regular hunting and fishing trips with him in Siberia. The Russian ministers popularity grew immensely after Moscow successfully annexed Crimea back in 2014. Shoigu was considered as the main mastermind behind the operation. However, Shoigu has been receiving a major backlash due to setbacks the Russian military witnessed in the ravaging Russia-Ukraine war. He has also been criticised for his inability to root out the widespread corruption that continues to plague the army. Advertisement Shoigus position as the countrys defence minister started to dwindle last month when the Russian security service arrested his long-term confidant Timur Ivanov, a deputy defence minister. Ivanov was charged with being involved in long-scale corruption. While on paper Shoigus new position is considered higher ranking than his role in the defence ministry, many people believe that Putin made this decision to let his long-term friend save his face. Why a civilian defence minister? When asked why a country which is currently embroiled in war is choosing a civilian defence minister, Peskov highlighted the need to control spending in the raging war. Its very important to put the security economy in line with the economy of the country so that it meets the dynamics of the current moment, Peskov said. Advertisement He insisted that the Russian president had decided that the veteran economist should lead the ministry to ensure the department was open to innovations and advanced ideas. The one who is more open to innovations is the one who will be victorious on the battlefield, he added. Belousov graduated from Moscow State Universitys Faculty of Economics in 1981 and is known for practising sambo and karate in his youth. However, he has never served the armed forces in his lifetime. In 2000, he became a non-staff adviser to the Russian prime minister and joined the economy ministry as deputy minister six years later. From the year 2008 to 2012, he was the director for economics and finance. It was the same year Putin was serving as Russias Prime Minister. Advertisement In 2012, he was appointed as the economics minister and from 2013 until 2020, Belousov served as adviser to the Russian president. From 2020 he has been working as first deputy prime minister. With inputs from agencies. Sunak repeatedly attacked Labour leader Keir Starmer, claiming he lacked a strategy for dealing with rogue states and seizing an opportunity. Sunak claimed that his party is better positioned to face a axis of authoritarian states, which he named as Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea. He also mentioned the war in Ukraine and Iranian proxies attacking ships in the Red Sea read more Rishi Sunak has until December 17 to call an election that will take place 25 working days later Image Courtesy AP In a speech to voters on Monday, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak warned of a dangerous future for the country ahead of a potential national election that could see the Conservatives ousted after 14 years. Sunak repeatedly attacked Labour leader Keir Starmer, claiming he lacked a strategy for dealing with rogue states and seizing an opportunity. Sunak claimed that his party is better positioned to face a axis of authoritarian states, which he named as Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea. He also mentioned the war in Ukraine and Iranian proxies attacking ships in the Red Sea. Advertisement In order to better position his party to take on the axis of authoritarian states, which he identified as consisting of North Korea, China, Iran, and Russia, Sunak said that his commitment to raise military spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2030 is appropriate. Among those risks, he claimed, are the war in Ukraine, Chinese hacking targeting members of Parliament, and Iranian proxies assaulting ships in the Red Sea. Over the next few years, from our democracy to our society to our economy to the hardest questions of war and peace, almost every aspect of our lives is going to change, Sunak said. How we act in the face of those changes, not only to keep people safe and secure but to realize the opportunities too, will determine whether or not Britain will succeed in the years to come. A little more than a week after his party was rocked in local elections and soon before a national election where Labour is largely predicted to take control of Parliament, he gave a lecture at the conservative think tank Policy Exchange. Rishi Sunak has until December 17 to call an election that will take place 25 working days later. Although opponents have urged him to do so repeatedly, he has stated he would do so in the second half of the year but has declined to specify when. Advertisement This Conservative government is out of touch and out of time and Rishi Sunak must do the right thing and give the people a general election, Ed Davey, leader of the Liberal Democrats, said. Sunak said Labour was trying to depress their way to victory with talk of doom loops and scaremongering about pensions. They have just one thing: a calculation that they can make you feel so bad about your country, that you wont have the energy to ask what they might do with the incredible power that they seek to yield, Sunak said. Jonathan Ashworth, a Labour member of Parliament, called the speech a desperate attempt to hide from the appalling record of this failed Tory government. Advertisement After 14 years of leaving the country less secure at home and abroad, the Tories have forfeited the right to talk about security, Ashworth said. Millions of people are paying more on their mortgages, crime is going unsolved, dangerous prisoners are being let out early, the armed forces have been hollowed out and the (National Health Service) is on its knees. Sunak acknowledged public uncertainty and anxiety but said some of that was due to global upheavals such as the COVID-19 pandemic. He said that despite storms ahead, Britain could feel proud and confident again as transformational technologies, such as artificial intelligence, could bring progress. Advertisement The paradox of our age is that for all the profound dangers that we face, right now we also hold in our hands an opportunity for human progress that could surpass the industrial revolution in speed and breadth, he said. Technologies like AI will do for the 21st century what the steam engine and electricity did for the 19th. (With agency inputs) Wong, 51, who currently serves as Deputy Prime Minister, will succeed incumbent Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, 72, son of Singapores late founding father Lee Kuan Yew. Wong has been overseeing the finance portfolio since 2021 read more Lawrence Wong, set to assume the role of Singapores prime minister on Wednesday, has announced that he will retain his position as finance minister, to ensure stability during the transition period. Continuity and stability are paramount, especially as we near the end of this governments term, Wong stated during a press briefing on Monday. To ensure a seamless transition, I have decided to retain current cabinet ministers in their current roles until the end of the term. Advertisement Wong, 51, who currently serves as Deputy Prime Minister, will succeed incumbent Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, 72, son of Singapores late founding father Lee Kuan Yew. Wong has been overseeing the finance portfolio since 2021. Joining Wong as Deputy Prime Ministers will be Gan Kim Yong, 65, the current Trade and Industry Minister, and Heng Swee Keat, 63, who remains in his post. Singapore traditionally appoints two deputies to the head of government. Gan will also take on the role of chairman of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, the countrys central bank. He previously worked alongside Wong in leading Singapores coronavirus multi-ministry taskforce during the COVID-19 pandemic. Heng, initially slated to succeed Lee as prime minister, stepped aside in 2021, citing his age, paving the way for Wongs ascension to the role. This cabinet reshuffle prioritises continuity and stability amid the generational change in leadership, remarked Eugene Tan, an associate professor at Singapore Management University. Gans promotion to the deputy position came as a surprise, Tan noted, highlighting the focus on maintaining stability. Outgoing Prime Minister Lee will continue to serve in the cabinet as a senior minister. In a letter to Lee, Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam praised his leadership during times of global crises, including the 2008 Global Financial Crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic, crediting him for steering the nation to emerge stronger. Wongs decision to retain most of the existing cabinet reflects a commitment to stability, with further changes expected after Singapores next election, scheduled by November 2025. The authorities noted that the plane was carrying up to five people including two crew members read more A small plane which was circling around the Newcastle airport in New South Wales on Monday was forced to make an emergency landing. According to Australian news outlet 9News, the plane was reporting an issue with its landing gear. The aircraft landed safely at Newcastle Airport in New South Wales after three hours of circling around the runway. The authorities noted that the plane was carrying up to five people including two crew members. Advertisement The plane involved in the incident was the Beechcraft B200 Super King Air small turboprop, which is normally configured to seat about 13 passengers. The small plane usually flies charter routes out of Eastern Air Services base in Port Macquarie. As per the reports, the aircraft departed the Newcastle airport at about 8:30 am (local time) on Monday. However, it did not appear to be flying towards Port Macquarie. The plane was later observed to be entering a circling holding pattern before emergency services were alerted about the matter at 9:30 am (local time). An attempt to burn the fuel According to 9News, the pilot of the aircraft reported the equipment failure and started circling the airport trying to burn the fuel before they made an emergency landing. Looking at what was happening in the sky, emergency services, including multiple fire engines and ambulances, were on standby at the scene. When speaking to reporters when the plane was encircling the airport, the authorities gave an update on the matter. About 9:30 am today (Monday 13 May 2024), emergency services were called to Newcastle Airport following reports of an aircraft with mechanical issues, NSW police said in a statement. Officers attached Port Stephens Hunter Police District are on scene. No further details are known at this stage," the statement further read. As per the reports, the plane was originally scheduled to make a 26-minute flight from Port Macquarie. The images released by the local news outlet showed that the planes landing gear was not deployed at the time it came to a standstill on the tarmac. Advertisement The authorities also mentioned that the passengers on board are believed to have suffered air sickness and stress. Sweden abandoned two centuries of military non-alignment to join NATO in March this year. Calls have mounted in recent weeks, from the Swedish Peace and Arbitration Association among others, for the government to put in writing in the DCA agreement that Sweden will not allow nuclear weapons on its soil read more Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said Monday he was open to allowing nuclear weapons on Swedish soil in wartime, as critics call for the new NATO member to ban their deployment. Swedens parliament is set to vote on a Defence Cooperation Agreement (DCA) with the United States in June which will give the US access to military bases in Sweden and allow the storage of military equipment and weapons in the Scandinavian country. Advertisement Sweden abandoned two centuries of military non-alignment to join NATO in March this year. Calls have mounted in recent weeks, from the Swedish Peace and Arbitration Association among others, for the government to put in writing in the DCA agreement that Sweden will not allow nuclear weapons on its soil. The government has repeatedly insisted there is no need to have a ban spelled out, citing broad consensus on nuclear weapons in Sweden as well as a parliamentary decision that bars nuclear weapons in Sweden in peacetime. But Kristersson said on Monday that wartime was a different story. In a war situation its a completely different matter, (it) would depend entirely on what would happen, he told public broadcaster Swedish Radio. In the absolute worst-case scenario, the democratic countries in our part of the world must ultimately be able to defend themselves against countries that could threaten us with nuclear weapons. He insisted that any such decision to place nuclear weapons in Sweden would be taken by Sweden, not the United States. Sweden decides over Swedish territory, he said. But, he stressed, the whole purpose of our NATO membership and our defence is to ensure that that situation does not arise. If Ukraine had been a NATO member, it would not have been attacked by Russia, he said. Swedens Social Democratic Party, which was in power when Sweden submitted its NATO membership application in May 2022, said at the time it would work to express unilateral reservations against the deployment of nuclear weapons and permanent bases on Swedish territory. Advertisement Nordic neighbours Denmark and Norway, which are already NATO members, have both refused to allow foreign countries to establish permanent military bases or nuclear weapons on their soil in peacetime. Since the start of the year, as the Chinese newcomers have been trying to find their footing in the U.S., Trump has alluded to fighting-age or military-age Chinese men at least six times and suggested at least twice that they were forming a migrant army." Its a talking point that is being amplified in conservative media and on social platforms read more It was 7 a.m. on a recent Friday when Wang Gang, a 36-year-old Chinese immigrant, jostled for a day job in New York Citys Flushing neighborhood. When a potential employer pulled up near the street corner, home to a Chinese bakery and pharmacy, Wang and dozens of other men swarmed around the car. They were hoping to be picked for work on a construction site, at a farm, as a mover anything that would pay. Advertisement Wang had no luck, even as he waited for two more hours. It would be another day without a job since he crossed the southern U.S. border illegally in February, seeking better financial prospects than he had in his hometown of Wuhan, China. The daily struggle of Chinese immigrants in Flushing is a far cry from the picture former President Donald Trump and other Republicans have sought to paint of them as a coordinated group of military-age men who have come to the United States to build an army and attack America. Since the start of the year, as the Chinese newcomers have been trying to find their footing in the U.S., Trump has alluded to fighting-age or military-age Chinese men at least six times and suggested at least twice that they were forming a migrant army." Its a talking point that is being amplified in conservative media and on social platforms. Theyre coming in from China 31, 32,000 over the last few months and theyre all military age and they mostly are men, Trump said during a campaign rally last month in Schnecksville, Pennsylvania. And it sounds like to me, are they trying to build a little army in our country? Is that what theyre trying to do? As Trump and others exploit a surge in Chinese border crossings and real concerns about Chinas geopolitical threat to further their political aims, Asian advocacy organizations worry the rhetoric could encourage further harassment and violence toward the Asian community. Asian people in the U.S. already experienced a spike in hate incidents fueled by xenophobic rhetoric during the COVID-19 pandemic. Advertisement Trumps dehumanising rhetoric and blatant attacks against immigrant communities will, without question, only fuel more hate against not only Chinese immigrants but all Asian Americans in the U.S.," Cynthia Choi, co-founder of Stop AAPI Hate and co-executive director of Chinese for Affirmative Action, said in a statement to The Associated Press. In the midst of an already inflamed political climate and election year, we know all too well how harmful such rhetoric can be. Gregg Orton, national director of the National Council of Asian Pacific Americans, said many Asian American communities remain gripped by fear and that some Asians still feel uncomfortable about taking public transportation. Advertisement To know that we might be staring down another round of that, its pretty sobering, he said. THIS TRIP IS DEADLY Wang, who traveled several weeks from Ecuador to the southern U.S. border, then spent 48 hours in an immigration detention facility before heading to Flushing, said the idea that Chinese migrants were building a military does not exist among the immigrants he has met. It is impossible that they would walk on foot for over one month for that purpose, he said. We came here to make money. Immigrants who spoke to the AP in Flushing, a densely populated Chinese cultural enclave in Queens, said they came to the U.S. to escape poverty and financial losses from Chinas strict lockdown during the pandemic, or to escape the threat of imprisonment in a repressive society where they couldnt speak or exercise their religion freely. Advertisement Many said they continue to struggle to get by. Life in the U.S. is not what they had imagined. Since late 2022 when Chinas three-year COVID-19 lockdown began to lift the U.S. has seen a sharp rise in the number of Chinese migrants. In 2023, U.S. authorities arrested more than 37,000 Chinese nationals at the U.S.-Mexico border, more than 10 times the previous years number. In December alone, border officials arrested 5,951 Chinese nationals on the southern border, a record monthly high, before the number trended down during the first three months of this year. The U.S. and China just recently began cooperating again to deport Chinese immigrants who were in the country illegally. Advertisement Yet with tens of thousands of Chinese newcomers who have crossed into the U.S. illegally, there has been no evidence that they have tried to mount a military force or training network. Its true that the bulk of those who have come are single adults, according to federal data. While the data doesnt include gender, there are more men than women on the perilous route, which typically involves catching a flight to South America and then making the long, arduous trek north to the U.S. border. Chinese immigrants in Flushing said one reason men may be coming alone in higher numbers is the expense often more than $10,000 per person to cover airfare, lodging, payments to local guides and bribes to police in countries along their journey. Another could be Chinas longtime family planning policy that skewered the gender ratio toward males. Theres also the danger, said a 35-year-old Chinese man who only gave his family name of Yin because he was concerned about the safety of his wife and children, who remain in China. He had arrived in Flushing in late April, five weeks after he left the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen. He had traveled through Panamas dangerous Darien Gap jungle and across Mexico. Signs of the journey were still fresh: His hair was messy, skin tanned with fine wrinkles, and his cardigan, once white, had not been washed for weeks. This trip is deadly. People die. The trip isnt suitable for women its not suitable for anyone, said Yin. He said that as the breadwinner, he came alone, with the hope his family could join him later. CHASING A BETTER LIFE While some in China have chosen to leave through investment schemes or talent programs in developed nations, those without resources set off for Latin America after learning from social media posts about the journey north. Upon arriving, most of them fan out to large cities such as Los Angeles, Chicago and New York with well-established Chinese communities, where they hope to get work and start a new life. Immigrants who arrived in Flushing said they came to America to escape China, not to fight on its behalf. Thirty-six-year-old Chen Wang, from the southeastern Chinese province of Fujian, said he decided to come to the U.S. in late 2021 after he posted comments critical of the ruling party on Twitter. He was admonished by local police. I feared that I could be locked up, so I came to America, Chen said. More than two years later, he is still unemployed and lives in a tent in the woods that he has made into a home. He built a fence from dead branches and dug a ditch so he could hand-wash his laundry and wash himself. He said life in the U.S. has fallen short of his expectations, but he hopes someday to get legal status so he can travel freely around the world and live a simple life in a self-built cabin. Chen, who served briefly in the Chinese military two decades ago, said he mostly encountered people from the bottom of Chinese society during his trek through Central America. He met no one else who had served in the Chinese military and described his fellow Chinese on the journey as simply people chasing a better life. LONG HISTORY OF ASIAN STEREOTYPES To be sure, U.S. intelligence leaders have grave concerns about the threat Chinas authoritarian government poses to the country through its espionage, military capabilities and more. There also have been crimes committed by Chinese immigrants, including the arrest in March of a Chinese national breaching a military base in California, but there has been no evidence to support the assertion that migrants from China are coming to the U.S. to fight Americans. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell called the Chinese nationals economic migrants during an April town hall meeting hosted by the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations. China has said it strongly opposes illegal immigration, and police there have arrested some who have tried to leave. Social media posts that offer advice and guides to come to the U.S. illegally have been censored in China. Instead, there are posts warning about dangers along the way and racial discrimination in the U.S. Chinas foreign ministry told the AP that Trumps claims of a Chinese migrant army were an egregious mismatch of the facts. The Department of Homeland Security didnt respond to requests for comment. Steven Cheung, communications director for the Trump campaign, said in an emailed statement that every American should be concerned about military-age Chinese men crossing into the U.S. These individuals have not been vetted or screened, and we have no idea who they are affiliated with or what their intention is, Cheung said. This sets a dangerous precedent for bad actors and potentially nefarious individuals to exploit Joe Bidens porous border to send countless military-aged men into the United States completely unfettered. The army-building narrative has been shared by many other conservatives. They are fighting-age males, primarily single, and you know, this isnt a coincidence, Republican Rep. Mike Garcia of California said during a Fox Business interview last month, nodding when host Maria Bartiromo suggested the immigrants could later be used as saboteurs if Chinese President Xi Jinping directs that. Sapna Cheryan, a psychology professor at the University of Washington, said the claims about Chinese migrants made without evidence build on a long history of pervasive stereotypes that Asian people do not belong in the country, ideas that have fueled acts of violence against Asian Americans. If that rhetoric is happening again, one thing we might be able to predict is, well, people will probably take that and feel emboldened to engage in these heinous acts, she said. Li Kai, also known as Khaled, a 44-year-old Muslim from Tangshan in the northern Hebei province, a city close to Beijing, said he was worried about Trumps statements regarding illegal immigration and Muslims, but said he has no choice other than to make his new life in the U.S. work. He was one of the few who made the trip with his family. He shares a bunk bed and sofa with his wife and two sons in a temporary home in Flushing where he has placed an American flag on the wall. Li said they fled China last year, after he participated in a gathering over the future of a local mosque that was broken up by riot police and he feared his own arrest. He chose the U.S. because it is a free society, where his children have learned to recite from the Quran. He said the migrants he encountered on his journey all left China for the U.S. to try to improve their prospects in life, and he was grateful for that opportunity. When his sons are at school, he studies for a commercial drivers license and then hopes to find a job and start paying taxes. Now that I have brought my family here, I want to have a stable life here, he said. I would like to pay back. Last week, Russia claimed that its forces captured five villages in a renewed ground assault in northeastern Ukraine read more As the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war continues to escalate, Ukraines top military commander admitted on Sunday that the situation in the northeastern Kharkiv region is very difficult. The admission from the Ukrainian official came at a time when it was dealing with Russias continued assault in the region. Last week, Russia claimed that its forces captured five villages in a renewed ground assault in northeastern Ukraine. While Col Gen Oleksandr Syrskyi denied that the Russians have made a significant breakthrough, he admitted that the Ukrainian forces are on the back foot. Advertisement [We] are fighting fierce defensive battles. The attempts of the Russian invaders to break through our defences have been stopped, he wrote in a statement on Telegram. He mentioned that Ukraine is suffering from chronic shortages of manpower and weapons and delays in Western funding. The situation is difficult, but the defence forces of Ukraine are doing everything to hold defensive lines and positions and inflict damage on the enemy, said Syrskyi, who was appointed as the army commander earlier this year. Russias dominance in Kharkiv After the Russian Defense Ministry confirmed that its forces had taken over five villages, reports started to emerge that multiple buildings were destroyed after Russian airstrikes hit the city of Vovchansk. In light of the latest attacks, Ukrainian Foreign Secretary David Cameron raised the alarm and told Sky News that the Russian assault marked an extremely dangerous moment in the war. Russias latest offence indicates the harsh reality that Ukraine may have to reposition troops to the northern front. This would mean deploying fewer forces in the southern front which is also being monitored heavily by the Russian army. The renewed assault in the region also forced more than 1,700 civilians to evacuate their homes. The assault came after Russia stepped up its attack in March by targeting energy infrastructure and settlements in Ukraine. Advertisement The situation in Vovchansk and the settlements along the border (with Russia) is incredibly difficult. Constant aviation strikes are carried out, multiple rocket missile systems strikes, artillery strikes, said Tamaz Hambarashvili, the head of the Vovchansk military administration. I think that they are destroying the city to make (local) people leave, to make sure there are no militaries, nobody. To create a grey zone," he added. The labor union of Naver on Monday voiced opposition to a possible sale of stake in the operator of the popular Line messenger app, saying protecting employees and technology concerning the app should be top priority for Naver. Naver has been under pressure from the Japanese government to "review its capital relationship" in LY Corp., the operator of Line controlled by a joint venture between Naver and SoftBank of Japan, over a massive data leak of user information. Both Naver and SoftBank confirmed that they have been in talks over a potential sale of stake in LY Corp. Last week, Naver said it was open to "all possibilities" with regard to the Japanese government's administrative guidance. "Protecting Line-related employees as technology and know-how they accumulated is top priority, and the best option to protect them is not to sell a stake," the union said in a statement. Naver has spared no efforts to develop the Line app as one of the popular messengers in global markets, the union said. If Naver sells a stake in LY Corp. to SoftBank, employees of Line-related businesses would face "job insecurity," the union said. The union also asked the Korean government to play a more "active" role to protect its companies from "unfair treatment" in overseas markets. "SoftBank's request to increase its shares as a response to a security breach incident is out of common sense and unreasonable," it said. Last week, LY President Takeshi Idezawa said in a conference call via an English Korea that his company has requested Naver and SoftBank to review its capital structure and Shin Jung-ho, a key South Korean executive at LY, will step down from its board. Shin, known as the "father" of Line in Korea, was the only Korean national on LY's board. Japan's actions drew criticism in Korea, with many viewing them as an attempt to diminish foreign influence on the widely used online platform in the country. (Yonhap) By Park Jae-hyuk A former employee of STX Marine Service was indicted last Thursday for allegedly leaking key technologies and information about the companys Iraqi power plant management project to a subcontractor in the Middle Eastern country, the ship and power plant management service provider said Monday. The former employee is alleged to have leaked core technologies about STX Marine Services power plant management project between 2020 and 2021, after establishing a company in collusion with the Iraqi subcontractor when he worked for the Korean firm. In 2021, STX Marine Service received several awards for its diesel power plant management project in Iraq, which created jobs for about 100 Koreans and around 700 Iraqis. The company emphasized that the project has enabled the inflow of $80 million into Korea every year. In collusion with the Iraqi subcontractor to take the $500 million project from our company, the former employee nullified our private contract with the Iraqi government and participated in a public tender for the project by utilizing trade secrets he stole from us, an STX Marine Service official said. STX Marine Service called for public attention to this matter, claiming that the stolen secrets are related to national security. The company added that a separate police investigation is underway for the former employees provision of unfair profits to the Iraqi subcontractor and supply of low-quality lubricant, which damaged the power plants engines. By Lee Min-hyung SK Networks has reported earnings growth in the first quarter due to the recovery of its hotel business and overall revenue expansion with its diverse business portfolio, the company said Monday. According to the company's regulatory filing, it generated an operating profit of 62.4 billion won ($45.58 million) between January and March, up 1.5 percent from a year earlier, after its hotel business helped offset dips in revenue caused by its car rental unit. The firm's sales also came in at 2.47 trillion won, up 3.6 percent, during the same period. Walkerhill Hotels & Resorts stood at the center of its earnings growth, as more tourists visited the hotel after it carried out renovation work as well as updating its buffet offerings and held diverse promotional campaigns to attract more customers, the company said. SK Networks also reiterated its strong willingness to transform into an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven company by introducing diverse AI solutions for multiple areas of its business. Under this drive, Walkerhill aims to rebuild its brand identity as an AI-powered hotel. Last year, the hotel unveiled its first-ever non-fungible token-based membership service, offering customized services for its members. SK Networks shared its grand vision of achieving an annual operating profit of 700 billion won in less than three years, powered by an AI-driven growth strategy. For instance, SK magic, the home appliance arm of SK Networks, is on track to diversify its revenue streams with a plan to launch more AI-converged IT devices in promising areas, such as pets and health care. The company is also increasing investments in promising AI startups. The company invested in Upstage, an AI company that specializes in generative AI so that the SK affiliate can generate more AI synergy in its future business areas. "We will keep accelerating our ongoing AI drive by establishing more AI-centric business models," an official from SK Networks said. "SK Networks will also strengthen its financial stability, and keep enhancing values from interested parties, so it can continue developing into a sustainable firm." Release of Fugaku-LLM a large language model trained on the supercomputer Fugaku Enhanced Japanese language ability, for use in research and business Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tohoku University, Fujitsu Limited, RIKEN, Nagoya University, CyberAgent Inc., Kotoba Technologies Inc. Kawasaki, May 10, 2024 Summary Large language model with enhanced Japanese language ability was developed using Japanese supercomputing technology Distributed parallel learning by maximizing the performance of the supercomputer Fugaku Commercial use is permitted, which will lead to innovative research and business applications such as AI for Science Abstract A team of researchers in Japan released Fugaku-LLM, a large language model (1) with enhanced Japanese language capability, using the RIKEN supercomputer Fugaku. The team is led by Professor Rio Yokota of Tokyo Institute of Technology, Associate Professor Keisuke Sakaguchi of Tohoku University, Koichi Shirahata of Fujitsu Limited, Team Leader Mohamed Wahib of RIKEN, Associate Professor Koji Nishiguchi of Nagoya University, Shota Sasaki of CyberAgent, Inc, and Noriyuki Kojima of Kotoba Technologies Inc. To train large language models on Fugaku, the researchers developed distributed training methods, including porting the deep learning framework Megatron-DeepSpeed to Fugaku in order to optimize the performance of Transformers on Fugaku. They accelerated the dense matrix multiplication library for Transformers, and optimized communication performance for Fugaku by combining three types of parallelization techniques and accelerated the collective communication library on the Tofu interconnect D. Fugaku-LLM has 13 billion parameters (2) and is larger than the 7-billion-parameter models that have been developed widely in Japan. Fugaku-LLM has enhanced Japanese capabilities, with an average score of 5.5 on the Japanese MT-Bench (3), the highest performance among open models that are trained using original data produced in Japan. In particular, the benchmark performance for humanities and social sciences tasks reached a remarkably high score of 9.18. Fugaku-LLM was trained on proprietary Japanese data collected by CyberAgent, along with English data, and other data. The source code of Fugaku-LLM is available on GitHub (4) and the model is available on Hugging Face (5). Fugaku-LLM can be used for research and commercial purposes as long as users comply with the license. In the future, as more researchers and engineers participate in improving the models and their applications, the efficiency of training will be improved, leading to next-generation innovative research and business applications, such as the linkage of scientific simulation and generative AI, and social simulation of virtual communities with thousands of AIs. Background In recent years, the development of large language models (LLMs) has been active, especially in the United States. In particular, the rapid spread of ChatGPT (6), developed by OpenAI, has profoundly impacted research and development, economic systems, and national security. Countries other than the U.S. are also investing enormous human and computational resources to develop LLMs in their own countries. Japan, too, needs to secure computational resources for AI research so as not to fall behind in this global race. There are high expectations for Fugaku, the flagship supercomputer system in Japan, and it is necessary to improve the computational environment for large-scale distributed training on Fugaku to meet these expectations. Therefore, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tohoku University, Fujitsu, RIKEN, Nagoya University, CyberAgent, and Kotoba Technologies have started a joint research project on the development of large language models. Role of each institution/company Tokyo Institute of Technology: General oversight, parallelization and communication acceleration of large language models (optimization of communication performance by combining three types of parallelization, acceleration of collective communication on the Tofu interconnect D) Tohoku University: Collection of training data and model selection Fujitsu: Acceleration of computation and communication (acceleration of collective communication on Tofu interconnect D, performance optimization of pipeline parallelization) and implementation of pre-training and fine-tuning after training RIKEN: Distributed parallelization and communication acceleration of large-scale language models (acceleration of collective communication on Tofu interconnect D) Nagoya University: Study on application methods of Fugaku-LLM to 3D generative AI CyberAgent: Provision of training data Kotoba Technologies: Porting of deep learning framework to Fugaku Research outcome 1. Significantly improved the computational performance of training large language models on the supercomputer Fugaku GPUs (7) are the common choice of hardware for training large language models. However, there is a global shortage of GPUs due to the large investment from many countries to train LLMs. Under such circumstances, it is important to show that large language models can be trained using Fugaku, which uses CPUs instead of GPUs. The CPUs used in Fugaku are Japanese CPUs manufactured by Fujitsu, and play an important role in terms of revitalizing Japanese semiconductor technology. By extracting the full potential of Fugaku, this study succeeded in increasing the computation speed of the matrix multiplication by a factor of 6, and the communication speed by a factor of 3. To maximize the distributed training performance on Fugaku, the deep learning framework Megatron-DeepSpeed was ported to Fugaku, and the dense matrix multiplication library was accelerated for Transformer. For communication acceleration, the researchers optimized communication performance for Fugaku by combining three types of parallelization techniques and accelerated the collective communication on the Tofu interconnect D. The knowledge gained from these efforts can be utilized in the design of the next-generation computing infrastructure after Fugaku and will greatly enhance Japan's future advantage in the field of AI. 2. An easy-to-use, open, and secure, large language model with 13 billion parameters In 2023, many large language models were developed by Japanese companies, but most of them have less than 7 billion parameters. Since the performance of large-scale language models generally improves as the number of parameters increases, the 13-billion-parameter model the research team developed is likely to be more powerful than other Japanese models. Although larger models have been developed outside of Japan, large language models also require large computational resources, making it difficult to use models with too many parameters. Fugaku-LLM is both high performance and well-balanced. In addition, most models developed by Japanese companies employ continual learning (8), in which open models developed outside of Japan are continually trained on Japanese data. In contrast, Fugaku-LLM is trained from scratch using the teams own data, so the entire learning process can be understood, which is superior in terms of transparency and safety. Fugaku-LLM was trained on 380 billion tokens using 13,824 nodes of Fugaku, with about 60% of the training data being Japanese, combined with English, mathematics, and code. Compared to models that continually train on Japanese, Fugaku-LLM learned much of its information in Japanese. Fugaku-LLM is the best model among open models that are produced in Japan and trained with original data. In particular, it was confirmed that the model shows a high benchmark score of 9.18 in the humanities and social sciences tasks. It is expected that the model will be able to perform natural dialogue based on keigo (honorific speech) and other features of the Japanese language. Future Development The results from this research are being made public through GitHub and Hugging Face so that other researchers and engineers can use them to further develop large language models. Fugaku-LLM can be used for research and commercial purposes as long as users comply with the license. Fugaku-LLM will be also offered to users via the Fujitsu Research Portal from May 10th, 2024. In the future, as more researchers and engineers participate in improving the models and their applications, the efficiency of training will be improved, leading to next-generation innovative research and business applications, such as the linkage of scientific simulation and generative AI, and social simulation of virtual communities with thousands of AIs. Acknowledgement This research was supported by the Fugaku policy-supporting proposal "Development of Distributed Parallel Training for Large Language Models Using Fugaku" (proposal number: hp230254). [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] About Fujitsu Fujitsus purpose is to make the world more sustainable by building trust in society through innovation. As the digital transformation partner of choice for customers in over 100 countries, our 124,000 employees work to resolve some of the greatest challenges facing humanity. Our range of services and solutions draw on five key technologies: Computing, Networks, AI, Data & Security, and Converging Technologies, which we bring together to deliver sustainability transformation. Fujitsu Limited (TSE:6702) reported consolidated revenues of 3.7 trillion yen (US$26 billion) for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2024 and remains the top digital services company in Japan by market share. Find out more: www.fujitsu.com. Press Contacts Fujitsu Limited Public and Investor Relations Division Inquiries All company or product names mentioned herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. Information provided in this press release is accurate at time of publication and is subject to change without advance notice. 10 May, 2024Kawasaki, JapanTokyo Institute of Technology, Tohoku University, Fujitsu Limited, RIKEN, Nagoya University, CyberAgent Inc., Kotoba Technologies Inc. Chinese e-commerce firms pledge to ensure safety of Korean customers By Lee Min-hyung The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) signed an agreement with AliExpress and Temu, Monday, to enhance monitoring the sale of potentially harmful products on the two Chinese e-commerce platforms. The agreement comes in response to dozens of recent reports indicating that the two Chinese companies were selling unsafe goods to local consumers, including children's products containing carcinogens or dangerous items that could cause injury or death. The voluntary safety agreement is the first of its kind to be signed between a local authority and a foreign platform business operator. Notably, this is Temu's first agreement of this type signed with a foreign government. FTC Chairman Han Ki-jeong urged the two Chinese firms to take more responsibility in earning customers' trust and ensuring their safety during a meeting with AliExpress Korea CEO Ray Zhang and WhaleCo Korea CEO Qin Sun, according to the nation's top antitrust agency. WhaleCo Korea operates Temu's local business. "Our top priority is to generate tangible outcomes from the latest agreement, even if it is not legally binding," Han told reporters during a press conference after signing the agreement. "We expect the agreement to create meaningful results, as was proven by ones signed between the Chinese firms and authorities in the European Union (EU) and Australia." Under the agreement, both parties agreed to enhance monitoring the sale of harmful or hazardous products on their respective platforms. The FTC anticipates that this joint action will contribute to reducing the distribution and sale of harmful products on the two large e-commerce platforms, whose influence is rapidly expanding in Korea. According to the watchdog, the number of AliExpress customers here reached 8.87 million as of March, coming in second following Coupang. Temu came in third with 8.29 million users. "Foreign online platform firms should prioritize fulfilling their role in ensuring customer safety and building higher levels of trust with customers," Han said. The FTC chief urged all interested parties to make every effort to fulfill the agreement and establish a solid foundation for safe consumer activities in this region. The Korean government also pledged to consult with foreign governments to enhance monitoring of the sale of potentially hazardous products by AliExpress and Temu and promptly notify the platforms of related cases so that appropriate action can be taken to block such sales. AliExpress and Temu will also run their own monitoring systems and order vendors to stop selling hazardous products. "We will immediately block the sale of any problematic items or products on our platform," the head of AliExpress Korea said. "We run a customer service center employing 300 workers. If customers have any complaints, they can report the case to us and we will take necessary steps to resolve their complaints as promptly as possible." According to the FTC, the EU also reached a similar agreement with AliExpress and a group of 11 platform firms, such as Amazon and eBay, in 2018. The Australian government also maintains such a partnership with Alibaba Group the parent firm of AliExpress and American e-commerce firms since 2020. The latest decision was made in response to increasing customer distrust and concerns regarding Chinese e-commerce platforms. The Korea Customs Office and the Seoul Metropolitan Government recently conducted safety inspections on children's products sold on the two platforms and discovered harmful substances in some of them. The discovery has prompted calls for the government and the watchdog to take immediate action to ensure the safety of customers, according to the FTC. felicilin at 13-05-2024 08:35 AM (4 months ago) (f) There were indications at the weekend that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) will apply to a United Kingdom court as an interested party in the trial of a former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke. There were indications at the weekend that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) will apply to a United Kingdom court as an interested party in the trial of a former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke. A team of the anti-graft commission is billed for London to begin the process of filing papers as a party to the case. The EFCC may also avail the UK court of its findings and the forfeiture order of a high court in Abuja on the former ministers $2.5 million homes and cars. Diezani has been on trial in the Southwark Crown Court in the UK for an alleged 100,000 bribe. The National Crime Agency (NCA) alleged that Diezani might have benefitted from at least 100,000 in cash, chauffeur-driven cars, flights on private jets, luxury holidays for her family, and the use of multiple London properties. On October 2, 2023, a Magistrate Court granted bail to the ex-Minister for 70,000 after deeming her a flight risk. According to a source, the EFCC is seeking to be an interested party in the case to enable Nigeria to have access to assets which may be seized from the ex-minister. The source said: A team of the anti-graft commission is billed for London to begin the process of filing papers as a party to the case.The EFCC may also avail the UK court of its findings and the forfeiture order of a high court in Abuja on the former ministers $2.5 million homes and cars.Diezani has been on trial in the Southwark Crown Court in the UK for an alleged 100,000 bribe.The National Crime Agency (NCA) alleged that Diezani might have benefitted from at least 100,000 in cash, chauffeur-driven cars, flights on private jets, luxury holidays for her family, and the use of multiple London properties.On October 2, 2023, a Magistrate Court granted bail to the ex-Minister for 70,000 after deeming her a flight risk.According to a source, the EFCC is seeking to be an interested party in the case to enable Nigeria to have access to assets which may be seized from the ex-minister.The source said: Quote This country may not be able to retrieve questionable assets from Diezani if the EFCC does not file an application as an interested party. We have received an advisory on this important bend to Diezanis trial and we will be part of the case in the UK. A team will leave for London any moment from now to explore legal opportunities and file necessary papers as an interested party. The overall aim is for Nigeria to benefit from Diezanis trial, especially the recovery of all assets linked to funds looted in this country. The EFCC has sufficient evidence against Diezani, including a court order on the former ministers $2.5million homes and cars. In another case, a former chairman of EFCC confirmed that the commission recovered $153million and secured the final forfeiture of over 80 properties in Nigeria valued at about $80million. Post Reply Posted: at 13-05-2024 08:35 AM (4 months ago) | Addicted Hero Guard Bureau Chief Promotes Partnerships at Defense Services Asia Exhibition By Sgt. 1st Class Zach Sheely May 12, 2024 KUALA LUMPURKUALA LUMPUR -- Alliances and partnerships underscored the National Guard Bureau chief's participation in one of Asia's largest defense and homeland security events on May 6. Army Gen. Daniel Hokanson, the Guard's top officer, told international military leaders and officials gathered at the biennial Defence Services Asia conference maintaining the international rules-based order requires a collective, cooperative effort. "Ours is a shared world, with shared challenges and opportunities," Hokanson said. "We are not just connected; we are intertwined. And we must be united in the pursuit of security, stability and peace across the globe." The CNGB joined Gen. Tan Sri Mohammad Ab Rahman, Malaysia's chief of Defence Forces, and Dr. Su Wai Mon, a senior lecturer at the Faculty of Law, University of Malaya, on a panel to discuss emerging technologieslike unmanned aerial systems and artificial intelligenceand confronting non-traditional threatslike cyber, mal-information and disinformation, climate change, food security and energy crises. "As emerging technologies intensify and accelerate both the risks and opportunities before us, the relationships between nationsbetween allies and partnershave never been more important," Hokanson said. In his remarks, Hokanson expanded on the Department of Defense National Guard State Partnership Program. What began in 1993 with 13 former Soviet-bloc states has grown to 92 partnerships with 106 nations that are paired with the National Guard of every U.S. state and territoryan enterprise the general describes as one of the most productive, cost-effective security cooperation programs in the world. "The National Guard builds relationships," Hokanson said. "Those relationships bolster capability and capacity for our allies and partners, and we learn much from them. Enduring, personal connections help promote security, stability, peace and prosperity. "There are so many benefits to our cooperation: stronger diplomatic relations, greater prosperity, advancements in science and technology, improved resilience in the face of adversity, and a stable, more peaceful world for generations to come," he said. As part of the SPP, the Guard is linked with 17 nations in the Indo-Pacific regionan expanse that is home to half the world's population, accounting for 60% of the global GDP and two-thirds of global economic growth. The United States' Indo-Pacific Strategy names this area the most dynamic and fastest-growing region on earth and an essential driver of America's future security and prosperity. The SPP pairing of states with nations is not random. Demographics, economics, and military size and composition are all factored in. Washington State and Malaysia have close diplomatic ties through substantial two-way trade, and similar economic, security and infrastructure considerations. Seen as a natural, mutually beneficial fit, Malaysia and the Washington National Guard formalized an SPP agreement in 2017. Focus areas incorporate U.S. Indo-Pacific Command objectives: supporting maritime security, defense professionalization, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. Washington Guardsmen and their Malaysian Armed Forces counterparts also work together in defensive cyber, defense modernization, maritime domain awareness through air defense sector modernization and interoperability of forces. Women, Peace, and Security activities began in 2023. 2023 was the busiest and most consequential year of the Washington Guard's partnership with Malaysia and included several key leader engagements, subject matter expert exchanges, bilateral meetings and participation in named exercises. Earlier this year, the Washington Air National Guard and the Royal Malaysian Air Force signed a sister squadron agreement between the RMAF's 320 Squadron, Control and Reporting Center 1, and the 225th Air Defense Group, Western Air Defense Sector at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Tacoma, Washington. The continuous, two-way communication and engagement enabled through the SPP contributes to providing INDOPACOM with access to, influence with, and insight from regional partners. Some Guard partnerships in the Indo-Pacific are nascent. Just last month, the U.S. Territory of Guam formalized a partnership with the Republic of Palau. Although Palau has no military, the SPP fosters a whole-of-government approach. Opportunities include exchanges in law enforcement and border security, cyber protection and resilience, medical and civil engineering community engagements, humanitarian assistance and disaster response. Other partnerships are more established. The National Guard of Guam and Hawaii have shared an affiliation with the Philippines since 2000 and the Washington Guard has also been paired with Thailand since 2002, to name a few. During his time in Kuala Lumpur, Hokanson, joined by Army Maj. Gen. Bret Daugherty, Washington's adjutant general, held bilateral meetings with defense officials and military leaders from both Malaysia and the Philippines to sustain and enhance relations at the highest levels. The CNGB emphasized the shared priorities of prosperity, security, peace and a free and open Indo-Pacific. Hokanson fielded questions during the panel discussion on howthrough security cooperation initiatives like the State Partnership Programthe U.S. can help ensure free-flowing global trade routes and why partnering with America makes sense to help fight food insecurity. "As we know, the whole world is interlinked," the general said. "Russia's invasion of Ukraine has had global implications to the supply of grain and wheat to other countries. Anytime a nation chooses war, there are going to be global implications. We all need to be aware of that and work to maintain peace. "When we see indiscriminate attacks on shipping, we all pay for that," he said. "The insurance rates go up and the cost of shipping goes up. And for some countries, the difference in price could make all the difference. Anything we can do to promote peace, stability, and respect for international borders and laws safeguards the rules under which everyone can live as prosperous as possible." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Jordan Hosts U.S. forces and partner nations for premiere Exercise Eager Lion 24 U.S. Central Command Press Release | May 12, 2024 USCENTCOM May 12, 2024 Release Number 20240512 - 01 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE TAMPA, Fla. -- Exercise Eager Lion 24 officially began today with an opening ceremony held at the King Abdullah II Special Operations Training Center (KASOTC), Amman, Jordan. This is the 11th iteration of the exercise, which is held every other year in Jordan and is a testament to 75 years of U.S.-Jordan relations which we commemorate this year. In addition to Jordan and the United States, 32 other partner nations will participate or observe in the exercise, which concludes May 23, 2024. Eager Lion is one of the largest military exercises in the U.S. Central Command (USCENTCOM) area of responsibility, hosted by one of the command's strongest and most reliable partners. The exercise is designed to exchange military expertise and improve interoperability among partner nations. "Eager Lion demonstrates the value of working together to maintain a ready and responsive force that truly demonstrates we are prepared to respond together in times of crisis," said U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Jason Benson, USCENTCOM's director for Eager Lion 2024. "Participating in Eager Lion demonstrates our shared commitment to improving interoperability with our partners. It also demonstrates that our coalition force can maintain a sufficient and sustainable presence in the region. It delivers a clear message that relationships matter." Exercise Eager Lion is the most important exercise between the U.S. military and the Jordanian Armed Forces. The exercise underscores the United States' commitment to partners in the Middle East in our joint defense against hybrid threats by state and non-state actors. Eager Lion 24 will focus on training participating partners on cooperation and interoperability between military and interagency organizations. This year's scenario will address regional challenges across air, land, sea and cyber domains, as well as support of multinational disaster response operations and humanitarian aid assistance. Participants will work with civil authorities responsible for critical national infrastructure protection, train on cyber defense and maritime security, practice operations in a chemically contaminated environment, and rehearse integrated logistics maneuvers. The exercise will train participants to prepare against cyber threats from fictitious adversaries, advance development of partnered counterterrorism skills, expand Integrated Air and Missile Defense synchronization, and sharpen proficiencies in maritime and border security. The exercise will also include a field training exercise with a combined-arms live-fire exercise, command post exercise, and a senior leader seminar to facilitate information sharing at tactical and strategic levels. The U.S. military participates in more than 80 exercises with partner nations in the USCENTCOM area of responsibility each year. Exercises in the region are designed to strengthen military-to-military relationships, promote regional security, and improve interoperability with partner nations. -30- NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address CENTCOM Commander Visits the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia U.S. Central Command Press Release | May 12, 2024 USCENTCOM May 11, 2024 Release Number 20240511 - 01 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE TAMPA, Fla. -- From May 9-10 Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla, commander of U.S. Central Command, traveled to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to meet with leaders of the Saudi Royal Armed Forces and senior U.S. diplomats. The visit is part of an ongoing multi-country trip to the CENTCOM area of responsibility. While in Saudi Arabia, Gen. Kurilla engaged with Chief of General Staff, Gen. Fayyadh al-Ruwaili and other Saudi senior military leaders. The leaders discussed shared regional security concerns, the status of humanitarian assistance into the Gaza Strip, and further opportunities to partner on innovation of defensive technologies. Gen. Kurilla also met with the U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Michael Ratney, and the U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Yemen, Steven Fagin. The leaders discussed current security challenges in the region, with particular emphasis on Houthi attacks in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. "The Royal Saudi Armed Forces are a critical security partner in the region as we address regional security challenges through interoperable organizations and capabilities," said Gen. Kurilla. "Building on our over seven decades of direct military partnership, we continue to work together to achieve our shared goals." -30- NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address North Macedonia: Statement by the spokesperson on the use of the constitutional name by the new President in her address at the swearing-in ceremony European External Action Service (EEAS) 12.05.2024 EEAS Press Team The EU regrets the fact that the new President of North Macedonia, President Siljanovska-Davkova, did not use the constitutional name of the country during the swearing-in ceremony today. The EU recalls the importance of full respect for existing, legally binding agreements including the Prespa Agreement with Greece. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address By Park Jae-hyuk A group of Korean business leaders met with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Tokyo, Monday, to discuss bilateral economic cooperation between the two countries amid the intensifying political dispute over Navers possible divestment from Line, an instant messaging app. The Korea-Japan Economic Association (KJE) said that the business delegation paid courtesy visits to Japans high-ranking government officials, a day before the opening ceremony of the annual Korea-Japan Business Conference. Samyang Holdings Chairman Kim Yoon, who leads the association, met with Kishida, along with Hyosung Group Chairman Cho Hyun-joon, who is head of the Korea International Trade Associations Korea-Japan Special Exchange Committee, and Shinhan Financial Group Chairman Jin Ok-dong, who previously worked in Japan for about two decades. The business delegation also met with Japans Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Ken Saito and Minister of Foreign Affairs Yoko Kamikawa. It remains uncertain whether they talked about the Japanese governments apparent attempt to exclude the Korean IT firm from joint management of Line with SoftBank. In March, Japan asked LY Corp., the messenger apps Tokyo-headquartered operator, to reconsider its financial reliance on Naver, in response to a massive leak of the personal information of Line users last November due to Navers cloud server. Following the request, Naver and SoftBank started negotiations about the formers sale of its stake in LY Corp.s holding firm to the latter. SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, who leads Koreas largest business lobby, the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), was absent from the Korean business delegations meeting with the Japanese prime minister, although he plans to deliver a keynote speech during the conferences opening ceremony. The conferences plenary sessions will take place between Tuesday and Wednesday, under the theme of the bilateral partnership between Korea and Japan for the future. Ahead of the 60th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic ties between Korea and Japan in 1965, business leaders of both countries will seek ways to boost their bilateral partnership, the KJE said in a press release. The participants of the event will include the KJE and the KCCI chairmen, as well as Japan-Korea Economic Association Chairman Mikio Sasaki and around 300 businesspeople from the two countries. The conference has been held every year since the first in 1969, with Korea and Japan taking turns hosting, without any suspensions despite the COVID-19 pandemic and worsening diplomatic relations under the previous Moon Jae-in administration. US might fail to stop Israel from attacking Rafah; 'Biden's influence over Netanyahu limited' Global Times By Yang Sheng Published: May 12, 2024 11:02 PM Although the US is recently increasing criticism over Israel and warns that Washington will stop weapon supply if the Israeli military forces launch full attack against Rafah, Israeli Prime Minister has defied the warning from US President Joe Biden by reaffirming his determination to maintain the war in Gaza. Chinese analysts said on Sunday that it seems like the US is losing influence over its ally Israel and the Biden administration has lost many chances to stop the bloodshed, and a large number of civilian casualties would be unavoidable if Israel insists on its plan, and the international community would condemn not only Israel but also the US. The Biden administration said Friday that Israel's use of US-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law but that "wartime conditions prevented US officials from determining that for certain in specific airstrikes," the AP reported on Saturday. The finding of "reasonable" evidence to conclude that the US ally had breached international law protecting civilians in the way it conducted its war against Hamas was the strongest statement that the Biden administration has yet made on the matter. It was released in a summary of a report being delivered to the US Congress on Friday. But the caveat that the administration wasn't able to link specific US weapons to individual attacks by Israeli forces in Gaza could give the administration leeway in any future decision on whether to restrict provisions of offensive weapons to Israel. The first-of-its-kind assessment, which was compelled by Biden's fellow Democrats in Congress, comes after seven months of airstrikes, ground fighting and aid restrictions that have claimed the lives of nearly 35,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, the AP reported. Biden said on Thursday while the US would continue to provide defensive weapons to Israel, including for its Iron Dome air defense system, other shipments would end should a major ground invasion of Rafah begin, CNN reported. However, Netanyahu said on Thursday in a thinly veiled rebuff to Biden's warning that arms supplies could be withheld over a planned operation in Gaza, Reuters reported on Friday. Liu Zhongmin, a professor at the Middle East Studies Institute of Shanghai International Studies University, told the Global Times on Sunday that the most recent situation and remarks made by the leaders of the US and Israel showed that Washington can make very limited impact on the Netanyahu administration. "Israel has gained enough weapons and ammos since the very beginning of the conflict from not only the US but also other Western countries, so even if the US stop the military supports immediately by now, Israel is still able to continue the war and the killing with the weapons that it has already got," Liu said. Since the Palestinian-Israeli conflict began in October 2023, Israel has conducted ground operations across most of Gaza, steadily pushing Palestinians south. The United Nations estimates up to 1.7 million people have been displaced by the conflict. A majority of them are in Rafah, which before the war had a population of around 275,000, the Washington Post reported. Experts said Netanyahu won't stop at this point because as long as Hamas continues to exist in Rafah, the Israeli military operation will be considered as failure, and the opposition parties within Israel will use this to attack Netanyahu and make him and his followers accountable for the failure and the failed handling since October 7, 2023. "Compare to this kind of serious consequence, the international pressure about civilian casualties is probably nothing and affordable to the leadership of Israel, so unfortunately, the conflict will continue and the bloodshed will not be stopped immediately. This shows that the US has failed to effectively stop the bloodshed, and its influence over Israel is also shrinking. Washington has lost the best window to stop this mess," said a Beijing-based expert on international relations who asked for anonymity. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Philippines provokes China with monitoring ships deployment near Xianbin Jiao Global Times Groundless accusations may lead to standoff, exacerbate tensions in SCS By Deng Xiaoci and Zhang Wanting Published: May 12, 2024 10:21 PM Updated: May 12, 2024 10:40 PM Amid rising tensions in the South China Sea, the Philippines' coast guard has taken a further provocative step, deploying a ship to monitor what it deems are China's "illegal activities" in waters adjacent to China's Xianbin Jiao, also known as Xianbin Reef. The Philippines also made groundless accusations on Saturday of China's construction of an "artificial island." Chinese analysts cautioned on Sunday that such provocations could spark a standoff, amplifying the strain on bilateral relations and exacerbating tensions across the entire South China Sea region. According to a statement released by the Office of the President of Philippines on Sunday, the Philippine Coast Guard (PSG) has deployed the BRP Teresa Magbanua to monitor the supposed "illegal activities of China," which is creating "an artificial island" on what it calls the Escoda Shoal in the West Philippine Sea by destroying the coral reefs. The statement added that two other PSG vessels were in rotational deployment in the area. According to Reuters on Saturday, PSG spokesperson Commodore Jay Tarriela told a forum there had been "small-scale reclamation" of China's Xianbin Jiao, which Manila calls Escoda, and that China was "the most probable actor." Such claims are in total disregard of the fact that Xianbin Jiao is an integral part of China's Nansha Qundao and China has indisputable sovereignty over Nansha Qundao (also known as Nansha Islands) and the adjacent waters, analysts pointed out. "The reefs in the Nansha Qundao within the nine-dash line are China's inherent territory. China has no intention of seizing an inch of land from other countries, but it will not cede an inch of its own territory. China's various activities on Xianbin Jiao are within our scope and sovereignty, and the Philippines has no right to interfere," a military expert, who requested not to be named, told the Global Times on Sunday. The PSG spokesperson Tarriela also claimed the presence of Chinese vessels at the atoll 200 kilometers from the Philippine province of Palawan "coincided with the coast guard's discovery of piles of dead and crushed coral," Reuters reported. The accusation of the so-called China's building of artificial islands and worries over the natural environment are both groundless, and they are all disinformation and are an excuse for the Philippines to justify its maritime provocations, Chen Xiangmiao, director of the World Navy Research Center at the National Institute for South China Sea Studies, told the Global Times on Sunday. By portraying itself as a victim in the region, the Philippines is trying to convince the international community that China is the one jeopardizing the status quo. Such move calls for timely clarification with facts, Chen noted. Xianbin Jiao is located next to Meiji Jiao (also known as Meiji Reef). Meiji Jiao is one of the more developed islands where China has undertaken construction. Adjacent to Meji Jiao is Ren'ai Jiao, which has become a focal point of conflict between China and the Philippines, the military expert noted. "The Philippines must not mistake China's restraint for weakness," the military expert warned. "If the Philippines persists in provoking China's sovereignty, taking a one-sided approach, then all accounts, old and new, will have to be settled together." The above-quoted expert elaborated that the Philippines' recent provocations have escalated, with the core factor being support from the US. "However, such actions will not bring any benefits to the Philippines. Instead, they are likely to backfire, causing self-inflicted harm," he warned. Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong told reporters on Friday after the 30th ASEAN-China Senior Officials' Consultation in Jakarta, Indonesia that the US deployment of medium-range ballistic missiles in the Philippines seriously threatens national security in the region and undermines regional peace and stability, when responding to an inquiry from the media on the US deployment. Sun said the US action is reversing the course of history and runs counter to the common aspiration of the region for peace and development. Sun said China firmly opposes the recurrence of Cold War-style confrontation in the region and the use of regional countries as tools of hegemony and proxies, adding that he expressed China's grave concerns during the meeting in Jakarta. "China supports ASEAN in strengthening its strategic independence and stands ready to work with regional countries to follow the path for Asia that ensures security through extensive consultation, joint contributions and shared benefits, and firmly uphold regional peace and stability," Sun said. Gu Xiaosong, dean of the ASEAN Research Institute of Hainan Tropical Ocean University, told the Global Times on Sunday that "the US, as a country outside the region, should contribute to maintaining peace and stability in the South China Sea. However, recently, the US has been consistently engaging in provocation and meddling, especially by supporting the Philippines' disruptive actions in the South China Sea." The Philippines' sending coast guard ships to China's Xianbin Jiao could spark a standoff, amplifying the strain on bilateral relations and exacerbating tensions across the entire South China Sea region, Gu warned. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Hezbollah uses new heavy missile against Israeli military targets IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency May 12, 2024 Tehran, IRNA -- The Lebanese resistance movement, Hezbollah, says it has used a new heavy missile against Israeli military positions for the first time since early October when the movement launched attacks on Israeli-occupied territories in support of Palestinians in Gaza. Hezbollah said on Sunday that it has used Jihad Mughniyeh heavy missiles in attacks against an Israeli military base in occupied Shebaa Farms. The unguided tactical missile has a high-level destructive power and is equipped with a warhead weighing 120kg. Hezbollah has been conducting daily attacks against Israel's military positions on Lebanon's southern border in an effort to reduce pressure on Palestinian resistance fighters battling the regime's forces inside Gaza. The Lebanese movement on Sunday announced fresh operations against Israeli targets, saying that one of the attacks hit an armoured vehicle carrying spying equipment at Ramon base. Hezbollah has promised to continue its anti-Israel operations until the regime stops its genocidal war in Gaza. 4194 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Al-Qassam conducts attacks on Zionist forces, military positions in Jabalia IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency May 12, 2024 Tehran, IRNA -- The military wing of Palestine's Hamas Resistance Movement has conducted combined attacks against Israeli forces and military targets in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip. The Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades said that its fighters hit a house in eastern Jabalia refugee camp, using TBG rockets. It said that a group of Israeli soldiers hiding in the house were killed and injured, without specifying. According to Al-Qassam, its fighters also hit ten Israeli tanks, nine of them Mekavas, using drones and anti-tank rockets. They also hit an Israeli armoured vehicle with rockets. The resistance fighters launched rocket attacks on Zionist settlements in Ashkelon and Sderot as well. Fighters from al-Qassam Brigades and other Palestinian resistance groups have been fighting Israeli soldiers in different parts of Gaza to defend the civilian population against the regime's intense attacks that have left more than 35,000 people dead since early October. 4194 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Israeli regime admits Hezbollah's high missile capabilities IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency May 12, 2024 Tehran, IRNA -- The head of the Zionist regime's National Security Council has acknowledged Hezbollah's high missile capabilities and its power to target the entire occupied territories. Tzachi Hanegbi said that Hezbollah enjoys tens of thousands of precision-guided missiles that can hit wherever in occupied territories, according to the Beirut-based Al-Mayadeen news network on Sunday. Also, Zionist media have confirmed repeatedly that Hezbollah has the upper hand in the northern occupied Palestinian territories and the Israeli army is trapped in this region. Accordingly, the seven-month desperation of more than 80,000 settlers in the north of the occupied territories to return to their settlements has prompted settlements' leaders to consider initiatives to pressure Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his cabinet. The leaders of the Israeli northern settlements decided to announce the establishment of the State of Galilee and fully separate from "Israel" at the anniversary of the establishment of the fake Zionist regime (anniversary of the Nakba), Israeli news website Walla reported. The media website explained that their decision was reached after Netanyahu's dismissive response to Benny Gantz's inquiry about settlers returning home for the school year, saying, "What would happen if they return a few months after September 1?" 3266**2050 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Hamas's return to Jabalia and Al Zaitoun means Israeli regime's defeat: Israeli media IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency May 12, 2024 Tehran, IRNA -- The Zionist regime's media admitted that the return of the Palestinian resistance fighters to the Jabalia camp in the north of the Gaza Strip and Al Zaitoun in the southeastern Gaza means the defeat of the Israeli army. The Zionist Channel 14 in a report referred to the return of Palestinian resistance fighters to the areas that the occupying army had previously captured, saying that their return to Al Zaitoun in southeastern Gaza means the failure of the Israeli army to clear this area. Meanwhile, the Israeli newspaper "Yedioth Ahronoth" quoted a Zionist regime's political official, saying that as long as Hamas is an organized military force that can stop other elements, replacing it out of the question. The Zionist media pointed to the occupying army's attempt to recapture the Jabalia camp in northern Gaza and Al Zaitoun, saying that the Zionist regime is paying a heavy price for staying in the Gaza Strip. In the meantime, the Zionist media Walla news website blamed Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu's cabinet for the failure of the ceasefire negotiations. 9376**9417 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address ICC considers issuing arrest warrants for Israeli officials IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency May 12, 2024 Tehran, IRNA -- The International Criminal Court (ICC) is considering the issuance of arrest warrants for Zionist officials such as prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, war minister Yoav Gallant, and chief of staff Herzi Halevi. Israeli officials are concerned about the arrest warrant as well as a new order by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for a ceasefire, which will affect their plan to commit genocide in Rafah city, southern Gaza. The Israeli regime's KAN 11 evening news reported, "The estimation in Israel is that the International Court of Justice in The Hague will order a ceasefire for the Israel Defense Forces operation in Rafah and therefore Israeli officials are fighting to prevent the move." "About half of the judges considered issuing the order even before the operation in Rafah, but it had no US backing," the Israeli outlet added. South Africa requested the ICJ on Friday to issue additional orders against the regime, because the steps already taken by the court do not address the circumstances in Gaza. The African country warned that the Israeli regime's operation against Rafah city poses an extreme risk to humanitarian supplies and basic services into Gaza, to the survival of the Palestinian medical system, and to the very survival of Palestinians. South Africa's genocide case against the Israeli regime was first brought before the ICJ on December 29, 2023, regarding the regime's war in the Gaza Strip. 4208**4354 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UNRWA warns against food shortage in southern Gaza IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency May 12, 2024 Tehran, IRNA -- The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in a message warned that if humanitarian aid does not enter Gaza, there will be no food left for distribution as of Sunday. If food aid is not received by Sunday (today), there will be no humanitarian aid left to distribute in this area, and the risk of starvation and famine will seriously threaten the lives of tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians, UNRWA said. Meanwhile, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories Francesca P. Albanese said that there is no safe place in Gaza. Israel violates international law and enjoys immunity provided by major powers, she added. Despite international opposition, the war cabinet of the Israeli regime approved a ground offensive on the city of Rafah located in the southern Gaza Strip on May 6, 2024. Last Tuesday, the Zionist army seized control of the Gaza side of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt; then, this area, which used to be a relatively safe place for millions of refugees, is now under heavy airstrikes and artillery shells. 9376**9417 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Zionist military hysterically bombing Jabalia: Gaza official IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency May 12, 2024 Tehran, IRNA -- Mahmoud Bassal, a spokesman for Gaza's civil defense force informed about intensified Israeli bombing of the Jabalia refugee camp, located in the northern part of the besieged Strip. All hospitals in the north of the Gaza Strip are out of reach, and we are unable to operate due to the continued Israeli bombardment, Bassal announced on Sunday morning, according to Al Jazeera. There is no exact detail of death and injuries from the ongoing Israel aerial raids on the area. But the spokesperson said that the occupying regime forces have been indiscriminately targeting innocent civilians, most of them women and children. Earlier, a Hebrew-language Zionist daily reported that the army started its military operations in Jabalia on Saturday night. 4399 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address British-Zionist captive not survived due to IOF Strikes ISNA - Iranian Students' News Agency Sun / 12 May 2024 / 11:10 Martyr Izz Al-Din Al-Qassam Brigades announced the death of the Zionist hostage Nadav Bublabil, a 51-year-old holding British citizenship, due to injuries sustained when IOF aircraft targeted his detention site over a month ago, along with the Zionist hostage "Judith Feinstein." Tehran -ISNA- In a post on his Telegram account, the spokesman for the brigades, Abu Obaida, explained that prisoner Bublabil's health deteriorated, ultimately resulting in his death. This deterioration was attributed to the absence of intensive medical care in facilities that were destroyed by Israeli aggression in Gaza. Hamas' military wing released a video of Bublabil entitled "A deal to exchange freedom and life...military pressure, death, and failure." Following Abu Obaida's announcement, the families of Zionist hostages pleaded, "A deal must be reached, and we do not have time to waste," urging the Zionist entity's government to take swift action. End Item NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Ethiopia, Djibouti embark on management, operation of Chinese-built railway Xinhua) 09:48, May 13, 2024 This photo taken on May 10, 2024 shows a handover ceremony held at the Lebu Railway Station in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The Chinese management contractors of Ethiopia-Djibouti standard gauge railway on Friday officially handed over the railway's management and operation to Ethiopia and Djibouti after six years of successful operation. (Xinhua/Liu Fangqiang) ADDIS ABABA, May 11 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese management contractors of Ethiopia-Djibouti standard gauge railway on Friday officially handed over the railway's management and operation to Ethiopia and Djibouti after six years of successful operation. This came as senior Ethiopian and Djiboutian government officials, the Chinese diplomatic community in Ethiopia, and management contractor of the 752-km electrified transnational railway celebrated the historic milestone of "Turnkey Ceremony" at the Lebu Railway Station on the outskirts of Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital, on Friday. Ethiopia's Minister of Transport and Logistics Alemu Sime said on the occasion that the railway, since it started operation back in January 2018, has been serving as a critical infrastructure, fostering connectivity between the two Horn of African nations. "Its establishment stands as a testament to the collaborative spirit and shared pursuit of progress between the two countries. The successful completion and operation of the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railway has significantly enhanced trade and fostered closer ties between the two nations," Sime said. He said the vital railway infrastructure has facilitated efficient transportation of goods under the Chinese management contractor, resulting in reduced costs and opening up new avenues for economic growth and development in both countries. Abdi Zenebe, the chief executive officer of the Ethio-Djibouti Railway Share Company (EDR), said the railway, as one manifestation of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), is a mutually beneficial cooperation platform advancing socioeconomic development across the two connected countries. "Six years ago, we embarked on a journey that would connect our two great nations, Ethiopia and Djibouti. EDR was born out of a vision for progress, prosperity, and regional integration. Today, as we celebrate the successful operation and maintenance of this railway, we reflect on the remarkable achievements that have brought us here," he said. He further reaffirmed the EDR's continued efforts to enhance its capacity building program to emerge as a center of excellence that will nurture talent, enhance skills, and empower its workforce. Djibouti's Minister of Infrastructure and Equipment Hassan Houmed, on his part, commended the railway's role in terms of reducing transport time and cost, as well as its contribution in employment creation. He said the railway's fast and streamlined transport system has enabled the port nation of Djibouti with infrastructures to decongest its port, promote the comfort and safety of passengers without forgetting its commendable role in terms of environmental protection. Data from the Chinese management contractor show that the railway has operated over 2,500 passenger trains with a passenger volume of 680,000 in six years; it has operated over 7,700 freight trains, with cargo volume of 9.5 million tonnes in the same period. The electrified railway has cut the transportation time for freight goods between Ethiopia and Djibouti from more than three days to less than 20 hours, and reduced the cost by at least one-third. At the same time, the railway has created a large number of local employment opportunities and has fully localized its workforce, employing more than 3,000 local staff. "The Chinese team is making every effort to promote capacity building. A total of 2,840 people have been trained and certified, realizing the localization of all professions of the railway in the field of operation, maintenance and safety management," said Guo Chongfeng, chief executive of China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation Ethiopian branch, which constructed this railway and maintained it with another company, China Railway Engineering Corporation. Guo said the management contractor, by focusing on the future development of the railway, has arranged leadership training for around 200 middle and senior management personnel, and further trained some 100 local managers in China. Ethiopia, as a land-locked country in the Horn of Africa, accesses international maritime trade through ports in neighboring countries. The Ethiopia-Djibouti trade corridor is the main gateway for Ethiopia, with about 90 percent of its import and export passing through it. Passengers chat in the dining cabin of a train in Ethiopia on Sept. 9, 2023. The Chinese management contractors of Ethiopia-Djibouti standard gauge railway on Friday officially handed over the railway's management and operation to Ethiopia and Djibouti after six years of successful operation. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen) Passengers buy tickets at the Lebu Railway Station in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Sept. 9, 2023. The Chinese management contractors of Ethiopia-Djibouti standard gauge railway on Friday officially handed over the railway's management and operation to Ethiopia and Djibouti after six years of successful operation. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen) Passengers board a train at the Lebu Railway Station in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Sept. 9, 2023. The Chinese management contractors of Ethiopia-Djibouti standard gauge railway on Friday officially handed over the railway's management and operation to Ethiopia and Djibouti after six years of successful operation. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen) A train attendant checks passengers' tickets in the cabin in Ethiopia, Sept. 9, 2023. The Chinese management contractors of Ethiopia-Djibouti standard gauge railway on Friday officially handed over the railway's management and operation to Ethiopia and Djibouti after six years of successful operation. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen) This photo taken on May 10, 2024 show an Ethiopian locomotive driver, trained by the Chinese counterpart, controls the train in the cab in Ethiopia. The Chinese management contractors of Ethiopia-Djibouti standard gauge railway on Friday officially handed over the railway's management and operation to Ethiopia and Djibouti after six years of successful operation. (Xinhua/Liu Fangqiang) A local train driver receivs a notebook from his Chinese predecessor at the Adama station in Adama City, Ethiopia, Sept. 9, 2023. The Chinese management contractors of Ethiopia-Djibouti standard gauge railway on Friday officially handed over the railway's management and operation to Ethiopia and Djibouti after six years of successful operation. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen) This photo taken on Sept. 9, 2023 shows the Lebu Railway Station in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The Chinese management contractors of Ethiopia-Djibouti standard gauge railway on Friday officially handed over the railway's management and operation to Ethiopia and Djibouti after six years of successful operation. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen) This aerial drone photo taken on Sept. 11, 2023 shows the Lebu Railway Station in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The Chinese management contractors of Ethiopia-Djibouti standard gauge railway on Friday officially handed over the railway's management and operation to Ethiopia and Djibouti after six years of successful operation. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen) This photo taken on May 10, 2024 shows a train drives into the Lebu Railway Station in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The Chinese management contractors of Ethiopia-Djibouti standard gauge railway on Friday officially handed over the railway's management and operation to Ethiopia and Djibouti after six years of successful operation. (Xinhua/Liu Fangqiang) (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Golden Dragon Cambodia and China begin their annual Golden Dragon military exercise this week to strengthen cooperation and exchange military experiences, a Cambodian official said Monday. A total of 1,315 military personnel from Cambodia and 760 from China will participate in the 15-day exercise, backed by three Chinese warships and 11 Cambodian ships, Cambodian army spokesperson Maj. Gen. Thong Solimo told journalists. He said the exercise, starting Thursday, is aimed at training to fight terrorism and provide humanitarian relief in both countries as well as in the region. The annual Golden Dragon exercises began in December 2016, shortly after Cambodia canceled similar exercises with the United States called Angkor Sentinel. China describes its friendship with Cambodia as ironclad. Cambodia is China's closest ally in Southeast Asia, while China is Cambodias most important ally and benefactor, with a strong influence on its economy. Cambodia has numerous Chinese-funded projects particularly infrastructure, including airports and roads, but also private projects such as hotels, casinos and property development. More than 40% of Cambodias $10 billion in foreign debt is owed to China. Beijings support allows Cambodia to largely disregard Western concerns about its poor record on human and political rights, and in turn Cambodia generally supports Beijings positions on foreign policy issues such as its territorial claims in the South China Sea. Cambodia recently reiterated its determination to go ahead with a Chinese-financed 180-kilometer (112-mile), $1.7 billion Funan Techo Canal project across four provinces in the southern part of the country to connect the capital, Phnom Penh, to the Gulf of Thailand. The plan has raised concern from neighboring Vietnam, where some analysts say the 100-meter (330-foot) -wide, 5.4 meter (18-foot) -deep canal could make it easier for China to send military forces southward, close to Vietnams southern coast. Relations between Vietnam and its massive northern neighbor are often frosty because of Beijing's aggressive claims to maritime territories also claimed by Hanoi. China's involvement in Cambodia's Ream Naval Base on the Gulf of Thailand has also caused concern, with the United States and some international security analysts saying it is likely to become a strategic outpost for Beijings navy. On Dec. 7, two Chinese naval vessels became the first ships to dock at a Chinese-financed new pier at the base, coinciding with a visit to Cambodia by Chinas top defense official. In April, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi made a three-day visit to Cambodia to affirm the countries' ties. (AP) Palestinian Resistance continues confronting Israeli war crimes in Gaza ISNA - Iranian Students' News Agency Sun / 12 May 2024 / 11:10 The Palestinian resistance fighters continued on Sunday heroically confronting the Zionist aggression against Gaza ongoing for more than seven months, inflicting more losses upon the occupation troops. Tehran -ISNA- Al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas military wing, destroyed an Israeli personnel carrier with Al-Yassin 105 in the vicinity of Rafah crossing. Al-Qassam Brigades published a video which shows Hamas fighters targeting the enemy soldiers and vehicles in eastern Rafah. Al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of Islamic Jihad resistance movement, detonated two highly explosive devices targeting the enemy vehicles in south of Gaza city. Al-Quds Brigades fighters also bombarded with mortar shells the enemy soldiers and vehicles penetrating the vicinity of Al-Zaytoun Clinic in the Al-Zaytoun neighborhood, south of Gaza City. Recent battles were resounding as fighters of the Palestinian resistance movements valiantly defended Rafah against Israeli attempts to encircle the area to the east of Rafah. In addition, Al-Quds Brigades' military media depicted footage of an IOF "Skylark" UAV, which fighters successfully intercepted and commandeered in Gaza City. Meanwhile, the Zionist enemy continued bombarding the Palestinian civilian areas across the Strip, especially Jabalia, Gaza city and Rafah, committing more massacres and destroying more buildings. Israeli warplanes carried out successive raids on Al-Zaitoun neighborhood in southeastern Gaza City, claiming 8 martyrs, according to Al-Manar reporter. End Item NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UNGA vote shows Israel, US more isolated: Kanaani ISNA - Iranian Students' News Agency Sun / 12 May 2024 / 11:10 The spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Nasser Kanaani, said that the overwhelming majority vote for Palestine's full membership at the United Nations reflects the isolation of the Israeli occupation and the United States in the international community. Tehran -ISNA- In a post on X, Kanaani stated that "the US' full support for the Zionists' crimes in Gaza comes amid an unprecedented, increased, and firm rejection of the occupation and forced displacement, and in support of Palestinians in the Strip." He noted that as "the Israeli occupation is more isolated than ever in history, only the US is still blindly supporting this criminal entity." This came after the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) passed a resolution awarding Palestine full-membership status, within the agency itself, delegating the matter to the UNSC on Friday. Although the vote is considered to be symbolic, it is a necessary step for the full recognition of Palestine as a member state in all UN agencies. Such a decision would need to be passed through the UN Security Council (UNSC). The draft resolution was originally introduced by the United Arab Emirates, following a UNSC vote on April 18 that blocked a similar proposal. "The State of Palestine is qualified for membership in the United Nations in accordance with article 4 of the Charter and should therefore be admitted," the draft read. It also called on the Security Council to "reconsider the matter favorably." The proposal garnered the support of 143 member states, while 25 abstained and another nine voted against the text. However, the proposal successfully passed the two-thirds yes-vote requirement. End Item NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address PM Netanyahu's Address at the Opening Ceremony of Remembrance Day for Israel's Fallen Soldiers at Yad Lebanim in Jerusalem Israel - Prime Minister's Office Events and Speeches The 37th Government 12.05.2024 Following are Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's remarks, at the opening ceremony of Remembrance Day for Israel's Fallen Soldiers, at Yad Lebanim in Jerusalem: "Distinguished guests, and above all on this sacred day, my brothers and sisters in the family of bereavement: Parents, siblings, grandparents, spouses and partners of the soldiers who fell in Israel's wars. They are joined by the victims of terrorism, wonderful Israelis, who loved our nation and country. I think about you every day, just like I think about my older brother Yoni every day. And I think of the ache and the sense of yearning that will not yield, the feeling that the sun has extinguished, I think about the heroes that we lost, about broken dreams, shattered hopes. Our beloved are always before our eyes, with the clear knowledge that the State of Israel exists thanks to them. That is our crutch, our consolation. Amichai Weitzen was a member of the security team in Kibbutz Kerem Shalom in the Gaza Envelope. On October 7th, the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah, Amichai and his friends fought with admirable courage. They engaged in a drawn-out fire fight with a large force of terrorists attacking the kibbutz. They stopped the terrorists with their bodies. The harsh battle lasted many hours. Here, the kibbutz was saved and a massacre was prevented. But Amichai and his friend Yedidya Raziel were killed. Out of a sense of shared destiny, Amichai's father, Rabbi Shlomo Yossef Weitzen, has visited the homes of other families. When he arrived at the home of Gilad Nitzan, a soldier in the Givati Brigade who fell in Gaza, Gilad's father, Yaakov asked him: 'Where will we find the strength to go on?' The two fathers answered each other: 'We draw the strength from our sons. We raised a determined and dedicated generation. It is a generation that strives to live life to the fullest, but it also knows that being prepared to sacrifice life at the moment of truth means a life full of meaning.' Distinguished guests, This generation continues the work of its predecessors defending the country. In the last few months, it has revealed itself in its full strength. The more we hear about the horrific massacre, the more tales of heroism are exposed. Soldiers on the front line, community security teams, police officers, NSA teams, fire fighters, rescue and medical teams, and many regular citizens - they did not sit idly by and took action. They risked their lives and charged forward against the Hamas monsters to save anyone they could. They jumped into the flames with a sense of mutual responsibility, a desire to overcome the abominable murderers, love for their country, an inseparable bond to our land and our shared destiny. These are all anchors of strength that will bring us victory, God willing. As is written in the Book of Nehemiah: 'Fight for your brethren, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your houses.' All of our soldiers in this difficult war have an ironclad commitment to our country: Jews, Druze, Christians, Muslims, Bedouin and Circassian. A few months ago, I paid a condolence visit to the Abu Latif family in Rahat. I embraced the family members of the Bedouin soldier Ahmad Abu Latif who fell in battle. I told them that I understand what they are experiencing. Like them, my parents suffered greatly when my brother was killed. Tewfik, Ahmad's father, told me that his son would say: 'I am proud to be a Bedouin who serves in the IDF.' When Ahmad joined his army unit on October 7th, he said that he would not return home until the last of the hostages was back at home. Ahmad did not get to see that mission completed. We have achieved about half, but we are committed to complete this sacred task. A month before the visit in Rahat, I visited the Bedouin reconnaissance battalion. One of the Bedouin officers described the horrors he witnessed on October 7th on his way to Gaza. He rushed to join his unit, and on the way he saw a woman who had been murdered. I will not detail what he saw, but he said to me: "It is that abomination that we are fighting." And he stressed we. We all fight together. Because it is the only way to defeat the Hamas monsters, who want to annihilate us all. Dear families, Citizens of Israel, Out of the darkness, we also see rays of light emerging. Police Officer Avi Amar fell while fighting the terrorists in Kibbutz Be'eri. His wife Pazit had a baby boy after he was killed. She named the baby Or, light. Amit Guetta from the Maglan Unit fell in battle. His wife Gal had a baby boy after he was killed. She named the baby Oz, courage. Yehonatan Lober from the Re'em Brigade also fell in the Gaza Strip. His wife Avia had a baby boy after her husband was killed. She named the baby Amatzya, a name that combines bravery and faith. Or, Oz and Amatzya - light, courage, bravery and faith - continue the path of our heroes. The spirit of our fallen soldiers secures our future. I wish all the wounded a full recovery in their rehabilitation journey. I visited them in hospital, I was moved to hear their stories. All of them, even those who had lost limbs, said to me, 'We are lifted by the spirit of the nation.' 'Continue until victory,' and we will. The spirit of the nation will continue to lift us in the fatal challenges we still face, and as we mark our 76th Independence Day. May the memory of the fallen soldiers of Israel's wars and the victims of terrorism be treasured in our hearts forever." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US admits Israeli assault on Rafah wouldn't eliminate Hamas Iran Press TV Sunday, 12 May 2024 7:14 PM US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said that an all-out Israeli incursion of Rafah would provoke "anarchy" if it fails to eliminate the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas in the southern Gaza city. A full-scale invasion, the top US diplomat said, could come "potentially at an incredibly high cost." And, he added, Israel "will be left holding the bag on an enduring insurgency." "Israel's on the trajectory, potentially, to inherit an insurgency with many armed Hamas left or, if it leaves, a vacuum filled by chaos, filled by anarchy and probably refilled by Hamas," Blinken told NBC's "Meet the Press." Hamas fighters, Blinken said, already are returning to areas of northern Gaza that Israel claimed to have cleared. NBC and CBS News aired interviews with Blinken dominated by President Joe Biden's decision to pause a shipment to Israel of bombs over fears of massive civilian casualties in Rafah and a State Department report that Israel's use of US-supplied arms may have broken international law. He also confirmed that the hold President Joe Biden has placed on weapons to Israel remained limited to 3,500 "high-capacity" bombs. Defending the pause on the shipment of 3,500 2,000-pound and 500-pound bombs, Blinken said Israel lacked a "credible plan" to protect some 1.4 million civilians sheltering in Rafah If Israel "launches this major military operation to Rafah, then there are certain systems that we're not going to be supporting and supplying for that operation," said Blinken. Blinken said the United States was continuing to press Israeli leaders to provide a plan for Gaza once the war is finally over. Israel needs to "have a clear, credible plan to protect civilians, which we haven't seen," he said. "We have the same objectives as Israel," he said. "We want to make sure that Hamas cannot govern Gaza again." Asked whether the US concurred with a statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Israeli forces had killed more civilians than Hamas fighters since the war began on October 7, Blinken simply replied, "Yes, we do." More than seven months into the US-Israeli genocidal war on Gaza, the regime continues to kill civilians across the besieged territory. The regime has carried out fresh attacks in the north, pushing deeper into the Jabalia refugee camp, killing several people there. In the central parts of the strip, over 60 Palestinians were killed in just 24 hours. Relentless Israeli bombings also claimed the lives of 18 people in the southern refugee-packed city of Rafah. That's where Israeli forces are preparing for a large-scale ground aggression, despite international warnings. Over 35,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since last October when the US-Israeli genocide began. Most of those killed are women and children. Thousands of bodies also remain under the rubble. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Lebanese MP: Israel's war will only result in greater strength of Hamas Iran Press TV Sunday, 12 May 2024 6:56 PM A senior Lebanese lawmaker has highlighted the Israeli regime's failure to attain any military achievement after more than seven months of brutal strikes against the Gaza Strip, stressing that the ongoing onslaught will only strengthen the Hamas resistance movement. Mohammad Raad, head of Loyalty to the Resistance Bloc - the political wing of Hezbollah - in the Lebanese parliament, said on Sunday that Hamas would emerge not only as a principal player in Gaza and occupied Palestinian territories but also in the Muslim world. "All Palestinian factions, particularly Hamas, were close to working out a formula aimed at ending the Gaza war. The Israeli prime minister, however, adamantly insisted on Rafah invasion and continuation of atrocities," Raad pointed out. He noted that US officials have been unable to dissuade Benjamin Netanyahu from an Israeli military offensive in Rafah, and have publicly warned for the first time that Washington would stop supplying weapons to the Tel Aviv regime if Israeli forces make a major invasion of the southern Gaza Strip city. "This is a solid proof that all munitions used in the destruction of Gaza and massacre of its Palestinian population are US-built. "Following the US administration's opposition to an Israeli assault on Rafah, Netanyahu said he will implement the plan single-handedly. Such comments reveal that the war which started more than seven months ago and has been raging on up until now is sponsored by the United States, Britain, Germany and France," the senior Lebanese parliamentarian said. Raad stressed that Israel has failed to achieve any of the declared goals of its war on Gaza, including eliminating Hamas and freeing its captives, after 219 days of a genocidal onslaught. "Hamas will have the upper hand in the Gaza conflict. It will emerge not only as an influential power in the Gaza Strip and Palestinian territories but also among Arab states and in the Muslim world," he said. At least 35,034 people have died across Gaza since October 7 last year, when the Israeli regime started attacking the blockaded strip of land in response to Operation Al-Aqsa Storm by the territory's resistance movements. Women and children comprise more than 70 percent of the victims of the war, which has also wounded as many as 78,755 others. Despite the unabated campaign of bloodshed and destruction, the regime has so far fallen short of realizing its goals, including defeating Gaza's resistance and causing forced displacement of the territory's entire population to neighboring Egypt. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Iran: West Asia peace, security hinge on disarmament of Israel, end of Palestine's occupation Iran Press TV Sunday, 12 May 2024 6:02 PM Iran says the establishment of full and genuine peace, stability and security in the West Asia region hinges on the disarmament of Israel and an end to its occupation of Palestine. Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian made the remarks in an address to the third Iranian-Arab Dialogue Conference, dubbed "For Cooperation and Interaction", in Tehran on Sunday. He added that the people of Palestine have been deprived of all their rights and Israel's "unequal war" in Gaza over the past seven months once more showed the reality of the Palestinian issue to the world. The Israeli regime took shape based on violation of Palestinians' rights, occupation, warmongering and extremism and lacks the potential to have peaceful coexistence with regional nations, he noted. The top Iranian diplomat lashed out at the United States for providing Israel with full and unconditional support for the regime's crimes and genocide against the people of Palestine. The US has also violated all its false and deceptive claims of advocating peace, democracy and human rights, he emphasized. Amir-Abdollahian said sustainable peace and stability will not be established in Palestine and the Arab-Islamic region unless the rights of the Palestinian people are realized. He emphasized that regional nations, particularly Palestinians, have no option but to continue their resistance to achieve their absolute rights. As a responsible actor and supporter of international peace and security, Iran stresses the importance of holding a referendum as a political solution to the Palestinian issue and establishing a Middle East free of nuclear weapons, the foreign minister added. He said Iran expresses its full readiness to cooperate with the regional and neighboring countries as well as the member states of the Muslim and Arab world. The Islamic Republic will spare no effort to realize the Palestinian people's cause, he added. More than 35,000 Palestinians, mostly children and women, have been killed in the war that Israel began on October 7, 2023 following a retaliatory operation by the Palestinian territory's resistance movements. The brutal military onslaught enjoys unreserved military and political support on the part of the Israeli regime's Western allies, including the United States and France. Iran in new phase of relations with Persian Gulf Arab states Elsewhere in his address, Amir-Abdollahian reiterated Iran's determination to deepen understanding and convergence among the regional countries, saying the restoration of relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia is an indication of such a policy. Iran and Saudi Arabia enjoy ample capacities and capabilities which can be used to boost cooperation in the region and the Muslim world, he added. He noted that Iran seriously heeds the promotion of ties with other Persian Gulf littoral states. Iran has started to enhance its relations with the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman and Kuwait and welcomes Bahrain's move to release detainees on political charges, the foreign minister emphasized. "We believe that today we have passed the phase of Iranian-Arab dialogue and have entered into regional dialogue...We are now in the stage of regional cooperation," Amir-Abdollahian said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UN rights chief warns against full-scale Israeli offensive on Rafah Iran Press TV Sunday, 12 May 2024 5:26 PM The United Nation's High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk has expressed alarm about the "catastrophic" impact of a full-scale Israeli offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah. In a statement released on Sunday, the UN human rights chief warned that a full-scale invasion of Rafah cannot take place for the sake of civilians. "I have repeatedly expressed my alarm about the catastrophic impact of a possible full-scale offensive on Rafah, including the possibility of further atrocity crimes," the UN rights chief said. Turk said he could not see how the latest evacuation orders or a "full assault" in an area with an extremely dense civilian presence, can be reconciled with the binding requirements of international humanitarian law and with the two sets of binding provisional measures ordered by the International Court of Justice (ICJ). "At this desperate moment, exacerbated by acts impeding the entry of humanitarian aid in Gaza through the three crossings, there is a dire shortage of fuel, which is hindering everything," the UN rights chief said. The remarks come as displaced Palestinians in the southern Rafah city are struggling to find a safe place with the continued Israeli genocidal war on Gaza. He said that since May 6, when the Israeli forces issued an evacuation order to Palestinians in eastern Rafah, more than 278,000 people have been displaced. The latest evacuation orders affect close to a million people in Rafah, Turk noted. "These exhausted, famished people, many of whom have been displaced many times already, have no good options." "There is no safe place in Gaza. So where should they go now?" the UN rights chief asked. "This includes people with disabilities, the chronically ill, older people, the injured, pregnant women, and many others who are physically unable to move without help." He noted that other towns across Gaza, including Khan Younis, which is supposed to receive those who are being displaced from Rafah right now, have already been "reduced to rubble," and remain under attack, thus not safe. The latest Israeli aggression comes despite international warnings that it will further deteriorate the already dire humanitarian situation there. Doctors and medics in Rafah describe the condition of hospitalized patients in this city as catastrophic. They say Israel's relentless bombardments have left no safe place in the city, calling on international organizations to provide immediate help. More than seven months into the US-Israeli genocidal war on Gaza, the Israeli regime continues to kill civilians across the besieged territory. The regime has carried out fresh attacks in the north, pushing deeper into the Jabalia refugee camp, and killing several people there. In the central parts of the strip, over 60 Palestinians were killed in just 24 hours. More than 35,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since last October when the US-Israeli genocide began. Most of those killed are women and children. Thousands of bodies also remain under the rubble. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Egypt to join South Africa's genocide case against Israel Iran Press TV Sunday, 12 May 2024 4:39 PM The Egyptian foreign ministry says the Arab country is intending to join a legal bid launched last year by South Africa against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) which accuses the regime of committing genocide against the Palestinians in Gaza. The ministry said in a Sunday statement that Egypt will formally support South Africa's genocide complaint against Israel at the ICJ because of the regime's escalating military attacks on civilians in Gaza. It said that "worsening severity and scope of Israeli attacks" against Palestinians in Gaza has created "an unprecedented humanitarian crisis" in the territory, adding that the regime's systematic practices in Gaza has eventually displaced people by forcing them to leave their lands. South Africa lodged a complaint against Israel in the ICJ in January, some three months after the regime launched its brutal aggression against Gaza. The complaint asked judges in the court to declare that Israel was committing genocide in Gaza and order the regime to stop its attacks on people. The ICJ then issued an initial ruling ordering Israel to refrain from acts that could fall under the Genocide Convention. It issued another verdict in March ordering the regime to ensure that basic food supplies can reach people in Gaza. Turkey and Colombia have also declared they are willing to join South Africa's genocide case against Israel. Egypt's announcement comes amid an escalation in attacks by Israel on Gaza's Rafah, a city which borders the Arab country and hosts a crossing by the same name which is responsible for a bulk of aid supply to the Palestinian territory. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Gaza death toll surpasses 35,000: Health Ministry Iran Press TV Sunday, 12 May 2024 2:10 PM The Gaza Health Ministry has announced that more than 35,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli war on the besieged territory. The ministry said in a statement on Sunday that since Israel launched its offensive on October 7, at least 35,034 people have been killed, including 15,000 children. It added that up to 78,755 people have been injured. The statement added that many Palestinians were still trapped buried under the rubble and that rescue and relief workers, ambulance crew and civil defense officers could not reach and free due to the huge damage and lack of excavation equipment. Following 7 months of relentless attacks, the Israeli regime has now increased the brutality, ordering the Zionist forces to attack the southern town of Rafah where 1.5 million displaced Gazans have sought refuge. This move has sparked global concerns that the regime forces were speeding up the massacre, intensifying the genocidal war on Gaza. The international community is now persuaded that Israelis have no intention of allowing a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and their genocidal war on Palestinians will continue until they achieve the ultimate goals of razing Gaza to the ground and annihilating remaining Palestinians. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address 'Intolerable': EU top diplomat slams Israel's forced evacuation of Rafah Iran Press TV Sunday, 12 May 2024 10:58 AM The European Union's foreign policy chief has denounced as "intolerable" the Israeli regime's move to forcibly evacuate Palestinians from the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah as the occupying entity prepares for a large-scale ground invasion of the densely populated area. Josep Borrell said in a post on X on Sunday that Israel is bound by international law to provide safety to Palestinian civilians before their evacuation from Rafah. "Forcing civilians to evacuate Rafah to unsafe zones is intolerable. Israel is bound by international law to provide safety to civilians," Borrell said. He went on to stress that the Israeli ground offensive would worsen the "dire humanitarian crisis" in the city. "We continue to urge Israel not to go ahead with a ground operation in Rafah. This would further exacerbate an already dire humanitarian crisis." The Israeli military ordered Palestinians on Saturday to evacuate more areas in the southern city of Rafah, where the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) says is accommodating an estimated population of approximately 1.1 million individuals in an area of 63.1 square kilometers. The Israeli occupation has been expanding the evacuation of Rafah since May 6, when the usurping entity declared launching a ground military offensive in the southern Gaza city, saying in a statement that about 300,000 people have left. A day after, the Israeli forces entered Rafah's eastern sector and seized control of Gaza's side of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt, which is the main corridor for the transfer of aid into the besieged strip. The incursion came despite widespread international opposition and after the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas said it had agreed to a ceasefire proposal put forward by mediators Qatar and Egypt. Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza since October 7, killing at least 34,971 Palestinians and injuring over 78,641 others. Moreover, at least 7,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UN chief renews call for ceasefire in Israel's genocidal Gaza war Iran Press TV Sunday, 12 May 2024 10:56 AM UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has reiterated his call for an immediate truce in the Gaza Strip, where Israel has been waging a genocidal war against Palestinians. Guterres made the remarks in a video message to the 9th Conference on Effective Partnership for Better Humanitarian Aid in Kuwait on Sunday, amid the international community's outcry over Israeli war crimes in Gaza. "I repeat my call - the world's call - for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire," he said. "But a ceasefire will only be the start. It will be a long road back from the devastation and trauma of this war." The UN chief also demanded an immediate surge in aid to Gaza amid a humanitarian catastrophe in the besieged Palestinian territory "Humanitarian agencies, led by UNRWA -- which is the backbone of the UN's efforts in Gaza -- rely on strong partnerships to do their work," he added. Israel unleashed its brutal war on Gaza on October 7 after the Palestinian Hamas resistance group carried out a historic operation against the usurping entity in retaliation for its intensified atrocities against the Palestinian people. The Tel Aviv regime has so far killed at least 34,971 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured 78,641 others. Recently, Hamas said that it has accepted an Egyptian-Qatari proposal, which includes a ceasefire, a complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, an exchange of prisoners, reconstruction of the territory, and the lifting of Israel's blockade. However, Israel rejected the ceasefire deal, with prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying a withdrawal of the occupation forces from the Gaza Strip would "leave Hamas intact." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Israel launches ground offensive into Gaza's Jabalia refugee camp Iran Press TV Sunday, 12 May 2024 10:47 AM Israeli military tanks have started to go deeper into the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza as part of a ground offensive months after claiming Hamas had been "dismantled" in the area. Israeli forces are "carpet-bombing" the eastern areas of Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, killing and wounding several Palestinians, Al-Jazeara reported citing local sources on Sunday. Israeli military tanks have advanced further into the Jabalia refugee camp, crossing Salah al-Din Street amidst ongoing battles with Hamas fighters, reports added. Media quoted eyewitnesses as saying that the tanks are surrounding evacuation centers and residential buildings in the densely populated area, leading to mass evacuations and displacement towards the western part of Gaza City. Also, Israeli drones targeted ambulances near the clinic run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in Jabalia, according to Mahmoud Basal, the spokesperson for the civil defense directorate in Gaza. Basal stated that emergency crews in Rafah, al-Zaytounm, al-Sabra, and Jabalia have been inundated with distress calls, confirming that these areas were subjected to overnight bombardment. Shortage of oxygen for patients Imad Abu Zayda, an emergency doctor in Jabalia, warned of the critical conditions prevailing there due to the recent Israeli aggression in the area. "No light due to the lack of fuel and there's no medical supplement available as Israel has expanded their operation in the area. We have no oxygen to give to patients," he said. He added that the majority of those injured are children and women, and the medical team is grappling with limited resources to provide essential care. All hospitals in the northern Gaza Strip are now out of service, following a warning from the UN about the risk of running out of fuel in hospitals across the region. Israel's closure of the Rafah crossing has also prevented aid trucks from entering the area since May 5. The Jabalia refugee camp, established in 1948 to accommodate Palestinians who were displaced after the Nakba, or catastrophe, which refers to the ethnic cleansing of Palestine in 1948, has become the most densely populated refugee camp in the Gaza Strip. With over 750,000 Palestinians forcefully displaced, this camp stands as a testament to the birth of Israel in 1948. Since the start of the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip on October 7, Israeli forces carried out several attacks on Jabilia camp, leaving it in ruins by intense bombardment. In early February, Israeli forces withdrew from the camp claiming it had destroyed Hamas as a fighting force in the northern areas. On Saturday, the Israeli military ordered residents of the Jabalia Refugee Camp to evacuate "immediately", as it prepares to launch military operations against Hamas. However, the displaced residents have no place to seek refuge, as the UN reports a severe famine in the region. Since the start of the offensive, the Tel Aviv regime has killed more than 34,971 Palestinians and injured more than 78,641 others, mostly women and children. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address May 11: 'Axis of Resistance' operations against Israeli occupation Iran Press TV Sunday, 12 May 2024 9:51 AM By Press TV Website Staff Amid Israel's genocidal war on Gaza, which has killed nearly 35,000 Palestinians so far, including more than 16,000 children, resistance groups in Palestine and across the region continue their operations against the Tel Aviv regime and its Western backers. The major operations carried out by the Palestinian and regional resistance groups on Saturday, May 11, are as follows: Al-Qassam Brigades' operations on May 11: Bombed a gathering of Israeli troops and their military vehicles east of the Rafah crossing in southern Gaza with a barrage of mortar shells. Bombed a gathering of Israeli forces positioned in the "Netzarim" axis with the "Rajoom" rocket system in a joint operation with the Martyr Jihad Jibril Brigades. Bombed the city of "Bir Al-Sabi" in occupied territories with a barrage of rockets. Targeted a gathering of Israeli soldiers south of the Al-Zaytoun neighborhood in Gaza City with a number of mortar shells. Targeted an Israeli military Merkava-4 tank with an Al-Yassin 105 shell, south of the Al-Zaytoun neighborhood in Gaza City. Bombed an Israeli military troop carrier with an Al-Yassin 105 shell in the vicinity of the Rafah crossing in the southern Gaza Strip. Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades' operations on May 11: Bombed a gathering of Israeli troops and their military vehicles with a number of heavy-caliber mortar shells on the axes of advance in Gaza City. Al-Quds Brigades' operations on May 11: Bombed a gathering of Israeli soldiers and their military vehicles invading the Umm Raed area, east of the southern Gaza city of Rafah, with heavy caliber mortar shells. Bombed a gathering of Israeli soldiers and their military vehicles in the vicinity of the airport, east of the southern Gaza city of Rafah, with a barrage of regular 60 caliber mortar shells. Bombed a gathering of Israeli soldiers and their military vehicles penetrating east of the city of Rafah in southern Gaza with a barrage of mortar shells. Detonated two highly explosive devices on a number of Israeli military vehicles infiltrating Route 8 in Al-Zaytoun neighborhood, south of Gaza City. Bombed a gathering of Israeli soldiers and their military vehicles infiltrating the vicinity of Al-Zaytoun Clinic in the Al-Zaytoun neighborhood, south of Gaza City, with mortar shells. Martyr Omar Al-Qasim Forces' operations on May 11: Targeted a gathering of Israeli forces penetrating the vicinity of the Ali bin Abi Talib Mosque, west of the Al-Zaytoun neighborhood in Gaza City, with 107-type short-range rockets. Targeted a gathering of Israeli forces inside the "Kerem Shalom" military site, east of the city of Rafah in southern Gaza, with a rocket salvo. Mujahideen Brigades' operations on May 11: Destroyed an Israeli military tank with an anti-armor device near the Al-Zaytoun Clinic in the Al-Zaytoun neighborhood axis. Hezbollah's operations on May 11: Eastern sector: At around 01:15 local time, Israeli soldiers stationed in the Metula settlement were targeted with appropriate weapons. At around 15:15 local time, the Al-Samaqa site in Lebanon's Kfar Shuba was targeted with appropriate weapons. At around 15:40 local time, the Ruwaisat al-Qarn site in Lebanon's Shebaa Farms was targeted with a barrage of missiles. At around 19:00 local time, the Beit Hilal military base and an Iron Dome battery were targeted by a volley of drones. At around 19:20 local time, Israeli soldiers at the Beit Hilal base were targeted with drones. At around 23:40 local time, the Al-Marj site was targeted with artillery shells. Western sector: At around 7:10 local time, the Ramya site was targeted with guided missile and artillery shells. At around 08:20 local time, surveillance equipment of the Israeli military at the Jal al-Alam site was targeted with appropriate weapons. At around 10:00 local time, Ramya site was targeted with artillery shells Islamic Resistance in Iraq's operations on May 11: Launched an Arqab advanced cruise missile towards the "Ramon" air base of the Israeli military in Israeli-occupied territories. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Colombia's President says Netanyahu will go down in history as 'genocidaire' Iran Press TV Sunday, 12 May 2024 8:24 AM Colombian President Gustavo Petro has said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will "go down in history" as a "genocide perpetrator." Petro in a post on X on Sunday compared Netanyahu with Nazis as the two leaders continue their social media feud after a diplomatic fallout resulting from Israel's genocidal war campaign against the Gaza Strip. "Mr Netanyahu, you will go down in history as a genocidaire. Dropping bombs on thousands of innocent children, women, and elderly people does not make you a hero," he wrote. "You remain alongside those who murdered millions of Jews in Europe. Genocide, whether it is related to religion or not, is genocide. At least stop the onslaught that is continuing," he added. This comes after Netanyahu called Petro "an anti-Semitic supporter of Hamas," following the Colombian leader's call for the Israeli prime minister's arrest in connection to the killing of Palestinians in Gaza. On Friday, Petro urged the International Criminal Court (ICC) to issue an arrest warrant for Netanyahu, citing Israel's actions in Gaza, which have resulted in the killing of nearly 35,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children. Earlier this month, the Colombian president also announced that his country was cutting diplomatic ties with the Israeli regime over the latter's ongoing genocidal war against the Gaza Strip. "And we here in front of you, the government of change, the president of the republic informs that tomorrow diplomatic relations with the Israeli regime will be cut," he said at the time. "If Palestine dies, humanity dies and we will not let it die as we will not let humanity die," Petro added. The Colombian president halted Israeli arms deals in February following a lethal assault by the regime's military on Gaza residents seeking humanitarian assistance, denouncing the incident as "genocide" reminiscent of the Holocaust. Colombia and Israel have experienced heightened tensions in the aftermath of the Gaza war in October. Ambassador Margarita Manjarrez returned to Colombia on November 8 last year, following her summons for consultations by the president. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address World must do more to end persecution of Palestinians: South Africa president Iran Press TV Sunday, 12 May 2024 8:02 AM South Africa has sounded the alarm on Israel's treatment of Palestinians and called for urgent action to put an end to the suffering of the nation including women and children. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in a statement on Saturday urged the international community, including Israel's allies, not to turn a blind eye to the ongoing genocide of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip which has so far killed nearly 35,000 people since the war began on October 7. "The gross human rights violations perpetrated by Israel have scaled to incomprehensible levels of cruelty, hate, and extreme violent oppression," Ramaphosa said. "The world must do more to end the persecution of Palestinians, including that of many innocent women and children." Ramaphosa also added that South Africa on Friday has once again taken legal action at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to seek an urgent order to protect the Palestinian people in Gaza from grave and irreparable violations of their rights under the Genocide Convention as a result of Israel's ongoing genocidal war on Gaza, exacerbated by a recent bloody assault on the southern city of Rafah. South Africa had lodged a complaint against Israel to the top UN court last December. The ICJ initially passed a verdict in January, issuing an interim ruling saying it is "plausible" that Israel is committing genocide against those living in the Gaza Strip. The court ordered the apartheid regime to stop its attacks and take measures to ensure that Palestinians received humanitarian aid. Ramaphosa said a permanent ceasefire in Gaza is required for the ICJ's measures to be effectively implemented. He added that the latest urgent application to the international court follows the Israeli regime force's increased attacks on Rafah, which has worsened the already dire situation, plunging the region to the brink of a horrifying total collapse. The city of Rafah is the refuge of some 1.5 million displaced Gazans who fled their homes after the Israeli regime launched its war on Gaza more than 7 months ago. The South African leader added that the worldwide pro-Palestinian student protests, which began to gain momentum last month after a solidarity encampment at the US Columbia University campus and led to the mass arrest of thousands of students, had been a source of encouragement for his country. Ramaphosa also said that the UN General Assembly's backing of the Palestinian bid to become a full member of the world body despite the American-Israeli opposition has also encouraged South Africa. "We are also greatly encouraged by the adoption of the United Nations General Assembly draft resolution that recommends to the Security Council to reconsider favorably the application by the State of Palestine for full membership of the United Nations," he said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Hezbollah launches artillery, drone strikes against Israeli positions Iran Press TV Sunday, 12 May 2024 6:31 AM Fighters from the Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement have launched several artillery and drone strikes against Israeli military positions north of the occupied territories in retaliation for its ongoing onslaught against the Gaza Strip. Lebanon's media outlets reported that Hezbollah fighters struck a group of soldiers at the al-Marj base on Saturday night, resulting in casualties in the targeted area. The Lebanese resistance group also claimed responsibility for a drone strike against the Israeli Beit Hillel military base, putting the so-called Iron Dome missile system at the site out of service. Hezbollah said in a statement that Israeli military aircraft sought to intercept and shoot down the incoming unmanned aerial vehicles, but failed to do so. Video footage circulated on social media platforms showed the drones evading Israeli interceptions as they conducted multiple maneuvers and crossed the Blue Line into occupied Palestinian territories. Earlier, Hezbollah said it had fired Katyusha rockets at the northern side of the Israeli-occupied lands in retaliation for strikes that killed two people in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah fighters fired "a salvo of Katyusha rockets in response to the Israeli enemy's attacks on... civilians, most recently in Tayr Harfa," the group said in a statement. The occupying Israeli regime has repeatedly launched attacks on southern Lebanon since October 7, after unleashing a genocidal war in Gaza that has claimed the lives of at least 34,971 Palestinians, predominantly women and children. As a retaliatory measure, Hezbollah has been carrying out almost daily rocket attacks on Israeli positions. At least 390 people have been killed on the Lebanese border, including more than 70 civilians. Two Israeli wars waged against Lebanon in 2000 and 2006 were met with strong resistance from Hezbollah, resulting in the retreat of the regime in both conflicts. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Jailed For Insulting The Uzbek President By Chris Rickleton and Khurmat Babadjanov May 12, 2024 ALMATY -- Earlier this year, Sitora Bozorova, a 24-year-old woman, was sentenced to five years in prison over social media posts that called for the "dynasty" of President Shavkat Mirziyoev to "burn." Bozorova, who was also accused of making a highly unflattering remark about Mirziyoev's daughter and top aide Saida Mirziyoeva, is now among a growing number of citizens who are being jailed for insulting the head of state -- a crime introduced into the legal code in 2021. Since becoming president in 2016, Mirziyoev has positioned himself as a champion of freer speech, a shift away from the heavy authoritarianism of his predecessor, Islam Karimov, and one that was greeted enthusiastically at home and abroad. That now looks like a bygone era, and the protections afforded to Mirziyoev are only helping to widen and deepen the crackdown. Straight To Jail The legal tweak -- Article 158, Part 3 -- is part of a growing arsenal available to the Uzbek authorities, who are eager to stifle the kind of everyday dissent that became more common after the tentative opening up. It is a legal weapon very much in vogue. Citing data from the Supreme Court, UzNews, a privately owned media outlet, reported this month that at least 10 people have been sentenced to jail over insults to the president in the last 12 months. The cases detailed by the news agency covered citizens between 25 and 60 years old, who received sentences ranging from correctional labor to the maximum sentence for the crime -- five years -- and even beyond in instances where defendants were being sentenced for other crimes as well. Overwhelmingly, the basis for the convictions were posts or online comments, with none of the offenders scattered across different regions of Uzbekistan enjoying large online followings. This type of targeting is now par for the course, said Nadezhda Ataeva, chairwoman of the Paris-based Association for Human Rights in Central Asia (AHRCA), which is set to soon publish a report on the state of freedom of speech in Uzbekistan in cooperation with the Brussels-based International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR). Ataeva told RFE/RL that Uzbekistan's law books now contain around 30 articles in some way or another connected to speech. In the vast majority of jailings under Article 158, Part 3, the citizens being incarcerated have no prior convictions, she said. "In many other countries, when it comes to offenses relating to speech, the first response from law enforcement is a caution," Ataeva said. "In Uzbekistan, there is no warning, just a prison sentence straight away." And, so far, pleas for leniency have fallen on deaf ears. "I can't imagine that my daughter would insult the president," Bozorova's mother, Saodat Kurbanova, told RFE/RL's Uzbek Service, before launching an impassioned appeal to the president. "President, please, my daughter has to get married," she said. "I don't want her to spend her life in prison like some hooligan. She had so many hopes and dreams. I ask you to take account of my appeals and assist us so that my daughter is vindicated and so that she might return home to us." The youngest citizen known to have been jailed for presidential insults was a 19-year-old from Samarkand, who was sentenced to 2 1/2 years imprisonment in October 2023. A copy of a court judgment seen by RFE/RL's Uzbek Service states that Dilshod Iskandarov left a comment cursing current and future generations of Mirziyoevs under a video about the president's family on Instagram. Iskandarov, who was in Russia at the time, deleted the comment on the advice of his friends and repented in court, but his plea of immaturity did not spare him prison time. Stalled Progress In 2019, some three years after the death of longtime Uzbek leader Islam Karimov, the Paris-based press freedom watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) changed its description of Uzbekistan's press freedom environment from "very serious" to merely "difficult." For the first time, in RSF's annual World Press Freedom Index, Uzbekistan was no longer one of those brick red countries like China, Iran, and Saudi Arabia highlighted for being the planet's top-level offenders of the free press. Instead, it was part of the peachy-colored band that included Colombia, Morocco, Indonesia, and Uzbekistan's Central Asian neighbor Kazakhstan. Five years on from that achievement, Uzbekistan is back in the brick red again, placing 148th out of 180 countries, 11 places below last year's ranking. "There is a great pressure on websites and bloggers. Materials are regularly deleted. Censorship, self-censorship. Colleagues are either leaving journalism or thinking about leaving," journalist Shukhrat Latipov wrote on his Telegram channel in response to Uzbekistan's plunge in the index, which RSF releases annually on May 3, World Press Freedom Day. The recent cases of people receiving jail time for insulting the president appear to mark an intensification of the more general crackdown that began toward the end of Mirziyoev's first term in office and appeared to target the new generation of citizen journalists who have emerged in recent years. One of the first Uzbeks to wind up behind bars in this respect was Otabek Sattoriy, a video blogger from the southern city of Termez, who relentlessly criticized local officials for corruption and mismanagement. Far from insulting Mirziyoev, he cited the president as an inspiration. Earlier in his reign, the Uzbek president called on bloggers to "expose shortcomings" among officials, while promising that he "stands behind" journalists. But Sattoriy was sentenced to 6 1/2 years in prison in May 2021 on charges of extortion and slander, gaining early release from jail in February of this year. Although free from jail, Sattoriy must pay 20 percent of any wages that he earns to the state for the remainder of his sentence. Since Sattoriy's sentencing, extortion has become a common crime for bloggers to be convicted of in Uzbekistan. In an interview with RFE/RL last year, Umida Niyazova, director of the Berlin-based Uzbek Forum for Human Rights, suggested that this was part of a deliberate tactic to make cases against bloggers look like disputes between private citizens. "Secondly, practice shows that extortion charges are easy to fabricate. It is not necessary to present material evidence. It is enough for someone to write a statement to police that some blogger extorted money," Niyazova said at the time. Another charge levied against bloggers is threatening public security and the "constitutional order" -- a vague charge beloved by prosecutors and courts during the Karimov era as well. Fozilxoja Orifxojaev, a blogger sentenced to 7 1/2 years in prison on those charges at the beginning of 2022, was released from prison in December of last year after having his sentence commuted to a parole-like punishment. But heading in the other direction that same month was Olimjon Khaidarov, a popular blogger from the Ferghana Valley city of Qoqand, who was handed eight years in jail for extortion and defamation. These heavy sentences are having their desired effect: muffling critical voices. Like their colleagues in Uzbekistan's print and broadcast media, bloggers are either toning down or giving up, often with explicit encouragement from the authorities. Last year, RSF raised the alarm after pressure from the authorities meant that six Telegram channels in a single region of southern Uzbekistan were shut down, depriving tens of thousands of readers of news. At the same time, pro-government bloggers are expanding their hold over the information space, building up massive followings with what rights activist Ataeva describes as "portrayals of a glamorous lifestyle." This all means that Mirziyoev's regime is losing a valuable feedback mechanism, Ataeva argued. "Uzbekistan is once again becoming like an aquarium where the water is turning foul, but citizens aren't allowed to say anything. They are just fish that have to shut up and swim," Ataeva said. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/jail-insulting-uzbek- president-mirziyoev-uzbekistan/32940015.html Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Georgia Vows To Arrest Protesters Who Seek To Block Parliament In Overnight Action By RFE/RL's Georgian Service May 12, 2024 TBILISI -- As Georgian protesters - who numbered in the tens of thousands on May 11 - prepared for another mass rally in central Tbilisi, government officials vowed to arrest demonstrators who attempt to block the parliament building ahead of discussions on the controversial "foreign agent" bill that has been condemned by the United States, the EU, and others. Opposition leaders have called on protesters to gather late on May 12 and spend the night on the streets ahead of parliament's planned third reading and likely passage of what critics call the "the Russian law" - similar to legislation used by the Kremlin to silence media and civil society groups in that country. The bill is scheduled to be heard by committee in parliament on May 13, with a full vote - and likely passage - expected on May 14. In a press briefing on May 12, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze claimed that ruling Georgian Dream lawmakers are certain to adopt the bill and that it will "reflect the will of Georgian society." He warned protesters that "violence will not remain unpunished," while urging police to "show maximum patience and in responding to violence and insults, to act with a high standard." Meanwhile, in a separate briefing on May 12, President Salome Zurabishvili, who has broken with the government and come out in support of peaceful protests, strongly criticized the government and Georgian Dream leaders for not taking into account the views of thousands of citizens on the streets. "It's very funny when politicians pretend to be able to count with high IQs and they can't count how many people there were," she said, adding that the government "has lost the confidence of the people." In front of an estimated 50,000 demonstrators assembled in central Tbilisi on May 11, poet Rati Amaghlobeli, one of the protest organizers, called on Georgians to come to the streets again on May 12. The aim is to show the world that Georgians strongly oppose the bill, which has raised concerns about its potential effect on media and civil society as well as the country's European ambitions. "We've got to have this country united tomorrow. We need to be that and so much more tomorrow. Let the world see!" Amaghlobeli said. Protesters were encouraged to gather around the parliament starting at 10 p.m. and stay overnight so their presence could be felt as parliament convenes early on May 13 for discussions on the bill. Organizers urged them to bring sleeping bags, tents, and board games and said that a stage will be set up for music and songs. Under the terms of the proposed legislation, media outlets, NGOs, and other nonprofits would be required to register as "pursuing the interests of a foreign power" if more than 20 percent of their funding comes from abroad. Critics say it is modeled after decade-old "foreign agent" legislation that Russian President Vladimir Putin has used to crush dissent and punish independent institutions, and EU officials have said the bill could be a significant setback to Tbilisi's membership bid. Demonstrators on May 11 chanted "Yes Europe!" and "No to the Russian law" as they assembled in different areas of the capital before making their way to Europe Square, in the heart of Tbilisi's historic district. Previous rallies have been met with a violent response by security forces, including the use of tear gas and water cannons against demonstrators, as well as arrests. Roving bands of thugs have targeted demonstrators. Protesters and journalists have also shown injuries consistent with the use of rubber bullets, despite officials' denials. Reports of actions by security forces during the May 11 demonstrations were unclear, and there was no immediate confirmation of arrests. Activist Gia Japaridze called for the release of all those detained during the weeks of protests. "We must make our voices heard. We must demand the Russian puppet authorities release detained political prisoners," said Japaridze, a former diplomat and university professor and the brother of opposition leader Zurab Japaridze. The United States has been one of the biggest backers of Georgia's efforts to join the European Union and other Western institutions and one of the biggest critics of the draft legislation. U.S. national-security adviser Jake Sullivan lauded the protesters on May 11. "The Georgian people are making their views known," Sullivan wrote on X, formerly Twitter. "Undeterred by intimidation tactics, tens of thousands of peaceful protestors turned out in rainy Tbilisi today to demand Georgian Dream withdraw the legislation." Earlier in the day, the U.S. Embassy announced that Jim O'Brien, the U.S. assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs, will visit the Georgian capital, along with the Montenegrin capital, Podgorica, between May 14 and May 17. The announcement came after 29 members of the U.S. House of Representatives issued an open letter to Kobakhidze expressing "grave concern" and "strongly" urging his government to withdraw the bill. The U.S. lawmakers said in a May 10 letter that it was a "harmful bill" that would "undermine the will of the Georgian people who seek a future in the West." The lawmakers said "in no uncertain terms" that its passage and further moves toward "Russian-style authoritarianism...would cause the United States to fundamentally reassess the nature of our relationship" with Georgia. Also on May 10, 18 media and rights organizations, including the International Press Institute, said the proposed legislation "provides the authorities with a powerful tool to discredit, pressure, and eventually silence independent voices, thereby threatening press freedom and freedom of expression." Kobakhidze's government insists the law is in line with EU standards and is only intended to increase "transparency" and prevent "harmful foreign influence" in the country's political scene. The bill's backers appear to control sufficient votes for passage and possibly to override a veto that has been promised by President Salome Zurabishvili. An earlier version of the bill was introduced by Georgian Dream allies last year but withdrawn amid public outcry. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/georgia-protests-foreign- agent-bill-parliament-vote/32942983.html Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US May Halt High-Precision Munition Supplies to Israel Amid Rafah Operation Sputnik News 20240512 The Israel Defense Force (IDF) launched what it called a counterterrorist operation in Rafah to eliminate Hamas in Gaza, later expanding the operation as reported by Israeli media on Friday. The US has not stopped supplying Israel with high-precision weapons but is exploring such an option, Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said in an interview with CBS. "The answer to thatthe answer is no," Blinken declared when asked by the host to clarify whether the US had paused the supply of any other weapons to Israel, including high-precision munitions, in addition to the 3,500 air bombs whose delivery suspension was previously confirmed by the Pentagon. "We've been clear about is that if Israel launches this major military operation to Rafah, then there are certain systems that we're not going to be supporting and supplying for that operation. But at present, the only thing that we've delayed and are holding back are these high payload bombs, because we're in an ongoing conversation with Israel given the impact that those weapons can have, when they're used in densely populated areas, including an area like Rafah," he continued. Blinken emphasized that Washington expects Israel to provide a plan for the safety of civilians in Rafah, as well as "a plan for what happens after this conflict in Gaza is over." According to him, the US has not yet received either of them. Meanwhile, Blinken doubted that Israel could completely neutralize the threat from Hamas, even if the operation in Rafah is carried out. "We're seeing parts of Gaza that Israel has cleared of Hamas, where Hamas is coming back, including in the north, including in Khan Younis," Blinken noted, emphasizing that the operation in Rafah, which will likely be accompanied by "incredibly high cost to civilians," does not guarantee the destruction of the organization. At the same time, the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, according to him, "will create a vacuum', which is likely "to be filled [...] by Hamas again." "We've been working for many, many weeks on developing credible plans for security, for governance, for rebuilding. We haven't seen that come from Israel," stressed the US secretary of state. On May 8, President Joe Biden stated in an interview with CNN that the US would stop arms shipments to Israel in the event of a major military operation in the city of Rafah in the Gaza Strip. On the same day, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin explained that Washington is reviewing some type of short-term military aid to Israel in connection with the situation around Rafah. His statements implied that, in particular, the supply of high-power bombs had been paused. On May 10, the White House clarified that the issue was a pause, not a cessation of projectile deliveries to Israel. As the State Department specified, although only one batch of munitions has been suspended, other military deliveries are being reviewed." Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Venezuela's Military Installs Temporary Bridge to Access Disputed Essequibo Region Sputnik News 20240512 MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Venezuela's armed forces have built a temporary bridge over the Cuyuni River, which marks a border between the Venezuelan territory and the disputed region of Essequibo, Domingo Hernandez Larez, the strategic operational commander of the National Bolivarian Armed Forces of Venezuela, said on Sunday. He added that Venezuela would build schools, universities, medical centers in this territory. "Territorial defense engineers crossed the Cuyuni River on May 10 over a military bridge to bring harmony and progress to our Guyana Essequibo territory," Larez said on his social media. The oil- and mineral-rich Essequibo region has long been the subject of dispute between Venezuela and Guyana. Venezuela gained independence from Spain in 1845, with Essequibo recognized as part of its territory. However, in 1899, the United Kingdom filed and won an arbitration claim to recognize Essequibo as part of its then-Caribbean colony of British Guiana. Independent Guyana cited the 1899 Arbitral Award in its 2018 International Court of Justice suit against Venezuela to reassert its claim of sovereignty over the disputed territory. In December 2023, Venezuela held a referendum in which almost 96% of the population voted for incorporating the Essequibo region into the country. Guyanese President Mohamed Irfaan Ali said that Georgetown was considering Caracas' actions to incorporate Essequibo, which makes up two-thirds of Guyana's territory, as a threat to the country's national security. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Borrell Urges Israel to Ensure Safety of Civilians in Rafah Sputnik News 20240512 MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Israel should ensure the safety of civilians in the southern Gazan city of Rafah in accordance with international law, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on Sunday. At least 1.4 million Palestinians are currently in Rafah, many of whom fled there from Israeli shelling from other parts of the Gaza Strip. "Forcing civilians to evacuate Rafah to unsafe zones is intolerable. Israel is bound by international law to provide safety to civilians. We continue to urge Israel not to go ahead with a ground operation in Rafah," Borrell said on his social media. He also called on Israel to refrain from going ahead with a military operation in Rafah as "this would further exacerbate an already dire humanitarian crisis." In the night from Monday to Tuesday, the Israeli army started a military operation in the eastern parts of Rafah and took control of the Gaza side of the Rafah crossing with Egypt. Israeli authorities say the operation is aimed at eliminating the remaining battalions of Palestinian movement Hamas in the Gaza Strip. On Friday, Israeli media reported that Israel's military cabinet had approved expanding the ground operation in Rafah. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US Military Shoots Down 3 Houthi Drones Over Red Sea Sputnik News 20240512 MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Houthis have been launching attacks on commercial and military vessels in the region for months, in response to Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip. The attacks prompted the United States to form a multinational coalition to protect shipping in the area, as well as to strike Houthi targets on the ground. The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Sunday that the US forces shot down three drones launched by Yemen's rebel Ansar Allah movement, also known as the Houthis, over the Red Sea. "Between approximately 4:30 a.m. and 4:45 a.m. (Sanaa time) on May 11, U.S. Central Command (USCENTCOM) forces successfully destroyed three UAS launched by Iranian-backed Houthis over the Red Sea from Houthi controlled areas in Yemen," the command said on X, adding that personnel and merchant ships did not report damages or injuries. In addition, on May 10, Houthis launched a drone over the Gulf of Aden, which was attacked by a coalition aircraft, the statement read. "It was determined that these UAS presented an imminent threat to both coalition forces and merchant vessels in the region," the command added. Moscow earlier slammed US aggression against Yemen. "US airstrikes on Yemen are another example of the Anglo-Saxons' distortion of UN Security Council resolutions and complete disregard for international law in the name of escalating the situation in the region for their own destructive purposes," Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova wrote on Telegram. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US Offers Israel Secret Data to Evade IDF's Operation in Rafah - Report Sputnik News 20240512 MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The administration of US President Joe Biden is offering Israel secret intelligence that will help locate Hamas leaders and find its underground infrastructure in the Gaza Strip, in exchange for Israel refusing a full-scale military operation in Rafah, The Washington Post reported, citing sources. US officials have also offered to help provide thousands of shelters for Palestinians evacuated from Rafah, the report said on Saturday. Washington is also working with Cairo to find and close tunnels that cross the border between Egypt and the Gaza Strip in the Rafah area, which Hamas used to replenish military supplies, the report added. In the night from Monday to Tuesday, the Israeli army started a military operation in the eastern parts of Rafah and took control of the Gaza side of the Rafah crossing with Egypt. Israeli authorities say the operation is aimed at eliminating the remaining battalions of Palestinian movement Hamas in the Gaza Strip. On Friday, Israeli media reported that Israel's military cabinet had approved expanding the ground operation in Rafah. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Israel Creates New Hospital in Central Part of Gaza Strip - IDF Sputnik News 20240512 MOSCOW, (Sputnik) - Israel has established a new field hospital near the village of Deir al-Balah in the central part of the Gaza Strip to provide humanitarian assistance to residents of the enclave, including those forced to leave the city of Rafah, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said. "Today (Saturday), the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) announced the establishment of a new field hospital run by the International Medical Corps in the Gaza Strip in coordination with the IDF and COGAT. The field hospital was established in the area of Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip and began operating in recent days," the IDF said on Telegram. The IDF added that this was the eighth field hospital opened by Israel in the Gaza Strip since October 7. About 150 medical workers from around the world are expected to work in the new hospital, the statement read. "As part of the humanitarian measures to facilitate the temporary evacuation of civilians from the eastern Rafah area, some of the existing field hospitals were transferred to the expanded Humanitarian Area in Al-Mawasi in coordination with the international community, where there is an increased supply of tents, food, water, and medicine," the statement said. On October 7, 2023, Hamas launched a large-scale rocket attack against Israel and breached the border, attacking both civilian neighborhoods and military bases. Nearly 1,200 people in Israel were killed and some 240 others abducted during the attack. Israel launched retaliatory strikes, ordered a complete blockade of Gaza, and started a ground incursion into the Palestinian enclave with the declared goal of eliminating Hamas fighters and rescuing the hostages. Over 34,900 people have been killed so far by Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip, according to local authorities. More than 100 hostages are still believed to be held by Hamas in Gaza. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address IDF Says Eliminated Dozens of 'Terrorists' in Eastern Rafah Sputnik News 20240512 MOSCOW, (Sputnik) - The Israeli military said that it had eliminated dozens of "terrorists" during an operation in eastern Rafah, located on the border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt, and about 30 more "terrorists" in the Zeitoun area in the central part of the enclave, Israel Defense Forces spokesman Daniel Hagari said. "So far, we have eliminated dozens of terrorists in eastern Rafah, found a significant underground route, and seized many weapons. This morning we coordinated the temporary evacuation of the population in additional areas in eastern Rafah, adjacent to the combat zone," Hagari told a briefing on Saturday. He also added that IDF forces "are in the midst of a wide-scale operation in the Zeitoun area" and eliminated about "30 terrorists and located dozens of weapons in a school in the area." In the night from Monday to Tuesday, the Israeli army started a military operation in the eastern parts of Rafah and took control of the Gaza side of the Rafah crossing with Egypt. Israeli authorities say the operation is aimed at eliminating the remaining battalions of Palestinian movement Hamas in the Gaza Strip. On Friday, Israeli media reported that Israel's military cabinet had approved expanding the ground operation in Rafah. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Secretary Antony J. Blinken With Kristen Welker of NBC's Meet the Press US Department of State Interview The Secretary of State Washington, D.C. May 12, 2024 QUESTION: And joining me now is Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Secretary Blinken, welcome back to Meet the Press. SECRETARY BLINKEN: Morning, Kristen. QUESTION: Thank you so much for being here. I want to start with that State Department report that did not draw a definitive conclusion about Israel, whether it's violated international law. Amnesty International says of the report, this is the, quote, "international version of [sending] 'thoughts and prayers.'" Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen says it ducks the ultimate questions that the report was designed to determine. Mr. Secretary, is the U.S. trying to avoid holding Israel accountable for its actions? SECRETARY BLINKEN: No. We don't have double standards. We treat Israel, one of our closest allies and partners, just as we would treat any other country, including in assessing something like international humanitarian law and its compliance with that law. I would invite people to read the report. They can see for themselves everything that we've laid out in the report. The report also makes clear that this is an incredibly complex military environment. You have an enemy that intentionally embeds itself with civilians, hiding under and within schools, mosques, apartment buildings, firing at the Israeli forces from those places. It's very, very difficult in the heat of war to make a definitive assessment about any individual incident, but what the report concludes is that based on the totality of the harm that's been done to children, to women, to men who are caught in this crossfire of Hamas's making, it's reasonable to conclude that there are instances where Israel has acted in ways that are not consistent with international humanitarian law. At the same time, Kristen, we continue to look at, investigate each of these incidents, but critically, so does Israel. There are hundreds, as we understand it, of open inquiries into particular incidents that have taken place since October 7th. There are criminal investigations that are going forward. Israel, unlike many other countries, has both the means and the will to try to police itself. So we need to let those play out, but our own process that has been underway for many months to look at individual incidents, that will continue as well. And when we can reach definitive conclusions, we will, but it's very difficult to do that in the midst of a war. QUESTION: And I hear you saying how complex the situation is on the ground, but here we are in the seventh month of this war, Mr. Secretary. How is it possible that the State Department, with all of its resources, was not able to reach a definitive conclusion on this critical question of whether Israel has violated international law? SECRETARY BLINKEN: Again, precisely because we continue to be in the midst of that war, and making these assessments in real time when we don't have people on the ground, when we also have to make sure that we're getting information from all concerned, that takes time, and we want to make sure that we can reach definitive conclusions. But as the report makes clear, given the totality of the damage that's been done to civilians, to children, to women, to men - given that, given the fact that Israel clearly has procedures, rules, regulations, laws that go into the targeting decisions they make, the way they conduct themselves - but the results that we've seen in terms of the horrible loss of life of innocent civilians, it's reasonable to assess, as we say in the report, that there are instances where they've acted inconsistent with their obligations under international humanitarian law. Those investigations continue, both by us and by Israel. QUESTION: Let's zoom out a little bit and talk about U.S. policy. The U.S. has urged Israel not to invade Rafah, yet troops are already on the ground, and this weekend we learned that over 300,000 people are being evacuated. President Biden threatened to withhold certain weapons if Netanyahu goes into Rafah in a full-scale invasion, while at the same time sending in other weapons. Big picture, why should Israel believe that the U.S. is willing to back up its threats? SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, first let's step back for one minute. No one has done more to defend Israel when it mattered than President Biden. He was there in the days after October 7th, the first President to go to Israel in the midst of a conflict. When Iran mounted an unprecedented attack on Israel some weeks ago - 300 projectiles, including ballistic missiles, launched at Israel - the United States for the first time ever participated it its active defense and President Biden brought together a coalition of countries the helped defend Israel. So no one has done more than Joe Biden. At the same time, what we've seen over the last few months is a deep concern on our part about the possibility of a major military operation in Rafah, given the damage it would do to civilians - there are more than 1.4 million Gazans in Rafah, most of whom have moved from other parts of Gaza. Absent a credible plan to get them out of harm's way and to support them, the President's been clear for some time that we couldn't and would not support a major military operation in Rafah. Now, at the same time, we share Israel's objective in making sure that Hamas cannot govern Gaza anymore, that it be demilitarized, that Israel get its leaders - we continue to support them. But there's a better way of achieving that than going headlong into Rafah. That's what we're talking about with Israel now. We have a better way of doing it. We're engaged in conversations with them about that. But the President, in answering a question, was very clear about where we are on Rafah itself and what we would do or not do in the event that they go with a major military operation. QUESTION: I hear you saying you haven't seen a credible plan yet for how Israel would go into Rafah and mitigate any civilian casualties. Is it fair to see - say that President Biden and Prime Minister Netanyahu are not seeing eye to eye right now? SECRETARY BLINKEN: There are two things. One is that, as the President said and as we've said in many conversations over the last couple of months, there has to be a credible plan for the civilians. We have to make sure QUESTION: Have you seen a credible plan? SECRETARY BLINKEN: We have not. Second, there's something else that's important. We also haven't seen a plan for what happens the day after this war in Gaza ends, because right now the trajectory that Israel is on is even if it goes in and takes heavy action in Rafah, there will still be thousands of armed Hamas left. We've seen, in areas that Israel has cleared in the north, even in Khan Younis, Hamas coming back. So the trajectory right now is that going into Rafah, even to deal with these remaining battalions - especially in the absence of a plan for civilians - risks doing terrible harm to civilians and not solving the problem, a problem that both of us want to solve, which is making sure Hamas cannot again govern Gaza. Israel's on the trajectory potentially to inherit an insurgency with many armed Hamas left or, if it leaves, a vacuum filled by chaos, filled by anarchy, and probably refilled by Hamas. We've been talking to them about a much better way of getting an enduring result, enduring security, both in Gaza itself and, much more broadly, in the region. Those conversations continue. And that's what partners, that's what allies, do. We are clear-eyed and we speak the truth to each other as we see it. We have American interests first and foremost in mind; we also have Israel's interests in mind. QUESTION: Yeah. SECRETARY BLINKEN: And there may be a difference in view in the best way to achieve them, but that's also the nature of the relationship. QUESTION: I want to drill down with you on President Biden's threat to withhold weapons. What exactly is his red line, Mr. Secretary? What would trigger him to say, "I am now withholding weapons?" SECRETARY BLINKEN: Look, we don't talk about red lines when it comes to Israel. We talk, again QUESTION: President Biden did talk about a red line, though, Mr. Secretary, respectfully. SECRETARY BLINKEN: So let me be - yeah, let me be clear. Let me be clear about two things. QUESTION: What would trigger him to make that decision? SECRETARY BLINKEN: Sure. So first, we have been holding back - and we're in active conversations with Israel about - the provision of heavy or high-payload weapons, large bombs, because of the concern that we have about the effect these weapons can have when they're used in a dense urban environment like Rafah. We're discussing that with Israel right now. Second, what the President said is that if Israel goes in with a major military operation in Rafah, in that case there are certain systems that we will not provide to Israel that would aid in - aid that effort, because it's something that we do not want to be part of given the damage that it would do to civilians, and again, not to achieve a durable, lasting, effective result for Israel and for its security. That's what the President said. We've said that in conversations with our Israeli partners. It's unfortunate that that leaked out, but the President responded forthrightly to a question when he was asked about it. QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, I want to ask you about the very latest on the deal to get the hostages released, for a ceasefire. We know that the CIA director has since returned home. Did those talks fall apart because Prime Minister Netanyahu was threatening and is making moves to go into Rafah? SECRETARY BLINKEN: Look, it's important, first of all, to remind ourselves that Hamas could have ended this on day one. Well, this never, of course, should have happened. There was actually a ceasefire before October 7th, on October 6th, that Hamas destroyed in the most barbaric way possible, humanly imaginable. But every day after that, Hamas could have decided to give up the hostages, stop hiding behind civilians, put down its weapons, and all of this would have been over. It still has that possibility. The quickest way for this to end is for Hamas to give up the hostages. We will get a ceasefire that we can build on - and build to something more lasting and more durable. The different teams continue to talk. It remains our view that the fastest way to get to a ceasefire, the fastest way to get hostages home, is through an agreement, and we're determined every single day to pursue that and to try to get it to happen. I think you can question whether Hamas actually wants to get this. It would also be the best way to make sure that we can really surge humanitarian assistance and better protect civilians in Gaza. Hamas purports to be interested in that; its actions certainly demonstrate the opposite. QUESTION: All right. Secretary Blinken, thank you so much for your time this morning. We really appreciate it. SECRETARY BLINKEN: Kristen, thank you. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address "Turkiye is the top provider of humanitarian aid to Gaza" Presidency Of The Republic Of Turkey 12.05.2024 Addressing the World Islamic Scholars Consultation Summit, President Erdogan said: "We have been exerting intensive efforts to stop the bloodshed in Gaza and prevent Israel's attacks. Turkiye is the top provider of humanitarian aid to Gaza, dispatching nearly 54 thousand tons of aid." President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke at the World Scholars Consultation Summit in Istanbul. "ISRAEL CONTINUES TO SHED INNOCENT PEOPLE'S BLOOD" Noting that one of the most atrocious massacres in human history has been taking place in Gaza since October 7, President Erdogan said: "Israel, which has constantly been enlarging its territories through occupation, oppression and thuggery since its establishment, continues to shed innocent people's blood. 15 thousand children have been brutally massacred so far. Our 35 thousand Palestinian brothers and sisters, mostly women and civilians, have been martyrized, and 80 thousand wounded. Nearly 2 million people have been forcefully displaced from their homes. Gaza, which had already been an open-air prison prior to October 7, has turned into a concentration and annihilation camp for the past 219 days the sole example of which was seen during Hitler's Germany. We have witnessed such scenes that words fall short of describing them. Bombs have been poured down on hospitals, places of worship, schools and civilian residential areas that are all untouchable even in wartime. All the principles, laws and redlines relating to human rights and freedoms have been trampled upon before the eyes of the world." "GAZA SERVES AS A LITMUS TEST FOR THE VALUES PROPAGATED FOR DECADES" Stressing that 150 journalists as well as UN workers and humanitarian aid personnel have also been targeted in Gaza, President Erdogan drew attention to the brutalities and atrocities committed in Gaza and occupied Palestinian territories over the past 219 days. Noting that Gaza serves as a litmus test for the values propagated for decades, President Erdogan said: "The true face of the international system and institutions has been laid bare. We have seen so much in the meantime. We have seen countries that constantly lecture us about human rights and freedoms openly supporting the murderers of 35 thousand Gazans. We have seen international media outlets not uttering even one single sentence about the 150 journalists whose blood has been shed by Israel. We have seen the United Nations failing to protect the lives of Palestinians, let alone protect its own workers. We have seen those who consider the right to protest as sacred not tolerating the rallies held to support Palestine." "WE HAVE BEEN EXERTING INTENSIVE EFFORTS TO STOP THE BLOODSHED IN GAZA" President Erdogan continued his remarks as follows: "We have seen those who distort the truth, keep silent, tell lies, and play into the hands of the Israeli propaganda just to avoid being labelled as anti-Semitic. In the face of this alarming scene, we as Turkiye have been in full solidarity with the Palestinian people since day one. We have been exerting intensive efforts to stop the bloodshed in Gaza and prevent Israel's attacks. Turkiye is the top provider of humanitarian aid to Gaza, dispatching nearly 54 thousand tons of aid. We have been sending 127 tons of clean drinking water to Gaza every week, where water resources have been destroyed by Israel. We have been providing treatment to over 400 sick and wounded Gazans, including cancer patients, at hospitals in our country. We have been sending benevolence ships to the region at regular intervals. We have been providing all kinds of support to Palestine despite the global Zionist network's intimidation attempts." "WE HAVE HALTED ALL TRADE WITH ISRAEL" Stressing the Turkiye is in close contact both with the Palestinian government and the Hamas leaders, President Erdogan stated: "In addition to humanitarian aid, we have taken many steps in the areas of diplomacy, trade and law in order to step up the pressure on Israel. In the first phase, we imposed restrictions on exports to Israel in 54 product groups. Subsequently, we have halted all trade with Israel to force Israel to declare ceasefire and allow the passage of more humanitarian aid. With the decision we have taken, we have renounced $9.5bn trade volume. By becoming a party to the genocide case filed against Israel at the International Court of Justice, we aim to make sure murderers are held to account." "ISRAELI ADMINISTRATION KNOWS NO RULES OR LIMITS" Noting that Israel is not attacking the Palestinian territories for the first time, President Erdogan said: "Israel is not committing genocide against the Palestinian people for the first time. We have been witnessing Israel's aggressions almost every day since 1948. The policies of occupation and massacres, which started 76 years, has since been escalating day by day. Zionist expansionism considers itself to be entitled to usurping the lands of Palestinian people and, if need be, shed the blood of innocents. They are blinded by the dream of promised lands. To make this dream come true, the Israel administration knows no rules, limits, or ethics. We cannot expect humanity from those who act like a bloodthirsty terrorist organization rather than like a state bound by international law." "IT IS FUTILE TO EXPECT THE MASTERS OF THE GLOBAL SYSTEM TO PUT PRESSURE ON ISRAEL" Pointing out that Western countries continue to turn a blind eye to the ongoing genocide in Gaza and support Israel by using Hamas as an excuse, President Erdogan said that what has occurred in the past 219 days has made it clear that it is completely futile to expect the masters of the global system, except conscientious nations and societies, to put pressure on Israel. Stressing that Israel's response to Hamas' approval of the ceasefire proposal on Monday has been to attack the innocents in Rafah, President Erdogan underlined that neither Europe nor the U.S. has not taken any decisive steps to enforce Israel into a ceasefire. "WE CALL UPON ALL COUNTRIES THAT HAVE NOT YET RECOGNIZED THE STATE OF PALESTINE TO RECOGNIZE IT" Noting that Israel's collaborators sided with Israel in the latest vote at the UN Security Council, vetoing Palestine's full membership, President Erdogan added: "However, the resolution adopted the previous day with 143 countries' votes in favor and 25 abstentions reveals how lonely Israel and its collaborates actually are. This decision will enable our Palestinian brothers and sisters to carry out their works at the United Nations with larger rights and benefits." Calling upon all countries that have not yet recognized the State of Palestine to recognize it without delay, President Erdogan further stressed that Turkiye will continue to defend its Palestinian brothers and sisters with all its means and that it will not let Israel silence every conscientious voice with the stick of antisemitism. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address No: 82, 12 May 2024, Regarding the Social Media Message Posted by the Israeli Foreign Minister Republic of Turkey Ministry of Foreign Affairs President Erdogan remains unwavering in his condemnation of the inexcusable crimes committed by Israel against the Palestinian people. Turkiye continues to work tirelessly to stop the massacre committed by Israel, taking decisive action to isolate Israel internationally. This is why some Israeli politicians are baselessly targeting Turkiye and President Erdogan in the most insolent manner. The fundamentalist Israeli Government's genocidal policies present a threat to both Palestinians and Israelis. Turkiye will continue to shed light on racist and unjust policies that Israel weaponises against the Palestinian people. Turkiye will defend the just cause of the Palestinians until they have their own state, in their own country. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Gaza: We must prevent a large-scale offensive in Rafah, UN pleads 12 May 2024 - The Secretary-General and the UN human rights chief said again on Sunday that a large-scale Israeli offensive in Rafah must be prevented at all costs, warning of catastrophic consequences in the densely populated southern area in Gaza. The warning comes as the UN Palestine refugee agency, UNRWA, reported that over the past week that nearly 300,000 people have now fled Rafah following the Israeli military's orders for further evacuations from area. "There is nowhere safe to go," the agency warned in a message on X. Catastrophic consequences In a telephone conversation on Saturday, UN chief Antonio Guterres and Qatar's Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani agreed that "a full-scale military operation in Rafah would have catastrophic consequences and must be prevented," according to a report of the conversation published by the office of the Secretary-General's spokesperson. "The Secretary-General expressed deep appreciation for Qatar's continued mediation efforts to broker a deal for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza and the immediate release of hostages," he said. Mr. Guterres also discussed the situation in Gaza on Sunday in Kuwait City with the Emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber. In a comment to the press on Sunday, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, said he was "deeply distressed by the fast deterioration in Gaza as Israeli forces intensify their air strikes" across Gaza. He also expressed concern about reports of indiscriminate rocket fire from Gaza. 'Where should they go now?' Mr. Turk noted that the latest evacuation orders from the Israeli army concern nearly a million people in Rafah. Since the Israeli military issued initial evacuation orders on 6 May, more than 278,000 Gazans have fled Rafah, an area one deemed a safe zone. "Where should they go now? There is no safe place in Gaza," he said. These are exhausted and hungry people, many of whom have already been displaced several times, and do not have good options, he said. Other towns in Gaza, including Khan Younis, which is currently supposed to host displaced people from Rafah, have already been reduced to rubble and remain under attack. "These are not safe places," he stressed. Flouting world court orders The human rights chief said he did not see how the latest evacuation orders, much less a general assault, in an area with an extremely dense presence of civilians, can be reconciled with the binding demands of international humanitarian law and with the two sets of binding provisional measures ordered by the International Court of Justice (ICJ). "A large-scale offensive on Rafah cannot take place," he said, calling on all influential States to do everything in their power to prevent it to protect civilian lives. Dire aid shortage amid border closures At the same time, there is a "dire shortage" of aid reaching Gaza, Mr. Turk said. "At this desperate moment, exacerbated by acts impeding the entry of humanitarian aid in Gaza through the three crossings, there is a dire shortage of fuel," he warned. Fuel shortages are "hindering everything", from the movement of food and operation of hospitals to sewage treatment and telecommunications, he added. Expressing concern for the safety of civilians and humanitarian workers, he called on Israel and Palestinian armed groups to urgently agree to a ceasefire and immediately release all hostages. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UN teams dispatch aid as deadly flash floods hit northern Afghanistan 12 May 2024 - UN humanitarian teams scrambled to get lifesaving aid to communities devastated by deadly flash floods in northeastern Afghanistan over the weekend. Flash floods in the area have reportedly killed at least 300 people, including 51 children, with many more injured, with these figures expected to increase as additional reports come in, according to UN agencies. UN chief Antonio Guterres expressed his condolences to the families of the victims. "The United Nations and its partners in Afghanistan are coordinating with the de facto authorities to swiftly assess needs and provide emergency assistance," said his spokesperson in a statement, extending wishes for a swift recovery to those injured and condolences to the families of the victims. Most of the casualties were reported in Baghlan province, where heavy rains destroyed an estimated 3,000 houses, flooded farmland, washed away livestock, closed schools and damaged health centres. Takhar and Badakhshan provinces were also impacted with initial reports of at least 300 houses damaged, according to the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF). UN teams mobilise on the ground "UNICEF and our partners are on the ground and are making every effort to bring quick relief to the affected families and communities," Dr. Tajudeen Oyewale, UNICEF Representative in Afghanistan, said on Sunday, expressing condolences to the families mourning the loss of loved ones. A UNICEF-supported mobile health and nutrition team has also been dispatched and teams are on the ground to help conduct additional assessments. "The heavy rains and subsequent floods have disrupted lives and pose a significant risk to children in the affected provinces," Dr. Oyewale said. "As families cope with the loss, maintaining access to safe water, health and protection services is paramount. As always, UNICEF stands with the children and people of Afghanistan during this difficult time." Aid swiftly deployed Working with partners, UN agencies are already distributing aid. UNICEF has dispatched 450 family kits, 500 hygiene kits, 476 blankets for adults and babies and 100 clothing kits alongside support provided by other UN agencies and partners. Meanwhile, the UN migration organisation (IOM) has been distributing aid packages that include temporary shelters, essential non-food items, solar modules, clothing and tools for repairs to their damaged shelters. The UN World Food Programme (WFP) is currently distributing energy biscuits to survivors of the floods, according to the agency's post on social media on Sunday. WFP also said this flood is one of the many events in recent weeks caused by unusually heavy rains. Extreme weather highlights need for resilient efforts UN relief chief Martin Griffiths said "this extreme weather event underscores the need for climate-resilient humanitarian efforts." Meanwhile, the UN relief agency, OCHA, is working with partners and national authorities to provide shelter, food and healthcare, he said in a post on X on Sunday. Afghanistan is among the 10 most vulnerable countries to climate change and has been experiencing a rise in extreme weather conditions, notably floods, drought and sand and dust storms, resulting in the loss of lives and livelihoods and significant damage to infrastructure. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address With untold lost lives & people on the brink of famine, Gaza is enduring unprecedented suffering UNRWA 12 May 2024 From Philippe Lazzarini, the UNRWA Commissioner-General as posted on his official X account (previously known as Twitter) With untold lost lives & people on the brink of famine, Gaza is enduring unprecedented suffering. In the new season of our Awake At Night podcast, @MelissaFleming speaks with @UNRWA's @unlazzarini about his tireless efforts to help amid the devastation. https://bit.ly/3QIfWal Background Information: UNRWA is the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East. The United Nations General Assembly established UNRWA in 1949 with a mandate to provide humanitarian assistance and protection to registered Palestine refugees in the Agency's area of operations pending a just and lasting solution to their plight. UNRWA operates in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, The Gaza Strip, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. Tens of thousands of Palestine refugees who lost their homes and livelihoods due to the 1948 conflict continue to be displaced and in need of support, nearly 75 years on. UNRWA helps Palestine Refugees achieve their full potential in human development through quality services it provides in education, health care, relief and social services, protection, camp infrastructure and improvement, microfinance, and emergency assistance. UNRWA is funded almost entirely by voluntary contributions. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Israel advances deeper on Rafah; US says there's no plan to protect civilians By VOA News May 12, 2024 Israeli forces advanced deeper on Gaza's southern city of Rafah on Sunday even as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Israel has not given the United States a credible plan to protect the more than one million Palestinian civilians sheltering there or a plan for what happens when the seven-month war eventually ends. About 300,000 of the 1.3 million Palestinians who fled to southern Gaza months ago on orders from the Israeli military to escape the attacks on Hamas militants in northern Gaza have now been ordered to move again, this time to the northwest of Rafah, to a territory along Gaza's Mediterranean Sea coastline. But Blinken told NBC's "Meet the Press" show on Sunday there is no specific Israeli plan to protect the Palestinians or provide sufficient humanitarian aid for them. "There's something else that's important," Blinken said. "We also haven't seen a plan for what happens the day after this war in Gaza ends. Because right now, the trajectory that Israel is on is even if it goes in and takes heavy action in Rafah, there will still be thousands of armed Hamas left." The top U.S. diplomat said, "We've seen in areas that Israel has cleared in the north, even in Khan Younis, Hamas coming back." "So, the trajectory right now is that [Israel] going into Rafah, even to deal with these remaining [four] battalions, especially in the absence of a plan for civilians, risks doing terrible harm to civilians and not solving the problem, a problem that both of us want to solve, which is making sure Hamas cannot again, govern Gaza," Blinken said. The U.S., Israel's chief arms supplier, has repeatedly warned Israel against a full-scale ground offensive into Rafah but the Israel Defense Forces have continued an aerial bombardment and more limited ground assaults. U.S. President Joe Biden has paused shipment of 3,500 227-kilogram and 907-kilogram bombs to Israel for fear they could be used in an attack on Rafah. In addition, Biden said last week that he would halt sending some offensive weapons to Israel if it launches a full-scale Rafah offensive. Israeli talks with Hamas for a cease-fire and the release of 100 or so hostages Hamas is still holding have stalled, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly said his country will not end the war until it roots out the remaining Hamas militants in Rafah. Blinken warned of the ongoing chaos. "Israel is on the trajectory potentially, to inherit an insurgency with many armed Hamas left or if it leaves a vacuum filled by chaos filled by anarchy and probably refilled by Hamas," he said. "We've been talking to them about a much better way of getting an enduring result, enduring security, both in Gaza itself and much more broadly in the region." Blinken said, "The quickest way for this to end is for Hamas to give up the hostages. We will get a cease-fire that we can build on and build to something more lasting and more durable. The different teams continue to talk." "It would also be the best way to make sure that we can really surge humanitarian assistance and better protect civilians in Gaza," he said. "Hamas purports to be interested in that. Its actions certainly demonstrate the opposite." On Sunday, the U.S. political divide over American policies related to Gaza was readily apparent. Progressive independent Senator Bernie Sanders, who aligns with Democratic opposition to Israel's conduct of the war, told NBC that Israel should "not be receiving another nickel in U.S. military aid. Israel has ... gone to war against the entire Palestinian people, and the results have been absolutely catastrophic." Republican Senator Lindsey Graham compared the Israel-Hamas war to World War II, telling NBC, "Why did we drop two ... nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki? To end a war we couldn't afford to lose. ... That was the right decision. ... Israel, do whatever you have to do to survive as a Jewish state." On the battlefield, aside from attacks on Rafah, Israel bombarded the urban Jabaliya refugee camp and other areas in northern Gaza. The region has suffered widespread devastation and been largely isolated by Israeli forces for months. United Nations officials say there is a "full-blown famine" there. Residents said Israeli warplanes and artillery struck across the camp and the Zeitoun area east of Gaza City, where troops have battled militants for more than a week. The war was triggered by the shock October 7 Hamas attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people and led to the capture of about 250 hostages. Israel's subsequent counter-offensive in Gaza has killed more than 35,000 Palestinians, including civilians and combatants. Some material in this report came from The Associated Press. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Afghanistan flood death toll rises to 315, officials say By Ayaz Gul May 12, 2024 Afghan officials said Sunday that the death toll from Friday's flash floods in the northern Baghlan province had risen to at least 315, with more than 1,600 people injured. The refugee ministry announced the latest casualties through social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter. It said more than 2,600 homes had been "completely and partially destroyed" in the province since the calamity hit following heavy seasonal rains. The ministry stressed that it was reporting preliminary assessments from its Baghlan office, saying the financial and human losses could increase. The United Nations World Food Program said Sunday on X that most of the affected areas in the province are "inaccessible by trucks," and it is using "every alternative," including donkeys, "to get food to the survivors who lost everything." The International Organization for Migration supported the losses reported by the Afghan Taliban authorities, saying the death toll has exceeded 300 and that it expected the number to rise. The agency said the flood had destroyed more than 2,000 homes. The IOM wrote on X, "We operate 16 warehouses throughout Afghanistan, and we are working with our partners to provide lifesaving aid to the affected people." The spokesperson for U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres quoted him as saying that he was saddened by the loss of life in flash floods in Baghlan and extended his condolences to the victims' families. "The United Nations and its partners in Afghanistan are coordinating with the de facto [Taliban] authorities to swiftly assess needs and provide emergency assistance," Stephane Dujarric said. The United States said Sunday it was "deeply saddened" by reports of the many lives impacted by and lost to the devastating floods in Baghlan and several other Afghan provinces. "Our implementing partners are mobilizing emergency relief including food, water, and other essential materials to communities in gravest need. Our thoughts are with those who've lost loved ones," Thomas Wes, the U.S. special envoy for Afghanistan, said in a post on X. Experts attribute the high seasonal rainfall in Baghlan and subsequent flooding to climate change, which caught an apparently unprepared administration and local residents off guard. The deputy prime minister for economic affairs, Abdul Ghani Baradar, traveled to the province Sunday to oversee rescue operations, medical aid provision, emergency food distribution, and temporary shelter arrangements, his office said. Poverty-stricken Afghanistan, reeling from years of conflict, is prone to natural disasters such as earthquakes, droughts, and floods. It is considered by the U.N. to be among the countries most vulnerable to climate change. In mid-April, heavy rains and flash floods in 32 of the 34 Afghan provinces killed more than 100 people and destroyed nearly 1,000 homes. The calamity also destroyed 24,000 hectares of farmland in a country where 80% of the more than 40 million population depend on agriculture to survive. Afghanistan's economy collapsed after the Taliban seized power militarily in August 2021. Aid groups say the Taliban-governed South Asian nation finds itself economically isolated, losing development funding that previously subsidized an estimated 75% of Afghanistan's spending on public services. International humanitarian aid for the country has significantly declined since the Taliban takeover even though the U.N. estimates over 15 million Afghans, or 35% of the population, suffer from crisis or worse levels of food insecurity. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Kuwait announces formation of new government IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency May 13, 2024 Tehran, IRNA -- Kuwait has formed a new cabinet headed by Prime Minister-designate Sheikh Ahmad Abdullah Al-Sabah, official news agency KUNA reported. Emir Sheikh Mishal al-Ahmad al-Sabah issued a royal decree on Sunday and appointed Ahmad Abdullah to form a new cabinet, report said. The cabinet will start its work with 13 ministers, with nine of them from the previous government, including people with top portfolios. The Emir dissolved the parliament weeks after the Persian Gulf country held elections in April that were the first under Sheikh Mishal, who came to power last December after the death of his half-brother and predecessor, Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah. The Emir of Kuwait attributed his move to "the dictates and conditions of some" legislators. Kuwait is one of the few Persian Gulf Arab countries that has an elected parliament, and since 2009 has allowed women to participate in elections, either as candidates or voters. Other than legislation, parliament is responsible for monitoring the performance of the government, but the final decision on important issues rests with the Emir who has also the authority to dissolve parliament. 4399 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address 500 medical staff killed since October 7: Gaza Health Ministry IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency May 13, 2024 Tehran, IRNA -- The Palestinian Health Ministry in the Gaza Strip says 500 doctors and healthcare workers have been martyred since the beginning of Israel's genocidal war on October 7th last year. 138 nurses are among those who were killed in Israeli bombing and shelling campaign over the past seven months, the ministry said according to the Palestinian Sama news agency. The ministry called on the international community to support medical teams and health centers working to save lives in the Gaza Strip. 219 days have passed since the Zionist regime's war against the defenseless people of Gaza, and the number of Palestinian martyrs has exceeded 35,000. In a statement, the Gaza Health Ministry also reported that the Israeli army has committed eight crimes in the matter of the past 24 hours, leaving 63 more people dead and 114 others wounded. The ministry has put the number of injured since October 7 to at 78,755 while thousands more remain unaccounted for. 4399 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russo-Ukraine War - 13 May 2024 - Day 810 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 31 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 since the start of 2024, Russia has highly likely increased its use of light vehicles, such as all-terrain vehicles and off-road motorbikes to transport personnel to the frontlines, and conduct attacks on Ukrainian positions, particularly at night. In November 2023, Russian President Vladimir Putin personally inspected newly acquired Chinese Desertcross 1000-3 all-terrain vehicles from Odes Industries. Russia has reportedly purchased over 2,100 of these vehicles. It is likely that Russian forces have increasingly resorted to the use of lighter, faster vehicles to conduct reconnaissance of Ukrainian defensive positions, to allow for subsequent engagement using artillery, first-person view (FPV) or one-way attack OWA drones in an effort to consistently degrade Ukrainian forces. However, in sacrificing armour and firepower for increased mobility, light vehicles are far more vulnerable than their armoured counterparts to an array of weapon systems. Ukrainian FPV drones have already demonstrated their ability to effectively target such light vehicles. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that since the beginning of the day, there have been 148 combat encounters, Russian forces launched 6 missiles, 30 air strikes using 40 cabs, almost 300 kamikaze drone strikes and carried out over 2.5 thousand shelling of Ukrainian troops positions. In the north of Ukraine, in Chernihiv and Sumy oblasts, the situation has not changed significantly, changes in the status and position of troops have not occurred. In the Kharkiv direction, Ukrainian units repelled 13 attacks of the Russian enemy in the directions of Nova Tovolzanka (Russia) - Vovcans k, Shebekino (Russia) Vovcansk, Gatyste - Vovcansk, Murom - Staricia, Strileca - Deep, Watch - Deep, Deep - Lipci. Ukrainian defenders are combing the urban development of the settlement of vovcans k. Fighting is ongoing, the situation is under control. Russian losses amount to 164 persons and 25 units of equipment. In the Kupians komu direction, Ukrainian troops repelled 22 attacks in the directions of Lyman the First - Synkivka, Vilshanka - Synkivka, Krohmalne - Brestove, Kolomyjchiha - Stelmakhivka, Kovalivka - Novoyegorivka, Ploshchanka - Makiyivka. In the course of fighting, the loss of positions is not allowed, the situation is under control. In some areas have improved the tactical position of Ukrainian troops. In the directions of kovalivka - novoegorivka and kislivka - ivanivka there are fights for separate positions. In the Limansky direction, Ukrainian soldiers repelled 1 Russian attack in the direction of Chervonopovka - Ivanivka, in some areas improved the tactical position. In the northern direction, the units of the Defense Forces repelled 15 Russian attacks in the directions of Lisichansk - Bilogorivka, Novodruzhesk - Bilogorivka, Vesele - Verkhnyokamans ke, Zolotarivka - Verkhnokamanske, Veselee - Rozdolivka, Mykolaivka - Spirne. Russian forces did not have success, the loss of positions is not allowed. In the Kramators komu direction, Ukrainian troops repelled 35 Russian attacks in the directions of Bakhmut-Ivanivsk, Bakhmut - Klishchieivka, Odradivka - Klishchiaivka. The loss of positions is not allowed, in some areas the tactical situation has been improved, and in some areas, due to the intense Russian fire influence, positions have been changed to save the lives of Ukrainian defenders and unit regrouping measures have been planned. In the Pokrovsk direction, Ukrainian troops repelled 33 Russian attacks in the directions of Ocheretyne - Novooleksandrivka, Ocheretynne - Evgenivka, Oceretyne - Kalinove, Arkhangelske - Novoooleksandrivka. In order to save the lives of Ukrainian defenders, the Defense Forces positions have been changed in some areas due to the intense fire influence of the enemy. In the directions of solovyove - falcon, ocheretine - solovyove, ocheretyne - Eugene, semenivka - novoselivka the first, semenivka - umans ke, sands - netajlove loss of positions is not allowed, the situation is controlled. In some areas within the direction of Ukrainian units, the tactical position has been improved. In the Kurakhivs komu direction, the Defense Forces repelled 13 Russian attacks in the directions of Staromyhajlivka - Krasnogorivka, Slavne - Novomyhajlivka. Ukrainian units are holding their defense, no loss of positions is allowed. In the vrmivs komu direction, the troops of the group repelled 11 Russian attacks in the directions of sweet-water, covenant desire-staromayors ke, volodine-staromayor ke. Regardless of Russian pressure, the loss of positions is not allowed. In the direction of Pridniprovs komu, Ukrainian defenders repelled 4 Russian attacks in the direction of Oleshkivski Piski - Krynki. In other directions, there have not been significant changes in the environment. During the current day, Russian forces lost more than 800 men in personnel. Ukrainian soldiers destroyed and shot down 9 tanks and 28 armored occupier combat vehicles, as well as shot down 212 Russian unmanned aircraft. The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reported that the Sever Group of Forces has improved the tactical situation and delivered strikes at manpower and hardware of the 125th Territorial Defence Brigade close to Volchansk, Neskuchnoye, Liptsy, and Veseloye (Kharkov region). In addition, five counter-attacks of AFU assault groups were repelled close to Glubokoye and Tikhoye (Kharkov region). The enemy's losses amounted to up to 250 Ukrainian troops, two tanks, two armoured fighting vehicles, and 17 motor vehicles. In counter-battery warfare, the Russian troops hit one 152-mm Msta-B howitzer, one 122-mm Gvozdika self-propelled artillery system, one 122-mm D-30 howitzer, Buk-M1 and Strela-10 anti-aircraft systems, as well as four MLRS launchers, to include Uragan, Czech-made Vampire, and Croatian-made RAK-SA-12. The Zapad Group of Forces has taken more advantageous lines and inflicted fire damage on the 63rd Mechanised Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and 117th Territorial Defence Brigade near Kirovsk and Torskoye (Donetsk People's Republic). Thirteen counter-attacks of the 4th Tank, 3rd, 21st, 63rd, 116th mechanised, 77th Airmobile brigades of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and 4th National Guard Brigade were repelled by the Russian Armed Forces near Kislovka (Kharkov region), Nevskoye, Novoyegorovka, Makeyevka, and Chervonaya Dibrova (Lugansk People's Republic). The enemy lost up to 80 Ukrainian troops, two infantry fighting vehicles, three pick-up trucks, two 152-mm Msta-B howitzers, and one 152-mm Giatsint-S gun. The Yug Group of Forces has improved the situation along the front line and delivered strikes at manpower and hardware of the 79th Air Assault Brigade and the 81st Airmobile Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine near Kleshcheyevka, Antonovka, and Grigorovka (Donetsk People's Republic). Over the past 24 hours, the Armed Forces of Ukraine have repelled three counter-attacks of assault groups of the 10th Mountain Assault Brigade and the 41st Mechanised Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine near Spornoye and Razdolovka (Donetsk People's Republic). The AFU losses amounted to up to 540 Ukrainian troops, two tanks, including the German-made Leopard-2A1, two armoured fighting vehicles, 11 motor vehicles, one U.S.-made 155-mm M777 howitzer, one 152-mm D-20 howitzer, one 122-mm Gvozdika self-propelled artillery system, one U.S.-made 105-mm M119 gun, and one 105-mm Melara Mod 56 self-propelled artillery system. The Tsentr Group of Forces have improved the tactical situation as a result of successful actions and inflicted fire damage on units of the 24th, 47th, and 100th mechanised brigades of the Armed Forces of Ukraine near Novosyolovka Pervaya, Katerinovka, and Novopokrovskoye (Donetsk People's Republic). The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation repelled seven counter-attacks launched by the 92nd Assault, 142nd Infantry, 68th, 71st jaeger, 24th, 110th mechanised brigades of the Ukrainian Armed Forces near Shumy, Ocheretino, and Netaylovo (Donetsk People's Republic). The AFU losses amounted to more than 395 Ukrainian troops, three armoured fighting vehicles, six motor vehicles, one 152-mm Msta-B howitzer, and one Croatian-made 122-mm RAK-SA-12 MLRS launcher. The Vostok Group of Forces has taken more advantageous lines and inflicted fire damage on manpower and hardware of the AFU 21st National Guard Brigade near Velikaya Novosyolka (Donetsk People's Republic). The AFU losses amounted to up to 135 Ukrainian troops, one tank, five motor vehicles, one U.S.-made 155-mm M777 howitzer, one UK-made 155-mm AS-90 Braveheart self-propelled artillery system, one 122-mm Gvozdika self-propelled artillery system, and one 100-mm Rapira anti-tank gun. The Dnepr Group of Forces has engaged the AFU 65th Mechanised Brigade, the 35th Marine Brigade, the 121st Territorial Defence Brigade close to Orekhov (Zaporozhye region), Ivanovka, Tyaginka, and Zolotaya Balka (Kherson region). The AFU losses amounted to up to 55 Ukrainian troops, two armoured fighting vehicles, two motor vehicles, one U.S.-made M109 Paladin self-propelled artillery system, one 152-mm Msta-B howitzer, and one 122-mm Gvozdika self-propelled artillery system. Operational-Tactical Aviation, Missile Troops and Artillery of the Russian Groups of Forces have engaged AFU manpower and hardware in 129 areas during the day. One Su-27 aircraft of the Ukrainian Air Force was downed by Russia's air defence forces. In addition, 33 unmanned aerial vehicles, six Tochka-U tactical missiles, 39 projectiles of Olkha, Chezh-made Vampire, and U.S.-made HIMARS, five French-made Hammer guided bombs, five U.S.-made HARM anti-radiation missiles, and four UK-made Storm Shadow cruise missiles have been shot down over the past 24 hours. In total, 596 airplanes and 274 helicopters, 24,020 unmanned aerial vehicles, 518 air defence missile systems, 16,008 tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles, 1,295 combat vehicles equipped with MLRS, 9,545 field artillery guns and mortars, as well as 21,678 units of special military equipment have been destroyed during the special military operation. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Xi's Europe visit 'increases mutual trust, charts a course for future development' Global Times Head-of-state diplomacy necessary to clarify matters, prevent further decline in China-EU relations: experts By Chen Qingqing Published: May 12, 2024 09:13 PM Updated: May 12, 2024 11:00 PM In summarizing the visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to three European countries, the Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Saturday that the visit, taking place in Europe with a global vision, successfully strengthened China-France relations, further solidified China-Serbia relations, enhanced China-Hungary relations, and injected momentum to China-EU cooperation. It was a journey to build on friendships, increase mutual trust, boost confidence, and chart a course for the future, which has concluded in great success, the Chinese top diplomat said. Over the past few years, with the global uncertainties, growing challenges that Europe has been facing, and the twists and turns in China-EU relations, a high-level exchange is necessary to clarify matters, prevent further decline, and stabilize relations, while fostering future-oriented development, some experts said, noting that head-of-state diplomacy, as the highest level of diplomatic exchange, is crucial at this critical moment. During the visit, China and France upheld the original spirit of establishing diplomatic ties, and will advance the bilateral relations by building on past achievements and pioneering new developments, Wang noted. We will continue to sustain our ironclad friendship and embark on a new journey to build a China-Serbia community with a shared future in the new era, and will strengthen traditional ties and guide China-Hungary relations into a "golden voyage," Wang said. On China-EU relations, the two sides should shape correct perceptions and adhere to the positioning of partnership. On global issues, China will demonstrate the responsibility of a major power and contributing China's solutions for world peace, the Chinese top diplomat noted. This visit demonstrates China's great emphasis on Europe and its special attention to these three countries - France, Serbia and Hungary, Sun Keqin, a research fellow at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, told the Global Times on Sunday. The trip conveyed to Europe and the world China's stance and attitude on China-EU relations, global peace and development, especially on the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and the Israel-Palestine conflict, Sun noted. It also addressed major international issues, such as global governance, and clarified misunderstandings about China's role in the Russia-Ukraine war and debunked the so-called overcapacity in China rhetoric, Sun said. "By positively stating its position, China has effectively countered anti-China forces in Europe and helped more Europeans understand China's perspective on these issues, responded to malicious slander and attacks in some Western media." Memorable moments President Xi's visit to the three European nations left many memorable diplomatic moments, the Xinhua News Agency said on Sunday. From talks at the AlysAe Palace in Paris to chats at Tourmalet pass in the Pyrenees; from the welcoming crowds in a Serbia Square to the farewell ceremony at the Villa Peace in Belgrade; from the flowers at Budapest Airport to the welcoming ceremony at Buda Castle in Budapest ... These vivid scenes and remarkable diplomatic stories from President Xi's European visit are unforgettable, Xinhua said. The New York Times said French President Emmanuel Macron "adds a personal touch to his diplomacy with China," as he took Xi to his childhood haunts high, hoping to forge a bond. The AFP described the impressive scene in Belgrade where Xi and Serbia's President Aleksandar Vucic "waved from a balcony to several thousand people." During the visit to Serbia, President Xi and Vucic agreed to build a China-Serbia community with a shared future in the new era, and Xi also announced a range of measures to support the building of China-Serbia community with a shared future. Wang said this decision marks a breakthrough in Europe for the building of a community with a shared future, which will become a new milestone in the history of China-Serbia relations. In all three European nations, from reception protocols to personal interactions between leaders, the warm hospitality showed the host countries' high regard for President Xi's visit and relations with China, Dong Yifan, a research fellow at the Institute of European Studies, China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, told the Global Times on Sunday. "The reception was of the highest standard, underscoring the importance of this visit," Dong said, noting that the visit holds significant diplomatic meaning for China, which reflects Europe's prominent position in shaping global relations and the strategic importance of China-EU relations. On Xi's visit, Wang also noted that "First Lady diplomacy" was a highlight of this visit as Peng Liyuan's charming diplomacy played a positive role in enhancing the foreign public's goodwill toward China and boosting China's soft power. "First Lady diplomacy" has two key characteristics: a feminine touch and a focus on people-to-people and cultural exchanges, Song Luzheng, a Chinese scholar residing in France and a research fellow at the China Institute of Fudan University, told the Global Times on Sunday. These aspects effectively complement the often overly formal and serious discussions between heads of state, emphasizing emotional connections and engagement in areas of consensus such as the humanities, language and culture, helping foster closer ties between people, Song said. Implications for China-EU ties Whether in EU elections or EU affairs, France and Germany play special roles. From the day the EU was founded, France has served as a political leader, acting as a "political engine," some experts said. Meanwhile, Germany remains an irreplaceable economic leader in the EU. Ahead of Xi's visit to Europe, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz also travelled to China in mid-April and had in-depth discussions on bilateral relations, regional as well as global affairs. Over the past few years, China-EU relations have faced various challenges due to geopolitical competition, the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and the expanding influence of the US. France remains committed to strategic autonomy and is the most influential power in the EU, Sun noted. By engaging with France and EU leaders on various issues, we can clarify whether we are partners or systemic rivals. Their perception is critical for the smooth development of China-EU relations, allowing us to understand each other's positions and establish a solid foundation for managing differences and strengthening cooperation, Sun said. Hungary is scheduled to take over the Council of the EU on July 1, and it will use its veto power if necessary once it assumes the rotating presidency, Euronews reported in April. Some experts said that given the unique structures of the EU and NATO, Hungary can play a crucial role, especially in the EU's consensus-based decision-making on major issues, and Hungary has for multiple times exercised its veto power against anti-China resolutions in the European Parliament and the EU. In an exclusive interview with the Global Times recently, Levente Horvath, director of the Eurasia Center at John von Neumann University, said Hungary is expected to play a positive role in China-EU relations during its upcoming EU presidency, hoping to influence the bloc's thinking about China. Some Western media, citing analysts, said the Chinese leader made an impression but no real breakthroughs on trade and Ukraine tensions. And some observers claimed that China "has gradually divided Europe into two groups: those friendly and unfriendly to China," German news outlet DW News said on Saturday in one article. European public opinion is generally pro-US, often making negative interpretations of China, some experts said, noting that however, since the beginning of this year, there have been many exchanges between China and Europe, with visits from Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany. "Therefore, it's not about China seeking to divide Europe but simply normal diplomatic visits. Moreover, the three countries that President Xi visited are relatively friendly toward China," Sun noted. Such friendliness is based on their own interests, objective considerations, and mutually beneficial cooperation. This approach represents European pragmatism and the direction of China-EU relations. "Therefore, it is incorrect to label this form of cooperation as an attempt to divide Europe," Sun said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address A decade of uncertainty: the fate of detained Uyghur refugees in Thailand By Kasim Kashgar May 12, 2024 Dozens of Uyghurs who fled China a decade ago and have been indefinitely detained in Thailand are getting conflicting explanations from the U.N. refugee agency and Thai authorities on why their cases are still in limbo. "If we speak out about our condition or our situation here, it will attract media attention, the world will know, Thai authorities will find out. Then our situation here will worsen, and we might lose all communication with the outside world," said one detainee in a rare interview with VOA. "That's why we refrain from speaking out for the time being," added the man, asking to be identified only as Ahmad. Ahmad said Uyghur detainees do not have phones to communicate with the outside world but said they sometimes can borrow a phone from a new detainee. That's how Ahmad and others were able to communicate with VOA. Rights organizations accuse Beijing of repressive policies that amount to human rights violations and even genocide against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities, which China has repeatedly denied. Ahmad said Uyghurs who escaped China in 2014 with the help of traffickers crossed into Thailand and were arrested by Thai authorities for illegally crossing the border. They have been held in immigration detention since then. "We fled repression in China," Ahmad said. He added that he and other Uyghurs in Thai detention feel they have been "abandoned" by the world over the past decade. Over the years, there have been several news reports on the plight of the Uyghurs in Thai detention, but so far, their situation has stayed the same. "The world has heard our appeals, but the rules of the United Nations and other [international] organizations have not yet worked in our favor," he said. UNHCR vs. Thai authorities Earlier this month, an investigation by The New Humanitarian news agency obtained documents that showed the Thai government in 2020 petitioned the U.N. refugee agency, or UNHCR, "to play a more active role in resolving the Uyghurs' indefinite detention, and that agency staff advised against doing this." UNHCR spokesperson Babar Baloch stated that due to confidentiality constraints and a desire not to undermine efforts to resolve this sensitive matter, the UNHCR cannot publicly elaborate on its approach to addressing the situation. "Despite requests, however, at no stage have we been permitted to access the group or engage with them for the purpose of facilitating solutions. We are engaged in close discussions with the Thai authorities," Baloch told VOA in an email. "UNHCR has and continues to proactively raise this issue with the Thai authorities." Thailand has not ratified the 1951 Refugee Convention and does not have laws that give refugees legal status, but according to the UNHCR, Thailand hosts 82,400 refugees from Myanmar in temporary shelters. Life in detention A rights activist familiar with the situation in Bangkok, who requested anonymity due to fear of reprisals from Thai authorities, said 43 Uyghurs are being detained at the Suan Phlu Immigration Detention Center in Bangkok. Additionally, five Uyghurs who attempted to escape immigration detention and were later arrested are imprisoned in Thailand. "At least five to six people live in a room measuring four meters wide and eight meters long," the activist said. "There are around 25 rooms on each floor of the five-story detention building, with one toilet and shower in each room," and the detainees sleep on the floor. The activist said when the Uyghurs first crossed the border into Thailand 10 years ago, there were more than 350 of them. "Initially, with humanitarian assistance from Turkey, over 170 women and children were taken to Turkey and settled in the city of Kayseri in 2015," the activist told VOA. "Subsequently, Thai authorities handed 109 mostly male Uyghur refugees to China weeks later," leaving more than 50 Uyghurs still awaiting their fate in Thai detention. "After Thai authorities deported 109 Uyghurs to China, Uyghurs in Turkey protested and stormed the Thai consulate in Istanbul, which made Thai authorities very uncomfortable with the Uyghur issue," he said. "Since then, Thailand has been reluctant to deal with the rest of the Uyghur refugees." At the time of publication, Thai officials had not responded to numerous requests for comment from VOA. Last year, Human Rights Watch reported that two Uyghur refugees in their 40s died while in Thai immigration detention and called on Thailand to "end the indefinite detention" of Uyghur asylum seekers from China. According to a February letter to Thai authorities from a group of United Nations special rapporteurs, the deaths of two Uyghur refugees last year brought the total number of Uyghur deaths in Thai immigration detention centers to five, including two minors. "We would like to bring to the attention of your Excellency's Government information we have received concerning the detention conditions of 43 Uyghur migrant individuals that may amount to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or even torture," the letter said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Press Statement by Spokesperson for DPRK Foreign Ministry Korean Central News Agency of DPRK Pyongyang, May 12 (KCNA) -- A spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) released the following press statement on May 12: The 10th urgent special meeting of the UN General Assembly on Friday adopted with approval by the overwhelming majority of member states a resolution on granting Palestine almost same qualifications and rights as a full-fledged UN member state, expressing serious concern over the recent U.S. veto against Palestine's entry to the UN. The DPRK fully supports it, acknowledging that the adoption of the resolution is a measure very appropriate in timing now that the legitimate national rights of the Palestinians are mercilessly violated by the U.S. high-handed and arbitrary practices. The adopted resolution reflects the strong desire of the international community to bring peace and stability to the Middle East as early as possible by recognizing Palestine as a full-fledged independent sovereign state. Nevertheless, the U.S. voted against it in disregard of the international justice and the call of the times, and openly said that it would exercise its veto again if the issue of Palestine's UN membership was referred to the UN Security Council. Furthermore, such brigandish assertion is heard within the U.S. that the U.S. should stop its financial contributions to the UN if Palestine comes to have the same rights as the UN member states. The righteous international community is greatly angered by the extreme Yankee-style arrogance of the U.S. calling for punishing anyone disobedient to it. As already known, the U.S. unhesitatingly vetoed a relevant draft resolution at a UNSC meeting on April 18 under the absurd pretext that Palestine's entry to the UN is possible only through direct negotiations with Israel. The U.S. asserts that Palestine's entry to the UN, in which Israel is a member state, runs counter to the "two-state solution policy." This is just unconvincing, nonsensical paradox, and to urge Palestine to gain its statehood through direct negotiations with Israel committing genocide against Palestinians is little short of pushing them to give up their efforts for building an independent state. The reality clearly proves that the U.S. pursues "one Jewish state policy", instead of "two-state solution policy", and is same as Israel in the intention to wipe the Palestinian nation off the face of the earth. The U.S., openly denying the internationally recognized "two-state solution policy" and zealously patronizing Israel, can never dodge its responsibility for having plunged the innocent Palestinians into death and despair. Expressing full support for and solidarity with the just cause of the Palestinian people for putting an end to the illegal Israeli occupation and building an independent sovereign state, the DPRK will actively join the efforts of the righteous international community to bring peace and stability to the Middle East in a manner of meeting the interests of the Palestinian people. -0- NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Respected Comrade Kim Jong Un Inspects Major Defence Industrial Enterprises Korean Central News Agency of DPRK Pyongyang, May 13 (KCNA) -- Kim Jong Un , general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) and president of the State Affairs of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), gave field guidance to major defence industrial enterprises under the Second Economic Commission on May 11 and 12 to learn about the implementation of the Party's policy on munitions industry. He was accompanied by Pak Jong Chon, vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission of the WPK and secretary of the C.C., WPK, Jo Chun Ryong, secretary of the C.C., WPK, Kang Sun Nam, minister of National Defence of the DPRK, Kim Yong Hwan, president of the Academy of Defence Sciences of the DPRK, Hong Yong Chil and Kim Yo Jong, vice department directors of the C.C., WPK. Kim Jong Un inspected a complex producing ultramodern precision munitions to learn about modernization of its production processes. Noting that it is a prerequisite and important guarantee for developing the self-reliant defence industry onto a more radical development stage that the modernization of production processes of the defence industrial enterprises playing a key role in bolstering up combat capability of the army has been put on a higher level and they are possessing world-level high technical capabilities, he added that the recent remarkable development made in the national defence industry on a world level is a brilliant fruition of the validity and vitality of the Party's strategy for national defence economic development and its policy for carrying it out. He highly appreciated the fact that the automation and streamlining have been successfully realized at many enterprises, and expressed great satisfaction over the fact that the ideas and efforts have been positively made to ensure the practical and effective arrangement of ultra-modern equipment and devices with high accuracy and reliability in operation throughout the whole process ranging from workpiece production to assembly and test and to carry out the production in a scientific way. He stressed the need for major defence industrial enterprises to effectively organize the economic work for serial production of major munitions whose quality is thoroughly guaranteed, saying that it is important to build up the technical forces in keeping with their production processes being modernized on a high level, establish strict quality control regulations and order, and carry on the supply of materials and products under contract in a planned way. He said that the core defence industrial enterprises under special care of the Party should play a vanguard role and fully guarantee the preparations of the Korean People's Army (KPA) for war materially and technically, calling for conducting the ideological education of all officials and employees in a more offensive way as required by the prevailing revolutionary situation and giving full play to their mental power so that they can turn out as one in the munitions production. He urged all the defence industrial enterprises under the Second Economic Commission to wage on a more developed basis the struggle for establishing a cultured way of production and life and continue creating and improving the new-century culture of the munitions industrial workers as a model. He visited a complex producing major small arms to learn about the performance of various small arms newly developed in Korean style including a sniper rifle. Showing his deep care for a newly-developed sniper rifle, he said with high appreciation that our scientists and technicians have produced a sniper rifle with world-level performance and might. Referring to the WPK's plan and intention to bring about a revolution in the production of more advanced small arms, he indicated the long-term development orientation for major small arms production enterprises and the issues of principle to be maintained in the work for organizing the national defence economy for its realization as well as important tasks and ways. He learned about the production of updated 240mm multiple rockets launchers to be equipped by KPA artillery units newly formed this year. Going round the produced launchers, he acquainted himself with the production plan for this year and the production results to date. And he mounted a launcher to learn about its combat performance while personally undergoing a trial operation. He noted with appreciation that the automation system of launchers has been put on a high level and they have been made qualitatively on the principle of ensuring the maximum combat effectiveness of the 240mm multiple rocket launcher system, stressing the need to further expand the production results by increasing the scientific and technological capabilities and making sustained innovations and thus accelerate the bolstering of the artillery capabilities of the army. In order to mass-produce multiple rocket launchers of our style with high efficiency and reliability in bulk, it is important to steadily improve the modernization level of production processes, he said, calling for continuously updating the goal for modernization of production processes with the main emphasis put on steadily improving the performance of launchers. He expressed expectation and belief that the major defence industrial enterprises would not only carry out the munitions production plan, set forth by the Party, in a qualitative way without fail but also make fresher innovations and leap forward with the peculiar spirit for development and manner of creation while always holding high the banner in the van of struggle for implementing the Party's national defence development strategy. -0- NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Press Statement of Section Chief for External Policy of DPRK Foreign Ministry Korean Central News Agency of DPRK Pyongyang, May 13 (KCNA) -- The section chief for external policy of the DPRK Foreign Ministry released the following press statement on Sunday: The U.S. allies have recently made their military interference in the Asia-Pacific region undisguised under the pretext of monitoring violation of UN sanctions, further worsening instability of the regional situation. A few days ago, the UK staged a naval operation drill with the ROK by dispatching its naval forces into the waters around the Korean peninsula, talking about the implementation of the UNSC "sanctions resolution" against the DPRK. In the wake of it, Canada is scheming to deploy a sea-patrol plane at a military base of Japan to conduct surveillance over the waters around the Korean peninsula. Meanwhile, such allies of the U.S. as Germany, France and New Zealand have also dispatched their warships and warplanes to the Asia-Pacific region including the waters around the Korean peninsula one after another this year, encroaching upon the security interests of regional countries and escalating the military tension in the region. In particular, an Australian warship, dispatched to the waters around the Korean peninsula, let a military helicopter go into action and threaten the maritime and air security of a surrounding country, thus creating possibility of a dangerous armed conflict. Such military intervention, conducted by the above-said countries under the pretext of implementing the so-called UNSC "resolution" and abiding by international laws, is contrary to the purpose and principle of the UN Charter with sovereign equality and non-interference as its core and poses a visible threat to peace and security in the Korean peninsula and the Asia-Pacific region as a whole. The Foreign Ministry of the DPRK expresses serious concern over the irresponsible behaviors of some countries taking advantage of the U.S. hostile policy and hegemonic strategy against independent sovereign states and urges them to immediately stop the provocations of causing tension and instability. The reality, in which some Western countries dispatch their military forces into the areas around the DPRK geopolitically far from them and exercise their military muscle, gives us many suggestions. If the intervention by force is their policy against the DPRK, it cannot but reconsider its policy stand toward them in line with its interests. The DPRK will take necessary measures to firmly defend the sovereignty and security of the state on the basis of a rigorous analysis of the negative influence being caused by the grave acts of some countries including Canada, Australia, UK, Germany and France taking part in the so-called "activities of monitoring sanctions against the DPRK". Western countries should ponder over the fact that their unreasonable and blind policy of following the U.S. is an act of harming their own interests. -0- NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Director General Defence Intelligence Agency Lt Gen DS Rana embarks on an official visit to Tanzania India - Press Information Bureau Ministry of Defence Posted On: 12 MAY 2024 5:10PM by PIB Delhi Director General Defence Intelligence Agency (DG DIA) Lieutenant General DS Rana has proceeded on an official visit to the United Republic of Tanzania. The aim of this visit, scheduled from 13-15 May 2024, is to further reinforce the robust defence ties between the two nations and discuss opportunities for regional security collaboration. During his visit, the DG DIA is scheduled to interact with senior military leadership of Tanzania, including the Chief of Defence Staff of Tanzania Peoples' Defence Force, General Jacob John Mkunda, and his counterpart Maj Gen MN Mkeremy, Chief of Defence Intelligence. In his visit to the Tanzanian National Defence College, he will discuss India's Security Perspective with future leaders of the TPDF. The meetings will be aimed to foster mutual understanding and strengthening bilateral defence cooperation. Lt Gen DS Rana will also inaugurate the newly set up Defence Wing at the High Commission of India, Dar Es Salaam. As a gesture of goodwill towards expanding military cooperation, he will present the TPDF with Indian manufactured Bullet Proof Jackets. At the Command and Staff College CSC Arusha the DG DIA will inaugurate the Library and lay the foundation stone for gymnasium that are being facilitated through Government of India assistance. India shares close, warm and friendly relations with Tanzania, which is bolstered by robust capacity building and avenues for defence cooperation. The visit of the Indian Military delegation is expected to further strengthen the elevated Strategic Partnership with Tanzania. **** ABB/Anand (Release ID: 2020369) NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Indian Kashmir voters prepare for historic election amid political shifts By Muheet Ul Islam May 12, 2024 Voters in Indian Kashmir are going to the polls from May 13 through May 25 to select their representatives in the Indian parliament. Local media reports claim that more than 1.7 million voters will determine the outcome for 24 candidates competing for the Srinagar constituency. This is part of India's ongoing general elections, which began in late April and run through June. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking a third term. The vote comes nearly five years after the Modi government stripped Muslim majority Kashmir of its semiautonomous status. Kashmir's loss of its special status in August 2019 led to the division of the region into two federal territories a Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh. Both areas are ruled by the central government and have no legislatures of their own. Modi's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is not contesting the elections in Indian Kashmir. News reports say the move signals ongoing discontent over the 2019 move and there is speculation BJP candidates would have lost. Residents say the Indian general elections are important for the people of Kashmir. They maintain that the Modi government has robbed the region of rights that were guaranteed to them under the Indian constitution. "What's left for us locals? Our land is given to non-locals, jobs are taken by them too, our electricity is sent to other Indian states and everywhere you look, high-ranking officials are not from Jammu and Kashmir," Fayaz Ahmad Malik, a resident, told VOA during a rally at Fateh Kadal, an area in Indian Kashmir's capital. "I have not voted in my life ever before but today I feel it is necessary because we are suffering. Modi and his party want to destroy us, but we have to stop him," he said. Modi visited Indian Kashmir in March for the first time since the region lost its special status. Amid tight security, he told a crowd that had packed the Bakshi Stadium in the region's capital, Srinagar, that Kashmir has seen significant changes and prospered since his government acted in 2019. Muzamil Maqbool, a political analyst and host of the podcast show Plain Talk, told VOA that the Kashmir valley is expected to see record-breaking voter turnout. He said the situation on the ground has changed since 2019. "The government of India always wanted to increase the voting percentage here because for years and decades Kashmir has witnessed a massive boycott," Maqbool said. "The government of India, political institutions and others always wanted Kashmiris to vote irrespective of which candidate will be chosen and the government of India has highly succeeded in that," he added. Maqbool believes people want to cast their vote and support their candidates openly. He added that young people, first time voters especially from central Kashmir, south and north Kashmir, are very eager to show the power of voting in democracy. Gul Mohammad Khan, a resident of Srinagar, said that he expects a strong candidate who would dare to challenge Modi and other Hindu leaders openly. "In the past no Kashmiri politician supporting India has shown such courage. They instead have aligned themselves with New Delhi's interests," Khan said. "I hope for a leader who can make Indian leaders dance to his tune," he said. Professor Noor Baba, another political analyst, told VOA that competition in Kashmir will be primarily between two regional political parties; the National Conference, or NC, and the People's Democratic Party, or the PDP. Modi's ruling party, Baba said, chose not to contest voting in Kashmir despite significant investment it made in reshaping politics in the area. India's main opposition party, the Indian National Congress, or INC, is supporting the NC. "In Srinagar, the NC candidate has the support of his voters while the PDP candidate has also gained sympathy as he has been a victim of post-2019 politics," Baba said. Nasir Aslam Wani, the National Conference provincial president, and Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi, National Conference's candidate for Srinagar, were contacted for comments but their phones were switched off. "NC has an advantage due to its longer historical presence and stronger social base. There is a perception that PDP played a role in the political rehabilitation of the BJP in the politics of the erstwhile state by forming a government with it as its alliance partner. It played a key role in facilitating BJP's reshaping politics in Kashmir," Baba added. Just before the ruling BJP revoked Kashmir's special status in 2019, the party withdrew its support from the PDP, ending their alliance. The PDP is now a bitter rival to Modi's party. The "2024 elections in Kashmir are different from previous ones. Expectations are high, especially among the youth, who seek candidates to truly represent them in the Indian parliament," said Tariq Ahmad Bhat, a senior youth leader of the People's Democratic Party, to VOA. "Previously the public viewed elections negatively, believing that voting would not make any difference. Today I can see the change. People have realized that undeserving candidates cannot be governed anymore," Bhat added. Jammu and Kashmir has been a disputed Himalayan region between India and Pakistan since the countries gained independence from British rule in 1947. Two wars have been fought between India and Pakistan over Kashmir. Both nations govern the territory under its control. Wasim Nabi contributed to this report. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Amirabdollahian: Continuation of regional dialogues needed more than ever IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency May 12, 2024 Tehran, IRNA -- Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said that today more than in the past, "we need to continue the dialogue in order to reach regional agreements and cooperation in order to increase interactions between each other" and, of course, recognize the challenges. On Sunday afternoon, Amirabdollahian stated at the third meeting of Iranian-Arab dialogues for cooperation and interaction that "I am confident that such conferences can lead to an increase in interactions between them and bring about peace, stability and security in the region". "Today we have passed the stage of Iranian-Arabic dialogues and have entered the stage of regional dialogues and cooperation, and if the founders of this meeting agree, we will continue to replace Iranian-Arabic dialogues with regional dialogues because we are with each other and We are in a positive stage of positive and strong regional dialogues and cooperation," he added. Amirabdollahian further added that today more than in the past, "we need to continue the dialogue to reach agreements and regional cooperation to increase the interactions" between each other and of course to recognize the challenges. "Our commonalities are many and more than our artificial and externally imposed points of difference," he said. The Iranian foreign minister stated that today, "we need a courageous determination to review perceptions, some of which are echoes of inaccurate interpretations of historical events, and many of which are from the contemporary era", which have foreign origins and have been raised to create differences between the countries of the region. Amirabdollahian added that Iran is determined to strengthen relations between the countries of the region and the foreign policy of the 13th government is based on this fundamental point. He said that the Islamic Republic of Iran strives to strengthen regional governments, adding that the return of normal relations between Tehran and Riyadh is one of its signs. "We believe that Iran and Saudi Arabia have many opportunities for cooperation. Our joint evaluation of the relations of the past one year shows good successes of the multi-layered development of cooperation, although we are still at the beginning of the path," he further said. Amirabdollahian also stated Iran's cooperation with Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries in the region is one of "our agendas". "We are going through a new phase of relations with Qatar, the UAE and Kuwait, and we appreciate Bahrain's action to release political prisoners," he added. The Iranian foreign minister stated that the Palestinian issue is a symbol of the suffering of a nation that has been deprived of all its rights and had to sacrifice thousands of martyrs and wounded in the past seven months to assert its rights, and millions were displaced in a small part of their homeland. "A nation displaced from the homeland and displaced in the homeland, who teach everyone a lesson in stability and resistance." He recalled that the Zionist regime was formed on the basis of negating and violating the rights of the Palestinian nation and extravagance, and it does not have the possibility to understand the realities of the region. Amirabdollahian pointed out that by continuing to unconditionally support the "Zionist regime", the US has turned its back on its human rights slogans. "Palestine has no other way to achieve its self-evident rights than standing and resisting, and this is the only way ahead for them. Iran registered the referendum plan for the Palestinian people in the United Nations many years ago," he added. The Iranian foreign minister said that peace, stability and security in the region will not be achieved until the disarmament and the removal of the occupation of the Zionist regime. "The issue of Palestine should be the center of gravity of the cohesion of the countries of the region and the Islamic world," he added. Amirabdollahian said that Iran, within the framework of its humanitarian, moral and political duties, declares its full readiness for all-round assistance with the countries of the region in order to realize the Palestinian cause. "Our strategy is sustainable regional development and security and regional convergence." Amirabdollahian said that "I emphasize that these days coincide with the withdrawal of the United States from the JCPOA. According to the 15th report of Iran Agency, it has adhered to its commitments and even our compensatory measures against the agreement and inaction of the Europeans and our strategic patience for a year led to the adoption of a new approach and we in the government did not depend on the JCPOA for our economy". The Iranian foreign minister noted that "we will adhere to the path of lifting sanctions and implementing the agreement in a way that provides for Iran's interests, and we call on the other parties to take constructive action". 2050 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Iran plans to build new nuclear reactor in Shiraz: Eslami IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency May 12, 2024 Tehran, IRNA -- The head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), Mohammad Eslami, has announced a plan for construction of a new nuclear reactor in the southwestern city of Shiraz. Eslami said on Sunday that the construction of the new nuclear plant is a joint effort to develop nuclear science and technology and to conduct research and educational work. The nuclear chief added that Shiraz is one of the targeted locations for the new reactor, and that experts are in the process of preparing the land and designing the project to begin the work. Also on Sunday, Eslami briefed members of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of the Iranian Parliament about the country's interactions with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Eslami told parliamentarians that Iran's interactions with the UN nuclear watchdog continue based on the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the Safeguards Agreement, according to Abolfazl Amouei, the commission's spokesman. The nuclear chief also assured lawmakers that the construction of new nuclear power plants, including Units 2 and 3 in Bushehr facility, is progressing as planned, Amouei said. 4353**2050 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UK says 'not wise' to ban arms sales to Israel as invasion of Rafah looms Iran Press TV Sunday, 12 May 2024 5:52 PM British Foreign Secretary David Cameron has voiced opposition to suspending arms sales to Israel, saying it is "not a wise path" for the UK government even as the regime is planning a large-scale assault on the southern city of Rafah in the Gaza Strip. Cameron made the remarks in an interview with BBC on Sunday after US President Joe Biden threatened to freeze American arms supplies to Israel if the occupying regime went ahead with a full-scale ground invasion of Rafah. The top British diplomat went on to say that halting arms exports to Israel would only strengthen the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas and make a prisoner swap deal less likely. Cameron also stressed that the UK government could not support Israel's attack on Rafah "unless they have a plan" to protect civilians. "We have not seen that plan so we do not support a major operation in Rafah," he said. Cameron also noted that Britain supplies a very small amount of Israel's weapons and it cannot be compared to the US, after the UK's opposition Labour Party and human rights groups argued that London should follow a similar position. London is facing domestic pressure since an Israeli attack on the World Central Kitchen convoy killed three British nationals last month in Gaza. Government officials have repeatedly emphasized in recent months that UK defense exports to Israel were very small. Anti-arms campaigners have said that the true figure could be much higher because the items sold under opaque open licenses keep the value of arms and their quantities secret. They also point to how critical UK-made components may be to Israel's war effort. Israel has vowed for weeks to launch a ground incursion against Rafah. The Israeli military has already gone ahead with waging limited ground attacks against the city and seized the nearby crossing into Egypt, which is the main corridor for the transfer of aid into besieged Gaza. Some 1.5 million Palestinians are seeking refuge in Rafah after fleeing a war that the regime has been waging against the Gaza Strip since October 7. More than 35,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed so far during the war, which began following the al-Aqsa Storm, a retaliatory operation by the territory's resistance groups. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address High-ranking Israeli 'security' official steps down amid Gaza onslaught Iran Press TV Sunday, 12 May 2024 5:10 PM An official in charge of military policy and strategic planning at the so-called Israeli National Security Council has stepped down, amid a recent wave of resignations by the regime's high-ranking officers which has fueled speculations about the potential for a domino effect within various institutions. According to the Israeli public broadcaster KAN, Yoram Hamo resigned due to frustrations over the failure to reach political decisions regarding future actions in the Gaza Strip. The so-called Israeli National Security Council alleged that Hamo had expressed his intention to step down several months ago, citing "personal reasons unrelated to public matters." Hamo was reportedly in charge of overseeing the "day after plan" for the Gaza Strip after Israel completed its military operation against Hamas, which has ruled the territory since 2007. KAN said a vision laid out for post-war Gaza has recently been deliberated within the Security Council will imminently be presented to the Security Cabinet. The broadcaster claimed civilian administration in the Gaza Strip for a period ranging from six months to a year. It claimed that essential services will be delivered to the population through private Arab enterprises, and eventually the control of the coastal sliver will transition to local entities not hostile to Israel. The Israeli regime says any future government in the besieged territory should not be led by Hamas. In response, the resistance movement has underlined that it will continue to be the key player in the politics and the administration of the Gaza Strip which has been under brutal aggression by the Israeli regime for more than seven months. Hamo's resignation comes as Moshik Aviv, the head of Israel's Public Diplomacy Directorate in the Prime Minister's Office, has informed Benjamin Netanyahu of his intention to walk out. Aviv, who was appointed just eight months ago, will wait for a successor to be appointed before stepping down. Galit Distel Atbaryan, the Public Diplomacy Minister, resigned from her position five days after the large-scale and surprise Operation Al-Aqsa Storm on October 7. Topaz Luk, social media adviser to Netanyahu, director general of the Prime Minister's Office Yossi Shelley, and Netanyahu's chief of staff Tzachi Braverman are also expected to leave the office shortly. All these started with the resignation of the head of the Israeli Military Intelligence Directorate, Aman, Major General Aharon Haliva, on April 22. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Putin Fires Longtime Ally Shoigu As Defense Minister, Names Little-Known Successor By RFE/RL's Russian Service May 12, 2024 Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose military has been criticized at home for a perceived lack of progress and heavy losses during its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, announced that he was replacing longtime ally Sergei Shoigu as defense minister. The Kremlin said that Shoigu, 66, would be replaced by former First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov, 65, a little-known politician who specializes in economic matters. Shoigu, who has been defense minister since 2012 and has been leading Russia's military through its full-scale invasion of Ukraine that began in 2022, has been named to head Russia's Security Council, which advises the president on national security matters. The Kremlin said that as part of Shoigu's Security Council duties, the former defense chief will advise on matters involving military-industrial issues. He will replace Nikolai Patrushev as head of the Security Council. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Patrushev's next position will be announced in the coming days. Russia's upper house of parliament, the Federation Council -- which also announced the changes -- said Putin has proposed reappointing Sergei Lavrov as Russia's foreign minister. British Defense Secretary Grant Shapps said Russia's next defense chief will be another Putin "puppet." "Sergei Shoigu has overseen over 355,000 casualties amongst his own soldiers & mass civilian suffering with an illegal campaign in Ukraine," he wrote on X. "Russia needs a Defense Minister who would undo that disastrous legacy & end the invasion - but all they'll get is another of Putin's puppets." Russia analyst and economics professor at the University of ChicagoKonstantin Sonin said on X that the changes illustrated the Kremlin's thinking: "Things are not going according to Putin's plan, but he will endlessly rotate the same small group of loyalists." "Putin has always feared to bring new people to the positions of authority -- even in the best of times, they must have been nobodies with no own perspectives. Toward the end of his rule, even more so," Sonin added. Jimmy Rushton, a Kyiv-based foreign policy analyst, wrote that "Shoigu's replacement with a (relatively experienced and apparently competent) economist pretty clearly signals Putin believes victory in Ukraine will come via outproducing (and outlasting) Ukraine and her Western allies. "He's preparing for many more years of war." Rob Lee, a senior fellow at Foreign Policy Research Institute, said he did not see the move as necessarily a demotion for Shoigu, pointing out that he's been handed additional powers in his new job. "This doesn't appear to be designed as a demotion for Shoigu, who not only received an important position as secretary of the Security Council but also will retain oversight of domestic and foreign defense issues, taking that from the new minister of defense," he wrote. The actions must be approved by the Federation Council, but both houses of Russia's parliaments are considered rubber-stamp bodies for Putin's wishes.The council said that "senators will hold consultations on the candidates proposed by the president at meetings of the committees on May 13 and at a meeting of the Federation Council on May 14." The moves come after the Russian government officially resigned following Putin's inauguration on May 7 for the fifth time in a ceremony to kick off a new six-year term that was boycotted by most Western countries over his war in Ukraine and an election victory they rejected as being orchestrated to provide him a landslide result. Russian lawmakers on May 10 approved Mikhail Mishustin as prime minister on May 10, hours after Putin nominated him for reappointment. Shoigu's future as defense minister had been closely watched over the past year following the struggles of the military in Ukraine and other issues. Although not directly implicated, Shoigu's Defense Ministry came under scrutiny after it was reported that Russian law enforcement officials had detained Deputy Defense Minister Timur Ivanov on suspicion of taking a bribe. The next day, the Basmanny district court in Moscow sent him to pretrial detention until June 23 after charging him with receiving a bribe on an especially large scale. Shoigu is considered close to Putin, with whom he has taken hunting trips in the past. He is one of the founders of the United Russia party, which was the main pro-Putin force in parliament in the first two terms of his presidency. Peskov said the Kremlin wanted to appoint an economic expert to head the Defense Ministry in the face of rising costs related to Russian security measures. "This demands special attention," he told reporters. "The Defense Ministry should absolutely be open to innovation, to the introduction of all advanced ideas. "At this stage, the president has decided that a civilian should run the defense ministry," he added. Anatoly Serdyukov, who preceded Shoigu as defense minister from 2007-12, also had a background in economics and had served as head of the Federal Tax Service from 2004-07. With reporting by the Financial Times and Reuters Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-shoigu- putin-belousov-defense-minister/32943289.html Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Why One of Russia's Top Economists is Being Appointed as Minister of Defense Sputnik News 20240512 Notable Russian economist and Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov has been nominated as minister of defense by Russian President Vladimir Putin on May 12. If economist Andrei Belousov does get appointed as Russia's newest minister of defense, it would not be the first time a civilian got put into that office, retired Russian naval officer (Captain 1st Rank) and military analyst Vasily Dandykin told Sputnik. "I believe that, first and foremost, he's a man from the president's team," Dandykin commented on Belousov's candidacy. "He was the first deputy prime minister and he actually knows very well the problems that [Russian] military-industrial complex faces. As always, our supreme commander-in-chief, the President of Russia, supervises all decisions." Russian military expert and military intelligence veteran Ret. Col. Rustem Klupov pointed out that Belousov is an accomplished economist of a very high caliber who advised prominent Russian statesmen. "If he is being appointed as the defense minister, it means that there will be goals of economic nature to complete," Klupov suggested. According to him, the new minister's duties might involve issues related to weapon procurement and defense contracts. "Gerasimov (Gen. Valery Gerasimov, Russian Armed Forces' Chief of General Staff) will conduct military operations and the defense minister will handle his own matters," Klupov added. Soviet and Russian Army veteran and military journalist Viktor Litovkin also highlighted Belousov's impressive reputation as a scholar and an economist, noting that the latter also paid considerable attention to the military-industrial sphere and military matters during his career as a government official. "So far, there is no reason to question his expertise. He's a distinguished man who paid a lot of attention while working in the government to the military-industrial complex and to the connection between the military and the industry." A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Putin Proposes Candidates for Key Defense, Security Positions in New Gov't Sputnik News 20240512 MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed candidates for the new cabinet's ministers of defense and foreign affairs as well as chiefs of top security agencies, Russia's Federation Council said on Sunday. "The Federation Council has received the list of candidates proposed by Russian President Vladimir Putin for the positions of heads of a number of federal ministries and agencies," the upper house said. The Russian leader proposed reappointing: Sergey Lavrov as foreign minister; Vladimir Kolokoltsev as interior minister; Alexander Kurenkov as minister for emergency situations. At the same time, Sergei Shoigu will leave the post of the Russian defense minister to be replaced by Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov. "Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree 'On the Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation' ... to appoint Sergei Shoigu as the Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation," the Kremlin said. In the Russian law enforcement and security agencies, Viktor Zolotov was endorsed to continue heading the Russian National Guard, Dmitry Kochnev to remain chief of the Federal Protection Service (FSO) and Alexander Bortnikov as the chief of the Federal Security Service (FSB). Sergei Naryshkin will also remain the head of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Who is Andrei Belousov, Putin's Candidate for Russia's Minister of Defense Sputnik News 20240512 On May 12, Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed the civilian economist to lead the Defense Ministry. Commenting on President Putin's suggestion to nominate the economist Andrei Belousov as minister of defense, presidential spokesperson Dmitry Peskov emphasized the need to integrate the overall economy of the security sector, particularly the Ministry of Defense, into the national economy. "It is very important to align the economy of the security sector with the dynamics of the current moment," Peskov told journalists, explaining Putin's decision to appoint Belousov as minister of defense. Peskov added that Belousov's appointment would not alter the "coordinate system" of the military component of the agency. "Regarding the military component, this appointment will not change the current coordinate system; the military component has always been the prerogative of the chief of the General Staff, who will continue his activities, and no changes are foreseen in this respect," Peskov told journalists. So Who is Andrei Belousov? Andrei Belousov is a Russian economist and government official born in Moscow on March 17, 1959. He graduated with honors from Moscow State University in 1981 where he studied economics. From 1981 until 2006, Belousov pursued a career as a researcher with first the Soviet Academy of Sciences' Central Economic Mathematical Institute and later with the Institute of Economic Forecasting of the Russian Academy of Sciences. In 2006, he was appointed as deputy minister of economic development and trade. In 2008, Belousov became the director of the Russian government's finance and economic department. From 2012 to 2013, Belousov held the office of minister of economic development. From 2013 till 2020 he worked as the Russian president's assistant on economic matters. In 2020, Belousov was appointed as Russia's first deputy prime minister and he has held this position since. In his capacity as deputy prime minister, Belousov handled the development of primary vectors of Russia's social-economic development, coordination of efforts to fulfill Russia's national development goals and the completion of national projects, matters of unitary financial, credit and monetary policy, and the regulation of financial markets. From 2022, Belousov also supervised the development of high-tech transportation technologies and intelligent control systems. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address PLA activities in the waters and airspace around Taiwan May 12, 2024 ROC Ministry of National Defense 2024/05/12 PLA activities in the waters and airspace around Taiwan 1. Date: 6 to 6 a.m. (UTC+8) Saturday to Sunday, May 11-12 2. PLA activities: 11 PLA aircraft and 8 PLAN vessels operating around Taiwan were detected up until 6 a.m. (UTC+8) today. 8 of the aircraft crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait and entered Taiwan's southwestern ADIZ. ROC Armed Forces have monitored the situation and employed CAP aircraft, Navy vessels, and coastal missile systems in response to the detected activities. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Erdogan Confirms His Intention to Improve Relations With Greece Sputnik News 20240512 ATHENS (Sputnik) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that he intends to strengthen relations with Greece and raise the level of bilateral relations to a historically unprecedented level. At the same time, Erdogan noted that Ankara does not recognize the agreement on the delimitation of maritime jurisdiction between Cyprus and Israel, since it was concluded "between the Greek administration in southern Cyprus and Israel, and the rights and interests of the Turkish Cypriots - the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus - which are an important element of the island, were ignored." "The goal is simple: by solving the problems, strengthen our friendship and raise the level of bilateral relations to a historically unprecedented level. To this end, we, Turkiye, have recently taken sincere and effective steps and intend to continue to do so," Erdogan said on Saturday in an interview with Greek newspaper Kathimerini on the eve of Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis' visit to Ankara, scheduled for May 13. The president also added that Turkiye's interests in exploitation of energy resources in the Eastern Mediterranean should not be ignored. NATO allies Greece and Turkiye have been at odds for decades, with the risk of an armed conflict arising several times. The disputed issues include competing territorial claims in the eastern Mediterranean, in particular in the region of the Aegean Sea, the Greek-Turkish divide in Cyprus, and the delimitation of maritime boundaries. Turkiye has repeatedly accused Greece of deploying weapons on the Aegean Islands in violation of the 1923 Lausanne Treaty. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said at a meeting with Mitsotakis in Athens in early December 2023 that there are no issues between Turkiye and Greece that cannot be resolved. The Greek prime minister echoed these remarks, saying that Greece and Turkiye should live in peace, while disagreements should not immediately cause tensions. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UK Minister of State for the Indo-Pacific completes first UK official visit to Maldives in two years Minister for the Indo-Pacific, Anne-Marie Trevelyan, visited Maldives to build closer links on maritime security, climate, and trade. 12 May 2024 UK Minister of State for the Indo-Pacific, Anne-Marie Trevelyan arrived in Maldives on 9 May for the first UK ministerial visit to the country in two years. During the visit, Minister Trevelyan held talks with Maldives Vice President Uz Hussain Mohamed Latheef, Minister of Climate Change, Environment and Energy Thoriq Ibrahim, Minister of Homeland Security and Technology Ali Ihusaan, and Minister of Economic Development and Trade Mohamed Saeed. Topics focused on opportunities for closer bilateral and regional cooperation including on justice reform, climate change, the security sector, trade and maritime security. With around 60% of global shipping passing through the Indo-Pacific, ensuring maritime security is of critical importance to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's priority of growing the UK's economy. Minister Trevelyan met Maldivian and British businesses operating in Maldives and discussed opportunities to further strengthen trade and commercial links between the UK and Maldives. Minister Trevelyan also met with female judges in Maldives to hear about the impact of UK programmes to support the justice sector, and understand the challenges faced by female judges. The Minister also visited the first, UK-backed marine plastics lab in Maldives where she met beneficiaries of UK programmes. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address The President was briefed on developments around residential building in Belgorod May 12, 2024 18:00 Acting Minister for Civil Defence, Emergencies and Disaster Relief Alexander Kurenkov and Governor of the Belgorod Region Vyacheslav Gladkov briefed Vladimir Putin on the developments around the destroyed section of a residential building in Belgorod as a result of the Kiev regime's attack. The President gave all necessary instructions. Earlier on Sunday, the Governor of the Belgorod Region reported that a section of an eight-entrance ten-storey residential building collapsed as a result of Ukrainian shelling. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russian Assault On Kharkiv Intensifies As Belgorod Hit By Presumed Ukrainian Missile By RFE/RL May 12, 2024 Kyiv on May 12 said "all areas" of the Kharkiv region's border area are under Russian assault after Ukraine's top military commander said "decisive battles" were being fought there, while the Kremlin assailed what it called a Ukrainian attack on an apartment building in the Russian city of Belgorod. Kharkiv Governor Oleh Synyehubov said on Telegram that Russian forces "continue to fire on the civilian population." "As of today, the number of mass artillery and air strikes have increased. Vovchansk, Lyptsi, and all the points of the northern border are under enemy fire almost around the clock," he said, adding that the "situation is difficult." Vovchansk, a border town with a prewar population of about 17,500, has become the focal point of Russia's latest offensive as the Kremlin's forces attempt to take settlements just east of Kharkiv -- Ukraine's second-largest city with some 1.4 million people. Ukraine's top military commander has said that his forces have prevented Russian troops from breaking through defenses, as large-scale evacuations of civilians continue in the country's northeast. "Units of the defense forces are fighting fierce defensive battles," Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskiy wrote on Telegram on May 12. "The attempts of the Russian invaders to break through our defenses have been stopped." However, Syrskiy echoed warnings from Kyiv about the dire situation Ukraine faces, with Russia boosting offensive efforts in the northeastern Kharkiv region and the eastern Donetsk region. Syrskiy said that Russia was attacking the front at several points with the aim of advancing deep into Ukrainian territory. "The situation is difficult, but the defense forces of Ukraine are doing everything to hold defensive lines and positions, inflict damage on the enemy," Syrskiy said. On May 12, Synehubov said more than 4,000 people had been evacuated from areas where "there is a threat to the lives and health of civilians" after fighting intensified in the territory bordering Russia. Russia launched a fresh assault on the region on May 10 and the following day claimed it had captured five villages. On May 12, Russian forces claimed they had taken four more villages. Ukraine has said it is battling for control in the affected areas and appears to have struck back with strikes in Russia itself. Russian officials said multiple people were killed and 20 injured on May 12 when fragments of a downed Tochka-U TRC missile fired by Ukraine hit an apartment block in Belgorod, a Russian regional capital near the border with the Kharkiv region. Varying death tolls have been given in the incident, ranging from at least two to seven people. "The city of Belgorod and the Belgorod region were subjected to massive shelling by the armed forces of Ukraine," said Belgorod region Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov, who added that more people could be buried in the rubble of the apartment building. On his Telegram page, Gladkov posted what he said were video and images of the collapsed apartment building. Russia's TASS news agency quoted Kremlin spokesman quoted Dmitry Peskov as saying President Vladimir Putin had been briefed about the "barbaric" attack on the apartment block. While Moscow itself denies targeting civilians, Russian air strikes have frequently hit hospitals, schools, and residential areas with devastating effect, with thousands of Ukrainian civilians killed since the full-scale invasion in February 2022. Kyiv has not commented on the incident in Belgorod, which has often has been the target of Ukrainian drone and missile attacks. Battlefield claims on either side cannot immediately be verified. During his nightly video address on May 11, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy raised alarms about frontline conditions in the war against Russia, highlighting the fighting in the Kharkiv region while also saying the situation in the eastern Donetsk region was "especially tense." The Ukrainian General Staff early on May 11 cited more than 100 areas of fighting in the previous 24 hours, in addition to overnight missile and drone attacks, hinting at the intensity of the Russian campaign 27 months into the full-scale invasion. Russia has also expanded its use of advanced rockets and missiles in addition to barrages from unmanned attack drones, and recently has targeted power infrastructure far from the front lines. With reporting by Reuters Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/urkaine-russia-war- kharkiv-donetsk-evacuations/32943042.html Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russian Forces Liberate Four Villages in Kharkov Region Sputnik News 20240512 MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russia's Ministry of Defense reported on the progress of special military operation and the achievements of Russian Armed Forces. Russia's Sever (lit. North) Group of Forces took control over four villages in the Kharkov region over the past 24 hours, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Sunday. "The units of the Sever Group of Forces advanced deep into the enemy's defensive and liberated the settlements of Gatishche, Krasnoye, Morokhovets and Oleynikovo in the Kharkov region," the ministry said. Russian forces also eliminated up to 100 Ukrainian solders and destroyed two tanks near the villages of Degtyarnoye, Vovchansk, and Kozachya Lopan in the Kharkov region, the ministry added. Furthermore, Ukrainian forces lost about 600 servicepeople and a US-made Abrams tank in the zone of responsibility of the Russian Zapad (West) and Tsentr (Center) groups of forces over the past 24 hours. "Units of the Western grouping of forces took more advantageous positions and hit [Ukrainian] formations ... in the areas of [the city of] Makeyevka, [the villages of] Artemovka, Dibrova of the Lugansk People's Republic [LPR], [the villages of] Yampolovka and Torskoye of the Donetsk People's Republic [DPR], as well as the Olivovsky Yar gully. Repulsed four counterattacks ... in the areas of the villages of Stelmakhovka in the Lugansk People's Republic and Synkovka in the Kharkov region," the ministry said. The Zapad group of forces eliminated up to 190 Ukrainian servicepeople, two armored fighting vehicles and four pickup trucks, as well as a US-made M777 howitzer, the ministry said. Kiev also lost an Msta-B howitzer, US-made M119 howitzer and a Grad multiple launch rocket system, the ministry added. The Tsentr group of forces improved its tactical situation and hit Ukrainian forces in the areas of the villages of Maiorsk, Yevgenyevka, Vodyanoye and Semyonovka of the DPR, the ministry noted. The grouping also repulsed 10 attacks of the Ukrainian forces in the areas of the DPR, the ministry said. "The Ukrainian army lost up to 415 servicepeople, two tanks, including US-made Abrams, a US-made Bradley infantry fighting vehicle, a US-made Kozak armored fighting vehicle, three vehicles, and a US-made Paladin 155-mm self-propelled artillery system," the ministry added. Russia's Yug (South) Group of Forces in turn have improved their position along the frontline, defeated Ukrainian troops and repelled two counterattacks. "The units of the Yug Group of Forces have improved the position along the front line and also defeated manpower and equipment of the 93rd mechanized, 92nd assault, 56th motorized infantry brigades of the Ukrainian armed forces, 107th, 112th, 115th brigades of the territorial defense in the areas of Spornoye, Orekhovo-Vasylivka, Chasov Yar, Kleshcheyevka, Andreyevka and Kurdyumovka settlements of the Donetsk People's Republic," the ministry said in a statement, adding that the losses of Ukrainian armed forces "amounted to up to 620 servicemen." Russia's Vostok (East) Group of Forces also took more favorable positions and repulsed two attacks of the Ukrainian army, eliminating up to 125 servicepeople over the past 24 hours. "The units of the Vostok Group of Forces took more favorable positions and hit the manpower and equipment of the 58th motorized infantry brigade of the Ukrainian army and the 128th territorial defense brigade in the areas of the villages of Volodymyrivka of the Donetsk People's Republic and Dorozhnyanka of the Zaporozhye region," the ministry said. The grouping also repulsed two counterattacks of the Ukrainian forces in the areas of the villages of Staromayorskoye and Urozhainoye, the ministry added. "Ukrainian losses amounted to up to 125 servicepeople, three vehicles, a 155-mm US-made M777 howitzer, a 152-mm Msta-B howitzer, a 122-mm Gvozdika self-propelled artillery unit and a 100-mm Rapira anti-tank gun," the ministry noted. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Residential Building Partially Collapses in Russia's Belgorod From Ukrainian Shelling Sputnik News 20240512 The Kiev regime shelled Belgorod with missiles from the Tochka-U complex and projectiles from the Olkha and Vampire Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS). Six missiles and six MLRS projectiles were destroyed by air defenses. Fragments from one of the downed missiles damaged a residential building, the Russian Ministry of Defense stated on Sunday. "On May 12, at around 11:40 Moscow time, the Kiev regime carried out a terrorist attack on the residential areas of the city of Belgorod using the tactical missile system Tochka-U, and the Olkha and RM-70 Vampire rocket artillery systems," the statement said. It is noted that during the repulsion of the attack, Russian air defense forces destroyed six Tochka-U missiles, four Vampire MLRS rockets, and two Olkha MLRS rockets. "Fragments from one of the downed Tochka-U missiles damaged a residential building in the city of Belgorod," the Russian Ministry of Defense clarified. Previously, regional Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov reported that Belgorod had been subjected to intense shelling by the Ukrainian Armed Forces, resulting in the collapse of an entire section of a residential building due to a direct hit. "Before the missile attack, sirens sounded and warnings to seek shelter were issued, which saved many lives," the agency's source said. An early warning of a missile attack in Belgorod and the region prior to the incident that led to the partial collapse of a building saved many lives, an emergency services representative told Sputnik on Sunday. "The entrance to a high-rise building collapsed on Shchors Street in Belgorod, services are on their way to the scene," the source said. A criminal case for terrorism has been launched following the shelling, the Russian Investigative Committee said on its Telegram channel. "A criminal case for terrorism has been initiated due to the shelling of Belgorod. On May 12, as a result of an attack by Ukrainian Armed Forces, a projectile struck a residential multi-story building. Preliminary data indicate there are fatalities and injuries. The Main Investigative Directorate of the Russian Investigative Committee has launched a criminal case for a terrorist act (Article 205 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation)," the message states. It is added that, on the orders of the Chairman of the Russian Investigative Committee Alexander Bastrykin, forensic experts and specialists from the central office of the agency have been sent to Belgorod to provide practical assistance. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russian Air Defense Downs 2 Tochka-U Missiles, 6 Drones Over Four Regions Overnight Sputnik News 20240512 Ukraine has targeted Russian civilian infrastructure almost daily since early June 2023 in the wake of obvious military setbacks. Russian air defenses intercepted two Tochka-U missiles over the Belgorod region and downed six Ukrainian drones over the Bryansk, Lipetsk and Volgograd regions, the Russian Ministry of Defense reported. "During the past night, a number of attempts by the Kiev regime to carry out terrorist attacks using aircraft-type UAVs and Tochka-U operational-tactical missiles (OTR) against targets on the territory of the Russian Federation were stopped," the statement said. Russian officials repeatedly stressed that Ukrainian attacks are acts of terrorism. More than 300 apartments in 85 apartment buildings, four houses and 14 commercial buildings were damaged by the massive shelling of the city of Belgorod on Saturday evening, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov posted on social media. Gladkov added that two women were in grave condition after the shelling and doctors were doing everything they could to save their lives. The governor said that a drone attack on the village of Shebekino in the Belgorod Region on Sunday morning resulted in damage to the territory of two industrial facilities with no casualties reported. A fire broke out at an oil refinery in Volgograd after a Ukrainian drone hit by Russian air defenses crashed in its territory on Sunday night. The fire was localized and extinguished as soon as possible and no casualties were reported, Volgograd Region Governor Andrey Bocharov was quoted by the regional administration as saying. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address First F-16 Fighters May Arrive in Ukraine Within Weeks - Reports Sputnik News 20240512 MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The first F-16 fighter jets are expected to be supplied to Ukraine in just a few weeks, UK newspaper The Standard reported, citing a high-ranking military source. The fighters should be delivered to Ukraine by June or July, the report said on Saturday, adding that the source did not specify from which countries these jets would arrive. The Netherlands and Denmark were among the first countries to agree to supply F-16s to Ukraine. The White House later confirmed that Kiev would receive the US-made jets from third countries once Ukrainian pilots complete the training to fly them. Dutch Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren said the Hague planned to deliver the first batch of F-16s to Ukraine in 2024, although the ministry announced in early January that the delivery would be delayed by up to six months. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu earlier said that Russia would start hunting down Ukrainian F-16s as soon as they begin arriving. He stressed that Russian air defense systems will need only about "20 days of work" to destroy the first batch of these jets supplied to Kiev regime. Vladimir Putin had a conversation with Russian military pilots in March and stressed that F-16 would change nothing for Kiev. "If they supply F-16s... I think, and you understand this better than anyone else..., this will not change the situation on the battlefield," Putin said. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address It Is Important to Involve as Many Countries as Possible in the Global Peace Summit - Andriy Yermak in a Conversation with U2 Frontman President of Ukraine 12 May 2024 - 15:59 Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak had an online meeting with Irish rock musician, U2 vocalist Bono. Andriy Yermak thanked Bono for his strong support and assistance to Ukraine during the full-scale war unleashed by Russia. The Head of the President's Office noted that Ukraine continues to courageously resist Russian aggression and at the same time makes great diplomatic efforts to prepare a plan to achieve a just peace for our country. To this end, the Global Peace Summit will be held in Switzerland on June 15-16, and Ukraine is seeking to involve as many countries as possible in it, including the Global South. Andriy Yermak urged Bono to support the idea of the Global Peace Summit and spread the word about it. After all, this event should lay the foundation for ending Russia's aggressive war against Ukraine, resolving all the crises caused by this war, and restoring the power of international law. "You can help in this, as your voice is known and heard by millions of people, and it is louder than the voices of many politicians," the Head of the Presidential Office emphasized. The conversation took place on Bono's birthday, and he noted that his greatest wish is for Ukraine to remain free. "Ukrainians are true heroes. Today you are at the forefront of the struggle for freedom for all of us. Ukrainians have an indomitable spirit. A spirit that cannot be conquered," U2 frontman said. U2 leaders Bono and The Edge came to Kyiv at the invitation of Volodymyr Zelenskyy in May 2022 to demonstrate solidarity with the Ukrainian people. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Ukrainians flee border areas as Russian forces advance near Kharkiv By VOA News May 12, 2024 More than 4,000 people have fled from areas around Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region since Friday, when Russia launched a surprise counteroffensive, the local governor said Sunday. "In total, 4,073 people have been evacuated," Oleg Syniehubov wrote on his social media channels. Syniehubov said a 63-year-old man was killed by artillery fire in the village of Glyboke and a 38-year-old man was wounded in Vovchansk, a border town with some 3,000 residents before Russia's Friday attack. Using artillery and mortar fire, Russian forces have been pounding towns and villages in the area. At least one Ukrainian unit has withdrawn from the Kharkiv region as Russian forces take over areas in the so-called contested "gray zones" along the Russian border. By Sunday afternoon, the town of Vovchansk, a town about 73 kilometers from Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, was the epicenter of ferocious battles in the area. Volodymyr Tymoshko, the head of the Kharkiv regional police, said Russian forces were on the outskirts of the town and approaching from three directions. "Infantry fighting is already taking place," he said. A Russian tank was spotted along a major road leading to the town, Tymoshko said, demonstrating Moscow's confidence in deploying heavy weaponry. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday battles are raging across parts of the border in the Kharkiv region, where thousands were displaced after a Russian offensive. "Defensive battles and fierce fighting continue on a large part of our borderline," Zelenskyy said, adding, "...the idea behind the attacks in the Kharkiv region is to stretch our forces and undermine the moral and motivational basis of the Ukrainians' ability to defend themselves." The Russian defense ministry said Saturday its troops captured five villages across the border from Russia's Belgorod region. The ministry said Moscow's forces had captured the villages of Pletenivka, Ohirtseve, Borysivka, Pylna and Strilecha in the Kharkiv region. Kyiv has contested that claim, but the commander-in-chief of the armed forces of Ukraine, Col. Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi, acknowledged Sunday that the situation is difficult in the area. "The defense forces of Ukraine are doing everything to hold defensive lines and positions, (and) inflict damage on the enemy," Syrskyi wrote on the Telegram app. Military spokesperson Nazar Voloshyn said on Ukrainian television Sunday that Russian forces are trying to widen the front, aiming at the towns of Vovchansk and Lyptsi. Lyptsi is about 19 kilometers from the outskirts of the city of Kharkiv. In 2022, Russian forces reached the city's suburbs before being driven back to the border. Voloshyn urged residents to keep calm, saying that Russia was waging a propaganda campaign aiming to create panic alongside its military assault. "The population should remain calm... the defense forces are holding (the lines); the situation is under control," the spokesperson said. More than two years after its invasion, Russia has gained the advantage on the battlefield, opening a new front as Ukraine faces shortages of personnel, along with stocks of artillery shells and air defenses. In a statement earlier Saturday, Zelenskyy urged Kyiv's Western allies to expedite the supply of weapons they had pledged. "It is important that partners support our soldiers and Ukrainian stability with timely supplies. Really timely. The package that really helps is the weapons brought to Ukraine, not just the ones announced," he said. The United States announced a fresh $400 million military aid package of weapons and equipment for Ukraine as Ukrainian forces try to repel an intensified Russian armored ground offensive near Kharkiv, White House national security council spokesperson John Kirby said. The State Department said in a statement the emergency military package contains urgently needed capabilities, such as additional air defense munitions for Patriot and National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems; Stinger anti-aircraft missiles and more. The package by the Presidential Drawdown Authority allows the U.S. president to transfer munitions and services from the Pentagon's U.S. stockpile without the U.S. administration needing to receive congressional approval. This is the third tranche of emergency military aid for Ukraine since Congress passed a $95 billion aid bill, with $60.8 billion of that amount going to Ukraine. Russia's Belgorod struck On the other side of the border, in Russia's Belgorod region, a Ukrainian Tochka-U missile struck a "residential district" in the city. Nine people were killed when the apartment building collapsed, according to local officials. "In total, five bodies have been taken out of the rubble," Russia's emergency situations ministry said on social media Sunday. Emergency services were quoted by the TASS news agency as saying that 20 people were also injured. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov called the attack "barbaric," the TASS news agency reported. Kyiv made no comment. Its forces have intensified attacks recently on Belgorod in its effort to free all its territory from Russian control. In response to Ukrainian attacks on Belgorod, Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested in March that Moscow could try to establish a buffer zone inside Ukrainian territory. Some information for this report came from Reuters, The Associated Press and Agence France-Presse. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address McMaster: 'It's past time to provide Ukraine what they need' By Ani Chkhikvadze May 12, 2024 The Russian army is attacking Ukrainian positions in the Donetsk region, near Chasiv Yar. British intelligence says Russia is sustaining heavy losses and according to the Ukrainian military has mobilized 20,000 soldiers around the small town just west of Bakhmut. In recent months, Russia has claimed limited gains along the 1,200-kilometer front line in the face of fierce Ukrainian resistance. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's administration has asked its Western partners for ammunition, long-range weapons and air defense capabilities. Ani Chkhikvadze of VOA's Georgian Service spoke to H.R. McMaster, a Hoover Institution senior fellow and national security adviser in the Trump administration, about the war and what Washington can do to help Ukraine. "It's past time to provide Ukraine what they need," he said. The interview has been edited for clarity and brevity. VOA: When we talk about war in Ukraine, does the United States right now have a strategy of what the outcome should look like? H.R. McMaster, Hoover Institution senior fellow: I think the outcome is clear, and it is clear because the Ukrainians defined it themselves. They want a free, sovereign, independent, secure country. That's what we ought to be supporting. That includes winning back the territory that they've lost, and I think we have not been as clear maybe in Washington and other capitals. We say [we will support Ukraine] as long as it takes. But I think we should define what "it" is. It is, again, a free, independent, secure Ukraine. VOA: Some critics say that Ukraine is not getting enough arms to make a difference on the battlefield. Does the White House have an idea of what the outcome should look like? McMaster: I wish that the White House and the president would be clearer about the objective. That would make clearer the amount of assistance, the kinds of weapons and munitions and the scale needed. I think there should be two fundamental military objectives. The first would be to stop the onslaught against the Ukrainian people and against their infrastructure. And the second would be to regain the territory that's been lost, certainly at least since the massive reinvasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Once you clarify those objectives, then, you know, you need tiered and layered air defense, or you need long-range precision strike capabilities, because you have to shoot down the arrows, but you also have to kill the archers who are firing these missiles and so forth. Then you need a range of military capabilities and logistics capabilities to sustain an offensive. Ukraine is struggling to rebuild their manpower, their womanpower, for their armed services. What we should be doing is providing as much material support as we can and stop, kind of, the "We don't know if we want to provide tanks or jet aircraft or long-range systems." It's past time to provide Ukraine what they need to accomplish those two military objectives. VOA: As a general and a [military] historian, how does the battlefield look to you right now? McMaster: It looks like it's a very tough situation for Ukraine right now. Russia has been able to replace the manpower they've lost, even though the numbers of casualties that they've suffered are staggering: 100,000-plus casualties. Russia, though, doesn't care about the casualties that they're taking. Apparently, they're taking about 30,000 casualties a month, a thousand casualties a day, for these gains that they're making around Chasiv Yar, for example, which is a pretty strategic, important place because of the routes it opens for more offensive operations, and because of some of the manufacturing capabilities that are around that city. Ukraine is doing their best to defend that area, and they're inflicting massive costs on Russia. One of the things that I think we have to consider is that every army has a breaking point. Russia might be reaching that breaking point. World War I is kind of instructive in this case. That war was relatively static, and it was terrible in terms of the casualties. There had not been any major gains. And then, in 1917, the French decided to mount the major offensive called the Nivelle offensive. ... They took staggering losses, and the French army mutinied. What happened after that was, the Germans conducted an offensive. It seemed like it was going to work, but they couldn't sustain it. Then America entered the war, and the war ended as a war of maneuver. Not that America is going to enter this [Ukraine] war. But wars don't remain static. There are always changes. Oftentimes those changes are due to physical strength and losses, but also because of morale or psychological effects of a battle. VOA: You served in the Trump administration [as national security adviser]. What would foreign policy look like under President Trump? McMaster: It's hard to say. I think that President Trump would be pragmatic about the challenges we're facing. I hope he would get good advice from those around him in an administration. It's also important to note, you know, that we're not a monarchy in the United States. You have separation of powers, and if President Trump had a desire to do something that the vast majority of members of Congress thought was unwise, even though the president has a lot of latitude in foreign policy, he's going to need Congress to go along with him for other elements of his agenda. I think it's important that we recognize that once the president is elected, that president is still held to account by the American people and by their representatives in Congress. We should wait to see what happens. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Dublin, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Advanced Wound Care Market: Industry Trends and Global Forecasts, Till 2035 - Distribution by Type of Advanced Wound Care Dressing, Type of Acute Wound Treated, Type of End User, Leading Advanced Wound Care Manufacturers, and Key Geographical Regions" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. The global advanced wound care market size is estimated to grow from USD 11.06 billion in 2023 to USD 20.21 billion by 2035, representing a CAGR of 5.15% during the forecast period 2023-2035 One of the key objectives of the market report was to estimate the current opportunity and future growth potential for the advanced wound care market over the forecast period. the analyst has provided informed estimates on the likely evolution of the market for the forecast period, 2023-2035. Over the past decade, wound care management has emerged as a significant contributor in medicare spending, resulting in a substantial financial burden on the healthcare sector. According to the recent medicare data, over 8 million people suffer from various chronic and non-healing complex wounds (such as diabetic foot ulcers, pressure ulcers, venous leg ulcers, infections arising from surgical procedures and thermal wounds) in the US alone; this accounts for 2% of the entire population of the US. The US medicare beneficiaries spend over $ 50 billion, annually, for the treatment of chronic wounds. The significant medicare cost can be attributed to the growing burden of chronic diseases, rise in the global geriatric population who are prone to chronic diseases and wounds, and the rising number of surgeries (by ~20%) post the pandemic. These factors have, subsequently, prompted the innovators to develop innovative and technologically advanced wound care products for effective wound care management. Advanced wound care products / advanced wound care management solutions refer to a group of products that can be utilized by the healthcare professionals to expedite the healing process of a wound. It is worth noting that over 180 players in this domain offer products in the form of advanced wound care dressings, bioengineered skins and dermal substitutes, and wound healing medical devices. In order to increase the adoption of advanced wound care products, stakeholders are focused on integrating these products with AI technology and machine learning, leading to the development of smart bandages and wound care products that can be operated through mobile app. It is also worth highlighting that close to 30% of the companies working in the advanced wound care market were established before-1990. Examples of such companies (established before 1990, very large companies, in alphabetical order) include 3M, B. Braun, Becton Dickinson, Cardinal Health, Coloplast, Cook Medical, and Ethicon. Recently, in April 2023, Convatec acquired the assets of 30 Technology in order to expand its product portfolio of wound care. In the foreseen future, more such collaborations are anticipated to take place to expand the existing expertise of the stakeholders. Presently, more than 40% of the advanced wound care market is captured by companies based in North America. The market size for advanced wound care in North America is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 4.59%, during the forecast period (2023-2035). Several factors contribute to the region's dominance in this domain, including the presence of big pharma companies with well-established research and development divisions that foster innovation and drive the demand for advanced wound care products and the rising prevalence of chronic disease conditions within this geographical region. Moreover, the experts believe that integration of wound care with AI technology has significant revenue generation potential in the near future. Such developments are further supported by the growing partnership activity in this domain. Notably, over the past three years, close to 100 partnerships have been established by stakeholders in advanced wound care market. With the rising popularity of such solutions in the healthcare industry and the ongoing efforts of stakeholders to further improve / expand their respective offerings, the advanced wound care market is likely to witness a steady growth during the forecast period. Advanced Wound Care Market Share Insights The market research report presents an in-depth analysis of the various companies that are engaged in the global market of advanced wound care, across different segments, as defined below: Historical Trend: 2019-2021 Base Year: 2022 Forecast Period: 2023-2035 Market Size 2023: USD 11.06 billion CAGR: 5.15% Customization Scope: 15% Free Customization PowerPoint Presentation (Complimentary) Type of Advanced Wound Care Product Advanced Wound Care Dressings Bioengineered Skins and Dermal Substitutes Wound Healing Medical Devices Type of Advanced Wound Care Dressing Foam Dressings Antimicrobial Dressings Hydrogel Dressings Hydrocolloid Dressings Alginate Dressings Composite Dressings Other Type of Wound Care Dressings Type of Bioengineered Skin and Dermal Substitute Allografts Autografts Extracellular Matrices Growth Factors Other Dermal Substitutes Type of Wound Healing Medical Device Negative Pressure Wound Therapy Topical Oxygen Therapy Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Hydrotherapy Electric Stimulation Therapy Skin Closure Systems / Adhesives Other Wound Healing Medical Devices Type of Wound Treated Acute Wounds Chronic Wounds Type of Acute Wound Treated Surgical Wounds Burns Other Types of Acute Wounds Type of Chronic Wound Treated Venous Ulcers Diabetic Ulcers Pressure Ulcers Other Types of Chronic Wounds Type of End User Hospital Care Home Care / Door to Door Services Other Types of End Users Key Geographical Regions North America Europe Asia-Pacific and Rest of the World Key Companies Profiled 3M Arthrex Advanced Medical Solutions Cardinal Health Coloplast Convatec DeRoyal Ethicon Essity Fidia Farmaceutici Integra Life Sciences Medline Industries Molnlycke Healthcare Organogenesis RTI Surgical Smith+Nephew Zimmer Biomet Excel Data Packs (Complimentary) Advanced Wound Care Market Landscape Company Competitiveness Analysis Partnerships and Collaborations Analysis Clinical Trial Analysis Market Forecast and Opportunity Analysis For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/ajxh2x 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. Attachment CALGARY, Alberta, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pan American Energy Corp. (CSE: PNRG | OTCQB: PAANF | FRA: SS60) ("Pan American or the "Company") is pleased to announce the commencement of the Spring 2024 field prospecting and sampling program at the Big Mack Lithium Project (the Project or Big Mack), located 80 km north of the town of Kenora, Ontario. The exploration program is part of the collaborative research project with the University of Regina (U of R) entitled Geomicrobiology for Detecting Rare Metal Deposits. Eight students specializing in geosciences from the University of Regina (U of R) will collect soil microbiology, soil chemistry, rock chemistry, ground water chemistry, soil mineralogy, and vegetation biochemistry samples across the entire Project area. The Company expects to collect upwards of 2,000 total samples from approximately 600 stations (Figure 1) over the course of 6 weeks. Laboratory analyses will be conducted at the Institute for Microbial Systems and Society at the U of R as well as the Saskatchewan Research Council, with the intent of using geomicrobiology to help generate new exploratory drilling targets on the Project Jason Latkowcer, Chief Executive Officer, commented as we embark on the Spring 2024 field prospecting and sampling program at Big Mack, we are not only advancing our exploration efforts but also helping to pioneer new frontiers in resource detection. Through our collaboration with the University of Regina, we intend to leverage the cutting-edge technology of geomicrobiology to help unlock the potential of the Big Mack. Our use of this innovative approach, alongside traditional exploration methods, underscores our commitment to strategic and informed decision-making and our efforts to position Pan American at the forefront of sustainable resource development. Geomicrobial surveying is an emerging technology that seeks to detect subsurface deposits by identifying and enumerating microbial species in soil samples. Geomicrobiology is intended to complement existing geochemical and geophysical exploration by observing how microbial communities in shallow soil are shaped by the geological formation below. This data can then be used as an additional data layer in drill target selection. At Big Mack, samples will be taken at areas of known mineralization to observe the presence of specific microbial species and the structure of microbial communities. Sampling is planned to begin at the Big Mack Pegmatite and work outwards to other boundaries of the Project, making use of the drilling data generated by the Company in its 2023/2024 drilling program at Big Mack to correlate samples with areas of known mineralization. The intent of the program will be to evaluate relationships between the microbial communities at the Project and the features of the surrounding geology, which can then be integrated into exploration models to inform drill target selection. Figure 1. Proposed sample locations for Big Mack. Qualified Person The technical content of this news release has been reviewed and approved by Jared Suchan, Ph.D., P.Geo., who is an independent consultant of the Company, and a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101. About Pan American Energy Corp. Pan American Energy Corp. (CSE: PNRG) (OTCQB: PAANF) (FSE: SS60) is an exploration stage company engaged principally in the acquisition, exploration and development of mineral properties containing battery metals in North America. The Company executed an option agreement in Canada with Magabra Resources, providing for the right to acquire up to a 90% interest in the Big Mack Lithium Project, 80 km north of Kenora, Ontario. The Company has also entered a property option agreement with Horizon Lithium LLC providing for the right to acquire a 100% interest in the Horizon Lithium Project, located within Esmeralda County Tonopah Lithium Belt, Nevada, USA. To register for investor updates, please visit https://panam-energy.com. On Behalf of the Board of Directors Jason Latkowcer CEO & Director Contact Phone : (587) 885-5970 Email: info@panam-energy.com Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements Certain statements contained in this press release constitute forward-looking information. These statements relate to future events or future performance. The use of any of the words could, intend, expect, believe, will, projected, estimated and similar expressions and statements relating to matters that are not historical facts are intended to identify forward-looking information and are based on the Companys current beliefs or assumptions as to the outcome and timing of such future events. In particular, this press release contains forward-looking information relating to, among other things, the planned field prospecting and sampling program and research, including the expected timing thereof and the anticipated number of samples to be taken as part of the sampling program; the aim and proposed utility of geomicrobial surveys; the utility of the research results in the Companys exploration of the Project, including in identifying drill targets at the Project; and the aim and hypothesis of the research and the Companys anticipated role in supporting the research. Various assumptions or factors are typically applied in drawing conclusions or making the forecasts or projections set out in forward-looking information, including, in respect of the forward-looking information included in this press release, the assumption that the research will proceed as anticipated on the anticipated timeline; the outcome of the research will be of assistance to the Company in exploring the Project and generating drill target at the Project; the Company will be successful in undertaking the planned field prospecting and sampling program on the timeline currently anticipated; geomicrobial surveys can be utilized in the manner anticipated in the exploration of mineral projects; and the Company will be successful in supporting the research project in the manner contemplated. Although forward-looking information is based on the reasonable assumptions of the Companys management, there can be no assurance that any forward-looking information will prove to be accurate. Forward-looking information involves 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 forward-looking information. Such factors include, among other things, the risk that the research does not proceed in the manner and on the timeline currently contemplated, or at all; that the Companys field prospecting program does not proceed in the manner and on the timeline currently contemplated, or at all; risks inherent in exploration, testing and research, including risks relating to changes in project parameters or delays as plans continue to be redefined, that exploration, testing and research is inherently uncertain and that the results of testing and research may not be reproducible at scale; that the exploration and/or research may be unsuccessful or fail to achieve the results anticipated by the U of R or the Company, including that the Company may be unable to utilize the results of its field program, in conjunction with the U of Rs research, to enhance its exploration of the Project or generate drill targets at the Project; that geomicrobiology may not be useful, or may not be as useful as anticipated, in mineral resource detection; and that the Company may not be successful in supporting the research. The forward-looking information contained in this release is made as of the date hereof, and the Company not obligated to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws. Because of the risks, uncertainties and assumptions contained herein, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The foregoing statements expressly qualify any forward-looking information contained herein. The Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE) has not reviewed, approved, or disapproved the contents of this press release. A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/6c3ff16f-2364-4c2f-b230-94ba890b60b6 HALIFAX, Nova Scotia, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Erdene Resource Development Corp. (TSX:ERD; MSE:ERDN) ("Erdene" or the "Company") is pleased to announce operating and financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2024, and to provide an update on progress at its Bayan Khundii Gold Project (BK or Project), being developed with Mongolian Mining Corporation (MMC). This release should be read in conjunction with the Companys Q1-2024 Condensed Consolidated Interim Financial Statements and MD&A, available on the Companys website and SEDAR+. Peter Akerley, Erdenes President and CEO stated, During the first quarter, Erdene and MMC closed their Strategic Alliance and formally launched construction of the Bayan Khundii Gold Project, one of the highest grade, open pit gold mines under development globally. Bayan Khundii will be Mongolias largest primary gold producer when it reaches full production, providing new opportunities for the Mongolian mining sector, increasing the industrys contribution to the national economy and creating long-term value for Erdene shareholders. He continued, Construction at Bayan Khundii is proceeding to schedule and budget with approximately 15% of works complete at the end of the first quarter. There are now over 400 personnel on-site working safely towards first gold in Q2 2025. Mr. Akerley concluded, During the first quarter we also launched our 2024 exploration program, as we look to expand mineralization in the Khundii Minerals District (KMD), located in an under-explored, world-class gold and copper belt. Ground-truthing of high-potential drill targets at Dark Horse and Ulaan commenced in Q2 along with surface exploration of Zuun Mod gold and copper targets and other regional exploration work. Q1-2024 Highlights and Significant Subsequent Events: Images: Bayan Khundii Construction Site May 2024 A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/50d71a60-4cf0-48d5-867e-89ce451ba684 Bayan Khundii Gold Project Announced formal construction decision for Bayan Khundii on January 15, 2024 Mobilized for full construction during Q1 2024 with over 400 personnel now on-site Project is proceeding to budget and schedule construction expected to be substantially complete by the end of 2024, commissioning in Q1 2025 and first gold production in Q2 2025 Reached 15% construction progress at Bayan Khundii by the end of Q1 2024 Achieved 1,000,000 hours construction effort without a lost-time incident Finished detailed design work and completed procurement of critical long-lead equipment Commenced Process Plant structural steel erection Advanced community development and local employment stakeholder programs Local Cooperation Agreement in place to support 2024 local development programs Recruitment and training of Bayan Khundii mine workforce well advanced, with 100 local residents completing mining equipment operator training Khundii Minerals District Exploration Completed 2024 exploration program planning for the Khundii Minerals District Near-term focus on mine geology for Bayan Khundii and near-pit expansion opportunities Planning completed for follow-up drilling at Zuun Mod to confirm resources in advance of planned Preliminary Economic Assessment Field program commenced in early Q2 on high priority targets within the KMD, including mapping and surface sampling to ground-truth drill targets Corporate Closed Strategic Alliance on January 23, 2024 to advance construction of BK Project MMC invested US$40 million for a 50% equity interest in EM, the company holding the BK Project Erdene retains a 50% equity interest in EM as well as a 5% NSR royalty on production from the Khundii District after the first 400,000 ounces of gold production and 100% interest in Zuun Mod Secured BK Finance from strategic partner MMC Up to US$80 million shareholder loan to EM, the entity co-owned by Erdene and MMC Five-year bullet maturity, bearing interest at 13.8%, payable in arrears Secured by Erdenes interests in EM and preferential rights over Erdenes properties Recorded a net loss of $2,678,373 for the three months ended March 31, 2024, compared to a net income of $5,405,927 for the three months ended March 31, 2023 Exploration and evaluation expenses totaled $783,156 for the three months ended March 31, 2024, compared to $66,827 for the same quarter in 2023, with the increase from the comparative prior year period primarily due to the timing of annual staff performance bonuses and stock option grants, which were incurred in the current quarter compared to the second quarter of 2023 Corporate and administrative expenses totaled $2,777,588 for the three months ended March 31, 2024, compared to $580,111 for three months ended March 31, 2023, with the change from the prior year comparative quarter resulting from the recognition of financing costs following the close of the BK project loan in Q1 2024 as well as the timing of annual staff performance bonuses and stock option grants, which were incurred in the current quarter versus Q2 2023 Non-cash gain on dilution of investment in associate of $1,070,737 with the issuance of equity in EM to MMC on January 23, 2024, compared to a gain of $6,544,863 in the first quarter of 2023, following the loss of control of EM due to the Strategic Alliance with MMC Loss from investment in associate of $257,016 for the three months ended March 31, 2024, compared to a loss from investment in associate of $564,206 for the three months ended March 31, 2023, with the period over period change primarily due to a 50% reduction in Erdenes ownership of EM during the current period with the close of the Strategic Alliance. Qualified Person Peter Dalton, P.Geo. (Nova Scotia), Senior Geologist for Erdene, is the Qualified Person as that term is defined in National Instrument 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this news release. About Erdene Erdene Resource Development Corp. is a Canada-based resource company focused on the acquisition, exploration, and development of precious and base metals in underexplored and highly prospective Mongolia. The Company has interests in three mining licenses and an exploration license in Southwest Mongolia, where exploration success has led to the discovery and definition of the Khundii Gold District. Erdene Resource Development Corp. is listed on the Toronto and the Mongolian stock exchanges. Further information is available at www.erdene.com. Important information may be disseminated exclusively via the website; investors should consult the site to access this information. Forward-Looking Statements Certain information regarding Erdene contained herein may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements may include estimates, plans, expectations, opinions, forecasts, projections, guidance, or other statements that are not statements of fact. Although Erdene believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to have been correct. Erdene cautions that actual performance will be affected by a number of factors, most of which are beyond its control, and that future events and results may vary substantially from what Erdene currently foresees. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include the ability to obtain required third party approvals, market prices, exploitation, and exploration results, continued availability of capital and financing and general economic, market or business conditions. The forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. The information contained herein is stated as of the current date and is subject to change after that date. The Company does not assume the obligation to revise or update these forward-looking statements, except as may be required under applicable securities laws. NO REGULATORY AUTHORITY HAS APPROVED OR DISAPPROVED THE CONTENTS OF THIS RELEASE Erdene Contact Information Peter C. Akerley, President and CEO, or Robert Jenkins, CFO VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Great Pacific Gold Corp. (Great Pacific Gold, GPAC, or the Company) (TSXV: GPAC) (OTCQX: FSXLF) (Germany: 4TU) is pleased to announce multiple high-grade gold assays from recent sampling of underground workings, outcrop and soils at the Kesar Creek Project in Papua New Guinea (Figure 1). Assays include a sample grading 244 g/t gold. Highlights: Multiple high-grade gold assays from various veined zones at Kesar Creek to 244 g/t gold. Kesar Creek Project is short distance from multiple epithermal vein and porphyry deposits and targets identified on the adjacent K92 Mining Inc. project (see Figure 1). High-grade gold results were obtained from veins that align with the orientation and strike of K92 Mining Inc.s prolific Kora Deposit. The Kesar Creek Project consists of one exploration license, EL 2711, and is contiguous with the K92 Mining Inc. tenements, approximately 10 km to the northwest and along strike from the Kainantu Gold Mine owned and operated by K92 Mining Inc. (Figure 2). Figure 1 GPACs PNG projects map. Thirty-two (32) rock chip samples were taken from outcrop and artisanal underground works and returned high-grade assays including 244 g/t Au (underground working), 116 g/t Au (outcrop), 36.5 g/t Au (float) and 33.4 g/t Au (underground working). Of the 32 samples, 19 samples were above 1 g/t Au. Additional to the rock chip sampling, a soil sampling program principally targeted the West and Central Vein Zones at Kesar Creek. In total, the 332 soil samples returned numerous significant gold grades over a strike length of 5.5 km including a high-grade assay of 20.9 g/t Au (Figure 3). The initial first-pass soil program used a 200 meter by 100 meter or 50-meter grid and was very broadly based to cover most of the known prospective ground and to get an indication of the location of the most prospective larger structures. Gold mineralization was found in samples covering the entire 5.5 km of sampled strike. Multiple parallel vein sets occur in close proximity within each of the three main vein zones. Infill and extension soil sampling will further enhance the results to date. A second phase soil sampling program is being done to define the target areas for an upcoming drill program at Kesar Creek (Figure 4). Great Pacific CEO, Bryan Slusarchuk, states, The high gold grades encountered in this program are significant, especially when taking into consideration where the sampling was done. The Western Vein Zone on the Kesar Creek Project aligns with the Kora Vein system on the adjacent K92 Mining Inc. property. Kora, as many investors will know, is exceptionally robust, high grade and sizeable gold-copper deposit. This is an excellent start at Kesar which was made possible via the hard work and effective execution by the ground team, comprised mainly of employees and contractors from the local communities. Figure 2 Kesar Creek Gold-Copper Project Figure 3 . Kesar Creek Geochemistry Results Map Figure 4 Kesar Creek Geochemistry Map with Proposed Sampling Quality Assurance / Quality Control All assays were subject to quality control measures appropriate for reconnaissance rock chip sampling with duplicates, blanks and commercially available standards with the expected results from the samples submitted. All assays were conducted by Intertek Minerals Ltd (ISO: 9001), located in Perth, Western Australia, using fire assay techniques with a 30g charge and ICP-OES finish. The quality control results are consistent. About GPAC Great Pacific Gold has a portfolio of high-grade gold projects in Papua New Guinea (PNG) and Australia. In PNG, Great Pacific Gold recently assembled a 2500 sq. km mineral exploration land package. The land package comprises of exploration licenses (EL). It includes both early-stage and advanced-stage exploration targets with high-grade epithermal vein and porphyry-style mineralization present. The Arau Project consists of two exploration licenses, located in the Kainantu region, and includes the Mt. Victor Prospect, where previous drilling found a multiple phase intrusion complex hosting copper and gold mineralization. The Wild Dog Project consists of two granted exploration licenses, EL 2761 and 2516, located on the island of New Britain and about 50 km southwest of Rabaul and Kokopo, PNG. The Kesar Creek Project consists of one exploration license, EL 2711, and is contiguous with the K92 Mining Inc. tenements. The Tinga Valley Project consists of one exploration license, EL 2720. The OK Tedi Copper Gold Mine is 140km to the northwest along the same belt is a superb geological comparison to the Tinga Valley Property. In Australia, Great Pacific Gold began with two, 100% owned, high-grade gold projects called the Lauriston and Golden Mountain Projects, and has since acquired a large area of granted and application tenements containing further epizonal (low-temperature) high-grade gold mineralization and associated intrusion-related gold mineralization all in the state of Victoria, Australia. The Great Pacific Gold land package, assembled over a multi-year period, notably includes the Lauriston Project which is a 535 sq. km property immediately to the south of and within the same geological framework that hosts Agnico Eagle Mines Ltds Fosterville Gold Mine and associated exploration tenements. The Golden Mountain Project is an intrusion-related gold project on the edge of the Strathbogie granite and occurs at the northern end of the Walhalla Gold Belt. The acquired projects include the epizonal gold Providence Project containing the Reedy Creek goldfield which adjoins the Southern Cross Golds Sunday Creek exploration project and a large group of recently consolidated granted tenements called the Walhalla Gold Belt Project, which contain a variety of epizonal and intrusion related style gold mineralization. Additionally, Great Pacific Gold has another gold-focused project called the Moormbool project which has epizonal style gold mineralization and associated potential intrusion-related gold mineralization, as well as the Beechworth Project occurs in the northeast of the state and contains intrusion related and mesozonal gold mineralization. All GPACs properties in Australia are 100% owned and have had historical gold production from hard rock sources despite limited modern exploration and drilling. Qualified Person The technical content of this news release has been reviewed, verified and approved by Rex Motton, AusIMM (CP), COO of GPAC, a Qualified Person under the meaning of National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. Mr. Motton is responsible for the technical content of this news release. On behalf of GPAC Bryan Slusarchuk Chief Executive Officer and Director Forward-Looking Statements Information set forth in this news release contains forward-looking statements that are based on assumptions as of the date of this news release. These statements reflect management's current estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations. They are not guarantees of future performance. Great Pacific Gold cautions that all forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain and that actual performance may be affected by many material factors, many of which are beyond their respective control. Such factors include, among other things: risks and uncertainties relating to Great Pacific Gold's limited operating history, its exploration and development activities on its mineral properties and the need to comply with environmental and governmental regulations. 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, Great Pacific Gold does not undertake to publicly update or revise forward-looking information. Mineralization at adjacent properties is not necessarily indicative of mineralization on Great Pacific Golds properties. 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. For further information: Adam Ross, Investor Relations, Direct: (604) 229-9445, Toll Free: 1 (833) 923-3334, Email: info@greatpacificgoldcorp.com Photos accompanying this announcement are available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/9340bac8-0cfc-4003-ad66-e0771637c594 https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/58b985ad-faf6-4ae3-ae77-803f91051ec3 https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/2b27de9a-7c00-4a9f-b4b0-64b65d93a101 https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/cb1fe7d1-b708-4a46-a9ca-cb2d142c830f CHICAGO, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- During Patient ID Week, May 13-17, the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) and the Patient ID Now coalition are amplifying the critical issue of patient misidentification and its profound impact on patient safety, privacy, healthcare costs, and healthcare interoperability. Patient misidentification, which can occur when medical records are overlaid or duplicated, remains a pervasive challenge in healthcare. Confusing one patient for another due to this issue jeopardizes patient safety and privacy and imposes significant financial burdens on patients and healthcare providers. According to AHIMA President and Board Chair Mona Calhoun, PhD, MS, Med, RHIA, FAHIMA, "Patient misidentification undermines the foundation of trust between patients and the healthcare system. We must address this issue to ensure patient safety, privacy, and efficient care delivery. Misidentification isnt merely a clerical error, but often results in patient harm and undue financial burden for those who receive bills for care provided for someone else. Misidentification leads to adverse medical outcomes, as patients may be treated based on incorrect health information (HI). Moreover, it contributes to privacy breaches, billing inaccuracies, and administrative inefficiencies. The lack of a national strategy to address patient misidentification exacerbates these challenges, hindering progress toward greater healthcare interoperability and the delivery of patient-centered care. A Government Accountability Office report found that 45 percent of large hospitals reported difficulty accurately identifying patients through electronic HI. A report from Pew Charitable Trusts notes that accurately matching patients to their medical records can be as low as 80 percent within a single care setting and as low as 50 percent among organizations that share electronic HI. In response, AHIMA continues to call on members of Congress to support HR 7379, the MATCH IT Act of 2024. This bipartisan legislation will improve patient matching within the healthcare ecosystem by creating an industry standard definition for the term patient match rate and standardizing the way demographic elements are entered into patient records within certified health IT products. During Patient ID Week, AHIMA invites individuals to take action by contacting their members of Congress through the AHIMA Action Center. Advocating for the MATCH IT Act and sharing personal experiences of patient misidentification is a call to action for meaningful change in the healthcare landscape. For more information on patient identification and how to get involved, visit ahima.org/patientID. ### About AHIMA AHIMA is a global nonprofit association of health information professionals, boasting over 61,000 members and more than 88,500 credentials in the field. The AHIMA mission of empowering people to impact health drives its members and credentialed HI professionals to ensure that health information is accurate, complete, and available to patients and providers. Leaders within AHIMA work at the intersection of healthcare, technology, and business, occupying data integrity and information privacy job functions worldwide. To learn more about AHIMA and the health information profession, visit ahima.org. About Patient ID Now Patient ID Now is a coalition of healthcare organizations representing a wide range of healthcare stakeholders committed to advancing a nationwide strategy to address patient identification through legislation and regulations. Founding members include the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA), the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME), Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society, Inc. (HIMSS), and Intermountain Health. Attachment SEATTLE, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- SecureW2, a comprehensive passwordless security platform provider, today announced it has been named the winner of the 2024 Cybersecurity Excellence Awards in the Digital Certificates, Network Security, and Passwordless Solutions categories. The annual awards honor cybersecurity vendors that demonstrate leadership, innovation, and excellence in all areas of security and technologies. The increased sophistication and frequency of cyberattacks exploiting the weaknesses of credential-based authentication has led to a rising demand for passwordless authentication. Certificate-based authentication (CBA) uses digital certificates based on cryptography to verify a persons identity, computer, or other device to grant access to a network or resource. Certificates prevent hackers from stealing credentials over-the-air and via social engineering. Since certificates are non-exportable and locked to the machines they were issued to, they enable systems to require Device Trust. Enforcing Device Trust allows organizations to thwart attacks where hackers have phished credentials and/or bypassed MFA, significantly reducing the entry points for threat actors to exploit. SecureW2 allows organizations to leverage real-time security and compliance data from identity and management infrastructure including Azure, Okta, Intune, and Jamf to dynamically automate and authorize access for Wi-Fi, Apps, VPN, and Desktop Logon. With customers from small and medium-sized businesses to large enterprises, SecureW2s cloud-native architecture has enabled millions of users and devices to adopt a Zero Trust security model powered by modern certificate-driven passwordless security. The platform has become increasingly popular by offering both an improvement in end-user experience, as well as time and cost savings for IT and security teams. SecureW2s platform includes fully managed Cloud PKI, RADIUS Authentication, and device onboarding services and provides a foundation for simple and effective certificate-driven security. Were honored to have won all three categories of the Cybersecurity Excellence Awards, said Bert Kashyap, CEO, SecureW2. IT teams everywhere are burdened by the rising cost and complexity of securing networks and resources, often made more complicated by legacy infrastructure and the difficulty that using passwords securely brings. These awards underscore our commitment to helping organizations everywhere eliminate credentials, better protect their network, and make both admins and users happy with the connected experience, no matter where they are. We congratulate SecureW2 on being recognized as an award winner in the Best Passwordless Solution category of the 2024 Cybersecurity Excellence Awards, said Holger Schulze, CEO of Cybersecurity Insiders and founder of the 600,000-member Information Security Community on LinkedIn, which organizes the 9th annual Cybersecurity Excellence Awards. With over 600 entries across more than 300 categories, the awards are highly competitive and their achievement reflects outstanding commitment to the core principles of excellence, innovation, and leadership in cybersecurity. Founded in 2014, SecureW2 recently announced its first funding round with an $84 million investment from global software investor Insight Partners. The company also recently expanded its passwordless certificate-based infrastructure access to include application security access driven by the expansion of Microsoft's Azure CBA's capabilities. It also released certificate-based ACME device attestation with the Apple ecosystem allowing organizations, for the first time, to incorporate a new and increased level of Device Trust provided by Apples Managed Device Attestation. Additional resources: Learn how customers use SecureW2 for improved network security and identity and device management infrastructure. Find out everything you need to know about digital certificates including best practices, and technical how-tos. Contact us to find out how SecureW2 can help your organization achieve passwordless security About SecureW2 SecureW2 is a cybersecurity SaaS company focused on making certificate-based passwordless security attainable for organizations of every size and stripe. Founded by Tom Rixom and Bert Kashyap with the principle that credential compromise should never impact an organization's network security, they set out in 2014 to build a next-generation passwordless security platform with the user in mind. The 100% cloud-based and turnkey deployable passwordless technology has helped hundreds of organizations safeguard their networks, apps and devices. SecureW2 services its global customers from its headquarters in Amsterdam with regional hubs in Seattle, Washington and Chennai, India. About Cyber Defense Magazine Cyber Defense Magazine is the premier source of cyber security news and information for InfoSec professions in business and government. We are managed and published by and for ethical, honest, passionate information security professionals. Our mission is to share cutting-edge knowledge, real-world stories and awards on the best ideas, products, and services in the information technology industry. We deliver electronic magazines every month online for free, and special editions exclusively for the RSA Conferences. CDM is a proud member of the Cyber Defense Media Group. Learn more about us at https://www.cyberdefensemagazine.com and visit https://www.cyberdefensetv.com and https://www.cyberdefenseradio.com to see and hear some of the most informative interviews of many of these winning company executives. Join a webinar at https://www.cyberdefensewebinars.com and realize that infosec knowledge is power. A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/7470a8c2-2c83-4647-a2e2-601d5898ed15 SHENYANG, China, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A BMW i5 electric car rolled off the assembly line on May 8 in northeast China's Shenyang, the capital city of Liaoning Province, marking the 6 millionth car produced by BMW Group's joint venture in China, BMW Brilliance Automotive (BBA), according to the Information Office of Shenyang Municipal People's Government. This came just 15 months after the joint venture's 5 millionth car was produced. The German carmaker announced in April an additional investment of 20 billion yuan (about 2.8 billion U.S. dollars) in the production base in Shenyang. The carmaker said the investment will be used for upgrading and innovating the Dadong plant of BBA, which was founded in 2003. In 2023, the BMW Group delivered a total of more than 820,000 BMW and MINI vehicles in the Chinese market, accounting for about 32 percent of its global sales. Source: Information Office of Shenyang Municipal People's Government VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- PRA Communications (PRA) is pleased to share that we have been awarded the Gold SABRE Award in the Energy and Natural Resources category for our work on Seabridge Gold KSM Project: Navigating Environmental Assessment and Beyond. The SABRE Awards are the worlds largest PR awards programme dedicated to benchmarking the best PR and communication work from across the globe. It's truly an honor to receive this prestigious recognition, especially for our PR and communication efforts within the mining industry. Often, the extensive consultation, stakeholder engagement, and communication with rights holders required to successfully navigate provincial and federal environmental assessments, negotiate benefit agreements, and earn social license to operate go unnoticed. This acknowledgment underscores the importance of these efforts, says Robert Simpson, President and CEO of PRA Communications. The KSM Project located in Northwest British Columbia is the worlds largest undeveloped gold deposit and third-largest undeveloped resource of copper. Canadas provincial and federal Environmental Assessment (EA) process was a rigorous eight-year undertaking that became the largest and most comprehensive ever conducted in North America. It required Seabridge Gold to demonstrate the KSM Project, when built and operational, would not have adverse environmental effects and that it has clear support from the five affected First Nations, three cities and towns, three municipalities and the British Columbia, Canadian, Alaskan and US governments and Tribes. Upon completion of baseline research and perception audits, PRA Communications created and implemented a multi-year communications strategy that encompassed a broad suite of activities. The PRA team was integral to our success at KSM. Often strategic communication and reputation management is either overlooked during the environmental assessment process or relegated to scientists and engineers. We understood professional, comprehensive, strategic and measurable communication and public relations was critical for our success. PRA stood shoulder to shoulder with us, boots on the ground and professionally guided our whole team to be better communicators, from our executive to our environmental scientists, says Brent Murphy, Senior Vice President Environment, Seabridge Gold. The KSM Project was granted Environmental Assessment (EA) Certificates by both the British Columbia and the federal government, as well as approval under the terms of the Nis g aa Final Agreement. Upon submission of the Environmental Assessments, community and First Nations supported the KSM Project by a 76 percent approval rating as measured through an inclusive polling and interview engagement model. The Tahltan Nation voted 83 percent in favor of the KSM Project and their negotiated Impact Benefits Agreement. The Province of British Columbia recognized Seabridge Gold's KSM project as an exemplary model for industry-wide consultation, engagement, and external communication, thanks to its strong support from the community. The Gold Sabre Awards were presented at a ceremony held in New York on May 1, 2024. For more information, please contact: Michael MacMillan, Vice President, PRA Communications 604-681-1407 mmacmillan@pracommunications.com Dallas, TX, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dickeys Barbecue Pit is excited to be treating courageous law enforcement officers across the country for National Police Week. During National Police Week, May 12th May 18th, the Texas-style barbecue brand is honoring local officers that serve our communities every day. Any law enforcement officers visiting their local Dickeys restaurant, in uniform, will receive a 10% discount in store only for the entire week. At Dickeys we take great pride in supporting law enforcement officers, said Laura Rea Dickey, CEO of Dickeys Barbecue Restaurants, Inc. Were always thrilled with an opportunity to recognize officers with a pit smoked token of appreciation during Police Appreciation Week. As a reminder, Dickeys guests also have the fantastic opportunity all year long to support their local first responder heros by selecting to donate $1 to The Dickey Foundation, the charitable arm of the barbecue brand, during check out either in store or at while ordering on www.dickeys.com. To learn more, follow Dickeys Barbecue Pit on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Download the Dickeys Barbecue Pit app from the Apple App Store or Google Play. To learn more about Dickeys Virtual Concepts follow Wing Boss on Facebook, Instagram and Tik Tok; Trailer Birds on Facebook, Instagram and Tik Tok ; and Big Deal Burger on Facebook, Instagram and Tik Tok . About Dickeys Barbecue Restaurants, Inc. Dickey's Barbecue Restaurants, Inc., the worlds largest barbecue concept, was founded in 1941 by the Dickey family. For the past 80 years, Dickeys Barbecue Pit has served millions of guests in 44 states Legit. Texas. Barbecue. At Dickeys, all our barbecued meats are smoked onsite in a hickory wood burning pit. Dickeys proudly believes theres no shortcut to true barbecue and its why our name isnt BBQ. The Dallas-based, family-run barbecue franchise offers eight slow-smoked meats and 12 wholesome sides with 'No B.S. (Bad Stuff)' included. Dickeys Barbecue has 500 locations across the United States and eight other countries. Dickeys was named to Newsweeks 2022 Americas Favorite Restaurant Chains list and USA Today 2021 readers choice awards. Dickeys won first place on Fast Casuals Top 100 Movers and Shakers list, been named a Top 500 Franchise by Entrepreneur and named to Hospitality Technologys Industry Heroes list. Led by CEO Laura Rea Dickey, who was named among the countrys 50 most influential women in foodservice in Nations Restaurant News, was recognized by Fast Casuals Top 100 Movers and Shakers list and honored by Dallas Business Journal. Dickey's Barbecue Pit has also been recognized by Fox News, Forbes Magazine, Franchise Times, The Dallas Morning News, The Wall Street Journal, People Magazine and QSR Magazine. Dickeys Barbecue is part of Dickeys Restaurant Brands which has more than 500 restaurants nationwide including brands Wing Boss, Trailer Birds, Big Deal Burger and bbqathome.com. DRB is led by CEO Roland Dickey Jr. For more information, visit www.dickeys.com. Attachment Jacksonville, Fla., May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- IQ Fiber, North Floridas only locally based fiber-optic internet service provider, announces it has completed its Phase 1 network deployment with service now available to more than 60,000 residential addresses in the Jacksonville metro area. The company continues its Jacksonville network deployment with new service now planned for Arlington, Ft. Caroline, Ponte Vedra, and Fruit Cove along with extensions to its San Pablo and Intracoastal West deployments. In addition, the company now serves over 100 private communities and continues to actively work with apartment owners, condominium associations and gated communities to bring IQ Fiber service to their residents. Building on the companys success in Jacksonville, IQ Fiber launched service in Gainesville, Florida just last week. The Gainesville network marks the companys first expansion outside of Jacksonville, with customers now coming online in Alachua County. The company has grown to over 140 employees and in June will move its headquarters to a new, larger space to support its continued rapid growth. In just two and a half years we have gone from start-up to a scaled organization with exceptional network deployment and operational capabilities, said Ted Schremp, CEO of IQ Fiber. IQ Fiber has become known across Jacksonville for a personal customer experience that sets the standard for what a modern internet experience should be. IQ Fiber, launched in August of 2021 with just two employees, now has over 140 employees working in three locations in the region including the new Jacksonville headquarters at 6410 Summit Parkway, its Engineering and Technical Operations Center on Jacksonvilles Westside and its North Central Florida Sales, Engineering and Technical Operations Center in Gainesville. IQ Fiber is closing the gap between available fiber-optic internet and residents in North Florida. IQ Fibers 100% fiber-optic network is capable of symmetrical speeds of up to 10 gigabits per second and is far superior to telephone or cable-based internet. The IQ Fiber network consists of underground conduit and fiber-optic cables extending from the core internet backbone directly into individual homes, allowing for the fastest internet speeds available while supporting the explosive growth in internet usage and demand. IQ Fiber offers simple month-to-month rates with no fees, surcharges or surprise price increases. IQ Fiber delivers symmetrical speeds along with whole-home Wi-Fi service and a simple app to manage the ever-growing number of Wi-Fi devices in the home. About IQ Fiber IQ Fiber is North Floridas only local fiber-optic internet service provider. Headquartered in Jacksonville, IQ Fiber is transforming the residential broadband market by offering a 100% fiber-optic network with a stress-free guarantee: no contracts, hidden fees, or data caps. Its network is supported by live, local customer service. IQ Fiber is focused on rapidly expanding its residential fiber network across Alachua, Clay, Duval, Nassau and St. Johns Counties. For more information visit www.iqfiber.com. ### Attachments NEW YORK, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Novum , a pioneering advertising technology platform for media buyers and sellers, announces the appointment of Kevin Gentzel as President and Chief Operating Officer (COO). Kevin was previously the Global Chief Commercial and Growth Officer at Newsweek, where he oversaw commercial operations and led digital strategy for the venerable news brand. At Novum, Kevin will leverage his expertise to scale its innovative approach to ad serving, focusing on providing advertisers and publishers with a more secure, efficient, and cost-effective advertising environment. Kevins unparalleled track record in leading high-impact teams and scaling advertising innovations makes him the ideal leader to steer Novum during this phase of rapid growth, said Greg Peters, CEO of Novum. His vision will further distinguish Novum as a leader in ad tech. Novum is revolutionizing the advertising industry with its innovative self-hosted data platform, designed to facilitate a fully transparent, direct, and cost-effective supply path between publishers and advertisers. The Novum tech stack allows companies to gain unprecedented control over their advertising operations, eliminating the need for third-party verification and the risks associated with data mishandling. By proactively eliminating common inefficiencies and providing robust ad fraud prevention, Novum ensures that its clients are charged only for valid, valuable traffic, setting a new standard of transparency and efficiency in the digital advertising space. Prior to Newsweek, Kevin served as Chief Revenue Officer at Gannett, where he led advertising and marketing solutions revenue across North America, managing over $1 billion in revenue. As the former head of advertising sales for North America at Yahoo, he was responsible for new revenue streams and strategic sales initiatives. He later served as CRO at The Washington Post, where he launched the TWP Brand Studio and drove substantial revenue across multiple channels, and at Forbes Media, where he led innovative advertising products and built a top-tier sales leadership team. "Joining Novum is a thrilling next step in my career, one that aligns perfectly with my passion for leading transformation in the advertising industry, Gentzel said. I look forward to advancing Novums groundbreaking platform that fundamentally enhances how publishers and advertisers operate and thrive in the digital ecosystem." Contact: Emily Riley emily@rileystrategic.com LONDON and NEW YORK and SAO PAULO, Brazil, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Claritas HealthTech (Claritas), a healthcare technology company specializing in advanced medical image enhancement, reconstruction, and AI solutions for the medical industry, is pleased to announce today, that it has selected Sao Paulo as its base for its Brazilian business headquarters. With an established presence in Asia and a successful entry into the European and North American markets, the new Sao Paulo base will cater to meet Brazils existing and rapidly growing demand for imaging solutions in nuclear medicine. Mr. Chetan Baxi, Co-founder and Director of Claritas, commented, After completing the initial tests and validations with our Brazilian partners, we are confident that iPET, our nuclear medicine platform will provide rapid, accurate and affordable imaging solutions to benefit patients, clinicians, and hospitals. Claritas in Brazil will be led by Dr Fernando Salis, a twenty-year veteran in the nuclear medicine industry. Dr Salis commented, Having reviewed the various available imaging solutions in the nuclear medicine field, I can say with confidence that Claritas iPET is by far the most advanced and accurate solutions in the market. iPET has the potential to transform the nuclear medicine imaging market providing significant benefits to patients with reduced radiation exposure, and for clinicians with accurate readings. As part of this initiative, Claritas aims to establish collaborations with leading stakeholders in Brazil for effective rollout and deployment. The company aims to commence several R&D collaborations with leading medical institutions in Brazil by Q4 this year. About Claritas HealthTech Claritas conducts research and development in the fields of image enhancement, machine vision and artificial intelligence (AI) with a focus on medical image processing and AI-assisted interpretation and diagnostics. Claritas aims to transform the diagnostics industry with powerful and effective software products created using image enhancement and AI technology, enabling and assisting doctors and physicians to make accurate diagnosis and improve patient lives. All Claritas products, including iRAD and iPET, are fully compliant with HIPPA and GDPR requirements. For more information, please visit www.claritashealthtech.com For Media Enquiries, please contact: Devika Dutt Claritas HealthTech Ltd d.d@claritasco.com NAPERVILLE, Ill., May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A Pint For Kim, a national grassroots movement created in 2020 in honor of mom Kimberly Sandford who lost her eight-year battle with a rare cancer, broke the record again as the largest single day, single location blood drive in the state of Illinois with more than 700 people signed up to donate blood and over 600 being eligible to donate. The annual celebration of Kims life took place again at Naperville North High School where her two boys currently go to school and included live bands, a car show with over $30 million in cars, food trucks, games and more. It is amazing that this event continues to grow year after year to help make Kims final wish an ongoing reality, said Robert Sandford, Kims husband. It is special to have the event at my boys school where the community comes out to donate and support them. Kim would be so humbled and amazed at what continues to take place every year in her honor. Kimberley Benedyk Sandford suffered from chemo-induced anemia and required more than 40 blood transfusions in her final months of life. Those donations gave her precious time to spend with her family, and to say goodbye to her husband and two young sons. Rather than being angry, Kim asked how she could turn her story into a catalyst for positive change. She, with the help of her family and friends, created the movement A Pint for Kim. The first drive was held in March 2020, just five days after Kim died as she requested a blood drive in lieu of a wake. The event broke state records, securing more than 500 pints of blood in a single day. The movement now has national impact, with drives held across the country throughout the year. The organization is dedicated to raising awareness of the importance of blood donations, and to educating people that the largest use of donated blood (over 30 percent) goes to cancer patients to help them be strong enough to fight their battles. Kim was the most selfless person I knew and while we miss her dearly, A Pint for Kim helps continue on her legacy of helping others, said Kristyn Benedyk, Kims sister, and co-founder of A Pint for Kim. We always feel Kims spirit around us at these drives and are so grateful to everyone who helps make this event happen. It really was a festival to celebrate Kims life, but also helped save lives. Please sign up to give blood at your local blood donation center. For more information on A Pint for Kim and Kims story, please visit www.apintforkim.com. About A Pint for Kim A Pint for Kim is a nonprofit organization that was created following the passing of Kimberley Benedyk Sandford of Naperville, Illinois who, after an incredible eight year journey with a rare cancer, left us in March 2020. The organization organizes and hosts blood drives year-round in her memory and has secured tens of thousands of pints of blood to date; each pint saving up to three lives. The organization is not a charity, as they do not raise a single dollar, only awareness for the importance of donating blood. For more information, visit us at www.apintforkim.com or follow us on Facebook or Instagram. MEDIA CONTACT: Jennifer Podkasik Arrowhead Communications 630.347.9338 jen@arrowheadcommunications.com A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/478552f4-b2e3-4769-93ae-7888dec9a8c0 HARRISBURG, PA, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pace-O-Matic, creator of Pennsylvania Skill games, said it received another positive court ruling in its conflict-of-interest case against Eckert Seamans on May 10 when a federal judge ordered the law firm to release additional documents. Pace-O-Matic (POM) already received hundreds of emails and documents from Eckert after the law firm lost a previous bid to shield the information. U.S. District Judge for the Middle District Jennifer P. Wilson, who ruled on the case last week, said Eckert has 21 days to hand over the documents to POM. Judge Wilson reviewed the emails and provided a detailed and extensive analysis. She determined that a number of documents that that law firm has claimed to be privileged are not. Mike Barley, chief public affairs officer for POM, said the ruling is an important step toward winning its case against Eckert. "This is yet another positive ruling for Pace-O-Matic to uncover the extent to which our former law firm, Eckert Seamans, harmed our business and damaged our reputation because they were doing the bidding of big casinos," Barley said. POM sued Eckert Seamans in February 2020 for breach of fiduciary duty and breach of contract. The skill game company says it accused the law firm of a conflict of interest after discovering it was representing POM in Virginia where it was working to regulate skill games and at the same time Parx Casino in Pennsylvania. Parx is fighting against POMs skill game operation in the state. POM asked Eckert to drop Parx Casino as its client when it discovered the conflict of interest but instead, the law firm said it would stop representing POM. POM has pushed in court to view documents shared between its former lawyers and others working against it in Pennsylvania. From the trove of documents POM already has received from Eckert, Barley says, it is clear there were backroom schemes involving Eckert to hurt POM, and by association, small businesses, veterans organizations and fraternal organizations that depend on skill games revenue. SAN JOSE, Calif., May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Noname Security , the leading provider of complete and proactive API security, today announced that CRN , a brand of The Channel Company , has named Michele Shear, Vice President - Channels, Americas and Channel Chief, to the Women of the Channel list for 2024. Every year, CRN highlights women from vendor, distributor, and solution provider organizations whose vision and leadership benefit the technology industry. The CRN 2024 Women of the Channel honorees are creative, strategic leaders who show an ongoing commitment to using their skills to innovate and drive success for their partners and customers. "Under Michele's leadership, we have seen unprecedented growth in the channel, a big reason Noname Security is where it is today, said Mike Baker, CRO of Noname Security. Michele's strategic vision and unwavering commitment to excellence has been and will continue to be a driver for our growth as we support organizations secure APIs. Noname Security launched its API security solution in 2019 with a channel-first strategy, knowing the impact the partner community has when working with CISOs. As API security has continued to become a top priority for companies, Noname Security has continued to work closely with partners to help educate and enable them to show strategic value to their customers. Michele established Noname Securitys channel-first strategy, which the company executes today. She is a saleswoman at heart, working within the channel for 13 years, and believes that approaching channel partners with a service mindset is the key to building successful, lasting partnerships. Michele was previously recognized as a Women of the Channel in 2022 and 2023 . Michele is also featured as a 2023 CRN Channel Chief . With this recognition, CRN honors these women leaders for their unwavering dedication and commitment to furthering channel excellence. It is a great privilege to honor the remarkable achievements of these women leaders in the IT channel, said Jennifer Follett, VP U.S. Content and Executive Editor, CRN at The Channel Company. Each woman on the list has demonstrated a deep commitment to innovation and leadership that advances their organizations and drives transformation and success across the IT channel. The 2024 Women of the Channel list will be featured in the June issue of CRN Magazine, and online coverage will start May 13 at www.CRN.com/WOTC . About Noname Security Noname Security is the only company taking a complete, proactive approach to API Security. Noname works with 20% of the Fortune 500 and covers the entire API security scope across four pillars Discovery, Posture Management, Runtime Security, and API Security Testing. Noname Security is privately held, remote-first with headquarters in Silicon Valley, California, and offices in London. About The Channel Company The Channel Company enables breakthrough IT channel performance with our dominant media, engaging events, expert consulting and education, and innovative marketing services and platforms. As the channel catalyst, we connect and empower technology suppliers, solution providers, and end-users. Backed by over 40 years of unequaled channel experience, we draw from our deep knowledge to envision innovative solutions for ever-evolving challenges in the technology marketplace. www.thechannelcompany.com Follow The Channel Company: X and LinkedIn 2024. CRN is a registered trademark of The Channel Company, Inc. All rights reserved. The Channel Company Contact: Kristin DaSilva The Channel Company kdasilva@thechannelcompany.com VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Premium better-for-you chocolate brand Chocxo announced today that its Chocxo Dark Milk Chocolate Toffee, Almond & Sea Salt Snaps were named as a winner in Good Housekeepings 2024 Best Snack Awards. The full list of winners is available online at goodhousekeeping.com/snackawards2024 . Select winners can be found in the July/August 2024 issue of Good Housekeeping. A decade ago, Chocxo set out to make the most mouth-watering, delicious chocolate and to make it better for people and the planet. The brand has since become known for truly indulgent chocolates that are naturally lower in sugar (without artificial sweeteners), with simple, high-quality organic ingredients. One of its newest flavor innovations, Chocxo Dark Milk Chocolate Toffee, Almond & Sea Salt Snaps feature a rich dark milk chocolate blend, made from a combination of 85% cacao dark chocolate and creamy milk chocolate, matched perfectly with sweet, crunchy toffee bits, diced almonds and a sprinkle of sea salt. The chocolatiers recipe creates a true indulgence with only 4 grams of sugar per individually-wrapped portion. Chocolate lovers can find these award-winning treats and a selection of other taste sensations including the new bestselling Lemon Creme Cups on Chocxo.com, at Sprouts Farmers Markets, Whole Foods Markets in Florida and the Southeast, select Costco locations and various retailers and grocers across the U.S. Internationally, Chocxo products are available in Costco Canada club locations, Whole Foods Markets, and most other retailers across Canada. About Chocxo (pronounced Choc-so) We are longtime chocolatiers and flavor fanatics on a mission to share the joy of truly indulgent, better-for-you chocolate thats also better for the planet! With more than a century of chocolate-making experience among us, Chocxos chocolatiers are celebrating a decade of crafting a line of decadent, premium chocolates from simple, organic ingredients that are naturally lower in sugar (without artificial sweeteners or sugar alcohols). Chocxo chocolates are made from sustainably-sourced organic cocoa beans that are naturally more flavorful, and require less sugar to taste incredible. Continuing to rack up industry and consumer awards recognizing its unparalleled taste, Chocxo is also a proud partner of RePurpose Global and all Chocxo products are Certified Plastic Neutral. All Chocxo chocolates are made in Vancouver, BC and ship to chocolate lovers worldwide. Media Contact: Joshua Levitt josh@fikacollective.com Photos accompanying this announcement are available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/ca230020-4f78-435f-a850-6609ccdeb923 https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/e57905b1-9638-41a6-bf3c-9e4e1e24de21 VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ascot Resources Ltd. (TSX: AOT; OTCQX: AOTVF) (Ascot or the Company) is pleased to announce the Companys unaudited financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2024 (Q1 2024), and also to provide a construction update on the Companys Premier Gold Project (PGP or the project), located on Nis g aa Nation Treaty Lands in the prolific Golden Triangle of northwestern British Columbia. For details of the unaudited condensed interim consolidated financial statements and Management's Discussion and Analysis for the three months ended March 31, 2024, please see the Companys filings on SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca). All amounts herein are reported in $000s of Canadian dollars (C$) unless otherwise specified. Q1 2024 AND RECENT HIGHLIGHTS On May 7, 2024, the Company announced a $5,000 non-brokered flow through private placement (the Offering), the proceeds of which will be used to fund the 2024 exploration program at the PGP. The Offering will consist of 6,024,096 common shares of the Company, which qualify as "flow-through shares" within the meaning of the Income Tax Act (Canada) (the FT Shares), at a price of $0.83 per FT Share. The closing of the Offering is expected to occur in one or more tranches in or around late-May to mid-June 2024, and is subject to certain conditions including, but not limited to, the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals, including the acceptance of the Toronto Stock Exchange. Rock was introduced into the grinding circuit of the mill on March 31, 2024, and first gold-bearing ore was introduced to the mills on April 5, 2024. On April 20, 2024, first gold was poured as a part of the commissioning process. Commissioning of the processing plant at PGP is ongoing, with commercial production anticipated in Q3 2024. Two gold pours have been completed using gold recovered from the gravity circuit. Another pour from gold recovered from the carbon-in-leach (CIL) circuit is anticipated imminently. On February 20, 2024, the Company closed its previously announced financing package for a total of US$50 million from Sprott Resource Streaming and Royalty Corp. and its affiliates (SRSR) and Nebari Credit Fund II, LP (Nebari Credit Fund II), as described in the Companys news release dated January 22, 2024. $13,700 of the above proceeds were used to buy back two existing 5% NSR royalties on various PGP property claims on March 15, 2024. On February 20, 2024, concurrently with the above-noted financing package, the Company closed its previously announced bought deal private placement financing, under which the Company issued a total of 65,343,000 common shares of the Company (the Common Shares) at a price of $0.44 per Common Share, for gross proceeds of $28,751. At the end of Q1 2024, overall construction excluding mine development was 98% complete compared with 86% complete at the end of 2023. A few remaining commissioning activities in the mill are underway. The tailing storage facility was completed and signed off by the engineer of record at the end of March 2024. The new water treatment plant began operations in February 2024. The high-density sludge plant has been successfully commissioned and water is being treated and discharged into the environment. The moving bed bio-reactor (MBBR) is complete and media have been loaded into the tanks. As of April 30, 2024, underground development totaled approximately 2,710 metres at Big Missouri and 150 metres at Premier. DEVELOPMENT OF THE PROJECT Project financing On February 20, 2024, the Company closed a bought deal private placement for gross proceeds of $28,751 and a financing package of US$50 million for the completion and ramp-up of PGP. The financing package consisted of a royalty restructuring and a cost overrun facility. Construction progress key performance indicators At the end of Q1 2024, overall construction was 98% complete, compared with 86% complete at the end of Q4 2023. With first gold having been poured on April 20, 2024 via gold recovered through the gravity circuit, the project construction is 100% complete on schedule and on the most recently provided budget of approximately C$339 million. Commissioning and ramp-up activities in the processing plant and in the mine continue towards achieving commercial production in Q3 of 2024. Safety The Project had no lost time injuries in Q1 2024. There was an increase in recordable injuries at the end of the quarter which in part, can be attributable to seasonal changes and the transition from construction to operations. As the Project continues its transition from construction into operations, focus has been placed on the ongoing development of standard operating procedures, in field job hazard analysis and worker training. There was a small increase in property damage reported in the quarter due in part to weather conditions and the onboarding of a significant number of new workers to the site. The re-enforcement of reporting to the operating team remains a key focus to ensure that all learnings are identified and applied to prevent re-occurrence and reflect in the future training plans. In Q2 2024, significant work will be placed to support the operational teams to begin to operate the newly constructed plant through the final stages of C4 and C5 commissioning. Processing plant and site infrastructure Mechanical and electrical work in the mill was substantially completed in Q1 2024 with minor associated systems and punch list items to complete. Focus has shifted to commissioning the process plant and ramp up as well as completing minor deficiencies. Stage one of the tailings storage facility (TSF) raise was completed and accepted by the Engineer of Record for use. Earthworks activities in 2024 will focus on raising the spillway dam by three metres, producing material for the 2025 raise and advanced work on the Cascade Creek Diversion in preparation for the 2025 works and final completion of the diversion. The new water treatment plant was substantially mechanically and electrically completed in Q4 2023 with some minor areas remaining. The high-density sludge circuit was commissioned in Q1 2024 and is advancing towards full ramp up. The MBBR circuit was substantially complete in Q1 2024 and will begin full commissioning as the process plant continues to deposit tailings into the TSF and feed nitrogen species into the MBBR circuit. The site power reticulation was completed in Q1 2024. Sustaining capital works in 2024 will focus on reticulation to the Premier portal as well as the Big Missouri portal. Mine development Procon Mining & Tunnelling (Procon) a mine contractor with extensive experience in BC and the Golden Triangle continued to advance mine development at two portal areas: S1 about 9 kilometres north of the mill which accesses the Big Missouri and Silver Coin deposits, and the mill adjacent Premier Northern Light (PNL) portal which accesses the Premier and Northern Light orebodies. As of the end of Q1 2024, Procon had about 57 people on site, 40 of whom were miners and 10 were maintenance personnel. At Big Missouri, Procon advanced development into several ore headings in the A zone, as well as reactivating the S1 ramp heading that goes to Silver Coin deposit. In Q1 Procon developed 936 metres at Big Missouri (258 metres in ore and 678 metres in waste, and by April 29, 2024, development advanced to 905 metres in waste and 507 metres in ore total in 2024. Including the development completed in late 2022 and late 2023, the total development to date is approximately 2,710 metres in both ore and waste. Productivities at Big Missouri have continued to improve, with availability of key equipment such as Maclean bolters being made a priority. During Q1 2024, the geological team continued to encounter high grade material occurrences in both face sampling and probe hole drilling in multiple areas of the A zone. As previously reported, these occurrences are in or very near existing wireframes or logical extensions of wireframes. At the end of March 31, 2024, a total of approximately 30,000 tonnes of ore was mined from Big Missouri and stockpiled at Diego pit. At PNL, Procon dealt with issues related to near surface structure and weak ground. These issues seem to have abated at the end of April, and Procon has started to make better progress as they move into the better ground conditions expected at Premier given what was seen historically. In Q1 2024 approximately 85 metres were advanced at PNL, and at the end of April this increased to approximately 150 metres as ground conditions improved. Mining development is being advanced down into the Premier deposit for initial mining in the Prew Zone, with ore development now anticipated to begin in early Q3 2024, and initial longhole stope production following later in Q3 2024. The ramp has been strategically laid out to allow for underground drilling on the Sebakwe Zone in 2024 and will eventually connect a footwall ramp over to the 602 area at the southern end of the Premier deposit. Although progress has been slow, the quality of the resultant work with ground control and shotcrete arches has been excellent, allowing for a secure and stable ramp for the life-of-mine production to come from this area approximately 350 metres from the Premier Mill. Recruitment At the end of Q1 2024, total site recruitment has reached approximately 90% of the planned operational team. A key achievement was the successful recruitment for some challenging roles pertaining particularly to some of the maintenance roles, health and safety (specifically, mine rescue), and technical roles for the mine and processing area. Policies and procedures development have been ongoing throughout Q1 2024 and key documents will be rolled out in Q2 2024. Permitting and Environmental Compliance A Joint Permit Amendment Application (JPAA) was required to be re-aligned with the project completion dates and was submitted in October 2023. The JPAA underwent first round comments through February 2024 and second round comments were received in late April 2024, with our responses anticipated to be submitted in May 2024. The air permit was received on March 25, 2024. The updated environmental permit PE-8044, including the sewage treatment facility discharge permit is anticipated to be received in late May 2024. 2024 EXPLORATION PROGRAM Planning for the 2024 exploration program is in full swing with an anticipated start date in late June. There are several areas on the properties that will be targeted by new drilling. Near the Premier mill, several drill holes have been planned around the Prew and Sebakwe zones of the Premier deposit. The new holes will complement the existing drill pattern at Prew and test induced polarization geophysical anomalies from last years survey. Additional drill holes have been planned for the Big Missouri deposit where underground development is rapidly providing access to different parts of the deposit. The new holes will be designed for resource conversion and mine plan addition at this deposit. Specific new drill targets have been identified at the Day Zone on the western edge of the deposit, where geophysical anomalies seem to outline previously untested mineralization along strike of known ore zones. Additional exploration drill holes are targeting a large geophysical anomaly to the west of the Dilworth deposit that extends surface showings to the north onto Ascots PGP property. This target has a large strike extent and may require drilling over more than one exploration season. The Company anticipates a drill program of between 15,000 and 20,000 metres distributed over the areas described above. The program will require utilization of two drill rigs into late September or early October 2024. FINANCIAL RESULTS FOR THE THREE MONTHS ENDED MARCH 31, 2024 The Company reported a net loss of $6,208 for Q1 2024 compared to $7,589 for Q1 2023. The lower net loss for the current period is primarily attributable to a $2,170 decrease in the loss on extinguishment of debt and a $1,196 decrease in financing costs, partially offset by increases in other expense categories. LIQUIDITY AND CAPITAL RESOURCES As at March 31, 2024, the Company had cash & cash equivalents of $47,028 and working capital deficiency of $33,030. The working capital deficiency is caused by an estimated $23,024 as the current portion of the deferred revenue only to be settled with future production from the Project and the $25,180 value of the Convertible facility, which is classified as current due to the lenders right to exercise the conversion option at any time at a variable exercise price. Excluding these non-cash current liabilities, working capital was $15,174. In Q1 2024, the Company issued 67,807,135 common shares, 10,164,528 warrants, and granted 110,000 stock options and 28,667 Deferred Share Units. Also, 100,766 stock options expired or were forfeited, 24,427 Restricted Share Units were forfeited, and 99,039 stock options, 137,533 Deferred Share Units and 158,726 Restricted Share Units were exercised in Q1 2024. MANAGEMENTS OUTLOOK FOR 2024 In 2024, the Company will transition from the construction of the mine and related infrastructure to the operation of the entire site and becoming a gold producer. Despite the challenges associated with this transition, there are many opportunities for the Company to grow and create value. The key activities and priorities for 2024 include: Making health and safety a priority in the commencement of operations Completing the commissioning of the process plant Completing the access ramp and starting the mine production at the Premier deposit Continuing to expand the mine production and development at the Big Missouri deposit Shipping and selling of gold dore Advancing the exploration and infill drilling program on the numerous opportunities to increase resources Compliance with the environmental requirements of the site and making sure water treatment and the tailings management facility operate as designed Successfully transition from a mine developer to a mine operator Qualified Person John Kiernan, P.Eng., Chief Operating Officer of the Company is the Companys Qualified Person (QP) as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the technical contents of this news release. On behalf of the Board of Directors of Ascot Resources Ltd. Derek C. White President & CEO, and Director For further information contact: David Stewart, P.Eng. VP, Corporate Development & Shareholder Communications dstewart@ascotgold.com 778-725-1060 ext. 1024 About Ascot Resources Ltd. Ascot is a Canadian mining company focused on commissioning its 100%-owned Premier Gold Mine, which poured first gold in April 2024 and is located on Nis g aa Nation Treaty Lands, in the prolific Golden Triangle of northwestern British Columbia. Concurrent with commissioning Premier towards commercial production anticipated in Q3 of 2024, the Company continues to explore its properties for additional high-grade gold mineralization. Ascots corporate office is in Vancouver, and its shares trade on the TSX under the ticker AOT and on the OTCQX under the ticker AOTVF. Ascot is committed to the safe and responsible operation of the Premier Gold Mine in collaboration with Nisgaa Nation and the local communities of Stewart, BC and Hyder, Alaska. For more information about the Company, please refer to the Companys profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca or visit the Companys web site at www.ascotgold.com. The TSX has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information All statements and other information contained in this press release about anticipated future events may constitute forward-looking information under Canadian securities laws ("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", "targeted", "outlook", "on track" and "intend" and statements that an event or result "may", "will", "should", "could", would or "might" occur or be achieved and other similar expressions. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein are forward-looking statements, including statements in respect of the terms of the Offering, the closing of the Offering, the advancement and development of the PGP and the timing related thereto, the completion of the PGP mine, the production of gold and managements outlook for the remainder of 2024 and beyond. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements, including risks associated with entering into definitive agreements for the transactions described herein; fulfilling the conditions to closing of the transactions described herein, including the receipt of TSX approvals; the business of Ascot; risks related to exploration and potential development of Ascot's projects; business and economic conditions in the mining industry generally; fluctuations in commodity prices and currency exchange rates; uncertainties relating to interpretation of drill results and the geology, continuity and grade of mineral deposits; the need for cooperation of government agencies and indigenous groups in the exploration and development of Ascots properties and the issuance of required permits; the need to obtain additional financing to develop properties and uncertainty as to the availability and terms of future financing; the possibility of delay in exploration or development programs and uncertainty of meeting anticipated program milestones; uncertainty as to timely availability of permits and other governmental approvals; and other risk factors as detailed from time to time in Ascot's filings with Canadian securities regulators, available on Ascot's profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca including the Annual Information Form of the Company dated March 25, 2024 in the section entitled "Risk Factors". Forward-looking statements are based on assumptions made with regard to: the estimated costs associated with construction of the Project; the timing of the anticipated start of production at the Project; the ability to maintain throughput and production levels at the PGP mill; the tax rate applicable to the Company; future commodity prices; the grade of mineral resources and mineral reserves; the ability of the Company to convert inferred mineral resources to other categories; the ability of the Company to reduce mining dilution; the ability to reduce capital costs; and exploration plans. Forward-looking statements are based on estimates and opinions of management at the date the statements are made. Although Ascot believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements and/or information are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements since Ascot can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Ascot does not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements, other than as required by applicable laws. The forward-looking information contained in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. LOS ANGELES, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Investors can contact the law firm at no cost to learn more about recovering their losses The Portnoy Law Firm advises The Chemours Company (Chemours or the Company) (NYSE: CC) investors that a lawsuit was filed on behalf of investors that purchased Chemours securities between February 10, 2023 and February 28, 2024, inclusive (the Class Period). Investors are encouraged to contact attorney Lesley F. Portnoy , by phone 310-692-8883 or email : lesley@portnoylaw.com, to discuss their legal rights, or click here to join the case via www.portnoylaw.com . The Portnoy Law Firm can provide a complimentary case evaluation and discuss investors options for pursuing claims to recover their losses. The complaint asserts that the defendants did not inform investors about: (1) manipulation of Free Cash Flow targets by some of the company's top executives to boost their cash and stock bonus under the company's yearly and long-term reward schemes; and (2) deficiencies in the company's accounting methods and controls over financial reporting. On February 29, 2024, before market opening, Chemours shocked investors with the news that it would postpone its 2023 annual report filing and that the company's Board of Directors had suspended President and CEO Mark Newman, Senior VP and CFO Jonathan Lock, and VP, Controller, and Principal Accounting Officer Camela Wisel, pending an internal review led by the Audit Committee with help from external legal counsel. The investigation's range includes examining the Chemours Ethics Hotline reporting processes and the company's working capital management practices, which affect both the incentive plans and certain non-GAAP metrics. Recognizing the significance of these issues for both executive compensation and investor evaluations of financial performance, Chemours has stated it is identifying possible significant weaknesses in its financial reporting controls as of December 31, 2023, particularly concerning the maintenance of effective controls and senior management's influence. Following these revelations, Chemours share price plummeted by $9.05, or over 31%, ending the day at $28.72 per share on February 29, 2024. Please visit our website to review more information and submit your transaction information. The Portnoy Law Firm represents investors in pursuing claims caused by corporate wrongdoing. The Firms founding partner has recovered over $5.5 billion for aggrieved investors. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes. Lesley F. Portnoy, Esq. Admitted CA and NY Bar lesley@portnoylaw.com 310-692-8883 www.portnoylaw.com Attorney Advertising Dhaka, Bangladesh, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The developers of DOGITA on the BSC network are now building it on the ETH network, taking this phenomenon of memecoins to a new level of reach and accessibility. In just one month of existence, Dogita has already achieved a notable feat, boasting over 3000 holders and an impressive market value, surpassing 5 million dollars. These numbers reflect its growing popularity and appreciation potential. Moreover, Dogita has already been listed on Bitmart, providing greater visibility and accessibility to investors worldwide. And the good news doesn't stop there: it's in the final stages of being listed on LBANK, a significant milestone that will further propel its growth and recognition in the memecoin market. To reinforce community trust, Dogita is undergoing an audit by Certik, which is already 76% complete. This process ensures the security and transparency of the project, adding an extra layer of reliability for investors and holders. With the imminent launch on the Ethereum network, Dogita is poised to conquer new territories and expand its presence in the cryptocurrency universe. This transition represents not only a milestone for Dogita but also an exciting opportunity for investors to join one of the most promising and innovative memecoins in the market. Dogita will continue its journey on both chains, remaining committed to constantly bringing new features and innovations to its holders. Since its inception, the team has tirelessly dedicated themselves to fulfilling all promises made to holders, and this commitment will remain unwavering. With the expansion to the Ethereum network, Dogita is opening up new horizons and opportunities, allowing an even larger base of investors to participate in its journey. This strategic decision demonstrates not only the team's long-term vision but also their determination to provide the best for the holder community. Dogita is ready to write the next exciting chapter of its story, continuing to exceed expectations and solidify its place as one of the most prominent and trusted memecoins in the market. The journey is just beginning, and holders can expect more impressive achievements on the horizon. For media inquiries, please contact: Name: Tony Smith City/Country: Dhaka, Bangladesh Email: contact (at) dogita.io Website: https://dogita.io Social Media Telegram: https://t.me/dogitaofficial Website: Dogita.io Twitter: x.com/missdogita Toronto, May 13, 2024 - Omai Gold Mines Corp. (TSXV: OMG) (OTCQB: OMGGF) ("Omai" or the "Company") announces its participation at the 121 Mining Investment Summit on May 15th and 16th in London. The 121 Mining Investment Summit attracts more than 400 investors, providing the Company with targeted one-on-one meetings with potential new investors https://www.weare121.com/121mininginvestment-london/. Further, the Company announces the granting of incentive stock options to 14 individuals, including Officers, Directors, employees, and consultants of the Company to purchase up to 8,850,000 common shares of the Company pursuant to the Company's stock option plan. The options have a five-year term at an exercise price of $0.14 per share, with 1/3 vesting upon the date of grant, 1/3 on the first anniversary of the date of grant and the final 1/3 on the second anniversary of the date of grant. About Omai Gold Mines Corp. Omai Gold Mines Corp. holds a 100% interest in the Omai Prospecting License that includes the past producing Omai Gold Mine in Guyana, and a 100% interest in the adjoining Eastern Flats Mining Permits. The Company announced a Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") on its Wenot deposit at Omai on April 4, 2024, showing an open pit operation to produce 1.84 million ounces of gold over a 13-year period, with an NPV5% of US$556 million at a US$1950/oz gold price. An updated NI 43-101 Mineral Resource Estimate ("MRE") announced February 8, 2024 includes 2.0 million ounces of gold (Indicated) and 2.3 million ounces (Inferred)1. Once South America's largest producing gold mine, Omai produced over 3.7 million ounces of gold between 1993 and 2005. Mining ceased at a time when the average gold price was less than US$400 per ounce. As a brownfields project, Omai benefits from good road access and a wealth of historical data that provides knowledge of the geology and gold mineralization on the Property, as well as metallurgy, historical process recoveries and many other relevant mining parameters. For further information, please see our website www.omaigoldmines.com or contact: Elaine Ellingham, P.Geo. President & CEO info@omaigoldmines.com Phone: +1-416-473-5351 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. 1The reader is referred to the NI 43-101 Technical Report titled "Technical Report and Updated Mineral Resource Estimate of the Omai Gold Property, Potaro Mining District No. 2, Guyana", prepared by P&E Mining Consultants Inc dated December 2, 2022 filed on www.sedarplus.ca and on the Company's website at www.omaigoldmines.com. The PEA will be filed by the Company on Sedar+ and will include the updated Mineral Resource Estimate. Qualified Person Elaine Ellingham P.Geo. is a Qualified Person (QP) under NI 43-101 "Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects" and has reviewed the technical information contained in this news release. Ms. Ellingham is not considered to be independent for the purposes of NI 43-101. Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information This press release contains forward-looking statements or information (collectively, "FLI") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. FLI is based on expectations, estimates, projections, and interpretations as at the date of this press release. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein are FLI that involve various risks, assumptions, estimates and uncertainties. Generally, FLI can be identified by the use of statements that include words such as "seeks", "believes", "anticipates", "plans", "continues", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "expects", "forecasts", "intends", "projects", "predicts", "proposes", "potential", "targets" and variations of such words and phrases, or by statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "will", "could", "would", "should" or "might", "be taken", "occur" or "be achieved." FLI herein includes, but is not limited to, statements regarding the results of the Omai PEA, including the production, operating cost, capital cost and cash cost estimates, the projected valuation metrics and rates of return, and the cash flow projections, as well as the anticipated permitting requirements and Project design, including processing and tailings facilities, infrastructure developments, metal recoveries, mine life and production rates for the Project, the potential to further enhance the economics of the Project and optimize the design, potential timelines for obtaining the required permits and financing. Forward-looking information is not, and cannot be, a guarantee of future results or events. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/208947 Edmonton, May 13, 2024 - Grizzly Discoveries Inc. (TSXV: GZD) (FSE: G6H) (OTCQB: GZDIF) ("Grizzly" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an update and plans for an initial drill and trenching program at the Company's Midway Mine Area within the Company's Greenwood District Precious and Battery Metals Project, British Columbia (BC). All assay results for the 2023 rock and soil samples, including the Midway Mine Area, collected from the Company's 172,000 acre Greenwood District have been received. Significant and important high grade results for gold (Au), silver (Ag), copper (Cu), lead (Pb) and zinc (Zn) have been received from a number of important areas and targets at the Midway Mine area, explored during 2023 and prior to that in 2022. The priority list of targets includes the Midway Mine, a faulted area west of the Midway Mine (Midway West Fault), to the northeast of the Midway Mine (Midway Northeast), the Picturestone Quarry area and the Lois - Burce area to the south of the Midway Mine area (Figures 1 to 4). Brian Testo, President and CEO of Grizzly Discoveries, stated, "We are excited with the new results and discoveries to date from the Midway area and we are planning follow-up exploration including ground geophysical surveys to be followed by drilling and trenching. Our drilling and trenching permit for Midway is imminent. We also are looking forward to pursuing a number of other high grade gold - silver - copper showings and historical mines with drilling in 2024 along with additional exploration for significant battery metals in our current 170,000+ acre land holdings in the Greenwood District. We have barely scratched the surface in terms of exploration!" The focus of the 2023 program was ground work for assessment and follow up work on a number of targets that returned excellent results during prior years including 2022. In addition, work was also conducted on a number of new targets acquired by staking and/or acquisition in the area while the Company waits for drilling and trenching permits. Highlights of the 2023 work are as follows: Highlights: The 2023 program saw the collection of a total of 755 rock grab or rock chip samples (with 347 from the Midway area) across the property (Figure 1) from May to November, 2023 along with a total of 4,065 soil samples (with 1,617 from the Midway area). Land acquisition during 2023 included new mineral claims at Beaverdell, Westbridge and in the Greenwood area at Midway, north of Midway, east of the town of Greenwood in the Marshall Lake area adjacent to the historical Phoenix Mine (Figure 1). Figure 1: Land position and targets of interest for future exploration, Greenwood Project. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/4488/208948_57fb37bc94d8eab7_002full.jpg Midway Mine Area An extensive sampling program was conducted at the Midway area during 2023 with the discovery of several new showings in the immediate area around the Midway Mine and in the Lois - Bruce area. At Midway Mine area, selective rock grab and composite rock grab samples collected during 2022 and 2023 from outcrop yielded a range of 12.05 grams per tonne (g/t) or 0.351 ounces per ton (opt) Au up to 70.8 g/t (2.065 opt) Au, along with 3 of 7 selective rock grab samples from the Midway Mine yielding from 1,360 g/t Ag (39.7 opt) up to 2,140 g/t Ag (62.4 opt) (See Company news release dated October17, 2022 and Figures 2 to 4). A selective rock grab sample from outcrop 200 m west of the main Midway Mine yielded 15.85 g/t Au (0.462 opt) and 1,530 g/t Ag (44.6 opt), illustrating that there is potential for additional high-grade mineralization in the area (Figure 4). This target has not been drilled. Two new showings were identified in 2023 near the historical Midway Mine including up 5.64 g/t Au (0.165 opt) from a showing 400 m to the northeast of Midway (Midway Northeast) and up to 4.19 g/t Au (0.122 opt) from a grab sample collected about 375 m to the west of the Midway Mine (Midway West Fault on Figure 4). These targets have not been drilled. All highly anomalous samples are from outcrop and characterized by the presence of abundant pyrite, arsenopyrite with visible galena and sphalerite in a siliceous chalcedonic host. The mineralization is hosted in polymetallic veins that display the presence of Pb, Zn, Cu, arsenic (As) and antimony (Sb) and are likely epithermal in nature. At least 6 new areas with anomalous gold (> 100 parts per billion [ppb]), copper (>200 parts per million [ppm]) and silver in soils have been identified at Midway (Figures 2 to 4). A number of rock grab samples collected from the Lois - Bruce area have yielded from >1 g/t Au up to 3.56 g/t Au and from >1% Cu up to 5.92% Cu along with a number of soils with >100 ppb Au and >100 ppm Cu (Figures 2 and 3). The Midway area is being targeted for copper-gold skarn, porphyry and epithermal gold-silver. A number of drillholes and trenches in the area of the Midway Mine and associated showings are being permitted for work during 2024 with the permit expected shortly (Figure 4). Figure 2: Midway Area Geology and Showings with Gold in Soils and Rocks. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/4488/208948_57fb37bc94d8eab7_004full.jpg Figure 3. Midway Vertical Derivative Magnetics and Showings with Gold in Soils and Rocks. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/4488/208948_57fb37bc94d8eab7_005full.jpg Figure 4. Midway Mine Geology and Showings with Gold in Soils and Rocks. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/4488/208948_57fb37bc94d8eab7_006full.jpg The Midway Mine and the Picturestone (aka Picture Rock) Quarry area have seen intermittent exploration and mining since the late 1800's through to as recent as 2012. In the case of the historical Midway Mine, limited underground and open pit development has occurred. The Midway Mine and the Picturestone Quarry are situated within the "Midway Window", a structural zone within the Toroda Graben exposing Late Paleozoic to Jurassic sediments, volcanics and intrusions, including the Knob Hill and Brooklyn formations, centered on an old thrust fault in a similar setting to the Golden Crown and Lexington Mine area near Greenwood, BC as displayed in Figures 2 and 3. The presence of serpentinite and listwanite in a thrust fault setting along with what is likely Jurassic aged quartz-feldspar porphyry and diorite has been noted. Prior owners and operators describe significant epithermal mineralization in the form vertical polymetallic sulphide veins enriched in pyrite, arsenopyrite, galena, sphalerite and stibnite and significant alteration at the Midway Mine and Picturestone Quarry. The Midway Mine is spatially associated with a northeast trending gold (Au), silver (Ag), lead (Pb), zinc (Zn) and arsenic (As) soil geochemical anomaly that is approximately 300 m in length and 100 m in width in the area of the Midway Mine. Historical trench sampling yielded 2.8 g/t Au and 218 g/t Ag over a 4.5 m interval in chip/channel sampling at the Midway Mine. Limited drilling with some significant intercepts was carried out in the 1980's to 1990 at the Midway and Picturestone prospects. Minnova Inc. conducted a 7 hole core drilling program for a total of 1,170 m 1990 in the Midway Mine area. No drilling has been conducted since. A total of 274 m of core was sampled and two holes tested the actual historical Midway Mine. Hole 90-1 drilled to a depth of 84.45 m intersected 23 m of altered quartz-feldspar porphyry with pyrite and some pyrite-galena veins. The best result obtained in sampling was 1.14 g/t Au (0.033 oz/t Au) and 208 g/t Ag (6.1 oz/t Ag) over 1.5 m core length. A 10.5 m interval of strongly altered quartz-feldspar porphyry returned an average grade of 0.33 g/t Au (0.001 oz/t Au) and 52.7 g/t Ag (1.54 oz/t Ag). A number of the drillholes completed intersected serpentinite, listwanite, diorite and then bottomed in Triassic Brooklyn Formation sharpstone conglomerate with pyrite and skarnified limestone clasts. A number of the other holes intersected similar geology, alteration and gold - silver values as hole 90-1. Additional trenching and drilling were recommended. The most recent work in 2012 resulted in a recommendation of ground geophysical surveys, additional soil sampling and drilling. The work was never completed. Plans For 2024 Exploration at Greenwood: An extensive rock and soil sampling program along with new geological mapping during 2023 has been completed in preparation for drilling at a number of locations in the Greenwood Area in 2024. Drilling is warranted at Midway but also at a number of other targets. The Company currently has active drilling permits for Ket 28, Dayton and the Motherlode target areas. The Company is awaiting permits for drilling +/- trenching at the Midway, Imperial, Sappho and the Copper Mountain target areas. Depending upon funding, the Company is planning for an aggressive drilling campaign for 2024 in order to take advantage of the outstanding metal prices. Quality Assurance and Control Rock and soil samples were analyzed at ALS Global Laboratories (Geochemistry Division) in Vancouver, Canada (an ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accredited facility). Gold was assayed using a fire assay with atomic emission spectrometry and gravimetric finish when required (+10 g/t Au). Rock grab and rock chip samples from outcrop/bedrock are selective by nature and may not be representative of the mineralization hosted on the project. The sampling program was undertaken by Company personnel under the direction of Michael B. Dufresne, M.Sc., P.Geol., P.Geo. A secure chain of custody is maintained in transporting and storing of all samples. The technical content of this news release and the Company's technical disclosure has been reviewed and approved by Michael B. Dufresne, M. Sc., P. Geol., P.Geo., who is the Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. ABOUT GRIZZLY DISCOVERIES INC. Grizzly is a diversified Canadian mineral exploration company with its primary listing on the TSX Venture Exchange focused on developing its approximately 72,700 ha (approximately 180,000 acres) of precious and base metals properties in southeastern British Columbia. Grizzly is run by a highly experienced junior resource sector management team, who have a track record of advancing exploration projects from early exploration stage through to feasibility stage. On behalf of the Board, Grizzly Discoveries Inc. Brian Testo, CEO, President Suite 363-9768 170 Street NW Edmonton, Alberta T5T 5L4 For further information, please visit our website at www.grizzlydiscoveries.com or contact: Nancy Massicotte Corporate Development Tel: 604-507-3377 Email: nancy@grizzlydiscoveries.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. Caution concerning forward-looking information This press release contains "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. This information and statements address future activities, events, plans, developments and projections. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, constitute forward-looking statements or forward-looking information. Such forward-looking information and statements are frequently identified by words such as "may," "will," "should," "anticipate," "plan," "expect," "believe," "estimate," "intend" and similar terminology, and reflect assumptions, estimates, opinions and analysis made by management of Grizzly in light of its experience, current conditions, expectations of future developments and other factors which it believes to be reasonable and relevant. Forward-looking information and statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause Grizzly's actual results, performance and achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking information and statements and accordingly, undue reliance should not be placed thereon. Risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to vary include but are not limited to the availability of financing; fluctuations in commodity prices; changes to and compliance with applicable laws and regulations, including environmental laws and obtaining requisite permits; political, economic and other risks; as well as other risks and uncertainties which are more fully described in our annual and quarterly Management's Discussion and Analysis and in other filings made by us with Canadian securities regulatory authorities and available at www.sedar.com. Grizzly disclaims any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information or statements except as may be required by law. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/208948 RENO, May 13, 2024 - i-80 Gold Corp. (TSX: IAU) (NYSE: IAUX) ("i-80", or the "Company") reports its operating and financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2024. i-80's unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial statements ("Financial Statements"), as well as i-80's Management's Discussion and Analysis of Operations and Financial Condition ("MD&A") for the three months ended March 31, 2024, are available on the Company's website at www.i80gold.com, on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca, and on EDGAR at www.sec.gov. Unless otherwise stated, all amounts referred to herein are in U.S. dollars (C$ represents Canadian dollars). 2024 FIRST QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS Gold sales of 2,486 ounces at a realized gold price of $2,083 per ounce sold 1 . . 10,167 tons of mineralized material sold for total revenues of $3.2 million. Continued drilling of polymetallic mineralization at the Ruby Hill mine (4,032 feet). Continued underground core drilling delineation of the CSD Gap and Helen zones at the McCoy-Cove project (3,594 feet). Completed non-brokered private placement of common shares for aggregate gross proceeds of C$23.5 million. March 31, 2024 cash balance of $13.1 million and $39.0 million in restricted cash. RECENT DEVELOPMENTS Bought Deal Public Offering On May 1, 2024, the Company completed a bought deal public offering of an aggregate of 69,698,050 units (each, a "Unit") at a price of C$1.65 per Unit for aggregate gross proceeds to the Company of approximately C$115 million (the "Offering"). Each unit consisted of one common share of the Company and one-half of one common share purchase warrant of the Company (each whole Common Share purchase warrant, a "Warrant"). Each Warrant is exercisable to acquire one common share for a period of 48 months from closing of the Offering at an exercise price of C$2.15 per share. The Offering was completed pursuant to a short form prospectus dated April 25, 2024 (the "Prospectus"). "The extension of the delivery requirements under the gold prepay and silver purchase agreements with Orion Mine Finance coupled with the recently completed bought deal public Offering, significantly enhance our financial flexibility and positions the Company to continue to execute on its plans", stated Ryan Snow, Chief Financial Officer of i-80. "We continue to advance exploration and definition drilling at Granite Creek and McCoy-Cove and permitting activities at our projects allowing the Company to advance our projects towards the ultimate goal of building a mid-tier Nevada focused producer." Three months ended March 31, (in thousands of U.S. dollars, unless otherwise noted) 2024 2023 Revenue 8,413 4,548 Cost of sales(1) (7,904) (6,542) Depletion, depreciation and amortization(1) (377) (1,421) Mine operating income (loss) 132 (3,415) Expenses Exploration, evaluation, and pre-development 2,782 8,979 General and administrative 4,578 5,191 Property maintenance 3,405 2,449 Share-based payments 530 1,308 Operating loss (11,163) (21,342) (1) For the three months ended March 31, 2024, includes an inventory impairment of nil (2023 - $4.0 million) Production and sales totaled 2,486 gold ounces for the quarter at a realized gold price of $2,083 per ounce sold1. Additionally, mineralized material sales totaled 10,167 tons for the quarter for proceeds of $3.2 million. Exploration, evaluation, and pre-development costs were $2.8 million for the quarter. This expenditure mainly reflects the exploration and pre-development work at McCoy-Cove and Ruby Hill. Granite Creek Highlights for the three months ended March 31, 2024, include: 10,167 tons of mineralized material sold under the Ore Sale Agreement for proceeds of $3.2 million. 28,500 tons of mineralized material added to stockpile, bringing the total stockpile material to 37,907 tons before sales. 3,178 feet of horizontal development. Management of increased groundwater inflows into the underground workings continues to be a top priority. Dewatering Well #6 was completed and is in operation, and a second contact water discharge line was commissioned from the underground workings. McCoy-Cove The Cove deposit and the McCoy-Cove Property is expected to be the core asset in the Company's "hub and spoke" business plan and likely the highest-grade gold deposit in i-80's portfolio. During the quarter the Company achieved high grade infill drilling results at Helen and Gap Zones with 3,594 feet of total drilling completed. Ruby Hill During the quarter drilling at Ruby Hill was focused on infill drilling of the Hilltop zones for metallurgical sampling in relation to the previously announced potential joint venture. 4,032 feet of core drilling was completed during the quarter, fully funded by the potential joint venture partner in order to complete due diligence during the exclusivity period. Drilling highlights for the quarter include: 0.2% Zn, 6.3% Pb, 180.0 g/t Ag & 2.2 g/t Au Over 5.0 m in hole iRH24-01 6.2% Zn, 5.6% Pb, 198.0 g/t Ag & 1.0 g/t Au Over 3.6 m and 13.4% Zn, 2.5% Pb, 93.7 g/t Ag, & 0.6 g/t Au over 5.5 m in hole iRH24-02 13.7% Zn, 0.6% Cu, & 17.5 g/t Ag Over 57.8 m in hole iRH24-03 Residual leaching activities at Ruby Hill produced and sold 444 ounces of gold during the quarter at a realized gold price of $2,016 per ounce sold1. As the heap leach pad is nearing the end of its production cycle the Company continues to analyze the breakeven cost and anticipates that the heap leach pad will cease production in 2024. Lone Tree Lone Tree is expected to become the hub of i-80's Nevada operations and the central processing facility for gold mineralization from the Granite Creek, McCoy-Cove and Ruby Hill underground gold deposits. Importantly, Lone Tree is host to infrastructure that, following successful refurbishment efforts, will position i-80 as one of only three companies in the United States capable of processing both oxide and refractory mineralization. During the quarter the Company continued its review of the value engineering studies and total refurbishment costs for the autoclave. Lone Tree produced and sold from its residual leaching activities 2,042 ounces of gold during the quarter at a realized gold price of $2,097 per ounce sold1. AGM & Investor Day Presentation The Company will hold an "Investor Day" presentation immediately following its Annual General Meeting (AGM) on May 14, 2024, being held at Bennett Jones LLP office - 100 King St W Suite 3400, Toronto in the Canada Boardroom on the 34th floor. The inperson AGM will begin at 4:00pm EST followed by the Investor Day presentation commencing at 4:30pm EST. The presentation can also be accessed via a conference call and webcast (details below). Investors are invited to attend the event inperson where they can meet and discuss details with members of i-80's Board of Directors and Management Team. Conference Call Participant Details Webcast URL: https://app.webinar.net/eb85pbLyxrG Phone Number Information: North American Toll-free: 1-888-664-6383 Local Toronto: 1-416-764-8650 Qualified Persons Tyler Hill, CPG-12146, Chief Geologist, and Tim George, PE, Mining Operations Manager, at i-80 have reviewed this press release and are the Qualified Persons for the information contained herein and are a "Qualified Person" within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101. About i-80 Gold Corp. i-80 Gold Corp. is a Nevada-focused mining company with a goal of achieving mid-tier gold producer status through the development of multiple deposits within the Company's advanced-stage property portfolio with processing at i-80's centralized milling facilities. i-80 Gold's common shares are listed on the TSX and the NYSE American under the trading symbol IAU:TSX and IAUX:NYSE. Further information about i-80 Gold's portfolio of assets and long-term growth strategy is available at www.i80gold.com or by email at info@i80gold.com. Forward-looking information Certain statements in this release constitute "forward-looking statements" or "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including but not limited to, actual production results and costs, results of operation outcomes and timing of updated technical studies at the Company's mineral projects, timing to advance mineral projects to production and advance permitting and feasibility work on its mineral projects and future production, development and exploration results, the expectation that Lone Tree will become the hub of i-80's Nevada operations and the central processing facility for gold mineralization from the Granite Creek, McCoy-Cove and Ruby Hill underground gold deposits; and the expectation that the Cove deposit and the McCoy-Cove Property will be the core asset in the Company's "hub and spoke" business plan and likely the highest-grade gold deposit in i-80's portfolio. 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 release. Forward-looking statements and information involve significant risks and uncertainties, should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results and will not necessarily be accurate indicators of whether or not such results will be achieved. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements or information, including, but not limited to: material adverse changes, unexpected 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; social or labor unrest; changes in commodity prices; and the failure of exploration programs or studies to deliver anticipated results or results that would justify and support continued exploration, studies, development or operations. For a more detailed discussion of such risks and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, refer to i-80's filings with Canadian securities regulators, including the most recent Annual Information Form, available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. NON-IFRS FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE MEASURES The Company has included certain terms or performance measures commonly used in the mining industry that are not defined under IFRS in this document. These include: adjusted net earnings and average realized price per ounce. Non-IFRS financial performance measures do not have any standardized meaning prescribed under IFRS, and therefore, they may not be comparable to similar measures employed by other companies. The data presented is intended to provide additional information and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for measures prepared in accordance with IFRS and should be read in conjunction with the Company's Financial Statements. Definitions Adjusted earnings / (loss) and adjusted earnings / (loss) per share excludes from net earnings / (loss) significant write-down adjustments and the gain / (loss) from financing instruments. Average realized gold price represents the sales price of gold per ounce before deducting mining royalties, treatment and refining charges and gains or losses derived from the offtake agreement with Orion. Average realized gold price per ounce of gold sold Average realized gold price per ounce of gold sold is a non-IFRS measure and does not constitute a measure recognized by IFRS and does not have a standardized meaning defined by IFRS. It may not be comparable to information in other gold producers' reports and filings. Three months ended March 31, (in thousands of U.S. dollars, unless otherwise noted) 2024 2023 Nevada production Revenue per financial statements $ 8,413 4,548 Mineralized material sales revenue $ (3,198) - Revenue without mineralized material sales (i) $ 5,215 4,548 Silver revenue from mining operations $ (37) (20) Gold revenue from mining operations $ 5,178 4,528 Ounces of gold sold ounce 2,486 2,349 Average realized gold price $/ounce 2,083 1,928 Lone Tree Revenue per financial statements $ 4,302 1,305 Silver revenue from mining operations $ (19) (4) Gold revenue from mining operations $ 4,283 1,301 Ounces of gold sold ounce 2,042 663 Average realized gold price $/ounce 2,097 1,962 Ruby Hill Revenue per financial statements $ 913 2,382 Silver revenue from mining operations $ (18) (16) Gold revenue from mining operations $ 895 2,366 Ounces of gold sold ounce 444 1,242 Average realized gold price $/ounce 2,016 1,905 Granite Creek Revenue per financial statements $ 3,198 861 Mineralized material sales revenue $ (3,198) - Revenue without mineralized material sales (i) $ - 861 Silver revenue from mining operations $ - - Gold revenue from mining operations $ - 861 Ounces of gold sold ounce - 444 Average realized gold price $/ounce - 1,939 (i) Does not include revenue from mineralized material sales. Adjusted loss Adjusted loss and adjusted loss per share are non-IFRS measures that the Company considers to better reflect normalized earnings because it eliminates non-recurring items. Certain items that become applicable in a period may be adjusted for, with the Company retroactively presenting comparable periods with an adjustment for such items and conversely, items no longer applicable may be removed from the calculation. Neither adjusted loss nor adjusted loss per share have any standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS and are therefore unlikely to be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. The following table shows a reconciliation of adjusted loss to the net earnings / (loss) for each period. Adjusted loss and adjusted loss per share exclude a number of temporary or one-time items detailed in the following table: Three months ended March 31, (in thousands of U.S. dollars, unless otherwise noted)(i) 2024 2023 Net loss for the period $ (15,716) $ (13,118) Adjust for: Gain on warrants 2,630 5,568 Gain on convertible loans 6,115 8,366 Loss on deferred consideration - (427) Loss on fair value measurement of gold prepay derivative (3,498) (3,091) Loss on fair value measurement of silver purchase derivative (857) (857) Inventory impairments - (4,025) Total adjustments $ 4,390 $ 5,534 Adjusted loss for the period $ (20,106) $ (18,652) Weighted average shares for the period 305,324 245,603 Adjusted loss per share for the period $ (0.07) $ (0.08) 1 Specified financial measure which is not a standardized measure under IFRS and may not be comparable to similar specified financial measures used by other entities. Please see "Non-IFRS Financial Performance Measures" for the composition of such specified financial measure, an explanation of how such specified financial measure provides useful information to a reader and the purposes for which management of i-80 uses the specified financial measure, and where required, a reconciliation of the specified financial measure to the most directly comparable IFRS measure. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/i-80-gold-reports-q1-2024-operating-results-302144018.html SOURCE i-80 Gold Corp. GM won't let Andretti's F1 push fail General Motors, one of the world's biggest carmakers, has pledged its ongoing loyalty to the quest to help Andretti enter the Formula 1 world. Japanese GP 2024 McLaren Recently, it emerged that the US congress is now looking into F1's allegedly anti-competitive decision to lock Andretti out of the grid and pitlane. It's a fight that I never thought we'd have to fight - to beg to get into the series, former McLaren driver Michael Andretti told the New York Times. Andretti had thought securing the factory backing of Cadillac - a GM subsidiary - would make convincing F1 to green-light the F1 project easier. Unfortunately, the goal posts started moving a bit, and I think it was because of pressure from the teams, Michael said. When asked about the new US congressional investigation into F1's behaviour regarding Andretti, existing team bosses were reluctant to extensively comment. I think Formula 1 and the FIA have both taken their positions and they don't seem to be changing, said McLaren CEO Zak Brown. I think all the teams have said that we don't have a vote in that matter. General Motors, however, are vowing to keep supporting Andretti as the collaboration now targets an F1 debut for 2026. I think everyone in the world disagrees with it, said GM's motorsport boss Eric Warren, referring to Formula One Management's blocking of the Andretti-Cadillac debut. That support has driven us to continue this. I always separate challenges into technical and political, and this is certainly both, heavier towards the political, Warren added. Andretti has now set up a F1 facility at Silverstone, and is actively building up a team and a car. We are rolling the dice a bit, but it shows how confident we are because our partners would not be spending the money they are spending right now if they didn't feel confident that we're going to be able to show the world, and the teams, that we should be welcome, because it's only going to help raise the tide for all boats, said Andretti. The worst-case scenario is that Andretti may need to wait until 2028, when GM will finally be ready with a works power unit. We're not letting ourselves think that way, said Andretti. If there comes a time we have to think about it, then we will, but we feel very strongly we won't have to. GM has the same resolve, Warren insists. We made the statement from a technical point of view that we are committed to it and we will not let it fail, he said. "Our company races, and has raced successfully, in every race series we compete in. Anyone who looks will see that. There are many high-level, experienced F1 personnel consistently at our door. They see what we're doing. We owe it to our fans and the two brands to bring something unique to them. (GMM) Haas returns legal fire at sacked boss Steiner The Haas Formula 1 team has punched back at Gunther Steiner, after the sacked boss launched legal action earlier this month. Gunter Steiner, Bahrain 2023 Haas Steiner, still present in the F1 paddock as a popular TV pundit, is suing Haas in North Carolina - where he lives and Haas is based - for continuing to use his image on merchandise without compensation. But it now emerges that Haas has returned fire with a counter-suit, with the papers published in full by the legal information publication JD Supra. The team's sponsor, Haas Automation, has sued Steiner for allegedly infringing the company's trademarks with the sale of his book 'Surviving to Drive', the media report reveals. Haas argues that by infringing its trademarks, consumers are likely to be deceived as to the origin, source, sponsorship, or affiliation of Steiner's book, JD Supra added. (GMM) Hulkenberg deserves Audi F1 seat Max Verstappen has backed F1 rival Nico Hulkenberg and Audi's decision to team up. Nico Hulkenberg, Japanese GP 2024 Haas It has been claimed that the now 100 percent Audi-owned Sauber team - to transition to a full works Audi team for 2026 - will pay Hulkenberg, 36, 5 million euros to start racing for the Swiss-based outfit from 2025. A much more lucrative offer is on the table for Ferrari refugee Carlos Sainz, but triple world champion Verstappen says Hulkenberg was right to say yes to Audi. I completely understand why Audi chose him and also why Nico chose Audi, he is quoted by Sport1. Of course I think it's better to change teams less often, but sometimes it's out of your control. So I understand that he is going there and I am very happy for him, Verstappen added. Indeed, Hulkenberg admits that team boss Ayao Komatsu fought hard to keep the German at Haas for 2025 and beyond, Haas was the team that allowed me to return, he said. But at the end of the day, for me personally, Audi simply provides the better opportunity in terms of sport. Hulkenberg actually holds the bitter F1 record as the driver with the most grand prix starts - more than 200 - without ever standing on the podium. But Verstappen says the German's experience will be invaluable for Audi. It's always good for Sauber to have a driver like Nico in the car instead of using a rookie, he said. "Then Audi are new to the sport in 2026, Nico has been in Formula 1 for a long time and he really knows what he's talking about. I'm very happy for him that he will be driving in Formula 1 for at least two more years, Verstappen added. "He absolutely deserves it. Nico is a very good driver. At certain times in his career he may have had a bit of bad luck where he should have been on the podium and it just didn't work out. (GMM) China completes construction of gigantic space weather monitoring radio telescope Xinhua) 09:50, May 13, 2024 HOHHOT, May 11 (Xinhua) -- China's first gigantic radio telescope dedicated to observing interplanetary scintillation phenomena passed its technical testing process on Friday. The telescope, located in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, will be applied to monitor interplanetary space weather on a daily basis to provide high-quality data for both China's and international space weather forecasting. Radio waves radiated from compact celestial objects outside the Milky Way can be scattered by the irregular micro-structures of solar wind turbulence as they propagate through interplanetary space, resulting in random fluctuations in the radio flux observed on Earth. Such a phenomenon is called interplanetary scintillation. Notably, interplanetary scintillation can be used to track interplanetary propagation caused by solar storms. "Monitoring interplanetary scintillation can be useful for the reconstruction of the three-dimensional structure of a large-scale solar wind, which is helpful in revealing the correlation between solar eruptive activities and geospace environment changes," said Yan Yihua, a researcher from the National Space Science Center (NSSC) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The development of the above-mentioned telescope project was led by the NSSC, and this telescope is one of the key facilities within the mega-framework of the Phase-2 Meridian Space Weather Monitoring Project in China. Interplanetary scintillation observation can help reduce or avoid the harmful impact of disastrous space weather events on aviation, aerospace, communications, navigation and grid operation. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) These are the best offers from our affiliate partners. We may get a commission from qualifying sales. Realme promised the GT 6T will be India's first Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 smartphone, and now we have an official launch date. The company revealed the smartphone will arrive next Wednesday, May 22 at 12 noon IST. The official info came alongside the first image of the phone, revealing the design and a 50 MP camera we've seen on the Realme GT Neo6 SE a phone launched in China with the same Qualcomm chipset. There is a reasonable suspicion then that the two are actually the same device. Realme said the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 chipset can score over 1.5 million on AnTuTu and even claimed it is a "flagship Qualcomm processor for peak gaming performance", despite the fact there are mightier platforms from the San Diego chip maker. Meanwhile the GT 6T appeared on Geekbench with 12 GB RAM and scoring 4,499 for multiple CPU cores. We expect to learn more features about the GT 6T in the following days but if it is the GT Neo6 SE, we can expect a 6.78" LPTO AMOLED panel, a 5,500 mAh battery with 100W charging and Realme UI 5.0 with Android 14 straight out of the box. The Realme GT 6T will be sold on Amazon India, as the online store had already set up a landing page for it. Source | Via Rumors about a more affordable Samsung Galaxy Fold6 have been going around for a while and it was expected to launch at the Galaxy Unpacked event in July alongside the Galaxy Z Fold6 Ultra, Z Flip6 and Galaxy Ring. A new report from South Korean outlet The Elec suggests that may not end up happening this year as Samsung is reexamining its plans to launch the Galaxy Z Fold6 FE. Galaxy Z Fold5 The report specifies that the early Z Fold6 FE production units were not thinner than its key competitors from Chinese brands and that the device lacked a stylus digitizer which means it didn't support S Pen input. Samsung believes these factors combined with market uncertainties are enough to postpone the launch for now. Samsung is expected to continue to work on bringing more affordable variants of its Z Fold and Z Flip series next year. Source (in Korean) Inspired by the Palestine solidarity encampments in the US, students across Britain have begun to take action. The newly-founded Revolutionary Communist Party has thrown itself into the struggle, fighting to escalate the movement and to bring down the imperialists. [Originally published at communist.red] As Israel launches its attack on Rafah, a wave of student encampments has swept UK universities over the past week. Inspired by the Palestine solidarity encampments in the United States, students in Britain have taken action at over 14 campuses and counting. The Revolutionary Communist Party (RCP) fully supports this bold action taken by students. As can be seen in the reports below, the communists are taking the lead in many of these occupations, putting forward a clear, working-class perspective, as well as a fighting strategy to spread the movement far and wide. The entire British establishment from university vice-chancellors to warmongering politicians are actively supporting and benefiting from Israels occupation. These ladies and gentlemen have blood on their hands. The RCP is fighting to escalate this movement into a mass force one which can drive the bosses and war criminals onto the back foot. We are striving for nothing less than mass action to strike real, material blows at the Israeli war machine, and to bring down this imperialist Tory government. Burning anger Young people are burning with anger over the genocide in Palestine. This issue has become a flashpoint for years of the accumulated rage against this entire oppressive system. Young people are burning with anger over the genocide in Palestine / Image: The Communist We have seen hundreds of thousands of people taking to the streets almost every weekend since October last year. But many have started to become disillusioned with A-to-B marches and the same tepid speeches. They want to take concrete, militant action! Until now, there wasnt a clear expression for this pent-up rage. But the brave students at Columbia University have pointed the way forward. And the brutal crackdown by the police has inadvertently spread this example to the youth of every continent. One encampment has set the world ablaze, with action spreading across the US, France, Italy, Spain, Canada, South Africa, India, Turkey, and even as far afield as Japan and Australia. One website lists over 160 different locations where students have entered into struggle. Divest and disclose! We believe that every university should cut ties with arms companies, multinationals, and banks which are directly or indirectly complicit in the conflict in Gaza, and in the oppression of the Palestinian people. No one should be profiting from genocide. We say: not a penny, not a bullet to the imperialist war machine! Most universities, meanwhile, are on the brink of bankruptcy. We have seen department and course closures, as well as massive layoffs. Staff have been fighting for wage increases and better working conditions for years. The whole higher education sector is at breaking point. And yet students are paying extortionate tuition fees and rents. We demand to know: where is this money going? Open up the books for inspection by staff and students! Clearly, the fat-cat bosses are not going to carry out divestment from Israel and the arms companies, because they directly benefit from these lucrative deals. We must therefore fight for democratic control over universities by students and staff the only people who can run education in the interests of the majority, and for the benefit of society as a whole. Escalate the movement! This movement has the potential to snowball into a mass struggle of workers and youth / Image: The Communist Just like we saw with the events of May 1968 in France, this movement has the potential to snowball into a mass struggle of workers and youth not just on the issue of Palestine, but around all of the daily attacks and injustices inflicted upon our class. We understand that students alone cannot put an end to this slaughter, however. Only the working class has the power to bring society to a standstill, and dismantle the imperialist war machine. The number one priority of the encampments, therefore, must be to spread as widely as possible, to every section of society. Agitators and delegates should be sent to workplaces, trade unions, schools, and colleges to drum up support and broaden the struggle. The encampments should be places for open debates about ideas and demands, where we can clarify our strategy and programme. General assemblies should be held regularly, alongside teach-outs on topics like imperialism, and the history of Israel and Palestine. Bring down the war criminals! Armed with a fighting programme, the movement could broaden out to include every school, college, and workplace in the country. We need a national all-out struggle against the whole British establishment, which has backed Israel financially and politically for decades. As the movement against the war grows, the ruling class will mobilise to clamp down on protests and curb our democratic rights, just as weve seen in the US. Already, Rishi Sunak has met with university vice-chancellors to discuss the rise of so-called antisemitism on campuses. This is a blatant smear, and a pretext for mobilising bourgeois public opinion against the action of students and workers. We will not take this. We must bring down the war criminals and profiteers in Parliament and beyond. The main enemy is at home. This is the fighting programme that we will be carrying into the movement. If you agree with it, then get organised with the RCP today. Birmingham Joining the global student encampment movement sparked by protestors in the United States, RCP comrades mobilised students of the University of Birmingham to occupy the campus grounds. With a vacuum of political leadership in the growing encampment movement, we grasped the opportunity to take the lead in organising Birminghams first student encampment, along with other student activists. We are putting forward revolutionary perspectives and demands, aimed at spreading this action towards the masses of students, and wider layers of workers. On Wednesday 8 May, tents went up in the dead of night, and the Green Heart was declared a Liberated Zone. The tents are centred around a Resistance Library which RCP comrades have established as the heart of the occupation turning the camp into a centre of education with planned daily teach-outs on topics like the history of Palestine and the lessons of May 1968. The encampment started out strong with 18 tents going up simultaneously, to which security and the police both showed up promptly. At the time of writing it is only the first day of the encampment and there has already been a great response, with passers-by setting up their own tents as well as others dropping off supplies. We are holding a rally on Thursday 9 May at midday, to win over wider layers to join the encampment. Manchester Comrades took to the streets to explain to students what was happening and why they should join / Image: The Communist Manchester Communists have thrown themselves into the encampment at the University of Manchester (UoM). Since Wednesday 1 May, comrades have been present in the encampment, specifically working to help build the encampment. As soon as the encampment began, comrades took to the streets to explain to students what was happening and why they should join. Immediately, we received a great response from this, with many students being excited to hear about the encampment and instinctively linking it to the need to fight the entire establishment. Over the last few days, comrades have been out on demos, on the street, and organising door knocking sessions, to grow the encampment. It will be through mass participation that we can be successful. Last night, a demo to protest the invasion of Rafah offered a perfect opportunity for us to discuss the encampment and what we can do. A comrade gave an impassioned speech about the role of the UoM management in funding and profiting from Israels war. This gained a huge echo amongst the protestors. Working comrades have also began using the encampment to talk to their colleagues about how we can fight the genocide in Palestine. Warwick On 8 May, the Warwick Marxists intervened in the 13th day of the student encampment at Warwick University, With the current siege of Rafah, and the continued displacement of millions of Palestinians, a rally was called to escalate the encampment against the university bosses, aiming to break the universitys ties to imperialism. 200 people gathered and marched across campus, including a prolonged display targeting University House, where the university management is located. This caused security to amass in response, but this did not deter anyone in attendance. We saw people banging the windows in unison with chants declaring the university as complicit, as well as chants calling to divest and disclose. Throughout the rally, comrades spoke to the attendees and put forward our perspective. We were pleased to discover that the energy was not just audacious but optimistic, with one attendee informing us that they felt that with the numbers we have, the university cannot stop us. Over the coming week, our comrades have agreed with the organisers to directly join the encampment and help it grow. The encampment has doubled in size since it started, and this momentum looks to continue. To quote the most energised chant of the day, the people united, can never be defeated. Lancaster Lancaster Communists, along with other students at Lancaster University, are planning escalated action against the university management, demanding that they cut ties with BAE systems. We threw ourselves into building for a rally at midday on Thursday 9 March, using posters, stalls, and lecture shout-outs to speak to as many students as possible. This rally was the launchpad for an encampment in Alex Square, which we are now playing an active role in by organising teach-outs and reading groups. One student comrade reported hearing talks of encampments in their computer science class, showing that students, regardless of background, are beginning to draw conclusions that an escalation of some kind is needed. After hearing reports on occupations and encampments from other comrades at the RCPs founding congress, we feel much more confident in putting forward our demands in this movement. At an open meeting in town, a comrade put forward the need for the university to open up its books, for reaching out to the campus unions, and for student and staff control of the university. This was met with resounding applause. It is clear that people are looking for answers for what they can do now, and that it is only the Revolutionary Communists who can provide them. Leeds Since 1 May, student activists have organized and built an encampment on the University of Leeds (UoL) campus in protest of the universitys partnership with arms manufacturer BAE Systems, and its refusal to acknowledge the genocide in Palestine. On the evening of 2 May, a protest to disrupt an awards ceremony had been planned to grab the attention of the student body and build the occupation. Security quickly blocked the entrance to the awards ceremony. Undeterred, activists sat by the entrance chanting and began their planned speech. In response, a security guard attempted to seize the megaphone, to which other members of security began manhandling protesters. During this incident, one student was knocked to the ground with enough force to cause a nosebleed. In the days following, university faculty threatened students with disciplinary action, and harassment from Zionist students increased. Some felt demoralised by this attack, while others have been inspired to keep the encampment growing, although many dont know how to do so. We know if an occupation is to succeed, it needs to build and grow. Leeds Communists have been organising leafleting, door knocking, and postering with members of the encampment. As one student told us, you guys are the only ones really doing outreach, because you go out and talk to people, and arent afraid to take some Ls. Overall our speeches and chants calling for revolution and mass action have been well received by the public and the members of the occupation. Sheffield The encampment at University of Sheffield (UoS) has brought together a few dozen activists, but has wide support across campus and the whole city, with donations of food and camping gear flowing in. This camp has the potential to become the epicentre of an explosive movement across Sheffield. The task now is to turn the movement outwards to directly involve the mass of passive supporters. Sheffield Communists have been getting stuck in. We are helping write the camp bulletin, and are taking on everyday tasks like washing up. Crucially, however, we have been turning outwards from day one, giving speeches in the library and in lectures in addition to leafleting across campus. Its vital that this movement reaches out to wider layers of workers. To kickstart this, we have contacted the unions on campus (UCU and Unite), with the UCU releasing a statement of solidarity with the encampment. Our comrades have made the case for a general assembly to bring new layers of students and workers into the fold, which has enthusiastically been taken up by the rest of the camp. This is what we are now building for. There is a latent energy simmering not only on campus but among school students and workers. It is entirely within our grasp to turn this into a mass movement able to impose our demands on the university bosses and the whole imperialist establishment. Cambridge The student movement at Cambridge has taken a decisive step forward embarking on an encampment in solidarity with Palestine on Monday 6 May. Amongst all layers in the camp, the mood is radical. The campaigns demands are head and shoulders above what we have seen in the Palestine movement so far, drawing attention to the role of imperialism on campus. People are vowing to fight until they are realised. On the first day, when making banners, we heard someone suggest a slogan including the word intifada a slogan we have been proudly calling for since the Palestine movement erupted. When someone pushed back on this, a couple of other people chimed in to explain the term and defend its use. This sort of revolutionary language is becoming increasingly customary. Our intervention so far has been based on patient work. Weve tried to maintain an uninterrupted presence on the site, and involve ourselves in the organisational work of the camp. Through some of these jobs, like stewarding, comrades have been able to talk to wider layers of the public, as well as members of the encampment community. We have already found several individuals sympathetic to our communist perspectives through this work. Our aim now is to try to draw in wider layers of workers, staff and school students into the movement to enhance its scope. A mass movement of all the workers and youth of Cambridge could force the bosses hand! UCL On 2 May a group of activists stormed the UCL main quad outside Portico and set up camp with a dozen tents, Palestinian flags, and chairs. Their demands are to divest from the Israeli war machine, condemn Israeli war crimes, and pledge to rebuild Gazas universities. Our comrades have been welcomed warmly and openly, as the activists rightly have the perspective of broadening the struggle to include as much support as possible, including students, alumni, staff, unions, and anyone else. The activists have reached out to UCU, Unison, and IWGB, with the UCL IWGB condemning the use of their security staff to enforce ID checks where previously they were not. One activist mentioned to me that until everyone is free, no one is free, an attitude of solidarity reflected on several of their placards. The activists were happy to receive any extra support and publicity, and so our comrades have joined the encampment and protests throughout the week, offering our support, and speaking about how we can help broaden the struggle to new layers. On 3 May three comrades attended an online Palestine Society discussion, reporting from the UCL encampment and putting forward a political strategy for the encampments nationally. This week our comrades will be joining with the UCL and SOAS encampments again, speaking with activists on how we can go forward and achieve their demands using militant class struggle. At 15:00 on Saturday 11 May, the activists from both UCL and SOAS plan a march. We will be mobilising the North London district of the RCP to attend. Guahan Academy Charter School has highlighted some of its activities from March and April, including having its student Teuila Keresoma win 2nd place at the island-wide Poetry Out Loud competition held on March 9. Keresoma recited and interpreted the poems April Midnight by Arthur Symons, We Wear the Mask by Paul Laurence Dunbar, and On Listening To Your Teacher Take Attendance by Aimee Nezhukumatathil. 'Aspire to inspire' GACS' Workforce Enabler: College and Career Readiness Education, or WE CCaRE, Program hosted another career engagement as part of its Aspire to Inspire initiative, aimed at focused small group engagements with industry experts in career clusters of interests. The session held on April 3 at the GACS Learning Resource Center focused on the human services cluster. Facilitating the discussion were two native born island women who graduated with degrees in Psychology from the University of Guam. Justine Gaminde, a behavioral care manager working in San Francisco, serves as regional intake care manager for students throughout the nation via online telehealth capabilities, and joining her was Deana Crisostomo, a risk reduction coordinator with the National Guard. Fourteen students who had expressed interest in the human services cluster attended and were actively engaged in the session. One of the key discussion topics centered on the importance of education, graduating from high school, and attending college. The relevance of these topics served to inspire students in visualizing and mapping out their future towards achieving a degree in the field of human services and its related pathways. GACS students on April 11 also engaged with former senator and longtime educator Aline Yamashita on politics as part of the school's WE CCaRE program's "Aspire to Inspire" series. During the session, Yamashita discussed various aspects of political careers, providing practical insights and fostering a deeper understanding of leadership. Participants expressed gratitude for the opportunity to learn from Yamashita's experiences, highlighting the impact on their future aspirations. Initiatives like the WE CCaRE program at GACS empower students to explore diverse career paths and contribute meaningfully to their communities. These sessions serve as catalysts for students to pursue their goals with confidence and inspiration, the school said in a press release. Exploring democracy Two GACS students also won second and third place in the Exploring Democracy Through Young Artistic Voices competition sponsored by the Right to Democracy Project aimed at eliciting student perspectives on the meaning of democracy through the lens of art and poetry. Second place winner Laya Flores, a 9th grade student, submitted a charcoal drawing artwork that exemplifies depth and diversity through her depiction of democracy. Third place winner Keegan Barnes, a junior, submitted a well written poem expressing his understanding of democracy. Both students received monetary prizes and were recognized for their talents. This competition involved all U.S. territories and both students competed against 147 submissions. Sen. Sabina Perez said she is keeping her options open to updating her newly vetoed bill that seeks a mandatory islandwide trash collection. Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero, in vetoing Perez Bill 165-37 on Wednesday, said she is in favor of islandwide garbage collection and supports the bills goals, but said the bill as currently written does not fully address the concerns of residents who are unable to add an additional bill to their monthly budget. I am keeping my options open to updating the legislation to allow for additional community outreach and input, in addition to the option of an override, Perez said. The governor also said Perezs bill does not provide any details as to when the customer assistance program will be implemented, how it will be funded, or the level of assistance it will provide. Perez said it was a missed opportunity for the governor. All of the concerns raised by I Magahaga were already answered and accounted for during the public hearing and on the session floor. This is in addition to my commitment to securing funding for the Customer Assistance Program, Perez said. Bill 165-37 passed by a slim margin of 8 to 7. During floor debate on the measure, several senators expressed reservations about mandating home garbage collection, especially for those households who use the solid waste transfer stations for disposal to save money. The Guam Solid Waste Authority has said the increased customer base from mandatory collection would result in lowered residential fees, from $40 a month to $37. But if a mandatory collection system is not implemented, GSWA plans to request a rate increase from the Public Utilities Commission. Rates havent changed in over 10 years. Without islandwide collection, rates will have to be increased. We plan to open a docket with the (Public Utilities Commission) relatively soon to raise rates to account for current and future obligations, GSWA Board Chairman Andrew Gayle said on Thursday. GSWA General Manager Irvin Slike said the proposed new rates are posted on their website. Residential curbside fees will increase from $30 to $35 in 2025. They will increase from $35 to $38 in 2026, and increase from $38 to $40 in 2027 and remain the same until 2029. Commercial rates will increase from $171 to $185 in 2025, stay the same in 2026, and increase to $190 in 2027 through 2029. Transfer station rates will increase from the minimum charge of $7.50 to $11.55 in 2025. A half cab truckload will increase from $15 to $23. Above cab truckload will increase from $22.50 to $34.65. The rates will remain the same thru 2029. 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West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming Puerto Rico US Virgin Islands Armed Forces Americas Armed Forces Pacific Armed Forces Europe Northern Mariana Islands Marshall Islands American Samoa Federated States of Micronesia Guam Palau Alberta, Canada British Columbia, Canada Manitoba, Canada New Brunswick, Canada Newfoundland, Canada Nova Scotia, Canada Northwest Territories, Canada Nunavut, Canada Ontario, Canada Prince Edward Island, Canada Quebec, Canada Saskatchewan, Canada Yukon Territory, Canada Postal Code Haiti - FLASH : Gangs worried about the arrival of the multinational force The "Vivre Ensemble" Association bringing together the gang coalitions "G9" and "G Pep", led by Jimmy Cherisier alias "Barbecue" has been organizing demonstrations since then against the upcoming arrival of the Multinational Mission to Support the National Police of Haiti (PNH) approved by the Security Council with a view to restoring security in Haiti https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-40642-haiti-flash-the-security-council-approves-the-intervention-of-a-multinational-force-in-haiti.html The Carrefour gangs, who control the commune, force the local population under threat to demonstrate with them... During these demonstrations, armed and hooded men uttered hostile slogans towards the international community, vigorously rejecting any external intervention which is the signal for them of the beginning of the end of their influence over the territories and the population. In the midst of these demonstrations, gang leaders are putting pressure on their members not to flee to the provinces before the arrival of international forces. Members visibly divided and who fear having to face experienced military personnel and well-trained and equipped elite police troops. TB/ HaitiLibre Haiti - USA : Congressmen call for urgent federal action to stabilize Haiti Haiti Caucus Co-Chairs Congresswomen Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (FL-20), Ayanna Pressley (MA-07), and Yvette D. Clarke (NY-09), along with Congresswoman Cori Bush (MO-01), Congresswoman Frederica Wilson (FL-24), and Congresswoman Barbara Lee (CA-13), held a Capitol Hill press conference with colleagues and advocates to renew their calls for urgent federal action to address the growing crisis in Haiti. They demand: : extending and redesignating TPS for Haiti; halting all deportations to Haiti; disrupting arms trafficking to the island; providing urgent humanitarian relief; preventing the transfer of Haitian nationals to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba; passing a new economic assistance package that creates jobs and rebuilds Haitis infrastructure... "In the face of the crisis in Haiti, our moral compass and international duty compel us to step forward, not just to alleviate the immediate suffering of the Haitian people, but to address the systemic problems forcing Haitians to flee their homeland. The extension and re-designation of Temporary Protected Status (TPS), alongside an expedited parole program and an immediate halt to deportations, are critical first steps. But our responsibility does not end there. We must confront the root causes of migration by : ensuring that Haitians can live safely and peacefully within their own borders; taking a firm stand against the trafficking of firearms from places like Florida to Haiti; holding those who perpetuate violence and instability accountable," said Congresswoman Sheila Cherfilus McCormick, Co-Chair of the House Haiti Caucus. "Congress and the Biden Administration have a moral obligation to take action to stabilize Haiti and to save lives, including by providing humanitarian and economic assistance, extending TPS for Haiti, halting deportations, supporting a democratic transition led by Haitian civil society, and more. If we truly believe Black lives matter, then that must include Haitian lives. [...] Congress has a responsibility to support Haitian stability and the safety of all its people, and it holds the power to deliver the progress our Haitian neighbors at home and abroad are counting on. In this dire moment where the future of our beloved Caribbean ally is at risk and millions of lives remain imperiled, inaction is inexcusable," said Yvette D. Clarke, co-chair of the House Haiti Caucus. The lawmakers were joined by Guerline Jozef, Executive Director of Haitian Bridge Alliance, Patrice Lawrence, Executive Director of UndocuBlack Network, Mary Estime-Irvin, Chairwoman of National Haitian American Elected Officials Network, Tessa Petit, Executive Director of Florida Immigrant Coalition, and impacted families and TPS recipients. "UndocuBlack Network calls on the Biden-Harris administration to end the cruelty against Haitians. It is cruel to deport Haitian nationals while arranging for evacuation of American nationals at the same time. Our ask is simple, honor the dignity of Haitian people. If Secretary Mayorkas leads by these values, he will release Haitians from detention, extend and redesignate TPS for Haiti and stop the deportations now. To be the change President Biden claimed to be, he must act differently from his predecessors especially as it relates to Black immigrants," said Patrice Lawrence, Executive Director, UndocuBlack Network. "An economic plan akin to the Marshall Plan is essential to aid Haiti, which is located less than 90 miles from our shores, in addition to humanitarian assistance and the reconsideration of TPS," said Mary Estime-Irvin, Chairwoman, National Haitian American Elected Officials Network. "Like Israel, Ukraine, and Taiwan, Haiti is a sovereign nation that requires support." HL/ HaitiLibre We publish here a contribution by Alan Woods to the pre-congress debate of the Brazilian Communist Party Revolutionary Refoundation. The PCB-RR gathers the comrades who were bureaucratically expelled from the PCB in July August 2023, after they raised a whole number of political differences, including regarding the question of the character of the war in Ukraine. We would like to thank the Provisional Political Committee of the PCB-RR for the opportunity for this exchange of ideas amongst Communists and we wish them success in their congress, which is taking place at the end of the month. The article was published as part of the Preparatory Debates for the PCB-RR congress with the following introduction: Editors note On the basis of bilateral contacts and meetings held since the second half of 2023 between members of the PCB-RR provisional NPC (National Political Committee) and leaders of some revolutionary left organisations, interested in maintaining a dialogue with us and aiming at the possibility of unity of action on some issues, an invitation was formalised for these organisations to contribute articles to the Tribuna de Debates (Debates Platform) section of the In Defense of Communism portal. In this context, we publish the following contribution, entitled, "The crisis in the communist movement We need to go back to Lenin", written by Alan Woods, from the International Marxist Tendency (IMT), of which the Internationalist Communist Organisation (OCI) is a part. We also extend the invitation to Coletivo Cem Flores and the Movimento Marxista 5 de Maio (MM5) so that they can also share their perspectives through articles on our platform, with our Tribuna remaining available for future contributions. First of all, I would like to thank the comrades of the PCB-RR for the opportunity to participate in their pre-congress discussions through this Tribune of Debate. Political discussion and clarification are essential if we are to advance. 15 years ago, the IMT commenced fraternal relations with the PCB and particularly with its then general secretary, comrade Pinheiro, with whom I had very cordial and constructive conversations. I visited the party on several occasions and met with its CC. This led in 2014 to joint work between the IMT and the PCB in solidarity with the anti-fascist resistance in Ukraine. I am pleased to see that these links have now been re-established with the comrades fighting for the revolutionary reconstruction of the PCB. The battle you are waging for the revolutionary reconstruction of the Communist Party is not only necessary, but of world significance. Our movement is international or it is nothing. It is necessary for the forces of genuine communism, those who stand for class independence, against imperialism and for socialist revolution, not only in words but also in deeds, to engage in a debate of ideas as well as in practical collaboration. It is the duty of communists everywhere to follow with attention the debates taking place, to learn from them and to contribute to them. Above all else, it is necessary to strive continuously for political clarity. Lenin explained long ago, without revolutionary theory there can be no revolutionary movement. The free discussion of ideas and differences was one of the main characteristics of the Bolshevik Party throughout its history. The party requires it as the human body requires oxygen. It is our duty to return to the clean traditions of Leninism / Image: public domain The dead hand of Stalinism destroyed the internal democracy that characterised Lenins party and smothered all internal debate. This was what destroyed the Communist International. It is our duty to return to the clean traditions of Leninism and revive the spirit of Bolshevism and proletarian internationalism. The discussion in the world communist movement was long overdue. It is taking place at a crucial turning point in world history. The capitalist system finds itself in an unprecedented crisis. The present crisis is not a normal cyclical crisis of capitalism. It is a clear indication that capitalism has reached its limits and is no longer capable of playing any progressive role. The crisis finds its expression in chronic instability in every sphere: economic, financial, social, political, diplomatic and military. Millions are faced with a slow death by starvation, squeezed by the remorseless grip of the imperialist moneylenders. Even in the most advanced and wealthiest countries, the working class finds itself faced with merciless attacks on its living standards and democratic rights. The strategists of capital offer no solution to the crisis. All the conquests of the past are now under attack: pensions, healthcare, education. All the attempts of the bourgeois to restore the economic equilibrium merely serve to destroy the social and political equilibrium. The conditions are ripening for an explosion of the class struggle on an international scale. The crisis of capitalism is also a crisis of reformism. Long gone is the period in which the labour movement was able to win serious and lasting concessions from the ruling class. After the 2008 crisis there was a worldwide revolt against austerity measures. The first expression of radicalisation was a swing in the direction of left reformism in different countries. We saw the rise of Syriza in Greece, Podemos in Spain, Bernie Sanders in the United States, and Jeremy Corbyn in Britain. However, experience has cruelly exposed the limitations of left reformism. They aroused enormous expectations, enormous hopes, only for them to be dashed in every single case. The left reformists have always capitulated in the moment of truth. Betrayal is inherent in reformism. As a result of those betrayals, today we see a whole layer of the youth turning towards the ideas of communism. This trend is clearly revealed in opinion polls in one country after another including the USA itself. This is an extremely important phenomenon. The most advanced layers of the youth call themselves communists. They have a passionate desire to fight for a better society and a thirst for ideas. Yet, paradoxically, precisely at this moment the world communist movement is in complete disarray. Many of todays Communist Parties are communist in name only. The leaders of those parties long ago abandoned the ideas of Lenin and Bolshevism and collapsed into vulgar reformism. Rather than socialist revolution they stand for the reform of capitalism and have succumbed to social-chauvinism. The mighty Italian Communist Party (PCI) used to be the biggest and most powerful in Europe. The policies of national-reformist degeneration led in the end to the dissolution of the PCI and its transformation into a bourgeois reformist party. The Spanish Communist Party (PCE) is part of a coalition government that is sending arms to Ukraine as part of NATOs war against Russia. When its youth wing (UJCE) rejected the official line, they were expelled. The Communist Party of the United States (CPUSA) is little more than an election machine for the capitalist Democratic Party, calling for a vote for Biden as a vote against fascism. The South African Communist Party had a Menshevik approach during the struggle against apartheid. It established a clear-cut and completely artificial separation between a national democratic revolution and a socialist revolution in the far distant future. It has been part of the pro-capitalist ANC government for 30 years, and even defended the massacre of 34 striking miners at Marikana in 2012 by the forces of the capitalist state. The Chinese Communist Party is neither Communist nor a Party, but merely an arm of the capitalist state, defending capitalist property relations at home and the imperialist interests of the Chinese capitalists abroad. And so the list goes on The Chinese Communist Party is neither Communist nor a Party / Image: Dong Fang, Wikimedia Commons The question of war is a litmus test for all tendencies in the workers movement. The war in Ukraine and the Israeli assault on Gaza have brought to the fore the complete bankruptcy of many of these so-called Communist Parties. The invasion of Ukraine by Russia in February 2022 brought the deep crisis in the Communist movement to the fore, with most Communist Parties scandalously making concessions to the position of their own ruling class. Many Communist Parties in the West gave open or tacit support to NATO, covering their capitulation with abstract appeals for peace, negotiations, etc. Equally bad, other parties have become little more than instruments of Russian and Chinese foreign policy, presenting these capitalist countries as progressive allies of the struggle of weak and dependent nations to break free of imperialist colonisation and debt slavery. The Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF) has become a cheerleader of the Putin regime, which represents the interests of the Russian capitalist oligarchs and their ambitions on the international scene. Faced with the massacre in Gaza, many Communist Parties across the world, instead of defending a clear revolutionary anti-imperialist policy, have responded with pious appeals to respect international law and the resolutions of the United Nations. Nothing could be further away from Lenin, who denounced the League of Nations as an imperialist thieves' kitchen. International law is a farce, merely a reflection of the given balance of forces between the main imperialist powers. During World War One, Lenin was particularly scathing in his criticism of pacifism. His basic position was that war was the inevitable result of imperialism and that an imperialist peace was just the preparation for another imperialist war. He insisted that the only consistent way to fight imperialist war was through socialist revolution and that the main enemy of the working class was at home. These contradictions have led to a series of splits. The International Meeting of Communist and Worker Parties (IMCWP) in Havana in 2023 failed to even produce a statement on the Ukraine War as it could not find consensus. The problems in the Communist movement are not new. They can be traced back to the acceptance of the anti-Marxist policy of socialism in one country in the late 1920s. In 1928, Leon Trotsky predicted that this would inevitably lead to the national-reformist degeneration of every Communist Party in the world. This prediction proved to be correct. At first, the leaders of the Communist Parties obediently carried out the dictates of Stalin and the bureaucracy, slavishly following every twist and turn that came from Moscow, from the ultra-leftism of the Third Period to the Menshevik policy of the popular front alliances with the Liberals. They later repudiated Stalin, but instead of returning to Lenin, they made a sharp turn to the right, particularly under the guise of euro-communism. They became mere social democrats, in some cases maintaining the word Communist in their names, in others ditching it as if it were a dirty old rag. In breaking from Moscow these parties adopted reformist perspectives and policies. Following the fatal logic of socialism in one country, the leadership of every national party adapted themselves to the interests of the bourgeoisie of their own country. This led to the complete degeneration and, in many cases, the total liquidation of the Communist Parties. Many rank-and-file communist workers have reacted against this shameless revisionism. The bureaucratic expulsions and violation of democratic rules in the Brazilian Communist Party (PCB) are part of this process. Amongst the parties which have not capitulated to national-chauvinism, the Greek Communist Party (KKE) stands out. This is a party comprising tens of thousands of the best workers and youth in Greece, which has undoubtedly taken important steps in rejecting the old discredited Stalinist-Menshevik idea of two stages and openly stands for socialist revolution. It adopted a clear internationalist stance on the Ukrainian war, which it correctly characterises as an inter-imperialist conflict, by opposing its own ruling class and NATO, but also denouncing the imperialist character of Putins regime. We have differences with the KKE. In particular, we think that it is necessary to break completely from the anti-Marxist theory of socialism in one country and to adopt a Leninist approach to the question of the united front. The KKE also took the initiative to convene the International Meeting of Worker and Communist Parties, as an attempt to reorganise the communist movement after the collapse of the USSR. There is a clear need to reorganise the communist movement internationally. The problem with these meetings is that they are based on consensus as opposed to debate, confrontation of ideas and democratic centralism. The limits of such an approach were revealed when wildly opposing points of view emerged regarding the war in Ukraine. Fundamental questions of theory cannot be disguised by diplomatic joint statements, which avoid the main questions. Some parties put their name to resolutions talking of workers power and the struggle for socialism at international gatherings while at the same time conducting a thoroughly reformist policy back at home. In some cases, militants who are repelled by the reformist policies of the leadership of many Communist Parties have gravitated towards the figure of Stalin. This is understandable, but wrong. A cursory examination of Stalins policies reveals that they represent a fundamental break with Lenin and Leninism. Lenin firmly defended a policy of no confidence in bourgeois liberals and the need for the working class to take power / Image: public domain Where Lenin firmly defended a policy of no confidence in bourgeois liberals and the need for the working class to take power, Stalin brought back the Menshevik two-stage theory of alliance with the progressive bourgeoisie, which led to disaster in China, Spain and elsewhere. Lenin opposed international institutions like the League of Nations, which he described as a thieves kitchen, but Stalin brought the USSR into the League of Nations in 1934. Where Lenin advocated proletarian internationalism, Stalin courted the different imperialist powers, and then disbanded the Communist International in May 1943 as a gesture of goodwill towards them. The bureaucratic methods that the leadership of many Communist Parties have used to eliminate their critics come straight from the anti-democratic rulebook of Stalinism and have nothing to do with the clean banner of Leninist democratic centralism. As long as Lenin was alive, debate thrived within the Communist International and the Russian Party on many different questions: the Brest-Litovsk negotiations, the trade union question, the New Economic Policy, the United Front, participation of Communists in parliament and trade unions, etc. That made the Party and the International stronger, not the opposite. It is of fundamental importance for all communists to examine these questions carefully. They are not of merely historical interest. On the contrary, they are extremely relevant to the discussions taking place today among Communist Parties about imperialism and war, the character of Russia and China, the role of the BRICS, and the idea of a so-called multipolar world. Of course, some will say: but you are Trotskyists! To this we reply: we are Marxists and we are Bolshevik- Leninists. We defend the ideas and traditions of Trotsky because he alone fought to defend the ideas and traditions of Lenin against the Stalinist reaction. On all the fundamental questions (working-class independence, opposing collaboration with the bourgeoisie, proletarian internationalism, and a democratic centralist form of organisation) there was no difference between Lenin and Trotsky after 1917. Unfortunately, many who call themselves Trotskyists have discredited the name in the eyes of communists. Suffice it to say that those sectarians have just as little to do with the genuine ideas of Leon Trotsky as the Stalinists have in common with those of Lenin. This is the case for instance with the so-called Fourth International, whose scandalous slogan is sanctions on Russia, weapons for Ukraine. This places them firmly in the camp of NATO imperialism and de facto on the same side as their own ruling class. We have absolutely nothing in common with such people. The truth is that after the assassination of Trotsky in 1940, the Fourth International ended up as an abortion. It is now not even a footnote to history. When Trotsky launched the International Left Opposition, he envisaged it as the left opposition in the Communist Parties. We are genuine communists Bolshevik-Leninists who were bureaucratically excluded from the ranks of the communist movement by Stalin. We have always fought to maintain the red banner of October and genuine Leninism, and now we must reclaim our rightful place as an integral part of the world communist movement. The time has come to open an honest discussion in the movement about the past, which will finally break with the last remnants of Stalinism and prepare the ground for lasting communist unity on the solid foundations of Leninism. We are now faced with a situation in which a whole layer of youth is instinctively looking for the banner of communism. The situation has never been more favourable to conquer these new layers for the cause of communism. But in order to succeed, we need a fresh start: a clean banner with a clear and unambiguous revolutionary and communist identity. To this end, the International Marxist Tendency is launching a new Revolutionary Communist International in June this year, which we see as a step in the direction of the rebuilding of a mass Communist International worthy of the name. We extend a hand of friendship to all honest militants who wish to fight for communism. All we have to offer are our ideas, which can be found in our published Manifesto. This is our contribution to an honest and fraternal discussion. The result of this will be entirely in your hands. For our part, we earnestly hope that it can eventually lead to a lasting unification of all genuine forces on the solid basis of the ideas of Lenin, Bolshevism and the great October Revolution. Comrades! Let us join hands in a common fight against revisionism and return to the ideas and methods of Lenin! Let our slogans be: Down with revisionism! Back to Lenin! For the fighting unity of all communists! Forward to the rebuilding of the Communist International! We look forward to your comments on these important questions. London, 9th April, 2024 (CNBC) SoftBank Group subsidiary Arm is planning to launch artificial intelligence chips by next year, according to a Nikkei Asia report, as the battle for AI chip dominance intensifies. The U.K.-based chip designer, in which SoftBank has a 90% stake, will set up an AI chip unit to build a prototype by spring 2025, according to the report on Sunday. To read this article: Luke on 25 April reported that logging volumes exceeded the highest maintainable roundwood removals that is, the annual level of logging that is regarded as sustainable in light of growth rates over a 10-year period in Kanta-Hame, Kymenlaakso, Pirkanmaa, Paijat-Hame, Satakunta, South Karelia and Aland. LOGGING VOLUMES exceeded sustainable levels in several regions of Finland in 2023, according to Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke). The removal limits do not take into consideration what would be sustainable for biodiversity. Forests on Aland Islands were devastated by storms in 2019, leading to roundwood removals exceeding sustainable levels by 14 per cent in 20192023. The levels were exceeded by two to seven per cent in Kanta-Hame, Kymenlaakso, Pirkanmaa, Paijat-Hame, Satakunta and South Karelia. In Lapland, the removals were 25 per cent below the sustainable level, according to the data from Luke. Its estimates indicate that nationally an average of 79.8 million cubic metres of wood can be harvested sustainably every year between 2019 and 2028. In 2023, 91 per cent of logging opportunities in the entire country were seized. That level was exceeded in altogether six regions on Mainland Finland, which are the same as over a longer monitoring period, Jukka Torvelainen, a senior statistician at Luke, said in a press release on 25 April. He revealed that in recent years roundwood removals have varied between 86 and 96 per cent of the highest maintainable levels, averaging at 92 per cent. Nearly 73 million cubic metres of roundwood was harvested in Finland in 2023, representing a three-per-cent drop from the previous year and a two-per-cent one from the average for the preceding five-year period. The amount of logwood and pulpwood removed from forests was slightly over 61 million cubic metres, marking a drop of five per cent from the previous year. Demand for logwood and pulpwood stems primarily from the domestic forest industry. The amount of energy wood harvested for the use of heat and power plants hit an all-time high of 7.5 million cubic metres in 2023. Another almost four million cubic metres was used as firewood by households. The timber off-cut harvest stayed at the same level as in previous year, but the amount of whole and de-limbed trees raised the total amount of energy wood to a new record. The uprooting of stumps has been low for a long time, said Tiina Sauvula-Seppala, a senior statistician at Luke. Aleksi Teivainen HT The European Commission's inaugural report on the real-world fuel consumption and CO2 emissions of new cars draws from a sample of 600,000 vehicles. In a recent European comparison, Finland has been recognized for having the most fuel-efficient driving habits, particularly in the use of plug-in hybrid vehicles. According to a spring 2024 report by the European Commission, these vehicles consume the least fuel in Finland, a testament to the countrys effective charging infrastructure and substantial investments in vehicle electrification. Since the beginning of 2021, the EU has required a fuel consumption monitoring system for all new passenger and light commercial vehicles. The report highlights that actual consumption tends to exceed the figures estimated by the Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicles Test Procedure (WLTP), which is conducted under controlled laboratory conditions to provide comparable data across different vehicle models. Overall, vehicles in Europe typically consume about 20% more fuel and emit more CO2 in real-world conditions than WLTP estimates suggest. However, Finnish drivers show the smallest discrepancy, with only a 13% difference in gasoline cars and about a 6% difference in diesel vehicles, indicating a national preference for economic driving. Tero Lausala, CEO of the Central Organization of Motor Trades and Repairs, attributes this achievement to the driving conditions in Finland, including long distances and consistent highway speeds, which are conducive to economical driving. The report places Sweden second, where the discrepancies between real-world data and WLTP estimates are slightly higher than in Finland. On the other end of the spectrum, countries like Bulgaria, Greece, Cyprus, Portugal, and Romania see discrepancies exceeding 30%. Plug-in hybrids, despite their complexities in measuring true fuel consumption and emissions in lab conditions, show that Finnish plug-in hybrids perform better than their European counterparts. The typical consumption increase over WLTP values is 176% in Finland, compared to a 236% average across Europe, translating into significantly lower CO2 emissions. The success in Finland can largely be credited to government incentives for electric vehicle charging infrastructure, which have notably ended but left a lasting impact. Over 80,000 charging stations have been installed in residential buildings through subsidies provided by the Housing Finance and Development Centre of Finland (ARA). Looking forward, despite the cessation of subsidies, the need for expanding the public charging network remains critical, especially for AC (alternating current) charging stations, which are predominantly used by plug-in hybrids. Jouko Sohlberg, Technical Director of the Central Organization of Motor Trades and Repairs, emphasizes the importance of expanding the AC charging infrastructure to keep pace with the growing number of electric vehicles. As plug-in hybrids gain popularity and become more accessible in the used car market, their potential for reducing emissions will depend significantly on the availability of regular charging opportunities. This aligns with the preferences of Finnish households, where plug-in hybrids are becoming increasingly desired as the next vehicle purchase, second only to gasoline cars. The Finnish commitment to sustainable driving practices and the societal shift towards plug-in hybrids indicate a future where both community and environment benefit from smarter, cleaner transportation choices. HT WHAT do three professors, a bishop, an elephant and a mermaid all have in common? Answer they will all be playing a part in Great Big Green Week. From June 8 to 16 you will be able to participate in a choice of 18 different events happening in Henley. Heres a snapshot of some of them: Were kicking off on the Saturday with our first ever Nature Discovery Day on Mill and Marsh Meadows with some fantastic activities organised to help us get to know our nature neighbours. There will be guided wildflower walks, butterfly sweeps, pond dipping, tree trails and bug hunts as well as real experts on tap to tell you what you have found, including a moth specialist, a spider professor and Linda Seward, who will explain how to take good photographs of the wildlife you see. Come and have a look around the interesting stalls about our local wildlife and habitats. Learn how to record the wildlife you find. Talk to Thames 21 about the state of our river. The Nature Squared stall will have free plants for anyone signing up to N2. Badgers, bats, butterflies, Gillotts Eco Club it will all be there and more. Its a free event from 10am to 2pm, so why not bring your family and a picnic and enjoy our beautiful wildlife. Each year Greener Henley organises an Environmental Science Challenge for Schools and this year the subject was pollution. We are really delighted that we have the opportunity to display the students work in the Kirkham Gallery at the River & Rowing Museum. What is particularly exciting is that our exhibition is being displayed alongside The Beautiful Blue exhibition curated by artist Vickie Amiralis. This is a waterside arts and ecology project involving communities with links to the river. The exhibition is running from May 24 to June 16, so please come along and enjoy this wonderful melange. Do you like poetry? If youd like to try your hand at writing a poem for Great Big Green Week the subject this year is Tread Lightly on the Earth. It should be no longer than 19 lines and has to be in by May 30. Chosen poems will be read out at the Poetry Reading event in the library on Tuesday, June 4 from 6pm. But, if reading is more your thing, why not join in Henleys Big Green Read? We have recommended eight great books you might like to encourage your book club or reading mates to consider. Wed love to hear what you think about them. Perhaps we can start a big Henley conversation where shall we go from here? For the fourth year running we have hidden items in 10 of our local shop windows. The Womens Institute has cleverly handcrafted some native flowers and next to them is a letter. Find all 10 letters and work out the word. Enter the Treasure Hunt competition at the Information Centre in the town hall and see if you are the lucky one who gets the prize. We have two special film showings during Great Big Green Week. On Sunday, June 9 at 2pm the Regal Picturehouse is screening Elephant Mother, which follows a brave woman rescuing abused elephants from the Thai tourist industry. The other film on Wednesday, June 12 is a preview of Wilding the film about the book and Knepp Estate. Both films will be followed by panel discussions talking about issues raised. Another event on June 9 is an evening talk at the town hall, titled Our Moral Obligation? Faith, Climate and Displacement. This is where you will find the Bishop, along with two climate scientists and Dr Krish Kandiah. And, back by public demand after the over-subscribed talk he gave at Cafe Scientifique, Professor Chris Merchant, of the Reading University earth and oceans sciences department, will give his excellent talk, In Our Hands: Our Climate Future at the town hall on Monday, June 10 from 7pm to 9pm. Greening your business how the green agenda can help your business thrive. Greener Henleys business group is hosting a networking and workshop event for local businesses, from sole traders, small firms or medium-sized enterprises at the River & Rowing Museum on Thursday, June 13 from 5.30pm to 7.30pm Lots more events and information are on our website https://greenerhenley.org.uk We hope to see many of you during the week. Come up and say hello. Diana Barnett A native of Maitland, Florida, Jackie Ossin Hirsch founded Crowne Atlantic Business Brokers in 2004 after selling companies locally since 1998. Her brother Lee has been her business partner for 20 years. "We typically sell companies with EBIT of $1,000,000+ in Florida, Alabama, and the Carolinas," Hirsch explained. In the past weeks, Crowne Atlantic Business Brokers received two prestigious awards. Crowne Atlantic was honored by the Business Brokers of Florida as one of the Top 50 Business Brokers out of about 1500 business brokers in Florida. The award is calculated based on the volume of bus... (New York Jewish Week) At a time of rising antisemitism, two shows about Jews caught up in a dangerous climate of hate received multiple nominations yesterday for the 2024 Tony Awards. A brand-new revival of the Kander and Ebb musical Cabaret, about the hedonistic antics at a late Weimar-era Berlin nightclub, received a total of nine nominations, while Prayer for the French Republic, a three-hour drama about antisemitism in France in 2016, received three. Both productions trail this years most-nominated: David Adjmis Stereophonic, about a Fleetwood Mac-esque band, received 13 nominat... By Dor Malul (Israel Hayom via JNS) Amid a wave of protests by pro-Palestinian students across the United States, Jewish students have decided to launch a counterattack against displays of antisemitism. Liat (not her real name), a doctoral student at Harvard University, together with other students, entered the anti-Israel lions den on campusthe protest encampment from which calls against Israel emanated, and where students expressed solidarity with Hamas terrorist acts. Feeling that the administration was abandoning the Jewish and Israeli students and trying to avoid taking effective ac... (Israel Hayom via JNS) A group of fraternity brothers at the University of North Carolina are being celebrated for safeguarding a giant American flag from an anti-Israel mob intent on raising the PLO colors. A GoFundMe page launched for the Pi Kappa Phi students has raised over $485,000 from more than 14,800 donations as of 8:30 p.m. on May 2. The fund aims to throw this frat the party they deserve for their stand at the UNC-Chapel Hill campus this week, according to the fundraising site. Extremists across the country have invaded college campuses to make outrageous demands on weak univer... (JNS) - The Biden administration is considering a plan to allow some Gaza residents to resettle in the United States, CBS News reported on Tuesday, citing internal federal government documents. According to the documents, senior officials from various U.S. federal agencies have discussed options for bringing Gazans to the country who have immediate family members who are either American citizens or permanent residents. One option under discussion is the United States Refugee Admissions Program, whose mission is "to offer resettlement opportunities to persons overseas who are of special humanit... (JNS) - U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Israeli leaders as part of his Middle East tour to Israel, Jordan and Saudi Arabia, his seventh trip to the Jewish state since the current Hamas war broke out on Oct. 7. Blinken met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem, where they "discussed ongoing efforts to reach an immediate ceasefire in Gaza as part of a hostage deal and emphasized that it is Hamas that is standing in the way of a ceasefire," according to an official statement from the U.S. State Department. "Secretary Blinken reaffirmed... (JNS) A chaotic scene unfolded at the main campus of the University of California, Los Angeles in the Westwood neighborhood late Tuesday night as pro-Israel protesters confronted the pro-Hamas encampment there. There were reports of fights breaking out, resulting in injuries. An unverified video circulating online shows a pro-Hamas mob allegedly beating a Jewish student. According to social media accounts and local reporting, the university and city police were absent from the increasingly violent scene at UCLA. The school on Tuesday declared that the encampment is unlawful and violates uni... The Jewish National Fund-USAs Hub and Resource Guide gives a list of organizations fighting anti-Jewish hate on college campuses. The link is https://www.jnf.org/our-work/education-and-advocacy/college-campus-resources. JNF Reporting Tool Kit The site also offers an antisemitism reporting tool kit where you can report any incident of antisemitism straight to your college campus administrator. Local College Chapters JNF also suggests joining your local college chapters to help make a difference: AEPI Students Supporting Israel Israel on Campus Coalition Yavneh on Campus Take Legal Action The A... (Israel Hayom via JNS) Columbia University is facing a class action lawsuit accusing it of failing to keep Jewish students safe amid the wave of anti-Israel protests that have disrupted the Ivy League campus. The anonymous student plaintiff filed the lawsuit on Apr. 29. It acknowledges the right to peaceful protest and open debate at colleges. However, the lawsuit alleges that a number of demonstrations have gone beyond acceptable bounds, intimidating and harassing Jewish students and faculty members as well as inciting demonstrators to engage in hate speech and even committing acts of... (JNS) Palestinian Authority chief Mahmoud Abbass Fatah faction has reiterated its desire to reconcile with Hamas, Chinas Foreign Ministry announced following talks in Beijing. Representatives of Fatah and Hamas recently held negotiations in the Chinese capital with a view to forging a Palestinian unity government. Fatah reportedly dispatched Azzam al-Ahmad, a member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, and Samir al-Rifai, a member of Fatahs Central Committee. The Hamas delegation was led by the deputy head of its political bureau, Moussa Abu Marzouk, and in... (JTA) Dozens of students unfurled Palestinian flags and banners at the main commencement ceremony of the University of Michigan. A single student staged a provocative demonstration during a ceremony at Northeastern University, raising hands stained with red paint as a symbol of violence in Gaza. And a Palestinian student speaker used her speech to lambaste Israels war against Hamas at the University of Toledo. Such were the disruptions during the first major weekend of graduation ceremonies to take place amid a sweeping pro-Palestinian protest movement on college campuses across the United... WASHINGTON (JTA) Israels war cabinet unanimously voted to approve an invasion of Rafah in southern Gaza, shortly after Hamas said it had agreed to a ceasefire deal with Israel. The announcements were two landmarks in a whirlwind and confusing day of diplomacy and warfare following months of speculation and negotiations. As of Monday night Israel time, both the fighting and diplomacy were ongoing. Israeli officials said the proposal Hamas accepted was different from the one Israel had agreed to. In its statement, the war cabinet said the outline was far from the requisite demands of Is... (JNS) The only moral and rational conclusion that can be drawn from the horrors of Hamass Oct. 7 massacre is that Israel must regain control of the Gaza Strip, Knesset member Amit Halevi (Likud) told JNS. Israel had disengaged from Gaza, it was essentially a Palestinian state. The outcome was Oct. 7, Halevi said on the sidelines of the Conservative Political Action Conference Hungary on Thursday. From the river to the sea, Israel will be free: this should be the slogan chanted at Columbia University, Harvard, Yale and Berkeley, he added. On Sept. 12, 2005, the Israel Defense Forces comp... (New York Jewish Week) On Tuesday night, as police cleared protesters out of a Columbia University building and arrested more than 100 people, lawyer Gerard Filitti said fault lay with the students who had erected an unauthorized pro-Palestinian encampment at the school. But theyre not the only ones he blamed. Although Columbias administration had called in the NYPD, Fillitti said Tuesdays clashes were the result of inaction by Columbias leadership not just during the two weeks of the encampment, but in the more than six months since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war. The universit... (Israel Hayom via JNS) - The war in Gaza brought with it countless stories of heroism. Split-second decisions altered lives, demarcating a clear divide between before and after. However, many decisions evaded the spotlight. While they will not be enshrined in battle narratives, they bear witness to our existence here, the conflicts we wage, and the character of our military and people, particularly the younger generation. In recent months, Israel Hayom has chronicled the experiences of lone soldiers-those without close family in Israel who can help them-associated with the Michael Levin Lone S... (JNS) Israeli security forces arrested a Palestinian suspect in the April 12 terrorist murder of 14-year-old shepherd Binyamin Achimeir following an overnight raid in the Binyamin region of Samaria. Overnight, in a joint operation of the Shin Bet, the Israel Police and the IDF, Ahmed Duabsha, 21 years old, a resident of the village of Duma in the Binyamin Brigade [area of deployment], was arrested by the soldiers of the Yamam [Border Police National Counter-Terrorism Unit] and the Shin Bet, said the statement. Achimeirs body was found by a drone on April 13 following a 24-hour-long search... (JNS) As tensions escalate at a Gaza Solidarity Encampment at the University of Pennsylvania, administrators are taking a dialogue and de-escalation approach, possibly because they have no choice. Penn asked the Philadelphia Police Department to dismantle the encampment, but the police refused, the student-run Daily Pennsylvanian claimed on May 2. Police asked that the university first provide proof that the encampment presents an imminent danger, reported the paper, citing a source familiar with the matter. If accurate (and the Philadelphia police refused to confirm or deny the report), i... (JNS) In the latest example of a deep-seated anti-Israel bias within the International Committee of the Red Cross, the head of the ICRCs office in Algeria and director of the Libya subdelegation has been outed as a pro-Hamas shill. Geneva-based, pro-Israel group U.N. Watch exposed the pro-terrorist sentiments of the ICRC official, who appears to be based in Montreal. Meet Haythem Ethan Abid. He runs the International Red Cross in Montreal. His job is to be neutral. But Abid marches in Free Palestine rallies, posts Hamas videos saying hostages love their captors and accuses Israel of t... (JNS) Saudi Arabia has decided to normalize relations with Israel and is debating the timing of the announcement, a foreign diplomat familiar with the details told Haaretz on Monday. According to the source cited in the article by the dailys diplomatic correspondent Jonathan Lis, Riyadh is discussing whether to make the move in the coming weeks or after the U.S. presidential election this November, in which either Democrat Joe Biden will continue to lead the country or his challenger Republican Donald Trump will return to the White House. The question is when, and the decision on the timin... (JNS) Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) shared his disgust over antisemitic protests on campuses during a meeting with pro-Israel and Jewish students at George Washington Universitys Hillel on Wednesday. The senators daughter attended the school, located just blocks from the White House and U.S. State Department. What I am seeing on that campus today is something I never could have imagined, he said. Our Jewish students deserve to have a place where they can live and learn without fearing for their safetystarting with university leadership that has the backbone to stand for their safety, or s... Jerusalem, Israel - "Unprecedented." "Monumental." "Timely." "Powerful." These are just some of the words describing the upcoming Global Prayer for Israel, bringing thousands of Jews and Christians together from all over the world to pray for Israel. With Israel at war, and Christians standing with Israel and the Jewish people at levels that are unprecedented in history, Christians are experiencing the hate and persecution toward Israel and the Jewish people that's more than vicarious, but deeply personal. At the same time, more Jews have realized that among people around the world cursing and... (JNS) The University of California, Los Angeles is allowing anti-Israel protesters to block Jewish students from entering the library of the state school in the citys Westwood neighborhood, according to audio of a phone conversation between a parent and the UCLA police. Are the protestors allowed to not allow a student who pays tuition access to their class in the library? the concerned mother is heard asking. Parent @UCLA gave permission to release this audio of her phone call with @UCLAPD as they describe the schools directive to allow protestors to restrict the movement of Jewish stud... (JNS) - "It all started after I joined the fight on Oct. 7 against Hamas terrorists invading the Israeli communities bordering the Gaza Strip," says Nimrod Palmach, CEO of Israel-is, which partners with producer Stephen D. Smith in the virtual reality "Be the Witness" initiative. Israel-is is an NGO dedicated to improving Israel's image. Part of the "Survived to Tell" project, "Be the Witness" features the stories of five survivors of the Oct. 7 Hamas massacre. Participants in the project wear VR goggles and relive the journey of one of five survivors, including Ofir Engel, who spent 54 days i... Israel opening its universities to besieged US Jewish students (JNS) Israel has launched a program to facilitate the educational transfer of Jewish students from American universities under siege by pro-Hamas agitators. The Israeli Diaspora Affairs Ministry has issued the call to Israeli universities to absorb as many Jewish-American college students as possible, with the assistance of a data-driven program developed by Inbal Ratz-Gilmore and professor Yuval Sinai of the Kohelet Policy Forum, a Jerusalem-based think tank that promotes free-market policies. When we developed this program, it... As I sat down to write this opinion, I realized that there are four things really bugging me. Number one. I have not read one single article that puts the blame on Hamas for the inhumane conditions in Gaza food and water shortages, destroyed homes with refugees everywhere, etc. Hamas was elected by the people in Gaza to be their governing body. All the money sent to Gaza since 2007 has not been used to build a prosperous area that, Im told, could have been like Dubai or Singapore. Hamas used the money to build tunnels and stockpile weapons. Hamas is supposed to be responsible for its citize... (JNS) U.S. President Joe Bidens approach to Israel since the start of the Oct. 7 war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip has my head spinning. His approach has been marked by a delicate balancing act that attempts to support a key ally on one hand while addressing humanitarian concerns faced by Gazan civilians on the other. However, this balancing actsome might call it nuancedhas led to contradictions that impact the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip. Remember that it began after a horde of Hamas terrorists invaded Israeli communities along the Gaza border, murdered 1,200 people, and kidnapped som... Antisemitism is on the rise across America and all over the world. What are Orlando Jews feeling and what can we do about it in these tumultuous times? Ive realized since Oct. 7, with the massacre in Israel and the terrible war raging in the Middle East, Ive been living with terrible feelings of disbelief, anger, frustration, depression and angst. These emotions are all related in a vicious cycle. First disbelief. Its difficult to conceive of the level of evil perpetrated by Hamas on Oct 7 and painful to witness the death of civilians in Gaza since then. Anger at the horrendous murder of Is... (JNS) Back in December, the eminent historian Niall Ferguson wrote an essay in The Free Press that, its now apparent, presaged the tidal wave of demonstrations now inundating college campuses around the country. It was called The Treason of the Intellectuals, which also was the title of a 1927 publication by French philosopher Julien Benda. Ferguson noted that while that piece was written six years before Hitler came to power, German universitiesthen the worlds bestalready were transitioning from scholarship to the intellectual organization of political hatreds. German academia did... New Delhi, May 13, 2024 - Jyotirmath, under the dynamic leadership of Present Jagadguru Shankaracharya of Jyotirmath Swamishri Avimukteshwarananda Saraswati Maharaj has appointed Mr Digant Sharma to setup IT Cell and CSR Fundraising Initiatives Across Multiple States across India. Digant Sharma, is embarking on a transformative journey aimed at revitalizing traditional education, fostering community welfare, and preserving cultural heritage. With strategic projects underway or in the pipeline across several states, the organization is poised to make a profound impact on society. Mr. Digant Sharma is a dynamic individual with a multifaceted portfolio spanning diverse industries. Currently engaged in numerous live projects, he serves as the Chairman of Torus Innotech Pvt ltd, uniting 83,000 tribal farmers across Maharashtra and Telangana. As the Founder and CEO of Small Retailer IPO, uniting 1 million small retailers across India. His commitment to social welfare is evident through his roles as Founder and President of the Undertrial Welfare Association and his leadership as Chairman of Intellipetrol Oil And Gas Pvt Ltd and Hydrocarbonix Oil And Gas Pvt Ltd, both prominent players in the oil and gas trading sector. Mr. Sharma's global footprint extends to Finland and Switzerland, where he Chairs Ophi Technologies Pvt Ltd, specializing in landfill cleaning. Additionally, he spearheads ventures in political consulting, franchise and brand expansion, coal trading, yoga and fitness, agri-tech, and game development. His illustrious past includes roles in resource mobilization, fashion, digital technology, and education, showcasing his versatility and leadership acumen. CA. Madan Mohan Upadhayay - CFO - Jyotirmath and Mr Prakash Upadhayay - CEO - Jyotirmath Chhattisgarh: Empowering Tribal Communities In Raipur and Jashpur, initiatives are underway to establish Jagadgurukulams for tribal children, providing education rooted in Vedas alongside modern curriculum. Organic farming ventures on vast lands aim to promote sustainability and agricultural self-sufficiency. Uttar Pradesh: Nurturing Future Generations and Supporting the Elderly From Varanasi to Meerut, Jagadgurukulams are set to provide holistic education to children, while old age homes with extensive capacities promise dignified living for seniors. Dharamshalas and temple renovations in key locations further enhance community support structures. Uttarakhand: Enhancing Healthcare and Hospitality The construction of modern hospitals in Joshimath and Haridwar will offer accessible healthcare to residents and pilgrims alike. Dharamshalas in Badrinath and elsewhere will ensure comfortable accommodation for spiritual seekers. Madhya Pradesh: Educating the Youth and Caring for the Elderly Jagadgurukulams are springing up in Bhopal, Jabalpur, and Joteshwar Narsinghpur, providing transformative education opportunities. Simultaneously, plans for extensive old age homes underscore the organization's commitment to elderly care. Gujarat: Providing Shelter and Spiritual Solace Dharamshalas in Ahmedabad and Bautha will cater to travelers' needs, while an old age home in Bautha ensures compassionate care for seniors. Jagadgurukulams in Dholka will shape the future of young minds. West Bengal: Empowering Youth and Honoring the Elderly In Kolkata, plans for Jagadgurukulams aim to empower youth with knowledge and values. Simultaneously, the construction of an old age home demonstrates reverence for the elderly. Haryana: Fostering Education and Spiritual Growth Jagadgurukulams in Hisar promise quality education, while a temple construction project reaffirms the organization's dedication to spiritual sanctity. Empowering Communities Through Technology and Philanthropy Under the guidance of Digant Sharma, an IT Cell will drive digital transformation, enhancing communication and efficiency. CSR fundraising initiatives will mobilize resources to support these noble endeavours, ensuring sustainable development and inclusive growth. CA Madan Mohan Upadhayay brings extensive experience and exposure to the table. He is serving as the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) at Jyotirmath. Additionally, as a faculty member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), he has participated in numerous Faculty Development Programs and provides training to newly qualified CAs and students. His expertise extends to motivational and career counseling programs at ICAI. Notably, he has held leadership positions such as Chairman of the Raipur Branch of the Central India Regional Council (CIRC) of ICAI, President of the Indirect Tax Practitioners Association in Chhattisgarh, and membership on the Audit Advisory Board of the Auditor General in Chhattisgarh State. He is also a partner at J. Shukla & Associates (Chartered Accountants) and serves as a director at Profsys Softwares Pvt. Ltd., specializing in ERP development, web designing, and mobile application development. Moreover, his contributions extend beyond finance and accounting as he holds roles in various organizations such as being a Special Invitee Member at the State Planning Commission in Chhattisgarh, State Vice President of the National Human Rights and Social Justice Commission for Chhattisgarh, and founder of several impactful NGOs including Raag Foundation, eManch Foundation, and Mission Sanatan. These initiatives focus on conserving folk music, promoting art and culture, providing online platforms and training for artists, and promoting the Sanatan religion while supporting temple priests. Mr Prakash Upadhayay CEO of Jyotirmath say our commitment to education, welfare, and cultural preservation is poised to uplift communities and enrich lives across India. With Digant Sharma at the helm, the organization is not only building infrastructure but also fostering our 2500+ Years of Sanatan legacy of compassion, empowerment, and service to humanity. Contact :- Name Mr Digant Sharma Organisation Jyotirmath Mobile - +91-9769999960 , +91-9920808363 Email fro-csr@shreejyotirmathah.org Website - https://shreejyotirmathah.org/ Head Address Totkacharya Guffa, Jyotirmath , Chamoli 246443, Garhwal, Uttrakhand. Administrative Office - B6/97 Shrividhamath, Pitambarpura Kedarghat, Varanasi, Uttarpradesh. Pin Code - 221001 Disclaimer: This article is a paid publication and does not have journalistic/editorial involvement of Hindustan Times. Hindustan Times does not endorse/subscribe to the content(s) of the article/advertisement and/or view(s) expressed herein. Hindustan Times shall not in any manner, be responsible and/or liable in any manner whatsoever for all that is stated in the article and/or also with regard to the view(s), opinion(s), announcement(s), declaration(s), affirmation(s) etc., stated/featured in the same. Justice RC Lahoti Memorial Lecture Series celebrates the rich heritage of Honorable Justice R C Lahoti Honble Justice UU Lalit, Former Chief Justice of India, and Chairperson- Manav Rachna School of Law Advisory Board was the Guest of Honor Faridabad, 11th May: The School of Law, Manav Rachna University (MRU), had the distinct privilege of organizing the esteemed Justice RC Lahoti Memorial Lecture Series, which celebrates the rich heritage of Honorable Justice Lahoti. Through this annual law lecture series, Manav Rachna University aims to illuminate the path of aspiring and existing law professionals by revisiting the endeavors, judgements, and memories of Justice R C Lahoti, a jurist par excellence. Adding a significant dimension to the event and making it a memorable moment in legal scholarship and tribute was the gracious presence of Honorable Shri Ram Nath Kovind, Former President of India as the Esteemed Chief Guest on the occasion. Honorable Justice UU Lalit, Former Chief Justice of India was present as the Guest of Honor. Welcoming the guests, Prof. (Dr.) Deependra Kumar Jha, Vice Chancellor, Manav Rachna University emphasized how Justice RC Lahoti continues to inspire the students with his ethics and values. He founded the Law Advisory Board for the School of Law at Manav Rachna University, inaugurated the Ratan Lal Lahoti Library of Law, and instituted the Ratan Lal Lahoti Gold Medal, all of which serve as a source of academic motivation and a matter of pride for the students of law at the University. President, Manav Rachna Educational Institutions & Chancellor Manav Rachna University, Dr. Prashant Bhalla shared his sentiments while addressing the August gathering. It is a historical moment for the School of Law at Manav Rachna University - the inauguration of a lecture series that commemorates one of the most celebrated legal luminaries of the country. The series will prove to be a fantastic opportunity for learning and I urge all the law students to absorb as much as they can from this platform to use it for the greater good. Dr. Archana Mantri, daughter of Hon'ble (late) Justice RC Lahoti offered heartfelt reflections on the profound legacy associated with her esteemed father. With deep reverence and fondness, she illuminated the profound impact Justice Lahoti had not only on the legal realm but also on the broader landscape of education and societal development. Justice Lahoti had a thirst for learning about different subjects, especially technology which he believed would be a game changer for the field of law. Every single day he approached his work with a divine purpose and lived a life of integrity, empathy and lifelong dedication to truth and discipline she said. Justice UU Lalit presented reflections on the Judicial discourse of Hon'ble Justice RC Lahoti and said, There's no denying that Justice Lahoti was an institution unto himself. His courtroom interactions were not just about imparting justice but also about establishing precedents which will be applicable and acceptable to the entire community for years to come. Justice Lalit's lecture on Justice Lahoti's journey, elucidating selected judgments that transcended into law, underscored the acuity of his judicial legacy. In his Presidential Address, the venerable Sh. Ramnath Kovind, Former President of India, recalled fond encounters with Justice Lahoti, highlighting his noble soul and profound impact. Talking about Justice RC Lahoti, he said Seldom do we come across persons, such as Justice Lahoti, who is known for his commitment towards judicial independence, integrity, deep humility in expressing his views and in upholding the rule of law. He showed a deep sense of tolerance and dignity that all of us could practice in our daily lives. The 14th President of India lauded MRU's School of Law for honoring such a luminary and urged the students to be life-long learners. As an advocate of giving back to society, he impelled present and future lawyers to provide pro-bono legal services and experience the personal satisfaction that comes with it. The inaugural lecture of Justice RC Lahoti Memorial Lecture Series symbolizes Manav Rachna's commitment to upholding Justice Lahoti's ideals and values. The event came to a close with Dr. Kanu Priya, Dean, School of Law, MRU proposing a vote of thanks. The presence of the Lahoti family added a layer of significance for the audience which primarily comprised dignitaries from the law fraternity, members of the bar & bench, lawyers, advocates, and students of law. Honorable Justice RC Lahoti, the 35th Chief Justice of India left an indelible mark on the legal landscape. Revered for his strength of thought, dedication to duty, and contributions to the legal services, ADR systems, and access to justice, Justice Lahoti's legacy continues to inspire generations. Disclaimer: This article is a promotional feature and does not have journalistic/editorial involvement of Hindustan Times. Melinda French Gates, the billionaire ex-wife of Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, announced on Monday that she is stepping down from her role as co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. She said that she will receive 12.5 billion dollars to use for her own charitable purposes as part of her agreement with her ex-husband. Philanthropist and co-founder of Microsoft, Bill Gates and his ex-wife Melinda French Gates.(Reuters) In a statement, Melinda said that her last day of work at the foundation will be June 7. "This is not a decision I came to lightly. I am immensely proud of the foundation that Bill and I built together and of the extraordinary work," Melinda Gates said in a statement. "I care deeply about the foundation team, our partners around the world, and everyone who is touched by its work. She added that she is taking the decision with full confidence as the foundation remains strong under CEO Mark Suzman, the executive leadership team and an experienced board of trustees. I am taking this step with full confidence that the foundation is in strong shape, with its extremely capable CEO Mark Suzman, the Executive Leadership Team, and an experienced board of trustees in place to ensure all its important work continues. The time is right for me to move forward into the next chapter of my philanthropy, she wrote. Melinda further said that it is a critical moment for women and girls in the US and around the world -- and those fighting to protect and advance equality are in urgent need of support. Also Read | Is Bill Gates planning to sell pair of yachts after dropping to lowest billionaire rank in decades? Under the terms of my agreement with Bill, in leaving the foundation, I will have an additional $12.5 billion to commit to my work on behalf of women and families. Ill be sharing more about what that will look like in the near future, she wrote. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is a non-profit fighting poverty, disease, and inequity around the world. It was launched in 2000 and is considered to be one of the biggest charitable foundations in the world. Melinda French Gates parted her ways with Bill Gates after 27 years of marriage. The couple's divorce was officially formalised nearly three months after announcing their separation in August 2021. Thank Melinda for her critical contributions, says Bill Gates In a separate statement on Monday, Bill Gates thanked Melinda for her critical contributions to the Gates Foundation from its very beginning. He said that Melinda has been instrumental in shaping the foundations' strategies and initiatives, significantly impacting global health and gender equality. Looking ahead, I remain fully committed to the Foundations work across all our strategies, and to realizing the opportunities we have to continue improving the lives of millions around the world, Bill Gates wrote in statement. I am sorry to see Melinda leave, but I am sure she will have a huge impact in her future philanthropic work. He added: Our foundation team is incredibly strong and deeply passionate about our work, and under the leadership of Mark Suzman, and a committed board of trustees, I am confident we will keep making substantial progress on our mission to create a world where every person can live a healthy, productive life. Tata Motors share price: Tata Motors witnessed a major decline in its shares, plummeting around 9 per cent, following disappointing March quarter earnings that failed to impress investors. Tata Motors(Reuters File Photo) Tata Motors share prices The 30-share BSE Sensex was down by 161 points at 72,504, while the NSE Nifty was quoted 35 points lower at 22,022. Tata Motors was worst performer among both BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty firms. Tata Motors experienced a sharp decline of 8.27 per cent to 960 per share on the BSE, while on the NSE, it plummeted by 8.23 per cent to 960.5 per share. The company's market capitalisation suffered a significant blow, plummeting by around 29,950 crore to 3,17,998 crore. ALSO READ- Sensex slumps 570 points at 72,090 in early trade; Nifty drops by 155 points at 21,900 Tata Motors Q4 results Tata Motors reported over three-fold surge in consolidated net profit at 17,528.59 crore in Q4 FY24, propelled by moderate performance across its auto businesses, notably Jaguar Land Rover. Consolidated net profit jumped from 5,496.04 crore in the same quarter of the previous fiscal to 17,528.59 crore, as disclosed by Tata Motors in a regulatory filing. Total consolidated revenue from operations rised to 1,19,986.31 crore in Q4 FY24, up from 1,05,932.35 crore in the corresponding period last year. ALSO READ- India saved $25 billion by importing Russian crude oil: Ministry data Jaguar shows weak sales outlook The company anticipates stagnant or marginal decline in sales volumes for its commercial vehicles for the financial year ending March 2025. Meanwhile, Jaguar's order book contracted to 133,000 units as of March 31, down from 148,000 units at the end of December. ALSO READ- Bhavish Aggarwal vs LinkedIn: Ola to switch from Microsoft Azure to its own Krutrim Cloud Sensex, Nifty performance JSW Steel, Tata Steel, NTPC, State Bank of India, Power Grid and Mahindra & Mahindra were the other major laggards. Sun Pharma was the lone gainer from the pack. The Chandigarh region stood seventh in the country with a pass percentage of 91.09% in the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) Class 12 exam result on Monday. Students celebrating after the CBSE Class 12 results were declared in Amritsar on Monday. (Sameer Sehgal/HT) The pass percentage of Chandigarh region, comprising Chandigarh, Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, registered a dip as compared to last years 91.84%. The region was fifth in the country last year. The Panchkula region, comprising Haryana and Himachal Pradesh, was ranked eighth in the country with a pass percentage of 90.26%. There was an improvement in the result as compared to last years pass percentage of 86.93%. The region was ranked ninth last year. More than 16.21 lakh students appeared for the Class 12 exam this time. Of the 16 CBSE regions, the Trivandrum region recorded the highest pass percentage at 99.91%, while the Prayagraj region reported the lowest at 78.25%. Of the 1.2 lakh students who appeared in the Chandigarh region, 1.09 lakh passed, while in the Panchkula region, 1.36 lakh of the 1.51 lakh students cleared the board exam. In both regions, girls performed better than boys even this year in terms of pass percentage. J&K shines, Ladakh slips Jammu and Kashmir emerged as the best performer in the Chandigarh region with a pass percentage of 94.45%. A total of 8,797 students had taken the exams in J&K. Punjab, where 89,326 appeared in the exam, was second with a pass percentage of 91.94%. Chandigarh came next with 90.24% of the 20,156 students clearing the exam. Ladakh was the worst performer with only 53.01% of the 2,307 students who appeared, clearing it. Last year, Ladakh was the best performer in Chandigarh region with a pass percentage of 95.32% when 577 students had taken the exam. In Panchkula region, Himachal Pradesh, with a pass percentage of 94.53%, outperformed Haryana that scored 89.94%. A total of 10,533 students appeared in the exam this year, while 1,40,812 students appeared in Haryana. Navodayas best in Panchkula region With a 99.66 pass percentage, Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNVs) excelled in Panchkula region, while the pass percentage in JNVs in Chandigarh region was 98.48%. The pass percentage for Kendriya Vidyalayas (KV) in the Chandigarh region was 99.23%, while in the Panchkula region it was 99.42%. The pass percentage of government schools in Chandigarh was 85.09%, while for government-aided institutions it was 90.62%. For independent institutes, it was 91.70%. In Panchkula region, the pass percentage of government schools was 73.03%, while for independent students, it was 92.24%. The pass percentage for Central Tibetan School Administration (CTSA) was 100%. RESULT SNAPSHOT (PASS PERCENTAGE) State/UT Total Boys Girls Ladakh 53.01 51.08 54.05 J&K 94.45 92.67 96.79 Himachal Pradesh 94.53 92.95 96.41 Punjab 91.94 89.32 94.92 Haryana 89.94 87.16 93.69 Chandigarh 90.24 87.99 92.80 NEW DELHI: The Delhi high court on Monday rejected a petition that sought action against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for allegedly delivering communally divisive speeches in violation of the model code of conduct during the Lok Sabha election campaign, holding that the court could not micromanage the Election Commission of India (ECI) which was yet to conclude proceedings in the case. The petition complained that ECI failed to take any effective action for violation of the code of conduct (HT File Photo) I cannot micromanage the ECI as to how they deal with the situation. They (ECI) have not yet concluded the proceedings. They (ECI) are in the middle of dealing with it.. a statement is being made and they will take further action.. We cannot presume that they will not do what they.. a bench of justice Sachin Datta told lawyer Nizam Pasha who appeared for the three petitioners, Shaheen Abdulla, Amitabh Pande and Deb Mukherjee. The petition complained that ECI failed to take any effective action for violation of the code of conduct despite many complaints against PM Modi by several persons including Abdullah. On April 25, the ECI issued a notice to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president JP Nadda following a speech by PM Modi at an election rally in Rajasthan on on April 21 that the Congress intended to redistribute public wealth to Muslims. Opposition leaders targeted Modi over the comments. Kharge called the remarks hate speech, and said that Modi had lowered the dignity of political discourse. The petition said the ECI hadnt even issued notice to PM Modi but the BJP president for the alleged hate speech and that such inaction impeded free and fair polls. The petitioners said the election watchdog was only acting against leaders of other political parties for hate speeches and had gagged former Telangana chief minister and BRS chief K Chandrashekhar Rao for 48 hours earlier this month. Lawyer Suruchi Suri, appeariing for ECI, said the poll panel issued notice to the BJP president on April 25 and expected a reply from the ruling party by May 15. She asserted that ECI will after receipt of the reply act according to the law and recalled the ECI advisory to all parties warning them of stern action for direct and indirect poll code violations. The bench underlined that the ECI had acted on the complaints and was yet to take a final decision. This court is of the view that at this stage, the petition is misconceived. ECI can take an independent view on the complaint of the petitioner in accordance with the law. There is no merit in the petition. The same is accordingly dismissed, justice Datta said. The high court also dismissed a plea last month that sought PM Modis disqualification for six years for allegedly seeking votes in the name of god and place of worship during his speech at Pilibhit, Uttar Pradesh, holding that the petition was thoroughly misconceived since the court was approached before the ECI decided the case. New Delhi, The Delhi Police team probing the recent brutal murder of an elderly doctor in southeast Delhi have identified house help who had been working with his family for 24 years as the main conspirator. HT Image The police said they have arrested the house help, Basanti, and her aides Akash Joshi and Himanshu in connection with the murder. Basanti, who is in her early sixties, had beforehand shown her associates the inside of the house through video calls using a messenger application for smooth execution of the crime, the police said. Yogesh Chandra Paul, a 63-year-old physician, was found dead in his home in Jangpura Extention on May 10. According to police, the accused beat up Paul, gagged him and tied him to a chair. They dragged the chair with Paul tied to it to the kitchen where they hit him on the head with a blunt object and strangulated him with a dog leash. The accused had locked Paul's two dogs in the bathroom. They then ransacked the house before fleeing, the police said. Deputy Commissioner of Police Rajesh Deo said, "Basanti, who is the mastermind of this murder, used to video call her associates to show them the inside of the house. Her aides already knew how the house of the doctor looked from inside and where they could execute their plan," The DCP asserted that the identity verification of domestic helps is an important step for everyone. The police said the family members of Paul never suspected Basanti as she had been working with their family for the last 24 years. While Basanti and two of her aides have been arrested, hunt for at least five others is underway in connection with the doctor's murder, they said. "Basanti's friend Varsha, Bheem, Vishwaroop Sai and two Nepal citizens are still on the run and we are suspecting that they have managed to cross the Nepal border. We have formed different teams who are working round the clock and the rest of the accused will be arrested soon," Deo said. Describing the incident, the DCP said, "After his wife first noticed the body in kitchen, she informed the police about the matter and teams reached the spot. We checked the CCTV footage and later got to know that six people came out of his house in batches of two." "After the incident, Basanti was missing and our team arrested her first, She broke down during interrogation and revealed the entire matter," he said. The officer further said that the doctor left from his clinic and reached his home around 1.40 pm on Friday. "CCTV footage confirmed that he was trailed by two people who also entered the house and later four more people in two different groups. Investigation revealed that the suspects stayed in a hotel in Delhi. They were carrying out reccee of the area from May 5 and killed the doctor on May 10. Our teams are working round the clock and rest of the accused will be arrested soon," said the DCP. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. Sun sets every evening in Connaught Place (CP). But the sun refuses to set in CPs Sunny Guest House. More than fifty years old, the upper-floor lodge is a lesser-known but lasting CP institution, continuing to survive even as many places of its kind have shut shop in the colonial-era district. It found a honourable mention in the third edition of Lonely Planet India (1993), then titled India: A Survival Kit. The Sunny Guest House is more than fifty years old. The upper-floor lodge is a lesser-known but lasting CP institution. (HT Photo) The longtime landmark has its own longtime living landmarkits room boy, the venerable Murari Lal (real name: Brij Lal). In his 60s, he has been with the guest house since 1985. I had come to Delhi from Moradabad in search of work, found a job in a garment export factory in Okhla, later I landed here, he says, with chin up, arms crossed. This afternoon, Murari Lal (see photo) is standing by the reception desk, being manned by the guest houses new manager Rishabh. This young man with a tattooed arm remarks that all the nine rooms are currently occupied. Murali Lal notes that earlier most guests used to be foreign backpackers. The guest house is quiet, the only sound is the deep whirring of the staircases air cooler. The staircase winds down into the lane outside through a discreetly positioned door, beside which a fading painted text warns of touts and misleading information. Much has altered in the CP side-lane outside the guest house. Many similar guest houses shut down one by one. Murali Lal lists some of the names, taking time to dig each out from his memory: Asian Guest House, Gandhi Guest House, Ringo Guest House, Sona Rupa Guest House. Ringo enjoyed a cult status among the foreign backpackers in the 1980s and 90s; sleeping on a rooftop charpoy used to cost 40 rupees. Illustrating the duties of a room boy, Murari Lal explains the typical tasks of a hotel housekeepermaking the bed, replenishing the supplies etc. The elderly man confirms he has remained a room boy through the years. This job has provided dal-roti to me and my family for many years. Soon the sun will start to set, and Sunnys room boy will board bus no. 602 for his home in Vasant Vihar. At a time when students are celebrating their success in the CBSE examination, but the mood of three meritorious students of St Anjanis Public School may best be described as sombre. For representation only (HT File Photo) These students passed the Board exam with flying colours, but all three lost their mother a few months before the Board examination. Zainab Fatima studied Commerce in Class 12 and passed the examination (commerce stream) with 95%. Teena Badlani scored 86% and Ameera Siddiqui 82%. Zainab lost her mother in October 2022 due to a heart attack. Missing her a lot, she said. Teenas mother passed away when she was in Class 11. Same was the case with Ameera Siddiqui. Mohd Aun of XII Humanities, a Thalassemia major patient, underwent blood transfusion every month at SGPGI but scored 75% despite debilitating weakness and failing health. Extremely talented, he won first prize in Nutri Fest competition in Home Science. Shiv Pratap Singh 75%, Shivanki Singh 66%, Mayank Shree 71%, Maitri Srivastav 75%, all lost their fathers during the Covid-19 waves, crashing their family fortunes, but the school created a fund for their fee, uniform, books, stationery and emotional support, so that they felt the whole school was rooting for them. Aman Prajapati, 76%, had lost both his parents and lives with his grandfather. He feels happiest in school. Manager Taru Saxena added that each childs problem became ours and the school was their home. They sat and studied in the school library instead of going home when preparation leave was declared as they felt safer and at ease in school. A student of Class 8 in Gonda reported her impending marriage to field officers and activists in the district, saving herself from child marriage. The girl was subsequently rescued by an anti-human trafficking unit and childline team, following which she was enrolled back in school. For representation only (HT File Photo) On account of the wedding season and Akshaya Tritiya falling around the same time, child marriages in rural parts tend to see a spike at this time of year, activating government field officers and NGOs. Knowing this, the girl, Suman Yadav (name changed) waited for field workers from child rights organisations to come towards her house, which was being decorated for her wedding, to be held in a few weeks. The girl was discovered and rescued with the help of district level workers of the Aparajita Samajik Samiti, a state level child rights advocacy organisation. This ground level survey is part of the Child Marriage Free India campaign which spans across 161 non-profit organisations across the country. Despite the insistence of family members that she was an adult, with her mother providing a fake Aadhar card claiming that Suman was 18 years old, the girl told the officers that she did not want to get married and was being forced and pleaded for help. The NGO tasked with this case verified the documents with the girls school and found that the Aadhar card was fake, and that the child had been pulled out of school to be married, much like her older sister two years ago. The case was then brought before the Child Welfare Committee, who counselled the girl and her family, also starting the process of getting Suman enrolled in Class 9 in her school. As per procedure, the CWC and the field officers will be following up with the family after a month, to ensure compliance with the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act. According to Gonda CWC, if the family is found to be flouting the law, they will recommend to the police to take punitive action. In the gruesome murders in Sitapur district, police detained the younger brother of the deceased, Ajit Singh, for interrogation, on Monday. For representation only (HT File Photo) Cops also took Ajit to the crime scene as part of the investigation. The Sitapur police took the step after Ankit Singh, brother of the deceased woman, Priyanka Singh, questioned the police theory that blamed Anurag Singh for the six murders. Six people were found dead at their residence in Sitapur village in the wee hours of Saturday. The deceased were identified as Anurag Singh, 45, his wife, Priyanka Singh, 40, mother Savitri Singh, 62, and three children Aarna, 12, Aadvik, 8 and Aarvi, 7. Claiming to have solved the murder mystery, the district police chief of Sitapur had claimed on Sunday that Anurag Singh, 45, had shot himself dead after killing his mother, wife and three children, aged between 7 and 12 years, in a Sitapur village early on Saturday morning, apparently in a fit of rage after a confrontation with family members on Friday night. Cops had also stated the mans younger brother survived as he locked himself in a room after sensing trouble. The post-mortem examination report of all the six deceased raised a question mark on the murder theory of the police, said Ankit Singh. Anurag used to do organic farming on 100 bigha land of which he owned 45 bigha. He had taken 55 bigha on lease, while his wife Priyanka Singh worked in an insurance firm in Lucknow and had returned to the village along with her children on Friday. Three suspected Maoists, including two women, were killed in an encounter with security forces in a forest area in Maharashtras Gadchiroli district, bordering Bastar region of Chhattisgarh, on Monday, police said. Police said the Maoists opened fire on the commandos indiscriminately, prompting the security personnel to retaliate. (Representative Image) The Superintendent of Police (SP), Neelotpal, said that based on intelligence indicating the presence of members of the banned CPI (Maoist) group, specifically the Perimili Dalam, planning their Tactical Counter Offensive Campaign (TCOC), two units of C-60 commandos, led by additional SP, Yatish Deshmukh, were dispatched immediately for a search operation in the forests near Katarangatta village under Bhamragarh tehsil on Monday morning. During the search operation, the left-wing extremists, who were camping there, opened fire on the commandos indiscriminately, prompting the C-60 personnel to retaliate. The commandos engaged in an hour-long exchange of gunfire, resulting in the militants fleeing and leaving behind the bodies of one male and two female Maoists. The slain Maoists were later identified by police as Vasu Samar Korcha (36), a senior leader of CPI (Maoist) and the in-charge-cum commander of the Perimili Dalam of Gadchiroli district, Reshma Madkam (25), a senior squad member and Kamla Madavi (24), a dalam member of Perimilli Dalam. Of them, Vasu, who was involved in several anti-police operations in the region, carried a reward of 16 lakh on his head while Reshma carried reward of 4 lakh and Kamla carried a bounty of 2 lakh. Their bodies were later sent to the government-run general hospital at Gadchiroli for postmortem. The security forces also recovered a significant cache of weapons from the site, including an AK-47 rifle, a carbine, an INSAS rifle and Maoist literature. The two female Maoists, who were killed in the encounter, are yet to be identified. Neelotpal confirmed that the anti-Maoist operation was on-going in the district, highlighting the strategic significance of the TCOC period for the CPI (Maoist). This operation marks a significant achievement for the Gadchiroli police, particularly in light of recent encounters in the neighbouring Bastar region of Chhattisgarh. Earlier, four suspected Maoists, carrying a collective bounty of 36-lakh, were killed in an encounter with police near Repanpalli in Gadchiroli district on March 19 this year. At least eight people died and dozens were injured after a towering hoarding advertised alongside a petrol pump in Mumbai collapsed amid rain and gutsy winds. The incident occurred at around 4.30 pm near Chheda Nagar Gymkhana in the Ghatkopar area when the weather in the city suddenly changed with dust storm and rain. Rescue operation underway at Ghatkopar petrol pump after the billboard fell amid dust storm and gutsy wind in Mumbai. (HT Photo by Anshuman Poyrekar.) Over 100 people were initially trapped after the 100-foot-tall illegal billboard fell on the petrol pump, triggering a search and rescue operation. An NDRF (National Disaster Response Force) team joined the rescue operation, said Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani. Gagrani told HT that the hoarding was illegal as the BMC had not given permission (for erecting it). The hoarding that crashed in Ghatkopar was illegal as it did not have a licence. We will check licences of all hoardings in Mumbai and if they don't have licences, they will be considered illegal. Read: Mumbai airport operations disrupted due to rain, 15 flights diverted Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said 57 individuals have been rescued and rushed to Rajawadi Hospital for urgent medical attention. I have asked the municipal commissioner to conduct a special audit of all hoardings in Mumbai and take action against those responsible for illegal hoardings, Shinde said. The chief minister also announced initial compensation of 5 lakh for the kin of the deceased. The government will also bear the treatment cost of the injured, he added. Read: Terrifying Mumbai dust storm video shows massive scaffolding falling: Gaya bhai, gaya Gangrani earlier told media persons that cranes and (gas) cutters reached the spot for rescue operation. "The location where the incident occurred has four hoardings set up on the railway land and one of them has collapsed. The BMC had been objecting to (setting up) hoardings for one year," the civic chief said. The Central Railway, however, said that the hoarding was not on Railway land and not in any way related to Indian Railways. An official said the civic body doesn't permit any hoarding measuring above 40 x 40 feet. He said the Mumbai civic body lodged an FIR on May 19, 2023, in connection with the poisoning of eight trees at the location near Chheda Nagar junction to increase the visibility of the concerned hoarding. "We had repeatedly raised the issue for action," he claimed and added that the Licence Department of the BMC had also issued a notice. With inputs from agencies MUMBAI: Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray has declared that he will never align with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), saying they were treacherous and would lose the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray during an election meeting in Anushakti Nagar in Mumbai (HT Photo/Bachchan Kumar) Thackerays assertion comes days after PM Modi advised the Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (SP) and the Shiv Sena (UBT) to join hands with Ajit Pawar and Eknath Shinde, instead of dying by merging with the Congress. In an interview with the partys mouthpiece, Saamana, Thackeray said PM Modi and the (Union home minister Amit Shah) Shah harbour a grudge against Maharashtra, which is why they have shifted institutions and investment projects to other states. However, Modis dictatorial regime will end after these Lok Sabha elections, and thats my guarantee. The INDIA alliance will form the government at the centre, and after that, I will ensure that Maharashtra regains its past glory. Also Read: No anti-incumbency against Modi government, says Devendra Fadnavis Thackeray also claimed that the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) will come to power when elections to the Maharashtra assembly are held later this year. We will then order probes into corruption cases, including scams in the BMC (Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation) and the misuse of funds by breaking the fixed deposits of the BMC. As reported by HT, the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader also said Maharashtra had a big role in Modis ascent to power as over 40 MPs were elected from the state. But they turned out to be traitors, he said. Terming the Modi government as Ghajini sarkar, he said what was promised in 2014 was forgotten in 2019 and what was promised in 2019 was forgotten now. People have been fooled twice. One can fool some of the people some time, but not all the people all the time, he said, adding that people had begun to see through tall claims of the government. TN 11th Result 2024: The Directorate of Government Examinations (DGE) Tamil Nadu has declared Class 11th or HSE +1 final results . Students can check their scores on the following websites - TN 11th Result 2024: TANDGE Tamil Nadu HSE +1 result out(HT file) tnresults.nic.in dge.tn.gov.in results.digilocker.gov.in. Direct link The following login credentials will be required to check the Tamil Nadu Class 11th results- Registration number Date of birth. The TNDGE has informed that students can check the Tamil Nadu Plus One results from the National Informatics Centres at District Collector's offices and central branch libraries of districts for free. How to check TN 11th +1 result 2024 Go to tnresults.nic.in or dge.tn.gov.in. Open the Class 11 or HSE (+1) result link, as required. Provide your registration number and date of birth. Check and download the TN Plus One result. The TNDGE further said that the Class 11th results will be shared with schools. Students will also get their marks via SMS on their registered mobile numbers, it added. Recently, the board announced Tamil Nadu SSLC and +2 results. In Class 12, 7,60,606 students took the exam and 7,19,196 passed. The overall pass percentage in Class 12 was 94.56 per cent. In Class 10, the pass percentage was 91.55 per cent. COMEDK UGET 2024 Answer Key: The Consortium of Medical, Engineering and Dental Colleges of Karnataka (COMEDK) conducted the Under Graduate Entrance Test 2024 (UGET 2024) on Sunday, May 12 and next, it will release the provisional answer key of the test. Candidates who took the entrance examination can download the answer key from comedk.org when it is released. COMEDK UGET 2024 answer key awaited on comedk.org(Shutterstock) Originally, COMEDK planned to hold the UGET in two shifts but later revised its decision and allowed three shifts morning session from 8.30 am to 11.30 am, afternoon session from 1 pm to 4 pm and evening session - 5.30 pm to 8.30 pm. In the notification, the consortium informed that due to the General Elections, there has been a shortage of the test centers with good computer systems and infrastructure and therefore, it was not possible to hold the exam in two sessions. With the exam now over, the COMEDK UGET answer key will be published next. The consortium will provide a window during which candidates can raise objections to the provisional key, if any. Candidates' feedback will be reviewed, and if it is found valid, it will be considered while preparing the final answer key. How to check COMEDK UGET answer key Bringing alive the action-based storyline of high school troublemakers, the Wind Breaker series is an anime adaptation based on Satoru Nii's manga, which is serialised in Kodansha's Magazine Pocket publication. Announced as part of the spring anime lineup, the TV series premiere launched on April 5 and is directed by Toshifumi Akai, with animation studio CloverWorks supporting the project. Key Visual for Wind Breaker anime.(CloverWorks) Crunchyroll describes the series as: Welcome to Furin High School, an institution infamous for its population of brawny brutes who solve every conflict with a show of strength. Some of the students even formed a group, Bofurin, which protects the town. Haruka Sakura, a first-year student who moved in from out of town, is only interested in one thing: fighting his way to the top. Anime fans who've warmed up to the narrative of the hit series Tokyo Revengers may find themselves drawn to this show as well. Wind Breaker is officially slated to have a 13-episode run. Also read | Mushoku Tensei Season 2's Labyrinth Arc teased in new trailer; Episode 19 revised release date and more revealed Wind Breaker Episode 7 Release date According to several media sources, the next Wind Breaker episode will air in Japan on Friday, May 17, 2024, at 12:26 am JST. Where to watch Wind Breaker Episode 7? After local Japanese TV networks broadcast the episode, international audiences may rely on Crunchyroll to watch the episode. Global audiences may refer to the following estimated release schedule for its eventual Crunchyroll premiere: Also read | My Hero Academia Season 7 Episode 3: Exact release date, where to watch and more Pacific Daylight Time: Thursday, May 16, at 8:26 am Eastern Daylight Time: Thursday, May 16, at 11:26 am Central European Summer Time: Thursday, May 16, at 5:26 pm Indian Standard Time: Thursday, May 16, at 8:56 pm Australian Central Standard Time: Friday, May 17, at 12:56 am Wind Breaker Episode 6 Recap Episode 6, titled Vow to Follow, captured the essence of the disagreeing terms of Tom Hiragi and Kota Sako's dynamic. Their heated scuffle allows for flashbacks to build on their shared history and what ultimately resulted in their fractured ties. Alia shares pic from Mother's Day celebrations In the photo, the family sat on the balcony, which was decorated with lights. Alia sat between Soni and Neetu Kapoor, and Shaheen and Ranbir were seen sitting next to their mothers. All of them smiled for the camera. Neetu was seen holding a cute umbrella. Mother's Day bash theme was white The family wore white outfits--Alia was seen in a shirt dress while Ranbir opted for a sleeveless T-shirt and black pants. Neetu was seen in a white shirt and matching trousers. Soni Razdan and Shaheen, too, opted for white outfits. Sharing the picture, Alia worte, "Precious moments with my precious ones (white heart emoji) #happymothersday (sun, balloon and upside-down face emoji)." Alia recently returned from Met Gala Alia recently attended the 2024 Met Gala in New York, leaving her family awestruck with her look. Neetu took to her Instagram stories and re-shared Alia's Met Gala post with the caption, "You are fabulous." Soni posted a video of Alia's interview at the Met Gala on her Instagram stories. She captioned it, "My baby girl making everybody proud." Re-sharing Alia's latest post on her Insta stories, Soni wrote, "I can't stop swooning what to do." Alia's sister Shaheen Bhatt commented on one of Alia's posts, "My fairy." Alia's upcoming films Alia will be seen in Jigra along with Vedang Raina. Helmed by Vasan Bala, Jigra will be co-produced by Alia and Karan Johar. The film is all set to hit the theatres on September 27, 2024. She is also set to play the lead in a Spy Universe film, with filming scheduled to kick off later this year. Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor's first public appearance with their blue-eyed daughter Raha Kapoor broke the internet in December 2023. In a new interview with mother-actor Soni Razdan for The Nod, Alia was asked, now that she's a mom herself, is there anything she would do differently in terms of parenting, compared to her own parents, Soni and Mahesh Bhatt. Also read: Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt finally reveal Raha's face to the world Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt's first public appearance with their daughter Raha in December 2023. The actors gave a special Christmas gift to fans as they finally revealed their one-year-old daughter's face and posed with her for the paparazzi. (File Photo/AFP) I left home too soon Alia said, "The only thing that Id do differently is to make sure Raha takes a liking to an art. That she learns at least one instrument, one dance form, and one sport, because these three skills will be very helpful for her in the long run. I know there is no right or wrong to this, but you left it up to me to decide what I like. I want to start Raha young, so she takes a liking to it. My only regret is not knowing how to play an instrument." The actor also spoke about leaving home 'too soon' and why she would not let Raha do the same. Alia lived with sister Shaheen Bhatt for years before moving in with now-husband Ranbir Kapoor and living at their Bandra apartment, Vastu. She added, "I was barely 23 when I moved out of the house. Id be away on long shooting schedules, and sometimes you wouldnt even know which city I was in. Now when I look back, Im like, wow, it was very cool of you to let me do that so early on because that actually helped me come into my own. Papa recently told me: 'If you don't let Raha fall down, it will be the biggest mistake youll make because shell never learn how to pick herself up'. So that was a defining point in my life and our relationship. But I do feel I left home too soon and I wont let that happen with Raha." Raha's first public appearance During Ranbir Kapoor and his extended family's annual Christmas lunch last year, Raha made her first public appearance with her parents. Dressed in a white and pink outfit and tiny red shoes, little Raha stole hearts as Ranbir held her, while facing the media for the first time. Alia stood next to them, looking at the father-daughter duo. Actor Dia Mirza has spoken about her stepdaughter Samaira Rekhi and that she doesn't call her "maa (mother)". In an interview with News18, Dia also shared that Samaira calls her by her name, and even her son Avyaan does the same. (Also Read | Dia Mirza wishes Samaira on birthday, shares pic as stepdaughter rests on her lap) Dia Mirza poses with her stepdaughter Samaira Rekhi. Dia talks about Samaira Speaking about Samaira, Dia said, She hasnt called me maa. There is no expectations from her to call me maa, mumma or mother. She has a mother who she calls mumma or mom. She calls me Dia,'. Thanks to her, now Avyaan also calls me Dia once in a while. He says Dia mom, its too funny. Who is Samaira Dia married businessman Vaibhav Rekhi in an intimate ceremony in Mumbai in 2021. On May 14, 2021, they welcomed a baby boy, Avyaan. Samaira is the daughter of Vaibhav from his first wife, Sunaina. Dia's posts for Samaira On Mother's Day, Dia posted pictures of Samaira and Avyaan on Instagram. In the photos, Avyaan sat on Samaira's lap and played as she smiled. Dia wrote, "The greatest privilege of my life is being your mother. You make me whole, Samaira and Avyaan." In March, Dia penned a special birthday wish for Samaira. Taking to Instagram, Dia shared a series of pictures with Samaira. She captioned the post, "Happy 15th Birthday baby girl. I carry your heart in my heart forever." Twinning in white, Dia and Samaira posed together for a selfie. In another image, Dia, Samaira, and Avyaan took a nap in the back seat of a car. Dia's recent film Fans saw Dia last in the road drama Dhak Dhak alongside Ratna Pathak Shah, Fatima Sana Shaikh, and Sanjana Sanghi. Helmed by Tarun Dudeja, the film belongs to the adventure genre and depicts a road trip by a girl gang, defying trappings, conventions and stigma. Like many famous women, Esha Gupta decided to take matters into her own hands when it came to her fertility and motherhood. In a new interview with ETimes, Esha opened up about freezing her eggs. The actor also spoke about love, marriage and having children with her boyfriend, Spanish-entrepreneur Manuel Campos Guallar. Also read: Priyanka Chopra says she froze her eggs during Quantico shoot, took injections for over a month Esha Gupta froze her eggs in 2017, when she was single. I was very smart She said, I did my freezing in 2017, before I met Manuel. I was very smart. I was single for almost 3 and half years before I met Manuel (in 2019). I met him by chance, not even in his country or my country. Since then we both knew that we were getting into a relationship and not dating. You're not at that age to date. We were very clear that if it goes well, our end goal is marriage. We want to get married; we want to have kids. I've always loved babies a lot. Manuel knows that; he's ready (to be a father), and he's prepared. 'I just want to marry him because of kids' The actor said, "I did the freezing at that time when in India it was really expensive. But I was certain that when it comes to health anything. These (the eggs) are my kids. I'd rather freeze them when I'm healthy. If I weren't an actor, I would have already had three kids by now for sure, I've always wanted kids, so I think I would have had three... he (Manuel) is okay with surrogacy which many might have a problem with. He is even okay with adoption something I told him that we might. So, I'm not stressed when we get married... I keep telling Manuel, I want the baby to have his eyes and my skin colour. I just want to marry him because of kids..." It was Esha's aunt that suggested the actor, who made her acting debut with the crime thriller Jannat 2 (2012), freeze her eggs when she is healthy. Esha further said that when she and Manuel marry, they will have children either via 'IVF or surrogacy depending on when they get married and what her body is going through'. The two have been together for almost five years now. Julia Fox has made a major revelation! The Italian-American sweetheart sparked a conversation online after revealing a surprising detail about her personal life. In a recent social media update, Fox disclosed that she's been celibate for the past two and a half years, responding to a bold and big Billboard message of Bumble. Italian-US actress Julia Fox attends the Vanity Fair Oscars Party at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Beverly Hills, California, on March 10, 2024. (Photo by Michael TRAN / AFP)(AFP) Julia Fox opens up about 2-Year Celibacy Celibacy is the practice of abstaining from sexual activities or remaining unmarried. Not a common one to see in Tinsel Town though! However, the Uncut Gems actress revealed that she has been practising celibacy for over two years and is thoroughly enjoying it. Bumble, the popular dating app as part of its ad campaign put on a giant Billboard in the city that read, A vow of celibacy is not the answer. Also read: Halle Berry's beau Van Hunt shares her bare body images with cheeky Mother's Day message, 'I wasn't supposed to... In response to the message, the 34-year-old actress wrote, "2.5 years of celibacy and never been better tbh." Her statement surprised many, leading to congratulations and discussions about finding inner peace. Numerous people reacted by congratulating Fox and sharing their own choices regarding abstaining from sex. Gosh, [as] if I didnt think you could give me another reason [to] admire you as much as I already do, a person commented on her reply. True that Julia, Ive been celibate for 20 years myself and it gets better each year, another wrote. When Julia Fox opened up about being a former Sex worker Julia's recent social media post attracted attention, particularly because she has previously shared her experience working as a dominatrix. In her memoir, she made personal revelations that were often misunderstood during her early days. Despite being in some of the best-reviewed movies out there, Fox spoke about at how the industry continues to portray sex workers in a negative light. Also read: Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes dominates China and Koreas box office; nets mighty $129 Million Globally In an interview with Q's Tom Power in an interview back in 2023, the actress said, "I remember the first time just being like, 'Oh my God, what do I do? This is so weird.' And then eventually, with practice, it just becomes second nature. It's kind of like an art form, really. But it was a great exercise, just like a mental exercise. It taught me how to act, but it also taught me my worth in a way. And it taught me how to have self-esteem, you know, because to be a dominatrix, you have to be empowered. I didn't want to be faking it, I really wanted to be that. She added. Foxs love life has been the subject of much speculation, especially when it comes to dating Kim Kardashians ex-boyfriend, Kanye West. Reports suggested that Fox dated the rapper in 2022 during his divorce process. However, in an interview with the New York Times, in 2023, Fox revealed that she never slept with Kanye. When asked about details in her memoir, Down the Drain, which details other sexual encounters, she explained the context of those experiences. 50 Cent has been vocally going off about Bad Boy rapper Diddy on his social media since sexual assault allegations against the latter emerged. Fuelling their decades-long feud, the Power producer even alleged that he was up for working out a documentary on the embattled hip-hop figure, titled Diddy Do It? The hip-hop war took an unpleasant turn when Diddy's son, Christian King Combs, dropped his diss track Pick A Side on Sunday, targeting several names and attacking his father. Meek Mill bashes 50 Cent for beefing with Diddy's son, Christian "King" Combs. Hearing the sour words aimed at him, The Massacre album-maker extended his beef with Diddy to his son. However, though away on vacation, Meek Mill quickly noticed what had transpired in this raging war of words. He promptly bashed 50 for beefing with Diddy's son. Hopping on X/Twitter, Mill got personal and dragged 50 for mocking King Combs: "Because your federal the street n***as in Queens know that why you tryna pick on a lil boy your own son hate your guts lol. Im so grateful to be on a island with my son and his friends on his bday .. dont follow these guys they miserable lives be terrible. (This tweet now appears to have been deleted) Also read | 'Diddy' seeks dismissal of Jane Doe's sexual assault lawsuit, claims statute of limitations expired The Philly rapper's post quoted one of 50's previous tweets on the platform, which read: Now why would you say some shit like this when you know the FEDS are investigating. IS YOU STUPID OR IS YOU DUMB? LOL. Mill's rant didn't end there. In several other (now-deleted) tweets, he shared videos of himself blissfully enjoying his son's company during his time away, simultaneously calling out rappers like 50 Cent for online beefing with kids. He accused these certain rappers of holding the culture back fr old hating manipulation. In a different all-caps tirade, Meek questioned the involved parties' motives for calling out each other in the most abrasive ways possible. Tearing yall folks down all yall can do, Mill continued. Meek Mill vs 50 Cent begins Soon after, 50 Cent probably caught heed of the latest developments against him and responded to Mill. Taking a dig at his last project, 50 alleged that it sold only 6,000 copies. Also read | Childish Gambino surprises fans with new album Atavista, announces The New World Tour He wrote online: You sold 6k copies your last project, you should not be on Vacation. Still chasing the dream or embracing the nightmare. Standing by your man, that I respect! Mill didn't stay mum either. He picked up on Cent's words and slammed his claims, stating that his last project sold 90,000 copies. He wrote, My last project sold 90k first week expensive pain Ross did that last cd for fun to let me out my contact cause we rich and have some type of history! Its different lol i dont even know how Cuban was talking to you ya swag is extremely wack! Also addressing 50's claims about standing by Diddy, Mill affirmed that he would back his fellow music industry mates' children because he grew up without a father. Neither of these tweets from Meek Mill can be recovered on X/Twitter anymore. What did 50 Cent say about King Combs? Slamming King Combs, Curtis James previously responded across social media platforms. Posting a picture of the Combs father-son duo, the Power creator shared the same rant on Instagram and X/Twitter. I feel so threatened by the things Christian is saying on his record. Im afraid for my life, please dont hurt me guys. I never mentioned or posted anything about puffys kids because KEEFE D said he killed 2Pac LOL, the In da Club rapper wrote. Jithu Madhavan's Aavesham is a volcanic, unruly beast of a film. It shifts gears, upends any sort of predictions from what can be called a gangster flick, and sets its own pace. At the heart of this unapologetic film about masculinity and the loss of innocence lies the performance of Fahadh Faasil as gangster Ranga. Rowdy, boisterous and eccentric, Ranga owns the room wherever he goes. The actor snatches the film from the very first second he arrives and gives it a thrilling dose of energy and fun. A still from Aavesham, which stars Fahadh Faasil as the gangster Ranga. Fahadh has been terrific in recent years, but nothing can prepare the viewer for the heights he reaches with this eccentric gangster. Aavesham lands mostly because of Fahadh's charismatic performance, but one unavoidable contradiction remains within the context of this great film. One wonders why Aavesham treats the subject of bullying in such a matter-of-fact fashion. Let us take a deep dive. (Also read: Aavesham movie review: Fahadh Faasil makes this gangster comedy outstanding) Aavesham takes shape before Ranga arrives Ever since the release of Aavesham, the film has received widespread acclaim for Fahadh's performance, the script by Jithu Madhavan, and Sushin Shyam's music. The film is also a massive commercial success, having collected over 150 crore so far in its theatrical run. There is no denying Aavesham's impact and the case which makes for its tormented and wounded protagonist Ranga. He is a gangster with a heart of gold, one whose rise to power is fascinatingly told through anecdotes. He commands power but also earns the trust of his gang members. Ranga takes a keen eye on three college students and alters their lives forever. Yet, Aavesham begins with the story of these students first and then finds its way to him. Fahadh Faasil's Ranga first makes his entrance in Aavesham exactly 28 minutes into the film. Until then, the main conflict has already occurred. Aju (Hipzter), Bibi (Mithun Jai Shankar), and Shanthan (Roshan Shahnavaz) are the three students who have enrolled in the Vaana Veekshan College of Engineering in Bengaluru. They decide to live in a hostel outside the campus. Over the next few days, these three boys witness how ragging is a menace inside the campus. One of the first-year students is called by the seniors the next day. He reports back, saying how he was ragged and severely beaten by the seniors. The scene treats him like a scapegoat, passable for a moment of comic relief. Aju takes the matter seriously and tells the other first-year students that they have to stay united as a front whenever they are on campus. Only then they will be able to save themselves from being ragged. This trick works, but unfortunately, only for a day or two. Soon, Shanthan rubs one of the seniors in the wrong way. He is backed by Aju and Bibi in a succeeding confrontation. But to their horror, they realize that this exact senior is Kutty (Midhutty), the dreaded leader of the senior bully gang himself. Later at midnight, Kutty arrives with his entire gang on bikes and takes the three boys to their den. Aju, Bibi and Shanthan are stripped of their clothes and beaten black and blue for the next few days. Ragging exists as a norm in Aavesham These scenes of physical violence are somehow perceived with a tonal indifference in Aavesham. The consequences are no less dangerous here. Aju, Bibi, and Shantan are spared no degree of harassment- both physical and mental. Their heads are banged on the walls, they are kicked in the face and treated worse than animals. The rage in Kutty builds to a saturation point, and he takes a huge stick and beats the three boys more relentlessly. The harassment finally stops. In the next scene, Kutty calls the three boys to sit with his gang and says that from this day onwards, the three will be under his call. A seething Aju is not convinced by this offer. Are the kids really okay? Thus begins the search for 'local support', where Aju, Bibi, and Santhan want to avenge Kutty and his gang with the help of a powerful presence in the locality. Sure enough, Fahadh's Ranga is the answer. The film, from this point, loses its momentum to tell the story of Ranga. So, Aavesham makes the point that to deal with a small bunch of bullies, one has no choice but to call a bigger bully. Be a bully to deal with a bully. There exists no other alternative. It seems to be the only resolution that Aavesham offers, as Ranga and his bunch of men, now give Kutty and his boys a taste of their own medicine. They are beaten in front of the whole college, inside the campus. Throughout the first half of Aavesham, the institutional powers of the college are absent. There is no governing body on campus and no mention of anti-ragging in even one instance. The governing body only makes its presence when the three students fail in all the subjects in the semester. Their parents are informed by the executive board member, and a strict warning is given to the students that they must take the retests and pass all the subjects. Final thoughts Why were the parents not called after the three of them were severely ragged by some of the students on the same campus? Where was this strict action when it came to ensuring that the campus was free of ragging? For all the nuance and layers Aavesham allows for Ranga and his internal helplessness in the second half of Aavesham, there is no such restraint shown towards the issue of ragging and what made Kutty such a spoilt character in the first place. The three boys must suffer at the end of it all. Kutty and his gang continue to operate. By this time, Aavesham has moved on to another bully altogether, in the form of Ranga. Will Ranga ever leave the three boys on their own? One wonders why Aavesham ignores the aspect of ragging so wholly, as if ragging is a norm, a socio-cultural reality of academic institutions. This casual depiction of the status quo and layers of hierarchy in Aavesham is acutely problematic. A character like Kutty is not to be dismissed so easily. These characters are very real, and their inexcusable actions are a prevalent reality in this nation. One wonders when Indian Cinema will own up to project the menace of ragging not just as some sort of comic relief but as a cruel and punishable act. Aavesham is available to stream on Prime Video. This is The Fault in Our Films, where Santanu Das writes about one acclaimed film/series per week and what stops the good from becoming great. Feature: Chinese language courses inspire locals in Myanmar Xinhua) 09:57, May 13, 2024 YANGON, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Phone Sin Kyal, 18, said that mastering Chinese language has several benefits such as understanding Chinese culture well and making friends with native Chinese speakers. "Since Chinese is one of the most widely used languages globally, learning it has no harm," he said. In the commercial city of Yangon, Myanmar on Friday, China's CITIC, in cooperation with the China Cultural Center in Yangon and other organizations, launched a Chinese language training project for local people. Several Chinese language courses of the project will be conducted at the China Cultural Center in Yangon, according to CITIC Myanmar. Those language courses aim to improve the vocational skills of local people, enhancing their competency for future employment opportunities, especially at Chinese companies in Myanmar, CITIC Myanmar said. "I've been studying Chinese for six months and enrolled in an intermediate class here," Phone Sin Kyal said, adding that he hopes to go to China to learn more about the culture and lifestyle. "I enjoy Chinese festivals like the Spring Festival," said the Chinese learner, whose grandparents are Chinese. Zun Pwint Phyu, 26, is another student enrolled in a course of the project. She said that she started learning Chinese 10 months ago and found herself drawn to Chinese culture now. "At home, I enjoy watching Chinese movies. I developed an interest in Chinese after graduating from university," she admitted. Quitting her job to be a full-time Chinese learner, she is still unsure whether to pursue a career as an engineer using Chinese or become a Chinese teacher after getting a master's degree in China. Khin Thandar Kyaw, a 22-year-old student, told Xinhua, "I joined the class here because I'm keen on learning both the Chinese language and culture." "I've been learning Chinese for about six months now and hope to become a Chinese language teacher once I master it," she said. Her interest in Chinese culture grew after reading books from siblings who studied in China, and hopes to study there in the future. Offering free Chinese language courses is highly beneficial, especially for local people with limited financial resources, she added. Ei Swe Zin, a 29-year-old Chinese teacher, also said that offering free Chinese language courses could help people find future employment opportunities. She explained that learning Chinese in Myanmar could help get the jobs such as interpreters for Chinese companies, or even become Chinese teachers after studying in China. U Kyaw Kyaw Soe, manager of the training project, said that nearly 70 students were enrolling in the three-month courses. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Mohammad Rasoulof was sentenced to eight years in prison after refusing to withdraw his new film, The Seed of the Sacred Fig, from the 77th Cannes Film Festival in Iran. Previously, Tehran banned him from attending the Cannes Film Festival. In a statement quoted by Deadline, the filmmaker confirmed that he had fled from his home country. (Also read: Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof banned from attending Cannes Film Festival 2024; here's everything you need to know) Mohammad Rasoulof has fled from Iran after he received an eight-year prison sentence. Iranian filmmaker reveals why he chose exile The Iranian filmmaker's statement read, "I arrived in Europe a few days ago after a long and complicated journey. About a month ago, my lawyers informed me that my eight-year prison sentence was confirmed in the court of appeal and would be implemented on short notice. Knowing that the news of my new film would be revealed very soon, I knew that without a doubt, a new sentence would be added to these eight years. I didnt have much time to make a decision. I had to choose between prison and leaving Iran. With a heavy heart, I chose exile. The Islamic Republic confiscated my passport in September 2017. Therefore, I had to leave Iran secretly. Mohammad Rasoulof seeks help from cinema community Mohammad pointed out how civil rights activists and those who speak against the establishment are harassed by the government. The filmmaker has previously also been arrested for being critical of the country's administration. Mohammad concluded his post by urging the worlds cinema community to support free speech. He also expressed concern for the well-being and safety of those who helped him in making The Seed of the Sacred Fig. Mohammad Rasoulof receives support from distributors Jean-Christophe Simon, CEO of Films Boutique and Parallel45, who are distributing Mohammad's film said, We are very happy and much relieved that Mohammad has safely arrived in Europe after a dangerous journey, quoted by Variety. He further added, We hope he will be able to attend the Cannes premiere of The Seed of the Sacred Fig in spite of all attempts to prevent him from being there in person. About Mohammad Rasoulof Mohammad has previously received many laurels at the Cannes International Film Festival. He won the Un Certain Regard and Francois Chalais Award - Special Mention for Goodbye (2011) at Cannes. The filmmmaker was honoured with FIPRESCI Prize - Un Certain Regard at Cannes for Manuscripts Don't Burn (2013). He also received Un Certain Regard Award for A Man of Integrity (2017). Actor Dhanush has made a significant individual contribution to the construction of the new building of Nadigar Sangam, aka South India Artistes Association, in Chennai. His generous donation of 1 crore aligns him with other actors who have also contributed. (Also Read: Vijay and Kamal Haasan donate 1 crore each to Nadigar Sangams building) Nassar and Karthi gave Dhanush flowers and thanked him for his contribution. Dhanush donates 1 crore Industry tracker Ramesh Bala took to X (formerly Twitter) to share news about Dhanushs contribution. He shared a picture which shows him receiving flowers from actor Nassar and posing for a click with Karthi. Sharing the news, Ramesh wrote, South Indian Artistes' Association member - Actor Dhanush donated a sum of rupees 1,00,00,000/- (1Crore) from his personal fund towards the construction of New Nadigar Sangam Building. He presented the cheque to SIAA President Thiru. Nassar, Treasurer Thiru. Karthi, and Vice-president Thiru.Poochi S Murugan. South Indian Artistes' Association expresses its gratitude towards his great gesture. In March this year, actors Vijay and Kamal Haasan had also donated 1 crore each towards the building. Vishal, who serves as the association's General Secretary, took to X to thank Vijay, writing, Thank u means just two words but means a lot to a person wen he does it from his heart. Well, am talking about my favourite actor our very own #ThalapathiVijay brother for DONATING ONE CRORE towards our #SIAA #NadigarSangam building work. He also thanked Kamal, writing, Dearest monument of Indian film industry. @ikamalhaasan sir. Have no words or space here to evaluate and not exaggerate what transpired yesterday when me @Karthi_Offl and Poochi Murugan sir met u. U started the movement by giving us a cheque of one crore years back and now u continue to support the cause. Upcoming work Dhanush was last seen in the 2023 film Captain Miller. He will soon be seen in the multi-lingual film Kubera, directed by Sekhar Kammula, also starring Nagarjuna, Rashmika Mandanna and Jim Sarbh. He is also directing and starring in the Tamil film Raayan, which also stars Sundeep Kishan, Kalidas Jayaram and SJ Suryah. SS Rajamouli, on Monday morning, stepped out to cast his vote during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections. The filmmaker not only joined a beeline of Telugu stars at polling stations in Hyderabad to exercise his voting right, he also shared a picture of himself and wife Rama Rajamouli after voting. Also read: Ranbir Kapoor, Karan Johar, Vikrant Massey: Celebs ask fans to vote in Lok Sabha polls with creative video Telangana Lok Sabha elections 2024: SS Rajamouli with wife Rama during Monday's polling. SS Rajamouli's tweet Taking to X (Formerly Twitter), the filmmaker also revealed the circumstances under which he made it to the polling booth. He tweeted along with a picture of himself and Rama showing their inked fingers after casting their vote, Flew from Dubai Rushed to the polling booth directly from the airport, hence the tired looks... (smiling face emoji) Done! YOU? Celebs cast their votes in Hyderabad Polling for the fourth phase began on Monday at 7am and will continue till 6pm across all Lok Sabha constituencies. Earlier on Monday, Oscar-winning music composer MM Keeravani stepped out to cast his vote in a polling station in Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad. Speaking to reporters after casting his vote, he said, "You have to vote because you are in democracy." Before him, veteran actor Chiranjeevi along with wife Surekha Konidela exercised their voting right during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections. The actor spoke with the media on Monday morning, encouraging citizens to vote. "I request people to exercise their right to vote. Please come and make use of your power," Chiranjeevi said. Not only him, Jr NTR and filmmaker Teja also arrived at the polling booth on Monday in Telangana. I am not politically aligned with any party Earlier in the day, actor Allu Arjun arrived at Hyderabad's polling station to cast his vote. Speaking to media after casting his vote, Arjun said, "Please cast your vote. It is the responsibility of all the citizens of the country. Today is the most crucial day for the next five years of our lives. There will be a huge voter turnout, as more and more people are coming out to vote. I would like to tell you; I am not politically aligned with any party. I am neutral to all parties." What Gurucharan Singh's father said about him Hargit said, "I had no idea about my son's financial situation. He never told me anything about it. So I am not aware of all this. I am sure if the police have found something, they would inform me. Meri umar aisi hai ki meri tabiyat theek nahi rehti hai (My age is such that I'm not in good health). It's been many days now and there is no positive response on this case. We are just waiting for him to come back." Gurucharan was facing financial crunch Reportedly, Gurucharan was a frequent user of credit cards and kept many bank accounts for financial activities. Police also found that he operated more than 10 bank accounts. As per a Free Press Journal report, he withdrew 14,000 from an ATM. He took out cash and used credit cards to settle the balance on one card with another. Police questioned TMKOC team Gurucharan is known for playing Roshan Singh Sodhi in Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah. As per a News18 report, the Delhi Police recently visited the sets of the show in Film City, Mumbai. This week Delhi police visited our sets and spoke with the actors who were in touch with Gurucharan Singh. Everyone has co-operated well with the police. Also, there were some rumours related to Gurucharan Singhs payments being due from the production house. But, the police found that the payment of the actor was cleared long ago, News18 quoted a source as saying. About Gurucharan Gurucharan, who was visiting his parents in Delhi, was expected to return to Mumbai. His family registered a complaint, informing the police that he had been missing since April 22. Netflix has debuted its new supernatural rom-com, The Atypical Family, marking the comeback of actor Jang Ki Young after a long hiatus. While tvNs record-breaking Queen of Tears, starring Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Ji Won, continues to dominate in the OTT space, the new show is following in its footsteps with rising domestic ratings and increased viewership on Netflix. Meanwhile, Beauty and Mr. Romantic, starring Ji Hyun Woo and Im Soo Hyang, maintains its dominance as the most-watched program of any kind airing on Sundays. The Atypical Family, Netflix's new K-drama hits ratings high; Beauty And Mr. Romantic dominates(Netflix) The Atypical Family hits ratings high The Atypical Famly, a new JTBC series starring Chun Woo Hee and Claudia Kim with Jan Ki Young in the lead role, saw an increase in its ratings with its fourth episode on Sunday. The average nationwide rating for the latest episode was 4.1 percent which is a new personal high for the show. Earlier, the fantasy-themed K-drama debuted with an average nationwide rating of 3.0 percent. The Atypical Family plot Having premiered on May 4 with a stellar cast, The Atypical Family revolves around the mysterious Bok family, who possess supernatural powers. The series begins with family members Bok Gwi Ju, Bok Dong Hee, Bok Man Hm, etc., losing their powers due to modern-day problems such as depression, obesity, and insomnia. However, the family soon crosses paths with Chun Woo Hees Do Da Hae, whose family plots a scheme to have her marry into the wealthy Bok family. Things start to change dramatically after her frequent encounters with the family, particularly with Bok Gwi Jus daughter, In Ha. Also read: BTS and BLACKPINK face Blockout Call from award-winning Palestinian Journalist; fans respond Beauty And Mr Romantic climbs to highest ratings KBS 2TVs Beauty and Mr. Romantic continue to reign as the undisputed king in the rating race, achieving an average nationwide rating of 18.3 percent on Sunday. This romantic K-drama was the most-watched program of any kind to air on Sunday. The 50-episode KBS family weekender follows the story of a high-profile actress who escapes from a life of poverty, only to be caught up in a scandal that brings her down. Also read: Baby Reindeer: Netflix receives official warning from UK Government over safeguarding concern The Midnight Romance in Hagwon debuts with strong ratings tvNs latest K-drama, The Midnight Romance in Hagwon featuring Wi Ha Joon, Jun Ryeo Won, Soo Joo Yeon, and others, maintained strong premiere ratings, holding onto an average nationwide rating of 5.2 percent and remaining in first place in its time slot across all cable channels. Meanwhile, MBNs Missing Crown Prince starring EXO Suho remained consistent at 3.1 percent and is about to kick off its second half. In September 2023, a team of scientists quantified the nine processes that regulate the stability of the Earth system. Called planetary boundaries thresholds within which humanity can continue to develop and thrive these processes were first proposed by Johan Rockstrom, former director of Swedens Stockholm Resilience Centre, and a group of 28 scientists in 2009. In its Planetary Boundaries Framework, the Stockholm Resilience Centre outlined the nine key processes: climate change, biodiversity integrity (functional and genetic), freshwater use, land-system change, biogeochemical flows of nitrogen and phosphorus, the release of novel chemicals (including heavy metals, radioactive materials, plastics, and more), ocean acidification, depletion of the ozone layer and atmospheric aerosol pollution. The 2023 update to the framework not only quantified the boundaries but also concluded that the first six of the nine boundaries have been transgressed due to the anthropogenic changes brought on by human actions. "The 2023 update clearly depicts a patient that is unwell, as pressure on the planet increases and vital boundaries are being transgressed, Rockstrom, who was recently awarded the 2024 Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement, told HT in an interview. The stability of these nine processes, all of which are inter-related, is essential to maintaining the Earths atmosphere, oceans and ecosystems in the delicate balance that has allowed modern human civilization to thrive, the Centre said. Johan Rockstrom will receive the 2024 Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement at a ceremony on May 17 in Germany. Credit: Jadranko Marjanovic The framework Under human influence, crossing these boundaries increases the risk of generating large-scale abrupt or irreversible environmental changes, which in turn threaten the stability of the entire Earth System. The scientific work to develop the planetary boundary framework emerged from intensive international research work starting 2007, and was first published in the year 2009. The framework evolved quite naturally from a growing body of scientific evidence across the Earth system science, tipping point research, evidence that we have entered the Anthropocene, and paleo-climate research on the evolution of Earth over the past one million years, Rockstrom, now the director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, said. After the identification of the processes, scientists estimated the limit of how much human activities could exploit and alter each of them before the global system would pass a tipping point, a threshold beyond which the impact on the planet, and as a result civilisations and ecosystems, would be cascading and irreversible. The scientists say that these changes will not necessarily happen overnight. The understanding that the Earth system is a complex, self-regulating system, that there are tipping points which may undermine the life-support and stability of Earth, and the remarkable stability of the climate on Earth over the last 12,000 years, since we left the last Ice Age, together gave us the scientific basis. The planetary boundary framework takes into account all this science, and addresses the threats that humanity causes for the stability of the entire Earth system in a systematic way, he explained. A simple example of this self-regulation by the planet is natural carbon removal. Ecosystems like forests and wetlands absorb carbon from the atmosphere and sequester it in plants, soils and sediments. But the abundance of carbon in the atmosphere and drop in areas covered by forests has led to the weakening of such systems. The research highlights that while a global focus on climate change is much needed, that alone is not sufficient for increased sustainability. Instead, understanding the interplay of boundaries, especially climate, and loss of biodiversity, is key in science and practice. The 2023 update to the Planetary boundaries. Credit: Azote for Stockholm Resilience Centre, based on analysis in Richardson et al 2023 Health of the planet According to the 2023 update to the framework, of the nine planetary boundaries humans have breached six: climate change, biosphere integrity, freshwater change, land system change, biogeochemical flows and novel entities. While atmospheric aerosol loading and ozone depletion remain within the constraints, ocean acidification is close to being breached. Among concerning evaluations, the key was the overflow of nitrogen and phosphorus the biogeochemical flow boundary in the environment. The second major planetary boundaries update [the framework was first updated in 2015] is the first to provide a complete check-up of all nine processes We dont know how long we can keep breaching these key boundaries before combined pressures lead to irreversible change and harm. Science and the world at large are really concerned about the rising signs of dwindling planetary resilience, manifested by the transgression of planetary boundaries, which brings us closer to tipping points, Rockstrom said. These changes are rapidly closing the window to have any chance of holding the planetary climate boundary of staying below 1.5C, he said. It could be that we are currently seeing the first signs that the capacity for self-regulation is losing strength: On land, in the rainforest and in the temperate forest zones, the absorption capacity for CO2 is decreasing, Rockstrom said. One of the most concerning evaluations is the overflow of nitrogen and phosphorus the biogeochemical flow boundary in the environment. Although nitrogen and phosphorus are essential for life, their widespread use as crop fertilisers is wreaking havoc by, for instance, triggering algal blooms (it can cause entire fish populations to leave an area or even die) and ocean dead zones (a reduced level of oxygen in the water). Imagine Earths environment at present to be at an equilibrium based on nine distinct systems. One is biogeochemical flows of nitrogen and phosphorus -- these two elements constitute fundamental building blocks of life on Earth. What the scientists contend is that these systems must be seen as boundaries for the ecology to be the perfect mix of conditions that lets life bloom on the planet. A drastic change in one of them will lead to consequences for the others. In the case of Nitrogen and Phosphorous, while they are essential for life, their widespread use as crop fertilisers is wreaking havoc by, for instance, triggering algal blooms (it can cause entire fish populations to leave an area or even die) and ocean dead zones (a reduced level of oxygen in the water). The breach of these boundaries is directly tied to human pressures of overexploitation and pollution, Rockstrom said on the question of any observed order in the breach. The order they have been breached in the past is at least as much related to the degree of resilience in the system as to the degree of human pressure itself. Interactions between boundary processes and systems do play a role: for example, climate heating causes ecosystems to suffer, which on the other hand can play a vital role for climate if large biomes like the Amazon lose some of its carbon sink capacity, he explained. Prioritising justice Building on the Planetary Boundaries Framework, scientists last year also assessed a just operating space for humans, defining justice as avoiding significant harm to people across the world. The team of over 50 scientists also included other species in their analysis. For the study Safe and just Earth system boundaries, published in Nature on May 31, 2023, researchers explored five of the existing nine processes and quantified their justice implications: Climate, biodiversity, freshwater, nutrient cycles, and aerosol pollutants. Safe boundaries ensure stable and resilient conditions on Earth. Just boundaries set the thresholds for human exposure to significant harm, Rockstrom said of the global assessment. This new science will help develop science-based targets that can be adopted by cities, businesses and countries to address the systemic global crises of climate change, biodiversity loss, nutrient overloading, overuse of water, and air pollution. Focus on boundaries other than climate change If these boundaries are respected, scientists hope the world will be able to sustain an environment like the Holocene, which began with the end of the last ice age and during which agriculture and modern civilisation evolved, and avoid more of the extreme environmental harm brought on during the Anthropocene. While the Holocene was characterised by relatively stable and warm planetary conditions, the research has shown that maintaining these conditions calls for focus on boundaries other than climate change. And, Rockstrom says, there is a clear trend in the climate negotiations that recognises this need. recognizing the need to manage also the biosphere boundaries of land, water, biodiversity, nutrients and air pollutants, and the only way to meet the Paris agreements limit of 1.5C. We need a planetary boundary approach to solve even the climate crisis, he said, adding: Phasing out fossil-fuel alone will not do the job. We have to understand that the Earth is a fragile system and that we have to coordinate our actions on a global scale, he said. Rockstrom recognized the turbulent times brought on by wars, misinformation and distrust that constantly undermine social resilience and amplify risks of displacement and conflict. Despite this turbulence, we are not losing ground on global climate policy. It is not going fast enough, for sure. But we are not turning back the dice is thrown, the global economy is on a path towards phasing out fossil-fuels, and increasingly safeguarding water, land, biodiversity, he said. Underestimating risks In the past, we have constantly underestimated the risks and the speed of change. That is the quintessence of climate research over the past 20 years. Things are changing faster than expected and the risks are increasing, Rockstrom said on the question of the unusual temperatures observed through most of 2023. The temperature trends are continuing this year as well, with ocean temperatures breaking records every day in the last one year. We dont yet know why ocean temperatures are suddenly rising like this. The rise in ocean temperatures is only partly attributable to the ongoing El-Nino, he said. And in a year that several large economies, including India, are set to elect new governments, it is imperative to recognize these risks. If we see large economies in the world electing short-sighted, populist and climate skeptic governments, then we will lose pressure time. This is a key moment to use our democratic voices to express the need and huge benefits for all, to solve the climate and ecological crises that we are in the midst of, Rockstrom said. But, the question, according to Rockstrom, is whether we will come back within safe Planetary Boundaries before it is too late. Tannu Jain, HT'ss deputy chief content producer, picks a piece of climate news from around the globe and analyses its impact using connected reports, research and expert speak While a concrete and foolproof solution is yet to emerge on preventing conventional conflicts, a peculiar situation has emerged wherein warfare has become grey zone warfare--somewhere between peace and conflict. As the world has moved and adapted to information technology, the domain itself has become a tool for waging warfare against entities ranging from State to non-State actors. Influence operations, cyber warfare, data theft among a long list of others have amalgamated to pose national security concerns to States across the globe. The peculiar part of it is that it is leveraged by state and non-state actors against others, while on the ground, there is no warfare and states are technically at peace. The usage of technology for malicious purposes has become heated up once again as the United States (US). Senate in April, passed a legislation giving TikToks Chinese owner, ByteDance roughly nine months to divest the US assets of the short video app, or to face a countrywide ban. In addition to the U.S. there are at least 13 other countries that have banned TikTok to varying degrees; and examples range from Afghanistan to Nepal to India to Belgium to Canada to Denmark. India was among the first countries to ban TikTok in 2020. Cyber warfare(via social media/ twitter ) In response to the new legislation in the US, TikTok and its parent ByteDance of China have sued to block the law. The lawsuit was filed against the US government in the court of appeals for the District of Columbia, arguing that the law is unconstitutional and violates free speech protection. Last year, in 2023, TikTok took similar legal actions to stop a ban on the app in the state of Montana, where a preliminary injunction was guaranteed. In light of the lawsuit filed by TikTok stating that the legislation violates free speech, it becomes pertinent to analyse why the US took the step in the first place. While freedom of speech in democracies including India and the US is sacrosanct, the state also has to ensure its own security and protection of its own citizens, and its own sovereignty over and above everything else. TikTok, owned by ByteDance is a Chinese internet technology company headquartered in Haidian, Beijing and incorporated in the Cayman Islands. ByteDance was founded by Zhang Yiming in 2012 in Beijing. As per a press release from TikTok in May, roughly 60% of ByteDance is owned by global investors such as Carlyle Group, General Atlantic and Susquehanna International Group, 20% by employees and the rest by Zhang. Nevertheless, Zhang holds over 50% of ByteDances voting rights. As is the case with most Chinese companies, the Communist Party of China (CPC) set up a party branch at ByteDance in 2014, which was stated by Chinese State media itself. Concerns over ByteDance increased after the CPC government took a 1% stake in its local subsidiary, Beijing ByteDance technology in 2019, which awarded the CPC government a board seat at the subsidiary. ByteDance was targeted by the U.S. government even under the Trump administration that needed ByteDance to sell TikToks U.S. assets or face being banned in the country. The orders were blocked by federal courts. The concerns over TikTok are in the realm of security and privacy, suggesting that user data might be shared with the CPC government. TikTok is used by about 170 million Americans. The second concern is that the CPC government will use influence operations through TikTok to create narratives against political parties that do not toe Chinas political lines and will interfere in US elections. Microsoft earlier this year has already come up with a detailed report on how democracies are at risk from disinformation, including from foreign sources. Chinese handles with direct and indirect links to the CPC government have tried pushing out narratives against social stability in democracies ranging from India to the US to Japan to the Philippines to Malaysia. Another pertinent concern in the US is that downloading TikTok on devices allows for the injection of malicious software by China, putting bank accounts and financial transactions of citizens at risk. The threat to democracies from these three primary threats, which want to uphold freedom of speech and expression, but must protect their citizens and sovereignty over and above anything else is real. In 2020, when India, banned TikTok, the Government of India had raised similar privacy concerns, as the US does now; stating that the Chinese app posed a threat to the countrys sovereignty and security. India is also one of the countries named in Microsofts report that is at risk of disinformation, including from foreign sources. TikTok was not a one-off case in India. As of date, India has banned more than 500 Chinese apps to date. An example of how Chinese apps can be predatory is from Hindenburg Researchs report stating that China-owned Opera is running four Android apps aimed at India, Kenya, and Nigeria which are in direct violation of Google Play Store policies, forbidding predatory loans and deceptive descriptions. The apps claim to offer rates of 33% or less on loans but the actual rates were much higher, climbing to 438% in some cases. While they offered loan repayment durations ranging between 91-365 days, the real duration was no more than 29 days on average. In the case of denial of payment, the apps would morph images gathered from the users phones and indulge in blackmail tactics. In the internet age, safeguarding citizen rights from foreign actors is extremely difficult. Lines between peacetime and conflict blur even more, enabling malicious actors, in the list of which China tops the list to unleash damage on countries democratic processes as well as their citizens. As was the case in traditional warfare, wherein states were responsible themselves for protecting their citizens and sovereignty, so is the case even in the current epoch of history wherein states, be it India or the US must protect their sovereignty and citizens against the onslaught of malicious actors now using tools of the internet age, such as apps. This article is authored by Sriparna Pathak, associate professor, Chinese Studies and International Relations, Jindal School of International Affairs, OP Jindal Global University, Sonipat. Poet, actor and author Priya Malik brought alive the nostalgia of 90s and emotions of motherhood during the Chai aur Kavitayein session organised by Lucknow Chapter of Ficci Flo in the state capital. Priya Malik during a session in Lucknow Widely known for penning thoughtful poems, Malik who became a mother this year, on March 24, says she now understands the emotions of motherhood more. We all love our mothers but after becoming one my perception has evolved; I feel its the strongest bond. I love to recite my poem dedicated to a mother and many people do get emotional. But I dont know why today I got carried away and choked, probably because I am also a mother now. Yes, thats surely the point, she shares. Priya Malik with Ficci Flo members during a session in Lucknow During the session, she recall her equation with her mother, My mum used to ask me questions to which I briefly replied, then my replies became shorter and after a point, I nearly stopped replying to her. Then, when she fell ill and was in ICU, while sitting outside fear engulfed me. I wanted her to throw her volley of questions once again and I promised I would revert to each one of them. Those are the emotions I poured in my poems and now I am very emotional about it. Getting a bit nostalgic, she rendered, iPhone ke zamane main Nokia 3910 dhoond rahi hoon, soymilk coffee ke zamane main adrak wali chaai dhoond rahi hoon...main 2024 main 1999 dhoond rahi hoon. Malik, who hails from Dehradun, adds, If your roots are strong then you will be a powerful being. Back in home town, I did not understand this but while living in Australia I value it more. Her poem Pyar rasta, ishq mukam wowed all. She shared many anecdotes from her life and in between weaved powerful one-liners like, kehne ki izzazat nahi abhivyakti ki izzazat chahiye, mujhe pyaar nahi ishq chahiye. She was ably supported on vocals and guitar by Abhinandan Joshi. Malik sang some old melodies including Yeh nayan dare dare... The session was moderated by Vanita Yadav. Earlier, the chapters chairperson Vibha Agarwal welcomed Malik. Members including Vandita Agarwal, Swati Verma, Seemu Ghai, Aarushi Tandon, Jyotsna Kaur Habibullah, Smriti Garg, Swati Mohan, Savneet Gurnani and Simran Sahni were present at the event. A case was registered on Sunday against five people who had allegedly assaulted a Muslim woman for being in relationship with a Hindu man, the police said. 5 booked for assaulting Muslim woman over interfaith relationship in Bidar: Police The police said that a 26-year-old Muslim woman was allegedly attacked by a group of men who questioned her association with a 45-year-old Hindu man, identified as Ashok Reddy, auto driver and resident of Basavakalyan in Bidar district. The incident took place two weeks ago and came to light after it went viral on social media. Police inspector Ambarish Vagmode said: The incident occurred two weeks ago at a park on the outskirts of Basavakalyan town. We have received a complaint from auto driver Ashok Reddy, a native of Basavakalyan, who was accompanying the woman. We have booked five persons on Sunday (aged 2028) under IPC Sections 354 (assault or criminal force on a woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 323 (punishment for voluntarily causing hurt), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), and 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation). We have identified the accused, and a search is underway to arrest them. On January 20, a group of nine individuals had reportedly harassed an interfaith couple in Haveri district. Following a complaint, the police apprehended nine people involved in the incident and booked them under various sections of the IPC. The incident unfolded at the Byadagi bus stand in Haveri district, where the couple - a Muslim woman and a Hindu man - was reportedly conversing when they were allegedly attacked. On January 8, in Hanagal, in Haveri district, seven people were accused of assaulting an interfaith couple in a hotel room. Later, the accused were arrested. According to the 26-year-old victim, the assailants subjected the couple to verbal abuse and physical assault and even filmed the woman, who attempted to shield her identity with a burqa. The woman alleged that she was subjected to gang rape by the group. Ports and shipping minister Sarbananda Sonowal left for Iran on Monday for the signing of a crucial long-term agreement for Indias operations at the strategic Chabahar port, people familiar with the matter said. The long-term agreement, which will be valid for 10 years and will be extended automatically, was being negotiated by the two sides over the past three years or so and had been primarily held up by differences on a clause related to arbitration. Dig Deeper Ports and shipping minister Sarbananda Sonowal left for Iran on Monday for the signing of a crucial long-term agreement for Indias operations at the strategic Chabahar port, people familiar with the matter said.(File photo) Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Farooq Abdullah on Monday questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi and union home minister Amit Shah over their 'normalcy' claim, saying his party's workers have been detained by law enforcement agencies for the last two days. The remark came amid voting for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections. After casting his vote along with his son Omar Abdullah, Farooq Abdullah questioned PM Modi over claims of normalcy in Jammu and Kashmir. Dig Deeper Latest News Whats the legal right?' Supreme Court rejects plea seeking removal of Arvind Kejriwal as Delhi CM PM Narendra Modi in Bihar: 'Will make Pakistan wear bangles if...' India News PM Narendra Modi wears Sikh turban, serves food in langar | Watch Rajasthan: After Delhi, Jaipur schools receive bomb threat, students evacuated Global Matters US elections: Unlikely if Biden can win this race and Trump wrongly indicted, CNN's Fareed Zakaria's verdict Japan's Shionogi says COVID treatment did not meet endpoint in late-stage trial Lifestyle and Health Are you suffering from digestive troubles, deficiencies or skin allergies? As per Ayurveda, what you eat can have a significant impact on your health. Your meal could have all what your body requires to keep you healthy, yet you may not be able to absorb these nutrients if you are eating them in wrong combination. 'Viruddha Ahaar', according to Ayurveda can lead to accumulation of ama meaning toxins or undigested metabolic waste which can wreak havoc on your health. Dig Deeper Tirupati: A woman gets her finger inked after casting her vote at a polling station during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections and Andhra Pradesh Assembly elections . (PTI Photo/R Senthilkumar) Andhra Pradesh, Odisha Election 2024 highlights: Apart from Phase 4 of the Lok Sabha election 2024, voting for the assembly elections in two statesAndhra Pradesh and Odishaconcluded on Monday. Voting commenced in Andhra and Odisha at 7 a.m. and continued until 6 p.m. The ruling YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) and opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP) are in a fierce battle in Andhra Pradesh, with both parties seeking to establish dominance in terms of poll promises as the state gears up for the voting to the 175-member Assembly on Monday....Read More Meanwhile in Odisha, the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) is eyeing majority once again. The BJD in 2019 formed the government after winning 112 out of the total 147 assembly seats in the state, with Naveen Patnaik becoming the chief minister once again. Voting in Andhra Pradesh is taking place in a single phase. Apart from the assembly elections, all 25 Lok Sabha seats from the state are going to polls in the fourth phase of the general elections. Meanwhile, assembly polls in Odisha will take place in four phases - May 13, May 20, May 25 and June 1 - with the counting of the votes on June 4. The fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections in West Bengal witnessed scattered incidents of violence. The workers of Trinamool Congress (TMC) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) clashed in various parts of Birbhum and Bardhaman-Durgapur constituencies, PTI reported. The Election Commission claimed that voting had been peaceful, stating that it received 1,700 complaints till 1 pm from different political parties alleging electronic voting machines (EVM) malfunction and polling agents being stopped from entering the booths. ALSO READ: Lok Sabha elections: Over 62% voter turnout till 5pm, Bengal sees highest polling at 75.66% BJP candidate Dilip Ghosh talks on phone after clashes between supporters of TMC and BJP while he was on his way to a polling booth following complaints of booth jamming in Susunia area of Bardhman,(PTI) BJP alleges Dilip Ghosh heckled In Bardhaman-Durgapur Lok Sabha seat's Susunia area, clashes erupted between the BJP and TMC workers. The clashes erupted while BJP candidate Dilip Ghosh was on way to a polling booth. As per the PTI report, TMC supporters blocked his convoy and squatted in front of his vehicle, starting a protest against him. Stones were allegedly hurled at his convoy, following which some of the cars of the security personnel tailing his convoy were damaged. The former Bengal BJP chief was also heckled by the TMC activists. "Police are just mute spectators. The TMC has let loose a reign of terror. Since morning, TMC goons have beaten up our polling agents and are not allowing polling to be free and fair," the BJP leader was quoted by PTI as saying. Dilip Ghosh's convoy was again attacked at Kalna gate in Bardhaman-Durgapur constituency. The BJP leader said he had gone to a booth there following allegations of TMC not allowing BJP's booth agents. Bricks were pelted at his convoy leading to serious injury of central police personnel deployed in his security, the report added. "This is for the second time that my convoy was attacked today. Two of my security personnel were injured and had to be taken to hospital for treatment," Ghosh said. The TMC, however, denied the charges and claimed Ghosh was "trying to vitiate the atmosphere sensing defeat." In Durgapur area of the same constituency, clashes broke out between the TMC and the BJP, following which saffron activists staged a sit-in. In Birbhum Lok Sabha constituency, BJP workers clashed with TMC activists in Nanoor after saffron party polling agents were allegedly stopped from entering booths. The BJP alleged that their polling agents were forcibly ousted from a booth by Trinamool Congress members besides intimidating voters. Tension prevailed in Chapra area of Krishnanagar constituency as BJP workers were allegedly beaten by TMC workers. Amrita Roy, BJP candidate of Krishnanagar, accompanied two injured persons, Nanda Das and Sukhen Das, to Chapra police station. The TMC has denied the allegations. (With PTI inputs) A Bengaluru court on Monday granted conditional bail to Janata Dal (Secular) leader HD Revanna in kidnapping case linked to sexual abuse charges against son Prajwal. The bail was granted days after the former Karnataka minister was sent to judicial custody till May 14 in the case related to the kidnapping of a woman. The court asked him to furnish 5 lakh personal bond and cooperate with the investigation among other conditions. HD Revanna, the son of former prime minister and JD(S) patriarch HD Deve Gowda, was booked for the purported abduction of a woman on April 29, as per a complaint filed by her son. ALSO READ: SIT not going abroad to bring Prajwal Revanna back: Karnataka Home Minister Bengaluru court grants conditional bail to HD Revanna in kidnapping case(AFP File photo) The Karnataka government has constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the case following a complaint by the State Commission for Women chairperson Nagalakshmi Chowdhary. The JD(S) leadership has suspended Prajwal from the party. Prajwal Revanna, the grandson of Deve Gowda, is facing charges of sexually abusing several women. The scandal has raised a political storm with the ruling Congress and BJP-JD(S) engaged in a slugfest. Prajwal is said to have flown abroad on April 27, a day after the first phase of Lok Sabha polls in Karnataka was held. He was BJP-JD(S) alliance's joint candidate from Hassan Lok Sabha segment, which went to polls in the first phase. ALSO READ: 'What is stopping govt from cancelling Revanna's passport?': Jairam Ramesh On Sunday, the Karnataka SIT arrested two persons in connection with the leak and circulation of explicit videos involving the Hassan MP, PTI reported. Two persons -- Chetan and Likith Gowda -- were arrested in Hassan, and they are reportedly associated with the BJP in the district, police officials said. Officials recorded their statements and the spot 'mahazar' was done at their residences in Yelagunda and Shravanabelagola respectively. Pen-drives containing the alleged explicit videos involving Prajwal Revanna, who was also BJP-JD(S) joint candidate from Hassan, were circulated in the district, a few days ahead of the first phase of Lok Sabha polls. (With PTI inputs) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday held a massive roadshow in Patna, with Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar standing by his side during the event. Standing atop a saffron-coloured vehicle, modelled as a chariot, Modi was seen waving at the large number of people gathered on both sides of the road. PM Narendra Modi and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar during roadshow (Photo - PTI) However, JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar was mocked on social media for holding up a Bharatiya Janata Party insignia during the election roadshow, with many users pointing out his dejected expression. Posting a video of the same on social media platform X, one user wrote, Nitish Kumar got all the respect in INDIA alliance. Now look at his condition. Social media coordinator for the Indian National Congress, Luv Datta, posted the clip from Modi's roadshow on social media and wrote, Nitish Kumar is giving hints to the people of Bihar to vote for Congress. Look how sad he looks. Another user wrote, A man who has been Bihar CM for over 19+ years is now kneeling down in front of BJP. He is holding BJP symbol just to show his loyalty towards his master. What a sad end of the career for nitish kumar. This Picture will prove to be last nail in the coffin for nitish kumars political career. End of an era. Apart from Nitish Kumar, deputy chief minister and state BJP president Samrat Choudhary and local MP Ravi Shankar Prasad were perched beside Modi on the saffron chariot as it waded through a crowd of thousands during the roadshow. Nitish Kumar, who had left the NDA alliance in 2022 to join the Opposition-led Mahagathbandhan, made a U-turn and returned to the BJP-led alliance in January 2024, taking oath as the chief minister of Bihar for the ninth time. PM Modi and Nitish Kumar held a roadhshow in Patna a day before Phase 4 of the ongoing Lok Sabha election 2024. Bihar recorded over 54 per cent of voting at 5 pm across five constituencies in the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections on Monday. As per an Election Commission data, Samastipur witnessed a voter turnout of 56.36 per cent. Begusarai registered the highest polling percentage at 58.40, followed by Samastipur at 58.10, Darbhanga at 56.63, Ujiarpur at 56 per cent and Munger at 55 per cent till 6 pm, the scheduled closing time for the elections. Voters showing finger ink marks after cast votes at a polling booth during 4th phase of Lok Sabha election in Ujiarpur, Bihar,(HT Photo) The fate of 55 candidates was decided by over 95.85 lakh voters in 5,398 polling stations during the fourth phase of the polls in state. Union Minister Giriraj Singh is seeking re-election from Begusarai where his primary opponent is CPI's Awadhesh Rai. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader had defeated former JNU students' union president Kanhaiya Kumar in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls in the same seat. ALSO READ: Maharashtra Lok Sabha polls: 52.49% voter turnout till 5 pm; Nandurbar records highest voting percentage Kanhaiya Kumar is contesting elections this time from North East Delhi, wherein he challenges two-time incumbent MP Manoj Tiwari of the BJP. In Ujiarpur, which has the lowest number of voters at 17.48 lakh but hosts the maximum of 13 candidates, Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai aims for a third consecutive term. His principal rival is Alok Mehta, a senior RJD leader and a former state minister. Samastipur, formerly known as Rosera, presents a battleground for two debutants - Congress' Sunny Hazari and Shambhavi Choudhary of LJP (Ram Vilas) - both offspring of senior JD(U) leaders and ministers in the Nitish Kumar cabinet. Sunny is the son of Maheshwar Hazari who had won the seat on a JD(U) ticket in 2009, while Shambhavi is the daughter of Ashok Choudhary, a minister in the Nitish Kumar cabinet in Bihar. (With PTI inputs) Former state public health engineering (PHE) minister Kusum Mehdele, now 80, recalls how she was denied a ticket in the 2018 assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh on the ground that she had crossed the age limit as per the partys formula to contest polls despite the fact, as she says, she was much active in politics. Mehdele was the sitting MLA from Panna assembly constituency in Bundelkhand region and minister in the then Shivraj Singh Chouhan cabinet when she was dropped as the party candidate and replaced by Brijendra Pratap Singh, younger than Mehdele, for the polls. She was not considered for the party ticket even for the 2023 assembly polls that BJP won with a massive mandate. When contacted by Hindustan Times in the backdrop of Union home minister Amit Shahs statement he made on Saturday reacting to Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwals comment about Prime Minister Narendra Modis tenure, Mehdele said it was the partys decision (to deny ticket to her) and she had to abide by it. What do I say? I was very active when I was denied the party ticket. Jinko hatana tha hata diya (Those who were to be removed were removed). However, I was not alone. Several others too were dropped like me on the grounds of age, said Mehdele. Soon after his release from jail late last week, Kejriwal said since BJP had introduced a rule for its leaders not to hold any post after the age of 75, Modi would step down the next year and Shah would replace him in case the party retains power. On this, Shah said there was no such provision in the BJPs constitution and that Modi would complete his tenure after the 2024 polls. Earlier cases Mehdele turned 75 on August 15, 2018, months before the state assembly polls. She was, however, allowed to continue as minister for a few months until the elections unlike the then state Home minister Babulal Gaur and the PWD minister Sartaj Singh who were also dropped from the cabinet because of age. Then CM Chouhans decision to expand the state cabinet on June 30, 2016, was preceded by Gaur and Sartaj Singh tendering their resignations from the state cabinet but not without lodging their protest and causing commotion in the party. In fact, Gaur even caused a flutter in the party and the government by refusing to obey the partys decision to resign from the state cabinet, asking the party leaders to tell him what his mistake was. It took some effort from senior leaders of the party both in Bhopal and Delhi to convince the two ministers to follow the party leaderships instructions to resign from the state cabinet. The then national general secretary (organisation) Ramlal had to step in; The then state BJP president Nandkumar Singh Chauhan also met the two leaders to convince them about the partys decision, recalled a senior leader of the party, who asked not to be named, as he was not authorised to speak to the media. Gaur and Singh, party veterans, later boycotted the swearing-in ceremony of the newly inducted ministers at Raj Bhavan; both leaders are no more now. I couldnt believe that age could be a factor to drop me from the state cabinet. This is not done in any political party, Sartaj Singh had said to the media persons after his resignation on June 30, 2016. Also read: Is 75-year retirement rule only for other BJP leaders and not Modi?: Kejriwal to PM Similar cases at the Central level The Madhya Pradesh episode was followed at the Centre too when the then minority affairs minister Najma Heptullah resigned from the cabinet in July 2016 just a day before she was to turn 76. Heptulla cited personal reasons behind her decision to put in her papers. The then union minister Kalraj Mishra who turned 76 on July 1, 2017, resigned from the cabinet in September that year. As per a second BJP leader, who also asked not to be named, Mishra, a prominent Brahmin leader from Uttar Pradesh, was spared for a year after he turned 75 due to the state assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh in 2017. Mishra who had crossed the 75, known to be the unofficial cut-off age to retire, had said after his resignation that performance was not the reason behind his decision to resign and that he had left the decision to the leadership. Mishra is presently the governor of Rajasthan; Heptullah was the governor of Manipur from July 2019 to August 2021. Coming back to Madhya Pradesh, Mehdele, Guar and Sartaj Singh both were denied tickets in the 2018 state assembly polls. The BJP leadership tried to mollify a belligerent Gaur ahead of polls by fielding his daughter-in-law Krishna Gaur in his place in the elections; She is a minister of state in the current Mohan Yadav cabinet. Advani, Joshi and Sumitra Mahajan The BJP national leaders including former deputy PM LK Advani, former union HRD minister Murali Manohar Joshi and former Lok Sabha speaker Sumitra Mahajan were denied party tickets in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Advani was 86-year-old, Joshi, 80, and Mahajan,71, when they contested their last Lok Sabha polls in 2014. Political analyst Girija Shankar said: Its a fact that the age bar provision is not a part of the BJPs constitution but its also a fact that several party leaders were either dropped from the union cabinet or denied party tickets because of the partys 75-plus unofficial formula. However, the party leadership then didnt realise that this formula would bounce back on it one day in future. Shankar added: Arvind Kejriwal is a shrewd politician. The BJP leaders often asked who was INDIA blocs PM face but now Kejriwal has asked who the BJPs PM face is. This has created a flutter in the BJP camp more because he has claimed that Amit Shah will replace Modi after the latter turns 75. Political analyst Dinesh Gupta said, The Union home minister Amit Shah or for that matter, the BJP cant take refuge in the partys constitution that there is no 75-plus rule particularly when a number of senior party leaders including LK Advani, Murali Manohar Joshi, Sumitra Mahajan, Kalraj Mishra, Najma Heptulla, Babulal Gaur, Sartaj Singh etc were shown the door based on the unofficial formula. Now, the entire country is looking at the PM if he will apply his own formula on himself. Rajneesh Agrawal, state BJP secretary, said that after Shahs statement, theres nothing else to comment on the issue. The Home minister's statement has left nothing to say for us on the issue. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate from Hyderabad K Madhavi Latha sparked a row on Monday after a video emerged where she was seen checking identity cards of burqa-clad Muslim women at a polling booth, asking them to lift or remove their veil. A case has been registered against her. Latha also asked polling officials to only allow voting once the IDs were properly checked. (Screengrab/ANI) After voting at the Amrita Vidyalaya, Latha visited several polling booths and stopped at Azampur to check the IDs of women waiting to vote. She also asked polling officials to allow voting once the IDs were properly checked, Indian Express reported. All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen, headed by incumbent MP Asaduddin Owaisi, registered a complaint against her with the Election Commission of India (ECI). Owaisi is seeking a fifth straight term as MP from Hyderabad. I am a candidate. As per law candidate has the right to check the ID cards without the facemasks. I am not a man, I am a woman and with a lot of humbleness, I have only requested them - can I please see and verify with the ID cards? If somebody wants to make a big issue out of it, that means they are scared, she told ANI. Read Here | Telangana Lok Sabha Election Phase 4: Key fights to look out for She earlier said that she did so as there were discrepancies in the voter lists and the names of several voters were missing. The Police personnel seem very dull, they are not active...They are not checking anything. Senior citizen voters are coming here but their names are deleted from the list. A few of them are residents of Goshamahal but their names are in the list of Rangareddy..., she told ANI. Hyderabad Collector said in a post on X that a case was registered in Malakpet Police Station. It said, A case is registered in Malakpet Police Station against Smt Madhavi Latha, Contesting candidate, BJP under sections 171C, 186, 505(1)(c) of IPC and Section 132 of the Representation of the People Act. Voting began on at 7:00 am for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections in 17 constituencies in Telangana. The bribery trial of Senator Robert Menendez begins Monday with the embattled New Jersey Democrat potentially blaming his wife for his predicament and seeking to call a psychiatrist to defend why he hoarded the $480,000 in cash and 13 gold bars FBI agents found in his house. Bob Menendez Bribe Trial Over Gold Bars, Cash Begins in New York Jury selection begins Monday in New York federal court for the New Jersey Democrat and two businessmen accused of bribing him. Prosecutors charged Menendez, 70, and his wife, Nadine, with accepting cash, gold and a Mercedes Benz in return for favors. Hes also charged with illegally helping the government of Qatar and acting as an agent of Egypt. He faces 20 years in prison on the most serious charge. Menendez, a senator since 2006, has seen his political support vaporize in the Senate and New Jersey, where hes derided as Gold Bar Bob. In a March video, he said: I am innocent and will prove so. He said he hopes to be exonerated and may run as an independent Democrat in November. He stepped down as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, a powerful post that prosecutors say was central to Menendez corruptly using his clout to help Egypt. Prosecutors say that Menendez gave Egyptian officials highly sensitive information about personnel at the US embassy in Cairo and helped Egypt obtain arms sales and other military aid from the US. Blaming His Wife Menendezs wife was key to Egypt making inroads with him, prosecutors say. They began dating in 2018, when she and Wael Hana, an Egyptian-American businessman also facing trial, introduced Menendez to Egyptian intelligence and military officials seeking influence, the US alleges. Menendez has suggested he may blame Nadine Menendez, who will face a later trial because she has an undisclosed illness and needs surgery. If he testifies, his lawyers wrote in a court filing, the senator may discuss communications about their dinners with Egyptian officials and her explanations of why businessmen gave her certain monetary items. Those explanations and communications will tend to exonerate Senator Menendez by showing he had no corrupt intent a key element in a bribery case, his lawyers wrote. Theyll also incriminate Nadine by demonstrating the ways in which she withheld information from Senator Menendez or otherwise led him to believe that nothing unlawful was taking place, according to the filing. Psychological Trauma Prosecutors said they found cash stuffed in envelopes and hidden in clothing, closets and a safe. Some envelopes bore the fingerprints and DNA of another co-defendant, New Jersey developer Fred Daibes, and his driver, prosecutors say. Menendez has offered various explanations for the cash. His lawyers said in a court filing that the cash reflected decades of documented withdrawals by the senator from his own bank account. They also said that the gold bars would be shown to be entirely unrelated to any actions by the senator. Menendez also wants jurors to hear from a psychiatrist about other explanations for the senators cash. One involves the intergenerational trauma stemming from his parents fleeing Cuba after having their funds confiscated by the Cuban government, a court filing shows. The psychiatrist, Karen Rosenbaum, would also testify that he experienced trauma when his father, a compulsive gambler, died by suicide after Senator Menendez eventually decided to discontinue paying off his fathers gambling debts. Menendezs lack of treatment over these traumas resulted in a fear of scarcity for the senator and the development of a longstanding coping mechanism of routinely withdrawing and storing cash in his home, the senators lawyers wrote. Prosecutors urged US District Judge Sidney Stein to reject the testimony, saying Menendezs lawyers didnt follow the rules for introducing it. The explanation, they wrote, is an impermissible attempt to endanger sympathy based on his family background, in the guise of expert testimony for Menendez. The judge hasnt ruled yet on the request. Menendez is also accused of trying to interfere in a criminal investigation conducted by the New Jersey Attorney Generals Office, and trying to interfere in a separate federal prosecution of Daibes. Businessman Jose Uribe has pleaded guilty, admitting he conspired to bribe Menendez with a Mercedes Benz convertible in exchange for favors. He agreed to testify against Menendez. The trial is expected to last several weeks. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday congratulated students who passed the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) Class 12 exams. PM Modi with students, teachers and parents during his annual Pariksha pe Charcha in Delhi. (PTI) In a post on X, Modi wrote that he is immensely proud of their accomplishment and relentless dedication. I am immensely proud of your accomplishment and your relentless dedication. I also acknowledge the efforts of your supportive families and dedicated educators, whose unwavering support has been crucial to this success, Modi said. All the best for the endeavours ahead. He also urged students who believe they could have achieved more in the exams to remember that this was just one milestone in their journey To the brilliant students who believe they could have achieved more in their Class XII examsremember, this is just one milestone in your journey, the prime minister wrote on X. Modi added: Your future holds limitless possibilities. Focus on what excites and drives you. Your unique talents will lead you to success and fulfilment. Keep pushing, keep pursuing! CBSE Class 12 exam result announced On Monday, the CBSE declared the results for the Class 12 board exams. This year's overall pass percentage is 87.98% compared to 87.33% last year. Officials said 91.52 per cent of girls cleared the exam, 6.40 percentage points higher than boys' pass percentage. The number of 90% and 95% scorers also increased in comparison to last year. While the number of students scoring 90% and above marks in all subjects increased to 116145 this year from last years tally of 112838, those scoring 95% and above also rose from 22622 last year to 24068 this year. The board attributed the marginal increase in the overall results to the changes made in examination patterns this year. This shows the students were well prepared for competency-based question papers as this year 40% competency-based questions were asked in the examinations, the board said. Politicians across party lines have extended condolences on the death of senior BJP leader and Bihar's former deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi, who was battling cancer. Former Bihar deputy chief minister and BJP senior leader Sushil Kumar Modi breathed his last at AIIMS, New Delhi on Monday late evening.(PTI) Prime Minister Narendra expressed his sadness over the untimely demise Sushil Kumar Modi - his valuable colleague in the party and friend for decades. He has played an invaluable role in the rise and success of BJP in Bihar. Strongly opposing the Emergency, he made a name for himself in student politics. He was known as a very hardworking and sociable MLA. He had a deep understanding of the issues related to politics. He also did a lot of commendable work as an administrator. His active role in the passage of GST will always be remembered. My condolences are with his family and supporters in this hour of grief. Om Shanti!, PM Modi wrote on X. Union home minister Amit Shah expressed his deep sadness at the demise of Sushil Kumar Modi. Shah reflected on Modi's extensive contribution to politics, spanning from his days with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) to his significant roles within the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the government. "I am saddened by the news of the demise of our senior leader Sushil Kumar Modi ji. Today Bihar has lost a great pioneer of politics forever. From ABVP to BJP, Sushil ji has adorned many important positions in the organization and government," Shah posted on X. "His politics was dedicated to the interests of the poor and the backward. The void that has emerged in Bihar politics due to his demise cannot be filled for a long time. In this hour of grief, the entire BJP stands with his bereaved family. May God give a place to the departed soul in his lotus feet. Om Shanti Shanti," Shah added. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who was close to Sushil Modi, condoled the death of the senior BJP leader saying it was an irreparable loss for the state. "Modi was a true soldier of the JP movement and he was a good friend and one of the sincere and hardworking leaders. I am deeply shocked by his death," the CM said in his condolence message. Former deputy CM and leader of the opposition in Bihar Tejashwi Yadav also expressed his sorrow over the loss, saying, I am extremely saddened to hear the news of the untimely demise of the former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar, our guardian, struggling and hardworking leader respected Shri Sushil Kumar Modi ji. May God grant a place to the departed soul in his feet and provide strength to the family and well-wishers in this hour of grief. Sushil Kumar Modi breathed his last at AIIMS, New Delhi on Monday late evening. He was 72 years old. Modi is survived by his wife and two sons. State BJP confirmed his death on social media. "The BJP family is deeply saddened by the news of the demise of former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar and former Rajya Sabha MP Shri Sushil Kumar Modi," the state unit of the party said in a post on X. This is an irreparable loss for Bihar and the entire BJP family, it said. Last month, Sushil Kumar Modi said he was diagnosed with cancer six months ago and, as a result, would not be participating in the BJP's Lok Sabha poll campaign. "I have been battling cancer for the last six months. Now, I feel that the time has come to inform people about it. I will not be able to do anything for Lok Sabha elections," he posted on X. "I have told everything to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. I will always remain grateful and dedicated to the country, Bihar and the party," he wrote. With Bureau inputs Union home minister Amit Shah on Monday hit out at the Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT) and Sharad Pawar's NCP(SC), accusing the trio of votebank politics. In his twin rallies in Maharashtra's Dhule and Palghar, Shah slammed the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance in the state over Ram temple consecration ceremony, saying,"Never in my life, have I seen such an ambience of devotion. The entire nation was engrossed in devotion to Ram on the day of consecration. Rahul Baba, Sharad Pawar, Udhhav Thackeray, and Supriya Sule got the invitations to attend the consecration ceremony. But they did not attend because of fear of losing their vote bank." ALSO READ: People who contested polls with us': PM says Maharashtra's sympathy with BJP The minister lashed out at Uddhav Thackeray, saying,"Why did not Uddhav Thackeray Ji attend the consecration ceremony despite being invited? We are not afraid of that vote bank and that is why Modi Ji has built the Kashi Vishwanath Corridor which was earlier demolished by Aurangzeb and is building the Somnath Temple with Gold along with other pilgrimages. Union home minister Amit Shah and former Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray. Shah also attacked Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole over his purification of Ram temple' vow. "Only two days back, the president of Maharashtra Congress gave a statement saying that they would purify the Ram Temple if they came to power. I want to ask him whether he has lost his mind. Can the place where Bhagwan Ram resides ever be impure? They neither know our traditions nor understand our religion. They only understand their selfish needs. ALSO READ: PM Modi's retort to Nana Patole's Ram Temple remarks: Do such people deserve Can Uddhav Thackeray, Sharad Pawar become PM?': Amit Shah The Union home minister attacked the INDIA bloc, saying the opposition alliance partners have only job of abusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi. I have been asking them who is their leader? If they get a mandate who will become their prime minister? Can Uddhav Thackeray become the prime minister? Can Sharad Pawar become the prime minister? Can Stalin become the prime minister? Can Mamata Didi become? Can Rahul Baba become?, Shah said. "When a journalist asked who would be their prime minister a leader of the Indi Alliance said that all of the leaders of the alliance would become prime minister in turns. The prime minister of the nation represents the nation across the globe. I want to ask the Indi Alliance that if they run the government in turn then who will take the responsibility if a pandemic strikes? he added. Uddhav left his ideology in greed of power: Shah Shah continued his attacks on Thackeray, accusing the former Maharashtra chief minister of leaving ideology for power. Congress leaders are supporting terrorist Kasav. I ask Uddhav Thackeray whether he is on the same page with the leaders of the Congress. He should answer the people of Maharashtra. Uddhav Thackeray has to answer whether he is with the Congress in its campaign to re-introduce Muslim personal law, the minister said. ALSO READ: You betrayed Balasaheb: Eknath Shinde responds to Uddhav's gaddar jibe The Congress Party and Rahul Gandhi are opposing Veer Savarkar. Uddhav Ji has to answer whether he agrees with Rahul Gandhi and the Congress party. Udaynidhi Stalin and his allies oppose the Sanatana Dharma. Shivaji Maharaj dedicated his life to setting up Hindvi Swaraj, Shah added. "Uddhav Ji allies with them. He has to answer to the people of Maharashtra whether he stands with them in their stance against Sanatana Dharma. Uddhav Thackeray has to clarify whether he is with the Congress partys decision to revoke the CAA, he said. By Sanjoy Kumar Dey Electors cast vote fearlessly for first time at former Maoist hotbed 'Budha Pahad' booth Budha Pahad , Thirty-seven-year-old Halkan Kisan on Monday exercised his vote for the first time at his own booth at 'Budha Pahad'a former Maoist hotbed, which falls under Palamu Lok Sabha constituency. Located along Jharkhand's Latehar and Garhwa districts, Budha Pahad was freed recently from the red rebels' control by security forces after over three decades. Kisan cast his vote at booth no 420 in government's Upgraded middle school, Hesatu, along with hundreds of voters from different villages fearlessly. "I have exercised my vote at my own booth for the first time in my life. Earlier, our booth used to be relocated, around 13 km from my village, due to impact of the Maoist in the locality. Very few voters used to go to vote in relocated place. Now, the area has become free from Maoist activity and people are enthusiastically exercising their votes," Kisan, a resident of Hesatu village under Bargarh block, told PTI. Medininagar sub-divisional officer Anurag Tiwary said that the voting at the polling station is being conducted amid deployment of heavy security. "The polling officials and security personals were air dropped on Sunday at Budha Pahad to conduct the polls," Tiwary told PTI. A total of 771 electors are eligible to exercise their votes at the booth. By 1 pm, the booth has registered 68 per cent polling. Vikram Yadav, 50, another voter, told PTI, "I have given my vote without any trouble. I came to the booth walking around 5 km from my village Saurat and I found no security issue even on the way as there are deployment of security forces. Block programming officer, Bargarh, Md Hashim Ansari told PTI, "Several arrangements have been made for voters such as shed, drinking water and ambulance. Besides, vehicles have also been arranged for the elderly and physically challenged voters. The polling was conducted at booth no 420 after the visit of Jharkhand Chief Electoral Officer K Ravi Kumar along with senior police officers on April 20. Kumar had then said that the voters here would exercise their franchise for the first time at their places after many decades. He gave credit to security forces for making this place terror-free. However, excluding booth no 420, other three booths in Budha Pahad have been relocated due to security reasons, a senior official said. Voting is being held in four Lok Sabha constituencies in Jharkhand - Singhbhum, Lohardaga, Khunti and Palamu on Monday. The exercise to free Budha Pahad from left-wing extremists was carried out through three special operations that were launched since the beginning of April 2022. A total of 14 Maoists were killed, while 590 others were either apprehended or had surrendered during these operations, the officials said. Earlier attempts to drive out the red rebels from 'Budha Pahad' did not materialise due to its difficult terrain, another police officer said. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. A 40-year-old elephant, which had been causing menace in human habitats for past several months, was electrocuted in a coffee estate in Kere Haklu village in Aldur forest range in Chikkmagaluru district on Saturday night, people familiar with the matter said. The 40-year-old elephant who died of electrocution. The forest officials said that the elephant had killed three people in the Aldur range in the last eight months and the villagers had been urging the authorities to translocate the elephant. Chikkamagaluru DCF Ramesh Babu said: The elephant came to the village in search of food on Saturday. It entered the coffee estate of Gudadur Sandeep and attempted to pluck a jackfruit. In the attempt, it came in contact with a live electric wire passing beside a tree, killing the elephant on the spot. I have visited the spot and conducted Mahazar; we have registered a case and are investigating. He further said that a proposal had been sent to higher authorities to capture the tusker but it got killed. The elephant had killed Anand Poojary (53), a supervisor at a coffee estate, on May 5 in Aldur Range. On August 3, 2023, it killed a farmer identified as Kini (38) in Kesuvina Haklu village in Aldur, and on October 18, the same elephant killed an estate worker named Meena (45). The man-elephant conflict has been escalating, particularly in the Aldur range in the district. The department had translocated a rogue elephant in November 2023, which was causing menace to the villagers. Wild elephants have made our lives unbearable as crops worth thousands of rupee and plants were destroyed in a single night, Basave Gowda, a coffee grower in Kasuvina Haklu, said.. We have been demanding forest officials translocate four-five elephants, which are menacing daily. Due to the drought in the district, the wild elephants are entering human habitats in search of fodder and water. We have staged protests against the menace many times, but officials and elected representatives did not take concrete steps to check menace, he added. A review petition has been filed in the Supreme Court, challenging the judgment in the EVM-VVPAT case where the prayer for 100% cross-verification of Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) data with Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) records was turned down. A review petition is considered by judges in their chambers, without oral arguments. (File photo) Arun Kumar Agarwal filed the petition, contending errors apparent in the judgment. According to the review petition filed through advocate Neha Rathi, the courts April 26 judgment overlooked the vulnerability of symbol loading units (SLUs) and the necessity for their audit. Agarwal claimed that the possibility of additional data in the SLU beyond necessary images was disregarded by the court. It added that the judgment erroneously recorded that the percentage of VVPAT slips counted for tallying with EVM votes is 5% whereas it is less than 2%. The plea also contested a determination in the ruling that the 100% matching of EVM-VVPAT data would cause a delay in the poll results being declared. Also Read: Supreme Court affirms sanctity of EVMs, paper trail system The petitioner submits that electronic voting machines do not allow voters to verify that their votes have been accurately recorded. Furthermore, given their very nature, electronic voting machines are especially vulnerable to malicious changes by insiders such as designers, programmers, manufacturers, maintenance technicians, etc, added the plea. A review petition is considered by judges in their chambers, without oral arguments. The top court had on April 26 dismissed a bunch of petitions demanding 100% cross-verification of votes cast on EVMs with VVPATs, emphasising the simplicity, security and user-friendliness of EVMs. Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta, in their concurrent opinions, affirmed the credibility of EVMs and highlighted the stringent safeguards by the Election Commission of India (ECI) for free and fair elections. The judges asserted that the Supreme Court cannot allow the entire process of the ongoing general elections to be called into question and upended on mere apprehension and speculation. The judgments also focussed on the practical challenges inherent in conducting elections in India, highlighting the extensive logistical operations required to ensure access to remote and diverse voting locations, and commending the ECI for putting in place a stringent system of checks and balances to prevent any possibility of a miscount of votes. Addressing concerns raised during the hearing, the bench proposed two forward-looking directions to enhance transparency in the electoral system while clarifying that such directions do not have the effect of interrupting, protracting or stalling the counting of votes for the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. The court directed the sealing and secure storage of symbol loading units (SLUs) in the strong room along with EVMs for 45 days post the declaration of results. Additionally, it ordered verification of burnt memory or microcontrollers in 5% of EVMs per constituency segment upon a written complaint by two runner-up candidates within seven days of the poll result. The bench rejected the petitions filed by non-profit Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and activist Agarwal, dismissing calls to return to the ballot paper system. Justice Khanna highlighted the advantages of EVMs, including curbing booth capturing and reducing invalid votes. In a concurrent judgment, justice Datta criticised ADRs plea to return to the ballot paper system, questioning its intention to discredit the voting system. He emphasised the need to avoid regressive measures and maintain public trust in the electoral process. The integration of VVPAT with EVMs gained legal prominence following a petition by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy after the 2009 general elections. The VVPAT system was declared an indispensable requirement for free and fair elections by the Supreme Court in its landmark 2013 judgment. Former Bihar deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi passed away on Monday after a long battle with cancer. Bihar deputy chief minister Samrat Chaudhary posted on social media platform X,"Humble tribute to former Bihar deputy chief minister and ex-Rajya Sabha MP Shri Sushil Kumar Modi ji on his demise. It is an irreparable loss for Bihar." Last month, Sushil Modi had announced that he would not be participating in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) campaign for the Lok Sabha elections due to his illness. "I have been battling cancer for the last six months. Now, I feel that the time has come to inform people about it. I will not be able to do anything for Lok Sabha elections," he had posted on X. Former Bihar deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi "I have told everything to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. I will always remain grateful and dedicated to the country, Bihar and the party," Sushil Modi wrote, eliciting a barrage of replies and wishes from his party colleagues, his supporters and leaders from different political parties. His political career started as a student activist at Patna University. He became the general-secretary of the Patna University Students' Union in 1973. Lalu Prasad, who later came to be his biggest political rival, was the president of the union at that time. During his political career spanning over three decades, Sushil Kumar Modi held various positions, including MLA, MLC and member of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. He served as the deputy CM of Bihar from 2005 to 2013, and again from 2017 to 2020. Modi became an MLA for the first time in 1990 from Patna Central constituency and was made the chief whip of the BJP legislature party. From 1996 to 2004, he was the leader of the opposition in the state assembly. Sushil Kumar Modi became a member of Lok Sabha from Bhagalpur in 2004. The fourth phase of the Lok Sabha polls covering 96 seats across 10 states and Union territories began on Monday morning. All 25 seats in Andhra Pradesh and 17 in Telangana were going to the polling along with 13 in Uttar Pradesh, 11 in Maharashtra, eight each in West Bengal, and Madhya Pradesh, five each in Bihar and Jharkhand, four in Odisha, and one in Jammu and Kashmir. Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. (HT PHOTO) Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, firebrand Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Mahua Moitra and All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen chief Asaduddin Owaisi were among those in the fray. The polling will coincide with two rallies of Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra in the Gandhi family pocket borough of Rae Bareli. This would be Rahul Gandhis first outreach in the constituency after filing his nomination this month. Kejriwals emotional appeal Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday asked people to vote for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) to ensure he does not have to return to jail. The Supreme Court on Friday granted interim bail until June 1 to Kejriwal for campaigning around two months after he was arrested on money laundering charges linked to the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy case. On the second day of his campaign, Kejriwal said he will not have to go back to jail after 20 days if his party gets maximum votes. Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann, who accompanied Kejriwal during AAPs roadshow, appealed voters to give them a big mandate. You all have to vote on May 25 [when polling will be held in Delhi]. If you give such a big fatwa, then Kejriwal Sahab will not have to go to jail again. BJPs [Bharatiya Janata Party] government is not going to be formed. AAP and INDIA [Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance] are coming to power, Mann said. INDIA, NDA alliance equations The Congress-led INDIA bloc is facing significant intra-alliance conflicts in the fourth phase of polling compared to the previous phase, an HT analysis shows. In contrast, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) remains largely unified, with only minor conflicts in two constituencies. Even the intra-alliance conflicts in INDIA are largely notional outside the eight parliamentary constituencies in West Bengal, where the TMC failed to partner with the Congress and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) or CPI(M). TMC moves ECI against NCW chief The TMC has lodged a complaint with the Chief Election Commissioner urging criminal proceedings against National Commission for Women (NCW) chairperson Rekha Sharm, and local BJP leaders after multiple women in West Bengals Sandeshkhali alleged that they were deceived into filling sexual assault complaints against TMC leaders. The complaint alleges forgery, cheating, fraud, criminal intimidation, and criminal conspiracy against women in Sandeshkhali and the wider electorate. The allegations stem from multiple purported videos shared on a social media platform earlier this week where Sandeshkhali women claimed that a local BJP leader made them sign blank papers which were later filled up as complaints of sexual assault. Attempts to withdraw the complaint were allegedly met with further intimidation and threats from local BJP members, the TMC alleged. Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Ambani, Adani Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhurys comments on Adani and Ambani have sparked a fresh controversy. In an interview with YouTube channel The Red Mike, he said if Adani, Ambani sent tempo-loads of money, he would not speak against them. The BJP said Chowdhury exposed the actual hafta vasooli model of the Congress and the INDIA bloc. Mothers Day On Sunday, Rahul Gandhi posted a video on Instagram on his interactions with his mother, Sonia Gandhi, and other women during the Bharat Jodo Yatra. The Congress leader wrote, Mother is a feeling beyond words of affection, sacrifice, patience and strength Today, on the occasion of Mothers Day, I salute motherly power. Other political leaders such as Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath, Bansuri Swaraj, the BJP candidate from New Delhi Lok Sabha seat, former Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje posted messages on social media on Mothers Day. From the once Maoist bastion of Malkangiri, to the glittering urban agglomeration of Hyderabad; from Srinagar that will vote for the first time since the revocation of Article 370, to Indore where the Congress will not fight the election at all 177 million Indians will line up at 192,000 polling booths on Monday when the country holds its fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections in 96 parliamentary seats. Follow LIVE updates Polling officials board a boat with election material in Chitrakonda, Odisha, on Sunday. (REUTERS) This is the second-largest phase in the 2024 election cycle in terms of number of constituencies and will be spread out over ten states and union territories. Voting will also be held for the 175 assembly seats in Andhra Pradesh and 28 assembly seats in Odisha. Votes will be counted for both the Lok Sabha and the assembly elections on June 4. In these 96 seats, there are 1,717 candidates in the fray, including high profile names such as Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav in Uttar Pradesh, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeens Asaduddin Owaisi in Telangana, and Congresss Adhir Ranjan Choudhury in West Bengal and Bharatiya Janata Partys Giriraj Singh in Bihar. Also read: Lok Sabha elections 2024 Phase 4: Schools, colleges to remain closed in these states/UTs When voting ends on Monday, 379 of Indias 543 constituencies will have voted, although there are some polling booths where a repoll will be held, such as Betul in Madhya Pradesh. Even as the Election Commission has had to contend with heatwave conditions in previous phases, the poll panel downplayed this risk for Monday. The weather forecast indicates that the Parliamentary Constituencies going for polls are likely to experience normal to below normal temperatures (2 degrees) and there will be no heatwave-like condition in these areas on the polling day, the EC said, in a press statement. Among the key battleground states will be Andhra Pradesh, where all of its 25 Lok Sabha seats and 175 assembly constituencies will all see their fates sealed, with a newly minted alliance between the former chief minister Chandrababu Naidu-led TDP, Pawan Kalyans Jan Sena and the BJP hoping to seize power from a dominant YSRCP. In 2019, the party, led by Jagan Mohan Reddy had swept to power in the state, winning 22 of the 25 Lok Sabha seats and 151 of the 175 assembly seats. Since then, Naidu and the BJP have both accused Reddy of corruption, even as the BJP kept its channels open with both regional forces in the run up to the election, eventually picking the TDP as its alliance partner. While coordination within the alliance has not always been seamless, Naidu will hope that a combination of anti-incumbency and a caste calculus that brings together three parties will be enough to return him to the seat of power in the state. Jharkhand too also sees the beginning of its Lok Sabha poll schedule on Monday, with four of its 14 seats voting on Monday, and the rest to be held in the three remaining phases. A key seat among these four is Khuntu, where Union tribal affairs and agriculture minister Arjun Munda is hoping to secure a second term, but is against old foe Kalicharan Munda, who he beat in 2019 by a slender margin of 1,445 votes. The BJP currently holds all four seats. This phase is crucial for us also because three of the five seats reserved for scheduled tribes are going to polls. In 2019, we won three of five seats, but were washed out in most of the ST seats in assembly elections. This will be a test of whether the tribal sentiments has been revived for the BJP or is still held by the JMM and the Congress. We think we are comfortable on the general seats. The real battle is here, a senior BJP leader said, asking not to be named. In Odisha too, there are four Lok Sabha seats, as well as 28 of the 243 assembly seats that will vote on Monday. One key prestige battle is in Berhampur where the BJP is attempting to wrest back a Biju Janata Dal (BJD) citadel that it had last won in 1999. It has also become a key battle because the BJP candidate is Pradip Panigrahy, once the aide of Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik. But away from Berhampur, there are also elections that will be held in the once-Maoist citadel of Swabhiman Anchal in the Nabarangpur Lok Sabha constituency, currently held by the BJD. At least 25 BSF companies and 100 other police personnel have been deployed in the district. We have also deployed more forces from other districts. Police personnel have been given satellite phones. Though the Andhra Pradesh-Odisha border is not seeing much movement of Maoists, we are keeping a close eye. Regular coordination meetings with police of Andhra Pradesh and Chhatisgarh are happening, said a senior Odisha Police officer. Elections will also be held in eight Madhya Pradesh seats on Monday, including in Indore, which has no Congress candidate in the fray after Akshay Bam, the man the party had given the ticket to, joined the BJP hours before he was scheduled to file his nomination. Of the other seven, three are seats reserved for scheduled tribes Khargone, Ratlam and Dhar and two are reserved for scheduled castes Ujjain and Dewas. In Bihars Munger, sitting MP and former JD(U) president Rajiv Ranjan Singh (also known as Lalan Singh) is in battle against Kumari Anita, the wife of gangster Ashok Mahto, of the Rashtriya Janata Dal. While Singh, a close confidant of chief minister Nitish Kumar, has said that he will sail through based on the NDAs development agenda, the electoral battle is a test of the caste combination of both alliances in the fray. RJD state president and former deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav has urged backward class voters to unite and vote for the RJD candidate, an ostensible response to gangster Anant Singh, who has reportedly canvassed support for Lalan Singh. In the fray in the other seats are union ministers -- Giriraj Singh from Begusarai and Nityanand Rai from Ujiarpur. In Uttar Pradesh, voting will be held in Kannauj, where SP chief and one of INDIA alliances key leaders Akhilesh Yadav will look to retain the seat against BJPs Subrat Pathak. Elections will also be held in Srinagar on Monday amid tight security in the first such election since the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019. Security has been tightened across the five districts that make up the constituency. We have made all the security arrangements in polling stations, locations, distribution centres and strong rooms. All the prescribed security arrangements under the guidelines of the election commission of India have been made for the Srinagar parliamentary constituency, said Kashmir inspector general of police, Vidhi Kumar Birdi. The police officer said that thousands of paramilitary personnel, road opening parties, quick reaction teams, static surveillance teams , flying squads and inter district checkpoints have been set up. Though there are 24 candidates in fray, the constituency will likely witness a triangular contest between the National Conference (NC), whose candidate is Aga Ruhullah Mehdi, the Apni Party whose candidate is Mohammad Ashraf Mir and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who is being represented by Waheed Para. Both the PDP and the NC have in recent days accused the Union government-led administration in Jammu and Kashmir of bias and unjust crackdown on party activists, with their leaders saying the local police had rounded up a number of party workers from both their organisations. I-PAC (Indian Political Action Committee), the countrys first and largest cross-party political advocacy group, continues to remain heavily involved in the ongoing Lok Sabha polls with focus on Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal. Rishi Raj Singh, co-founder & director at I-PAC spoke to HT on both assembly and Lok Sabha election preparations, Prashant Kishors legacy and groups future course of action. Edited excerpts. Rishi Raj Singh says I-Pac remains committed to Andhra Pradesh & West Bengal polls as of now. (HT photo sourced) What is the level of involvement of I-PAC in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls? We are campaigning for Andhra Pradesh chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. In 2019 too, we campaigned for Jagan Mohan Reddy, and I think it is going to be the first time that we are doing the campaign for someone consecutively for the second time in assembly polls. So, anything about elections, we are involved. All kinds of things that strengthen the party and its chances for elections. From social media, other media, inputs on candidates election, ground campaigns, branding, visibility, formation of booth committees and strengthening the organisation, we ensure it is taken care of by us. We also provide input, suggestions, conceptualisation and help in the execution. Our full-fledged campaign is going on in West Bengal, I think the Bengal team is even bigger than what we have in Andhra Pradesh. In West Bengal, we are working for the general elections with the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and in the professional capacity we are advising, executing and strategising and doing everything we can in Bengal. What is the difference between 2019 and 2024 for Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP)? The basic difference between 2019 and 2024 is last time it was the only party, this time YSRCP is in the incumbent government. What is the relationship status between Prashant Kishor and I-PAC? When Kishor launched his yatra in Champaran, we journalists could only see I-PAC workers all around him. Prashant has been a mentor to I-PAC for a very long time, since its inception. But after the West Bengal election, I think he tried doing something different and eventually announced he is taking a political plunge. He also announced he is going to go away from the field of strategy. His focus remains in Bihar. But I-PAC will remain independent. We realised it and that is how we went ahead. That is what it is today right now. But since Prashant Kishor and I-PAC remained synonymous, the brand I-PAC must have been affected after his exit. See, I am working in Andhra Pradesh, and it is not because of I-PAC or any other agency. It is because Jagan Mohan Reddy trusts us. It is about trust, and the value we add. Whether Prashant is here or not, someone else is here. But if we keep delivering results and keep adding that value, I think the brand value of I-PAC will never diminish. Also Read:On Prashant Kishors step back suggestion to Rahul Gandhi, Congresss curt reply I dont take pride in how many elections I have won. I take pride in a couple of things: we are those professionals who could create a platform which was converted into an industry on its own. And today, thousands of people are working here. There are so many consultancies working at both party level and individual level. The I-PAC legacy is never going to die. Did you get offers from other parties for the Lok Sabha election? We had two large units active and functional. One in West Bengal, the other one in Andhra Pradesh. In Bengal, it is a tough battle and Andhra Pradesh, as you know, is so politically polarized that you have to give everything to achieve the best results. So, we were completely soaked and focused on these two projects. I-PAC has its share of failures as well. Be it the Congress campaign in UP or TMCs bid in Goa. Your critics have often pointed out that I-PAC works very well when the political party is in a strong position. I agree with one part of it and disagree with another I-PAC doesnt have a magic wand. Its true there is no replacement for the political process and the subsequent long route. There is no shortcut to electoral success. But remember we came to Bihar in 2015 against the strong current in favor of the BJP, which was fresh from its 2014 Lok Sabha victory. We started working for Jagan Mohan Reddy since 2017 when his party was three years old. We started building the brand. No pad yatra (foot pilgrimage) had happened before we came. In Bengal, everyone thought BJP will win (in 2021). In 2015, when we went to Punjab, in our own surveys, the BJP and the Akalis were winning 2/3 of seats. From that stage to ensure victory of Captain Amarinder Singh was a huge deal. Prashant Kishore is believed to be helping the TDP while you are with the YSRCP. Is this a guru versus disciple battle in Andhra Pradesh? I know I-PAC is strategising for Jagan Mohan Reddy and he will get a historic victory. And it is not because I-PAC is working for him. He will come out with flying colours because of his delivery and good governance. I dont know if Prashant Kishor is helping the TDP. What are the future engagements of I-PAC? To be honest, we are focused on these two states. Of course, we will have to work with the TMC for the 2026 assembly election. And when we are free from Andhra Pradesh, we are going to go make rounds. Something can work out only when both sides want to work with each other. New Delhi: At 8-31 a.m. today Dr Rajendra Prasad assumed office as President of the Indian Union for a second term since India became a Republic. HT This Day: May 14, 1957 -- Second term as President Dr Rajendra Prasad sworn in (HT) The Central Hall of Parliament House, where the swearing-in ceremony took place, resounded with ovation from all sides. A 31-gun salute by the Army and a 31-gun salute by the ships of the Indian Naval Flotilla at Bombay proclaimed the event. The ceremony, at which the Vice-President took the oath of office, followed almost immediately. There was a burst of applause as Dr Radhakrishnan completed taking the oath and assumed office, also for a second term in succession. The actual ceremony lasted ten minutes but packed in the short time was a great occasion-recalling the countrys history and beckoning her future. The Central Hall was packed by members of the diplomatic corps, Union Ministers, members of Parliament and a number of invitees, including Mr Dhebar, Congress President. The Chief Justice of India administered the oath to Dr Rajendra Prasad in Hindi. Dr Radhakrishnan was sworn in by the President, who administered the oath in English. Mr A. V. Pai, Secretary, Union Home Ministry, read out the ceremonial announcements - announcements of the names of the President - elect and the Vice - President-elect, etc.- and read them out in Hindi. The President visited the Rajghat to pay homage to the Father of the Nation before the swearing in ceremony. The President also participated in the public prayer held at Rajghat, which lasted 20 minutes. Ceremonial Drive Driving in State, escorted by the Body Guard, the President arrived at the north porch of Parliament House at 8-26 a.m. The entire route up to the porch from the forecourt of Rashtrapati Bhavan was lined on either side by officers and men of the three Services, numbering over 2,000, in ceremonial uniform. As the President drove past the troops presented arms. At the north porch the Vice-President, received the President. The President took the salute of the Body Guard. The Chief Justice of India and the Speaker of the Lok Sabha were then presented to the President. The President then proceeded to the north door of the Central Hall. The procession was headed by the Chief Justice and the Speaker. Next was the Vice-President and then the President. As the procession entered the Central Hall the fanfare was sounded and all stood up. The President arrived at the dais at 8-31 a.m. The oath the President took in Hindi was as follows: I Dr Rajendra Prasad, do swear in the name of God that I will faithfully execute the office of President of India and will to the best of my ability preserve, protect and defend the Constitution and the law and that I will devote myself to the service and well-being of the people of India. The oath read out by Dr Radhakrishnan said: I, Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan, do swear in the name of God that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India as by law established and that I will faithfully discharge the duty upon which I am about to enter. The Home Secretary obtained the Presidents permission for issuing a proclamation announcing his assumption of office, and to communicate it for information to the principal military stations, to all the Ministries of the Government of India and to all the States of the Union. At 8-41 a.m. after the ceremony the National Anthem was played and the Presidential procession re-formed and left the Central Hall. Service Chiefs Messages On behalf of all ranks of the Armed Forces the three Service Chiefs have conveyed messages to Dr Rajendra Prasad on his being re-elected as President of India for a second term. Gen. Thimayya, Chief of the Army Staff, says: On behalf of all ranks of the Army I convey our congratulations on your re-election as the President of India. We take this opportunity of re-pledging to you as our Supreme Commander our continued loyalty and allegiance. Rear-Adm. A. Chakraverti, Officiating Chief of the Naval Staff, says: On behalf of all officers and men of the Indian Navy and myself, I have the honour to offer you our hearty felicitations on your re-election as the President of India, and we assure you, our Supreme Commander, of our continued loyalty and support at all times. Air Marshal Mukerjee, Chief of the Air Staff, says: On behalf of all ranks of the Indian Air Force and myself, I congratulate you on your being re-elected as our President. I also take this opportunity of assuring you, our Supreme Commander, of our continued loyalty and support at all times. Messages from abroad Dr Rajendra Prasad has received messages from various countries congratulating him on his re-election as President of the Republic of India. Mr Antonin Zapotocky, President of the Czechoslovak Republic, in his message expressed his sincere congratulations and best wishes for further successes in the endeavour for further development of your beautiful country. Mr Kuwatly, President of Syria, said he was confident that India under your wise leadership will realize its noble aims to serve the cause of world peace and welfare of humanity and to strengthen the solid ties of friendship between our two countries. Mr Aleksander Zawadzki, President of the of the Council of State of the peoples Republic of Poland, conveyed his best wishes for your personal well-being and the success of your efforts for the good of the friendly and peace-loving Indian people. M Rene Coty, President of France, said he learnt with great pleasure of the re-election and conveyed his sincere wishes for your personal welfare and the prosperity of India. Asaduddin Owaisi of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen and his Bharatiya Janata Party rival Madhavi Latha cast their votes in Hyderabad for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections 2024 on Monday, May 13. AIMIM's Asaduddin Owaisi casts his vote at Vattapally polling station during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha polls in Hyderabad and Bharatiya Janata Party candidate Madhavi Latha. After casting his vote, Asaduddin Owaisi said every election opponent should be taken seriously. "Every election cannot be the same as it was five years ago. The challenges are different, and the issues are different. This is a very important, historic parliamentary election in our country. People have a different understanding of what they want for the country. Elections should always be taken seriously, whether it is a parliamentary election or a Panchayat election. An election is an election. We should always take our opponent seriously. We are confident that we will win elections with the blessings of the people," Asaduddin Owaisi told reporters. Follow live updates on Lok Sabha elections 2024 The AIMIM chief also gave a message to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP saying people do not agree with their ideology or with the statement that the PM has made for the minority community. "The message (to PM Modi) would be that people do not agree with the BJP's ideology and people do not agree with the statements that PM Modi has given for on minority community. Please understand what PM Modi has done with Agniveer, he is now going to go ahead and do the same if he comes back to power with BSF, CRPF, RPF and SSP. Four years of service and you are out. People must understand that it will come out very soon," news agency ANI quoted Owaisi as saying. Asaduddin Owaisi has been the elected representative from Hyderabad since 2004. He was previously elected as an MLA twice in the erstwhile undivided Andhra Pradesh. Owaisi faces BJP leader Madhavi Latha and BRS' Gaddam Srinivas Yadav. Madhavi Latha, cast her vote at the Amrita Vidyalayam polling station in Hyderabad and asserted that Sabka Sath mai hi Sabka Vikas Hai. After casting the vote, Madhavi Latha urged the people to go out to vote, as the vote brings changes and moves towards development. I only have to tell all the voters that it is the responsibility of every citizen that they need to go out to vote because the vote brings two changes: 1) a new change and development towards themselves and their families, and 2) it allows changing the lives of the downtrodden, Dalits, poor and the lives of every elderly people who have been abandoned. Voting is the most precious social work, along with a selfish desire to move towards development. So I would say you may not have money but you have vote, then you have contributed to the nation to go towards 'Viksit Bharat'. And the best thing you all have to understand is Sabka Sath mai hi Sabka Vikas Hai, Alag Alag jeene mai vikas nhi hai, Madhavi Latha told reporters. Prominent among the early voters were former Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, BJP chief in Telangana G Kishan Reddy, popular Telugu actors Chiranjeevi, Allu Arjun, Andhra Pradesh chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and TDP supremo N Chandrababu Naidu. The India Meteorological Department on Monday forecast rainfall with gusty winds with a chance of hail at isolated places in the Malwa-Nimar region of Madhya Pradesh, where polling is on in eight constituencies in the fourth and final phase of the Lok Sabha elections in the state. The India Meteorological Department on Monday forecast rainfall with gusty winds with a chance of hail at isolated places in the Malwa-Nimar region of Madhya Pradesh, where polling is on in eight constituencies in the fourth and final phase of the Lok Sabha elections in the state. The Election Commission and government agencies are working to increase voter turnout, which has been hit because of extreme heat, among other reasons. As per poll authorities, an average voter turnout of 32.38 per cent was recorded till 11 am in the Lok Sabha seats of Dewas, Ujjain, Mandsour, Ratlam, Dhar, Indore, Khargone and Khandwa. A voter turnout of 64.76 per cent was recorded in 21 constituencies that went to polls in the first three phases, while in the 2019 general elections, these constituencies had seen 69.74 per cent polling, MP chief electoral officer Anupam Rajan said. ALSO READ| Nine flights diverted from Bengaluru to Chennai after heavy rains Talking to PTI, IMD Bhopal's senior meteorologist Abhijeet Chakrobarty said rainfall of 1.5 mm was recorded at Kannod in Dewas district of the Malwa region between 8.30 am and 10.30 am. As per the forecast, rainfall with gusty winds and a chance of hail is likely at isolated places in Khargone, Khandwa, Barwani, Alirajpur, Jhabua, Dhar, Indore, Ratlam, Ujjain, Dewas, Shajapur, Mandsaur and Neemuch from 8.30 am on Monday to 8.30 am on Tuesday, he said. Apart from Indore, SC-reserved constituencies of Dewas and Ujjain, ST-reserved seats of Raltam, Dhar and Khargone, and Khandwa and Mandsaur received rainfall in the last 24 hours ending 8.30 am, he said. Manawar town in Dhar district received 46 mm of rainfall in the last 24 hours, ending at 8.30 am, he added. An election official said the authorities have not received complaints of power outages in polling stations. They have learned of windstorms and gusty winds in some parts of the Nimar region, including Khandwa, Khargone, Barwani and Burhanpur districts, he said. "We are concerned about the inclement weather. We are trying to ramp up the turnout, but the weather is creating a hurdle. We have enough time till 6 pm when the voting culminates," he said. An Indian delegation visited Singapore last month to apprise the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) about steps taken to counter money laundering and terror financing over the past decade ahead of the global watchdogs presentation of its report of a review of Indian mechanisms. India informs FATF of steps taken on money laundering, terror funds The FATF, an intergovernmental organisation, is set to present its report on its mutual evaluation or periodic review of Indias efforts to fight money laundering and terror financing next month. The Indian team comprising officials from the Enforcement Directorate (ED), income-tax department, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), and the finance and external affairs ministries visited Singapore in April for face-to-face consultations on the evaluation, people familiar with the development said. Also read: Pak-backed terror conspiracy case: NIA conducts searches at 6 locations in Jammu The discussions focused on steps taken by New Delhi since 2010, when India last underwent such a review, the people said on condition of anonymity. The mutual evaluation was scheduled for September 2020, but was delayed because of the pandemic. During the meeting, the Indian delegation informed the FATF and peers about notable amendments in the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), registration of more than 5,000 money laundering cases in the past 10 years, the arrest of 755 individuals and attachment of properties worth more than 1.21 lakh crore. These steps deterred elements such as organised gangs, terrorists and white-collar criminals, the officials said. A key change since the last review has been defining a politically exposed person under the PMLA, which was recommended by the FATF. Besides, the Indian government has widened the ambit of PMLA to bring non-government organisations and crypto currencies under it, so that illicit financial transactions through virtual digital assets (VDAs) can be monitored. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has stepped up scrutiny of fintech firms to ensure they are following the provisions of the anti-money laundering law, and it is keeping tabs on suspicious transactions, they said. The government also enacted a new law in 2018 to deter economic offenders from evading the process of Indian law by remaining outside the jurisdiction of local courts. The Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018, empowers authorities for non-conviction-based attachment and confiscation of assets and proceeds of crime abroad in cases involving amounts above 100 crore. The team, including ED officials, participated in the face-to-face discussions and discussed steps taken by India to meet the AMT/CFT (anti-money laundering/combating the financing of terrorism) requirements. Compared to many countries, we have done a great job in this area. In fact, several countries are adopting our model, a government official said. Officials exuded confidence that India will not face any red flags in the FATF review. India is currently in the compliant category for key criteria and is expected to remain there, with some of the steps taken by New Delhi likely to be recommended to other countries. Indian regulators and agencies have taken more than enough action against fintech companies and violations of money laundering laws, officials said. The FATF conducts peer reviews of each member country to assess the implementation of its recommendations and provides an in-depth description and analysis of each countrys system. In 2019, the Indian government set up a joint working group comprising 22 central investigation, intelligence and regulatory agencies to make presentations, hold discussions with, and brief the FATF experts. Also read: How Five Eyes Bloc is trying to defang Indias counter-terror & intel apparatus The agencies involved in the process include the ED, the income-tax department, DRI, CBI, Financial Intelligence Unit, Customs, market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India, banking regulator RBI and Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India. Over the past few years, the ED has aggressively gone after businessmen, politicians and companies involved in money laundering by violating the rules laid down by the government and regulatory authorities, even as provisions of the PMLA have been described by many political parties, lawyers and businessman as draconian. The courts have, however, upheld most of its arrests and prosecution complaints that are equivalent to charge sheets. Timeline: Currently India is in compliant category Indias last mutual evaluation was done in June 2010. For the June 2024 plenary, an on-site evaluation was done by FATF in November 2023. A team of officers travelled for face-to-face discussions on steps taken by the Indian government on AMT/CFT since the last evaluation in 2010. NEW DELHI: India and Iran on Monday signed a long-term agreement covering Indian operations at the Chabahar port, with New Delhi offering a credit window worth $250 million for the development of infrastructure around the strategic facility in the Gulf of Oman. Sarbananda Sonowal said the two countries have laid the foundations for Indias long-term involvement in Chabahar with the signing of the new agreement (X/sarbanandsonwal) The agreement was signed in Tehran in the presence of ports and shipping minister Sarbananda Sonowal and his Iranian counterpart Mehrdad Bazrpash. Sonowals visit amid Indias general elections emphasises the importance attached by New Delhi to the Chabahar port and its place in ambitious plans to forge greater connectivity with Iran, Afghanistan and the landlocked central Asian states. Sonowal said with the signing of the agreement, the two countries have laid the foundations for Indias long-term involvement in Chabahar. The signature of this contract will have a multiplier effect on the viability and visibility of Chabahar port, Sonowal said. Chabahar is not only the closest Iranian port to India, but it is also an excellent port from [a] nautical point of view. The long-term agreement, to be valid for 10 years and extended subsequently, was being negotiated by the two sides over the past three years and had been held up over differences on a clause related to arbitration. It replaces an initial pact inked in 2016 that covered Indias operations at the Shahid Beheshti terminal of Chabahar port and has been renewed annually. India Ports Global Chabahar Free Zone (IPGCFZ), a subsidiary of state-run India Global Ports Limited (IGPL), currently operates the Shahid Beheshti terminal at Chabahar port. Under the new contract between IPGL and the Ports and Maritime Organisation of Iran (PMO), the Indian state-run firm will invest about $120 million to further equip the Shahid Beheshti terminal, people familiar with the matter said on condition of anonymity. The Indian side will procure equipment such as mobile harbor cranes, rail mounted quay cranes, rubber tyred gantry cranes, reach stackers, forklifts and pneumatic unloaders. Also Read: In Chabahar, the city of four springs, India is stuck in a long winter India has also offered a credit window equivalent to $250 million for mutually identified projects aimed at improving Chabahar-related infrastructure, the people said. The Indian side handed over a letter from external affairs minister S Jaishankar to his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amirabdollahian regarding the credit window and reiterated Indias commitment to cooperate in developing the port, the Indian embassy in Tehran said in a post on X. Sonowal and Bazrpash discussed furthering the shared vision of making Chabahar port a regional connectivity hub connecting India to Afghanistan, Central Asia, and Eurasia, the embassy said in another post. Sonowal travelled from New Delhi to Tehran on a special Indian Air Force (IAF) and his delegation included JP Singh, the joint secretary who heads the Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran desk in the external affairs ministry. The move comes at a time when China has been showing greater interest in investments in ports and other coastal infrastructure in Iran, with Tehran pressing Beijing to take up the development of other terminals at Chabahar port. Both India and Iran see the deep-water port in the Sistan-Baluchistan province as a hub for the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), which will allow shipping companies to use an alternative route that bypasses the sensitive and busy Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz. Chabahars location in the open sea provides easy and secure access for large cargo ships and the port has benefited from a carve-out from the US sanctions on Iran. HT first reported in September 2022 that India and Iran were working on a long-term agreement for IGPLs operations at Chabahar port. The only issue holding up the agreement at that time was related to the jurisdiction for arbitration of differences on any matter. Under Irans Constitution, such arbitration cannot be referred to foreign courts, and a proposal under the agreement required a constitutional amendment. It was not immediately clear how the two sides worked out these differences, though Iranian officials told HT some time ago that this issue had been resolved. Iranian ambassador Iraj Elahi told HT last month the long-term agreement was ready and Indias ports and shipping minister was invited to Tehran for its signing. Since IPGL began operations at Shahid Beheshti terminal in December 2018, it has handled more than 8.4 million tonnes of bulk and general cargo, including trans-shipments from Australia, Bangladesh, Brazil, Germany, Russia and the United Arab Emirates. Chabahar has also facilitated the supply of humanitarian aid, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic. A total of 2.5 million tonnes of wheat and 2,000 tonnes of pulses have been trans-shipped from India to Afghanistan through Chabahar. In 2021, India supplied 40,000 litres of the pesticide Malathion to Iran through the port to fight a locust menace. India took up the development of the Shahid Beheshti terminal under a tripartite agreement on Chahbahar signed with Iran and Afghanistan in May 2016. Afghanistan is effectively no longer part of the arrangements since the takeover of the country by the Taliban in 2021. India had earlier pledged to invest $85 million in the terminal and has so far supplied six mobile harbour cranes (two of 140 tonnes and four of 100 tonnes capacity) and other equipment worth $25 million. Sonowal said Indias investment in Chabahar will enhance the ports capacity and efficiency and solidify New Delhis commitment to the regions economic development. Indias sustained engagement in Chabahar underscores the ports role as an anchor for Indian trade in the region, and the establishment of regular ship calls between Chabahar and Indian ports has instilled stability and confidence among traders, offering them visibility and predictability in their supply chain operations, he said. Chabahars integration with a special free trade zone and Indias incentives such as concessions on vessel-related charges and cargo charges are aimed at attracting Indian entrepreneurs, he added. Ports and shipping minister Sarbananda Sonowal left for Iran on Monday for the signing of a crucial long-term agreement for Indias operations at the strategic Chabahar port, people familiar with the matter said. The long-term agreement on the Shahid Beheshti terminal is expected to be signed on Monday. (File photo) The long-term agreement, which will be valid for 10 years and will be extended automatically, was being negotiated by the two sides over the past three years or so and had been primarily held up by differences on a clause related to arbitration. It will replace an initial pact inked in 2016 that covered Indias operations at Shahid Beheshti terminal of Chabahar port and has been renewed on an annual basis. Sonowal flew from New Delhi to Tehran on a special Indian Air Force (IAF) flight and people familiar with the matter on both sides said his visit was linked to the signing of the 10-year agreement for operations by state-run India Global Ports Limited (IGPL) Shahid Beheshti terminal. The long-term agreement on the Shahid Beheshti terminal is expected to be signed today [Monday], said a person familiar with the latest developments in Tehran. Also Read: Eye on the Middle East | In Chabahar, the city of four springs, India is stuck in a long winter Sonowals visit amid Indias general election emphasises the importance attached by New Delhi to Chabahar port and its place in ambitious plans to forge greater connectivity with Iran, Afghanistan and the landlocked Central Asian states. The move also comes at a time when China has been showing greater interest in investments in ports and other coastal infrastructure in Iran, with Tehran pressing Beijing to take up the development of other terminals at Chabahar port. Both India and Iran see Chabahar as a hub for the International NorthSouth Transport Corridor (INSTC) that will allow shipping companies to use an alternative route that bypasses the sensitive and busy Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz. HT had first reported in September 2022 that India and Iran were working on a long-term agreement for IGPLs operations at Chabahar port. The only issue holding up the agreement at that time was related to the jurisdiction for arbitration of differences on any matters. Under Irans Constitution, such arbitration cannot be referred to foreign courts, and a proposal under the agreement required a constitutional amendment. It was not immediately clear how the two sides had worked out these differences, though Iranian officials had told HT some time ago that this issue had been resolved. Iranian ambassador Iraj Elahi told HT last month that the long-term agreement was ready, and Indias ports and shipping minister had been invited to Tehran for its signing, though it was unclear whether he would travel during the general election. Since IPGL began operations at Shahid Beheshti terminal in late 2018, it has handled more than 4.8 million tonnes of bulk cargo, including trans-shipments from Australia, Bangladesh, Brazil, Germany, Russia and the United Arab Emirates. India took up development of Shahid Beheshti terminal under a tripartite agreement on Chahbahar signed with Iran and Afghanistan in May 2016. Afghanistan is effectively no longer part of the arrangements since the takeover of the country by the Taliban in 2021, though Chabahar port has benefited from a US waiver on sanctions imposed on Iran. India pledged it would invest $85 million in the terminal and has so far supplied cranes and other equipment worth some $24 million. Amid the sexual harassment case involving Janata Dal (Secular) patriarch HD Deve Gowdas grandson Prajwal Revanna, the party has now used the issue about the Vokkaliga community and deputy chief minister DK Shivakumars conspiracy to gain control of the state. Prajwal Revanna. (PTI) On Tuesday, the women workers of the JD(S) held protests in several parts of the state targeting Shivakumar for allegedly being the conspirator behind leaking the sex abuse videos. For his political gains, to bring down JD(S), he ruined the lives of several women in Hassan. He released their photos and videos in public, ruining the lives of our women, argued one of the protesters, who didnt comment on the allegations against Prajwal Revanna. DK Shivakumar is targeting the Revanna family. They even got a case registered against Revanna. As the case had no material, they hatched a conspiracy and booked another case of abduction against Revanna, Lingesh Gowda, another protester, said. According to a senior leader in the know of the development, the JD(S) plan is to make the issue about the Vokkaliga community and Shivakumars conspiracy to gain control. More than the government, HDK has been targeting Shivakumar because he is the Congresss Vokkaliga face. While sex tapes are a legal issue and a matter of concern, the dynamics of caste politics work differently. If HDK can convince the community that Shivakumar tried to tarnish another leader from the community for his political gains, there could be an opening for the JD(S) to gain the support of the community, the leader said. Meanwhile, HD Kumaraswamy also focussed his allegations on Shivakumar, claiming that the former driver of the Revanna family, D Karthik, the person who leaked the controversial videos, was sent to Malaysia by the deputy chief minister. The former chief minister questioned why the police did not take actions against people responsible for leaking the videos. While he said that Prajwal should be punished if found guilty, he added that the videos had affected the lives of several women. It is now in the public domain that Naveen Gowda on April 21 at 8 pm announced releasing explicit videos on WhatsApp in the next few seconds. Why no action has been taken against this? Then what is the role of SIT (Special Investigation Team)? he asked while talking to reporters on Wednesday. While Kumaraswamy and other JD(S) leaders have been careful not to support Prajwal its argument, the Congress leaders emphasised that the palpable anger against Prajwals alleged crimes remains a prominent issue. The community is smart. They know what Prajwal has done and who are defending a rapist, a senior Congress leader from Mandya said on condition of being anonymous. At the state level, the Congress has been careful not to play into the JD(S) hands by making the issue - Kumaraswamy vs Shivakumar. Following the accusations by Kumaraswamy, several Congress leaders accused him of dragging the Vokkaliga community into the sexual abuse case and diverting attention from the urgent need for justice for the numerous victims. The leaders included ministers Krishna Byre Gowda, N Cheluvarayaswamy, M.C. Sudhakar, and Ramalinga Reddy, MLC Dinesh Guligouda and MP GC Chandrashekar Byre Gowda said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Kumaraswamy held talks on the matter and they should undergo a truth test before the deity at Hasanamba temple in Hassan, a prominent temple in the district Instead of handing over USB drives related to the sexual abuse to state police chief or the chief Justice of the high court of Karnataka, BJPs Devaraje Gowda gave them to BJP leaders and others...Did the Congress ask the Hassan MP to indulge in sexual abuse? Did the Congress ask MLA HD Revanna to kidnap a 62-year-old woman? the revenue minister asked. The government is equally concerned about the circulation of videos and other materials and passed on the message to the SIT so that cases will be booked against all those people involved in further circulation of the videos, he added. Hamirpur/Shimla , Union Minister Anurag Thakur on Monday described Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal as the "biggest liar in the country" and alleged the A national convener has deceived the people of the national capital and Punjab. Kejriwal biggest liar in country, deceived people of Delhi, Punjab: Anurag Thakur Thakur, who is seeking a fifth term in the Lok Sabha from the Hamirpur seat in Himachal Pradesh, urged people not to vote for the A. "Today, the entire country has seen the true face of Arvind Kejriwal. These people are contesting only 22 seats and are deceiving the entire nation with false promises and deception. Last time also, they made big promises but did not fulfil a single one. "They have embarrassed the people of Delhi. Today, almost all Delhi government ministers are in jail on serious corruption charges. The people of Delhi want stability and development. They do not want to vote for people who go to jail," Thakur said. The Union minister alleged that Kejriwal's primary aim was to grab power so that his misdeeds remain under wraps but people know him well and would defeat his party in all seven Lok Sabha constituencies in Delhi. "Kejriwal is the biggest liar in this country. Kejriwal can say anything about anyone. He has deceived the people of Delhi and Punjab with his lies. His comments only entertain the people of this country and will benefit the BJP," he told reporters. Asserting that there was no anti-incumbency against the BJP, Thakur claimed that Kejriwal was spreading rumours after coming out of jail. The BJP leader exuded confidence that his party would win the Lok Sabha elections with ease and Narendra Modi would become prime minister for the third time. Arrested in a money laundering case linked to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam, Kejriwal has been granted interim bail by the Supreme Court till June 1 to campaign in the Lok Sabha elections. He will have to surrender and go back to jail on June 2. Responding to queries about Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal allegedly being assaulted at Kejriwal's residence, Thakur said in a release issued here that the A has become the "Arvind Assault Party". "The Aam Aadmi Party, once known as Arvind Advertisements Party, has now become the Arvind Assault Party, demonstrating the degradation of its founder Arvind Kejriwal and his associates. "If the Rajya Sabha MP of the Aam Aadmi Party, who has previously chaired the Delhi Commission for Women, is not safe, then how can other women be assured of their safety?" he asked. He also asked if the assault was "ordered" by the chief minister or someone else. "Some people from the family seemed to be emerging to take leadership roles. Is this causing tension? And will this tension escalate further on June 2nd when Arvind Kejriwal, an accused in the liquor scam, goes back to jail, as directed by the Supreme Court?" Thakur asked. Earlier on Monday, Maliwal went to the Civil Lines police station and alleged that a member of Kejriwal's personal staff "assaulted' her at the chief minister's official residence, police officials said. Police have not yet received a formal complaint. June 1 is the last day of the seven-phase elections and the votes will be counted on June 4. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. A low-intensity explosion was reported in Kerala's Kannur district on Monday morning. No casualties were reported. Police personnel were present in the nearby area when the blast occurred.(Image for representation.) The explosion occurred in the Bavode area near Chakkarakkal in the politically volatile district, news agency PTI reported. Police personnel were present in the nearby area when the blast occurred, they added. A bomb squad accompanied by a dog squad conducted searches. However, it has not been ascertained who threw the bomb, reported ANI. Unidentified officials in the police department told PTI that the explosive materials in ice-cream ball-shaped containers exploded in the area where tension has been simmering between the activists of the BJP and the Communist Party of India (Marxist). Also Read | Crude country bombs of Kerala's Kannur and their unintended targets A clash was reported on Sunday between members of the ruling CPI(M) and the BJP regarding the temple festival of Chakarakal Bavot, as per the news agency. Following this, police patrolling was intensified in the area. The Chakkarakkal police have launched an investigation into the incident. Last month, a booth agent for the Congress during the Lok Sabha elections, was allegedly assaulted by CPI(M) workers in Kannur. Rajith Kumar P (32), an assistant professor in the Department of Commerce at the Co-operative Arts and Science College in Madayi, was allegedly assaulted with iron rods by CPI-M workers, including the party's branch secretary, reported ANI. The incident happened on April 30 when Rajith was assaulted with iron rods, while he was returning home on his motorcycle around 10 pm. "They stopped me around 200 metres from my home at Korom near Maniyara. They hit my head with iron rods and punched my back. I was saved because I was wearing a helmet," Rajith Kumar told ANI. A case was registered under sections 341,323,324,34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Five accused people were named in the FIR: Suresh TT, Ajaayn TV, Mahesh Iruttan, Suresh VV and Pranav TV. The fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections on Monday witnessed over 62% per cent polling across 96 constituencies in 10 states and Union Territories. West Bengal recorded the highest polling with 75.91 per cent voter turnout followed by Madhya Pradesh at 68.48 per cent. Jammu and Kashmir and Maharashtra were the laggards with 36.58 per cent and 52.63 per cent polling, respectively. An elderly voter shows his ink-marked finger after casting his vote for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections, in Jharkhand on Monday. (ANI Photo)(ceojharkhand-X) Among other states, Andhra Pradesh saw 68.12 per cent polling, Bihar 55.90 per cent, Jharkhand 63.37 per cent, Odisha 63.85 per cent, Telangana 61.29 per cent, and Uttar Pradesh 57.76 per cent. This is provisional data and overall voter turnout is likely to go up. While the polling was largely peaceful, some incidents of violence were reported in Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal. There were also reports of EVMs malfunctioning at some booths in West Bengal and Odisha. The TDP and YSRCP traded allegations of violence against each other in the state, especially in Palnadu, Kadapa and Annamayya districts. YSRCP accused TDP of violating the poll code in various constituencies and capturing polling booths. On the other hand, TDP alleged that YSRCP workers damaged vehicles belonging to their candidate and assaulted their agents. YSRCP MLA A Shiva Kumar allegedly slapped a voter in Tenali after an argument broke out over the lawmaker jumping the queue, following which the voter returned in kind. In Telangana, BJP candidate K Madhavi Latha, who is challenging AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi from Hyderabad, was booked by election authorities for allegedly asking women voters to lift their burqa to match their identity at a polling booth. Srinagar voted amid rising concerns about low voter turnout and the campaigns increasingly acrimonious tenor. The ruling BJP isnt contesting the Srinagar Lok Sabha seat or the two other parliamentary constituencies from the Muslim-majority Kashmir region. A number of displaced Kashmiri Pandits in Jammu were unable to cast their vote as their names were missing from the electoral rolls. The voter turnout in the first three phases of the Lok Sabha elections was 66.14 per cent, 66.71 per cent and 65.68 per cent, respectively. A total of 1,717 candidates are competing in this phase across the Lok Sabha seats, with over 17.70 crore eligible voters, including 8.73 crore women. Polling is underway for all 17 Lok Sabha seats in Telangana, all 25 seats in Andhra Pradesh, 13 in Uttar Pradesh, five in Bihar, four in Jharkhand, eight in Madhya Pradesh, 11 in Maharashtra, four in Odisha, eight in West Bengal, and one in Jammu and Kashmir. Till phase three of the Lok Sabha elections, polling was held in 283 seats out of 543. After today's round, polling will conclude in 379 seats. The voter turnout in the first three phases of the Lok Sabha elections was 66.14 per cent, 66.71 per cent and 65.68 per cent, respectively. The subsequent three phases are scheduled for May 20, May 25, and June 1, with vote counting slated for June 4. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, speaking at a rally in Bihar's Hajipur Lok Sabha constituency on Monday, said that his government would keep fighting corruption in the country despite the opposition's accusations of central agencies being misused by the Centre. Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses during a public meeting for Lok Sabha elections, in Hajipur. (PTI) Modi also said that the money that had been recovered in raids at the homes of politicians belonged to the countrys poor. I will tell you why they are crying hoarse against the actions of agencies like the ED. During the previous Congress regime, the ED seized only 35 lakh, which could be contained in a school bag, the Prime Minister said. Modi said that unlike his political rivals, who focus on advancing their family members, I have no waaris (successor). The common people are my waaris. Attacking Opposition parties in Bihar, he said that when parties like Congress and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) were in power, they allowed extortion and kidnapping to flourish. "Modi searched the houses of thieves who had looted the money of the poor. In the last 10 years, Modi has seized 2200 crore. If that money has to be transported, 70 small trucks will be required," he said. Modi added that the opposition parties, if voted to power, would give away reservations to Muslims to pursue their vote bank politics. However, the PM further said, As long as I am alive, I will not let this happen. Kidnapping and extortion flourished during the RJD rule in Bihar... NDA fights for social justice, 60 per cent Union ministers from OBC/SC/ST categories, Modi said. Modi said that the Opposition parties were deliberately hurting peoples sentiments by making obnoxious statements about the Ram temple in Ayodhya. On the day of the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections, Modi encouraged everyone to vote for the Bharatiya Janata Party-led (BJP) National Democratic Alliance (NDA) to help form a powerful government. Modi also visited the Takhat Sri Harimandir Ji Patna Sahib in Patna wearing a Sikh turban. He also distributed langar (food) to devotees at the Gurdwara. JAIPUR: The six minors including a 10-year-old, who have confessed to having murdered the 32-year-old cleric at Ajmer-based Muhammedi Masjid on April 26, were allegedly made to watch pornographic videos, stripped, and sexually abused by him over the past seven months, police officers familiar with the questioning of the detainees said. Ihe cleric from Uttar Pradesh, who was appointed in October last year, was beaten to death by the six minors last month by the six children in the 10-17 age group (AFP FILE PHOTO) The cleric from Uttar Pradesh, who was appointed in October last year, was beaten to death by the six minors last month while he was sleeping in his room inside the mosque, the police officer added. Initially, they told the police that three people whose faces were covered with a black cloth, entered the mosque around 3 am, snatched everyones phone, threatened them, and bludgeoned the cleric to death before escaping by jumping over a wall behind the mosque. But it was found during the investigation that they made up the story after killing the cleric, Muhammed Maheer, themselves, said Ravindra Khinchi, the SHO of the local Ramganj police station. According to the police, five of the six minors including a 10-year-old have been in the mosque as part of their religious education. Four of them are from Uttar Pradesh and one is from Rajasthans Bundi. They arrived here during the tenure of the former cleric, after whose death last year, Maheer was appointed. The sixth minor (16) arrived last March, added Khinchi. According to the police, after being abused by the cleric, and not willing to put up with it any longer, the six bought a few sleeping pills from a nearby medical shop in the day when Maheer was away. When he returned, they offered him a bowl of raita spiked with the pills. They then entered his room at around 2 am. The eldest, among them, who is 17, hit Maheer on his head multiple times. When he fell unconscious, the 16-year-old and the 10-year-old smothered him to death while the rest of the boys helped them tying his hands and legs with a rope, said the SHO. Later, they also hid their mobile phones in a bush behind the mosque and ran out to raise an alarm. The minors have told the police that their parents did not respond to their complaints about Maheer. Police detained all the six accused on Sunday after their confession. We have also seized the murder weapons and the ropes they used during the incident. We will also present them before the Child Welfare Commission for further counselling considering their mental state. Maharashtra recorded an overall voter turnout of 52.49 per cent till 5 pm in the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections. Nandurbar recorded the highest turnout of 60.60 percent among the 11 constituencies that went to elections. On the other hand, Jalna saw 58.85 percent turnout until 5 pm. Beed witnessed 58.21 percent polling, followed by Raver at 55.36 percent among others. ALSO READ: Lok Sabha elections: Over 62% voter turnout till 5pm, Bengal highest at 75.66% Here is the voting percentage of each of the 11 constituencies in Maharashtra that voted on Monday. A voter walks inside a polling station during the fourth phase of the general election, in Beed, Maharashtra,(Reuters) CONSTITUENCY VOTING PERCENTAGE JALGAON 51.98 JALNA 58.85 NANDURBAR 60.60 SHIRUR 43.89 AHMEDNAGAR 53.27 AURANGABAD 54.02 BEED 58,21 MAVAL 46.03 PUNE 44.90 RAVER 55.36 SHIRDI 52.27 During the voting in the day, Congress' Pune unit chief Arvind Shinde alleged bogus voting. "I went to Saint Meera school for voting, but my name was already ticked off on the list, and I was told voting was already done in my name. Someone had signed next to my name," he was quoted by PTI as saying. Shinde claimed he filled up necessary forms and was allowed to vote on ballot paper, adding he had raised a complaint online. Union minister Raosaheb Danve, BJP leader Pankaja Munde and actor-turned-politician Amol Kolhe are among the prominent candidates. A total of 298 candidates are in the fray, with Beed having the highest number of 41 candidates and Nandurbar the lowest number at 11. Altogether, 2.28 crore voters are eligible to participate in the fourth phase of the election in the state. ALSO READ: Uttar Pradesh records nearly 58% polling in phase 4 of Lok Sabha elections They comprise 1.18 crore men, 1.09 crore women, and 1,272 third-gender voters. In the 11 constituencies, there are 23,284 polling centres, 83 of which are deemed critical. Voting is underway using 53,959 ballot units, 23,284 control units, and 23,284 VVPAT machines, the official said. The BJP has renominated Danve from Jalna constituency and Sujay Vikhe Patil in Ahmednagar and fielded former state minister Pankaja Munde from Beed. ALSO READ: Telangana Lok Sabha polls phase 4: Voter turnout crosses 61.16% Actor Amol Kolhe is the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) candidate from the Shirur Lok Sabha seat in the Pune district. NCP (SP) candidate Bajrang Sonavane, Union Minister Raosaheb Danve, AIMIM MP Imtiaz Jaleel and Leader of Opposition Ambadas Danve cast their votes in their constituencies. It is BJP versus Congress in Jalna and the Uddhav Thackeray-headed Shiv Sena (UBT) versus Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena in Aurangabad. In Beed, the BJP has fielded former state minister Pankaja Munde instead of sitting MP and her younger sister Pritam Munde. Pankaja's main rival is Bajrang Sonawane of the NCP (SP). In Shirur, sitting MP Kolhe of the NCP (SP) is pitted against Shivajirao Adhalrao Patil, who is contesting on the NCP ticket. After Baramati in Pune district, Shirur is another prestige battle for Ajit Pawar, who has publicly stated that he wants to ensure the defeat of Kolhe. Maharashtra has 48 Lok Sabha seats, the second highest after 80 in Uttar Pradesh. Out of the 48 seats, polling culminated in 24 in the first three phases of elections on April 19, April 26 and May 7. (With PTI inputs) Bhopal, An average voter turnout of 14.97 per cent was recorded till 9 am on Monday in eight Lok Sabha seats in Madhya Pradesh where polling was underway in the fourth and last phase of general elections in the state, officials said. MP records 14.97 pc turnout in 8 LS seats till 9 am; CM Yadav among early voters Among the eight seats, Dewas recorded 16.79 per cent polling, Dhar 15.61 per cent, Indore 11.48 per cent, Khandwa 14.68 per cent, Khargone 15.35 per cent, Mandsour 16.61 per cent, Ratlam 13.73 per cent and Ujjain 16.80 per cent, as per official figures. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav was among the early voters. He exercised his franchise in Ujjain, his home town, along with his family members. In Ratlam-Jhabua Lok Sabha seat, Congress candidate former Union minister Kantilal Bhuria, BJP nominee Anita Chauhan and her minister husband Nagar Singh Chauhan exercised their franchise in the early hours of polling. Rains disrupted polling in some areas of Khandwa Lok Sabha seat and also in parts of some other constituencies, but voting was going on peacefully, Madhya Pradesh's Chief Electoral Officer Anupam Rajan told PTI. Voting began at 7 am and will end at 6 pm in the eight constituencies where 18,007 polling stations have been set up, as per officials. A total of 74 candidates - 69 men and five women - are in the fray in the fourth phase. There are 1,63,70,654 eligible voters, including 82,48,091 men, 81,22,175 women and 388 third gender persons, the CEO earlier said. The eight constituencies, spread over 64 assembly segments in 15 districts in the state's Malwa-Nimar region, are considered the bastion of the BJP. The Indore Lok Sabha seat has the maximum number of 14 candidates and Khargone has the least five nominees. Out of the eight seats, Indore also has the highest number of eligible voters at 25,26,803, while Ujjain has the least number of 17,98,704 electors, the CEO said. In Ratlam, there is a straight fight between former Union minister Kantilal Bhuria and state Forest Minister Nagar Singh Chauhan's wife Anita Chauhan. In Indore, the 'None of the above ' option has unexpectedly hogged the limelight after Congress candidate Akshay Kanti Bam withdrew his nomination at the last minute and joined the BJP. As Bam's move set the stage for a one-sided contest for BJP's Shankar Lalwani, who won from Indore by nearly 5.4 lakh votes last time, the Congress urged voters to hit the NOTA button. Of the total 29 seats in Madhya Pradesh, polling was held in 21 in three phases on April 19, and May 7. Votes will be counted on June 4. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. Flight operations at Mumbai's Chhattrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport were temporarily suspended due to low visibility and rains. Due to the inclement weather and dust storms in the city, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) temporarily suspended flight operations for around 66 min due to low visibility and gusty winds. Operations resumed at 17:03 hrs, the airport said in a statement. During this time, the airport witnessed 15 diversions. CSMIA last week completed its pre-monsoon runway maintenance successfully, ensuring safe and smooth aircraft operations. Committed to efficiency and passenger safety, the airport remains steadfast to prioritize seamless operations, the CSMIA statement added. ALSO READ: Severe winds, rain hit Mumbai, Thane; 7 injured in Ghatkopar billboard collapse Metro and local train services were disrupted as rains and gusty winds lashed several parts of Mumbai and adjoining areas. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a "nowcast warning" forecasting a thunderstorm accompanied by lightning and moderate to intense spells of rain for Thane, Palghar and Mumbai. Dust storm at Mumbai's Chhattrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport.(Sourced) "Thunderstorm accompanied with lightning and light to moderate spells of rain with gusty winds reaching 40-50 kmph is very likely to occur at isolated places in Mumbai in the next 3-4 hours," an official of IMD said. Metro services were suspended between Aarey and Andheri East metro stations after a banner landed on the overheard wire due to strong winds, a spokesperson from Metro Rail was quoted by PTI as saying. Suburban services on Central Railway were affected after an overhead equipment pole between Thane and Mulund stations got bent due to strong winds, an official said. The suburban services on the Main Line have been suspended, the chief spokesperson of Central Railway said. While the unseasonal showers brought some respite from the scorching heat, power outages were reported in Kalwa in Thane district and some other areas. Apart from this, the incidents of trees falling were also reported in some areas of India's financial capital. Rains coupled with gusty winds were witnessed in the suburbs of Dadar, Kurla, Mahim, Ghatkopar, Mulund and Vikhroli, while parts of south Mumbai saw drizzles. The satellite towns of Thane, Ambernath, Badlapur, Kalyan and Ulhasnagar also received moderate showers with gusty winds. (With PTI inputs) Emergency services personnel at the spot where a massive iron hoarding collapsed on a petrol pump due to strong winds and heavy rain at Ghatkopar in Mumbai, Monday, May 13, 2024. Mumbai weather highlights: At least eight people died and around 57 people were injured after a 100-foot tall billboard was uprooted and fell on a petrol pump and nearby houses at the Cheddanagar Junction in the Ghatkopar area as rain and gusty winds lashed parts of the state on Monday. Around 20-30 people are still feared trapped....Read More The unseasonal rainfall also adversely affected flight, metro and local train services in the city. At least 15 flights were diverted at Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport after flight operations were temporarily suspended due to low visibility. Operations at the airport resumed at around 5pm. Also Read | Mumbai rain: Metro, local trains services affected in several parts Metro services were suspended between Aarey and Andheri East metro stations after a banner landed on the overheard wire due to strong winds. Train services on the Harbour line were also intermittently stopped due to overhead line equipment fluctuation caused by the heavy rainfall and strong winds. Kohima, The Nagaland government has constituted a 'Political Affairs Committee' comprising ministers and legislature party leaders of all political parties in the state Assembly to find an inclusive solution to the Naga Political issue. Nagaland govt constitutes Political Affairs Committee on Naga political issue The PAC was constituted during a high-level political meeting held on Thursday under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, state government spokesperson and minister for parliamentary affairs, K G Kenye said in a statement here on Sunday. The PAC comprising the council of ministers and the legislature party leaders of all political parties in the current Nagaland Legislative Assembly has been formed to find an inclusive solution to the long-drawn Naga Political issue as a facilitator, he said. The PAC is being initiated once again in pursuit of a broad consensus for an early and amicable settlement, he said. In line with this, all the legislature party leaders have been directed to initiate the formation of 'Political Consultative Committees' in consultation with their respective party organisations to deal with matters exclusively for the purpose mentioned above, he said. The PAC has been approaching both the Centre and the Naga political groups urging them to listen to the voice of the people and arrive at the final solution. The Government of India and Naga political groups have entered into a ceasefire since 1997 and held separate talks with different groups for a solution to the vexed political problem. After almost 70 rounds of talks, the Centre entered into a Framework Agreement with NSCN-IM in 2015 and also signed the Agreed Position with the Working Committee of Naga National Political Groups in 2017. In October 2019 the then Centres Interlocutor for Naga Peace Talks and Governor of Nagaland R N Ravi had declared that talks had concluded. However, the Centre has not accepted the NSCN-IM's persistent demand for a separate flag and constitution of the Nagas delaying the final solution while on the other hand, the WC NNPGs have declared that they are willing to accept the solution and continue the talks for the remaining demands. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. 'Pappu Chaiwala,' the vendor at the popular tea kiosk at Assi crossing in Varanasi, showered praise on Prime Minister Modi on Monday as he eagerly anticipated the latter's roadshow in the holy city, stating that the nation has never witnessed a leader of his calibre. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's poster put up in Varanasi.(PTI) Speaking to news agency ANI, the tea seller said, "Varanasi is excited about the Prime Minister's roadshow. All those coming with PM Narendra Modi are welcome here. Many good programs are being organised in his honour..." Pappu Chaiwala added, Modi ji always asks about my well-being. He has come to my shop and had tea here. When my father was unwell, he asked about his health We never saw a Prime Minister like him in our life and neither did we see a roadshow like this If I am made a proposer for his nomination, I am ready for it. I have even got an orange kurta-pyjama ready for it. Even if I'm not made a proposer, I will wear that kurta-pyjama to his roadshow today ALSO READ | Kashi decks up for PM Modis nomination eve road show today Varanasi will witness a roadshow by PM Modi on Monday evening. The prime minister is also set to file his nomination from Varanasi for a third consecutive term a day later. The PM's roadshow will cover five kilometres and begin with him garlanding the statue of Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya at Lanka Gate, Banaras Hindu University. Senior BJP officials and representatives have been entrusted with organizing the eleven beats that mark the path from the Malaviya statue to the sacred Kashi Vishwanath Dham. The PM will seek blessings from Baba Vishwanath at the Kashi Vishwanath temple, where the roadshow is set to conclude. ALSO READ | BJP workers invite traders to participate in PMs roadshow PM's roadshow will highlight the achievements of the central government in the past decade. PM Modi won the seat twice - in the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Uttar Pradesh Congress chief Ajay Rai will be contesting against PM Modi in Varanasi. He will be competing against PM Modi in a Lok Sabha contest for the third time. Varanasi will vote on June 1 in the seventh phase of the Lok Sabha elections. In the 2019 polls, PM Modi won the seat with over 674,664 votes. (With inputs from ANI) External affairs minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on Monday responded to the arrest of fourth Indian national in Canada in connection with Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar's killing. The 22-year-old arrested suspect has been identified as one Amandeep Singh by Canada's Integrated Homicide Investigation Team or (IHIT). He split his time between Brampton in the Greater Toronto Area or GTA, and Surrey and Abbotsford in British Columbia, as per the authorities. When asked about the development, the minister said,"I also read that another arrest has been made...We have long maintained that if any event or violence in Canada has any evidence or information that is relevant to be investigated in India, we are open to investigating it." To date, we have never received anything specific or worthy of being investigated by our investigative agencies, the minister was quoted by ANI as saying. According to a statement by IHIT, the suspect was in the custody of Peel Regional Police or PRP in Ontario on unrelated firearms charges. On May 4. External Affaris Minister S. Jaishankar said if any event or violence in Canada has any evidence or information that is relevant to be investigated in India, the government is open to investigating. (Ajay Aggarwal/ Hindustan Times) "This arrest shows the nature of our ongoing investigation to hold responsible those that played a role in the homicide of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, said Superintendent Mandeep Mooker, the Officer in Charge of IHIT. ALSO READ: Arrest of 3 Indian nationals in Canada thickens the Nijjar plot and deepens diplomatic mistrust Amandeep Singh's arrest comes days after the IHIT arrested three Indian nationals- Karan Brar (22), Kamalpreet Singh (22) and 28-year-old Karanpreet Singh -- for the killing of Nijjar. All three individuals are Indian nationals living in Edmonton and have been charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder. ALSO READ: India says Canada informed about arrests, but still no evidence on Nijjar killing The ties between India and Canada came under severe strain following Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's allegations in September last year of the "potential" involvement of Indian agents in the killing of Nijjar. India has dismissed Trudeau's charges as "absurd" and motivated. Nijjar was a Khalistani terrorist and wanted in India on various terror charges. Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday retorted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's allegation that the former's party had lately been silent on allegations of crony capitalism as it accepted 'tempo loads of cash', saying the BJP stalwart should have industrialists Gautam Adani and Mukesh Ambani arrested. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge addresses a public meeting. (ANI file photo) "You arrested Hemant Soren, why aren't you arresting Adani and Ambani," he was quoted as saying by news agency PTI. Earlier this month, PM Modi claimed Rahul Gandhi had not been abusing Adani-Ambani since the Lok Sabha elections started because the former had accepted bribes. Rahul Gandhi accuses Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government of favouring certain industrialists, including Adani, while formulating policies. He claims the government had waived off loans of industrialists at the expense of the welfare of farmers. Also read: Rahul Gandhi's personal experience reply to PM Modi's money in a tempo from Adani-Ambani' dig "For five years, the Congress's Shehzada kept repeating one thing. But when the Rafale issue faded, he switched to targeting five industrialists, especially Ambani and Adani. However, once the elections were announced, he stopped attacking them. I want to ask from Telangana soil, let the Shehzada announce, how much has been lifted from Ambani-Adani. Has tempo loads of notes (currency) reached the Congress? What deal has been arrived at, that abusing Ambani-Adani has stopped overnight," PM Modi had said. In reaction, Rahul Gandhi had said it was the first time PM Modi spoke about Adani and Ambani in public. Daring him to take action against them, he said PM Modi had levelled the tempo charge as he had a personal experience. Today, Gandhi, the Congress party's Lok Sabha candidate from Rae Bareli, said PM Modi works in the interest of Adani and Ambani, whereas he works for the constituency. He today claimed PM Modi waived loans amounting to 16 lakh crore, of 22-25 industrialists. Voting in Amethi and Rae Bareli the Gandhi family's strongholds in UP will take place on May 20. Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Farooq Abdullah on Monday questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi and union home minister Amit Shah over their 'normalcy' claim, saying his party's workers have been detained by law enforcement agencies for the last two days. The remark came amid voting for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections. Jammu and Kashmir National Conference President Farooq Abdullah (L) along with his son and former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah(AFP) After casting his vote along with his son Omar Abdullah, Farooq Abdullah questioned PM Modi over claims of normalcy in Jammu and Kashmir. ...It is sad that they say that there is no violence and everything is smooth but I want to say that the workers of our party have been locked up for 2 days. On one side, they are saying that elections are taking place in a free environment, he said. Abdullah said if there was normalcy, why his party's workers were detained ahead of the Lok Sabha elections in the union territory. I want to ask the Union home minister and PM Modi: Why have our workers been locked? Are they scared that they will lose? They will lose," he said. Omar Abdullah claimed the administration was trying to vitiate the poll process. "We have even written their names. Others have only said that their workers are being harassed but we gave the names of our 8 workers. This is an attempt from the administration to vitiate the poll process and it is condemnable," he was quoted as saying by news agency ANI. "We have been waiting for this day for a long time. We were expecting that along with parliament elections, Assembly elections would also take place. I want to appeal to the people of Srinagar, Budgam, Shopian to come out and cast their votes...," he added. On Monday, three generations of the Abdullah family cast their votes together in Srinagar - National Conference president Farooq Abdullah, his son Omar Abdullah and grandsons and first-time electors Zahir and Zamir. It is for the first time since 1998 that no member of the Abdullah family is contesting the Lok Sabha elections from Srinagar. BJP and Congress have also not fielded any candidate from the Srinagar seat. (With inputs from PTI, ANI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday visited the Harimandir Ji, Patna Sahib Gurdwara and served food to devotees in its langar. Visuals of PM Modi's 'seva' at the Sikh place of worship have gone viral. Prime Minister Narendra Modi serving food at the Gurdwara. (ANI) A viral video shows Prime Minister Narendra Modi serving food to Sikh people from a steel bucket. Those receiving food from the BJP stalwart can be seen showing their gratitude. PM Narendra Modi also helped the Gurdwara management cook food for the langar. Elaborate security arrangements had been made for PM Modi's visit to the famous gurdwara in Bihar's Patna. History of Patna Sahib Gurdwara Takhat Sri Patna Sahib, also known as Takhat Sri Harimandir Ji, Patna Sahib, is one of the five takhats of the Sikhs. Maharaja Ranjit Singh had commissioned the Gurudwara and takhat in the 18th century. It was constructed to celebrate the birthplace of Guru Gobind Singh. Also read: PM Narendra Modi in Bihar: Will make Pakistan wear bangles if... Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh Guru who fought Mughal emperors, was born in Patna, in 1666. Before moving to Anandpur Sahib, Guru Gobind Singh spent his early years in the historical city. Narendra Modi in Bihar On Sunday, PM Narendra Modi carried out a roadshow in Bihar's capital. He is the first prime minister ever to hold a roadshow in Bihar. PM Narendra Modi will today address election rallies in the state's Hajipur, Muzaffarpur and Saran constituencies. Amid voting for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday morning asked the people of the country to vote in large numbers. "In today's 4th Phase of the Lok Sabha elections, 96 seats across 10 States and UTs are going to the polls. I am sure people in these constituencies will vote in large numbers and the young voters as well as women voters will power this surge in voting. Come, let's all do our duty and strengthen our democracy," he wrote on X. Union home minister Amit Shah also appealed to the people of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir to vote in record numbers to eradicate Naxalism and for developed India. He said every vote will prove to be a strong pillar for a strong and decisive government. Over the past three phases, voting in 283 constituencies concluded peacefully. In a sharp jibe at the INDIA bloc over remarks made by Farooq Abdullah and Mani Shankar Aiyar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said India would make cash-strapped Pakistan wear bangles if it wasn't wearing any. Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a public meeting in Bihar. (PTI) Earlier this month, National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah, reacting to Rajnath Singh's vow to take back Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (Pok), said the neighbouring country was not wearing bangles and it possessed atomic bombs which could harm India. PM Modi highlighted the economic problems faced by Pakistan. "Pakistan ne choodiyan nahi pehni hain, are bhai pehna denge. Ab unko aata bhi chahiye, unke pass bijli bhi nahi hai, ab humein maloom nahi ki unke pass choodiyan bhi nahi hai (If Pakistan is not wearing bangles, we will make them wear bangles. They don't have flour, they don't have electricity, now I have come to know that they even have a scarcity of bangles)," PM Modi said in Bihar's Muzaffarpur, without naming Abdullah or Aiyar. An old video featuring Mani Shankar Aiyar went viral last week, in which the Congress veteran urged the Indian government to respect Pakistan because it had atomic bombs. Also read: Rajnath Singh makes PoK promise; Farooq Abdullah says Pakistan not wearing bangles Reacting to his remarks, PM Modi said last week that the Congress had been trying to spook the people of the country. He said such a weak attitude encouraged cross-border terrorism in the past. He also took a swipe at Pakistan, saying India's estranged neighbour had been trying to sells its bombs but no one was interested because of their poor quality. PM Modi today claimed his government had seized illegal money to the tune of 2200 crore over the past 10 years. In Hajipur, PM Modi claimed that the RJD and Congress priorities their vote bank over the welfare of the people of Bihar. He accused the RJD of bringing Jungle Raj to the state. Referring to Lalu Prasad Yadav's "Muslims should get reservation" remark, PM Narendra Modi said the Congress and RJD will snatch away the reservation provided to Dalits, backwards and tribals by the Constitution. He also claimed the leader of the Congress and the RJD were busy settling their own children. Begusarai , Congress leader Kanhaiya Kumar on Monday challenged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to "send ED, CBI after Ambani and Adani" if he was sure that "tempos full of cash" had been dispatched to the opposition party. PM should get raids conducted against those he suspects of sending tempos full of cash: Kanhaiya The former JNU student leader spoke to journalists in his native district of Begusarai, where he had made an unsuccessful poll debut five years ago on a CPI ticket. "The prime minister seems to have forgetten he is in power and not in the opposition. He sounds ridiculous when he makes such allegations, Kumar said at a polling booth after casting his vote. "How did the PM get such information? Is he making it up? If not, why is he complaining? He has Union Home Minister Amit Shah at his beck and call. He should get raids conducted against those whom he suspects of sending tempos full of cash, the Congress leader said. The PM had last week accused the Congress of having a deal with Ambani and Adani, and asked if the party has received tempo loads of black money from the two businessmen for its leader Rahul Gandhi to stop abusing them. Kumar, who is contesting the current elections from North East Delhi, also rued that the PM, who has intensively campaigned in Bihar and just concluded a two-day tour, "never bothered to come when the state was reeling under the hardships caused by the Covid pandemic". "He has not even granted special status to Bihar, a demand his own ally, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, has been raising for long. And, nobody knows where is the assistance of 1.25 lakh crore that he had announced with so much fanfare, alleged the young leader. Admitting that he felt a sense of nostalgia in his native place, Kumar also expressed his full support to the CPI, which is contesting the Begusarai seat. The Left party, which Kumar quit in 2021, has fielded former MLA Awadhesh Rai from the seat. "I see myself as a part of the INDIA coalition. And I support every candidate of the alliance, asserted Kumar. Kumar, who first shot into fame when he was slapped with a sedition case following an event that took place inside JNU premises, allegedly in his presence, added: "The PM seems to have forgotten his old slogan of abki baar chaar sau paar since people had begun to wonder if the BJP wanted to change the Constitution and scrap reservations by winning more than 400 seats". This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. Patna, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday visited Takhat Sri Harimandir Ji Patna Sahib in Patna City. PM visits Takhat Sri Harimandir Ji Patna Sahib Modi reached the takhat Sri Harimandir Ji Patna Sahib wearing a Sikh turban, bowed his head in Darbar Sahib and also served 'langar' to devotees at the Gurdwara. "Prayed at Takhat Sri Harimandir Ji Patna Sahib this morning. Felt truly blessed to experience divinity, serenity and rich history of this sacred place. This Gurudwara has a close link with Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji. Our Government had the honour of marking his 350th Parkash Utsav in a grand manner. May the teachings of the Sikh Gurus continue to inspire and guide us all," PM wrote in a post on X immediately after visiting the Sri Harimandir Ji Patna Sahib. "Sikhism is rooted in the principles of equality, justice and compassion. Central to Sikhism is seva. This morning in Patna, I also had the honour of taking part in seva as well. It was a very humbling and special experience," PM said. Former Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad who is seeking re-election from Patna Sahib Lok Sabha seat was also present when the PM visited Takhat Sri Harimandir Ji Patna Sahib. "It's a historic day and a matter of pride for us ... .Modi Ji is the first Prime Minister who visited takhat Sri Harimandir Ji Patna Sahib," Prasad told reporters after the PM's visit. "Modi Ji cooked food at the Gurdwara, baked rotis and served the community kitchen to people with his own hands," Prasad said. Takhat Sri Patna Sahib also known as Takhat Sri Harimandir Ji, Patna Sahib, is one of the five takhats of the Sikhs, located in the state capital. The construction of the takhat was commissioned by Maharaja Ranjit Singh in the 18th century to mark the birthplace of Guru Gobind Singh. Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh Guru, was born in Patna, in 1666. He also spent his early years here before moving to Anandpur Sahib. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. The Delhi Police on Monday received two calls from chief minister Arvind Kejriwals residence, claiming Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)s Rajya Sabha member Swati Maliwal was assaulted there, people aware of the matter said. AAP Rajya Sabha member Swati Maliwal. (ANI) The people said Maliwal, who was out of the country for weeks and was largely absent during the chief ministers internment in the excise police case, was at the residence to meet Kejriwal but his personal assistant Bibhav Kumar prevented her from doing so. HT reached out to Maliwal, a former chairperson of the Delhi Commission for Women, for comments but she repeatedly disconnected the calls made. An officer with the operations cell of the Delhi Police said that two calls were received regarding the alleged incident. In the first call to 100 [emergency response number] made at around 9.40 am, the caller did not mention her name. But in the second call at around 9.54am...the caller told the police that her name is Swati Maliwal and Delhi chief ministers aide Bibhav Kumar is manhandling her, said the officer, asking not to be named. Also read: Swati Maliwal assaulted at Arvind Kejriwal's house? BJP takes 'boxing ring' dig Police said three vans were rushed to the alleged place of occurrence, where nothing could be found. Maliwal separately arrived at the Civil Lines Police Station but soon left without lodging any complaint, a second police officer said, asking not to be named. It was not immediately clear why she did so. Bharatiya Janata Partys Delhi spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor sought clarification from the office of the chief minister, who is on interim bail until June 1, to prevent rumours about the purported incident. He cited unnamed sources and claimed there was a clash between an aide of the chief minister and a senior woman leader at Kejriwals residence around 9.15am on Monday. He added a police call was also made. Kapoor said that a former womens panel chief is not safe at the chief ministers house while calling it a serious matter. He asked the chief minister to respond. Amaravati , Polling for 175 Assembly and 25 Lok Sabha seats in Andhra Pradesh is underway with voters standing in queues to exercise their franchise on Monday. Polling underway for 25 Lok Sabha, 175 Assembly seats in Andhra Pradesh After an intense campaign marked by fervent speeches from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, and several other prominent leaders across political parties over the past several weeks, polling began at 7 am today. YSRCP president Jagan Mohan Reddy , TDP supremo N Chandrababu Naidu and Janasena chief and actor Pawan Kalyan , among others, are in the Assembly poll race. Andhra Pradesh Congress president and Jagan's sister YS Sharmila and BJP state chief Purandeswari , among others, are in Lok Sabha poll fray. According to a note from the Chief Ministers Office , Jagan Mohan Reddy is expected to cast his vote in Bhakarapuram in Pulivendula constituency of Kadapa district on Monday and head back to Tadepalli by 10 am. The YSRCP is contesting in all 175 Assembly seats and 25 Lok Sabha segments in the state. As part of a seat-sharing deal among NDA partners, the TDP was allocated 144 Assembly and 17 Lok Sabha constituencies while the BJP is contesting from six Lok Sabha and 10 Assembly seats. The Janasena is contesting two Lok Sabha and 21 Assembly seats. The YSR Congress campaign centred around the welfare measures that it implemented during the past five years while the NDA highlighted the "failures" of the state government and the doles it would provide, if voted to power in the state and the job creation it would do. Besides PM Modi, several union ministers including Rajnath Singh and Amit Shah, and Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi undertook poll campaigns for their respective party candidates. For the smooth conduct of the polls, the Election Commission has deployed 1.06 lakh security personnel, who included 3,500 Karnataka police, 4,500 Tamil Nadu police, 1,614 ex-servicemen and 246 retired police personnel, among others. The polling is scheduled from 7 AM to 6 PM in the state, barring a few places where it will conclude one or two hours before. The total number of voters in the southern state is 4.14 crore, which includes 2.02 crore male, 2.1 crore female, 3,421 third gender voters and 68,185 service electors. As many as 454 candidates are in the fray for Lok Sabha and 2,387 for Assembly polls, according to Andhra Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer MK Meena. The YSRCP won 151 seats, TDP 23 and Janasena claimed one in the last Assembly polls while the ruling party emerged victorious in 22 and Chandrababu Naidu-led party in three Lok Sabha seats in the 2019 elections. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. Health officials in Kolar district on Sunday seized a scanning machine and sealed the scanning room of a private hospital that was allegedly used to determine the sex of a foetus, according to officials familiar with the matter. Private hospital in Karnataka under scanner over foeticide An official from the district health department said that the medical staff of Sanjana hospital in Malur town, Kolar district, had allegedly conducted a sex determination test with the consent the couple - Murugesh Nayak (36) and Anitha Murugesh (32), residents of KGF, on May 6. When the couple allegedly learnt that the foetus was female, the staff allegedly gave them a pill claiming that it would change the sex of the fetus for a fee of 75,000. Anitha allegedly miscarried on May 8, which led to the discovery that the foetus was allegedly male, the official quoted Murugesh as stating. The couple filed a complaint with the taluk health officer against the hospital on May 8. The couple has accused the hospital of inducing abortion without their consent. Kolar district health officer Dr Jagadeesh said: The victim alleged that the doctor had advised her to take a pill to change the sex of the foetus. However, there is no documentary evidence for this claim. The records of the hospital were scrutinised, revealing discrepancies. Documents were not properly handled in the scanning department. Besides, the CCTV camera is not functional. We have seized the machines and sealed the scanning section. He further said that the department is investigating the pill that was administered and also whether similar incidents took place previously. A notice has been issued to the hospital, giving them seven days to respond. Legal action will be initiated accordingly, he added. District health department officials swiftly took action, sealing the scanning room of Sanjana Hospital and confiscated the scanning machines. An inquiry was initiated by the district health officer. Reacting to the allegations, Dr Mohan Raj of Sanjana Hospital said: We did not conduct any such scans or treatments on the couple. Conducting such tests is an offence. If the couple is in possession of any such records, they are encouraged to provide them. At least four schools in Rajasthan capital, Jaipur, received bomb threats via email on Monday, news agency PTI reported, citing police. Students and staff members have been evacuated, and police teams, along with bomb and dog squads, have reached the schools. The development comes 12 days after similar messages to more than 150 schools in Delhi-NCR sparked a scare of unprecedented scale. The development comes 12 days after similar messages to more than 150 schools in Delhi-NCR sparked a scare of unprecedented scale. (Photo for representational purpose only) "Four-five schools have received bomb threats. Police have reached the schools," Jaipur Police Commissioner Biju George Joseph said. The threat was given by email and a team is trying to identify the sender, the police added. "Threatening emails have been sent to some schools in the city, including Maheshwari School (MPS International School). Currently, the bomb disposal squad is carrying out searches in the school. All the students and staff have been evacuated. Further investigation is underway," ANI quoted quoted DCP East Jaipur Kavendra Sagar as saying. This is not the first time Jaipur has received a bomb threat. Last year, Jaipur airport received a threat to blow up the airport premises. According to the police, the anonymous sender threatened to blow up Jaipur and other airports. However, the call was later found to be a hoax. On Sunday, 20 hospitals, the IGI airport and the Northern Railways' CPRO office in Delhi received bomb threats through emails. While threats to Delhi schools were received from a Russia-based mailing service, Sunday's threats to hospitals and two other installations were received from a Europe-based mailing service company 'beeble.com', officials said. A police officer told PTI that the e-mail was sent to one hospital with copies marked to others with the same content. The officer said it was generated from sender id "courtgroup03@beeble.com", which is being verified and cyber officials are trying to locate the IP address. Also Read | Lucknow airport receives bomb threat, probe underway The content of the letter read, I have placed explosive devices inside your building. They will explode in the following hour. This isn't a threat, you have a few hours to disarm the bomb or else the blood of innocent people inside the building will be on your hands. The group called 'Court' is behind this massacre. The Delhi Police suspects the email was sent with the help of a VPN (virtual private network) or proxy server so that the IP address could not be traced. The Delhi Police Special Cell is likely to file an FIR and conduct the probe, PTI quoted the officer as saying. Bomb threats to Delhi-NCR schools On May 1, over 150 schools in Delhi-NCR received an identical threat email claiming that explosives had been planted on their premises, triggering massive evacuations and searches. The authorities later declared it a hoax. The Delhi Police's anti-terror unit special cell traced the domain of e-mails to Russia and it is suspected to have been formed with the help of the dark web -- an encrypted online content that allows individuals to hide their identity and location from others. Also Read | Bomb hoax at schools to disturb public order: FIR After the hoax e-mails to schools, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla reviewed situation with senior officials and emphasised the need to enhance security, deploy CCTV cameras and regularly monitor e-mails in the schools, besides preparing a detailed protocol and SOPs to handle any such incidents in the future. Bomb threats to Delhi hospitals Police received information regarding the threat from Brurari Hospital at 3pm on Sunday after which complaints came in from several other hospitals across the city and police teams were dispatched but "nothing suspicious" has been found yet, officials said. The bomb threats were reported from Indira Gandhi International Airport Terminal-3, Burari Hospital, Sanjay Gandhi Memorial Hospital, Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital, Bara Hindu Rao Hospital, Janakpuri Super Speciality Hospital, Deen Dayal Upadhyay, Dabri's Dada Dev Hospital and Aruna Asaf Ali Government Hospital in Civil Lines, a senior Delhi Fire Services official said. The Guru Nanak Dev Eye Hospital, Gramin Swastha Prashikshan Sansthan in Najafgarh, ILBS in Vasant Kunj are among the hospitals which were also checked by the local police as the emails were sent to them too, a police officer said. The CPRO building located at State Entry Road in Connaught Place was also checked but nothing suspicious was found, the officer said. At some of the hospitals, the checks were underway till late night, he said. "The Security Operations Control Centre at IGI Airport has received a threat email concerning an explosive device within the premises. Enhanced security protocols are now in effect, and safety measures have been intensified. Legal action has been initiated. No suspicious items have been found as of now," Deputy Commission of Police (IGI) Usha Rangnani said. The officer said that the airport authorities received a threat email at 6pm. (With inputs from PTI) There is no legal right to demand the removal of Arvind Kejriwal as Delhis chief minister following his arrest in the Delhi excise policy case, the Supreme Court held on Monday, rejecting a petition that challenged Kejriwals continued authority in office. Since Kejriwals arrest in the Delhi excise policy case on March 21, a flurry of petitions has inundated the Delhi HC. (ANI photo) Maintaining that Kejriwals position cannot be challenged through legal means, the top court said that ultimately, it is up to the Lieutenant Governor (LG) of Delhi to address such matters. What is the legal right (to seek Kejriwals removal)? He wants to continue. Thats for him to decide. On propriety, you may have something to say, but where is the legal right? a bench of justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta asked the petitioners lawyer. Dismissing the petition filed by Delhi resident Kant Bhati, the bench added: LG will take action if he wants to... But there is no legal right. We are not inclined to interfere with the decision of the Delhi high court. The bench also pointed out that Bhati was not a petitioner before the high court and was challenging a judgment rendered in a plea filed by someone else. Bhati had challenged an April 10 ruling by the high court nixing a petition by former Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) legislator Sandeep Kumar, who sought Kejriwals removal from the post of Delhi CM. The court had also imposed a penalty of 50,000 on Kumar for bringing a frivolous litigation. Also Read: If you choose jhadu, I will not have to go back to jail: Kejriwal Since Kejriwals arrest in the Delhi excise policy case on March 21, a flurry of petitions has inundated the Delhi high court, demanding Kejriwals removal as CM. The spectrum of cases has prompted colorful reactions from the high court, which labelled some petitions as publicity litigation and emphasised its indisposition to be dragged into political matters. The top court on Friday ordered releasing Kejriwal on interim bail until June 1 in the excise policy case, rejecting the Enforcement Directorate (ED)s contention that the CMs release for political campaigning would connote preferential treatment to politicians, and underlining the importance of elections in a democracy. In an order that may have significant implications for both the ongoing general elections and the political landscape of Delhi, the court on May 10 resorted to a holistic and libertarian view while noting that although serious charges of money laundering have been levelled against the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief, he has not been convicted nor does he have any criminal antecedents or is a threat to the society. Lok Sabha elections are the most significant and an important event this year, highlighted the bench, adding these elections supply the vis viva (living force) to a democracy. Simultaneously, the bench of justices Khanna and Datta imposed several conditions on the interim bail. It directed Kejriwal to refrain from performing his official duties as the CM of Delhi during the bail period, adding Kejriwal must surrender before the Tihar jail authorities on June 2, marking the end of his interim bail period. The bench said Kejriwal cannot visit the CMs office and the Delhi secretariat a measure aimed at preventing any potential conflicts of interest or interference in governmental affairs while he is out on bail. It further ordered Kejriwal not to sign any official files unless necessary to obtain approval from the lieutenant governor of Delhi. Additionally, the court prohibited the CM from making public statements about his role in the excise case or interacting with any witnesses related to the case while also barring him from accessing official files connected with the case. With a deluge of petitions demanding Kejriwals removal, the Delhi high court has remained vocal in its reprimand as it dealt with such pleas, describing these efforts as a mockery of the judicial system and attempts to drag the court into a political thicket. Apart from rejecting Kumars plea, the high court had last month dismissed similar petitions from social activist Surjit Singh Yadav and Hindu Sena president Vishnu Gupta. All these petitions demanded Kejriwals ousting, which the court declined, underlining that such decisions rest with constitutional authorities like the LG or the President and are not within the judiciarys purview. The excise policy case stems from allegations of irregularities in Delhis excise policy, which the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) began probing following a recommendation by Delhis LG in July 2022. Kejriwal is the third AAP leader arrested in this connection. Sisodia has been in jail since February 2023, and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh was granted bail by the top court in April this year after six months of custody. ED, in its submissions before all courts, has accused the CM of being the kingpin and key conspirator of the alleged corruption in the 2021-22 Delhi excise policy, adding he acted in cahoots with ministers of his cabinet and other AAP leaders for seeking benefit from some businessmen involved in the liquor business. Voting for the Lok Sabha election 2024 is underway in Jammu and Kashmir's Srinagar in the fourth phase. This is the first major election in Kashmir since the abrogation of Article 370, which granted special status to the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir. As many as 24 candidates are in the fray in the Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency. Polling officials along with security personnel arrive at a red polling station on the eve of the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha polls, in Srinagar on Sunday.(ANI) The Srinagar seat comprises Srinagar, Ganderbal and Pulwama districts and parts of Budgam and Shopian districts. There are 17.48 lakh voters in the constituency. Voting began at 7am in Srinagar, as part of the fourth round of the seven-phase Lok Sabha elections. Across India, more than 1,700 candidates are in contention in the 96 Lok Sabha constituencies. ALSO READ| Srinagar Lok Sabha: NC turf to witness three-way contest In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, polling was held for six seats in Jammu and Kashmir. After the abrogation of Article 370, the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir state was split into two Union Territories - Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh. There is no longer a separate Lok Sabha constituency for Ladakh. ALSO READ| High-octane campaigning for Srinagar Lok Sabha seat ends Top updates on Lok Sabha election 2024 in Srinagar The Supreme Court on Monday gave the Enforcement Directorate (ED) three days to respond to a petition filed by former Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren against his arrest in an alleged land scam, agreeing to an expedited hearing in the matter due to the ongoing general elections. Former Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren. (PTI) A bench of justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta set the next date for May 17 following a vehement appeal by senior counsel Kapil Sibal, who represented Soren, emphasising the need for parity with Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal. Jailed in connection with a money laundering case, Kejriwal was on May 10 granted interim bail for campaigning for the Lok Sabha polls. Kejriwals order covers me completely, highlighted Sibal, demanding continuity of Sorens political involvement in election campaigning, especially in the light of the precedent set by the recent interim bail granted to Kejriwal. Initially, the bench was setting down the matter before a vacation bench on May 20, but Sibal pressed for a shorter date and a hearing before the same bench, highlighting the urgency of the matter due to the ongoing general elections. Sibal even went so far as to say that if the bench postponed the hearing to a later time, he might think about withdrawing the petition. Elections will be over. Why should I be prejudiced? This court sent us to the high court. The high court did not deliver its order for more than two months. Thats not our fault... A great injustice has been done to me. This is unfair, said Sibal. The senior counsel added that if the bench were not inclined to fast-track Sorens matter, it should consider granting him interim bail, allowing him to participate effectively in the elections. But the bench said that it cannot pass such an order without hearing ED. The bench acceded to Sibals plea to fix the next hearing in the current week. In the Delhi excise policy case, the top court on May 10 granted Kejriwal temporary bail until June 1st. The court rejected the EDs argument that the release for campaigning would imply preferential treatment for politicians, highlighting the significance of elections in a democracy. On the same day, the court had closed proceedings in a separate petition filed by Soren seeking interim bail because there was a prolonged delay by the Jharkhand high court in deciding his appeal against his arrest by ED in January. The apex court noted that the high court had already rendered a decision on May 3 rejecting Sorens challenge to his arrest, which has been assailed in an appeal before it. The court on April 29 issued a notice to ED on Sorens petition seeking interim bail in a money laundering case lodged by the agency in connection with an alleged land scam in Jharkhand. In his plea, Soren also cited the ongoing general elections while pointing out the high court had failed to deliver its order on his challenge to the ED arrest despite reserving its judgment on February 28. But three days later, the high court dismissed Sorens plea, noting that he cannot wriggle out of the mess he created for himself, adding there is an abundance of documents that lay a foundation for the arrest and remand of the petitioner to police and judicial custody. A day later, Soren filed an appeal against the May 3 high court order in the apex court, amid the approaching elections in the state on May 13. After the first phase on May 13, the polling in Jharkhand for the Lok Sabha seats will be held on May 20, May 25 and June 1. The alleged scam pertains to usurping prime landed parcels, including a 4.55-acre defence land at Morabadi Mouza at Ranchi, and a land parcel of 7.6 acres at Hehal, Ranchi both valued at over 74 crore at the current market price, besides several other land parcels by the accused persons by making fake deeds using manufactured identities and falsifying original land records at Circle Offices and Registrar of Assurances (RoA), Kolkata and Circle Offices in Jharkhand, according to the ED charge sheet. Overall, ED has recovered documents related to at least 27 properties of which alleged fake deeds were created by the accused people. Sorens arrest happened minutes after he resigned as chief minister of the state. ED has claimed that it has evidence that he is the key beneficiary in alleged land-related irregularities in Ranchi, where a network of brokers and businessmen were allegedly working over the years to create fake deeds of landed parcels by forging records in the registrar offices and further selling them off. Soren has denied the charges. The Supreme Court on Monday rejected a petition demanding the removal of Arvind Kejriwal as the Delhi chief minister because of his arrest in the excise policy case. The apex court said it is a matter of propriety, but there is no legal right seeking the removal of Arvind Kejriwal as chief minister following his arrest. Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal. (Sanjeev Verma/HT Photo) The bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta also said it is up to Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena to act if he wants to but we will not interfere. The bench also pointed out that the petitioner who approached the Supreme Court, Kant Bhati, was not the petitioner before the Delhi high court. What is the legal right? Why should we go into all this? On propriety you may certainly have something to say but no legal right. Let the LG take action if he wants to....we are not inclined, Live Law quoted Justice Khanna as saying to the petitioner. "We are not inclined to interfere with the impugned judgment. The Special Leave Petition is dismissed," the bench dictated the order. On April 10, the Delhi high court had rejected this PIL while imposing a cost of 50,000, being of the view that it was aimed at gaining publicity. It was noted that the petitioner pursued the petition despite being aware of three orders passed by the court denying identical prayers. The Supreme Court ruling comes days after it, on Friday last week, granted interim bail to Arvind Kejriwal for campaign in the Lok Sabha elections 2024 till June 1, saying since the matter related to the validity of his arrest was still under consideration. A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta has ordered Arvind Kejriwal to surrender on June 2 and barred him from visiting the chief minister's office and the Delhi secretariat as a condition for his bail. The court said, "Power to grant interim bail is commonly exercised in a number of cases. Interim bail is granted in the facts of each case. This case is not an exception." The order came as a big boost to the poll campaign for the Aam Aadmi Party, which is contesting all the seats in Punjab and four seats in Delhi, in alliance with the Congress. Arvind Kejriwal, the national convenor of the AAP, was arrested on March 21 in the Deljhi liquor policy scam case. He has challenged the validity of his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate. Telangana recorded an approximate voter turnout of 62.64% on Monday as polling was underway for 17 Lok Sabha seats in the state, data from the Election Commission showed. The state Chief Electoral Officer, Vikas Raj, said no law and order problems had been reported until noon. The officer added that an inquiry was underway into some complaints received amid polling in the state. Women stand in a line to cast their votes at a polling station during the fourth phase of India's general election, in Rangareddy district in the southern state of Telangana.(REUTERS) ALSO READ | Hyderabad Lok Sabha poll: What AIMIM's Asaduddin Owaisi, BJP's Madhavi Latha said after casting votes in Phase 4 Hyderabad collector Anudeep Durishetty, said in a post on social platform X that a case has been registered in Malakpet police station against BJP candidate Madhavi Latha under different sections of the IPC and the Representation of the People Act. The case was registered following an allegation that she checked the identity of burqa-clad women voters by asking them to show their faces. Voting in Telangana: Telangana chief minister Revanth Reddy exercised his franchise in the constituency of Kodangal in Vikarabad district earlier in the day. Speaking to media persons in Kodangal, Reddy alleged that the BJP was misusing central agencies for electoral benefit. Former Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, Telangana BJP chief G Kishan Reddy, AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi, film actors Chiranjeevi, Allu Arjun and Junior NTR were other prominent people who were seen casting their votes. BJP general secretary Bandi Sanjay Kumar and the party candidate from Hyderabad Lok Sabha seat K Madhavi Latha also exercised their franchise. ALSO READ | Phase 4 of 2024 Lok Sabha elections today: 1,717 candidates, 96 seats in 10 states/UT | 10 facts Polling percentage across constituencies in Telangana: Sl. No. Constituency Voter turnout 1 Adilabad 70.51% 2 Bhongir 72.34% 3 Chevella 53.15% 4 Hyderabad 39.17% 5 Karimnagar 69.78% 6 Khammam 75.19% 7 Mahbubabad 69.27% 8 Malkajgiri 49.06% 9 Medak 73.63% 10 Nagarkurnool 66.91% 11 Nalgonda 70.75% 12 Nizamabad 70.94% 13 Peddapalle 63.86% 14 Secunderabad 42.48% 15 Warangal 64.08% 16 Zahirabad 71.48% Polling is also underway in the Secunderabad Cantonment assembly constituency. The bypoll witnessed 47.88 per cent voting till 5 pm. The bypoll was necessitated due to the death of sitting BRS MLA G Lasya Nanditha in a road accident. (With inputs from PTI) Actor Allu Arjun and NTR Jr voted at a polling booth in Jubilee Hills in Hyderabad in the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections 2024 on Monday, May 13, morning. Voting in Telangana started at 7am, and the two were among the group of first voters in Jubilee Hills. Actors Allu Arjun and NTR Jr at polling booth to cast their votes (Photo - ANI) Pushpa star Allu Arjun was seen wearing a white t-shirt and black jeans while RRR star NTR Jr arrived in a blue shirt and trousers at the polling booth to get their fingers inked. Voting for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections in 96 Parliamentary Constituencies across nine states and one Union Territory began at 7am. Polling for all 175 seats of the state legislative assembly of Andhra Pradesh and 28 seats of the state legislative assembly of Odisha also started simultaneously with the Lok Sabha polls. Including Telangana, a total of nine states and one union territory went to polls in phase 4 of the Lok Sabha election 2024. In Telangana, people across 17 constituencies are casting their votes. Of the 96 Lok Sabha seats, 25 are from Andhra Pradesh, 17 from Telangana, 13 from Uttar Pradesh, 11 from Maharashtra, eight each from Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal, five from Bihar, four each from Jharkhand and Odisha and one from Jammu and Kashmir. The previous three phases of the election saw a lower voter turnout than the 2019 general election, with the Election Commission attributing the reluctancy of the voters to heatwave conditions in certain states. Some of the key candidates in the fray in the fourth phase of the polls are AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, West Bengal Congress chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, TMC leader Mahua Moitra, BJP leader Giriraj Singh, JDU's Rajiv Ranjan Singh (Lalan Singh), TMC leaders Shatrughan Sinha and Yusuf Pathan. (With inputs from ANI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday asserted that the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) will not be repealed as long as he remains in power and went on to accuse the Trinamool Congress (TMC) of turning Hindus into second-class citizens in West Bengal. Prime Minister Narendra Modi with BJP leaders at a rally in Barrackpore on Sunday. (Samir Jana/HT Photo) Modi alleged that the TMC was indulging in vote-bank politics, with the goons of the ruling party in West Bengal threatening the tormented women of Sandeshkhali where allegations of sexual abuse against TMC leaders have surfaced. Suggesting that the performance of the Congress in the ongoing Lok Sabha polls will drop to an all-time low, the Prime Minister said that the party will get fewer seats than the age of the Shehzada, a veiled attack at the 53-year-old Rahul Gandhi. Modi said under the TMC regime, West Bengal has turned into a centre of corruption and a cottage industry of bomb-making. While Modi talks about water in every household, TMC talks about bombs in every household, he added. TMC has surrendered to vote-bank politics in West Bengal, where you cannot even mention the name of Lord Shri Ram or celebrate Ram Navami. Hindus have been become second-class citizens in West Bengal, he alleged. Criticising the TMC for opposing the CAA in West Bengal, Modi said, CAA is a law to give citizenship to victims; it does not take away anyones citizenship. But parties like Congress and TMC have painted it with the colour of their lies. As long as there is Modi, no one can repeal the CAA, he said. He also stepped up his attacks while referring to recent developments at Sandeshkhali in the North 24 Parganas district, which has emerged into a political battleground since local Trinamool strongman Sheikh Shajahan was accused of running a widespread extortion operation, which allegedly included attacks and even sexual assault. The entire nation is watching whats happening in Sandeshkhali. First the state police shielded the culprits. Now the TMC has started a new game. TMCs goons are terrorising and threatening women in Sandeshkhali just because the culprits name is Shahjahan Sheikh. Guns and explosive are being recovered from his house but in a bid to appease the vote bank, TMC is making efforts to give him a clean chit, Modi said while addressing the first rally of the day at Barrackpore in North 24 Parganas. The allegations pertaining to Sandeshkhali have now turned into a war of sting operations and videos, with the states ruling TMC releasing what it said was evidence of BJP having engineered the entire saga, while the BJP has said that people were being coerced into retracting their allegations. Shahjahan was arrested on February 29 on the orders of the Calcutta high court. He was later handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). On May 4, a purported string video was released by the TMC in which Gangadhar Koyal, a local BJP leader from Sandeshkhali was seen allegedly saying that there were no rapes and women were paid to lodge false complaints of sexual assault. Addressing his second rally of the day at Chinsurah in Hooghly, Modi said, TMC is using every trick in Sandeshkhali, but none of the oppressors will be spared. Hitting back at a rally in Uluberia, Howrah, chief minister Mamata Banerjee said, I have seen many Prime Ministers such as Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Manmohan Singh, IK Gujral and HD Deve Gowda and Rajiv Gandhi. But I have never seen a Prime Minister like Modi who spreads so much slander. He would get 120 out of 100 in telling lies. He always abuses me and the TMC. He became Prime Minister twice by lying. The BJP leaders are the biggest leaders of thieves. It is guarantee of a liar. Modi addressed four back-to-back rallies at Barrackpore, Chinsurah, Aramnbagh and Sankrail in the eastern state. He also mounted an attack on the INDIA-partners saying that corruption is their common character alleging that TMC has taken up corruption as a full-time business which it runs openly. You would certainly make the BJP-NDA cross the 400-mark. But write it down that in this election the Congress will get fewer seats than the age of its shehzada, Modi said. Modi claimed Congress and TMC are competition for appeasement. Speaking at another rally in Arambagh in Hooghly district, the PM said, TMC thinks it has a monopoly over Bengali culture, but the truth is that this is the land of Maa Durga and Maa Kali. He claimed that in West Bengal, it has become a crime to take the name of Ram Mandir. There is no freedom of expression under the TMC rule, he alleged, adding that opposition and independent voices were being stifled. Asserting that nobody can provide reservations based on religion, he guaranteed the people of West Bengal that reservations for SC, ST, and OBC will not be touched. Nobody can stop you from celebrating Ram Navami. Nobody can stop the implementation of CAA.. The Food Innovation Conference 2024 is set to kick off today, Monday 13th May, in Dubai. The event, running until 15th May, is organised by Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives (MBRGI) and the World Economic Forum (WEF), under the theme "Reimagining Future Food Systems". (Also Read | Hong Kong tourism boost: Eight more Chinese cities join solo travel scheme) The Food Innovation Conference highlights the best international practices and studies in the food sector, and the latest relevant technologies including AI and Data for Food.(Pexels) Hosted at the Museum of the Future and Emirates Towers in Dubai, the conference brings together over 150 international experts, academics, local, regional and global private businesses and farmers, who will be taking part in various discussion panels that focus on driving tech support of resilient, inclusive and sustainable food systems, fostering global cooperation and addressing the latest trends in the field of sustainable food systems. The event will also highlight the best international practices and studies in the food sector, and the latest relevant technologies including AI and Data for Food. Mohammad bin Abdullah Al Gergawi, Secretary-General of Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives (MBRGI), said that hosting the Food Innovation Conference in Dubai reflects the visions of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, for embracing creative ideas and innovative solutions to create cost-efficient food systems that empower underprivileged communities to tackle food challenges resulting from natural disasters, crises and climate change impact, while helping extend aid and relief to refugees and support global humanitarian efforts. "The conference is testament to the close cooperation between MBRGI and the World Economic Forum, and their joint visions for utilising the huge potential of AI and advanced food tech to meet the growing global food needs, and creating the frameworks necessary to institutionalise this approach while encouraging research centers and innovators to develop solutions that address this noble cause," he said. "The conference aligns with MBRGI's mission of serving humanity and improving lives, as well as the main objectives of the Food Innovation Hub UAE, launched in late 2023, further affirming the UAE's commitment as a key contributor to the UN Sustainable Development Goals 2023," he added. The Food Innovation Conference aims to accelerate knowledge exchange and capacity building through the Food Innovation Hubs Global Initiative, showcase national innovation modules as well as global frontiers and scalable technology innovations, facilitate matchmaking between entrepreneurs, investors, private and public sector leaders, and amplify the role of technology in support of resilient, inclusive and sustainable food systems. The conference enjoys the support of the Food Innovation Hubs Global Initiative, launched by the World Economic Forum in collaboration with MBRGI. The initiative brings together partners from public and private sectors, international and regional organisations as well as civil society players. It mainly aims to foster partnerships and collaboration in the area of food system innovation, fund promising and meaningful initiatives locally and regionally, while promoting the sharing of food related knowledge and data globally. The event will kick off with a welcoming dinner gala on 13th May 2024, hosted in the Museum of the Future, with keynote speeches by Dr. Amna bint Abdullah Al Dahak Al Shamsi, Minister of Climate Change and the Environment; Tania Strauss, Head of Food and Water, World Economic Forum and Asma Khan, Chef Advocate, World Food Programme. The opening session on 14th May under the title "Purpose-Driven Innovation for a Positive Food Future" will be hosted in the Godolphin Ballroom, Emirates Towers. Moderated by Tania Strauss, the opening remarks will be delivered by Dr. Abdulkareem Al Olama, Chief Executive Officer, Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives (MBRGI). Session panelists include Khadim Al Derai, Co-Founder and Managing Director, Al Dahra Holding; Cao Duc Phat, Former Minister of Agriculture and Chair of the International Rice Research Institute in Vietnam; Marie-Rose Mukahirwa, Senior Vice President and Head of Products, Humanitarian and Development, Mastercard; Leonardus Vergutz, Chief Sustainability and Innovation Officer of OCP Group, Morocco; Carrie Chan, Chief Executive Officer of Avant Meats, Hong Kong and Shelly Trench, Managing Director and Partner at Boston Consulting Group. The event will also host a session entitled "Advancing Global Frontier Innovations". Amna Al Dahak will deliver the opening remarks for the closing plenary of the conference, entitled "Reimagining Future Food Systems". Panelists at the session moderated by CNBC's Dan Murphy include Badr Jafar, Chief Executive Officer of Crescent Enterprises; Dan Pathomvanich, Chief Executive Officer of NR Instant Produce in Thailand; Ishmael Sunga, Chief Executive Officer of the Southern African Confederation of Agricultural Unions (SACAU), Gim Huay Neo, Managing Director of the Centre for Nature and Climate at the World Economic Forum; Ibrahim Al Zu'bi, Group Chief Sustainability Officer, ADNOC Group; Leonardus Vergutz, Chief Sustainability and Innovation Officer of OCP Group and Jane Nelson, Director of the Corporate Responsibility Initiative at Harvard Kennedy School On 13th and 14th May, the Food Innovation Conference 2024 is organising an open exhibition showcasing latest food system innovation through an interactive platform that invites visitors to learn about modern technologies shaping the future of food systems, with a chance to taste and try innovative products. The Food Innovation Hubs Leadership Committee meeting will be held on the sidelines of the conference on 14 May, following an agreement signed between MBRGI and the World Economic Forum in Davos 2022, under which Dubai is designated the international headquarters for the Hubs annual meeting. Field trips on the last day, 15th May, will take participants to multiple sites including farms and production plants, to highlight innovative practices adopted in the UAE to achieve food sustainability, while exploring areas of cooperation and investment. Alia Bhatt celebrated Mother's Day with Ranbir Kapoor and their mothers, Neetu Kapoor and Soni Razdan, on May 12. After the celebrations, the actor flew to London to attend Gucci's first Cruise collection by Creative Director Sabato De Sarno. While Alia gave a glimpse of her Mother's Day celebrations by sharing a post on Instagram, the paparazzi shared her jet-set look on social media. Keep scrolling to see what Alia wore for her travels to London and how she and Ranbir celebrated Mother's Day. Alia Bhatt captured at the airport as she leaves for Gucci's show in London (L); Alia celebrates Mother's Day with Ranbir Kapoor, Soni Razdan, Neetu Kapoor and Shaheen (R). (Instagram) Inside Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor's Mother's Day with Neetu Kapoor and Soni Razdan On Mother's Day, Alia Bhatt posted an adorable picture on Instagram featuring her husband, Ranbir Kapoor, mom Soni Razdan, mother-in-law Neetu Kapoor, and sister Shaheen Bhatt. The image shows the family in matching all-white outfits as they cosy up on a couch for the celebrations. While Soni hugs her daughters, Alia and Shaheen, Neetu holds a decorative umbrella as she smiles brightly and poses with Ranbir. Alia wore a button-down shirt dress for the celebrations, styled with minimal makeup, gold hoop earrings, and a sleek bun. It has a collared neckline, front button closures and a curved hem. Meanwhile, as she flew off to London, Alia slipped into a simple T-shirt and denim jeans for her airport look. The actor's top features a crew neckline, half-length sleeves, a front Gucci logo print in brown and khaki green hues, and a figure-skimming silhouette. She paired the off-white blouse with light blue-coloured coloured acid-washed denim jeans. It features a mid-rise waist and a comfy fitting. Alia accessorised the ensemble with chic additions from Gucci, including a brown over-the-body bag, luggage, and black-tinted sunglasses. She also wore rings, white sneakers, and statement-making earrings to round off the accessories. Meanwhile, Alia chose a pulled-back low bun, nude lip shade, rouge on the cheekbones and glowing skin for the glam picks. About Gucci's Cruise show Gucci will unveil its first Cruise collection by Creative Director Sabato De Sarno at Tate Modern, an art gallery in London, set against the city's dynamic landscape backdrop. The show is on May 13 at 9 pm BST (May 14, Tuesday, 1:30 am IST). Cannes 2024: The Cannes Film Festival is almost here! The 77th edition of the Film Festival will take place from May 14 to May 25. Every year, hundreds of celebrities, filmmakers, artists and film enthusiasts gather at the Palais des Festivals et des Congres to witness the brilliance and artistic creativity in cinema. Deemed as one of the year's most widely publicised and anticipated events, Cannes also becomes a runway for stars to showcase their brilliant ensembles. Film stars and internet personalities, including Indian celebrities like Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Deepika Padukone, Priyanka Chopra, Aditi Rao Hydari, Hina Khan, Anushka Sharma, Sonam Kapoor, and Diana Penty, among others, arrive in Cannes, serving fans with unforgettable and iconic fashion moments. As the 77th edition of the festival inches close, here's all you need to know about. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Aditi Rao Hydari at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. (Instagram) Cannes 2024: Indian celebrities who will attend; what they wore last year This year, Cannes regular Aishwarya Rai Bachchan will attend the film festival. Aditi Rao Hydari will also attend the event. They will be making their much-anticipated return to the international film festival as ambassadors for L'Oreal. Meanwhile, Sobhita Dhulipala will also walk the red carpet at the 77th Cannes Film Festival on the French Riviera. She is representing an ice cream brand. A few other known names attending this year are King, RJ Karishma, Nancy Tyagi, Niharika, Ankush Bahuguna, and Vitiligo. Meanwhile, stars such as Demi Moore, Meryl Streep, and George Lucas are expected to walk the red carpet. Meryl will receive a special Palme d'Or at the opening ceremony. Coming to the Bollywood divas attending this year - Aishwarya Rai and Aditi Rao Hydari - who also attended last year, here's a look at what they wore in 2023. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan Aishwarya Rai Bachchan captured in the French Riviera at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. (Instagram) Aishwarya Rai turned mystical in a unique Sophie Couture gown as she walked the red carpet at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. Aishwarya's hooded ensemble featuring lightweight aluminium details, shimmering embellishments and a signature cinched corset was from the label's Cannes Capsule Collection. Another look she had worn outside the red carpet for the interviews was a shimmering green midi dress from the Italian luxury fashion house Valentino's Spring 2023 collection. It featured a round neckline, multiple pleated designs on the front, and billowy cape-style sleeves with slits. Aditi Rao Hydari Pictures of Aditi Rao Hydari attending the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. (Instagram) Aditi Rao Hydari walked the Cannes red carpet dressed in a Michael Cinco Princess gown that turned her into the Belle of the Ball. Her strapless gown featured a plunging square neckline, a corseted bodice, a cinched waist, tiered ruffles on the voluminous skirt, and floral ornament embellishments. For her second look, Aditi changed into a powder blue Oscar de la Renta gown featuring an asymmetric voluminous skirt, a bow adornment on the front, and a sheer embellished corset. Cannes 2024: Date and venue of the Cannes Film Festival The opening night of the 77th Cannes Film Festival is on Tuesday, May 14. It will end on Saturday, May 25. While the festival is set to open with a bang as it announced Quentin Dupieux's latest, The Second Act, as its inaugural film, the closing-night film is yet to be revealed. Meanwhile, the festival will occur at Palais des Festivals et des Congres in Cannes, France. Cannes 2024: How to watch the 77th Cannes Film Festival? The exclusive content from the Cannes Film Festival will be available live on France Televisions in France, according to the official Cannes Festival website. One can also find the live stream of the event on the festival's YouTube channel and official website. Cannes 2024: Who are the jury members? This year, the jury will be presided over by Greta Gerwig. Apart from the Barbie director, Turkish screenwriter Ebru Ceylan, actress Lily Gladstone, French actress Eva Green, Lebanese writer-director Nadine Labaki, Spanish writer-director Juan Antonio Bayona, Italian actor Pierfrancisco Favino, Japanese director Kore-eda Hirokazu, and French actor Omar Sy are part of the jury. Cannes 2024: First Indian film to contend for the esteemed Palm d'Or Payal Kapdia's All We Imagine As Light is the first Indian film to contend for the esteemed Palm d'Or in 30 years. The film will be competing against will be competing against Francis Ford Coppola's Megalopolis, Yorgos Lanthimos' Kinds Of Kindness, Paul Schrader's Oh, Canada, Ali Abbasi's The Apprentice, Andrea Arnold's Bird, and more. An online booking system for Mount Fuji's most popular trail was announced on Monday by Japanese authorities trying to fight overtourism on the active volcano. Japan's highest mountain has become increasingly crowded during the summer hiking season, raising concerns over safety and environmental damage. To ease congestion on the Yoshida Trail, the preferred route for most hikers, the Yamanashi region is planning to cap daily entries to 4,000 people, who will be charged $13 each. This file photo taken on August 31, 2023 shows visitors climbing the slopes of Mount Fuji, Japan's highest peak at 3,776 meters (12,388 feet). An online booking system for Mount Fuji's most popular trail was announced on May 13, 2024 by Japanese authorities trying to fight overtourism on the active volcano. (Photo by Mathias CENA / AFP) But to address some climbers' fears that they will be rejected once the daily limit is reached, this year online bookings will also be introduced for the first time. The system will guarantee people entry through a new gate, "allowing them to plan ahead," Katsuhiro Iwama, an official from the Yamanashi regional government, told AFP. (Also read: Japanese town erects barrier to shield Mount Fuji from tourist overcrowding ) Online bookings open on May 20 for the July-September hiking season. Each day at least 1,000 places will be kept free for on-the-spot entry. Mount Fuji is covered in snow most of the year, but in the summer more than 220,000 visitors trudge up its steep, rocky slopes, many climbing through the night to see the sunrise. Some attempt to reach the 3,776-metre (12,388-foot) summit without breaks and become sick or injured as a result. Tourists are also flocking to surrounding areas to snap the majestic mountain, which is seen as a symbol of Japan but whose popularity is proving a burden to locals. In one photo spot where Mount Fuji emerges behind a Lawson convenience store, exasperated officials are constructing a huge black mesh barrier to block the view. People who work and live nearby had complained about mostly foreign tourists trespassing, littering and dangerously crossing the street to get the perfect Instagram post. Record numbers of overseas tourists are travelling to Japan, where in March monthly visitors exceeded three million for the first time. Residents of Kyoto's geisha district have also banned tourists from private alleys after complaints that some were rudely demanding selfies with the kimono-clad entertainers. Indias achievements in science and technology under Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi are no exception to criticism from the Left-liberal circles. However, there has been significant progress in the Science and Technology (S&T) sector in the last 10 years. Long-term and sustainable financial commitment to S&T is essential as most projects are of a long gestation. Gross R&D expenditure has doubled from 60,000 crore in 2010-11 to 1.2 lakh crore last year. The total expenditure of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has gone up from around 3,200 crore in 2013-14 to 6,700 crore in 2021-22. Several forward-looking policy decisions were taken by the Modi government to foster this sector. For instance, the 2015 start-up policy has become a key driver of the rapid growth of start-ups in India. Similarly, the recently announced National Research Foundation will be an integrated funding agency (broadly based on the National Science Foundation, United States) with a sanctioned financial outlay of 14,000 crore over the next five years, or 2.5 times the amount approved to its previous avatar, Science and Engineering Research Board. Last year, 14 autonomous biotechnology institutes under the department of biotechnology were brought under one apex body (Biotechnology Research and Innovation Council), bringing about significant synergies. Investment in S&T has resulted in significant enhancement both in quality and quantity of outcomes. In terms of the number of scientific publications, Indias ranking went from 7th in 2010 to 5th in 2015 and now 3rd in 2023, behind China and the US. In scientific research, the quality of publications has more value than their quantity. Even on this parameter, Indias rank in the Global Innovation Index (based on 80 parameters by the World Intellectual Property Organisation) jumped from 81 in 2013-14 to 40 in 2023. There have been significant advancements in protecting indigenous technologies in terms of filing patents. Indias patent filing has grown significantly in recent years in 2022, it registered the largest increase of 22%. India is now ranked seventh in terms of resident patent filing. In 2022, 82,000 patent applications were filed in the Indian Patent Office and 34,000 patents were granted. The Indian Patent Office granted over 100,000 patents between March 15, 2023, and March 14, 2024. The Centre has also announced significant concessions on capital gains tax if the intellectual property (IP) generated by Indian entities is monetised, further encouraging the commercialisation of IP. The launch of the Quantum Computing Mission, Semiconductor Mission, India AI Mission, and National Biopharma Mission, further proves Indias long-term commitment to cutting-edge technologies. India now figures in the global telecom standards map with indigenous IP incorporated into 5G and beyond technologies. The pan-IIT project on 5G has indigenously developed 5G systems and technology that has been transferred to the Tata group. Similarly, Indias success in developing indigenous vaccines against Covid-19 would not have been possible without the active support of DBT. As of April 2024, over 127,0000 start-ups had been officially recognised close to 30% more than the number last year. The start-up ecosystem received a boost from a sector-specific funding programme. For example, the number of bio incubators (funded by the Biotech Industry Research Assistance Council, DBT) has gone up from six in 2014 to 95 in 2024. Technologies developed with the support of BIRAC have resulted in the launch of over 800 products in the market. Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) is another unique initiative of the Modi government. From inculcating the spirit of innovation in school students (Atal Tinkering Labs) to funding start-ups, it has created and supported an entire innovation ecosystem. Since its inception, more than 10,000 tinkering labs have been established in schools. As of now, 86 incubators and more than 4,000 start-ups are supported by AIM. The participation of women in R&D is also growing. There were 67,441 women scientists in 2020-21 as compared to 42,000 in 2014-15. These are some examples of how the Modi government inculcated a culture of scientific innovation and entrepreneurship in India. Of course, the demands and aspirations of the society are going to grow significantly. The average R&D spend (as a percentage of turnover) by Indian industry is still lower than in developed countries and there is a significant gap in the participation of Indian women in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM). Specific schemes have been launched by the government to address both issues. In the last 10 years, the Indian mindset has become more entrepreneurial. India is not only among the largest consumers of the latest technologies but also an inventor of world-class, safe, secure and affordable technologies. Vijay Chauthaiwale is in-charge, foreign affairs department of the BJP. The views expressed are personal New Delhi, Researchers have discovered a new "fiery, glowing red" exoplanet displaying intense volcanic activity similar to Jupiter's moon Io. HT Image Further, the many active volcanoes on the exoplanet could be making its surface hotter than some stars, they said. In a known star system about 66 light years away from Sun, the astrophysicists discovered signals for a new rocky planet about a third larger than Earth. The signals were captured by NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite , which searches for exoplanets or planets outside our solar system, orbiting the brightest stars in the sky. The team, including researchers from the University of California Riverside, US, said that the star system, called HD 104067, was already known to harbour a giant planet. While gathering data on the planet, Stephen Kane, a professor of Planetary Astrophysics, "unexpectedly" found another "fiery" one, taking the count of planets in the star system to three. "At optical wavelengths, you would be able to see a glowing, red-hot planet with a molten lava surface," Kane, lead author of the study published in The Astronomical Journal, said. The newly discovered rocky exoplanet, named TOI-6713.01, has a lot in common with Jupiter's rocky innermost moon, Io, and is known to be the most volcanically active body in our solar system, Kane said. The researchers explained that gravitational forces exerted by the other two planets in the system force this rocky planet into an elliptical or "eccentric" orbit around their star. The star, to which TOI-6713.01 is closer than the other planets, "squeezes" the rocky planet as it orbits and rotates because of gravity, thereby causing tides on the planet's surface in the form of volcanoes. Likening the scenario to "racquetball", Kane explained that the rocky inner planet gets hotter as it is constantly bounced around by the other two planets and squeezed by the star. "It's been forced into a situation where it's constantly exploding with volcanoes," he said. The extreme volcanic activity could be making the surface of TOI-6713.01 hotter than some stars, Kane said, as he calculated the surface temperature to be 2,600 degrees Kelvin or 2,330 degrees Celsius. The intense volcanic activity on Jupiter's Io is also due to the gravity exerted by the other moons of the solar system's biggest planet, which itself has a strong gravitational pull, the researchers said. Io is thus "forced" into an eccentric orbit around the planet, Kane explained. "If the other moons weren't there, Io would be in a circular orbit around the planet and it would be quiet on the surface. Instead, Jupiter's gravity squeezes Io so much that it erupts in volcanoes constantly," Kane said. On Earth, tides are the effect of moon's gravity on our oceans. The researchers said the findings reveal a lot about the extremes in amounts of energy that can be pumped into a rocky planet, such as TOI-6713.01. Further, tidal effects on planets haven't historically been a focus of exoplanet research, which Kane hopes might change with this discovery. "While we know that stars contribute to the heat of a planet, the vast majority of the energy here is tidal and that cannot be ignored," he said. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. Microsoft on Sunday announced four billion euros in investment for developing data centres in France, joining fellow US giant Amazon in committing to the country's tech infrastructure. Microsoft, Amazon to invest billions in French tech: Report(Reuters FILE Photo) The announcements came on the eve of the seventh Choose France Summit, the aim of which is to attract foreign investors to the country. Macron will host it at the Chateau of Versailles near Paris. Microsoft's president Brad Smith told AFP the move to strengthen its artificial intelligence and cloud computing infrastructure was the tech giant's biggest-ever investment in France since its arrival 41 years ago. France's "longstanding commitment to carbon-free energy markets" and its status as a "critical leader" in Europe explained the decision, Smith said. A new data centre will be created in eastern France, while existing sites in the Paris region and the southern city of Marseille will be expanded. E-commerce behemoth Amazon will invest more than 1.2 billion euros in France, creating more than 3,000 jobs, French President Emmanuel Macron's office said earlier on Sunday. The money will help develop Amazon Web Services' (AWS) cloud infrastructure, mainly generative artificial intelligence, and the logistical infrastructure of its parcel delivery service, a statement added. Amazon did not respond to approaches by AFP on Sunday, having recently said it did not want to make any comment ahead of a possible announcement that would be made at the event. The US company has already announced the creation of 2,000 new jobs in France in 2024, which would bring its staff workforce in the country up to 24,000 by the end of the year, mainly in its logistics centres. AWS is a key subsidiary of the group, having made $25 billion worldwide in the first quarter, capitalising on the growing appetite among businesses for remote computer and artificial intelligence services. As Choose France prepared to get under way, several pharmaceutical groups, including US group Pfizer and Britain's AstraZeneca, announced on Sunday commitments to invest more than a billion euros more in France's health sector. The largest industrial project announced so far is a potential fertiliser factory, which could significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions. European consortium FertigHy is to announce it is looking at investing 1.3 billion euros ($1.4 billion) into a factory in the Somme region in northern France, Industry Minister Roland Lescure told France's La Tribune Dimanche newspaper. Three people were injured as the lift at a Noida housing society malfunctioned and crashed through the roof of the top floor on Sunday. According to reports, the incident happened in Tower 5 of Paras Tierra Society in Sector 137 in Noida. The incident happened when the lift reached the fourth floor of Tower 5 of a housing society in Noida. (Representative Image) According to a report by NDTV, the brakes of the lift failed when it was on the fourth floor of Tower 5. It started ascending unexpectedly, reached the 25th floor, and crashed into the roof. Three people, including two women, were inside it when the incident happened. All three of them have sustained injuries. Since the incident, the two lifts in the tower have now been closed, and the residents have been asked to use the stairs. The outlet further reported that the residents had alleged a lack of maintenance that led to this technical glitch. The police are investigating the matter, and action will be taken against the culprits. We will demand an investigation into this entire incident from the architects and builders. The safety of the residents is our first priority. We will take all necessary steps so that such incidents do not happen in future, the Apartment Owners Association of Paras Tierra Society told NDTV. Earlier, a 73-year-old woman resident of the same society died in a lift crash. The incident happened when the woman got into the lift from the eighth floor, and it fell to the ground after the lift cable snapped. These are not the only incidents in which people were injured or died in elevator mishaps. In April 2023, nine people sustained injuries after an elevator at a hotel in Noida plummeted from the third floor to the basement of the building. In July 2022, a woman was injured after a lift had a free fall at Supertech Supernova housing in Sector 94. On the occasion of Mother's Day, Anand Mahindra, the chairperson of Mahindra and Mahindra, shared a sentimental post dedicated to his mother. Along with the touching message, he also uploaded a nostalgic photograph from his college days featuring himself and his mother. His heartfelt words for his mom struck a chord with numerous individuals. Anand Mahindra shared this throwback picture with his mother. "Back in 1977. Just before I left for college, my mother wasn't looking into the camera. As usual, she was gazing into the distance, trying to envision her children's future, hoping that a good education would be their passport to successand happiness. Happy Mother's Day, ma. We'll keep trying to live up to your dreams for us," wrote Anand Mahindra in the caption of the post. In the adorable picture he shared, you can see him and his mother standing side by side. (Also Read: Vendanta founder Anil Agarwal on how his mom inspired him to start the company: I nearly gave up) Take a look at the post shared by Anand Mahindra here: This post was shared on May 12. Since being posted, it has garnered close to three lakh views. The share also has more than 9,800 likes, and the numbers are only increasing. Numerous people also took to the comments section of the post to share their reactions. Here's what people had to say about the post: An individual wrote, "You are looking handsome; your mother looks like a beautiful actress. Happy Mother's Day." A second added, "Where every wish is fulfilled, where the feet of the mother is paradise, what words are written for that mother, at least there is someday of the mother, Mother's Day is every day." "Most beautiful picture in the world," commented a third. A fourth said, "Maybe she was hiding tears of separation! You can't comprehend a mother's emotions or sacrifices completely!" "Can't recognise that it is you. Looks very different," shared a fifth. Dr Cyriac Abby Philips, better known as The Liver Doc on the Internet, said that he had been summoned by the Inspector of Crime Branch in Raebareli, Uttar Pradesh. The summons is regarding his social media posts on AYUSH and Homeopathy. He also shared that he has only three days to appear at the police station. Dr Cyriac Abby Philips expressed that such petty, frivolous and trash complaints are entertained and investigated for no actual reasons to harass people who speak the truth.(X/@theliverdr) Dr Philips initially believed the summons to be fraudulent but later realised it was legitimate. In a detailed post on X, the doctor shared that the complaint was filed in September 2023 by a Homeopathy practitioner named Rajeev Singh. Singh claimed that Homeopathy can cure the COVID-19 pandemic. The doctor stated that the complaint was sent to several officials, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah, UP CM Yogi Adityanath, National President of BJP JP Nadda, and Chief Minister of Kerala Pinarayi Vijayan. According to the post, Singh filed a complaint against Dr Philips over his defamatory social media posts on AYUSH and Homeopathy system of treatment. He expressed that such petty, frivolous and trash complaints are entertained and investigated for no actual reasons to harass people who speak the truth. These are the people I have to deal with in this country. Complete disasters. Total waste of my time and money, he wrote on X. Dr Philips also said that if he has to undergo such kind of treatment, then being Indian is a punishment for those who dont have support or strength. Heres what the doctor posted on X: In March this year, the hepatologist who regularly busts health-related misinformation on social media received a notice from Instagram stating that his post had violated the platforms rules. The post compared the liver of a 52-year-old who never drank alcohol with that of a 29-year-old who had. The non-drinkers liver appeared pink and healthy, while the young drinkers liver appeared shrivelled and dark in colour. The Liver Doc has over 2.5 lakh followers on X and over 40,000 followers on Instagram. The multi-award-winning clinician-scientist is a vocal critic of alternative forms of medicine such as Ayurveda, Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy. Today, on May 13, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) declared the results of the Class 12 board exams. Students across the country are filled with anxiety and anticipation as they rush to the CBSE website to find out how well they have performed. Meanwhile, some others have chosen to lighten up the mood by sharing funny memes on social media platforms to mark the occasion. One of the memes shared on X. Many netizens took to various social media platforms to create memes that are making people laugh left and right. Take a look at a few memes here: According to CBSE, 1633730 students registered for this year's Class 12 board exam, of whom 1621224 appeared and 1426420 have passed the exam. Overall 87.98% passed. Last year 87.33% students passed the exams. Students can check the CBSE results using roll number, school number and admit card ID at cbseresults.nic.in. A journalist shared her ordeal at Delhi airport last Saturday, when she endured a last-minute flight cancellation and numerous delays by IndiGo. Stranded for nearly 12 hours, she ultimately opted against travelling. (AFP File Photo) Anubha Pandey was planning to travel from Delhi to Hyderabad for a family function and to spend Mother's Day with her mother. She reached the Delhi airport at 9 am for a flight scheduled for 10:40 am. At the luggage check-in, she got to know that the flight was cancelled. "I was asked to go the reservation counter to get a reschedule or other options," she said in a long note on X (formerly Twitter). "I was shocked to see that there was no dedicated person handling passengers whose flight got cancelled. That also meant no priority or precedence given to passengers whose flight gets cancelled due to whatsoever reason." There was another flight to Hyderabad at 12:20 pm but she realised that the only available ticket on that flight was being given to a passenger who missed his flight. Pandey asked IndiGo staff why the only "When I questioned the act of giving the only 12:20 pm flight ticket to Hyderabad to a person who 'missed' his flight, I faced insensitivity and argument from two guys at the T1 counter, only to add more stress to what was going to come in the day," Pandey said. She finally managed to reschedule her tickets for a 5 pm flight. Pandey decided to wait at the airport itself. "After reaching out three to four people, I got to know that two idlis and a wada is the meal that IndiGo has provided for the six-hour wait time," the journalist said. Half-an hour before the scheduled take-off at 5 pm, the airline informed the passengers that the flight was delayed by 1.6 hours. Pandey said she had gotten ready for her Hyderabad family function at the Delhi airport. "I never felt so small and disappointed in recent times. It felt like the big corps can play with us however they like, even after we are paying for the services," she said. The airline reportedly said the delay in Delhi was because the flight got delayed in Hyderabad. Exhausted after her long wait at the airport, Pandey asked IndiGo staff if they could be further delays in the flight. She was told there would be no further delay. However, around 45 minutes before take-off, the already-delayed flight's boarding gate was changed. "Guess what? The flight further got delayed to 7:50 pm," she said. "I gave up. I was just exhausted and sad. I felt nauseated just thinking that thank god its no emergency," she said, expressing her frustration. "I was about to miss a family function and some good time with family but what about people who are travelling for doctor's appointment or any other emergency?" Feeling drained after a long day, Pandey decided to abandon her travel plans. "I decided not to travel. Because what's the point reach at 12 in the night (due to possible further delays) with such sh***y mood?" Take a look at Anubha Pandey's post on X: Pandey, who slammed the airline for its Mother's Day special video, said the airline offered her a 2,000-voucher as compensation. In compensation, a senior official is offering me a 2k Indigo voucher, she said. Firstly, very delusional of that person to even believe that I'll ever travel from Indigo again. Secondly, I would give 5k back but answer me clearly why I have put through such emotional, mental and physical stress? IndiGo responded to the passenger's post, saying it facilitated a full refund for her return flight even though it was with a different airline. We had communicated about your cancelled and delayed flight via SMS to the registered number. Our team served refreshments during the wait time and facilitated a full refund for your return journey, even though it was with a different airline, the airline said. Also Read - Woman recounts airport ordeal amid IndiGo flight delay: Diabetic patients made to eat sugary food Mumbai has been grappling with a severe dust storm coupled with heavy rainfall, leading to poor air quality and reduced visibility across the city. As the unusual weather whipped through the city, people took to social media platforms to share photos and videos. This led to Mumbai Rains topping the trends in India on X (formerly Twitter), with more than 11,500 tweets at the time of writing this article. Mumbai: A NOWCAST issued at 4 pm forecasted gusty winds reaching speeds of 50-60 km/hr, thunderstorms, lightning, and moderate to intense rainfall. Isolated areas were expected to experience hail. (X/@josephradhik) An individual took to X to share a picture from the city and wrote, Mumbai disappeared in a flash. Another asked, Whats going on in Mumbai? while sharing a picture of the dust storm in the city. A third said that the city currently looks like a Hollywood movie shot in Mexico. Heres what this X user posted: A giant billboard collapsed on a petrol station in Ghatkopar amid the heavy rainfall and dust storms. At least 100 people were reported to be trapped under the white billboard. Among them, three are reported to be dead, and at least 54 people were rescued by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF). The injured people were rushed to Rajawadi Hospital, and their condition was reported as stable. In another heart-wrenching incident, a scaffolding fell in Wadala East as vehicles passed by during the bad weather conditions in Mumbai. At least seven people were injured and have been taken to Rajawadi Hospital. Heavy winds, lightning, and rain lashed Mumbai and nearby regions of Thane and Palghar. The most affected areas include Thane, Palghar, and the eastern suburbs of Mumbai, such as Mulund, Titwala, and Kalyan. A NOWCAST issued at 4 pm forecasted gusty winds reaching speeds of 50-60 km/hr, thunderstorms, lightning, and moderate to intense rainfall. Isolated areas were expected to experience hail. In some parts of Mumbai, winds were predicted to reach speeds of 40-50 km/hr, accompanied by lightning and light to moderate rainfall. Dadar encountered conditions resembling a dust storm briefly due to strong winds, while eastern and northern areas experienced heavy rain for over 40 minutes. Due to the bad weather conditions, metro and train services between several stations have been suspended. Flight operations at Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport were also temporarily suspended due to low visibility and rains. At least 15 flights were diverted. Several incidents of trees falling were also reported in the city, and some areas also experienced power outages. Starbucks CEO Laxman Narasimhan shared a heartwarming post on LinkedIn about his mothers influence on his life. He expressed that his mothers passing left a big void in his life, but her memories and teachings continue to live on inside him. Starbucks Indian-origin CEO Laxman Narasimhan (left) and his mother Bhama (right). (LinkedIn/Laxman Narasimhan) In a blog, the 56-year-old executive shared that his mother, Bhama, instilled faith in him for all religions despite being a Hindu. She said choose any path, theres many that lead to God. No place for hate. Only space for love and kindness, wrote Narasimhan. He stated that his mother was the lighthouse for him. Narasimhan shared that despite losing two children and her husband by the age of 48, his mother remained the backbone of their family. She dedicated her life to children, working as a kindergarten teacher for many years. During his growing-up years, Narasimhans home in Mumbai and Pune was always filled with children who came to his mother for extra help, many of whom became his close friends. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the mother-son lived together and created sweet memories. I ran a company and cleaned the house. She made me meals, and we played Rummicube together and watched Indian TV serials. Narasimhan, who was previously the CCO of PepsiCo, mentioned that his mother taught him to look at the bright side always. She was the life of every party. She knew how to make people feel instantly comfortable. She had more friends in the communities we lived in than we did, he further wrote. He also talked about the bond that his wife and mother shared: My wife and mother had an unbelievable relationship right to the end. She loved my wife like the daughter she once had. My wife gave so much over 27 years to take care of her for right to the end. The CEO of Starbucks mentioned that he learned the meaning of living a life of duty from his mother. He added, She moved in to live with us in 1997 and never left our side, helping us raise two amazing kids. She stood by them through thick and thin- like she did for me- walking the streets of Bombay to the various scholarship houses to collect the money they said theyd give me while I studied in Philadelphia. Our difficult financial situation did not stop her from asking me to go to study- and she watched as I sold my car and one of the three paintings my father left me to take a bet and go to America. He concluded his blog by saying that mothers do incredible things, and it was his first Mothers Day without her. Anil Agarwal, Founder and Chairman of Vedanta Group, recently revealed how his mom inspired him to start the company after he faced multiple setbacks in business. He also posted how, after he failed, he was "lost, demotivated and disturbed". Soon after he made the post talking about his mother as an inspiration in his life, it went viral and received numerous reactions. Vedanta founder Anil Agarwal with his mother. "After failing multiple times in business, I nearly gave up. I was lost, demotivated and disturbed. Tab Maa ne bola tha 'Anil aage badhte jao darwaze khulte jaenge. (Anil, keep moving; doors will open on their own)' It wasn't easy, but unki blessings se I kept moving forward (It wasn't easy, but through her blessings I kept moving forward). It was with these words and with maa's blessings I started all over again. That's how Vedanta was born, a company named after my mother Vedvati Agarwal. It is a tribute to her strength and wisdom. Happy Mother's Day!" wrote Anil Agarwal in the post. (Also Read: On Mothers Day, Deepinder Goyal invites moms of Zomato employees to office. Watch) Take a look at the post here: This post was shared on May 12. Since being posted, it has gained more than 70,000 views, and the numbers are still increasing. The share also has over 3,300 likes. Many people flocked to the comments section of the post and shared their reactions. Here's how people reacted: An individual wrote, "Really inspiring to know that Vedanta got its name from your mother's name." A second added, "Beautiful testament to what she saw when you couldn't." A third shared, "Where every wish is fulfilled, it is paradise at the feet of the mother, what words are written for that mother, at least one day should be there for the mother, Mother's Day is every day, Happy Mother's Day." "Sir ji, you are truly a billionaire not because of your wealth but your simplicity, humility and outstanding Bharatiya values. You will inspire many more!" posted a fourth. Taiwan police alleged that a woman hid her dead father's body for years at home to claim his pension benefits. According to reports, the unnamed woman from Kaohsiung, a city in the southern part of the island, lived with her father for more than 50 years. She came under police suspicion when she did not allow officials inside her home to spray dengue-prevention chemicals. Subsequently, she was fined NT $60,000 (approximately 1.5 lakh). Taiwanese police is looking into the woman's actions in concealing her father's body. The authorities became concerned when she continued to refuse to let government officials into the house. When officers questioned the woman about her father's whereabouts, she first said he was in a nursing home. She told a different narrative to the police when they pressed her, saying her brother had taken him to the mainland, reported South China Morning Post. As per the news outlet, that narrative collapsed when the police looked into the claim and found that the woman's father had not left Taiwan and that the sibling had been deceased for 50 years. When she was unable to provide his death certificate, she stated that her father had passed away on the mainland and that she was requesting the certificate. (Also Read: Russian man whose visa expired 6 years ago arrested in Gurgaon for selling LSD, charas) Later, when the police searched the woman's house, they found a black plastic garbage bag containing the bones of an elderly person. As a veteran of the military with over 20 years of service, the woman's father was entitled to a monthly pension based on his rank and service record. The man's service history was unknown, although the average monthly pension for a veteran of the Taiwanese military is NT $49,379 (nearly 1.2 lakh). (Also Read: Waiter, 21, admits to rubbing his genitals, urinating on food and more, arrested) In addition to looking into the woman's actions in concealing her father's body, police are also looking into the reason for the man's death. A woman in Florida, United States, who was found guilty of adding bleach to her husband's coffee, was sentenced to three years of probation. Melody Felicano Johnson, according to reports, was caught on hidden camera by her husband pouring bleach into their coffee maker last year. The woman was caught on camera adding bleach to her husband's coffee. (Pexels) The husband, Roby Johnson, is a member of the US Air Force, and the first incident occurred when the couple was living in Germany with their child. It all started when he felt that his morning coffee had a "foul taste", CNN reported. Roby, determined to get to the bottom of the strange taste in his coffee, took matters into his own hands. He bought pool water testing strips and first tested the tap water. When the result came back clear, he turned his attention to his coffee. The shocking discovery of high levels of chlorine" in his coffee, as reported by CNN affiliate KVOA, was te first clue in a mystery that would soon unravel. By May, the husband had set up cameras in their house and noticed his wife poisoning his coffee. Johnson pretended to drink his coffee but did not report it to the police in Germany because he wanted to alert the authorities in a foreign country. Melody Felicano Johnson allegedly continued doing this even when the family returned to Arizona in US. This is when Johnson took the camera recordings to the local police. Viral videos on social media showed the woman adding something to the coffee pot in the kitchen. Watch one of the videos here: A woman in Florida, United States, who was found guilty of adding bleach to her husband's coffee, was sentenced to three years of probation. Melody Felicano Johnson, according to reports, was caught on hidden camera by her husband pouring bleach into their coffee maker last year. The husband, Roby Johnson, is a member of the US Air Force, and the first incident occurred when the couple was living in Germany with their child. It all started when he felt that his morning coffee had a "foul taste", CNN reported. Roby, determined to get to the bottom of the strange taste in his coffee, took matters into his own hands. He bought pool water testing strips and first tested the tap water. When the result came back clear, he turned his attention to his coffee. The shocking discovery of high levels of chlorine" in his coffee, as reported by CNN affiliate KVOA, was the first clue in a mystery that would soon unravel. By May, the husband had set up cameras in their house and noticed his wife poisoning his coffee. Johnson pretended to drink his coffee but did not report it to the police in Germany because he wanted to alert the authorities in a foreign country. Melody Felicano Johnson allegedly continued doing this even when the family returned to Arizona in US. This is when Johnson took the camera recordings to the local police. Viral videos on social media showed the woman adding something to the coffee pot in the kitchen. Watch one of the videos here: |#+| The couple was in the middle of a divorce during this period. The husband, who did not want her to face jail-time, reportedly told investigators that he believes she was trying to kill him to collect death benefits. A court in Arizona recently sentenced her to three years of probation and mental health treatment, CNN reported. She was initially charged with attempted first-degree murder. OTTAWA, - The western oil- and grain-producing province of Alberta on Monday urged Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to do all he could to head off potentially devastating strikes by railway and port workers. Alberta urges Canada PM Trudeau to head off port and rail strikes Staff represented by the Teamsters union voted overwhelmingly this month to strike as early as May 22. Railways are critical to Canada's economy, due to its vast geography and exports of grain, potash and coal. Further to the west, talks between management and unions at the port of Vancouver have hit an impasse. "Any work stoppage affecting our railways and ports would be crippling for our national economy and North American supply chains," Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said in a letter to Trudeau that was released by her office. Smith said Ottawa had to do all it could to help the parties in both disputes reach negotiated settlements. "In the event of a work stoppage, your government must be prepared to use all the tools at its disposal to terminate it rapidly, including, if necessary, back-to-work legislation," said Smith, one of Trudeau's main domestic political opponents. The ruling center-left Liberals could present a draft law to force striking workers back to work but in the past have shown little interest in doing so. Asked about a possible Vancouver port strike, the office of Labour Minister Seamus O'Regan said: "Our government believes in collective bargaining." O'Regan last week asked the Canada Industrial Relations Board to look at whether a rail strike might have safety implications. Until the board has issued a decision, the strike by workers at Canadian National Railway and Canadian Pacific Kansas City cannot start. The board on Monday asked for submissions by the end of business on May 21 and could take weeks to act. The unions are currently negotiating contracts and asking for better wages and working conditions. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. A 36-year-old Indian-origin man has been arrested in Canada in connection with a brazen multimillion-dollar gold heist at Toronto's main airport, almost a month after the arrest of five others involved in the theft -- the biggest in the country's history. Peel Police Chief Nishan Duraiappah reveals details of the arrests. (AP/File) On April 17, 2023, an air cargo container carrying more than 22 million Canadian dollars worth of gold bars and foreign currency was stolen from a secure storage facility using fake paperwork, Peels Regional Police said. The gold and currency had arrived on an Air Canada flight from Zurich, Switzerland, to Pearson International Airport in Toronto. Shortly after the flight's landing, the cargo was offloaded and transported to a separate location on airport property. It was reported missing to the police a day later. On May 6, 2024, investigators arrested and charged Archit Grover at the airport in Toronto as he flew in from India, according to the police. The police had issued a Canada-wide warrant for his arrest earlier. He is charged with theft over Canadian dollars 5,000 and conspiracy to commit an indictable offence, police said in a statement on Thursday. Grover was held for a bail hearing and attended the Ontario Court of Justice in Brampton. He is also being indicted in the US for firearm-related charges. Last month, two persons of Indian origin Parmpal Sidhu, 54, and Amit Jalota, 40 -- both from Ontario, were arrested in connection with the case along with Ammad Chaudhary, 43, Ali Raza, 37, and Prasath Paramalingam, 35. Besides, Canada-wide warrants were issued for Simran Preet Panesar, 31, from Brampton, who was also an Air Canada employee at the time of the theft and Arsalan Chaudhary, a 42-year-old man from Mississauga, the statement said. According to the police, at least two former Air Canada employees allegedly helped in the audacious theft, one of whom is now in custody, while an arrest warrant has been issued for the other. Air Canada spokesman Peter Fitzpatrick confirmed Sidhu and Panesars employment with the national flag carrier. "One left the company prior to the arrests announced today and the second has been suspended, he said. The stolen cargo contained 6600 bars of .9999 pure gold, weighing 400 kilograms, valued at over 20 million dollars and Canadian dollars 2.5 million worth in foreign currency. In an earlier statement, the police said that investigators seized one kilogramme of gold worth approximately Canadian dollars 89,000, believed to be from the theft, smelting equipment, and approximately 434,000 dollars in Canadian currency. A strong earthquake shook the border of Mexico and Guatemala early Sunday, driving frightened residents into the streets. The temblor struck just before 6 a.m. near the Mexican border town of Suchiate, where a river by the same name divides the two countries. (Representative file image) The temblor struck just before 6 a.m. near the Mexican border town of Suchiate, where a river by the same name divides the two countries. The epicenter was just off the Pacific coast, 10 miles (16 kilometers) west-southwest of Brisas Barra de Suchiate, where the river empties into the sea. The earthquake had a preliminary magnitude of 6.4, according to the U.S. Geological Survey and a depth of 47 miles (75 kilometers). In Mexico, there were no immediate reports of damage, but more mountainous, remote parts of the border are prone to landslides. Across the border Guatemala's national disaster prevention agency shared photos of small landslides onto highways in the Quetzaltenango region and large cracks in walls in a hospital in San Marcos on its social media accounts, but there were no reports of deaths. In Tapachula, near the border, civil defense brigades were moving through the city looking for signs of damage. Didier Solares, an official with Suchiate's Civil Defense agency, said so far they had not found damage. Luckily, everything is good, Solares said. We are talking with companies, to the (rural areas) via radio and there's nothing, there's no damage thank God, he said. The early morning quake still gave people a fright. In the mountainous and picturesque colonial city of San Cristobal, the shaking was strong. Here we got up because we have the seismic alert service, said resident Joaquin Morales. The alert woke me up because it comes 30 seconds before (the quake). In Tuxtla Chico, a town near Tapachula, Maria Guzman, a teacher said: It was horrible, it felt strong. It was a real scare. Later Sunday, there was a swarm of at least two dozen small earthquakes in Mexico's northern state of Baja California, near the U.S. border. The largest of the quakes was of 4.6 magnitude, while the majority were between between 2.5 and 3.7. No immediate damage was reported in the sparsely populated region roughly 30 miles ( 50 kilometers) south of a relatively unpopulated area south of El Centro, California. They did not appear related to the quake in Suchiate, which is almost 2,330 miles (3,750 kilometers) to the southeast. An Iraqi commanding officer and four soldiers were killed and five others injured on Monday in an attack by suspected Islamic State militants on an army post in eastern Iraq, two security sources said. Five Iraqi soldiers killed in ISIS attack: Report(AP) The attack took place between Diyala and Salahuddin provinces, a rural area that remains a hotbed of activity for militant cells years after Iraq declared final victory over the extremist group in 2017. Iraq's defence ministry issued a statement mourning the loss of a colonel and "a number of heroic fighters of the regiment as a result of their response to a terrorist attack." Security forces repelled the attack but there were many casualties in the process, the statement added. Iraq has seen relative security stability in recent years after the chaos of the 2003-U.S.-led invasion and years of bloody sectarian conflict that followed. Baghdad is now looking to draw down the U.S-led international coalition that helped defeat Islamic State and remain in the country in an advisory role, saying local security forces can handle the threat themselves. A former U.S. military intelligence official released a letter on Monday that explained to his colleagues at the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) that his November resignation was in fact due to "moral injury" stemming from U.S. support for Israel's war in Gaza and the harm caused to Palestinians. The remains of a United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) school in central Khan Younis, Gaza(Bloomberg) Harrison Mann, an Army major, would be the first known DIA official to quit over U.S. support to Israel. A U.S. airman fatally set himself on fire in February outside Israel's embassy in Washington and other military personnel have protested. Mann said he kept quiet about his motives for resigning for months out of fear. "I was afraid. Afraid of violating our professional norms. Afraid of disappointing officers I respect. Afraid you would feel betrayed. I'm sure some of you will feel that way reading this," Mann wrote in a letter shared with colleagues last month and published on his LinkedIn profile on Monday. The Defense Intelligence Agency did not respond to a request for comment. Mann's case differs from other U.S. government officials, including several State Department officials, who publicly deplored U.S. policy as they resigned rather than waiting months to explain their departure. Man said he felt shame and guilt for helping advance U.S. policy that he said contributed to the mass killing of Palestinians. "At some point whatever the justification you're either advancing a policy that enables the mass starvation of children, or you're not," Mann wrote. Israel is retaliating against Hamas over an Oct. 7 attack in which Israel says the militants killed about 1,200 people and took more than 250 people hostage. More than 35,000 Palestinians have been killed and 78,827 injured in Israel's military offensive on Gaza, according to the Gaza health ministry. There has been increasing concern about the lack of humanitarian aid allowed into Gaza by Israel, and growing U.S. and international warnings about the risk of famine. The high death toll has fueled pro-Palestinian protests that have swept college campuses across the United States and pushed Democrats in key battleground states to vote "uncommitted" to signal their unhappiness ahead of this year's presidential election. President Joe Biden, a staunch supporter of Israel, put a hold on one package of arms, in a major policy shift that became public last week, and his administration said the U.S. was reviewing others. The Biden administration on Friday said Israel's use of U.S.-supplied weapons may have violated international humanitarian law during its military operation in Gaza, in its strongest criticism to date of Israel. Israel's prime minister said on a podcast that almost half of those killed in the Gaza war are Hamas fighters, playing down a civilian toll that has sparked global outrage. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.(Reuters) Benjamin Netanyahu maintained the overall toll is lower than that given by authorities in the Palestinian territory. According to the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza, at least 35,091 people have been killed in the territory during more than seven months of war between Israel and Palestinian militants. But Netanyahu suggested in an interview on the "Call Me Back" podcast conducted on Sunday that the death toll in Gaza was actually around 30,000 and that Hamas fighters accounted for nearly half of that toll. Gazan authorities do not provide an overview of the number of Palestinian militants killed, but have repeatedly said that a large majority of those killed in the war have been women and children. The United Nations and a long line of countries have voiced alarm at the number of civilian deaths. United Nations rights chief Volker Turk warned in a statement last month that children especially are "disproportionately paying the ultimate price in this war". But Netanyahu insisted to podcaster Dan Senor that Israel had "been able to keep the ratio of civilians to combatants killed... (to) a ratio of about one to one". "Fourteen thousand have been killed, combatants, and probably around 16,000 civilians have been killed," he said. He gave similar figures in March during an interview with Politico, at a time when Gaza's health ministry was reporting a toll of at least 31,045. Netanyahu said at the time that the figure included 13,000 militants and the number of civilians was "far less than" 20,000. His latest comment comes at a time of intensified pressure from Israel's chief military supplier, the United States, over the Palestinian toll from the war. Washington paused delivery of 3,500 bombs, and US President Joe Biden warned he would stop supplying artillery shells and other weapons if Israel carries out a full-scale invasion of Rafah, where around one million people are sheltering. Also read: Former US military intelligence official resigns over Gaza war A US State Department report on Friday said it was "reasonable to assess" that Israel has used American arms in ways inconsistent with standards on humanitarian rights but that the United States could not reach "conclusive findings." The bloodiest ever Gaza war broke out after Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of more than 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures. Militants also seized around 250 hostages, scores of whom were freed during a week-long truce in November. Israel estimates 128 captives remain in Gaza, including 36 the military says are dead. A woman whose son is being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza shared a heartbreaking message for him on Mothers Day. 23-year-old Hersh Goldberg-Polins mom, Rachel Goldberg-Polin, posted a video where she is seen reading a letter she had written on the eve of her sons third birthday. Hersh Goldberg-Polins mom shares heartbreaking Mother's Day message (@BringHershHome/X) Because today is Mothers Day, I decided to read you this letter that I wrote to Hersh the night before he turned 3 years old, she said before reading the note. She was seen wearing a tape numbered 219 on her shirt the number of days Hersh, an Israeli-American man, has been held hostage after being abducted from the Nova music festival on October 7, 2023. Hersh, these last three years have been the most challenging and best years of my life, Rachel read from the letter. Nothing can begin to describe my love for you. Rachel recalled how she became emotional peeking into Hershs room at night, watching the boy as he slept in his blue onesie and held a teddy bear. I gently touched your long, soft, curly hair that we will cut for the first time in a few days. I went back into my room and I cried and cried, she wrote. Rachel said that her husband would go look at Hersh and come back and say, There will be many more of these. She went on to read the translation of a Yiddish lullaby, Your mother will cry a thousand tears before you grow to be a man. My ultimate goal as a parent is to help you become a confident Rachel said of her son, One day when you have children, and I cant even fathom that now, you will know this kind of so much more than love. You are my baby. My ultimate goal as a parent is to help you become a confident, self-sufficient and independent person. But that means you wont need me, she added, highlighting the fact that she has become one of the most vocal advocates calling for the release of her son, as well as the other hostages. And I think that is whats causing my heart to ache so much right now. I want to raise you to become a healthy person of the world. Notably, Rachel was named to Time100: The Worlds Most Influential People. I dont want to let you go, she said. Time moves so quickly. To understand this, one only needs to look at ones children. The days fly by and before I know it, we will be taking you to college, she read. I cant imagine what a basketcase I will be then. I wish this could all go more slowly. I treasure each and every moment I spend with you. I am so blessed that it scares me. What did Dada and I do to get so lucky to have you? she added. I wish you the best of everything this world has to offer love, happiness, kindness, success. But most of all, I wish you a child like yourself, who will bring to you all the light and delight that you have brought to me, she said. I love you to bits, Mama. Rachel concluded the video by saying, Hersh, thank you for making me a mother, adding, I love you. Stay strong. Survive. She then began to sob. Last month, Hamas published a propaganda video of Hersh, where he was seen criticising the Israeli government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as did other hostages in the past. Hersh was seen with a buzzed haircut, his left arm is missing below the elbow. He lost his limb during the attack on the Supernova music festival. Israeli forces pushed deep into the ruins of Gaza's northern edge on Monday to recapture an area where they had claimed to have defeated Hamas months ago, while at the opposite end of the enclave tanks and troops pushed across a highway into Rafah. Israeli forces pushed deep into the ruins of Gaza's northern edge on Monday to recapture an area where they had claimed to have defeated Hamas months ago, while at the opposite end of the enclave tanks and troops pushed across a highway into Rafah.(REUTERS) With some of the most intense fighting for weeks now taking place on both the northern and southern edges of Gaza, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have again taken flight, and aid groups warn that a humanitarian crisis could sharply worsen. Israel described its latest return to the north, where it pulled out most of its troops five months ago, as part of a "mop-up" stage of the war to prevent fighters from returning, and said such operations had always been part of its plan. Palestinians say the need to keep fighting amid the ruins of previous battles is proof Israel's military objectives are unattainable. In sprawling Jabalia, the biggest of Gaza's eight camps built 75 years ago to house Palestinian refugees from what is now Israel, tanks pushed towards the heart of the district. Residents said tank shells were landing at the centre of the camp and air strikes had destroyed clusters of houses. Thick clouds of black smoke from explosions could be seen rising over northern Gaza from the Israeli border on Sunday. ALSO READ| With the shock of Oct. 7 still raw, profound sadness and anger grip Israel on its Memorial Day Israeli troops are seeking to wipe out Hamas, which has said it is committed to Israel's destruction. The militant group burst into Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 and taking more than 250 hostages, by Israeli tallies. The Palestinian death toll in the war has now surpassed 35,000, according to Gaza health officials who fear many more bodies are lost under the rubble. The fighting has laid waste to the coastal enclave and caused a deep humanitarian crisis, with the Gaza health ministry warning in a statement on Monday that the medical system is on the verge of collapse due to a shortage of fuel to power generators and ambulances. Palestinian health officials on Monday said they had so far recovered 20 bodies of Palestinians killed in the overnight air strikes on Jabalia, while dozens were injured. At the opposite end of Gaza in Rafah, against the border fence with Egypt, Israel stepped up aerial and ground bombardments on the eastern areas of the city, killing people in an air strike on a house in the Brazil neighbourhood. Israel ordered residents out of the east of the city last week, and extended that order to central areas in recent days, sending hundreds of thousands of people, most of whom are already displaced, fleeing for new shelters. Residents said Israeli air and ground bombardments were intensifying and tanks had cut off the main north-south Salahuddin Road that divides the eastern part of the city from the central area. "The tanks cut the Saladuddin road east of the city, the forces are now in the southeast side, building up near the built-up area, the situation is dreadful and the sounds of explosions never stopped," said Bassam, 57, from the Shaboura neighbourhood in Rafah. "People continue to leave Rafah, even far away near the western areas as no place looks safe now and also because people do not want to escape at the last minute should tanks make sudden incursions and moving out becomes too late," he told Reuters via a chat app. UNRWA, the main United Nations aid agency in Gaza, estimated that about 360,000 people had fled the southern city since the Israeli military gave its first evacuation order a week ago. BOMB SHIPMENT ON HOLD The assault on Rafah has caused one of the biggest splits in generations between Israel and its main ally the United States, which put some deliveries of weapons on hold for the first time since the war began. Washington has said Israel must not assault Rafah without a plan in place to protect civilians there, which it has yet to see. Jack Lew, the U.S. ambassador to Israel, signalled on Sunday that the Rafah incursion was still on a scale that Washington considers acceptable. "The president was clear in the interview he gave the other evening that what Israel has done so far hasn't crossed over into the area where our disagreements lie," Lew told Israel's Channel 12 TV, without elaborating on what that area entails. "I'm hoping we don't end up with real disagreement." Hamas' armed wing said its fighters were engaged in gun battles with Israeli forces in one of the streets east of Rafah, and in the east of Jabalia. In Israel, the military sounded sirens several times in areas near Gaza, warning of potential Palestinian cross-border rocket and or mortar launches. Hamas and the armed wing of Islamic Jihad said in a joint statement that they fired mortar bombs against Israeli forces massing up inside the Rafah crossing, the sole checkpoint linking Gaza to Egypt, which Israel captured last week. Late on Saturday, the Israeli military said forces operating in Jabalia were preventing Hamas, which rules Gaza, from re-establishing its military capabilities there. "They were bombing everywhere, including near schools that are housing people who lost their houses," Jabalia resident Saed, 45, told Reuters via a chat app on Sunday. "War is restarting, this is how it looks in Jabalia." Maldives foreign minister Moosa Zameer on Monday hailed the Indian government for extending a budget support of $50 million to the island nation, this amid downturn in bilateral relations between the two countries since pro-China Mohammed Muizzu took over as president. I thank EAM @DrSJaishankar and the Government of #India for extending vital budgetary support to Maldives with the rollover of USD 50 million Treasury Bill. This is a true gesture of goodwill which signifies the longstanding friendship between #Maldives and #India, Zameer, who visited India from May 8 to 10 on his very first bilateral official visit, posted on social platform X. The Maldives government's foreign office said that India's budgetary support was in the form of a rollover of $50 million Treasury Bill, for an additional year, through the State Bank of India, Male, from 13 May 2024. The Maldives government said it is highly appreciative of the generous support that Government of India has been providing to the Maldives in the form of budgetary support. Large number of infrastructural developmental projects and High Impact Community Developmental projects are underway with the assistance from the Government of India, which consists of a notable part as grant assistance. The Government of Maldives looks forward in continuing this collaborative partnership for the mutual benefit and prosperity of their people, the Muizzu government statement added. ALSO READ: Amid diplomatic row, India fully withdraws soldiers from Maldives Last week, the Maldives foreign minister had said that 76 Indian military personnel were replaced by civilian employees of the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited which manufactured the two helicopters gifted by India, thus also ending the suspense over the exact number of those repatriated at the insistence of Male. ALSO READ: 'Our troops not capable of operating aircraft from India': Maldives Minister External affairs minister S Jaishankar with his Maldivian counterpart Moosa Zameer.((X/Moosa Zameer) ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. New Mexico is standing in for California in a new film as Jamie Lee Curtis production company and others tell the story of a bus driver and a school teacher who rescued students during the deadliest and most destructive wildfire in Californias history. New Mexico to stand in for California as McConaughey stars in new movie about a 2018 deadly wildfire The 2018 blaze killed 85 people and nearly erased the community of Paradise in the Sierra Nevada foothills. Some residents have returned to help make something new, while others are still haunted by their memories. Curtis was among those marking the five-year anniversary in November when she posted on social media about the people of Paradise having suffered an unimaginable inferno and talked about the bravery of residents and the heroes who suited up and responded. She said at the time she was proud to be producing a film based on the stories in Lizzie Johnson's novel: Paradise: One Towns Struggle to Survive an American Wildfire. The Lost Bus was a project that started in 2022. Now, filming is underway in and around Santa Fe and Espanola and in Ruidoso, a mountainous area of southern New Mexico that also has seen its share of wildfires including a deadly fire in 2022 that was sparked by a downed power line. From California to New Mexico and other parts of the West, wildfires have become more volatile amid drier and hotter conditions that have been exacerbated by the effects of climate change. So far this year, more than 2,812 square miles have burned more than double the 10-year average, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. The film will star Matthew McConaughey and America Ferrera under the direction of Paul Greengrass. Emmy Award winner Brad Ingelsby, Greg Goodman and Jason Blum's production company Blumhouse will join Curtis' Comet Pictures in producing the film. The Lost Bus will focus on bus driver Kevin McKay and teacher Mary Ludwig, who helped navigate a bus full of children through the deadly wildfire. In an interview in 2018, Marc Kessler, a science teacher at a Paradise Unified School District middle school, told The Associated Press he arrived at work early that Thursday morning and saw smoke plumes that soon grew uncomfortably near. Teachers, aides and bus drivers loaded more than 100 students into cars and school buses as the fast-moving wildfire approached, Kessler said. They drove hours through smoke and flames to safely reunite the children with their families. In McKay's case, he responded to an emergency call and picked up 22 students from Ponderosa Elementary School as the flames approached. Ludwig and fellow teacher Abbie Davis helped to comfort the children. Curtis in a 2022 interview with Deadline said as a lifelong California resident, she watched with profound sadness as the ferocious fire consumed Paradise. She had said she wanted to be able to turn the stories in Johnson's novel into a film that would explore the human elements, tragedies and bravery that stemmed from the wildfire. The production will employ 480 New Mexico crew members and 2,100 extras, according to the New Mexico Film Office. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. Royal commentator Kinsey Schofield has claimed that Prince Harry needs to mature to be able to reconcile with King Charles. Harry visited the UK this week to mark the tenth anniversary of the Invictus Games. However, he and the King did not meet. Royal expert Angela Levin said that Buckingham Palace claimed they "did not receive a request" from Harry to have a private audience with Charles. A royal expert has said Prince Harry must mature in order to reconcile with King Charles (AP/PTI, James Manning/Pool via REUTERS) "I do think that the King should engage in peace talks once Prince Harry does some maturing and he is completely self-serving, a perpetual victim, which we saw in that statement while he was in the UK, Schofield told GB News. "He has no respect for his elders, no respect for the institution, and a questionable relationship with the truth." Schofield condemned Harrys behaviour towards the royal family after stepping down. He claimed the Duke of Sussex has "remained defiant and detrimental" throughout the "illness and death of Prince Philip, the death of Queen Elizabeth", and the "devastating cancer revelations" from Charles and Kate Middleton. Harry's untrustworthy and his delusions of grandeur are reckless Schofield went on to say that the increasing conflict between the royal family and the Duke is "devastating to watch unfold". Host Mark Dolan said that it is "time for the country and the King to forgive Prince Harry. Hitting back, Schofield said, "Harry's untrustworthy and his delusions of grandeur are reckless, and he remains a liability to the future of the monarchy. He still has some growing up to do." Schofield addressed Harrys alleged claim that his father was "too busy" to see him during his UK visit, saying that we are "giving him a lot of credit by taking his word for why they didn't have a meeting". "The King hasn't commented on why they didn't meet. We are all reacting to a press release sent out by Prince Harry's team, and says he wanted to calm speculation. Well, where was that desire to calm speculation when Omid Scobie accused your father of racism at the end of last year? Schofield said. "I just think that the whole release was entirely self-serving to cater to the victimhood narrative that he's done such a good job of building in the States, Schofield added. A sense of disquiet is sweeping over the old continent. Innovative, low-cost Chinese producers are taking on Europes venerable industries and unsettling its policymakers. Europe has played only a bit part in the tech revolution: the market value of Americas magnificent seven tech giants is about the same as that of the combined stock market capitalisation of the eus 27 members. In an interview with us last week, President Emmanuel Macron offered his own diagnosis. There can be no great power without economic prosperity and technological sovereignty, but Europe does not produce enough wealth per capita. It must become an attractive place to invest and innovate. This requires vast amounts of capitaland a well-oiled financial system that channels savings to promising investment opportunities across the continent. The trouble is that European finance remains inefficient and bound by national borders. Pressing ahead with banking and capital-market reforms is thus more important than ever. A decade ago European banking was on its knees. The sovereign debt crisis in the South exposed an infernal doom loop. Because banks held a lot of sovereign debt and governments had to bail out banks in difficulty, trouble at one infected the other. Lenders were unprofitable, unloved by investors and saddled with non-performing loans. Today those bad loans have been shed and profits have recovered. The share price of UniCredit, one of Italys largest lenders, has outperformed that of Meta this year. Big banks are now subject to European supervision and regulation, rather than a patchwork of national measures. Yet banking on the continent remains cumbersome and parochial. Europes banking union, first proposed in 2012, remains incomplete, mainly because a common deposit insurance scheme has yet to be set up. One result is that the doom loop retains its power. Another is that too little cross-border activity and consolidation takes place. Regulators fear that if a bank collapses, they will be on the hook for loans made to dodgy borrowers beyond their borders. Without a common deposit insurance scheme, governments require banks to use ring-fencing regimes to hoard liquidity that could have been more profitably deployed elsewhere. The time to press on with such a scheme is surely now, when non-performing loans are low everywhere and even southern banks are in good health. Banks are not the only source of finance. More must also be done to create a European capital market, which can help spread risks. National markets are underdeveloped: according to the IMF, only 30% of companies financing comprises tradable securities in the euro area, compared with two-thirds in America. As a consequence, Europeans vast savings are locked up in bank deposits, small firms struggle to obtain finance and entrepreneurs bear too much risk. By one estimate, a shock of one percentage point to national GDP growth results in a 0.8-point fall in consumption in the EU, but only a 0.18-point fall in America, where the pain is shared by investors, creditors and the government. No wonder Americans are more go-getting. Although a proposal for a European capital markets union was put forward in 2015, not much has been achieved. That is because regulations touching things like insolvencies, tax and disclosure have to be harmonised for an investor to see no difference between a security in Greece and one in Germany. Compared with whacking tariffs on Chinese cars, this is neither eye-catching nor easy. It is the spinach of public policy. Eat your greens Tariffs cheat European consumers by raising the cost of otherwise good and cheap products. By comparison, financial reforms channel Europes large pot of savings into profitable investments. They should encourage innovation and make the economy more resilient, by spreading risk more widely. Europe rightly worries that it is falling behind as America and China charge ahead in the race for technological supremacy. But, as with the two superpowers, one of its main strengths is size. To keep up, Europe should make the most of it. 2023, The Economist Newspaper Limited. All rights reserved. From The Economist, published under licence. The original content can be found on www.economist.com BELGRADE, Serbia Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba made a surprise visit to Russia-friendly Serbia on Monday, together with Ukraines first lady, Olena Zelenska, in a sign of warming relations between the two states. Ukraine's first lady and foreign minister visit Russia-friendly Serbia On his first visit to Serbia since the start of the Russian aggression on Ukraine in 2022, Kuleba met new Serbian Prime Minister Milos Vucevic, whose government includes several pro-Russian ministers, including two who have been under U.S. sanctions. Later Monday, he is to meet Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic. Although Serbia has condemned the Russian aggression on Ukraine, it has refused to join international sanctions against Moscow and has instead maintained warm and friendly relations with its traditional Slavic ally. Serbia has proclaimed neutrality regarding the war in Ukraine, and its authorities repeat that Serbia does not supply weapons to any parties. However, there are reports that Serbia has delivered weapons to Ukraine through intermediary countries. The visit by Kuleba and Zelenska, who toured the Serbian capital with Serbian first lady Tamara Vucic on Sunday, was met with criticism in Moscow. Comments by readers in the Russian state-run media such as shameful were published by RIA Novosti. In what appears to be damage control, soon after his talks with Kuleba on Monday, Vucevic was to meet the Russian ambassador to Belgrade and the two were to tour a big storage facility for Russian gas that is being imported to Serbia. Pro-Russian President Vucic has informally met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy three times on the sidelines of international conferences. Serbia has supplied Ukraine with humanitarian and financial aid. Vucic has for years claimed to follow a neutral policy, balancing ties among Moscow, Beijing, Brussels and Washington. Although he has repeatedly said that Serbia is firm on its proclaimed goal of seeking European Union membership, under his authoritarian rule the Balkan country appears to be shifting closer to Russia and especially China. During a high-stakes visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping to Belgrade last week, China and Serbia signed an agreement to build ironclad relations and a shared joint future. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. Three men charged in the 2018 prison killing of notorious Boston gangster James Whitey Bulger have reached plea deals with prosecutors, according to court papers filed Monday. 3 men charged in Whitey Bulger's 2018 prison killing have plea deals, prosecutors say The plea deals were disclosed nearly six years after the 89-year-old gangster, who spent almost two decades on the lam, was beaten to death in his cell at a troubled West Virginia prison. Fotios Freddy Geas and Paul J. DeCologero were accused of repeatedly striking Bulger in the head while Sean McKinnon served as a lookout. An inmate witness told authorities that DeCologero said he and Geas used a belt with a lock attached to it to beat Bulger to death. Prosecutors asked the court to schedule hearings for the men to change their not-guilty pleas and to be sentenced, though they didn't provide further details about the plea agreements, which have not been filed in court. Belinda Haynie, an attorney for Geas, declined to comment about the change of plea filing. Attorneys for the other two defendants didnt immediately respond to requests for comment. Prosecutors said last year that they would not seek the death sentence for Geas and DeCologero, who were charged with murder. All three men were charged with conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, which carries up to a life sentence. McKinnon was also charged with making false statements to a federal agent. Bulger, who ran the largely Irish mob in Boston in the 1970s and 80s, served as an FBI informant who ratted on the main rival to his gang. He became one of the nations most-wanted fugitives after fleeing Boston in 1994 thanks to a tip from his FBI handler that he was about to be indicted. He was captured at the age of 81 after more than 16 years on the run. In 2013, he was convicted in a string of 11 killings and dozens of other gangland crimes, many of them committed while he was said to be an FBI informant. Bulger was killed just hours after he was transferred from a Florida lockup to USP Hazelton in West Virginia and placed in the general population. Bulgers transfer to Hazelton, where workers had already been sounding the alarm about violence and understaffing, and his placement in the general population instead of more protective housing were widely criticized by experts after his killing. A Justice Department inspector general investigation found that his killing was the result of multiple layers of management failures, widespread incompetence and flawed policies at the Bureau of Prisons. The inspector general found no evidence of malicious intent by any bureau employees, but said a series of bureaucratic blunders left Bulger at the mercy of rival gangsters behind bars Bulger never admitted to working for the FBI. Court papers made public in a lawsuit brought by his family showed that he was interviewed by staff after arriving at Hazelton about whether there were reasons he should be kept out of the general population. An intake screening form signed by Bulger said he answered no to the question have you assisted law enforcement agents in any way? This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. The latest clash between major US airlines and the Biden administration has resulted in the former suing the US Transportation Department over a new fee disclosure rule. On Monday, May 13, Reuters reported that Airlines for America and American Airlines filed a suit against the USDOT in the US Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday. US President Joe Biden exits the White House before boarding Marine One in Washington, DC, US, on Thursday, May 9, 2024. Climate activists who successfully pushed President Joe Biden to halt new US liquefied natural gas exports are setting their sights on proposed crude oil shipping facilities, after the administration approved a massive petroleum terminal last month. Photographer: Bonnie Cash/UPI/Bloomberg(Bloomberg) Why are major US Airlines suing Biden Administration? This raging development follows the Transportation Department's announcement of rules last month, stating that airlines and agents must divulge all service fee charges with the airfare. USDOT pushed for the requirement so customers wouldn't be startled by unexpected last-minute fees. Last month, the department also declared the new result would help customers pay less for air travel. Moreover, this rule targeted major airlines charging extra fees for checking customers' bags if they don't pay beforehand. Also read | Trump overtakes Biden in 5 swing states; poll shows why US desires major change Why are US Airlines charging extra for baggage checks? In February 2024, CNBC reported that United Airlines, American Airlines and JetBlue Airways raised baggage check prices for passengers who didn't pay to check a bag online in advance. Carriers reportedly put this in motion to free up employees at check-in areas, who would then be able to facilitate escorting travellers to the gates faster. Answering why the airlines were encouraging travellers to pay in advance for baggage check, an American Airlines spokesperson told CNBC: It allows our team members to spend more time with customers who require additional assistance with their travel journey. US Airlines' suit - latest developments The airline group released a statement on Monday, claiming that the USDOT's rule attempts to regulate private business operations in a thriving marketplace (are) beyond its authority. Also read | Duke University: Jerry Seinfeld speech prompts student walkouts at commencement ceremony As revealed by the media outlet, the suit's copy slammed the department's rule as arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion and otherwise contrary to law. In response to the airlines' earlier decision, USDOT said these baggage check charges "must be individually disclosed the first time that fare and schedule information is provided on the airline's online platform, and cannot be displayed through a hyperlink." The Transportation Department also asserted that their new rule will curb, bait-and-switch tactics some airlines use to disguise the true cost of discounted flights. Unlike the aforementioned groups, Southwest Airlines supported USDOT's proposal and did not join the lawsuit. In response to airlines' surprise fees, President Joe Biden remarked last month, Too often, airlines drag their feet on refunds or rip folks off with junk fees. Reuters also noted that US airlines secured a hefty bag of approximately $6.8 billion, guised as baggage fees in 2022. On the other hand, the mere first nine months of the following year brought them $5.5 billion. Columbia University has received major flak over antisemitism amid the recent pro-Palestinian protests. What started as on-campus demonstrations nearly three weeks ago soon turned into nationwide protests. More recently, a video of a student ripping the diploma handed at the graduation ceremony on the renowned college's New York City campus has been making rounds on the internet, drawing staunch criticism from netizens. A Columbia University student tore their diploma during graduation ceremony (X, formerly Twitter) Columbia University student rips diploma during graduation ceremony In the viral video, a student can be seen tearing their diploma upon receiving it from the Vice Chancellor, who appeared to be taken aback but did not take any action. According to the clip shared on X, formerly Twitter and TikTok, the graduation ceremony took place at the university's School of Social Work, and the student received their diploma for Master's of Social Work in Integrated Practice and Programming. Furious debate erupts online after Columbia University student's stunt As the video made rounds on various social media platforms, furious debate erupted online, with netizens calling it a publicity stunt. One X, formerly Twitter user wrote, That was certainly an expensive hissy fit! Now, would YOU hire such a person? Because I certainly wouldnt, not for a serious business. I pity anyone who gets her for their barista! Im sure shell do well at some NGO. Thats about the only place she might fit. One more wrote, No worries. It doesn't negate the degree. Purely performative. Another furious user commented, What's there to be proud of in this action? It's really thoughtless Even the university diploma presenter doesn't seem to really care about it. Meanwhile, several others linked the student's actions with politics as one user wrote, These are the people Joe Biden's administration wants the country to forgive their loans. Another said, And Biden wants us to repay her loans. Awesome. The weekend's historic geomagnetic storm gave way to the mesmerising, twinkling display of the Northern Lights in the US. Southern states as far down as Florida and Texas witnessed the dazzling marvel, sparking the sky with jaw-dropping shades of pink, purple, green and more. However, it's time to bid farewell to the wondrous sight as the Aurora Borealis' originating source has finally started to fade out gradually. The northern lights, or aurora borealis, are visible over Lake Washington, in Renton, Wash., on Friday evening, May 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)(AP) The National Oceania and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) describes a geomagnetic storm as a major disturbance of Earth's magnetosphere that occurs when there is a very efficient exchange of energy from the solar wind into the space environment surrounding Earth. Fox Weather reported that this Friday-Saturday event transpired after solar flares emanated from a colossal sunspot with the width of 17 Earths. Ultimately, the resulting historic geomagnetic storm activity peaked at Level 5 extreme conditions. Also read | Biden administration sued by major US airlines, here's what happened These levels sporadically kept going up and down over the weekend, but they eventually shot back up to Level 5, which spurred NOAA to issue a Geomagnetic Storm Warning. This weekend's storm was the first one to blast Earth with its extreme Level 5 conditions since October 2023. Northern Lights displays to fade out as geomagnetic storm starts to wane This warning expired on Monday morning once the magnetic storm started to wane. Despite the beautiful display in the US skies, their origins impacted the power grid. NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) reported notices of power grid issues, further dampening high-frequency communications and GPS. It also resulted in significant power outage problems in Sweden. Earlier this weekend, farm equipment supplier LandMark Implement wrote on X/Twitter: Thread: Please be advised that there is significant solar flare and space weather activity currently affecting GPS and RTK networks. This severe geomagnetic storm is the worst since 2005 and is forecasted to continue throughout the weekend. Also read | Hamas blasts Joe Biden for saying ceasefire possible if hostages are released: We consider it a setback SpaceX founder Elon Musk tweeted later that day, addressing how the geomagnetic storm had impacted Starlink satellites. Major geomagnetic solar storm happening right now. Biggest in a long time. Starlink satellites are under a lot of pressure, but holding up so far, he said on the social media platform. Hamas has condemned Joe Bidens latest remarks on the hostages being held in Gaza. During a speech in Seattle, Biden claimed that a ceasefire in Gaza would be possible only if Hamas terrorists release the hostages. Hamas blasts Joe Biden for saying a ceasefire possible is hostages are released (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)(AP) What did Hamas say? We in the Islamic Resistance Movement have watched with dismay the statements made by US President Joe Biden in which he stated that a ceasefire in Gaza is contingent upon Hamas releasing the captives in the Strip, Hamas said in a statement, according to Press TV. "We condemn this position by the US president, [and] we consider it a setback to the outcomes of the latest round of negotiations, which led to the movement's agreement to the proposal put forward by mediators, Egypt and Qatar," Hamas added. Hamas said it has shown the necessary flexibility in all stages of the negotiations that were held to reach an agreement on a ceasefire. However, the terrorist group added, the terrorist [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu and his cabinet quickly reversed this course [of ceasefire talks] by launching their aggression on our people in Rafah, Jabalia, and Gaza. Hamas went on to say that Israels decision to escalate its onslaught on Gaza shows now Benjamin Netanyahu intends to to continue the genocidal war on the Gaza Strip, and [also proves] his disregard for the lives of [Israeli] captives being held. Hamas further said that Bidens position again highlights the US support for the criminal policy led by the Nazi Zionists. It said that the US continues to provide political cover and military support for Israels attacks on Gazas Palestinians. It accused the US of trying to buy more time for the terrorist occupation army to complete its operations of destruction, killing, and genocide in the Strip. A senior Hamas official said last week that the Israeli regime is delaying negotiations on a truce in Tel Avivs war on the Gaza strip in order to be able to carry out a full-scale invasion of Rafah. Israel is not serious about reaching an agreement, Izzat al-Rishq, a member of the Hamas Political Bureau said. Izzat added that the regime uses the negotiations as a cover to invade Rafah and occupy its crossing with Egypt. Amid a rare joint engagement with Prince William on Monday, King Charles opened up on his cancer treatment. The 75-year-old monarch visited the Army Flying Museum in Hampshire, where we spoke with British Army veteran Aaron Mapplebeck, who is a cancer survivor, per Independent. King Charles reveals the side effect of his cancer treatment(via REUTERS) King Charles reveals he lost his sense of taste amid cancer treatment During their brief conversation, Mapplebeck revealed that he lost his sense of taste as he underwent cancer treatment last year. To this, King Charles said that the same had happened to him, per the outlet. As the palace has not provided any confirmation on the unusual side effect, it is unclear whether the King is still missing his sense of taste. The official Instagram page for the royal family shared the King's message to the veterans in a heartfelt post along with a carousel of photos. Let me just say what a great joy it is to be with you even briefly on this occasion but also it is tinged with great sadness after 32 years of knowing you all, admiring your many activities and achievements through the time that Ive been lucky enough to be Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps," the caption read. Later in the day, King Charles was joined by Prince William at the Army Aviation Centre. He officially named his eldest son the Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps, which previously belonged to Prince Harry. The King passed on the baton to the Prince of Wales after holding the title himself for 31 years. However, according to reports, the title was originally meant for the Duke of Sussex, should he remain a working member of the royal family. However, he quit his royal duties in 2020 and moved to the United States. Buckingham Palace announced King Charles' return to his royal duties on April 26 via an Instagram post that said, "His Majesty The King will shortly return to public-facing duties after a period of treatment and recuperation following his recent cancer diagnosis. The British monarch made his return on April 30 with his first royal engagement at the University College Hospital Macmillan Cancer Centre in London, where he was joined by Queen Camilla. Language proficiency contest encourages Cambodians to learn Chinese Xinhua) 09:59, May 13, 2024 PHNOM PENH, May 11 (Xinhua) -- The Confucius Institute of the Royal Academy of Cambodia on Saturday organized the 23rd "Chinese Bridge" Chinese proficiency competition for Cambodian university students. A total of 10 Cambodian finalists, shortlisted out of dozens of candidates from various universities and institutes in the Southeast Asian country, were contested in the final round held at the Royal Academy of Cambodia in Phnom Penh. Among the tests set for the participants were a quiz, delivering keynote speeches and a talent show with each participant presenting performances related to Chinese culture including songs, music, dancing, drawing and martial arts, among others. As a result, the top winner was awarded to Kol Sovathanak, a 22-year-old student from the Confucius Institute of the Cambodia-China University of Technology and Science. Speaking to Xinhua after the contest, Sovathanak said this annual event has become an important platform for young students across the world to learn Chinese language and culture. "The contest helps improve our knowledge in Chinese language, Chinese culture and civilization, and it is also a platform for Cambodia-China cultural exchanges," he said. He added that the program is really good for Cambodian students because it provides them new experience, making them overcome fear and anxiety and feel self-confidence. "I'm really excited and proud to win the first place in the contest because although I'm a Cambodian, I can do well in the Chinese proficiency contest," he said. Sovathanak, who has studied Chinese for more than three years, said Chinese language has gone popular in Cambodia thanks to close ties between the two countries in politics, economics, trade, investment, tourism, culture and education. "Learning Chinese is not only easy to find a job, but also helps us to gain insights into Chinese culture, civilization and daily life," he said. "I recommend that Cambodian students, if they have time, should learn Chinese because there will be more Chinese people coming to Cambodia." Looking into the future, Sovathanak said he wants to pursue his master's degree in China. Koem Keamheang, a student at the Confucius Institute of Cambodia-China University of Technology and Science, who won the second place in the competition, said the contest is very useful for Chinese-learning students because it allows them to better understand about Chinese arts and literature. "Currently, more and more people have learned Chinese," she told Xinhua. "I think Cambodian students can learn Chinese if they have time because it will help them get good jobs in the future." Keamheang said she wants to become a teacher of Chinese in the future, so she can share her knowledge about Chinese literature, culture and civilization with others. The 20-year-old student is also eager to pursue her study in China, saying that she has fallen in love with China since she was a child. Joseph Matthews, a senior professor at the BELTEI International University in Phnom Penh, said the "Chinese Bridge" Chinese proficiency competition has not only helped students improve their Chinese proficiency, but also served as a bridge of friendship among Chinese-learning college students. He said more and more Cambodian students have sought university degrees in Chinese literature as the Cambodia-China relations have been expanding rapidly in all areas. "China has been emerging as a global economic power and is a very important player in the region, so learning Chinese will help further strengthen economic and trade ties between the two countries," he told Xinhua. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing) Meghan Markle and Prince Harrys recent trip to Nigeria has been nothing short of a triumphant return to the spotlight after keeping a low profile for some time. The Duchess of Sussex, in a colourful display of cultural connection, arrived fashionably late (by an hour!) to a women's leadership summit. However, she quickly made up for it by delivering an impactful yet emotional speech and lovingly declaring Nigeria "my country" after learning of her Nigerian heritage through a genealogy test. Meghan Markle and Prince Harry arrive at a charity polo club in Lagos on May 12, 2024. PHOTO: KOLA SULAIMON/AFP VIA GETTY(AFP via Getty) Meghan Markle calls Nigeria my country Meghan addressed the crowd at the women's event held at the World Trade Organisation in the capital, Abuja, expressing her gratitude and honour for the warm reception she and her husband received from the locals in Nigeria. She even chuckled while mentioning a memo she received advising her to wear more colours to better connect with the people on cultural grounds. Also read: Baby Reindeer: Netflix receives official warning from UK Government over safeguarding concern "I want to start by saying thank you very much for just how gracious you've all been in welcoming my husband and I to this country my country. The former Suits star said. In 2022, The Duchess revealed that she underwent a genealogy test and was surprised to discover that she is 43 percent Nigerian. Following the disclosure of their plans to visit Nigeria, multiple reports surfaced indicating Meghan's desire to further explore her ancestral heritage. She previously discussed the difficulties of being an African-American woman, saying that it often means not knowing much about your family history or where youre originally from. Also read: Prince Harry chose hotel stay over royal residence offered by King Charles on UK visit In one of her Archetypes podcasts, the mother of two said, I'm going to start to dig deeper into all this because anybody that I've told, especially Nigerian women, are like 'What!' Meghan Keeps her promise After her appearance in the capital, the estranged royals travelled to Lagos, and Meghan kept her promise to include more colours in her dressing palette. Earlier in Abuja, she expressed, "I am just flattered and honoured and inspired. It has been a whirlwind 24 hours since we arrived. And I very quickly got the memo that I need to wear more color, so I can fit in with all of you and your incredible fashion." After landing in Lagos, the couple headed straight to the residence of Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the Governor of Lagos State, where they engaged in a private meeting. Meghan flaunted a bright yellow flowy dress, which she later accessorised with an additional shawl. The striped shawl that matched her outfit was reportedly a gift from the Governors wife to the Duchess. The Governor praised Prince Harry, mentioning that the Duke embarked on a very informative and interesting trip to the country. He said, "He has seen a lot and is still soaking in a whole lot. One of the things we are hoping he will take away is seeing the diversity and the extent of how big our country is, and how we continue to ensure that we live together in peace and harmony." Michael Cohen, the star witness in the hush money trial against Donald Trump, took the stand Monday. The 57-year-old lawyer, who was the president's personal fixer and ex-attorney, remains the prosecution's most important witness. Giving his testimony on Day 16 of the civil fraud case, Cohen spoke directly to the prosecutor instead of the jurors. Michael Cohen leaves his apartment building on his way to Manhattan criminal court, Monday, May 13, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)(AP) Donald Trump's former fixer Michael Cohen takes the stand in hush money trial Cohen began his testimony by providing his family background, admitting that he didn't really want to be a lawyer. My grandmother wanted me to be a lawyer. My family is comprised of doctors and lawyers, he added. As he went on to identify Trump in the courtroom, the former president didn't make any eye contact, per CNN. Moving on with his testimony, Cohen recalled working for Trump and how he was honoured by the president's job offer. He offered me the position of EVP Trump Org. and special counsel to Donald J. Trump, whereby I would only answer to him and I would work on issues that were of concern to him, Cohen said. Cohen revealed that during his employment, he reported directly to Mr. Trump and would renegotiate bills on his behalf. He didnt believe that the invoice was fair, reasonable, justified. So hed give me the task of renegotiating a specific bill, he said. Cohen added that he felt like he was on top of the world when appreciated by Trump. Revealing how he'd solve problems for him, Cohen said, With press as an example, they said something that angered him, I would reach out to the press and I would express to them their need to either redact or take the article down or we would file an action against them. Cohen further went on to say that Trump had an open door policy, meaning he never needed an appointment to see him. He also admitted that it was required for him to keep the president updated on his work. If you didn't immediately provide him with the information and he learned it in another manner, that wouldn't go over well for you, Cohen said of micromanager Trump. The world of pageantry was rocked by a double resignation this week! In a surprising turn of events, both the reigning Miss USA and Miss Teen USA have tendered their resignations amid the brewing scandal within the Miss USA Organization. UmaSofia Srivastava was crowned as Miss Teen USA in 2023. (Instagram/@umasofias) The abrupt departures have raised eyebrows and questions within the pageant community and beyond. Miss USA Noelia Voigt and Miss Teen USA UmaSofia Srivastava in a daring move have dropped their crowns. What exactly is going on behind the glittering facade of the competition? Miss USA & Miss Teen USA resign amid Miss USA scandal For the first time in Miss USA's 72-year history (established in 1952), no reigning titleholder has ever relinquished their crown. Now, both Miss USA, Noelia Voigt, and Miss Teen USA, UmaSofia Srivastava, have shockingly resigned mid-reign. Citing mental health concerns as a priority, Voigt stepped down three months before her reign was due to end. She announced her decision to relinquish the crown and sash of Miss USA. Also read: Meghan Markle claims Nigeria as 'My Country' after exploring roots; Keeps her promise after arriving late In September 2024, Voight won the title of Miss USA at the age of 24 and also became the first Miss USA titleholder in 72 years to resign voluntarily. Voight commended Miss Teen USA Sofia, for taking a stand for what's right. "Deep down I know that this is just the beginning of a new chapter for me, and my hope is that I continue to inspire others to remain steadfast, prioritize your mental health, advocate for yourself and others by using your voice, and never be afraid of what the future holds, even if it feels uncertain," she wrote praising her darling. Also read: Who is UmaSofia Srivastava? 10 points about Indian-origin Miss Teen USA who resigned from her post As the first Mexican-Indian American to represent New Jersey at the national level, Srivastava was crowned Miss Teen USA when she was 17 years old. The Miss USA scandal explained, why are the girls stepping down The sudden resignations by two reigning titleholders have once again stirred up the controversy surrounding the pageant. The Miss USA organization is receiving backlash and flak for mismanagement, a toxic work culture, and alleged mistreatment of mental health concerns. The mismanagement allegedly started back in 2023 when the organisation owner JKN Group filed for bankruptcy leading to its presidents termination. Soon after the person who replaced her also resigned in February raising several eyebrows. Laylah Rose, the current CEO and Miss USA President was announced as the replacement on the same date. In 2015, NBCUniversal severed ties with the pageants after Donald Trump, then owner of Miss Universe, made controversial comments accusing Mexico of sending criminals and rapists into the U.S. Citing, My personal values no longer fully align with the direction of the organization. UmaSofia Srivastava took to her social media to announce to her resignation. Dani Walker explains the Miss USA struggles Ex-Miss Montana and YouTube commentator Dani Walker brought attention to the struggles and unethical practices within the industry in the face of competition from social media influencers, reality shows, and Hollywood celebrities. Claudia Michelle on financial troubles It appears that the Miss USA chaos has something to do with money. Former social media manager Claudia Michelle said that she was not paid for two months, and was told after she was hired that the organization did not have money to pay. I wasnt really an employee. There was no contract signed, there was no onboarding, there was no salary and benefits, the ex-employee said. Its a testament to how much I love this brand, I was willing to take this on pro bono. King Charles officially handed over Prince Harry's old regiment to the Prince of Wales on Monday. In another brutal snub to the Duke of Sussex, the 75-year-old monarch named Prince William colonel-in-chief of the Army Air Corps. The King passed on the baton to his eldest son in a rare joint engagement at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, south England. Britain's King Charles III officially hands over the role of Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps to Prince William, The Prince of Wales in front of an Apache helicopter at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, England, Monday, May 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, Pool)(AP) Prince William named colonel-in-chief of Army Air Corps The prestigious honour means that Prince William will now head the regiment, which previously belonged to his brother, who served as an Apache helicopter pilot in Afghanistan. At the historic ceremony, the royal father-son duo was received by a Guard of Honor and Lieutenant General Sir Nicholas Borton, Colonel Commandant of the Army Air Corps, who escorted them to the Army Flying Museum, per New York Post. Royal fans were also gathered around the military base, cheering for King Charles, who unveiled a plaque commemorating the arrival of the first Apache AH Mk.1 to be installed in a United Kingdom museum. The historic ceremony took place the same day the Duke and Duchess of Sussex concluded their three-day tour of Nigeria. Following the ceremony, King Charles and Prince William posed in front of the helicopter. The latter also demonstrated his piloting skills as he took off in the Apache. Prince Harry in tears as King Charles hands prestigious title to Prince William According to the outlet, Prince Harry would have been given the title should he remain a working member of the royal family. However, the younger prince took a step back from his duties in 2020 and moved to the United States, where he now permanently resides with his wife, Meghan Markle, in their multi-million-dollar Montecito mansion. King Charles, who himself held the title for 31 years, announced his decision to pass on the baton to Prince William in August last year. His decision reportedly left Prince Harry in tears, per the outlet. King Charles announcement is a real kick in the teeth for the son who always felt marginalized and underrated, royal expert Tom Quinn told the Mirror, adding, He is said to have been in tears when he heard. Quinn further stated, What makes it much worse is that the role is being given to the very man who Harry sees as the cause of so many of his problems his brother. NEW YORK The fourth week of witness testimony in Donald Trump's hush money trial could be a doozy: Michael Cohen is expected to finally take the stand on Monday. The Latest | Cohen expected to take the stand as testimony in Trump hush money case enters 4th week The long-anticipated testimony from Trumps former lawyer and personal fixer would follow a breathtaking buildup by prosecutors of a case that ultimately hinges on record-keeping. Trump is accused of falsifying internal business records to cover up hush money payments that Cohen made as part of efforts to buy and bury stories that might hurt the former president's 2016 campaign. Text messages, audio recordings, notes and more have all been introduced or shown to jurors in recent weeks to illustrate what prosecutors say was a scheme to illegally influence the election that year. And sometimes dramatic testimony from witnesses that included former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker, ex-Trump staffers and porn actor Stormy Daniels added to the intrigue. The prosecution could wrap its case this week after telling the judge on Friday that they expected to call just two more witnesses. The trial is in its 16th day. In addition to Daniels' recounting of a 2006 sexual encounter she said she had with Trump which he denies last week saw two failed bids by the defense to have a mistrial declared, attempts to have the gag order squashed or at least altered and more. Trump has pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts. The case is the first-ever criminal trial of a former U.S. president and the first of four prosecutions of Trump to reach a jury. Currently: Michael Cohen: A challenging star witness in Trumps hush money trial Trump trial turns to sex, bank accounts and power: Highlights from the third week of testimony Key players: Whos who at Trumps hush money criminal trial The hush money case is just one of Trumps legal cases. See the others here Here's the latest: TRUMP, FLANKED BY SUPPORTERS, SPEAKS BEFORE TRIAL BEGINS As Donald Trump entered the criminal courtroom in Lower Manhattan on a pivotal day of his hush-money trial, he stopped to talk to reporters to proclaim his innocence. He also called the case a political witch hunt. His comments come moments before the expected beginning of testimony of a pivotal witness: his former lawyer and personal fixer Michael Cohen, now one of his sharpest critics. Some of Trumps political allies lined up behind him as he spoke, including Republican Ohio Sen. JD Vance. Vance, who has become a close ally of the former president, is considered one of the top contenders on Trump's shortlist of vice presidential candidates. Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville and Rep. Nicole Malliotakis of New York were also among the crowd. It was by far the biggest showing of support from Trumps Republican allies after one-off appearances in recent days by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and others. Trump has started inviting supporters to join him in court as he is subject to a gag order that prohibits him from criticizing the witnesses and others. TRUMP ARRIVES AT THE COURTHOUSE Donald Trump's motorcade has arrived at the criminal courthouse in Lower Manhattan for the start of the 16th day of the former president's hush money trial. The trial involves allegations that he falsified his companys records to hide the true nature of payments to Michael Cohen, who helped bury negative stories about him during the 2016 presidential campaign. Hes pleaded not guilty. Cohen, who was once Donald Trumps personal lawyer and fixer, is expected to take the stand as the prosecutions star witness. Prosecutors have spent weeks building up a case that largely hinges on record-keeping. They've presented witnesses, text messages, notes and audio recordings to illustrate what prosecutors have said was a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 presidential election by buying and burying negative stories that might hurt Trump's campaign. TRUMP AND HIS GAG ORDER ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL While Donald Trump seized on his legal woes Saturday in front of a Jersey Shore campaign rally crowd, a judges gag order and the threat of jail limit Trumps ability to comment publicly on witnesses, jurors and some others connected to the New York trial, which is expected to consume much of the month. The judge in the case already has fined Trump $9,000 for violating the order and warned that jail could follow if he doesnt comply. The order doesnt include references to Judge Juan M. Merchan, whom Trump called highly conflicted or District Attorney Alvin Bragg, both of whom Trump said are doing the bidding for crooked Joe Biden. Trumps responsibilities as a defendant have limited his ability to win over voters on the campaign trail. COHEN LEAVES HIS NEW YORK HOME Michael Cohen has left his New York home on Monday morning. Donald Trumps fixer-turned-foe is expected to take the witness stand in the former presidents hush money case. In criminal trials, many witnesses come to the stand with their own criminal records, relationships with defendants, prior contradictory statements or something else that could affect their credibility. Cohen has a particular set of baggage. In testimony, he will need to explain his prior disavowals of key aspects of the hush money arrangements and to convince jurors that this time he is telling the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. OVER THE WEEKEND, TRUMP CALLED HIS HUSH MONEY CASE A BIDEN SHOW TRIAL Sandwiched between his appearances in court, Donald Trump headed on Saturday to the Jersey Shore, where he repeatedly blamed President Joe Biden for the criminal charges hes facing as the presumptive nominees prepare to face off in the November election and called his New York hush money case a Biden show trial. Blasting the Democratic president a total moron, Trump before a crowd of tens of thousands repeatedly characterized the cases against him as politically motivated and timed to harm his ability to campaign. Hes a fool. Hes not a smart man, Trump said of Biden. I talk about him differently now because now the gloves are off. Trump has repeatedly accused the Biden administration and Democratic officials in New York of using the legal system to block his return to the White House. The hush money case was filed by local prosecutors in Manhattan who do not work for the Justice Department or any White House office. The Justice Department has said the White House has had no involvement in the two criminal cases against Trump brought by special counsel Jack Smith. TRIAL WILL ONLY MEET FOR 3 DAYS THIS WEEK Court proceedings in Donald Trump's hush money trial will be held on just three days this week Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. Wednesday is the trial's usual day off during the week and court will not be in session on Friday to allow the former president to attend his son Barron's high school graduation. COULD WEISSELBERG MAKE AN PEARANCE AFTER ALL? Allen Weisselberg, the Trump Organization's former chief financial officer, could make an appearance at Donald Trump's hush money trial after all. On Friday, Judge Juan M. Merchan asked prosecutors to see if they could get him to court before seeking instead to introduce evidence to explain his absence. Weisselberg, 76, is currently jailed at New York Citys Rikers Island complex, serving a five-month sentence for lying under oath in his testimony in the state attorney generals civil fraud investigation of Trump. He pleaded guilty in March and was sentenced last month. His plea agreement does not require his cooperation or testimony in the criminal case. Right now its seems to me were trying to jump the gun. Were trying to explain why hes not here without making any effort to get him here, Merchan said. Trump lawyer Emil Bove noted that his absence is a very complicated issue and may require a jury instruction about uncalled witnesses. Prosecutors had argued that subpoenaing Weisselberg to testify would probably be a waste of time due to his loyalty to Trump and the likelihood that he would invoke his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. WITNESS TESTIMONY IN TRUMP'S HUSH MONEY TRIAL ENTERS 4TH WEEK Donald Trump is due back in court on Monday morning as witness testimony in his criminal trial enters its fourth week. Michael Cohen, Trumps former lawyer and personal fixer, is the star prosecution witness in Trumps hush money trial. Cohen is set to take the stand Monday and is by far the Manhattan district attorneys most important witness in the case. Prosecutors say they may wrap up their presentation of evidence by the end of the week. Cohen is expected to testify about his role in arranging hush money payments on Trumps behalf during his first presidential campaign, including to porn actor Stormy Daniels, who told jurors last week that the $130,000 that she received in 2016 was meant to prevent her from going public about a sexual encounter she says she had with Trump in a hotel suite a decade earlier. Defense lawyers have teed up a bruising cross-examination of Cohen, telling jurors during opening statements that the fixer-turned-foe is an admitted liar with an obsession to get President Trump. The trial is in its 16th day. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. Former US President Donald Trump is counting on this year's presidential elections to swoop in for Term 2. The latest New York Times, Siena College, and the Philadelphia Inquirer poll on Monday morning revealed that the ex-president is leading in five of six key swing states. FILE PHOTO: Combination picture showing former U.S. President Donald Trump attending the Trump Organization civil fraud trial, in New York State Supreme Court in the Manhattan borough of New York City, U.S., November 6, 2023 and U.S. President Joe Biden participating in a meeting with Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, U.S., March 1, 2024. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid and Elizabeth Frantz/File Photo/File Photo(REUTERS) Meanwhile, Biden's chances of a new term have been undermined despite months of campaigning. Reportedly, young and non-white voters have particularly expressed their discontentment over his handling of the economy and the war in Gaza. The survey shows that Trump is currently dominating the head-to-head presidential rivalry with Biden, favourably winning the registered voters' support in Michigan, Arizona, Nevada, Georgia and Pennsylvania. Biden led the poll in merely one state - Wisconsin. It was also noted that all six states favoured Biden in 2020. After his State of the Union address in March, Biden gained a sudden surge of support. However, his stance on pressing issues like immigration, cost of living and Israel's occupation in Gaza has seemingly pushed voters's desire for change. Also read | Duke University: Jerry Seinfeld speech prompts student walkouts at commencement ceremony Trump vs Biden: Why voters desire a change in the US The poll (surveying 4,097 people from April 28 to May 9) found that 13% of people who voted for Biden in 2020 were apprehensive of his foreign policy, citing why they won't be voting for him this year. (Also read | April poll: Survey: Biden almost caught up with Trump's early polling popularity ) As per the poll numbers, it was also recorded that US citizens are deeply bent on welcoming a change, which they feel will be more likely delivered by Trump over Biden. 14% of pollers said the system had to be torn down entirely," while 55% favoured major changes." Although the voters weren't sure if the potential change reeled in by Trump would be good or bad, their doubts about Biden's ability to deliver positive changes were even lower. Only 13% of Biden's supporters believe that he will deliver improvements in his second term. On the other hand, those against Trump acknowledged that he may shake things up. Who voted more for whom? Trump and Biden tied among 18-to-29-year-old and Hispanic voters. Even among these voters, the poll showed that over 60% voted for Biden in 2020. Trump led the numbers among Black voters, marking the highest extent of Black support for any Republican presidential candidate since the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was enacted. Also read | Duke Vs Duchess: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle head out to charity polo club for final leg of Nigeria trip On the contrary, Biden stayed relatively strong among older and white voters, representing a quota that is less likely to push for changes to the system. For the same reason, Biden steadily maintained his competitive numbers in relatively white Northern swing states - Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. The economy fared as another one of Biden's vulnerabilities, as 40% of Trump's supporters underscored its influence on their standing. On the flip side, the poll presented the issue of abortion as Trump's kryptonite, as 64% of voters on average in battleground states highlighted that abortion should be always or mostly legal. These numbers also included 44% of Trump loyalists. The star prosecution witness in Donald Trump's hush money trial is set to take the stand Monday with testimony that could help shape the outcome of the first criminal case against an American president. Hush Money Trial: Donald Trump's former attorney Michael Cohen and star witness in hush money trial to take stand today(AP) Michael Cohen, Trump's former lawyer and personal fixer, is by far the Manhattan district attorney's most important witness in the case and his expected appearance signals that the trial is entering its final stretch. Prosecutors say they may wrap up their presentation of evidence by the end of the week. Cohen is expected to testify about his role in arranging hush money payments on Trump's behalf during his first presidential campaign, including to porn actor Stormy Daniels, who told jurors last week that the $130,000 that she received in 2016 was meant to prevent her from going public about a sexual encounter she says she had with Trump in a hotel suite a decade earlier. He also matters because the reimbursements he received form the basis of the charges 34 felony counts of falsifying business records against Trump. Prosecutors say the reimbursements were logged as legal expenses to conceal the payments' true purpose. Defense lawyers have teed up a bruising cross-examination of Cohen, telling jurors during opening statements that the fixer-turned-foe is an admitted liar with an obsession to get President Trump. The testimony of a witness with such intimate knowledge of Trump's activities could heighten the legal exposure of the presumptive Republican presidential nominee if jurors deem him sufficiently credible. But politically, prosecutors' reliance on a witness with such a checkered past Cohen pleaded guilty to federal charges related to the payments and to lying to Congress could be a boon for Trump as he fundraises off his legal woes and paints the case as the product of a tainted criminal justice system. Either way, his role as star prosecution witness further cements the disintegration of a mutually beneficial relationship that was once so close that Cohen famously said he'd take a bullet for Trump. After Cohen's home and office were raided by the FBI in 2018, Trump showered him with affection on social media, praising him as a fine person with a wonderful family and predicting incorrectly that Cohen would not "flip." Months later, Cohen did exactly that, pleading guilty that August to federal campaign-finance charges in which he implicated Trump. By that point, the relationship was irrevocably broken, with Trump posting on the social media platform then known as Twitter: If anyone is looking for a good lawyer, I would strongly suggest that you dont retain the services of Michael Cohen! Cohen later admitted lying to Congress about a Moscow real estate project that he had pursued on Trump's behalf during the heat of the 2016 Republican campaign. He said he lied to be consistent with Trump's political messaging. Prosecutors are expected to elicit detailed testimony from Cohen about his past crimes in hopes of blunting the impact of defense lawyers' questioning and showing that they're not trying to hide his misdeeds. But it's unclear how effective that will be, given that defense lawyers will be prepared to exploit all the challenges that accompany a witness like Cohen. In addition to painting Cohen as untrustworthy, they're also expected to cast him as vindictive, vengeful and agenda-driven. Since their fallout, Cohen has emerged as a relentless and sometimes crude critic of Trump, appearing as recently as last week in a live TikTok wearing a shirt featuring a figure resembling Trump with his hands cuffed, behind bars. The judge on Friday urged prosecutors to tell him to refrain from making any more statements about the case or Trump. He has talked extensively about his desire to see President Trump go to prison, Trump attorney Todd Blanche said during opening statements. He has talked extensively about his desire to see President Trumps family go to prison. He has talked extensively about President Trump getting convicted in this case. No matter how his testimony unfolds, Cohen is indisputably central to the case, as evidenced by the fact that his name was mentioned in the jury's presence during opening statements more than 130 times more than any other person. Other witnesses, including former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker and former Trump adviser Hope Hicks, have testified at length about the role Cohen played in arranging to stifle stories that were feared to be harmful to Trump's 2016 candidacy. And jurors heard an audio recording of Trump and Cohen discussing a plan to purchase the rights to a story of a Playboy model, Karen McDougal, who has said she had an affair with Trump. During a massive rally on Saturday in the southern New Jersey resort town of Wildwood, Trump revived his criticism of the case, wrongly blaming President Joe Biden for orchestrating the New York charges, calling the case a Biden show trial. That argument ignores the reality that the hush money case was filed by local prosecutors in Manhattan who do not work for the Justice Department or any other White House office. The Justice Department has said the White House has had no involvement in the two criminal cases against Trump brought by special counsel Jack Smith. TEL AVIV, Israel Ruby Chens son, Itay, was killed in the Hamas attack on Oct. 7. But unlike scores of other families of soldiers killed that day, Chen doesnt have a grave to visit because his sons remains are held captive in Gaza. With the shock of Oct. 7 still raw, profound sadness and anger grip Israel on its Memorial Day The absence of a final resting place is being felt acutely now, as Israel marks its Memorial Day for fallen soldiers, when cemeteries are brimming with relatives mourning over the graves of their loved ones. Where are we supposed to go? Chen said. There is no burial site for us to go to. Memorial Day is always a somber occasion in Israel, a country that has suffered through repeated war and conflict throughout its 76-year history. But Chens torment underscores how this year it has taken on a profound and raw sadness coupled with percolating anger over the failures of Oct. 7 and the war it sparked. Families of the fallen, along with broad segments of the public, are demanding accountability from political and military leaders over the blunders that led to the deaths of hundreds in the deadliest attack in the countrys history. Too many people were killed on that day because of a colossal misjudgment, said Chen, who for months thought his son was still alive after he was snatched into Gaza, before receiving confirmation earlier this year that he was dead. People who made the misjudgment need to pay, from the prime minister down. Israel marks its Memorial Day for fallen soldiers and victims of attacks beginning at sundown Sunday with an official ceremony and smaller events the following day at military cemeteries across the country. The solemnity is then abruptly interrupted by the fanfare of Independence Day, which begins Monday evening. Grouping the two days together is intentionally meant to highlight the link between the costly wars Israel has fought and the establishment and survival of the state, a contrast that this year will be hard to reconcile at a time when Israel is actively engaged in warfare and Israelis feel more insecure than ever. With the trauma of Oct. 7 looming large, each day is expected to feel dramatically different from previous years. More than 600 Israeli soldiers have been killed since Hamas launched its surprise attack on Oct. 7, when thousands of militants rampaged across southern Israeli military bases and sleepy communities on a Jewish holiday. Roughly 1,200 people were killed that day, about a quarter of them soldiers, and another 250 were taken captive into Gaza, according to Israeli authorities. The attack sparked the war, now in its eighth month, which has killed more than 34,700 Palestinians, most of them women and children, according to local health officials. The militants stormed past Israels vaunted defenses, bursting through a border fence, blinding surveillance cameras and battling the countrys first line of defense soldiers, many of whom were outnumbered. Itay Chen, an Israeli-American, was one of them. Militants reached roughly 20 different locations in southern Israel, stretching into cities beyond the belt of farming communities that straddles Gaza. It took hours for the regions most powerful military to send reinforcements to the area and days for it to clear all the militants. The attack shook Israel to its core. It shattered the broad trust the countrys Jewish population has long placed in the military, which has compulsory enlistment for most Jewish 18-year-olds. Beyond the crisis of confidence in the military, the attack smashed Israelis faith in their government and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose public support plummeted. Thousands of people take part in weekly protests demanding an early election so that a new leadership can take over. Military and defense leaders have said they shoulder the blame for what transpired during the attack, and the country's head of military intelligence resigned as a result. But Netanyahu has stopped short of accepting responsibility, saying that he will answer tough questions after the war and even blaming his security chiefs last year in a late night post on X that he later deleted. His refusal to own up to his role has infuriated many. But many Israelis have also lost patience with the protracted war, where soldiers continue to die and where thousands have been wounded. The war's twin aims, of defeating Hamas' governing and military capabilities and freeing the hostages, haven't been accomplished, casting a shadow over events typically meant as a salute to the military's prowess, said Idit Shafran Gittleman, an expert on the military and Israeli society at the Institute for National Security Studies, a Tel Aviv think tank. Tens of thousands of Israelis also remain displaced from the country's south and volatile north. Since Oct. 7, Israelis have asked themselves how they will endure Memorial Day and Independence Day. And I dont think anyone has an answer, she said, adding that the one thing that might improve public sentiment is an election and a new government. The anger that has surged is likely to boil over at the Memorial Day ceremonies, which take place at military cemeteries across the country. The ceremonies are typically seen as sacred, solemn and apolitical, even though they are attended by government ministers and lawmakers. Some families have asked that the ministers refrain from joining, fearing a repeat of last year, when attendees at multiple ceremonies yelled at lawmakers who supported a divisive government plan to overhaul the judiciary. This is an event that the failing leadership and the failing security apparatus led us to, Eyal Eshel, whose daughter, Roni, was killed at a base stormed by militants on Oct. 7 and who is leading the charge to prevent ministers from attending, told Israeli Channel 12. Respect the families request: Dont come. Regardless, ministers are still slated to fan out across cemeteries nationwide. But other changes are being made to reflect the somber mood, especially for Independence Day. The official ceremony marking the start of celebrations will be scaled down and have no live audience. The traditional air force flyby has been canceled. Israelis are wondering what the right way to celebrate is and whether there is much to celebrate at all. People have stopped believing that the country is able to defend us, said Tom Segev, an Israeli historian. The basic faith in the ability of the state to ensure a good future here has been undermined. Follow s coverage of the war at /hub/israel-hamas-war This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. President Joe Biden told a group of supporters on Saturday that Donald Trump is "clearly unhinged" since he "snapped" following his defeat in 2020. He reportedly made the comment during a private fundraiser outside of Seattle. "When he lost in 2020, something snapped in him," Biden said ,according to reporters in the room. The fundraiser was held at the home of former Microsoft executive Jon Shirley, CNN reported. It was one of several fundraisers the president held during a brief swing to the West Coast. Biden raised millions of dollars in Silicon Valley on Friday, the Los Angeles Times.reported. While Biden was out West, Donald Trump held a campaign rally in Wildwood, N.J., where thousands turned out in a Republican area of a state that generally votes Democratic in national elections. Several polls show that Trump is leading in the election by a narrow margin, although some show the race tightening. Trump has had to sharply curtail his campaign schedule to attend his Manhattan criminal trial for allegedly making hush-money payments to a former porn star to keep her quiet about a sexual relationship she claimed she had with him. Trump denies having sex with Stormy Daniels. Alabama Republican Sen. Katie Britt was criticized this weekend, after proposing a federal database which purportedly would provide resources to pregnant women but would also collect their personal data to track them. The senator's More Opportunities for Moms to Succeed (MOMS) Act would create pregnancy.gov, a website that would provide information about adoption services and pregnancy care while explicitly excluding information about any provider who "performs, induces, refers for or counsels in favor of abortions." The broad language of the bill would exclude a significant number of OB-GYNs and sexual health clinics, including Planned Parenthood, the country's single largest provider of reproductive healthcare. The website would also encourage pregnant people to provide their data and contact information. A spokesperson for Britt said that the website would not collect data from users but this statement was contradicted by the bill's actual language, according to the Guardian. Government officials would be able to "conduct outreach via phone or email to follow up with users on additional resources that would be helpful for the users to review," according to the legislation's text. "I'm proud to support women throughout these seasons of motherhood," Britt said in a statement. "This legislation is further evidence that you can absolutely be pro-life, pro-woman, and pro-family at the same time." Britt's proposal was swiftly blasted on social media as a way to track pregnant women with some drawing comparisons to Margaret Atwood's dystopian novel, "The Handmaid's Tale." "According to the GOP, America needs a national registry for pregnant women along with the federal government tracking women's menstrual cycles," said Amy McGrath, a former Democratic Senate candidate from Kentucky. "Folks, they are extreme and they want to use government to take us back 100 years. It's real." Republicans will fight you to the death over registering guns, but they're A-OK with Sen. Katie Britt's INSANE Handmaid's Tale pregnant woman registry bill. Roevember is coming, folks. pic.twitter.com/sfbJvMhXTH BrooklynDad_Defiant! (@mmpadellan) May 10, 2024 Former President Donald Trump declined to condemn a similar idea, during a recent interview with Time Magazine. But when asked whether states should monitor pregnancies, to see if people were accessing abortion after legal cutoffs, the presumptive Republican candidate said "they might do that," and said the issue should be left to "individual states." It's "irrelevant whether I'm comfortable or not. It's totally irrelevant, because the states are going to make those decisions," he said. "And by the way, Texas is going to be different than Ohio. And Ohio is going to be different than Michigan. I see what's happening." A Massachusetts man given a genetically modified pig kidney in a transplant in March has passed away. Richard "Rick" Slayman, 62, had the groundbreaking procedure after an end-stage kidney disease diagnosis. His family issued a statement announcing the death. "Our family is deeply saddened about the sudden passing of our beloved Rick but take great comfort knowing he inspired so many," said the statement. "Millions of people worldwide have come to know Rick's story. We felt and still feel comforted by the optimism he provided patients desperately waiting for a transplant." To "us, Rick was a kind-hearted man with a quick-witted sense of humor who was fiercely dedicated to his family, friends, and co-workers. We are extremely grateful to his care team across Massachusetts General Hospital and Mass General Brigham" and doctors, "who truly did everything they could to help give Rick a second chance," it added. Massachusetts General Hospital, where the surgery occurred, said there was no indication the transplant caused his death. The hospital said that Slayman will "forever be seen as a beacon of hope to countless transplant patients worldwide and we are deeply grateful for his trust and willingness to advance the field of xenotransplantation. We offer our heartfelt condolences to Mr. Slayman's family and loved ones as they remember an extraordinary person whose generosity and kindness touched all who knew him," it added. Several biotech companies are working to develop a supply of cloned pigs whose DNA has been genetically modified so that human bodies won't reject them or spread pig viruses to people and cause other problems. The kidney Slayman received came from a pig created by eGenesis of Cambridge, Mass. The eGenesis pigs are bred with 69 genetic modifications to prepare organs for human transplantation. "We are grateful for the courageous contribution of the patient and to the advancement of transplantation science," Mike Curtis, chief executive officer for eGenesis, expressed in a statement after the transplant. Slayman had "issued a statement after his implant: "I'm excited to resume spending time with my family, friends, and loved ones free from the burden of dialysis that has affected my quality of life for many years." He was released from the hospital last month. An angry Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders said Sunday that the U.S. shouldn't send another "nickle" of military aid to Israel, arguing that the nations has violated both international and American law during its war on Gaza. "The Foreign Assistance Act is very clear," Sanders told Kristen Welker of NBC's "Meet the Press."Any country that blocks U.S. humanitarian aid is in violation of law and should not continue to receive military aid from the United States, and that is precisely what Israel has done." In "my view," he said, "Israel should not be receiving another nickel in U.S. military aid." Sanders emphasized that he believes that Hamas is a "terrible, disgusting organization," but argued that Israel has gone to war against all Palestinians, not just against members of Hamas. Bernie Sanders on Meet the Press: "In my view, Israel should not be receiving another nickel in US military aid." pic.twitter.com/BcKsVTY0zd Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 12, 2024 The senator made his remarks shortly after Welker interviewed Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who said that Israel has not yet provided a "credible" plan for mitigating civilian casualties in the Gazan city of Rafah. For months, the U.S. has warned Israel that invading Rafah would be a "mistake." Israel maintains that invading Rafah is necessary to defeat Hamas. The city, however, is also home to more than a million Palestinians, many of whom fled the Israeli bombardment from elsewhere in Gaza. "We're not just talking about not just 35,000 Palestinians dead and 77,000 wounded two-thirds of whom are women and children," Sanders told Welker before enumerating the other consequences of Israel's war. "We're [also] talking about 60% of the housing in Gaza being destroyed. You are talking about a systematic destruction of the healthcare system there. Every university has been bombed and right now most frighteningly according to the humanitarian organizations, we are looking at the likelihood of hundreds of thousands of children facing starvation," Sanders underscored. Sanders, who is Jewish, has been highly critical of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's claims that criticism of the war is antisemitic. In past interviews, he has said that allegations of genocide should be determined by the international justice system, but emphasized that he does not doubt that Israel is carrying out an ethnic cleansing of Gaza. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant described the country's plan to invade Rafah as a "precise operation," even as American Secretary of State Antony Blinken criticized the invasion for failing to mitigate civilian deaths or guarantee a total defeat of Hamas. Gallant made the remarks during a phone call with Blinken discussing "developments in Gaza, including IDF operations across the Strip in the face of terror hotspots, and the precise operation in the Rafah area against remaining Hamas battalions, while securing the [Rafah] crossing," according to a readout of their phone call. Blinken criticized the planned invasion during a Sunday morning appearance on NBC's Meet the Press. "Right now, the trajectory that Israel is on - even if it goes in and takes heavy action in Rafah - there will still be thousands of armed Hamas left," Blinken said. "The trajectory right now is that going into Rafah, even to deal with these remaining battalions, especially in the absence of a plan for civilians, risks doing terrible harm to civilians and not solving the problem." The civilian population of Rafah has swelled to more than a million people in recent months - many of whom are Palestinians fleeing Israeli bombardment in other regions of Gaza. Israel maintains that invading Rafah is necessary to defeat Hamas but for months the U.S. has warned against this course of action. During his Sunday interview, Blinken said that the Israelis had provided no "credible" plan to mitigate civilian casualties. During his Sunday evening call with Gallant, Blinken reiterated these concerns, according to State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller. "The Secretary underscored the urgent need to protect civilians and aid workers in Gaza and urged the Minister to ensure assistance can move into Gaza and help address distribution challenges inside of Gaza as Israel pursues Hamas targets," Miller said in a statement. Cape Town's legendary V&A Waterfront property captures the spirit of South Africa through elegant design and authentic cuisine as it reopens its doors, unveiling a new era of hospitality. As of 1st May 2024, after nine months of renovations, Cape Grace, A Fairmont Managed Hotel unveils its design transformation, reopening its doors once again with a new look inspired by South Africa's heritage, culture and artistry. Located on the iconic V&A Waterfront, Cape Town's most treasured hotel has been gracefully redesigned by globally renowned interior and architecture firm, 1508 London who have paid homage to Cape Town's evolution from a bustling trading port to a cosmopolitan hub. Following this grand transformation, Cape Grace will embark on a new chapter as it becomes the inaugural Fairmont Hotel in South Africa, joining a collection of 90 distinctive properties worldwide. Under its new guise, the interiors are a curated celebration of the country's diverse narrative, from its landscapes and languages, vibrant art and fascinating cultures. Handpicked artwork from local artists will be showcased throughout the new hotel and materials chosen for a contemporary, understated look that harmonises with Cape Town and its natural surroundings. With unrivalled views of the city, each of the 112 rooms and suites features large French windows or balconies that look out onto either the Marina or the iconic backdrop of Table Mountain. The stand-out suite will be the two-bedroom Cape Grace Suite with an expansive terrace offering panoramic views of Table Mountain, a stylish lounge and a dining area with a private bar and butler's pantry, perfect for families or entertaining friends who are in town. For its culinary vision, Cape Grace is working with well-known Cape Town Chef, Gregory Czarnecki to offer locals and international guests elevated South African-inspired cuisine at the new restaurant Heirloom. With a name inspired by the hotel's family roots, the highlight of the restaurant will be its Tasting Menu featuring 8 creative courses using locally sourced ingredients. The new dining experiences also include a Pool Bar for relaxed afternoons spent by Cape Grace's beautiful outdoor pool after a morning exploring the city. Meanwhile, the Library Lounge offers the perfect setting to enjoy traditional afternoon tea, suited to those who appreciate the combination of literary charm and mixology mastery, with the evenings saved for a pre or post dinner drink in the revamped Bascule Bar & Lounge, renowned for its extensive whisky collection, exclusive wine cellar and a design that celebrates South Africa's rich history. The new serene Fairmont Spa at Cape Grace features treatments inspired by local natural elements including tailored bath rituals, jet lag recovery, detox massages, a salt room experience, guided meditation and curated packages to help guests sink into an oasis of relaxation. On the doorstep of the city's finest cultural, culinary and historical landmarks, Cape Grace quickly developed a reputation for being the best in town following its opening in 1996. In its new chapter, the hotel will build on its legacy of playing host to leading luminaries from the world of politics, film and business, offering a new era of hospitality and the perfect destination to explore the very best of South Africa. About Cape Grace Cape Town's iconic waterfront hotel, Cape Grace, is a testament to the city's rich history seamlessly blended with contemporary sophistication. Originally established in 1996, this opulent haven now managed by Fairmont Hotels and Resorts has been gracefully redesigned and invites guests to experience timeless luxury and personalised service. With 112 stylish rooms and suites, the elegant decor sets the stage for an unparalleled stay, ideally positioned at the heart of Cape Town's cultural, culinary, and historical treasures. Beyond its central location, Cape Grace stands as the ultimate prelude or epilogue to the tales of a safari adventure, promising an unrivalled sanctuary. Hotel website Minor Hotels, a hotel owner, operator and investor currently with a portfolio of 540 hotels and resorts in 56 countries across Asia Pacific, the Middle East, Europe, the Americas, Africa and the Indian Ocean, has announced the appointment of Lokesh Kumar as Vice President of Development for the Middle East. Lokesh brings over 23 years of strategic business leadership experience and a proven track record in managing owner and key government relationships whilst executing strategic public-private partnerships to maximise revenues and optimise costs. Lokesh joins Minor Hotels from his most recent management consulting role, where he demonstrated his prowess in developing tourism offerings along the 1,600 km Coral Highway from Jezan to NEOM, whilst creating futuristic hotel concepts for the tourism authority in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He also offered feasibility and development strategies for mixed-use city development projects across multiple asset classes, including hospitality, commercial, residential and education. Additionally, Lokesh provided advisory services for operator selection and joint venture evaluation for a sovereign fund entity in KSA that aimed to develop 4,000 hotel rooms in key cities. His exceptional track record in managing key responsibilities of development, asset management and commercial with hospitality companies, including Movenpick, Unison Hotels and The Oberoi Group, puts him in an ideal position to drive Minor Hotels' future growth initiatives and expansion in the Middle East. In his new role, Kumar will oversee development strategies and management of assets across Minor Hotels' portfolio of hotels, including the Anantara, Avani, NH Hotels, NH Collection, Oaks and Tivoli brands. His expertise in business process enhancement will also contribute to commercial effectiveness across all the brands' projects. Lokesh holds an MBA from the Lal Bahadur Shastri Institute of Management in India after completing hotel school at the Institute of Hotel Management, Goa. The sixth edition of the Forum forms part of the "Baku Process", launched by President Ilham Aliyev in 2008, brought together more than 700 participants from 107 countries, including 60 Ministers of Culture. Serving as the sectors voice, UN Tourism held a special session on the sectors role in fostering connections in post-conflict societies, with reference to Bosnia & Herzegovina, Colombia, and Rwanda. Opening the main high-level forum, UN Tourism Executive Director Zoritsa Urosevic said: At UN Tourism, we have a duty to foster peoples desires to discover the world, making the unknown more inviting and building new connections between strangers, and also to give back to tourism the power to build bridges, because Tourism Opens Minds. Participating in the 3rd High-Level Meeting of International Organizations on Sustainable Pathways for a Greener Future, Ms. Urosevic highlighted UN Tourisms commitment towards transforming the sector. She concluded: As we look ahead to COP29 in Baku and future collaborations, I encourage all stakeholders to join us in the transformation of the tourism sector for a greener future. Our value chain cuts across various sectors, offering numerous opportunities to catalyze change for a more sustainable future. Top forum for international cooperation The primary objective of the World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue is to explore the critical intersections between dialogue facilitation, cooperative frameworks, leadership efficacy, and the complex dynamics of interconnectedness, all in the service of advancing global peace and security imperatives. Over three days, a series of plenary sessions and panel discussions brought together a diverse range of stakeholders, including government officials, representatives from international organizations, eminent cultural figures, journalists, civil society actors, and intellectuals from across the globe, to deliberate upon pressing global challenges. Joining UN Tourism partnership in Baku were representatives of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC), UNESCO, and the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ICESCO). Tourism and the Baku Process Building upon the legacy of previous iterations of the forum held in 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017, and 2019, which collectively comprised more than 250 events and attracted nearly 10,000 participants from 180 countries and 30 international organizations, the 6th edition of the World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue aimed to further solidify the "Baku Process" as a preeminent international platform for fostering intercultural collaboration and dialogue. The significance of the "Baku Process" has been duly acknowledged by major international bodies, with the United Nations Secretary-General's Annual Report of 2017 to the United Nations General Assembly on intercultural and interreligious dialogue recognizing it as a pioneering initiative in advocating for dialogue among cultures. Subsequently, the United Nations General Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution acknowledging the "Baku Process" as a pivotal global mechanism for promoting intercultural dialogue. Furthermore, at its 215th session, the Executive Board of UNESCO passed a resolution voicing robust support for the "Baku Process" and urging all member states and major international organizations to actively engage with it. Related links: About UN Tourism The World Tourism Organization (UN Tourism) is the United Nations agency responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism. As the leading international organization in the field of tourism, UN Tourism promotes tourism as a driver of economic growth, inclusive development and environmental sustainability and offers leadership and support to the sector in advancing knowledge and tourism policies worldwide. Our Priorities Mainstreaming tourism in the global agenda: Advocating the value of tourism as a driver of socio-economic growth and development, its inclusion as a priority in national and international policies and the need to create a level playing field for the sector to develop and prosper. Promoting sustainable tourism development: Supporting sustainable tourism policies and practices: policies which make optimal use of environmental resources, respect the socio-cultural authenticity of host communities and provide socio-economic benefits for all. Fostering knowledge, education and capacity building: Supporting countries to assess and address their needs in education and training, as well as providing networks for knowledge creation and exchange. Improving tourism competitiveness: Improving UN Tourism Members' competitiveness through knowledge creation and exchange, human resources development and the promotion of excellence in areas such as policy planning, statistics and market trends, sustainable tourism development, marketing and promotion, product development and risk and crisis management. Advancing tourism's contribution to poverty reduction and development: Maximizing the contribution of tourism to poverty reduction and achieving the SDGs by making tourism work as a tool for development and promoting the inclusion of tourism in the development agenda. Building partnerships: Engaging with the private sector, regional and local tourism organizations, academia and research institutions, civil society and the UN system to build a more sustainable, responsible and competitive tourism sector. Our Structure Members: An intergovernmental organization, UN Tourism has 160 Member States, 6 Associate Members, 2 Observers and over 500 Affiliate Members. Organs: The General Assembly is the supreme organ of the Organization. The Executive Council take all measures, in consultation with the Secretary-General, for the implementation of the decisions and recommendations of the General Assembly and reports to the Assembly. Secretariat: UN Tourism headquarters are based in Madrid, Spain. The Secretariat is led by the Secretary-General and organized into departments covering issues such as sustainability, education, tourism trends and marketing, sustainable development, statistics and the Tourism Satellite Account (TSA), destination management, ethics and risk and crisis management. The Technical Cooperation and Silk Road Department carries out development projects in over 100 countries worldwide, while the Regional Departments for Africa, the Americas, Asia and the Pacific, Europe and the Middle East serve as the link between UN Tourism and its 160 Member States. The Affiliate Members Department represents UN Tourism's 500 plus Affiliate members. UN Tourism Communications Department +34 91 567 8100 UN Tourism Driven by Dalatas ambitious growth plan and expansion into new geographies Focused on delivering unified messaging and fostering closer relationships with its expanding customer base Represents a brand investment of more than 3 million Dublin, London - Dalata Hotel Group, the largest hotel operator in Ireland, with a growing presence in the United Kingdom and continental Europe, announces a major repositioning of its core brands and customer proposition. This marks the most significant investment in its brands since the formation of the Dalata Hotel Group, as it continues to deliver on its ambitious growth strategy and recognises the critical role that brands have to play across its target markets. As part of this investment, the Groups three main brands, Dalata Hotel Group, Clayton Hotels and Maldron Hotels have all been redefined, resulting in both a clearer visual identity and stronger market positioning. The new visuals, alongside the carefully redefined messaging will support Dalata in fostering closer relationships with its customer base, throughout the customer journey, as the brands become increasingly recognisable. The brand repositioning is currently being rolled out across the Groups hotels. The project commenced in 2023, with consumer research and brand design which has led to the creation of new websites, brand imagery, brand creative and advertising campaigns. Dalata are investing a total of 3 million in the project. New internal and external signage will be installed over the next 12 months across the portfolio. Dalata has grown steadily since its foundation in 2007 and is now Irelands largest hotel operator with a fast-growing presence in the UK and continental Europe, employing more than 5,500 people. Its portfolio currently comprises 53 hotels with a pipeline of four further hotels due to open in the UK this year, in Manchester, Liverpool, London and Brighton. The overall growth of the business and its expansion into new geographies are the major drivers behind the brand refresh. Research and insights were central to the brand refresh process, which began over a year ago with the establishment of the Dalata Customer Panel. Through customer interaction, including in-depth customer interviews, in Ireland, the UK, Germany and the Netherlands, the panel aimed to gain the relevant insights required to elevate the voice of the customer across the business. As part of this research the Group identified that its brands would benefit from a clearer visual identity and more evolved messaging, that would ensure the customer understood what to expect when staying at a Dalata hotel. We are very excited to relaunch our brands today. The relaunch is the culmination of more than a years work researching how our customers perceive us and developing a better understanding of their hospitality needs. As we continue our ambitious growth plan across Ireland, the UK and continental Europe, our refreshed brands will deliver more impactful customer communications, easier online journeys and a stronger understanding of Dalatas unique customer proposition. Roma OConnor, Chief Marketing Officer at Dalata Hotel Group Our continuous growth since 2007 has established Dalata as the largest hotel operator in Ireland, with significant operations in the UK and a growing presence in continental Europe. Throughout this time, Dalatas difference has always been our people and their customer focus. As we continue on our growth path, and expand into new markets, our refreshed brands will give our people a unified understanding of what customers want and how they can interact with their guests every day, ensuring that every guest experiences the Heart of Hospitality. Dermot Crowley, CEO of Dalata Hotel Group Introducing the new brands Dalata - The Heart of Hospitality Dalatas core philosophy is that hospitality is all about people. The Groups difference has always been its people, and the refreshed brands represent just that. Dalatas people, through their individuality and charm, deliver the difference that sets it apart from its competitors. In essence, Dalatas service is The Heart of Hospitality. The Groups Clayton and Maldron Hotel brands have also been refreshed to represent the unique way in which each brand, within the group, cares for its guests. Clayton - Its Personal The new Clayton Hotels tagline Its Personal highlights the personal touch and human connection that really matters to customers. Each team member brings their own difference to deliver personable hospitality, making sure guests feel appreciated through a sincere smile, remembering individual guests names, listening to them as customers and showing them that their stay matters. Maldron - It Starts Here Maldron Hotels, new tagline It Starts Here emphasises that due to their excellent locations, Maldron Hotels are an epic basecamp for customers as they begin unforgettable experiences. From the moment guests arrive, theyll encounter a welcoming environment filled with positive energy. Guest services will be enhanced as hotel staff provide insightful local tips, ensuring that each visit to a Maldron Hotel is a great visit. Dalata was supported extensively by its agency partners TBWA and Publicis on the brand refresh. TBWA supported the design and brand positioning aspects of the programme and Publicis supported the advertising campaign. The refreshed brands will be promoted in the coming months through an extensive multimedia advertising campaign, across Video on Demand, Out of Home, Social Media, Cinema and Display platforms in Ireland, the UK, Germany and the Netherlands. All 5,500 Dalata team members will participate in online training relating to the brand refresh in the coming months, while further in-person-training will take place throughout the organisation, later in the year. About Dalata Dalata Hotel Group plc was founded in August 2007 and listed as a plc in March 2014. Dalata is Ireland's largest hotel operator, with a growing presence in the UK and continental Europe. The Group's portfolio comprises 53 three and four-star hotels with 11,412 rooms and a pipeline of over 1,300 rooms. The Group currently has 32 owned hotels, 18 leased hotels and three management contracts. Dalata successfully operates Ireland's two largest hotel brands, the Clayton and the Maldron Hotels. For the period ended 30 June 2023, Dalata reported revenue of 284.8 million and a profit after tax of 42.0 million. Dalata is listed on the Main Market of Euronext Dublin (DHG) and the London Stock Exchange (DAL). For further information visit: www.dalatahotelgroup.com GuestRevu, a leading guest survey and online reputation management solution, is thrilled to announce entries are now open for the 2024 GuestRevu GREAT Awards. These prestigious awards, celebrating Guest-Rated Excellence in Accommodation & Travel, are back for another exciting year. Once again, the Awards will be held in partnership with leading property management software, Hop, and Stenden Univerity resumes the role of academic partner. HOSPA, The Hospitality Professionals Association, which is dedicated to supporting hospitality specialist leaders in networking and learning, is an exciting new partner for the 2024 GREAT Awards. Following the resounding success of last year's event, which saw hotels from around the globe recognised for their exceptional guest experiences, the 2024 GREAT Awards promise to be even more spectacular. With entries open until June 30, 2024, hotels, resorts and guesthouses worldwide are invited to showcase their commitment to excellence and vie for the coveted GuestRevu GREATest Hotel titles in 2024. Last year's ceremony, held at The Good Hotel London, was a testament to the outstanding achievements of the hospitality industry. From boutique retreats to luxury resorts, winners from diverse locations and backgrounds showcased their dedication to providing first-class guest service. The 2023 event was a celebration of the passion and innovation driving the hospitality sector forward, and anticipation is already building for the 2024 Awards evening. We are really excited to be part of the great awards again for 2024 and look forward to a fantastic evening in November, says Sharon Smith COO of Hop. The GREAT Awards stand apart among hotel awards programmes as winners are determined by relying solely on guest feedback rather than conventional judging panels. With a mission to spotlight exceptional guest experiences regardless of hotel type or size, reviews shared on top review platforms like Google Reviews, Booking.com, and Tripadvisor are analysed to determine the winners. To ensure the data analysis is objective, fair, and transparent, the process will be overseen by Dr Wouter Hensens, the Executive Dean of Stenden South Africa. During the 2023 GREAT Awards, representatives from GuestRevu and Stenden analysed over 60,000 online reviews of over 1000 hotels from more than 35 countries worldwide to identify the winners in each category, and early interest in the 2024 Awards programme indicates the data analysis this year will be even more intensive. We collect and analyse millions of reviews on behalf of our clients, so we usually know what to expect from reviews, but I was really impressed at the quality of the feedback that the entrants received last year, says GuestRevu CEO and Founder, Chris Alexandre. The overall calibre of contestants in the awards was outstanding, with an average overall satisfaction score of 88% for hotels that qualified to compete, and scores in the high 90s for most shortlisted hotels. The GREAT Awards provide an invaluable opportunity for hotels to showcase their commitment to guest satisfaction while also getting valuable insights from guest reviews, said Chris, We are excited to partner with HOSPA and Stenden University for the 2024 Awards, and look forward to celebrating excellence in hospitality worldwide once again. Its a wonderful event, said Robert Walshe, co-owner of Highcliffe House, who walked away with awards in four categories in 2023. We have many mystery shoppers, judging panels and adjudicators involved in other awards, but this is a real, pure example of what guests think. To learn more about the 2024 GREAT Awards and submit your entry, visit www.guestrevu.com/guestrevu-great-awards About GuestRevu GuestRevu helps hospitality professionals to listen to, learn from and earn from their guests by enabling them to leverage the power of their guest data to build lasting loyalty and drive revenue. GuestRevus mission is to give hospitality professionals award-winning tools that they can use every day to develop a guest-centric culture, optimise their guest experience, and the running of their business and, ultimately, drive revenue using online surveys and reputation management. GuestRevu offers local support in South Africa and the United Kingdom and is a Tripadvisor Platinum Review Collection Partner. About Stenden University Stenden South Africa is a Private Higher Educational Institution offering a three-year Bachelor of Commerce Degree in Hospitality Management. We are at present the only Institution in South Africa offering a Degree in Hospitality Management. Stenden South Africa is a satellite campus of their main campus in Leeuwarden, Holland. There are also campuses situated in Thailand, Qatar and Bali. Stenden South Africa is able to offer specializations such as Wildlife Management, Lodge Management, Tourism, Entrepreneurship and Events Management. We also offer practical training at the training hotel: My Pond Hotel. With opportunities like these, you are guaranteed a successful and exciting career in the world of Hospitality Management! About HOSPA HOSPA is the association helping hospitality's specialist leaders to develop their careers and network, as well as keep up to date with industry trends and developments. HOSPA offers a wide and growing range of opportunities for members, from networking meetings and webinars which address specific topics to extensive professional development programmes and the latest industry data disseminated through a variety of mediums. About HopHop is a cloud-based property management solution for the hospitality industry, including independent hotels, hotel groups and self-catering accommodation and provides solutions globally, Hop offers a Channel Manager, commission FREE Booking Engine, Property Management tools such as a Housekeeping module, real-time Revenue Management, Event Management, CRM and many other hospitality service integrations such as Epos, Locks, TV's and Accounting Software. Sarah Came GuestRevu +27 (0)87 231 0125 View source The artistry of questioning resides in the ability to inquire, provoke thought, and stimulate meaningful conversations. Asking the right questions is a skill that goes beyond simple information gathering; it involves finesse, empathy, and a deep understanding of the context. Questioning is also one of the oldest and most effective methods for teaching and opening minds. The Socratic method is based on antagonistic questions. And Voltaire's words echo through time, urging us to: Judge a man by his questions rather than his answers. Indeed, the questions we ask can be more important than the answers we obtain, and often pave the way for the answers we need. EHL Train the Trainer (TTT) Program develops a comprehensive approach to hospitality education and training. It equips teachers and trainers with the necessary skills to be course facilitators who embrace the importance of questions in the learning process. Instead of giving learners the solution to a challenge, questions serve as catalysts for engagement, critical thinking, and skill development. In this blog post, we delve into the artistry of asking questions within the EHL Train the Trainer Program and explore methods for crafting effective questions, integrating them into the curriculum, examining case studies, addressing challenges, and drawing conclusions. The role of questions in training Importance of questions Questions play a pivotal role in facilitating learning and engagement in training programs. They stimulate curiosity, encourage active participation, and foster critical thinking among trainees. By posing thought-provoking questions, trainers can guide learners to explore concepts more deeply, leading to a richer understanding of the subject matter. The value of questions goes beyond their immediate impact; they are catalysts for transformative learning. As educators, we can safely rely on questions as a tool for: Breaking mindsets : Questions challenge existing mindsets, paving the way for new perspectives and insights. : Questions challenge existing mindsets, paving the way for new perspectives and insights. Provoking deep reflection : Thoughtful questions instigate deep reflection, prompting individuals to reevaluate their beliefs. : Thoughtful questions instigate deep reflection, prompting individuals to reevaluate their beliefs. Stimulating focus and conversation : Questions gather focus, attract attention, and energize conversations. : Questions gather focus, attract attention, and energize conversations. Creating knowledge : Questions drive knowledge creation and expansion. : Questions drive knowledge creation and expansion. Sparking creativity : Well-crafted questions ignite creativity, encouraging innovative thinking. : Well-crafted questions ignite creativity, encouraging innovative thinking. Learning facilitation: Questions expedite the learning process, moving individuals from reactionary to deep thinking. Critical thinking and active participation One of the primary functions of questions in training is to promote critical thinking. By posing open-ended questions that require analysis and evaluation, trainers encourage trainees to think critically and develop their problem-solving skills. Moreover, questions elicit active participation from learners, creating an interactive learning environment where ideas are exchanged, and knowledge is co-constructed. Difference between closed and open-ended questions Understanding the distinction between closed and open-ended questions is essential for effective training. Closed questions typically require a specific, often one-word answer, while open-ended questions encourage a more elaborate response, prompting deeper reflection and discussion. Trainers must use a combination of both types of questions strategically to engage learners and stimulate meaningful dialogue. Albert Einstein's Insight: Albert Einstein, the maestro of theoretical physics, acknowledged the paramount importance of questions in problem-solving. His perspective, "If I had an hour to solve a problem and my life depended on it, I would use the first 55 minutes determining the proper question to ask," underscores the profound value of questions in guiding our thought processes. The neuroscience behind question-led learning In fact, the neuroscience of learning has proven that asking open-ended, insightful questions such as What would you do? or What opportunities do you see here? triggers several astounding processes in the mind of the learner: Rewiring: The brain isnt hardwired like electronic devices that use the same circuits to perform the same processes over and over. Neuroplasticity allows our brains to physically change their wiring to enable creative thinking and synthesis. Our neurons literally shift into new locations and form new pathways in our brain when we learn. Thought-provoking questions force our brains to develop new pathways and grow stronger for greater insight. Whole-brain involvement: The brain literally lights up when you ask a question instead of being provided with a solution or information. Following questioning, the entire brain gets busy and releases serotonin, the feel-good hormone that promotes relaxation. This complete involvement allows ideas to merge from all areas of the brain. It generates new thinking pathways and more comprehensive thoughts and creative ideas. Desire for action: When serotonin is released, it creates a rush of energy that stokes the brain into actively searching for solutions to a problem. The learner becomes motivated and ready to act. And while this flash of energy is brief, it creates a good opportunity to ask the learner to create a plan of action and commit to the solution. MORE ARTICLES Q : What Is Vocational Education? The pros and cons of Vocational Education Training The importance of vocational training for career development Types of questions that promote learning In EHL Train the Trainer Programs, a variety of question types are utilized to facilitate learning and skill development. Clarifying questions help learners understand complex concepts, probing questions encourage deeper exploration of ideas, and reflective questions prompt self-assessment and evaluation. By incorporating diverse question types, trainers can cater to different learning styles and preferences. Here are a few examples: Closed questions These are designed to get a single, straightforward response, basically Yes or No or True or False or a specific answer. There is usually only one possible answer for a closed question. These are best used to get specific information or gauge someones knowledge of a topic. Examples: Did you receive the syllabus? Is Switzerland part of the European Union? How many milliliters are in a liter? Open-ended questions These encourage detailed and insightful responses, fostering creativity and depth. There is no correct response, therefore, the respondent is free to answer openly. These questions stimulate thought processes and work well for group discussions. Examples: Why is it important to smile when welcoming a guest? How did you find that answer? What was your internship experience like? Testing questions There are many different types of questions that test knowledge, such as closed questions, multiple choice and true or false, and to those we can add recall and process questions. These are all used to evaluate a learners understanding of a subject, and they usually have only one correct answer. Examples: Yes/No: Does sparkling water contain anything besides H2O? True or false? Most sparkling water is naturally bubbly. Recall: What is the main ingredient in bread? Multiple choice: Which of these show the molecular structure of water? Process: Why is it important to knead bread? Leading questions Leading questions encourage a certain response by including a hint to the right response within the question itself. These types of questions should be used carefully, as they may give an impression of bias or manipulation. And they can elicit a negative reaction. In contrast, neutral questions are just open-ended questions that dont seek to influence the response. Examples: Leading: "Isnt it better to greet a guest by name? Leading: Wasnt that presentation great? Neutral: "How should you greet a guest?" Neutral: What did you think of the presentation? Rhetorical questions Rhetorical questions are used to make a point or draw attention to an idea. They are used to persuade the audience, so they dont require or expect a response. We dont use rhetorical questions in everyday conversations, but they can be useful and thought-provoking when included in formal presentations, speeches or sales pitches. Examples: Wouldnt it be great if you could do all of those things in one click? Who cares if one customer leaves unhappy? Who will maintain the service standard if the lead trainer is missing? Divergent questions Here, the questions dont have right or wrong answers, but are designed to encourage reflection and discussion, or introduce topics. As a form of the open question, they go a step further to invite the respondent to share an opinion, take an educated guess, or reflect on future possibilities. Examples: "Do you know why we need to eat vegetables?" Why is it so hard for people to eat enough vegetables? What would happen if eating vegetable was made easier? Probing questions These are second-level questions that stimulate deeper thinking and reflection, often as a follow-up for a first response. Within this category, there are a number of different types of probing questions. Elaborating: "Can you tell me more about that?" "Can you tell me more about that?" Clarifying: What do you mean by un-fit? What do you mean by un-fit? Critical awareness: What facts do you have to support your answer? What facts do you have to support your answer? Refocus: If that is true, then how will that affect the process? If that is true, then how will that affect the process? Redistribute: John, can you explain Sharons answer? John, can you explain Sharons answer? Prompting: What might come next, after giving the key? What might come next, after giving the key? Devil's Advocate: "What if the contrary were true?" The art of crafting effective questions Characteristics of well-crafted questions Well-crafted questions possess certain characteristics that make them effective tools for learning. They are clear, concise, relevant to the topic at hand, and designed to stimulate critical thinking. Additionally, effective questions are open-ended, allowing for multiple perspectives and interpretations, and they encourage active engagement from learners. Tips for formulating questions Formulating effective questions requires careful consideration and planning, so trainers should: Prepare some questions ahead of time for each lesson or discussion session Consider learning objectives, audience demographics, and desired outcomes Use language that is clear and accessible to all learners Avoid leading or biased questions Allow sufficient time for reflection and response These essential tips for formulating questions ensure that your questions will stimulate discussion and learning while avoiding the pitfalls of asking vague or misleading questions or making certain people feel excluded or uncomfortable. Qualities of powerful, yet respectful, questions In todays classrooms and training groups, respect for cultural diversity is paramount. Its important that educators formulate questions that meet these criteria: Open: There are no embedded cultural, political, or ideological assumptions. Inviting: Involves both head and heart. People can respond with their feelings and their thoughts. Honest: It has not already been answered and finding an answer is crucial to moving forward. Experiential: People can tell a story or recall an experience that relates to the question. Inclusive: Anyone could have something valuable to say, regardless of age, race, gender, etc. Generative: Cant be answered with a yes or no, or a platitude. Relevant: Even though broad, the question applies to many of the real issues we all face. Inspiring: Makes you want to find an answer and do something about it. The use of questions in EHL Train The Trainer programs Integration into the training curriculum Questions are seamlessly integrated into the training curriculum of EHL Train the Trainer Programs. They are not treated as isolated exercises but rather as integral components of each learning module. Trainers incorporate questions into lectures, group discussions, case studies, and practical exercises to reinforce key concepts and promote active engagement from learners. Techniques for encouraging questions Encouraging trainees to ask questions is essential for creating a participatory learning environment. EHL Train the Trainer Programs employ various techniques to facilitate question asking, such as fostering a supportive and non-judgmental atmosphere, providing opportunities for peer interaction and collaboration, and offering incentives for active participation. Role in assessing understanding and skill development Questions also play a crucial role in assessing trainee understanding and skill development. Trainers use questions to gauge comprehension, identify areas of confusion, and measure progress over time. By posing targeted questions during training sessions and evaluating the quality of responses, trainers can tailor their instruction to meet the individual needs of learners and ensure optimal learning outcomes. Addressing common challenges While questions are powerful tools for learning, they are not without their challenges. Common issues such as trainee reluctance to ask questions, managing difficult or off-topic questions, and dealing with silence during group discussions can arise. Trainers must be prepared to address these challenges effectively and implement strategies to encourage question asking and maintain a productive learning environment. Strategies for overcoming challenges Several strategies can help trainers overcome challenges related to question asking in the EHL Train the Trainer Program. Building rapport and trust with trainees, providing clear guidelines for question asking, and incorporating interactive activities that encourage participation are effective approaches. Additionally, trainers can use prompts, scaffolding, and feedback to support learners in formulating and articulating their questions effectively. Real-life examples from EHL Train The Trainer programs To illustrate the effectiveness of questions in EHL Train the Trainer Programs, let's consider two real-life examples: In a leadership development workshop, trainers use probing questions to encourage participants to reflect on their leadership style and identify areas for improvement. In a customer service training session, open-ended questions are employed to facilitate role-playing exercises and encourage empathy and problem-solving skills. Success stories abound in EHL Train the Trainer Programs, where questions have led to valuable insights and breakthroughs. By posing the right questions at the right time, trainers have been able to unlock hidden talents, inspire creativity, and empower learners to reach their full potential. The appreciative remarks of learners serve as a testament to the transformative power of questions in training and education. In conclusion, questions are indispensable tools in teaching and an important part of the EHL Train the Trainer Program, guiding learners through the process of exploration, reflection, and discovery. By understanding the significance of questions, crafting them effectively, and integrating them strategically into the training curriculum, trainers can create dynamic learning experiences that foster engagement, critical thinking, and skill development. As we reflect on the artistry of questions, we are reminded of their transformative power and the profound impact they have on the learning journey. In the words of Bruce Lee, "Practice makes perfect." As trainers hone their questioning skills, their work becomes a natural, skillful, swift, and steady art, ensuring a transformative learning experience for students, recognizing their potential to inspire curiosity, ignite creativity, and spark meaningful dialogue. EHL Hospitality Business School Communications Department +41 21 785 1354 EHL View source California businesses brace for Senate Bill 478s impact. SB 478 was signed by Governor Newsom in October 2023 and became effective July 1, 2024. It cracks down on hidden fees, often referred to as junk fees and drip pricing (because the full cost is only disclosed drip by drip). It will likely change how businesses approach pricing strategies. Many say it is part of a nationwide response to President Joe Bidens call to eliminate Junk Fees. Whats in a name? SB 478 or California Junk Fee Law? The confusion starts with how to reference the new law. Many refer to it by the Senate Bill number assigned when it was first introduced in the California Senate, and the SB 478 moniker continues to be popular with many, even after signed into law. We also like to call it the California Junk Fee Law because SB 478 does not describe the focus of the legislation. It is really a collection of amendments to the various sections of the California Civil Code, Government Code, and Vehicle Code, as described in more detail below. Many consumer groups and plaintiffs lawyers seem to refer to it as amendments to the California Consumers Legal Remedies Act, or the CRLA. Their focus is on enforcing the law and the remedies given to the government and consumers to bring private legal actions. Still, others refer to it by the underlying prohibited practices, calling it the California law on drip pricing, hidden fees, bait-and-switch, unfair competition, unfair business practices, consumer fraud, and the like. These advocates generally include California plaintiffs lawyers and state and local prosecutors who largely rely on the California Unfair Competition Law (UCL) and the Consumers Legal Remedies Act (CELA) The new California Junk Fee Law is expected to facilitate new claims against businesses under these laws. We may use all these terms interchangeably, but we tend to prefer the California Junk Fee Law. What does the SB 478 or the California Junk Fee Law change? The California Junk Fee Law is a comprehensive act that adds or amends several provisions in various California statutes, including the Civil Code, the Government Code, the Streets and Highways Code, and the Vehicle Code. In particular, SB 478 generally makes these changes: Civil Code: Section 1770: This section amends the California Consumers Legal Remedies Act (CLRA) to explicitly prohibit unfair business practices related to advertising prices that are lower than a customers final cost. Section 2985.71 (New): Added to define what constitutes a deceptive advertisement regarding pricing. Section 1939.20 (New): Added to allow consumers to sue businesses violating new pricing advertisement regulations. Government Code: Section 13995.78 (New): Added to grant authority to the Attorney Generals office to enforce the provisions of SB 478. Streets and Highways Code and the Vehicle Code: New sections were added to both these codes (Sections 36538 & 36638 in the Streets and Highways Code and Sections 11713.27 & 11713.28 in the Vehicle Code) to extend the application of SB 478s pricing advertisement regulations to businesses operating within these sectors. Understanding the Impact of SB 478 The California Junk Fee Law (as implemented by SB 478) is designed to prohibit businesses from advertising a price thats lower than the total cost a customer ultimately pays. This means previously hidden fees, such as hotel resort fees, restaurant service charges, convenience fees on event tickets, and mandatory service fees on online orders, must now be factored into the advertised price. However, SB 478s impact extends beyond just hotels and restaurants. The laws reach is broad. It applies to many industries and impacts most goods and services offered to consumers in California. This includes things like retail products, event tickets, hotel stays, rental cars, and services like repairs or maintenance. Businesses across various industries may need to review their pricing models. Service providers like plumbers or electricians who charge trip fees might need to bundle them into the base service cost. Gyms with enrollment fees may have to factor those into monthly membership prices. Here are some examples and potential impacts: Source: JMBM The impact of the California Junk Fee Law does not stop at Californias border SB 478, or the California Junk Fee Law, could potentially extend beyond businesses with a physical presence in California. For example, the law applies specifically to businesses advertising to California residents. So, if an out-of-state company uses online ads targeting California, it would likely need to comply with the California Junk Fee Law because it is actively soliciting business in the state. And, if a business operates entirely outside California and has a website accessible nationwide, the law might be interpreted to apply if the business has knowledge that a significant portion of their website traffic comes from California and they advertise prices without mandatory fees. But there is also the reality of enforcement it might be more difficult for California to pursue legal action against a completely out-of-state business with minimal California interaction. Bottom line: Businesses that advertise online and reasonably expect to reach California residents should be aware of the California Junk Fee Law and ensure their advertised prices are transparent about all mandatory fees (excluding taxes and shipping). Challenges and Adjustments for Businesses While promoting transparency for consumers, the California Junk Fee Law necessitates adjustments for businesses. Companies may need to re-evaluate their pricing strategies. Restaurants that relied on service charges might need to raise menu prices to cover staff wages. Similarly, companies selling tickets or booking hotels may have to incorporate mandatory fees into their advertised base price. To comply with the new regulations, businesses must also ensure all advertising and pricing materials reflect the total cost, including mandatory fees. These adjustments may require significant upfront investments in updating systems and marketing materials, which will be a financial burden for smaller businesses. Additionally, businesses may face customer resistance to price increases, especially if competitors are slower to adapt. Navigating the Gray Areas The California Junk Fee Law specifically targets mandatory fees. And while it offers clear guidelines on eliminating hidden fees, some gray areas remain. For instance, businesses may offer optional add-on services that could be bundled with the base price or presented separately. The line between a mandatory fee and an optional add-on service might sometimes be blurry. Businesses may need to clarify which fees are mandatory and which are optional to avoid confusion for consumers. Ultimately, the California Attorney Generals office may need to provide further clarification. The Transition Consumers accustomed to seeing a lower advertised price with hidden fees tacked on later might experience sticker shock. This could pressure businesses to find creative ways to communicate the value proposition behind their pricing strategies. While SB 478 aims to benefit consumers, some industries have already raised concerns. Restaurants, for example, worry that eliminating service charges could make it difficult to maintain wages for tipped staff. The California Restaurant Association is lobbying for an exemption for restaurants that can demonstrate a fair distribution of service charges to employees. Technology can play a crucial role in helping businesses adapt to the California Junk Fee Law. Point-of-sale systems and online shopping platforms can be updated to automatically factor in mandatory fees and display the total cost upfront. Marketing automation tools can be used to ensure consistent messaging across all advertising channels, reflecting the new pricing structure. Clear communication will be crucial for businesses as the July 1, 2024 implementation date approaches. Educating staff about the new regulations and ensuring they can answer customer questions is essential. Businesses should also proactively contact customers to explain the changes and address potential concerns. Industry associations and business groups can be vital in supporting businesses during this transition. Sharing best practices, offering educational resources, and advocating for clear regulations from the Attorney Generals office can help businesses navigate the changes more effectively. Potential Benefits for Businesses Despite these initial challenges, the California Junk Fee Law may offer some benefits. Transparent pricing fosters a level playing field where businesses compete based on value, not deceptive practices. Upfront pricing also reduces the potential for customer dissatisfaction and lawsuits arising from hidden fees. Customers who trust they are getting the full picture upfront will likely be repeat customers. Some businesses may use the California Junk Fee Law as an opportunity to re-evaluate their entire business model. Subscription services with a base fee and additional tiered pricing structures may need to be adjusted to ensure all potential costs are upfront. This could lead to simplified pricing structures and more transparency for consumers. The need to adapt to SB 478 could spark innovation in the business world. Companies may explore alternative revenue models that dont rely on hidden fees. Subscription services with clear pricing structures or bundled packages that include previously separate fees could emerge as attractive options for consumers. The success of the California Junk Fee Law hinges partly on how effectively its enforced and how competitors adapt. Businesses that readily embrace transparent pricing could gain a competitive edge. Conversely, those who resist or find loopholes may face customer backlash and potential legal consequences. Enforcement and Potential Penalties The California Attorney Generals office will enforce the California Junk Fee Law. Businesses found to be in violation could face civil penalties and potential lawsuits from consumers. Likely, SB 478 is just the first step towards more comprehensive consumer protection regulations in California, as it did with ADA lawsuits. If this law is successful however that may be measured it could pave the way for additional laws targeting unfair business practices or surprise charges in other industries. Businesses should be prepared for the possibility of a stricter regulatory landscape in the future. Looking Ahead: A National Trend The California Junk Fee Law adds another layer of complexity for businesses operating nationally. With California being a major economic hub, the implications of SB 478 could extend beyond state lines. They may need to implement separate pricing structures for California. This could be particularly challenging for businesses with a strong online presence. Or they could implement similar transparent pricing structures like Californias across all their operations to avoid confusion and ensure compliance. SB 478 is not alone. It aligns with a national trend towards consumer protection. Similar legislation is being considered in other states, reflecting a growing trend to combat hidden fees. In January 2017, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a 44-page report describing so-called drip pricing and concluding that such practices harm consumers and are likely deceptive and misleading business practices that are already illegal under section 5 of the FTCA. See The FTC takes aim at hotel Resort Fees. After receiving more than 12,000 comments, on October 11, 2023, the FTC proposed a rule on Junk Fees and other related unfair or deceptive practice relating to fees for goods and services. Jim Butler +1 310 201 3526 JMBM View source Hotel Indigo Saigon The City, Junior Suite IHG Hotels & Resorts is opening two Luxury & Lifestyle brands in Vietnam this year as it introduces Hotel Indigo and Vignette Collection to the market as part of its growth strategy. Lifestyle brand Hotel Indigo will soon welcome guests in the heart of Ho Chi Minh City as Hotel Indigo Saigon The City brings the neighbourhoods sights, sounds and flavours to life throughout its stunning property and grounds. Vignette Collection, IHGs Luxury & Lifestyle collection brand, will also make its country debut with an upcoming hotel in Hoi An, situated close to the famous UNESCO Heritage Site in the historic central coast city. By introducing both brands, IHG is responding to the rising demand for hotel stays in Vietnam. Last year, there were 108 million domestic trips within the country, with Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City remaining one of the top 10 busiest flight routes in the world. Internationally, Vietnam remains especially popular with visitors from the US, South Korea and China. With international arrivals reaching 4.6 million in first quarter of 2024, and exceeding 2019 levels, its targeting 18 million visitors this year. Paul Cunningham, Senior Director, Operations, South East Asia and Korea, IHG, said: Following the successful debut of voco hotels in Danang last year, we are excited to introduce more fantastic IHG brands to Vietnam in 2024. These include Hotel Indigo our fastest-growing lifestyle brand in Ho Chi Minh City, and Vignette Collection which will bring its one-of-a-kind stay experience to guests in the UNESCO Heritage Site area of Hoi An. Together, they will grow our Vietnam estate to eight IHG brands, with stay experiences to suit every type of traveller. Our growth in Vietnam is buoyed by a positive outlook for travel in the country, where domestic demand remains strong and international demand continues to grow, especially within Asia thanks to its growing middle class and expanding GDP. With new flight routes from major cities including New Delhi, Manila, Sydney and Munich set to further increase demand, we have strong aspirations for our growth in the market. As well as introducing these two brands to Vietnam, IHG continues to grow its market-leading portfolio across destinations in the country. Next year, it will open InterContinental Halong Bay Resort in Ha Long city its first property in the area which will be followed by Holiday Inn Resort Halong Bay in 2026. IHG also plans to introduce its InterContinental brand in Thanh Xuan Valley within the city of Vinh Phuc its first valley resort project in Vietnam within the next few years. Cunningham added: With 18 hotels and 26 properties in the pipeline, were seeing many great new opportunities for growth in Vietnam as we enter new destinations including Ha Long Bay, Hoi An and Vinh Phuc. IHG is in Vietnam, for Vietnam, and we have a strong in-market team and presence committed to our hotels and owners as, together, we deliver for our guests. IHG has 18 open hotels in Vietnam across six brands: Six Senses, Regent Hotels & Resorts, InterContinental Hotels & Resorts, Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts, voco hotels and Holiday Inn Hotels & Resorts. It is on course to more than double its portfolio in the country by 2028 by opening at least 26 more hotels. Unlocking Success: Why Your Hotel Needs a Lightning-Fast Website In the digital era where speed is the norm, it's critical to the success of your establishment to provide users with a fast-loading website. In a connected world and thanks to globalization, travelers from all over the world are likely to visit your website to learn more about your hotel and make a direct booking. That's why it's important to have a fast-loading website, across all media (mobile and desktop) and around the world. According to a Google study, 75% of users consider that the most important element of a website is its speed. More surprisingly, it is considered much more important than the attractiveness of the website. Making sure your website loads quickly is the cornerstone of all your direct digital distribution. A fast hotel website prevents the loss of customers A study by Deloitte, a major consulting firm, confirms this finding. Speed has a direct impact on the user experience. Speed plays a critical role in the success of any digital initiative and is prevalent on e-commerce and other transactional websites. 70% of consumers admit that page speed impacts their willingness to buy from an online retailer and in the U.S., latency is the number one reason consumers decide to abandon mobile websites, with 10% blaming slow downloads as a reason not to buy. A slow website makes you lose bookings Did you know that 40% of visitors leave your website if your pages take longer than 3 seconds to load? In fact, if you have 10,000 unique monthly visitors and your website takes 4 seconds to load, you are losing 4,000 potential customers! A slow website encourages visitors to leave, but above all it makes you lose customers and therefore revenue. This is not a theory: Amazon calculated that a one-second drop in the loading speed of its platform would result in a loss of 1.6 billion dollars. But there are also long-term effects. Having a website that is too slow gradually hinders your natural growth. Fewer customers or prospects will want to book directly on your website if it doesn't perform well enough. The speed of your hotel website impacts its visibility Google is constantly seeking to improve the user experience of Internet users who use its search engine. Google regularly updates its algorithms to improve the relevance of the results provided. The loading speed of websites is a criterion taken into account by Google in its referencing of web pages, its representatives have clearly stated. Of course, it is only one of many criteria, and a page that is very relevant on a topic but loads slowly will always be better ranked than a page that loads faster but whose content is not as relevant as the slower page. Nevertheless, speed is a strong argument when you want to gain new positions and you know the importance of Search Engine Optimization (SEO) for the visibility of a website. How do I get a fast website for my hotel? There are many technical aspects of a website that need to be optimized to ensure a fast loading time. If any of these aspects are not properly optimized, your hotel website will load slowly. Here are the technical optimizations we do at Cendyn that you can implement to ensure that your hotel website is fast-loading. Content Delivery Networks (CDN) CDN is a technology that uses servers located in different geographical areas around the world to ensure that websites load very quickly. When a user visits your hotel's website, the information from your website is sent from the closest servers. For example, if a user connects to your website from Germany, your website data is loaded from the server closest to that user. With a wide distribution network, you can guarantee the best possible loading time for all users who connect to your website. At Cendyn, we use AWS Amazon CloudFront, a global network of more than 225 points of presence around the world to reduce website loading latency. A serverless connection Traditionally, web hosting is set up so that every time a user logs into a website, it connects to the server to load it. Once the server is connected, it will load the latest version of the website with any new changes made. The technology we use allows your website to load without latency thanks to the use of a server cache. The advantage of this cache is that it does not require you to connect to a server each time, which considerably speeds up the loading time of your website. Please note that some websites still have trouble loading at optimal speed. The main cause of this problem is due to the presence of third-party scripts that can slow down the loading of a website considerably. This is because you, or your website design agency, do not have control over this script and every load requires the user to connect to the third-party server. How can I make my hotel website faster? Hosting and media file optimization are two sources you can act on to increase the speed of your website. At Cendyn, we use the Amazon Web Services hosting platform to keep your page load times to a minimum and ensure a fast hotel website worldwide. As far as visual content is concerned, images and videos are heavy files and consume a lot of server resources. This is why it is important to optimize their weight. There are 3 main techniques to reduce the weight of an image: Compress the image : with the ShrinkMe tool that we recommend. Easy to use, fast, 100% free, and without premium limitations. : with the ShrinkMe tool that we recommend. Easy to use, fast, 100% free, and without premium limitations. Change its format : by converting your PNG images into JPEG and by limiting the use of GIF. : by converting your PNG images into JPEG and by limiting the use of GIF. Reduce its dimensions: the smaller the image, the fewer pixels it has, the less it weighs. These actions should preferably be performed before uploading the images to your website's server, i.e. before adding them to the media library of your website. Conclusion The loading speed of your hotel website is essential in your web project. It plays an essential role in the user experience of your future customers. Reducing your website loading time will allow you to provide a better service to your customers from the first interaction with your hotel. Thus, you improve the overall performance of your digital distribution and increase your online revenue. About Cendyn Cendyn is a global hospitality cloud-based technology company that enables hotels to Find, Book, Grow - driving revenue, maximizing profitability, and creating deeper connections with guests through its integrated solutions. Serving hoteliers for nearly 30 years, Cendyn has over 32,000 customers in more than 150 countries including brands Outrigger Hospitality, Hyatt, IHG, Aman Resorts & Hotels, Relais & Chateaux, Banyan Tree Hotels & Resorts, Coraltree Hospitality, and Onyx Hospitality Group - generating more than $20 billion in annual hotel revenue. The company supports its growing customer base with offices across the globe. To find out more, visit cendyn.com. Berkshire Community Land Trust To Show Film, Host Panel GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. Berkshire Community Land Trust's Farmsteads for Farmers will show the award winning regenerative farming film "Kiss the Ground" followed by a panel moderated by Katy Sparks (Edible Natural World) with Berkshire County farmers on May 19 at 4:00pm. Farmers Anna Houston (Off the Shelf Farm), Elizabeth Keen (Indian Line Farm), and Will Conklin (Sky View Farm/Greenagers) will offer their knowledge and expertise to the event. According to a press release: Marketed as "The Most Important Film You'll Ever Watch", Kiss the Ground offers a hopeful message about climate change and the impact of regenerative farming. Regenerative farming techniques, which are thousands of years old and practiced by indigenous cultures across the world, working in sync with nature and science. In doing so these techniques focus on caring for the soil and helping it retain carbon. Farmsteads for Farmers, an initiative of the 501c3 Berkshire Community Land Trust, was created to serve those who seek security on the land to feed their neighbors. Resources to protect farmstead sites are vital to building a resilient, sustainable future. "Our goal is to stop the loss of our farmland, and provide secure farmsteads for unlanded farmers using regenerative practices. Not only is this a huge local benefit, but the impact is global. This is a climate action we can take in our backyard. Today," said Sarah Downie, vice president of Berkshire Community Land Trust. According to an excerpt from The Massachusetts Farmland Action Plan of 2023-2050, "Protection of farmland soils, a ?nite resource, preserves the rural character of an area, supports domestic food security, acts as a carbon sink stabilizing future greenhouse gas emissions, sustains habitat, provides ?ood control and contributes to local rural economies." In 2022 Great Barrington's Agricultural Committee commissioned a report from the Conway School of Landscape Design. Titled Growing Better Great Barrington: Toward a Regional Food Economy in the Southern Berkshires, the report highlighted insecure access to land and housing by regional farmers as the prime obstacle to establishing food security. The Farmsteads for Farmers initiative of the Berkshire Community Land Trust is a response to the problem described in the report. Currently Farmsteads for Farmers is working toward the purchase of River Run Farm in Great Barrington. The first long term lessee of River Run Farm will be Off the Shelf Farm, a regenerative chicken, egg, and poultry farm. Purchase of River Run and leasing to Off the Shelf Farm will remove the burden of land debt from the farmers' business costs while enabling them to build equity in their improvements. Funds raised to secure the site ensure affordable access to local farmland and farm housing for generations to come. The voters of Great Barrington have supported this effort with a $300,000 CPA grant. "Soil improvements are already visible from Off the Shelf Farm's regenerative practices. It's exciting and tangible. After seeing this film you get the sense that there is hope, and real action that can be taken today. And that's what Farmsteads for Farmers is doing," said Downie. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Sascha Bailey, the son of fashion photographer David Bailey and model Catherine Dyer, has detailed why he decided not to change genders. The 29 year old believed himself to be a transgender woman born in the wrong body and made plans to transition to become Sacha without the s while living in Tokyo, Japan. Bailey was given his first prescription of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) at a gender clinic in Nagoya but chose to remain a man after NHS wait times stalled his treatment back in the UK. Speaking to The Times, Bailey revealed hed been signed up for gender reassignment after one meeting at the clinic in Nagoya, which took less than ten minutes. I went and saw the surgeon, a psychiatrist popped in and we spoke over one of those translation boxes, he said. I had the [oestrogen] patches prescribed and everything. Bailey said he experienced a feeling like dysphoria in childhood, adding whether that was gender-based I dont know. The former model, who has walked in fashion shows for labels including Dolce & Gabbana, suffered abuse at the hands of an unnamed older man during his childhood. I often found it hard growing up to identify with males and male characters, he explained. I used to love Ripley [Sigourney Weaver] from Alien because she was strong and she didnt represent the person who had hurt me [as a woman] she looked sufficiently different. At the time of his visit to the gender clinic in Nagoya, Bailey was married to the Japanese lawyer Mimi Nishikawa, who he claims frequently attacked [him] at home for not being enough. open image in gallery Bailey with his ex wife Mimi Nishikawa in 2015 ( Getty Images for Converse ) Following a suicide attempt, Bailey felt transitioning to womanhood was a project he could get right while his marriage and career struggled. In October 2022, Bailey fled Japan from Haneda airport, where he bought a one way ticket to Heathrow and was met in London by his mother and moved back into his family home. Everyone saw that it was maybe wrong for me but didnt want to say something, he said, adding his family has kind of breathed a sigh of relief, since he has chosen to remain a man. Despite securing his first months worth of HRT in Japan, Bailey wanted to line up a second month before starting the treatment because the worst thing you can do is to stop and start. NHS wait times gave Bailey pause to think about his decision, during which time he met his now girlfriend Lucy Brown. Brown formerly worked as an assistant to The English Defence League founder, Tommy Robinson, and started laughing when Bailey explained the reasons he wanted to transition. It all unravelled from that point, he said. Individuals who experience gender dysphoria and choose not to transition are known in gender terms as desisters. Writing in The Atlantic, Tey Meadow, a member of the executive of the Institute for the Study of Sexuality and Gender said to focus on desisters is to focus on the rarest of cases, and to ignore the vastly more common experience of trans teens: that of being second-guessed. Transgender hate crimes in the UK rose by 11 per cent in the year to March 2023, to their highest rate since the figures were first recorded in 2012. Last October, in a briefing outlining the statistics, the Home Office highlighted for the first time the potential link between MPs remarks and the rise in recorded incidents. This March, former prime minister Liz Truss called on Rishi Sunak to back laws preventing children changing gender and banning biological men from competing in womens sport. open image in gallery Former prime minister Liz Truss called on Rishi Sunak to back laws preventing children changing gender this year ( Sky News ) Under her plan, girls would be treated as girls and boys as boys until they are 18 and there would be a ban on the prescription of hormones to children questioning their gender. A spokesperson from the transgender youth charity Mermaids told Huffington Post they were disgusted by Truss Health and Equality Acts (Amendment) Bill. Trans people, young and old, deserve the same autonomy and respect as cis people to live their lives authentically and access the services they need, they said. We know firsthand from the young people we support how transformative it is to their mental and physical wellbeing, when they are in an environment where their pronouns are respected, and they have the space to explore their identity. Get our free weekly email for all the latest cinematic news from our film critic Clarisse Loughrey Get our The Life Cinematic email for free Get our The Life Cinematic email for free SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Jeff Most, who produced 1994s The Crow in which Brandon Lee was shot and killed while filming has defended Alec Baldwin against his renewed Rust shooting charges. Baldwin, the lead actor and a co-producer of Rust, was pointing a prop gun at Hutchins during a rehearsal in October 2021 when the gun went off, discharging a real bullet that killed her and wounded director Joel Souza. Hutchinss death is eerily reminiscent of the tragic accident that claimed the life of Lee the only son of Bruce Lee 30 years ago. Lee was 28 years old when he died after his co-star Michael Massee shot him with a prop gun that malfunctioned while filming a scene for Alex Proyass action fantasy. Speaking to The Guardian in an interview marking 30 years since the release of The Crow, Most said of Hutchinss death: To see that in the almost 30 years between the movies we hadnt improved upon that was certainly devastating. I will say that I find it tragic and beyond belief that Alec Baldwin has been held any bit responsible for this. open image in gallery Brandon Lee in The Crow and Alec Baldwin ( Lionsgate/Getty Images ) As a producer with more than 30 years experience and numerous action films under his belt, I can assure you that there is no place in the world in which an actor is responsible for the weapon theyre handling. He added: Theres no place for anything but absolute safety on a set and it all brought back memories of the terrible tragedy with the loss of Brandon. It should not have been repeated and I hope it wont ever be again. Last year, Baldwin, 66, was dismissed of initial involuntary manslaughter charges in connection with the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of his forthcoming Western. Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free In January, however, prosecutors renewed the involuntary manslaughter charges against him, citing new evidence. The actor has pleaded not guilty to the charges. In March, Rust armourer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter over Hutchins death. Reed, 26, was handed the maximum prison sentence of 18 months. Baldwin, meanwhile, maintains his innocence, claiming that he pulled back the hammer but not the trigger and the gun fired. He currently remains free pending trial under conditions that include not possessing firearms, consuming alcohol or leaving the country. Should Baldwin also be found guilty, he could potentially be sentenced to 18 months in prison in addition to being fined $5,000. Get our free weekly email for all the latest cinematic news from our film critic Clarisse Loughrey Get our The Life Cinematic email for free Get our The Life Cinematic email for free SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy John Leguizamo has opened up about the roles he regrets turning down in his four-decade spanning career. Among the roles Leguizamo has rejected are Stanley Tuccis Nigel in The Devil Wears Prada, Robin Williamss voice role as Ramon in Happy Feet, and Vince Vaughns role as Eddie in Mrs & Mrs Smith. Reflecting on his past decisions, he said: I had my reasons. I mean, theyre stupid, but I had my reasons. Leguizamo said it was an issue of pay that led to him not wanting to work on Mr and Mrs Smith, telling Business Insider: Well, for Mr & Mrs Smith, it was because they were paying them $20m and they were going to pay me scale. I felt dissed, and they probably werent dissing me, but I felt dissed. Sometimes when youre a person of colour, youre so used to being dissed that you think youre being dissed, and sometimes youre not being dissed, reiterating what he said in a separate portion of the interview about the difficulty of being a Latin actor and getting good roles. So thats what happens, and you have to go to a lot of therapy to fix that. On 2006s Happy Feet, Leguizamo said he had just done the Ice Age films, in which he voiced Sid the Sloth, and didnt want to be doing all these ice movies. Such a stupid reason. But it seemed logical to me at the moment, and then I lost out on millions. open image in gallery Actor John Leguizamo speaks during 2021 Los Angeles Comic Con ( Getty Images ) However, Leguizamo said he loved his role in the Ice Age franchise, adding: I created that role with Mike Berg and Peter Ackerman and Chris Wedge. That was a creation of mine. We created this innocent, naive, beautiful soul. I value that. I love Sid the Sloth. Leguizamo previously told ComicBook.com that he once negotiated to be a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Vulture in Spider-Man: Homecoming, a part that ultimately went to Michael Keaton. However Leguizamo revealed that the conversation between Marvel and Keaton went on for so long they lined up another actor Leguizamo in case things fell through. Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free I was supposed to be the Vulture, he said at the time. We had negotiated and I was about to play him, and they said that Michael Keaton wanted it back and they asked me if I would give it up. I said, Well, okay I guess. open image in gallery Michael Keaton in Spider-Man: Homecoming ( Sony Pictures Releasing ) The actor elaborated, saying the studio offered him something tiny as consolation, but he refused. Leguizamo has now said in the Business Insider interview, that another actor wouldve sued if they had been dropped the way he did. I hadnt signed a contract, but we had agreed. I think those are sueable terms. My grandma was like, If they dont want you at a party, dont go. So I was like, you dont want me at the party. I dont want to be there. I felt dissed and diminished, so I didnt really want to be a part of it. Get our free weekly email for all the latest cinematic news from our film critic Clarisse Loughrey Get our The Life Cinematic email for free Get our The Life Cinematic email for free Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the The Life Cinematic email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Mad Max: Fury Road director George Miller has addressed the notorious on-set feud that developed between the films leads, Charlize Theron and Tom Hardy. Ahead of the premiere of the forthcoming prequel film, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, Miller told The Telegraph: Tom has a damage to him but also a brilliance that comes with it, and whatever was going on with him at the time, he had to be coaxed out of his trailer. Whereas Charlize was incredibly disciplined a dancer by training, which told in the precision of her performance and always the first one on set. Miller, who is returning to direct the prequel to the 2015 film, chalked the dispute up to the actors being two very different performers. Im an optimist, so I saw their behaviour as mirroring their characters, where they had to learn to co-operate in order to ensure mutual survival, Miller added. Theres no excuse for it, and I think theres a tendency in this business to use great performances as an excuse for other disruption that could be avoided. The Australian filmmakers comments echo Therons remarks featured in Kyle Buchanans 2022 book Blood, Sweat, and Chrome: The Wild and True Story of Mad Max: Fury Road. Speaking candidly about her strained working relationship with Hardy, Theron, who played Imperator Furiosa, said: I dont want to make excuses for bad behaviour, but it was a tough shoot. Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron in Mad Max: Fury Road ( Warner Bros promotional ) I was in survival mode; I was really scared s***less, she added. We should not have done that; we should have been better. I can own up to that. The oral history book included quotes from the films producers and camera operators, who claimed the co-stars boiling point came when Hardy arrived to set three hours late despite knowing that Theron had arrived early. Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free Hardy later owned up to his behaviour, telling Buchanan: In hindsight, I was in over my head in many ways. The pressure on both of us was overwhelming at times. What [Theron] needed was a better, perhaps more experienced partner in me. Id like to think that now that Im older and uglier, I could rise to that occasion. Miller returns to helm Furiosa: A Max Saga, which stars Chris Hemsworth and Anya Taylor-Joy as the younger version of Therons military figure. In the interview with The Telegraph, Miller noted that he warned Hemsworth and Taylor-Joy: You have to be obsessive about safety physical safety, as the shoot goes on and fatigue sets in, but also psychological safety. Its not like the wild old days. Furiosa will have its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival later this month before its debut in cinemas on 24 May. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Steve Buscemi, the star of the Coen brothers film Fargo and HBOs Boardwalk Empire, was randomly assaulted in New York City and taken to a nearby hospital for treatment. The attack occurred near 369 Third Avenue in the Kips Bay area of Manhattan last Wednesday morning and left New Yorker Mr Buscemi, 66, with bruising, swelling and bleeding to his left eye. He was taken to Bellevue Hospital for treatment, according to police. On Sunday, Mr Buscemis publicist shared a statement updating the public on his condition. Steve Buscemi was assaulted in Midtown Manhattan, another victim of a random act of violence in the city, the statement reads. He is OK and appreciates everyones well wishes, though incredibly sad for everyone that this has happened to while also walking the streets of NY. In March, Mr Buscemis Boardwalk Empire co-star Michael Stuhlbarg was also assaulted at random while out in the city, marking the second actor from the HBO hit series to be attacked this year. The New York Police Department (NYPD) put out a statement about the assault on Wednesday but did not identify the victim. Mr Buscemis representative later confirmed on Sunday that the unidentified assault victim in the police statement was the actor. The actor was randomly attacked in New York City ( Getty Images ) At the time of the attack, police said that the suspect was wearing a dark coloured baseball style cap, blue t shirt, black pants, white sneakers, and carrying a bookbag. The NYPD said there were no arrests and the investigation was continuing. An onlooker told the New York Post what she saw of the attack, noting that she didnt see what the assailant looked like. I saw he was with a woman, and then through the corner of the window I saw him trip and fall backwards, the woman told the publication. He right away got up and ran in the opposite direction... I didnt see who hit him. The NYPD released images of the alleged suspect, who is pictured wearing a blue t-shirt, black trousers and a black cap while carrying a book bag. The NYPD have released images of an alleged suspect in the Steve Buscemi attack in Manhattan ( NYPD via PIX11 News ) Overall crime is on the decline across the city compared with the same period last year, according to the NYPDs latest figures. The number of felony assaults, however, are on the rise with 9,189 complaints made this year, up to 5 May a four per cent rise from the same period in 2023. Mr Buscemi was born in Brooklyn, New York City and has lived in the city for most of his life. In the 1980s, Mr Buscemi was an FDNY firefighter before leaving the profession to pursue an acting career. After the September 11 attacks in 2001, Buscemi returned to his old department for volunteer shifts and searched for missing firefighters under the rubble. The attack is one of a series of random assaults on the streets of New York City in recent years. Buscemis Boardwalk Empire co-star Michael Stuhlbargwas assaulted at random earlier this year. Stuhlbarg was hit in the back of the neck with a rock while walking in Manhattan's Central Park on 31 March. Stuhlbarg chased his attacker, who was taken into custody outside the park. Police confirmed the following day that the alleged attacker was 27-year-old Xavier Israel, who is thought to have attacked Stuhlbarg, 55, in the back of the neck with the weapon, causing an abrasion and other injuries. Just days earlier on 27 March, a man was charged with assault following reports that hed indiscriminately punched women in the face in a series of unprovoked attacks. Skiboky Stora, 40, from Brooklyn, New York, was arrested after he took a swipe at TikToker, Halley Kate, in Manhattan. She posted it to her 1.2 million followers, with the clip quickly going viral. Ms Kate sustained an injury to the left side of her face as she fell to the ground, according to the NYPD. The 23-year-old said the blow caused her to black out for a second. You guys, I was literally just walking and a man came up and punched me in the face, she tearfully told her audience in the video just days before Mr Storas arrest. Sign up to Roisin OConnors free weekly newsletter Now Hear This for the inside track on all things music Get our Now Hear This email for free Get our Now Hear This email for free SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Drake has issued a plea to the media in the wake of what has been a controversial fortnight for the rapper. In the last few weeks, the Canadian star has made headlines for his feud with Kendrick Lamar , which saw the pair launch personal attacks against each other. Days later, a drive-by shooting occurred outside Drakes residence. On Tuesday (7 May), a security guard was shot in the chest, with officers finding him unconscious when they arrived at the scene. The guard is believed to have been standing outside the gates in front of the property when he was shot at around 2am. He was later transported to a local hospital with serious injuries. One suspect fled the scene in a vehicle, police said. Officials could not confirm whether Drake was home at the time of the shooting, but said that the rappers team is cooperating with the investigation. Days later, an intruder tried to break into Drakes mansion, with another spotted outside the residence hours later. The second intruder had an altercation with security guards and was taken to hospital with injuries that were serious, but not life-threatening. On Saturday (11 May), Toronto Police Service told TMZ a third intruder was escorted off the rappers property. Drake has now referenced the frenzied interest in his residence on Instagram via a post addressed to Canadian news organisation CP24. He wrote: Can we discuss the chopper flight times over the house 'cause I won't lie, I'm trying to sleep. Anytime after 3pm works great for me. Enjoy unlimited access to 70 million ad-free songs and podcasts with Amazon Music Sign up now for a 30-day free trial Sign up Enjoy unlimited access to 70 million ad-free songs and podcasts with Amazon Music Sign up now for a 30-day free trial Sign up open image in gallery Drake issues plea to media on Instagram ( Instagram ) The incidents came days after rival Lamar doxxed Drakes home in a diss track against him amid an ongoing feud between the two rappers. Lamar created three similar diss songs about Drake in just 36 hours. A rivalry between two of the worlds biggest rappers has simmered for years, flaring up again in recent weeks thanks to the surprise tracks. The feud between the two stars began a month ago when Lamar hit out at the Canadian rapper and J Cole in his song First Person Shooter. Drake has responded with a diss track accusing Lamar of domestic violence. Lamar in turn has accused Drake of having a secret daughter. In another song titled, Not Like Us, the Humble rapper calls Drake a certified paedophile and makes multiple references to alleged interactions with younger women. open image in gallery Drakes mansion is the source of media interest ( Getty Images ) Paul Krawczyk of the police services Integrated Gun and Gang Task Force said that the motive behind the shooting at Drakes home remains under investigation. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Timothy Spall has been praised by viewers of the 2024 Bafta TV Awards for his sincere and unrehearsed acceptance speech. The actor, 67, won the Best Actor prize for his role in the four-part BBC true crime drama The Sixth Commandment. Brian Cox had been the heavy favourite to take home the trophy for his role in Succession, while Steve Coogan was also tipped to be a contender for his portrayal of celebrity paedophile Jimmy Savile in The Reckoning. Dominic West (The Crown), Kane Robinson (Top Boy) and Papa Essiedu (The Lazarus Project) were also nominated in the category. However, it was Spall who emerged victorious, and the actor appeared to take the podium without having written a speech. Spall described the acting profession as being a soppy old thing, standing up pretending to be somebody and pissing around in costume. The reality is, sometimes you get a chance to play people that have had a terrible thing happen to them, and all they wanted is love. This is a story about many things, about terrible crimes, but its also about love, he told the audience at Londons Royal Festival Hall. Were just storytellers, arent we, really? When it makes a difference and we can all share in the human condition ... even though acting is a silly stupid thing, its lovely. Gesturing at the trophy, he muttered: Ive always wanted one of these. Viewers shared praise for the actor on social media. Really pleased Timothy Spall won best #BAFTAs actor for Sixth Commandment, wrote journalist Harry Wallop. It was such a fine performance in a really compelling drama. (And lovely acceptance speech so rare for someone to admit they actually rather coveted a Bafta!) Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free open image in gallery Timothy Spall at the TV Baftas 2024 ( BBC ) As someone who grew up on [the Spall-starring 1980s comedy] Auf Wiedersehen Pet, great to see Timothy Spall get a BAFTA and give a brilliantly human nonscripted speech. Always be Barry to me, another person wrote. Timothy Spall giving the the most real, genuine speech, from the most deserved winner, someone else wrote. Elsewhere at the ceremony, Joe Lycett showed up dressed as Queen Elizabeth after losing a bet, while a dance tribute to Peaky Blinders left some viewers scratching their heads. You can find the full winners list here. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Dozens of students walked out on Jerry Seinfeld at Duke University on Sunday as he was about to deliver the commencement speech. Videos, posted on social media, showed students leaving the stadium in North Carolina to protest Israels war in Gaza as Duke president Vincent Price introduced the comedian. Some students could be heard booing as they waved Palestinian flags while others cheered: Jerry! Jerry! open image in gallery Dozens of students walked out as Jerry Seinfeld delivered the commencement speech at Duke University on Sunday ( AP ) Seinfeld has publicly supported Israel following the 7 October Hamas attack, and traveled to a kibbutz in December to meet with hostages families. He has been uncharacteristically vocal about his support during press calls for his new film, Unfrosted, The New York Times reported. The comedian, who was receiving an honorary degree from Duke, largely stayed away from the issue at the centre of the protests during his speech. At one point, he mentioned his Jewish heritage which was met with applause from the crowd. I grew up a Jewish boy from New York, he said. That is a privilege if you want to be a comedian. Outside Dukes stadium on the Durham campus, Gaza-supporting students chanted: Disclose, divest, we will not stop, we will not rest. Small pro-Palestinian protests popped up across the country this weekend as colleges and universities from North Carolina to California held commencement ceremonies. At Dukes rival school, the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, pro-Gaza demonstrators splattered red paint on the steps of a building hours ahead of the schools commencement ceremony and chanted on campus while students wearing light blue graduation gowns posed for photos, the News & Observer reported. Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free An estimated 100 students and family members left Virginia Commonwealth Universitys ceremony during Republican Governor Glenn Youngkins speech in a show of support for Palestinians, while others held signs signaling opposition to his policies on education, according to WRIC-TV. Gov Youngkin, who received an honorary doctorate at commencement, did not appear to address the students who left the event. The world needs your music, he said, during his speech. You, all of you, will be the symphony. Make it a masterpiece. open image in gallery Virginia Commonwealth University students walk out of graduation as Republican governor speaks on Saturday ( National Students for Justice in Palestine ) At the University of Wisconsin-Madison, a small group of demonstrators staged what appeared to be a silent protest during commencement at Camp Randall Stadium. A photo, posted by the Wisconsin State Journal, showed about six people walking through the rear of the stadium, with two carrying a Palestinian flag. Marc Lovicott, a spokesperson for campus police, said the group, believed to be students because they were wearing caps and gowns, was kind of guided out but they left on their own. No arrests were made. The demonstration came after pro-Palestinian protesters on that campus agreed on Friday to permanently dismantle their two-week-old encampment and not disrupt graduation ceremonies in return for the opportunity to connect with decision-makers who control university investments by 1 July. The university agreed to increase support for scholars and students affected by wars in Gaza and Ukraine. At the University of Texas, Austin, a student held up a Palestinian flag during a commencement ceremony and refused to leave the stage briefly before being escorted off by security. open image in gallery UC Berkeley Law School graduates wear T-shirts that read UC DIVEST as a form of protest during the UC Berkeley Law School commencement at the Greek Theater in Berkeley on Friday ( ONLINE_YES ) And at the University of California, Berkeley, a small group of pro-Palestinian demonstrators began waving flags and chanting during commencement and were escorted to the back of the stadium, where they were joined by others, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. There were no major counterprotests, but some attendees voiced frustration. I feel like theyre ruining it for those of us who paid for tickets and came to show our pride for our graduates, said Annie Ramos, whose daughter is a student. Theres a time and a place, and this is not it. Saturdays events were less dramatic than what happened on other campuses on Friday when police made dozens of arrests as pro-Gaza protest encampments were dismantled at the University of Pennsylvania and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Those actions came hours after police tear-gassed demonstrators and took down a similar camp at the University of Arizona. The Associated Press has recorded at least 75 instances since April 18 in which arrests were made at US campus protests. Nearly 2,900 people have been arrested at 57 colleges and universities. The Associated Press contributed to this report For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Lorraine Kelly described being sworn at by Brian Cox as one of the highlights of her career while accepting a prize at the 2024 Bafta TV Awards. Cox, who played the foul-mouthed media tycoon Logan Roy on the HBO drama Succession, was presenting the Lorraine host with the Bafta Special Award. Coxy! said Kelly, 64, after being handed the trophy. One of the highlights of my career was when Brian told me to eff off, she revealed, before adding: In character! At least I think it was in character. Cox, meanwhile, paid tribute to the much-loved ITV presenter in his introductory speech. He said: My late sister Betty was a huge fan of this years recipient and when I asked her why she loved her so much, her reply was this: Shes real. Her indominable spirit has etched her name as an integral part of British daytime television. Her infectious humour, boundless enthusiasm and genuine, genuine kindness instantly draws people in, and she truly deserves this recognition tonight. Cox was nominated on the night for his performance in Succession, although ultimately lost out in the Best Actor category to Timothy Spall. Spall took home the prize for his performance in the BBC One crimem drama The Sixth Commandment. Elsewhere on the night, viewers were left bemused by a live dance performance paying tribute to the Birmingham-set crime series Peaky Blinders. open image in gallery Lorraine Kelly with her Special Bafta ( BBC ) Other than the costumes and the music, this has absolutely nothing to do with Peaky Blinders. I dont get it, one person wrote. This years Baftas was hosted by comedians Rob Beckett and Romesh Ranganathan, who were also nominated twice for their Sky reality series. Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free Among the celebrities to appear at Londons Royal Festival Hall on the night was Joe Lycett, who was dressed as Queen Elizabeth after losing a bet. At the start of the evening, the nominees list was headed up by The Crown and Black Mirror, with eight and seven nominations respectively. Happy Valley, Slow Horses and The Sixth Commandment were all nominated six times, while The Last of Us, The Long Shadow and Succession had five. You can keep up with the winners list here. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Flash floods, landslides and a stream of cold lava from an active volcano left at least 43 people dead and 19 missing on the Indonesian island of Sumatra over the weekend. Images and videos shared by Indonesia's disaster response agency showed thick mud and ash covering roads and fields near the foot of Mount Marapi, one of the most active volcanoes in the country. The ash was from cold lava, known as "lahar" in Javanese, a hot or cold mixture of water and rock fragments that flows down the slopes of a volcano and typically enters a river valley. Cold lava can flow rapidly, at a speed of hundreds of kilometres per hour, and spread as far away as 60 km from the volcano. Cold lava flow generally occurs on or near a stratovolcano and can crush or bury almost anything in their path. It is considered more destructive and deadlier compared to regular lava flows, according to the United States Geological Survey. By destroying bridges and roads, lahars can also trap people in areas vulnerable to other hazardous volcanic activity, especially if the lahars leave fresh deposits that are too deep, too soft, or too hot to cross, said the US Geological Survey. open image in gallery Cold lava flood from Mount Marapi and widespread flooding hits Indonesia ( Anadolu via Getty ) Cold lava can form with or without an explosion. Heavy rain or snowfall can erode and transport loose volcanic sediment and form a slurry where vegetation poses no hindrance to the flow. A small eruption of ash or lava can melt enough of that snowcap to produce devastating lahars, Brittany Brand, director for the Boise State Hazard and Climate Resilience Institute at Boise State University, told Newsweek in an interview. open image in gallery Aftermath of flash floods in Tanah Datar, West Sumatra, Indonesia ( EPA ) Rains frequently cause landslides and flash floods in Indonesia, an archipelago nation of over 17,000 islands where millions of people live in mountainous areas or near floodplains. Indonesia sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire with 127 active volcanoes, more than any other country in the world. Mount Marapi alone has erupted 11 times in the 21st century. An eruption in December left 23 climbers dead and spewed ash as high as 3,000 metres into the air, covering entire towns and villages in the surrounding areas. It erupted again in January, prompting Indonesian authorities to warn people against going within a 4.5km radius of the crater where the eruption took place. Further back in 1979, an eruption of the volcano killed 60 people. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy At least 43 people died in flash floods triggered by heavy rains and torrents of cold lava and mud flowing down a volcano's slopes on Indonesias Sumatra island. Officials on Monday said another 17 people remained missing as the search and rescue operation continued. Torrential rain on Saturday caused flash floods, landslides, and cold lava flow from Mount Marapi in three districts in West Sumatra province. The deluge tore through mountainside villages and swept away people while submerging nearly 200 houses and buildings and damaging rice fields, said Abdul Malik, the chief of the provincial rescue team. open image in gallery Rescuers carry the body of a victim of a flash flood in Tanah Datar, West Sumatra, Indonesia ( AP ) Cold lava, also known as lahar in Indonesia, is a hot or cold mixture of water and rock fragments that flows down the slopes of a volcano and typically enters a river valley. Rescue officials recovered more bodies on Monday from the worst-hit villages in Agam and Tanah Datar districts. "Bad weather, damaged roads and access blocked by thick mud and debris were hampering relief efforts," said Ilham Wahab, chief of the West Sumatra Disaster Mitigation Agency. The flash floods over the weekend also left at least 19 people injured. Around 400 personnel, consisting of local rescuers, police, and military have been pressed into action to search for the missing people. Eko Widodo, a 43-year-old survivor, told Reuters that the floods came instantly. "The flooding was sudden and the river became blocked which resulted in the flow of water everywhere and it was out of control." open image in gallery Flash flood kills at least 43 people in West Sumatra ( EPA ) Videos released by the National Search and Rescue Agency showed roads transformed into murky brown rivers and villages covered by thick mud, rocks, and uprooted trees. Heavy rains cause frequent landslides and flash floods in Indonesia, an archipelago nation of more than 17,000 islands where millions of people live in mountainous areas or near floodplains. The disaster came just two months after heavy rains triggered flash floods and a landslide in West Sumatra, killing at least 26 people and leaving 11 others missing. A surprise eruption of Mount Marapi late last year killed 23 climbers. Marapi is known for sudden eruptions that are difficult to predict because the source is shallow and near the peak, and its eruptions aren't caused by a deep movement of magma, which sets off tremors that register on seismic monitors, according to Indonesia's Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation. Marapi has been active since an eruption in January 2024 that caused no casualties. It is among more than 120 active volcanoes in Indonesia. The country is prone to seismic upheaval because of its location on the Pacific "Ring of Fire", an arc of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thailands police have seized a tonne of crystal methamphetamine worth almost 2m, in one of the biggest ever single seizure of the illegal drug. The drug burst happened after police officers stopped a pick-up truck in central Nakhon Nayok province on Friday following information of movement of large amounts of drugs, the Royal Thai Police said in a press conference on Sunday. As many as 40 bags of the methamphetamine commonly known by its street name Ice were seized from the truck, said national police chief Kittharath Punpetch. He said that Thailands army and police officers were on alert and monitoring smuggling gangs across the country after learning about the movement of drugs. The driver of the truck has been arrested but the police believe that the huge consignment was linked to a Thai national based in a neighbouring country. Inshik Sim, from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime Regional Office, said there was a notable increase in trafficking cases involving one ton or more of the drug in the Mekong. Thailand is a part of the major transit route the golden triangle known for the illicit trade of methamphetamines and other illegal drugs between Myanmar, Laos, and Thailand. The estimated international value of the latest seizure was Thai Bhats 798mn (19.9m). According to reports, drugs flow from super labs in parts of Myanmar, specifically its Shan state, which is known for the worlds largest meth trade. In 2023, a UN report found that Myanmar overtook Afghanistan as the worlds largest producer of opium. Methamphetamine is primarily distributed in two forms: pills commonly referred to as yaba, or the highly addictive crystal methamphetamine, known as ice. In recent years, law enforcement agencies from Thailand and China, supported by neighboring forces, have intensified operations in the Golden Triangle. In December last year, Thai police seized an estimated 50 million tablets hidden in sacks in a six-wheeler truck from western province of Kanchanaburi, close to the Myanmar border. At that time, the quantity of methamphetamine tablets seized was a record for Thailand. Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet Get our free Climate email Get our free Climate email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy More than 3,000 people in British Columbia have been ordered to evacuate by authorities after the first major wildfires of the year erupted in Canada. Residents in the small town of Fort Nelson, around 995 miles from Vancouver, have been urged to leave immediately after a blaze that started on Friday almost doubled in size in 24 hours. The wildfires have now spread to roughly 30 square miles in total across western Canada, Reuters reported. On Sunday, British Columbias wildfire service maps showed the fire burning just a few miles west of Fort Nelsons city limits. The town, and the Fort Nelson Indian Reserve, have a combined population of about 3,500. The Northern Rockies Regional Municipality (NRRM) and Fort Nelson First Nation issued a joint statement warning people choosing to stay that emergency medical services are not available, nor are groceries or other amenities. open image in gallery Canadas first major wildfires of the year have spread to roughly 30 square miles ( via REUTERS ) Footage shared online by locals showed thick plumes of smoke rising into the sky, in some photos, haze appears to cover wide areas. A previous alert, issued by NRRM on Saturday for the areas of Nogah and Patry Creek, read: This Evacuation Alert has been issued to prepare you to evacuate your premises or property should it be found necessary. Residents will be given as much advance notice as possible prior to evacuation; however, you may receive limited notice due to changing conditions. The alert advised residents to locate family members, pack essential items, prepare to move vulnerable persons and pets, and arrange transport and accommodation ahead of time. On Sunday, the municipality mayor, Rob Fraser, said most of the residents in and around Fort Nelson have been evacuated, adding that police were going door to door to ensure everyone got out, according to Associated Press. Health authorities said Fort Nelson General Hospital has been safely evacuated and closed until further notice. open image in gallery Smoke from wildfires blankets the city as a couple has a picnic in Edmonton, Alberta on May 11, 2024 ( AP ) Last year, Canada had a record number of wildfires which forced tens of thousands of people to evacuate across British Columbia. The fires also led to choking, thick smoke billowing south into parts of the US, turning the sky an apocalyptic orange in cities like New York and Washington DC. This weekend, authorities in Alberta issued an alert about a wildfire 16 miles southwest of the oil sands hub of Fort McMurray that could impact visibility on highways in some areas. The blaze grew significantly over the weekend to 21 square miles, much larger than what was reported on Friday, though no evacuation order has been given so far for the major Canadian oil city. Elsewhere on Saturday, high winds pushed smoke across Alberta, putting the city of Edmonton under an air quality advisory with hazard levels rated at 10-plus, or very high risk, forecast. Meteorologists are not anticipating rain and have advised people to stay indoors. Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet Get our free Climate email Get our free Climate email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Regions of Minnesota and Wisconsin are under air quality alerts as smoke rolls in from devastating Canadian wildfires. The thick smoke is rolling into the Great Lakes region as more than 100 wildfires rage in British Columbia on Monday. The largest blaze, the Parker Lake wildfire, has now forced more than 3,000 people to evacuate as the flames threaten the small town of Fort Nelson. Now, wind gusts have blown the smoke to southern Minnesota and much of central Wisconsin, leaving thousands under air quality alerts. open image in gallery Wildfire smoke hangs over the Minneapolis skyline on Monday, May 13, 2024 ( AP ) The southern half of Minnesota is under a red air quality index category, according to the states pollution control agency. The alert means the air is unhealthy for all residents, rather than just those with underlying health conditions. People with asthma and heart disease are among the most vulnerable, as well as children and the elderly. Meanwhile, Wisconsin residents are facing an air quality advisory for sensitive groups, according to state officials. Residents in impacted areas should avoid being outdoors for prolonged periods, officials in both states said. open image in gallery Smoke fills the air in Albert, Canada as the Parker Lake wildfire rages in British Columbia ( Alberta Wildfire Service/AFP via ) The Parker Lake wildfire began on 10 May due to a strong wind event, officials said. It has burned more than 5,000 hectares, or 20 square miles, as of Monday. A Sunday evening cold front brought another series of strong wind gusts that caused the flames near Fort Nelson to spread rapidly. Winds are expected to continue throughout Monday. Cliff Chapman, the services director of operations, warned remaining residents should leave immediately. open image in gallery An arial image of the Parker Lake wildfire burning near Fort Nelson in British Columbia. Strong winds fueled the fire Sunday evening into Monday, officials said ( BC Wildfire Service/AFP via Gett ) If you are still in Fort Nelson or anywhere in the evacuation order of the Parker Lake wildfire, I encourage you to leave, Mr Champan said in a Sunday evening video. The fuels are as dry as weve ever seen. The wind is going to be sustained and it is going to push the fire towards the community. Escape routes may be compromised and visibility will be poor as the fire continues to grow, he continued. Ben Boghean, fire behaviour specialist, said on Sunday that years of drought also made the region prone to wildfires this year. The fire is expected to spread south and southwest towards the US but winds are expected to slow down on Tuesday, reducing the spread, Mr Boghean said. Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy A restaurant has named a special dish in honor of rapper Kendrick Lamar, after he mentioned the establishment amid his ongoing feud with Drake. New Ho King a Chinese restaurant in Drakes hometown of Toronto, Canada has seen a surge in popularity since the Los Angeles-born rapper gave a shout out to the unassuming restaurant in his Drake diss track, Euphoria. I be at New Ho King eatin fried rice with a dip sauce and a blammy, crodie, Lamar raps on the track, sarcastically using the Ontario slang term for bro. Since the track was released on 30 April, the restaurant located in Torontos Chinatown neighbourhood has seen its business soar by 300 per cent, owner Johnny Lu told MarketWatch. Its more busy than before, he said. Now that Drake and Kendrick did that, now theres more, more, more stuff to do. According to a viral video posted by food blogger @insta.noodls, customers are now flocking to New Ho King to order the Kendrick Lamar special a series of dishes featuring a massive plate of fried rice, deep fried shrimp with chili and crispy garlic, spicy fried chicken wings, and beef and broccoli. The four dishes came out to a total of $66, but customers can also enjoy the fried rice with the optional dip sauce in true Lamar fashion. New Ho King has operated in the citys Chinatown for nearly five decades, The Guardian reported on 10 May. While the Kendrick Lamar special is the restaurants latest attraction, its most popular dish remains to be the Ho King Special Fried Rice a mix of shrimp, pork, eggs, peas, and lettuce. Just days after the release of Euphoria, Drake responded to Lamar with his own diss track, titled Family Matters. New Ho King was even featured in part of the music video, in which Drake and his posse can be seen with an array of dishes spread out on the table, including the fried rice. Drake (real name Aubrey Graham) and Lamar have made headlines for their ongoing feud, launching personal attacks against each other in a series of diss tracks. The feud between the two stars began a month ago, when Lamar hit out at the Canadian rapper and J Cole in his song First Person Shooter. Drake responded with a diss track accusing Lamar of domestic violence, while Lamar in turn accused Drake of having a secret daughter. In another song titled, Not Like Us, Lamar called Drake a certified paedophile and made multiple references to alleged interactions with younger women. On 7 May, things took a turn when a drive-by shooting occurred outside Drakes residence. A security guard was shot in the chest, and police officers found him unconscious when they arrived at the scene. Toronto police said that the security guard was standing outside of the gates in front of the property when he was shot by an unknown assailant, and was transported to a hospital with serious injuries. There have also been three instances of intruders attempting to break into Drakes mansion, the most recent one on 11 May. In response, the rapper issued the plea on social media: Can we discuss the chopper flight times over the house cause I wont lie, Im trying to sleep. Anytime after 3pm works great for me. Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Olivia Munn has revealed that she underwent a full hysterectomy after being diagnosed with breast cancer. The actor, 43, who announced in March that a genetic test to determine if she carried cancer genes found she had breast cancer, has now opened up about the fifth surgery she had to undergo after receiving her diagnosis. I have now had an oophorectomy and hysterectomy, the actor told Vogue magazine. I took out my uterus, fallopian tubes, and ovaries. The procedure was done in April and The Newsroom star said she chose it as an alternative to treatment that was making her unwell. She has previously spoken about the symptoms from the treatment saying her hair had started thinning and she was constantly tired. The side effects of the medication hit me almost immediately, she said of the treatment, which put her body into medically induced menopause. The medication, Lupron, was meant to suppress oestrogen, the hormone that could cause the cancer to reoccur. It was next-level, debilitating exhaustion. I would wake up in the morning and almost immediately need to get back into bed. Munn added that while the hysterectomy meant she couldnt have children and was a big decision, she made it because she needed to be present for my family. I had friends try to cheer me up by saying, Malcolms not going to remember this. Dont worry. But I just kept thinking to myself, Im going to remember this, that I missed all these things. Its his childhood, but its my motherhood, and I dont want to miss any of these parts if I dont have to. Malcolm is Munns one son with comedian John Mulaney. He was born in 2021. The actor said she spoke with Mulaney and they decided that they werent done growing our family leading to a final round of egg retrieval before the hysterectomy to use for a surrogacy. The retrieval proved successful and the doctor informed the couple that they had two healthy embryos. It was just so exciting because not only did we get it in one retrieval, but it also meant that I didnt have to keep putting myself at risk, she said. With a surrogate, you have to try to go find a version of yourself somewhere out in the world. Somebody that you trust as much as yourself to live their life as a pregnant woman the same way that you would, Munn said. But a surrogate isnt a scary prospect to me anymore because theres nothing I can do. I dont have the ability to carry a baby anymore, so if we want to build our family, this is our option, she added. This journey has made me realise how grateful I am to have options for not only fighting cancer, but also having more children if we want, because I know a lot of people dont have those options. In March, Munn took to Instagram to reveal that she had breast cancer while detailing her process of being diagnosed. She wrote that she and her sister were undergoing genetic testing for 90 different cancer genes, including BRCA, the most well-known breast cancer gene. Although both Munn and her sister tested negative for the gene and had a clear mammogram, her doctor decided to calculate her Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Score just in case. The fact that she did saved my life, Munn added, noting that her risk was 37 per cent. Because of that risk, Munn was sent for an MRI, ultrasound, and biopsy, which revealed she had Luminal B cancer in both breasts. Her post explained that it is an aggressive, fast moving cancer. I went from feeling completely fine one day, to waking up in a hospital bed after a 10-hour surgery the next, she wrote. Im lucky. We caught it with enough time that I had options. Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Meghan Markle wore an ode to her late mother-in-law, Princess Diana, during her recent trip to Nigeria. The 42-year-old Duchess of Sussex travelled with her husband to Abuja, the capital of Nigeria, to celebrate military families on 11 May. For the occasion, Meghan donned a strapless white dress and a dazzling necklace that paid tribute to Princess Diana, who died 27 years ago at age 36. According to People, the gold chain with a studded cross was a gift to Meghan from Prince Harry. The Duke of Sussex was handed down the necklace from his mothers coveted collection. Meghan and Kate Middleton, Princess Dianas daughters-in-law, have honoured her memory multiple times by wearing jewellery pieces that once belonged to her, some of which were passed down from the late Queen Elizabeth II. The Princess of Wales, who was recently diagnosed with abdominal cancer, has worn several of Princess Dianas jewels, but has repeatedly worn a few of her favourite pieces. Kate, 42, fastened her Diamond and South Sea Earrings for the 2019 BAFTA Awards, the 2022 Royal Ascot, and the 2023 coronation for King Charles. Shes also been seen wearing the Cambridge Lovers Knot Tiara, Collingwood Pearl earrings, and her sapphire drop earrings, while Kates sapphire engagment ring was the one previously worn by Princess Diana. Meghan has been seen in her mother-in-laws butterfly earrings, aquamarine ring, diamond bracelet, and Cartier Tank watch. For the Suits actress trip to Nigeria, her wardrobe appeared like a lookbook of classic yet chic attire. Meghan wore everything from a tailored white pantsuit by Altuzarra to a red dress by the Nigerian brand, Orire. While co-hosting a Women in Leadership discussion with Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the World Trade Organisations director general, Meghan spoke about her Nigerian background and feeling connected to her heritage. Never in a million years would I understand it as much as I do now, she admitted during the event. And what has been echoed so much in the past day is: Oh, we are not so surprised when we found out you are Nigerian. It is a compliment to you, because what they define as a Nigerian woman is brave, resilient, courageous, beautiful, she continued. When her audience was asked to brainstorm possibilities for Meghans Nigerian name, several options were offered. Some suggested Ifeoma, which means a treasured thing. Others said, Omowale, which means the child has come home, according to ABC News. Sign up for our free Health Check email to receive exclusive analysis on the week in health Get our free Health Check email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Health Check email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} A parliamentary inquiry into birth trauma is calling for a national plan to improve maternity care as it found good care is the exception rather than the rule. The report, published on Monday, was led by Conservative MP Theo Clarke, who thought she was going to die when giving birth to her daughter in 2022, and Labour MP Rosie Duffield. The report detailed harrowing stories including mothers being left to lie in their own blood and urine, or having their concerns about their babys health dismissed which in some cases resulted in death. According to The Times, the report found poor care is all frequently tolerated as normal, and women are treated as an inconvenience. Among the recommendations included in the report is the creation of a maternity commissioner reporting to the prime minister. Conservative MP Theo Clarke speaking in the House of Commons, during a backbench debate on birth trauma ( PA ) Ms Clarke told The Times that the horrific testimony has shone a light on how we must do so much better when it comes to maternity services. She also told BBC Radio 4s Today programme that the inquiry highlights geographic discrepancies in care: I think what came through very strongly (in the inquiry) was that there does seem to be a postcode lottery for maternity care in this country, and thats something that I dont think is acceptable that depending on where you live, you will literally be offered a different level of care in terms of how youre given support during childbirth and afterwards. Describing her own experience, she said: I remember pressing the emergency button after Id come out of surgery and a lady came in and said she couldnt help me, said it wasnt her baby, wasnt her problem and walked out and left me there. So we need to make sure there are safe levels of staffing. Research from the Birth Trauma Association charity shows that about 4-5 per cent of women experience PTSD after birth about 25,000-30,000 a year in the UK. It says many more women experience some trauma symptoms, such as intense anxiety or flashbacks, but not enough for a PTSD diagnosis. NHS England chief executive Amanda Pritchard said the experiences of more than 1,300 women who have given evidence to the inquiry were simply not good enough. Victoria Atkins shared her personal experience of the darker corners of the NHS after giving birth as a patient with type 1 diabetes ( EPA ) Health secretary Victoria Atkins said she was determined to improve the quality and consistency of care for women throughout pregnancy, birth and the critical months that follow. In January, she shared her personal experience of the darker corners of the NHS after giving birth as a patient with type one diabetes. I want to reform our NHS and care system to make it faster, simpler and fairer for all of us and that includes women, she said. The womens health minister apologised to women affected by birth trauma, following the findings of a parliamentary inquiry. Asked whether there was an apology to be made, Maria Caulfield told Sky News: Absolutely. I recognise as womens health minister that maternity services have not been where we want them to be. She added that rates of neonatal deaths and stillbirths are coming down after reaching their highest point in two decades. Ms Caulfield also told LBC: If you actually look at the neonatal deaths and stillbirth deaths, they are falling by roughly between 20 and 30 per cent, so the measures we are putting in are working. We know, for example, that Covid had a significant impact on pregnant mums and on poorer outcomes for babies. Our figures are better than the Labour-run health service in Wales, for example, and they are not putting in any of these measures. Sign up for our free Health Check email to receive exclusive analysis on the week in health Get our free Health Check email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Health Check email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} The first person to have a genetically modified pig kidney transplant has died nearly two months after he underwent the surgery. The family of Richard Rick Slayman confirmed the news. Rick had the transplant at Massachusetts General Hospital in March at the age of 62. Surgeons said they believed the pig kidney would last for at least two years. The transplant team at Massachusetts General Hospital said in a statement it was deeply saddened by Slayman's passing and offered condolences to his family. They said they didn't have any indication that he died as a result of the transplant. The Weymouth, Massachusetts, man was the first living person to have the procedure. Previously, pig kidneys had been temporarily transplanted into brain-dead donors. Two men received heart transplants from pigs, although both died within months. Slayman had a kidney transplant at the hospital in 2018, but he had to go back on dialysis last year when it showed signs of failure. When dialysis complications arose requiring frequent procedures, his doctors suggested a pig kidney transplant. At the time his discharge was hailed as a major landmark for medical science. Rick Slayman with (left to right) Dr. Leo Riella, Medical Director of Kidney Transplantation, Dr. Nahel Elias, Interim Chief, Division of Transplant Surgery, his partner, Faren, and Dr. Tatsuo Kawai, Director, Legoretta Center for Clinical Transplant Tolerance ( Massachusetts General Hospital ) Doctors at the hospital at the time said the kidney transplanted to Mr Slayman was functioning properly, producing urine, removing waste from the blood and maintaining the balance in the bodys fluids. This moment leaving the hospital today with one of the cleanest bills of health Ive had in a long time is one I wished would come for many years, he said in the statement. Now its a reality. Today marks a new beginning not just for me, but for them as well, Mr Slayman said. Im excited to resume spending time with my family, friends and loved ones free from the burden of dialysis that has affected my quality of life for many years, he added. In a statement on Saturday, Slayman's family thanked his doctors. Their enormous efforts leading the xenotransplant gave our family seven more weeks with Rick, and our memories made during that time will remain in our minds and hearts, the statement said. They said Slayman underwent the surgery in part to provide hope for the thousands of people who need a transplant to survive. Rick accomplished that goal and his hope and optimism will endure forever, the statement said. Xenotransplantation refers to healing human patients with cells, tissues or organs from animals. Such efforts long failed because the human immune system immediately destroyed foreign animal tissue. Recent attempts have involved pigs that have been modified so their organs are more humanlike. More than 100,000 people are on the national waiting list for a transplant, most of them kidney patients, and thousands die every year before their turn comes. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} The trial of aristocrat Constance Marten and her partner Mark Gordon over the death of their baby had been due to last six weeks but has now entered its fourth month after a string of delays. Marten, 36, and Gordon, 49, both deny gross negligence manslaughter of their daughter Victoria after they went on the run to stop her from being taken into care like their four other children. The mother insists she fell asleep with the newborn infant zipped inside her jacket as they camped in wintry conditions in a flimsy tent on the South Downs last January, but awoke to find her dead. The childs remains were eventually found in a Lidl carrier bag covered with rubbish in a disused shed in Brighton last March, shortly after the parents were arrested after 53 days on the run with the newborn. Marten being questioned by her barrister Francis FitzGibbon KC at the Old Bailey ( PA ) When is the trial due to resume? Jurors have so far been deliberating for a total of five days since they were sent out on 30 April after hearing weeks of evidence over the infants death. However the 11-strong panel of six men and five women will not resume deliberations until 20 May at the earliest due to a long-standing juror commitment after the trial has dramatically overrun. The high-profile hearing was originally scheduled to conclude by 8 March but has lasted much longer as the court painstakingly made its way through evidence including CCTV footage, pathologists reports and police interview recordings. The long-running case also heard six days of evidence from Marten, who insisted she did nothing but love Victoria, who she says died in a tragic accident last January after she fell asleep with her zipped inside her jacket. Prosecutors accused Marten of telling big fat lies to the court after the babys decomposed body was found dumped in a rubbish-filled carrier bag after the couple spent 53 days on the run. Why has it been delayed? The trial has been beset by a string of delays including a blaze in an electrical substation at the countrys top criminal court. The fire at the Old Bailey which plunged the court into darkness while black smoke billowed from the rear of the building forced an emergency evacuation of the trial and closed the court for four days while repairs were carried out. More than 1500 people poured out of the Grade II listed court in central London after an explosion was heard as the fire broke out on 7 February, postponing dozens of trials and hearings. Defendants held in custody were seen being led from the building and evacuated in prison vans as officials cleared the building to assess the damage. The long-running case has been further slowed by pre-existing jury commitments after the trial exceeded the original time schedule. Last Wednesday members of the jury were told to press the pause button on their deliberations for more than a week due to juror commitments until 20 May, when they are due to resume at 9am. Firemen at the Old Bailey following a fire in an electrical substation ( NickJBBC/X ) The prosecution claims baby Victoria didnt stand a chance during her short life after she was taken off-grid wearing just a baby grow and a vest last winter. Jurors must decide on five counts on the indictment. The couple both deny gross negligence manslaughter of their daughter Victoria between 4 January and 27 February last year. They also deny charges of perverting the course of justice by concealing the body, along with concealing the birth of a child, child cruelty, and allowing the death of a child. The trial continues. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Three men have appeared in court accused of assisting the Hong Kong intelligence service and foreign interference. Chi Leung (Peter) Wai, 38, Matthew Trickett, 37, and Chung Biu Yuen, 63, spoke only to confirm their identities at Westminster Magistrates Court on Monday. It is alleged that between 20 December 2023 and 2 May 2024, Yuen, Wai and Trickett agreed to undertake information gathering, surveillance and acts of deception that were likely to materially assist a foreign intelligence service. Chi Leung Wai ( PA ) The court also heard that on 1 May 2024 they forced entry into a UK residence. All wearing grey sweatshirts, Wai, of Staines-upon-Thames, Surrey; Trickett, of Maidenhead, Berkshire; and Yuen, of Hackney, east London, who was also wearing a black jacket, sat side by side in the glass-fronted dock for a brief hearing before they were given bail. Trickett is employed as a Home Office immigration enforcement officer and was previously a Royal Commando in the marines for six years. Wai works as a Border Force officer at Heathrow Airport and Yuen is employed as a Hong Kong trade official based in London. China has reacted with fury to the charges. Its London embassy told The Telegraph: We strongly condemn the UKs unwarranted accusation against the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government. Chung Biu Yuen ( Reuters ) District Judge Louisa Cieciora said they must abide by conditions including a 10pm to 5am curfew, reporting weekly to their local police station, not travelling internationally and informing police of devices used to access the internet. They were charged with the offences under the National Security Act following an investigation by the Metropolitan Police Counter Terrorism Command that saw a total of 11 people arrested. Eight men and a woman were arrested by officers on 1 May in the Yorkshire area, before a man was arrested in London and another man was arrested in the Yorkshire area the following day, the force said. Court sketch of the trio in the dock in Westminster ( PA ) All 11 people were detained under Section 27 of the National Security Act. The seven men and one woman who were not charged were released from custody on or before 10 May. The Metropolitan Police said the investigation was not related to a separate case involving Russia. The three men are next due to appear at the Old Bailey on 24 May. Commander Dominic Murphy, head of the Mets Counter Terrorism Command, said: A number of arrests were made and searches carried out across England as part of this investigation. While led from London, the Counter Terrorism Policing network has been crucial to disrupting this activity and we have worked closely with the Crown Prosecution Service since the start of the investigation. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} The man behind the white/gold-blue/black dress that broke the internet has pleaded guilty to endangering his wifes life, and admitted to strangling her. Keir Johnston, 38, appeared at the High Court in Glasgow on Thursday, where he pleaded guilty to a terrifying attack on his wife, Grace Johnston, that left her fearing for her life, but alive, according to The Daily Record. Johnston, from the Isle of Colonsay, off the west coast of Scotland, was remanded in custody until his sentence next month, scheduled for 6 June. Johnston received global attention for #TheDress after an image of his mother-in-laws dress during his wedding in 2015 was shared online by a guest at the event. The debate over the dresss true colours black and blue or white and gold broke the internet, headlines said at the time and drew thousands of comments including from celebrities. Reality star Kim Kardashian posted that she had argued about it with her then-husband, Kanye West. The photo dress posted on social media divided opinion as to whether it was white/gold, or black/blue ( Swiked / Tumblr ) Ellen DeGeneres invited the Johnstons onto her talk show, where they were given $10,000 and a trip to Grenada. This week, the Scottish court heard that behind closed doors Johnston left his wife fearing for her life, and had a history of domestic abuse towards her. Chris Macintosh, prosecutor for the Crown, told Lady Drummond and the court how Grace lived in fear of her abusive husband, The Record reported. There is no permanent police presence on the island, and she was in a situation where she felt trapped, he said. The court heard that Ms Johnston had once refused her husbands demands not to attend a job interview on the mainland. Days later he told her he was leaving her before the pair got into an altercation where Johnston grabbed his wife and threw her to the ground. Johnston woke up and said that he was going to leave her. She went outside the property to stop him leaving. He followed her and pinned her to the ground, Mr Macintosh said, according to The Record. Keir Johnston, pictured left during a talk show appearance in 2015, admitted to strangling his wife Grace Johnston, right, during a hearing at the High Court in Glasgow on Thursday ( The Ellen Show/YouTube ) He placed both knees on her arms, so she was unable to move. He then began strangling her with both his hands. She was initially able to scream and feared for her life and believed Johnston intended to kill her as he was very forceful, Mr Macintosh said that despite suffering severe bruising, Ms Johnston did not require medical treatment. Lawyers for Johnston said he had accepted responsibility for the assault. Lady Drummond denied Johnston bail and placed him in custody, telling him: I have no need to tell you that this is a serious and violent offence. You repeatedly strangled her, injured her and put her life in danger in what must have been absolutely terrifying circumstances for her. I am afraid, Mr Johnston, that your status has now changed, you have been convicted of a very serious crime and you will be remanded meantime. It is unclear whether the Johnstons have separated following the incident. Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} A heroic Afghan pilot who helped Britain in its war against the Taliban is begging for his wife to be allowed to join him in the UK. As he makes his appeal, charities are calling for the Home Offices broken family reunion system to be fixed. The air force lieutenant, who was granted asylum in the UK after a five-month-long campaign by The Independent, is waiting for his young family, including his wife, who are currently in Iran. He is worried that they will be forced to return to Afghanistan as their visas have run out in Iran. His story is one of thousands, it has emerged, with figures from summer 2023 showing that more than 11,000 people were then waiting to be reunited with family members in the UK. The Home Office has repeatedly refused to provide an updated figure for the visa backlog through freedom of information laws. Charities Refugee Council and Safe Passage have called on the government to fix and expand the UKs broken family reunion system in a new report, which draws on the many cases of separated refugee families that they are supporting. The Afghan pilot said of his family: They have been waiting for a visa for five months in Iran, but so far there is no news from the embassy and there is no guarantee it will be issued. My family are facing a lot of problems. They dont have a proper place to live, and dont have access to a doctor, because they are living illegally. Their Iranian visas have expired and they need to extend them, but it is impossible. My wife is suffering mentally and emotionally, and she is completely [without hope]. Afghan refugees wait to be processed at Heathrow airport after arriving on an evacuation flight from Afghanistan ( AFP via Getty ) Under current rules, separated refugee children in the UK do not have the right to bring their parents into the country. Afghans evacuated from Kabul during Operation Pitting in August 2021 are also not allowed to bring their close family to the UK, and Ukrainian refugees in the UK are not able to sponsor family members to join them either. Even those who have been granted the right to resettle in the UK can often find themselves waiting years to be relocated. And many thousands who apply for a family reunification visa are forced to wait months for a decision, despite the Home Office promising to process applications within 12 weeks. One young unaccompanied Afghan child supported by Safe Passage, Ahmad, tried to join his older brother in the UK. His father had been killed by the Taliban and his mother was also dead but the Home Office did not accept that there were any serious and compelling circumstances that would necessitate a relocation to the UK. His family reunion case was only successful after a UK judge ordered the Home Office to help. Afghans who were evacuated to the UK during Operation Pitting are also struggling to be reunited with family members. Despite ministers promising in October 2023 that a new route would allow them to bring close family to safety, the pathway has not yet been set up. Farhad, a teenager who was airlifted from Kabul without his parents, told The Independent: They promised in 2021 that theyre going to bring the families, but its still been almost three years. My mum and my siblings are in Pakistan because they needed a doctor and medication. But my father couldnt get the visa to go with them. I am doing my GCSEs this month and I cant really focus on my studies knowing that my family is struggling. MPs and Lords wrote to the Home Office last week, calling on the government to act faster to reunite Afghan families. Dr Wanda Wyporska, CEO at Safe Passage International, said: Nearly three years on, its a national shame that Afghans, who risked so much to support UK military operations, are still waiting for a way to bring their family to safety here with them. Their family members are living in fear every day of the Taliban. Enver Solomon, CEO of the Refugee Council, said: The UK has clearly failed the Afghan refugees that it promised to protect, by keeping families separated for so long with no information on how they may be reunited. After risking everything for the UK, Afghans and their families should not be forced to make dangerous boat journeys to get here, nor should they face hostile, inhumane policies like the Rwanda plan when they do make it to the UK. A Home Office spokesperson said: We made one of the largest commitments of any country to support people from Afghanistan, and so far we have brought around 27,900 individuals to safety in the UK, including thousands under our Afghan resettlement schemes. In October we committed to establish a route for those evacuated from Afghanistan under Pathway 1 of the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme without their immediate family members, to reunite them in the UK. We remain on track to meet that commitment and open the route for referrals in the first half of this year. Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} As the 80th anniversary of D-Day approaches, there arent many people old enough to remember the day that marked the turning point of the Second World War, when Allied forces landed on the beaches of Normandy to begin the liberation of north-west Europe from Nazi occupation. And because there are so few people left to tell the tale of what happened on June 6, 1944 or during the rest of the war, its hugely important to find out, particularly about your own family members. But without a detailed history of what relatives did during the war, how do families go about discovering what their ancestors roles were? The Second World War had a huge impact on the British Isles and the lives of our families, and many people have stories of family members who served, or snippets of information about an ancestor who was involved, says Simon Pearce, a family history expert at Ancestry UK. But there is little more to go on. Its so important that we remember the monumental sacrifices made by our ancestors during the war, whether at home or overseas, and keep their stories alive for future generations. One way we can do this is by researching their military service like all types of family history, Second World War research can be challenging, but its incredibly rewarding. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) cares for war graves at 23,000 locations throughout the world, commemorating almost 1.7 million men and women who died in the First and Second World Wars. CWGC spokesperson Lewis Brown says the CWGC website or app are good places to find records of the men and women who fought for British and Commonwealth forces, and who died in the war. He points out: Perhaps most heartbreakingly of all, the records also show the personal inscriptions on their headstones. Lewis Brown ( Lewis Brown/PA ) An example of one of the headstone inscriptions is: Into the mosaic of victory our most precious piece was laid, from the headstone of Royal Marine Edward William Durn. He is buried at Bayeux War Cemetery in Normandy, which is one of the key sites for D-Day commemorative events this year. How to find out what your family members did in the Second World War Ask those closest to you Start by speaking to family and ask parents, grandparents, aunts or uncles questions. Its amazing what you can pick up from a simple conversation and asking, Did anyone in our family serve during the Second World War?, says Pearce. Search for family memorabilia A photograph of someone in uniform, a letter, diary or newspaper cutting could contain clues to help you research your ancestor, suggests Pearce. Look through the CWGC records Although the CWGC doesnt store military records, its database holds commemoration records of Commonwealth servicemen and women, who died during the war. This includes any Commonwealth war casualty who died in service between the outbreak of war in 1939 and the end of the CWGC commemoration period, December 31, 1947. Search the CWGC Find War Dead page, entering any information you have on your relative, such as their first and last name, service number and regiment. Members of recruits of the Horse Transport Unit attached to the Royal Army Service Corps learning how to shoe a horse ( PA ) Brown says: When people search for the war dead, they can discover a casualtys regiment/unit or ship, date of death and age, where they are buried or commemorated at, and their country of service. Theres also additional information on our records, which usually show details of relatives and an address. Search the National Archives You can find out more about what your ancestors did by searching the National Archives, which offers a wealth of information, including official records, personal correspondence, diaries and leaflets. Try their regiment If you know what regiment your relative served in, look at their regimental records to get more information about their military career. Look at unit war diaries If your ancestor served in the British Army, their unit war diary will provide a day-to-day account of what a battalion or unit was doing during the war. War diaries can be seen in the National Archives, and theres a selection of Second World War diaries on Ancestry UK, covering D-Day and the Second Battle of El Alamein. Look at Second World War service records While service records used to be held by the Ministry of Defence, many have been transferred to the National Archives for digitisation. The Ministry of Defence website (MOD) outlines what has been transferred and how to apply, whether its through the MOD or the National Archives. Check out other records Further information available through Ancestry UK includes Second World War Casualty Records, such as the British Army Casualty Lists, Allied Airmen Roll of Honour, the Merchant Seaman Deaths collection, or the Allied Prisoners of War collection (1939-1945) . Dont forget the Home Front As well as researching ancestors who served in the military, Pearce suggests trying to find out what other family members did on the Home Front, by checking the Home Guard records. The Blitz, evacuation and rationing had a significant impact on our families, and their stories are also worth exploring, he points out. For more information on what non-military ancestors did during the Second World War, try checking the 1939 England and Wales Register. Taken on September 29, 1939, the register indicates where people were living, who was in their household, when they were born and their occupations. Its a great tool for establishing where your ancestors were living less than a month after the British declaration of war, explains Pearce. You may notice that your family member was an evacuee, living away from home, or had an evacuee staying in their household. There may also be details of any voluntary war work carried out by your ancestors on the Home Front, such as an air raid warden or a fire watcher. Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} The chair of Marks and Spencer has said the police are not interested in shoplifting, which has risen to record levels in the UK overall. Archie Norman said his staff get very little help from the police when dealing with theft and said the company has spent a lot of money on preventative measures. He told LBCs Nick Ferrari: We have store detectives, technology, camera systems ... we monitor all our stores, not least because if somebody is threatened we can intervene. Mr Norman, a former Conservative MP, said theft had gone down at M&S partly because of the preventative measures put in place by the company. He said: We get very little help from the police. I mean, I think we have to accept the police are not interested in this sort of crime anymore. Whether we like it or not, thats the way its gone. Some of the countrys biggest retailers have sounded the alarm over rising levels of shoplifting and abuse against staff. Co-op said there were more than 300,000 incidents of shoplifting, abuse, violence and anti-social behaviour in its stores last year. The boss of John Lewis said shoplifting had become an epidemic with a rise in organised gangs looting stores. The chain is among 10 of the UKs biggest retailers which last year agreed to fund a police operation to crack down on shoplifting, dubbed Project Pegasus. The companies are expected to pay around 600,000 towards the project, which will use CCTV pictures and facial recognition technology to get a better understanding of shoplifting operations. The concerns of major retailers are supported by the latest figures that show the number of shoplifting offences recorded by police in England and Wales has risen to the highest level in 20 years. A total of 430,104 offences were logged by forces last year, up more than a third (37 per cent) on the 315,040 recorded in the previous 12 months to December 2022. The figure is the highest since current records began in the year to March 2003, according to the Office for National Statistics, which described the latest increase as notable. Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Skygazers were left spellbound for the third night in a row on Sunday as a solar storm painted the night skies with aurora borealis in the UK, the US, Europe and Canada. The powerful geomagnetic storm created a glowing green, pink and purple Northern Lights show seen from several parts of the UK, including London, Liverpool and Whitley Bay. And the lights were even more impressive across the Atlantic Ocean in the US and Canada. The show on Sunday night was caused by a weakened G3 category geomagnetic storm, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said. It began as a more extreme G5 category storm on Friday when the celestial display was more pronounced. This weekends was the most powerful solar storm to hit Earth in over two decades. Such a storm is caused when the sun ejects large clouds of particles known as coronal mass ejections and they collide with Earths magnetic field. The last G5 storm hit Earth in October 2003 and sparked power outages in Sweden. The latest storm posed a risk to transmission lines for power grids, but not to the electrical lines ordinarily found in our homes, space weather forecaster Shawn Dahl said. Satellites could also be affected, disrupting navigation and communication services on Earth. SpaceX said its Starlink satellite internet service had been degraded. CEO Elon Musk wrote on X overnight that Starlink satellites were under a lot of pressure, but holding up so far. Marco Petagna, a meteorologist at the Met Office, said on Sunday night that geomagnetic activity was on the rise but a quite extensive cloud cover could block the view for some people. Said Pulido, a photographer, said he captured the Northern Lights glowing above Anthony Gormleys Another Place statue on Crosby Beach in Liverpool. A sky watcher captured a view of the lights from a plane window. Another person captured what he called the residual end of the Aurora Borealis above Liverpool. People also shared pictures of a stunning display of the aurora from Canada, including at Lake Huron, which is shared by Canada with the US. Nathan Barker, a photographer based in Toronto, shared a picture of the lights from Southern Ontario. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Wes Streeting has hit out at the treatment of Labours deputy leader Angela Rayner over a probe into her housing arrangements, as it was revealed that the police are to interview her under caution. Speaking exclusively to The Independent, Mr Streeting said that the whole saga makes my blood boil and he accused his colleagues critics of attacking her because she is a working-class success story. The shadow health secretary was speaking to The Independent about his autobiographical book One Boy, Two Bills and a Fry Up which tracks his own rise from being born into severe poverty on an east London council estate to being one of the leading MPs in Westminster and talked up as a future leader. Greater Manchester Police are to question Ms Rayner over whether she broke electoral law by claiming to live in a property while actually living in one a few miles away in a different constituency with her partner. There have also been questions over whether she avoided paying capital gains tax when she sold the house. The allegations have been pursued by Tory critics and right-wing elements in the media after they emerged in an unauthorised biography of her by billionaire former Tory treasurer Lord Ashcroft. Angela Rayner is to be interviewed under caution by police ( PA ) But Mr Streeting has said that he believes Ms Rayner is a victim of snobbery due to her background and the path she has taken to success. He spoke of the difference in the way they are treated due to her having been a teenage mother who came up through the trade union movement while he entered politics at Cambridge University. He said: I look at how Angie gets treated and it makes my blood boil because actually, our backgrounds are really similar. I think a lot of Angies life is fairly similar to my mums as well. Although shed hate me making that comparison as she is not much older than me. But what I see in, in both of us are working-class success stories. I feel like because she went through the university of life as a care worker and the trade union movement and I went to the University of Cambridge, we are treated differently. Also probably because shes a woman as well, and theres probably a bit of a north/south divide in there too. Wes Streeting has defended Rayner in an interview about his 2023 memoir ( PA ) But he spoke of his pride in Ms Rayner and what she has achieved in her life. He went on: I think that having people like her around the cabinet table, with people like me and Bridget Phillips, our shadow education secretary, means we will make fairer choices that will serve the interests of the majority of people in this country, not just the privileged few. And that in itself would be a refreshing change in No 10. He insisted that the characterisation is true of Sir Keir Starmer too. He also experienced poverty growing up. He was not born with a silver spoon in his mouth, and everything hes got in life, hes had to work for just as his dad worked for it, and his mum worked for it, he said. A longer interview with Mr Streeting will be published ahead of the Hay Festival, which runs from 23 May to 2 June. Book tickets at hayfestival.com and read our highlights guide for more of our recommendations Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Labour is pushing for an investigation into Welsh secretary David TC Davies for allegedly breaching the ministerial code. In yet another problem for prime minister Rishi Sunak, Mr Davies stands accused of misusing a taxpayer funded office for filming an attack on Welsh Labours expansion of the Senedd (Welsh Parliament). The row erupted over the weekend when a source close to Mr Davies reportedly told The Observer that a video posted on X (formerly Twitter) had been filmed in the Welsh Office in Whitehall known as Gwydyr House. The source said that Mr Davies had been forced to make his video in the taxpayer funded office because of security reasons, according to The Observer. However, the ministerial code states: Ministers are provided with facilities at government expense to enable them to carry out their official duties. These facilities should not generally be used for party or constituency activities. Welsh Secretary David TC Davies (PA) ( PA Archive ) The Independent has now seen a letter from shadow Welsh secretary Jo Stevens to Glynne Jones, director of office of the secretary of state for Wales, asking for an investigation. Ms Stevens wrote: As you know, the Ministerial Code states: Ministers are provided with facilities at government expense to enable them to carry out their official duties. These facilities should not generally be used for party or constituency activities. Im sure you will agree that the secretary of states private office in Gwydyr House falls squarely within that definition. You will also know that the exemptions on official residences do not apply in this case. She went on: On 8 May 2024, as you will have read in media reports this weekend, the Welsh secretary posted on the social media site X a video filmed in his private office, which contained explicitly party political content, criticising the Welsh Labour Government for its proposals on Senedd reform, and endorsing the opposition to those proposals from the Welsh Conservative Group. He closed with the line: I know which side Im on, I wonder what Welsh Labour are going to do today. Ms Stevens suggested that had there been genuine security concerns, the cabinet minister could have made the video in nearby Tory headquarters, CCHQ. A meeting of the Senedd ( Matthew Horwood/Welsh Government/PA Wire ) She said: In your capacity as the director of the secretary of states office, can I ask you to establish whether a breach of the Ministerial Code took place in this instance, and if so, what action will be taken to investigate how that happened, to ensure that it never happens again, and to issue a formal apology from the secretary of state. In the event that you are unable to make those adjudications yourself, I am copying this letter to the cabinet secretary so that he can either take action himself to rectify any breach of the code, or advise on an investigation by the prime ministers independent adviser on ministers interests. However, I hope this matter can be resolved without requiring escalation to that level. The Independent has requested a comment from Mr Davies office. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Unions and charities have accused the government of rattling off of a tick list of culture-war talking points over its plans to axe equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) jobs in the Civil Service. Esther McVey, the governments common sense minister, claimed public money was being wasted on woke hobby horses, in a speech at the Centre for Policy Studies on Monday morning. Ms Mcvey said there will be no more spending on external EDI contracts, such as those with LGBT+ charity Stonewall, without an explicit sign-off from a minister, and no more EDI-focused Whitehall jobs outside human resources. However, the FDA Union, which represents professionals and managers in public services, hit back warning the changes could lead to more problems in the future. Lucille Thirlby, Assistant General Secretary of the FDA union, said: Yet again the government is attacking the equality, diversity and inclusion spend in the civil service. Its become a convenient punch-bag for when it wants to demonstrate that its taking a tough stance, when in reality these changes could actually lead to more problems in the future. Public servants need to ensure that the services they provide reflect the needs of the public at large. How does this happen if you have reduced - or in some cases, no - specialist knowledge of how equality legislation operates? Equality outcomes matter, and employers need specialist knowledge as do organisations providing public services. Otherwise, the Government could find itself spending a lot more money defending employment tribunals for discrimination or judicial reviews on the lack of public service provision. Conservative minister without portfolio Esther McVey (Jeff Moore/PA) ( PA Wire ) Ms McVey claimed a concerted effort had been made by politically-correct woke warriors in public bodies, in her speech. These Left-wing, politically-correct woke warriors have made a concerted effort to get themselves into positions of influence within the public sector, she said. They did not stand for election on these views because if they had they would not have won. So instead some have got themselves in academia and the civil service, local government, charities and arms length bodies and we need to make a similarly concerted effort to ensure they cannot use their positions in these public bodies to hijack them to impose their own political ideology. In March, Women and Equalities minister Kemi Badenoch, commissioned a report which found that most of the money spent on EDI was wasted. However, The Cabinet Office has not released the details of the audit which asked more than 100 government departments and Civil Service agencies how many staff work on EDI and the cost associated with the roles. Ms McVey also announced a ban on rainbow and other random lanyards in the civil service. Ms McVey announced a ban on rainbow and other random lanyards in the civil service ( PA Wire ) Lucille Thirlby told The Independent: Nobody joins the civil service in order to impose their own political ideology. Civil servants understand they serve the government of the day and have been doing so for a Conservative-led government for the past 14 years. At a time when the country is facing serious challenges, should the colour of a civil servants lanyard really be a ministerial priority? Equality, diversity and inclusion is a serious topic worthy of serious consideration and debate. Unfortunately, we got nothing of the sort from Esther McVey, who instead rattled off of a tick list of culture-war talking points. Dr Shabna Begum, Interim CEO of the Runnymede Trust, a leading race equality think tank, described the announcement as cynical and regressive. "This is the latest in the government's calculated public withdrawal of support and funding for EDI initiatives, a cynical move which panders to certain sections of Britains political elite, who seek to undermine progress towards racial and social justice as a distraction from the real issues facing the British public, she told The Independent. "EDI initiatives tend to focus primarily on changes at an individual and cultural level, without challenging the systems and structures which hold people of colour back. EDI initiatives have always been the bare minimum the government can do to tackle racism in society. The governments refusal to uphold even this basic commitment demonstrates a clear lack of leadership promoting equity in the workplace, and broader human rights issues. We urge the government to revoke this regressive step and take genuine action to address structural injustices." Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Nadhim Zahawi has announced his next role after confirming he will stand down at the next election. Last week Mr Zahawi joined the exodus of Tory MPs standing down at the election, which is expected to be held this autumn. The former chancellor has now been appointed chair of online retailer Very Group, which owns Very and Littlewoods. He will replace interim chair Aidan Barclay at the company which is part of the Barclay familys business empire. The Barclays have owned Very Group since 2002, but the business recently swung to a half-year loss and was forced to secure 125 million in new debt funding from Carlyle Global Credit and IMI. The Very Group said in a statement that Mr Zahawi would work with the directors and management team to explore expanding the business in new areas. It also said he would work with shareholders on the strategic options for the business, possibly including fresh investment in the short to medium term. Aidan Barclay added: I am delighted to welcome Nadhim to the Board of the Very Group. With a proven track record in digital growth and innovation, and highly respected in the UK and global markets, he is ideally suited to lead our Board as the company enters its next stage of strategic development and growth. Mr Zahawi, who co-founded the polling company YouGov in 2000, has held ministerial positions under the last four prime ministers Theresa May, Boris Johnson, Liz Truss, and Rishi Sunak. He had a short-lived stint as chancellor in the final days of Mr Johnsons government. Other positions included Covid-19 vaccines minister, Conservative Party chairman and education secretary. Last week, he announced he would not run in the next election. He was sacked as Conservative Party chairman in January 2023 after an inquiry found he had failed to disclose that HMRC was investigating his tax affairs. The investigation was sparked by The Independents revelation of an HMRC investigation into the MP over his tax affairs. Mr Zahawi tried to stop this publication from exposing the investigation by threatening to sue if the information was published. Mr Zahawi did not sue, and paid a penalty of more than 1m to HMRC in a settlement worth almost 5m in total. ( The Independent ) Over the weekend, he told the BBC he paid nearly 5 million to authorities to settle his tax affairs, and apologised for not being more explicit in his ministerial declaration on the settlement. He called it a careless mistake. Mr Zahawi said of his new role: As one of the UKs largest digital retailers and flexible payments providers, the company has an important role to play in helping families get more out of life. With a heritage of over 100 years, Very has an unrivalled knowledge and understanding of its customer, demonstrating resilience even in the face of challenging conditions. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak warned of a dangerous future for the U.K. in a pitch to voters Monday as he fights to hang on to power ahead of a future national election that could see Conservatives ousted after 14 years. Sunak's speech swung from ominous warning to optimistic projections as he repeatedly attacked Labour leader Keir Starmer, saying he lacked a plan for dealing with rogue states and harnessing a period of a great opportunity. Sunak said his pledge to increase military spending to 2.5% of gross domestic product by 2030 better positions his party to confront an axis of authoritarian states that he named as Russia, China, Iran and North Korea. The war in Ukraine, Iranian proxies attacking ships in the Red Sea and Chinese cyberattacks aimed at members of Parliament are some of those threats, he said. Over the next few years, from our democracy to our society to our economy to the hardest questions of war and peace, almost every aspect of our lives is going to change," Sunak said. "How we act in the face of those changes, not only to keep people safe and secure but to realize the opportunities too, will determine whether or not Britain will succeed in the years to come. His speech at Policy Exchange, a conservative think tank, came just over a week after his party was rocked in local elections and ahead of a general election at which Labour is widely seen as likely to win control of Parliament. Sunak has until Dec. 17 to call an election that will take place 25 working days later. He has said he would do so in the second half of the year but has refused say when, as opponents repeated calls for him to do so. This Conservative government is out of touch and out of time and Rishi Sunak must do the right thing and give the people a general election, Ed Davey, leader of the Liberal Democrats, said. Sunak said Labour was trying to depress their way to victory with talk of doom loops and scaremongering about pensions. They have just one thing: a calculation that they can make you feel so bad about your country, that you wont have the energy to ask what they might do with the incredible power that they seek to yield, Sunak said. Jonathan Ashworth, a Labour member of Parliament, called the speech a desperate attempt to hide from the appalling record of this failed Tory government. After 14 years of leaving the country less secure at home and abroad, the Tories have forfeited the right to talk about security, Ashworth said. Millions of people are paying more on their mortgages, crime is going unsolved, dangerous prisoners are being let out early, the armed forces have been hollowed out and the (National Health Service) is on its knees. Sunak acknowledged public uncertainty and anxiety but said some of that was due to global upheavals such as the COVID-19 pandemic. He said that despite storms ahead," Britain could feel proud and confident again as transformational technologies, such as artificial intelligence, could bring progress. The paradox of our age is that for all the profound dangers that we face, right now we also hold in our hands an opportunity for human progress that could surpass the industrial revolution in speed and breadth," he said. "Technologies like AI will do for the 21st century what the steam engine and electricity did for the 19th. Rishi Sunak framed himself as the only man who can lead Britain through the most dangerous period for the world since the end of the Cold War as he made a desperate plea to voters to get behind his plan. In what was in effect the opening salvo for a long general election campaign, the prime ministers major speech in central London laid out his preferred battleground of defence and national security. Citing the danger facing the UK, Mr Sunak said: Putins recklessness has taken us closer to a dangerous nuclear escalation than at any point since the Cuban missile crisis. But his keynote speech left many Tory MPs feeling flat because of a lack of new initiatives to tackle the major threats posed by China, Iran, Russia and North Korea whom he described as the axis of authoritarian states undermining freedoms and security. Meanwhile, Labour were bemused by the Tories relying on defence and national security after 14 years which have seen cuts to the army and the Royal Navy. Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting told The Independent that Labour is happy for the election to be fought on national security grounds. Sir Keir Starmer underlined his partys election fighting machine by holding a summit with the 11 regional mayors who won in the local elections. Rishi Sunak made his election pitch on Monday ( Getty ) But with many polls still putting Labour more than 20 points ahead of the Conservatives, Mr Sunak has been urged to use desperate measures to turn his partys fortunes around. The speech appeared to be an attempt to change the narrative and focus the minds of the general public on the threats the country is facing. The prime minister framed the next five years as more important than the last 30 and hinted at his own anxiety, saying he felt a sense of urgency. He said: At some point, in the second half of this year, we will all go to the polls and make a choice. Not just about Conservatives vs Labour. Or Sunak vs Starmer. It will be a choice between the future and the past. I remain confident that my party can prevail. Not because of our record alone, but because we will be the only party really talking about the future and not with vague, lofty platitudes. But with bold ideas and a clear plan that can change our society for the better and restore peoples confidence and pride in our country. I feel a profound sense of urgency. Because more will change in the next five years than in the last 30. Im convinced that the next few years will be some of the most dangerous yet the most transformational our country has ever known. So the question we face today is this: Who has the clear plan and bold ideas to deliver a secure future for you and your family? Keir Starmer speaks during a meeting with Labours newly expanded team of mayors in Wolverhampton on Monday ( PA ) Listing the dangers the world now faces he highlighted how war has come to Europe with Russias invasion of Ukraine. He went on: War rages, too, in the Middle East as Israel defends itself not only against the terrorists of Hamas but a barrage of missiles fired for the first time directly from Iran. Right now in Africa, conflicts are being fought in 18 different countries. However, critics inside and outside his own party were left unimpressed. Former home secretary Suella Braverman, who he sacked last year but has been accused of plotting to replace him, posted on X (formerly Twitter): If we are serious about national security we must: 1. Declare China a hostile state and list it on the Enhanced tier of the Foreign Influence Register; 2. Proscribe the Iranian Revolutionary Guard the chief sponsor of global terrorism; and 3. Increase defence spending to over 3 per cent of GDP. Another senior Tory messaged: It was just more blah, blah, blah. Yet another added: What about increasing defence spending above the reheated 2.5 per cent Boris announcement a few years ago? And, picking up on Mr Sunaks claim that artificial intelligence provides a major opportunity as well as threat, another senior Tory sarcastically suggested he is afraid of attacks by Daleks. Speaking to The Independent ahead of the speech, shadow health secretary Wes Streeting expressed surprise over the prime minister claiming the Labour Party would undermine defence by not committing to the increase in spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP by the end of the decade. He said: Were not the people who left the country with the smallest army since the Napoleonic war. We're not the people who left the navy, and they RAF short-staffed and short of planes and boats. So if the Conservatives want the next election to be a debate about who can be trusted with national security we will happily have that argument with them. Meanwhile, Mr Sunak will make a bid to win back the farming vote amid concerns that they are abandoning the Tories in key rural seats. The push by the government follows an alarming survey by the NFU which revealed confidence in the farming sector is at an all-time low with 7,000 agricultural businesses shutting following 2019 and Brexit. Along with 18 months of unprecedented wet weather post-Brexit measures including trade deals with Australia and New Zealand as well as the phasing out of the EU subsidy system have hit the sector, according to the NFU. The prime minister will tomorrow tell the second Farm to Fork Summit at Downing Street tomorrow that the UK needs to reduce its reliance on overseas fruit and vegetables and back British producers. It comes as the first UK Food Security Index published to ensure the government and sector is resilient to unexpected shocks to the market and extreme weather This follows a major package of support announced by the prime minister at the National Farmers Union annual conference to increase innovation and automation in farming. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Rishi Sunak is staging yet another relaunch of his premiership with a general election on the horizon, promising bold ideas to create a more secure future for you and your family. In a desperate pitch to voters after this months local election drubbing, the prime minister will pledge to restore peoples confidence and pride in our country. And he will stress that more will change in the next five years than in the last thirty, with the next few years to be among the most dangerous the country has ever witnessed, adding he felt a profound sense of urgency. Rishi Sunak will say more will change in the next five years than in the last thirty ( PA Wire ) In what Downing Street billed as a major speech in central London, the PM will say: Our country stands at a crossroads. Over the next few years, from our democracy to our economy to our society to the hardest questions of war and peace almost every aspect of our lives is going to change. How we act in the face of these changes not only to keep people safe and secure but to realise the opportunities too will determine whether or not Britain will succeed in the years to come. And this is the choice facing the country. The policy-light speech will be an attempt to draw a dividing line with Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, who is on course to take the keys to Downing Street later this year. Mr Sunak will seek to paint Labour as having old ideas, old thinking and nothing positive to say, No10 sources suggested. And he will promise the Conservatives are ready to face oncoming challenges and embrace the opportunities they present. Lord Cameron said Rishi Sunak is absolutely right to wait and hold a general election this autumn ( PA Wire ) In the speech, Mr Sunak will say: I have bold ideas that can change our society for the better, and restore peoples confidence and pride in our country. I feel a profound sense of urgency. Because more will change in the next five years than in the last thirty. Im convinced that the next few years will be some of the most dangerous yet most transformational our country has ever known. The PM is expected to hold a general election in October or November and faces an uphill battle, with Labour consistently 20 points ahead in the polls. He attempted last week to win over disgruntled Tory MPs after a stunning set of local election defeats, including of the incumbent West Midlands mayor Andy Street, who lost to Labours Richard Parker. The PM told nervous backbenchers that his economic plan is working and that the party has it all to play for. He was buoyed on Friday by official figures showing the economy grew by 0.6 per cent over the first quarter, ending a technical recession recorded in the final half of last year. Rishi Sunaks government was shaken by the shock defection of Natalie Elphicke on Wednesday ( Getty Images ) And on Monday he will attempt to win over voters, touting his leadership in areas such as security. The prime minister will vow to safeguard the UK against threats of war, a global rise in immigration and "those seeking to undermine our shared values and identities", according to Downing Street. Foreign Secretary David Cameron on Sunday argued it would be "absolutely right" for the general election to be held in the second half of the year to give voters time to see "the economic plan is working". Talking up the Conservatives chances, Lord Cameron told Sky News: "I think youve got a very clear choice opening up, and thats what happens as you get to the end of a parliament. It stops being a referendum on the Government every day and it starts being a choice between two teams." The PMs latest attempt at a relaunch comes after a devastating week in which he was rocked by the defection of right-wing Tory MP Natalie Elphicke. She crossed the floor of the House of Commons with a swipe at Mr Sunaks tired and chaotic government and accused him of failing to deliver on his promise to stop the boats, adding that Labour would bring a much better future for our country. Reacting to the prime ministers speech tomorrow, Labours shadow chancellor Pat McFadden said the Conservatives cant fix the countrys problems because they are the problem. He added: Nothing the Prime Minister says will change the fact that over the past fourteen years the Conservatives have brought costly chaos to the country, with this being the only Parliament in living memory where peoples standard of living will be lower at the end of it than the beginning. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Family and friends of the three surfers killed in Mexico say they are frustrated at those claiming the men were reckless for traveling in remote Baja California when actually the region has attracted surfers from southern California, and all over the world, for decades. They have been doing what so many surfers have been doing for years, said Kara, who was friends and neighbors with Callum Robinson, an Australian who lived in San Diego. Callum, 33 and his brother Jake Robinson, 30, along with their friend, Carter Rhoad, 30, of San Diego, were shot in the head execution style by alleged car thieves on a surfing trip to Baja, according to Mexican authorities. Kara spoke to Callum and Jakes mother, Debra Robinson, after their deaths and told her how shed personally camped about 10 times in the exact location where the men were reportedly staying when they were killed and how she had traveled even further down the peninsula to more remote areas with only two other women with her. Kara and her friends on a trip to Baja California, Mexico ( Kara ) [Their mom] told me that it was so comforting to know that it was something I had done many times, Kara, who asked for her last name not to be published, told The Independent. The 35-year-old said Ms Robinson told her that in the day since her sons disappearance she had encountered people who were insinuating that her boys should have known better or that they were doing something they shouldnt have. I think its important to her that people understand that they werent doing anything wrong, or that they were being irresponsible, she said. This was a situation of just pure evil and lack of value for human life. The parents of the brothers friend Carter Rhoad have not yet publicly spoken. The 30-year-old was set to get married in August after proposing to his girlfriend last year. The couples engagement from July 2023 was the final post on the American surfers Facebook page. His heartbroken fiancee and many of the trios loved ones have since talked with a man who went through a similar tragedy and are taking comfort in his words. The couples engagement from July 2023 was the final post on the American surfers Facebook page ( Carter Redd Rhoad/Facebook ) Further south down the peninsula, Ron Gomez Hoff, who is known as Baja Gringo, is at the heart of information sharing for the region. His Facebook group TalkBaja, which began as an online forum when he moved to the area over 20 years ago, and is where news of the surfers disappearance first broke when the Australians mother posted a plea for help. The Facebook group TalkBaja is where news of the surfers disappearance first broke when the Australians mother posted a plea for help ( TalkBaja ) Hoff says its his own personal experience of being attacked in 2011, in which he and his Mexican wife were left for dead, that has connected him to the surfers grieving loved ones. I have spoken to dozens and dozens of their family members including the fiancee of the American, Carter, and its just heart wrenching, he told The Independent. It got to me. Because it made me relive what we went through. Following the murders of the surfers, he wrote an editorial for TalkBaja about his own horrific experience, detailing how he was beaten unconscious with a crowbar and how the men slit his wifes throat and tossed her off the cliff in a case of extreme violence near his home in San Quintin, Baja California. Miraculously, both of them survived and because of the community they found in Baja, they stayed. Ron Gomez Hoff and his wife Cristina ( Ron Hoff ) Mr Hoff told The Independent that many people, including those who knew the three surfers best, have told him they read the editorial and appreciated him sharing his experience. Some of them have reached out to me and told me, you do understand what were going through, he said. And yeah, sadly, I do. It was tough to deal with. These poor people, I know what theyre going through. I wish I could provide words to comfort them, he added. To lose them this way, tragic. Unless youve gone through this, you cant imagine. The tragic murders of the foreigners made headlines across the world, shining a light on the Baja peninsula where surfers and visitors are aware of the violence, but are still reeling from the shocking tragedy a contrast to the stunning place with stunning idyllic remote beaches they travel to as an escape. Driving near Punta San Jose, Baja California ( Kara ) For Kara, who lived just two blocks from Callum, a drive down to Baja, something she does multiple times a month, is her favorite thing. You get to go and experience a different culture, you get past Tijuana and suddenly youre on that stretch in between Rosarito and Ensenada and its such beautiful cliff sides and the most stunning beauty and thats when you can just leave everything behind. Its my favorite thing. The surfer from Missouri has lived all over the world, including a remote area of Western Australia, settled in San Diego about six years ago. She admitted to The Independent that the murders have left her rattled and she cant shake the thought that it could have been her. If I had known Callum and the guys were there, I wouldve joined them, she said, explaining that she was in Baja on the Friday before the men vanished, and had texted Callum, but they had already moved on from their current spot, so she decided to stay at K38, a famous surf break. About a week after the three men failed to check into a local Airbnb and their families could not get in contact with them, their bodies were found on 3 May down a well in a remote area miles from where they had reportedly set up camp in Punta San Jose. Callum and Jake Robinson were reported missing after travelling from California to Mexico on 27 April. Their bodies were found a week later ( 9News/Instagram ) Kara said that over the years, Punta San Jose has become more dangerous with roadside robberies but it hasnt stopped surfers from going there. She explained she wouldve felt comfortable going with two vehicles and more people especially Callum, Carter and Jake, who she described as strong and smart men who had their wits about them. Shes close with many of Carters friends, who previously lived in Guatemala and spoke Spanish fluently, leading many to believe he wouldve been able to speak the language if needed. Carter Rhoad previously lived in Guatemala and spoke Spanish fluently ( LinkedIn/carterrhoad ) Kara added that as a surfer, you are aware of elements of danger but you go in cautious, keep your head on you, dont drive at night, set up camp, and pay the rancher to stay on his land - which affords safety, she explained. Surfers dont wanna live in fear - the thing that brings us life, the new waves that hardly anyone knows about - thats what excites us, she said. Every surfer Ive talked to - whether they knew them or not, many did not, it feels so close to home. After what happened to her friend Callum, Carter, and Jake, who were such a big part of the surf community, Kara said other surfers are terrified. A demonstrator holding a bodyboard written in Spanish They just wanted to surf and they were executed ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved ) One of her friends told her, this changes how we do Baja, because we had this illusion of safety, she explained. Kara said shes hesitant to go back to Baja right now, but believes she will never go back to Punta San Jose. I just dont think I could itd be too hard after knowing what happened there, she said. On Tuesday, Callum and Jakes mother gave a moving tribute to her sons at a beach in San Diego. Our hearts are broken and the world has become a darker place for us, Ms Robinson said, fighting back tears. They were young men enjoying their passion of surfing together. Tearful mother of Australian surfers killed in Mexico: 'The world has become a darker place for us' ( Australia TV ) She noted that her son Callum considered the United States his second home, and that Jake loved surfing so much that, as a doctor, he liked to work in hospitals near the beach. Jakes passion was surfing, and it was no coincidence that many of his hospitals that he worked in were close to surfing beaches, she said. Choking back tears, Ms Robinson conveyed a final message that coincided with her sons adventurous lifestyles. Live bigger, shine brighter, and love harder in their memory, she said. Debra Robinson paid tribute to her sons in an emotional speech in San Diego ( AP ) The Baja California peninsula, a place visited for its stunning beaches and epic surf breaks, includes two Mexican states, Baja California, which borders the US state of California, and Baja California Sur, which is home to resort city Cabo San Lucas on the southern tip. Theres nowhere you can go in the world today thats totally safe, Mr Hoff added, explaining that its about being prepared the best you can, doing your research, and just being familiar with the area. But in Baja, where most of the region is extremely remote, there are factors working against each other youve got smaller police forces with limited budgets, and then the fact that the vast majority of the peninsula is so remote with few paved roads, and theres no cell signal in most places. You can drive hundreds of miles without even seeing a gas station. Baja California, Mexico ( Shutterstock / sabine_lj ) The drive along Highway 1 from Tijuana to San Jose del Cabo is over 1,000 miles and is a two-lane road that is often not paved. Side roads are at your own risk, Mr Hoff says as many are washed out or some have changed routes leading people to even more remote areas. Chief state prosecutor Maria Elena Andrade Ramirez said on Sunday that she believed the alleged killers, three men who have been arrested, drove by and saw the surfers pickup truck and tents, and wanted to steal their tires. But when (the foreigners) came up and caught them, surely, they resisted, she added. After shooting and killing the men, their bodies were dumped in a well. The truck was found burnt out with the hubcaps still on. Mr Hoff said the tragic murders are nothing new to the local people and that there are hundreds of murders or disappearances of Mexicans in the region that are never solved. But when its a foreigner, he finds there is pressure from their home countries and outrage on social media for arrests to be made swiftly, which was done in the case of the surfers, and also his case back in 2011. Something shifted with this event, and I think it has to do with the amount of coverage it has gotten, Mr Hoff said. Locals here are saying finally someone is understanding what were going through. Someone is shining a light on what is happening. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Clergymen ducked for cover, and churchgoers scrambled out of their seats after a 16-year-old armed with a gun entered a Louisana church during a first communion service over the weekend. However, quick-thinking parishioners were able to confront the teen and get him out of the building. The unnamed male teen was arrested after the Abbeville Police Department received a call of a suspicious person with a gun lingering at the St Mary Magdalen Church at around 10.30am on Saturday, police said. He has been arrested on charges of terrorising and two counts of possession of a firearm by a juvenile. The gun-wielding teen was confronted by parishioners after he opened the back door of the church, interrupting a first communion ceremony, before being escorted outside, where police put him in custody, the church said in a statement. Around 60 children were at the church during that time, set to make their first communion at the church service, according to KADN. This understandably caused panic. While we realise this was a frightening experience for those in attendance, we are incredibly grateful to both parishioners and police officers for acting quickly to ensure the safety of all, the church added. During a livestream video of the church service, associate pastor Father Nicholas DuPre was leading Mass when the crowd of people in attendance, mostly off camera, could be heard scuffling around, screaming and shouting as the pastor was in the middle of prayer. Churchgoers at the very front can be seen standing up and looking towards the back of the church while Father DuPre and another clergyman beside him duck behind the altar as the chaotic noise from the crowd continues. The church was in the middle of a first communion service for children in the community when they were interrupted ( St Mary Magdalen Catholic Church ) A police officer appears behind the clergymen, and a few people appearing to be boys dressed in choir attire run from one end to another behind the altar. Churchgoers can be seen picking up their children and moving frantically about before a voice can be heard saying across the church, Just get ahold of your child; go slowly. The teenager who entered the church, along with those parishioners who confronted and escorted the teen were not caught on the livestream. We did apprehend a young man, he is in custody, he is in the police custody, calm down and just get next to your child and go slowly. Liz Touchet, who was in attendance at the Mass, told KADN that the first communion was proceeding as normal and then police came in with their guns drawn. People started running to get their kids and we were told to get down, she added. After the arrest, officers from Abbeville and the Vermilion Parish Sheriffs Office made a sweep through the church to make sure there were no additional threats and to confirm that no one was injured, the police said. The teen was then questioned by police with a parent present before being transported to the Abbeville General Hospital Behavioural Medicine Center to be medically assessed, they added. People started to scatter and pick up their children after the teenager was detained ( St Mary Magdalen Catholic Church ) The church also added in their statement that out of an abundance of caution, in all upcoming Masses, the church has organised for uniformed law enforcement to be present. All first communicants could also receive their first holy communion at whichever Mass they chose throughout the weekend. The following day, the church posted pictures on their Facebook of children returning to their church to receive their first communion. Chief Mike Hardy from the Abbeville Police Department is handling the investigation with the cooperation of the Vermilion Parish Sheriffs Office and assistance from the FBI. The Independent has contacted the Abbeville Police Department for further information. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Skeletal remains that were discovered on a beach in St Augustine, Florida nearly 40 years ago, have been identified as a mother-of-two who vanished in the late 1960s. Mary Alice Pultz, who was raised in Rockville, Maryland, was 25 years old in 1968 when she left with a man, John Thomas Fugitt, and became estranged from her family, according to the St Johns County Sheriffs Office. It was the last time they ever saw her. Last week, the sheriffs office announced that the remains found in a shallow grave by construction workers on Crescent Beach, Florida in 1985 had been positively identified as Pultz. The details of how Pultz died remains unclear but her death is being investigated as a homicide and detectives named Fugitt as a person of interest in the case. Fugitt, who also went by an alias Billy Joe Wallace, was convicted in the 1981 murder of his male roommate in Georgia. He was sentenced to death in that case but died in prison before he could be executed, according to the sheriffs office. Skeletal remains found in a shallow grave by construction workers on Crescent Beach, Florida in 1985 were positively identified as Mary Pultz ( St. Johns County Sheriffs Office ) This investigation is a powerful example that we will never give up, St. Johns County Sheriff Rob Hardwick said in a press release. The combination of highly skilled detectives and advanced DNA technology has given Mary Alices family some answers about her disappearance close to 40 years ago. After the remains were found, the initial investigation revealed the victim was a white female, possibly between the ages of 30 and 50, at the time of her death. The manner of death was determined to be homicide. But over the years, the case grew cold and the victim remained unidentified. In 2011, the victims skull and jaw were sent to the Florida Institute for Forensic Anthropology and Applied Science at the University of South Florida, where experts created a facial reconstruction graphic of what she may have looked like. Mary Pultzs boyfriend John Thomas Fugitt in 1968. He has been named a person of interest in her death but died in prison ( St. Johns County Sheriffs Office ) While the image generated a few leads, there were no clear answers. In 2023, the sheriffs office said detectives partnered with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the remains were sent to a private lab in Texas, which extracted DNA and created a DNA profile. This led to Pultzs living relatives - her son Norman Jenkins of Yuma, Arizona, and her sister Patricia Allamong of Winchester, Virginia - agreeing to provide DNA samples to match against the profile. 40-year-old cold case of disappearance of Mary Alice Pultz, solved In January 2024, detectives received confirmation of a match and the victim was positively identified as Pultz. Further examination of the remains by medical examiner Dr Wendolyn Sneed revealed that she had suffered multiple injuries including fractures of the nasal bones, multiple ribs, and on the lower legs, some of which were healed. There were also three surgical burr holes drilled into Pultzs skull, according to the sheriffs office. Detectives discovered, through interviews with the family, that the burr holes were likely done after she disappeared from their lives in 1968. Mary Pultzs remains were examined by medical examiner Dr. Wendolyn Sneed who found she had suffered multiple injuries. There were also three surgical burr holes drilled into her skull ( St. Johns County Sheriff's Office ) Dr. Sneed advised these injuries, in addition to the surgical burr holes, are indicative of severe trauma that would have required hospitalization such as being involved in a vehicle crash or being struck by a vehicle, the release said. Its unclear if Pultz had moved to Florida with Fugitt as there were no addresses or records of jobs she might have held between 1968 when she left Maryland, and 1985 when her remains were found. While Fugitt is a person of interest in the death, detectives say other possibilities cannot be ruled out. Although a significant amount of time has passed, detectives are hopeful that the information developed so far will result in a lead(s) that brings final closure to the family, the detectives said. Pultzs son, Norman Jenkins, who was young when she left, said: I would just like to know if anyone ever saw her or knew her. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} The story of a mother who cyber-bullied her own daughter and the teenagers boyfriend, using a fake persona, is now being told on the small screen as she serves time in jail. Kendra Gail Licari spent more than a year harassing the two Michigan teenagers, while also spending time helping their school and local authorities track down whoever was bullying them. The 43-year-old was sentenced to between 19 months and five years in prison in April 2023, after pleading guilty to two counts of stalking a minor. Mother charged for cyberbullying own daughter Now her story has been turned into a Lifetime movie called Mommy Meanest. Here is everything we know about the real-life case which inspired the film: Licaris daughter told her she was being bullied In early 2021, Licaris teenage daughter started getting harassing, mean messages from someone claiming to be the same age as her. The girls boyfriend was also targeted, with each of them getting messages via text and social media up to 12 times a day. The Mount Pleasant high-schooler told her mother about the messages and Licari went to authorities herself to report the bullying. She worked with the boyfriends mother to try to track down the culprit. How did Licari keep her identity secret? Kendra Licaris reasons for bullying her daughter online for months remain a mystery ( Michigan Department of Corrections ) The mother used a fake identity to bully her daughter and her daughters boyfriend, but it was far more complex than a simple fake profile. Beal City Schools started investigating in December 2021, when the girl and her mother went to report the messages. The district then called in local law enforcement a month later when they couldnt find the source of the bullying. However, a few months later the FBI was called in after local computer crime resources were exhausted. It was found that Licari was using a virtual private network (VPN) to mask her location, but law enforcement investigators were getting suspicious in April 2022. The FBI then managed to lock down the IP addresses used to send the messages and found they belonged to the mother. At one point, Licari had claimed it was one of the teens who was sending the messages. She was charged in December 2022. What was in the messages? Investigators said there were several hundred messages, with 349 pages of evidence submitted. The contents of the messages were kept private by prosecutors and the court, but they were described as disturbing and hateful. Some of the messages included doctored photos, prosecutors said. I cant imagine any parent saying such horrible things to her own daughter, Judge Mark Duthie told the court in April 2023. Why did Kendra Licari bully her daughter? Licaris reasons for harassing her daughter online remain a mystery. When she was confronted by law enforcement, the mother made a full confession and so the case did not go to a jury trial. Isabella County prosecutor David Barberi said at the time that it appeared the mother wanted her daughter to need her. "Someone else coined the term, but they called it a version of cyber Munchausens syndrome in a sense that this seems to be the type of behaviour where youre making somebody feel bad or need you in their life because of this behaviour," Mr Barberi told Local 12 News. The mother told the judge at her hearings that she would take back what she had done if she could. Where is Licari now? The 43-year-old is currently serving her sentence at Michigans Special Alternative Incarceration Womens Facility. Her earliest possible release date is 3 November 2024. Who is playing Licari in the Lifetime movie? The dramatised version of the story, which premiered on Saturday 11 May, saw some slight changes but reflects the real-life events while trying to fill in the gaps left by the lack of reasoning given for Licaris behaviour. Lisa Rinna arrives to the Daily Front Row Fashion LA Awards 2024 at The Beverly Hills Hotel in Beverly Hills, California on 28 April 2024 ( AFP via Getty Images ) Mommy Meanest - trailer Lisa Rinna is playing divorced mum Madelyn, the fictional version of Licari, who in the story feels replaced by her daughter Mias boyfriend, People reported. As the daughter gets ready to leave for college, the mother tries to squash her new independence by sending the mean messages. Those messages are designed to bring her daughter back to her, as the mum offers to help investigate the bullying. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} A Missouri man pleaded guilty to damaging government property for driving a rental truck into the gates outside the White House and waving a Nazi flag, according to court documents. Sai Varshith Kandula, 20, drove a rented U-Haul truck onto a sidewalk in Washington, DC, and rammed it into a barrier near the White House, nearly hitting pedestrians in the heavily foot-trafficked area. No one was injured as a result of the May 22, 2023, incident. He faces a maximum of 10 years in prison following his Monday guilty plea to a felony charge of depredation of government property. His sentencing was set for Aug. 23. Sai Varshith Kandula is pictured in a Marquette High School yearbook image from 2022, courtesy of the Rockwood School District. ( Rockwood School District ) Prosecutors have recommended he serve no more than eight years, but presiding US District Judge Dabney Friedrich could sentence him up to the maximum. Kandula, who was 19 years old at the time, flew from his home in St Louis to Washington, DC, and rented a truck in Herndon, Virginia. He then drove it to Washington, DC ,where he crashed it outside the White House twice. Police did not find any weapons, ammunition or explosives on him during the arrest. He reportedly told the Secret Service his goal was to overthrow President Joe Biden and begin ruling the United States, prosecutors said. When agents asked how (Kandula) would seize power, he stated he would Kill the President if thats what I have to do and would hurt anyone that would stand in my way, prosecutors wrote, according to the Associated Press. He allegedly said he purchased and displayed a Nazi flag because he admires Adolf Hitler and the "great history" of the Nazis. A U.S. Park Police officer inspects a security barrier for damage in Lafayette Square park near the White House ( Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. ) Scott Rosenblum, Kandula's defense attorney, said his client is taking medication to treat schizophrenia. He is expected to call a medical specialist to speak about Kandula's condition during the sentencing hearing. Kandula was carrying a journal with him at the time of his arrest that included passages about America under his rule, which included the moment he planned to apparently kill Biden, presumably on camera. As I am familiar with the [unknown] of this country being a democratic nation, and this will no longer be the case," a passage reads, according to a memo from federal prosecutors entered into the case. "There shall be consequences if civil unrest happens. To make it clear Any opposition will be met with death penalty to make it clear: (kill president) As you have seen, we will declare martial [law] until the situation has been [unknown]. We will rebuild this world." Kandula reportedly declared he succeeded in spreading his message, even if his plan to take over the United States was thwarted by a metal pole. "Either way, whether I got into the White House or not, my message was received," he reportedly told prosecutors. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Drakes Toronto mansion has become the scene of a third trespassing incident in a matter of days, after a suspect returned to the property to collect his bike. Officials responded to the sprawling home on Park Lane Circle at 3.30pm ET on Saturday when the man who had tried to trespass onto the rappers property on Thursday came back, a spokesperson for the Toronto Police Service said. Footage, obtained by TMZ, shows a security guard tackling the man to the ground outside the home. The man, who police have not identified, was escorted off the property and charged under the Provincial Services Act for trespassing. The first time the man tried to break into Drakes house, he got into a scuffle with a security guard outside and suffered an injury. Saturdays incident marks the third time, involving two separate suspects, that someone has tried to break into the rappers home, ever since Kendrick Lamar used a photo of the mansion for a diss track hitting out at the rival music icon. The break-ins came in the days after a security guard was injured in a drive-by shooting at the property. Police were first called to the home on 7 May, when the guard was struck by gunfire as he stood outside of the gates to the home. The suspect fled the scene. Drake issued a plea to Canadian news organisation CP24 to change its helicopter flight times, saying it is keeping him awake ( Instagram ) When officers arrived on the scene, they found the security guard unconscious and suffering a gunshot wound to the chest. He was transported to hospital with serious injuries. It is not clear what his current condition is. Officials could not confirm whether Drake was home at the time of the shooting but said his team was cooperating with the investigation. Hours later, a man then tried to break into Drakes home. He was apprehended under Canadas Mental Health Act to be assessed. A representative for Drakes team did not comment on the matter. Toronto police patrol Drakes after the shooting on 7 May ( AFP via Getty Images ) Over the weekend, Drake issued a plea to Canadian news organisation CP24 to change its helicopter flight times, saying it is keeping him awake. Can we discuss the chopper flight times over the house cause I wont lie, Im trying to sleep. Anytime after 3pm works great for me, the rapper posted on Instagram. The shooting followed an ongoing rap battle between Drake and Lamar. The Los Angeles native created three diss tracks about Drake in 36 hours, one of which doxxed Drakes mansion. It is not clear if any of the incidents have anything to do with the rap battle. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} A high-ranking New York Police Department (NYPD) officer seemed to accidentally deploy pepper spray in his face while trying to break up a pro-Palestinian protest on the Manhattan Bridge this weekend. On Saturday more than 100 rally-goers took to the bridge for a day of action ahead of the 76th anniversary of Nakba when more than half of the Palestinian population was displaced during the 1948 establishment of Israel. Videos taken during the protest on Saturday showed James McCarthy, NYPD assistant chief, trying to break up some of the protesters, eventually reaching for his pepper spray. Seconds after looking down at the pepper spray canister, Mr McCarthy shuts his eyes and turns his face away. Several NYPD officers came to Mr McCarthys aid. Photos showed them pouring bottled water on his eyes to flush the chemical irritant. Later, an unnamed member of the NYPD told CBS News that someone pepper sprayed Mr McCarthy. It is unclear if the assistant chief sustained any major injuries from the incident. The Independent has reached out to the NYPD for comment. James McCarthy, NYPD assistant chief, is assisted after seemingly being affected by a chemical irritant as police arrest pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocking traffic on the Manhattan Bridge ( Getty Images ) More than 100 people were arrested on Saturday for intentionally blocking traffic on the bridge, the NYPD deputy commissioner of operations said in a statement on X. More than an inconvenience, this is a public safety hazard, Kaz Daughtry wrote. The recent arrests add to the growing number of individuals detained for protesting the war in Gaza. This past month hundreds of people on college campuses in New York and across the United States were arrested for setting up protest encampments. More than 34,000 Palestinians have died as a result of Israels war in Gaza, which was sparked by Hamas attack on October 7, in which at least 1,130 people were killed and approximately 250 were taken hostage. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} The billionaire owner of WABC has revealed that Rudy Giuliani had three strikes against him before he was finally suspended from the station and had his radio show struck off air. John Catsimatidis, 75, told The New York Post that the former New York City mayors ongoing behavior was making it increasingly difficult to welcome him back to the station. Its pretty hard to bring him back, said Mr Catsimatidis, a Republican donor and the founder of Gristedes Food. His behavior makes it very hard to reverse course. He makes it hard not to terminate him. Mr Catsimatidis revealed that Mr Giuliani was suspended after the station had to bleep out Mr Giulianis comments when he launched into a spiel on voting machine live on air on The Rudy Giuliani Show last week. This was a violation of the stations policy about the 2020 presidential election, he said adding that the former mayor had been given repeated warnings before being ousted. That was strike one, Mr Catsimatidis told The New York Post. Then came strike two, when Mr Giuliani allegedly issued an ultimatum to double the hours of his showor else. Then, when Mr Giuliani hit out at Mr Catsimatidis on his Twitter/X show, the radio station owner said it was strike three. The man once known as Americas mayor after 9/11 had taken to his show on X Americas Mayor Live on Friday night to lash out at the radio station owner, following his suspension for airing baseless claims about the 2020 election. In the online rant, the former personal attorney to Donald Trump claimed that the trailer trash little creep President Joe Biden had something to do with his ousting. John Catsimatidis in 2013. Mr Catsimatidis said that Rudy Giulianis behaviour is making things difficult ( Getty Images ) The Democrat thing has something to do with it. And the fact that the Bidens are really zeroing in, now, on interference with the 2024 election. And remember, we can go right back to the beginning. The first thing Biden did as a candidate is write a letter to the network saying to keep me off, Mr Giuliani claimed. He began as a trailer trash little creep taking little bits with his scummy little brothers. And now hes a world-class thief. Somehow, strangely, hes president of the United States, he added. Mr Giuliani went on to claim that Mr Catsimatidis was attempting to keep him from telling the truth about the stolen 2020 presidential election. What John Catsimatidis has done is disgraceful, Mr Giuliani said. With the pretence that he was building some kind of a First Amendment station, he blew a hole in the First Amendment thats so big you cant even find it. You cant tell somebody not to talk about the 2020 presidential election and tell me that you have respect for free speech. The radio station owner personally filled in Mr Giulianis scheduled WABC slot on Sunday from 10am to 11am along with two other radio hosts. Mr Giuliani is facing a criminal trial, having been indicted on charges of attempting to overturn the result of the 2020 election in Georgia and Arizona ( Getty Images ) What happened last week was very tragic, Mr Catsimatidis said on air during the usual time slot for the Rudy Giuliani Show. When I hired Rudy, I got a lot of criticism, he continued. In this country, youre innocent until proven guilty. This latest turmoil comes mere months after the man formerly known as Americas mayor before he became synonymous with pushing election conspiracies filed for bankruptcy in December. As well as this, Mr Giuliani is facing a criminal trial, having been indicted on charges of attempting to overturn the result of the 2020 election in Georgia and Arizona. The trained attorney has also been disbarred in Washington DC and New York. In an emailed statement to The Independent, Mr Giuliani said he had learnt of his firing from a report in The New York Times and claimed that he was unaware of a policy against his speaking out about the 2020 election. How can you possibly believe that when Ive been regularly commenting on the 2020 election for three and a half years, and Ive talked about the case in Georgia incessantly ever since the verdict in December, Mr Giuliani wrote. Even if such a policy did exist, he said it was violated so often that it couldnt be taken seriously. He called the directive a clear violation of free speech. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} A family is fighting for answers after a teenage boy died hours after he was allegedly hit on the back of the head during a fight at school, before being sent back to class. Emmanuel Emeka, 17, then had a seizure in his classroom at Henry Clay High School in Lexington, Kentucky, last week. He was rushed to hospital, where his mother told local media she saw a whole team trying, but failing, to save her son. Emmanuel Emeka, 17, died hours after being hit on the head by another student in Lexington, Kentucky ( Lex 18 ) The school district has told the family that no fight was reported, but Emmanuels family and friends now want answers. It hurts. It still hurts. Even being in his house or just in my house in the living because he is just there. Nothing feels the same like it used to, Emmanuels best friend Modoul Danso told Lex 18. Its just he played a big part in all of our lives. We just miss him. It dont feel the same any more. The fight had broken out at the high school, with Emmanuel somehow involved, witnesses said. It was just after the fight was broken up that the teen was hit on the back of the head by another student, but he reportedly did not get any medical treatment. Emmanuels mother, Irene Mwele, told Lex 18 that she received a call from the school about an emergency at 10.55am, but then she had not heard any updates after that. The school is like a second family to him, so they are supposed to take responsibility when shes not around to know, Irene explained through a relative translating for her. And she wants to have that communication with them, so they can tell her what happened exactly with her son. Lexington Fire Department told The Independent that it had been called out to the school at 10.09am to reports of a patient experiencing a seizure. Emmanuels mother and siblings are seeking answers over his death last week ( Lex 18 ) The Fayette County Public School District told The Independent that it had been in constant contact with the family. The entire FCPS family is grieving the death on Friday of the student at HCHS, said Dia Davidson-Smith, FCPS spokesperson. This incident is being fully investigated and no comment will be given until that is complete. On behalf of the superintendent and entire FCPS family, our sincere condolences. As family and friends sat together on Mothers Day without him, Emmanuel was described as an honest person with a big heart. The 17-year-old planned to attend community college once he graduated in two weeks. He have his paper, he was accepted into the college. He was talking about the college, how happy and excited he is to leave high school, to start a new life, says Mr Danso added. His sister Ndaya Emeka, 14, told the outlet that Emmanuel was the best brother. If I needed help with something he would help me, she said. If I needed, like if my mood changed, he would know before anybody else and if I needed help with school stuff he would do it. The Independent has reached out to the Lexington Police Department for further comment but is yet to receive a response. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Joe Bidens campaign is set to host a major fundraising event in Los Angeles in June, enlisting help from the likes of former president Barack Obama and Hollywood stars George Clooney and Julia Roberts. The Biden campaign event, which will take place around mid-June in Los Angeles, will reportedly feature an online contest with Clooney and Roberts that will run across the campaigns social media platforms to attract grassroots donors and celebrities, according to NBC News. The two movie stars, who have worked together on a number of Hollywood projects, will also be lending their names to emails and text messages sent by the campaign to try and engage with more contributors to the fundraising efforts, the outlet said. Mr Biden is also reportedly expected to hold a fundraiser with former president Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton somewhere along the East Coast in early summer, according to a source familiar with the plans. Mr Biden has already worked with the former Democrat presidents Mr Obama and Mr Clinton, having held a fundraiser in at Radio City Music Hall in New York City in late March, which saw a giant $26 million raised for his campaign. Julia Roberts and George Clooney at the premiere of Ticket To Paradise in October 2022 in Los Angeles ( Getty Images ) In a statement announcing what they described as the historic result, the campaign said the fundraiser, billed as An Evening with President Biden and Presidents Obama and Clinton, represents the most successful political fundraiser in American history with a 5,000-strong sellout crowd at the historic Manhattan venue and thousands more taking in the spectacle online. This event was something the Biden campaign aides said was a record for Democratic fundraising in a single event. The star-studded glitzy event slated for June will be similar to the very successful evening in March. Mr Biden has just come off the back of fundraising at various events in Northern California and the Seattle area over the weekend, filling his campaign pot up a further $10 million in two days, a source familiar with the total amount told NBC. The Biden campaign, according to the most recent FEC filings seen by CNN, ended March with nearly twice the amount of cash in his arsenal than his Republican opponent Donald Trump. When taking into account the Democratic National Committee, the finances of Mr Bidens presidential campaign are almost double that of Mr Trump and the Republican National Committee $131 million versus $67 million, according to NBC. However, ever since Mr Trump won the GOP nomination, his fundraising has significantly increased, such as raising a huge $50.5 million at a major fundraiser in Florida last month. His advisors also announced earlier this month to donors that Mr Trump had yielded $76 million in April. The Independent has contacted the Biden campaign for comment. Chinese foundation wins acclaim for intensifying humanitarian services in Ethiopia Xinhua) 10:10, May 13, 2024 The launch ceremony of Chinese Enterprises Volunteer Project in Ethiopia is held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, May 10, 2024. A special ceremony was held on Friday in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, to mark the fifth anniversary of the establishment of China Foundation for Rural Development (CFRD) Ethiopia Office and the launch of the Chinese Enterprises Volunteer Project with attendees of senior Ethiopian government officials, Chinese diplomats and representatives of Chinese enterprises. (Xinhua/Michael Tewelde) ADDIS ABABA, May 11 (Xinhua) -- China Foundation for Rural Development (CFRD) has won acclaim for intensifying humanitarian assistance in Ethiopia as it marked its five years of operation in the east African country. A special ceremony was held on Friday in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, to mark the fifth anniversary of the establishment of CFRD Ethiopia Office and the launch of the Chinese Enterprises Volunteer Project with attendees of senior Ethiopian government officials, Chinese diplomats and representatives of Chinese enterprises. Speaking on the occasion, Minister of Women and Social Affairs Ergogie Tesfaye said with its school feeding, water and sanitation, poverty alleviation and women's economic empowerment programs, CFRD has extended a helping hand to 320,000 people in Ethiopia. "Today I am filled with joy to witness the accomplishment of the China Foundation for Rural Development in Ethiopia whose dedication and contributions are commendable in bringing significant change on the lives of people in Ethiopia," Tesfaye said. With its "Smiling Children Program", CFRD has been working jointly with the Ethiopian government and local NGOs to meet its target of "zero hunger" scheme in Ethiopia, mainly through school feeding and poverty alleviation programs. "It is really pleasing to see smiles on the faces of children who benefited from CFRD's project. It is all about humanity and this project shows that humanity does not have borders," she said. Noting that the CFRD's humanitarian services have expanded to nearly all regions of Ethiopia, Tesfaye said China and Ethiopia are enjoying "all-weather" strategic partnership with deepening political trust and fruitful economic collaborations. Highlighting that CFRD has done a great job in strengthening relations between the peoples of China and Ethiopia, Yang Yihang, minister counselor at the Chinese Embassy in Ethiopia, said the CFRD has been addressing the diverse needs of poor communities in Ethiopia over the past five years. "CFRD has been undertaking a lot of charitable projects in Ethiopia through the school feeding program, panda pack project and solar lamp project among others," Yang said. According to information obtained at the event, CFRD has invested over 10.5 million U.S. dollars to undertake its humanitarian services in Ethiopia. Currently, CFRD is undertaking school feeding and food items distribution program in selected primary schools, aiming at meeting nutritional needs of disadvantaged school children and addressing delayed growth problems in the east African country. The foundation also launched a water, sanitation and hygiene project as part of its effort of helping the east African country meet the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). CFRD also started the pilot panda light project involving provision of solar powered lamps to primary school students learning in off-grid areas of Ethiopia. So far, the foundation has distributed 9,000 solar lamps to primary school students in the Oromia region of the country. Ethiopian Minister of Women and Social Affairs Ergogie Tesfaye speaks at a ceremony in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, May 10, 2024. A special ceremony was held on Friday in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, to mark the fifth anniversary of the establishment of China Foundation for Rural Development (CFRD) Ethiopia Office and the launch of the Chinese Enterprises Volunteer Project with attendees of senior Ethiopian government officials, Chinese diplomats and representatives of Chinese enterprises. (Xinhua/Michael Tewelde) (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing) Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} The Biden administration is sharing intelligence with Israel to help it target Hamas leadership and conduct other combat operations in the hope of limiting the invasion of Rafah, according toThe Washington Post. For weeks, Israeli officials have warned of imminent invasion in the southern city Rafah, where more than one million Palestinians fled to escape fighting in the north of Gaza. On Sunday, the exodus of Palestinians from Gazas last refuge accelerated as Israeli forces pushed deeper into Rafah. Israel also pounded the territorys devastated north, where some Hamas militants have regrouped in areas the military said it had cleared months ago. Rafah is considered Hamas last stronghold. Some 300,000 of the more than 1 million civilians sheltering there have fled the city following evacuation orders from Israel, which says it must invade to dismantle Hamas and return scores of hostages taken from Israel in the Oct. 7 attack that sparked the war. A boy looks on as Palestinians prepare to flee Rafah after Israeli forces launched a ground and air operation in the eastern part of the southern Gaza city on 12 May ( REUTERS ) The White House, State Department, and a number of Democrats are vocally opposed to those plans, stating that the US does not believe an assault can be carried out with appropriate considerations for civilians caught in the crossfire. President Joe Biden told CNN last week that he would cut off specific types of military aid to Israel if a full-scale attack was launched in Rafah. Were going to continue to make sure Israel is secure in terms of Iron Dome and their ability to respond to attacks that came out of the Middle East recently, he said. But its, its just wrong. Were not going to were not going to supply the weapons and artillery shells. On Sunday, the Washington Post reported new details of the Biden administrations steps to limit the Rafah attacks. The US intelligence community is reportedly sharing information with its Israeli counterparts to assist the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) in locating Hamas leadership as well as the groups purported tunnel system alleged to exist throughout Gaza. Biden administration officials have committed to intelligence-sharing with the hopes they will persuade Israel to conduct a more limited and targeted operation in the southern Gaza city, the Post reported. One unnamed official told the Post: We have serious concerns about how Israel has prosecuted this campaign, and that could all come to a head in Rafah. A State Department official noted to The Independent that the agency does not comment on the details of private diplomatic talks, but did not refute any of the facts laid out by the Posts reporting. The agency spokesperson added that State Department officials continue discussions with Israel to address humanitarian concerns, including increasing life-saving assistance, supplementing aid, creating more entry points for assistance to get into Gaza, allowing fuel entry, and ensuring freedom of movement for humanitarian workers. US President Joe Biden meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in September 2023 ( POOL/AFP via Getty Images ) Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar remains in hiding. The group maintains a political office in Qatar through which limited negotiations, facilitated by the US, have taken place. More than 35,000 people have died in Gaza since the war began seven months ago, according to estimates from the health authority there. More than 1,100 Israelis died in the 7 October terrorist attack which ignited the conflict, the deadliest in Israels history. More than 100 of the 251 hostages taken from Israel that day are believed to be in the territory. President Biden has grown increasingly frustrated with Israels handling of the war against Hamas and his administration in recent days paused a shipment of high-payload weaponry to the ally as US officials increasingly point to an assault on Rafah as a red line. At the same time, the Biden administration has faced growing criticism from Democrats over all miltary assistance to Israel, given allegations of war crimes committed by Israeli forces. With reporting from The Associated Press Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Watch from outside court in New York as jury selection is expected to begin on Monday 13 May in the corruption trial of US Senator Robert Menendez. Mr Menendez, 70, and two New Jersey businessmen face charges in a bribery conspiracy case in Manhattan federal court, in a trial that could last five to eight weeks. The senators wife, Nadine Menendez, has also been charged but will be tried separately. All four have pleaded not guilty. Mr Menendez, New Jerseys senior senator, is up for re-election in November and if exonerated hopes to run for a fourth full term as an independent. But recent polls show Mr Menendez is deeply unpopular among New Jersey voters, and many Democratic senators including New Jerseys Cory Booker have called for him to resign. Democrats and independents who caucus with them hold a 51-49 Senate majority. Prosecutors said Mr Menendez accepted cash, gold bars and a Mercedes-Benz convertible in exchange for wielding his political influence in New Jersey and to help Egypts and Qatars governments. The alleged crimes occurred between 2018 and 2023. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Jury selection is set to begin on Monday in the trial of New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez, who has been accused of allegedly accepting gold bars and cash in exchange for political favours. Mr Menendez, 70, will stand trial in a Manhattan federal court along with two New Jersey businessmenreal estate developer Fred Daibes and Egyption-American businessman Wael Hana. All three have pleaded not guilty to the charges. A third businessman, Jose Uribe, has pleaded guilty and has agreed to testify against the other defendants. Mr Menendezs wife has also been charged, but her trial will not start until at least July. An attorney representing Nadine Menendez wife has previously said that she "denies any wrongdoing and will vigorously defend against these allegations in court." Mr Menendez faces 16 felony charges in total, including bribery, extortion, acting as a foreign agent and obstruction of justice. If he is convicted, he could spend the rest of his life in prison. The senator, who has held his position since 2006, and his wife, are accused of accepting hundreds of thousands worth of bribes in the form of cash, gold bars, jewellery and a Mercedez-Benz convertible in exchange for political favours that benefitted the governments of Egypt and Qatar. In addition, prosecutors brought a superseding indictment against Mr Menendez in March for allegedly trying to cover up the bribes as loans. In the case of Mr Hana, prosecutors claim that the businessman had arranged meetings between Mr Menendez and Egyptian officials, who urged the senator to sign off on military aid. In return, Mr Hana put Ms Menendez on the payroll of a company he controlled, prosecutors allege. US Senator Bob Menendez arriving with his wife Nadine Menendez at Manhattan Federal Court, in New York City for his arraignment in March ( AFP via Getty Images ) Prosecutors say Mr Menendez accepted luxury watches, a gold bar and cash from Mr Daibes knowing that he expected him to induce the Qatari Investment Company to invest with Dabies on the real-estate developers residential skyscraper project in Edgewater, New Jersey. In the case of the third businessman, Mr Uribe, it is alleged that Mr Uribe arranged for the Menendezes to receive payments for his wifes luxury Mercedez-Benz in exchange for the senators political influence over an insurance fraud investigation. Authorities say they seized $100,000 in gold bars and more than $480,000 cash, mostly stuffed into envelopes and hidden in clothing, closets, and a safe at their home, according to a federal indictment. At the end of March, Mr Menendez announced that he would not seek re-election. However, he did not rule out the possibility of running as an independent candidate after his federal trial. Unfortunately the present accusations I am facing, of which I am innocent, and will prove so will not allow me to have that type of dialogue and debate with political opponents that have already made it the cornerstone of their campaign. New Jerseyans deserve better than that, Mr Menendez said. He later said: I am hopeful that my exoneration will take place this summer and allow me to pursue my candidacy as an independent Democrat in the general election. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Californias governor Gavin Newsom was confronted while being probed at a press conference over the states spending of $24 billion to tackle homelessness. Mr Newson led a conference on Friday announcing that Californias budget deficit is at least $45 billion and proposed various spending cuts to state worker jobs, education programs and health services. He also proposed reducing funding for homelessness and housing initiatives by nearly $1.2 billion, including $474 million from an anti-foreclosure program to preserve existing affordable housing. Despite the big budget announcements and slashes on spending, one reporter at the conference did not allow the governor to skim over the topic of homelessness in the state. In a state audit, released in early April, it was revealed that California spent $24 billion to tackle homelessness over the past five years, yet did not consistently track how exactly the huge sum of money helped the homeless crisis. Angela Hart, of KFF Health News, asked two questions: whether he felt his administration did enough to determine if the money was well spent and if he was worried whether public opinion over spending so much on the homelessness program has soured given the lack of progress from all the billions of dollars spent. Mr Newsom replied with a lengthy answer about localism, and how it is difficult at state level to deal with these issues when local governments have different strategies, but touched on how they have incorporated accountability plans into their Housing Assistance Program (HAP). He added that the audit did not surprise him and said that he acknowledged they needed to do more not just in the homeless bucket but also the mental health/homelessness bucket. However, Ms Hart came back to the governor after his response saying, Im sorry, governor, I didnt hear responses to either of those questions. Well, forgive me if I appear to repeat the first response, the governor started off by saying. He reiterated that the audit did not surprise him and explained that California has taken part in unprecedented investments and, with that unprecedented interventions, such as demanding more accountability over local governments on how they are spending state money. He reiterated that he initially rejected plans surrounding an accountability framework as he believed there was not enough accountability nor ambition in them. Californias governor Gavin Newsom unveils his revised 2024-25 state budget during a news conference in Sacramento on 10 May ( AP ) He then said they had created a housing accountability unit and wanted to incorporate homelessness into that for further accountability over state funding. He also said that in other areas, they have proposed to foundationally reform an existing stream of funding to provide more transparency and state oversight of how local governments are spending. Moving on to Ms Harts second question over whether the public may be sceptical about spending further on homelessness, Mr Newsom said: As it relates to the public mood, no question, more is not always better; they want to see results. He then listed off some demonstrable examples of where California has been taking action against homelessness, such as the national model encampment resolution grants and an amicus brief he filed with the United States Supreme Court concerning the homelessness encampments in March. In a statement on the brief, the governor said: The United States Supreme Court can establish a balance that allows enforcement of reasonable limits on camping in public spaces, while still respecting the dignity of those living on our streets. Ms Hart thanked him for his answer, calling it thorough before questioning Mr Newsom over other budget areas. The tension over whether California is doing enough toward homelessness rose further after the audits release in April. An estimated 171,000 people are homeless in California, which amounts to roughly 30 per cent of all of the homeless people in the US. However, without a clear dataset, it is unclear how much of the $24bn helped towards the situation. Without reliable and recent data on its spending, the state will continue to lack complete and timely information about the ongoing costs and associated outcomes of its homelessness programs, the audit stated. California funds more than 30 programs to tackle homelessness, with the audit assessing only five initiatives. However, the audit found that only two of them the efforts to turn hotel and motel rooms into housing and housing-related support programs are likely cost-effective. The other programs, which received collectively $9.4 billion since 2020, did not have enough data to be fully assessed, the report says. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Vice President Kamala Harris drew both laughter and applause when she dropped the f-bomb while delivering a speech about the importance of representation to a group of Asian-American activists. Ms Harris, whose mother was an Indian immigrant to the US and whose father was from Jamaica, is the first woman, the first Asian-American and the first African-American person to serve as Vice President. She was roughly 12 minutes into a conversation with comedian Jimmy Yang at the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies annual legislative summit in Washington DC on Monday, when her language turned a bit blue as she offered advice to the gathering of activists and advocates about being the first in a given position. Mr Yang had asked the vice president what it means to her to be the first vice president of Asian descent and how her heritage has informed her views and roles as a leader. Ms Harris responded by recalling advice from her mother, who she said had once told her: Dont you ever let anybody tell you who you are you tell them who you are. She went on to tell attendees not to burden themselves with other peoples limited ability to see what theyre capable of. Then, in a somewhat out of character moment, she dropped the f-bomb. Sometimes people will open the door for you and leave it open, she said. Sometimes they wont and then you need to kick that f***ing door down! Her comment prompted laughter from attendees. Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a campaign event in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, on May 8 2024 ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. ) The vice president went on to tell attendees that she considered the late Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall the first African-American to serve on the high court one of her mentors even though she never met Marshall, who retired from the court in 1991 and passed away two years later. She said Marshall understood the importance of translating the passion from the streets to the courtrooms of America to make real the promise of America. Ms Harris described the Supreme Courts overturning of Roe v Wade in 2022 a move that ended a half-century of legal federal abortion rights in the US as a departure from the jurisprudence of the Court of Thurgood and RBG because it just took a constitutional right that had been recognised from the people of America from the women of America. She added: And thereafter in state after state laws are being proposed and passed that will criminalise health care providers, punish women, some make no exception even for rape or incest ... over the last few years this issue and the way it has played out has resulted in real and profound harm to real people on a daily basis. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Senator Lindsey Graham has come under fire for drawing comparisons between Israels war on Gaza and the USs decision to drop atomic bombs on Japan during World War II urging Israel to do whatever you have to do. Speaking on NBCs Meet the Press on Sunday, the South Carolina Republican appeared to justify Israels Rafah offensive something that President Joe Biden has warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against and called the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945 the right decision for the US. When we were faced with destruction as a nation after Pearl Harbor, fighting the Germans and the Japanese, we decided to end the war by bombing Hiroshima, Nagasaki with nuclear weapons, Mr Graham told Kristin Welker. That was the right decision, he concluded. The two atomic blasts and the radiation that ensued are estimated to have killed between 129,000 and 226,000 people most of them civilians. Give Israel the bombs they need to end the war they cant afford to lose and work with them to minimise casualties, Mr Graham continued. Ms Welker was stopped in her tracks by the senators comments, as he continued to speak over the host. Why is it okay for America to drop two nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki to end their existential threat war. Why was it okay to do that? I thought it was okay? Mr Graham said. He added: To Israel, do whatever you have to do to survive as a Jewish state. Whatever you have to do. Lindsey Graham with Donald Trump at a Republican primary event in February ( AP ) Its not the first time Mr Graham has shared his controversial opinion about the Middle East conflict, previously urging the US president to blow parts of Iran off the map. I have been saying for six months now... hit Iran, he told Fox News in December. They have oil fields out in the open, they have the Revolutionary Guard headquarters you can see from space. Blow it off the map. The Republican senators comments come as Israel launches a ground invasion on the Gazan city of Rafah, with more than 360,000 Palestinians so far having fled the region, according to the United Nations. Tensions between the US and Israel continue to come under strain with Mr Biden warning Mr Netanyahu that the US will curtail the supply of certain weapons if Israel invades Rafah. Mr Netanyahu swiftly responded, telling Phil McGraw on Dr Phil that the halt of precision weapons might cause more civilian casualties due to the uptake of imprecise weaponry. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene has signalled that significant divisions between her and fellow Republican Mike Johnson remain as she spoke about her failed attempt to bring down the House speaker earlier this week. On Wednesday, Greene brought her long-awaited motion to vacate to the floor in an effort to remove Johnson from the speakers chair. It failed spectacularly, with 196 Republicans and 163 Democrats voting to kill her resolution. But she appeared unable to move on during an interview with Fox News on Sunday where she accused Mr Johnson of being owned by the Democrats after the rival party voted to protect him. Americans are fed up with Republicans that will not defend President Trump, Rep. Greene told host Maria Bartiromo on Sunday Morning Futures. Bartiromo asked Greene whether her effort to oust Johnson was creating a disruption too close to an election when Republicans will be seeking to defend a thin majority in the chamber. The Georgia lawmaker responded that the disruption, the chaos and the drama she was bringing to Capitol Hill was already a staple of the average Americans daily life, an allusion to problems she argues are failures of Washington. Marjorie Taylor Greene, pictured speaking on the House floor on Wednesday, was defeated when she attempted to remove Speaker Mike Johnson ( C-SPAN ) The congresswoman also shared that, ahead of her motion to vacate, she asked Mr Johnson to defund Jack Smith - the justice departments special counsel overseeing investigations into Mr Trumps attempts to overturn the 2020 election, and his handling of classified documents. The House speaker does not have the power to do that. Ms Greene also claimed that the GOP would not win control of the House in November elections unless the party prove[d] to the American people that were worth theyre vote. And so far, under Mike Johnson, we havent proven that. The remark is just one of many remarks from Greene that the Biden campaign is likely to weaponise against Republicans. A clip of her Fox interview was quickly shared on social media by an account operated by the Democratic National Committee, with the caption: Marjorie Taylor Greene: Republican voters are saying theyre going to skip our names on the ballot. Theyre not going to vote for us. Ms Greenes war with Speaker Johnson has now stretched on for months. In January, she threatened to call a motion to vacate the speakership, if brought a bill to fund military assistance to Ukraine, which he eventually did in April. That bill passed with wide bipartisan support last month, as expected, though more Democrats than Republicans supported it. Despite few backers among Republicans, the Georgia lawmaker continued in her lonely bid to oust Mr Johnson which came a head on Wednesday. Unlike the process which led to former Republican speaker Kevin McCarthys ouster last fall, Democrats crossed party lines to vote for Mr Johnson, citing his willingness to bring the Ukraine vote to the floor under threat from his partys right wing. The chamber voted 359-43 to put aside her motion without an official vote or period of debate, a process called tabling the resolution. I appreciate the show of confidence from my colleagues to defeat this misguided effort, Mr Johnson said after the ouster attempt. In this moment, the country desperately needs a functioning Congress. Even conservative and right-wing members of the GOP rounded on Ms Greene following her ouster attempt. We need to get our act together, said Nancy Mace, a Republican who supported ousting McCarthy, before Greene made her move this week. Shes gonna lose. I dont know why shes doing this because the votes arent there. Shes gonna lose the motion to vacate, and I dont know why shes doing it. "One dumpster fire at a time," Dusty Johnson of South Dakota quipped when asked by one reporter if the caucus would punish Greene following the motion to vacate. At this point, the congresswoman is persisting in criticizing the speaker contrary to the wishes of former president Donald Trump, who has remained the Republican partys de facto leader. Mr Trump has now made clear on several occasions that he did not support Ms Greenes bid to oust Mr Johnson from the speakership. The former president and Mr Johnson recently met at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, where the two unveiled a piece of headline-grabbing legislation to combat the largely nonexistent problem of undocumented immigrants attempting to vote in presidential elections. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} The governments sprawling corruption case against New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez, his wife and two New Jersey businessmen of brazenly engaging in bribery has begun in federal court in Manhattan. Over the next six to seven weeks, federal prosecutors are expected to argue that Mr Menendez used his political influence and power to provide favors for the businessmen as well as aid officials in Egypt in exchange for lavish bribes. It comes months after federal prosecutors unveiled three separate indictments, amounting to 18 criminal charges, against Mr Menendez, his wife Nadine Menendez, and businessmen Fred Daibes and Wael Hana. Each is accused of playing a part in a years-long bribery scheme that intended to wield Mr Menendezs political influence as a senator and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to obtain deals with officials in Qatar and Egypt. As the trial kicks off, here are the key players to know. Robert Bob Menendez The senator-turned-defendant Bob Menendez, the New Jersey senator indicted in a corruption scandal ( Getty Images ) Mr Menendez, 70, is a three-term Democratic US Senator from New Jersey who formerly chaired the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He is accused of accepting lavish bribes in exchange for wielding his political influence for favors. Federal prosecutors say Mr Menendez and his wife took gold bars, luxury jewelry and hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash, among others, to help two New Jersey businessmen secure deals with officials from Egypt and Qatar. In addition, prosecutors say the New Jersey senator tried to influence criminal cases in New Jersey and complete favors for the Egyptian government. He has been charged with 16 crimes, including bribery, acting as a foreign agent, obstruction of justice and more. He has pleaded not guilty. This is the second time Mr Menendez has been investigated and indicted in a corruption scheme. He was charged with bribery in 2015 but the charges were dismissed when it ended in a mistrial. Nadine Menendez The senators wife Nadine Menendez, the wife of Senator Bob Menendez, indicted in a corruption scandal ( Getty Images ) Ms Menendez (nee Arslanian), 57, is the wife of Mr Menendez. She is also accused of accepting bribes to use her husbands political influence for favors. She faces 15 charges, including bribery and obstruction of justice. Her role is at the heart of the indictment and, possibly, Mr Menendezs defence. Prosecutors allege that shortly after Ms Menendez began dating Mr Menendez in 2018 she began offering up her then-boyfriends political influence to help her friend Wael Hana and eventually served as a messenger between her friend, her husband and Egyptian officials. She has pleaded not guilty to all charges. Her trial will be separate from Mr Menendezs, beginning sometime this summer. Fred Daibes The real estate developer Fred Daibes, a New Jersey real estate developer indicted in a bribery scandal ( Getty Images ) Mr Daibes, 66, is a New Jersey real estate developer who is accused of giving Mr Menendez gold and cash in exchange for his help with a criminal investigation and securing investors in a development project. He is charged with seven crimes including bribery, honest services wire fraud, conspiracy to commit obstruction of justices and more. He has pleaded not guilty. Prosecutors say Mr Daibes sought Mr Menendezs help to secure a financial investor for a residential skyscraper project in Edgewater, New Jersey. He was eventually introduced to a Qatari investor who was also a member of the Qatari royal family. Additionally, the government claims Mr Daibes tried to have Mr Menendez intervene in a separate federal bank fraud case. Wael Hana The halal meat-certifying businessman Wael Hana, the New Jersey businessman indicted in a bribery scheme alongside Senator Bob Menendez ( Getty Images ) Mr Hana, 40, is an Egyptian-born American businessman who is accused of giving Mr Menendez gold bars, cash and more to secure a lucrative deal for his halal meat-certifying company with Egyptian officials. Prosecutors allege that Mr Hana used his company, IS EG Halal to funnel bribes to the Menendezes and influenced the senator from New Jersey to make favorable decisions for Egypt. He has been charged with six crimes, including bribery, honest services wire fraud, conspiring for a public official to act as a foreign agent and more. Mr Hana has pleaded not guilty. Jose Uribe The defendant turned witness Jose Uribe, a former insurance broker indicted alongside Senator Bob Menendez. He later struck a plea deal with prosecutors ( Getty Images ) Mr Uribe, 56, is a former New Jersey insurance broker, indicted alongside Mr Menendez and his co-defendants who took a plea deal with prosecutors. In the initial indictments, the government said Mr Uribe facilitated payments that ultimately paid for the Menendezes $60,000 Mercedes-Benz convertible in exchange for the senator intervening in a criminal investigation into several of Mr Uribes associates. In March, Mr Uribe pled guilty to seven crimes, including conspiracy to commit bribery, obstruction of justice and tax evasion. He agreed to cooperate with the government and revealed to prosecutors the Menendezeses attempted to cover up the bribe payments by misrepresenting them as loans after they realized they were under investigation. He will likely serve as a witness for the prosecution. Sidney Stein The judge Judge Stein, 78, a senior judge for the Southern District of New York court, is presiding over the corruption case against Mr Menendez and his co-defendants. He was appointed to the court by President Bill Clinton in 1995 and has been described as a down-the-middle fair judge who maintains a calm demeanor. Judge Stein has overseen the case against Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star Jennifer Shah. Damien Williams The prosecutor Damien Williams, the US assistant attorney for the Southern District of New York ( Getty Images ) Mr Williams, 44, is an assistant attorney for the Southern District of New York (SDNY). He brought the charges against Mr Menendez and his co-defendants. He joined the US attorneys office in 2021 and became the first African-American US attorney for SDNY when President Joe Biden named him in 2021. Mr Williams also oversaw the prosecutions of the disgraced FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried and convicted sex offender Ghisalane Maxwell. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Michael Cohen was once so close to Donald Trump that he said he would take a bullet for him. In the seven years since professing his unwavering loyalty, the former lawyer and fixer has suffered his own very public downfall and criminal conviction, and has now been recast as the star witness in the Manhattan district attorneys hush money case against the former president. It is a role that Cohen both relishes as a reformed truth-teller who enthusiastically pulls back the curtain on the alleged murky dealings of Trumpworld and reviles. Before he testified in the trial, some of those close to Cohen told The Independent that he faced significant risks by taking the stand against his former boss. His family and Michael are still under risk because of Mr Trumps hateful attacks and what he does on social media, said Lanny Davis, Cohens friend and legal advisor, who is not involved in the hush money trial. Cohen is a wounded human being who fears for his family, Mr Davis added. The former lawyer cannot have been unaware of the profound significance of his testifying for the prosecution against Mr Trump at the first-ever criminal trial of a US president, which could yet see the defendant sentenced to a jail term at a time when he is campaigning for a return to the White House. Michael Cohen pictured with Donald Trump at a campaign stop in Ohio ahead of the 2016 presidential election. The pair have since been reunited at Mr Trumps criminal trial in Manhattan ( Reuters ) Mr Trump is accused of 34 counts of falsifying business records over payments made to porn star Stormy Daniels to keep quiet about their alleged affair ahead of the 2016 election. Cohen, who at that point was Mr Trumps attorney and fixer for a decade, said that he delivered the payments, totalling $130,000, to Ms Daniels and did so at the direction of the former president. Mr Trump has repeatedly denied the affair but admitted on Twitter in May 2018 that he had reimbursed Cohen for the sum. In taking the stand, Cohen once more found himself face-to-face with the man he now describes as a cheat, con man and more recently, Von S***zInPantz. Since their relationship imploded in 2018, Mr Trump has verbally attacked his one-time confidante again and again. He disparaged Cohen from the White House and has continued ever since on social media, branding him a liar, sleazebag and rat to his nearly seven million Truth Social followers. Mr Trump has assailed Cohens credibility, pointing out that his former lawyer pleaded guilty in federal court to lying to Congress about a Trump Tower project in Russia. The former president also highlighted that Cohens bid to reduce his court-ordered supervised release was rejected by a judge, who suggested that the disbarred lawyer had perjured himself over tax evasion claims. Stormy Daniels, pictured in 2018. Mr Trump allegedly paid her $130,000 to keep quiet about an affair ahead of the 2016 election. Mr Trump has denied the affair ( AP ) But Mr Trumps posts about Cohen also attracted the attention of prosecutors in the hush money trial, who used the evidence to bolster accusations that the former president had violated his gag order. Cohen declined to discuss specifics of the trial with The Independent. But in a text message in April, he wrote that, in the face of Mr Trumps attacks, he was feeling stronger than I ever imagined, adding that the truth will prevail. (He has since issued a self-imposed gag order on himself ahead of his testimony.) But despite this show of bravado, Cohen previously confessed that he didnt want to testify in the hush money case but was compelled to by subpoena. His decision to tell the truth has taken a toll, he claimed. Cohen said that he had received emails, social media posts and texts from Trump-supporting haters. Lanny Davis, Cohens former legal adviser and friend, pictured in 2018. He is not involved in the ongoing criminal case in Manhattan but told The Independent that Cohen is under risk ( AFP/Getty ) I just got one, he said on a March episode of Mea Culpa, the regular podcast he started in 2020. F*** you, traitor, snitch and all-around c*** sucker. Cohen also brought up the disturbing messages on Political Beatdown, another podcast that he co-hosts. Earlier this month, Cohen accused Mr Trump of blowing the dog whistle by which he meant igniting the MAGA, right-wing group. Why does my life need to be threatened on a daily basis? he wondered aloud on the show. Public property records show that Cohen still has a home in a Trump-branded building in Manhattan. In December, he acknowledged owning property in the luxury residence despite his fractious relationship with the former president and tweeted that he would move from the building when Im ready. A source with knowledge of the matter told The Independent that he is not currently living in that apartment. Mr Davis speaks with Cohen after he testified to the Senate Intelligence Committee on Capitol Hill on 26 February 2019, where he unveiled information that is now being used in the hush money case ( Getty ) Cohen is married to Laura Shusterman and has two adult children, Samantha and Jake. Samantha Cohen, a Penn graduate-turned-digital creator with a podcast of her own, has spoken about how their lives were upended by her fathers exile from Trumpworld. The level of hatred and vitriol thrown at us terrifies me, Samantha Cohen told Vanity Fair in 2020. I get that people are angry. I get that people hate Trump. But think about the effect that has on a person, on their family, on the people who love them. And its not just immediate family. Mr Davis, who joined the former fixers legal team in 2018 after meeting him through a mutual friend, is under a security risk and threats just like everybody else who was involved with Michael Cohen, he said. Mr Davis, former special counsel to president Bill Clinton, emphasized just how serious the situation is for Cohen and his family but declined to discuss specific threats, fearing that to do so would exacerbate the problem. Mr Trump at the Manhattan criminal courthouse on 26 April 2024. He has pleaded not guilty and has denied any wrongdoing in the hush money case, the first-ever criminal trial of a US president ( AP ) He decided to tell the truth after lying for Donald Trump for 10 years, Mr Davis told The Independent. He recalled Cohens explosive testimony to Congress where he displayed the checks he had written to Ms Daniels, a moment that arguably lit the match that has ended up in Mr Trumps hush money trial five years later. Cohen himself pleaded guilty to tax evasion, lying to Congress, and campaign finance violations in August 2018 and served three years, largely in home confinement. To this day, he is on supervised release. He paid his price, Mr Davis said. Michael is fearful to this day. But hes standing up and telling the truth. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Donald Trumps former attorney and one-time fixer Michael Cohen has been looming throughout the former presidents criminal hush money trial in New York, on the lips of nearly every witness and all over documents at the heart of the case. He made his debut on the witness stand on Monday, testifying for nearly six hours giving jurors the crucial connective tissue for the prosecutions case against Mr Trump. It was Cohen who negotiated hush money deals that kept stories of Mr Trumps alleged affairs away from voters. It was Cohen who wired $130,000 to Stormy Daniels. And it was Cohen who sent invoices to Mr Trump and was reimbursed for his payout to the adult film star. On Monday, he testified that Mr Trump directed him to pay Ms Daniels in the hopes of keeping his chances of winning the 2016 presidential election alive, following a series of explosive controversies involving women that threatened to derail his campaign. Cohen has now directly linked Mr Trump to the alleged cover-up, labelling his reimbursements as legal expenses when they were actually, as Cohen testified, made to buy the life rights to Ms Daniels story. Here are the key takeaways from Mr Trumps day in court: Trumps reaction to the Stormy Daniels story: This is a disaster Mr Trump was furious with his attorney and feared disaster for his 2016 campaign when Cohen disclosed that Ms Daniels was preparing to share her story about having sex with him in 2006. I thought you had this under control. I thought you took care of this, Cohen said, recalling Mr Trumps enraged reaction to news that the adult film stars allegations had resurfaced. Just take care of it. Theres a lot going on at the campaign at the time. Just take care of it, Mr Trump said, according to Cohen. This is a disaster. This is a total disaster, he said. Women are going to hate me. This really is a disaster. Women are going to hate me. Guys will think its cool, but this is a disaster for the campaign. Melania came up with minimizing Trumps Access Hollywood comments as locker room talk Mr Trumps campaign was in damage control mode with the release of a tape from 2005 that included Mr Trump bragging about grabbing womens genitals. He told Cohen and his advisers that the campaign needed to put a spin on this, according to Cohen. And the spin that he wanted to put on it was that this was locker room talk, something that Melania had recommended, or thats what Melania thought it was, he said. He urged his campaign to get control on the story and minimize impact on his campaign, according to Cohen. Cohen leaves his apartment building on his way to Manhattan criminal court on Monday ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. ) Trump was worried about losing women voters Cohen was tasked with putting out fires from a series of damaging stories in the weeks leading up to the 2016 election, he said. He also told the court about how Mr Trump responded to such stories and his concern about how those stories would play with women voters. After hearing about the Access Hollywood tape, Cohen recalled thinking This was going to be significantly impactful, especially with women voters. At the time, Trump was polling very poorly with women, he said. With this Access Hollywood, he thought it was a disaster. Cohen recalled Trump ordering him to get control of it. This concern reappeared in early October when the threat of the Stormy Daniels story resurfaced after Cohen and Mr Trump thought they had buried the story in 2011 when the story of the alleged sexual encounter first appeared on the gossip website TheDirty.com. Cohen recalled Mr Trump being very angry that the story resurfaced, adding: I thought you had this under control. I thought you took care of this. This is a disaster. Women are going to hate me. Guys will think its cool but this is a disaster for the campaign, Mr Trump said, according to Cohen. But the negative stories about Mr Trump threatening to repel women voters didnt end there. Cohen testified that when he discovered the Wall Street Journal was working on a story about the National Enquirer covering up allegations from Karen McDougal, who alleged a months-long affair with Mr Trump, Cohen contacted her attorney Keith Davidson as well as Trump aide Hope Hicks and publisher David Pecker so we can all coalesce around this issue and again quell the effects of an article like this. Mr Trump then called Cohen, who said that they addressed that this was a real serious problem, especially because it was so close to the election. He was angry and upset, Cohen recalled, because there was a negative story that could once again impact the campaign as a result of women. Cohen portrays himself as a fierce, but calm, loyalist Trumps former attorney remained composed throughout his testimony contrasting other witnesses opinions of his personality. In court, other witnesses have described him as a pants-on-fire type of guy, excitable, and aggressive, while outside of the courtroom, he often posts inflammatory tweets about Mr Trump. Text messages shown in court also reflected that Cohen often worked with urgency, contacting many people to deal with the Trump issue du jour. But on the stand, jurors didnt see that personality at all. He remained cool, calm and collected, even when he was testifying about touchy subjects. Earlier this month, Mr Davidson testified that after he found out that Mr Trump wasnt considering offering Cohen a top position in the White House, I thought he was going to kill himself. But in court on Monday, Cohen remained largely unfazed. He agreed with the prosecutor when she asked whether he was disappointed. He also testified that despite his loyalty, his Christmas bonus was significantly cut in 2016. Cohen testifies on the witness stand ( Elizabeth Williams via AP ) Cohen said he felt personally hurt and didnt understand it after all I had gone through in terms of the campaign and laying out $130,000 on his behalf to protect Mr Trump. It was insulting that the gratitude shown back to me was to cut my bonus by two-thirds, he said. He even joked emphatically: I am unusually angry. But even that line landed with a smile on the stand. As for lying, Cohen admitted on the stand multiple times that his invoices were intentionally falsely labelled as a retainer when they were actually payments for the life rights of others stories. Push it as long as you can: Cohen confirms Trump wanted to stall until after the election Prosecutors asked Cohen about his strategy to deal with the resurfaced Stormy Daniels story in October 2016. Cohen recalled Mr Trump telling him to push it out as long as you can. If I win, it wont matter, he said, according to Cohen. Mr Davidson said that his client had expressed dissatisfaction with a delay of 10 days for funding, which was written into the contract. Cohen said that Mr Davidson wanted an immediate wire transfer and Cohen replied that he needed 10 days. He told the court that the 10-delay was what I was instructed to do. Push it past Election Day. I was following directions, he said. The deadline for paying Ms Daniels was 14 October, 2016. Assistant District Attorney Susan Hoffinger asked Cohen whether he expected to make the payment on deadline. No maam, Cohen replied. When asked what he was planning to do, he said: Delay it. Trump never uses email Cohen testified that his former boss did not have an email address. During some conversations, Mr Trump would comment that emails were like written papers, according to Cohen He knows too many people who have gone down as a direct result of having emails that prosecutors can use in a case, he added. Cohen then confirmed that by going down, he meant getting in trouble. Be prepared, theres going to be a lot of women coming forward Before he launched his 2016 presidential campaign, Mr Trump warned Cohen who was then the Trump Organizations special counsel that damaging stories about his relationships with women were imminent and could derail his bid for the White House, according to testimony from Cohen. You know, that when this comes out meaning, the announcement just be prepared theres gonna be a lot of women coming forward, Cohen said, remembering what his former boss told him in 2015. Mr Trump wanted to rely on the power of the National Enquirer and its placement in supermarkets and bodegas to place positive stories about him and negative ones about his rivals, according to Cohen. During a meeting at Trump Tower in August 2015, two months after the launch of his campaign. Mr Trump met with Cohen and tabloid publisher David Pecker, who previously testified that he vowed to be the eyes and ears of the campaign. Trump slumps during the criminal trial ( AP ) What he said was that he could keep an eye out for anything negative about Mr Trump and that he would be able to help us know in advance about what was coming out for us to stop it from coming out, according to Cohen. The resulting catch and kill scheme helped bury a bogus story about an alleged love child with a Trump Tower maid as well a story from Ms McDougal. Cohen admitted he would lie and bully for Trump Cohen testified that upon reflection, he felt fantastic working at the Trump Organization for 10 years. He divulged that he referred to Mr Trump as boss. I enjoyed working with my colleagues at the Trump Organization, the Trump children. It was a big family, he said. But there were great times and several not great times, he added. Ms Hoffinger asked whether he had ever lied for Mr Trump. I did, he said. It was sometimes needed to accomplish a task. Cohen confirmed that he would also bully on behalf of Mr Trump: The only thing that was on my mind was to accomplish a task to make him happy. Cohen calls to Trump in days before election By late October, weeks before 2016 Election Day, Ms Daniels attorney Keith Davidson was running out of patience with Cohens excuses, and Ms Daniels was shopping the story to The Daily Mail, according to Cohen. Cohen met with Mr Trump, whose friends and very smart people told him to just pay Ms Daniels, he said. Its $130,000, youre a billionaire, pay it, theres no reason to keep this thing out there, Cohen said, recalling the advice from Mr Trumps circle. He expressed to me, Do it, meet with Allen Weisselberg and figure this out. Mr Trump, Cohen and Weisselberg met at Trump Tower in January 2017, where then-president-elect Trump approved a payment plan that included reimbursements to Cohen over 12 months. Mr Trump told them they were in for one heck of a ride in Washington, DC. That amounted to $420,000 total spread out over 12 months but it was not a retainer for future legal counsel, Cohen said. It was a payment plan to cover up reimbursements, according to Cohen. Weisselbergs separation agreement from the Trump Organization wont be in evidence Judge Merchan is denying the admission of Allen Weisselbergs separation agreement from the Trump Organization, which came up last week when prosecutors wanted to explain to the jury why a prominent figure in the case is not there. Not only is he in Rikers Island jail, but the agreement effectively stipulates that he cant speak out against the company in any way without risking tens of thousands of dollars in severance. Trump speaks to to press after arriving at Manhattan criminal court on Monday ( AP Photo/Seth Wenig, Pool ) On Friday, Judge Merchan suggested that Weisselberg could be brought up as a witness, though neither side has subpoenaed him. The judge suggested he could be brought up, sworn in and questioned without a jury present first. Trump cared more about his campaign than Melania, Cohen says After the Access Hollywood tape was released, Cohen testified that Mr Trump feared how the offensive recording would affect his campaign not his wife. Cohen testified that he was strategizing with Mr Pecker about how to deal with the explosive story. He wasnt thinking about Melania. This was all about the campaign, Cohen said on the stand. Its the fifth week of the Manhattan criminal trial and Melania Trump is still nowhere to be seen. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Donald Trump was furious with Michael Cohen and feared disaster for his 2016 presidential campaign when his then-attorney disclosed that Stormy Daniels was preparing to share her story about having sex with him in 2006. I thought you had this under control. I thought you took care of this, Cohen said from the witness stand in the former presidents hush money trial on Monday, recalling Mr Trumps enraged reaction to the news that the adult film stars allegations had resurfaced. Just take care of it. Theres a lot going on at the campaign at the time. Just take care of it, Mr Trump said, according to Cohen. This is a disaster. This is a total disaster, he said. Women are going to hate me. This really is a disaster. Women are going to hate me. Guys will think its cool, but this is a disaster for the campaign. Mr Trump told him to push it past Election Day, Cohen said. If I win, it wont matter, Mr Trump said, according to Cohen. Mr Trump wasnt thinking about his wife Melania, Cohen said. This was all about the campaign. A courtroom sketch depicts Assistant District Attorney Susan Hoffinger questions Michael Cohen as Donald Trump watches at his hush money trial in Manhattan on 13 May. ( REUTERS ) Cohen is among the final witnesses in the former presidents historic criminal trial in New York, where he is accused of covering up so-called hush money payments to the adult film star as legal expenses. Cohen bought Ms Daniels silence for $130,000, and Mr Trump reimbursed him with a series of checks in 2017, part of a months-long effort to suppress politically explosive stories leading up to the 2016 election. Mr Trump faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records as part of an alleged election interference scheme. He has pleaded not guilty Witness testimony, recordings, emails and text messages shared with jurors have shown Cohen negotiating hush money deals to secure the rights to stories of Mr Trumps alleged affairs. In the fourth week of witness testimony, prosecutors have relied on Cohen to connect a narrative threaded throughout the trial: it was Cohen who negotiated a contract for Ms Daniels silence, it was Cohen who sent her $130,000, and it was Cohen who sent invoices to Mr Trump all at his direction. Mr Trump instructed Cohen to pay Ms Daniels himself, according to Cohen. Do it, he said Mr Trump told him. Figure this out. Be prepared theres gonna be a lot of women coming forward Before he launched his campaign, Mr Trump had braced his then-attorney for the likelihood of damaging stories about his relationships with women that could derail his bid for the White House, according to testimony from Mr Trumps former attorney and one-time fixer. You know, that when this comes out meaning, the announcement just be prepared theres gonna be a lot of women coming forward, Cohen said, remembering what his former boss told him in 2015. Mr Trump wanted to rely on the power of tabloid giant National Enquirer and its placement in supermarkets and bodegas to place positive stories about him and negative ones about his rivals, according to Cohen. A courtroom sketch depicts Michael Cohen testifying during Donald Trumps hush honey trial in Manhattan on 13 May. ( AP ) During a meeting at Trump Tower in August 2015, two months after the launch of his campaign. Mr Trump met with Cohen and tabloid publisher David Pecker, who previously testified that he vowed to be the eyes and ears of the campaign. What he said was that he could keep an eye out for anything negative about Mr Trump and that he would be able to help us know in advance about what was coming out for us to stop it from coming out, according to Cohen. The resulting catch and kill scheme helped bury a bogus story about an alleged love child with a Trump Tower maid as well a story from a former Playboy model who alleged a months-long affair with Mr Trump years earlier. Bully and lie for Trump As counsel for the Trump Organization and a surrogate for his campaign, Cohen agreed to lie and bully on Mr Trumps behalf. I did, he testified on Monday. If it was needed to accomplish a task. Donald Trump appears in a Manhattan courtroom for his hush money trial on 13 May ( POOL/AFP via Getty Images ) Asked whether he agrees whether the term fixer accurately described his work, Cohen said: Its fair. Cohen urgently set up an account for a shell company to wire funds to Ms Daniels attorney Keith Davidson, but he repeatedly delayed the transaction and made excuses to string him along until after Election Day, according to Cohen. Because after the election, Cohen said, it wouldnt matter. He also lied on customer forms to establish LLCs intended to make transactions for Karen McDougal and Ms Daniels, he said. Im not sure they would have opened it ... to pay off an adult film star for a non-disclosure agreement, he said. In fact, there is no mention of Mr Trump on any of the formation documents for Cohens Essential Consultants LLC from October 2016, which he used to transfer cash to buy Ms Daniels silence. He left Mr Trump out of the plan to protect him and to isolate him from the transaction, Cohen said on Monday. Do it. Figure this out National Enquirer editor Dylan Howard, who brokered deals to buy the silence of a Trump Tower doorman and Ms McDougal, warned Cohen several weeks before Election Day that allegations from Ms Daniels had resurfaced, according to Cohen. The news was catastrophic for Mr Trumps campaign, Cohen said on Monday. After the story resurfaced on a gossip website, Cohen told Mr Trump that they should take care of it, he said. And he said, Do it. Take care of it, according to Cohen. A courtroom sketch depicts Donald Trump shaking his head during Michael Cohens testimony in his hush money trial on 13 May. ( AP ) Time was running out, however. A deal with Ms Daniels attorney was straining. Mr Davidson was running out of patience with Cohens excuses, and Ms Daniels was shopping the story to The Daily Mail. Cohen met with Mr Trump, whose friends and very smart people told him to just pay Ms Daniels. Its $130,000, youre a billionaire, pay it, theres no reason to keep this thing out there, Cohen said, recalling the advice from Mr Trumps circle. He expressed to me, Do it, meet with Allen Weisselberg and figure this out. President-elect Trump approved a payment plan from Trump Tower Cohen was beyond angry when he got his Christmas bonus in 2016 it was cut by two-thirds, and Mr Trump hadnt paid him back for paying off Ms Daniels. I was truly insulted, he said on Monday. Made no sense, after all I had gone through It was insulting that the gratitude paid back to me was to cut my bonus by two-thirds. He admitted he was pissed off and had some colorful language and used quite a few expletives when he talked to Weisselberg. After Weisselbberg and then-Trump Organization accounting executive Jeffrey McConney drew up a handwritten plan to reimburse Cohen, they presented the plan to Mr Trump in January 2017 weeks before he moved to Washington DC. President-elect Trump, Cohen and Weisselberg met at Trump Tower and Mr Trump approved the plan. He told them theyre in for one heck of a ride in Washington, according to Cohen. Weisselberg told him to just send an invoice to us, and just mark down for legal services rendered pursuant to the agreement, according to Cohen, and well get you a check out. Another courthouse reunion that could blow up Trumps campaign Cohen had previously reunited with his former boss in a courtroom down the street from the criminal courthouse in downtown Manhattan. Last year, he served as a key witness in the former presidents civil fraud trial, where Mr Trump glared from the defense table and fumed from the hallway and on social media as Cohen compared him to a mob boss who instructed him to falsely inflate his net worth and assets. It was Cohens bombshell testimony to Congress that outlined Mr Trumps alleged fraud, inspiring several criminal and civil investigations targeting the former president. In 2018, Cohen pleaded guilty to federal campaign finance violations and tax charges that included the catch and kill scheme at the center of the Manhattan case. In the years after their fallout, Cohen went to jail, Mr Trump ran for re-election, lost, and was criminally indicted four times in four separate jurisdictions, with a mountain of litigation threatening his business and 2024 campaign. Mr Trumps attorneys are expected to unleash a furious cross-examination when they take on Cohen, a frequent subject of Mr Trumps witness-menacing gag order violations. Last week, after threatening Mr Trump with jail for any future gag order violations, New York Justice Juan Merchan also told prosecutors to keep a lid on Cohen, who uses his social media platforms and podcasts to attack his old boss now desperate to bury the credibility of an old ally who could now get him convicted. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Its the moment that everyone following Donald Trumps hush money trial had been waiting for. On Monday morning, the cases star witness Michael Cohen took the stand to testify against his former boss and kick off the fifth week of the first criminal trial of a former president in American history. Even before he stepped up to the witness stand, Cohen as one of the most talked about figures of the ongoing criminal case has been on display in many forms, both in trial and online. In the first four weeks of the trial, Cohens name cropped up almost daily in courtroom testimony. Jurors heard him described as Mr Trumps fixer, his former personal lawyer, a campaign surrogate, a convicted felon, a pants-on-fire kind of guy and a liar. Now, as he took the stand on Monday, Cohen revealed yet another version of himself: a compliant witness. Cohen serves as the lynchpin of the payments at the heart of the criminal case against the former president. It was him who gave adult film star Stormy Daniels $130,000 in payments ahead of the 2016 presidential election in exchange for her agreement to stay silent about an alleged affair she had with Mr Trump in 2006. Mr Trump is now on trial charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records related to those so-called hush money payments. He has pleaded not guilty. Fixer and loyalist On the stand, Cohen appeared agreeable and polite, often punctuating his responses to questions with a maam and referring to his ex-boss-turned-foe as Mr Trump. He spoke deliberately and slowly, keeping an even tone. Composed, Cohen walked prosecutors through his communications with National Enquirer publisher and former American Media Inc (AMI) CEO David Pecker and Ms Daniels and Karen McDougals lawyer Keith Davidson, testifying that he set up a shell company to make the payments so as to separate Mr Trump from them. Evidence shown in court has offered a glimpse into a day in the life of Cohen as Mr Trumps attentive personal attorney. His frequent invoices, texts, and emails ahead of the 2016 election have underscored Cohens loyalty to Mr Trump and his urgency to kill stories that would have damaged his hopes of clinching the White House. To showcase this loyalty, Cohen divulged that he often referred to Mr Trump as boss. Donald Trump in court sketch while Michael Cohen testified on 13 May ( AP ) Cohen calmly slid on his glasses while reading through bombshell text messages that documented the catch-and-kill scheme. But, despite his laid-back read-through of the messages while on the stand, the tone and contents of Cohens messages were often urgent. Take one day in July 2016, when Cohen appeared to be desperately trying to reach Mr Trump. The fixer had just heard from AMI employee Dylan Howard about the deal to quash the story about Mr Trumps alleged affair with former Playboy model Karen McDougal. Cohen texted Mr Trumps bodyguard Keith Schiller. Can we speak? I need you, he asked. After receiving no response for two minutes, Cohen quickly texted Schiller again: You there? Documents shown in court also revealed a common thread in Cohen-created contracts in the catch-and-kill scheme: a $1m fee per violation. This breach provision was included in an agreement made to quash a story from Mr Trumps doorman that he had fathered a love child with a woman who worked for him. Cohen explained to the court: I reviewed [the agreement] to make sure that Mr Trump was fully protected and to show that it had been taken care of. His testimony reflected this loyalty and revealed the extent to which he made himself available to Mr Trumps demands. He repeatedly testified that he would immediately provide updates to Mr Trump about the agreements, and would try to inform him in person in his office at the Trump Organization. He testified that Mr Trump had an open door policy, so he didnt need an appointment. On other occasions, outside of the office, Cohen said he would reach out to various contacts, like Trumps personal attache Mr Schiller, to try to get in touch with his boss over the phone. Cohen said he would want to keep Mr Trump up to speed in order to show he had accomplished a task. Michael Cohen leaves his apartment building on his way to Manhattan criminal court ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. ) Be it creating a shell company or communicating with media figures or signing an agreement that contained only pseudonyms Cohen was there to protect Mr Trump. Cohen even told the court that he initially offered to front the $130,000 to Stormy Daniels hismelf, explaining he was doing everything to protect my boss, which is something I had done for a long time. This protection also extended to Mr Trumps campaign something that Cohen described himself as a surrogate to. Not only did he frequently provide comment to press, but Cohen also testified that he had even suggested making Trumps 2016 campaign more diverse. If were going to win, we need diversity, he said. He then started the group the National Diversity Coalition for Trump. Pants-on-fire kind of guy But his demeanor on the stand and the version that he presented of himself as a loyal problem-solver to his boss came in sharp contrast to the Michael Cohen described by other trial witnesses to date, not to mention the Michael Cohen he himself presents online. In the four-plus weeks of the trial so far, Cohen has been labelled as a highly excitable, pants-on-fire kind of guy and compared to the easily excitable cartoon dog from the Pixar movie Up who is distracted at the sight of a squirrel. Another witness Ms Daniels and Ms McDougals attorney Mr Davidson said he feared Cohen was going to kill himself after he found out that he wasnt being considered for a top position in the Trump administration when he took office. Menwhile another said it would be fair to describe Cohen as an aggressive guy. Undeniably, its this trait that comes across, at least in part, online. Since working for Mr Trump, Cohen has had an eventful few years. He has gone to prison after pleading guilty to charges of lying to Congress, tax evasion, and campaign finance violations, and lost his ability to practice law in New York. And, perhaps more publicly, the man once known as Mr Trumps fixer has now become one of his most outspoken critics. Michael Cohen testifies on the witness stand with a National Enquirer cover story ( AP ) Last year, he testified against Mr Trump for the first time in his New York civil fraud trial. He has also launched podcasts where he often bashes his former boss. But this criticism has come at a cost. He has often emphasized that he doesnt want to testify but is forced to due to a subpoena. Part of the reason he doesnt want to testify, he has said on his podcasts, is due to the frequent online attacks and threats he gets from Trump-supporting haters. On one of his podcasts, he wondered: Why does my life need to be threatenedon a daily basis? Still, he has been undeterred with his charged posts toward Mr Trump. He often posts tweets that goad the former president, even dubbing his former boss VonS***zenpants in the days after the trial began. He trolled Mr Trump to such an extent that Judge Juan Merchan last week urged the prosecutors to tell Cohen to stop discussing the former president or the ongoing criminal case. Meanwhile, the former president has been trying to amplify a decision made in March by a judge who rejected Cohens bid to end his supervised release early after the judge suggested that he had perjured himself over tax evasion claims. Perhaps ironically, on Monday, the reformed former fixer admitted many times on the stand that he had not been truthful years ago in labeling certain forms dealing with the hush money payments. One wire transfer to Mr Davidson intended for Ms Daniels was marked as a retainer, according to documents shown in court. Cohen admitted that description wasnt accurate. The payment was actually made in order to pay Stormy Daniels, executive the nondisclosure agreement and obtain her life rights. Now, Cohen will return to the stand to deliver more testimony on Tuesday and jurors may see yet another side of the man at the heart of the case. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} A State Department spokesman pushed back against the assertion the Israeli government was restricting aid to Gaza as reports of dehydration and starvation continue and videos depict humanitarian convoys being targeted in Israel. Vedant Patel asserted several times at Mondays briefing it was not fair to say the Israeli government was prohibiting aid into Gaza despite a previous State Department-authored report had found there to be reasonable evidence to find that Israeli forces had violated international humanitarian law in various instances. If Israel did restrict aid, it would be in violation of the laws. We need to see more [aid get into Gaza]. But wanting to see more is very different than dealing with a situation in which a country is restricting the flow of aid. And we have not seen that in this case, Patel told reporters. Under the standard set out by international humanitarian law, Patel said, we were not satisfied with what we were seeing in aid crossings since the Oct. 7 terrorist attack that provoked hostilities in Gaza. But he reiterated that we did not see a restriction or prohibition of aid. Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant meets with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the Kerem Shalom border crossing in southern Israel ( POOL/AFP via Getty Images ) Even today, Patel said, we dont see enough going in. But it doesnt rise to the level of restricting the aid, according to the Biden administration. Confusingly, he also conceded that certainly Israel could have taken steps it took to increase the flow of aid six months ago, as a reporter suggested. His remarks come as videos from the Kerem Shalom crossing have shown aid convoys bound for Gaza held up at the Israeli border while gangs of rightwing extremist rioters and thugs attempt to destroy or damage the desperately-needed humanitarian supplies. The State Departments increasingly questioned position comes after a presdiential directive that led to the aid report. Under US law, the federal government is required to verify to Congress that recipients of US arms-related assistance do not use those weapons or munitions to commit war crimes. Democrats in the presidents party are increasingly voicing concerns about that issue, even as Israel-boosters in its own party, such as Pennsylvanias John Fetterman, push back and argue that Israel has the right to fight a war on its terms. Marylands Chris Van Hollen, one of the most vocal of those critics, told CBS News on Sunday:I fear that we have set...a very low standard for whats acceptable. And I think that will come back to haunt us. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was forced to face some of those criticisms over the weekend in an interview on NBCs Meet the Press, where he was asked whether the Biden administration has held a double standard on Israel allowing its ally to get away with violations of international law by which other countries abide. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks to reporters on 17 July 2023 ( AFP via Getty Images ) Mr Secretary, is the US trying to avoid holding Israel accountable for its actions? asked NBCs Kristen Welker in the interview. No. We dont have double standards, Mr Blinked replied. We treat Israel, one of our closest allies and partners, just as we would treat any other country, including in assessing something like international humanitarian law, and its compliance with that law. International health authorities estimate that more than 35,000 people have died in Gaza since the beginning of Israels brutal military assault. A terrorist attack beginning the war in October of last year left more than 1,100 dead, the deadliest attack in Israels history. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} A Tennessee woman who was denied an abortion despite a fatal abnormality says the states anti-abortion laws resulted in her losing an ovary, a fallopian tube and her hopes for a large family. The state of Tennessee took my fertility from me, Breanna Cecil, 34, told The Independent. She added that state lawmakers took away my opportunity to have a family like my own biological family because of these horrible laws that they put in place. The mother-of-one said she has not felt the same since her doctor told her in January 2023 that her fetus was diagnosed with acrania, a fatal condition where the fetus has no skull bones. Then, 12 weeks pregnant, Ms Cecil was getting her first ultrasound. She attended the appointment alone, so when the doctor told her the fetus was not viable outside the womb, she was left with only asking the doctor what she should do. However, she was left with few options. The states near-total abortion ban prevents anyone from getting an abortion if there is still a heartbeat - which her fetus still had. The law makes no exceptions for fatal conditions and also criminalizes physicians who perform the procedure outside of the allowed exceptions. Ms Cecil recalled the doctor not knowing how to respond to her question about her options. Thats something that no one should ever hear, she noted. The doctor set her up with a specialist, where another ultrasound was conducted. That scan was more difficult, she says, because she could see the severity of the fetus condition. I could see the brain not attached, Ms Cecil said. The only advice doctors could give offer was that if she had her second child it would most likely die inside of me before 20 weeks and she would be forced to deliver a stillborn. The news was crushing as Ms Cecil said her pregnancy was starting to show. Not only could she not mentally handle the well-intentioned questions about the babys due date and sex, she said she could not be a good mom to [her] little boy if she was forced to go through with her pregnancy, and deliver the stillborn. She decided to get an abortion. Breanna Cecil and her husband in 2021 ( Handout ) After sobbing to receptionists at roughly 20 clinics and hospitals in a desperate attempt to get an appointment, she finally had success. A hospital in Chicago had an opening. On 3 February, doctors performed a dilation and curettage procedure. Just six days after returning to Tennessee, thinking the worst was behind her, Ms Cecil started experiencing a fever and back pain. Her doctor gave her antibiotics, but something still wasnt right. She went for another ultrasound and the physician found retained tissue leftover from the fetus, which can have serious consequences. Doctors performed another procedure on Ms Cecil hoping it would be the end. Her fever persisted and two days later, she returned to the hospital, where doctors discovered she had a nine-centimeter-sized abscess in her abdomen that encompassed some of her reproductive organs. Doctors had to perform emergency surgery on her, and removed her right ovary and fallopian tube. Ms Cecil returned home after a grueling 10 days in the hospital. Ms Cecil and her husband had spent nearly a year trying to conceive that pregnancy. Fertility and infertility is really hard to go through in itself, she said, noting the couple thought theyd finally gotten through the difficult stage. So when news of the fetus condition hit, she blamed herself and asked the nurses: Did I do something wrong? Since her third procedure, she and her husband have not been able to become pregnant. Ms Cecil doesnt think its a coincidence and wonders if not for Tennessee law, would she still have her fertility? Right now I feel like they took that away from me, the 34-year-old said of state lawmakers. Ms Cecil said she wanted to make clear to legislators that abortion is not black and white, explaining that every situation is different. Like Texas woman Kate Cox, who was also denied the procedure in her home state, Ms Cecil wants a large family; neither woman falls within the stereotype that many on the right are portraying as abortion candidates. The young mother added pregnant people who need an abortion shouldnt feel like they need to beg for permission from lawmakers who do not have medical backgrounds. Often, women in these situation are deciding if we want our child to suffer after being born or are waiting until they die inside of us, Ms Cecil said. She added she still doesnt feel normal more than a year after the pregnancy. Physically, she has a scar that stretches from her belly button down to her pelvic bone that has caused her fat to become displaced. Emotionally, she said, I think about that baby all the time. While she and her husband have been trying for another baby, she often breaks down and thinks, I just want that baby. Why didnt that work out? Ms Cecil contemplated joining a group of women, represented by the Center for Reproductive Rights, who were denied abortions and are now fighting the states prohibition, asking for clarity on the bans medical exceptions. The state of Tennessee took my fertility from me Breanna Cecil She decided not to become a plaintiff in the case because she feared others opinions of her decisions. On 4 April, a three-judge panel listened to arguments from lawyers from the center and the state about a temporary block of the abortion ban. The centers attorneys mentioned a series of heartbreaking stories from the plaintiff as well as a woman whose baby was diagnosed with acrania. Thats the same condition that Ms Cecils fetus was diagnosed with. The three-judge panel has yet to rule on the temporary injunction in a state that is one of 14 across the nation that made abortion illegal since the end of Roe v Wade in June 2022. After hearing the oral arguments, Ms Cecil now wants to join the case. If someone doesnt ever want to hire me again because of what happened to me, I just dont care. Im not gonna let that bother me anymore, she said. Shes lived in Tennessee since she was seven years old, and while she has been tempted to leave, she refuses to let the anti-abortion crowd force her from her home. I cant back down and let them win this battle, Ms Cecil said. If you have been affected by this story and want to share yours, you can reach out to kelly.rissman@independent.co.uk Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Democrats and Republicans will select their respective nominees for the US Senate in Maryland on Tuesday and in doing so will set up the most unique race of the cycle. Two leading Democrats, Congressman David Trone and Prince Georges County Executive Angela Alsobrooks, are locked in a dead heat as the race enters its final hours. The Democratic primary, which has grown negative in the past few weeks, carries incredible significance: the entrance of former Governor Larry Hogan into the race has given Republicans a breath of life and possibly their only real shot at winning the seat. That dynamic is playing out in a year when Democrats hold the Senate by one vote and are looking desperately to protect that majority either for the start of a second Biden term or to throttle Donald Trumps first two years in office. Senate races in Maryland are not usually competitive; the state is reliably blue in terms of its congressional delegation. But Mr Hogans two terms in office left him with widespread name recognition and a reputation bolstered by beating cancer while in office. His centrist record including his signature on a bill banning fracking and his support for the Paris climate agreement helped him distinguish himself as an outlier within the Republican Party even as he frequently picked fights with Democrats in the state legislature, who were forced to override his vetoes. Mr Trone, a member of the House, is pursuing a strategy that may seem surprising unless one is already familiar with the Total Wine & More mogul. Owner of the prolific beverage megamart chain, Mr Trone has poured more than $61m of his own money into this race, making it the most expensive Democratic Senate primary in state history. That would be surprising, had he not done the same in his two bids for the House, once in a losing battle against Jamie Raskin (which fostered bad blood that still persists) and once again in a crowded 2018 primary (ditto). David Trone speaks at a press conference on Capitol Hill in 2019 ( Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved ) Ms Alsobrooks is taking a more familiar route. She declined an opportunity to run for governor in 2022, as Hogans second term came to a close. The Prince Georges County Executive was then promptly endorsed by the winner of that contest, Democrat Wes Moore, and a host of his allies across the state. Unable to match Mr Trones injections of his own personal wealth, she has leaned harder on statewide connections while attacking Mr Trone for missteps including his unintentional utterance of a racial slur at a House hearing. Theres one other important factor which singles out Mr Hogan from his Republican colleagues: his clear, firm opposition to Donald Trump. Hogan was one of just a few prominent elected Republicans to support the impeachment of the 45th president after January 6, and came out in favour of the first Trump impeachment inquiry in 2019 as well. In campaigning for the seat in 2024, he has positioned himself as an enemy of dysfunction in Washington and a Mitt Romney- or Lisa Murkowski-esque check on a possible President Donald Trump from within the Republican Party, though he rarely mentions the former president on the trail. His campaign website pointedly alerts viewers to the fact that his father was the only Republican to support the impeachment of Richard Nixon in the Senate in 1974. All that being said, Mr Hogans greatest advantage over Mr Trone and Ms Alsobrooks is his name recognition. A poll in March found that a much wider quantity of voters had no opinion of the Democratic contenders compared to the likely Republican nominee. A poll taken in the final few days of the race contradicted some concerns about either Democratic candidates ability to beat Mr Hogan in November, though how voters feel may be another story. One dynamic is playing firmly against Mr Hogan this time around: the realities of his sought office. Having served as the chief executive of a state and not a legislator, Mr Hogans reputation is built on being a stand-alone operative. Thats harder to do in the Senate, where despite his anti-Trump rhetoric he will inevitably end up caucusing with the GOP. The reality of the situation is that the former governor was recruited by Republicans to run for this seat because he was the partys best chance of winning it and flipping the upper chamber and voters know this. Some Marylanders who were featured this past week on The Bulwarks Focus Group podcast with Sarah Longwell described themselves as Hogan-Biden voters and explained that keeping the seat in Democratic hands was too important, regardless of Mr Hogans record. After Ive seen what the Republicans have done with the House and the Senate...I think we need to keep that seat, one woman explained of her view. Maryland Governor Larry Hogan speaks to guests at the Republican Jewish Coalition Annual Leadership Meeting on November 18, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada ( Getty Images ) Theres the catch. In seeking to join a GOP caucus in the Senate, Mr Hogan is inadvertently tying himself to all the baggage that comes with that new club. In his case, that may include not just the Senate, where bipartisanship has carried on in a beleaguered sense, but the House of Representatives as well. The lower chamber and the Republican House caucus specifically remain a chaotic scene, with members feuding openly in the media, endorsing against each other in GOP primaries, and deriding each other with petty insults. Just this past week, Georgia Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene and two of her colleagues brought a motion to oust a speaker of the House, the second such motion to reach the floor within the past 12 months. In a surreal scene, she angrily rebuked the uniparty as both Democrats and Republicans joined in booing her on the floor. Donald Trump will also play a role directly. This will be the first time, thanks to the timing of Marylands statewide elections, that Mr Hogan and the former president will be on the ballot in the same year. Thats another factor that could weigh on Mr Hogan; in a deep blue state, he will be under increased pressure to distance himself from the top of his partys ticket as the election draws closer. Whatever the outcome tomorrow, the Maryland race is set to be one of the most unique in the country in 2024. Two candidates are testing dramatically different strategies for gaining political power, even as they themselves differ only marginally in policy. The race it sets up in November will answer a bigger question: is the #NeverTrump faction of the Republican Party still a viable political force? Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} The judge presiding over Donald Trumps criminal hush money trial in Manhattan has instructed prosecutors to tell Michael Cohen to stop talking about the case and the former president. Mr Trumps attorneys have repeatedly urged New York Justice Juan Merchan find a way to gag the former presidents one-time fixer turned sworn nemesis and shameless critic. Cohen, who paid Stormy Daniels $130,000 to silence her story about having sex with Mr Trump in 2006, is a key witness in the case against the former president. Mr Trump is accused of reimbursing his former attorney the $130,000 in a series of payments falsely lableled as legal expenses. He is charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records and has pleaded not guilty. Cohen is now expected to testify in the trial on Monday. He isone of two final witnesses for the prosecution in a trial stretching into a fourth week of testimony. In court on Friday, defense attorney Todd Blanche told the judge that Mr Trumps former lawyer is becoming a real problem throughout the trial. Cohen continues to speak publicly about this trial and President Trump, including in a recent TikTok video wearing a white T-shirt with a picture of President Trump behind bars and announcing that hes running for Congress, Mr Blanche told Judge Merchan. Donald Trump speaks to reporters next to his attorney Todd Blanche inside a criminal courthouse in Manhattan on 10 May. ( Getty Images ) Mr Blanche said he wants Cohen prohibited from talking about the case, just like Trump is. Its becoming a problem every single day that president Trump is not allowed to respond to this witness, but this witness is allowed to continue to talk, Mr Blanche said. Assistant District Attorney Joshua Steinglass dismissed the defences argument, arguing that prosecutors have no control over what they do, and we have repeatedly, repeatedly, asked the witnesses to do that. Not just Mr Cohen. All the witnesses, he added. If Mr Blanche is asking the court to order the people not to do something, we have already done that. The judge found a compromise: prosecutors should tell Cohen that the judge is telling him to be quiet. I will direct the People to communicate to Mr Cohen that the judge is asking him to refrain from making any more statements about Mr Trump or anything else related to this case, Judge Merchan said. That comes from the bench. While Cohen has now been asked to stop commenting on the case, Mr Trump continues to face a gag order that blocks him from publicly attacking trial witnesses, the jury, court staff and their families. To date, the former president has been fined $10,000 for routinely violating this order through attacks on social media, links on his campaign website and comments in media interviews. On Monday, while handing down a 10th penalty, Judge Merchan warned the former president that issuing $1,000 fines for each offense is not a strong enough deterrent and that any future violations could result in jailtime. Michael Cohen attends Donald Trumps civil fraud trial in New York in October 2023 ( AP ) The magnitude of such a decision is not lost on me, the judge told him. But at the end of the day I have a job to do, and part of that job is to protect the dignity of the justice system. Your continued violations threaten to interfere with the administration of justice, and constitute a direct attack on the rule of law. That warning came just days before Cohens anticipated testimony on Monday, following years of sparring between the former president and his former attorney on both social media and in person. Several of Mr Trumps gag order violations involved his apparent threats to Cohen, who previously testified against the former president in his civil fraud trial, where he compared Mr Trump to a mob boss who instructed him to grossly inflate the values of his net worth and assets. Cohen has already pleaded guilty to crimes central to the hush money case in New York; in 2018, he agreed that he sent monthly invoices to Mr Trump as part of a retainer agreement that didnt exist, and that the monthly invoices [he] submitted were not in connection with any legal services he had provided in 2017 but for reimbursements for a hush money scheme with Ms Daniels. Mr Trump is charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records in connection with that scheme in an alleged effort to hide politically damaging stories about his affairs to keep his chances of winning the 2016 election afloat. Donald Trump speaks to members of the media outside the courtroom on 10 May ( EPA ) In the trials opening statements, Mr Blanche claimed that payments to Cohen were merely for legal services rendered. The invoices were processed, somebody at Trump Tower signed off on them, and they were recorded as such in a ledger, he argued. What on earth is a crime? What is a crime about what I just described? Mr Blanche said last month. The 34 counts are really just 34 pieces of paper. Those 34 counts include not just the checks but the ledger entries and invoices that created them. Cohen submitted each invoice pursuant to the retainer agreement, according to documents shown in court. Pay stubs to Cohen described each check as payments for his retainer. Invoices entered into the companys accounting software list each payment as a legal expense. Ledgers from Mr Trumps personal checking account and the Donald J Trump Revocable Trust which handled the former presidents assets while he was in office recorded the payments to Cohen as a legal expense, according court documents. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Theres been a recurring theme in Donald Trumps hush-money trial after three weeks of testimony: Michael Cohen is not favoured by the witnesses. While Mr Trumps former lawyer and fixer once styled himself as a spokesman, thug, pit bull and lawless lawyer, others in the courtroom have given him less aggrandising titles of jerk and aggressive guy. After weeks of delay, and admitting some of the witnesses came with baggage, prosecutors finally put forward Mr Cohen in the hope that he finds favour with the jury. On Monday, the 57-year-old and Mr Trump, 77, came face-to-face at Manhattan Criminal Court after their last meeting at the ex-presidents New York civil fraud trial in the autumn. Mr Cohen has finally taken the stand to give testimony in what prosecutors hope can help them prove Mr Trump falsified business records ahead of the 2016 presidential election. Mr Trump is accused of making a hush money payment to Stormy Daniels via Mr Cohen to allegedly suppress stories about an alleged affair. Prosecutors claim he fraudulently reimbursed his former lawyer for the $130,000 paid to Ms Daniels. Trump and Cohen go face-to-face on Monday ( Reuters ) The presumptive Republican presidential candidate denies both the affair and the charges against him. The jury has already heard a host of scathing descriptions from a wide pool of witnesses concerning Mr Cohen. Former head of American Media Inc David Pecker said that Mr Cohen was prone to exaggeration. While former Trump adviser Hope Hicks commented that he liked to call himself a fixer or Mr Fix It. She took the gloss of his title, saying that he was given the name because he usually broke it first. Ms Daniels former lawyer Keith Davidson said that he only dealt with Mr Cohen after the adult stars manager at the time, Gina Rodriguez, didnt want to deal with him. He continued to describe him as a jerk. The moral of the story was: No one wanted to talk to Cohen, he told the court. Stormy Daniels took the stand last week ( AP ) Mr Davidson described a 2011 conversation surrounding a blog post on Ms Daniels and Mr Trump, where he said the lawyer unleashed a barrage of insults and insinuations and allegations. Cohens former banker, Gary Farro, said it was fair to call Cohen an aggressive guy, and testified that he was given Cohens account because he could be firm with individuals who were a little challenging. It comes a week after Ms Daniels herself took the stand, delivering some highly graphic and embarrassing evidence about her alleged sexual encounter with Mr Trump in July 2006. Mr Trump has seemingly succumbed to his gag order after violating it on 10 occasions and being threatened with jail, by Justice Juan Merchan. It was implemented as an attempt to stop him from making statements about jurors, witnesses and families of the judge and prosecutors. However, on Friday, Justice Juan Merchan warned prosecutors to tell Mr Cohen to stop commenting on the case. He has mocked Mr Trump calling him sleepy Donald on X, about when the former president was said to fall asleep in court last month. Mr Cohen has also posted memes that appear to show Mr Trump in prison-uniform orange and joked on TikTok about Mr Trump being incarcerated. Trump 2024?, he said. More like Trump 20-24 years. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Donald Trumps former lawyer and one-time fixer, Michael Cohen, testified that the former president expressed greater concern about the impact the Stormy Daniels affair story would have on his 2016 presidential campaign than how it would affect his wife. On the first day of his highly anticipated testimony in the New York criminal case, Cohen recounted how Mr Trump reacted when hearing the adult film star was preparing to come forward with allegations of an extramarital affair. He wasnt thinking about Melania, this was all about the campaign, Cohen told the jury on Monday. The former lawyer said Mr Trump was angry because he was polling very poorly with women after the leaked Access Hollywood tape heard Mr Trump making sexist remarks about women. Cohen said Mr Trump feared that Ms Daniels revelation would be disastrous for his campaign. Cohen testified that when he asked Mr Trump how the story could affect his relationship with Melania Trump, the former president said, Dont worry. Micheal Cohen is questioned by prosecutor Susan Hoffinger on 13 May ( REUTERS ) At the time, Cohen, Mr Trump and David Pecker, a former tabloid publisher, were engaged in a catch-and-kill scheme which Manhattan prosecutors say was part of a greater effort to influence the 2016 campaign. The three had managed to kill a rumor from a Trump doorman and allegations of an affair with a Playboy model. But the release of the Access Hollywood tape hurt Mr Trumps campaign. Cohen said the former president told him that Ms Trump came up with the idea to brush his comments off as locker room talk. Once Cohen found out Ms Daniels was going to come forward with allegations, it made the former president angry with him. Cohen said Mr Trump instructed him to just take care of it. Former first lady Melania Trump ( AFP via Getty Images ) The former lawyer added that Ms Trump texted him the day after he left Mr Trump a voicemail informing him Ms Daniels was preparing to go to The Daily Mail with her story. Ms Trump asked Cohen to call DT on his cell. Ultimately, Cohen testified, that Mr Trumps request led him to pay Ms Daniels $130,000 in exchange for her silence. Manhattan prosecutors allege that Mr Trump later reimbursed Cohen for the money but misrepresented it as payment part of his legal retainer. Those misrepresented payments are at the center of the criminal case. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Donald Trumps former lawyer Michael Cohen faced another day of fiery cross-examination on Thursday as the former presidents defense attorney Todd Blanche sought to discredit the one-time fixer as a revenge-seeking liar. Mr Blanche launched several attacks against Cohens credibility and history of deception, including past false statements and guilty pleas for financial crimes some related to the hush money payments at the center of Mr Trumps trial. Mr Blanche zig-zagged through Cohens dubious history as an admittedly self-interested figure in Mr Trumps universe to undermine bombshell testimony in the case against his former boss. Here are the key takeaways from the 18th day of proceedings. Defense depicts Cohen as a serial liar Mr Blanche argued that Cohens turn against the former president was only motivated by his self-interest and that he was lying both on the stand and throughout his career. He argued that Cohen lied when he said he stated he hadnt been offered nor would he accept a pardon from Mr Trump, and that he was angry when Mr Trump didnt pick him for a White House role. Cohen said he only wanted a job offer for his ego. Former President Donald Trump waves as he returns to the courtroom after a break in his trial at Manhattan criminal court Thursday, May 16, 2024, in New York ( AP ) Cohen celebrates Trump indictment Mr Blanche played audio from Cohens podcast Mea Culpa where he celebrated the 34-count indictment against the former president last year. I truly f***ing hope this man ends up in prison, Cohen said in an October 2023 episode. Revenge is a dish best served cold. You better believe I want this man to go down and rot for what he did to me and my family, he added. Trumps lawyer shouts at Cohen Mr Blanche was furious with Cohen during cross-examination and accused Cohen of lying about a pivotal phone call that tied Mr Trump to the conspiracy at the center of the case. Cohen previously testified that he spoke to Mr Trumps bodyguard, Keith Schiller, after finalizing a deal to pay Stormy Daniels $130,000 in 2016. But Mr Blanche suggested Cohen was only calling Mr Schiller to complain about some harassing phone calls he was receiving at the time. Mr Blanche yelled at Cohen: That was a lie, wasnt it! Michael Cohen is asked about taking an oath as he is cross-examined by defense lawyer Todd Blanche during former President Donald Trumps criminal trial ( REUTERS ) Crime-fraud exception Cohen testified that he regularly recorded phone calls with journalists over the years and even recorded a few with Mr Trump. Mr Blanche noted it was unethical for an attorney to record client phone calls. Yes, except of course in crime-fraud exception, Cohen replied. Under the crime-fraud exception, a clients statements to lawyers are not protected by attorney-client privilege if they are meant to further or conceal a crime. Lauren Boebert and Matt Gaetz show up at court MAGA Republican Reps Lauren Boebert and Matt Gaetz became the latest lawmakers to show up at the courthouse for their surrogate duties in a bid to circumvent the gag order. On X, Ms Boebert attacked Justice Merchans daughter, claiming she was being paid millions and millions of dollars by Democrat campaigns. Meanwhile, Mr Gaetz echoed Mr Trumps call to far-right extremists the Proud Boys prior to the 2020 election. Standing back and standing by, Mr. President, he posted on X. US Representative Matt Gaetz, Republican of Florida, listens as former US President Donald Trump speaks to the press before his trial ( via REUTERS ) The week ahead On Monday morning, Mr Blanche will finish his interrogation of Cohen. Manhattan prosecutors will not introduce any further witnesses, defense attorneys are deciding whether to introduce rebuttal witnesses when or if they decide to make a case, and Judge Merchan instructed attorneys to prepare for closing arguments as soon as Tuesday. Mr Trump still has not indicated to his attorneys whether he will testify in his defense. The defense hopes to introduce one expert witness Bradley Smith, a former chair of the FEC but want to expand the scope of what he can talk about. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} All the worlds a stage, and this week the spotlight is on the Manhattan Criminal Court as major Republican players flock to audition for the role of Donald Trumps 2024 running mate. On Monday, Senators JD Vance and Tommy Tuberville joined the former president in a show of support at his hush money trial, echoing his rhetoric speaking to reporters outside court in slamming the case against him. Mr Tuberville of Alabama made his bid defending Mr Trump by criticising the fact he is forced to go by the moniker Mr Trump rather than President Trump in court and accusing prosecutors of inflicting mental anguish on the former president. Im disappointed in the courtroom, Mr Tuberville told reporters on Monday. I hear: Mr Trump, Mr Trump. He is former president Trump. Give him some respect, I mean thats what that place is, no respect. This is New York City, the icon of our country, and weve got a courtroom thats the most depressing thing Ive ever been in, he continued. Mental anguish is trying to be pushed on Republican candidate for the president of the United States this year. Mr Vance of Ohio one of Mr Trumps rumoured top picks to become his running mate also put in an appearance and took his performance to X, echoing a similar sentiment. The president is expected to sit here for six weeks to listen to the Michael Cohens of the world, Mr Vance posted Monday. Im now convinced the main goal of this trial is psychological torture. Mr Vance also jumped to defend Mr Trump over reports that he has been nodding off in the courtroom. Im 39 years old and Ive been here for 26 minutes and Im about to fall asleep, the senator added. Senators JD Vance (left) and Tommy Tuberville (right) stand behind Donald Trump (centre) on 13 May 2024 at the Manhattan Criminal Court. The two senators are rumoured to be candidates for Mr Trumps running mate ( via REUTERS ) MSNBCs Lawrence ODonnell noted that the senators sat in court right behind Mr Trumps son Eric Trump the only member of the Trump family to have shown up to support the criminal defendant. This will be the vice-presidential nominee audition bench, which is right behind the Eric Trump bench, Mr ODonnell said. Tuberville, to his credit, was straight ahead and listening, taking it all in as best he can, whatever since he can make of it, he continued. But JD Vance there was really no reason for him to come if he wasnt going to take in anything. Vivek Ramaswamy former 2024 presidential candidate and another rumoured vice presidential pick is expected to attend Mr Trumps trial on Tuesday. The three figures arent the only Republicans using the trial as their testing grounds. Last week, Senator Rick Scott accompanied the former president as the court heard bombshell testimony from adult film star Stormy Daniels. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a staunch ally to Mr Trump, also attended last week. Donald Trump (left), Rick Scott (centre) and attorney Todd Blanche (right) walk into the Manhattan Criminal Court on 9 May. Mr Scott, a GOP senator from Florida, is a staunch ally of the former president ( AP ) Mr Trumps campaign told The Associated Press last week that the attending lawmakers volunteered to come and were not formally invited. The former presidents pick for his running mate has been shrouded in mystery. He is expected to announce his vice presidential candidate at the Republican National Convention this July, where he will officially be named the partys presidential nominee. But last week, audio obtained by Axios from a private lunch revealed his thoughts about those auditioning. The audio, obtained by Axios, was recorded during Mr Trumps high-profile Republican event at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida last weekend. Attendees included major Republican donors and his many contenders for vice president. Mr Trumps potential picks for a running mate include several senators, representatives, governors and former presidential candidates. Mr Trump has been on trial since 15 April after he was charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records related to hush money payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election, in order to stop her coming forward with allegations of a 2006 affair. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} The White House on Monday condemned the conditions in which Palestinians in Gaza have been forced to live after seven months of Israels war against Hamas. But a spokesperson stopped short of saying the high civilian death rate amounts to a genocide. In what were the Biden administrations strongest remarks on the humanitarian situation in Gaza since the start of the war after the October 7 terror attacks, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said the US still wants to see Hamas defeated and hopes justice will be delivered to Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar. He also said there can be no equivocation... the Palestinian civilians caught in the middle of this war are in hell during a press briefing. The depth and trauma they've endured are unimaginable. Their pain and suffering are immense. No civilian should have to go through that, he said, adding that the conditions in Gaza and the suffering of the Palestinian people are on the presidents mind every day. Mr Sullivan also stated that Israel faces an unusual, even unprecedented burden in conducting their war on Hamas because of the militant groups use of hospitals and schools and other civilian facilities for military purposes and the vast network of tunnels under Gaza that put innocent civilians in the crossfire because of their location in civilian areas. But he cautioned that those conditions dont lessen Israel's responsibility to do all it can to protect innocent civilians and said Israeli forces can and must do more to ensure the protection and wellbeing of innocent civilians. Mr Sullivan continued by denying the view that the civilian death toll in Gaza amounts to a genocide against Palestinians, telling reporters: We do not believe what is happening in Gaza is a genocide. We have been firmly on record rejecting that proposition. He added that the US would continue to lead international efforts to surge humanitarian assistance throughout the Gaza Strip, because innocent civilians should never go without food, water, medicine, shelter, sanitation, or other basic necessities. The comments from President Bidens top national security aide come days after Mr Biden said he would withhold offensive arms to Israel if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus government went ahead with a full-scale assault on Rafah. Millions took shelter in the city in southern Gaza after months of Israeli bombing in the north. Mr Netanyahu, who needs to remain in office to avoid trial and possibly prison if found guilty of corruption charges, has vowed to press on with the Israeli operation in Rafah over American objections. Asked whether the embattled Israeli leaders defiance of Mr Biden shows the US now lacks clout with its longtime ally, Mr Sullivan said Israels government is its own and Mr Netanyahu has to answer to his own constituents. The prime minister doesnt have to answer to us. Hes got to answer to the Israeli people, he said. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} President Joe Bidens national security adviser Jake Sullivan has given ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos a rare tour of the White House Situation Room following its $50m revamp. The makeover of the nerve centre of the West Wing which was first opened in 1961 and where every president from John F Kennedy to Mr Biden have overseen some of the toughest moments of their tenures was completed last October, greatly enhancing the rooms security and technological capability. Mr Sullivan told Mr Stephanopoulos, who has just authored a new book chronicling presidential crises handled within the facilitys walls, that, contrary to popular belief, the 5,500 square foot Situation Room in the basement of the White House is actually a vast complex comprising multiple rooms. The adviser detailed the workings of the Watch Floor, where civilian and military experts monitor events around the world on a bank of glowing monitors 24/7 and put in a call to the president or his top aides whenever a developing situation requires their immediate attention, which could come at any time of the day or night. When you see the number from the Situation Room at 3am, its not usually to update you on good news, I would say, Mr Sullivan joked. He went on to explain the facilitys use as a venue for secure video conferences, explaining that Mr Biden had made it his base from which to discuss Russias invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 with his fellow world leaders and to coordinate their response. He uses this room not just to make decisions but to do diplomacy, to build and execute coalitions and alliances and so a lot of the history that is written day to day in American foreign policy is lived out in this room, Mr Sullivan said. The adviser explained that the complex serves as a place for the commander-in-chief and his senior decision-makers to share their viewpoints and that asking the right questions of expert intelligence officials is key to securing a successful outcome during stressful moments of global consequence. US president Joe Biden meets with members of the National Security team regarding the unfolding missile attacks on Israel from Iran on 13 April 2024 in the White House Situation Room in Washington, DC ( Adam Schultz/The White House/Getty ) According to Mr Stephanopolouss new book, the Situation Room was created at the request of President Kennedy in the aftermath of the failed Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba, a disaster that was blamed on inadequate communications and intel and which no one wished to repeat as the tense atmosphere of the Cold War lingered on. The site chosen for a state-of-the-art surveillance base was formerly a bowling alley and might have been called either the Nerve Center or the Executive Coordination Center before the intentionally more mundane and euphemistic National Daily Situation Room was recommended. Some presidents like Lyndon Johnson during the Vietnam War or Ronald Reagan in the 1980s would come to regard the facility as the beating heart of the White House and loved to be there while others, like Richard Nixon and Donald Trump, found it gloomy and preferred the pomp and ceremony of the Oval Office instead. Heres a look at some of the more extraordinary events that have since been overseen from within its walls. Cuban Missile Crisis (October 1962) The centre proved its worth within a year of its opening, when intelligence staff intercepted a Radio Moscow broadcast that revealed that Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev had decided to remove Russian missiles from the island after all, news that was immediately communicated to President Kennedy, enabling a broader conflict to be averted. If the Situation Room had not yet existed, Khrushchevs overture would have taken longer to arrive, and the Cuban Missile Crisis might have taken a much darker turn, Mr Stephanopoulos writes of the significance of that moment. 9/11 attacks (September 2001) Following the attack on the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, members of George W Bushs administration ran to the complex much like the firefighters in New York rushed toward the burning towers, the ABC journalist observes, noting that staff refused to obey evacuation orders even though al-Qaeda terrorists were feared to be targeting the building. Frank Miller, President Bushs senior director for defense policy, asked everybody present to write down their names and Social Security numbers, telling them: We want to know what bodies to look for. Raid on Bin Ladens compound (May 2011) One of the most famous images of the 21st century was captured in the Situation Room by official White House photographer Pete Souza on 11 May 2011 when President Barack Obama, his then-vice president Joe Biden, secretary of state Hillary Clinton and a host of military brass and staffers gathered to watch the raid on Osama bin Ladens Pakistani hideout on 2 May 2011. The terrorist leader was gunned down by US Special Forces after almost a decade on the run as part of Operation Neptune Spear, a moment witnessed live by Mr Obama and his staff in a cramped side room rather than around the main conference table because an engineer could reportedly not work out how to patch the feed through in time, a technical blunder that at least yielded a truly iconic photograph. President Barack Obama, vice president Joe Biden, secretary of state Hillary Clinton and members of the national security team receive an update on the mission against Osama bin Laden in the Situation Room of the White House on 1 May 2011 in Washington, DC ( Pete Souza/The White House/Getty ) Firing of Trump aide Omarosa (December 2017) Mr Stephanopoulos writes that the Situation Room and how it is used by a particular administration often reflects the personality of the president. We should therefore not be surprised that the first person to be fired in the room was an aide to President Trump: Omarosa Manigault Newman. Ms Manigault Newman was reported to have been dismissed by White House chief of staff John Kelly on 13 December 2017, although she later claimed to have resigned and produced a tape recorder she had smuggled into the room and presented the audio of her exchange with Mr Kelly to NBC journalist Chuck Todd to play on air in August 2018. That proved a matter of no little controversy, as cell phones and recording devices are banned from the facility. Larry Pfeiffer, an Obama-era director of the Situation Room, told Mr Stephanopoulos: Nobodys being frisked as they come in the door. Its an honour system. Most of the people coming in and out of there tend to be very high-level, very important people. Certain assumptions get made that theyre going to do the right thing. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Those waiting on former German Chancellor Angela Merkel's memoirs will not have to wait much longer. The book, titled Freiheit (Freedom), will be released in late November, nearly three years after the end of her 16-year tenure at the helm of one of Europe's biggest powers, her publisher said on Monday. The roughly 700-page volume will be out on November 26, publisher Kiepenheuer & Witsch announced. It was co-written with her longtime assistant and adviser, Beate Baumann. Merkel, a former scientist who grew up in communist East Germany, became Germanys first female chancellor on November 22, 2005. The 69-year-old steered Germany through a succession of crises including the global financial crisis, Europe's debt and migration crises and the coronavirus pandemic. The publisher quoted Merkel in a statement as saying that for me, freedom is not stopping learning, not having to stand still but being able to go further, even after leaving politics. Germany Merkel's Memoirs ( Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistribu ) The company said the book will appear worldwide in over 30 countries but didn't elaborate. Merkel has generally kept a low profile since handing over to current Chancellor Olaf Scholz in December 2021. She has stayed out of the political fray and away from events of her center-right party, the Christian Democratic Union. Merkel was named The Worlds Most Powerful Woman by Forbes magazine for 10 years in a row, and was seen as a powerful defender of liberal values in the West and a role model for girls. But her record has faced criticism as well since she stepped down, notably her approach to Ukraine and Russia. Merkel has defended her actions, saying months after Russia launched its full-scale invasion that a much-criticized 2015 peace deal for eastern Ukraine bought Kyiv precious time and she wont apologize for her diplomatic efforts. She also has defended her governments decisions to buy large quantities of natural gas from Russia, which cut off supplies in 2022. On Monday Germany rejected a no-fly zone over Ukraine enforced by the NATO military alliance and has not changed its stance, a government spokesperson said, after recent domestic calls for such a move by a cross-section of German lawmakers. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Germany's domestic intelligence agency was justified in designating the far-right Alternative for Germany as a suspected case of extremism, a court ruled Monday, rejecting an appeal from the opposition party. The administrative court in Muenster ruled in favor of the BfV intelligence agency, upholding a 2022 decision by a lower court in Cologne, German news agency dpa reported. Alternative for Germany, or AfD, has rejected the designation strongly. The party could still seek to appeal the verdict at a federal court. AfD was formed in 2013 and has moved steadily to the right over the years. Its platform initially centered on opposition to bailouts for struggling eurozone members, but its vehement opposition to then-Chancellor Angela Merkels decision to allow in large numbers of refugees and other migrants in 2015 established the party as a significant political force. AfD has been polling strongly in Germany in recent months as discontent is high with center-left Chancellor Olaf Scholzs three-party coalition government. However, its support declined somewhat following a media report in January that extremists met to discuss the deportation of millions of immigrants, including some with German citizenship, and that some figures from the party attended. The report triggered mass protests in the country against the rise of the far-right. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Microsoft announced its most substantial commitment yet to France, pledging on Monday to invest 4 billion euros ($4.3 billion) this year to bolster the countrys burgeoning artificial intelligence sector. The move is part of a broader effort unveiled during President Emmanuel Macrons pro-business event, Choose France, which aims to attract foreign investment and stimulate economic growth. Microsofts vice chair and president, Brad Smith, visited the companys French headquarters with Macron. We will build out the computing capacity here in France," Smith said. "We will put this infrastructure to work for everyone in France. The plan includes expanding next-generation Cloud and AI infrastructure and delivering up to 25,000 of the most advanced GPUs, or graphics processing units, to France by the end of 2025. Additionally, Microsoft will launch an AI skilling initiative to train 1 million French people by the end of 2027, emphasizing the importance of equipping citizens with future-ready skills. The announcement was made as part of the annual Choose France summit, created by Macron in 2018. The summit, held this year at the Palace of Versailles, was attended by 180 international CEOs and senior business executives. It highlighted foreign investments totaling a reported 15 billion euros, surpassing last years 13 billion euros raised through 28 projects. Macron addressed the necessity of advancing AI technology in Europe and told Microsoft staff, We are entering a totally different world where the competition will be ferocious, and we can only win this competition if we have trusted partners, and you are among them. This significant investment underscores Microsofts commitment to supporting French growth in the AI economy and marks a milestone in the ongoing efforts to enhance Frances position as a global leader in technology and innovation. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Vladimir Putin is replacing his defence minister with a civilian economist in an attempt to better equip Russia for an economic war after the West tried, and so far largely failed, to cripple his forces with sanctions. The Russian president proposed Andrei Belousov, a 65-year-old former deputy prime minister who specialises in economics, to replace Sergei Shoigu, 68, as defence minister in a shock reshuffle on Sunday night. Mr Belousov, a former economy minister known to be very close to Mr Putin, shares the Russian leaders vision of rebuilding a strong state, and has also worked with Mr Putins top technocrats who want greater innovation and are open to new ideas. The announcement came amid Russias renewed armoured push across the border in northeastern Ukraine, with thousands reported to have fled their homes in the Kharkiv region. Grant Shapps, the UK defence secretary, said Mr Shoigus replacement would like be another of Putins puppets. Andrei Belousov, a 65-year-old former deputy prime minister who specialises in economics, is set to replace Sergei Shoigu ( AP ) Writing on X, he said: Sergei Shoigu has overseen over 355k casualties amongst his own soldiers & mass civilian suffering with an illegal campaign in Ukraine. Russia needs a Defence Minister who would undo that disastrous legacy & end the invasion but all theyll get is another of Putins puppets. Mr Shoigu, defence minister since 2012, is set to become secretary of Russias national security council. The reshuffle of the military command is the most significant Mr Putin has undertaken since his full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the change made sense because Russia was approaching a situation like the Soviet Union in the mid-1980s, when the military and law enforcement authorities accounted for 7.4 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP). That, said Mr Peskov, meant it was vital to ensure such spending aligned with and was better integrated into the countrys overall economy, which was why Mr Putin now wanted a civilian economist in the defence ministry job. The one who is more open to innovations is the one who will be victorious on the battlefield, Mr Peskov said. Russias economists have so far largely ensured economic stability and growth despite the toughest sanctions ever imposed on a major economy, even though the failings of the Russian military were laid bare shortly after the invasion. Mr Putins move, though unexpected, preserves balance at the top of the complex system of personal loyalties that make up the current political system. The shake-up gives Mr Shoigu a job that is technically regarded as senior to his defence ministry role, ensuring continuity and saving Mr Shoigus face. Valery Gerasimov, the chief of Russias General Staff and someone with a more hands-on role when it comes to directing the war, will remain in post. Close Quality of Russian troops is now lower than beginning of war, says Nato Chief For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Russian President Vladimir Putin has claimed there are no plans to take the northeastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv despite tens of thousands of his forces having recently stormed across the border into the region and getting within artillery range of the city. Speaking on the second day of his two-day tour of China, Putin claimed he had ordered the attack to create a buffer zone between Ukrainian soldiers and the Russian region of Belgorod. When asked if Russian forces planned to take control of Kharkiv city, some 20 miles from the current fighting, Putin said: As for Kharkiv, there are no such plans as of today. While Ukrainian officials and military analysts maintain that Russian forces in the Kharkiv region do not have the manpower or weaponry to take its namesake capital, and that the attack is likely an attempt to create a buffer zone, as Putin puts it, as well as draw Ukrainian forces away from other battles further east, there is little doubt that Russia would try to invade the city if it had the capability. From beyond the grave, Yevgeny Prigozhin has had one of the main aims of his attempted coup fulfilled. Russias defence minister Sergei Shoigu, one of the Wagner chiefs hate figures, has been removed from his post. The bitter complaint from Prigozhin and his ally at the time, the Chechen warlord Ramzan Kadyrov, was that Shoigu and his bureaucrats were among those culpable for the shortcomings which saw Ukraine claw back land lost in Vladimir Putins invasion. Shoigus sacking was greeted with elation by Russias warhawks, the Z-Patriots, with Konstantin Malofeyev, describing it as pure Easter joy (Orthodox Easter took place last week) and declaring that the move showed that, for president Putin, defence was becoming the absolute priority of all state policy. The first deputy prime minister, Andrey Belousov, taking over from Shoigu, has a background in economics, and one interpretation is that this means that Russia is going full steam towards becoming a war economy and the Kremlin is preparing for the longest haul in the conflict. But Russian ammunition production, aided by procurement from countries like Iran and North Korea, has already improved considerably over the course of the campaign, and the West is having difficulty at present matching the supply for Ukraine. Neither Shoigu, with a background in construction, or his predecessor Anatoly Serdyukov, who was in commercial marketing, were military men. And being in the forces is not a prerequisite for getting the defence portfolio, as, for instance, Grant Shapps proves. Rockets are launched towards Ukraine from Russias Belgorod region ( AP ) Nor is the war going badly for Moscow at present, as the advances in the Donbas and the new front near Kharkiv show. Shoigu, as some Russian reports indicate, may just have made too many enemies, his performance in the early part of the campaign was poor, and president Putin decided it was time to move him on. This is not to say that economics was not part of the calculation in the Belousov appointment. Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesperson, spoke of the need for innovation. Defence spending has risen to no less than 6.7 per cent of Russias GDP since the start of the invasion, returning to the coldest time of the Cold War. Shoigu remains a part of the defence establishment as the new secretary of the Security Council of Russia. And this brings one of the most intriguing aspects of the reshuffle what happens to the man he is replacing, Nikolai Patrushev, who has presented himself as an implacable adversary of the West? Patrushev, who had been in the post since 2008, had built up a power base while remaining an erstwhile ally of Putin. He had expanded his role to become, in effect, the overseer of national intelligence. Patrushev was also an avid advocate of the Ukraine invasion. Russian intelligence about Ukraine, with the central premise that Ukrainians will welcome liberation from a neo-nazi regime in Kyiv, proved to be disastrously wrong. Is the Kremlin closing another chapter of lessons learned from the war? There is no indication at present about what will happen to Patrushev. No obvious position seems available right now. But it seems unlikely that such a prominent figure will simply disappear from public life. It also remains to be seen whether changes follow in the military command. There have long been rumours that the chief of general staff, General Valery Gerasimov, another Prigozhin target, may be moved on. Hardline nationalists accuse him of not being vigorous enough in conducting operations and lobbying for his removal. General Sergei Surovikin, who was handed the moniker General Armageddon for his actions in Syria, was once a favourite among the possible successors mentioned. The defensive shield he established in Ukraine, the Surovokin Line ensured that last summers counteroffensive by Kyvs forces failed. Surovokin, however, was deemed by the Kremlin to be insufficiently condemnatory of the Wagner plot. There were accusations even that he gave it tacit support. So the general may have to spend some further time in penance before any promotion takes place. Eleven months after his attempted coup and nine months since he and Wagners senior echelon were eliminated when their plane was blown up out of the sky, the shadow of Yevgeny Prigozin continues to linger on Russias military horizons. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Old foes Turkey and Greece will test a five-month-old friendship initiative Monday when Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis visits Ankara. The two NATO members, which share decades of mutual animosity, a tense border and disputed waters, agreed to sideline disputes last December. Instead, theyre focusing on trade and energy, repairing cultural ties and a long list of other items placed on the so-called positive agenda. Mitsotakis is to meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara on Monday as part of efforts to improve ties following the solidarity Athens showed Ankara after a devastating earthquake hit southern Turkey last year. The two leaders have sharp differences over the Israeli-Hamas war, but are keen to hold back further instability in the eastern Mediterranean as conflict also continues to rage in Ukraine. We always approach our discussions with Turkey with confidence and with no illusions that Turkish positions will not change from one moment to the next, Mitsotakis said last week, commenting on the visit. Nevertheless, I think its imperative that when we disagree, the channels of communication should always be open." We should disagree without tension and without this always causing an escalation on the ground," he added. Greeces Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, left, welcomes the Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan ( Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved ) Ioannis Grigoriadis, a professor of political science at Ankaras Bilkent University, said the two leaders would look for ways to expand the positive agenda and look for topics where the two sides can seek win-win solutions, such as in trade, tourism and migration. Erdogan visited Athens in early December, and the two countries have since maintained regular high-level contacts to promote a variety of fence-mending initiatives, including educational exchanges and tourism. Turkish citizens this summer are able to visit 10 Greek islands using on-the-spot visas, skipping a more cumbersome procedure needed to enter Europes common travel area zone, known as the Schengen area. This generates a great opportunity for improving the economic relations between the two sides, but also to bring the two stable societies closer for Greeks and Turks to realize that they have more things in common than they think, Grigoriadis said. Disagreements have brought Athens and Ankara close to war on several occasions over the past five decades, mostly over maritime borders and the rights to explore for resources in the Aegean and eastern Mediterranean seas. The two countries are also locked in a dispute over Cyprus, which was divided in 1974 when Turkey invaded following a coup by supporters of union with Greece. Only Turkey recognizes a Turkish Cypriot declaration of independence in the islands northern third. Cyprus soldiers on the military vehicles pass behind a Greek flag during a military parade marking the 63th anniversary ( Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved ) The dispute over the exploration of energy resources resulted in a naval standoff in 2020 and a vow by Erdogan to halt talks with the Mitsotakis government. But the two men met three times last year following a thaw in relations and a broader effort by Erdogan to re-engage with Western countries. The foreign ministers of the two countries, Hakan Fidan of Turkey and George Gerapetritis of Greece, are set to join the talks Monday and hold a separate meeting. Just weeks before Mitsotakis visit, Erdogan announced the opening of a former Byzantine-era church in Istanbul as a mosque, drawing criticism from Greece and the Greek Orthodox church. Like Istanbuls landmark Hagia Sophia, the Chora had operated as a museum for decades before it was converted into a mosque. Turkey, meanwhile, has criticized recently announced plans by Greece to declare areas in the Ionian and Aegean seas as marine parks to conserve aquatic life. Turkey objects to the one-sided declaration in the Aegean, where some areas remain under dispute, and has labelled the move as a step that sabotages the normalization process. Grigoriadis said Turkey and Greece could focus on restoring derelict Ottoman monuments in Greece and Greek Orthodox monuments in Turkey. That would be an opportunity for improved ties, he said. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Russia is intensifying its attacks around the Kharkiv region with Kyiv admitting that Vladimir Putins forces are achieving some tactical success as soldiers warn that the next few days will be critical to stop Russian troops advancing. Moscows forces have captured a number of villages and sent thousands of people fleeing their homes. They are trying to broaden the area of its most recent attack, which seemed to take Ukrainian forces by surprise and caused some to retreat from their lightly fortified positions. The Independent spoke to a colonel from the Ukrainian general staff, who did not want to be named. He said: The situation is serious and dynamic. It has the potential to develop dangerously very swiftly and the next few days will be critical. He said Ukraine is sending one of our most experienced brigades to reinforce our troops. The Russians are taking very big casualties and I think this brigade, which I know well, will be able to stop the Russian attack from spreading and then push them back or destroy them. Although Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky and both the armys top commander and military intelligence chief had for weeks warned that Russia was preparing to launch an offensive this month or in June, the attack in the northern Kharkiv region still caught the Ukrainians off balance. The colonel said: The Russians entered in areas where our defences were weak and not ready. They are places near the border with Russia which are in reach of their artillery and where its very difficult and dangerous to build defences. Kharkivs governor, Oleh Syniehubov, told local TV: The enemy is trying to deliberately stretch it [the front line], attacking in small groups, but in new directions, so to speak. He added that "the situation is difficult. A police officer helps a local resident during an evacuation to Kharkiv from Vovchansk one of the towns liberated from Russian occupation in 2022 ( Reuters ) Portions of the areas now being fought over were freed from Russian occupation in a successful Ukrainian surprise offensive in the autumn of 2022. Some Ukrainian commanders in the area have complained to journalists they will now lose more of their men fighting to retrieve the same territory and condemned Ukrainian military and civil authorities for not having built sufficient fortifications when they had the chance. Kyiv announced on Monday the replacement of the commander overseeing the northeastern Kharkiv front line. The colonel The Independent spoke to said some five battalions of Russian troops up to 3,000 men were involved in the incursion which started on the night of 9 May into 10 May. They were backed by tanks and other armoured vehicles, with glide bombs launched from Russian territory. Moscow was also using fighter jets and helicopters. Ukrainian and Western sources say Russian forces have spread out in an area of some five by 10 kilometres and captured at least six villages: Strilecha, Krasne, Borisivka, Zelene, Ohirtseve, and Hatyshche. Vovchansk, one of the towns liberated from Russian occupation in 2022, has again turned into a focus of fierce fighting between its Ukrainian defenders and Russian troops who, the general staff admitted, have penetrated into some eastern areas of the town. The Ukrainians say a group of Russian soldiers are now trapped in a factory in the town with all routes for reinforcement or retreat cut off. Despite warnings from President Volodymyr Zelensky, Russian forces attack in the northern Kharkiv region still caught the Ukrainians off balance ( Reuters ) The colonel said the present Russian attack will likely be limited in scope as Moscow does not yet have the necessary resources to make an attempt at capturing the regional capital, the city of Kharkiv, Ukraines second largest. He said Moscows aim for the moment was to solidify a grey zone no-mans land that already effectively exists on much of the border between Russia and Ukraines Sumy and Kharkiv regions. The colonel said: One of the most important tasks is to prevent the Russians coming within artillery range to shell Kharkiv city. Thats about 30 kilometres. Its already being hit daily by drones and glide bombs, and if the Russians were close enough to use their artillery, that would be a catastrophe and we cant let that happen. Moscow has made it clear it either wants to take Kharkiv after its first attempt in the early stages of its 2022 full-blown invasion failed disastrously or to bludgeon it so that most of its remaining million population flee, leaving the city as an uninhabitable wasteland. The current attack on the region has emptied many of the villages which have faced continuous shelling since last week. Thousands of refugees are streaming into Kharkiv and putting more strain on already stretched welfare, medical and accommodation services. The colonel said Kyiv believes that Russia wants to create a buffer zone of 15 kilometres on the Ukrainian side of the border that strengthens their defences, but that Moscow would also insist on retaining a grey zone in any future talks about cessation of the conflict. The Ukrainian military acknowledge that by opening a new front in Kharkiv, Russia wants to draw away Ukrainian forces from other areas under attack, particularly further south in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions, and to the west towards the Zaporizhzhia region. Residents are moved out of Vovchansk to escape fierce fighting between Ukrainian and Russian troops ( Reuters ) Moscow already holds most of the Luhansk and Donetsk regions, collectively known as Donbas, and the Kremlin has repeatedly set deadlines for its forces to capture the entirety of both regions. Ukrainian intelligence has said for several months that Moscows plan for 2024 involves taking full control in the first half of this year. Ukraines forces have been facing dwindling supplies of key weapons and ammunition due to months-long delays in fresh military aid from the US. While billions of dollars in support was signed off in recent weeks, it is arriving on the front line in a trickle so far and Russia is trying to take advantage. Moscows troops have whittled away at Ukrainian defences and manpower, using waves of troops backed up by armoured vehicles and air assaults. The relentless attacks have cost Moscow thousands of casualties and hundreds of destroyed armoured vehicles but eventually gave them their only significant victory this year the capture of the key town of Avdiivka on the outskirts of Donetsk city. Since then the Russians have tried similar tactics to try and capture the town of Chasiv Yar in Donetsk. It sits atop hills which give artillery positions there a reach over most of the remaining territory and largest cities Kramatorsk, Slovyansk, Druzhkovka and Konstantinovka still in Kyivs hands. While initiating the attacks in Kharkiv region, the Russians have not let up pressure on Chasiv Yar and other areas in Donetsk. Kyiv and its Western allies assess that the Russians will take advantage of Ukraine's continuing dearth of ammunition to try to move forward in as many places as possible before supplies return to sufficient levels for Ukraine to stabilise the front. It comes as Putin has replaced his defence minister and long-term ally Sergei Shoigu with Andrei Belousov, in a surprise move. While the colonel believes this will not have a significant effect in the short-term, there is concern over what it says about Russias aims. Belousov doesnt have much real military experience but he is a businessman, he said. Belousov could manage Russias war industries more effectively and reorganise the economy, military and manufacturing for a long, protracted conflict. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Israeli forces have pushed deep into Jabalia in northern Gaza to recapture an area where it said it had dismantled Hamas weeks ago while tanks and troops continued to move into the southern border city of Rafah. The offensive in Jabalia, which contains a sprawling refugee camp, shows just how difficult an operation in Rafah where more than a million Palestinians are sheltering will be. Jabalia residents fled along rubble-strewn streets carrying bags of belongings. Tank shells landed in the centre of the camp and airstrikes destroyed clusters of houses, they said. Health officials said they had recovered 20 bodies of Palestinians killed in overnight airstrikes. On Sunday, US secretary of state Antony Blinken warned Israel that a full-scale offensive in Rafah would likely provoke anarchy without eliminating Hamas. The UNs Palestinian refugee agency, UNRWA, estimated that about 360,000 people had fled Rafah since the Israeli military gave its first evacuation order a week ago. Khaled Roumi, 33, a father of three from the al-Shaboura neighbourhood in the border city, said: We have been hastily preparing our things to leave the place. The situation is horrible; it is difficult to control yourself. Many are facing acute hunger due to the lack of aid deliveries that are making it into the strip in the wake of Israeli forces seizing control of the border crossing in Rafah. All the areas that were threatened looked like ghost towns. The areas, houses and streets have become empty. You would feel lonely when walking on the streets of these neighbourhoods, Khaled said. The situation is more difficult than you can imagine. Food is now not available like before, and it is difficult to get water. There are no goods in the market to buy. Prices are rising every day due to the closure of the crossings. Israel has stepped up aerial and ground bombardments on the eastern areas of the city, killing people in an airstrike on a house in the Brazil neighbourhood on Monday. Israeli troops are seeking to wipe out Hamas in the wake of the attack on Israel on 7 October during which around 1,200 were killed and another 250 were taken hostage. In the Israeli bombardment, ground offensive and blockade that has followed, more than 35,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to health officials in the strip. Palestinians ride on a vehicle as they flee Rafah the UN estimates some 360,000 have left the city in the past week ( Reuters ) Attending a Memorial Day ceremony to mark Israels fallen soldiers in Jerusalem on Monday, prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: We will not stop until we bring about the collapse of the Hamas terror regime. We will exact revenge from those who perpetrated the attack, till the very last one of them. We will sever their arms so that they can no longer raise them against Israel. Hospital staff inside Rafah fear what is to come as supplies run low and facilities are overwhelmed. Ali, a young surgeon at al-Kuwaiti Hospital, said: We are planning to stay here until the last moment. We are trying to keep providing healthcare to the people here in Rafah since we are the only unit left receiving casualties and the only unit that manages burns. We are pleading that the whole world stands in the way of this war as soon as possible, he added. In Khan Younis, the largest city in southern Gaza, where many of those leaving Rafah are seeking to flee to despite it having also faced Israeli assault in recent months hospital staff say they have seen nothing like this before. A British doctor currently in Rafah, who asked not to be named said: "Over the last couple of days, the situation has deteriorated even further, with several airstrikes and artillery strikes across the east of Rafah city Coming into Rafah, the streets that were previously packed with [Palestinians] living in makeshift tents [are now empty]. Most of those tents have now been dismantled and people have fled. "The south [of Gaza] is running out of food. People in sheer desperation, have been taking humanitarian aid from the very limited convoys that are allowed into Gaza," he added. "This is just catastrophe on catastrophe on catastrophe. I've never seen or heard anything like it in my entire life." Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy A livestream portal between Dublin and New York has been temporarily closed after inappropriate behaviour on the Irish side. Thousands of people had visited the web-linked art installation, which opened last week and offers a real-time view between Manhattan and the Irish capital, and is described as a bridge to a united planet by its creators. And while there have been a number of wholesome moments such as Irish dancing and even a proposal a number of people have behaved inappropriately, Dublin City Council has said. Videos on social media have show how some on the Irish side have flashed body parts, displayed swear words and even images of the 9/11 attack. Another video shows an image reading RIP Popsmoke referring to the murdered American rapper. A number of technical solutions are to be implemented over the next day to allow the installation to continue, the council says. Images of the portal from the New York side show wholesome placards reading Hello from New York and We love Dublin. However, some of the footage in return shows a man in construction clothing waving to a crowd gathered in New York before he turns around to bare all by pulling his trousers down. open image in gallery Wholesome placards can be seen on the New York side ( Dublin City Council ) Another woman was escorted away by Irish police after she was seen grinding against the portal. Basically she was there for about 20 mins very drunk and was slapping and grinding against the portal before guards stepped in, wrote Liza Lannane in an Instagram post in which she shared the incident, according to The Times. The 24/7 stream is situated in north Dublin, facing OConnell Street, while the American installation is on North Earl Street. In a statement, a spokesman for Dublin City Council said: The Portals artwork facilitates a wide range of human interactions and engagements. The overwhelming majority of interactions are positive. We have seen families and friends unite, dancing moves being shared as well as new friendships being made. There was even a successful marriage proposal. Unfortunately, we have also been witnessing a very small minority of people engaged in inappropriate behaviour, which has been amplified through social media. While we cannot control all of these actions, we are implementing some technical solutions to address this and these will go live in the next 24 hours. We will continue to monitor the situation over the coming days with our partners in New York to ensure that Portals continue to deliver a positive experience for both cities and the world. The spokesperson also added that maintenance work is often carried out at night meaning the livestream may be paused during those hours. open image in gallery The portal was temporarily closed ( Niall Carson/PA Wire ) The Portals Organisation said: As Portals Organisation, we do not intend to suggest people to interact with Portals in any particular way our goal is to open a window between far away places and cultures that allows people to interact freely with one another. We encourage people to be respectful and from our position as observers, we see that the absolute majority of experiences is on the bright side. However, in an earlier statement a spokeswoman for Portals Organisation said that it briefly paused the livestream to update the software used on the Portal. Its not broken. Our goal is to provide a window between different locations, but the nature of this being a livestream sometimes requires us to pause, for updates, maintenance or to fix technical glitches, it said in a statement to the PA news agency. The Portals are active again since noon today. Sign up to our free weekly IndyTech newsletter delivered straight to your inbox Sign up to our free IndyTech newsletter Sign up to our free IndyTech newsletter SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy OpenAI, the creator of viral chatbot ChatGPT, has unveiled a new AI model that can interact with the world via audio, vision and text in real time. GPT-4o is the latest flagship product for the Microsoft-backed company, aiming to offer users a more natural human-computer interaction. In a presentation on Monday, OpenAI said its latest AI could respond to queries in less than a third of a second similar to human response time in conversation. Using a smartphones camera and microphone, GPT-4o is capable of understanding audio and visual inputs, while using the speakers to respond in a personalised and natural voice. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said the new technology feels like magic, writing in a blog post that it was the best computer interface he had ever used. It feels like AI from the movies; and its still a bit surprising to me that its real, he wrote. The original ChatGPT showed a hint of what was possible with language interfaces; this new thing feels viscerally different. It is fast, smart, fun, natural, and helpful. Unlike its other advanced AI models, OpenAI said it would offer GPT-4o for free, making it available within the next few weeks. In an effort to prevent misuse or potential harm, OpenAI said it carried out extensive testing that covered everything from cyber security to psychology. We tested both pre-safety-mitigation and post-safety-mitigation versions of the model, using custom fine-tuning and prompts, to better elicit model capabilities, the company explained in a blog post introducing the product. GPT-4o has also undergone extensive external red teaming with 70+ external experts in domains such as social psychology, bias and fairness, and misinformation to identify risks that are introduced or amplified by the newly added modalities... We will continue to mitigate new risks as theyre discovered. OpenAI acknowledged that its latest AI model has several limitations that it hopes to overcome with future versions. Videos of the AI making mistakes showed GPT-4o switching between languages without being prompted, making errors with language translation, and mispronouncing someones name as Nacho. The announcement comes just a day ahead of Google I/O, the tech giants biggest event of the year that is expected to have a heavy focus on artificial intelligence. All eyes will be on how AI becomes more integrated into connected devices, particularly smartphones, given the sheer scale of the opportunity, Leo Gebbie, a principal analyst at CSS Insight, told The Independent ahead of the event. Google needs to clearly articulate the benefits of AI to avoid consumers succumbing to AI fatigue. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Residents of a Long Beach neighborhood have successfully banned short-term rentals after a series of drug-related busts and loud partying pushed them over the edge. After a months-long fight, College Estates resident Andy Oliver led a successful petition to ban unsupervised, short-term rentals such as Airbnb and Vrbo after problems disturbed him and his neighbors. The College Estates neighborhood, located near the San Gabriel River, is an affluent neighborhood with numerous homes worth over $1m, according to Realtor.com. Mr Oliver told the Los Angeles Times he had been frustrated with a nearby Airbnb for more than a year after a frightening encounter. The kid is chased cross my lawn and shot right at my front porch, Oliver told CBS News of the incident. open image in gallery Andy Oliver speaks before the Long Beach City Council regarding short-term rentals ( City of Long Beach ) But Mr Oliver wasnt just concerned about the gunshot victim. Parties and drug use had made the rentals a nuisance for months, he said. The Long Beach resident told the Los Angeles Times he spoke with renters in December after they disturbed him by smoking marijuana. They said recreational marijuana wasnt allowed in Texas and they were going to take advantage of their time here, Mr Oliver told the outlet. He also pointed to loud late-night parties as a source of frustration for him and his neighbors. The music is blaring. Theres screaming and drunkenness spilling out into the front and back lawns till 3 am, Mr Oliver told the Los Angeles Times. One of the guests actually apologized the next day, but then they partied again till 4 am Trouble with short-term rentals isnt anything new for the city. In 2020, the city passed an ordinance limiting the number of unsupervised rentals to 1,000. That same ordinance permits residents to ban rentals by circulating a petition in their neighborhood enabling Mr Oliver to lead his movement. open image in gallery A view of Long Beach, California. The city currently limits the number of short-term, unsupervised rentals to 1,000 ( AFP via Getty Images ) Mr Oliver needed more than half the homes in College Estates to sign the petition for the ban to go into effect. He told media outlets he got more than half the 800 homes to agree after months of canvassing. I heard it was close and I dont have confirmation of the final vote, but I was informed [last week] that we succeeded, Mr Oliver told the Los Angeles Times over the weekend. Now, College Estates has become the first neighborhood to enact the ban. However, residents in other nearby neighborhoods are looking to follow in Mr Olivers footsteps. Christina Nigrelli told Fox News shes waiting for the city of Long Beach to review her petition to ban the short-term, unsupervised rentals in the South of Conant neighborhood. Other residents arent as enthusiastic, telling reporters they rely on renting Airbnbs to supplement their income. open image in gallery A view of a park in College Estates, Long Beach, California. The College Estates neighbourhood has banned short-term, unsupervised rentals ( Google Maps ) Jean Young, 67, told the Los Angeles Times she runs an Airbnb in Long Beach. Im a part-time writer, and the income from rentals just smooths out the rough edges and has been wonderful, she told the outlet. Ms Young also told CBS News she relies on the income to help me survive here in California. The Independent has contacted Airbnb for comment. Sign up to Simon Calders free travel email for expert advice and money-saving discounts Get Simon Calders Travel email Get Simon Calders Travel email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Turkish police have arrested a man suspected of trying to smuggle hundreds of poisonous spiders and scorpions out of the country. State media identifyed the suspect on Monday as a curator at New Yorks American Museum of Natural History. Police arrested the suspect at Istanbul Airport on Sunday and seized dozens of bags from his luggage containing some 1,500 valuable scorpions and spiders, including tarantulas, as well as dozens of plastic bottles containing unspecified liquids, police said. The state-owned Anadolu news agency reported the suspect was Lorenzo Prendini, a curator at the historic US museum, without specifying a source. The American Museum of Natural History did not immediately respond to a request for comment and Prendini could not be reached. The museums website lists Prendini as the curator of its spider, scorpion, centipede and millipede collections. It says his research into spiders and scorpions has taken him to more than 30 countries. open image in gallery A traveller pets the dog Alita while two handlers walk airport therapy dogs Alita and Kuki through Istanbul Airport ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. ) Police said the specimens seized were endemic to Turkey and that their DNA could be copied and their poisons milked for use in making medicines. The suspect faces charges under anti-smuggling law, it added without giving a name. It is understood that these medicines have very high financial values and therefore taking these animal species abroad is strictly forbidden, it said. It said research showed that the market value of one litre of medicine obtained from scorpion venom was worth $10 million. Elsewhere in Istanbul Airport on Thursday a plane made a dramatic emergency landing after its front landing gear failed. A video on social media showed the Boeing 767 belonging to FedEx Express using the back landing gear and then dipping its nose with the front portion of the fuselage. The front landing gear did not deploy, but the pilot managed to stay on the runway, Turkeys transport ministry said, adding that there were no casualties. Video footage showed sparks flying and smoke billowing as the front end of the plane scraped along the runway before being doused with firefighting foam. The Boeing 767 aircraft, flying from Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, informed the traffic control tower at Istanbul Airport that its landing gear failed to open and it landed with guidance from the tower, the ministry said in its statement. Sign up to Simon Calders free travel email for expert advice and money-saving discounts Get Simon Calders Travel email Get Simon Calders Travel email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Jeremy Clarkson has insisted that he will not travel abroad for a summer holiday this year, claiming that hed rather stay at home in the UK. Clarkson, along with his girlfriend Lisa Hogan, flew to Madrid last weekend seeking some sun to escape the UKs unseasonably cold and wet spring. The Clarksons Farm star complained in his Sun column of lengthy check-in queues, uphill terminal walks and e-passport gates only for people who live in the EU. At Madrid airport, you leave the plane, which has parked at the very end of the furthest terminal from baggage reclaim. So you walk, uphill, in a superheated tunnel for about an hour and then youre in a terminal, which is bigger than most deserts. You walk. And then you walk some more. And then you walk until every old injury starts to flare up, Clarkson wrote of his journey through an aviation hub in the Spanish capital. In a post on Twitter/X, he said: Lets have a group chat. Whats the stupidest airport in the world? Ill go first. Madrid. Clarkson blamed Brexit voters for the snaking queues full of people who dont speak Spanish. Or English, and have no paperwork at the non-EU border control checkpoints. He also expressed his frustration at nuisance fellow passengers who dont realise that they cant travel with liquids and cant work the electronic passport machines. Clarkson said: Ill be staying in the UK this summer and not going abroad. open image in gallery Clarkson said he faced three hour queues at Madrid airport ( Getty ) The TV personality urged travellers not to spend half your holiday in a lift or a queue, as he will be staying at home to enjoy a beautiful summer likely on his Chipping Norton farm. Raymond Young from Edinburgh, who bagged a 500,000 Thunderball jackpot win, recently echoed the sentiment. The winner said he would choose a weekend trip at his home from home holiday spot in Blackpool over an exotic holiday when spending his cash prize. However, travel companies are still reporting high demand for international holidays this summer with bookings up 7.1 per cent in April. According to data from Barclays, holidays abroad are outshining staycations with 32 per cent of consumers saying theyre prioritising sun-seeking over closer-to-home getaways. Sign up to Simon Calders free travel email for expert advice and money-saving discounts Get Simon Calders Travel email Get Simon Calders Travel email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Majorca has proposed the continuation of a strict cap on the number of cruise ships that can dock each day in the capital Palma. Plans have already been approved to continue the limit of tourist-carrying ships arriving in the port following calls from politicians in Madrid to impose serious regulations on cruise liner activity in Spain. In May 2022, the Spanish island restricted the number of cruise ship arrivals a day to just three ships. Of these, only one ship could hold a capacity of over 5,000 passengers. The Committee on Tourism, Trade, Employment, Culture and Sport is now working with the Balearic Government and cruise lines to renew the agreement and stagger the arrival of vessels. The measures to protect the environment in the Spanish hotspot and curb overtourism are likely to impact British holidaymakers 2.3 million flocked to Majorca in 2023. Last October, eight local businesses including bars and restaurants called on the government to scrap the cruise restrictions after an 18 per cent fall in passengers, reports the Majorca Daily Bulletin. In a statement, they said: Dont demonise cruise ship passengers, it is family tourism with a high spending power. Palma currently welcomes over two million cruise ship passengers a year on multi-city Mediterranean voyages. Holidaymakers to Majorca were warned last week of tougher alcohol restrictions, including a ban on buying alcohol from shops on the Spanish island between 9.30pm and 8am under a crackdown announced by the local government. The proposed cruise ship limit follows measures by other European port cities in Barcelona, Venice and Marseille. Ocean-going cruises have already been banned from docking in the city centres of Amsterdam and Venice to limit tourist footfall. According to a report by Transport & Environment last year, cruise ships were responsible for more than four times the sulphuric emissions into Europes atmosphere than all of the continents cars. In 2018, campaigners also demanded a 5 daily tax for cruise ship passengers to the popular Balearic Island after concerns over the impact of mass tourism on the busy port and environment. Sign up to Simon Calders free travel email for expert advice and money-saving discounts Get Simon Calders Travel email Get Simon Calders Travel email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy A light plane has been forced to make a wheels-up emergency landing at Newcastle Airport in New South Wales after its landing gear failed. The twin-turboprop aircraft circled the airport dumping fuel for almost four hours before it made the dramatic landing on Monday afternoon with three people on board. Emergency crews who were on standby for the landing broke applause after the plane touched down safely on its belly. The Beechcraft Super King Air, operated by Eastern Air Services, had taken off at 8.30am from Newcastle Airport, north of Sydney, bound for a 112-mile flight north to Port Macquarie. However, just 10 minutes into the flight, the pilot raised an SOS alarm. As the plane circled in preparation to return to the runway, an operations room was set up at the adjoining defence base at Williamtown and a dozen crews including firefighters, police, the State Emergency Service and ambulances arrived at Newcastle Airport. A NSW Police spokesperson confirmed that the plane landed on the tarmac without incident, praising the pilot for executing a "textbook" wheels-up landing. Footage of the landing showed the plane touching down and slowing to a stop without suffering any significant damage. Onlookers gathered at the airport cheered and applauded as the pilot and two passengers emerged safely. Superintendent Wayne Humphrey of NSW Police said the 53-year-old pilot from Queensland realised there was a mechanical issue with the plane shortly after taking off and he later found that the landing gear would not come back down. He stayed here and burned off fuel, Supt Humphrey said of the planes time in the air above Newcastle, which was captured by air traffic monitoring website. I could hear him on the air. He sounded very calm to me. After some hours in the air burning off some fuel, he [the pilot] made a textbook wheels-up landing, which I was very happy to see It ended really well, thank goodness, he said. He said the passengers were a couple in their sixties, who got out of the plane themselves, adding: It was great work by the pilot, to be honest. Newcastle Airport said in a statement posted on social media: Were incredibly relieved the aircraft landed safely this afternoon. Were investigating options to recover the aircraft and re-open the airfield as soon as possible. Newcastle Airport was expected to remain shut for about 24 hours as recovery operations were conducted. Watch as an Indian Air Force helicopter rescues an American hiker with a spinal injury from a trail in India. According to local reports, two female tourists from the US were trapped on the Churdhar trek, the highest peak in the Sirmour district and also the highest peak in the outer Himalayas. Footage shows local officials and soldiers carrying the injured woman on a stretcher towards a Cheetah helicopter on Saturday 11 May. Both tourists were airlifted to a hospital in Chandigarh, where they are being treated. Jerusalem fell silent as a two-minute-long siren blared across Israel on Monday, 13 May, to mark Memorial Day. The country gathered to remember fallen soldiers and civilian victims of hostilities as Benjamin Netanyahu led military and government officials in a ceremony at Mount Herzl. The Israeli prime minister vowed once again to defeat Hamas, repeating a promise he has made during Israels brutal seven-month war with the militant group and offensive in Gaza. It came after around 300,000 Palestinians fled Rafah over the weekend as Israeli forces pushed deeper into the southern city, according to UN estimates. Shocking CCTV footage shows the moment a tourist was attacked after walking out of a gift shop in New York Citys Times Square. The incident happened at around 6:15pm on Saturday 11 May. The New York Police Department (NYPD) have identified the attacker as 61-year-old Cyril Destin. In the footage, he is seen calmly sitting on a walker before getting up to stab a 35-year-old tourist coming out of a gift shop in an unprovoked attack. The victim is expected to recover after she was taken to Bellevue Hospital. Police say Destin has a history of at least 14 arrests, including robbery and several drug-related charges. He was charged and arrested on Saturday with assault and criminal possession of a weapon. Russia said on Sunday (12 May) it had captured four more villages in Ukraines Kharkiv region, as thousands of residents were evacuated. Volodymyr Zelensky said fierce fighting was under way and governor Oleg Synegubov said all areas of the regional border with Russia were now under enemy fire almost around the clock. Local prosecutors said four civilians had been killed in the Kharkiv region in the Russian ground offensive, which was launched on Friday. The Ukrainian armys top commander said that although the situation was complicated, his forces were managing to hold back further Russian advances. But Russias defence ministry said its troops had advanced deeply into the enemy defences a day after claiming the capture of five villages in Kharkiv region. Gina London: Dont email if you can talk, and other small changes to make for a better workplace Communication is all about building that sense of camaraderie Its easy to talk the talk, but leaders need to walk the walk Gina London Sun 12 May 2024 at 03:30 The desert seemed to stretch endlessly in unbroken uniformity as I looked down upon it from my seat in the plane flying from Riyadh to the ancient oasis city of Al Ula. Global jobs and recruitment website Indeed has said it will cut approximately 1,000 jobs, representing 8pc of its workforce. The firm employs more than 1,400 people in Ireland, at its European base in Capital Dock, in Dublin. The job losses will be mostly concentrated in the US, and they are more focused on R&D, the company said. However, the reductions will touch other groups and regions, CEO Chris Hyams said in a message posted publicly. Indeed is a significant employer in Ireland. The business had just over 1,400 staff in Ireland at the end of last year. This was up from 2022 even after it announced an earlier round of job cuts in spring 2023. That round saw 225 jobs lost in Ireland. The cuts this year are not driven by cost cutting, Mr Hyams said. Unlike last year, where our reduction was driven by cost savings, we are taking this action because we need to simplify our organisation to make it easier and faster for us to make decisions, and help us to more effectively grow revenue and hires, he said. Indeed said all employees outside of Ireland, the UK and Australia would hear by Monday evening whether they were affected by the job cuts. Employees in Ireland, the UK and Australia will be told whether they are entering into a consultation process, a reflection of protective notice procedures that apply here and in the UK and Australia. I am responsible for how we got here, and the entire senior leadership team is responsible for making the difficult decisions necessary to help set us up for the future, Mr Hyams said. We know these decisions will have a significant impact on peoples lives. The CEO said that Indeed had responded last year to a slow down in hiring globally by successfully cutting costs but had not as yet positioned itself operationally for a rebound, citing overly complex and bureaucratic structures. While the global economy has improved in several areas over the past year, we are not yet set up for sustainable growth. Despite our efforts so far, our organisation is still too complex, we still have significant duplication of effort and too many organisational layers that slow down decision making. We have been working to simplify every aspect of our business, but without meaningful change we cant get where we need to go, he said. It was the Irish company that told the world it had upended the laws of physics and created energy from nothing. But now Steorn has gone supernova, with its liquidation completed last week, just over seven years after the winding-up began. During its relatively short, shiny life, it had raised as much as 20m from hopeful investors. Steorn was founded by Sean McCarthy and he convinced investors that it had invented a perpetual motion machine dubbed Orbo that relied on magnets. The company claimed to have discovered an anomaly in the laws of physics. That discovery came about as Steorn hunted for a way to efficiently power cameras for ATM surveillance in order to detect fraud. In 2006, knowing his invention would be met with derision from swathes of the international physics community, Mr McCarthy advertised in the Economist magazine for a panel of the most cynical possible experts to validate, or debunk, his invention. The panel eventually comprised 22 people and was led by Ian McDonald, a professor of electrical engineering at the University of Alberta. Three years later, the jury debunked the claims. The unanimous verdict of the jury is that Steorns attempts to demonstrate the claim have not shown the production of energy, Mr McDonald said in 2009. The jury is therefore ceasing work. But well-heeled investors hundreds of them had stumped up millions of euro for Steorn over the course of more than a decade. They were betting that Mr McCarthys invention would generate huge financial returns for them by creating free energy. Even in 2012 years after the expert jury dismissed the companys invention money was still flowing into its coffers. That year, it raised 433,000 from backers. But by 2016, the flow of money had dried up. Mr McCarthy said he was liquidating Steorn and the company entered that process in early 2017. A final creditors meeting was held last week by liquidator David Van Dessel of Deloitte. His final liquidators statement shows that creditors had been due just under 344,000, with 157,000 owed to preferential creditors. It had virtually no assets at the time it was voluntarily wound up, with the liquidator realising assets of just over 80,000. We didnt set out to do this, said Mr McCarthy in a 2007 interview with Endgadget. We stumbled upon it. I wouldnt believe a word of it if I wasnt working here. Broker says credibility of industry damaged by Axa limiting claims for accidental damage Axa said it will no longer cover loss or damage to underground pipes. Photo: Getty Images Householders have been warned to check what is covered in their home insurance policies, after it emerged a leading insurer is restricting what it will compensate policyholders for in the event of a claim. Axa Insurance, which also provides policies that are sold through SuperValu and AIB, is limiting claims for some forms of accidental damage to homes. Insurance broker Tommy OBrien, of Cregan Kelly OBrien Insurances, said there has been a recent trend for insurance companies to try to reduce the policy cover or introduce restrictions under their policies. But this was not reflected in reductions in premium rates. Mr OBrien, whose firm is involved in brokering commercial insurance from Swords, Co Dublin, said the development was damaging to the credibility of the insurance industry. Axa claims to be the largest personal lines insurer in Ireland, he said. But Mr OBrien described as scary the move by the insurer to introduce policy exclusions. Axa said it will no longer cover loss or damage to underground pipes, listing 10 exclusions. These include damage as a result of tree root action, and by wear or tear or anything which happens gradually, its new policy document states. The broker said: Up until now there was no exclusions in respect of damage caused to underground services. If you are unfortunate to have your underground pipes damaged, it is a severe cost to rectify. Nobody ever thinks that such an event will occur to them. However, such incidents regularly occur. Providers of underground camera services will confirm the regularity of such events. He has seen claims in the past where the damage to underground services has been caused by the unnoticed action of tree roots. And most damage that occurs to underground services will be the result of a gradual action, he said. The message was caveat emptor (buyer beware), and homeowners need to make sure they read the small print, he said. There was no such exclusions on the house policies for Axa in the UK, he said. Asked why it was reducing the level of its cover, and if it had told its customers about this, a spokesperson for Axa Insurance said: Our policies change from time to time and when they do, these changes are communicated directly to customers before their renewal. I stress that there is no change to policies already in place until such time as they come due for renewal. The cost of home insurance has been rising lately. This is largely down to a huge increase in the cost of repairs and rebuilding. Broker Jonathan Hehir, of Insuremyhouse.ie, said recently that up to half of all homeowners could now be underinsured by anywhere from 10pc to 30pc. This is down to huge increases in building costs not being reflected in the rebuild-cost sum recorded in an insurance policy. And recent research by Aviva Insurance shows that almost one in five householders are under-insured when they make a claim. The Central Bank has ordered home insurers to write to their customers to warn them that their insurance cover may be inadequate in the event of a claim. South African insurer OUTsurance is aiming to add competitive pressure in the home and motor insurance market here where premiums have risen lately. The company says it will compete on pricing and hopes its successful model used in South Africa and Australia of loyalty discounts will work here too. It is offering discounts of 10pc on premiums in cash for customers that hold their OUTsurance policy claims-free for three years. Chief executive Peter Broome, asked whether the company would compete on price, said: Yes, 100pc, we will compete on price. We are not going to be the cheapest for everyone, but for those that fit our risk profile they will save money. Today's News in 90 seconds - 13th May 2024 The arrival of competition in the market comes as motor insurance premiums across the market have gone up for eight months in a row, according to Central Statistics Office figures, while home insurance is also rising in cost. Mr Broome said that since its soft launch a few months ago, OUTsurance customers had saved between 200 and 300 a year on their motor cover. This market needs competition. We are not going to undercut everyone as that would be silly, but we will be competitive. The company employs 70 people at its head office in Cherrywood in Dublin but will grow its headcount to 300 roles over the next three years as part of an overall investment programme of 160m. The company said it aimed to challenge accepted market norms with the introduction of its OUTbonus cash-back scheme. Government levies and taxes will not form part of the cash-back payment, because the insurer is not allowed to refund these. It would not offer conventional no-claims discounts but those who needed to move from it would get documents outlining their claims history, Mr Broome said. He said his company prided itself on its customer service standards at every stage of the customer journey from a quote through to a seamless claims process. Mr Broome said: We will change the way people think about car and home insurance with the introduction of something fundamentally new in Ireland the OUTbonus. Customers always pay in, so why shouldnt they get something out of their insurance when they have not made a claim. Thats why with the OUTbonus we will be putting 10pc of customers premiums back in their bank account when they have held a policy with us for three years and are claims-free, Mr Broome said. Minister of State with responsibility for Financial Services, Credit Unions and Insurance Neale Richmond welcomed the new rival in the insurance market. OUTsurances commitment to Ireland is clear from their plans to create 230 additional jobs over the next three years, as part of a 160m investment in our economy. This is a very positive sign that Ireland is an attractive destination for international insurance companies, and I look forward to working with OUTsurance over the coming months. The insurer is the first provider in more than a decade that is fully licensed and regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland to launch here since Quinn Insurance more than a decade ago. Revolut offers motor insurance but is not licended in this market, rather it passports in here using its Lithuanian banking licence The OUTsurance Group was established 26 years ago, employs more than 7,000 people and is listed on the Johannesburg Securities Exchange. Partner Content The entrepreneurial journey can be a long one, and often comes with a myriad of highs and lows. While it sometimes feels like a solitary activity, founders should be assured they are not alone, as Enterprise Ireland is committed to supporting entrepreneurs from the very beginning of this journey and has a number of programmes and supports to help Irish businesses at this pivotal stage. Thats why the start-up journey is the focus of this years Enterprise Ireland Start-up Showcase event, which is happening this Tuesday in Dublin Castle. Enterprise Ireland is committed to assisting Irish companies to achieve their global ambition From the earliest-stage entrepreneurs to seasoned business leaders, the start-up community will have an opportunity to share lessons learned, hear from others about their experiences, and learn how best to forge new connections at this day-long invitation-only event. Its the largest annual event on Irelands start-up calendar, with 600 people set to attend. The audience this year will include start-up founders, scaling entrepreneurs, venture capital firms and angel investors, technology- transfer professionals, multinational executives, representatives from Enterprise Ireland and the Local Enterprise Offices, the network of business innovation centres and other key ecosystem stakeholders. Putting a focus on the global expansion process will be keynote speaker Dr Mark Barrett, co-founder of pharma research company APC, which also has operations in the US. He will share insights from APCs growth path, which includes the 100m expansion the company announced earlier this year, together with its sister company, VLE. The day will also include pitches from researchers hoping to commercialise their work The event will also include two panel discussions. The first will discuss the power of networking with leading entrepreneurs offering tips on how to get stuck in and improve at a skill that comes naturally to few people. Those sharing their experience will be Sinead Crowther, CEO of Soothing Solutions; Barry Lunn, CEO of Provizio; Ciaran Crean, co-founder of Micksgarage.ie; and Sarah Jane Larkin, director general of the Irish Venture Capital Association. The second panel will focus on what it takes to scale a business, and will hear from Rory OConnor, CEO of Scurri; Orlaith Ryan, CTO of Shorla Oncology; and Bobby Healy, CEO of Manna. Theyll also be joined by Dr Helen McBreen, partner at equity investors Atlantic Bridge, giving the VC perspective on what they look for in a young business. Alongside networking opportunities, the event will also include pitches from researchers hoping to commercialise their work as part of the Big Ideas programme. The day will also celebrate Enterprise Irelands Class of 2023, which includes firms funded by the Pre-Seed Start Fund, and others who received High Potential Start-Up (HPSU) funding. Early-stage entrepreneurs who have completed the third stage of Enterprise Irelands New Frontiers programme will also join in. New Frontiers is often the first stage of support extended to would-be founders. The innovators who come through this programme with their new business up and running can then go on to graduate through further stages of support and funding, such as PSSF and HPSU. Enterprise Ireland is committed to assisting Irish companies to achieve their global ambition and provides a range of comprehensive supports for innovative entrepreneurs at every moment of their start-up journey. Anna-Marie Turley is department manager of entrepreneurship and HPSUs at Enterprise Ireland The founders also say that the company, which is the biggest rival to ChatGPT, now expects to build out the Dublin office substantially after establishing it this year Anthropics Claude AI assistant is now available to Irish and EU users Anthropic, one of the worlds biggest artificial intelligence companies and a rival to OpenAIs ChatGPT, is expecting a more hands on regulatory ride in the EU as it launches its AI services in Ireland and across the 27-country bloc. That has certainly been the style, typically, [in the EU] and I think that we can probably expect that to continue, co-founder Jack Clark told the Irish Independent. I anticipate that we will be in pretty detailed conversations with them later this year after the EUs AI office has staffed up over the summer. The newly-available services, including Claude.ai and a Claude app for iPhones, are now available free and for monthly subscriptions, depending on the level of complexity required. Claude acts in a similar way to ChatGPT, allowing intelligible summaries of notes or long tracts of texts, writing code or performing other complex tasks. Earlier this year, Anthropic set up an office in Dublin where it intends to base some regulatory operations, as well as employing sales and engineering staff. For Anthropics co-founder president, Daniela Amodei, it was a sort-of corporate homecoming. I was lucky enough to get to help build out the Dublin office for Stripe when I worked for Stripe many years ago, she told the Irish Independent. I worked in [the] risk and trust and safety [division] and we ended up having a pretty large operation in Dublin. Wed like to hopefully reconnect with some colleagues there. We're actively recruiting and looking to build that Dublin office out pretty substantially. She said that to date, the Claude AI assistant is generally used by businesses to summarise meeting notes and help analyse other data. We have healthcare companies that are using Claude to do things like help with genetics research to look for cancer markers, she said. We also have financial institutions that are using Claude to help summarise things like SEC reports, as well as technology companies that are building on generative AI to make their tools better. For example, Slack uses Claude, for things like summarising and AI powering. Consumers, she said, are starting to use it to help with tasks ranging in importance. Many use it to summarise or analyse the things they're working on, If you're trying to rent a new flat somewhere, you might want it to look through, for example, your rental agreement to see if there are things amiss or something that you should be consulting with a lawyer on. While the basic version of Claude is free, the Claude Pro service, which grants access to Claude 3 Opus, costs 18 plus Vat per month. A Team plan costs 28 plus Vat per user per month, with a minimum of five seats. Mr Clark said that the company is expecting to work closely alongside the emerging rules from the EUs recently-passed EU Act, which bans certain practices and requires extra caution on others. I've been to Brussels a few times and we'll be carrying on with regular visits to try to understand how they [the EU] are going to approach testing, he said. There is a huge amount of detail to be worked out by the AI office. Mr Clark said that Anthropic trains its models according to the concept of fair use public data. In the US, rival AI assistant ChatGPT is facing multiple law suits from entities including the New York Times for using copyrighted data to train its models on. We subscribe to industry-best practices and we take the view that data at the point of ingestion is fair use, he said. We respect rights holders and we build technologies to ensure that Claude doesn't generate things that could compete with or infringe on rights holders. So could a sentence of an Irish Independent journalist turn up in a Claude response? We're working very hard to ensure that's not the case, even though the statistical likelihood of generating five to 10 words that are similar to something someone else has written is quite high, said Mr Clark. But not if it's a long phrase, or particularly original. Both he and Ms Amodei said that AI systems were currently on an upward curve that was so steep that even near-future applications are hard to predict. Five years ago, AI systems were just barely able to write a coherent paragraph, said Mr Clark. Today, AI systems can write multiple pages of text. Five years ago, AI systems could write new code that didn't work. And now today, they can write extremely complex, entire software programs in one shot. So where will we be five years from now? I think you can assume that systems will be much, much more capable than they are today and able to do kind of long term tasks already complex tasks. And I expect that we will be surprised by how inventive the AI systems will become. They're kind of like useful colleagues and critics today, but they maybe lack the ability to have insights that feel original or are particularly interesting. I expect that in the future, we're going to have interesting ideas that are generated entirely by the AI systems. themselves, to help businesses do interesting stuff. The company says that it will soon release more collaboration features, including citations from user-submitted materials, integrations with data repositories (like codebases or CRMs) and allowing work-based colleagues to jointly tend to AI-generated documents or projects. It also says that it continues address the challenge of underlying bias in the system, citing third party accreditation in its claim to have less bias than previous models. Ms Amodei said that the firm, which has raised 6.7bn in funding over the last year, didnt hesitate when choosing where to locate its first EU office. We like to do the simple thing that just works, she said. Given my experience at Stripe, we knew what it was like to launch an office in Ireland. It was also down to the level of experience of people in sales and engineering there. I think Ireland has been an incredible hub for that type of talent. Lifestyle Waterford Crystal is a subsidiary of Finland-based Fiskars which produces gift and homeware goods. Photo: Jeffrey Greenberg/ via Getty The owner of Waterford Crystal has said it is needs to optimise the glassware brand to future proof its competitiveness. Nathalie Ahlstrom, CEO of Waterford Crystal owner Fiskars, made the comments during a call with investment analysts covering its results for the first quarter of the year. The Finnish group recorded net sales of 283m for the quarter. During the call, Ahlstrom said Iittala and Waterford, two of the groups brands, were those we need to optimise to future-proof the competitiveness of. She added Fiskars was actively managing that process of optimisation. In response to questions from the Sunday Independent, a representative from Fiskars said Waterford continues to be an important part of its portfolio. A representative said Fiskars was taking several actions to improve the profitability of Waterford The House of Waterford and its factory are the heart of Waterfords crystal manufacture. However, the Waterford brands relative performance is currently not where it should be and that is why its called an optimise brand, she said. The representative from Fiskars said the Finnish group was taking several actions to improve the profitability of Waterford. Last week we announced we are investing 15m to modernise our Rogaska glass factory where the volume part of the Waterford products are manufactured. Waterford Crystal is a subsidiary of Finland-based Fiskars which produces gift and homeware goods. Photo: Jeffrey Greenberg/ via Getty She said it was also improving distribution. In Dublin, we recently invested in a full renovation of our store in Brown Thomas, Grafton Street. We are also working on optimising our distribution in our key market, the US. And in 2023, we reopened our fully renovated store in Waterford. Fiskars is a provider of luxury homes, outdoor living and lifestyle products. While large volumes of Waterford products are produced at Fiskars Rogaska factory in Slovenia, some pieces are still made in Waterford city. The company closed its factory in Dungarvan in 2005, resulting in the much-publicised loss of 500 workers. Waterford Crystal was established in 1783. It rose to prominence, but high taxation and export duties resulted in the factory shutting its doors in the mid-1800s. In 1947, it was re-established in the heart of Waterford City and became a subsidiary of Waterford Wedgwood plc in the 1980s. The company closed its factory in Dungarvan in 2005, resulting in the much-publicised loss of 500 workers. It went into receivership and US-based KPS Capital Partners bought the company for 107m in 2009. In 2015, Fiskars agreed to pay about 400m for WWRD (Waterford Wedgwood Royal Doulton) to KPS. Health Minister Donnelly plans to raise legal age for buying cigarettes to 21After decades of progress, we are stagnating It's hoped that the new age limit on buying cigarettes will have a beneficial effect on people's health in Ireland. Photo: PA The legal age for buying cigarettes and other tobacco products is set to rise from 18 to 21 under landmark legislation being introduced by the Health Minister. Stephen Donnelly will this week seek Cabinet approval for the legislation to increase the legal age by three years. While the smoking rate in Ireland has fallen, it has plateaued in recent years and 18pc of Irish adults currently do so 20 years on from the smoking ban. Raising the minimum legal age of the sale of tobacco products is expected to lead to a significant reduction in smoking prevalence and addiction. Today's News in 90 seconds - 13th May 2024 According to the Tobacco 21 report by the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland Policy Group, experimentation with smoking is highest among teenagers between the ages of 15 and 17. Chair of the group, Professor Des Cox, said the age at which people start smoking is rising over time. After decades of progress, tobacco control is stagnating and we are actually seeing an uptick in use among teenage boys, he said. The data also shows that the ages between 18 and 21 are a time of high risk for becoming a smoker. It is hoped that increasing the legal age will limit the social sources of cigarettes for children and young people under 18 as they are less likely to be socialising with older people who can legally buy cigarettes. International modelling suggests that Tobacco 21 policies can reduce smoking rates by up to 25pc among 15- to 17-year-olds and by up to 15pc among 18- to 20-year-olds. The bill will be designed so that it does not affect those who are between the ages of 18 and 21 and who are currently legally entitled to be sold tobacco products. The prohibition on the retail sale of tobacco products will not apply to this cohort for a wash through period. Approximately 4,500 deaths each year in Ireland are caused by tobacco smoking and exposure to second-hand smoke. Smoking and exposure to second-hand smoke also cause a range of preventable illness and disability including 16 types of cancers, respiratory diseases such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). In November 2021, the Irish Heart Foundation found that 73pc of adults and 71pc of those aged between 18 and 24 supported raising the legal age. A ban on the sale of tobacco and vape products from vending machines is also to be enacted shortly, while a second piece of legislation will address the thousands of flavours of vapes and the bright colours of the packaging. A number of countries have already done this in the hope of creating a smoke-free generation. A new law in the UK will each year increase the legal age for the sale of cigarettes by one year. Portugal aims to have a smoke-free generation by 2040 and Canada is hoping to reduce tobacco use to less than 5pc by 2035. Earlier this year, it became the first country to rule that health warnings should be printed on individual cigarettes. New Zealand will ban the sale of vapes, increase fines on retailers that sell to those younger than 18 years old while retailers will be better regulated. A womans body has been found on a beach in Cultra, Co Down. Emergency services are currently in attendance. A PSNI spokesperson said: Police are examining the circumstances surrounding the death of a woman whose body was found on the beach at Seafront Road in Holywood this morning. There are no further details at present. North Down DUP MLA Stephen Dunne said he was shocked to hear of the discovery. Our thoughts and prayers are with this womans family and friends at this most difficult time, he said. The local community is naturally concerned by these events but we must allow the local PSNI to carry out its investigations without unnecessary speculation. "I would encourage anyone that may have information that will assist the police in their investigations to come forward immediately. More details to follow.. A young man who sexually assaulted two young girls when he was aged 12 and 14 years old has been jailed for 18 months. The now 21-year-old Co Cork man pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court to sexual assault against two girls on dates in 2015 and 2017. He has no previous convictions and has not come to any further garda attention. Nicola Hanney on surviving ex-garda Paul Moodys four-year campaign of abuse: The way he saw it, I was pregnant with his child, so I was his property now Enoch Burke sent back to jail after again refusing to abide order to stop attending school he was sacked from Mother of six (36) died from toxic shock syndrome linked to tampon in her body, inquest hears Samantha Comiskey died from an unusual phenomenon that was a completely shocking event for her family, the coroner told the inquest Dublin Coroners Court. Photo: Dara Mac Donaill Sean McCarthaigh Mon 13 May 2024 at 16:52 A young Dublin mother with no history of any health condition died from toxic shock syndrome linked to a tampon in her body, an inquest has heard. Irish Defence Force veterans have embarked on a 170km famine trail to raise funds for homeless defence forces. A group of veterans will walk across Ireland for seven days in aid of The Veterans Charity and the Organisation of National Ex-Service Personnel (ONE). The group will walk the 17km journey from Strokestown in Co Roscommon to Dublin. They started their journey at 8am on Monday morning at the Strokestown Famine Museum. The veterans will complete the 23km of their march today at Cloondara in Co Longford, where they are set to stay overnight. The team is expected to arrive at their final destination at Custom House Quay in Dublin at 3pm on Sunday, May 19. Veterans who embarked on the journey include Jimmy Fullam, Peter Malone, Peter Downes, Ken Cleary, John Rabbitte and Hugh ONeill. After months of preparation, the team is embarking on their week-long march, where they will be supported at various stages by several Defence Forces members, such as US veteran Lt Col Bryan Bean Retd. Jimmy Fullam, one of the veterans who embarked on the long walk, said: "Weve just finished day one. We are all army veterans. The eldest is 76 and the youngest is 58. We all served in Defence Forces at some stage some overseas, some in Lebanon, some in Syria, all over the place. "Were on this walk today to get some houses built for soldiers who, when they leave the army, end up on the streets and whatever else happens to them after that. "Weve one house in Smithfield, weve another one in Cobh, Cork, and weve one in Donegal, and we plan to get another two built, he told the Irish Independent. The Defence Forces themselves have come on board with it. "I just want to thank everybody because the army is one family when it comes to stuff like this, and we couldnt thank them enough. We do have three army personnel presently in the army walking with us. We have Capitan ONeill, whose father is actually walking with us, Hugh ONeill and he's 76 years of age. So its father and son walking. Everybody pulled together, cant thank the army enough for helping us. If this money helps somebody thats job completed. These are soldiers that serve the state. The famine trail dates back to 1847 when 227 families were evicted from their homes on Stokestown Estate in Co Roscommon. Nearly 1,500 men, women and children were forced to take the 170km walk to Dublin to start a new life overseas. They sailed from Dublin to Liverpool where they boarded coffin ships going to Canada, with more than two-thirds dying on that journey. Before the march started, Defence Forces Veteran and CEO of ONE Cormac Kirwan said: We want to say a huge thank you to the eight Irish veterans lacing up their boots this morning and raising money for vital ONE services. "Without the continued support of the public, we would not be able to provide the critical support our veterans so desperately need, he said. ONE is a registered Irish veterans charity established to support ex-service personnel. Its aim is to support the needs of homeless defence forces personnel by providing accommodation in its veteran homes. The charity also offers counselling services and support to veterans through its nationwide network of branches and veterans support centres. Donations can be made online through the charitys website. People are also encouraged to support veterans as they make their way along the route. 161 applicants for just 52 places at one school in crisis that is mirrored nationwide Children denied the right to appropriate education as special schools grapple with overwhelming high demand Hundreds of children are being left without places in special schools which are experiencing the worst demand for places ahead of the next academic year. It means children are being left at risk of reaching secondary school without being able to read or other key skills. There has been a doubling of the number of applications for some special schools in the past year, with many reporting a significant increase in the number of children they have had to turn away. The Childrens Ombudsman has raised concerns about the unacceptable level of stress caused to families when children with additional needs are denied the right to education. Dr Niall Muldoon was responding to a special investigation by the Irish Independent that found some special schools are experiencing a greater demand for places than ever before. He said his office continues to receive complaints from parents who are having problems finding school places for children with special educational needs (SEN). All children with SEN should enjoy their right to education without discrimination and on an equal basis with the rest of their peers, Dr Muldoon said. This is not currently the case, and is putting an unacceptable level of stress and pressure on families and their children. The data on the number of children waiting for school places is also still not available. It is essential that appropriate school places are made available for children with SEN close to their homes, and in order to provide for an inclusive education system, children should be supported to attend mainstream classes wherever possible. We know there is the will in the Department of Education to cater for all children with SEN. However, a tendency to react, rather than to sufficiently plan for places, is hampering progress. It comes against the backdrop of the State pursuing a policy that questions the need for special schools. Proponents of the inclusive model believe it is better for children with special needs to be educated in their community with their peers, but others think this will deny disabled children the right to access an appropriate education. According to the National Council for Special Education, there are more than 100 special schools in Ireland. The Irish Independent contacted each school to ask if they had noticed an increase in applications for places this year. Those that responded provided a snapshot of the wide scale of the problem. St Michaels House Special National School in Skerries, Co Dublin, said it had 36 applications this year, for just six places. The school said this was a significant increase from last year. St Killians school in Mayfield, Co Cork, has spent the last number of years expanding and adding new classes in order to try clear its waiting list, but principal Sue Lenihan said there are always more pupils applying than places available. This year, there are 25 children who meet the criteria to attend the special school but for whom there is no place available. We have no more space, no more classrooms to utilise. We are in the process of a six-class extension, but this will take a few years and until it is complete we cannot accommodate any more pupils, Ms Lenihan said. Catherine McAuley National School in Dublin city warned of the worst levels of oversubscription seen to date. For the 2021/2022 school year, there were 116 applications for 44 places at the school. For this coming academic year, the school has received 161 applications for 52 places. Neasa Sheahan, the schools principal, said she regularly had to give parents advice on how to lobby for access to school places. These are children who get to the age of 11 or 12 without being able to read, children who have spent primary school just surviving. They are being denied their right to an appropriate education as enshrined by the Education Act, Ms Sheahan said. The Catherine McAuley school offers two-year placements for children suffering with dyslexia who are at least eight years old. Ms Sheahan said that without finding a place, children will be left struggling in mainstream schools. She said younger children, who should be starting a special school for the first time in September, will be left in limbo after their parents try and fail to find a place for them. Conan Byrne, the principal at the Red Door School in Monkstown, Dublin, said it had received 31 applications for the next school year with only one place available. So weve turned down 30 applications who met the criteria for our school, he said. The previous year we had 17 applications it varies year on year. But generally, we range from 15-20 applications minimum each year. This year there was a substantial increase. Nano Nagle School in Listowel, Co Kerry, said it has currently enrolled six new students for the coming academic year, but was unfortunately oversubscribed by seven places. We are experiencing a greater demand for places every year, particularly over 12 years, a school spokesperson said. The only school that did not report high demand for places was Holy Family School for the Deaf in Cabra, Dublin. It said it does have capacity to accept new pupils for enrolment, as long as they meet the criteria for enrolment as per our enrolment policy. A number of schools declined to comment publicly, citing a concern about talking to journalists without the permission of the Department of Education or its board of management. However, three more schools said they had seen more demand for school places than ever before, and had to turn down more families for next September than any previous academic year. A spokesperson for the Department of Education said the majority of children with special educational needs are supported to attend mainstream classes with their peers. The spokesperson said the department had been planning for children with more complex needs, and it had sanctioned 1,300 new special classes and established seven new special schools over the last four years. Gardai probe if row at property led to death of father Ion Daghi Gardai believe a father of young children was stabbed to death by a man known to him following a drink-fuelled row in a Kildare home. The victim, named locally as Ion Daghi (39), was discovered with serious injuries after emergency services were alerted to a house in Sallins in the early hours of yesterday morning. The Moldovan national was pronounced dead at the scene in Sallins Park and a criminal investigation was launched. Its understood Mr Daghi had been living in the area for some time. A 23-year-old man, who was known to the victim, was arrested at the scene and last night remained in garda custody. Detectives are probing if the younger man stabbed the victim in the chest after a drink-fuelled row escalated. This morning the house where Mr Daghi lived with his partner and young children remained sealed off by gardai as a forensic examination continued. The house is at the bottom of a cul de sac in the Sallins Park estate on the edge of the Co Kildare town. One local person said that Mr Daghi had been renting the house for a number of years with his partner or wife, and they had two young twins as well as an older girl. "They keep themselves to themselves and we only really know them from seeing them coming and going. I think one of the mothers of the man or woman was also living there to help with the children while the parents work," they explained. It is believed the man arrested in relation to the fatal attack is known to the family. "It's very sad. I didn't hear anything myself but only became aware there was something wrong when I saw the emergency services at the house," one neighbour said. "There was a dark coloured car towed away from the house yesterday also," they added. Several people had been socialising at the residential property that night prior to the fatal assault. Investigators have spoken to those who were present and are following a definite line of inquiry in relation to the attack. One source said: The exact circumstances of what led to this turning into a fatal assault are still under investigation. Detectives at Naas garda station have begun a murder inquiry and are not looking for anyone else in relation to the assault. The suspect is being detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984, and can be held for up to 24 hours. Once his period of detention expires, he must either be charged or released from custody pending a file to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP). The Garda Technical Bureau was yesterday carrying out examinations of the property which remained sealed off. In the afternoon, Mr Daghis body was removed from the scene and brought to the local mortuary where a post-mortem examination was being carried out yesterday evening. A garda spokesman said that the local coroner has also been notified. A senior investigating officer has been appointed to lead the inquiry, and an incident room has been established at Naas garda station, he said. Additionally, a family liaison officer has been assigned to keep the deceaseds family informed of developments. Locals yesterday expressed their shock at waking up to the news that a person had been killed in the quiet housing estate. One local reported hearing people arguing at around 2am but did not realise what had happened until gardai arrived on the scene yesterday morning. Fianna Fail TD James Lawless, who is the chair of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice, said the incident was a tragedy. I understand the parties were known to each other, the victim and the attacker. It seems to have been a social event and obviously it ended in tragedy. I think alcohol was a factor and these things can happen in any corner of Ireland, he said. The Kildare North TD told RTE that what had happened was out of character for the very close-knit community in the area. Gardai have arrested three men following the seizure of a number of offensive weapons in Longford. On Sunday night at approximately 11.45pm, gardai stopped and conducted a search of a car on the Athlone Road, Ballymahon, Longford. Two men, aged in their 20s, and a male juvenile were arrested at the scene and were detained at a Garda Station in Co Longford under Section 4, Criminal Justice Act, 1984 in relation to the seizure. All three males have since been charged and are due to appear before Longford District Court tomorrow morning at 10.30am. Investigations are ongoing. All Ukrainian refugees, regardless of when they came to Ireland, will be given three months notice before their social welfare payments are cut. The Government will today sign off on plans to make social welfare rates for all Ukrainians the same, 38.80 per adult and 29.80 for a child while refugees are in a designated accommodation centre. There are thousands of Ukrainian refugees currently receiving Jobseekers Allowance of 232 per week and this will be reduced to the same rates as new arrivals in 12 weeks. The 12 week lead in time will allow the Minister for Children Roderic OGorman and the Minister for Social Protection Heather Humphreys to give notice to the people affected. Both ministers will review entitlements of International Protection applicants and report back to government within six weeks. The new plans to get a handle on migration will be brought to cabinet by the Taoiseach, Minister OGorman, Minister Humphreys and Minister Helen McEntee. There will also be more targeted workplace inspections in sectors or firms where there is an increased risk or reports of non-compliance with the range of employment and workplace requirements and permit regulations under plans from Enterprise Minister Peter Burke. The list of safe countries is set to be expanded and there will also be a review of visa-free travel for all States from which there are significant numbers of international protection applicants. IPO offices will also have their staffing levels increased and the Government has already promised to put in faster processing of asylum applications, as well as the standing up of more safe and sanitary accommodation facilities on state lands. Meanwhile, migrants arriving in the North to escape the implications of the UK's Rwanda bill may mean more asylum-seekers come into the State, a TD has warned. The UK government is expected to appeal a ruling by a judge that parts of the UKs Rwanda law should not apply in Northern Ireland. The Illegal Migration Act gives powers to the British government to detain and remove asylum seekers it deems to have arrived illegally in the UK and central to the new laws is the scheme to send asylum seekers to Rwanda. A government spokesperson said the judgment will now be studied. The government notes the court ruling in Belfast this afternoon, they said. We will study the judgment carefully, including with regard to the findings on compatibility with the European Convention on Human Rights which is, of course, central to the Good Friday Agreement. The Government will still press on with its plans to pass laws to designate the UK a safe country, it is understood. There is nothing to stop Ireland designating part of the UK, namely Northern Ireland, as a safe third country Immigration solicitor Sinead Marmion told RTE that the judgment was "hugely significant" as it suggested if asylum seekers impacted by the act made their way to the North from the UK, they could not be sent to Rwanda. Her views were also echoed by Fianna Fail justice spokesperson TD Jim OCallaghan, who said asylum seekers in the North can be treated no less preferably than those in the State. He said this may mean that asylum seekers dont have to go to the State to avoid deportation to Rwanda, but this may mean that more migrants go to Northern Ireland from the UK. The arrival of more asylum seekers on the island of Ireland will inevitably mean more will apply for international protection in the Republic, he said. Rishi Sunak's government wants to send illegal immigrants to Rwanda. Photo: Reuters The judgment today underlines the importance of the Oireachtas promptly enacting legislation to make the UK a safe third country again. Even if there were doubts about designating all of the UK as a safe third country because of the Rwandan policy, there is nothing to stop Ireland designating part of the UK, namely Northern Ireland, as a safe third country to where asylum seekers could be returned. He said the ruling also shows that supports for asylum seekers in Ireland must be identical to the ones in the North. Otherwise all applicants will apply for international protection in the more generous location, he said. Aontu TD Peadar Toibin also said that more people will "cross the Border and seek asylum in the south". To ignore what the courts have said would not be merely a case of sleepwalking into the creation of immigration border in the Irish Sea but rather embarking on such a path with eyes wide open "The Irish Government must now engage with the British government to ascertain how that will be managed. The loud hailer diplomacy that happened before the English local elections will not cut it," he said. The DUPs Gavin Robinson warned the UK government that it must not facilitate the creation of an "immigration border" in the Irish Sea, with different rules applying in Northern Ireland to the rest of the UK. Mr Robinson insisted that his party had repeatedly warned the UK government that its immigrations laws were incompatible with post-Brexit arrangements contained in the Northern Ireland Protocol/Windsor Framework. "Whilst today's judgment does not come as a surprise, it does blow the government's irrational claims that the Rwanda scheme could extend equally to Northern Ireland completely out of the water," he said. Taoiseach Simon Harris wants a conversation on the uniformity of supports offered. Photo: Eamonn Farrell "For ministers to ignore what the courts have said would not be merely a case of sleepwalking into the creation of immigration border in the Irish Sea but rather embarking on such a path with eyes wide open. "It is imperative that immigration policy applies equally across every part of the United Kingdom. Delivering his court judgment yesterday, Mr Justice Humphreys ruled that a several sections of the Illegal Migration Act would lead to a diminution of the rights of asylum seekers residing in Northern Ireland. Public Expenditure Minister Paschal Donohoe has said the review set to take place into welfare supports for asylum-seekers will be completed in weeks. The comments came after Taoiseach Simon Harris wrote in the Sunday Independent about a review he has ordered into all state supports for refugees and asylum-seekers to ensure Ireland has a firmer system and ensures we are not out of kilter with other EU countries. Mr Donohoe said it was important that Ireland continued to treat those who came to Ireland with compassion but also that the system in place was making good use of taxpayers money. The Taoiseach has asked for this work to be done quickly. We want to ensure that we are treating people compassionately and fairly as they come into our country seeking refuge, Mr Donohoe said. But we also want to ensure that we are acting in a way that is in line with similar offers and similar decisions that are made across Europe. The review, which Mr Donohoe said is currently under way, will be done within weeks, after which the Government plans to act quickly, he said. The number of people coming to Ireland has increased very considerably over the last number of months and this is happening in other countries as well, but this work will be done in weeks and I know the Government will act quickly when it is done, Mr Donohoe said. The minister added that the scale of the situation in relation to tented accommodation has become so big in parts of Dublin that it posed a health and security risk for those in the tents and has also created challenges for the city. However, Mr Donohoe said NGOs providing those tents were trying to do the right thing. Were also trying to act in a humane way, he said. The last thing we want to see happening, the last situation any of us want to be confronted by is seeing people who have come to Ireland seeking refuge with no shelter at all. And in the aim to try and avoid that happening, tents have been provided by organisations who are looking to do the right thing. Meanwhile, the Government has been accused of increasing tensions within society by its operations to clear tent settlements. The question of what message the moves sent to the wider population about migrants, refugees and asylum-seekers was raised by Social Democrats TD Jennifer Whitmore. Commenting after the Mount Street and Grand Canal clearances in successive weeks and amid loaded commentary about whack-a-mole new encampments Ms Whitmore said: The Government has clearly lost control of this situation. Recent efforts at talking and acting tough on the issue of tents have only succeeded in increasing tensions. Moving homeless asylum-seekers from street to street and erecting barriers is not a plan. Worse, this chaotic approach is putting vulnerable asylum-seekers at real risk. She questioned what the Governments actual plan was, since it is not possible for the Government to fence off the entire city. Ms Whitmore, a Wicklow constituency colleague of the Taoiseach, added: Without a sustainable solution, asylum-seekers, communities, businesses and the city in general will continue to be failed. Its time for Government to get its act together. Pleasure Boys, Frostbit Boy and Free Presbyterians: A night to remember as strip group returns After the controversy of The Devenish show in February, Niamh Campbell went to Banbridge to see what kind of night the stripper group had in store Reporter Niamh Campbell and (far left) Frostbit Boy Ruairi McSorley with several of Pleasure Boys Niamh Campbell Mon 13 May 2024 at 08:13 The UK Pleasure Boys, Frostbit Boy and two Free Presbyterian ministers walk into a bar No, thats not the start of a joke, its how this reporters Saturday night panned out. Over 700 people flock to watch strip show which caused Devenish controversy, while a group of local ministers condemn the performance (left to right) Big Ben of the UK Pleasure Boys, Frostbit Boy Ruairi McSorley and Big Nate and Dom O'Nate from the dance troupe Niall Carson, Lewis Latimer, Laura Sullivan and Natalie Ryans waiting to go into the show There was a picket by around two dozen members of Moneyslane Free Presbyterian Church at The Bannville Hotel in Banbridge More than 700 people defied a picket by around two dozen members of Moneyslane Free Presbyterian Church at The Bannville Hotel in Banbridge for the return of the Magic Mike-style dance troupe. The controversy surrounding the erotic dance group after viral videos of their performance at the Devenish in west Belfast in February didnt seemed to deter people from all over Northern Ireland coming to see the strip show. Many of those who turned up on Saturday night said they only became aware of the Pleasure Boys because of the viral videos from The Devenish which showed a number of women mimicking sexual acts with the nude erotic dancers on stage. Police and council officials launched separate investigations. The PSNI later closed their case but a Belfast City Council inquiry is ongoing. Lewis Latimer (36) from Ballyclare, was one of the first on the scene at The Bannville before doors officially opened. He said: Ive been to Thailand, these shows are like nothing compared to everything over there, so calm down everyone! His friend, Niall Carson (34) even has a favourite Pleasure Boy - Jay - and he joked that hes hoping to find Mr Right now that the performers are back in town. Either that or Im hoping theyll pick me from the crowd and ask me to join the group, he said. I think people overreacted [to The Devenish show]. Id say all their shows are like that, but over here its so backwards and its only because those videos got out. Tonight could be the same [as The Devenish] but people wont know because theres no recording allowed. I don't think its a big deal. Niall Carson, Lewis Latimer, Laura Sullivan and Natalie Ryans waiting to go into the show When asked if they would feel embarrassed to be photographed or filmed at the show, Lewis stated: No way - my grannys not alive anymore, so I dont care who knows Im here! Natalie Ryans (24) said she had been to Magic Mike shows in England before so wanted to check out the Pleasure Boys performance. "I want to see what all the attention on this was about. It will be a different type of night out. Big Nate, one of the Pleasure Boys involved in the controversy the last time they were in Northern Ireland with their XXL tour, said that he had a really good experience the last time, barring everything that was said about it. He added: Overall, it was a positive experience, hence the reason we came back. I hope everyone enjoys it, and that the roof lifts and theres a scream and a half. Big Nate also noted that the clips of their Belfast appearance - which have been viewed and shared online hundreds of thousands of times - have changed many of the Pleasure Boys lives completely. From the second we got off the plane in Northern Ireland here - before we even got on the plane, in Newcastle Airport - people noticed us and then knew that we were coming here, and were taking pictures, he revealed. Its literally like being a celebrity. Its been the maddest 24 hours, and Im not used to it. Im a normal guy who works Monday to Friday otherwise, so for people to come up to us and all know who we are, its just crazy. They have even grabbed the attention of Ruairi McSorley - better known as Frostbit Boy - who has launched his own podcast, with three of the Pleasure Boys becoming his first guests. Ruairi himself found fame thanks to a viral video of him as a schoolboy on UTV news in 2015 during a cold snap when he said you wouldnt be long gettin frostbit. However, not everyone was pleased with the strippers Co Down comeback. The Moneyslane Free Presbyterian Church protest came after a group of local Free Presbyterian ministers deemed Saturday nights performance a filthy display of perversion. In an open letter to The Bannville, Rev. Daniel Henderson, Rev. Gregory McCammon, Rev. David Smith and Rev. John Gray said they felt it was necessary to expose such wickedness and challenge those who would publicise it. The conduct of such entertainers is sinful in the sight of Almighty God and whatever the prevailing opinion may be to the attendees of these iniquitous and immoral performances, there is ultimately only one opinion that matters - and that is the opinion of Almighty God whom we must all stand before and give account, it read. Saturday nights show involved extra security personnel, no video recordings of any kind, and the dancers had agreed not to go fully nude. Managing director of The Pleasure Boys, John Woodward, said that while the show is still a full monty act in the rest of the UK, due to legal barriers in Northern Ireland, they have had to respect local regulations. But, we do get right down and close to the knuckle, John added. The Pleasure Boys will also be back again in Co Tyrone next month, with the Silverbirch Hotel in Omagh advertising a show for June 22. Taoiseach Simon Harris has said Ireland needs a common sense approach in relation to migration. He added that Irish people are compassionate and want to help people, however the system needs to be fair. Mr Harris also said that Ireland needs to move from the emergency response to a much more sustainable model. While speaking on Newstalks Pat Kenny Show, Mr Harris said: "What we're going to do is make sure that never again is there a situation where official Ireland can almost turn a blind eye to the development over many months of an encampment. "Which not only was bad from a law-abiding point of view, it was also extraordinarily bad from a public health point of view. When I became Taoiseach, it became very apparent to me very quickly that the approach from many agencies was far too siloed, he added. He added that Irish people are full of compassion and common sense. What they want to see when it comes to migration policy, is compassion and common sense aligned, and they want us to be honest with people coming to this country about what we can and can't do. We can absolutely provide shelter, but not necessarily housing, for people who come here, we can absolutely use state land and provide people with access to sanitation, and help people who are fleeing persecution, he said. Today's News in 90 seconds - 13th May 2024 Mr Harris added the discussion about migration should be honest and truthful, adding Ireland benefits from migration. He also said Ireland aims to have a sustainable migration system, which requires faster processing times. As a result of this, we have seen countries that used to be amongst the highest fall in terms of the number of people coming, he said, providing Georgia as an example, and adding that Nigeria has just been added to the fast-processing system. Taoiseach Harris added Ireland needs to look at various aspects of migration policy, such as faster processing time, effective deportations, and integrating people who come to the country. Every discussion about migration can't just be about accommodation, we have obligations around accommodation, we need to do better. Faster processing times are the way because what you want to do here is you want to help people. "We want to welcome people to our country, the people who have a right to be here. "But the people who don't have a right to be here, they need to be asked and ensured that they leave much more quickly. And that's what faster processing gives you, he said. The staff working on processing in the International Protection Office is set to increase from 200 to 485 this year, he said. We're seeing an initial yes or no within 12 weeks now for all the countries in relation to the safe country list that is a turnaround from months and years to weeks. So we are making real progress in relation to this. Our migration policy is going to be grounded in common sense. We are a compassionate country, we want to help people. But we also want to know that the system is fair, he said. Taoiseach also said smoking is what the Government wants to make progress on, as the age limit for buying cigarettes is set to increase to 21. "We've made a lot of progress as a country when it comes to reducing our smoking rates but we have somewhat seen that progress stalled in recent years, he said. Mr Harris added hes very worried about vaping, which is a revenge of the tobacco industry where they're constantly looking to morph into new areas. When speaking about Irelands plans to recognise the state of Palestine along with several other countries, Mr Harris said: The way you bring stability and peace to the Middle East is a two-state solution. This is actually about our country believing in the rule of international law and our country believing in human rights. A two-state solution has to be the endpoint here and by recognising two states, you helped bring that about, I believe, he said. An annual global survey has found that Ireland fell from 20th place in 2020 to 24th place in 2022 in rankings measuring how 143 nations perform in key areas of womens health and well-being. Taiwan topped the table while Afghanistan came bottom of the Hologic Global Womens Health Index. The report on 79,000 women scored countries on preventive care, emotional health, basic needs, individual health and opinions of health and safety from 2020 to 2022. On preventive care, Ireland ranked 63rd on the table of 143 countries. Only 44pc of the Irish women surveyed said they were screened for blood pressure in 2022, 17pc were screened for cancer, 17pc were screened for diabetes and 7pc were tested for STDs and STIs. In contrast, in Puerto Rico, which topped the table in preventive care, 70pc of women were screened for high blood pressure, 46pc for cancer and 57pc for diabetes while 30pc were tested for STDs and STIs. Hologic CEO Stephen P MacMillan said the annual survey measured the state of health for 97pc of the worlds women and girls aged 15 and older. The Hologic Global Womens Health Index serves as an enduring benchmark to measure and monitor changes in the behaviours and attitudes that influence womens access to quality healthcare in every corner of the world, he said. Regrettably, this years findings reveal that womens global health has stagnated, especially in critical dimensions like preventive care and basic needs, two factors that have a major impact on a womans average life expectancy at birth. Last year, more than one billion women never visited a healthcare professional. The report stressed the importance of preventive care to help people avoid illnesses and detect health problems early. The right test at the right time helps make it possible for women to be treated and live healthier and potentially longer lives, Mr MacMillan said. Most women say they havent been tested for cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure or an STD/STI in the past 12 months, meaning that billions of women went untested for potentially life-threatening conditions for the third consecutive year. Regarding emotional health, Irish women were placed 37th out of 143 countries, with Vietnam in first place and Kazakhstan in second place. For Irish women, feelings of worry, stress and anger had all fallen although feelings of sadness had slightly increased since 2020, according to the report. When asked about the emotions they experienced the previous day, 34pc of Irish women surveyed said they experienced worry, 24pc felt sadness, 37pc experienced stress and 13pc experienced anger. The study found Irish women felt safer walking at night in the area where they lives with 75pc feeling secure in 2022 compared to 67pc in 2020. Satisfaction with pregnancy care in their area remained steady at 82pc to 85pc across the three years. On basic needs, Ireland was placed at No 18 on the list of countries with only 8pc saying they didnt have enough money for food and 10pc saying they couldnt afford shelter. Ireland got its highest score on the metric of individual health with 18pc of women saying they had health problems and 23pc of women saying they had experienced physical pain the previous day. The index is compiled through interviews with about 500 women in each country by the global analytics firm Gallup and Hologic, a medical technology firm primarily focused on womens health. Overall, women in Ireland had a much higher rate of emotional well-being than the global average with a higher score than the UK or the US but lower than Japan and South Korea. The LGBTQ+ guide to world travel where to go and where to definitely avoid Stefan Arestis and Sebastien Chaneac have been travelling the world since 2014, but its not always been easy - or safe. Here are their favourite LGBTQ+ friendly spots and the places they would never visit again Stefan and Sebastien at the Tigers Nest Monastery in Bhutan. Photo: Nomadic Boys Stefan Arestis and Sebastien Chaneac Evening Standard Thu 20 Jun 2024 at 08:52 We met in 2009 at the G-A-Y bar in London. Stefan is originally Greek Cypriot and Sebastien is from Lyon, France and several years into our relationship we realised we wanted a complete life change and had a craving to see more of the world together. We began planning and saving, then in 2014 we quit our lives and jobs for a big trip around Asia. You walk into your local public office, hopeful and determined to conduct your business as Gaeilge. But instead of being greeted with a warm Dia dhuit, youre met with an apologetic shrug. This is meant to be our official language and yet here we are, being met with blank stares when we try to speak it. New laws are being prepared to curb the sale of vapes. Photo posed The designers of bicycle sheds never intended for them to become de facto smoking shelters. However, for generations, this was invariably what happened in schools up and down the country. Despite the sale of cigarettes being restricted to adults, under-18s could always find a way of getting them. In more recent times, more stringent enforcement cut down on the supply. The effects of smoking are beyond debate. Those who become addicted young, when their bodies are developing, can experience lifelong illnesses. Data shows about 4,500 deaths each year can be put down to smoking or exposure to second-hand smoke. Smoking can cause an enormous range of preventable illness and disability, including 16 types of cancer. It can lead to respiratory diseases such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and cardiovascular diseases including coronary heart disease, peripheral arterial disease, aneurysms and strokes. Rheumatoid arthritis can be brought on by smoking, as can diabetes and dementia. Its a real death list. Then the scourge of vaping arrived on the scene and with it the unknown impact of inhaling such a concoction of chemicals. Among the scientific and medical communities, there are concerns of the long-term impact. Policy makers have been slow to respond. A ban on selling vapes to children was only enacted last year. From September, there will be curbs on the advertising of vapes on public transport and near schools. There will also be a ban on the sale of vapes at events attended by children. A ban on the sale of tobacco and vape products from vending machines is also to be enacted shortly. A new licensing regime will mean all shops selling these products have to pay an annual licence fee. New laws are being prepared to curb the sale of vapes. The legislation is supposed to address issues such as the hundreds of flavours available and brightly coloured packaging. While smoking has been cracked down on repeatedly, the companies behind vapes seem to be getting away with a lot of the old tricks of the tobacco trade. Putting up hurdles to access does work to a degree. There is merit in legislation, to be approved by Government this week, that will increase the minimum legal age of tobacco purchase to 21. There will be accusations of a nanny state being in operation. Reasonable arguments can be put forward that once you hit adult age, the decisions you take on your health and wellbeing are your own choice. Likewise, the State is obliged to take measures that prevent people from harming themselves. But equally, there are legitimate concerns about the rate of smoking going up in recent years. The legislation wont stop smokers aged 18 to 21 from buying cigarettes as it will only be introduced gradually. Lifting the minimum age will place an obstacle in the way of younger smokers and also limit their interaction with peers who are smoking, up to a point. It might not go far enough, but it has merit. Over 80 festival events will take place at at several locations around Cork city and county Niamh Glavin, Izzy Prendergast and Oliver Prendergast launching this years Cork Harbour Festival, which runs from 1-10 June with over 80 events in a dozen different locations. Full details at corkharbourfestival.com. Photo: Clare Keogh Cork Harbour Festival will see events hosted in a dozen locations across the county. Niamh Glavin, Izzy Prendergast and Oliver Prendergast launching this years Cork Harbour Festival, which runs from June 1 - 10 with over 80 events in a dozen different locations. Full details at corkharbourfestival.com. Photo: Clare Keogh A festival which aims to highlight Corks greatest natural amenities will take place in the Rebel County across 10 days next month. Cork Harbour Festival will run from June 1 to June 10 and as part of it, over 80 events will take place at a dozen locations to highlight the best attractions and activities in Cork Harbour, the River Lee and the countys coastline. Featuring activities that will explore maritime history, cultural experiences and heritage sites, the festival promises something for people of all ages and abilities, including water sports, talks, walks, storytelling, exhibitions, orienteering, family activities, theatre experiences, poetry and heritage events. The Ocean to City - An Ras Mor, a 28km rowing race through the harbour from Crosshaven to Cork City that will have hundreds of participants from all over the world, will take place on Saturday June 8 in the festivals flagship event. Cork Harbour Festival. The all-inclusive rowing and paddling event will welcome some 200 boats, featuring everything from traditional wooden working boats, currachs, skiffs, gigs and longboats to contemporary ocean racing shells, kayaks, canoes and even stand-up paddle boards. Festival Manager, Geri Murphy, said that Meitheal Mara, a community boatyard in Cork City, is delighted to bring another amazing fun-filled programme of events for this year's Cork Harbour Festival, now in its 10th year. With over 50 Event Partners in Cork City and County, that never fail to deliver an impressive array of over 80 interactive, educational and enjoyable events and activities on both land and water. We can't wait to welcome thousands of visitors from local, national and international destinations to come and delve into all the Maritime fun that this Festival has to offer, and explore the awe and beauty of Cork this June. Bain taitneamh as! Geri said. Lord Mayor of Cork City, Councillor Kieran McCarthy, said that Cork City Council are delighted to be a major sponsor of the festival. This festival combines creativity, heritage and tradition with the promotion of physical activity and a healthy lifestyle. Festivals like this are a key attraction for citizens to engage with a family friendly event and to discover their city as well as for tourists visiting and discovering our city. To everyone with an interest in all things riverine and maritime, go and engage whether as a participant or a spectator with the amazing Cork Harbour Festival, Mayor McCarthy said. Niamh Glavin, Izzy Prendergast and Oliver Prendergast launching this years Cork Harbour Festival, which runs from 1-10 June with over 80 events in a dozen different locations. Full details at corkharbourfestival.com. Photo: Clare Keogh Welcoming the launch of the festival, Mayor of the County of Cork, Cllr. Frank O'Flynn, said that he is thrilled that Cork County Council is a sponsor of the 2024 celebration. It is a festival which celebrates our rich maritime heritage, the picturesque Cork Harbour and City, and offers unforgettable experiences for all who attend and are involved. The harbour is an area of exceptional beauty and Failte Ireland in partnership with Cork City and County Councils, and the Port of Cork, aim to position Cork Harbour as a must-visit destination within Irelands Ancient East, Mayor OFlynn said. As the largest natural harbour in the northern hemisphere we need to ensure that this area becomes a world class visitor destination resulting in economic benefits to Cork Harbour and the wider East Cork area. Those interested in attending the festival can see its full programme of events at corkharbourfestival.com. Registration to take part in Ocean to City An Ras Mor closes May 24 for rowers and May 31 for paddlers: oceantocity.com. The redevelopment of Colaiste Iosagain is the Udaras na Gaeltachta flagship project in the Muscrai Gaeltacht. Udaras na Gaeltachta is to receive almost 3.3m in grant aid towards the cost of refurbishing and repurposing the former boarding school Colaiste Iosagain in Baile Bhuirne. The announcement by the Minister for Rural and Community Development Heather Humphreys has been welcomed by Fine Gael TD for Cork North West Michael Creed. Im delighted that funding has been allocated. Udaras na Gaeltachta is to receive almost 3.3m in grant aid towards the cost of refurbishing and repurposing the former boarding school Colaiste Iosagain in Baile Bhuirne, he said. Colaiste Iosagain was built by the De la Salle Order in 1940, originally as a preparatory college for primary school teachers. The building was in use as a secondary school until 1989. Udaras na Gaeltachta purchased the building in 1998. This is a really important project for the Muscrai region and for all of County Cork, said Deputy Creed. The long-disused building will be transformed into a Regional Development Centre, providing facilities for enterprise development, training and research. This will support economic development and facilitate the creation of jobs in the region. The project has an estimated total cost of almost 9m, but now over a third of that money has been provided by the Department of Rural and Community Development under the Rural Regeneration Programme. I have worked hard at Government level to emphasise the importance of this project and to press for funding to be provided. I wish Udaras na Gaeltachta every success with the work ahead, he added. A Regional Development Centre is to be developed in the former boarding school building. This will include 1720 square metres (18,500 square feet) of flexible entrepreneurial space. The Udaras na Gaeltachta regional office will be located there, along with customised educational and business development support services. The goal is to create 200 jobs at this centre in years to come. All facilities in the centre will be connected to high speed internet via fibreoptic cabling, as part of Gteic, the Gaeltacht digital network. Dublin players are being urged to check their Lotto tickets. Pic: Stock image A Dublin-based Lotto player, who won more than 3.7m in Saturday nights draw, is yet to come forward to claim their prize. While the location of the winning ticket owner has not yet been announced, all lottery players in Dublin are being urged to check their numbers. The lucky winner scooped a total of 3,796,062 in the main Lotto draw on Saturday, May 11. The winning numbers were: 08, 16, 24, 27, 28, 42, and the bonus was 30. Today's News in 90 seconds - 13th May 2024 The lucky winner is advised by the National Lottery to sign the winning ticket, keep it in a safe place, and call the National Lottery prize claims team on 1800 222 666 or email claims@lottery.ie. Saturday nights Lotto draw saw more than 81,000 players win prizes between the Lotto and Lotto Plus games. National Lottery spokesperson Sarah Orr has appealed to all Dublin players to check their tickets very carefully today. While the entire country was enjoying our sunniest Saturday of the year so far, one Lotto player was also becoming the latest jackpot winner after scooping the massive 3,796,062 on offer in the weekend draw, she said. So far this year, we have seen the Lotto jackpot won by players in Dublin, Louth and Limerick, with the latest winner now taking the title of the 4th Lotto jackpot winner of 2024. We will be revealing the store location where the ticket was purchased on Tuesday. In the meantime, we are appealing to all of our players who may have purchased their tickets in Dublin to carefully check their tickets as soon as possible, as one player now has a ticket worth a life-changing amount. An Ukrainian man who was stopped at a garda checkpoint in Kerry has been convicted of driving with excess alcohol. Zaza Hohsadze with an address at Great Western, Frenchville Lane, Galway, was before Killarney District Court on the charge. The court heard he was pleading guilty. In evidence the court was told that Mr Hohsadze was stopped at a mandatory checkpoint in Shronedarragh, Barraduff on February 4, 2023 at around 11.20pm. He failed the roadside breath test and was arrested. A subsequent breath sample at the station gave a reading of 51mgs of alcohol per 100mls breath. The court heard he has no previous convictions. His solicitor Padraig O'Connell said his client had left the Ukraine after Russia attacked. He said he has a disability and mental health issues. Judge Stephanie Coggin convicted and fined him 200 and disqualified him from driving for two years. The celestial light show...as colours collide, cloud and skies cleared to make way for a once in a lifetime aurora borealis - the northern lights, which lit up the night sky at Ross Castle, Killarney National Park. Photo by Valerie O'Sullivan. The celestial light show...as colours collide, cloud and skies cleared to make way for a once in a lifetime aurora borealis - the northern lights, which lit up the night sky at Ross Castle, Killarney National Park. Photo by Valerie O'Sullivan. The Northern Lights over part of the newly designated Pairc Naisiunta na Mara, and Tralee Bay as seen from the top of the Conor Pass around 2am on Saturday morning. Photo by Declan Malone. The Northern Lights over Tralee Bay as seen from the top of the Conor Pass around 2am on Saturday morning. To the naked eye there was a faint glow in the sky but a camera reveals the full spectrum of colours produced by the solar storm. Photo by Declan Malone. The Northern Lights over Tralee Bay as seen from the top of the Conor Pass around 2am on Saturday morning. To the naked eye there was a faint glow in the sky but a camera reveals the full spectrum of colours produced by the solar storm. Photo by Declan Malone. A sight to behold: the Northern Lights were absolutely beautiful over Waterville on Saturday night. Photo by Jacinta O'Shea. Stunning photos of the Northern Lights over Kerry on Saturday night. Photo by Dylan Clifford Photography. Stunning photos of the Northern Lights over Kerry on Saturday night. Photo by Dylan Clifford Photography. Aurora Borealis? At this time of year? At this time of day? In this part of the world? Localised entirely over Kerry? Yes...and judging by social media over the weekend, almost everyone in the county was out to witness the incredible natural phenomena's appearance over Kerry on Saturday night. The Northern Lights were visible across Kerry, and indeed almost all of Ireland as a result of after the most powerful solar storm in more than two decades hitting the the Earth. In what is a display that is usually reserved for Iceland, Greenland and northern Scandinavia, the Kerry skies were lit up with an awe-inspiring blend of pink, green and blue as the aurora borealis made for a simply unforgettable night for all who witnessed it. The Kerry Astronomy Club, on their social media pages, described Saturday nights sighting as the best display of aurora that they had ever seen from Ireland, adding that they were simply blown away by the display. An artists impression of the new Carnegie building which is set to be given a face-lift as part of a regeneration project for the town. The town of Cahersiveen is set to get a face-lift with the news that it is set to receive almost 6.5m in funding for a major project that will change the landscape of the town. Planning was granted earlier this year to develop what is to be known as the Daniel O'Connell Quarter and now that funding has been announced it is hoped that construction will begin on the redevelopment project for the South Kerry town by the end of the year. This will see the overall public realm, on the Killorglin side of the town, redeveloped including the Fair Field and the Waterfront. This first phase focuses the enhancement of the Fair Green Environs and introduction of a one-way system between the Library and The Market House allowing for greater connectivity, a proposed new development/amenity site at the waterfront and a proposed new boardwalk. As part of this the Carnegie building, the former library, is set to upgraded and extended and this took has been granted planning. Today, Monday, April 13 he town received the good news that they have received funding to develop this project with 6.46 million allocated to regenerate its town centre and support its position as a key tourism destination on the Wild Atlantic Way. Kerry County Council must provide a percentage of funding towards the project which will bring the total funding to 8m. This comes from the coffers of the property tax in the county. 2m was also granted to the regeneration project in 2021 which was used for design and property purchases to allow the project to move forward. This weeks funding will allow improvements on the Fair Green area progress as well as the boardwalk development which is set to be a key feature for the town. It will also ensure progress on the Carnegie building. Meanwhile, another South Kerry town has also received good news as Killorglin is getting a grant of 640,000 to repurpose a vacant courthouse as a heritage, cultural performance and events space. The project aims to revitalise the town centre, address dereliction and provide a centre hub for events and festivals. Planning has been granted for this too. Minister for Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphreys TD, announced record funding of 164 million for 30 landmark regeneration projects across the country. The funding is from the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund, which has now invested over 577 million in funding for projects in rural Ireland. Minister Norma Foley welcomed the funding and said it will vital to develop such projects to build thriving towns. Revitalising our town centres is a key part of stimulating the rural economy. I welcome the confirmation of this investment of over 7 million in Cahersiveen and Killorglin by my cabinet colleague, Minister Heather Humphreys. It will both enrich and enhance the communities of Cahersiveen and Killorglin, creating vibrant, modern centres where families and businesses can thrive for years to come. Cllr Norma Moriarty (FF) has also welcomed the funding. She said it will help progress a project that is going to benefit the town and its environs. "It help make us Greenway ready and help Cahersiveen realise its potential as a destination town in its own right. Cllr Michael Cahill (FF) has also welcomed the funding and said this is fantastic news for the town preparing it for the a bright future. Flowers left near the scene at the Grand Canal in Co Kildare A teenage boy who died on Saturday after getting into difficulty while swimming in the Grand Canal in Co Kildare has been named locally as Max OConnor. Max (15), from the village of Newcastle, in south-west Dublin, has been described as a well-liked and popular boy who had a lot of friends in his home area. Max is survived by his parents Brian and Dolores, siblings Lee, Emma, Ava, Milly, Libby, Mark and Dwayne, and niece Esme and nephew Luan. The funeral will take place at 11am on Tuesday, May 21, in the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Clondalkin Village. It will be followed by burial in Newlands Cross Cemetery. Cllr Trevor Gilligan told the Irish Independent that the tight-knit community of Newcastle is devastated and shocked by the tragedy. "My thoughts and prayers are with his family at this terribly sad time He had his whole life ahead of him, Cllr Gilligan said. He added that Maxs group of friends are terribly saddened and upset at the tragic news of his death. It is understood that he was attending Colaiste Chilliain secondary school in Clondalkin. At approximately 5.40pm on Saturday May 11, gardai became aware of a person who had gotten into difficulty in the water in the Grand Canal between Ardclough and Celbridge in Co Kildare. Follow Independent Kildare on Facebook A number of emergency services attended the scene and the body of the 15-year-old boy was recovered from the water a short time later. The local coroner had been notified, and arrangements were being made for a post-mortem examination. Today's News in 90 seconds - 13th May 2024 The Irish Independent understands that no foul play is currently suspected and the incident appears to have been an accident. Minister for Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphreys TD, has announced funding of 8,474,869 for Enniscrone under the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF). The project will regenerate key seafront areas in Enniscrone. It includes the redevelopment of the historic Cliff Bath House, upgrading of the existing Cliff Walk and replacement of a derelict building to provide a new Community Pavilion. The project will strengthen the town centres tourism and public amenity offering. The total cost of the Enniscrone Cliff Bath House. Community Pavillion and Promenade Project is 9,416,521 and the plan was nominated by Sligo Co unty Council for funding. The RRDF is a key part Our Rural Future, the Governments five-year policy designed to reinvigorate Rural Ireland. The Fund itself is designed to combat dereliction, increase the vibrancy of town centres and regenerate old buildings so that they have a new purpose. Deputy Frank Feighan has warmly welcomed the announcement as a real game changer for Enniscrone. The project will generate key seafront areas in Enniscrone. It includes the re-development of the historic Cliff Bath House, upgrading the existing Cliff Walk and the replacing of a derelict building to provide a new Community Pavillion. I firmly believe that this project will strengthen the town centres tourism and public amenity offering. I wish to again compliment Sligo Co Council for their work on this project and its preparation in consultation with local groups and I wish to acknowledge the input of local Fine Gael election candidate, Patrick Cleary who took the opportunity to show Minister Humphreys and I the project some weeks ago when the Minister was visiting Kilglass. In conclusion, I wish to thank sincerely Minister Heather Humphreys for her commitment to the RRDF funding from her department and to the generous allocation for my constituency of Sligo Leitrim, said Deputy Feighan. The Brazilian Community in Sligo have organised fundraisers to help those affected by recent floods in Southern Brazil that has affected millions of people Brazilians living in Sligo are organising raffles, fundraisers and collecting donations of clothes and sanitary items to send back to the people displaced from their homes due to the devastating floods. Olivia Rocha da Rocha Brito, a third-year student at Mercy College, told the Sligo Champion that many people in the community have their family or friends displaced or rehomed because of the floods. I am myself from Rio Grande do Sul, the region which is worst affected by the floods. My extended family are there, and they have been taken to safe shelters, but they still need support to fulfill the basic necessities. There is no safe drinking water available in the area, which means they have to buy water to drink, they need clothes and other necessities like sanitary items. So, we are trying to collect money along with clothes and sanitary supplies. We have already collected 1000 through a raffle and planning a Bake Sale at Mercy college. Clothes and other supplies are being collected at a drop-off point every evening between 6pm to 8pm. We are hoping to raise a few thousand euros through our fundraisers. The whole collection will be sent off to Brazil on Friday 17th May, through our community in Dublin. Days of heavy rain resulted into massive flooding and landslides in Brazils southernmost state, that killed around 100 people, according to the local authorities. Rio Grande do Suls 497 municipalities were affected by the flood, which left over 150,000 people displaced and over 130 people still missing. Olivia added: Only 100 people are being reported dead, but more than a thousand people are missing. Local people are afraid that the flood water might be infected with leptospirosis and hence they are scared of another disease spread due to the floods. Leptospirosis is traditionally associated with heavy rainfall and flooding events in Brazil and worldwide. It spreads from animals to humans, and the most common source of infection is contact with infected animals urine or contaminated water/soil The situationis dire and thousands of people in Brazil need help and support. Anyone interested in donating clothes or sanitary supplies can drop them off at 1, Bridge Street, Sligo (F91A252), every evening between 6pm to 8pm. Online donations can be made at https://brazilfoundation.org/en/donate-now-funds/ An election candidate in County Leitrim who has previous motoring and tax returns convictions has apologised to the public and promises my past will not become my future. Fine Gael local election candidate in Manorhamilton, Kevin Comiskey, has opened up about his lengthy battles with addiction and depression. It comes following an article in The Ditch publication which reported Comiskeys 15 past convictions, including offences of failing to make tax returns, drink driving and the use of green diesel. Since the publication of the article, Mr Comiskey has publicly apologised for his actions on local radio station Ocean FM and has issued a statement via his Facebook page. In his statement on Facebook he said he has made several mistakes and did things that he is not proud of in the past. "I thought this chapter in my life was closed, and I would like to apologise to my family, friends and supporters for the hurt caused over that time as well as that caused by it being brought up again now. "I suffered with an addiction to alcohol for most of my young adult life. Almost 14 years ago, with the help of my family and some close friends I sought help, got it and have managed to turn my life around. Anxiety and depression were also factors for which I received medical intervention for a short period. Thankfully, after almost 14 years I am in a much better place with my recovery and my absolute resilience will continue, said Mr Comiskey. Mr Comiskey continued by explaining that in 2006/2007, he had a haulage company but when the crash came, he was unable to keep up with his tax returns. "Again, this is something I am not proud of but I was under severe financial pressure at the time. "The company went out of business subsequently and I settled my case with Revenue, said Mr Comiskey. Mr Comiskey is married to Michelle, and has three adult children. Mr Comiskey works as a farmer in Fivemilebourne, where he has a small suckler and sheep farm. He is also a local peace commissioner. Mr Comiskey said he has worked hard to turn his life around. "I am disappointed that despite my best efforts to turn my life around, that these mistakes are now coming back to haunt me. "But I can assure firstly my family, my friends and my colleagues, my past will not become my future, he said in the statement. During an interview with Ocean FM, Mr Comiskey gave an emotional account of his journey and admitted it does not reflect good on his character. When asked if there was 15 convictions, Mr Comiskey said, To be honest, I didnt read the article and I didnt count them. "Some people have said to me that when they looked through them, there might have been no tax displayed and they could have been combined, a few of them. "There possibly was. It was something I was putting in the past. I didnt want to look back on it. "There could have been and there could have been even more, I dont know, said Mr Comiskey. Mr Comiskey said he lives in a close knit community, the incidents were widely reported in the public domain at the time and he has never made the incidents a secret. "The party did ask me had I anything to say and I did disclose my financial difficulties and said I was in court for failing to make tax returns. "In regards the drink driving and all that, I thought when once the endorsements was lifted off licences, that was the end of it. "I am a different Kevin Comiskey now than I was then, he said. When asked if he had considered stepping down from the election campaign, Mr Comiskey said no, he did not or would not consider stepping down. "I did not consider it and would not consider stepping down because as I said I am not going to let my past become my future. I am going to be very resilient on this and I am going to concentrate on the good work that I have done that people are speaking to me about for the last 14 years in my recovery and the good work I have done for the farmers. "I think I can continue to do that and I simply will not let this get to me, said Mr Comiskey. He admitted that in hindsight he should have made the situation clearer to the public and to his party before he sought to be selected as a candidate. In hindsight, maybe I should have but I did in my own mind think it was a chapter that was closed and I also said it was out there. "People were saying it to me on the doors even before I canvassed and people know about it. "The party did ask and I thought the financial affairs was the big issue. "As I said, I thought when the endorsements were lifted off the licence and you do the time and pay the fine, that was it, said Mr Comiskey. In reference to Fine Gael's hard line on crime and Simon Harris previous statement that the party is a party of law and order, Mr Comiskey said he could be a positive example of recovery. "Thats true and he has said that. "I suppose that is what I would try and do. But going forward, say this, this man done wrong things, this is the way it should be done, he is not doing it anymore, he is in recovery and he is not doing it anymore and I certainly wouldnt do it anymore. "Maybe use this as an example as how things should be done, said Mr Comiskey. Mr Comiskey said since the news broke, he has received phone calls from all over the country and reiterated his apology to his wife, family, supporters and his party. Mr Comiskey asked anyone who may need help or support for alcohol addiction or depression to reach out to him. "My number is freely available and I will talk to anyone about it, said Mr Comiskey. As International Nurses Day was marked on 12 May, ATU celebrates the invaluable contributions of nurses worldwide. Among them is ATU Alumna, Louise Hanna, from Laghey, Co. Donegal, a Registered Nurse in Intellectual Disability in Sligo/Leitrim, whose journey is an example of the dedication and compassion inherent in the nursing profession. Reflecting on her inspiration to pursue nursing, particularly focusing on intellectual disability, Louise says, Its hard to pinpoint when and where my interest in nursing came from. It was just always there. When I thought about career choices my natural tendency was towards the health and social sciences. I have a distinct memory as a child playing in a park and seeing a disabled child playing alone with her Mum. It bothered me even then that this child was on the outskirts. I wanted to invite her to join us but was too shy to do so. The seed of intellectual disability nursing was maybe sown then, even though I wasnt aware that such a discipline of nursing existed.. Louises journey began with her undergraduate studies at ATU St Angelas Sligo, where she completed the BSc Intellectual Disability Nursing Programme in 2003. She reminisces about her time as a student, stating, Studying is challenging. But then anything worthwhile is challenging. After graduation, Louise embarked on a fulfilling career, initially working with HSE Cregg Services in Sligo. Reflecting on her experiences, she says she developed a specific interest in dementia and palliative care, which became a cornerstone of her practice. Over the years, she transitioned to Community Disability Services in Donegal, where she embraced a more community-focused role, driven by her passion for supporting individuals to live life to the fullest. In her current role as a Clinical Placement Coordinator for HSE Disability Services, Louises daily routine is diverse and dynamic with each day presenting new challenges. From developing placement sites to overseeing student assessments, she plays a pivotal role in guiding the next generation of nurses. Despite the challenges, Louise finds immense reward in her work, stating, Intellectual Disability nursing is a wonderful career. It is such a privileged position. I have supported the most vulnerable of people in society and the strongest most resilient people I will ever meet. Intellectual disability nursing is personal. It is getting to know a person, their wishes, their dreams, their goals, their challenges and assisting them to exert their rights and overcome the barriers society have laid in their path to equality, fulfilment and beyond. The reward is knowing the difference you make every single day in the life of a person you are supporting. The course of my career has brought me great job satisfaction. More than that I have had the greatest laughs, met wonderful people, felt seen, felt valued and have never regretted this career choice. Charlene Bogan, an ATU graduate, has transitioned from a successful career in womens health to become an Assistant Lecturer in the Department of Nursing and Health Care at ATU. Several of my friends worked in the nursing profession and they encouraged me to follow in their footsteps. I had always been drawn to the idea of helping others and being there for people in their time of need. Nursing seemed like the perfect way to fulfil this desire. With experience in gynaecology nursing and as a candidate Advanced Nurse Practitioner in Womens Health, Charlene turned her attention to training nurses. She now focuses on educating and inspiring the next generation of healthcare professionals, blending her passion for nursing with academia, Embarking on my career as an Assistant Lecturer marks an exciting new chapter filled with opportunities for growth and learning. I have been fortunate to continue to be surrounded by supportive colleagues from both the ATU and our clinical partners in LUH. This incredibly rewarding career offers numerous opportunities to make a positive impact on the next generation of nurses as they embark on their educational journey. This year, I have witnessed the growth and development of students, both academically and professionally which is very rewarding. It is immensely satisfying to know that I am helping them on their path to becoming competent and compassionate nurses. Charlene has advice for those considering a career in nursing, To anyone considering a career in nursing I would say go for it. Nursing is a rewarding profession that offers endless opportunities for growth and professional development. Your work will make a difference in the lives of both you patients and their families. Embrace the privilege becoming a nurse, and never underestimate the positive impact that you will have on others. To mark International Nurses Day, ATU and Health Service partners hosted events in, Mayo and Sligo University Hospitals on Friday last. Meanwhile ATU and NPD North-West partners in General, ID and MH Nursing partners hosted a symposium event on ATU Donegal Letterkenny campus on Wednesday 8 May. These events were an opportunity to show appreciation to the work and dedication of nurses in Ireland and around the world. If you are interested in a career in nursing, ATU offers courses in General Nursing, Mental Health Nursing and Intellectual Disability across campuses in Mayo, Donegal & St Angelas in Sligo. For further information visit www.atu.ie. Pupils attending St Josephs National School in Bree will not be given smartphones until at least the end of sixth class after a new policy was adopted by parents, teachers and the board of management. The school had previously polled the parents to find out what they felt was the best time for their children to own a smartphone and they voted that children should not be given smartphones until their Confirmation. This result was adopted by the school board of management and has become the recommended age for ownership of a smartphone in the school. Also, parents agreed that children should not be given access to social media until they are at least 13 years old. A meeting to launch the campaign for a Smartphone Free Childhood was attended by a representative from CyberSafeKids, members of An Garda Siochana, and local councillor Cathal Byrne. At the meeting, the problems of smartphone ownership, and consequent social media use, were outlined, including excessive gaming and social media use, decreased attention span, sleep problems, sedentary lifestyle, experience blocking (loss of time that could be spent on other activities exercise, music, playing, talking to other children), need for charging and maintenance, pornography, dangers (grooming, sexting, blackmail) and general social media use (online mistakes, cyberbullying, toxic influences, focusing on body image and looks). The speaker from CyberSafeKids gave advice to parents about how to supervise effectively, problems that can occur and how to keep children safe, while sergeants Niall Maher, John Comerford and Siobhan Twomey spoke to the parents about issues with social media and smartphones, and the recent introduction of Cocos Law, prohibiting intimate image abuse. The meeting ended with unanimous support for the proposal, and school principal, Mark Kelly, urged the parents present to spread the message to other parents and build a united approach to smartphone ownership and social media usage. He said, If we stand together, we can protect and nurture the children of our community. Education Minister, Norma Foley, TD, visited Gorey Central School recently and heard about the challenges theyre currently facing to meet the demand for primary school places in north Wexford. Minister Foley visited the area as a guest of Senator Malcolm Byrne on Thursday, May 2 and addressed the rapid growth in population in the Gorey area which means that there will be a continuing demand for primary school places in the future. She also discussed the proposed extension and plans for expansion with school principal, Matt Bater. "Gorey Central School has been expanding and so the planned much needed extension cannot happen quickly enough. While all the home building in our community is very welcome, that means there is a strong demand for other services, including school places. "Minister Foley recognised that when she sanctioned the building of Gorey Educate Together Secondary School for second level places and is also very aware of the pressures on local primary schools, said Senator Byrne. The Education Minister also visited Ballyellis National School on the day where she was shown the newly completed extension by principal, Enda Morris. This was the first ever visit by a Minister to the school. The Minister praised Mr Morris, the staff, the Board of Management and the construction team for their work on the additional facilities which were much needed for the requirements of a growing school. Minister Foley then called in to nearby Monaseed and Craanford National Schools. In each of the four schools, Minister Foley spoke with staff and students and the pupils put the Minister through her paces with a series of questions about her work. She also met with local Councillors Pip Breen, Andrew Bolger, Donal Kenny and Joe Sullivan, who shared their concerns about the need to ensure there are enough school places in the Gorey area going forward. Record funding of 164m has been allocated to 30 landmark projects across the country including one in Kilkenny This project will connect the village of Glenmore to the South East Greenway. Photo: Google Maps A major regeneration project in Co Kilkenny is set to get a funding boost of over 1.8 million under the enhanced Rural Regeneration and Development Fund. The Minister for Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphreys has announced record funding of 164 million for 30 landmark regeneration projects across the country, including one in Co Kilkenny. This investment is being provided under the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF) with a particular emphasis on the revitalisation of rural town centres. Follow Independent Kilkenny on Facebook The South East Greenway Connectivity Link and Pink Rock Cycle Loop & Amenity Trail in Co Kilkenny has been allocated a total of 1,885,138. This project will connect the village of Glenmore to the South East Greenway enabling the village to capitalise on its proximity to the Greenway. This will aim to increase footfall and provide an economic and social boost for the community. The transformative projects will revitalise town centres, stimulate the rural economy and attract people back to live, work and visit rural areas," said Carlow Kilkenny TD John Paul Phelan. Record funding of 164 million for 30 landmark regeneration projects across the country. The investment is being provided under the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF) with a particular emphasis on the revitalisation of rural town centres, which is a key objective of the Our Rural Future and Town Centre First Policies. Meanwhile Minister Humphreys added: "I am announcing an unprecedented 164 million in funding for 30 landmark projects in rural Ireland. This announcement has been made possible by the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund, which is providing strategic capital funding for significant projects around the country. The funding announced will revitalise towns and villages in line with the Town Centre First Policy, addressing vacancy and dereliction, stimulating rural economies and responding to community needs. "The RRDF alone has now invested over 577 million in funding for projects in rural Ireland. This is a truly transformative level of funding that will make a real and lasting difference in rural communities throughout Ireland, she concluded. The cast of Out of Order with Director Pat Whelan at the All Ireland Drama Finals in Athlone. Ballycogley Players production team for Out of Order at the All Ireland Drama Finals in Athlone. A first time qualifying drama group from County Wexford was awarded third place in the All Ireland Drama Festival Final in Athlone on Saturday, May 11. Ballycogley Players were delighted to be awarded third place for their production of Out of Order by Ray Cooney. Sean Carthy from the group also took home Best Supporting Actor and Shay Hannon was awarded the The Bride Rosney Award for Outstanding Newcomer. Nominees from the group included Best Director Pat Whelan, Best Actor Fr Pat Mernagh and Best Stage Management Celine Tracey. "This was the first time in our 49 year history to qualify for the All Irelands in Athlone so we felt very privileged, very lucky and very honoured to represent Ballycogley Players and our county." It was a special time for us and weve had a fantastic journey with this play. After our last show tomorrow night we will have entertained and made over 5,000 people laugh so thats a phenomenal win and that was a win for us before we even went to Athlone for the final, said Secretary of Ballycogley Players Trish Boyce who also starred as Jane Worthington in their production of Out of Order. The cast of Out of Order with Director Pat Whelan at the All Ireland Drama Finals in Athlone. The standard was higher than ever this year at the finals and Trish says adjudicator Tom Byrne kept his cards close to his chest across the nine nights of the festival. "We started celebrating on Thursday night once we were finished on stage and packed our set away. We went into the Dean Crow Theatre and celebrated with the committee as well as family and friends that had travelled up from Wexford as well. That continued throughout the weekend, we said wed give it a rest on Friday for the awards ceremony on Saturday but that didnt happen. "We celebrated the super journey we had with this play. When we were announced third especially for our first time, the roof nearly lifted off the Radisson hotel, said Trish. Ballycogley Players will perform Out of Order for the final time on Tuesday, May 14 at 8p.m. at Gorey Little Theatre and all of the funds raised on the night will go towards the Hope Centre in Enniscorthy. The reason being is one of our founding members Con Doyle, otherwise known as the Master, who sadly passed away in November last year. We dedicated this production to him. He was with us on this journey and we had a moment with him before we went on stage to guide us every night and he did, said Trish. Wexford Drama Group took home a couple of awards on the night with Naoise O'Connor, winning the Outstanding Newcomer Award and Cian Redmond, winning Best Lighting. Sophie Blaney Parslow was nominated for Best Supporting Actress and Paul Walsh for Best Director. Furthermore, young actor Joseph Sunderland from Bridge Drama was one of nine recipients of the very first Bride Rosney Award for Outstanding Newcomer for his performance of Norman in their production of the Wake by Tom Murphy. Susan Somers from Bridge Drama was also nominated for Stage Management and Ken Murphy was nominated for best supporting actor for his role as Finbar. Ballyduff Drama Group, directed by Ger Canning, were crowned RTE All Ireland Drama Festival champions for their performance of The Ferryman by Jez Butterworth. Ballyduff Drama Group has been performing on the Three Act circuit for over forty years and they last won the All-Ireland in 2022. Their director Ger Canning also won the Best Director award. John Stack, playing Quinn Carney, won the award for best actor, and Mary Colbert, won the award for the best actress in a supporting role while Noel Hayes, won the award for the best stage management, and Donie OSullivan, took home the award for best stage setting. To mark the 20th year of RTE as title sponsor of the RTE All Ireland Drama Festival, a special one-off prize, the Bride Rosney Award, was awarded to newcomers from each group. Bride Rosney served as Director of Communications at RTE from 2002 to 2009. During her tenure, the partnership with the RTE All Ireland Drama Festival began and she laid the foundations for the 20 years of success which followed. The inter-generational aspect of amateur drama groups was something Bride often referred to. She saw it as a torch that was carried through the generations and a fountain on which great communities would flourish. To honour the memory of Bride Rosney and mark two decades of the partnership, the RTE All Ireland Drama Festival presented an award to the best newcomer from each group. Brides partner Peter McMenamin presented the awards. This years adjudicator at the festival was Mr Tom Byrne. He has over 45 years involvement with amateur drama and competed in his first festival in 1979. This year was the 20th Year of RTE as title sponsor of the festival, and Adrian Lynch, Deputy Director General of RTE, presented the final award. Mark O'Brien, Executive Director, The Abbey Theatre, said they were delighted to continue their partnership with the festival. He announced that after much deliberations the winner of the Abbey Award for 2024 were Dalkey Players who presented The Crucible. The proposed site for a new weighbridge facility on the M11 motorway in south Wicklow. Arklow councillors have given their unanimous approval for a new weighbridge facility on the M11 motorway, with an amendment allowing Wicklow farmers to utilise the facility by arrangement. Located on the R772 Regional Road, to the immediate southeast of Junction 19 of the M11, the greenlit development comprises a new entrance from the R772 to the weighbridge facility, where a purpose-built weighbridge suitable for all vehicles on Irish roads will facilitate WCC personnel and Gardai checks, with the plans also including a canteen, toilet and seven on-site parking spaces. Wicklow County Council/BAM Civil Ltd commissioned Carroll & Browne Consultants of Kildare to prepare Part 8 planning documentation for the weighbridge facility, with a statutory public consultation commencing in March this year and closing on April 30. Presenting the finalised details of the development to Arklow councillors for their approval at the May MD meeting, Senior Engineer at Wicklow County Council, John Bowes, noted that Wicklow Gardai had been very supportive of it, and that one submission on the development had been made by Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), who recorded no observations. Before the sitting councillors rendered their decision, Councillor Sylvester Bourke proposed that the weighbridge could be put to even better use by accommodating local farmers, for whom he said it would be a hugely convenient asset, and spare them the astronomical costs of installing their own weighbridges. I did mention it at the last meeting that it would be nice if the weighbridge could be utilised by local people for their vocational needs, Cllr Bourke said. You get a lot of inter-farmer trading, with silage and some grain, and it would be a very useful tool to have close by, especially because a lot of farmers would be considering putting in their own, and its about 25,000 for a basic weighbridge. It would be an extra option and would be very useful at harvest time. A good management tool for farmers. It would be a shame to have it there and not be able to use it, even if it just gets used the odd time, but if more people are aware of it, they might use it, and it would be a hugely convenient asset. I think it could be very useful, so could that be put in?" Thats up to yourselves you can make an addition to the resolution, or adopt it as is, or reject it, Mr Bowes replied. I would have no objection to that, with the caveat that this facility may not be open, and depending on hours of operation, it would have to be by arrangement. After Cllr Bourke approved, the amendment was seconded by Councillor Pat Fitzgerald, who commented that it was a safe place to do it, adding: I fully support this it will be a great facility for the people of Wicklow, and there are so many accidents on that road. Concluding the consideration of the Chief Executives Report, District Manager Leonora Earls noted the amended resolution which read: In accordance with Section 179 of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, the development of a Weighbridge Facility located on the R772 adjacent to the M11 Junction 19 be carried out as recommended in the Chief Executive Report, subject to the added amendment that the weighbridge is available to farmers on a needs basis, by arrangement. The members then gave their unanimous approval. Farming For Nature's mentorship programme 'The Horse's Mouth' is now open to applications. Photo: Farming For Nature Wicklow farmers can now apply for The Horses Mouth, a farmer-to-farmer knowledge share and mentorship providing on-the-ground practical advice from fellow farmers on how to improve biodiversity on their land. Driven by Farming For Nature (FFN) and supported with funding from the NPWS and DAFM, the programme offers a knowledge-sharing service to 50 farms across Ireland to help farmers decide on what actions could be undertaken to improve the environmental condition of a site. Whether you are starting the journey to include more nature on your farm, have recently inherited/bought a farm, want to change a farming system or already have lots of nature but want advice on what more you can do, no matter how far you are along the journey of increasing biodiversity on your farm, this project will provide all farmers and landowners with practical advice on how to encourage nature but also remain productive. The programme involves an informal walk on your farm and a farmer-to-farmer chat to share simple, practical advice and encouragement. These farmers are not ecologists but are fellow farmers working day in and day out in situations that have an abundance of wildlife and plant life without impacting on their farming systems. The deadline for applications is Friday, May 31. If shortlisted, you will be matched with an FFN mentor chosen from a national network of ambassadors. You and the FFN Mentor will arrange a date to walk the farm along a route taking no more than three to four hours decided by you beforehand, which should include all the potential habitats and areas you hope to improve (hedgerows, watercourses, woodlands, crops etc). Following the visit, a short list of recommendations will be drawn up by the FFN Mentor and sent along with any other useful resources to you by FFN within a month. Among the Wicklow FFN Farming Mentors available through the programme is Luggala Estate farm manager Michael Keegan, part of a committed team actively striving to improve habitat conditions on the 5,000-acre estate. Michaels own attitudes to upland farming have been transformed over the past two years, resulting in changes to his farming practices on his home farm. A very active member of the IFA, Michael is currently Chair of the Enniskerry IFA branch, a past vice-chair of Wicklow IFA and a board member of the Wicklow Uplands Council. These connections place Michael in a position to influence the wider farming community. Along with his colleagues, Michael is facilitating responsible and sustainable recreation in tandem with his upland management work. He has shown that he can be instrumental in building an understanding of upland management amongst recreational users, school groups and the wider community. Here at Farming For Nature (FFN), we often get queries from farmers and landowners who are seeking on-site advice about how to enhance the biodiversity of their land but arent quite sure how best to proceed, a spokesperson said. Some have asked for a fellow farmer to visit and provide practical tips. In response to this, we are offering a farmer-to-farmer knowledge-sharing service to help people decide on what actions could be undertaken to improve the environmental condition of a site and how to do them. We will be short-listing up to 50 applications for this years scheme depending on the interest and capacity. We will let you know in mid-June if you have been shortlisted for a peer-to-peer visit. To apply for The Horses Mouth 2024 programme, before May 31, visit farmingfornature.ie A local councillor has said he feels that Wicklow is being treated as a soft target when it comes to the disparity between the amount of migrants being taken in by other counties. Figures released recently showed that about 1.6pc of the population in County Wicklow is currently asylum-seekers and Ukrainians who have fled the war with Russia. With a population of 155,851 recorded in the last census, Wicklow has accommodated 1,339 Ukrainians and 1,288 international protection applicants. Neighbouring counties such as Wexford (1,599) and Meath (1,608) have accommodated more Ukrainians than Wicklow, while the numbers taken in by other nearby counties are much lower, such as Kildare (546), Carlow (692) and Kilkenny (748). However, the 1,288 IP applicants in Wicklow far exceeds the figures for other neighbouring counties such as Wexford (575), Carlow (418), Kilkenny (137), Kildare (661) and Meath (909). The new figures were provided by Integration Minister Roderic OGorman and it is important to note that they only show Ukrainians who are in accommodation commissioned by his department and asylum-seekers who are housed by the International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS). There are no figures for the unhoused and homeless, or those involved in accommodation gifted by individuals, nor those who may be renting or who are otherwise unseen by the statistics. Cllr John Snell voiced his frustration at seeing tented migrant communities organised by the state popping up in Wicklow and along the border at Crooksling, a site the community has long campaigned should be used as a community facility. He described the move as inhumane and said he felt the Government is failing both the asylum-seekers and the Irish people. It seems any asylum-seekers moved out of tents in Dublin are being sent to Wicklow with impunity, Cllr Snell said. The days of looking for buildings to accommodate asylum-seekers now seems long gone and the focus now is in on greenfield sites, not to build accommodation, but to place tents on, which is inhumane. "You have 20 eight-person tents proposed for River Lodge House in Newtown, and something similar at Crooksling on the Wicklow border. I feel Wicklow is being treated as a soft target. Unfortunately, the Governments failed migration system means no one appears to be in control. The asylum-seekers are basically going from tent to tent, which isnt what they want either. Its not that long ago that Minister Roderic OGorman sent out literature in 12 different languages inviting people to come over to Ireland, which made no sense whatsoever at the time. That had a real detrimental impact on all our hotels, guest houses and B&Bs, and that negative impact is now being fully felt. "It has impacted on tourism across the country and our capacity to provide accommodation to tourists. That well has now run dry and the only solution now seems to be tents, which is completely inhumane, especially when the tents are located in a field with a foot of water in it. More than 106,000 Ukrainian refugees have come to Ireland since the outbreak of the conflict in Ukraine in February 2022, but thousands have since gone home, while others have secured employment and are renting homes. The current statistics show that there are still 48,305 from Ukraine in State-paid accommodation, a figure that could fall further with expected changes in welfare. However, the number of international protection (IP) applicants in State-funded accommodation has reached 29,283. Cllr Snell said the Irish public is losing faith in the Government being able to get to grips with the worsening crisis. There is a lack of vetting taking places and a lot of the time the asylum-seekers arriving on these shores arent from war-torn countries. It should be easy enough to vet someone who isnt from a war-torn region, and it shouldnt be as lengthy a process as it currently appears. There will always be legitimate cases and communities across Wicklow and Ireland have been at the forefront of the response to what is happening in Ukraine, and the response has been phenomenal. Unfortunately, you have other people trying to piggy-back on that goodwill. The Governments response to everything seems to be reactionary. We now know that 91pc of asylum-seekers are entering Ireland from the border because they are afraid the UK Government will send them to Rwanda. That was always going to have an affect, but the Irish Government appear to have been caught out, even though its something everyone was aware was happening. "The whole situation isnt promoting Ireland, the Government or the opposition parties in a good light. They are failing both the asylum-seekers and the Irish people. The popularity of the Camino de Santiago has resulted in plenty of interest in pilgrim walks in Ireland, with Wicklows St Kevins Way proving to be one of the most popular pilgrim paths in Ireland and now there are plans for a new route to nearby Glendalough. You can follow in the footsteps of St Kevin on a scenic walking route through the heart of County Wicklow and the valley of Glendalough where he spent the spent the rest of his life in solitary prayer and contemplation. After Kevins death in AD 618, medieval pilgrims came from far and wide to visit Kevins tomb, and the alternative starting points to the walk reflect the different directions from which they are likely to have travelled. The main route starts in Hollywood, while the alternative route comes from Valleymount. The paths meet and join at Ballinagee Bridge. The walker then climbs towards the spectacular Wicklow Gap and the flagstones of the old pilgrimage road are still visible in sections. The route then follows the descent of the Glendasan River into the Valley of Glendalough. The total walk covers 26km and takes around eight hours to complete in full, covering forest trails, country roads and mountain paths. Plans are now afoot for a brand new pilgrim trail being proposed by Cllr Mary Kavanagh, which will travel from Wicklow town to Glendalough. She is working alongside local man Cormac McGrane, who is himself a seasoned Camino walker, and members of the Town Team, Dave Shannon and Pascal Burke. The proposed route will take in as many of the local towns and villages along the way such as Wicklow, Rathnew, Glenealy, Rathdrum and Laragh, while it is also hoped to divert walkers to other areas such as Newtownmountkennedy and Roundwood. The work has been ongoing for a few years explained Cllr Kavanagh, It was first mooted a long time ago when Cormac and my late sister, Cllr Pat Kavanagh, discussed the possibility of a walk all the way from Wicklow town, where St Patrick is reputed to have first landed in Ireland, to Glendalough which is one of the most important landmarks not only in Wicklow but in Ireland as its one of our top tourist attractions. The route has just been finished and should hopefully be submitted for sign-off very soon. Khalid Abdalla scattered 14,000 sequins at the Bafta TV awards in an anti-war message (Jane Barlow/PA) The Crown star Khalid Abdalla shared the anti-war message stop arming Israel at the Bafta TV awards. The British actor scattered 14,000 red sequins at the London event, with each representing a child that has been killed in Gaza during the conflict which began on October 7. Abdalla, who played Dodi Fayed in The Crown, wrote the words stop arming Israel on his hand and wore the Artists4Ceasefire red pin, which calls for a ceasefire in Gaza and Israel. We need your consent to load this Social Media content. We use a number of different Social Media outlets to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review your details and accept them to load the content On X, the 43-year-old actor wrote: Every one of these 14,000 sequins is a child that has been killed in Gaza. Multiply that by 2.46 and you get the current death toll, over 34,500. STOP ARMING ISRAEL. It is not the first time Abdalla has made a political protest. He wrote the words never again on his hand at the Emmy Awards in January in reference to the Israel-Hamas war. Abdalla was among several stars showing support for the Artists4Ceasefire campaign at the Bafta TV Awards on Sunday. Brian Cox attended the Bafta TV Awards 2024 wearing the Artists4Ceasefire pin (Ian West/PA) Succession star Brian Cox wore the red pin against the stark contrast of his all-white suit, while TV presenter and comedian Joe Lycett also appeared to have the pin on alongside his flowing silver cape and Elizabethan-style high ruff neck piece. Steve Coogan, known for starring as Alan Partridge, and Jimmy Savile in The Reckoning, also sported the pin. The actor has previously condemned Hamas over what he called their horrific and brutal invasion of Israel as he defended a letter he signed to campaign for humanitarian support for Gaza. Luke Rollason, who starred in TV series Extraordinary, also wore the pin alongside a cat-shaped bag in a nod to his character Jizzlord. Rather than firing off barbs, Drake and Kendrick Lamar, above, on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury in 2022, are writing little poems to each other. Photo: Yui Mok/PA Drake has issued a plea to the media in the wake of what has been a controversial fortnight for the rapper. In the last few weeks, the Canadian star has made headlines for his feud with Kendrick Lamar , which saw the pair launch personal attacks against each other. Days later, a drive-by shooting occurred outside Drakes residence. Rather than firing off barbs, Drake and Kendrick Lamar, above, on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury in 2022, are writing little poems to each other. Photo: Yui Mok/PA On Tuesday (7 May), a security guard was shot in the chest, with officers finding him unconscious when they arrived at the scene. The guard is believed to have been standing outside the gates in front of the property when he was shot at around 2am. He was later transported to a local hospital with serious injuries. One suspect fled the scene in a vehicle, police said. Officials could not confirm whether Drake was home at the time of the shooting, but said that the rappers team is cooperating with the investigation. Days later, an intruder tried to break into Drakes mansion, with another spotted outside the residence hours later. The second intruder had an altercation with security guards and was taken to hospital with injuries that were serious, but not life-threatening. On Saturday (11 May), Toronto Police Service told TMZ a third intruder was escorted off the rappers property. Drake has now referenced the frenzied interest in his residence on Instagram via a post addressed to Canadian news organisation CP24. He wrote: Can we discuss the chopper flight times over the house 'cause I won't lie, I'm trying to sleep. Anytime after 3pm works great for me. The incidents came days after rival Lamar doxxed Drakes home in a diss track against him amid an ongoing feud between the two rappers. Lamar created three similar diss songs about Drake in just 36 hours. A rivalry between two of the worlds biggest rappers has simmered for years, flaring up again in recent weeks thanks to the surprise tracks. The feud between the two stars began a month ago when Lamar hit out at the Canadian rapper and J Cole in his song First Person Shooter. Drake has responded with a diss track accusing Lamar of domestic violence. Lamar in turn has accused Drake of having a secret daughter. In another song titled, Not Like Us, the Humble rapper calls Drake a certified paedophile and makes multiple references to alleged interactions with younger women. Paul Krawczyk of the police services Integrated Gun and Gang Task Force said that the motive behind the shooting at Drakes home remains under investigation. Met Eireann has issued a Status Yellow rain warning for three counties following a spell of warm, dry weather. The warning for Cork, Waterford and Kerry is valid from 1am on Monday until 1pm. Heavy rain is expected with the possibility of localised flooding, difficult travelling conditions and poor visibility. On Sunday, a thunderstorm warning was valid for Cavan, Donegal, Monaghan, Dublin, Kildare, Louth, Meath and Wicklow for over seven hours. Monday will see rain widespread across the country, with some showers turning heavy. Some sunshine will develop in the south and west in the afternoon, extending to the whole country except Ulster, but there will be some scattered showers too. Temperatures will stay mild on Monday and will range between 14C and 17C. Overnight they will fall to between 7C and 10C with some rain and drizzle. For those planning to travel to the North today, Met Office UK has also issued a Yellow rain warning for five counties starting at midday until 6am on Tuesday. The warning for Antrim, Armagh, Down, Tyrone, and Derry will see spells of rain, which will be the heaviest in the eastern areas, extending to the northeast later. Met Eireann said the weather will be changeable during the week, with rain showers and some sunshine possible. It will be a mix of rain and showers on Tuesday with the rain affecting areas in the north and south. However, Met Eireann said the details of the persistent rain could change in the coming days. Highest temperatures on Tuesday will be between 14C and 18C and drop to between 8C and 11C overnight, when it will be dry with some scattered showers. Heavy rain is also possible for Wednesday. It looks set to be a day of sunshine and showers on Wednesday with the chance of the odd heavy downpour. Maximum temperatures of 16 to 20 degrees, warmest across the west in light easterly breezes, Met Eireann said. Overnight it will be mostly dry when temperatures are expected to be between 6C and 9C. Thursday will also be a mixture of rain and sun but some showers could be heavy and thundery. The heavier spells could mean some spot flooding and daytime temperatures will be between 18C and 21C. Temperatures are expected to drop on Friday, ranging from 13 to 18 degrees, while the south will enjoy the warmest weather. There will be a mix of sunny spells and scattered showers, with some regions remaining dry. The next weekend will be a little cooler, with sunny spells and scattered showers, Met Eireann said. Former German chancellor Angela Merkels memoirs will be released in late November, nearly three years after the end of her 16-year tenure at the helm of one of Europes biggest powers, her publisher said. Kremlins surprise reshuffle is a 'sign of long Ukraine war plan' Vladimir Putin was accused last night of putting another puppet in as defence minister as he moved to appoint an economist to the role in a sign that he is planning for a long war in Ukraine. LATEST | Russian forces bear down on Ukraine border town in Kharkiv region Russian troops focus on two border townsFighting rages on outskirts of border townUkraine evacuates nearly six thousand people from area Wreked buildings in Kharkiv Vitalii Hnidyi Mon 13 May 2024 at 09:07 Russian forces attacking Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region were engaged in fighting on the outskirts of the border town of Vovchansk, Kyiv's troops said on Sunday, as President Volodymyr Zelenskiy described heavy fighting there and in the east. A demonstrator holds a Georgian national flag as he walks in front of the parliament building during an opposition protest against the Russian law in the centre of Tbilisi, Georgia (Zurab Tsertsvadze/AP) Georgia's parliament has given the green light for a final vote on a proposed law that critics see as a threat to media freedom and the country's aspirations to join the European Union, a day after police dispersed the latest protests against it. A former economy minister of Kazakhstan was sentenced to 24 years in prison on Monday for murdering his wife following a widely watched trial that some see as a litmus test of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev's promise to build a fairer, more equitable society. China sees thriving fruit trade with Mekong River countries Xinhua) 10:24, May 13, 2024 GUANGZHOU, May 11 (Xinhua) -- China's fruit imports from five countries along the Mekong River amounted to 10.68 billion U.S. dollars in 2023, accounting for nearly 60 percent of the country's total. The figure was released on Friday by Guo Libin, Party chief of the Foreign Economic Cooperation Center under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, at the Lancang-Mekong Fruit Industry Development Workshop held in the southern metropolis of Guangzhou. According to the workshop, durians, mangoes, bananas, longans, mangosteens, coconuts and other fruits from Mekong River countries and other Southeast Asian countries are popular among Chinese consumers. Similarly, Chinese dates, persimmons, pears, pomegranates and cantaloupes have entered the Southeast Asian market, renowned for their excellent quality, competitive prices and delicious taste. After the implementation of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement, economic and trade cooperation between China and the Mekong River countries has continued to deepen, and the trade in agricultural products, including fruits and vegetables, has been growing continuously, according to Guo. "Thanks to the China-Laos Railway, fruits from the Mekong River countries can enter China more quickly, providing a broader space for agricultural cooperation," Guo said. Six countries -- China, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam -- jointly established the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation framework. These countries share the same river, called the Lancang River in China and the Mekong River when it flows through the other five countries before emptying into the sea. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing) Indias Construction Equipment Market to Become Worlds 2nd Largest by 2030 Indias construction equipment industry is the third largest in the world, generating a turnover of approximately US$8.5 billion annually. The industry is projected to triple in size by 2030 as it plays a pivotal role in building the countrys infrastructure and contributing to development activities. Indias construction equipment (CE) industry registered a growth of 26 percent in FY 2022-23, with sales figures crossing 100,000 units, indicating steady recovery during the post-pandemic period. The countrys economic stability and increased focus on infrastructure activities has accelerated demand for heavy-duty machinery. There are over 50 CE original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in India, with a cumulative workforce of 5 million people. Performance of Indias construction equipment industry During FY 2021-22, the construction equipment industry in India experienced a degrowth of 8 percent due to the global slowdown connected to the COVID-19 pandemic, constraints in the supply chain, and a hike in the value of steel and allied commodities. The number of units sold of CE machinery dropped to 85,385 units in FY 22 from 92,470 during the previous fiscal. However, the figures have since rebounded, with the Indian Construction Equipment Manufacturers Association (ICEMA) noting that the total sales figures for FY23 crossed 100,000 CE units, largely driven by demand in the domestic market. For example, there was a surge in requirements of heavy-duty construction equipment from the mining sector due to a 14 percent jump observed in coal production from 782 MT in 2021-22 to 892 MT in 2022-23. Meanwhile, Indias central and state governments have begun prioritizing infrastructure building as a key development goal, including expanding and modernizing road and highway connectivity and rural-urban development. ICEMA report highlights The sales of earth moving equipment, the largest segment in the construction equipment industry, reached 93,531 units in FY24, marking a 21 percent increase from the 77,164 units sold in FY23. This segment constituted around 70 percent of total CE sales in FY24, with backhoe loaders and crawler excavators experiencing significant growth, contributing to 90 percent of the total earth moving equipment sales. Material handling equipment, including pick-and-carry cranes and telehandlers, saw a notable 61 percent increase in sales volume, accounting for 14 percent of total CE sales, compared to 9 percent in FY23. Concrete equipment, comprising concrete mixers, batching plants, concrete pumps, and boom pumps, collectively recorded a 19 percent year-on-year increase in FY24. Additionally, road construction equipment, the only segment with negative growth in FY23, rebounded impressively in FY24, selling 6,571 unitsa 40 percent rise from the 4,828 units sold in FY23. Indias top performing industries: ASCON survey report In 2023, it was reported that the annual budgetary allocation of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways had increased by more than 940 percent, from about INR 258.72 billion (US$3.109 billion) per year during 2009-14 to about INR 2704.35 billion (US$32.3 billion) during 2023-24. ASCON Industry Survey Report 2023: Production (January to March, y/y 2022-2023)* Excellent High ATF (Aviation turbine fuel) Conductor Construction Equipment Machinery Distribution Transformers Energy Meters Lubes NP/NPK Passenger Carriers (LCVs) Passenger Carriers (M&HCVs) Mustard Tractors Vans Circuit Breakers (LT) Machine Tools Motors (HT) Relay/Control Panels, MCC & Switchboards LV & HV Sponge Iron Urea Utility Vehicles (UVs) Note: Distribution of total sample sectors over different growth ranges based on key parameters. Domestic demand and product portfolio in Indias CE market India is heavily dependent on imports to procure precision components, such as hydraulic components, undercarriage, electrical, electronics, and other finished products. According to industry data aggregator Volza, South Korea, China, and Sweden are the main exporters of construction equipment to India. An ICEMA and Deloitte report, namely, Innovating Financing Solution, noted new trends in CE financing that are transforming the way construction equipment products are offered in the market. This includes offering end-to-end solutions, fintech solutions that help automate credit decision making, platform-based aggregator solutions, innovative payment options, and more. CE market segments Earth moving Road construction equipment (excavator, backhoe loader, wheeled loader, motor grader, and others) Material handling equipment (crane, forklift & telescopic handler, and others), Concrete equipment (asphalt finishers, transit mixers, and others), and Material processing equipment (crushing equipment) Recent market trends Various companies operating in the Indian market are diversifying their product portfolio to launch electric/hybrid construction equipment products to cater to the growing demand of consumers. For instance, in June 2023, Action Construction Equipment (ACE), a material handling and construction equipment manufacturing company, announced the launch of its first fully electric mobile crane in India at the Bauma Conexpo 2023 Trade Fair in Greater Noida. In June 2023, Volvo CE India announced a partnership with Vedanta Iron Ore Karnataka by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to deploy sustainable power solutions, such as zero-emission electric off-road machines, at Vedanta IOKs mines in Chitradurga on a trial basis. Further, JCB has been actively engaging in launching various construction electric equipment products in India, such as the electric excavator named JCB 19C-1E. Vision 2030: ICEMA projections for the construction equipment industry in India The ICEMA has forecast that Indias construction equipment market will triple from its current size to emerge as the worlds second-largest CE market by 2030. According to the report, one of the factors influencing the overall growth of the business has been the volatility of demand. The report recommends tapping into export opportunities and rising domestic demand to benefit from this momentum. Building a strong operating ecosystem that can guarantee the CEs survival and extend beyond OEMs is the other recommendation. In addition, while building a trained labor pool for the CE sector, it is imperative to consider technology developments and modernization. To ensure the implementation of Vision 2030, the ICEMA has announced the formation of seven panels. These panels have been tasked with consulting with relevant industry stakeholders in the CE industry: Brand Building and Communication Financial Ecosystem Industry Analysis and Insight Manufacturing & Supply Chain Sustained, Modern, Agile, Resilient and Tech-Enabled (S.M.A.R.T.) Infra Strategic Partnership Technology and Sustainability In addition, a Human Capital Task Force was constituted in 2022 with the objective of enabling a skilled workforce in the industry. Outlook Indias construction equipment industry experienced a boost in sales during FY24, with a 26 percent increase compared to the previous year. As per the data provided by industry body ICEMA, CE sales reached 135,650 units, up from 107,779 units in the previous fiscal year. The surge in sales was attributed to Indias focus on infrastructure development, which stimulated growth across all five major segments of construction equipment, led by earth moving and road construction equipment. Further, Indias construction equipment market is soon to emerge as the worlds second-largest CE market, which makes it essential to build up a trained labor pool for the CE sector that is familiar with technological developments for CE manufacturing. (US$1 = INR 83.54) Photo courtesy: Videgrab of Mumbai dust storm from X New Delhi/IBNS: At least three died and 59 others are feared trapped under the debris of a massive billboard that collapsed on a fuel station amid a strong dust storm in Mumbai's Ghatkopar on Monday evening. According to police, 35 people were injured and 54 were rescued. The billboard was located opposite the fuel station. Visuals show the structure crashing down right in the middle of the fuel station. The metal frame of the billboard tore through the roof of several cars parked at the fuel station. Over 35 people injured and 100+ likely trapped after giant hoarding collapses in Chheda Nagar of Ghatkopar East in Mumbai amid heavy rains and dust storm. Rescue work is presently underway. https://t.co/mEDLlZWDjK pic.twitter.com/NbjJbJPSkt Aditya Raj Kaul (@AdityaRajKaul) May 13, 2024 The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has reached the site and is looking for survivors trapped under the debris. In a post on X, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the state government has ordered an investigation into the incident. A massive dust storm caught Mumbai off guard, crippling the transport system, uprooting trees, and leading to power outages in many districts of the financial capital. The sky turned dark when the dust storm hit the city, with people posting visuals on social media. Local trains, a section of the metro network, and airport services were temporarily stopped amid a darkening sky. "Due to the inclement weather and dust storms in the city, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) temporarily suspended flight operations for around 66 minutes due to low visibility and gusty winds," Mumbai airport said in a statement. "Operations resumed at 17:03 hours. During this time, the airport saw 15 diversions. CSMIA last week completed its pre-monsoon runway maintenance successfully, ensuring safe and smooth aircraft operations. Committed to efficiency and passenger safety, the airport remains steadfast to prioritise seamless operations," it said. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) Mumbai issued a "nowcast warning" forecasting a thunderstorm accompanied by lightning and moderate to intense rain for Thane, Palghar, and Mumbai. Mumbai currently looks like a Hollywood movie shot in Mexico pic.twitter.com/CeJRqEDEdL Sagar (@sagarcasm) May 13, 2024 The metro did not run between Aarey and Andheri East after a billboard landed on the overhead wire. Suburban trains were affected after an overhead equipment pole between Thane and Mulund got bent due to the strong winds. The suburban services on the main line have been stopped, the chief spokesperson of Central Railway said. New Delhi/IBNS: The Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) played a crucial role in securing a historic moment during the 10th meeting of the Memory of the World Committee for Asia and the Pacific (MOWCAP). At the gathering in Ulaanbaatar 38 representatives from member states convened alongside 40 observers and nominees. Advocating for three Indian nominations, IGNCA ensured their placement in UNESCO's Memory of the World Asia-Pacific Regional Register. Recently, UNESCO's register added three significant Indian literary works: The Ramcharitmanas, Panchatantra, and Sahrdayaloka-Locana. Professor Ramesh Chandra Gaur, Dean (Administration) and Head of the Department, Kala Nidhi Division at IGNCA, successfully presented these three entries from India: The Ramcharitmanas, Panchatantra, and Sahrdayaloka-Locana. Prof. Gaur effectively defended the nominations at the UllanBatar convention. This milestone accentuates IGNCA's dedication to preserving and promoting India's cultural heritage, reaffirming its commitment to global cultural preservation and the advancement of India's literary legacy. This marks the first time IGNCA has submitted nominations to the Regional Register since its inception in 2008. After undergoing rigorous deliberations and receiving recommendations from the Register Subcommittee (RSC), and subsequent voting by member state representatives, all three nominations secured inclusion, thereby marking significant Indian entries predating the inception of the Register in 2008. The 'Ramcharitmanas', 'Panchatantra', and 'Sahrdayaloka-Locana' are such timeless works that have deeply influenced Indian literature and culture, shaping the nation's moral fabric and artistic expressions. These literary works have transcended time and place, leaving an indelible mark on readers and artists both within and outside India. It is noteworthy that Sahrdayaloka-Locana, Panchatantra, and Ramcharitmanas were authored by Acharya Anandvardhan, Pt. Vishnu Sharma, and Goswami Tulsidas, respectively. This inclusion is a proud moment for India, a confirmation of the country's rich literary heritage and cultural legacy. It signifies a step forward in global cultural preservation efforts, highlighting the importance of recognizing and safeguarding the diverse narratives and artistic expressions that shape our shared humanity. By honouring these literary masterpieces, society not only pays homage to the creative genius of their creators but also ensures that their profound wisdom and timeless teachings continue to inspire and enlighten future generations. Photo Courtesy: Representational image by Moritz Erken on Unsplash New Delhi/IBNS: The Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) under the Indian government's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has issued a warning about vulnerabilities in Apple iTunes and Google Chrome desktop applications. According to the CERT, these vulnerabilities could allow hackers to remotely access a user's device and execute arbitrary code. CERT warning for Apple iTunes users: The CERT said a vulnerability has been reported in Apple iTunes which could be exploited by a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code on the targeted system. Explaining the issue via a report, the government agency said this vulnerability exists in the Apple product due to improper checks in the CoreMedia component. "A remote attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a specially crafted request," as per CERT. According to CERT, this vulnerability affects users of Apple iTunes on Windows prior to version 12.13.2. Describing the solution, CERT states that updating to the latest version of iTunes should help mitigate the potential vulnerabilities, and to update their iTunes applications on Windows, users can go to the Help section and click Check for Updates. CERT warning for Google Chrome users: Besides Apple iTunes, the agency has also found several vulnerabilities in Google Chrome that could be used by a potential hacker to gain access to a targeted system. The vulnerabilities in Chrome exist due to a bug in the Visuals and ANGLE components called 'use-after-free' and could be used by a hacker to execute a specially crafted HTML page to cause heap corruption, according to the CERT. It stated that the vulnerability under CVE-2024-4671 is being exploited in the wild, and users are advised to patch the vulnerable devices immediately. The vulnerabilities affect Google Chrome users on desktop prior to version 124.0.6367.201/.202 for Windows and Mac and version 124.0.6367.201 for Linux, as per the government agency. Explaining solutions to the issue, CERT has advised Google Chrome users on Windows, Mac and Linux to update to the latest version to mitigate potential vulnerabilities. To update to the latest version, users can navigate to the 'Help' option and click on 'About Google Chrome', which will automatically search for a new version, it added. Photo Courtesy: Peel Regional Police website Peel Regional Police have said an Indian-origin man was arrested in Canada in connection with multimillion-dollar gold heist at Toronto's main airport. The arrested person was identified as 36-year-old Archit Grover from Brampton. Earlier, five people were arrested for their involvement in the theft. On April 17, 2023, at 3:56 p.m. a flight landed at Pearson International Airport from Zurich, Switzerland, with a cargo containing 6600 bars of .9999 pure gold, weighing 400 kilograms, valued at over 20 million dollars and CAD 2.5 million worth in foreign currency, the police said in a statement. On April 18, 2023 at 2:43 a.m., the cargo was reported missing to Peel Regional Police. "Peel Regional Police immediately started the investigation, which has crossed borders, and we have been working collaboratively with the Philadelphia Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF)," the police said. Peel Regional Police and ATF said it has continued to make significant progress in the investigation. Additional Arrest Made in Over 20 Million Dollar Gold Heist - Read more: https://t.co/JuthiSl6EJ pic.twitter.com/RM8oFfC3uq Peel Regional Police (@PeelPolice) May 9, 2024 Peel Regional Police has identified and charged or issued warrants for ten individuals with over 21 charges. On Monday, May 6, 2024, investigators arrested and charged Archit Grover at Pearson International Airport as he flew in from India. He is charged with the following offences Theft Over $5000 Conspiracy to Commit Indictable Offence He was held for a bail hearing and attended the Ontario Court of Justice in Brampton. He is also being indicted in the United States for firearm-related charges. Maldives Defence Minister Ghassan Maumoon. Photo Courtesy: Ghassan Maumoon X page A day after the last Indian personnel left the island nation, Maldivess Defence Minister Ghassan Maumoon has admitted that its military pilots are not capable of operating the three aircraft donated by India. "There aren't any people licenced to fly the aircraft," Defence Minister Maumoon was quoted as saying by India Today. Meeting the deadline set by Maldivian authorities as per an agreement reached between the two countries, Indian military personnel who were stationed in the Island Nation to operate the helicopters and a Dornier aircraft, left Male and returned to India on Friday. Diplomatic tensions reached a flashpoint in recent times between the two countries over remarks made by some Maldives ministers against Indian PM Narendra Modi's visit to Lakshadweep, to promote the Indian Union Territory having the potential to compete with tourism major Maldives. Last month, pro-China Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu's Peoples National Congress (PNC) took control of the Parliament by winning the election clinching over 60 of the total 93 seats, highlighting the Island Nation's further tilt towards India's hostile rival China. The Maldives, which comprises some 1,192 tiny coral islands scattered across 800 kilometres (500 miles) on the equator, is considered as one of the top beach destinations in the world. Apart from its scenic beauty, the country is known for its luxury hotels and water villas. The pro-China Maldivian President faced massive domestic criticism for his anti-India stance as the main opposition parties of the country, the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) and the Democrats, slammed Muizzu for distancing from India, the island nation's "most long-standing ally" and source of tourists. Besides expressing concern over the new foreign policy of Muizzu-led government in Maldives, the opposition parties took to the street in January in protest. Photo courtesy: Screenshot grab from X video Patna/IBNS: Amid the ongoing fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections , Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday offered prayers at Gurudwara Patna Sahib in Bihar. Modi in Bihar as he is set to bolster his party BJP's poll campaign for the fifth phase of the General Elections. #WATCH | PM Narendra Modi visits and offers prayers at Gurudwara Patna Sahib in Patna, Bihar pic.twitter.com/GolksgdCBc ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024 The Prime Minister also performed 'seva' and served langar at the Gurudwara. PM Narendra Modi performs 'seva' and served langar at Gurudwara Patna Sahib in Patna, Bihar pic.twitter.com/xFZAGvRw7I ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024 Modi is also scheduled to visit Kashi Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi on Monday. The Prime Minister, who is spearheading BJP's poll campaign, will file his nominations from the Varanasi constituency on Tuesday. Sarbananda Sonowal at Chabahar Port in Iran in 2022 | Photo courtesy: PIB New Delhi/IBNS: In a big diplomatic outreach to Tehran , India is in all likelihood to strike a 10-year deal with Iran for the management of the Chabahar Port on Monday, a report by Economic Times said. Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal is likely to travel to Iran on Monday. However, the central government hasn't confirmed the news yet. The port is located in the southeastern coast of Iran along the Gulf of Oman. As per a report by Moneycontrol, there are plans to link Chabahar with the North South Transport Corridor that connects India and Russia through Iran. It will give India access to the Central Asian region. Earlier, a pact between India and Iran was signed in 2016 during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Tehran in 2016. The matter also popped up during External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar's latest visit to Iran in January 2024. Jaishankar claimed the 10-year deal between India and Iran will pave the way for more investments and linkages from the sea port, Moneycontrol reported. Glimpse of Delhi Airport | Photo courtesy: Delhi Airport Facebook New Delhi/IBNS: The Delhi Police has found "nothing suspicious" in the bomb threat mails sent to the airport and a few hospitals on Sunday afternoon, media reports said. "An email was received at Burari Hospital regarding a bomb threat. Local police, bomb squad, dog squad were rushed to the spot. Teams are checking the hospital. Nothing suspicious has been found yet," Deputy Commission of Police (North) M K Meena said as quoted by Times Now. The bomb threat mails were received by the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport, Burari Government Hospitals and Mangolpuri Sanjay Gandhi Hospital in the national capital. A search operation jointly by Delhi Police and Fire Services Department teams was launched. On May 1 in Delhi, as many as 131 schools were evacuated after the classes were stopped midway and students were asked to leave after they received bomb threats via emails. Examinations in some of the schools were also disrupted. The threat emails were hoax, police said after the probe. Photo courtesy: X/@AamAadmiParty New Delhi/IBNS: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who is out in an interim jail in the liquor policy case, has urged the voters to cast their mandates in favour of the AAP to keep him out of the prison. "Both myself and the people of Delhi were pained by my arrest. God has given me bail so that I could meet the residents of Delhi again. Now I will not have to return to jail if people of Delhi vote for AAP," Kejriwal said in an election rally on Sunday. Kejriwal added, "People are saying God has sent Kejriwal for 20 days to defeat BJP." The AAP supremo made the remarks while campaigning for his candidates from South Delhi, West Delhi and New Delhi. Kejriwal walked out of Tihar Jail on Friday, 50 days after he was arrested on corruption charges linked to the alleged liquor policy scam. The Chief Minister has been granted bail till June 1, the date for the final round of voting in the ongoing Lok Sabha election. In his first public comments after leaving jail, Kejriwal thanked "all the judges of the top court". Eyeing the upcoming election in Delhi on May 25, he called on voters to "'save the country from dictatorship". "I want to thank all of you... you showered me with your blessings. I want to thank the judges of the Supreme Court, it is due to them that I am in front of you. We have to save the country from dictatorship...," he said Kejriwal was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on March 21 in the Delhi liquor policy case from his official residence in Delhi. The central investigative agency asserts that he played a central role in the scam and was directly implicated in soliciting kickbacks from liquor barons. The Supreme Court said that Kejriwal would not be permitted to carry out his official responsibilities due to "may have a cascading effect" even if he is granted interim bail while in jail. All 7 constituencies of Delhi will go to polls on May 25. Photo Courtesy: Screengrab from viral video on X The Hyderabad Police have registered a case against Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)s Hyderabad Parliament constituency candidate Madhavi Latha after she allegedly trespassed into a polling station and asked Muslim voters to remove their burqa and reveal their identity. Based on a direction from Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation commissioner, Ronald Rose, who is also the returning officer for Hyderabad LS constituency, the Malakpet police registered a case against Madhavi Latha under Sections 171C (voluntarily interfering in the exercise of electoral right), 186 (voluntarily obstructing a public servant from discharging of duties) and 505 (1)(c) (circulation of a statement with an intent to incite a class or community) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), besides Section 132 of the Representation of the People Act, Hindustan Times reported. Meanwhile, a video has gone viral on the social media where the candidate could be seen asking women candidates to remove their burqa and reveal identity. She was apparently seeking to verify whether the faces of the women voters tallied the images on their Electoral Photo Identity Cards (EPIC), the newspaper reported. The candidates do not have the right to check the identity of the candidates. It is the act of the polling officials to ensure the identity of the voters. I am a candidate, and every candidate has the right to verify the credentials of the voters who were wearing face masks or burqa, the candidate told reporters as quoted by Hindustan Times. India voted in the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha polls on Monday. French envoy to India Thierry Mathou visiting Meghalaya. Photo Courtesy: French envoy to India Thierry Mathou X page French envoy to India Thierry Mathou is currently visiting Meghalaya when he met Governor Phagu Chauhan and wished to foster his nation's cooperation with the state. "Paid a courtesy call on the Hon'ble Governor of #Meghalaya, H.E. Shri Phagu Chauhan. I conveyed Frances wish to foster cooperation with the state," he posted on X. During his visit to Meghalaya, Thierry Mathou reached Asia's cleanest village Mawlynnong and described it as the inspiring model of co-existence of humans and Nature. " In #Meghalaya, I visited beautiful Mawlynnong, Asia's cleanest village. Its an inspiring model of coexistence of humans and Nature that reflects the commitment of locals to sustainable living," the envoy said. Meanwhile, the 7th edition of India- France Joint Military Exercise Shakti commenced today, at Umroi, in a fully developed and modern Foreign Training Node in Meghalaya. The Exercise is scheduled to be conducted from 13th to 26th May 2024. The Opening Ceremony of the joint exercise was attended by H.E. Thierry Mathou, Ambassador of France to India and Major General Prasanna Sudhakar Joshi, General Officer Commanding 51 Sub Area. Exercise Shakti is a biennial training event conducted alternatively in India and France. Last edition was conducted in France in November 2021. Photo Courtesy: Sarbananda Sonowal X page India on Monday inked a contract with Iran to develop and operate strategically important Chabahar Port for 10 years. The contract is seen as a new chapter in regional connectivity. Indian Ports and Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, who arrived in Tehran on Monday, oversaw the inking of the contract. Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal posted on X: Scripting a new chapter in bilateral partnership!Minister @shipmin_india @moayush@sarbanandsonwal witnessed the signing of the long-term contract for the operation of the Shahid Beheshti Port in Chabahar, between India Ports Global Ltd. & Ports and Maritime organisation of Iran." He said the contract will give a boost to regional connectivity & s linkages with Afghanistan, Central Asia and Eurasia. After being a part of the event, Sonowal wrote on X: "At Tehran, Iran today, delighted to be part of the signing of the Long Term Bilateral Contract on Chabahar Port Operations in presence of HE Mehrdad Bazrpash, Minister of Roads & Urban Development, Iran." "India will develop and operate Iran's strategic Chabahar Port for 10 years, marking a historic moment in - ties and regional connectivity," he said. At Tehran, Iran today, delighted to be part of the signing of the Long Term Bilateral Contract on Chabahar Port Operations in presence of HE Mehrdad Bazrpash, Minister of Roads & Urban Development, Iran. India will develop and operate Iran's strategic Chabahar Port for 10 pic.twitter.com/iXwekIk8ey Sarbananda Sonowal (Modi Ka Parivar) (@sarbanandsonwal) May 13, 2024 He said the agreement not only strengthens links between the two nations but also places India's firm footstep in the global supply chain and maritime sector. Photo courtesy: Videograb of Dilip Ghosh making booth visits during polling Kolkata/IBNS: Multiple incidents of violence were reported in West Bengal, where people in eight constituencies voted on Monday in the fourth phase of Lok Sabha polls. Even though poll officials claimed that voting has been largely peaceful, different political parties have filed about 1,088 complaints of alleged EVM malfunction and agents stopped from entering booths. Workers of the ruling Trinamool Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) clashed in some areas of the Bardhaman-Durgapur Lok Sabha constituency. In Kalna Gate, BJP candidate Dilip Ghosh faced a protest on his way to a poll booth after receiving some complaints. Trinamool supporters blocked his way and staged a protest, raising 'go back' slogans. Stones were also thrown at his convoy, and some cars were damaged, local TV channels showed. TMC terrorists unleash havoc in Monteswar, assaulting candidate Shri. Dilip Ghosh with savage stone pelting! Media vehicles smashed, innocents left bleeding. This barbarism is a stain on democracy! TMC's goonda raj must be crushed, and perpetrators locked up for good! pic.twitter.com/FjBIgnlEWY BJP West Bengal (@BJP4Bengal) May 13, 2024 Visuals captured by local television showed paramilitary personnel trying to keep the crowd under control. Soon after, a group of people threw stones at Ghosh's car. A security personnel was injured in the head and somehow managed to hop into NDTV's vehicle, blood oozing from his wound. A stone hit the NDTV cameraperson on his leg. However, the unruly scenes were a far cry from a show of bonhomie between Ghosh and his main opponent, Trinamool's Kirti Azad, earlier in the day. The two leaders hugged each other during a visit to a poll booth, a rare sight in an election marked by sharp barbs exchanged by leaders of the ruling Trinamool and the BJP, its main challenger. Earlier in the day, Ghosh told the media that "goons of TMC" were preventing polling agents from entering booths. "When I went to villages, women asked me with folded hands if they would be able to vote or not. It is their (Trinamool) habit to threaten people. The goons of TMC are not letting the polling agents enter the booths, including the presiding officer. Last night, they threatened people in certain areas and asked them not to come out to vote. I hope the situation will improve and voting will be done smoothly," he told local TV channels. Clashes were also reported in Birbhum and Krishnanagar constituencies, where BJP workers clashed with Trinamool supporters. BJP candidate Amrita Roy, who is pitted against Trinamool's firebrand leaer Mahua Moitra in Krishnanagar, accompanied two injured supporters to the police station. In the constituency's Tehatta area, a CPM worker was injured in a scuffle with Trinamool supporters over being present in a polling booth. In some areas of Birbhum, Trinamool workers held protests, accusing central forces of intimidating voters. Photo Courtesy: PIB New Delhi/IBNS: Voter turnout in 96 constituencies across nine states and one Union Territory in the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha election was recorded at 62. 9 percent on Monday, according to the Election Commission. States of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha also voted for the assembly elections simultaneously. Nine states and one Union Territory that went to polling Monday included Andhra Pradesh (25), Bihar (5), Jharkhand (4), Madhya Pradesh (8), Maharashtra (11), Odisha (4), Telangana (17), Uttar Pradesh (13), West Bengal (8), and Jammu and Kashmir (1). Forty-two of the 96 seats (44 percent) are spread across Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. This phase saw the conclusion of polling in the southern states. Jammu and Kashmir had its first election since 2019 on Monday. The polling was held in the Srinagar constituency, one of the two Lok Sabha seats in the Union Territory. Amidst ample security, voters were seen queuing up peacefully at various polling stations in Srinagar to cast their votes. Polling for the Anantnag-Rajouri seat has been deferred to May 25 after objections from the BJP. Polling time in certain assembly segments of 17 Parliamentary Constituencies of Telangana was increased by the Commission (from 7 am till 6 pm) to increase voters participation. Photo Courtesy: PIB Non-aligned parties dominated this phase of election including Naveen Patnaik's Biju Janata Dal and YS Jagan Mohan Reddy's YSR Congress. These parties have not stitched any alliance with either the ruling dispensation or the Opposition INDIA bloc, although they have given "issue-based support" to the Centre on multiple occasions in the parliament. Ahead of this phase of voting, oppositions have questioned the role of the Election Commission after it sent notices to the BJP and the Congress chiefs after controversial comments by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi. Several senior leaders from the BJP and the Opposition are in the fray, including Union ministers Giriraj Singh and Ajay Mishra, whose son is in jail in connection with the farmers' death in Lakhimpur Kheri, run over by his car. The key Opposition leaders who contested in this phase include Trinamool Congress's Mohua Moitra, who is hoping to get back into parliament after her suspension over the alleged cash-for-questions issue. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, Congress's Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, Trinamool's Shatrughan Sinha and National Conference's Omar Abdullah are also in the fray. Multiple incidents of violence were reported in West Bengal, where people in eight constituencies voted on Monday in the fourth phase of Lok Sabha polls. Even though poll officials claimed that voting has been largely peaceful, different political parties have filed about 1,088 complaints of alleged EVM malfunction and agents stopped from entering booths. Workers of the ruling Trinamool Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) clashed in some areas of the Bardhaman-Durgapur Lok Sabha constituency. In Kalna Gate, BJP candidate Dilip Ghosh faced a protest on his way to a poll booth after receiving some complaints. Trinamool supporters blocked his way and staged a protest, raising 'go back' slogans. TMC terrorists unleash havoc in Monteswar, assaulting candidate Shri. Dilip Ghosh with savage stone pelting! Media vehicles smashed, innocents left bleeding. This barbarism is a stain on democracy! TMC's goonda raj must be crushed, and perpetrators locked up for good! pic.twitter.com/FjBIgnlEWY BJP West Bengal (@BJP4Bengal) May 13, 2024 Stones were also thrown at his convoy, and some cars were damaged, local TV channels showed. Clashes were also reported in Birbhum and Krishnanagar constituencies, where BJP workers clashed with Trinamool supporters. BJP candidate Amrita Roy, who is pitted against Trinamool's firebrand leaer Mahua Moitra in Krishnanagar, accompanied two injured supporters to the police station. In the constituency's Tehatta area, a CPM worker was injured in a scuffle with Trinamool supporters over being present in a polling booth. In some areas of Birbhum, Trinamool workers held protests, accusing central forces of intimidating voters. The next phase of election is due on May 20. The counting of votes will be held on June 4 after the last phase of the election ends on June 1. Photo Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons New Delhi/IBNS: Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and Rajya Sabha MP, Sushil Modi, died at Delhi's All-India Institute of Medical Sciences on Monday evening after battling cancer for a long time. He was 72. Sushil Modi was admitted to the intensive care unit of AIIMS for the last month. He had opted out of the ongoing Lok Sabha Elections also on account of his health. On April 3, he announced it on social media with a post on X. "I have been battling cancer for the last 6 months. Now I feel that the time has come to tell people. I will not be able to do anything in the Lok Sabha elections. I have told everything to the PM. Always grateful and always dedicated to the country, Bihar and the party," his post read. His absence was expected to be felt the most in Bihar, where he had considerable influence on the party, built over three decades. Over 11 years between 2005 and 2020, he had served as the Deputy of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. Union Home Minister Amit Shah condoled Sushil Modi's death and remembered him as a 'great pioneer of politics forever.' "I am saddened by the news of the demise of our senior leader Sushil Kumar Modi ji. Today Bihar has lost a great pioneer of politics forever. From ABVP to BJP, Sushil ji has adorned many important positions in the organization and government. His politics was dedicated to the interests of the poor and the backward. The void that has emerged in Bihar politics due to his demise cannot be filled for a long time. In this hour of grief, the entire BJP stands with his bereaved family. May God give a place to the departed soul in his lotus feet. Om Shanti Shanti," he wrote on X. Former Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi also posted his condolences on X. "Heartfelt tribute to our dear friend, former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar and former Rajya Sabha MP Shri Sushil Kumar Modi ji on his demise," his post read. Photo courtesy: Screenshot grab from X video Hyderabad/IBNS: Popular Telugu film Chiranjeevi, Allu Arjun, Jr. NTR cast their votes in Hyderabad as the fourth phase of Lok Sabha polls are underway on Monday. The three actors went to their respective polling booths early in the morning. After casting his vote along with his family, Chiranjeevi told the media, "I do request people to make use of the power of vote. Please come and vote." #WATCH | Hyderabad, Telangana: After casting his vote, Film star Chiranjeevi Konidela says, "I request people to exercise their right to vote. Please come and cast your vote..." #LokSabhaElections2024 pic.twitter.com/U10KdY6aIe ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024 Casting his vote at a polling booth in Hyderabad's Jubilee Hills, Allu Arjun said, "People should cast their votes. It's a very responsible day for all of us as citizens of the country.. Today is the most crucial day for the next 5 years of our lives." #WATCH | Telangana: Actor Allu Arjun says "Please cast your vote. It is the responsibility of all the citizens of the country. Today is the most crucial day for the next 5 years. There will be a huge voter turnout, as more and more people are coming out to vote...I would like to pic.twitter.com/y5EwVLZVRk ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024 Jr. NTR, who was dressed in a blue shirt, says after voting, "Everybody has to use the right of their votes. I think it's a good message we need to pass on to the coming generations." #WATCH | Jr NTR says, "Everybody has to use the right of their vote. I think it is a good message which we need to pass on to the coming generations."#LokSabhaElections2024 https://t.co/pZR5lTzmpH pic.twitter.com/n15vUX8Bqb ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024 On the work front, Chiranjeevi will next appear in Vishwambhara. Allu Arjun is gearing up for the release of the much anticipated film, Pushpa 2: The Rule, which will release in theatres on August 15, 2024. Jr. NTR is currently shooting for Koratala Siva's Devara. The actor also joined the shooting for his Bollywood debut War 2, co-starring Hrithik Roshan. Tourists visiting Pahalgam. Photo Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons/ShareAlike 3.0 Unported Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam region is witnessing a spike in visitors with 3 lakh tourists, including both domestic and international, exploring the beauty of the place in the past four months. Chief Executive Officer, Pahalgam Development Authority, Tariq Hussian Naik told Kashmir Life that more than three lakh tourists including 7,000 foreigners visited Pahalgam in the first four months of this year. According to Naik, the increase in tourist footfall has brought jubilation among tourism stakeholders in Pahalgam. Hotel occupancy rates are on the rise, Zakir Ahmad, a hotelier, told the news portal. He said almost all hotels in Pahalgam are fully booked for the next month. Shopkeepers, ponywalas, hoteliers and others have expressed happiness over the spike in tourist visits in the region. Meanwhile, people are voting in Jammu and Kashmir's Srinagar seat, the first major polling taking place in the region since special status was abrogated by the BJP government on August 5, 2019 and the erstwhile state was also downgraded into two union territories of Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir. Over 17.4 lakh electorate are eligible to exercise their franchise to decide the fate of 24 candidates in the seat. The Srinagar parliamentary constituency is spread across five districts namely Srinagar, Budgam, Ganderbal in central Kashmir and Pulwama and Shopian in south Kashmir districts. Polling began at 7 am across 2,135 polling stations in the constituency. Photo Courtesy: Unsplash A 17-year-old woman was allegedly burnt and beaten to death by her parents after she refused to marry a man they selected in a Pakistani village named Liaqatpur. According to an FIR filed by ASI Jamil Malik, he, along with constables Muhammad Shoaib, Matloob Hussain, Fida Hussain and Nazish Batool, received information while at bridge that the daughter of Atta Muhammad from the Dobai Bloach clan was murdered by her father and brothers in Mauza Miyani Icha in the name of honor, reported Dawn News. The police arrived when they were burning her in the graveyard. Upon inquiry, those present failed to provide satisfactory details about her death, the Pakistani newspaper reported. The body was later shifted to Taranda Muhammad Pannah Rural Health Centre for postmortem. The FIR states that based on further investigation, it was found that the deceased had eloped with Allah Dewaya Chandia, of Mauza Malikpur, and had returned after the intervention of local dignitaries. When her family attempted to arrange her marriage with Muhammad Asif Gopang of Miyani Acha on May 10, she refused, Dawn News reported. Police said the suspects will be arrested soon. 1. Cannes Film Festival 2024: When And Where To Watch 77th Edition Of The Anticipated Event X The well-known Cannes Film Festival 2024 is set to be one of the most prestigious events in the world of cinema, attracting celebrated figures from around the globe. As the 77th edition approaches, excitement for this renowned event continues to grow. Many Indian artists, who have previously made appearances at Cannes, are expected to return and make their mark at this year's festival. The 77th Cannes Film Festival is slated to occur from May 14 to May 25, 2024, at the Palais des Festivals et des Congres in Cannes, France. 2. Bigg Boss OTT 3: Not Salman Khan, Sanjay Dutt Or Anil Kapoor To Host The Reality Show? Know Here X The internet is abuzz with anticipation for updates on the upcoming season of the popular reality show 'Bigg Boss OTT'. Salman Khan, who is loved for his hosting, may not return for this season due to scheduling conflicts. A source close to the project revealed to Pinkvilla, "Salman Khan is facing date issues, however, makers are keen on having him onboard. In case, Khan's schedule didn't work out, makers have approached Sanjay Dutt, Anil Kapoor, and Karan Johar to host the show." 3. Heeramandi: Aditi Rao Hydari's 'Gajagamini Walk' Mesmerises Fans, Video From SLB's Show Goes Viral X Filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Netflix show "Heeramandi'' has evoked a mixed response from viewers. While some have praised its grandeur, others have criticized it for its slow pace. However, there has been widespread acclaim for Aditi Rao Hydari's 'Gajagamini Walk' in the show. Many have praised the grace of her performance and highlighted how the visibility of her 'back fat' helps normalize certain body types in society. 4. Trinayani Actress Pavitra Jayaram Passes Away, Husband Pens Heartbreaking Note X Actress Pavitra Jayaram, best known for her role as Thilottama in the popular Telugu show 'Trinayani,' tragically lost her life in a car accident near Mahabubnagar in Andhra Pradesh. The accident occurred when the car she was traveling in lost control, collided with a divider, and was then struck by a bus from Hyderabad to Vanaparthi. Pavitra succumbed to her injuries at the scene of the accident. The incident also left her cousin Apeksha, driver Srikanth, and actor Chandrakanth seriously injured. Pavitra was en route to Hanakere in Mandya district, Karnataka, at the time of the accident. 5. Did You Know Sanjay Kapoor Once Cheated On Wife Maheep Kapoor? Here's What Happened After X In an episode of "Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives," Maheep Kapoor opened up about a personal experience involving her husband, Sanjay Kapoor, being unfaithful to her. She bravely shared the difficult decision she made to leave, taking their daughter Shanaya with her. Maheep told Zoom, I feel people just dont want to step out of the box and look at that person and try to stand in his shoes and understand. Give everybody a break, everyone is not perfect, everyone is going to **** up. Its fine. For more news and updates from the world of OTT, and celebrities from Bollywood and Hollywood, keep reading Indiatimes Entertainment. Bigg Boss OTT 3: The internet can not wait for updates on the upcoming season of the popular reality show Bigg Boss OTT. Salman Khan, the most loved host of the show, may not return for this season due to a problem with dates. Reports suggest that if Salman is unavailable, the producers are considering other prominent Bollywood stars to take over hosting duties. Names like Sanjay Dutt, Anil Kapoor, and Karan Johar have been mentioned as potential replacements. Who Will Host Bigg Boss OTT 3? A source close to the project revealed to Pinkvilla, "Salman Khan is facing date issues, however, makers are keen on having him onboard. In case, Khan's schedule didn't work out, makers have approached Sanjay Dutt, Anil Kapoor, and Karan Johar to host the show." X Bigg Boss OTT Winners In the first season of Bigg Boss OTT, Divya Agarwal emerged as the winner, with Nishant Bhatt securing the first runner-up position. In the second season, YouTuber Elvish Yadav clinched the victory, while Abhishek Malhan was the first runner-up. Also read: Bigg Boss 16 Fame Abdu Rozik Set To Marry In July! Here's How He Found His True Love In Dubai Who Are The Contestants Of Bigg Boss OTT 3? Media reports suggest that Chandrika Dixit, known for her Delhi Vada Pav brand, might participate in the upcoming season of the show. Over the past month, she has dominated social media conversations. Her initial viral fame came from a video showing her selling vada pav for Rs 50 in Delhi, showcasing her engaging conversational style with customers. While some praised her for her hard work, others found her irritating. Also read: After Bigg Boss 10, Heeramandi Actor Jason Shah To Participate In Salman Khan's Bigg Boss OTT 3 A recent report on Zoom suggests that the producers of Salman Khan's Bigg Boss OTT 3 are eager to have her join the show and have already extended an offer. However, she is currently contemplating the offer and has not yet confirmed her participation in the reality show. As per ABP, Rumors have been circulating about the possible contestants for this season of Bigg Boss OTT. Names such as Vicky Jain, Delbar Arya, Thugesh, Shehzada Dhami, Pratiksha Honmukhe, Sreerama Chandra, Sheezan Khan, Arhaan Behll, Sana Saeed, and Shivangi Joshi have been mentioned. For more news and updates from the world of OTT, and celebrities from Bollywood and Hollywood, keep reading Indiatimes Entertainment. The Cannes Film Festival 2024 stands as one of the globe's most esteemed celebrations of cinema, drawing renowned figures from around the world. As the 77th edition approaches, anticipation for this prestigious event builds. Numerous Indian artists have graced Cannes in previous years and are poised to make a comeback at this year's festival. When To Watch Cannes Film Festival 2024? The 77th Cannes Film Festival is slated to occur from May 14 to May 25, 2024, at the Palais des Festivals et des Congres in Cannes, France. Screenings of selected films across various segments will unfold during this timeframe, with the opening ceremony kicking off on May 14.The closing ceremony, scheduled for May 25, will announce the winners of the competition section. Filmmaker and actress Greta Gerwig will preside over the jury, selecting the victors from the 22 films in contention this year. The event's opening hours are from 8 am to 8 pm for the opening ceremony (11:30 am to 11:30 pm IST), and from May 15 to May 25, 9 am to 6 pm (12:30 pm to 9:30 pm IST). X Also Read: Two Indian Films Enter Cannes Competition After 30 Years Of Wait, Who All Have Won It Before? Where To Watch Cannes Film Festival 2024? According to the official website, all exclusive content from the event will be broadcast on France Televisions within France. For international audiences, Brut will be airing the Cannes Film Festival 2024. Additionally, the event can be streamed live on the festival's YouTube channel and official websites. Also read: India At Cannes 2024: 7 Indian Movies That Will Be Screened At The 77th Cannes Film Festival What Is The Cannes Film Festival About? The Cannes Film Festival, also known as Festival de Cannes, is a highly prestigious international event held annually in Cannes, France. Established in 1946, the festival presents a diverse selection of films, including documentaries, from around the globe. It is famous for its glamorous red carpet affairs, where celebrities and filmmakers congregate to honor the art of cinema. Alongside screenings and premieres, the festival hosts various competitions, with the prestigious Palme d'Or being the top prize awarded to the best film in the official competition. Beyond being a platform for new cinematic works, Cannes serves as a central hub for networking, deal-making, and advancing the worldwide film industry. For more news and updates from the world of OTT, celebrities from Bollywood and Hollywood, keep reading Indiatimes Entertainment. While the Cannes Film Festival is known to give exposure to striking films being made across the world, it has always been synonymous with great fashion and Indians have always put their best foot forward with statement-making showcases. Getty With just a day to go for the prestigious film festival to commence in Cannes, France, we are sure that you are eager to see who will show up on the red carpet. While you wait to see this year's looks, take a walk down the memory lane. Here's a look at the most iconic debut appearances of Bollywood divas at the Cannes red carpet. Cannes Iconic Debut Looks 1) Aishwarya Rai Bachchan Instagram and Pinterest Aishwarya Rai Bachchan made her debut at the Cannes Film Festival in 2002 when she walked the ramp with co-actor Shah Rukh Khan and director Sanjay Leela Bhansali for their film 'Devdas'. The actor arrived in a carriage wearing a stunning yellow Neeta Lulla saree that she paired with heavy gold jewellery. 2) Sonam Kapoor Pinterest The fashion icon turned heads during her first appearance on the Cannes red carpet in 2011 wearing a Jean Paul Gaultier couture gown that she accessorised with an Amrapali ring and Chopard earrings. 3) Priyanka Chopra Jonas priyankachopra/Instagram Priyanka stunned everyone when she arrived at the Cannes red carpet in a shimmery black and red strapless gown designed by Roberto Cavalli in 2019. She paired the dazzling gown with Chopard earrings. 4) Deepika Padukone Pinterest Deepika made her first-ever appearance at Cannes in 2010 in a white and gold saree designed by Rohit Bal. A low bun, kundan earrings, a gold cuff bracelet and a bindi completed her look. 5) Anushka Sharma The actor made her grand debut at Cannes last year in a cream off-shoulder ruffled Richard Quinn number. The embellished gown was designed with huge flowers on the bosom. The actor opted for a minimal look with a sleek bun, natural makeup and simple accessories. 6) Sara Ali Khan The actor went full 'desi' and went with an ivory and beige Abu Jani-Sandeep Khosla lehenga with two dupattas for her first appearance at Cannes in 2023. The multi-panel lehenga featured beautiful hand embroidery while the top was embellished with crystals, pearls, and resham. 7) Vidya Balan Pinterest Vidya debuted on the Cannes red carpet in 2013 in a gold silk saree by Sabyasachi Mukherjee. The actor's elegant saree was accompanied by a full-sleeved maroon blouse, a low bun and statement gold earrings. As actors Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Aditi Rao Hydari, and Sobhita Dhulipala have confirmed their appearance at the upcoming film festival, we're in for some of the best fashion moments by our Bollywood divas and it's going to be a treat to the eyes. Also Read: Met Gala : 13 Most Glamorous Accessories Of All Time For more on lifestyle, astrology and health from around the world please visit Indiatimes Lifestyle. Every vote counts because it's your voice shaping our future. A woman from Patna, Bihar showed her dedication to the nation by stepping out to vote even while shes battling cancer and is currently bed ridden. Voting from a stretcher Despite being severely ill and surviving solely on water for four days, Shubhadra Devi was determined to cast her vote in Bihar's Darbhanga. Her son, Vijay Kumar Mishra, took her on a stretcher to the local school serving as a polling booth. Shubhadra Devi/ NDTV Visuals from the scene showed voters respectfully making way for the stretcher, allowing them to proceed towards the voting room after completing the necessary formalities. Despite her prolonged illness, Ms. Devi, a resident of Chaugma village, insisted on exercising her civic duty. According to Mr. Mishra, she expressed her desire to vote even in her final moments. Shubhadra Devi/ NDTV He stated, "My mother voted today while fulfilling her civic duty in the last moments of her life. She has been very ill for a long time and has been taking only a few drops of water for the last four days. When asked, she expressed her desire to vote." Lok Sabha Elections 2024: 4th phase of voting underway Voting began for Phase 4 of the Lok Sabha elections at 7 am on Monday, May 13. This phase includes 96 seats across 10 States and Union Territories. Lok Sabha Elections 2024 Around 17.7 crore voters can participate, with over 1,717 candidates competing for seats in this round. Following Phase 4, there are three more phases of voting: Phase 5 on May 20, Phase 6 on May 25, and Phase 7 on June 1. For more on news and current affairs from around the world, please visit Indiatimes News. India was ready to host Tesla CEO Elon Musk last month, However, he cancelled at the last minute citing other investor meetings. A week later, Musk made a surprise visit to China to sign a major deal with tech giant Baidu. Many were taken aback when he chose China over India. India-American academic, entrepreneur and author Vivek Wadhwa took to social media and revealed that he had asked Elon Musk to consider moving his manufacturing unit to India. Had he done so, he would have ruled the market by now. Wadha even advised him to not pick China as it would rob him blind. Also Read: Before Narayana Murthys 70-Hour Advice, It Was Elon Musk Who Rallied For 100-hour Work Week observer Following Elon Musk's sudden cancellation of his planned visit to India, where he was scheduled to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and unveil a $3 billion investment, Wadhwa's post on X emerged. Musk subsequently made an appearance in China just days later. Elon Is Going To Be The Biggest Loser, Says Vivek Wadhwa Elon is going to be the biggest loser here. A few years ago, I exchanged emails with him about the risks in China. I warned him they would rob him blind and urged him to consider moving manufacturing to India instead, where he would have dominated the market by now, said Wadhwa in the post. Also Read- Wealth Wisdom: 5 Money Habits Of Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates, Elon Musk And Fellow Billionaires Elon is going to be the biggest loser here. A few years ago, I exchanged emails with him about the risks in China. I warned him they would rob him blind and urged him to consider moving manufacturing to India instead, where he would have dominated the market by now. https://t.co/yohQBhz2JN Vivek Wadhwa (@wadhwa) May 12, 2024 He quoted a post by Director of Centre for Russia Europe Asia Studies, Theresa Fallon, who said that US and European automakers are failing in China because they were looking only for short-term gain and transferring technology, management techniques and know-how to China. It was good while it lasted but that era is over, said Fallon. Elon Musks China Visit Musk met Premier Li Qiang to discuss the rollout of Teslas Full Self-Driving (FSD) software and the data-transfer permissions. Tesla received a significant endorsement from a prominent Chinese auto association, affirming that Tesla's Model 3 and Y vehicles adhere to data-security regulations. This development potentially opens doors for Tesla to access regions in China that were previously off-limits. Additionally, Tesla forged an agreement with Baidu, securing access to its mapping license for data gathering on Chinese public roads. yahoo finance Following these advancements, Elon Musk took to X to announce the imminent availability of Tesla's Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology to customers in China. Concurrently, Chinese competitors like XPeng and Huawei Technologies are also gearing up to introduce their own self-driving software solutions. Imagine this: you're gearing up for a birthday or success party at home. The music's pumping, the snacks are laid out, and you're about to open the first bottle of scotch or whisky or a beer, a question hits you: how much booze can you legally keep at home in India? Don't panic! We're here to demystify the rules and regulations, so you can enjoy your bash without any legal bumps in the road. So, grab a seat, pour yourself a drink (keep it under control), and let's unravel the mysteries of Indian alcohol laws together! and find out how much alcohol you can legally store at home state-wise in India: Delhi: In Delhi, residents can stock up to 18 liters of liquor at home, which includes beer and wine. But when it comes to rum, whisky, vodka, or gin, the limit is capped at 9 liters. And if you're planning a little party elsewhere, you're only allowed to take one liter of alcohol outside Delhi. Haryana: Moving over to Haryana, the limits are quite specific: 6 bottles of local liquor (750 ml each), 18 bottles of IMFL (with a maximum of 6 being imported), 12 beer bottles (650 ml), 6 rum bottles (750 ml), 6 vodka/cider/gin bottles (750 ml), and 12 wine bottles. Also Read: Sanjay Dutt's Whisky Glenwalk Records 3X Sales Surge In A Year; What's The Price Per Bottle? Punjab: In Punjab, the rules are a tad stricter: two bottles of Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL), a case of beer, two foreign liquor bottles, two domestic liquor bottles, and one bottle of brandy. Liquor Shops | Photo: BCCL Uttar Pradesh: Uttar Pradesh keeps it simple: 1.5 liters for foreign alcoholic beverages, 2 liters for wine, and 6 liters for beer. Andhra Pradesh: Down in Andhra Pradesh, you can stash three bottles of IMFL or foreign liquor, along with six beer bottles, without needing a permit. Also Read; Rampur Signature Reserve: India's Most Expensive Whisky Sells At Rs 5 Lakh Per Bottle Arunachal Pradesh: But in Arunachal Pradesh, watch out! Without a proper liquor license, you're not allowed more than 18 liters of IMFL or Country Liquor under the Arunachal Pradesh Excise Act. West Bengal: West Bengal allows individuals over 21 to purchase and keep six 750 ml bottles of Indian Manufactured Foreign Liquor and up to 18 beer bottles without a license. Assam: In Assam, daily retail limits include 12 bottles of IMFL, 4.5 liters of rectified or denatured spirit, and 3 bottles (750 ml each) of "reputed" country spirit per person. Goa: Goa residents are permitted 12 IMFL bottles, 24 beer bottles, 18 country liquor bottles, and 6 bottles each of rectified and denatured spirit. Himachal Pradesh: Himachal Pradesh residents can possess 48 beer bottles and 36 whisky bottles. Kerala: Kerala's alcohol consumption cap stands at 3 liters of IMFL and 6 liters of beer. BCCL/ Representational Image Madhya Pradesh: Madhya Pradesh offers a unique option: individuals with high incomes can store up to 100 "expensive" alcohol bottles at home for an annual fee. Maharashtra: In Maharashtra, alcohol consumption requires a license. Permits are necessary for purchasing, transporting, and consuming both domestic and imported alcoholic beverages. Rajasthan: In Rajasthan, residents are allowed to carry up to 12 bottles or nine liters of IMFL. Also Read: From Watches To Whisky: Indias Super Rich Invest 17% Of Their Fortunes In These 10 Things Jammu & Kashmir: In Jammu & Kashmir, permitted storage comprises 12 bottles of IMFL, which even includes the 750 ml JK Desi Whisky, along with 12 beer bottles at 650 ml each. Dry States: However, it's a different story in dry states like Mizoram, Gujarat, Bihar, Nagaland, and Lakshadweep, where alcohol is strictly banned. Breaking this law can result in serious consequences. (Source: ET Now) For the latest and more interesting financial news, keep reading Indiatimes Worth. Click here Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's meeting on Monday and the extended meetings with delegations, lasted for over 1.5 hours in Ankara, government sources said. Talks included bilateral and international issues, such as developments in the Middle East, Gaza, and Ukraine. The talks were held in a cordial climate, sources said, while the two leaders ageed that the next meeting of the Greece-Turkiye High-Level Cooperation Council (HLCC) will take place in Ankara around the end of the year. It was also agreed that Greek-Turkish meetings be repeated, as agreed at Vilnius, on the basis of three axes: political dialog, positive agenda, and Confidence Building Measures. iefimerida.gr Greece and Turkiye can "establish an approach of mutual understanding not as an exception, but as a productive normalcy that is not annulled by the well-known differences in our positions," Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said after meeting in Ankara with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday. In joint press statements, he said their meeting, the fourth in the last ten months, was proof of that, and he underlined that it was a positive development at a difficult time for international peace and stability in the region. "This approach has already led to tangible results with great benefit," Mitsotakis added, referring among others to the agreement to found a business council. Both Greeks and Turks are now enjoying the results of a significant initiative, allowing Turkish citizens to travel to 10 Greek islands with a quickly issued visa, he noted. Speaking of the migration issue, the Greek premier said the collaboration with Turkiye on illegal flows and human traffickers and "must continue and be intensified." He added that both countries "have been pressured by migrations and Greece always agreed and continues to agree to Turkiye's funding by the European Union." Mitsotakis referred to the Greek Muslim minority in Thrace, noting, "The minorities in our countries that are defined by the Lausanne Treaty comprise a bridge of friendship. The Lausanne Treaty explicitly foresees the definition of the minority as a religious one, and the practical interest in its welfare is confirmed by the practical compliance with the principles of equality and equity, and by adopting specific measures that Muslims in our country enjoy." The Greek PM added that "it would be a welcome fact if the continuously shrinking Hellenism in Turkiye experienced the same flourishing." The Greek premier said he also raised the issue of the conversion of Chora Monastery in Istanbul to a mosque. "We had the opportunity to discuss our sadness, our protest for the fact," he said, adding that "at the very least, it is very important to preserve the monument's unique cultural value, so that it may be open to visits by all." In terms of developments in Ukraine and the Middle East, Mitsotakis said, "We do not always agree with Turkiye on issues related to the Middle East. Athens' position is that Israel has every right to defend itself. However, we do agree on that the asymmetric use of force and bloodshed in the region must end and lead to a lasting ceasefire, on protecting the civilians of Gaza, and on freeing the hostages. We agree that it would be a colossal error to attack Gaza by land. The only viable solution is the return to a political process and the two-state solution." Speaking of the Cyprus issue, the Greek premier said "obviously we disagree, but the antidote to the impasse is dialog, nothing else," and he said the special envoy of the UN Secretary General must be given time. Greece has supported and continues to support Turkiye's European prospects, as long as the European acquis is respected. "Today we showed that next to our established differences of opinion we can still proceed in parallel with our agreements," he added, speaking of the agreements signed in Ankara on Monday. "We wish to intensify our bilateral contacts and continue on the positive path," he said. The Greek premier also noted that he and Erdogan would meet bilaterally again, possibly at the NATO Summit in Washington in July, and definitely in the framework of the UN General Assembly meeting in New York in September, as well as at the Greece-Turkiye High-Level Cooperation Council to be scheduled at the end of the year. When President Erdogan said they disagreed on calling Hamas a terrorist organization, Mitsotakis responded, "Let us agree we disagree on this issue, but agree on the need for an immediate ceasefire and, above all, on protecting the civilian Palestinians." Erdogan responded, "That can be done." President Erdogan On his part, Turkish President Erdogan said that the two countries, "despite our disagreements, we are keeping our communications channels open and focusing on the positive agenda." Erdogan said that boosting the spirit of collaboration between Turkiye and Greece would benefit the entire region. "I shared my belief that there is no problem between Greece and Turkiye that cannot be resolved. It is about a process. It must proceed meticulously, in order to provide more results. [] In our meetings, we discussed the interrelated problems in Greek-Turkish relations. We are committed to our will to resolve our issues in the framework of sincere dialog, good neighborliness, and international law." Greece and Turkiye are working to increase bilateral trade from the 6 billion dollars it was last year to 10 billion dollars, the Turkish president said. He also announced the signing of an agreement to found the Greek-Turkish Business Council, and two more agreements on collaboration in natural disasters and in the sector of health. Fighting terrorist organizations is a priority of the bilateral agenda, Erdogan noted, adding that cooperation with Greece on that issue was becoming stronger. Commenting on the conversion of Chora Monastery to a mosque, the Turkish leader noted that Turkiye is a model country in terms of protecting cultural heritage. "We turned over the Kariye mosque to religious worship and to visitors after works of meticulous restoration following our decision in 2020. We attach great significance to the protection of every work that is a UNESCO asset, and its return for use by our nation and all of humanity. The Kariye mosque is open to all," he underlined. Erdogan also referred to the Greek Muslim minority in Greece as 'Turkish' and said he saw it as a human bridge between the two cultures. "We expect that the positive atmosphere in our relations contributes to the satisfaction of the rights of the Turks and expatriates in Greece," he said, while on the Cyprus issue he added that a just and permanent solution on Cyprus - "based on the realities on the island" - will contribute to stability and peace in the entire region. iefimerida.gr Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama addresses Albanian community in Athens during a sensitive private visit, commending them for their resilience in facing challenges and adversity. An alleged notorious member of Jamaat Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Dawah wal-Jihad, also known as Boko Haram, Alhaji Wosai, has surrendered to the Nigerian troops of Operation Hadin Kai in Borno State. At the weekend, Zagazola Makama, a counter-insurgency publication focused on the Lake Chad region, said Wosai surrendered to the army on Saturday. Advertisement Wosai was said to have escaped from an enclave of insurgents in Garno village in Borno state. It was gathered that the terrorist surrendered on May 11, 2024, to the troops of 21 Armored Brigade after escaping from the enclave of the insurgents in Garno village in Borno. READ ALSO: Kaduna Man Abducts Cousin, Throws Dead Body In Well Intelligence sources informed Zagazola Makama that he surrendered with 1 Ak 47 rifle and 1 Magazine filled with 7.63MM 39 MM Special ammunition. The militant is in the military custody for profiling, the publication disclosed. In April, a Boko Haram fighter identified as Sajeh Yaga reportedly surrendered to troops of Operation Hadin Kai after he sneaked out from the terrorists camp in Sambisa forest. Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - A total of 76 migrants were intercepted and returned to Libya between 5-11 May, announced the International Organization for Migration (IOM) here Monday Bovi Ugboma, a Nigerian comedian, has expressed disappointment over his African Magic Viewers Choice Awards, AMVCA loss. The comedian, who was nominated for Best Writing TV Series for his work on Visa On Arrival at the recently concluded 10th African Magic Viewers Choice Awards, lost to Volume by Mona Ombogo. Taking to Instagram to bemoan, he stated that he has received 7 nominations since its establishment, four of which are solo nominations, but has not won any. Advertisement Despite this, he anticipated that before the 20th anniversary of AMVCA, he would have won 10 awards. READ MORE: AMVCA 2024: Wale Ojo Celebrates Best Lead Actor Win For Movie Breath Of Life Sharing a picture of himself on Instagram, he wrote, amvca10 All my nominations since inception -7 Individual nominations- 4 Wins- 0 Expected wins before #amvca20 10 Congrats to all the winners from last night. Very deserving. SEE POST: The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) says underage persons involved in internet fraud are resorting to forging their ages to open bank accounts and obtain drivers licences This, the anti-graft said is enabling the young yahoo boys to launder proceeds from their illicit activities. Effa Okim, the EFCC Zonal Director for Edo, Delta, and Ondo States, disclosed this during a weekend courtesy visit to the Edo State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), led by Comrade Festus Alenkhe. Advertisement Okim expressed concern over the fraudulent practices of underage Yahoo boys, who deceive authorities by falsely declaring themselves to be 18 years old to open bank accounts. READ ALSO: She Has Large Head, Wide Mouth, Tribal Marks Police Describe UK-Based Blogger Declared Wanted For Murder, Cyberstalking He lamented that when these individuals are apprehended for their criminal acts, their parents often claim they are underage, despite evidence of their involvement in criminal activities. The underaged Yahoo boys go and meet some authorities and do age declaration stating that they are 18 years old just to enable them to open accounts and put their criminal structures in place and at the end when they are arrested, their fathers will be saying their children are underage, he said. The Director warned that parents of convicted Yahoo boys who colluded in the forgery of documents would face legal consequences. He disclosed that Edo State ranks second only to Lagos in terms of convictions, a fact that he deemed alarming and damaging to the states reputation. Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, has posited that the Governor of Rivers State, Siminalayi Fubara can not change the sitting venue of the State House of Assembly. Falana who stated this in on Channels Televisions Sunday Politics, said Fubara does not have the power to direct members of the State Assembly to meet at the Government House. Advertisement According to him, the legislature is independent of the executive arm of the government. His words: I would like to assume that the governor issued that executive order before the intervention of the High Court in Rivers State. The house is independent of the executive. So the governor cannot tell the house where to sit. Meanwhile, the presidency has said President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will not take sides between Minister of Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike and Fubara over the ongoing political crisis rocking the State. READ ALSO: Fubara Makes Executive Order Moving Rivers Assembly Sitting To Govt House Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to Tinubu, Ajuri Ngelale disclosed this during an interview on Television Continental. Ngelale said that anyone with the belief that President Tinubu would take their side in the political crisis would be disappointed. According to him, President Tinubu wont allow any attempt to frustrate the Rivers government. He said, I believe that anyone who believes that by their actions, whether its from the Federal level, State level or the legislative branch in the State or the executive branch in the state; if they are banking on Mr. President to take sides on this matter, theyre mistaking and theyll be disappointed, he added. Mr. President will not do that. What he will do is to ensure that everybody has what they need in order to work. He will also ensure that any attempt to frustrate the operation of the Rivers State Government of conducting its affairs in a way that it would benefit the Rivers people, thats obviously not going to be allowed by this President or anybody else. So, I think theres a need for all stakeholders to understand that Mr President wont take sides, Ngelale furthered. Caretaker Committee Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State, Tony Okocha, has asserted that Governor Siminalayi Fubara did not vote for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the 2023 presidential election. Okocha made this claim on Sunday, during a protest organized by leaders of the APC and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) against Fubaras alleged plan to demolish the House of Assembly Quarters in Port Harcourt. Advertisement His words: This shows the world that Rivers people are united. We are one. The speaker had taken us around the premises and had given us the synopsis of what transpired when the governor, in a Gestapo manner, cane with thugs to harass the inhabitants here. READ ALSO: Fubara Cant Change Rivers Assembly Sitting Venue Falana 27 lawmakers are members of our party and we owe them the responsibility to protect and defend them. At every twist and turn, the governor attempts to see how he can curry political patronage by claiming he supports Mr. President. It is not true. It is a fluke. The world should know that they are not supporters of Mr. President. They want to lash on it to see whether they can continue to engage in their illegality. As chairman of APC, Rivers State, I have looked at the voting details in the past election and it is clear to me that the governor did not vote for Mr. President. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo advised Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke on Sunday not to give up on the states infrastructure development goals. Obasanjo, who spoke during the inauguration of a VIP lodge, an edifice located within the premises of the Osun State Government House in Osogbo, remembered a private chat he had with Adeleke in which he told him not to stop dancing but to work extremely hard to improve the lives of the states citizens. The former president, who called himself Adelekes dancing partner, also urged the governor to unite the Peoples Democratic Party in the state, adopt excellent policies that benefit people, and ensure appropriate documentation of all his accomplishments as governor. Advertisement Speaking in a mixture of Yoruba and English language, Obasanjo said, Some people once despise you, calling you a mere dancer. In reply, I told them that it is only happy people that dance. From now on, you are my dancing partner. What I have heard and seen since three days that I have been here if there is anyone doubting you, bring the person to your state to see for himself or herself. If you remember that at one time, I called you on the phone and I said Dont stop dancing but I added that, as you are dancing, ensure you are working. If I tell that I dont know what happened before you get to government, I will be telling a lie. But you did something last week Sunday that I appreciate. You called leaders of your party together. I am happy that you called them and bring them together. Senator Olu Alabi is here, ex-governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola is here and Fatai Akinbade too. You should bring everyone on board. That is the best thing to do. I have talked to two out of the three of them. It is a good move, which is not only good for your party, but for the state and the country. You said government is a continuum; you also said you are working on all abandoned projects; may God crown your efforts. Anywhere our path cross, we will dance and rejoice. If anybody want to abuse us, they should go ahead. In project management, there is no end to it, you have to prioritise within priorities.I am happy that you are taking them one after the other. You have to be honest with your conscience, with the people and with your God. You have to be a man of character. Speaking previously, Adeleke stated that his administration had finished some key capital projects, while work was also underway on many others included in his infrastructure plan. READ MORE: Stop Tolerating Disrespect Because You Dont Want To Lose People Portables Wife Omobewaji Asserts According to him, the VIP Lodge would allow his administration to reduce the expense of hosting key individuals visiting the state, and the projects completion would mark a significant step towards cost efficiency. Adeleke, nicknamed dancing governor due to his love of dancing, took the oath of office as the sixth elected governor of Osun State on Sunday, November 27, 2022, following in the political footsteps of his late elder brother, Senator Isiaka Adeleke, who was the states first elected governor. Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, says Rivers State House of Assembly members who quit the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to join the All Progressives Congress (APC) can no longer be considered legislators as they have lost their positions. Recall that 25 lawmakers loyal to the immediate past governor of Rivers State and the current Minister of the Federal Capital Territory Nyesom Wike had defected to the APC amid the political impasse involving him and Governor Siminalayi Fubara. In an interview on Channels Television on Sunday, the human rights activist cited cases where the Supreme Court had ruled that its illegal for lawmaker to dump a political party on whose platform he was elected. Advertisement The 25 lawmakers who defected have lost their seats. They have lost their rights to remain members of the Assembly. In the case of Adetunde and the Labour Party, the Supreme Court made it clear that you cannot decamp and then remain a member of a legislative house in Nigeria unless you can show that there is a division in your party. Today, the PDP is one, he said. READ ALSO: Fubara Cant Change Rivers Assembly Sitting Venue Falana The crisis bedeviling the oil-rich State took a new turn last week when some of the lawmakers elected Victor Oko-Jumbo as the speaker. Oko-Jumbo who represents the Bonny constituency was elected by the lawmakers said to be loyal to Fubara. Falana, has, however, said that the lawmakers need a quorum to elect a speaker. Again, we have to look at the Constitution. Before the House can conduct proceedings, the House must form a quorum to conduct the business of the House, and a quorum in the Constitution is defined. But if you want to remove the governor by way of impeachment, again you must have a two-thirds majority of the legislature. This is very clear, Falana added. Shan George, a veteran actress, recently detailed how scammers gained access to her account. It should be noted that the movie diva had stepped out on May 4, to raise an alert and pleaded for aid after whopping amount of N3.6m was abruptly transferred from her account. She had cried out at the moment, regretting that the banks wouldnt be open because it was the weekend. Advertisement On May 8, she resorted to social media to announce that she had retrieved her money. In an interview with Ruth Osime on Arise Tv over the weekend, Shan George narrated the event that led to her ordeal. READ MORE: I Got My Money Back Shan George Gives Update On N3.6M Wiped From Her Account While speaking she said, A few days prior to the incident, I was in search of a method to obtain my bank statement from the bank. Anticipating the need to submit a soft copy for my visa application, I had requested for my bank statement to be sent to my email. However, on that particular Thursday, which marked the fourth day, I departed from the bank feeling extremely frustrated as I had spent the entire day there. To my dismay, the bank closed at its designated closing time, while I was still inside, only to hear the repeated announcement of no network, no network. After departing from the bank, I pondered on the method to obtain my bank statement. The following day, Friday morning, was the deadline for submitting that specific document, along with the other documents I had already gathered. Uncertain of what to do, I turned to Twitter in hopes of grabbing the attention of a Zenith bank employee who could potentially assist me. Hence, I composed a tweet stating, Dear Zenith Bank, I am experiencing a prolonged network outage. Could you please provide an update? So I tweeted that, and a lot of people started bickering and I just left the thing there. Later on when I came back, I saw that somebody had responded with a Zenith Bank page. So the person said, but you dont have to go to the bank for your bank statement, its something you can actually do on your own. So, it now dawned on me that this one that technology is moving very fast and some of us are old school and not catching up, I thought that was a good suggestion. So I agreed to what the person said, and the person now sent a number that I should chat with them on Whatsapp. So I went on Whatsapp and the Whatsapp had a verified blue tick with the Zenith Bank logo. So the person now said just fill this link and well send the email to you in less than 30 minutes. Im usually very careful. Ive been very careful about these internet things being that Im not so knowlegeable about it so the fear of falling for something I dont know, I ignore anything that makes me click link or anything. I even hardly do online shopping. So after I now entered my details into the link the person sent me to get the email, I now said let me take a nap. After a few minutes again, I saw that I had different notifications from different platforms. So I entered the email because I was anxious for that bank statement. When I entered the email is when I now saw an email from Zenith Bank telling me that somebody is trying to log into my app. Immediately I entered my text messages and I saw that I had quite a number of them. I checked and then I saw that the text messages were a range of alerts. They removed the money in bits and with different names. Watch the interview below The Nigeria Police Force (NPF), on Sunday, declared one Dorcas Adeyinka wanted in connection with alleged murder. The police also alleged that the Nigerian blogger based in the United Kingdom, is linked with cyber-stalking, abduction, murder, injurious falsehood, threat to life and extortion. Advertisement In a post via X, the police described the suspect as 1.64m tall. The force highlighted other attributes of the suspect to include big chin, full lip, wide mouth, and a large head size. The police said the suspect hails from Ekiti state but lives in the UK and frequently visits Ikeja, Fagba, Ogudu, and Sango. READ ALSO: Benue Violence: Four Feared Dead In Mbachon And Mbagbe Communities The bulletin further noted her last known address as 833 Woolick Road in the United Kingdom. The police however promised a handsome reward for anyone providing information on her whereabouts. Adeyinkas family had, in April, accused the Lagos State Police Command of conducting a biased and lopsided probe, after she was arrested for the same cyberbullying and cyberstalking. They claimed that she had been subjected to threats to life, cyberstalking and bullying by suspected Nigerian bloggers who use various social media accounts to harass her The organised labour on Monday, commenced nationwide protests over the removal of subsidy from the power sector by the Federal Government. INFORMATION NIGERIA reports that the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) shut down offices of Distribution Companies across the nation. Recall that the unions had earlier given a deadline of May 12 for the upward review to be cancelled. Advertisement This was made known in a joint statement made available by NLCs Ag General Secretary Chris Uyot and his TUC counterpart, Anka Hassan. The statement reads: We write to inform you of the picketing action scheduled to take place in the offices of the NERC and Electricity Distribution companies (DISCOS) in all states, including the FCT. The action will jointly take place on Monday, 13th of May, 2024 nationwide simultaneously. Therefore, the two Labour centres are directed to work together to carry out this important action. While counting on your usual cooperation, kindly accept the assurances of our goodwill and highest regards. READ MORE: Cybersecurity Levy: TUC Slams NASS, Threatens Nationwide Shutdown According to Channels TV, as early as 7AM on Monday, members of the labour unions blocked the main gate of the distribution company located in the Kaduna State capital amidst tight security. Staff of the company were also prevented from going into the premises as the protesting union members demand for the reversal of the tariff hike. In Kwara State, the union members blocked the entrance of the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company in the state capital Ilorin. Led by the state chairman of the NLC, gate of the company was locked and the staff were prevented from gaining access into their offices as early as eight 8AM on Monday morning. A man attacked an off-duty officer before wresting away his personal firearm and hitting the officer with a car as he fled the scene, part of a melee that erupted in North Philadelphia and left the officer with a concussion, police said. Police are now searching for another man they say hit the officer multiple times in the face. Advertisement The officer, who has been with the police department for nine years, had just wrapped up his overnight shift at the 22nd Police District at 7:12 a.m. Sunday and was on his way home in his personal car, wearing plain clothes, when he drove up to a crowd in the street and a black BMW blocking the intersection of West Oxford Street and Ridge Avenue, said Deputy Police Commissioner Frank Vanore. After waiting around four minutes for the car to move, the officer, whose name was not released, honked his horn, prompting a woman who was talking to someone in the BMW to start yelling at the officer. Then, a man who police say goes by the name Duke approached the officer and began arguing with him before punching the officer several times in the left side of his face, said Vanore. After the first attack, the officer got out of the car and identified himself as a police officer and the man known as Duke brandished a gun and pointed it at the officer, he said. After the officer called for backup and he continued to struggle with Duke, another man, later identified as 24-year-old Yusef Coleman, who police say had a gun, attacked the officer, putting him in a headlock from behind, police said. As the officer struggled with Coleman, he grabbed Coles gun and pulled the trigger to clear the guns chamber, said Vanore. No one was injured by that shot, he said. More people joined the fight and the officer struggled with as many as 12 people, said Vanore. At one point, he said, someone called on the 24-year-old to grab a gun the officer had in his waistband, and the man was able to take the gun and run from the scuffle, getting away in the BMW. Police later said Duke pointed a gun at the officer and demanded he release his firearm before Coleman was able to steal it, police said. The officer was taken to Temple University Hospital and was being treated for injuries to his face and a concussion, said Vanore. Police released images of Coleman and he was arrested Sunday at G and Hilton Streets, in Kensington, Vanore said. He was charged with criminal conspiracy, aggravated assault, assault of a law enforcement officer, and related crimes. Police recovered the officers firearm, a Glock 9mm, on Tuesday. Officers recovered the assailants gun, which had an obliterated serial number, after it dropped on the ground at the scene of the fight, said Vanore. Three women police said were involved in the skirmish went to the 22nd District and gave statements at the departments officer-involved-shooting unit, said Vanore. As of Monday afternoon, the women had not been charged. Police are searching for the man who goes by the name Duke, who was described as heavy set and 6 feet tall, and asked anyone with information to call the officer-involved shooting investigation unit at 215-683-1866. New York, US (PANA) - A staff member of the UN Department of Safety and Security (DSS) died and another was injured when their UN vehicle was struck as they travelled to the European Hospital in Rafah, Gaza, on Monday Bryn Mawr College traditionally has held its commencement ceremonies on Merion Green, a large outdoor space in the center of campus. But this year, a pro-Palestinian encampment remains in place on the site, so the womens college announced Monday that it would relocate the ceremonies. Advertisement The graduate ceremony on Friday and the undergraduate ceremony on Saturday will both be held at Applebee Field next to Cambrian Row on the western end of campus, Bryn Mawr president Kim Cassidy wrote in an email to the campus community. The senior awards ceremony on Thursday also will be held at the field, instead of on Merion Green, she said. READ MORE: Penn adds security, makes commencement changes as protests continue Commencement is a time-honored tradition, allowing graduates and their loved ones the opportunity to celebrate the achievement of earning a Bryn Mawr College degree, Cassidy wrote. I believe that not observing these ceremonies would harm our campus community and the families and friends of graduates who are excitedly anticipating these events. Graduates will receive more details Tuesday on new safety protocols that will be in place for the commencement, Cassidy wrote. A Bryn Mawr spokesperson said no additional details were available on the safety protocols. At Bryn Mawr, students erected the encampment on April 27, amid a flurry of similar activity at some colleges across the nation. There are about 25 tents on the site, the spokesperson said. READ MORE: Philly Police have cleared Penns Pro-Palestinian encampment and arrested 33 protesters At the University of Pennsylvania, police dismantled an encampment on Friday and arrested 33 participants, nine of them Penn students. That 35-tent encampment had been in place since April 27. An encampment at Rutgers University-New Brunswick was quietly taken down on May 2 after protesters reached an agreement with the administration. In addition to Bryn Mawr, an encampment also remains at Swarthmore College. READ MORE: While a few other universities reach compromises with protesters, why cant Penn? Swarthmore has not announced any changes to its commencement, scheduled for May 26. Commencement was held last year at the same place where the encampment is currently erected on Parrish Beach by Clothier Hall. And the plan is to hold it there again, a Swarthmore spokesperson said. Penn also plans to hold its commencement at Franklin Field next Monday, with some added security, the university said last week. Its encampment had been located on the College Green. The School District of Philadelphia headquarters at 440 N. Broad St. A federal discrimination complaint has been filed against the district, alleging antisemitism. Read more A federal complaint has been lodged against the Philadelphia School District, accusing the school system of antisemitism in connection with a series of incidents ranging from a swastika drawn on a door to fliers describing Israels military campaign in Gaza as genocide that a group of Jewish district parents say shows a troubling pattern. The U.S. Department of Educations Office of Civil Rights is investigating the claim, according to the School District of Philadelphia Jewish Family Association. A district spokesperson said she could not comment because of the ongoing investigation. Federal complaints over both antisemitism and Islamophobia have risen sharply since Oct. 7; both the University of Pennsylvania and Temple University have been the target of such inquiries in recent months. Advertisement The school district claim, reviewed by The Inquirer, centers on incidents at Masterman, the district magnet school in Center City. It was filed by a Masterman parent who is a member of the district Jewish families group and whose name is being withheld because of safety concerns. Organization officials say the Masterman incidents are representative of an issue at schools around the city. Weve seen so much antisemitism happening inside Philadelphia schools, and much of it has gone unchecked, said Jason Holtzman, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia. What does the complaint say happened at Masterman? The first incident cited in the federal complaint happened last July, when a Masterman student posted a picture of the Israeli flag with the word trash written across it. Another student captured the post and reported it to the district as cyberbullying. Multiple other incidents are described, including one in which a student dressed as a Palestinian freedom fighter for Halloween and attempted to drape another student in the Palestinian flag, one where a swastika was drawn on a school door, and another where a bake sale for Sudan was held in violation, the parent who filed the complaint said, of the districts fundraising policy. At the bake sale, the parent wrote, fliers were plastered about Israel committing genocide and occupation. In all cases, the complaint filed last month alleges, the district was informed and did nothing. The complaint cites non-Masterman matters, including the districts decision to continue to employ an assistant superintendent who resigned from her volunteer role as a Montgomery County school board member after she declared, in a social media post, that Israeli Defense Forces was a terrorist organization carrying out genocide against Palestinians. As a remedy, the group seeks a safe place for Jewish and Muslim students, plus fixes including a public apology to the community, training for administrators, a letter from Superintendent Tony B. Watlington Sr. condemning Hamas and advising no place for hate in our schools, counseling for students, and more. Why are some Jewish parents concerned about antisemitism at Philly schools? Holtzman said his organization has broad concerns, not just about Masterman but about teachers who are pushing for very inflammatory and extreme views on the war in Gaza. The Jewish families organization had previously raised objections about a Northeast High student assignment, a video of a podcast about Palestinian resistance art, that had been shown at one Black History Month assembly at the school. The video, which had initially been approved for public sharing, was banned by the district from being shared at subsequent assemblies, drawing protests over censorship from some and allegations of antisemitism by the recently formed School District of Philadelphia Jewish Family Association. Holtzman said the association members realize there are multiple narratives around the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. We realize that its painful. But whats happening thats really disturbing to us is that supporters of Israel are being labeled as genocidal. Theres been a lot of dehumanization of Jewish students, Jewish faculty. Events described by the group as antisemitic continue, said Holtzman, who described an Israeli student at Farrell Elementary in the Northeast who Holtzman said was pushed while their assailant shouted Free Palestine! The student was blamed for the incident and his mother ultimately unenrolled him from the school because he did not feel safe there. And at Baldi Middle School this month, a geography teacher changed the name of Israel to Palestine on a handout map of the Middle East given to sixth graders. The schools principal, Bianca Gillis, wrote to parents that the map did not reflect the political boundaries of Israel and the Palestinian territories, leaving students feeling unsupported. The teachers efforts to support some of their students, did not support all students in the way they deserve. Gillis wrote that the incident has deeply offended many of our students, staff and parents. I want to be crystal clear that this incident is unacceptable and we are currently looking into it, in accordance with our Code of Ethics and School Board Policies, respectively. We have also already addressed this with the individuals involved. What are Pro-Palestinian educators saying about the complaint? Philly Educators for Palestine, another new, grassroots group, said it had not been aware of the federal complaint in a statement. A spokesperson for the group said it had not heard of any instances of antisemitism or other discrimination in district schools but hoped the district advocates for restorative actions when these incidents occur. We do not, however, believe that critique of Israel or advocacy for Palestine are antisemitic. The group, whose statement was sent jointly with the Racial Justice Organizing Committee, also said it was aware of many cases of Islamophobia and anti-Palestinian hate and discrimination, which students have been facing long before October 7th. The group said it believed the federal complaint and other efforts to silence teachers and students are distractors from the carnage being inflicted upon Palestinians in Gaza by Israel. The pro-Palestinian teachers group said it stood beside our fellow educators who offer space for their students to learn about, process, and engage in respectful, healthy dialogue around the history of Israel and Palestine and the current genocide in Gaza. We fully support educators rights of free speech, especially outside of the classroom. A society that silences criticism of genocide and criminalizes those who speak out against these atrocities sets a very dangerous precedent. Comedian Shane Gillis lands a new Netflix deal, which includes a new special and the comedy series "Tires," set to premiere May 23. Read more Pennsylvania-born comedian Shane Gillis has a new Netflix comedy series set in his home state. Premiering on May 23, Tires follows a brewski-chugging guy named Shane (played by Gillis) as he attempts to save the Valley Forge Automotive Center, where he works for his cousin (Steven Gerben). Cue in fundraising hijinks, like a bikini car wash where Shane jokes that being old enough to be the girls dad is hot. The six-episode show comes after Gillis, who grew up in Mechanicsburg and spent time in Phillys comedy scene, debuted the successful 2023 stand-up special Beautiful Dogs, also on Netflix. Advertisement The comedian isnt quite a household name but Saturday Night Live fans might remember him as the cast member who never was. In 2019, the show announced that Gillis would join their comedy king-making lineup but rescinded its offer when clips of Gillis using racist and homophobic slurs resurfaced online. The show apologized, saying its vetting process was not up to our standard. Im a comedian who pushes boundaries. I sometimes miss, Gillis said at the time. Since that rocky reception on the national stage, Gillis has managed to find his own audience and toured across the country. Though SNL passed on hiring him full-time, Gillis was brought back as a host earlier this year, where he joked about being fired, saying, But if, you know, dont look that up, please, if you dont know who I am. Please, dont Google that. Its fine. Dont even worry about it. Gillis has also found a big supporter in Netflix, which has continued to promote specials from Dave Chappelle and Ricky Gervais amidst allegations of transphobia. Last week, Gillis participated in four events as part of its Netflix Is a Joke Fest. Tires, which he co-created with Gerben and series director John McKeever, was self-financed and independently produced. Netflix acquired the show earlier this year and plans to release a second Gillis stand-up special in the future. Brad Cosgrove, director and chief of emergency medical services for TowerDIRECT, sets up a demo practice blood unit in Phoenixville. Read more Paramedic Leonard Brown knew the patient a pale, Berks County man who could barely speak after days of internal bleeding needed a blood transfusion fast. But Brown did not have blood on his ambulance. On that day in April, the TowerDIRECT paramedic had to wait for dispatchers to send to the scene a critical care transport, a specialty truck staffed with a nurse and equipped with blood units. Advertisement Once the nurse delivered the blood, the patient rapidly improved. By the time we got him to the hospital, his color returned and he was much more alert, Brown said. He was talking. The next time Brown has a patient who needs blood, he will be able to provide the lifesaving resource himself. TowerDIRECT paramedics last month became the first in the Philadelphia area to carry blood for patient transfusions on their ambulances and are among the first in Pennsylvania to do so. They have expanded access after the state last year started allowing more health-care providers to give blood. This allows patients to receive blood earlier, which studies have shown improves survival and other outcomes. You should have all the tools in your tool kit to give the patient the best care, said Brian Lahmann, chair of emergency medicine at Tower Health. If there is significant blood loss, now there is blood available. Not just fancy fluids Blood transfusion used to be considered risky and too logistically complicated to perform outside the hospital walls and without a physician present. But the experiences of military medical units who carried blood in recent decades, as well as medical air transport programs, showed that blood could be delivered safely by paramedics in the field. Emergency medical services, or EMS, around the nation have been pushing state regulators for permission to carry blood. Ambulances in Texas have done so for years, and multiple cities have joined in recent months, including Washington, D.C., Indianapolis, and Atlanta. Research on these programs has found that giving blood before a patient arrives at the hospital can be the difference between life and death. One study found that each delayed minute in giving blood increased mortality rates for trauma patients by 11%. In Pennsylvania, paramedics until this year could have only treated such emergencies with other types of fluid, such as saline, to increase the volume of the blood. We gave them a fancy fluid, Lahmann said. But what they really needed was blood. Blood has been used in air transports for decades in Pennsylvania, according to the states Department of Health. Registered nurses with specific certification and physicians were able to give blood outside the hospital as their scope of practice. Last year, TowerDIRECT equipped its nurse-staffed critical care transport with blood for the first time. In the year since, the critical care transport has administered blood to 22 patients, said Brad Cosgrove, Towers chief of emergency medical services. Patients with internal bleeding, gunshot wounds, or injuries from accidents had better outcomes. Hey, this works. Can we make this more readily available? Cosgroves team wondered, he said. So when the health department updated its protocols in December last year to allow paramedics to also give blood, TowerDIRECT moved quickly to expand. In January, the state approved Tower Healths EMS responders to carry blood, the first in the state. EMS in the Pittsburgh area are also among those also now approved, and Southern Chester County EMS are hoping to roll out blood on their trucks soon. TowerDIRECT waited until April to equip its ambulances with blood to have time to train staff. What kind of blood? TowerDIRECT has specialty trucks that carry whole blood, which is the same as the blood that circulates in the body. A paramedic truck in Reading and the one in Phoenixville carry two units of packed red cells. This is the part of the blood that carries oxygen. The blood type on the trucks is O positive. While O negative is the universal donor, it is in short supply and O positive is a close runner-up in emergencies. The TowerDIRECT paramedics carry the blood in red cooler bags. Each bag has a quality assurance sticker with a flower that changes color if the blood has been out of the cooler for too long to signal that it cant be used. A scarce commodity The TowerDIRECT initiative has protocols to reduce the risk of wasting blood units, which are in high demand. A blood unit can be stored in a blood bank for up to 40 days, Cosgrove said. But it can only stay in a cooler for 48 hours and the paramedics arent expecting to use the units so frequently. To prevent the risk of a blood unit going bad on ambulances, the blood supply is replaced every 24 hours. At 8 a.m., the paramedics drive the mile and a half from the fire station to the nearby Phoenixville Hospital. There, they drop off the bag with the old blood units and pick up a new batch. Its like it never left the shelf at the blood bank, Cosgrove said. But even without waste, blood is a limited commodity, the chief said. Before rolling out blood units on the ambulances, the fire station held a blood drive to boost supplies. Cosgrove and the paramedics stretched out their arms and donated as well. We got to put our money where our mouth is, he said. There's no word on whether any potential buyers have surfaced for Crozer-Chester Medical Center and other Crozer properties. Read more The future of two operating and two shuttered hospitals in the Philadelphia region owned by Prospect Medical Holdings has been uncertain for months. Heres an update on where things stand: Advertisement More than three months after Prospect Medical Holdings started trying to sell Crozer Health under a timeline set by the Pennsylvania Attorney General, neither Crozer nor state officials will say whether any prospective buyers have emerged. The confidential sale process is progressing and our office remains actively engaged, Attorney General spokesperson Brett Hambright said in an email. Crozer declined to comment. Los Angeles-based Prospect entered the Philadelphia market in 2016 when it acquired the financially struggling Crozer-Keystone Health System in a deal valued at $300 million. Three years later, Prospects former private-equity owner sold the Crozer real estate for $420 million in an agreement that saddled Crozer with steep annual rent of nearly $35 million on the properties. Crozer has since closed Delaware County Memorial Hospital in Drexel Hill and Springfield Hospital, leaving it with Crozer-Chester Medical Center in Upland, Taylor Hospital in Ridley Park, and several outpatient facilities. Prospects troubles in Connecticut Meanwhile in Connecticut, the proposed sale of three Prospect hospitals to Yale New Haven Health for $435 million is on the rocks. Yale New Haven filed a lawsuit last week in Connecticut Superior Court to try to get out of the deal it agreed to in 2022. Yales complaint says Prospect failed to hold up its end of the purchase agreement by not maintaining the hospitals as viable businesses. The lack of financial support has run the Prospect hospitals into the ground, the complaint says. Yale New Haven asked the court to rule that it is no longer obligated to complete the purchase. Another option is that Yale New Haven and Prospect could negotiate a lower price. Its not clear what the hiccup in Connecticut means for Crozer. Both Crozer and the Connecticut hospitals have significant financial ties to Medical Properties Trust (MPT), a large real estate investment firm that acquired most of Prospects hospital real estate in 2019 and leased it back to the hospitals. MPT executives told analysts on an earnings conference call Thursday that Prospect has significant cash pressures caused in part by delays in disposing of Prospects hospitals in Connecticut and Pennsylvania. Under the Yale New Haven agreement, $355 million of the $435 million was supposed to go to MPT, according to the Yale New Haven lawsuit. The remainder may have helped relieve financial pressure at Prospects hospitals in California and Delaware County. The Foundation for Delaware County has sued Prospect over the closure of Delaware County Memorial, alleging that it violated the 2016 purchase agreement. The Foundation is the legal successor to the nonprofit that sold the hospitals. The Yale/Prospect situation is of concern to the foundation, the Delaware County government, and the tens of thousands of Delaware County residents affected by Prospects actions, Rocco P. Imperatrice III, a lawyer for the foundation, said Friday. Pa. Attorney General agreement The AGs January timeline called for Prospect to reach a deal to sell Crozer to a nonprofit before the end of June and then to complete the sale by the end October. However, neither the AG nor Prospect can force anyone to buy Crozer. Officials from Gov. Josh Shapiros office have been in regular contact with local health system leaders about possible plans to stabilize Crozer-Chester, which serves a vulnerable population in Chester. Local health-care experts say any buyer of Crozer would have to dig the system out of a massive financial hole caused by a large pension liability, years of deferred maintenance, and a $150 million mortgage owed to MPT. MPT has bigger problems than Crozer and Prospect. Its largest tenant, Steward Health Care System, filed for bankruptcy protection last week. MPT intends to find new operators for more than 30 Steward hospitals. Steward has one Pennsylvania hospital, in Sharon, near the Ohio border. The group of mothers protesting the Israel-Palestine war on Mother's Day marches toward Rittenhouse Square. Read more Clutching baby carriers, rolling strollers, and holding tiny hands, hundreds of Philadelphia moms and dads ditched their Mothers Day brunch for a Gaza solidarity march on Sunday. Around 10 a.m., beating the cold, a crowd of parents, teachers, and children gathered at Fitler Square demanding a cease-fire and humanitarian aid for Gaza. Advertisement We cant celebrate Mothers Day as usual while Palestinian mothers are being killed and pulling their children from the rubble at our own expense, said organizer Jennifer Shraim whose children and husband are Palestinian. The march was led by Families for Ceasefire Philly, an organization that recently held a Passover Seder at the University of Pennsylvanias former encampment site. Although the Mothers Day march was an independent action, the attendees echoed the demands of the Penn encampment organizers. While the encampment organizers demanded Penn to divest from Israel bonds, the marchers demanded the same from the state of Pennsylvania in addition to, in the words of organizers, an end to the occupation of Palestine. As marchers got ready to leave Fitler Square, heading to Rittenhouse Square, the crowd of 200 participants marched behind a Mothers for free Gaza sign, some holding Palestinian flags. Children marched holding their parents hands, sometimes riding piggyback while holding signs, and speaking into the megaphone even when some were too young to speak. Some children chanted while others handed out red roses to passersby with cards reading Wishing all mothers a safe Mothers Day. Nyla Koncurat, 39, was walking by 21st Street when the marchers passed by. Everybody is very peaceful; the kids are chanting; its a really lovely community who cares for the well-being of everybody, she said of the group. Instead of continuing with her Mothers Day plan with her husband helping their son ride his bike and their daughter learn to roller skate the Koncurats joined the march. If we dont fight for the rights of other people who cant fight for themselves, who will do it for us and our families? she said holding her daughters hand. Along the way, cars and trucks honked their horns in support of the crowd, that was escorted by one police car and legal observers who kept the march moving. The situation in Gaza is getting worse every day, this is the least we can do said attendee Carmen Guerrero, who traveled for an hour and a half to attend the event. We cant celebrate when many mothers have a missing child, a dead child. This is an all mothers fight. For Laura Smith, 36, who attended the march with her 4-year-old and a baby strapped to her, the scene is sad but necessary. I am sad that they have to learn at such a young age about all of the suffering and the evil in the world, she said. But being a mom has always been challenging and they are learning about it in an empowering way. At Rittenhouse Square, where the marchers stayed on until early afternoon, the organizers requested attendees to call the states treasury and leave a voice mail asking them to divest from funding Israel. By the end of the march there were about 500 marchers from multiple religious backgrounds, the organizers said. A tiny contingent of Duke University graduates opposed pro-Israel comedian Jerry Seinfeld speaking at their commencement in North Carolina Sunday, with about 30 of the 7,000 students leaving their seats and chanting free Palestine amid a mix of boos and cheers. Some waved the red, green, black and white Palestinian flag. Seinfeld, whose namesake sitcom was one of the most popular in U.S. television history, was there to receive an honorary doctorate from the university. Advertisement The stand-up comic turned actor, who stars in the new Netflix movie Unfrosted, has publicly supported Israel since it invaded Gaza to dismantle Hamas after the organization attacked the country and killed some 1,200 people in southern Israel on Oct. 7. The ensuing war has killed more than 35,000 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to Gazas Health Ministry, which doesnt distinguish between civilians and combatants. The small student protest Sunday at Dukes graduation in Durham, North Carolina, was emblematic of campus events across the U.S. Sunday after weeks of student protests resulted in nearly 2,900 arrests at 57 colleges and universities. READ MORE: Why Penn became the hotspot for Gaza protests in Philly instead of Temple, Drexel, or La Salle Students at campuses across the U.S. responded this spring by setting up encampments and calling for their schools to cut ties with Israel and businesses that support it. Students and others on campuses whom law enforcement authorities have identified as outside agitators have taken part in the protests from Columbia University in New York City to UCLA. Police escorted graduates' families past a few dozen pro-Palestinian protesters who tried to block access to Sunday evening's commencement for Southern Californias Pomona College. After demonstrators set up an encampment last week on the campus ceremony stage, the small liberal arts school moved the event 30 miles (48 kilometers) from Claremont to the Shrine Auditorium in downtown Los Angeles. Tickets were required to attend the event, which the school said would include additional security measures. In April, police wearing riot gear arrested 19 protesters who had occupied the president's office at the college with about 1,700 undergraduates. Demonstrator Anwar Mohmed, a 21-year-old Pomona senior, said the school has repeatedly ignored calls to consider divesting its endowment funds from corporations tied to Israel in the war in Gaza. Weve been time and time again ignored by the institution, Mohmed said outside the Shrine on Sunday. So today we have to say, it's not business as usual. At the University of California, Berkeley, on Saturday, a small group of pro-Palestinian demonstrators waved flags and chanted during commencement and were escorted to the back of the stadium, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. There were no major counterprotests, but some attendees voiced frustration. I feel like theyre ruining it for those of us who paid for tickets and came to show our pride for our graduates, said Annie Ramos, whose daughter is a student. Theres a time and a place, and this is not it. This weekend's commencement events remained largely peaceful. READ MORE: Protesters march through University City after Penn encampment disbanded: When they destroy, we build At Emerson College in Boston, some students took off their graduation robes and left them on stage. Others emblazoned "free Palestine" on their mortar boards. One woman, staring at a camera broadcasting a livestream to the public, unzipped her robe to show a kaffiyeh, the black and white checkered scarf commonly worn by Palestinians, and flashed a watermelon painted on her hand. Both are symbols of solidarity with those living in the occupied territories. Others displayed messages for a camera situated on stage, but the livestream quickly shifted to a different view, preventing them from being seen for long. Chants during some of the speeches were difficult to decipher. Protests at Columbia University, where student uprisings inspired others at campuses across the country, led the school to cancel its main graduation ceremony in favor of smaller gatherings. The University of Southern California told its valedictorian, who publicly backed Palestinians, that she could not deliver her keynote speech at its graduation ceremony because of security concerns. It later canceled its main graduation ceremony. READ MORE: Philly Police have cleared Penns Pro-Palestinian encampment and arrested 33 protesters At DePaul University in Chicago, graduation is more than a month away. But as the academic year closes, school leaders said they had reached an impasse with the school's pro-Palestinian protesters, leaving the future of their encampment on the Chicago campus unclear. The student-led DePaul Divestment Coalition, which is calling on the university to divest from economic interests tied to Israel, set up the encampment nearly two weeks ago. The group alleged university officials walked away from talks and tried to force students into signing an agreement, according to a student statement late Saturday. Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter Welcome to a new week. Its set to be a mostly cloudy day, with high temps in the low 70s. Election Day 2024 is less than six months away, and in purple Pennsylvania, voters are narrowly split between the two major parties presidential candidates. A new poll from The Inquirer, the New York Times, and Siena College found that President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are in a statistical tie. Two big sticking points for voters: the economy, where Trump leads; and abortion, where Biden leads. Advertisement And as the climate warms, can Philly become a hothouse for bananas and pineapples? Read on for these stories and more. Julie Zeglen (morningnewsletter@inquirer.com) If someone forwarded you this email, sign up for free here. Come Nov. 5, well see a repeat of the 2020 election, as President Joe Biden fights to keep former President Donald Trump from retaking the White House. Its shaping up to be another close match. According to a recent poll of 1,023 registered voters in Pennsylvania, Trump would lead Biden 47% to 44% in a two-way race, which is within the statistical margin of error. The big takeaways: Most voters are unhappy with the state of the economy, and trust Trump to do more to improve it. Young and nonwhite voters arent backing Biden as strongly as they did in 2020. And a whopping 10% of voters would pick independent Robert F. Kennedy Jr., roughly the same percentage as those who said theyre unsure. On abortion: Trump leads Biden on every issue included in the poll the economy, crime, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict but this one. Biden has centered reproductive rights on the campaign trail as a key issue, while Trump has bragged about his role in paving the way for the Supreme Courts decision that ended the federal right to an abortion. On Gov. Josh Shapiro: Pennsylvanias chief executive isnt on the ballot this year, but if he is in 2028, hell likely find wide support in his home state. The poll found that most voters approve of his leadership so far including 42% of Republicans. He actually seems to try to work with both parties, one said. National politics reporter Julia Terruso and data reporter Aseem Shukla break down the full results of the poll from The Inquirer, the New York Times, and Siena College. What you should know today This region is better known for apple trees than guava trees. But a local nonprofit is testing whether guava and bananas, and olives, and kumquats could indeed grow here, as temperatures rise and conditions become more like their native lands. The Philadelphia Orchard Project has set up two high-tunnel, unheated greenhouses as a sort of living lab, as environment reporter Frank Kummer puts it, to see if the exotic plants can survive inside. The opportunity to grow new fruits is a silver lining to the very black cloud of climate change, the orgs co-executive director told The Inquirer. As temperatures increase, he said, we want to be ready to adjust to those changes and share that knowledge with our community partners. Kummer has the full story on the greenhouse project, which is based at the Woodlands in West Philly. P.S. If you love earthy stories like this, be sure to subscribe to The Inquirers free Outdoorsy newsletter, which returns on June 7. Trivia time The Phillies June 23 game against the Arizona Diamondbacks will be the earliest ever at Citizens Bank Park. What time is it scheduled to start? A) 2:35 p.m. B) 12:35 p.m. C) 11:35 a.m. D) 8:35 a.m. Think you know? Check your answer. What we're Walking: The Revolution Remix tour of Philadelphia from the South Asian American Digital Archive. Admiring: Hajichi, a traditional tattoo style for Okinawan women, which a local tattoo artist is working to revive. Accessing: Museums for $2, available to anyone with an ACCESS Card or Art-Reach ACCESS Card. Unscramble the anagram The name for the policy-driven program to end injuries and deaths from traffic crashes. Hint: 0 IRVIN OOZES Email us if you know the answer. Well select a reader at random to shout out here. Cheers to Geoff Dolman, who solved Sundays anagram: Nick Castellanos. The Phillies player sadly lost his longtime furry companion, Tiger, on Friday morning. That night, in an 8-2 win over the Marlins, he honored Tiger in a way that only he could: with a home run. Photo of the day Your only in Philly story Think back to the night that changed your life in a way that could only happen in Philly, a true example of the Philly spirit, the time you finally felt like you belonged in Philly if youre not a lifer, something that made you fall in love with Philly all over again or proud to be from here if you are. Then email it to us for a chance to be featured in the Monday edition of this newsletter. This only in Philly story comes from Inquirer investigative reporter William Bender, who describes a brush with the mob (and an invitation for pasta dinner): A voice mail left on my office line: Hey, why dont you write about the Eagles instead. It might be, ehhh safer. Private caller. South Philly accent. Threat masked as a polite suggestion. Yep, I was onto a good mob story. I had recently written about how a crooked mob associate had somehow raked in nearly $2 million in tax dollars fixing Philadelphia Police Department vehicles. What tipped us off? Oh, the cop cars parked inside his auto body shop. Anyway, the city canceled the contract the day after my first story ran. Headline: Reputed mobsters contract with the city of Philadelphia gets whacked. Turns out, I later learned, the guy had allegedly been kicking up money to imprisoned mob boss Joseph Uncle Joe Ligambi. So you can see how I had become a problem in the eyes of the anonymous caller. My editor says: Dont worry, Bill, killing journalists is bad for business. I say: Are we perhaps overestimating the business acumen of todays Philly mobsters? Around that time, a high-ranking mobsters mother had randomly suggested that I come over for pasta dinner. Now Im hearing Al Pacino in Godfather Part II: Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer. I dont believe in coincidences. Is this nice lady going to sprinkle some arsenic over my rigatoni instead of Parmesan cheese? I never did take her up on dinner. Am I paranoid? Probably. But, in my defense, also still alive. Hope you got a laugh out of that one, Philly, or at least an appreciation for what our reporters sometimes go through to get the story. Now, back to your Monday! May it be a good one. By submitting your written, visual, and/or audio contributions, you agree to The Inquirers Terms of Use, including the grant of rights in Section 10. Gov. Josh Shapiro walks on stage to address supporters at the Scranton Cultural Center at the Masonic Temple, before the arrival of President Joe Biden at an event last month. Shapiro has far higher favorability than either Biden or former President Donald Trump in Pennsylvania. Read more Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro continues to be widely popular among Pennsylvanians including more than a third of former President Donald Trumps supporters as President Joe Biden struggles in the state, according to a new poll from The Inquirer, the New York Times, and Siena College. About 57% of Pennsylvanians strongly or somewhat approve of Shapiros leadership, according to the poll. When split down by party, 77% of Democrats, 42% of Republicans, and 39% of independent voters have positive opinions about the job Shapiro is doing in his first term as the battleground states governor. Advertisement Biden, meanwhile, has only a 38% approval rating, according to the poll conducted April 28 through May 7. Shapiro has support from a majority of people across every racial and education line, according to the poll. The moderate Democrats support among Trump and third-party voters is significant: Shapiro maintains a positive rating from 35% of Pennsylvania voters planning to vote for Trump in November and a likely majority from voters who said theyd vote for independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Its a sign that Shapiro could be a formidable candidate if he pursues a presidential run in 2028. Hes not too radical, he actually seems to try to work with both parties, said Michael Paletta, 64, a registered Republican who supports Trump but also approves of Shapiro. Hes been running for president since he became attorney general eight years ago, said Paletta, who lives in Mars, Butler County. Hes as good as anyone else. Hes at least younger and he understands, hes not 80 years old. Shapiro has maintained unusually high approval ratings for a Pennsylvania governor of any party at this point in his term, even as he is the only governor in the country who has to work with a divided legislature with each party controlling one chamber. He continues to promise to govern across the aisle, and advocates for a handful of Republican priorities hes tried to implement, such as private school vouchers. Shapiro, 50, has become a national fixture in the Democratic Party and is among the top candidates Democrats are eyeing to run for president in 2028. He now serves as one of Bidens top surrogates campaigning for his reelection in the battleground state. Shapiro first piqued national Democrats interest when he was elected state attorney general in 2016, just as former President Donald Trump also won the state. While AG, he released a historic grand jury report detailing decades of abuse in the Roman Catholic Church, and he played a central role in defending Pennsylvania from Trumps attempts to overturn the 2020 election all of which raised his national profile. The Abington native and father of four cemented his central role to the party in 2022, after he was elected governor by 15 percentage points over far-right Republican State Sen. Doug Mastriano. In his first year and a half in office, hes also gotten national attention for his administrations reopening of I-95 in 12 days after it collapsed and his outspokenness against the former president of the University of Pennsylvania over her comments before Congress, and more. Burton Siegel, 80, a registered Democrat from Jenkintown, said hes known Shapiro since the governor was a boy. He praised the governor for signing an executive order on his first day in office that eliminated a four-year college degree requirement for most state government jobs. To bring more people into government, I think not to create a barrier that might not be relevant to your performance of the job is also a good thing to do, Siegel said. And I think he provided an opportunity for a lot of people who wanted to be public servants but couldnt because they didnt have B.A. Other top potential contenders for the 2028 Democratic presidential primary include the executives of other major states: Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore. While the nations electorate has strong opinions about the candidates for president, voters largely have a positive view of their own governor, according to statistics-based website 538. Shapiros ability to attract Trump and third-party voters in one of the nations decisive battleground states, however, will give him a persuasive pitch if he decides to pursue higher office. Before serving as attorney general and governor, Shapiro was a county commissioner in Montgomery County, a suburb of Philadelphia with more than 864,000 residents. Before his election, the county had been a Republican stronghold, and Shapiro was influential in establishing it as a top Democratic destination in the state. He also served as a state representative, first elected at age 30, and he gained a reputation for cutting bipartisan deals. Shapiro is Pennsylvanias third Jewish governor, and one of four Jewish governors across the country. The United States has never elected a Jewish president. Shivani Gonzalez of the New York Times contributed to this article. Pennsylvania voters overwhelmingly trust President Joe Biden more than former President Donald Trump with abortion policy an issue that could prove to be essential for Biden as he trails Trump on other key issues in the state. A poll from The Philadelphia Inquirer, New York Times, and Siena College asked Pennsylvania voters which candidate would better handle four issues abortion, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, crime, and the economy. Advertisement Abortion is the only one where Biden led. While Trump polled higher in every other category, voters trusted Biden with abortion by a wide 20-point margin. And 66% of respondents to a separate question said Trump bore some or a lot of responsibility for the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade and ending the right to abortion. The poll of 1,023 registered voters was conducted from April 28 to May 7. Biden has made abortion rights a focus of his campaign in Pennsylvania, speaking on the issue in Delaware County on the day after the State of Union. Trump has bragged about his role in paving the way for the Supreme Courts decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization, which ended the federal right to an abortion. But hes sent mixed messages about the issue on the campaign trail, floating support for a 15-week federal ban earlier this year before more recently saying it should be left to the states. Its now up to the will of the people in each state. Some states will be more conservative and others will be more liberal, Trump said Saturday at his rally in Wildwood. The numbers show a continued frustration among Pennsylvanians over the fall of federal protections for abortion rights as Biden continues to make reproductive rights a central tenet of his reelection campaign. The day the Dobbs decision was passed I was screaming at the TV, said Heidi Carroll, a 51-year-old from Washington in Western Pennsylvania. She plans to vote for Biden and hopes the federal government will reinstate the right to an abortion. Pennsylvania is unlikely to change its abortion laws over the next few years. Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro promised to veto any legislation that would reduce abortion access, and the GOP-controlled state Senate would not approve any abortion expansion. Pennsylvanias state Supreme Court stopped just short of recognizing abortion access as a right protected by the states constitution earlier this year, but three of the five justices on the case signaled theyd be open to such a finding in the future. According to data compiled by the Kaiser Family Foundation, a health policy research group, 14 states have enacted total or near total bans on abortion in the last two years while five more are enforcing restrictions on abortions between the sixth and 12th week of pregnancy. As the impacts of these bans have played out across the country, including stories of women being forced to carry dangerous and nonviable pregnancies, abortion has proven to be a powerful voting issue for Democrats. On every ballot measure on the issue since the June 2022 decision, voters have voted in favor of abortion rights. The poll found voters in the state in line with national trends as 65% of voters believed abortion should be always or mostly legal while just 27% said it should be always or mostly illegal. Jennifer Marvelous, a 53-year-old Biden voter from Philly who cited abortion as a top issue, said positions on abortion have a lot to do with how leaders see women in general. If Trump won reelection, she said, she would expect abortion rights to be further threatened in the country. Carroll, however, said she wasnt sure either candidate would make much of a difference. Trump had said the issue should be left to the states but Biden, she noted, hasnt done anything yet to make it better. Bidens ability to draw out a wide swath of voters motivated by abortion will be key to his reelection chances in November. And the campaign knows it. Vice President Kamala Harris last week visited Montgomery County for an event focused on reproductive rights, where she sharply criticized Trump for his role appointing the justices that overturned Roe v. Wade. We just have to call it for what it is, Harris said. Do you not trust women to know what is in their best interest? But Biden does not have universal support among voters who believe abortion should be legal. The poll found Trump supporters split on the issue with 42% believing abortion should be legal and 46% believing it should be illegal or mostly illegal. One of those voters, 68-year-old Kathe Sobczak, explained that she believed abortion should be an option in many cases but called it crazy to have an abortion in the eighth month of a pregnancy. Trump made claims about abortion in the eighth and ninth month during his Saturday rally, after the poll was completed. Abortions that late, however, are exceedingly rare. The most recent CDC data on abortion nationwide found that less than 1% of abortions occurred after the 21st week of pregnancy. Several states, including Pennsylvania, restrict abortions around the time a fetus reaches viability at 24 weeks. In Pennsylvania, patients can only seek an abortion after the 23rd week of their pregnancy if their health is in danger. Sobczak said her opinion was formed after a classmate in her Catholic high school died after seeking backdoor abortion. I do believe in legal abortions. I never forgot, said Sobczak, who lives in Philadelphia. But she said only about 5% of her vote was based upon abortion. My vote for Donald Trump isnt really for the abortion issues, its because of the economy. My stance on the abortion issue, I feel strongly about that and I know how he feels about that, however my vote for him is really about the economy and other issues and food prices, she said. If it was Joe Biden I would be worried about access expanding. Staff writer Gillian McGoldrick and Camille Baker and Shivani Gonzalez of the New York Times contributed to this article. A pedestrian walks near the closed Wawa on Broad and Walnut Streets in Center City. A Chase bank will open there. Read more The former location of Wawas flagship Philadelphia location at 201-11 S. Broad St. is becoming a Chase Bank. This is the second time this year that JPMorgan Chases retail banking wing has announced its taking over a location that housed a Wawa. Advertisement Oftentimes convenience food stores or gas stations are often going after the same types of locations that we do, said Ashlee Kelly, managing director of real estate at JPMorgan Chase. At Broad and Walnut, it was really one of [Wawas] forays into an urban environment, which obviously works great for us and maybe in this situation wasnt the best location for them. In recent years, Chase has been bucking national trends by adding retail banking locations while others in the industry pivoted to fewer physical locations to emphasize their digital offerings and save labor costs. JPMorgan now runs the largest bank network in the nation, eclipsing competitors like Bank of America and Wells Fargo. In February, the company announced that it would add another 40 locations in the Philadelphia region, expanding on the 50 locations it has placed in the metropolitan area since 2018. In March, the decades-old Wawa at 21st and Hamilton Streets in the Art Museum District learned it would not have its lease renewed in favor of a Chase Bank. Kelly said that Center City Philadelphia and its immediate neighborhoods are a compelling location for the company because they have a mix of office, shopping, nightlife, and residential traffic. It makes it a great combination for us when you think about Philadelphia with the amount of residential that they also have intertwined with their central business district, Kelly said. She said the company plans three or four more locations in Philadelphia by the end of 2026, in addition to the existing 16 branches. The Philadelphia metropolitan area contains the large majority of Chase Bank locations in Pennsylvania. As for their propensity for targeting Wawa locations, retail banks and convenience stores both want to grant easy access. No word yet on whether a brass band from the Philadelphia Orchestra will play the Rocky theme music as it did at the grand opening of the Wawa flagship at 201-11 S. Broad in 2015. The high-profile location on the Avenue of the Arts is owned by the University of the Arts. Wawa typically leased high-profile corners, exactly where a growing bank would also want to be, said Jacob Cooper, partner at MSC Retail, who has worked with Chase Bank as a landlord-side broker, although not on the South Broad Street deal. A group of men with Pace Roofing LLC compete in the grease pole contest at the South 9th Street Italian Market Festival in Philadelphia on Saturday, May 21, 2022. They won on their second attempt to climb the pole and grab the meat and cheese hanging on top. Read more South Philadelphias finest restaurateurs, pastry chefs, cheesemongers, and more will line the streets of the Italian Market for its annual festival this weekend. On Saturday, May 18, and Sunday, May 19, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., the South 9th Street Italian Market Festival will see more than a hundred vendors sharing their food, drinks, and crafts, live music, DeerParks hoagie competition, and time-honored traditions like the Procession of Saints and the greased pole competition. The seven-block takeover of South Phillys famous open-air market is a celebration of the culture and small businesses cultivated over the past 150 years by the citys rich and diverse immigrant communities. Heres what you need to know. When is the Italian Market Festival? The Italian Market Festival is Saturday, May 18, and Sunday, May 19, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., along South Ninth Street between Wharton and Fitzwater Streets in South Philadelphia. Prepare for warm weather in the 70s with hints of rain (64% chance as of publication) on Saturday and wind (up to 15 mph wind gusts) on Sunday, according to AccuWeather. Food and drinks Almost all of the South 9th Street Italian Market will be open for business, but expect streetside vending. According to local hoagie aficionado Hoagie Dom, some Italian Market must-visits are Espositos, Sarcones Bakery, Claudios, Fantes, Anthonys Coffee, Angelos Pizza, Di Bruno Bros., Isgros Pastries, and Villa di Roma. Dont overlook spots like Alma del Mar, Blue Corn, South Philly Barbacoa, Mole Poblano, and Taqueria La Prima. Festival events St. Paul Parish Procession of Saints: Watch the annual procession on Sunday, May 19, as it strolls along the market starting at 11 a.m. at St. Mary Magdalen de Pazzi Church, 712 Montrose St. The procession will proceed to Ninth Street and Washington Avenue for the Blessing of the Market, ending at St. Paul Catholic Church (corner of South Hutchinson and Christian Streets). This year, the patron saint of the impossible, St. Rita of Cascia, will be part of the procession. Live Entertainment: Washington Avenue stage: Sat., May 18, Variable Elements (noon-2 p.m.), DJ Eric Bartello (2 p.m.-3 p.m.), Amanda and Teddy (3 p.m.-5 p.m.). Sun., May 19, Juliano Brothers (noon-2 p.m.) and Philly Heart and Soul (3 p.m.-5 p.m.). Ninth & Christian Streets Stage: DJ Timmy DeSimone (all weekend). Tavolo Zona at Ninth and Montrose: Sunday, May 19, DJ Eric Bartello (all day). John Marzano Half Ball Tournament: This annual fundraiser supports the John Marzano Wood Bat Scout League. Teams can register on-site the morning of the event, which takes place at Christopher Columbus Charter School, 916 Christian St., on Sat., May 18, starting at 10 a.m. Greased Pole Climbing Competition: A tradition brought over from Italy, the competition , known as a albero della cuccagna in Italian, features groups of people working together to race up a 30-foot lard-greased pole for cash prizes, meats, and cheeses. Competition takes place all day on both festival days, at Ninth and Montrose Streets. Vendors: More than 100 vendors will be on-site. DeerParks Hoagie Competition: The citys top sandwich makers, nominated by Philadelphians, will duke it out to see who can create the best hoagie with the winner earning bragging rights, a trophy, and a $5,000 donation to the charity of their choice. Street closures Ninth Street from Wharton to Fitzwater will be closed during festival hours. This includes all adjacent intersecting streets including Catherine Street, Christian Street, Carpenter Street, Washington Avenue, Ellsworth Street, and Federal Street. SEPTA You can take bus routes 47 or 47M, which run along the Markets blocks, or you can take the Broad Street Line, get off at Ellsworth-Federal, and walk about 10-15 minutes until you reach Ninth Street and Washington Avenue. Find other routes that will get you close to the festival at iseptaphilly.com/plan-your-trip. Parking near the Italian Market Festival the organisation; professional development; personal relationships; and individual health and wellbeing. Achievement in two of these categories should be the base; for most of us, this is typically work and family, achievement in three categories is great, with all four you will be unstoppable and leading a big life, he said. My learning is that if you articulate a goal or aspiration, in each category, share it with others to engender accountability. Review regularly. The aspirations will accelerate towards you. According to Mercury General chief executive officer Gabe Tirador, the California Department of Insurance and Commissioner Ricardo Lara have been taking the steps needed to modernize the insurance market, which will help in stabilizing the market as well as lead to the creation of a transparent and sustainable model that will be beneficial to consumers in California. Insurance is about protecting what matters most and helping those in need. Its important that we live up to that standard, Kaufman Davis told Insurance Business. Since my grandfather started the company 55 years ago, weve always been powered by a commitment to investing in communities where we live and do business. According to Reuters, Porch and its affiliate, Homeowners of America Insurance Co, contend, in a complaint lodged with the US Southern District Court of New York on Thursday, that CCB collaborated with individuals linked to the now-defunct Israeli insurance entity, Vesttoo. Their alleged collaboration birthed a cascade of counterfeit reinsurance letters of credit, ostensibly guaranteeing access to reinsurance funds for insurance companies, it was suggested. However, Porch asserts these documents were duplicitous, leading to profound monetary setbacks on their end. Pennsylvania will join the majority of states that ban motorists from handling a cell phone for almost any purpose while driving, as backers of the legislation hope to reduce distracted driving accidents and deaths after nearly two decades of pressing the measure. Gov. Josh Shapiros office said Thursday that the Democrat will sign the bill, 18 years after he first introduced a similar bill when he served in the state House of Representatives. The ban will take effect a year after he signs it, which is expected in the coming days. The bill also includes a provision long-sought by the Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus as a bulwark against racial profiling. That provision requires bigger police departments, as well as the Pennsylvania State Police, to collect and publicly report data on traffic stops, including a drivers race. The bill passed both chambers of the state Legislature this week and will bring Pennsylvania into alignment with the law on motorists cell phone use in every one of its neighboring states. Currently, Pennsylvanias restriction on cell phone use while driving applies only to texting. Sen. Rosemary Brown, R-Monroe, had pushed for more than a decade to toughen Pennsylvanias restriction on cell phone use while driving. Its passage is a monumental victory for Pennsylvania that will protect drivers, prevent crashes and save lives, Brown said in a statement. Under the bill, police can ticket a driver who is handling their phone for almost any reason. Drivers can still use their phone to make phone calls or for other functions, such as listening to music, if they are using it hands-free with technology such as a docking station, Bluetooth or speakers. The ban applies to motorists sitting in traffic or stopped at a traffic light, but does not include a driver who has parked on the side of the road or another place where the vehicle can remain stopped safely. Other exceptions include for navigational use or alerting emergency responders. A first offense is punishable by a $50 fine and offenders who cause serious accidents could get more time in prison. Shapiro called the bill common sense. Ive met too many families that have an empty seat at the dinner table because of distracted driving. Ive met too many people with injuries that theyre going to live with for the rest of their lives because they were hit by a distracted motorist, Shapiro told WILK-FM radio in Pittston during an interview last month. Cause of Accidents Crashes where a distracted driver was a contributing factor are down in Pennsylvania in the past decade, as crashes overall have declined, according to state data. In some years, it was the second-leading cause of accidents. In 2022, it was the third-leading cause. That was behind speed and improper turning, but ahead of drinking alcohol, careless passing and tailgating. Twenty-eight states already ban cell phone use while driving, according information from the National Conference of State Legislatures. Meanwhile, at least 23 states have laws on collecting data on traffic stops, the group said. Rep. Napoleon Nelson, D-Montgomery, the chair of the Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus, said caucus members were concerned that police could abuse a broad new power to pull over motorists and target racial minorities. Collecting traffic stop data is important for accountability, Nelson said. I think this will be a significant win for transparency and help to continue building trust between community members and those who are sworn to serve and protect, Nelson said in an interview. State Police Rep. Donna Bullock, D-Philadelphia, who worked for several years to get the provision into law, called it a big step for Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania State Police recently began voluntarily collecting and reporting traffic stop data and some municipal police departments do as well, Bullock said. But the methods of individual departments arent uniform, like they will be under the new law, Bullock said. Data released last year by the state police and analyzed by the National Policing Institute showed no disparities between racial and ethnic groups for warnings, citations or arrests. But troopers were more than twice more likely to search Black and Hispanic drivers than white drivers, the report showed. Under the forthcoming law, data that police must report includes the reason for the stop, details from a search of the vehicle and the race, ethnicity, age and gender of the driver who was stopped. Police forces that serve municipalities under 5,000 people are exempt from the requirement. The data collection requirement takes effect in a year and a half. After the cell phone ban takes effect, drivers get a grace period of another year in which they only receive a written warning for violating it. Copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Personal Auto Pennsylvania A driver going the wrong way on Connecticuts Merritt Parkway crashed head-on into a minivan early Thursday, killing all four people in the vehicles and closing one side of the highway for nearly seven hours, state police said. State police said an SUV was traveling northbound in the southbound lanes when it crashed into the minivan and burst into flames at about 1:45 a.m. in Stratford. Television news video of the aftermath showed a minivan with its front end smashed in and a heavily damaged sport-utility vehicle lying on its side on the highway, also known as Route 15. Concern is increasing in Connecticut about wrong-way highway crashes, nearly all of which are caused by drunken drivers, officials say. The state Department of Transportation has identified 200 off-ramps as high risk, in part because of multiple ramps that meet at the same location. State police said all three people in the minivan were killed men ages 65 and 80 and an 81-year-old woman, all from Easton, Connecticut. The SUV is registered to a Massachusetts resident and the medical examiners office was working to identify the driver, who also died, authorities said. There was a second accident as well: A state trooper responding to the scene collided with a vehicle that was stopped in the roadway with its lights off, as its driver tried to help people in the head-on crash. The trooper had minor injuries, state police said. The state Department of Transportation reported 13 wrong-way crashes that killed 23 people in 2022. Preliminary data for 2023 shows five wrong-way accidents killed seven people, the DOT said. And this February, four people were killed in a wrong-way crash on Interstate 95 in West Haven. State crews have been installing alert systems on highway ramps that flash bright red lights to drivers going the wrong way. Systems in some locations also alert state police and transportation officials. Copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Connecticut A European naval force detained six suspected pirates on Friday after they opened fire on an oil tanker traveling through the Gulf of Aden, officials said, likely part of a growing number of piracy attacks emanating from Somalia. The attack on the Marshall Islands-flagged Chrystal Arctic comes as Yemens Houthi rebels have also been attacking ships traveling through the crucial waterway, the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait connecting them. The assaults have slowed commercial traffic through the key maritime route onward to the Suez Canal and the Mediterranean Sea. The pirates shot at the tanker from a small ship carrying weapons and ladders, according to the British militarys United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center, which oversees Mideast shipping routes. The pirates carried Kalashnikov-style rifles and rocket-propelled grenades, the private security firm Ambrey said. The pirates opened fire first at the Chrystal Arctic, whose armed, onboard security team returned fire at them, the UKMTO said. The pirates then abandoned their attempt to take the tanker, which continued on its way with all its crew safe, the UKMTO said. Dark black smoke came out of the small boat carrying the pirates, likely from a burning fuel drum, Ambrey said. Hours later, the European Union naval force in the region known as Operation Atalanta said a frigate operating in the region detained six suspected pirates. The frigate seized the pirates given the unsafe condition of their skiff and said that some had injuries of varied severity. It wasnt immediately clear if those injured suffered gunshot wounds from the exchange of fire with the Chrystal Arctic. The EU force declined to elaborate due to the security of the operations. Ambrey identified the EU vessel as Italys Carlo Bergamini-class frigate ITS Federico Martinego. Once-rampant piracy off the Somali coast diminished after a peak in 2011. That year, there were 237 reported attacks in waters off Somalia. Somali piracy in the region at the time cost the worlds economy some $7 billion with $160 million paid out in ransoms, according to the Oceans Beyond Piracy monitoring group. Increased naval patrols, a strengthening central government in Mogadishu, Somalias capital, and other efforts saw the piracy beaten back. However, concerns about new attacks have grown in recent months. In the first quarter of 2024, there have been five reported incidents off Somalia, according to the International Maritime Bureau. These incidents were attributed to Somali pirates who demonstrate mounting capabilities, targeting vessels at great distances, from the Somali coast, the bureau warned in April. It added that there had been several reported hijacked dhows and fishing vessels, which are ideal mother ships to launch attacks at distances from the Somali coastline. In March, the Indian navy detained dozens of pirates who seized a bulk carrier and took its 17 crew hostage. In April, pirates releases 23 crew members of the Bangladesh-flagged cargo carrier MV Abdullah after seizing the vessel. The terms of the release arent immediately known. These attacks come as the Houthi campaign targeting shipping since November as part of their pressure campaign to stop the Israel-Hamas war raging in the Gaza Strip. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. announced the acquisition of Cedar Rapids, Iowa-based Acumen Advisors, Inc. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Acumen is an employee benefits consultant serving small and mid-size businesses throughout Iowa. Andrew Morf, Kirby Moss and their team will remain in their current locations under the direction of Tom Lannen, head of Gallaghers Midwest region employee benefits consulting operations. Topics Mergers & Acquisitions Iowa A.J. Gallagher Sarah Rahm, age 39, of Bondurant, Iowa was charged with one count of Insurance Fraud Presenting False Information (Class D Felony), following an investigation by the Iowa Insurance Divisions Fraud Bureau. The charges against Rahm stem from an investigation that began in March of 2024. According to the criminal complaint filed by the Iowa Insurance Divisions Fraud Bureau, Rahm made willful misrepresentations regarding her pets medical history and then falsified the onset date of a claimed medical condition in connection with an insurance claim. Rahm was arrested and booked into the Polk County Jail on May 3, 2024. Rahm posted a $5,000 bond and was released. Iowans with information about insurance fraud are encouraged to contact the Iowa Insurance Divisions Fraud Bureau at 515-654-6556. Source: Iowa Insurance Division Topics Fraud Iowa The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday ruled in favor of a Miami music producer in a legal fight with Warner Music over a song by rapper Flo Rida, finding that there is no time limit for recovering monetary damages in copyright cases that have been filed before the expiration of a statue of limitations. The 6-3 ruling, authored by liberal Justice Elena Kagan, affirmed a lower courts decision that favored producer Sherman Nealy, who sued a Warner subsidiary and others in Florida federal court in 2018. Nealy has said that his label Music Specialist owns rights to the electronic dance song Jam the Box by Tony Butler, also known as Pretty Tony. Warner artist Flo Rida, whose given name is Tramar Dillard, incorporated elements of Jam the Box into his 2008 song In the Ayer. Nealy sued music publishing company Warner Chappell and others, arguing that they took an invalid license to Jam the Box from Butler, his former business partner, while Nealy was incarcerated for cocaine distribution. The producer requested damages for alleged copyright infringement dating back to 2008. A federal judge decided that Nealy could recover damages only for infringement that happened during the three years before he filed the lawsuit, based on the U.S. statute of limitations for bringing a copyright-infringement case after discovering a claim. The Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed that decision and said there was no bar to damages in a timely action. The Supreme Court upheld the 11th Circuits ruling on Thursday. The Copyright Act entitles a copyright owner to recover damages for any timely claim, Kagan wrote, referring to the 1976 federal law at issue in the case. If Nealys claims are thus timely, he may obtain damages for them, Kagan added. Nealys attorney Wes Earnhardt welcomed the decision. By holding that damages are available for all timely filed infringement claims, regardless of when the infringements occurred, the courts decision provides clarity on an important issue that had divided the circuit courts, Earnhardt said. Warner declined comment. During Supreme Court arguments in February, some of the justices indicated they could not decide the case before reconsidering the issue of statute of limitations in a separate dispute before them. The justices are currently deliberating whether to take up the discovery rule in a copyright dispute between Hearst Newspapers and photographer Antonio Martinelli. What concerns me is that we are being asked to decide a question that may be eliminated based on a subsequent decision on whether the discovery rule applies, conservative Justice Samuel Alito said during the arguments. Conservative Justice Neil Gorsuch echoed Alitos statements in a dissenting opinion on Thursday that was joined by Alito and Justice Clarence Thomas. Topics Legislation The Biden administration said on Friday it will provide nearly $200 million to fight the spread of avian flu among dairy cows, in the governments latest bid to contain outbreaks that have fueled concerns about human infections with the H5N1 virus. The virus has been detected among dairy cattle in nine states since late March. Scientists have said they believe the outbreak is more widespread based on U.S. Food and Drug Administration findings of H5N1 particles in about 20% of retail milk samples. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will make $98 million available to provide up to $28,000 per dairy farm for efforts to contain the spread of the virus between animals and humans and for testing milk and animals for the virus, the agency said on Friday. USDA is doing the work to track and eliminate H5N1 in the dairy cattle herd, said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on a call with reporters. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said it would provide $101 million through the FDA and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to protect public health and the nations food supply. The risk to the public from this outbreak remains low, HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said on the call. The money includes $34 million through the CDC for testing efforts and supporting public health labs, $8 million for vaccines, and $3 million for wastewater surveillance. While the CDC has said the public health risk is low, scientists are closely watching for changes in the virus that could make it spread more easily among humans. The FDA also will provide $8 million to ensure the safety of the commercial milk supply. At this stage theres no concern about the safety of the commercial milk supply or beef supply, Vilsack said on the call. Health experts have cautioned against the consumption of raw milk but said pasteurization appears to kill the virus. One dairy farm worker in Texas tested positive for the virus and reported conjunctivitis, commonly known as pink eye. To limit transmission in cattle, the USDA on April 29 started requiring lactating dairy cows to test negative before being shipped across state lines. In the first week of the order, USDA laboratories reported 905 tests, of which 112 were presumptive positives, said an agency spokesperson. The figure could include samples that were tested more than once or those collected for other purposes like research studies, the spokesperson said. Topics USA Agribusiness LUBBOCK A decayed utility pole that broke, causing power wires to fall on dry grass in the Texas Panhandle, sparked the states largest wildfire in history, a Texas House committee confirmed Wednesday. And other poorly maintained power equipment sparked four additional fires across the region earlier this year, the committee said. The committee also found that a lack of readily available air support, ineffective communication from faulty equipment and coordination among agencies inhibited on-the-ground efforts to contain the Smokehouse Creek fire and others that ravaged the Panhandle earlier this year. In response, the committee made up of three House members and two landowners recommended the Legislature have more effective monitoring and rule enforcement to check irresponsible oil and gas operators and improve accountability with utility providers when it comes to inspecting and replacing power poles. The 43-page report largely confirmed what was previously established in the days and weeks following the fire. It appeared to rely heavily on testimony from three days of public hearings the committee held in Pampa, a Panhandle town near where the fires raged. The deadly wildfires disrupted life in the Texas Panhandle after they started in late February. Two people died and more than 1 million acres burned across several counties Hutchinson, Hemphill, Roberts, Carson, Gray and Wheeler. [After Texas largest wildfire is contained, a rancher moves on with a single calf] The fires caused extensive damage in its wake. The Panhandle region is largely rural, where cattle are known to outnumber residents. More than 85% of the states cattle population is located in the Panhandle. Many residents lost everything 138 homes burned, according to the report, and more than 15,000 head of cattle, including pregnant cows, perished. Hundreds of water wells were also destroyed as the fires raged through the Panhandle. According to the report, this has eliminated sources of water for people and livestock in the region, creating another hurdle to overcome. Xcel Energy, a Minnesota-based company that has provided electricity in that portion of the state, previously acknowledged its role in the Smokehouse Creek fire. Following the release of the committees report, it said they are taking action to mitigate wildfire risk, including updating systems to be more resilient in extreme weather and adjusting wildfire settings on their equipment. We care deeply about the Panhandle communities harmed by wildfires, the company said. Our people live and work in these same communities. The company said it they look forward to working with the Public Utility Commission, the state legislature, members of the public and other agencies in response to the wildfires. Xcel has contracted Osmose Utility Services, a Georgia-based company, to manage its lines in Texas. Both companies have been sued in the aftermath of the fire. In a statement, Osmose CEO Mike Adams said they have met with King since the hearings. We have provided the committee with information regarding our view of best practices for utility pole maintenance and remain available to the committee and our customers in Texas to assist in this area going forward, Adams said. According to the report, the pole was inspected in January by Osmose and given a priority one replacement designation. On Feb. 9 weeks before the fires sparked Osmose notified Xcel that the pole needed to be replaced. Scott McBroom, a Fritch resident, fled his home when the Windy Deuce Fire breached his neighborhood. McBroom and his wife Deana lost everything. It was his childhood home. McBroom, who learned about the reports findings through a Texas Tribune reporter, said he was angry to hear it. He said companies should have done more to maintain the power lines and poles. Its just frustrating because through no fault of your own you end up losing everything, he said. It does make you angry because they have been neglecting stuff for a while. The family, including their dogs, are living with their daughter in Borger while they figure out whats next. Efforts to extinguish the fires showed how flawed the states response to emergencies is in vulnerable areas of Texas. Volunteer fire departments were first on the scene, but had poor equipment, including broken radios, due to running on a tight budget. Wind speeds and a lack of availability caused a delay in air support being used as the fire spread. The committee also called for more resources to contain wildfires before they grow out of control. Their suggestions range from Texas obtaining its own firefighting air fleet, additional funding for volunteer fire departments, and upgrading statewide communications systems for better communication across all responding agencies. Investigators began looking into poorly-maintained power lines as the cause of the fire in the days after it started. According to the report, wildfires ignited by power lines have been among the most destructive in the region since 2000 causing more than 1,300 fires and burning more than 1.4 million acres. Reference: Read the Texas Houses report on the Panhandle wildfires.(1.9 MB) This document is available at https://www.texastribune.org/2024/05/01/texas-panhandle-wildfires-report/ The committee was chaired by Rep. Ken King, a Canadian Republican. It also included Republican Reps. Dustin Burrows of Lubbock and Todd Hunter of Corpus Christi, and landowners Jason Abraham and James Henderson as public members of the committee. Carlos Nogueras Ramos contributed. Weve got big things in store for you at The Texas Tribune Festival, happening Sept. 57 in downtown Austin. Join us for three days of big, bold conversations about politics, public policy and the days news. This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune at https://www.texastribune.org/2024/05/01/texas-panhandle-wildfires-report/. The Texas Tribune is a member-supported, nonpartisan newsroom informing and engaging Texans on state politics and policy. Learn more at texastribune.org. Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters Texas Wildfire NEW ORLEANS (AP) Louisianas Supreme Court agreed Friday to reconsider its recent ruling that wiped out a state law giving adult victims of childhood sexual abuse a renewed opportunity to file damage lawsuits. The law was passed by the Louisiana Legislature in 2021 and amended in 2022. Sometimes called a look back law, it gave victims of past abuse, whose deadlines for filing civil lawsuits had expired, until June 14 of this year to file a deadline that could be extended until June of 2027 under pending legislation. At the time, its chief sponsor, Rep. Jason Hughes, a New Orleans Democrat, cited research that showed the average age for child sex abuse victims to report the crimes is 52. In a 4-3 ruling in March, the states highest court had said the law conflicted with due process rights in the state constitution. Justices James Genovese, Scott Crichton, Jefferson Hughes and Piper Griffin had been in the majority in March. But in Fridays order, Crichton and Griffin joined Chief Justice John Weimer and justices Jay McCallum and William Crain in granting a rehearing. This was the right decision as the bill passed unanimously through the State Legislature and should be the law here in Louisiana, Louisiana Attorney Gen. Liz Murrill said in a news release. Fridays decision comes as the Catholic Church continues to deal with the ramifications of a decades-old sex scandal. The ruling that is getting a second look arose from a case filed against the Catholic Diocese of Lafayette by plaintiffs who said they were molested by a priest in the 1970s while they ranged in age from 8 to 14, according to the Supreme Court record. The rehearing decision follows last weeks revelation that Louisiana State Police carried out a sweeping search warrant in April at the Archdiocese of New Orleans, seeking records and communications between local church leaders and the Vatican about the churchs handling of clergy sexual abuse. Fridays order did not set a new court date for arguments on the look back law, but it gave parties until May 20 to file briefs. The new majority didnt assign reasons for granting a rehearing, although Weimer said the court should have set a hearing for this month. Hughes criticized the decision in a brief dissent saying civilizations have provided time limits on legal claims for centuries. Special interest exceptions are anathema to the broader and more important concept of Justice, he wrote. Equal protection means equal. Copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Lawsuits Louisiana Forecast temperatures in Washington this week are exapted to will trigger protections designed to prevent heat-related illness in agriculture, landscaping, construction, and other outdoor jobs. The forecasted temperatures above 90 degrees in Eastern Washington mean the rules, overseen by the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries, require frequent breaks, access to shade and water cool enough to drink. The state heat rules include protections for outdoor workers that kick in at 80 degrees Fahrenheit, with additional requirements when there is high heat. The rules also require close observation of all workers anywhere temperatures are 80 degrees or higher and 10 or more degrees above the average temperatures for the last five days. At or above 80 degrees, employers are required to: Encourage and allow workers to take paid cool-down rest periods as needed; Provide enough shade or other way of cooling down for all employees on a meal or rest break to use; Provide enough cool drinking water for each employee to drink a quart per hour; Closely observe new employees, employees returning from absences, and all employees during heat waves. At or above 90 degrees, employers must require a 10-minute paid cool down rest period every two hours. When the temperature reaches 100 degrees or higher, the requirement for breaks becomes 15-minutes of paid cool down rest every hour. L&I updated its heat protection rules last year, lowering the trigger temperature from 89 to 80 degrees and making the rules effective year-round based on temperature. Topics Washington The Catholic church is refusing to cooperate with a Washington state investigation into whether it unlawfully used charitable trust funds to cover up sexual abuse by priests, Attorney General Bob Ferguson said, asking a court to force the Seattle Archdiocese to turn over decades of records. The archdiocese called the allegations a surprise, saying in a statement that it welcomed the investigation and has been collaborating since receiving a subpoena last July. The archdiocese shares the states goals preventing abuse and helping victim survivors on their path to healing and peace, it said. We have a good understanding of the content of our files and we have no concern about sharing them with the Attorney General lawfully and fairly, the statement said. Ferguson, a Catholic himself, told a news conference that the archdiocese has refused to provide even a single document that had not already been made public, claiming an exemption as a religious institution. The archdiocese disputed that as well, saying it offered this week to provide private deposition documents, but that the attorney generals office said it wasnt interested. Ferguson said the archdiocese ignored a second subpoena issued this spring seeking records on how the church handled allegations of sex abuse, including financial records related to how it may have spent charitable trust money moving priests from parish to parish after they were accused of sex abuse. The church has more information than it has shared with the public, Ferguson said. We believe the public is entitled to see those records. Some 23 states have conducted investigations of the Catholic church, and so far at least nine have issued reports detailing their findings. In some cases, those findings have gone far beyond what church officials had voluntarily disclosed. For example, the six Catholic dioceses in Illinois had reported publicly that there had been 103 clerics and religious brothers credibly accused of child sex abuse. But in a scathing report last year, the Illinois attorney generals office said it had uncovered detailed information on 451 who had sexually abused at least 1,997 children. Similarly, Maryland last year reported staggering evidence of just how widespread the abuse was: More than 150 Catholic priests and others associated with the Archdiocese of Baltimore sexually abused over 600 children and often escaped accountability. In 2018, a Pennsylvania grand jury found that more than 300 Catholic clerics had abused more than 1,000 children in that state over the prior 70 years. The Seattle Archdiocese has published a list of 83 clerics it says were credibly accused, and it says that beginning in the 1980s it was one of the first in the nation to begin adopting policies to address and prevent sexual abuse by priests. Sexual abuse by church personnel peaked in 1975, and there have been no reports since 2007, the archdiocese said. But despite decades of lawsuits by survivors of clerical sex abuse, the extent of the scandal in Washington state remains unknown, Ferguson said, because the church has not released its files or explained why it found allegations against other priests less than credible. Accusers, who have long demanded that the church open its books, welcomed Fergusons announcement and said they regretted its necessity. Transparency is essential for the church to heal, said Terry Carroll, a member of the steering committee at Heal Our Church, a Catholic church reform organization in Washington. We call on the church and its legal representatives to cooperate fully with the investigation by granting full access to all relevant records, including internal chancellery memos, attorneys correspondence and financial information, Carroll said during the news conference Thursday. Church members and survivors deserve no less. Fergusons investigation is civil, not criminal, and focuses on the three dioceses in Washington Seattle, Spokane and Yakima. He said the Spokane and Yakima dioceses have refused to provide documents, but the attorney generals office is not yet seeking court orders to force them to comply. Copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Washington Altria Group Inc. (MO) is a holding company whose main subsidiaries produce tobacco products. The central piece of the company is cigarette maker Philip Morris, creator of the iconic Marlboro cigarette brand. Altria's U.S. smokeless tobacco component traces back to 1822, before the founding of Philip Morris. However, this is a more recent addition to Altria. Philip Morris has been the core of the company since it has existed. Its founding in London in 1847 can be seen as the birth of Altria. Later the tobacco company came to America with New York incorporation in 1902. Next, an American owned branch of the company was incorporated in Virginia in 1919. This company expanded throughout the 1930s, '40s and '50s, and by the 1980s, had become the leading cigarette maker in the U.S. In 1985, Philip Morris Companies incorporated as a holding company and parent of Philip Morris Inc. It was this holding company that was later renamed Altria Group in 2003, a name that the company said would better reflect the diversity of its portfolio beyond tobacco. However, tobacco remains the primary business of Altria's subsidiaries, with tobacco products comprising about 99.75% of the company's $24.483 billion of net revenue in 2023. As of May 13, 2024, Altria has a market cap of $77.122 billion. In the past, the company has made major attempts to diversify into other lines of business, especially during the latter decades of the 20th century when consumer demand for tobacco began to decline in key markets. Philip Morris acquired a controlling interest in the Miller Brewing Co. in 1970 and purchased soft-drink maker Seven-Up Co. in 1978. Between 1985 and 2000, the company acquired General Foods Corp., Kraft Inc., and Nabisco, all of which were merged into what eventually became Kraft Foods Inc. However, these acquisitions were later divested. Kraft Foods was spun off in 2007. And the company also later sold Seven-Up and Miller Brewing. Since these actions, the company's focus has been primarily domestic after spinning off Philip Morris International Inc. (PM) in 2008. Altria, including the domestic Philip Morris company which it retained, has boosted sales in the tobacco market both through partnerships, new products, and through a series of acquisitions into new areas with the potential for rapid growth. After scrapping talks to reunite, for example, the company and Philip Morris International launched IQOS, a heated tobacco product designed to provide users with the rush from nicotine, but with fewer toxins. IQOS launched in October 2019 in the United States and signals Altria's willingness to innovate in creating new products. The company's series of acquisitions illustrate, again, its focus on shifting away from the shrinking cigarette market and, instead, moving into related markets. These include buying companies that sell smokeless tobacco, marijuana, electronic cigarettes, cigars, and nicotine pouches. We look in more detail at some of these acquisitions below. Breakdowns for revenue and profit are available for some, but not all, of these companies. UST LLC Type of Business: Smokeless Tobacco Producer Acquisition Price: $10.4 billion Acquisition Date: January 7, 2009 (completed) UST is a holding company that was first incorporated in 1986. However, one of its main subsidiaries, U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company LLC, traces its roots back to a tobacco shop opened by George Weyman in Pittsburgh in 1822. UST was bought by Altria in 2009. The U.S. Smokeless Tobacco purchase added two leading smokeless tobacco brands to the Altria product family: Copenhagen and Skoal. Smokeless tobacco use, unlike that of cigarettes, has been increasing since 2000. The UST acquisition also added wine manufacturer Ste. Michelle Wine Estates to Altria's portfolio. However, on July 9, 2021, Altria announced that it had reached an agreement to sell its wine business to private equity firm Sycamore Partners Management for approximately $1.2 billion. Altria planed to use the proceeds from the sale for additional share repurchases. The deal was completed later that year. Cronos Group Inc. Type of Business: Cannabis Producer Acquisition Price: $1.8 billion for a 45% equity stake Acquisition Date: December 7, 2018 (announced) Annual Net Revenue (2023): $87.2 million Annual Net Loss (2023): $69.8 million Canadian cannabis producer and distributor Cronos Group Inc. (CRON) was founded in 2012. In December 2018, Altria announced that it would acquire newly issued shares of Cronos worth $1.8 billion for a 45% ownership interest in the company. The agreement also included a warrant allowing Altria to increase its ownership to 55% over the next four years. Marijuana stock prices have fallen tremendously since the deal. The acquisition is a further demonstration of Altria's intent to diversify. Altria's ownership interest in Cronos Group at the end of 2023 stood at 41.1%, down from its initial 45% stake due to additional shares being issued by Cronos and for which Altria did not exercise its fixed-price preemptive rights to purchase additional shares at a pre-agreed price. Altria never exercised the warrant to increase its ownership stake to 55% either. Juul Labs Inc. Type of Business: Electronic Cigarette Company Acquisition Price: $12.8 billion for a 35% economic interest Acquisition Date: December 20, 2018 Silicon Valley startup and e-cigarette maker Juul Labs Inc. was founded in 2015. Altria acquired a 35% stake in Juul in 2018, valuing the company at $38 billion. The acquisition demonstrates Altria's shift toward more innovative segments of the tobacco market. However, the acquisition hasn't been smooth. Vaping, the term used to describe the inhaling and exhaling of vapor produced by e-cigarettes, has come under stiffer regulatory scrutiny from health officials as a vaping-related illness has led to a number of deaths and hospitalizations. Amid these health concerns, Juul has faced mounting lawsuits over its marketing practices as vaping among teens has surged. In April 2020, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed a lawsuit against Altria claiming that the company's 35% investment in Juul violated antitrust laws. The FTC alleges that Altria and Juul made an illegal side deal that resulted in Altria pulling its own e-cigarettes from the market just prior to its investment in Juul, thus eliminating a source of competition from the market. After an initial ruling in favor of Altria in 2022, the FTC initially continued with appeals and other legal avenues of pursuing the case. However, in 2023 Altria sold its stake in JUUL, following a massive decline in its value. This led to the FTC dropping all cases and complaints. John Middleton Co. Type of Business: Cigar and Pipe Tobacco Manufacturer Acquisition Price: $2.9 billion (announced) Acquisition Date: December 11, 2007 (completed) John Middleton Inc. was first established by John Middleton in 1856 as a small tobacco shop selling cigars and pipe tobacco in downtown Philadelphia. A century and a half later, Altria acquired the company from privately held Bradford Holdings. Today, John Middleton Co. manufactures large machine-made cigars and pipe tobacco as a wholly owned subsidiary of Altria. The acquisition illustrates another way that the company is diversifying away from cigarettes and into sectors of the tobacco market that are growing. At the time of the acquisition, Altria said that the market for machine-made cigars had grown at an annual compound rate of 4% between 2003 and 2007. Burger Sohne Holding AG (the 'Burger Group') Type of Business: Nicotine Pouch Producer Acquisition Price: $372 million for an 80% stake (announced) Acquisition Date: June 3, 2019 (announced) Burger Sohne Holding AG, which is headquartered in Switzerland, was founded in 1864. Last year, Altria acquired an 80% stake in the Burger Group and formed a subsidiary called Helix Innovations LLC to act as the parent company of the Burger Group subsidiaries engaged in the production of a flavored nicotine pouch with the brand name on!. The product is a pouch that users put in their mouth in order to experience a nicotine rush without the chewing, spitting, and odor of tobacco that comes from chewing tobacco. Altria Group Diversity and Inclusiveness Transparency As part of our effort to improve the awareness of the importance of diversity in companies, we have highlighted the transparency of Altria Groups commitment to diversity, inclusiveness, and social responsibility. The below chart illustrates how Altria Group reports the diversity of its management and workforce. This shows whether Altria Group discloses data about the diversity of its board of directors, C-suite, general management, and employees overall, across a variety of markers. We have indicated that transparency with a . TORONTO - May 13, 2024 (Investorideas.com Newswire) dynaCERT Inc. (TSX: DYA) (OTCQX: DYFSF) (FRA: DMJ) ("dynaCERT" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Bernd Krueper as President of the Company and as a Director to serve on the Board of Directors of the Company. This news is paid advertisement/ news disseminated on behalf of/issued on behalf of dynaCERT Inc. As the new President of dynaCERT, Mr. Krueper will provide hands on supervision and senior responsibilities leading the enterprise's further development and international global world-wide expansion with a view of growing the sales volume of the Company's products and the Company's new production initiatives. Mr. Jim Payne remains as Chief Executive Officer and Director of dynaCERT and continues also as Chairman of the Board. Former Chairman, Mr. Wayne Hoffman, continues to serve on the Board of Directors of dynaCERT and takes on the new role of Lead Director of dynaCERT. Mr. Bernd Krueper is a dedicated and results-driven Executive with more than 30 years track record and comprehensive experience in international leadership roles in the Automotive and the Off Highway industry as well as in Sustainable Energy and Power Generation solutions and in Precision Machining. Mr. Krueper brings to dynaCERT top management and C-Suite level expertise having founded and headed numerous entities. He has M&A Transaction skills, strong competence in Finance, Marketing, Sales, Service & Operations and Restructuring & Turnaround management experience. Mr. Krueper also brings to dynaCERT his experience in successfully driving profitable growth, performance increases, sustainable technology road mapping and digital transformation. Mr. Krueper's career accomplishments include the following: Deputy Chairman of the German engine manufacturer association "VDMA, section Engines & Systems", representing leading German and international engine brands. Lobbying and consulting Political Authorities and Decision Makers in Germany and the European Union, e.g. on emission legislation, ESG criteria, Renewable Energy and Non-Fossil Fuel Solutions like Hydrogen. Various Executive Advisor, Supervisory Board Member and Cooperation Partner roles in start ups and well developed companies like Battery Systems, Telematics, Digitalization and Financial Advisory. 6 years CEO at Motorenfabrik Hatz GmbH and 2.5 years CEO of Hatz Components GmbH in Southern Germany, heading Turnaround Management and Performance Increase as well as the company's development from a diesel engine manufacturer to a leading solutions provider for Propulsion and Power Generation incl. digitalization and alternative fuel, hybrid and full electric solutions. Member of the Supervisory Board of Rolls-Royce Power Systems AG. 18 years Leadership Experience at Rolls-Royce Power Systems AG, Tognum AG, MTU Friedrichshafen GmbH, including President Rolls-Royce Power Systems and MTU Greater China; Head of Sales, Service and Network at Rolls-Royce Power Systems AG; Head of Industrial Business, Marketing and Distribution. 6 years at Daimler Group, e.g. "Product Manager Sales and Marketing Maybach"; Senior Manager Strategic Planning Sales and Marketing worldwide, Mercedes-Benz. MBA ("Dipl.-Kfm.") from Eberhard-Karls-University Tubingen, Germany and academic education programs at Universities of New York, USA, Oxford, UK and St. Gallen, CH. A-Levels, Military Service. Bernd Krueper, President & Director of dynaCERT, stated, "I am really very excited about dynaCERT's mission and its continued advancements in hydrogen technology. Working with an admirable management, that is dedicated to reducing carbon emissions in internal combustion engines and staying at the forefront of hydrogen innovation, is exhilarating for me. As President and Director, I welcome the opportunity of collaborating in a vital part of shaping dynaCERT's strategic direction and ensuring that our innovations continue to make a positive impact throughout the world and generate profitable revenue by increasing sales growth world-wide. By planning additional key initiatives in the next few months and coming years, I look forward to leading and further propel dynaCERT's influence and positive impact in the hydrogen marketplace." Jim Payne, Chairman & CEO of dynaCERT stated, "The dynaCERT Board of Directors is very pleased to welcome Mr. Bernd Krueper as President and as a Director of the Company. Mr. Krueper is a highly dynamic and energetic executive, with a positively outgoing manner and a straightforward approach and I look forward to working closely with him. His ambitious, self-confident and target-oriented pronounced will to succeed, embraces change. Mr. Krueper will work well with the dynaCERT Board of Directors as he is open-minded, transparent and convincing, reliable, structured, integrative and consistent in leadership. As President, Mr. Krueper is strategic and analytic with hands-on mentality. Our entire Company, our stakeholders, clients, dealers and shareholders are joining me in greeting Mr. Krueper as a dynamic strong supporter of the furtherance of our hydrogen technology on a global scale across many industries world-wide." The new appointment to the Board of Directors, the new Chairman, the new Lead Director and the office of President mentioned herein will take effect May 15, 2024. Pursuant to By Law NO. 1 adopted by the shareholders of dynaCERT at its last annual meeting, the Board of Directors of the Company has increased the number of Directors of the Company from eight (8) Directors to nine (9) Directors. About dynaCERT Inc. dynaCERT Inc. manufactures and distributes Carbon Emission Reduction Technology along with its proprietary HydraLytica Telematics, a means of monitoring fuel consumption and calculating GHG emissions savings designed for the tracking of possible future Carbon Credits for use with internal combustion engines. As part of the growing global hydrogen economy, our patented technology creates hydrogen and oxygen on-demand through a unique electrolysis system and supplies these gases through the air intake to enhance combustion, which has shown to lower carbon emissions and improve fuel efficiency. Our technology is designed for use with many types and sizes of diesel engines used in on-road vehicles, reefer trailers, off-road construction, power generation, mining and forestry equipment. Website: www.dynaCERT.com. READER ADVISORY Except for statements of historical fact, this news release contains certain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities law. Forward-looking information is frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. In particular, information relating to Jeff Zajac cannot be independently verified. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking information are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. We cannot guarantee future results, performance of achievements. Consequently, there is no representation that the actual results achieved will be the same, in whole or in part, as those set out in the forward-looking information. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the statements are made and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking information. Some of the risks and other factors that could cause the results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking information include, but are not limited to: uncertainty as to whether our strategies and business plans will yield the expected benefits; availability and cost of capital; the ability to identify and develop and achieve commercial success for new products and technologies; the level of expenditures necessary to maintain and improve the quality of products and services; changes in technology and changes in laws and regulations; the uncertainty of the emerging hydrogen economy; including the hydrogen economy moving at a pace not anticipated; our ability to secure and maintain strategic relationships and distribution agreements; and the other risk factors disclosed under our profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Readers are cautioned that this list of risk factors should not be construed as exhaustive. The forward-looking information contained in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. We undertake no duty to update any of the forward-looking information to conform such information to actual results or to changes in our expectations except as otherwise required by applicable securities legislation. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Neither the Toronto Stock Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Toronto Stock Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of the release. On Behalf of the Board Murray James Payne, CEO Contacts For more information: Jim Payne, CEO & President dynaCERT Inc. #101 - 501 Alliance Avenue Toronto, Ontario M6N 2J1 +1 (416) 766-9691 x 2 jpayne@dynaCERT.com Investor Relations dynaCERT Inc. Nancy Massicotte +1 (416) 766-9691 x 1 nmassicotte@dynaCERT.com 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. contact management and IR of each company directly regarding specific questions. Disclosure. DYA is a monthly featured cleantech stock on Investorideas.com effective March 1, 2024 for 6 months. (equivalent of 3500 month in stock) More disclaimer info: https://www.investorideas.com/About/Disclaimer.asp Learn more about publishing your news release and our other news services on the Investorideas.com newswire https://www.investorideas.com/News-Upload/ Global investors must adhere to regulations of each country. Please read Investorideas.com privacy policy: https://www.investorideas.com/About/Private_Policy.asp dynaCERT Inc. (TSX:DYA.TO) (DYFSF) is a featured Renewable Energy / Fuel Cell stock on Investorideas.com Visit profile page South African insurance company OUTsurance has announced plans to invest 160m into its Irish operations and create more than 200 more jobs. The company, which currently employs 70 people in its head office in Cherrywood in Dublin, is to offer both car and home insurance in Ireland. Over the next three years, it is planning to bring its number of employees up to 300. Accumulated profits at the renowned Ballymaloe cookery school firm in east Cork, which recently hosted Hollywood star Kate Winslet, last year climbed to 2.9m. That is according to new accounts which show that post-tax profits at Ballymaloe Cookery School Ltd last year totalled 88,864 which was a 2% increase on the profits of 86,876 for 2022. The Cork cookery school business sits on a 100-acre organic firm where Darina Allen is the majority shareholder. Last month, the cookery school came into the spotlight after Oscar-winning actor Kate Winslet enrolled in a two-and-a-half-day course with TV chef and bestselling cookbook author Rachel Allen. Commenting on the cookery school firms financial performance last year, director Toby Allen said: We are delighted that 2023 was a busy year and we were able to increase our numbers back to pre covid levels which helped with the bottom line. He said: We had a selection of over 60 courses in 2023 and were delighted that most were full. Many, including our 12-week certificate courses had waiting lists when they started, which shows great confidence in our business. Our next 12-week course begins in September and it is already full, which is great news. Mr Allen said that increased costs of energy and food have continued to be a concern and necessitated an increase in our course fees. The cost of sitting the schools 12-week certificate course in 2024 is 14,495. Mr Allen said: We are delighted that the cookery school continues to attract students from all over Ireland, the UK and the rest of the world." He said: Our most recent course has students from 12 different countries around the world with students ranging from 18 to 65 years old. Winslet boost Mr Allen wouldnt be drawn up on the recent enrolment of Kate Winslet when asked if the publicity surrounding her time at Ballymaloe resulted in a spike in bookings. Mr Allen said: We value the privacy of all our students and are unable to answer any specific questions." The profits of the last three years at the school firm follow post-tax losses of 193,097 during the covid-19 hit 2020. The school is a significant employer in east rural Cork and last year numbers employed increased from 66 to 68 as staff costs rose from 2.33m to 2.52m. The profits last year take account of non-cash depreciation costs of 170,796 while directors pay rose from 288,665 to 336,478. The firms cash funds reduced from 1.27m to 944,642 after the company re-invested in the business enterprise. The book value of the firms fixed assets increased by 753,408 to 6m before non-cash depreciation costs are taken into account. Mr Allen said: We are continually investing in new accommodation for our students and were able to add eight new bedrooms last year. This coming weekend, the inaugural Ballymaloe Festival of Food at Ballymaloe House and Grainstore, which is about 5km from the Cookery School, takes place. When the worlds top gas traders met in late April in Amsterdam, the news came of a leak at Europes biggest liquefied natural gas plant, located above the Arctic circle in Norway. The problem discovered during a planned test of the facilitys safety systems was quickly repaired, but not before it caused a momentary spike in the price of natural gas. Back in the Netherlands, it served as an uncomfortable reminder of the power of a single company, Equinor. In the more than two years since Russia invaded Ukraine, sending energy prices soaring, the Norwegian oil and gas giant has quietly picked up the crown that once belonged to Russias Gazprom. Norway now supplies 30% of eurozone gas; Gazprom provided about 35% of all Europes gas before the war. And of the more than 109 billion cubic meters of natural gas Norway exported to Europe last year enough to power Germany until 2026 roughly two-thirds was marketed and sold by Equinor. The companys new prominence has also raised questions about whether European leaders are, once again, putting their countries at risk by relying too heavily on a single supplier. Although Norway is perceived as a steady trading partner with a long and consistent history of delivering energy to Europe, extended outages and its handling of maintenance challenges, both of which affect energy prices, have had ripple effects across the continent. Part of the companys good fortune has to do with a broader shift in Europes relationship to fossil fuels, Thina Margrethe Saltvedt, chief analyst for sustainable finance at Nordea Bank, said in an interview. Norways new role as gas purveyor to Europe has been very profitable gas exports hit a record high of 1.4 trillion kroner (120bn) in 2022 but it has also cast a question mark over Norways green future. While the country has become a leader in initiatives like the transition to electric vehicles, the recent surge in demand for gas has had the effect of redirecting financial resources and talent back into the oil and gas sector. Meanwhile, organisations such as Greenpeace have expressed concern that Europes embrace of Norwegian gas could come at the expense of the broader green transition. - Bloomberg Dear Stephen, I am a farmer, and I have had a number of issues for the last number of years with adjoining land. This land was originally farmland and was subsequently granted planning permission by the local council to build a housing estate. I made objections to An Bord Pleanala and engaged a planning consultant to assist with the objections. An Bord Plenanala has very recently upheld the original permission. The planning consultant informed me that I cannot appeal it further, but we can look at the decision-making process. What does this mean, and what are my legal options? Dear Reader, There is a process in Ireland called Judicial Review is a mechanism by which an application can be made to the High Court to challenge the decision making processes of administrative bodies and lower courts. The basic principles of public decision-making are: The decision-maker must have the authority to make the decision that affects you. If the decision-maker has the authority to make the decision, it must not go beyond the limits of its authority You are entitled to fair procedures in how the decision is reached. This means that the decision-maker must not be biased, and the decision-maker must give you a fair hearing. You must be given an adequate opportunity to present your case. You must be informed of the matter and you must be given a chance to comment on the material put forward by the other side. The decision maker must comply with all legal requirements governing the decision and its making. If the decision-maker does not have authority, does not give you fair procedures, or does not comply with the law, you may bring judicial review proceedings in the High Court to challenge the decision. If you wish to begin Judicial Review proceedings, you should instruct a solicitor. You should obtain advice from the planning consultant as to whether they are of the view there is a basis for bringing a Judicial review application. You would need to instruct a solicitor, and the first step is that an application be made to the High Court seeking permission or leave to judicially review a decision of the planning authority in question. The application must be made within eight weeks from the date of the decision of the planning authority. The leave stage is used to identify applications at an early stage, which or without merit. At the leave stage, you must show that you have "sufficient interest" in the matter and demonstrate that you are affected in some way by the decision you are challenging. The application to the court is based on a statement of grounds and grounding affidavits of the person bringing the application. This statement should set out the reasons a judicial review is sought. Typically if leave to proceed is granted, the applicant may then bring judicial review proceedings. The respondent, who in planning matters is normally the body that made the final decision, has an opportunity to oppose the application and can file a statement of opposition and reply affidavits. Normally, the legal teams also file legal submissions, and then the application is heard by the court. Any person who may be affected by the judicial review proceedings and judgment should be notified or may apply to be heard as a notice party. A court can then grant a number of remedies. The most common in planning is an Order of Certiorari, where the court can cancel the original decision. The original decision-maker generally must then re-examine the case and issue a new decision. It is a measure of Simon Armitages dedication to his work and indeed all aspects of his life that he has given up time from a rare holiday to do an interview with the Irish Examiner on Zoom. There is a delicious irony in the fact that the name of the platform hosting our chat is also the title of his first collection of poetry. Yorkshire-born Armitage wrote Zoom! when he was employed as a probation officer and it was hailed as an instant classic on its release in 1989. Thirty-five years on, Armitage, who will appear at the Cork International Poetry Festival on Saturday, has numerous collections under his belt and also holds the British title of poet laureate. Not to mention his other endeavours as a lecturer, broadcaster, DJ, band member, playwright and novelist. What does he think when he looks back at his first collection and the start of what would be such a creatively productive life and career? Theyve got all my old archives in Leeds University and once in a while, I go in and see some of those poems that were in Zoom! and written on probation office stationery. I suppose thats when it feels like quite a while ago, thinking back to a real time of innocence for me, just writing those poems without any knowledge that they might ever be published. You know, just writing for fun. The late great Eavan Boland once wrote that poetry begins where the language starts, in the shadows and accidents of one persons life. Where did poetry begin for Armitage? We all have our own creation myths. Ive talked a lot about waking up to poetry when I was at school, through reading Ted Hughes being a very distant kid at that time, not engaged in anything, and suddenly being confronted by these startling, small, intense packages of language and that realisation that something incredibly vivid was happening in my head. But if I go back further, I think its probably something to do with reading and staring at song lyrics printed on album covers and hymns and prayers. Just noticing organised language, language with managed intervals, language that was ceremonialised through being arranged and structured rather than just poured in, as prose is, to fill up a page. Armitages love for music extends to performance he fronts the band LYR (Land Yacht Regatta). Among his countless accolades, he also has an Ivor Novello songwriting award for lyrics he wrote for a Channel 4 documentary. With the recent release of The Tortured Poets Department by Taylor Swift, there has been renewed discussion of her talents as a lyricist and even as a poet. Armitage chuckles somewhat nervously when I ask him if he consider Swifts work to be poetry. Yeah, dont get me going on that, he says. I will talk more generally about the difference between lyrics and poetry rather than based on the legions of Swifties. The short answer is that all poetry can be used as song lyric. But by and large, song lyrics are not poems. And thats because they come with all this other stuff called music they come with a backbeat, they come with orchestration, they come with composition, they come with chord changes, they come with performance, they come with cowboy boots. But poetry has got to be its own score on the page. Queen Elizabeth II presenting Simon Armitage with The Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry upon his appointment as Poet Laureate during an audience at Buckingham Palace in 2019 in London. (Photo by Jonathan Brady - WPA Pool/Getty Images) Armitage has said that part of his philosophy is to try and find the miraculous within the everyday, the ordinary and the domestic. Does he think poets brains are wired differently to see inspiration everywhere? It would be fun to make a case for poets being born and not made and to think that we have some special quality. I know people say a lot to me that I notice more than they do. If you give me a chance, Ill probably say yeah, were the special ones, were the high priests. But in reality, I think its probably more mundane, its just about finding a way of writing things down and of course, you get really practiced at that. And you develop it almost as a way of life. Poems have never been more widely disseminated than in the digital age. While the internet has rewired our brains and shattered our attention spans, Armitage thinks poetry is more relevant than ever. When I started, I had a sense of it being slightly old-fashioned, and maybe out of touch, and I think I was trying to change that a little bit when I started writing, in the only way that I knew how. But in the age that we live in now, where were just bombarded with noise and colour, and shite, 24 hours a day, 360 degrees, when you get one person saying something that they've thought about, and that they really believe in and that theyve revised and improved before theyve sent it out there into the world that becomes incredibly valuable. Armitage is now halfway through his stint as poet laureate, and has been conscious of using the influence and recognition that the position brings as much as he can. Its a role that gets you into rooms with people, opens doors, its a chance to do put a little bit back. So, Im trying to develop a National Poetry Centre in Leeds; Ive established the Laurel Prize, an international award for eco and nature poetry that highlights the climate crisis; I do a big tour of libraries every spring. None of those things would have been financially viable without that title. He also had the weighty responsibility of being the first poet laureate in more than 70 years to write a poem on the death of a monarch when Queen Elizabeth II died in 2022. The result, Floral Tribute, was a double acrostic (two verses of nine lines, the first letters of which spelt Elizabeth) and was warmly received. He was in Durham for an event when he heard that the Queen was ailing and later that she had died. I thought I probably need to go home and sharpen a pencil. I went back through my notebooks because I had some ideas; when I took the job, people in the palace did say to me theres likely to be quite a few significant events in the next 10 years. He says coming up with the double acrostic form helped him to write the poem in what anyone would consider to be a highly pressurised situation. I mean, the idea is always the problem. And the solution is the point. So, there's always a way of doing these things, in a way that you're proud of, and in a way that's still new. And sometimes thats harder than other times, but theres always a way. Armitage has a particular reason why he's looking forward to his first trip to Cork. One of my all-time favourite bands are from Cork, Microdisney, he says, adding that he enjoyed the recent BBC documentary on the band, which was fronted by Cork native, the late lamented Cathal Coughlan. I recorded it and I watched it on my own because theyre not everybodys cup of tea. I found it really joyful, especially showing those reunion gigs. I went back and listened to their first two albums again, they are amazing. Im definitely going to have those albums playing on my headphones when Im out and about in Cork. It may not be poetry, but its a sentiment that will be music to many Corkonians ears. Simon Armitage is at Cork Arts Theatre at 10pm on Saturday, May 18. See www.corkpoetryfest.net Cork Poetry Festival: Other highlights (all events at Cork Arts Theatre) Victoria Kennefick. For the long view of Irish poetry, it would be hard to beat John F. Deane and Aidan Mathews, Thurs, 8.30pm. Cork native Victoria Kennefick, fresh from the success of Egg/Shell, is in conversation with Heather Treseler, Thurs, 10pm. Poetry as Gaeilge is well represented at the festival; bi ann le Simon O Faolain and Gabriel Rosenstock on Sat, 4.30pm. Another big beast of contemporary poetry features on Saturday Paul Muldoon (8.30pm) in conversation with Thomas McCarthy, followed by Simon Armitage talking to Matthew Geden (10pm). Well worth the late night. Irish universities are struggling to keep pace with their international peers, according to a new global ranking of third-level institutions. Eight Irish universities feature in the Global 2000 list for 2024, which is published on Monday by the Center for World University Rankings (CWUR), but five of those have fallen in their rankings. Trinity College Dublin (TCD) remains Irelands best-performing university in the list, which measures education, employability, faculty, and research. The national picture in Ireland is a cause for concern, amid intensified global competition from well-funded institutions, the CWUR noted. TCD fell by three spots to 250 due to a decline in faculty and research. However, the CWUR said it improved in the employability indicator. University College Dublin fell by 13 places to 301 while UCC fell eight spots to 542. These are ahead of the University of Galway which sits at 668th place and the University of Limerick, which fell by five places to 925th place. The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland sat at 1,013, Dublin City University at 1,134, and Maynooth University at 1,287. Research performance affecting rankings The decline in rankings for these institutions is down to a drop in research performance. CWUR president Nadim Mahassen said the rankings made it clear that "Irelands standing in education and research is under increasing pressure, following the rise of higher-education systems from around the world. In the last five years, Irelands global share in scientific research fell by 3%, he said. Without additional Government investment in research and development, Ireland faces the possibility of declining even further in the future. For the 13th year in a row, Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, topped the world ranking, maintaining a perfect 100 out of 100 score. It is followed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Standford University, while the UKs Cambridge and Oxford rank fourth and fifth, respectively. The rest of the global top 10 features other private US universities, including Princeton, Columbia, Pennsylvania, Yale, and Caltech. While the rankings confirm the world-class standing of the US higher-education sector, the decline of nearly two-thirds of American institutions is concerning, amid stiff competition from Chinese universities, said Dr Mahassen. China investing heavily in R&D The overall slide of US institutions mirrors those of UK, Russian, and Japanese universities, while France saw improvements as a result of the growing number of mergers between its institutions, he said. Chinas remarkable rise in the rankings is due to heavy investment in research and development, as well as the recruitment of talented researchers in classified areas from the US and elsewhere. With Chinese universities are challenging their Western counterparts, American and European institutions cannot afford to be complacent, Dr Mahassen said. More than 630 European universities are featured in the top 2,000. However, the overall picture for the year for these institutions remains bleak, he said, amid growing competition. Around 100 people are said to have gathered at a pro-Palestine encampment set up over the weekend at University College Dublin (UCD). Since Saturday, students have set up tents and banners around the lake at the Belfield campus in solidarity with Palestinians who are being displaced from their homes in Gaza. The encampment is organised by a Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) group set up by UCD students last autumn, which claims to have between 200-250 members. It follows the end of a student encampment at Trinity College Dublin on Wednesday after the university said it would divest from investments in Israeli companies that have activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and endeavour to divest in other Israeli companies. An encampment protest over the Gaza conflict on the grounds of University College Dublin (UCD) (Niall Carson/PA) Eabha Hughes, a third-year student of history and politics who co-founded the BDS group, said the outcome of the Trinity students encampment definitely helped build the momentum for their own. We just have to work on the momentum that they built, she told the PA news agency. She said a lot of the tents were brought along by students, but some were lent by Trinity students after their protest ended. After our encampment finishes, whenever that may be, whenever they divest, well donate the tents to charities, she said. The UCD encampment has 11 demands, Ms Hughes said, including asking the university to divest from any business, academic or research ties with Israeli institutions. They are also asking for an anti-apartheid policy and campus to be implemented by UCD. (It) means that no institutions or companies or any relationship between UCD and any institution in the future that has ties to emancipation, a genocide, a regime of any kind, were really pushing for that policy. Students have set up tents in the grounds of University College Dublin (Niall Carson/PA) Ms Hughes said the reaction to the encampment has been pretty good. Were very welcoming, and I say to everyone whos walking by and were in the middle of exams so the campus is pretty busy to come on in and we do have various activities organised if people want to come down on their lunch break. Today, for example, we have a Q&A session with some Palestinian students who are going to flesh out peoples knowledge. Ms Hughes, who has exams on Wednesday, said that I can take my exams again but people are losing their lives. I study history and politics and so my degree is so heavily based on occupation, a lot of the classes Ive taken have been about the British occupation in Ireland, imperialism, genocide and war. I guess were essentially practising what our educators preach in my classes. I study history and politics, because I think its really important to learn about whats happened in the world so it doesnt happen again and were watching a genocide livestreamed through our phones. Its important to be there because of my degree. Thats not to say that Im not studying, I was in the library earlier today, but thats because we have people holding down the camp. We have students here who have finished their exams or their assignments, and theyre still sticking around in UCD to help out with the encampment. We want to work with the university, not against them, we just want to show them that we're not messing around, we care about Palestine Asked if the encampments could spread to other Irish universities, she said: One hundred per cent. Trinity, Queens (University Belfast), its just the start. She added: We want to work diplomatically with the university, were open to conversation, its a completely peaceful protest but just because its a peaceful protest doesnt mean were not making demands. We have to escalate, we tried to contact them diplomatically in the past. We want to work with the university, not against them, we just want to show them that were not messing around, we care about Palestine. UCD president Orla Feely sent a message to students and staff on Sunday acknowledging the shock and deep distress that the suffering and deaths in Gaza and Israel have caused people at UCD. Emphasising the universitys support of peaceful protest and the importance of students safety, Ms Feely said that all members of the university have the right to be treated with dignity and respect, including freedom from harassment. Students in Ireland have set up tents outside university buildings, replicating the nationwide campus demonstrations which began in the US last month (Niall Carson/PA) Addressing the demands of the protesters, she said the bursar has confirmed to me that UCD has no investments in Israel, so this issue of divestment does not arise for UCD. She also said that there are no formal bilateral partnerships with Israeli institutions, but they do have 11 EU research projects that have Israeli partners. The university participates in EU research projects as a member of a number of multi-partner networks. We currently have 11 active projects that have Israeli partners within these large networks. We fully respect the academic freedom of UCD researchers to continue these research collaborations, most of which are in the areas of health and sustainability. Ms Hughes said justifying academic research with Israeli institutions in the name of health and sustainability, whilst those same institutions are providing technologies for the Israeli Defence Forces, is just reprehensible and unjustifiable in my opinion. Were asking for no relationship with Israeli institutions, no matter what the work is. Ms Feely concluded her message to staff and students: It remains my hope, as I indicated in an email last week, that even through very difficult times UCD can continue to be a place that supports open and constructive debate in an environment of inclusivity and respect, modelling the behaviour and environment that we wish to see in the wider world. Small EU countries such as Ireland are not safe from the threat posed by information manipulation from hostile countries, a top European Commission expert has warned. Lutz Gullner, attached to the EU diplomatic service, told a conference in Dublin that nobody is safe and that it doesnt matter if a country is big or small as disinformation campaigns are transmitted in the digital world, not the physical one. Speaking via videolink, the head of strategic communication at the European External Action Service (EEAS) said that each member state, regardless of its size, needs to have a national disinformation strategy and a clear leader. In a special report in the Irish Examiner last week, security sources described Irelands approach to tackling disinformation as very confused, with a number of agencies operating in the area, but no overall strategy or co-ordinating body. Ireland was due to publish the countrys first national counter-disinformation strategy by March, but it is now expected before June. Addressing a conference organised by the Institute of International and European Affairs, Mr Gullner said Russia was the most visible perpetrator of disinformation in the EU. He said some of Russias information manipulation has also involved suspected corruption of elected representatives to the European Parliament, with a number of investigations underway into alleged payments to MEPs. Mr Gullner said the target of Russian disinformation is shifting all the time, being traditionally focused on Eastern European states and Baltic countries. He said these countries have built up quite significant resilience and that the campaigns are currently hitting Germany and France. Asked if this meant small countries, particularly neutral ones like Ireland, would not be a target, he said: The key message I would like to pass on is nobody is safe from this, big or small, because it doesnt work with big and small it works with digital means and it doesnt matter whether its big or small, because you can reach people. He urged all member states to be wary of this threat and for each country to define what the problem was, did they want to tackle it, and how. He said this requires structures and strategies and that, in his personal opinion, there needs to be somebody in charge, as it crosses so many different departments, including communications, digital policy, foreign policy, national security, and other areas. Mr Gullner said there was a risk of disinformation campaigns during the current European Parliament election campaigns and other elections (Ireland is also having local elections on the same day, 7 June). Countries need to be prepared, but we dont want to overstate this threat, he said. He said that if voters believe elections will be interfered with anyway, it might stop some from voting which, he said, was what the attackers want. Mr Gullner said AI was making disinformation, such as fake videos and fake audios, easier, faster and cheaper as well as more professional and sophisticated. He said: Can we actually trust our eyes and ears anymore, the better these things are being done? He said it was important that the threat from AI disinformation should not be hyped too much and added that the technology can also be used to detect machine-produced content as well. He added that countering disinformation was not about controlling freedom of speech, but the protection of it. A man has been arrested after a woman was assaulted in Dublin on Friday evening. Gardai in Blanchardstown are investigating the serious incident that happened in the Waterville area shortly before 9pm. People living in one of Irelands fastest-growing towns have unveiled ambitious plans for a decade of festivals as part of a new vision they hope will shape their area over the next two decades. The team behind the grassroots-led masterplan for Carrigtwohill in Cork will publish the 146-page document on Wednesday for people to vote on. This plan was written by 60 of us and captures the ambitions and the creativity of an even bigger group, said Frank Hannigan, one of those involved in the Carrigtwohill (C2H) 2040 project. The more people who read it and engage with it, the more powerful a plan it becomes. "We are very proud of where we live. We know that what got us here will not be enough to ensure that a 15,000-population town maintains its quality of life, community, and integrity. So, this is the plan to define whats next. The C2H 2040 document sets out a wide range of aims, goals, and strategies for areas such as planning, transport and development, industry, retail and business development, social integration, inclusion and social infrastructure, parks and green spaces, the environment, culture, tourism, and folklore. Among the flagship projects are: The launch of a decade of festivals from this year, building to a major celebration in 2034 to mark the 800th anniversary of Carrigtwohill Fair; The promotion of the restored Barryscourt Castle as a new tourism destination, and the development of an interpretative centre; The development of a campervan park, given the towns location midway between Rosslare and Ringaskiddy ferry ports, and its proximity to tourist attractions including Fota Wildlife Park and Midleton Distillery. The support of Cork County Council and various Government departments will be vital if the plan is to implemented, the group said. Carrigtwohill, 11km east of Cork City and on the commuter rail corridor, has seen its population grow rapidly over the last two decades, from just over 1,200 in 1996 to around 5,600 in 2022. If national policy targets are met, its population could reach 15,000 by 2031 a staggering 1,180% increase in just 25 years. Once a largely agricultural and monocultural community, today it boasts more than 50 different nationalities, with more than 40% of the population aged between 25 and 44. However, the C2H 2040 group said various county council-led development plans for the town over the years have failed to deliver necessary infrastructure in line with house construction, including a through road for the Castlelake development, upgrades of the junction of Main St and Church Rd, and a major upgrade of the N25. Despite the challenges it faces, Carrigtwohill has retained its unique community spirit and highly motivated, energetic, and enthusiastic voluntary sector, the plan says. The winning of the national Pride of Place title in 2017 demonstrated that the sense of community still burns strongly in Carrigtwohill. The Carrigtwohill (C2H) 2040 project proposes making more use of the stunning newly-restored Barryscourt Castle. Picture: Denis Minihane The retention and extension of that community spirit and the passing on of that spirit to a new and diverse population is a major challenge but it is possible. We are at a pivotal point in the development of our village-turned-town, said Mr Hannigan. "The development of a workable and meaningful, properly funded plan and a sincerity in relation to the implementation and delivery of that plan backed by meaningful proposals and a coordinated approach to delivery of the necessary infrastructure is critical to the success of our community. The overall objective of the plan is that Carrigtwohill will, in 2040, be an attractive, vibrant living town with a mix of housing types and associated infrastructure, excellent public transport options, a large public park accessible by walking and biking from all over the town, while still retaining its unique community spirit. The plan will be published online on May 15, with voting open for four weeks. You can learn more on the Carrigtwohill Community Council website ahead of the unveiling of the plan on Wednesday. UN secretary general Antonio Guterres has renewed his call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Strip as Israeli forces expand their operations in Rafah. Guterres also called for the unconditional release of all captives held by Hamas as well as an immediate surge in humanitarian aid into Gaza. Some 300,000 people have been forced to flee Rafah in recent days as Israel pushes further into the city, extending its evacuation order. And, as the war escalates, new figures show that Irish imports of Israeli goods have not been impacted by the war. The most recent data available shows that Ireland imported around 3.6bn worth of Israeli goods in 2023 and that for the first two months of this year, that figure is 608m. Recent data from Israels central bureau of statistics shows Ireland in its top 10 export markets, with a trade surplus of over 1.5bn. Figures released by the Department of the Taoiseach show Ireland imported over 3.4bn worth of "machinery and transport equipment", with nearly 600m this year. Another 60m of chemical products was imported in 2023, with just over 10.5m in food and live animals. The figures also show that Ireland exported more than 140m worth of goods to Israel in January and February of this year, largely made up of chemical products and machinery. Ireland exported over 500m worth of products to Israel last year, according to figures released earlier this month. Human rights obligations Ireland and Spain have asked the European Commission for an urgent review of whether Israel is complying with its human rights obligations under the EU/Israel association agreement. However, that review has not yet taken place, frustrating some in Government. The agreement is the basis for the EU's trade relations with Israel and was introduced in June 2000. It "aims to provide an appropriate legal and institutional framework for political dialogue and economic cooperation between the EU and Israel". The Labour Party's candidate in the European elections for Ireland South, Niamh Hourigan, said that the figures show that despite the ongoing bombardment of Gaza, international demands for boycotts have had little impact. Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike on buildings near the separating wall between Egypt and Rafah, southern Gaza Strip. Picture: Ramez Habboub/AP Photo The Irish Government needs to cease investment and trade in the occupied territories altogether. "The volume of exports to Israel will shock Irish people who have been calling week in, week out for radical action from the Government to deal with the Netanyahu led genocide in Palestine. "Famine hovers over the people of Gaza as a horrific spectre but companies continue to export at leisure." The Cork Palestine Solidarity Campaign march heard similar calls. West Bank-based human rights organisation Al-Haqs general director Shawan Jabarin said all trade in Ireland with all Israeli companies should be stopped, not just trade with companies in the occupied territories. He told the march, which was the 30th demonstration since the war began, that severing economic ties would not damage the Irish economy. Israel needs to be held accountable for its crimes and it needs to feel painful ecomist consequences for what it has done. If they dont, Israel will keep repeating the crimes they commit. Additional reporting by the Associated Press She was a duchess or something like that. And around the time of King Charles coronation, at some social event, she got talking to a black woman. Amicable, the chat was. So amicable that the duchess, or whatever she was, developed the urge to know more about the other woman. Where, she asked, was the other woman from? Birmingham, was the reply. No, but really, she persisted. How do you mean, really? the other woman asked, beginning to get ratty. No, where are you really from, though? The aristocrat couldnt get her ennobled head around the possibility that a black woman could be just as much a UK citizen as herself. It created a controversy and generated grovelling apologies. The incident came to mind because of Natalie Elphicke abandoning the Conservative Party in the middle of last week and climbing aboard Keir Starmers Labour Party. Its a curious thing about British politics. People switch parties much more often than happens here, where weve maybe had three political party renegades in the last 50 years, one of them a former Labour Party leader who went to Fine Gael. The UK, on the other hand, has long lists of members of parliament who crossed the floor. In Ireland, floor-crossers dont tend to make a mark in history, although, if memory serves, they dont ever go back to where they came from, as Winston Churchill did, in the 1920s, having left the Conservatives in 1904. Anyone can rat, he cheerfully announced on his return to the Tories, but it takes a certain amount of ingenuity to re-rat. (You can see why Boris Johnson identifies so closely with Churchill.) Crossing the floor in Ireland Floor-crossing in Ireland was refreshed during the years of Charlie Haugheys leadership of Fianna Fail, with former members like Mary Harney, Dessie OMalley, and Bobby Molloy moving to the new Progressive Democrats. Progressive Democrats leader Des O'Malley with Fianna Fail leader Charles Haughey in 1991. Along with Mary Harney and Bobby Molloy, O'Malley crossed the floor to form the new party but ended up back with Fianna Fail in a coalition government. Picture: Eamonn Farrell/Photocall Those old enough to remember the beautifully-managed sequence of defections will testify that, because the PDs was a new entity, a kind of idealistic whiff surrounded the public representatives who made the move, as opposed to the stench of treachery traditionally associated with rare defections to another long-standing party. That the star players in the PDs ended up in government with their former party turned out to be a manageable proposition, up to the moment when Dessie OMalley found Sean Dohertys phone-tapping confession chilling and effectively wrote an end to CJs career. Coalition floor-crossing should be easy... In theory, it should be relatively easy for members of the current Government parties to shift from their home territory to one of the two others, having proven they can work remarkably well together. But no matter how well they work together, each of the three cherishes a sense of standing for something specific and different. It may be delusional, that cherishing, but it is real and present, unlike the position of the British Labour Party right now. The sad commonality between the British and Irish Labour parties is that what they cherish is a sense of standing for something specific and different that belongs in the past. Like rich guys who were brought up in poverty, they convince themselves that their unchosen past stamps them with the justification for their wealthy present. Their sense of mission is rooted in the conviction that they are intrinsically better people, by virtue of their past, than current government parties. Ergo they dont have to own any present-day ideal or champion the rights of any particular sector. In Ireland, this is complicated by Ivana Baciks ill-founded conviction that turning everything into a civilised academic discussion constitutes leadership. Keir Starmer will readily sacrifice beliefs to get into power In England, it is complicated by Keir Starmers equally ill-founded conviction that the end justifies the means, the end being getting to rule. That conviction relies on the Tories being so lousy in government that if he curls up in a foetal crouch rather than standing full height and stating what he and his party believe in, Starmers Labour will still get into power. This may turn out to be true, but what a travesty of politics it represents the determination to sacrifice identity, brand, and beliefs, lest any one of the three prevent election. Its the first time a major opposition party in UK or Ireland has deliberately chosen not to be seen to stand for anything. Keir Starmer is the moral equivalent of the duchess. When hes asked what his party stands for, what it really stands for, he chooses not to tell the truth. If there is a truth beyond determination to get into Downing Street. In his column in this paper last week, Fergus Finlay indicated positivity towards the British Labour Party getting into power because they are social democrats and can be relied on to take social democratic actions once they get it. Theyre sure as hell not taking social democratic actions in advance of that point. Starmer's welcome for Natalie Elphicke Nobody has advanced an acceptable reason for Starmer to welcome Natalie Elphicke, a Conservative runaway, to his party. This isnt a woman who was ever on what well laughingly call the leftward-leaning side of the Tories. She was always to the hard right, always part of groups articulating that stance, always wanted Brexit. When her husband was convicted of abuses against women, she not only backed him but rubbished his accusers. Suddenly, now, shes seen the light about him and has apologised to the women involved. No matter how you look at her, a shining Labour Party acquisition she is not. Labours leader seems to be so values-free that accepting her is OK on the basis that she might help his election chances. Elected, goes the spurious assumption, he would suddenly do a U-turn and be driven by left-wing values. Yeah, right. Starmers taken the safe option of constantly criticising Rishi Sunaks government without (for reasons Fergus Finlay elucidated) presenting excitement in the way of specific alternative policies. Instead, hes been doing the magicians trick of Dont look here, look there. British Labour should heed warning from its own past Has it made him popular with prospective Labour voters? Not according to former British Labour leader Neil Kinnock who, a few days ago, told the BBC people werent convinced by Starmer and that nobody could guarantee a House of Commons majority for Labour in the next general election, despite sky-high expectations. Party chairwoman Anneliese Dodds agreed with him, noting that: We can be very good at losing elections people thought we would win. Think of 1992. Kinnock would not be happy to think of 1992, when he was the charismatic leader of what was, at the time, seen as an unbeatable party, only to be beaten by the Tories, then led by the decidedly uncharismatic John Major but the chairwoman is right. So, two Labourites of standing warn against extrapolating from the widespread dislike of Rishi Sunaks government to a rush to shelter under Starmers wing. At a time of despairing cynicism, voters want something and someone to believe in. Starmer provides neither. Because he cant or wont answer the question: What do you really stand for? Ahead of the European parliament elections in June, Germany has lowered the age limit on participation to 16. This makes it the largest of just a handful of states in the EU to allow people under the age of 18 to vote. Austria, Belgium, and Malta have already enfranchised 16- and 17-year-olds, and Greece is to allow anyone turning 17 in 2024 to participate in the June vote. Around 4.8m young Germans plus about 300,000 young people from other EU member states who live in Germany will be allowed to vote for the very first time. The group makes up a relatively small proportion of Germanys overall electorate of 64.9m, but is nevertheless larger than the population of many other European member states. And given that the 2019 European elections saw a significant rise in participation among young voters, we can be hopeful of a good turnout among this newly enfranchised group. However, younger voters are being heavily courted by the far right, so this lowering of the voting age could end up boosting the performance of the Alternative fur Deutschland (AfD) party. The latest data suggests that the 15- to 24-year-old age group has a broadly more positive view of the European Parliament than the rest of the German population but that this positivity is in sharper decline than other age groups. Recent figures show 41% of Germans between 15 and 24 years old felt positively about the parliament, compared to 34% of the overall population. It had been at an all-time high of 51% just a few years ago in 2021. Similarly, while 75% of the younger age group believed in having a stronger European parliament in 2021, that has fallen to 51% in 2024. The picture, however, is ultimately one that suggests ambivalence. This younger age group still considers EU membership a good thing and 84% see the benefits for Germany. And while their level of satisfaction with democracy in the EU has shrunk to 58%, trust in the European Parliament itself has risen to 63%. Political TikTok The European Parliament is the European Unions directly elected institution and the only directly elected transnational parliamentary assembly in the world. These first-time voters in Germany will have a choice between 35 political parties but there is reason to believe that many of them will choose the AfD, a party with roots in soft euroscepticism but which now tends more towards hard eurosceptism, rightwing populism and partially even extremism. This age group is politicised by TikTok. A vast majority receives political information via social media and does not use traditional political journalism. German political parties and politicians are relatively inexperienced, and therefore absent from the platform or unsuccessful at gaining traction. The notable exception here is the AfD. Unlike its rivals, the AfD has a very professional TikTok presence, directed especially at the younger generation. Heading into the European elections, it is the German political party with the most likes. The AfDs lead candidate for the 2024 European parliament election, MEP Maximilian Krah, is particularly popular on the platform and boasts more than half a million likes on his personal page. Krah is known for his ethno-nationalist opinions and has openly praised autocratic systems. Krah is under investigation by the German judiciary for taking payments from Russia in relation to his work as an MEP. One of his accredited parliamentary assistants has also been arrested and put under investigation after being accused of spying for China although Krah himself will not be investigated for this. The AfDs TikTok content appears to be geared towards an audience that is pessimistic about the future and prone to an emotionally charged and overtly simplistic political worldview. It is inflected with hate speech but also jokey in tone. And sure enough, the AfD appears to be gaining traction among Germanys young people. According to a recent study, 'Jugend in Deutschland 2024' ('Youth in Germany 2024'), about 22% of young people aged 14 to 29 would vote for the AfD. Many of these will be in the group of first-time voters in June. This signals a potentially major shift in voting behaviour. In the 2019 European elections, 30% of German voters aged 18 to 29 voted for the Greens and 13% for the CDU/CSU, the centre-right Christian democratic political alliance. All other parties received less than 10% and the AfD came in seventh with 7%. A striking gender gap is also visible. Young women were more inclined to vote for the Greens while young men opted for conservative or liberal parties. This gender gap is particularly strong when it comes to the AfD which is a rather masculine party when it comes to its candidates, its voters, and its programme. In the 2019 European elections, 14.6% of men (of all ages) voted for the AfD, but only 7.6% of women. Leaning into this appeal, Krah, who prides himself on being the father of eight children from three different partners, liberally hands out dating tips on TikTok. In one post he advises: Dont watch porn, do not vote for the Greens, enjoy fresh air, go out into the fresh air, stand up for yourself, be self-confident, look straight ahead. Real men are right-wing, real men have ideals, real men are patriots, then it works out with the girlfriend. Whether this apparent appeal translates into votes among the newly enfranchised young people of Germany and especially its male teenagers, will become apparent in the coming weeks. Other parties will have to take note if they want to avoid leaving a young generation prone to Eurosceptic and anti-democratic agitation. Gabriele Abels, Jean Monnet Professor for Comparative Politics & European Integration, University of Tubingen University campuses around the world have become the site of tiny tent cities in recent weeks, with student activists protesting the ongoing conflict in Gaza. Though the protests on Australian campuses have been largely peaceful, tensions are starting to rise. There have been allegations of hate speech and clashes between student groups in recent days. And in the US, there have been disturbing scenes of police interventions to break up similar protests nationwide. The students, and many others, are protesting the loss of life and worsening conditions in the current Gaza conflict. Many Israeli hostages taken in last years assault by Hamas have yet to be returned, while the Palestinian death toll from the Israel Defence Forces response is believed to have exceeded 34,000. Many Palestinians are also experiencing what the UN has termed a full-blown famine. The situation in Gaza is undoubtedly severe and requires urgent international attention and a peaceful resolution. Yet it is not the only armed conflict or humanitarian crisis in the world far from it. Why, then, has the Gaza war generated such passionate and sustained interest, particularly among young people? Why are people motivated to protest on this specific issue, but not others? There are many factors that explain why people choose to protest. People listen to a speaker at a pro-Palestinian encampment, advocating for financial disclosure and divestment from all companies tied to Israel and calling for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, inside the campus of Columbia University in New York last month. Photo: AP/Andres Kudacki Personal, family or community impacts are strong motivations to become an activist. But even for those without an obvious connection to a cause, news coverage and stories shared to social media can be enough to catalyse action. Researchers have found some stories or narratives are more effective than others at mobilising political activism. In the case of the Gaza war, I believe three factors in the narrative have helped fuel the significant protest movements we are seeing globally. A strong, shocking narrative First, narratives are powerful motivators of action when they combine elements of what social movements scholars call breach and resonance. A crisis narrative, like the one in Gaza, attracts and holds peoples attention because it shocks us. It represents a breach with our expectations of how life should be and what we deem acceptable. A powerful narrative must also be culturally resonant, which means it is consistent with our understanding of how the world works. That is to say, it must reflect a familiar story. The images of children and families who have been harmed by the Gaza war tell a horrific, yet recognisable, tale. And this has motivated protesters to act to try to right the wrong, and correct the breach. An 'ideal victim' Second, protesters are often motivated to engage in collective action to defend or protect an ideal victim. While the term ideal victim is far from ideal, the concept itself is ever-present in awareness campaigns and protest movements, due to the power of this central figure to compel action. In academic terms, ideal victims are those seen as being innocent and powerless. Historically, campaigns on behalf of the Palestinian people have not achieved the same support or urgency that we are seeing now. In the current Gaza conflict, the military strength of the Israel Defence Forces, contrasted with the vulnerability of the civilian population in places like Rafah, highlights the ideal victim in need of protesters urgent actions. Students protest a police evacuation outside Sciences-Po university in Paris last month where students held pro-Palestinian protests. Photo: AP/Michel Euler Of course, there are many ideal victims in conflicts and crises around the world whose stories are not catalysing collective action. This is, in part, because their stories are not being showcased through news outlets and on social media. While the ideal victim must be recognised as powerless, they must also be able to tell their story to motivate others to act, either themselves or through their advocates. Many victims of conflict are rendered invisible by inattention. Tangible impact Third, protest or collective action is often more sustained when there is a clear call to action and activists can see a role for themselves within the narrative. The real time nature and urgency of the Gaza war is an important motivator for action. While the broader Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not new, the current situation has played out in front of our eyes since October, when Israelis were kidnapped and killed in the Hamas assault and the government responded with military force. With a ground assault on Rafah seemingly now imminent, activists may be motivated by the sense this is a critical juncture in the conflict where their protest may have a real impact. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators earlier this month calling on the University of Mississippi in the US to stop doing business with Israel or companies they say support the war in Gaza. Photo: Maria Ramirez/The Daily Mississippian via AP The motivation to protest also rises exponentially when other types of activism fail to bring change. For example, when political leaders ignore petitions and representations from community groups, protest movements emerge. And when legislatures fail to act, protesters call for action from others. In the current protests, for instance, many students are calling for their universities to divest from weapons manufacturers profiting from the conflict, or Israeli companies linked more broadly with the occupied West Bank and Gaza, as a symbolic protest. This is part of the wider boycott, divest and sanction (or BDS) campaign, which uses political consumerism and political investorism as protest tactics. Students at an encampment on the grounds of Newcastle University in the UK protesting the loss of life and worsening conditions in the current Gaza conflict. The conflict in Gaza may seem intractable, but the divestment demand gives protesters an achievable aim with a localised target their own universities. Protesting at this important time, with an achievable demand, allows activists to write themselves into the narrative. They can contribute something to the push for peace. In recent days, this action has led to tangible results. Trinity College Dublin agreed to divest from three Israeli companies linked to settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories. After the university made the announcement, students began dismantling their protest camp. Protest is not always about achieving specific demands, though. Protests also have significant symbolic value in raising awareness and bringing others to the cause. Whether student protesters are motivated by powerful stories, a need to protect victims or the chance to have an impact, they exemplify a wider narrative message that protesting for peace is a worthwhile pursuit. Read More Student leader who forced Trinity climbdown is in talks with students of other universities The Simon Harris "common sense" approach to migration will only work if all members of his Government fully sign up to solving the issue. Common sense also means strongly tackling the 'Ireland is full' slogans and online campaigns that only spread hate and fear. The Government, through years of inaction in addressing our sub-standard international protection system, may now be scrambling to find accommodation for those forced into tents along the Grand Canal, but we cannot forget that this country would immediately grind to a halt without migrants. As the debate rages on, there has been a focus on all of the perceived negatives of migration, with less emphasis on the positive impact people who have come here from other countries have on each of us every single day. From the binman, to the barista, tech workers, surgeons, childcare workers and those making sure the lights remain on in our hospitality sector, this country needs migrants to sustain the economy. One nurse and midwife in every two working in our hospitals and healthcare facilities was trained abroad. There were 15,060 registered from India alone last year and a further 6,348 on the register from the Philippines. The Government has a responsibility to counter false narratives that are being spun by those on the far right. That means admitting that the coalition has not been focused enough on putting solutions in place around asylum accommodation, which has only given oxygen to anti-migrant sentiment. Ministers have not been urgent enough in tightening loopholes and ensuring people who should not be in the international protection system are deported. When I became Taoiseach, it became very apparent to me very quickly that the approach from many agencies was far too siloed, Mr Harris admitted during an interview with Pat Kenny on Monday. It's a refreshing start, that now must be followed up with action. Faster processing of people who seek asylum, a review of payments they receive and even proposals to ask some in State-provided accommodation to financially contribute will all be discussed by ministers when they meet on Tuesday morning. A streamlining of work permits and a ramping up of workplace inspections also form part of the Taoiseach's new common sense strategy. Joined-up thinking All of this will only work if there is joined-up thinking it makes common sense that the housing minister, for example, would be involved in delivering longer-term accommodation for those seeking asylum. The ministers for Education, Health, Justice, Enterprise and Social Protection must also treat this like an emergency that must be solved at speed. The Taoiseach was clear that in the current context the Government must also be honest with people coming to this country about what "we can and can't do". We can absolutely provide shelter, but not necessarily housing, for people who come here, we can absolutely use State land and provide people with access to sanitation, and help people who are fleeing persecution, he said. Being open and honest with both the public and migrants, makes complete common sense. Activists are calling for more support for avocado farmers as a report revealed climate change is having a terrible impact on the fruit. The popular superfood, which is high in fibre and healthy fats, relies on a lot of water to grow, making it especially vulnerable in a hotter, drier, more drought-prone world. The best growing regions in countries like Burundi, Chile, Peru, Spain, South Africa and Mexico are seeing productivity shrink due to the more volatile conditions, according to the report from the charity Christian Aid. The paper, published on Monday, said these areas are expected to decline by between 14% and 41% by 2050, depending on how fast global emissions are reduced. The worlds biggest producer Mexico could see its potential growing area reduced by 31% by 2050 even if the global average temperature rise is limited to under 2C, and as much as 43% if it increases towards 5C, it said. CLIMATE & SUSTAINABILITY HUB Jolis Bigirimana, an avocado farmer and president of Farmers Pride Burundi, said: In Burundi, climate change is a huge problem, especially for avocado growers. We are experiencing hot temperatures, heavy rain and erosion, which is having a terrible impact on farmers productivity and their income. It now costs us a lot of money to water our crops. Just one avocado needs 320 litres of water on average, according to Honor Eldrige, sustainable food expert and author of the Avocado Debate. Producing an avocado is therefore becoming increasingly expensive and these costs will likely be passed on to the consumer, raising the price we pay for our guacamole, she warned. Dr Chloe Sutcliffe, research fellow in sustainable horticulture at the Royal Horticultural Society, added that the UK currently obtains most of its avocados from Peru and Chile, where water scarcity is already high and expansion of avocado production has compromised access to water for some smallholder farmers. It is very likely that the impacts of climate change on water availability will further exacerbate water scarcity issues in these areas, she said. The findings come as a recent Savanta poll suggested 63% of the British public want the Government to do more to reduce the impact of climate change on the food supply chain, including supporting farmers in developing countries who provide to Britain. Christian Aid is urging governments to commit to urgent emissions reductions, accelerate the energy transition and commit to providing more climate aid to developing nations at Cop29 this year in Azerbaijan. The charity also calls for more financial support for vulnerable agricultural communities that rely on avocado growing for their livelihoods so they can invest in mitigation measures. Mariana Paoli, global advocacy lead at Christian Aid, said: Avocados might be a superfood but their kryptonite is climate change. Agricultural communities in developing countries are already bearing the brunt of the climate emergency and they rely on stable and predictable climates to feed their families. That is why its vital they receive a lot more financial support to adapt to this changing climate. Mr Bigirimana added: We need to see richer, polluting countries cut their carbon emissions which is driving this extreme weather and also provide finance to help us adapt to the changing climate. Professor Carol Wagstaff, dean for agriculture at the University of Reading, said the problem requires a multipronged solution. She added: We have to embrace different cultivation systems that do not rely on deforestation and monoculture production which makes avocado vulnerable to diseases, destroys soil quality and biodiversity, and reduces the availability of water all of which are crucial to enabling resilience of avocado trees and other crops. Crucially, we also need to stop human activities and industrial processes which drive the higher temperatures and extreme weather events associated with climate change. The Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has been contacted for comment. - PA Israeli forces pushed deep into the ruins of Gaza's northern edge on Monday to recapture an area where they claimed to have dismantled Hamas months ago, while in the south tanks and troops pushed across a highway into Rafah. Some of the most intense fighting for weeks is raging in both the north and south. Israeli operations in Rafah, which borders Egypt, have closed a main crossing point for aid, which humanitarian groups say is worsening an already dire situation. Hundreds of thousands of people are being forced to flee again after around half of Gaza's population took sanctuary there after being pushed south by fighting elsewhere. Gaza's health authority on Monday appealed for international pressure to reopen access via the southern border to allow in aid and medical supplies. "The wounded and sick suffer a slow death because there is no treatment and supplies and they cannot travel," it said. In northern Gaza's Jabalia, a sprawling refugee camp built 75 years ago to house Palestinian refugees from what is now Israel, tanks pushed towards the heart of the district. A child sits back on a truck as Palestinians with their packed belongings, continue to depart from the eastern neighborhoods of the city due to ongoing Israeli attacks in Rafah, Gaza Picture: by Ali Jadallah/Anadolu via Getty Images Residents fled along rubble-strewn streets carrying bags of belongings. Tank shells landed in the centre of the camp and airstrikes destroyed clusters of houses, they said. Health officials said they had recovered 20 bodies of Palestinians killed in overnight airstrikes. "We don't know where to go. We have been displaced from one place to the next... We are running in the streets. I saw it with my own eyes. I saw the tank and the bulldozer. It is on that street," said one woman, who did not give her name. Israel's military said in early January that it had "dismantled Hamas' military framework in Jabalia", although it expected to return to the area periodically to fight militants. Palestinians say the need to return to earlier battlegrounds is proof Israel's military objectives are unattainable. Israeli troops are seeking to wipe out Hamas, which has said it is committed to Israel's destruction. The militant group burst into Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 and taking more than 250 hostages, by Israeli tallies. Attending a Memorial Day ceremony to mark Israel's fallen soldiers in Jerusalem on Monday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the war against Hamas is a struggle to secure Israel's "existence, liberty, security and prosperity." "Our war of independence is not over yet, it continues to these days," he said. Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike on buildings near the separating wall between Egypt and Rafah, southern Gaza Strip (Picture: AP Photo/Ramez Habboub) The Palestinian death toll in the war has now surpassed 35,000, with 57 killed in the past 24 hours, according to Gaza health officials, whose figures do not differentiate between civilians and fighters. The fighting has laid waste to the enclave and caused a deep humanitarian crisis, with the Gaza health ministry warning on Monday that the medical system is on the verge of collapse due to a shortage of fuel to power generators and ambulances. In Rafah, Israel stepped up aerial and ground bombardments on the eastern areas of the city, killing people in an airstrike on a house in the Brazil neighbourhood. Israel ordered residents out of the east of Rafah last week, and extended that order to central areas in recent days, sending hundreds of thousands of people fleeing in search of safety. Residents said Israeli air and ground bombardments were intensifying and tanks had cut off the main north-south Salahuddin Road dividing east of the city from the central area. "The tanks cut the Salahuddin road east of the city, the forces are now in the southeast side, building up near the built-up area. The situation is dreadful and the sounds of explosions never stopped," said Bassam, 57, from the Shaboura neighbourhood in Rafah. "People continue to leave Rafah...no place looks safe now and people do not want to escape at the last minute should tanks make sudden incursions and moving out becomes too late," he told Reuters via a chat app. Displaced Palestinians arrive in central Gaza after fleeing from the southern Gaza city of Rafah in Deir al Balah, Gaza Strip Picture: AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana UNRWA, the main United Nations aid agency in Gaza, estimated that about 360,000 people had fled the southern city since the Israeli military gave its first evacuation order a week ago. In Gaza city, Al-Ahli Arab Hospital medics said five people were killed in an airstrike on a house. Bomb Shipment on Hold The assault on Rafah has caused one of the biggest splits in decades between Israel and its main ally the United States, which paused some deliveries of weapons for the first time since the war began. Washington says Israel must not assault Rafah without a plan to protect civilians, which it has yet to see. Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant's office said on Monday he had briefed US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on the "precise operation" in the Rafah area. Jack Lew, the US ambassador to Israel, signalled on Sunday that the Rafah incursion was still on a scale that Washington considers acceptable. Hamas' armed wing said its fighters were engaged in gun battles with Israeli forces in one of the streets east of Rafah, and in the east of Jabalia. In Israel, the military sounded sirens several times in areas near Gaza, warning of potential Palestinian cross-border rocket and or mortar launches. Hamas and the armed wing of Islamic Jihad said in a joint statement that they fired mortar bombs against Israeli forces massing inside the Rafah crossing, which Israel captured last week. Green development injects new impetus into China-Hungary mutually beneficial cooperation 10:27, May 13, 2024 By Yu Limin, Zhang Huizhong ( People's Daily Hungary is the first European country to sign an inter-governmental cooperation document on Belt and Road cooperation with China. In recent years, under the strategic guidance of the leaders of both countries, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has been aligned with Hungary's "Opening to the East" policy, resulting in fruitful cooperation across various sectors. Significant achievements have been made in green development areas such as new energy vehicles, lithium-ion batteries, and photovoltaic products, injecting new impetus into the mutually beneficial cooperation between China and Hungary. A worker works in an electric bus factory of Chinese automaker BYD in Komarom, Hungary. (People's Daily/Yan Huan) The automotive industry is one of the pillars of Hungary's economy. More than 10 out of the top 20 global automobile manufacturers have established vehicle manufacturing plants or automotive component production bases in Hungary. To embrace green transformation in the transportation sector, the Hungarian government launched an electric vehicle development plan in 2016. Chinese electric vehicle companies have been closely cooperating with Hungarian counterparts, and their brand recognition has been continuously increasing. In April 2017, an electric bus factory of Chinese new energy vehicle manufacturer BYD in north Hungary's Komarom officially started production. It is BYD's first electric vehicle factory established in Europe. In September 2022, Chinese electric vehicle maker NIO's first overseas factory was put into use in Biatorbagy, Hungary. The factory serves as NIO's manufacturing, service, and research center for charging products in Europe, providing local consumers with battery swapping stations. In January this year, BYD set up a new energy vehicle production base in Hungary's Szeged, which is the sixth Chinese automotive manufacturing plant in Hungary and is expected to offer thousands of job opportunities. "Hungary has a mature industrial chain for automotive manufacturing. While leveraging Hungary's advantages in the industry, we are bringing advanced manufacturing techniques and highly automated production lines to the Hungarian market from China, so as to support the electrification of the Hungarian automotive industry and promote technological exchange and innovation between China and Hungary," said an executive from BYD. Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto said that the automotive manufacturing sector is a pillar industry in Hungary, and attracting Chinese investment is crucial for strengthening Hungary's position in global new energy vehicle development. Power batteries are key components of new energy vehicles, accounting for approximately 40 percent of the total vehicle cost. With advantages such as fast charging, long range, and high safety, Chinese lithium-ion batteries have become an important aspect of China-Hungary cooperation in the field of new energy. In March 2022, Chinese lithium-ion battery company EVE Energy Co., Ltd. (EVE) announced a plan to build a factory in Debrecen, Hungary to produce cylindrical cells. Photo shows an 80 MW solar farm in Buzsak, Hungary, invested by a Hungarian enterprise and built by China National Machinery Import & Export Corporation. The project was put into use in 2022. (Photo/Zoltan Pletser) Five months later, Chinese battery manufacturer and technology company CATL also announced to build a battery plant in the city, which will become one of the largest battery factories in Europe once completed. Additionally, other Chinese power battery companies and related material enterprises, such as SEMCORP, Huayou Cobalt, and Sunwoda, have also started building factories in Hungary. The investment of Chinese battery companies like CATL in Hungary has stimulated the development of the Hungarian battery industry, and factories built by Chinese carmakers including BYD in Hungary have also promoted the development of the local automotive industry, said Andrea Nagyne Boda, head of the International Cooperation and Development Finance Department at the Ministry for National Economy of Hungary. Hungary-China cooperation projects not only benefit the Hungarian people but also contribute to the entire Europe's enjoyment of the benefits of new energy, Andrea added. Hungary's electricity import stands at around 30 percent. In order to diversify the country's energy supply, the Hungarian government has been actively exploring solar energy resources and developing the photovoltaic industry. In June 2019, China National Machinery Import & Export Corporation (CMC) under China General Technology (Group) Holding Co., Ltd., invested in a 100 MW solar park in Kaposvar, Hungary, which is one of the largest renewable energy facilities in Hungary. Since its operation in 2021, the solar farm has generated over 140 million kilowatt-hours of electricity each year, which is equivalent to saving 45,000 tons of standard coal and reducing 120,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions on an annual basis. CMC implemented a series of environmentally friendly measures when the solar farm was constructed. For instance, it replaced impact piles with spiral pile photovoltaic brackets to minimize land damage. It hired landscape experts for ecological planning and conducted large-scale greening around the factory area. Kaposvar's mayor Karoly Szita said that the Kaposvar solar farm is not only an exemplary collaboration in clean energy between Hungary and China but also a testament to the friendship between the two countries. "Green transformation is a global trend, and the development of new energy is crucial for restructuring global energy supply. China has provided us with excellent opportunities in this field, and the deepening of green cooperation between our two countries has achieved mutual benefits and win-win outcomes," said Marton Bokay, deputy state secretary of the Hungarian Ministry of Economic Development. (Web editor: Chang Sha, Liang Jun) By Akshaya Kumar | (@AkshayaSays) | ( Human Rights Watch ) This week, United States President Joe Biden announced that his administration has held up at least one shipment of 3,500 bombs and artillery shells to Israel, saying the US wouldnt transfer certain weapons to Israel if it proceeded with an assault on the city of Rafahs densely populated areas. This partial pause on weapon transfers doesnt go far enough in response to Israels international law violations and US rules on arms transfers. Nonetheless, Bidens decision represents a shift from the unconditional support the US has offered Israel, particularly since Biden acknowledged that civilians have been killed as a consequence of those bombs and other ways [Israel] goes after population centers. Biden should resist congressional opposition to the pause and go further. Immediately stopping all transfers of arms and military support would be consistent with the USs international and domestic legal obligations. Since November, Human Rights Watch has called for the suspension of arms transfers to Israel and Palestinian armed groups given the real risk that weapons would be used to commit grave abuses. Providing weapons that knowingly and significantly would contribute to unlawful attacks can make those providing them complicit in war crimes. Other human rights organizations and dozens of United Nations human rights experts have echoed with their own calls to stop transfers to Israel. Recently, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) considered Nicaraguas legal challenge to bar Germanys military assistance to Israel, among other things. The ICJ declined that request based on Germanys assertion that it was not exporting any war weapons for use by Israeli forces. However, the court allowed the case to move forward and left the door open for a different outcome if Germany begins providing more war weapons, language that two legal scholars have characterized as might hang like a sword of Damocles over States providing military support to Israel. Several of the USs Western allies have already revised their policies of supplying weapons to Israel. In March, Canada announced it would cease future arms exports to Israel. Italy and Spain also stopped new licenses. Legal action has also effected changes in state policies. In the Netherlands, a lawsuit forced the government to pause sales of F-35 fighter jet parts. In Germany, civil society groups filed a similar suit seeking to stop weapon sales. Mounting public and legal pressure is making it harder for governments such as the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and Denmark to continue selling arms to Israel. Bidens shift in tone will add to the pressure. In the face of continuing atrocities, full-blown famine in northern Gaza, and Israels obstruction of aid for Gaza, these countries need to stop sending weapons now. Human Rights Watch Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina let his inner genocidal maniac loose on Sunday, defending Israels total war on Palestinian civilians in Gaza, and he appeared to urge the nuking of Gaza. He said on NBC, When we were faced with destruction as a nation after Pearl Harbor, fighting the Germans and the Japanese, we decided to end the war by the bombing [of] Hiroshima [and] Nagasaki with nuclear weapons. That was the right decision. The weaselly Mr. Graham slides easily from one position to another, having lambasted Donald Trump in 2016 and then having ended up kissing the ring (or other parts of the anatomy) once Trump won. It is therefore hard to take him seriously, since he pioneered the role of Congressional troll, later taken up by nonentities such as Marjorie Taylor Greene and Lauren Boebert. It is now possible to fundraise nationally off clownish bombast, and flamethrowers play to an increasingly unhinged GOP base. His argument is that when the United States faced an existential threat in 1945, it used nuclear weapons, killing on the order of 200,000 civilians in Japan. The problems with this argument from any rational point of view are manifold. First, the United States was not facing an existential threat from Japan in 1945 the empire had been defeated. The only question left was the terms of Japanese surrender. The US vaporized hundreds of thousands of children, women and noncombatant men in hopes of forcing an early capitulation on terms favorable to the US. It was not about protecting the American mainland. Second, Israel is also not facing an existential threat. Only 2.2 million Palestinians lived in Gaza, while Israels population is 9.5 million. Hamas only had, by Israels count, some 30,000 armed men in the Qassam Brigades, along with a few thousand irregulars from other groups, such as Islamic Jihad. The group has no Air Force, no fighter jets, no armored divisions, no significant artillery, and its homemade rockets typically land uselessly in the desert. Israel has 169,000 active duty military personnel and 465,000 reservists. It is ranked as in the worlds top 20 military powers. NDTV notes that Israel has 241 fighter jets [including highly advanced F-35s], 48 attack helicopters, and 2,200 tanks. . . . Israel also has over 1,200 artillery units; this includes 300 MLRS, or multiple launch rocket systems. This includes smart bombs that can strike targets with minimum collateral damage. So the Qassam Brigades do not pose an existential threat to Israel, though they are capable of guerrilla actions and terrorist strikes. Israel lost 2,500 or so troops in the 1973 war, over twice the death toll (some 650 of them innocent civilians) lost on October 7. So the latter attack was not in existential threat territory, however horrific and disgusting it was. Even if a country were existentially threatened, it would be immoral and illegal to target innocent noncombatants, and also would be stupid and ineffective. If an enemy military is attacking in such a way as to pose an existential threat, then you should be concentrating your firepower on the military instead of wasting it on grandmas and toddlers. Strangelove Graham, Digital, by Juan Cole, Dream / Dreamworld v. 3, IbisPaint, 2024. Graham not only delivered himself of a response suitable to a war criminal, he also talked out of both sides of his mouth. Because Graham has postured over the killing of innocent civilians quite a lot, when his enemies rather than his friends have done it. Here is what Mr. Graham said on CBS Mornings, Conversation With Sen. Lindsey Graham, on Thursday, March 3, 2022, about Russian war crimes in Ukraine: TONY DOKOUPIL: On the war crimes question, what was the breaking point for you before this extraordinary press conference yesterday? SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): When they started using banned munitions like cluster bombs, vacuum bombs. Everything he is doing is illegal under the Law of War . . . There is no rule of law in Russia to hold Putin accountable. So this international tribunal [the International Criminal Court] is the right way to go . . . Economic sanctions, aid to the Ukrainians so they can fight back. But I want every military commander in every pilot to know in Russia, that if you carry out these atrocities against the Ukrainian people, you do so at your own peril, you`re going to wind up in the dark. So if a sniper shoots a Russian soldier from an apartment building, what we would do is try to isolate the sniper. What they will do is destroy the apartment building. He`s going scorched earth here. He`s going to start disassembling all resistance. He has no look at Aleppo. If you want to know the playbook for Putin, Chechnya he leveled the place. Aleppo, Syria, barrel bombs coming out of helicopters. That`s the Russian game plan and they`re all war crimes and the world complain, but we moved on. We can`t move on when it comes to Ukraine. The Syria example recalls an old crusade for Mr. Graham. In 2016 at the height of the Russian/ Syrian campaign against Aleppo, he issued a statement with the late Senator John McCain: For four long years, Aleppo has been at the center of the Assad regimes war on the Syrian people. Together with its Russian and Iranian allies, the Assad regime has relentlessly targeted women and children, doctors and rescue workers, hospitals and bakeries, aid warehouses and humanitarian convoys. The Israeli military, of course, has a long history of insisting on using cluster bombs in southern Lebanon, and has been condemned for it by the U.S. government and some of Mr. Grahams colleagues in Congress. The U.S. sent two shipments of cluster bombs for use in Gaza to Israel last fall. As for vacuum bombs, these are also called thermobaric bombs. Israel has used them extensively in Gaza. The Financial Express writes, the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) have employed Thermobaric bombs, a devastating and controversial weaponry previously unused on civilians. These weapons have resulted in 4th degree burns and caused significant harm to those unfortunate enough to be within their blast radius. When these bombs are dropped, the first compartment causes an explosion and create a cloud and, FE continues, a second charge ignites the cloud, resulting in a massive fireball, a formidable blast wave, and the creation of a vacuum that absorbs all surrounding oxygen. This weapon has the capacity to demolish reinforced buildings, destroy equipment, and cause harm or casualties to people within its range. Israeli fighter jet pilots are behaving in Gaza in precisely the way Russian pilots behaved in Syria: So if a sniper shoots a Russian soldier from an apartment building, what we would do is try to isolate the sniper. What they will do is destroy the apartment building. Israel has behaved so much like this that a majority of domiciles in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed and over 34,000 people have been killed, with likely another 10,000 under the rubble of those buildings that the Israelis knocked down no less assiduously than the Russians knocked down buildings in Syria. It is scorched earth. As for violations of International Humanitarian Law, even the State Department of Antony Blinken, the chief defense counsel for Israels extremist cabinet, has admitted that Israel is in breach of it, though mysteriously avoiding the conclusion that US arms should be cut off as required by the Leahy Act. And nothing could better describe the Israeli militarys behavior in Gaza than Grahams denunciation of Russia and al-Assad for having relentlessly targeted women and children, doctors and rescue workers, hospitals and bakeries, aid warehouses and humanitarian convoys. So it turns out that not cluster bombs, nor vacuum bombs, nor thumbing his nose at international law, nor targeting women, children, physicians, aid workers, hospitals and bakeries were actually what ticked Mr. Graham off about Mr. Putin. Otherwise he would be similarly peeved with Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu. Graham just found a political and personal benefit in grandstanding on Syria and Ukraine and in being a Russia hawk. No principles are involved here, no actual concern for innocent life, since those are universal and not tribal. Meanwhile, South Carolina is 42nd in the US for life expectancy. In contrast, it is the 8th highest state for deaths of mothers in childbirth. And there is an alarming increase in the infant mortality rate in South Carolina. Perhaps Mr. Graham might concentrate on doing something about these health statistics in his state, which are in the gutter, rather than daydreaming about playing Slim Pickens riding a nuke, in the last scene of Dr. Strangelove. Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 13, 2024) - IMPACT Silver Corp. (TSXV: IPT) (OTC Pink: ISVLF) (FSE: IKL) ("IMPACT" or the "Company") is pleased to announce it is amending and increasing its previously announced non-brokered private placement from $6,200,000 to gross proceeds of up to C$8,200,000 (the "Offering") due to increased investor interest. The revised financing has been increased to $5,000,000 from the sale of 18,518,518 units (the "Standard PP Units") at a price of C$0.27 per Standard PP Unit, up from the original proposed $3,000,000 and 11,111,111 Standard PP Units. Each Standard PP Unit is comprised of one common share and one full share purchase warrant (each a "Warrant") with each Warrant entitling the holder thereof to acquire one common share of the Company (a "Warrant Share") at a price of $0.34 per Warrant Share for a period of 24 months from its date of issue. The LIFE financing units remain unchanged at $0.28 per LIFE unit, each comprised of one common share and one-half of one Warrant for gross proceeds up to $3,200,000 (the "LIFE Offering"). All other terms from the Company's press release announcing the LIFE Offering and Standard PP Unit Offering on April 30, 2024 remain the same. Subject to compliance with applicable regulatory requirements and in accordance with National Instrument 45-106 - Prospectus Exemptions, the LIFE Offering is being made pursuant to the listed issuer financing exemption under Part 5A of NI 45-106 (the "Listed Issuer Financing Exemption"). The securities offered under the Listed Issuer Financing Exemption will not be subject to a hold period in accordance with applicable Canadian securities laws. There is an offering document (the "Offering Document") related to the LIFE Offering that can be accessed under the Company's profile at www.sedarplus.ca and on the Company's website at impactsilver.com. Prospective investors should read this Offering Document before making an investment decision. The Offering is scheduled to close on or about the week of May 20th, 2024 and is subject to certain conditions including, but not limited to, the receipt of all necessary approvals including the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange (the "Exchange"). The Company may pay finder's fees or commissions on a portion of the Offering, subject to compliance with the policies of the Exchange and applicable securities legislation. All common shares and Warrants issued as part of the Standard PP Units will bear a hold period of four months and one day from the date of issuance. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities in the United States, nor shall there be any sale of the securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. The securities being offered have not been, nor will they be, registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "1933 Act"), or under any U.S. state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the 1933 Act and applicable state securities laws. ABOUT IMPACT SILVER IMPACT Silver Corp. (TSXV:IPT) is a successful producer-explorer with two mining projects in Mexico. Royal Mines of Zacualpan Silver-Gold District: IMPACT owns 100% of the 211 km2 Zacualpan project in central Mexico where four underground silver mines and one open pit mine feed the central 500 tpd Guadalupe processing plant. To the south, the Capire Project includes a 200 tpd processing pilot plant adjacent to an open pit silver mine with an NI 43-101 inferred mineral resource of over 4.5 million oz silver, 48 million lbs zinc and 21 million lbs lead (see IMPACT news release dated January 18, 2016, for details and QP statement). Company engineers are reviewing Capire for a potential restart of operations to leverage improving commodity prices. Over the past 18 years, IMPACT has developed multiple exploration zones into commercial production and has produced over 12 million ounces of silver, generating revenue more than $265 million, with no long term debt. Plomosas Zinc-Lead-Silver District: Plomosas is a high-grade zinc producer in northern Mexico with exceptional exploration upside potential. The Company recently began preliminary mining and processing operations where upgrades to facilities and equipment continue. Exploration potential at Plomosas is exceptional with only 600m of the 6 km-long structure have seen modern exploration. This is in addition to other exploration targets on the 3,019-hectare property including untested copper-gold targets with indications of high-grade material from surface. Regionally, Plomosas lies in the same mineral belt as some of the largest carbonate replacement deposits in the world. Qualified Person and NI 43-101 Disclosure George Gorzynski, P.Eng., is a "Qualified Person" within the meaning of NI 43-101 and has approved the technical information contained in this news release. Additional information about IMPACT and its operations can be found on the Company website at www.IMPACTSilver.com. Follow us on X (formerly Twitter) @IMPACT_Silver and LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/impactsilver. On behalf of IMPACT Silver Corp. "Frederick W. Davidson" President & CEO For more information, please contact: Jerry Huang CFO | Investor Relations O (604) 664-7707 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. C (778) 887 6489 Direct 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. Forward-Looking and Cautionary Statements This IMPACT News Release may contain certain "forward-looking" statements and information relating to IMPACT that is based on the beliefs of IMPACT management, as well as assumptions made by and information currently available to IMPACT management. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, included herein, including, without limitation, statements relating to future silver prices, interpretation of drill results, future work plans, the timing of closing of the Offering, proceeds received and use of funds, the potential of the Company's projects, and potential and plans for the Plomosas project, are forward looking statements. Forward-looking information is often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "seek", "anticipate", "plan", "continue", "planned", "expect", "project", "predict", "potential", "targeting", "intends", "believe", "potential", and similar expressions, or describes a "goal", or variation of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "should", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. There is no assurance that (i) the Company will be able to complete the Offering on the terms set out above, or at all, or (ii) that the proceeds of the Offering will be expended as contemplated. Such forward-looking information involves known and unknown risks and assumptions, including with respect to, without limitations, exploration and development risks, expenditure and financing requirements, title matters, operating hazards, metal prices, political and economic factors, competitive factors, general economic conditions, relationships with vendors and strategic partners, governmental regulation and supervision, seasonality, technological change, industry practices, and one-time events. Should any one or more risks or uncertainties materialize or change, or should any underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results and forward-looking statements may vary materially from those described herein. IMPACT does not assume the obligation to update any forward-looking statement, except as required by law. The Company's decision to place a mine into production, expand a mine, make other production related decisions or otherwise carry out mining and processing operations, is largely based on internal non-public Company data and reports based on exploration, development and mining work by the Company's geologists and engineers. The results of this work are evident in the discovery and building of multiple mines for the Company and in the track record of mineral production and financial returns of the Company since 2006. Under NI 43-101 the Company is required to disclose that it has not based its production decisions on NI 43-101 compliant mineral resource or reserve estimates, preliminary economic assessments or feasibility studies, and historically such projects have increased uncertainty and risk of failure. 303-543 Granville Street Vancouver, BC, Canada V6C 1X8 Telephone (604) 664-7707 www.impactsilver.com Twitter LinkedIn VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Oct. 05, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Strongbow Exploration Inc. (TSX-V: SBW) (Strongbow or the Company) announces that Mr. John Burzynski will be stepping down from his role as Director effective today. The Company would like to thank Mr. Burzynski for his tremendous... Read More Park Sun Young, best known for her role in the hit K-drama "The World of the Married," shared her stories about exposing an affair that eventually affected her friendship. During her appearance in SBS' "My Little Old Boy," the actress recalled a similar experience from a scene in the blockbuster JTBC K-drama. In the revenge drama, Park Sun Young played the role of Go Ye Rim; she is one of the neighbors of doctor Ji Sun Woo, portrayed by Kim Hee Ae, and the wife of Son Je Hyuk, played by Kim Young Min. One of the significant details about her character in "The World of the Married" was her knowledge of Ji Sun Woo's husband's attitude toward her. After Ji Sun Woo found out that Ye Rim hid the truth about her, she took her revenge by seducing her husband, Je Hyuk. In the end, the couple tried to patch things up, but Go Ye Rim chose to break free from him. Park Sun Young Recalls Having Similar Experience as Her 'The World of the Married' Character Although Park Sun Young's marital life is quite far from her K-drama, she revealed that she exposed an affair but ended up ruining their friendship. Interestingly, one of the hosts of "My Little Old Boy" asked her what she would do if she witnessed something like this in real life. The actress surprised the viewers when she confessed that she had the same scenario. Park Sun Young revealed the truth to her friend, but it did not go as planned. "After much thought, I told my friend that her husband was cheating on her. I thought they would get a divorce. But they didn't." Adding that the friend continued to be with the cheating husband and chose to "live with him in pain." Park Sun Young shared that the incident ended their friendship. 'The World of the Married' One of the Most-Watched K-Dramas On the other hand, at the time of "The World of the Married" finale, the JTBC series received a remarkable 28.4% rating for its 16th episode, making it one of the most watched K-dramas of all time. As the JTBC series bid goodbye to viewers, cast members, including Park Sun Young, thanked the viewers for their huge support. "Now that I'm doing a final interview like this, it really feels as if it's coming to an end. Thanks to your interest and love, we were able to gather strength and work hard on filming," she said, adding that the actress "had so much fun" throughout the production, especially with her working relationship with the senior actors. Meanwhile, Park Sun Young returned to K-drama as she joined the cast of "The Love Story of Choon Hwa," headlined by Go Ah Ra and Chang Ryul, set to premiere sometime in 2024. For more K-Drama, K-Movie, and celebrity news, keep your tabs open here at KDramaStars. KDramaStars owns this article Written by Geca Flores Monday, May 13, 2024 - Kileleshwa Ward MCA Robert Alai has accused Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua of exaggerating the population of the Ruiru Constituency. According to the DP, the Constituency in Kiambu County has a population of 800,000 residents. Speaking in Embu County on Sunday, Gachagua said he will advocate for the 'One Man One Vote One Shilling idea' to ensure residents of Ruiru benefit from the National Government Constituency Development Fund (NGCDF). Gachagua explained that having a constituency with 14,000 people get the same resources as one with 800,000 people was unfair. "I am a believer and proponent of one man, one vote, one shilling. "We want fairness in the sharing of revenue. And there is no apology to give for saying that. "The more you are, the more taxes you pay. It cannot be that a constituency like Ruiru with 800,000 people is given the same CDF allocation as a constituency with 14,000 people. "We want fairness in the sharing of revenue, and we will be pushing, It is not fair. that agenda," Gachagua said. However, Alai in a social media post disputed Gachagua's claims that the Ruiru constituency has a population of 800,000 people. Alai said the population of Ruiru has been exaggerated by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics. I believe that the population of Ruiru is exaggerated. Hawa 800,000 people stay where? After the prison land, where are these 800,000 people? "KNBS has been used to manipulate national data. Fake data, Alai wrote on X ( formerly Twitter). The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, May 13, 2024 The Government of President William Ruto has changed its tune on flood victims whose houses were swept away. This is after it vowed never to compensate some of them despite promising to help them get back on their feet. Speaking during an interview, Deputy Government Spokesperson Mwanaisha Chidzuga revealed that there were some Kenyans who had illegally changed the course of rivers and erected homes and now are seeking compensation from the government. This was after the houses were swept away by floods forcing them to evacuate to safer grounds. According to Chidzuga, Rutos administration had set aside a compensation kitty but the individuals who deliberately changed the course of the rivers to erect houses would not benefit. There is a compensation whereby we have allocated Ksh39 Billion to deal with floods, she explained. The deputy government spokesperson explained that the money would only be available to Kenyans who were conned during the issuance of title deeds. She explained that there were cases of Kenyans who were holding legitimate land ownership papers but which were obtained fraudulently. Chidzuga further revealed that that category of affected Kenyans would be given alternative places or resources to settle. But there are people who were told to move a river and they did. How do we handle those people? she posed. She explained that the individuals knowingly carried soil from other places and filled it on rivers changing their course. Chidzuga revealed that the individuals then went ahead to build permanent structures on the reclaimed land. If you know you diverted a river, just move. We will not give you compensation to buy land in another place, she stated. The Kenyan DALY POST Monday, May 13, 2024 - Canadian rapper, Drake's security now have a lot on their plate as they've taken down another trespasser at his Toronto home. New video and photos obtained by TMZ showed one of Drake's security guards holding down the newest alleged trespasser outside Drake's Toronto mansion, the third in the last seven days. An eyewitness told the publication that he was riding by Drake's pad on his bike when he saw two of Drake's security guards tackle a guy to the ground, placing a knee on his back to prevent him from getting up. One of the security members hopped on the radio while the other helped take the guy down. It has been reported earlier that two trespassers were taken into custody by police this week, and a drive-by shooting left one of Drake's security hospitalized. Drake and Kendrick Lamar have been embroiled in a rap beef in recent days, though, cops said earlier this week they were aware of the beef but didn't say if they thought these incidents were related. Here's a video from the scene Monday, May 13, 2024 - Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has finally seen the light and realized that former President Uhuru Kenyatta and ODM Leader Raila Odinga were right all along with their Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) that advocated for the one-man-one-shilling campaign. This is after he vowed to personally lead the campaign for one-man-one-shilling in relation to resource allocation in Mt. Kenya, claiming the region has been neglected by President William Rutos administration. Gachagua was responding to Embu Governor Cecily Mbarire who had lamented that the Mt Kenya region, including Embu, received less funding from the National Government despite having the highest population. The two leaders were speaking during the consecration of Bishop John Kimani Nthiga at ACK Cathedral of St. Peter's Mbeere, Siakago, Embu County. Gachagua, despite campaigning against the same formula in the previous administration, claimed that he was a firm believer and proponent of one-man, one-vote, one-shilling. Resources are about people. The more you are, the more taxes you pay. And it goes without saying, the more taxes you pay, when it comes to sharing you share more, he explained his rationale. Gachagua remarked that Mt Kenya was receiving less funds despite having more resource-intensive projects and needs. We will push that and we have no apologies to make because it cannot be a constituency like Ruiru that has almost 800,000 people is given the same Constituency Development Fund (CDF) allocation as a constituency with 14,000 people, he lamented. Gachagua remarked that it was not fair and that he would lead the campaign to bring fairness when sharing CDF resources. It is not because we come from a region that has a high population but because it is about fairness and resources are people, he explained. Additionally, Gachagua remarked that he would also push for more Mt Kenya regions to be listed as beneficiaries of the equalization fund. Gachagua promised that this had already been put into consideration adding that other constituencies in Mt Kenya would also be declared as marginalized to benefit from the fund. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, May 13, 2024 - Eleven members drawn from the National Assembly were yesterday night holed up in a hotel to deliberate the fate of Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mithika Linturi, with reports indicating that the CS would be spared from impeachment over the fake fertilizer scandal. The MPs, led by Naomi Waqo from Marsabit County, had secluded themselves from Friday to decide if to uphold the impeachment motion against the CS. CS Linturi is being accused of overseeing the distribution of substandard fertilizer through National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) stores. This is in relation to his position as the Minister of Agriculture given the responsibility to oversee the implementation of President William Rutos subsidized fertilizer program. The 11-member committee is expected to present their findings to the National Assembly during a special sitting later today. Linturi had defended the impeachment motion brought against him remarking that it was persecution from his adversaries. He blamed his political opponents as well as a former lover Marianne Kitany whom he had intimidate relations with before a bitter fallout. Linturi became the first Cabinet Secretary since the promulgation of the Kenyan Constitution 2010 to face a National Assembly Committee over an impeachment motion. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, May 13, 2024 - Former Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka has warned of the resumption of demonstrations if Parliament passes the controversial Finance Bill 2024. Finance Bill 2024, prepared by the Treasury, proposes a raft of taxes including, boda boda tax, bread tax, and mpesa transaction tax among other taxes that will affect poor Kenyans. Speaking at a church service at the Vision Centre in Embakasi East on Sunday, Musyoka, flanked by Co-principal Martha Karua, lamented that the proposed taxes were too high, especially for poor households. He further picked an issue with introducing taxes on basic items such as foodstuffs, arguing that it was unnecessarily punitive. He, therefore, urged Parliament to amend the bill failure to which the opposition will join other Kenyans in staging protests countrywide. "Besides boda boda's tax going up, even bread tax has gone up. Now imagine, if you deny a Kenyan child bread, what you are doing?" he stated. "They are even saying that civil servants will be signing a contract. We are not mad people, we just love our country and want people to live in peace." The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, May 13, 2024 - Narc Kenya chairperson Martha Karua has invited former President Uhuru Kenyatta and Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua for a conference in Limuru dubbed Limuru III conference aimed at addressing issues affecting Mt Kenya residents. The conference is organized by Karua, former Ndaragwa Member of Parliament Jeremiah Kioni, and former Laikipia County Governor Nderitu Muriithi. Speaking after a closed-door meeting at a hotel in Ruaka, Kiambu county, Muriithi said the meeting is open for every person to discuss matters ranging from agriculture, economy, and politics. "Mt Kenya region has an economy bigger than 33 African states and as a region, we have decided to come together to chart a way forward," Ndiritu said. He said the meeting has no invitation and is an open meeting for Mt Kenya people at Limuru Jumuiya conference centre so that everybody can have a say on different matters that will be discussed. "We are the ones who will bring ourselves to the meeting. This is not a political meeting or rally where people are mobilised with money. People should not have any idea that they will be paid as no one will pay them. This meeting has no financiers or bigger people than the other. We will all be equal in deliberations," he said. He said the region has lagged behind in terms of economy with increased unemployment and untapped resources, adding that the region can only liberate itself through unity. "Other regions have come together and deliberated on their matters. There is nothing wrong with Mt Kenya region coming together to discuss their own matters," he said. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, May 13, 2024 - Busia Senator Okiya Omtatah has vowed to challenge the Finance Bill 2024, should the Appropriation Act be enacted. Speaking during an interview, Omtatah remarked that the proposed tax increases were based on an illegality. The vocal senator wondered why President William Rutos administration was keen on raising taxes without furnishing Parliament with revenue estimates. We want to set the Appropriation Act that has got a revenue side which then the Finance Bill will be anchored on, he stated. If that is not done then we are going to fight it in its entirety because they must disclose revenue estimates. Omtatah revealed that the Kenya Kwanza administration has on several occasions given Parliament expenditure for a proposed budget without the corresponding source of revenue. The parliamentarian explained that a Finance Act was a measure to raise revenue to finance the budget as outlined in the Public Finance Management Act. Senator Omtatah remarked that not setting up the Appropriation Act before presenting the Bill is against Articles 220 and 221 of the Constitution. Omtatah remarked that the Kenya Kwanza administration was now at fault for routinely producing a budget that does not have revenue. The MP remarked that Rutos administration should understand that the Finance Act should be a measure to raise approved revenue. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, May 13, 2024 Panic has engulfed the political class after New Life Prayer Center and Church founder Pastor Ezekiel Odero shared a concerning prophecy regarding a Kenyan politician. Speaking during a sermon in his church, Pastor Ezekiel revealed that he had received a divine vision, not just once but on two separate occasions, indicating the impending demise of this individual. Despite knowing the politician personally and possessing his contact information, Pastor Ezekiel expressed his inability to communicate the warning directly. "There is a Kenyan politician that I have been told will die. I have been told twice. I feel for him. I know him and have his number, but I can't tell him because he won't pick up my call. "When I went to Kitale, I was told again that the same person would die and shown how it would happen. Only two people know the story. If I mention him, the story will make headlines. You know something about your country's leader, but the country is young spiritually, so you can't say the message. "If I speak, it will be breaking news. I'm looking for an avenue. The problem is I don't know when the person will die," he said. In another video, the pastor elaborated on the nature of the politicians predicted fate. "There is a Kenyan politician who will be beaten to death. It will shock Kenya a lot. But I can't tell him," Pastor Ezekiel said. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, May 13, 2024 Azimio Coalition has threatened to lead nationwide mass protests over the draconian Finance Bill 2024 as proposed by President William Rutos government. Speaking at a church service at the Vision Centre in Embakasi East, Azimio Principal Kalonzo Musyoka announced the coalition's plans to hit the streets, should Parliament pass the Finance Bill 2024 as proposed by the National Treasury. Flanked by co-principal Martha Karua, Kalonzo lamented that the proposed taxes were too high, especially for poor households. He further picked an issue with introducing taxes on basic items such as foodstuffs, arguing that it was unnecessarily punitive. He, therefore, urged Parliament to amend the bill failure to which the Opposition will join other Kenyans in staging protests countrywide. "Besides boda boda's tax going up, even bread tax has gone up. Now imagine, if you deny a Kenyan child bread, what are you doing?" he stated. "They are even saying that civil servants will be signing a contract. We are not mad people; we just love our country and want people to live in peace." Karua, who was in attendance, corroborated with Kalonzo, arguing that the new slate of taxes was too high for a majority of the Kenyan households who are already grappling with a high cost of living. "The tax must be paid because the government needs development but you cannot charge the tax to the point of making food inaccessible." "You cannot tax so much to cause children from poor households to sleep hungry and fail to go to school," she observed. In the recently released bill, the State proposed a raft of new taxes including motor vehicle, minimum top-up tax, economic presence tax, withholding tax, and digital content tax. The government also wants to make all employees in government work with contracts and also sought to increase taxes affecting the boda boda sector. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, May 13, 2024 - Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has also been affected by the "Deputy President Curse," which has been affecting all second-in-command positions in the country since independence. Since gaining independence from Britain in 1963, the "curse" has affected all vice presidents, starting with the late Oginga Odinga, late Daniel Moi, late Mwai Kibaki, late Dr. Josphat Karanja, late Prof. George Saitoti, Kalonzo Musyoka, and William Ruto. Holders of this office are always humiliated and embarrassed and Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has not escaped this curse. In the last few months, President William Ruto has been sidelining him and giving more attention to former Prime Minister Raila Odinga. In recent weeks, Raila has been meeting senior dignitaries, including welcoming heads of state to the country. Additionally, on Saturday, he met with officials of the Kenya Medical Practitioners Pharmacists and Dentists Union. In a statement on Saturday on his X account, Raila said the KMPDU officials paid him a courtesy call. He assured that he is standing in solidarity with the union, acknowledging that the return-to-work formula is a goodwill gesture for both the government and KMPDU. Raila met KMPDU after Ruto hosted them at State House, Nairobi. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, May 13, 2024 Tourists will now be obligated to plant trees each time they visit Kenya. This was revealed by Tourism Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua, who announced plans to make each tourist plant a tree upon visiting the country. Speaking in Taita Taveta, Mutua noted the initiative would help in meeting the government's 15 billion trees target. According to the CS, the initiative dubbed "One Tree per Tourist" marked a significant step in the nations efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change. Mutua noted the move was reached during one of the Cabinet meetings held at the State House where ministers deliberated how to achieve a green economy. The initiative is set to be rolled out in collaboration with tourism agencies in the country, including hotels and other relevant stakeholders. "Tourism heavily relies on the preservation of biodiversity and ecosystems," CS Mutua stated. Upon arrival into the country, a tourist will be given a tree to plant in a specific designated area with the CS insisting the project will help tourists contribute to the government's initiative. "Tree planting remains a continuous and pivotal exercise undertaken by the ministry to preserve the country's ecosystem," Mutua revealed. Mutua's sentiments followed President William Rutos directive to Cabinet Secretaries where he directed all ministries to continue planting trees for the next six months. The Kenyan DAILY POST Blog Archive: Oct 2024 (60) Sep 2024 (149) Aug 2024 (155) Jul 2024 (155) Jun 2024 (150) May 2024 (153) Apr 2024 (149) Mar 2024 (155) Feb 2024 (145) Jan 2024 (156) Dec 2023 (155) Nov 2023 (150) Oct 2023 (155) Sep 2023 (150) Aug 2023 (155) Jul 2023 (155) Jun 2023 (150) May 2023 (155) Apr 2023 (150) Mar 2023 (155) Feb 2023 (140) Jan 2023 (155) Dec 2022 (156) Nov 2022 (150) Oct 2022 (155) Sep 2022 (150) Aug 2022 (155) Jul 2022 (154) Jun 2022 (150) May 2022 (155) Apr 2022 (150) Mar 2022 (155) Feb 2022 (140) Jan 2022 (156) Dec 2021 (156) Nov 2021 (150) Oct 2021 (155) Sep 2021 (150) Aug 2021 (155) Jul 2021 (155) Jun 2021 (150) May 2021 (155) Apr 2021 (150) Mar 2021 (155) Feb 2021 (140) Jan 2021 (155) Dec 2020 (155) Nov 2020 (150) Oct 2020 (158) Sep 2020 (150) Aug 2020 (130) Jul 2020 (124) Jun 2020 (120) May 2020 (124) Apr 2020 (120) Mar 2020 (124) Feb 2020 (116) Jan 2020 (125) Dec 2019 (126) Nov 2019 (120) Oct 2019 (124) Sep 2019 (120) Aug 2019 (125) Jul 2019 (124) Jun 2019 (120) May 2019 (123) Apr 2019 (121) Mar 2019 (124) Feb 2019 (112) Jan 2019 (125) Dec 2018 (126) Nov 2018 (120) Oct 2018 (124) Sep 2018 (121) Aug 2018 (124) Jul 2018 (125) Jun 2018 (120) May 2018 (124) Apr 2018 (121) Mar 2018 (124) Feb 2018 (112) Jan 2018 (123) Dec 2017 (124) Nov 2017 (124) Oct 2017 (141) Sep 2017 (135) Aug 2017 (138) Jul 2017 (137) Jun 2017 (134) May 2017 (138) Apr 2017 (135) Mar 2017 (139) Feb 2017 (129) Jan 2017 (143) Dec 2016 (135) Nov 2016 (138) Oct 2016 (142) Sep 2016 (128) Aug 2016 (133) Jul 2016 (136) Jun 2016 (138) May 2016 (164) Apr 2016 (311) Mar 2016 (348) Feb 2016 (320) Jan 2016 (348) Dec 2015 (314) Nov 2015 (338) Oct 2015 (363) Sep 2015 (358) Aug 2015 (399) Jul 2015 (374) Jun 2015 (331) May 2015 (337) Apr 2015 (319) Mar 2015 (320) Feb 2015 (271) Jan 2015 (286) Dec 2014 (254) Nov 2014 (238) Oct 2014 (287) Sep 2014 (267) Aug 2014 (259) Jul 2014 (260) Jun 2014 (238) May 2014 (241) Apr 2014 (228) Mar 2014 (240) Feb 2014 (217) Jan 2014 (263) Dec 2013 (226) Nov 2013 (254) Oct 2013 (256) Sep 2013 (252) Aug 2013 (263) Jul 2013 (261) Jun 2013 (251) May 2013 (250) Apr 2013 (221) Mar 2013 (193) Feb 2013 (164) Jan 2013 (157) Dec 2012 (155) Nov 2012 (240) Oct 2012 (526) Sep 2012 (411) Aug 2012 (394) Jul 2012 (284) Jun 2012 (229) May 2012 (213) Apr 2012 (213) Mar 2012 (253) Feb 2012 (269) Jan 2012 (298) Dec 2011 (273) Nov 2011 (219) Oct 2011 (204) Sep 2011 (201) Aug 2011 (236) Jul 2011 (217) Jun 2011 (211) May 2011 (206) Apr 2011 (215) Mar 2011 (215) Feb 2011 (186) Jan 2011 (215) Dec 2010 (107) Nov 2010 (98) Oct 2010 (55) Monday, May 13, 2024 African Union Commission Chairperson Moussa Faki Mohammed launched a scathing attack on African countries, among them Kenya, over the heavy reliance on imported fertilizer. Speaking during the Africa Fertiliser and Soil Health Summit held in Nairobi last week, Faki Mahamat denounced African nations' heavy reliance on European-imported fertilizers, urging them to prioritize locally manufactured alternatives. He expressed concern over the continent's disproportionate dependence on imported fertilizers despite the presence of local production capabilities. "Some African countries produce fertilizers but we depend mostly on imported fertilizers, which are expensive for our farmers," lamented Faki Mahamat. He pointed out to the importance of utilizing existing continental assets to bolster local production and ensure the availability of quality, affordable fertilizers. Kenya is among the top five net importers of fertilizer on the continent, alongside Ethiopia, Cote dIvoire, Zambia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, and is contemplating a shift in its fertilizer procurement strategy. According to data from the World Bank, there's considerable potential for redirecting fertilizer trade within Africa to mitigate the impacts of global crises such as the Ukraine-Russia conflict. Kenya, which spends more than about Ksh56 billion annually on fertilizer purchases is facing a crisis of fake fertilizer with Agriculture CS Mithika Linturi on the firing line over the same. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, May 13, 2024 - New Life Church Prayer Centre lead pastor Ezekiel Odero has surprised Kenyans after he prophesied doom to an unknown Kenyan politician. Speaking during a sermon in his church, the pastor, who was campaigning for former Prime Minister Raila Odinga's presidential bid during the 2022 presidential election, revealed that he had received a divine vision, not just once but on two separate occasions, indicating the impending demise of this individual. Despite knowing the politician personally and possessing his contact information, Pastor Ezekiel expressed his inability to communicate the warning directly. "There is a Kenyan politician that I have been told will die. I have been told twice. I feel for him. I know him and have his number, but I can't tell him because he won't pick up my call. When I went to Kitale, I was told again that the same person would die and shown how it would happen. Only two people know the story. If I mention him, the story will make headlines. You know something about your country's leader, but the country is young spiritually, so you can't say the message. If I speak, it will be breaking news. I'm looking for an avenue. The problem is I don't know when the person will die," he said. Pastor Ezekiel was among fake pastors who were arrested last year after President William Ruto, his deputy Rigathi Gachagua and Interior Cabinet Secretary, Prof Kithure Kindiki ordered a crackdown on all cult-like churches in the country. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, May 13, 2024 - Former Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko has been in the political cold since 2020 when the Senate confirmed his impeachment by Nairobi MCAs. However, Sonkos political comeback is now looking more of a reality than illusion, after sections of top political leaders in Nairobi ganged up against Governor Johnson Sakaja. Governor Sakaja is facing a backlash from Nairobians and hes currently the most unpopular leader in Kenya due to his non-performance, arrogance, massive corruption at City Hall among other factors. Sonko is now well positioned to win back the Governors seat following the dismissal of his corruption cases by the courts. Sources indicate that President William Ruto has disclosed to his inner circle his firm desire to retain the Nairobi Governors seat through Sonko. According to the Presidents inner circle, Sonko will bring a wealth of experience in City politics and a strong political following, which would greatly benefit the presidents political aspirations in the City. Analysts opine that Sonkos popularity among Nairobi residents would tip the scale in President Rutos favour in 2027. Following Sonkos impeachment by the Nairobi City County Assembly, he has actively been contesting the decision at the East African Court of Justice., based in Arusha. The reality is that in 2027, Ruto will not depend on the Kikuyu voters in Nairobi to be re-elected, with sources indicating that the President is exploring options of substituting the Kikuyu vote in Nairobi with the Kamba and Luhya votes. To secure the votes in Nairobi especially from the youth, the President is devising plans to involve Sonko in Nairobi politics. Ruto is aware of Sonkos potential as a skilled politician, his favourable reputation among voters and his financial strength, attributes that can effectively sway votes in his favour. Others likely to be in the Governors race in Nairobi include; Westlands MP Tim Wanyonyi, Embakasi East MP Babu Owino and a Kikuyu candidate who is yet to be identified. Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Watch on YouTube. Catch up on old episodes! Join Luissa Kiprono, an obstetrician-gynecologist, as she shares insights from her book, Push, Then Breathe: Trauma, Triumph, and the Making of an American Doctor. Luissas remarkable journey from surviving the oppressive regime in Romania to becoming a successful physician and advocate for womens empowerment will leave you inspired and uplifted. Luissa Kiprono is an obstetrician-gynecologist She discusses her book, Push, Then Breathe: Trauma, Triumph, and the Making of an American Doctor. Our presenting sponsor is Nuance, a Microsoft company. Do you spend more time on administrative tasks like clinical documentation than you do with patients? Youre not alone. Clinicians report spending up to two hours on administrative tasks for each hour of care provided. Nuance, a Microsoft company, is committed to helping clinicians restore the balance with Dragon Ambient eXperience or DAX for short. DAX is an AI-powered, voice-enabled solution that helps physicians cut documentation time in half. DAX Copilot combines proven conversational and ambient AI with the most advanced generative AI in a mobile application that integrates directly with your existing workflows. DAX Copilot can be easily enabled within the workflow of the Dragon Medical application to bring the power of ambient technology to more clinicians faster while leveraging the proven and powerful capabilities used by over 550,000 physicians. Explore DAX Copilot today. Visit https://nuance.com/daxinaction to see a 12-minute DAX Copilot demo. Discover clinical documentation that writes itself and reclaim your work-life balance. VISIT SPONSOR https://nuance.com/daxinaction SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST https://www.kevinmd.com/podcast RECOMMENDED BY KEVINMD https://www.kevinmd.com/recommended GET CME FOR THIS EPISODE https://earnc.me/hGB4f4 Powered by CMEfy. As the annual martyrs day celebrations draw close, the Anglican Church is calling for more support towards preparations for the June 3rd event. Speaking to KFM, the Chairman Organizing Ruwenzori Cluster Bishop Reuben Kisembo says not even 50% of the proposed Shs2.1bn budget has been raised so far. Bishop Kisembo says even the government pledge of Shs.1.5bn is yet to materialise, calling on the faithful to support the diocese with this years Martyrs Day preparations. He adds that if the budgeted funds are raised in good time, they may be forced to cut off some important activities. For now we appeal to the general public to continue to raise and giving us the money to support the function. Kisembo said. The mid-west Ruwenzori Cluster will lead the 2024 Uganda Martyrs Day Celebrations at the Martyrs Shrine Namugongo on June 3rd. The 2024 National Housing and Population Census (NHPC) exercise enters Day Four today with calls on enumerators to emphasize accuracy, respect, confidentiality, and safety of the data collected. This latest call comes from the Commissioner of Prisons in charge custodial services, Jacob Kivumbi who was speaking to enumerators and supervisors at Luzira Prisons. Kivumbi reveals that so far, over 70,000 inmates accommodated in the 269 prison units grouped in 19 regions have been counted. The enumeration exercise is expected to cover over 14,000 staff and their families. Meanwhile, the census exercise runs until May 19th except for the tree districts of Kampala, Wakiso and Mukono where it was extended by one day to make up for time lost due glitches experienced by enumerators on day one. Dr Chris Mukiza, the Executive Director of the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) explains that the three districts were affected due to mal-functional Computer-Assisted Personal Interviews (CAPI) tablets. A renowned economic expert has warned of dire consequences of shunning the ongoing National Population and Housing Census exercise on the economy. This is after six people were arrested in Mityana and Pallisa districts over dodging the census exercise. Prof. Augustus Nuwagaba, and senior consultant on economic transformation, says refusing to be counted is uncalled for because the government cannot budget for its citizens without accurate figures. He adds that no country has transformed economically without having the right number of people living there. Prof. Nuwagaba however asks the government to ensure it delivers quality services to the people so they appreciate the value of the census and continue embarrassing such exercises. He empathizes that census figures play a critical role in guiding planning, policy formulation, and program implantation. By Jane Nafula A section of the census enumerators has tasked government to expedite the process of releasing their allowances. They have also demanded that the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) considers increasing the quantity of census materials as this will ease the process of enumeration. Some of the enumerators that were conducting the census exercise in Luteete -Kereziya village in Kasangati Town Council, Wakiso District said, they have not received a penny from government, as promised and have been forced to dig deep into their pockets to cater for transport and meals. According to Prossy Nakakande, one the area enumerators, they were promised a daily allowance of Shs 50,000. We have never received any money. We have to struggle on our own to raise money for transport and lunch. We have to use our own money. We are hopeful that it will come but, we pray that it comes in time to make life easy, said Nakakande. She however says she only started the enumeration process on May 12, three days into the exercise that kicked off on May 9, saying the tablet she had been initially been allocated was faulty. Hassan Kasirye, another enumerator from the same area also raised concerns about uncleared allowances and limited supply census materials such as pieces of chalk extended to them. Although he didnt specify the quantity given to him, he said what he had in stock was inadequate. He is supposed to use the chalk to write the household number and the writings are expected to last for at least three months. While addressing journalists at a weekly press briefing held at the police headquarters in Naguru, Dr Albert Byamugisha UBOS board-chairman said the issue of allowances was being worked upon. Dr He revealed that enumerators from districts that had fully compiled the details of enumerators had already received the contentious facilitation. The enumerators from Luteete also said that citizens had embraced the exercise and that that had not yet experienced any resistance from the audience. They were even calling us from a distance saying they had over-waited for us, Nakakende said. Every enumerator is expected to cover atleast 14 households on a daily basis. Meawhile, KFM has also sampled out the views of some members of the public. Sylvia Nankabirwa, a resident of Luteete-Kereziya said this was her first time to be counted and that the questions were easy to answer. Nankabirwa said she was optimistic that the she would benefit from the exercise. We were told that the information that we provide will bale government to plan for us. I think they will also find us some jobs because I was asked whether I work, Nankabirwa a charcoal seller said. However, Margret Nalugya from the same area was worried that they exercise will subject them to more taxes. Julliet akasaga, a housewife from Luteete -Kereziya said she had been early waiting for the enumerators since Friday. I expected them on Friday but they didnt show. Im glad that they are finally here. I dont have any problem with the exercise. We were told that census will help government to give us the services that we need such is healthcare, she explained. Meanwhile, UBOS officials have revealed that they would recruit more enumerators in greater Kampala to beef up the current number and expedite the process of enumeration. Currently, it is estimated that a total of 6000 enumerators has been deployed in greater Kampala. Dr Madina Guloba, a Senior Research Fellow at Economic Research Centre, Makerere University who doubles as a member of the 2024 national census advisory committee said solar, the exercise is on track. According to UBOS 10 million people from 8.7 households have sofar been covered. Dr. Guloba also noted the law allows the Uganda Bureau of Statistics to extend census period in case the targeted population is not covered within the stated census period. If lags or the delays become a little bit too much, then after the census, the Supplemental Act which governs UBOS on census and surveys, then they are mandated under Section 7 to extend if the board agrees, she explained. They have to get the true picture of the population. A census is not like a survey a survey where you cant do estimates. They have to get the actuals, so if the period allocated to the exercise is not adequate, they will have to extend it, she added. The Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) says it has strengthened security of the 2024 National Housing and Population Census (NHPC) enumerators following cases of attacks in two separate incidents. This is after one of the enumerators identified as Andrew Ssali was attacked and killed by unknown people in Najeera, a Kampala suburb on Saturday night. Another one identified as James Kalyango was stabbed by unknown assailants on Friday morning as he made village rounds to mobilise residents for the census exercise using a megaphone speaker. According to Dr Chris Mukiza, the Bureaus Executive Director, they are working with Local Government officials, Resident District Commissioners and District Police Commanders to beef up security of enumerators. Dr Mukiza adds that specifically for Apaa where there are land disputes, the Bureau has written to the Chief of Defence Forces requesting for support to which he has responded positively. He reveals that so far, 5.7m people have so far been enumerated from 1.6m households across the country. The 2024 census exercise that kicked off on May 10 shall be concluded on May 19 except for the three districts of Kampala, Wakiso and Mukono where a one-day extension was announced due to glitches at the start. The 2024 National Census is the first to have digital technology used to collect, process, and disseminate census results. A new exhibition showing the connections between Gaza and the Sea was recently shown at Fennellys of Callan in Co. Kilkenny. The exhibition was launched by Waterford MEP Grace OSullivan, who after traveling to the West Bank in February 2023, began the process of commissioning the project connecting her love of the oceans and work on Palestine. While in Palestine our initial plan was also to visit Gaza as part of the official European Parliament delegation, however the Israeli authorities didnt allow this. I learned so much from the Palestinian people in the West Bank and have brought this back to my work in the European Parliament, but one conversation stayed with me - a lady who had lived there all her life but she had never seen the sea, due to the travel restrictions for Palestinians in the region OSullivan noted. The sea holds a great importance to the people of Palestine - those living in the West Bank have been completely cut off from the Mediterranean and Gaza is now the only place where Palestinians can reach the water. It is therefore the only place where centuries-old fishing traditions are carried out, acting as a connection for Palestinians to their cultural heritage. The initial idea to commission a calendar and an exhibition titled Gaza & the Sea began in the summer of 2023. Just as award-winning Gazan photographer Mohammed Zaanoun was commissioned to create the exhibition, the events of October 7 unfolded. Since then, Gaza has now faced some of the most horrific violence seen in all of its history. We were unsure of what to do with the project, but with Mohammeds consent, and wanting to support him and his family as he now became a photojournalist documenting the tragedies unfolding in Gaza, we proceeded with the project by using photos Mohammed had previously captured. The images are very poignant and now vastly different to the reality in Gaza today. But they show the beauty of Gaza and its people in a snapshot in time - we purposely left the photos without captions, so that those who are viewing them have to think about what is happening then and and in the new reality now OSullivan shared. The exhibition was hosted by Etaoin Holohan of Fennellys of Callan and has now continued on its tour of Ireland. Kata MacNamara reports: Details of Tony Blakelys involvement in the New Zealand Governments response to the pandemic raise serious questions about the work of the Covid-19 Royal Commission of Inquiry over which he presides. It has long been clear that Blakely, a respected epidemiologist and professor at the University of Melbourne, has a network of colleagues who were key players in advising the New Zealand Government on its Covid policies and indeed who worked deep within the government response. But the extent of Blakelys personal involvement, including his friendships with these players and the advice he gave them, has only now been publicly disclosed. It seems pointless to carry on this work either narrowly focused or otherwise if there are questions over the impartiality of the inquiry chair. Van Velden may yet ask Blakely to resign; she told the Herald: The makeup of the inquiry commissioners, as well as scope of the inquiry are decisions that I am currently considering. City Journal reports: n continuous publication since 1845, Scientific American is the countrys leading mainstream science magazine. Authors published in its pages have included Albert Einstein, Francis Crick, Jonas Salk, and J. Robert Oppenheimersome 200 Nobel Prize winners in all. SciAm, as many readers call it, had long encouraged its authors to challenge established viewpoints. In the mid-twentieth century, for example, the magazine published a series of articles building the case for the then-radical concept of plate tectonics. In the twenty-first century, however, American scientific media, including Scientific American, began to slip into lockstep with progressive beliefs. Suddenly, certain orthodoxiesespecially concerning race, gender, or climatecouldnt be questioned. Once upon a time scientists welcomed debate, but now many scientific institutions seek to suppress it. The following month, Shermer submitted a column discussing ways that discrimination against racial minorities, gays, and other groups has diminished (while acknowledging the need for continued progress). Here, Shermer ran into the same wall that Better Angels of Our Nature author Steven Pinker and other scientific optimists have faced. For progressives, admitting that any problemracism, pollution, povertyhas improved means surrendering the rhetorical high ground. They are committed to the idea that there is no cumulative progress, Shermer says, and they angrily resist efforts to track the true prevalence, or the base rate, of a problem. Saying that everything is wonderful and everyone should stop whining doesnt really work, his editor objected. Progress cant be celebrated or even acknowledged! In 2021, SciAm published an opinion essay, Why the Term JEDI Is Problematic for Describing Programs That Promote Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. The articles five authors took issue with the effort by some social-justice advocates to create a cute new label while expanding the DEI acronym to include Justice. The Jedi knights of the Star Wars movies are inappropriate mascots for social justice, the authors argued, because they are prone to (white) saviorism and toxically masculine approaches to conflict resolution (violent duels with phallic light sabers, gaslighting by means of Jedi mind tricks, etc.). What all this had to do with science was anyones guess. Vomitous nonsense. Shermer believes that the new style of science journalism is being defined by this postmodern worldview, the idea that all facts are relative or culturally determined. Of course, if scientific facts are just products of a particular cultural milieu, he says, then everything is a narrative that has to reflect some political side. Without an agreed-upon framework to separate valid from invalid claimswithout science, in other wordspeople fall back on their hunches and in-group biases, the my-side bias. Traditionally, science reporting was mostly descriptivewriters strove to explain new discoveries in a particular field. The new style of science journalism takes the form of advocacywriters seek to nudge readers toward a politically approved opinion. Sadly this is correct. Share this: Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Reddit WhatsApp More Pinterest Print Tumblr The City of Columbia has been monitoring PFAS levels since 2018. President Yoon Suk Yeol and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet will hold a summit in Seoul this week, and discuss ways to enhance cooperation in defense, trade and other issues, the presidential office said Monday. Hun Manet will pay a four-day official visit to Korea starting Wednesday and hold the summit with Yoon on Thursday. The two leaders plan to discuss ways to increase practical cooperation in various areas, including defense, trade, development and infrastructure construction, the presidential office said. Yoon and Hun Manet previously held talks in Jakarta, Indonesia, last September on the margins of annual summits involving the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. The two agreed at the time to actively use the Korea-Cambodia free trade agreement to further increase bilateral trade that reached a record $1.05 billion in 2022. (Yonhap) Amid backlash, ILLIT is now being accused of copying NewJeans's "Ditto" stage outfits. ILLIT's reputation has taken a massive hit, despite debuting just a month ago. Following their encore stages, where they showcased unstable and shaky vocals, ILLIT received major backlash from Korean netizens for being unable to perform their own song. Things only got worse after Min Hee Jin accused BELIFT Lab and HYBE Labels of copying NewJeans's formula for ILLIT's debut. Though Min Hee Jin stated she did not blame the ILLIT members, the title "stolen group" stuck with the group. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Can ILLIT & LE SSERAFIM Recover Their Image? K-Netz Discuss Groups' Future With their backlash, more eyes are on ILLIT than ever. On May 12, 2024, a post titled "ILLIT copying the 'Ditto' uniform concept" was shared with the South Korean online community forum Nate Pann. The post included photos of both girl groups. The photo from ILLIT is from their debut showcase. In their group photo, the members are wearing school uniforms with oversized blazers, sweaters, and jackets. They are also seen in high socks and black leather shoes. NewJeans's photo was taken backstage at a music show. In their outfits, they are also wearing uniforms with oversized blazers, high socks, and leather shoes. The biggest difference is that NewJeans's jackets are brown, while ILLIT's are black. YOU MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN: ILLIT Safety Shorts Draws Backlash From K-Netizens: 'I Feel Repulsed' Additionally, the original poster shared a photo card of NewJeans's Minji and ILLIT's Minju. Both girls are seen wearing the school uniforms. They also added a caption that reads, "ILLIT really stole everything NewJeans did in two years under a month into their debut." Korean netizens agreed with the original poster. They noted that the school uniform concept itself isn't unique, but the style that NewJeans wore was uncommon. The fact that ILLIT wore a similar uniform is what sparked backlash. Some comments read, "Isn't the common kind of school uniform the 'Produce' style one? NewJeans definitely did something new by wearing the old-school kind of uniform." "If NewJeans was a seven-year-old group, I'd just be like 'Oh, okay.' But it hasn't even been two years since NewJeans debuted and the event went on a 10-month hiatus. ILLIT just debuted and copied everything." "The way ILLIT is cleverly copying everything NewJeans did is f*cking wicked." What do you think of the situation? Tell us in the comments below! CHECK THIS OUT: Video of NewJeans Minji & Hanni 'Fighting' Goes Viral - Here's What Really Happened KpopStarz Owns This Written by Alexa Lopez BABYMONSTER member Chiquita experienced a voice crack during the group's latest performance, but it's her reaction to it that's going viral! On May 12, BABYMONSTER held their second fan meeting in Tokyo, Japan. Just like their first night, BABYMONSTER captivated the audience with a series of performances that they've never shown fans before! IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: K-Netz Couldn't Believe How Long BABYMONSTER Members Trained Before Debut: 'Thanks For Not Giving Up' However, there were also incidents of the girl group singing live that garnered attention on social media platforms. The one that is currently trending is the group's performance of Alessia Cara's "Scars To Your Beautiful." During the song, the group's youngest member was seen singing passionately. As she walked the stage, however, her voice suddenly cracked. YOU MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN: BABYMONSTER Ahyeon Garners Praise For Star Quality in Latest Stage: 'She Has It All' It seemed even she was caught off-guard by it. Her eyes widened in shock, and she immediately covered her mouth. The idol was then seen laughing at her blunder. Chiquita is soo cute and her reaction with the voice crack don't worry baby u did well pic.twitter.com/e5hmwkJQBp May 12, 2024 She quickly regained her composure. Soon after that, the female idol continued to perform, singing the rest of her parts flawlessly and professionally. However, when she stepped back and moved next to Asa, Chiquita couldn't contain her embarrassment and was seen covering her face due to shock. CHECK THIS OUT: BABYMONSTER Chiquita Sparks Concern After Nearly Fainting While Performing Currently, the clip of Chiquita's voice cracks and her hilarious reaction is making its rounds on X (formerly Twitter), attracting the attention of fans worldwide. It was intentional, everyone. She had to prove to the antis that they were singing live!#BABYMONSTER #CHIQUITA pic.twitter.com/rgpCx8PuoL kawaki (@baeskawaki) May 12, 2024 Chiquita's reaction to the voice crack is the cutest reaction I've ever seen in the world. pic.twitter.com/7LQ2VEwaJs mons7er (@baemonhigh) May 12, 2024 What do you think of the situation? Tell us in the comments below! BABYMONSTER Recent Activities BABYMONSTER made their official re-debut with their first mini-album "BABYMON7ER" and lead single "SHEESH." The album also contains re-recordings of their previous singles. It was then revealed that the girls would go on an Asian fan meeting tour, stopping in five different locations: Singapore, Japan, Thailand, Taiwan, and Indonesia. After the announcement, BABYMONSTER made history by entery "arena-class" venues only 40 days after their debut. The group sold 26,000 tickets in their Tokyo stop. CHECK THIS OUT: BABYMONSTER Stylists Slammed For Dressing Ahyeon Inappropriately: 'She's Still A Minor...' BABYMONSTER signed with Adidas as worldwide partners in April. They were previously announced as one of Pepsi's Asia-Pacific faces in February 2024. They are also the spokespersons for CNP Laboratory, a cosmeceutical brand owned by LG Household & Health Care. They will facilitate progress in the Japanese beauty industry. KpopStarz Owns This Written by Alexa Lopez Shaker Heights, Ohio, is a comfortable, peaceful, progressive suburb of Cleveland, a carefully planned community incorporated in 1912 that exists in a gentle state of idyll, sustained by adherence to the rules, many rules, about what you could and could not do. Its a marvelous setting for a novel, reminiscent of the sleepy fictional villages that are forever being ravaged by murder. But unlike St. Mary Mead or Cabot Cove, Shaker Heights is a real place author Celeste Ng grew up there. In Little Fires Everywhere, the stellar follow-up to her bestselling 2014 debut, Everything I Never Told You, she takes her hometown and throws it into chaos, with glee and evident affection. The book has some serious themes, but the tone is refreshingly animated, less dependent on ennui and adultery than many of the books that have defined suburban American fiction. The story begins at the end, with a spot of arson. Everyone in Shaker Heights was talking about it that summer: how Isabelle, the last of the Richardson children, had finally gone around the bend and burned the house down. Advertisement Celeste Ng will be at Vromans Bookstore on Friday October 6 at 7:00 p.m. This is precisely the sort of disaster Elena Richardson, a Shaker Heights native, thought she could avoid. Mrs. Richardson has lived her life guided by the towns spirit, trusting the promise that planning prevents catastrophe. She had been brought up to follow rules, to believe that the proper functioning of the world depended upon her compliance, and follow them and believe she did. She had had a plan, from girlhood on, and had followed it scrupulously: high school, college, boyfriend, marriage, job, mortgage, children. She had, in short, done everything right and she had built a good life, the kind of life she wanted, the kind of life everyone wanted. Mrs. Richardson has built her entire existence around this personal philosophy. It is not a structure that bends pliantly in the face of a challenge. Ng is a confident, talented writer, and its a pleasure to inhabit the lives of her characters. Advertisement The challenge comes in the shape of Mia Warren, a visual artist and single mother who rents a house from the Richardsons with her teenage daughter Pearl. Mrs. Richardson is immediately fascinated and unsettled by this Mia, a completely different kind of woman leading a completely different life, who seemed to make her own rules with no apologies. Before long, their children befriend each other, and they befriend each others children. By the time Mrs. Richardson decides that Mia is her nemesis, the two womens lives have become messily entwined. Lines are drawn over a heated custody battle between Mias co-worker a young Chinese waitress who abandoned her baby in a moment of desperation and the Richardsons close friends, a wealthy white couple in the final stages of that babys adoption. When Mrs. Richardson discovers Mia was the one who set these events in motion, she nearly loses her mind. Mia did whatever she wanted, Mrs. Richardson thought, and what would result? Heartbreak for her oldest friend. Chaos for everyone. You cant just do what you want, she thought. Why should Mia get to, when no one else did? Already suspicious of her enigmatic tenant, she goes on an increasingly vindictive, obsessive mission to uncover any secrets in Mias past. The story begins at the end, with a spot of arson. Unlucky for Mia, Mrs. Richardson has developed her investigative skills writing for the local paper, and Mia has plenty of secrets. Even Pearl doesnt know much about her mothers past. (Asked where Mia grew up, Pearl replies, Im not really sure. California, maybe?) But while Mrs. Richardson seems to see Mia as the immovable object to her unstoppable force, Mia is just trying to live her life in peace, raising her daughter and creating her (brilliant but commercially unmotivated) art. After years of moving from one town to another, shes finally promised Pearl they can put down roots. For the first time, Pearl lets herself get close to new people. Disastrously, all of these people are Richardsons. The plot is tightly structured, full of echoes and convergence, the characters bound together by a growing number of thick, overlapping threads. Mia starts as Mrs. Richardons tenant, then becomes her housekeeper, then a mentor and secret keeper for her children; Pearl falls into a love triangle with the two Richardson boys. Like Shaker Heights, Little Fires Everywhere is meticulously planned, every storyline and detail placed with obvious purpose. This can be overbearing at times an on-the-nose college essay prompt comes to mind but the overall effect is strong and thoroughly enjoyable. Ng is a confident, talented writer, and its a pleasure to inhabit the lives of her characters and experience the rhythms of Shaker Heights through her clean, observant prose. Before she became an author she was a miniaturist almost too perfect for a writer of suburban fiction and theres a lovely, balanced, dioramic quality to this novel. She toggles between multiple points of view, creating a narrative both broad in scope and fine in detail, all while keeping the story moving at a thrillers pace. Mrs. Richardson warns, Rules existed for a reason: if you followed them, you would succeed; if you didnt, you might burn the world to the ground. Ng sets fire to Shaker Heights, and the result is both unruly and glorious, a novel that vibrates with the heat of life. Cha is the author, most recently, of the novel Dead Soon Enough. Advertisement Little Fires Everywhere Celeste Ng Penguin Press: 352 pp., $27 PM Modi serves langar at historic Patna Sahib Gurudwara Prime Minister Narendra Modi performed 'seva' (service) and served 'langar' (community kitchen meal) at Takht Sri Harmandir Sahib Gurudwara here on Monday. This followed Sunday's mega roadshow in the city. Patnas Harmandir Sahib, popularly known as Patna Sahib, is the birthplace of the 10th Sikh Guru, Sri Guru Govind Singh. This brings a large number of Sikh pilgrims from across the world to worship here every day. The pilgrims and members of the Gurudwara greeted the Prime Minister. PM Modi donned a saffron turban and reached there amid tight security. He also consumed prasad in the langar and served it to the pilgrims in attendance. The Prime Minister will address three rallies in Bihar later in the day in Hajipur, Saran and Muzaffarpur. In Central America, there's a special place called El Salvador. Even though it had some problems in the past, it's getting better now. It used to have a lot of crime, but things have changed. With new leaders and plans to stop crime, El Salvador is now one of the safest places to visit in the area. This safety means more people can come and see the amazing things in El Salvador. It's not like other places crowded with tourists. El Salvador has beautiful beaches along the Pacific Ocean, and it's bordered by Honduras and Guatemala. Even though it's the smallest country in Central America and doesn't have a beach on the Caribbean Sea, El Salvador is full of wonderful things, according to Way to Stay. There are big mountains, lively cities, and green forests. It's a great place to explore and learn about its nature and culture. Here are some El Salvador landmarks. Tazumal Archaeological Site Embark on a journey through time at El Salvador's Tazumal Archeological Site. Located near San Salvador, this ancient Mayan treasure showcases centuries of history, featuring pyramids, ball courts, and ornate temples. Explore and connect with the rich cultural heritage of the region. Santa Ana Volcano El Salvador, known as 'the land of the volcanoes,' sits within the Pacific Ring of Fire, home to numerous volcanic activities. Natural disasters like earthquakes and eruptions have devastated the country, including its capital, San Salvador, which faced complete destruction twice. With over twenty volcanoes, San Miguel and Izalco stand out for their activity. Despite eruptions, hiking Santa Ana, the country's tallest volcano at 2,384 meters, remains popular for its breathtaking views of Lake Coatepeque. READ NEXT: Explore El Salvador's Top 4 Beautiful Destinations in the 'Land of Volcanoes' Coatepeque Lake El Salvador boasts captivating landscapes, including Coatepeque Lake, formed by a volcano 50,000 years ago. Drawing around 5,000 visitors monthly, it offers various activities like swimming, boating, fishing, and diving. Nestled near Santa Ana volcano, the lake appeals to adventurers and nature enthusiasts alike for its scenic beauty and recreational opportunities. Ruta de las Flores The 'Route of the Flowers' winds 36 kilometers through El Salvador's picturesque countryside, featuring vibrant towns like Salcoatitan, Apaneca, and Juayua, renowned for scenic views, events, and waterfalls, El Salvador noted. Visitors encounter colorful markets, artisan crafts, and coffee farms along the way, offering a rich cultural experience. Juayua serves as a hub for tourists, offering accommodation and access to the trail's highlights. Metropolitan Cathedral of San Salvador The San Salvador Cathedral, situated in the historic district, serves as El Salvador's primary Catholic church and the residence of the Archbishop. Despite enduring destruction from earthquakes in 1873 and a fire in 1951, it remains a significant landmark in downtown San Salvador. Visitors flock to admire its art, architecture, and history, with particular interest in the tomb of Archbishop Oscar Arnulfo Romero, recently canonized as a saint. Plaza Gerardo Barrios Plaza Gerardo Barrios, situated in downtown San Salvador, holds immense historical significance for El Salvador. Surrounded by key El Salvador landmarks such as the National Palace, Cathedral, National Theater, and El Rosario Church, it commemorates President General Gerardo Barrios. Notable events include the 1980 riots during Bishop Oscar Romero's funeral and the 1992 celebration marking the end of the Civil War. READ MORE: Unveiling Nayib Bukele: The Enigmatic Leader of El Salvador This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Ross Key WATCH: Top 10 Best Places in El Salvador| Travel Guide - From Opentiera Mexico has just captured a serial killer that nobody even knew about, a man the media now calls "Mexico's Jeffrey Dahmer" as his serial killer nickname. However, the country already has its own gruesome history with serial killers, and there are a lot more than many people imagined. Being right next to the country with the greatest number of recorded serial killers, the United States, not many know about the country having a lot of them as American serial killers like Jeffrey Dahmer and John Wayne Gacy tend to steal the spotlight. 5 Mexican Serial Killers That Are Responsible for Some of Mexico's Most Heinous Murders Serial killers have terrorized Mexico for a long time, though not many make it to being featured in US media that much. We have picked five notorious Mexican serial killers who have operated in Mexico, and they are: Adolfo Constanzo - The Godfather of Matamoros Constanzo is actually a US citizen. However, in Mexico, his name lives forever in infamy as not just a serial killer but also a drug dealer and a cult leader who led the infamous cult known as Los Narcosatanicos. Under his leadership and guidance, he led cult members in Matamoros, including the murder of Mark Kilroy, an American student killed in Matamoros in 1989. He eventually committed suicide that same year. READ MORE: Alleged Mexico City Serial Killer Miguel Cortes Kept Women's Bones in His Room, Prosecutors Downplay Case Juana Barraza - The Old Lady Killer Known as La Mataviejitas or the "Old Lady Killer," Barraza used to be a well-respected lucha libre wrestler but was disgraced after it was discovered that she was a serial killer who targeted elderly women by gaining their trust before killing them through strangulation. She was eventually arrested in 2006 and sentenced to over 700 years in prison for her crimes, according to Discover Walks. Rafael Ramirez - The Railroad Killer "The Railroad Killer" became infamous as he did not just kill people in Mexico, but he was also active in the United States. He usually targeted people near the train tracks, which led to his nickname. This soon led to a massive manhunt between the two countries, with him being arrested in the US and with several counts of murder. He was executed via lethal injection in 2006. Gilberto Vallejo Chavez - The Mummy An infamous serial killer who terrorized Mexico City between 2009 and 2011, "The Mummy" often targeted sex workers and homeless people by luring them into his house. There, he would kill them and then wrap his victims in a blanket after they were dead, thus earning him his nickname. He was eventually captured and sentenced to 100 years. Miguel Cortes - Mexico's Jeffrey Dahmer The latest serial killer on our list was just captured late last month, and police did not even know he was a serial killer until they raided his room for evidence. As ABC News noted, his case is still under investigation, but multiple remains have been discovered, some of which have already been identified as women who have gone missing. READ NEXT: The 5 Most Infamous Serial Killers From Colombia This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Rick Martin WATCH: Miguel Cortez, known as 'Mexican Jeffrey Dahmer,' is accused of being a serial killer - FOX 11 Los Angeles Panama President-Elect Jose Raul Mulino pledged as a candidate that he would try and do the near-impossible task of shutting down one of the busiest and most dangerous migration routes on Earth, the Darien Gap. This might affect the migration crisis that is happening in the Americas as more and more people try to head to the US-Mexico border to try and get inside the United States. The Darien Gap is a treacherous stretch of jungle between Colombia and Panama that connects Central America to South America. It is filled with muddy terrain, dangerous animals, and roving bands of criminal gangs and rebels. However, over 500,000 people still crossed it last year in an effort to head to the United States. This would now be a seismic shift in Panama's migration policy as during this current administration, the country just simply bused them from the edge of the Darien Gap where they emerged to the north and helped them along the way to the US. Experts are saying whether Mulino would do this or not remains to be seen as the Panamanian government has very little presence in the sparsely populated jungle. "Panama and our Darien are not a transit route. It is our border," said Mulino after his election win was formalized, according to the Associated Press. He added that he would try to end "the Darien odyssey that does not have a reason to exist." The Darien Gap migrant route became very popular in recent years with the help of organized crime in Colombia, with human traffickers helping migrants of many nationalities cross the dangerous jungle-filled isthmus. However, human rights organizations and NGOs such as Doctors Without Borders have repeatedly reported a rising number of sexual assaults happening in the area. READ MORE: Mexico Imposes Travel Restrictions on Peru to Help Curb Migration Policing the Darien Gap Might Prove Difficult for Panama's Incoming Jose Raul Mulino Administration Promising to shut down the Darien Gap to stop migrants is one thing; keeping that promise is another, as several groups, including Human Rights Watch (HRW), have repeatedly warned that closing the Darien may be impossible. The rights group also warned that this could force migrants to choose even more dangerous routes, such as taking dangerous migrant boats from Colombia to Panama. The dangerous and muddy jungle terrain of the Darien has had a history of being impossible to tame, as efforts to build a super highway that connects North and South America through the jungle were halted by the Darien. Despite the inhospitable terrain, Newsweek reports that migrants from Venezuela, Cuba, Haiti, and even Africa and Asia, have traversed the "Gap" in hopes of reaching the US. Jose Raul Mulino Pledges To Deport Migrants Caught Crossing the Darien Gap Into Panama As to what might happen to the migrants caught crossing the Darien Gap once Jose Raul Mulino takes over as president, they will get deported, according to AA. "We will begin, with international help, a repatriation process with full respect for the human rights of all the people who are there," Mulino stated during a press conference. "So those from there [referring to people in South American nations] and those who would like to come know that whoever arrives here will return to their country of origin. Our Darien is not a transit route, no sir, that is our border." READ MORE: Panama Slams Nicaragua Over Ricardo Martinelli Asylum, Claims Neighbor Is Meddling in Internal Affairs This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Rick Martin WATCH: I Was Trafficked Through The World's Deadliest Jungle - bald and bankrupt Peru authorities are deepening their scrutiny of President Dina Boluarte's administration following the arrest of her brother, Nicanor Boluarte, on corruption charges. This development has intensified pressure on Boluarte, who is already facing investigations into alleged misconduct, including the controversial acquisition of luxury items. Nicanor Boluarte's detention is part of a broader investigation into suspected corrupt practices within the government, Reuters reports. The arrest has reignited concerns about the prevalence of corruption in Peru's political system, contributing to ongoing protests and demands for governmental reform. The situation underscores the fragility of Peru's political environment and the public's growing dissatisfaction with perceived impunity among high-ranking officials. READ NEXT: Peru President's Brother Arrested in Rolex Scandal Legal Action Against Peru President Dina Boluarte The Attorney General's Office of Peru has initiated an inquiry into President Boluarte's decision to disband a special police unit tasked with investigating her brother. This action is being scrutinized for potentially obstructing justice and abusing authority, prompting questions about the government's commitment to accountability and transparency. The dissolution of the police unit has raised suspicions of attempts to impede ongoing corruption investigations, exacerbating concerns about institutional integrity, according to INKL. In addition to Nicanor Boluarte's arrest, Peru President Boluarte's lawyer, Mateo Castaneda, has also been apprehended as part of separate investigations. Nicanor Boluarte faces allegations of leading a criminal network that manipulated appointments to influential positions, while Castaneda is accused of obstructing justice. Authorities have conducted searches at multiple locations, including residences linked to the accused, in search of evidence to substantiate the allegations. Political Turmoil in Peru Peru has been grappling with political instability in recent years, characterized by frequent changes in leadership and persistent corruption scandals. President Boluarte assumed office following the removal of her predecessor, Pedro Castillo, on corruption and rebellion charges. The ongoing investigations into Boluarte's administration reflect broader challenges facing the country's governance structures, including the need for institutional reform and enhanced accountability mechanisms. Peru President Boluarte's approval ratings remain low as her administration faces mounting challenges and public scrutiny, Jurist News noted. Allegations of corruption, coupled with concerns about the government's response to ongoing investigations, have further eroded public trust in Peru's political leadership. The outcome of these inquiries will likely have far-reaching implications for the country's political landscape, shaping public perceptions of accountability and the rule of law. Peru navigates through a period of political uncertainty and heightened public discontent, the President Dina Boluarte investigation represents a pivotal moment in the country's quest for transparency and accountability. The outcome of these inquiries will not only determine the fate of individual officials but also influence broader efforts to combat corruption and strengthen democratic institutions. The need for impartial and thorough investigations is paramount to restoring public trust and upholding the principles of justice and integrity in Peru's governance. READ MORE: Suspected Murderer of Surfers in Mexico Identified This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Ross Key WATCH: Police arrest brother and lawyer of Peru's president in Rolex scandal probe - From FRANCE 24 English Several earthquakes and aftershocks have been recorded throughout southern Mexico and Guatemala, especially in the areas around the two countries' shared border. These happened around Sunday morning, with the strongest being a magnitude of 6.4, with its epicenter in southern Mexico, near the border with Guatemala. According to the US Geological Survey, one of the strongest recorded in the series of quakes had a magnitude of 4.9. It struck about 9 kilometers north-northwest of Delta, Baja California, Mexico, around 11:22 in the morning. The tremors were felt all the way to the United States. NBC 7 San Diego reported that the tremors were felt as far north as San Diego County in California, including in its Rancho Santa Fe, Lakeside, Spring Valley, El Cajon, Chula Vista, Bonita, Imperial Beach, and Campo areas. The tremors were also felt in Arizona, including Fortuna Foothills, Mesa, and Yuma, as well as San Luis Rio Colorado in Sonora state. However, these tremors were just felt as very weak to light shaking. Baja California, Mexico Earthquake Was Shallow, Mexico-Guatemala Earthquake Was Stronger Meanwhile, Volcano Discovery reported that the Baja California earthquake was relatively weak and only had a very shallow depth of 9.6 km, even though it was felt all the way to Arizona. No damages have been reported yet. While the shaking was very weak to light for the Baja California quake, the tremblor that struck near the Mexico-Guatemala border was much stronger as the US Geological Survey measured it at magnitude 6.4 with a depth of 75 Kilometers or around 47 miles. The two quakes, which happened just hours apart, do not appear to be connected. READ NEXT: Panama President-Elect Jose Raul Mulino Reiterates Promise To Shut Down Darien Gap Migration Crossing, Deport Migrants The earthquake's epicenter was located near the Mexican border town of Suchiate. The shaking happened just before 6 AM, waking many residents on either side of the Mexico-Guatemala border. While no immediate damage was recorded in Mexico for this stronger quake, it was noted that it affected several mountainous areas prone to landslides. As for Guatemala, some minor damage and landslides were recorded in relation to the earthquake. Guatemala's national disaster prevention agency revealed images of several landslides that happened around the Quetzaltenango region, located next to the border with Mexico. A hospital in San Marcos also had several cracks, but so far, there were no reported deaths. Mexico Earthquake Frightened and Woke Up People Across the border in Mexico, people woke up to quite the scare. The Associated Press talked to several people about their experience with the border earthquake. "Here we got up because we have the seismic alert service," San Cristobal resident Joaquin Morales told the AP. "The alert woke me up because it comes 30 seconds before (the quake)." Meanwhile, Maria Guzman, a teacher, told the AP, "It was horrible, it felt strong. It was a real scare." READ NEXT: Mexico's Most Infamous Serial Killers This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Rick Martin WATCH: Just now! A 6.4 magnitude earthquake shakes Mexico and Guatemala at dawn! - Forces Of Nature Months before his arrest in Russia, American soldier Gordon Black made a surprise video call from his overseas tour in South Korea to his 6-year-old daughter in Texas. However, instead of a heartwarming chat, the call took a shocking turn when a violent altercation unfolded between Black and his Russian girlfriend, witnessed by his wife, Megan. During the video call, Megan Black and her daughter were taken aback as they saw a fight erupt between Black and his girlfriend, escalating into a bloody scene. American soldier's wife recounted the horror of witnessing her husband being stabbed, leaving him with blood on his face. Despite repeated attempts, Black could not be reached for comment regarding the incident, Reuters reports. Gordon Black, an American soldier staff sergeant stationed at Camp Humphreys in South Korea, was arrested on May 2 in Vladivostok, Russia. Russian authorities accused him of theft following a dispute. His mother, Melody Jones, revealed that Black had followed his girlfriend to Russia despite their tumultuous relationship, which had often been marked by heated arguments. READ NEXT: US Soldier Apprehended in Russia on Theft Allegations Legal and Personal Struggles Black's arrest adds to the challenges faced by US officials dealing with other detention cases in Russia. An Iraq and Afghanistan war veteran, Black violated army regulations by traveling to Russia without authorization, transiting through China. Despite the severity of his situation, neither Russian authorities nor the Pentagon have hinted at espionage concerns, according to Market Screener. Megan Black shared emotional details about her relationship with her husband, revealing that they were in the process of finalizing their divorce when he was arrested. Her lawyer, Jeff Linick, highlighted the chaotic nature of the video call and the subsequent events leading to Black's detention. Despite their separation, Megan and her daughter were entitled to support under military regulations, which Black failed to provide. Marital Struggles and Unexpected Turns American soldier's wife recounted the initial charm of her relationship with Black when they met in 2014, but things began to deteriorate around 2018. Black initiated divorce proceedings shortly after relocating to South Korea, citing disagreements over their personal lives and relationships. Their marital discord escalated when Megan discovered Black's Russian girlfriend through social media, the Daily Mail noted. Melody Jones, Black's mother, expressed regret over her son's decision to follow his girlfriend to Russia despite her warnings. She suspected that the girlfriend might have been deported from South Korea due to paperwork issues. Despite the legal complexities and personal turmoil, neither the Pentagon nor the American soldier's wife suggested any espionage motives behind his actions. As Gordon Black remains in pre-trial confinement in Russia, his arrest serves as another challenging chapter in the ongoing saga of US citizens detained abroad. Amid personal struggles and legal battles, his family grapples with the fallout of his actions while US officials navigate the delicate diplomatic implications of his case. As investigations continue, unanswered questions linger, leaving Black's fate uncertain and his family's future in limbo. READ MORE: California Mass Shooting: Juvenile, Teen, Man Arrested This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Ross Key WATCH: Wife of US soldier in Russia says girlfriend stabbed him - From REUTERS A high court in Bogota, Colombia has ordered the immediate release of Salvatore Mancuso, the Colombian warlord who led the rightwing Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) paramilitary group, which is accused of various crimes against humanity and war crimes in its campaign against the various leftist rebel groups in the country. Mancuso was returned to Colombia earlier this year after he was extradited to the US and served 16 years behind bars there. Upon his return, he was immediately arrested again but has now walked free after two prior judicial setbacks that prevented his release. The Colombian warlord tried to seek his release by invoking his cooperation with the transitional justice system created with the 2016 peace deal that resulted in the disarmament of the notorious communist rebel group, FARC. However, The City Paper Bogota noted that Salvatore Mancuso is still in danger of being thrown back in prison as his case is still pending in Colombia's Supreme Court, which can still reverse the tribunal's decision. He also faces several other outstanding warrants that amount to over 40 years in prison. Magistrate Jose Manuel Parra delivered the verdict, which revoked the 57 security measures that had kept the notorious warlord in prison. The decision divided many in Colombia, given that Mancuso has been accused of some very violent and heinous crimes. Colombia Warlord Salvatore Mancuso Was Imprisoned in US for Drug Trafficking While he went against Colombian rebel groups such as the FARC and the ELN with his paramilitary AUC group, he funded his activities through nefarious means, particularly drug trafficking cocaine to the United States. This led to him being extradited by Colombia and being imprisoned in the US. READ MORE: Colombia Suspends Ceasefire With Ex-FARC Rebel Group, EMC As for his current status, his defense attorneys confirmed to Reuters that the high court ruled for his release, with the order being dated May 10, 2024. He was previously held in preventive detention in La Picota prison, located on the outskirts of Bogota. He was held there since being deported by the United States. Who Is Colombian Warlord Salvatore Mancuso? Salvatore Mancuso Gomez is the son of an Italian father and a Colombian mother. He studied civil engineering and agricultural administration before becoming an administrator for several cattle ranches. However, the rebel group known as the EPL or Popular Liberation Army extorted these ranches, leading to Mancuso taking up arms against them. Mancuso started as an informant for the Colombian military and gave them information on the EPL's activities in Colombia's Codoba region, according to InSight Crime. He worked with the military enough that he joined the paramilitary group known as the ACCU. He was initially in charge of networking with local and regional politicians but soon branched out to drug trafficking and directly led efforts to smoke out suspected guerrillas. This was where his various crimes in Colombia happened. His group, the ACU, was said to be responsible for over 1,500 murders. READ MORE: Colombia: Brother of Powerful Senator Pleads Guilty to Drug Smuggling Charge in US This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Rick Martin WATCH: US extradites former far-right paramilitary leader Salvatore Mancuso back to Colombia - Al Jazeera English Bengal records 32.78 pc polling, over 1,000 complaints received by CEO office Even as the polling percentage in West Bengal's eight Lok Sabha was increasing, the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) was flooded with complaints related to violence and tension, said officials here on Monday. The polling percentage in the constituencies in the first four hours on Monday was 32.78, and the number of complaints received by the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) during the same period was 1,088. Party-wise CPI(M) has filed the maximum number of complaints at 72, followed by Congress at 70, six by BJP and one by Trinamool Congress. As per the records from the CEO Ariz Aftab's office, the highest polling percentage till 11 a.m. was reported from Baharampur at 35.53 followed by Bolpur at 35.22, Baradhaman-Purba at 33.82, Ranaghat at 33.23, Krishnanagar at 32.59, Bardhaman-Durgapur at 31.41, Birbhum at 30.45 and Asansol at 29.99 per cent. Tension mounted in Pandaveswar in the Asansol Lok Sabha constituency after police stopped senior BJP leader Jitendra Tiwari from entering a particular area. Tiwari complained that the personnel of the state police stopped him despite his having the requisite papers from the Election Commission for visiting the place. The most serious incident of poll-related clashes was reported from Chapra under Krishnanagar Lok Sabha constituency as the CPI(M) and Trinamool Congress supporters engaged in a scuffle. One CPI(M) polling agent received severe head injuries. Similarly, at Monteswar under Baradhaman-Purba Lok Sabha, a BJP worker was severely injured following clashes between Trinamool Congress and BJP activists. At Bharatpur under the Baharampur Lok Sabha constituency, the Central Armed Forces Personnel had to resort to mild lathi-charge to disperse aggressive gatherings by ruling and opposition party supporters. A cruise ship hauled a 44-foot dead whale into a New York City port, leading authorities to take the deceased whale to a New Jersey beach for further study. The whale, identified as a sei whale, was found in the cruise ships bow when it arrived in Brooklyns port on Saturday, May 4, 2024, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which opened an investigation into the incident. Sei whales are an endangered species. The whale was on the bow of the MSC Meraviglia, which stopped in Brooklyn before continuing its voyage to ports in New England and Canada. We immediately notified the relevant authorities, who are now conducting an examination of the whale, officials with the cruise line said in a statement. We are deeply saddened by the loss of any marine life, the officials added. Now biologists are examining the whale carcass on the beach of Sandy Hook, New Jersey, and results from the necropsy should be available within days to weeks to determine whether the whale died from natural causes before colliding with the cruise liner or because it collided with the ship. The Atlantic Marine Conservation Society is spearheading the whale examination. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Katherine Rodriguez can be reached at krodriguez@njadvancemedia.com. Have a tip? Tell us at nj.com/tips. NEW YORK Donald Trumps fixer-turned-foe, Michael Cohen, directly implicated the former president in a hush money scheme Monday, telling jurors that his celebrity client tasked him on several occasions to stifle stories about sex that he feared could torpedo his 2016 presidential campaign. Stop this from getting out, Cohen, the prosecutions star witness, quoted Trump as telling him in reference to porn actor Stormy Daniels account of a sexual encounter with Trump a decade earlier. A similar episode occurred when Cohen alerted Trump that a Playboy model was alleging that she and Trump had an extramarital affair. The order was clear: Make sure it doesnt get released, Cohen said Trump told him. The woman, Karen McDougal, was paid $150,000 in a hush money arrangement that was made after Trump was given a complete and total update on everything that transpired. What I was doing was at the direction of and benefit of Mr. Trump, Cohen testified, later adding: Everything required Mr. Trumps sign-off. Cohen, Trumps former lawyer and personal fixer, is by far the Manhattan district attorneys most important witness in the case, and his much-awaited appearance on the stand signaled that the first criminal trial of a former American president is entering its final stretch. Prosecutors say they could wrap up their presentation of evidence by weeks end. The testimony of a witness with such intimate knowledge of Trumps activities could heighten the legal exposure of the presumptive Republican presidential nominee if jurors deem him sufficiently credible. But prosecutors reliance on a witness with such a checkered past Cohen pleaded guilty to federal charges related to the payments also carries sizable risks with a jury and could be a boon to Trump politically as he fundraises off his legal woes and paints the case as the product of a tainted criminal justice system. The men, once so close that Cohen boasted that he would take a bullet for Trump, had no visible interaction inside the courtroom. The calm was a marked contrast from their last courtroom faceoff, when Trump last October walked out of the courtroom after his lawyer finished questioning Cohen during his civil fraud trial. This time around, Trump sat at the defense table with his eyes closed for long stretches of testimony as Cohen recounted his decade-long career as a senior Trump Organization executive, doing work that by his own admission sometimes involved lying and bullying others on his bosss behalf. Jurors had previously heard from others about the tabloid industry practice of catch-and-kill, in which rights to a story are purchased so that it can then be quashed. But Cohens testimony is crucial to prosecutors because of his proximity to Trump and because he says he was in direct communication with the then-candidate about embarrassing stories he was scrambling to prevent from surfacing. Cohen also matters because the reimbursements he received from a $130,000 hush money payment to Daniels, which prosecutors say was meant to buy her silence in advance of the 2016 election, form the basis of 34 felony counts charging Trump with falsifying business records. Prosecutors say the reimbursements were logged, falsely, as legal expenses to conceal the payments true purpose. Under questioning from a prosecutor, Cohen detailed the steps he took to mask the payments which he had agreed to front from his wife and his bank. When he opened a bank account to pay Daniels, an action he said he told Trump he was taking, he said it was for a new limited liability corporation but withheld the actual purpose. Im not sure they wouldve opened it, he said, if it stated: to pay off an adult film star for a non-disclosure agreement. Cohen also gave jurors an insider account of his negotiations with David Pecker, the then-publisher of the National Enquirer who was such a close Trump ally that Cohen said he told him that his publication maintained a file drawer or a locked drawer as he described it, where files related to Mr. Trump were located. That effort that took on added urgency following the October 2016 disclosure of an Access Hollywood recording in which Trump was heard boasting about grabbing women sexually. The Daniels payment was finalized several weeks after that revelation, but Mondays testimony also centered on the deal earlier that fall with McDougal. Cohen testified that he went to Trump immediately after the National Enquirer alerted him to a story about the alleged McDougal affair. Make sure it doesnt get released, he says Trump told him. Trump checked in with Pecker about the matter, asking him how things were going with it, Cohen said. Pecker responded: We have this under control, and well take care of this, Cohen testified. Cohen also said he was with Trump as Trump spoke to Pecker on a speakerphone in his Trump Tower office. David stated it would cost $150,000 to control the story, Cohen said. He quoted Trump as saying: No problem, Ill take care of it, meaning that the payments would be reimbursed. To lay the foundation that the deals were done with Trumps endorsement, prosecutors elicited testimony from Cohen designed to show Trump as a hands-on manager on whose behalf Cohen said he sometimes lied and bullied others, including reporters. When he would task you with something, he would then say, Keep me informed. Let me know whats going on, Cohen testified. He said that was especially true if there was a matter that was troubling to him. If he learned of it in another manner, that wouldnt go over well for you, Cohen testified. Defense lawyers have teed up a bruising cross-examination of Cohen, telling jurors during opening statements that hes an admitted liar with an obsession to get President Trump. Besides portraying him as untrustworthy, theyre also expected to cast him as vindictive, vengeful and agenda-driven. Prosecutors are hoping to try to blunt those attacks by acknowledging Cohens past crimes to jurors during opening statements and by relying on other witnesses whose accounts, they hope, will buttress Cohens testimony. They include a lawyer who negotiated the hush money payments on behalf of Daniels and McDougal, as well as Pecker and Daniels. Cohens role as star prosecution witness further cements the disintegration of a mutually beneficial relationship. After Cohens home and office were raided by the FBI in 2018, Trump showered him with affection on social media, praising him as a fine person with a wonderful family and predicting incorrectly that Cohen would not flip. Months later, Cohen did exactly that, pleading guilty that August to federal campaign-finance charges in which he implicated Trump. By that point, the relationship was irrevocably broken, with Trump posting on the social media platform then known as Twitter: If anyone is looking for a good lawyer, I would strongly suggest that you dont retain the services of Michael Cohen! Cohen later admitted lying to Congress about a Moscow real estate project that he had pursued on Trumps behalf during the heat of the 2016 Republican campaign. He said he lied to be consistent with Trumps political messaging. He was sentenced to three years in prison, but spent much of it in home confinement. Since the mens fallout, Cohen has emerged as a relentless and sometimes crude critic of Trump, appearing as recently as last week in a live TikTok wearing a shirt featuring a figure resembling Trump with his hands cuffed, behind bars. The judge on Friday urged prosecutors to tell him to refrain from making any more statements about the case or Trump. NEW YORK Donald Trumps fixer-turned-foe, Michael Cohen, characterized his celebrity client as a hands-on manager and said he sometimes lied for him and bullied others on his behalf during highly anticipated testimony Monday in the former presidents hush money trial. Cohen, Trumps former lawyer and by far the Manhattan district attorneys most important witness in the case, took the stand in an appearance that signals that the first criminal trial of a former American president is entering its final stretch. Prosecutors say they may wrap up their presentation of evidence by the end of the week. The testimony of a witness with such intimate knowledge of Trumps activities could heighten the legal exposure of the presumptive Republican presidential nominee if jurors deem him sufficiently credible. But politically, Trump is likely to seize on prosecutors reliance on a witness with such a checkered past Cohen pleaded guilty to federal charges related to the payments and to lying to Congress as he raises money off his legal woes and paints the case as the product of a tainted criminal justice system. Cohen is expected to testify about his role in arranging hush money payments on Trumps behalf during his first presidential campaign, including to porn actor Stormy Daniels, who told jurors last week that the $130,000 that she received in 2016 was meant to prevent her from going public about a sexual encounter she says she had with Trump in a hotel suite a decade earlier. He also matters because the reimbursements he received form the basis of the charges against Trump 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. Prosecutors say the reimbursements were logged as legal expenses to conceal the payments true purpose in what they allege was an effort to illegally interfere in the 2016 presidential election. Trump has denied the sexual encounter and has pleaded not guilty. Trump did not appear to make eye contact with Cohen as the lawyer began his testimony by recounting his upbringing on Long Island as the son of a Holocaust survivor and his career experience with Trump, including a decade-long tenure as a Trump Organization senior executive. Cohen testified that Trump wanted to be updated immediately on any developments in the tasks he assigned. When he would task you with something, he would then say, Keep me informed. Let me know whats going on, Cohen testified. He said that was especially true if there was a matter that was troubling to him. If he learned of it in another manner, that wouldnt go over well for you, Cohen testified. Cohen said Trump had an open-door policy allowing executives to meet him in his office, without appointment, and keep him apprised of developments. Asked how he and other executives referred to Trump, Cohen said: Wed call him boss, Mr. Trump. Even as he spoke warmly of his time with Trump, he also acknowledged that his job required him to lie and bully on his bosss behalf. The only thing that was on my mind was to accomplish the task and make him happy, Cohen said, referring to Trump. Defense lawyers have teed up a bruising cross-examination of Cohen, telling jurors during opening statements that hes an admitted liar with an obsession to get President Trump. Prosecutors are expected to try to blunt those attacks by eliciting detailed testimony from Cohen about his past crimes. They have also called other witnesses whose accounts, they hope, will buttress Cohens testimony. Those witnesses included a lawyer who negotiated the hush money payments on behalf of Daniels and a Playboy model; a tabloid publisher who pledged to be the Trump campaigns eyes and ears; and Daniels herself. Cohens role as star prosecution witness further cements the disintegration of a mutually beneficial relationship that was once so close that the attorney famously said he would take a bullet for Trump. After Cohens home and office were raided by the FBI in 2018, Trump showered him with affection on social media, praising him as a fine person with a wonderful family and predicting incorrectly that Cohen would not flip. Months later, Cohen did exactly that, pleading guilty that August to federal campaign-finance charges in which he implicated Trump. By that point, the relationship was irrevocably broken, with Trump posting on the social media platform then known as Twitter: If anyone is looking for a good lawyer, I would strongly suggest that you dont retain the services of Michael Cohen! Cohen later admitted lying to Congress about a Moscow real estate project that he had pursued on Trumps behalf during the heat of the 2016 Republican campaign. He said he lied to be consistent with Trumps political messaging. Defense lawyers are expected to exploit all the challenges that accompany a witness like Cohen. Besides painting him as untrustworthy, theyre also expected to cast him as vindictive, vengeful and agenda-driven. Since their fallout, Cohen has emerged as a relentless and sometimes crude critic of Trump, appearing as recently as last week in a live TikTok wearing a shirt featuring a figure resembling Trump with his hands cuffed, behind bars. The judge on Friday urged prosecutors to tell him to refrain from making any more statements about the case or Trump. He has talked extensively about his desire to see President Trump go to prison, Trump attorney Todd Blanche said during opening statements. He has talked extensively about his desire to see President Trumps family go to prison. He has talked extensively about President Trump getting convicted in this case. No matter how his testimony unfolds, Cohen is indisputably central to the case, as evidenced by the fact that his name was mentioned in the jurys presence during opening statements more than 130 times more than any other person. Other witnesses, including former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker and former Trump adviser Hope Hicks, have testified at length about the role Cohen played in arranging to stifle stories that were feared to be harmful to Trumps 2016 candidacy. And jurors heard an audio recording of Trump and Cohen discussing a plan to purchase the rights to a story of a Playboy model, Karen McDougal, who has said she had an affair with Trump. During a massive rally on Saturday in the southern New Jersey resort town of Wildwood, Trump revived his criticism of the case, wrongly blaming President Joe Biden for orchestrating the New York charges, calling the case a Biden show trial. That argument ignores the reality that the hush money case was filed by local prosecutors in Manhattan who do not work for the Justice Department or any other White House office. The Justice Department has said the White House has had no involvement in the two criminal cases against Trump brought by special counsel Jack Smith. Several tryout players were on the NovaCare Complex field during the Eagles rookie minicamp, including wide receivers John Ross and Jakeem Grant. However, one player earned a contract, and he will compete at a position where many players are already vying for a roster spot. BUY EAGLES TICKETS: STUBHUB, VIVID SEATS, TICKETMASTER Portlaoise's attractiveness as a place to do business has been reinforced in comments from a leading Irish pet care company which has confirmed the opening date for its newest outlet in the Laois county town. In a statement revealing its official opening date and special events for the launch, Maxi Zoo says its new store in Portlaoise will include state-of-the-art grooming salon and aqua area at the Kyle Centre. It says the the store is expected to have 12 staff and Maxi Zoo is currently recruiting to fill the positions. Anthony Cremin, Head of Marketing at Maxi Zoo Ireland, spoke about the upcoming store opening in Portlaoise and why the company it is locating in the Laois town. "After reaching our 30 store milestone in Cork earlier this year, its fantastic to once again be in a position to announce another store opening, and new jobs, at Maxi Zoo Ireland. We see the Midlands as a region of expansion for the company, with our Mullingar store a very busy one. Portlaoise has a great retail offering and its fantastic to know well soon be part of that, bringing great products and services to pet lovers in Laois, he said. The store will open on May 17, but the company says a weekend of celebration is planned in the Portlaoise outlet from Friday, May 24 to mark the expansion into Laois. On Saturday and Sunday, May 25 - 26, families and their four-legged friends can expect a variety of activities at the Kyle Centre branch, including face painting, balloon modellers, a live in-store DJ, giveaways, and goodies. Maxi Zoo is also giving a 20% discout off everything on Friday, 24. The red carpet will be rolled out for a Pupparazi and Cat Walk, where shoppers can parade their pets and take some photos. Since its inception in Ballincollig, County Cork in 2006, Maxi Zoo says it has evolved into Ireland's largest specialty pet retailer, offering over 8,000 products for pet owners. With an existing presence in 15 counties, the upcoming opening of the Laois store Maxi Zoo says it has an unwavering commitment to meet the needs of pet lovers throughout Ireland. The new store brings Maxi Zoo's workforce to over 300 staff in Ireland. Maxi Zoo says it has been actively engaged in supporting various animal charities across Ireland since its establishment, raising hundreds of thousands of euros through numerous campaigns. The new Portlaoise outlet is being located in part of the Kyle Centre which was previously occupied by Argos. Dunnes Stores owns the Kyle Centre which opened in 2007. Dunnes is the anchor retailer with, TK Maxx, McDonalds, Insomnia. Senior Government figures have signalled that there will be further changes to payments for Ukrainians seeking protection in Ireland. Following Russias invasion of Ukraine, the European Union triggered a temporary protection directive to offer assistance for those fleeing the war. It places obligations on EU countries to give certain rights to the beneficiaries of temporary protection (BOTPs) including residence permits and access to suitable accommodation. Ireland has granted more than 105,000 temporary protection orders since the start of the war, and almost 72,000 BOTPs are in State-provided accommodation. However, the Government changed its offering for new arrivals in March. Under the revised plan, Ukrainian refugees go to designated accommodation centres for up to 90 days and are provided with food, laundry and integration support during this time. They will be paid a 38.80 euro subsistence allowance per week and an additional 29.80 euro per child. Arrivals had previously been entitled to a jobseekers allowance of 220 euro per week and unlimited time in State accommodation. Approximately half of arrivals opt for State-provided accommodation. Those who do not are entitled to the full income supports. The changes did not apply to those who arrived before the March deadline. However, Taoiseach Simon Harris has said there should be discussion about a consistency of approach for Ukrainians and BOTPs. Speaking on Newstalk, Mr Harris added: It shouldnt be whether you came one month (ago) or not that you get a different level of support. Asked if payments would be cut further, environment minister Eamon Ryan said: I expect that will apply to a wider category of people regardless of when they came to the country. He told RTE radio: So I think there will be some variations and some changes. And we do that at the same time that we know we have to provide additional accommodation for those seeking international protection. We have to do both to try to manage this fairly. It comes as the Government continues to fail to provide accommodation for all arriving asylum seekers. Mr Harris has said there are several common sense changes to migration policy that need to be implemented in Ireland. Cabinet will discuss the proposals as well as payments to BOTPs on Tuesday. Taoiseach Simon Harris has said that Ireland must reconsider what it can offer migrants in the future and that an 'honest and truthful discussion' needs to be had about it. The number of tents has grown once again in Dublin, just days after encampments were removed along the Grand Canal. It has been reported that tents along the Grand Canal, where more have popped back up, were attacked and damaged over the weekend. "We need to move from the emergency response, in terms of migration, to a much more sustainable model," the Taoiseach said in his latest interview on national airwaves this Monday morning. "Irish people want us [the government] to be honest with people coming into this country about what we can and can't do," he said. Figures also show the number of asylum seekers increased by 95% in the first four months of this year compared to last. 200 tents were removed from Mount Street outside the international protection office at the start of the month. The Taoiseach said it is "different when tents arrive for a relatively short period of time versus what was allowed to happen in relation to Mount Street". "What we're going to do is make sure that never again is there a situation where official Ireland can almost turn a blind eye to the development over many, many, many months of an encampment," he said. "We can absolutely use State land and provide people with access to sanitation, and help people who are fleeing persecution, but we also have to be truthful in what we can do. "It's about having an honest, it's about trying to have an honest and truthful discussion in relation to migration". An Irishman has recounted his experience of his own 'Baby Reindeer' stalking experience which went on for a decade, initially in Ireland and then in the UK. Jarlath Rice told Lunch Time Live on Newstalk about his traumatic experience which he endured for 10 years. In an ordeal lasting until 2017, Jarlath was assaulted, subjected to thousands of messages of abuse, and relentlessly followed in Ireland and abroad by a woman who has since been convicted of stalking in the UK. He told presenter Andrea Gilligan that his own situation has "a lot of similarities with Baby Reindeer - it was really strange watching it. Obviously it is a dramatisation, but there were a lot of parallels". A simple conversation with a random woman in a Dublin cafe in 2007 resulted in 10 years of stalking hell for Jarlath Rice. He recounted how they ended up meeting a couple more times before he realised she was "something a bit troubled about the person", but by then it was too late. He wasn't interested in having a relationship, but the woman was very persistent and "needy". "You are a human being, you feel empathy for people and you want to help them - you don't expect them to be psychotic," he said. "Very quickly things escalated and I realised that this person wasn't the person they were making out to be," he said. She started following and tracking Jarlath to his mother's house and to where his father lived. She found out information about him, and even rang up the phone company "pretending that they were my wife or that I had died or something to get the PIN for my phone, so they could listen to my messages and obviously monitoring what I was up to," Jarlath recalled. The woman began randomly popping up in strange places, at the Luas, in a shop, or when he was leaving his home all under the pretence of chance encounters. This caused a lot of disruption for Jarlath who was studying for an MA at the time. "Then she moved to an apartment above where I was living in Balinteer and had to drive by my house to get where she was going and that became a bit of an issue," said Jarlath. When I didnt want to talk to her, shed often be confrontational and scream at me in the street or scream at me on the Luas, the train, or wherever I happened to be," he said. "Things took a nasty twist when I was doing work for a friend of mine, a female, and they had left a message on my phone, he said. "This woman had got the phone number, got the message and made a threat to my friend that she was on her way to her house and she had a hammer. My blood runs cold every time I think about it and that was the sign that this person was dangerous, Jarlath said. He reported her to police and she told them that they had been engaged, and Jarlath had let her down and she had been emotional. Jarlath said the police told her to "just calm down and believed all that she said". From there, he said it became "constant, persistent emails, phonecalls - no matter what I said to her, she wouldn't listen. She was adamant that we were going to be in a relationship". Jarlath said he wasn't believed, despite the perpetrator being brought to court and having an assault charge struck out in lieu of a fine. "This was pre-stalking laws and the police weren't trained and weren't up to speed and pushed an awful lot back on me," he said. Jarlath's stalker broke into the apartment building of his partner at the time, and tried to kick the door in before being removed by the police. "She waited all night and the next morning she violently attacked us," he said. If she had been charged and punished through the legal system, he felt her behavour would have stopped. Events continued when he moved to the UK in 2015. She had followed him to the UK and made threats. As the UK had strong laws against stalking in place at the time, which weren't in place in Ireland, police took the situation seriously and the woman was sentenced to eight years in prison. She was released on parole after two years and Jarlath said, touch wood, he hasnt heard from her since and there have been no further incidents. You can listen to the full interview with Andrea Gilligan on Newstalk here Hungarian business student looks to create value for China, Hungary Xinhua) 10:28, May 13, 2024 Markos Milan, a student from Hungary, consults experienced Chinese merchants in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province on April 5, 2024. (Xinhua) TIANJIN, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Markos Milan, a student from Hungary, has a particular interest in international finance and business. In September 2023, he traveled to China to fulfill a "long-cherished wish": to gain an all-round understanding of the country. "China has a significant role in the global economy. However, before I embarked on my 'business trip,' I knew almost nothing about China. I needed to see it for myself," he said. He started his career at an international accounting and finance organization in Budapest, which motivated him to seek opportunities to broaden his mind and observe the international business environment from a different perspective. Having traveled extensively throughout Europe and yearning to immerse himself in a culture vastly different from those he knew, he resolved to pursue a course of study in China. He opted for the one-year International Master of Business Administration (IMBA) program at Tianjin University in Tianjin, a bustling port city in north China. "I have already experienced the advantages of the relationship between China and Hungary, starting with the Budapest-Beijing direct flight. Chinese people have always welcomed me as a friend," he said. In addition to business studies, Markos has taken intensive classes in the Chinese language, while always seeking opportunities to put his knowledge to use in ways that benefit both Hungary and China. In Hong Kong and Shanghai, he gained an insight into China's financial sector. "One of my good friends introduced me to representatives of a leading international insurance company in Hong Kong. We discussed engaging ideas related to the insurance industry," he said. He also gained insights into China's rich culture and long history through visits to Beijing, northwest China's city of Xi'an, and east China's city of Suzhou. He was impressed by the role played by the city of Shenzhen in fostering innovation and the start-up community, while the Tsingtao Beer Museum in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, gave him an insight into the beer industry. On his travels around China, Markos has seized every opportunity to engage with locals, chatting with taxi drivers, open-air market vendors, students, researchers and executives at various companies. "Exploring different regions of China was essential for me," he said. His proficiency in the Chinese language improved with each trip. His formal studies at Tianjin University have taught him a great deal about Chinese companies. "Discussing business topics with my Chinese classmates, participating in projects, and giving presentations has provided me with a deeper understanding of the Chinese business landscape," he said. He actively sought out opportunities to attend classes that required higher levels of Chinese proficiency. "My ambition led me to the classes that prepare students for the advanced proficiency language exam. I feel that good language skills and effective communication are crucial in conducting international business," he said. Markos will take his final Chinese language exams this summer, and hopes to bring his language skills to the level required to conduct business negotiations. Meanwhile, he is working to further improve his knowledge of China's financial industry. "I am actively expanding my network in China and seeking opportunities to cooperate with Chinese organizations to create value for both China and Hungary," he said. Markos Milan (L), a student from Hungary, learns Chinese at Tianjin University in north China's Tianjin Municipality on Oct. 31, 2023. (Xinhua) (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing) Four men were sentenced to state prison for terms ranging from 13 to 19 years in a double-shooting case that was compromised because Antioch police officers exchanged racist text messages about the men during the investigation. Robert Daly/Getty Images/Caia Image Four men were sentenced to state prison for terms ranging from 13 to 20 years in a double-shooting case that was compromised because Antioch police officers exchanged racist text messages about the men during the investigation. The men were sentenced last week after pleading no contest to involuntary manslaughter and attempted murder as part of a plea deal. The March 2021 shooting left Arnold Hawkins, 23, dead and another man injured. Contra Costa County Superior Court Judge David Goldstein sentenced 23-year-old Terryonn Pugh to 20 years in prison, 25-year-old Eric Windom to 19 years in prison, 23-year-old Trent Allen to 19 years in prison and Keyshawn McGee to 13 years and eight months in prison. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The defendants faced life without parole before the case fell apart when a separate investigation uncovered the text messages. Chief Assistant District Attorney Simon OConnell said the resolution of the case promotes public safety, describing the prison terms as lengthy terms that hold the defendants accountable for the violence, even after the case was tainted. OConnell acknowledged the police misconduct and officers credibility was likely to be scrutinized if the case went to trial. OConnell said Goldstein indicated the prison terms were not light sentences. Hawkins mother, Brandi Griffin, said she felt the outcome of the case didnt amount to justice for her son. The defendants prison terms isnt much time, Griffin told ABC 7 last week. They pretty much did them a favor, she said of the defendants. Thats how our family feels. We paid for what the Antioch police officers did. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Evan Kuluk, a deputy public defender with the Contra Costa County Alternate Defenders Office who represented Windom, said there is no mathematical formula to quantify the impact that racial prejudice has had on the integrity of a criminal case for sentencing purposes, but no one should be sentenced to life in prison when racial bias taints a case. Defense attorney Mathew Martinez, who represented Allen, said the prison terms seemed appropriate based on the officers offensive conduct. He said he hopes law enforcement agencies work to eliminate racial bias. As pessimistic as I feel about the behavior exhibited by the officers, he said, I am equally optimistic that the district attorneys office, under the current administration, is doing everything it can to rectify the past abuses and will act with fairness for all the residents of Contra Costa County going forward. The shooting occurred on March 9, 2021. Prosecutors alleged the defendants drove from San Leandro to Antioch, where they ambushed rival gang members in a residential neighborhood. The defendants fired a volley of shots after Hawkins and another man walked out of a home and got into a vehicle, prosecutors said. Hawkins died about six months later. Pugh, Windom, Allen and McGee were charged with murder and attempted murder, as well as special-circumstance allegations and gang and firearm enhancements. They faced life in prison without parole. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The case, however, started to fall apart last year after a separate FBI and district attorneys office joint investigation uncovered the trove of racist text messages part of a much larger case of misconduct in the Antioch and Pittsburg police departments. The texts showed that officers involved in the investigation of the shooting used racial slurs and made other racist remarks in messages about the defendants. As officers surveilled the defendants at John F. Baldwin Park in Concord, Officer Eric Rombough texted another officer: I feel like Im at the zoo, according to an investigative report the district attorneys office released last year. The texts also showed that the officers made light of the force they used when they arrested the defendants. The defendants challenged the case against them under Californias Racial Justice Act, a law that aims to eliminate racial disparities in the criminal justice system. Based on data that showed racial disparities in the charges the district attorneys office filed over the course of a decade and the text messages, Judge Goldstein dismissed special-circumstance allegations and gang and firearm enhancements, taking life sentences off the table. While Hawkins family felt there was no justice, OConnell said the case represents an opportunity to rebuild trust in the criminal justice system. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Through a very dark moment, there can be an opportunity to make positive change, he said. A long Laois campaign to have one of the county's landmark courthouses saved from dereliction and repurposed for community use looks set to come to fruition in Borris-in-Ossory. Minister Heather Humphreys TD has confirmed that the Borris Courthouse renovation project has been allocated 3.3 million by her Department under Category 1 of the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF) 2024. The project, which has been driven by the local community and has the backing of Laois County Council, will see the building repurposed to create a new digital hub. A total of 3,337,714 has been secured for the renovation of the building. It is envisaged that once the courthouse is fully renovated it will become a remote working hub for 15-17 people, community facility and local area office for the Council in the Borris Mountmellick Municipal District. Local authority staff previously worked at the building before it was vacated over decades ago. A modern new wing will also be extended to the Courthouse which has the potential to be used as a community enterprise, such as a coffee shop. Fine Gael Councillor Conor Bergin, said he was "absolutely delighted" with the commitment of funds. "This is a huge announcement for Borris-In-Ossory, and the proposed renovation of the Courthouse has been a major local issue for over 20 years since it closed," he said. MORE BELOW PICTURE. "This is perhaps the largest ever investment in Borris-In-Ossory as a joint project between Laois County Council and the Department of Rural and Community Development and working with the local community to develop a major hub for employment, community and heritage in the village," he said. The Council were successful in 2022 under Category 2 & 3 of the RRDF programme in securing 212,332 for phase 1, which included planning and design work. Renovation plans for the Courthouse were officially unveiled at a public meeting in Borris-In-Ossory with Laois County Council and Howley Hayes Cooney architects in March 2023. Planning permission for the project was granted by the Council via the Part 8 process in October 2023. Cllr Bergin highlighted the significance of the building. "The courthouse building itself has a significant place in local history in Borris-In-Ossory and is part of the heritage of the area, having being originally constructed in 1835. According to local tradition Charles White, the High Sheriff of Laois insisted that the Courthouse should be built facing in the direction of his home at Charleville, in the parish of Ballaghmore. 'Petty sessions', as they were known operated in the Court in the early 1900s and it held the status of District Court until the late 1960s. The original courthouse roof was burned off during the War of Independence in 1921. "The premises have been derelict for almost 20 years and this project will hopefully both renovate a derelict building in the village and provide a 21st century state-of-the-art community centre and new remote working facility. I also understand a number of local people have various rare and historic memorabilia and artefacts from the Courthouse, which they would gladly donate to any exhibition or local history project which could be undertaken in the Courthouse once renovated," said Cllr Bergin. Laois Offaly TD and Minister of State Sean Fleming also welcomed the funding. "This funding is part of the Government and Fianna Fails plan to support rural Ireland by creating employment and redeveloping our local towns and villages in County Laois," he said. The project has been on the Council's radar for several years. In December 2020, it set aside 1.6 million in 2020 in a 130 million Indicative Capital Programme 2021 to 2023. This was contingent on getting money from the Government. Cllr Bergin said he was 'perplexed' with the project missed out on national funding in 2021. Extensive renovations have been carried out in recent years at former courthouses in Mountmellick, Abbeyleix and Stradbally. The Borris project is included in record funding of 164 million for 30 regeneration projects across the country announced on May 13 by Minister Humphreys. Edenderry in Co Offaly is the biggest beneficiary. It's getting 12.2 million for the redevelopment of a derelict site to provide a new Community Library and Arts Base and regenerate the centre of the town on a former Tesco site. Please allow ads as they help fund our trusted local news content. Kindly add us to your ad blocker whitelist. If you want further access to Ireland's best local journalism, consider contributing and/or subscribing to our free daily Newsletter . Support our mission and join our community now. A group of Irish Defence Forces veterans are today, setting off on a 170 km famine trail march across Ireland to raise vital funds for Veterans Charity, Oglaigh Naisiunta na hEireann / the Organisation of National Ex-Service Personnel (ONE). Taking place over seven days, the group of veterans will walk all the way from Strokestown to Dublin. Donations can be made online, with members of the public encouraged to support participants as they make their way along the route. The march commenced at 8 am this morning from Strokestown Famine Museum, Co Roscommon. Its expected the team will complete the first 23km leg of the journey to Cloondara (Longford) where they will stay overnight. The team is expected to arrive at their final port of call, Custom House Quay, in the Dublin City Docklands on Sunday 19th May at 3 pm. ONE is a registered Irish veterans charity that was established to support ex-service personnel. Its primary objective is to support the needs of homeless defence forces personnel by the provision of accommodation in its veteran homes. It also offers counselling services and support to ex-service personnel, through its nationwide network of branches and veterans support centres. Taking part in the fundraiser are veterans Jimmy Fullam, Peter Malone, Peter Downes, Ken Cleary, John Rabbitte, and Hugh O'Neill. After months of preparation, the team is ready to embark on the lengthy seven-day march, supported along the way by a number of Defence Forces members, and US Veteran Lt Col Bryan Bean Retd. A team of veterans will support the walkers at various stages of the trail march. The famine trail dates back to 1847 when 227 families were evicted from their homes on Strokestown Estate in County Roscommon. As a result, 1,490 men, women, and children were forced to undertake a gruelling 170 km walk to Dublin in order to start a new life overseas. It was here that they sailed to Liverpool before being forced to board coffin ships bound for Canada. Over two-thirds died on the journey. For more information on the fundraiser please visit bit.ly/faminewalk Speaking ahead of the march, Defence Forces Veteran and CEO of ONE, Cormac Kirwan, said: We are absolutely delighted to be a part of such a fantastic fundraiser. We want to say a huge thank you to the 8 Irish Veterans lacing up their boots this morning and raising money for vital ONE services. Without the continued support of the public, we would not be able to provide the critical support our veterans so desperately need. About ONE Oglaigh Naisiunta Na hEireann, the Organisation of National Ex-Service Personnel (ONE) is a veterans organisation, a registered charity, a company limited by guarantee, an approved housing body, and a sustainable energy community. The role of ONE can be summarised in four words Support, Comradeship, Advocacy, and Remembrance. ONEs services are available to all veterans of the Defence Forces, while also facilitating homeless veterans from other countries living in Ireland, from time to time. ONE currently provides accommodation (board and lodging) in its four residential homes in Athlone, Cobh, Dublin, and Letterkenny. A fifth home is currently being developed in Cork City and there are plans for further homes in Limerick, Kildare, Galway and Louth to address the increasing challenge of homelessness among veterans. Its estimated that since 1994, ONE has managed to provide accommodation to over 1,000 Irish Defence Forces veterans who have become homeless. Since 2020, ONE has also provided professional mental health support to all veterans of the Defence Forces through its network of Veteran Support Officers (VSO). ONE has developed a nationwide network of 35 Branches and 15 Veteran Support Centres (VSC) and is continuing to develop its professional Veteran Mental Health Support Services, all in support of struggling veterans of the Defence Forces. For more information, please visit www.one-veterans.org. Drumshanbo based FG Cllr and Chairman of Drumshanbo Community Council Enda McGloin has this morning (Monday) warmly welcomed the announcement by the Minister for Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphreys TD that her department has allocated 5,555,148 to fund the new EXCHANGE Project which will get this significant regeneration project get the go-ahead for Drumshanbo under the RRDF programme. Separately, in Glenfarne the greenlight has been given to commence the 1st phase of the Glenfarne Wood, Rural Regeneration Project. This is a partnership project led by Coillte with Leitrim Co Council. This area which is close the N16 and the proposed SLNCR greenway route will see the development of Glenfarne Wood into a significant tourism destination. The proposed spend of 2,588,0540 will kickstart several of the proposals within the plan which has received full planning. The successful application for Drumshanbo contains plans to repurpose two high profile buildings in the town centre including the former Bank of Ireland as the Exchange Smart Working Hub and Creative Studios which will create access to the town back lands for recreation and business use and now following planning permission, the 6.2m project will see the repurposing of the prominent buildings in the town centre into the EXCHANGE Smart Hub Facility and will deliver a riverside amenity experiences and enhancement to the peoples park The application this project will bring a derelict building back into use, increase footfall and regenerate the town centre creating the potential for a smart digital working hub and creatives spaces generating more employment based in the town centre. The closure of the Bank of Ireland building in the town centre was a devasting blow to the community at the time however from the ashes rises the phoenix in the guise of the EXCHANGE project which will bring employment, reduce dereliction and bring ownership of our town centre back to the people. Minister Humphreys department is now committed to spend in excess of 6.2m with this announcement and the previous allocation for plan preparation and building purchasing. I wish to conclude by thanking Fergal Mc Partland of our Community Council alongside Orla Casey of Momentum consulting who worked very hard on the project and to Joseph Gilhooly, Shay OConnor (retired), Pauric MacShera, Joe Lowe and Nicola McManus of Leitrim County Council who compiled an excellent project application. I also wish to thank Minister Humphreys who has visited Drumshanbo on a number of times at my invitation and saw for herself the worth of this project & application. I am grateful for the support of Frank Feighan TD who has supported my lobbying efforts to ensure this project was successful. Our collective ambitions are high, and we have some exciting opportunities ahead for our town We look forward with confidence as this development coupled with the new Food Hub on the Dowra Road, the ongoing expansion of the existing food hub and their businesses will bring renewed confidence for the future of Drumshanbo concluded Cllr Mc Gloin. In a bid to crack down on booze-fuelled holidays in tourist areas, the sale of alcohol will be totally banned between 9.30pm and 8am in areas of "excessive tourism" in Majorca and Ibiza. The new decree, passed by the government of Spain's Balearic Islands, completely prohibits late-night sales of alcohol in the popular tourist destinations of Llucmajor, Palma and Calvia (Magaluf) in Majorca, as well as San Antonio in Ibiza. Party boats will also be stopped from operating within one nautical mile of the designated area under the toughening of a law passed in 2020 to limit the impact of alcohol-fuelled holidays of tourists from abroad. The vessels are reportedly banned from picking up and disembarking passengers in these areas. The legislation comes with a 16 million funding package for security, inspections and advertising, the Balearic government said. Officials say it is part of an overall plan to promote responsible tourism, with the new law to remain in place until 2027. The new decree comes after the government warned rowdy tourists they could face big fines under tougher sanctions for bad behaviour. People could be fined between 750 and 1,500 if their consumption of booze on public roads "disrupts coexistence, involves crowds or deteriorates the tranquillity of the environment", according to the Canarian Weekly website. If the offence is considered very serious, the fine could range from 1,500 to 3,000. While the money generated by drinking alcohol is welcomed by some local businesses, the impact of drunk holidaymakers can be negative for the regions, especially for the people living there. The measure comes as many European resorts brace for the influx of tourists over the summer season. World Energy GH2 and Vortex Energy Corp Announce Memorandum of Understanding to Explore Hydrogen and Green Energy Storage Solutions in Newfoundland & Labrador VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Vortex Energy Corp. (CSE: VRTX | OTC: VTECF | FRA: AA3) ("Vortex" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that World Energy GH2 ("World Energy") and Vortex have agreed, by way of a memorandum of understanding ("MoU"), to explore green energy cavern storage solutions in Newfoundland and Labrador. The MOU was signed in Rotterdam, Netherlands at the Canadian Pavilion during the World Hydrogen Conference. Recognizing the immense potential of Newfoundland and Labrador as a hub for renewable energy development, World Energy and Vortex have agreed to leverage their collective expertise, resources, and technologies in the pursuit of sustainable energy storage solutions. Paul Sparkes, CEO of Vortex Energy Corp said, "This MOU marks a significant step towards meeting our shared goal of bolstering the province's green energy economy and ensuring long-term energy security. We are extremely excited about the next steps." Both companies are committed to driving innovation and fostering the development of the infrastructure necessary for the widespread adoption of green energy solutions in Newfoundland and Labrador. Through collaborative research, development, and deployment initiatives, World Energy GH2 and Vortex Energy Corp intend to work together to study and explore scalable and efficient storage solutions. Sean Leet, CEO of World Energy GH2, commented, "We look forward to working with Vortex Energy in the development of the Green Hydrogen industry in Newfoundland and Labrador. There are many opportunities for collaboration as the development of energy storage is further evaluated. Vortex has been a proactive partner and we are pleased to be working with them in our project area." About World Energy GH2 World Energy GH2 is a Newfoundland and Labrador-based renewable energy partnership affiliated with World Energy LLC, one of the world's largest producers of green fuels. Project Nujio'qonik is a consortium of partners advancing a cost effective, safety-focused green hydrogen/ammonia production facility on the west coast of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Project Nujio'qonik aims to be Canada's first commercial green hydrogen/ammonia producer created from 4+ Gigawatts of wind energy in one of the world's best wind resource regions. Project Nujio'qonik's partners are CFFI Ventures, Columbus Capital, World Energy LLC, Horizon Maritime, and SK ecoplant. World Energy GH2 is committed to Truth and Reconciliation Call to Action 92 and is working to ensure that Indigenous communities gain long-term, sustainable benefits from Project Nujio'qonik. As an affirmation of this commitment, World Energy GH2 has signed an MOU with Qalipu First Nation and is incorporating a range of capacity building activities designed to leave a legacy of prosperity and environmental excellence. https://worldenergygh2.com/ 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. The company is currently advancing its Robinson River Salt Project comprised of a total of 942 claims covering 23,500 hectares located approximately 35 linear kms south of the town of Stephenville in the Province of Newfoundland & Labrador. The Robinson River Salt Project is prospective for both salt and hydrogen salt cavern storage. The company is actively evaluating technologies to efficiently store hydrogen or energy in salt caverns. Vortex Energy Corp. also holds the Fire Eye Project, which is located in the Wollaston Domain of northern Saskatchewan, Canada. On Behalf of the Board of Directors Paul Sparkes Chief Executive Officer, Director +1 (778) 819-0164 [email protected] Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements Certain statements contained in this press release constitute forward-looking information. These statements relate to future events or future performance. The use of any of the words "could", "intend", "expect", "believe", "will", "projected", "estimated" and similar expressions and statements relating to matters that are not historical facts are intended to identify forward-looking information and are based on the Company's current beliefs or assumptions as to the outcome and timing of such future events. In particular, this press release contains forward-looking information relating to, among other things, the MOU and the work that may be undertaken thereunder, as well as the intended and expected outcomes of the collaboration with World Energy. Various assumptions or factors are typically applied in drawing conclusions or making the forecasts or projections set out in forward-looking information, including, in respect of the forward-looking information included in this press release. Although forward-looking information is based on the reasonable assumptions of the Company's management, there can be no assurance that any forward-looking information will prove to be accurate. Forward looking information involves 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 forward-looking information. Such factors include, among other things, the risk that intended collaboration with World Energy does not proceed in the manner currently contemplated or at all. The forward-looking information contained in this release is made as of the date hereof, and the Company not obligated to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws. Because of the risks, uncertainties and assumptions contained herein, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The foregoing statements expressly qualify any forward-looking information contained herein. The Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE) has not reviewed, approved, or disapproved the contents of this ?press release.? 13 may 2024 at 05:00 News published onand distributed by: Hummingbird Bioscience Presents New Preclinical Data Highlighting Next-Generation Antibody-Drug Conjugate Capabilities at PEGS Boston 2024 SAN FRANCISCO and SINGAPORE, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Hummingbird Bioscience, a precision biotherapeutics company discovering and developing transformative biologics for hard-to-treat diseases, today announced two presentations at the 20th Annual PEGS Boston summit being held from May 13-17, 2024. Data from the first presentation demonstrates the ability to direct antibodies and antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) to rationally selected epitopes of interest on challenging disease-associated proteins. Data from the second presentation show how a novel dual-payload ADC approach has the potential to address resistance and improve the therapeutic window of ADCs. "The data presented at PEGS show for the first time how our proprietary fourth generation antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) platform leverages novel linker and dual-payload technologies to overcome the resistance observed with earlier generation single payload ADCs. Our ADC technology has the potential to treat a large number of patients that have either intrinsic or acquired resistance to currently approved ADCs," said Jerome Boyd-Kirkup, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer, Hummingbird Bioscience. "We will also showcase how our proprietary Rational Antibody Discovery platform engineers immune responses in transgenic mice models so that resulting ADCs and antibodies bind to the key epitopes on disease-associated proteins for optimal drug properties. These data continue to support our belief that our next-generation ADC platform can generate best-in-class ADCs that address payload resistance, optimize tumor specificity, and enhance payload delivery, and therefore maximize the anti-tumor potential of ADCs." Presentation details: Title: Engineering Immune Responses for Epitope-Focused Antibody Discovery Presenter: Jerome Boyd-Kirkup, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer Session: Display of Biologics - Novel Platforms Date/Time: Monday, May 13, 2024, 1:45 p.m. ET Title: Overcoming Payload Resistance with Dual-Payload ADCs Presenter: Ben Ayers, DPhil, Vice President, Antibody-Drug Conjugates Session: Driving Clinical Success in Antibody Drug Conjugates - Novel payloads and MOAs Date/Time: Friday, May 17, 2024, 9:30 a.m. ET About Hummingbird Bioscience's ADC Platform The 4th generation ADC platform developed by Hummingbird Bioscience aims to address the key limitations in efficacy and safety of current approved ADCs. The ADC platform combines the company's AI-enabled Rational Antibody Discovery Platform and proprietary linker and dual-payload technologies to unlock the power of dual-payload approaches against the most important disease-associated proteins. The platform engineers potentially best-in-class ADCs that address payload resistance, optimize payload delivery and tumor specificity, and maximize anti-tumor cytotoxic potential. About Hummingbird Bioscience's Rational Antibody Discovery Platform The Rational Antibody Discovery (RAD) platform is designed to address the challenges of traditional antibody approaches. This technology enables the company to identify critical functional regions of a target protein using mAbPredict, a machine learning-enabled technology platform that identifies optimal regions to target, and then drives production of antibodies against these epitopes using mAbHits, a proprietary immuno-engineering technology that directs the antibody response to pre-determined epitopes of interest in the proprietary transgenic HMBD Abvantage mouse. Unlike classical approaches to antibody discovery that have limited control over antibody binding regions, and hence, ability to target optimal epitopes, mAbHits ensures in vivo generation and affinity maturation of antibodies against only the optimal epitope. This systematic and rational approach to antibody discovery opens up the potential of discovering antibodies to specific regions of many important "hard targets" that have not been drugged or are inadequately drugged to date. The RAD platform has produced multiple antibodies and ADCs that effectively target disease-associated proteins, including two antibodies that are currently in Phase I trials (HMBD-001 and HMBD-002) and a recently out-licensed ADC (HMBD-501) that will enter the clinic in 2024. About Hummingbird Bioscience Hummingbird Bioscience is a precision biotherapeutics company discovering and developing transformative biologics for hard-to-treat diseases. To address key challenges with current antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) therapies, Hummingbird Bioscience is building a pipeline of next-generation ADCs using its proprietary antibody discovery and linker/payload platforms. The company has a pipeline of ADCs in preclinical development and other novel biologics including monoclonal antibodies, HMBD-001 (anti-HER3 mAb) and HMBD-002 (anti-VISTA mAb) in Phase I and a recently out-licensed ADC (HMBD-501) that will enter the clinic this year. The Hummingbird Bioscience approach combines computational and systems biology with wet lab drug discovery in a multi-disciplinary, collaborative environment spanning initial discovery through clinical development. The company harnesses this integrated approach across target identification and patient selection, enabling the team to increase the efficiency of translating novel scientific insights while reducing the inherent risk in drug discovery and development. At Hummingbird Bioscience, the commitment to rigorous science, teamwork, and intellectual integrity underpins our passion to accelerate the journey of new drugs from concept to clinic. For more information, please visit www.hummingbirdbioscience.com, and follow Hummingbird Bioscience on LinkedIn, X (formerly Twitter), and YouTube. Contacts: Media Crystal Ho [email protected] [email protected] +65 6979 5580 Investors [email protected] 13 may 2024 at 05:30 News published onand distributed by: Habitat for Humanity announces grand prize winners in national student writing contest TORONTO, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Three deserving grand prize winners and nine runners-up have been chosen in Habitat for Humanity Canada's national writing contest, Meaning of Home, in which children answer the question, "What does home mean to you?" The winning poems and stories are among 15,000 entries submitted by grade 4, 5, and 6 students from across Canada. All the submissions are poignant reminders of the comfort and joy that a safe home creates for a child. Everyone who entered earns a $10 donation to their local Habitat for Humanity with their submission. In addition, three grand prize winners receive a $30,000 grant for their local Habitat. Runners-up win a $10,000 grant for their local Habitat. Through their entries, students have raised $327,000 this year for local Habitat for Humanity organizations, bringing the total raised through the Meaning of Home contest to $2.7 million since its inception in 2007. The Grade 4 grand prize winner is Kashvi K. from Burlington for her entry "A Home is Not a House". Her $30,000 grant will benefit Habitat for Humanity Halton Mississauga Dufferin. The Grade 5 grand prize winner is Kateryna (Katy) K. from Hamilton, for her entry "What does home mean to me?". Katy's grant will benefit Habitat for Humanity Hamilton. The Grade 6 grand prize winner is Hannah B. from Toronto, for her entry "My Home", whose grant will benefit Habitat for Humanity Greater Toronto Area. Grade 4 runners-up Isla A. of Oakville for her entry H.O.M.E., benefitting Habitat for Humanity Halton Mississauga Dufferin Julia H. of Kitchener for her entry George's Question, benefitting Habitat for Humanity Waterloo Karyssa K. of Vancouver for her entry The Wonders of Home, benefitting Habitat for Humanity Greater Vancouver Grade 5 runners-up Emily J. from Winnipeg for her entry Home, benefitting Habitat for Humanity Manitoba Sofia S. from Halifax for her entry Home Sweet Home, benefitting Habitat for Humanity Nova Scotia Xuyuan (Alec) Q. from Richmond, B.C. for his entry Memories of Home, benefitting Habitat for Humanity Greater Vancouver Grade 6 runners-up Qinhao Z. from Windsor, Ontario for his entry The meaning of home benefitting Habitat for Humanity Windsor Rihanna R. from Edmonton, for his entry What Home Means To Me, benefitting Habitat for Humanity Edmonton Winter W. from Winnipeg, for her entry What home means to me., benefitting Habitat for Humanity Manitoba "Too many Canadians don't have access to a safe and affordable home ? a universal need," says Julia Deans, President and CEO of Habitat of Humanity Canada. "Through their thoughtful descriptions of the comfort and safety of a home, along with the laughter and love it contains, these students are showing us the meaning of home through a child's eyes. Congratulations to all the winners for their beautiful submissions." "Since the Meaning of Home contest began in 2007, over 120,000 students have shared what home means to them. With the support of Sagen as founding sponsor, these students have raised $2.7 million to help more families in need of homes build stronger lives through housing," says Stuart Levings, President and CEO of Sagen. "It's our privilege to support students in becoming caring citizens, and local Habitats in providing safe and affordable homes for families." The Meaning of Home contest would not be possible without the generous support of Founding Sponsor SagenTM and Award Sponsor Urban Systems Foundation. To read all the winning entries, please visit http://www.meaningofhome.ca/page/winners2024. About Sagentm As a sponsor since 2000, Sagen has donated over $6.9 million in support of Habitat Canada and has helped thousands of Canadian families realize their dreams of affordable homeownership. While Sagen's financial support provides crucial funding for their homeownership program, its support of Habitat Canada extends far beyond financial support. Throughout the sponsorship, Sagen employees from all levels of the organization, including President and CEO Stuart Levings and his executive team, have lent their leadership experience, industry knowledge, and time to help launch many of Habitats' signature programs, including the Sagen homebuilding grants, Global Village volunteer program in Canada, and the Meaning of Home contest. These programs, along with Sagen's support and involvement, have significantly increased Habitat's ability to raise funds, recruit volunteers and ultimately, support more families and build stronger communities. Find out more at www.sagen.ca About Habitat for Humanity Canada Founded in 1985, Habitat for Humanity Canada is a national charitable organization working toward a world where everyone has a decent and affordable place to call home. Habitat for Humanity brings communities together to help families build strength, stability and independence through affordable homeownership. With the help of volunteers, Habitat homeowners and 46 local Habitats working in every province and territory, we provide a solid foundation for better, healthier lives in Canada and around the world. Habitat for Humanity Canada is a member of Habitat for Humanity International, which was established in 1976 and has grown to become a leading global non-profit working in more than 70 countries. For more information, please visit www.habitat.ca. For more information: Jennifer Fowler Director, Communications Habitat for Humanity Canada [email protected] (437) 317-8581 Photos accompanying this announcement are available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/aaa90d0f-043a-45ee-9db8-51aac6ce1a0c https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/783f086f-cba4-4f7f-a44d-6e14e3f2ff88 https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/c1ef6f63-3e2e-48ca-937b-c6deb2036572 https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/de865652-3451-40ae-b1b0-10c843888aff 13 may 2024 at 06:00 News published onand distributed by: A 5-year-old boy died at a hospital after being pulled from the water off Bethel Island. Steven G. de Polo/Getty Image A 5-year-old boy who was pulled from the water off Bethel Island died Saturday at a hospital, according to the Contra Costa Sheriffs Office. The boy was reported missing around 4:30 p.m. Saturday on Halcyon Place, a street in the Delta Coves housing development on the island in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. Deputies and firefighters searched for the boy. Advertisement Article continues below this ad About 30 minutes later, a Contra Costa County firefighter with water rescue gear pulled the boy from the water. Rescuers started CPR on the boy, who was unconscious, and took him to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead, authorities said. BelindaCZ s.r.o. Introduces Notepad++ 8.6.5 Pre-installed on Windows Server 2022 PRAGUE, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- BelindaCZ s.r.o. is excited to announce a significant enhancement for developers working on Windows Server 2022. The latest version of Notepad++ (version 8.6.5) is now pre-installed on Windows Server 2022, providing a seamless and powerful coding environment right out of the box. Why This Matters: Tailored for Developers: With Notepad++ pre-installed, Windows Server 2022 offers an optimized platform for developers who require a reliable and robust text/source code editor. Intuitive and Customizable: Notepad++ features an intuitive interface and powerful tools like syntax highlighting and code folding, designed to enhance productivity. Advanced Plugin Support: The extensive plugin support allows developers to customize and enhance their workflow, ensuring efficient coding in multiple programming languages. About Notepad++: Notepad++ is a free, open-source text and source code editor known for its lightweight design and high efficiency. It is beloved by developers for its advanced features, including syntax highlighting, code folding, and extensive plugin support. Notepad++ has become an indispensable tool for programmers and text editors alike. Ready to explore the possibilities? Discover the enhanced coding experience with Notepad++ pre-installed on Windows Server 2022. About BelindaCZ s.r.o.: BelindaCZ s.r.o. is a leading provider of innovative IT solutions, committed to empowering businesses with advanced technology. Specializing in cloud computing and IT infrastructure, BelindaCZ s.r.o. delivers comprehensive services to clients globally. www.belinda-cz.com Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2409618/Notepad_Windows_Server.jpg 13 may 2024 at 06:29 News published onand distributed by: AtkinsRealis, AECL and CNL Team Up to Bolster Canada's Strategic Heavy Water Supply in support of CANDU technology MONTREAL, May 13, 2024 /CNW/ - Candu Energy Inc., an AtkinsRealis company [SNC-Lavalin Group Inc.] (TSX: ATRL), has signed a memorandum of understanding ("MOU") with Atomic Energy of Canada Limited ("AECL"), a federal Crown corporation, and Canadian Nuclear Laboratories ("CNL"), which manages and operates Canada's premier nuclear science and technology organization for AECL, to cooperate on the upgrading and production of heavy water for the commissioning and operation of new CANDU nuclear reactors in Canada. "This collaboration among important stakeholders in the Canadian nuclear sector sets the stage for Canada to lead the global heavy water market, solidifying its role as a key player in the energy transition," commented Ian L. Edwards, President and Chief Executive Officer, AtkinsRealis. "With CANDU reactors operating across four continents, a global nuclear new build market with expected demand in excess of 1,000 new reactors, a strong CANDU reactor refurbishment market, and the introduction of the new CANDU MONARKtm 1,000 MW reactor in addition to the existing Enhanced CANDU 6, this memorandum of understanding could not have come at a better time." The MOU brings together AtkinsRealis' nuclear and industrial capabilities in Canada as the licensee of CANDU technology, as well as AECL, owners of CANDU intellectual property (IP) and other heavy water production technologies, and CNL, a world leader in the industry with extensive experience in heavy water technologies. The objective is to evaluate options and select cost efficient, environmentally responsible, and viable heavy-water production technologies, which could include the establishment of industrial scale heavy-water production facilities to support the deployment of a new fleet of CANDU reactors. Heavy water is used as a moderator and coolant in CANDU reactors. It's a differentiating factor in nuclear reactor design that not only allows CANDU technology to be incredibly safe, but also allows the reactor to utilize unenriched uranium as its fuel source; something no other modern nuclear reactor can do. However, heavy water has not been produced in Canada for over 25 years, and there are currently no large industrial scale heavy water production capabilities in the Western world that will meet the supply needed for a new fleet of CANDU reactors. This is especially true as Canada has ambitious nuclear build out plans, with the country being one of many to have committed to tripling nuclear output by 20501, and the province of Ontario alone having an estimated future need for 18 GW of new nuclear power by 20502. "I am pleased that AECL, CNL and AtkinsRealis are collaborating and working together to advance heavy water production for CANDU reactor technology. CANDU technology is uniquely positioned to contribute to important national objectives such as decarbonization, energy security, economic growth and maintaining Canada's Tier-1 nuclear nation status," said Fred Dermarkar, President & Chief Executive Officer of AECL. "As the owner of CANDU IP licensed to Candu Energy Inc. and owner of Canada's national nuclear laboratory at Chalk River, Ontario, managed and operated by CNL, AECL is committed to seeing its CANDU technology and the unique capability of its national laboratory leveraged for the benefit of Canadians," commented Grant Gardiner, EVP, Business Strategy & Development, AECL. "We believe establishing a secure, domestic and economically viable supply of heavy water is vital to the continuing success of CANDU technology and are proud of the unique capability that our national laboratory brings to this effort." "The deployment of large-scale nuclear power in Canada is an enormous undertaking, and will require extensive alignment and coordination between organizations, industries, public officials and regulators from across the country," commented Jack Craig Jr., President & Chief Executive Officer at CNL. "Heavy water is one key piece of the larger puzzle, and CNL is working hard to play a leadership role in this process, ensuring that the broader industry is working towards a shared vision, and that the necessary inventory and production capabilities are in place to supply these reactors. CNL looks forward to leveraging our world-leading expertise, experience and CNL-managed, AECL-owned IP in heavy water production and upgrading to support the deployment of new CANDU reactors in Canada with AtkinsRealis. By doing so, we will strive to make Canada the leader in the global heavy water market." "CANDU technology, as Canada's only domestically-developed large-scale nuclear technology, is a source of national pride," said Joe St. Julian, President, Nuclear, AtkinsRealis. "We are honoured to continue stewarding and enhancing its reputation as a leading global nuclear technology. A reliable supply of heavy water will also safeguard the supply of the global isotope market with cancer-fighting nuclear medicine, as CANDU reactors? with Ontario's supplying 50% of the world's supply of Cobalt 603 ? are the only commercial scale reactors that can produce such medical isotopes while also producing power at the same time." About AtkinsRealis?? Created by the integration of long-standing organizations dating back to 1911, AtkinsRealis is a world-leading professional services and project management company dedicated to engineering a better future for our planet and its people. We create sustainable solutions that connect people, data and technology to transform the world's infrastructure and energy systems. We deploy global capabilities locally to our clients and deliver unique end-to-end services across the whole life cycle of an asset including consulting, advisory & environmental services, intelligent networks & cybersecurity, design & engineering, procurement, project & construction management, operations & maintenance, decommissioning and capital. The breadth and depth of our capabilities are delivered to clients in key strategic sectors such as Engineering Services, Nuclear, Operations & Maintenance and Capital. News and information are available at www.atkinsrealis.com or follow us on LinkedIn. About AtkinsRealis' Nuclear Business AtkinsRealis has over 70 years of global nuclear expertise, delivering nuclear technology products and full-service solutions to nuclear utilities around the world. AtkinsRealis is the steward of CANDU nuclear technology, operating on four continents, and provides advisory and engineering services to other nuclear developers. With an innovative technology portfolio, including access to over 500 patented solutions, AtkinsRealis solves technically complex challenges across the whole nuclear lifecycle from design and new build through asset management and from life extension and late life management through decommissioning and waste management. AtkinsRealis operates and manages government nuclear research sites, transforming ageing infrastructure and safely managing legacy nuclear waste. AtkinsRealis is also involved in developing medical radioisotopes for cancer research through its partnership with TerraPower. Learn more on our Nuclear market page. About Atomic Energy of Canada Limited Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) is a federal Crown corporation with a mandate to drive nuclear opportunities for Canada. Working through a government-owned / contractor-operated (GoCo) model that is executed by its contractor, Canadian Nuclear Laboratories, AECL enables nuclear science and technology through its Chalk River Laboratories, Canada's largest research complex, and by engaging with academia and private industry to advance nuclear innovation. It is committed to advancing reconciliation with Indigenous peoples. It also manages the Government of Canada's radioactive waste responsibilities. AECL continues to own the intellectual property for the CANDU reactor technology and is accountable for deriving optimal benefit from this technology for Canada. Read more on AECL at www.aecl.ca. About CNL As Canada's premier nuclear science and technology laboratory and working under the direction of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL), CNL is a world leader in the development of innovative nuclear science and technology products and services. Guided by an ambitious corporate strategy known as Vision 2030, CNL fulfills three strategic priorities of national importance ? restoring and protecting the environment, advancing clean energy technologies, and contributing to the health of Canadians. By leveraging the assets owned by AECL, CNL also serves as the nexus between government, the nuclear industry, the broader private sector and the academic community. CNL works in collaboration with these sectors to advance innovative Canadian products and services towards real-world use, including carbon-free energy, cancer treatments and other therapies, non-proliferation technologies and waste management solutions. To learn more about CNL, please visit www.cnl.ca. Forward-Looking Statements Reference in this press release to the "Company" or to "AtkinsRealis" means, as the context may require, SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. or all or some of its subsidiaries or joint arrangements or associates. Statements made in this press release that describe the Company's or management's expectations or strategies constitute "forward-looking statements", which can be identified by the use of the conditional or forward-looking terminology such as "expects", "forecasts", "intends", "may", "objective", "plans", "projects", "should", "will", "likely", or the negative thereof or other variations thereon. Forward-looking statements also include any other statements that do not refer to historical facts. All such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the "safe-harbour" provisions of applicable Canadian securities laws. The Company cautions that, by their nature, forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, and that its actual actions and/or results could differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements, or could affect the extent to which a particular projection materializes. Forward-looking statements are presented for the purpose of assisting investors and others in understanding certain key elements of the Company's current objectives, strategic priorities, expectations and plans, and in obtaining a better understanding of the Company's business and anticipated operating environment. Readers are cautioned that such information may not be appropriate for other purposes. Forward-looking statements made in this press release are based on a number of assumptions believed by the Company to be reasonable as at the date hereof. The assumptions are set out throughout the Company's 2023 annual management disclosure & analysis ("MD&A") (particularly in the sections entitled "Critical Accounting Judgments and Key Sources of Estimation Uncertainty" and "How We Analyze and Report our Results") filed with the securities regulatory authorities in Canada, available on SEDAR+ at and on the Company's website at under the "Investors" section. If these assumptions are inaccurate, the Company's actual results could differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements. In addition, important risk factors could cause the Company's assumptions and estimates to be inaccurate and actual results or events to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by these forward-looking statements. Those risks are identified in the Company's 2023 annual MD&A (particularly in the sections entitled "Risk and Un certainties") and are not exhaustive. The forward-looking statements herein reflect the Company's expectations as at the date of this press release and are subject to change after this date. The Company does not undertake to update publicly or to revise any such forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless required by applicable legislation or regulation. SOURCE AtkinsRealis 13 may 2024 at 07:45 News published onand distributed by: Study Design and Baseline Characteristics of Prespecified, Exploratory Pooled Analysis to Investigate Effect of Finerenone on Cardio-Kidney Outcomes in Patients with CKD and Type 2 Diabetes and/or Heart Failure Shared at Heart Failure 2024 Congress The study design and baseline characteristics of FINE-HEART, a new prespecified, exploratory pooled analysis of three Phase III trials with finerenone1, were presented today as a Late-Breaking Science Session at Heart Failure 2024, a scientific congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) in Lisbon. Finerenone is marketed as Kerendia and approved for the treatment of adults with chronic kidney disease (CKD) associated with type 2 diabetes (T2D) in more than 70 countries worldwide, including the United States. The data presented here may discuss a use outside of the approved indication. FINE-HEART is designed to investigate the effects of finerenone on cardio-kidney outcomes based on data from over 19,000 patients with varying combinations of heart failure (HF), CKD and T2D across three Phase III finerenone studies ? FIDELIO-DKD, FIGARO-DKD, and FINEARTS-HF.1 Over 92% of patients included in the analysis had overlapping cardio-kidney-metabolic (CKM) conditions?78% had two (HF and CKD, HF and T2D or CKD and T2D), while 14.7% had all three. 37% of patients had a history of HF, 81% had a history of T2D, and 89% had a history of CKD.1 The analysis showed that patients across the three studies were at high risk for CKD progression with either reduced estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) [30% with eGFR <45, and 26% with eGFR 45 to 60 mL/min/1.73m2] and/or albuminuria [31% with "A2" urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio (UACR) 30-300mg/g, and 49% with "A3" UACR>300mg/g].1 "The multimorbid patient profile of the FINE-HEART study is reflective of the patients seen today in real-world clinical settings, highlighting the critical need for data that investigate the impact of finerenone on cardio-kidney outcomes," said Dr. Robert Perkins MPH, FACP, Vice President, U.S. Medical Affairs/Cardiovascular-Renal at Bayer. "The 19,000+ individuals investigated under the umbrella of FINE-HEART represent one of the most comprehensive studies of individuals living with an increasingly common and complex set of conditions, and I am optimistic that the FINE-HEART program may help provide key insights for clinicians managing ever-more complex patients." The prespecified, exploratory pooled analysis FINE-HEART includes data from the FIDELITY program, which encompasses the FIDELIO-DKD and FIGARO-DKD trials, having randomized more than 13,000 patients with CKD associated with T2D and albuminuria (UACR?30mg/g) on maximally tolerated doses of renin-angiotensin system inhibitors across 48 countries.2 It also includes data from the FINEARTS-HF trial, with more than 6,000 patients with HF with left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) ?40%, elevated natriuretic peptides, and evidence of structural heart disease across 37 countries.1 About Kerendia (finerenone)3 Kerendia is a non-steroidal mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist (MRA) and was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in July 2021 to reduce the risk of sustained eGFR decline, end-stage kidney disease, cardiovascular death, non-fatal myocardial infarction, and hospitalization for heart failure in adult patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) associated with type 2 diabetes (T2D). Kerendia was studied in the largest CKD clinical trial program, FIDELIO-DKD (Finerenone in reducing kiDnEy faiLure and dIsease prOgression in Diabetic Kidney Disease) and FIGARO-DKD (Finerenone in reducinG cArdiovascular moRtality and mOrbidity in Diabetic Kidney Disease), across a broad range of CKD severity in adults with CKD associated with T2D. In the Kerendia Phase III program for CKD associated with T2D with over 13,000 people, FIDELIO-DKD and FIGARO-DKD showed Kerendia reduced the risk of CKD and cardiovascular events.4 Based on data from the clinical trial program, Kerendia has been recommended for adults with CKD associated with T2D in several major treatment guidelines, including those from the American Diabetes Association (ADA), the American Association of Clinical Endocrinology, and the Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) Foundation, as well as the ADA/KDIGO Consensus Statement.4 IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION CONTRAINDICATIONS: Concomitant use with strong CYP3A4 inhibitors Patients with adrenal insufficiency WARNINGS AND PRECAUTIONS: Hyperkalemia: KERENDIA can cause hyperkalemia. The risk for developing hyperkalemia increases with decreasing kidney function and is greater in patients with higher baseline potassium levels or other risk factors for hyperkalemia. Measure serum potassium and eGFR in all patients before initiation of treatment with KERENDIA and dose accordingly. Do not initiate KERENDIA if serum potassium is >5.0 mEq/L. Measure serum potassium periodically during treatment with KERENDIA and adjust dose accordingly. More frequent monitoring may be necessary for patients at risk for hyperkalemia, including those on concomitant medications that impair potassium excretion or increase serum potassium. MOST COMMON ADVERSE REACTIONS: From the pooled data of 2 placebo-controlled studies, the adverse reactions reported in ?1% of patients on KERENDIA and more frequently than placebo were hyperkalemia (14% versus 6.9%), hypotension (4.6% versus 3.9%), and hyponatremia (1.3% versus 0.7%). DRUG INTERACTIONS: Strong CYP3A4 Inhibitors: Concomitant use of KERENDIA with strong CYP3A4 inhibitors is contraindicated. Avoid concomitant intake of grapefruit or grapefruit juice. Concomitant use of KERENDIA with strong CYP3A4 inhibitors is contraindicated. Avoid concomitant intake of grapefruit or grapefruit juice. Moderate and Weak CYP3A4 Inhibitors: Monitor serum potassium during drug initiation or dosage adjustment of either KERENDIA or the moderate or weak CYP3A4 inhibitor and adjust KERENDIA dosage as appropriate. Monitor serum potassium during drug initiation or dosage adjustment of either KERENDIA or the moderate or weak CYP3A4 inhibitor and adjust KERENDIA dosage as appropriate. Strong and Moderate CYP3A4 Inducers: Avoid concomitant use of KERENDIA with strong or moderate CYP3A4 inducers. USE IN SPECIFIC POPULATIONS: Lactation: Avoid breastfeeding during treatment with KERENDIA and for 1 day after treatment. Avoid breastfeeding during treatment with KERENDIA and for 1 day after treatment. Hepatic Impairment: Avoid use of KERENDIA in patients with severe hepatic impairment (Child Pugh C) and consider additional serum potassium monitoring with moderate hepatic impairment (Child Pugh B). Please click here for full Prescribing Information for KERENDIA. About Chronic Kidney Disease in Type 2 Diabetes Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) associated with type 2 diabetes (T2D) are three times more likely to die from a CV-related cause than those with T2D alone.5 CKD is a serious and progressive condition that is generally underrecognized.6 CKD is a frequent complication arising from T2D and is also an independent risk factor of CV disease.7,8,9 Approximately 40% of all patients with T2D develop CKD. Despite guideline-directed therapies, patients with CKD associated with T2D remain at high risk of CKD progression and CV events.6,7,9,10 T2D is the leading cause of end-stage kidney disease, which requires dialysis or a kidney transplant to stay alive.10,11,12 About Heart Failure Heart failure (HF) is a highly prevalent chronic condition, affecting approximately 6.5 million adults in the U.S.13 HF is characterized by the progressive decline in the heart's ability to pump enough blood to meet the body's needs for blood and oxygen.13 Symptoms can include shortness of breath, fatigue, chest discomfort and swelling in the lower body. Risk factors are hypertension, diabetes mellitus, smoking, a past myocardial infarction and coronary artery disease.13,14 Patients with diabetes have more than two times the risk of developing HF than their healthier peers.15 Further, cardiovascular outcomes, hospitalization and prognosis are worse for patients with diabetes mellitus than those without. While 10% to 15% of the general population has diabetes, a study suggests that 44% of patients hospitalized for HF have diabetes.12 About Bayer's Commitment in Cardiovascular and Kidney Diseases A leader in the cardiovascular (CV) space, Bayer upholds a long-standing commitment to delivering science for a better life by advancing research and treatment options. Bayer's cardiorenal franchise, which began with the discovery and development of a number of vital therapies, now includes several products and compounds in various stages of preclinical and clinical development with the potential to impact the way that CV and kidney diseases are treated. Bayer is investigating potential treatment approaches for areas of high unmet medical need. Currently, Bayer is investigating nine CVR-related projects in different stages of development, including heart failure (HF) and non-diabetic chronic kidney disease (CKD).4 Bayer is actively identifying resources and programs aimed at better understanding the real-world management of CKD, expanding screening and early care management for CKD, aligning with and supporting groups and institutions that share the common goals of improving health outcomes, promoting health literacy and education, and promoting research and initiatives that represent the diversity required to address the needs of all patients. About Bayer Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the life science fields of health care and nutrition. In line with its mission, "Health for all, Hunger for none," the company's products and services are designed to help people and the planet thrive by supporting efforts to master the major challenges presented by a growing and aging global population. Bayer is committed to driving sustainable development and generating a positive impact with its businesses. At the same time, the Group aims to increase its earning power and create value through innovation and growth. The Bayer brand stands for trust, reliability and quality throughout the world. In fiscal 2023, the Group employed approximately 100,000 people and had sales of 47.6 billion euros. R&D expenses before special items amounted to 5.8 billion euros. For more information, go to www.bayer.com. Find more information at https://pharma.bayer.com/ Follow us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/bayer Follow us on X: @BayerPharma Forward-Looking Statements This release may contain forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by Bayer management. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and the estimates given here. These factors include those discussed in Bayer's public reports, which are available on the Bayer website at www.bayer.com. The company assumes no liability whatsoever to update these forward-looking statements or to conform them to future events or developments. _________________________ 1 M. Vaduganathan et al. Design and baseline characteristics of FINE-HEART: an integrated pooled analysis of finerenone in >19,000 participants across 3 phase III trials of HF & CKD. Heart Failure 2024, a scientific congress of the European Society of Cardiology.; May 11-14.; Lisbon, Portugal 2 Di Lullo L, Lavalle C, Scatena A, Mariani MV, Ronco C, Bellasi A. Finerenone: Questions and Answers-The Four Fundamental Arguments on the New-Born Promising Non-Steroidal Mineralocorticoid Receptor Antagonist. J Clin Med. 2023 Jun 12;12(12):3992. doi: 10.3390/jcm12123992. PMID: 37373685; PMCID: PMC10299719. 3 KERENDIA (finerenone) [prescribing information]. Whippany, NJ: Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; September 2022. 4 Data on File. 5 Afkarian M, Sachs MC, Kestenbaum B, et al. Kidney disease and increased mortality risk in type 2 diabetes. J Am Soc Nephrol. 2013;24(2):302-308. 6 Breyer MD, Susztak K. Developing treatments for chronic kidney disease in the 21st century. Semin Nephrol. 2016;36(6):436-447. 7 Anders HJ, Huber TB, Isermann B, et al. CKD in diabetes: diabetic kidney disease versus nondiabetic kidney disease. Nat Rev Nephrol. 2018;14:361-377. 8 Thomas MC, Brownlee M, Susztak K, et al. Diabetic kidney disease. Nat Rev Dis Primers. 2015;1:1-20. 9 Bailey RA, Wang Y, Zhu V, et al. Chronic kidney disease in US adults with type 2 diabetes: an updated national estimate of prevalence based on Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) staging. BMC Res Notes. 2014;7(1):415. doi:10.1186/1756-0500-7-415. 10 National Diabetes Statistics Report 2020: Estimates of Diabetes and Its Burden in the United States. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Accessed July 9, 2021. https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/pdfs/data/statistics/national-diabetes-statistics-report.pdf. 11 Stages of CKD. American Kidney Fund. Accessed May 11, 2021. https://www.kidneyfund.org/kidney-disease/chronic-kidney-disease-ckd/stages-of-chronic-kidney-disease. 12 United States Renal Data System. USRDS Annual Data Report. National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases; 2020. Accessed November 2021. https://adr.usrds.org/2020/chronic-kidney-disease/6-healthcare-expenditures-for-persons-with-ckd. 13 Fine N. Heart failure (HF). MSD Manual Professional Version. 2022 Sept. 14 Dunlay S et al. Risk factors for heart failure: A population-based case-control study. Am J Med. 2009 Nov; 122(11): 1023?1028. 15 Kenny HC, Abel ED. Heart Failure in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus. Circ Res. 2019 Jan 4;124(1):121-141. doi: 10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.118.311371. PMID: 30605420; PMCID: PMC6447311. COR-KER-US-0076-1 5/24 13 may 2024 at 08:10 News published onand distributed by: Nevada Exploration Inc. Appoints New President and CEO VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Nevada Exploration Inc. ("NGE" or the "Company") (TSX-V: NGE; OTCQB: NVDEF) is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Mark Kolebaba as President and Chief Executive Officer ("CEO") of the Company effective immediately. Mark Kolebaba has been exploring for minerals since 1990. His experience ranges from early-stage project and target generation through to conducting more advanced stage activities related to defining mineral resources and subsequent project feasibility. Over his 30 plus years in the mineral business, Mark has extensive experience exploring for commodities including gold, diamonds, base metals and uranium and has had the good fortune of being involved in discoveries including the Hope Bay gold deposits, several kimberlites forming the Ekati Diamond Mine and the development of over 20 million pounds of uranium resource in Nunavut. Over his career, Mark has shown an ability to raise significant capital as well as structure agreements to effectively acquire and explore projects. Prior to shifting his career to the junior mining sector in 2002, Mark worked with major mining companies including Cominco, BHP, and BHP Billiton, during which time he explored for minerals on every continent. Mark remains involved with Adamera Minerals Corp., a company he co-founded to assemble and explore land with high-grade gold potential in Washington State near past producing gold mines. Mr. Kolebaba is replacing Mr. Darcy Higgs, who had been acting as interim CEO since December 31, 2023, and has resigned concurrent with Mr. Kolebaba's appointment. The Board of Directors of the Company would like to thank Mr. Higgs for stepping in to help provide direction in the short-term. Subject to TSX Venture Exchange approval, the Company has granted incentive stock options to officers, directors, and consultants under its stock option plan, entitling them to purchase an aggregate of up to 1,950,000 common shares of the Company. The stock options are exercisable for a period of five years at an exercise price of $0.125 per share. About Nevada Exploration Inc. NGE is a mineral exploration company focused on discovery. The Company has a wide range of management and Board of Directors experience relating to several commodities and jurisdictions. For further information, please contact: Nevada Exploration Inc. Email: [email protected] Telephone: +1 (604) 601 2006 Website: www.nevadaexploration.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. 13 may 2024 at 08:30 News published onand distributed by: Pete Sena to succeed Stephen Kuczynski as chairman and CEO of Southern Nuclear ATLANTA, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Southern Company today announced that Peter (Pete) P Sena III, president of Southern Nuclear, has been elected by the Southern Nuclear Board of Directors to succeed Stephen Kuczynski as chairman and CEO of Southern Nuclear following Kuczynski's retirement, effective June 28, 2024. After joining Southern Nuclear in 2011, Kuczynski led the existing operating fleet to top industry performance and brought online the first newly constructed nuclear power units in the U.S. in more than 30 years. "For more than a decade, Stephen has led Southern Nuclear and the entire industry in the pursuit of nuclear innovation, overseeing the premier performance of our nuclear power plants while ensuring Vogtle Units 3&4 were constructed safely and brought online," said Chris Womack, chairman, president and CEO of Southern Company. "It's no secret that Stephen led our company through a number of challenges, but he never wavered; understanding the importance of the Vogtle expansion project, which is now delivering clean energy to Georgia homes and businesses." "It has been the privilege of my career to work alongside the leaders of Southern Company, the greater nuclear industry, and the nuclear professionals at Southern Nuclear to demonstrate the viability and importance of nuclear power. We've proven to this country and our communities that the deployment of new nuclear is achievable," said Kuczynski. When Sena assumes the additional roles of chairman and CEO, he will oversee the operation of over 8,400 MW of nuclear power across Plant Farley in Alabama, and both Plants Hatch and Vogtle Units 1-4 in Georgia. "Pete is the leader who will carry both our company and the nuclear industry forward," Womack added. "Pete has had a transformative impact on the company since joining our team five years ago; and his decades of proven experience, comprehensive knowledge, and depth of relationships will help ensure we provide customers with clean, safe, reliable and affordable nuclear generation for decades to come." "Pete is well respected for his expertise, passion, and understanding of people," added Kuczynski. "He understands the importance of innovation, standards, and technology as the engines of American greatness and will work tirelessly to help ensure Southern Nuclear's continued leadership in the industry." "The people at Southern Nuclear have built a legacy running our plants safely and reliably, working day-in and day-out to serve our communities with 24/7 carbon-free power," said Sena. "It's been a privilege to be a part of that journey, and as we navigate this exciting time for our country, I look forward to building upon that legacy with the incredible teams across our company." Sena was appointed president in 2023 after joining the company in July 2019 as executive vice president and chief nuclear officer (CNO). Before joining Southern Nuclear, he held a number of leadership positions at First Energy and later PSEG, including serving as CNO for both companies. Under his tenure, these nuclear fleets achieved consistent top quartile performance as rated among nuclear utilities. Sena's diverse industry experience began in the U.S. Navy, where he served as an officer in the U.S. Naval Nuclear Propulsion program, serving on both fast attack and ballistic missile submarines. He served as a resident inspector at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and later earned two senior reactor operator licenses while working at Beaver Valley Power Station. He also completed a rotational assignment with the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO). Sena earned a Bachelor of Science degree in fuel science from Pennsylvania State University in 1985. Since March of 2023, he has served as a member of the Executive Committee of the Nuclear Energy Institute's (NEI) board. Before joining Southern Company, Kuczynski was the senior vice president of engineering and technical support for Exelon Nuclear, responsible for performance of outage services, training, emergency preparedness, security, chemistry, radiation protection, operations, maintenance, work control and industrial safety for the Exelon Nuclear fleet. Prior to that role, Kuczynski was the senior vice president of Exelon Nuclear's Midwest Operations. In that role, he was responsible for oversight of Exelon Nuclear's six Illinois operating facilities and 11 reactors. Kuczynski holds a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering technology from the Milwaukee School of Engineering and is a graduate of the Harvard Advanced Management Program. He earned a Senior Reactor Operator License from the NRC. Kuczynski previously served as chair of the NEI's Advanced Reactor Working Group and the New Plant Advisory Committee. He has also served on the board of directors and the executive committee of NEI, the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations National Nuclear Accrediting Board, and as a member of both the Terrestrial Energy Corporate Industrial Advisory Board and the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Nuclear Energy, Nuclear Energy Advisory Committee. Additionally, Kuczynski served on the advisory boards for the Oak Ridge National Laboratory Nuclear Science and Engineering Directorate, the Department of Energy's Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear, Georgia Institute of Technology's Nuclear and Radiological Engineering Program and Fluoride High Temperature Reactor Program, X-Energy, and ClearPath. Kuczynski received the Special Achievement Award from the U.S. Nuclear Infrastructure Council and the Presidential Citation from the American Nuclear Society. About Southern Company Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is a leading energy provider serving 9 million customers across the Southeast and beyond through its family of companies. Providing clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy with excellent service is our mission. The company has electric operating companies in three states, natural gas distribution companies in four states, a competitive generation company, a leading distributed energy distribution company with national capabilities, a fiber optics network and telecommunications services. Through an industry-leading commitment to innovation, resilience and sustainability, we are taking action to meet customers' and communities' needs while advancing our goal of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Our uncompromising values ensure we put the needs of those we serve at the center of everything we do and are the key to our sustained success. We are transforming energy into economic, environmental and social progress for tomorrow. Our corporate culture and hiring practices have earned the company national awards and recognition from numerous organizations, including Forbes, The Military Times, DiversityInc, Black Enterprise, J.D. Power, Fortune, Human Rights Campaign and more. To learn more, visit www.southerncompany.com. SOURCE Southern Company 13 may 2024 at 08:30 News published onand distributed by: Hydrexia and Lestari Form Strategic Partnership for Hydrogen Development KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia and SHANGHAI, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Hydrexia Holding Limited (Hydrexia), a leading integrated hydrogen solution provider in China and Lestari H2GaaS Sdn Bhd (LHSB), a renewable energy and hydrogen technology commercialization arm of Petroliam Nasional Berhad (PETRONAS) in Malaysia today announced that the two companies have entered into a Technology Collaboration and Commercialization Agreement (TCCA) to leverage the technological and market strengths of each other to better serve the hydrogen development needs in Sarawak, Malaysia. Under the framework of TCCA, both companies set forth key cooperation initiatives which include joint technical collaboration and commercialization of hydrogen application technology in a phased approach. The planned technical collaboration will focus on hydrogen applications in the areas of purification, storage and transportation, and refueling station. Both companies will jointly explore hydrogen application project opportunities to meet the local hydrogen development needs by integrating Hydrexia's hydrogen technology products across the hydrogen industry value chain. This newly-formed partnership marks an important milestone for Hydrexia's business expansion in Southeast Asia with continued success. Meanwhile, it also reinforces the strong commitment of Hydrexia to serve the growing hydrogen business needs in the region by collaborating with local partners. "We are excited about forming this strategic partnership with LHSB. It not only further expands the scale of our business expansion in Southeast Asia, but also adds significant depth in our local business operation in this region," said George Gan, the Chief Executive Officer of Hydrexia Southeast Asia. "The collaboration with LHSB enables us to best utilize our hydrogen technology solutions to serve the needs of our customers in Malaysia. We look forward to expanding the cooperation with LHSB going forward," Gan added. "We are happy to have chosen Hydrexia as our important technology and commercial partner," said Colin Patrick, the Chief Executive Officer of LHSB. "Our decision to go with Hydrexia is based on its strong overall technology capability as well as its commitment to developing the local hydrogen market in Malaysia. I am confident about the prospects of this partnership," Colin continued. "Through this TCCA, we commit ourselves to fostering innovation, driving sustainable practices, and making significant strides towards a net carbon zero future. The hydrogen projects we are embarking upon will not only contribute to decarbonizing industries but also open new possibilities in transportation, energy storage, and beyond within this region," Colin mentioned. The optimal combination of technology and market advantages achieved through this collaboration will enable both companies to fully address the needs for green energy in the Sarawak region in Malaysia. Hydrexia is fully committed to developing this new partnership both technologically and operationally. [About Lestari] Lestari H2GaaS is the hydrogen technology commercialization arm of Petroliam Nasional Berhad (PETRONAS), the national oil and gas company of Malaysia. Lestari is presently pursuing a series of Hydrogen Production Facility developments in Sarawak and supply of lectrolyzer globally via Sarawak Electrolyser Assembly and Distribution Facility (SEA-DF). Its service includes an end-to-end hydrogen solution designed to support market application, through its core & proprietary technology, PEM lectrolyzer. It aspires to empower its customers across industries who seek versatile hydrogen solutions in driving low carbon targets within their business. [About Hydrexia] Hydrexia Holding Limited is a leading integrated hydrogen technology solution provider in China with global reach. The company specializes in providing technology solutions for hydrogen production, storage, transportation, and end-use applications. Leveraging its solid R&D capabilities and industry-leading technology, Hydrexia aims to effectively address the technology and application needs across the global hydrogen industry value chain. SOURCE Hydrexia 13 may 2024 at 09:00 News published onand distributed by: SOUTHWEST AIRLINES INTRODUCES DAILY NONSTOP SERVICE BETWEEN ORLANDO AND NASSAU NASSAU, Bahamas, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Southwest Airlines recently announced the launch of its new Orlando ? Nassau route. Daily nonstop flights will connect Central Florida's metropolitan hub with The Bahamas' capital city at the height of the summer months. The Orlando ? Nassau flights will operate from 4 June to 4 August, with departures from Orlando and arrivals in Nassau. The Orlando ? Nassau flights will operate from 4 June to 4 August, with departures from Orlando and arrivals in Nassau . "The expansion of Southwest Airlines' Central Florida route map to include a new daily service to Nassau is another testimony to the government's efforts and commitment to grow air stopover arrivals throughout our 16-islands destination aggressively," says the Honourable I. Chester Cooper, Bahamas Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism, Investments, and Aviation. At the end of 2023, the Bahamas recorded a historic 9.65 million total foreign air and sea visitor arrivals to its shores. Of that number, foreign air arrivals exceeded a record-breaking 1.7 million passengers, accounting for an increase of 3.5% over 2019 and 17% over its 2022 air arrivals numbers. At the end of the first quarter of 2024, foreign air arrivals had already surpassed 504,000, a gain of 7.3% compared to the first quarter of 2023. End-of-year foreign air arrivals numbers are forecasted to exceed 2 million. "We have been very strategic about driving and expanding strategic partnerships with airlines and our local and international industry partners, including our Promotion Boards and Hotel Partners," said Deputy Prime Minister Cooper. "Part of our expansion includes an ongoing growth strategy in our Southern, Central, and Northern Florida source market, including Orlando, West Palm Beach, and Tampa, to attract new airlift to Nassau/PI, Grand Bahama, and our Family Islands," continued Cooper. Southwest Airlines' new route will come on stream on 4 June 2024 in line with its relocation of its operations from Fort Lauderdale to Orlando. According to Southwest Airlines, the airline has been serving Orlando since 1996, offering nonstop flights to over 50 destinations across the United States and the Caribbean. Southwest is also the largest carrier at Orlando International Airport, accounting for over 20% of all passenger traffic. About The Bahamas: The Bahamas has over 700 islands and cays, as well as 16 unique island destinations. Located only 50 miles off the coast of Florida, it offers a quick and easy way for travellers to escape their everyday. The island nation also boasts world-class fishing, diving, boating and thousands of miles of the earth's most spectacular beaches for families, couples and adventurers to explore. See why It's Better in The Bahamas at www.bahamas.com or on Facebook, YouTube or Instagram. Media Contact: Anita Johnson-Patty Director Global Communications Bahamas Ministry of Tourism & Aviation [email protected] Bahamas USA FINN Bahamas [email protected] SOURCE The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism, Investments & Aviation 13 may 2024 at 10:56 News published onand distributed by: Clay Haden named new Business Unit President for Skanska USA Building STOCKHOLM, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Skanska has promoted Clay Haden to Business Unit President for Skanska USA Building, effective June 1, 2024. Haden succeeds Paul Hewins who has announced his decision to retire. As BUP, Clay Haden will be responsible for the overall performance of Skanska USA Building, including setting the business strategy, delivering safety and financial performance, evolving a value-based culture, and positioning the business unit for long-term success. He will report directly to Skanska Group Executive Vice President Richard Kennedy. "Clay is the right leader for our next chapter. He is a strategic, insightful, and innovative leader who, having served on the USA Building Senior Leadership Team for the past 14 years, has a deep understanding of our business and our organization. As both General Counsel and Chief Administrative Officer, Clay has been integrally involved in shaping the company into what it is today. I look forward to working together to steer Skanska USA Building into the future," says Anders Danielsson, President and CEO, Skanska Group. Since joining Skanska in 2006, Haden has held a series of increasingly senior roles with expanded responsibilities, being appointed General Counsel in 2009, a member of the Senior Leadership Team in 2010, and Chief Administrative Officer in 2016. As General Counsel, he oversaw the company's legal, compliance, and risk management functions, including Insurance & Bonding, Ethics & Compliance, and Supplier Diversity. As Chief Administrative Officer, he oversaw various company-wide functions and led many important nationwide level initiatives that have resulted in higher performance across the organization. Prior to joining Skanska, Haden was a Partner with global law firm Seyfarth Shaw LLP, where he focused on construction law and litigation. Clay Haden holds a J.D. from the Vanderbilt University School of Law and a B.S. in Construction from Arizona State University's Del E. Webb School of Construction. "I am honored to continue serving the incredible people in this organization as the new BUP," said Haden. "Our success is driven by our people, who work hard every day to deliver outstanding results for our customers. Paul Hewins often said it's about getting better, better, better. I believe we'll do just that by continuing to develop high performing teams of talented people who are committed to our customers and our values." "These are exciting times for Skanska in the US, and I look forward to working with Clay to build on this positive momentum. I also want to thank Paul Hewins. Throughout his 25 years with Skanska, he made real and lasting contributions that positively impacted many lives. He leaves behind a powerful legacy. We are all better for his leadership, partnership, and friendship," says Richard Kennedy, Skanska Group Executive President. For further information please contact: Mia Walton, Vice President, Communications, Skanska USA Building, tel +1 (240) 672-1789 Andreas Joons, Press Officer, Skanska Group, tel +46 (0)10 449 04 94 Direct line for media, tel +46 (0)10 448 88 99 This and previous releases can also be found at www.skanska.com This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com https://news.cision.com/skanska/r/clay-haden-named-new-business-unit-president-for-skanska-usa-building,c3978002 The following files are available for download: https://mb.cision.com/Main/95/3978002/2793263.pdf 20240513 US Clay Haden BUP https://news.cision.com/skanska/i/image---clay-haden,c3298900 Image - Clay Haden SOURCE Skanska 13 may 2024 at 10:58 News published onand distributed by: Balfour Beatty Substantially Completes Caltrain Electrification Balfour Beatty has achieved substantial completion on the Caltrain Electrification project, the first undertaking in North America in which diesel trains and their infrastructure components are transitioned to an electrified system. The milestone signifies the successful turnover of the electrified, 51-mile corridor between San Francisco and San Jose, as Caltrain prepares to transform the system into a faster, more efficient and sustainable service for commuters throughout the Bay Area. To reach the milestone, construction activities were performed day and night which included locating underground utilities, testing soil conditions, inspecting signal and communication equipment and pruning and removing trees. The project team also installed foundations and 2,569 pre-engineered poles and strung 2,645,050 feet of wire to support the Overhead Contact System (OCS) which powers the fleet of new, high-performing electric trains. Additionally, 10 traction power facilities ? electric power stations used to provide, distribute and regulate electricity to the OCS and electric trains ? were installed between the San Francisco and San Jose corridor. "Reaching substantial completion is a tremendous feat," said Mark Konchar, Balfour Beatty US Civils president. "On a project of this magnitude, ongoing collaboration and an all-hands-on-deck approach was vital, and I commend our team of global experts, various industry partners and local stakeholders for their partnership in delivering the future of public transportation in the U.S. Another milestone achieved means we are a step closer in providing Caltrain with the resources to safely maintain and operate their new infrastructure for their customers every day." "We are now at the cusp of our new and improved electrified service," said Caltrain Executive Director Michelle Bouchard. "I thank our partners at Balfour Beatty for helping us to deliver a transformative change that will benefit Bay Area residents for decades to come." Substantial completion follows the success of Balfour Beatty, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) and Caltrain's efforts in energizing the full corridor through the OCS and traction power facilities and testing the electric trains up to 79 mph. Post-substantial completion, Balfour Beatty will continue to work with its industry partners and Caltrain to conduct operations and maintenance training, pre-revenue service testing and complete punch list items along the corridor. These preparations are underway, with official revenue service starting in September 2024. About Balfour Beatty US Balfour Beatty is an industry-leading provider of general contracting, at-risk construction management and design-build services for public and private sector clients across the United States. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, the company performs heavy civil, rail and a broad variety of vertical construction. The company is held by Balfour Beatty plc (LSE: BBY), who is global leader in international infrastructure with interests in Hong Kong, UK and US. Balfour Beatty US is ranked among the top domestic building contractors in the United States by Engineering News-Record. To learn more, visit www.balfourbeattyus.com. About Caltrain Owned and operated by the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board, Caltrain provides rail service from San Francisco to San Jose, with commute service to Gilroy. Serving the region since 1863, Caltrain is the oldest continually operating rail system west of the Mississippi. Looking to the future, Caltrain is set to electrify the corridor by 2024, which will reduce diesel emissions and add more service to more stations while advancing the agency's equity goals. Follow Caltrain on Facebook and Twitter. 13 may 2024 at 13:35 News published onand distributed by: The OpenAI logo is seen on a mobile phone in front of a computer screen displaying output from ChatGPT, March 21, 2023, in Boston. MICHAEL DWYER / AP OpenAI on Monday, May 13, released a higher performing and even more human-like version of the artificial intelligence technology that underpins its popular generative tool ChatGPT, making it free to all users. The update to OpenAI's flagship product landed a day before Google is expected to make its own announcements about Gemini, the search engine giant's own AI tool that competes with ChatGPT head on. "We're very, very excited to bring GPT-4o to all of our free users out there," Chief Technology Officer Mira Murati said at the highly anticipated launch event in San Francisco. The new model GPT-4o the "O" stands for omni will be rolled out in OpenAI's products over the next few weeks, the company said, with paid customers having unlimited access to the tool. The company said the model could generate content or understand commands in voice, text, or images. "The new voice [and video] mode is the best computer interface I've ever used. It feels like AI from the movies," said OpenAI CEO Sam Altman in a blog post. Altman has previously pointed to the Scarlett Johansson character in the movie Her as an inspiration for where he would like AI interactions to go. "Talking to a computer has never felt really natural for me; now it does," he added. Murati and engineers from OpenAI demonstrated the new powers of GPT-4o at the virtual event, posing challenges to the beefed-up version of the ChatGPT chatbot. The demo mainly featured OpenAI staff members asking questions to the voiced ChatGPT, which responded with jokes and human-like banter. The bot served as an interpreter from English to Italian, interpreted facial expressions and walked one user through a difficult algebra problem. The company said that GPT-4o had the same powers as the previous version when it came to text, reasoning, and coding intelligence, and set new industry standards for multilingual conversations, audio, and vision. In one demonstration, ChatGPT successfully interpreted an employee's surroundings through a smartphone camera, speaking in a friendly, feminine voice, not unlike the AI bot in the film Her. "Hmmm from what I can see it looks like you're in some kind of recording or production set-up with lights, tripods... you might be gearing up to shoot a video or make an announcement?" the ChatGPT bot said. 'Take our time' Anticipation was high in recent weeks that OpenAI would release an AI-amped version of an online search tool to compete with the Google search engine, but on Friday Altman said this would not be the case. Observers were also waiting for the launch of GPT-5, but Altman said last week that his company would "take our time on releases of major new models." The event is just the latest episode in the AI arms race that has seen OpenAI-backer Microsoft surpass Apple as the world's biggest company by market capitalization. OpenAI and Microsoft are in a heated rivalry with Google to be generative AI's major player, but Facebook-owner Meta and upstart Anthropic are also making big moves to compete. All the companies are scrambling to come up with ways to cover generative AI's exorbitant costs, much of which goes to chip giant Nvidia and its powerful GPU semiconductors. Read more Subscribers only Meta challenges OpenAI and Google with a free alternative Making the new model available to all users may raise questions about OpenAI's path to monetization amid doubts that everyday users are ready to pay a subscription. Until now, only lower-performing versions of OpenAI or Google's chatbots were available to customers for free. "We are a business and will find plenty of things to charge for," Altman said on his blog. The AI makers are also feeling pressure from publishers and creators, who are demanding payment for any content used to train the models. OpenAI has signed content partnerships with the Associated Press, the Financial Times and Axel Springer, but is also caught in a major lawsuit with The New York Times. AI companies have also been confronted with separate lawsuits from artists, musicians, and authors in US courtrooms. Read more Le Monde and Open AI sign partnership agreement on artificial intelligence Travelers wait to check in at the International Terminal of San Francisco International Airport on Nov. 21, 2022. United Airlines expects to see a record-setting number of travelers Memorial Day weekend and this summer. Scott Strazzante/The Chronicle A group listening to audio players travels along San Franciscos Haight Street during a walking tour. Benjamin Fanjoy/Special to the Chronicle Alaska Airlines ticketing counter in Terminal 2 of San Francisco International Airport. The airline is also expecting a summer travel surge despite its door blowout incident in January. Scott Strazzante/The Chronicle Despite facing numerous widely publicized challenges, from mechanical issues to in-flight disputes, airlines are preparing for a massive surge in travelers in the coming weeks. This will be the biggest Memorial Day and summer travel season in Uniteds 98-year history, the airlines Chief Commercial Officer Andrew Nocella said in a statement to the Chronicle. The airline forecasts more than 3 million passengers will fly nationwide between May 23 and 28, marking a more than 5% increase compared with last year. The trend is expected to continue throughout the summer, potentially offsetting the carriers $200 million in reported losses in the first quarter. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Last year, approximately one-third of Americans passed through TSA checkpoints during a record-setting travel season. This year will see that number increase substantially. United Airlines forecasts more than 3 million passengers will fly nationwide between May 23 and 28, marking a more than 5% increase compared to last year. Paul Chinn/The Chronicle According to AAA, the outlook for Memorial Day weekend travel, often seen as the beginning of the summer travel season, is poised to surpass pre-pandemic levels in the United States. The auto and travel association predicted that 43.8 million travelers will venture 50 miles or more from home during the Memorial Day holiday period, representing a 4% increase over last year and nearing the record set in 2005 with 44 million travelers. Of these, approximately 3.51 million are expected to travel by air, marking a 4.8% increase from last year and a 9% jump from 2019. This is anticipated to be the busiest Memorial Day weekend at airports since 2005 when 3.64 million passengers flew for the holiday, signifying a significant rebound for the travel industry post-9/11. Advertisement Article continues below this ad We havent seen Memorial Day weekend travel numbers like these in almost 20 years, said Paula Twidale, senior vice president of AAA Travel. Were projecting an additional 1 million travelers this holiday weekend compared to 2019, which not only means were exceeding pre-pandemic levels but also signals a very busy summer travel season ahead. Tourists crowd the Tunnel View Vista Point at Yosemite National Park. AAA also projects a record number of people hitting the road in their cars, with 38.4 million people expected to travel by car over Memorial Day weekend, the highest number since AAA began tracking in 2000. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle Locally, San Francisco International Airport estimates itll see approximately 15.5 million travelers between Memorial Day and Labor Day, representing about 86% of pre-pandemic summer travel levels. Meanwhile, the newly minted San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport anticipates over 130,000 passengers during Memorial Day weekend and over 3.4 million passengers throughout the summer, similar to figures seen in 2023. United Airlines isnt alone in experiencing heightened demand. Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian noted on the companys recent earnings call, We see a record spring and summer travel season with our 11 highest sales days in our history all occurring this calendar year. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Alaska Airlines also projects peak numbers despite the widely publicized door plug incident in January, having expanded its capacity by approximately 3.5% over the past year. San Francisco International Airport is expecting approximately 15.5 million travelers between Memorial Day and Labor Day, representing about 86% of pre-pandemic summer travel levels. Scott Strazzante/The Chronicle Online travel agency Expedia reports a 25% increase in flight searches overall for June through August compared to last year. Meanwhile, American Airlines plans to accommodate more than 72 million customers, exceeding any previous summer and reflecting a 10% increase over the same period last year. AAA also projects a record number of people hitting the road in their cars, with 38.4 million people expected to travel by car over Memorial Day weekend, the highest number since AAA began tracking in 2000. The number of drivers is up 4% from last year and 1.9% higher than in 2019. Advertisement Article continues below this ad In the Bay Area, peak Memorial Day weekend traffic congestion is expected around 11 a.m. on Friday, May 24. Michael Short/Special to the Chronicle In the Bay Area, peak congestion is expected around 11 a.m. on Friday. Travelers heading from San Francisco to Napa for the BottleRock Napa Valley music festival via Interstate 80, in particular, should anticipate a 56% increase in congestion compared to last year, according to INRIX, which tracks transportation data and insights. Travel times are expected to be up to 90% longer than normal. Travelers should stay up to date on traffic apps, 511 services, and local news stations to avoid sitting in traffic longer than necessary, said Bob Pishue, transportation analyst at INRIX. Best and worst times to travel by car According to the AAA, these are the best and worst times to travel by car over Memorial Day weekend. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Thursday, May 23 Worst: 12-6 p.m. Best: before 11 a.m. or after 7 p.m. Friday, May 24 Worst: 12-6 p.m. Best: before 11 a.m. or after 8 p.m. Saturday, May 25 Worst: 2-5 p.m. Best: before 1 p.m. or after 6 p.m. Sunday, May 26 Worst: 3-7 p.m. Best: before 1 p.m. Monday, May 27 Worst: 3-7 p.m. Armenian law enforcement officers detain a demonstrator in a protest against land transfer to neighbouring Azerbaijan, in Yerevan on May 13, 2024. KAREN MINASYAN / AFP Armenian police said on Monday, May 13, they had detained dozens of people attempting to block streets in the capital Yerevan as part of protests against government plans to concede land to Azerbaijan. Armenia has agreed to hand over territory it has controlled since the 1990s and has started border delimitation efforts, in a bid to secure an elusive peace deal with Baku and avoid another bloody conflict. Read more Subscribers only Armenian protestors march against territorial concessions to Azerbaijan The territorial concessions have sparked weeks of protests by demonstrators, who have blocked major roads in an attempt to force Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan to change course. Protest leader Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan has urged opponents of the deal to flood the streets of Yerevan on Monday in a fresh show of opposition to the deal. The interior ministry said that a total of 151 people had been detained so far on Monday but that protesters had failed to close off any streets in Yerevan. An Agence France-Presse (AFP) journalist said hundreds of people had joined the demonstration. Armenia and Azerbaijan, two former Soviet republics in the south Caucasus, have been locked in a stand-off over disputed territory, primarily Nagorno-Karabakh, since the break-up of the Soviet Union. Roman Reusch, member of Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, answers questions of journalists after the verdict of his party's trial at the Higher Administrative Court in Muenster, western Germany on May 13, 2024. INA FASSBENDER / AFP The Alternative for Germany (AfD) suffered a stinging defeat on Monday, May 13, as a court threw out its bid to stop Germany's intelligence services from investigating it as a suspected right-wing extremist organisation. The legal dispute started in 2021 when the domestic intelligence agency, the BfV, labelled the AfD a "suspected" right-wing extremist group, giving authorities more power to gather intelligence on it. Read more Subscribers only Germany's far-right AfD party is mired in scandal The party challenged the move in the courts but on Monday the Higher Administrative Court in Muenster, western Germany rejected the AfD's appeal. The party "has no right to demand that the BfV refrain from monitoring it," said the court, adding that existing laws "provide a sufficient legal basis for observation as a suspected case." The court has been hearing arguments in the case since March. The AfD's lawyers claimed statements made by its members, which have been collected by the BfV as evidence to support their arguments, were "the aberrations of individuals" and should not be attributed to the party as a whole, which has some 45,000 members. The lawyer representing the BfV, however, said the statements, highlighting what it says are extremism, were "not just the individual opinions of a few people." They were taken from a large number of statements by high-ranking officials and elected representatives with considerable political influence, and have a "very clear" impact on political life in Germany, the lawyer said. In 2022 a lower court in Cologne had already dismissed an appeal against the BfV's move to label the AfD a suspected right-wing extremist group, leading the party to turn to the Muenster court. Mired in scandal The ruling is another blow for the AfD ahead of key EU and regional elections, and comes with the party already reeling from a Chinese spying scandal, as well as claims of links to Russia. It comes just weeks before European Parliament elections, at which the AfD like other far-right parties in Europe is hoping to make gains. And in September three eastern German states, where the party has been leading in the polls, will hold closely-watched elections. Read more Subscribers only Germany's far-right party starts its European campaign without lead candidate Posting on X, Chancellor Olaf Scholz hailed the ruling as evidence that "our constitutional state protects our democracy also against threats from within." An AfD spokesman, meanwhile criticised an "inadequate clarification of the facts," saying that authorities had not followed up on hundreds of requests for further evidence. This failure "borders on a refusal to work," he added. The party said it intends to lodge a further appeal at the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig. Some German media reported Monday the court ruling could clear the way for the intelligence services to take a further step against the AfD by labelling it a "confirmed" right-wing extremist group which would give authorities further powers to monitor them. Several local branches of the party have already been given this classification. The party's most recent scandal came last month when the aide of Maximilian Krah, an AfD European Parliament lawmaker, was arrested on suspicion of spying for China. Krah had previously been caught up in Russian propaganda allegations. Read more Subscribers only German far-right MEP's assistant accused of being a Chinese spy On Tuesday a court is due to deliver a verdict on whether Bjoern Hoecke, an AfD member and one of Germany's most controversial politicians, deliberately used a Nazi slogan at a rally. In January, an investigation by media group Correctiv indicated AfD members had discussed the idea of mass deportations at a meeting with extremists, leading to a wave of protests across the country. Read more Subscribers only German far-right party leaders planned mass deportation laws with neo-Nazis Valerie Hayer talks to a local resident as she delivers campaign leaflets during a campaign visit, ahead of the upcoming European Parliament elections in Bordeaux, south-western France on May 9, 2024. CHRISTOPHE ARCHAMBAULT / AFP The lead candidate for French President Emmanuel Macron's party in upcoming European elections said she was tricked into taking a photo with members of a "neo-Nazi group." Prominently visible alongside a smiling Valerie Hayer in the photo is one of the men's T-shirts, whose logo aping the North Face outdoor brand reads "The White Race." "On Sunday, I was approached by men asking me for a photo. On principle, I don't usually refuse, and I accepted as I do every time," Hayer, who is heading the Renaissance party list, wrote on X. "This was a trap set up for me by activists from a neo-Nazi group," Hayer said. She added that the men whose faces were blurred out in the photo circulated on messaging service Telegram had used "shameful methods of the far right, which I fight against with all my might." Hayer said she had "not had time to notice the racist slogans on their clothing." The encounter took place the day after a far-right gathering in Paris where participants had commemorated the 1994 death of a comrade. Read more Subscribers only Neo-fascists march through Paris despite government commitment to ban ultra-right demonstrations Hayer came under attack from the fiercely anti-Macron hard-left party La France Insoumise (LFI), whose leader Jean-Luc Melenchon said that "no sane person would present themselves alongside such perpetrators of ethnic violence." The incident is the latest blow for Hayer, 38, after she was widely seen by analysts as coming out second best in a televised debate against the head of the RN's list Jordan Bardella, aged 28, earlier this month. The Macron list is languishing a distant second to the far-right Rassemblement National (RN) in polling less than a month ahead of European Parliament elections. A Le Monde poll in partnership with IPSOS also indicated that the ruling party faces a tight race even for second place against the Socialist alliance led by Raphael Glucksmann, who is credited with running a dynamic campaign. Read more Subscribers only Macron considers debating Le Pen to avoid European elections fiasco TWO FARMS of land in the county and on the city's outskirts both exceeded the guide prices at public auction. James Lee, of REA John Lee, was the man with the gavel in his hand at the two auctions in the space of five days. First up on Friday, April 26 in the South Court Hotel was the sale of 84 acres at Ballycahane Upper, Manister. A highly fertile, productive farm with enormous potential, is how Mr Lee describes it. There are also a range of farm buildings. Mr Lee told Farm Leader they were guiding at 10,000 an acre and it made well above that. READ MORE: Crime spree in picturesque Limerick village There was a big crowd. We had three bidders - one online and two in the room. It came down to the two in the room fighting it out, said Mr Lee, who dropped the gavel at 945,000, which is just over 11,000 an acre. Both the vendor and auctioneer were very satisfied at the price achieved. It is understood a man with farming interests not from the locality won the day. Next up for Mr Lee was the auction of a prime roadside holding extending to 33 acres of top quality land with extensive road frontage at Killonan, Castletroy (pictured below). It took place in their Newport office on Wednesday, May 1. The lands are situated in an exceptional location just a short distance from the suburb of Monaleen / Castletroy, University of Limerick and Plassey Technological Park. This holding, while ideal currently for agricultural use, must have long term potential for numerous uses given its proximity to the expanding Castletroy / Monaleen / Annacotty areas. It is on the doorstep of the city, said Mr Lee. The guide price of 20,000 an acre reflected its potential, as did the high level of interest from farmers and businessmen. We had one bidder online and three bidders in the room. It came down to an online bidder and a person in the room, said Mr Lee. The bidder in the room is the new owner after paying three quarters of a million euro. The price of 750,000 equates to over 22,000 an acre. Again, the auctioneer and vendor were very satisfied with the price achieved. It is understood the new owner is a business person with strong farming interests. Gardai in Shannon are appealing for witnesses following the theft of several bales of hay from a farm yard in Sixmilebridge over the bank holiday weekend. The six bales, which are worth several hundred euro, were taken from the property in the Belvoir area sometime between 5pm last Friday and 6pm on Saturday. "Gardai believe a tractor and trailer was used to steal the round bales and the gardai are asking anyone that observed a tractor and trailer with round bales on either Friday evening or Saturday morning to contact them," said a spokesperson. READ ALSO: Two men who attempted to damage an Audi A6 flee Clare property on foot Gardai are also appealing to farmers not to buy bales which are offered for sale, if they have any suspicions or concerns as to where they came from. Gardai at Shannon can be contacted on 061 365900. LAST November, Limerick-based child sexual abuse charity, CARI, faced closure but while their their funding is now stable for 2024, they say waiting lists cannot be tackled without further funding. CEO Emer ONeill has welcomed confirmation that Tusla will provide them with 775,000 for 2024. We now have financial stability for the year, which is an enormous relief for staff and the children and families we serve," said Ms O'Neill. The charity faced closure in November, when they were unable to secure stable funding for the year ahead. Ms ONeill says what was essentially a funding crisis has now been averted "for now" and thanked all those they worked with in Tusla. "However, the reality remains that there are still 128 children who have been sexually abused on waiting lists for our care. Furthermore, there is a critical need to extend therapy services for child sexual abuse victims and their families across the regions. "We worked closely with Tusla this year to implement the findings of an independent review of our activities. The reviews focus was on creating financial stability for 2024, and it recommended a series of Cost saving measures. These measures created some staff redundancies, a reduction in therapy services for clients, and the closure of our dedicated Helpline. We want to assure the public that we still offer phone support services on 0818 924567, from 9am to 5pm, Monday to Thursday. Unfortunately, we will also have to close our outreach service in Wexford this year, which goes against our mission to extend services to child sexual abuse victims across the regions. CARI believes no child should have to make long journeys for the treatment they need," said Ms O'Neill. READ MORE: Gardai investigate break-in at Limerick college The charity says evidence indicates that the longer a child has to wait for treatment, the more severe the impact will be. Children can wait as long as two to three years for support, according to Ms ONeill. Some children are effectively denied the right treatment as they are too far away to access specialised services. Without this support, child victims of sexual abuse are more likely to experience premature death in adulthood through illness, disease, and suicide. This comes at a huge cost to these individuals, families, communities and the State. In CARI, we understand the journey a child takes toward healing from sexual abuse. They start off feeling unsafe, frightened, struggling to sleep, eat or focus at school, and in a constant state of stress, even when they are physically safe. With CARIs support, children start to feel safe, trust their environment and find their voice," said Ms O'Neill. CARI say the reality is that therapy services for child victims of sexual abuse need to extend to "all regions" across Ireland. Existing services are run in Dublin, Limerick, and via Barnahus West in Galway. Ms ONeill says CARI struggle to fill the budget gaps by raising funds from the public like other charities. People find it very difficult to talk about the horror of child sexual abuse and this stops people from engaging with our fundraising campaigns. It can be easier to think of it as something which occurred in the past, not in the here and now. Also, the victims cant speak out for themselves, and their families cannot go public and compromise their childrens privacy. In the best interests of children, families and communities, the Government needs to adopt a strategic approach to providing care at regional and national level. To this end, we need open and honest discussions with the Government on how to cut waiting lists and provide Outreach services to children in the regions. A COUNTY Limerick man who spent two years in jail for attacking a pensioner with a machete before his conviction was overturned due to the failure by gardai to seek out CCTV footage cannot be seen to lose twice by paying his legal costs, his lawyers have argued. At Limerick Circuit Criminal Court in November 2021, John O'Donoghue was convicted of assault causing serious harm to Willie O'Driscoll Sr, who was then aged 74, in Bothar Bui, Rathkeale, Co Limerick, on December 17, 2017. Mr ODonoghue, aged 54, of Lower Main Street, Rathkeale, was also convicted of violent disorder on the same date and location during an incident between two families. A jury unanimously convicted Mr ODonoghue on the assault causing serious harm and on the violent disorder charge but found him not guilty of a charge of the production of an article a machete during the course of a dispute and of making threats to kill. He had pleaded not guilty on all counts. He was sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment for assault causing serious harm and to a concurrent eight-year term for the violent disorder offence. Mr ODonoghue subsequently successfully appealed the conviction on the grounds that vital CCTV had not been harvested by gardai and that a garda notebook had not been disclosed until the trial when the relevant garda was already giving evidence in the witness box. Delivering the judgement last February, Ms Justice Tara Burns said the three-judge court upheld Mr O'Donoghue's complaint regarding the failure of trial judge Patrick Meghan to direct an acquittal. She said this was on the basis of an unfairness arising in the investigation which deprived him of a "reasonable prospect of a defence". Ms Justice Burns said it was an established duty of gardai to seek out and preserve CCTV. At the Court of Appeal this Monday, Michael Bowman SC, for Mr ODonoghue, argued that the appellant was entitled to costs both from his trial and his subsequent appeal. He said that a matter of law and necessity, Mr ODonoghue was required to pursue an appeal to vindicate his right to a fair trial in a process that was flawed from the investigation stage. The defendant is not to bear the costs, quite literally, of the difficulties in the prosecution case, he said. The jury ultimately proceeded to convict the defendant and he not only incurred the costs of the trial but also suffered a deprivation of his liberty until the matter could be further litigated before the Court of Appeal, Mr Bowman submitted. The appellant cannot be seen to lose twice after he was put in the position where he had to appeal because there were issues that started with the investigation process, said Mr Bowman. The appeal was absolutely necessitated, he added. He submitted that an inadequate investigation, combined with an outcome in which Mr ODonoghue was entirely successful in respect of every count on the indictment, gives rise to an entitlement to costs, both of the trial court and the appeal. Fundamentally, the judge was required as a function of his constitutional duty to ensure a fair trial, yet this did not happen. He submitted that refusing the application would be a disproportionate exercise in the courts discretion and that the outcome of the appeal was the most weighty factor to be considered among the other discretionary factors identified in the jurisprudence. Lily Buckley BL, for the State, submitted that the Court of Appeal, after careful analysis, had overturned the decision of the trial judge made in the exercise of his discretion but that this was a far cry from saying there should never have been a prosecution or that the respondent should not have sought to stand over the decision of the trial judge. It is a matter for this court whether the fact of there having been a unanimous jury verdict allows for the drawing of a reasonable inference that the defence case was rejected. Thereafter it is a matter for the court whether this is of relevance in the exercise of its discretion on the costs. Ms Buckley said the jurisprudence of the Superior Courts establishes that in criminal matters, costs do not necessarily follow the event, but rather the jurisdiction to award costs is at the discretion of in this instance the Court of Appeal. It is respectfully submitted that the decision to initiate and maintain the prosecution and to stand over the conviction was entirely reasonable in the circumstances of the present case. It is the directors submissions that in the circumstances of this case that there should be no costs order made in regards to the trial below or in regards the appeal, she said. Ms Justice Isobel Kennedy, sitting with Ms Justice Una Ni Raifeartaigh and Ms Justice Burns, said the court would reserve judgement in the matter. Northern Irelands health minister Robin Swann said he felt like an observer at his first Cobra meeting in the early days of the coronavirus pandemic. Cabinet Office briefing meetings were held throughout the pandemic to share information as the UK responded to Covid-19. At a sitting of the Covid-19 Inquiry in Belfast on Monday, lead counsel to the inquiry Clair Dobbin put to Mr Swann that it had been said it was highly unusual for ministers from Northern Ireland to be invited to attend Cobra. Mr Swann said: Thats correct at that point I didnt know it was unusual. He said with hindsight it would have been useful if then first minister Arlene Foster and then deputy first minister Michelle ONeill were invited to attend early Cobra meetings about Covid-19 in January 2020. I think in hindsight it would have been useful if the invitation had included the first and deputy first ministers even from those early points as well, he said. As we work our way through the pandemic, it was often that I was there along with them and other meetings as well. In those early stages it was delegated to me to attend at that point. Mr Swann described the first meeting he attended in January 2020, with Northern Irelands chief medical officer Sir Michael McBride, chaired by then health secretary Matt Hancock, as very challenging. They were challenging at that stage mainly because this was pre-Zoom, pre-online/virtual meetings, so we were dialled in, so it almost felt like we were there as observers to listen to what was going on, rather than actually being full participants as to what was actually happening around the table, he said. At least 600 pro-Israel supporters attended an interfaith rally against Hamas at White Memorial Plaza, a few feet from a pro-Palestinian encampment at Stanford on Sunday. Manuel Orbegozo/Special to the Chronicle A pro-Israel supporter lifts an Israeli flag near the pro-Palestinian student encampment at White Memorial Plaza at Stanford on Sunday. Manuel Orbegozo/Special to the Chronicle Signs highlighting of hostages said to be held by Hamas were placed on the grass of White Memorial Plaza at Stanford on Sunday. Manuel Orbegozo/Special to the Chronicle Supporters of Israel rally during an interfaith demonstration at White Memorial Plaza at Stanford on Sunday. Manuel Orbegozo/Special to the Chronicle Supporters of Israel rally during an interfaith demonstration at White Memorial Plaza at Stanford on Sunday. Manuel Orbegozo/Special to the Chronicle Fabien Bismuth takes a selfie during an interfaith rally against terror at Stanford on Sunday. Manuel Orbegozo/Special to the Chronicle A rally in support of Palestinians was held at the student encampment at White Memorial Plaza at Stanford during the interfaith rally held by pro-Israel demonstrators on Sunday. Manuel Orbegozo/Special to the Chronicle Demonstrators at Stanford University verbally clashed over the war in Gaza on Sunday during a march that organizers billed as an interfaith rally against terror. Hundreds of students, some carrying Israeli flags, marched a half-mile to White Memorial Plaza on the Palo Alto campus, where about 40 pro-Palestinian campers have been sleeping outside in tents. After verbal confrontations near the encampment, campus security officers asked the demonstrators to vacate the plaza, which they had reserved for the rally, said Aaron Schimmel, a Stanford graduate student who helped organize it. Schimmel said he believed the setback largely did not detract from the success of the march, which he said was organized to voice support for values such as freedom and diversity that we see being opposed by the encampment. Advertisement Article continues below this ad We wanted to show this isnt really about just Jews on campus, it is about defending the freedoms that are core to the university, Schimmel said. Organizers from the Lchaim Club, a Jewish student organization, said that students of many backgrounds were invited to protest what they called a movement on campus that endorses terrorism. The more than 600 marchers were met by pro-Palestinian supporters carrying signs and a banner than read End genocide, save Gaza. There were no arrests announced as of Sunday evening. The encampment began at Stanford last month. According to Stanford administrators, it has remained largely peaceful. One person not affiliated with the university was arrested earlier this month for antagonizing students holding a vigil for Gaza victims, administrators said. Campers at the grassy square outside Stanfords student union have called on the university to divest from companies associated with Israel. Signs at the encampment have included one that read death 2 settler colonial projects. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The verbal clashes came one day after UC Berkeleys main commencement ceremony was disrupted by protesters clustering inside the universitys Memorial Stadium, where the graduation was held. German businesses are increasingly experimenting with artificial intelligence to become more productive, but some caution the gains the technology promises could be years away. From automating processes to optimizing supply chains, German companies are resorting to AI tools for a growing range of functions. The technology is expected to make work more efficient by cutting repetitive tasks and freeing employees up for new, higher-value jobs. Productivity growth in Germany, like in many other industrial countries, has stalled in recent years, a trend that has economists worried about possible long-term implications as the population ages. The popularity of OpenAIs ChatGPT chatbot since its launch in late 2022, followed by Microsofts Copilot and Googles Gemini, sparked a wave of investments from companies globally. Some businesses in Germany are optimistic that the technology could boost productivity. AI is probably the most transformative technological development in recent decades. It will fundamentally change tasks and qualification profiles across all industries," said Carsten Knobel, chief executive at consumer-goods company Henkel. The maker of Dial soap and Snuggle fabric softener has been training its workforce in AI, which it uses to automate processes in its adhesives business. In its production facilities, a central cloud server collects millions of data points from its machines equipped with sensors, analyzing and processing them with the help of AI to maximize efficiency and detect any flawed products or packaging. Henkel is running a number of pilot projects with technology partners like SAP, Adobe and Microsoft. However, Knobel says it is almost impossible to predict how the company will use AI in five years time given how fast the technology evolves. Many German companies are at an experimental stage regarding AI, said Inga Fechner, INGs senior economist for Germany. Data-protection concerns, workforce skills and lack of use cases are holding them back, and some are waiting to see what others do before acting, Fechner said. In Germany, the proportion of companies with more than 1,000 employees that deploy AI as part of their business operations stands at about 32%, with a further 44% exploring its use, according to the latest IBM Global AI Adoption Index. This puts Germany behind the countries that lead in AI enterprise adoptionIndia, the United Arab Emirates, Singapore and China, all of which have deployment rates above 50%and the global average of 42%, according to the IBM report. When it comes to investment in AI startups, Germanythe worlds third-largest economyis punching below its weight too. Over the 2013-23 period, Germany ranked sixth in terms of private investment in AI, behind the U.S., China, the U.K., Israel and Canada, according to data from marketing-intelligence firm Quid cited in the AI Index report by the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence. Food-delivery firm Delivery Hero has been using machine learning since 2011, but only last year started investing at scale in generative AI, the technology behind ChatGPT that can generate text, images and other forms of content. Tillmann Neben, senior director of data science at Delivery Hero, said the company uses generative AI to create food images for menus or help customers find niche restaurants through conversational search. AI isnt replacing anyone or anything," Neben said. Instead, he expects the technology to bring new features and capabilities that will ultimately make the workforce more efficient. This technology allows our employees to automate time-consuming tasks in the fast paced nature of our business, such as content creation and customer support, while simultaneously increasing our employees productivity by giving them more time to innovate," Neben said. While AI is a hot topic, research firm Gartner in November said its position in European corporate IT budgets doesnt reflect that for now. Gartner estimated IT spending in Europe would grow 9.3% this year compared with 2023 to reach $1.1 trillion, but said AI wasnt a priority, with companies focused on other factors such as generating revenue, maintaining profitability or bolstering security. Meal-kit company HelloFresh has been investing in machine learning and AI for more than six years. Chief Technology Officer Valeri Liborski expects that, over the next five years, AI will optimize a large part of what today is still a manual decision-making process. HelloFresh is investing in AI to improve demand forecasting, optimize its fulfillment centers and streamline customer care, hoping to use the technology to personalize customer experience, from marketing content to recipes, he said. The technology will by no means replace creative minds, but will make the work of the teams more efficient and enable them to respond even more individually and successfully to the different needs of the target groups," Liborski said. For individual companies, it makes sense to invest in AI, but it is hard to see a boom at the macroeconomic level, at least in the next two to three years, said INGs Fechner. It wont be this huge game changer in terms of productivity if you consider positive effects and negative effects," she added. Gerresheimer, which makes vials and packaging for pharmaceutical products, said AI would help it optimize production, supply-chain management and equipment maintenance and plans to train employees on how to leverage AI at work. Despite its push to digitize and automate processes, Gerresheimer aims to hire roughly 3,000 employees globally in the next few years, a sign that AI wont result in a lower headcount, a spokeswoman said. While some businesses insist that AI wont replace human labor, Henkels CEO Knobel conceded that some roles will, at least partially, be replaced by AI. However, he is convinced that AI cant replace workers altogether since the technology will depend on human capabilities to thrive. The opportunities of AI are diverse for companies like ours," Knobel said. Write to Nina Kienle at nina.kienle@wsj.com The National Company Law Tribunal on Monday deferred its hearing in Go Firsts insolvency case to July, leaving engine lessors to the bankrupt airline having to wait longer to repossess their assets. NCLT indicated it needed more time to study the Delhi High Court's order in a related case involving the airline and determine an appropriate ruling under the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP), in line with the courts judgment. The High Court had in April ordered the Directorate General of Civil Aviation to deregister all 54 aircraft leased by Go First, effectively quashing any hopes of a revival for the 20-year-old low-cost carrier. The court asked the aviation regulator to process the aircraft lessors deregistration applications as well as to assist them in accessing airports for flying back their aircraft. Subsequently, the DGCA deregistered all the 54 aircraft in early May. Engine lessors stranded Engine lessors of the bankrupt airline urged NCLT to issue an urgent order as their engines are connected to the deregistered aircraft. As per the engine lessors, certain aircraft have engines leased to them. If these aircraft are required to leave the country after deregistration, the engines must also undergo deregistration. Only aircraft lessors of Go First had approached the Delhi High Court for the deregistration of their aircraft, not the engine lessors of the airline. The engine lessors stated that Go Firsts resolution professional had no jurisdiction left with their assets as the DGCA had deregistered all the 54 aircraft as directed by the Delhi High Court, and as the RP has not challenged the single-bench order. During the NCLT hearing, the RP declined to provide clarity on the future steps following the Delhi High Court's ruling that left the airline with no aircrafts. As of now, Go First has not contested the High Courts order. Faulty engines Previously, on 8 April, NCLT had granted Go First a 60-day extension to conclude its corporate insolvency resolution process, taking stakeholders' interests into account. This extension is valid until 3 June. Go First, established in 2005 and formerly supported by the Wadia Group, filed for insolvency on 2 May, 2023, and ceased operations the following day, attributing its financial troubles to faulty engines supplied by American aerospace manufacturer Pratt & Whitney. India ranks 14th in the global music market, but for the world's largest music company Universal Music Group that operates in over 60 countries, India is one of the most promising markets along with China. Adam Granite, Universal Music Group's (UMG) chief executive for Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, who was in Mumbai last week, spoke to Mint on the companys vision for India in the next few years and its willingness to invest for faster growth. Edited excerpts Where does India currently stand for Universal Music Group and where do you see it in the next 5 years? India currently ranks 14th globally in the music market. However, given its population and growth potential, we anticipate significant upward movement in the coming years. India holds immense significance for us at Universal Music Group. (Universal Music Group posted a revenue of 555 crore and a net profit of 72 crore in FY'23 from its India operations. According to a FICCI-EY report, the Indian music market was at 2,400 crore in 2023.) Its youthful population and rich cultural heritage make it a priority market for our expansion efforts. India is growing very fast for us, but it is our desire, our goal, and one of Devrajs (Sanyal, chairman and CEO, South Asia) KPIs to grow faster than the market. The market growth is exciting. But we have to grow faster than that. We envision India breaking into the top 10 global music markets within five years, with UMG maintaining leadership in non-film music and exploring new genres and regions. Our focus lies on nurturing local talent, forging strategic partnerships, and exploring potential investments that align with our long-term goals. What is the roadmap or key pillars that you are going to focus on for this growth? We focus on three primary areas first is on our local artists, nurturing and expanding our roster. The evolution of India's non-film music scene in recent years presents an exciting opportunity to leverage our expertise in this space. (The film music comprised 64% of total music consumption in India, but artist-driven music continued to grow and reached 27% of the total music consumed in 2023.) Secondly, we actively seek strategic partnerships in the market. Whether it's our investment in TM Ventures, the country's largest talent agency, or recent collaborations like Represent, we're deeply engaged in forging alliances. Additionally, our focus on independent distribution, exemplified by Virgin's recent launch, brings a fresh dimension to our ecosystem, empowering independent artists and labels. Lastly, we remain vigilant for M&A prospects, seizing investment opportunities as they emerge, a strategy we've executed successfully in recent years. Without getting into details, I can tell you music has to be at the core for us to want to invest. We're looking at catalogues, live events, and other record labels that perhaps are in a different genre than we're in. If you think about the music industry, it's incredibly broad and India is a great example as there are so many different regions and genres here. Why should an artist partner with UMG and not other labels? First and foremost, we keep the artist at the centre of it. That's our core business. And then it's about maximizing the entire ecosystem around the artists and being great partners with them to help maximize their careers. That can span from streaming and subscription to merchandise to live to brands. It can be quite broad. We know we need to be a great partner for those artists across as many different revenue streams as possible. UMG recently signed a multi-dimensional" deal with TikTok in the US. There have been concerns about the platforms use of Gen AI and artist rights. How do you tackle that? I believe one of the main areas of dispute we encountered revolved around the use of AI and ensuring that the platform, indeed all platforms, safeguards the integrity and value of human artistry. While we harbour great excitement for the future of AI, it must be employed in a responsible fashion. I can tell you who doesn't own the IP and that's the AI model. We will always fight for the rights of our artists if we feel that a platform is not getting the appropriate permissions to train their models is not being transparent about the outputs of their models, and also making sure that fake artists content is quickly identified and separated out. We have a major problem with a technology that could misappropriate the identities of artists and infringe on their rights. And we'll continue to fight as needed. But I want to stress, we are very optimistic about the potential of AI as it relates to the creative process. But dont these platforms also help in content discoverability and making the songs viral? Of course, if a song or video of ours begins to go viral on a platform, that can be an amazing moment. I wish we were more in control of those moments though. I think it's also important to recognize the distinction between a song and an artist and those viral moments can often lead to a song becoming very popular. But I think it's rare that they then lead to an artist on the other side of it as well. And that's where we have to connect the dots and take perhaps an ember and turn it into a big fire. Despite UMG's leading position in India's non-film music sector, Bollywood music still dominates over half of India's music market. You've ceased involvement in Bollywood music entirely. Is there a possibility of reconsidering your stance on this in the future? There's always a possibility and if the right opportunity presents itself, we will certainly consider it. Over the last couple of decades, we have not been investing in the Bollywood space. But it's certainly something we constantly discuss and evaluate. As I said, we would only consider if the right opportunity presents itself but don't expect us to join the current bidding circus for the evolution of the Bollywood industry. (UMG stopped engaging with Bollywood music industry because it feels that there is no control on the process and you just have to buy it as Devraj Sanyal said, We don't like trading. We don't like a finished end product. And then everyone's in a bidding war, killing each other and we don't like it".) You recently made some senior-level promotions in the India team. What was the reason? I'm really proud of the team here. We have an incredible leader in Devraj, who is so passionate and cares about his people, artists and music. And we have some new promotions as well. Sanujeet (Bhujabal) is elevated to managing director and Viral (Jani) to chief revenue officer at Universal Music India and South Asia. Both will work with Devraj, who can focus on a broader strategy. And he has an excellent team underneath him to execute and grow our core business. Bengaluru: New CEO, new approach. Less than a month after Srinivas Pallia replaced Thierry Delaporte in the corner room of Bengaluru-headquartered Wipro Ltd, the company is attempting to settle lawsuits it had filed against two former senior executives, according to a review of court filings and two executives aware of the development. Jatin Dalal, former chief financial officer of Wipro, and Mohd Ehteshamul Haque, the companys former senior vice president and head of healthcare and medical devices business, were sued by Indias fourth-largest IT services company for breach of employment contracts. Both had joined rival Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp less than 12 months after resigning from Wipro. The company has now initiated processes in the courts to close the lawsuits. Dalal, who quit as CFO on 21 September 2023, joined Teaneck, US-headquartered Cognizant last December. Earlier, in August 2023, Haque had joined Cognizant as its chief commercial officer shortly after leaving Wipro in June 2023. I believe the change of leadership has promulgated a different approach to former executives," said Ray Wang, founder of Constellation Research, a California-based technology research and advisory firm. The services business ultimately comes down to relationships and capability. A combative approach is a short-term approach, not a long-term approach. Great companies know that their alumni can be a great asset when treated well. I believe that Srini and the team are taking a different and wise approach," added Wang. The case details Wipro had sought 25.1 crore in damages from Dalal in a suit filed in Bengaluru civil court. After initially opposing his request for arbitration, as prescribed in the employment contract, Wipro is now working to settle this dispute with its former employee, according to two executives who spoke on condition of anonymity. This (arbitration proceedings) matter should end soon," said one of the executives. I will not get into details of the case but please appreciate that Wipro could see the return of many of its former employees who for various reasons had moved out of the company. No management would want to have these unnecessary distractions of lawsuits against former employees." Email queries sent to Wipros attorney, Lomesh Kiran Nidumuri, partner at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas; and Dalals lawyer, Karan Joseph, Partner at Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co, went unanswered till press time. Separately, on 6 May, Wipro requested a New Jersey Court for 60 days to settle its case with Haque. Plaintiff (Wipro) also wants to inform the Court that the parties (Wipro and Mohd. Haque) have agreed to settle this matter. The parties are still finalizing the settlement agreement and will file a stipulation once the settlement agreement has been executed," Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, the law firm hired by Wipro, said in a filing dated 3 May before the New Jersey court. Emailed queries to Palo Alto-based Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, and Haques legal team representative at Saiber LLC, the New Jersey-based law firm, remained unanswered till press time. Tough task ahead To be sure, analysts and former executives said Pallia faces a difficult task in bringing about a turnaround at Wipro, which ended FY24 with $10.8 billion in revenue, a 3.8% decline. Wipro is at a junction (not an unfamiliar territory) with the risk of a false start," HDFC Securities analysts Apurva Prasad, Vinesh Vala and Amit Chandra wrote in a note dated 20 April. Wipro lags peers across a large number of metrics which cannot be reversed soon. The new CEO is likely to make small tweaks, the repercussions of which may not prolong a good thing (vs. an extended period of senior management attrition earlier)." New Delhi: Piramal Pharma Ltd (PPL), part of the Piramal Group, aims to press ahead with its strategy to grow organically, without actively looking for acquisition opportunities, as the company is keen on first paring its debt, chairperson Nandini Piramal said. The company plans to invest more than 700 crore ($85 million) in brownfield expansion through FY25. This capital expenditure (capex), she revealed, will mostly be assigned towards the contract development and manufacturing organisation (CDMO) segment of the company. Upholding focus The plan for the next year will be to uphold our continued focus on revenue growth, brownfield organic expansion, Ebitda and net debt to Ebitda ratio improvement. And so, for this, the capex will remain the same as last year at around $85 million," Piramal told Mint in an interview. We plan to finance this through internal accruals only and the bulk of this capex will be attributed towards the CDMO business of the company, which will be a mix of maintenance capex as well as some debottlenecking things." Although the core focus remains on organic growth, the company will consider any accretive acquisition opportunities if they come along. But the priority before any acquisition remains on reducing the net debt ratios of the company, and so it remains cautious. The company's net debt to Ebitda ratio as of 31 March 2024 was 2.9 times, lower from 5.6 times at the start of the financial year, as the company cut its debt to 3,932 crore from 4,781 crore at the end of FY23. Refinancing plan The company has plans to refinance its debt, but the process remains only in the planning stages, and it would be too early to comment on its current details," she added. The company earlier had raised 1,050 crore through a rights issue, primarily used for debt repayment. It has managed to cut its net debt by 958 crore since March 2023. Also read | Piramal Alternatives invests 110 cr in Biodeal Pharmaceuticals The Mumbai-based pharma company reported a 102% y-o-y increase in its net profit to 101 crore in January-March on the back of strong revenue growth in the CDMO business. The company posted a Q4 revenue of 2,552 crore, an 18% y-o-y rise, of which 1,649 crore came from the CDMO business. The segment saw a revenue growth of 29%. For the full fiscal year ended 31 March, the company reported a profit of 18 crore, from a loss of 186 crore in FY23, on a revenue of 8,171 crore. The focus remains to do good in all three business segments through FY25; overall we expect early teen growth through the fiscal. The CDMO business will probably witness faster growth than the overall business as our focus remains on growing our on-patent and innovation-related work," she added. Monitoring funding The company continues to monitor the biotech funding space, which has in recent quartes seen an improvement and would further boost its CDMO business. India remains a major contender to be a gainer of the CDMO transition to the eastern hemisphere in the next two decades. The country is the third-largest pharmaceutical producer globally by volume and houses many FDA, WHO, and EDQM-compliant facilities. According to the Indian Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF), India has over 3,000 pharmaceutical companies and more than 10,500 manufacturing plants, with more than 500 API producers accounting for 8% of the global output. India-based research firm Mordor Intelligence estimates the India CMO market size to reach $44.63 billion by 2029, from $22.51 billion in 2024, growing at a CAGR of 14.67% during the period. BENGALURU : Reliance-backed electric vehicle maker Altigreen, unable to raise funds over the past year amid a surgical restructuring, is now chasing a metric thats become the investors darling: profitability. That, however, might be a long and bumpy road. As part of a restructuring in December after the company failed to raise funds last year, Altigreen laid off about 200 employees and cut salaries by 30-40% to pare expenses, two people familiar with its operations told Mint, requesting anonymity. But sales remain a challenge for the maker of electric three-wheelers, they said. Besides, in the 2022-23 financial year, the latest for which data is available, Altigreens losses widened significantly, to 78 crore from 22 crore in the year before, according to data sourced from Tofler. Amitabh Saran, co-founder and chief executive, however, insists that the companys cost-cutting measures have started bearing fruit. Investors in 2024 have been evaluating business plans on the basis of a clear path to profitability of companies," he said. Altigreens bet, taken in September, to focus on profitability (rather than market share), is reaping dividends." Read This | Profitability: The new benchmark for startups seeking investor approval Altigreen has raised a total funding of $39 million, or about 300 crore, so far from investors including Reliance New Energy, Sixth Sense Ventures, Xponentia Capital Partners, Momentum Venture Capital, and Accurant International. Operational challenges Altigreen has been experiencing significant challenges in selling its products due to lack of demand, said the people familiar with the companys operations. In the middle of last year, they were expecting the funding round to happen and all the teams were asked what resources are needed for manufacturing 1,000 vehicles. The company has been struggling with demand. There were no orders coming, so we were only manufacturing 100-200 scooters in a month," said one of these people, a former employee of the company. Altigreen sold 146 vehicles in 2021, 861 in 2022, and 2,519 in 2023, according to data available on Vahan. To put this in perspective, Altigreen's 300,000-sq.ft. plant and warehouse facility in Malur, Karnataka, has a capacity for manufacturing 55,000 three-wheeled cargo vehicles a year, according to information available on its website. India's electric three-wheeler market size reached $1,031.0 million in 2023, according to research platform IMARC group. Saran said the companys increasing revenueto 95 crore in FY23 from 8 crore in the year priorand improving margins following the restructuring will drive profitability. We started this year with a negative (-3%) margin and have steadily moved to a positive (+16%) margin. Our determined efforts continue as we aim to reach a (+29%) margin by 2025." Restructuring and optimization Saran did not comment on the number of people laid off or the quantum of pay cut following the restructuring. Changes in the team are continuous, gradual, and with a determination to reach a stronger, long-term sustainable position," he said in an email response to Mints queries. The automobile industry is unlike the tech or software world where investor capital can be burnt for short-term market share gains, while the company seeks valuation multipliers," he said. Burning investor capital is not the way I run companies. Given FAME subsidy continuation uncertainties, the company began its focus on profitability and building margins for the no subsidy day, which is coming sooner than we think." This included a focus on new product launches, closer supplier partnerships and alliances with battery manufacturers, charging infrastructure providers, and vehicle financing providers, Saran said. Altigreen recently launched two new models, including an electric three-wheeler for passengers. Overall, the company sells seven models of electric three-wheelers. Funding struggles The company has struggled to raise the next funding round amid a slowdown in the larger industry, as investors have become cautious due to external headwinds, said multiple people familiar with the matter. For instance, last year, the companys plan to raise capital fell through. Bloomberg in May 2023 had reported that the EV maker was looking to raise $85 million to ramp up its production. Saran had then confirmed to the publication that the startup was looking to close the round by July. These include uncertainty around the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles (FAME) subsidy, unfavourable pricing of cells last year, and delays in government decisions, such as scrapping mandatory testing parameters introduced in 2022. These factors led to poor sales and delays in the launch of new models across the industry. Investor sentiment took a hit in 2023 but is improving now that it is clear subsidies will gradually shrink, said Saran. He noted that 2022 was plagued with semiconductor issues and 2023 with regulatory changes, including in batteries. We raised approximately 300 crore in March 2022 enough for our scale of companies. The funding climate has its own cycles, and it is difficult to predict global sentiments. Knowing this, startups have to be nimble and plan way ahead (which includes raising funds when you dont necessarily need them)," he said. The startup had raised Series A funding of 300 crore in a round led by Sixth Sense Ventures, which also saw participation from Reliance New Energy, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Reliance Industries Ltd, in 2022. Altigreen has raised a total funding of $39 million so far from investors like Reliance, Sixth Sense Ventures, Xponentia Capital Partners, Momentum Venture Capital, and Accurant International, among others. On the companys fundraise plans, Saran said, We are in constant fund raise mode, and every day is better than the one gone by." Also This: Startup investors are hunting outside unicorn zone Altigreen uses an engineering-first approach and is probably the only EV company that designs, develops, and manufactures all its EV components ourselves, in our plants, using our own proprietary technologies. We have 32 global patents granted to us. Availability of funds is about fiscal management. A startup will try many things in parallel, but should know when and where to focus on, for long-term sustainable growth," he added. Fighting between Israel and Hamas intensified across the Gaza Strip on Monday, as mediators pushed for a resumption of talks to pause fighting and free hostages held in the strip. Israels military conducted ground raids in the northern Gazan areas of Jabalia and Zeitoun, and fought Hamas fighters in the southern city of Rafah. The raids underscored comments by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday that Israel could face a prolonged insurgency even if it routs Hamas in Rafah. Israel has pushed further into Rafah over the past week in what it calls a targeted operation to pressure the U.S.-designated terrorist group into a deal that releases hostages in return for a temporary cease-fire. But the tactic so far has brought only more intense fighting, including in parts of Gaza where the Israeli military previously said it cleared militants. Cease-fire negotiations, mediated by Egypt, Qatar and the U.S., also have stalled. Still, Arab mediators hope to narrow the gaps between the two sides and expect to reconvene in Doha, Qatar, this week, Egyptian officials said. The fighting on Monday came as Israel marked its annual memorial day to remember fallen service members, and ahead of celebrations that commemorate the establishment of the country in 1948 and begin at sundown. Israel is applying military pressure on Hamas in Rafah in an attempt to secure the release of hostages and aims to enter the city to destroy four of the groups military battalions, Netanyahu said in a podcast recorded Sunday. Were very close to achieving the destruction of the remaining Hamas battalions, he said. Thats a precondition for victory. About 130 hostages remain in Gaza from the 240 abducted by Hamas and other Palestinian militants in the Oct. 7 attack that killed 1,200 Israelis, according to Israeli authorities. Israels subsequent operation in Gaza has caused the deaths of 35,000 people, local health authorities say, figures that dont distinguish between civilians and combatants. Since Israel began its targeted operation in Rafah last week, more than 300,000 Palestinians have fled the city and a deteriorating humanitarian crisis there has heaped fresh international pressure on Netanyahu to end the war. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant Sunday evening to reiterate U.S. opposition to a major ground operation in Rafah, where until last week more than a million people had taken refuge from fighting elsewhere in the strip. President Biden also is threatening to hold up additional weapons sales to Israel if it continues to defy American concerns. When and whether Israels operation in Rafah constitutes a major ground operation is unclear. The conflict is also creating major friction between Israel and Egypt, erstwhile enemies that signed a historic peace deal in 1979. Egypt on Sunday said it would intervene in support of South Africas case accusing Israel of genocide at the International Court of Justice, citing concerns about the growing scale of Israels operations in Gaza. As a result of the fighting in Rafah, the Egyptian crossing at the border city has largely been closed. Military positions near the other important gateway into southern Gaza, Israels Kerem Shalom terminal, have faced rocket barrages by Hamas. The Health Ministry in Gaza said Monday that a worsening lack of fuel meant it couldnt power generators in hospitals and ambulances. Egypt is blocking any humanitarian-aid trucks originating in its country from entering Gaza through Kerem Shalom, according to Egyptian officials. Cairo was angered that Israel gave it short notice before seizing the Gaza side of the Rafah border crossing last week, and has threatened to cease acting as a mediator in the negotiations and suspend its peace treaty with Israel, the officials said. Husam Badran, a senior Hamas official, said Sunday that Israels operation in Rafah was a rebellion against the world. Given international pressure on Israel not to be too heavy-handed in Rafah, the country and its military face a difficult trade-off: Too much force and a high number of civilian deaths will elicit more condemnation and weaken Israels international position, but too little force may not defeat Hamas. At present, Israel is not pressuring Hamas enough to put them in a dilemma whether to release hostages, said Amir Avivi, a former deputy commander in the Israeli military who oversaw operations in Gaza. The only way to force a cease-fire deal, Avivi said, is to threaten Hamas existentially. The group is not going to be threatened existentially without a massive incursion into Rafah, he said. The fighting elsewhere in Gaza has again highlighted how the seeming lack of an Israeli postwar plan for the strip is affecting the war. The U.S. has warned that Hamas would likely continue to fill the power vacuum until Israel brings in an alternative authority to the group. The U.S. wants a revitalized Palestinian Authority, which governs in the West Bank, to take control in Gaza. But Netanyahu has said he wont accept it in the strip. In the podcast Sunday, the Israeli prime minister suggested Israel was bracing for a long insurgency in Gaza. He said the militarys first job was to destroy the Hamas battalions at Rafah and mop up any other fighters. Israel would then have to demilitarize the strip and enter a period when Hamas would launch periodic attacks, and thats going to be a while, he said. Netanyahu in parallel said he hoped that Israel could work with local Gazans to manage civilian affairs with support from other Arab countries, an option Palestinian leaders have dismissed and some within Israels military have said is unrealistic. First, victory, Netanyahu said. There is no substitute for victory. Quebec and Vermont are their nations respective champions of maple-syrup making. It isnt a fair fight. Vermont, about 9,600 square miles, has maple as the official state flavor" and boasts of more than six million sugar maple and red maple trees on tap. Quebec is a 595,000-square-mile province in a country that features a maple leaf on its national flag and hosts a maple-syrup cartel. Its 50 million syrup-producing maple trees yield around 72% of the worlds supply. Quebecs Global Maple Syrup Strategic Reservethree high-security warehouses big enough to hold 221,000 barrelsallows the cartel to regulate global prices. Without much argument, Quebec is known as the Saudi Arabia of maple syrup. Vermonter Pat Leclaire isnt particularly impressed. I was talking to a producer up in Quebec, and I said you guys make the quantity, but we make the quality," said Leclaire, 68 years old. He runs a maple farm of 1,200 trees in Charlotte, Vt., and started making maple syrup on his familys farm when he was 8. Leclaire sticks to the old-fashioned ways. He uses a wood fire to slowly boil the water of the maple sap, leaving behind the glutinous sweetener. I compare boiling sap to Italian cooking, he said. The longer it stays in the pan and its boiling, the more caramelization of the sugars takes place. We feel like we get a more robust maple taste." Around 100 miles north, in rural Quebec, 64-year-old David Hall also learned to boil maple-tree sap into thick, amber-color syrup as a boy, sitting with his family around a crackling fire on early spring days. He now runs a modern operation. Miles of plastic tubes attached to vacuum pumps lead to an assembly line of reverse osmosis machines, oil-fueled evaporators and filter presses that turn the sap from 15,000 maple trees into syrup shipped around the world. Theres always going to be people who want it the old-fashioned way," Hall said. But we dont milk our cows by hand anymore. Its the evolution of the business." Hall makes more syrup at a lower cost than the traditional method his family practiced when they entered the business in the 1860s. People wouldnt be able to afford syrup if he made it the old way, he said. Among the advances helping Quebec dominate maple-syrup making is wide use of the reverse osmosis machine, which separates the water from the sugar in sap, replacing the slow-boil method. The machines can increase syrup yield by 200%, said Aaron Wightman, co-director of Cornell Universitys Maple Program, which researches maple syrup production. For people that want to make a full-time business out of making maple syrup, thats the trade off," Wightman said. Its not grandpa sitting here in his flannels, enjoying himself, smoking a pipe." Harry Kessels wears noise-canceling headphones when he checks his maple-syrup operation in the backwoods of Ontario, Canada. I wont go into my sugar shack without them," he said. The loud whir and clang of machinery turning sap from 12,000 trees into syrup is the sound of the modern maple farm," Kessels said. Leclaire and other traditionalists say modern processing robs syrup of some flavor. Others disagree. Scientists at the University of Vermonts Proctor Maple Research Center conducted blind taste tests from 2008 to 2011 to settle the matter. Researchers asked 26 people to taste maple syrup made from the same sap using reverse osmosis machines as well as traditional methods. They concluded that tasters couldnt tell the difference, said Abby van den Berg, who led the study. Europeans landing in North America watched indigenous people harvest maple-tree sap. They learned to bore holes into the bark and collect sap as it dripped into buckets hanging below. Its very seductive," said Lewis Coty, 72, a Vermont maple-syrup maker who learned the old ways. For the first 10 years, Coty carried buckets on a yoke up a big hill at his sugar farm in the Green Mountains east of Lake Champlain. He started his business in 1976 on a whim and made ends meet as a carpenter. Sugaring tends to be high on romance and low on profitability," he said. Coty didnt turn a profit until he abandoned the buckets for plastic tubes, vacuum pumps and reverse osmosis machines. It cost him several hundred thousand dollars for a system to accommodate 10,000 trees. It took several years for the investment to pay off. The taste of his syrup got better, Coty said. Emma Marvin taps 30,000 maple trees on her 860-acre Butternut Mountain Farm, about an hours drive northeast of Burlington, Vt. Her father started the business and was an early adopter of vacuum pumps, which use air pressure to draw more sap from the trees. Marvin now uses all the latest equipment. In her backyard, though, Marvin used buckets to collect sap from taps in four backyard maple trees. She boiled the sap over a fire pit. It looked awful," Marvin said. But it tasted phenomenal. Im sure some of it was the effort that made it taste so delicious." Write to Vipal Monga at vipal.monga@wsj.com Polycab India Ltds shares are up 11% in the past two trading sessions, having hit a new 52-week high of 6,468.90 on Monday. The reason is simple. Investors are upbeat about the strong March quarter (Q4FY24), which saw the company gain market share and grow its volumes. The wires and cables business, which contributed 87% of consolidated gross total segment revenues in FY24, was the star of the show in Q4, clocking 19% year-on-year growth. This was due to a resurgent domestic market, which saw government and private investments, and a real-estate boom. Polycabs strategic initiatives solidified its market share to 25-26% of the domestic organised market. The upshot of this was that the earnings before interest and tax (Ebit) margin in the wires and cables business was higher than anticipated at 15.1% in Q4, thanks to better operating efficiency and product mix, and reduced marketing expenses. Management guided for a sustainable Ebit margin of 12-13% in the long term. On the other hand, one-time charges hurt the profitability of Polycab's fast moving electrical goods (FMEG) business, which contributed 7% of revenue, and Ebit loss mounted in Q4. Going forward, the management aims to improve FMEG profitability through increased volumes and a focus on higher-margin products such as switches and switchgear. Also read: FMEG Industry: Wire and cable stocks offer a huge opportunity; should you invest? Overall, though, Polycab is brimming with optimism. Anticipating strong demand for cables, the company has increased its annual capex from 600-700 crore to 1,000-1,100 crore for the next two to three years. The company has targeted 20,000 crore in total revenue by FY26 but could well achieve this sooner, having already crossed 18,000 crore in FY24. Tax troubles Investors have taken note. Over the past year the stock has gained as much as 90%, leaving behind fears of regulatory overhang. Reports in January that the Income Tax Department had searched several premises of the company the previous month hurt the stock, but it has recovered smartly since then. Polycabs management has said the tax department has asked it for certain details and that it is in the process of compiling them. In the absence of any communication from the tax authorities, the markets have clearly assumed that Polycab does not face any material risk on the regulatory front," said a report by Kotak Institutional Equities. While this assumption may indeed be proven right, the governance factor remains an overhang in our minds," it added. Also read: Polycab share price tanks on reports of over 200-crore tax evasion, companies denies allegations Despite the strong prospects, investors should keenly monitor the margins in the core business, the turnaround in the FMEG business, and any tax liabilities that may accrue in the coming year. Matthew Gallelli with SRI International operates a Cloud Aerosol Research Instrument during a geoengineering field study that launched aboard the aircraft carrier Hornet in Alameda on April 2. The work has been halted by the city of Alameda, which is citing health and safety concerns. Yalonda M. James/The Chronicle The city of Alameda has ordered the University of Washington to halt a controversial marine cloud brightening experiment on the USS Hornet a decommissioned aircraft carrier and connected museum citing health and environmental safety concerns. In a May 4 Facebook post, city of Alameda officials wrote that the experiment was taking place without the Citys knowledge on the deck of the USS Hornet. Research began on April 2, and the Chronicle documented a demonstration of the experiments. The study, a first-of-its-kind nationally, is aimed at slowing global warming by reflecting sunlight back to space. The Chronicle obtained an April 16 letter sent from Alameda city manager Jennifer Ott addressed to Laura Fies, executive director at the USS Hornet museum Advertisement Article continues below this ad The City's findings are that the testing component of the (marine cloud brightening) program taking place on the USS Hornet is in violation of the permitted use under the lease agreement, Ott wrote. The Alameda Post first reported the news. The University of Washington Marine Cloud Brightening Research Program wrote in an email that the city of Alameda was informed of the plans for the atmospheric science educational exhibit in advance, at the USS Hornets Sea, Air and Space Museum. Following news articles in early April, City officials were made more closely aware of the research studies taking place and requested a more detailed review. Prior to the Citys posting, our team had already agreed to pause our studies for a period while they undertook this review, the researchers wrote. According to the Apr. 16 letter, researchers voluntarily paused the experiments on Apr. 11 after city officials visited the site Advertisement Article continues below this ad The city of Alameda said it has hired a consulting firm to independently assess whether the microscopic chemical compounds pose a respiratory hazard to humans or animals. The results of the assessment will be presented to the Alameda City Council on June 4, during which the council will hear public comment on the research, and determine whether the work is in line with the city's lease, according to city of Alameda spokeswoman Sarah Henry. The council will vote the same day to decide if the experiments can continue. At this time, there is no indication that the spray from the previous experiments presented a threat to human health or the environment, the city of Alameda said in its statement. A plume of salt water floats in the air on the Hornet, where scientists had recently been studying marine cloud brightening. Yalonda M. James/The Chronicle Kelly Wanser, the projects senior advisor, told the Chronicle in April that aerosol emissions from the experiment were within regulatory thresholds for air quality. Wanser said the team alerted the local air quality authorities as a precaution. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The Coastal Atmospheric Aerosol Research and Engagement (CAARE) facility aboard the USS Hornet is led by scientists at the University of Washington, along with SRI International, Silver Lining, and multiple other institutions. The field research, in its initial stages, was originally planned to last through summer, with the goal of artificially replicating naturally-occuring sea spray, similar to what occurs at the beach when waves break. Scientists told the Chronicle that the spray is composed of water and pressurized microscopic salt particles. Microscopic sea salt aerosols act as the seed for water vapor particles in marine clouds that hang along the California coast and in the Bay Area. Hypothetically, increasing the concentration of small sea salt particles in a cloud could reflect more sunlight back to space. This local or regional cooling could offset some effects of climate change as anthropogenic carbon dioxide levels continue to rise to dangerous levels. Scientists involved in the Alameda study said the work is small scale and would not alter weather patterns in the East Bay. We continue to appreciate our engagement with the community on the nature of this type of research study, which we do not consider an experiment, as it is not designed to impact clouds, the environment or climate. We appreciate the Citys care regarding this effort and support their approach fully. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) stakes in NSE-listed companies declined significantly in the previous quarter, hitting an 11-year low of 17.7%. This 0.5% drop from 18.2% in the previous quarter highlights a shift in investor sentiment. Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) bucked this trend, though, with net inflows of 1 trillion, taking their shareholding to a record high of 16.1% in March. This increase, from 15.9% in December, narrowed the gap between FII and DII holdings to an all-time low. DIIs holdings are now just 9.2% below those of FIIs. A select group of companies also defied the FII selling trend, attracting significant foreign inflows. Here are five such firms. #1 Pricol Pricol is the world's second-largest maker ofdriver information systems for two-wheelers, with a market share of more than 50% in India. It is also the fourth-largest firm of its kind worldwide in the commercial-vehicles (CVs) and offroad-vehicles segment, with a market share of more than 70% in driver information systems for CVs. The latest shareholding figures for Pricol indicate a notable uptick in FII ownership, up from 6.5% in the December quarter to 14.4% in the March quarter, reflecting a substantial increase of 7.9%. DIIs increased their stake by 9.7% from 6.9% in the December quarter to 16.6% in the March quarter. This could be because Pricol is making strong inroads in the electric-vehicle segment and making itself future-ready through collaborations with startups. It is also the sole supplier to TVS for its iQUBE electric scooter. To deepen its presence in the EV space,the company has signed an international licensing agreement with BMSPowerSafeto manufacture and sell a battery management system (BMS) for the Indian market. Through this partnership, Pricol will licence the product and technology from BMS PowerSafe and manufacture it in-house.Thiswill allow the company to offer a pure-play EV product. The management said in a recent conference call thatgrowth was affected by lower production of EVs and deferment of schedules owing to the FAME subsidy issue. Going forward, the company is targeting at least 20% growth over the next three to four years. Pricol stock View Full Image Source: BSE #2 PSP Projects PSP Projects offers various services for construction projects in India. It caters tosegments such as industrial, institutional, government and residential, and is known for its timely execution and ability to bid for high-value projects. The most recent shareholding data for PSP Projects shows a significant 4.3% increase in FIIs stake, from 2.3% in the December quarter to 6.6% in the March quarter. DIIs increased their stake by 4.2%, from 4.6% in the December quarter to 9.2% in the March quarter.. This surge in investor interest could be due to the company's consecutive order wins.In January, PSP Projects was the lowest bidder for a dairy plant development project in Rajkot, Gujarat, valued at nearly 4.5 billion.On 15 February, it secured another order worth 6.3 billion in Gujarat for the construction of aGati Shakti Vishwavidhyalaya at Vadodara for Rail Vikas Nigam. This project is expected to be completed in two-and-a-half years. The Ahmedabad-based firm previously expected to have earned revenue of 25-26 billion in FY24 and had targeted 30 billion in FY25. Recently, though, it said it was confident of surpassing 30 billion in revenue in FY24 and would set a target of 36 billion for FY25. PSP Projects stock View Full Image Source: BSE #3 Aavas Financiers The company provides housing loans to customers in the low-income, middle-income and self-employed segments in suburban and rural India. The latest shareholding pattern of Aavas Financiers reveals a notable increase in FIIs stake, which rose 2.5% from 32.3% in the December quarter to 34.8% in the March quarter. DIIs increased their stake by a substantial 8.7%, from 15.3% in the December quarter to 24% in the March quarter. This increase in investor interest could be attributed to the company's robust performance in the December quarter. Aavas Financiers reported a 23.5% year-on-year (yoy) increase in revenue to 5.1 billion, with net profit rising 8.95% to 1.2 billion. The company also has as trong long-term outlook, with loan grow expected to improve once its technology rollout is complete. The company is also looking to diversify its loan-sourcing channels by connecting with local sourcing ecosystems rather than relying on direct sourcing channels, and plans to increase the number of branches by 10%. It has also already tied upwith e-mitra, the Rajasthan government's network, to offer various services. The company is targeting loan growth at the top end of its 20-25% guidance. Aavas Financiers stock View Full Image Source: BSE #4 Tips Industries The company produces and distributes motion pictures, and acquires and monetises music rights. Its latest shareholding pattern reveals a 1.2% uptick in FII ownership, from 0.9% in the December quarter to 2.1% in the March quarter. DIIs increased their stake by 7.3%, from 0.9% in the December quarter to 8.2% in the March quarter. This could be due to the company's robust performance in the December quarter. Despite facing stiffer competition in the content-acquisition market, Tips achieved 27% growth in revenue while profits surged by 72%. The board declared an interim dividend of 3 per share. The company recently announced a programme to buy back 0.6 million equity shares for 625 each ( 372 million in total), a significant premium over the current market price of 500. Warner Music has also extended its partnership with Tips Industries for another four years. The company will focus on acquiring more content from external sources to drive future growth. Tips Industries stock View Full Image Source: BSE #5 Dixon Technologies Dixon Technologies is a multinational electronics manufacturing and services company that offers design-focused solutions in consumer durables, home appliances, lighting, mobile phones and security devices. Its strength is in large-scale, cost-effective manufacturing, which has the potential to drive wider adoption of photonics-based products such as lasers, cameras and sensors in India. Recent shareholding data reveals a 0.5% rise in FII ownership, from 17.4% in the December quarter to 17.9% in the March quarter. DIIs increased their stake by 0.6%, from 26.4% in the December quarter to 27% in the March quarter. Several factors could be responsible for this. First, Dixon Technologies saw its revenue from operations double to 48.2 billion, driven by increased demand for smartphones in India, which bolstered its mobile and electronics manufacturing business. The company reported impressive 86% growth in the December quarter, benefiting from surging demand for electronic gadgets and the rapid expansion of electronics manufacturing in India. Dixon Technologies has renewed its focus on the governments production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for the mobile manufacturing sector and proposed the introduction of a fresh PLI for electronic components. The company recently signed a share purchase agreement with Ismartu Pte Ltd, aiming to acquire up to 56% equity in the latter in two tranches. This strategic move aligns with Dixon's expansion goals in the segment. The company now plans to expand its product range to position itself for continued growth in electronics manufacturing. Dixon Technologies stock View Full Image Source: BSE Conclusion FII and DII buying activity might be tempting to imitate as their huge research teams and access to information could help uncover strong fundamentals or growth potential. However, it's important to remember that their investment strategies may not align with your own financial goals, risk tolerance, or investment horizon. FIIs and DIIs often have different objectives, time frames, and risk appetitesthan individual investors. They could be investing for short-term gains, long-term growth, or to meet specific portfolio requirements. Also, by the time FII and DII investments are publicly disclosed, the stock price may already have moved, potentially reducing the upside potential and increasing the risk. Therefore, you should conduct your own research to ensure the company aligns with your investment goals and risk tolerance. Disclaimer: This article is for information purposes only. It is not a stock recommendation and should not be treated as such. This article is syndicated from Equitymaster.com ACE Software Exports (Ace) has given multibagger returns this year so far as well as in the last one year. The stock has skyrocketed 300 percent in 2024 YTD from 41.28 in December 2023 to touch its record high of 165.15 in intra-day deals. It hit its 2 percent upper circuit for the seventh straight session today. Meanwhile, it has soared over 743 percent in the last one year. This recent surge has led to the stock soaring over 849 percent from its 52-week low of 17.40, hit on July 21, 2023. This year so far, the scrip has given positive returns in 4 of the 5 months to date. The stock has risen 14.5 percent in May following an over 58 percent surge in April. However, it fell 8 percent in April. Meanwhile, it was also positive in the first 2 months of this year, gaining over 51 percent in February and 58.5 percent in January 2024. Read here: Multibagger Stock: Swadeshi Polytex gained over 10000% in just 5 years, rose 6140% in 3 years However, it is important to note that the stock is currently trading under ESM: Stage 2 In the long term as well, the stock has given multibagger returns, rallying 634 percent in the last 5 years, from 22.50 in May 2019; and 828 percent in the last 3 years from 17.79 in May 2021. What is ESM? The Enhanced Surveillance Measure (ESM) is a regulatory framework implemented by the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in India. It aims to enhance monitoring and surveillance of listed companies to ensure investor protection and market integrity. Under Stage I, the trading of the securities is settled through a trade-for-trade mechanism with a price band of 5 percent, or 2 percent. Under Stage II, the surveillance action permits trading on all trading days under periodic call auctions with trade-for-trade settlement and a 2 percent price band. Earlier this stage permitted trading just once a week. Read here: Virat Kohli, Anushka Sharma to make multibagger return of 263% via Go Digit IPO About the firm Ace Software Exports Limited, together with its subsidiaries, provides document management, digital publishing, and data conversion solutions using process engineering and conversion systems in India. The company also offers digital content; and publishing services, which include pre-press, e-book formatting, editorial, cover design, and document conversion, as well as distributes and markets content through social media and print-on-demand platforms. In addition, it provides technology consulting and develops applications, websites, software, IT infrastructure, workflow improvement, and project management. It serves publishers and other organisations. The company was founded in 1987 and is based in Rajkot, India. Earnings In the December quarter (Q4FY24), the net profit of Ace surged 775 percent year-on-year (YoY) to 2.8 crore from 0.32 crore in Q3FY23. Meanwhile, its total income also jumped 114 percent YoY to 5.1 crore in the quarter under review as against 2.38 crore in the same quarter last year. Read here: This multibagger stock soared 345% in less than 5 months! Should you invest? Brokerage view According to ICICI Direct's analysis, Ace exhibits several positive factors contributing to its strong momentum in the market. One of the key positives of Ace Software, as per the brokerage, is the MACD crossover above the signal line, indicating a bullish trend in the stock's price movement. Additionally, the promoter holding has increased by more than 2 percent quarter-on-quarter, reflecting confidence in the company's prospects. Furthermore, the stock exhibits strong momentum, with its price trading above both short-term, medium-term, and long-term moving averages, suggesting sustained upward momentum in the stock's performance, noted ICICI. Meanwhile, its weaknesses, as per the brokerage are - - The company's other income is rising while operating income is low. - Declining Net Cash Flow: The company is not able to generate net cash. - Book Value Per Share of the company has been deteriorating for the last 2 years. Read here: Multibagger Stock: Hitachi Energy records 144% surge in a year, up 1235% from 2020 low Investing in shares of small companies with low market capitalisation presents the potential for significant gains owing to their lower stock prices. However, this investment avenue comes with notable risks. Such stocks often suffer from limited liquidity, leading to fewer transactions compared to larger counterparts. Moreover, they typically lack the stringent financial reporting and oversight seen in larger corporations, rendering them susceptible to price manipulation and fraudulent activities. Given their restricted liquidity and diminished oversight, stocks of small companies frequently exhibit heightened volatility, amplifying risks for investors. Therefore, conducting thorough research and implementing careful risk management strategies are imperative to navigate the uncertainties associated with these stocks and mitigate potential losses. In Bengali, macher tel literally translates to fish oil. Sometimes it also refers to the skin of the fish. But it usually means innards, which consist of some fat, liver, intestines and gallbladder of the fish. Entrails if you may call it, or say, offal. Some might say it is ugly delicious. Large-sized freshwater carps such as rohu and catla are packed with the best fish fat. Macher tel is loved for its complex depth of flavour. It is buttery, textural and all kinds of umami. But it does not enjoy the same status as that of a chingri malaikari or kosha mangsho. It is neither cooked on special occasions, nor does it feature on any restaurant menus. Is it because eating rejected organs of a fish is not commonly associated with a cuisine often celebrated for its abundance? It is deeply cultural given the prevalence of nose-to-tail eating practice in Bengal, where a generation of home cooks continue to demonstrate an uncanny knack for cooking with kitchen discards. My mother can effortlessly put peels of bottle gourd, potato skins and cauliflower stalks, fish heads and innards to precise use. Macher tel is no different. She cooks it with brinjals and potatoes in a greasy chorchori (a mishmash of sorts), or as crisp fritters (bora), that we relish with steaming hot rice coated with lashings of the oil they are fried in. Recipes such as these are rarely documented, and passed down from one family to another. Maa learned to repurpose innards from her mother, and tells me she has never encountered a recipe in traditional cookbooks. Also read: For chef Massimo Bottura food is all about art and poetry I dont have a clear memory of eating fish fat for the first time. But I remember the times when Id rush home hungry after school to find it on the lunch menu. I knew I could make a meal out of it with a mountain of rice, and skip the mundane dal. When I moved to Delhi for college, I missed everything Maa cooked, especially the everyday food that I had come to take for granted. The heart craved for familiar flavours in a city that was far too distant to call home. And therefore, almost like telepathy, it was always macher teler chorchori that shed cook for lunch on the day I returned home for vacations. Macher tel is also a tricky subject in my family. On days my father returns home from the fish market feeling rather triumphant about his prized catch, only to realise he forgot to ask for the tel, can tick off my mother. Being offal, many vendors dont pack it along with the fish, unless instructed, and often sell it separately. I started cooking it after my big move to Mumbai more than a decade ago. Married life meant taking over the kitchen, and somehow cooking became the perfect escape from the humdrum of a hectic city life. Since I did not learn to cook standing next to Maa (as I was rarely allowed in the kitchen and left home after finishing school), I picked up all the wizardry over repeated phone calls to her. Before I could realise it, I was at the Andheri Four Bungalows fish market, patiently waiting for my turn to instruct the vendor to pack some macher tel along with my regular purchase of rohu or catla. The fella I came to trust always obliges me under the watchful eyes of the probashi Bangali men gathered around his giant bonti (a traditional knife fixed to a wooden board). Over the years the act has made me own my cultural identity, and most importantly, value a practice that celebrates the ingenuity of kitchen waste. A few years ago, I posted a picture of macher teler chorchori on Instagram. Anticipating some backlash, I was pleasantly surprised to discover a community of individuals typically from North-east India that relished fish innards. While Mumbai-based Assamese food chronicler Gitika Saikia told me about masor petu bhoja, which she cooks like a fried rice with onions, garlic and green chillies, my Naga friend Maongka Longchar shared her stir fry recipe with dried bamboo shoot, smoked chillies along with other aromatics. To be able to connect through our shared culinary heritage provided a sense of belonging. Recipe for Macher Teler Chorchori Ingredients 200 gms macher tel (fish innards or fish fat from any big carp) 1 medium brinjal, diced in small cubes 1 big potato, diced in small cubes 2 onions, finely chopped 5-6 garlic pods, crushed 2 tbsp mustard oil A pinch of turmeric 2-3 green chillies Salt as per taste Method Clean and wash the macher tel thoroughly. Marinate it with salt and turmeric. Heat the oil and fry the potatoes first. Keep them aside once half cooked. Now fry the brinjal until it acquires a golden brown colour. Keep it aside. In the same oil, add the garlic followed by the onions. Fry for a few minutes, and then tip in the macher tel. Cook this for a few minutes. Now add the potatoes and brinjal, and bring everything together. Add the green chillies too. Continue to cook on low heat. Season the mixture, and check if the potatoes are cooked. Serve it with hot rice. Tip: You may find the mixture oily at the end of the cook. It is actually the fat that dissolves due to heat. With your ladle, collect the entire mixture in one corner of the kadai (wok) to drain off the excess. You can use this oil to make fish curry. China has reclaimed its position as India's largest trading partner, surpassing the United States after two years, according to the latest figures released by the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI). In the fiscal year 2024, India's bilateral trade with China totalled $118.4 billion, with imports rising by 3.24% to $101.7 billion and exports increasing by 8.7% to $16.67 billion. Conversely, trade between India and the US experienced a slight decline. Two-way trade totalled $118.3 billion in FY24, with Indian exports dropping by 1.32% to $77.5 billion and imports decreasing by 20% to $40.8 billion. India's economic ties with China have been under close scrutiny due to a heavy reliance on Chinese imports in critical sectors such as telecommunications, pharmaceuticals, and advanced technology. The GTRI report highlighted significant dependence, noting, "India imported $4.2 billion worth of telecom and smartphone parts, accounting for 44 per cent of total imports in this category, indicating significant reliance on Chinese components. Laptops and PCs imports from China totalled $3.8 billion, making up 77.7 per cent of Indias imports in this sector." In response, India has implemented various measures to reduce this dependency, including production-linked incentive schemes (PLI), anti-dumping duties, and quality control orders. Additionally, India's import of lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles, primarily from China, was valued at $2.2 billion, representing 75% of such imports, underscoring the critical role China plays in Indias push towards electrification of transport. The report also compared other significant trading relationships, noting substantial changes in trade dynamics with countries like Russia and Saudi Arabia. Russia's trade figures have seen a dramatic increase, with exports growing by 78.3% and imports soaring by 952%, leading to a significantly widened trade deficit. The temples in Kerala have banned offerings of Arali flowers (oleander) in sacred rituals after a decision by two major temple administration boards following the death of a woman in Alappuzha district. In Kerala, oleander is known as Arali and kanaveeram, and grows in different colours and varieties. Decision by two boards The decision to ban oleander flowers was taken by the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB), which is entrusted with the task of administrating 1,248 temples, and the Malabar Devaswom Board with over 1,400 temples under its jurisdiction. Why oleander is banned According to a PTI report, the decision was made after incidents were reported in Alappuzha and Pathanamthitta. In Alappuzha, a woman allegedly died after consuming some Arali flowers and leaves by mistake. A cow and calf also reportedly died in Pathanamthitta last week after eating oleander leaves. Nurse died due to accidental oleander poisoning According to the Indian Express, Surya Surendran (24), a nurse who was set to leave for the UK on April 28, died prima facie due to accidental oleander poisoning. On April 28, she chewed some leaves of the oleander plant, which grew outside her house in Alappuzha's Pallipad. After that, she developed uneasiness and vomited a few times. Later that day, she collapsed at the Kochi airport and died a couple of days later at a hospital, according to the report. Substitute for oleander Flowers like tulsi, thechi (Ixora), jasmine, jamanti (hibiscus), and rose will be used instead of oleander in temples. What Travancore Devaswom Board says It has been decided to completely avoid using Arali flowers in the naivedya and prasad offerings in temples under the TDB, PTI quoted PS Prasanth, the president of the TDB, as saying. Malabar Devaswom Board follows suit Although the Arali flower is not widely used in rituals in temples, its use is banned, considering the safety of devotees. Studies have found that the flower contains toxic substances, MR Murali, Malabar Devaswom Board President, told PTI. Medicinal properties The Indian Express report said that according to Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia of India, an oil prepared from the root bark can be used to treat skin diseases. The Maldivian government on Monday, May 13, thanked India for extending vital budget support to the Island nation, and termed it a true gesture of goodwill. The development, just days after Maldivian Foreign Minister Moosa Zameer visited India and met External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar, signals a notable shift in a relationship between two countries. "I thank EAM @DrSJaishankar and the Government of #India for extending vital budgetary support to Maldives with the rollover of USD 50 million Treasury Bill," said Moosa in a post on X. "This is a true gesture of goodwill which signifies the longstanding friendship between Maldives and India," he added. On Monday, the Island nation said that the Indian government has provided a budget support of USD 50 million to the Maldives. "The support was in the form of a rollover of USD 50 million Treasury Bill, for an additional year, through the State Bank of India, Male, from 13 May 2024," said Maldivian foreign ministry in a statement. Stating that the Government of Maldives is highly appreciative of the generous support that Government of India has been providing to the Maldives in the form of budgetary support, Maldives said, "Large number of infrastructural developmental projects and High Impact Community Developmental projects are underway with the assistance from the Government of India, which consists of a notable part as grant assistance. It added that the country looks forward in continuing this collaborative partnership for the mutual benefit and prosperity of their people. During his India visit on May 8, Moosa said that derogatory remarks against India shouldn't have been made and Maldives was taking proper action" to ensure that they are not repeated. Defense Minister Ghassan Maumoon confirmed shortcomings in the Maldivian military's aviation capabilities, shortly after the departure of 76 Indian defence personnel, who had been stationed in the Maldives to operate two helicopters and a Dornier aircraft. The Indian forces left at the request of Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu, amid diplomatic tensions between Maldives and India. Ghassan acknowledged during a press conference at the Presidents Office that though some Maldivian National Defense Force (MNDF) members have started flying training, none were yet qualified to operate the aircraft provided by the Indian military. As it was a training that required passing various stages, our soldiers had not reached completion due to various reasons. Therefore, there arent any people in our force at the moment who are licensed or fully operational to fly the two helicopters and Dornier aircraft, Ghassan stated, according to the Adhadhu.com news portal. This confession contrasts sharply with the claims of key officials of the new administration, who have criticised the previous government for its mismanagement. These officials have asserted that the MNDF had competent pilots, challenging Ghassan's statements, as per the Firstpost report. The helicopters and aircraft, supplied during the terms of former presidents Mohamed Nasheed, Abdulla Yameen, and Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, were intended primarily for training Maldivian personnel. However, the current status reveals that this training is incomplete. Foreign Minister Moosa Zameer emphasised on Saturday that the agreement to replace the Indian army with civilians included provisions for local pilot training, indicating ongoing efforts to develop Maldivian aviation capabilities despite current limitations, the report added. Flight operations were affected at the Mumbai international airport on Monday in the wake of heavy rainfall and dust storms in the financial capital. Several airlines, including SpiceJet and Indigo, issued advisories for their passengers. Vistara shared information about four Mumbai-bound flights which were diverted due to the bad weather. Due to the inclement weather and dust storms in the city, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) temporarily suspended flight operations for around 66 minutes due to low visibility and gusty winds. Operations resumed at 17:03 hrs. During this time, the airport witnessed 15 diversions, Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) said in a statement. Check your flight status: Advisory issued Indigo, a low-cost airline, also warned on X that "potential air traffic congestion is expected" due to the dust storm in Mumbai. The airline asked flyers to "keep a tab on their flight status". The dust storm has returned, this time over Mumbai. Potential air traffic congestion is expected, so keep a tab on your flight status https://bit.ly/3DNYJqj Plan your journey to the airport accordingly and have a safe trip, Indigo tweeted. SpiceJet, another low-cost airline, posted on X, Due to bad weather in Mumbai (BOM), all departures/arrivals and their consequential flights may get affected. Passengers are requested to keep a check on their flight status via http://bit.ly/2tG9xBx. List of Mumbai-bound flights diverted Vistara also took to X to share an update on its flight operations. In a series of posts, the airlines informed about Mumbai-bound flights which were diverted due to bad weather in the region. It said: 1. Flight UK272 from Male to Mumbai (MLE-BOM) has been diverted to Goa (GOX) due to bad weather at Mumbai airport and is expected to arrive in Goa at 1720 hours. 2. Flight UK562 from Jaipur to Mumbai (JAI-BOM) has been diverted to Goa (GOX) due to bad weather at Mumbai airport and is expected to arrive in Goa at 1720 hours. 3. Flight UK522 Coimbatore to Mumbai (CJB-BOM) has been diverted to Ahmedabad (AMD) due to bad weather at Mumbai airport and is expected to arrive in Ahmedabad at 1735 hours. 4. Flight UK620 Dehradun to Mumbai (DED-BOM) has been diverted to Vadodara (BDQ) due to bad weather at Mumbai airport and has arrived in Vadodara (BDQ) at 1745 hours. Mumbai rains: Check IMD's weather update here Mumbai, Thane and other adjoining areas received rainfall, accompanied with dust storms, lightning, gusty winds and thunder on Monday afternoon, bringing a major relief from the scorching heat. In its local forecast for Mumbai city and suburbs for the next 24 hours, the regional meteorological centre said in a post on X in Marathi, "Unsettled cloudy sky with possibility of light rain/thundershower in evening/night. Maximum and minimum temperatures will be around 35C and 28C respectively." Earlier in the day, Mumbai's weather department predicted thunderstorms, hail and gusty winds (50-60 kph) and heavy rain in some districts of Maharashtra on Monday. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said isolated hailstorm activity is very likely to occur over Madhya Pradesh on May 13 and 14 and in parts of Madhya Maharashtra and Marathwada on May 13. Isolated heavy rainfall very likely over Madhya Maharashtra on 13th May, 2024, the weather department said. A press release by the IMD also informed on Monday that "hailstorm activity [was] observed [during past 24 hours till 8:30 an on Monday] at isolated places over Jammu-Kashmir, Uttarakhand, West Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Vidarbha, Marathwada, Telangana and Madhya Maharashtra." IMD alerts today The Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) issued a yellow alert for Thane, Palghar, Raigad, Solapur, Latur, Beed, Nagpur, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg districts. These regions are very likely to receive thunderstorms accompanied with lightning and winds at isolated places. Bringing a relief from the scorching heat, Mumbai, Thane and adjoining areas on Monday afternoon received rains accompanied with dust storm, lightning, gusty winds and thundering. The Regional Meteorological Center (RMC) has issued yellow alert for Thane, Palghar, Raigad, Solapur, Latur, Beed, Nagpur, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg districts. These regions are very likely to receive thunderstorm accompanied with lightning & gusty winds (30-40kmph) at isolated places. According to weather department, Mumbai will receive light rain and thunder showers. Possibility of light rain/thundershower in evening/night over the next 24 hours. Maximum and minimum temperatures will be around 35C and 28C respectively, said RMC in a post on X. Whereas, an orange alert has been issued for Pune, Satara, Sangli, Nashik, Kolhapur, Ahmednagar, Aurangabad, Jalna and Parbhani districts. View of Thane city after rain on Monday, May 13. According to weather forecast, Thunderstorm accompanied with lightning, gusty winds (50-60 kmph, hail are very likely at isolated places. "Heavy to intense rain ahead for the next 2 hours in Thane & Palghar, Kalyan, Badlapur and interiors. Advisable for residents to stay indoors. Wind speeds will be very high and massive near 40-50 kmph. More intense rain in Interiors," Rushikesh Agre, an independent meteorologist, posted on X. Some districts of Marathwada are likely to witness thundershowers at many places, and gusty winds (40-50 kmph), light to moderate rain. Train, Metro services affected Local train services on Central, Harbour and Western railway lines were running behind late by at least 15 to 20 minutes. Metro services also affected as cloth got entangled on the OHE near Airport Road Metro station. RMC's forecast for Tuesday Mumbai: Isolated pockets of Mumbai are very likely to experience hot and humid conditions. Thane and Palghar: Heat wave very likely in isolated pockets. Possibility of rain or thundershowers towards evening. Raigad: Thunderstorm accompanied with lightning & gusty winds (30-40kmph) at isolated places. Mumbai weather updates: At least eight people died and 65 others were injured after a massive hoarding fell on a petrol pump in Mumbai's Ghatkopar area on Monday. Over 20 people are still feared to be trapped, as per the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC.) The Ghatkopar hoarding collapse incident was reported as heavy rains and gusty winds lashed the city Monday afternoon. A team of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) said 67 people have been rescued and efforts are underway to rescue those trapped. In a sudden change of weather, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) witnessed brief heavy showers along with dust storm and lightning. Though rains brought a relief from sweltering heat, incidents of trees collapse, water logging, traffic jam were reported from across the maximum city. Here are latest developments related to the Mumbai weather: 10:00 pm: Ghatkopar hoarding collaps eyewitness Swapnil Khupte told ANI, "I was there when a big hoarding of some builder fell down, all the cars, bikes and people that were there got stuck. We helped people get out and somehow manage to escape." He said everyone, including many women and children rushed to save their lives. 9:40 pm: Ghatkopar hoarding was 'illegal' - Municipal Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani told Hindustan Times, "The hoarding that crashed in Ghatkopar was illegal one and did not have a licence. We will check licences of all hoardings in Mumbai and if they don't have licences, they'll be considered illegal." Meanwhile, CM Eknath Singh also said action will take against hoarding which were put up in Mumbai without any license or permission. 9:21 pm: 20 feared trapped in hoarding collapse incident - Bhushan Gagrani, the BMC Commissioner, said, "We suspect 20-30 more people trapped under that hoarding which collapsed in Ghatkopar. A total of eight people died in the incident. Rescue is underway..." 9 pm: Toll in Ghatkopar hoarding collapse incident rises to 8: Municipal Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani told Hindustan Times that eight people have died after a 100-foot tall billboard was uprooted and fell on a petrol pump and nearby houses at the Cheddanagar Junction in the Ghatkopar area. Over 20 people are still stuck. Meanwhile, news agency ANI quoted him as saying, Four people died. We have received information about four more deaths on site64 people have been admitted to Rajawadi Hospital in Ghatkopar. One is in critical condition and a total of four people have died in this incident. 8:40 pm: Family member of one of the injured said, "One of our neighbors has got injured in the incident. I received a call from him. We immediately reached the incident site. He is badly injured..." Watch video here 8:30 pm: 5 lakh financial assistance to victims of Ghatkopar hoarding collapse incident - Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde said the state government will take care of the treatment of those who are injured in the incident. " 5 lakh will be given to the family of those who have lost their lives. I have directed the concerned authorities to audit for all such hoardings in Mumbai...," he added. He said rescuing the people is the priority. 8:27 pm: Hoarding collapse viral video - Those injured in the hoarding collapse incident at Pantnagar near Eastern Express Highway (EEH) have been rushed to Rajawadi Hospital for treatment. A video of the incident has gone viral on social media platforms. 8:25 pm: Maharashtra Deputy CM Fadnavis reacts - Reacting to the hoarding collapse incident, Maharashtra Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis said that he has ordered an inquiry in the incident. He said, ...There will be an investigation regarding what kind of permission they have for this hoarding, whether they had this permission or not... Since there is a petrol pump, the rescue operation is going on carefully. The whole focus is on the rescue operation. There seems to be several irregularities. Who gave the permissions will be checked. Some notices were served, and why no action was taken will also be checked, said Fadnavis speaking to media. 8:23 pm: Audit of all hoardings in Mumbai to be done - Fadnavis said, The CM has directed that a proper audit of all the hoardings in Mumbai be done by BMC to mitigate such incidents in future. Whoever has done this kind of ignorance, strict action will be taken against them. "Mumbai Police, Municipal Corporation BMC, Disaster Management Depts are coordinating and efforts are being made to evacuate the trapped people on war footing," said Fadnavis in a tweet. 8:20 pm: Mumbai civic body reacts: According to PTI, the BMC said that it is going to file a complaint against advertising company for the incident. In the post on X, the BMC said, As of now, 60 people have been rescued from the accident site and taken to the hospital. Four people have succumbed to death in this unfortunate incident. 8:15 pm: Trees collapse: Several incidents of trees collapsing were reported in the city after a brief spell of shower. Some of the residents from Mulund also shared videos and photos of uprooted trees blocking the route and urged BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to help them. "BMC was so unprepared this time. Very disappointing," said a user on X. Another Mulund resident said they can't go out of building using any vehicles as uprooted trees in Mahakali Nagar blocked the road. 8:05 pm: Metal structure collapse: In another incident, a tall metal structure opposite a building collapses in Wadala area. Car insurers made lowball settlement offers through software that reduced the cash value of totaled vehicles, Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Prices office says in a lawsuit. Yevhen Roshchyn/Getty Images Car insurance companies and affiliated software developers came up with a scheme that undervalued totaled vehicles, allowing the companies to underpay their customers for the vehicles, the Alameda County District Attorneys Office alleges in a lawsuit. The lawsuit says the companies, including Progressive and United Services Automobile Association, violated state laws that prohibit unfair competition and false advertising. The suit, filed April 26 in Alameda Superior Court, seeks civil penalties against the companies and restitution for their customers. Public safety includes protecting consumers from powerful companies that seek only to maximize profits, District Attorney Pamela Price said in a statement. For many Californians, she said, the loss of their vehicle can destabilize their life, and when insurance companies underpay for totaled vehicles, their customers could miss loan payments, end up with damaged credit scores and find it difficult to buy another vehicle. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Progressive and USAA didnt immediately respond to requests seeking comment. Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price says the loss of a vehicle can destabilize life for many Californians. Scott Strazzante/The Chronicle The lawsuit says the companies and software developers designed vehicle appraisal software to undervalue totaled vehicles, with built-in features to lower the cash value of the vehicles. The suit alleges the companies then made lowball settlement offers to their customers based on the deflated cash values and refused to negotiate in good faith. Once customers accepted the lowball offers, the companies were able to resell the vehicles at auctions to further minimize their losses, according to the lawsuit. The companies, the suit states, would rather total a vehicle than repair it because of the opportunity to recoup the losses. The lawsuit alleges the scheme disproportionately impacted disadvantaged Californians, including senior citizens, economically challenged residents and people of color. The law allows for harsher civil penalties for unlawful acts that target protected citizens, such as seniors, according to the District Attorneys Office. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The scheme also impacted other businesses, including gap insurance providers, which must cover the difference between the value of insured vehicles and outstanding loan amounts; car loan institutions, which suffer when vehicle owners can no longer pay their loans; and repair shops, which lose out on business when vehicles are totaled instead of repaired, according to the lawsuit. Janata Dal(S) leader and Karnataka MLA HD Revanna was on Monday, May 13, granted a conditional bail by Bengaluru court in connection with a kidnapping case linked to sexual abuse allegation against him and his son Prajwal. HD Revanna was arrested by the special investigation team (SIT) on May 4 after a kidnapping case was registered against him at KR Nagar police station in Bengaluru. Revanna, the JD(S) MLA from Holenarsipura, has termed this case a "political conspiracy" against him. A Special Investigative Team (SIT), constituted by the Karnataka government, is probing the alleged sexual abuse against against HD Revanna and his son Prajwal Revanna. Prajwal Revanna, the incumbent MP, is seeking another term from Hassan Lok Sabha constituency. The voting for the seat took place on April 26. Earlier, JD (S) chief HD Kumaraswamy alleged that Karnataka government does not want a fair inquiry. "They are misusing the office. Nothing is going to happen ultimately. They wanted character assassination of HD Revanna and for that reason, they are using their office," Kumaraswamy told ANI. Former Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi died on Monday. He was 72. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader had earlier informed that he was diagnosed with cancer six months ago. The current Bihar Deputy Chief Minister, Vijay Kumar Sinha, took to X to confirmed Sushil Kumar Modi's death. "Senior leader of Bharatiya Janata Party and former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar Shri Sushil Modi ji is no more among us," Sinha said in the post. Sinha said Sushil Kumar Modi's death is "an irreparable loss for the entire BJP organisation family as well as countless workers like me". "He will always be remembered for his organization skills, administrative understanding and his deep knowledge on social political issues. May God grant eternal peace to the departed soul and give strength to the family in this hour of grief," Sinha said. Condolences pour in Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he is "deeply saddened by the untimely demise of Sushil Modi ji". He called Sushil Modi his "valuable colleague in the party" and a "friend for decades". He has played an invaluable role in the rise and success of BJP in Bihar. Strongly opposing the Emergency, he made a name for himself in student politics. He was known as a very hardworking and sociable MLA. He had a deep understanding of the issues related to politics, PM Modi said. The Prime Minister added, He also did a lot of commendable work as an administrator. His active role in the passage of GST will always be remembered. My condolences are with his family and supporters in this hour of grief. Om Shanti!. Union Home Minister Amit Shah condoled Sushil Modi's demise and said Bihar has "lost a great pioneer of politics forever". He said Sushil Modi adorned many important positions in the BJP, the ABVP and the government. "His politics was dedicated to the interests of the poor and the backward. The void, that has emerged in Bihar politics, due to his demise cannot be filled for a long time. In this hour of grief, the entire BJP stands with his bereaved family. May God give a place to the departed soul in his lotus feet. Om Shanti Shanti," Shah tweeted. The BJP's Lok Sabha candidate from Himachal Pradesh's Mandi, Kangana Ranaut, said, "The demise of former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar Sushil Kumar Modi ji has left a sudden void in the BJP family." "He will be remembered for his fight against corruption and ensuring an era of good governance in Bihar," Ranaut added. Former Bihar Deputy Chief Minister and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav also took to social media to express sadness over Sushil Modi's "untimely demise". He called Sushil Modi a "guardian" and said, " May God grant a place to the departed soul in his lotus feet and provide strength to the family and well-wishers in this hour of grief. Om Shanti Om." Rajya Sabha MP from Nagaland S Phangnon Konyak said he was "deeply saddened" by the demise of "distinguished parliamentarian" Sushil Kumar Modi. "He was a mass leader who came up through the grassroots. His passing comes as a shock and leaves the party poorer. As we mourn, I offer my heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family members. May God grant his soul eternal peace," Konyak said. Sushil Modi diagnosed with cancer Sushil Modi had posted on X in April, "I have been battling cancer for the last six months. Now, I feel that the time has come to inform people about it. I will not be able to do anything for Lok Sabha elections." Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders have claimed that Swati Maliwal, a Rajya Sabha MP from the Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP), alleged on Monday that she was assaulted by Bibhav Kumar, the personal assistant to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. Several media outlets, citing sources, have reported that a lady caller", purportedly Swati Maliwal, placed two PCR calls from the Chief Minister's residence, alleging that she was 'assaulted' by Bibhav Kumar. Maliwal is an AAP MP in the Rajya Sabha and former Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) chief. Here's all we know about the matter as of now: 1. What Delhi Police said? Neither Swati Maliwal nor the police have made any official statement on the alleged incident yet. However, some officials told the news agency PTI that AAP MP Swati Maliwal went to the Civil Lines police station on Monday and alleged that a member of Arvind Kejriwal's personal staff misbehaved with her. Meanwhile, sources in the Delhi Police told news agency ANI that Maliwal had made a PCR call twice from the chief minister's residence, alleging that she was 'assaulted' by Kejriwal's personal assistant, Bibhav Kumar. A PCR call was received around 9.34 in the morning, in which the lady caller said that she was assaulted inside the CM house," DCP (North) Manoj Meena said, adding that the SHO of the local police responded to the call and reached the spot. After some time, MP madam (Maliwal) visited the Civil Lines police station. However, she left soon after saying she would file a complaint later. Till now we have not received any written complaint in this matter, Meena added. Source said a Delhi Police team reached the CM's residence after acting on Maliwal's complaint over the phone. However, the team did not find her there. 3. What do BJP leaders claim? Bansuri Swaraj, the BJP's candidate from New Delhi, said, "We got shameful news today that after getting instigated by Arvind Kejriwal, his OSD [officer on Special Duty] has beaten and misbehaved with one of their party's MP Swati Maliwal." "She also made a call to the Delhi Police and complained regarding the same. The incident took place in the presence of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal at his residence...," Swaraj said. India should also commit to remain an open economy and review import tariffs that may be making inputs costlier for sectors where it has an advantage, Park said on the sidelines of ADBs annual meeting in Tbilisi last week. Park said that if ADB were to do an economic diagnosis of the country, education would be among the priority areas where it should really improve the quality since becoming a middle-income country means moving up the technology ladder. Need for skilled labour And you're trying to start producing more and more sophisticated goods. And that's going to require more skilled labour," Park said, adding that it entails training more people to higher levels and raising average attainment levels. That is one thing China did very well, Park said, quoting Chinas high score in Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Developments (OECD) Programme for International Student Assessment or PISA. Education is a long-term investment as the results of teaching children today will only be seen when they enter the labour market, Park said. In terms of the ambitions of India to reach these goals by 2047, I still think these are good investments," said Park, adding human capital investment is important because learning outcomes in India are still relatively poor compared to more successful economies. None of India's higher education institutions made it to the top 100 in the latest QS World University rankings, which was topped by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. IIT Bombay came in at 149, followed by Delhi University at 407 and Anna University at 427. Need for sustainable agriculture Park also made a strong case for India to make policies, reform subsidies and adopt technology so that farmers are encouraged to shift to more sustainable and less water-dependent farming, which will make Indias farm sector more resilient to climate shocks. That would include reforms in the pricing of inputs like fertilizer, the production and non-optimal use of which could be carbon-intensive. The economist said that Indias infrastructure investment is on right track, but there are still opportunities for bringing in foreign direct investment into the economy, participating more in global value chains, and boosting manufacturing because those are the areas where catching up to global technologies will deliver fast productivity growth. India is currently pursuing over 10,000 infrastructure projects at various stages with a total project cost of $1831 billion, to be executed by 2025 as per the national infrastructure pipeline. The central government, which in recent years scaled up its capital expenditure, hopes the economy to benefit from its multiplier effect and expects private sector investments to further pick up. Also read: Our school infrastructure needs to be revamped to flatten its pyramid Ease of doing business According to Park, India needs to focus on improving the ease of doing business and keep tariffs low. There are many parts where the government should work closely with businesses to understand what the constraints are and improve the ease of doing business. Of course, India made progress on that. After the elections, when there is the political space, tougher reforms could come. The other point is that to enter the global value chain, India really needs to make a commitment to being open, especially on the import tariff side. There is a need to simplify tariffs, reduce them and certainly make sure that the subsectors, where India has the comparative advantage, are not suffering from having to pay higher costs of intermediate inputs because of tariffs." I'm familiar with a lot of research using Chinese data where they found that companies that are using more imported inputs tend to have higher productivity growth and are more innovative because they are part of global value chain by importing and exporting," he said. Park said that India is definitely involved in the global economy, though a lot of the exports are in petroleum products and gold, while exports in manufacturing-intensive sectors such as electronics are not growing as fast as in other more dynamic parts of Asia. But India is making progress. Investments and manufacturing growth is happeningWe are seeing both public and private sector investment at pretty high levels. The Indian government last year (FY24) increased its capital expenditure by 28%. The budget is planning an increase of central government capital expenditure by 17% for FY25. And state governments are also doing their own investments," said Park. Also read: Why Indian schools continue to fail rural teens Resilient farming India exported goods and services worth $776.68 billion in FY24, little changed from a year earlier, while overall imports at $854.80 billion showed an annual contraction of about 4.8%, according to commerce ministry data. Policy makers have been trying to step up exports so that the manufacturing sector receives a boost. Making agriculture sector resilient to weather shocks is important as climate change impact is quite severe for India, Park said. The ADB chief economist suggested pricing reforms on farm inputs such as fertilizers and water and on farm produce and replacing sensitive subsidies with less distorting social transfers so that farmers are encouraged to shift to less water-consuming and more sustainable produce. India cannot give up on reforms in the sector because it is related to resilience, he said. If you are subsidizing irrigation, it is very costly in terms of the water and probably it's not that sustainable because the water tables keep going down. The only way to shift away from that is to price water closer to its real opportunity cost." Freeing up resources Indias farm output is estimated to have grown by 0.7% in FY24, an El Nino year, down from a robust 4.7% growth in FY23. New technology and farming methods could help in getting the same yield thrust on with less water and less green house gas emissions, Park said. The input price support in farm sector is very expensive for the Indian government and if it can somehow move away from that, it frees up a lot of resources to do other things and support technological innovations needed to move to a more sustainable farming, he said. For FY25, India has allocated 1.64 trillion of fertilizer subsidy, down from 1.88 trillion spent in FY24 as per the budget documents. Park also said that if the world really aggressively addresses climate change, energy and food prices may go up because one of the important adjustments to reduce carbon emissions is to shift land use away from regular cropping to having more forests and things that are more environmentally friendly. But that is a general statement and each country has many ways to manage prices and its agriculture economy, Park said. (Bloomberg) -- Australian-based Atlantic Lithium Ltd., which is developing Ghanas first lithium mine, has taken a step toward raising capital from equity investors in the country. The company has listed all its shares in issue on the Australian Securities Exchange and London Stock Exchanges AIM board, on the Ghana Stock Exchange, said Abena Amoah, the Accra-based bourses managing director. The shares opened at 4.40 cedis ($0.31) apiece at Mondays launch in Accra. The miner, which has yet to start production, listed the shares to meet licensing requirements in the West African nation, and isnt raising new capital in Ghana for now. Its Ewoyaa mine is expected to become the continents third-largest hard-rock lithium project, according to the company. We look forward to working with you on a follow-on offering where the company raises capital by selling shares to Ghanaian investors as you build out your mine, Amoah said, addressing the companys representatives. The next steps for Atlantic Lithium include the ratification of its 15-year mining lease by Ghanas parliament and a final investment decision, with the aim of breaking ground before the end of the year, said Chief Executive Officer Keith Muller. Read More: African Lithium Project Boosts US Drive to Close EV Gap on China Ghana, which is already Africas biggest gold producer, aims to increase local ownership of its mineral wealth, Land and Natural Resources Minister Samuel Jinapor said at the event. Last year, the country approved a green-minerals policy requiring miners of these resources, considered key to the worlds energy transition, to allow for a minimum 30% local stake in projects. Resource nationalism is strengthening across the world as developing countries seek a greater share of the profits from their commodities, while addressing historic inequities in the wealth flows from mining. In Chile the No. 2 lithium producer President Gabriel Boric has been negotiating the role of the state in a sector seen as key to its economic growth. Ghanas sovereign minerals fund plans to pour $32.9 million into the Ewoyaa project, which could produce 65,000 metric tons lithium carbonate equivalent at its peak, enough to power about 1.4 million Tesla Model 3s. Tesla Supplier Atlantic is the Ghanaian bourses first listing since Asante Gold Corp., which also received backing from the fund, said Minerals Income Investment Fund Chief Executive Officer Edward Koranteng. Half of Ewoyaas output is earmarked for a refinery that Piedmont Lithium Ltd., which supplies Tesla Inc. and LG Chem Ltd., plans to build in Tennessee. Piedmont, which has agreed to provide most of the funds to build the mine, is Atlantic Lithiums second-largest shareholder, followed by Ghanas sovereign minerals fund MIIF. Im still in dream land hearing all these proposals in mining, Alexandra Amoako-Mensah, the geologist whose 1971 thesis laid the groundwork for lithium exploration in Ghana, said. Im surprised that my modest development of research work has generated all this. Its my hope that the country will continue to expand its interest and explore the significant reserves of other green minerals for industrial purposes, she added. More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com (Bloomberg) -- Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda won the early vote count in Sundays election, putting the outspoken critic of Russias Vladimir Putin closer to securing a second term as head of state. Nauseda took 46.5% of vote, with 84% of districts counted, while Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte came second with 16.5%, the Election Committee said on its website. Falling short of 50%, the two rivals look set to face each other in a second round on May 26. Voters in the Baltic state of 2.8 million went to the polls amid mounting fears over Russian aggression and a protracted conflict in Ukraine. Nauseda, who has gained attention among Western leaders for his hard line against Kremlin war aims, has led in surveys with solid public backing, particularly in rural areas and among more conservative voters. Im prepared to steadily seek victory in the second round and I believe Ill be successful, Nauseda said on the election night. Im thankful for the strong support from the people. I want to continue work for another five years. The Lithuanian president is responsible for foreign and defense policy and has limited powers over domestic issues, but can veto legislation, appoint judges, central bankers and other officials. The head of state also grants the mandate to lead the government and represents the country at European Union and North Atlantic Treaty Organization summits. For the countrys voters, 59-year-old Nauseda has steadily aligned his agenda around traditional and family values in his five years in power marking a contrast with Simonyte, 49, who has advocated a more inclusive approach on issues such as LGBTQ rights. But Russias war in Ukraine and the looming threat of Lithuanias vast neighbor to the east have dominated the presidential campaign. In televised debates ahead of the contest, Nauseda and his challengers were queried on whether they had survival kits at home and if they would flee into exile in case of an invasion. Boots on the Ground, China More than three decades after the country, along with Latvia and Estonia, reclaimed its independence from the Soviet Union, the EU member state has hosted the biggest military drills in its history. The exercises involved curfews in the countrys two largest cities earlier in the week. Nauseda has been a leading voice calling for NATO troops to be deployed in the Baltics, the military alliances eastern flank. Germany has solidified plans to expand its presence in the country to a permanent brigade of as many as 5,000 troops over the next three years. We need boots on the ground, Nauseda told Bloomberg News in an interview ahead of a NATO summit he hosted in Vilnius. Simonyte, whos led the government government since 2020, has drawn recognition for defying pressure from China after Lithuania allowed Taiwan to open a trade office in Vilnius. That triggered a backlash from Beijing, which blocked trade, removed the Baltic state from its customs system and canceled Lithuanian diplomats identity cards. Read More: Fear of War With Russia Haunts Lithuania: Year of Elections Nauseda last week called for improved relations with China after Taiwan fallout. While he views setting up the trade outpost as positive in principle, the representative office should adopt the word Taipei rather than Taiwan in line with international standards in a bid to defuse simmering tensions with Beijing, he said. The adjustment could serve as a signal from Lithuania to normalize diplomatic relations with China, Nauseda told Baltic News Service. More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday slammed Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) after the AAP's Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal alleged assault by the CM's aide. Speaking to ANI, BJP leader Bansuri Swaraj said her party strongly condemns the incident if it is true that after getting instigated by Arvind Kejriwal, his Officer on Special Duty (OSD) has beaten up and misbehaved with one of their party MPs, Swati Maliwal, in the presence of the Delhi CM. "It is shameful, and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal needs to answer that if their party MP is not safe in his presence, then how will he protect the women of Delhi," said Swaraj, the BJP Lok Sabha candidate from New Delhi constituency. Reacting to the alleged incident, Union Minister Anurag Thakur said not everything is fine in the AAP and 'Nari Shakti' is not safe in the party. "A few other people from the family seem to be joining politics in the time to come, so will this tension keep escalating when Arvind Kejriwal goes back to jail on 2nd June...It is clear that not everything is fine in AAP," Thakur said. According to reports, Maliwal on Monday went to the Civil Lines police station and alleged that a member of Kejriwal's personal staff misbehaved with her. She also made PCR calls after the alleged verbal spat. However, no formal complaint has been lodged so far. Former Delhi Congress chief Arvinder Singh Lovely also slammed the AAP and asked how they can guarantee the safety of the nation. (Bloomberg) -- Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchezs Socialist party won a local election in Catalonia, both affirming his decision to negotiate with the separatist movement in the wealthy Northeastern region and potentially upending his fragile ruling coalition in Madrid. The regional Socialist candidate Salvador Illa matched expectations Sunday night, winning about 28% of the votes, or 42 seats. Thats far short of the 68 seats required for an absolute majority, and with no obvious path to cobble together a governing coalition, a new election has become a real possibility. Its the first time the Socialist party has won the election, both in votes and in seats, Illa told reporters Sunday night. This new phase that Catalonia opens today is a phase for all Catalans. Fugitive pro-independence leader Carles Puigdemonts Junts got around 22%, or 35 seats, becoming the largest separatist party in the region. Its rival independence party ERC, which currently leads a minority government in Catalonia and is led by Pere Aragones, got 14%, falling to 20 seats. Illas victory represents an endorsement for Sanchezs strategy in Catalonia of trying to tamp down the pro-separatist push by offering concessions, including amnesty for those involved in an illegal independence referendum in 2017. Puigdemont who has been living in self-imposed exile in Belgium since then would be the most high-profile beneficiary of the amnesty. If the region goes to another election, it could benefit Puigdemont, who would be able to campaign in Catalonia once the amnesty law goes into effect in the coming weeks. Puigdemont held his campaign event on Sunday in Argeles-sur-Mer in France. The uncertainty surrounding Catalonias parliament could spell trouble for Sanchezs government, which relies on both the main separatist groups to pass legislation. If either Puigdemont or Aragones pull support for the Socialists in Madrid, it could cause legislative deadlock and potentially a new national election. Illa, a mild-mannered former health minister, has almost no chance of forming a majority government, given that the pro-independence parties have both made a fresh referendum on Catalan independence a condition of their collaboration. Thats a red line for the Socialists, he said previously. Catalonia has been governed by separatist parties for more than 10 years. The relationship between Junts and ERC has recently hit a new low. After the two major separatist parties formed a coalition in 2021, Junts stepped away from it, sending the region on a path to Sundays snap election. The challenge is made harder for all by the unusually stark personal animosities between Puigdemont and Aragones. We have had a bad result in fact a very bad result, Aragones told reporters Sunday night. It will be up to the Socialists and Junts to run the government. Voters have decided that we have to be in the opposition. If the other pro-independence party, ERC, is willing to think about the effects of the lack of unity and a single strategy, so are we, Puigdemont said. Low Turnout A repeat vote is a likely scenario, according to experts and party insiders. That wont be good for Catalonia, it wont solve any of the fundamental problems facing Spain or its prime minister, but it might keep him on the high wire for another few months at least. Public transport was disrupted in part of Catalonia on Sunday due to problems in the regional train network, which is run by the central government. The two leading pro-independence parties demanded that voting hours be extended in case people failed to make it to the ballot boxes, but the national electoral board dismissed the requests, leaving it to local boards to decide. Turnout was 58%, compared with 51.3% in the previous regional election in 2021, when restrictions were in place to address the effects of the Covid pandemic. More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com Gabriella Munro Douglas is a 36-year-old from southwest London who found a unique career that unexpectedly shaped her life. Living with her partner, Michael, and their twin daughters, May and Joy, Gabriella's journey as a Kate Middleton lookalike began over a decade ago. Also Read: Kate Middleton sends 'clear message' about her future plans with her latest post In 2011, as the Royal wedding approached, people frequently mistook Gabriella for Kate Middleton. Encouraged by her mother and grandmother, she sent her photo to a lookalike agency. This step began a lucrative side career that complemented her job as a furniture designer. Soon I was earning anywhere from 650 to 1,000 ( 1 lakh) per day. But it wasnt just about the extra money it was so much fun and I got to meet some lovely people. I did lots of meet and greets, corporate events, private parties, and photo shoots in beautiful venues, she told The Sun in 2021. Also Read: Kate Middletons cancer brings Prince William, Queen Camilla much closer as they become each others emotional help Gabriella's resemblance to the Princess of Wales allowed her to attend events, participate in photo shoots and even ride in an open-top carriage through Melbourne. Her mother, who passed away shortly after Gabriella started her lookalike career, had always urged her to be financially independent. She also participated in significant events like the London 2012 Olympics. Also Read: Kate Middleton cancer: When will Princess of Wales return to public duties? The update may not please Royal Family fans Gabriella paid keen attention to Kates wardrobe and public appearances, quickly adapting her look to match. Gabriella even purchased a fake bump during Kate's pregnancy to enhance her role in appearances. Kate Middleton lookalike Gabriella Munro Douglas with a fake baby bump Of course, emulating Kate meant I had to keep up with her wardrobe and accessories, but thankfully it was quite easy. I learned to do my hair and make-up like her, and closely followed press articles for ideas of high-street versions of her clothes, she told the publication. Gabriellas Instagram account, however, has not been active since January 2016. According to IMDB, she acted in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire as a Gryffindor Student, but she was uncredited for the 2005 movie. Kate lookalike rumour Earlier in March, when Kate Middleton had been away from the public eye for quite some time, a video surfaced showing the Princess with her husband, Prince William. Flash floods in northern Afghanistan sweep away livelihoods, leaving hundreds dead and missing. The United Nations Food Agency has estimated unusually intense seasonal rainfall in Afghanistan has resulted in the deaths of over 300 individuals. Here are the top ten updates: 1. The destruction of thousands of residences, predominantly in the northern province of Baghlan, which suffered the greatest impact from the heavy downpours on Friday. In a post on X, UNICEF South Asia, said, The heavy rains and subsequent floods have disrupted lives and pose a significant risk to children in the affected provinces. As always, UNICEF stands with the children and people of Afghanistan during this difficult time, said Tajudeen Oyewale. 3. UNICEF has reported that among the at least 240 deceased individuals, 51 are children. Several international aid organizations, including UNICEF, are dispatching relief teams and providing essential supplies such as medicines, blankets, and other necessities. 4. The World Health Organization (WHO) has also confirmed the delivery of 7 tons of medicines and emergency kits to the affected areas. People clean up their damaged homes after heavy flooding in Baghlan province in northern Afghanistan Saturday, May 11, 2024. Flash floods from seasonal rains in Baghlan province in northern Afghanistan killed dozens of people on Friday, a Taliban official said. AP/PTI 5. In the aftermath of the flash floods, individuals who have lost family members are urging the interim government and local and international organizations to tackle the obstacles and assist those who remain trapped. Hundreds of thousands of people have been left isolated without access to essential services, as reported by the International Rescue Committee (IRC), which is coordinating its emergency efforts to address the flooding impacting seven provinces. 6. The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Afghanistan, Richard Bennett, urged urgent assistance for flood victims in Afghanistan on May 11. Bennett described the recent floods across the country, notably in Baghlan where numerous casualties occurred, as a clear indication of Afghanistan's susceptibility to climate-related emergencies. 7. In a post on X, Richard Bennett stated, Recent floods in Afghanistan including Baghlan which claimed many lives, are a stark reminder of Afghanistan's vulnerability to the climate crisis & both immediate aid and long term planning by the Taliban & international actors are needed. Condolences to the families of victims. 8. Lives and livelihoods have been washed away," said Arshad Malik, country director for Save the Children. The flash floods tore through villages, sweeping away homes and killing livestock. Children have lost everything. Families who are still reeling from the economic impacts of three years of drought urgently need assistance. Also Read: The Taliban warn journalists and experts against cooperating with Afghanistan International TV 9. Aid group Save the Children said about 600,000 people, half of them children, live in the five districts in Baghlan that have been severely impacted by the floods. The group said it sent a clinic on wheels with mobile health and child protection teams to support children and their families, AP reported. 10. At least 70 people died in April from heavy rains and flash floods in the country, which also destroyed About 2,000 homes, three mosques and four schools. Like legions of disgruntled former employees who preceded him, Howard Schultz took to LinkedIn last week to complain about what had gone wrong at his old company. Without naming names, the former Starbucks CEOwho all but founded the coffee chainslagged his successor, writing that after such a significant quarterly earnings miss, there must be contrition" and that the company should own the shortcoming without the slightest semblance of an excuse." Schultz has a point. The quarter was a disaster: Sales fell for the first time since 2020 and earnings came in well below expectations, with William Blair analyst Sharon Zackfia calling the results a stunning across-the-board miss on all key metrics." The companys earnings call did not leave investors with a lot of confidence that it had the situation under control; shares plummeted as much as 16% the day after the company reported, the most since the early days of the pandemic. But if Schultz really wants to see Starbucks turn around, the best thing for him to do at this point is butt out. The LinkedIn post was just the latest example in Schultzs long history of meddling and backseat CEO-ingtendencies that may very well have kept Starbucks from finding a stronger candidate to replace him. Any advice Schultz has to offer should come alongside a bit of that contrition hes talking about. He conveniently omitted an important piece of context in his LinkedIn postthat he has only been off the Starbucks board since September and out of the CEO chair for just more than a year. It really is not possible for things to have gone this far sideways so quickly. Some of the companys problems began on Schultzs watch, chief among them setting expectations too high on his way out the door. Between the time Starbucks announced Laxman Narasimhan as the next CEO and when he started the job, Schultz introduced an aggressive growth plan during the companys biennial investor day. Since then, Narasimhan has had to lower guidance several times. Even if Schultz does think the new regime is fully at fault, he has only himself to blame for bringing Narasimhan on as his hand-picked successor. In an unusual arrangement, Narasimhan joined Starbucks as incoming CEO in the fall of 2022 and was supposed to work closely alongside Schultz until he fully took over in March 2023. The move was meant to give Narasimhan, who was previously the CEO of British consumer goods company Reckitt, more retail experience. It is highly possible that Narasimhan, a relative unknown in the US market, was not the boards first choice to replace Schultz. Running Starbucks looks great on paper, but a CEO or rising star at another company may have said no to the job because its not particularly fun or easy to step into the shoes of an iconic leader like Schultz. A 2019 study from PricewaterhouseCoopers found that executives who followed longstanding CEOs had annualized total shareholder returns that were four percentage points lower than their predecessors. And the longer the predecessor was CEO, the worse the replacement performed. The successors were also much more likely to be ousted. Schultz has made the job look even less desirable, twice boomeranging back into the CEO spot to displace the companys latest leader. He returned to Starbucks for the first time in 2008, replacing Jim Donald, and the second time in 2022, replacing Kevin Johnson. His returns have sent a message to CEO candidates that when times get tough, the boards knee-jerk reaction is to bring back Schultz. One research firm has already said that it expects Schultz to be back as Starbucks CEO during the 2025 fiscal year. Schultz has a history of undermining new leaders. He famously wrote in a Valentines Day memo leaked while Donald was running the show that the companys stores no longer have the soul of the past." And once he replaced Johnson, he had no problem throwing him under the bus. Schultz took employees attempts at unionization as a personal affront and cited it as one of the biggest reasons he returned as CEO yet again, saying that organizers showed up because the company lost its way." We can also assume that Schultzs relationship with Narasimhan and the board has souredotherwise he would have privately shared his advice rather than posting it publicly. With a financial quarter like the one he just had, Narasimhan could soon become a statistic: yet another ousted successor who followed a longtime CEO. If that happens and Schultz wants a strong replacement who can turn things around, the best thing he can do is delete his LinkedIn account. bloomberg Hitting back at Opposition parties over a recent controversial remark by National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah that Pakistan is not wearing bangles and has atom bombs, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said that Indi (INDIA) alliance seems to have taken 'supari' against India. The prime minister launched a scathing attack on the opposition INDIA bloc while addressing a Lok Sabha election campaign rally in Bihar's Muzaffarpur. "In dreams at night, they see Pakistan's atom bomb. Can we hand over (leadership) of the country to such parties and politicians who see Pakistan's atom bomb (in dreams). They say Pakistan ne Chudiyan (bangles) nahi pehni hai (Pakistan is not wearing bangles) Will make them wear (Pehna Dena)," said Modi. On May 10, Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar sparked a row after a clip of his old interview went viral in which he said, "Pakistan is a respected nation that also possesses an atom bomb." They are also a sovereign country (Pakistan). They are a respected nation. You can talk tough with them (Pakistan). But start the dialogue," Aiyar said. On May 5, Jammu and Kashmir National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah stated that Pakistan is not wearing bangles and also has atom bombs that they would use. He was responding to Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh's remark that PoK will be merged with India. Referring to comments made by Congress leaders during the election season, Modi added," Someone is giving clean chit to Pakistan in Mumbai terror attack, some are questioning surgical and air strike. It feels like Indi alliance has taken 'supari' against India. Can such selfish people take stronger decisions for the security of the country?" "Modi is your servant (Aapka yeh Modi, yeh aapka sevak hain). Your dreams are my resolve and for this 24/7 for 2047," said the prime minister. Stating that this election is going to decide the future of the country, Modi added, "It is the election to decide the leadership of the country... The country doesn't want a coward, instable government of the Congress." Modi also asked the crowd if they needed a stronger PM, like a strong teacher and policeman in the Mohalla. "Can a coward PM run a country," he asked. Kangana Ranaut, the BJP candidate from Mandi, repeated her earlier claim that India had become independent in 2014. On May 13, she expressed her desire for India to become a 'Hindu Rashtra'. Our forbears saw and suffered centuries of slavery under the Mughals, followed by the British. What followed after 1947, when the country was freed of British rule, was the misgovernance of the Congress over several decades, ANI quoted the Bollywood actor as saying. Also Read: 'Amitabh Bachchan ji ke baad aaj kisi...': Kangana Ranaut at election rally "The country, in the truest sense, attained freedom in 2014. It not only marked freedom for thinking but also for Sanatan. It gave us the freedom to practice and flaunt our own religion without fear and advance the vision of making India a Hindu Rashtra," she added. She wondered why India wasn't declared a Hindu nation at independence. Also Read: 'Ye mohtarma...': Tejashwi Yadav responds to Kangana Ranaut's 'machli' remark "During partition in 1947, which led to the birth of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, why wasn't India declared a Hindu nation? We will work towards making India a Hindu Rashtra," she added. Kangana is running for election in Mandi, a constituency usually dominated by the Congress party. The actor is up against Vikramaditya Singh from Congress, the son of the former chief minister, Virbhadra Singh. The election will take place on June 1. Vikramaditya Singh on Kangana Ranaut Kangana's rival, Vikramaditya Singh, earlier took a jibe at the BJP candidate. The Queen actor has no political understanding or vision and is seeking votes only in the name of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said. Also Read: Kangana Ranaut takes aim at Tejasvi Surya, mistakes him for Tejashwi Yadav in viral speech: WATCH Singh also said that the actor-turned-politician had "zero knowledge" about the region. According to him, his comments were based on the kind of promises she had been making. He referred to Ranaut making an airport at Mandi. Even in the most speculative reaches of science fiction, there is no escaping humanitys dependence on liquid water. Luke Skywalker, the hero of the original Star Wars" trilogy, grows up on his uncles moisture farm, extracting water from Tatooines arid atmosphere. The residents of the desert world Arrakis, accessible to anyone with a copy of Frank Herberts novel Dune" (or with three hours to kill at their nearest cinema), likewise use windtraps to steal precious liquid from the air. Engineers on Earth, too, are increasingly looking to the atmosphere for water. They have good reason to do so. Even in the depths of Chiles Atacama Desert, often called the driest place on Earth, estimates suggest that fog and dew can generate some 200ml of water per square metre. Elsewhere, the atmosphere is even more generous. Worldwide, it is estimated to contain 12,900 cubic kilometres of water, roughly the volume of Lake Superior. Moreover, models indicate that evaporation driven by global warming will increase these levels by 27% over the course of the next 50 years. Tapping this invisible reservoir is a priority. As Earths temperatures rise and its population grows, ever more people are likely to run short of water. More than 2.3bn are currently living in water-stressed countries and analysts predict that further droughts will force roughly a third of these to move from their homes by 2030. Collecting water from the air is nothing new. The Inca, who are widely thought to have invented the technique, placed buckets under trees to collect the condensation from heavy fog drifting in off the sea. On the Canary Islands laurels, junipers and pines have come to be known as fountain trees" for their association with fog harvesting. People dwelling in the arid mountains of Oman have long built cisterns under trees for the same reason. Modern atmospheric water harvesting follows many of the same principles. Instead of using leaves as condensation traps, however, which drip over an impractically large area, modern traps instead consist of sheets of very fine polymer mesh. As fog flows through the sheets, tiny droplets of water stick to the polymer fibres. These droplets grow until gravity pulls them into a compact trough and, thence, a reservoir. While collectors vary in size, a 40-metres-square collector in a reasonably foggy area yields around 200 litres a day, enough to supply 60 people with drinking water. Further improvements are possible. A team led by Urszula Stachewicz at AGH University of Krakow in Poland found that the sheet could be made even more productive by changing the way in which its polymer threads were manufactured. Dr Stachewicz theorised that careful manufacture via a process known as electrospinning could lend the sheet a slight electrical charge that would prove attractive to water droplets in fog. In experiments conducted in 2021 she and a team of colleagues found that such sheets yielded 50% more water. This past August, she and Gregory Parisi, a phd student at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York reported yet further improvements by adding titanium dioxide (TiO2) to the mesh. Previous work had shown that titanium dioxide could be rendered superhydrophilic (intensely attractive to water) upon exposure to ultraviolet lighta hindrance under extremely foggy conditions, as water would stick to the mesh rather than trickle into the cistern. When fog was light, however, Dr Stachewicz and Mr Parisi found that a TiO2-enhanced mesh became 30% more effective. Her fog collectors are now being used at sites on three continents. Further inland, where fog is scarce, other solutions are needed. One effective approach involves harnessing the water already present in the air. When the temperature drops, the water-carrying-capacity of air decreases with it. This leads to excess water condensing onto surfaces, a process most often seen as dew. It is common in water-saturated places like Britain, but anywhere with little wind and an average relative humidity of 70% or greater can cajole water out of the air. A key way to do this is with radiative cooling, a phenomenon that occurs at night when certain materials (like aluminium) radiate enough heat to cool below the ambient temperature of their surroundings. After sunset, water condenses on these materials, forms droplets and trickles off. Chambers built of these radiative materials sometimes include adsorbent inner surfaces to which water in the air readily sticks. When humid air drifts into such chambers, it loses its water upon exposure to the cool conditions before drifting out. One big benefit is that such techniques work best in places like deserts, with clear skies, high daytime temperatures and cool nights. An important limitation of radiative cooling has long been its relative ineffectiveness by day. That changed in 2021 when Dimos Poulikakos and his then-doctoral-student Iwan Haechler, at ETH Zurich, crafted a piece of glass with a layer of silver at the bottom and a layer of silicon polymer, sandwiched between layers of chromium, at the top. The silver layer reflected away the incoming sunlight while the sandwiched polymer allowed the device to shed heat in the form of infrared radiation. This cooled the glass by up to 15C below ambient temperatures, driving condensation even during the heat of the day. Paired with a heat shield, a condensation chamber built with this glass helped produce 1.2 litres of water per square metre a day. Another challenge posed by radiative cooling systems is that water needs to be wiped off the surface of the collection chambers. This requires power, typically from nearby turbines or solar panels, which can be expensive. To cut costs, Dr Poulikakos and Dr Haechler applied a superhydrophobic coating to the surface of the chamber, forcing water droplets off the surface and making it possible for the device to function without electricity. Such technology is indeed affordable, with the prototype itself costing less than $50. But in many regions where water is desperately needed, humidity levels are too low for dew harvesting to be feasible. In places like these, the most promising options are those that make use of superabsorbent materials. Many salts, chemical cousins of the familiar sodium chloride, will readily snatch water out of the air. With this in mind, an engineering team led by Peng Wang at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia studied the effectiveness of hollow nanocarbon capsules filled with lithium chloride. In 2020 the researchers reported that these capsules could capture more than double their weight in water vapour from ambient air when relative humidity was below 60%. Similar techniques using other salts have proved capable of gathering water in humidity levels as low as 10%. The findings are promising, but the technology has yet to advance beyond the prototype stage. The problem is inefficiency; even Dr Wangs world-leading capsules can only produce 1.6 litres of water per kilogram of lithium chloride over the course of ten hours in very arid conditions. Better than nothing, but inadequate for sustaining a community. Between them, though, these technologies suggest a brighter future is possible. Areas so dry as to have gone without rainfall since modern records began may one day yield enough water to sustain settlement. And not just on a fictional planet. For more coverage of climate change, sign up for The Climate Issue, our fortnightly subscriber-only newsletter, or visit our climate-change hub. 2024, The Economist Newspaper Limited. All rights reserved. From The Economist, published under licence. The original content can be found on www.economist.com Vera Rubin, affectionately known as the Mother of Dark Matter, earned her moniker through groundbreaking research on the elusive substance that makes up a significant portion of the universe. According to a post by Hubble, a galaxy in particular became synonymous with Rubin's pioneering work, earning the nickname Rubin's Galaxy. This designation stemmed from Rubin's thorough investigation of the galaxy, motivated by her quest to unveil the mysteries of dark matter, the invisible scaffolding upon which our universe is structured. In a post on X, Hubble wrote, This Mothers Day, we're thinking of Vera Rubin also known as the Mother of Dark Matter! This galaxy was nicknamed Rubin's Galaxy because she studied it in search of dark matter, which is like the invisible scaffolding of our universe. According to a release, Rubin measured the galaxy's rotation, which provides evidence for dark matter, which makes up most of the galaxy's mass as measured by the rotation rate. We consider this a commemorative image. This goal to cite Dr. Rubin in our observation was very much part of our original Hubble proposal, said B. Holwerda from the University of Louisville. Holwerda, presenting findings at the winter American Astronomical Society meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii, aims to unravel the mystery behind the extraordinary size of the galaxy. Expressing his curiosity, he remarked, How it got so big is something we don't quite know yet. He further explained that the galaxy's dimensions are remarkable, being as large as possible for a disk galaxy without encountering other celestial bodies in space. NASA's upcoming James Webb Space Telescope holds promise for delving into the heart of this galaxy and exploring its globular cluster population. Additionally, NASA's planned Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST) is poised to comprehensively census the galaxy's cluster population, particularly within its extensive halo. Holwerda emphasized the significance of the infrared capabilities of both telescopes, which offer a clearer view of the underlying stellar populations. This complements the Hubble Space Telescope's ability to track subtle star formation across the galaxy in visible light. Foreground stars from our Milky Way are visible in the image, identifiable by their diffraction spikes. Despite the appearance of one bright star seemingly atop the galaxy's disk, it's crucial to note that UGC 2885 lies 232 million light-years further away. Google's annual I/O 2024 developer conference is all set to take place at the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, California from May 14th. The marquee event will kick off with a keynote from Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, followed by a series of sessions that will provide much-needed details on all the new announcements from Google. Google I/O 2024: Where to watch livestream? The Google I/O 2024 keynote and many other key sessions will be live-streamed by the Android maker on its official YouTube channel. Sundar Pichai's keynote session will begin at 10 am Pacific Time (10:30 pm India time). In order to save readers' time, we have embedded the live-streaming link for the keynote session below. Also Read | Weekly Tech Recap: Apple announces new iPads, Google launches Pixel 8a and more Google I/0 2024: All the expected announcements Unlike its hardware announcements, Google has managed to keep its plans for I/O 2024 under wraps. However, given Google's focus on AI, the company is expected to Gemini powered AI features to suite of apps. 1) Hardware annoucements: While I/O has traditionally been a software focused event Google has also rolled out many hardware annoucnements in the past. For instance, the company launched Pixel 7a and its first ever Pixel Fold at the I/O event last year. This year, however, Google has already announced Pixel 8a which goes on sale on May 14, the day of I/O. Meanwhile, reports indicate that Google may not launch its Pixel Fold 2 smartphone at this year's I/O event. Instead, we might get a teaser for its upcoming foldable device which now be launching with the Pixel 9 series in September and also get a rebranding to Pixel 9 Pro Fold. Google is still expected to spend some time talking about the newly launched Pixel 8a and may even go on to highlight its AI prowress thanks to the Gemini AI integration. 2) Android 15: The wait is over for Android enthusiasts as Google is expected to reveal new features and the release date of Android 15 at its I/O 2024 event. The latest version of Android is currently in beta and can only be tested on Pixel devices. Android 15 isn't expected to bring a major overhaul in terms of design, but could instead include many upgrades that could help improve user privacy, productivity and security. Google's latest OS will also come with many new features, including satellite connectivity, audio sharing, notification cooldown, app archiving and partial screen sharing. 3) Gemini AI everywhere: Google is expected to add Gemini AI functionality to a wide range of applications, including Google Maps, Chrome, Google Workspace, Gmail and more. Gemini is also expected to play a more central role in all future Android devices, likely pushing Google Assistant to the sidelines. Google is also expected to unveil a new Pixel-exclusive virtual assistant powered by Gemini called 'Pixie'. The new assistant could receive multimodal capabilities, meaning it might not be limited to text or voice input, but users might also be able to share images with Pixie. 4) Wear OS 5 and Android TV: Google has finally decided to give its operating system for wearables a much-needed upgrade. However, the company has notoriously been tight-lipped about all the new features that will be coming to Wear OS 5. A description of the Wear OS5 session states that the new operating system will include advances in the Watch Face format, along with how to build and design for an increasing range of devices. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. 3.6 Crore Indians visited in a single day choosing us as India's undisputed platform for General Election Results. Explore the latest updates here! OnePlus appears to be gearing up for yet another addition to its mid-range smartphone lineup, with rumors swirling around the imminent launch of the OnePlus Nord CE 4 Lite. The device has recently garnered attention after receiving certifications from various regulatory bodies, including Singapore's IMDA and India's BIS. While OnePlus has not officially confirmed the existence of the Nord CE 4 Lite, its emergence on certification websites suggests that a new offering from the company may be on the horizon. It's been over a year since the debut of the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite, indicating that the release of its successor could be imminent. Following the introduction of its premium mid-range and flagship devices, such as the OnePlus 12R and OnePlus 12 earlier this year, OnePlus is expected to focus on refreshing its lower mid-range segment. With the Nord CE 4 hitting the shelves in April 2024, speculation is rife that the Nord CE 4 Lite could be the next in line. Priced under 20,000, similar to its predecessor, the Nord CE 4 Lite is anticipated to cater to budget-conscious consumers. The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite was initially launched at 19,999, but is currently retailing at a reduced price of 17,499 on Amazon. According to leaked information reported by several media outlets, the upcoming device is rumored to be powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 chipset paired with 12GB of RAM. Additionally, it may boast a larger 5,500mAh battery with 80W fast charging support, an upgrade from the Nord CE 3 Lite's 5,000mAh battery with 67W fast charging capability. In terms of display, the Nord CE 4 Lite could sport a 6.67-inch AMOLED screen with FHD+ resolution. The camera setup may include a 50MP primary sensor on the rear, while the front is expected to house a 16MP selfie shooter. With these specifications in tow, OnePlus seems poised to deliver another compelling offering in the competitive mid-range smartphone market. As anticipation builds, enthusiasts eagerly await official confirmation and further details from the tech giant. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. 3.6 Crore Indians visited in a single day choosing us as India's undisputed platform for General Election Results. Explore the latest updates here! A feud among seven siblings at Monticello Vineyards in Napa could end in the sale of the 54-year-old winery. Brian L. Frank/Special to The Chronicle The future of a Napa family winery hangs in the balance, as a divisive family feud could end in the sale of the 54-year-old Monticello Vineyards. Founded in 1970, Monticello isnt a household name. But the elegant estate, named and designed after Thomas Jeffersons Virginia residence, epitomizes the regions trailblazing generation of ambitious family-owned wineries thats rapidly shrinking. Similar wineries have been sold to national and foreign conglomerates, and while Succession-like family feuds are often the crux of a winerys motivation to go corporate, these conflicts rarely go public. But Carolyn Corley, whose father founded the winery where she took her first steps, says she is desperate. Advertisement Article continues below this ad She said she fears that several of her siblings are looking to sell Monticello to the highest bidder and will trample their late fathers legacy in the process. She has accused the privately held winerys board of directors, and four of her brothers who she says want to sell, of misleading shareholders to support their interests. Two of her brothers, who are Monticellos board chairman/president and corporate secretary, did not respond to the Chronicles requests for comment. Documents reviewed by the Chronicle, however, mention the possibility of selling the winery on numerous occasions. Board director Hugh Tietjen, one of Monticellos earliest investors, declined to comment. Carolyn Corley is fighting against four older brothers in an effort to keep Monticello Vineyards in the family. Andri Tambunan/Special to The Chronicle One shareholder described the yearslong dispute as like a soap opera. It was expected to come to a head Tuesday at a shareholder meeting in Napa, where the board could put forth a motion to sell the winery. Napa Valleys most famous family feud a 1960s fight between brothers Peter and Robert Mondavi over their winery Charles Krug led to the founding of the regions most famous estate, Mondavi. Monticellos conflict isnt as high-profile, but its particularly complex: It involves seven siblings. Advertisement Article continues below this ad On one side is Carolyn Corley, the youngest Corley sibling and the only daughter. She believes that two of her brothers, Chris and Kevin Corley, share her desire to keep the winery in the family. Carolyn and Chris Corley, who have a different mother than their older half siblings, were raised in Napa Valley. Chris Corley, who has worked at the winery since he was 16, has been Monticellos winemaker since 2000. Carolyn has worked in several departments at the winery over the decades, including hospitality, production, sales and marketing. Kevin Corley, the oldest sibling, joined his father at the winery in 1986, and said Jay Corley passed the baton to him to lead the estate in the late 1990s. Carolyn Corley is leading the fight to retain the winery against half brothers Mark, Kent, Stephen and Michael Corley, who she believes want to maximize their holdings and then cash out. At stake is the winery their father, Jay Corley, built on a former prune ranch. The winerys brick-laden, Palladian-style home is a smaller replica of Jeffersons, featuring a portico with stately white columns and a square cupola instead of a dome. Tucked away on a Napa back road, Monticello hasnt changed much in half a century while hundreds of flashy wineries have popped up around it. Its where we grew up. Theres so much potential and history there, said Carolyn Corley. I dont want to sell. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Carolyn Corley, right, with her father Jay Corley, in the early days of Monticello Vineyards. Provided by Carolyn Corley The first signs of a sibling rift came five years after Jay Corleys death in 2016. In March 2021, four Corley brothers proposed a policy to separate the roles of president and chairman, which were then held by Kevin Corley. While most of the siblings each have stakes of 4% to 6% in the winery, Kevin Corleys share is more than 15%, according to documents obtained by the Chronicle. Soon after board members approved this policy, they elected Mark Corley, a sibling in Tennessee not previously involved in the winery, to the board and made him chairman. In Carolyn Corleys view, this was the first step toward a company takeover because the chairman has more power than the president. The following year, the board proposed and approved a six-month sabbatical for Kevin Corley from his role as president. The reason for the sabbatical is unclear, and Kevin Corley told the Chronicle that he has not been involved in the daily operations of Monticello since. (He is still a board member.) The board then elected Mark Corley to replace him as president despite the policy that the chairman and president roles must be separate. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The conflict over the winerys direction took a turn last fall when several directors, including Mark Corley, proposed loaning the winery money at 10% compound interest with the option to accept repayment in new shares. The creation of new shares would have diluted the value of all existing shares, Carolyn Corley argued. The loans were not approved, but around this same time, text messages reviewed by the Chronicle show a Monticello shareholder sold thousands of shares to corporate secretary Kent Corley for $8 each a price Carolyn Corley said was absurdly below market value. In a recent letter to shareholders, Mark Corley wrote that shares were each worth $51.81, based on a $30.8 million appraisal of the winerys real estate holdings. Monticellos shareholder register, which the Chronicle reviewed, listed a transfer of 22,887 shares to Kent Corley on June 27, 2021. The next day, Kent Corley divided up those shares in transfers to five other board members, including Mark Corley, and shareholder Michael Corley. Founded in 1970, Monticello was named and designed after Thomas Jeffersons Virginia residence. Brian L. Frank/Special to The Chronicle Chris Corley said he resigned from the board of directors in November. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Over the last four decades, I have enthusiastically worked for and served Monticello in every department, and plan to do so going forward as long as Im able, he wrote in a statement to the Chronicle. I remain an absolute and enthusiastic supporter of the legacy that our father started with the founding of Monticello back in 1970. But it appears that a sale of the winery could be imminent. Last November, Mark Corley notified an estimated 100 shareholders of a quiet period during which the board would evaluate strategic options, including the potential sale of the entire business. The letter addressed the growing consolidation trend in Napa Valley and stated that the opportunities for Monticello and its shareholders could be significant. On March 1, another letter stated the board had started discussions with several parties who have expressed interest in acquiring the entire company. In response, shareholder Jugal Taneja wrote a letter expressing his support of Chris Corley, who makes wine for Tanejas small Napa winery, Maroon Wines. In a note to shareholders, Taneja criticized the boards actions regarding share valuations and adherence to company bylaws. Taneja also offered to purchase up to 40% of Monticello shares for $12.50 each. Taneja told the Chronicle that the board of directors wont speak with him about his offer, but said he believes the Corley family members should walk away from the business regardless. I had no desire to be a shareholder of a private company with a family feud, but I thought it would help Chris if I could take a big portion, said Taneja. The way they are fighting, its like a soap opera. The best outcome is they should sell the company. Carolyn Corley followed Tanejas letter to shareholders with one of her own: Monticello is not just a business to me, she wrote, it is my childhood, my history, and the memory of my dad. The agenda for Tuesdays shareholder meeting included a motion to reelect current board members and to implement a specific plan for the future of the company. Donna Cullen from Ballinalee, was a lucky winner in Gala Retails Home or Away store promotion, winning a holiday voucher worth 2,500. Donna is the second winner from county Longford. Shannon Timothy from Longford Town also won a holiday voucher worth 4,000. Gala Retail launched the promotion in celebration of 25 years of serving communities, and has been delighting its loyal customers, across the country, with the chance to win one of 25 holiday vouchers. Running throughout February and March, the promotion offered shoppers the opportunity to enter by spending over 10 in any of the participating Gala Retail stores. Entrants had the chance to win one of 10 family holidays abroad, valued at 4,000 each, or one of 15 holiday vouchers for unforgettable Irish staycations, each worth 2,500. Also read: Longford's Shannon Timothy strikes it lucky and wins 4,000 holiday in Gala giveaway Gary Desmond, CEO of Gala Retail, reflected on the significance of 25 years of loyal custom in Gala stores, stating, "We are delighted to kick start our 25th year in business with a huge thank-you to our loyal Gala shoppers. This giveaway is our way of expressing our gratitude and giving back to the community that has supported us throughout the years. From staycations in Ireland to fun filled, family adventures abroad, there are so many exciting opportunities and were thrilled to see our customers creating unforgettable memories with family or friends." PICTURES | Longford schools show amazing support for Go Yellow campaign The Home or Away promotion, which ran from February 5 to March 17, received overwhelming participation and support from customers across the country. Gala Retail collaborated with Ireland Hotels and the 'Go Anywhere' gift card to offer the home vouchers, aimed at promoting local hospitality and creating memorable experiences in Ireland for winners. For more information, visit: www.gala.ie/news PICTURES | Fostering intergenerational bonds: Longford Hi Digital initiative a massive success A security guard who sexually assaulted a 15-year-old girl after she shoplifted a face mask and make-up brush from Penney's has been jailed for five years. Abdul Rahman Mohammed (35) of Mountjoy Square, Dublin 1, was found guilty of sexual assault, false imprisonment and demanding money with menace on December 4, 2022 in Penney's at Dundrum Shopping Centre. Mohammed was convicted by a jury of all three counts following a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court trial in February this year. The injured party, who was aged 15 at the time, had been out shopping with two friends. The group went to Penney's and the girl put a makeup brush and peel-off face mask in her jacket. As she was leaving, a security guard who was not Mohammed approached her. He asked her to come back into the shop and tell them what else she had taken. She was brought into a room within the premises. At one point, she was left alone in the room with Mohammed. Mohammed accused the girl of hiding more items she had taken and told her to take off her clothes. He made her strip down to her underwear and rubbed his hand on her thigh before making her turn around. The girl asked if she could dress again and Mohammed said yes. He asked her if she would pay and she said she would, so he told her to wait for him outside Penney's. They met in the parking area of the shopping centre and she agreed to send him money via Revolut. The girl thought she would have to pay him 2.50 for the face mask and brush, but he told her it was actually 250. The girl called her friends, but they didn't have the money to pay Mohammed. At one point, one of the girl's friends went to Penney's where she was told that people caught shoplifting didn't have to pay security. When the matter came to trial, Mohammed denied the offence and alleged that his victim and her two friends had been following him around the shopping centre at the time. During the trial, it was also the prosecution case that Mohammed had interfered with the CCTV camera in the room where he sexually assaulted the girl a week prior to make the footage blurry. In a victim impact statement handed in to the court, the girl said the incident left her feeling afraid and depressed. I didn't want to go outside to the street in case I came across him, she said, adding that she couldn't close her eyes without seeing his face. Mr Peart also said his client was a foreign national so time spent in prison would be more onerous for him than an ordinary Irish citizen. Mohammed has two previous convictions for road traffic offences. Judge Orla Crowe handed down a sentence of five years. She backdated it to February, when Mohammed went into custody. Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Possession with Intent to Sell Cocaine, Heroin, & Enough Fentanyl to Kill Hundreds of Thousands of People Crime By Chris Boyle Published: May 13 2024 Nathaniel Howell Pleaded Guilty in April and Has 7 Prior Felony Convictions. Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney today announced that Nathaniel Howell, 40, of Medford, was sentenced to 10 years in prison followed by five years of post-release supervision for Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Second Degree for possessing cocaine, heroin, and fentanyl with intent to distribute out of his Medford home. This defendant was brazen enough to continue peddling these poisons while on parole for a prior cocaine and illegal weapon offenses, said District Attorney Tierney. Our parole system is clearly broken as it no longer allows parole officers to effectively monitor parolees, however, with this guilty plea and sentence, my office has removed a significant threat from our community, which makes us all safer. According to court documents and the defendants admissions during his guilty plea allocution, in November 2023, the District Attorneys Fentanyl Task Force launched an investigation and found that Howell was selling cocaine and fentanyl out of his home on Wilson Avenue in Medford. A search warrant was executed against the home where police subsequently recovered a bag containing 1.57 ounces of fentanyl, a bag containing 2.10 ounces of heroin mixed with fentanyl and a bag containing 3.54 ounces of heroin, and over $305,000 dollars from his bedroom. At the time of this offense, Howell was already on parole for a conviction stemming from a 2020 search warrant executed under similar circumstances against Howells Medford home. That investigation had resulted in the seizure of cocaine, a loaded firearm, and over $50,000 dollars. Howell has seven prior felony convictions, including: A 2004 conviction for Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Seventh Degree and a Felony charge of Driving While Intoxicated. Howell was sentenced to six months in jail. A 2007 conviction for Attempted Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Third Degree and Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Third Degree. Howell was sentenced to three years in prison. A 2009 conviction for Attempted Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Third Degree and Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Third Degree. Howell was sentenced to three and a half years in prison. A 2015 conviction for Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Third Degree. Howell was sentenced to two and a half years in prison. A 2020 conviction for Attempted Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Third Degree. Howell was sentenced to two years in prison. Howell also has numerous misdemeanor convictions where he served periods of incarceration. On April 4, 2024, Howell pleaded guilty before Supreme Court Justice Richard Ambro to two counts of Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Second Degree, Class A felonies. On May 9, 2024, Howell was sentenced to 10 years in prison and five years of post-release supervision. Howell was represented by Ira Weissman, Esq. This case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Robert Kerr of the Narcotics Bureau, and the investigation was conducted by Suffolk County District Attorneys Fentanyl Task Force which is comprised of District Attorney Investigators, the Suffolk County Sheriffs Office, and the Suffolk County Police Department. Two cousins from Boston are making their way on a 220-mile run from Boston across Long Island to the 9/11 Memorial in New York City to raise money for the Tunnel to Towers Foundation. Tanner Kern and Jordan Tucker started their journey on Sunday and are set to arrive on Long Island via the Orient Point Ferry on Wednesday, May 14th, after running from Boston and through Connecticut. They are available for interviews at any point along their route as they complete roughly 30 miles daily to reach Ground Zero on Saturday, May 18th. In 2020 the duo, hit the streets during the global COVID-19 Pandemic, running 260 miles from Canada to Connecticut to raise $15,000 for a Connecticut food bank For this run the cousins set a goal of $20,000 to support Tunnel to Towers on its mission to provide mortgage-free homes for the families of fallen first responders, Gold Star families, and catastrophically injured veterans and first responders. America is the greatest country in the world, because of the men and women who risk their lives to keep us safe. Tunnel to Towers ensures our military and first responders are taken care of when tragedy strikes. We want to do our part to help the people who answer our calls for help every day, said Tanner Kern. Tanner and Jordan are available to speak each day of their run about this physical challenge to benefit Tunnel to Towers and support Americas heroes. FULL 220 MILE ROUTE Local News By Chris Boyle Published: May 13 2024 A responding officer used a life preserver to assist the tired male until the Oyster Bay Fire Department responded. The Public Information Office releases the details of a Water Emergency that occurred on Sunday, May 12, 2024 at 8:23 pm in Oyster Bay. According to police, a male 34, was walking his service dog when it entered the water to swim. The dog began to struggle and became stuck under a dock. The male notified his girlfriend of the incident and she was able to use the dogs GPS collar to located them. She then relayed that information to police. The male entered the water to help the dog. Upon the officers arrival the dog was out of the water, but the male was unable to get himself out. The officer used a life preserver to assist the tired male. The Oyster Bay Fire Department responded and used a rescue line to extract the male from the water. IDF troops operate in Gaza on May 11. (IDF) The Israel Defense Forces have rapidly increased the number of troops fighting in Gaza over the week of May 5-12, sending two divisions to clear out Hamas in eastern Rafah and Jabalya. Eastern Rafah is along the Egyptian border, and is a sensitive area because of potential opposition from the US and Egypt. Jabalya is in northern Gaza and was previously cleared by the IDF in December. A third, smaller operation also began in Gaza citys Zaytun suburb. The multiple operations are bolstered by Israels control of the Netzarim corridor which stretches across Gaza, cutting off Gaza City from central Gaza and giving IDF forces easier access to areas such as Zaytun. The decision to return to Jabalya is raising eyebrows in Israel because the IDF cleared the area once already and it is clear now how quickly Hamas has re-established control. Hamas also launched rockets at the Israeli city of Ashkelon twice on May 11-12 and twice at Beersheba on May 10-11, illustrating that terrorist groups continue to possess or rebuild long-range rocket capabilities. In general, there have been few long-range rocket launches since January 1. There is now rising concern in the IDF that the absence of a strategy to find a replacement to Hamas will lead to a cycle of clearing areas and having to return for the foreseeable future. We are now operating once again in Jabaliya. As long as theres no diplomatic process to develop a governing body in the Strip that isnt Hamas, well have to launch campaigns again and again in other places to dismantle Hamass infrastructure, Halevi said to Israels Channel 13. It will be a Sisyphean task. Similar reports across Israeli media indicate a growing recognition of this problem. The new phase of operations in Gaza began on the evening of May 6, when IDF troops crossed into southern Gaza and took over areas in eastern Rafah. Over five days of fighting, they secured the key Salah al-Din road and other road junctions and outlying neighborhoods of Rafah. These areas are called Al-Bayuk and Shokat al-Sufi. The moves along the border, including Israeli tanks seizing the Gaza side of the Rafah crossing, have led to increasing criticism from Egypt, including reports in Arab media that the operation could lead Egypt to assert that Israel is breaching the peace treaty between the countries, which regulates the number and type of military units that may be in this sensitive border zone. In Zaytun, the IDF lost four soldiers over several days of fighting from May 8-11. Zaytun was cleared by Israeli forces back in November and again in February, making symbolic of the IDF raid tactic followed by a rapid Hamas return to the cleared area. In Jabalya, the IDF tasked the 98th division backed by the 7th armored brigade to return to this key area near Gaza City. Jabalya has long been a center of terrorist cells. The area of low hills overlooks fields in Israel and was one of the areas from which terrorists the October 7 attack. The 98th division and the 7th armored were the same units the IDF used to clear Khan Younis between December and April. The 98th division includes commando units and is known for precision operations. Overall, the IDF struck 150 targets in Gaza between May 11 and 12, of which 30 were in Jabalya. Reporting from Israel, Seth J. Frantzman is an adjunct fellow at FDD and a contributor to FDDs Long War Journal. He is the senior Middle East correspondent and analyst at The Jerusalem Post, and author of The October 7 War: Israel's Battle for Security in Gaza (2024). We were so jealous of Crocs' new kids range - turns out they have adult versions, too A PG&E crew prepares to underground utility lines in a Santa Rosa neighborhood devastated by a wildfire in 2017. Fixed fees are supposed to make electricity bills fairer by more equitably dividing the costs of maintaining the electrical system. Carlos Avila Gonzalez/The Chronicle 2018 Regarding Why Californias plan to let PG&E charge you a fixed monthly fee is as flawed as it sounds (Editorial, SFChronicle.com, May 8): The Chronicles editorial criticism of the new fixed charge for utility ratepayers misses the mark, and the critique is yet another tirade against PG&E. Hey, dont forget that PG&E last year was Americas most hated utility, the editorial board reminded its readers. So, what else is new? Six weeks before PG&Es first bankruptcy filing in 2001, the New York Times profiled the utility, and it declared that Pacific Gas and Electric has long been a company that Californians love to hate. With good reason, I would add. But thats hardly the point regarding the fixed charge. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The Chronicle editorial board laments that the fixed-charge proposals premise is that everyone should stay on a mass grid largely run by private utilities, forever. But is that really what we want or need? It wont be forever but do the math. Even ardent supporters of rooftop solar acknowledge that, at least in the foreseeable future, about 80% of solar power will be (cheaper) utility-scale. Therefore, we need the incremental ratepayer equity that the fixed charge provides. Kurt Schuparra, Moraga Equity for college instructors Regarding My child had a 4.5 GPA. Heres why she chose California community college (Open Forum, SFChronicle.com, May 6): I was thrilled with the authors recognition of the invisible advantages of community colleges for students, including opportunities for some to have adequate consultation time with their instructors, to meet multiple times each year with a counselor and by shaving two years off the cost of a four-year college degree. Advertisement Article continues below this ad What makes those benefits possible, however, is the exploitation built into the unequal two-tier faculty structure in community colleges. About 70% of community college instructors are in a lower tier of temporary, at-will employees, despite some having decades of teaching experience. They receive low compensation, minimal, if any, benefits, and have no job security. Work hours are also limited, and many crisscross college districts to different jobs to cobble together a livable wage. Consequently, the vast majority of community college students have scant access to equally qualified instructors and counselors to ensure their academic success. They deserve better. Fortunately, a campaign is now underway to establish a one-tier community college faculty structure that offers equal compensation, benefits and job security for all. Cynthia Mahabir, Berkeley Advertisement Article continues below this ad Put Trump on trial Regarding Judge delays Trump documents trial (Nation & World, May 8): U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannons decision to indefinitely postpone Donald Trumps classified documents trial is an attack on justice. If the charges are true, not bringing the former president to account for his dangerous behavior also attacks our national security. With boxes of classified documents stacked in his bathroom and elsewhere, there is no accounting for who may have seen sensitive military secrets. Special counsel Jack Smith ought to call for a replacement judge. The judges bias for Trump was exposed when an appellate court reversed some of her decisions. American voters need to know before the presidential election whether Trump engaged in traitorous disregard for our national security. Top-secret government documents must be kept secret. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Bruce Joffe, Piedmont Congress needs more McCloskeys Regarding Former South Bay Republican Congressman Paul Pete McCloskey dies at 96 (Politics, SFChronicle.com, May 8): I first heard Pete McCloskeys name soon after my dad, a Palo Alto lawyer, and several of his Democratic friends urged him to run for Congress against Shirley Temple Black in 1967. The next time I heard his name was in 1972. Thats when I was working on Capitol Hill and then-Rep. McCloskey had launched his primary campaign against President Richard Nixon. Ten years later, I was asked to be his wingman for a day when he visited Orange County as a candidate for the U.S. Senate. About Opinion Guest opinions in Open Forum and Insight are produced by writers with expertise, personal experience or original insights on a subject of interest to our readers. Their views do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Chronicle editorial board, which is committed to providing a diversity of ideas to our readership. Read more about our transparency and ethics policies In my encounters with McCloskey, he showed me, and countless others, how to fight the good fight honorably, which I have always admired. Advertisement Article continues below this ad If only there were more people with Pete McCloskeys backbone serving in Congress now. If youre looking for an excuse to drink on a Monday, then here it is. In honor of World Cocktail Day, which falls on May 13 every year, the Canadian casino ranking site Casino.ca compiled a list of the top cocktails in both the United States and Canada. The staff at Casino.ca used Google Trends in April 2024 to identify the most searched-for cocktails in both countries. While it was determined that margaritas hold the crown across both territories, the state of Massachusetts preferred the second-most sought-after cocktail: martinis. Hotspots include Massachusetts where martini hits a flawless Google Trends score of 100, New York, and New Hampshire, the website wrote on its findings page. While search volumes typically remain stable throughout the year, martini experienced a huge 133% surge in December. Seems like its the perfect drink for spreading holiday cheer. Espresso martinis have a specific popularity in Boston but with the summer months just around the corner, people may be on the hunt for something fruitier and lighter. Some of the best places to find martinis in Boston include Farmacia Cocktail Bar, OFFSUIT and SAVR, according to Yelp. Meanwhile Vincents, Deadhorse Hill and Boardroom Kitchen and Bar in Worcester are among the top spots. Top Springfield destinations include Center Square Grill, Osteria and Deweys Jazz Lounge, according to Yelp. Who has the best martinis in Massachusetts? Email dcifarelli@masslive.com to let us know. Twenty-one people were arraigned Monday in connection with a pro-Palestinian encampment established at the University of Massachusetts Amherst last week. There were 130 people arrested on May 7 at the universitys campus and arraignments began Monday in Eastern Hampshire District Court for people arrested in connection with the protest, according to Northwestern District Attorney David Sullivans Office. All 21 pleaded not guilty to an assortment of charges, such as trespassing, rioters failing to disperse and resisting arrest, before district court Judge Bruce Melikian, according to district attorney spokesperson Laurie Loisel on Monday. Not all defendants faced all those three charges, Loisel said. Among the arrested were students, faculty members and community members, Loisel said. Arraignments are scheduled to be done in groups of 20 until all have been processed, which could run into next week, Loisel said. We understand there is significant community interest in these cases, particularly as there are similar protests taking place around the country. The Northwestern District Attorneys Office will seek just resolutions for each case individually, with prosecutors taking into account the specific facts around each arrest, Sullivan said in a statement. We respect the right of people to speak out and engage in political protests as is fundamental to our democracy. At the same time, we understand the university may take steps to safeguard everyone on the campus, Sullivan said. Prosecutors are seeking to review police reports and body camera footage before decisions are made on how to move forward, Loisel said. Most cases were continued to July 8 for pre-trial conferences, and most will be continued to July 9-10 and beyond, Loisel said. UMass student government members announced at a rally on May 8 that they would be pushing for a no-confidence vote to remove Chancellor Javier Reyes after his decision to use police to disperse a pro-Palestinian encampment the day before. Prior to the 130+ arrests at UMass on May 7, the Associated Press calculated that more than 2,600 people have been arrested on 50 campuses since April 18. Massachusetts state officials plan to use a former Norfolk prison as a temporary emergency shelter site for families experiencing homelessness as they attempt to deal with an overflowing shelter system, according to Gov. Maura Healeys Office. The site is expected to serve about 140 families on the state shelter systems waitlist many of whom are currently staying at Logan Airport each night, the office said in an email to MassLive. Over half the families receiving emergency shelter assistance are newly-arrived immigrants. Read more: How migrants sleeping at Logan Airport spend their days and nights Bay State a former minimum-security prison was decommissioned in 2015, but the facility is still in good condition, Scott Rice, the states emergency assistance director, said in a statement to MassLive. The families will have access to full bathrooms, a cafeteria, a gym and a large common room, he said. The site will be set up with play areas for children, as well as classroom spaces for adults to take job training, english second language and housing search classes, Rice said. Additionally, the razor wire on the fence surrounding the facility will be removed, and the former prisons gates will be left open so that the families can come and go as they please. The site will be staffed at all times by a contracted service provider, according to Healeys office. Transportation services allowing the families to go on and off site will also be made available. The families will be subject to the states 30-day emergency overflow shelter stay limit, according to Healeys office. The limit requires people staying in certain shelters to reapply to stay there every 30 days to prove they meet certain requirements, according to WBUR. Chinese proficiency competition held in Turkiye's Istanbul Xinhua) 10:54, May 13, 2024 Contestants and jury members of the 23rd "Chinese Bridge" language competition for college students in Turkiye pose for a group photo in Istanbul, Turkiye, May 11, 2024. The final round of the 23rd "Chinese Bridge" language competition for college students in Turkiye took place Saturday in Istanbul, the country's largest city. The competition was held at Okan University with the participation of 17 contestants from seven universities across Turkiye. The contestants showcased their language skills and Chinese-related artistic talent through performances like singing, dancing, and playing musical instruments. (Photo by Safar Rajabov/Xinhua) ISTANBUL, May 11 (Xinhua) -- The final round of the 23rd "Chinese Bridge" language competition for college students in Turkiye took place Saturday in Istanbul, the country's largest city. The competition was held at Okan University with the participation of 17 contestants from seven universities across Turkiye. The contestants showcased their language skills and Chinese-related artistic talent through performances like singing, dancing, and playing musical instruments. Deniz Gumuslu, a student of Okan University's Chinese Translation and Interpreting preparatory class, was awarded the first prize and would represent Turkiye to compete in China. "My curiosity about China was sparked after I registered in my class, which further fueled my interest in China," Gumuslu told Xinhua after the competition, expressing his dream of pursuing education in China in the future. In her opening speech, Guliz Mugan, president of Okan University, emphasized that, in the Chinese courses, Turkish students acquire the language and evolve into "cultural ambassadors." "The objective of Chinese proficiency competitions is to promote Chinese culture and language proficiency while enhancing global awareness and understanding of China," Mugan said. Wei Xiaodong, consul general of China in Istanbul, highlighted in his speech the growing interest among Turks in learning Chinese. He expressed hope that more Turkish youths would visit China and have more exchanges with Chinese youths, jointly promoting friendship, cultural exchanges, and mutual learning between the two countries. A contestant performs during the 23rd "Chinese Bridge" language competition for college students in Turkiye held in Istanbul, Turkiye, May 11, 2024. The final round of the 23rd "Chinese Bridge" language competition for college students in Turkiye took place Saturday in Istanbul, the country's largest city. (Photo by Safar Rajabov/Xinhua) (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing) Min Jia Xian, left, agrees to support Chyanne Chen, a candidate for the San Francisco Board of Supervisors District 11 seat, following an April 26 campaign stop at the dry-cleaning business Xians brother owns. Xian said she was swayed by Chens Chinese heritage. Lea Suzuki/The Chronicle Min Jia Xian was working at her brothers Excelsior neighborhood dry-cleaning business when Chyanne Chen, a first-time candidate for the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, dropped by on a campaign walk in April. Chen, a labor organizer and Chinese immigrant, greeted Xian in Cantonese, chatted about the business, then asked if she could display campaign posters in the window. Xian said yes and pledged to support Chens campaign. Asked why, Xian had a simple answer: Because she is Chinese. Chinese people must speak up and must support Chinese people, she said in Mandarin, adding she thinks a Chinese politician will better advocate for her communitys needs. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Chinese American voters in the city have long supported Chinese American candidates, but that may be starting to change. In recent elections, Chinese American politicians, whove tended to be more progressive, havent always won the support of increasingly moderate-leaning Chinese American voters galvanized during the pandemic due to anti-Asian hate, concerns about street conditions and crime, and public school closures. Its no longer strictly about identity politics, said Nancy Tung, a prosecutor who was recently elected chair of the local Democratic Party committee. Chinese (American) voters are being more sophisticated about who actually represents their views and their values. Novembers elections will test that theory. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Six seats on the Board of Supervisors are up for election with five Chinese American candidates running so far. Sharon Lai, a former San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency commissioner who now works for the World Economic Forum, is running in District 3, which includes Chinatown. The Hong Kong native and Cantonese speaker faces five other candidates, including Moe Jamil, who is conversationally fluent in Cantonese, and Danny Sauter, who speaks some Cantonese. Lai is considered more progressive while Sauter has been backed by powerful moderates in the city. Michael Lai, a Mandarin-speaking moderate candidate for the District 11 seat on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, sets out campaign materials at an April 8 candidate forum at the Italian American Social Club. Carlos Avila Gonzalez/The Chronicle Two Chinese Americans are competing in District 11: Chen, who has progressive roots as a union organizer, and Michael Lai, who founded a micro day care business and was part of the centrist slate that took over a powerful Democratic organization this March. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Theyre competing with five other candidates to represent a district encompassing Oceanview and the Excelsior. The only Chinese American currently on the Board of Supervisors, progressive District 1 Supervisor Connie Chan, faces a difficult reelection in a redrawn district where many Richmond District residents are frustrated about a rise in crime. Her centrist opponent, Marjan Philhour, the child of Filipino and Iranian immigrants, has campaigned heavily on improving public safety. San Francisco District 1 Supervisor Connie Chan discusses safety information for older residents during an April 16 lunch at the Self Help for the Elderly Jackie Chan Senior Center. The only Chinese American person on the board, Chan faces a difficult reelection campaign. Lea Suzuki/The Chronicle Chan said her experience as a first-generation immigrant from Hong Kong, able to translate and advocate for Cantonese-speaking constituents, has empowered monolingual residents in her district. But this year, many of the citys Chinese American residents are reckoning with what representation means to them. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The golden era In a city where 22% of residents are ethnically Chinese, Asian American political representation was hard won. When Carmen Chu first joined the Board of Supervisors in 2007, she was the only Asian American on the board. Seven years later, five Asian Americans sat on the board, including four who were Chinese American, during what political consultant David Ho described as a golden era for Asian American political representation in San Francisco. At the time, the city had a Chinese American mayor in Ed Lee. Phil Ting held one of two San Francisco seats on the state Assembly. San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu speaks during a September 2023 public safety town hall meeting at the Strand Theater. Chiu served on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and in the California state Assembly at a time of peak Chinese American political representation for the city. Gabrielle Lurie/The Chronicle We didnt realize at the time how special that era was, said City Attorney David Chiu, who was a supervisor from 2009 to 2014. Chiu went on to represent San Francisco at the state Assembly from 2014 to 2021. He tried to recruit more Chinese and Asian American newcomers to run for office, but said there was a dearth of interest. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Politics had very little appeal to a lot of folks who are in that generation, he said. That was disappointing. Part of what contributed to the golden era was the activist and leadership infrastructure built around progressive, often Chinatown-based nonprofits, said three people involved with local Chinese American politics. Several recent Asian American supervisors came from that world. Brothers Eric Mar and Gordon Mar, both former supervisors, were longtime activists with the Chinese Progressive Association before being elected. Chiu was board chair of Chinatown Community Development Center, where Jane Kim, a former supervisor, had worked. Norman Yee, a former supervisor, was executive director of nonprofit Wu Yee Childrens Service for decades before taking office. The progressive, liberal leaning (Asian American) incumbents have always punched above their weight in terms of where the Chinese community is, Ho said. San Franciscos majority-Asian precincts, on average, have voted the least progressively of all the citys racial groups on ballot measures from 2018 to 2020, according to a 2022 Chronicle analysis. This ideological misalignment came to a head in Gordon Mars 2022 reelection bid, when the progressive Mar was defeated by the more moderate Joel Engardio in the majority-Asian District 4 encompassing the Outer Sunset, a moment that many see as a turning point. Moderate Asian voters could determine who gets elected to the Board of Supervisors this year, as well as who becomes San Franciscos next mayor. Some Asian American Richmond residents in Chans district said whether candidates are Asian doesnt matter. Vietnamese American community organizer Liz Le, who criticized what she sees as Chans soft-on-crime approach, is one such resident. Le said her home has been broken into and her son experienced an anti-Asian incident on Muni this month, leading her to call for increased law enforcement on public transit. We, as the Asian American community, have got to move away from voting for her because her last name is Chan, Le said. On the other hand, Chan supporter Hei Kwok, owner of Lung Fung Bakery in the Richmond, said he fully supports her but not because shes Chinese. Lung Fung Bakery owner Hei Kwok, center, speaks to Supervisor Connie Chan, right, on April 16. He says he supports Chan, but not because they share the same ethnicity. Lea Suzuki/The Chronicle He, too, is worried about public safety, after his store was broken into twice this year. But he said Chan has done a good job, pointing to how she advocated for more public safety resources at a Richmond neighborhood meeting last August. As long as someone does a good job, he said, he doesnt care what their race is. This is America, he said in Mandarin. Its equal. Here, we dont differentiate. I dont differentiate. Chan has defended her public safety record. During last years budget season, she said, she voted in support of $25 million in police overtime, an increase in the police budget, and officer salary raises and retention bonuses. A new generation of activists Since 2020, a new generation of Asian American activists has sprung up, many moderate leaning, focused on tougher policing and academic achievement in schools. Chiu said he thinks this political change was reflected in a crucial race this March when moderates took over the powerful local Democratic party, which hands out key election endorsements. Half of the San Francisco Democratic County Central Committees elected members are of Asian descent, most of whom were part of the new moderate slate. Tung, the committee chair, said, to the extent that we have more people on DCCC who are of AAPI heritage, this may be part of building a bench for people to run as well. The phenomenon is already underway. After winning a seat on the DCCC in March, Michael Lai, a moderate whos never run for office, announced in April hes running for the District 11 seat. District 11 candidate Chyanne Chen, center, introduces herself to Aldie Chung, right, owner of Als Appliances while campaigning in San Francisco on April 26. Chung believes its time the majority Asian American district elect its first Asian American supervisor. Lea Suzuki/The Chronicle The majority-Asian district has never had a Chinese or Asian American supervisor. Aldie Chung, owner of Als Appliances on Geneva Avenue in District 11, said its time for a supervisor who can connect to Chinese-speaking residents. A lot of Asians dont speak out, Chung said. If you speak to them in English, forget it. But at least one resident, Michael Juan, isnt weighing that fact heavily in deciding who to support. Bellingham police are increasing patrols at the towns high school this week after a local 16-year-old was shot and killed at a large party in Northborough over the weekend. The teen boy who authorities have yet to publicly identify was not a Bellingham Public Schools student, but other young people from Bellingham attended the 300-person party during which he was killed early Sunday morning, the department wrote in a Sunday Facebook post. The increased police presence at Bellingham High School is out of an abundance of caution. We have been in close contact with our partners at the Northborough Police Department and feel confident that this was an isolated incident of violence and there is no threat to anyone in Bellingham or to the schools, the department wrote. ... Our thoughts go out to the family of the victim of this senseless incident, the department wrote. Last month, Northborough police were notified of a large party at the five-bedroom mansion at which the teen was killed, and the homeowner assured them that such gatherings would cease, Police Chief Brian Griffin said previously. The property at 333 Howard St. which is estimated to be worth over $1.5 million is known for hosting large parties, neighbors told Boston 25 News. The homeowner a man who police did not identify was at the mansion while the party was happening, Griffin said. Investigators are still determining whether he was hosting the party, as well as what proportion of the guests were underage, Worcester County District Attorney Joseph Early Jr. said Sunday. Read more: Shooting that killed teen during large party happened at Northborough mansion Authorities began investigating the shooting around 1 a.m. Sunday morning after a party-goer flagged down a Northborough police officer and told them someone had pulled out a gun at the party, Early said. More than 25 officers from eight different departments were preparing to enter the mansion when they heard gunshots. Police then rushed into the home and found the 16-year-old who had been shot, Early said. He was taken to UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester where he was declared dead. Read more: Suspects in connection with shooting of teen at Northborough party due in court Monday A 17-year-old male was also shot in the buttocks during the incident, and two other injured people were taken to a hospital following the shooting, Early said. Three men Wallisom Texeira Da Silva, Arnoldo Nogueira Filho and Pedro Desouza-Passos were arrested at the scene and are set to be arraigned on firearms charges on Monday, but so far, no homicide charges have been filed in the case. The body of a 65-year-old man was recovered from ocean waters off the North Shore after a boat crash near Little Misery Island in Beverly on Sunday, according to multiple reports. A search for the man kicked off the day prior when a boat was found on the rocks near the island, according to 7News. He was found the next day, and no foul play is believed to be involved in his death, according to the Essex County district attorneys office, WCVB-TV reported. The district attorneys office did not immediately respond to a request for information sent Monday morning by MassLive. The U.S. Coast Guard searched for the man by air and sea, providing aid to several local harbormasters, according to WCVB-TV. The mans name was not released. A Boston man was arrested Monday after prosecutors say he pointed a high-powered laser pointer at a Coast Guard helicopter attempting to land at Massachusetts General Hospital in September. Philip Gagnon, 59, is facing a single charge of aiming a laser pointer at a Coast Guard helicopter and was released on conditions after making an initial appearance in federal court in Boston on Monday, acting U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Joshua S. Levys office said. On the evening of Sept. 21, 2023, a Coast Guard helicopter was trying to land at Massachusetts General Hospital during a routine training mission with four crew members on board. As the helicopter descended, prosecutors say Gagnon knowingly aimed a high-powered green laser beam at the aircraft as it was descending. The beam illuminated the side of the helicopter and shone through the helicopters windows, Levys office said. The helicopter pilot scrapped the planned landing at MGH and flew several miles north, eventually landing at another Boston-area hospital. Gagnon would face a sentence of up to five years in prison if he is convicted, according to Levys office. MassLive recently asked readers to identify people who are leaders from the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community throughout the state, working to make a difference in politics, education, business, the arts or another area of interest. Profiles of these leaders will be published through AAPI Heritage Month in May. 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. Grace Lee is the Regional President of Massachusetts and Head of Government Banking & Finance in New England for M&T BankGrace Lee Grace Lee Community: Boston Her story: Grace Lee is the Regional President of Massachusetts and Head of Government Banking and Finance in New England for M&T Bank. At M&T, we pride ourselves on meeting the needs of the communities we serve. We help our customers start families, buy houses, open small businesses, and set up their retirements, Lee said. To have such a large and personal relationship with our customers is incredibly powerful and important to me. Banks like M&T are vital components to every Main Street and community across the country and serve as the foundation for the national economy. Lee also said she is a first-generation Korean American and the daughter of parents who speak little English. Growing up her family struggled to make ends meet until her father started his own small business. The work she does at M&T, helping customers and small businesses find success is personal to her, she said. M&T was recognized as the #1 SBA Minority Lender of the Year in the Commonwealth for 2023. Im so proud of this accomplishment because it serves as proof of our commitment to working with underserved populations in need and our effort to close the wealth gap so that all Massachusetts families can thrive like mine did, Lee said. Lee, who is also an attorney, said that she has a unique mix of private and public work. She was the Special Counsel and Vice Chair of the Public Finance Group for Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellot and she was an attorney for Morgan, Brown & Joy where she focused on employment discrimination, labor law and commercial litigation. But Lee said it was her work in the public sector that shaped her career outlook, fueling her passion to help others. I witnessed the terrible effects of discrimination while working as a civil rights lawyer for the Norfolk County DAs Office and the U.S. Department of Education and later, I proudly served as the Receiver General for the Office of the State Treasurer where I helped establish the Asian American Commission to lift our community here in Massachusetts, she said. Lee said she works with the M&T Charitable Foundation to support the banks commitment to equality and inclusion. In her words: Be bold! Stick your neck out and lean into everything you believe. If you do that, youll be passionate about what you do, and that passion will drive you to success. But most importantly, always prioritize giving back and find ways to elevate those around you. Were always open to hearing about more inspiring people. If youd like to suggest someone else who should be recognized, please fill out this form. A man drowned in Halifax on Sunday when the canoe he was in capsized, according to Plymouth County District Attorney Tim Cruzs office. Massachusetts State and Environmental Police, along with Halifax Police, are investigating the drowning, Cruzs office wrote in a post on X, formerly Twitter. Halifax police went to the area of a boat ramp on White Island Road shortly before 11 a.m. Sunday after receiving a 911 call reported a capsized canoe and several people in the water, NBC10 Boston reported, citing the Plymouth County district attorneys office. The district attorneys office did not immediately respond to a request for information sent Monday morning by MassLive. First responders determined three people an adult and two children safely exited the water but another adult did not resurfaced, according to WCVB-TV. Divers from the Plymouth County Technical Rescue Dive Team found the man around 12:40 p.m., the station reported. The man was taken to Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital in Plymouth, where he was declared dead. The mans name was not released. Halifax resident Julie Lang called the incident absolutely crushing. Its hard to concentrate on other things. I dont wish this on anyone, Lang told WCVB-TV. The town of Norfolk is distancing itself from a decision by the Healey administration to designate the decommissioned Bay State Correctional Center as a temporary emergency shelter. Over the weekend, state officials announced their plans to use the former minimum-security prison as an additional site for approximately 140 families who are on the states shelter waitlist. Gov. Maura Healeys office told MassLive many of the families are currently staying at Logan Airport each night. In a statement released Monday, the town of Norfolk said it was informed on Friday that the Bay State Correctional Center, which was decommissioned in 2015, would be used as an emergency shelter. The town had no role in this decision and was not consulted prior, it said. Since Healeys emergency declaration last summer, state officials have been forced to make quick moves to react to the precariousness of the situation a jam-packed shelter system housing both an influx of newly arrived migrants and permanent Massachusetts residents. Communities havent had much involvement, if any, in many of the decisions regarding the location of temporary shelter sites, which have opened in cities and towns of all sizes. Last June, Roxann Wedegartner, mayor of Greenfield at the time, said she didnt know families were being housed in a Days Inn Hotel until the morning they arrived. In August, Yarmouth Town Administrator Robert Whritenour said he received a phone call from the governors office on a Wednesday about a plan to relocate displaced and migrant families to a condo-motel, and two days later was still struggling to get additional information, the Cape Cod Times reported. Families sleeping at Boston's Logan Airport on Monday, March 11, 2024.Luis Fieldman On Saturday, Norfolk officials received further clarification from Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll. According to the town, Driscoll told them the shelter will be managed 24/7 by a shelter operator determined by the Executive Office of Health and Human Services through competitive bid, and it will house up to 140 families, or up to 450 people total, who are deemed eligible for emergency assistance. The shelter is expected to operate for six to 12 months. An unexpected influx of a large number of families poses many logistical challenges to Norfolk, the towns statement said. In the coming days, the town administrator, police chief, fire chief, school superintendents and other department leaders are expected to meet regularly to develop a comprehensive list of potential impacts to the town and develop strategies to continue to deliver regular municipal services without interruption. Norfolk Select Board member Jim Lehan told WVCB, Our job is to minimize this impact because we dont get a vote on this. If the state wants to do this, then the state will do this. In a Friday letter to his constituents, Republican State Rep. Marcus Vaughn, 9th Norfolk District, said he felt deep disappointment over the decision. Undoubtedly, this development will strain our school systems in Norfolk and at King Philip Middle and High School and will likely impact public safety infrastructure, concerns I emphasized during our discussion with the Governors Office, Vaughn wrote. He said the town was provided with assurances by Healeys office regarding on-site security and ongoing dialogue with state officials. Norfolk, as a small community, faces an unprecedented challenge with the decision, Vaughn wrote. ...Rest assured, we are committed to providing timely updates as we navigate this situation together. In March, the Boston Globe interviewed more than 50 people in several cities where overflow shelters have opened. After initial outcry, the majority reported the shelters had little impact on community life. As of May 9, there were 7,490 families enrolled in the states emergency shelter system, according to state data. From former prison to overflow shelter In a statement to MassLive over the weekend, Scott Rice, the states emergency assistance director, said the Bay State Correctional Facility is still in good condition, and that families will have access to full bathrooms, a cafeteria, a gym and a large common room. The site will be set up with play areas for children, as well as classroom spaces for adults to take job training, english second language and housing search classes, Rice said. Additionally, the razor wire on the fence surrounding the facility will be removed, and the former prisons gates will be left open so that the families can come and go as they please. The families will be subject to the states 30-day emergency overflow shelter stay limit, according to Healeys office. The limit requires people staying in certain shelters to reapply to stay there every 30 days to prove they meet certain requirements, according to WBUR. MassLive reporter Susannah Sudborough contributed to this story. A Northborough home that was the site of a massive house party and, later, the fatal shooting of a 16-year-old early Sunday, has roots that can be traced back to the 1950s, the towns historical society wrote in a Facebook post. The Vera Green House at 333 Howard St. was designed by architect Doak Martin for Vera and Albert L. Green in 1953. The homes walls are made of roughly cut granite slabs that alternate between vast expanses of glass with horizontal siding made of cypress, the society wrote. Martin who designed several large buildings in greater Worcester was clearly inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright in the design of the home, crafting a large and fully realized example of the organic architecture Wright envisioned. The flat, horizontal roofs of the house, the natural granite and cypress used to build it, and its open-plan are defining characteristics of this type of architecture, the society wrote. The wooded setting of the house furthers the sense that it was brought forth from its surroundings. Read more: Northborough shooting took place at 21st birthday party, records show Some say Martin was an apprentice of Wrights, but the society said no evidence of the apprenticeship exists and Martin may well have just been inspired by the legendary architect as many others were. Vera and Albert L. Green were officers of Botwinik Brothers of Massachusetts, which the society described as a large industrial concern located in Worcester. The company, which was based in Bridgeport, Connecticut, specialized in buying, refurbishing, and selling machine tools such as lathes and milling machines. Its motto was The Plant that Answers 1001 Machine-Tool Problems, the society wrote. Vera Green was a secretary and assistant treasurer at the company, but also had her own business, a womens clothing store on Main Street in Worcester. She resigned from Botwinik Brothers in 1956, a decision the society called controversial and devoted herself to the clothing business full-time. She was also involved in a number of local philanthropies in greater Worcester. Vera Green was also an early proponent of the role of women in business and began using the title Ms. in 1953. Northborough officials identified the 333 Howard St. property as potentially deserving of national historic registration. Read more: Shooting that killed teen during large party happened at Northborough mansion A Zillow listing for the property says the 4,200-square-foot Frank Lloyd Wright-style home has five bedrooms, four-and-a-half bathrooms and an in-ground pool. The listing also shows a cottage on the property with two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a full kitchen, a bar and a pool table. Its quite a house, Early said during a press conference about the shooting Sunday afternoon. Pictures of the home featured on the listing show that it has many full-length windows, more than one walk-out porch and a stone patio with a grill. The homeowner a man who police did not identify was at the house while the party was happening, officials said. Investigators are still determining whether the homeowner was hosting the party, as well as what proportion of the guests were underage, according to Worcester County District Attorney Joseph J. Early Jr. Public records and Zillow indicate the house was last sold in 2010, but the home was last listed for rent on Zillow in February 2023. At that time, the listing said the ideal renter would be a serious and mature young professional or grad student. When MassLive called a phone number listed as being for a man with the same name and address as the homeowner, a man picked up but hung up after finding out who was calling. Three men Wallisom Texeira Da Silva, Arnoldo Nogueira Filho and Pedro Desouza-Passos are facing charges in connection with the fatal shooting, according to the Worcester County district attorneys office. A judge will rule next week if one of the three men charged in connection with a fatal shooting at a massive house party in Northborough that left a 16-year-old from Bellingham dead should be held as a danger to the community, while the two other suspects will remain in jail pending a $25,000 cash bail, court records show. Wallisom Texeira Da Silva, 20, of Hyde Park, is charged with unlicensed sale/possession of an assault weapon, possessing a firearm while committing a felony, carrying a firearm without a license, and possession of ammunition without an FID card, according to Northborough police. He was held pending a dangerousness hearing at his arrangement in Westborough District Court on Monday, court records show. The other two men charged Arnoldo Nogueira Filho, 19, of Marlborough and Pedro Desouza-Passos, 27, of Rockland were detained on $25,000 cash bail. Both men are charged with unlicensed sale/possession of an assault weapon and possession of ammunition without an FID card, according to police. Read more: Bellingham police patrol high school in wake of teens killing at party A judge ordered Filho must surrender his passport if he posts bail, records show. All three were arrested hours after a fatal shooting at a 21st birthday party at a Northborough home, according to a statement of facts filed in court. A cottage on the homes property had been listed on Airbnb but was not booked the night of the shooting, according to the company. Police say Da Silva, Filho and Desouza-Passos were inside a car being driven by the person who the party was for. Officers found ammunition inside bags in the backseat of the car, where the three men were sitting. Northborough police were previously notified of a large party at the home last month, Police Chief Brian Griffin said during the Sunday press conference. Officers spoke with the homeowner, who told them there would not be another such gathering. The homeowner a man who police did not identify was at the house while the party was happening, Griffin said. Investigators are still determining whether the homeowner was hosting the party, as well as what proportion of the guests were underage, according to Early. Authorities began investigating the shooting after a party-goer flagged down a Northborough police officer around 1 a.m. Sunday morning and told them someone had a gun at the party, Early said. More than 25 officers from eight different departments including Massachusetts State Police were preparing to enter the home when they heard gunshots. Police then rushed into the home where approximately 300 people had gathered and found the 16-year-old who had been shot, Early said. He was taken to UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester where he was declared dead. Investigators are asking that anyone with information about the shooting call Northborough police at 508-393-1515. A Zillow listing for 333 Howard St. in Northborough says the 4,200-square-foot Frank Lloyd Wright-style home has five bedrooms, four and a half bathrooms and an in-ground pool. The listing also shows a cottage on the property with two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a full kitchen, a bar and a pool table. Its quite a house, Early said during a press conference about the shooting Sunday afternoon. Pictures of the home featured on the listing show that it has many full-length windows, more than one walk-out porch and a stone patio with a grill. It was built on the 3.37-acre lot in 1953 using cypress wood and granite and is set a ways back from the road, according to the listing. The cottage was listed as a short-term rental on Airbnb at the time of the shooting. Investigators are still determining whether the party or shooting involved an Airbnb guest, Early said Sunday. A Northborough Airbnb listing showing the same pictures as the 333 Howard St. Zillow listing has a 4.92 guest rating and is a guest favorite. In an email to MassLive, Airbnb said there was no guest booked through the site to stay at the cottage Saturday night. By Monday morning, the Airbnb listing had been removed. A 21st birthday party at a Northborough mansion was plunged into chaos early Sunday morning when someone pulled out a gun and later opened fire, fatally wounding a 16-year-old Bellingham teenager and injuring another teen, court records show. In a statement of facts filed in Westborough District Court Monday morning, Northborough Detective Stephen Sullivan wrote he was called to 333 Howard St. just before 2 a.m. Sunday for a report of shots fired and multiple victims. Later, around 3 a.m., a Southborough police sergeant was working to process a silver Nissan with a New York registration. The Nissan had five occupants, including the person the birthday party was for, and the three men who now face charges in connection with the shooting, the filing shows. The sergeant found ammunition in two black purses located in the back seat of the car, where the three suspects were sitting, according to the filing. A Massachusetts State Police Trooper found a 9-millimeter 30-round magazine with a green Buchanans Scotland label, which was rolled up in a light blue Shein shirt, in one of the purses, which was described as black with a black leopard-print strap. Police also found female paraphernalia in the purse. Police also found a 9-millimeter bullet loosely inside the black purse. The magazine had 17 bullets in it, according to the filing. The second purse, a black Gucci bag, contained a Brazillian passport belonging to Wallisom Texeira Da Silva, one of the three men charged with the shooting, more than $300 in cash, cologne, a cell phone with a cracked screen and another 9-millimeter bullet, police wrote. Read more: Suspects in connection with shooting of teen at Northborough party due in court Monday The Northborough detective held up the first bag in front of all five occupants of the car and asked who it belonged to, but did not get an answer. When he did the same with the second bag, Da Silva claimed ownership, according to the filing. At that point, Da Silva, Arnoldo Nogueira Filho and Pedro Desouza-Passos were arrested after police determined they did not have a license to carry or a firearms identification card with them, the filing reads. Later, as the sun was rising, a police lieutenant found a gun on the grass near a pathway leading into the Northborough property, which is described in the filing as an Airbnb. The gun did not have a serial number on it and was believed to be a 9-millimeter, police wrote. Da Silva claimed ownership of the gun, according to police. Da Silva, Filho and Desouza-Passos are all set to be arraigned in Westborough District Court on Monday. All three men are in their late teens or 20s, and none are from Northborough, according to Worcester County District Attorney Joseph Early Jr. Northborough police were previously notified of a large party at the home last month, Police Chief Brian Griffin said during the Sunday press conference. Officers spoke with the homeowner, who told them there would not be another such gathering. The homeowner a man who police did not identify was at the house while the party was happening, Griffin said. Investigators are still determining whether the homeowner was hosting the party, as well as what proportion of the guests were underage, according to Early. Authorities began investigating the shooting after a party-goer flagged down a Northborough police officer around 1 a.m. Sunday morning and told them someone had a gun at the party, Early said. More than 25 officers from eight different departments including Massachusetts State Police were preparing to enter the home when they heard gunshots. Police then rushed into the home where approximately 300 people had gathered and found the 16-year-old who had been shot, Early said. He was taken to UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester where he was declared dead. Read more: Bellingham police patrol high school in wake of teens killing at party Investigators are asking that anyone with information about the shooting call Northborough police at 508-393-1515. A Zillow listing for 333 Howard St. in Northborough says the 4,200-square-foot Frank Lloyd Wright-style home has five bedrooms, four and a half bathrooms and an in-ground pool. The listing also shows a cottage on the property with two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a full kitchen, a bar and a pool table. Its quite a house, Early said during a press conference about the shooting Sunday afternoon. Pictures of the home featured on the listing show that it has many full-length windows, more than one walk-out porch and a stone patio with a grill. It was built on the 3.37-acre lot in 1953 using cypress wood and granite and is set a ways back from the road, according to the listing. The cottage was listed as a short-term rental on Airbnb at the time of the shooting. Investigators are still determining whether the party or shooting involved an Airbnb guest, Early said Sunday. A Northborough Airbnb listing showing the same pictures as the 333 Howard St. Zillow listing has a 4.92 guest rating and is a guest favorite. In an email to MassLive, Airbnb said there was no guest booked through the site to stay at the cottage Saturday night. By Monday morning, the Airbnb listing had been removed. Police are investigating the suspected drowning of a man after the canoe he was in capsized Sunday morning in a Halifax pond, according to the Plymouth County District Attorneys Office. Halifax police were called to the scene at the boat ramp at 47 White Island Road just before 11 a.m., the district attorneys office said in a press release. The 911 call reported that a canoe had capsized, and that several people were in the water. At the scene, police found that an adult and two children had gotten out of the water safely, but that a man had gone below the waters surface and was now missing, the district attorneys office said. Several fire departments and a dive team responded to the scene, and around 12:40 p.m., the dive team found the man. The man was taken to a hospital where he was declared dead, the district attorneys office said. Massachusetts State Police, Halifax police and Massachusetts Environmental Police are investigating his death. The boat ramp is located on Monponsett Pond. No further information about the drowning including the mans identity has been released. Attendees at the RSA cybersecurity conference, which brought 40,000 visitors to the city, walk between Moscone West and Moscone South near Fourth and Howard streets in San Francisco on Wednesday. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle One year after San Francisco was introduced to the concept of a doom loop, in which fears of a remote-work-fueled real estate apocalypse would trigger mass tax shortfalls, budget cuts and out-migration, the city has yet to spiral into the worst-case scenario, experts say. But the recovery remains very shaky, with the city cutting spending as it grapples with a budget deficit that could reach a staggering $1.36 billion by 2027 the equivalent of nearly 10% of this years total budget. Advertisement Article continues below this ad I think the story from a year ago hasnt changed much. It was a slow recovery then, and the cyclical issues facing key sectors like tech and construction have weighed us down since then, said Ted Egan, the citys chief economist. I dont expect that to last forever, he said. The region has kept up its share of venture capital and is a leader in artificial intelligence, and that bodes well for the future of tech here. Though more people have been congregating in downtown San Francisco, like during the RSA cybersecurity conference last week, experts say the citys recovery remains sluggish. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle One of the biggest contrasts compared to a year ago has been the surging AI sector. Spearheaded by OpenAI, which signed a massive Mission Bay lease last year and is on the hunt for potentially more space, development of the technology has burnished the citys business reputation and shifted some of the narrative away from downtowns struggles. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The city also saw modest 0.1% annual population growth between July 2022 and July 2023 according to the latest state data, even as other Bay Area counties shrank. And downtown has been packed with people this month. Two dance-oriented block parties, First Thursdays in South of Market and Bhangra and Beats in the Financial District, each drew thousands to revel, eat and shop, with over a dozen more events planned. The RSA cybersecurity conference also flooded Moscone Center with 40,000 attendees last week. The argument for a revival is central to Mayor London Breeds bid for reelection against a crowded field. But a drawn-out recovery period is still expected. Five years from now, things should be back close to pre-pandemic trends, but we are looking at a recovery period of years, not months, said Nicholas Bloom, a Stanford economics professor who studies remote work. RSA Conference attendees walk between Moscone West and Moscone South in San Francisco. The number of conferences in the city remains below 2019 levels. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle Im long-run positive on the city with the highly educated population nearby, connections to world-class universities, fantastic weather and Asia exposure. That all bodes well for long-run growth and expansion. Yes, San Francisco has taken a knock, so doom is appropriate but not loop. Things are down but the city will recover, and indeed San Francisco is the classic boom-and-bust city, he said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Although conventions and parties help downtowns businesses on some days, San Franciscos return-to-office rate remains anemic. Its been stuck around 45% of 2019 levels for the past year, among the worst for major cities, according to security firm Kastle Systems, which measures security card swipes. Placer.ai, which uses location data from mobile devices, similarly said San Francisco office visits were just over half of 2019 levels in April, the worst among major cities it tracked, although the company said the city had seen a strong year-over-year gain. San Franciscos biggest office landlord, BXP, formerly Boston Properties, said for peak office days like Tuesday and Thursday, New York is basically back. Boston is at about 75% on that measure, and the only place where its really lagging is in San Francisco, which is about 45% or 50% for those peak days, according to CEO Owen Thomas on an earnings call this month. The company, which owns Salesforce Tower and Embarcadero Center, said last year that commercial real estate was in a recession, even though the broader economy is not. Remote work has unleashed a massive cutback in tech leasing since 2020, which has, in turn, devalued office buildings and threatened a major source of tax revenue. Salesforce, the citys biggest private employer with around 10,000 local workers, said it cut its office space by 45% in 2023, from 1.6 million square feet to 900,000 square feet, in part by leasing it out to other tenants. Scott Beck, the CEO of San Francisco Travel, expects tourism to rebound and more conventions, like the RSA cybersecurity conference, to return to the city. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle The citys office vacancy rate was a record-high 36.6% at the end of March, according to real estate brokerage CBRE. Advertisement Article continues below this ad S.F. is still the worst major office market in the country in terms of vacancies, and we are not at the bottom yet, said Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh, the Columbia University professor who co-authored the 2022 doom loop paper that was cited in the Chronicle story last March that first applied the term to the city. He noted that Google said just last week it is exiting 300,000 square feet at One Market Plaza. Its the tech giants first significant real estate cut in San Francisco ever and coincides with numerous rounds of layoffs. Tax receipt declines, which are at the core of the urban doom loop, are also likely to get worse in the near future. To use a real estate analogy, S.F. has good bones but needs a major renovation in terms of policies that will stimulate investment in conversions and business-oriented reform, Van Nieuwerburgh said. Business leaders and elected officials are trying, with a major tax overhaul aimed for the November ballot that is expected to cut taxes in the near term, with support from Breed and Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin, who is also running for mayor. State efforts to streamline downtown project approvals and office-to-housing conversions are also underway. Advertisement Article continues below this ad But sky-high construction costs and weaker demand have frozen almost all development projects in San Francisco. Instead of construction cranes, downtown has been marked by shuttered storefronts. Meanwhile, BART, the citys and regions primary rail transit service, is staring down a $385 million deficit by fiscal year 2027, with its best hope for solvency coming in the form of a ballot measure not guaranteed to pass. Muni is in a similar situation, with the San Francisco transit service facing a $240 million gap by 2026. RSA cybersecurity conference attendees walk between Moscone West and Moscone South near Fourth and Howard streets in San Francisco. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle The challenges are particularly acute around the crucial Union Square shopping district. Theres the former Westfield San Francisco Centre, the citys biggest mall, which is under new management after its namesake previous owner stopped paying its mortgage last year. A couple of blocks away, two of the citys biggest hotels, Parc 55 and Hilton Union Square, are also under receivership and seeking a sale after owner Park Hotels & Resorts gave up on the properties nearly 3,000 hotel rooms. Nearby, Macys is preparing to close its decades-old flagship store. Part of the areas pain comes not just from the absence of office workers, but also a significant shortfall in tourism. In 2023, visitor spending was around 8% below 2019s record year, according to San Francisco Travel, the citys tourism bureau. But hotel revenue, which depends on large business conventions and corporate travel, was down about a third from 2019 revenue in the spring. The impact of remote work hits our market harder than most markets nationally, with tech companies cutting back on corporate travel, said Scott Beck, the new CEO of San Francisco Travel. Moscone Center bookings are also down this year, with events accounting for 430,000 room nights, compared to over 618,000 last year and 550,500 next year. Beck attributed the drop to the inability to sell the convention center during 2020-2021 COVID shutdowns, which affected bookings this year. But tourism is expected to continue improving, and Beck noted that spending from Chinese visitors is likely to surpass 2019 levels this year, even though the number of visitors from China will be around 30% below that 2019 level. Affluent Chinese visitors and those passionate about travel are still coming to San Francisco, Beck said, despite Chinas economic slump. Overall tourism spending wont recover until late 2026 or 2027 compared to 2019, Beck said. The world has changed, and it will be a different mix, said Beck, who remains optimistic. He said organizers of the recent RSA Conference, as well as other events, have noticed that downtown is becoming more vibrant and attractive. The three suspects in the fatal shooting of a Bellingham teenager at a massive party in Northborough on Sunday are set to be arraigned in court on Monday, where they will face several firearms charges, according to the Worcester County district attorneys office. Court records show the suspects are Wallisom Texeira Da Silva, Arnoldo Nogueira Filho, and Pedro Desouza-Passos. All three men were arrested Sunday. Da Silva is charged with unlicensed sale/possession of an assault weapon, possessing a firearm while committing a felony, carrying a firearm without a license, and a misdemeanor charge of possessing ammunition without an FID card. Filho and Desouza-Passos are both charged with unlicensed sale/possession of an assault weapon and possessing ammunition without an FID card, Westborough court records show. All three men are in their late teens or 20s, and none are from Northborough, according to Worcester County District Attorney Joseph Early Jr. The shooting happened sometime after 1 a.m. Sunday, and at that time, there were approximately 300 people attending the party, according to Early. A 17-year-old was also shot during the incident, but he has since been released from a hospital. Authorities began investigating the shooting after a party-goer flagged down a Northborough police officer and told them a person had a gun at the party at 333 Howard St., Early said. More than 25 officers from eight different departments including Massachusetts State Police were preparing to enter the home when they heard gunshots. Police then rushed into the home where approximately 300 people had gathered and found the 16-year-old who had been shot, Early said. They provided medical aid at the scene before rushing him out to an ambulance. He was taken to UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester where he was declared dead. Our thoughts go out to the victim and the victims family during this senseless act of violence, Northborough Police Chief Brian Griffin said during the conference. Its especially difficult, being Mothers Day. Northborough police were previously notified of a large party at the home last month, Griffin said. Officers spoke with the homeowner, who told them there would not be another such gathering. The homeowner a man who police did not identify was at the home while the party was happening, Griffin said. Investigators are still determining whether the homeowner was hosting the party, as well as what proportion of the guests were underage, according to Early. Material from a previous MassLive story was used in this report. One of New Englands most popular annual music festivals is kicking off at the end of the month featuring more than 50 acts, but guests attending the 2024 Boston Calling Music Festival can also expect to enjoy food from more than 30 vendors. While many fans anticipate seeing big name-acts such as Ed Sheeran, Hozier and Megan Thee Stallion, the food may be the star of its own show, with options from smoked barbecue and pierogies, to sushi and shawarma. This years event spans over the course of three days on Memorial Day weekend Friday, May 24, through Sunday, May 26, and lasts from 1 p.m. until 11 p.m. The venue, Harvard Stadium, houses 30,323 people. With 30 food vendors to explore and tens of thousands of people to sift through, guests will want to check out this food guide to make navigating the festival grounds that much easier. Chicken and Rice Guys will be at Boston Calling cooking up some cuisine for attendees.Boston Calling Note: *GFO indicates the vendor offers gluten-free options. *VO indicates the vendor offers vegan options. Main Field Chicken & Rice Guys Middle Eastern Halal street food. (GFO&VO) Deans Concessions All things friends and battered - from Oreos to fried dough. (GFO&VO) FoMu Ice Cream Dessert vendor featuring cookies, ice cream and other sweets. (GFO&VO) FoMu will offer ice cream at this year's Boston Calling Music Festival.Boston Calling GreCo Fast casual Greek cuisine. (GFO&VO) Jaju Pierogi Polish cuisine specializing in pierogies. Love Art Sushi Fast casual sushi and poke bowl joint. (GFO&VO) Moyzilla Asian street food with a twist on traditional dumplings. Naco Taco is one of 30+ vendors attending the Boston Calling Music Festival in 2024.Boston Calling Naco Taco Mexican cuisine. (GFO/VO) PieSons Pizza Brick oven pizza. (GFO) Riceburg All things rice-based: Rice buns, rice bowls and rice burgers. (GFO) Roxys Gourmet Grilled Cheese Specialty grilled cheeses, milk shakes and burgers. Roxy's Gourmet Grilled Cheese offers a unique spin on a classic, feel-good food.Boston Calling Tasty Burger Where its all about the burger. The Chubby Chickpea Shawarma and Greek cuisine. (GFO&VO) Flatbread Company Brick oven pizza. (GFO&VO) The Sausage Guy Serving up sausages, hot dogs and other classic ballpark foods. (GFO) The Smoke Shop BBQ will be at the 2024 Boston Calling Music Festival to take care of guests smokey and BBQ needs.Boston Calling The Smoke Shop BBQ Anything smoked and smothered in BBQ sauce. (GFO) Zinnekens Authentic Belgian waffles, made with the finest ingredients imported from Europe. Door Dash Village Blackbird Doughnuts and Sallys Sandwiches Cafe cuisine - anything from doughnuts and pastries to breakfast burritos. (GRO&VO) Guests craving a little something sweet this Memorial Day weekend can nosh on a Blackbird Doughnut at the Boston Calling Music Festival.Boston Calling Dumpling Daughter Authentic Chinese dumplings and cuisine. El Jefes Taqueria Mexican cuisine. (V/O) Flour Bakery and Cafe Anything from sweet pastries to savory paninis. (GFO) The Shaking Crab offers attendees a mix of spicy cajun flavor and seafood.Boston Calling Lily Ps Friend Chicken Soul food and fried chicken. Ricen Thai cuisine focused on rice and noodle dishes. Shaking Crab Cajun seafood restaurant. The Macbar Boston-based Mac n Cheese joint. Five new retail and dining options are set to open this year at Wrentham Village Premium Outlets, according to the outlets property manager. Pottery Barn Outlet, a furniture chain, will open a store this month, offering customers a wide range of home decor, according to a press release from the Simon Property Group, the agency that owns and manages the outlet. Wrentham Village Premium Outlets is already home to Pottery Barns sister brand, West Elm Outlet, another home decor company. This summer, OFFLINE by Aerie will open in Wrentham, according to Simon. OFFLINE is an extension of the Aerie lifestyle brand and will join Aerie and American Eagle. OFFLINE offers customers activewear and accessories designed for comfort, Simon said. Read More: Crumbl opens new cookie store at Liberty Tree Mall Clothing stores Hollister Co. and Gilly Hicks are set to open in the fall, according to Simon. Hollister offers casual, trendy clothing for teens, while Gilly Hicks offers activewear and loungewear for men and women. Shake Shack, the fast food restaurant, will open in late winter, according to Simon. Shake Shack is known for its classical American meals such as made-to-order Angus beef burgers, crispy chicken and hand-spun milkshakes. We are proud to welcome these iconic brands with such a strong following to Wrentham Village Premium Outlets, Ashley Feldhouse, area director of marketing and business development, said in a statement. Restaurants and retailers like these make Wrentham a true New England shopping and dining destination, and we are looking forward to the summer tourism season and beyond. Wrentham Village Premium Outlets is located at 1 Premium Outlet Blvd. in Wrentham. The outlet is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday and open until 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. The outlet is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays, according to the website. HOLYOKE A man accused of ramming a state police troopers cruiser was rescued by police after trying to evade officers by jumping into the Connecticut River. The suspect, who was not named, was stopped by police for routine violations at about 8:10 p.m. Friday. During the stop, the man is accused of reversing his vehicle into the cruiser and speeding away. The car was found a short time later on St. Kolbe Drive by the Massachusetts State Police Air Wing, which was patrolling the area in the departments helicopter. SPRINGFIELD City police identified the victim of a fatal Friday morning shooting on Locust Street and arrested a suspect. Gustavo Cartagena, a 49-year-old Springfield man, was found dead at the scene, the Hampden District Attorneys Office announced Monday. Police responded to the shooting around 1:30 a.m. Friday at a gas station. WESTFIELD In a ceremony Monday afternoon, city and state officials broke ground for the construction of the Westfield River Multi-Use Path. The Massachusetts Department of Transportation has worked closely with the Engineering Office for several years on this project. The project, to be funded by MassDOT, will widen the crest of the levee to 14 feet across and add a 10-foot wide asphalt multi-use trail. On landward portions of the levee that abut residential neighborhoods, a concrete wall and 4-foot railing will be built. With messages from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Trade Minister Mary Ng and Premier Doug Ford among others the Canada-Africa Chambers contribution to Canada was celebrated this week. Over 150 members and invited guests attended the 30 Year-Anniversary on Tuesday 7 May 2024, with the keynote address by Joe Lombard, Vice Chairman of Hatch. Gabriel Tshitende, founder and CEO of Elephant Trade-Services DRC, as well as Founding Chair of the Chamber, Stephen Pincus, a Partner at Goodmans LLP, also addressed delegates. The historic ballroom of the National Club of Toronto was adorned with portraits of past distinguished speakers (https://apo-opa.co/44DWBwY) commemorating addresses by leaders over the past three decades, who have included Heads of State, captains of industry and world-leading think tanks. Paula Caldwell St-Onge, Chair of the Board, opened the 30th Anniversary, underscoring this years extensive programming including but not limited to events in Toronto , Ottawa and Sudbury in Canada, as well as Nairobi , Kenya; Kolwezi , Democratic Republic of Congo; Harare , Zimbabwe and Cape Town , South Africa in addition to the inaugural upcoming Canada-US Forum for African Partnerships in Washington, DC. Mr. Gabriel Tshitende, founder and CEO of Elephant Trade-Services DRC, headline sponsor of the 30th Anniversary Program, delivered the official welcome which included an invitation to attend the Elephant Trade Services February 2025 Investment Mission (https://apo-opa.co/4ahkhrQ) in the Democratic Republic of Congo. This follows from the success of this years DRC Mission undertaken with the Canada-Africa Chamber of Business, showcasing major investment opportunities. Honourable Mary Ng, Minister of Export Promotion, International Trade and Economic Development, thanked Chamber leaders for their contribution in remarks from her Ministerial Office in Ottawa. Awards Ceremony In recognition of their incredible support, four leading corporate members were recipients of our Major Supporter Awards. Board Chair, Paula Caldwell St-Onge, Board Director Pierre Boivin and Vice President Ateau Zola, were pleased to present the awards: Goodmans LLP received by Stephen Pincus (Partner) MineAfrica Inc received by Wayne Floreani (President) and Bruce Shapiro (co-founder) Hatch received by Joe Lombard (Vice Chair) Elephant Trade Services DRC- received by Gabriel Tshitende (Founder and CEO) Thank you to all who have made the last 30 years a success, in addition to those whove pledged today to writing the story of our next 30 years, said Chamber President Garreth Bloor. I am delighted to announce that the headline sponsor of our 30-year anniversary programming writes that story with us as we step into the future: Elephant Trade-Services DRC has committed to 2025 headline sponsorship of our organization, he added. The 2nd annual API Mauritius & Indian Ocean Property Forum (www.APIEvents.com), which will be held on 13 June 2024 at the InterContinental Hotel & Resort, is situated 15km from both Port Louis and Gand Baie in Mauritius, promises to be a landmark event. The gathering is a testament to Mauritiuss growing status as a destination for real estate investment and corporate expansion. With its favourable business environment, safety, strategic location, and growing economy, Mauritius is poised to attract increased foreign direct investment and become a major player in the regional business landscape. This one-of-a-kind event covers opportunities for buyers and developers as well as Mauritiuss significant potential as a business hub for Africa and the region. The forum, a gathering of local and international stakeholders, offers a unique opportunity to connect with key players in the industry. With its well-structured schedule, diverse sessions, and high-profile speakers, the event promises to provide valuable insights and networking opportunities for all. Murray Anderson-Ogle, GM of marketing and commercial at API Events, says, The API Mauritius & Indian Ocean Property Forum is easy to attend and comes with plenty of opportunities in residential, hospitality and commercial property, property management, and more. It also coincides with one of the best months to visit this beautiful island nation. Adding that this years theme Building the Future Leading Tomorrows Africa provides a unique platform to share insights into the opportunities in Africas fastest growing and impactful business hub. JLL, a second-time sponsor, is the largest global real estate advisor present in Africa and has been active in Mauritius for more than a decade, advising investors, lenders, developers, occupiers and the public sector on a broad spectrum of asset classes, with the aim of linking global capital and innovation with local platforms and expertise. Wayne Godwin, Co-CEO of JLL Africa, comments, The success of the inaugural event in 2023 really highlighted the appetite for Mauritius from the regional and local investor community and 2024 will no doubt build on this success. Mauritius has weathered many of the global headwinds better than other regional economies and the fundamentals are amongst the best in Africa for recovery through 2024. As JLL, we are very proud of the partnership with API and the forums ability to raise awareness of the opportunity for investment into Mauritian and African real estate. Bloomage is a proud sponsor of the API Mauritius & Indian Ocean Property Forum for the second consecutive year. It is a growth-driven innovative property fund that holds and manages a well-diversified portfolio of prime properties in Mauritius, with assets valued at circa MUR 6 billion spanning across the retail, office, industry and hospitality segments, and land for future development. Robin Hardin, CEO of Bloomage Property Fund, comments, Our strong permeating belief in Real Estate with a Heartbeat supports our dedication to positively contribute to Mauritiuss economy through the real estate sector. By collaborating with API Mauritius, we reinforce our role as a reliable partner in developing the property market both locally and in the region. Our principle of Real Estate with a Heartbeat underscores our dedication to enhancing Mauritiuss economy through the real estate sector. By supporting API Mauritius, we reinforce our role as a reliable partner in developing the property market both locally and in the region. As a repeat sponsor of the event Landscope Mauritius are pleased to demonstrate their ongoing support for the Summit, which serves as a valuable platform connecting international and local real estate professionals and leveraging on a wealth of industry expertise and pan-African knowledge. Sandee Teeroovengadum, Head of Marketing & Communication at Landscope Mauritius, says, API Mauritius aligns with the organizations intent of promoting sustainable and cutting-edge real estate development in Mauritius. As a repeat sponsor, we are pleased to demonstrate our ongoing support for the Summit, which serves as a valuable platform connecting international and local real estate professionals and leveraging on a wealth of industry expertise and pan-African knowledge. Medine Property, another second-time sponsor, is part of the historic Medine Group in Mauritius, which has been part of the western Mauritius growth story since 1911. Since 2007, Medine Property managed a diverse portfolio of high value, strategically located properties, including retail, offices, education, and hospitality assets. Joel Bruneau, Managing Director of the Property Department at Medine Group, says API Mauritius offers valuable international exposure and connections with industry leaders and potential buyers. Medine Propertys support aligns with our goal to create world-class integrated residential and commercial offerings in The West of Mauritius with leisure and educational developments all part of a carefully considered masterplan while contributing to Mauritius sustainable social and economic progress. HTI Consulting is proud to be a second-time sponsor at the Mauritius & Indian Oceans Property Forum. HTI Consulting brings 20 years of experience in the brokerage, asset management, operation selection and management contract negotiation, due diligence, financial and feasibility analysis fields having worked in over 40 countries in Africa and the Middle East. Wayne Troughton, CEO of HTI Consulting, comments Summit expected to build on ground-breaking clean cooking initiatives launched at COP28; African Development Banks Adesina (www.AfDB.org), Tanzanian President Hassan, Norway Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stre and International Energy Agency Executive Director Fatih Birol to co-chair event. Development partners gathering in Paris on 14 May are expected to pledge towards the $4 billion needed to provide clean cooking access for 250 million African women by 2030. African Development Bank Group President Dr Akinwumi Adesina will co-chair the Clean Cooking Summit, to be held in Paris, alongside President Samia Suluhu Hassan of Tanzania, Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stre of Norway, and International Energy Agency Executive Director Fatih Birol. The landmark event aims to drive significant change in clean cooking access for the nearly one billion Africans using polluting fuels, which cause the premature deaths of approximately half a million women and children every year. Women and girls spend up to five hours a day collecting fuel and cooking. This leaves little time for education, social or economic activities. Worldwide, the annual economic cost of women and girls time searching for fuel wood is estimated at $800 billion. The health costs are as high as $1.4 trillion. The capital investment needed to ensure universal clean cooking access in Africa by 2030 is accessible. The $4 billion needed annually is a small fraction of the $2.8 trillion invested globally in energy each year. The summit aims to mobilize this much-needed finance. It brings together governments, development partners, private companies and NGOs to make concrete commitments and develop action-oriented strategies to accelerate progress on clean cooking. They are expected to pledge increased funding for clean cooking, with development partners committing to allocate a higher share of their energy portfolios and to work through private capital arms to bring more financing. Governments will prioritise clean cooking in national planning, create funded implementation programs, and introduce proven policies to support scaling clean cooking solutions. Dr Adesina has committed the Banks strong support and outlined a three-pronged approach to achieve universal clean cooking access in Africa. It entails governments directing at least 5% of their annual energy investments towards clean cooking solutions and having multilateral and development finance institutions set aside a significant share of their annual energy financing for clean cooking solutions, including concessional blended financing and guarantees. At COP28, Adesina said that the Bank Group will channel $2 billion for clean cooking over the next decade. He also joined global leaders in rallying around the Africa Women Clean Cooking Support Program launched by Tanzanias President Suluhu Hassan. Clean cooking initiatives are eligible under the Climate Action Window (CAW) of the African Development Fund (ADF), the Bank Groups concessional window for 37 of Africas poorest and most vulnerable countries. During COP28, the Bank Group launched its first call, with $258 million in mostly grant funding, for climate adaptation proposals through the CAW, which seeks to raise $13 billion to accelerate climate adaptation in the ADF countries. Increased adoption of cleaner cooking fuels such as electricity, biogas, and sustainable biofuels will improve the health and well-being of Africas women and children and also protect Africas forests. Several African governments have begun taking proactive measures to accelerate clean cooking adoption. Kenya has established a Clean Cooking Delivery Unit and introduced special electricity tariffs. Industry, international organizations, and multilateral fora will affirm their support for achieving clean cooking targets. The Banks commitment to addressing the clean cooking crisis aligns with its High 5 priorities particularly Light Up and Power Africa and Improve the Quality of Life for the People of Africa. As Dr Adesina said at COP28, Providing access to clean cooking is clearly doable in Africa. Let us prioritize saving the lives of women and children; let us make it easier for women to cook in dignity and safety. Martina Jennings, CEO of the Mayo Roscommon Hospice Foundation, has won the Social Entrepreneur of the Year award at this years IMAGE PwC Businesswoman of the Year Awards. Crowned at a ceremony in The Clayton Hotel in Dublin, the IMAGE PwC Businesswoman of the Year Awards celebrates the success, talent and accomplishment of female business peers across a wide arc of industries, professions and communities. Becoming CEO of the Mayo Roscommon Hospice Foundation in 2017, this is Ms Jennings third accolade as she was awarded Mayos Most Inspirational Woman in 2015 and won Mayo Person of the Year in 2020. Ms Jennings explained that she was 'thrilled' to have been shortlisted for the award, but winning was 'truly special'. She continued: "I must thank IMAGE, the judges and the sponsors for a wonderful evening and I want to dedicate my award to all of the families who we have supported over the years. Mike Smith, Chairman of the Mayo Roscommon Hospice Foundation, said the organisation were overjoyed and immensely proud to hear the news. Out of 650 entries and 125 nominations, this is an incredible achievement. Martinas exceptional leadership in the past eight years has brought the Foundation from strength to strength, he concluded. Alex Shepard works in the Hej! Workshop on the top floor of Ikea Mall in San Francisco. Shepard works there four to five times weekly as he writes software for nonprofit organization iNaturalist. Yalonda M. James/The Chronicle Prior to the pandemic in 2019, a total of 32 flexible coworking space providers were active in San Francisco, operating some 3.2 million square feet of office space across 108 locations. At the start of this year, the number of providers had dropped to 24, and the total amount of office space dedicated to coworking decreased by more than half, to just over 1.5 million square feet, according to data provided by real estate brokerage CBRE. In spite of the overall shrinkage, and the rise in remote work, providers of flexible, shared offices say that they are hopeful about recent surges in demand driven by individual employees and entire companies seeking in-person work opportunities. Among those betting on the health of San Franciscos coworking space market is WeWork, which confirmed to the Chronicle Monday that it plans to keep its lease inside of an 18-story tower that it anchors near the citys waterfront. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The office tower at 201 Spear St. saw its vacancy rise dramatically last year as a list of tenants exited the building, including Google. It sold to local developer Strada Investment Group in January for just 30% of its pre-pandemic value. The Trellis coworking space in downtown San Francisco has seen an increase in customers in recent months. While the city lost more than half of its coworking spaces since 2019, business owners are hopeful people want these options. Santiago Mejia/The Chronicle As part of its new contract with Strada, WeWork which took the coworking concept to new heights in the years leading up to the pandemic amid rapid growth and occupied close to one-third of 201 Spear will see its rent and footprint reduced in the building, which it has occupied since 2017. An individual with insight into the matter confirmed that WeWork will be giving back one of the five floors it previously occupied in the tower. The arrangement, which is still subject to court approval, comes as WeWork, once privately valued at $47 billion, is eyeing an exit from Chapter 11 bankruptcy later this month. Its November bankruptcy filing triggered a massive lease restructuring effort that forced the company to part with dozens of locations across the country, including seven of the 14 it operated in San Francisco. The significant cutbacks are projected to reduce WeWorks total rent commitments by over $11 billion. Advertisement Article continues below this ad As WeWork seeks to regain its footing in San Francisco, the co-working model it boosted appears to remain popular in a city that has yet to to see a full-blown return to the office, even as more than one-third of San Franciscos total office space sits vacant in the wake of the pandemic, according to industry experts. A lot of companies right now dont really want to allocate capital to real estate, they want to minimize that especially if they are startups trying to build, said Colin Yasukochi, executive director of the tech insights center with brokerage CBRE, adding that the flexible coworking model provides space options with fewer commitments than traditional leases. WeWorks spokesperson confirmed Monday that a bankruptcy court has also approved the companys request to maintain its 600 California St. location, and that negotiations around retaining five additional San Francisco locations are ongoing. In Oakland, WeWork, on Monday, requested to continue operating at 1111 Broadway with modified terms. According to court filings, the restructuring will leave WeWork with an estimated 337 wholly-owned locations, of which 175 are in the United States. Roque Lopez works out of the Trellis coworking space in San Francisco on May 9. Santiago Mejia/The Chronicle WeWorks focus will be on its most profitable locations and on offering its core products including private offices and All Access and On Demand memberships that allow users to book office space at all WeWork locations and on a pay-per-use basis. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Despite WeWorks recent financial troubles, Elton Kwok, a vice president and general manager with the company, said that WeWork remains bullish on its products, and is motivated by growing demand for them. Since 2022, the number of people visiting its Bay Area spaces has increased by 40%, he said. In San Francisco, WeWorks users have increased by 27%. Thats pretty indicative that people want coworking and want flexibility, he said, adding that the company is ideally positioned to capture growing demand in San Francisco from startups in the artificial intelligence space. New companies dont want to be distracted by anything facilities-related or experience-oriented they want us to essentially do it all for them, and all they have to do is pay a monthly fee, Kwok said. Its hard for them to predict their futures, and we give them a sense of flexibility around their growth. Rebecca Pan, founder of the 18,000-square-foot events and coworking space Trellis at 981 Mission St., described her business as the phoenix rising from the ashes. This year has been a huge turnaround we are growing rapidly, Pan said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Kayla Fahey makes coffee at Trellis in San Francisco. The coworking space has seen more interest from clients since adding a coffee bar and events. Santiago Mejia/The Chronicle Pan previously ran another coworking space, Covo, at the same location on Mission Street for eight years. In 2019, the space was full at roughly 200 members, but the business collapsed due to COVID-19 regulations in the early years of the pandemic. Since relaunching as Trellis, Pan said that the coworking spaces focus shifted to being a homebase for climate resilience, and targeted efforts were launched to improve members experience, like adding an independent coffee shop, a bar and regular events and programming. Weve been cultivating and bringing in a lot of climate companies and related events, Pan said. Its raising awareness that we are here and are building an ecosystem for climate initiatives. She said its this sense of community building and the added amenities that are helping the business rebuild: During the pandemic, memberships dropped to just 20 people. Now, the space boasts 120 members. Advertisement Article continues below this ad I think its due to a combination of things, including that people are really craving being in society, she said. Traditional real estate owners are also counting on hospitality-oriented coworking concepts luring workers back into downtown. Landlord Tishman Speyer, which launched its coworking concept Studio by Tishman Speyer in 2018, is seeing an upswing of demand from large enterprises with really sophisticated occupancy strategies who need a little bit of coworking, maybe a little bit of move-in ready suites, said Nate Pinsley, head of Studio at Tishman. Tishman currently has two studios in San Francisco, one with 242 desks that it opened in 2021 at 333 Bush St., and another with 210 desks that it opened at 595 Market in 2022. A third studio with 387 desks will be launched inside of a 32,000-square-foot space in the new Mission Rock development. All studios have waitlists for memberships, which speaks to demand for the coworking concept, Pinsley said. Members have access to all of the amenities in buildings where the spaces operate, with flexibility to expand and grow throughout Tishmans portfolio. The concept is also reassuring to high growth startups who are unsure of their future space needs, he said. Jonathan Iyandemye works in the library in the Hej! Workshop on the top floor of Ikea Mall in San Francisco. He said he works there three times a week. Yalonda M. James/The Chronicle Hej! Workshop, a new coworking space launched over the summer on the top floor of the new Ikea mall at Sixth and Mission Streets, is performing better than expected, according to its operator, New York-based Industrious. Occupancy ramp-up there is 7% per month, compared to the original projections of 4%. On Thursday, more than two dozen people could be counted in the 46,000-square-foot space, which features a library, coffee bar, a wellness room and various conference and meeting rooms along with private offices and shared work spaces. San Francisco is a really good flex market and I dont think people realize that because long term leasing has been so challenged there, said Jamie Hodari, of Industrious, which has four locations in the city and a total of seven in the Bay Area. According to Hodari, revenue at Industrious San Francisco location is double what it was pre-COVID. A Ballinrobe family are hoping to raise funds for a local charity in memory of their son and brother. Climb for Fergal will raise much needed funds for Cancer Fund for Children and Daisy Lodge in Cong. The fundraiser will see participants climb the Reek in memory of the south Mayo native, Fergal Loftus, who succumbed to cancer after a battle borne with dignity and courage, four years ago. The Loftus family are inviting friends and acquaintances to join them on Saturday, May 25 in a climb of Croagh Patrick at 12pm, with refreshments and music afterwards at Campbells pub, Murrisk. The poster for 'Climb for Fergal' The event aims to raise vital funds for Irish charity, Cancer Fund for Children. Their mission is that no child on the island of Ireland should face a cancer diagnosis alone. The charity is currently in the process of building a new facility, Daisy Lodge, on the shores of Lough Corrib at Lisloughrey, just outside the village of Cong. The family decided to organise this event having commenced climbing the Reek in May every year after his passing, given that this vital centre is being built close to their home in South Mayo and to try to help families cope with the devastating diagnosis which touches so many families. Cancer Fund for children provide short breaks to families from the Republic of Ireland in the existing Daisy Lodge in Co Down. However, for every one family referred, another six families must go on a waiting list as Daisy Lodge is running at full capacity. It is now their vision to open a second therapeutic short break centre and welcome families for breaks within the next two years. This will allow the charity to increase the number of children and parents they support from 1,800 to 4,000 each year. The project in Cong is currently underway with groundworks ongoing, and building set to commence this autumn. Anyone who would like to get involved in Climb for Fergal can contact Mary McHugh Murphy, Connaught Regional Fundraiser for Cancer fund for children at mary@cancerfundforchildren.ie . Additionally, you can donate on the fundraisers iDonate page. A Parents' Guide to Career Development One of the most valuable things parents can do to help a student with career planning is listen, be open to ideas, try to help your student find information, and be nonjudgmental. Here are 10 ways you can help: 1. Encourage your student to visit Career Services. (You can go too!) Next time you visit campus, drop into Career Services and pick up a business card from one of the staff members. When your student is feeling anxious about the future, offer the card and say, "Please call this person. He (or she) can help you." Many students use their first semester to "settle into" college life so perhaps the spring semester of the freshman year is the optimal time to start using Career Services. It's a good time for you to prompt that first visit. Ask your student, "Have you visited Career Services?" If you hear, "You only go there when you are a senior," then it's time to reassure them that Career Services is not just for seniors, and meeting with a career counselor can take place at any point (and should take place frequently) in their college career. The sooner a student becomes familiar with the staff, resources, and programs, the better prepared he or she will be to make wise career decisions. Career Services offers a full range of career development and job-search help including: mock interviews a network of alumni willing to talk about their jobs and careers a library of books on a wide range of careers workshops on writing resumes and cover letters a recruiting program individual advising 2. Advise your student to write a resume Writing a resume can be a "reality test" and can help a student identify weak areas that require improvement. Suggest that your student get sample resumes from Career Services, from books at the library or online. You can review resume drafts for grammar, spelling, and content, but recommend that the final product be critiqued by a Career Services professional. 3. Challenge your student to become "occupationally literate." Ask: "Do you have any ideas about what you might want to do when you graduate?" If your student seems unsure, talk about their personal qualities you see as talents and strengths. You can also recommend: Taking a "self-assessment inventory," such as the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator at Career Services Talking to favorite faculty members Researching a variety of interesting career fields and employers A career decision should be a process and not a one-time, last-minute event. Encourage your student to think about their future long before their senior year. 4. Allow your student to make the decision. Myth: Picking your major means picking the career you will have forever. Truth: That's not true anymore. "Major" does not necessarily mean "career," and it is not unusual for a student to change majors. Many students change majors after gaining more information about specific fields of study and career fields of interest. Many students end up doing something very different than originally planned, so don't freak out when they come up with an outrageous career idea. Chances are plans will develop and change. It's okay to change majors-and careers. It's okay to make suggestions about majors and career fields, but let your student be the ultimate judge of what's best. Career development can be stressful. Maybe this is the first really big decision that your student has had to make. Be patient, sympathetic, and understanding even if you don't agree with your child's decisions. 5. Emphasize the importance of internships Career Services will not "place" your student in a job at graduation. Colleges grant degrees but not job guarantees, so having relevant experience in this competitive job market is critical. Your student can sample career options by completing internships and experimenting with summer employment opportunities or volunteer work. Why an internship? Employers are interested in communication, problem-solving, and administrative skills that are developed through internships. Employers look for experience on a student's resume and often hire from within their own internship through internships. Employers look for experience on a student's resume and often hire from within their own internship programs. Having a high GPA is not enough. A strong letter of recommendation from an internship supervisor can often tip the scale of an important programs. Having a high GPA is not enough. A strong letter of recommendation from an internship supervisor can often tip the scale of an important interview in their favor. 6. Encourage extracurricular involvement. Part of experiencing college life is to be involved and active outside the classroom. Interpersonal and leadership skills, qualities valued by future employers, are often developed in extracurricular activities. Flavored whiskey isn't new. American, Canadian and Irish brands have all been in the niche market for years. What is different are the demographics. Since younger millennial drinkers arent often whiskey aficionados, it's an easy way to introduce them to the category. Skrewball is singular a peanut butter whiskey that claims to be "a little salty, a little sweet, a little savory, and always smooth." And its new campaign by The Martin Agency says it all: "Skrew the Usual." The work consists of two 15-second spots and a 30-second spot. The campaign just debuted via online video, social and search. OOH ads will follow in June in key markets such as Chicago, Los Angeles and New York. advertisement advertisement Its an incredibly exciting time for flavored whiskey as it continues to experience growth in the U.S., and especially exciting for Skrewball as the worlds first peanut butter whiskey. Skrewballs new "Skrew the Usual" campaign is for the fun and lighthearted, appealing to those who enjoy discovering new flavors and also traditional whiskey drinkers who may never have tried the brand before. We want everyone to give Skrewball a shot literally, "Kuppy Sampale, brand director, Skrewball Whiskey, told Agency Daily. Launched in 2018, Skrewball is the No. 1 premium brand in the flavored whiskey category ($25+) for value and volume, and the No. 5 brand overall, according to Nielsen. Skrewball Peanut Butter Whiskey has won several awards, including the Best Flavored Whiskey award at the New York World Wine and Spirits Competition. It has also garnered SIP Awards from consumer judges. Flavored whiskey is a $1.5 billion category, per Nielsen IQ, and accounts for 20% of all U.S. whiskey sales. In the past few years, flavored whiskey sales have outpaced unflavored whiskey, according toSouthern Glazers distributors. Since 2019, the number of flavored whiskeys on shelves has surpassed 1,000 options. by Fern Siegel , May 13, 2024 Brendan Robertson has been selected as chief strategy officer for David&Goliath. He reports to David Angelo, founder-creative chairman, D&G. Robertson will handle strategic development and new business opportunities. Angelo said that as a strategic leader, Robertson's "exemplary track record depicts a depth of expertise that has delivered consistent results for brands throughout his career. Previously, Robertson was managing partner at VCCP, where he led strategy on brands including Activision Blizzard, Native (P&G) and Equinox. Before that, he was executive vice president of strategy and planning at Edelman, the strategic lead for HP, Nissan, Starbucks and Adobe. His agency career also encompasses posts at Goodby Silverstein & Partners and Eleven. Current D&G clients include Kia America, California Lottery, Vizio and Frito-Lay. by Wendy Davis , Staff Writer @wendyndavis, May 13, 2024 Leaders of the House Energy and Commerce committee on Sunday unveiled draft legislation that would repeal Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act at the end of next year. Section 230 is now poisoning the healthy online ecosystem it once fostered, Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Washington) and Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-New Jersey) wrote Sunday in an op-ed published in The Wall Street Journal. The lawmakers say they want to work with tech companies and others to evaluate and enact a new legal framework that will allow for free speech and innovation while also encouraging these companies to be good stewards of their platforms. Section 230, passed in 1996, generally immunizes social media platforms, web publishers and other interactive service companies from liability for content posted by consumers and other third parties. Rodgers and Pallone contend that the current law means a social media company cant easily be held responsible if it promotes, amplifies or makes money from posts selling drugs, illegal weapons or other illicit content. It's worth noting, however, that Section 230 already has an exemption for content that violates federal criminal law. In 2011, the Department of Justice drew on that exception to fine Google $500 million for allowing Canadian pharmacies to advertise prescription drugs to U.S. consumers. Also, even though tech companies historically tended to prevail in lawsuits over content, judges today appear increasingly inclined to allow claims against social media companies to move forward -- despite Section 230. For instance, a New York state judge in March allowed victims of a racially motivated mass shooting in Buffalo to proceed with a lawsuit alleging that YouTube, Reddit and other platforms radicalized the shooter by showing him posts about the racist replacement theory," which holds that white people in the United States are being replaced by non-white immigrants. Erie County Supreme Court Justice Paula Feroleto rejected the tech companies' arguments that the case should be dismissed under both Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act and the First Amendment. Instead, Feroleto said the victims could attempt to argue that the companies' products are dangerously defective. And last year, a federal judge and state judge in California said in separate rulings that teens who claimed they were harmed by addictive content on social media could proceed with lawsuits against Meta, Google, Snapchat, TikTok and other platforms. Adam Kovacevich, CEO of the industry-funded think tank Chamber of Progress, blasted the new bill, saying it would hold Section 230 hostage without a replacement. If lawmakers believe Section 230 needs amendment, they should come up with a proposal instead of chasing headlines, he stated Monday. by Teresa Buyikian , May 13, 2024 Many QSRs and coffee shops fundraise for one charity or another, but not many collect donations for a cause that directly impacted the chain itself. Today Dutch Bros Coffee announced its annual Drink One for Dane event, which will take place May 17. For every drink sold on that day, the Dutch Bros Foundation will make a donation to the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA), benefiting the organizations mission to end ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or Lou Gehrig's disease). The chain was founded by two brothers, Dane and Travis Boersma in 1992. In 2009, co-founder Dane passed away from ALS. The annual fundraiser supports research to find a cure for the disease, and the MDA is the leading nonprofit for ALS research, care, advocacy and education. "Drink One for Dane holds a special place in our company's heart and has been a part of our giving DNA for the past 18 years," said Tana Davila, CMO at Dutch Bros, in the release. advertisement advertisement Customers who cannot make it to a Dutch Bros location can also donate directly to the MDA at www.dutchbros.com/drink-one-for-dane. "When we lift our cups to Drink One for Dane, we're not only honoring the legacy of Dane Boersma, but were also actually igniting hope across the ALS and neuromuscular disease communities. Every beverage fuels our momentum and that momentum fuels our certainty that we can and will defeat ALS," said Morgan Roth, CMO of the Muscular Dystrophy Association in the release. Headquartered in Grants Pass, Oregon, Dutch Bros now has more than 850 locations in 17 states. Through the Dutch Bros Foundation and local operators and franchisees, the company donates several million dollars to causes across the country each year. Adult Immunization There are millions of people across the globe suffering from or have died due to vaccine-preventable diseases. We generally assume that the vaccinations we receive as children are enough to safeguard us throughout life. Contrary to this belief, our need for immunization does not stop with childhood. A few of the reasons are given below: Many adults have never been administered vaccines during childhood. Some of the vaccines available now were not available a few years ago. It is also established that immunity reduces as a person grows old. Childhood immunization is done very early and some of its effects are likely to wear-off, leaving individuals at risk for newer and different diseases. Regardless of age, we need immunization against a whole gamut of vaccine-preventable diseases to maintain good health and lead a disease-free life. Each country has its own guidelines regarding immunization in adults. An adults need for immunization is very specific and are determined by certain factors. These include the following: Age Health condition Previous immunization status Lifestyle Occupation Areas / locations where travel is to be undertaken Tetanus, Diphtheria and Whooping Cough: Tetanus is a serious infection that causes painful tightening of muscles. The disease is commonly known as lockjaw, where a person is unable to open the mouth, swallow or breathe. It is caused by the bacterium Clostridium tetani, which produces a toxin that affects the brain and nervous system, leading to stiffness of the muscles. It is transmitted through cuts or wounds. Diphtheria is a serious respiratory infection caused by the bacterium Corynebacterium diphtheriae. The infection generally affects the mucous membranes of the nose and throat. Whooping cough or pertussis is an extremely contagious respiratory tract infection that is caused by the bacterium Bordetella pertussis. Living with whooping cough can be traumatic as it involves periods of fitful coughing, difficulty in breathing, choking and difficulty in doing everyday chores. The condition can be quite severe for both babies and adults. Advertisement Tetanus, diphtheria and whooping cough infections can be prevented by administering the vaccine Tdap to an adult who has not been administered vaccines for these conditions earlier. Tdap is commercially available as Adacel (Sanofi) and Boostrix (GlaxoSmithKline). The CDC recommends the Tdap vaccine once in individuals who have not received the vaccine beyond the age of 11 years. The primary series should be 3 doses of Td [commercially available as Tenivac (Sanofi)] given at least 1 month apart; of this, one dose should be replaced by Tdap. Subsequently, Td boosters should be given every 10 years. Seasonal Influenza: Influenza, commonly known as flu, is a respiratory viral infection characterized by chills, runny nose, headache, body pain, fatigue and fever. It is caused by the viruses Influenza A and B. It is mostly seasonal and can cause complications especially in the elderly. All adults can be protected against the flu virus by taking the flu vaccine. Immunization can be carried out either with a trivalent inactivated vaccine (TIV) or a live-attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV). Both LAIV and TIV contain strains of influenza viruses that are antigenically equivalent to the annually circulating strains as per the World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations. Of the two types of influenza vaccines discussed above, your health care provider will decide on the correct one that you should take. Influenza vaccines are available commercially as Fluarix Quadrivalent (GlaxoSmithKline) and Fluzone Quadrivalent (Sanofi Pasteur). Annual vaccination against influenza is recommended for adults wanting to reduce the risk of coming down with the flu or of transmitting it to others. Moreover, for adults who are either at high risk of complications arising from flu, or are close contacts of persons at higher risk, should also be vaccinated. The vaccine has to be repeated every year. Chickenpox: Chickenpox, also known as varicella, is a highly contagious viral infection, which causes an itchy, blister-like rash on the skin. It is caused by the varicella zoster virus (VZV). The infection can be more severe in adults than in children. Chickenpox can be prevented by vaccination. The varicella vaccine is a live-attenuated vaccine, which is commercially available as Varivax (Merck). The chickenpox vaccine is a two-dose vaccine that is administered to adults who have not received it earlier or who have not suffered from the infection during their childhood. Shingles: Shingles, also known as herpes zoster, is an infection characterized by skin rashes, headaches, chills, and fever and is brought about by the same virus which causes chickenpox. Shingles can cause loss of eye sight if the virus attacks the eye. Herpes zoster vaccine is available commercially as Zostavax (Merck) and is licensed by the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) for all adults, 60 years and older. People with a past episode of herpes zoster also can receive the vaccine to help prevent future occurrences of the disease. Advertisement Meningococcal Disease: Bacterial meningitis is caused by the meningococcus, Neisseria meningitidis. The pathogen causes infection of the brain and spinal cord, which can be prevented in adults through meningococcal vaccination. The vaccine may be administered to adults who are at high risk for the infection. Currently, there are three meningococcal vaccines that are available. Meningococcal Conjugate Vaccines: These include Menactra (Sanofi Pasteur), Menveo (GlaxoSmithKline) and MenHibrix (GlaxoSmithKline). These include Menactra (Sanofi Pasteur), Menveo (GlaxoSmithKline) and MenHibrix (GlaxoSmithKline). Meningococcal Polysaccharide Vaccine: This is available commercially as Menomune (Sanofi Pasteur). However, this vaccine has been discontinued from February, 2017. This is available commercially as Menomune (Sanofi Pasteur). However, this vaccine has been discontinued from February, 2017. Serogroup B Meningococcal Vaccines: These are available commercially as Bexsero (GlaxoSmithKline) and Trumenba (Pfizer). Hepatitis A and B: Hepatitis is a condition involving inflammation of the liver. It is brought about by Hepatitis A and B viruses (HAV and HBV). Hepatitis A is spread through food contamination while hepatitis B is spread most commonly from mother to child at birth (perinatal transmission), and through contact with infected blood products, unsafe sex with infected partner(s), and using infected needles in healthcare settings and among drug users. The symptoms of hepatitis include fever, fatigue, loss of appetite and nausea, abdominal discomfort, dark urine, and yellowing of the skin and the white of the eyes. Adults may be protected against these viral hepatitis infections by being vaccinated against Hepatitis A and B viruses if they did not receive the vaccines as children. Currently, two vaccines are available for Hepatitis A. These include Havrix (GlaxoSmithKline) and Vaqta (Merck), both of which are two-dose vaccines. The first dose is followed by the second dose between 6-18 months. Similarly, there are two hepatitis B vaccines that are currently available, both of which are made by recombinant DNA technology or Genetic Engineering. Both vaccines are based on the recombinant hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg or Australia antigen) protein, which is commercially called Recombivax HB (Merck) and Engerix-B (GlaxoSmithKline). These are three-dose vaccines and are administered at 0, 1 and 6 months. Rubella: Rubella is also known as German measles. The infection is caused by the rubella virus and is generally a mild infection. The infection occurs most often in children and young adults and is characterized by fever, sore throat, rash, headache, and red, itchy eyes. In pregnant women, rubella infection can cause fetal death or congenital defects in their children. It can be prevented with the help of the Measles-Mumps-Rubella (MMR) vaccine, which is commercially available as M-M-R II (Merck). The CDC recommends that adults born in 1957 or later without acceptable evidence of immunity to measles, mumps, or rubella should receive 1 dose of the MMR vaccine unless they have a medical contraindication to the vaccine, e.g., pregnancy or severe immunodeficiency. Pneumococcal Disease: Pneumococcal infections are caused by the bacterium Streptococcus pneumoniae that is responsible for pneumonia, sinus infections, ear infections, meningitis and sepsis. Adults who have lower immunity are more prone to these infections, which can be prevented through pneumococcal vaccinations. There are two vaccines currently available for pneumococcal disease the 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPV) and the 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV-13). Advertisement PPV contains purified capsular polysaccharide from 23 serotypes of S. pneumoniae and is recommended for children above 5 years, adolescents and adults. PPV is used as a single-dose vaccine for immunizing adults and is safe, effective and well-tolerated. It is available commercially as Pneumovax 23 (Merck). The PCV-13 is available commercially as Prevnar 13 (Wyeth Pharmaceuticals Inc.) and is recommended exclusively for infants and children below 5 years. HPV Infections: The human papillomavirus (HPV) causes cervical cancer in females and genital warts in both males and females, which can be prevented by vaccination. There are currently two safe and effective vaccines available for HPV. These are the 9-valent Gardasil9 (Merck) and the bivalent Cervarix (GlaxoSmithKline). As per CDC recommendations, females should be vaccinated with three-doses in the age-group 19-26 years. Males should be vaccinated with three-doses in the age-group 19-21 years. Japanese Encephalitis: Japanese encephalitis (JE), also known as brain fever, is caused by the Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) and is spread by the bite of Culex mosquitoes. There are currently three JE vaccines available in India: JENVAC : This vaccine is manufactured by Bharat Biotech International Ltd., a Hyderabad based company. It is an inactivated (killed) Vero-cell derived vaccine prepared from an Indian strain of JEV. It is a two-dose vaccine. This vaccine is manufactured by Bharat Biotech International Ltd., a Hyderabad based company. It is an inactivated (killed) Vero-cell derived vaccine prepared from an Indian strain of JEV. It is a two-dose vaccine. JEEV : This vaccine is manufactured by Biological E Ltd., based in Hyderabad. It is a purified inactivated (killed) vaccine that uses the SA 14-14-2 strain of JEV. It is a two-dose vaccine. This vaccine is manufactured by Biological E Ltd., based in Hyderabad. It is a purified inactivated (killed) vaccine that uses the SA 14-14-2 strain of JEV. It is a two-dose vaccine. SA 14-14-2: This vaccine is manufactured by the Chengdu Institute of Biological Products, China. It is a live-attenuated, single-dose vaccine. It is imported by India and used exclusively for mass vaccination campaigns by the Government of India. It is not available commercially. Although JE vaccines are recommended for children, as per new guidelines, adults in JE endemic areas who are susceptible to JE infection, as well as people traveling to JE endemic regions can also be vaccinated. Cholera: Cholera is a severe diarrheal disease caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The disease causes profuse watery stool (called rice water stool), leading to rapid dehydration, and if not treated promptly can cause death within a matter of hours. An oral cholera vaccine is available and is commercially known as Shanchol (Sanofi). Shanchol is indicated for active immunization against Vibrio cholerae. The vaccine can be administered to anyone above the age of 1 year. Typhoid: Typhoid fever, also known as enteric fever, is caused by the bacterium Salmonella typhi, a highly virulent and invasive enteric pathogen. It is a major cause of morbidity and death in children and adults with a global annual incidence of 22 million cases and 200,000 deaths. Typhoid continues to be a major public health problem in developing countries like India. Typhoid can be prevented by vaccination. Three typhoid vaccines are commercially available. These include Typherix (GlaxoSmithKline), Typbar (Bharat Biotech), and Typhim Vi (Sanofi Pasteur). These are recommended for active immunization of adults and children 2 years of age and older for protection against Salmonella typhi infection. New Vaccines There are a couple of new vaccines that are yet to be available commercially. When these become available, recommendations will be made for adult immunization. These vaccines are briefly highlighted below: Malaria Vaccine: Malarial disease is caused by the Plasmodium parasite that is transmitted to people through the bites of infected female Anopheles mosquitoes. Symptoms include fever, headache, and chills. The RTS,S is the most advanced malaria vaccine till date. It has been developed by PATH Malaria Vaccine Initiative (MVI) and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) with support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF). It is a recombinant vaccine, which consists of the P. falciparum circumsporozoite protein (CSP) from the pre-erythrocytic stage of the malaria parasite life-cycle. WHO has recommended a large-scale pilot implementation of RTS,S among children aged 5 to 17 months in 35 settings of moderate-to-high transmission in sub-Saharan Africa. Dengue Vaccine: Dengue is a mosquito (Aedes aegypti)-borne viral infection characterized by high fever, severe headache, pain behind the eyes, muscle and joint pains, nausea, vomiting, swollen glands or rash. A recombinant dengue vaccine called Dengvaxia (CYD-TVD), developed by Sanofi Pasteur has been extensively evaluated in more than 40,000 individuals in 15 different countries, including India. The Sanofi vaccine is recommended by WHO for use in individuals aged between 9 and 45 years in areas of the world where dengue is prevalent. The vaccine has been evaluated in a 3-dose schedule (0/6/12 months) in Phase III clinical trials and was first registered in Mexico in December 2015 and first commercially available in 2016 in the Philippines and Indonesia. The vaccine has since been adopted in 7 other dengue-endemic countries around the globe, namely, Brazil, Paraguay, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Peru, Guatemala, and Singapore, where more than 500,000 people have already been vaccinated with over 1.5 million doses distributed so far. The vaccine is yet to be available in India. A consultation with a doctor will help you decide on the vaccinations that are required. If you are at risk for a disease because of your occupation or if you are traveling to a region that is endemic for a particular infectious disease, you may need to talk to your doctor about it and get vaccinated accordingly. As responsible adults, it is our responsibility to live a healthy life and to make sure that our family and loved ones are disease-free. Let us make it our duty to remind our near and dear ones, our colleagues and others in our community about the need to protect ourselves by getting vaccinated. The Central Valleys hottest weather so far this year is expected Wednesday, with highs in the 90s to near 100. The Bay Area will be cooler, in the 60s at the coast and 80s inland. Baron/Lynx Meteorological summer doesnt start until June 1, but the weather pattern this week across California will begin to resemble the hot season. A high-pressure system is predicted to strengthen Tuesday just off the Oregon coast, an ideal location for hot weather across the Sacramento Valley. The area of high pressure should strengthen even further Wednesday into Northern California, but the Bay Area will remain on the edge of the system, limiting its influence on temperatures. Advertisement Article continues below this ad High temperatures will be in the 90s in the Central Valley this week. Redding, Chico, Red Bluff and Sacramento may even flirt with 100 degrees Wednesday for the first time this year. The normal May 15 high temperature in Sacramento is 80 degrees. Rivers are running fast and cold due to snowmelt, so residents hoping to cool off along local waterways this week should exercise caution. The Bay Area will be relatively cooler, with highs in the 60s at the coast and mid-70s to mid-80s inland. Lows will be in the 50s. A foggy pattern is also expected, with the high fog and clouds filtering into San Francisco and San Pablo bays in the morning, retreating to the coast midday before spreading inland again in the evening. Windy afternoons and evenings are expected near the Golden Gate, the San Bruno gap and the delta, with gusts of 20 to 30 mph. Widespread fog was visible along the California coast Sunday morning, from Crescent City (Del Norte County) to San Diego, extending into San Francisco Bay. On Monday, Morning fog is expected to spread toward Wine Country, the East Bay hills and the Santa Clara Valley. NOAA/GOES-18 Satellite Wednesday will have the best chance of extended clearing in San Francisco, with a slightly weaker sea breeze probably resulting in more sunshine than earlier in the week. Wednesdays highs may approach 70 on the citys east side. Thursday and Friday will probably continue the pattern of inland heat and coastal fog. Aside from slight shifts in day-to-day temperatures, no major changes are on the horizon as the dry season settles across California. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Monday breakdown San Francisco: Fog will dominate along the coast, with only a brief period of midday sunshine possible in the Richmond and Sunset districts. The citys east side should see a bit more sunshine, from the late morning until the early evening, before fog returns. Gusts up to 25 mph are possible in the afternoon and evening in wind-prone spots. Highs will reach only the upper 50s west of Twin Peaks and the lower to mid-60s in the Mission District, downtown, SoMa and Nob Hill. Lows will be in the lower 50s North Bay: Low clouds and fog are expected until midmorning in Wine Country before burning off for afternoon sunshine. A large range in temperatures is expected. Highs will be in the upper 60s in Tiburon and Mill Valley, the lower to mid-70s in Petaluma and Vallejo, upper 70s in Santa Rosa and Napa, and lower to mid-80s in Fairfield and Vacaville. Gusts of 15 to 25 mph are possible near the delta in the evening. Lows will be in the lower to mid-50s, with fog again developing overnight in the valleys and near the water. East Bay: Another round of fog is expected from Richmond to Fremont and toward the Oakland and Berkeley hills in the morning. Some of these low clouds may spill over toward the Livermore Valley. Sunshine should prevail by midmorning, with afternoon highs in the mid-60s in Alameda, Oakland and Berkeley, the upper 60s to lower 70s in Hayward and Fremont, and the mid- to upper 70s in Walnut Creek, San Ramon and Livermore. Lows will be in the lower to mid-50s with fog returning along the bay shoreline overnight. Pacific Coast and Peninsula: The coast will probably be shrouded in fog, with chilly conditions. Highs will be in the upper 50s in Daly City, Pacifica and Half Moon Bay. Car thermometers will climb traveling south south on Highway 101 and Interstate 280, from the lower 60s in San Bruno to around 70 in Redwood City. Afternoon gusts up to 25 mph are possible in South San Francisco, San Bruno and Millbrae. Lows will be in the lower to mid-50s, with a return of fog for all of San Mateo County overnight. Advertisement Article continues below this ad South Bay and Santa Cruz: The fog season has returned to Monterey Bay, which can make for tricky forecasting. Wind should remain light out of the northeast, a favorable direction for at least a few hours of midday clearing in Santa Cruz, Capitola and Watsonville before the fog returns overnight. Highs will be in the upper 60s. Scotts Valley, Boulder Creek and Ben Lomond should reach the mid- to upper 70s. Trusted Source Cardiovascular Burden of the V142I Transthyretin Variant Go to source Trusted Source V142I variant found in 3-4% of Black Americans escalates heart failure risk, resulting in 2-2.5 years of lost life expectancy. #hearthealth #geneticrisk #medindia The Impact of the V142I Variant on Cardiac Amyloidosis Trusted Source Rare gene mutation in some Black Americans may allow earlier screening of heart failure Go to source Trusted Source Impact of the V142I Variant on Heart Failure Risk Among Black Americans Advertisement Advertisement Cardiovascular Burden of the V142I Transthyretin Variant - (https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2818877) Rare gene mutation in some Black Americans may allow earlier screening of heart failure - (https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/rare-gene-mutation-some-black-americans-may-allow-earlier-screening-heart-failure) A recent study conducted by researchers at Brigham and Womens Hospital and Duke University reveals that a genetic variation found in 3-4% of self-identified Black individuals in the U.S. significantly increases the risk of heart failure and death, leading to a notable decrease in lifespan at the population level ().The study, published in JAMA, demonstrates that individuals carrying the V142I transthyretin variant face a heightened risk of heart failure in their 60s and an increased risk of mortality in their 70s. On average, carriers die 2 to 2.5 years earlier than expected, resulting in an estimated loss of approximately one million years of life among current Black individuals aged 50 and above.We believe these data will inform clinicians and patients regarding risk when these genetic findings are known, either through family screening, medical, or even commercial genetic testing, said senior author Scott D. Solomon, MD, the Edward D. Frohlich Distinguished Chair, Professor of Medicine at Brigham and Womens Hospital and Harvard Medical School. There are now several potential new therapies for cardiac amyloidosis, and understanding the magnitude of this risk, at the individual and societal level, will help determine which patients might be best suited for novel therapies ().The V142I variant causes transthyretin, a protein in the blood, to misfold leading to deposits of abnormal amyloid protein in the heart and other parts of the body. In the heart , these deposits cause the muscle to become thick and stiffened, a condition known as cardiac amyloidosis, which can ultimately lead to heart failure. Recently, several therapies have been developed to treat cardiac amyloidosis, including therapies that: prevent the protein from misfolding, reduce the amount of protein, remove the protein, and even a gene-editing therapy that is currently undergoing clinical trials. A better understanding of the epidemiology of V142I and cardiac amyloidosis would help physicians connect patients with the appropriate treatment at the appropriate age, the researchers say.Although the association between the V142I variant and heart failure has been previously described, precise estimates of how the variant increases risk were unclear until now. Considering approximately 48 million Americans self-identify as Black, 1.5 million across the lifespan are estimated to carry this variant. However, since effects of the variant arent typically seen until after age 50, the researchers focused on the risk among Black Americans in mid-to-late life.To uncover these details, the researchers pooled data from self-reported Black participants in four NIH-funded studies in the United States (ARIC, MESA, REGARDS and Womens Health Initiative). Altogether, the team examined data from 23,338 self-reported Black individuals, 754 (3.23 percent) of whom carried the V142I genetic variant.They showed that V142I increased the risk for heart failure hospitalization by age 63 and the risk of death by age 72. The variants contribution to heart failure risk increased substantially with age but was not itself increased by other known risk factors such as diabetes and hypertension . The team also showed that female and male carriers of the variant were equally at risk, contrary to some previous studies showing that men were more affected. This suggests that women are likely underdiagnosed with the condition. The researchers estimated that individual carriers with the V142I variant live 2-2.5 years less than expected.Since 3-4 percent of self-identified Black individuals in the United States carry this variant, a significant number are at elevated risk for developing cardiac amyloidosis, being hospitalized for heart failure, and dying several years earlier than expected, said first author Senthil Selvaraj, MD, an advanced heart failure physician-scientist at Duke University School of Medicine. With our improved understanding of the risks with the variant, future efforts to increase disease awareness and ultimately connect carriers with the disease to effective therapies will be important.In future studies, the researchers plan to investigate why some, but not all, carriers of the V142I variant develop cardiac amyloidosis. They are also actively involved in developing and testing therapies for the disease, including the gene therapy mentioned above.One of the areas that will be really important going forward will be whether we can actually prevent the onset of the disease if we identify these patients earlier, said Solomon.Source-Medindia Trusted Source World's First Genetically-Edited Pig Kidney Transplant into Living Recipient Performed at Massachusetts General Hospital Go to source Trusted Source Did You Know? Despite advancements, xenotransplantation remains a delicate balance between hope and caution. #organtransplantation #pigkidney #transplant #medindia Despite advancements, xenotransplantation remains a delicate balance between hope and caution. #organtransplantation #pigkidney #transplant #medindia Advertisement Critical Analysis of Complications of the Case Advertisement Why Organs from Animals are being Researched and Considered for Transplantation? Advertisement Lessons Learned and Future Directions Worlds First Genetically-Edited Pig Kidney Transplant into Living Recipient Performed at Massachusetts General Hospital - (https://www.massgeneral.org/news/press-release/worlds-first-genetically-edited-pig-kidney-transplant-into-living-recipient) Richard "Rick" Slayman became the first person to undergo a genetically modified pig kidney transplant. However, two months post-surgery, Slayman succumbed, raising questions about the viability and safety of xenotransplantation procedures ().Slayman, aged 62, battled end-stage kidney disease, accompanied by Type 2 diabetes . Having previously undergone a human kidney transplant in 2018, which began to fail after five years, he opted for the experimental pig kidney transplant.Conducted in March at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), the surgery marked a significant milestone in the realm of xenotransplantation. Notably, post-transplant,While Slaymans demise occurred two months following the transplant,This assertion highlights the complex nature of organ transplantation and the inherent risks involved.Xenogeneic rejection remains a significant hurdle in xenotransplantation, despite advancements in genetic engineering. The complexities of cross-species immunology pose challenges in achieving long-term graft survival.Slaymans case accentuates the importance of rigorous patient selection criteria in pioneering procedures. Comprehensive assessment of patient comorbidities and risk factors is imperative in optimizing transplant outcomes.The necessity for robust post-operative care protocols cannot be overstated. Close monitoring, early detection of complications, and tailored immunosuppressive regimens are essential in mitigating risks and optimizing patient recovery.Xenotransplantation, the process of transplanting living cells, tissues, or organs from one species to another, holds immense promise in addressing the global organ shortage crisis. However, challenges such as immunological barriers and the risk of xenogeneic rejection underscore the need for further research and refinement in this field.The global organ shortage presents a significant challenge in healthcare. Xenotransplantation, the transplantation of organs from one species to another, offers a potential solution. However, significant hurdles remain, including the bodys natural rejection of foreign organs.The case highlights the imperative for ongoing research and refinement in xenotransplantation. Further elucidation of immunological mechanisms, development of novel immunomodulatory strategies, and enhancement of graft survival are essential in advancing the field.While xenotransplantation offers promise, safety and ethical considerations remain paramount. Stringent regulatory oversight, adherence to ethical principles, and transparent communication are imperative in ensuring patient safety and public trust.Collaboration between researchers, clinicians, and regulatory bodies is essential in navigating the complexities of xenotransplantation. Multidisciplinary approaches, knowledge exchange, and data sharing facilitate informed decision-making and propel the field forward.The passing of Richard Slayman underscores the complexities and risks inherent in pioneering medical procedures such as xenotransplantation. While his journey may have ended, his legacy as a trailblazer in medical innovation will continue to inspire future advancements in the field of organ transplantation. Moving forward, concerted efforts in research, patient care, and ethical governance are imperative in realizing the full potential of xenotransplantation as a viable solution to the organ shortage crisis.Source-Medindia Minister of Foreign Affairs George Gerapetritis will meet tomorrow, Tuesday, May 14 at 10:30 a.m., with the Personal Envoy of the United Nations Secretary-General on Cyprus, Maria Angela Holguin Cuellar. First century AD British Celtic warrior At a glance Appearance Hair sometimes lime-washed and spiked-up Face sometimes painted with blue protective tattoos Clothing and Jewellery Cloak, tunic and trousers, often of tartan cloth Neck-ring (torc) made of gold, silver, electrum or bronze Leather belt, often with decorated buckle and plates Scabbard, often decorated, especially at the chape Weaponry Long, double-edged sword, often with decorated hilt. Long spear for throwing or thrusting Armour Oval, wooden body-shield with metal boss and painted decoration Overview Boudicas army was formed of British Celtic warriors organised in tribal contingents, led by chieftains, and accompanied by druids, trumpeters, and standard-bearers. The elite used chariots and sometimes wore armour, but ordinary tribesmen fought as infantry, usually with only a shield for protection. Boudicas army was essentially a tribal militia of under-trained and lightly-equipped farmers. Some men in the ranks may have had helmets or at least a leather cap, but most were probably bare-headed, for Celtic warriors are sometimes described as having blue tattoos and lime-washed spiky hair. They wore homespun tunics, trousers, and cloaks, often made from colourful tartan cloth, though some may have stripped to the waist for battle, perhaps to expose talismanic tattoos across the chest. Personal ornament may have included torcs (neck-rings), bracelets, and decorated belt-fittings. The Celts carried large body-shields, usually oval in shape, made of wood, and provided with a metal boss and perhaps decorative devices. They were armed with spear and sword. The spear was principally a throwing weapon, though it could also be used for thrusting. The sword was the more important armament, being a relatively long (55-75 cm), double-edged, slashing weapon. Celtic infantry tactics were therefore an awkward combination of shield-wall defensiveness and heroic sword-duelling. Though unarmoured, the Celts fought in the manner of heavy infantry, closing with the enemy in dense masses, relying on shock action rather than missile-shooting. On the other hand, they were not drilled to fight as a team, and their principal weapon required space for long sideways or overhead sword-swings. This contradiction between tactical organisation and weapons system, combined with lack of protection, almost guaranteed defeat in any head-on collision with Roman legionaries. Gentrack Group Limited (NZX/ASX: GTK) invites investors to a conference call on Monday 20 May 2024 at 10.30am NZT / 8.30am AEST (duration 1 hour) to review Gentracks results for the half-year ended 31 March 2024. The recording from the briefing will be made available in the Gentrack Investor Centre (https://www.gentrack.com/investor-centre/) following the call. Virtual Conference details and confirmation codes are below: Date: Monday, 20 May 2024 Time: 10.30am (NZT) / 8.30am (AEST) URL Link: www.virtualmeeting.co.nz/gtkhy24 Please register 5-10 minutes prior to the start time. You will be asked a few registration details (name, email, participant type) prior to accessing the meeting. Dial in details (if you are unable to connect via virtual conference details above) are below: You will be asked to provide the confirmation code or the title of your conference. Conference Title: Gentrack Half Year Results 2024 Confirmation Code: 2994951 The dial-in numbers for available locations are listed below. - Australia Toll Free/Free Phone +61 1 800 571 226 - Australia, Sydney (Toll) +61 2 8088 0946 - Denmark Tollfree/Freephone +45.80.83.06.62 - Denmark, National +45 32 74 07 10 - Hong Kong Tollfree/Freephone +852 800 960994 - Hong Kong, National +852 5808 0624 - Ireland Tollfree/Freephone +353 1800 001199 - Ireland, Dublin Local +353 1 582 2023 - New Zealand Tollfree/Freephone +64 800 450 012 - New Zealand, Auckland Local +64 9 887 4636 - Singapore, National +65 3159 1234 - United Arab Emirates Toll Free +971 800 0311 185 - United Kingdom Toll Free +44 800 260 6466 - United Kingdom London +44 20 3481 4247 - United States Toll Free +1 (646) 307 1963 - USA & Canada Toll Free (800) 715-9871 Questions can be submitted online via the Webcast platform or the audio call system when prompted. Personal information provided for the purpose of registration will not be disclosed to any third parties and will only be used by Gentrack to manage participant interaction. ENDS Contact details regarding this announcement: Anna Ellis Company Secretary +64 9 966 6090 About Gentrack We are entering a new era, with utilities worldwide transforming to meet business and sustainability targets. For over 35 years Gentrack has been partnering with the worlds leading utilities, and more than 60 energy and water companies rely on us. Gentrack, with our partners Salesforce and AWS, are leading todays transformation with g2.0, an end-to-end product-to-profit solution. Using low code / no code, and composable technology, g2.0 allows utilities to launch new propositions in days, reduce cost-to-serve and lead in total experience. https://www.gentrack.com Comments from our readers No comments yet Add your comment: Your name: Your email: Not displayed to the public Comment: Comments to Sharechat go through an approval process. Comments which are defamatory, abusive or in some way deemed inappropriate will not be approved. It is allowable to use some form of non-de-plume for your name, however we recommend real email addresses are used. Comments from free email addresses such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc may not be approved. Anti-spam verification: Type the text you see in the image into the field below. You are asked to do this in order to verify that this enquiry is not being performed by an automated process. Related News: TRU - WHO Agency UNITAID Features TRU in Tech Landscape Report PaySauce Quarterly Market Update - September 2024 October 2nd Morning Report Rua Releases Annual Report for Year Ended 30 June 2024 SCL - Settlement of orchard sales The Warehouse Group 2024 ASM and Director Nominations AIR - Update on Chief Operational Integrity and Safety Officer Comvita Limited - Annual Report 2024 September 27th Morning Report Spark announces departure of Finance Director When the Defense Department expanded U.S. service members' eligibility for certain fertility benefits in 2024, the Department of Veterans Affairs had to follow suit by law. But while the VA must cover the same treatments as the DoD, not all the same individuals -- specifically, not surrogates who carry a baby for someone else -- may receive treatment from the VA. All VA healthcare beneficiaries generally qualify for most fertility services and treatments, but only veterans whose infertility is service-connected and their legal spouse may receive in vitro fertilization (IVF). Here is an explanation of the fertility benefits the VA provides to veterans and their spouses: All Enrolled Veterans For most VA fertility benefits, veterans need only to be enrolled in VA health care to qualify for coverage. Services and treatments include: Counseling and assessments Tests, imaging and scans Hormone therapy and fertility medications Artificial insemination Surgery for conditions contributing to infertility Reversal of tubal ligation or vasectomy Sperm retrieval Egg and sperm freezing (cryopreservation) In Vitro Fertilization The VA limits its coverage of assisted reproductive technologies (ART) to instances in which a veterans service-connected disability "results in the inability to procreate without the use of fertility treatment." IVF treatment involves fertilizing eggs with sperm in a lab, then placing the resulting embryos into someone's uterus to try to start a pregnancy. A surrogate may carry the fetus and give birth. However, unlike Tricare, the VA won't cover the treatment for an unmarried partner or surrogate because only veterans and their legal spouses are listed in the federal regulations, separate from the DoD's, authorizing the VA to provide IVF. The 2024 change in regulations reversed the past requirements that eligible veterans be legally married and both able to produce eggs and sperm. Since the change, the VA won't disqualify veterans based on their marital status, and it will allow donated eggs and sperm, opening up eligibility to unmarried veterans and those in same-sex marriages. For male veterans in same-sex couples, the VA said it will now cover the part of the IVF process of creating a fertilized embryo with a donated egg. The VA refers IVF patients to outside providers. To find out whether you're eligible for VA health care, go to https://www.va.gov/health-care/eligibility/. Keep Up with Changes to Tricare and Your Other Benefits Want to know about changes in military benefits as they happen? Subscribe to Military.com to get the latest benefits news delivered directly straight to your inbox. The U.S. Army soldier currently being held in police custody in Russia appealed his two-month pretrial detention, according to state media. Staff Sgt. Gordon Black, 34, was detained by Russian authorities in the port city of Vladivostok on May 2 on suspicion he stole money from his Russian girlfriend. Black, an infantryman, was stationed in South Korea and was en route to a new assignment at Fort Cavazos, Texas, when he made an unauthorized detour to Russia. RIA Novosti, a Russian state-owned news agency, reported Monday that Black's defense team has filed an appeal of the soldier's pretrial detention. According to the article, which cites a spokeswoman for the court, objections to the motion can be filed until May 20. Read Next: 'It's OK Not to Be OK': Special Operations Wing Orders Stand-Down After Roger Fortson's Police Killing The Army did not respond to a request for comment on whether it has assisted Black with legal counsel. It's unclear whether he has an attorney in Russia. Black is married to an American woman and is going through a divorce, Texas court records show. Meanwhile, he had been with the Russian woman, Alexandra Vashchuk, for at least a year, according to social media posts made by her and Black. The pair had a seemingly odd, and violent, relationship. Megan Black, the soldier's wife, told Reuters that, during a video call with Gordon Black, he and his Russian girlfriend got into a fight that ended with the girlfriend hitting and eventually stabbing him. Black's mother, Melody Jones, also told Reuters that the two constantly fought. Vashchuk posted numerous videos on social media of Black, sometimes referring to him as her husband -- though there's no evidence the two are married. In one posted video, Vashchuk asked Black questions about Russia's relationship with the U.S. He said former President Donald Trump was a better leader, that NATO is "aggressive," and suggested that Russia's warpath in Ukraine is justified -- tracking closely with common Kremlin talking points. Vashchuk has since partially sanitized her social media accounts of Black: In one image of her at a restaurant, she edited him out of the photo. Defense Department officials have declined to offer any further information about Black and instead directed reporters to the State Department, which has said it is providing consular support. Military.com reached out to the State Department for details about the support being provided to Black but did not receive a response in time for publication. Black's case bears some key similarities to that of Pvt. Travis King, an Army soldier who darted across the Korean Demilitarized Zone and was held by North Korea for just over two months last year. Aside from being stationed at the same Army camp in South Korea, both soldiers also disobeyed orders in traveling to North Korea and China then Russia, respectively. While military officials have declined to forecast Black's fate, King has remained in the Army after being released from North Korea, and his legal proceedings continue to play out. Last month, the Army confirmed that King was still in the service and assigned to the 1st Armored Division. Jonathan Franks, a spokesman for King and his family, told Military.com that the young soldier was being held in pretrial confinement in New Mexico, about 45 minutes from Fort Bliss, Texas. Related: Gordon and Aleksandra: Videos, Photos Show Relationship Between Detained Soldier and Russian Woman RAFAH, Gaza Strip Aid workers struggled Monday to distribute dwindling food and other supplies to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians displaced by what Israel says is a limited military operation in Rafah, as the two main crossings near the southern Gaza city remained closed. The United Nations' agency for Palestinian refugees said 360,000 Palestinians have fled Rafah over the past week, out of 1.3 million who were sheltering there before the operation began. Most had already fled fighting elsewhere during the seven-month war between Israel and Hamas. Israel has portrayed Rafah as the last stronghold of the militant group, brushing off warnings from the United States and other allies that any major operation there would be catastrophic for civilians. Hamas has meanwhile regrouped in some of the most devastated parts of Gaza that Israel previously claimed to have cleared with heavy bombardment and ground operations. Thirty-eight trucks of flour arrived through the Western Erez Crossing, a second access point to northern Gaza, said Abeer Etefa, a spokeswoman for the U.N.s World Food Program. Israel announced the crossing's opening on Sunday. But no food has entered the two main crossings in southern Gaza for the past week. The Rafah crossing into Egypt has been closed since Israeli troops seized it a week ago. Fighting in Rafah city has made it impossible for aid groups to access the nearby Kerem Shalom crossing with Israel, though Israel says it is allowing supply trucks to enter from its side. For the past week, the Israeli military has intensified bombardment and other operations in Rafah while ordering the population to evacuate from parts of the city. Israel insists it is a limited operation focused on rooting out tunnels and other militant infrastructure along the border with Egypt. Israeli forces were also battling Palestinian militants in Zeitoun and the urban Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza, areas where the army had launched major operations earlier in the war. Etefa said WFP was distributing food from its remaining stocks in the areas of Khan Younis in the south and Deir al-Balah further north, where many of those escaping Rafah have fled. Inside Rafah, only two organizations partnering with WFP were still able to distribute food, and no bakeries were operating. The majority of distributions have stopped due to the evacuation orders, displacement and running out of food, she said. Israeli protesters halted a convoy of aid bound for Gaza at a checkpoint between the occupied West Bank and Israel. Videos circulating online showed them hurling some of the aid off trucks and destroying it. Police said a number of arrests were made, without elaborating. Almost the entire population of Gaza relies on humanitarian aid to survive. Israeli restrictions and ongoing fighting have hindered humanitarian efforts, causing widespread hunger and a full-blown famine in the north, according to the U.N. The director of the Kuwait Hospital, one of the last functioning medical centers in Rafah, said medical staff and residents living near the facility have been told to evacuate. Sohaib al-Hams warned that any evacuation of the hospital itself would have catastrophic consequences. The international charity Oxfam, meanwhile, warned of disease outbreaks in Gaza following an estimated $210 million worth of damage to water and sanitation infrastructure, mass displacement and the onset of summer. Oxfam staff in Gaza have described piles of human waste and rivers of sewage in the streets, which people are having to jump between. They also reported people having to drink dirty water and children being bitten by insects swarming around the sewage, it said in a statement. The war began when Hamas and other militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking another 250 hostage. Militants still hold about 100 captives and the remains of more than 30 after most of the rest were released during a cease-fire last year. Israels offensive has killed more than 35,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gazas Health Ministry, which doesnt distinguish between civilians and combatants in its figures. Israel says it has killed over 13,000 militants, without providing evidence. Israel marked an especially somber Memorial Day on Monday, with ceremonies commemorating fallen soldiers, including the more than 600 killed since Oct. 7, more than half of them in the initial attack. Sirens announced two minutes of silence at 11 a.m. At a ceremony at Mount Herzl cemetery on the outskirts of Jerusalem, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed once again to defeat Hamas. We exacted and will exact a high price from the enemy for their criminal acts. We will realize the goals of victory and at the center of them the return of all our hostages, he said. Protesters and hecklers interrupted some of the ceremonies, reflecting growing discontent with Israel's leaders that has brought thousands of protesters into the streets in recent months. Critics blame Netanyahu for the security and intelligence failures that allowed the attack to happen and for the failure to reach a deal with Hamas to release the hostages. Months of internationally mediated talks over a cease-fire and hostage release ground to an apparent standstill last week after Israel launched its incursion into Rafah. Israel has refused Hamas' central demands for an end to the war and the withdrawal of its forces from the territory, saying that doing so would allow the militant group to regain control and launch more Oct. 7-style attacks. U.S. President Joe Biden's administration, which has provided crucial military and diplomatic support for the overall offensive, has expressed growing impatience with Israel, saying it won't supply offensive arms for a full-scale Rafah assault. Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned Sunday that Israel could face an "enduring insurgency" if it doesn't come up with a realistic plan for postwar governance in Gaza. Israel has rejected U.S. proposals for the Palestinian Authority to govern Gaza with help from Arab states because those plans depend on progress toward the establishment of a Palestinian state, which Netanyahu opposes. ___ Krauss reported from Jerusalem and Magdy from Cairo. Associated Press writer Lee Keath in Cairo and Jack Jeffery in Jerusalem contributed. NEW YORK It was 7 a.m. on a recent Friday when Wang Gang, a 36-year-old Chinese immigrant, jostled for a day job in New York City's Flushing neighborhood. When a potential employer pulled up near the street corner, home to a Chinese bakery and pharmacy, Wang and dozens of other men swarmed around the car. They were hoping to be picked for work on a construction site, at a farm, as a mover anything that would pay. Wang had no luck, even as he waited for two more hours. It would be another day without a job since he crossed the southern U.S. border illegally in February, seeking better financial prospects than he had in his hometown of Wuhan, China. The daily struggle of Chinese immigrants in Flushing is a far cry from the picture former President Donald Trump and other Republicans have sought to paint of them as a coordinated group of military-age men who have come to the United States to build an army and attack America. Since the start of the year, as the Chinese newcomers have been trying to find their footing in the U.S., Trump has alluded to fighting-age or military-age Chinese men at least six times and suggested at least twice that they were forming a migrant army." It's a talking point that is being amplified in conservative media and on social platforms. Theyre coming in from China 31, 32,000 over the last few months and theyre all military age and they mostly are men, Trump said during a campaign rally last month in Schnecksville, Pennsylvania. And it sounds like to me, are they trying to build a little army in our country? Is that what theyre trying to do? As Trump and others exploit a surge in Chinese border crossings and real concerns about China's geopolitical threat to further their political aims, Asian advocacy organizations worry the rhetoric could encourage further harassment and violence toward the Asian community. Asian people in the U.S. already experienced a spike in hate incidents fueled by xenophobic rhetoric during the COVID-19 pandemic. Trumps dehumanizing rhetoric and blatant attacks against immigrant communities will, without question, only fuel more hate against not only Chinese immigrants but all Asian Americans in the U.S.," Cynthia Choi, co-founder of Stop AAPI Hate and co-executive director of Chinese for Affirmative Action, said in a statement to The Associated Press. In the midst of an already inflamed political climate and election year, we know all too well how harmful such rhetoric can be. Gregg Orton, national director of the National Council of Asian Pacific Americans, said many Asian American communities remain gripped by fear and that some Asians still feel uncomfortable about taking public transportation. "To know that we might be staring down another round of that, its pretty sobering, he said. 'This trip is deadly' Wang, who traveled several weeks from Ecuador to the southern U.S. border, then spent 48 hours in an immigration detention facility before heading to Flushing, said the idea that Chinese migrants were building a military does not exist among the immigrants he has met. It is impossible that they would walk on foot for over one month for that purpose, he said. "We came here to make money. Immigrants who spoke to the AP in Flushing, a densely populated Chinese cultural enclave in Queens, said they came to the U.S. to escape poverty and financial losses from China's strict lockdown during the pandemic, or to escape the threat of imprisonment in a repressive society where they couldnt speak or exercise their religion freely. Many said they continue to struggle to get by. Life in the U.S. is not what they had imagined. Since late 2022 when China's three-year COVID-19 lockdown began to lift the U.S. has seen a sharp rise in the number of Chinese migrants. In 2023, U.S. authorities arrested more than 37,000 Chinese nationals at the U.S.-Mexico border, more than 10 times the previous year's number. In December alone, border officials arrested 5,951 Chinese nationals on the southern border, a record monthly high, before the number trended down during the first three months of this year. The U.S. and China just recently began cooperating again to deport Chinese immigrants who were in the country illegally. Yet with tens of thousands of Chinese newcomers who have crossed into the U.S. illegally, there has been no evidence that they have tried to mount a military force or training network. Its true that the bulk of those who have come are single adults, according to federal data. While the data doesn't include gender, there are more men than women on the perilous route, which typically involves catching a flight to South America and then making the long, arduous trek north to the U.S. border. Chinese immigrants in Flushing said one reason men may be coming alone in higher numbers is the expense often more than $10,000 per person to cover airfare, lodging, payments to local guides and bribes to police in countries along their journey. Another could be China's longtime family planning policy that skewered the gender ratio toward males. Theres also the danger, said a 35-year-old Chinese man who only gave his family name of Yin because he was concerned about the safety of his wife and children, who remain in China. He had arrived in Flushing in late April, five weeks after he left the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen. He had traveled through Panamas dangerous Darien Gap jungle and across Mexico. Signs of the journey were still fresh: His hair was messy, skin tanned with fine wrinkles, and his cardigan, once white, had not been washed for weeks. This trip is deadly. People die. The trip isnt suitable for women its not suitable for anyone, said Yin. He said that as the breadwinner, he came alone, with the hope his family could join him later. 'Chasing a better life' While some in China have chosen to leave through investment schemes or talent programs in developed nations, those without resources set off for Latin America after learning from social media posts about the journey north. Upon arriving, most of them fan out to large cities such as Los Angeles, Chicago and New York with well-established Chinese communities, where they hope to get work and start a new life. Immigrants who arrived in Flushing said they came to America to escape China, not to fight on its behalf. Thirty-six-year-old Chen Wang, from the southeastern Chinese province of Fujian, said he decided to come to the U.S. in late 2021 after he posted comments critical of the ruling party on Twitter. He was admonished by local police. I feared that I could be locked up, so I came to America, Chen said. More than two years later, he is still unemployed and lives in a tent in the woods that he has made into a home. He built a fence from dead branches and dug a ditch so he could hand-wash his laundry and wash himself. He said life in the U.S. has fallen short of his expectations, but he hopes someday to get legal status so he can travel freely around the world and live a simple life in a self-built cabin. Chen, who served briefly in the Chinese military two decades ago, said he mostly encountered people from the bottom of Chinese society during his trek through Central America. He met no one else who had served in the Chinese military and described his fellow Chinese on the journey as simply people chasing a better life. Long history of Asian stereotypes To be sure, U.S. intelligence leaders have grave concerns about the threat Chinas authoritarian government poses to the country through its espionage, military capabilities and more. There also have been crimes committed by Chinese immigrants, including the arrest in March of a Chinese national breaching a military base in California, but there has been no evidence to support the assertion that migrants from China are coming to the U.S. to fight Americans. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell called the Chinese nationals economic migrants" during an April town hall meeting hosted by the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations. China has said it strongly opposes illegal immigration, and police there have arrested some who have tried to leave. Social media posts that offer advice and guides to come to the U.S. illegally have been censored in China. Instead, there are posts warning about dangers along the way and racial discrimination in the U.S. Chinas foreign ministry told the AP that Trumps claims of a Chinese migrant army were an egregious mismatch of the facts. The Department of Homeland Security didn't respond to requests for comment. Steven Cheung, communications director for the Trump campaign, said in an emailed statement that every American should be concerned about military-age Chinese men crossing into the U.S. These individuals have not been vetted or screened, and we have no idea who they are affiliated with or what their intention is, Cheung said. This sets a dangerous precedent for bad actors and potentially nefarious individuals to exploit Joe Bidens porous border to send countless military-aged men into the United States completely unfettered. The army-building narrative has been shared by many other conservatives. They are fighting-age males, primarily single, and you know, this isnt a coincidence, Republican Rep. Mike Garcia of California said during a Fox Business interview last month, nodding when host Maria Bartiromo suggested the immigrants could later be used as saboteurs if Chinese President Xi Jinping directs that. Sapna Cheryan, a psychology professor at the University of Washington, said the claims about Chinese migrants made without evidence build on a long history of pervasive stereotypes that Asian people do not belong in the country, ideas that have fueled acts of violence against Asian Americans. If that rhetoric is happening again, one thing we might be able to predict is, well, people will probably take that and feel emboldened to engage in these heinous acts, she said. Li Kai, also known as Khaled, a 44-year-old Muslim from Tangshan in the northern Hebei province, a city close to Beijing, said he was worried about Trumps statements regarding illegal immigration and Muslims, but said he has no choice other than to make his new life in the U.S. work. He was one of the few who made the trip with his family. He shares a bunk bed and sofa with his wife and two sons in a temporary home in Flushing where he has placed an American flag on the wall. Li said they fled China last year, after he participated in a gathering over the future of a local mosque that was broken up by riot police and he feared his own arrest. He chose the U.S. because it is a free society, where his children have learned to recite from the Quran. He said the migrants he encountered on his journey all left China for the U.S. to try to improve their prospects in life, and he was grateful for that opportunity. When his sons are at school, he studies for a commercial driver's license and then hopes to find a job and start paying taxes. Now that I have brought my family here, I want to have a stable life here," he said. I would like to pay back. ___ Tang reported from Washington. Troops at Colorado Space Force Base Will Have to Bring Their Own To-Go Boxes for Dining Hall While the initiative is aimed at reducing waste on base, the spokesperson added that they hope it will give troops on base... Between the villages of Vierville-sur-Mer and Sainte-Honorine-des-Pertes in Normandy, France, is a 5-mile stretch of beach that was once called Cote dOr, or golden coast. Since June 6, 1944, however, this beach has borne a different name: Omaha. Eighty years ago, on a day now known as D-Day, thousands of Allied soldiers crossed the choppy waters of the English Channel by air and sea to land on beaches and coastal areas of Normandy, France, to destroy the Nazi invaders and defeat Hitlers regime. Within the military collections of the National Museum of American History, where I am a curator of modern military history, several artifacts collected over the decades help tell the story of Omaha Beach and the invasion landings on D-Day. A letter from a general A paper given to the troops involved in the D-Day invasion carried words of exhortation and hope from Supreme Allied Commander Dwight D. Eisenhower. National Museum of American History In the morning hours of D-Day, Pvt. Howard I. Moorefield of North Carolina was handed a piece of paper. As he later wrote in his museum donation, most fellows read it and discarded, but he chose to sign, fold and save his copy. With the signature of Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower at the bottom, the Order of the Day declared to all soldiers, sailors and airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force: You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you. Special equipment goes wrong The U.S. Army issued new assault jackets to troops that helped hold additional supplies, but the garments proved a hindrance to fighting and surviving during the landing. National Museum of American History For soldiers of Company A of the 116th Infantry Regiment, 29th Infantry Division, the Order of the Day mattered less than what awaited them at Sector Dog Green on Omaha Beach. Awakened aboard their troopship around 2 a.m., the soldiers pulled on their equipment. The regiment had been overseas since October 1942, preparing for this critical day with carefully rehearsed drills and training operations. Yet just days before the invasion, the men received new U.S. Army assault jackets, made to help the first wave of soldiers as they carried ashore ammunition, TNT, a first-aid kit and other equipment. Once loaded, each jacket added upward of 60 pounds onto each soldiers load. As Company As six landing craft began to head to Sector Dog Green, one of the craft began to take on water. As men entered the deep water, the assault jackets became anchors, the cotton straps swelling in seawater and making removal of the garment almost impossible. Dozens of men drowned while others staggered ashore, exhausted. The troops in Company A had expected to find shelter on the beach, which they had been told would be pockmarked with holes from aerial bombing and naval rockets. But when the soldiers in the surviving five landing craft arrived on the beach at 6:36 a.m., they found smooth sand and nowhere to hide from the enemy. In less than 10 minutes, German machine-gun fire, mortars and artillery all but destroyed Company A. Other companies of the 116th would land on Omaha Beach at sectors Dog White, Dog Red and Easy Green. Wet, cold, frightened and pinned down by enemy fire, many soldiers shed the awkward assault jackets and did what they could to stay alive and get off the beach. In the days after D-Day, assault jackets littered the beaches. One veteran of Bloody Omaha chose to send a vest back home to Virginia, the fate of its former wearer unknown. Multiple waves of troops One of the most famous of war photographer Robert Capas images, this one shows troops storming ashore on the morning of D-Day. Robert Capa via National Museum of American History Farther down Omaha Beach at Sector Easy Red, photographer Robert Capa arrived at the shore around 8:15 a.m. with the command group of Company E, 16th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division. As part of the 13th wave of the landings, he spent 30 minutes on the beach capturing images of the invasion before returning to the attack transport vessel USS Samuel Chase. On June 19, five of Capas images graced the pages of Life magazine, bringing the invasion home to Americans. A symbol of the fights significance Along with his dog tags, one Jewish sailor wore a coin from British Palestine during his fight against the Nazis. National Museum of American History As Capa arrived back aboard the Chase, so did countless wounded men from the initial assault waves. Navy and Coast Guard personnel went right to work, including Walter Melville Weberbauer, a pharmacists mate first class from New Jersey. As he aided the treatment of the wounded, the identification tags around his neck included a small copper coin a British Palestine 2 mils. Perhaps during prayer or just for luck, he rubbed the coin until the word Palestine all but wore away. As a Jewish man, Weberbauers fight with the Nazis understandably carried great significance in the waters off Omaha Beach. The nations highest military decoration The Medal of Honor awarded to Pfc. Francis X. McGraw for action in Europe in 1944. He landed on the evening of D-Day and fought through France into Germany, where he was killed in action. National Museum of American History As wounded soldiers kept arriving back aboard the USS Samuel Chase throughout the afternoon, Army leaders decided to land the remaining members of the 26th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division, on Omaha Beach. That evening, the men of Company H of the 26th disembarked from the ship and came ashore, including a machine-gunner, Pfc. Francis X. McGraw of New Jersey. Having already fought in North Africa and Sicily, Normandy would be McGraws third fight with the Nazis. Months later, on Nov. 19, 1944, near the German town of Schevenhutte, McGraws war would end. For his one-man stand against a ferocious German assault, he would posthumously receive the Medal of Honor. A record in the landscape Sand from the Normandy beaches holds tiny fragments of metal, mostly iron, produced during the intense fighting. National Museum of American History In the days and weeks after June 6, Omaha Beach was transformed into a highway for Allied men and material entering Europe. This traffic changed even the sand itself. Today, 4% of the sand at Omaha Beach is composed of tiny grains of iron, mostly microshrapnel produced during intense fighting on the beach and the subsequent buildup of forces. These different items a document, garment, photographs, identification tags, a decoration and sand all remain indelibly marked by a time and a place. Through the linkage of time, space and memory, these items weave together lives whose paths crossed, in the words of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, in the fight to end conquest to liberate to let justice arise, and tolerance and good will among all people. Frank A. Blazich Jr. is the Curator of Military History, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. The Orioles announced Monday that theyve designated outfielder Ryan McKenna for assignment. His spot on the roster will go to veteran Austin Hays, who has been reinstated from the 10-day injured list after missing about three weeks with a strained calf. Its the second bit of outfield shuffling by the Os today. Baltimore previously optioned Heston Kjerstad to Triple-A Norfolk in favor of Kyle Stowers. McKenna, 27, was only selected back to the 40-man roster for a second stint with the Orioles on April 26. He appeared in nine games and went 3-for-8 at the plate, popping a pair of home runs in his brief look with the club. Despite that productive cup of coffee, he wont stick around on the big league roster. McKenna is out of minor league options, so the Os had little choice but to designate him for assignment once things reached a point where they needed to open his roster spot back up. In all likelihood, McKenna knew itd be a short stay on the active roster. A fourth-round selection by the Os in the 2015 draft, McKenna has now appeared in parts of four seasons with the MLB club. Despite the big showing in this years tiny sample, he struggled extensively from 2021-23, hitting just .222/.299/.318 in 508 plate appearances across that three-year span. He owns a productive .261/.359/.561 output in 274 Triple-A plate appearances but also a .234/.327/.357 slash in a much larger sample of 817 Double-A plate appearances. Baltimore is stacked with outfield talent and with position players in general leaving little room for McKenna to wrest everyday at-bats from the teams other outfield options. Colton Cowser, Cedric Mullins, Anthony Santander and the now-reinstated Hays are all in the mix for at-bats, as is the aforementioned Stowers, whos joining the club for his 2024 debut after smacking 11 Triple-A homers in his first 165 plate appearances there this season. Mullins has been in a deep slump of late, and Hays struggled a good bit before landing on the injured list himself. However, both veterans have lengthy track records of production that date back several years. Neither was going to be displaced because of a brief hot streak from McKenna. The Orioles have a week to trade McKenna or else place him on outright waivers or release waivers. He went unclaimed on outright waivers at the end of March, and in doing so gained the right to reject any additional outright assignments for the remainder of his career. As such, if he clears waivers, hell have the right to reject a minor league assignment in favor of free agency. Given the glut of outfield talent on the Baltimore roster, its possible hed prefer to latch on with another organization that has far less depth and thus a better opportunity for him to get an earnest look at the big league level. Fans are sending prayers to Duck Dynasty stars Jase and Missy Robertson after they shared the frightening news that a tornado hit their farm while their son was home. And, from the sounds of it, Cole Robertson, 26, narrowly dodged a situation that could have been much worse. MECOSTA COUNTY, MI A 10-year-old girl was hospitalized late Sunday, May 12, when the Amish buggy she was riding in was struck by a vehicle, sheriffs deputies said. The Stanwood girl is being treated for non-life-threatening injuries at Helen DeVos Childrens Hospital. Eight passengers, including six under the age of 13, were on the buggy. The 10-year-old, who was ejected, was the only one injured, Mecosta County sheriffs deputies said. The crash happened just after 10 p.m. on Pierce Road near 160th Avenue in Austin Township, police said. A 31-year-old Wyoming man was driving west on Pierce Road when he came upon the buggy. He tried to swerve at a last minute but struck the buggy, police said. The injured girl was taken by ambulance to the hospital. Firefighters from Mecosta and Morton townships and state police assisted at the scene. Alcohol and drugs are not suspected to be a cause of the crash, police said. GRAND RAPIDS, MI Godfrey-Lee Public Schools closed Monday, May 13, after the district received a threat, according to a statement from the Kent Intermediate School District. Superintendent Arnetta Thompson said in a statement that the schools closed out of an abundance of caution. Details of the threat were not released. Staff and students should not report to district schools in the Grand Rapids suburb of Wyoming. Grand Rapids police and Wyoming police are investigating. The district is waiting for additional information from police before a return to campus. The safety and well-being of our students and our staff is our top priority and we take all threats seriously, Thompson said. The district acted after swift action of a staff members and their prompt reporting which led to the response by administrators, school security and police. VAN BUREN COUNTY, MI -- A training grenade found outside a home in Southwest Michigan had suspicious modifications that made it a live improvised explosive device, according to police. Deputies were dispatched about 6:30 p.m. on Friday, May 10, to the 50000 block of County Road 388 in Columbia Township for a report of an explosive found, the Van Buren County Sheriffs Office said. The homeowner was doing yard work when they located a hand grenade partially buried in the yard. Police believe the grenade had been there for multiple years, the sheriffs office said. A deputy responded. The item appeared to be a training grenade that had suspicious modifications to it, the sheriffs office said. Deputies requested the assistance of the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety bomb squad. Investigators determined someone modified the grenade to turn it into a live improvised explosive device. The device was taken to a safe location and destroyed by the bomb squad, police said. Want more Kalamazoo-area news? Bookmark the local Kalamazoo news page or sign up for the free 3@3 Kalamazoo daily newsletter. KALAMAZOO, MI -- In the days after a tornado brought chaos to Kalamazoo County last week, people are banding together to try to help. Among them is an adult entertainment business. Deja Vu Showgirls Kalamazoo, a strip club, announced its collecting supplies for residents affected by the May 7 tornado. Donations are being accepted through Saturday, May 18, at Deja Vu Showgirls Kalamazoo, 1336 Ravine Road, Suite C, in Kalamazoo. A lot of areas were devastated by the recent tornadoes in Kalamazoo, Deja Vu Showgirls General Manager Holly Johnson said. We are collecting items to benefit the residents of Pavilion Estates. Pavilion Estates mobile home park was among the places hardest hit. The storm destroyed 17 homes and damaged 173 others in the mobile home park, the Kalamazoo County Sheriffs Office said last week. Related: Portage tornado assessment: 60 buildings destroyed, 129 with major damage Items being collected include mens socks, underwear, T-shirts, pants and personal hygiene items such as soap, toothbrushes and razors. Guests who bring in a donation item can receive complimentary admission to the club, Deja Vu said. The business said donations are needed especially for men, Deja Vu said, as it has received more donations for women and children. A media contact listed for the company could not be reached for comment and the business did not pick up a phone call Monday morning. RELATED: U-Haul offering 30 days of free storage to those with tornado damage RELATED: Heres how to help out with tornado recovery efforts in Portage Want more Kalamazoo-area news? Bookmark the local Kalamazoo news page or sign up for the free 3@3 Kalamazoo daily newsletter. May 12, 2024: Since invading Ukraine in February 2022, Russia has lost nearly 700 fixed wing aircraft and helicopters. About half the losses have been the more expensive fixed wing fighter-bombers and specialized surveillance and electronic warfare aircraft. So far that is about ten percent of the official number of Russian military aircraft, counting all the ones nominally available including those out of service in storage. The worst aspect of this is that Russia is only able to replace five percent of these losses because the companies that build aircraft are too few to produce what is needed and were believed unable to increase production because of international economic sanctions. This means that the Russian Air Force is fading away. The process wont stop and be reversed until Russia is free of all the economic sanctions. To cope with the current situation Russia has switched to a wartime economy, which increases resources for weapons and the defense budget in general. This comes at the expense of civilian living standards. Russians are becoming more outspoken about what the Ukraine War is doing to Russian living standards. The government reaction was to arrest and prosecute those who openly criticized the war. That did not halt the open criticism, and more Russians quietly supported the critics, especially those imprisoned. Meanwhile the air force continues to lose aircraft and helicopters. Since early 2022, the Russians have lost about nearly 400 fighters, fighter-bombers, and attack aircraft. Most of the fighter losses were the modern Su-30/34/35 aircraft. The attack aircraft losses consisted of Su-24s and Su-25s. A similar number of helicopters have been lost. While Russia is unable to produce many replacement aircraft, Ukraine has received hundreds of aircraft and helicopters from its NATO supporters, with most being old Soviet models left over from the Cold War. Because of NATO aid, Ukrainian air defense grew stronger as the war went on and by 2023 Russian combat aircraft would no longer fly into Ukraine. Instead, Russian fighter-bombers or heavy bombers launched air-to-ground missiles from inside Russia and usually close to the Ukrainian border. Most of those missiles either failed because of defects or were shot down by Ukrainian Air-Defense systems. Russia still loses aircraft to accidents and lack of spare parts to keep aircraft operational. This is changing because China has recently been quietly supplying materials, barred by Western sanctions, that enabled Russia to produce, missiles, tanks, and other armored vehicles and munitions at a faster pace over the last year than at any time since World War II Russia was only able to reach these levels of production because of considerable help from China, which has shipped machine tools, microelectronics, and optics. Most of these items are coming from China and most of these goods are dual use, meaning they have commercial as well as military applications. The United States has criticized China for this support because it enables Russia to continue fighting in Ukraine. There the Russians have adopted a scorched earth policy. This means concentrating on civilian infrastructure in an effort to make it difficult for the civilian population to survive. The Chinese assistance has made it possible for Russia to rebuild and upgrade its defense industries. European diplomats tell China that these policies make Russia more of a threat to the rest of Europe as well as Ukraine. Since 2023, NATO countries have strived to prevent other countries from aiding the Russian war effort. This did not work with Iran and North Korea, which were quite willing to send weapons to Russia as long as Russia could pay for them, and this seems to be now happening with China. Its unclear how Russia is paying for the much larger assistance they are now receiving from China because the Chinese are noted for not giving things away or even offering generous credit terms, that include the possibility of default. The Chinese assisted revival of Russian defense production has not shown up in Ukraine yet, but it soon will and Ukrainians will find their losses are because of Chinese aid to the Russians. That is unusual because before the war, which actually began in 2014 with the seizure of Crimea, China had been eager to do business with Ukraine, even when it meant trouble for Russia. Now the Chinese are backing Russia in a big way for unexplained reasons. The Chinese aid will enable Russia to build more combat aircraft to replace heavy losses. China has been building its own combat aircraft but it is unlikely that any of these J-10, J-11, J16 or J-20B aircraft will show up in Russia. The J-20B is particularly interesting because it is a Chinese designed stealth fighter that is actually in service. The only other nation to build and use stealth fighters is the United States with its F-22s and F-35s. May 12, 2024: China has quietly expanded its presence in orbital space. Since 2018 China has tripled the number of satellites in orbit. China currently has over 700 satellites in orbit and plans to expand that to over 10,000 by the end of the decade. This is part of a larger plan to upgrade its entire military establishment to world class standards by 2049. Orbital space operations and those beyond orbital space are now current rather than future goals. In addition to expanding the number of satellites in orbit, China also continues construction of its Tiangong space station, which is still under construction. Enough space station modules were in orbit by 2022 for the first three-man crew to occupy Tiangong. The space station will be expanded over the next decade with the addition of more modules and upgrades. China has also been carrying out operations on the moon. The first Chinese moon landing in 2019 was unmanned and those landings continued in number and size. China plans to have a manned base on the moon by 2030. Chinese activities on orbital space and on the moon are more ambitious than those of any other space-faring nation. The competition comes from the United States and Russia. The Americans could catch up because they have both government-funded NASA and privately funded SpaceX, which has been very innovative and ambitious. SpaceX is a commercial operation and does what its customers want, not what a government-controlled operation decides will happen. China has nothing like SpaceX but the government-run programs in China are trying to copy some of the SpaceX innovations. China has also established an Aerospace Force to coordinate space operations. The speed and intensity of the Chinese expansion of their space activities is alarming to some nations. China has used these Great Leap Forward programs in the past and not all of them have succeeded. But if you dont try you definitely wont succeed. May 13,2024: Ukraine currently has three Patriot Air Defense Batteries and one more is about to arrive. Ukraine says it needs 25 batteries to provide protection for all of Ukraine. Patriot has been used in combat before, but never as intensively as in Ukraine. The war in Ukraine is a near peer war, where both sides are armed with modern weapons and neither side has an overwhelming advantage. Ukraine expects to get seven more batteries soon and has asked for more Patriot missiles. There are currently nineteen countries using Patriot and these nations have between them over 250 Patriot Batteries. The United States is the largest user, with 90 of those batteries before Russia invaded Ukraine, and that is now closer to 80 because of those sent to Ukraine. The Americans are purchasing more batteries, as are other user nations. American ground forces are based around the world and one or more Patriot batteries are often used for air defense there from local threats. Most of these threats are not aircraft but short-range ballistic missiles. This reveals that Patriot is more a Ballistic Missile Defense, or BMD system, than one that shoots down aircraft. Patriot missiles have intercepted far more missiles that aircraft. Suddenly, there is more demand worldwide because Patriot has once more demonstrated its effectiveness in a wartime situation. In Ukrainian cities protected by Patriot, the loud boom off a missile being launched is reassuring for soldiers and civilians. RTX, the manufacturer of Patriot, has increased Patriot missile production to 500 a year and that will soon reach 550 a year and by 2027 will be 650 missiles a year. Ukraine needs several hundred more missiles right away to replace those used against Russian missile attacks. Ukraine also wants more Patriot batteries so that more territory can be protected. Many of the 19 countries armed with Patriot have older missiles that are approaching their Use By Date. After that date you must refurbish these missiles for them to remain useful. The missiles receive periodic upgrades as the manufacturer develops improvements. There are also upgrades to the radar and fire control system Now Ukraine and other Patriot users wants more Patriot missiles and support equipment. The United States and European NATO countries are sending all they have. One reason for this urgency and generosity is that Ukraine has developed some new ways to use Patriot missiles more efficiently and effectively. In early 2023 Ukraine received two Patriot batteries plus some additional missiles. Another battery is supposed to arrive by the end of the year. Soon after Ukraine received the first Patriot batteries, they managed to destroy two Russian jet fighters and three helicopters that were carrying out bombing attacks on Ukrainian targets in the north, near the border with Russias Bryansk province. This happened so quickly that Russia decided to cease launching airstrikes from bases in this region. The main reason for this was the unexpectedly effective Ukrainian use of their Patriot systems. The Ukrainians had developed some new techniques to do this. For example, Ukrainian Patriot system operators have developed methods for reliably and consistently using Patriot against several different Russian ballistic missile systems. These methods have stopped dozens of Russian ballistic and high-speed cruise missiles sent to attack the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, as well as other targets in Ukraine. Ukrainians were not the first Patriot users to come up with novel ways to use the system. Patriot has proved to be very configurable and able to deal with many new situations the Patriot System designers never expected. That sort of thing has kept Patriots in service for over three decades. Patriot has been in service since 1984 and experienced its first sustained combat in 1990, when it was used against Iraqi SCUD ballistic missiles fired at Israel and Saudi Arabia. Its success rate, 40 to 70 percent, was mediocre at best. That was largely due to the improvised modifications Iraqis made to their SCUDs to extend their range. As a result, the SCUDs tended to fall apart during the terminal flight phase as they were speeding down towards the target. This created unintended countermeasures. Some of the larger pieces of these modified SCUDs, like additional fuel tanks, broke away and were seen by Patriot radar as the actual missile warhead section. In some cases, non-warhead portions, like the fuel tanks carrying very toxic fuel, of the SCUD came down on military or civilian personnel on the ground. Subsequent upgrades to Patriot increased accuracy against deliberate or accidental countermeasures. Patriot has been used against UAVs but firing a missile costing over three million dollars at homemade UAVs, as Israeli forces did a few times, isnt healthy for the economy so Israel developed cheaper solutions for UAVs. Although initially designed to be used against manned aircraft, the Patriot did not face this threat very often and it wasnt until 2014 when Patriot downed one. An Israeli Patriot shot down a Syrian Su-24 fighter-bomber. While Patriot was originally designed for use against aircraft, most of what it has shot down have been ballistic missiles, either SCUDs or more recent Iranian and Russian designs. The UAE sent a battery to Yemen where it successfully defended major military bases from Iranian ballistic missile attacks. Arab Patriot users have developed a lot of missile crews with combat experience and that has helped attract capable recruits to air defense work, which is usually seen as less prestigious than traditional service with ground, air, and naval combat units. During 2023 Patriot Systems began operating in Ukraine, with the usual spectacular results. This was especially the case with the Ukrainians, who tended to find additional uses for many of the weapons they received from NATO countries. Since 1970 nearly 11,000 Patriot missiles and over 1,500 launchers have been produced. After decades of service, some were updated while others were scrapped. Patriot missiles can, with regular upgrades and refurbishment, remain in use for over 40 years. A growing number of Patriot missiles are doing just that, but many are still fired each year for training and testing. Most Patriot batteries are equipped with both longer-range GEM-T missiles for aircraft and shorter-range PAC-3 MSE ones for ballistic missiles or, if necessary, aircraft. The PAC 2 is older, cheaper, and designed to intercept manned aircraft at ranges up to 160 kilometers, while the PAC 3 is the newest and about twice as expensive (over $4 million) with special features to make it better than the PAC 2 at ballistic missile defense. The Patriot system, with continued upgrades, will likely remain in production until the 2040s, though it badly needs a mobile replacement for various reasons such as attack by swarms of cheap UAVs, plus that the precise location of Patriot radars can be easily determined from orbit. Demand for Patriot missiles in Ukraine means that nearly all the older Patriot missiles are being used and the manufacturer is working overtime to produce more missiles. Each Patriot battery is manned by about a hundred troops and contains a radar plus four or more launchers. The launcher is designed to use both the smaller PAC 3 missile as well as the original and larger PAC 2 anti-aircraft version. A Patriot launcher can hold sixteen PAC 3 missiles versus four PAC 2s. A PAC 2 missile weighs about a ton while a PAC 3 weighs about a third of that. The PAC 3 has a shorter range that was originally 20 kilometers, but the latest version can do 35 kilometers. The larger PAC-2 can reach 160 kilometers. NATO countries are being asked to send Ukraine all the Patriot missiles they can. The NATO countries are also sending their Patriot System experts in order to learn about the novel methods Ukrainians have developed. It did not take long to train Ukrainian crews. Ukraine points out that it will take a lot less time for Ukrainians to master Patriot operation because it is wartime and time is of the essence. That proved to be the case. May 13, 2024: The Russian Air Force has been having a bad time in the Ukraine War. While its initial attacks were successful, Ukrainian air defenses quickly recovered and their Russian made SAM (Surface to Air Missile) systems were very effective against Russian aircraft. The reverse was not true. Many Russian SAMs didnt work at all when launched and others proved less accurate than they were supposed to be. Poor design and manufacturing defects in these missiles were not revealed until they were used. The reverse was not true. The same SAMs in Ukrainian service worked fine. The difference was that, after the Soviet Union collapsed, the Ukrainians began properly maintaining their SAMs, noticed the design and manufacturing defects and fixed them. The Russians didnt. This was an old problem. Before the USSRs collapse, jams and jellies produced in Bulgaria kept winning prizes in agricultural contests of the USSR and its Eastern European satellites such as Bulgaria. Soviet judges kept lauding the excellence of Bulgarian jams and jellies until the Bulgarian manufacturers told them they had used exactly the same recipes the Soviets did. I.e., Soviet jams and jellies used less expensive ingredients and were sloppily made. One side effect of Russian corruption plus sloppy manufacturing is that 21 Russian guided bombs and SAMs landed on the Russian side of the Ukrainian border and caused some damage and an undisclosed number of casualties. One of these errant bombs landed in Belgorod City, the capital of Belgorod Province. That bomb left a large crater in a street and some damage to nearby buildings. The government would not reveal the extent of civilian casualties. The government tried to suppress any news reports of these embarrassing bombings on the Russian side of the border. Ukrainians reported the number of Russian missiles shot down or malfunctioning as they headed for Ukrainian targets. Few of the missiles actually landed on or near their targets. It was no surprise that Russian air strikes were failing on both sides of the border and the Russians could not suppress reporting of what happened inside Ukraine. NATO is sending Ukraine about sixty F-16 fighter-bombers and these will be dispersed to several different airports and air bases and remain hidden most of the time. While the Russian Air Force is inept, they are not totally useless and will occasionally be successful. Ukraine doesnt want to take chances with its new F-16s and the Americans have asked Ukraine not to be too aggressive with their F-16s inside Russia. The U.S. fears that F-16 attacks deep inside Russia could trigger a state of war between Russia and the United States. The Ukrainians have plenty of targets along the Russian border and prefer to use Ukrainian made UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) for long range attacks inside Russia. China-France co-produced dance drama "Journey to the West" starts tour in both countries Xinhua) 11:12, May 13, 2024 BEIJING, May 12 (Xinhua) -- A dance drama "Journey to the West," jointly produced by Chinese and French artists, has recently started its tour in the two countries. Directed and choreographed by Chinese dancer Wang Yabin, with music composed by French composer Laurent Petitgirard, the drama depicts the memories of the Monkey King about the search for the sacred scriptures, during which he overcomes various challenges and finally achieves harmony between the internal and external worlds. This year marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and France. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing) You are already a Moneycontrol Pro user. OK OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All Congress to win Lok Sabha seats in double digits in Rajasthan: Ashok Gehlot OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All 'Even their friend Pakistan hasn't denied': PM Modi on Congress questioning surgical strikes Follow us on: Let's all do our duty, strengthen democracy: PM Modi to voters 1/32 Fourth phase of Lok Sabha polls: Voting begins in 96 seats in 9 States, 1 UT. (Imge: ANI) 2/32 AIMIM's Asaduddin Owaisi shows his inked finger along with his family members after casting his vote at Vattapally polling station during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha polls, in Hyderabad, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo) 3/32 Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy and his family members show inked fingers after casting votes at a polling station during fourth phase of Lok Sabha polls, in Kodangal, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo) 4/32 Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy meets people as he arrives to cast his vote during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections, in Pulivendu, Andhra Pradesh, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo) 5/32 BRS leader K. Chandrashekar Rao shows his finger marked with indelible ink after casting his vote for the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections, in Siddipet district, Telangana. (PTI Photo) 6/32 National Conference President Farooq Abdullah, his son and party Vice President Omar Abdullah and grandsons Zamir Abdullah and Zahir Abdullah show their ink marked fingers after casting their votes at a polling booth during the 4th phase of Lok Sabha elections, in Srinagar, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo) 7/32 Hyderabad: Former Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu and his wife Usha show their inked fingers after casting votes at apolling station during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha polls, in Hyderabad, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo) 8/32 J&KNC leader Omar Abdullah shows his inked finger after casting his vote at a polling station during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha polls, in Srinagar, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo) 9/32 Telugu Desam Party Chief N Chandrababu Naidu and wife Nara Bhuvaneshwari shows their ink-marked finger after casting vote during Lok Sabha elections, in Undavalli, Andhra Pradesh, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo) 10/32 Nadia: TMC candidate from Krishnanagar constituency Mahua Moitra on the day of voting for the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections. (PTI Photo) 11/32 Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav casts his vote during the fouth phase of Lok Sabha elections, in Ujjain, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo) 12/32 Secunderabad: Telengana BJP chief G Kishan Reddy shows his inked finger after casting his vote along with his family members and relatives at a polling station during fourth phase of Lok Sabha polls, in Kacheguda, Secunderabad, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo) 13/32 BJP candidate Madhavi Latha casts her vote at a polling station during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha polls, in Hyderabad, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo) 14/32 Guntur: Telugu Desam Party (TDP) national general secretary Nara Lokesh shows his inked finger after casting his vote at a polling station during fourth phase of Lok Sabha polls, in Guntur, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo) (PTI05_13_2024_000067B) 15/32 BJP MP Sakshi Maharaj shows victory sign during voting for the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections, in Unnao, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo) 16/32 Nellore: YSRCP MP Vijayasai Reddy V shows his inked marked finger after casting vote for the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections, in Kondayapalem of Nellore district, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo) 17/32 Jana Sena Party President Pawan Kalyan shows his inked finger after casting vote for Lok Sabha elections, in Mangalagiri, Andhra Pradesh, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo) 18/32 Polling officials with security personnel travel by boat to reach polling stations ahead of the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections, in Bahraich district in Uttar Pradesh. (PTI Photo) 19/32 Voters show their fingers marked with indelible ink after casting their votes during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections, in Kanpur, Monday, May 13, 2024. Polling is underway in Uttar Pradesh's 13 seats in fourth phase of Lok Sabha polls. (PTI Photo/Arun Sharma) 20/32 A woman shows her finger marked with indelible ink after casting her vote at a polling station during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections and Andhra Pradesh Assembly elections, at Sullurupeta in Tirupati district, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo/R Senthilkumar) 21/32 People wait in queues at a polling station to cast their votes during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections, in Kanpur, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo/Arun Sharma) 22/32 People show their inked fingers after casting votes at a polling station during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections, in Kanpur, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo/Arun Sharma) 23/32 People wait at a polling station to cast their votes during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections, in Kanpur, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo/Arun Sharma) 24/32 People wait in queues to cast their votes at a polling station during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections, in Kanpur, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo/Arun Sharma) 25/32 A man arrives at a polling station to cast their votes during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections, in Kanpur, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo/Arun Sharma) 26/32 Woman voters search their names in voters' list at a polling station during fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections at Mandar, in Lohardaga district, Jharkhand, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo) 27/32 People stand in queues to cast their votes at a polling station during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections at Fakeer Gujri on the outskirts of Srinagar, Monday, May 13, 2024. ( PTI Photo/S.irfan) 28/32 People stand in a queue to cast their votes at a polling station during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections and Andhra Pradesh Assembly elections, at Sullurupeta in Tirupati district, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo/R Senthilkumar) 29/32 People stand in a queue to cast their votes at a polling station during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections and Andhra Pradesh Assembly elections, in Nellore, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo/R Senthilkumar) 30/32 People cast their votes at a polling station during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections and Andhra Pradesh Assembly elections, at Sullurupeta in Tirupati district, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo/R Senthilkumar) 31/32 People stand in a queue to cast their votes at a polling station during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections and Andhra Pradesh Assembly elections, in Nellore, Monday, May 13, 2024. (PTI Photo/R Senthilkumar) 1/5 Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a five-kilometer roadshow in Varanasi on May 13 along with Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adiyanath and other BJP leaders. PM Modi will file his nomination from Varanasi on May 14. (Image Credit: PTI) 2/5 A huge crowd could be seen storming the road and gathering on terraces in hopes of catching a glimpse of the prime minister. (Image Credit: ANI) 3/5 The Prime Minister received a warm welcome at one hundred specified points along the five-kilometre circuit in the temple town, which comprises Assi, Sonarpura, Jangambari, and Godaulia. (Image Credit: PTI) 4/5 The roadshow also displayed the promises kept and milestones achieved by the party, bringing the extraordinary accomplishments of the central government over the last ten years to life in a colourful exhibition. (Image Credit: ANI) Follow us on: PM Modi says this region will spring 'biggest surprise' in Lok Sabha elections Follow us on: PM Modi to hold roadshow in Varanasi this evening, to file nomination on May 14 Follow us on: Andhra elections: YSRCP MLA slaps voter for objecting to him jumping queue, he hits back OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All 'Will not accept CAA, NRC in West Bengal': Mamata Banerjee Will Congress borrow to fund the Khata Khat schemes or will they raise taxes to fund them, asks FM Sitharaman Follow us on: Heeramandi: Tawaif-core and the exploitation of women in courtesan culture OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All Happy birthday Robert Pattinson: Check out the actors 5 best performances OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Ram Charan Teja and Mahesh Babu cast votes with their families OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All Indian Army TES Recruitment 2024: Job alert released for candidates with 10+2 PCM and JEE Mains 2024 background Follow us on: Air India management says merger with Vistara will be completed by 2024-end, NCLT hearing done More than 7,000 employees of Air India and Vistara have been assessed and their fitment will be complete in June as the merger process of two Tata Group-owned airlines progresses, sources said on Monday. Air India CEO and MD Campbell Wilson along with Vistara CEO Vinod Kannan on Monday held a one-and-a-half-hour long townhall meeting with the employees of both carriers about the proposed merger. Air India and Vistara together have more than 23,500 employees. Air India and Vistara together have more than 23,500 employees. At the phygital meeting, Campbell said more than 7,000 staff have been assessed and their fitment will be completed in June, as per the sources. The roles and responsibilities of these employees, including the flying staff, will be clear by the end of next month. The roles and responsibilities of these employees, including the flying staff, will be clear by the end of next month. Around 120 pilots are already seconded between Vistara and Air India, and the movement of employees will continue between the two carriers through secondment. To ensure fairness and transparency, the staff have been informed that the organisation structure has been finalised with the help of a global consulting firm, leveraging benchmarking and learning from the overall airline industry, the sources said. To ensure fairness and transparency, the staff have been informed that the organisation structure has been finalised with the help of a global consulting firm, leveraging benchmarking and learning from the overall airline industry, the sources said. The plans for fleet expansion, network growth and enhanced service over the next few years have also been taken into consideration while deciding on the organisation structure. The chiefs assured that the fitment or assignment of existing employees into the new structure is being done on the basis of merit and competency. The chiefs assured that the fitment or assignment of existing employees into the new structure is being done on the basis of merit and competency. Kannan, who is also the chief integration officer for the merger, spoke about the process of integration and the work that has been undertaken so far in anticipation of the merger. He also mentioned about the organisation design process, the fitment of employees and the next steps in the integration journey, the sources added. The merger, which will create one of the biggest airline groups, was announced in November 2022. Once the deal is complete, Singapore Airlines will have a 25.1 per cent stake in Air India. Vistara is a joint venture between Singapore Airlines and Tata Group. The merger, which will create one of the biggest airline groups, was announced in November 2022. Once the deal is complete, Singapore Airlines will have a 25.1 per cent stake in Air India. Vistara is a joint venture between Singapore Airlines and Tata Group. Campbell also spoke about Air India's vision and plans and the status of the regulatory approvals. The sources said there will be department-wise townhall meetings in the coming days to apprise the staff about various aspects of the merger. The sources said there will be department-wise townhall meetings in the coming days to apprise the staff about various aspects of the merger. Campbell said that customers of Air India and Vistara will have more options and greater choices across the combined airline's robust worldwide route network. Employees of the combined airline will benefit from being part of the combined Air India Group with a vision of an accelerated growth path and a stable financial foundation, he said. Employees of the combined airline will benefit from being part of the combined Air India Group with a vision of an accelerated growth path and a stable financial foundation, he said. The merger is awaiting a nod from the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in India. In March this year, Singapore's competition regulator CCCS gave a conditional nod for the proposed merger. In September 2023, the deal received approval from the Competition Commission of India (CCI), subject to certain conditions. In March this year, Singapore's competition regulator CCCS gave a conditional nod for the proposed merger. In September 2023, the deal received approval from the Competition Commission of India (CCI), subject to certain conditions. Tata Group took over the reins of loss-making Air India in January 2022. OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All Shriram Finance to sell Shriram Housing Finance to Warburg Pincus for Rs 4,630 crore OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All Biocon inks supply, distribution pact with Medix for chronic weight management drug in Mexico OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All Can govt's proposal to scrap import duty on private jets boost India's chartered aviation industry? MC Explains Follow us on: TCS to set up first-of-its-kind human-centric AI center of excellence in France Follow us on: Hyundai ties up with Laxmi Group to commence Venue production in Nepal Follow us on: India to ink 10-year Chabahar Port management pact; shipping minister Sonowal on his way to Iran Follow us on: Daily Voice: Pick up FMCG, pharma stocks in current market, says R Venkataraman of IIFL Follow us on: HUDCO gains on signing MoU with SITCO for construction, development of Surat MMTH Listed co tries to pass on blame of violation to sick employee, Sebi finds otherwise Markets will 'shoot up' on June 4, no need to link volatility with poll outcome, says Amit Shah Adrija Chatterjee is an Assistant Editor at Moneycontrol. She has been tracking and reporting on finance and trade ministries for over eight years. Souptik Datta Reports on Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Chennai. Btw, curiosity never kills the cat. You can reach me on souptikdatta@nw18.com OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All TMB seeks fresh applications for MD & CEO after RBI rejection of earlier candidates Follow us on: Unrest in Sandeshkhali following arrest of 4 in TMC MLA heckle case Manish M. Suvarna is Senior Correspondent at Moneycontrol. He writes on the Indian money markets, RBI, Banks and NBFCs. He tweets at @manishsuvarna15. Contact: Manish.Suvarna@nw18.com Follow us on: Wipro expected to settle soon with former top executives Jatin Dalal, Mohd Haque OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All 3 Naxalites killed in encounter with police in Maharashtra's Gadchiroli Follow us on: First Made-in-Assam semiconductors to roll out in a year, defence policy next: CM Himanta Biswa Sarma Follow us on: Haven't received anything worthy of being probed by Indian agencies: Jaishankar on Nijjar case OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All India's imports from FTA partners up 38% during 2019-24 fiscal years: GTRI Follow us on: Take-offs and landings suspended at Mumbai airport for one hour amid dust storm and heavy rain Arun Anand has authored two books on the RSS. His X handle is @ArunAnandLive. Views are personal, and do not represent the stand of this publication. May 13, 2024 / 21:47 IST Two hours after the roadshow began from the Malviya Chauraha in Varanasi's Lanka area, Prime Minister reached the Kashi Vishwanath temple and offered prayers. The roadshow on Monday began with Modi garlanding a statue of educationist and social reformer Madan Mohan Malviya at the Malviya Chauraha in Varanasi's Lanka area and passed through the Sant Ravidas Gate, Assi, Shivala, Sonarpura, Jangambadi and Godaulia. - It took agencies outside the country to warn Indians that many food products that they had been consuming for years contained unsafe elements. Last month, the Singapore Food Agency and Hong Kong's Center for Food Safety banned the sale of several spice mixes from MDH and Everest, claiming that they detected the presence of carcinogenic pesticide in them. The two companies promptly rejected the charges and said the products were completely safe. But it isnt clear why three Follow us on: Dont see why Kejriwal cant attend office when he can campaign: Kapil Sibal Follow us on: Lok Sabha elections 2024: Srinagar records highest voter turnout in three decades with 36.58 per cent Danish Khan is the editor of Technology and Telecom. He was previously with the Economic Times and has tracked the sector for 13 years. Best cities to find a job in the US .: ... Nikhil Kamath reveals why he doesn't have kids: 'Going to ruin 18-20 years of my life...' Follow us on: Sudha Murty says motherhood has been 'rewarding': 'Akshata, Rohan are my greatest blessings' Follow us on: Want to ask about remote work roles during a job interview? Stanford University expert has a tip Follow us on: Antony Blinken delivers some of strongest US public criticism of Israel's conduct in war in Gaza OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All How hard will new Joe Biden tariffs hit China? OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All India set to ink a 10-year agreement with Iran for Chabahar Port management: Report MBABANE While the countrys authorities had given prospective miners prospecting rights for coal in a bid to boost the mining industry, it appears that these efforts are bound to be hamstrung by the continuous weakening of coal prices. The World Bank expects the price of coal to significantly weaken further in 2024/25, dampening the prospects of reigniting an industry that is envisioned to boost the kingdoms economy and create employment opportunities for hundreds of emaSwati. The Washington-based lender in its latest Commodity Markets Outlook said prices of coal fell by about 8.0 per cent in the first quarter of 2024, due to substitution away from coal in the power sector. The World Bank observed that demand growth slowed due to soft economic activity, the increased penetration of renewable electricity, and lower gas prices. However, global coal production is estimated to have risen by about 150 t in 2023. Output rose by about 100 million metric tonnes in India, but by only about 50 million metric tonnes in China, partly owing to increased safety measures in domestic mines. According to the bank, coal consumption is expected to decrease markedly in the European Union and the United States, continuing recent trends, and to have peaked last year in China, with the prospective rise in renewable generation projected to exceed growth in electricity demand. Coal trade is estimated to have peaked in 2023 and is projected to decrease faster than consumption and production. Declining demand in the European Union is likely to particularly affect coal producers that raised exports following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, including Indonesia, Colombia, and South Africa. Prices might be lower than projected if this pattern continues. Lower prices than projected could result from weaker-than-anticipated economic growth, especially in China and India, reads the World Bank Outlook report. With these downside risks, Eswatinis desired job projections could not be realised notwithstanding that the country hosts large reserves of coal, which are low-volatile bituminous coals or anthracite. Unlocking the mining sector in the Kingdom of Eswatini as statistics from the Central Statistics Office Annual GDP Report states that the mining and quarrying industry is the least contributor to the countrys GDP as it contributes only 0.2 per cent. To revive the industry, in July 2022, His Majesty King Mswati III granted mineral rights to Mwelase Mining Eswatini (Pty) Ltd for Iron Ore Resources at the Ngwenya Iron Ore site. An environmental impact assessment study detailed that the project requires a workforce of about 460 employees. In October 2021, the King granted Lurco Coal Eswatini a prospecting for coal resources at Mpaka Coal Mine in the Lubombo region which had been mothballed in 1992 after the previous owner exited the Eswatini market. According to reports various studies have been undertaken to re-establish mining, but to date, no development of the project has been recorded. Other companies which are conducting studies to establish mining in the country are Magomba Coal Mine, Eswatini Antracite and L.C.E Investments trading as Mpaka Colliery. The Minister of Commerce announced that a mining license had been issued for the Mpaka Coal Mine in March 2022. This may indicate that there are plans to go ahead with the Mpaka Power. The anthracite mine at Maloma commenced with production in 1993 with the material exported mainly to South Africa. Follow us on: Melinda Gates to step down as co-chair of Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Follow us on: Nepal President's economic advisor resigns after criticising inclusion of Indian territories in map on Nepal Rs 100 notes Invite your friends and family to sign up for MC Tech 3, our daily newsletter that breaks down the biggest tech and startup stories of the day Aghi said investors have confidence in the reform and business-oriented government. Investors expect Prime Minister Narendra Modi to come back to power and they also have confidence in the reform and business-oriented government, US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF) president and chief executive officer Mukesh Aghi has said. "Everybody also feels that this time, the elections are more predictable. And that predictable results sends investors coming to India more and more because they feel that the current government is very reform-oriented, is very business-oriented," the head of the top US-based Strongest geomagnetic storm in two decades erupts with limited impact on public 13:12, May 13, 2024 By Xu Keyue ( Global Times This photo taken with a mobile phone on May 11, 2024 shows the northern lights near Nanshan scenic spot in Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Chen Shuo) From Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region to Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, multiple northern regions across China are among the best destinations to enjoy the stunning beauty of the aurora - a breathtaking gift brought by the strongest geomagnetic storm in two decades, which attracts visitors and photographers to rush for the mesmerizing display by the nature. The Earth's magnetic field experienced a massive geomagnetic storm (kp=9) on the night of Friday to the early hours of Saturday, due to a coronal mass ejection event from the sun. At 9:32 am on Saturday, the National Space Weather Monitoring and Early Warning Center under the China Meteorological Administration issued a red alert for geomagnetic storms, predicting moderate to high solar activity levels in the next three days, with the possibility of M-class or even X-class flares, leading to small to large geomagnetic storms, and even severe geomagnetic storms. Regions such as Altay in Xinjiang, Mohe in Heilongjiang, and North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region were hotspots for tourists and photography enthusiasts eager to witness this natural wonder. The night sky in Altay, located in northern Xinjiang, was adorned with colorful auroras, creating a mesmerizing spectacle for people who gazed upon it. As a response, Altay decided to temporarily adjust the nighttime lighting of all its buildings to allow residents and tourists to better enjoy the aurora nightscapes. The adjustment period was from midnight on Saturday until the early morning of Sunday. Local tourism departments and businesses tailored services for tourists interested in viewing the auroras at night. Discounts were offered at various observation lodges in Altay, such as multiple inns, to provide affordable and convenient accommodations for visitors. The unique geographical location and climatic conditions of Xinjiang play a significant role in the formation of vibrant auroras during geomagnetic storms. Xinjiang's dry climate, high atmospheric transparency and special magnetic field distribution create favorable conditions for the interaction of charged particles with atmospheric molecules and atoms, resulting in more pronounced light phenomena, according to experts. Interestingly, the phenomenon of the northern lights even extended as far as Beijing on Saturday. A student from a Beijing-based university told the Global Times on Sunday that he embarked on a six-hour journey to the mountains of Miyun district on the night of Saturday to capture a dazzling aurora display. This was his first time witnessing the auroras, and he was amazed to experience such a natural wonder at a latitude of 40 degrees north. Another photography enthusiast surnamed Xing traveled 2,300 kilometers to Hulunbuir, Inner Mongolia and finally captured a spectacular aurora eruption. He described the sight of the auroras dancing in the sky as both mesmerizing and unattainable, expressing that no photograph could fully capture the awe-inspiring moment. The ongoing solar storms are expected to continue to be active in the next two days, allowing for the possibility of widespread auroras in the northern hemisphere. With the increase in solar activities since the beginning of the 25th solar activity cycle in 2019, events such as solar flares, solar proton events, and geomagnetic storms have become more frequent and intense especially since 2023, attracting public attention. Many netizens jokingly blamed their insomnia, bad luck, and nightmares on the geomagnetic storm, claiming it was the cause of all their misfortunes. While some concerns have been raised about the potential health effects of geomagnetic storms, current research indicates that they have minimal impact on human health. Claims of insomnia, drowsiness, palpitations, and restlessness due to geomagnetic storms are unfounded and should not be taken seriously. However, according to the National Space Science Center of Chinese Academy of Sciences, geomagnetic storms and a series of space environmental events will have a serious impact on the earth. For example, geomagnetic storms can damage satellites, power grids and power facilities, and even oil pipelines. The higher density of the upper atmosphere increases the resistance of satellite operation, thus speeding up the attenuation of satellite orbit. Hot plasma injection can cause surface charging of satellite, and high energy electron bursts can cause deep charging harm to satellite. Ionospheric storms could affect things like short-wave communications and satellite navigation. As the sun continues to be active, the frequency and intensity of geomagnetic storms are expected to remain elevated, captivating the public with the beauty and wonder of celestial displays, experts said. (Web editor: Tian Yi, Zhong Wenxing) MBABANE - Zee Nxumalo, the dynamic 21-year-old Amapiano artist, is celebrating a monumental achievement as her hit single Funk 55 achieves five time platinum status. The platinum certification was introduced in 1976 for the sale of one million units for albums and two million for singles, with the gold certification redefined to represent sales of 500 000 units for albums and one million for singles. Audiences The infectious track, a collaborative effort featuring Shakes and Les, DBN Gogo, Ceeka RSA and Chley, has captivated audiences nationwide with its vibrant beats and catchy melodies. Inspired by the beloved Heineken beverage, Funk 55 has not only topped the charts but also caught the attention of the iconic brand itself. Heineken honoured Zee Nxumalo with a custom-made bottle bearing her name, a testament to her rising star power and the songs immense popularity. Reflecting on her journey to success, Zee Nxumalo expresses gratitude for the unexpected turn her life has taken. When we recorded this song, I never thought it would change my life like thistoday I have a whole bottle of Henke with my name written on it, shared Zee Nxumalo, beaming with excitement. Achievements In addition to her chart-topping achievements, Zee Nxumalo is also celebrating a milestone on social media, surpassing over a million followers on TikTok. Her engaging presence and electrifying performances have garnered a dedicated fanbase, propelling her into the spotlight as a household name in South Africa. Zees meteoric rise to fame continues with a string of hit collaborations including Shaymoto and Nguwe, solidifying her status as one of the most promising talents in the Amapiano genre. With her infectious energy and irresistible charm, Zee Nxumalo is poised for even greater heights in the music industry. President Joe Biden View Photo President Biden spoke in Palo Alto, California on Friday. Biden was Mondays KVML Newsmaker of the Day. Here are his words: When I got elected president I mean this sincerely I decided I was going to have an administration that looked like America, and I meant it, both in term- we have more women in my Cabinet than we have men. We have more women in the offices, in the major positions in my administration than we have men. And we have people of color that we have more African Americans that are in courts. We have more Hispanics. I mean, we just decided that its important. I mean this sincerely. I didnt plan on saying any of this until I looked at you two guys. Its really important that people have something to look to to know what can be done, to know what can be accomplished. You could be governor; you could be president. (Laughter.) No, I mean Im not Im not joking. Im being deadly earnest. And a lot is changing. And so, Jennifer, the First Partner of California, who is doing an incredible job along with the governor. And also, its great to be in California w- but the only Im in a little bit of trouble because Kamala is not here. (Laughter.) Every time Im going to California, she says, Wh- wait, wait I got to go back. I got to go back. (Laughter.) She sends her love. And I want to thank you all for your support for this campaign. Look, were into the spring, and were genuinely theres excitement and momentum moving on building this campaign. So far I dont think this has ever happened before we have 1.6 million people who have individually contributed to this campaign 1.6 million. 97 percent have contributed under $200, and theyre doing $5, $10, $20, $30 a month. And weve raised more money than anybody has ever raised because of you, as well at this stage in a campaign. Weve opened over 150 offices in battleground states. And, you know, we weve opened and Trump has opened zero offices. And its not just because hes in a trial; he isnt doing it at all. Look, I think this is going to be a campaign those women and men who play sport tough sports. Its like its about blocking and tackling. It just gets down to who is going to get to have the volunteers, whos going to knock on the doors, whos going to make those phone calls, whos going to put those signs up. It matters. Whos going to get people to the polls. While the press doesnt want write about it, the momentum is clearly in our favor, with polls moving towards us and away from Trump. As I left Wisconsin last week, the Wisconsin latest Quinnipiac Poll has us up six points among registered voters. The IPSOS/ABC Poll has us up four nationwide. All the rest are basically tied. But I, quite frankly, dont think the polls mean anything today. Its awful hard to get a read of a poll. I dont know how many my pollsters tell me that you have to contact an enormon- enormous number of people just to get a response. And theres hardly anybody has cell pho- anything other than cell phones. We know not everyone is feeling the enthusiasm, though, for real. The other day, a defeated-looking guy came up to me and said, Look, Mr. President, Im being crushed by debt. And Im completely wiped out. And I had to tell him, Donald, I cant help you. (Laughter.) Theres nothing I can do for you. (Laughter.) Look, Trump is in trouble, and he knows it. And after bragging about his reasons why Roe v. Wade was overturned and he was the reason for it, he now wants voters to h- not hold him accountable for all the cruelty and chaos its created. And I have news for Trump: The voters arent forgetting. Theyre going to hold him accountable. Trump did a long interview, if youve seen it, in TIME Magazine. If you havent, I urge you to get it. Not a joke. He his own words. He said, States should monitor womens pregnancies and prosecute those who violate abortion bans. Monitor womens pregnancies? Thats just what we need a president doing. Look at the chaos. Its nothing new for Trump. His presidency literally was chaos. Its ha- and it seems like a hundred years ago. Trump is trying to make the country forget how dark and unsettling things were during his presidency. But well never forget. A million people died. A million people died because of COVID, and he kept telling people, Dont worry. Nothing to it. Just inject a little bleach in your arm. For real. Well, I wish he had injected a little beach, and we could see what was going on. (Laughter.) But, look, you know remember his love letters for Kim Jong Y- Un of North Korea and how he adm- his admiration for Putin said he trusted Putin over our own people? Heres what he said in that TIME article, and you really got to get it, because this is about alternatives too. He may not come out and aid an ally in Asia or in Europe if he thinks they havent paid enough for their own defense. Thats a great message to send. As the press national press is with me today, theyve heard me say it before. Some of them have been with me at these international organizations I attend the G7, the G20, all these various where I meet with other heads of state. They literally they literally come up to me as Im leaving and say, He cant win. He cant win. My meaning their countrys democracy is at stake. Look how far weve come: 15 million new jobs. No president has ever created that many jobs in one term ever in American history. More people have health insurance today than ever before in the history of the country. Millions of people didnt have it before. And were going to expand that. We took on Big Pharma Big Pharma to lower prescription drug costs. How many people do you know who need insulin for their diabetes? They were paying roughly 400 bucks a month. Now they dont have to pay more than $35 a month. And theyre still making a good profit with that. And, look, were it not only saves lives; it saves the co- the taxpayer $160 billion $160 billion because the federal government doesnt have to pay out these exorbitant prices. And so, look, Im so proud of the new report released by the 20 major climate organizations, from the Sierra Club to the Sunrise Movement, crediting our administration with taking more than 300 related climate actions conservation, public health, clean energy. In their words it sounds I feel guilty mentioning reading this Biden does more to take action and protect, restore, and secure health and the environment than any president in American history, and hes not done yet. Were not done yet. Were on the verge of being able to do so much more. Were just finally breaking through. Were breaking through on the ability to deal with agriculture and all the anyway. Weve made the most significant investment in American hi- in science, technology I need not tell you in Silicon Valley any of this in generations. And so many of you are leading the way. Weve already attracted off the sidelines $866 billion $866 billion in private investment in clean energy, advanced manufacturing historic amounts in such a short period of time. And were just getting started. We I mean, were really I know you probably, its the only place in the country that fully appreciate it. Were just getting started. I signed the most significant gun safety law in 30 years. And, by the way, although shes not around to help me this time, Dianne Feinstein and I passed the Assault Weapons Ban. Were going to pass it again. (Applause.) Look, I could go on. The point is were lowering costs, expanding opportunities, and protecting freedom. But it literally is all at stake. Im not going to take too much of your time. Trump is still determined, in his words, to, quote, terminate the Affordable Care Act. That will kick millions of people off of healthcare because its the only way they can get if you have a preexisting condition, its the only means by which you can get insurance. Hes determined to get rid of the climate law. Were spending $368 billion on climate, more than ever spent in the entire history of the world. And were just getting started. Why? Because and hes he wants to make sure that he gets he says, if Im not elected, hes going to eliminate it. Did you see what he just said? You saw it on television, also out of his his TIME Magazine article. He said to the major cor- oil executives he told Big Oil he said, Raise me a billion dollars, and I said, That would be a hell of a deal for you make a deal. And then he goes on and says he has one objective if hes reelected: Drill, drill, drill. Look, folks, during his presidency, he exploded the federal deficit more than any president did in a one term. He racked up more federal debt than any previous president in history. Hes determined to cut Social Security and Medicare. Were going to have to deal with it, but we can do that by everybody beginning to pay their fair share. In his own words, he said, Theres a lot you can do in terms of cutting. And he plans on doing it. The nonpartisan [Congressional] Budget Office just released a study showing his plans that all that the House of Representatives Republicans passed as well, what theyre going to do in a if they take control next time it would cost $5 trillion over the next decade. Its fiscally reckless $5 trillion. Folks, theres so so much at stake. I I know you know all this, so I should shush up. But after months of bipartisan negotiations, I proposed the strongest border bill ever, a comprehensive immigration reform in decades a bipartisan bill that would require us to hire 1,500 more security agents and officers at the border; 100 more immigration judges to tackle the backload of 2 million cases theres a backload of 2 million cases; 4,300 asylum officers and new policies so they can resolve cases in six months instead of six years and to get decisions faster. When they do that, no one is going to pay a a cowboy to take them across the border for 8,000 bucks, knowing theyre going to be sent home in six six weeks [months]. A hundred more high-tech detection machines. We know how we can deal with fentanyl coming into the country and the biproducts. Its just stupid what they did. And, by the way, that group that put it together was led by a very one of the most conservative members of the Congress in the United States Senate from Oklahoma. But the majority of the House and Senate support this bill, but politics derailed it. Trump was on the phone, Im told and I have the national press here, so they theyve heard it too; they can write whether they think Im telling the truth or not. Trump was on the phone calling members of the House and the Senate saying, Dont bring that bill up. Dont pass that border bill. Why? Because itll make Biden look like a winner. It would be a political win for Biden. Dont do it. Now, his ability to threaten people or have an impact on the Congress is amazing to me. And guess what? They backed off, even though the vast majority support it. But hes wrong. Itd be an enormous win for America. Were a nation of immigrants. Thats why this bipartisan bill also includes fair and humane immigrant reform immigration reform in decades the most significant. It includes a pathway for citizenship for DREAMers and so much more. And, by the way, Im proud that my administration just announced that DREAMers are finally able to get healthcare under the Affordable Care Act. Look, folks, the idea these DREAMers are somehow you know, youre five years old, mom says, Lets cross the Rio Grande, and you say, No, Mom, leave me here. Im going to be okay its ridiculous. And, by the way, its one of the reasons why our economy is growing. Were not xenophobic. Were able to grow the economy because we have workers coming in. We have farmworkers and other workers, and its real. And the governor is doing an incredible job, by the way. No, he really is. And, by the way, AMLO said I told him what was going on down at the border in Southern California. It slowed down from 10 million people I mean, excuse me, 500,000 people to 50,000 people. I mean, theres a lot theres a lot I dont want to bore you, but theres a lot we can do and are doing. Meanwhile, in the TIME interview, Trump vowed to use the U.S. military to round up get the military out there, going through America, round up the 11 million Americans who are waiting for their determination of whats going to happen in their because theyre waiting now five, six, seven years to be longer to be able to have their hearings whether they can stay. And he he and I just wonder how people feel when he calls our immigrants rapists and murderers. He says, quote, Theyre not people. The rest of the world hears this, by the way. He says immigrants poison the blood of America of our country. Folks, thats not who we are. Thats not America. And we and it really hurts us around the world, not in terms of immigration but in terms of what kind of people we are. Folks, the biggest threat Trump poses is to our democracy. You know, again, in that TIME article, he says, A lot of people liked it when I said Ill be a dictator for one day. Well, I dont like it, because I know he means it. Asked if he thought violence would occur if he lost, Trump says, Well, it depends. Then asked if hed recognize hed recognize the outcome of this next election, he said if hes not re- not reelected, and he said no. He calls the insurrectionists who are in prison he calls them patriots. He says, if reelected, he wants every one of them hell free them, pardon them. Trump says, if he loses again in November, therell be a bloodbath. I mean, this is a president of the United States of America, for Gods sake. (Referring to Representative Eshoo.) Oh, I didnt see you, Congresswoman. I I apologize. I didnt REPRESENTATIVE ESHOO: Thats all right. THE PRESIDENT: By the way, shes one of the best in the country. (Applause.) He says hes not going to accept the results of the election when he loses again. You cant only love your country when you win. MAGA candidates auditioning to be his vice president are saying they would not accept the results, either. I dont know what it is. I mean, something is going on. Its like theyre drinking some Kool-Aid. Look, let me close with this. Whats at risk in 2024 are our freedoms and our democracy. I know we can do this if we work together. I really do. Were the only country in the world thats come out of every crisis stronger than we went into the crisis every one. Ive never been more optimistic about our future. We have to remember who we are, for Gods sake. Were the United States of America. There is nothing beyond our capacity when we work together. And I know I get criticized, in the light of all hes doing, to say we got to work together. But we have to work together because I dont this is not your fathers Republican Party. This is a different breed of cat. The MAGA Republicans make up somewhere between 30 and 35 percent of the Republican Party. They have a hammer on the rest of the party. But its not who we are. Ive always been Ive been in the Senate a long time before this job. And some of the most impressive men and women Ive worked with are the Republicans. But its not there anymore. Its got to change. Its got to change. So, with your help, not only will you help me get elected, but hopefully well elect a Democratic House and a Democratic Senate, and well get a lot done. Thank you. (Applause.) And, by the way, thank these girls for getting all dressed up. (Laughter.) Theyre all (inaudible), and this good-looking guy. By the way, I made a prom- I made him give me a promise: If he or his sister ended up being president of the United States and they say, Joe Biden is out in the waiting room, promise me you wont say, Joe who? (Laughter.) Really, folks, thank you. I know theres a lot at stake. I really (inaudible). As I said, every time Ive run in the past and I was a senator for 36 years and vice president for 8 years Ive always wanted to win. But Ive never before felt that it was an obligation an obligation to win. Weve got to get this done. Theres too much at stake. So, thank you, thank you, thank you. Thank you. The Newsmaker of the Day is heard every weekday morning at 6:45, 7:45 and 8:45 on AM 1450 and FM 102.7 KVML. Ras Al Khaimah has signed a key deal to develop a network of vertiports to connect key attractions across the emirate with electric air mobility by 2027. Ras Al Khaimah Transport Authority (RAKTA) and Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority (RAKTDA) have signed a future-forward memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Skyports Infrastructure (Skyports), the company leading the development of vertiport infrastructure for electric air taxi services, in this regard. Marking the beginning of an exciting partnership that will pioneer sustainable tourism through electric air mobility, this pivotal MoU will see Skyports develop a network of vertiports to connect key attractions across Ras Al Khaimah, propelling the emirate as a destination of the future and aligning with RAKTAs Strategic Plan 2030. Under the agreement RAKTA, RAKTDA and Skyports will collaboratively design, develop, and operate Ras Al Khaimah's first electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) air taxi ecosystem, with commercial operations set to commence by 2027. This innovative project will seamlessly integrate Skyports vertiport infrastructure with RAKTA's existing transport network, providing fast and convenient zero-emission transport to Ras Al Khaimah's most popular areas and attractions, including Al Marjan Island, Al Hamra and Jebel Jais, the UAEs highest peak. Tourists and residents visiting these iconic sites will experience substantial time savings from the service. For example, travelling from Al Marjan Island to Jebel Jais takes approximately 70 minutes by car. The launch of air taxi services will cut the journey time to less than 20 minutes. The vertiport network will transform transportation in Ras Al Khaimah and support its objective of responsibly driving 3.5 million visitors annually by 2030. By providing zero-emission transportation options, the emirate is reinforcing its commitment to environmental stewardship and sustainable development, a statement said. These ambitions align with Skyports design approach, which prioritises integration with existing public transit networks to promote more sustainable transportation. In addition, this initiative directly addresses the pressing need for innovative solutions to cut carbon emissions in ground transportation, a sector that accounts for 40% of greenhouse gas emissions in the travel and tourism industry, as highlighted by the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC). Furthermore, it will unlock future opportunities to integrate with air taxi networks across the United Arab Emirates (UAE), it said. Eng Esmaeel Hasan Al Blooshi, Director General of RAKTA, added: This partnership marks a pivotal moment in our efforts to revolutionise transportation in Ras Al Khaimah. By introducing electric air mobility, we're not just connecting tourists to our attractions, we're forging a sustainable path forward for our emirate. This innovative project aligns perfectly with our commitment to enhancing accessibility while minimising our environmental impact, following our 2030 strategic plan. Together, we're shaping a brighter, greener future for Ras Al Khaimah. Raki Phillips, CEO of Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority, expressed his enthusiasm about the partnership, sharing: "The support we've received from the UAE government and Ras Al Khaimah authorities has been phenomenal, enabling us to innovate at an unprecedented scale and pace. In the next two years, we aim to build the infrastructure and facilities for an electric-powered transit system that will redefine the way tourists experience Ras Al Khaimah. This collaboration also perfectly aligns with our commitment to sustainable tourism. By introducing electric air mobility, we not only enhance accessibility to Ras Al Khaimahs attractions but also significantly reduce our carbon footprint. This initiative drives us closer to our goal of establishing Ras Al Khaimah as a regional leader in sustainable tourism by 2025" Duncan Walker, CEO and founder of Skyports, commented: We are eager to join forces with the leading transport and tourism organisations in Ras Al Khaimah to launch electric air taxi services in the Emirate. This collaboration further underscores our commitment to providing the essential enabling infrastructure for zero-emission aviation across the UAE. We look forward to contributing our expertise to realise Ras Al Khaimahs ambitious transport and tourism goals. -TradeArabia News Service Conor here: The Fermi Paradox, answered? By Sarah Scoles, a science journalist based in Colorado, and a senior contributor to Undark. She is the author of Making Contact, They Are Already Here, and Countdown: The Blinding Future of 21st Century Nuclear Weapons. Originally published at Undark. IN APRIL 2023, a satellite the size of a microwave launched to space. Its goal: to get ready to mine asteroids. While the mission, courtesy of a company called AstroForge, ran into problems, its part of a new wave of would-be asteroid miners hoping to cash in on cosmic resources. Potential applications of space-mined material abound: Asteroids contain metals like platinum and cobalt, which are used in electronics and electric vehicle batteries, respectively. Although theres plenty of these materials on Earth, they can be more concentrated on asteroids than mountainsides, making them easier to scrape out. And scraping in space, advocates say, could cut down on the damaging impacts that mining has on this planet. Space-resource advocates also want to explore the potential of other substances. What if space ice could be used for spacecraft and rocket propellant? Space dirt for housing structures for astronauts and radiation shielding? Previous companies have rocketed toward similar goals before but went bust about a half decade ago. In the years since that first cohort left the stage, though, the field has exploded in interest, said Angel Abbud-Madrid, director of the Center for Space Resources at the Colorado School of Mines. A lot of the attention has focused on the moon, since nations plan to set up outposts there and will need supplies. NASA, for instance, has ambitions to build astronaut base camps within the next decade. China, meanwhile, hopes to found an international lunar research station. Still, the pull of space rocks remains powerful and the new crop of companies hopeful. The economic picture has improved with the cost of rocket launches decreasing, as has the regulatory environment, with countries creating laws specifically allowing space mining. But only time will tell if this decades prospectors will cash in where others have drilled into the red or be buried by their business plans. *** AN ASTEROID-MINING company needs one major ingredient to get started: optimism. A hope that they could start a new industry, one not of this world. Not a lot of humans are built to work like that, said Matt Gialich, co-founder and CEO of AstroForge. Since the companys April 2023 demo mission, it has yet to come close to mining anything. What he and colleagues hope to extract, though, are platinum-group metals, some of which are used in devices like catalytic converters, which reduce gas emissions. Substances like platinum and iridium, meanwhile, are used in electronics. There are also opportunities in green technology, and new pushes to produce platinum-based batteries with better storage that could end up in electric vehicles and energy storage systems. To further the companys goals, AstroForges initial mission was loaded with simulated asteroid material and a refinery system designed to extract platinum from the simulant, to show that metal-processing could happen in space. Things didnt go exactly as planned. After the small craft got to orbit, it was hard to identify and communicate with among the dozens of other newly launched satellites. The solar panels, which provide the spacecraft with power, wouldnt deploy at first. And the satellite was initially beset with a wobble that prevented communication. They have not been able to do the simulated extraction. The company will soon embark on a second mission, with a different goal: to slingshot to an asteroid and take a picture a surveying project which may help the company understand which valuable materials exist on a particular asteroid. Another company, called TransAstra, is selling a telescope and software designed to detect objects like asteroids moving through the sky; Chinese corporation Origin Space has an asteroid-observing satellite in orbit around Earth, and is testing out its mining-relevant technology there. Meanwhile, Colorado company Karman+ plans to go straight to an asteroid in 2026 and test out excavation equipment. To achieve the ultimate goal of pulling metals from space rocks, TransAstra, Karman+, and AstroForge have received a combined tens of millions of dollars in venture-capital funding to date. Another company with similar aims, simply called Asteroid Mining Corporation Ltd., doesnt want to rely much on outside investment in the long term. Such reliance, in fact, helped sink earlier companies. Instead, founder and CEO Mitch Hunter-Scullion is focusing his companys early work on terrestrial applications that pay up immediately so he can fund future work in the broader universe. In 2021, the company partnered with Tohoku University Space Robotics Laboratory, based in Japan, to work on space robots. Together, they have built a six-legged robot called the Space Capable Asteroid Robotic Explorer, or SCAR-E. Designed to operate in microgravity, it can crawl around a rugged surface and take data on, and samples of, whats there. In 2026, the company plans to do a demonstration mission analyzing soil on the Moon. For now, though, SCAR-E will stay on Earth and inspect ship hulls. According to one market research platform, this is a nearly $13 billion dollar market globally as compared to the asteroid-mining market, currently $0, as no one has yet mined an asteroid. Such grounded work may give the company a revenue stream before, and during, their time in space. I think every asteroid-mining company has this realization that money runs out, investors get tired, and you have to do something, said Hunter-Scullion. My opinion is that unless youve built something which makes sense on Earth, he added, youre never going to be able to mine an asteroid. *** IAN LANGE sees sideways applications like ship-inspections as the gin of space mining: Lots of distilleries want to make whiskey. But making whiskey requires years of maturing alcohol in a cask. You can make gin right now, said Lange, an economist at the Colorado School of Mines. The gin can float a company until their whiskeys ripe. AstroForge is betting that asteroid mining will happen soon enough that it doesnt need gin. Some of the economics are, in fact, better than they were in the 2010s. Rockets are significantly cheaper than when the prior companies started (and then stopped), for instance. But other considerations are more complicated. For one, said Lange, theres no shortage of terrestrial resources. Its not that we dont have lithium around, he said, as an example. The problem is that for a number of reasons, were not allowing ourselves to take them out of the ground. Often, those reasons involve environmental concerns. For some, extracting materials from space offers a way to reduce the burden on Earths resources. That consideration is especially prevalent when it comes to the extraction required for clean energy technologies, like hydrogen fuel production, which uses iridium, and hydrogen fuel cell cars, which require platinum. Certain metals like nickel, cobalt, and iron are also more concentrated in asteroids since, unlike Earths richest deposits, they havent been tapped yet. But space mining isnt without its own environmental impacts: Rocket launches, for instance, contribute greenhouse gases to the atmosphere, something Langes research notes. Extraction on space rocks would generate waste and debris, which would float out into the vacuum of space. To combat such concerns, researchers suggested in 2019 that much of the solar system should be set aside as wilderness, like protected land on Earth. Allowing exploitation like mining on only one-eighth of cosmic resources, they wrote, could prevent the kinds of impacts that overzealous extraction has wrought at home. In 2021, researchers at the University of New South Wales in Australia published a proposed environmental impact framework to assess how damaging a given space-mining project would be, through factors like how much dust it would stir up. But the kind of public outcry that accompanies endeavors like deep-sea mining isnt likely to happen for asteroids: A 2022 study found that the public is largely in favor of asteroid mining, a finding that held regardless of peoples preconceived ideas about ecological fragility or their political ideology. People were much more supportive of mining asteroids than other forms of frontier mining like mining the ocean floor, mining Antarctica, and mining the Alaskan tundra, Matthew Hornsey, lead author of the paper and a professor at the University of Queensland, wrote in an email to Undark. They didnt raise the same ethical objections that they did to other forms of mining, and they reported little anxiety about it. Even those who typically would object to mining on environmental grounds felt that way, Hornsey says, likely because they saw the trade-off: Scar the Earth or scrape an asteroid. The same, though, was not true of the moon, where respondents disapproved of mining more sometimes more than they did ecologically sensitive parts of Earth. The moon is visible, beautiful, and associated with purity and spirituality, he wrote. I can see why people might see the need to preserve the sanctity of the moon more so than asteroids. Regardless of environmental pros and cons, making the leap to cosmic extraction will likely require further constraints on Earth for example, stricter environmental regulations that make space mining more appealing than digging another hole in the ground at home. Still, Lange said, its not clear that we will be able to bring costs down to match terrestrial minerals. Its simply a bet that the new optimists are making. *** A FEW OTHER things have changed since the 2010s: For one, would-be asteroid miners have more data. Recent NASA missions have revealed more about asteroids composition and structure. The regulatory landscape for space mining has also shifted in recent years, said Melissa de Zwart, a professor who specializes in space law at the University of Adelaide in Australia. Lack of existing regulation, she says, is part of why the first crop of companies failed. There wasnt a legal framework that explicitly stated that space mining was allowed. Today, Japan, the United Arab Emirates, Luxembourg, and the United States all have legislation enshrining their companies and countries rights to own space material. The U.S. has also established the Artemis Accords, a set of best practices for behavior on the moon. Other nations have signed on to these principles, which include ensuring that lunar digs align with the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, the major international law governing space exploration, including mining (even though it was enacted long before space mining was on the practical horizon). The Outer Space Treaty doesnt prohibit space mining but it lays some ground rules: The U.S. couldnt go to the moon, put the U.S. flag on there and say, It belongs to us, and start mining, said de Zwart. But the country could extract material like ice or metallic rocks from the moon, or an asteroid, and then own that material. The treaty also says nations are responsible for what their private companies do, and their activities must benefit humanity. But that framework leaves a lot of gaps for example how exactly mining can be done responsibly. And there is talk toward that more logistical end: The Hague International Space Resources Governance Working Group has put together some starting points for developing an international how-to framework, and the United Nations has a working group dedicated to the cause. That framework is likely to be tested, with the first proverbial pickaxe strike, not on asteroids but on the moon since thats where humans are set to take their next small steps. The moment you start talking sustained presence, youre going to have to start looking at resources, said Abbud-Madrid. Lunar surveying is already happening, and as of December 2020, NASA has contracts with four companies: Their task is to gather a small amount of material from the lunar surface as a proof of concept to show that extraction is possible . NASA doesnt have a similar demonstration for mining asteroids. But the space rock seekers nevertheless continue their quest for treasure, even though its potential payoff is farther off. They believe Earth needs, and will pay handily for, what space has to offer. At least thats the optimistic take. This has to happen, said Gialich. And I just hope that were the first. The Craton Enigma: Scientists Propose a New Continental Formation Theory SciTech Daily The Fire Beneath Our Feet Belt Magazine Earths Gateway to Hell is growing by 35 million cubic feet each year New Atlas Climate/Environment Pandemics Lack of bird flu testing may be hiding true spread of virus on US farms The Guardian. Commentary: The wounds are always self-inflicted. https://t.co/w95xWM8zUl Laura Miers (@LauraMiers) May 12, 2024 With #H5N1 #birdflu spreading amongst dairy cows, one of the most important things to think about right now is what would need to happen for this virus to actually start a pandemic. Im on a train, so a brief thread Kai Kupferschmidt (@kakape) May 12, 2024 China? Its funny that when China doesnt merely compete on price through low wages but actually pushes the technological frontier out as with EVs and 5G the US becomes happily protectionist. Matt Bruenig (@MattBruenig) May 12, 2024 European Disunion Syraqistan Senator Lindsey Graham just suggested nuking Gaza on national TV. pic.twitter.com/IL3g7N346v Read Let This Radicalize You (@JoshuaPHilll) May 12, 2024 This weekend, the Commander of @CENTCOM , General Michael Erik Kurilla, arrived in Israel as the official guest of the Chief of the General Staff, LTG Herzi Halevi. The commanders held an operational situational assessment and discussed operational developments including the pic.twitter.com/fSH69QxV9i Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) May 12, 2024 These monsters manufacture the Quadcopter drone with a sniper gun. One night we had 30 injuries when they were sent to shoot at people trying to get to Ahli hospital. One was a 9 year boy shot in the neck. He bled-out in the ER. Germany hasnt banned them from Europe pic.twitter.com/Yv4xlQw6Cd Ghassan Abu Sitta (@GhassanAbuSitt1) May 9, 2024 New Not-So-Cold War The survivability of nuclear conflict is a meme that has emerged in the wake of Ukraine. Clearly some liberals and conservatives want to nuke Russia, and the implication is that they realize they will be nuked in return, but they resort to fantasy that it wont matter for them. https://t.co/DUbRJjC5ty ecosocialist musician (@EcosocialistM) May 12, 2024 The Caucasus Old Blighty Imperial Collapse Watch We cannot re-industrialize under neoliberalism. It cannot be done. Ian Welsh (@iwelsh) May 12, 2024 Boeing NASA wants a cheaper Mars Sample ReturnBoeing proposes most expensive rocket Ars Technica South of the Border The Secret History of Israels Role in Genocide in Colombia Consortium News O Canada B-a-a-a-a-d Banks There will be blood: Lenders warn of bank failures at TRD forum The Real Deal GOP Clown Car More Republicans Betray Causes They Supported Ten Minutes Ago Matt Taibbi, Racket News Democrats en deshabille 2024 Why are social media users blocking celebrities and influencers on TikTok? A look at the #Blockout movement Yahoo News Trump This may be the week Alvin Braggs case against Trump falls apart Jonathan Turley, New York Post Realignment and Legitimacy Groves of Academe No. They walked out on him because he is a staunch zionist who likes to cosplay brutalizing Palestinians as part of his vacation. https://t.co/wj9aiUBfQI pic.twitter.com/oLihSH6Eu5 Esha K (@eshaLegal) May 12, 2024 AI Healthcare? Antitrust Class Warfare Antidote du jour (via): See yesterdays Links and Antidote du Jour here. From the standpoint of having a hope of preserving civilization and some level of planetary health, falling birth rates, and eventually, falling population levels, would seem to be highly desirable. And before the Industrial Revolution, population levels were generally static. But with modernity came the notion of progress and in parallel, the rise of capitalism, which seems to find growth a necessity. Population growth (absent massive disruptions like war and economic crises) creates a baseline of demand growth. The other source of economic growth is productivity increases. The perceived need for growth is so strong that a new Wall Street Journal story, Suddenly There Arent Enough Babies. The Whole World Is Alarmed, does not feel the necessity to unpack much why declining birth and population rates are perceived to be highly problematic. Ambitious young men need new worlds to conquer, and that impulse can become destructive when the economic pie shrinks or increases only slowly. And lordie, what will happen to real estate prices? Similarly, the press and punditocracy covers Japan, which has merely had a static but aging citizenry, with horror, even though the Japanese, between having generally very robust oldsters, plus high levels of social cohesion, seems to be wearing its affliction awfully well. Authors Greg Ip (a sometimes Fed whisperer) and Janet Adamy describe expert puzzlement and distress. But as well explain, this might not be so difficult to understand if undue sentimentality did not get in the way. While well get to factors that make modern parenting hard despite much higher levels of affluence, some people are better suited to become parents than others. And that matters because raising kids, particularly ones that turn out to be functioning adults, is a hard and more than occasionally not as rewarding as widely depicted, particularly in advertising showing always smiling families. In the US, surveys have repeatedly found that couples with children are on average less happy that their childless peers, but they report a greater sense of purpose in life. Consumer marketing reinforces the idea that pursuit of enjoyment, as opposed to duty, is an important aim. This is before getting to the fact that childrearing duties fall preponderantly on women (no offense meant, but to simplify the discussion, we will focus on traditional families, since single parents and same-sex couples bringing up kids face additional obstacles). The male partner has the option of how involved he is, including leaving entirely. It seems odd for a business paper to be so puzzled as to what is happening. Late stage capitalism is not child-friendly. It expects workers to be mobile when that can mean moving away from relatives that provide back-up junior care. The now scarce-as-hens-teeth 9 to 5 day for office workers and professionals, and regular shift work for factory laborers, gave scheduling predictability that helped with organizing child supervision and gave the kids themselves a sense of order in the world. Late-stage neoliberalism has also produced in the US and many other advanced economies a large increase in income and wealth inequality and a corresponding fall in income/class mobility. That further increases the stakes of raising children well: getting them into the right schools and/or making sure they travel in circles that increase the odds of landing good jobs and/or good romantic partners. A final factor is at least some, and perhaps many, potential parents are concerned about the state of the world and wonder if having children is the right thing to do. And that does not just mean that their progeny will add to the environmental load but also that those offspring might suffer from societal upheaval, violence, and other dystopian outcomes as competition for scarce resources becomes desperate. Well turn to key parts of the article: The world is at a startling demographic milestone. Sometime soon, the global fertility rate will drop below the point needed to keep population constant. It may have already happened. Fertility is falling almost everywhere, for women across all levels of income, education and labor-force participation. The falling birthrates come with huge implications for the way people live, how economies grow and the standings of the worlds superpowers. In high-income nations, fertility fell below replacement in the 1970s, and took a leg down during the pandemic. Its dropping in developing countries, too. India surpassed China as the most populous country last year, yet its fertility is now below replacement. Let us point out the obvious: women cut back on how many children they had as soon as the Pill and other new types of contraception gave them greater reproductive control. While many women relish being mothers despite its bodily-fluid intensiveness (and here I mean a lot more than nursing), the harsh reality is that in England and Europe, most aristocratic women farmed out child-rearing to servants (see the bios of Talleyrand and Churchill among many others). They regarded it as drudgery. So unless societies affirm that motherhood is important and back that up with action, and not just Hallmark schmaltz, many women will gravitate towards paid work, particularly now that women increasingly can land and hold good, interesting jobs. Back to the Journal: Many government leaders see this as a matter of national urgency. They worry about shrinking workforces, slowing economic growth and underfunded pensions; and the vitality of a society with ever-fewer children. Smaller populations come with diminished global clout, raising questions in the U.S., China and Russia about their long-term standings as superpowers. Some demographers think the worlds population could start within four decadesone of the few times its happened in history. Notice lower groaf is assumed to be bad. But does this necessarily mean lower per capita GDP, particular with all the much hyped productivity enhancing wonders, from AI to self-driving cars to other deployments of robots? Otherwise, shrinking workforces can and probably will translate into having to pay workers more and being more accommodating to now marginalized groups like oldsters and the handicapped (and the ugly!!). The horror! And is the underfunded pensions merely about Social Security, which is actually a pay as you go program, or is it a dog whistle to the concern that peppy stock markets may become a thing of the past? Well skip over the detailed discussion about demographers having been surprised by an accelerating decline in global birth rates that began in 2017 and whether the world has already hit the point where the current reproduction rate is below the replacement level. Note here that nowhere does the piece mention that physical fertility is declining, as in more couples are having trouble conceiving, and how much that is lowering birth rates among those who are keen about the parenting project and might have even more if they could. Next, the piece turns to how parental-commitment-intensive bringing up kids has become in the US, particularly among parents with college degrees. It briefly describes the Pittmans in Raleigh, North Carolina, a dual income couple who decided to have only one child, and the cost of his various enrichment activities seems to have borne their decision out. From other parts of the world: Fertility is below replacement in India even though the country is still poor and many women dont workfactors that usually sustain fertility. Urbanization and the internet have given even women in traditional male-dominated villages a glimpse of societies where fewer children and a higher quality of life are the norm. Do not underestimate the power of TV. I was in Bali in the early 1990s when TV was introduced. Thanks to soap operas, wives (recall most married women in Bali then were part of polygamous setups) suddenly started consulting various elders about their worry that their husband did not love them any more. Back to the article: Mae Mariyam Thomas, 38, who lives in Mumbai and runs an audio production company, said shes opted against having children because she never felt the tug of motherhood. She sees peers struggling to meet the right person, getting married later and, in some instances, divorcing before they have kids. At least three of her friends have frozen their eggs, she said. I think now we live in a really different world, so I think for anyone in the world its tough to find a partner, she said. Sub-Saharan Africa once appeared resistant to the global slide in fertility, but that too is changing. The share of all women of reproductive age using modern contraception grew from 17% in 2012 to 23% in 2022, according to Family Planning 2030, an international organization. Once a low fertility cycle kicks in [president of the Global Aging Institute]. The story then turns to how governments are implementing policies to increase birth rates, but nothing much has worked. They start with Japans many efforts, which only briefly reversed the decline in childbirths. What the article fails to mention is that (implicitly) women in Japan en mass are in revolt against what a lousy deal it is to be a wife and mother. Husbands with normal jobs (the kind that can support a family) work long hours so that their spouses barely see them except on weekends. And the home is the domain of the woman, so I infer they dont help out much if at all with kid care or household duties. The 1990s saw the rise of parasite singles, women who got jobs and stayed home with their parents rather that get married. The post-crisis rise of freeters (men who did not land full-time jobs and had erratic employment) didnt help. And immigration isnt a great solution: Neil Howe, a demographer at Hedgeye Risk Management, has pointed to a recent World Bank report suggesting that worsening demographics could make this a second consecutive lost decade for global economic growth. The usual prescription in advanced countries is more immigration, but that has two problems. As more countries confront stagnant population, immigration between them is a zero-sum game. Historically, host countries have sought skilled migrants who enter through formal, legal channels, but recent inflows have been predominantly unskilled migrants often entering illegally and claiming asylum. High levels of immigration have also historically aroused political resistance, often over concerns about cultural and demographic change. A shrinking native-born population is likely to intensify such concerns. Many of the leaders keenest to raise birthrates are most resistant to immigration. Notice (and this is typical) that there is almost no consideration of how reproductive control reduced the risk of hiring women and gave women access to better jobs over time. Womens liberation (remember that hoary term?) encouraged women to expect more from their marriage partners, when male role expectations have barely budged. This outtrade seems to me to be a significant factor in why women as the primary child-carers are not so keen to have as many kids, yet is weirdly ignored in favor of 50,000 foot explanations, like women are more educated so they arent having kids. Erm, by itself, that does not have a lot of explanatory power. When my mother went to college, women were depicted as seeking a Mrs. degree. Similarly, when Radcliffe had its centenary, the jibe was 100 years of enlightened motherhood. The article also ignores the reality staring policy-makers in the face: they will need to learn to manage stagnant and eventually shrinking populations. Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg fielded questions posed by young leaders from both sides of the Atlantic as he participated in NATOs fourth annual Youth Summit on Monday (13 May 2024). Speaking in front of an audience of young staff members at NATO Headquarters in Brussels, the Secretary General described security as fundamental to meeting major global challenges, from climate change to poverty alleviation. Mr Stoltenberg stressed the importance of continued defence investment given evolving security challenges, and underlined the enduring significance of NATOs Article 5 collective security guarantee underlining that an attack on one Ally would be regarded as an attack on all. The Secretary General also answered questions about NATOs support to Ukraine, and its vital work with partners in the Indo-Pacific. Admiral Rob Bauer, Chair of NATOs Military Committee, also addressed the Youth Summit from Stockholm. He stressed the importance of Allies individual and collective capacity to resist armed attack, as set out in the Washington Treaty, the need to have a resilient mind-set and the ability to expect the unexpected. This years Youth Summit is taking place in two locations Miami and Stockholm with virtual watch parties happening simultaneously across the Alliance and beyond, including in Kyiv. (As delivered) Moderator Carlota Rebelo (Brussels, Belgium): Thank you, Donna in Miami and earlier Sarah in Stockholm. It is indeed an absolute pleasure to be here at the NATO HQ to conduct this transatlantic conversation with the Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. Thank you very much for having me in your home. It's a pleasure. Before we begin, I would like to recognize the audience here with us at the Agora comprised of young NATO staffers and interns, I'm sure they're very eager to hear your thoughts on the future of the Alliance and the future of the world. So, thank you and hello. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (Brussels, Belgium): Thanks so much, Carlota. It's great to be with you here in Brussels, and also hello to Sarah in Stockholm and Donna and Miami and I am also told that in Miami, the president of Montenegro, Milatovic, is there together with you, and Montenegro is actually the first country I had the honour and pleasure to welcome in, as a new NATO Ally when I became Secretary General. They joined in, back in 2017. So, it's great to be together with all of you and to be able to, again engage with and talk with young people, and not least, and also to first time to engage with Sweden, with our newest member. We raised the Swedish flag outside the NATO Headquarters not so many months ago, and it's good to have Sweden as a full member of the Alliance. Moderator Carlota Rebelo (Brussels, Belgium): And then it's been great to seeing it out there as well, while here in Brussels. Well, let's look ahead to July, that's when NATO will hold its Summit in Washington and it will mark the 75th anniversary of the Alliance, but also will address some of the very serious issues and challenges. So, I'm curious to hear from you. What are some of the key threats faced by NATO Allies and what are we doing to solve them? NATO Secretary General (Brussels, Belgium): So, NATO faces of course many threats and many security challenges. We live in a world with more great power competition. Also, with China, but we have on top of that, of course, a new war in the Middle East, and we have a full-fledged war in Europe with a brutal war aggression launched by President Putin against Ukraine. And all of this matters for our security. No one can tell with certainty what the next war, the next crisis and next threat will be. But what I can say is that as long as we stand together, North America and Europe and protect each other, we will be safe, we will be secure, because together NATO Allies represent 50% of the world's economic might and 50% of the world's military might. So, as long as we stand together, we will be able to handle any potential threat and challenge against our security. Moderator Carlota Rebelo (Brussels, Belgium): Well, I want to turn to the question of, you know, an increased defence spending because at a time when there are so many challenges around the globe, and this can go you know, from health to education to climate crisis. Why should governments be spending taxpayers money on, you know, more tanks and bombs so why this conversation about the increase in defence spending? NATO Secretary General (Brussels, Belgium): Because without peace, without security, we will not manage to cope with any of the other big challenges we face - be it global warming, climate change or alleviating poverty or making social and economic progress. All of that will be impossible if we are not able to preserve peace, to preserve security for the 1 billion people that live in NATO countries. I have been Minister of Finance, I've been Prime Minister for 10 years, I've been in different political positions for many years. And I really understand that it's hard to find money for defence because all politicians always, and I have been among them, would love to spend money on health, on education, on climate change, on all the other important tasks. But the reality is that unless we succeed when it comes to security, we will not succeed with all the tasks. And when the Cold War ended, after the Berlin Wall came down and the Cold War ended, NATO Allies, also our own country, Norway, we all reduced defence spending for many, many years when tensions went down. But when we reduced defence spending, when tensions went down, we have to be able to increase the defence spending and once again, invest in defence when tensions are going up as they do now. And the last thing I'll say about defence spending is that we have done it before. As late as the beginning of the 1990s, at least the end of the 1980s, NATO Allies in Europe and Canada, we spent roughly 3% of GDP on defence which is significantly more than we spent today. Because then we lived in a more dangerous world and then we invested more in our security. Moderator Carlota Rebelo (Brussels, Belgium): Well I think we should open the floor to questions. We'll get started in Miami where I know Donna is standing by and we have a couple of questions for the Secretary General. Moderator Donna Farizan (Miami, US): Yes. Thank you so much, Carlota. And it is a great honour to have the Secretary General. We have asked one member of the Aspen Youth Council and one of the winners of the Youth Summit Challenge to address a question. So, Vijay and Kissa I'd love for you to come to the stage. Please introduce yourselves, we can grab that microphone. You can come on up and, both come on at the same time. And you will introduce yourselves with your name the country you're from and then your question. Question (Miami, United States): Okay. All right. Good morning, Miami and good afternoon, Sweden. And thank you so much for having us. My name is Kissa Jafri. I'm part of the Youth Council Summit. And I'm originally from Pakistan, but I've lived in Chicago for a couple of years now. And [Secretary] General thank you so much for your time and sharing your knowledge with us in answering some critical questions that we have. And one from me is with emerging technology, shaping the future of warfare. How is NATO going to be responsive, adaptive, as well as ethical during these changes? Thank you so much. Moderator Donna Farizan (Miami, US): Thank you and you can pass the microphone on to Vijay. Vijay, you may do the same. Question (Miami, US): Alright, so my name is Vijay. I am a senior at Yale and from Luxembourg. Thank you so much for taking my question today. My question is about NATO strengthening relations with countries outside of the Alliance, like Australia and Japan. What is NATO's mission in fostering those relationships and how to respond to questions about NATO potentially overexposing itself, specifically in regions that intersect with China's sphere of interest. Moderator Donna Farizan (Miami, US): Thank you both for your smart, thoughtful questions. Carlota. Back to you. Moderator Carlota Rebelo (Brussels, Belgium): Thank you. Well, let's begin with the first question about you know, emerging technology and how it is shaping warfare. Ill let you tackle that one first. NATO Secretary General (Brussels, Belgium): Well, emerging disruptive technologies are changing the nature of warfare as much as the Industrial Revolution did a couple of centuries ago, because we see it also in Ukraine. How cyber, how drones, how autonomous systems are playing a very major role in the warfare in Ukraine. This is part of, so they have trench warfare, which reminds us of the First World War and then we have the advanced technologies applied to this kind of classical warfare. NATO has been and continues to be the strongest and most successful Alliance in history for many reasons, but one of the reasons is that we have always been able to keep a technological edge on our potential adversaries, and we just need to make sure that we maintain that technological edge. We do that by and now investing more in technology, we have established a new fund, Innovation Fund. We have also established a network of centres for developing technology across the Alliance. And all of this was due to partly ensure that NATO as an Alliance but also Allies as Allies ensure that they invest in new disruptive technologies, which are very linked to also military capabilities, artificial intelligence and quantum computing. Of course, it matters really, or how weapons or weapons systems will be acquired and developed today and in the future. We also need ethical guidelines. We're working on that. For NATO Allies, but most of all, we need to ensure that not only NATO Allies, but also our potential adversaries have a minimum of ethical guidelines when they now implement all these different technologies in their weapon systems. Then on our partnership outside NATO, we have many partners, we have close to 40 partner nations around the globe, but the question was primarily about our partners in the Indo-Pacific. We have four partners there, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. These are important partners for NATO. NATO is a regional Alliance, North America and Europe and NATO will remain a regional Alliance. Article Five our collective defence clause will apply for NATO Allies, Europe and North America. But this region, the North Atlantic region, faces global threats. Cyber is a global threat. Space, which becomes more and more important for defence is a global challenge, of course. But also, for instance, China. It's not about moving NATO to the Indo-Pacific, but it's about that China and global threats are coming closer to us. We see China in cyberspace, we see them in Africa, we see in Arctic, we see them trying to control critical infrastructure in our own countries. So, all of this matters for our security in many ways. The war in Ukraine demonstrates that security is not regional, security is global. The main country that is enabling Russia to conduct its war of aggression against Ukraine in Europe, is China. They are by far the biggest trading partner for Russia. They are delivering a critical components to their weapons, microelectronics, advanced technology, which is enabling Russia to build missiles, drones, a lot of other stuff, which is key for their war against Ukraine. So, and then we have Iran and then we have providing drones. We have North Korea providing ammunition and weapons. So, the friends of Russia in Asia, Iran, North Korea and China, they are key for Russia's capability to fight against European friend, neighbour of NATO. So, this idea that we can divide Asia from Europe doesn't work anymore. This is interlinked, than we also of course, need to address the security challenges that China's representing for our security. Moderator Carlota Rebelo (Brussels, Belgium): Well let's turn to the newest member of the Alliance, where Sarah is standing by in Stockholm with two more questions for the Secretary General. Moderator Sarah Franzen (Stockholm, Sweden): Thank you, Carlota. And thank you for your time, Mr. Stoltenberg. We have two young participants here in the room. We have an international participant who also competed in the NATO Youth Challenge. And we also have a Swedish participant asking each question. Please introduce yourself. Tell us which country you're from and ask your question. Question (Stockholm, Sweden): Thank you, Mr. Secretary General and my colleagues from Stockholm and also Miami. I'm Bartosz Moscicki, president of Polish Forum of Young Diplomats from Poland. I would like to ask about what should be the role of the Alliance of NATO in the reconstruction process in Ukraine after the war ends. Last but not least, thank you for the years of your service for the Alliance. Thank you. Question (Stockholm, Sweden): Hello, everyone. My name is Amie Trawally. And I'm a political science student at the Swedish Defence University from Stockholm, Sweden. I want to thank the organizers today for doing all of this. It's very nice that to us that the youth get a place to ask your questions. And I also want to thank the Secretary General for answering our questions. The debate surrounding Sweden and Finlands entry in NATO have been characterised by how the organization will contribute or how the countries will contribute to the organization. But my question is how will the NATO membership contribute to these countries? Thank you. NATO Secretary General (Brussels, Belgium): Well, first on the question about NATO's role in reconstruction of Ukraine after the war. The first thing I will say is that first of all, you need to ensure that Ukraine prevails. Because unless Ukraine prevails, there's nothing to reconstruct in the free and independent Ukraine. So the most immediate, the most important task now is to help Ukraine with military support as NATO Allies and NATO do. We need to sustain that. We need to make the support more predictable and more robust, and we are going to hopefully make decisions on that not least at the NATO Summit in July. So yes, reconstruction in the future is important, but unless Ukraine prevails, there is nothing to reconstruct. And the second, reconstruction will be very expensive. But prevention is cheaper than, in a way, repairing so meaning that every air defence missile we can provide Ukraine will actually mean less damage, less destruction. And then also less need for reconstruction after the war. Moderator Carlota Rebelo (Brussels, Belgium): So does it go back to that notion of the increased defence spending then? NATO Secretary General (Brussels, Belgium): Yes, absolutely. The thing is that we must afford, we must be able to help Ukraine prevail because it's important for Ukrainians. But also because every day this war drags on, of course, the more destruction and the more expensive, the more resource demanding it will be to do reconstruction afterwards. So I'm not saying that we shouldn't think about reconstruction but the precondition for reconstruction is to prevail. And the sooner Ukraine can prevail, the sooner this war can end with just a lasting peace where Ukraine prevails as a sovereign independent nation in Europe, the less need there will be for costly reconstruction afterwards. Then on the issue of reconstruction. Of course, NATO will play a key role in rebuilding defence and security institutions. We will play a key role in also helping them to not only reconstruct their own country, but to become a full-fledged member of the Alliance. We decided in Vilnius at the summit last summer that Ukraine will become a member of NATO. We also made three important decisions to move them closer to NATO membership. We turned the whole process from a two-step process to a one-step process. We removed something called the Membership Action Plan. So, meaning that Ukraine doesn't have to go through Membership Action Plan; they can be go straight from where they are now and be invited as a full-fledged member. So then we shortened down the process. Second, we established what we called the NATO-Ukraine Council, which is an important political body where we actually strengthened our political integration and cooperation with Ukraine, and also made it easier for them to join the Alliance. at a later stage. And thirdly, we agreed the big program for interoperability. And interoperability is a difficult word for ensuring that Ukraine and NATO Allies can work together on communications and operations, on everything. And this program will help them now but will help them also in the future to build a future force, which is which is fully interoperable that can fully be integrated with NATO forces. So these are the things we have to do both in the short and long term to ensure Ukraine prevails and help them to rebuild the country afterwards. Moderator Carlota Rebelo (Brussels, Belgium): Let's tackle the other question then which was about you know, the other side of membership. What can NATO membership do to the newest members of the Alliance? NATO Secretary General (Brussels, Belgium): Well, first of all, NATO provides security guarantees. And that's the best security guarantee that ever has existed. That's Article Five of the Washington Treaty saying that an attack on one Ally, it will be regarded as an attack on all Allies. So, if you attack Sweden or Finland or Norway or Belgium or whatever NATO Ally, then it will be regarded as an attack on 32 Allies. And again, we are by far the strongest military power in the world, 50% of the world's military might. So as long as we stand together, as long as we ensure that theres no room for misunderstanding in Moscow or in any other capital that may be an adversary to NATO, there will be no military attack against any NATO Ally and that includes also Finland and Sweden, because they realise that an attack on one Ally is the attack on all Allies. So the first and most important thing that Finland and Sweden gets is Article Five, is NATO's collective defense clause, collective defense security guarantees. Then, of course, they get the opportunity to sit here at NATO Headquarters to be fully part of this family, to sit at council meetings just inside the meeting room over there and be equal around the table and take decisions and be integrated in our political, our practical, our military cooperation. That's good for Finland and Sweden, but it's also of course good for NATO because Finland Sweden bring a lot to NATO. So, this is good for NATO, good for Finland and Sweden and good for peace. Moderator Carlota Rebelo (Brussels, Belgium): Well it would be remiss if we didn't turn to the audience here with us in Brussels. There is time for a few questions. So if anyone has a question for the Secretary General, could you put your hands up? I can see two here. One, two, and if we could follow the same format, could you introduce yourself say where you're from? And we'll have the questions back to back please. Question (Brussels, Belgium): Hello everyone in Miami in Stockholm and good afternoon, sir. My name is Kornelia. I'm from Hungary. And my question would be over the past 10 years of being Secretary General of NATO, what do you think was the biggest challenge and on the other hand, the biggest accomplishment of the organization? Thank you. Moderator Carlota Rebelo (Brussels, Belgium): And the second question, please. Question (Brussels, Belgium): Yes, hello, my name is Tatum Brunton from Canada. My question for you is: did you always want to work in this field? And do you have any advice on youth professional career paths? Thank you. Moderator Carlota Rebelo (Brussels, Belgium): Thank you. Quite nice stuff. We got a bit more personal here in Brussels. NATO Secretary General (Brussels, Belgium): The first on the biggest challenge: the biggest challenge is and has been the war in Ukraine. Because all the other challenges I have faced, have, of course, been very serious, but they have not had the same magnitude and not the same implications for NATO's security and for peace in our region as the fully-fledged war in Ukraine. And I say fully-fledged war on purpose because when I arrived in October 2014, Russia had already annexed Crimea and had already taken part of eastern Ukraine or used their forces to control the eastern part of Ukraine. So the war in Ukraine didn't start in 2022, in February. It started back in 2014. But of course, a fully-fledged war invasion in 2022 really changed everything and has been by far the biggest and most serious challenge I have faced as Secretary General. Then the good news is that I've seen how Allies have stepped up. How we have mobilised and provided unprecedented support to Ukraine. And also, I'm absolutely certain that President Putin totally underestimated the Ukrainians, their bravery, their determination to fight and protect the country. You have to remember that at the beginning of the war, most experts feared or believed that Ukraine would fall within weeks, Kyiv within days. That didn't happen, the Ukrainians have been able to liberate 50% of the territory that Russia occupied in the beginning of the war. They have been able to inflict heavy losses on the Russian occupiers and they've been able to open a corridor in the Black Sea and everything to export a grains and other products. So these are big victories for Ukrainians showing that they have the determination, the bravery, to really fight back. But Putin also underestimated NATO and the unprecedent support we have been able to deliver to Ukraine. So this has been my biggest challenge. Then the other question was? Moderator Carlota Rebelo (Brussels, Belgium): Was about if you always wanted to work in this field. NATO Secretary General (Brussels, Belgium): First of all, my plan was never to become a politician. That was the beginning. So I was a young politician when I was in my teens, and the beginning of my 20s then I was active in the Social Democratic Party of Norway. But then I decided to leave politics and to become an economist to do statistics and mathematics. So I started to do a PhD at the Central Bureau of Statistics in Norway, and my plan was to never engage in this kind of dirty business or politics, because I want to do pure and as they say, serious stuff science, but then I was asked to become Deputy Minister for Environment in 1990. And I promised myself and my wife only to do that for a year or two. And then I ended up here because I stayed in politics and to be honest, politics is very exciting because you actually do something, you can change the world. Of course, not as fast and not always in the direction you want, but at least you're part of a process where things are changing and things are happening. And in democratic countries, of course then you also have to face the voters and some I've lost elections. I won elections and I can tell it's better to win than to lose the elections. But you have to have to be able to do both and to live with both. And then my plan was to work on the international scene, I worked mostly on climate change, and also with a big campaign to immunise children, which is a very effective way to alleviate poverty. But then when I was asked by President Obama and Chancellor Merkel and the other leaders back in 2014, to become Secretary General of NATO, I thought it was impossible to say no, and of course, I don't regret for a second that I said yes. Because it has been an a privilege to serve at this great Alliance with all these great people with all these great nations, and also to have the honour of welcoming North Macedonia, Montenegro, but also Finland, Sweden as members and to serve at a very critical time for our security. So I'm extremely privileged. I'm very happy that I had this opportunity even though it has been a very challenging period 2014 to 2024. But yes, that has been a privilege. Moderator Carlota Rebelo (Brussels, Belgium): So the advice for young professionals is perhaps to not be scared to deviate from the plan. NATO Secretary General (Brussels, Belgium): The problem is that I never had a very clear path or a clear idea for what I should or shouldnt become. Except for one thing I didn't become, because I had one clear plan that was to not become a politician, and to become a professor in mathematics and statistics, that was my only clear decision in life. And I failed, totally. So I think first of all, it is important to be devoted to what you do a bit regardless of exactly what to do, and not think too much about the next job, but think more about the job you have and not be too afraid that of authorities and bosses. That's really serious, the last one. So be yourself and believe in yourself and be nice to the people you work with. And then something nice will happen. Moderator Carlota Rebelo (Brussels, Belgium): Well, I have one final question. I think this being the NATO Youth Summit, it is important to address you know everyone watching us, of course the audiences and here in Brussels, in Stockholm and in Miami, about you know, what parting words you have to say for these younger audiences about the future of our defence and security. NATO Secretary General (Brussels, Belgium): We live in a more dangerous world and we have to take that very seriously. At the same time, NATO is stronger and more united than we have been for decades. So as long as we ensure that we are united despite our differences, we are 32 countries from both sides of the Atlantic, with different political parties in power, with disagreements on many issues. But we have always been able to unite around what is NATO's core task and that is to protect and defend each other. NATO's purpose is not to fight the war but NATOs purpose is to prevent the war, is to deter war, is to make sure that there is no room for misunderstanding that we protect and defend each other. And by doing that, NATO has been able to preserve peace for NATO Allies, 1 billion people for 75 years. So, yes, there is more of a dangerous world but at the same time, this Alliance has proven extremely resilient, extremely capable, and we are by far the most successful Alliance in history for at least two reasons. One is that we have been united despite our differences. We see the value of standing together. And second, we have been able to change when the world is changing. So as soon as long as we just keep this rather big, sometimes a bit strange, family together, we will be safe. And then we can devote our time and our energy to climate change, to education, to science, to arts, to all the other beautiful things. So just make sure that NATO is, as I say, strong and united, then we can devote time for other more beautiful activities. Moderator Carlota Rebelo (Brussels, Belgium): NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, thank you very much for your time today. I have no doubt that everyone watching us on both sides of the Atlantic found this to be a really inspiring conversation, which will hopefully pave the way for further debate and conversation about the future of the Alliance. Thank you very much for your time. The French Navys aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle left its home port of Toulon on 24 April to venture in the Mediterranean Sea in preparation for NATOs multi-domain enhanced Vigilance Activity Neptune Strike 2024. Neptune Strike demonstrates the seamless synergy of Alliances forces working together in multiple domains, to protect and defend against any threat. On 25 April, the aircraft carrier demonstrated its ability to have jets, air and surface surveillance aircraft and helicopters take off from and land on its flight deck. During the activity, and for the first time, the French Carrier Strike Group (CSG) is under the command of STRIKFORNATO (Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO), showing the Alliances strength and unity. Neptune Strike ran from 26 April to 10 May across the Mediterranean Sea. AIPAC-funded Republicans threaten ICC: Target Israel and we will target you America's top Republican senators are threatening the International Criminal Court (ICC) with retribution should the Hague-based tribunal proceed with serving Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other top Israeli officials with arrest warrants over the war in Gaza. A one-page letter that media outlets are describing as "terse" lays out the terms of these Israel-first senators in so many words: leave Netanyahu et al. alone or else. "Target Israel and we will target you," the letter to Karim A. A. Khan from the ICC's Office of the Prosecutor reads. "Such actions are illegitimate and lack legal basis, and if carried out will result in severe sanctions against you and your institution." All of the letter's signatories are Republicans and include the following names: Katie Boyd Britt of Alabama Kevin Cramer of North Dakota Marco Rubio of Florida Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee Mitch McConnell of Kentucky Pete Ricketts of Nebraska Rick Scott of Florida Tom Cotton of Arkansas Ted Budd of North Carolina Tim Scott of South Carolina Ted Cruz of Texas Bill Hagerty of Tennessee The ICC's chief prosecutor responded to the letter on Twitter by condemning the threats therein, calling on everyone involved to cease their efforts to "impede" and "intimidate" ICC officials read the statement below: Statement of the #ICC Office of the Prosecutor pic.twitter.com/Cw331pMcDm Int'l Criminal Court (@IntlCrimCourt) May 3, 2024 (Related: Have you checked out TrackAIPAC.com, which exposes Zionist politicians in the United States who take bribes from Israel?) Democrat senator condemns "thuggery" of Senate Republicans Zeteo confirmed the letter's authenticity, and Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) responded to it with the following statement: "It is fine to express opposition to a possible judicial action, but it is absolutely wrong to interfere in a judicial matter by threatening judicial officers, their family members and their employees with retribution. This thuggery is something befitting the mafia, not U.S. senators." It is important to note that every single Republican senator who signed the letter to the ICC is on the dole from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), meaning they are all bought and paid for by the Zionist lobby. Human knowledge is under attack! Governments and powerful corporations are using censorship to wipe out humanity's knowledge base about nutrition, herbs, self-reliance, natural immunity, food production, preparedness and much more. We are preserving human knowledge using AI technology while building the infrastructure of human freedom. Use our decentralized, blockchain-based, uncensorable free speech platform at Brighteon.io. Explore our free, downloadable generative AI tools at Brighteon.AI. Support our efforts to build the infrastructure of human freedom by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com, featuring lab-tested, certified organic, non-GMO foods and nutritional solutions. Look at this crazy, unseemly, sycophantic, truly cowardly behavior from the supposed U.S. Congress! "If you hurt Israel, we will hurt you" - US Republican senators threaten International Court of Justice in letter to chief prosecutor . . . pic.twitter.com/PDubkXdwCZ Cynthia McKinney PhD (@cynthiamckinney) May 6, 2024 These 12 U.S. Senators have received >$6.8 MILLION from AIPAC and the Israel lobby: https://t.co/lMagi4tWfa pic.twitter.com/BfkHlyX2hu AIPAC Tracker (@TrackAIPAC) May 6, 2024 Keep in mind that not a single one of these Israel-first Republicans has ever issued these kinds of threats on behalf of the American people whom they supposedly represent. All of them have made Israel their top priority, their constituents and their needs be damned. "When the GOP controlled all three branches of government under Trump, they claimed they were powerless to defend our border, deport illegals, stop Big Tech censorship, secure gun rights and so on but now, with the slimmest of majorities in the House, they're passing $95 billion giveaways to Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan (with zero dollars to secure America's borders), banning TikTok for Israel, approving the FISA spying laws to spy on Americans for Israel, passing bills to outlaw 'anti-Semitism' on college campuses for Israel and threatening the ICC without a care in the world for the laws of America or the 'international rules-based order,'" further notes Chris Menahan from Information Liberation. All of the 12 Republican senators talk a big game when it comes to America First issues, but their actions once again speak louder than their words. Congress is infested with Israel-first traitors who could not care less about We the People. Find out more at Treason.news. Sources for this article include: InformationLiberation.com NaturalNews.com Honeywell has entered several Memoranda of Understandings (MoUs) with the Iraqi government and private sector, helping to support the local infrastructure as it faces increasing demand for energy and electricity. These agreements allow Honeywell to explore strategic collaborations for Iraqs oil and gas fields, including the cessation of gas flaring and the provision of development, automation, remote control and monitoring services. The MoUs were signed by Ken West, president and CEO of Honeywell Energy and Sustainability Solutions (ESS), who attended, along with members of his leadership team, a meeting hosted by the US Chamber of Commerce. Prime Minister of Iraq, Mohamed Shia Al-Sudani, participated in the meetings, along with high-level Iraqi government officials and prominent private sector firms. West said: Honeywell has done remarkable work in Iraq, and I look forward to what we can do with these agreements. While there has been significant development within the energy sector locally, there is still tremendous potential for growth and cooperation, all aimed at providing a more reliable and sustainable energy sector for Iraqis throughout the country. The agreement is a part of Honeywells commitment to provide the best solutions and global expertise to help drive better efficiencies and sustainability within the countrys energy sector. This also demonstrates Honeywells alignment and support of its portfolio to three compelling megatrends, including the energy transition. Mohamad Shaboot, President Honeywell Iraq, said: These agreements show a clear commitment by both Honeywell and the Iraqi public and private sectors to continue the modernization and development of local industry. The focus on the energy sector is only continuing to grow and it is incumbent upon all of us to put in place the necessary technology and rigor to help realize a better energy future for the entire region. Honeywell has been operating in Iraq since the 1970s and recently appointed Shaboot as country president. The company supports local industry across multiple pillars, including energy, smart buildings and aerospace. --OGN/TradeArabia News Service Biden faces impeachment over Israel weapons suspension A Republican congressman has filed articles of impeachment against US President Joe Biden for withholding deliveries of weapons to Israel, making a point of using the exact same phrasing the Democrats had used to impeach President Donald Trump. (Article republished from RT.com) Earlier this week, Biden told CNN that were not going to supply the weapons and artillery shells to Israel if it proceeded with plans to attack Rafah City in south Gaza. Republicans quickly pointed out that Democrats had accused Trump of abuse of power for allegedly withholding congressionally approved military aid in 2019. Joe Biden is pressuring Israel, our biggest ally in the Middle East, by pausing their funding that has already been approved in the House, if they dont stop all operations with Hamas, Representative Cory Mills of Florida told Fox News on Thursday, adding that it was a pretty clear case of quid pro quo and that he intended to impeach Biden for it. On Friday, Mills made good on his threat, formally initiating the procedure in the US House of Representatives. In violation of his oath to faithfully execute the office of the president and to uphold the Constitution, President Biden abused the powers of his office by soliciting a quid pro quo with Israel while leveraging vital military aid for policy changes, according to Mills. Part II: The yellow highlighted area was verbatim of Rep. Nadlers impeachment articles accusing and impeaching President Trump for Quid Pro Quo. I have submitted to House counsel and will pursue action tomorrow morning using the Demss own language, but Bidens actual abuse of pic.twitter.com/bYHrMUG1qr Cory Mills (@CoryMillsFL) May 9, 2024 He also posted a photo on X (formerly Twitter), showing the exact same language used by Rep. Jerry Nadler, a New York Democrat, to go after Trump five years ago. Democrats, who controlled the House of Representatives at the time, impeached Trump in a party-line vote after accusing him of abuse of power. They claimed Trump had threatened to delay a shipment of weapons to Ukraine unless Kiev investigated the firing of a prosecutor who was looking into a company that had hired Bidens son Hunter. Biden had publicly boasted about getting the prosecutor fired, but as he was in the race for the Democrats 2020 presidential nomination, the party claimed this amounted to soliciting election interference. The impeachment went nowhere because the Republican-majority Senate refused to convict Trump in February 2020. Republicans currently hold a slim majority in the House of Representatives, which has been largely ineffective at opposing the Democrats priorities. Even if Mills manages to get the House to impeach Biden, it is highly likely that he will be acquitted in the Democrat-controlled Senate. Read more at: RT.com Breitbart openly promoting genocide, extreme news bias in support of Israels ongoing crimes against humanity Depending on which media sources you read or watch, you will get a much different version of events concerning the proposed ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Middle East Eye and Human Events say that Hamas accepted a U.S. mediated ceasefire proposal but that Israel rejected it, whileis claiming that Hamas "suddenly begs for ceasefire" as Israel is about to launch an attack on Rafah. So, who is telling the truth? Hamas itself said that it accepted a proposal from Egypt and Qatar, mediated by the U.S., that involves the release of all Israeli captives in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. The Netanyahu regime will not agree to it, however, because it contains "far-reaching" conclusions that Israel cannot accept. "This would appear to be a ruse intended to make Israel look like the side refusing a deal," an Israeli official is quoted as saying about the proposed deal and all the confusion surrounding it. Breitbart, meanwhile, is presenting the story much differently to make it seem as though Hamas was refusing to cooperate until the very last minute when it realized that Israel really is planning to launch a full ground invasion of Rafah any day now. (Related: Former Breitbart employee Charles Johnson says that he witnessed Ben Shapiro receive tasking from Israeli intelligence when both men worked at Breitbart together.) The art of deception Since the October 7 incident, Breitbart has adopted a very pro-Zionist bent, which some say is not all that shocking considering the suspicious nature of how its founder, Andrew Breitbart, died in 2012. We are building the infrastructure of human freedom and empowering people to be informed, healthy and aware. Explore our decentralized, peer-to-peer, uncensorable Brighteon.io free speech platform here. Learn about our free, downloadable generative AI tools at Brighteon.AI. Every purchase at HealthRangerStore.com helps fund our efforts to build and share more tools for empowering humanity with knowledge and abundance. Many have felt for a long time that Breitbart, which as previously mentioned used to employ Zionist infiltrator Ben Shapiro, was co-opted by sinister forces that got rid of Breitbart in order to turn his media outlet into a propaganda mouthpiece for Zionism. In many ways, this appears to be what happened based on Breitbart's continued coverage of Israel's war on Gaza. Breitbart insists that Hamas held out for weeks concerning the ceasefire proposal until it was absolutely sure that Netanyahu was planning to follow through on his ground invasion threat. Once that became clear, according to Breitbart, Hamas started "begging" for a ceasefire. The narrative claims that Hamas was calling Israel's bluff, not believing that it would actually conduct a ground invasion into Rafah. Israel, meanwhile, says it fully plans to finish the job it started with Rafah as the last remaining target in the Palestinian enclave. It definitely looks as though there will be no ceasefire no matter what terms are presented. Israel is committed to eliminating Hamas, and Hamas is trying to remain in existence no matter what since Israel is trying to make sure the group never again returns to power in Gaza. It is also being reported that Israel proceeded to "carpet bomb" Rafah immediately after Hamas accepted a ceasefire proposal, this being another version of events by some media outlets. In war, deception is to be expected, hence all the confusion. The question is: are both sides doing the deceiving or is there any concrete truth to be found concerning what is really going on in the Middle East? Will we ever know the truth? Another bit of news worth mentioning is a meeting that CIA director William Burns reportedly had with Hamas to try to forge a ceasefire agreement that would be acceptable to both parties. Nobody involved in the matter seems willing to talk about it, though, with government officials declining to comment. The latest news about Israel's genocide in Gaza can be found at Genocide.news. Sources for this article include: MiddleEastEye.net HumanEvents.com Breitbart.com NaturalNews.com IBTimes.com MiddleEastEye.net Israel captures Rafah border crossing, cutting of all humanitarian aid to Gaza as hundreds of thousands face starvation Israel Defense Forces (IDF) are chomping at the bit to launch their long-awaited ground invasion of Rafah, the border crossing of which was captured by Israel this week in anticipation of its final solution for the Palestinian people. The last remaining route through which humanitarian aid is being delivered into Gaza, the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt is a strategic passage through which Israeli tanks and troops are now entering the Palestinian enclave. IDF is reportedly bombing locations throughout Rafah, including residential homes. In the latest attack, at least 23 Palestinians were killed, including six women and five children. Israel says the bombing resulted in the lives of 20 Hamas fighters coming to an end, and there is still more to come as the Jewish state focuses its sights on the "terrorist operations" allegedly taking place at the Rafah crossing. Up until now, the Rafah crossing was the only Gaza passageway that Israel did not control. Now, Israel is in full control of Gaza with its sights and scopes pointed at the roughly 1.4 million Palestinians who live and are taking refuge in the southern Gaza city. According to the United Nations (UN) World Food Program (WFP), the nearby Kerem Shalom crossing remains closed, which means the Rafah crossing is the only entry and exit point that remains in and out of the Gaza Strip. (Related: Did you know that Trump wants the death penalty for anyone caught engaging in "antisemitism?") Gaza experiencing "full-blown famine" Things are not looking good for the remaining Palestinians who have nowhere else to go as they hunker down in Rafah. Many of them relocated there months ago from northerly parts of Gaza after Israel told them to flee there for safety, only to now discover that they are sitting ducks with no way to escape. Human knowledge is under attack! Governments and powerful corporations are using censorship to wipe out humanity's knowledge base about nutrition, herbs, self-reliance, natural immunity, food production, preparedness and much more. We are preserving human knowledge using AI technology while building the infrastructure of human freedom. Speak freely without censorship at the new decentralized, blockchain-power Brighteon.io. Explore our free, downloadable generative AI tools at Brighteon.AI. Support our efforts to build the infrastructure of human freedom by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com, featuring lab-tested, certified organic, non-GMO foods and nutritional solutions. Only a very small fraction of the people in Rafah are Hamas militants, and yet all of them are now in the crosshairs of IDF as they await whatever Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu unleashes next. WEF chief Cindy McCain commented that the cutting off of this last vital aid channel is basically a death blow to Gaza, which was already before this in the throes of a "full-blown famine." If the Rafah border crossing remains closed and under Israeli control for an extended period of time, which appears to be the plan, it will result in an even worse hunger crisis for the remaining Palestinians who live there. Commenting on the matter, James Elder, the head of the UN's children's relief agency, said that it is "hard to see how famine in Gaza can be averted" with everything that is transpiring now, and at increasing speed. We know from the latest news reports that Netanyahu is rejecting every proposed ceasefire, including one that Hamas recently accepted. Netanyahu insists that Hamas is trying to "sabotage the entry of our forces into Rafah" by accepting the ceasefire deal that Israel has rejected. The ceasefire deal that Hamas accepted is "very far from Israel's vital demands," Netanyahu stated, vowing to never let "Hamas restore its wicked rule in the Strip." The Biden White House, meanwhile, continues to say one thing while doing another. One day the regime is against what Israel is doing, and the next day it is for it, or at least continuing to supply the cash and weapons needed to continue the assault. Biden did put a halt, we are told, on new arms shipments, but it remains unclear precisely how this will affect Israel one way or another in terms of the longevity of its current arms stores. The latest news about the situation in Rafah can be found at Prophecy.news. Sources for this article include: AntiWar.com NaturalNews.com Israel sympathizers are unleashing violence at U.S. college campuses, not the other way around The mainstream media is exerting a lot of effort right now trying to convince Americans that the people protesting at college campuses against Israel's actions in Gaza are violent "terrorists," but the facts show otherwise It turns out that pro-Israel counter-protesters are the ones attacking those who stand in solidarity with Gaza, at least at the University of California, Los Angeles where Gaza solidarity protesters were hit with sticks and blasted with chemical sprays by pro-Israel militants. An investigation by The New York Times found that pro-Israel rioters have been using fireworks as weapons as well, launching them directly at the Gaza solidarity protesters to try to harm them. After officials at UCLA declared an encampment of Gaza solidarity protesters to be illegal, the pro-Israel crowd reportedly took this as a green light to start violently assaulting the people inside the encampment. Video footage captured by protesters and journalists shows that violence erupted only after pro-Israel militants started tearing down protective metal barriers that were erected to cordon off the Gaza solidarity protesters. "Counter-protesters shot fireworks toward the encampment at least six times" and "sprayed chemicals both into the encampment and directly at people's faces," The Times reported, noting that these attacks continued for nearly three hours before police finally arrived. (Related: The Anti-Defamation League [ADL] is pushing to eliminate the First Amendment in order to "protect Israel.") Popular Israeli song openly calls for genocide of Palestinians in Gaza The same video footage shows pro-Israel militants wearing clothing in support of Israel's genocide, as well as blaring loud music that included Israel's national anthem and "Harbu Darbu," a popular Israeli song that openly calls for the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza, as well as the killing of Western celebrities like Bella Hadid, Mia Khalifa and Dua Lipa who have all expressed solidarity with Gaza. Human knowledge is under attack! Governments and powerful corporations are using censorship to wipe out humanity's knowledge base about nutrition, herbs, self-reliance, natural immunity, food production, preparedness and much more. We are preserving human knowledge using AI technology while building the infrastructure of human freedom. Speak freely without censorship at the new decentralized, blockchain-power Brighteon.io. Explore our free, downloadable generative AI tools at Brighteon.AI. Support our efforts to build the infrastructure of human freedom by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com, featuring lab-tested, certified organic, non-GMO foods and nutritional solutions. "They could be seen punching, kicking and attacking people with makeshift weapons, including sticks, traffic cones and wooden boards," The Times further reported about the violent actions of the pro-Israel crowd. "Except for a brief attempt to capture a loudspeaker used by counter-protesters, and water bottles being tossed out of the encampment, none of the videos analyzed by The Times show any clear instance of encampment protesters initiating confrontations with counter-protesters beyond defending the barricades." Police officers, meanwhile, stood idly by and watched all of this happen for about an hour after their arrival before finally intervening at around 2:42 a.m. When asked by The Times for comment about this, the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) and the California Highway Patrol refused to respond. Mary Osako, UCLA's vice chancellor of strategic communications, also refused to be forthcoming about why law enforcement did nothing for all that time to try to stop the violence, instead choosing to issue the following statement: "We are carefully examining our security processes from that night and are grateful to U.C. President Michael Drake for also calling for an investigation. We are grateful that the fire department and medical personnel were on the scene that night." UCLA police reportedly arrested 200 people at the pro-Palestinian encampment, claiming these individuals tried to resist. The arrests came after university officials declared the encampment to be an "unlawful assembly" and ordered all demonstrators to leave the area. "Every day, the nation of Israel finds some new way of demonstrating that it has no right to exist and should be dissolved," one of our own readers wrote in a comment. "No, I'm not calling for the genocide of anybody, just getting rid of a political institution which has proven itself murderous, corrupt and blatantly racist, and therefore illegitimate." Israel's lies are being unveiled with increasing speed. Learn more at Prophecy.news. Sources for this article include: TheCradle.co NYTimes.com NaturalNews.com Pfizer unleashed wave of turbo cancers with its COVID jabs; now the corporation is declaring cancer our new COVID profit stream Now that its Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) "vaccines" have had time to trigger turbo cancers in many of the victims who took them, pharmaceutical giant Pfizer is eager to start marketing new "blockbuster" cancer drugs, according to company CEO Albert Bourla. Bourla spoke with Fox Business this past week about how Pfizer plans to score big on the new turbo cancer market. Since profits from the company's mRNA (modRNA) COVID jabs are drying up, Bourla is ready to unleash new chemical drugs to reinvigorate the profit streams. The "pandemic" brought record revenue to Pfizer, which generated an astounding $157 billion overall from not just its "vaccine" but also Paxlovid, an oral antiviral medication. In 2023, however, sales were down by more than half at only around $71 billion. Since the end of 2022, Pfizer's share price has likewise fallen by 42 percent due to a rapid decline in demand for all things COVID-related. Pfizer responded with a major cost-cutting campaign that included laying off hundreds of people at its United Kingdom and United States facilities you didn't think Bourla and the other executive fat cats were going to take any pay cuts, did you? (Related: In late 2022, Bourla was found guilty of making "disgracefully misleading" statements about childhood vaccination.) Pride comes before a fall, Bourla Bourla lives for money, and he told Fox Business that the layoffs were part of a "very good cost containment" campaign that produced "very good results" as of early 2024. Bourla is also convinced that Pfizer's new focus on cancer will be extremely lucrative, enriching him and his friends with new record profits in the coming months and years. Human knowledge is under attack! Governments and powerful corporations are using censorship to wipe out humanity's knowledge base about nutrition, herbs, self-reliance, natural immunity, food production, preparedness and much more. We are preserving human knowledge using AI technology while building the infrastructure of human freedom. Use our decentralized, blockchain-based, uncensorable free speech platform at Brighteon.io. Explore our free, downloadable generative AI tools at Brighteon.AI. Support our efforts to build the infrastructure of human freedom by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com, featuring lab-tested, certified organic, non-GMO foods and nutritional solutions. "Oncology: it is our new COVID," Bourla said with a smirk, giving all the credit to himself and his friends. "We did what we did with COVID. We are very proud to have saved the world but it is behind us now. We want to do [it] once more and I think oncology is our best chance to do it." Just before the turn of the new year, Pfizer completed a $43 billion acquisition of Seagen (formerly known as Seattle Genetics), a biotechnology company that specializes in the development of monoclonal antibody-based drugs, also known as antibody-drug conjugates or ADCs. "They are designed to kill tumor cells while leaving healthy tissues relatively unaffected," is how RT described ADCs. Adcetris is the drug that landed Seagen on the map, its uses being for the treatment of lymphoma and Hodgkin's lymphoma. The drug costs around $11.91 for a single 50 milligram dose. Seagen also has another drug in its portfolio called Padcev that Bourla described as showing "phenomenal performance." Padcev is used to treat bladder cancer, and sales of it have increased by 164 percent since Pfizer acquired Seagen. The price of Padcev is much more expensive than Adcetris, costing an astounding $4,446 for a single 30 milligram dose. "That demonstrates how well we've invested the money," Bourla said proudly, adding that in the future the Pfizer drug "will have a significant impact on cancer patients." Pfizer's shift into oncology was announced in late 2023 with Bourla indicating that this is sure to bring in the cash seeing as how fearful people are about getting cancer. "Nothing scares people all over the world more than cancer because it affects everyone," he explained. "I hope we will be successful in our mission. I am optimistic that in the next 10 years we will see significant advancement." By 2030, Pfizer plans to have at least eight blockbuster cancer drugs on the market, as well as double the number of patients being treated with them as of 2023, Pfizer is treating 2.3 million cancer patients. The pharmaceutical industry is all about the money. Learn more at BadMedicine.news. Sources for this article include: RT.com NaturalNews.com Putin lambasts Ukraine, West for distorting WWII history to further stoke regional conflicts Ukraine and its Western allies are attempting to "distort" history to further ignite the burgeoning conflicts in the region. This was according to Russian President Vladimir Putin when he gave a defiant speech on Thursday, May 9, as he attended a military parade during Russia's celebration of the 79th anniversary of Allied Victory over Adolf Hitler's Germany. "Today we see how they're trying to distort the truth about World War II. It interferes with those who are used to building their essentially colonial policy based on hypocrisy and lies," Putin said in front of guests and servicemen. He said that these policies are aimed at elevating a few nations by restraining the development of other sovereign states. They demolish memorials to true fighters against Nazism and place traitors and Nazi collaborators on pedestals, he said and added that Western nations "would like to forget the lessons of WWII." "Revanchism, abuse of history, and an attempt to justify the current Nazi followers is part of an overall policy of the Western elites to stoke new regional conflicts," he said, seeming to refer to the authorities in Kyiv, whom Russian officials including Putin regularly accuse of holding neo-Nazi views. "These [actions] are part of the general policy of Western elites of inciting more and more regional conflicts, interethnic and interreligious hostility, and restraining the development of sovereign independent states." This year's Victory Day commemoration took place despite a tense geopolitical situation. Security in Moscow was tight because of Ukrainian repeated strikes on Russian territory and after an attack on a concert hall near the capital in March killed dozens. In some parts of Russia, including the western Kursk and Pskov regions, parades to commemorate Soviet Union's victory over Nazism were canceled due to safety concerns. Human knowledge is under attack! Governments and powerful corporations are using censorship to wipe out humanity's knowledge base about nutrition, herbs, self-reliance, natural immunity, food production, preparedness and much more. We are preserving human knowledge using AI technology while building the infrastructure of human freedom. Use our decentralized, blockchain-based, uncensorable free speech platform at Brighteon.io. Explore our free, downloadable generative AI tools at Brighteon.AI. Support our efforts to build the infrastructure of human freedom by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com, featuring lab-tested, certified organic, non-GMO foods and nutritional solutions. Russia's Defense Ministry said around 9,000 servicemen and 61 pieces of military equipment, including the Yars intercontinental ballistic missile system and the S-400 surface-to-air missile system, took part in the Red Square military parade this year. IT featured the traditional flypast of airforce jets, which painted the sky with the colors of the Russian flag. Putin was joined by six leaders of former Soviet republics: Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Kyrgyzstan's President Sadyr Japarov, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, Uzbek leader Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedow. Leaders of Cuba, Laos and Guinea-Bissau were also in attendance. "We celebrate Victory Day against the background of the special military operation," Putin said. He used the Kremlin's preferred term for its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. "We bow our heads to the memory of civilians killed in the neo-Nazis' barbarian shelling and terrorist acts and our brothers-in-arms who died in the righteous fight against neo-Nazism," he added. Putin emphasized that even though Russia would do everything possible to prevent a global conflict, it would not allow anyone to threaten its own safety and sovereignty. He said that their nuclear forces are at full combat readiness in preparation for a global war. (Related: Putin warns the west that Russia is ready for nuclear war.) Russia's military weaponry is "one step ahead" The annual military parade in commemoration of Victory Day has been viewed by the world as an opportunity for Russia to show off its weaponry. This year, it featured columns of Russian military equipment, although it was notably scaled back compared with past years. Last year and this year, it only presented one war tank the Second World War T34. Critics remark that the celebration's "scaled-down" display mirrored Russia's current "weak capability" in continuing its battle against Ukraine in the conflict. But while the Russian tank display was notably lacking, other modern weapons did make an appearance. Throughout the war in Ukraine, Russia has also regularly rattled the nuclear saber. In a video released by the Kremlin that was shown during the festivity, Putin called for Russia to modernize its military arsenal so it could stay "one step ahead," including by buying foreign equipment where possible and sidestepping international sanctions where necessary. The president said that Russian engineers were working "day and night" to try to update equipment. "Modern military technology is changing very fast. If we want to be successful, we always have to be one step ahead," he said. "Our enemy has quite modern means since the whole Western community is working for our enemy." He said Russia would look to the international market for solutions as well. He also believes that might be relatively easy even amid Western sanctions. "We will take, why hide it, what we can find on the international market. Despite the difficulties, we can find things... They have dual, triple and civilian use," he said. Thursday's event comes two days after Putin promised at a lavish inauguration for his fifth presidential term to deliver "victory" to Russians. He was in power as president or prime minister since 1999 and began his new mandate more than two years after he sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. Check out WWIII.news to read more stories related to the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. Sources for this article include: RT.com TheMoscowTimes.com DW.com Report: Hong Kongs freedoms have significantly eroded under Beijings control A new report has found that Hong Kong's freedoms have significantly eroded under the control of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in Beijing. The May 7 report published by the Washington, D.C.-based think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) highlighted this erosion of liberties in the special administrative region (SAR). It noted that Hong Kong's "high degree of autonomy," which is intended to be preserved until 2047, has been undermined since China's shift toward authoritarianism under paramount leader Xi Jinping. "There remains some resilience of autonomy, and life in Hong Kong is qualitatively different than in other mainland Chinese jurisdictions. However, the overall trend is clearly in the direction of further erosion of autonomy across nearly all domains the legal and political system and civil society, as well as the climate for companies and investors," the CSIS report said. "While in every instance it is a mixed picture, in most domains more signs of erosion than resilience were evident, and the general trajectory is toward continued erosion going forward." According to the Epoch Times, "Beijing's control over Hong Kong has tightened considerably since the mid-2010s, significantly eroding the city's promised autonomy. While [the CCP] initially made gradual restrictions after the 1997 handover from the U.K., protests escalated in response to these moves." Such demonstrations include the 2012 protests against changes to the school curriculum and the 2014 "Umbrella Movement." (Related: Chaos in China: Rushed exit from zero-COVID strategy could COLLAPSE Chinese economy.) Human knowledge is under attack! Governments and powerful corporations are using censorship to wipe out humanity's knowledge base about nutrition, herbs, self-reliance, natural immunity, food production, preparedness and much more. We are preserving human knowledge using AI technology while building the infrastructure of human freedom. Speak freely without censorship at the new decentralized, blockchain-power Brighteon.io. Explore our free, downloadable generative AI tools at Brighteon.AI. Support our efforts to build the infrastructure of human freedom by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com, featuring lab-tested, certified organic, non-GMO foods and nutritional solutions. Things came to a head in 2019, when protests broke out over a proposed extradition law allowing Hong Kong residents to be sent to the mainland for trial. While the proposal was withdrawn, the harsh suppression of the protests against it fueled greater support for the pro-democracy movement. This resulted in pro-democracy candidates winning a majority in the SAR's November 2019 district council elections. HK's national security law instrumental in the erosion of liberties The gains of the pro-democracy movement in 2019 led Beijing to impose a sweeping national security law in June 2020. Its vague definition of crimes such as subversion and terrorism have been used to suppress opposition, disqualify pro-democracy candidates, limit media freedoms and silence dissent thereby fundamentally changing Hong Kong's political landscape. Since the national security law was enacted in the city, authorities have suppressed protests, imprisoned pro-democracy activists and banned gatherings, including the annual Tiananmen Square massacre vigil. Jimmy Lai, founder of the Apple Daily tabloid and the Giordano clothing retailer, was among those victimized by this draconian edict by the CCP something the report mentioned. The CSIS report said as of February 2023, 291 people had been arrested for allegedly engaging in activities that threaten national security since the law was implemented. Cash bounties had also been placed on at least 13 Hong Kong opposition figures and activists based overseas. This has fostered a climate of fear, even among those who manage to escape the city. The Epoch Times also mentioned that the law has also eroded religious freedom in the city, which a separate report by the U.K.-based group Hong Kong Watch (HKW) pointed out in its November 2023 report. It noted that self-censorship is now common in religious activities and schools affiliated with religious groups. The HKW report also mentioned that CCP agents have infiltrated church leadership in the SAR. The authors of the CSIS report offered three recommendations for U.S. policymakers to explore concerning Hong Kong's freedoms. First, it suggested the imposition of penalties on individuals accountable for undermining Hong Kong's autonomy. This way, the stakes for Beijing's actions are raised. Second, it urged a gradual removal of all policy exemptions that grant Hong Kong special treatment compared to the mainland under U.S. law. According to the authors, this would result in the SAR being treated like any other city in mainland China. Third, the report called for maintaining what remains of Hong Kong's autonomy from Beijing for as long as possible. This can be done by reinforcing practical engagements between state and non-state actors in the U.S. and Hong Kong while using targeted punitive measures when needed, the authors explained. Visit CommunistChina.news for more stories about Hong Kong. Watch G News founder Miles Guo warning that the people of Hong Kong have no more choices in the clip below. This video is from the Chinese taking down EVIL CCP channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories: Chinese military aircraft used civilian plane as cover in Taiwan Strait. China simulates precision strikes on key Taiwanese targets during three-day military drills. SOURCES: China preparing for "D-Day" INVASION of the continental United States, with forces to land on the beaches of California, as Biden and Newsom serve as China's accomplices. Sources include: TheEpochTimes.com Brighteon.com WHITE HOUSE REPORT: Israel may have used U.S.-supplied weapons to kill civilians, which violates international humanitarian law The administration of President Joe Biden has issued a report suggesting that the Israel Defense Forces may have used American-supplied weapons in ways inconsistent with international humanitarian law on multiple occasions. However, due to the absence of American personnel in Gaza, it could not be confirmed whether American weapons were indeed utilized in incidents with high numbers of civilian casualties. This report comes in response to Biden's National Security Memorandum 20 (NSM-20) issued in February which tasked the federal government with assessing the credibility of Israel's assurances regarding the lawful use of U.S. weapons. (Related: Biden gives ultimatum to Israel: Don't attack Rafah or you'll lose supply of U.S. bombs, artillery shells.) If it's determined that Israel violated international law with American weapons, Washington would be compelled to suspend all non-defensive military aid to the country. The much-anticipated report was initially slated for delivery to Congress earlier in the week but was postponed until Friday evening, May 10. It highlights several instances where the actions of the Israeli military raised serious concerns, including airstrikes on aid workers from the international charity World Central Kitchen, the "Flour Massacre" in northern Gaza and attacks on other international aid groups and charities operating in the region. Despite these documented incidents, the report couldn't definitively establish whether U.S. weapons were involved. Additionally, Israel's failure to provide comprehensive information hindered efforts to verify the use of U.S. defense articles covered under NSM-20 in alleged violations of international law. Human knowledge is under attack! Governments and powerful corporations are using censorship to wipe out humanity's knowledge base about nutrition, herbs, self-reliance, natural immunity, food production, preparedness and much more. We are preserving human knowledge using AI technology while building the infrastructure of human freedom. Use our decentralized, blockchain-based, uncensorable free speech platform at Brighteon.io. Explore our free, downloadable generative AI tools at Brighteon.AI. Support our efforts to build the infrastructure of human freedom by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com, featuring lab-tested, certified organic, non-GMO foods and nutritional solutions. Nevertheless, considering Israel's extensive reliance on U.S.-made defense articles, the report suggests it's reasonable to assume that such weapons may have been used inconsistently with international humanitarian law. The Biden administration maintains that Israel's overall commitment to international humanitarian law isn't necessarily undermined by individual violations, noting Israel's pledge to investigate such incidents. Moving forward, the State Department intends to engage with the Israeli government to establish a dedicated channel for reviewing incidents of concern and recommending measures to reduce civilian harm. U.S. refusing to call IDF campaign in Gaza a breach of international law While the report criticized certain Israeli operations in Gaza, it refrained from definitively stating that the IDF's campaign in Gaza had breached international law, claiming that Israel is facing an "extraordinary military challenge" while combating Hamas in Gaza. The report deemed the assurances from Israel regarding the lawful use of U.S. weapons as "credible and reliable," allowing for the continuation of weapons shipments. However, it noted the complexity of determining legitimate targets in an active war zone where Hamas utilizes civilian infrastructure and civilians as human shields. Acknowledging Israel's significant reliance on U.S.-made weapons, the report suggested that these weapons may have been used in ways inconsistent with international humanitarian law. While Israel possesses the knowledge and tools to mitigate civilian harm, the high levels of civilian casualties raised concerns about the effectiveness of these measures. The report highlighted criticism from the United Nations and humanitarian organizations regarding Israel's efforts to mitigate civilian harm, describing them as "inconsistent, ineffective and inadequate." Regarding humanitarian aid to Gaza, the report initially found that Israel did not fully cooperate with U.S. efforts to maximize aid during the conflict's early stages but noted improvements later on. David Satterfield, a former U.S. ambassador to Turkey and one of the report's contributors, emphasized its uniqueness and stated that the U.S. would continue monitoring Israeli actions closely. He characterized the conflict as unprecedented and stressed the report's candid yet credible assessment. Watch this video reporting on the beginning of Israel's invasion of Rafah. This video is from the Cynthia's Pursuit of Truth channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories: U.S. opposed to Israel's Rafah operation "as currently planned," some offensive munitions being withheld from Israel by Biden admin. AMERICAN-MADE BOMB was used in Israeli strike that killed seven volunteer health workers in southern Lebanon. Biden HALTS shipments of U.S.-made ammunition to Israel first time since October 7. Sources include: MiddleEastEye.net BBC.com Brighteon.com Sharing official crime statistics on social media is now a hate crime in Germany Sharing facts is apparently now a hate crime in Germany as a politician there has been found guilty of inciting hatred against local Afghan workers after posting gang rape statistics online. It all started when Hamburgs First Mayor, Peter Tschentscher, announced in 2021 that a group of 200 Afghan workers would be moving to the city. This caught the attention of 27-year-old Marie-Therese Kaiser, a member of the right-learning Alternative for Germany party who is also a womens safety advocate. Unhappy with this decision, she shared statistics on social media showing that Afghans in Germany have a notably high rate of committing gang rape. It was accompanied with the caption: Afghanistan refugees; Hamburg SPD mayor for unbureaucratic admission; Welcoming culture for gang rape? The official government statistics show that foreign people are involved in half of all of the gang rape cases there and the role of Afghans in gang rape, rape and other serious crimes is very high relative to their population. However, despite this data, authorities decided that she was inciting hatred against these individuals, with a Verden regional court in Lower Saxony finding her guilty. Judge Heiko Halbfas stated that anyone who attacks human dignity cannot invoke freedom of expression and that her statements caused hatred of a nationally determined group. She will now have a criminal record and must pay a fine of $6000. Ahead of her case, the politician stood behind her decision to share the data, writing on X: My appeal hearing for alleged incitement will take place at the beginning of May. Simply naming numbers, dates and facts is to be declared a criminal offense, just because the establishment does not want to face reality. I will not allow myself to be silenced. Human knowledge is under attack! Governments and powerful corporations are using censorship to wipe out humanity's knowledge base about nutrition, herbs, self-reliance, natural immunity, food production, preparedness and much more. We are preserving human knowledge using AI technology while building the infrastructure of human freedom. Use our decentralized, blockchain-based, uncensorable free speech platform at Brighteon.io. Explore our free, downloadable generative AI tools at Brighteon.AI. Support our efforts to build the infrastructure of human freedom by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com, featuring lab-tested, certified organic, non-GMO foods and nutritional solutions. Many people expressed their horror over this insane interpretation of the law, with X owner Elon Musk asking on the platform: Are you saying the fine was for repeating accurate government statistics? Was there anything inaccurate in what she said? The data shows a clear link between crime and immigration Others have been sharing a chart showing the makeup of gang rape suspects, with a caption that reads: In Germany, Afghans and Africans are proportionally 40x and 70x more involved in gang rapes than Germans. Mass immigration to Germany from the Middle East has spurred a significant spike in violent crime in the country, including rape. According to a government-commissioned study, there was a 10.4% rise in violent crime during the height of the immigration crisis a time when around 850,000 Muslims flooded into the country. According to Deutsche Welle, 90% of this rise in violent crime can be attributed to immigrants, especially males aged 14 to 30. Moreover, despite making up less than 2% of the country's overall population at the time, nearly 12% of sex offenders and 10% of murder suspects in the country were refugees and asylum seekers in 2017. Things have only gotten worse since then. Kaiser said she intends to appeal the verdict, telling Junge Freiheit: "The whole world is astonished by this decision by the German courts. After even Elon Musk picked up on my case, I have received numerous messages of support and press inquiries. The demand for a way to donate is also becoming louder and louder. She added that the incident has severely shaken her trust in German law. Although Germany claims its citizens have freedom of speech, censorship is rife and the label of hate speech is often used as an excuse to censor people with right-leaning views. Sources for this article include: Rmx.news TheBlaze.com China analyst: Xi Jinpings Five-Anti Campaign aims to PURGE his opponents and critics The newly launched "Five-Anti Campaign" of the People's Republic of China President Xi Jinping seeks to purge his opponents and critics , a Chinese politics expert recently told the Epoch Times. According to Frank Lehberger, a Europe-based China analyst, the campaign also aims to further consolidate the Chinese supreme leader's hold over the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). China's Ministry of State Security (MSS) Chief Superintendent Chen Yixin last month wrote that the dark period in China's history led to talk of a newly minted campaign. On Qiushi, the theoretical journal of the CCP, Chen said that the campaign was to protect the security of China. The article was followed by an April 29 article in the state journal Study Times also featuring the anti-corruption campaign. "Five-Anti" was reported to be a key part of the CCP's effort to root out capitalism and private property. The original campaign was launched in response to a call issued by CCP founder Mao Zedong in his opening address to the third session of the National Committee of the Peoples Political Consultative Conference in October 1951. Launched in 1952, the purge ultimately ensnared hundreds of thousands of businesses and led to many deaths. Taking its cue from the first bloody campaign, which consolidated Maoism's control over Chinese society, the new campaign's pillars are Anti-Coup, Anti-Hegemony, Anti-Separatism, Anti-Terror and Anti-Spy. The recent five-pillared campaign targets those identified by Xi as "spies, traitors or other ill-loyal individuals" among the ranks of the CCP and the Chinese military, said Lehberger, who has 30 years of experience working as a political analyst and consultant in Asia. Human knowledge is under attack! Governments and powerful corporations are using censorship to wipe out humanity's knowledge base about nutrition, herbs, self-reliance, natural immunity, food production, preparedness and much more. We are preserving human knowledge using AI technology while building the infrastructure of human freedom. Speak freely without censorship at the new decentralized, blockchain-power Brighteon.io. Explore our free, downloadable generative AI tools at Brighteon.AI. Support our efforts to build the infrastructure of human freedom by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com, featuring lab-tested, certified organic, non-GMO foods and nutritional solutions. "To pre-empt any further opposition and obstacles to his plans shortly, Xi has now given the go-ahead for a political campaign to rid the CCP top levels of stubborn forces that still manage to oppose or elude him," he added. Lehberger said Mao used it to "spread fear and terror both among the privileged CCP cadres and the ordinary people alike, dividing them among themselves with the help of bloody pogroms that were initiated by fanaticized grass-roots activists who were loyal to Mao only (not the CCP)." "Xi became painfully aware that even among his entourage, which he had handpicked in October 2022, could still potentially lurk traitors who had secret intentions of using their PLA [People's Liberation Army] or Police connections toppling him or obliterating his plans for a speedy attack on Taiwan and Xi's total autocratic control of China," the expert explained. This scenario resulted in the sacking of Chinese Minister of Justice Fu Zhenghua in September 2022 and Vice Minister for Police Sun Lijun in September 2021. More recently, it led to the sacking of foreign and defense ministers who disappeared without any explanation and without a timely or orderly replacement. A closer look at the campaign's five pillars Lehberger warned that the five pillars have actual literal meanings that mask the Chinese government's tactical goal. "The official explanation given for these five is not always equivalent to their actual meaning due to the tacit goals that the CCP tries to obfuscate from public view," he said, adding that Anti-Coup literally means anti-subversion and it targets all treasonous members of CCP-elite clans who are trying to topple Xi. The second one, which is Anti-Hegemony, targets liberal pro-American elites within the CCP. The Chinese word for "hegemony" is a CCP code word denoting anything related to the U.S. government. "At the same time this also signals that the MSS takes control over Chinese foreign policy with the U.S. and her allies in the [United Kingdom], European Union, Japan, Australia, Canada etc, meaning the Chinese Foreign ministers will be subject to more stringent MSS supervision," Lehberger said. The third campaign pillar, Anti-Separatism, pertains to the goal of controlling Taiwan. Its goal is to better infiltrate Taiwan's society and politics and prepare for a Chinese takeover of Taiwan by military or non-military means. Anti-Terrorism is the fourth pillar that aims to create a climate of distrust and fear among ethnic communities in Tibet and Xinjiang. Ordinary Tibetans will be forced to denounce each other, as well as Xinjiang's Uyghurs. Lastly, Anti-Spy hopes to uncover top officials, CCP elites and PLA generals who are selling secrets to anyone outside China. "It also dovetails with a political campaign among the Chinese populace since last year that is hysterically hunting for foreign spies and thus forcing mutual denunciations among ordinary Chinese," said Lehberger. The current campaign aims to sow internal division and its primary goal is not to scare investors and entrepreneurs away but to more effectively divide PLA and CCP elite, the expert concluded. This is for Xi and his underlings to "conveniently purge a large number among them." (Related: Beijing warns Washington against crossing "red lines" to avoid CONFRONTATION.) Watch the video below that talks about Xi's visit to French President Emmanuel Macron to enhance political mutual trust between the nations. This video is from the Sanivan channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories: Blinken attempts to bully China over its support of Russia's actions in Ukraine. Despite Biden claiming otherwise, majority of Americans still view China as the "GREATEST THREAT" to the U.S. Russia, China discussing plans to "double counteract" U.S.-led alliance of Western nations. Sources include: TheEpochTimes.com QSTheory.cn TheoryChina.org.cn Brighteon.com A roster of speakers and industry leaders has been lined up at the ACI Asia-Pacific & Middle East/ACI World Annual General Assembly, Conference, and Exhibition (WAGA) that will take place from May 21-23 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Tony Douglas, CEO of Riyadh Air, is among the speakers, who will bring a wealth of experience and innovation to the stage. WAGA is the most important global gathering of airport leaders that will bring together senior executives of the airport industry from all over the world. Held in partnership with ACI Asia-Pacific & Middle East, and hosted by Riyadh Airports Company, the event will feature topics that shape the way in which the aviation industry is fast evolving. TradeArabia News Service Both Zelensky and Netanyahu claim God has chosen them to be victorious Many politicians appear to have a god complex, but two world leaders who are currently involved in wars have openly claimed that God has chosen them and their people to emerge victorious. First up is Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who has said that God is an ally of Ukraine in its current conflict with Russia. In a video address that he released on Easter from Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kiev, he accused Russia of breaking all the commandments. The world sees it, God knows it, and we believe God has a chevron with the Ukrainian flag on his shoulder. So, with such an ally, life will definitely win over death, he asserted. Its an interesting stance for someone who has been cracking down on the Orthodox Church in recent years. The Ukrainian parliament is currently exploring legislation that will shut down the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which is the biggest Christian Church in the country. This law is currently sitting in parliament, but the Zelensky government has been restricting its activity since the conflict first erupted. The Ukrainian Orthodox Church has been historically tied to the Russian Orthodox Church, although it renounced it and declared autonomy from it following the Russian invasion. Despite this, Zelensky has repeatedly accused the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of serving as an agent of Moscow. The Secret Service of Ukraine has launched a series of criminal cases against priests with the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, sanctioned clerics, seized church property and stripped bishops of Ukrainian citizenship. However, he's happy to bring up God when it serves his goals. Human knowledge is under attack! Governments and powerful corporations are using censorship to wipe out humanity's knowledge base about nutrition, herbs, self-reliance, natural immunity, food production, preparedness and much more. We are preserving human knowledge using AI technology while building the infrastructure of human freedom. Use our decentralized, blockchain-based, uncensorable free speech platform at Brighteon.io. Explore our free, downloadable generative AI tools at Brighteon.AI. Support our efforts to build the infrastructure of human freedom by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com, featuring lab-tested, certified organic, non-GMO foods and nutritional solutions. Netanyahu brings up God in hopes of appealing to religious Israelis and Americans Not to be outdone, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has invoked the name of God to help sell his war to the Jewish people as well as religious Americans. Netanyahu is known to be secular in his private life but has no problem saying whatever it takes to promote his objectives. The frequent references made by Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders to biblical figures are also an attempt to legitimize the civilian casualties they are causing in Gaza. Netanyahu said about the attacks in Gaza: "With shared forces, with deep faith in the justice of our cause and in the eternity of Israel, we will realize the prophecy of Isaiah (against Hamas)." He famously used the biblical narrative of Amalek when inciting IDF soldiers to carry out operations in Gaza. When announcing the second phase of the war in Gaza, he said: "You must remember what Amalek has done to you, a reference to a nation in the Hebrew Bible whose soldiers ambushed Israelites on their way to the Promised Land. After they overcame the attack, God told them to never forget what happened and carry out an eternal war until no trace of the existence of Amalek was left and this is widely being interpreted as a call to obliterate Gaza. His comments were even presented as evidence by the South African legal team pursuing a genocide case against the Jewish State before the International Court of Justice. Creating the image of a religious war is working well for Netanyahu so far, as Israel is enjoying an overwhelming amount of support from many Americans who identify as religious yet dont appear to have any problem with the tens of thousands of civilians who have died as a result of Israels war and the devastating toll it has taken on the people of Gaza. Cut off from food and essential supplies, those on the ground are reporting unimaginable suffering. Its hard to imagine anyones idea of God approving of what Israels actions are doing to the people there right now. Sources for this article include: RT.com TimesOfIsrael.com The latest weather reports show severe storms are likely in the southern U.S. this week, unleashing tornadoes, strong winds, and hail conditions. The mid-month of May can bring a potentially challenging weather outlook. Commuters traveling in the southern U.S should keep updated with the latest reports to prevent road hazards. In a report, the NWS Weather Prediction Center warns of excessive rainfall and moderate risks in the southeastern U.S. There is a chance of flash floods and heavy rains. Southern U.S. Weather Outlook: Where Will Stormy Outlook Unload? In the southern U.S., residents should anticipate severe storms and thunderstorms. The primary concerns are heavy rains and flooding. Residents in low-lying areas, including communities near streams and rivers, are the most vulnerable to flooding. Texas and Oklahoma can likely experience challenging weather outlooks. In addition, the National Weather Service (NWS) reveals that showers and strong thunderstorms can threaten portions of the Upper Midwest and Gulf Coast states. A tornado and severe thunderstorm watch are issued in the western and central Gulf Coast. On Monday, the severe storm potential can unleash flooding downpours, hail, and isolated tornadoes. The areas at risk are the following: Dallas Victoria Monroe Lake Charles New Orleans Mobile Montgomery Memphis Fayetteville In Memphis, residents can expect a cloudy weather outlook and isolated showers. Additionally, a cold front could move into the Lower Mississippi Valley, causing thunderstorms. Homeowners should keep alert for isolated severe storms. On Tuesday, the severe thunderstorms can unleash possible isolated tornadoes in the following areas: Montgomery Albany Pensacola Gainesville Jacksonville Savannah Charleston Furthermore, the rainy conditions, with flooding risks, can occur in Little Rock, Nashville, Atlanta, Jackson, New Orleans, and Jacksonville. NWS Little Rock reports a chance of rain and thunderstorms this week, particularly in southern Arkansas. Residents should watch out for the severe storms on Monday morning. Also Read: Mother's Day Weather Forecast: Rainy Conditions Likely to Bring Slower Commuters This Weekend Tornado Preparedness and Safety Tips From April to May's beginning, portions of the U.S. have been battered by rounds of tornadoes, causing significant damage to properties and infrastructure. Tornadoes threat can unleash devastating aftermath, particularly in the south-central U.S. Consequently, commuters should keep alert for the latest weather information, especially a tornado watch and warning. It mitigates potentially severe weather, packed by strong winds, very large, flooding rain, and isolated tornadoes. Staying at home is the best option this week, especially when commutes are not actually important. When the weather becomes challenging, commuters can stay at home until the weather improves. Additionally, it is advisable to store emergency kits to stay safe from the weather, particularly in the south-central U.S. Potential tornadoes can unleash severe damage to properties and infrastructure. Related Article: Central US Weather Outlook: Rounds of Rain, Thunderstorms To Hit Next Week For more similar stories, don't forget to follow Nature World News. The latest report warns of potential rounds of rains, causing potential flooding risks in southern Brazil. Parts of Brazil suffered from devastating flooding, which resulted in evacuations and major travel disruptions, particularly for low-lying areas in the region. Although the situation recovering from the devastating floods in southern Brazil, the country could still experience emergency concerns, particularly in the affected areas. Recent reports warn of potential worsening floods in the region, explaining that El Nino and climate change helped to bring challenging flooding rainfall to southern Brazil. With climate change, the country could experience frequent extreme weather events. Flooding Concerns in Southern Brazil According to a weather report, the recent flooding in southern Brazil resulted in 136 casualties, which floods exacerbated due to river overflow. The details showed the following: 806 people were injured 125 people remained missing 92,000 homes were damaged 537,000 evacuated from their homes Personnel delivered emergency supplies to help affected residents in an area in Sao Joao. When flooding occurred, the country suffered from a lack of water supplies, and search and rescue became challenging. People in flood-prone areas should keep up with the latest forecasts in southern Brazil. Avoiding flooded roads or areas is essential to avoid threats of floodwaters. A recent Nature World News (NWS) report found that Brazil is vulnerable to extreme weather events, including drought, wildfires, and storms. In the Amazon, it has experienced wildfires and prolonged drought. With frequent flooding and heavy rains, it is challenging for vulnerable areas or with poor drainage systems. Also Read: Brazil Deadly Flooding Updates: Death Toll Reaches 100 as Rescue Continues for Missing People Flooding Preparedness in South Brazil As the country becomes at risk of flooding rainfall, homeowners should keep updated with the latest weather information. People in flooded areas should check for flooding safety before returning home. When flooding rainfall unloads, low-lying areas or communities are vulnerable. When flooding becomes severe, it is advisable to stay at home until the condition finally improves. Additionally, homeowners should stay alert for potential evacuations due to the flooding rainfall. Checking for evacuation advisories is essential for keeping safe from devastating floods. Homeowners can likely experience power outages and major travel disruptions. When commuting or travel is not essential, being at home is the best option. For emergency supplies, households can store supply kits that can be brought to shelters. Three-day emergency kits are advisable, which include bottled water supplies, canned goods, battery-powered radios, batteries, and medicines. When flooding abates, homeowners should be extra careful with flooded roads and damaged electrical supplies. In addition, family members should check their family members' safety. Related Article: Southern Brazil Deadly Flooding: 55 People Died While 70,000 Evacuated For more similar stories, don't forget to follow Nature World News. Portions of the United States suffered from severe weather threats in late April and the beginning of May. It unleashed very large hail, strong winds, and isolated tornadoes. The National Weather Service (NWS) warns of severe weather and isolated tornadoes and urges communities to stay updated with the latest weather reports. The country braced for tornado outbreaks and over 600 Tornado Warnings from late April to May. South-Central U.S. has experienced challenging weather conditions, particularly in Oklahoma and Texas. Late April Tornadoes in the U.S According to a recent report, the U.S. suffered from tornado outbreaks, causing a surge in warnings. The country recorded severe weather threats in late April, especially in the Midwest and Great Plains. The report highlights the unusual tornadoes last month. Portions of Nebraska, Iowa, Omaha, Tennessee, Texas, Oklahoma, Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky, Kansas, and Ohio braced for severe weather triggered by isolated tornadoes. Weather news published on May 7 reported that the region was battered by stormy conditions and a devastating tornado that damaged dozens of homes. From northeastern Arkansas to Michigan, residents experienced haul conditions and damaging winds. In addition, over 190 storms were recorded in the U.S. Strong winds and thunderstorms were additional concerns. Also Read: Hurricane Season 2024: 6 Life-Saving Preparations to Keep Safe From Challenging Weather Tornado Preparedness: How Can Americans Keep Safe From Severe Weather Threats? Parts of the U.S. have recently been devastated by strong tornadoes, particularly in the south-central U.S. Severe weather threats can occur anytime, packed by hail conditions, isolated tornadoes, and flooding rainfall. Homeowners should stay updated with the latest forecasts, such as tornado advisories this May. Additionally, preparedness can mitigate potential risks, unleashing intense winds with over 200 miles per hour. Here are essential weather reminders to be safe from violent tornado outbreaks. Watch out for Tornado Watch and Tornado Warning Homeowners should be alerted to tornado watches and warnings and pay attention to weather information. When there is a severe weather threat, households should understand if they are in an area with a tornado risk. Know important safe shelters A recent Nature World News (NWN) report showcases the important safe shelters in the U.S. In addition, homeowners could prepare possible sheltering places at home. Additionally, it is essential to stay away from windows, outside walls, and doors. There is a chance of flying debris, and homeowners should always protect their heads and necks. Storing emergency supplies Severe weather threats can stay longer, depending on the situation. However, tornadoes are mostly brief but cause significant damage. Homeowners should keep disaster kits or emergency supplies if transportation becomes challenging or dangerous. After the tornado outbreak Ultimately, it is best to stay careful after a tornado outbreak. Falling debris from damaged homes, including a leak of hazardous chemicals, is likely. Related Article: Central & Northern California Forecast: Above-Average Temperatures to Unfold This Week For more similar stories, don't forget to follow Nature World News In an era where climate change has become an undeniable reality, the southern region of Brazil is facing a catastrophic deluge that has shattered records and lives. The relentless rise of river levels, a consequence of the torrential rains, has led to a situation that is both catastrophic and heart-wrenching. Submerged Hopes: The Human Cost of Climate Calamity The state of Rio Grande do Sul, known for its vibrant culture and bustling cities, now finds itself in the throes of nature's fury. The floods, described as the worst in over eight decades, have claimed the lives of at least 145 individuals, leaving a trail of destruction and despair. The calamity has rendered over 619,000 people homeless, forcing them to seek refuge in shelters and temporary accommodations. The historic center of Porto Alegre, a city renowned for its colonial architecture and cultural significance, is now a ghostly sight with furniture and personal belongings floating in murky waters. The Guaiba estuary, which borders the city, has swelled to alarming levels, threatening to submerge more areas in its wrath. In the town of Sao Leopoldo, the situation is dire, with cars lying half-submerged along roads and residents navigating the streets in boats. Electrician Claudio da Silva, 36, went to check on his neighborhood, describing his house as "broken" and recounting the sight of dead animals and the overwhelming sadness that has enveloped the area. Metallurgist Antonio Vanzan, 50, expressed the critical nature of the situation, fearing the continuous rain could lead to a further rise in river levels and more flooding. Also Read: China Flooding Season: Flash-Flood Warning Raised as 4 Rivers Exceed Dangerous Levels Resilience Amid Ruin: The Community's Response to Unrelenting Floods Amid the chaos, the spirit of the Brazilian people shines through. Communities have come together in an extraordinary display of solidarity and resilience. Volunteers and rescue workers navigate the flooded streets, now akin to rivers, in boats, providing aid and comfort to those affected. The state, despite the overwhelming challenges, is a testament to human endurance and the will to overcome adversity. The situation remains precarious, with the National Center for Monitoring and Warning for Natural Disasters (Cemaden) indicating a high probability of further flooding across most regions of the state. The rivers, once lifelines for the communities they nurtured, have turned into agents of destruction, reshaping the landscape and the lives of millions. As Brazil faces this environmental crisis, the world watches and learns. The floods in Rio Grande do Sul serve as a stark reminder of the power of nature and the urgent need for climate action. It is a call to humanity to unite in the face of climate change, to rebuild not just the physical structures that have been lost but also to fortify the resolve to prevent such disasters in the future. The full extent of the damage is yet to be ascertained, but one thing is clear: the floods in southern Brazil are a harbinger of the challenges that lie ahead in our collective fight against climate change. It is a fight that we must undertake with urgency and determination, for the sake of our planet and future generations. Related article: Russia, Kazakhstan Face 'Worst Flood In Decades' Due To Melting Snow Cold lava flow, consisting of volcanic ash, water, and rock debris, along with flash floods have killed dozens of people and wreaked havoc in Western Indonesia. The catastrophe was caused by a torrential rain that occurred in recent days. It triggered lava from an active volcano and the rise of raging floodwaters in Indonesia's West Sumatra province, according to reports on Monday, May 13. Among the casualties from the natural disaster included the confirmed deaths of at least 41 people. In addition, multiple people are still missing as of Monday evening (local time). Local authorities stated that reports of the accumulating death toll and missing people came following the heavy rain, which led to the flooding and cold lava flow, in the Indonesian region on Saturday evening, May 11. Indonesia Flooding Disaster The Indonesia flooding disaster was triggered by the torrential rain and torrents of cold lava, mud flowing down from Mount Merapi on Sumatra island, based on a statement by local officials on Sunday, May 12. Local reports specify that the region's monsoon rain and a large mudslide from the lava caused a river to overflow and impacted mountainside villages in four districts of the province. The floodwaters swept away some people and submerged over 100 houses and buildings, spokesperson Abdul Muhari, from the National Disaster Management Agency, reported. As emergency units continue to search for potential survivors, at least 17 people are still missing. Security forces, including the police and the military, have also been deployed in the area. This is not the first deadly rainfall event that struck Indonesia in 2024. Earlier this year, flash floods and landslides due to torrential rain also killed dozens of people in West Sumatra province, as well as forced the evacuation of more than 70,000 locals. The previous flooding rain in Indonesia occurred during the country's rainy season, which approximately spans from November to March each year. Also Read: Southern Brazil Deadly Flooding: 55 People Died While 70,000 Evacuated Cold Lava Flow Cold lava flow, also called "lahar" or lava flows, which was seen in the recent Indonesia flooding occurs as a life-threatening mudflow or debris that flow down along the slopes of a volcano. According to the Michigan Technological University, a "cold lava flow will not travel far" since it is in a state of high viscosity, with the latter pertaining to a high resistance to flow. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) defines a lahar as a hot or cold mixture of water and rock fragments. This volcanic substance can move up to 40 miles per hour through obstacles like valley and stream channels. It can also extend more than 50 miles from its point of origin in the volcano. In the past several decades, similar events have occurred in different parts of the world. In 1985, Colombia witnessed the deadliest lahar ever recorded following the Nevado del Ruiz volcanic eruption, also called the Armero Tragedy. Related Article: Flash floods, Landslides Kill at Least 26 People in Indonesia's Sumatra Island: Over 70,000 Locals Evacuated Tourism Malaysia showcased at the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2024 that recently took place in Dubai, the countrys latest attractions and destinations to attract more tourists from the Middle East. The Malaysian delegation, comprising a good mix of 75 organisations, including hotels and resorts, travel agents, tourism product owners, and representatives from state tourism boards, was led by Chairman of Tourism Malaysia Datuk (Dr) Yasmin Mahmood, and accompanied by Dato' Shaharuddin bin Abu Sohot, Deputy Secretary General (Management), Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture. The Malaysia Pavilion engaged with Middle Eastern buyers, generating interest while highlighting tourism products and services tailored to their specific needs and preferences, thus underscoring the importance placed on West Asia as a key source of tourists, especially during its summer vacation. With the upcoming launch and celebration of Visit Malaysia Year 2026, we strive to attract more West Asia tourists. We recognise the immense potential of this market, not only in terms of outbound tourism but also trade and investment, said Mahmood. We are confident that Malaysias position as a top destination for Muslim travellers, coupled with our intensified promotional efforts, will enable us to achieve our target. In 2024, Malaysia aims to welcome 27.3 million international tourist arrivals and generate RM102.7 billion ($21.7 billion) in tourism receipts. TradeArabia News Service Spoofed email email that appears to come from a legitimate source but is not is becoming an increasingly worrisome threat. Its so serious that the NSA and FBI have joined forces in releasing the following warning about spoofed email from senders in North Korea: The National Security Agency (NSA) joins the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the U.S. Department of State in releasing the Cybersecurity Advisory (CSA) North Korean Actors Exploit Weak DMARC Security Policies to Mask Spearphishing to protect against Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK, aka North Korea) techniques that allow emails to appear to be from legitimate journalists, academics, or other experts in East Asian affairs. To fully grasp what is happening, read this explanation from Al Iverson, industry research and community engagement lead for Valimail, which provides email authentication and anti-impersonation software: Gyanendra Tripathi speaks out against prioritising market trends over art: IANS Interview A ctor Gyanendra Tripathi, who is awaiting the release of his upcoming film 'Barah by Barah', feels that artistes should be able to strike a balance between their art and its commerce. The actor shared that prioritising market trends is the biggest disservice that an artiste can do to their artwork. Speaking with IANS prior to the release of his film, Gyanendra discussed how the city of Varanasi influenced the actor in him during the shoot, how cinema benefited from across media, and his upcoming projects. Barah by Barah has been shot in Varanasi and sees him essaying the role of a death photographer. Sharing the experience of working in the city, he told IANS: "Sometimes art becomes a vehicle for exploring existential questions, expressing inner truths, and seeking transcendence. For viewers, encountering spiritually inspired art can evoke a sense of awe, wonder, and contemplation, inviting them to reflect on their own beliefs and experiences." Shooting in a city like Varanasi, staying there for over a month, and playing a character which by virtue of his profession, witnesses life and death with such close proximity, I did delve into such areas. Our film basically explores the idea of migration, which is an inevitable part of nature, but the change is never easy to accept, hence, one needs a spiritual lens to let go of the previous attachments," he added. Many artistes from different media have made their way into cinema. Shah Rukh Khan came from television and is now ruling Bollywood. When asked about his opinion on cinema thriving on actors from different media, Gyanendra said: I do believe cinema benefits greatly from actors with diverse backgrounds, including those from OTT platforms and theatre." The actor shared that OTT platforms provide actors with opportunities to explore a wide range of characters and storytelling styles, often allowing for more nuanced performances. "On the other hand, theatre training instils actors with strong stage presence, improvisation skills, and the ability to connect with live audiences, which can translate into compelling performances on screen. This blend of experiences enriches the pool of talent available to filmmakers, contributing to the richness and variety of cinema. Additionally, actors who have experience across different mediums bring unique perspectives and techniques to their roles, enhancing the overall depth and authenticity of cinematic storytelling," he said. Talking about the fine balance of art and the business associated with it, the actor told IANS: One of the biggest disservices an artiste can do to their artwork is when artists prioritise market trends or the opinions of others over their own creative vision and expression. Due to this, their work may lose its authenticity and depth." This can result in artworks that feel contrived or insincere, ultimately diminishing their impact on audiences. It's essential for artists to stay true to their unique voice and vision, even if it means taking risks or facing criticism. Having said that, commerce is an integral part of filmmaking, it takes a lot of money to make a film, publicise and distribute it. So, in today's time, artistes do need to strike a balance and find an expression which is true to themselves and yet somehow remains accessible to a wider audience. That's the real struggle," he added. Meanwhile, on the work front, the actor will be next seen in Superman of Malegaon directed by Reema Kagti. He is also shooting for web series such as Petty Cash and the second season of 'Half CA. Gyanendra Tripathi speaks out against prioritising market trends over art: IANS Interview Post your comments Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! Starmer win would embolden Putin as UK election looms: Rishi Sunak B ritish Prime Rishi Sunak warned giving opposition leader Keir Starmer the keys to Downing Street would leave the country less safe and embolden Russias Vladimir Putin, in an early indication of bitter general election battles to come. Sunak claimed Labours refusal to adopt the governments plan to spend 2.5 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) on defence sent the wrong message at a time when the world was facing one of the most dangerous periods weve ever known. The highly personal attack on Starmer came as Sunak attempted to revive Conservative hopes with his party more than 20 points behind in the opinion polls and licking its wounds after a local election mauling. The next UK general election must be held no later than January 2025, but Sunak has indicated he could call an election this autumn. Starmer rejected the attack, saying I know first-hand the importance of national security from his role as director of public prosecutions. Sunak said that despite the dangers over the coming years, there was also opportunity and voters will have a choice between the Conservatives optimistic view of the future and Labours doomsterism. In a speech to the Policy Exchange think tank, Sunak said he remained confident that his party could win the general election as it was the only party really talking about the future and offering bold ideas and a clear plan rather than lofty platitudes. The prime ministers wide-ranging address warned of threats over the next five years from an axis of authoritarian powers including China, Russia, Iran and North Korea, extremists seeking to sow division at home, fears about new technologies such as artificial intelligence and global forces imperilling peoples financial security. He said: People want to know that they have got someone in charge who understands these dangers, because only if you understand whats happening can you be trusted to keep us safe. Sunak has set out a plan to spend 2.5 per cent of GDP on defence by 2030, with the money largely coming from slashing the size of the Civil Service. Labour has said it wants to raise defence spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP, but has not set a date for achieving that target and would carry out a defence review if it wins the election. Sunak said: I believe that we will keep this country safe and Keir Starmers actions demonstrate that he wont be able to do that. He added: The Labour Party and Keir Starmer not matching our investment on defence spending emboldens our adversaries. What do you think Putin thinks when he sees that? That he thinks the West isnt prepared to make the tough choices to invest in their security? Because Russias economy has mobilised for war, he is continuing to be aggressive, we need to meet that aggression with strength. Sunak also accused the opposition of attempting to depress their way to victory with talk of doom loops and gaslighting and scaremongering about pensions. He said: They have just one thing: a calculation that they can make you feel so bad about your country, that you wont have the energy to ask what they might do with the incredible power that they seek to yield. Sunak acknowledged that the public felt anxious and uncertain, but denied that this was all due to 14 years of Conservative government. But while he painted a picture of a difficult period ahead, the prime minister also pointed to significant opportunities presented by transformational technologies such as AI, adding it was incumbent upon us to make this a period not just of great danger but of great progress too. Starmer win would embolden Putin as UK election looms: Rishi Sunak Post your comments Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! In a recent article published in the journal Scientific Reports, Matthew Zipple of Cornell University, USA, used mathematical modeling to assess the impact of childhood mortality in the United States (US) in the 20th century on female mortality. He found that a significant decline in childhood mortality during 19002000 indirectly led to a substantial decrease in female mortality, leading to an extension of the female lifespan by approximately one year after age 15 in the US. Article: Reducing childhood mortality extends mothers lives. Image Credit: DONOT6_STUDIO / Shutterstock Background The significant decline in childhood mortality during the twentieth century, particularly in the US, resulted in a substantial decrease in the proportion of mothers experiencing child loss. This reduction, estimated at 96%, had profound implications for maternal health and survival. Studies across various societies have consistently shown that the loss of a child increases maternal mortality risk, with impacts extending across reproductive ages and even decades after the child's death. Evidence suggests a causal relationship, as maternal mortality risk increases significantly following child loss, while such a relationship is weaker or absent for fathers. The decline in maternal bereavement is hypothesized to improve maternal survival and extended lifespan for women in the US during the twentieth century. Therefore, the present research aimed to examine the subsequent consequences of a decrease in childhood death and total fertility in the US between 1900 and 2000 on maternal bereavement frequency, female mortality rate, and female life expectancy. About the study The significant decline in the fraction of females experiencing child loss during the twentieth century shifted nearly all women of reproductive age in the US into a single group that had not experienced child loss, effectively aligning their mortality risk with that of non-bereaved females. In the present study, three parameters collectively enable the inference of mortality experienced by non-bereaved and bereaved women at a certain time: (1) the observed age-specific mortality for all women in a population, (2) the relative mortality risk faced by non-bereaved women compared to bereaved women and (3) the proportion of women of a certain age expected to experience bereavement. Age-specific mortality rates and relative risk ratios for bereaved females were estimated from historical data and literature. As the research did not utilize any individual-level or confidential data, no research ethics approval was necessary. A simulation model was constructed to estimate the proportion of females experiencing child loss at various ages, using period tables of female death and fertility data. These estimates were then used to infer age-specific mortality rates for females not experiencing bereavement. The reduction in child loss from 1900 to 2000 was evaluated to determine its impact on female mortality rates and life expectancy. In a new publication out in @SciReports, I argue that reductions in the frequency of child loss in the 20th century extended female lifespan by about 1 year in the US, a previously undocumented source of increased longevity.https://t.co/cwtGY6V6l4 pic.twitter.com/Cv2v7GsexL Matthew Zipple (@MatthewZipple) May 9, 2024 Results and discussion The reduction in childhood mortality in the US in the 20th century substantially decreased the fraction of females experiencing bereavement. Simulation results indicated a dramatic decrease (>95%) in the proportion of females experiencing child loss, leading to corresponding reductions in population-level female mortality rates. The reduction in child loss was estimated to have decreased overall mortality risk for females aged 15 to 49 years by 11% to 15%, contributing significantly to the total decrease in mortality faced by this demographic group during the period. Furthermore, the reduction in child loss may have increased the average female lifespan after age 15 by approximately 0.9 to 1.2 years. The projected effect of decreasing the incidence of child loss on the median female lifespan after age 15 was estimated to be between 0.8 and 1.0 years. The inferred rates of mortality for non-bereaved females in 1900 are substantially lower than the observed mortality rates. Elimination of child loss would have shifted all females into the non-bereaved category, resulting in an overall reduction in population mortality. Overall, as per the research, reducing childhood mortality not only seems to benefit children but also has positive downstream effects on maternal health and lifespan, particularly in less- and least-developed nations where parental bereavement rates remain high. However, the study's assumptions regarding constant hazard ratios for maternal bereavement across the reproductive lifespan and over time and space may oversimplify the complexity and cultural specificity of these phenomena, potentially limiting the generalizability of the findings. Conclusion In conclusion, the significant decrease in maternal bereavement due to child loss between 1900 and 2000, particularly in the US, is estimated to have indirectly increased maternal lifespan by approximately one year. This study highlights the importance of policies prioritizing the reduction of child loss through strategies such as lowering child mortality rates and improving access to family planning resources. While the research draws on data primarily from Europe and North America, further research across diverse cultural and developmental contexts is essential to assess the consistency or variability of this effect on maternal mortality. Wade Trammell recalls the time he and his fellow firefighters responded to a highway crash in which a beer truck rammed into a pole, propelling the truck's engine through the cab and into the driver's abdomen. "The guy was up there screaming and squirming. Then the cab caught on fire," Trammell says. "I couldn't move him. He burned to death right there in my arms." Memories of that gruesome death and other traumatic incidents he had witnessed as a firefighter in Mountain View, California, didn't seem to bother Trammell for the first seven years after he retired in 2015. But then he started crying a lot, drinking heavily, and losing sleep. At first, he didn't understand why, but he would later come to suspect he was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. After therapy failed to improve his mental well-being, he heard about the potential benefits of psychedelic drugs to help first responders with PTSD. Last July, Trammell went on a retreat in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, organized by The S.I.R.E.N. Project, a nonprofit that advocates the use of psychedelics and other alternative medicines to help first responders. He took psilocybin mushrooms and, the next day, another psychedelic derived from the toxic secretions of the Sonoran Desert toad. The experience, he says, produced an existential shift in the way he thinks of the terrible things he saw as a firefighter. "All that trauma and all that crap I saw and dealt with, it's all very temporary and everything goes back into the universe as energy," Trammell says. Abundant research has shown that psychedelics have the potential to produce lasting relief from depression, anxiety, PTSD, addiction, and other mental health conditions. Many universities around the United States have programs researching psychedelics. But experts warn that these powerful drugs are not for everybody, especially those with a history of psychosis or cardiovascular problems. Most psychedelic drugs are prohibited under federal law, but California may soon join a growing number of local and state governments allowing their use. A bill working its way through the California Legislature, would allow the therapeutic use of psilocybin; mescaline; MDMA, the active ingredient in ecstasy; and dimethyltryptamine, the active ingredient in ayahuasca, a plant-based psychoactive tea. The drugs could be purchased and ingested in approved locations under the supervision of facilitators, who would undergo training and be licensed by a new state board. The facilitators would need a professional health credential to qualify. The bill, co-sponsored by Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), Assembly member Marie Waldron (R-San Diego), and several other lawmakers, follows last year's unsuccessful effort to decriminalize certain psychedelics for personal use. Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, vetoed that bill, though he extolled psychedelics as "an exciting frontier" and asked for new legislation with "regulated treatment guidelines." Wiener says the new bill was drafted with Newsom's request in mind. It is supported by some veterans and first responder groups and opposed by numerous law enforcement agencies. One potential roadblock is the state's budget deficit, pegged at between $38 billion and $73 billion. Newsom and legislative leaders may choose not to launch a new initiative when they are cutting existing programs. "That is something we'll certainly grapple with," Wiener says. The legislation, which is making its way through committees, would require the new board to begin accepting facilitator license applications in April 2026. The system would look somewhat like the one in Oregon, which allows the use of psilocybin mushrooms under the guidance of state-licensed facilitators at psilocybin service centers. And like Oregon, California would not allow for the personal use or possession of psychedelics; the drugs would have to be purchased and consumed at the authorized locations. Colorado, following the passage of a ballot initiative in 2022, is creating a system of regulated "healing centers," where people will be able to legally consume psilocybin mushrooms and some other psychedelics under the supervision of licensed facilitators. Colorado's law allows for the personal use and possession of a handful of psychedelics. In California, the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, Berkeley, Santa Cruz, and Arcata have effectively decriminalized many psychedelics, as have other cities around the United States, including Ann Arbor, Michigan; Cambridge, Massachusetts; Detroit; Minneapolis; Seattle; and Washington, D.C. Psychedelics such as psilocybin, ayahuasca, and peyote have been used for thousands of years by Indigenous populations in Latin America and the current-day United States. And some non-Indigenous groups use these substances in a spiritual way. The Church of Ambrosia, with locations in San Francisco and Oakland, considers psilocybin mushrooms, also known as magic mushrooms, a sacrament. "Mushrooms affect the border between this world and the next, and allow people to connect to their soul," says Dave Hodges, founder and pastor of the church. Hodges was behind an unsuccessful attempt to get an initiative on the California ballot this year that would have decriminalized the possession and use of mushrooms. He hopes it will qualify for the 2026 ballot. The pending California legislation is rooted in studies showing psychedelics can be powerful agents in mental health treatment. Charles Grob, a psychiatry professor at the University of California-Los Angeles School of Medicine who has researched psychedelics for nearly 40 years, led a study that found synthetic psilocybin could help reduce end-of-life anxiety in patients with advanced-stage cancer. Grob says MDMA is good for couples counseling because it facilitates communication and puts people in touch with their feelings. And he conducted research in Brazil that showed ayahuasca used in a religious context helped people overcome alcoholism. But Grob warns that the unsupervised use of psychedelics can be dangerous and says people should undergo mental and medical health screenings before ingesting them. "There are cases of people going off the rails. It's a small minority, but it can happen, and when it does happen it can be very frightening," Grob says. Ken Finn, past president of the American Board of Pain Medicine, says that psychedelics have a number of side effects, including elevated blood pressure, high heart rate, and vomiting, and that they can trigger "persistent psychosis" in a small minority of users. Legal drugs also pose risks, he says, "but we have much better guardrails on things like prescriptions and over-the-counter medications." He also worries about product contamination and says manufacturers would need to be tightly regulated. Another potential problem is health equity. Since insurance would not cover these sessions, at least initially, they would likely attract people with disposable income. A supervised psilocybin journey in Oregon, for example, can cost more than $2,500. Many people who have experienced psychedelics corroborate the research results. Ben Kramer, a former Marine who served in Afghanistan and now works as a psilocybin facilitator in Beaverton, Oregon, says a high-dose mushroom session altered his worldview. "I relived the first time I was ever shot at in Afghanistan," he says. "I was there. I had this overwhelming love and compassion for the guy who was shooting at me, who was fighting for what he believed in, just like I was." Another characteristic of psychedelic therapy is that just a few sessions can potentially produce lasting results. Trammell, the retired firefighter, hasn't taken psychedelics since that retreat in Mexico 10 months ago. "I just felt like I kind of got what I needed," he says. "I've been fine ever since." This article was produced by KFF Health News, which publishes California Healthline, an editorially independent service of the California Health Care Foundation. "Sticks and stones may break my bones," the old adage goes. "But words will never hurt me." Tell that to Eugenia Rho, assistant professor in the Department of Computer Science, and she will show you extensive data that prove otherwise. Her Society + AI & Language Lab has shown that Police language is an accurate predictor of violent interactions with Black motorists. Broadcast media bias and social media echo chambers have put American democracy at risk. Now, Rho's research team in the College of Engineering has turned to another question: what effects did social media rhetoric have on COVID-19 infection and death rates across the United States, and what can policymakers and public health officials learn from that? A lot of studies just describe what's happening online. Often they do not show a direct link with offline behaviors. But there is a tangible way to connect online behavior with offline decision making." Eugenia Rho, Assistant Professor, Department of Computer Science, Virginia Tech Cause and effect During the COVID-19 pandemic, social media became a mass gathering place for opposition to public health guidance, such as mask wearing, social distancing, and vaccines. Escalating misinformation encouraged widespread disregard for preventive measures and led to soaring infection rates, overwhelmed hospitals, health care worker shortages, preventable deaths, and economic losses. During a one-month period between November and December 2021, more than 692,000 preventable hospitalizations were reported among unvaccinated patients, according to a 2022 study published in the Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine. Those hospitalizations alone cost a staggering $13.8 billion. In the study, Rho's team, including Ph.D. student Xiaohan Ding, developed a technique that trained the chatbot GPT-4 to analyze posts in several banned subreddit discussion groups that opposed COVID-19 prevention measures. The team focused on Reddit because its data was available, Rho said. Many other social media platforms have barred outside researchers from using their data. Rho's work is grounded in a social science framework called Fuzzy Trace Theory that was pioneered by Valerie Reyna, a Cornell University professor of psychology and a collaborator on this Virginia Tech project. Reyna has shown that individuals learn and recall information better when it is expressed in a cause and effect relationship, and not just as rote information. This holds true even if the information is inaccurate or the implied connection is weak. Reyna calls this cause-and-effect construction a "gist." The researchers worked to answer four fundamental questions related to gists on social media: How can we efficiently predict gists across social media discourse at a national scale? What kind of gists characterize how and why people oppose COVID-19 public health practices, and how do these gists evolve over time across key events? Do gist patterns significantly predict patterns in online engagement across users in banned subreddits that oppose COVID-19 health practices? Do gist patterns significantly predict trends in national health outcomes? The missing link Rho's team used prompting techniques in large language models (LLMs) -; a type of artificial intelligence (AI) program -; along with advanced statistics to search for and then track these gists across banned subreddit groups. The model then compared them to COVID-19 milestones, such as infection rates, hospitalizations, deaths, and related public policy announcements. The results show that, indeed, social media posts that linked a cause, such as "I got the COVID vaccine," with an effect, such as "I've felt like death ever since," quickly showed up in people's beliefs and affected their offline health decisions. In fact, the total and new daily COVID-19 cases in the U.S. could be significantly predicted by the volume of gists on banned subreddit groups. This is the first AI research to empirically link social media linguistic patterns to real-world public health trends, highlighting the potential of these large language models to identify critical online discussion patterns and point to more effective public health communication strategies. "This study solves a daunting problem: how to connect the cognitive building blocks of meaning that people actually use to the flow of information across social media and into the world of health outcomes," Reyna said. "This prompt-based LLM framework that identifies gists at scale has many potential applications that can promote better health and wellbeing." Big data, big impact Rho said she hopes this study will encourage other researchers to bring these methods to bear on important questions. To that end, the code used in this project will be made freely available when the paper publishes in the Proceedings of the Association of Computing Machinery Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. The paper also compares the cost of various ways researchers can analyze big datasets and extract meaningful conclusions at lower cost. The team will present its findings May 11-16 in Honolulu, Hawaii. Outside of academia, Rho said she hopes this work will encourage social media platforms and other stakeholders to find alternatives to deleting or banning groups that discuss controversial topics. "Simply banning people in online communities altogether, especially in spaces where they are already exchanging and learning health information, can risk driving them deeper into conspiracy theories and force them onto platforms that don't moderate content at all," Rho said. "I hope this study can inform how social media companies work hand-in-hand with public health officials and organizations to better engage and understand what's going on in the public's mind during public health crises." Women who enter menopause before the age of 40 are more likely to die young, but may lower their risk with hormone therapy, according to research presented at the 26th European Congress of Endocrinology in Stockholm. This long-term Finnish study is the largest carried out on the association between premature menopause and mortality, which highlights the importance of regular medical checkups and appropriate hormone therapy use in these women. Most women experience menopause between the ages of 45 and 55. However, about 1% of women go through menopause before the age of 40 years, known as premature menopause or premature ovarian insufficiency (POI), and are at a higher risk of long-term health problems such as heart disease. The cause is largely unknown but can be brought on spontaneously or by some medical treatments such as chemotherapy or by surgically removing the ovaries. Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is the most common treatment but the majority of women with premature menopause do not take these drugs in accordance with the recommendations. In this study, researchers from the University of Oulu and Oulu University Hospital examined 5,817 women who were diagnosed with spontaneous or surgical premature ovarian insufficiency in Finland, between 1988 and 2017. They compared these women with 22,859 women without POI and found that women with spontaneous premature ovarian insufficiency were more than twice as likely to die of any cause or of heart disease, and more than four times as likely to die of cancer. However, the risk of all-cause and cancer mortality about halved in women who used hormone replacement therapy for more than six months. Women with premature menopause from surgery did not have any added mortality risk. Previous studies have also shown that women with premature menopause have a higher risk of early death. However, this association has never been studied in women on such a large scale before and followed for up to 30 years. "To our knowledge, this is the largest study performed on the linkage between premature ovarian insufficiency and mortality risk," said Ms Hilla Haapakoski, a PhD student at the University of Oulu, who led the study. Our study is one of the first to explore both surgical and spontaneous premature ovarian insufficiency in women's all-cause, cardiovascular and cancer-related mortality, and examine whether hormone replacement therapy for over six months may reduce mortality risk. Our findings suggest specific attention should be paid to the health of women with spontaneous premature ovarian insufficiency to decrease excess mortality." Ms. Hilla Haapakoski, PhD student, University of Oulu The team will next assess whether women with premature menopause are more likely to have other illnesses or conditions, such as cancer or heart disease, and whether long-term use of hormone therapy affects these conditions. "Various health risks of women with premature ovarian insufficiency have not been well recognized and the use of HRT is often neglected. We hope to improve the health of these women by increasing awareness of the risks among healthcare professionals and the women themselves", said Ms Haapakoski. Liposomal bupivacaine was launched on the market twelve years ago to provide long-lasting local control of pain. The medication is used as a local anesthetic, particularly for orthopedic operations. A research study by MedUni Vienna has now shown the limited effectiveness of the substance. The study has just been published in the journal "Anesthesiology", the peer-reviewed journal of the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA). The study was conducted as a collaboration between scientists from the Department of Anesthesia, General Intensive Care Medicine and Pain Management and the Department of Clinical Pharmacology with 25 healthy volunteers in a randomized, controlled and triple-blinded design. The study participants were randomly assigned to receive two nerve blocks with bupivacaine for pain control, one in the conventional and one in the liposomal form. Liposomal means that the active ingredient is encapsulated in vesicles called liposomes, which should enable a slower release over a longer period of time. "Since the combination of both forms of bupivacaine is recommended, little was known about the effectiveness of the use of liposomal bupivacaine alone in pain therapy during and immediately after surgery," says co-first author Peter Marhofer, summarizing the initial situation. As the research showed, the administration of liposomal bupivacaine produced successful surgical blockade in around a third of the test subjects, compared to 100 per cent after administration of the conventional form. This suggests that liposomal bupivacaine alone is not sufficient to control pain during surgery." Peter Marhofer, anesthetist As far as longer-lasting post-operative efficacy is concerned, liposomal bupivacaine did lead to a reduction in pain sensitivity in the affected area of the body that lasted for 3.5 days. "However, based on our findings, this effect cannot be regarded as reliable," says Marhofer, "as the effectiveness was unpredictable even within a single test subject and sometimes decreased and increased again several times over time." Further research for safe use As a special form of bupivacaine, which was introduced in 1963, liposomal bupivacaine was developed with the aim of ensuring long-lasting regional pain control. Its mode of action is based on the local blocking of nerve conduction, which prevents pain signals from being transmitted from the anesthetized area to the brain. By prolonging the duration of action, patients should experience less pain after surgery and require fewer opioids, which in turn should reduce the risk of addiction and other undesirable side effects. In medical practice, liposomal bupivacaine is typically used for local anesthesia, particularly in orthopedic surgery. "Our study showed unpredictable effects of liposomal bupivacaine in terms of nerve block and associated pain relief. Based on our findings, the substance cannot currently be recommended for use in pain therapy during and after surgery," emphasizes study principal investigator Markus Zeitlinger. Yoga focused on breathing, meditation, and relaxation is linked with symptom improvement in patients with heart failure, according to research presented today at Heart Failure 2024, a scientific congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC). Patients who practiced yoga on top of taking their medications felt better, were able to do more, and had stronger hearts than those who only took drugs for their heart failure. The findings suggest that yoga can be a beneficial complementary therapy in patients with heart failure." Dr. Ajit Singh, study author of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Manipal Academy of Higher Education, India Heart Failure affects vast numbers of people more than 64 million globally and can have devastating impacts on quality of life, with patients feeling tired and breathless, and being unable to participate in their usual activities. While previous studies have shown the short-term benefits of yoga in patients with heart failure, this study provides new information about the long-term effects. The study enrolled patients aged 30 to 70 years with heart failure from the cardiology outpatient department of Kasturba Hospital in Manipal, India. All participants had undergone a cardiac procedure within the past six months to one year and were taking guideline-recommended heart failure medications. Patients with severe symptoms were excluded. The study included 85 patients. The average age was 49 years and 70 (82%) were men. In a non-randomised fashion, 40 patients were assigned to the yoga group and 45 patients were allocated to the control group. All participants continued taking guideline-recommended heart failure medications throughout the study. Experienced faculty in the hospital's Department of Yoga demonstrated pranayama (yogic breathwork), meditation, and relaxation techniques to patients in the yoga group. Participants were supervised for one week and then advised to continue self-administered yoga at home once a week for 50 minutes. Patients spoke to an instructor after each home session to check progress. At baseline, six months, and one year, the researchers assessed heart structure and function in the yoga and control groups using echocardiography. The measurements included the ability of the heart to pump blood (left ventricular ejection fraction), and assessment of right ventricular function. The researchers also examined blood pressure, heart rate, body weight, and body mass index. Symptom burden and the ability to do ordinary activities such as walking and climbing stairs were assessed using the New York Heart Association classification system. Compared to the control group, the yoga group demonstrated significantly greater improvements in all measurements at six months and one year relative to baseline. Dr. Singh said: "Patients who did yoga had healthier hearts and were more able to carry out ordinary activities such as walking and climbing stairs than those who only took medications. Patients with heart failure should speak to their doctor before starting yoga and should then receive training from an experienced instructor. Prescribed medications should be continued as before. Yoga may be unsuitable for heart failure patients with severe symptoms, who were excluded from our study." 3 dead in road accident in central Philippines 12 Oct 2024 | 8:12 PM Manila, Oct 12 (UNI) A sedan car collided with a trailer truck in Cebu province in central Philippines before dawn on Saturday, killing three and critically injuring another, police said. see more.. 5 killed as boat catches fire off Indonesia's North Maluku 12 Oct 2024 | 7:14 PM Jakarta, Oct 12 (UNI) At least five people have been killed and some others feared dead as a speed boat caught fire in the water off Indonesia's North Maluku province on Saturday, officials said. see more.. Nearly 1 in 2 primary health centers in Lebanon conflict areas closed - WHO 12 Oct 2024 | 5:56 PM Beirut, Oct 12 (UNI) A hundred out of 207 primary health care centers in war-affected regions of Lebanon have been closed while the number of injured continues to rise, World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Saturday. see more.. Over 22K SL displaced due to rain-related incidents 12 Oct 2024 | 5:48 PM Colombo, Oct 12 (UNI) Over 22,000 Sri Lankans have been displaced due to recent rain-related incidents such as floods, strong winds, tree falls and lightnings, according to the country's Disaster Management Center (DMC). see more.. Bengaluru faced another day of heavy rains on Sunday, causing disruptions at Kempegowda International Airport. Nine flights had to be diverted to Chennai due to the bad weather, as reported by Money Control. Among the flights diverted were Akasa Air from Mumbai (QP1341), Vistara from Delhi (UK 807), Air Asia from Guwahati (I5821), Air India from Mumbai (AI 585), and Alliance Air from Goa (9I548). International flights also faced diversions including Thai Lion Air from Bangkok (SL 216), Air France from Paris (AF 194), Thai Airways from Bangkok (TG 325), and KLM from Amsterdam (KL 879). However, operations resumed post midnight at Kempegowda International Airport. Last week, Terminal 2 of Bengaluru airport made headlines due to water leakages and heavy rains in Devanahalli. Light to moderate rains are expected in parts of Bengaluru over the next few days, with a yellow alert issued until today. Commuters continue to face challenges with waterlogging and uprooted trees across the city. As people head to work on Monday, traffic police advise bikers to be cautious on wet roads. Air passengers are urged to stay vigilant for announcements regarding delays, diversions, and cancellations. Indian Stock Market Amid Lok Sabha Elections: Home Minister and senior BJP leader Amit Shah on Monday showed confidence in his party returning to power for the third time in a row and said the Indian stock market will create new records on June 4. The results of the Lok Sabha elections, which are going on in seven phases, will be announced on June 4. On this, Amit Shah in an interview with NDTV said, The market has fallen more in the past as well. Thus, linking market movements directly to elections, is not wise. Maybe the fall was due to some rumours. In my opinion, buy before June 4. The market is going to shoot up. In the month of May so far, the Sensex has declined over 3,000 points or 4 per cent to 71,940 now, as compared with 74,981 on April 30. VIX has also surged to 52-week high of 21, which indicates volatility in the markets. Some analysts are linking it with the likely lower victory margin for NDA in the ongoing general elections. Amit Shah said that due to different reasons, there are ups and downs in the stock market. Please note my point, on June 4, this stock market will once again create new records. Shah explained why he was optimistic about where the Indian stocks markets were heading. Whenever there is a steady government, markets do well. Modiji is coming back as the prime minister for the third time. Thus, my prediction. On the elections, Amit Shah said that in the three phases till now, I expect BJP to win over 190 seats. Thus, we have built a good lead. I am also positive that the fourth phase is going to go very well for us. I expect to gain ground in eastern IndiaBengal, Odisha. Even in North East, we should do better. On Monday, the BSE Sensex declined 656.52 points to 72,007, while the NSE Nifty also dropped 174.15 points to below 21,900. Tata Motors, JSW Steel, Tata Steel, SBI and NTPC were the biggest laggards dragging the domestic equities market. The rupee also opened on a flat note at 83.51 against US dollar. HDFC Bank, Indias largest private sector lender, has reduced its notice period for employees from 90 days to 30 days, according to an FE report. The bank hopes that this change will improve flexibility. This is the second private sector lender to make this change after ICICI Bank in 2020 cut the notice period from 90 days to 30 days. This change in policy aims to provide more flexibility for employees while ensuring smooth transitions, the FE report quoted a senior HDFC Bank official as saying. HDFC Bank employees were informed of the change in the HR policy by email on May 6, according to the report citing sources. According to the latest changes, employees under probation need to serve a 30-day notice period. However, employees, according to the report, employees can even be relieved in less than 30 days if their request is approved by their reporting manager. Currently, Kotak Mahindra Bank has a notice period of 90 days. Public sector lenders like State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank and Bank of Baroda also have the same duration of notice period. The total number of employees at HDFC Bank crossed the 2 lakh mark to reach 208,066 in the third quarter of FY24. In Q4 FY24, HDFC Bank reported a 37.05 per cent jump in its standalone net profit to Rs 16,511.85 crore. Its net interest income (interest earned less interest expended) during the quarter ended March 31, 2024, grew 24.51 per cent to Rs 29,076.82 crore, from Rs 23,351.83 crore a year ago, according to a BSE filing. For the full year 2023-24, Its net profit stood at Rs 60,810 crore, which is 37.9 per cent higher as compared with that in the year-ago period. It also declared a dividend of Rs 19.50 per equity share, or 1,950 per cent, for the financial year 2023-24. This was higher than the Rs 19 dividend announced in the previous year 2022-23 and the Rs 15.5 announced in 2021-22. Indias stock market is experiencing a bout of jitters, with the VIX (Volatility Index) mirroring a similar pattern seen before the 2019 election results. The VIX, often referred to as the fear gauge, has climbed above 20, signalling heightened volatility expectations among investors. According to experts, this rise in market anxiety has echoes of 2019. Back then, the markets had peaked in March and the VIX shot up to 28.6 before the election results. However, theres a key difference this time around. In the lead-up to the 2019 polls, the VIX had been hovering between 20 and 14 for a period of six months, indicating a prolonged period of elevated volatility, said Anand James, chief market strategist at Geojit Financial Services. In contrast, the current surge in the VIX has been much more rapid, he added. In stark contrast, VIXs rise from record lows to above 20 now, has unfolded in just a fortnights time (two weeks), James said. While the historical comparison suggests the VIX could potentially climb further and thereby volatility, the abruptness in the rate of change of the VIX may lead to a cool off, perhaps even before the electoral results, he said. What Is VIX? The VIX, or Volatility Index, is a tool that tries to predict how stormy the market might get in the next 30 days. Its kind of like a weather forecast for investors. A high VIX reading suggests investors expect rough seas ahead, with prices likely to fluctuate more. A low VIX suggests smoother sailing is expected. VIX on Monday surged to a 52-week high of 21, which indicates high volatility in the markets. In May so far, the Sensex has also declined over 3,000 points or 4 per cent to 71,940 now, as compared with 74,981 on April 30. Market analysts are divided on the implications of this volatility. Some believe the current anxieties are justified, given the upcoming elections and potential policy changes. Others point out that the rapid rise in the VIX might be a temporary overreaction, and a correction could be imminent. Addressing the stock market concern, Home Minister and senior BJP leader Amit Shah in the latest interview with NDTV, on Monday said, The market has fallen more in the past as well. Thus, linking market movements directly to elections, is not wise. Maybe the fall was due to some rumours. In my opinion, buy before June 4. The market is going to shoot up. He, however, showed confidence in his party returning to power for the third time in a row and said the Indian stock market will create new records on June 4. The results of the Lok Sabha elections, which are going on in seven phases, will be announced on June 4. He said that due to different reasons, there are ups and downs in the stock market. Please note my point, on June 4, this stock market will once again create new records. Shah explained why he was optimistic about where the Indian stocks markets were heading. Whenever there is a steady government, markets do well. Modiji is coming back as the prime minister for the third time. Thus, my prediction. Implied Volatility & Lok Sabha Elections Apart from VIX (Volatility Index), there is another gauge Implied volatility. While the VIX reflects the expected volatility of the entire Indian stock market, the implied volatility is specific to a particular stock or option contract. It reflects the markets perception of how volatile the price of that specific stock or option is likely to be in the future. According to a recent Reuters report, the implied volatility of a put option with a strike price that is 10 per cent below the current level of the Nifty 50 Index was at 18-20 per cent on the National Stock Exchange. At this time in 2019, the implied volatility was 28-30 per cent, suggesting an investor had to pay much more to protect against an unexpected outcome a BJP loss that year. Implied volatility is a key variable in options pricing. A lower number indicates investors are relatively more confident about the outcome of an event. I think theres a high level of confidence that there will be stability in the Prime Ministers office post the results declaration, Reuters quoted Vikas Pershad, Asian equities portfolio manager at M&G Investments, as saying. The depressed volatility to an extent, reflects complacency about the results. This time, its the least event risk that we have felt in 20 years, Pershad added. The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has announced the results of the much-anticipated Class 12 results today, May 13. Students can now check their marksheets on the official CBSE website results.cbse.nic.in and cbseresults.nic.in. The overall pass percentage recorded this year is 87.98 per cent which is a 0.65 per cent rise from last years 87.33 per cent. CBSE will issue the merit certificate to top 0.1 per cent of students who have scored the highest marks. The Toppers list will not be released to avoid unhealthy competition. CBSE has further stated that it does not award second or third division to students. CBSE Class 12 Results 2024 Live Updates This year, more than 24,000 class 12 students received scores above 95 per cent, while more than 1.16 lakh received scores above 90 per cent. Notably, Girls have yet again surpassed boys, this time around by more than 6.40 per cent with over 91 per cent of girls passing tests. Girls have recorded a pass percentage of 91.52 per cent while the pass percentage among boys is 85.12 per cent. This year, transgenders have recorded a pass percentage of 50 per cent. The percentage for the class 12 CBSE result 2024 has been revealed region-wise. With 99.91 per cent, Trivandrum is the region with the highest per forming students, followed by Vijayawada with 99.04 per cent and Chennai with 98.47 per cent. The CBSE 12th exams were held from February 15 to April 2. A total of over 39 lakh students from India and 26 other countries appeared for the CBSE Class 10 and 12 exams. As per the CBSE passing criteria for Class 12 exams, students need to secure a minimum of 33 per cent marks to pass in a particular subject. This translates to at least 23 marks out of 70 in the Class 12 exams. Last year, over 14 lakh students appeared for the class 12 exams, achieving an overall pass percentage of 87.33 per cent. The pass percentage for female candidates stood at 90.68 per cent, whereas boys achieved a pass percentage of 84.67 per cent. CBSE Class 12 Results 2024: How To Check Step 1: Open the official website of CBSE i.e. cbse.nic.in. Step 2: Locate and click on the CBSE 12th Result 2024 link on the homepage. Step 3: Enter the required information such as your roll number and registration number. Then, click on submit. Step 4: Your CBSE 12th mark sheet will appear on the screen. Step 5: Check carefully and download the result. Step 6: Be sure to print out the mark sheet for future reference. Students can check the result via SMS as well. Just send a message cbse12 (your roll number) (your date of birth in DDMMYYYY format) (your school number) (your centre number) to 7738299899. Stay ahead with all the exam results updates on News18 Website. Summer vacation 2024 has been announced in all government and government-aided schools in Delhi. A heat wave is currently occurring in the majority of North Indian states, including Delhi NCR. Under such circumstances, school timings have been changed in most states, and summer vacation has also been declared to protect the health of school children. School students in Delhi will have their summer vacation for 51 days, starting from Saturday, May 11, to Sunday, June 30, 2024. The teacher must report to work for two days on June 28 and 29, 2024, for necessary school-related purposes. The order to close schools in Delhi has come only for government and government-aided schools. This indicates that private school students will have to wait for summer vacation for now. According to the academic calendar of the Delhi Education Directorate, there will be summer vacations from May 11 to June 30 in all government and government-aided schools. However, private schools will announce their summer vacations on different dates. At present, summer holidays have not been declared in private schools in Delhi. It is believed that the vacation will be announced in all private schools in Delhi between May 15 and 21, 2024. Private school students have to wait for the notice. Considering the weather, it is estimated that holidays will be declared in all schools by next week. Students studying in NCR schools adjacent to Delhi are also waiting for summer break. In Noida, Ghaziabad, and Gurugram, schools can be closed at any time after May 15. While summer vacation will be declared in Noida, Greater Noida, and Ghaziabad as per the orders of the UP government, schools in Gurugram and Faridabad will be closed as per the orders of the Haryana government. Stay ahead with all the exam results updates on News18 Website. The University Grants Commissions (UGC) anti-ragging helpline answers around 300 calls daily, of which three to four, on an average, are ragging complaints that could be of serious nature, according to data compiled by the team that handles the calls. UGC, the higher education regulator, runs a 247 anti-ragging helpline (1800-180-5522), a confidential service that allow students from across India to turn up for help at any time of the day to report incidents of ragging or seek guidance. According to the UGCs anti-ragging cell, a vast majority of calls (300 on an average daily) are general, including enquiries on filing affidavits (downloading, purpose, verification), university compliance forms (login details, updates) and other helpline regulations and procedures, while the ragging complaints (3-4 on average per day) received by it can be very serious and pertain to issues ranging from mental, sexual harassment to physical abuse. UGC chairperson Prof M Jagadesh Kumar said the ragging complaints mostly have students or representatives enquire about how to register a complaint, check on complaint status and tracking procedures as well as seeking guidance on the anti-ragging committee report format. Most ragging complaints reported on the helpline, he said, include issues faced by new students such as mental harassment (abusive language, name-calling, false accusations, body shaming, and threats related to attendance or grades); physical abuse (some calls involve reports of physical violence, including beatings); social ostracism (being forced to do unnecessary tasks or being excluded from social activities); sexual harassment (any unwelcome sexual advances, comments, or physical contact); extortion (demanding money or valuables from new students; verbal abuse (insults, derogatory language, and other forms of verbal aggression are unacceptable); and substance abuse (being pressured to smoke, drink, or use other substances). 1,240 RAGGING INCIDENTS REPORTED SINCE JAN 1, 2023 The anti-ragging helpline and cell were set up by the UGC on June 20, 2009, after an apex court order. In December 2023, the UGC issued a notification as a reminder asking higher educational institutions to implement anti-ragging mechanisms on their campuses. This came in the wake of the death of a first-year student at Jadavpur University on August 9, who was subjected to intense ragging, including sexual abuse on campus. The anti-ragging cell and helpline lends crucial support to students with a dedicated team of eight-nine members who handle calls in three shifts, around-the-clock, throughout the year. Between January 1, 2023, and April 28, 2024, a total of 1,240 ragging incidents were reported on the helpline, of which 1,113 (89.7%) have been resolved, while it is working to address the 127 active complaints (10.24%), according to UGC data. Of the incidents 82.18% included male students, 17.74% female and 0.08% transgender. The accessible and confidential helpline empowers students to report ragging incidents without fear of retribution. This allows for swift intervention and ensure students safety. The robust monitoring system sends a clear message to institutions that ragging will not be tolerated, creating a deterrent effect discouraging potential incidents, said Kumar. HOW DOES THE HELPLINE WORK? As per the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP), the helpline forwards each complaint to the nearest police station and the citys Superintendent of Police (SP) or Commissioner of Police (CP). The helpline forwards the complaint to four higher authorities within 15 minutes to 24 hours of the complaint being registered. These authorities include college (principal/director); university (vice-chancellor/registrar); nearest police station; city SP/CP. The helpline follows up on cases every day. On an average, 50% of complaints are resolved within a week, while 30% of complaints are resolved in a maximum of 15 working days. These might involve complexities requiring more investigation. The rest of 20% complaints are resolved in 40 days. These are typically the most serious cases that may necessitate police involvement, reinvestigation by the institution, or additional enquiries, said Kumar. Also, he added, the helpline closes every ragging complaint upon ensuring the victims satisfaction. In case of victims being dissatisfied by the institutions action-taken report, the helpline seeks reinvestigation reports from the college/university. It also ensures that the victim can get their complaint reactive if they again face ragging, however, there are very few cases where a victim may have to reactivate once the complaint has been resolved. Stay ahead with all the exam results updates on News18 Website. The Arambagh (SC) Lok Sabha constituency is one of 42 parliamentary constituencies in West Bengal. The seat is reserved for Scheduled Caste candidates and comprises parts of Hooghly and Paschim Medinipur districts. Seven Assembly segments fall under the Arambagh (SC) Lok Sabha seat, of which the BJP currently holds four (Pursurah, Arambagh-SC, Goghat-SC and Khanakul) and the Trinamool Congress holds three (Haripal, Tarakeswar, Chandrakona-SC). Polling Date May 20, 2024; Phase 5 Sitting MP Aparupa Poddar (Afrin Ali) (TMC) Candidates Mitali Bag (TMC), Anup Kanti Digar (BJP), Biplab Maitra (CPM) Political Dynamics Overview: The Arambagh (SC) constituency is an erstwhile red bastion in West Bengals Hooghly district and is a political hotspot in terms of law-and-order volatility. The Arambagh (SC) constituency is an erstwhile red bastion in West Bengals Hooghly district and is a political hotspot in terms of law-and-order volatility. The TMCs decision to contest independently in the state, rather than as part of the INDIA bloc, has led to a three-way contest, with the other contenders being the BJP and the Congress-Left alliance. Its a neck-and-neck fight between the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party here at the moment. Interestingly, this is the first Lok Sabha election for both their candidates. Arambagh is known to be a microcosm of the entire southern part of West Bengal. The trends here can largely reflect on the TMCs poll fortunes in the other so-called safe seats of the party south of the Farakka barrage. The CPI(M), meanwhile, is buoyed by the falling vote share of the TMC in Arambagh and hopes to corner anti-BJP votes here. TMC: West Bengals ruling party may have won the 2014 and 2019 editions of parliamentary polls in Arambagh, but the partys steady decline in vote share over the last two editions point to an upcoming battle with the BJP which Mamata Banerjees party may find tougher to tide past. West Bengals ruling party may have won the 2014 and 2019 editions of parliamentary polls in Arambagh, but the partys steady decline in vote share over the last two editions point to an upcoming battle with the BJP which Mamata Banerjees party may find tougher to tide past. In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, TMC candidate Aparupa Poddar (Afrin Ali) had polled 54.94% of the votes to beat nearest rival, CPMs Sakti Mohan Malik, by 3,46,845 votes. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Poddar had polled 44.14% votes to survive a spirited challenge from BJPs Tapan Kumar Roy. The TMCs victory margin had plummeted drastically to 1,142 votes. Not wanting to risk the seat by fielding Aparupa Poddar again, the TMC has replaced the two-time MP with Hooghly Zilla Parishad member Mitali Bag. The BJP claims switching out the sitting MP is a sign that all is not well within the TMC. This is Bags debut in parliamentary polls. During campaigning, she has been passionately countering BJP allegations of neglecting the constituency. Bag claims that women and youth of the constituency have benefitted from various schemes implemented in the state by the Mamata Banerjee government. Bag has alleged that BJP-backed goons vandalised her parked car during campaigning on May 5. She alleged that the mob tried to attack her and her team as well. The Arambagh BJP leadership denied the allegations. BJP: The saffron party has sensed a realistic shot at victory in Arambagh this time given that it had trumped the TMC in four of Arambaghs six Assembly seats in Hooghly in the 2021 Assembly elections. The saffron party has sensed a realistic shot at victory in Arambagh this time given that it had trumped the TMC in four of Arambaghs six Assembly seats in Hooghly in the 2021 Assembly elections. Its vote share has also been going up in successive elections. In 2014, the party stood third at the hustings, with 11.63% of the vote share. In the 2019 elections, however, its vote share shot up to 44.06% and its candidate Tapan Kumar Roy lost by a razor thin margin of 1,142 votes. Thats perhaps why Prime Minister Narendra Modi chose Arambagh to kick start his 2024 poll campaign in West Bengal and addressed one of the election seasons first public meetings on March 1 from where he slammed the Mamata Banerjee government for betraying the people of the state. The BJP has this time nominated Arup Kanti Digar, a first timer, from the Arambagh seat. Digar has made the plight of farmers and recurrent floods his main election plank. Citing floods as a routine affair in places like Pursura, Goghat, Khanakul and Chandrakona during July-August every year, he has accused the TMC government of grossly mis utilising central funds to undertake measures like dredging of water bodies and building barrages. He has also accused the state government of discriminating against the area by neglecting the creation of employment opportunities for youth. Youth, in fact, make up majority of the BJPs support base in Arambagh. The BJP candidate has further accused panchayats of withholding disbursal of central funds for several welfare schemes of the Narendra Modi government among the poor in the area. CPI(M): Arambagh was an impenetrable CPM fortress between 1980 and 2014. Eight of these 10 victories were clinched on the trot (1984-2004) by Anil Basu. Arambagh was an impenetrable CPM fortress between 1980 and 2014. Eight of these 10 victories were clinched on the trot (1984-2004) by Anil Basu. This red bastion was, however, breached by the TMC in 2014 and retained in 2019. Hoping to wrest it back from Mamata Banerjee, the CPI(M) has fielded Biplab Maitra, a primary school teacher, from Arambagh this time. The CPI(M)s district units have alleged that the party was virtually wiped out from the seat over the last decade on account of terror unleashed by the TMC. The Left party bagged 1,00,520 votes in 2019, which was less than 7% of the votes polled. This time, however, the situation is different, say its local leaders. They claim the unemployed graduates of the constituency are upset with the TMC for not only failing in industrialization but also turning the states education sector into a mess with job scams. According to political observers, till a few months ago Bengal seemed to be a TMC vs BJP bipolar affair. But with issues like corruption and Sandeshkhali gaining prominence, the Left-Congress alliance is fast gaining traction in several seats and turning the polls into a three-cornered contest in at least 18-20 Lok Sabha segments, including Arambagh. BJP Has the Edge: Election observers are of the opinion that the fight between the TMC and BJP is likely to go down to the wire this time, but the going may be tougher for the former. Election observers are of the opinion that the fight between the TMC and BJP is likely to go down to the wire this time, but the going may be tougher for the former. The Trinamool Congress may have to contend with grassroot grievances on development, recurrent flooding and the school recruitment scam. School Recruitment Scam: The school job recruitment scam is likely to have a pro-BJP impact in the constituency since a sizeable number of young teaching job aspirants hail from Arambagh in particular and Hooghly district in general. The school job recruitment scam is likely to have a pro-BJP impact in the constituency since a sizeable number of young teaching job aspirants hail from Arambagh in particular and Hooghly district in general. The Calcutta High Court had on April 22 invalidated the appointment of 25,753 teachers and non-teaching staff in state-run and state-aided schools of West Bengal. The state government challenged the Calcutta High Court order, saying it cancelled the appointments arbitrarily. On May 7, the Supreme Court termed the alleged recruitment scam as systemic fraud and said authorities were duty-bound to maintain the digitised records pertaining to the appointment of the teachers and non-teaching staff. Though the top court stayed the Calcutta High Court verdict of invalidating the appointments, the ordeal has helped bolster the BJPs allegations of corruption and job stagnation against the TMC government. Women With Didi: Political observers say there is a strong undercurrent of support for Mamata Banerjee among women in Arambagh. Political observers say there is a strong undercurrent of support for Mamata Banerjee among women in Arambagh. The state governments Lakshmir Bhandar Scheme launched in February 2021 to provide financial assistance to women between the ages of 25 and 60 has been much appreciated in Arambagh. Women who are eligible for the scheme receive a monthly amount of Rs 1,000 if they are the head of a household and belong to the SC or ST category, or Rs 500 if they are the head of a household and belong to another category. Arambagh is an SC-majority seat. It needs to be seen if Mamata Banerjees social welfare schemes can tilt the balance in her favour. Not Much Sandeshkhali Impact: Sources say that while allegations of land grabbing and sexual abuse against TMC leaders is talked about in Arambagh, it may not have much impact electorally even among women voters. Key Constituency Issues Lack of Development: Youth in Arambagh are said to be disillusioned with the ruling TMC over the lack of job creation and development in the constituency. Youth in Arambagh are said to be disillusioned with the ruling TMC over the lack of job creation and development in the constituency. Many of them are veering towards the BJP which has promised job and wealth creation in the region. Allegations of corruption have also tarnished the TMCs image here. Recurrent Floods: Arambagh is home to vast swathes of agrarian land and comprises mostly rural Assembly pockets like Haripal, Tarakeswar, Pursurah, Arambagh, Goghat, Khanakul. Arambagh is home to vast swathes of agrarian land and comprises mostly rural Assembly pockets like Haripal, Tarakeswar, Pursurah, Arambagh, Goghat, Khanakul. It also includes Chandrakona, the only assembly segment falling in the neighbouring district of Paschim Medinipur. Recurrent floods every monsoon is one of the key election issues in all these areas. The BJP has alleged that the TMC government has grossly misutilised central funds to undertake measures like dredging of water bodies and building barrages while offering no more than lip service to the Ghatal master plan to control flood damages in neighbouring Paschim Medinipur. The TMC, meanwhile, has blamed the Ghatal master plan delay on the BJP-led Centre. Ghatal Master Plan: The Rs 1,500-crore Ghatal Master Plan is a mega project that entails dredging of riverbeds and strengthening of embankments of 10 major rivers including Rupnarayan, Shilabati and Kansabati, which get swollen during monsoon causing deluges. The Rs 1,500-crore Ghatal Master Plan is a mega project that entails dredging of riverbeds and strengthening of embankments of 10 major rivers including Rupnarayan, Shilabati and Kansabati, which get swollen during monsoon causing deluges. Ghatal is a low-lying riverine area in Paschim Medinipur district that gets affected by floods almost every year. In 1979, the Irrigation Department of the erstwhile Left Front government had approved the Ghatal Master Plan to save the people of the region from floods. West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee has alleged that the BJP-led central government is delaying providing clearances to the flood prevention plan that will benefit 17 lakh people. She announced in February this year that her government would implement the Ghatal Master Plan without any help from the central government. The TMC supremo said it would require a budget of Rs 1,250 crore. Keleghai Flood Control Project: The Keleghai flood project includes fortifying embankments and spurs to protect infrastructure and help riverbank communities thrive. The Keleghai flood project includes fortifying embankments and spurs to protect infrastructure and help riverbank communities thrive. As per reports, the West Bengal government has submitted a detailed project report to the central government for dredging the rivers and repairing embankments, but has not received a response. The project is crucial to the Keleghai basin which is prone to flooding. Voter Demographics Social composition SC 23.65% ST 5.73% Religious composition Buddhist 0.03% Christian 0.17% Jain 0.04% Muslim 15.03% Sikh 0.05% Major Infra Projects in Arambagh Road Widening: The Champadanga-Pursura-Arambagh project is a 16.326-km stretch of road that is being widened to four lanes. The Champadanga-Pursura-Arambagh project is a 16.326-km stretch of road that is being widened to four lanes. The project is being carried out by the West Bengal Highway Development Corporation (WBHDC) on an engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) basis. The project is located in the Hooghly district and excludes the Muthadanga bypass. New Bridge: Krishak Setu is a river bridge on the Burdwan-Arambagh Road (SH-7). Krishak Setu is a river bridge on the Burdwan-Arambagh Road (SH-7). In February 2024, the state budget proposed the construction of a new 640-meter, 4-lane bridge called Shilpa Setu, which will run parallel to Krishak Setu over the Damodar River. Paschim Medinipur Projects: In November 2022, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari inaugurated and laid the foundation stone for 4 NH projects worth Rs 5351 crore in West Medinipur. The Arambagh constituency comprises part of the Paschim Medinipur district. In November 2022, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari inaugurated and laid the foundation stone for 4 NH projects worth Rs 5351 crore in West Medinipur. The Arambagh constituency comprises part of the Paschim Medinipur district. The projects include the construction of 55km Kharagpur to Chichra 4-lane road stretch at the total cost of Rs 613 crore and construction of 162km Panagarh to Dankuni (NH-2) 6-lane road stretch at the total cost of Rs 4,215 crore. Tarakeswar-Bishnupur Project: The Tarakeswar-Bishnupur new line project is an 82.47km railway line project that was sanctioned in 2000-01 and is estimated to cost Rs 479.20 crore. The project includes the Goghat-Kamarpukur stretch and the Tarakeswar end to Goghat and the Bishnupur end to Maynapur. Goghat and Tarakeswar are Assembly segments within the Arambagh Lok Sabha seat. The Tarakeswar-Bishnupur new line project is an 82.47km railway line project that was sanctioned in 2000-01 and is estimated to cost Rs 479.20 crore. The project includes the Goghat-Kamarpukur stretch and the Tarakeswar end to Goghat and the Bishnupur end to Maynapur. Goghat and Tarakeswar are Assembly segments within the Arambagh Lok Sabha seat. 4-Lane Raniganj Bypass: In February last year, Nitin Gadkari approved Rs 410.83 crore for the construction of a 4-lane Raniganj Bypass with a length of 5.261km on NH-14 (old NH-60) in Paschim Bardhaman district. In February last year, Nitin Gadkari approved Rs 410.83 crore for the construction of a 4-lane Raniganj Bypass with a length of 5.261km on NH-14 (old NH-60) in Paschim Bardhaman district. It connects many important Industrial, religious and agricultural areas, including Chandrakona Road which falls in the Arambagh Lok Sabha constituency. Explore in-depth coverage of voting in Telangana , Odisha , and Andhra Pradesh during Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 4 polling. Madhavi Latha, the BJP candidate contesting from Hyderabad in the Lok Sabha elections, on Monday said 90 per cent of the polling booths in the constituency are compromised. This is after she landed in a controversy when a video of her purportedly checking voter IDs of burqa-clad Muslim women at a polling booth, went viral on social media. Soon after the incident, amid polling in the fourth phase, she was booked by election authorities. She was also spotted telling the policemen to allow voters into polling booths only after a thorough check. 90% of the booths are compromised. Police do not want to instruct female constables to check the face with the voter ID. When I asked the police officer, he said its not his responsibility she told news agency ANI. #WATCH | Telangana: BJP candidate from Hyderabad Lok Sabha constituency, Madhavi Latha says, "90% of booths are compromised. Police do not want to instruct female constables to check the face with the voter ID. When I asked the police officer, he said it's not his pic.twitter.com/zHaKmccCol ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024 Madhavi is facing AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi and Gaddam Srinivas Yadav of the BRS in the high-profile Hyderabad seat. In the viral video, she was seen asking the women voters to lift the burqa and show their face so that she could verify the identity at a polling booth in Azampur. #WATCH | Telangana: BJP candidate from Hyderabad Lok Sabha constituency, Madhavi Latha visits a polling booth in the constituency. Voting for the fourth phase of #LokSabhaElections2024 is underway. pic.twitter.com/BlsQXRn80C ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024 The BJP candidate said she had only requested the women to verify their identity and there was nothing wrong with that. I am a candidate. As per law, a candidate has the right to check the ID cards without the facemasks. I am not a man, I am a woman and with a lot of humbleness, I have only requested them can I please see and verify with the ID cards? If somebody wants to make a big issue out of it, that means they are scared, she said. A case was registered against her in Malakpet police station under sections 171C, 186, 505(1)(c) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 132 of the Representation of the People Act. Section 171C deals with interference or attempts to interfere with the free exercise of any electoral right. Section 186 is related to voluntarily obstructing any public servant in the discharge of public function, while 505 is applied for inciting or likely to incite, any class or community of persons to commit any offence against any other class or community. Congress attacks BJP Reacting to the controversy, Telangana chief minister A Revanth Reddy accused the BJP of trying to polarise the Muslim votes and said such actions by the saffron party will only help Owaisi win from Hyderabad. I have not seen (the video) but BJP is simply trying to polarise Muslim votes to win but all these issues are going to help Asaduddin Owaisi. It is not going to benefit BJP, he said, when asked about the video. (With PTI inputs) Explore in-depth coverage of voting in Telangana , Odisha , and Andhra Pradesh during Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 4 polling. The Opposition should at least listen to Pakistans grudging acceptance of surgical strikes by India if it doesnt trust the countrys forces and the Centre on the move, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday in an exclusive interview with Network18. Speaking to Amish Devgan, Managing Editor News18 UP, PM Modi said: Congress has intense hatred for the defence forces of the country. If you remember, they had once referred to then then army chief as Gali ka Goonda. What else can you expect from someone who holds such views about the army? The prime minister added: Even Pakistan does not say that surgical strikes did not happen. Pakistans leaders have said in their Parliament that India is conducting air strikes, surgical strikes but they are sitting idle. If they [Congress] dont trust us or the security forces of the country, they can at least listen to what their friend Pakistan has to say. Indias surgical strikes found their way back to the electoral discourse when Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy raised doubts over the Indian Air Forces action in Pakistans Balakot after the Pulwama attack in February 2019, saying nobody knew if it had taken place. For Modi, everything is politics, everything is about winning elections. So, Modis thinking is not right for the country. So, the country needs to be without BJP, without Modi now. They answer everything with Jai Sri Ram. Pulwama incident is a classic example. They have failed. What is the IB doing? What is the Intelligence network doing? Modi ji attempted political benefit from the surgical strike after Pulwama incident, Reddy said. His remarks saw a sharp retort from the BJP. In their (Congresss) attempt to oppose Modi, the Congress party is questioning the bravery of the military and putting India under question on the issue of terrorism by giving clean chit to Pakistan. They are giving them a way to protect themselves at international forums from the allegations of terrorism. This is the real intention of Congress and hence they are getting support from Pakistan, BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said. On several occasions, PM Modi has spoken about his governments approach of Ghar Mein Ghus Ke Maara in his election rallies. This call from the Narendra Modi-led BJP worked wonders for the party in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, after people gave a resounding thumbs-up to Indias twin surgical strikes in Pakistan in 2016 and 2019. Explore in-depth coverage of voting in Telangana , Odisha , and Andhra Pradesh during Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 4 polling. Death toll from Israeli attacks in Lebanon reaches 2,255 12 Oct 2024 | 10:04 PM Beirut/Jerusalem, Oct 12 (UNI) The death toll from Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon since the beginning of the Hezbollah-Israeli conflict on Oct. 8, 2023, reached 2,255, with injuries totaling 10,524, said the Lebanese health ministry on Saturday. see more.. Four dead in gas tank blast in Russia's Chechnya 12 Oct 2024 | 10:01 PM Moscow, Oct 12 (UNI)Four people, including two children, were killed on Saturday in a gas tank explosion at a gas station in the city of Grozny in Russia's Chechnya, the local office of the Russian Emergencies Ministry said. see more.. Egypt supports Palestinian Authority, rejects plans to displace Palestinians: FM 12 Oct 2024 | 8:14 PM Cairo, Oct 12 (UNI) Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty on Saturday reiterated "Egypt's firm support for the Palestinian Authority and rejection of any plans to displace the Palestinians from their land." Abdelatty made the remarks during his meeting with a visiting delegation of the Palestinian National Liberation Movement (Fatah), according to a statement from his ministry. see more.. 3 dead in road accident in central Philippines 12 Oct 2024 | 8:12 PM Manila, Oct 12 (UNI) A sedan car collided with a trailer truck in Cebu province in central Philippines before dawn on Saturday, killing three and critically injuring another, police said. see more.. Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) leader Supriya Sule on Monday alleged that the CCTV cameras at the strongroom where EVMs were stored for the Baramati Lok Sabha Constituency, were not working for more than 40 minutes. Sule, who is the NCPSP candidate from one of Maharashtras most high-profile seats Baramati, demanded an explanation from the Election Commission of India (ECI) about the condition of the CCTVs and called the episode suspicious. In a long X post tagging ECI, Sule said that it was suspicious that CCTV cameras of the place where something as pertinent as EVMs are kept are not working for almost 45 minutes adding that the polling commission gave no satisfactory answers. After the polling of Baramati Lok Sabha Constituency, the CCTV in Godown where the EVMs are kept was switched off for 45 minutes this morning. It is suspicious that the CCTV is switched off where a very important thing like EVM is kept. Also, this is a big laxity. No satisfactory answers were received when the election representatives contacted the concerned authorities and administration. Apart from this, the technician is also not available at the said place, the post read. Also, our representatives are not allowed to inspect the EVM status. This is very serious. The Election Commission should immediately take notice of this and announce the reasons why the CCTV was closed. Apart from this, appropriate action should be taken against those responsible for the incident, the translation of the post, originally curated in Marathi, further read. Election Commission Responds to Sules Allegations The election authorities, however, clarified that a cable of the cameras had to be removed for a short period during some electrical work on the premises in the morning. The CCTVs were turned off between 10.30 am and 11.15 am at the Food Corporation of Indias godown, where the EVMs from the constituency are stored, said Laxmikant Khabiya, the election representative of Baramati candidate Supriya Sule. Election officials told us that the CCTVs will function round the clock. Our party representatives are deployed to keep a watch. On Monday, we received an alert that the CCTVs were turned off for nearly 45 minutes. We tried to raise the issue with the police. The administration has come up with a clarification, but we will submit an application to the returning officer of Baramati, Khabiya said. Meanwhile, Baramati returning officer Kavita Dwivedi said the partys claim was investigated, and it was found that an electrician at the godown had removed a cable, which caused the display unit to be shut down. All cameras in the premises were functional, and the data was intact, she said. Explore in-depth coverage of voting in Telangana , Odisha , and Andhra Pradesh during Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 4 polling. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday gave himself the moniker Gaali-proof as he shared that he was not rattled by the Oppositions personal attacks on him. Responding to a question by Amish Devgan, Managing Editor, New18 UP, the prime minister said: We are kaamdaar, they are naamdaar. Kaamdars like us have grown up hearing abuses since childhood. We dont take these things personally. In a lighter vein, the prime minister added: I have become Gaali-proof in a way. When people ask me the source of my energy, I say jokingly that I eat two kilograms of abuses every day and that is where I get my energy from. Explaining how he turns around negative remarks, PM Modi said: There is an old poem, the gist of which was that I take the stones that people throw at me and use them to build a path and move forward. Secondly, jitna who keechad ucchalenge, kamal utna hi zyaada khilega [The more muck they throw our way, the more the lotus will bloom]. Earlier, in an interview with Network 18 Group Editor-in-Chief Rahul Joshi, the prime minister had said he was ashamed of the level of discourse. That means whatever abuses you are hurling, you are hurling them at the prime minister. To say things like we will bash the prime ministers head or abuse my mother I am shocked that even the president of India was insulted. I am ashamed of this. He had asserted that he was going forward with a positive attitude and had left the responsibility on the media and voters to deal with people (hurling abuses) as they deem fit. The BJP has often turned around the Oppositions barbs at the prime minister into opportunities to reach out to voters and touch a chord with them. For instance, when Rashtriya Janata Dal supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav mocked the prime minister by saying he did not have a family, PM Modi retaliated with 140 crore people of India are my family. Following this, all BJP leaders added Modi Ka Parivar after their names on social media platform X. Ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, then Congress president Rahul Gandhi had raised the Chowkidar Chor Hain slogan, alleging irregularities in the Rafale aircraft deal. Subsequently, all the BJP leaders added Main bhi chowkidar after their usernames on X (formerly Twitter). Explore in-depth coverage of voting in Telangana , Odisha , and Andhra Pradesh during Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 4 polling. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday held a 6-km roadshow in his constituency Varanasi, from where he is contesting the Lok Sabha elections, amid the fourth phase of polling across India. He will be filing his nomination from the seat in Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday (May 14). Taking to X, the prime minister said Kashi is special because of the unbelievable warmth and affection of the people. Kashi is special The warmth and affection of the people here is unbelievable! https://t.co/Al6lu5mOJI Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 13, 2024 Prime Minister Modi is seeking a third consecutive term from Varanasi, which will go to polls on June 1 in the seventh and final phase. He garlanded a statue of educationist and social reformer Madan Mohan Malviya at the Malviya Chauraha in the Lanka area before beginning the roadshow. He was accompanied by Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath. #WATCH | Uttar Pradesh: Prime Minister Narendra Modi pays tribute to Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya's statue in Varanasi, ahead of his roadshow. PM Modi is the sitting MP and candidate from Varanasi. He will file his nomination for the #LokSabhaElections2024 tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/MjmHPDhkKX ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024 The roadshow started from Malviya Chauraha in Lanka to Shri Kashi Vishwanath Dham. It will be passing through Sant Ravidas Gate, Assi, Shivala, Sonarpura, Jangambadi, Godaulia. According to BJP sources, the PM will be staying the night at the BLW guesthouse. He will reach the guesthouse from Vishwanath Dham after his convoy is passes through Maidagin Chauraha, Kabirchaura, Lahurabir, Teliabagh Tiraha, Chowkaghat Chauraha, Lakdi Mandi, Cantt Overbridge, Lahartara Chauraha, Manduwadih Chauraha and Kakarmatta Overbridge areas. Office-bearers of the BJP said people from different communities, including Marathi, Gujarati, Bengali, Maheshwari, Marwari, Tamil and Punjabi, welcomed PM Modi at 100 points in 11 zones during the roadshow. He was welcomed with the blowing of conches and beats of dhols and damrus. #WATCH | Uttar Pradesh: BJP workers & supporters gather in huge numbers in Varanasi to welcome Prime Minister Narendra Modi. PM Narendra Modi will hold a roadshow today and file his nomination from Varanasi tomorrow for #LokSabhaElections2024 pic.twitter.com/R7xo5ovu4b ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024 Cutouts of famous people of Kashi have been installed along the route of the roadshow. Modi will also go to seek the blessings from Baba Vishwanath, while sources said he will also be taking a dip in the Ganga. (With PTI inputs) Explore in-depth coverage of voting in Telangana , Odisha , and Andhra Pradesh during Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 4 polling. A special Shehnai rendition, folk music, ode to Kashis celebrities and much more as Prime Minister Narendra Modi gears up to file his nomination for the 2024 Lok Sabha Elections on May 14, his five-kilometre-long roadshow a day before on Monday will present a glimpse of Mini India and the culture of Uttar Pradesh. The prime minister will file his nomination at 11.40am on Tuesday, which is considered an auspicious period as it falls under the Abhijit Mahurat and Anand Yog as per Hindu Panchang. The grand plans to welcome PM Modi to Apni Kashi include Shehnai rendition by family members of Bharat Ratna Ustad Bismillah Khan near Madanpura. The Muslim community will shower flowers on the prime minister under the leadership of former MP Rajesh Mishra. A picture of the PM Modi touching his mothers feet will also be seen in the road show. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, other chief ministers, ministers and prominent people of many states are likely to be a part of the nomination process. PM Modis roadshow will start with the garlanding of the statue of Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya at Singh Gate of Banaras Hindu University (BHU) on Monday evening and will prepare the roadmap for the development journey of Kashi in five years. It will end at Shri Kashi Vishwanath Temple, with PM Modi seeking blessings from Baba Vishwanath. Old and new pictures of Varanasis development will be seen along the route of the roadshow apart from pictures of Kashis celebrities whose place of work or birthplace has been the historic city. These will include Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya, Bismillah Khan, Pandit Kishan Maharaj, Tulsidas, Kabir Das, and Sant Ravidas among others. More than 5,000 Matrishakti will be involved in the road show along with sportspersons as the prime minister will seek votes for himself in a departure from canvassing for others. PM Modi has sent door-to-door invitations to Kashi residents to attend his roadshow. As part of the BJPs strategy to make the roadshow a raging success, the five-kilometre journey will prepare a roadmap for the development journey of Kashi in five years. Under 11 beats, 10 points each i.e. about 100 points have been made on which people from Marathi, Gujarati, Bengali, Maheshwari, Marwari, Tamil, Punjabi etc. communities will welcome PM Modi in traditional attire Along with this, cultural programmes will be held at various places, while artists from Banaras will perform folk dance and music and chant Vedic mantras. With the new pictures of Kashis development, the old pictures will also be seen at some places on the route, including of Kashi Vishwanath Temple, the railway station etc. The new work done in the city, including Rudraksh Convention Centre and cancer hospital, will be showcased. After the roadshow, the prime minister will visit Shri Kashi Vishwanath Temple and seek blessings for the historic victory of BJP. A meeting with intellectuals is also proposed at night. PM Modi will file his nomination on May 14 after darshan of Kashi Kotwal Baba Kaal Bhairav. He may also meet workers at the Rudraksha Convention Centre. Explore in-depth coverage of voting in Telangana , Odisha , and Andhra Pradesh during Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 4 polling. Srinagar polling center on Monday registered a record 36.58% voter turnout by 8 pm, marking a historic high for which Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha congratulated the people and all stakeholders in the parliamentary constituency. Voters of Srinagar, Budgam, Ganderbal, Pulwama, and Shopian showed up in record numbers to cast their votes in a show of faith and enthusiasm in the election process, the Election Commission of India (ECI) said in a press note. This was the first general election in the valley after the abrogation of Article 370 and the enaction of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019. There are 24 candidates in the fray as compared to 12 in the 2019 general election, the ECI added. Would especially like to applaud the people of Srinagar Parliamentary constituency for the encouraging turnout, significantly better than before. The abrogation of Article 370 has enabled the potential and aspirations of the people to find full expression. Happening at the grassroots level, it is great for the people of J&K, in particular the youth, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a post on X. Would especially like to applaud the people of Srinagar Parliamentary constituency for the encouraging turnout, significantly better than before. The abrogation of Article 370 has enabled the potential and aspirations of the people to find full expression. Happening at the https://t.co/2DvSCnXFKR Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 13, 2024 It is heartening In a post on X, the Lt Governor said: Today, people came out in large numbers to cast their votes in Srinagar Parliamentary Constituency and reaffirmed their faith in democracy and the constitution. I commend the hard work by all the stakeholders for free, fair, peaceful and smooth conduct of the polling. Returning Officer for Srinagar, Bilal Mohiuddin Bhat, said there were no reports of zero voting from 2,135 polling stations across the constituency. Notably, in the past many polling stations would record zero turnout. It is heartening to see the huge surge in voting percentage in the biggest festival of democracy. I truly appreciate the enthusiasm of electors and hopeful to see historic turnout in the next two phases. I appeal to all to vote without fear and vote with responsibility and pride, Lt Governor Sinha said. Today, people came out in large numbers to cast their votes in Srinagar Parliamentary Constituency and reaffirmed their faith in democracy and the constitution. I commend the hard work by all the stakeholders for free, fair, peaceful and smooth conduct of the polling. Office of LG J&K (@OfficeOfLGJandK) May 13, 2024 Biggest endorsement BJP IT cell chief Amit Malviya lauded the record turnout as the biggest endorsement for a flourishing democracy in Kashmir, post abrogation of Art 370. Polling percent in the prestigious Srinagar LS seat has jumped significantly in 2024 GE to 36.88% (still updating). Figures for: 2019 GE 14.43% 2014 GE 25.86%. Another campaign of calumny bites dust, Malviya said in a post on the microblogging website X. The fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections today saw a voter turnout of 62.9% till 8 pm in 96 constituencies spread over 10 States and union territories. As many as 1,717 candidates were in fray in this phase and 17.7 crore electors were eligible to exercise their franchise. So far, the voting process in 23 States and union territories and 379 seats has been completed. Explore in-depth coverage of voting in Telangana , Odisha , and Andhra Pradesh during Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 4 polling. Comedian Bharti Singh recently faced a health scare and was admitted to Kokilaben Hospital in Mumbai. She initially ignored her severe stomach pain, but later she was diagnosed with stones in her gallbladder. The comedian was admitted for a couple of days. Now, after a successful surgery, Bharti Singh is back. In an emotional video on her YouTube channel, LOL (Life of Limbachiyaas), she opened up about being terrified before the surgery and couldnt stay away from her son, Golla. The comedian said, My operation is done, I am very happy. I am not as scared as I was. I was very scared, cried a lot seeing the operation theatre, but after that, the doctors were so good. I dont know when my eyes closed and I regained consciousness. The operation was done around 3:30 or 4 in the afternoon, and I came to the room at 9 oclock, and its now 1 oclock at night. Now I am completely stress free. My stone has come out, my stone is with me. Bharti Singh added, The doctors were good. They were asking everything, how does it feel to work in Dance Deewane? How does shooting happen? They were talking to me. I remember the last thing they asked, Bharti Ji, when is your shooting? I dont know if I answered them or not. Then after that, when I regained consciousness, I was in my room. I dont know when they brought me here, but Im feeling very, very, very good right now. Hours before the surgery, Bharti Singh claimed she was terrified and recounted that her day started with injections at 6 am, followed by x-rays and an MRI. When the doctors first met her, she couldnt stop crying. However, when the doctors urged her to remain confident, she started feeling positive. Bharti Singh married Haarsh Limbachiyaa in 2017, and together, the couple welcomed their son Golla in April 2022. As Srinagar votes today in the fourth phase of Lok Sabha Election, Jammu and Kashmir is seeing parliamentary polls for the first time since the Abrogation of Article 370 in August, 2019. Regional parties say this election is more about dignity, honour and identity, as per media reports. There are five Lok Sabha seats in J&K two in Jammu and three in Kashmir. The two seats in Jammu division Udhampur and Jammu voted in the first phase on April 19. Kashmir has three seats Srinagar, which is voting today, Baramulla in north and Anantnag-Rajouri in south, which will vote on May 20 and May 25, respectively. The BJP has not fielded any candidate for the first time in three decades in any of the Lok Sabha constituencies in Kashmir. From the Jammu division, Union minister Jitendra Singh contested from Udhampur while MP Jugal Kishore Sharma sought re-election from the Jammu seat. Who are the Regional Parties? The main contest in the Kashmir valley is between the National Conference (NC), J&K Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Sajad Lones J&K Peoples Conference and Altaf Bukharis J&K Apni Party. Former chief minister Ghulam Nabi Azads Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) has also fielded its candidates on all three seats, but its chances of a win are slim. Both PDP and NC are part of the opposition INDIA bloc but in J&K and Ladakh, Congress entered the seat-sharing arrangement with the NC and gave them support on all three seats of Kashmir. The PDP, NC and PC were part of the regional alliance Peoples Alliance for Gupkar Declaration formed in October 2020, to strive for the restoration of special status and statehood of J&K. They fought District Development Council (DDC) elections together, but insiders say they fielded candidates against each other, as per a report by The Economic Times. Let us look at the candidates from the three Lok Sabha seats in Kashmir. Srinagar The seat will see the main contest between Waheed Para of the PDP, who was booked under Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) and jailed for several months, and Aga Ruhullah Mehdi of NC, an influential Shia leader who was a minister in J&K. Ashraf Mir of Apni Party is also in the fray but is not a strong contender compared to the other two. Ruhullah is banking on NCs cadre support and Shia voters in his home town of Budgam and in Srinagar city as well. In the 2019 election, Farooq Abdullah, the leader of the National Conference, contested from the Srinagar Lok Sabha seat and emerged a winner with 106,750 votes. Agha Sayeed Mohsin of the Jammu & Kashmir National Front secured 36,700 votes. In the 2017 by-election, Farooq Abdullah won with 48,555 votes, defeating Nazir Ahmed Khan of the PDP, who received 37,779 votes. The constituency witnessed a low voter turnout of 15.6% in 2019. In the 2014 Lok Sabha Election, Tariq Hamid Karra of the JKPDP emerged victorious with 157,923 votes, followed by Farooq Abdullah with 115,643 votes. There are 17.48 lakh voters in the Srinagar constituency that comprises Srinagar, Ganderbal and Pulwama districts and parts of Budgam and Shopian districts. Authorities have set up 2,135 polling stations across the five districts. Special polling stations have been established for migrant voters of the Kashmir Division of the Union Territory 21 in Jammu, four in Delhi and one in Udhampur district. Voting is scheduled to end at 6 pm. Baramulla The valley will see the most high-profile contest between National Conference leader and former chief minister Omar Abdullah and Sajad Lone of PC. Lone, who has support of the Apni Party, called Abdullah an outsider to Baramulla, which is Lones hometown. Abdullah has called Lone the proxy of the BJP. The Baramulla constituency has a significant population of Paharis, a linguistic minority in Jammu and Kashmir who were recently granted tribal status by the BJP government. The number of assembly constituencies in Baramulla Lok Sabha constituency increased from 15 to 18 after J&Ks delimitation in 2022. The delimitation exercise, which was necessitated by J&K Reorganisation Act 2019, increased the number of assembly seats in Jammu and Kashmir from 83 to 90. While Kashmir got only one new assembly seat after the delimitation, six new seats were carved out in Jammu, the stronghold of the BJP. Trehgam, the new assembly segment carved out in Kashmir, falls in Baramulla constituency. Two assembly segments Budgam and Beerwah which were part of the adjoining Srinagar constituency, were also clubbed with the Baramulla constituency, taking the total number of assembly segments to 18. Abdullah was elected consecutively in 2009 and 2014 assembly elections from Beerwah, which is now part of Baramulla constituency. In the 2019 Lok Sabha election, Mohammad Akbar Lone from NC won this seat with 1,33,426 votes. Raja Aijaz Ali from PC came second with 1,03,193 votes. In the 2014 Lok Sabha election, Muzaffar Hussain Beg from the PDP defeated the National Conference candidate Sharifuddin Shariq by 29,000 votes. Muzaffar Hussain received 1.75 lakh votes and Sharifuddin Shariq received 1.46 lakh votes. Peoples Conference candidate Salamuddin Bajad, from Sajad Lones party, had to settle for the third place with nearly 71,000 votes. Anantnag-Rajouri seat Former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti is up against main tribal leader Mian Altaf of the National Conference, who has never lost any assembly election since 1987. Apni Partys Zaffar Iqbal Manhas is being seen as a proxy fielded by the BJP. After delimitation, the Jammu region continued to have two Lok Sabha seats, while Poonch district and almost two-thirds of Rajouri district were merged with Kashmirs Anantnag Lok Sabha constituency to form the Anantnag-Rajouri parliamentary seat. The new constituency consists of 18 Assembly segments 11 in Kashmirs Shopian, Kulgam, and Anantnag districts, and 7 in Poonch and Rajouri districts. In 2019, the Anantnag Lok Sabha constituency had the third lowest number of total electors at 1,25,465 after Lakshadweep and Daman & Diu. At 8.98%, it also saw the lowest voter turnout in the last Lok Sabha elections. After delimitation, the constituency has an electorate of 1.92 million, of which, roughly 1.1 million are in the Kashmir region, and 7,35,000 are in the Jammu region. Mehbooba Mufti came third with National Conferences Hasnain Masoodi winning the election in 2019. Mehbooba had won the seat in 2004 and 2014, while her father, Mufti Mohammed Sayeed, won in 1998 on a Congress ticket. The speculation behind the number of Indian military personnel repatriated from Maldives was put to rest after foreign minister of the island country made the announcement over the weekend in line with the agreement reached between the two nations in February. A few days later, Maldives defence minister Ghassan Maumoon admitted that the countrys military lacks pilots qualified to fly three Dornier aircraft given by India. Ghassan told media that although some soldiers in the Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) had started flying training, none of the three aircraft supplied by the Indian military were operated by Maldivian soldiers. As it was a training that required passing various stages, our soldiers had not reached completion due to various reasons. Therefore, there arent any people in our force at the moment who are licensed or fully operational to fly the two helicopters and Dornier aircraft, Ghassan was quoted as saying by Adhadhu.com news portal. As per reports, the repatriation of 76 Indian soldiers happened in a phased manner. Maldives foreign minister Moosa Zameer had mentioned that 26 soldiers left Gan between March 7 and March 9, followed by 25 from Hanimaadhoo between April 7 and April 9, and 12 from Kadhdhoo on May 7, with the final batch withdrawing on May 9. The agreement between India and Maldives was reached on the request of Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu, known for his pro-China stance, after assuming office in November. Zameer clarified that civilian employees of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), the manufacturer of the gifted aircraft by India, have replaced the soldiers. India had provided Maldives with Dornier aircraft in 2020 to help the island nation enhance surveillance over its exclusive economic zone as well as to keep an eye on sea-borne terrorists. The requirement for Dornier was raised by then Maldives president Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom during a visit to India in 2016. How Tensions Began? The relations turned sour when Peoples National Congress leader Mohamed Muizzu came to power in Maldives in November 2023. Muizzu was a candidate of the Progressive Congress, a coalition of his own Peoples National Congress (PNC) along with Peoples Party of Maldives (PPM) incarcerated Yameens party. Yameen led an India Out campaign in the Maldives, which gained momentum in 2021 when India signed an agreement with the Ibrahim Mohamed Solih-led government to develop, support and maintain a harbor at Uthuru Thila Falhu naval base in Maldives. After the Solih government was overthrown, the Maldives government, under the presidency of Mohamed Muizzu, asked the Indian government to withdraw its troops from the island nation in December 2023. Moreover, the new Maldives government asked India to stop conducting hydrographic surveys in the territorial waters of the Indian Ocean archipelago. Amid the row over the deputy ministers remarks insinuating Israels control over the PM, the nations embassy in Delhi quietly lent support, and promoted Lakshadweep as a tourist destination. The Embassy of Israel in India shared images and videos of Lakshadweep. History of India-Maldives Relations The bilateral ties go back to 1965 when India established relations with Maldives after the British relinquished control of the islands. While there was no diplomatic mission in Male since 1980, India has had an ambassadorial representative in the islands. The transition in ties took place from 2008 in different departments spanning politics, military, business and civil society. India gradually became the first destination for Maldivians for education and medical reasons. Maritime Security & Defence: Maldives is located to the west coast of India, and its location at the hub of commercial sea-lanes run through the Indian Ocean. Maldives is Indias key maritime neighbour in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and occupies a special place in the countrys initiatives like SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) and the Modi governments Neighbourhood First Policy. India has invested in Maldives security by training its defence forces, with nearly 70% of Maldives training done by India either on the islands or in Indias elite military academies, as per a report by The Indian Express. India has trained over 1,500 MNDF personnel in the past 10 years. The Indian Navy has given aircraft and choppers to the Maldivian defence forces for aerial surveillance, and have trained their personnel on how to land vertically in the islands. India also wants to set up a coastal radar system in Maldives, with a view to keep an eye on the activities in the Indian Ocean, The Indian Express report further said. China: Maldives opened its embassy in that country in 2009, and China opened its embassy as recently 2011. Male has been wooed by China since President Xi Jinping came to power. Maldives and China have inked two military agreements, as reported by media in Male. According to Maldivian media, under the terms of one of the agreements, China has pledged to provide military assistance to the Maldives at no cost. The Maldives Defence Ministry is yet to reveal the details of the assistance. India is concerned at the expanding Chinese footprint in Maldives. While Mohamed Nasheed first started the engagement with China, former Maldives President Yameen strengthened it during his term from 2013-2018. Why is Maldives Dependent on India? India supplies everyday essentials such as rice, spices, fruits, vegetables, poultry to Maldives. It also supplies medicines, including critical care and life-saving drugs. India also supplies basic items such as cement, rock boulders to Maldives, and anything one needs to build a house or a bridge or a school or a hospital. One of the major multi-speciality hospitals in Maldives has been built by India, the 300-bed Indira Gandhi Memorial hospital. Since there are no major educational universities in Maldives, Indias higher educational institutes accommodate Maldivian students, some come to boarding schools as well. India is also one of the top trading partners of Maldives. Of the Rs 50 crore total trade between India and Maldives in 2022, Rs 49 crore was Indias exports to Maldives. India emerged as Maldives second largest trade partner in 2022. India helped Maldives during the 2004 tsunami. It helped Male in 2014 during the drinking water crisis and airlifted drinking water to the city. India sent essential medicines, masks, gloves, PPE kits and vaccines to the island country. Multiple schools in both Jaipur and Lucknow on Monday received bomb threats through threatening emails, causing panic among school authorities and students. As a precautionary measure, the schools swiftly evacuated students and staff from the premises. In Rajasthans Jaipur, bomb threats were reported at approximately four schools, while in Lucknows Gomti Nagar area, at least three schools received similar threats. This latest string of bomb threats via email adds to a concerning trend across the country. Earlier this month, around 150 schools in the Delhi-NCR region also received similar threats. Moreover, on Sunday, several city hospitals and the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi were targeted with bomb threats. Four-five schools have received bomb threat. Police have reached the schools, said Jaipur Police Commissioner Biju George Joseph. A team is trying to identify the sender of the threat email, police said. ALSO READ: 8 Delhi Hospitals, Delhi IGI Airport Receive Hoax Bomb Threat, Facilities On Alert DCP East Jaipur Kavendra Sagar said, Threatening emails have been sent to some schools of the city including Maheshwari School (MPS International School). Currently, the bomb disposal squad is carrying out searches in the school. Meanwhile, the Lucknow schools targeted by the threatening emails included Vibgyor High School, LPS PGI branch, and St. Marys School. According to the police, the schools received emails threatening to detonate explosives on their premises. Despite thorough investigation, no suspicious objects were found within the schools. The cyber cell has taken over the investigation to determine the origin of these threatening emails. On Sunday, as many as eight city hospitals and Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi received bomb threats through emails, which later turned out to be hoaxes. The bomb threats were reported from IGIA Terminal-3, Burari Hospital, Sanjay Gandhi Hospital, Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital, Bara Hindu Rao Hospital, Janakpuri Super Speciality Hospital, Deen Dayal Upadhyay and Dabris Dada Dev Hospital, a senior official of the Delhi Fire Services (DFS) said. On May 12, at about 3.30 pm, a bomb hoax mail was received at GTB Hospital, GTB Enclave. Hospital authorities informed the local police about that mail. Immediately police swung into action and called the Bomb Disposal Squad which inspected GTB Hospital and Delhi State Cancer Institute premises, DCP Shahdara said adding that nothing suspicious was found. Security was later tightened in all the hospitals in the national capital and additional police force was deployed at the airport. On May 1, around 150 schools in Delhi-NCR received bomb threats, prompting swift evacuation of students from campuses. The Ministry of Home Affairs asked people not to panic, adding that the threats were hoax calls. Meanwhile, top intelligence sources had hinted that the hoax call might have been intended to create terror. Last week, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla reviewed the situation and pressed on the need to enhance security and regular email monitoring in schools. Bhalla also emphasised on the need to prepare detailed protocols and standard operating procedures (SOP) to handle any such situation in the future. (With inputs from agencies) Explore in-depth coverage of voting in Telangana , Odisha , and Andhra Pradesh during Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 4 polling. Rain-related incidents in the city are once again in focus after a massive illegal billboard collapsed in Mumbais Ghatkopar area, killing fourteen people and injuring at least 74. While rescue operations are still underway, Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde ordered a structural audit of all such structures saying those found to be unauthorised must be taken down. Mumbai Billboard Collapse LIVE Updates But, even as blame game over land ownership and permissions is on between the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation and Indian Railways in the latest tragedy, it brings to the fore how lack of timely audits and news18.com//mumbai-weather-news-live-updates-dust-storm-hoarding-collapse-ghatkopar-thunderstorm-gusty-winds-flight-train-delay-rescue-operation-liveblog-8889533inspections by the authorities, as well as construction of unauthorised structures can result in the loss of lives, serious injuries and damage to public property. Here are major rain-related incidents in Mumbai that have grabbed headlines in the recent past: Major wall collapse incidents in 2021 & 2019 Building and wall collapse incidents caused by heavy and incessant rain have become common in Mumbai. In such cases, constructions like slums and shanties are the most affected. In 2021, at least 17 people were killed in Chembur in a wall collapse incident, while seven slum residents were killed in Vikhroli when five shanties collapsed in a landslide. That year, Rs 2 lakh was pledged from the Prime Ministers National Relief Fund to the next of kin of those killed due to the wall collapses in Mumbai, while Rs 50,000 was disbursed for the injured. Rain fury claimed 22 lives and injured at least 80 after a wall collapsed in Malad in July 2019. The incident took place when a compound wall in Pimpripada in Malad East area collapsed and people living in shanties adjacent to the wall got trapped under the debris. Opposition parties had lashed out at the ruling Shiv Sena and BJP for the loss of lives due to wall collapse incidents in Mumbai, attributing them to corruption. Andheri bridge collapse, 2018 Two persons were killed when a section of the old Gokhale bridge caved in at Andheri station following incessant rain in July 2018. The bridge on SV Road connects Andheri East and Andheri West stations and is used by thousands of commuters each day. The BMC and the state government received a lot of criticism due to its misalignment. Before its collapse in 2018, the bridge was facilitating big vehicles. Under repairs since the collapse, the bridge was reopened to the public in February this year, but only partially and for lighter vehicles. Ghatkopar helicopter crash, 2018 Five persons, including one pedestrian, were killed in June 2018 when a chartered planed crash landed in Mumbais densely populated Ghatkopar area. The casualties included the two pilots, a pregnant aircraft maintenance engineer, junior technician and a man, who was burnt fatally when some burning fuel fell on him. Three others were injured in the incident. According to a report in Times of India, the probable causes of the fatal crash during a test flight were engine problems, coupled with deteriorating weather, during which the aircraft banked unexpectedly and the pilots lost their spatial awareness, as per the final probe report. The families of the deceased rejected the report and deemed it suspicious. The Beechcraft KingAir C-90A, belonging to UY Aviation, took off from Juhu airport and crashed in Ghatkopar, killing all four crew members and one pedestrian on the ground. Elphinstone stampede, 2017 At least 23 people and 39 people injured were killed when a stampede took place at the Elphinstone Road railway station in Mumbai on September 29, 2017. The incident took place in the morning rush hours on a footbridge after people rushed to board trains as it rained heavily outside. Four trains arrived simultaneously and numerous people were already crammed into the bridge, taking shelter from the rain, when they rushed forward. The stampede is likely to have been caused due to a person tripping and falling over, and people panicking due to a certain rumour that the bridge was about to collapse. Eyewitnesses, however, said the situation worsened because the police and emergency personnel did not respond in time or implement crowd control measures. The then railway minister, Piyush Goyal, had announced a compensation of Rs 10 lakh for the victims. According to hospital reports, most people died of chest compression and haemorrhage due to injuries. Mumbai airport crash-landing, 2023 A private jet carrying six passengers and two crew members veered off the runway on landing at Mumbai airport amid heavy rain and low visibility in September last year. The impact was such that the aircraft split in two but no casualties were reported even as the two pilots were hospitalised in critical condition. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said the VSR Ventures Learjet 45 aircraft VT-DBL was operating from Visakhapatnam to Mumbai and was making an attempt to land, but the visibility was severely compromised due to heavy rain. (With inputs from Yesha Kotak) Explore in-depth coverage of Lok Sabha Election 2024 Schedule, Voter Turnout, Upcoming Phase And Much More At News18 Website Hours after a billboard collapsed in Ghatkopar, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Monday ordered a structural audit of all hoardings in Mumbai. The CM said that the civic commissioner has been asked to remove all dangerous and unauthorised hoardings immediately. On Wednesday, the number of deceased stood at 16, with over 70 injured. ALSO READ | Billboard Collapses In Mumbais Ghatkopar After Thunderstorm; Rescue Underway The billboard, said to be illegal, fell on a petrol pump at the Chhedanagar Junction along the Eastern Expressway, amid a dust storm and heavy rain in the afternoon. A senior civic official said a National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team has reached the spot and rescue operation is underway. The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has dispatched a team of 60 personnel from Metro Line 4 Amar Mahal site to provide support. At least 54 people are injured, with over 40 trapped under a collapsed billboard in Mumbais Ghatkopar after a dust storm and heavy rain@kotakyesha shares more details#MumbaiWeather #DustStorm #rain pic.twitter.com/q0uXUdxSIm News18 (@CNNnews18) May 13, 2024 Machinery, including cranes for lifting the hoarding and gas cutters, has arrived at the spot, the official said, adding that the search and rescue operation is underway. CM ANNOUNCES COMPENSATION, STRICT ACTION AGAINST THOSE RESPONSIBLE Shinde, who visited the spot in the evening, said, The accident is very unfortunate. It will be investigated and action will be taken against the culprits. Currently, the rescue operations have started at the accident site and the hoarding is being removed with the help of hydra and cranes. So far, 57 people have been evacuated safely and they are undergoing treatment at Rajawadi Hospital. Rescuing people is our priority. The government will take care of the treatment of those who are injured in the incident. Rs 5 lakh will be given to the family of those who have lost their lives. I have directed the authorities concerned to audit all such hoardings in Mumbai, Shinde said. Shinde said a case of culpable homicide has been registered and action will be taken against those responsible. Maharashtra Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis said, There will be an investigation regarding what kind of permission they had for this hoarding, whether they had this permission or notThe CM has directed that a proper audit of all the hoardings in Mumbai be done by the BMC to mitigate such incidents in future. Whoever is responsible for this kind of ignorance, strict action will be taken against them. Confirming that four people died in hospitals and four at the site, Bhushan Gagrani, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) commissioner, said, The CM has ordered us to take steps to prevent such incidents in the future. Explore in-depth coverage of Lok Sabha Election 2024 Schedule, Voter Turnout, Upcoming Phase And Much More At News18 Website India has never received anything which is specific and worthy of being pursued by its probe agencies, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday said over a fourth arrest made by Canada in the killing of Khalistan separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Jaishankar said New Delhi is open to an investigation if Ottawa has any evidence or information related to any violence which is relevant to be investigated in India. We have never received anything which is specific and worthy of being pursued by our investigative agencies and I am not aware that anything has changed in the last few days in that regard, the minister said in response to a question during a press conference here. As a consular practice, it is informed to the government or the embassy of the country of origin when arrests of foreign nationals are made, Jaishankar said. Nijjar, 45, was killed outside Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia on June 18, 2023. A fourth Indian national has been arrested by Canadian authorities in connection with the killing of Nijjar, a week after police arrested three Indians linked with the high-profile case that has severely strained Indias relations with Canada. Amandeep Singh, 22, a resident of Brampton, Surrey, and Abbotsford areas of Canada, has been charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder, as per officials. Explore in-depth coverage of voting in Telangana , Odisha , and Andhra Pradesh during Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 4 polling. The billboard accident in Mumbais Ghatkopar, which left eight dead and at least 100 injured amid heavy rain and dust storm, has set off a blame game between the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation and the Indian Railways over land ownership. The civic body said the land on which the accident took place does not belong to it but to the railway police, and said it will file a complaint against the railways and the advertising company in the matter under the Disaster Management Act. Soon after this, the Central Railway denied ownership of the land and clarified that the billboard was not on railway land and has nothing to do with the Indian Railways. This hoarding is not on Railway land and it is not in anyway related to Indian Railways, (sic) it said in a post on X. This hoarding is not on Railway land and it is not in anyway related to Indian Railways. Central Railway (@Central_Railway) May 13, 2024 According to BMC sources, on December 7, 2021, the then GRP commissioner gave permission to set up these hoardings that are illegal. These hoardings were set up after poisoning and cutting seven to eight trees and the BMC had also filed the first FIR in this matter in May 2023, they added. Sources said the BMC did repeated follow-ups with the Pant Nagar police station, where the FIR was registered, but to no avail. Providing documents in the matter, the civic body said the size allowed for such a structure is 4040 sq ft, but the hoarding that collapsed is 120120 sq ft. Now, the assistant commissioner of N ward has issued a notice to the agency to remove all its hoardings with immediate effect, and for not having valid permission from the BMC. In its documents, the BMC has given the name and details of the advertising company that owned the billboard. This document shows that the land is Collector Land and in possession of Police Housing Welfare Corporation of Government of Maharashtra. The civic body said there are a total of four such structures on the site, including the collapsed hoarding. Permission to all these four structures was issued by ACP (Admin) for Commissioner of Police (Railways Mumbai), it added. The BMC further said it had not been approached for any kind of permission or no-objection certificate, which must be obtained before erecting a structure like this. A notice was also issued to the approving authority in the railway police to cancel all permissions and remove the hoardings on May 2, it added. Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde visited the site of the accident, where rescue operation is still on and at least 20 to 30 people are still feared trapped. He has ordered a structural audit of all hoardings in Mumbai and said those marked as dangerous and unauthorised must be removed. Rescuing the people is our priority. Government will take care of the treatment of those who are injured in the incident. Rs 5 lakh will be given to the family of those who have lost their lives. I have directed the concerned authorities to audit for all such hoardings in Mumbai Shinde told the reporters. The accident took place when the 100-foot illegal billboard fell on a petrol pump in Ghatkopar area during unseasonal rains. A senior civic official said an NDRF (National Disaster Response Force) team is conducting a search and rescue operation at the site. In another rain-related incident, an under-construction metal parking tower collapsed on a road amid gusty winds in Wadala area, causing injuries and damaging vehicles. Flight operations at Mumbai airport were suspended for an hour in the evening due to low visibility while local trains were delayed. Explore in-depth coverage of voting in Telangana , Odisha , and Andhra Pradesh during Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 4 polling. Hello readers, todays afternoon digest brings you the latest stories: AAP MP Swati Maliwal Tells Cops Kejriwal Gave Directions To Close Aide Bibhav To Assault Her; BJP Says Dont Forget, and other top stories. AAP MP Swati Maliwal Tells Cops Kejriwal Gave Directions To Close Aide Bibhav To Assault Her; BJP Says Dont Forget Swati Maliwal, Aam Aadmi Party leader and former Delhi Commission for Women chairperson, on Monday alleged that Arvind Kejriwals close aide Bibhav Kumar assaulted her on the directions of the Chief Minister, sources told CNN-News18. According to sources, two PCR calls were made at around 10 am by Maliwal from Delhi CMs residence. READ MORE Election 2024 LIVE: PM Modi Takes Na Neta, Na Agenda Jibe At Oppn; 24.87% Voter Turnout Recorded Till 11 AM The voting for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha Elections 2024 began at 7 am today in 96 seats across nine states and one union territory. Notably, the campaigning for the fourth phase ended on Saturday, May 11. Among the prominent candidates in the fray are Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav (Kannauj, UP), Union ministers Giriraj Singh (Begusarai, Bihar), Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury (Baharampur, West Bengal). LIVE Updates Here Prajwal Raped My Mother, Forced Me To Strip On Video Calls: Woman Complainant Tells Cops In Sex Scandal Case Amid the ongoing probe in connection to the sex tape controversy in Karnataka, a woman has come forward with allegations against suspended JD(S) leader Prajwal Revanna and his father HD Revanna, accusing them of sexual assault and harassment. Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna raped her mother four to five years back at his Bengaluru residence, the woman alleged. READ MORE YSRCP MLA Shivakumar Slaps Voter At Andhra Polling Booth, He Hits Back | Video In a shocking turn of events at a polling booth in Andhra Pradesh, a YSR Congress Party MLA slapped a voter after he allegedly objected to the legislator jumping the queue at a polling station in Guntur on Monday. A video of the incident has gone viral on social media. READ MORE IPL 2024 Playoff Qualification Scenarios Explained: CSK, RCB Gain Momentum; DC Almost Eliminated After the penultimate double-header day before the IPL playoffs, RCB and CSK keep their playoff hopes alive while Delhi Capitals, despite a strong run during the middle of the tournament, are as good as out of the IPL 2024 playoff race. With eight more matches in the league stages to go, only KKR have sealed a playoff spot while RR, even though they might be in pole position to claim the second playoff spot, the third consecutive loss has meant they are in a vulnerable position. READ MORE Preity Zinta Dated Lars Kjeldsen, Reveals Wife Suchitra Pillai: I Was Called Boyfriend Snatcher Suchitra Pillai is well-known for playing Saif Ali Khans girlfriend in Dil Chahta Hai. The film also starred Preity Zinta in a key role, with whom Suchitra shares a special connection. Suchitra recently revealed that her husband, Lars Kjeldsen, used to date Preity Zinta. READ MORE Explore in-depth coverage of voting in Telangana , Odisha , and Andhra Pradesh during Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 4 polling. The Supreme Court on Monday is scheduled to hear a plea of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal challenging a Delhi High Court order upholding the summons issued to him in a criminal defamation case for retweeting an allegedly defamatory video circulated by YouTuber Dhruv Rathee in May 2018. Notably, Kejriwal has admitted that he committed a mistake by retweeting the alleged defamatory video. A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta is likely to hear the matter. Kejriwal Admits Making Mistake Kejriwal on February 26 admitted in the apex court that he made a mistake by retweeting an allegedly defamatory video circulated by YouTuber Rathee related to the BJP IT Cell. Following the Delhi Chief Ministers acceptance of the mistake, the top court on March 11 asked Kejriwal if he wanted to give an apology to the complainant in the matter. Meanwhile, the High Court had earlier refused to quash the trial courts 2019 order summoning Kejriwal, stating that when a public figure tweets a defamatory post, the ramifications extend far beyond a mere whisper in someones ears. Kejriwal Out On Bail In Liquor Policy Case Meanwhile, the Supreme Court on Friday (May 10) granted interim bail to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal till June 1, the final phase of voting for the Lok Sabha election 2024. Kejriwal was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on March 21 in the alleged Delhi liquor excise policy scam was lodged in Delhis Tihar Jail. As per the top courts order, the Aam Aadmi Party supremo has to surrender to prison officials by June 2. Explore the detailed schedule and key constituencies of the 2024 Lok Sabha Elections Fourth Phase The National Commission for Women on Monday said it will be sending an inquiry team to look into the alleged assault on Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal and also send a formal letter to the Delhi Police to send an action taken report in the matter. MP Rajya Sabha Smt Swati Maliwal reportedly assaulted at Delhi CMs residence. The National Commission for Women (NCW) vows action, demanding justice from Delhi Police and sending an inquiry team. Perpetrators must be held accountable. NCW will be sending a formal letter to Delhi Police to send an ATR in this matter in 3 days, the NCW said in a post on X. MP Rajya Sabha Smt Swati Maliwal reportedly assaulted at Delhi CM's residence. The National Commission for Women (NCW) vows action, demanding justice from Delhi Police and sending an inquiry team. Perpetrators must be held accountable. NCW will be sending a formal letter to Delhi NCW (@NCWIndia) May 13, 2024 Maliwal, the AAPs Rajya Sabha MP and former chairperson of the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW), went to the Civil Lines police station and alleged that a close aide of Arvind Kejriwal assaulted her on the chief ministers directions at his official residence. Police have not yet received a formal complaint. She alleged that Bibhav Kumar from Kejriwals personal staff attacked her, sources told CNN-News18. The police said the first call came around 9.34 am following which the AAP leader came to the police station and said she will later file a formal complaint in the matter. We received a PCR call at 9:34 AM wherein the caller said that she has been assaulted inside the CM residence. Accordingly, local police & SHO responded to the call. After some time, MP Swati Maliwal came to the police station civil lines. No complaint was given by her. In this matter, no complaint has been received till now, said DCP (North) Manoj Meena. Lady caller is saying that I am at CM residence. He instructed his PA to attack me, read the police register entry, accessed by CNN-News18. Who is Bibhav Kumar, Kejriwals close aide? Notably, Bibhav Kumar recently made headlines after the Delhi vigilance department sacked him from the position of Kejriwals personal secretary citing illegal appointment. He was sacked in connection to a 2007 case against him for assault and use of criminal force to obstruct a public servant from doing his duty. In February, meanwhile, he was also summoned by the ED in connection with the Delhi excise policy case. BJP Hits Out At AAP Slamming the AAP over Maliwals allegations, union minister Rajeev Chandrashekar said: Dont forget this is same Kejriwal who also assaulted the chief secretary IAS officer. Amit Malviya, BJP IT cell head, said Maliwal was silent on Kejriwals arrest and was not even in India back then. AAP RS MP and former DCW chief Swati Maliwal alleges that Delhi CMs PA assaulted her. Call made from Delhi CMs House. Remember, Swati Maliwal had maintained radio silence on Kejriwals arrest. She was in fact not even in India at that time and didnt return for a long time, Malviya wrote on X. AAP RS MP and former DCW chief Swati Maliwal alleges that Delhi CMs PA assaulted her. Call made from Delhi CMs House.Remember, Swati Maliwal had maintained radio silence on Kejriwals arrest. She was infact not even in India at that time and didnt return for a long time. Amit Malviya ( ) (@amitmalviya) May 13, 2024 Taking to X, former Delhi BJP president Vijender Gupta said: AAP MP from Rajya Sabha and former DCW Chief, Swati Maliwal, has been physically assaulted by out on bail CM Arvind Kejriwals PA at CMO. Anyone who has followed Kejriwals politics knows that he has done with many of his colleagues who he dared to differ with him. He is a dictator and a megalomaniac. AAP MP from Rajya Sabha and former DCW Chief, Swati Maliwal, has been physically assaulted by out on bail CM @ArvindKejriwal's PA at CMO. Anyone who has followed Kejriwal's politics knows that he has done with many of his colleagues who he dared to differ with him. He is a Vijender Gupta (Modi Ka Parivar) (@Gupta_vijender) May 13, 2024 Another BJP leader, Kapil Mishra, also took to X and attacked the AAP asking them to issue a clarification on the matter. Did Kejriwals PA Bibhav beat up Swati Maliwal? Will the Chief Ministers office give any clarification? May God grant that the news of beating of a female Rajya Sabha MP in the Chief Ministers house is false, he said. Explore in-depth coverage of voting in Telangana , Odisha , and Andhra Pradesh during Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 4 polling. External Affairs Minister Subramanyam Jaishankar on Monday said that India has deployed record number of troops to the Ladakh border in recent years to counter China. The Union Minister made these comments while addressing the media during a conference held at the National Stock Exchange Plaza in Mumbai. Addressing the press at National Stock Exchange Plaza, Mumbai. https://t.co/Tq7Vqb70RE Dr. S. Jaishankar (Modi Ka Parivar) (@DrSJaishankar) May 13, 2024 Yes, there is a challenge from China, they have violated agreements and have sent a large number of troops to the border. However, India should take pride in the fact that despite the Covid, we counter deployed and sent a record number of troops to the border, said the External Affairs Minister in response to questions regarding the India-China border row. The external affairs minister further noted that the country should support its military and refrain from criticising or undermining its efforts. He stated, The country should be supporting the military and should not be running down the military. On Hardeep Singh Nijjars killing case Regarding the fourth arrest made by Canada in connection with the killing of Khalistan separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, the foreign minister emphasised that India has not received any specific and worthy of being pursued by its investigative agencies. We have never received anything which is specific and worthy of being pursued by our investigative agencies and I am not aware that anything has changed in the last few days in that regard, he stated. Additionally, Jaishankar expressed New Delhis willingness to cooperate with an investigation if Ottawa possesses any evidence or information pertaining to relevant violence that warrants investigation within India. (With inputs from PTI) Explore in-depth coverage of voting in Telangana , Odisha , and Andhra Pradesh during Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 4 polling. Aimed at encouraging the participation of high-end tertiary hospitals in the Modi governments flagship Ayushman Bharat Scheme, the countrys top private hospitals have told an apex panel to bring back penalties for delayed reimbursement of hospital claims and introduce a co-payment model, News18 has learnt. Suffering from lower participation of top private hospitals, the Ayushman Bharat scheme provides secondary and tertiary level hospitalisation benefits to beneficiaries, identified based on the 2011 Census, through the empanelled private and government hospitals. ALSO READ | Ayushman Bharat: Centre Forms Panel to Review Health Insurance Scheme, Report to be Submitted in 45 Days The Association of Healthcare Providers of India (AHPI), which represents approximately 15,000 private hospitals across India, including Fortis, Max Healthcare, Manipal, Medanta, Apollo, and others, has proposed the Niti Aayog panel to address two major concerns to enhance private hospital participation in the scheme. The proposal has been submitted to a committee, which was established by the government in March, led by Dr V K Paul, a member of the health sector think tank Niti Aayog. The committees task is to evaluate the schemes operations and propose methods to expand services and the number of beneficiaries, among other objectives. TWO BIG COMPLAINTS According to the lobby, two of the biggest concerns are unreasonable delays in releasing payments (for the treatment done under the scheme) and lower procedure rates. At any given time, for a mid-sized hospital, around 30 to 40 beds are vacant. These beds can be given to patients coming under the scheme, hence availability is not an issue. The issue is delayed payments, which end up hurting the cash flow of hospitals, Girdhar J Gyani, director-general, AHPI told News18. Empanelled hospitals typically experience an average payment delay of approximately six-eight months, with some states facing particularly severe situations. The AHPI, on behalf of private hospitals, have proposed bringing back the penalty of paying 1 per cent interest for delays exceeding one month. This clause was earlier part of the original scheme, but was removed at a later stage. If the cash flow of hospitals wont be hurt, they will be encouraged to join the scheme, he said. Another proposal is to introduce a co-payment method to solve the conflict over the lower rate of procedures. This model would allow hospitals the flexibility to charge slightly higher than the predetermined rates based on their expenses, with the requirement to disclose these rates on their websites beforehand, giving the consumer a choice to opt for treatment at a variety of hospitals at pre-disclosed rates. INFORMED CHOICE Consider this example, Gyani said, adding, If the government sets the rate for a particular procedure at Rs 100 under the scheme, private hospital A may choose to charge Rs 120 for the procedure. In this scenario, the government will reimburse Rs 100, while the patient will be responsible for paying Rs 20. Each hospital should publish its charges on its website so patients can make informed decisions. If a patient wishes to pay extra for treatment at a high-end tertiary hospital, why should we refuse them? he said. There will be hospitals offering procedures at Rs 100, Rs 110, or Rs 120. Let the patient choose where they want the procedure done. In this way, the top hospitals in the country will be happy to participate in the scheme. Highlighting the significance of the private sector in the success of the flagship scheme, Gyani said that of Indias total of 13 lakh beds, 85 per cent are in private sector hospitals. Explore in-depth coverage of voting in Telangana , Odisha , and Andhra Pradesh during Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 4 polling. Bollywood star Alia Bhatt, who welcomed daughter Raha Kapoor with actor-husband Ranbir Kapoor in 2022, has opened up about navigating the challenges of being a working mother while also experiencing the guilt of neglecting her own mom. In conversation with her mother, actress Soni Razdan, Alia spoke about how she wouldnt want Raha to move out of home in her early 20s. Talking to The Nod Mag, Alia recalled, I remember when I was pregnant and shooting in London for Heart of Stone, I couldnt sleep for three days because I felt so guilty about how maybe I wasnt a good enough daughter. To this, Soni added, She works hard on her mental health, but there are days she feels anxious about not picking up my calls or giving us any attention. Alia said that she couldnt get enough time to spend with her mother because she started working when she was just 23. She said, I was barely 23 when I moved out of the house. Id be away on long shooting schedules, and sometimes you wouldnt even know which city I was in. So that was a defining point in my life, and our relationship. But I do feel I left home too soonand I wont let that happen with Raha. Believe it or not, usually Im a forward-thinking kind of person, but with Raha, Im just taking each day as it comes. Papa recently told me: If you dont let Raha fall down, it will be the biggest mistake youll make because shell never learn how to pick herself up. During their discussion, Soni also said that after a point she began feeling like Alias manager not mother. Those days I remember feeling less mom and more like a manager. Youd barely spend five minutes with me in the morning for tea, she said. However, the veteran actress said that she is proud of Alia and really happy about what the Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani star has achieved in life. Megastar Chiranjeevi made his way to a voting booth in Hyderabad to cast his vote as part of the Lok Sabha Elections 2024. The Telugu superstar was joined by his wife, Surekha Konidala. In a video shared by ANI, Chiranjeevi was spotted walking through a group of media and into a polling booth. After casting his vote, the actor spoke with the press and urged his fans to step out and vote. Addressing youngsters, Chiranjeevi asked to step out and vote. So I would like to say, every time I have been saying, this time also (I say), new emerging waters are coming up. I do request them (young voters) to make use of your power of vote. Voting is our right, he said. As he headed to his car, a journalist ask Chiranjeevi about his brother, actor turned politician Pawan Kalyan. The actor is contesting from the Pithapuram Assembly in the Lok Sabha Elections 2024. Speaking about his brother, Chiranjeevi said, My best wishes to him. #WATCH | Telangana: Film star Chiranjeevi Konidela and his family arrive at a polling booth in Jubilee Hills in Hyderabad to cast their vote.#LokSabhaElections2024 pic.twitter.com/HrnDGIWdjU ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024 #WATCH | Hyderabad, Telangana: After casting his vote, Film star Chiranjeevi Konidela says, "I request people to exercise their right to vote. Please come and cast your vote" #LokSabhaElections2024 pic.twitter.com/U10KdY6aIe ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024 Earlier in the day, Allu Arjun and Jr NTR were also spotted casting their votes. The RRR star showed off his inked finger and said, Everybody has to use the right of their vote. I think it is a good message which we need to pass on to the coming generations. The Pushpa 2 star also urged fans to step out and vote. Its a very responsible day for us as all of us, for the citizens of this country. I know its quite hot but lets put that little effort because today is the most crucial day for next five years of our lives. Please cast your vote and vote responsibly, he said. There will be a huge voter turnout, as more and more people are coming out to voteI would like to tell, I am not politically aligned with any party. I am neutral to all parties, he added. Mental Health Board Report to be tabled at next session of Parliament This week is Mental Health Awareness Week and, to mark the occasion, the Minister for Health and Care, the Hon Gemma Arias-Vasquez, has committed to tabling the Mental Health Board Report for 2023 at the next meeting of the Gibraltar Parliament. In order to allow for a meaningful and appropriate debate on the subject of Mental Health, and on the content of the report, the Minister for Health and Care will also be moving a Motion at the next meeting of Parliament. Government explains that this goes further than what the Minister is required to do under statute, which is simply to table the report in Parliament, and demonstrates the Governments commitment to prioritising Mental Health issues in Gibraltar. Marking the start of Mental Health Awareness Week, the Minister for Health and Care, the Hon Gemma Arias-Vasquez said: Mental Health is a hugely important topic which I am committed to making a priority. It is clear to me that we now live in a Gibraltar where suffering with issues of mental health is not taboo and where speaking out is accepted. This is, undoubtedly, in very large measure, thanks to the great work being undertaken by the many charities we have in Gibraltar who work flat out throughout the year to improve the lives of those living with issues of mental health and their families. The Government has recognised the importance of mental health and has increased the quality of its service provision significantly. This was recognised by the Mental Health Board in their report, which although critical in some areas, is generally positive and, in my view, the most positive report we have had to date. I fully accept and recognise the need to further improve mental health provision and, for this reason, I look forward to tabling the report in Parliament at the next meeting and to debating it through a motion I will be presenting. This is the right thing to do if we want to show that we are genuinely committed to improving our mental health service provision locally. For some months now I have been working on the relocation of the new Community Mental Health Team currently based at Coaling Island. This is something we are totally committed to doing and I am pleased to report that we have now identified a suitable building in the heart of town. This will mean that the CMHT will NOT be relocated to the PCC or to St Bernards Hospital. Although I would have loved to have announced the location today, we still have a few loose ends to finalise and I hope to be able to make this exciting and significant announcement very soon. Lokesh Kanagaraj has worked with some of the most sought-after actors in the South Indian film industry. The filmmaker is now set to work with the megastar Rajinikanth in Thalaivar 171, officially titled Coolie. Latest reports suggest that Lokesh Kanagaraj has increased his remuneration for the film. It is being speculated that the director will be paid on par with some of the biggest stars in the industry. India Herald has reported that Lokesh Kanagaraj will receive a remuneration of roughly 60 crore rupees for the film Coolie. The director was paid Rs 50 crore for his previous film Leo, claims the report. Lokesh Kanagaraj made his debut in the Tamil cinema business with the film Managaram. He quickly achieved widespread fame and made some noteworthy films like Kaithi, Master, Vikram, and Leo. Further, reports also suggest that Rajinikanth has charged an exorbitant fee for the film. According to Koimoi and DNA, Rajinikanth is being paid between Rs 260 and 280 crore for the film. Meanwhile, the title teaser for Coolie was released in April. The clip began with numerous gold smugglers going over their inventory of bars, watches, jewellery, and other stuff. Soon, Rajinikanth breaks into their cave and thrashes them with their possessions. Anirudh Ravichander has composed music for the film. The preview contains a noteworthy background score that sets the tone for whats to come. The film is set to go on floors soon. The film also stars Prithviraj Sukumaran, Ranveer Singh, and Parvathy Thiruvothu in key roles. Produced by Sun Pictures, Coolie is expected to be released in 2025. Lokesh Kanagarajs last release Leo starred Vijay in the titular role, alongside Sanjay Dutt, Arjun Sarja, Trisha Krishnan and others. The film grossed about Rs 605 crore worldwide. On the other hand, Rajinikanth is also working on Thalaivar 170, officially known as Vettaiyan. The film is directed by T J Gnanavel. Rajinikanth stars as the protagonist, and the cast includes Amitabh Bachchan, Fahadh Faasil, Rana Daggubati, Manju Warrier, Ritika Singh, Dushara Vijayan, Kishore, and Rohini. It is being produced by Subaskaran Allirajah under the banner of Lyca Productions. Anirudh Ravichander composed the music for the film. Behind every successful actor, there is always a long story of struggle. Everyone has to overcome many obstacles to become a successful actor. Today, we are talking about one such actress who tasted success even after facing various types of humiliation and body shaming. Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty, who is a well-known name in Bollywood, also faced rejections when she first entered the film industry. Though she was left disappointed and disheartened during her initial days, she tasted success and became one of the most successful actresses in the Bollywood film industry. In an earlier interview with Humans of Bombay, Shilpa shared about her earlier days in the glamour industry. She said, I was a dark, tall and lanky girl who never thought much about life. After completing my graduation, though I was working I wanted to try something different, something bigger and better. I took the first step when I first took part in a fashion show. While talking about her debut in the film industry she said, Soon after the fashion show I received an offer for a film. I never looked back from there as I got offers of multiple works after that. I was 17 years old then when I first stepped into the industry. That time I was less experienced. I wasnt even ready for the success which I received then. After a few films, my career came to a halt. I struggled to speak in Hindi in front of the camera. I worked hard but at times I felt like I was lagging somewhere. It becomes harder when you are celebrated in one moment and then ignored in another. I remember several producers threw me out of their films without any reason, she added. Shilpa Shetty earlier participated in an American television show Big Brother. While talking about the experience in the show, she said, I was publicly discriminated against because of my country. It wasnt easy for me as I was all alone in the house. I believed in myself and kept up my performance. When I won, people came and told me that I made them proud. That moment I felt that all that struggle was worth it. Shilpa Shetty is married to businessman Raj Kundra. They have two children Viaan and Shamisha. Despite being thrown out of films, she is presently one of the most popular actresses in Bollywood. She is one of the wealthiest actresses with a luxurious bungalow worth Rs 100 crore and a private jet. Suchitra Pillai is well-known for playing Saif Ali Khans girlfriend in Dil Chahta Hai. The film also starred Preity Zinta in a key role, with whom Suchitra shares a special connection. Suchitra recently revealed that her husband, Lars Kjeldsen, used to date Preity Zinta. However, she also clarified that they did not break up because of her. Suchitra also recalled the time when she was called a boyfriend snatcher. When asked if the boyfriend snatcher tag had anything to with Lars and Preity, Suchitra said as quoted in The Indian Express, No, thats another story from somebody else. Preity and I were never friends, we were acquaintances because we had a common friend. But, yes, Lars Kjeldsen did date Preity Zinta for some time but that was the breakup he had before he met me and only this part is true. I didnt come between them, they split up for a totally different reason. The big news that happened, which was a big misunderstanding, it was not because of me. It happened at the time I came back from England, I was called a boyfriend snatcher on the cover of several magazines. The headline read, Suchitra Pillai is a boyfriend snatcher. It was because I started dating Andrew Coyne, who had started Star Television in India. This was the relationship in question, but it was not because of me that Andrew and his partner and model Achala Sachdev fell apart. It is water under the bridge after many years and Archala and I have a laugh about it, she was also mentioned as saying. Suchitra and Lars got married in 2005. They also have a daughter named Annika Kjeldsen. As for Preity Zinta, she married Gene Goodenough in 2016 and welcomed her twins Gia and Jai via surrogacy in 2021. Preity Zinta is currently in India to film her movie with Sunny Deol, Lahore 1947. The actress, who is making her big-screen comeback after many years, shared a series of behind-the-scenes photos from the sets of the Rajkumar Santoshi directorial earlier. Taking to her official Instagram account, Preity posted the pics and wrote, On set for Lahore 1947, accompanied by new movie and shooting hashtags. Lahore 1947 is being produced by Aamir Khan. Preity Zinta and Sunny Deol have previously collaborated on multiple films like Hero: The Love Story of a Spy, Farz, and Bhaiyaji Superhit. Veteran actress Shabana Azmi is also a part of Lahore 1947. Director Rajkumar Santoshi recently revealed that her character plays a pivotal role in the period film. Rajkumar Santoshi also revealed that AR Rahman and Javed Akhtar would also be in the film. He said that this is his best dream team. A few years ago, no one had imagined the extent of the craze created by South Korean television in the present time, thanks to the increasing number of K-dramas that have taken over streaming platforms. From romantic comedies to thrillers, suspense and fantasy, there is a gamut of genres for K-drama lovers to explore. As Korean content has influenced audiences across the globe, India has also become one of the primary consumers. There are several binge-worthy K-dramas to watch on the streaming giant Netflix including the latest releases in 2024. Best K-dramas To Watch On Netflix 1. Queen Of Tears: One of the most popular and trending K-dramas on the platform in 2024 is the Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Ji Won starrer Queen of Tears. The show revolves around the story of a couple whose marriage is on the verge of breaking. However, things take a different turn as they work on their relationship amid the trials and turmoil, finally winning it over. 2. Crash Landing On You: Another very popular Korean drama is this romantic Netflix show. Featuring Hyun Bin and Son Ye Jin, Crash Landing On You tells the story of a woman, a chaebol heiress who enters North Korea and crash lands in a soldiers life. The show enjoys immense popularity globally. 3. Guardian: The Lonely and Great God: Also known as the Goblin, the rom-com fantasy K-drama is popular among K-drama lovers. The show revolves around the Goblins lookout for his bride to end his immortal curse. However, the story takes an unexpected turn after events from his past life get intertwined with the present. 4. All Of Us Are Dead: Those who love watching zombie thrillers should give this a try. The K-drama shows how a school becomes ground zero for a deadly virus outbreak, leaving students trapped while they struggle to survive. 5. Its Okay To Not Be Okay: Another masterpiece from Kim Soo Hyun, this popular K-drama stands out from the crowd for its unique take. The story is about an orphaned young man Moon Gang-tae who meets a woman named Ko Moon-young, a childrens author who has antisocial personality disorder. Their story then takes an interesting turn as they spend more time together, while also healing from their past traumas. 6. Squid Game: The show that made history at the Golden Globes and Emmys is a must-watch Korean show. The thriller drama revolves around a dangerous contest where hundreds of contestants come under the same roof to play childrens games in order to win a jackpot. However, theres a twist. A single mistake will cost them their lives. The shows sequel is presently in the works. 7. Business Proposal: This romantic-comedy K-drama focuses on two individuals, the president of GO Food and a new researcher at the company. Despite having a crush on her college friend, the female lead goes on a blind date with her boss, making things even more complicated. 8. Vincenzo: Another popular K-drama is the Song Joong-ki and Jeon Yeo-bin starrer Vincenzo. The show is about an Italian mafia lawyer who crosses paths with Hong Cha-young (Jeon Yeo-Bin) and teams up. 9. Extraordinary Attorney Woo: The show received widespread appreciation for its portrayal of autism. Park Eun Bin delivered a career-defining performance as Woo Young Woo, for which she also won the Daesang Baeksang Television. The legal drama is focused on an autistic lawyer and her journey. 10. Hometown Cha Cha Cha: Another heartwarming K-drama that will definitely make you feel good. Released in 2021, the show revolves around the story of a dentist who moves back home and ends up meeting a jack-of-all-trades handyman. Ram Charan and Mahesh Babu, prominent figures in the Telugu film industry, exercised their voting rights and cast votes on May 13. They visited their designated polling stations and fulfilled their civic duties. Videos capturing their voting process are going viral on social media. Several celebrities from the Telugu film industry have been encouraging their fans to go out and vote.Ram Charan, accompanied by his wife, Upasana Kamineni Konidela, arrived at his polling booth in Jubilee Hills to cast their votes. Mahesh Babu and his wife, Namrata Shirodkar, also voted in Hyderabad on May 13. Check out the video below: #WATCH | Telangana: Actor Mahesh Babu along with his wife Namrata Shirodkar arrived to cast his vote at Jubilee Hills public school polling station in Hyderabad. pic.twitter.com/UOvAz8KkmF ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024 Just before the election, Ram Charan visited Pithapuram and met with Jana Sena Party Chief, his uncle Pawan Kalyan, urging the public to vote for him. He was swarmed by thousands of people during his visit to Pithapuram. Ram Charan was on his way to the Kukkuteswara Swamy temple with his mother when fans started cheering for him. Ram Charan greeted his fans and also politely asked them to clear the way. Ram Charan was reportedly visiting the temple to seek blessings after his father, Chiranjeevi was honoured with the Padma Vibhushan award earlier this week in Delhi. The ceremony was attended by his wife Surekha and children Ram Charan and Sushmita. Ram Charans wife Upasana Konidela also attended the ceremony. Watch here: Ram Charan in Pithapuram can't control crowd here pic.twitter.com/leQV1xPlHA cultismm (@cultismm) May 11, 2024 Ram Charan, Mahesh Babu Cast Their Votes In Lok Sabha Elections 2024 | Watch While Pawan Kalyan has paused work to focus on the Lok Sabha elections, Ram Charan is shooting for Game Changer and has projects with other directors. Mahesh Babu is preparing for a new film with SS Rajamouli. Ram Charan is also gearing up for his next project, RC17, which will kick off shortly. Before that, he had announced that filmmaker Sukumar will be joining him for their second collaboration. This film follows their successful partnership in Rangasthalam, released six years ago. Director SS Rajamouli has cast his vote but it was nothing less than an adventure for him. The RRR director revealed he has voted for his candidate at the Lok Sabha Elections 2024 on Monday. The filmmaker shared a picture of his inked finger on Instagram along with his adventurous journey. Rajamouli revealed he returned from Dubai on Monday morning and one of the first things he did upon landing for head to a polling booth. In a post on Instagram, Rajamouli said, Flew from Dubai Rushed to the polling booth directly from the airport, hence the tired looks. Done! YOU? The filmmaker posed with his wife, Rama Rajamouli, and their son SS Karthikeya. Check out the photo below: Earlier in the day, stars such as Jr NTR, Allu Arjun and Chiranjeevi were also seen casting their vote at polling booths in Hyderabad. After he cast his vote, Allu Arjun spoke to the press and urged fans to cast their vote. Its a very responsible day for us as all of us, for the citizens of this country. I know its quite hot but lets put that little effort because today is the most crucial day for next five years of our lives. Please cast your vote and vote responsibly, he said. There will be a huge voter turnout, as more and more people are coming out to voteI would like to tell, I am not politically aligned with any party. I am neutral to all parties, he added. Chiranjeevi also asked youngsters to step out and vote. I would like to say, every time I have been saying, this time also (I say), new emerging waters are coming up. I do request them (young voters) to make use of your power of vote. Voting is our right, he said. As he headed to his car, a journalist ask Chiranjeevi about his brother, actor turned politician Pawan Kalyan. The actor is contesting from the Pithapuram Assembly in the Lok Sabha Elections 2024. Manoj Bajpayee and the late Sushant Singh Rajput co-starred in the critically acclaimed 2019 film Sonchiriya. Recently, Manoj revealed that Sushant struggled with negative articles written about him and often sought advice from Manoj on handling them. Speaking with Siddharth Kannan, Manoj shared his own experiences with producers publishing negative articles and how Sushant would turn to him for guidance. Manoj remembered Sushants sensitivity to such articles, describing him as a kind-hearted man who was deeply affected by them. He shared, Sushant was very vulnerable when it came to blind articles. He was a very good human being and it is only a good person who can get affected by these things. He would often come to me and ask how to deal with these things, I used to tell him not to take these things seriously because I have gone through such situations before, and I am still bearing the brunt of such articles against me. Manoj suggested to Sushant to handle influential people in the industry differently. Manoj said, I told him to handle people whose films are working, who are in power. I would handle such people in a different way. I would tell my friends to convey to them that I would come and beat them up. Whats important is that the message is conveyed. Sushant used to laugh and would say, Sir aap he kar sakte ho, main nahi kar sakta yeh (Sir only you can do it, I cant). But he was troubled by blind articles. He was a very sensitive and intelligent person. Manoj shared his last talk with Sushant, remembering how Sushant, also from Bihar, loved the mutton curry Manoj made on set. Sushant even wished to visit Manojs house one day to have it. Sadly, just 10 days later, Sushant died, allegedly by suicide, never getting the chance. Manojs most recent appearance was in Silence 2, and he has already started filming for The Family Man 3. That apart, his upcoming movie, BhaiyyaJi, is set to be released on May 24, 2024. Just a few weeks from now, audiences worldwide will be delighted as The Garfield Movie hits theatres on May 24, with some countries already enjoying its theatrical release. Ahead of the official launch, fans in the US and UK were treated to special screenings, while Sony imposed a social media embargo until May 12. Now that the embargo has lifted, eager fans have flooded social media with their spoiler-free reviews, praising the films storyline and particularly Chris Pratt, who is the voice behind the iconic feline. While initial public reactions are positive, full reviews from critics are expected to be out on May 19. Audiences are heaping praise on The Garfield Movie, with one user calling it delightful and charming. Chris Pratts portrayal of the iconic orange cat has been lauded, with fans declaring it the best Garfield movie ever. Another viewer applauded Pratt for bringing charisma and wit to the role, along with the talented supporting voice cast. While some minor flaws were noted, the film was still hailed as the best animated movie of the year. The beautiful animation and Chris Pratt and Samuel Jacksons efforts were also commended. #TheGarfieldMovie REVIEW: Delightful & charming! Filled to the brim with satire fun. Chris Pratt truly honors the legacy. Youll roar with laughter & have a puss-pounding good time. Not just another cartoon, its the best Garfield movie ever! A fitting end setting up whats next. pic.twitter.com/J4Pb8q2Gkt Atom (@theatomreview) May 11, 2024 The Garfield Movie: Chris Pratt brings a load of charisma and wit to Jim Davis iconic orange tabby in a film that has a somewhat formulaic plot, but makes up for it with its heartfelt moments. It has a few laughs in there and a great supporting voice cast. 7/10 #TheGarfieldMovie pic.twitter.com/dpDj00b2xd Sean Bradley (@SeanB102) May 12, 2024 #TheGarfieldMovie is the best animated film of the year so far. An adorable adventure with some strong emotional beats that despite some flaws, manages to perfectly please its target audience.Full review on May 19th! pic.twitter.com/ZolPtcRWQW The Hollywood Handle (@HollywoodHandle) May 12, 2024 I was surprised by #TheGarfieldMovie Not only was it funny, but it was also very empathetic and emotional, with a great theme about perspective. After five god-awful films, the orange cat finally gets a fun film to watch. pic.twitter.com/1vpXpf6qov Fer (#ReleaseCoyoteVsAcme) (@FMark2011) May 6, 2024 Love at first bite..Mark Dindals #GarfieldMovie is a Purrrfect Adventure, layered with whisker-twitching humour & heartwarming moments.Just like a perfectly crafted lasagna,#TheGarfieldMovie offers layers of enjoyment for viewers of all ages to devour. 1/2 pic.twitter.com/rRTtwVr8cF Liam Dearden (@liamdearden) May 12, 2024 Are you a fan of cats, cheese or just love Garfield, then watch The Garfield Movie. #GarfieldMovie is beautifully animated with Chris Pratt and Samuel L. Jackson perfectly casted as their respective counterparts. Its a heist film filled with humour and love that youll adore pic.twitter.com/9bIeYbTudJ Chris #VENOMANIACS @Cannes (@LuminousDagger) May 12, 2024 Apart from Chris Pratt and Samuel Jackson, Hannah Waddingham, Ving Rhames, Nicholas Hoult, Cecily Strong, Harvey Guillen, Brett Goldstein, Bowen Yang and Snoop Dogg have also worked in the film. The official synopsis read, Garfield, the world-famous, Monday hating, lasagna-loving indoor cat, is about to have a wild outdoor adventure. After an unexpected reunion with his long lost father, scruffy street cat Vic, Garfield and his canine friend Odie are forced from their perfectly pampered life into joining Vic in a hilarious, high stakes heist. Currently, The Garfield Movie is running in theatres across Mexico, Spain, Brazil, Italy, Peru and 13 other countries, which is roughly 35% of the international market. During its opening weekend, the star-studded film featuring Chris Pratt and Samuel L Jackson earned $22 million. The new trailer for The Garfield Movie is here. While we anticipate the antics of our favourite cat, its worth noting that while Hollywood heartthrob Chris Pratt lends his voice to the English version, the Hindi dub is skillfully voiced by Varun Sharma. In the trailer, Chris charmingly introduces Varun Sharma as the voice of Garfield for Indian audiences. With playful jest, Chris quips, I wish I could voice Garfield in everywhere but I only speak like 162 languages," as the scene transitions to Garfield with Hindi voiceover. Chris then playfully asks, Hows that? Nailed it!". He then cheekily reveals that hes not the one behind Garfield in a Hindi voice. The spotlight then shifts to Varun Sharma, who warmly greets viewers and introduces his role as the voice of Garfield in the Hindi version of the animated movie. Watch the trailer here: Reflecting on his experience of dubbing for The Garfield Movie, Varun Sharma shared with Bollywood Hungama, For me, lending my voice for The Garfield Movie has been a character I have followed since my childhood, and I resonate with his quirks. The entire dubbing process was an amazing experience, allowing me to relive all the best of my childhood memories." Expressing his gratitude to Sony Pictures, Varun exclaimed, I am thankful to Sony Pictures Releasing International for this opportunity. I am eagerly waiting for the audience to have an absolute blast watching the film." Earlier, Shony Panjikaran, General Manager and Head of Sony Pictures Releasing International (SPRI) India, expressed the excitement about the collaboration, stating, We are thrilled to collaborate with Varun Sharma for the Hindi version of The Garfield Movie. Garfield has a quirky personality, and Varuns phenomenal and humorous performances in recent films makes him the perfect choice." In the movie, Garfield embarks on a quest to reunite with his long-lost father, Vic (voiced by Samuel L. Jackson), who knows the streets, unlike a pampered feline. Garfield, along with his loyal companion by his side, Odie, sets off on a journey filled with laughter and surprises that are sure to keep audiences entertained. Directed by Mark Dindal, the film is scheduled to release on May 17, 2024. While the screenplay is penned by Paul A. Kaplan, Mark Torgove and David Reynolds, the production team includes John Cohen, Broderick Johnson, Andrew A. Kosove, Steven P. Wegner, Craig Sost, Namit Malhotra and Crosby Clyse. This latest instalment in the Garfield franchise follows the successes of 2004s Garfield: The Movie and its 2006 sequel, Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties. Attachments area An FIR has been lodged against senior Congress leader Salman Khurshid and Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Maria Alam Khan under Sections 188 and 295A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) in the Kayamganj Police Station, Fatehgarh district. The FIR alleges that the leaders made an appeal for vote jihad, terming it as necessary in the current situation for the minority community to drive away the BJP government. Maria Alam Khan, during an election rally, urged for vote jihad, stating that it is essential for the minority community to act in unison against the ruling party. Prime Minister Modi, in response to the aforementioned incident, condemned the call for vote jihad as an insult to democracy and constitution. He expressed shock at the remark made by Maria Alam, emphasising that such rhetoric is particularly concerning coming from an individual from an educated Muslim family. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had earlier launched an attack on the Congress, citing a video of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh wherein he allegedly stated that minorities should receive priority in the allocation of the nations resources. This further fuelled the ongoing discourse surrounding religious favouritism and political polarisation. As India goes out to vote in the ongoing election, similar events have sparked intense debates about the essence of parliamentary democracy and the principles it embodies. These incidents, in particular, have brought to light the complexities surrounding identity politics, religious rhetoric, and the role of leadership in a democratic society. While democracy is founded on the principles of equality, secularism, and meritocracy, the reality often strays from these ideals. Instead, we see instances of identity-based politics, religious appeals, and polarisation, which threaten the integrity of the democratic process. At the heart of parliamentary democracy lies the principle of electing leaders based on merit, irrespective of religious or communal affiliations. The essence of democracy is to empower citizens to make informed choices, free from divisive rhetoric and partisan agendas. It is about selecting representatives who will uphold the values of inclusivity, justice, and accountability. As the nation heads into elections, it is imperative for voters to critically evaluate candidates based on their qualifications, track record, and commitment to democratic principles. Blind allegiance and identity-based voting only serve to perpetuate divisions and hinder the progress of the nation. Moreover, it is imperative to recognize the intricate workings of parliamentary democracy, wherein the power to govern is decentralised and vested in elected representatives at the local level. Unlike in other forms of governance, such as presidential systems, where voters directly elect the head of state, parliamentary democracy operates on a more nuanced mechanism. Here, voters elect local leaders, who, in turn, play a pivotal role in the formation of the government and the selection of the Prime Minister. This aspect of parliamentary democracy often goes unnoticed or underappreciated, yet it is the very essence of democratic governance. The power to shape the course of the nation is vested in the hands of ordinary citizens at the grassroots level, highlighting the significance of each vote cast. By electing representatives who embody the values and aspirations of their constituents, citizens actively participate in shaping the direction of their nations governance. The essence of parliamentary democracy lies not merely in the act of voting but in the responsibility of citizens to engage in a thoughtful and deliberative process of selecting their leaders. By embracing this principle and holding their elected representatives accountable, citizens uphold the fundamental tenets of democracy and ensure that governance remains rooted in the collective will of the people. PM Modis recent remarks on Manmohan Singhs 2006 speech have ignited a firestorm of controversy. He alleged that Singh hinted at the Congress intention to prioritise wealth redistribution among Muslims, suggesting they would have the first right to Indias resources. Modis statement extended to the redistribution of assets among intruders and individuals with multiple children. This sequence of topics, transitioning from discussions on Muslims to illegal immigrants and then to individuals with numerous children, raised eyebrows and deepened concerns over communal tensions. While some observers interpret PM Modis comments as a calculated political statement, strategically positioning the BJP against the opposition, others see them as contributing to a divisive narrative that risks exacerbating communal divides. Seen through the lens of political strategy, Modis controversial speech could be construed as an attempt to address concerns about low voter turnout. The appointments of Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu as Election Commissioners have also raised concerns about transparency and independence. Under the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act, 2023, a committee including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury from the Indian National Congress, selected the commissioners. Critics argue that the inclusion of political figures in the selection process undermines impartiality, highlighting the importance of safeguarding Indias electoral institutions integrity and independence. On the other hand, the opposition has failed to reinvent itself for the nth time. Even though the ruling party has tried to play up its development model and the opposition has also discussed economic agendas, but the 2024 Lok Sabha elections seem to be broadly about Hindu sensibilities versus Muslim appeasement. The opposition has failed to acknowledge the problem of Muslim appeasement infesting it for decades, and hence, finds itself disconnected from the masses. Apart from the famous examples of entire state machinery bending over backwards to accommodate Muslim sensibilities at the time of Shah Bano, Digvijay Singh attending the inauguration of Aziz Burneys book blaming the 26/11 on the RSS or the extremely bizarre communal violence bill, 2013 or Manmohan Singhs statement about minorities having first right on resources, there has been a very visible undertone of Muslim appeasement by the Congress for decades. Appeasement is not just reservations and subsidies, sometimes statements like the one by Rahul Gandhi saying, Muslim League is a completely secular organisation, there is nothing non-secular about it, also denote a political partys convictions. The Congress also had to come clean of its anti-Hindu image that had been conveyed to the masses, but once again, the party top brass seemed uninterested. When Udhayanidhi Stalin gave a heinous remark about eradicating the Sanatana Dharma, the Congress, being its ally, should have come out strongly against it. Perhaps it is too late now for the opposition to register all of this and do course-correction, but it should understand that a lot of average Indians, whom they have discarded as communal bigots, could have been their potential voter. Ideally, the election process in a healthy democracy should be free from communal rhetoric and the elections should be fought on the values of progress, development and nation-building; however, one cannot expect the majority of Hindu voters to only vote on the agendas of development and completely gloss over the politics of appeasement going on in the country for decades. It is this spirit of democracy that is at stake in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The duty of a leader, in a democracy, is public outreach and engagement. It is not just preaching to the converted, but also to those who are not yet convinced. Intellectual elitism and saviour-messiah complexes have cost the opposition the last two elections but it has still failed to understand that it now cannot complain about politicians appealing to Hindu sensibilities without acknowledging the problem of Muslim appeasement in the last so many decades. The writer takes special interest in history, culture and geopolitics. The views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18s views. Chinese premier congratulates Mishustin on reassuming office as Russian PM Xinhua) 13:14, May 13, 2024 BEIJING, May 12 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Sunday congratulated his Russian counterpart, Mikhail Mishustin, on reassuming office as prime minister. In his message, Li said that under the strategic guidance of Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin, the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era has maintained healthy and stable development. Political mutual trust between the two countries has continuously deepened, mutually beneficial cooperation has advanced in an orderly manner, and people-to-people exchanges have become increasingly frequent, which has brought tangible benefits to the two countries and their people, Li said. Li said he is ready to continue to work with Prime Minister Mishustin to make new contributions to enriching the connotation of China-Russia relations and strengthening practical cooperation between the two countries. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing) Gibraltar Alzheimers and Dementia Society fund Dementia Palliative Care Course for Health and Social Care staff in Gibraltar Health and Social Care staff across Gibraltar have attended an innovative Dementia Palliative Care Course, delivered virtually by St Christophers Hospice, London. This course is aimed at enhancing the quality of care for individuals living locally with Dementia and was organised in collaboration with Palliative Care Doctor, Dr. Bronwen James, and Dementia Coordinator, Karen Truman, marking a significant milestone in the realm of palliative and Dementia care. Dementia is a progressive condition affecting millions worldwide, it presents unique challenges that demand specialised care approaches. Recognising this need, St Christopher's Hospice, renowned for its excellence in end-of-life care, has provided a bespoke course for Gibraltar which has been kindly funded by the Gibraltar Alzheimer's and Dementia Society. The Dementia Palliative Care Course has been designed to provide healthcare professionals with the confidence to support people with advanced Dementia and their Carers. Drawing upon evidence-based practices and the latest advancements in Dementia Care, participants have gained insights during the two-day course which included a focus on common symptoms, successful future planning, distressed and adaptive behaviours, emotional labour of caring and communication. The course was facilitated by Helen Scott, an Independent Nurse Lecturer specialising in palliative and end-of-life care and Dementia who previously worked at St Christophers as a Palliative Care Nurse Lecturer and was supplemented throughout the two days by Clinical Leaders and Research Professionals experienced in Dementia and Palliative Care. Daphne Alcantara, GADS Chairperson, said: The Gibraltar Alzheimers & Dementia Society is proud to have funded the first Dementia Palliative Care Course for Health and Social Care staff in Gibraltar which will greatly benefit the lives of people living with Dementia and their families Karen Truman, Dementia Coordinator, said: "We are immensely grateful to the Gibraltar Alzheimer's and Dementia Society for their generous support, which has made this course possible, Their dedication to improving Dementia care aligns with the Gibraltar National Dementia Strategy (2023-2028), and together, we strive to make a meaningful difference in the lives of those affected by this condition." Dr James, Palliative Care Doctor at St Bernards Hospital, said: "We are thrilled to have launched this initiative that embodies our commitment to providing holistic care for individuals with dementia. This course represents a collaborative effort between healthcare professionals and community organisations, underscoring the importance of multidisciplinary teamwork in addressing the complex needs of patients and their families." GHA Director General Mr Kevin McGee OBE IPFA said, This Dementia Palliative Care Course has been very popular, and demand has exceeded spaces available. This speaks volumes about the dedication of Healthcare and Social Care professionals in Gibraltar, who deeply value the importance of enhancing the quality of life for individuals with dementia, to be able to provide compassionate and dignified care until the end of life. In the shadows of the long-standing conflict over Kashmir lies the often-overlooked region of Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), a territory grappling with its own intense and multifaceted struggles. Since the partition of India in 1947, PoJK has remained under Pakistans control, yet the promises of progress and prosperity have largely remained unfulfilled, leading to growing discontent among its people. This article delves into the historical exploitation of the region, the current demands for freedom from Pakistan, and the role of international bodies and India in addressing the humanitarian concerns of PoJKs residents. Historical Exploitation and Current Discontent Post-partition, PoJK became a strategic point rather than a region to be developed by Pakistan. Rich in natural resources and potential revenue from tourism, it was seen as a reservoir to be tapped rather than a community to be nurtured. The benefits of these resources have consistently flowed outwards, primarily enriching Pakistans heartland, especially Punjab, while leaving PoJK in a state of socio-economic stagnation. Infrastructure development has lagged dramatically behind the rest of the country, and investments in local education and healthcare are sorely lacking. The local populace views these disparities as systemic exploitation, where their homeland serves the interests of the powerful elite rather than their own communitys needs. Spark of the Current Uprising The ongoing discontent has recently transformed into outright demands for freedom. The catalysts for these demands are manifold. Primarily, there is a significant sentiment among the people of PoJK that aligning with India could lead to better economic opportunities and more substantial political representation. This sentiment has been further inflamed by the direct contrast between the development seen in the Indian-administered parts of Jammu and Kashmir, particularly after recent legislative changes, and the stagnation in PoJK. Reports from the ground indicate that large-scale protests are being organised, with people from all walks of life joining in to demand their right to self-determinationa right promised but never realised under Pakistani governance. The response from the Pakistani military and the Pakistan Rangers has been harsh, with reports of crackdowns, arbitrary detentions, and suppression of peaceful protests. International Perspective and the Role of India The international community has largely remained silent on the issues faced by PoJK, often overshadowed by the broader Indo-Pak tensions over the Kashmir region. However, the rising human rights violations call for a concerted international response. Organisations such as the United Nations, Amnesty International, and Human Rights Watch must step forward to document these abuses and hold the Pakistani authorities accountable. Furthermore, India, which has historically claimed the entire Kashmir region as its integral part, including PoJK, has a pivotal role to play. New Delhis approach should be twofold: diplomatically advocating for the rights of PoJKs residents in international forums and providing support to the ethnic populations facing repression. This support should not only be moral but also practical, providing asylum and humanitarian aid to those fleeing persecution. Conclusion The plight of PoJK is not just a regional issue but a significant test of the international communitys resolve in upholding human rights and democratic principles. As the people of PoJK brave the streets in their quest for freedom, their voices mustnt be silenced by the harsh tactics of the Pakistan Army and Pakistan Rangers. International organisations, along with India, must work together to ensure that the ethnic population of PoJK is protected from further punishment and that their demands for a fair and free existence are recognised and supported. Only through such concerted efforts can we hope to see a resolution to the long-neglected crisis in PoJK, bringing peace and prosperity to its deserving people. Group Capt MJ Augustine Vinod VSM (retd) tweets at @mjavinod. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18s views. Out of a total of 17,32,13,635 voters, 8,86,12,171 cast their votes for elections to the Parliament. The overall percentage was thus 51.15 which was by no means unsatisfactory. That was how Sukumar Sen, the first Chief Election Commissioner of India, summed up the electoral participation in the first general elections, 1951-52 (Report on the First General Elections, 1951-52, Vol-1, P.131). A voter turnout figure of 51.15 per cent would be considered poor, even outrageous today. The same was considered satisfactory then because it had previously been feared that adult suffrage would fail abjectly in India due to the bleak literacy rate (16.6 per cent in 1951). In the 1950s and 60s, the New Delhi-based Indian Adult Education Association (it still exists at the same address at 17-B, Indraprastha Estate) with S.C. Dutta as its General Secretary used to hold high-profile annual seminars on Adult Education for Parliamentary Democracy directed by Dr L.M. Singhvi. However, actual experience revealed that electoral participation did not improve in sync with the rising literacy graph in the ensuing half a century. The polling percentage in three successive Lok Sabha elections 1999 (59.99 per cent), 2004 (58.07 per cent) and 2009 (58.21 per cent) failed to breach the 60 per cent mark despite tremendous advancement in literacy, the advent of electronic media, and strengthening of political organisation. In the ongoing elections to the 18th Lok Sabha, below-par voter turnout has become a matter of discussion. From the rising mercury to peoples dipping interest in voting, poll pundits have tried to factor in almost everything. Even election planning has been questioned on the ground that two phases are scheduled on Fridays, and two on Saturdays, when voters might take advantage of long weekends to go on excursions. The turnout figures given by the EC for the first two rounds are 66.14 per cent and 66.71 per cent respectively which signify a marginal dip compared to 2019. This is no doubt an improvement over the initial figures reported in the media. Election Commission of India vide its press release dated May 3 affirmed that it remained keenly focused on enhancing voter turnout. It listed a string of measures like collaboration with the BCCI during IPL 2024, vote day alert on Facebook, collaboration with the Postal department and nationalised/private banks, collaboration with the Ministries of Railways/Petroleum and Natural Gas/Civil Aviation, and tie-up with digital payment networks, food delivery platforms, television channels and podcast platforms etc. It appears that no stone has been left unturned in pursuit of alerting people to exercise their franchise. In ancient Rome, Cato, the Elder also called Cato, the Censor (234-149) ended all his speeches regardless of the subject, with the singular phrase Carthago delenda est or delanda est Carthago (Carthage must be destroyed). So whatever one sees, hears or consumes should ideally deliver the message that one must vote, positively and ethically, and destroy the apathy towards voting. Why and how did the polling percentage acquire such importance? Until the first decade of the 21st century, there was no such sensitivity around the subject. If one were to look at the historical figures of voter turnout in Lok Sabha elections, as given by the Election Commission of India, they breached the 60 per cent mark only five times in thirteen elections in 20th century 61.04 per cent in 1967, 60.49 per cent in 1977, 64.01 per cent in 1984-85, 61.95 in 1989 and 61.97 per cent in 1998 (Electoral Statistics Pocket Book, 2021, P.48). As already told, in three successive elections to Lok Sabha in 1999, 2004 and 2009, the poll percentage remained below 60 per cent. Thus, howsoever historic we might term certain elections, the electoral participation has ranged between average to fair. Anything above 70 per cent can be rated as good, and above 75 per cent very good, never achieved at the pan-Indian level. II During the first fifty years or more, optimising the conduct of free and fair elections remained the priority for the ECI. Various electoral reforms, including Constitutional amendments, were enacted by the Parliament of India during this period. It is not true that the issue of participatory elections was completely lost upon the ECI. The then Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) S.P. Sen Varma, inspired by John Stuart Mills dictum that the polling places should be as numerous as to be within easy reach of every voter, made a dramatic increase in the number of polling stations for the Lok Sabha elections, 1971 (taking them to 3,42,944 in 1971 as against 2,67,555 in 1967), yet paradoxically the voters turnout fell sharply from 61.04 per cent in 1967 to 55.27 per cent in 1971. By the early 21st century, a number of enforcement issues had been settled. By the late 1980s, observers got legal status, and the EC the authority to adjourn or countermand elections on grounds of booth capturing. The Election and Other Laws (Amendment) Act, 2003 made declaration of donations received by political parties mandatory, and made legal provision for allocation of equitable sharing of time on national carriers like DD and AIR etc, and free supply of electoral roll to candidates of recognised political parties etc. Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) were universalised in the fourteenth Lok Sabha elections in 2004. However, the average (or low) rate of voting in the three successive Lok Sabha elections in 1999, 2004 and 2009 made the Election Commission of India take notice. Several general and targeted interventions were envisaged to bridge the gap between enrollment and actual voting ahead of the Jharkhand Legislative Assembly elections towards the end of 2009. This led to the introduction of planned IEC (Information, Education and Communication) which subsequently came to be known as the SVEEP (Systematic Voter Education and Electoral Participation) programme. The Diamond Jubilee of the EC was celebrated on January 25, 2010. The theme adopted was Greater Participation for Stronger Democracy, making a strong pitch that ensuring free and fair elections through statutory and administrative measures was not enough, and increasing voter participation mattered. On January 25, 2011, National Voters Day (NVD), coinciding with the foundation day of the Election Commission of India, was launched with fanfare. Its prime target group was young and first-time voters, who as experience showed, were lukewarm towards exercising their franchise. In 800,000 simultaneous events held across polling stations in India, voter ID card (EPIC) was handed to those who had turned 18 years old on January 1. On the eve of the first NVD, while addressing an international conference on the theme of Best Electoral Practices, the then Chief Election Commissioner Dr S.Y. Quraishi delineated a reorientation in the ECs approach in the following words- First, our Commission has very actively embraced the path of inclusive elections, in which voluntary participation of all sections of people in the electoral process is a cherished goal. The Commission does not want to leave voters participation to selective whims of political parties. We created a dynamic and proactive Voter Education and Electoral Participation Wing that would initiate scientifically planned interventions preceded by a comprehensive survey of Knowledge, Attitude, Behaviour and Practices among voters prior to elections. III The Election Commission of India has progressively increased its stake in more participatory elections through a perennial voter education and facilitation programme. The Department Related Parliamentary Standing Committee report pertaining to the Demand for Grants (2023-24) of the Legislative Department (Ministry of Law and Justice) shows that Rs 75 crore was specifically allocated to the ECI for its voter awareness (SVEEP) programme. This was Rs 58.12 crore less than the ECIs demand to the Ministry of Finance under that head (DRPSC on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice, Report No-130, P.27). Over the last few years, the EC initiated several measures aimed at ease of voting. Assured minimum facilities in every polling station, all polling booths being located on ground floor, pick up and drop to persons with disabilities, and further home voting option for senior citizens above 85 years and persons with disabilities are some of them. The polling percentage in the last Lok Sabha elections (2019) reached a record high of 67.40. Voters turnout is the ultimate test of voter education and facilitation programmes conducted by the Election Commission of India. Having boasted of rising voter participation as a success story of the EC, even a marginal dip could reflect poorly upon the Commission. That is exactly the peril of segregating electoral participation from political sentiments. As long as elections, even enrollment, are voluntary, polling figures are bound to be swayed by political sentiments. It might take a long time for voters to take polling as a sacred civic duty as a citizen of India. Otherwise, a significant section of the electorate will vote when they strongly feel about a candidate and a political party. By some strange coincidence, the implementation of the SVEEP programme coincided with tectonic shifts in the political scenario and the rearrangement of political forces. The former benefitted from the latter buoying up the polling percentage. One could not deny the possibility of the voter education and facilitation programme getting caught in a downward political curve also. Thus, there is nothing to be disheartened by temporary setbacks, if any. The voter turnout figure could not be entirely shielded from political sentiments. Admittedly, there are certain traditionally high-voting states like West Bengal, Tripura etc. That is a result of the sustained politicalisation of public life, which is not always a good thing. The writer is author of the book The Microphone Men: How Orators Created a Modern India (2019) and an independent researcher based in New Delhi. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18s views. Amidst the complex web of challenges facing Pakistan, the nation grapples with a worn economy, volatile internal security, a faltering regional policy, and importantly, heightened political uncertainty. At the heart of this tumultuousness lies one institution: the Pakistan Army. Its persistent interference in the countrys political affairs and consequent dominance over all other institutions has largely inhibited the establishment of strong and stable civilian democratic institutions in Pakistan. While traditionally tasked with national defence, the Pakistan Army has, over the years, assumed a dual role as both a military and a political actor, exerting influence through its overt and covert involvement in the politics of the state. Despite occasional civilian efforts, it has proved difficult to undo or limit the influence of this deeply entrenched political role of the Pakistan Army. Several factors contribute to the complexity of addressing the Pakistan Armys entrenched role. These encompass its extensive economic interests, manifested in numerous commercial enterprises, the fragility of civilian institutions, and deliberate actions to maintain internal security instability. Moreover, it has positioned itself as Pakistans most reliable institution in the eyes of foreign powers like the United States and China, thereby securing influence over the nations foreign policy. The Pakistan Armys intervention in politics dates back to the countrys formative years when it was tasked with the responsibility of safeguarding the nascent nation and ensuring internal security. However, this constitutional duty has been historically exploited by the Army to acquire a disproportionate share of national resources, a trend that continues to this day. For instance, when Pakistan acquired $2 billion in financial aid from the United States in 1947, the armed forces received a significant share of $300 million. Similarly, despite Pakistans current economic challenges, the military establishment ensured a 13 per cent increase in the annual defence budget from PKR 1.5 trillion in 2022-23 to 1.8 trillion in the 2023-24 federal budget. Through collusion with other state actors such as civil bureaucracy, judiciary, and various political and religious leaders, the Pakistan Armys political meddling has manifested in various forms. From orchestrating military coups to directly influencing the appointment of political leaders, it has consistently sought to shape Pakistans political landscape through direct and indirect means in accordance with its interests. This was particularly evident during the recent February 2024 elections when the Pakistan Army not only prevented Imran Khans party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI), from securing an electoral majority through elaborate pre- and post-poll manipulation but also ensured the sidelining of Nawaz Sharif in favour of his brother Shehbaz Sharif to safeguard its interests. Such nuanced manipulation underscores the Pakistan militarys adeptness in navigating the complexities of Pakistani politics, ensuring its continued influence within the democratic framework. The foremost reason for the unending political interference in Pakistans civilian affairs largely stems from the Armys vast network of commercial enterprises it has established over the decades, spanning sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, education, construction, and real-estate sectors. In the broader political economy of the country, the Army-led Pakistan Armed Forces are directly involved in commercial or profit-making ventures or have personal economic interests of its officer class at stake. Pakistani author Ayesha Siddiqa calls this nexus Milbus, which is the military capitalused for the personal benefit of the military fraternity, especially the officer cadre, but is neither recorded nor part of the defence budget. This is significant for the armed forces, given the Pakistan Army has continued with the colonial practice of rewarding its officer class with land and effectively formed a new feudal class. At the apex of the militarys economic pyramid stands the Fauji Foundation (FF), Army Welfare Trust (AWT), Shaheen Foundation (SF) and Bahria Foundation (BF), all being run in the name of welfare organisations. Not only do all three services of the Pakistan Armed Forces run their welfare organisations with economic subsidiaries, but the military formations and units of the Pakistan Army starting from its Corps till brigades level run their independent commercial ventures. For instance, Fauji Foundation controls dozens of subsidiaries, such as Fauji Foundation Gas, Fauji Corn Company, Fauji Cement, Fauji Security Company, Fauji Fertilizer, Fauji Sugar Mills, Fauji Foundation Securities (PVT), Fauji Farm Ltd, Fauji Oil, Overseas Employment Services, among others. Likewise, the Army Welfare Trust (AWT), as per 2016 Senate filings of Pakistans Ministry of Defence, owns over 50 housing projects in the country besides dozens of industrial ventures such as Askari Farms, Askari Rice, Askari Sugar, Askari Fish, Askari Cement, Askari Pharmaceutical, Magnesite Refineries, Commercial Plazas, Askari Guards, Askari Aviation, among others. Additionally, the Army also controls organisations such as the Frontier Works Organisation (FWO), which is Pakistans largest construction company, along with the Special Communication Organisation (SCO), which accord it control and dominance over all other state institutions. Besides, Pakistans Armed Forces own 11.58 million acres of the 93.67 million acres of state land, with the exclusive powers to change its character to private use. Of this military landholding, it has allocated a huge 6.8 million acres, that is 59 per cent, to the individual members of the armed forces, thereby making them the new feudal class of the country. It is this omnipresence across all economic sectors of Pakistan that essentially accords it an important role for the military in the state and society even if the generals do not directly control the levers of power, as Pakistani Political Scientist and Military Analyst Hasan-Askari Rizvi argues in his book Military, State and Society in Pakistan. Given these economic entanglements, the Pakistan Army has developed vested interests in the governments economic policies and hence has felt the necessity to infiltrate the democratic institutions of the country to ensure it retains unchallenged control of and access to state resources. This explains the appointment of retired and serving senior military officers in important civilian institutions such as NADRA, WAPDA, SUPARCO, and CPEC Authority, among others. Not only do these strategic appointments help it tilt the government policies in its favour, but it also ensures that the military itself designs such policies where its interests are at stake. What is more interesting is how the Army has ensured that its economic empire functions out of governmental accountability mechanisms even as it exploits national resources at the peril of the state economy. This is significant in the current context wherein the countrys economy remains ventilator-ridden, yet the military economy remains unscathed and thriving. For instance, whereas Pakistans economy risks a potential external debt default in the absence of new sustained financial support from external creditors, its unaccountable military economy remains thriving with the assets of its enterprises growing to over $20 billion, with entities such as Fauji Foundation worth PKR 9.8 billion and Army Welfare Trust PKR 50 billion. Given this state of the economy, the Pakistan Army needs a civilian yet feeble facade of government to not only shield its unaccounted assets but also to scapegoat these plaint political leaders for the countrys economic mismanagement. Intricately related to this is how the Pakistan Army has exploited frequent militant violence and internal insecurity in the country to its advantage. From the tribal areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to Balochistan, Pakistan has witnessed recurrent violence from many groups that the military establishment has long patronised such as the various factions of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and several sectarian groups. While the Pakistan Army conveniently blames external forces out of convenience, unsurprisingly, it also remains the ultimate beneficiary of this violence in the countrys hinterland. This insecurity gives the Army carte blanche to retain dominance over the state institutions, as well as to justify its claims over ever-increasing annual budgetary allocations. Increased volatility in Pakistans security situation allows the military establishment to pressure the weak political dispensations to allocate an increased share of the federal budget to the armed forces. This was seen in the 2023-24 annual budget allocation when the Shehbaz Sharif government was forced to increase the defence share by 13 per cent despite the near economic collapse of the country. Therefore, unless and until Pakistans political leadership get its act together and brings the independent economic enterprises of the armed forces under the accountability mechanism of the state, the military establishment will ensure its interests remain unscathed and unaccounted for even as it feeds on the national resources. It is this military capital that holds the key to how long the political interference from the military establishment will continue in the country. There is an imminent requirement of a democratic consensus amongst the political parties towards this end. Instead of competing to be the subordinate partners of the military establishment, the civilian political actors need to go beyond their individual interests to reclaim the civilian governance institutions from the clutches of the Army. Then only can there be a possibility of limiting the role of the Army from the political affairs of Pakistan, if not outrightly ending it in totality. The writer is an author and columnist and has written several books. His X handle is @ArunAnandLive. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18s views. Microsoft is busy fighting it out in the AI arena with OpenAI and Google but soon the company is going to have a new battle on its hands. Microsoft is planning to launch its own mobile game store for apps that will compete with Googles Play Store and Apple App Store. The report from Bloomberg claims Microsoft plans to launch a web-based gaming store that will include popular titles like Call of Duty: Mobile, Candy Crush Saga and more. The company is likely to host its in-house apps which can allow Microsoft to offer better incentives to download from its app store rather than Google or Apples. Microsoft Gaming Store: What It Could Look Like The details about the app store launch were confirmed by Sarah Bond, President, Xbox who talked about bringing games from the Microsoft game studios to the upcoming platform. The best thing about the Microsoft gaming store is that being a web-based app store means you can access these apps on all devices and not limited to a few countries like the regular app stores. The other likely benefit of installing games from the Microsoft game store is that developers could bypass the app store commission that Google and Apple charge for their respective app stores. Microsoft will be hoping that the ongoing antitrust battle between its rivals and the ecosystem plays to its advantage. Having said that, these two have a big uptake on apps and user base thanks to their mobile platforms, so Microsoft will definitely need to offer a compelling package for developers and consumers to get them to make the jump. The company could have an event to announce this app store where they could see special arrangements with Xbox that could help it appeal to the users. The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) unwrapped the results of the CBSE 12 board exams this Monday. A solid 87.98 percent of students sailed through the Class 12 exams, marking a cheerful upswing of 0.65 percent from last year. Out of the 16,33,730 students who signed up for the CBSE Class 12 journey this year, a robust 16,21,224 students appeared for the exams. Among them, a commendable 14,26,420 students passed them. But wait, theres more to the story. Over 24,000 students soared above the 95% mark, while a whopping 1.16 lakh students crossed the 90% threshold. As students celebrate their achievements, social media is buzzing with humorous memes and jokes, reflecting their anxieties in a lighthearted manner. Also Read: CBSE Exam Blues? Students Find Relief Through Hilarious Memes From memes capturing the shock of unexpected results to jokes about less-than-ideal marks, the online world is filled with amusing takes on the exam experience. Take a Look: Guys who literally woke up and check their results. Situations of the 12th class students right now#CBSEResults #CBSEpic.twitter.com/HioAUGb4eU Sidra (@SidRa18350) May 13, 2024 The guys who literally woke up now & checked their results #CBSE #CBSEResults pic.twitter.com/TOzXPTnKnG Shreyash Shukla (@Shreyashh_ss) May 13, 2024 Every Buas Face After She Get To Know That You Scored 96% In Board Exams#CBSE #CBSEResults pic.twitter.com/6FMewj2uxj Shreyash Shukla (@Shreyashh_ss) May 13, 2024 But beyond the laughs, many voices online are rallying to support students who didnt hit the mark. They remind us that grades arent everything and urge students to believe in themselves. As one message goes, CBSE class 12 board exam results declared; 87.98% of students pass! Congrats! But this message is for the rest of the 12.02% of students! Keep believing in yourself and what youre capable of! Once you start doubting yourself, its like giving up the fight because you already know your strengths and abilities. Never doubt yourself, ever! Another voice underscores, If you know students/parents of students who havent scored well in the CBSE 12th Std exams, say an encouraging word if appropriate. Yes, marks matter in our system, but they dont need to hear that today. Tell them the world has changed & explodes with opportunity. Also Read: YouTuber Ankur Warikoo Inspires Students By Sharing His Class 12 Marksheet Nevertheless, its a beautiful thing to see how social media is stepping up to spread cheer in the midst of stress. No one wants to be a victim of a toxic culture at the workplace but not everyone is that fortunate. And in a poignant display of dissatisfaction, an employee who had endured the brunt of such toxicity didnt hesitate to deliver a resounding message to the organisation on their final day at the office. Their impassioned email, directed towards the managers and all who had contributed to the degradation of the work environment, quickly gained traction after being shared on the Developers India subreddit. The screenshots of the email unveiled a narrative beginning with the employees pointed observation of the managers absence on their last day, prompting thwm to send an email. It was not AT ALL PLEASURABLE for me to work with you, the emails heated tone began, with select phrases emphasised for effect. The employee proceeded to express their reluctance to leave on bad terms but attributed their decision to the managers dictatorial demeanour, likening it to a HITLERs RACE, compelling them to reveal all. The employee listed several instances where they were unfairly accused of provoking others and recounted numerous occasions of mistreatment during their notice period. These included being pressured to stay after team meetings and being purposefully isolated during lunch and other interactions. They didnt leave out any details, making sure to highlight each instance of mistreatment. Also Read: Viral Video Shows Canara Bank & Bandhan Bank Officers Browbeat Employees in Meetings Over Targets But that wasnt just it. The email wasnt just about complaining. It also expressed gratitude to those who had been supportive and kind. At the same time, it pointedly suggested that the manager should learn from these examples of kindness and support. Moreover, it highlighted the managers disrespectful behaviour towards female employees, which further reflected poorly on their leadership abilities. In conclusion, the employee strongly criticised the managers suitability for their position. They emphasised their determination to uphold self-respect and dignity despite facing challenges in the workplace, writing, My backbone is strong enough to hold/stick on grounds of self-respect/self-esteem and ofcourse cant stand humiliation and mental sickness at workplace. I dont like sitting at the table where respect is not served. Take a Look: Since its circulation, the post has garnered widespread attention, with public commendation for the employees courage in speaking out against toxicity. Usually people dont write such things because they might get in trouble in their next job. But damn this person might have went through a lot to write all these and cc everyone. Cant imagine the frustration of manager in next standup call, remarked one user. Also Read: Zomato Celebrating Employees Working on 31st Dec Has Internet Stressed Out: Nothing to Be Proud It is great to see that you stand against a toxic work culture, echoed another amidst a chorus of supportive comments. As the world celebrated Mothers Day on Sunday, May 12, numerous social media users and prominent figures flooded the internet with their childhood snapshots alongside their mothers. Among all the posts, Indian Forest Service (IFS) Officer Himanshu Tyagis X (Formerly Twitter) post touched many hearts. Taking to his official handle, Tyagi honoured his mother for being his primary source of motivation. According to the IFS officer, his mother got married at the age of 16 after completing 8th grade and took responsibilities of the family. Despite facing societal challenges, she survived patriarchy and made numerous sacrifices throughout her life. On the special occasion, Tyagi also shared five valuable lessons he learned from his mothers remarkable journey. The officer wrote, Educated only till 8th grade, married at 16. Took on family responsibilities early, survived patriarchy. An ardent Krishna devotee. Life of sacrifices. She is my biggest inspiration. 5 lessons from the life of my mother. 1. Never give up: Try your best. Its okay if the situation fails you, but you should not give up from your side. 2. Live a life of good character: Chase goodness, good values, and spirituality. Look beyond external pleasures. 3. Wait for time to change: During your bad times, dont give up because nothing is constant in the world. One day, your bad times will end and your good times will start. Survive till that day. 4. Dont waste time arguing: Dont try to prove yourself with your words. Learn to ignore. Work on yourself. 5. Follow yourself, not society: Do what seems appropriate to you. Even if it is against societal traditions. Believe in God, Himanshu Tyagi concluded the post. educated only till 8th grade, married at 16. Took on family responsibilities early; survived patriarchy. An ardent Krisha devotee. Life of sacrifices. She is my biggest inspiration. #HappyMothersDay 5 lessons from the life of my mother pic.twitter.com/lSagCTWree Himanshu Tyagi (@Himanshutyg_ifs) May 12, 2024 Soon after Himanshu Tyagi shared a special Mothers Day post on X, it quickly captured the internets attention and garnered over 19,000 views. Social media users flooded the comments section with appreciation responses. A user wrote, Very impressive Sir, while another, praising his observation skills, called him very inspiring. An individual shared, Valuable thoughts, one more added, Inspirational sir. Mothers Day is celebrated to honour mothers, which typically falls on the second Sunday in May. The origin goes back to ancient Greece and Rome, where the festival admired mother goddesses like Rhea and Cybele. In the US, Anna Jarvis is considered the force behind Mothers Day celebration. After her mothers death in 1905, Jarvis organised a memorial in West Virginia three years later, to honour her mothers memory and pay tribute to all mothers. During the service, she filled the venue with 500 white carnations flowers and also held a separate memorial in Philadelphia. This event, on May 10, 1908, became the first official Mothers Day celebration. On the occasion of Mothers Day, social media was flooded with heart-touching posts in which people expressed their gratitude and love for their mother or other maternal figures in their lives. Former US President Barack Obama also shared a special Mothers Day post for his wife Michelle Obama. Barack Obama and Michelle Obama have been married for 32 years. They have two daughters, Malia and Sasha. In his Mothers Day post, Barack Obama shared a beautiful picture of his wife and wrote, Happy Mothers Day to Michelle Obama and all the moms out there! Michelle, thank you for all that you do for our girls. Today and every day, we celebrate you. And a big thank you to all the mothers and mother figures out there who provide us love, inspiration and support, often in the face of remarkable odds. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Barack Obama (@barackobama) The post got over 1 lakh likes in less than a day. Commenting on it, an Instagram user wrote, Happy Mothers Day to our forever FLOTUS, Michelle Obama. Another person mentioned, Michelle is amazing! I love how much respect you show your wife and all women everywhere. The country needs you! Im staying positive on social media. I wish more ppl would too. Thanks, President Obama for all your strength and love. Michelle Obama also dedicated a special Instagram post to her mother Marian Shields Robinson. The former US first lady wrote, Happy Mothers Day to all the moms out there! My mom has always been my rock and Im so grateful for all the ways she continues to show up for my family. Shes taught me so much over the years, and I feel so lucky that I get to pass that same wisdom down to my own girls. To all the moms celebrating today, I hope you know how much youre appreciated. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Michelle Obama (@michelleobama) Michelle Obama has often spoken about how her parents, who dropped out of college, raised her and her brother Craig Robinson in the best way possible, despite having financial precarity. In 2022, she told Chicagos ABC 7, We were poor. We lived in a small house, but what they gave us was a feeling of importance, a belief that our voices mattered at a very young age, a sense of understanding, of pushing through resilience. We all expect a smooth and pleasant travel experience after investing money and making our bookings well in advance. However, these days we hear stories about how air travel has become a stressful experience for passengers. Recently, one such incident came to light involving a woman named Swati Singh, who faced a challenging ordeal while travelling with IndiGo over the weekend. The woman took to social media to express her frustration and highlight the distressing situation that she and other passengers experienced during a significant flight delay. Swati Singh recounted her experience of being stranded at the airport for several hours due to the delay of their IndiGo flight. In her complaint, she also mentioned that diabetic passengers were forced to eat sugary food to manage their condition while coping with the inconvenience caused by the delay. Another flight delayed by IndiGo, diabetic patients forced to eat sugary food to keep up with the inconvenience. The managers answer is We have no option. Why is the aviation ministry not putting penalties on big corporations like IndiGo airlines when the common man is suffering? she wrote in her post. The passenger also shared a video showing an elderly woman addressing the IndiGo staff at the airport counter. The woman expressed her frustration, stating that important tasks that needed to be done urgently were delayed due to the flight delay. She mentioned that they would be complaining to IndiGos chairman in Delhi regarding the matter. Another flight delayed by @IndiGo6E #diabetic patients forced to eat sugary food to keep up with the inconvenience. The managers answer is we have no option Why is avaiatiin ministry not putting penalties on big corporations like #indigoairlines when common man is suffering? pic.twitter.com/AGz8sHDRYu Swati Singh (@swtsingh34) May 11, 2024 This was not the first time she had encountered issues with IndiGo. In a previous post on social media, she revealed that she had missed her flight to Seattle, USA after IndiGo cancelled her connecting flight. Singhs frustration was compounded by the airlines response to her complaint, where the manager reportedly stated that they had no other options. She questioned the effectiveness of Indias Aviation Minister in addressing such issues, particularly the lack of accountability from airlines like IndiGo. In response to Swati Singhs complaint, IndiGos customer service reached out, expressing regret for the inconvenience and requesting details of her flight for further assistance. They assured her that such experiences were not reflective of the airlines usual standards and pledged to investigate the matter promptly to address her concerns. So far, three phases of voting have been completed out of the seven, with the fourth phase currently ongoing and scheduled to continue on May 13. These phases have seen voter turnouts of 66.1%, 66.7%, and 61% respectively, marking a roughly three percent decrease from the 2019 elections. This decline has naturally raised questions about voter engagement in the worlds largest democracy, prompting businesses to contribute to raising voting awareness. As part of this effort, hotels and restaurants have stepped up to offer special discounts to voters who show their inked fingers. Also Read: Vote First, Marriage Second: Maharashtra Man Is Making Headlines For His Commitment Voters can avail of a 10-20% discount on their meals simply by showing that they voted. But where can these discounts be found? Mahabaleshwar A restaurant called Meghna Food Studio, situated right next to Nakinda bus stop is offering a generous 25% discount to voters. Naresh Jain, the owner, expressed his motivation behind this initiative, stating, I was planning to do something for voter awareness because I believe its also a part of nation-building. Its vacation time and lots of people are coming to Mahabaleshwar, so we decided to offer the discount. Jain further emphasised the importance of voting, especially for the youth, saying, Especially the youth should know that its not just our right to vote but also our duty. So everyone should vote, putting all other things aside. Jain, who is actively involved in social work, sees this discount as a means to promote civic engagement. Delhi In the national capital, businesses are also rallying to ensure a high voter turnout. Deepak Mehta, president of the Old Delhi Hotel Association, announced special discounts and offers on May 25 and 26 for voters. Hotels around Jama Masjid, Chandni Chowk, and Delhi Gate are offering discounts of up to 25%. Moreover, the Delhi Hotel Association is extending an additional 20% discount on bookings in hotels and guesthouses in Paharganj and Karol Bagh for all voters. Deputy Commissioner Abhishek Mishra of Karol Bagh Zone underscored the initiatives objective, stating, The initiative aims to encourage citizens to actively participate in the democratic process and fulfill their civic duty. He added, By offering tangible benefits to voters, the market and hotel associations hope to increase voter turnout and promote civic engagement in the Karol Bagh and Najafgarh areas. Mumbai In Mumbai, where all six constituencies are set to vote in the fifth phase, several hotels and restaurants are gearing up to offer a 10-20% discount to customers who cast their votes in the Lok Sabha elections. This initiative, known as Pledge To Vote, is spearheaded by the Hotel and Restaurant Association (Western India) HRAWI, with the aim of promoting voter awareness and increasing participation in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Solan, Himachal Hotels and restaurants in Solan are also joining the effort to encourage voter turnout. They will be offering a 20% discount to voters on polling day as part of the district administrations push to encourage people to vote. Solan Deputy Commissioner Manmohan Sharma revealed that the Solan administration has already partnered with 20 hotels and restaurants as part of the Eat Pure, Vote For Sure campaign, as reported by Deccan Herald. More eateries are expected to join this initiative until voting day on June 1. And its not just hotels and restaurants; other businesses like cinema halls, jewellers, and mobile phone shops are also joining in, offering discounts on voting days in their respective areas. Also Read: Indian Professors Job Poster Looks Straight From Election That Has Desis Voting for Laughs So, dont miss your chance to flex your voting muscle and bag some sweet perks in the process. The fourth phase of Lok Sabha Election 2024 kicked off today, on May 13, starting at 7 AM. Across 10 states and Union Territories, 96 Lok Sabha Constituencies are participating in the process. Social media feeds are filled with images and videos capturing the election excitement among voters from various polling locations. One particular polling station in Kodangal, Telangana, has caught everyones attention for its unique atmosphere. Voters arriving at the station were pleasantly surprised to be greeted with open arms as if they were stepping into a wedding celebration. Reports suggest that this unconventional setup was created to attract voters and ensure maximum crowd. The wedding-themed polling station left voters excited and the footage shows them entering the premises with smile on their faces. In the video circulating online, voters are shown entering the polling station, while a volunteer distributes various kinds of flowers to each person. Just like an actual wedding, the entrance is decorated with vibrant drapes, balloons and fresh plants, creating a cheerful atmosphere. Not only the entrance, but the polling rooms were also decorated with flowers, enhancing the voters experience. VIDEO | Lok Sabha Elections 2024: A wedding-themed polling station was set up in Kodangal, Telangana in an effort to attract voters.Voting for the fourth phase is underway in 96 Lok Sabha Constituencies across 10 states and UTs. #LSPolls2024WithPTI #LokSabhaElections2024 pic.twitter.com/bsfRfRqRlI Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) May 13, 2024 During the Lok Sabha 2024 elections second phase, a groom from Amravati, Maharashtra, made headlines by voting with his family before his wedding. Similarly, in Kathua, Jammu and Kashmir, during the first phase, a bride and groom, accompanied by their entire wedding guests, were spotted giving their votes at the Buddhi polling booth. Another newlywed couple in Udhampur didnt waste time either, as they voted right after their wedding ceremony. The latest Lok Sabha election covers a major portion of India, as 25 seats up for grabs in Andhra Pradesh, 17 in Telangana and several others distributed across states like Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha, Jharkhand, and Jammu and Kashmirs Srinagar. 17.7 Crore voters are eligible to cast their votes. This phase of elections is seeing a tough competition as over 1,717 candidates are competing for victory. Popular contenders include Union Minister and BJP leader Giriraj Singh in Baharampur, SPs Akhilesh Yadav in Kannauj, Congress Adhir Ranjan Chaudhary and TMCs Mahua Moitra in Krishnanagar. Additionally, Union Minister and former CM of Jharkhand Arjun Munda is contesting from Khunti, while TMCs Shatrughan Sinha is standing from Asansol. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and his ex-wife Melinda Gates congratulated their eldest daughter Jennifer on her medical school graduation. Jennifer Gates graduated from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York. The 28-year-old took to Instagram to reflect on her academic journey. She described her doctoral degree as her childhood dream and wrote, Its been a whirlwind of learning, exams, late nights, tears, discipline, and many moments of self-doubt, but the highs certainly outweighed the lows these past 5 years. She also thanked her professors, mentors, friends and family for supporting her along the way. Bill Gates, a proud father, commented, What you have achieved todayand every day leading up to itis a tremendous accomplishment. Im so proud of you for finishing medical school, and I cant wait to watch you take this next step into residency. Your patients will be lucky to call you doctor. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Jenn Gates Nassar (@jenngatesnassar) Melinda Gates wrote, Jenn, I am so proud of youand you should be so proud of yourself! What an incredible tribute to your passion, intelligence, and hard work. Cant wait to see where your next chapter takes you! In March, Jennifer revealed that she will be doing her residency at Mt. Sinai in the Pediatrics Research department. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Jenn Gates Nassar (@jenngatesnassar) In a 2020 interview with Sidelines Magazine for the July issue, Jennifer recalled that her parents would often discuss global health issues with her and these conversations inspired her to be a doctor. She said, As a young kid, they always talked to me like I was an adult and werent willing to shy around difficult conversations. I grew up hearing about childrens mortality at the dinner table, about polio, about the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Bill Gates and Melinda Gates have three kids: Jennifer, Rory and Phoebe. All three kids have maintained a low profile and stayed away from the press. Rory, 24, earned a double major and a masters from the University of Chicago in 2022. Phoebe, 22, joined the Stanford University post after graduating from high school in 2021. This Mothers Day was special for a writer named Blake Turck living in the US. She has described it in an article for The Washington Post. Blake wrote that she found many things in her late mother Deborahs New York apartment. One of those possessions includes a diary. Blake was flipping through the pages of the diary till she reached its back cover. In cursive, the content of the back pages read: Life is not about waiting for the storms to passits about learning how to dance in the rain. Blake wrote that these words have helped her to stay motivated during the tough moments of life. According to the writer, eight years after she discovered the note, she lost a baby while being five months pregnant. Blake added that grief continued through more loss over the next five years. She had to face infertility as well, and during this time, the inspiring words written by her mother came to her rescue. Blake then described in detail the problems her mother had to endure before the demise. As per the writer, Deborah had lost her father at a young age and her mother as well due to cancer. The Washington Post writer also added that her mother had to endure many health ailments and a difficult divorce as well. She died due to cancer. Blake Turck added that throughout these stressful situations, Deborah remained loving and always preached her positivity. The writer remembered getting infuriated often and at that time, her mother gently urged her to calm down. The lady residing in the USA ended the article with the words, In smaller moments of anxiety, or when Im terrified of the future, its presence nudges me to be present and pause for gratitude. I hear her voice uttering those simple, still-cliche words, telling me its going to be okay. And I believe it. Social media users loved the tribute penned by Blake Turck for her mother. Many of them recounted similar stories of the notes left by their parents in the comment section. A Spanish holiday destination is trying to prevent British tourists by telling them to stay away. The popular Menorca village, Binibeca Vell, is threatening to ban all tourists. Earlier it asked tourists to come between 11 am and 8.30 pm so they could enjoy their breakfast. Menorca, the quieter of the three Balearic islands, is expected to see more than a million tourists disembark this summer following a social media-fuelled tourist boom. As MailOnline reports, residents of the fishing village have complained about bad behaviour from tourists, which has ranged from breaking into houses to climbing onto balconies. Last year, residents asked tourists to visit the village and its famous whitewashed walls between 11 am and 8 pm in a bid to curb anti-social behaviour. Oscar Monge, who heads a group representing the owners of Binibeca Vell, said in an interview: Binibeca Vell is not a place of adventure, it is a private housing development where people live. If tourists do not comply with Binabeca Vells wishes, they face a total ban. Menorcas tourism director Begona Mercadal said the village could be closed to tourism. She said: We are clear that it is private property and if they want to close it, that is their right. The Balearics are trying to rehabilitate their tourism and deter the cheap tourists many of them Brits who flock to the islands in summer. Menorca, literally a smaller island, is one of the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean Sea and belongs to Spain. Its name derives from its size, which distinguishes it from nearby Mallorca. The island is known for its collection of megalithic stone monuments: navetes, taules and talayots, which indicate very early prehistoric human activity. Some of the earliest cultures on Menorca were influenced by other Mediterranean cultures, including the Greek Minoans on ancient Crete. Bangladeshs development is not possible without good relations with India as both countries share a common border of several thousand kilometers, Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud said on Monday. Hasan, who is also the joint general secretary of the ruling Awami League party led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, made the remarks while responding to a question regarding a failed campaign by some groups on social media asking people to boycott Indian products. Our development is not possible without maintaining good relations with the country (India) with which we have a common border of several thousand kilometers on three sides, he told the reporters here. Mahmud added it would be difficult as well to maintain peace and stability in Bangladesh without good relations with the next-door neighbour. His comments came in response to a question on what he thought regarding an India boycott campaign mainly through social media like Facebook and YouTube, asking people to boycott Indian products, which drew little response. The campaign is widely believed to be backed by ex-premier Khaleda Zias Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) because of New Delhis support to Prime Minister Hasinas ruling Awami League during the January 7 elections. Mahmud, however, attributed directly the campaign to BNP, saying they launched it to create a crisis in the domestic market and destabilise Bangladeshs economy. The minister called the campaign a complete flop and added the BNP would be further isolated if they came up with the call again. Their efforts (call for boycotting Indian products) went unsuccessful. They know it, too. It will be refused by the people of the country again if BNP comes up with the agenda afresh, he told reporters. BNP, however, made no public statement asking people to boycott Indian products while media analysts suggested the campaign was initiated by social media influencers, who are critical of the ruling party and many of them spearhead it from outside Bangladesh. Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra last week visited Bangladesh where he called on Prime Minister Hasina and other top leaders and reviewed New Delhis strong bilateral relationship with Dhaka, including in areas such as security, water, trade and investment, power and energy, defence, connectivity, and sub-regional cooperation. In the first official visit of a high-level official to Bangladesh after the formation of the new government in January 2024 here, Kwatra also met Foreign Minister Mahmud and his counterpart Masud Bin Momen. Kwatra invited Prime Minister Hasina to visit New Delhi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the first world leader to congratulate Hasina on her re-election. Explore in-depth coverage of voting in Telangana , Odisha , and Andhra Pradesh during Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 4 polling. Members of the Sikh community in the Canadian city of Calgary held the annual Nagar Kirtan Parade (also known as Khalsa Parade) to celebrate the festival of Vaisakhi on Saturday. The event saw a considerable gathering of supporters of Khalistani separatists. Anti-Indian elements and Khalistani separatists waved Khalistan flags in the presence of Calgary police officials. The Canadian police also organised a special recruitment drive during the Nagar Kirtan/Khalsa Parade. Our Recruiting Unit was honoured to be a part of this event, connecting with potential applicants to join our team, Calgary Police said in a statement. Canadian RCMP had previously posted notices asking potential recruits to come and meet police officials personally to enquire about recruitment. Join us at the Sikh Parade/Nagar Kirtan 2024 for an exclusive opportunity to meet an RCMP recruiter in person and explore over 150 different career paths, the RCMP said ahead of the event. Relations between both nations entered a tough phase when Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, without evidence, claimed that Indian officials were behind the murder of Khalistani separatist-terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Nijjar was gunned down in 2023 at a parking lot of a gurdwara and four Indians have been charged with their murder. The four men have been presented before a court in British Columbia province. Indian officials and the government on several occasions have intimated the Canadian government that Canadas soil is being used to threaten Indias sovereignty but the Canadian government has failed to take concrete steps. Senior officials like Jyoti Gondek, who is the mayor of Calgary, was also present. Today, Calgarians united in the thousands for the annual Nagar Kirtan parade celebrating the founding of the Khalsa. It is always a moment of pride for the Sikh community and Im grateful to have shared the experience once again with everyone, Gondek said. Officials estimated that over 100,000 attended the event where members sang, danced and performed a display of traditional Sikh martial arts. Residents of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir launched a series of protests against the Pakistan government beginning last week to highlight the poor economic conditions and the lack of development of the region. The civil unrest was triggered when Pakistan police tried to clamp down on a protests under the banner of the Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) which was seeking the provision of electricity as per hydropower generation cost in the region, subsidised wheat flour and an end to the privileges of the elite class. Clashes broke out between the resident and the police personnel when the latter tried to stop a rally for Muzaffarabad via Kotli and Poonch districts. One police officer was killed and more than 100 people, mostly policemen, injured in violent clashes between security forces and agitating protesters. (The) protest (is) due to poor economic conditions and ignorance by the (Pakistan) federal government. They (have been) victims of ignorance since the last 70 years, an official familiar with the developments told CNN-News18. For generations they have not been allowed to grow financially and are used to settle Pakistans political agenda against India in international forums, the official mentioned above said. The official also highlighted that it is not simply exorbitant electricity bills, rising bills, high taxes and unemployment that has led to the protests but it is also a protest against Pakistan polices brutality and the atrocities committed by the Pakistan Army. The anti-Pakistan sentiment has risen to such an extent that posters were seen in Rawalakot where some citizens demanded a merger with India. Government officials familiar with the developments told CNN-News18 that these are not new developments and these protests have happened earlier as well. They, however, highlighted that due to social media people are getting to know the ground realities. On one hand, the Union Territory of Kashmir is ushering in (a) new world with more employment (opportunities) and tourism, while Pakistan-occupied Kashmir lacks the basic necessities needed for living life, the official said. Pakistan-occupied Kashmir is used for terror hubs and launching pads (of terrorists) but (its residents) are not given anything. We want Pakistan to return Pakistan-occupied Kashmir to us, the official further added. The girlfriend of one of the Australian surfers, who was tragically murdered in Mexico, has released the heartbreaking voicemail she received from him shortly before his grisly murder. Emily Horwath, Callum Robinsons girlfriend, took to social media to share the last voice message she sent him. The voice message has now gone viral and has been shared on other social media sites as well. NEW: Heartbreaking voicemail recording released that surfer Callum Robinson left his girlfriend right before he was murdered in Mexico.Robinson, from Australia, was on a surf trip when he and his brother and friend disappeared. Officials believe the three were murdered after pic.twitter.com/D2nkyySwpZ Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) May 11, 2024 Australian brothers Callum and Jake Robinson, and their American friend Jack Carter Rhoad had been on a surf trip to Mexicos Pacific coast before they were killed. The voicemail began with the words: Happy Tuesday! Good morning! Its 11:11 and Im just thinking about you. Just wanted to drop you a quick message and say hello. Hope youre having a phenomenal start to your day. Im sensing a big grin on your face for some reason today. Hope youre having a phenomenal start to your day, Callum tells Emily in the voice message. Horwath captioned the post on her Instagram stories with the words I will play this on repeat. The bodies of two Australian surfers murdered in Mexico were taken to the United States last week to be delivered to their relatives for the long journey home. A fourth body in the same area which had been there longer was also found but it is not believed to be connected to the case. The funeral home transporting the remains of brothers Jake and Callum Robinson, who were aged 30 and 33 respectively, confirmed that they had been transferred from Tijuana to San Diego where their parents were waiting. The body of their 30-year-old American friend Jack Carter Rhoad, who was also murdered, was in the care of another funeral company. Investigators believe that the trio were killed while they were camping in a remote beachside area in violence-hit Baja California state during an attempt to steal their pickup truck. Their bodies were found on May 3 in a cliff-top shaft with bullet wounds to the head. Jesus Gerardo N alias El Kekas in Ensenada, Baja California has been named suspect in the case and will be prosecuted. Two other suspects have also been apprehended and remain in detention for alleged possession of methamphetamine. El Kekas reportedly confessed to committing the crime. Mexican authorities said murder charges will also be filed in the case. His girlfriend told the court last week that El Kekas visited her home on April 28 and confessed to having murdered three gringos. The term gringo is primarily used to refer to foreigners, particularly those from the United States and its often used to refer to white Americans. I killed them, she said he told her. Indian-origin Member of Parliament Murali Pillai will be appointed the Minister of State for Law and Transport in the new incoming cabinet of Singapores new Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, it was announced on Monday. Pillai, 56, will be appointed and sworn in on July 1, according to a report by The Straits Times newspaper while others will be sworn in on May 15. Pillai, a member of the ruling Peoples Action Party, is a lawyer. Among other Indian-origin politicians, Dr Vivian Balakrishnan will remain as Foreign Affairs Minister, K. Shanmugam will continue as Minister of Home Affairs and Law, and Indranee Rajah as the Minister in the Prime Ministers Office. The new cabinet line-up was announced by the Singapore Prime Ministers Office on Monday. It will be led by Wong, who will be sworn into the highest executive office on Wednesday after incumbent Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, 72, announced that he will step down on Wednesday after leading the country for 20 years. Gan Kim Yong, 65, will be promoted to Deputy Prime Minister as part of a cabinet reshuffle and will remain as Trade and Industry Minister. He will be the acting prime minister in the absence of the prime minister. He will also take over as the chairman of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, the de facto central bank, and assume responsibility for the strategy group within the Prime Ministers Office. Currently, Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat, 63, will continue in his role. Heng was first named to succeed Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong but he has declined to take up the position. Wong, 51, also announced other promotions and appointments on Monday, but there were no major changes to the ministers helming each ministry in this reshuffle. For example, Wong will remain at the helm of the Finance Ministry. Speaking at a press conference at Istana on Monday, Wong said continuity and stability were key considerations as the government approached the end of its current term. Noting that his new team is a good mix of experienced ministers and younger officeholders, Wong said he plans to rotate the Peoples Action Partys (PAP) fourth-generation, or 4G, ministers to different portfolios to give them wider exposure and experience if the party is re-elected after this term of government. Lee will stay in the cabinet as senior minister after stepping down as leader of the government, it was announced previously. He will remain as chairman of the Research, Innovation and Enterprise Council. After serving for two decades, Lee, as Singapores third prime minister, is putting in charge the city states fourth-generation leader of the Asian financial hub which has to, without exception, face the challenging global environment of war, conflict, and trade supply chain disruptions, political observers said. They emphasised no end to Ukraine-Russia fighting, Gaza bomb blasting, and clogging of sea lanes in the Red Sea. In fresh development in Hardeep Singh Nijjars killing, sources have indicated that it was a case of gang war and any Indian involvement in his killing is unlikely. Sources said that the Nijjar killing could be a case of rivalry between Khalistani Tiger Force, Sikhs For Justice and Dashmesh Gurudwara Surrey. Sources said that the Dashmesh Gurudwara group under Satinder Gill had been operating for the last 35 years and had not reached anywhere, while on the other hand, Nijjars rise was sudden. Sources added that both the groups had been fighting for some time and were getting drugs, weapons and money from Pakistan, which they were using for local use. Sources said that these were given to the groups by Pakistan Embassy in Canada. Nijjar had been involved in carrying out illegal activities for Pakistan for some time and reached everyone because of his clout, said sources. Sources added that one Gurpreet Sahota was working for Satinder Pal Gill and was also the publisher and editor of his paper Chadhti Kalan, a paper backed by Khalistani groups. Gurpreet Sahota had uploaded a post within five minutes of Nijjars killing, stating that he was killed by India. Sources said that their informers were Pakistani groups and that this is a false propoganda done by Pakistani groups. The group did the same after the arrest of these three people in Nijjars killing and started a propaganda that the Indian government was involved and did this with the help of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi and other gangsters. Nijjar, 45, a designated terrorist, was shot dead in June 2023 outside a gurudwara in Surrey, a Vancouver suburb with a large Sikh population. A few months after his death, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had claimed that his government had evidence that Indian government officials were involved in his killing. The Canadian police had earlier this month arrested and charged Karan Brar (22), Kamalpreet Singh (22) and Karanpreet Singh (28) in the city of Edmonton in Alberta. The police said that they are probing if the men had ties to the Indian government. On Saturday, the Canadaian police also arrested Amandeep Singh, 22, and charged him with first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder in Nijjars killing. External affairs minister S Jaishankar said Canadian investigators did not share anything with India that is worth investigating in connection with the murder of Khalistani separatist-terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. We are open to investigating it, but to date, we have never received anything which is specific and worthy of being pursued by our investigative agencies, S Jaishankar said while addressing an event on Monday in Mumbai. Roadmap for Viksit BharatSpeaking at a seminar on Indian Capital Markets at NSE, Mumbai. https://t.co/oepdVXQ1mL Dr. S. Jaishankar (Modi Ka Parivar) (@DrSJaishankar) May 13, 2024 Canadian authorities last week arrested four Indians and charged them with the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Nijjar, a designated terrorist in India, was shot dead by unknown miscreants outside a gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia. Canada has claimed that Indian officials played an important role in the murder of Nijjar, who is a Canadian citizen. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau last year accused India of hatching the plot and murdering Nijjar in Canada, on Canadian soil. People familiar with the developments told CNN-News18 that Nijjars murder was a case of gang war and any Indian involvement in his killing is unlikely. Rival groups may have been behind his murder as they did not benefit as much as Nijjar who is reported to have received drugs, weapons and money from Pakistan. India on several occasions has intimated Canada that anti-Indian elements with designs to foment trouble in India and who are also involved in creating unrest in Punjab have found a breeding ground in the North American nation but the Canadian government has not taken any action so far. Canadian political parties, like Trudeaus Liberal Party and his ally New Democratic Party (NDP) chief Jagmeet Singh Dhaliwal, have also not taken any action against Khalistanis who have also attacked members of the Indian diaspora, vandalised places of worship and also attacked Sikhs who do not subscribe to the Khalistani ideology. India on several occasions have asked the US and Canada to consider the threat these groups pose to Indias sovereignty as well. We have issues with Canada and the US on providing space to Khalistani supporters, he said. Many of these countries to varying degrees, you know, they give latitude in name of freedom of speech. We have an issue with that because we dont think freedom of speech should extend to advocating and supporting separatism terrorism, extremism, violence, Jaishankar said. It should be noted that Khalistani separatists during so-called agitations have attacked Indian consulates and embassy buildings in the US and the UK. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday resigned as the President of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), paving the way for his elder brother and former premier Nawaz Sharif to retake the helm of the ruling party amid internal strife. In his resignation letter addressed to the PML-N secretary general, Shehbaz cited the tumultuous events of 2017, which resulted in the unjust disqualification of Nawaz from the Prime Ministers Office and the presidency of the party, and said he was entrusted with the responsibility of assuming the presidency of the party. Shehbaz said that his brother had entrusted him with the responsibility of assuming the party presidency in the face of adversity and added that it was a duty he had upheld with utmost dedication and sincerity. However, I am cognisant that this role has always been viewed as a trust bestowed upon me by our revered leader, the 72-year-old said. Nawaz, 74, returned to Pakistan in October last year, ending nearly four years of self-imposed exile in London. I am heartened by recent developments that have exonerated our leader with dignity, affirming his unblemished integrity and commitment to the service of our nation, he said, referring to the Islamabad High Court ruling on November 29 that acquitted Nawaz in the Avenfield reference. The next month, on December 12, the PML-N supremo was acquitted in the Al-Azizia reference by the high court. In light of these developments and the steadfast guidance of our beloved leader, I believe the time has come for Mohammad Nawaz Sharif to resume his rightful place as the president of the PML-N, Shehbaz said. It is with a deep sense of duty and reverence for our partys principles that I tender my resignation as the president, he said. In 2017, the Supreme Court disqualified Nawaz as premier and party president for his alleged corruption in cases related to the Panama Papers revelations about his illegal wealth stashed abroad. He relinquished his position within the party following his disqualification, which also led to his departure from the prime ministers office. Nawaz was all set to become prime minister for the fourth time but his party failed to get a clear majority in the National Assembly on its own in the February 8 general elections. In a surprise move, he allowed his younger brother and the incumbent party president Shehbaz who is considered the favourite of the military establishment to lead a six-party coalition government at the Centre. Shehbazs resignation comes amidst internal tensions within the ruling party in Punjab and at the federal level. Several prominent figures within the party, including Rana Sanaullah, Javed Latif, Senator Javed Abbasi, and former Senator Asif Saeed Kirmani, have publicly criticised the leadership. PML-Ns Punjab unit has already unanimously passed the resolution to make Nawaz the party president. Hours after India signed a 10-year contract to operate the strategic Iranian port of Chabahar, the United States said Monday that Indian companies risked sanctions over investment in Tehran, following the signing of a bilateral 10-year contract to develop the Chabahar port. The strategically important Iranian port on the Gulf of Oman will provide Indian goods a gateway to reach landlocked Afghanistan and Central Asia using a road and rail project called the International North-South Transport Corridor, bypassing Pakistan. Earlier, US sanctions on Iran over its suspected nuclear programme had slowed the development of the port. Any entity anyone concerned with business deals with Iran, they need to be aware of the potential risks that theyre opening themselves up to and the potential risk of sanctions, State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel told reporters during a press conference. Earlier on Monday, the long-term agreement was signed by Indian Ports Global Limited (IPGL) and the Port & Maritime Organisation of Iran. IPGL will invest about USD 120 million while another USD 250 million will be raised as debt. The pact was signed in a ceremony attended by Indias Ports, Shipping and Waterways Minister Sarbananda Sonowal and Iranian Transport and Urban Development Minister Mehrdad Bazrpash in Tehran. It replaces an initial 2016 pact, which covered Indias operations at Shahid Beheshti terminal in Chabahar port and had been renewed on an annual basis. READ MORE: Five Reasons Why The Chabahar Port Is Of Strategic Importance To India Chabahar port was last year used by India to send 20,000 tonnes of wheat aid to Afghanistan. In 2021, the same was used to supply environmentally friendly pesticides to Iran. This is the first time India will take over the management of an overseas port that will also have a multiplier effect on trade among India, Iran and Afghanistan as efforts continue to directly tap the potential in Central Asia. The contract was signed by India Ports Global Ltd (IPGL) and Irans Port & Maritime Organisation (PMO), in the presence of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Minister Sarbananda Sonowal. The long-term bilateral contract on Chabahar Port Operation was signed between Indian Ports Global Limited (IPGL) of India and the Port & Maritime Organisation (PMO) of Iran, enabling operation of Shahid-Beheshti in Chabahar Port Development Project for a period of 10 years, the statement said. Located in Sistan-Balochistan province on the energy-rich Irans southern coast, the Chabahar port is being developed by India and Iran to boost connectivity and trade ties. India has been pushing for the Chabahar port project to boost regional trade, especially for its connectivity to Afghanistan. This is the first time India will take over the management of an overseas port. This agreement aims to enhance regional connectivity and facilitate trade, particularly between India, Iran and Afghanistan, the statement said. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had allocated Rs 100 crore for Chabahar Port for 2024-25, underlining Indias focus on connectivity projects with Iran. The India Ports Global Chabahar Free Zone (IPGCFZ), a subsidiary of IPGL, facilitated the first consignment of exports from Afghanistan to India in 2019. The statement said the operations continued through short-term contracts while negotiations on the long-term agreement picked pace with the visit of Sonowal to Chabahar in August 2022. This 10 years long term lease agreement further strengthens the bilateral ties between the two countries while bolstering confidence and boosting trust of trading communities from the region, the statement said. (With agency inputs) India has signed a long-term contract with Iran for the operation of the Shahid Beheshti Port in Chabahar, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Monday, announcing a move expected to boost Delhis investments and connectivity linkages to Tehran. New Delhi has been developing part of the port in Chabahar on Irans southeastern coast along the Gulf of Oman to transport goods to Iran, Afghanistan and central Asian countries, bypassing the port of Karachi and Gwadar in its rival Pakistan. This announcement comes hours after Union Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal flew to the West Asian country to seal the deal. Hailing the move as a pivotal moment in the bilateral partnership, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the deal holds promise for enhancing Indias linkages with Afghanistan, Central Asia, and Eurasia. READ MORE: Five Reasons Why The Chabahar Port Is Of Strategic Importance To India | Scripting a new chapter in bilateral partnership!Minister @shipmin_india & @moayush @sarbanandsonwal witnessed the signing of the long-term contract for the operation of the Shahid Beheshti Port in Chabahar, between India Ports Global Ltd. & Ports and Maritime pic.twitter.com/hUddkyQrkE Randhir Jaiswal (@MEAIndia) May 13, 2024 Why Is Chabahar Important According to an official statement, the contract was signed by India Ports Global Ltd (IPGL) and Irans Port & Maritime Organisation (PMO), in the presence of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Minister Sarbananda Sonowal. The long-term bilateral contract on Chabahar Port Operation was signed between Indian Ports Global Limited (IPGL) of India and the Port & Maritime Organisation (PMO) of Iran, enabling operation of Shahid-Beheshti in Chabahar Port Development Project for a period of 10 years, the statement said. This is the first time India will take over the management of an overseas port. This agreement aims to enhance regional connectivity and facilitate trade, particularly between India, Iran and Afghanistan, the statement said. The India Ports Global Chabahar Free Zone (IPGCFZ), a subsidiary of IPGL, facilitated the first consignment of exports from Afghanistan to India in 2019. The statement said the operations continued through short-term contracts while negotiations on the long-term agreement picked pace with the visit of Sonowal to Chabahar in August 2022. This 10 years long term lease agreement further strengthens the bilateral ties between the two countries while bolstering confidence and boosting trust of trading communities from the region, the statement said. As part of the agreement, the statement said India will procure MHCs, RMQCs, RTGCs, Reach Stackers, Forklifts, Pneumatic Unloaders etc at Chabahar Port. The agreement paves the way for enhanced trade and investment opportunities which will potentially boost Indias economic development, it added. Speaking at the occasion, Sonowal said, With the signature of this contract, we have laid the foundations of Indias long-term involvement at Chabahar. Sonowal added that the signing of this contract will have a multiplier effect on the viability and visibility of Chabahar port. According to him, Chabahar is not only the closest Iranian port to India but it is also an excellent port from nautical point of view. Sonowal also held a meeting with Iranian Minister of Roads & Urban Development Mehrdad Bazrpash. Located in Sistan-Balochistan province on the energy-rich Irans southern coast, the Chabahar port is being developed by India and Iran to boost connectivity and trade ties. India has been pushing for the Chabahar port project to boost regional trade, especially for its connectivity to Afghanistan. India and Iran have projected the port as a key hub for the INSTC project. The INSTC is a 7,200-km-long multi-mode transport project for moving freight among India, Iran, Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Russia, Central Asia and Europe. India has been developing a part of Chabahar Port and discussions on the development of the port dates back to 2003 during Iranian President Muhammad Khatamis visit to India. In 2013, India committed to investing USD 100 million towards the development of Chabahar Port. Earlier, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for development of Chabahar Port by India was signed in May 2015. Thereafter, the contract was executed on May 23, 2016, at Tehran (Iran) during the visit of PM Modi to Iran. (With agency inputs) Explore in-depth coverage of voting in Telangana , Odisha , and Andhra Pradesh during Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 4 polling. Maldivian government thanked the Indian government for providing budgetary support worth $50 million on Monday. The support was extended in the form of a rollover of a $50 million treasury bill for one more year which was done through the State Bank of Indias branch in the Maldivian capital of Male. The Government of India has provided a budget support of USD 50 million to the Maldives today. The support was in the form of a rollover of USD 50 million Treasury Bill, for an additional year, through the State Bank of India, Male, from 13 May 2024, the Maldivian government said in a press release. The Maldivian government revealed that the decision to rollover the treasury bill was made after a request by foreign minister Moosa Zameer to his counterpart S Jaishankar when the former visited New Delhi last week. I thank EAM Dr S Jaishankar and the Government of India for extending vital budgetary support to Maldives with the rollover of $50 million Treasury Bill. This is a true gesture of goodwill which signifies the longstanding friendship between Maldives and India, Maldivian foreign minister Moosa Zameer said. I thank EAM @DrSJaishankar and the Government of #India for extending vital budgetary support to Maldives with the rollover of USD 50 million Treasury Bill. This is a true gesture of goodwill which signifies the longstanding friendship between #Maldives and #India. @HCIMaldives https://t.co/MKeUbs6C0e Moosa Zameer (@MoosaZameer) May 13, 2024 The Government of Indias decision to rollover the T-Bill came following a request to that effect made by Foreign Minister Moosa Zameer to Indias External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar, during the official bilateral visit to India from 8-10 May 2024, the press release by the Maldivian finance ministry said. The Government of Maldives is highly appreciative of the generous support that Government of India has been providing to the Maldives in the form of budgetary support. Large number of infrastructural development projects and High Impact Community Developmental projects are underway with the assistance from the Government of India, which consists of a notable part as grant assistance. The Government of Maldives looks forward to continuing this collaborative partnership for the mutual benefit and prosperity of their people, the press release further said. The government treasury bills are subscribed by the SBI under a unique government-to-government arrangement at zero cost (interest-free) to the Maldivian government. Donald Trumps estranged former lawyer Michael Cohen told jurors on Monday that he conspired with the Republican presidential candidate and a tabloid publisher to suppress negative stories that could damage his 2016 campaign, as prosecutors aim to prove that Trump illegally hid a hush money payment to a porn star. Cohen said he learned from the National Enquirer in June 2016 a month before the Republican National Convention that former Playboy model Karen McDougal was shopping a story about a year-long affair she said she and Trump had. Make sure it doesnt get released, Cohen recalled Trump saying. Trump and David Pecker, the tabloids publisher, had already agreed that Pecker would use the newspaper to boost Trumps presidential candidacy while suppressing any negative stories that could hurt his chances, Cohen testified. Cohen described a phone call in which Pecker told Trump that the Enquirer would need to pay $150,000 to lock down McDougals story. To which Mr. Trump replied, No problem, Ill take care of it,' Cohen said. Pecker previously testified at the trial about his role in killing McDougals story. Once one of Trumps most loyal lieutenants, Cohen is the prosecutions star witness as the trial enters its fifth week in New York state criminal court in Manhattan. Cohens $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election, intended to keep her from speaking publicly about a 2006 sexual encounter she says she had with Trump, is at the center of the case. Prosecutors have said the Daniels payment was part of a broader catch and kill scheme between Trump, Cohen and Pecker to pay off people, such as McDougal, with potentially negative stories about Trump in violation of campaign finance laws. When Trump was preparing to announce his campaign for president, Cohen said, Trump told him that there would be a lot of women coming forward. Trump is accused of hiding the Daniels payment by reimbursing Cohen with a phony legal retainer fee that was falsely recorded in Trumps real estate companys records. Prosecutors say the altered business records covered up election-law and tax-law violations that elevate the 34 counts Trump faces from misdemeanors to felonies punishable by up to four years in prison. For nearly a decade, Cohen, 57, worked as an executive and lawyer for Trumps company and once said he would take a bullet for Trump, a Republican former president trying to take back the White House from Democratic President Joe Biden in this years Nov. 5 U.S. election, opens new tab. Cohen said it was fair to describe his role as a fixer for Trump, testifying that he took care of whatever he wanted. Rather than work as a traditional corporate lawyer, Cohen reported directly to Trump and was never part of the Trump Organizations general counsels office. Among his duties was renegotiating bills from business partners, threatening to sue people and planting positive stories in the press, he said. Trump, he said, communicated primarily by phone or in person and never set up an email address. He would comment that emails are like written papers, that he knows too many people who have gone down as a direct result of having emails that prosecutors can use in a case, Cohen said. Trump offered him a job in 2007, after Cohen presented Trump with a $100,000 bill from his then-law firm for work done for one of Trumps companies. I was honored. I was taken by surprise, and I agreed, Cohen said, adding that Trump never paid the bill. Trump sat slouched in his chair with his eyes closed and lips pursed throughout Cohens testimony, occasionally shifting his head from side to side. COHEN IS FREQUENT TRUMP TARGET Cohen, who served as Trumps personal lawyer after his presidential term began in 2017, broke with him when federal prosecutors probing Trumps 2016 presidential campaign focused on Cohen. He has become one of Trumps most outspoken critics, frequently disparaging him on social media and on podcasts. On Friday, Justice Juan Merchan urged prosecutors to tell Cohen to stop making public statements about the case after defense lawyer Todd Blanche said Cohen had posted on social media while wearing a T-shirt showing Trump behind bars. Trump has pleaded not guilty to all 34 counts and denies having had a sexual encounter with Daniels. He argues the case is a politically motivated attempt to interfere with his campaign. Cohen pleaded guilty in 2018 to violating federal campaign finance law by paying off Daniels and testified that Trump directed him to make the payment. Federal prosecutors did not charge Trump with any crime. Trumps defense lawyers have told the 12 jurors and six alternates that Cohen acted on his own when paying Daniels, seeking to distance Trump from the payments at the heart of the case. Cohen has admitted to lying under oath multiple times, providing substantial fodder for the defense to undermine his credibility. He has acknowledged lying to the U.S. Congress in 2017 about a Trump Organization real estate project in Moscow, but has since said he did so to protect Trump. He also pleaded guilty to violating tax law in 2018, but now claims he did not commit that crime. Cohen has been on the receiving end of Trumps vitriolic social media attacks, some of which the judge has said violated a gag order restricting Trump from making statements about witnesses, jurors and families of the judge and prosecutors if meant to interfere with the case. Trump has called the gag order a violation of his right to free speech and has said it is unfair to bar him from responding to attacks by witnesses such as Cohen and Daniels. Merchan has fined Trump $10,000 for repeated violations and warned the former president he could face time in jail if he keeps up his attacks. The case is widely seen as less consequential than three other criminal prosecutions Trump faces, but it is the only one certain to go to trial before the election. The other cases charge Trump with trying to overturn his 2020 presidential defeat and mishandling classified documents after leaving office. Trump pleaded not guilty to all three. by Tim Sommers Heres the gist of it. I think a recent declaration on animal consciousness, being signed by a growing number of philosophers and scientists, is largely correct about nonhuman animals possessing consciousness, but misleading. It insinuates that animal consciousness is a recent discovery made in the last five to ten years based on new experimental work. As exciting and revelatory as recent work on the minds of nonhuman animals is, animal consciousness is hardly a new discovery. In fact, I am not sure the declaration is really a scientific manifesto so much as a moral one. We ought to be treating nonhuman animals better because many seem to have some level of consciousness, but implying we should do so because of new scientific evidence may be a mistake. NBC recently reported that discoveriesin the last five years show that a surprising range of creatures exhibit evidence of conscious thought or experience, including insects, fish and some crustaceans. That has prompted a group of top researchers on animal cognition to publish a new pronouncement that they hope will transform how scientists and society view and care for animals. Nearly 40 researchers signed The New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness, which was first presented at a conference at New York University. Many more have signed the Declaration since then, and many more are likely to sign it in the near future. Here is The New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness in its entirety. Which animals have the capacity for conscious experience? While much uncertainty remains, some points of wide agreement have emerged. First, there is strong scientific support for attributions of conscious experience to other mammals and to birds. Second, the empirical evidence indicates at least a realistic possibility of conscious experience in all vertebrates (including reptiles, amphibians, and fishes) and many invertebrates (including, at minimum, cephalopod mollusks, decapod crustaceans, and insects). Third, when there is a realistic possibility of conscious experience in an animal, it is irresponsible to ignore that possibility in decisions affecting that animal. We should consider welfare risks and use the evidence to inform our responses to these risks. When I read this my first reaction was I cant believe it, theyve solved the other minds problem! A leading problem in philosophy, after all, has been How do we even know other humans have consciousness? much less nonhuman animals. In fact, one of the signatories to the declaration, leading philosopher of mind David Chalmers, is well-known for arguing that there might be beings (philosophical zombies) that look and behave just as we do, but have no consciousness. In other words, recognizing there is a philosophical problem about how we can be justified in attributing consciousness to others. I dont want to defend the view that we dont know if other humans have consciousness, any more than I would want to defend the argument that we live in a simulation, but its worth noting that a solution to the problem is unlikely to be empirical or the outcome of an experiment. Moreover, given that we are very similar to other humans and have the ability to communicate with them, of course, we tend to attribute consciousness to each other. However, given our differences with other animals, the problem of nonhuman consciousness becomes orders of magnitude more difficult than the other minds problem. Before I say more about the NY Declaration, I ought to note that it has a distinguished predecessor. In 2012, the Cambridge Declaration on Consciousness concluded: The absence of a neocortex does not appear to preclude an organism from experiencing affective states. Convergent evidence indicates that non-human animals have the neuroanatomical, neurochemical, and neurophysiological substrates of conscious states along with the capacity to exhibit intentional behaviors. Consequently, the weight of evidence indicates that humans are not unique in possessing the neurological substrates that generate consciousness. Non-human animals, including all mammals and birds, and many other creatures, including octopuses, also possess these neurological substrates. That declaration also prominently features claims that their conclusions are based on new techniques and strategiesof research, though it seems to have been endorsed exclusively by scientists, unlike the NY Declaration where 28 of original signatories are philosophers. On the other hand, the Cambridge Declaration did not confine itself to experts in the field. (Stephen Hawkings attended the signing, for whatever thats worth.) But the key to this earlier declaration is the way it frequently repeats the word substrates. To oversimplify, their arguments are based on the claim that many animals have the right neural anatomy (sufficiently similar to ours) to be capable of some kind of consciousness, even where the neural machinery is very different in many ways. The Cambridge Declaration, in other words, reads like a tacit rejection of functionalism. Functionalism is the view that minds or states of mind sentience, consciousness, cognition, etc. are to be understood in terms of their functions or causal role. They do not depend for their existence on some underlying, fundamental substance, but on the role they play in the mind as a system. Mental states are multiply-realizable, then. Humans, dogs, octopuses, insects, and maybe alien or artificial beings, too, can all feel pain, on this view, even if the underlying neural substrate is very different. Some functionalists even argue that absolutely anything is potentially sufficient for realizing mentality even enough people attached to each other by ropes. My point is that the evidence offered in the Cambridge Declaration, even though it countenances variety and does not demand too strict an isomorphism between human and nonhuman neural architecture, reinforces what functionalists deny. Namely, that the particularities of the system dont matter at all. What sort of the evidence does the NY Declaration adduce? In order to keep to a reasonable length, I am going to mention just one piece of evidence, but I think it is representative. I urge you to check out the Background section of the NY Declaration if you disagree. In fact, I urge you to check it out either way. This research is fascinating and amazing. Again, my only disagreement is with how the Declaration as a whole is presented. Heres the study mentioned. Questions of self-awareness in animals have long been explored using the mirror-mark test, which tests whether an animal, upon seeing a mark on their own body in a mirror, will try to remove that mark. In a surprising series of studies between 2019 and 2023, researchers showed that cleaner wrasse fish can pass the four phases of the test. First, when exposed to a mirror, the fish react aggressively as though they believe they see a rival fish. Second, the aggression fades and the fish begin performing unusual behaviors in front of the mirror, such as swimming upside down. Third, the fish seem to study themselves in the mirror. Finally, after the experimenters place a colored mark on the fish, the fish, on seeing the mark in the mirror, attempt to remove it by scraping against an available surface. Heres the thing. The mirror-mark test was developed 54 years ago and has been used many times on a wide-variety of animals. Its cool that wrasse fish can pass it, but its another of many examples accumulated over many years, not a new development appropriately classed under the title of Recent Rapid Advances, as it is in the NY Declaration. More to the point, why do we even need mirror-mark tests, or the like, to conclude most, if not all, animals possess at least a minimal phenomenal consciousness or sentience? Hasnt any of the signatories had a dog or a car? We have plenty of evidence that animals can feel pleasure and pain and more. The point is not that the declaration is wrong when it says that when there is a realistic possibility of conscious experience in an animal, it is irresponsible to ignore that possibility in decisions affecting that animal. Its just that Bentham said the same thing better in 1789 when he said that when it comes to nonhuman animals, The question is not, Can they reason? nor Can they talk? but, Can they suffer? Why should the law refuse its protection to any sensitive being? If we let our duty to take more seriously the welfare of nonhuman animals turn on scientific evidence of more sophisticated kinds of consciousness or cognition among animals than previously recognized, we make the case for kindness more, not less, tenuous. I get that this goes against most peoples intuition that moral propositions are more subjective or tenuous than factual ones, so let me end with a thought experiment. Consider these two propositions. The Earth goes around the Sun. And Its wrong to torture kittens for fun. Could anything change your mind about either of these? Setting aside claims like the kitten is not really a kitten but a robot and the sun is just an illusion created by aliens, its conceivable to me, however unlikely, that you could tell me a story that accounted for all of the scientific of heliocentrism but which ultimately put the Earth back at the center of the solar system. But its inconceivable to me that there is a story you could tell to convince me that it is not wrong torture kittens. I believe that in the web of belief, a principle forbidding such torture is less open to revision than facts about the orbit of the Sun and the Earth. Moral principles need moral, not scientific, justification. Jerry Seinfeld has made his support for Israel clear, and as such, some of Duke University's recent graduates were unhappy that the comedian was chosen as this year's commencement speaker. Social media videos (see one example at Fox News ) show a group of students carrying Palestinian flags walking down an aisle on the field where the ceremony was taking place, some of them chanting "Free Palestine," while other students and attendees can also be seen walking out of the stadium bleachers. Reuters puts the number of students who left at "dozens." Boos are also heard as Seinfeld was introduced, though NBC News reports it's not clear whether the boos were intended for him or for the people staging a walkout. Seinfeld, 70, was also receiving an honorary doctorate from the North Carolina university, which his son attends and from which his daughter graduated. After the walkout, chants of "Jerry! Jerry!" were heard, and the comedian finished the rest of his speech with no major interruptions. "A lot of you are thinking, 'I can't believe they invited this guy.' Too late," he said as he launched into his commencement speech. Later, he said he wanted to "defend" the concept of privilege: "I say, use your privilege. I grew up a Jewish boy from New York. That is a privilege if you want to be a comedian." While a few other protests broke out at other commencement ceremonies this weekend, the AP reports they have mostly been "subtle" acts of defiance and generally the graduations have remained peaceful. (More Jerry Seinfeld stories.) A volunteer fire department in Maryland is out more than $100,000 after money meant for new ambulances was swiped in a "business email compromise" scam. Per the Washington Post , the Rockville Volunteer Fire Department wired a $220,000 deposit for two much-needed new ambulances late last month, thinking they were sending the cash to a vendor they'd signed a contract with, according to Eric N. Bernard, the RVFD's president. However, five days after that supposed money exchange, Bernard says, the fire department heard from the vendor, asking where the money was for the new ambulancesmoney that the RVFD thought had transferred immediately when sent. "That's when we panicked," Bernard recalls. With IT help, the fire department found that their computer had malware on it and had been "spoofed" and cloned, meaning hackers had been able to intercept the messages between the fire department and bank, then send a new message with their own routing number for the money. Thanks to help from police in Montgomery County and the US Secret Service, Bernard says they were able to recoup about $100,000 of the stolen funds, though the rest may be be lost for good. The RVFD notes in a release that, due to donations that have been pouring in since news of the theft broke, "we remain in a strong financial position to both complete this purchase and to continue operations as normal." The department says it's working with its bank and the authorities in a continued investigation to possibly recoup more funds. "The thought that anybody would think of stealing from volunteers is just mind-boggling," Bernard tells NBC Washington, adding that two other fire departments who used the same vendor were also stolen from around the same time. "We don't have any time to deal with garbage like this. ... Shame on them." (More scam stories.) Nearly 21,000 baby boys born in the US last year were named Liam, while more than 15,000 girls were announced as Oliviasthe two names that have been bestowed upon American bambinos the most now for five years straight, reports NPR. That's according to this year's annual "top baby names" lists released by the Social Security Administration, in which only one new name appears this year in the top 10 for boys: Mateo. There were no new names for girls added to the top 10. "Everyone thinks that they're choosing ... a name that's just so special for their child," University of Chicago professor Eric Oliver said in a previous interview, per NPR. "It's only when they get to the playground and there are half a dozen other Ellas there that they realize, 'Oh, maybe I'm part of a social trend.'" The year's victors: Girls names Olivia Emma Charlotte Amelia Sophia Mia Isabella Ava Evelyn Luna A tiny, low-priced electric car called the Seagull has American automakers and politicians trembling. The car, launched last year by Chinese automaker BYD, sells for around $12,000 in China, but it drives well and is put together with craftsmanship that rivals US electric vehicles that cost three times as much. A shorter-range version costs under $10,000. Tariffs on imported Chinese vehicles will keep the Seagull out of America for now, per the AP , but the rapid emergence of low-priced EVs from China could shake up the global auto industry in ways not seen since Japanese makers arrived during the oil crises of the 1970s. BYD, which stands for "Build Your Dreams," could be a nightmare for the US auto industry. "Any car company that's not paying attention to them as a competitor is going to be lost when they hit their market," said Sam Fiorani, a VP at AutoForecast Solutions. "BYD's entry into the US market isn't an if. It's a when." US politicians and manufacturers already see Chinese EVs as a serious threat. The Biden administration on Tuesday is expected to announce 100% tariffs on electric vehicles imported from China, saying they pose a threat to US jobs and national security. The Alliance for American Manufacturing says in a paper that government-subsidized Chinese EVs "could end up being an extinction-level event for the US auto sector." Earlier this year, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said Chinese EVs are so good that, without trade barriers, "they will pretty much demolish most other car companies in the world." Outside of China, EVs are often pricey, aimed at higher-income buyers. But Chinese brands offer affordable options for the massesjust as many governments are encouraging a shift away from gasoline vehicles to fight climate change. BYD would have to modify its cars to meet US safety standards, which are more stringent than in China. BYD told the AP last year it's "still in the process" of deciding whether to sell autos in the US. It's also weighing factory sites in Mexico for the Mexican market. More here. (More BYD Co. stories.) UPDATE May 13, 2024 3:10 PM CDT Air-quality alerts from wildfires in Canada were in effect over four US states Monday afternoon, reports NBC News. Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota were affected, with conditions ranging from "moderate" to "unhealthy" under the air quality index established by the Environmental Protection Agency. May 13, 2024 11:01 AM CDT Remember when last year's Canadian wildfires made things smoky in the US? Residents of Minnesota and Wisconsin have been getting a reminderthey were under air quality alerts on Monday morning thanks to fires from the north, reports the New York Times. The alerts (for all of Minnesota and parts of Wisconsin) were expected to be lifted later Monday. However, multiple fires were still burning in western Canada: Jessica Seinfeld is praising the "amazing crowd" of Duke University students who stayed put as dozens of others walked out on Sunday to protest her husband's commencement speech. In a post on Instagram , Jessica Seinfeld said a "small group" of protesters "tried to interrupt" Jerry Seinfeld's speech, Fox News reports. "Despite their efforts, it had no impact on the ceremony. In fact, they were boo'd and it inspired the crowd of 7,000 to chant 'Jer-ry! Jer-ry! Jer-ry!' and applaud even louder," she wrote, adding that the speech "was amazing and received a standing ovation from grads and their parents." Some students chanted "Free Palestine" as they left the ceremony, Reuters reports. Jerry Seinfeld has been a vocal supporter of Israel since the Oct. 7 attacks. Jessica Seinfeld, a cookbook author, recently disclosed that she funded counter-protests at UCLA, reports AFP. In a post on Instagram Monday, she said she supported an April 28 counter-protest at the university, but she condemns "in the strongest terms" the violence that erupted two days later, when counter-protesters attacked a pro-Palestinian encampment on campus. At Duke, students who walked out of the ceremony were accompanied by faculty and family members at an alternative ceremony, the Chronicle student newspaper reports. Student organizer Zella Hanson, who is Jewish, described Jerry Seinfeld as "an avid supporter of the Israeli military" and said students were also protesting how "every university in Gaza has been destroyed." Student protesters are calling for Duke to divest from its holdings in Israel. After Sunday's alternative commencement ceremony, they posed in front of Duke Chapel to recreate a scene from 1985, when anti-apartheid protesters walked out of the commencement ceremony. (More Jessica Seinfeld stories.) Parishioners at a Catholic church in Louisiana confronted an armed teenager who tried to enter a service where around 60 children were gathered for their First Communion. Police said the 16-year-old tried to enter St. Mary Magdalen Church in Abbeville, around 20 miles south of Lafayette, through a back door during the Saturday morning service, NBC News reports. "The person was confronted by parishioners and escorted outside," the police department said in a Facebook post . "Upon arrival, Officers arrested the suspect and placed him in custody." The service was being live-streamed at the time of the incident. Video shows a man approach the Rev. Nicholas Dupre and whisper in his ear, the Advocate reports. Dupre told parishioners to sit and started praying the Hail Mary. Within around a minute, screaming could be heard and Dupre and other clergy members ducked behind the Communion table. Over a speaker, an officer said: "We did apprehend a young man. He is in custody. Calm down and get next to your child and just go slowly." Police said that after the teen was in custody, officers "made a sweep through the church to ensure there was no additional threat and confirmed that no one was injured." The 16-year-old was dressed all in black and was armed with a rifle, KADN reports. Police said he was taken to the Abbeville General Hospital Behavioral Unit for a medical evaluation and will face charges of terrorizing the church and two counts of possession of a firearm by a juvenile. Abbeville Police Chief Mike Hardy said the teen's girlfriend was inside the church and he had planned to intimidate parishioners before running away to Texas with the girl, the Advocate reports. "I don't think his goal was to shoot people," the chief said. "He was there to intimidate somebody." (More Louisiana stories.) A rare geomagnetic storm caused a spectacular sight right across the country at the weekend, lighting up the night sky in pink, purple and green hues. If you somehow missed it, despite incredible shots taking over TV screens and social media, Otago University physics Professor Craig Rodger told AM that there's another "likely" chance you'll get to see it this week - but it all depends on where you are and if weather plays its part. "At the moment there is a forecast from the NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center that another coronal mass ejection is likely to occur maybe tonight, maybe in the next 24 hours. It's one of those areas that is actually quite difficult to forecast accurately when the coronal mass ejections will arrive," Prof Rodger told AM on Monday. "So there is another possibility. I would be surprised, I would be very surprised if it was a good as good as Saturday night though. "If you live in the lower South Island, I'd be saying there's a reasonable chance of aurora. If you live in the upper North Island, I really hope you saw it on Saturday, because it could literally be another ten years before we get a show that good." New Zealand's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has responded to a chilling threat from North Korea over surveillance of the nation. Pyongyang on Monday called out New Zealand, alongside the UK, Canada, Germany, France and Australia, to immediately stop the "blatant military intervention in the Asia-Pacific" by using UN sanctions as an excuse, a statement by its foreign ministry via state media KCNA said. The outlet added that North Korea would take necessary steps to protect its sovereignty and security. by Ashutosh Jogalekar Once again the world faces death and destruction, and once again it asks questions. The horrific assaults by Hamas on October 7 last year and the widespread bombing by the Israeli government in Gaza raise old questions of morality, law, history and national identity. We have been here before, and if history is any sad reminder, we will undoubtedly be here again. That is all the more reason to grapple with these questions. For me, a particularly instructive guide to doing this is Errol Morriss brilliant 2003 film, The Fog of War, that focuses on former Secretary of Defense Robert McNamaras eleven lessons drawn from failures of the United States in the Vietnam War. Probably my favorite documentary of all time, I find both the film and the man fascinating and the lessons timeless. McNamara at 85 is sharp as a tack and appears haunted with the weight of history and his central role in sending 58,000 American soldiers to their deaths in a small, impoverished country far away which was being bombed back into the stone age. Throughout the film he fixes the viewer with an unblinking stare, eyes often tearing up and conviction coming across. McNamara happens to be the only senior government official from any major U.S. war who has taken responsibility for his actions and what is much more important than offering a simple mea culpa and moving on gone into great details into the mistakes he and his colleagues made and what future generations can learn from them (in stark contrast, Morriss similar film about Donald Rumsfeld is infuriating because unlike McNamara, Rumsfeld appears completely self-deluded and totally incapable of introspection). For me McNamaras lessons which are drawn from both World War 2 and Vietnam are uncannily applicable to the Israel-Palestine conflict, not so much for any answers they provide but for the soul-searching questions which must be asked. Here are the eleven lessons, and while all are important I will focus on a select few because I believe they are particularly relevant to the present war. Lesson #1: Empathize with your enemy. Lesson #2: Rationality alone will not save us. Lesson #3: Theres something beyond ones self. Lesson #4: Maximize efficiency. Lesson #5: Proportionality should be a guideline in war. Lesson #6: Get the data. Lesson #7: Belief and seeing are both often wrong. Lesson #8: Be prepared to reexamine your reasoning. Lesson #9: In order to do good, you may have to engage in evil. Lesson #10: Never say never. Lesson #11: You cant change human nature. Lets start with what I consider to be the most important learning. Lesson #1: Empathize with your enemy. The world came closest to nuclear annihilation in October, 1962, when the United States and the Soviet Union almost went to war over the Soviet Unions installation of nuclear missiles in Cuba. McNamara recounts the story of Llewellyn (Tommy) Thompson, an advisor to President Kennedy, who convinced Kennedy that he must let Nikita Khrushchev save face in order to escape with his countrys self-respect from the crisis. That was the ultimate example of empathizing with your enemy, according to McNamara. Empathy seems to be in short supply on both sides of the Israeli-Palestine conflict. A primary reason for this, as I see it, is because many people mistakenly confuse empathy with sympathy. They feel they should feel bad for their adversaries or, worse, give in to their demands. But empathy and sympathy are very different things. Empathy, as McNamara describes it, is looking at the world through someone elses eyes: We must try to put ourselves inside their skin and look at us through their eyes, just to understand the thoughts that lie behind their decisions and their actions. You dont need to agree with their world view or feel bad about them, but you do need to understand them, understand what the causes are that propel them to behave the way they do. The United States won the Cold War because we could empathize with the Soviets. The United States lost the Vietnam War because we could never empathize with the Vietnamese, never understand that what we thought was a proxy war with communist China and Russia was an internal civil war for self-determination. I think theres a similar lack of empathy on all sides of the Middle East conflict, whether its the Israeli government or the student protestors on campus. For one thing, empathy requires truly understanding your adversaries history, religion and culture, and I see very few discussions of these aspects of Israeli and Palestinian identity around. You cannot understand the conflict, for instance, without understanding Israels origins, without understanding how both David Ben-Gurion who was Israelis first prime minister and the Arabs in the region were at loggerheads and in an uneasy peace at best right from the beginning. And going centuries further back, you cannot understand the conflict without understanding the elemental role that religion Jew vs Muslim even more than land has played in the relationship. Understanding these historical, religious and cultural elements of a country or people is critical in developing empathy for them. And empathy not only plays a big role in taking a more human view of your adversaries, but it is also a practical tool. Good strategy flows directly from empathy. The lack of empathy is what crippled American efforts in Vietnam and Iraq, and they threaten to cripple peace in the Middle East. What does empathy look like on the Israeli and the Palestinian side? For Israel its understanding that not every Palestinian is a supporter of Hamas and that collective punishment wont necessarily win them the peace they want. For the Palestinians, its understanding that they cannot be at peace with Israel unless Hamas, their supposed benefactor, has Israels extinction explicitly written in its charter and is a bonafide terrorist group. Palestinians should understand that Israelis with their deeply ingrained cultural memories felt a trauma second only to the Holocaust when Hamas brutally murdered so many of them on October 7. Israelis should understand the trauma and damage they are inflicting on an entire generation of Palestinians by destroying hospitals and universities and killing so many children, children whose parents and brothers and sisters will grow up determined to avenge what they see is the wholesale destruction of their communities. Unless both sides understand these basic facts about each other there will be no empathy, and consequently no progress toward peace. The next two lessons are closely related and should be considered together in my view. Lesson #5: Proportionality should be a guideline in war. Lesson #9: In order to do good, you may have to engage in evil. Perhaps the most profound question raised in any kind of conflict is the contrast between means and ends. In World War 2 McNamara was an officer in the U.S. Army Air Forces serving in Japan under General Curtis LeMay, a notoriously ruthless, almost brutal commander. LeMay led the firebombing of Japan in which between 50% and 90% of 62 Japanese cities were completely destroyed and hundreds of thousands of civilians killed. Most notoriously, in the single night of March 9-10, 1945, 100,000 Japanese civilians were burned to death in Tokyo. After the war, LeMay strikingly admitted that had his country lost he would have been tried for war crimes. McNamara acknowledged that he would have been considered a war criminal as well. And this is in spite of the fact that the end goal the defeat of Japan was considered an essential goal and a good one. In other words, decent men like McNamara committed what even they themselves would consider war crimes in service of a moral goal. They committed these war crimes because they thought that their response was proportional to Japanese aggression. Japan, after all, had started the war, so the gloves were off. But these lessons raise profound questions about means and ends and about proportionality. Lets apply them to the current conflict. Hamas brutally murdered and mutilated more than 1100 Israelis on October 7. Since then, Israel has killed more than 30,000 people in Gaza, two-thirds of whom are women and children. Most of its universities and schools have been destroyed, its cultural landmarks decimated. Before the conflict began, Israel gave more than a million of Gazas residents 24 hours to evacuate with all their belongings. We might well ask two important questions: Are Israels actions in Gaza proportional to what Hamas did? And do these actions constitute a war crime? There has been a huge amount of discussion especially about the first question. Supporters of the bombing have pointed out that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) are much more careful than other armies in making sure that the ratio of civilian to combatant casualties is minimized and that enemy residents, at least in their minds, are given prior warning. To them this makes the response proportional. They also point out, rightly in this case, that Hamas which has no pretense of protecting either enemy civilians or their own, uses its own people as human shields and hides not just in underground tunnels but in hospitals, schools and houses, structures which should be legitimately considered civilian and not military installations. Hamas also refuses to hand over the hostages it has unconditionally. There is no doubt that the special nature of Hamas as a non-state terrorist group that cares minimally even about its own people makes the job of the Israeli army incredibly hard. And lets reiterate that Hamas denies the very existence of Israel whereas Israel has at least tried to peacefully co-exist with Hamas and the Palestinians. There is also no doubt that Israel has a judicial review process in initiating army operations that is more careful and sophisticated than that of many other countries. In terms of intentions there is no doubt which side is better. But as Dwight Eisenhower once asked, if a driver of a school bus drove into a ditch, would we excuse his behavior by saying that he had good intentions? Ultimately outcomes matter, and in terms of outcomes the arguments made by the advocates of bombing Gaza inch uncomfortably close to the arguments made by LeMay in bombing Tokyo. In those cases, as in Hamass case, the Japanese (and the Germans) had concentrated their war-marking capability very close to civilian housing. Civilians were deeply integrated in war production in all countries including the United States. And just like Hamas, the Japanese in particular were considered fanatic soldiers who wouldnt give up. Thus, the aims in both cases defeating Japan in World War 2 and defeating Hamas in the case of Israel could be legitimately considered to be good aims. But the means can still be questioned. Did killing 100,000 Japanese in one night and destroying 62 of their cities justify the ends the United States was fighting for? Does killing 14,000 children in Gaza, many of whom have nothing to do with Hamass attacks, and destroying 60% of all civilian housing justify the ends Israel is fighting for? Had the United States in 1945 and Israel until 2023 tried every non-violent tool at their disposal, every diplomatic strategy, every backchannel, to bring about peace? More importantly, when does this stop? When 100,000 children are dead? Half a million? In other words, when do these actions become evil and how much evil should you do in order to do good? It also does not help that bombing is not just morally questionable but strategically doubtful. Certainly the bombings of London, Dresden, Hamburg and Tokyo were not just ineffective in destroying the morale of the British, Germans and Japanese but only succeeded in hardening their resolve to fight. In case of Germany the bombing only became effective when bombers could be escorted deep into the Third Reich by P-51 Mustang fighter aircraft, and that development came too late during the war. In Japan, dispute continues to this day whether the atomic bombs forced the Emperor to declare surrender; the best evidence seems to indicate that while the Emperor might have invoked the bomb, it was a convenient excuse to avoid admitting that it was the Russian declaration of war on Japan that really convinced the Japanese that there was no way out. In justifying its actions in Gaza as proportional, Israel has invoked rules of war which say that the gains will be bigger than the human losses. And yet Israels own commanders and leaders would be hard-pressed to tell us whether their actions will get rid of Hamas completely, and whether they will do so for a short time or long-term. We can also be sure that just like in Dresden or Tokyo, the bombing of Gaza would have only hardened the resolve of those facing the rain of destruction on the ground, and while Israel is hoping that the relatives of the children killed in Gaza will hate Hamas more than they hate Israel, this is by no means certain. All that Israel has succeeded in doing with the bombing is to incur the opprobrium of most countries and rack up a moral burden. Other lessons from McNamaras list above can also be applied to the current conflict. Get the data and Belief and seeing are often both wrong are calls to treat news pieces in the media skeptically and to comprehensively analyze all data on current events before reaching a conclusion. In a conflict as polarizing as this, many of us regularly fall prey to selective reporting and confirmation bias, and I am no exception. But if we realize that all sides including ourselves are subject to emotional reasoning, and that more than one side is keen on propaganda, we will do a better job of getting the data and questioning what we see, especially on social media. Many of us including I think that between Hamas and Israel Israel is unequivocally the good guy, the sole true democracy in the Middle East which at least tries to achieve co-existence with a fractious partner locked in a conflict going back centuries, as opposed to a state ruled by a terrorist group whose explicit agenda is to wipe Israel off the map and which cares little about its own people in achieving this agenda. But in order to preserve not just the worlds goodwill and support but a long-term practical strategy with the Palestinians, many of whom are as much under the boot of Hamas as Israel, the country should be prepared to reexamine its reasoning when necessary (lesson #8), empathize with its adversary, realize that many Palestinians are interested in peace and will only be hardened by conflict, and constantly question the distinction between the ends it seeks to achieve and the means it seeks to achieve them with. Similarly the Palestinians should understand that Hamas is at least as big an enemy of theirs as they consider Israel to be, an enemy that has no qualms about hiding in hospitals and schools and willingly using them as cannon fodder. As hard as that will be, these learnings might constitute the only road to a lasting peace and a moral high ground. Ultimately it may be easy to feel depressed by lessons 2 and 11: Rationality cannot save us. and You cannot change human nature. War sometimes seems to be the natural state of humankind. And yet it would be easy to miss the islands of light in the ocean of darkness. Consider the danger of nuclear weapons. While the world still has much to fear from the catastrophe of an accidental nuclear exchange, through treaties, cajoling and occasionally coercing, we have drastically reduced and secured most of the worlds nuclear arsenals; they are now a fraction of what they were at the height of the Cold War. Americans who found nuclear war with the Soviet Union inevitable and regularly participated in duck and cover drills in their schools no longer put a nuclear exchange between the two countries at the top of their list of existential threats. Similarly a string of laws, conventions, treaties and institutions ranging from the Geneva Convention to the Nuremberg Trials to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court have tried to rein in humanitys worst excesses (sadly, both the United States and Israel have withdrawn their signatures to the Rome Statute to make their solders and officials immune from accusations of war crimes). Although there have been a string of proxy and local wars and occasional horrific genocides like that in Rwanda, no major war has claimed the lives of tens of millions of people since World War 2. Thus, although rationality may be in short supply it still exists, and although human nature cannot change it seems to change just enough for us to keep our hopes and efforts alive. And those hopes and efforts are what will continue to matter. Under the $6.54 billion existing transport funding, two Roads of National Significance and 10 Roads of Regional Significance projects will be progressed. Brown was clear there would be no additional Crown funding. Two further projects will now be incorporated into the Mill Road and Whangarei to Port Marsden Roads of National Significance listed in the draft Government Policy Statement on land transport 2024, Brown added. "The Roads of National Significance (RoNS) built by the previous National Government are some of New Zealands most successful State Highway corridors, reducing congestion and improving safety," Brown said. "Expanding this programme to roads that are regionally significant will ensure that our cities and regions are well-connected, and our economy thrives. "When we came to government, we were advised that there would be a significant funding gap of up to $1.5 billion to deliver the NZUP projects. This is in addition to the cost increases which resulted in major project cancellations under the previous government, such as Mill Road." Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Brown have agreed to delegate all decision-making responsibilities around project scope and delivery to the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA). It means Ministers would no longer determine project scope and funding decisions, which Brown believed was leading to project delays and scope creep under the previous Government. "Our Government will deliver a transport system that boosts productivity and economic growth and allows New Zealanders to get to where they want to go, quickly and safely. Prioritising the delivery of roading investment across New Zealand is part of our plan to boost productivity and rebuild the economy." To be progressed as Roads of National Significance: Takitimu North Link Stage 1 Otaki to North of Levin To be progressed as Roads of Regional Significance: Penlink Waihoehoe Road SH1 Papakura to Drury SH1/29 Intersection SH58 Improvements Stage 2 Melling Canterbury Package Rural Intersections Canterbury Package Rolleston Upgrade Canterbury Package Halswell Queenstown Package The Whangarei to Port Marsden and Manukau to Takaanini projects will be incorporated into the SH1 Whangarei to Port Marsden and Mill Road Roads of National Significance already listed in draft GPS 2024. These will be considered for funding through the National Land Transport Programme. The Brougham Street and SH22 Drury projects will complete pre-implementation so that they are ready for delivery. However, any further Crown funding for these projects to progress beyond pre-implementation will only come from the $6.54 billion baseline funding, subject to the completion of other projects in delivery and procurement. Bahrain backs Arab unity for economic progress TDT | Manama The Daily Tribune www.newsofbahrain.com His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, reaffirmed Bahrains commitment to supporting Arab initiatives aimed at advancing economic and social integration. Emphasising the need for coordination amidst global economic shifts, HRH Prince Salman emphasised the Kingdoms role in fostering economic growth. HRH the Crown Prince and Prime Minister was speaking as he met yesterday with the heads of delegations participating in the preparatory meetings of the Economic and Social Council of the Arab League on the level of the 33rd Arab Summit, which will be held on May 16 under the presidency of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. His Royal Highness underscored the importance of ongoing progress and development across all sectors, particularly the economic and social sectors, to achieve the joint aspirations and visions of forward-thinking Arab leaders. Welcome He welcomed the heads of delegations to the Kingdom and wished them success in achieving the goals and aspirations of the meeting. HRH Prince Salman stressed that the economy, along with security and fairness, are essential pillars for development. AFP | Port Sudan, Sudan The Daily Tribune www.newsofbahrain.com Clashes reignited between the Sudanese army and rival paramilitaries earlier this week in the key Darfur town of El-Fasher, the United Nations said yesterday, killing at least 27 people in one day. Eyewitnesses have reported air strikes, artillery fire and machine gun clashes battering the city since Friday, when an hours-long battle left an estimated 850 people displaced, according to the UN. It also killed at least 27 that day, based on what the UN said were unconfirmed reports, as the city suffers a near-total communications blackout, with medics and human rights defenders barely able to get news to the world. The fighting has since continued, eyewitnesses said Sunday, reporting air strikes and artillery shelling that left houses on fire, one resident told AFP. According to French medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF), two children and a caregiver were killed in an intensive care unit Saturday following a nearby military air strike. Since April of last year, Sudan has been in the grips of a devastating war between the army, headed by the countrys de facto leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), commanded by his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Daglo. The RSF has seized four out of five state capitals in Darfur, a region about the size of France and home to around one quarter of Sudans 48 million people. El-Fasher is the last major city in Darfur that is not under paramilitary control. The international community, including the UN and the United States, have for weeks warned against a looming offensive on the city. VAUGHAN, ON, May 13, 2024 /CNW/ - Get ready for the summer starting today, Harveys is offering $3 summer drinks, including NEW Frozen Brisk Lemonade, Crush Cream Soda and Crush Orange. Harvey's locations across Canada will be offering hand-spun milkshakes and frozen drinks for $3. This initiative serves as a way to celebrate Canadian summers through refreshing drinks at an affordable price point, as well as invite new guests to try the brand's frozen beverage offerings. Harveys has launched $3 summer drinks, including NEW Frozen Brisk Lemonade, Crush Cream Soda and Crush Orange. (CNW Group/Harvey's) Also available are Harvey's classics like the Vanilla, Strawberry, Chocolate, Orange Cream and Salted Caramel Milkshakes- hand spun and made with 100% Canadian dairy. (CNW Group/Harvey's) In the line up are Harvey's classics like the Vanilla, Strawberry, Chocolate, Orange Cream, and Salted Caramel Milkshakes hand spun and made with 100% Canadian dairy. The promotion will also include a new, limited edition shake in partnership with the NHL. The Hat Trick Shake blends Chocolate, Vanilla and Strawberry together for a tasty summer treat. Frozen drinks are also included in the promotion, with support from PepsiCo Beverages Canada. Guests can try the new Frozen Crush Cream Soda, Frozen Crush Orange and Frozen Brisk Lemonade, as well as Harvey's classic Frozen Blue Raspberry. Whether youre stopping along the route during your summer road trip, sitting in a park enjoying the heat, or bringing a frozen treat to a pool party, nothing screams summer more than our new frozen drinks, says Michael Nault, Chief Operating Officer, Harveys. Our $3 summer drinks promotion gives us the opportunity to raise awareness and excitement for our frozen beverage lineup in a way thats refreshing and fun, especially at a time when consumers are shifting to non-alcoholic drinks and crave innovation and variety. Also new to Harvey's frozen drinks offering but not included in the $3 Summer Drinks promotion is the Watermelon Strawberry Frozen Red Bull, using Red Bull Red Edition. This is the fourth partnership with Red Bull on their signature frozen beverage only available at Harvey's. Also included in the Frozen Red Bull line up is Original (Lemonade) and Peach. Each Frozen Red Bull beverage is made with a full can of Red Bull. For more information, visit https://www.harveys.ca/en/summer-drinks-promo.html . About Harvey's Harvey's is an iconic Canadian restaurant chain that has been feeding Canadian families since 1959. Serving delicious flame-grilled burgers made with 100% Canadian beef and topped the way you want them, Harvey's has been a staple in Canadian communities for almost 65 years. About Recipe Founded in 1883, RECIPE Unlimited Corporation is Canada's largest full-service restaurant company. The Company franchises and/or operates some of the most recognized brands in the country including Swiss Chalet, Harvey's, St-Hubert, The Keg, Montana's, Kelseys, East Side Mario's, New York Fries, Bier Markt, The Landing Group of Restaurants, Original Joe's, State & Main, Elephant & Castle, The Burger's Priest, The Pickle Barrel, Marigolds & Onions, Blanco Cantina, Anejo, and Fresh Kitchen + Juice Bar. RECIPE's iconic brands have established the organization as a nationally recognized franchisor of choice. More information about the Company is available at www.recipeunlimited.com. SOURCE Harvey's Meera Patel, Director of Marketing, Harvey's, [email protected] Grimace arrives in Canada and brings the Grimace Shake to participating restaurants beginning tomorrow TORONTO, May 13, 2024 /CNW/ - After several reported sightings, McDonald's Canada is confirming Grimace has officially arrived in Canada. With his much-anticipated entrance, the mysterious purple icon brings the very special Grimace Shake to Canadian menus for a limited time only at participating restaurants. Grimace arrives in Canada and brings the Grimace Shake to participating restaurants beginning tomorrow (CNW Group/McDonald's Restaurants of Canada Ltd.) That's right: Starting tomorrow, Canadians will be able to get their hands on the special shake. Rumours of his arrival and what it could mean have been flying since our purple pal was first spotted at a Vancouver Canucks game a few weeks ago. The Grimace Shake was first introduced to McDonald's menus across the US last summer in celebration of his birthday and now it is finally available to Canadians. "When the Grimace Shake dropped for our neighbours to the south, the response we got from fans here in Canada was overwhelming," said Alyssa Buetikofer, Chief Marketing Officer, McDonald's Canada. "Inspired by the sheer creativity and passion we saw for the Grimace Shake, we had to bring it to Canadian menus." What exactly is Grimace, anyway? Perhaps we'll never know. But while Grimace remains an enigma, the fan-favourite sparks nostalgia and excitement for McDonald's fans of all ages with the signature fuzzy purple look, friendly and playful personality, and of course - love for shakes. "SurpriiiiiseHope u didn't have 2 much fomo. I had the funnest bday last year. Think my Canadian besties could use a little sumthin' sweet :)", said Grimace in a hand-written note to the McDonald's Canada communications team. The Grimace Shake is available at participating restaurants in Canada starting tomorrow Tuesday, May 14 in-restaurant, through the McDonald's app, at the Drive-Thru, or via McDelivery. Though Grimace is a timeless icon, the Grimace Shake is only available for a limited time, so mark your calendar! About McDonald's Canada In 1967, Canada welcomed the first McDonald's restaurant to Richmond, British Columbia. Today, McDonald's Restaurants of Canada Limited has become part of the Canadian fabric, serving more than one million guests every day. In both franchised and corporate-owned restaurants, nearly 100,000 people are employed from coast to coast to coast, and more than 90 per cent of McDonald's 1,400 Canadian restaurants are locally owned and operated by independent franchisees. Of the almost $1 billion spent on food, more than 85 per cent is purchased from suppliers in Canada. For more information on McDonald's Canada, visit mcdonalds.ca. SOURCE McDonalds Canada Canada Impact, McDonald's Canada [email protected] An 83 page 2023, report to the US Congress by the Department of Energy has three citations to articles by Nextbigfuture.com Alternate Fuels: Thorium and Uranium-233, Report to Congress March 2023 This report describes the potential use of thorium fuel and uranium-233 (U-233) in future Generation IV reactor designs and in current light water reactors. Various thorium fuel cycle options using fertile thorium along with fissile uranium fuel could serve to increase fuel burnup, extend fuel resources, reduce the need for uranium enrichment facilities and uranium mining, and significantly lower spent fuel volume and waste radiotoxicity over time. This report describes the potential benefits, disadvantages, and economics of using thorium and U-233 to fuel nuclear reactors as well as the use of thorium for non-nuclear applications. Thorium fuel may be useful for future Generation IV reactor designs, including advanced MSRs that would use natural and/or depleted uranium with its fissile U-235 content to denature fertile thorium fuel that would produce fissile U-233 as Th-232 is irradiated over the core lifetime. Mixed thorium and uranium fuel assemblies could be used in current LWRs or advanced LWRs in heterogeneous (i.e., seed-and-blanket LWR designs) core loading strategies that would be able to breed or burn fissile U-233. Thorium could be used in sodium fast reactor. Wang, Brian, Thorium Power Canada is in advanced talks with Chile and Indonesia for 10 MW and 25 MW solid thorium fueled reactors, Next Big Future, July 2013. Available at: https://www.nextbigfuture.com/2013/07/thorium-power-canada-is-in-advanced.html P3Tek, Indonesia Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resource, P3Tek Recommends Thorcon Molten Salt Nuclear Reactor for Indonesia. Available at: https://www.nextbigfuture.com/2019/09/p3tek-recommends-thorconmolten-salt-nuclear-reactor-for-indonesia.html Wang, Brian, China spending $3.3 billion on molten salt nuclear reactors for faster aircraft carriers and in flying drones, Next Big Future, December 2017. Available at: https://www.nextbigfuture.com/2017/12/chinaspending-us3-3-billion-on-molten-salt-nuclear-reactors-for-faster-aircraft-carriers-and-in-flying-drones.html Other Notable Citations There was a US marines study of future urban warfare scenarios that cited Nextbigfuture.com. In 2023, Elon Musk tweeted out a reference to Nextbigfuture.com School 8 in Jersey City was briefly evacuated Monday morning after a student set a bathroom garbage can on fire, Jersey City officials said. The student who set the fire was identified and apprehended, Jersey City spokeswoman Kimberly Wallace-Scalcione said. Jersey City firefighters responded to the Franklin Street elementary school at 9 a.m. and contained the fire to the garbage container. The school was safely evacuated for a short time. No injuries were reported. About 5,000 applications for New Jerseys ANCHOR property tax benefit remain in limbo eight months after the state first started processing the benefit for the 2020 tax year, the state said Friday. The state Division of Taxation sent notices to the 5,000 ANCHOR applicants to request additional documentation to perfect their accounts, spokeswoman Danielle Currie told NJ Advance Media. In these cases, the application may have missing or erroneous information that needs to be corrected, Currie said. Benefits will be issued to every account that is perfected. The holdup in making some payments has come as the state has worked to prevent massive fraud, Currie said. The Division of Taxation successfully identified and stopped over 900,000 fraud attempts over the course of the 2020 ANCHOR season, she said. The Division of Taxations rigorous process of scrutinizing and verifying each individual application led to some delays for certain taxpayers, but also led to many fraud attempts being thwarted. Those efforts are whats holding up the pending 5,000 applications. The agency declined to discuss the details of the fraud attempts because it doesnt want to encourage bad actors to file bogus applications. Through April 19, which is the most recent data available, the state has made more than 1.85 million ANCHOR payments worth nearly $2.2 billion to homeowners and renters, the state said. The average payment to homeowners was $1,150 and to renters, the average payment was $484. Its unclear exactly how the next benefit for the 2021 tax year will work, though its expected that many applications will again be submitted automatically on behalf of residents in a process that would begin in August. First, though, the benefit has to be funded as part of the pending state budget. Gov. Phil Murphy, in his latest state budget proposal, which is now being negotiated with state lawmakers, asked for ANCHOR to once again to be funded with benefits of up to $1,500 for eligible homeowners and $450 for qualifying renters, along with an extra $250 payment for homeowners and renters who are age 65 and older. At the same time, Murphy this week downplayed concerns of a showdown between him and lawmakers over funding for a separate property tax relief program for seniors known as Stay NJ and the governors proposal for a 2.5% tax on corporations to help cash-strapped NJ Transit. NJ Advance Media reported last month that a potential battle is shaping up between Murphy and top legislators about how much money will go to either the tax cut or the transit tax. Sources say state Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, D-Middlesex, the architect of Stay NJ, may want to secure more funding for that program in exchange for supporting the transit fee, which is cheered by transit advocates but opposed by business leaders in the state. Or, Coughlin could ask for some of the fee to go toward Stay NJ. Murphy and lawmakers must agree to a new state budget by July 1 or risk a state government shutdown. A big moment in the budget process is coming up Tuesday, when the Murphy administration will present updated figures on how much revenue the state can expect from now until the next fiscal year ends in June 2025. Asked about the tension during his call-in radio show Wednesday night on NPR stations, Murphy said Stay NJ funding is under discussion in budget negotiations, which will ramp up in the coming weeks. I wont get into the specifics, the governor said. But I feel really good about the relationship we have with (lawmakers). None of this is easy, but Im highly optimistic well land in a good place. Asked if the state will get both a senior tax cut and the transit fee, Murphy said: God willing. Murphy emphasized his budget proposal includes $200 million in ramp-up money for Stay NJ, which is set to launch in fiscal year 2026, though only if the state reaches benchmarks. So were sort of building up, the governor said. We climb these mountains over several years. Please subscribe now and support the local journalism YOU rely on and trust. Karin Price Mueller may be reached at KPriceMueller@NJAdvanceMedia.com. Follow her on X at @KPMueller. Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on X at @johnsb01. A man died at an area hospital last week after Brick police found him in a state of active distress on a residential street in the Ocean County town, authorities said. Police called to the area of Wisteria and Vermont drives just before 4:30 p.m. Thursday found the man in the street, the state Office of the Attorney General said. Officers handcuffed the man and brought him to the nearby grass, authorities said. Emergency workers brought the man to Ocean University Medical Center in town. He was pronounced dead at 5:48 p.m. His cause of death and additional information wasnt immediately available. The state Office of the Attorney General investigates when someone dies during an encounter with police or in the custody of law enforcement. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Donald Trump was at it again Saturday at his New Jersey rally mocking Chris Christie over his weight in the former governors home state. And howd he go about it? Trump used a tried and true method he deployed on the campaign trail in New Hampshire by calling Christie a fat pig by telling people not to call Christie a fat pig. By his own admission, Trump said a man at one of his rallies tossed the slur at Christie, but no one else could hear him. Thats when Trump amplified it. And continued to do so on the trail as Christie was a harsh critic of his former friend. Does anybody like Chris Christie? Trump asked the crowd, which responded with boos and jeers. Trump continued: So I was in New Hampshire, and he was fighting, fighting hes, like, totally unhinged. Its called Trump Derangement Syndrome. I would say he was a major case of Trump Derangement Syndrome. Somebody from the front row said, Sir, hes a fat pig. And I said, but nobody heard him, the person, he was a nice person. But you know, I said, You cannot call Chris Christie a fat pig. You cannot do that. Please, sir, if you call him a fat pig once more, Im going to have to have you leave the arena. The guy didnt know what was happening. I said, Dont worry about it. Im only kidding. But I said you cannot call him a fat pig because youre not allowed to use fat word. You know, you can use almost any word, but you cant use the fat word. Its career-ending. If you call somebody fat, its career-ending. Christie was one of the first mainstream Republicans to endorse Trump in 2016 after he ended his own failed election bid. It led the way for other Republicans to get behind the ultimate winner of the primary. Christie went on to be a top advisor to Trump. But he parted ways with the former president after Trump denied the 2020 election results the night of the election. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Matt Arco may be reached at marco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @MatthewArco. Part of former President Donald Trumps entourage that accompanied him to criminal court Monday included U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville. Like most of his colleagues, Tberville is upset about the trial altogether. But the Alabama lawmaker is also miffed about something else: How they address the former prez. First of all, Im disappointed in the courtroom. Im hearing, Mr. Trump, Mr. Trump. He is former President Trump. Give him some respect. I mean, thats what that place is in there. Its no respect, he told reporters after a break. Tuberville: I'm disappointed in the courtroom. I'm hearing Mr. Trump, Mr. Trump. He is former President Trump. Give him some respect. pic.twitter.com/unQyPayPJx Acyn (@Acyn) May 13, 2024 Trump has pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records as part of an alleged effort to keep salacious and, he says, bogus stories about his sex life from emerging during his 2016 campaign. On Monday, Trump called the case brought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg a scam and witch hunt. The charges center on $130,000 in payments that Trumps company made to his then-lawyer, Michael Cohen. He paid that sum on Trumps behalf to keep porn actor Stormy Daniels from going public with her claims of a sexual encounter with Trump a decade earlier. Trump has denied the sexual encounter ever happened. Prosecutors say the payments to Cohen were falsely logged as legal fees. Prosecutors have described it as part of a scheme to bury damaging stories Trump feared could help his opponent in the 2016 race, particularly as Trumps reputation was suffering at the time from comments he had made about women. Trump has acknowledged reimbursing Cohen for the payment and that it was designed to stop Daniels from going public about the alleged encounter. But Trump has previously said it had nothing to do with the campaign. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Matt Arco may be reached at marco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @MatthewArco. The suspect in a fatal stabbing at a New Jersey Transit train station during the summer of 2023 has been arrested in Pennsylvania. Aswad J. Spruiel, 44, of Plainfield, was apprehended by U.S. Marshals in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, on Friday. He was previously charged with first-degree murder and weapons offenses, the Union County Prosecutors Office said on Monday. Police found the victim, 45-year-old Juquin Smith, suffering from stab wounds at Plainfield Station around 2 p.m. on July 6, 2023, officials said. He was later pronounced dead at the hospital. Prosecutors did not say how Spruiel was identified as a suspect. Court records indicate that a warrant was issued for his arrest on July 14. He is being held in Northumberland County Jail in Pennsylvania and is awaiting extradition to New Jersey. Attorney information for Spruiel was not immediately available. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Nicolas Fernandes may be reached at nfernandes@njadvancemedia.com. Six-day (Tuesday through Sunday) print subscribers of the Watertown Daily Times are eligible for full access to NNY360, the NNY360 mobile app, and the Watertown Daily Times e-edition, all at no additional cost. If you have an existing six-day print subscription to the Watertown Daily Times, please make sure your email address on file matches your NNY360 account email. You can sign up or manage your print subscription using the options below. Barnstaple's bus station is slated to reopen this summer following renovation works carried out by North Devon Council. The revamped station will offer improved facilities and a modernised layout aimed at enhancing safety and comfort for passengers. The renovation includes the addition of a new cafe, Barnstaple Bus Station Cafe and Takeaway, which will serve a variety of refreshments including sandwiches and pastries. Public toilet facilities will also be available during the cafe's operating hours. The project, undertaken in collaboration with RGP Architects and Grills Renovations and Refurbishments, is expected to be completed within two months, with the reopening scheduled for July. Funding for the project is provided by North Devon Council's capital allocation, supplemented by support from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. Leader of North Devon Council, Councillor Ian Roome, said: I am delighted that we will soon be able to reopen the Barnstaple Bus Station building. I am pleased this will be run by a local business and wish them every success going forward. The new cafe, waiting area and toilets will provide a welcoming environment for those coming in and out of Barnstaple by bus. The previous layout of the station building made it a target for misuse and anti-social behaviour, and it has taken time to find the right scheme to address those concerns. We are so pleased that work is under way and we will have a building that bus station visitors can use safely. Officers have been working hard to get this project up and running for many months and its nice to see their hard work coming to fruition. Barnstaple Bus Station Cafe and Takeaway manager, Dan Brierley, said: Myself and my wife Lucy are really excited to be involved with the reopening of Barnstaple Bus Station with our family-run cafe and takeaway. We will be offering a range of hot and cold refreshments and we can't wait to meet our new customers. The station is a hub which is valuable to the community, and we look forward to offering a place people can enjoy and relax in before their next journey. A traditional annual Fun Fair is being held at in Rock Park in Barnstaple until Saturday, May 18, with all the usual attractions offered by Rowlands, who are members of the Showmens Guild. Town Mayor Louisa York said: Were delighted to be able to host Rowlands fair in Rock Park once again. Theres always a thrill in the local community when the fair arrives and its very popular with our residents. We hope families and friends enjoy all the fun of the fair. Rowlands has announced it has more rides and attractions this year, including Blaze, Waltzer and Crazy Frog among others. It is also hosting the Real life Animal Show, Bluey and Bingo making an appearance on Saturday. A variety of rides and attractions are planned for all ages with Rowlands stating: We are accredited members of The Showmens Guild of Great Britain and ensure our rides, both big and small, are immaculately maintained, regularly checked and fully compliant with industry health and safety standards, from the very latest high impact thrill rides to traditional carousel gallopers. A wide range of side-show games and on-site catering will also be in place. This year Rowlands is offering unlimited rides for 14.99, reduced to 12.99 if booked online. Further details can be found at www.rowlandsfunfairs.com. WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP More details are expected to be released early this week about a fatal crash that occurred Friday afternoon in the area of County Road 325 East, south of County Road 500 North, according to Porter County police. Portage killing happened during drug deal, attempted robbery, police say They then heard up to 10 gunshots and one witnesses walked out to see a man point a gun at her and say, "Don't (expletive) move," police said. The preliminary investigation revealed that around 12:15 p.m., a 2019 Honda pickup truck was traveling northbound on 325 East when for unknown reasons it traveled off the east side of the roadway, striking building materials and coming to a stop in an open field. "Upon arrival, Officers found the male driver and sole occupant of the vehicle unconscious and not responding," police said. "Subject was transported to a local hospital and was later pronounced deceased." Russia pushed into Ukraines north After launching a complex offensive on Friday, Russian troops have poured across Ukraines northeastern border. At least nine villages have been seized, and Russia has taken more square miles per day than at almost any other point in the war. Now, some Ukrainian troops are retreating, and some commanders have taken the unusual step of blaming each other. Thousands of civilians have fled to Kharkiv, about 20 miles from the border and the nearest big city to the villages. For now, it is safe but approaching machine gun fire is increasingly audible, those on the ground say. Gen. Oleksandr Syrsky, Ukraines top military commander, conceded that the situation had significantly worsened. But he said that Russian attempts to break through Ukrainian defensive lines had been unsuccessful so far. Toll: Villagers in the Kherson region slowly rebuilt their lives after Ukraine pushed back Russia. Now residents are braced for a fresh assault. Melinda French Gates is leaving the behemoth foundation she and her former husband, Bill Gates, founded nearly a quarter-century ago to devote herself fully to her work on behalf of women and girls, which has been the focus of much of her recent philanthropy. Her move, announced on Monday, marks the end of an era for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation henceforth known as the Gates Foundation which she and her former husband founded in 2000 and transformed into a juggernaut that shook up the world of philanthropy and reshaped the fields of global public health and development. After careful thought and reflection, I have decided to resign from my role as co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Ms. French Gates, 59, said in a post on X. She added that the foundation was in strong shape, and that it was the right time for her to move into the next chapter of my philanthropy. Her last day will be June 7. Ms. French Gates will get $12.5 billion in resources to direct toward her philanthropic work. In a statement, she said she would use the money she was leaving with to commit to my work on behalf of women and families. Senator J.D. Vance, an Ohio Republican, joined Donald J. Trumps entourage in court on Monday as the prosecutions star witness, Michael D. Cohen, the former presidents fixer-turned-nemesis, took the stand. Mr. Vance and other supporters of Mr. Trump attacked Mr. Cohen and other participants in the trial in social media posts and a news conference. The judge overseeing the case has barred Mr. Trump from launching such broadsides. Every single person involved in this prosecution is practically a Democratic political operative, Mr. Vance told reporters in Collect Pond Park, outside the courthouse. He added that it was a disgrace that Mr. Trump could not say so himself. Mr. Trump is barred from attacking a number of people involved in the case, including witnesses and prosecutors, other than the Manhattan district attorney, Alvin L. Bragg. Mr. Vances presence could signal a new frontier for Mr. Trumps testing of potential running mates. The former president has been encouraging vice-presidential contenders, including Mr. Vance, to grant interviews to cable networks to measure their performance, as well as inviting them to join him on the campaign trail and to attend fund-raisers. Jury selection for Senator Robert Menendezs corruption trial started on Monday in a federal courthouse in Manhattan, a 20-mile drive from Mr. Menendezs home in northern New Jersey, where for decades he has been a well-known Democratic political leader. His efforts to move the trial to his home turf failed. Jurors picked to decide the case will be from Manhattan, the Bronx or one of several New York counties north of the city. Prosecutors with the U.S. attorneys office for the Southern District of New York have said that they expect to take as many as six weeks to present their case against Mr. Menendez, who is accused of being at the center of an international bribery scheme involving more than $100,000 in gold bullion, an Egyptian halal meat monopoly and a Qatari sheikh. Mr. Menendez, 70, will be tried with two New Jersey businessmen, Fred Daibes and Wael Hana. All three sat in the court for more than two hours Monday morning, quietly talking with their lawyers while the judge, Sidney H. Stein, questioned prospective jurors who said they would be unable to serve for the duration of the trial. A Black man from New Jersey who was until recently a U.S. Marine has been charged with threatening to kill white people as many as I possibly can in a ranting message posted online, federal prosecutors said on Monday. The man, Joshua Cobb, acknowledged to F.B.I. agents in an interview last month that he had written the threatening message, admitted posting other ominous comments and described in detail several sites he had considered as potential targets, a criminal complaint says. During the interview, the complaint says, Mr. Cobb also discussed his affinity for other mass shooters, including the gunman who killed 17 people at a Florida high school in 2018 and the white teenager who killed 10 Black people in a racist attack at a Buffalo supermarket in 2022. Mr. Cobb, 23, of Trenton, was charged with one count of transmitting a threat in interstate and foreign commerce. He was scheduled to make an initial appearance before a magistrate judge in Federal District Court in Trenton Monday afternoon, the U.S. attorneys office in New Jersey said. It was not immediately clear whether he appeared in court. Monday is not Michael D. Cohens first day in a courtroom. Mr. Cohen, who is Donald J. Trumps former fixer, pleaded guilty in August 2018 to a variety of federal crimes, including campaign finance violations for his role in two hush-money deals with women who said they had sex with Mr. Trump. He also pleaded guilty to personal financial crimes unrelated to Mr. Trump, including tax evasion. Three months later, Mr. Cohen was back in federal court to plead guilty once again. That time, he accepted responsibility for lying to Congress about plans to build a Trump Tower in Moscow, saying he did so out of loyalty to Mr. Trump. His loyalty faded in 2018 as the authorities closed in on Mr. Cohen, and Mr. Trump shunned him. Mr. Cohen is now the star witness in Mr. Trumps criminal trial in Manhattan, which centers on a hush-money deal. A judge sentenced Mr. Cohen to three years in prison for all the charges, and in May 2019, he reported to the medium-security federal prison and detention center in Otisville, N.Y., about 75 miles northwest of New York City. Follow todays live coverage of Trumps hush-money trial in Manhattan. Michael D. Cohen, once one of Donald J. Trumps closest confidants and his loyal protector, offered an account Monday that could convict the man he used to refer to as boss and now calls an enemy. Testifying in the first criminal trial of an American president, Mr. Cohen said that he had made a $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels, a porn star who in testimony last week described a brief sexual encounter she said she had with Mr. Trump in 2006. On the stand Monday, Mr. Cohen said he paid Ms. Daniels to ensure her silence before the 2016 presidential election, saying her story would have been catastrophic. The $130,000 payment led to the charges against the former president: that Mr. Trump falsified 34 business records to hide a reimbursement to Mr. Cohen. Mr. Trump, 77, has denied the charges and says he did not have sex with Ms. Daniels. If convicted, he could face prison or probation. Here are five takeaways from Mr. Trumps 16th day on trial: Cohen said Trumps wife suggested locker-room talk. According to Mr. Cohen, Mr. Trumps wife, Melania, offered a oft-quoted turn of phrase after the Access Hollywood tape was revealed in early October 2016, a recording in which Mr. Trump bragged about grabbing womens genitals. Mr. Cohen said that, according to Mr. Trump, she recommended calling it locker-room talk to explain it away. Pinned Michael D. Cohen testified in a Manhattan court on Monday, and his cross-examination is likely to begin Tuesday. Follow todays live coverage of Trumps hush-money trial in Manhattan. Michael D. Cohen, once one of Donald J. Trumps closest confidants and his loyal protector, offered an account Monday that could convict the man he used to refer to as boss and now calls an enemy. Testifying in the first criminal trial of an American president, Mr. Cohen said that he had made a $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels, a porn star who in testimony last week described a brief sexual encounter she said she had with Mr. Trump in 2006. On the stand Monday, Mr. Cohen said he paid Ms. Daniels to ensure her silence before the 2016 presidential election, saying her story would have been catastrophic. The $130,000 payment led to the charges against the former president: that Mr. Trump falsified 34 business records to hide a reimbursement to Mr. Cohen. Mr. Trump, 77, has denied the charges and says he did not have sex with Ms. Daniels. If convicted, he could face prison or probation. Here are five takeaways from Mr. Trumps 16th day on trial: Cohen said Trumps wife suggested locker-room talk. According to Mr. Cohen, Mr. Trumps wife, Melania, offered a oft-quoted turn of phrase after the Access Hollywood tape was revealed in early October 2016, a recording in which Mr. Trump bragged about grabbing womens genitals. Mr. Cohen said that, according to Mr. Trump, she recommended calling it locker-room talk to explain it away. That wasnt her only mention Monday. Mr. Cohen contradicted one possible defense argument that Mr. Trump paid Ms. Daniels only because he was worried about her storys effect on his family and marriage. He said that the former president wasnt thinking about Melania when Ms. Danielss story threatened to become public. Image Donald J. Trump arriving to court in Lower Manhattan on Monday. Credit... Todd Heisler/The New York Times This was all about the campaign, Mr. Cohen said. Mr. Cohen said that when he mentioned both Ms. Daniels and Karen McDougal, a former Playboy model who also said she had an affair with Mr. Trump, the candidates reaction had to do with them both being beautiful. Cohen brought four weeks together in one day. Since testimony began April 22, prosecutors have been stitching together the motive and methods of the $130,000 payment, using phone logs, emails, text messages and witness testimony. Mr. Cohen brought many of those moments to life, describing Mr. Trumps micromanagement and his campaigns panic after the release of the Access Hollywood tape. Mr. Cohen also bolstered testimony by David Pecker, the former National Enquirer publisher, establishing a deal to suppress unflattering stories about Mr. Trump. And he ratified the account of Keith Davidson, Ms. Danielss onetime lawyer, about buying her story. But Mr. Cohens credibility will be aggressively challenged during cross-examination. Whether the jury finds Mr. Cohen believable could determine its verdict. A cryptic phrase could be damning. It was a direct accusation of intent: Mr. Cohen said that Mr. Trump had made it clear in late October 2016 that he wanted to pay off Ms. Daniels. He expressed to me, Just do it, Mr. Cohen said. He also said that during a conversation with Mr. Cohen and Allen Weisselberg, then the Trump Organizations chief financial officer, Mr. Trump had been apprised of the plan for Mr. Cohen to pay Ms. Daniels and then be repaid. That arrangement forms the basis for the charges of falsifying business records. Once I received the money back from Mr. Trump, I would deposit it and no one would be the wiser, Mr. Cohen said. Gagged, Trump is letting other allies attack the case. For some Republicans, the trial is an opportunity to show loyalty to the former president, and burnish their reputations in his eyes. On Monday, that included Senator J.D. Vance of Ohio, considered a possible vice-presidential candidate. He also held a news conference blasting Democrats, whom he and Mr. Trump blame for the case, and Mr. Cohen. It was public criticism of a witness whom the defendant is barred from attacking because of a gag order. Mr. Vance was just the latest Republican to drop by. Senator Rick Scott of Florida and Ken Paxton, the Texas attorney general, have visited in weeks past. On Monday, Senator Tommy Tuberville, a former football coach from Alabama, complained about the courtrooms aesthetics. That courtroom, he said, is depressing. Cohen was described as a maniac. But he wasnt one Monday. Prosecutors had allowed witnesses to disparage Mr. Cohen, presumably to get ahead of defense arguments about his being unreliable. People painted him as a maniac, an explosive figure with an ax to grind. That could blunt the defenses cross-examination, which could cover his time in federal prison. But the Michael Cohen on the stand was calm. He did describe his temper flaring, including when he saw his bonus sharply cut for 2016, which he called insulting. I didnt expect more, he said. But I certainly didnt expect less. Mr. Cohens direct examination by prosecutors who said last week that they may finish with their witnesses this week will continue Tuesday morning. The defense will surely try to rattle his composure later in the day, when cross-examination is expected to begin. Feature: Chinese acupuncture therapy offers hope for patients in Uganda Xinhua) 13:20, May 13, 2024 KAMPALA, May 12 (Xinhua) -- In the China-Uganda Friendship Hospital in the Ugandan capital of Kampala, 40-year-old Naome Kayongo joins the queue, a familiar ritual in her journey toward healing. She is among a growing number of patients seeking acupuncture, a traditional Chinese therapy, hoping to restore movement to her paralyzed right hand. Each needle inserted into Kayongo's body symbolizes a glimmer of hope. In the East African country, the ancient Chinese practice of acupuncture is gaining popularity. As senior Chinese acupuncturist Wei Wei carefully places the needles, Ugandan nurse Stella Apio observes intently, learning from the specialist. Wei is part of a Chinese medical team on a year-long mission at the China-Uganda Friendship Hospital. Guided by Wei, Apio administers moxibustion, another form of acupuncture therapy, to Kayongo. While in China, acupuncture is typically performed by doctors, but Apio is eager to become certified in Traditional Chinese Medicine therapies. Since 1983, China has sent medical specialists, including acupuncturists, to Uganda as part of efforts to enhance healthcare in the country. This collaboration extends both ways, with many Ugandan healthcare professionals also traveling to China for training and exchanges. Last year, Apio was among the medical personnel selected by the Ugandan government for a three-week training program in Beijing. In a recent interview with Xinhua, she shared her experience of being placed at a hospital in the Chinese capital where acupuncture was a primary therapy. This exposure has fueled her optimism that with time, she will master the intricate skills of acupuncture. "The acupuncture treatment rooms in China are spacious and equipped with machines, unlike here. We have received some machines from China, and we are using them," Apio said. With 24 years of medical practice, Wei said it takes lengthy training to master acupuncture. She highlighted its effectiveness for both young and elderly patients suffering from various ailments such as stroke and back pain. On average, the clinic attends to about 15 patients per day over the two days it operates each week, according to Apio. Patients typically receive two sessions per day, tailored to the severity of their condition. "We sometimes get overwhelmed because of the high number of patients, considering we are only open two days a week," she added. Kayongo is among the patients grateful for the availability of acupuncture at the hospital. Since a motorcycle accident left her right hand paralyzed last October, she has been undergoing acupuncture sessions. "I have tried several treatments, but it is with acupuncture that I am finally noticing a difference," she said. Expressing her gratitude for the Chinese administration of this therapy, Kayongo has recommended the treatment to many of her friends. According to the hospital administration, acupuncture, along with other forms of alternative or traditional medicine, is gaining prominence alongside Western medicine in Uganda, offering complementary treatment options. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing) For the final stage of the prosecutors case in the People of the State of New York v. Donald Trump, the prosecution is expected to call the witness who has received the lions share of attention since the indictment was brought a year ago: Michael Cohen. Before the trial started, some observers thought Mr. Cohen would be an indispensable star witness. They said that without Mr. Cohen, the district attorney could not establish the elements of the charged criminal offenses. But having seen the proof laid out meticulously and methodically by the prosecution these past three weeks, I find myself wondering: Do prosecutors even need Michael Cohen as a witness? Does the jury need to hear from him? To be sure, the case would not exist but for Mr. Cohen. It is he who first revealed to prosecutors in the special counsel Robert Muellers office (I was one of the special counsel prosecutors) and in New York the hush-money scheme to buy Stormy Danielss silence in the aftermath of the Access Hollywood tapes disclosure. But since then, Alvin Bragg, the Manhattan district attorney, has amassed evidence that appears to independently both prove the crime and corroborate Mr. Cohens account. Love it or hate it, the United States has an imperial presidency, and in his first term, Donald Trump demonstrated a record of using such powers with noted relish on the world stage. As in many areas, he does not have a conventional approach to global relations. But it may turn out that, like Richard Nixon and George H.W. Bush before him, Mr. Trump enjoys engagement with foreign policy. His particular style of politics can be provocative, of course, but also effective. Mr. Trumps approach to Americas place in the world is pragmatic or unpredictable or both, and it could offer surprising opportunities for peace. If Mr. Trump re-enters the Oval Office, he may seek to surprise in his final act, perhaps inspiring parallels, in its unpredictability and volatility, with Nixon and his madman foreign policy. In Mr. Trumps first term, his results in foreign affairs have generally been underrated. For a madman, there were real accomplishments: no new foreign wars, the Abraham Accords between Israel and a handful of Sunni states that many experts on the subject thought were impossible, a focus on China that is now bipartisan, putting allies on notice that they had to more than vaguely contribute to their own defense. They havent learned to drive yet, but they are excellent travelers. SHELL LEWIS, who drove 14 hours to New York from Illinois with two dogs for the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, on the planning and training that goes into getting the worlds top-ranked canines to events. Ts May 19 Travel issue is dedicated to pasta in Italy, diving deep into the culinary traditions, regional variations and complicated history of the countrys national symbol. I (like you, Im sure) have friends who dont eat meat. I also have friends who dont eat fish. Others dont eat eggs. Then there are the ones who dont eat fruit. Vegetables. Gluten. Dairy. Nuts. Sugar. Chiles. Salt. Sugar. But everyone eats pasta or tries their hardest to find a decent substitute. And who can blame them? Pasta any kind of noodle, really, but pasta in particular is a food so lovable that it feels almost elemental. Most of us cant remember the first time we ate it, but most of us never want to live without it. Ts May 19 Travel issue is dedicated to pasta in Italy, diving deep into the culinary traditions, regional variations and complicated history of the countrys national symbol. WHEN STEFANO SECCHI was growing up in Dallas, the end of every school year meant the beginning of a great adventure. His parents, intent on maintaining a connection with their relatives in Italy, put him and his two brothers on a plane, and off they flew to Sardinia, where the sprawling Secchi clan clustered around and tended to the family farm. He remembers the sheep and cows that grazed on the hillsides, the tomatoes, wild fennel and zucchini that grew in such abundance. He remembers the long sunny days and the nearby sea. But more than any of that, he remembers the Sunday meal. What an epic production it was. What a labor of extraordinary love. His nonna, Gavina Secchi, would commence her work at dawn and, by the time many or all of his seven aunts and uncles and their families gathered at the table around 2 or 3 p.m., everything was ready: the local cheeses and salumi with which they started; the endive, radicchio or arugula that came next; the culurgiones, a hearty, rustic dish of pasta shells that were stuffed with potato, mint and pecorino and nestled in either a tomato sauce or goat butter; the meat, usually lamb or wild boar or suckling pig. The eating and the talking went on for four, five, six hours, and hed lose count of how many bottles of wine and how many incredible stories and how many fights over politics there were. We sometimes wouldnt finish until 9 p.m., he told me. It was crazy. And blissful. And now, a fading image in a mental scrapbook, a relic from a distant past. Secchi, the 42-year-old chef and a co-owner of the Michelin-starred Italian restaurant Rezdora in Manhattan, said that when Gavina Secchi died at the age of 96 a little less than a decade ago, the lavish Sunday lunches vanished with her. But they were on life support even beforehand, as members of the Secchi clan, like so many other Italians, got educations, moved into such professions as banking and academia, left their rural setting for urban ones and scattered to different cities: Milan, Turin, Rome. Nobody wanted to work with their hands anymore, he said. And nobody had the kind of life rooted firmly in one community, hitched to predictable rhythms that allowed for a weekly gathering of so many relatives over such laboriously prepared food for so many hours. The Secchis story is the story of many Italians, and Im pained to tell it because its the eulogy for a tradition il pranzo della domenica, or Sunday lunch that so colorfully, calorically and cacophonously mingles Italians trademark passions: family, food and endless conversation. Sunday lunch also evokes one of my favorite Italian phrases, il piacere della tavola, which strictly means the pleasure of the table (or of the sit-down meal) and has no English analogue because, well, Americans and Brits dont know that pleasure the way Italians do. Does anyone? The pan waiting on the stove is almost wider than the circle of my arms. A slick of olive oil, garlic cloves dropped in whole and a chop of peperoncino: its a matter of a moment, garlic into gold, just long enough to leave an imprint on the oil before theyre skimmed out with a spoon so as not to overpower the sauce. The tomatoes go in all at once, with seeds and skins, and my part is done. DAniello turns up the flame, shakes the pan and with a swift glissando of the fingers flicks down salt from on high. All the while, the pasta is boiling in a pot alongside. Torn basil, a ladleful of cloudy pasta water, another and then the pasta itself is swirled in the pan until it half-disappears into the red. We eat tomato with pasta, not pasta with tomato, she says. This is the last time DAniello and Abagnale, who are in their 50s with two grown daughters, will eat pasta al pomodoro made with fresh tomatoes until next August. After this, DAniello will use preserved tomatoes, processed or transformed, as Abagnale puts it under our feet in the clean and bright basement of their home, here in the small town of SantAntonio Abate, about 20 miles outside of Naples. First the tomatoes are pasteurized in a vat at the precise boiling point of water, 212 degrees Fahrenheit, for an hour, then in a tank at 122 degrees for 20 minutes. With industrial production, Abagnale points out, it would be longer, at higher temperatures. You kill everything, but also flavor, he says. Afterward, the tomatoes are left to cool and rest for 60 days. They taste even better as they age, he tells me. Three years would be ideal. But no one can wait that long. An Army officer assigned to the Defense Intelligence Agency has resigned in protest over the United States support for Israel, which he said had enabled and empowered the killing of Palestinian civilians. The officer, Maj. Harrison Mann, announced his resignation and explained his reasons for leaving the service in a post on the social media site LinkedIn on Monday. According to his biography on the site, he has specialized in the Middle East and Africa for about half of his 13-year career and previously served at the U.S. Embassy in Tunis. The policy that has never been far from my mind for the past six months is the nearly unqualified support for the government of Israel, which has enabled and empowered the killing and starvation of tens of thousands of innocent Palestinians, Major Mann wrote in the post, which noted that he had emailed his comments to co-workers on April 16. This unconditional support also encourages reckless escalation that risks wider war. Crime has become a big topic in the California State Legislature, reflecting the growing frustration many residents have expressed over crime rates. Several Democratic lawmakers are championing legislation intended to crack down on crime, including bills to toughen penalties for retail theft and to prosecute more people who break into cars. There will probably be a measure on the ballot in November asking voters whether to impose harsher penalties for shoplifters and fentanyl dealers. Another group of Democrats is taking a different approach. Saying that the state should not rely on mass incarceration as a solution, progressive lawmakers introduced a 29-bill package last month that focuses on crime prevention, rehabilitation and services for offenders. One of those bills, Senate Bill 1446, has attracted a lot of attention recently for the way it might change an everyday activity grocery shopping. A jury was being chosen for a murder trial nearly three decades ago in California. The state was seeking a death sentence for Ernest Dykes, who had been charged with killing a 9-year-old boy during a robbery in Oakland. Weighing who should be struck from the jury pool and who should be kept, a prosecutor made notes about a prospective juror: I liked him better than any other Jew but no way. Other notes about prospective jurors bore evidence of similar prejudice: Banker. Jew? read one. Jew? Yes, read another. The notes just handwritten scribbles were discovered recently in an internal case file from the 1990s when Mr. Dykes was convicted of murder and sent to death row. A federal judge who is overseeing settlement talks as part of an appeal by Mr. Dykes told the Alameda County District Attorneys office to conduct a top-to-bottom search for any additional documents, and that search turned up the notes, which are now in the hands of the judge. As the police arrested student protesters at Dartmouth College, a 65-year-old professor ended up on the ground. Two student journalists, reporting that night, ended up arrested themselves. And a bystander, visiting his father who lives near Dartmouth College, found himself with a fractured shoulder. That was some of the collateral damage after the president of Dartmouth College, Sian Leah Beilock, took unusually swift action and authorized the police action on May 1 to clear an encampment that students had, just two hours earlier, pitched on the college green. Dr. Beilock, a cognitive scientist who studies why people choke under pressure, has been facing a campus uproar ever since. President Biden has argued for years that he is the politician to restore normalcy to American politics. But for almost as long, a subset of American voters, frustrated by everything from the economy to immigration policy, have argued that they do not want his version of it. The latest New York Times/Philadelphia Inquirer/Siena College poll in battleground states, released on Monday, showed that most voters still wanted to bring politics in Washington back to normal. But nearly 70 percent of voters said the countrys political and economic systems needed major changes or to be completely torn down. And few believed that Mr. Biden would make even minor changes that would be good for the country. The view from the Biden campaign is this: There is still time to sell Mr. Bidens economic and policy accomplishments, and officials are working to connect with the voters who will decide the election. There is still time to draw a character contrast between Mr. Biden and his predecessor and challenger, Donald J. Trump. Democratic candidates for the Senate in Arizona, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin lead their Republican rivals and are running well ahead of President Biden in key states where he continues to struggle, according to polls by The New York Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer and Siena College. The battleground surveys of registered voters indicate that the presidents difficulties against former President Donald J. Trump may not be enough to sink other Democrats, especially Senate incumbents who are facing less-well-known Republicans. Ticket-splitters are not abundant about 10 percent of Trump voters back the Democratic candidate for Senate in the four states, while about 5 percent of Biden supporters back the Republican. But those voters are enough to give Democrats a chance at holding the Senate, where they currently hold a one-seat majority. To maintain control, the Democrats would have to sweep every competitive Senate seat and win the White House. Over the years, Representative Henry Cuellar often harked back to the small house in Laredo, Texas. It was there that his parents, one-time migrant workers who spoke no English, raised him and his seven siblings to value hard work and beware the dangers of debt. The references in speeches, campaign advertisements and interviews were intended to forge affinity with the largely Hispanic residents of his hometown. They demonstrated that I am one of you, as his campaign website put it in 2004, when he first won election to Congress as a Democrat representing Laredo, one of the poorest cities in the country. By 2013, those hardscrabble beginnings seemed a distant memory. Mr. Cuellar had become the hub of a bustling small enterprise that blurred the lines between his political operation, his businesses and his family, affording him trappings of affluence even as he sometimes strained to make ends meet. He had recently purchased a penthouse apartment in Washingtons bustling Navy Yard neighborhood near Nationals Park and a pair of properties in Laredo, including a 6,000-square-foot house with a pool and cabana in a gated community on a street called Estate Drive. He took on an increasing amount of debt, and his net worth declined. In February 2021, weeks after Jan. 6, Larry Hogan, who was then the Republican governor of Maryland and a frequent critic of Donald Trump, told Katie Couric that a battle for the soul of their party was underway and that Trumps influence was really, finally, diminishing. He realizes that declaration was a little premature. I guess Im not as smart as I thought I was, Hogan told me this morning. Hogan knows that his side of the party what he calls the Republican wing of the Republican Party lost that battle. He knows that many of his fellow Never Trumpers have lost re-election, decided to retire or changed their tune. And he is running for Senate anyway, gearing up for a fierce battle that will test whether there is any path forward for anti-Trump Republicans seeking federal office in 2024. I do feel a little bit like Im running toward the burning building, Hogan said. But, he added, you can either give up and walk away or you can continue to try to fight to get things back to the place you want it to be. A Missouri man who crashed a box truck carrying Nazi paraphernalia into White House security barriers last year agreed to plead guilty on Monday to damaging property. The man, Sai Varshith Kandula, faces up to 10 years in prison on the charge. Prosecutors say Mr. Kandula, who was 19 at the time of the incident, caused more than $4,300 in damage to National Park Service property. Mr. Kandula, a lawful permanent resident from India, said he had been plotting the attack for weeks with the goal of seizing political power once he got into the White House and replacing the government with a Nazi-inspired dictatorship. He said he would be the dictator, and he told officers that he would kill the president if thats what I have to do, and would hurt anyone that would stand in the way. On May 22, 2023, Mr. Kandula flew from St. Louis to Washington Dulles International Airport and rented a box truck. At about 9:30 p.m., he drove the truck into metal bollards near Lafayette Square, in front of the White House, sending nearby pedestrians running. Then he put the truck in reverse and slammed into the barriers a second time. If youre in the northern part of the Central United States and the skies look smoky, heres why: Minnesota and parts of Wisconsin were under an air quality alert on Monday because of wildfire smoke from Canada. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency issued the alert for the southern portion of the state, which was set to expire at 11 p.m. Central time on Monday. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources issued an air quality alert on Monday for northwestern Wisconsin that was set to last through the day. Zhang Zhan, thought to be the first person in China imprisoned for documenting the early days of the coronavirus pandemic in the country, was expected to be released on Monday, after serving a four-year sentence. But in a sign of how eager the Chinese government remains to suppress public discussion of the outbreak, it was unclear on Monday evening whether Ms. Zhang, 40, had actually been set free. The lawyer who represented Ms. Zhang during her trial, Zhang Keke (the two are not related), said he could not reach her mother all day. Reached by phone, officials at the Shanghai prison administration declined to comment. Even though she will have served her sentence, there are doubts regarding the Chinese regimes willingness to give her back her freedom, Reporters Without Borders, the international media watchdog group, said in a statement several days before her expected release. The group, which gave Ms. Zhang a press freedom award in 2021, noted that journalists released from imprisonment in China are often kept under surveillance. Ms. Zhang was an early symbol of the mistrust that many Chinese harbored toward the governments handling of the outset of the pandemic, and the hunger they had for unfiltered information. A former lawyer from Shanghai, she traveled in early 2020 to Wuhan, the city where the virus was first detected, as a self-styled citizen journalist. Finlands right-wing nationalist Finns Party has surged in recent years, gathered 20 percent of the vote last year and entered a governing coalition as the countrys second-biggest political force. But since the party came to power, a government minister has had to apologize for racist remarks, another was forced to resign after making Nazi references, and most recently, a lawmaker was expelled from the party after firing a gun outside a bar. Riikka Purra, the finance minister and party chair, said last week that the party had acted swiftly to address the most recent incident, involving the lawmaker, Timo Vornanen. However, Ms. Purra told the national broadcaster Yle, We are still, perhaps most of all, the kind of party that people join from outside politics. For better and for worse, our membership may be plagued by such problems, she said. The police said that a 54-year-old man whom Finns Party officials identified as Mr. Vornanen, a member of Parliament with the party pointed a gun at two people and fired a shot into the ground at about 4 a.m. on April 26 after a bar brawl in downtown Helsinki. Three men have been charged with assisting the Hong Kong intelligence service, the London Metropolitan Police said on Monday, following an investigation in which arrests and searches were carried out across England. The three people charged under Britains National Security Act were identified as Chi Leung (Peter) Wai, 38, of Staines-upon-Thames; Matthew Trickett, 37, of Maidenhead, and Chung Biu Yuen, 63, of Hackney, East London. The foreign intelligence service to which the above charges relate is that of Hong Kong, the police said in a statement. The three men appeared at Westminster Magistrates Court on Monday. As court proceedings are now active, English reporting restrictions apply, limiting what can be reported about the case. In a sandy clearing near Israels border with Gaza, soldiers, civilians and tourists wandered silently through a dense thicket of poles. Affixed to the poles were portraits of the hundreds of people who came there to dance late one night last October and never made it home. As Israelis observed Memorial Day, the countrys annual commemoration for fallen soldiers and victims of terrorist attacks, many were drawn to the site of the Tribe of Nova music festival, a rave dedicated to peace and love that was interrupted around sunrise on Oct. 7 by a barrage of rockets from Gaza, signaling the start of the Hamas-led cross-border assault. In the horror that followed, at least 360 festivalgoers were slain nearly a third of the roughly 1,200 people killed in southern Israel that day, according to the Israeli authorities. Gunmen who surged across the border surrounded the Nova site, ambushed people as they tried to escape in their cars and hunted them down in bomb shelters along the road or as they fled across furrowed fields. With Israels most sacrosanct day of remembrance as a backdrop, peace activists in Israel broadcast their annual Joint Israeli-Palestinian Memorial Day Ceremony on Sunday night, with parallel events in London, New York and Los Angeles. The ceremony, organized by Combatants for Peace and the Parents Circle Families Forum, two peace-building organizations, is unusual in that it tries to recognize not only Israeli grief, but also the toll of Palestinian suffering over the decades. This years event was especially poignant given that it was the first since the deadly Hamas-led attack on Israel on Oct. 7 and comes amid the devastation caused by the war in Gaza. This year the ceremony, which has been held annually since 2006, was prerecorded to avoid the possibility of disruption by protesters. In previous years it attracted sharp criticism and a legal challenge in Israel, and on Sunday organizers said just before the ceremony was set to be broadcast that its website had been hacked. As a result, the organizers said it was not possible to watch it on YouTube as planned, and viewers instead watched on Facebook. The ceremony, an annual focus for peace activists in Israel, featured speeches, songs, a poem about peace and a video that showed children in Israel and the Israeli-occupied West Bank talking about the effect of war. One child wished for everyone who died to come back to life. Palestinians in the West Bank did not participate in person, given that Israel stopped allowing many Palestinians to work in Israel after the Oct. 7 attacks led by Hamas, which the Israeli authorities say killed around 1,200 people. There were also no direct contributions by speakers in Gaza. President Bidens national security adviser said on Monday that while the United States was committed to Israels defense, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus government had still failed to provide the White House with a plan for moving nearly a million Gazans safely out of Rafah before any invasion of the city. In a lengthy presentation to reporters, the adviser, Jake Sullivan, also said Israel had yet to connect their military operations to a political plan for the future governance of the Palestinian territory. Mr. Sullivan, who has been at the center of the administrations response to the Oct. 7 terrorist attack on Israel and its aftermath, described in detail the administrations objectives in intervening to achieve a cease-fire and a return of hostages, including Americans, still in the hands of Hamas. But beneath repeated expressions of support for Israel, he made clear Mr. Bidens frustration in dealings with Mr. Netanyahu, after a series of heated conversations between the two men. Mr. Sullivan insisted that the only weapons Mr. Biden was withholding from the Israelis were 2,000-pound bombs, for fear that the U.S. munitions, which can level whole city blocks, would be employed by Israel in its effort to rout Hamas leaders from their tunnel network, deep under the city. Ukraines military is confronting a critical situation in the countrys northeast, facing troop shortages as it tries to repel a Russian offensive that has been advancing for several days, a top Ukrainian general said on Monday. Russian troops surged across the border last week to open a new line of attack near Kharkiv, Ukraines second-largest city after Kyiv, capturing at least nine settlements and villages and forcing thousands of civilians to flee. The situation is on the edge, Gen. Kyrylo Budanov, the head of Ukraines military intelligence agency, said in a video call from a bunker in Kharkiv. Every hour this situation moves toward critical. His bleak assessment echoed those of other Ukrainian officers in recent days, that the countrys military prospects were dimming. In addition to being outnumbered, the Ukrainians face critical shortages of weapons, especially artillery ammunition, and $60.8 billion worth of arms from the United States approved three weeks ago after months of congressional gridlock has barely begun to arrive. View toplines for the full set of polls and cross-tabs for: all registered voters | likely electorate | Arizona | Georgia | Michigan | Nevada | Pennsylvania | Wisconsin Party ID is self-identified party, without leaners; independents include only self-identified independents. Party registration is the respondents party as listed on the voter file. Gender is self-reported if the respondent completed the full questionnaire; otherwise, it is based on the interviewers determination. If neither is available, it is as reported on the voter file. Neighborhood type is a New York Times classification based on each voters address. Voters within a metropolitan areas central city are classified as living in a city. Voters living in a metropolitan area but outside the central city are considered suburban if they live in a census-designated urban area. All other voters those living in nonmetropolitan areas and those living in non-urbanized parts of metropolitan areas outside the central city are classified as living in small towns or rural areas. Party ID is self-identified party, without leaners; independents include only self-identified independents. Party registration is the respondents party as listed on the voter file. Gender is self-reported if the respondent completed the full questionnaire; otherwise, it is based on the interviewers determination. If neither is available, it is as reported on the voter file. Neighborhood type is a New York Times classification based on each voters address. Voters within a metropolitan areas central city are classified as living in a city. Voters living in a metropolitan area but outside the central city are considered suburban if they live in a census-designated urban area. All other voters those living in nonmetropolitan areas and those living in non-urbanized parts of metropolitan areas outside the central city are classified as living in small towns or rural areas. Would you be open to commenting on the issues in this survey and be interested in being contacted by a reporter? (If independent, another party or not sure) And as of today, do you lean more to: [READ LIST] (Without combination) (If Protestant, Christian, Mormon, Greek/Russian Orthodox or some other religion) Do you consider yourself an evangelical or born-again Christian? (If Protestant, Christian, Mormon, Greek/Russian Orthodox or some other religion) Do you consider yourself an evangelical or born-again Christian? Do you consider yourself Catholic, Protestant, Mormon, Jewish, Muslim, some other religion, or do you have no religious affiliation? Which of the following general income categories is your total household income before taxes? [IF NEEDED: I just want to remind you that you are completely anonymous. We only use this information in aggregate form to ensure we have a representative group of people.] And just a few more questions for demographic purposes... Do you consider yourself politically liberal, moderate or conservative? [FOLLOW UP: (If liberal or conservative) Is that very or somewhat?] Yes, you and another member of your household are members Are you, or is any member of your household, a member of a labor union? [IF YES: Is that you, another household member, or both you and another household member?] Have you gotten any doses of a Covid-19 vaccine, including boosters? IF YES: Were you vaccinated just once or have you gotten a Covid-19 vaccine or booster multiple times? Have you yourself ever invested in, traded or used a cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin or Ether [ee-ther]? More than none but less than 1 hour (Without combination) (If social media user) How often, if ever, do you use TikTok? [READ LIST] (If social media user) How often, if ever, do you use TikTok? [READ LIST] How often, if ever, do you use social media, such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok or others? [READ LIST] [VOL] National print or online news organizations, like The New York Times or The Wall Street Journal What single news source do you turn to most often? This could include a social media site or a news site. [IF NEEDED: If you had to pick just one.] In the dispute between Israel and the Palestinians [pah-luh-stin-ians], which side do you sympathize with more: Israel or the Palestinians [pah-luh-stin-ians]? (Split B) Thinking about Donald Trumps trial in New York related to hush money payments, do you think he will be able to get a fair and impartial trial? (Split B) Thinking about the trial of Donald Trump in New York related to hush money payments made to the porn star Stormy Daniels, do you think that it is likely or unlikely that he will be convicted? FOLLOW UP: Is that very or somewhat? (Split B) How much attention would you say you are paying to news about the legal cases against Donald Trump? [READ LIST] Im going to describe two kinds of presidential candidates. Regardless of who you support, tell me which kind of candidate youd prefer as president: [READ LIST] Which comes closer to your view, even if neither is exactly right? [READ LIST] (Without combination) (If Biden major/minor change or tear down the system) Do you think the changes that Joe Biden would make would be good for the country or bad for the country, or neither good nor bad? IF GOOD/BAD: Is that very or somewhat? (If Biden major/minor change or tear down the system) Do you think the changes that Joe Biden would make would be good for the country or bad for the country, or neither good nor bad? IF GOOD/BAD: Is that very or somewhat? (Without combination) (If Trump major/minor change or tear down the system) Do you think the changes that Donald Trump would make would be good for the country or bad for the country, or neither good nor bad? IF GOOD/BAD: Is that very or somewhat? (If Trump major/minor change or tear down the system) Do you think the changes that Donald Trump would make would be good for the country or bad for the country, or neither good nor bad? IF GOOD/BAD: Is that very or somewhat? If Joe Biden won the election, do you think nothing would change, there would be minor changes to how things work, there would be major changes to how things work, or he would tear down the system completely? If Donald Trump won the election, do you think nothing would change, there would be minor changes to how things work, there would be major changes to how things work, or he would tear down the system completely? The system needs to be torn down entirely Which comes closest to your view about the political and economic system in America, even if none are exactly right? [READ LIST] Who do you think is most responsible for the Supreme Court ending the constitutional right to an abortion: Joe Biden or Donald Trump? FOLLOW UP: Does he have a lot of responsibility or some responsibility? (If Pennsylvania voter) How confident are you that your community will be relatively safe in the future? [READ LIST] (If Pennsylvania voter) How would you describe the problem of crime in your local area? [READ LIST] (If Pennsylvania voter) How would you describe the problem of crime in Pennsylvania? [READ LIST] (If Pennsylvania voter) Crime [IF NEEDED: Regardless of how you might vote, tell me whether you trust Joe Biden or Donald Trump to do a better job on...] (Split A) Abortion [IF NEEDED: Regardless of how you might vote, tell me whether you trust Joe Biden or Donald Trump to do a better job on...] (Split A) The Israeli-Palestinian [pah-luh-stin-ian] conflict [IF NEEDED: Regardless of how you might vote, tell me whether you trust Joe Biden or Donald Trump to do a better job on...] (Split A) The economy [IF NEEDED: Regardless of how you might vote, tell me whether you trust Joe Biden or Donald Trump to do a better job on...] Regardless of how you might vote, tell me whether you trust Joe Biden or Donald Trump to do a better job on each of the following: Do you think abortion should be always legal, mostly legal, mostly illegal or always illegal? What one issue is most important in deciding your vote this November? [IF NEEDED: If you had to pick just one.] (If Pennsylvania voter) John Fetterman [FEH-ter-min] [IF NEEDED: Do you have a very favorable, somewhat favorable, somewhat unfavorable or very unfavorable opinion of them?] (If Pennsylvania voter) David McCormick [IF NEEDED: Do you have a very favorable, somewhat favorable, somewhat unfavorable or very unfavorable opinion of them?] (If Pennsylvania voter) Bob Casey [IF NEEDED: Do you have a very favorable, somewhat favorable, somewhat unfavorable or very unfavorable opinion of them?] Joe Rogan [roh-gun], the podcast host [IF NEEDED: Do you have a very favorable, somewhat favorable, somewhat unfavorable or very unfavorable opinion of them?] Robert F. Kennedy Jr. [IF NEEDED: Do you have a very favorable, somewhat favorable, somewhat unfavorable or very unfavorable opinion of them?] Joe Biden [IF NEEDED: Do you have a very favorable, somewhat favorable, somewhat unfavorable or very unfavorable opinion of them?] Donald Trump [IF NEEDED: Do you have a very favorable, somewhat favorable, somewhat unfavorable or very unfavorable opinion of them?] Tell me whether you have a very favorable, somewhat favorable, somewhat unfavorable or very unfavorable opinion of each of the following. (If Pennsylvania voter) Do you approve or disapprove of the way Josh Shapiro is handling his job as governor? FOLLOW UP: Is that strongly or somewhat? Do you approve or disapprove of the way Joe Biden is handling his job as president? FOLLOW UP: Is that strongly or somewhat? How often do you pay attention to what's going on in government and politics? [READ LIST] In general, how satisfied are you with your choice of candidates in this falls presidential election? [READ LIST] (If supporting Kennedy in presidential race) Are you mostly voting FOR Robert F. Kennedy Jr. or AGAINST the other candidates in the race? (If candidate selected in presidential race, including third-party candidates) What is the MAIN reason you are planning to vote for [CANDIDATE SELECTED]? (Without combination) (If not supporting Trump) Would you say theres some chance you will support Donald Trump or not really any chance? (If not supporting Trump) Would you say theres some chance you will support Donald Trump or not really any chance? (Without combination) (If not supporting Biden) Would you say theres some chance you will support Joe Biden or not really any chance? (If not supporting Biden) Would you say theres some chance you will support Joe Biden or not really any chance? (Excluding I did not vote) Who did you vote for in the 2020 presidential election between Donald Trump and Joe Biden, or did you not vote? Who did you vote for in the 2020 presidential election between Donald Trump and Joe Biden, or did you not vote? Do you consider yourself a Democrat, a Republican, an independent or a member of another party? Note: Responses to questions after this point are reported only for respondents who completed the entire questionnaire. Would you consider yourself: [READ LIST] [IF biracial or multiracial, ask: What races would that be?] What is the highest educational level that you have completed? [READ LIST] (If Wisconsin voter) If this years general election for U.S. Senate were held today, which candidate would you be more likely to vote for? [READ LIST] [IF NEEDED: If you had to decide today, are you leaning toward one candidate?] (If Pennsylvania voter) If this years general election for U.S. Senate were held today, which candidate would you be more likely to vote for? [READ LIST] [IF NEEDED: If you had to decide today, are you leaning toward one candidate?] (If Nevada voter) If this years general election for U.S. Senate were held today, which candidate would you be more likely to vote for? [READ LIST] [IF NEEDED: If you had to decide today, are you leaning toward one candidate?] (If Arizona voter) If this years general election for U.S. Senate were held today, which candidate would you be more likely to vote for? [READ LIST] [IF NEEDED: If you had to decide today, are you leaning toward one candidate?] (Combines Senate races in Arizona, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin) If this years general election for U.S. Senate were held today, which candidate would you be more likely to vote for? (Without combination) (If not supporting Trump or Biden) If you had to decide between the two today, would you lean more toward: (Head to head, combines leaners) If you had to decide between the two today, would you lean more toward: (If candidate selected) Are you definitely or probably going to vote for [CANDIDATE SELECTED IN PREVIOUS QUESTION]? [VOL] Not going to vote/wouldn't vote if those were the choices If the 2024 presidential election were held today, who would you vote for if the candidates were: [READ LIST] [IF NEEDED: If you had to decide today, are you leaning toward one candidate?] Thinking ahead to the presidential general election, are you almost certain that you will vote, very likely to vote, somewhat likely to vote, not very likely to vote or not at all likely to vote? How satisfied are you with the way things are going in your life these days? [READ LIST] If you want to read more about how and why we conduct our polls, you can see answers to frequently asked questions and submit your own questions here . When the states are joined together, the margin of sampling error among registered voters is plus or minus 1.8 percentage points. Each state poll has a margin of error ranging from plus or minus 3.6 points in Pennsylvania to plus or minus 4.6 points in Georgia. In theory, this means that the results should reflect the views of the overall population most of the time, though many other challenges create additional sources of error. When computing the difference between two values such as a candidates lead in a race the margin of error is twice as large. To further ensure that the results reflect the entire voting population, not just those willing to take a poll, we give more weight to respondents from demographic groups underrepresented among survey respondents, like people without a college degree. You can see more information about the characteristics of our respondents and the weighted sample at the bottom of the page, under Composition of the Sample. Voters are selected for the survey from a list of registered voters. The list contains information on the demographic characteristics of every registered voter, allowing us to make sure we reach the right number of voters of each party, race and region. For this set of polls, we placed nearly 500,000 calls to about 410,000 voters. Our polls are conducted by telephone, using live interviewers, in both English and Spanish. Nearly 95 percent of respondents were contacted on a cellphone for this poll. Here are the key things to know about this set of polls from The New York Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer and Siena College: Methodology The New York Times/Philadelphia Inquirer/Siena College poll in Pennsylvania and the Times/Siena polls in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan and Nevada were conducted in English and Spanish on cellular and landline telephones from April 28 to May 9, 2024. In all, 4,097 registered voters were interviewed. When all states are joined together, the margin of sampling error is plus or minus 1.8 percentage points for all registered voters and plus or minus 1.9 percentage points for the likely electorate. The margin of sampling error for each state poll is plus or minus 3.6 percentage points in Pennsylvania, plus or minus 4.2 points in Arizona, plus or minus 4.5 points in Michigan, Nevada and Wisconsin, and plus or minus 4.6 percentage points in Georgia. The Pennsylvania poll was funded by a grant from the Lenfest Institute for Journalism. The poll, which was designed and conducted independently from the institute, includes a deep look at voters in the Philadelphia suburbs using a statistical technique called an oversample. The results are weighted so that in the end, the poll properly reflects the attributes of the entire state and is not biased toward those voters. Sample The survey is a response-rate-adjusted stratified sample of registered voters on the L2 voter file. The sample was selected by The New York Times in multiple steps to account for the oversample of the Philadelphia suburbs, differential telephone coverage, nonresponse and significant variation in the productivity of telephone numbers by state. The L2 voter file for each state was stratified by statehouse district, party, race, gender, marital status, household size, turnout history, age and homeownership. The proportion of registrants with a telephone number and the mean expected response rate, based on prior Times/Siena polls, were calculated for each stratum. The initial selection weight was equal to the reciprocal of a stratums mean telephone coverage and modeled response rate. For respondents with multiple telephone numbers on the L2 file, the number with the highest modeled response rate was selected. Fielding The samples for each state were stratified by party, race and region and fielded by the Siena College Research Institute, with additional field work by ReconMR, the Public Opinion Research Lab at the University of North Florida, the Institute for Policy and Opinion Research at Roanoke College, and the Center for Public Opinion and Policy Research at Winthrop University in South Carolina. Interviewers asked for the person named on the voter file and ended the interview if the intended respondent was not available. Overall, 94 percent of respondents were reached on a cellular telephone. The instrument was translated into Spanish by ReconMR, and Spanish-speaking interviewers were assigned to the modeled Hispanic sample. Bilingual interviewers began the interview in English and were instructed to follow the lead of the respondent in determining whether to conduct the survey in English or Spanish. Monolingual Spanish-speaking respondents who were initially contacted by English-speaking interviewers were recontacted by Spanish-speaking interviewers. Overall, 19 percent of interviews among self-reported Hispanics were conducted in Spanish, including 21 percent in Nevada and 17 percent in Arizona. An interview was determined to be complete for the purposes of inclusion in the ballot test questions if the respondent did not drop out of the survey by the end of the two self-reported variables used in weighting age and education and answered at least one of the age, education, race or presidential election ballot test questions. Weighting registered voters The survey was weighted by The Times using the R survey package in multiple steps. First, the samples were adjusted for unequal probability of selection by stratum. Second, the five state samples and the samples of the the Philadelphia suburbs and the rest of Pennsylvania were weighted separately to match voter-file-based parameters for the characteristics of registered voters by state. The following targets were used: Party (party registration if available, else classification based on a model of vote choice in prior Times/Siena polls) by modeled L2 race (except Wisconsin) Age by gender (self-reported age, or voter file age if the respondent refuses) Race or ethnicity (L2 model) Education (four categories of self-reported education, weighted to match NYT-based targets derived from Times/Siena polls, census data and the L2 voter file) White/nonwhite by education (L2 model of race by self-reported education, weighted to match NYT-based targets derived from Times/Siena polls, census data and the L2 voter file) Marital status (L2 model) Homeownership (L2 model) State regions (NYT classifications by county or city) Turnout history (NYT classifications based on L2 data) Vote method in the 2020 elections (NYT classifications based on L2 data) History of voting in the 2020 presidential primary (Pennsylvania and Wisconsin only, NYT classifications based on L2 data) Census block group density (Arizona only, based on American Community Survey five-year census block-group data) Census tract educational attainment In Pennsylvania, the samples from the Philadelphia suburbs and the rest of the state were combined and adjusted to account for the oversample of the Philadelphia suburbs. Finally, the six state samples were balanced to each represent one-sixth of the sum of the weights. The sample of respondents who completed all questions in the survey was weighted identically, as well as to the result for the general election horse race question (including leaners) on the full sample. Weighting likely electorate The survey was weighted by The Times using the R survey package in multiple steps. First, the samples were adjusted for unequal probability of selection by stratum. Second, the first-stage weight was adjusted to account for the probability that a registrant would vote in the 2024 election, based on a model of turnout in the 2020 election. Third, the five state samples and the samples of the Philadelphia suburbs and the rest of Pennsylvania were weighted separately to match targets for the composition of the likely electorate. The targets for the composition of the likely electorate were derived by aggregating the individual-level turnout estimates described in the previous step for registrants on the L2 voter file. The categories used in weighting were the same as those previously mentioned for registered voters. In Pennsylvania, the samples from the Philadelphia suburbs and the rest of the state were combined and adjusted to account for the oversample of the Philadelphia suburbs. Fourth, the initial likely electorate weight was adjusted to incorporate self-reported vote intention. The final probability that a registrant would vote in the 2024 election was four-fifths based on their ex ante modeled turnout score and one-fifth based on their self-reported intention, based on prior Times/Siena polls, including a penalty to account for the tendency of survey respondents to turn out at higher rates than nonrespondents. The final likely electorate weight was equal to the modeled electorate rake weight, multiplied by the final turnout probability and divided by the ex ante modeled turnout probability. Finally, the six state samples were balanced to each represent one-sixth of the sum of the weights. The sample of respondents who completed all questions in the survey was weighted identically, as well as to the result for the general election horse race question (including leaners) on the full sample. The margin of error accounts for the surveys design effect, a measure of the loss of statistical power due to survey design and weighting. The design effect for the full sample is 1.33 for registered voters and 1.5 for the likely electorate. The design effect for the sample of completed interviews is 1.38 for registered voters and 1.53 for the likely electorate. Historically, The Times/Siena Polls error at the 95th percentile has been plus or minus 5.1 percentage points in surveys taken over the final three weeks before an election. Real-world error includes sources of error beyond sampling error, such as nonresponse bias, coverage error, late shifts among undecided voters and error in estimating the composition of the electorate. Facing an Endless Barrage, Ukraines Air Defenses Are Withering This is what a year of Russian missile strikes on Ukraine looks like. Ukrainian air defenses used to intercept most missiles, but in recent months, more and more have made it through. April 2023 Intercepted Russian missile Not intercepted May June July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. 2024 Feb. March April The data, from a New York Times analysis of daily Ukrainian military reports, shows a major shift: Ukraine is increasingly failing to stop Russian missiles, crippling its ability to protect major infrastructure and plunging cities into darkness. Russian air assaults have struck critical Ukrainian weapons factories and railways used to supply the front. They have also targeted Ukrainian troops on the front line. Ukraine has been making desperate pleas for more air defenses from its Western allies, saying it is running out of critical supplies. But that is only part of the problem. Russia has also changed its tactics, firing larger barrages that overwhelm Ukrainian air defenses and faster missiles that are harder to shoot down. Some attacks appear intended to make life difficult for civilians by striking urban centers, or damaging power plants and cutting off electricity to tens of thousands of residents, as was the case last week. New Western aid will help. After prolonged political wrangling, the United States last month approved a $60 billion aid package, and more air-defense missiles have already been sent as part of the package. But it could be months before enough weapons arrive to significantly bolster Ukrainian air defenses. And some problems, like Russias use of more advanced missiles, are likely to remain even after the aid is delivered. The Times analyzed hundreds of statements released by the Ukrainian Air Force over the past year that detailed the number and types of missiles fired by Russia and intercepted by Ukraine over that period. While the data cannot be independently verified, experts who study the war say it is broadly reliable. Share of Russian missiles Number of Russian missiles Intercepted Not intercepted 0% 50% 100% 0 50 100 150 200 250 April 2023 May June July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. 2024 Feb. March April Ukraine says it has recently faced hundreds of Russian missiles a month, and an increasing number have slipped through its air defenses. While Kyiv reported intercepting more than 80 percent of the missiles last May, that rate has dropped to less than half. Much of Ukraines success last May, during another period of intense Russian missile barrages, was attributable to newly augmented defenses: It had just received its first Patriot system. Considered one of the United States best air-defense weapons, the Patriot includes a powerful radar system and mobile launchers that fire missiles at incoming projectiles. Last May, Ukraine said it used the system to shoot down a Russian hypersonic Kinzhal missile, one of the most sophisticated conventional weapons in the Kremlin arsenal. The arrival of the Patriot system and other Western weapons raised hopes that Ukrainian cities would now be better protected. Its allies have so far provided Ukraine with at least three Patriot systems and at least 15 other air-defense systems. But this winter, when Russia once again ramped up its missile attacks, Ukraine was at a loss to stop them. Russia had improved its tactics, firing larger and more complex barrages, including cruise, ballistic and hypersonic missiles. To confuse and overwhelm Ukrainian defenses, Russia often starts by launching attack drones, followed by waves of missiles fired from different locations. In particular, Russia has increased its use of weapons that Ukraine has long struggled to intercept, such as the Iskander-M ballistic missile and the Kh-22 missile. Iskander-M Kh-22 S-300/S-400 A short-range ballistic missile, it evades air defenses by releasing decoys that produce radio signals to spoof enemy radars and contains a heat source to attract missiles. Originally an anti-ship weapon, it has been repurposed for land attacks. It travels at several times the speed of sound, complicating the task of air defenses. Russia has increasingly used these antiaircraft missiles for land attacks. It often fires them at close targets, leaving little to no time to shoot them down. Intercepted Not intercepted 60 40 20 April 2023 July Oct. Jan. 2024 April April 2023 July Oct. Jan. 2024 April April 2023 July Oct. Jan. 2024 April S-300/S-400 Russia has increasingly used these antiaircraft missiles for land attacks. It often fires them at close targets, leaving little to no time to shoot them down. Intercepted Not intercepted 60 40 20 April 2023 July Oct. Jan. 2024 April Kh-22 Originally an anti-ship weapon, it has been repurposed for land attacks. It travels at several times the speed of sound, complicating the task of air defenses. 20 April 2023 July Oct. Jan. 2024 April Iskander-M A short-range ballistic missile, it evades air defenses by releasing decoys that produce radio signals to spoof enemy radars and contains a heat source to attract missiles. 20 April 2023 July Oct. Jan. 2024 April S-300/S-400 Russia has increasingly used these antiaircraft missiles for land attacks. It often fires them at close targets, leaving little to no time to shoot them down. Intercepted Not intercepted 60 40 20 April 2023 July Oct. Jan. 2024 April Kh-22 Originally an anti-ship weapon, it has been repurposed for land attacks. It travels at several times the speed of sound, complicating the task of air defenses. 20 April 2023 July Oct. Jan. 2024 April Iskander-M A short-range ballistic missile, it evades air defenses by releasing decoys that produce radio signals to spoof enemy radars and contains a heat source to attract missiles. 20 April 2023 July Oct. Jan. 2024 April S-300/S-400 Russia has increasingly used these antiaircraft missiles for land attacks. It often fires them at close targets, leaving little to no time to shoot them down. Intercepted Not intercepted 60 40 20 April 2023 July Oct. Jan. 2024 April Kh-22 Originally an anti-ship weapon, it has been repurposed for land attacks. It travels at several times the speed of sound, complicating the task of air defenses. 20 April 2023 July Oct. Jan. 2024 April Iskander-M A short-range ballistic missile, it evades air defenses by releasing decoys that produce radio signals to spoof enemy radars and contains a heat source to attract missiles. 20 April 2023 July Oct. Jan. 2024 April But Ukrainian commanders say there is a more basic reason for Kyivs plummeting interception rates: growing shortages of ammunition. Last month, Russia destroyed the biggest power plant in the Kyiv region, an area that is one of the best protected in Ukraine, thanks to the presence of Patriot batteries. Why? Because we had zero missiles, President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine said in an interview with PBS NewsHour. We ran out of all missiles. Russia, by contrast, fired 11 missiles at the power plant, he said. Ukrainian air defenses downed the first seven but had no choice but to let the next four pass, he said. That is the sort of decision a Ukraine short on munitions has to make increasingly these days, even if it may mean destruction and death for its citizens, military experts say. Its the new rules of engagement, said Tom Karako, the director of the Missile Defense Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. Sometimes, you have to let things go. And it may be that you have to protect your military forces over your population, for instance. Maj. Ilya Yevlash, a Ukrainian Air force spokesman, said that Russia had so many S-300 missiles that it was worthless to try to intercept them all. We cannot afford to deplete our invaluable stockpile of air defense missiles, he said. If we try to shoot them down, we wont have enough Patriots. Shahed 131/136 These low-cost drones are designed to fly into a target and detonate on impact. Russia often launches them in swarms to overwhelm air defense systems. Intercepted Not intercepted 400 200 April 2023 July Oct. Jan. 2024 April Shahed 131/136 These low-cost drones are designed to fly into a target and detonate on impact. Russia often launches them in swarms to overwhelm air defense systems. Intercepted Not intercepted 400 200 April 2023 July Oct. Jan. 2024 April Shahed 131/136 These low-cost drones are designed to fly into a target and detonate on impact. Russia often launches them in swarms to overwhelm air defense systems. Intercepted Not intercepted 400 200 April 2023 July Oct. Jan. 2024 April Ukraine has been much more successful at intercepting attack drones. Data from the Ukrainian Air Force shows it has downed about 80 percent of them over the past year, almost all Shahed drones. That is because they are slower than missiles and can be shot down with less sophisticated weapons, like antiaircraft guns. But Ukraines rate of intercepting drones has declined as Russia has adapted its drone fleet, changing flight patterns, bolstering speeds and painting them black to evade detection. Konrad Muzyka, a military analyst with Rochan Consulting in Poland, said large and slow Russian reconnaissance drones had recently been able to operate behind Ukrainian lines around the cities of Dnipro and Zaporizhzhia. If you cant shoot them down, then obviously this raises a significant question about the Ukrainian ability to provide an air-defense umbrella, he said. Ukraines need to triage its air-defense systems leaves some cities far more exposed than others. And Russia has made the most of this situation in recent months, hitting cities and regions that do not enjoy the protection of Patriots like Kyiv. Since December, Russian forces have targeted, in particular, a large belt of land stretching from Kharkiv in the northeast to Odesa in the south. Ukraines western regions, which have been spared heavier bombardment for much of the war, have also been increasingly hit. Minimum number of days each region was targeted by Russian strikes None 12 34 56 78 9+ Kyiv was targeted more than any other region last May. April 2023 May June July August Kyiv Kharkiv Dnipro Odesa September October November December January 2024 The south was hardest hit in December. March April February Dnipropetrovsk was targeted on at least 15 days in February. April 2023 May Kyiv Kharkiv Dnipro Odesa Kyiv was targeted more than any other region last May. June July September August November October The south was hardest hit in December. December January 2024 March February Dnipropetrovsk was targeted on at least 16 days in February. April April 2023 May June Kyiv Kharkiv Dnipro Odesa Kyiv was targeted more than any other region last May. July August September October November December The south was hardest hit in December. January 2024 February March Dnipropetrovsk was targeted on at least 15 days in February. April April 2023 May Kyiv Kharkiv Dnipro Kyiv was targeted more than any other region last May. Odesa June July September August November October December January 2024 The south was hardest hit in December. March February Dnipropetrovsk was targeted on at least 16 days in February. April Note: Russian missile and drone strikes reported by the Ukrainian Air Force are shown. This does not include artillery shelling on the front line. With air defenses limited, Major Yevlash said, the Ukrainian Air Force uses them in non-standard ways. It moves them around the country to adapt to Moscows changing tactics and to reduce the chances of the weapons being spotted and destroyed by Russian forces. But that will not be enough to plug the holes in a country the size of Texas, said Justin Bronk, a senior research fellow for air power and technology at the Royal United Services Institute in London. Ukrainian commanders must constantly make extremely hard choices between defending critical national infrastructure, key military facilities, cities and troops on and close to the front lines, Mr. Bronk said. For one Ukrainian unit of drone hunters in the battered northeastern city of Kharkiv, the lack of defense systems has often left them watching helplessly as Russian missiles race overhead in the citys direction. There are missiles that our forces cant intercept with what we have, and they fly as they please, said Barber, 23, a unit member, using only his first name under military rules. We need Patriots for that. Muluwork Ambaw, a 26-year-old woman from Ethiopia, claims to have gone the last 16 years of her life without eating or drinking anything. Most people can hardly last a few hours without munching on something, but Muluwork Ambaw insists that she shunned food forever one day when she was only 10 years old, after her appetite vanished out of the blue. Apart from her complete lack of sustenance, Ambaw reportedly has a normal life, she is in good health and has plenty of energy to perform her daily tasks, which include cooking for others and running various errands. The young woman has undergone several medical tests in Ethiopia, but none could really confirm if she spoke the truth, although doctors at a hospital in Addis Ababa did confirm that there was no evidence of any food in her intestines at the time of the examination. Photo: YouTube/@drewbinsky Muluwork Ambaws case recently went viral after she was visited by Drew Binsky who heard her story while visiting Ethiopia and decided to meet her in person. His video quickly went viral, but this isnt the first time Ambaw makes news headlines. She first attracted attention in 2016, when rumors of a girl who could survive without food or water started spreading in her home country. Before long, journalists and TV reporters were converging on her small village to document her bizarre case. The 26-year-old woman says that she can still remember the last time food passed her lips. Her last meal was red lentils stew with injera, a typical Ethiopian dish, after which her appetite simply vanished. At first, she lied to her family that she had eaten, but she eventually had to tell them the truth. I used to live with my family, and they asked me to eat breakfast and go to school, Ambaw recalled. I said I had eaten but I was pretending. I had lost my appetite for water or for any food. The young Ethiopian woman claims that because she hasnt consumed any food or water in 16 years, she also hasnt had to use that toilet during that time. Apparently, the only time she needs to use the bathroom is when she bathes. In 2021, Ethiopian news blog Borkena announced that the countrys Prime Minister had learned of Ambaws claims and had arranged to have her tested by doctors in Dubai. In her recent interview with Drew Binsky, the 26-year-old claimed that doctors found nothing wrong with her, although she didnt mention if they kept her under observation to see if she could really survive without food and water. I have nothing to say. Its Gods work and I just accept that, Muluwork Ambaw said. Weve heard people claim to survive without solid food for decades, but Muluwork Ambaw is one of the few who claim not to need liquids either, which is really hard to believe. According to Guinness Records, the longest anyone has gone without food and water was 18 days, and that was a man who police arrested and then forgot about. This woman claims to have gone without any water for over 16 years. A homeless Michigan woman was found living in the rooftop sign of a Family Fare supermarket in Midland. She had been staying there for about a year without anyone noticing her. The 34-year-old unnamed woman was found living inside the business sign when contractors curious about an extension cord on the roof of the Family Fare supermarket in Midland decided to follow the wire. It led them inside the rooftop advertising sign where the clandestine guest had set up a cozy nest complete with flooring, a computer, and a coffee maker. Police officers were called, and the woman told them that she had a job elsewhere but had no home and had been living there for about a year. She was homeless, Officer Brennon Warren of the Midland Police Department said. Its a story that makes you scratch your head, just somebody living up in a sign. People would see her from time to time and then all of a sudden she would vanish, Warren added. No one really knew where she went but no one ever indicated or thought that she would be up on top of the roof. The woman didnt tell police how she discovered that the Family Fare supermarket sign was accessible via a door on the roof, or how she even made her way up there without people seeing her, considering that there was no ladder for anyone to climb. She was dubbed the Roof Ninja by police because of her discretion in entering and leaving the rooftop sign. In the time she spent living above the Family Fare supermarket, the woman managed to install some flooring and gain access to electricity via a rooftop electrical outlet. Police found a mini desk, a computer and printer setup, clothing, and other stuff youd expect to see in an average home. Upon discovering the womans living arrangements, they asked her to leave, and she conformed right after apologizing for any inconvenience. She reportedly declined to contact services for homeless individuals. No charges were filed against her. She apologized and continued on her way. Where she went from there, I dont know, Officer Warren said. Chris Brathwaite Chris Brathwaite, who was senior VP & chief communications officer at Tenneco, has moved to American Electric Power as VP & CCO. He had joined the automotive components giant in 2018, which was prior to Apollo Funds taking the company private in a $7B deal in 2022. Earlier, Brathwaite was VP-corporate communications at Sears Holding, media relations director at United Airlines, and PR staffer at State Farm Insurance. At AEP, he assumes policymaking, internal/external communications, reputation management, social media, branding and digital outreach duties. Brathwaite reports to Phil Ulrich, executive VP & chief human resources officer. He said Brathwaites expertise in several industries will help AEP connect effectively with customers, employees and other key stakeholders. Based in Columbus, AEP has more than 17K employees and serves 5.6M customers in 11 states. A man who bit off part of a restaurateur's ear after he was told the premises was not yet open has been given 240 hours of community service in lieu of a three year sentence. Petru Budai (43) of Finnslawn, Lucan, Co Dublin pleaded guilty to one count of assault causing harm to the man at Whitehall Terrace, Swords on October 28, 2021. He has no previous convictions. The court heard that on the day in question, the injured party was preparing to open the restaurant and his daughter and nephew were carrying out a deep clean when Budai came to the restaurant door, along with two other men. Budai told the restaurateur that he wanted something to eat and drink. He was clearly intoxicated, the court heard. When he was told the restaurant was not yet open, Budai wrapped his hands around the injured party and bit his ear, saying something that sounded like: I eat you, I eat you, the court heard. Others came to the man's assistance and he was taken to hospital, the court heard. The part of his ear that had been bitten off was recovered, but could not be re-attached. Sentencing Budai, Judge Martina Baxter said it was a devastating attack, which must have been traumatising for the injured party. She noted it was an attack carried out on a business owner who was sober and trying to tell a member of the public that his business was not open. She said there were young people present at the time of the attack. Judge Baxter said Budai was clearly out of control on the day in question as a result of his alcohol intoxication. She took into account a number of mitigating factors in the case, including that Budai is now receiving alcohol addiction treatment, has no previous convictions and has expressed genuine remorse for his actions. A letter of apology was written to the victim and Budai had a sum of 5,000 in court as a token of his remorse. Judge Baxter ordered Budai to serve 240 hours of community service in lieu of a three year jail sentence. Budai nodded and said, thank you very much after the sentence was handed down. An investigation is underway following the discovery of a woman's body on a beach in Cultra, Co Down. Emergency services are currently on the scene at the Seafront Road in Holywood, and a police cordon is in place. A PSNI spokesperson said: Police are examining the circumstances surrounding the death of a woman whose body was found on the beach at Seafront Road in Holywood this morning. The PSNI have said there are no further details at present, and if anyone has information to contact immediately. In a social media post, a local DUP MLA Stephen Dunne said it was "very sad and shocking news that a body has been found on a beach in Cultra. Our thoughts and prayers are with this womans family and friends at this most difficult time. The local community is naturally concerned, but we must allow the local PSNI to carry out its investigations. U.S. Assistant Secretary Donald Lu meets with Sri Lankan President Posted by Editor on May 13, 2024 - 9:27 pm United States Assistant Secretary Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, Donald Lu, called on Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe today (May 13) at the Presidential Secretariat. During the meeting, extensive discussions were held regarding Sri Lankas economic recovery strategies. President Wickremesinghes unwavering dedication and commitment to implementing the economic reform program were highly appreciated. The President was accompanied by the Senior Advisor on National Security and Chief of Staff, Sagala Ratnayaka, Secretary to the President, Saman Ekanayake, United States Ambassador to Sri Lanka Julie Chung, and Director of International Affairs, Dinouk Colombage. (Presidents Media) "And we took all his cities at that time, and utterly destroyed the men, and the women, and the little ones, of every city, we left none to remain." The above is from the Hebrew Bible/Christian Old Testament at Deuteronomy 2:34. This ungodly and heartless passage reveals the brutal mindset of the ancient Jewish clergymen who wrote the Hebrew Bible/Christian Old Testament. It also reveals the cruel and brutal mindset of the current Jewish state of Israel and its leaders as they wreak havoc on Gaza and the people who are barely surviving there. To date, Israel has killed 34,488 Palestinians in Gaza with 14,500 of them being children and 9,500 of them being women. That's not including the probable thousands of bodies that will be found under the rubble of bombed out buildings across Gaza. As this article points out, the root cause of the ongoing slaughter of Palestinian children, women and men in Gaza is the Jewish state of Israel's claim that God gave all of that land to the Jews for a Jewish state, for the Bible tells them so. This lie is found in the Hebrew Bible. Israeli officials actually state that this proves the land the Palestinians own and have their homes and farms on actually belongs to the Jews and the Jewish state of Israel. Thomas Paine pointed out that he did not believe the biblical claim that God gave that land to the Jews when he wrote in The Age of Reason, "The cruelties that the Jews had accustomed themselves to practice on the Canaanites, whose country they had savagely invaded under a pretended gift from God, they afterward practiced as furiously on each other." Joe Biden, who was solidly in Israel's corner until he realized that position could cost him at least tens of thousands of votes, asked Israeli PM Netanyahu not to attack the city of Rafah in southern Gaza where there are over a million Palestinian refugees sheltering. When Netanyahu said Israel will assault Rafah regardless of what Biden wants, Biden withheld a shipment of 500-pound and 2,000-pound bombs from Israel. The reason for Israel's insistence on attacking Rafah with its over a million refugee population is claimed by Netanyahu to be to destroy Hamas. Since the military section of Hamas is more an anti-occupation guerrilla organization and not a conventional army, Netanyahu should know that as was seen in Viet Nam and Afghanistan, conventional warfare methods do not work in a guerrilla war. It's beginning to look like Israel's real purpose for attacking Rafah is Hebrew Bible/Christian Old Testament-based ethnic cleansing. Israel should take this advice from Albert Einstein: "Should we be unable to find a way to honest cooperation and honest pacts with the Arabs, then we have learned absolutely nothing during our 2,000 years of suffering and deserve all that will come to us." All of us should take to heart this observation, also from Albert Einstein: "The world that we have made as a result of the level of thinking that we have done so far, has created problems we cannot solve at the level of thinking at which we created them.... We shall require a substantially new manner of thinking if humankind is to survive." Deism can be the "new manner of thinking" that will enable humankind to evolve and to survive. This is because Deism is a reason-based, and not faith-based, way of believing in The Supreme Intelligence/God. Deism is truly a Revolution in Religion! Police have released the name of the man who was shot to death in Northeast Portlands Wilkes neighborhood on May 4. Ozell Shepherd, 34, of Gresham died by gunshot wound, the medical examiner determined. Shepherds death has been ruled a homicide. Shepherd grew up in Alabama before moving to Portland, according to his Facebook page. Officials said officers arrived in the 15700 block of Northeast Beech Street shortly after 5 a.m. on May 4 to find Shepherd wounded. He died at the scene, police said. Neighbors said they heard at least eight gunshots at around 5 a.m. Police have not announced any arrests and havent said whether they have identified any suspects. Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to contact Det. Ryan Foote at ryan.foote@police.portlandoregon.gov, 503-823-0781, or Det. Travis Law at travis.law@police.portlandoregon.gov, 503-823-0395. -- The Oregonian/OregonLive; dperry@oregonian.com While Vancouvers Yogesh Raut competes in the primetime Jeopardy Masters tournament, a Portlander will be among the contestants on Mondays episode of the syndicated Jeopardy! Michael Richter, an elections worker from Portland will compete on the May 13 episode, on KATU-TV. (No antenna or cable? You can stream Jeopardy! on Sling TV.) The other players in the Jeopardy! episode that airs Monday are Will Stewart, the returning champion. Stewart, originally from Nashville, Tennessee, is a political organizer. His previous one-day winnings total is $25,601. The third player is Joyce Yang, a data analyst from Germantown, Maryland. For Northwest-based Jeopardy! fans, Monday will be a feast. After the syndicated episode with Michael Richter airs at 7 p.m. on KATU-TV, the latest episode in the three-week Jeopardy Masters event will air, at 8 p.m. on ABC. The six Jeopardy stars competing in Jeopardy Masters are Raut, a cognitive and behavioral scientist; James Holzhauer, the Las Vegas-based self-described Final Boss of Jeopardy!; Victoria Groce, a writer and television personality from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Matt Amodio, a quantitive researcher from New York; Mattea Roach, a writer and podcaster from Toronto, Ontario, Canada; and Amy Schneider, a writer from Oakland, California. The Jeopardy Masters contestants who earn the most points will compete in the finals, vying for the grand prize of $500,000. Jeopardy! airs weeknights at 7 p.m. on KATU-TV. Kristi Turnquist covers features and entertainment. Reach her at 503-221-8227, kturnquist@oregonian.com or @Kristiturnquist Our journalism needs your support. Please become a subscriber today at OregonLive.com/subscribe The Jeopardy Masters 2024 tournament is heating up, with smart contestants competing to see who can buzz in first, who gets Daily Double questions at the right time, and who knows the answers in the Final Jeopardy category. (No cable or satellite? You can stream Jeopardy Masters via Fubo, which offers a free trial.) The event continues Monday, May 13, on ABC, with Games 9 and 10. The first game features Victoria Groce, a writer and television personality from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; James Holzhauer, the Las Vegas-based self-described Final Boss of Jeopardy!; and Matt Amodio, a quantitive researcher from New York. The second game features Vancouvers Yogesh Raut, a cognitive and behavioral scientist; Mattea Roach, a writer and podcaster from Toronto, Ontario, Canada; and Amy Schneider, a writer from Oakland, California. Raut goes into tonights game on a roll. In the episode that aired on Friday, May 10, the top three players -- so far, at least -- competed. Raut came through with the win, with Groce in second, and Holzhauer in third. Game on Which matchup are you excited to see? The newest season of #JeopardyMasters premieres TONIGHT at 8/7c on ABC and Stream on Hulu. pic.twitter.com/q4VrWj5fgs Jeopardy! (@Jeopardy) May 1, 2024 Going into tonights games, the Jeopardy Masters leaderboard shows, in order, Groce; Raut, Holzhauer, Schneider, Roach, and Amodio. Jeopardy Masters airs at 8 p.m. Monday, May 13, on ABC. Kristi Turnquist covers features and entertainment. Reach her at 503-221-8227, kturnquist@oregonian.com or @Kristiturnquist Our journalism needs your support. Please become a subscriber today at OregonLive.com/subscribe Portlands own Bach Cantata Choir will sing in Leipzig, Germany, as part of the 2024 Leipzig Bach Festival, the preeminent festival centered on the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. The festival presents 157 events from June 7 to 16 in churches and other venues in Leipzig. It draws an international audience, and its events regularly sell out. Bach was the director of church music in Leipzig from 1723 until his death in 1750. His duties included conducting choirs at the St. Thomas School and providing four very large churches with music. Many of these works were cantatas for choir, orchestra, and soloists that expressed religious texts from the Bible. This is the 300th anniversary of when Bach started to write his cantata cycles, said Ralph Nelson, Artistic Director of the Bach Cantata Choir. He wrote five cycles that covered every festival day of the church year except during Lent when cantatas were not done. Bach started writing cantatas based on Lutheran chorale tunes, which were well-known in the Protestant part of Germany. Formed in 2005 by Nelson with the intent of singing all of Bachs cantatas, the choir still has a long way to go because Bach, being a hard-working genius, cranked out a ton of them. Bach wrote around 300 cantatas, although we have the scores for only 215, noted Nelson, unless more are found. They are great works of art and demand a lot from the singers and instrumentalists. So far, we have done 79 of them. During a typical season, the choir gives four cantata concerts on Sunday afternoons at Rose City Park Presbyterian Church in Northeast Portland. Each performance is free, although donations are welcome, and features a professional chamber orchestra and soloists, and the 50-voice choir, which consists of auditioned volunteer singers and professional section leaders. It was through serendipitous circumstances that the Bach Festival discovered the BCC. The choir toured Germany in 2018 and performed in Leipzig. That impressed concertgoers who notified the festivals Artistic Director Michael Maul. Maul asked the choir to participate in this years festival along with four other vocal ensembles from the United States: Emmanuel Music Boston, Bach Cantata Vespers Choir (Chicago), The Bach Choir of Bethlehem (Pennsylvania), and Bach Collegium San Diego. Its a huge honor to sing at the International Bach Festival, said tenor and choir vice president Woody Richen. It doesnt get any better than that. Bach is not easy. Sometimes the voice leading is odd and not intuitive. So you have to be at the top of your game. Some members of the choir, like Richen, are taking language classes to buttress their singing. It can be intimidating for any foreign choir to sing in German in Germany, but the BCC has soprano Dorothea Lail as its secret sauce. Lail is a native German with a very strong choral background. What you have to do with American singers, is get their sound towards the front of their face instead in the back near the throat, said Lail. There the rolling rs and many other sounds that take a lot of listening and practice. For its concert in Leipzig (June 11), Nelson with lead the BCC in Cantata 38 Aus tiefer Not schrei ich zu dir (In Deepest Need I Cry to You), Cantata 80 Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott, (A Mighty Fortress is our God), and Cantata 115 Mache dich, mein Geist, bereit (O My Spirit Be Prepared). This concert includes four soloists from the Pacific Northwest: soprano Vakare Petroliunaite, alto Hannah Penn, tenor Leslie Green, and bass Jacob Herbert along with the Leipzig Camerata Orchestra. Leading up to its appearance in Leipzig, the BCC will also perform a separate program at the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church in Berlin and the Friedenskirche in Potsdam. It will also perform at the concert pavilion in the Leipzig main train station and at the Simon and Judah Church in Prague. These concerts will present some American numbers, including a new piece, The Promised Land by Portland composer John Vergin. As a send off to its Leipzig appearance, the choir will give two concerts. The first, on May 19 at Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, will offer Cantata 80, Cantata 115, and several other works. The second, on May 25 at St. Michael and All Angels Church, will present Bachs motet Jeu, meine Freude (Jesus, my Joy) and other pieces. Like its regular season concerts, these concerts are gratis. However, concertgoers should be ready to clear their throats and warble. Thats because Nelson will invite audience members to sing a chorale in English after the choir has sung it in German. The sound from the audience was amazing at our last concert, said Nelson, And the festival in Leipzig will also invite concertgoers to sing a chorale from each cantata. Since the St. Nicholas Church seats over a thousand people, that should create an awesome experience. 2 p.m. Sunday, May 19, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 1907 N.E. 45th Ave.; and 7 p.m. Saturday, May 25, St. Michael and All Angels Church, 1704 N.E. 43rd Ave.; both concerts are free. After two searches within the last year, including a national sweep for top water managers, Gov. Tina Kotek has settled on an insider to oversee management of Oregons water, one of its most valuable resources. Kotek said in a news release last week she has appointed Ivan Gall, a longtime manager in the Water Resources Department, as the agencys director. The department, charged with allocating and distributing water in Oregon, plays a crucial role in the state, especially now after years of drought, declining snowpack and worries of dwindling resources. Despite that, the department has continued to follow a tradition of dishing out water permits even when lacking data on availability, said Rep. Ken Helm, D-Beaverton and co-chair of the interim House natural resources committee. Gall has been in the department during that time. Hes worked for the agency for nearly 30 years, including as a hydrogeologist, or groundwater scientist, region and section manager and administrator. Hes been interim deputy director of water management, one of two deputy directors at the agency, since September 2022, taking over temporarily for Doug Woodcock, who became the agencys acting director after Tom Byler stepped down from the top spot. The state launched an initial search last June, but it ended with disappointment over candidate quality, OPB reported. Only two people were identified as having the minimum qualifications. Sources said they were Gall and Jason Minor, natural resources adviser to former Gov. Kate Brown. The state launched a second search last October, led by Motus Recruiting, and a woman in Colorado was offered the job. She turned it down over the pay, sources said. They said the governors office was reluctant to conduct a third search. Koteks office said in a statement to the Capital Chronicle that the search was extensive and included input from more than a dozen stakeholders, a tribal member and the Water Resources Commission. Kotek said in her release that Gall will be able to hit the ground running along with Sara OBrien, who Kotek appointed to lead the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board, a state agency that allocates grants to restore streams, rivers, wetlands and other natural areas around the state. OBrien has been a part of Willamette Partnership, a conservation group that works with communities on land, water and recreational opportunities, since 2013 and has served as its executive director since 2015. These two new directors I am appointing are ready to take this charge head on, Kotek said. I expect them to work collaboratively with Oregons federally recognized tribal nations, local communities, water users and other natural resource partners to prepare our state for the future of water resource management. Both appointments need to be confirmed by the state Senate, which is expected to consider them at the end of the month. Sources said they see little problem for OBrien, who told the Capital Chronicle shes honored by the appointment and is very excited to lead the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board. Ive worked closely with several of their staff over the years and have always been impressed with their dedication and collaborative approach, OBrien said. The board job pays nearly $174,000. Gall would earn nearly $200,000, but his confirmation could prove tricky. I dont think its a slam dunk by any means, said Rep. Mark Owens, R-Crane. Owens is the other co-chair of the House water resources committee and has worked closely with Helm to get the department to rein in water permitting. Theyve both leaned on Kotek to hire an outsider to manage the department. So has the Oregon Farm Bureau, which represents Oregons $5 billion agriculture industry that depends on water. A farm bureau spokeswoman, Lauren Poor, indicated in an email to the Capital Chronicle that the bureau is not happy with Galls choice. The important role that the Oregon Water Resources Department fills for the states water user community cannot be understated, Poor said. Overall, Oregon Farm Bureau has been discouraged with the departments direction for some time and were hopeful that Gov. Kotek would appoint a director with a fresh perspective, new energy and creative ideas from outside the agency. We are very concerned that despite Mr. Galls long and capable service, that this appointment represents more status quo. Both Helm and Owens said they would work with Gall, if hes confirmed. But Owens also worries that promoting an insider could mean more of the same. Weve over-appropriated water, Owens said. So instead of figuring out how to allocate and regulate water, we got to figure out how we can manage water. Kotek spokeswoman Anca Matica told the Capital Chronicle in an email that Kotek also wants change. The governor has been clear throughout the recruitment process that Oregons approach and culture around managing our water resources must change, a statement said. In the face of increasing pressure on ground and surface water supplies from a changing climate and growing population, Oregons Water Resources Department needs a reset. Matica added: Throughout this process, Mr. Gall communicated a clear vision and direction for the Oregon Water Resources Department consistent with that of the governor. Mr. Gall demonstrated command of the issues facing the state, and a willingness to work with all those interested in helping the department make progress on this significant challenge. In the news release, Kotek said the two appointees need to focus on building resiliency for Oregons resources in the face of climate change. Oregonians deserve leaders who can chart a proactive path to protect and improve management of our states limited water resources for the benefit of healthy ecosystems, thriving communities and a strong economy, Kotek said. Helm and Owens have been pushing the department to suspend issuing new water permits until the state audits its water supplies. A bill they proposed in 2023 would have done just that, but it didnt pass. Helm told the Capital Chronicle on Wednesday it freaked people out and potentially prompted the department to scramble up new water permitting rules. The proposed changes, which are now up for public comment, would dial back permitting in cases in which the department couldnt determine whether there was enough water available. That would mark a turnaround. It is a big change for the department because it was exactly the opposite for decades and decades, Helm said. If the data wasnt there, they would default to going ahead and giving the permit and hoping for the best and monitoring. A department spokeswoman, Alyssa Rash, said Gall was involved in the rulemaking, and Helm said he supported the new approach. But he said the department could still use a shakeup. You want to make sure that the new director has the courage to make changes that will reverse that direction, Helm said. The Oregon Water Resources Department Department is holding two more sessions to gather public comment on the proposed water rule changes: May 16 at Jackson County Auditorium in Central Point between 7-9 p.m. and online May 21 and in Salem that same day at the North Mall Office Building between 7-9 p.m. The department is also accepting written comments through the end of the month to Laura Hartt, Oregon Water Resources Department, 725 Summer Street N.E., Suite A, Salem, OR 97301 or by email to WRD_DL_rule-coordinator@water.oregon.gov. The Oregon Water Resources Department Commission will consider approving the proposed change in September. For more information, visit the departments website here. -- Lynne Terry, Oregon Capital Chronicle Oregon Capital Chronicle, based in Salem, is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Oregon Capital Chronicle maintains editorial independence. Oregon ranks dead last in balancing the prevalence of youth mental illness with access to care, given high rates of youth with mental health conditions and the lack of available treatment, according to advocacy and monitoring nonprofit Mental Health America. At 21%, the state has the highest percent of youth who said they have experienced at least one depressive episode, according to the nonprofits 2023 study based on data from 2020. That, coupled with the crisis of readily available cheap fentanyl and other hard drugs, has culminated in a dire trend of young people turning to substances to deal with the feelings their mental illnesses bring. Despite the extremely high levels of need for care, Oregon has struggled to keep youth services open and operating. Programs such as DePaul Treatment Centers youth services in Portland, Yes House Adolescent Residential Treatment in Corvallis and Northwest Behavioral Healthcare Services in Gladstone have all shuttered in recent years, among others. The Oregonian/OregonLive talked with Chelsea Holcomb, the Oregon Health Authoritys youth behavioral health director, about what the state is doing to address youth mental health needs. Responses have been edited for length and clarity. Q: The most recent Mental Health America report, which the Oregonian/OregonLive has reported on extensively, ranks Oregon last compared to other states in balancing the prevalence of youth with mental illness with access to care. Can you comment on the accuracy of the study and how it aligns with Oregons reality as you see it? A: The report talks about major depressive order but that is just one disorder of many. Its not inaccurate, but it is just a very narrow slice of the population. What that means is that there is still a broader need. What we are seeing in Oregon, and across the world, are increases in anxiety, trauma-related concerns, eating disorders and Autism Spectrum diagnoses. However, it is true that youth in Oregon are not always able to access the care they need or have delays in accessing care. We are still setting up systems to understand waitlists. Q: We know inpatient options for youth in need of behavioral health treatment can have waitlists of up to eight weeks. How is the state working to address the lack of access? A: The Oregon Health Authority has invested in renovating and expanding current residential programs as well as creating new programs. The $7 million that was given to OHA during the 2021 legislative session has just started seeing work materialize. One new facility is currently breaking ground in Boardman that will serve children five to 12 years old. This is a huge need in our state with only one current provider, Trillium Family Services, for this age group. Another program in the Portland metro area, Madrona Recovery, expanded early this year using Oregon Health Authority funds and is now licensed to serve (older) youth with co-occurring substance use and mental health needs. These recent efforts, plus others, have resulted in 32 new beds. OHA is also investing in intensive programs to hopefully prevent youth from needing residential treatment. These include intensive in-home behavioral health treatment that provides youth and families therapy, peer support, medication management and a 24-hour crisis system. There has been a lot of focus on expanding the adult system, but more investments are needed for youth mobile response and stabilization services. Q: We know it is hard to track all the youth outpatient options in the state. But many families feel it is nearly impossible for them to access therapists who treat children or teens and even harder to find outpatient options that treat both mental illness and substance use disorder simultaneously. How is the state working to expand such options for youth? A: It can absolutely feel difficult to find a provider that is a good fit for youth and their family. Over the past few years, multiple new outpatient providers have opened across the state. Oregons Coordinated Care Organizations are responsible for ensuring that there are enough providers to meet their members needs. For Oregon families with Medicaid coverage, their local regional website is an excellent place to find information about providers who specialize and work with youth, have expertise in substance use disorders or other key aspects of their care like gender or other specialties. The state has also created a Medicaid benefit for children ages zero to 21 that eliminated some barriers to access last year. It has also worked to pilot new medical centers that offer a combination of physical and behavioral health to create a one-stop shop with a different kind of payment method for providers. Additionally, the state invested money to train providers on how to treat co-occurring diseases and if providers participate in that training, they get a higher reimbursement rate for the services they provide for either youth or adults. Connecting youth to substance use disorder services is still very complicated. Even with Measure 110 and new legislation to make access better, access for youth hasnt improved. Often youth are accessing help once their substance use disorder is very far along and has reached a dangerous peak. That means we are not getting to them early enough. Q: Given that many teens told us they didnt understand how various substances would impact them differently, ranging from cannabis to fentanyl, how will the state increase education on these topics? Can you talk about what those campaigns will look like and what messages they will be sending? A: Oregon Health Authoritys public health department has multiple programs for substance use prevention and education, including social media campaigns, school prevention supports, and community activities. One example is the Rethink the Drink campaign, providing information related to alcohol use and abuse. The Oregon Department of Education is responsible for school curriculum related to health impacts of substance use and different types of substances. After legislation passed in 2023, additional school curricula on substance use and abuse and the risks of different substances (will be) required as well. The state is working to support the development of these new lesson plans to be provided to Oregons 197 school districts. Q: When we last talked, you mentioned the Oregon Health Authority was working to create a centralized referral system for youth inpatient services. What does that system look like now and how will it change how families access services? When will this change happen? A: We continue to make progress towards collecting referral and program capacity data in our new system A few providers have already started piloting inputting their data. Q: Has the centralized referral system given the state better information about how much unmet need there is for inpatient treatment and what type of care is least available to meet the need? If not, what information does the state know about how far short of demand the current inpatient offering are? A: Intensive treatment services capacity, which include psychiatric day treatment programs, residential treatment programs, secure inpatient programs and acute psychiatric inpatient units, remains a critical concern to the child and family behavioral health system. Each week we receive data on capacity for acute psychiatric inpatient beds, psychiatric residential treatment facility beds and substance use disorder residential beds. The number of psychiatric residential treatment facility beds still falls below the 286-bed goal. As of January 2024, only 135 beds were staffed due to both lack of beds and lack of staff. Q: What parts of the youth behavioral health system are on your radar to expand most imminently? A: More psychiatric residential beds intensive in-home behavioral health services and youth mobile crisis response. Because of lingering impacts from the pandemic coupled with ongoing staffing issues, the new programs have taken longer than hoped to roll out. While money has been distributed and invested, some of the programs are still trying to hire staff and open up. More peer youth services, early childhood intervention and culturally specific providers are also needed. Overall, pay needs to increase for workers too. A collection of books line the shelves of the English and social studies classroom at a recovery high school that helps fill in big gaps in Oregon's system for helping youth affected by mental health conditions or substance use disorders.Vickie Connor/The Oregonian Q: Both outpatient and inpatient youth providers told us the financial structure of youth services compared to adult services is a barrier to keeping their businesses viable. Is the state working to address this? A: Even before the pandemic, there was not enough capacity in the youth mental health system to meet the needs of youth and their families. Many dedicated but underpaid staff left the workforce, forcing programs to scale back treatment. Programs continue to struggle to pay staff livable wages, and the work is often complex and difficult. While the adult system has largely bounced back, the youth system continues to struggle due to staffing shortages. To address workforce needs, Oregon Health Authority has invested in rate increases for providers, specific funds for recruitment and retention, and has created programs to support the behavioral health workforce, including student loan reimbursement, access to clinical supervision, and child care and housing stipends. The state is now working on workforce supports designed specifically for the youth-serving system. Q: What else would you like readers to know? A: We have a current roadmap for childrens behavioral health. We dont have money for everything, though, so we need to prioritize what to invest in. And we want youth, families and providers to help us make those decisions. There is a system of care we are trying to work towards. We have a lot of catching up to do and we have a staffing crisis, but we also have dedicated people working at every level to make it better. Read More: Nicole Hayden reports on behavioral health and homelessness for The Oregonian/OregonLive. She can be reached at nhayden@oregonian.com. Liv Osthus came to Portland in 1996 because she didnt know where else to go. After graduating from Williams College in Massachusetts, the aspiring writer and musician couldnt imagine returning to Minnesota, where she grew up. And New York and Los Angeles just seemed like too much, too soon. So she landed in Portland, a midsized industrial city in transition. Osthus made a good choice. It was an exciting time to be young in the Rose City. Cheap rent abounded and everybody was in a band. You could be whoever you wanted to be and you could make it, in a low-key kind of way. That was then. Over the past half-dozen-or-so years, Portlands good vibes have largely disappeared. Record-breaking numbers of murders, homeless encampments and fentanyl overdoses have turned the city of Osthus youth the Portland of Satyricon, the Red and Black Cafe and, yes, the TV show Portlandia into a distant memory. People miss it. Which is why, Osthus says, she made a decision a couple months ago that surprised even her: She would run for mayor. She wants to bring back the buoyant, striving, look-at-me city that lured her here all those years ago, and she believes she knows how to do it. Her campaign announcement scored headlines across the country and beyond, but not because political observers believe she has a shot at winning. Its because Osthus is best known as the erotic dancer Viva Las Vegas, longtime Marys Club habitue and subject of a feature-length 2018 documentary. A stripper running for mayor? How very Portland, commentators from Toronto to New York have opined. See, Osthus says, her plan is working already. *** Its not unusual for an attention-seeking oddball with no experience in politics to run for Portlands highest elected office. There was Steven J. Entwisle, a self-described former Chinatown bouncer and frequent testifier at City Hall, in 2016. And Scot Campbell, aka Extremo the Clown, in 2004. To name just two of many. Osthus, 49, and her supporters insist she doesnt fall into this category. Sure, shes a stripper, but so what? This is Portland. Besides, says the novelist Chelsea Cain, who recently hosted a rooftop house party for Osthus, taking off your clothes, dancing in front of strangers and managing a crowd are all excellent prep for politics. Cain brought together many of her friends on Osthus behalf, she says, because the first-time candidate is offering a unique vision that revolves around what, before the citys recent downward spiral, gave Portland its identity. Osthus is running to focus attention on the arts. Liv Osthus, a.k.a. Viva Las Vegas, works an afternoon shift at Mary's Club in 2017. (Photo: Beth Nakamura/The Oregonian)LC- FROM THE ARCHIVE: Stripper Viva Las Vegas unusual approach earns devoted following. What happened in the city in the 1990s and aughts, when it seemed that everyone of a creative bent wanted to be in Portland, can happen again, Osthus says. The government simply needs to aggressively step in to help artists. When bankrupt office buildings emptied by the coronavirus pandemic go to auction, for example, the city should buy them and turn them over to artists for work and living spaces, she recently told The Oregonian/OregonLive. Thats how downtown can come back. This doesnt mean she thinks the corporate types should follow the musicians and painters and potters back to the citys core. Considering the climate crisis and the advent of work-from-home technologies, theres no longer a good reason for anyone to be driving from far-flung suburbs to sit in downtown skyscrapers, she says. She also wonders if the city could do arts coverage, hiring people to review plays, gallery shows and other artistic efforts that get little attention from the press. Osthus admits she hasnt worked out the details of her proposals, and she has no idea how much theyd cost. Shes still in the there-are-no-bad-ideas-in-brainstorming phase of her campaign, with only a handful of volunteers and few events planned. But she knows for sure that running for mayor is not just about identifying the right policies. I think we really need a voice of optimism, she says. Fentanyl is so cheap that addicts wont get straight without hope. And the arts bring hope, energy and ultimately money. *** Historically speaking, optimism has never come easily in Portland. This is a town that, throughout the 20th century, got attention from the wider world only when things went very wrong. When mobsters tried to muscle their way into the citys inner sanctum, say. Or a teenage couple was battered to death in a lovers lane attack. Or a gang of white supremacists turned murderous. But by the 1990s, something different something hopeful had started happening in the Rose City. Priced out of bigger, higher-profile cities, young artists from around the country were arriving in town by the busload. Osthus was one of them. Liv Osthus heads to work for an afternoon shift at Mary's Club in 2017. (Photo: Beth Nakamura/The Oregonian)LC- She soon made a name for herself on local stages more than one name, in fact. She was Coco Cobra, lead singer for a punk group. And she also became Viva Las Vegas as Portland was turning into a hot spot for strip clubs thanks to an unusual 1987 decision by the Oregon Supreme Court that safeguarded all-nude dancing. Portland being Portland, life remained difficult for her. There was never enough money, her big break staying just out of reach. Then, at 33, she got breast cancer. She didnt tell any of her Portland friends or colleagues about the diagnosis, because, as she put it in an essay, it felt like a personal failing. Then, finally, she did tell them and immediately wondered why it had taken her so long. Liv Osthus frequently wears these boots while out campaigning. They serve as both metaphor and reminder, to kick up the dirt so new things can grow, she said. Beth Nakamura Her fellow artists helped her through this period, becoming like family to her. After recovering from surgery and chemotherapy, she returned to Marys Club, Portlands iconic downtown strip joint, proud of her new scars. She tweaked her approach to the job, now talking with patrons and listening more than dancing. Her local celebrity grew, culminating in a documentary about her, Thank You for Supporting the Arts, named after her standard response when a customer slips cash into her bikini bottom. Osthus really does believe that Portlands musicians, novelists, strippers and visual artists her close-knit community can save the city from its current ills. Because shes seen them do it before. The early 21st-century boom years that filled new, gleaming Pearl District condo towers with tech- and ad-agency professionals? Scratching-to-survive artists made that possible, Osthus says. In the couple of decades before, they created the 24-Hour Church of Elvis and Danzine and the Velveteria. They packed rock clubs along Burnside, making the city a breeding ground for talented, ambitious bands. They turned a grimy, working-class city into, as The New York Times called it in 2015, one of our national capitals of cool. Portland has since reverted to its historical mean. But it doesnt have to stay this way, Osthus says. The citys artists can spark a second boom period, post-pandemic. One that lasts this time. Were deciding Portlands soul, she says of the November mayoral election, the first that will employ ranked-choice voting. *** The conventional wisdom on Osthus candidacy is crystal clear: She doesnt have a chance. The city faces a phalanx of tough problems, and voters dont seem to be in any mood to take a flier on an unorthodox, inexperienced candidate. City Commissioners Rene Gonzalez, Mingus Mapps and Carmen Rubio are considered the frontrunners. But nostalgia is always a powerful lure, and thats Osthus pitch that the Portland that made Viva Las Vegas possible can rise again. Her true, deep ties to the arts community are a strength that no one else in the race has, says Jessie Glenn, a Portland-based book publicist whos known Osthus for years. Glenn, Osthus ersatz campaign manager, adds that Osthus is brilliant and warm-hearted and well-meaning. Evidence of Liv Osthus run for mayor rest on a counter in her home on April 30, 2024. Beth Nakamura Osthus says that, if elected, she will come up with a 24-hour plan, a seven-month plan and a seven-generation plan. When asked what the 24-hour plan will be, she thinks for a moment and then says: Connect, listen, uplift. As it happens, shes already launched the 24-hour plan. And it appears to be working, at least with her primary demographic. Though they have friends in common, Cain and Osthus had never met each other before that recent rooftop gathering. Cain says she didnt know what to expect from Osthus as a mayoral candidate, and that she came away from the get-together enthused. She made me believe in Portland again (in the possibility of Portland both the Portland I miss and the one I want, which is better than the one I miss), Cain wrote in an email. Liv Osthus, aka Viva Las Vegas, in her Southeast Portland home, April 30th, 2024. Beth Nakamura Those two Portlands of the imagination are undeniably linked, to each other and to the Rose City in the real world right now. The dirty, rundown Portland of today, after all, looks much like it did three decades ago, when Osthus arrived in town and everything felt possible. Douglas Perry is a reporter and editor at The Oregonian/OregonLive. You can reach him at dperry@oregonian.com. Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - The Department of Health Emergencies of the Libyan Ministry of Health, in coordination with the World Health Organisation (WHO), has organised a workshop to discuss a national mental health project in Libya Suzano Reports First Quarter 2024 Earnings May 13, 2024 - Suzano on May 9 reported results for the first quarter of 2024. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The performance of the pulp market remained favorable during the first quarter of 2024, which reflected in another round of price increases, but which was not fully captured in the results of the period. Operational performance remained in line with the plan, with cash cost of production remaining stable without the effect of scheduled maintenance downtimes. This combination of factors resulted in an important increase in adjusted EBITDA per ton from pulp compared to the previous quarter. At the paper business unit, sales volume decreased chiefly due to seasonality, while prices remained stable. As such, consolidated adjusted EBITDA in the quarter totaled R$4.6 billion, while operating cash flow reached R$2.5 billion. As for financial management, net debt in USD increased to US$11.9 billion, mainly due to the largest investment cycle in the Company's history aimed at generating significant and sustainable value in the long term. Leverage in USD stood at 3.5 times, in line with the financial policy, an increase explained by the reduction in Adjusted EBITDA in the last 12 months and the increase in net debt. The hedging policy continued to play its part, bringing in a positive cash inflow of R$0.4 billion. Continuing the advances made in its strategy, within the context of the "Maintain relevance in pulp" and "Be 'best-in-class' in the total pulp cost vision" avenues, the physical progress of Cerrado Project remains as expected, reaching 94%, while financial progress was 87% by the end of April. Lastly, regarding the "Playing a leading role in sustainability" avenue, Suzano announced that it has adopted the recommendations of the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD), being one of the first Brazilian companies to commit to the initiative dedicated to creating an instrument for managing and disclosing risks and opportunities so that organizations can report and act on potential impacts related to nature. PULP BUSINESS PERFORMANCE Pulp Sales Volume and Revenue The first quarter of the year was marked by paper production above expectations and low pulp inventories across the chain, which, combined with higher lead time due to logistical constraints, resulted in lower supply than demand, creating favorable market fundamentals for increases in pulp price in all regions. In China, especially after the Chinese New Year, production by paper lines that mostly use hardwood pulp (sanitary papers, printing and writing papers and paperboard) registered a significant increase of 6% year on year. During the quarter, prices in all paper segments were below than in the same period last year, but increased gradually during 1Q24 and, in March, were higher than in January. In the European market, demand for pulp surprised positively in the quarter, coming above expectations at the end of last year. Hardwood consumption grew 14% in the region in 1Q24 compared to the same period last year. The Red Sea crisis and strikes in Finland, which led to lower operational availability of local producers, contributed to lower supply than demand. In North America, demand for sanitary papers continues positive in response to increases in pulp prices. Regarding the supply of chemical pulp (BCP) in the first quarter, the low inventory levels across the chain and restricted supply due to unscheduled events, especially strikes in Finland and logistics bottlenecks such as the Red Sea Crisis, had a negative effect on pulp availability. Average PIX/FOEX prices of hardwood pulp in the quarter increased 6% in China and 23% in Europe compared to 4Q23. The difference between softwood and hardwood pulp prices in the quarter was US$82/t in China and US$208/t in Europe, in line with healthy levels. Suzano's pulp sales decreased from the previous quarter due to seasonal effects in the period, as well as the need of partial restocking, totaling 2,401 thousand tons, down 13% from 4Q23 and 2% from 1Q23. Average net price in USD of pulp sold by Suzano was US$619/t, increasing 9% from 4Q23 and decreasing 14% from 1Q23. In the export market, average net price charged by the Company was US$624/t, up 9% from 4Q23 and down 13% from 1Q23. Average net price in BRL was R$3,066/ton in 1Q24, up 9% from 4Q23, due to the better price scenario in China and Europe. Compared to 1Q23, the 18% reduction was mainly due to the lower average net price in USD during the period and the 5% decline in average USD versus average BRL. Suzano's complete first quarter 2024 earnings report is available on the company's website within the Investor Relations section: www.suzano.com.br. Suzano is the world's largest producer of hardwood pulp and a global leader in the innovation and production of renewable, bio-based materials for consumer and industrial use. SOURCE: Suzano A Michigan woman is filing a lawsuit against the Hawaii Tourism Authority for her husband's fatal snorkeling incident. Patti Johnson believes that due to the lack of awareness regarding the lesser-known danger of snorkeling, his husband's demise due to snorkeling could have been prevented. Ray Johnson, aged 64, met his untimely demise in February 2022, with the coroner attributing his death to drowning, a prevalent hazard for tourists in Hawaii. Patti Johnson's lawsuit brings to light the need for enhanced safety measures and educational initiatives to mitigate such risks in water-related activities. Husband's Fatal Snorkeling Incident Patricia and Ray Johnson, accompanied by four friends, checked into Maui's Fairmont Kea Lani on the evening of February 23, 2022, intending to explore various islands during their multi-week stay. This trip marked the couple's sixth visit to Hawaii, where they had previously enjoyed snorkeling numerous times. On the morning of February 25, while some of the group, including Ray, ventured into the waters off Wailea Beach near their resort for snorkeling, Patricia chose to stroll along a nearby trail with a view of the beach. "I looked out, and I saw my husband and my friends or people out there," she recounted. "I'm waving at him, and it hits me." Patricia noticed individuals who appeared to be assisting Ray while he was snorkeling. Rushing down to the beach, Patricia witnessed a rapid deterioration of the situation. Initially, Ray managed to keep his head above water and was heading back to shore, but suddenly he fell onto his back, his head jerking backward at one point, requiring assistance to be brought ashore. Emergency services were contacted, but despite efforts by medical personnel, Ray could not be revived. The subsequent autopsy labeled Ray's death as an accidental drowning, a conclusion Patricia questions vehemently. "I was watching him come in, how could he be drowning?" she questioned. According to eyewitnesses among his snorkeling companions, Ray was speaking and even diving underwater. He surfaced at one point, pleading for help as he is struggling to breathe. Michigan Woman's Hawaii Lawsuit According to Jay Stuemke, the attorney representing the deceased experienced snorkeler, the circumstances surrounding his final moments deviated significantly from a typical drowning incident. Stuemke explained that he mentioned to a friend, 'I'm having trouble breathing,' and efforts were made to bring him ashore. The study's authors, whose findings are referenced in Johnson's legal case, highlighted in their interim report that Rapid Onset Pulmonary Edema (ROPE) is a contributing factor to numerous fatal and near-fatal incidents related to snorkeling. Stuemke further emphasized the importance of delaying snorkeling activities for at least three days after arriving in Hawaii, citing a significant reduction in the risk of preventable deaths. Drowning stands as the primary cause of death among tourists in Hawaii, particularly during snorkeling excursions. Despite the ocean's unpredictable nature, attention is being drawn to a lesser-known medical condition, ROPE, which poses specific risks to snorkelers but has received limited attention in the past. The study underscores that tourists typically endure long flights of at least five hours to reach Hawaii. Given that aircraft cabins are pressurized to levels equivalent to altitudes of up to 8,500 feet, this can affect lung membrane permeability and potentially contribute to the development of ROPE. Stuemke highlighted the missed opportunity to inform individuals like Ray of their heightened risk due to recent air travel. He noted that had they been aware of safety recommendations, they would have opted for leisurely activities rather than immediate snorkeling, as emphasized by Ray's wife. This highlights a broader need for informed decision-making among tourists who plan extended stays and engage in various activities during their Hawaii visits. A Rhode Island couple turned a chance discovery into a symbol of their love story, culminating in a wedding filled with heartfelt moments and dreams of a Parisian honeymoon. Rhode Island Couple Turning a Clam Discovery into Love's Token Ken Steinkamp and Sandy Sikorski stumbled upon an unexpected treasure while dining at a Westerly, Rhode Island, restaurant on December 27, 2021. Sandy tasted something peculiar in her clam-a pearl. Charmed by its uniqueness, Ken transformed it into a stunning engagement ring, encasing it in 18-karat gold and embellishing it with diamonds. Their engagement on July 6, 2023, marked the beginning of a remarkable journey. Sikorski donned a strapless gown adorned with crystals during her wedding day that featured lace detail at the hem, describing it as elegant yet weighty throughout the evening. During the ceremony, the couple's unique clam-made ring often catches attention, becoming a frequent topic of admiration due to its beauty, as Sikorski mentioned receiving numerous compliments despite strangers being unaware of its origin. A Pearl-Themed Wedding and Family Bonding On April 14, just over nine months later, Ken and Sandy exchanged vows in an intimate ceremony at Avondale Chapel in Westerly. Their love for pearls extended to their wedding details, with a pearl-themed cake and pearl-adorned shoes for Sandy's granddaughter. Sandy radiated elegance in a crystal-studded gown, embodying the spirit of their special day. Despite a stormy day, the couple's wedding unfolded with heartwarming moments. Sandy's brother ensured her safe passage to the chapel, embodying family support and love. Furthermore, her 93-year-old father, Louis Bald, defied health challenges to walk her down the aisle, symbolizing enduring familial bonds. Despite his own health challenges, he was determined to walk his daughter down the aisle, and although there were uncertainties until just days before, they had arrangements in place with a CNA as a precaution. With the CNA ready in the back row, he managed to walk with a cane, a practice he had done before the wedding to ensure comfort. His daughter expressed gratitude for his determination and described him as a trooper throughout the event. Steinkamp said, "I think I hung on to him." "He was a trooper. He did great." Celebrating Love and Dreams in Paris The couple incorporated an Apache wedding poem into their ceremony, and after exchanging vows, they proceeded to capture photos before making a grand entrance at Ocean House. Descending a staircase amidst guests enjoying cocktails, Ken and Sandy celebrated at Ocean House, where they were greeted with applause and love. Their first dance to "Everything I Do (I Do It for You)" by Celine Dion and Bryan Adams echoed their devotion. Their Parisian honeymoon became a reality, filled with cultural explorations and cherished memories. Ken's touching speech at the reception highlighted their journey, emphasizing the priceless value of their love. Their pearl-clam ring, now a symbol of the Rhode Island couple's unique love story, continues to capture hearts and spark conversations, reflecting the beauty of love found in unexpected moments. The wedding of Sikorski and Bald was a beautiful and memorable celebration of love, unity, and overcoming challenges. From the unique details like the clam-made ring and Apache wedding poem to the touching moments of Bald walking his daughter down the aisle, every aspect of their special day reflected resilience, joy, and the power of love. It was a testament to the strength of their bond and the happiness shared with family and friends, making it a truly unforgettable occasion. Days before Mother's Day, a mom and her three kids were brutally attacked by a pack of dogs outside a Georgia middle school. Mom, Her Children Attacked Aggressive Dog at Bus Stop The circumstances happened as they waited at a bus stop behind Brooks County Middle School in Quitman. Courtney Williams, 35, was tragically found dead in a nearby yard. Responding deputies encountered several aggressive dogs on the scene. Williams' children sustained injuries and were swiftly taken to the hospital, with her son bravely intervening to protect his sister from harm, according to family reports. Graphic images shared on social media revealed the extent of the boy's injuries, while another son sought help from a passerby who aided in fighting off the dogs and getting them to safety. Though the particular breed of the dogs remains ambiguous, homeowners had reportedly voiced concerns about the lack of animal control in the location. The timing of the circumstances, just days before Mother's Day, compounded the disaster for the family and community. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is recently conducting an autopsy to make sure the official cause of Williams' demise. Read Also: Pregnant Bride Marries Her Fiance in Hospital Donning a Wedding Dress Crafted from Bed Sheets Grandmom Dies After Being Attacked by Dogs A woman had been mauled by aggressive dogs while visiting her grandson in Essex. Esther Martin, aged 68, passed away in Jaywick, near Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, on Saturday. A 39-year-old man has been discharged on bail under doubt of dangerous dog offenses, and the two dogs involved have been euthanized. According to Ms. Martin's daughter, Sonia Martin, the dogs were XL bully dogs, a breed prohibited under the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991. She recounted that there were also six puppies present at the property, and a circumstance happened when the dogs were battling. However, police are awaiting verification of the breed from experts. Ms. Martin elucidated that her mom, who was visiting her 11-year-old grandson, had conveyed concerns about the aggressive nature of the dogs to their owners. Ms. Martin characterized how her mom had been advised by the owner to intercede with a broom whenever the puppies fight each other, resulting in the tragic attack. The suspect involved in the incident has a familial relationship with Ms. Martin, who was a grandmother of eight and a great-grandmother of three. Essex Police reported progress in the investigation, despite its complexities. Ms. Martin recounted receiving the distressing news from a local police officer at her home in Chesterfield, Derbyshire. Her nephew had sought help from neighbors to rescue his grandmother. Witnesses described hearing screams and the subsequent police response, which resulted in the destruction of the dogs involved. Esther Martin was described as someone who was rebuilding her life following the loss of another daughter two years prior. Her daughter lamented the tragic loss, mentioning her upcoming marriage and the absence of her mother. Superintendent Glen Pavelin praised the bravery of the officers who responded to the incident and thanked the community for their assistance. XL bully dogs are the biggest type of American bully dogs, described by their muscular physique and blocky heads. They are prohibited under the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 in England and Wales, making their breeding, selling, or abandonment illegal. Interpreter Radio Show May 5, 2024 In the 5 May 2024 episode of the Interpreter Radio Show, Spencer Kraus, Hales Swift, Brent Schmidt, and Martin Tanner discussed Come, Follow Me Book of Mormon lesson 22 and various topics related to the Book of Mormon. Their conversation is now available to you at your convenience but at no charge. The Book of Mormon in Context portion of this show, for the Come, Follow Me Book of Mormon lesson 22, will also be posted separately on Tuesday, May 21. The Interpreter Radio Show can be heard once a week, on Sunday evenings from 7 to 9 PM (MDT), on K-TALK, AM 1640, or you can listen live on the Internet at ktalkmedia.com. I hope that my extensive history of writing and speaking on Islam and other faiths over the past decades has established the fact in reasonable minds, of course; I hold out no hope at all for some of the folks on the Peterson Obsession Board that I regard other faiths and those who hold them with sympathy and respect. I confess, though, that I do have a problem with Calvinism (and, for that matter, with the deterministic aspects of non-Mutazili Islam). Even regarding Calvinism, though, I have tried to be appreciative and, where not admiring, at least fair. I cite such evidence on my behalf as the columns that I wrote (with the late, much-missed Bill Hamblin) for the Deseret News about John Calvin (The Protestant Reformations other great writer) and the prominent Scots Presbyterian/Calvinist leader John Knox (John Knox and the Scottish Reformation). I dont think about Calvinism on most days nor, for that matter, during most months, but I ran across an article on the subject over the weekend that because it agrees with my views I really liked. (For what its worth, many years ago I helped to host its author while he visited Brigham Young University for an academic conference. I must not have done a very good job because he wrote some negative things about my church shortly thereafter.) In any event, the article expresses quite well some of my objections to Calvinist theology: Why Calvinism Cannot Be True And Is It Heresy? Inspired by it, I thought that I might offer a few notes of my own about Calvinism. First, I will use as my template what is sometimes called five-point Calvinism, and the tulip acronym that often accompanies it as a mnemonic device: Total Depravity sometimes rephrased as radical corruption or utter perversion. Because of Original Sin, we we are unable to will the good. Every aspect of our personalities is corrupt, and we cannot save ourselves. Latter-day Saints believe, to the contrary, that we are born innocent. Only later are we inevitably tainted by the fallen world into which we have entered. Still, though, we have the Light of Christ with us and, if we heed it, we can choose the Savior, his Atonement, and the Gospel and the Plan of Happiness. Were neither all bad nor all good. Unconditional Election also called sovereign election. From all eternity, God has chosen those whom he will save. He will extend mercy to those whom he has chosen and he will withhold mercy from those whom he has not chosen. The latter will be justly punished for their sins. His choice of a subset of human beings for salvation is not based on any virtue, merit, or faith that he has foreseen in those people; rather, his choice is grounded solely in his sovereign will. Limited Atonement The atonement of Christ, according to Calvinism, applies only to the chosen, the Elect. It was never intended for all. Irresistible Grace The Elect cannot effectively resist Gods choice of them for salvation, and their election will cause them to have faith. If God wills that Jean be saved, Jean will be saved. Perseverance of the Saints Since Gods sovereign will cannot be frustrated or resisted, those who have been chosen will not fall. If the seemingly Elect do fall, its because they were never really among the Elect to begin with. Now, theres a whole lot that might be said, and that should be said, about this. (The article already cited above says some of the important things.) With regard to the alleged total depravity of all humans, I counter (for one thing) with the Apostle Pauls insistence that we are, all of us, children of God. Consider his remarks to the pagan Athenians they werent Christians or Jews, let alone Presbyterians! on Mars Hill. For claritys sake, I quote Acts 17:22-31 from the New Testament translation of J. B. Phillips: Gentlemen of Athens, my own eyes tell me that you are in all respects an extremely religious people. For as I made my way here and looked at your shrines I noticed one altar (one of a number in Athens) on which were inscribed the words, TO GOD THE UNKNOWN. It is this God whom you are worshipping in ignorance that I am here to proclaim to you! God who made the world and all that is in it, being Lord of both Heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by human hands, nor is he ministered to by human hands, as though he had need of anythingseeing that he is the one who gives to all men life and breath and everything else. From one forefather he has created every race of men to live over the face of the whole earth. He has determined the times of their existence and the limits of their habitation, so that they might search for God, in the hope that they might feel for him and find himyes, even though he is not far from any one of us. Indeed, it is in him that we live and move and have our being. Some of your own poets have endorsed this in the words, For we are indeed his children. If then we are the children of God, we ought not to imagine God in terms of gold or silver or stone, contrived by human art or imagination. Now while it is true that God has overlooked the days of ignorance he now commands all men everywhere to repent (because of the gift of his son Jesus). And, with regard to the notion of Limited Atonement, that Christs atoning sacrifice was never intended for everybody, I think that Pauls declaration at 1 Timothy 2:4 is sufficient rebuttal: God will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. Ive never forgotten a comment that John Sanders, another Protestant theologian who visited BYU a couple of times (and whom I admire on several levels), made to me and Lou Midgley over dinner one evening: I would feel a whole lot better about Calvinism, he remarked, if I had ever met a Calvinist theologian who wasnt sure that he himself was one of the Elect. Ill probably return to this topic in a day or two. But I cant in good conscience leave you basking in complacent self-satisfaction as one of the Universes randomly-chosen Elect. So here are some horrors from the Christopher Hitchens Memorial How Religion Poisons Everything File: that should serve to goad you into ever-greater efforts toward building a secular society where all can enjoy complete freedom from religion: Why Brazils first lady recently posted a sweet picture with sopping-wet missionaries Faith and religion promote strong mental health so why, pray tell, do atheists run the industry? May is Mental Health Awareness Month, a much-needed spotlight Overwhelming scientific evidence connects faith and religious practice with strengthening mental health, lowering depression, and preventing suicide and drug and alcohol overdoses. Sober minded: Why young Americans are abstaining from alcohol Im gratified to report that Jeffrey Mark Bradshaw, the Interpreter Foundations Vice President for Special Projects, is headed at this very moment to Cotonou, Benin, in west Africa, where he will join with a few associates for further work on the Foundations Not By Bread Alone film project, on which see here and here. They will be working there in Benin and, thereafter, in Rwanda, in Kenya, and, once more, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. There are stories from the Church in Africa that members worldwide should know. I want to share a few more passages that I recently marked while reading the book How to Know a Person: The Art of Seeing Others Deeply and Being Deeply Seen, which was written by the conservative New York Times columnist David Brooks. Incidentally (and for the sake of the folks on the Peterson Obsession Board, I do not claim that these excerpts adequately represent the overall thesis of the book. I also didnt claim that on the previous occasion when I shared quotations from How to Know a Person. My purpose in citing them isnt to reproduce the books overall thesis. If thats your interest, read the book. (I commend it to you.) Anyway, here are several passages that I noted, because I found them thought-provoking: People who grow up in different cultures see the world differentlysometimes on the most elemental level. Let me give you some examples. Between 1997 and 2002, diplomats to the United Nations didnt have to pay fines on any tickets they might acquire by parking illegally on New York City streets. Basically, they got free park where you want permission. People from low-corruption cultures, however, still refused to break the rules. Diplomats from the United Kingdom, Sweden, Canada, Australia, and a few other similar nations got a total of zero parking tickets during these five years. Meanwhile, diplomats from countries that had higher tolerance for corruption and rule breaking (You got to do what you got to do to feed your family) took full advantage of the regulation. Diplomats from Kuwait, Albania, Chad, and Bulgaria accumulated more than one hundred tickets per diplomat. They saw the situation differently, and its important to emphasize that its not because some individual diplomats were more honest or less honest than others. Its because some were descended from people whod grown up in places where it made sense to follow the establishments rules. Other diplomats ancestors grew up in places where perhaps there was colonialism or oppression or autocracy, and the establishments rules were illogical or even immoral, and so it made sense to break the rules when you could. Each person saw the world in a way that made sense according to their ancestors circumstances. (237) The evolutionary biologist Joseph Henrich wrote a book called The WEIRDest People in the World. In it, he makes the point that those of us in our Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic culture are complete outliers when compared to most other cultures in world history. For example, when people in our WEIRD culture get married, they tend to go off and set up their own separate household. But that is the dominant pattern in only 5 percent of the twelve hundred societies that have been studied. We often live in nuclear families. Thats the dominant family mode in only 8 percent of human societies. We have monogamous marriages. Thats predominant in only 15 percent of societies. And so on and so on. (238) In a classic 1972 study, students from Indiana and Taiwan were given groups of three things and asked which two of the three go together. When shown pictures of a man, woman, and child, the American kids tended to put the man and woman together, because they are both adults. The Taiwanese kids tended to put the woman and child together because the mother takes care of the baby. When shown pictures of a chicken, a cow, and grass, the American kids put the chicken and cow together because they are both animals. The Taiwanese kids put the cow and the grass together because a cow eats grass. In these and many other cases, the Americans tended to sort by categories and the Taiwanese tended to sort by relationships. (239) Research by Alberto Alesina, Paola Giuliano, and Nathan Nunn found that people who are descended from those who practiced plow-heavy agriculture tend to live in cultures that have strongly defined gender roles, because it was mostly men who drove the plow. On the other hand, people who are descended from those who did non-plow farming tend to have less defined gender roles. People descended from sheepherding cultures tend to be individualistic, because a shepherds job requires him to go off on his own. People descended from rice-farming cultures tend to be very interdependent, because everybody has to work together to raise and harvest rice. One researcher in China found that the divorce rate for people in historic wheat-farming regions was 50 percent higher than the divorce rate for those from historic rice-farming regions. (240) For further illustrations of his point in this context, Brooke recommends the 1989 book Albions Seed: Four British Folkways in America (1989), by the retired Brandeis University historian David Hackett Fischer. Ive long had it on my mind, though I havent yet read it. Fischers Historians Fallacies: Toward a Logic of Historical Thought (1970) is an absolute treasure. You might enjoy this new article from the Filipino magazine BusinessMirror. I did. It is based at least partially on an interview with President Dallin H. Oaks and Sister Kristin Oaks, the occasion for which was their visit to the Philippines to dedicate the new temple in Urdaneta: Latter-day Saints new temple to serve 200,000 members around Pangasinan Finally, I want to wish a rather happy Mothers Day to all those out there to whom the wish properly applies. My wife certainly deserves better thanks than she receives, and Im betting that some of you do, too. I cannot begin to repay the debt that I owe to my own mother and to my wife. Please Hit Subscribe! If you have received benefit from this or any of my other 4,600+ articles, please follow this blog by signing up (with your email address) on the sidebar to the right (you may have to scroll down a bit), above where there is an icon bar, Sign Me Up!: to receive notice when I post a new blog article. This is the equivalent of subscribing to a YouTube channel. Please also consider following me on Twitter / X and purchasing one or more of my 55 books. All of this helps me get more exposure, and (however little!) more income for my full-time apologetics work. Thanks so much and happy reading! *** These are my replies to the James White portion of the legendary (notorious?) debate on this topic with Catholic apologist Patrick Madrid: Does The Bible Teach Sola Scriptura? It took place live on 28 September 1993, at the Bayview Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Chula Vista, California. As I always do when commenting on a debate that had included another Catholic, I wont be reading or defending the Catholic side. Pat made his particular arguments, and did a fine job, as always. I will be concentrating on giving my replies to Whites remarks. The Right Rev. Bishop Whites words will be in blue. I use RSV in my Bible citations. *** There have always been those who have refused to give the Scriptures their proper place. Indeed. Ignoring the abundant data that Scripture provides about the Church and tradition (also necessary parts of the rule of faith) isnt doing that. Its pretending that what we may not personally care for is not in Holy Scripture. Thats not deferring to or respecting Gods inspired revelation, but rather, making ourselves the arbiters and judges of what portions of Scripture we will follow, and what parts we will minimize or ignore. Pick-and-choose theology, in other words, which is precisely what the heresies of history always did, too. There have always been those who wished to add to Scripture their own authority and the unique teachings that set them apart. Exactly what I was just saying that Protestants must do, if they abide by the man-made, unbiblical tradition of sola Scriptura . . . White then contends that because St. Basil the Great appealed to Scripture in arguments with heretics, he must have believed in sola Scriptura. Its not true. The two are not the same thing. The Bible or the reverence of and recourse to it is not equivalent to an outlook sola Scriptura whereby the Bible is considered the only infallible authority in Christianity (Church and tradition being excluded from such infallibility). Basil did not adhere to sola Scriptura, as I have documented several times (including in reply to White himself). Basil the Great accepted the authority of sacred tradition (in a way utterly at odds with sola Scriptura): The one aim of the whole band of opponents and enemies of sound doctrine is to shake down the foundation of the faith of Christ by levelling apostolic tradition with the ground, and utterly destroying it. (The Holy Spirit, 25) Now one of the institutions of Gregory is the very form of the doxology to which objection is now made, preserved by the Church on the authority of his tradition; . . . (The Holy Spirit, 29) Let us now investigate what are our common conceptions concerning the Spirit, as well those which have been gathered by us from Holy Scripture concerning It as those which we have received from the unwritten tradition of the Fathers. (The Holy Spirit, 9:22) [T]hey clamour for written proof, and reject as worthless the unwritten tradition of the Fathers. (The Holy Spirit, 25) While the unwritten traditions are so many, and their bearing on the mystery of godliness is so important, can they refuse to allow us a single word which has come down to us from the Fathers; which we found, derived from untutored custom, abiding in unperverted churches; . . . (The Holy Spirit, 27) But if the greater number of our mysteries are admitted into our constitution without written authority, then, in company with the many others, let us receive this one. For I hold it apostolic to abide also by the unwritten traditions. I praise you, it is said, that ye remember me in all things, and keep the ordinances as I delivered them to you; and Hold fast the traditions which ye have been taught whether by word, or our Epistle. (The Holy Spirit, 27) Of the beliefs and practices whether generally accepted or publicly enjoined which are preserved in the Church some we possess derived from written teaching; others we have received delivered to us in a mystery by the tradition of the apostles; and both of these in relation to true religion have the same force. And these no one will gainsay;no one, at all events, who is even moderately versed in the institutions of the Church. For were we to attempt to reject such customs as have no written authority, on the ground that the importance they possess is small, we should unintentionally injure the Gospel in its very vitals; or, rather, should make our public definition a mere phrase and nothing more. . . . For we are not, as is well known, content with what the apostle or the Gospel has recorded, but both in preface and conclusion we add other words as being of great importance to the validity of the ministry, and these we derive from unwritten teaching. . . . the Apostles and Fathers who laid down laws for the Church from the beginning thus guarded the awful dignity of the mysteries in secrecy and silence . . . Time will fail me if I attempt to recount the unwritten mysteries of the Church. . . . While the unwritten traditions are so many, and their bearing on the mystery of godliness is so important, can they refuse to allow us a single word which has come down to us from the Fathers;which we found, derived from untutored custom, abiding in unperverted churches;a word for which the arguments are strong, and which contributes in no small degree to the completeness of the force of the mystery? (The Holy Spirit, 30) He believed in apostolic succession (in a way that Protestants have rejected): [T]hat doctrine, which by the tradition of the Fathers has been preserved by an unbroken sequence of memory to our own day. (The Holy Spirit, 30) That faith we have received; that faith we know is stamped with the marks of the Apostles; to that faith we assent, as well as to all that was canonically and lawfully promulgated in the Synodical Letter. (Letter #92 to the Italians and Gauls, 3) He believed in the binding authority and infallibility and even a sort of quasi-inspiration of ecumenical councils (anathema to Protestantism): [T]he same Fathers who once at Nica promulgated their great decree concerning the faith. Of this, some portions are universally accepted without cavil, but the homoousion, ill received in certain quarters, is still rejected by some. . . . To refuse to follow the Fathers, not holding their declaration of more authority than ones own opinion, is conduct worthy of blame, as being brimful of self-sufficiency. (Letter #52 to the Canonicae) Y]ou should confess the faith put forth by our Fathers once assembled at Nica, that you should not omit any one of its propositions, but bear in mind that the three hundred and eighteen who met together without strife did not speak without the operation of the Holy Ghost, . . . (Letter #114 to Cyriacus, at Tarsus; NPNF2-8) Therefore, he did not believe in sola Scriptura; period! Is the Bible the sole and infallible rule of faith for the Church? No; according to that same Bible. Or must we have other revelation from God? Other revelation isnt required; only other authoritative and infallible teaching: from the Church and tradition and apostolic succession and ecumenical councils and popes. Do we need . . . the so-called Apostolic unwritten traditions of Rome? Yes, just as Basil reiterated over and over. He clearly didnt believe in the non-biblical notion of inscripturation: as White does. Does the Bible teach its own sufficiency to function as the sole rule of faith for the Church? No; it denies its own formal sufficiency for that purpose. The doctrine of sola scriptura, simply stated, is that the Scriptures and the Scriptures alone are sufficient to function as the regula fide, the rule of faith for the Church. . . . That which is not found in Scripture is not binding upon the Christian conscience. . . . Their authority is not dependent upon man, Church or council. . . . the Bible is sufficient to function as the sole, infallible rule of faith for the Church. It follows that councils and popes and tradition and the Church are not infallible and thus are not part of the rule of faith, according to Protestantism. And it also logically follows that whoever believes that any of these non-scriptural things are infallible, must by the same token deny sola Scriptura. I have shown by this method, that some twenty-five or more Church fathers all denied sola Scriptura: using Whites own definition, which is a pretty standard one. I was arguably utilizing an even more full and concise definition of sola Scriptura a year before this expression from White, in a treatise written on 9-14-92: later included in my book, A Biblical Defense of Catholicism (p. 4): The concept of sola Scriptura, it must be noted, is not in principle opposed to the importance and validity of Church history, Tradition, ecumenical councils, or the authority of Church Fathers and prominent theologians. The difference lies in the relative position of authority held by Scripture and Church institutions and proclamations. In theory, the Bible judges all of these, since, for the Evangelical Protestant, it alone is infallible, and the Church, popes, and councils are not. FOOTNOTES: Luther, Martin, On the Councils and the Churches, 1539; Sproul, R.C., Sola Scriptura: Crucial to Evangelicalism, in Boice, James Montgomery, ed., The Foundation of Biblical Authority, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 1978, 109; Brown, Robert McAfee, The Spirit of Protestantism, Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press, 1961, 67. We begin by noting that Scripture is theopneustos, God-breathed. No Catholic has ever denied this. But its irrelevant to the discussion of sola Scriptura, which entails the question of whether other sources of authority are infallible and binding. They need not be inspired in order to disprove sola Scriptura. White then trotted out (like every other apologist for sola Scriptura) 2 Timothy 3:16-17: All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, [17] that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. I replied to this in my book, A Biblical Defense of Catholicism, as follows: For example, to reason by analogy, lets examine a very similar passage, Ephesians 4:11-15: Ephesians 4:11-15 And his gifts were that some should be apostle, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, for the equipment of the saints, for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ; so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the cunning of men, by their craftiness in deceitful wiles. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are able to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, If the Greek artios (Revised Standard Version [RSV], complete; King James version [KJV], perfect) proves the sole sufficiency of Scripture in 2 Timothy, then teleios (RSV, mature manhood; KJV, perfect) in Ephesians would likewise prove the sufficiency of pastors, teachers, and so forth for the attainment of Christian perfection. Note that in Ephesians 4:11-15, the Christian believer is equipped, built up, brought into unity and mature manhood, knowledge of Jesus, the fulness of Christ, and even preserved from doctrinal confusion by means of the teaching function of the Church. This is a far stronger statement of the perfecting of the saints than 2 Timothy 3:16-17, yet it doesnt even mention Scripture. Therefore, the Protestant interpretation of 2 Timothy 3:16-17 proves too much, since if all nonscriptural elements are excluded in 2 Timothy, then, by analogy, Scripture would logically have to be excluded in Ephesians. It is far more reasonable to synthesize the two passages in an inclusive, complementary fashion, by recognizing that the mere absence of one or more elements in one passage does not mean that they are nonexistent. Thus, the Church and Scripture are both equally necessary and important for teaching. This is precisely the Catholic view. Neither passage is intended in an exclusive sense. (pp. 15-16) It also can be noted that in 2 Timothy, Paul also makes reference to oral tradition three times (1:13-14; 2:2; 3:14). The authority of the Church then, in teaching, and rebuking, and instructing, is derived, despite Roman Catholic claims to the contrary, from Scripture itself. We dont deny that. We deny that the two things ought to be pitted against each other in a typically Protestant false dichotomy. Surely, here Paul would have to direct us to any and all other rules of faith that we would need to be complete but, he does not. He certainly does, as I just documented, including in the verse just two verse before our passage, and in the first and second chapters, too: 2 Timothy 1:13-14 Follow the pattern of the sound words which you have heard from me, in the faith and love which are in Christ Jesus; [14] guard the truth that has been entrusted to you by the Holy Spirit who dwells within us. 2 Timothy 2:2 and what you have heard from me before many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. 2 Timothy 3:14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it Now, Mr. Madrid, do you not believe that it is a good work to pray to Mary? Yet, the Scriptures nowhere teach this. Scripture teaches (from Jesus Himself) that the rich man petitioned Abraham in prayer three times (Lk 16:24, 27-28, 30). Abraham nowhere rebukes him or tells him to pray only to God. Jesus is telling the story, in inspired Scripture, therefore it must be true theology. Thus, if Jesus taught that men can pray to Abraham, there is nothing stopping them from praying to (i.e., petitioning or asking to intercede) Mary the Mother of God the Son. If one creature and holy person can be prayed to, so can another, by the same token. Have at it! Do you not believe that it is good to believe and teach that Mary was bodily assumed into Heaven? Yet, the Bible does not teach this. It doesnt list its own canon, either, or teach sola Scriptura, or sola fide (faith alone). That doesnt stop Protestants from believing in all three. But Marys Assumption is completely consistent and harmonious with Scripture (being simply an early example of the resurrection of the body, promised to all of the elect; why not Jesus mother first?). Sola Scriptura and sola fide, on the other hand, are not. Theyre contradicted by many other biblical passages (which would, I guess, explain why virtually no one believed in them until some fifteen centuries after Christ). Do you not believe that the man of God should teach, in the Church, that the pope, in Rome, is infallible in his teaching office? Yet, the Scriptures know nothing of such a concept. It certainly does. St. Peter exercised his infallibility at the council of Jerusalem (Acts 15). He gave the primary speech and provided the guiding principle (based on a direct vision from God regarding the Gentiles, that he recently experienced), which caused the assembly to be silent (15:12); then the letter based on it was described as good to the Holy Spirit (15:28). No less than St. Paul then went all through Asia Minor (Turkey) delivering for observance the decisions which had been reached by the apostles and elders who were at Jerusalem (16:4). So we had an infallible pronouncement by the first pope and leader of the new Church, in conjunction with a council of important figures in the Church (apostles and elders), that was protected by the Holy Spirit, and binding on Christians far and wide. After Jerusalem was destroyed in 70 AD, it made sense for the Church to then be centered in Rome, since it was the capital of the empire. Peter and Paul both ended their lives there as martyrs. Sound familiar? Paul here [2 Tim 3:16] teaches that the Bible is a rule of faith. Yes, a rule of faith, but not the sole one. For he says the Churchs function of teaching and rebuking and instructing is to be based upon God-inspired Scriptures. It certainly is, but just not exclusively so. It doesnt say only Scripture is the rule of faith, etc. Thats simply read into the passage by wishful thinking Protestants (eisegesis), in order to be force-fit into their arbitrary man-made tradition. It states that the Bible is profitable (of course) and is inspired (yep; who denies it?). Neither is the same thing as a rule of faith. And Im sick and tired of Protestant apologists not recognizing this self-evident fact. We see that Paul not only does not refer us to another rule of faith False. He refers to tradition (including oral) three times in the same letter: once in the immediate context. Therefore, I assert that the doctrine of sola scriptura is taught plainly in this passage. Mr. Madrid must be able to fully refute the information I have provided to you to win this evenings debate. Im sure he did. Its not difficult at all to do. Basically, its simple logic and citing obviously related biblical cross references. I certainly did so, too, in my replies above and will continue to do so in what remains of this reply. Now, one might well ask, Is this the only place where sola scriptura is taught? Most certainly not, though it is the clearest. Thus is manifest the Protestant difficulty in desperately attempting to prove this false doctrine from Scripture. If this is the best they can come up with (and most of them say it is), how pathetic and pitiful indeed is the case, since this proves nothing whatsoever of what is required to be proven. That being the case, Protestants simply pretend that it proves what it doesnt prove, and go on their merry way. It would be comical if it werent so tragic. Mr. Madrid is going to have to prove that these oral traditions are theopneusto [God-breathed; inspired] or they cannot function along with God-breathed Scripture. This is the same fallacy again. Not all binding authority is required to be inspired Scripture. Scripture never says that it is the sole authority or rule of faith. And it presents other things beside itself as quite authoritative. For example, the church of the living God, the pillar and bulwark of the truth (1 Tim 3:15). When one unpacks the meaning of that verse (as I did), its quite profound and unmistakable. Ive already brought up the Jerusalem council, recorded in Acts 15 (Ive written about it many times), which was guided by the Holy Spirit. That wasnt the Bible when it happened. Parts of it were recorded in the Bible. But it itself was a council, not a written revelation. The Holy Spirit confirmed what was decided. That may not be literally God-breathed but it was very close, if not. If something is led and overseen by God, then in a large sense it is inspired and God breathed. But in any event it was authoritative, which is why St. Paul proclaimed its decree far and wide. lets take a look at 2 Timothy 2:2. . . . But you my child, be strong in the grace which is in Christ Jesus, and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, these things entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others. Join in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. Did you hear anything in there that denies sola scriptura? Yes. Its authoritative oral tradition, rather than the Bible. So its describing a rule of faith contrary to sola Scriptura. Well were told, You see, well youre supposed to entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others those that youve heard from me. And you need to listen to every presentation that is made by the Roman Catholic apologists because there is an underlying assumption, you see. As soon as you hear all these passagesand were going to take the time to look at 2 Thessalonians 2:15 and all the rest of thatheres the assumption, that if you hear about a spoken tradition, if you hear about, for example, here Timothy hearing things in the presence of Paul, those things must contain information, like maybe the Immaculate Conception or Bodily Assumption of Mary, or Papal Infallibilitythey must contain some different data that is being passed on, rather than whats in Scripture. Theres the problem. Its not a problem because we dont believe it must contain information other than whats in Scripture. It may or it may not. Its silly for White to pretend that this is what we believe. I challenge Mr. Madrid to show us any bit of evidence that any time that the term tradition is used in Scripture, where the Christian Church is passing it on, that it means that what is in that tradition differs from whats in the New Testament. Thats the assumption that must be proven by the Roman Catholic for these citations of these passages to be relevant at all. This accomplishes little in this debate, since White has the same task in the opposite direction. He has to prove that every tradition mentioned in the Bible, or generic, broad apostolic tradition is the same as what we have in the Bible. He can no more prove that than we can prove the opposite (even though its not our burden to do so in the first place, as white vainly imagines). But being a sophist as he is, he plays up our supposed responsibility, while ignoring his own, that is even more pressing than our task, since it inexorably follows from his own viewpoint on the rule of faith. The Bible arguably presents tradition as synonymous with the gospel, the Word of God, the truth, the faith, the gospel, the teaching, etc. Paul obviously has in mind a concrete body of teachings that he taught the churches that he established. Its not just one thing. If that were the case, he would have specified it. But he doesnt do so in almost all cases. Thayers Greek Lexicon (Strongs Greek word #3862) states that the same word ( paradosis tradition) means a giving over which is done by word of mouth or in writing what is delivered . . . instruction . . . the substance of the teaching in 2 Thessalonians 3:6, whereas he thinks it refers to particular injunctions of Pauls instruction in 1 Corinthians 11:2 and 2 Thessalonians 2:15. He holds that the word can refer to precepts received from the fathers, whether handed down in the O. T. books or orally (Gal 1:14: the traditions of my fathers): with some restricting or including the reference in that passage to extra-biblical traditions. In the Greek Septuagint (LXX) its used for the law [of God]: Ezra 7:26. Kittels Theological Dictionary of the New Testament (one-volume edition, p. 168, also, like Thayer, not a Catholic work, affirms that it refers to written as well as unwritten traditions in Galatians 1:14, and is equated with Christian teaching (1 Cor 11:2; 2 Thess 2:15); also deducing from 1 Corinthians 15:3 ff. and 11:23 ff., that it is older than Paul and is already acquiring a fixed form in his day. Any way we look at it, there is plenty of tradition in the sense that Catholics refer to it (including oral) in the New Testament. Now, did Paul teach something different in the presence of many witnesses that he taught in his epistle to the Romans or the Galatians? Undeniably, that is entirely possible, and White can make no argument that proves that it is impossible. So his claim has no substantive content. I agree that most of it would likely be basically the theology we have in the New Testament; but no one can prove that all of it would be that. heres one of those passages that talks about tradition, or teaching. 2 Thessalonians 3:6, In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ we command you, brothers, to keep away from every brother that is idle and does not live according to the teaching or the tradition you received from us. Oh, well, heres this oral tradition, this oral tradition we need to keep! Really? No. Look back at 1 Thessalonians chapter 5 verse 14 as well as 1 Thessalonians chapter 4. Paul is referring back to the tradition he had already delivered to them, that is, in writing. In 1 Thessalonians 5:14 Paul tells them to admonish the elders. But that doesnt cover the whole content of 2 Thessalonians 3:6. Its only a secondary matter. The relevance of the latter verse is the second part, which refers to the tradition you received from us. Nor can White prove that whatever is in 1 Thessalonians 4 is identical to what he is talking about in 2 Thessalonians 3:6. He simply cannot do so. As we will see, the term tradition normally refers to that which was orally preached, but its the same message. Well, it passes along part of the entire deposit of faith: some of which is not in Scripture, or not explicit there. Again, White cant prove otherwise. Catholics can assert that authoritative tradition existed because the fathers massively bear witness to it. In fact, in 2 Thessalonians 2:15 . . . its talking about the gospel. White appears to have in mind the verse before: To this he called you through our gospel, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. But this doesnt necessarily have any direct correlation to the next verse: So then, brethren, stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught by us, either by word of mouth or by letter. Nothing there requires the reader to equate the traditions and the gospel altogether. In any event, all of it together comprises the apostolic deposit, passed down through apostolic succession. The linguist Thayer, as I noted above, thinks that 2 Thessalonians 2:15 refers to particular injunctions of Pauls instruction not the gospel per se. I submit that he is more of an authority on the biblical text than White is. the teaching of the infallibility of the Bishop of Rome is a traditional teaching. It comes from tradition primarily. It is not found in Scripture. Youll never find a reference to the Bishop of Rome or anything even regarding that in Scripture. The early Church didnt believe it, and Ive debated that, and would be glad to have more debates on that. Its there by analogy. See: Infallible Individuals: Scriptural Examples & Analogies [2009] Inspired & Infallible Prophets: Analogy to Infallible Popes [2-2-10] Papacy & OT Infallible Prophets Analogy (vs. Gavin Ortlund) [3-14-24] * *** "City Read" sparks love for reading Xinhua) 13:22, May 13, 2024 SHENYANG, May 12 (Xinhua) -- Wang Yan, a sophomore at China's Northeastern University, makes it a weekend ritual to wander along the bustling streets and narrow alleys of the city, hunting for tucked-away urban bookstores where she can settle in quietly to indulge in reading. "Each bookstore has its unique features, allowing us to experience the city's characteristics while delving into deep reading," said Wang. Since the beginning of this year, "City Read" has become a popular hashtag on Chinese social media platforms. This planned exploration of cities, by checking in at urban bookstores, allows young people to explore urban changes, history, culture, fashion, and innovation through a new way of reading. On social media platforms, many young people recommend various urban bookstores and share stories of achieving "reading freedom" and "self-study freedom" right at their doorsteps. Walking through the streets of Shenyang's Heping District, in northeast China's Liaoning Province, one can find many independent bookstores hidden in alleys. The list includes Gede Bookstore, which has a history of 101 years, and which boasts a classical and grand architectural style. There is also Whoop Book &Cafe, converted from a community boiler room, and which recommends new books every week, while When Paper Talk Bookstore is located under residential buildings, and is a store where new books are unsealed and available for free, allowing visitors to sit quietly and read all day. These three stores are just a few of those available to reading enthusiasts in Shenyang. "These bookstores are very close to my home, and the environment is comfortable. Sitting here reading gives me a unique feeling," said Zhang Qi, a resident of Shenyang. In Beijing, meanwhile, some 24-hour urban libraries are highly popular among residents. Convenient locations, round-the-clock availability, spacious designs, and other advantages have become the main reasons why many young people flock to such libraries. The popularity of "City Read" is inseparable from the continuous improvement of the construction of public facilities across China. In Shenyang, relying on the cultural heritage of historical buildings, many idle assets have been transformed into public cultural spaces. These spaces now host over 20 bookstores and more than 100 reading rooms, attracting millions of readers. Across the country, efforts are also being made to create "10-minute reading circles" and "15-minute reading circles" to improve urban public reading facilities. Whoop Book &Cafe hosts weekly activities such as new book signings, film screenings, lectures, podcasts, and salons, and offers a "one-day store clerk" experience. Deng Qingxuan, a student from Shenyang Jianzhu University, decided to have a go at the "one-day store clerk" opportunity. Making coffee, organizing shelves, and recommending books, proved a busy day which left Deng with a deep impression and feeling that "reading is infectious, and seeing so many people drawn to reading because of my service makes me very happy." Zhang Sining, a researcher at Liaoning Academy of Social Sciences, said that in the digital era, diverse offline urban bookstores can better satisfy the emotional needs of young people, while also allowing them to discover the greater charm of physical reading. Since opening two years ago, the book club of When Paper Talk Bookstore has grown from a handful of readers to over 300 members, mostly young people with an average age of about 30. "Many book club members bring their friends, and some even fall in love with reading because of the bookstore," said Zhang Shibo, the bookstore's manager. "Attending a City Read activity and hearing diverse narratives in bookstores evoked the charm of reading in me," said Deng. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing) The second of the new Doctor Who episodes is called The Devils Chord. The title and the opening sequence make reference to the notion that the church banned tritones because they were demonic. Although Doctor Who started out aiming to teach young people about history, it has regularly repeated pseudohistorical notions, and this most recent episode is an example of that. The fact that someone called the dissonance created by two notes a half step apart or by a diminished fifth/augmented fourth as the devil in music should not be taken as anything other than a metaphor. If youre aiming for beauty then such dissonance needs to be kept to a minimum. Thats not theology, it is aesthetics based in physics. Be that as it may, the premise of music being used to conjure, and the being (the Maestro) who appears starting to play the Doctor Who theme on the piano and then having it segue into the actual opening credits is effective. For those interested in religion, the Doctors reference to everyone wanting to go to Mars or Bethlehem rather than see the Beatles is striking, and not just because of John Lennons quip that the Beatles had become bigger than Jesus Christ. (See my short story Certainty for time travel to Jerusalem in the first century. It was recently reprinted in Esoterica Magazine. Also dont forget about when the Doctor said he went to the original Christmas.) What happens next is hilarious, if also somber. The Beatles (and also Cilla Black) are seen singing songs, but not good ones. Even an orchestra is heard playing a dissonant version of Three Blind Mice. It turns out that it is not only music that has changed, but historical events are going awry too. The Doctor says, If music is gone that means everything has changed. The Doctor and Ruby talk to Paul and John and there is a hint that there is a holy music they have an inkling of, but then we see glimpses of the Maestro and thats it. No love songs, no dancing. There is also a great open-ended discussion of whether the Doctors granddaughter escaped the genocide of the time lords. Ruby plays the piano in an effort to bring the music back and we see people responding emotionally. Then the Maestro appears cackling the giggle of the Toymaker. The Doctor makes reference to the Maestro in religious terms: That thing must be part of the Pantheon. Oh God. One trick thats all you get with the gods. We also get to see a world robbed of the beauty, artistic, and poetic that music and also mysticism make room for. The Doctor says, Without music the human race goes sour. If theres no way to express a broken heart, humans go to war without even knowing why. We learn that the Maestro seeks aeolian tones, music produced without people. We also get a moving appearance of the Carol of the Bells. Hearing it leads the Maestro to ask, How can a song have so much power, power like the oldest one? Am I right that somehow that carol is inherently transcendent, haunting, full of power in the way the episode describes? Is there anyone for whom it doesnt have that effect? We then get a music battle (as the Maestro calls it) which has inherent religious overtones thanks to the scenarios depiction in songs like The Devil Went Down to Georgia and the movie Crossroads. The Doctor seems to be winning but then messes up the last note. But then Paul and John come and play, as Paul recalls what he said, you put the notes together and it is like the most holy thing on earth. They discover the notes the Doctor had played and add the last one. Just as the so-called devils chord summoned the Maestro, the secret chord (perhaps the one that Leonard Cohen says pleased the Lord) reverses it. The Maestro, before being banished, says The one who waits is almost here. If you have read my blog for a while youll know that music is one of the major elements in my religious faith. It expresses aspects of life that go beyond words, and points towards transcendence, depth, and mystery. I dont mean specifically religious music. Often it is music without words that touches my heart and brings joy and hope to my soul, as so often in this episode (apart from the bits of rock comedy). Carol of the Bells is but one wonderful example. See here for some past Doctor Who Beatles intersections. The actual Beatles appeared on the very early Doctor Who episode The Chase. What did you think of The Devils Chord? At a glance Expert's Rating Pros Very good value 1440p, 30Hz Autofocus, which works well in good lighting Good noise-cancelling mics Decent imagery Cons Autofocus doesnt work as well in dim lighting Somewhat precarious connection to a laptop Unnecessary utility software Our Verdict The eMeets SmartCam C960 2K is a decent $50 midrange webcam thats a good value, with decent imagery in good lighting. Its not a definitive upgrade over the 1080p model, though. The eMeet SmartCam C960 2K pushes into midrange webcam territory by offering 1440p video at a 1080p price, but youll still find some areas in which this webcam feels more like a budget offering. Will that matter to you? Probably not. eMeets SmartCam C960 2K is the upgraded version of the eMeet SmartCam C960, a rather decent webcam and one of the most popular on Amazon by virtue of its reasonable price and feature set. As the name suggests, the autofocusing C960 2K offers 2K resolution, which is another way of saying that it produces 1440p video (at 30Hz) and 25601440 images. This review forms part of our roundup of the best webcams for Windows PCs. eMeet SmartCam C960 2K build quality At 3.9 x 2.3 x 2 inches., the C960 2K is a compact little webcam that perches on top of your monitor. A pair of noise-canceling mics are mounted to either side. This is a $50 (or less) webcam, but its still a bit disappointing to see that eMeet preserved the stickum privacy shutter that graced the cheaper model. Its a folding plastic tab that connects via sticky tape to the top of the camera, instead of being already attached. In fairness, it works just fine, but feels a bit cheap. Again, eMeet cut a corner (rather literally), in that the mounting mechanism consists of the standard tooth that hooks over the front of the display. In the C960 2Ks case, the webcams mount is a V, with the webcam mounted on one leg. The other leg swivels on a hinge. Some webcam makers add another hinge, allowing the webcam to better accommodate a variety of laptops and monitors. In this case, the webcam sat easily on top of my desktop display, which has a slightly curved backing. On a laptop, the eMeet SmartCam C960 2K grips a little too precariously for my taste. On a laptop, the eMeet SmartCam C960 2K grips a little too precariously for my taste. Mark Hachman / IDG On a laptop, the eMeet SmartCam C960 2K grips a little too precariously for my taste. Mark Hachman / IDG Mark Hachman / IDG On laptops, though, the eMeet C960 2K sits much more precariously, gripping the top of a laptop more like a pair of chopsticks than anything else. While you can swivel the C960 2K around its mount by 360 degrees, it has much less vertical play maybe 20 degrees in either direction. On a laptop, then, the C960 feels more like a balancing act than an extension of your laptop. There is a threaded hole, however, if you prefer a tripod. The C960 2Ks cable stretches almost 5 feet, terminating in a legacy USB-A port. The manufacturer says that the cable is an older USB 2.0 cable, which should be able to connect to a legacy 480Mbps USB port on your laptop. The C960 2K is an autofocusing camera, but its a different type of autofocusing: According to eMeet, it uses time-of-flight camera technology to calculate the distance to the object, and when adjusting the focus, it prioritizes the distance to the object, so it can focus more accurately. In addition, TOF focusing can work better in low-light environments because it does not rely only on visible light. Theres a flip-down privacy lid on the eMeet SmartCam C960 2K. Theres a flip-down privacy lid on the eMeet SmartCam C960 2K. Mark Hachman / IDG Theres a flip-down privacy lid on the eMeet SmartCam C960 2K. Mark Hachman / IDG Mark Hachman / IDG As it turns out, Im not so sure about that. eMeet SmartCam C960 2K performance If youre not a fan of downloading random utilities to assist peripheral devices, you might be able to skip downloading eMeetLink, the webcams utility software. Microsofts Bing search engine began autosuggesting is eMeetLink safe after typing the first two words, which wasnt particularly reassuring. When installing the driver, Windows will note that the software comes from a manufacturer which is identified in Mandarin, not English, so the source of the software isnt easily determined. In any event, eMeetLink overlaps heavily with Windows own built-in webcam controls (Settings > Camera, then select the eMeet camera) with contrast, brightness, and other image controls within the app. But there really isnt anything else, although I suspect that it would influence how well it can control autofocusing. I downloaded the app on a test notebook anyway. The eMeet SmartCam C960 2K, captured at 2K (1440p) resolution, in my downstairs office. The eMeet SmartCam C960 2K, captured at 2K (1440p) resolution, in my downstairs office. Mark Hachman / IDG The eMeet SmartCam C960 2K, captured at 2K (1440p) resolution, in my downstairs office. Mark Hachman / IDG Mark Hachman / IDG I thought eMeets camera did an excellent job in terms of color accuracy, though I accidentally reset the settings when I was testing the utility. That made the camera reassess the ruddy look it had given my face (Irish-German heritage, hurray) and color it more accurately. It still looks fairly red in my sample shot. I was convinced that the camera wasnt delivering the proper resolution, however, until I discovered that it simply wasnt focusing correctly on my face. I use two locations to capture images: one, downstairs, in a rather dimly-lit office; and upstairs, in my living room with much more natural light. The claim that the camera autofocuses better in low light doesnt quite hold up, in my opinion. Upstairs, focusing wasnt an issue, and the camera captured me pretty well. I still feel that the image was dimmer than it could be, compared to the laptops internal webcam that I used as a reality check. What the camera doesnt do and this is a good thing is constantly focus in and out. That drives me nuts, like people who tap their brakes constantly on the highway. Upstairs, the eMeet SmartCam C960 2Ks picture is rather dim. It was a bright spring day outside, around noon, and the drapes were open. Upstairs, the eMeet SmartCam C960 2Ks picture is rather dim. It was a bright spring day outside, around noon, and the drapes were open. Mark Hachman / IDG Upstairs, the eMeet SmartCam C960 2Ks picture is rather dim. It was a bright spring day outside, around noon, and the drapes were open. Mark Hachman / IDG Mark Hachman / IDG A great webcam isnt great unless it can make your voice sound good, too. I test webcams and their noise-cancelling mics by playing background music and white noise to see how well the camera filters them out. The eMeet SmartCam C960 2K didnt do badly: I was able to faintly hear a rock song I was playing in the background as I recorded my test sample, which would be apparent to a listener but not enough to overwhelm the conversation. Simulated white noise (in this case, rainfall) was filtered almost perfectly. My voice sounded normal, too. Remember, theres no privacy shutter for the C960 2Ks mic. Its always on, and youll have to unplug the camera to turn it off or manually turn off the mic in the Windows Settings menu. Should you buy the eMeet SmartCam C960 2K? I think the C960 2K is worth buying. Im not sure I agree with the TOF autofocusing being better than traditional methods. As with all webcams, better lighting produces a better picture, and if you prefer working in a dim environment, this webcam is a little hit or miss. You might want to add a ring light or just open the blinds a bit during a call. Even in a brighter environment, you may have to adjust the brightness settings within Windows to produce a better image. I do like a solution that works well out of the box. Here, though, any focusing issues disappear. Is the eMeet C960 2K better than the eMeet C960 (1080p)? Not definitively. I rather liked the images the vanilla C960 produced in well-lit areas. The 2Ks mics are better, in my book. I think with some fiddling you can produce a better picture with the C960 2K, but its not an overwhelmingly better camera. Im convinced, though, that the C960 is indeed a solid webcam, at the price. Im not awarding it an Editors Choice award, but it earns my approval nevertheless. AI isnt just a buzzword trying to drive PC sales to consumers. Its also becoming a huge and very lucrative business just ask Nvidia, which has more than doubled its stock price in the last year off of selling GPUs to data centers powering the backend of generative artificial intelligence apps. And chip competitor Arm, and its business daddy SoftBank, wants a piece of that pie. Nikkei Asia reports that Arm is currently setting up an AI division and seeking partners for mass chip production, with a prototype AI chip planned for early 2025 and full-scale manufacturing penciled in for the fall of that year. Its all part of SoftBanks 10-trillion-yen ($64 billion USD) investment in the AI space, combined with plans to build data centers around the world and seek out new mergers and acquisitions. Notably, Nvidia failed to buy Arm from SoftBank in 2022 after the US Federal Trade Commission threatened to block the deal. Arm currently licenses chip designs to companies like Nvidia, Apple, and Samsung; this change would mean Arm is making its own chips (via foundries). It would be a massive change to the model that brings them more closely in competition to their licensing customers. Arm-based chips are usually seen in smartphones and other mobile devices, but more recently theyve been on the rise in Mac laptops and a big push for Windows machines. Arms architecture is also gaining steam in servers, where theyre generally less powerful but far more efficient than the x86 and x64 designs data centers usually rely on, still evolving from chip designs as far back as the 1980s. Arm CPU designs are gaining performance ground quickly, with Qualcomm claiming its upcoming Snapdragon X Elite chips could even snatch some performance crowns from Intel. Thats yet to be proven, of course well have to wait and see how the next generation of Arm designs stack up against more conventional chips for consumers and industry. (Arms CEO also recently teased that he expects more companies to make Arm-based PC chips in the next few years possibly Arm itself, or maybe Nvidia?) Since AI applications require both number-crunching power and huge amounts of electricity, a compelling offering from Arm could set off an even bigger AI arms race, if youll pardon the pun not least because it will be competing against its own customers. The company will have a lot of ground to make up versus Nvidia and others in 2025, but the potential for profit is simply too great to ignore for SoftBank. Microsoft is launching a new application called Places, which will offer employees and organizations balancing home and in-office work a better way to figure out who is where, and when. Youll probably immediately know if you or your team might be using Places, given that youre already familiar with your companys attitude towards remote work. Its clear that some companies would like to convince their workers to return to the office, while some workers would rather avoid the stress and expense of a commute and work from home. Places is designed to balance that tension, Microsoft said. First off, the app can be used as a standalone indicator of who will be in the office, and when. But it will also be integrated into both Outlook and Copilot, so you can visually see which team members will be where, or just ask Copilot to sum it all up. Copilot integration will take place during the second half of 2024, Microsoft said. Microsoft outlined its Places plans in a blog post, with a surprising amount of graphics describing what Places will look like. Weve reproduced a few here. Heres what Places will offer: Location plans: You can set you location for a given period, and check to see whether your coworkers (or your boss) will be in too. A peek card sums your plans up. This is the Microsoft Places suggestions screen, where you can see your calendar and decide whether or not to go in. This is the Microsoft Places suggestions screen, where you can see your calendar and decide whether or not to go in. Microsoft This is the Microsoft Places suggestions screen, where you can see your calendar and decide whether or not to go in. Microsoft Microsoft Suggestions: What days should you plan to come in? Places can make recommendations. What days should you plan to come in? Places can make recommendations. Team guidance: If you do have to be in the office, a guidance card at the top of the daily Places stack will outline where your boss expects you, and why. If you do have to be in the office, a guidance card at the top of the daily Places stack will outline where your boss expects you, and why. Places finder: If you do come into the office and need to book a desk or meeting room, Places will allow you to do that. This basically takes a service like Tribeloo and integrates it into Teams. Place finder will also help you find suggested locations as well as juggle long-term stays and how to figure out where to work over the course of a few weeks. Who will be where and why, in Microsoft Places. Who will be where and why, in Microsoft Places. Microsoft Who will be where and why, in Microsoft Places. Microsoft Microsoft Administrators will obviously be able to keep tabs on whos where, which is the downside at organizations which are keying in-office presence to promotions or even retention. Correction: Users wont be specifically tracked. Microsoft representatives say that Users expanded presence will be contained to signals about in-office locations and will be aggregated and anonymized in reports about office occupation trends. Interestingly, Places wont be a Microsoft 365 application. It will be licensed as part of Microsoft Teams Premium, perhaps as a consequence of the breakup of Teams and Office 365 in the wake of an European antitrust investigation. It will be interesting to see if Microsoft views this separation as an advantage, giving the company not one but two separate platforms, subscriptions and revenue streams. Corrected at 12:27 PM to note that users will not be individually tracked, according to Microsoft representatives. Oyster Agribusiness has been recognized as the Promising Company of the Year at the second edition of the Ghana Business League Awards (GBLA) 2024, a scheme that acknowledges industry leaders based on their rating in the 2023 business assessment. This follows the company's exceptional achievements over the years in agribusiness solutions, farming innovation and technology, international agribusiness standards, corporate social responsibility, brand consistency, just-in-time supply practices, brand appeal, goodwill, and overall significant contributions to the Ghanaian economy through agribusiness. The awards ceremony, held in Accra at the Movenpick Hotel, concluded with an exclusive five-star executive dinner themed Celebrating the transformative impact of technological innovation, entrepreneurial drive, and economic growth driven by Ghanaian enterprises. In his acceptance speech, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Oyster Agribusiness, Edmund Kombat, applauded his staff for their unwavering dedication and shared vision. He recounted their path from humble beginnings to industry leaders, emphasizing their determination to drive positive change in the agribusiness sector. He dedicated the honor to the hardworking farmers and partners who have helped them along the way. Event Director at Maven Communications, Seth Joojo Danso Asante, stated that the prize was determined following a thorough examination by their research team and approval by the event Awarding Board. After careful evaluation by our research team and approval by the event awarding board, Oyster Agribusiness emerged as a standout performer, demonstrating business leadership in the Promising Company of the Year category, he affirmed. The Ghana Business League Awards is an effort of Maven Communications with cooperation from the Accra Metropolitan Assembly, (AMA), Magic Wave Consult, Silicon House Production, and the University College of Management Studies. The awarding procedure began with researching and analyzing possible honorees. Last year's awarding board was chaired by Mr. Stephen Djaba, who also serves on the boards of the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA), and the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission's National Nuclear Research Institute (NNRI). The Ghana Business League Award conducts research to discover possible award winners and recognizes them. This clearly shows that their effort and perseverance are being recognized, and the recognition is based on merit, suggesting honesty in their award selection procedure, as there is no public vote for favorite nominees. About Oyster Agribusiness Oyster Agribusiness Limited was founded on a passion to transform the narrative surrounding agriculture since time immemorial. Agriculture has always been viewed as an unappealing sector for young people, resulting in high rates of youth unemployment throughout Africa. They produced extraordinary outcomes by conducting rigorous studies, employing creative methodologies, continuously improving, exceeding industry standards and creating new milestones. With their comprehensive approach, they have streamlined the entire agricultural value chain, ensuring quality, sustainability, and freshness at all stages. Oyster Agribusiness's primary function is the production and processing of agricultural goods for both domestic and international markets. Source: Peacefmonline.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. Featured Video Renowned Ghanaian-owned mining company, Betterland Ghana Limited (BGL) has committed to sustainable mining operations in Ghana. Recognizing the importance of responsible mining practices, BGL is resolved to work to preserve the environment. The company said it adheres to strict environmental regulations, engaging in responsible resource extraction while minimizing the ecological footprint. Betterland Ghana Limited has acquired 62.12sqkm concession and 61.93sqkm concession side by side in Nzema East in the Western region of Ghana, which is going through final preparations for full large-scale gold mining operations to commence. These projects are estimated to produce millions of ounces of gold over the mine life and create massive employment in the catchment areas, as well as contribute massively to the gold production tally in Ghana. Speaking at a media engagement in Accra, Project Director of Betterland Ghana Limited, David Thomas said they are committed to responsible and sustainable mining practices in the country. He indicated that, they will do so by ensuring that its operations do not adversely impact the environment and the livelihoods of residents of host communities. Mr. Thomas noted that, they are committed to make a positive impact on Ghanas natural landscapes and mining industry. For her part, Corporate Affairs Director, Grace Adjoa Frimpomaa Apeaning, said they would ensure that all its members operated within the confines of the regulations. More importantly, she indicated that, they will ensure that community livelihoods were not destroyed but well protected and enhanced. As part of the Corporate Social Responsibility, Ms. Apeaning said they will engage the youth in skills training and also buy produce from local farmers to boost the local economy. This, she said, is their commitment to making positive impacts in the communities in which it operates. "At Betterland Ghana, we aim to nurture the next generation of change makers who will drive progress and prosperity in the community within which we operate and make a positive contribution Ms. Apeaning added. About Betterland Ghana Limited Betterland Ghana Limited (BGL) is a renowned Ghanaian company specializing in land reclamation and restoration, sustainable mining, mining support services, and project management. With a strong commitment to environmental stewardship and sustainable development, we strive to make a positive impact on Ghanas natural landscapes and mining industry. At BGL, we have assembled a highly skilled and diverse team comprising experts in environmental sciences, mining engineering, geology, project management, and community engagement. Our team members bring extensive experience from various industries, both in Ghana and internationally, providing us with a well-rounded understanding of the complexities and challenges involved in our work. Their expertise and dedication enable us to deliver high-quality services and innovative solutions to our clients. We foster a collaborative and inclusive work environment, promoting teamwork and knowledge sharing within our team. By combining our collective knowledge, skills, and experiences, we are able to tackle complex projects and find creative solutions to the unique challenges presented by each endeavor. Our teams passion for environmental conservation, sustainable practices, and community development drives our mission to create a positive impact through our work. Source: Peacefmonline.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. Featured Video The Golden Stool of the Asante is the throne of the ruler of the Asante kingdom and the ultimate symbol of power in Asante society. As legend has it, a high priest late in the seventeenth century made the stool to descend from the sky and land on the lap of Osei Tutu, the first Asante King. Today, as the King of the Ashanti Kingdom, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II celebrates his 25th Jubilee Akwasidae, the golden stool was seen publicly as a custom demand. See pictures below Source: Peacefmonline.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. Featured Video In a heartwarming gesture to celebrate Mothers Day, Fidelity Bank, Ghana's largest privately owned bank, visited female entrepreneurs particularly self-employed individuals, and micro-enterprises in Kaneshie, Tudu, Okaishie, Kantamanto, and Kejetia markets. This initiative served a dual purpose: celebrating mothers while fostering stronger customer relationships. The initiative aimed to appreciate their loyalty, strengthen customer engagement, and empower women-led businesses. The selected customers were treated to exciting packages as a token of appreciation for their continued loyalty to Fidelity Bank. Leading the bank's team on these visits was Nana Esi Idun-Arkhurst, Divisional Director, Retail and Business Banking. She expressed her heartfelt gratitude to the women for choosing Fidelity Bank as their financial partner. "We are incredibly grateful for your trust and confidence in us," Nana Esideclared. "Your business is not only important to us, but it is also vital to the growth of our nation's economy. You, the amazing women entrepreneurs, and self-employed individuals in our markets, are the backbone of many families and communities. We recognize the hard work and dedication you put into your businesses, and we are honored to support you in any way we can." She continued, "Today, we also want to celebrate you as mothers. You play a critical role in nurturing future generations and shaping the society we live in. We commend you for your strength, resilience, and unwavering love for your families. We hope these gifts are a small token of our appreciation for everything you do." Anna Aidoo, one of the female entrepreneurs who banks with Fidelity Bank at Tudu market, was delighted to receive her gift and hear Nana Esi Idun-Arkhurst's words of appreciation. "This is such a wonderful surprise," Ms. Aidoo said. "It means a lot to me that Fidelity Bank would take the time to come out and show us how much they value our business. Other customers echoed Ms. Aidoo's sentiments, expressing their appreciation for Fidelity Bank's focus on women-owned businesses. They praised the bank's financial products and services designed to meet the specific needs of female entrepreneurs, such as tailored loans and training programs on financial literacy and business management. In a related development, Fidelity Bank also rewarded the top 3 transactors on the Fidelity Mobile App in the Dine with Mom promo. The winners were presented with special Mother's Day dinner vouchers which allowed them to treat their mothers or other cherished loved ones to a fabulous meal at one of the premier hotels in Accra. Fidelity Bank's market visits and "Dine with Mom" promo highlight their recognition of women in business and their commitment to empowering women. By recognizing the contributions of female entrepreneurs and self-employed individuals, the bank underscores their dedication to supporting a vital sector of the Ghanaian economy. This customer appreciation initiative strengthens Fidelity Bank's connection with its female clientele, fostering trust and loyalty while celebrating the important role mothers play in families and communities. Source: Peacefmonline.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. Featured Video The immediate past Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Dr. Henry Kwabena Kokofu has urged the general public to get committed to the ongoing limited voter registration exercise. The Electoral Commission, as a way of capturing all persons who were not able to get registered during the last registration exercise and persons who turned the eligible age of eighteen (18), has decided to embark on a limited voter registration exercise across the country. Although the exercise has been charaterised by a number of challenges, the Environmental Scientist has called on all Ghanaians who are eligible to cease the opportunity to do so. Everyone who has to take part in the ongoing registration exercise must endeavor to do so. This is a collective effort that everyone must endeavour to make. Speaking on Friday's edition of Peace FM's 'kokrokoo' programme, Dr. Kokofu said, I was very perturbed when I heard that a certain parliamentary candidate has travelled out of the country when this all important national exercise is ongoing. I pray it is not an NPP candidate. If it is, then I am urging him or her to come back and ensure that all persons in your constituency who was not able to get registered during the last edition to do so in this exercise. It is part of your responsibility to ensure that persons whose names have not been captured in the system of the Electoral Commission is done without fail. Reacting to IMANIs petition to CHRAJ to investigate the Electoral Commission over the disposal of the obsolete BVDs, and the Commissions refusal to release the serial numbers of the BVDs and BVRs to the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Dr. Kokofu mentioned that, they are schemes devised to distract attention from the upcoming elections. According to him, it is a deliberate attempt made by these organisations to say that the election was rigged when the NPPs flagbearer is declared winner after December 7. This is not the first time a registration exercise is being conducted and it is not the first time an election is going to be held. So where from the demand of serial numbers of BVRs and BVDs. This is ridiculously disheartening and should not be encouraged, he said. He stressed, We in the NPP are working so hard to win the marginal seats. We are not relenting on hard work. We are not going to bus anyone from anywhere but we shall work within the constituencies to make sure that everyone who has not registered gets registered. We are not as desperate as the NDC. We need to protect the free SHS policy so we shall encourage all the batches of the free SHS students who couldnt register at the time to do so and vote for the NPP so that the policy can be protected. We are not taking any chances. Watch video below Source: Kobina Darlington/peacefmonline.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. Featured Video Prof. Smart Sarpong has slammed the opposition National Democratic Congress for demanding that the Electoral Commission should share the serial numbers of their biometric machines with the party. The National Democratic Congress accuses the Electoral Commission (EC) of trying to connive with the ruling New Patriotic Party to rig the December polls and retain them in power. They also hold the position that the EC is manipulating the ongoing limited registration exercise, therefore they demand the serial numbers of the Biometric Voter Registration(BVR) kits currently deployed in the field but the Commission has refused to share the numbers with the party, stating it will compromise the integrity of the registration exercise. The commission, in a response to the NDC said; The commission wishes to highlight that the integrity and security of our electoral process are paramount. Each BVR kit, as a critical component of this process, is assigned a unique serial number. This number plays a crucial role in the operation of these devices, particularly in the generation of activation codes essential for their functionality as well as tracking their location and movement." Commenting on the issue during a panel discussion on Peace FM's "Kokrokoo" show, Prof. Smart Sarpong, a Senior Researcher, sided with the EC for refusing to share the numbers with the NDC. He noted that releasing the numbers is akin to giving the NDC the BVRs to operate in their homes. He argued that the machines whether missing or not, I think the NDC is demanding too much if they go for the serial numberbecause having the serial number of the gadget is just as having the machine. Prof. Sarpong urged the opposition party not to interfere with the work of the Electoral Commission, stressing give the EC some independence to do their job. Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The largest opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has responded to the arrest of a Member of Parliament for Asutifi South in the Ahafo region, Alhaji Collins Dauda during the ongoing Limited voter registration exercise. The NDC lawmaker was arrested in the Ahafo region for his alleged involvement in the disturbance which occurred at a registration centre at Kukuom in the Asunafo South constituency on Saturday, 11th May 2024. The police released a statement to confirm his arrest. However, the NDC in a statement on Monday, May 13, 2024, has given more details of the incident that led to the arrest of Collins Dauda. We wish to place on record that, at no point was the Member of Parliament for Asutifi South, Hon. Collins Dauda present at the Kukuom registration center on Saturday, 11th May, 2024. Contrary to the claim by the Ghana Police Service, Hon. Collins Dauda was busily monitoring the ongoing registration exercise in his Constituency, Asutifi South and was nowhere near the incident at Kukuom which is located in the Asunafo South constituency, a portion of the statement said. Read the full statement below NDC RESPONDS TO ARREST OF THE MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT FOR ASUTIFI SOUTH, HON. COLLINS DAUDA IN CONNECTION WITH ONGOING VOTER REGISTRATION EXERCISE. The National Democratic Congress (NDC), has taken note of a statement by the Ghana Police Service, that it has arrested the Member of Parliament for Asutifi South, Hon. Collins Dauda for his alleged involvement in some disturbances at a Voter Registration Center at Kukuom in the Asunafo South constituency in the Ahafo Region. Having had the benefit of the facts surrounding the said incident, the party wishes to respond as follows; 1. On or about 10:00am on Saturday, 11th May, 2024, a group of thugs belonging to the ruling New Patriotic Party numbering about 40, besieged the Asunafo South Constituency registration center at Kukuom. 2. Wearing face masks and dressed in what looked like military apparel, these NPP thugs unleashed violence on the registration center. They attacked and chased away perceived first-time NDC voters numbering about 150, who were in a queue waiting to be registered. 3. These hooded NPP thugs who were led by one Anointing, threatened the accredited NDC agent, Police Officers and other observers, insisting that they will not allow the first-time voters to be registered. The attacks persisted from 10:00 am until 3:00pm on that fateful day. 4. At about 3:00pm, the Police at Kukuom called for reinforcement from the Regional Police Command at Goaso. This did not however deter the NPP bandits, who continued to engage in heated verbal exchanges with the Police at the scene, insisting that they will not allow the perceived supporters of the NDC to register. 5. In the midst of the pandemonium, one Daniel Arthur, a known NDC member and the Assembly Member for the Denyase Electoral Area: Abu, the NDC Coordinator for Asarekrom Electoral Area as well as the NDCs registration agent at the center, were severely brutalized by the NPP thugs. 6. Upon hearing about the ongoing chaos, some NDC supporters, rushed to the scene to ascertain the situation for themselves and offer some support to the NDC supporters who were under attack. Upon seeing the NDC supporters, some of the NPP thugs bolted. Calm was restored at the center for sometime, allowing some of the harassed supporters of the NDC to register. 7. In a sudden turn of events, one of the NPP thugs drove across and blocked the road when the Asutifi South NDC supporters were leaving the center. He then pulled a gun and began to shoot indiscriminately at the NDC supporters in their vehicle. At this point, the NDC supporters in exercise of their right to self-defence, shot back to deter the thugs. No one sustained gunshot injuries. 8. This fact was corroborated by the Police in their investigative report read to Hon. Collins Dauda, MP for Asutifi South, in the presence of Hon. Eric Opoku, MP for Asunafo South, at a meeting on the morning of Sunday, 12th May, 2024. 9. We wish to place on record that, at no point was the Member of Parliament for Asutifi South, Hon. Collins Dauda present at the Kukuom registration center on Saturday, 11th May, 2024. Contrary to the claim by the Ghana Police Service, Hon. Collins Dauda was busily monitoring the ongoing registration exercise in his Constituency, Asutifi South and was nowhere near the incident at Kukuom which is located in the Asunafo South constituency. 10. Several NDC supporters who were hospitalised after being brutalized by the NPP thugs, have since lodged official complaints with the Kukuom Police. 11. The NDC condemns in no uncertain terms the unprofessional haste of the Ghana Police Service to publish the so-called arrest of the Member of Parliament for Asutifi South, and create the impression all over the media as though he has committed a crime. For emphasis, Hon. Collins Dauda has committed no crime. The allegation by the Police that he was involved in some disturbances at the ongoing voter registration in Kukuom is palpably false and must be treated with the contempt it deserves. 12. The National Democratic Congress reiterates our commitment to peace in the ongoing limited voter registration exercise. We are a law-abiding political party committed to respecting the laws of the country. Our Parliamentary Candidates, agents and supporters throughout the country have so far comported themselves in the ongoing exercise, even in the face of extreme provocation and in some cases, violent attacks. 13. We are however concerned by the widespread violent incidents across the country in which NDC supporters have been at the receiving end of unprovoked brutalities, intimidation and harassments from the ruling New Patriotic Party, as happened in Adugyama in the Ahafo-ano South East Constituency in the Ashanti region, few days ago. 14. We wish to remind the Ghana Police Service of their responsibility to protect all stakeholders in the ongoing voter registration exercise. The Ghana Police must display professionalism and impartiality in maintaining law and order, and be fair to all actors in the political space. 15. We cannot accept a situation where the Police choose to watch on and take little action against NPP thugs who unleash unprovoked violence on NDC supporters in broad daylight. 16. Even though we in the NDC will never initiate any such attacks, let it be known, that our supporters reserve the right to defend themselves against any violence or attacks. SIGNED. SAMMY GYAMFI ESQ. National Communications Officer Source: King Edward Ambrose Washman Addo/peacefmonline.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. Featured Video Agents with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection recently made a discovery that left them quite bugged. On May 2, agriculture specialists with CPD inspected a parcel from Portugal that claimed to contain pieces of silk to be used in works. Instead, however, the parcel, which was heading to an address in Wayne County, contained dried-out pupal cases and over 60 envelopes holding dead adult moth and butterfly specimens of the order Lepidoptera. The specialists reported their discovery to inspectors at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, as all importers must be licensed and declare any imports to the USFWS. The parcel did not have any import certifications, invoices, or other documentation that would have declared the scientific names of the butterflies or the purpose of the shipment. Customs and Border Protection agriculture specialists have a very challenging and critical mission, and that is to protect our vital agricultural resources against the accidental or deliberate introduction of invasive insect pests, and plant and animal diseases that could harm our nations economic vitality, Tater Ortiz, CBPs Area Port Director for the Area Port of Philadelphia, said in a press release. CPB did not say in the release if anyone had been charged following the packages discovery. On an average day, CBP agriculture specialists across the U.S. seize 2,677 prohibited plant, meat, animal byproducts, and soil, and intercept 240 insect pests at U.S. ports of entry, the organization said. Comedian Kevin James will bring his Owls Dont Walk tour to central Pa. this weekend. His 8 p.m. show on Sunday, May 19, 2024, at American Music Theatre in Lancaster is sold out and only a few tickets remain for the 4 p.m. show the same day. Fans can, however, still find tickets on secondary market sites, including these (prices are as of the time of this post): 4 p.m., Sunday, May 19 8 p.m., Sunday, May 19 Kevin James began his career as a stand-up on the Long Island comedy scene. After being discovered at the 1996 Montreal Comedy Festival, he signed a network development deal to create his own sitcom. The King of Queens, which premiered in 1998, ran for nine seasons on CBS and garnered James an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. James has starred in the hit comedy films Paul Blart: Mall Cop 1 and 2, Zookeeper, Here Comes The Boom, Hitch, Pixels, Grown Ups, Grown Ups 2, I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry, and Hubie Halloween. He has also starred in the feature True Memoirs of an International Assassin for Netflix, the independent action thriller Becky, and Home Team for Netflix. Other upcoming shows at American Music Theatre include: May 31 - 38 Special June 26 - Kenny G June 27 - The Wallflowers June 29 - The Beach Boys July 11 - Amos Lee July 14 - Asia July 21 - Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons July 25 - NEEDTOBREATHE Aug. 8 - Trace Adkins Aug. 11 - Straight No Chaser Zoo-goers in China were excited to see a new panda exhibit. But it soon became apparent that those pandas werent actually pandas. At least one person has been injured in a house explosion that occurred early Monday morning in New Jersey. Police said that the explosion happened at a house located along the 6200 block of Battle Lane in Commercial Township, Cumberland County, at a little before 5 a.m. At least one person suffered burns and was taken via medivac to a hospital for treatment, according to reports from 6ABC and NBC10. Both sites said that firefighters were on the scene battling heavy flames. A neighbor living several blocks away told NBC10 they had felt their house shake. One official on the scene confirmed that there had been an explosion, according to NBC10, but there is no word yet on what might have caused the explosion. By Aarushi Dedhiya Words and actions have consequences. This is something we have always been told when we were young. However, its important to consider the immense truth found in these five words. Through following this message, we can put an end to the stigma associated with substance use and mental health. Our society has stigmatized the way we discuss mental health and substance use disorders. Rather than creating a positive environment, we shun the people who are struggling, making the problem intensify and preventing many people from seeking the help that they desire. This stigma persists due to ignorance of the issues. Here are some common words that people tend to use that add to this issue in society. Addict Society has normalized the use of addict, especially when talking about a person with a substance use disorder. However, this word adds to the moral judgment against the person. Rather than making society think that the person is the issue, it is important that we emphasize that they can get help to get rid of the problem that they have to face. For that reason, we should use a person with a substance use disorder rather than calling them an addict. Psychotic This word is used by people in society to describe a person dealing with a mental illness. This term is offensive, and it puts a label on a person to attribute them to their behavior or struggles. This description can stick on a person, making them feel worse about their conditions and preventing them from seeking help. Therefore, it is important to avoid calling people struggling with a mental illness psychotic, crazy, or insane. Clean/ Dirty When describing someone who is no longer using substances, we typically say that they are clean. However, the word clean also implies that people who are taking substances are dirty. This creates a greater stigma toward people taking substances, causing them to feel ashamed of asking for help to get rid of their addiction. Therefore, these terms add to the judgment and overall worsen this crisis. Hence, instead of using clean and dirty, we can say a person in recovery and a person who uses drugs, respectively. Substance Abuse This is the most commonly mistaken way of contributing to the stigma. There is a large difference between using use and abuse. The word abuse has many negative connotations, and it tends to be associated with violence and judgements; hence, it does not fit with describing someone taking substances. There are many alternatives that can be used instead of substance abuse, including substance use disorder, drug misuse, or substance misuse. By making some changes in our vocabulary and using less offensive terms, we will be able to finally work towards ending this stigma that is still present in our society. It takes each of our efforts to prevent more people from being ostracized in our community, and with this, more people will seek the help that they need and feel like they belong. Teenagers in Pennsylvania have become champions for promoting healthier lifestyles in our community and eliminating this stigma. On June 8, Youth Encouraging Healthy Lifestyles (YEHL), a youth-led organization, is holding a 5K Fun Run at Adventure Park. The goal of this event is to spread awareness in our community about mental health and eliminate youth substance use. This 5K Fun Run aims to bring people of all ages together, and there is no cost to join and run. You can register here to join this movement for spreading healthy lifestyles for youth: https://www.yehl.org/event-details/youth-encouraging-healthy-lifestyles-5k. All proceeds from this event are being donated to support research for adolescent substance use prevention and mental health. It is imperative that we are able to remove the everlasting stigma in our society when discussing these topics. By advocating for changes in attitudes, we can ensure that future generations can thrive. We can learn to be more inclusive to develop a healthier and happier society. Aarushi Dedhiya is youth columnist for PennLive and a student at Cumberland Valley High School. She is a former intern with the World Affairs Council and PennLive. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) admitted on Fox News that the real job of House Republicans is to defend Donald Trump. Greene said on Foxs Sunday Morning Futures when asked why Speaker Johnson wont defund Jack Smith: Mike Johnson is owned by the Democrats and that I, that proved me to be right again. When I called the motion to vacate, it wasnt Republicans that saved Mike Johnson. It was Democrats that saved Mike Johnson. And when you have Nancy Pelosi, who was Speaker of the House when they impeached President Trump twice. And you have Jerry Nadler, who was chairman of the Judiciary Committee that led the impeachment against President Trump voting to save Mike Johnson that tells the American people everything that they need to know. Mike Johnson is owned by the Democrats and refuses to protect President Trump even though he runs down to Mar-a Lago every chance he gets and, and hugs him as tightly as he can. Video: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene says the quiet part out loud when she admits House Republicans see their job as protecting Trump, Mike Johnson is owned by the Democrats and refuses to protect (former) President Trump. pic.twitter.com/FkRjawDJGT Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) May 12, 2024 Greene admitted it. House Republicans arent supposed to be passing legislation or looking out for the national interest. House Republicans are supposed to be protecting Donald Trump, and Johnsons crime against the Republican caucus, according to Greene, is that he has not done enough to protect Trump. The House majority believes that they represent Trump and not the American people. A belief like that explains why House Republicans have done nothing for the people. House Republicans dont represent the people. They represent Trump, and Rep. Greene thinks that Johnson has to go because he hasnt done enough to potentially keep Trump out of jail. A Special Message From PoliticusUSA If you are in a position to donate purely to help us keep the doors open on PoliticusUSA during what is a critical election year, please do so here. We have been honored to be able to put your interests first for 14 years as we only answer to our readers and we will not compromise on that fundamental, core PoliticusUSA value. [wpedon id=344887 align=center] Michael Cohen testified at Trumps criminal trial that it was the idea of Melania Trump to spin the Access Hollywood tape as locker room talk. CNNs Kaitlin Collins is the court room and posted: "I immediately went to Mr. Trumps office, knocked on the door. Boss, I've got to speak to you. Cohen said he told Trump what he learned. I told him that one of the things that we need to do is obviously take care of it. He said, 'Absolutely. Do it. Take care of it. Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) May 13, 2024 Michael Cohen testifies that Donald Trump told him it was Melanias idea to spin the Access Hollywood comments as locker room talk. (Not sure weve heard that before.) Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) May 13, 2024 Cohens testimony has so far lived up to expectations. Trumps former lawyer, who went to jail for crimes associated with this case, has been waiting for years to face down his former boss in court and try to convince a jury to hold the ex-president accountable. For those who think that Melania Trump is any different than her husband, Cohens testimony disproves that notion. Melania Trump has continued to stay married to man who bragged about sexually assaulting women on tape and was later find liable for a rape in civil court. Given this context, it is no surprise that she came up with the talking point that bragging about sexual assault was locker room talk. Melania Trump is the least popular first lady in history. In January 2021, she left the White House with more people disapproving of her (47%) than approving (42), and Cohens testimony showed exactly why. A Special Message From PoliticusUSA If you are in a position to donate purely to help us keep the doors open on PoliticusUSA during what is a critical election year, please do so here. We have been honored to be able to put your interests first for 14 years as we only answer to our readers and we will not compromise on that fundamental, core PoliticusUSA value. [wpedon id=344887 align=center] Trump showed up in court on Monday with supporters like Sens. J.D. Vance and Tommy Tuberville with him, but his whole crew left and didnt come back during a court break. CNN reported: The political entourage that came to support Donald Trump appears to have skipped out during the break. Before the brief pause, the politicians seated in the second row like Sen. Tommy Tuberville and Rep. Nicolle Malliotakis split their time between their phones and the testimony underway in the courtroom. The list of politicians included: N.Y. Rep. Nicole Malliotakis Ohio Sen. JD Vance Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird Eric Trump and Alina Habba also attended court, and they apparently stayed, but all of the Republican politicians who showed up supposedly to support Trump bailed at the first opportunity. Where did Trumps court support go? The politicians went outside to talk to reporters and hold a photo-op. Trump requires loyalty from everyone around him, but the Republican politicians not sticking around for the ex-president sends an unintended message. If Trump loses to President Biden again in 2024, he should expect the same sort of treatment from the entire Republican Party. Their support for him is completely transactional, and once they have nothing to gain by being around him, they will be out the door and on to someone else. Trump isnt the star or the political force of nature that he thinks he is. A Special Message From PoliticusUSA If you are in a position to donate purely to help us keep the doors open on PoliticusUSA during what is a critical election year, please do so here. We have been honored to be able to put your interests first for 14 years as we only answer to our readers and we will not compromise on that fundamental, core PoliticusUSA value. [wpedon id=344887 align=center] Hazel was born September 20, 1932 in Hatch Bend, Florida, a town that was founded by her grandfather. She was the youngest of six. She grew up on a farm, which had no electricity until she was in grade school. Her chores included plucking chickens and helping her brothers skin squirrels. As Read moreObituary Hazel Lee Carlton Back in 2019, Joker managed to make over $1 billion at the global box office and earn itself 11 Oscar nominations, including Best Picture and a Best Actor win for Joaquin Phoenix. I recall respecting the movie for Phoenixs performance and the inspired idea to paint him as a Scorsese-style Read moreJoker: Folie a Deux PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 21:30:13 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 1058 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / Battery Mineral Resources Corp. (TSXV:BMR)(OTCQB:BTRMF) ("Battery" or "BMR" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the resumption of mill operations and first production of copper concentrates at its Punitaqui project in Chile.Martin Kostuik, Battery's CEO stated, "The commencement of copper concentrate production at Punitaqui marks a significant milestone for BMR and in establishing Chile's next copper mine. Having efficiently applied capital, it has paved the way for near term copper production at Punitaqui and positioning the company favorably to generate meaningful cash flow. With the commencement of copper concentrates production, a proficient operational team, and a promising outlook for robust copper markets, we aim to enhance shareholder value further. We eagerly anticipate sharing our progress and results as 2024 progresses." Operational Highlights 2024The Company has initiated copper concentrate production after the successful commissioning of the recently refurbished and upgraded mineral processing facility at Punitaqui. Mining activities to establish access to the mineralized zones in both Cinabrio and San Andres continue to ramp up with stockpiling of fresh mill feed. Cinabrio is the original mine that supplied feed for the first 10 years of prior operations, primarily by Glencore plc.During the ramp up period of the mines, the Company is looking to boost the revenue stream by processing mill feed from external sources. Supply to the mill over the coming months will be a combination of fresh material from the Punitaqui mines and feed from outside sources including material from private mines in the area, and copper smelter slags.Anglo-American AgreementThe source of slags supply is made possible by the Anglo-American PLC ("Anglo") agreement announced on February 13th, 2024. Anglo has agreed to purchase all the copper concentrate to be produced from 240,000 tonnes of Anglo-supplied copper smelter slags.MilestonesThe timeline from first fresh mine feed through the mill to reaching planned capacity is expected to require approximately nine months, reaching a run rate of ~90,000 tonnes per month. BMR expects that the Punitaqui full annual copper production rate will be in the range of 19 million to 23 million pounds of copper in concentrate with an operating margin of $35 million to $50 million at current copper prices.While the Cinabrio and San Andres mines are reaching full production, the Company will continue processing mill feed from outside sources and advancing toward its newly discovered Cinabrio Norte zone, to commence production of mill feed from that zone in H2 2025.As part of the ongoing operational readiness during 2024, BMR is executing underground infill and extensional drilling at San Andreas and Cinabrio. The drilling program is designed to further define areas that could be included in near-term mine sequencing and for grade control purposes. The company looks forward to reporting the results of this drilling during the course of the year.Closing of Convertible Debenture OfferingBMR is also pleased to announce that it has closed its US$400,000 (approximately C$549,360) private placement (the "Private Placement") of senior unsecured convertible debentures (the "Debentures"), which was previously announced on March 11, 2024.As previously announced, the Debentures will mature on September 30th, 2026 (the "Maturity Date") and will bear interest at 10% per annum, compounding annually on September 30th of each year, not in advance. Interest accrued from the date of issuance up to and including March 30th, 2025, will be paid by way of issuance of common shares of the Company. Interest accrued following March 30th, 2025, will be, at the option of the holder, paid either in cash or by way of issuance of common shares of the Company. The issuance of common shares as payment of interest will be at the then current market price of the Company's common shares at the date the interest becomes payable and will be subject to the prior acceptance of the TSX Venture Exchange and applicable securities laws.The holder of a Debenture may, at their option, at any time preceding the Maturity Date, convert all, but not less than all, of the principal amount of such Debenture into common shares of the Company at the conversion price of US$0.22 per share (approximately C$0.30 per share).All Debentures issued in the Private Placement and in connection with the debt consolidation are subject to a four month hold period under applicable Canadian securities laws and under the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange. The Debenture issuances are subject to acceptance by the TSX Venture Exchange.MI 61-101 MattersWeston Energy II LLC, a subscriber for Debentures in the Private Placement, is a "related party" to BMR pursuant to pursuant to Multilateral Instrument 61-101 - Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101"). Prior to giving effect to the transactions disclosed in this news release, Weston Energy II LLC and its affiliates owned or controlled (directly or indirectly) 107,578,740 BMR Common Shares on an undiluted basis (representing approximately 59.4% of the outstanding BMR Common Shares on an undiluted basis).Weston Energy II LLC's participation in the Private Placement constitutes a "related party transaction" for the purposes of MI 61-101. The transaction is exempt from the formal valuation requirements of MI 61-101 as the fair market value of the transaction does not exceed 25% of BMR's market capitalization and BMR is not listed on a specified market (pursuant to the exemptions set forth in Section 5.5(a) and 5.5(b) of MI 61-101, respectively) and is further exempt from the minority shareholder approval requirements of MI 61-101 by virtue of Section 5.7(1)(a) and 5.7(1)(b) of MI 61-101 which provides that a related party transaction is exempt from the minority shareholder approval requirements if the fair market value of the transaction is not more than 25% of the issuer's market capitalization or is not more than $2,500,000, respectively.Additional Disclosure Regarding the Fiera Credit AgreementBMR is also providing additional information in connection with the C$8M credit agreement with Fiera Enhanced Private Debt Fund. ESI Energy Services Inc., a subsidiary of BMR and the borrower under the credit agreement, paid a commitment fee of C$120,000 in connection with the signing of the credit agreement.Exchange RatesAll USD amounts for which CAD equivalent amounts are given in this news release were calculated at CAD/USD exchange rate of 1.3734, the exchange rate published by the Bank of Canada on May 8th, 2024.About Battery Minera PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 19:15:56 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 667 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 TULSA, OK / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / BrandMyDispo, a trailblazing provider of bespoke packaging solutions, proudly announces its ongoing expansion within the custom packaging market. Fueled by a steadfast commitment to innovation, quality, and client satisfaction, BrandMyDispo cements its status as the go-to partner for businesses seeking personalized packaging solutions.From vibrant and durable printed Mylar bags to sleek and sophisticated printed boxes, BrandMyDispo provides businesses with the tools they need to enhance their brand presence and captivate consumers. Whether it's juice pouches, jars, or other packaging solutions, BrandMyDispo's focus on quality, innovation, and customer satisfaction sets it apart in the custom packaging market.The global demand for custom packaging solutions has surged in recent years, driven by a burgeoning desire for tailored branding experiences across diverse industries. BrandMyDispo has emerged as a driving force behind this trend, offering an extensive array of customizable packaging options crafted to meet the unique requirements of its clientele.At the heart of BrandMyDispo's success lies an unwavering dedication to excellence and ingenuity. Leveraging cutting-edge printing technologies and premium-grade materials, the company delivers custom packaging solutions that not only safeguard products but also amplify brand visibility and allure. From captivating designs to practical features such as resealable closures and tear-resistant materials, BrandMyDispo ensures that each packaging solution is meticulously tailored to exceed client expectations.Expanding its repertoire of customizable packaging options, BrandMyDispo specializes in crafting die cut Mylar bags, demonstrating its commitment to meeting diverse client needs. These meticulously crafted bags showcase products in distinctive and visually captivating ways. With a range of shapes and sizes available, BrandMyDispo's custom shaped Mylar bags provide a versatile packaging solution that enhances product visibility and elevates brand presence. Each custom mylar bag is tailored to clients' specific requirements, showcasing BrandMyDispo's dedication to innovation and excellence in the custom mylar packaging industry.In addition to its unwavering focus on quality and innovation, BrandMyDispo places a premium on client satisfaction. The company collaborates closely with each client to grasp their unique needs and preferences, offering tailored guidance and support throughout the design and production process. From initial concept development to final delivery, BrandMyDispo is dedicated to ensuring that every client receives packaging solutions that surpass their expectations.As BrandMyDispo charts its course for further expansion within the custom packaging market, the company remains steadfast in its commitment to its core values of integrity, collaboration, and excellence. With a seasoned team of professionals and an unwavering passion for creativity and innovation, BrandMyDispo is primed to address the evolving needs of its clients and drive sustained growth in the custom packaging industry.For more information about BrandMyDispo and its array of custom packaging solutions, please visit www.brandmydispo.com About BrandMyDispo:BrandMyDispo stands as a beacon of excellence in the dynamic realm of custom packaging, embodying a steadfast dedication to innovation, quality, and client satisfaction. With a rich tapestry of experience and an innate flair for creativity, BrandMyDispo has emerged as the premier destination for businesses seeking personalized packaging solutions.BrandMyDispo is renowned for its commitment to innovation, quality, and client satisfaction. Specializing in a diverse range of customizable packaging options, including printed Mylar bags, boxes, tubes, containers, juice pouches, jars, and more, BrandMyDispo empowers businesses to elevate their brand presence and captivate consumers. With a focus on delivering unparalleled service and exceeding client expectations, BrandMyDispo stands as a trusted partner for businesses across industries seeking personalized packaging solutions.From captivating custom Mylar bags to sophisticated printed boxes and a myriad of other offerings, BrandMyDispo boasts a diverse array of customizable packaging options meticulously crafted to meet the distinct needs of businesses spanning various industries.What truly distinguishes BrandMyDispo is its unwavering commitment to excellence across every facet of the process, from inception to delivery. With an unwavering focus on delivering unmatched service and surpassing client expectations, BrandMyDispo empowers businesses to amplify their brands and carve their niche in today's fiercely competitive landscape.Media DetailsCompany Name: BRANDMYDISPOMail: info@ brandmydispo.com Website: www.brandmydispo.com City and Country: Tulsa, OklahomaSOURCE: BRANDMYDISPO PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 15:02:44 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 495 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Brand Adds Locations Across the United StatesNORTH NEW HYDE PARK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 /CareBuilders at Home, a national in-home care industry leader, is excited to announce a substantial expansion of its franchise network, adding new locations in key regions across the United States. The recent strategic growth includes new franchises in six states and major metropolitan areas. CareBuilders at Home is proud to welcome franchisees in Marietta and Duluth, Georgia; Charlotte, North Carolina; Cincinnati, Ohio; Seattle, Washington; St. Petersburg and Orlando, Florida and Inland Empire in Southern California."It's exciting to see CareBuilders at Home expanding into new regions of the country," said Lori Yount, Vice President of Operations at CareBuilders at Home. "These new locations help secure our emergence within the in-home care industry and strengthen our ability to make a significant impact in the communities we serve. We're ready to continue this momentum and add even more locations in the year ahead." The expansion highlights CareBuilders at Home's commitment to empowering entrepreneurs who are passionate about making a difference. The franchise model provides a robust foundation for business owners to succeed in the growing home care market while giving back to their communities."Our extensive back-office support accelerates our franchisees' time to market, while our revenue-generating brand programs equip them for success with unique features that empower them to thrive in establishing a business centered on compassion," explained Yount.As CareBuilders at Home continues to grow, the organization remains focused on its mission to enhance the quality of life for individuals across the nation. Each new franchise location provides essential services to more families, helping seniors enjoy a higher quality of life in their own homes.For more information about CareBuilders at Home and its franchise opportunities, please visit CareBuilders at Home Franchise.###About CareBuilders at HomeCareBuilders at Home is a fast-growing national franchise which provides comprehensive non-medical home health care solutions to enhance the lives of individuals across the nation.The company offers a wide range of services individualized to meet the needs of clients including errands, light housekeeping, and medication compliance. In addition to the support given to older Americans, the company also assists those who are physically or developmentally disabled, recovering from illness or surgery, and new moms.The CareBuilders at Home franchise opportunity allows entrepreneurs to be a part of the lucrative home care industry, while being able to give back and help clients. CareBuilders at Home franchise partners have access to the company's exclusive Virtual Caregiver platform.crative home care industry, while being able to give back and help clients. CareBuilders at Home franchise partners have access to the company's exclusive Virtual Caregiver platform.The company is the only home care franchise that handles all back-office services for franchise partners including payroll, billing, and collections.For more information on the CareBuilders at Home franchise opportunity, visit https://carebuildersfranchise.com Media Contact:Mandy Cline MCline@919 Marketing.com SOURCE: CareBuilders at Home PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 01:11:17 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 436 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 MONTREAL, QC / ACCESSWIRE / May 12, 2024 / Castle Hall Diligence, a pioneer in integrating fintech within the due diligence process, has announced the formal launch of DiligenceAI. DiligenceAI begins with a groundbreaking mobile application that leverages artificial intelligence to transform how due diligence is conducted across the finance industry. The app introduces new diligence models, including Know Your General Partner ("KYGP") and Know Your Service Provider ("KYSP"), and helps Castle Hall continue to set new standards across operational, cyber, and ESG diligence.Castle Hall Diligence Logo The Logo of Castle Hall Diligence, the due diligence company.Anne Coady, Managing Partner at Castle Hall, stated "The introduction of DiligenceAI marks a significant milestone in our commitment to enhance due diligence through technology. AI not only speeds up the due diligence process but provides depth and precision in assessing risks, ensuring our clients can achieve better investment outcomes." DiligenceAI uses advanced AI technologies to analyze vast amounts of industry data. This enables the detection of patterns and potential risks that traditional methods may overlook. DiligenceAI is designed to enhance the due diligence process by providing immediate access to detailed, AI-generated insights across tens of thousands of asset managers and service providers.Chris Addy, President and CEO of Castle Hall, highlighted the impact of AI on the industry: "AI opens up a new universe of tools that bring efficiency, speed, and accuracy to every element of the due diligence process. The DiligenceAI mobile app is a game-changer, placing comprehensive due diligence capabilities directly in the hands of our users at a fraction of the cost of traditional ODD." Features of the DiligenceAI Mobile App Include:KYGP (Know Your General Partner): Users can access detailed information on over 20,000 asset managers and nearly 100,000 funds, including data on AUM, headcount, regulatory oversight, and executive teams. This service uses AI to generate immediate insights on each general partner and their associated strengths and risks. KYSP (Know Your Service Provider): As regulations tighten globally, KYSP ensures that users can perform due diligence on nearly 10,000 service providers. Subjects include custodians, prime brokers, administrators, auditors, and legal counsel, aligning due diligence capabilities with new regulatory frameworks requiring diligent third-party vendor risk management.For more information on DiligenceAI and to download the app, please visit diligence-ai.com About Castle HallCastle Hall Diligence helps investors worldwide manage the operational, ESG and cyber risks of asset managers and industry service providers.Contact: solutions@ diligence-ai.com Contact InformationEmily SweetBusiness Solutions Manageresweet@ castlehalldiligence.com +1 450 465 8880 x431Jessica PamenterBusiness Solutions Managerjpamenter@ castlehalldiligence.com 450 465 8880 x437 SOURCE: Castle Hall DiligenceView the original press release on newswire.com PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 13:51:25 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 915 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 VIENNA, AUSTRIA / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / Chatarmin.com is excited to announce the release of a comprehensive guide on seamlessly integrating WhatsApp with Shopify, the leading e-commerce platform, empowering businesses to enhance customer engagement and streamline their communication strategies. Is it possible to have full WhatsApp integration for the Shopify platform? Through this guide, we are going to illustrate how to integrate WhatsApp into the much-talked-about e-commerce platform called Shopify' in a few easy steps and, ultimately, why it is an essential move for your e-commerce.Shopify is an eCommerce platform that allows users to create and customize their online store step by step with just a mouse click, and therefore, no programming knowledge is required. Away with saying we have over a million dealers signing up with our e-sales company for the management of their online business.Shopify WhatsAppoffers the same feature to its users- for secure payments, it implements 256 SSL-bit certificates. Landscaping check-out pages are amazingly true, and they are appealing to the user, further making him go ahead to conversion.Moreover, integrated with the platform are hundreds of applications and tools; all you need is email marketing, feedback collection and others. We cordially invite you to be part of our discussion on how to add WhatsApp, the main social messaging application, to your effective communication journey with your target audience.Adding WhatsApp Chat to Shopify: What to DoAs you think of integrating WhatsApp for sales strategies, you need to be at ease that the visitors to your online shop just need to be fed into what is known to be an instant messaging platform.The use of this channel can be particularly effective in the sale of products or services where the client frequently requests guided assistance for the purchase: let's see this through an example of a travel package, insurance policy or any other product that might require some personalization.The advantages of communicating with your clients via WhatsApp are many: it will build the classic type of relationship among us and, at the same time, allow every one of us to keep in touch regularly.The easiest way to let your Shopify store users lead to WhatsApp is to set up the chat widget directly on your website. This remedy is a really great one for creating big number of interactions with users of your website.The first action taken to install the chat widget is to open an account. The completion of the registration process is all it takes, and going to the dashboard is all left to do.Inside the platform, there will be space to create the widget configuration connecting the main instant messaging channels. You can join your WhatsApp account by simply tapping the WhatsApp icon.After the connection of WhatsApp is done successfully, you will install the chat widget in their Shopify store.1) Installation through Google Tag Manager:Once you create a Google Tag Manager account, the next step will be to set up a container within your Shopify store.After the container for Google Tag Manager has been configured correctly, only a custom HTML tag will need to be added, with its code copied from the widget - this will ensure that the HTML tag is integrated directly into the website.2) Installation through the Shopify dashboard:This process could be simplified if you have all the login and password information for your Shopify store at hand. Just go to the Shopify control panel, click on Online Store, and then on Themes.Now, endeavouring down the drop-down menu of themes as well, hit Modify Code. Locate the string "theme liquid" and overwrite it with your widget's code, and paste the code inside the section.How to Boost the Sales of Your Shopify Store Through WhatsAppDuring teaming up on WhatsApp, I expect an increase in sales and, ultimately, help maximize the customer's lifetime value as it will be easy to create a longer-term relationship with customers.A great business door can be opened by using WhatsApp as a sales channel for a company that wants to grow, given the large scope of this instant messaging app, where almost 100 billion messages are sent and received every day.You should expect the same value of leads you obtained to be different with WhatsApp as most of the push notifications for emails are not there.WhatsApp is an absolute tool with which you can send or receive photos, videos, voice messages, and documents. It means a more specific and, thus, more productive transmission of the content of your message.Using the WhatsApp Business account, you can incorporate catalogues showing your products and promote your products, which is similar to having a Shopify store where all your users can browse.Another way through which WhatsApp can be used, is to ask for feedback about products or the customer support offered by your company. In this way, you can get regular evaluations from customers about the performance of your business and conclude in order to make appropriate corrections.However, do not overstep ethical lines while doing so because it may do more harm to your business than good. Being too fiercely competitive can disconnect clients from your shop instead of bringing in new customers.Thus, we emphasize the avoidance of spam or insistently sending the message, all things being equal, in the attractive communication that motivates the users to take part.MEDIA CONTACTCompany Name: chatarmin.com GmbHEmail: support@ chatarmin.com Website: https://chatarmin.com/en SOURCE: Chatarmin GmbH PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 15:01:31 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 787 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / CO2 GRO Inc.. ("CO2" or the "Company") (TSXV:GROW) announces the resignation of Mr. John Archibald as President and Chief Executive Officer and Director of the Company. The Board wishes to thank Mr. Archibald for his service and wishes him the best in his future endeavours.The Board of Directors will be undertaking a search for a new CEO and will provide updates if and when necessary in accordance with applicable securities laws.As announced in it press release dated April 26, 2024, the Company has struck a committee comprised of Rose Marie Gage, Gordon Surgeoner and Michael Boyd, three independent members of its Board of Directors, to oversee all discussions arising with interested parties on future strategic initiatives of the Company, including possible partnerships or sale of assets.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.About CO2 GRO Inc.CO2 GRO Inc. is a precision ag-tech, clean-tech company with a focus on people, the planet and prosperity. Our vision is to become one of the leading companies enhancing global food production from protected agriculture. By helping our customers sustainably increase yield and profitability, we could help feed up to half a billion people worldwide while reducing our customers' ecological footprint.Forward-Looking Statements and DisclaimerThis press release contains statements which constitute "forwardlooking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including statements regarding the plans, intentions, beliefs and current expectations of the Company with respect to future business activities. Forward looking information is often identified by the words "may," "would," "could," "should," "will," "intend," "plan," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect" or similar expressions and include information regarding: statements regarding the future direction of the Company; the ability of the Company to successfully achieve its business and financial objectives; plans for expansion and the ability of the Company to obtain, develop and foster its business relationships; and expectations for other economic, business, and/or competitive factors. Investors are cautioned that forward-looking information is not based on historical facts but instead reflect the Company's management's expectations, estimates or projections concerning the business of the Company, future results or events based on the opinions, assumptions and estimates that management considered reasonable at the date the statements are made. Such assumptions include but are not limited to: general business and economic conditions; the Company's ability to successfully execute its plans and intentions; successful completion of the Offering; the availability of financing on reasonable terms; the Company's ability to attract and retain skilled staff; market competition; the products and technology offered by the Company's competitors; and that good relationships with business partners will be maintained. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forwardlooking information are reasonable, such information involves risks and uncertainties, and undue reliance should not be placed on such information, as unknown or unpredictable factors could have material adverse effects on future results, performance or achievements. Among the key factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in the forwardlooking information are the following: changes in general economic, business and political conditions, including changes in the financial markets; in particular, the ability of the Company to raise debt and equity capital in the amounts and at the costs that it expects; adverse changes in applicable laws or adverse changes in the application or enforcement of current laws; the biotechnology industry and the greenhouse growers market are highly competitive, and technical advances in the industry will impact the success of the Company, and other risks described in the Company's filings that are available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca . Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should assumptions underlying the forwardlooking information prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described herein as intended, planned, anticipated, believed, estimated or expected. Although the Company has attempted to identify important risks, uncertainties and factors which could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be others that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. The Company does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update this forwardlooking information except as otherwise required by applicable law.Neither the TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.Contact:Stephen Gledhill, CFO ir@ co2gro.ca 888.496.1283SOURCE: CO2 Gro Inc. PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 13:07:17 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 575 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / Bernstein Liebhard LLP:Do you, or did you, own shares of Compass Minerals International, Inc. (NYSE:CMP)?Did you purchase your shares between November 29, 2023 and March 22, 2024, inclusive?Did you lose money in your investment in Compass Minerals International, Inc.?Do you want to discuss your rights?Bernstein Liebhard LLP, a nationally acclaimed investor rights law firm, reminds investors of the deadline to file a lead plaintiff motion in a securities class action lawsuit that has been filed on behalf of investors who purchased or acquired the securities of Compass Minerals International, Inc. ("Compass Minerals" or the "Company") (NYSE: CMP) between November 29, 2023 and March 22, 2024, inclusive (the "Class Period"). The lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Kansas and alleges violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 against the Company and certain of its officers (the "Complaint").If you purchased or acquired Compass Minerals securities, and/or would like to discuss your legal rights and options please visit Compass Minerals International, Inc. Shareholder Class Action Lawsuit or contact Investor Relations Manager Peter Allocco at (212) 951-2030 or pallocco@ bernlieb.com If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later thanJune 24, 2024 . A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. Your ability to share in any recovery doesn't require that you serve as lead plaintiff. If you choose to take no action, you may remain an absent class member.According to the Complaint, Defendants failed to disclose to investors that:(1) Compass Minerals overstated the likelihood that it would be awarded a renewed U.S. Forest Service contract for the use of its proprietary magnesium chloride-based aerial fire retardants for the 2024 fire season, as a result of safety issues presented by its fire retardant; and (2) Compass Minerals materially overstated the extent to which testing had confirmed that its fire retardants were safe.On March 25, 2024, before the market opened, the Company announced that the U.S. Forest Service had informed the company that it will not be entering into a contract for the use of magnesium chloride-based aerial fire retardants for the 2024 fire season. On this news, Compass Minerals' stock price fell $3.00 per share, or 17.09%, to close at $14.55 on March 25, 2024.If you purchased or acquired Compass Minerals securities, and/or would like to discuss your legal rights and options please visit Compass Minerals International, Inc. Shareholder Class Action Lawsuit or contact Investor Relations Manager Peter Allocco at (212) 951-2030 or pallocco@ bernlieb.com Since 1993, Bernstein Liebhard LLP has recovered over $3.5 billion for its clients. In addition to representing individual investors, the Firm has been retained by some of the largest public and private pension funds in the country to monitor their assets and pursue litigation on their behalf. As a result of its success litigating hundreds of lawsuits and class actions, the Firm has been named to The National Law Journal's "Plaintiffs' Hot List" thirteen times and listed in The Legal 500 for sixteen consecutive years.ATTORNEY ADVERTISING. 2024 Bernstein Liebhard LLP. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Bernstein Liebhard LLP, 10 East 40th Street, New York, New York 10016, (212) 779-1414. Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter.Contact Information:Peter AlloccoInvestor Relations ManagerBernstein Liebhard LLP https://www.bernlieb.com (212) 951-2030 pallocco@ bernlieb.com SOURCE: Bernstein Liebhard LLP PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 04:29:41 Press Information Published by ACN Newswire +65 6304 8926 e-mail https://www.acnnewswire.com/ # 664 Words ACN Newswire+65 6304 8926 HONG KONG, May 13, 2024 - (ACN Newswire) - Creation Business Consultants, a leading corporate services provider, tax, compliance advisory, and business consultancy firm, is thrilled to announce the opening of its new office in Hong Kong. This strategic expansion marks an exciting milestone for Creation and represents a significant opportunity for Hong Kong and Chinese clients seeking to establish their commercial presence in the Middle East.With its rich history as a global financial hub, Hong Kong serves as an ideal gateway for businesses looking to expand into new markets. The launch of Creation's Hong Kong office solidifies the company's commitment to providing comprehensive support to clients in the region and beyond."Our decision to open an office in Hong Kong was driven by the increasing demand from our clients in the region and the growing importance of Hong Kong as a business destination," said Scott Cairns, Managing Director of Creation Business Consultants. "This expansion allows us to better serve our clients by providing localized expertise and support, while also offering a seamless transition for businesses looking to enter the Middle Eastern market." The Hong Kong office will offer a wide range of services tailored to the needs of Hong Kong and Chinese companies seeking to expand into the Middle East. These services include company formation, tax advisory, and ongoing business, and compliance support. By establishing a physical presence in Hong Kong, Creation aims to streamline the process for clients and provide them with access to a dedicated team of experts with in-depth knowledge of the Middle Eastern market."We believe that our presence in Hong Kong will not only benefit our clients but also contribute to the growth and development of the local business community," added Cairns. "We are excited about the opportunities that this new office will bring and look forward to helping our clients achieve their business objectives in the Middle East." Neil Wilson, Director of Strategy and Commercial at Creation Business Consultants, commented on the timing of the office launch, stating, "This is an excellent time for Hong Kong and Chinese companies to capitalize on the opportunities in the UAE and Saudi markets. By establishing a presence in Hong Kong, we aim to forge stronger partnerships with trade bodies and strategic allies, ultimately streamlining support and fostering stronger business ties for companies from Hong Kong and China in the MENA region"Gary Hales, Head of International Business, emphasized the significance of the Hong Kong office launch, stating, "This is a part of our on-going expansion to our service offering and delivering exceptional superior service to our clients. The launch of the Hong Kong office will complement the Chinese-speaking team we have working in Dubai and Riyadh, providing a comprehensive suite of services to our clients." Creation Business Consultants is dedicated to empowering businesses to succeed in today's booming global marketplace. The opening of the Hong Kong office underscores Creation's commitment to providing unparalleled service and support to clients worldwide.For more information about Creation Business Consultants and its services, please visit www.creationbc.com ABOUT CREATION BUSINESS CONSULTANTS:Creation Business Consultants is a leading MENA and APAC corporate services provider, tax, compliance advisory, and management consultancy firm, assisting multinational corporations, family offices, SMEs, and entrepreneurs worldwide. With a team of highly skilled professionals and a client-centric approach, the company offers comprehensive solutions in company structuring, company formation, tax planning, accounting, and other corporate services. Creation safeguards their clients corporate entities and maximizes their business returns through the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and the wider GCC region. Creation Business Consultants is dedicated to delivering excellence, value, and tailored solutions to empower businesses worldwide.MEDIA CONTACT:Creation Business ConsultantsMarketing Team+971 4 878 6240marketing@ creationbc.com This press release is issued through AsiaNewswire.Net https://www.asianewswire.net) - a newswire service with press release distribution to media in Asia Pacific, East Asia, South and South East Asian countries. PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 16:26:00 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 638 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 TORRANCE, CA / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / Criminal IP, a renowned Cyber Threat Intelligence (CTI) search engine developed by AI SPERA, has recently signed a technology partnership to exchange threat intelligence data based on domains and potentially on the IP address to protect users by blocking threats to end users.Criminal IP underwent rigorous data evaluation to integrate with Quad9's threat-blocking service, demonstrating high data uniqueness and accuracy. Particularly, test results revealed a remarkable outcome: 99.1% of malicious domains identified by Criminal IP's threat intelligence were found to be non-duplicative with other TI data.Through this integration, Quad9 leverages the most up-to-date threat intelligence lists, incorporating data from Criminal IP's database of malicious domains to block harmful hostnames. This process not only safeguards computers, mobile devices, and IoT systems from a diverse array of threats like malware, phishing, spyware, and botnets, ensuring privacy, but also optimizes performance.Quad9's Threat Blocking Enhanced by Criminal IP's Threat IntelligenceQuad9 is a free anycast DNS platform delivering robust security protections and privacy guarantees that comply with rigorous Swiss Data Protection and GDPR rules. Quad9 is operated as a non-profit by the Quad9 Foundation in Switzerland for the purpose of improving the privacy and cybersecurity of Internet users.Operating on a high-performance global network, Quad9 partners with Criminal IP, which offers extensive cyber threat information, including malicious IPs, domains, and CVEs, derived from sophisticated IP and domain scoring algorithms and big data analysis on a worldwide scale, enhances this mission.The specially designed Criminal IP Malicious Domains Retrieval API is used to send the Domain Data Feed identified as malicious to Quad9 for integration. This feed is then utilized alongside other threat intelligence (TI) data sources integrated into the Quad9 platform, such as IBM, OpenPhish, F-Secure, RiskIQ, and Domain Tools, to create a comprehensive blocklist for user protection.Criminal IP's specialized Domain Threat IntelligenceIn addition to these comprehensive threat-blocking results on Quad9, for those seeking more information about each component of domains, users can use Domain Search of Criminal IP. The vulnerability scanner tool meticulously analyzes a wide array of domain details including screenshots, WHOIS data, utilized technologies, page redirections, and certificates. It also identifies potentially malicious content and replicated phishing domains, providing an overall domain score and a Domain Generation Algorithm (DGA) score. This global threat intelligence is updated daily and can be accessed through flexible API integration enabling seamless incorporation of the data into existing security systems, such as SOAR and SIEM."Our partnership with Quad9 is a recognition of the accuracy of Criminal IP's data," stated Byungtak Kang, CEO of AI SPERA. "It is expected that our collaboration will contribute to the protection of Quad9's end-users, who have a global reach, while simultaneously enhancing the quality of Criminal IP's data." End users interested in utilizing the integrated threat-blocking security service of Quad9, which is linked with Criminal IP threat intelligence, can automatically activate the service simply by using the Quad9 DNS server (9.9.9.9).About AI SPERAAI SPERA launched its global cybersecurity service, Criminal IP, on April 17, 2023, following a successful year-long beta phase. The company has established technical and business partnerships with acclaimed global security firms and educational institutions, including VirusTotal, Cisco, Tenable, and Sumo Logic.Criminal IP offers personalized plan options, also suitable for company use. Users can check their own credit usage for specific features (Web, Vulnerability Scanner, Tags, etc.) and API on the dashboard, and upgrade the plan anytime according to their needs.Criminal IP is available in five languages (English, French, Arabic, Korean, and Japanese), providing a powerful and accurate CTI search engine for users worldwide. AI SPERA has been delivering cybersecurity solutions worldwide through a range of products, including Criminal IP CTI Search Engine, Criminal IP ASM, and Criminal IP FDS.ContactMichael SenaAI SPERA support@ aispera.com SOURCE: AI SPERA PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 13:30:26 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 1007 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 AI Driven Education Delivery: The Launch of the State-Wide AI Educational Platform under VSK post the successful pilot across 26 locations in Meghalaya.TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / Deepspatial Inc. (CSE:DSAI)(OTCQB:DSAIF) ("DeepspatialAI" or the "Company"), an outcome-based artificial intelligence company, enabling organizations to enhance their decision-making capabilities by leveraging the power of data and AI, is proud to announce the successful completion of a pilot program and the official launch of its education platform under the Government of India's Vidya Samiksha Kendra (VSK) initiative. This milestone marks a significant achievement in the implementation of the National Education Policy.BackgroundThe VSK initiative, launched by the Indian Ministry of Education, aims to transform the education landscape in India. Its objectives include real-time monitoring of projects and activities, tracking student enrolment, identifying areas for improvement, enhancing academic performance and accountability, and developing a centralized dashboard to display real-time performance indicators.Deployment in MeghalayaUnder the VSK initiative, Deepspatial's platform is being deployed in the state of Meghalaya. Our AI-based learning analytics, assessment, and management system is a critical component of the entire VSK setup.According to an official statement to "The Shillong Times", the VSK centre, which aims to streamline data collection and leverage data visualisations for better understanding of the realities within the state's education frameworks, will now act as a nerve centre for real-time data collection, information management and analysis."As an AI-driven learning enhancement and analytics platform, VSK is fed with data from a range of learning processes - attendance, budget and salary, mid-day meals, and student-teacher performance. The platform is uniquely customised for a range of processes including school monitoring, child tracking, rationalisation and accreditation, and driving AI-driven skills assessment and career counseling," the statement said.VSK setup includes Deepspatial's AI platform along with setup being developed by one of the largest Japanese Multinational Conglomerate which is a Fortune 500 company and among the top 10 companies by market capitalization on NIKKEI index.Launch EventThe fully integrated VSK setup was inaugurated by the Education Minister of Meghalaya, Shri Rakkam A Sangma, at the DERT Annexe, Malki, Shillong. The event, organized by the Department of Education in collaboration with SEMAM, marks a significant milestone in education technology.Launching the centre during a programme here, Education Minister Rakkam A Sangma urged the teachers to leverage the system with good faith and a learning approach."By having the system in place, we can now track the performance of the Department, institutions, students and teachers more efficiently," Sangma noted. The education minister also informed that the process, despite being challenging initially, will produce rewarding outcomes in the long run. "The system is designed to understand the reality of the ground situation of our children and our schools. The system is just another technology, unless we contribute to its betterment and for improved changes in our state," Sangma added.1Rollout PlansThe VSK platform is expected to be rolled out to other states and regions in India in the coming months, with the goal of reaching millions of students and teachers across the country.Principal Consultant, Project Management Unit, Dany K Lyngdoh informed that the VSK was conceptualised, procured and monitored entirely by the Education department. "This accomplishment has garnered appreciation from the NCERT, which has prompted other states and consultants to explore/consult the Meghalaya model," stated Lyngdoh.2NCERT is the National Council of Educational Research and Training, an autonomous organization setup by the Government of India to assist and advise the Central and State Governments on policies and programmes for qualitative improvement in school education.Future DevelopmentsDeepspatial is committed to continuous innovation and improvement and is already working on new features and functionality to further enhance the VSK platform."We are thrilled to see the successful launch of the VSK platform, which is a testament to the power of collaboration and innovation in education," said Dr. Rahul Kushwah, CEO of Deepspatial. "Our platform is designed to empower teachers, engage students, and improve learning outcomes. We are proud to be a part of this important initiative and look forward to continuing to work with our partners to make a positive impact on the lives of students and teachers across India." The company is also pleased to announce the appointment of David Goodman as an independent director.Pursuant to a consulting agreement, the Company will be issuing 960,000 common shares to a consultant at an issue price of $0.05 per share for services provided.About Deepspatial Inc.Deepspatial is an outcome based artificial intelligence company, enabling organizations to enhance their decision-making capabilities by leveraging the power of data and AI. From finding the most efficient supply chain routes to knowing where to develop next, Deepspatial'sAI-driven platform enables its clients to visualize what's going on, predict what's coming, analyze data, and optimize processes to make smarter decisions for a better future. For more information, visitwww.Deepspatial.aiand follow us onTwitter ,InstagramorLinkedIn .Caution regarding Forward Looking Information:THE CANADIAN SECURITIES EXCHANGE HAS NOT REVIEWED NOR DOES IT ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE.This news release may contain forward-looking statements and information based on current expectations. These statements should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results of the Company. Such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from those implied by such statements. Although such statements are based on management's reasonable assumptions, there can be no assurance that such assumptions will prove to be correct. We assume no responsibility to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances. The Company's securities have not been registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), or applicable state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold to, or for the account or benefit of, persons in the United States or "U.S. Persons% PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 13:06:41 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 603 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / Bernstein Liebhard LLP:Do you, or did you, own shares of Doximity, Inc. (NYSE:DOCS)?Did you purchase your shares between February 9, 2022 and April 1, 2024, inclusive?Did you lose money in your investment in Doximity, Inc.?Do you want to discuss your rights?Bernstein Liebhard LLP, a nationally acclaimed investor rights law firm, reminds investors of the deadline to file a lead plaintiff motion in a securities class action lawsuit that has been filed on behalf of investors who purchased or acquired the common stock of Doximity, Inc. ("Doximity" or the "Company") (NYSE: DOCS) between February 9, 2022 and April 1, 2024, inclusive (the "Class Period"). The lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California and alleges violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 against the Company and certain of its officers (the "Complaint").If you purchased or acquired Doximity common stock, and/or would like to discuss your legal rights and options please visit Doximity, Inc. Shareholder Class Action Lawsuit or contact Investor Relations Manager Peter Allocco at (212) 951-2030 or pallocco@ bernlieb.com If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later thanJune 17, 2024 . A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. Your ability to share in any recovery doesn't require that you serve as lead plaintiff. If you choose to take no action, you may remain an absent class member.According to the Complaint, Defendants repeatedly touted the Company's business prospects and the sustainability of its revenue growth and profitability, while downplaying both the impact of competition and tightening macroeconomic conditions, as well as Doximity's reliance on "upselling" products and services (such as additional advertising) to existing customers to sustain performance and future growth.On August 8, 2023, after the market closed, Doximity provided disappointing guidance for the second quarter of fiscal year 2024 and slashed its guidance for the full fiscal year 2024. In conjunction with the disappointing guidance, Doximity announced that it would reduce its workforce by approximately 10%.On this news, Doximity's stock price fell $7.49 per share, or nearly 23%, to close at $25.30 per share on August 9, 2023.Then, on April 1, 2024, Jehoshaphat Research published a report alleging, among other things, that "Doximity's underlying sales . . . are declining at a negative -3-6% rate, but [] this decline has been masked through accelerated revenue recognition." On this news, Doximity's stock price fell almost 2%, closing at $25.80 per share on April 1, 2024.If you purchased or acquired Doximity common stock, and/or would like to discuss your legal rights and options please visit Doximity, Inc. Shareholder Class Action Lawsuit or contact Investor Relations Manager Peter Allocco at (212) 951-2030 or pallocco@ bernlieb.com Since 1993, Bernstein Liebhard LLP has recovered over $3.5 billion for its clients. In addition to representing individual investors, the Firm has been retained by some of the largest public and private pension funds in the country to monitor their assets and pursue litigation on their behalf. As a result of its success litigating hundreds of lawsuits and class actions, the Firm has been named to The National Law Journal's "Plaintiffs' Hot List" thirteen times and listed in The Legal 500 for sixteen consecutive years.ATTORNEY ADVERTISING. 2024 Bernstein Liebhard LLP. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Bernstein Liebhard LLP, 10 East 40th Street, New York, New York 10016, (212) 779-1414. Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter.Contact Information:Peter AlloccoInvestor Relations ManagerBernstein Liebhard LLP https://www.bernlieb.com (212) 951-2030 pallocco@ bernlieb.com SOURCE: Bernstein Liebhard LLP PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 22:15:33 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 362 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 HOLLYWOOD, FL and MIAMI, FL / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / On May 28, 2024 after the NYSE closing, HEICO Corporation (NYSE: HEI.A)(NYSE:HEI) will release its financial results for the second quarter ended April 30, 2024. The earnings release will be available through the Internet on the Company's website at https://www.heico.com In order to assist interested parties in scheduling their participation in HEICO teleconferences, the Company issues advance notices of conference calls.HEICO will hold a conference call on Wednesday, May 29, 2024 at 9:00 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time to discuss its second quarter results. Individuals wishing to participate in the conference call should dial: US and Canada (888) 256-1007, International (929) 477-0448, wait for the conference operator and provide the operator with the Conference ID 1602283. A digital replay will be available two hours after the completion of the conference call for 14 days. To access the replay, please visit our website at https://www.heico.com under the Investors section for details.The Company has two classes of common stock traded on the NYSE. Both classes, the Common Stock (HEI) and the Class A Common Stock ( HEI.A) , are virtually identical in all economic respects. The only difference between the share classes is the voting rights. The Class A Common Stock ( HEI.A) carries 1/10 vote per share and the Common Stock (HEI) carries one vote per share. The stock symbols for HEICO's two classes of common stock on most websites are HEI and HEI.A. However, some websites change HEICO's Class A Common Stock symbol ( HEI.A) to HEI/A or HEIa.HEICO Corporation is engaged primarily in the design, production, servicing and distribution of products and services to certain niche segments of the aviation, defense, space, medical, telecommunications and electronics industries through its Hollywood, Florida-based Flight Support Group and its Miami, Florida-based Electronic Technologies Group. HEICO's customers include a majority of the world's airlines and overhaul shops, as well as numerous defense and space contractors and military agencies worldwide, in addition to medical, telecommunications and electronics equipment manufacturers. For more information about HEICO, please visit our website at https://www.heico.com Contact: Victor H. Mendelson (305) 374-1745 ext. 7590Carlos L. Macau, Jr. (954) 987-4000 ext. 7570SOURCE: HEICO Corporation PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 12:00:19 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 410 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Seamless Omnichannel Integration Empowers B2B OrganizationsBOCA RATON, FL / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / INFUSE, the top global B2B demand performance partner, has announced a new partnership with 6sense, the leading platform that revolutionizes the way B2B organizations create, manage, and convert pipeline to revenue. This strategic partnership marks a significant milestone in delivering unparalleled demand activation capabilities to clients of both 6sense and INFUSE.INFUSE & 6sense: Better Together Intelligence Meets Activation Streamlined Omnichannel ActivationMutual clients of 6sense and INFUSE can now seamlessly activate omnichannel brand-to-demand programs by leveraging in-market buyer intelligence from 6sense alongside INFUSE's comprehensive omnichannel demand activation solutions. This new integration empowers 6sense customers to deploy the most effective demand generation tactics with INFUSE, tailored to an account's current buying stage. This dynamic capability adapts automatically as accounts progress through their buying journey, generating optimal engagement at every step and allowing marketers to seamlessly and simply build and launch sophisticated brand-to-demand programs that directly convert 6sense's predictive analytics account intelligence into revenue opportunities."We're excited to partner with INFUSE, reshaping demand intelligence and activation by seamlessly integrating 6sense's buyer intelligence with INFUSE's omnichannel solutions," said Elliot Smith, 6sense Head of Partnerships. "This collaboration empowers our mutual customers to leverage powerful, customized demand-generation tactics at every stage of the buying process. Our dynamic capability ensures optimal engagement, converting predictive analytics into revenue, further demonstrating our dedication to innovation and efficiency in the industry." "This partnership is more than a collaboration; it's a commitment to innovation, efficiency, and pushing the boundaries of what's possible in our industry," said Alexander Kesler, Founder and CEO of INFUSE. "It's about realizing your vision with precision and intelligence." Contextually Relevant Content PromotionCapitalizing on the dynamic synchronization of 6sense's ICP buying stage account intelligence to INFUSE's AI-powered content marketing engine, contextually relevant content is precisely targeted through the most effective channels at the optimal moment, ensuring that buying groups receive the most relevant information exactly where and when they need it. Leveraging a rich set of first-party engagement data generated throughout each program, marketers are empowered to formulate optimal content creation strategies by understanding key metrics such as asset performance by persona, department, company, and region.Learn MoreTo discover the full potential of the combined INFUSE and 6sense solution, please visit 6 sense.infuse.com Contact InformationVictoria AlbertVP Marketingalbert@ infuse.com +1 (617) 459-4500 x700SOURCE: INFUSEView the original press release on newswire.com PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 20:00:54 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 641 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 PLANO, TX / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 /Legacy ER & Urgent Care, a leading provider of emergency room and urgent care services in the North Texas area, is proud to announce its role in helping to secure a $10,000 grant for Frisco Fastpacs, a local non-profit organization dedicated to fighting childhood hunger. The grant was awarded by the ACP Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Altamont Capital Partners, a private equity firm and investor in Intuitive Health, Legacy ER & Urgent Care's parent company.Legacy ER & Urgent Care's Founder and Intuitive Health's Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Jay Woody, MD, FACEP, ABEM nominated Frisco Fastpacs for the competitive grant based on the organization's tireless work to provide weekend meal packs to food-insecure children in the Frisco Independent School District. Frisco Fastpacs will use the grant funds to help feed over 1,000 area students during the 2024-2025 school year."As an organization committed to the health and wellbeing of the Frisco community, Legacy ER & Urgent Care is honored to play a role in supporting Frisco Fastpacs and the incredible work they do for local children in need," said Dr. Woody. "No child should have to worry about where their next meal is coming from, and we're grateful to the ACP Foundation for providing this crucial funding." As Frisco Fastpacs plans to utilize the grant funds to expand its reach, the organization's leadership expresses gratitude for the support from local partners. "Tackling the issue of childhood hunger requires a collaborative approach," states Heather Canterbury, executive director of Frisco Fastpacs. "The generous contribution and unwavering dedication from ACP Foundation, Legacy ER & Urgent Care and Dr. Jay Woody play a crucial role in our mission. We are truly grateful for their partnership and commitment to making a difference in the lives of children in our community." For more information on Frisco Fastpacs and how you can support their mission, please visit friscofastpacs.org . To learn more about Legacy ER & Urgent Care's services and locations, visit legacyer.com ###ABOUT LEGACY ER & URGENT CARE Founded in 2008, Legacy ER & Urgent Care is one of the nation's first health care models to offer both urgent care and emergency room treatment options under one roof. By providing transparent billing, a welcoming clinical environment and one-on-one service with board-certified, emergency-trained physicians, Legacy has built an exceptional customer service program with industry-leading ratings. The Hybrid care model gives patients access to immediate full-service care while only paying for the level of service required. Each state-of-the-art location is equipped with modern, comfortable amenities, including X-ray, Ultrasound, CT scan, and a full-service laboratory to cater to a wide range of medical needs. The Emergency Room operates 24/7, and urgent care is available from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. At Legacy ER & Urgent Care, we are dedicated to providing the best possible care at an appropriate price. Our commitment to excellence and patient-centered care has established us as a trusted name in healthcare within our communities. For more information, please visit LegacyER.com.ABOUT INTUITIVE HEALTH Founded in 2008, Intuitive Health pioneered the combined emergency room and urgent care model. Intuitive Health partners with established health systems nationwide to build, operate and launch retail healthcare facilities that provide urgent care and emergency room services under one roof. Intuitive Health partners with leading health systems nationwide, including Arizona, Delaware, Florida, Kentucky, Indiana, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, Virginia and Washington. Intuitive's patient-centric approach to immediate care has saved payors and patients hundreds of millions in unnecessary emergency care spending. In addition, the Intuitive Health model increases market share for partnered healthcare systems by expanding their footprint with conveniently located centers. For more information, please visit IHERUC.com Media Contact Jo Trizila, TrizCom PR, on behalf of Legacy ER & Urgent Care and Intuitive HealthOffice: 972-247-1369Cell/text: 214-232-0078Email: Jo@ TrizCom.com SOURCE: Legacy ER & Urgent Care PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 13:07:07 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 606 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / Bernstein Liebhard LLP:Do you, or did you, own shares of Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE:LNC)?Did you purchase your shares between November 4, 2020 and November 2, 2022, inclusive?Did you lose money in your investment in Lincoln National Corporation?Do you want to discuss your rights?Bernstein Liebhard LLP, a nationally acclaimed investor rights law firm, reminds investors of the deadline to file a lead plaintiff motion in a securities class action lawsuit that has been filed on behalf of investors who purchased or acquired the securities of Lincoln National Corporation ("Lincoln National" or the "Company") (NYSE: LNC) between November 4, 2020 and November 2, 2022, inclusive (the "Class Period"). The lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and alleges violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 against the Company and certain of its officers (the "Complaint").If you purchased or acquired Lincoln National securities, and/or would like to discuss your legal rights and options please visit Lincoln National Corporation Shareholder Class Action Lawsuit or contact Investor Relations Manager Peter Allocco at (212) 951-2030 or pallocco@ bernlieb.com If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later thanJune 24, 2024 . A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. Your ability to share in any recovery doesn't require that you serve as lead plaintiff. If you choose to take no action, you may remain an absent class member.According to the Complaint, Defendants failed to disclose to investors that: (1) the Company was experiencing a decline in its variable universal life insurance business; (2) the goodwill associated with the life insurance business was overstated; (3) the Company's policy lapse assumptions were outdated; (4) the Company's reserves were overstated; and (5) the Company's reported financial results and financial statements were misstated.On November 2, 2022, after the market closed, Lincoln National released its third quarter 2022 financial results, reporting a net loss of $2.6 billion for the quarter. This was compared to a net income of $318 million for the third quarter of 2021 the previous year. The Company explained that "[t]he current quarter's adjusted operating results included net unfavorable notable items of $2.0 billion, or $11.62 per share, related to the company's annual review of DAC and reserve assumptions." The Company also disclosed that it "incurred a $634 million goodwill impairment to the life insurance business." On this news, Lincoln's stock price fell $17.27, or 33.2%, to close at $34.83 per share on November 3, 2022.If you purchased or acquired Lincoln National securities, and/or would like to discuss your legal rights and options please visit Lincoln National Corporation Shareholder Class Action Lawsuit or contact Investor Relations Manager Peter Allocco at (212) 951-2030 or pallocco@ bernlieb.com Since 1993, Bernstein Liebhard LLP has recovered over $3.5 billion for its clients. In addition to representing individual investors, the Firm has been retained by some of the largest public and private pension funds in the country to monitor their assets and pursue litigation on their behalf. As a result of its success litigating hundreds of lawsuits and class actions, the Firm has been named to The National Law Journal's "Plaintiffs' Hot List" thirteen times and listed in The Legal 500 for sixteen consecutive years.ATTORNEY ADVERTISING. 2024 Bernstein Liebhard LLP. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Bernstein Liebhard LLP, 10 East 40th Street, New York, New York 10016, (212) 779-1414. Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter.Contact Information:Peter AlloccoInvestor Relations ManagerBernstein Liebhard LLP https://www.bernlieb.com (212) 951-2030 pallocco@ bernlieb.com SOURCE: Bernstein Liebhard LLP PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 17:30:50 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 734 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / Logicalis, the global technology service provider delivering next-generation digital managed services, has today announced the launch of Intelligent Security, a blueprint approach to its global security portfolio designed to deliver proactive advanced security for customers worldwide.Intelligent Security has been designed by Logicalis' worldwide team of security specialists to give customers the most comprehensive observability and protection available. It is based on tracking and analysing cyber threats and knowledge of the latest prevention methods deployed across its customer base.Logicalis' tenth annual CIO report surveyed 1,000 CIOs globally and found that of the 83% of CIOs who experienced cyber-attacks in the last 12 months, only 43% feel prepared for another breach. Designed to help CIOs manage these pressures, Intelligent Security will leverage Logicalis's security capabilities as well as its relationships with global partners such as Cisco and Microsoft, where it has the highest levels of security accreditations.Logicalis CTO Toby Alock said:"Many organisations focus on one area of the security fabric; we recognise in today's cyber security landscape there are no silos; organisations must look across the entire footprint, from secure connectivity, securing the cloud, securing the hybrid worker and weaving secure operations across the entire organisation".The Intelligent Security global portfolio delivers a concise and comprehensive proposition for customers, including: Advisory: Providing customers with a range of advisory services dedicated to helping them understand their security needs and identify the right solutions for their business. Secure workplace: Securing worker communications and devices as remote working continues to impact the workplace security landscape. Secure connectivity: Enforcing zero trust security from edge-to-edge, ensuring networks are robust enough to enable safe IoT, 5G and edge computing. Secure hybrid cloud: Safeguarding cloud environments to ensure data, applications, and IT resources are safe. Secure Operations: Providing 24/7/365 best practice proactive threat detection and incident response, across three global security regions, using AI and automation to identify and triage.In addition to the Intelligent Security global portfolio, the company is announcing several key investments in cyber skills and capabilities to bolster its position as a global leader in security services.Expanding the Managed Security (SOC) team in Portugal, which currently serves customers across EMEA, including the UK, Ireland and GermanyPartnering with Cisco to develop a Cyber Academy and a pipeline of qualified cybersecurity graduates into the EMEA Security teamPartnering with local universities in Portugal to develop an Intern program, which helps develop cybersecurity skills to serve the EMEA region and beyond.Logicalis continues to prove its robust security offer by achieving Microsoft-verified Managed Extended Detection and Response (MXDR) Partner Status, launching Cisco Powered Intelligent Connectivity, built on zero-trust security, and being one of only six partners globally working with Cisco to develop an XDR proposition and enhance its Cisco security capabilities.Intelligent Security will be underpinned by Logicalis' Digital Fabric Platform, providing CIOs with deeper-level insights and recommendations to enhance the performance of their entire digital ecosystem.Toby Alock concludes, "We are at a pivotal point as security threats grow in scale and sophistication. CIOs and IT leaders are rethinking security in the era of AI and considering whether they have the in-house skills necessary to operate safely. Logicalis has seen a 300% surge in demand globally for Managed Security services in the past 12 months. Our customers are looking for a holistic, proactive approach to navigating security; we believe our simplified portfolio, our partnerships, and our investments in cyber talent for the next generation will deliver customers what they need: AI ready Managed Security with governance and SOC Protection wherever they are in the world".For more information please contact:Logicalis Team at Another WordEmail: logicalis@ anotherword.com Tel: 020 3176 0014About LogicalisWe are Architects of Change. We help organisations succeed in a digital-first world. At Logicalis, we harness our collective technology expertise to help our clients build a blueprint for success, so they can deliver sustainable outcomes that matter.Our lifecycle services across cloud, connectivity, collaboration and security are designed to help optimise operations, reduce risk and empower employees.As a global technology service provider, we deliver next-generation digital managed services, to provide our clients with real-time visibility and actionable insights across the performance of their digital ecosystem including; availability, user experience, security, economic performance and sustainability.Our 7000+ Architects of Change' are based in 30 territories around the globe, helping our 10,000+ clients across a range of industry sectors create sustainable outcomes through technology.SOURCE: Logicalis PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 15:16:32 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 611 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / Net Savings Link, Inc. (OTC PINK:NSAV), a cryptocurrency, blockchain and digital asset technology company, announced today the sensational ongoing results of its joint- marketing campaign with MyAirDropAlert.com (MADA) https://www.myairdropalert.com and the Company's Airdropx.co platform https://www.airdropx.co Since the launch of the campaign on May 8, NSAV has been diligently working to onboard MADA's extensive user base of over 8,000,000 members to the NSAVx.com https://nsavx.com/ CEX exchange. The campaign involves sending 1,000,000 emails per day to MADA members. As of this morning, over 5,000,000 emails have been sent, resulting in 2,100,000 opens, 525,000 clicks, and 273,915 new exchange signups. This brings the total number of exchange users to 345,778 directly attributable to this campaign.NSAV also announced the deposit onramp opening for the SWOP token. Deposits will commence at 7 AM EDT on May 13, 2024. For more information on how to deposit your SWOP tokens on the NSAVx.com CEX exchange, please email hello@ nsavxtoken.com NSAV released the following statement, "Achieving over 345,000 sign-ups within our first week is a remarkable accomplishment. We are nearing the completion of the first round of MADA emails and are preparing for Phase 2 of our email marketing campaign beginning on May 15. We expect the Phase 2 campaign will yield even higher conversion results." The Company went on to state, "This is a significant week for NSAV, with developments including the resolution of the OTC Markets Yield sign, our Q1 results, updates on regulatory compliance and licenses, corporate management expansion, and business combinations/partnerships, We have established a clear path for growth and have assembled a seasoned team of professionals to help guide us on this next phase of our corporate journey." NSAV's vision is the establishment of a fully integrated technology company, which provides turnkey technological solutions to the cryptocurrency, blockchain and digital asset industries. Over time, the Company plans to provide a wide range of services such as software solutions, e-commerce, financial services, advisory services and information technology.For further information please contact NSAV at info@ nsavholdinginc.com The NSAV Centralized Cryptocurrency Exchange (CEX) website can be accessed at https://nsavx.com/ The AirdropX.co website can be accessed at https://www.airdropx.co/ The NSAVx Token website can be accessed at https://www.nsavxtoken.com/nsavx-token The NSAVx Discord Server can be accessed at https://discord.com/invite/7Q2Vv5NmKd The NSAV Twitter account can be accessed at https://twitter.com/nsav_tech The NSAV corporate website can be accessed at http://nsavholdinginc.com This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, which are intended to be covered by the safe harbors created thereby. Investors are cautioned that, all forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, including without limitation, the ability of Net Savings Link, Inc. to accomplish its stated plan of business. Net Savings Link, Inc. believes that the assumptions underlying the forward-looking statements contained herein are reasonable, any of the assumptions could be inaccurate, and therefore, there can be no assurance that the forward-looking statements included in this press release will prove to be accurate. In light of the significant uncertainties inherent in the forward- looking statements included herein, the inclusion of such information should not be regarded as a representation by Net Savings Link, Inc. or any other person.ContactNet Savings Link, Inc. info@ nsavholdinginc.com Media ContactOrganization: Net Savings Link IncContact Person: James TiltonWebsite: https://www.nsavholdinginc.com Email: info@ nsavholdinginc.com Contact Number: +17185698815Address: 26 Grosvenor Street, MayfairAddress 2: W1K4QWCity: LondonCountry: United KingdomSOURCE: Net Savings Link Inc PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 17:54:28 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 863 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 PHOENIX, AZ / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / PetroSun, Inc (OTC PINK:PSUD) (the "Company") announced today two separate transactions that provided assignments of Oil, Gas and Helium working interests in the Central Holbrook Basin to Exodus Energy, Inc and Pivot Point Energy, Inc. The working interest covers 11,430.53 acres of ASLD leases, subject to the working interest partners respective participation.The working interest acquired by the parties totals seventy-five percent (75%), with Exodus Energy acquiring fifty percent (50%) and Pivot Point Energy obtaining a twenty-five percent (25%) working interest position. The balance of the working interest is held by PetroSun and affiliates.The Central Holbrook Basin and the leases subject to the above transactions are associated with structures that have been drilled by PetroSun or its subsidiaries and are proven to contain commercial concentrations of helium. The helium concentrations within the gas streams peaked at 9.3% per the analysis provided by Wyoming Analytical Lab. A Contingent Resource Report was issued by MHA and later confirmed by Sproule that the helium potential of the Concho Dome structure has a median recoverable helium reserve estimate of 3.453 billion cubic feet. Based on a lower-case market price of $250 per thousand cubic feet the Central Holbrook Basin Concho Dome calculates to have a gross valuation of approximately $863 million.The Sproule Report on the adjacent Central Holbrook cluster of structures contained within the leasehold were stated to have recoverable helium reserves of 15.467 billion cubic feet based on a stochastic evaluation. The lower-case gross economic value of these structures would exceed $3.86 billion.PetroSun CEO Gordon LeBlanc, Jr stated, "My primary purpose on returning to the Company a year ago was to bring PetroSun into revenue generating status. It has been a 30-year journey in the Holbrook Basin and I am grateful to now bring in partners that can cause the commercialization of the gas that would not burn on a July 4th more than two decades ago. Exodus Energy has committed to acquiring and commissioning a helium processing plant, subject to the flow-testing and gas composition analysis of existing wellbores. Both parties have also committed to the drilling of helium development wells during 2024 and beyond, subject to successful efforts. Operational updates will be provided on a regular basis during the next 90 days." "Finally, it is personally painful to not have Chris Sumner and John Templin with us to witness all of our combined efforts and sacrifice to see this project enter this long-desired phase of operations. No doubt that you are with us in spirit." About PetroSunPetroSun, Inc. is a fully integrated energy and mining business focusing on Lithium, Zeolite Clays, Rare Earth Elements, Mine Tailings, Helium, Natural Gas and Water Processing through the use of cutting-edge technologies, a broad portfolio of assets and leases, and a management team with decades of research, development, and production experience. PetroSun is vertically integrated with control of all aspects of the business from exploration and production to delivery to end users, providing customers direct customized solutions and shareholders maximum returns by participating in profitability at each stage in the supply chain.PetroSun, Inc. owns significant leasehold acreage that is prospective for helium exploration and production in the Holbrook Basin of Arizona and for natural gas and helium in the Paradox Basin of Utah. The Company holds mineral leases on approximately 280,000 gross acres in the Holbrook Basin and Pedregosa Basin of Arizona and over 26,000 gross acres in the Paradox Basin. PetroSun's greatest assets are its shareholders, partners, advisors, employees, and its patented and proprietary technologies. We seek to provide global solutions to some of the most critical challenges the world faces today and into the future.The Company trades on the OTC Pink Sheets under the symbol "PSUD".For additional information:Contact PetroSun at mallison@ petrosun.us Forward-Looking Statements Disclaimer:This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Act of 1934, as amended. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by the following words: "anticipate", "believe", "continue", "could", "estimate", "expect", "intend", "may", "ongoing", "plan", "potential", "predict", "project", "should", "will", "would", or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology, although not all forward-looking statements contain these words. Forward-looking statements are not a guarantee of future performance or results and will not necessarily be accurate indications of the times at, or by, which such performance or results will be achieved. Forward-looking statements are based on information available at the time the statements are made and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainty and other factors that may cause our results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from the information expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements in this press release. This press release should be considered in light of all filings of the Company that are disclosed on the OTC Market.com website. Contact: PetroSun, Inc. 2999 North 44th Street, Suite 620 Phoenix, Arizona 85018 480-425-4290; Website: www.petrosun.us SOURCE: PetroSun, Inc. PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 16:02:30 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 589 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 WASHINGTON, DC / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / A little more than 10 years ago, the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution declaring the decade from 2015-2024 as "The International Decade for People of African Descent." At the start of that decade, South Sudanese business leader Akol Ayii was a few years into building the company he founded - Trinity Group, an investment firm focused on energy, construction, technology, agriculture and finance.Ayii and Trinity's goals were simultaneously bold and simple: Establish unprecedented socio-economic resilience in South Sudan by stabilizing the supply of petroleum products in the region. Through Trinity Group's subsidiary, Trinity Energy, Ayii has spent the past decade delivering on that vision.Fast-forward to the end of the UN's designated decade of African growth: Last month, Ayii was honored as "Young African Leader of the Year" by African Leadership Magazine, as part of its prestigious "Persons of the Year" ceremony held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.The ceremony's theme - "building a resilient Africa in a period of global tensions and economic disruptions" - reflects Trinity's tangible successes in South Sudan, along with Ayii's goals for the future.Energy innovation in service of South Sudanese stability is at the core of Trinity's accomplishments. Trinity has invested more than $13 million into its current retail network in South Sudan's capital of Juba and more than $5 million into the largest petroleum storage terminal in South Sudan.Ayii and Trinity's leadership goes beyond energy innovation and security in South Sudan - Trinity employs more people than any other corporate operator in South Sudan, in addition to being South Sudan's leading corporate taxpayer.Under Ayii's leadership, Trinity Group has championed sustainable development, ethical business practices and social responsibility.Ayii's compliance framework model has set a new standard in South Sudan. Its four core elements - policy development, stringent standards of due diligence, compliance reviews, and training - takes a leadership position in a region in which regulatory scrutiny is high.Trinity's plans to help increase energy resilience in South Sudan are as powerful as the work done over the past decade: They are diversifying their business to provide electricity to millions of South Sudanese who don't have access to grid power. Trinity is expanding its retail footprint to an additional 100 stations across four South Sudan states. They are investing an additional 150 million liters of fuel storage to safeguard the country against supply disruptions that are perennially being faced in the country due to a lack of adequate storage facilities. They are developing 40,000 barrels of oil per day to locally process South Sudan's crude oil at the Paluoch refinery.Beyond regional energy stability and fuel distribution, Ayii has made a tangible commitment to innovative projects with direct social and economic impact. Most recently, Trinity's technology subsidiary mGurush has revolutionized financial inclusion in South Sudan by offering a new mobile money and digital payment platform.Ayii's "Young African Leader of the Year" award was "in recognition of exceptional entrepreneurial achievements and unwavering commitment to fostering sound corporate practices within the business landscape of South Sudan." Ayii echoed that, defining his and Trinity's foundational principles: "It is about vision, hard work and dedication." The UN recognition of the past decade is powerful, but Akol Ayii has provided the model and inspiration for African leaders to accelerate socio-economic stability and resilience into the next decade to come.Media DetailsCompany Name: Gunster Strategies WorldwideMail: office@9 figuremedia.com City & Country: Washington DC, USAWebsite: GunsterStrategies.com SOURCE: 9-Figure Media PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 19:02:17 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 402 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 DUBAI, UAE / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 /Rinascimento Ai is excited to introduce a groundbreaking platform designed to revolutionize yield generation in the cryptocurrency market. Utilizing advanced Artificial Intelligence technologies, this platform offers a sophisticated alternative to traditional DeFi protocols, which have shown diminishing returns since 2020.The innovative platform by Rinascimento Ai aims to tap into a $20 billion AI market, potentially transforming the $3 trillion crypto industry, which has rapidly produced significant wealth, with over 280,000 millionaires and 55 billionaires emerging in record time.Dubbed "the astronomic dividend firm," Rinascimento Ai not only offers substantial growth potential-projecting up to 285X growth-but also allows investors to receive biweekly dividends proportional to their investments.The team behind Rinascimento Ai includes seasoned financial market experts, quantitative analysts, and AI developers, known for capitalizing on major market movements such as the Corona Crash and the DeFi Summer. They are now set to launch an AI-backed protocol on the blockchain, ensuring partners benefit continuously from the firm's future revenue in the expanding crypto markets.Investment Opportunities and Benefits with Rinascimento AiInvestors in the Rinascimento Ai pre-sale can purchase RINA tokens at an initial rate of $0.01per token, with significant growth potential post-listing. The options post-investment include a quick gain by selling the tokens after their value increases and still receive 20% revenue of protocol, or holding the tokens to enjoy further price appreciation and dividends from 50% of the profits generated from the protocol.The benefits of investing early in the Rinascimento Ai ICO include- Early Bird Advantage: Securing a significant amount of tokens at a discounted rate.- Potential for Substantial Rewards: As the platform integrates more innovative solutions, the value of investments is poised to grow.- Security and Transparency: Rinascimento Ai prioritizes investor security and provides real-time tracking of investments and project progress.In anticipation of its public trading launch on both decentralized and centralized exchanges, Rinascimento Ai is expected to see an initial surge in trading price, potentially increasing by 1000%. This positions investors to substantially grow their portfolios.How to Participate in the Rinascimento Ai ICO?1. Visit Rinascimento Ai Pre-Sale2. Select the desired investment amount in USDT/BTC-ETH.3. Register on the platform and confirm your transaction.4. Relax and watch your investment grow, with options to withdraw dividends biweekly.For more details, visit the Rinascimento Ai website or contact the team directly through the provided contact informationRinascimento AiSantino santino@ rinascimento.aiwww.rinascimento.ai SOURCE: Rinascimento Ai PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 08:19:31 Press Information Published by ACN Newswire +65 6304 8926 e-mail https://www.acnnewswire.com/ # 679 Words ACN Newswire+65 6304 8926 Samurai 2K Aerosols Tintatek technology was awarded the Silver Medal amidst stiff competition from over 1000 innovationsFillable Aerosol Container for mixing, colour matching of paint colours without additional equipment revolutionises aerosol paint industryUnique participation certificate in the form of a non-fungible token (NFT), enables exhibitors to verify their participation through blockchain technologySINGAPORE, May 13, 2024 - (ACN Newswire) - Samurai 2K Aerosol Limited (the Company ) (SGX: Y8E), a Company listed on the Catalist board of the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited (SGX-ST) and an innovator in the aerosol paint industry, proudly announces its latest accomplishment securing a Silver Medal at the prestigious 49th International Exhibition of Inventions in Geneva, Switzerland (the Geneva Exhibition) which was held from 17 April to 21 April 2024.The Geneva Exhibition, supported by the Swiss Government and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), is renowned for showcasing new products ready for commercialisation. This year, the exhibition hosted over 825 exhibitors from 45 countries.The Companys award-winning innovation, Tintatek, is a fillable aerosol container that allows users to mix paint colours manually without additional equipment. This groundbreaking product promises to revolutionise the aerosol paint industry by significantly enhancing product usability and accessibility.Ian Ong, CEO of the Company, remarked, Whether its automobiles, marine pleasure crafts, household items, or industrial machinery, the issue of how to repair damaged parts so that the new colour matches the original without any visible discrepancy is a dilemma for many users. I am confident that Tintatek will revolutionise the aerosol paint industry by making colour repair not only more accurate but also more user-friendly and cost-effective. Mr Ian Ong added, Tintatek is nearing the final stages of refinement and will soon be launched in the market. This innovation does not only reflect our dedication to research and development but also aligns with our vision to dramatically enhance the commercial potential of the aerosol industry. The Geneva Exhibition also introduced a novel feature this year a unique participation certificate in the form of a non-fungible token (NFT), enabling exhibitors to verify their participation through blockchain technology, underscoring the events commitment to integrating modern technology with traditional inventiveness.The Companys participation in the Geneva Exhibition is a testament to its innovative spirit and commitment to pushing the boundaries of the aerosol paint industry.Reference:Issued by Samurai 2K Aerosol LimitedThis press release has been reviewed by UOB Kay Hian Private Limited (the Sponsor).This press release has not been examined or approved by the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited (SGX-ST) and the SGX-ST assumes no responsibility for the contents of this press release, including the correctness of any of the statements or opinions made or reports contained in this press release.The contact person for the Sponsor is Mr Lance Tan, Senior Vice President, who can be contacted at 8 Anthony Road #01-01, Singapore 229957, telephone (65) 6590 6881About Samurai 2K Aerosol Limited (SGX: Y8E)Samurai 2K Aerosol Ltd (SAMURAI) has been listed on the Catalist Board of the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited (the SGX-ST) since January 2017. SAMURAI is a fully integrated aerosol specialist that focuses on the repainting business as well as aftermarket for the automotive refinishing and refurbishing industry.SAMURAI aims to be the worlds most respected innovative aerosol system provider and offer the most innovative aerosol systems with the best user enjoyment and to create more job opportunities for all the sprayers in the world.SAMURAI regional office is situated in Singapore while research, product development, branding and manufacturing are conducted in Malaysia. Samurai's products are distributed worldwide to throughout Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia, UK, USA, Singapore, and India. Its range of products includes Truck Bed Liner, Epoxy Marine Surface Primer, Marine Coating, Boat Deck Granular Textured Epoxy Primer, Automobile Body Epoxy Primer etc.For more information, please visit our official website at www.samurai2kaerosol.com Media Contact:Samurai 2K Aerosol LimitedMs. Saveena PrabakaranLegal Cum Relation ExecutiveEmail: saveena@ samuraipaint.jp PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 16:10:30 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 1015 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / SouthGobi Resources Ltd. (TSX-V:SGQ)(HK:1878) ("SouthGobi" or the "Company", together with its subsidiaries, the "Group")announces that, on May 13, 2024, it has entered into an amendment agreement (the "Convertible Debenture Amendment") with JD Zhixing Fund L.P. ("JDZF"), the registered holder of the Company's US$250 million Convertible Debenture issued on November 19, 2009 (the "Convertible Debenture") and the Company's largest shareholder, to amend certain terms of the Convertible Debenture.This announcement is made by the Company pursuant to Rule 13.09(2) and Chapter 14A of the Rules Governing the Listing of Securities on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (the "Hong Kong Listing Rules") and the Inside Information Provisions under Part XIVA of the Securities and Futures Ordinance (Chapter 571 of the Laws of Hong Kong).Convertible Debenture AmendmentPursuant to the Convertible Debenture Amendment, the Company may, by resolution of the board of directors of the Company (the "Board"), at any time and from time to time prepay, without penalty, the whole or any part of the principal amount outstanding under the Convertible Debenture, together with accrued cash interest and PIK interest thereon to the date of prepayment, provided that:the Company has, not later than three (3) business days prior to the proposed prepayment date, delivered to JDZF an irrevocable written notice, signed by an independent director of the Company and setting out the terms of the prepayment;the amount of such prepayment reduces the then outstanding principal amount under the Convertible Debenture by an amount that is (I) not less than US$500,000 and (II) if in excess of US$500,000, an integral multiple of US$500,000; andthe proposed prepayment date falls on a business day.The Company is not providing any additional form of consideration to JDZF in connection with the Convertible Debenture Amendment. Aside from the aforementioned amendments, the existing terms of the Convertible Debenture continue in full force and effect and unchanged.The effectiveness of the Convertible Debenture Amendment is subject to the Company providing notice to, and obtaining acceptance (if required) from the TSX Venture Exchange ("TSX-V") and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, as well as requisite approval from disinterested shareholders of the Company in accordance with the requirements of applicable securities laws.The aforementioned summary of the principal terms of the Convertible Debenture Amendment is not comprehensive, and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the full text of the Convertible Debenture Amendment, a copy of which has been filed on the Company's profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca General Information of the PartiesThe GroupThe Company is an integrated coal mining, development and trading company. SGQ Coal Investment Pte. Ltd. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company incorporated under the laws of Singapore, which is principally engaged in the investment holding business activities. Southgobi Sands LLC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company incorporated under the laws of Mongolia, which is principally engaged in coal mining, development and exploration of properties in Mongolia.JDZFJDZF is an exempt limited partnership formed under the laws of the Cayman Islands, which is principally engaged in investment holding activities. JDZF's general partner and limited partner are JD Dingxing Limited and Inner Mongolia Tianyu Trading Limited, respectively. To the best of the Company's knowledge and belief, the ultimate beneficial owner of the limited partner is Mr. Yong An and the general partner is Ms. Chonglin Zhu. Mr. Yong An is the Chairman and founder of Inner Mongolia Tianyu Innovation Investment Group Co. Ltd.* ( ) ("Tianyu Group"), and has conducted business in Inner Mongolia region since 1998. Ms. Chonglin Zhu was the Chief Financial Officer of Tianyu Group from March 2015 to September 2022, and was also responsible for managing JDZF. Ms. Chonglin Zhu has served as an Executive Director of the Company since September 8, 2022. She was the Company's Senior Vice President of Finance from September 8, 2022 to February 2, 2024, and appointed as the Company's Chief Financial Officer on February 2, 2024.Reasons for and Benefits of the Convertible Debenture AmendmentIn evaluating the terms of the Convertible Debenture Amendment and reaching its conclusion and making its recommendation in support of the Convertible Debenture Amendment, the Board (excluding the Amendment Interested Directors (as defined below)), considered a number of factors, including the following: (i) the Convertible Debenture Amendment is designed to improve the financial position of the Company, as it provides the Company with an ability to repay the principal amount and accrued cash interest or PIK interest, without penalty, at the discretion of the Board, if doing so is in the best interests of the Company; (ii) the Convertible Debenture Amendment improves the financial flexibility of the Company, as the Company did not have a right to prepay the principal amount outstanding under the Convertible Debenture under the original terms of the Convertible Debenture; (iii) the terms of the Convertible Debenture Amendment are reasonable in the circumstances of the Company, in particular given that the Company is not providing any additional form of consideration to JDZF in connection with the Convertible Debenture Amendment; and (iv) the best interests of the Company and shareholders will be served by approving the Convertible Debenture Amendment.Board Review and ApprovalBased on the above, the Board (excluding (i) the Directors who are appointed by JDZF pursuant to contractual nomination rights contained in the securityholders agreement between the Company, JDZF and a former shareholder of the Company and certain deferral agreements between JDZF, the Company and certain of its subsidiaries relating to the Convertible Debenture, namely, Mr. Ruibin Xu, Ms. Chonglin Zhu and Mr. Chen Shen (collectively, the "Amendment Interested Directors"); and (ii) a special committee of the Board struck to negotiate and consider the terms of the Convertible Debenture Amendment, which consisted solely of independent non-executive Directors, whose views are to be contained in the letter from the independent board committee (the "Independent Board Committee") in the Company's management proxy circular (the "Management Proxy Circular") to be despatched to the Shareholders) are of the view that the Convertib PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 12:45:17 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 950 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Vista founder Thomas Flohr will introduce a fleet of Global 7500s to business travelers in the U.S. in an upcoming nationwide tour.NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / As it marks its 20th anniversary, Vista, the world's leading private aviation group, is launching an unprecedented tour across the United States to showcase the capabilities of its newly dedicated American fleet of Bombardier Global 7500 aircraft. The tour emphasizes Vista founder Thomas Flohr's ongoing commitment to meeting the sophisticated demands of business aviation, connecting the U.S. with global destinations.The tour includes stops in New York City, Los Angeles, Dallas, San Jose, California, and Palm Beach, Florida. At each stop, Vista will introduce its services to interested businesses and individuals, focusing on the Bombardier Global 7500, the longest-range private jet in the world. The tour also serves as something of a celebration for Vista, the parent company of VistaJet and XO, and its robust growth in the U.S. market.When Swiss-bornThomas Flohrlaunched VistaJet in 2004, the company focused primarily on Europe. The U.S. is now one of the company's fastest-growing markets."The U.S. is a mature business aviation market, yet there's a gap for clients who need a consistent solution for both domestic and international travel. We see strong demand for the long-haul, nonstop capabilities of the Global 7500," said Leona Qi, president of VistaJet U.S."Our newly dedicated U.S. fleet enhances our ability to meet this need comprehensively, from Texas to Alaska, Chicago to Hawaii, and Seattle to Anguilla. Vista is uniquely positioned to fulfill this demand as the only company to offer connectivity at this scale." Vista America Launched to Focus on North American ClientsGuided byThomas Flohrand his team of experienced industry leaders, Vista has disrupted the private business jet industry with its subscription-based model that saves enterprises the cost of purchasing and maintaining their own aircraft. As a Vista member, they receive around-the-clock access to the company's fleet of 300-plus jets - including 18 Bombardier Global 7500s - and luxury service.The company is truly global in nature, having flown to airports in 96% of the world's countries. It recently focused on expanding its reach into the U.S. with the support of Vista America.Vista America will operate the Vista Members' fleet in the United States for VistaJet and XO clients with Vista's operating partners in the U.S., which includes Jet Select, Western Air Charter and Red Wing Aviation.Shortly after the announcement about Vista America, Vista reported double-digit growth in all territories and 17% growth in on-fleet hours globally. Much of the growth is driven by increases in its Program membership, including increased demand for flights in the U.S.Vista Dedicates Fleet of Global 7500s to the North American MarketAs it has grown worldwide, Vista has also become the largest operator of Global 7500s. The company recently introduced these state-of-the-art jets through Vista America, specifically catering to North American business travelers seeking reliable travel solutions for both domestic and international routes.The Global 7500 aircraft boasts an industry-leading 17-hour flying range and features a luxurious cabin with four distinct living areas, designed to accommodate business meetings, relaxation, and family travel. This remarkable aircraft also provides clients unparalleled comfort and connectivity.Vista also continues to expand its operations through continuous investment in infrastructure, technology, and personnel. The company has set a new industry standard with client-centric initiatives, including the pioneering VistaJet Wellness program. This program offers ergonomic seating and jet lag-reducing technologies, enhancing the onboard experience.Furthermore, Vista's dedication to refining onboard services is evident in their partnerships that curate unforgettable experiences, unlimited fast Wi-Fi, and elevated private dining standards.For Vista Members, guaranteed availability on the Global 7500 represents a significant benefit, allowing them to enjoy the luxuries of guaranteed availability for flying on an aircraft valued at over $70 million, without the need to invest directly in purchasing the asset. Additionally, flights can be conveniently booked via XO, based on availability.The Global 7500 is in demand in the U.S. Vista reports a 76% increase in the aircraft's U.S. flight hours in 2023. In addition, Vista members in North America added 38% more hours to their Global 7500 subscription in 2023.Thomas Flohr and the Subscription-Based Private Jet ModelThomas Flohr founded Vista in 2018 as the parent company for both VistaJet and XO. VistaJet provides business travelers a subscription-based mode for private jet travel. XO is a private aviation network that offers clients the chance to book flights on over 2,400 aircraft through its online interface.Flohr, who previously worked in asset finance, launched VistaJet in 2004 after experiencing unsatisfactory options for booking private jet business travel. He wanted to create a firm that focuses on the client's needs and provides high-end service. By creating a subscription service that eliminated the need to own a jet, he also made business travel accessible to more companies.Flohr's focus on continually improving and expanding what Vista offers aligns with his advice on running a business, as does his commitment to transparency."Honesty and straightforwardness always get you the farthest. Your word must be your bond. And that's the principle I live by," Flohr said in an interview with Peter Fuda, DBA, a leadership and business transformation expert. Flohr added that the global scale of the company demands a constant focus on improving.Thomas Flohr told Fuda that Vista is "serving the most influential and smartest people in the world and they do have the highest standards. To bring them together to work in all those different time zones, being omnipresent, basically, at any given point in time - is certainly one of the biggest challenges." For media inquiries, please contact -press@ vistaglobal.com SOURCE: VistaJet PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 14:15:11 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 676 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / Weaver Labs, a revolutionary blockchain technology company building the future of telecom infrastructure and one of the most impactful DePIN projects currently underway, has announced the pre-sale of its native cryptocurrency, Adeno ($ADE), which started on the 1st of May and will end on the 15th of May. This token will fuel CellNet, the world's first Web3 marketplace dedicated to the telecom industry, enabling a decentralized approach to infrastructure sharing and network management.Decentralizing the Internet: A Paradigm ShiftThe current internet landscape is dominated by large, centralized telecom companies. This model often leads to limited access, high costs, and a lack of transparency. Weaver Labs is on a mission to change that.Adeno, the cornerstone of the CellNet ecosystem, empowers a future where no single entity controls the network. Infrastructure ownership becomes decentralized, fostering competition and innovation.Anyone, anywhere, can gain affordable and reliable internet connectivity. Blockchain technology ensures secure transactions, real-time usage monitoring, and efficient resource allocation.Reduced Bureaucracy: The Marketplace for a Decentralized Telecom FutureCellNet acts as the central nervous system of Weaver Labs' vision. This Web3 marketplace facilitates a wide range of essential network transactions, including deploying and sharing network resources using CellStack. Through Cell-Stack, Weaver Labs lays the groundwork for a decentralized connectivity marketplace, transforming how telecom assets are utilized by digitizing them. Their goal is to assist network builders in transitioning to a software-based platform, streamlining the process and minimizing bureaucratic hurdles.By creating a marketplace that oversees the rental of assets, Cell-Stack transforms the landscape of future network deployments, making them more efficient and accessible to all.Adeno Token: Unlocking the Power of CellNetThe Adeno token serves several critical functions within CellNet:It enables micropayments for network usage, fostering a dynamic and cost-effective system. ADE holders have a say in shaping the future of CellNet through voting and proposal creation. The token facilitates real-time tracking of network consumption, ensuring efficient resource allocation. Adeno acts as a unit of account for infrastructure usage, enabling transparent and secure transactions, and incentivizes network providers to maintain high service quality.Strong Partnerships and Proven Track RecordWeaver Labs boasts a prestigious list of partners with bigger companies.The company has a proven track record of success, having secured significant funding from government bodies and private institutions to support its innovative projects. These projects range from creating open network software platforms to deploying smart city solutions and bringing connectivity to stadiums and other venues alike.Investing in the Future of TelecomThe Adeno pre-sale presents a unique opportunity for early adopters to contribute to the decentralization of the Internet and be part of the next generation of telecom infrastructure. By participating in the pre-sale, token buyers can support the project, the vision and contribute to the success of Cellnet.About Weaver LabsWeaver Labs is a pioneering company at the forefront of the telecom revolution. It is building the infrastructure for a decentralized future, empowering a more connected and equitable world. Weaver Labs' vision is driven by a team of passionate technologists and industry experts committed to creating a more open and transparent telecom ecosystem.As part of Weaver Labs' commitment to empowering and embracing crypto and blockchain, they have been invited to events in London to showcase and discuss the benefits of these alternatives for driving business. In May, they will be at the Palace of Westminster alongside renowned stakeholders to delve into the topic. Undoubtedly, this underscores the value of Weaver Labs and Adeno, highlighting their significant potential to revolutionize telecommunications.Join the Decentralized RevolutionFor more information about the Adeno pre-sale, Weaver Labs, and the transformative power of CellNet, please visit the following resources:Weaver Labs Website: https://www.weaverlabs.io/ Adeno Token Information: https://www.weaverlabs.io/adeno CellNet Whitepaper: https://www.weaverlabs.io/whitepaper.pdf Twitter: https://twitter.com/Weaver_Labs Telegram: https://telegramchannels.me/ Media ContactOrganization: Weaverlabs LTDContact Person: RamandeepWebsite: https://www.weaverlabs.io/ Email: ramandeep.singh@weaverlabs.io City: LondonCountry: United KingdomSOURCE: Weaverlabs LTD PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 14:21:03 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 534 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 MAULDIN, SC / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / Xcelerate, Inc.(OTCQB:XCRT) today announced it has changed its auditor from BF Borgers CPA PC to Bush & Associates CPA LLC. The Company filed a report with the SEC on May 10,2024, in which it advised that it had terminated its relationship with BF Borgers CPA after the Securities and Exchange Commission terminated Borgers' right to practice before the SEC, alleging "massive fraud affecting more than 1,500 SEC filings"."Following the filing of our SEC report of the termination of our former auditor, the entire Xcelerate team, including our accountant, securities counsel and board members worked tirelessly to identify and engage a new audit firm with the capability and expertise to assist us in our growth plan, including auditing of our financial statements and those of ESN in order to include the same in our anticipated amendment of our registration statement previously filed. We are confident that Bush & Associates ( www.bushandassociatescpa.com) is that firm" said Xcelerate CEO Mike O'Shea. "We do not anticipate any material changes in these financial statements" added Mr. O'Shea.Investors and stakeholders are encouraged to stay updated on the latest developments by visiting the Company's website at https://xcelerate.global/ ABOUT XCELERATE INC.Since establishing new management and adopting a new business plan in May 2020, we have developed three separate but related businesses within the medical, health and wellness sectors, including (i) formulation, packaging and marketing of consumer health and beauty, clinically tested skin care products; (ii) development of AI and virtual health technology to assist patients in developing countries, initially in Africa, to provide for their population to obtain medical care by extending the reach of physicians through the use of that technology; and (iii) owning and licensing the rights to various forms of medical equipment and portfolio of patents, patents pending and technology licenses. We believe we have made significant advances in the businesses included in (i) and (ii) and while no assurances can be provided, believe we are on the cusp of significant growth. For more information visit www.xcelerate.global or contact us at 854-900-2020 or email info@ xcelerate.global SAFE HARBORThis press release may contain forward-looking information within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"), including all statements that are not statements of historical fact regarding the intent, belief or current expectations of the Company, its directors or its officers with respect to, among other things: (i) the Company's financing plans; (ii) trends affecting the Company's financial condition or results of operations; (iii) the Company's growth strategy and operating strategy; and (iv) the declaration and payment of dividends. The words "may," "would," "will," "expect," "estimate," "anticipate," "believe," "intend," and similar expressions and variations thereof are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Company's ability to control, and actual results may differ materially from those projected in forward-looking statements resulting from various factors.SOURCE: Xcelerate, Inc. PR-Inside.com: 2024-05-13 19:04:05 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 326 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 USA Employer Recognition Award WinnerHOUSTON, TX / ACCESSWIRE / May 13, 2024 / ZTERS announced it is a recipient of the prestigious 2024 Top Workplaces USA award, featured in USA TODAY. This achievement underscores the organization's dedication to fostering a people-first workplace culture and prioritizing the employee experience.USA Today Top Work Place 2024 USA Today Top Work Place 2024 AwardChad Farley, ZTERS CEO, stated, "We have a wonderful thing going on here. Last year your responses placed ZTERS as a top workplace in many categories. We ranked as a top company nationally in:Compensation & Benefits Innovation Leadership Purpose & Values Work-Life Flexibility "ZTERS is nothing without great employees committed to making ZTERS a great company. We are going to continue to focus on making sure that we follow our orange values and take ZTERS to the Power of Three. When we work towards adding value for Customers, Service Providers, and Each Other, we all succeed!!!"With a history spanning 17 years, the Top Workplaces program has surveyed over 27 million employees, spotlighting culture excellence across 60 regional markets. The Top Workplaces USA designation honors the nation's greatest employers of choice.The national recognition celebrates organizations with 150 or more employees who have cultivated exceptional workplace environments. Of the more than 42,000 invited organizations, ZTERS secured the award based solely on an employee engagement survey administered by Energage, the HR technology and research firm behind the Top Workplaces program. Survey results were evaluated by comparing responses to research-based statements that predict high performance against industry benchmarks.Eric Rubino, Energage CEO, commented, "The Top Workplaces award is a badge of honor and something companies should be very proud to showcase. The people-first cultures they have built and nurtured will set them apart in a highly competitive market. These organizations represent the best of the best." Contact InformationMarketing Department866.652.7647 Related ImagesUSA Today Top Work Place 2024 USA Today Top Work Place 2024 Award ZTERS ZTERS Logo SOURCE: ZTERSView the original press release on newswire.com Governor Caleb Mutfwang of Plateau State has appreciated President Bola Tinubu for the 997 metric tons of grains donated to Plateau to alleviate the sufferings of the indigent and vulnerable. Mr Mutfwang extended his appreciation when he received the palliatives on Monday in Jos, the capital of Plateau State. The governor said that Mr Tinubus gesture was a demonstration of care and concern about the plight of the vulnerable. Thank you, Mr President, for listening to the cry of the vulnerable in Nigeria. We are living in difficult times and moments when mistakes of the past have led us to the current problems we are confronting. The problems required painful policies to be put in place, which made life painful at the moment. Mr President has deemed fit to procure and release these items to every state of the federation so that we can address the immediate stomach challenges while we are waiting for bumper harvest this year. It is my prayer that next year we will not need to supply palliatives but will be able to farm sufficiently to be able to provide food security to our people and be able to drive hunger from every home in Nigeria, he said. Mr Mutfwang said that his administration was determined to tackle poverty and, by the grace of God, ensure that all farmlands were cultivated to be able to maximise the blessings God has put in the land for the Plateau people. The governor announced that in addition to the palliatives the state received from the federal government through NEMA, the state government would add to the basket 26,979 bags of 25kg of rice for onward distribution across the state. He hoped that the distribution would go on seamlessly, transparently, and honestly and reach the vulnerable. He warned against selling the items, as anyone found culpable would be punished. Zubaida Umar, NEMA Director-General, said that the release of the palliatives was in fulfilment of President Tinubus promise to reduce the impact of the current economic downturn being experienced in the country in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later Mrs Umar was represented by Bashir Garga, NEMA North Central Zonal Director, who said that Mr President had approved the release of 42,000 metric tons of assorted food commodities from the national strategic reserve. Sharing of food commodities The director-general said that the assorted food commodities comprised maize, millet, sorghum, and garri. It is worthy of note that based on the allocation table, Plateau has been allocated 374 metric tons (7,480 50kg bags) of maize, 442 metric tons (8,840 50kg bags), and 161 metric tons (3,230 50kg bags) of sorghum. The above food items will be shared equally to all 17 local government areas (LGAs) in the state. Also, based on the directives of Mr President, 20 per cent of the food items due for each LGA should be given to religious organisations (JNI and CAN) and three per cent to be given to boarding schools in the LGAs, he said. Sunday Abdu, Executive Secretary, State Emergency Management (SEMA), said the gesture marked a significant milestone in the collective efforts to alleviate the suffering of our people. Abdu said that it was a testament to the unwavering commitment of this administration to the welfare of her citizens.As we gather to flag off the distribution of these palliatives, I am reminded of the strength and resilience of our people. We have faced challenges, but here we are standing strong. We have been knocked down, but we have always gotten back up by the grace of God, he said. (NAN) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Some female residents in Lagos have expressed frustration over the discriminatory practices of some landlords who refuse to rent their properties to single ladies and mothers. In separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday, some ladies shared their experiences and challenges securing apartments in Lagos, citing bias as a significant obstacle. The ladies called for an end to such discriminatory practices, urging landlords to consider their applications. They said this should be based on their creditworthiness and ability to pay rent rather than their marital status or gender. Titi Ogunseitan, a single mother-of-one, complained about the difficulties in renting an apartment, noting that estate agents are judgemental. Ms Ogunseitan, who resides in Magodo, noted that it took her months to secure her apartment. I have heard about the difficulties of renting a house as a single mother, but I was always dismissive about that until I started looking for a home after the birth of my son. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later I went to several houses, but I was rejected because Im a single mother. Some of the reasons they gave were just insane, and I couldnt understand them as they were flimsy excuses. After many searches without results, I got fed up and decided to stay with my family and friends. It isnt convenient, but what more can I do? Discrimination Fisayo Kasali, a self-employed tailor, had similar difficulties renting a house in the Ikeja area of Lagos. The appropriate authorities need to investigate so many things in the housing sector, one of which is unfair discrimination against single ladies. When single ladies are looking for houses to rent, landlords and agents have this particular perception about us, and we dont understand why. Cant single ladies have decent jobs? Why do they categorise and see all of us in a particular way? This shouldnt be the case; this mentality and perception must be changed and erased. The physical and mental stress I went through when I was looking for a house last year was draining, and I dont wish for anyone to go through it, she said. Busola Lawal, a single lady who works in an insurance company, expressed similar frustrations while house hunting. Ms Lawal, who resides in the Alapere area of the state, noted that renting an apartment took her a while. I was house hunting for over 11 months, and it took this long because the estate agents and landlords had problems with me not being married. I saw several houses that I was interested in but didnt buy any of them because of the problem we created. At a point, I got frustrated, so I stopped house hunting. But eventually, I got an apartment when I used my guy friend to get the place on my behalf, she said. Government intervention A banker, Temi Farasimi, noted that status should not be a determining factor when renting an apartment. She urged the Lagos State Government to address the situation, noting that a law should be created to protect women against such discrimination. However, a landlord in Ogudu GRA, Demola Adesesan, said he does not discriminate against gender as he rents his apartments to female tenants. I have heard about cases like this, and I have some friends who own properties who prefer to give their houses to men, but I dont do that. My agents have instructions that there shouldnt be discrimination against single ladies or mothers. So, I can tell you that I have ladies as tenants in my properties. I can understand the stance of some landlords against renting their houses to females, but I dont do such things because I ensure I give everyone a level playing field, he said. Another landlord, Abass Oyewole, said he preferred to rent his property to the male gender, noting that past experiences ensured the decision. I prefer to give my property to the male gender because of my experience with the opposite gender, and I can tell you, it was a very terrible one. I have been in real estate for several years, and the problems I have encountered with my house are with the female tenants, especially the single ones. Im not going to go into details, but with what I experienced with female tenants, I would prevent any situation where I have to give my property to them, he said. (NAN) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print On Monday, the Akwa Ibom state government debunked social media speculations that the famous Landmark Beach in Lagos was relocating to the state. The construction of the N15 trillion 700 km Lagos-Calabar coastal road has not been without its impact on private businesses, especially those in Lagos. One of the business brands impacted by this development is Landmark Beach. Business mogul and owner of Landmark Beach Resort, Paul Onwuanibe, told CNN he acquired the land in 2007 before the plans for the coastal highway were drawn and felt a mix of emotions after receiving the demolition order, which also urged him to file compensation claims. Speaking with PREMIUM TIMES on Monday, the Commissioner for Tourism, Charles Udoh, said contrary to reports, the state was in a partnership with Landmark Hotel and Beach Resort to develop 20 hectares of Ibeno Beach, one of the states major tourist attractions. Mr Udoh said that on Saturday, the management of Landmark Hotel and Beach Resort met with the government of Akwa Ibom state in a strategic move, with the transition chairman of Ibeno LGA, Emma Ibok, in attendance. Yes, the landmark is coming to Akwa Ibom State but not relocating. So, no one should say they are shutting down in Lagos and coming over here. Akwa Ibom state is blessed with 129 km of shoreline, so we are seeking a partnership with Landmark, which is over 20 hectares only, he clarified. Mr Udoh also added that the partnership will open a broad range of employment opportunities in the state. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later This partnership is targeted at creating 1,000 jobs, so we are looking at taking 1,000 people off the street, he said. Investment calls The commissioner also said the state is open to other investors considering the portion allocated to Landmark, adding that the partnership is part of deliberate efforts made by this present administration to improve tourism in the state. He said, For 36 years plus, prior governments of the state never considered tourism as a front-burner issue for the state, but this present government has set tourism as a front-burner issue and a prospective primary income earner for the state. This intentionality by the present government has attracted landmark Hotel and Beach Resort and hopefully other investors. He also claimed that Akwa Ibom state holds a vital share of Nigerias history. The name Nigeria was born in Akwa Ibom state. We intend to share the history and stories of the slave trade and the dwelling place of Mary Slessor with the world. He added, All of this is stirred at achieving the governor ARISE agenda, which is moving Akwa Ibom state from a geographical destination to a tourist destination. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print On Sunday, the Nigeria Police declared Lagos socialite and blogger Dorcas Adeyinka wanted for alleged crimes, including cyber-stalking, abduction, and murder. Ms Adeyinka, 40, owner of the TMS blog, was in the news in 2022 after her nude photos leaked online. Consequently, the blogger filed a criminal complaint against Tolulope Adeoye (aka Abike Jagaban) and Tolulope Odegbami (aka Olowosibi), alleging they shared her private photos on YouTube. Pelumi Olajengbesi of an Abuja-based law firm, Law Corridor, filed the case at the Chief Magistrate Court in Wuse Zone 6, Abuja. The lawsuit partly read: On the 5th of March 2022, Abike Jagaban shared the complainants nude pictures on Youtube, directing her followers to different online platforms where the complainants pictures were/are shared and ridiculed the complainant in the process. The defendants have also circulated publications on social media, alleging that the complainant is responsible for the death of an individual named Folusho Asimiyu, also known as Iya Ibeji, whom the complainant had previously supported financially through her non-governmental organisation. These allegations have been made without any evidence or connection linking the complainant to the demise of Folunsho Asimiyu. In his ruling in May 2024, Chief Magistrate Emmanuel Iyanna ordered the defendants to appear in court on 4 June, the adjournment date. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later The matter became somewhat controversial and messy, with several allegations and counter-allegations on social media by several parties. Wanted On the Police Wanted flier issued by the authority of the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, the blogger was described as a married woman who hails from Ekiti State and Ibadan in Oyo State. The Police in the flier shared on its X page detailed the blogger stands at approximately 1.64m tall, with an oval face, tribal marks, a pointed nose, a wide mouth, full and white dentition, and light skin, complemented by black eyes. The Police also stated that she resides in the United Kingdom and often visits Ikeja, Ogudu, and Fagba in Lagos State and Otta and Sango in Ogun State. Furthermore, the Police urged the public to apprehend and deliver the suspect to the nearest police station or the office of the IGP Monitoring Unit, Force Headquarters, Abuja. Zero intimidation Ms Adeyinka, the Aare Tayese of Owode-Otta in Ogun State, maintained innocence of the allegations. The blogger on Monday on her Facebook page said she would not be intimidated by Police actions. She said: When you are innocent, you have nothing to worry about. I will not be intimidated. My humanitarian work, which is hurting my enemies, will continue. Helping the less privileged is built for me; no one will intimidate me. The people writing fake petitions against me have done worse on this social media! What was done to them? They went as far as sharing my nudity! What happened to my counter-petition? Everything they wrote in their petition was all lies! I didnt know that helping the less privileged is now a crime? Lawyers reaction Reacting, her counsel, Olajengbesi, revealed that his client has always appreciated invitations from law enforcement agencies. In a statement on Monday, Mr Olajengbesi faulted the Police action and added that the matter is in court. As legal representatives for Dorcas Adeyinka, we have noted various reports, including those from reputable news sources and official Nigeria Police Force channels, claiming our client has been declared wanted in connection with some phantom allegations. While we acknowledge that this issue originated from a shameful social media dispute involving certain individuals, we are surprised by the extent of attention it has garnered from the Nigeria Police Force, the lawyer added. The lawyer reiterated Ms Adeyinkas commitment to legal procedures and said she would cooperate with the police when invited. He said they had contacted the relevant authorities to schedule a convenient date for his client to cooperate with the investigation. He said, Our client has found herself ensnared in a social media altercation initiated by individuals who maliciously circulated her private images online. Seeking recourse, she sought assistance from the police, only to face further harassment and attempts to silence her. It is crucial to note that this is not the first instance of our client being unfairly targeted. In December of last year, similar unfounded charges were levied against her, only to be struck out by the court due to lack of evidence. Mr Olajengbesi believed the court would ensure justice and fairness for all involved parties. Subsequently, not satisfied by the courts decision, she was summoned for questioning by the Inspector General of Polices Monitoring Unit in Abuja, where, once again, no substance was found in the allegations. She was granted bail. The office of the IGP Monitoring Unit asked her to report to the Abuja office on May 8, 2024. She communicated her schedule and informed them that her legal team would coordinate a suitable alternative date with the Police. Therefore, the proclamation of her being wanted, especially when her availability was evident, and she was in a public event on 11 May 2024, where she was decorated, suggests either misguidance within the Nigeria Police Force or unauthorised access to their official channels to make such a derogatory statement. This appears to trivialise the crucial role of the Police. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Renowned Nigerian perfumer and CEO of Seinde Signature Salon De Parfum brand, Olaseinde Olusola, unveiled a surprising trend in his industry during his recent birthday celebration in Lagos. According to Mr Olusola, Abuja residents are leading the charge as top perfume connoisseurs in the country. The 62-year-old perfumer who recently introduced global niche fragrances to Nigeria shared insights into the discerning tastes of Abujas residents compared to their counterparts in Lagos. Mr Olusola told PREMIUM TIMES that Abuja residents keenly appreciate niche perfumes, selecting scents that resonate more with their personalities, moods, and attire than Lagosians. He said: Fragrances are works of art. They are people trying to put their emotions in a bottle and tell a story about what they are creating, and some of the stories are very true. Each niche brand has a concept that they follow, which is very meaningful. It is not just about smelling nice. However, not most Nigerians understand this. He illustrated this point with examples of niche perfumes inspired by Nigerian deities and cultural elements. For instance, he mentioned a fragrance named Esu, which embodies the characteristics of the trickster god. Despite its artistry, some Nigerians may shy away from such scents due to religious associations. He said, There is a perfume we have. The guy who created the perfume studied the gods in Nigeria and created a perfume called Esu to encapsulate the character of the Esu god. In this sense, Esu is a liar. This perfume lies and tricks you. If you wear it, it smells a certain way, and the next minute, it changes to something else. Because Nigerians are very religious, some people will see it and try to avoid it. Someone else from Romania created Osun. He has never been to Nigeria but created a perfume named after the River Osun in Osun State. It is talking about the god of fertility. So he tried to create something that depicts it. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later So many fragrances come with different stories and try to depict different things. If you look at Electimos, it uses the Roman methodology. Some even try to talk about the kind of food they eat and how vivid they are. They try to create a fragrance that fits that. However, most Nigerians do not appreciate the value of niche perfumes, except for Abuja residents, who appreciate niche perfumes better and go with a perfume that resonates with their persona, moods, and attires compared to Lagosians. Mr Olusola mentioned that hed just set up shop in Abuja. Surprisingly, the response was so overwhelming. Mr Olusola said that he had only opened an outlet in Abuja in 2023 but has enjoyed higher patronage in the Abuja outlet, so much so that he had to send his daughter from Lagos to Abuja to oversee the fast-paced growth in the business. Birthday giveaway Mr Olusola announced the launch of #Seinde365 to celebrate his birthday and promote niche perfumery. The initiative aims to distribute over N100 million worth of niche perfumes in a year. Starting on 8 May 2024, he said he would gift at least one lucky individual a complimentary bottle of niche perfume every day for 365 days, totalling 480 bottles. Reflecting on his birthday and sharing his philosophy for longevity, Mr Olusola encouraged people to prioritise happiness amid lifes challenges. He said, I do not know which of us can change anything by worrying. I have come to a point where I know that I didnt make myself a black young man; I did not make myself go to Mr and Mrs Olusola, who had me. I cant even wake myself up, so why worry about so many things you cannot control? Trust me, if you keep yourself very happy, that is the secret to longevity. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has reassured stakeholders of the industry that oil and gas service companies that have established capacities in the country will continue to enjoy patronage through the award of contracts from operating companies in the industry. The Executive Secretary NCDMB, Felix Omatsola Ogbe made this commitment on Friday in Port Harcourt, Rivers State when he led officials of the Board and Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC) to visit companies that deliver pipe coating and related services. The team visited Brightwaters Energy Limited, formerly known as Willbros Nigeria Ltd,Solewant Nigeria Limited and Pipe Coaters Nigeria, managed by Tenaris Nigeria Ltd. The Executive Secretary said the visits were to assess the companies facilities and determine how the Board can galvanise the industry to patronise them. He underscored the importance of getting first-hand informationon in-country capabilities before making key decisions on oil and gas projects. Heinsisted that operating companies must support and patronise local oil and gas service companies in compliance with the provisions of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act. Mr Ogbe emphasised that activities in the Nigerian oil and gas industry must be used to create employment opportunities for the nations teeming youths and help to resuscitate the economy, in line with the aspirations of President Ahmed Bola Tinubu. The Chief Executive Officer of Brightwaters Energy Limited, Scott Gregory thanked the Executive Secretary for leading the visit while highlighting that Brightwaters, formerly Willbros carried out Nigerias first pipe coating in 1962. He recalled that the facility had 3,000 employees some years back, executing various spheres of oil and gas projects. He conveyed the managements aspiration to return the firm to thosehigh-performance levels and sought the Boards support to win oil and gas projects that would resuscitate the sprawling facility. We feel that we can be a positive contributor to Nigeria through the capacities that we have. We want to bring real, true value to the table, he added. He admitted that the coating facility had suffered downtime, but assured that the plant would be up and running within 60 days of the award of a new contract. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later The Chairman of Tenaris Nigeria, Ernest Nwapa welcomed the NCDMBs team to PCNLs facilities. He commended the effortsmade by the agency to pushlocal content in the industry, attributing it to the good culture that had been established at the Board over the years. Nwapa, who was the pioneer Executive Secretary of NCDMBexpressed delight that some of the oil and gas projects that had been pending for nearlyten years were now being developed and expressed hope that existing local capacities would be maximized in the execution of those projects. The team was taken around the companys facilities and shown the various equipment of PCNL in readiness for the award of new contracts. Nwapa pledged the commitment of thecompany to meet the expectations of clients as well as allow them to participate in the supervision of the work in their factory. The PCNL facility covers an area of 160,000 m2 in the Onne Free Trade Zone. The company offers Anticorrosion, CWC, Thermal Insulation, Internal and Bends Coating plants as well as Double Jointing and Anode Installation Facilities. At Solewant Group, an EPCI and Pipe Coating Company, the NCDMB delegation was shown round the companys facilities as well as the new investments, such as the 5mega watts generators,procured to guarantee power supply to the facility. Accompanying Mr Ogbe on the facility visits werethe Director Projects Certification and Authorization Division (PCAD), Abayomi Bamidele, General Manager PCAD, Maurice Iwhiwhu, Special Technical Assistant (STA) to the Executive Secretary, Mofe Megbele, Deputy Manager, Corporate Communications, Obinna Ezeobi, and other staff members of the Board. The SPDC team was led by the General Manager, Nigerian Content Development, Mr Lanre Olawuyi. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print President Bola Tinubu has extended his warm congratulations to the president-elect of the Republic of Chad, Mahamat Deby, on his election victory. President Tinubu affirmed that the successful conduct of elections in the nation underlines the commitment of the government and the people of Chad to democracy and orderly transitions in the region. The president assured President-elect Deby that Nigeria will continue to work closely with the Republic of Chad, as both countries seek to enhance peace, security, and shared prosperity for the mutual benefit of their peoples. The president also called for sustained, friendly cooperation between both nations, while wishing the president-elect success as he undertakes this noble service to the people of Chad. Ajuri Ngelale Special Adviser to the President (Media & Publicity) Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later May 12, 2024 Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Minister of Information and Culture, Mohammed Idris, said on Monday that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting would continue on Tuesday. Mr Idris stated this while briefing the State House Correspondents at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. He said, There is no briefing today. A lot of far-reaching decisions are being taken and the conclusions will be made available tomorrow (Tuesday). Therefore, FEC will continue tomorrow, he said. The meeting which was presided over by President Bola Tinubu was attended by Vice President Kashim Shettima, and Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike. Others are the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), George Akume, Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola and the Minister of State for Police Affairs, Imaan Sulaima-Ibrahim, among others. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the FEC comprises cabinet members and is part of the executive branch of the government. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later It determines the general direction of domestic and foreign policies of the government; coordinating the activities of the president, the vice-president and the ministers in the discharge of their responsibilities. (NAN) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Former President Olusegun Obasanjo says Governor Ademola Adeleke of Osun State is his dancing partner. Mr Obasanjo made the remark at the inauguration of a VIP lodge in Osun Government House on Sunday in Osogbo, the state capital He, however, told Mr Adeleke, who is usually referred to as the dancing governor, to focus on governing the state and do so with honesty and integrity. You remember that at one time I phoned you; I told you I didnt have problems with your dancing. I said, Dont leave dancing, but as you are dancing, ensure you are working. Some people once despised you as a dancer, but I said only happy people dance; you are my dancing partner. You have to be honest with your conscience, with the people and with your God. You have to be a man of character. Let people say when he sees an opportunity to dance, he will dance, but he is a man of integrity; he is honest and works hard. It is very important. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later Anywhere we meet, we would dance and rejoice; if anybody wants to abuse us, they should go ahead, he said. Mr Obsanjo also commended Mr Adeleke on his developmental programmes in Osun. According to him, what he heard and saw since his arrival in the state was a testimony to the good work the governor was doing. You are working on roads; dont joke with it because when we make necessary provisions for the people to have jobs, the state will work. Many Yoruba people want to work, but what is impeding that is the road to ply. When we provide the wherewithal for them, they would work. I will plead with you to continue with that. You said government is a continuum, and all the abandoned projects are being completed. God will make it good for you, he said. In his remarks, Mr Adeleke said his administration would continue to ensure that laudable projects were completed for the common use of the people. The governor, who noted that the APC government started the VIP lodge, said he completed it because he believed public infrastructure should not be politicised. We assure all lovers of good governance that our administration is passionate about delivering on quality pro-people policies for the benefit of all residents of the state, he said. (NAN) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Multiple security motions, endless one minute silence ritual Security challenges in Nigeria dominated last weeks plenary sessions in the House of Representatives as members from different constituencies presented motions calling for interventions in their constituencies. From the killings in Enugu State to the herders invasion in Kogi State to the massacre in Kaduna State, lawmakers spent the most of the legislative hours deliberating on insecurity across various constituencies. From Tuesday to Thursday, one-minute silence was observed by the House 10 times in honour of the dead victims of the attacks. The breakdown shows that the lower chamber performed the ritual four times on Tuesday, two times on Wednesday and four times on Thursday. The frequency of the ritual was highlighted by the Minority Leader, Kingsley Chinda (PDP, Rivers), who expressed concerns over the number of security-related motions and the number of times one minute of silence was observed by the House. The lawmaker said the House cannot continue to observe moments of minute silence without any meaningful outcome. Lawmaker calls for foreign mercenaries An interesting dimension to the resolution of the lingering insecurity confronting the nation came up during the debate on one of security-related motions. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later Ahmed Jaha, a lawmaker from Borno State, made a strong plea for the hiring of foreign military contractors to help in the fight against bandits, terror groups and others. In as much as a substantial amount of money is not going to be allocated or will continue to be allocated to security agencies, insecurity will never come to an end in Nigeria. From 2015 to 2023, more than N19 trillion was allocated to security and security-related sectors in Nigeria. Whereas, we have an alternative, he said. Mr Jahas suggestion is coming at a time when there is a strong debate over the possible location of United States and French military bases in Nigeria. It is not clear what the position of the House on foreign mercenaries is as Mr Jahas submission was not debated. Lawmakers fume over Binance bribery allegation Issues around controversial cryptocurrency giants, Binance, featured prominently on the floor of the House in the past week. On Wednesday, Kama Nkemkanma, a lawmaker from Ebonyi State, raised a point of privilege on a bribery-allegation made aginst the House by the Chief Executive Officer of Binance, Richard Peng. In a now-deleted post on X, Mr Peng narrated the encounter of his team with the members of the House Committee on Financial Crimes. He claimed that his team was approached by a man who demanded money to help get the company out of trouble with the Nigerian government. Mr Peng said this unknown person approached the team immediately after a meeting with the committee. Mr Nkemkanma, while presenting the motion, submitted that the embattled cryptocurrency platform is attempting to embarrass the House. Speaker Abbas Tajudeen ruled that the clerk should coordinate a media campaign to refute the allegation. Meanwhile, the House also resolved to launch another probe into the escape from custody in Nigeria of the Head of Binance Africa, Nadeem Anjarwalla. This resolution was sequel to a motion of urgent public importance moved by Dominic Okafor on Wednesday during plenary. Cybersecurity levy not for bank customers The House also made a decision on the controversial cybersecurity levy which the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) recently announced its implementation. The intervention by the House followed a motion of urgent public importance moved by the Minority Leader of the House, Kingsley Chinda, on behalf of the leadership of the House. In the motion, Mr Chinda said the CBN erred in its interpretation of the Cybercrime (Prohibitions) Act. According to him, bank customers are not supposed to bear the burden of the levy. He listed some of the bodies that ought to pay the 0.5 per cent to include GSM service providers, telecommunication companies, internet service providers; banks and other financial institutions, insurance companies and the Nigerian Stock Exchange. The position of the House was a product of a long meeting of the leadership of the House, which had on the previous day stopped Mansur Soro, a member of the House from Bauchi State, from moving a motion on the issue of the levy. Speaker Abbas Tajudeen explained that the leadership was planning to meet on the matter. Consequently, the House resolved that the CBN should withdraw the circular on the implementation of the levy, and issue an appropriate one based on proper interpretation of the Act. Lawmakers probe controversial Lagos-Calabar Highway project The House also resolved to probe the controversial N15 trillion Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project. The lower legislative chamber resolved that its Committee on Works and Public Procurement should investigate the details of the 700km highway to determine possible violations of relevant laws in the award of the contract. The decision to probe the N15 trillion project stemmed from a motion of urgent public importance raised by Austin Achado, an APC member from Benue State. While opinions are divided on the project, there are lots of questions Nigerians will be hoping to get answers to from the probe. However, expectations should be measured because the House has a history of abandoning probes or not submitting reports on them. House inundated with bills During the week, a total of 80 bills were introduced in the House. Twenty-eight of the bills were introduced on Tuesday, 31 on Wednesday and 21 on Thursday. Member dies On Friday, a member of the House from Jigawa State, Isa Dogonyaro, passed away after a brief illness. Until his death, the lawmaker represented the Garki/Babura federal constituency of Jigawa State on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC). He was the deputy chairperson of the House Committee on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Control. Mr Dogonyaro was the second member of the 10th House that died since its inauguration in June 2023. Abdulkadir Danbuga died in October 2023. In line with its tradition, the House is expected to suspend all legislative activities on Tuesday in honour of the late lawmaker. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Governor Alex Otti of Abia State has maintained that his predecessor, Okezie Ikpeazu, diverted N10 billion, which was earmarked for the construction of an airport in the state. Mr Ikpeazu served as a two-term governor of the state on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) between 29 May 2015 and 29 May 2023, when he handed over to Mr Otti. Mr Otti was elected governor of the state on 22 March 2023 on the Labour Party ticket. The governor, during a recent trip to the US, accused Mr Ikpeazu of allocating N10 billion to a non-existent airport project in Abia State. He claimed he obtained the information from a report of a forensic audit carried out by a firm contracted by his administration. But Mr Ikpeazu later denied the allegation, explaining that the N10 billion originally budgeted for the airport project was rechanneled into other projects following the approval of the then State Executive Council. Alleged diversion Mr Otti, on Thursday, further claimed that Mr Ikpeazu-led administration diverted the N10 billion airport funds into 32 different company accounts from where the funds were allegedly looted. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later He spoke during a monthly media chat held at Government House Umuahia, the state capital. The media chat was broadcast live on local outfits and various social media platforms. Our engagements with the contractor that received the money gave an impression that the company was deceived. The managing director of the company said that he told them (Mr Ikpeazu-led administration) that he had never built an airport before, that its not his area of competence, and neither did he apply to them to construct an airport. But according to him (the managing director), the then government asked him to move the money elsewhere. He showed us letters from the then government to move the money in different tranches to 32 companies and that he did that on the instruction of the former government. So, like I said, the rest of the work will be done by security agencies, Mr Otti said. The governor said he would soon release the forensic audit report which indicted Mr Ikpeazu, adding that the report also indicated that the money had already been transferred out of the state government account before his predecessor approached the Abia State House of Assembly for approval. What is true is that bank statement on the 25th of September 2020, when COVID-19 was dealing with people (showed that) a debit went into the state account for N10 billion, and the description was: payment for 80 per cent contract of the Abia airport. Thats true and indisputable. The statement and report are there and will soon be published. I can assure you that KPMG did that forensic audit report, he said. Return the money or show us the airport. Mr Otti said he was not interested in any verbal war and that Mr Ikpeazu must either return the funds or show where the airport was located in Abia State. What is important to our Government is that somebody is showing us the airport or returning our money. Thats what is important to us. We are not interested in the fireworks and all the abuse. We are not even interested in anybody going to jail except if they are telling us that somebody whose money is missing should not look for it. Where I come from, if your property is missing, you have to look for it, he said. The spokesperson to Mr Ikpeazu, Onyebuchi Ememanka, did not respond to calls and a text message seeking his comments. Also, a former Commissioner for Information in Mr Ikpeazus administration, John Kalu, said he was in a meeting and would not be able to speak. Mr Kalu promised to respond to the allegations later. Not the first time Since inauguration as governor of Abia State, Mr Otti has been making allegations against Mr Ikpeazu, which appear to discredit the former governor and his administration. In June 2023, for instance, Mr Otti accused Mr Ikpeazu of leaving a humongous debt burden for the state. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in Abia State has criticised the Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, for insisting that workers in the state should embark on another verification exercise. The state government had, through a circular issued by the head of service of the state, directed the state public and civil servants in ministries, departments, agencies (MDAs) and 17 local government areas to upload their documents online as part of the verification exercise. The workers were to upload their documents from 10 to 31 May 2024, according to the circular. Its anti-workers. Well not obey it However, the leadership of the NLC in the state said they were surprised that the Abia State government was making the request even after workers in the state had previously undergone a verification exercise ordered by the government. In a statement on Saturday jointly signed by its State Chairperson, Ogbonnaya Okoro and Secretary, Emma Alozie, the NLC claimed that the state government withheld salaries of many workers for over seven months on the basis that some of the workers were yet to be verified. The workers said it was a slight for government to again organise such a sensitive programme for our members without recourse to the NLC, the umbrella body of workers in the state. They said they viewed the recent directive for the verification as retrogressive to an earlier vision of the governor to fish out ghost workers from the system. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later Another verification exercise a few months after the first one is anti-workers, considering the economic hardship the workers are going through with their meagre salaries and that asking them to go online is another financial burden to the workers faced with various financial challenges, the statement read in part. The workers asked the state government to, as a matter of urgency, put the exercise on hold to avoid an industrial crisis. Therefore, the State Executive Council (of the NLC) in session finally resolved that no Abia worker in the MDAs and the 17 Local government areas should henceforth present his or herself for any form of online verification pending when this issue would be discussed between labour and government, the statement added. Abia govt reacts The Commissioner for Information in Abia State, Okey Kanu, could not be reached for comments as calls to his mobile phone did not go through as of the time of filing this report. Also, Kazie Uko, the spokesperson for Governor Otti, did not respond to several calls seeking his comments. Mr Uko was yet to respond to a WhatsApp message seeking his comments on the allegations against the governor by the NLC. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Labour Party (LP) in Enugu State has asked the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to investigate the recent N100 billion deal between the state government and a firm. PREMIUM TIMES reported that the state government, last week, signed a N100 billion deal with Pragmatic Palms Limited to resuscitate the moribund United Palm Products Limited in Enugu State. Pragmatic Palm Limited is a subsidiary of Diamond Stripes Limited. The state government set up United Palm Products Limited to plant palm trees and engage in the production of palm products such as palm oil and kernel, among others. The firm is an offshoot of the defunct Agricultural Development Corporation established in 1970 by the then Eastern region government led by Premier Michael Okpara. However, the United Palm Products Ltd has remained moribund as efforts by successive administrations in the state to revive it were unsuccessful. Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State said the deal was in line with his administrations determination to grow the states economy from $4.4 billion to $30 billion. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later Labour Party reacts But the LP in the state, in a statement on Sunday by its Chairperson, Casmir Agbo, and Secretary, Onuora Odo, alleged that the deal was a conduit by the government to embezzle the states resources. It is important also to draw the attention of the people of Enugu State, the federal government of Nigeria, and the anti-corruption agencies such as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to what looks like a grand plan to divert the resources of Enugu State through what looks like a conduit, the LP said in the statement. The party claimed the partnering company was registered only four days before it signed the agreement with the state government. Checks at the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) have created a cloud of suspicion around the project following our discovery that Pragmatic Palms Limited was registered only on May 6, 2024, four days before the partnership agreement was signed with the Enugu State Government on May 10, 2024, the statement said. Company has no competence in agriculture. The LP said they further conducted checks on the CAC and the companys website, pointing out that their findings show that the company and its owner, George Nwangwu, have no competence in agriculture. Diamond Stripes Limited, which is also worth highlighting, started business in 2013 and has its capacities in the area of hydroelectric generation and port management. Nowhere on its website was its capacity for agriculture and agro-processing mentioned. More worrisome is the fact that the owner of the company, Prof George Nwangwu, has no known track record in agriculture and related areas, the party said. What we found on the CAC website Meanwhile, PREMIUM TIMES carried out a search on the CAC website and found that Pragmatic Palm Limited, a subsidiary of Diamond Stripes Limited, was truly registered on 6 May 2024, with its office located at 5 Kokoma Close, Wuse II in Abuja, Nigerias capital. The registration was done about four days before the company signed the agreement with the Enugu State Government. Why were worried We are worried because a lot of things in the transaction (between the government and the firm) do not appear straightforward. First, by sheer stroke of coincidence, Pragmatic Palms Limiteds registered office located at 5 Kokoma Close, Wuse II, Abuja, appeared in our search to be the same as that of a Law firm, Ratio Legal Practitioners LLP, which also processed the registration of Pragmatic Palms Limited, the LP said. We are also worried that while on its website, Diamond Stripes Limited claimed it was in the business of electricity generation, ports services, and the building of silos, data on its registration documents at the Corporate Affairs Commission indicated that it was registered to carry on the business of the manufacturer, importation, exportation, distribution, promotion, sales, supply and marketing of all types of products, materials, agents, reagents and equipment. To engage in the business of real estate and property, the party added. It stressed that the development was strange and suspicious, given that CAC no longer permits the registration and operation of omnibus businesses in Nigeria. The LP asked Governor Mbah to provide details of the agreement with the company, including when discussions on the partnership began and how he concluded and signed the deal within four days of incorporating the company. Enugu govt reacts The Enugu State Government, in its first response, argued that the deal with Pragmatic Palms Limited happened after months-long negotiation and due diligence that started way back in 2023. The Senior Special Adviser to Governor Mbah on External Relations, Uche Anichukwu, in a statement on Monday, said the state government will not pay any money to the company for the deal. Pragmatic Palm Limited will provide finance for 60 per cent of the transaction value, while the Enugu State Government will provide the plantations valued as 40 per cent equity, Mr Anichukwu said. The governors aide said the Pragmatic Palm Limited was duly incorporated before the deal was signed. He stressed that, in line with terms of the deal, Diamond Stripes Limited was presented to the government by the partnering firm as their guarantor. Mr Anichukwu suggested that although Diamond Stripes Limited has been investing in the power sector and port sector, it has also been investing in the agricultural sector since 2013. He assured that the state government had inserted certain terms into the agreement to safeguard its interests in the deal. Importantly, performance targets and timelines were equally set in the agreement for Pragmatic Palms Limited, failing which the Enugu State Government is free to revoke the deal and reassume total ownership of United Palm Products Limited, he said. In addition, the Enugu State Government is represented on the companys Board, including the Chairmanship of the Board, as part of the steps taken to secure the states interest. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has uncovered two illegal bunkering sites in Rivers State. The NSCDC spokesperson, Babawale Afolabi, in a statement on Monday, disclosed that the sites were located at Odagwa-Owaza Riverside boundaries of Rivers and Abia states while the other was at Etche Local Government Area of Rivers State. The spokesperson stated that the Commandant-Generals Special Intelligence Squad (CGsSIS) discovered the illegal connections following an intelligence report. The illegal connections were made to syphon oil from well heads, using very huge hoses laid and buried underground in a thick forest at Odagwa/Owaza Riverside boundaries of Rivers and Abia states. And another site at Odagwa in Etche area of Rivers State where vandals tampered with valves of the manifold and siphoned crude at Imo River 2, oil and gas flow station operated by the Nigerian Petroleum Development Commission (NPDC). During the operation, we observed that the first local refining site had been earlier destroyed by security agencies but was later rebuilt, he said. According to him, some of the exhibits recovered were one new yellow colour Robin EY 20 pumping machine, blue colour heavy-duty hoses, over 5,000 litres of locally refined petroleum products in cellophane bags and reservoir. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later Also recovered were about 10,000 litres of kerosene (AGO) stored in a cooking oven, two shovels and spades, buckets, and four flash headlights. The CGsSIS commander, Dandaura Appolos, reaffirmed the corps commitment to waging a relentless war against oil theft across the nation. Let me at this point re-assure the public that the NSCDC remains committed to her statutory mandate as the lead agency in safeguarding all critical national assets and infrastructure across the nation. The intelligence department has commenced thorough investigation into the matter and the suspects in custody are currently assisting us in the ongoing investigation, the commander said. (NAN) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, has called for the elimination of unnecessary expenditures as a way of cutting the cost of governance in the country. Mr Akpabio made the call on Monday at a one-day dialogue on the cost of governance in Nigeria organised by the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS) in Abuja. The Senate President, represented by Jarigbe Agom Jarigbe (PDP-Cross River), highlighted some of the possible factors contributing to the high cost of governance in the country. According to him, the size of the countrys bureaucracy, the escalating public service wage bills, the overhead costs of appointive public officials, and the salaries and allowances of elected officials are major factors. He said the running of government institutions, among other substantial components, contributed to weighing down the economy and hindering development efforts. Let us hold ourselves accountable and take responsibility for the betterment of our nation. We have to ensure that our government operates efficiently and effectively, serving the needs of the people and fostering sustainable development. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later Mr Akpabio emphasised the need to streamline bureaucracy, eliminate unnecessary expenditures, and ensure transparency and accountability at all levels of governance. We must invest in our human capital, empowering our public officials with the necessary skills and knowledge to drive progress. And we must foster a culture of innovation and creativity, where new ideas can flourish and transform our nation, he said. He urged all Nigerians to remain united, become agents of change and be committed to making sacrifices for the nation. He said the 10th Assembly was ready to partner with all stakeholders to do everything within its constitutional powers to make Nigeria for all citizens. Leaders must respond to call for reduction in cost of governance- Speaker Tajudeen Abbas In his remarks, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, said the call for a reduction in government spending resonated loudly across the nation, and it was incumbent upon leaders to respond. Mr Abbas, who was represented by Aliyu Madaki, deputy minority leader of the house, said the country must adopt measures that will streamline expenditure per the prevailing economic realities. Nigeria has long grappled with budget deficits, further emphasising the necessity to streamline government operational costs and foster budgetary stability. This requires a concerted effort to eliminate wasteful, inefficient and unnecessary expenses from our budgetary allocations, he said. Earlier, the Director-General of NILDS, Abubakar Sulaiman, said the efficiency and accountability of governance directly impacted the prosperity and well-being of the nation. He said the dialogue provided an opportunity to holistically re-evaluate the approach to governance and the viability of the parliamentary system as a cost-effective alternative to the current presidential system of government. The dialogue aims to collectively chart a path towards fiscal prudence, transparency, and accountability that encapsulates stakeholder perceptions drawn from across civil society. These will constitute a part of the overarching governance roadmap and interventions of the current administration under President Bola Tinubu, who has shown an unyielding commitment to implementing the recommendations of the Oronsaye Report and reducing the cost of governance. The solutions lie within our zeal to enact change and to work towards a future where the cost of governance is not a burden, but an investment in the prosperity of every Nigerian, Mr Sulaiman, a professor, said. (NAN) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Kano Central District Senator, Rufai Hanga, has further explained why he donated burial materials to his constituents. He said he made the gesture so as to please God and seek eternal reward. PREMIUM TIMES reported how one of Mr Hangas aides announced the donation of 500,000 clay pots and 500,000 pieces of plain white cloths to help his constituents in burying their dead. The aide, Dawuud Auwal, said Mr Hanga, whose district covers 15 local government areas, said the donation was in response to frequent demands for assistance for burial materials from his constituents. However, contrary to Mr Auwals claims, Mr Hanga said he donated only 2,000 clay pots and 10,500 yards of white cloth to the Muslim graveyards in his constituency. The district head of Tarauni and head of the committee overseeing the graveyard in Kano, Ado Kurawa, has supervised the 500,000 clay pots and 500,000 white plain cloths (likkafani) donated by Senator Rufai Hanga for distribution to the graveyard in Kano Central District. After the supervision he directed for the distribution, Mr Auwal had claimed. Following the post, Mr Hanga came under tense criticism from some of his constituents and social media users accusing him of underrepresentation. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later But Mr Hanga at a press conference on Sunday said the donation was not part of his constituency projects. He blamed the misconception on cynics and opponents who out of hatred and malice spread the misinformation. In his first press conference since his election in 2023, Mr Hanga said the donation of burial materials was something he had been doing before his election. He said it was a family legacy that he grew up to see and inherited, hoping to continue to do it throughout his time on earth, Daily Trust reported. We made the donation to Kano State committee for the graveyards headed by Dangoribar Kano and district head of Tarauni Local government. We had found out that clay pots were lacking in most of our graveyards and decided to donate, the newspaper quoted him saying. Responding to accusation of underrepresentation since he was elected, Mr Hanga said he has been battling ill-health and travelled abroad for medication. He said he stayed for seven months in hospitals in Nigeria and was later flown to Egypt and England, where he spent three months each in hospital. The lawmaker said despite still recuperating, he initiated projects for his constituency in the 2023 budget, and vowed to follow up to ensure their implementation. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print President Bola Tinubu on Monday launched a campaign to promote inclusive education, skill development, and gender equity. The campaign tagged #WeAreEqual is an initiative of the Organisation of African First Ladies for Development (OAFLAD). The campaign has been launched in 15 African countries in different iterations, focusing on health, education, economic empowerment, and gender-based violence. The Nigerian component of the programme is tagged, Education as a Powerful Tool for Change, championed by the First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu. Speaking at the campaign launch at the State House, President Tinubu saluted the commitment of African First Ladies, as members of OAFLAD, to advance gender equality and narrow the gender gap across the continent. This campaign holds significant importance for us in Africa. I, therefore, congratulate you all, particularly my dear wife, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, the First Lady of Nigeria, who has chosen education as a primary tool to champion this campaign nationwide. The focus of launching this campaign in Nigeria, Education as a Powerful Tool for Change, is critical for Africas development if we attain gender equity and ensure equal opportunities for all. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later We must continue to create opportunities for all our children to access quality education without leaving anyone behind, particularly the girl child. We must engender a society where everyone has the same opportunities, regardless of who they are, because doing that leads to a stronger and more peaceful society for all, the president said. President Tinubu noted that the launch of the campaign in Nigeria coincides with the re-introduction of the Alternative High School for Girls advanced by the First Lady, adding that this initiative offers a second chance to young girls who have dropped out of school to continue their education and fulfil their dreams and aspirations. I am happy to note that the foundation stone of one of the schools was recently laid in Osun State, in western Nigeria, by the First Lady. More schools are underway across the country, supported by state governments, the federal government through the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), and other development partners. As governor of Lagos State, before I became President of Nigeria on May 29, 2023, I witnessed first-hand how societal challenges, such as unwanted teenage pregnancy, domestic violence, human trafficking and drug addiction, can obstruct the promising future of young girls. Indeed, the re-introduction of Alternative High School for Girls by the First Lady of Nigeria must have received inspiration from the successful implementation of a similar initiative in Lagos State during my tenure as governor, the president said. President Tinubu emphasised that education is the cornerstone of national development and that when girls are empowered to pursue their dreams, communities thrive, economies prosper, and nations succeed. He said it is, therefore, incumbent on all stakeholders to continue to take bold and decisive actions to eliminate the structural inequalities that hold women back on the continent. We must be conscious of the fact that the empowerment of women and girls is essential to achieving each of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. We must work together to promote laws and policies that protect and promote womens rights, invest in girls education and skills development, and create economic opportunities that are accessible to all. For us in Nigeria, the full operationalisation of the Students Loan (Access to Higher Education) Act is key to achieving these goals as it will ensure that all young people have unhindered access to education. The Nigerian government, through the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, is also implementing a N50,000 non-repayable grant programme for one million Nigerians in Nano businesses and skilled trades, including women and youth, President Tinubu said. The president also said his administration will continue to work to end gender-based violence and increase learning opportunities for girls in safe and conducive environments, adding: These measures will enable more women to succeed in different vocations and properly shape their future endeavours, from politics to engineering, science, technology, sports, and the creative economy. President Tinubu reaffirmed his commitment to ensuring that no Nigerian child is excluded from quality education that prepares women and girls to lead and bring positive change to communities. Let us carry forward this campaign, which promises to gift an educated girl-child the potential to bring the necessary change and transform African communities for the better. It is now my honour to launch the (#) We Are Equal Campaign in Nigeria. I wish you all a fruitful deliberation. I enjoin you to enjoy your stay in our beautiful country, the president concluded. Ajuri Ngelale Special Adviser to the President (Media & Publicity) May 13, 2024 Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Five soldiers of the Nigerian Army were killed and 11 others injured on Sunday afternoon by terrorists who attacked a military camp in Faskari Local Government Area of Katsina State. A member of a vigilante group, Aliyu Tukur, 30, was also killed in the attack, according to a military internal memo seen by PREMIUM TIMES. Terrorist attack on military camp causing grievous hurt and death of military personnel, the memo stated. According to the memo, the incident occurred at about 2 p.m. on Sunday when over 200 terrorists armed with sophisticated weapons and led by a terrorism kingpin, Ado Aleiru, attacked the military camp situated at the village of Yar Malamai. On receipt of the information, Supol Faskari, proceeded to the scene with his team and engaged the bandits on a gun battle as reinforcement (of) Air Components were also called upon and responded promptly. The battle lasted for over two hours after intervention from the Air Force; sadly five soldiers and one vigilante by name Aliyu Tukur, 30 years (old), of the same address, lost their lives. Eleven soldiers sustained different degrees of gunshot injuries, all the injured were rushed to hospital by the military, all the corpses were also removed. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later The attack led to the withdrawal of all the remaining military personnel from the village to a nearby camp 25 kilometres away situated at Ali Kere village due to heavy casualty recorded. The bandits also suffered heavy casualties but have succeeded in removing them away from the scene (sic). Residents of the area are currently migrating Investigation has commenced further development would be communicated above for your information, please, the internal memo stated. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print President Bola Tinubu said on Monday his administration is committed to ensuring that no Nigerian child is excluded from quality education that prepares women and girls to lead and bring positive change to communities. He added that he is committed to taking action to eliminate structural inequalities that hold back African women. Mr Tinubu, who spoke at the launch of the #WeAreEqual Campaign at the state house in Abuja, called on other African leaders to do the same. We must be conscious of the fact that the empowerment of women and girls is essential to achieving each of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. We must work together to promote laws and policies that protect and promote womens rights, invest in girls education and skills development, and create economic opportunities that are accessible to all, he said, according to a statement by his spokesperson, Ajuri Ngelale. For us in Nigeria, the full operationalisation of the Students Loan (Access to Higher Education) Act is key to achieving these goals as it will ensure that all young people have unhindered access to education, he said. Mr Tinubu said his administration will continue to work to end gender-based violence and increase learning opportunities for girls in safe and conducive environments. He said: These measures will enable more women to succeed in different vocations and properly shape their future endeavours, from politics to engineering, science, technology, sports, and the creative economy. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later About #WeAreEqual Campaign The #WeAreEqual campaign is an initiative of the Organisation of African First Ladies for Development (OAFLAD). It is said to have been launched in 15 African countries in different iterations, focusing on health, education, economic empowerment, and gender-based violence. The Nigerian component of the campaign, tagged: Education as a Powerful Tool for Change, is championed by Nigerias First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu. Tinubu commends African first ladies Speaking at the launch of the campaign at the State House, President Tinubu saluted the commitment of African First Ladies, as members of OAFLAD, to advance gender equality and narrow the gender gap across the continent. He emphasised the need to continue to create opportunities for all children to access quality education, particularly the girl child. We must engender a society where everyone has the same opportunities, regardless of who they are, because doing that leads to a stronger and more peaceful society for all, Mr Tinubu said. He said the focus of the campaign in Nigeria, Education as a Powerful Tool for Change, is critical for Africas development to attain gender equity and ensure equal opportunities for all. Mr Tinubu noted that the launch of the campaign in Nigeria coincides with the re-introduction of the Alternative High School for Girls advanced by the First Lady, adding that this initiative offers a second chance to young girls who have dropped out of school to continue their education and fulfil their dreams and aspirations. He said: As governor of Lagos State, before I became President of Nigeria on May 29, 2023, I witnessed firsthand how societal challenges, such as unwanted teenage pregnancy, domestic violence, human trafficking, and drug addiction, can obstruct the promising future of young girls. READ ALSO: Mutfwang appreciates Tinubu for grains released to Plateau as palliatives Indeed, the re-introduction of Alternative High School for Girls by the First Lady of Nigeria must have received inspiration from the successful implementation of a similar initiative in Lagos State during my tenure as governor. President Tinubu emphasised that education is the cornerstone of national development and that when girls are empowered to pursue their dreams, communities thrive, economies prosper, and nations succeed. Qosim Suleiman is a reporter at Premium Times in partnership with Report for the World, which matches local newsrooms with talented emerging journalists to report on under-covered issues around the globe Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says it plans to conduct the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) in Edo and Ondo States from Monday, 27 May to Wednesday, 5 June. The voter registration exercise comes ahead of the governorship elections slated to hold separately in Edo State on 21 September and in Ondo State on 16 November. INEC chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, said this at the commissions second regular quarterly consultative meeting with political parties held on Monday in Abuja. Mr Yakubu said that INEC would also distribute uncollected Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) in the two states during the period, advising those who were yet to register or collect their PVCs to use the opportunity to do so. He said that the resumption of the CVR would also afford registered voters who wanted to transfer their registration from other states to Edo and Ondo. Let me reiterate that the CVR is only open to new registrants and those who seek to transfer their registration. Persons who are already registered voters should not attempt to register again as that will amount to double or multiple registrations and it is illegal. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later Lost or damaged voters cards will be replaced during the exercise but this does not require fresh registration, he said. Mr Yakubu said that taking into consideration the limited time to the election, the CVR would take place at ward and state headquarters of INEC instead of the local government offices, and a few designated centres. This means that there will be 192 Ward registration centres in Edo and 203 centres in Ondo, in addition to our state offices in Benin City and Akure, making a total of 397 walk-in registration centres in the two states. There will be no online pre-registration option in the two states because of time constraints. Each centre will be managed by two officials drawn from our regular staff and the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), he said. He added that in the next few days, INEC would commence the training of at least 794 officials for the exercise, saying that the locations for the registration centres and other relevant information had been made available to political party leaders. Mr Yakubu appealed to political parties and other stakeholders to join INEC in mobilising prospective registrants for the exercise, particularly on the need to register early and not wait until the eleventh hour. He said that INEC plans to publish the list of uncollected PVCs in its offices in the two states and simultaneously uploaded to the commissions website. Mr Yakubu appealed to party leaders to continue to play by the rules during the electioneering process and beyond, ahead of the 24 May commencement of electioneering campaign for Edo election. He also urged them to adhere strictly to the timeline for the upload of the list of polling and collation agents to the INEC dedicated portal. He said doing so would enable INEC to produce and deliver identity cards in good time for the expected 76,823 polling unit agents and 3,587 ward, local government and state collation agents for the election. Turning to Ondo, political parties have just concluded their primaries. Eighteen political parties conducted primaries monitored by the Commission. I wish to remind you that parties have one week to the deadline for the nomination of candidates, which is 6.00pm on Monday May 20, 2024 when the portal automatically shuts down. I urge you to adhere strictly to the deadline. Political parties have been given 23 days from the end of primaries to prepare and submit the list of only two candidates (governorship candidate and running mate) to the Commission, Mr Yakubu said. He said that the commission was remobilising to conduct the two State Assembly constituencies in Enugu and Kano States. The INEC chairman also said that INEC would soon announce the date for the conduct of by-election into existing vacancies in National and State Assemblies caused by either death or resignation of members in three states constituencies and one federal constituency. The constituencies are Khana 2 State Constituency of Rivers State, the Bagwai/Shanono State constituency of Kano State, the Zaria Kewaye State Constituency of Kaduna State and the Garki/Babura Federal Constituency of Jigawa State, he said. In his remarks, the National Chairman of Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), Yusuf Dantalle, pledged to work with INEC to mobilise voters for the Edo and Ondo governorship election. Ahead of the forthcoming Edo and Ondo States governorship elections, it is important that voters are massively mobilised to register and participate in the poll. As the umbrella body of all registered political parties in Nigeria, IPAC will spearhead this crucial exercise in collaboration with INEC. In previous elections, Council would move to various states, sensitise and mobilise the people on upcoming polls, call for non-violence and urge them to shun vote buying and selling, etc with the limited funds at its disposal, Mr Dantalle said. (NAN) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) will on Tuesday arraign a former Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, on fresh charges of fraudulent awards of contracts worth billions of naira. This is coming less than a week after the anti-corruption agency arraigned the former minister alongside his daughter, Fatima, and her husband, on charges of abuse of office in awarding some contracts. In the charges, Mr Sirika, who was the aviation minister during President Muhammadu Buharis two terms in office, was accused of abusing his office as minister through the award of contracts to a company in which his daughter and her husband had interest. They pleaded not guilty to all six counts preferred against them before a judge of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Maitama, Abuja, Sylvanus Oriji. Fresh case The EFCC will similarly arraign him before another judge of the FCT High Court in Garki, Abuja, S.B Belgore, Tuesday. There are eight counts in the fresh case, according top officials of the commission that have been briefed about it. Mr Sirika is charged in the case alongside his brother Ahmad Abubakar. Like in the previous case, the defendants stand accused of abuse of office with regard to award of contracts. Also joined with them as a co-defendant is Mr Abubakars firm, Enginos Nigeria Limited, which was allegedly awarded the contracts. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later Sources say the contracts were cumulatively worth N14 billion. In one of the counts, the EFCC accused Mr Sirika of using his position as minister to confer unfair advantage upon Enginos Nigeria Limited, a company owned by Ahmad Abubakar, Mr Sirikas biological brother. The contract involving N1.3 billion (N1,345,586,500) was awarded for the construction of a terminal building at Katsina Airport, in breach of Section 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act 2000. The prosecution, in another count, alleged that Mr Sirika, in November 2022, used his position to influence the award of another contract to Enginos Nigeria Limited for the establishment of fire truck maintenance and refurbishment centre at Katsina Airport to the tune of N3.8 billion (N3,811,497,685) in violation of the ICPC Act. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print From the killing of police operatives in Enugu State to the war of words between Governor Alex Otti of Abia State and his predecessor, Okezie Ikpeazu, the past week was action-packed in the South-east. The N100 billion deal between the Enugu State Government and Palm Products Limited was another top story in the week. Here are the highlights of the top stories that made headlines in the region within the past week: Otti, Ikpeazus war of words On Tuesday, we reported the ongoing war of words between Governor Alex Otti of Abia State and his predecessor, Okezie Ikpeazu, over the alleged allocation of N10 billion by Mr Ikpeazu-led administration to a non-existent airport project in the state. Mr Ikpeazu served two terms as governor of the state on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) between 29 May 2015 and 29 May 2023, when he handed over to Mr Otti. Mr Otti was elected as governor of the state on 22 March 2023 under the Labour Party ticket. The war of words began when Mr Otti accused Mr Ikpeazu of allocating N10 billion to a non-existent airport project in the state. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later The governor made the accusation at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies in the US, where he delivered a lecture on 19 April. He claimed he obtained the information from a report of a forensic audit carried out by a firm contracted by his administration. In his first response in late April, Mr Ikpeazu, through a statement by his spokesperson, Onyebuchi Ememanka, denied the allegation, describing it as senseless. In his second response, Mr Ikpeazu, through his former commissioner for Information, John Kalu, explained that the N10 billion originally budgeted for the airport project was rechanneled into other projects following the approval of the then State Executive Council. But the war of words continued on Thursday when Mr Otti claimed the former governor diverted the funds to 32 bank accounts of companies from where they allegedly looted the funds. Mr Ikpeazu has also denied the allegation, explaining that the N32 bank accounts belonged to contractors for road projects where the funds were reportedly used for. Since inauguration as governor of Abia State, Mr Otti has been making various allegations against Mr Ikpeazu, aimed at discrediting the former governor and his administration. The ongoing war of words is unlikely to end soon, apparently. After deadly attack, Nigerian lawmakers pass bill to regulate herders operation Efforts to end frequent clashes between herders and farming communities in Enugu State continued last Tuesday when the State Assembly passed a bill to regulate the operation of herders in the South-eastern state. The bill empowers the Enugu State Government to set up an agency to regulate both government and privately owned ranches in the state. The development occurred days after suspected herders invaded Nimbo, a community in the same Uzo-Uwani Local Government Area, killing at least four people. At the Assembly chambers, the lawmakers hailed the bill and expressed hope that it would end clashes between the herders and farmers in the state. Report of 21 soldiers killed in Anambra is false Police Tension was high in Anambra State and South-east on Wednesday morning when a report emerged that some gunmen attacked and killed 21 soldiers in the state. But many residents felt relieved after the police in Anambra State refuted the report. The police spokesperson in the state, Tochukwu Ikenga, who refuted the report in a statement, described it as misleading, unfounded, and falsehood. Mr Ikenga, a superintendent of police, warned that the police in the state would not hesitate to invoke the relevant cyber laws against persons found to manufacture false information to cause tension. Court jails 41 internet fraudsters The effort to tackle internet fraud in Nigeria yielded fruit last week whenathe Federal High Court in Onitsha, Anambra State, sentenced 41 internet fraudsters to one-year imprisonment each. The 41 convicts were arrested for their involvement in separate internet frauds, according to a statement by the Economic Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) on Wednesday. Prosecuted by the EFCC, the convicts, upon arraignment, pleaded guilty to one-count charge separately filed against them which prompted the court to sentence them. Some of the 41 charges for the different convicts included obtaining by false pretence, possession of fraudulent documents and impersonation. They were sentenced to one-year imprisonment each with an option of a fine of N100,000 while the court ordered that they should be involved in community service in line with Section 462 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act. Enugu govt, firm seal N100 billion deal to revive moribund palm oil company There was excitement in Enugu on Friday when the Enugu State Government announced that it had signed a N100 billion deal with Pragmatic Palms Limited to resuscitate the moribund United Palm Products Limited in Enugu State. United Palm Products Ltd was set up by the state government to plant palm trees and engage in production of palm products such as palm oil and kernel, among others. The moribund firm, which had defied efforts by successive governments to revive it, is an offshoot of the now defunct Agricultural development Corporation established in 1970 by the then Eastern region government led by the then premier Michael Okpara. Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State boasted that the deal represents a major leap in his quest to revive dormant assets in the state. The Enugu State Commissioner for Trade, Investment and Industry, Adaora Chukwu, expressed hope that the deal would provide job opportunities to thousands of unemployed people in the state, in addition to improving the states economy. However, the Labour Party in Enugu State has raised the alarm that the deal might serve as a conduit to embezzle the states resources. Killing of two police operatives by gunmen It was a sad day on Friday in Enugu State when gunmen killed two police operatives in the state. The police spokesperson in the state, Daniel Ndukwe, in a statement on Saturday, said some police operatives from Ogui Division were attacked along Presidential Road on Friday night. Mr Ndukwe, a deputy superintendent of police, claimed that although two of the operatives sustained gunshot injuries, they were able to repel the attack. But speaking to reporters at the Government House later on Saturday, Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State, confirmed that two operatives were killed during the attack. The governor said available information suggested that suspected IPOB and ESN members carried out the attack. He called on residents of the state to be on the lookout for the criminals and report the same to security agencies. Mr Mbah also announced a N10 million reward for anyone who would assist authorities with information that could help in tracking down the killers. READ ALSO: Police declare famous blogger wanted for alleged murder The killing of police operatives is another reminder that the insecurity in the state and the South-east region. NLC tackles Abia governor The disagreement between the National Labour Congress (NLC) in Abia State and the state governor, Alex Otti, took a fresh twist on Saturday. The workers protested against a directive of the state government that workers should undergo a verification exercise after a previous exercise had been conducted. In a statement jointly signed by its state chairperson, Ogbonnaya Okoro, and Secretary, Emma Alozie, the NLC claimed that the state government withheld salaries of many workers for over seven months on the basis that some of the workers were yet to be verified. The workers asked the state government to put the exercise on hold, insisting that they would not obey the directive. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print In order to prevent the permanent loss of experts, Africa must design its own home-grown incentives to encourage those who have japa-ed to Japada. It is gratifying that the Nigerians In Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) has mapped out some programmes that have the potential of encouraging immigrants to cast a favourable glance back home. One of such is the National Housing Programme (NHP), which NIDCOM has keyed into. Ever since Sir Isaac Newton, the English physicist, mathematician, astronomer, natural philosopher, and alchemist discovered the law of gravitation and established for the ages that, any particle of matter in the universe attracts any other with a force varying directly as the product of the masses and inversely as the square of the distance between them, the larger society has taken a cue from scientists that what goes up must come down. In the same vein, mans peregrinations in life are philosophically explained as comings and goings, or Departures which foreshadow imminent Arrivals. Thus, you have the name, Enilolobo in Yoruba meaning the person who went is the one who returned, a testament to the cyclical nature of human existence as conceived by our forebears: Birth-Death-Return. I was ruminating over that concept as I tried to unravel the link between the novel phenomenon, Japa, and its sibling, Japada. Japa is a Nigerian slang derived from the Yoruba language used to describe the act of escaping or fleeing from an unsavoury situation. The word, Japa, has now been adopted by Nigerians, especially the large youthful population, as the slang for the fad of relocating to a foreign country for greener pastures. Manpower Loss While the motive is usually economic, the trend has created gaps in manpower requirements, particularly in critical areas such as the medical profession. Frustrated by what they described as poor working conditions and low remuneration, Nigerian medical doctors have been emigrating to nations with better working conditions such as the UK, US and Canada. In 2017, a polling agency, NOI Polls, in conjunction with Nigerian Health Watch, found that 88 per cent of doctors were considering work opportunities abroad and that an average of 12 doctors per week secured employment in the UK. The trend has become a free for all as there is no calling that is insulated from what has now been dubbed the brain drain scourge. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later Africas loss has been the gain of the host countries employing our professionals. According to the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, it costs an African country such as Nigeria between $21,000 and $51,000 to train a single medical doctor. Because 10 per cent of doctors working in the UK come from African nations, the UK is saving about $2.7 billion by recruiting these doctors. A similar scenario plays out in other countries such as the US, Canada, Australia, Saudi Arabia where Nigerian doctors and other professionals can be found in huge numbers. One of the fallouts is that there is now a thriving medical tourism market involving wealthy Nigerians who travel abroad to seek specialist medical care. Ironically, in many cases, they are attended to by their compatriots, Nigerian doctors who had relocated abroad. Even cultural exponents such as artists, musicians, actors and the like have also succumbed to the brain drain bug. Many countries have well designed programmes to encourage their professionals in the Diaspora to return home. In those days, African immigrants preferred to work and spend the rest of their lives abroad, but these days, with the various improvements in many areas of public and communal life at home, and the rise of racism in some Western countries, many Africans are returning home after a few years or, at the latest, after retirement. Nigerian immigrants typically take advantage of the merit-driven system to improve themselves educationally at every opportunity. It is not surprising therefore that the Migration Policy Institute (MPI) of Washington confirms that Nigerians in the United States are the most educated immigrant group, with 61 per cent holding at least a bachelors degree, Compared with 31 percent of the total foreign-born population and 32 percent of the US-born population. Annual remittances to Nigeria from the Diaspora is estimated at $22 billion. The Japa phenomenon cannot therefore be described as totally hurtful to Nigeria. It has helped a good number of our nationals who have emigrated to those countries to widen their professional coast and become a better version of themselves. Eventually, after a couple of decades, the relatively young Japa immigrant longs to return home. And he does so with all his newly acquired knowledge and international best practices, especially in corporate governance. Reverse Brain Drain That is the new Japada or Enilolobo phase. It is called the Reverse Brain Drain, or the return of the professional pilgrims to give back to the original source whence they had emerged. Many countries have well designed programmes to encourage their professionals in the Diaspora to return home. In those days, African immigrants preferred to work and spend the rest of their lives abroad, but these days, with the various improvements in many areas of public and communal life at home, and the rise of racism in some Western countries, many Africans are returning home after a few years or, at the latest, after retirement. China took a giant leap in massive investment in the education of its young people with generous scholarships to reputable universities in Europe and America. Many of them were enrolled in science and technology courses. The local government of each student was involved in the system of rewarding the returnees with large bonuses from their home unit. Universities and research centres competing for breakthroughs drew up a programme of juicy incentives for the returnees who, in turn, were quite happy to dedicate the rest of their lives to the intellectual pursuit for which their institution, and by extension the nation, was compensating them so handsomely. Another developing country, India, has also done well for itself in this regard. Actually, India can be said to have pioneered the reverse brain drain trend. Indian immigrants to the West used to be prepared to be culturally assimilated by their host country. Tens of thousands of them held highly valued information technology and engineering jobs in Silicon Valley. It all looked so attractive until the dot-com bubble torpedoed the prices of stocks in the technology industry. Many high-skilled Indian workers were forced to return to their country, especially because of security concerns after the 9/11 attacks when Indians were often discriminated against because they looked like Arabs. The Seattle Times estimates that there are more than two million Indians in software development who are now permanent residents of the US. Considering how invaluable the contributions of our returnees will be across various professions and businesses, every government department ought to have its own package of incentives in partnership with NIDCOM to attract immigrants who may want to return to help uplift the country. You never know, the package of incentives you dangle may be the difference between a Nigerian spending the rest of his years abroad or returning home to give back to society. Pakistan and Mexico also have their own success stories in terms of return migration. Of particular significance is the media boom in Pakistan, which prompted many overseas Pakistani journalism professionals to return to the country. Today, there are over 47,000 British nationals in Pakistan, many of whom are of Pakistani origin, who have returned to contribute to the economic development of the country. In Africa, There is a disconnect between Africans in the diaspora and on the continent, says Ade Olufeko, a technologist, speaking about reverse brain drain challenges in 2017. NIDCOMs Role In order to prevent the permanent loss of experts, Africa must design its own home-grown incentives to encourage those who have japa-ed to Japada. It is gratifying that the Nigerians In Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) has mapped out some programmes that have the potential of encouraging immigrants to cast a favourable glance back home. One of such is the National Housing Programme (NHP), which NIDCOM has keyed into. Currently, the NHP has housing schemes comprising one to three-bedroom bungalows and blocks of flats in 34 states in Nigeria. The application process is facilitated through an online Expression of Interest Form (EOI). NIDCOM also assists Nigerians in the Diaspora with data capturing and registration under the National Identity Management Scheme, pension matters, medical and educational missions, establishment of businesses and link with the Bank of Industry and the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN). Nigerians who are stranded abroad have also benefited from NIDCOMs intervention. Considering how invaluable the contributions of our returnees will be across various professions and businesses, every government department ought to have its own package of incentives in partnership with NIDCOM to attract immigrants who may want to return to help uplift the country. You never know, the package of incentives you dangle may be the difference between a Nigerian spending the rest of his years abroad or returning home to give back to society. Azus New Book Congratulations to Azu Ishiekwene, Editor-in-Chief of Leadership newspapers, on the publication of his new book, Writing for Media and Monetising It. More grease. More grace. Wole Olaoye is a Public Relations consultant and veteran journalist. He can be reached on wole.olaoye@gmail.com, Twitter: @wole_olaoye; Instagram: woleola2021. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Godly mothers stand on the wings of the spirit. They are intercessors. They are deep wells of wisdom. They provide courage and inspiration to their families. They are rare to find in our generation, but still exist in various climes, although in small proportions. You can be part of this elite group of kingdom stalwarts, mothers with the eyes of the spirit and the strength of eagles. I believe that it was my mothers prayer that saved my life, on a day that would have been my last on earth. It was in 2002, on Adeola Odeku Street, Victoria Island, Lagos, Nigeria that I experienced a very fatal accident on the back of a motorcycle, popularly called Okada. There was an emergency situation I needed to sort out in a new generation bank. The traffic was hell. To meet up with my appointment, I abandoned my vehicle in a safe location and hopped on a motorcycle. The guy who drove me, and who must have been under the influence of alcohol, sped off, entered into a one-way lane, apparently facing a barrage of vehicles. I screamed, but within a split second, I was on the edge of the tires of one of the approaching vehicles. Many passersby screamed, he don kill am! But with torn clothes and to the utter amazement of the onlookers, I stood up. There was a Police vehicle beside the road. The officers rushed to the scene to rescue me, but were shocked to find out that I had survived. It was then that they bundled the motorcycle rider into their vehicle and bolted away with him. I stood up and walked away. A few minutes later, my mum called me and said, I sensed some danger some minutes back and was praying for you. I hope you are fine? I was stunned! Look at the mercy of God in display in broad day light. My mothers prayer triggered the release of Gods mercies that preserved my life. Three years after the incidence, she went home to be with the Lord. History is replete with the exploits of godly mothers who blazed the trail and set the pace for the advancement of Gods kingdom. Presently, we are at a crossroad the values that produced great and godly mothers in the past are increasingly being eroded from culture by the forces of humanism, feminism, atheism, and above all, the increased love of sin in the hearts of men. There is now a conflict between culture and scripture. For the genuine daughter of God, the scriptures are sacrosanct about the path to becoming a godly mother. It starts from the new birth committing your heart to Jesus in what is called being born again. Next to this experience is a daily walk with Jesus in His word and in prayer, to produce the right fruits that would shape the right character for becoming a godly mother. Thus, at the root of godly motherhood is godly womanhood. As we celebrate Mothers Day today, it is imperative for all of us who have benefited from the values and virtues of kingdom mothers to venerate them. You will hardly find any great man in Gods kingdom whose roots were not hooked to the sacrifices of their mothers, who were godly for that matter. History informs us of the incredible impacts of John and Charles Wesley in the revival that swept through England. On the other hand, culture, which is diametrically opposed to the tenets of the scriptures, promotes far-reaching secular values for the attainment of motherhood. Some of the principles and virtues that the Bible emphasises, such as humility of the heart and submission to the husband as unto the Lord in the marriage institution, are being violated by culture. Adherence to culture promotes carnal womanhood. Adherence to the scriptures promotes godly motherhood, which is the unavoidable path of influence and impact in the kingdom of God. Every woman must desire to be kingdom-minded, as it is a guaranteed path to godly motherhood. As we celebrate Mothers Day today, it is imperative for all of us who have benefited from the values and virtues of kingdom mothers to venerate them. You will hardly find any great man in Gods kingdom whose roots were not hooked to the sacrifices of their mothers, who were godly for that matter. History informs us of the incredible impacts of John and Charles Wesley in the revival that swept through England. The fire of revival that broke out in Great Britain in the late 17th century was fanned from the embers of the Wesleys. But it was their mother, Susanna Wesley who started this fire, right by her bedside. She had nineteen children for her husband, Samuel Wesley. John Wesley was the fifteenth of these children. For many years, Susanna would pray for each of her children, and she birthed their visions on the wings of intercession. She lost many of them, but God rewarded her faithful intercession by sending the mantle of revival on her son, John Wesley, who later founded the great Methodist church in England. Godly mothers are priceless. Our generation is yet to appreciate the value and impact of godly mothers in the birth of great visions. To further bridge this gap, let me also tell you more about the exploits of godly mothers in shaping the history of the church. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later Morrow Graham, the mother of Billy Graham, prayed for and inspired him into his calling. Katharina Luther equally inspired the great Martin Luther to prominence. Any man with this kind of mother, either as a wife or parent, is truly blessed by God. They must be cherished, honoured, and rewarded. If you have one, please venerate her. After God, godly mothers, most especially as wives, are the next best factors for success in life. Truly, Godly mothers are priceless. Happy Mothers Day. Ann was the first wife of the great missionary, Adoniram Judson, and before her death she contributed to the revival that broke out through his ministry in the nation of Burma. Ann literarily died in the hands of her husband. While Adoniram was jailed for preaching the gospel, Ann stood with him and by him, combing the bush at night to secretly locate the window of the prison facility that held her husband, just to encourage him. She would quietly knock the window of the cell and whisper the following words to her husband, Hang on Adoniram, God will soon give us the victory. Then she would crawl back home through the same bush path. While she was dying in his hands, after his release from prison, her last words were still, hang on Adoniram, God will soon give us the victory. Adoniram burst into tears and said, Ann, oh Ann, my dear wife. He rose up after her death to birth a major revival in Burma that is still burning till today. Truly, Godly mothers are priceless. Dr CE French told the story of a 98-year-old woman, Sister Mary, who as an intercessor in America in the 1960s, revealed the secret of an impending bilateral deal between the US and Turkey. This was a top secret. Some delegates from Turkey had arrived at the White House to sign some documents with the then US president. A night before the meeting, the Lord showed Sister Mary the exact details of the deal in a night vision. She woke up and sent a message to her friend at the White House, who later passed it over to the White House Secretary that, should the US president sign that deal, America was going to enter into serious trouble. That same evening, FBI agents stormed Sister Marys house, demanding the source of her information. They said to her, you are an agent of the Turkish government. After subjecting her to hours of gruelling interrogation, they discovered that her source of information was beyond any natural means. Surprisingly, the US government changed its mind and bowed to the warnings of Sister Mary. Truly, Godly mothers are priceless. Godly mothers stand on the wings of the spirit. They are intercessors. They are deep wells of wisdom. They provide courage and inspiration to their families. They are rare to find in our generation, but still exist in various climes, although in small proportions. You can be part of this elite group of kingdom stalwarts, mothers with the eyes of the spirit and the strength of eagles. Any man with this kind of mother, either as a wife or parent, is truly blessed by God. They must be cherished, honoured, and rewarded. If you have one, please venerate her. After God, godly mothers, most especially as wives, are the next best factors for success in life. Truly, Godly mothers are priceless. Happy Mothers Day. Ayo Akerele is the senior Pastor of Rhema Assembly and the founder of the Voice of the Watchmen in Ontario, Canada. He can be reached through ayoakerele@gmail.com Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Nigerian Navys Operation Delta Sanity, launched for increased maritime surveillance, led to the arrest of over 14 rogue oil vessels in Rivers State alone in the first quarter of this year. This is in addition to 90 badges, 74 suspects, companies and organisations nabbed for the pillaging. The mess highlights the escalation of oil theft and attempts to contain it. With Nigerias present economic maelstrom, tightening the noose on marauders in its maritime space has become non-negotiable. The corporate brigands involved, often shamelessly protected by the authorities, need to be unmasked and named. In Delta State, Tantita Security Service Company intercepted MT Kali in Warri, which necessitated the Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musas visit to the place. Chief of Naval Staff, Emmanuel Ogalla, who disclosed the arrest of the 14 oil ships recently at a meeting with Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State, noted that most of the cases are at various levels of investigation. The inquest should be thorough and speedy, followed by the prosecution of suspects, and those found culpable convicted with stiff penalties. Perpetual economic crises for Nigeria as an oil-dependent economy, is the net effect of unremitting oil theft. The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Yemi Cardoso, had in December 2023, hinted of the danger ahead, with a projected drop in revenue in 2024, during a joint meeting with the Senate and House of Representatives Committees on Banking. His pessimism was premised on OPECs new crude oil production quota, oil theft, pipeline vandalism and divestment from the upstream oil sector by some international oil companies. The confiscated oil vessels, which are of different sizes, include MT Habour Spirit, MT Kali, MT Size Nail, MT Okito, MT Bullarenous, MT Sweet Mary, among others. These ships are used in stealing crude from major tap points of oil pipelines and feeding larger oil tankers stationed on the high seas. Yet, there are countless cases of bigger ships daring our maritime watchdogs and entering our territorial waters, as the super tanker MT Heroic Idun did in August 2022. It went straight to Akpo Oil Field in a bid to load, but was stopped. It had no documentation or clearance for loading oil from the NNPCL. Such audacity could not have happened without the connivance of highly placed Nigerians. It clearly shows how porous Nigerias 315,240 square-kilometre maritime space is. Also, in 2003, MT African Pride was caught with crude, detained but curiously escaped despite being under the Navys custody. This illicit business, worth billions of dollars in value, involves a complex web of local and international collaborators. Nigeria loses about 400,000 barrels of crude daily, or $40 million, according to experts. A total of $4 billion was lost in 2021. The Navy had in 2022 handed over 70 out of 127 vessels arrested for crude theft and illegal bunkering to the EFCC for investigation and prosecution, Ogalla, then as Navys Director of Lessons Learnt, told a House of Representatives public hearing. It is obvious now that the seemingly insurmountable nature of this criminality is as a result of the shoddy handling of reported cases. It was in a bid to stem the heist that the Muhammadu Buhari administration awarded the N48 billion pipelines surveillance contract to Tantita Security Service Company, owned by Government Ekpemupolo, aka Tompolo. President Bola Tinubu has renewed the N4 billion per month contract. In the first quarter of executing the contract under Buharis regime, 400 tap points of major oil pipelines were discovered. The Chief Executive Officer of NNPCL, Mele Kyari, says that over 5,000 kilometres of oil pipelines are not working due to vandalism. He stated in November that Ten million litres of oil were lost from the volume pumped from Aba to Enugu at a time. The company has not been able to pump oil from Warri to Benin within the last 22 years and cannot connect to Ore. There is no amount of security measures that had not been taken to curb the crime without success, which to us in NNPC Ltd, is substantially a national calamity, he noted. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later Yes, it is a big shame; but we do not share Kyaris diffidence or resignation. In this age of high-tech, with sensors or trackers installed on pipelines and the building of a central surveillance system, it is possible to monitor every vessel that enters and exits our territorial waters. Saudi Arabia and other major oil producing nations deploy such measures to secure their oil infrastructure. If these devices had optimally been deployed here, they would have been used to detect the 400 ruptured major pipeline points not known to the NNPC that Tantita uncovered earlier in its assignment. In climes where public good drives governance, Kyaris shocking revelations would have provoked angry and awesome reflexes of the executive arm of government. The President as the substantive minister of Petroleum Resources should bite the bullet. We have repeatedly drawn his attention to the $17 billion crude oil theft by some IOCs between 2011 and 2014, which his predecessor documented but failed to act on. Strangely, he too, has been timorous about this! The perpetrators of this monumental heist have rightly been documented in a report of the UK think-tank, Chatham House, in 2014. The theft is on an industrial scale, it stressed, and is engineered by politicians, military officers, militants, oil industry personnel, oil traders and communities. The current Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, Nyesom Wike, as governor of Rivers State, corroborated this verdict. Besides, a government agency, the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), had stated in an audit report that 160 million barrels of crude oil valued at $13.7 billion, was stolen from the country in four years from 2009 to 2012, as contained in the shadowy record of just three oil companies it examined. Therefore, the Federal Government needs to step up to the plate. The crude production figure for March 2024, at below 1.25 million barrels per day, fell short of Nigerias OPEC quota of 1.38mbpd, and its stated production plan of 1.5mbpd, subject to verification and approval. The OPEC downward review came amid years of Nigeria not meeting its 1.7mbpd quota, and as a result did not gain from the spike in crude oil prices that reached $100 per barrel not too long ago. Industry experts say that 50 per cent of Nigerias oil revenue is used in defraying the cost of its production. With a daily crude allocation to Afriexim bank for a loan repayment deal of $3.3 billion, and also a similar commitment to Dangote Refinery in respect of the NNPC Limited stake of $20 billion in the company, what then is left to accrue to the public treasury will not save the country from its prevailing forex debacle. Brazen oil theft by local and international criminals, needs to be urgently staunched to rescue Nigeria from economic turmoil. Nigerias leadership must go after those elements Chatham House identified. For too long, a slap on the wrist is all that the few caught get. This is a perverse incentive for them to continue to cut Nigerias economic jugular. This is the takeaway from the $15 million plea bargain Nigeria received from the super tanker oil thieves, who were finally let off the hook after Equatorial Guinea that arrested them, handed them over. Ironically, Nigerian convicts abroad dont get such indulgence. The country should notch up its economic diplomacy. If stolen diamonds in Sierra Leone and the Congo could be labelled as blood diamonds, in the international system, we dont see why our stolen crude should not be similarly considered. Within, oil thieves are sometimes convicted and given the option to pay a N3 million fine, as was the case with Messrs Wisdom and Godwin in 2016. This is easily paid, and paves the way for a return to the illegality, sooner than later. This penal regime is overdue for a review. Convicted felons should be made to serve long jail terms, while their vessels and trucks are forfeited to the government. Nigeria must snuff them out of existence so that it can survive. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Adamawa State chapter of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) on Monday, shut down the regional offices of the Yola Electricity Distribution Company (YEDC) and the office of the Electricity Regulatory Commission of Nigeria (ERCN). Emmanuel Fashe, the NLC chairman in the state, who addressed members of the union at the premises of the picketed offices in Yola, the Adamawa State capital, North-east Nigeria, said the action was to protest exorbitant electricity tariff. He said the tariff on Band A has reached 300 per cent, saying the indiscriminate charges were beyond the ability and capability of Nigerians. Our action to picket these offices was sequel to the directive from our headquarters and it is a nationwide action, he said. Mr Fashe explained that categorising power supply into different bands was equal to creating division among Nigerians, adding that it was an attempt to eliminate the middle class. The tariff hike was from N65 to N223, which is far above reasonable charges. The only services that were yet to be taxed by the federal government are the oxygen we breathe and the rainfall on our farms, he said. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later The chairman used the occasion to caution the federal government against unpopular policies that were capable of inflicting hardship on the citizens. Also, Dauda Adamu, the Chairman of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) in the state, urged the government to sustain the subsidy on the cost of social services for the affordability of Nigerians. READ ALSO: Adamawa extends school resumption after fatal measles outbreak He attributed the rising cost of living in Nigeria to the removal of fuel subsidy, insecurity and other unpopular government policies. We advise the government to revert back to the initial cost of the power supply as Nigerians will not be paying what they did not consume, he said. According to him, all Nigerians will be mobilsed to partake in the next protest, saying: we are tired of this life of servitude. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that both offices were under lock and key and the staff on duty were asked to leave unconditionally. (NAN) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Kogi State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja, on Monday, concluded the hearing of the petition filed by the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and its governorship candidate, Murtala Ajaka, to challenge the victory of Governor Usman Ododo, who was declared the winner of the keenly contested November 2023 poll. INEC on Monday urged the three-member tribunal to affirm Governor Ododos victory. Governor Ododo and his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), also told the three-member panel, headed by Ado Birnin-Kudu, to dismiss the petition for being incompetent and lacking in merit. The trio, through their lawyers Kanu Agabi, Joseph Daudu and Emmanuel Ukala stated this position while adopting their final written addresses and presenting their arguments against the SDP and Mr Ajakas petition. However, Mr Ajakas lawyer, Pius Akubo, urged the tribunal to discountenance the respondents submissions and uphold their petition. The tribunal, after listening to all the parties in the petition, reserved the matter for judgement. It would be recalled that Mr Ajaka challenged Mr Ododos victory in the 11 November 2023 poll. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later In the petition, INEC, Mr Ododo and APC are listed as first, second and third respondents respectively. The tribunal had, on 25 April, fixed Monday for adoption of final written addresses after parties closed their case in the matter. Upon resumed hearing, INECs counsel, Mr Agabi, told the court that their final written address was dated and filed on 2 May. He said the commissions reply on point of law was dated 8 May and filed 9 May. While adopting the processes, the lawyer submitted that the petition lacked merit and was incompetent, urging the court to strike it out or dismiss it. It is our humble submission that your work in the determination of this petition is simplified in recent judgements by the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court, he said. He argued that the Appeal Court had decided that if the grounds of a petition are inconsistent with one another, and are not consistent with the reliefs, it should be struck out. He also argued that the evidence of the petitioners were grossly insufficient, citing a Supreme Court decision in a case by Tonye Cole against INEC. It is to the effect that once the evidence called is grossly insufficient, there is no evidence. In that case, the petitioner filed 305 witness depositions but only adopted 40 of them. The petitioner, according to the decision, only adopted about 13.1 per cent of the witness depositions. In this case, the depositions adopted represent just about 3.6 per cent of their witness depositions, he said. He said the petitioners only called 25 witnesses out of the scores listed. Mr Agabi said that in a mathematical calculation of evidence, 3.6 per cent of Mr Ajakas witness deposition adopted in the petition amounted to a failure and, therefore, ought to be dismissed. The lawyer also described the case as frivolous. He said the petitioners equally failed to file the witness deposition beforehand in contravention of the Supreme Courts decision in Obungados case. He argued that the petitioners witness, who testified about the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) machines, clearly stated that he could not guarantee whether those were the BVAS used. Besides, he said the witness was not the maker of the inputs in the BVAS machines. Also, the evidence contained in the BVAS machines fell short of what is required of the law, he added. Mr Agabi further argued that the BVAS machine was tendered against Section 84 of the Evidence Act, as there was no certificate of trustworthiness attached alongside it as required by the law. He argued that out of the 25 witnesses called by the petitioners, there was no single polling unit agent among them. In other words, not a single person who observed the election was called. Besides, the star witness could not distinguish between what he heard and what he saw when questions were put to him, he said. The senior lawyer prayed the tribunal to strike out or dismiss the petition for being incompetent. While adopting his final written address dated and filed on 1May, Mr Daudu, who appeared for Mr Ododo, urged the tribunal to dismiss the petition in its entirety. Adumbrating, he argued that the petition was statute barred (filed out of time). The senior lawyer said that though the petitioners responded to their submission that when it comes to filing, it is what the secretary of the tribunal says that determines the date of filing, he, however, argued that the action of the petitioners was against Section 122(1) and (2)(a) of the Evidence Act, which empowers the tribunal to take judicial notice of this. But Mr Akubo objected to Mr Daudus citing of the section, describing it as a fresh argument. Mr Daudu, in response, disagreed with Akubo that he was raising fresh issues after a final written address had been filed. You cannot shut me out from making my comment. You cannot because you dont have the power to do so, he said. He said if the court found merit in his argument, Mr Akubo had the right to respond because it bordered on issues of remittal procedure. He also urged the tribunal to dismiss the allegations of forgery against his client, saying it bordered on pre-election matters, which the apex court had decided in Gbagis case against INEC. Mr Daudu also argued that Section 137 of the Electoral Act cited by the petitioners on allegations of over-voting did not apply in the instant petition. Also backing Mr Daudus submission, Mr Ukala, who represented APC, urged the court to dismiss the petition for lacking in merit. The lawyer, who said their final written address, dated April 30 was filed the same date, adopted all the processes. The petitioners lawyer, Me Akubo, told the tribunal that their final written address was dated and filed 6 May. He disagreed with Mr Daudu that their petition was filed out of time. He argued that the respondents themselves confirmed that the petition was filed on 2 December 2023, even by their own witness. I urge your lordship to hold that we filed this petition within time under our law, he said. After taking the arguments, the chair of the three-member tribunal, Birnin-Kudu, reserved judgement in the petition. The date will be communicated to both parties, he said. (NAN) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Nigerian Army troops of Operation Whirl Punch have killed four terrorists, including a notorious terrorist leader, Dogo Bangaje, in Giwa Local Government Area, Kaduna State. The states Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, said the development was reported to the state government over the weekend. According to the operational feedback, the troops conducted the special fighting patrol first to Tumburku village and then projected the same to Sabon Sara, both in Giwa LGA. Acting on credible intelligence, the troops sighted bandits fleeing the latter location and engaged the criminals in hot pursuit. The troops neutralised two of the bandits, and recovered a range of items including a motorcycle, a mobile phone, gas lighters, tobacco, assorted charms, and a polythene bag containing petrol. Another leg of the operation was conducted at Basurfe village, Southwest of Kindandan. The troops fought through an ambush and forced the bandits to flee on motorcycles. A vigorous pursuit resulted in two more bandits neutralized. The troops further exploited the area and dislodged a camp serving as a treatment area for the insurgents, Mr Aruwan said. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later Mr Aruwan said ranges of dangerous weapons were recovered by the security operatives following the encounter. Recoveries made at the location included two AK47 rifles, one pump action rifle, three magazines, 16 rounds of ammunition, one Improvised Explosive Device (IED), two radios and one motorcycle, as well as cigarettes, drugs and medical accessories. The reports revealed that one of the bandits neutralized in the operations was a notorious bandit leader Dogo Bangaje, who was eliminated alongside a close associate yet to be identified, Mr Aruwan said. Receiving the report, Governor Uba Sani praised the troops under the leadership of GOC 1 Division and Commander Operation Whirl Punch, MLD Saraso, a major general, for their efforts. The governor congratulated the soldiers on the remarkable breakthrough, Mr Aruwan said. The Governor urged the security forces to sustain the momentum towards flushing out criminal elements from the area. Citizens are urged to report suspicious persons seeking medical attention in the general area to the Kaduna State Security Operations Room, via the lines 09034000060 and 08170189999, he said. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Two out of the eight prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members, abducted by gunmen along a highway in Zamfara State while travelling to take part in the orientation camp in Sokoto State, North-west Nigeria, are still in captivity. They were abducted in August last year while honouring the mandatory one-year national service and have so far spent nine months in captivity. Their continuous stay in captivity has triggered outrage from Nigerians and civil society groups in the country, calling on the federal government to take action to secure their release. The NYSC last December announced that it had secured the release of two of the corps members after they had spent 106 days in captivity. Some persons familiar with how the six NYSC members were released told PREMIUM TIMES that it appears the NYSC authorities have lost interest in securing the release of the remaining two. They accused the Akwa Ibom State government of not cooperating with the NYSC authorities over the matter. The bulk of the abducted NYSC members, including the two who are still in captivity, are from Akwa Ibom State. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later When PREMIUM TIMES contacted the Commissioner for Information in Akwa Ibom State, Ini Ememobong, on Monday, he referred our reporter to the Commissioner for Internal Security, Koko Essien, for comments. Mr Essien, a retired army general, did not respond to calls and a text message seeking comment as of the time of filing this report. One of the parents of the abducted corps members, when contacted, told PREMIUM TIMES that commenting on the matter would put the lives of the two who are still in captivity in danger. A civil society group in the state, Akwa Ibom Human Rights Community, has urged the federal government to take urgent steps to secure the release of the two remaining corps members. The appeal was part of the resolutions made by the group at the end of its meeting held on 10 April in Uyo. The group urged the federal government to overhaul the NYSC to enable corps members to serve in their geo-political zones. READ ALSO: Nigerian govt wants NOUN graduates to participate in NYSC The harrowing and traumatic experiences of the victims, and the associated pains and anxiety of the parents and guardians have made us question the continued importance of the existence of the NYSC Scheme and seek a rejig of the policy to make youths serve within their regions, the group said in a communique signed by its Convener, Clifford Thomas and Secretary, Ime Udo. The NYSC scheme, which appears to have out-lived its usefulness, should be reviewed and completely overhauled to reflect solutions to emerging trends, the group said. Akwa Ibom Human Rights Community described as alarming the level of insecurity in the country and called on governments at all levels to take proactive steps to address it. The group called for the engagement of more community-based people in intelligence gathering and security to assist in combating insecurity in the country. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The organised labour unions in Bayelsa State have rejected the recent hike in electricity tariff by the federal government by staging a picketing exercise. The Nigeria Labour Union (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) had on Monday picketed the Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company (PHED) in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, to express their resentment toward the hike. Bayelsa State NLC Chairman, Comrade Simon Barnabas, urged the government to, immediately, look into the matter by reversing the hike and giving Nigerians a constant power supply. He decried the situation where despite the hike in tariff, people were still subjected to epileptic power supply. He said: Our action today is a way to inform the government that the hike in tariff is unacceptable by us. Of course, the national centres of NLC and TUC gave the directive that we should have a joint action here in Bayelsa State to express our unacceptability of this policy. We are calling on the authority to have an immediate reversal and passing information to our people that the labour leadership is concerned about their well-being and welfare. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later We are hoping that there will be a change of mind on the part of the government after this action. But where there is none, we have no option than to apply confrontation, as the issue of an epileptic power supply must be addressed. Meanwhile, Bayelsa State TUC chairman, Julius Laye, said introducing another form of taxation was not the right way to handle Nigerians at this time. He said Nigerians were already sacrificing to buy petrol and diesel at exorbitant prices, therefore, the hiked electricity tariff should not be added to their woes. According to him, the President Bola Tinubu-led administration should consider the feelings of the masses and allow them to breathe. (NAN) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State has vowed to probe the administration of his predecessor Nyesom Wike amidst the ongoing political crisis in the state. Mr Fubara said this on Monday while swearing in Dagogo Iboroma as the new Attorney Genea and Commissioner for Justice in the state, according to a press statement from the governors spokesperson, Nelson Chukwudi. Mr Iboroma, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, replaced the former commissioner of justice, Zachaeus Adangor, an ally of Mr Wike, who resigned his appointment in April after he was redeployed to the Ministry of Special Duties. The oil-rich Rivers State has been thrown into a protracted political crisis since last year after lawmakers loyal to Mr Wike, who is now the FCT minister, initiated a plot to remove Governor Fubara from office. Read the press statement from Governor Fubaras spokesperson below: WELL SET UP PANEL OF INQUIRY ON GOVERNANCE IN RIVERS GOV FUBARA Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, hinted of plans to set up a judicial panel of inquiry soon to investigate how the affairs of governance were conducted in the State before he assumed office. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later Governor Fubara gave the hint at the swearing in of Mr Dagogo Israel Iboroma, SAN, as the new Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice of the State at Government House in Port Harcourt on Monday. The Governor said he was bringing the Attorney-General on board at a critical time that there were lots of legal matters that needed to be tackled, with bravery and courage. He said, So, my brother, Dagogo Iboroma, you are going to be the brand new Attorney-General of our dear State. SSG, give him his letter, he is the Attorney-General. Why are we bringing you at this very critical time? We have a lot of issues around us. We believe that you are not going to be the one that when they send service to you, you go and file nolle prosequi or you go and file one thing that would kill us here. Governor Fubara further said: Let me also say this, you have a big task. We will be setting up a judicial panel of inquiry to investigate the affairs of governance. So, brace up, I am not going back on it. Please, defend us. We know that you are going to defend us because your record is clean. You are a gentleman and peaceful. You are not a noise maker. People like you are endowed, and they have the fear of God. Governor Fubara reiterated that though he thought the political crisis he considered as a problem within a family would have been resolved but regretted that there had been no headway out of it. The Governor emphasised that though it was unfortunate, his administration has moved forward because there is now a well- constituted State House of Assembly to discharge legislative duties, and a seasoned lawyer appointed as the Attorney-General of the State. I am happy that this is happening today to mark the beginning of a new era in our administration. When I said that I had a reason for being patient, it is because I know that we are all from one family. And if we have a disagreement, no matter how bad it is, it should be resolved amicably. But it has become very clear that this disagreement, there is no way to resolve it amicably. And for a lot of reasons, there are visible evidence that there is sabotage, deliberate attempt to sabotage this administration. For that reason, we have to move forward. And, moving forward, if it means taking decisions that are going to hurt anybody, we are not going back on the protection of the interest of Rivers people. Governor Fubara took a swipe at a former Attorney-General, Prof. Zaccheaus Adangor, who as the chief law officer of the State, indulged in sabotaging the same administration he served. It is good that you were already a SAN before your appointment. This means that youre a very thorough lawyer and has earned your appointment. Not like the one we had here, who while in office, they went to pay money to get SAN. When you become a SAN, the only thing you will do is to sabotage government. Instead of you to close your mouth, you go publicly to claim that you are a learned person. But go publicly to tell people that you were the Chief Law Officer. READ ALSO: Fubara relocates Rivers assembly amid states worsening political crisis Chief Law Officer? You were here and you went to stand before a magistrate court. At that time, you didnt remember that you were a Chief Law Officer, going against the ethics of your job. Like I said, you will get your reward, not in the next world, but in this world. The Governor also said that God does not make mistakes when He elevates any person to whatever level, and dismissed talks to that effect, claiming that it was a mistake that he became Governor. Signed Nelson Chukwudi Chief Press Secretary to the Rivers State Governor Monday, May 13, 2024. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print NEW YORK, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The global amphibious landing craft market size is estimated to grow by USD 589.97 mn from 2024-2028, according to Technavio. The market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of almost 2.78% during the forecast period. For more insights on the forecast market size and historic data (2018 - 2022) - Buy Report Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Amphibious Landing Craft Market 2024-2028 Forecast period 2024-2028 Growth momentum & CAGR Accelerate at a CAGR of 2.78% Market growth 2024-2028 USD 589.97 million Market structure Fragmented YoY growth 2022-2023 (%) 2.52 Regional analysis North America, Europe, APAC, South America, and Middle East and Africa Performing market contribution North America at 29% Key countries US, China, Russia, France, and UK Key companies profiled Abu Dhabi Ship Building PJSC, Almaz Shipbuilding Co., BAE Systems Plc, Bland Group, CNH Industrial NV, CNIM SA, Damen Shipyards Group, Fincantieri Spa, Goa Shipyard Ltd., Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc., L3Harris Technologies Inc., Marine Alutech Oy Ab, Marine Inland Fabricators, Navantia SA, Rostec, Singapore Technologies Engineering Ltd., Strategic Marine S Pte Ltd., Textron Inc., Wetland Equipment Co., and Wilco Manufacturing LLC Market Driver Amphibious landing craft market is witnessing significant growth due to the integration of advanced technologies such as DEWs, air cushion technology, and hovercraft. These innovations enable landing crafts to counter terrorism threats, conduct surveillance, and support military activities, including beaching operations, search and rescue, disaster relief, and logistics. DEWs, including high-powered lasers and microwave systems, offer anti-personnel and anti-material capabilities, reducing casualties and damaging enemy equipment. Additionally, amphibious landing craft cater to seaborne trading demands, providing alternative transportation methods and enhancing military capabilities in amphibious warfare. Market Challenges Amphibious landing craft market growth has been influenced by the economic downturn, particularly in commodity-exporting regions. Despite political uncertainty and slow investments in the US, China , Japan , and Europe , demand persists for advanced amphibious vehicles. , , and , demand persists for advanced amphibious vehicles. These include landing craft with air cushion technology, amphibious vehicles, and large tanks, equipped with waterproof screens, telescopic snorkels, and hovercraft. Modern ships and armored combat vehicles are also integral components, along with power generators and logistics operations. Unmanned amphibious vehicles, fuel supply, and medical evacuation variations are essential for military applications. Surveillance payloads, sensors, and technical breakthroughs continue to drive market expansion, with applications extending to terrorist organizations and alternative transportation methods. Electrically-powered vehicles, endurance, durability, and sophisticated electronic systems are key considerations, as are government authorities and high-tech propulsion systems. Hybrid-based engines and excavators are emerging trends, with applications in professional purposes, sports, mountaineering, exploration, and excavation. Research report provides comprehensive data on impact of trend, driver and challenges - Request a sample report! Segment Overview This amphibious landing craft market report extensively covers market segmentation by Application 1.1 Military 1.2 Commercial Type 2.1 Amphibious ACVs and APCs 2.2 Air cushion vehicle 2.3 LCU and LCM Geography 3.1 North America 3.2 Europe 3.3 APAC 3.4 South America 3.5 Middle East and Africa 1.1 Military- The Amphibious Landing Craft Market caters to diverse applications, ranging from professional military purposes to sports, mountaineering, exploration, and excavation. Durability is a paramount consideration, as these landing crafts must withstand harsh marine environments and rough terrain. Sophisticated electronic systems ensure precise navigation and communication, while affordable vehicles cater to various budgets. Government authorities rely on high-tech propulsion systems and hybrid-based engines to power their amphibious assault ships and landing crafts. Countering terrorism threats and maritime boundary conflicts necessitates the integration of advanced surveillance capabilities, such as telescopic snorkels and waterproof screens. Modern amphibious warfare ships and landing crafts accommodate a range of mission requirements, from beaching operations and search and rescue to disaster relief operations and supply and replenishment. Seaborne trading demands further expand the market, with amphibious vehicles transporting large tanks and other cargo. Military vehicles, such as the M-1 Abrams tank, require specialized landing crafts for deployment. Air cushion technology and hovercraft enable these vehicles to traverse water and land with ease. Amphibious landing crafts also serve as power generators for logistics operations, ensuring uninterrupted support for ground forces. The world's coastlines witness the deployment of these versatile landing crafts, which adapt to various roles, including multi-role activities and amphibious assaults. Amphibious vehicles, equipped with sophisticated electronic systems and powerful engines, continue to play a crucial role in amphibious warfare and peacekeeping missions. For more information on market segmentation with geographical analysis including forecast (2024-2028) and historic data (2018 - 2022) - Download a Sample Report Research Analysis The Amphibious Landing Craft market encompasses innovative solutions designed for modern maritime applications. These crafts play a pivotal role in amphibious warfare, enabling ground forces to deploy from ships for various missions. Key components include air cushion technology and amphibious vehicles, ensuring efficient beaching operations. Countering terrorism threats and maritime boundary conflicts necessitate advanced capabilities. Amphibious landing craft offer multi-role activities, such as search and rescue, disaster relief operations, and supply and replenishment. Seaborne trading demands further emphasize the importance of these versatile vessels. Surveillance capabilities are essential, and large tanks with waterproof screens accommodate military vehicles like the M-1 Abrams tank. Telescopic snorkels and hovercraft technology enable these crafts to operate in shallow waters. Amphibious warfare ships and amphibious landing craft are integral to this market, providing essential support for military operations along the world's coastlines. Market Research Overview The Amphibious Landing Craft market represents a significant sector in the defense industry. These crafts are essential for transporting military personnel and equipment from ships to shore in various terrains, including water and land. Amphibious crafts come in various types, such as tank landing crafts, utility landing crafts, and multi-purpose amphibious crafts. They are equipped with features like shallow draft, high maneuverability, and the ability to operate in rough seas. The market for these crafts is driven by factors like increasing military modernization, rising geopolitical tensions, and the need for versatile and adaptable military assets. Companies involved in this market offer innovative solutions to meet the evolving requirements of military forces worldwide. Table of Contents: 1 Executive Summary 2 Market Landscape 3 Market Sizing 4 Historic Market Size 5 Five Forces Analysis 6 Market Segmentation Application Military Commercial Type Amphibious ACVs And APCs Air Cushion Vehicle LCU And LCM Geography North America Europe APAC South America Middle East And Africa 7 Customer Landscape 8 Geographic Landscape 9 Drivers, Challenges, and Trends 10 Company Landscape 11 Company Analysis 12 Appendix About Technavio Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focuses on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios. Contacts Technavio Research Jesse Maida Media & Marketing Executive US: +1 844 364 1100 UK: +44 203 893 3200 Email: [email protected] Website: www.technavio.com/ SOURCE Technavio The farmer-owned cooperative accelerates its ongoing sustainability achievements through its $45M Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities grant. SACRAMENTO, Calif., May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Blue Diamond Growers, a farmer-owned cooperative and the world's largest almond marketer and processor, launched the second year of enrollment for their $45 million Climate Smart Commodities Grant this month. The grant, awarded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), provides farmers funding to implement climate-smart practices on-farm including planting cover crops, conservation cover and hedgerows. Blue Diamond's farmer-members planted more than 17,000 acres of almond orchards with cover crop and over 100 conservation cover in the first year of the project. Starting May 1, the cooperative began accepting applications from their approximately 3,000 farmer-owners for the second year of activities, which are supported by grant partners Project Apis m. and Pollinator Partnership. The grant is part of the USDA's Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities program aimed at equipping farmers with the resources and incentives needed to further their sustainable practices on-farm. Through this grant, Blue Diamond has provided almost $800,000 in funds for seeds, and incentive payments for 91 farmers in the first year. The total acres of almond orchards implementing pollinator habitat practices through the grant would be large enough to cover the island of Manhattan. "This grant is an important piece of Blue Diamond's sustainability story, and we are proud of our first-year successes," said Dr. Dan Sonke, Head of Sustainability. "We are thankful for our partnership with the USDA as we invest in the future of agriculture and assist our farmers with implementing these critical practices." The grant expands Blue Diamond's current sustainability efforts, including the cooperative's flagship Orchard Stewardship Incentive Program (OSIP), which began providing incentive payments to participating farmers in the 2020 crop year. Through OSIP, Blue Diamond has provided millions of dollars in incentives and has the most acres in an almond sustainability program in the world. Today, over 57% of Blue Diamond member acreage is participating in OSIP. The Climate Smart Grant will bolster Blue Diamond's farmers to employ practices that support the good stewardship of their orchards. "Blue Diamond has always been synonymous with quality because of our commitment to producing the best product possible," said Carmen Bourgaize, Chief Commercial Officer. "This commitment continues through our investment in sustainability and in turn, increases our value proposition because our retail and manufacturing customers know they are receiving almonds that are not only safe and high-quality, but are supported by important on-farm stewardship initiatives." About Blue Diamond Blue Diamond Growers, a grower-owned cooperative representing approximately 3,000 of California's almond farmers, is the world's leading almond marketer and processor. Established in 1910, it created the California almond industry and opened world markets for almonds. Blue Diamond is dedicated to delivering the benefits of almonds around the world and does so by providing high-quality almonds, almond ingredients, and branded products. Headquartered in Sacramento, the company employs more than 1,800 people throughout its processing plants, receiving stations and gift shops. To learn more about Blue Diamond Growers, visit www.bluediamond.com and follow the company on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/159190/blue_diamond_growers_logo.jpg BYOMA, the authority on skin barrier, launches inaugural Skin Barrier Awareness Month this May cementing the brand as the champion of skin barrier health. NEW YORK, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- On a mission to democratize and demystify skincare, BYOMA empowers everyone to make the right choices for their unique skin type with science-backed, solution focused, skin barrier-care. Since launching in 2022, BYOMA has become a credible, impartial authority and innovation trailblazer in skin barrier and skin health. With skin barrier health at the forefront of the beauty industry, BYOMA continues to drive and lead not just a trend, but an evolution of skincare. Considering everything from a 360 lens, from researching skin-compatible complexes to engaging and empowering skincare users with education to build their best skincare routines every day - BYOMA is building better beauty. Today, a new generation is breaking their skin barriers with super-strength actives and age-inappropriate formulas. The Gen Alpha skincare boom has become an epidemic due to lack of education resulting in mis-purchasing products. In response to this epidemic, Founder, Marc Elrick felt it is BYOMA's responsibility to take a stand. "This month, we're making a category-defying pledge with Skin Barrier Awareness Month, geared towards democratizing the skincare industry by empowering consumers of all ages with skin barrier health education," said Elrick. "My fear is that barrier care becomes a buzzword and a trend, rather than evolving the category and sparking a skincare revolution as we'd originally hoped. Our month-long campaign will cement BYOMA as true champions of skin barrier health by our community and for our communities. All our activities will tie back to our core values of education, democratization, and trust and transparency." The brand is launching several initiatives to kickstart Skin Barrier Awareness Month including: Opening of the BYOMA clinical testing lab at Glasgow HQ Clinical testing is an integral part of the R&D process, ensuring the products perform with the highest efficacy. All BYOMA products undergo rigorous third-party clinical testing to thoroughly assess effectiveness. This includes HRIPT (Human Repeat Insult Patch Test) testing to verify safety for sensitive skin. This comprehensive testing process ensures BYOMA products not only deliver desirable results but also uphold the highest standard of safety. In addition to these tests, BYOMA is taking clinicals one step further. "As we work to revolutionize the industry with cutting-edge skin barrier products, the launch of the in-house lab allows us to test and update new formulations in real-time. Our new complexion analysis machine with multi-spectral imaging reveals damage and signs of ageing on and beneath the surface of skin (i.e. erythema, melanin, sebum, skin elasticity, radiance, etc.) not visible to the human eye. This allows us to develop more advanced formulas that take skin barrier function to the next level," says Elrick. BYOMA Smart Skin Scan AI Tool, for personalized skin analysis BYOMA was one of the first skincare brands to offer total transparency on their packaging, decoding the inci (ingredient) list, telling consumers exactly what is in their formulations and the primary function. "As a brand at the cutting edge of technology and innovation, I want us to continue to push the boundaries of what's possible to enhance the consumer experience," said Elrick. "Supercharging our brand's mission, we have partnered with global leading AI/AR company Revieve to develop a fully branded, digital skincare diagnostic service powered by AI technology that can be used anytime, anywhere." BYOMA understands the desire and demand for increased personalization with 71% of consumers expecting personalized interactions with companies and a further 91% stating they are more likely to shop with brands if their experience is personalized. BYOMA will be one of the first brands at mass to bring this degree of intelligence, insight, and accessibility to their highly engaged community. With just a few questions and quick snap of a selfie, BYOMA's Smart Skin Scan offers tailored skin analysis based on age, location, skin type, tone, and texture. The tool will be accessible everywhere our community is: across digital touchpoints like our site and social channels as well as in stores, and even on pack! This is an important step towards improving the consumer experience helping to further educate on their unique skin needs while providing the right personalized skincare routine. "Our strategy is to leverage this innovative tool to better understand the needs of our community informing future product development with science-based consumer insights, allowing for strategic decisions on what's to come next in our revolutionary product pipeline," said Elrick. Immersive consumer pop up experiences in NYC 435 Broome St, SoHo, New York, 10013 5/31 - 6/1 - 10am - 5pm With consumers at the heart of the brand, BYOMA will be launching their first-ever pop-up experience in SoHo, NYC on May 31 June 1 inviting consumers of all ages to immerse themselves into the skin barrier. Attendees will have the opportunity to scan their skin with new BYOMA AI tool for a customized prescription of BYOMA products. The brand will also be providing 1:1 consultations with dermatologists including Angelo Landriscina, MD, FAAD, to help answer their skincare queries. Lastly, everyone will receive best-selling BYOMA product samples, merch, and other prizes through fun gamification activities all while understanding the science and health of the skin barrier. Launch of disruptive campaign to raise awareness & supercharged educational content across social platforms With more information at consumer's disposal, misinformation, and unclear expectations within skincare, is higher than ever. A recent consumer study by Vitabiotics Perfectil1 showed that 72% of 2,000 surveyed need clarification on scientific skincare terms and technological developments in the beauty industry with 69% having bought a beauty product without understanding the label. BYOMA's latest campaign, "MiSKINformed" #skinbarrierawarenessmonth is spotlighting this issue of misinformation plaguing the category. The brand is determined to empower the consumer with the knowledge needed to make smart, informed decisions about their skin so that misinformation stops breaking skin barriers. BYOMA's top priority is to ensure platforms remain a resource for impactful learning. Part of this, is leading the charge on education. A key initiative is driving conversations around how skincare should be used at every age, so everyone feels empowered with knowledge to make the best choices for their unique skin type. BYOMA has a responsibility to educate younger skincare users to stop overtreating, over exfoliating, and overbuying skincare. The brand will be boosting educational content across social platforms, partnering with derms, cosmetic chemists, and skincare enthusiasts to break down misconceptions in an effort to build and boost skin barriers. They will be encouraging consumers to take the BYOMA Smart Skin Scan, to better understand their skin needs and how to best care for it with the BYOMA 5-step routine. "Gone are the days of complicated skincare. We're boosting barriers for better skin with simplified routines, decoded incis, and transparency consumers can trust. Our goal is to scan one million faces as we continue to champion skin barrier health," said Elrick. These initiatives are intended to supercharge BYOMA's skin barrier building mission. By putting education at the forefront and making it more accessible, affordable, and approachable than ever BYOMA hopes to become the impartial, trusted authority on skincare. "We want everyone to have their best skin day, every day," said Elrick. 1 https://beautymatter.com/articles/beauty-continues-to-grow-so-does-consumer-confusion Media Contact: Chasen Creative Media [email protected] SOURCE BYOMA Nearly Half of Seizures in Pill Form Last Year NEW YORK, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The number of illicit fentanyl seizures by law enforcement in the United States grew by more than 1,700 percent between 2017 and 2023, according to a new analysis. Further, the share of total fentanyl seizures that involved pills quadrupled over the same periodwith the 115.6 million pills seized in 2023 representing 49 percent of total seizures. This is the first time that such up-to-date seizure data has been published differentiating between fentanyl powder and pills, says the research team led by experts at NYU Grossman School of Medicine and the University of Florida. Law enforcement drug seizures are used as a proxy for drug availability or supply, but do not necessarily indicate the prevalence of illicit drug use. Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid up to 50 times more potent than heroin and involved in approximately two-thirds of all U.S. overdoses. More than 100,000 people continue to die from drug overdoses each year. The findings, published online May 13 in the International Journal of Drug Policy also indicated that fentanyl seizures varied by U.S. region. Fentanyl seizures were initially less common in the West; however, by 2023, the West had the greatest number of all seizures by weight, and 85 percent of all confiscated fentanyl pills. The greatest number of fentanyl seizures in powder formwhich can easily be used to adulterate other drugs and make them deadlierwas highest in the South. While the Midwest had fewer fentanyl seizures overall, researchers saw a particularly noteworthy spike in fentanyl pill seizures there. "About half of seized fentanyl is now in pill form, suggesting that the illicit drug landscape has rapidly changed," said study lead author Joseph J. Palamar, PhD, MPH, an associate professor in the Department of Population Health at NYU Langone Health and deputy director of the National Drug Early Warning System (NDEWS). "Fentanyl in pill form not only makes it easier for people to initiate use, but also increases the chances that people who buy illicit pills could be unintentionally exposed to fentanyl since it is commonly present in counterfeit pills pressed to resemble oxycodone, Xanax, or even Adderall." How the Study was Conducted Palamar and colleagues analyzed annual trends in seizures of pills and powders containing fentanyl using data from the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program for the U.S. overall, as well as by region, from 2017 through 2023. Unlike most survey data and surveillance systems which can lag by a year or more, HIDTA data are made available quarterly, which allows for analysis in almost real time. The team of investigators measured eight indicators of potential shifts in illicit fentanyl supply or availability including the number of total seizures, powder seizures, pill seizures, and the total weight of seizures. They also looked at the percentage of pill seizures in comparison to total seizures. In the U.S. overall between 2017 and 2023, there were 66,303 seizures, with 67.3 percent of fentanyl seizures being in powder form and 32.7 percent in pill form. The total number of seizures during that time period increased by more than 1,700 percent. In 2023, states with the greatest number of seizures included Florida, Arizona, and California respectively. The highest number of pill seizures were in Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. The Northeast had the fewest pills seized in 2023. The West always had the largest proportion of fentanyl pills relative to all seizures, most likely to proximity to the Mexican border, said Palamar, but his team's findings show all regions are slowly catching up and that pills are dominating much of the fentanyl market. States with the highest percentage of seizures in pill form include New Mexico (98.4 percent), Colorado (94.8 percent) and Wyoming (93.8 percent) One study limitation identified by Palamar was that due to the nature of HIDTA data collection, the investigators were unable to differentiate whether seizures were solely fentanyl, fentanyl combined with other drugs, or fentanyl analogs (such as carfentanil, one of the most potent opioids in existence). Even so, Palamar maintains that detection of any fentanyl in a drug seizure can be an important indicator for risk of overdose. In addition to Palamar, co-investigators include Linda B. Cottler, PhD, MPH, and Nicole Fitzgerald at the University of Florida in Gainesville; Thomas H. Carr, at the University of Baltimore in Maryland; senior author Daniel Ciccarone, MD, MPH, at the University of California, San Francisco. Research reported in this publication was supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health under grant numbers U01DA051126, T32DA035167, and R01DA057289. The content of this research is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health. Media Inquiries: Sasha Walek [email protected] 917-838-9607 SOURCE NYU Langone Health System New grant to Urban Institute's Health Policy Center marks first funding commitment under organization's renewed mission to support smoking cessation and public health worldwide WASHINGTON, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Global Action to End Smoking, formerly known as the Foundation for a Smoke-Free World, today announced that it will fund research by the Urban Institute to study tobacco-use disorder and nicotine dependence among low-income individuals in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. The work conducted by Urban's Health Policy Center will further understanding of the challenges of quitting among the country's marginalized and most vulnerable populations. Additionally, it will fill a critical equity research gap relating to the effective delivery of tobacco cessation and treatment and provide tangible solutions designed to reduce smoking rates and improve public health. "We're thrilled to work with the experts at the Urban Institute, who will carry out the important work of quantifying the magnitude of the problem of the smoking epidemic among low-income individuals in the U.S.," said Cliff Douglas, President of Global Action to End Smoking. "Understanding the barriers to cessation is the first step to overcoming them. This work reflects our commitment to end the smoking epidemic worldwide by helping us better understand how best to empower those at the greatest risk of suffering illness and premature death from smoking." With support from a Global Action grant, Urban's health researchers will analyze data from state Medicaid programs on treatments for tobacco-use disorder from 2019 to 2026. This research will allow the experts to estimate the prevalence of smoking and vaping rates among people with low incomes and examine the potential impact of the 2023 and 2024 Medicaid disenrollment on people who smoke. The findings of this work will identify and provide recommendations for the health community, policymakers, and everyday consumers of tobacco products. Urban is a leading nonprofit research organization that provides data and evidence to help advance upward mobility and equity. "Our research will offer key insights into Medicaid prescribing trends for tobacco use disorder and nicotine dependence treatments," said Urban Institute senior research fellow Lisa Clemans-Cope. "This work will inform efforts to enhance health outcomes and minimize disparities for the leading cause of preventable death and disease." The Urban Institute grant falls under Global Action's newly established Cessation Education program. In addition to continuing to fund research under its Health and Science Research focus area, grants within the Cessation Education program will focus on unearthing challenges to quitting and on better educating consumers, health-care providers, and key public-health stakeholders on the ways people who smoke can improve their health by quitting and moving down the continuum of risk. The work funded in this space focuses on marginalized communities and low- and middle-income countries, where 80% of the world's tobacco users live. The Cessation Education initiative is an expansion of Global Action's existing grant program area that raises awareness of the many cessation strategies and tools available to people who smoke. In addition to the new program, the revamped Global Action website (www.globalactiontoendsmoking.org) will provide the public with the latest evidence-based information on smoking cessation and risk minimization as a living resource for consumers and health care providers. "Global Action is energized by our work across the world, from the United Kingdom to Pakistan and the Philippines, because smoking is a truly global epidemic. With the new grant to Urban Institute, we are elevating the work of an institution that will focus on empathy, understanding, and solutions for people who smoke, rather than the judgment and shame they too often face," continued Douglas. Global Action to End Smoking is the relaunch of the Foundation for a Smoke-Free World. The charitable organization's rebrand reflects a new approach to achieving its mission to end the smoking epidemic. While Global Action's grantmaking will continue to focus on advancing health and science research for robust smoking cessation and reduced-risk solutions, it will also disseminate research findings and information to support people who smoke through its new Cessation Education program. Additionally, Global Action's Agricultural Transformation Initiative will continue to assist smallholder farmers in moving away from dependence on tobacco growing to achieving more healthful and sustainable livelihoods in Malawi. You can learn more about the relaunch by watching the following video: https://youtu.be/SLYFDpP0aIA. Through September 2023, the organization received charitable gifts from PMI Global Services, Inc ("PMI") while operating as an entirely independent entity. In October 2023, the organization ended its prior funding agreement with PMI. Global Action has since adopted a formal policy that it will not seek or accept funding from any industry that manufactures tobacco products or non-medicinal nicotine products. For more information, please visit http://globalactiontoendsmoking.org/. About Global Action to End Smoking Global Action to End Smoking is an independent, U.S. nonprofit 501(c)(3) grantmaking organization accelerating science-based efforts worldwide to end the smoking epidemic. Its mission is to end combustible tobacco use, which remains the leading preventable cause of death worldwide. The organization collaborates with academic and research centers and others to accelerate life-saving research and educational projects. Global Action does not seek or accept funding from companies that produce tobacco products or non-medicinal nicotine products. For media inquiries, please contact Katherine Foley: 202-215-9971; [email protected] SOURCE Global Action to End Smoking BROADVIEW, Ill., May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ --On the heels of being named Proviso Township Committeeman, Illinois House Speaker Emanuel "Chris" Welch is focusing on building the local party with the launch of the Democratic Party of Proviso. Community members and elected officials can join the Democratic Party of Proviso and volunteer for various committees by visiting ProvisoDems.com and completing the membership form. Community members and elected officials can join the Democratic Party of Proviso and volunteer for various committees by visiting ProvisoDems.com and completing the membership form. Proviso Township, located in Cook County, Illinois, is a significant political entity within the Chicago metropolitan area. Its unique political landscape, demographic diversity, and historical context make it a microcosm of broader Illinois politics. Speaker Welch says he looks forward to widening the big tent to include a strong voice for his hometown. "I speak with residents in the 7th District and throughout the state about our Democratic values and uplifting the needs of our communities," said Welch. "Proviso Township encompasses 14 communities that all have different needs. Through the Democratic Party of Proviso, we hope to tangibly show local families what the party is doing on their behalf and how our party, both locally and nationally, is helping their family daily." Democratic Proviso Mayors will serve on the Executive Board of the Party. Proviso Township encompasses several Chicago suburbs, including Maywood, Bellwood, Westchester, and Melrose Park. With a population of over 150,000 residents, the township is one of the most densely populated in the state. Local Mayors and elected officials are expected to play a key role in strengthening the Democratic Party of Proviso and will be instrumental in communicating with local families throughout the upcoming presidential campaign. Proviso Township's sense of community and tight-knit neighborhoods is a testament to its engaged residents, rich history, and strategic location within Cook County. Its influence extends beyond its borders, impacting county and state politics in significant ways. As the township navigates future challenges, The Democratic Party of Proviso will give local residents an opportunity to play a crucial role in shaping the direction of Illinois politics. The first meeting will take place on Saturday, June 1st at the IBEW Union Hall located at 2525 Lexington Broadview, Illinois. Donations to the Democratic Party of Proviso can be mailed to 10055 W. Roosevelt Rd. Ste D. Westchester, Il 60154. SOURCE Democratic Party of Proviso Blo Blow Dry Bar and LashKind Debut in Frisco, Bringing New Beauty Spots to the Community FRISCO, Texas, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Blo Blow Dry Bar, North America's original blow dry bar and blow dry bar franchise, and LashKind, an innovative brow and lash franchise concept, will soon open new locations in Frisco. The new businesses are located next to one another at 4800 Eldorado Pkwy., with Blo Blow Dry Bar opening on May 17 and LashKind opening on May 31. Frisco residents will now have a collective place to visit to get their hair, makeup, lashes, and eyebrows done. The new beauty bars are owned and operated by local entrepreneur, Judy Adams. Having a previous lash bar location in Frisco, Adams decided to rebrand to LashKind and add a Blo Blow Dry Bar, giving Frisco residents places where they can look and feel their best. A Dallas native, Adams wanted to bring businesses to Frisco that would not only thrive but also have an impact on the community by assisting and supporting local residents. Active in the local community, Adams is motivated by her commitment to making Frisco a better place for all residents. This dedication is evident in her decision to introduce these franchise concepts to her home community. "I love the people of Frisco, and am really excited to bring Blo Blow Dry Bar and LashKind to the neighborhood," says Adams. "Blo Blow Dry Bar and LashKind are places for women to feel confident and beautiful. I am so grateful that I get to bring new beauty shops to Frisco that prioritize support and female empowerment." To celebrate the Blo Blow Dry Bar opening, guests will be able to purchase a single discounted blowout for $40, this offer runs from May 17 to June 16. The new LashKind location will feature discounted rates on a variety of services: a lash lift for $60, full set of classic natural lashes for $80, and brow lamination for $70. Blo Blow Dry Bar will offer guests five signature styles on its hair menu, a la carte options, a variety of hair treatments, and five signature makeup looks. LashKind's full list of services include: lash extensions, lash lifts; lash tints; brow and full-face waxing; brow and full-face threading; brow lamination; and brow tints. LashKind is a collective of beauty lovers who also know that beauty means business. Its mission is to make guests look and feel beautiful by providing fun and fabulous bar environments, expertly delivered services and high-quality products, while helping ensure their natural lashes and brows remain healthy. Blo Blow Dry Bar is on a mission to create a space where people of all ages, ethnicities, and orientations are welcomed, represented, and made to feel gorgeous while emphasizing the need for self-care and wellness. Combining a sophisticated design with a fun and energetic environment, Blo cultivates a seamless and enjoyable experience for guests upon their arrival, during, and after their services. Expertly trained blo-ers are available for consultation seven days a week to meet the needs of all guests. The brand's hair menu includes five signature styles from sleek and straight to bouncy curls, plus a wide assortment of customized looks including updo's and braids. Blo Blow Dry Bar also offers makeup services from expert artists on hand to help guests look and feel amazing for any occasion. Blo Blow Dry Bar is open Monday Sunday from 9 a.m. 7 p.m. For more information on Blo Blow Dry Bar in Frisco, please visit https://blomedry.com/blo-frisco/ or call (469) 287-2889. LashKind is open Monday Saturday from 10 a.m. 7 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. 6 p.m. For more information on LashKind in Frisco, please visit https://wearelashkind.com/lashkind-frisco/ or call (469) 268- 3545. About Blo Blow Dry Bar Blo Blow Dry Bar is North America's original blow dry bar and the world's largest blow dry bar franchise. The company transformed beauty norms and reinvented the salon industry when it launched the "no cuts, no color" concept: only blow outs. Since opening its first location in Canada in 2007, Blo has grown to over 150 locations across the U.S. and Canada and continues to expand rapidly. The brand has also evolved over time, adding makeup services, a membership program, and quality retail products to its bars. With a mission to enhance the lives of those in the community through the power of flawless blow outs and beauty services, Blo Blow Dry Bar offers perfectly styled hair and exceptional customer experiences seven days a week. For more information visit www.blomedry.com. About LashKind LashKind is an innovative brow and lash franchise concept, grounded in the success of Canadian-based MYNC Beauty Inc. (founded in 2011) and brought to you by the team behind the category disruptor, Blo Blow Dry Bar. With a proven business model in a booming industry, LashKind is designed to stand out and set franchisees up for success. As a collective of beauty lovers, LashKind's mission is to make guests look and feel beautiful by providing fun and fabulous bar environments, expertly-delivered services and high-quality products, while helping ensure guests' natural lashes and brows remain healthy. To learn more, visit lashkindfranchise.com. Media Contact: Emily Otter, Fishman Public Relations, (440) 623-6532, or [email protected] SOURCE Blo Blow Dry Bar and LashKind 2024 Study explores the prevalent compensation trends pertaining to insurance agents and brokers WOODMERE, Ohio, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- MarshBerry, a global M&A advisory firm, serving the insurance brokerage and wealth management industries, has released its 2024 Insurance Agency & Brokerage Compensation Review. MarshBerry has collected compensation data for this proprietary report for more than a decade, which provides in-depth insights into the compensation landscape along with unparalleled understanding and knowledge of remuneration structures. According to John Wepler, MarshBerry Chairman & CEO, "Producer compensation and productivity are some of the most significant levers within an organization's growth strategy. This study provides leading indicator data to help firms hone their compensation plans to accelerate growth. MarshBerry has gathered data in this area for more than ten years, which ensures the trends and perspectives reflect the expertise and opportunities to help brokerages differentiate themselves and stay relevant in this dynamic industry." The 2024 report contains data from 302 U.S. insurance agencies and brokers that participated in the Study with the average (mean) revenue size of firms in the dataset being $28 million. This one-of-a-kind industry report offers a comprehensive look at current compensation data for 31 roles commonly found across insurance agents and brokers. The report highlights the salary plus bonus compensation by role on a national basis, as well as the median salary bonus by region for the following: Executive & Management Production Service Support Employee Benefits The report is available for purchase for $1,500. New for 2024 is an Excel spreadsheet that summarizes the information from the PDF report into easy-to-read tables. The Excel file, along with the report, can be purchased for $2,500. No specific company information is published or identified in the report or the Excel data. If you have questions about how MarshBerry helps firms create their path forward, in the U.S. or across Europe, please contact us today. MarshBerry Helping Clients Learn, Improve & Realize Value Founded in 1981, MarshBerry is a global leader in financial advisory and consulting services serving the insurance brokerage and wealth management industries to help clients grow and advance their business strategies. With locations across North America and Europe, MarshBerry market sector expertise includes property and casualty agents & brokers, employee benefit firms and specialty distributors, partners in insurtech, capital markets, and insurance carriers, as well as registered investment advisors, retirement planning and life insurance firms. Clients choose MarshBerry as their trusted advisor for every stage of ownership to help them build, enhance and sustain value through Financial Advisory solutions (Investment Banking; Merger & Acquisition Advisory, Debt & Capital Raising, Business Consulting), Growth Advisory solutions (Organic Growth, Aggregation, Leadership, Sales & Talent Solutions) and Market Intelligence and Performance Benchmarking. Learn more at www.MarshBerry.com. Contact: Lauren Byers, Senior Vice President Marketing Phone: + 1 440.392.6546 Email: [email protected] SOURCE MarshBerry Chinese books, cultural products welcomed at int'l book fair in Morocco Xinhua) 13:27, May 13, 2024 RABAT, May 12 (Xinhua) -- At the ongoing 29th Rabat International Book and Publishing Fair, Chinese books and cultural products on display have charmed many local visitors. The Chinese delegation brought around 600 books, covering such areas as politics, children's literature, and Chinese language learning, in addition to a wide range of cultural and creative products. A visitor, who named herself Yacout, said the book fair provides a chance to learn more about Chinese culture, expressing hope of pursuing education in China in the future. During the book fair, the Chinese publishers will discuss cooperation with their African and Arab partners, promote the 30th Beijing International Book Fair, and push forward the Chinese-Moroccan classics translation project, Gong Xun, the general manager of People &Tangel Publishing House (Beijing), told Xinhua. Addressing the opening of the fair on Thursday, Moroccan Minister of Youth, Culture and Communication Mohamed Mehdi Bensaid welcomed the Chinese delegation, expressing his hope that exchanges between Morocco and China in the publishing and cultural industries would be further enhanced. The fair held here in Morocco's capital will continue until May 19 and is expected to host more than 700 publishing houses and institutions from around 50 countries and regions. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing) SALT LAKE CITY, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Packsize, the leader in sustainable, right-sized, on-demand packaging, today announced that Kellen Frey has been appointed Chief Operating Officer. Kellen Frey joined Packsize in 2016 as Vice President of Operations. He was named Senior Vice President of Operations in 2019, responsible for service, supply chain, customer service, program management, technical support, solutions engineering, product management, quality, and safety. He initiated the growth of the U.S. research and development team and has led the company through multiple infrastructure moves in Louisville, KY, and Salt Lake City, UT. From 2022 through early 2024, Frey served as Vice President of Sales, focused on building out developing key markets in both the U.S. and Mexico. "I am humbled at the opportunity to be part of a company committed to positively impacting our planet's sustainability through right-sized packaging automation," said Frey. "It is important to me to be part of something that will have a lasting effect on future generations, and to do it alongside a team with a shared dedication is truly extraordinary." Before Packsize, Frey spent more than ten years in the medical device industry working for Zimmer Orthopedics in multiple capacities, including sales, sourcing, operations, logistics, distribution, and service. In 2015, he helped support Zimmer's acquisition of its competitor, Biomet, which resulted in one of the largest global orthopedic businesses today. "I'm thrilled to welcome Kellen Frey as our new Chief Operating Officer. His understanding of our business and mission, as well as his dedication to operational excellence, make him an ideal choice for this role," said Packsize CEO David Lockwood. "Kellen has extensive leadership experience and is well-respected throughout the organizationI'm excited to see the positive impact he'll make as we continue to deliver cost-effective, sustainable packaging technology to our customers." About Packsize Packsize transforms how businesses and their customers experience packaging - from packing to unboxing. Since introducing Right-sized Packaging on Demand in 2002, Packsize has become a recognized supply chain and sustainable packaging industry leader in North America, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific. As a partner and trusted advisor, Packsize unlocks the hidden potential in its customers' supply chains and creates custom packaging process flows that consider every step from the warehouse floor to the consumer's hands. Packsize is reimagining packaging and accelerating the path to a more sustainable future. Follow Packsize on LinkedIn. SOURCE Packsize AUSTIN, Texas, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Pennybacker Capital Management, LLC (Pennybacker), an Austin, Texas-based real assets investment management firm, is pleased to announce that Goldman Sachs Asset Management's Petershill program has made a strategic investment in the firm. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Pennybacker will leverage this passive, minority investment to accelerate the evolution of its platform as a leading middle-market real assets investment manager. Timothy Berry Founder, Chief Executive Officer, and Co-Chief Investment Officer of Pennybacker said, "This transaction marks the next phase in Pennybacker's growth. With additional capital and a value-add partner, we look forward to extending our strong track record, while continuing to develop the culture and team that have contributed to our success." Robert Hamilton Kelly co-head of Goldman Sachs Asset Management's Petershill program said, "Our aim is to partner with best-in-class firms and Pennybacker has developed the investment and organizational capability to be properly recognized as such. We're looking forward to this partnership and helping Pennybacker realize continued success." Berkshire Global Advisors LP served as financial advisor and Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as legal advisor to Pennybacker. Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP served as legal counsel to Petershill. About Pennybacker: Pennybacker is a real assets investment management firm based in Austin, Texas, with approximately $4 billion of assets under management. The firm pursues real estate and infrastructure strategies through both closed-end and open-ended vehicles across the capital structure. About Goldman Sachs Asset Management's (GSAM) Petershill Program: Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) is one of the leading investors in alternatives globally, with over $450 billion in assets and more than 30 years of experience. The business invests in the full spectrum of alternatives including private equity, growth equity, private credit, real estate, infrastructure, hedge funds and sustainability. The alternative investments platform is part of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, which delivers investment and advisory services across public and private markets for the world's leading institutions, financial advisors and individuals. Goldman Sachs has over $2.8 trillion in assets under supervision globally as of December 31, 2023. Established in 2007, Petershill partners with leading alternative asset managers and helps to accelerate their strategic development. Petershill's minority investments seek to support the creation of long-term value by providing strategic capital to enhance employee retention, facilitate business development, buy out legacy equity holders and generate strategic options while preserving the autonomy and entrepreneurial spirit of these organizations. This material shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation to buy securities. The opinions expressed herein represent the current, good faith views of Pennybacker Capital Management, LLC ("Pennybacker") at the time of publication and are provided for limited purposes, are not definitive investment advice, and should not be relied on as such. Predictions, opinions and other information contained in this article are subject to change continually and without notice of any kind and may no longer be true after the date indicated. Any forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and Pennybacker assumes no duty to and does not undertake to update forward-looking statements. Certain information contained herein constitutes "forward-looking statements" which can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "may," "will," "should," "expect," "anticipate," "target," "intend," "continue," or "believe," or the negatives thereof or other variations thereon or comparable terminology. All forward-looking statements contained in this document speak only as at the date of this document. Pennybacker is not soliciting any action based on this material. Before acting on this material, you should consider whether it is suitable for your particular circumstances and, if necessary, seek professional advice. An investment is speculative due to a variety of risks and considerations as detailed in a confidential offering document, limited liability company agreement, partnership agreement or other similar materials and this document is qualified in its entirety by the more complete information contained therein and in the related subscription materials. The information provided herein is confidential and should not be disclosed further. CONTACT: [email protected] SOURCE Pennybacker Capital Management, LLC NEW YORK, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- American Values 2024 (AV24), along with Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., has filed the attached election interference case against Meta Platforms, Inc., Facebook Operations, LLC, Instagram, LLC, Mark Zuckerberg, and John Does 1- 10. The lawsuit accuses Meta et. al. of violating Plaintiffs First Amendment rights, "civil rights law dating back to the Civil War," and "the American people's fundamental right to a presidential election decided by voters, not by trillion-dollar corporations." Meta brazenly censored "speech by and supportive of Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr." Post this #whoisbobbykennedy #whoisbobbykennedy According to the complaint, Meta brazenly censored "speech by and supportive of Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., and lying to the public about it." American Values 2024 released the thirty-minute film, "Who is Bobby Kennedy?" on May 3rd. "Shortly after its release, Who Is Bobby Kennedy began trending on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter," reads one of the lawsuit's first bullet points. "Meta, however, censored it, blocking users on its platforms from watching, sharing, or even posting a link to Who Is Bobby Kennedy." The complaint further claims that both Facebook and Instagram "sent users messages threatening to suspend their accounts or otherwise punish them if they sought to watch, share or even post a link to the film." The short film's original posting has now been viewed more than 100 million times on X, formerly Twitter, but its reach on Instagram and Facebook has been minimal. The complaint describes Meta censorship as "election interference," stating, "Defendants seem to believe that they can with legal impunity issue threats to their users and deploy their vast power of censorship, account-suspension, and deplatforming in order to favor or target the presidential candidate of their choice." It further states, "Under the Support and Advocacy Clause of the Civil Rights Act of 1871, private companies and their officers and employees cannot in concert seek to prevent by force, threat or intimidation any citizen from engaging in lawful speech supporting or advocating the election of a presidential candidate." The complaint argues that Meta's current censorship must be seen in the context of recent Supreme Court censorship case Murthy v. Missouri. That case reveals "a campaign of unrelenting pressure from the most powerful office in the world" to "bend [social media platforms] to the government's will." The district court called this collusion and partnership between the White House government entities and officials and social media platforms "arguably the most massive attack against free speech in United States history." The complaint further quotes the district court as finding that it was "certainly likely that defendants could use their power over millions of people to suppress alternative views or moderate content they do not agree with in the upcoming 2024 national election." Tony Lyons, Co-Founder of AV24, stated the following: "Polls show that 20% of Americans still don't know that Kennedy is running for president. And as many as 30% more have been misled with respect to his character, his integrity, and the policies that he advocates. Reaching those voters could change the outcome of the 2024 election. How are people supposed to find out that they have a viable alternative candidate that they don't have to vote for the lesser of two evils when Meta is colluding with the Biden administration to block key channels for communicating with the American public?" Conceived, filmed and produced by Apple TV +'s The Morning Show creator Jay Carson and director Mike Piscitelli, the film tells Kennedy's story in an eloquent, candid, motivating, and entertaining way. It details how the prevailing narrative about him "crazy," "dangerous," "unhinged" bears little resemblance to the reality of who he is and the work he's done as a successful environmental attorney and corruption fighter. The film is narrated by award-winning actor, Woody Harrelson. Lawsuit Exhibit A Civil Cover Sheet About AMERICAN VALUES 2024 (AV24) American Values 2024 (AV24) is a super PAC committed to educating and mobilizing voters to elect candidates who will restore and protect the soul of democracy in the United States. Our long-term vision is to build a movement starting at the local level to create a national groundswell to address the critical issues our country faces. Today, AV24 supports Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s presidential campaign. AV24 is co-founded by Mark Gorton (Chairman of Tower Research Capital) and Tony Lyons (President of Skyhorse Publishing). Media Contact Lindsay Stevens [email protected] 213-200-9638 SOURCE American Values 2024 PLANO, Texas, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- AnX Robotica, the leader in advanced gastrointestinal visualization technologies, is happy to announce a recent publication validating the clinical benefits of using ProScan, the first FDA cleared AI Assisted Reading Tool for Small Bowel Video Capsule Endoscopy. This significant milestone, which further validates the AI technology, firmly establishes NaviCam SB with ProScan as the most advanced technology in small bowel video capsule endoscopy. The study, AI-assisted capsule endoscopy reading in suspected small bowel bleeding: a multicentre prospective study, published in Lancet Digital Health, was conducted across 14 European centers validating ProScan's effectiveness in different clinical settings and supporting its generalizability and scalability. Overall, the findings demonstrated an increased diagnostic yield and significantly higher lesion detection rate. These findings suggest that integrating ProScan into clinical practice can enhance the diagnostic process for small bowel bleeding through more accurate and quicker readings, ultimately benefiting patient management and healthcare efficiency. "ProScan is a groundbreaking AI-assisted reading tool that marks a significant leap forward in gastrointestinal diagnostics, stated Dr. Cristiano Spada, Professor of Gastroenterology at Gemelli Hospital in Rome, Italy. ProScan not only enhances the accuracy of small bowel bleeding detection but also dramatically reduces reading times, offering clinicians a powerful tool to improve patient outcomes efficiently." "This innovation underscores our continued commitment to advancing medical technology and supporting healthcare professionals in providing the best care possible, commented Stu Wildhorn, Vice President of Marketing and Product Management at AnX Robotica." About AnX Robotica Founded in 2019, AnX Robotica stands as a pioneering force in the realm of advanced medical technology. Fueled by a commitment to merging cutting-edge research and development, the company is steadfast in its mission to furnish the medical community with user-friendly devices tailored for both diagnostic and therapeutic purposes, including NaviCam SB with ProScan, the NaviCam Xpress Magnetically controlled Capsule endoscopy system and IntraMarX 3D, radiopaque markers for colonic transit testing. NaviCam is a registered trademark of AnX Robotica Corporation. SOURCE AnX Robotica TORONTO, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - Rock Tech Lithium Inc. (TSXV: RCK) (OTCQX: RCKTF) (FWB: RJIB) (WKN: A1XF0V) ("Rock Tech" or the "Company") announces that it has adopted an "Advance Notice By-law" to establish the conditions and framework under which registered or beneficial owners of common shares of the Company ("Shareholders") may exercise their right to submit director nominations by fixing a deadline by which such nominations must be submitted by a Shareholder to the Company prior to any annual or special meeting of shareholders, and sets forth the information that a shareholder must include in the notice to the Company for the notice to be in proper written form in accordance with the Canada Business Corporations Act (the "Act"). The Advance Notice By-law provides a clear process for Shareholders to follow for director nominations, and will help ensure that all Shareholders receive adequate notice and information about director nominees in order to exercise their voting rights in an informed manner. Among other things, the Advance Notice By-Law fixes deadlines by which shareholders must notify the Company of director nominations prior to any annual or special meeting of shareholders where directors are to be elected. It also sets forth the information about the proposed nominee that a shareholder must include in the notice for it to be valid. In the case of an annual shareholder meeting, notice to the Company must be given not less than 30 days prior to the date of the annual meeting. In the event that the annual meeting is to be held on a date that is less than 50 days after the first public announcement of the meeting's date, notice may be given not later than the close of business on the 10th day following such announcement. In the case of a special meeting of shareholders (which is not also an annual meeting), notice to the Company must be given not later than the close of business on the 15th day following the first public announcement of the date of the special meeting. The Advance Notice By-Law also prescribes the proper written form for a Shareholder's notice and provides that the Company's Board of Directors may, in its sole discretion, waive any requirement under these provisions. The Advance Notice By-Law is effective immediately and will be placed before shareholders for approval, confirmation and ratification at next Annual and Special Meeting of Shareholders of the Company on June 27, 2024 (the "Meeting"). Pursuant to the provisions of the Act, the Advance Notice By-Law will cease to be effective unless it is approved, ratified and confirmed by a resolution adopted by a majority of the votes cast by the shareholders of the Company at the Meeting. ABOUT ROCK TECH Rock Tech is a cleantech company with operations in Canada and Germany on a mission to produce lithium hydroxide for electric vehicle batteries. The Company plans to build lithium converters at the doorstep of its customers, to guarantee supply-chain transparency and just-in-time delivery, beginning with the Company's proposed lithium hydroxide merchant converter and refinery facility in Guben, Germany. The second Lithium converter is planned to be built in Red Rock, Ontario, Canada. Rock Tech plans to source raw material from its wholly-owned Georgia Lake spodumene project located in the Thunder Bay Mining District of Ontario, Canada, as well as procuring it from other responsibly producing mines. In the years to come, the Company expects to also source raw material from discarded batteries. To close the most pressing gap in the clean mobility story, Rock Tech has gathered one of the strongest teams in the industry. The Company has adopted strict environmental, social and governance standards and is developing a proprietary refining process aimed at further increasing efficiency and sustainability. Rock Tech's goal: to create a closed-loop lithium production system. Neither the 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. CAUTIONARY NOTE CONCERNING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION Certain statements contained in this news release constitute "forward-looking information" under applicable securities laws and are referred to herein as "forward-looking statements". All statements, other than statements of historical fact, which address events, results, outcomes or developments that the Company expects to occur are forward-looking statements. When used in this news release, words such as "expects", "anticipates", "plans", "predicts", "believes", "estimates", "intends", "targets", "projects", "forecasts", "may", "will", "should", "would", "could" or negative versions thereof and other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements by their nature are based on assumptions and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements, including the risks, uncertainties and other factors discussed in the Company's most recent management's discussion and analysis and annual information form filed with the applicable securities regulators. Such uncertainties and factors include, among others, failure of Shareholders to ratify the Advance Notice By-Law. No assurances can be given that any of the events anticipated by the forward-looking statements will transpire or occur, and the Company cautions the reader not to place undue reliance upon any such forward-looking statements. The Company does not intend, nor does it assume any obligation to update or revise any of the forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, changes in assumptions, future events or otherwise, except to the extent required by applicable law. SOURCE Rock Tech Lithium Inc. This year's theme: Where lies the Originality in Chinese Literature? BEIJING, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- On April 15, 2024, the seventh Blancpain Imaginist Literary Prize was officially launched. From now until May 15, the organizing committee will accept submissions from publishers, publishing companies or authors themselves. The final winners will be announced at the award ceremony in October. The young writer who wins the first prize will receive a bonus of 300,000 yuan. The finalists will receive the Young Friend of Blancpain award, a certificate for the finalist's work, and a bonus of 20,000 yuan to support their creative efforts and to encourage young writers to continue their work. The Literary Prize is an "impartial, authoritative and professional" award in the field of Chinese literature that aims to discover and encourage outstanding young writers under the age of 45. The co-sponsors, Blancpain and the Imaginist, continue on their quest to convey a simple but meaningful message to the public: "Reading makes time more valuable." As every year, the 2024 Blancpain-Imaginist Literary Prize has brought together a new team to serve as the members of jury. By doing so, the prize maintains the diversity and high caliber of the judging team by assembling many important and iconic figures in the field of Chinese literature and culture. This year's jury lineup brings together Joan Chen, Lo Yi-chin, Shuang Xuetao, Xu Zidong and Zhang Dinghao (in alphabetical order). Theme of the 2024 Blancpain - Imaginist Literary Prize: Where lies the Originality in Chinese Literature? Every year, the Literary Prize shines a spotlight on a theme that captures the essence of creativity or the zeitgeist, inviting writers and like-minded individuals to delve into its intricacies for a collective exploration and discussion. As the clock ticks into 2024, the saying "When in doubt, learn from artificial intelligence (AI)" has evolved from a fleeting joke into a bona fide, albeit intermittent, aspect of our daily routine. The streets are adorned with billboards, subtly enhanced by a growing array of virtual voices. The sixty-second AI-generated videos flow gracefully, revealing diverse perspectives with unparalleled precision. AI's involvement in the creation of novels, even winning literary accolades, has sparked widespread discussion. The subject of AI has emerged as an inescapable and profoundly interwoven thread in our conversations. Yet, herein, we do not aspire to propagate the "threats of AI," nor do we endeavor to delve into the myriad applications of AI tools. Rather, the rapid evolution of AI, akin to a polished mirror, offers us an unparalleled opportunity to introspect upon our own existence: If the intricate tapestry of human thought and judgement, woven from the threads of history and personal experience, finds itself overshadowed by the vast reach of big data, then what truly qualifies as "original" work? And amidst this digital deluge, does a spark of human "creation" remain, unquenchable and irreplaceable? How much of our understanding of the world and our place within it is derived from acquired knowledge, and how much springs forth from the wellspring of "our" creativity? If each human soul is merely a contingent creation, are we perhaps destined to forever wander in the shadows of "originality," never truly embracing it as our own? -- Literature, ever attuned to the pulse of "man" and "the world," cannot divorce itself from the depths of "the self"; indeed, these themes are ever-present in its eternal quest for meaning and understanding. In the realm of literary creation, one might inquire: What defines the "originality" of what we call "original literature"? Does it arise from a sense of autonomy, a break with precedent, or a singular bond? Is it the spark of perpetual self-renewal or the embodiment of vitality? Must it be inherently "new," grounded in a fresh phenomenon, identity, or subject matter, expressed through a novel style, language, or rhetoric? How does this originality intersect with the venerable literary traditions and paradigms? How does it dance with the pulse of contemporary society? As "creativity" transforms into a commodity, are the prevalent forms and topics reflections of our societal concerns, or mere replicas generated by the relentless churn of big data? In the tapestry of a literary work, which thread is most vital: authenticity, uniqueness, or completeness? Are they all necessary, or is one paramount? Is 'originality' in our current evaluation system overvalued? Or is it being lightly attributed? As human subjectivity is increasingly called into question, the moment has perhaps arrived to reflect on the imperative of originality through the stronghold of literature: in what manner can we aspire to be "authentic individuals," strive towards a "novel world," and thereby, reclaim a "genuine literary terrain"? Jury of the 2024 Blancpain - Imaginist Literary Prize Joan Chen, actress, film director, screenwriter, and writer. She starred in films like Little Flower, The Last Emperor, and Red Rose White Rose, and directed films such as Autumn in New York, Her, and English. She is also the author of Catfish (forthcoming). Lo Yi-chin, writer. His representative works include Surname of the Moon, And Now She Remains in You, My Future 2nd Son's Memory about Me, The Western Xia Hotel, and Daughter, among others. Shuang Xuetao, novelist. He has published a collection of short stories, including Moses on the Plain, The Aviator, and The Hunter; full-fledged novels like Silent Age, Tianwu Shouji, and Winged Ghost; and a collection of miscellaneous essays, The Black Sheep Among White Sheep. Xu Zidong, Professor Emeritus of the School of Chinese at the University of Hong Kong and Chair Professor of East China Normal University - Zijiang Program. He is the author of New Theory on Yu Dafu, Reading Eileen Chang, Rereading Lu Xun, Xu Zidong on Modern Chinese Literature, and Rereading the Chinese Novel of the 20th Century. He has been a resident guest on talk shows such as "Behind the Headlines With Wen Tao" and "Yuanzhuo Pai". Zhang Dinghao, literary critic and poet. He has published numerous collections of poetry and essays, such as Ji Jian Jun Zi and Mengzi Dufa, among many others. About the Blancpain-Imaginist Literary Prize The Blancpain-Imaginist Literary Prize, co-founded by the prestigious Swiss watchmaker Blancpain and China's foremost publishing brand Imaginist, is the first accolade to be jointly established by a commercial brand and a publishing house, with the goal of identifying and supporting talented young writers under 45. Since its inception, the Literary Prize has upheld the principles of impartiality, authority, and professionalism, steadfastly maintaining these standards as its cornerstone. Engagement of the members of the latest generation just entering adulthood is always a key indicator that determines the future of the world of literature. In the field of literary creation, talented young authors are always seeking an opportunity, while publishing platforms are looking for potential authors, and, at the same time, aim to attract more attention and garner more engagement. Many contemporary classical authors were discovered and recognized in their youth, as literary awards specifically designated for up and coming authors were available to them. For example, Naipaul, Coetzee and Kazuo Ishiguro all won the Man Booker Prize in their youth, and went on to earn the Nobel Prize in Literature at a later stage in their writing careers. Renowned Japanese authors, among them, Shusaku Endo, Kenzaburo Oe and Ryu Murakami, were each recipients of the Akutagawa Prize in their youth. In today's world, literary creation is a lonely and long road for young authors. The literary prize is designed to create a future that gives authors the space to focus on the creation of their works just as calligraphers are given the space and time to practice their craft. Imaginist, the most influential publisher in China, has been dedicated to discovering the best authors who write in Chinese, offering an opportunity for thoughtful words to be published, while imagining another possibility for books. Works by Mu Xin, Kenneth Pai Hsien-yung, among others, have become even more valuable with the passage of time, nourishing the emotional life for generations of readers. Imaginist has, for a long time, been focused on publishing both the literary classics alongside the works of some of the most dynamic and thoughtful young authors who care about the human condition through the diverse collection of works that they have created with their open-minded insights. There's always great literature out there to be discovered, and the best of it always pushes the boundaries and explores new horizons. That's the core idea behind what Imaginist strives for in literature. Bearing the identity mark of Manufacture de Haute Horlogerie (MDHH), Blancpain is a truly luxury watchmaking brand. For Blancpain, a creator of classic timepieces, watchmaking is as much a result of enduring love as writing. Since its establishment in 1735, Blancpain has ushered in the age of branded watchmaking. Over the past 289 years, navigating the ever-changing tides of time and numerous historical junctures, Blancpain has steadfastly upheld its brand philosophy of solely crafting mechanical watches and maintaining unwavering quality standards, considering MDHH as its eternal passion. This devotion resonates deeply with authors' dedication to literature and their pursuit of creating classic works, with a shared purpose. Moving forward, Blancpain sees literature as an extension of time - this is Blancpain's take on literature. Call for Entries Requirements: Entries must be in Simplified Chinese, published as a standalone volume between 1 May 2023 and 30 April 2024, exclusively in mainland China. All novels or collections written in Chinese are eligible for submission. Collections comprising multiple works by different authors or anthologies will not be considered. Short story collections must be first-time publications and should not include stories that have appeared in other published novels by the same author. The entry age limit is set at 45 years old or younger, calculated as of the author's age at the time of his or her work's initial publication. The publication date refers to the first-print date indicated on the copyright page, and reprinted editions are ineligible for this award. How to Register Entries can be submitted either by publishing entities (publishers or publishing houses) or directly by individual authors. For publisher recommendation: If the submission is made by a publishing entity (publisher or publishing company), the recommending unit must compile a list of the recommended works in an official letter, fill out the "Blancpain-Imaginist Literary Prize Recommendation Form," affix the official seal (download the recommendation form here), and submit it along with five copies of the work's sample to the Jury Office. Each unit is limited to nominating two works, and explicit consent from the author must be obtained prior to submission. For author submission: For self-nominations, authors must fill out the "Blancpain-Imaginist Literary Prize Recommendation Form," sign it and attach a copy of their personal ID, along with five copies of the work's sample to the Jury Office. Each author is limited to submitting one work for consideration. Please note that the submission deadline for this year's Prize is 15 May 2024, based on the delivery date stamped by the courier or postmark. In addition to the paper materials mentioned earlier, kindly submit the electronic version of your work in PDF format, along with the front cover and a three-dimensional book cover (excluding the waistband, JPEG file not exceeding 5MB), and the electronic "Recommendation Form" as a WORD document to the designated email address. Upon receipt, the Jury Office will confirm your submission for evaluation via email. Please note that sample books will not be returned. The Jury Office reserves the right to disqualify any organization or person who is found to be ineligible to participate in the competition. Receiving Address Address: Blancpain Imaginist Literary Prize Jury Office, Building 26, Xinghua Dongli, Hepingli, Dongcheng District, Beijing Postcode: 100013 Tel: 010-84255532 (ext. 8096) Email for Submission: [email protected] Rules Throughout the evaluation process, the organizing committee respects the autonomy of the jury and entrusts them with the sole discretion to determine the shortlist and final award recipients. All jury members are required to read all the entries for the year. Entries nominated by any jury member will be considered for inclusion on the longlist . All judges will thoroughly examine the nominated works multiple times. At the shortlist evaluation meeting, they will collectively score, discuss, and vote, ultimately selecting the top five works for the shortlist . The jury will deliberate during the morning session of the award ceremony to determine the recipient of the year's first prize. Stay tuned On 1 August, the Jury Office will unveil the longlist, compiled from two or three initial candidates proposed by each jury member. On 13 September, the Jury Office will announce the shortlist, determined by the five nominations made by a majority vote of the jury. The final winner (1) will be announced at the Award Ceremony scheduled in October. For further details on the selection criteria and the progress of the prize, you can keep track by visiting the official website of the Prize at http://www.ilixiangguo.com/literary.html. SOURCE Blancpain Info-Tech Research Group's latest industry research provides strategies to harness real-time transportation visibility for enhanced logistics efficiency. The newly published blueprint offers practical guidance for organizations aiming to optimize their supply chain operations, ensuring timely delivery and robust response capabilities in a rapidly changing global market. TORONTO, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - The logistics sector is experiencing significant growth and technological advancement, significantly increasing the importance of real-time transportation visibility systems. These systems enable organizations to enhance supply chain and delivery efficiency, as well as adapt to the evolving expectations of the market. Info-Tech Research Group's latest industry blueprint, Real-Time Transportation Visibility Systems, explores how these technologies can transform logistics operations by providing immediate insights into shipment statuses, thereby improving operational reliability and customer satisfaction. Info-Tech Research Groups Real-Time Transportation Visibility blueprint offers practical guidance for organizations aiming to optimize their supply chain operations, ensuring timely delivery and robust response capabilities in a rapidly changing global market. (CNW Group/Info-Tech Research Group) "Supply chain visibility is the capacity to track various items or products in transit, providing a clear picture of the inventory and activity," says Kevin Tucker, principal research director at Info-Tech Research Group. "Using real-time information that identifies problems, a real-time supply chain visibility system can assist logistics organizations in identifying possible problems before they arise so that they can implement solutions that minimize risks and prevent disruptions." Info-Tech's research emphasizes the critical role that real-time transportation visibility systems play in modern logistics strategies. These systems can streamline operations by providing continuous monitoring and updates on shipments, as well as considerably reducing costs associated with delays and miscommunications. By integrating these technologies, organizations can exceed customer expectations, ensuring prompt and reliable service delivery. This proactive approach is crucial for maintaining a competitive edge in the fast-paced logistics industry. "The more sophisticated visibility systems combine data from all sources, both internal and external, spanning the whole supply chain service region," explains Tucker. "This includes data about people, processes, technology, and environmental factors like weather, road conditions, and other factors that could affect product delivery services. These solutions also make use of machine learning and artificial intelligence to provide precise forecasts and recommended fixes." Building on the capabilities of real-time visibility systems, Info-Tech's blueprint highlights the transformative impact these technologies have on logistics operations. By leveraging comprehensive data analytics and real-time tracking, logistics organizations can optimize routing, reduce delays, and enhance overall supply chain efficiency. This level of sophistication in visibility systems not only mitigates risk but also adapts to dynamic market conditions, ensuring logistics operations are both resilient and responsive to unforeseen challenges. The firm's blueprint outlines the following six criteria that logistics organizations must consider when selecting and implementing a supply chain visibility system: 1. Internal Data Integrations: Ensure the system integrates seamlessly with: WMS Warehouse Management System YMS Yard Management System IMS Inventory Management System TMS Transportation Management System ERP Enterprise Resource Planning System 2. Account for External Conditions: The visibility system will need to incorporate data on external factors affecting logistics, like: Road Conditions Weather Traffic 3. External Data Handling: Manage data interactions with external parties effectively, including: Third-Party and Fourth-Party Logistics Customers, Suppliers, and Partners Contractors, Depots, and Agencies 4. Real-Time Decision-Making: Key processes to enhance with real-time data, such as: Route Planning Driver Communication Expense Management Proof of Delivery Load Status Data Management 5. System Selection: Choose a visibility system that aligns with organizational goals and integrates well with existing tools. Example visibility systems include: Project 44 FourKites BLUME Global Transporeon TMS First MacroPoint 6. Cybersecurity Measures: Implement robust cybersecurity solutions to protect data integrity and privacy. Info-Tech's latest blueprint underscores the strategic advantages of real-time transportation visibility systems, positioning them as critical tools for enhancing supply chain resilience and efficiency. By adopting such systems, organizations can improve logistical operations and adapt more effectively to unexpected market shifts and disruptions. This approach not only elevates operational reliability but also significantly boosts customer satisfaction, ensuring organizations are well-equipped to meet the challenges of a dynamic supply chain environment. For exclusive and timely commentary on this topic from Info-Tech's experts and access to the complete Real-Time Transportation Visibility Systems blueprint, please contact [email protected]. Info-Tech LIVE 2024 Registration is now open for Info-Tech Research Group's annual IT conference, Info-Tech LIVE 2024, taking place September 17 to 19, 2024, at the iconic Bellagio in Las Vegas. This premier event offers journalists, podcasters, and media influencers access to exclusive content, the latest IT research and trends, and the opportunity to interview industry experts, analysts, and speakers. To apply for media passes to attend the event or gain access to research and expert insights on trending topics, please contact [email protected]. About Info-Tech Research Group Info-Tech Research Group is one of the world's leading research and advisory firms, proudly serving over 30,000 IT and HR professionals. The company produces unbiased, highly relevant research and provides advisory services to help leaders make strategic, timely, and well-informed decisions. For nearly 30 years, Info-Tech has partnered closely with teams to provide them with everything they need, from actionable tools to analyst guidance, ensuring they deliver measurable results for their organizations. To learn more about Info-Tech's divisions, visit McLean & Company for HR research and advisory services and SoftwareReviews for software buying insights. Media professionals can register for unrestricted access to research across IT, HR, and software and hundreds of industry analysts through the firm's Media Insiders program. To gain access, contact [email protected]. For information about Info-Tech Research Group or to access the latest research, visit infotech.com and connect via LinkedIn and X. SOURCE Info-Tech Research Group BEIJING, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- During the 2024 Beijing International Automotive Exhibition, HONGQI hosted the "2024 HONGQI Global Media Communication Conference". At this event, HONGQI announced the official establishment of the "Cross Border Ecology Alliance of HONGQI". This alliance aims to unite leading global consumer brands to curate an exclusive quality lifestyle tailored for HONGQI's discerning high-end user base, facilitating the joint launch of exclusive products. Furthermore, HONGQI forged new partnerships with Ekornes | IMG Comfort, the top notch furniture brand, and Nervora & Vogue Arabia, the top notch fashion brand. HONGQI will remain committed to seeking opportunities for cooperation with top notch brands in various industries. HONGQI has entered into an intent letter for cooperation with Ekornes | IMG Comfort, with the objective of effectively leveraging complementary resources, enhancing the core marketing competitiveness of both entities, and jointly developing co-branded products spanning furniture and automotive peripherals. Since being founded by Mr. Jens Ekornes in 1934, Ekornes stands as Norway's largest furniture manufacturer, boasting 8 production bases and over 6000 sales outlets worldwide. Leveraging Ekornes' extensive reach, HONGQI aims to bolster joint promotional efforts online and offline, ensuring broader audience coverage and expanded market resources. Notably, Ekornes enjoys widespread popularity in Norway, with one STRESSLESS recliner for every four individuals. Moreover, HONGQI's "Explore Zero" event in 2022 significantly heightened brand awareness locally in Norway. This cooperation holds promise in assisting HONGQI in capturing the Norwegian market and potentially extending its reach further into Europe. HONGQI has also entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Nervora & Vogue Arabia to leverage their upscale resources in the Middle East, enriching the user experience with innovation and sophistication. This cooperation aims to elevate the profile of the HONGQI brand and its vehicles, bolstering brand recognition and perception. Through increased exposure, HONGQI seeks to align its brand and products with notions of fashion, luxury, and global allure. Previously, HONGQI EHS9 and H9 proudly served as the official automotive partner for the " Ball of Arabia 2024", the annual red carpet ball hosted by Vogue Arabia, providing stylish transportation for VIP guests to Dubai's Atlantis the Royal, and showcasing its latest offerings. Besides this, EHS9 and HS3 were prominently featured in a photoshoot for the magazine's special 7th-anniversary edition. HONGQI embraces the sight of "Safety, Intelligence, Green, Health, and Taste" as its brand DNA, committed to providing users with the progress of products, ultra-performance, network, service, capacity, and eco-system. As the oldest and most prestigious luxury automotive brand in Chinese history, HONGQI places a greater emphasis on a sense of exclusivity and quality in its brand ecosystem. In order to provide users with more evenly balanced automotive products and more attentive services, HONGQI's focus on brand building is particularly robust among Chinese automotive brands today. Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2410782/image_5028817_32018476.jpg LOS ANGELES, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- TLG Motion Pictures, a leader in television, film, and digital content development, is thrilled to announce a partnership with esteemed Italian-American actor Nicholas Turturro for the upcoming unscripted series "Where Are My Italians." The series, created by Nicholas and his wife, Lissa Turturro, will explore vibrant Italian-American communities across the United States, revealing the rich culture and traditions that flourish far from the urban centers of New York City, Chicago, and Philadelphia. "Where Are My Italians" follows host Nicholas Turturro on a heartfelt journey to connect with his Italian roots and discover communities that maintain their unique heritage through gastronomy, traditions, and local stories. Each episode features Nick and a guestbe it a friend or a family memberdiving into the Italian-American experience, from hidden enclaves on the West Coast to prominent neighborhoods on the East. Courtney LeMarco, Executive Producer and Director of the series states, "This series is more than just a travel log; it's a celebration of heritage and the bonds that connect us. We're excited to bring Nick's charismatic and heartfelt exploration of his roots to audiences nationwide." Nicholas Turturro adds, "Growing up in a tight-knit Italian family in Queens, I've always been passionate about my heritage. 'Where Are My Italians' is my quest to explore how Italian-Americans have contributed to and shaped the American landscape. It's an honor to share these stories." The series aims to entertain and enlighten viewers about the thriving Italian-American spirit and its pivotal role in American culture. About TLG Motion Pictures: Based in Los Angeles, TLG Motion Pictures offers extensive financing and development resources for producing quality television, film, and digital content aimed at domestic, international, and OTT distribution. About Nicholas Turturro: Nicholas Turturro is renowned for his roles in key New York City-based films and television series such as NYPD Blue and Blue Bloods. A frequent collaborator with director Spike Lee, Turturro remains a prominent figure in American cinema and television. "Where Are My Italians" is set to begin production later this year and promises to be a journey full of discovery, humor, and heartfelt stories. SOURCE TLG Motion Pictures DUBAI, UAE, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- XRP Healthcare, a pioneering force in healthcare innovation, proudly announces the registration of its trademark in Uganda, marking a significant milestone in its commitment to revolutionize healthcare services in the region. Concurrently, the company underscores its unwavering dedication to self-reliance by discontinuing its collaboration with any third parties, thus emphasizing its resolve to drive forward under its own stewardship. XRP Healthcare Solidifies Presence in Uganda with Trademark Registration Success The registration of the XRP Healthcare trademark serves as a necessary prerequisite for the company to create its brand of pharmacies, medical centres, and hospitals in Uganda. This strategic move underscores XRP Healthcare's commitment to not only expand its footprint, but also to enhance the quality and accessibility of healthcare services through its proprietary establishments. This intentional manoeuvre is indicative of XRP Healthcare's steadfast focus on establishing a robust presence in Uganda's healthcare landscape, underpinned by a vision to enhance access to quality medical services across the nation. By fortifying its trademark rights, XRP Healthcare reaffirms its dedication to fostering trust, reliability, and excellence in healthcare delivery through its brand and the ability to grow exponentially. Moreover, XRP Healthcare is poised to embark on a transformative journey in Uganda, with ambitious plans for mergers and acquisitions of private healthcare facilities. Through strategic partnerships and investments, the company aims to elevate the standard of healthcare provision, ensuring that every individual has access to comprehensive and compassionate medical care services via its acquisitions or the XRPH App available on iOS and Google Play. Kain Roomes CEO and Founder of XRP Healthcare commented "The groundwork for these initiatives is already underway, with meticulous attention to legal and regulatory compliance. XRP Healthcare has established a tax structure that aligns with Uganda's regulations, ensuring seamless integration into the local healthcare ecosystem, and with the successful registration of the XRP Healthcare Trademark in Uganda the company is now poised to establish its brand here in Uganda through the acquisition of pharmacies, medical centres and hospitals. Whitney Lynn, Chairman of XRP Healthcare said "The registration of our trademark in Uganda is not just a procedural milestone; it represents a firm commitment to the communities we serve and the start of a new chapter in accessible healthcare innovation. By forging ahead on our own terms, and remaining independent of any third parties, we are ensuring that our commitment to our mission remains pure and focused. We are excited to begin the work of transforming the healthcare landscape in Uganda, ensuring that every facility and service we introduce will embody the highest standards of care and efficiency that XRP Healthcare is known for globally. This is about building lasting health infrastructure where it is most needed, driven by local needs and global standards." Business Development Officer Laban Roomes also commented saying, "XRP Healthcare has been successfully registered as a trademark in Uganda, following a comprehensive and persistent process. This achievement marks a pivotal moment for us, as it ensures the protection of our brand identity within the Ugandan market. With our trademark secured, XRP Healthcare acquisitions can confidently display our trademarked logo on their premises without concern for unauthorized usage or protests from third parties - maintaining the integrity of our intellectual property and brand identity." Further support came from Peter Kyobe Waiswa, known worldwide for his expertise in the Healthcare Industry - Peter who joined XRP Healthcare recently was quoted as saying "I am thrilled to join XRP Healthcare and contribute to the transformation of Uganda's private healthcare sector, through strategic partnerships and innovative solutions, we aim to improve access to quality healthcare facilities for the people of Uganda." Exciting news indeed for a company who no longer wishes to rely on investment firms or business angels, for its expansion in Africa but has opted to finance acquisitions through its internal means and investments. This strategic decision positions XRP Healthcare for sustained growth and success in consolidating the highly fragmented healthcare sector in Africa. XRP Healthcare remains committed to its mission of transforming healthcare paradigms and enhancing the well-being of communities worldwide. With the trademark registration in Uganda, XRP Healthcare is poised to redefine healthcare standards, setting new benchmarks for quality, accessibility, and innovation. About XRP Healthcare: XRP Healthcare is the first Pharma and Healthcare platform on the XRP Ledger, enabling fast global payments, improving healthcare access in emerging markets, and creating real-world utility by transforming global healthcare through mergers, acquisitions and blockchain. Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2410534/XRP_Uganda.jpg Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2365357/XRP_Healthcare_Logo.jpg SOURCE XRP Healthcare Vilnius, May 13 : Incumbent President Gitanas Nauseda and Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte are poised to advance to the second round of the presidential race in Lithuania, according to preliminary results. Nauseda and Simonyte, each falling short of the 50 per cent threshold needed to secure the presidency in Sunday's first round, have both declared their advancement to the runoff, Xinhua news agency reported. The runoff is set to be held in two weeks, on May 26. Lithuanians also voted on Sunday in a referendum on amending the constitution to allow dual citizenship. Tehran, May 13 : Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian has hailed the success in the expansion of cooperation between Tehran and Riyadh following their normalisation of bilateral ties. He made the remarks on Sunday at the third Iranian-Arab Dialogue Conference in Iran's capital Tehran, which was attended by Iranian officials, foreign ambassadors, and guests from other states, Xinhua news agency reported. Amir-Abdollahian said that Iran was determined to promote understanding and solidarity among regional countries, referring to the normalisation of Iran-Saudi Arabia relations as an example of Iran's focus on expanding ties with neighbours as well as Muslim and Arab states. "Our assessment (of the progress) of relations between Tehran and Riyadh over the past year indicates that success has been achieved in the area of the multilayered development of bilateral cooperation," said the Iranian Foreign Minister, stressing that there are numerous opportunities for the two countries to further enhance their cooperation. Noting that Iran has initiated a new phase of cooperation with the UAE, Qatar, Oman, and Kuwait, Amir-Abdollahian mentioned that Tehran and Bahrain are also considering advancing towards normalising bilateral relations. Iran and Saudi Arabia formally declared in April of last year the resumption of diplomatic relations with immediate effect. Saudi Arabia cut diplomatic ties with Iran in early 2016 in response to attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran. The attacks followed Saudi Arabia's execution of a Shia cleric. Jerusalem, May 13 : The Israeli military has said that it has opened a new crossing to bring humanitarian aid into the famine-stricken Gaza Strip. In a press statement on Sunday, the military announced the opening of the "Western Erez crossing" between Israel and northern Gaza in coordination with the US, Xinhua news agency reported. According to the military, the new crossing is located west of the Erez crossing, closer to the seashore. It added that the crossing was constructed by the Israeli military "as part of the effort to increase routes for aid to Gaza, particularly to the north of the strip". On Sunday, the military said it launched a large-scale operation in the area of Jabaliya in northern Gaza while continuing its operations in eastern Rafah and the Gazan side of the Rafah crossing. It stressed that it had called on the civilian population to evacuate from Jabaliya to shelters in western Gaza City. The military noted that its Air Force attacked 150 sites throughout the enclave on Saturday. In early April, the Israeli government approved the temporary reopening of the Erez crossing, also known as the Beit Hanoun crossing to Palestinians, to allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza. The over seven-month-long Israeli offensive in Gaza, which was launched in retaliation for a Hamas onslaught on southern Israeli sites, has led to at least 35,034 fatalities and 78,755 injuries in the besieged enclave, according to Gaza's health authorities on Sunday. Kolkata, May 13 : A former Trinamool Congress worker was found dead in West Bengal's East Burdwan district on Monday as polling began for the eight Lok Sabha constituencies in the state in the fourth phase. The polling started at 7 a.m. The body of the former Trinamool Congress worker, identified as Mintu Sheikh was recovered from Ketugram in the district. Sheikh quit the party three months ago. His family claimed that he was attacked by some unknown miscreants while returning home late Sunday night and was killed. On one hand, the Trinamool Congress legislator from Ketugram Sheikh Shahnawaz claimed that the local CPI(M) activists were behind the murder. "He was an active worker of our party. He was killed late Sunday night as he was coming back. The goons having the backing of CPI(M) are behind the murder," he said. However, CPI(M)'s East Burdwan district committee member Tamal Majhi claimed that infighting in the ruling party in the area had led to the murder. The family members of the deceased claimed that it was unlikely that any opposition party was involved in the murder as they did not have any effective presence in Ketugram. Apart from this incident, stray incidences of poll-related tension have already started surfacing from different pockets in the state. The BJP complained that a temporary party camp at Suri in Birbhum district was demolished by the ruling Trinamool Congress activists before the beginning of the polls. The ruling party leadership has, however, denied the allegations. Reports of tension have also been reported from Naskashipara in Nadia district, as bombs were hurled at the residence of a local BJP leader Hazrat Mondal. Reports of clashes between Trinamool Congress and CPI(M) activists have also been reported from the Kaliganj area under Krishnanagar Lok Sabha constituency in Nadia district. The eight constituencies in the state going to polls are Baharampur in Murshidabad district, Birbhum and Bolpur in Birbhum district, Krishnanagar and Ranaghat in Nadia district, Bardhaman-Purba in East Burdwan district and Bardhaman-Durgapur and Asansol in West Burdwan district. Solapur (Maharashtra): Women voters wait in a queue to cast their votes for the third phase of 2019 Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra's Solapur, on April 23, 2019. (Photo: IANS/PIB). Image Source: IANS News Mumbai, May 13 : Voting started on a brisk note with people, including many first-timers, queuing up at many polling stations in the fourth phase of voting for 11 Lok Sabha constituencies in Maharashtra, officials said here on Monday. Voting started on a peaceful note in the 11 seats sprawling across three regions in the state -- Shirdi, Nandurbar, Jalgaon, Raver, Jalna (in north Maharashtra), Beed and Aurangabad (Marathwada), Ahmednagar, Pune, Maval and Shirur (western Maharashtra). Early-bird voters, candidates of various political parties, celebs, youngsters and others hurried to their polling centres in Pune, Ahmednagar, Aurangabad, Beed, and others, hoping to beat the summer heat as the day temperatures have been hovering around 40 degrees Celsius for the past few days. Compared with the past two LS elections, the political horizon is virtually unrecognisable, party splits, strange permutations and combinations, break-ups and new alliances, that have made candidates of all parties edgy. For instance, the Shiv Sena founded by the late Balasaheb Thackeray has split, the Nationalist Congress Party launched by Sharad Pawar broke up, the alliance between Prakash Ambedkaras Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi and All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen was severed. Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed four rallies, Ahmednagar, Beed, Nandurbar and Pune. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi addressed one rally in Pune, and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra did a rally in Nandurbar along with the Congress President in Nandurbar. Pawar has addressed half a dozen rallies in Ahmednagar, Beed, Pune, Shirur, Thackeray has followed suit with around six rallies in Shirur, Maval, Pune, Ahmednagar and Aurangabad in the past few days, besides other senior leaders of all the parties in the fray. Moscow, May 13 : Russian armed forces made significant gains in the Kharkiv region after capturing four settlements, the Russian Defence Ministry said. The units of its North group had made advancements deep into Ukrainian defences, seizing the settlements of Gatyshche, Krasnoye, Morokhovets, and Oleynikovo in the Kharkiv region, the ministry said in a statement, reports Xinhua news agency. Three Ukrainian brigades suffered heavy losses in the settlements of Degtyarnoye, Volchansk, and Kazachya Lopan in the Kharkiv region, losing up to 100 servicemen, two tanks, an armoured vehicle Kozak and four vehicles, it added. Russian armed forces have been actively advancing in the Kharkiv region for several days. More than 4,000 people have been evacuated from the region since Russia launched the latest round of missile attacks on Friday, regional governor Oleg Synegubov said. New Delhi, May 13 : Tesla CEO Elon Musk, on Monday, won over the Australian government after a court overturned a legal block by the country's regulator directing the removal of footage of a stabbing attack in Sydney on X social media platform. The Australian court had earlier granted a two-day injunction, ordering the platform to hide videos of the April 15 church stabbing for its users globally. X, however, agreed to hide the footage from Australian viewers but kept it accessible for international users. The Federal Court has now overturned the legal block on videos of the Sydney church stabbing on X, reports The Australian. Musk reacted, saying that he is not trying to win anything. "I just don't think we should be suppressing Australians' rights to free speech," the tech billionaire posted. Last month, Musk hit out at Australia over the attempts to ban footage of the Sydney church stabbing on X. "Our concern is that if ANY country is allowed to censor content for ALL countries, which is what the Australian 'eSafety Commissar' is demanding, then what is to stop any country from controlling the entire Internet," Musk wrote on X. Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had told ABC News Breakfast that Musk was an "arrogant billionaire." S.S Rajamouli flew from Dubai and rushed to the polling booth from airport. Image Source: IANS News Mumbai, May 13 : Auteur S.S. Rajamouli did not miss the opportunity to exercise his voting right, expressing that he rushed to the polling booth upon landing in the country from Dubai. Rajamouli took to Instagram and shared a picture of himself and his wife, Rama Rajamouli, proudly displaying their inked fingers after casting their votes. He captioned the post: aFlew from Dubai... Rushed to the polling booth directly from the airport, hence the tired looks. Done! You?" Apart from Rajamouli, stars such as K. Chiranjeevi, Jr NTR, and Allu Arjun were among the first to cast their votes in Hyderabad on Monday. Chiranjeevi, accompanied by his wife Surekha, voted at a polling centre in posh Jubilee Hills. Jr NTR, accompanied by his wife Lakshmi Pranithi and mother Shalini, cast their votes at the polling centre at Obul Reddy School in Jubilee Hills. Similarly, Allu Arjun also queued up to cast his vote at the BSNL office in Film Nagar. Patna, May 13 : Polling for the fourth phase got underway in Bihar on Monday on the 5 Lok Sabha seats of Darbhanga, Begusarai, Munger, Ujiarpur and Samastipur. The Election Commission stated that 10.18 per cent polling was registered in the first two hours of voting on Monday. The Election Commission registered the highest voting in Darbhanga with 11.61 per cent polling followed by Samastipur where 11.11 per cent polling was done in the first two hours of voting. In Munger, the poll panel registered 10.26 per cent polling, 9.31 per cent in Ujiarpur and 8.85 per cent polling in Begusarai District. A total of 55 candidates including 4 women are in the fray of the fourth phase of the election. Among them, 14 candidates belong to national or regional parties and 20 belong to other small parties. A total of 21 candidates are trying their luck as Independents. The commission has established 9,447 polling stations in those 5 Lok Sabha constituencies. In a bid to ensure fair voting, the Election Commission is monitoring 4,810 polling stations through webcasting. The polling began at 7 A.M. and the voters can exercise their voting rights till 6 P.M. Hyderabad, May 13 : Former Vice-President M. Venkaiah Naidu and Tripura Governor N. Indrasena Reddy, were among prominent leaders who cast their votes here on Monday for Lok Sabha elections in Telangana. Naidu and his wife Ushamma were among the first voters at a polling station at Obul Reddy School in upscale Jubilee Hills in Secunderabad parliamentary constituency. The former Vice President later posted on social media that they fulfilled their duty as responsible citizens by exercising their franchise. He appealed to all citizens to vote and urged others to participate actively in the world's largest electoral process. Tripura Governor Indrasena Reddy also cast his vote in Malakpet, a part of the Hyderabad Lok Sabha constituency. Former Chief Justice of India N. V. Ramana also exercised his franchise in Hyderabad. Telangana Chief Electoral Officer Vikas Raj, Chief Secretary Santhi Kumari, Director General of Police Ravi Gupta also cast their votes. Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) working president K. T. Rama Rao cast his vote at Nandi Nagar in Hyderabad. His wife and son too polled their votes with him. The BRS leader appealed to the people to exercise the valuable right given by the Constitution of India to elect the government of their choice. Union minister and Telangana BJP President G. Kishan Reddy, who is seeking re-election from Secunderabad Lok Sabha constituency, cast his vote at a polling station in Barkatpura. He said all voters should come out and participate in the festival of democracy. All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) President Asaduddin Owaisi, who is seeking re-election from Hyderabad for a fifth straight term, cast his vote at a polling centre in Shastripuram near his residence under Chevella Lok Sabha constituency. He along with his family members exercised the franchise. When media persons asked him if this was a special day for him as it was also his birthday, Owaisi said he never celebrated his birthday. He appealed to people to cast their votes. He said they should vote for the country. "You should vote if you believe in democracy and if you love India and want to see it as a country where there is justice for the poor and oppressed, youth get employment and you feel safe and secure," he said. Owaisi's main opponent and BJP candidate K. Madhavi Latha cast her vote in the Secunderabad Cantonment Assembly segment, a part of the Malkajgiri Lok Sabha constituency. She appealed to all voters to participate in the polling process and strengthen democracy. BJP's Chevella candidate K. Vishweshwar Reddy cast his vote in Dharmasagar village in Chevella mandal. Mumbai, May 13 : Actor Gyanendra Tripathi, who is awaiting the release of his upcoming film 'Barah by Barah', feels that artistes should be able to strike a balance between their art and its commerce. The actor shared that prioritising market trends is the biggest disservice that an artiste can do to their artwork. Speaking with IANS prior to the release of his film, Gyanendra discussed how the city of Varanasi influenced the actor in him during the shoot, how cinema benefited from across media, and his upcoming projects. aBarah by Baraha has been shot in Varanasi and sees him essaying the role of a death photographer. Sharing the experience of working in the city, he told IANS: "Sometimes art becomes a vehicle for exploring existential questions, expressing inner truths, and seeking transcendence. For viewers, encountering spiritually inspired art can evoke a sense of awe, wonder, and contemplation, inviting them to reflect on their own beliefs and experiences." aShooting in a city like Varanasi, staying there for over a month, and playing a character which by virtue of his profession, witnesses life and death with such close proximity, I did delve into such areas. Our film basically explores the idea of migration, which is an inevitable part of nature, but the change is never easy to accept, hence, one needs a spiritual lens to let go of the previous attachments," he added. Many artistes from different media have made their way into cinema. Shah Rukh Khan came from television and is now ruling Bollywood. When asked about his opinion on cinema thriving on actors from different media, Gyanendra said: aI do believe cinema benefits greatly from actors with diverse backgrounds, including those from OTT platforms and theatre." The actor shared that OTT platforms provide actors with opportunities to explore a wide range of characters and storytelling styles, often allowing for more nuanced performances. "On the other hand, theatre training instils actors with strong stage presence, improvisation skills, and the ability to connect with live audiences, which can translate into compelling performances on screen. This blend of experiences enriches the pool of talent available to filmmakers, contributing to the richness and variety of cinema. Additionally, actors who have experience across different mediums bring unique perspectives and techniques to their roles, enhancing the overall depth and authenticity of cinematic storytelling," he said. Talking about the fine balance of art and the business associated with it, the actor told IANS: aOne of the biggest disservices an artiste can do to their artwork is when artists prioritise market trends or the opinions of others over their own creative vision and expression. Due to this, their work may lose its authenticity and depth." aThis can result in artworks that feel contrived or insincere, ultimately diminishing their impact on audiences. It's essential for artists to stay true to their unique voice and vision, even if it means taking risks or facing criticism. Having said that, commerce is an integral part of filmmaking, it takes a lot of money to make a film, publicise and distribute it. So, in today's time, artistes do need to strike a balance and find an expression which is true to themselves and yet somehow remains accessible to a wider audience. That's the real struggle," he added. Meanwhile, on the work front, the actor will be next seen in aSuperman of Malegaona directed by Reema Kagti. He is also shooting for web series such as aPetty Casha and the second season of 'Half CAa. Guwahati, May 13 : Social activist and Padma Shri awardee Birubala Rabha passed away on Monday after a prolonged battle with cancer. She breathed her last at the State Cancer Institute in Guwahati Medical College and Hospital. Rabha, 75, was suffering from oesophageal cancer for the last three years. She underwent radiotherapy, chemotherapy and stenting as she faced difficulty in swallowing food six months ago. As Rabha's condition deteriorated, she was re-admitted to the hospital on April 22. Her condition further worsened on May 12 when she was put on a mechanical ventilator for respiratory distress. She fought against the scourge of witch-hunting and also got recognition for that. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma expressed condolences on Rabha's death. Taking to his X handle, CM Sarma wrote, "I am deeply distressed to learn about the passing away of Padma Shri Smt Birubala Rabha. Through her untiring efforts to end social evils, she illuminated the paths of scores of women with hope and confidence." "Rising through a challenging life, she epitomised courage against all odds. Assam will forever remain grateful for her leadership in serving society," he added. New Delhi, May 13 : Increasing tobacco smoking rates among women is a significant contributor to early menopause, which poses a significant health risk, warned doctors on Monday. Premature menopause is the cessation of menstruation before the age of 40 and can have profound implications for a woman's health and quality of life. Jaishree Gajaraj, Senior Consultant, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, MGM Healthcare, told IANS that smoking accelerates premature menopause, which further raises the risk of developing osteoporosis, cardiovascular diseases, cancer, and psychological issues like depression and anxiety in women. Nicotine, a primary component of tobacco, exerts detrimental effects on ovarian function by reducing the number of viable eggs and hastening the decline of ovarian reserve. This premature depletion of follicles leads to an earlier onset of menopause. It not only impacts fertility but also contributes to the overall decline in ovarian function. "Oestrogen has cardio-protective effects, and its abrupt reduction can lead to adverse changes in cholesterol levels, blood pressure, and vascular function," Dr Jaishree said. Research shows that women who smoke go into menopause about a year earlier than non-smokers and as much as two years earlier for heavy smokers. "It has been observed that smokers who are currently smoking will experience a younger menopause than smokers who have never smoked," Vidyashri Kamath C, Consultant Obstetrics & Gynecologist, KMC Hospital, Mangalore, told IANS. The doctor noted that "smoking by-products decrease the quantity or quality of the ovarian follicles; it also causes changes in reproductive hormone levels during reproductive years; and smoke exposure during the intrauterine period may also affect the follicle pool and influence menopausal timing." "Smokers are 35 per cent more likely to break a hip after menopause than non-smokers. Former smokers have a 15 per cent greater risk of hip fracture. How long you smoked will affect your risk of fracture more than how much you smoked," Sophia Rodrigues, Consultant - OBG, Manipal Hospital, Goa, told IANS. A recent study showed that women who enter menopause before the age of 40 are more likely to die young. Premature menopause is a critical issue and underscores the urgent need for comprehensive education and awareness, the experts said. Kolkata, May 13 : Even as the polling percentage in West Bengal's eight Lok Sabha was increasing, the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) was flooded with complaints related to violence and tension, said officials here on Monday. The polling percentage in the constituencies in the first four hours on Monday was 32.78, and the number of complaints received by the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) during the same period was 1,088. Party-wise CPI(M) has filed the maximum number of complaints at 72, followed by Congress at 70, six by BJP and one by Trinamool Congress. As per the records from the CEO Ariz Aftab's office, the highest polling percentage till 11 a.m. was reported from Baharampur at 35.53 followed by Bolpur at 35.22, Baradhaman-Purba at 33.82, Ranaghat at 33.23, Krishnanagar at 32.59, Bardhaman-Durgapur at 31.41, Birbhum at 30.45 and Asansol at 29.99 per cent. Tension mounted in Pandaveswar in the Asansol Lok Sabha constituency after police stopped senior BJP leader Jitendra Tiwari from entering a particular area. Tiwari complained that the personnel of the state police stopped him despite his having the requisite papers from the Election Commission for visiting the place. The most serious incident of poll-related clashes was reported from Chapra under Krishnanagar Lok Sabha constituency as the CPI(M) and Trinamool Congress supporters engaged in a scuffle. One CPI(M) polling agent received severe head injuries. Similarly, at Monteswar under Baradhaman-Purba Lok Sabha, a BJP worker was severely injured following clashes between Trinamool Congress and BJP activists. At Bharatpur under the Baharampur Lok Sabha constituency, the Central Armed Forces Personnel had to resort to mild lathi-charge to disperse aggressive gatherings by ruling and opposition party supporters. Regional parties will come to power at Centre: BRS chief. Image Source: IANS News Hyderabad, May 13 : Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) president K. Chandrasekhar Rao said on Monday said regional parties will come to power at the Centre. The former Telangana chief minister was talking to media persons after casting his vote in his native Chintamadaka village in Siddipet district. When asked if he would join hands with INDIA bloc in days to come, he said there is nothing like a bloc. "There is nothing like a block. Now, regional parties will come to power in India," he said "There is no doubt in it. This is the situation emerging in the country," he said when asked about his earlier statement that regional parties will play a key role in the formation of the next government at the Centre. KCR said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has to step down as per the rule set by the BJP that nobody should take up any position after reaching the age of 75. The BRS chief hoped that Telangana will record 65-70 per cent polling. The BRS, which lost power to Congress in Telangana five months ago, is contesting all 17 Lok Sabha seats in the state on its own. KCR and his wife cast their votes in Siddipet Assembly segment, a part of Medak Lok Sabha constituency. New Delhi, May 13 : The seventh edition of the joint military exercise between the Indian and the French Armies, 'Shakti-2024' kicked off on Monday at the Eastern Command's Joint Training Node in Meghalaya's Umroi. Held alternately in India and France, this year's exercise - which will last until May 26 - focuses on training for ground control operations in semi-urban and mountainous terrain under United Nations mandate besides including for the first time Air Force assets as well as Navy and Air Force observers. It marks a new level of complexity compared to previous editions as it has fielded twice as many troops as before and began with a brigade-level command post-exercise. The French contingent comprises 90 personnel from the Legion etrangere (Foreign Legion), an elite corps of the French Army. On January 26, another contingent from the Legion etrangere had taken part in Indiaas Republic Day parade with France as the guest of honour. This year's Shakti exercise is also taking place in the framework of an intensification of Indo-French defence ties following French President Emmanuel Macron's State Visit to India on January 25-26. Recently, CDS General Anil Chauhan paid an official visit to France, while the French Navy and Army Chiefs visited India. A French frigate, FNS Bretagne, made a port call in Kerala last week as part of an Indo-Pacific deployment. The bilateral 'Varuna' naval exercise will take place later this year, and the French Air Force will take part in India's multi-nation Tarang-Shakti exercise scheduled in August. Defence and security cooperation is an essential component of the Indo-French strategic partnership. It was enshrined as the first pillar of the Horizon 2047 Roadmap, which charts the course of the partnershipas next 25 years, and was adopted during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's landmark 2023 visit to France on the occasion of Bastille Day. Indo-French defence cooperation aims to strengthen both nations' sovereignty and strategic autonomy and to advance peace in the region. "Together, we have built a unique strategic partnership, based on a level of mutual trust that is rarely seen between nations. A shining example of this was the unprecedented reciprocal invitation of our leaders to our respective National Days, Bastille Day last year in France, and Republic Day this year in India. The pictures of our troops marching together on the Champs-ElysAes in Paris and then on Kartavya Path in Delhi are a powerful and lasting symbol of our friendship," said Thierry Mathou, Ambassador of France to India, while speaking at the opening ceremony of the exercise. "The aim of this cooperation is to strengthen both our nationas sovereignty and strategic autonomy, and together advance peace and security in the Indo-Pacific," he added. Berlin, May 13 : The German digital association Bitkom says it has recorded an increasing number of cyber attacks from China and Russia over the past 12 months. Within two years, a doubling of attacks from Russia has been measured, said managing director Bernhard Rohleder on Monday morning on German public broadcaster ZDF. There was also a 50 per cent increase in the number of known incidents from China, he said. Of the companies affected, 80 per cent were targeted by attacks, such as data theft, espionage and sabotage, according to the Bitkom Director. Germany's Interior Minister Nancy Faeser and the president of the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), Holger Munch, plan to present the "National Situation Report on Cybercrime" for 2023 on Monday morning. In particular, the number of offences committed from abroad or from an unknown location has been increasing for years, the BKA said in advance. This also applies to the amount of damage caused by cybercrime to companies in Germany. "The damage is 148 billion euros ($159 billion) per year from cyber attacks alone, meaning digital attacks," said Bitkom's Rohleder. "That is a very significant amount." Organised crime is often behind these attacks, as are foreign intelligence services, he added. "Some are after money," Rohleder said, adding that other perpetrators want to cause as much damage as possible, such as to critical infrastructure like the energy supply or hospitals. "And there are still some, especially private individuals, who just want to have fun," he said. --IANS/DPA sd/svn Lucknow, May 13 : The remaining three phases of elections in Uttar Pradesh will be a test for OBC leaders in the state. The performance of these leaders and their parties will decide their future in the NDA. Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP) President Om Prakash Rajbhar, also a minister in the UP government, has been making tall claims about the influence he wields on the Rajbhar community. The BJP has given him the Ghosi seat on which he has fielded his son Arvind Rajbhar. His sonas candidature has already caused resentment in the community which wanted other members to contest the seat. If Om Prakash Rajbhar manages to win the Ghosi seat, his position in the NDA will be secure but if he fails to do so, he may face problems. Rajbhar is already known for his controversial statements. Nishad Party President and UP minister Sanjay Nishad also faces the challenge of ensuring his son Parveen Nishadas victory. Parveen is seeking re-election from his Sant Kabir Nagar seat on the BJP symbol. He had first won a by-election from Gorakhpur in 2018 on the Samajwadi Party ticket. Sanjay Nishad claims to wield influence over 27 Lok Sabha seats and his sonas performance in Sant Kabir Nagar will validate his claims. The Anupriya Patel-led Apna Dal (S), a BJP ally since 2014, also faces a test this time. The Apna Dal (S) has been winning two seats that it got in 2014 and then again in 2019. This time, Anupriya is contesting from Mirzapur but the Samajwadi Party has pitted Ramesh Bind, sitting BJP MP from Bhadohi, who on Sunday joined SP, against her. In Robertsganj, the Apna Dal (S) has denied a ticket to the sitting MP Pakodi Lal Kol and has named Rinki Kol -- his daughter-in-law -- as the candidate. The family feud has come out in the open and this could harm the party. Another OBC leader whose popularity will be on the test, in these elections, is UP Minister Dara Singh Chauhan. Dara Singh Chauhan quit the BJP in January 2022 to join the SP. However, when the BJP formed government again in 2022, Chauhan quit SP and returned to BJP. He fought a by-election but lost to SP. The BJP made him a member of the Vidhan Parishad and then a minister. Chauhan also claims to be a custodian of Lonia Chauhan votes and NDAas performance in Ghosi in these polls will determine whether Chauhan has any hold over his community votes. BJP rebel Swami Prasad Maurya is also facing a crucial test from Kushinagar Lok Sabha seat. Maurya had revolted against the BJP in 2022 to join SP and then left SP in February this year after issuing statements against Sanatan Dharm. He sent feelers to INDIA bloc members but got no response and is now contesting as a candidate of his own Rashtriya Shoshit Samaj Party. Mauryaas diatribe against the BJP ensured that his daughter Sanghmitra Maurya was denied a ticket from Budaun. Maurya, sources claim, is looking for a return to BSP after the polls. Two other OBC leaders whose fate will also be sealed in these elections are Krishna Patel and her daughter Pallavi Patel of Apna Dal (Kamerawadi). The mother-daughter broke away from SP in March and later formed an alliance with AIMIM -- called PDM (aPichda, Dalit and Musalmana) alliance -- hoping to strike it rich in the Lok Sabha polls. However, the euphoria vanished and the PDM could announce only seven candidates. Those who were looking forward to a face-off between the warring sisters Anupriya and Pallavi in Mirzapur are sorely disappointed because Pallavi is not contesting the polls. She will have to decide her own future after the Lok Sabha polls because she was elected from the Sirathu assembly seat on the SP symbol in 2022. Nashik/Ahmednagar : , May 13 (IANS) The Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi leaders claimed that large amounts of cash were reportedly being transferred to and fro, ostensibly to buy votes in the Lok Sabha elections, even as anti-graft crusader Anna Hazare frowned at the developments while the MahaYuti flatly dismissed the allegations, here on Monday. Crying foul, Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut, Nationalist Congress Party (SP) MLA Rohit R. Pawar and Congress MLA Ravindra Dhangekar who is contesting from Pune, hurled the allegations targeting the ruling alliance of Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party-Nationalist Congress Party in Pune, Ahmednagar and Nashik Lok Sabha constituencies. Posting a purported video of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde alighting from a helicopter in Nashik with two security personnel lugging at least two heavy bags, Raut demanded to know why the CM travelled with such bulky luggage for just a two-hour-long poll campaign trip. Rohit R. Pawar posted another supposed video showing bundles of cash lying on a road in the Ahmednagar LS constituency and claimed that it contained 'prasad' for disbursing among the voters. "Today, a packet arrived here in the name of everyone called 'Raja' with the 'prasad' and a plea by the guardian minister to vote for his party. The irony is that in many villages, the local refused to accept the 'prasad' and in others, the village elders siphoned off half the 'prasad'," said Rohit R. Pawar in a jibe at the BJP's LS candidate from Ahmednagar Dr Sujay R. Vikhe-Patil, who is battling against NCP (SP)'s challenger Nilesh D. Lanke. Dhangekar alleged that last night in Pune, a large amount of cash was distributed during the weekend to lure the voters in the Sahakar Nagar slums in his constituency reportedly supporters of the ruling MahaYuti. Early on Monday, he and hundreds of MVA activists had gathered to lodge a police complaint which was not accepted ostensibly due to lack of evidence. Raut claimed that as per his information, the bags hauled by the CM's security personnel may have been filled with "around Rs 12-13 crore" and demanded a statement from the government. Rohit R. Pawar said more complaints of 'prasad' packets are pouring in and alleged that there are reports of more than Rs 2,000 crore cash being splurged by the ruling side to get votes and buy out leaders of opposition parties. Responding to the developments, anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare appeared sad and termed it as regretful besides posing a 'threat to the survival of democracy'. "If money power enters into the election arena in this way then democracy will be finished, only autocracy will remain," he warned, after casting his vote in the Ahmednagar LS constituency. On his part, Ahmednagar BJP candidate Dr Sujay Vike-Patil hit back saying it was a planned operation to create confusion in the minds of voters. He also referred to an incident in the 2019 LS elections when some employees of the Rohit R. Pawar-headed Baramati Agro Co. were caught distributing cash for votes and a case was registered in the matter. State BJP President Chandrashekhar Bawankule dismissed the MVA's contentions saying, "they are staring at defeat in the allegations and hence it is not surprising that they are levelling such baseless charges". Shiv Sena's Sanjay Shirsat also rubbished the MVA allegations and said that this is an attempt to divert attention from the impending defeat of the Opposition parties. (Quaid Najmi can be contacted at: q.najmi@ians.in) Kyiv, May 13 : The Ukrainian military conceded on Monday that Russian forces are making progress in their offensive in the north-eastern Kharkiv region. Moscow's troops have been engaged in a concerted push into the region, raising alarm among Ukrainians and their Western allies that a large-scale assault on the major city of Kharkiv is coming. Kharkiv city, the second-largest in Ukraine, is located just 30 kilometres south of the Russian border. "The enemy is currently achieving tactical success," the Ukrainian General Staff said in its situation report posted on social media early Monday morning. Following the capture of several villages in the predominantly Russian-speaking Kharkiv region, fighting is currently underway around the city of Vovchansk, only 5 kilometres from the Russian border, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said. Despite incurring heavy losses, Ukraine said the Russian military is deploying significant forces in the battle for Vovchansk, with up to five battalions bearing down on the city. Vovchansk had come under Russian occupation at the beginning of the war. During Ukraine's autumn offensive in 2022 in the Kharkiv region, Russian troops withdrew from Vovchansk. According to Ukrainian figures, around 3,500 people were still living in the city at the time. Russia launched a renewed campaign in the Kharkiv region on May 10. Over the past two days, the Russian Defence Ministry has reported the capture of nine villages. --IANS/DPA sd/svn Kolkata, May 13 : Polling has picked up pace in the eight Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal where polling is being held on Monday, amid reports of tension and violence coming in for different pockets of the state. Till 1 p.m., 51.87 per cent polling was recorded in Bengal, which was comparatively higher than the national average of 40.30 per cent, said sources in the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO). The highest turnout was seen in Bardhaman Purba at 55.87 per cent, followed by Bolpur (54.81 per cent), Ranaghat (52.70 per cent), Baharampur (52.27 per cent), Bardhaman-Durgapur (50.30 per cent), Krishnanagar (49.72 per cent), Birbhum (49.63 per cent), and Asansol (49.55 per cent). At Manteswar in East Burdwan district, the convoy of BJP nominee from Bardhaman-Durgapur constituency, Dilip Ghosh, was allegedly attacked by a group of Trinamool Congress workers, in which a window of Ghosh's car was smashed. Ghosh's supporters also retaliated, leading to a clash between both sides in which a ruling party supporter was reportedly injured. "Trinamool Congress is trying to control the polling process here by unleashing anti-social elements. The state police are standing as mute spectators," Ghosh alleged after the incident. The Election Commission has sought a detailed report on the matter. Earlier, there was tension in front of a booth at Nanur in Birbhum district with the BJP alleging forceful eviction of its polling agent from the booth by Trinamool workers. The BJP also alleged that armed ruling party workers were threatening the voters since Monday morning. At Suri, a temporary camp office of the BJP was allegedly demolished by Trinamool supporters. At Barwan under the Baharampur Lok Sabha constituency, clashes were reported between Trinamool Congress and Congress workers. State Congress President and five-time sitting MP from Baharampur, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, said that although the ruling party workers tried to create tension in the area, timely intervention by the CEO's office led to prompt action by the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) personnel. In Baharampur, Chowdhury is seeking re-election against former India all-rounder and Trinamool nominee Yusuf Pathan, and BJP's Nirmal Kumar Saha. There was also tension in the Kulti under the Asansol Lok Sabha constituency after the CAPF personnel tried to remove Trinamool flags hoisted within 200-metre radius of a polling booth. London, May 13 : UK police have charged three men with assisting the Hong Kong intelligence service under the National Security Act. Chi Leung (Peter) Wai, 38, Matthew Trickett, 37, and Chung Biu Yuen, 63, have also been charged with foreign interference under the same Act, the Metropolitan Police in London said. It follows an investigation led by officers from the Metas Counter Terrorism Command in which 11 people in total were detained. Eight men and a woman were arrested by officers on May 1 in the Yorkshire area before a man was arrested in London and another man was arrested in the Yorkshire area the following day, the force said. The seven men and one woman, who were not charged, were released from custody on or before May 10. Commander Dominic Murphy, head of the Metas Counter Terrorism Command, said: "This operation is not connected to a recently reported Counter Terrorism Policing investigation linked to Russia." "A number of arrests were made, and searches carried out across England as part of this investigation." "While led from London, the Counter Terrorism Policing network has been crucial to disrupting this activity, and we have worked closely with the Crown Prosecution Service since the start of the investigation." "While these offences are concerning, I want to reassure the public that we do not believe there to be any wider threat to them." "This investigation remains ongoing, but now that charges have been brought, I urge people not to speculate or comment further in relation to this case." The three men will appear in custody at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Monday. --IANS/DPA sd/svn Hyderabad/Amaravati, May 13 : Telangana recorded 52.34 per cent polling and Andhra Pradesh 55.49 per cent polling by 3 p.m. on Monday, the Election Commission said. Polling was underway in all 17 Lok Sabha constituencies in Telangana while voters in Andhra Pradesh are exercising their franchise for both the 175-member Assembly and 25 Lok Sabha seats of the state. In Telangana, Zahirabad recorded the highest turnout of 63.96 per cent, followed by 63.67 per cent in Khammam, and 62.44 per cent in Nalgonda. The lowest polling of 29.47 per cent was recorded in the Hyderabad constituency. Secunderabad Lok Sabha constituency also saw only 34.58 per cent turnout in six hours. In the Secunderabad Cantonment Assembly segment, where the by-election is being held, 39.92 per cent of voters cast their votes till 3 p.m. The vacancy arose following the death of sitting MLA Lasya Nanditha of BRS in a road accident in February 2024, just three months after she was elected in the Assembly elections. A little over 3.17 crore voters will decide the political fortunes of 525 candidates in 17 Lok Sabha constituencies. Polling in 13 Left Wing Extremism (LWE) affected segments under five Lok Sabha constituencies came to an end at 4 p.m. The process will continue till 6 p.m. in 106 Assembly segments. Telangana had recorded a turnout of 71.34 per cent during the Assembly elections held in November 2023. In Andhra Pradesh, 55.49 per cent of voters cast their votes till 3 p.m. for simultaneous elections to the 175-member state Assembly and 25 Lok Sabha seats. Among Parliamentary constituencies, the Chittoor (SC) constituency recorded the highest polling of 61.43 per cent while the lowest was 47.66 per cent in Visakhapatnam. More than 4.14 crore voters are eligible to cast their votes at 46,389 centres to decide the political fortunes of 2,841 candidates. Polling was marred by sporadic incidents of violence in the state. There were clashes between supporters of the YSRCP and the TDP in a few places. In the Left-Wing Extremist (LWE) affected segments of Araku, Paderu and Rampachodavaram, the polling concluded at 4 p.m. while in three other LWE-affected segments of Palakonda, Kurupam, and Salur it will conclude at 5 p.m. The balloting in 169 Assembly segments will continue till 6 p.m. Poll officials said those standing in queues at 6 p.m. will be allowed to cast votes. In the 2019 elections, the state had recorded 79.84 per cent polling. Chief Minister and YSR Congress Party President Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief and former Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, Jana Sena leader and actor Pawan Kalyan are among 2,387 candidates for 175 Assembly seats. For the 25 Lok Sabha seats, 454 contestants are in the fray and the prominent among them are former Union Minister and state BJP chief D. Purandeswari (Rajahmundry), state Congress President Y.S. Sharmila Reddy (Kadapa), and former Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy (BJP, Rajampet). New Delhi, May 13 : Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday reiterated claims of BJP's 'solid' performance in the ongoing polls and claimed the party is awaiting a 'huge victory' in the Southern states. In an exclusive interview with NDTV, the Home Minister said that the BJP is moving towards big victory in four Southern states including Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Notably, 'Mission South' is one of the key thrusts of the BJP this time, as the party aims to cross past the '400 mark', a goal set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Amit Shah predicts 'huge victory' in South, names four states where BJP will bag seats The four states - Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Tamil Nadu together sent 109 seats to Lok Sabha, out of which BJP won 29 in 2019 elections. In Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, BJP drew a blank but this time it is hoping for 'magnificent' gains in both states, besides opening its account in Kerala. The Home Minister also spoke on a couple of issues including the Opposition's charges on Constitution change and reservations. Taking the opposition to task, he asked it to refrain from inventing fake narratives and not mislead the voters to derail the democratic process. "Modi ji became Prime Minister twice. He had a clear mandate both times. So, if the BJP government wanted to change the Constitution, or remove reservation, who could have stopped us?" Amit Shah said. "Rahul Gandhi wants to mislead the country. The people of the country know this. Either he is delusional or is spreading delusion," he added. Amit Shah also highlighted how the BJP government used its majority to finish Article 370, Triple Talaq, to build Ram Mandir, to conduct a surgical strike, to land Chandrayaan, to save 130 crores during the Covid pandemic and also undertook wide-ranging projects to ease up the life of common people. On queries about the fall in stock markets, he said that the market crash shouldn't be linked with elections. Highlighting that a stable government helps shoot up markets, he said that the markets will see a fresh surge after June 4, as the BJP-led alliance will return to power with a thumping majority. Chennai, May 13 : Tamil Nadu School Education Department will conduct the 'Out of School Children' (OoSC) survey from the last week of May to track the whereabouts of the students and to assess the conditions of the student families. President of the Social and Economic Study Centre M. K. Muthuvel told IANS that the survey will clear why children in the age group of 6-18 are not attending the schools. "Those who drop out of schools are either due to financial instability of the parents or due to migration from one district to the other," Muthuvel said. He said that if these issues are addressed and the government can convince the parents about the importance of education, then the rate of dropouts and out-of-school children could be minimised to a larger extent. The survey will be conducted by Block Resource Teacher Educators (BRTE), school headmasters, teachers, Anganwadi teachers, social activists, school management committee members along the Labour Department officials. Physiotherapists and special educators will also be roped in for the survey as the department is undertaking a study of special children and those with different abilities. An Education Department official told IANS that special focus will be given to children of migrant labourers as there is a huge presence of migrant labourers in Tamil Nadu from North India and Northeastern states. He said that a survey, conducted in February 2023, showed a dropout of 1.3 lakh students. In 2017, a government order said that children who have not attended classes for 30 continuous days will be considered 'dropouts'. The order also said that those who are irregular will be considered 'potential dropouts'. The official said that during a 2023 survey, they identified some schools where the student attendance had not attended classes for more than thirty days. He said that the department will take stringent action against such schools which have provided fake pictures of the ground-level situation of the school-going children. The survey in 2024 was delayed after several teachers were involved in election duty as well as in the New India Literacy Programme. Srinagar, May 13 : As female voters started coming out after completing household chores in the afternoon, voting percentages started rising across J&K's Srinagar constituency on Monday with the overall turnout at 30.23 per cent. The highest voter turnout so far has been in the Kangan Assembly segment of the Ganderbal district where 46.76 per cent of voters had exercised their franchise till 3 pm. This was followed by Char-e-Shareef at 45.09 per cent, Chadoora at 40.70 per cent, Khan Sahib at 41.20 per cent, Ganderbal at 39.30 per cent, Shopian at 37.91 per cent, Rajpora at 36.31 per cent, Pulwama at 33.21 per cent, Tral at 30.45 per cent, Pampore at 29.79 per cent, Zadibal at 22.97 per cent, Hazratbal at 22.02 per cent, Lal Chowk at 21.70 per cent, Central Shalteng at 20.48 per cent, Khanyar at 17.05 per cent, Channapora at 16.45 per cent, and Habba Kadal at 11.40 per cent. This is the first election in Kashmir after 1987 when the separatists have not called for a poll boycott. This is also the first Lok Sabha election after the abrogation of Article 370 and downgrading of J&K into a Union Territory. The eagerness of the people to cast their vote was obvious everywhere except the Khanyar segment in Srinagar city where the first vote was only cast after 9 a.m. Even in the once perceived hotbed of separatist sentiment in the Valley, the old city areas of Srinagar, voters came out without any fear to cast their vote. Authorities had made elaborate security arrangements to provide a fearless voting environment to the people. Despite a large number of security forces deployed in the entire constituency, there is no tension or fear anywhere in the constituency. At many places, smiling voters exchanged greetings with the deployed security personnel, and even displaying their fingers to show the indelible ink mark. There are 17,47,810 voters - 8,75,938 male, 8,71,808 fender and 64 third-gender voters in the constituency. ECI has set up 2135 polling stations -1,004 urban and 1,131 rural polling stations in the constituency. There are 24 candidates in the fray in this constituency although the main contest is between Syed Ruhullah Mehdi of the National Conference (NC), Waheed ur Rehman Para of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Mohd Ashraf Mir of the J&K Apni Party. The voting started at 7 a.m. and will end at 6 p.m. Ludhiana, May 13 : Announcing to start the 'Patar Award' in memory of Punjabi poet, writer and Padma Shri recipient Surjit Patar, who died at the age of 79, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Monday attended the funeral. Patar was cremated with full state honours in Ludhiana. The last journey of Patar was taken out from his house to the cremation ground in Model Town. CM Mann also reached there and shouldered the bier. He also met the family of Patar and shared condolences. He got emotional while shouldering the bier. On the occasion, AAP MP Sant Balbir Singh Seechewal was also present. Talking to the media, the chief minister announced that the 'Patar Award' would have prize money of Rs 1 lakh and will be given every year to emerging poets. The award will be for students from grade VIII up to graduation level. A panel will be formed for the 'Patar Award'. Litterateurs will be included in this and emerging poets will take part in the competition to win the award. Besides, a competition will be organised for graduation-level students. He said the aim of the award is to inspire the youth to read Surjit Patar, take interest in the literature, and become writers and poets like him (Patar) too. He said Patar used to say the Punjabi language is not part of artificial intelligence. "We will do our best to take our mother language forward in every field." Aizawl, May 13 : The contagious African Swine Fever (ASF) continues to spread in Mizoram, killing at least 635 pigs while 290 pigs had to be culled so far to prevent the spread of the disease, officials said on Monday. Officials in the Animal Husbandry and Veterinary (AHV) Department said that since April, an ASF outbreak has been reported from three districts -- Aizawl, Champhai, and Saitual -- with 308 pigs killed and 195 pigs culled since last month in Aizawl alone. Officials said that under the Prevention and Control of Infectious and Contagious Disease in Animals Act, 2009, the department has declared various villages and localities in these three districts as infected areas following the outbreak of ASF. The department has also prohibited the supply of pigs from the infected zones. The AHV department has asked its teams and villagers to bury the dead and culled pigs with lime powder in the designated areas. Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Minister C. Lalsawivunga recently held a review meeting with the concerned officials and appealed to all to adhere to the governmentas guidelines and directives to deal with the disease. The ASF first hit Mizoram in 2021 and since then, reports of the outbreak of the disease have been reported almost every year during summers. According to the officials, the outbreak of ASF mostly occurs when the climate begins to warm up and pre-monsoon rains commence in the state. At least 47,269 pigs and piglets have died between 2021 and 2023 in Mizoram due to ASF outbreak, while at least 25,182 pigs have been culled during this period. The amount of losses incurred due to the ASF outbreak in the state has been estimated to be over Rs 132.20 crore, affecting 19,017 families. According to experts, the outbreak of ASF may have been caused by pigs or pork brought from neighbouring Myanmar, Bangladesh, and the adjoining states of the northeast. With heavy demand for pork in the northeastern region, its annual business in the region is worth around Rs 8,000-Rs 10,000 crore, with Assam being the largest supplier. Mumbai, May 13 : A massive dust storm engulfed large parts of Mumbai and suburbs besides adjoining Thane and Navi Mumbai with the visibility dropping drastically forcing the closure of operations at Mumbai Airport, here on Monday. The dust storm, something rare for coastal Mumbai, whipped up suddenly with strong gusty winds around 3 pm and within minutes enveloped almost the entire city, dipping visibility, darkening the atmosphere and hampering the movement of traffic and pedestrians. The stormy conditions and poor visibility have also hit the flight operations at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA). After over an hour, the dustiness gave way to dark clouds with showers in many parts of Mumbai which appreciably dropped the scorching temperatures and also improved visibility to normal levels. The causes of the dust storm in Mumbai, often referred to as the concrete jungle, were not immediately known, but the IMD had issued an alert of a storm with thunder and lightning shortly before it started. The BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation has issued a fresh warning of a thunderstorm over Mumbai with strong winds of 50-60 kmph likely to hit parts of Mumbai after dusk. The IMD Pune head K. S. Hosalikar said that a moderate to intense thunderstorm would hit Thane, Raigad, Palghar, Ahmednagar, Pune and Satara, besides parts of Mumbai in the next couple of hours. Many people complained that their homes, shops, offices and other places were covered in a thick layer of dust that blew in abruptly before they could shut the doors and windows. Rae Bareli: Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra during a public meeting for the Lok Sabha elections. Image Source: IANS News Raebareli : , May 13 (IANS) After evading queries for years, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Monday finally responded to a question about his marriage. Gandhi scion Rahul, who is considered one of the most eligible bachelors in the country, was addressing a meeting in Raebareli on Monday when someone from the crowd teased the senior Congress leader about his marital status and asked him when he plans to tie the knot. His sister Priyanka Gandhi who was standing close to him drew Rahul Gandhi's attention to the question and he said, "Ab jaldi hi karni padegi (now, I will have to get married soon)." On hearing his reply, the crowd cheered wildly and Rahul Gandhi responded with a smile. Rahul Gandhi is a sitting MP from Kerala's Wayanad constituency, from where he is seeking a fresh term alongside the Raebareli constituency. He had represented Amethi from 2004 until 2019. He will face Congress defector and three-time MLC Dinesh Pratap Singh of the BJP in Raebareli. Raebareli constituency goes to the polls on May 20 in the fifth phase. New Delhi, May 13 : Strengthening the Digital India mission, two-wheeler giant Hero MotoCorp on Monday said that it has joined the government-run Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) Network, becoming the first auto company in the country to join the network. According to the company, this partnership will further improve the reach and convenience, providing an easily accessible digital mode to consumers. "Now with ONDC Network, we have pioneered the automotive taxonomy for the auto industry, making it easier for customers to find vehicle parts and accessories to begin with," Niranjan Gupta, CEO, Hero MotoCorp, said in a statement. He further added that with this initiative, Hero MotoCorp is taking forward the government's Digital India mission and "we will continue to bring in more innovation in this space". Initially, ONDC will offer two-wheeler parts, accessories and merchandise on its platform. Consumers can easily discover the two-wheeler giant's genuine parts by using any buyer apps on the Network, such as Paytm and Mystore, among others, the company mentioned. "When brands like Hero MotoCorp embrace the Open Network, it reaffirms our vision of driving digital transformation in the country by creating a fair and efficient ecosystem for all kinds of businesses to thrive," said T Koshy, MD & CEO of ONDC. With ONDC Network, Hero MotoCorp said that it is all set to deliver a renewed purchasing experience to its over 115 million customers. New Delhi, May 13 : Elon Musk-run Tesla has regained the top position in BEV (battery electric vehicle) sales in the first quarter (Q1) of 2024, despite a 9 per cent (year-on-year) decline, a new report showed on Monday. Tesla takes the top spot in BEV sales with a 19 per cent market share in Q1, according to Counterpoint Research. Among the top three OEMs (original equipment manufacturers), only BYD Group achieved growth with 13 per cent (year-on-year), while both Tesla and Volkswagen experienced drops of 9 per cent and 4 per cent (year-on-year), respectively. According to the report, global passenger EV (BEV+PHEV) sales increased 18 per cent (year-on-year) in Q1 this year. While BEV sales grew by a modest 7 per cent (year-on-year) during the quarter, PHEV (plug-in hybrid EV) sales grew 46 per cent (year-on-year). "The cheaper upfront cost of PHEVs when compared to BEVs and the availability of a fuel tank that eliminates range anxiety were among the main reasons for high PHEV demand," said Research Analyst Abhik Mukherjee. As per the report, Tesla and BYD have managed to trim their BEV manufacturing costs, allowing them to offer competitive prices. This has put pressure on other automakers like Ford and GM which are struggling to reduce their manufacturing costs. While analysts believe the EV market is set for significant growth in 2024, there are also signs of a slowdown and annual growth could fall below 20 per cent. "The levelling off of early-adopter interest suggests a shift in consumer dynamics to the mass market in the long term and a new phase of evolution for the EV industry," said Associate Director Liz Lee. --IANS shs/vd New Delhi, May 13 : The new KP.2 Covid-19 variant appears to be more transmissible, but is not virulent, said doctors on Monday, amid reports of 91 cases being detected in Maharashtra. KP.1.1, and KP.2 strains are part of the new variant dubbed FLiRT, based on the technical names for their mutations, one of which includes the letters "F" and "L", and another of which includes the letters "R" and "T". Genome sequencing of March and April revealed 91 cases of KP.2 in Maharashtra -- Pune (51), Thane (20), Amravati (7), Aurangabad (7), Solapur (2), Ahmednagar (1), Nashik (1), Latur (1), and Sangli (1). "There is no reason to believe that the FLiRT group of variants being reported are more virulent than the existing variants," Dr Lancelot Pinto, Consultant Pulmonologist and Epidemiologist, P. D. Hinduja Hospital and MRC, Mahim, told IANS. "KP.2 appears to be more transmissible," he added. The doctor advised people who are immunocompromised to take precautions such as masking, avoiding crowded closed spaces, and keeping comorbidities under control. FLiRT variants belong to the Omicron lineage, which was highly transmissible and showed great immune escape. First identified globally in January, KP.2 is a descendant of Omicronas JN.1. Data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that KP.2 accounted for about 25 per cent of new sequenced cases in the country in the last weeks of April. The symptoms of the new variant typically include a sore throat, runny nose, congestion, tiredness, fever (with or without chills), headache, muscle pain, and sometimes loss of taste or smell. KP.2 has replaced the previously circulating JN.1 variant and is now driving cases in several countries, including the US, UK, and Canada. "While KP.2 may be the most predominant variant, it is not causing a massive increase in infections," as seen in the data from other countries, Dr Tushar Tayal, Lead Consultant, Department of Internal Medicine, C.K. Birla Hospital, Gurugram, told IANS. --IANS rvt/vd Mumbai, May 13 : Telugu stars Ram Charan, who is gearing up for his film 'Game Changer', and Mahesh Babu, who was recently seen in 'Guntur Kaaram', fulfilled their duties as citizens as they cast their votes in Hyderabad in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. Mumbai, May 13 (IANS) Telugu stars Ram Charan, who is gearing up for his film aGame Changera, and Mahesh Babu, who was recently seen in aGuntur Kaarama, fulfilled their duties as citizens as they cast their votes in Hyderabad in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. Ram Charan went to the Jubilee Hills Club polling station along with his wife Upasana Kamineni Konidela to cast his vote around 2:30 pm on Monday. After casting his vote the actor was seen posing for the paparazzi stationed at the venue. He was seen wearing a white shirt with a mandarin collar and white pants. He rounded up his look with a pair of sunglasses. Earlier, Ram Charan met the Jana Sena Party Chief and his uncle Pawan Kalyan in Pithapuram and appealed to the people to vote for him. Mahesh Babu and his wife, Namrata Shirodkar, also exercised their right to vote as they cast their vote in Hyderabad. Mahesh Babu was seen donning a blue coloured t-shirt and pants, and a cap. New Delhi, May 13 : Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday fired a fresh salvo against Rahul Gandhi and the Congress, for making "lofty promises disconnected with reality" during the Lok Sabha poll campaign without explaining where the huge funds to finance these schemes were going to come from. New Delhi, May 13 (IANS) Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday fired a fresh salvo against Rahul Gandhi and the Congress, for making "lofty promises disconnected with reality" during the Lok Sabha poll campaign without explaining where the huge funds to finance these schemes were going to come from. The Finance Minister said that these schemes could not be implemented without increasing taxes or borrowing heavily and running down the economy. The Finance Minister said on X: "Has @INCIndia considered the cost of the lofty promises made in their manifesto? Have they calculated how much the 'Khata Khat' schemes will cost fiscally? Will they borrow substantially for them, or will they raise taxes to fund them? How many welfare schemes would @RahulGandhi shut down to accommodate the fiscal cost of the 'Khata Khat' schemes?" The Finance Minister asked would Rahul Gandhi care to answer these questions and explain how their gigantic schemes of fiscal splurge would work without increasing taxes or borrowing heavily and running down the economy. "Here's a challenge to him to answer these questions for the people of India," she said. She said that the truth is that the BJP government's fiscal management is much better than that of the UPA despite facing the COVID-19 pandemic in which substantial resources were used for relief efforts. She also asserted that the Modi government had managed the country's fiscal situation in a much better manner than the Congress-led UPA government and cited figures to drive home her point. "During the UPA rule from FY2004 to FY2014, Central Government Debt, including external debt at current values, grew about 3.2 times, from Rs 18.74 lakh crore in March 2004 to Rs 58.59 lakh crore in March 2014. This increase was much greater than the 2.9 times growth from Rs 58.59 lakh crore in FY 2014 to Rs 172.37 lakh crore in FY 2024 (RE)," she said. This lower increase between FY 2014 and FY 2024 occurred despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, where the Centre borrowed to provide relief to those in need even as revenues fell, she added. She said that the Central government's debt, which was 52.2 per cent of GDP at the end of FY 2013-14, was reduced to around 48.9 per cent in FY 2018-19 through gradual fiscal consolidation. "During this period, the fiscal deficit was lowered from 4.5 per cent in FY 2013-14 to 3.4 per cent in FY 2018-19. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and proactive government measures to protect lives and livelihoods, the fiscal deficit surged to 9.2 per cent of GDP in FY 2020-21, increasing the central government's debt to 61.4 per cent of GDP," the Finance Minister said. She said that post-pandemic, the government pursued a balanced approach to fiscal consolidation while sustaining economic growth. "This strategy reduced the fiscal deficit from 9.2 per cent of GDP in FY 2020-21 to 5.8 per cent in the Revised Estimates for FY 2023-24," she said. The minister said that the Interim Budget projects a further reduction to 5.1 per cent of GDP in FY 2024-25. Similarly, the Central government's debt-to-GDP ratio fell from 61.4 per cent in FY 2020-21 to 57.1 per cent in FY 2023-24. "On the other hand, under UPA, for 6 consecutive years between FY 2009 and FY 2014, the ratio of India's Gross Fiscal Deficit (GFD) to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was at least 4.5 per cent. It was between 4.5 per cent - 5 per cent of GDP in 3 out of the 6 years, between 5 per cent - 6 per cent in one, and more than 6 per cent in 2 years. And there was no COVID-19-like crisis that needed such a quantum of fiscal expansion, showing poor fiscal management by UPA," the Finance Minister said. The Net Market Borrowings (G-sec) of the Centre had gone up a whopping 4.5 times during the UPA regime. It went up by 2.6 times under our government despite the COVID-19 pandemic. It shows the robust fiscal management of our govt, she added. During COVID-19, 'borrow, spend and even print money' to reboot the economy was the predominant advice given by the so-called "luminaries" of the opposition parties led by Congress. Ironically, the same people are complaining about high debt levels, the Finance Minister remarked. Under the Congress-led UPA government, the underlying deficit was much higher than the budgeted deficit, she said. UPA Govt did 'window dressing' to hide its high fiscal deficit without maintaining the integrity of the fiscal numbers. Fiscal Deficit for 2008-09 would have been 7.9 per cent instead of 6.1 per cent as officially stated, she said. "In contrast, our government has prioritised transparency and accountability in its budgeting practices, thereby enhancing the credibility and robustness of its fiscal numbers," the Finance Minister added. Gandhinagar, May 13 : In a bid to foster collaboration in research, education, and innovation in defence technology, the Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar (IITGN) on Monday joined hands with Adani Defence & Aerospace, a subsidiary of Adani Group, to collaborate in areas of emerging technologies. The collaboration will encompass joint research projects, prototype developments, student projects, and joint workshops in technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and large language models (LLMs) for defence applications. The MoU was signed by Amit Prashant, Dean, Research & Development, IITGN, and Ashish Rajvanshi, CEO, Adani Defence & Aerospace, on the IITGN campus. "Our collaboration with IITGN marks a pivotal moment in the defence sector's technological evolution. By combining our industry acumen with IITGN's academic prowess, we aim to develop sophisticated, innovative solutions for defence," said Rajvanshi. "Our joint efforts underscore our dedication to national security and affirm our commitment to India's self-reliance in defence technology," he added. The partnership between Adani Defence & Aerospace and IITGN is a strategic step forward in reinforcing India's defence sector through technological innovation and academic-industry collaboration. "Our alliance with Adani Defence and Aerospace, a trailblazer in the defence industry, is a testament to our shared vision of harnessing potential technologies for defence," said Rajat Moona, Director, IITGN. This collaboration offers "our faculty and students the opportunity to tackle significant challenges within the defence realm and broadens their industry horizons", he added. Adani Defence & Aerospace is a pioneer in the design, development, and manufacturing of state-of-the-art defence equipment. It has established a robust platform for startups and MSMEs to help develop a vibrant defence ecosystem with an export-oriented mindset, best-in-class processes, and quality management systems. Mumbai, May 13 : Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) state President and MP Sunil Tatkare on Monday expressed confidence that the polling so far had been in favour of the Mahayuti and the alliance would get success in the fourth phase of the elections. Tatkare was speaking to the media at a press conference at the NCPas Mumbai office and said he was assured of the Mahayuti's victory and that the alliance would get a further impetus. "There are some seats left while the last phase will see elections in Mumbai and Thane constituencies which will help us," he added. He said it was natural that the Opposition will not agree to the aMahaYuti wavea. "They want to keep their party workers' morale high. Since the Maha Vikas Aghadi's candidates are contesting, they have to say such things for their voters. That is why they make such statements. The reality however is completely different," he said. Tatkare also expressed the belief that Sunetra Pawar would get a better lead from Khadakwasla Assembly Constituency than what the BJP got in 2019. "We are all contesting as Mahayuti. Even though we contest as NCP with the 'Clock' symbol, we will win maximum seats in Maharashtra as Mahayuti," he said. Tatkare launched an attack on NCP Legislator Rohit Pawar stating that, through his posts on social media, he has indirectly conceded defeat in Baramati. He stated that leaders of all three parties were gearing up for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Mumbai rally. "I will attend the meeting in Kalyan the next day as NCP state President. It is the responsibility of each worker of every alliance partner of Mahayuti to ensure PM Modi's meeting is a huge success," he said. New Delhi, May 13 : India on Monday signed a 10-year contract with Iran to develop and operate the Shahid Beheshti terminal at Chabahar port on Iran's south-eastern coast. The contract was signed in Tehran by India Ports Global Ltd (IPGL) and the Ports and Maritime Organisation of Iran in the presence Union Ports, Shipping and Waterways Minister, Sarbananda Sonowal, the Indian Embassy in Iran posted on X. Under the agreement, government-owned IPGL will invest about $120 million while there will be an additional $250 million in financing, bringing the contract's value to $370 million, Iranian Minister of Roads and Urban Development, Mehrdad Bazrpash, told journalists in Tehran, The agreement was signed in the presence of Sarbananda Sonowal, who flew to Tehran for the crucial event amid the hectic Lok Sabha poll campaign. Sonowal said with the signing of the agreement, the two countries have laid the foundations for India's long-term involvement in Chabahar. The new pact replaces an earlier agreement signed in 2016, allowing India to operate the Shahid Beheshti terminal in Chabahar port which was ad hoc in nature and had to be renewed every year. "Chabahar Port's significance transcends its role as a mere conduit between India and Iran; it serves as a vital trade artery connecting India with Afghanistan and the Central Asian countries," Sonowal said after the signing of the agreement. "The signing of this contract will have a multiplier effect on the viability and visibility of Chabahar Port," Sonowal said, adding, "Chabahar is not only the closest Iranian port to India, but it is also an excellent port from a nautical point of view." India has been developing a terminal at the port in Chabahar to transport goods to Iran, and the land-locked countries of Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan. The new agreement with Iran would open a trade route between South Asia and Central Asia via Iran, bypassing Karachi and the Gwadar Port in Pakistan. There are plans to link the Chabahar Port with the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) that connects India with Russia via Iran, giving India access to the Central Asian region. This would be an alternative route bypassing the congested Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz sea lanes. The development also comes at a time when China has been keen to increase its investments in ports and other coastal infrastructure in Iran. Meanwhile, External Affairs Minister S, Jaishankar said in Mumbai that the agreement would provide the pathway for bigger investments and more linkages coming out of the seaport. Patiala, May 13 : Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday said he has seen many elections but never seen such passion and enthusiasm among the voters. Speaking at the roadshow of the four-time MP Preneet Kaur, BJP's Lok Sabha candidate from Patiala in Punjab, Sarma said: "Seeing your enthusiasm, I am sure that election is just a formality. Preneet Kaur will win from Patiala again. Modi-ji has made the impossible possible, he revoked Article 370 and he answered the prayers of thousands of devotees by opening Ram Mandir." He said that PM Modi is now asking for 400 plus seats to ensure Vikasit Bharat. "The people of Punjab have seen through the charade of the Congress and AAP as they are working as partners in Haryana and Delhi and acting as opponents here. The people will not waste their votes on either of them," he said. Slamming the incumbent AAP government, Punjab BJP President Sunil Jakhar lamented on the deteriorating law and order situation in Punjab, contrasting it with the safety and security prevalent during Captain Amarinder Singh's tenure. He underscored Patiala's faith in Preneet Kaur's ability to address their concerns, be it the effective utilisation of MPLAD funds or the provision of essential medical services. During the roadshow, Preneet Kaur, the wife of two-time Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, covered the entire route in a specially branded vehicle, emblazoned with the resounding slogan, "Patiale Da Bharosa Preneet Kaur". Nearly 12,000 people walked along with the convoy for more than three hours. Crowds lined up streets, eagerly awaiting a glimpse of leaders, showering flower petals from rooftops and balconies as the convoy passed by. Addressing the crowd, Preneet Kaur said: "This election is not merely about politics, it's about renewal of 'rishta' between me and the people of Patiala. People's unwavering 'bharosa' (faith) and 'ashirwad' (blessing) are my greatest treasures. I will ensure that I will do more work in the next five years than in the previous 20 years." Prior to filing her nomination paper, Preneet Kaur paid her obeisance at the historic Burj Baba Ala Singh, Qila Mubarak, accompanied by family members. Sitting MP Preneet Kaur has been pitted against Congress candidate and noted cardiologist Dr Dharamvira Gandhi, who is seven years younger than the 79-year-old Kaur. Dharamvira Gandhi defeated Preneet Kaur in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls when he was contesting on an AAP ticket. While this time, the AAP has fielded Health Minister, Balbir Singh, the Shiromani Akali Dal has reposed faith in two-time legislator and realtor, N.K. Sharma, the first Hindu face of the party from the Sikh-dominated seat. Patiala, one of the 13 Parliamentary constituencies in Punjab, has been a bastion of the Congress. Polling in Punjab for all 13 seats is scheduled in the last phase of Lok Sabha elections on June 1. Patna May 13 : Congress candidate from North-East Delhi and former JNU student leader Kanhaiya Kumar cast his vote at his native village in Bihar's Begusarai district on Monday. Kanhaiya Kumar went to polling booth No. 228 located in his native village Bihat Maksudpur and exercised his franchise. "If you believe in democracy, casting vote is your first responsibility as a voter. For me, this place has both emotional and political values. I spent my childhood here. I studied at the local school. I have many memories here," Kumar said after casting his vote. Kumar had joined the CPI before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections and unsuccessfully contested the polls from Begusarai against BJP's Giriraj Singh. Under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi, he joined the Congress in 2021. There were talks that the party may stake a claim for the Begusarai seat for Kumar this time, but it went to the CPI as per the seat-sharing formula of the INDIA bloc. Now, Kumar is contesting against BJP's Manoj Tiwari from North-East Delhi. Patna May 13 : RJD leaders on Monday filed a complaint before the Election Commission claiming that scores of voters were "not allowed" to exercise their franchise in Bihar's Munger Lok Sabha constituency. Patna May 13 (IANS) RJD leaders on Monday filed a complaint before the Election Commission claiming that scores of voters were "not allowed" to exercise their franchise in Biharas Munger Lok Sabha constituency. The fourth phase of polling for the five seats including Munger, Darbhanga, Begusarai, Samastipur and Ujiarpur ended at 6 pm on Monday. A delegation of RJD leaders led by Rajya Sabha MP Manoj Jha filed the complaint before the election commission. They pointed out irregularities allegedly which took place during voting in the Munger Lok Sabha constituency. The RJD leaders claimed voters were not allowed to vote in Lakhisarai, Mokama and Barahia in the Munger Lok Sabha constituency and district administrations of Patna and Lakhisarai did not help them. They have urged the Election Commission to take cognisance of the matter and take appropriate action. So that people who are deprived of voting can cast their vote peacefully. The RJD leaders pointed out irregularities at booth numbers 200, 201, 202, 205, 207, 208, 209, 210, 211, 212, 213, 219, 221, 222, 223, 224, 225, 226, 227, 228, 229, 232, 233, 234, 235, 236 of Mokama assembly constituency. Booth numbers 236, 237, 238, 265, 266, 349, 392 in Lakhisarai assembly constituency. They said that booth number 29 of Badhiya Municipal Council and 157 and 179 of Suryagarh Assembly Constituency were taken over by JDU supporters. I didn't even dream about that kind of success: Lewandowski proud of scoring 100 goals in European competition. Image Source: IANS News Warsaw, May 13 : Robert Lewandowski's agent Pini Zahavi affirmed that the Polish striker would remain at FC Barcelona next season. He added that Lewandowski is not interested in a transfer to the Saudi Pro League. "That is nonsense. Lewandowski will stay in Barcelona one hundred percent. He wants to play another year in Catalonia," Zahavi told Polish media on Monday morning. The 34-year-old scored four goals for Barcelona in his last two La Liga matches, and sits fourth in this season's individual scoring charts with 17 goals, reports Xinhua. However, according to Spanish media Sport.es, Barcelona are considering selling Lewandowski as it would allow them to bring in other players. An important factor is the Pole's high salary, which media reports suggest amounts to approximately 30 million euros per year. In 2022 the forward signed a four-year contract with Barcelona. The last year will depend on his performances in the 2024-25 season. The contract includes a clause providing for the possibility of unilateral termination of the deal if Lewandowski does not play in 55 per cent of all minutes played. New Delhi, May 13 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi, leading the BJP's campaign blitzkrieg across various states, saw groundswell of emotions particularly in West Bengal during the weekend, coinciding with Mother's Day. While some individuals gifted PM Modi hand-made portraits of his mother at Hooghly rally, other rally saw heartfelt meeting between PM Modi and the BJP workers. On Monday, Modi Archive, a popular X handle, shared an interesting anecdote about Prime Minister Narendra Modi, way back in 2001. It tells the netizens that PM Modi's mother Heeraben gave him a 'mantra' before assuming the chair of Gujarat CM. The X handle mentions that after Narendra Modi became the Chief Minister of Gujarat, he went to meet his mother. Upon seeing him, his mother was overwhelmed with emotion. However, mother Heeraben had a message for him: "Son, do whatever you believe is right but never accept bribes." This happened in October 2021 when PM Modi was getting ready to assume the office of Gujarat Chief Minister. He went to meet his mother to seek her blessings and received a 'mantra' which he has lived and practiced throughout his political life. PM Modi also followed one more practice religiously. After every election victory, he would first visit his mother, Heeraben and seek his blessings. Notably, 2024 Lok Sabha polls is the first election when the Prime Minister doesn't have his mother by his side. Some days ago, a video of PM Modi recalling his relationship with his mother also went viral, where he said that this was for the first time he was going to the polls without the blessings of his mother. "This is for the first time that I will go to file the nomination without touching my mother's feet," an emotional Prime Minister said in a TV interview. New Delhi, May 13 : Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharman said on Monday that India has fared relatively well compared with other countries as far as the government debt to GDP ratio is concerned and the country is the third least indebted nation among low- and middle-income countries (LMIC). India had a debt-to-GDP ratio of 81 per cent in 2022. This is significantly lower than economies like Japan (260.1 per cent), Italy (140.5 per cent), the USA (121.3 per cent), France (111.8 per cent), and the UK (101.9 per cent) in the same period. On the other hand, several countries have faced the risk of sovereign default in recent years. The number of countries facing high debt levels increased from 22 in 2011 to almost 60 in 2022, she said. The Finance Minister said that in a comparative analysis with other LMICs, India's external debt scenario is robust. Considering the ratio of total external debt to Gross National Income (GNI), India emerges as the 3rd least indebted country among all LMICs. This is a vital indicator of a country's ability to handle its external debt. The ratio of India's total external debt to its exports is 91.9 per cent, positioning it as the fifth least indebted country among LMICs in this aspect. India's share of short-term debt in the total external debt is 18.7 per cent. This is lower than that of other LMICs like China, Thailand, Turkey, Vietnam, South Africa, and Bangladesh, which have higher percentages, she added. A lower proportion of short-term debt is beneficial as it implies less immediate repayment pressure. Regarding Central government debt, it is also important to note that it is overwhelmingly rupee-denominated, with external borrowings (from bilateral & multilateral sources) contributing a minimal amount (less than 5 per cent of total debt), which signifies that exposure to volatility in exchange rates tend to be on the lower end. Domestically issued debt of the Central government, which is mostly raised through government securities, has a weighted average maturity of roughly 12 years, which indicates low rollover risk. This indicates the sustainability of the Central government debt. Therefore, the risk profile of Indiaas government debt stands out as safe and prudent in terms of accepted parameters of indicator-based approach for debt sustainability, she said. India's government external debt as a percentage of GDP (2020) was just 6.7 per cent compared to 24.4 per cent of Mexico, 28.6 per cent of Pakistan, 20.6 per cent of Indonesia, and 15.8 per cent of Turkey. Criticising the erstwhile Congress-led UPA amid the ongoing Lok Sabha poll campaign, the Finance Minister said that during its tenure, Indiaas external vulnerability had shot up because of over-dependence on External Commercial Borrowings (ECBs). Between 2004-14, ECBs rose at a deplorable CAGR of 21.1 per cent, whereas in the 9 years from FY14 to FY23, they grew at an annual rate of 4.5 per cent. "UPA's legacy of fiscal shortsightedness and hidden debts contrasts sharply with our era of transparent, strategic, and transformative investments. Under PM Modi-led Govt, we are building a legacy of growth, transparency, and responsibility," she added. Mumbai, May 13 : At least 3 persons were killed, and 55 others injured in two separate incidents -- a gigantic hoarding crash in Ghatkopar and a vertical steel parking lot in Wadala -- in Mumbai, in the aftermath of a massive dust-storm that shrouded the city for over two hours, following by unseasonal rains, the BMC Disaster Control said here on Monday. A monstrous hoarding of advertisements crashed in the gusty winds on several houses and a petrol pump in Pant Nagar, Ghatkopar east suburb around 4.15 p.m. At least 54 people were left injured and another 70 are still feared trapped under the hoarding when many vehicles queued up to refill petrol and diesel. In Wadala, a multi-storied, vertical steel parking lot near the Shreeji Towers building crashed on a main road in the squally dust-storm this afternoon. The tumbling parking lot crushed around a dozen vehicles and one person sitting in a car was trapped, said the officials. The Mumbai Fire Brigade rushed over a dozen fire engines, and the NDRF rushed its expert teams, which managed to rescue 62 people and are engaged in a huge search and rescue operation for the others still trapped in the Ghatkopar hoarding crash. A heavy-duty crane was deployed to lift the hoarding to enable the rescuers to reach the victims trapped. Taking serious cognisance, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde rushed to the tragedy spot, enquired about the rescue operations, and ordered the BMC Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani and Mumbai Police to conduct a probe into the tragedy. "I have also ordered the BMC authorities to carry out a special audit of all the hoardings in Mumbai and remove all the illegal ones from the city," Shinde told mediapersons, while announcing an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh to the kin of the deceased. Bharatiya Janata Party ex-MP Kiriti Somaiya told mediapersons from the site that the hoarding was allegedly illegal and the BMC had reportedly issued a notice to remove it on Sunday. He demanded a thorough inquiry into how the illegal hoarding was allowed to be erected without following safety norms, arrest and slap criminal charges against the owners. Besides the two major tragedies, there were reports of several tree crashes, vehicular accidents and other minor incidents due to the sudden inclement weather conditions. After the dust storm subsided, many parts of Mumbai were lashed by rains, bringing some respite from the heat and humidity. The BMC Disaster Control said that in two hours between 4-6 p.m., south Mumbai recorded an average of 18 mm rains, eastern suburbs notched 47 mm and the western suburbs recorded 35 mm rainfall. The BMC has issued a warning of a thunderstorm likely to hit parts of Mumbai with strong winds of 50-60 kmph, later on Monday night, and advised citizens to exercise precautions while stepping out. The IMD Pune head K.S. Hosalikar said that a moderate to intense thunderstorm accompanied by strong winds, is likely to lash Thane, Raigad, Palghar, Ahmednagar, Pune and Satara, besides parts of Mumbai in the next few hours. Kolkata, May 13 : The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday told a special PMLA court here that suspended Trinamool Congress leader Sheikh Shahjahan earned Rs 260 crore through illegal land-grabbing at Sandeshkhali in West Bengal's North 24 Parganas district. The ED counsel informed the court that the central agency has identified properties worth Rs 260 crore which were purchased using the aproceeds of crime". Meanwhile, the counsel for Sheikh Shahjahanas brother Sheikh Alamgir on Monday moved a bail petition on behalf of his client claiming that his wife is suffering from a lack of finances following the attachment of his bank account by the ED. However, the ED counsel opposed the bail application and informed the court that the bank account of Alamgir has not been attached by the agency, following which the court rejected the plea. Following an order of the Calcutta High Court, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is already probing the complaints of illegal land grabbing, extortion, and sexual harassment of women at Sandeshkhali. Although the state government approached the Supreme Court challenging the high court order, the apex court refused to set it aside. Bamako, May 13 : A plan to extend military rule in Mali by several more years has been met with harsh criticism by political parties and civic groups in the West African country. Participants in Mali's national dialogue recommended at the weekend that the junta continue to rule for another three years until the military-led transition to democracy is complete. It also said that junta leader Assimi GoAta should stand in the election to be held once democracy is realised. The national dialogue had been taking place for more than three months and included members of political and religious groups - but it was boycotted by members of the opposition, among others. In a joint declaration issued late Sunday, opposition parties and groups said the results of the national dialogue in no way reflected the will of the majority of the people. They called the dialogue "a trap" to keep the junta in power and said that Malians' true concerns - "water, electricity, youth employment, high cost of living, closure of businesses and construction sites, restriction of public freedoms, poor quality of judicial decisions" - had been ignored. They called for a return to constitutional order according to a mutually agreed timetable with a "new institutional architecture." The proposal also included reducing the number of political parties, curbing the political activity of religious leaders, and initiating talks with Islamist terrorist militias. Goita was among the rebels to overthrow the government in 2020 and then became interim president in another coup in 2021. He then announced a 24-month transition timetable starting in March 2022 to return Mali to civilian rule. In autumn 2023, the military indefinitely postponed a presidential election that had been due to be held. In mid-April, the transitional government suspended the work of political parties that had called for democratic elections with immediate effect. The security situation in Mali and its neighbours has been deteriorating for years. Islamist terrorist groups allied with al-Qaeda and the Islamic State terrorist militia are spreading across West Africa's Sahel region. Tens of thousands of people have died in the conflict in the region. Cairo, May 13 : Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday discussed over the phone the recent security and humanitarian impacts of the Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip, particularly in the southernmost city of Rafah, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement. During the phone conversation, Shoukry underscored the dire consequences of the Rafah operation, which affected more than 1.4 million Palestinians after the closure of the Rafah crossing, amid the ongoing extensive Israeli offensive, Xinhua news agency reported. He emphasised the necessity of resuming the delivery of aid to the Gaza Strip, which had been suspended in the past few days. The ongoing Israeli operation in Gaza poses a severe threat to regional stability, the statement quoted Shoukry as saying. Both diplomats stressed the importance of reopening the crossings between Israel and the Gaza Strip and ensuring the entry of sufficient humanitarian aid to meet the needs of Gaza's residents. According to the latest statistics released by Gaza's health authorities on Monday, more than 35,000 Palestinians have been killed, and over 78,800 others injured in the Gaza Strip since Israel launched a large-scale offensive in the Palestinian enclave following Hamas's surprise attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Gadchiroli : , May 13 (IANS) In a major operation, Maharashtra Police commandos shot dead at least three dreaded Maoists, including two women - carrying a total bounty of Rs 22 lakh on their heads - during a fierce gunbattle in the Gadchiroli forests, officials said here on Monday. Gadchiroli (Maharashtra), May 13 (IANS) In a major operation, Maharashtra Police commandos shot dead at least three dreaded Maoists, including two women a" carrying a total bounty of Rs 22 lakh on their heads a" during a fierce gunbattle in the Gadchiroli forests, officials said here on Monday. A team led by Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) Yatish Deshmukh carried out the operation in the jungles adjoining the Katrangatta village from where the police also recovered three automatic weapons and other arms and ammunition. Following a tip-off that a gang of Maoists were hiding in the forests near the village, a crack team of commandos was sent for a combing operation when the outlaws suddenly opened indiscriminate fire at them. Initially, the police ordered them to surrender, but when they did not pay heed, the commandos opened retaliatory firing in self-defence which continued for some time before the Maoists fled into the jungles. In a subsequent search of the vicinity, the police came across the bullet-ridden bodies of three Maoists -- two women and a man, all hailing from Chhattisgarh. The deceased women have been identified as Reshma Madkam (25), who was wanted for a murder, five encounters, and other crimes, carrying a reward of Rs 4 lakh; and Kamla Madavi (24), wanted for two murders, five encounters, and other crimes carrying a bounty of Rs 2 lakh. The other Maoist has been identified as Commander Vasu Samar Korcha, who was charged with one murder, five encounters, one dacoity, and other cases carrying a bounty of Rs 16 lakh on his head. The police recovered one AK-47 rifle, one carbine, one Insas rifle, knives, several rounds of ammunition, personal belongings, and inflammatory literature left behind by the fleeing gang. The police have appealed to the Maoists to surrender and join the national mainstream under the state governmentas rehabilitation policy. Dhaka, May 13 : The World Bank has opened a new financing window that will enable Bangladesh to access 10 percent of the undisbursed amount of its loan portfolio with the global lender for emergency use during a crisis. The amount would be 847 million U.S. dollars if the volume of pledged loans in the pipeline for the last fiscal year is considered, officials of the Economic Relations Division (ERD) were quoted by Business Standard as saying on Monday, Xinhua news agency reported. They said the amount would be greater if the undisbursed amount of the current fiscal year is calculated. The new feature, referred to as the Rapid Response Option(RRO), is part of the World Bank's recently approved Crisis Preparedness and Response Toolkit. The toolkit is aimed at helping countries quickly repurpose existing balances in the World Bank portfolio for emergency response when crises such as natural disasters, health shocks, or conflict events occur. In April, in a letter to Bangladeshi Finance Minister Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali, the World Bank informed Bangladesh about the feature and invited the country to "establish a new Rapid Response Option." The World Bank's new initiative came as another relief for the country's foreign exchange reserve after an IMF team last week agreed to release 1.15 billion dollars, nearly double the amount previously scheduled, in the third tranche of its 4.7 billion dollars loan package. The introduction of this new initiative, offering added flexibility, will complement existing mechanisms, empowering governments to deliver prompt responses in times of crisis, it said. However, some initial steps need to be taken, including signing an agreement with the World Bank beforehand, to get the fund. London, May 13 : UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Monday cited India's rise as an 'economic superpower' as he pledged to create a dynamic, innovative economy fuelled by technological progress. Insisting that "more will change in the next five years than in the last 30", Sunak, during his speech on security at the Policy Exchange think-tank, spoke on a "clear plan and bold ideas" to deliver a secure future for the Britons. He also maintained that "new and fast-growing economic superpowers" like India, Indonesia, and Nigeria are significantly reshaping the global economy. "We must be prepared strategically and economically, with robust plans and greater national resilience, to meet this time of instability with strength," said the UK PM while elaborating on the current geopolitical situation. The UK, which has had five Conservative Prime Ministers since 2010, is expected to go to the polls later this year. Sunak was only spotlighting the resilience demonstrated by the Indian economy as it successfully mitigated the risks of global economic downturn over the recent years, including the Covid-19 aftermath. "I see India as Asia's Silicon Valley and the UK as Europe's Silicon Valley, so there's a lot we can work on together," Jeremy Hunt, UK's Chancellor of the Exchequer, had said following talks with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Delhi last September. London, : Britain's King Charles officially handed over the role of colonel-in-chief of the Army Air Corps to Prince William during a visit to its Hampshire airfield. Charles - who became the inaugural holder of the title 32 years ago - met with his eldest son in a rare joint official engagement at the Middle Wallop base on Monday afternoon to transfer the role. The Army Air Corps is the duke of sussex's old unit, in which he served as an Apache helicopter commander and co-pilot gunner during his second tour to Afghanistan in 2012. The king's decision to hand the role to William was seen as a blow to Harry when it was announced last year. The king said it was a "great joy" to meet servicemen, their families and veterans at an earlier visit to the Army Flying Museum but added the handover was "tinged with great sadness." He said: "I do hope you'll go from strength to strength in the future with the prince of wales as your new Colonel-in-Chief." "The great thing is he's a very good pilot indeed so that's encouraging." He unveiled a plaque commemorating an Apache AH Mk.1 going on display, the first of its kind to be installed at a UK museum. The aircraft was one of four involved in a rescue mission during the Battle of Jugroom Fort in 2007. The king said: "Let me just say what a great joy it is to be with you even briefly on this occasion but also it is tinged with great sadness after 32 years of knowing you all, admiring your many activities and achievements through the time that I've been lucky enough to be colonel-in-chief of the Army Air Corps." General Nick Barton, who took part in the rescue operation, said it was a "unique honour" to meet the king who served as an important "figurehead" for the soldiers. Charles spoke to one veteran who had recently undergone chemotherapy for testicular cancer, discussing losing the sense of taste as a result of the treatment. William embarked on his first engagement with the Army Air Corps after the king left, receiving a briefing on its work and inspecting training and operational aircraft as well as talking to soldiers. He was presented with a gift on behalf of the corps a tartan scarf for the prince, a wrap for his wife Kate and three wooden helicopter models for the couple's children. He will later leave the base in an Apache as part of a capability flight. Kensington Palace posted two images of the prince during his military service on X, showing a young William in 1998 and 2009 standing next to a helicopter in one picture and smiling at the controls in another. Monday's visit comes just days after Harry travelled to the United Kingdom to mark 10 years of the Invictus Games, without meeting up with his father and brother. The king trained with the Royal Air Force (RAF) while in his second year at the University of Cambridge and was given his wings in August 1971. William served in the army with the Blues and Royals and was an RAF search and rescue pilot for three years at RAF Valley in Anglesey, Wales. Donald Glover announces The New World Tour dates, releases new version of studio album 3.15.20. Image Source: IANS News Los Angeles, May 13 : Hollywood multi-hyphenate Donald Glover has dropped a new version of the surprise release of his studio album '3.15.20' under its original title 'Atavista'. Los Angeles, May 13 (IANS) Hollywood multi-hyphenate Donald Glover has dropped a new version of the surprise release of his studio album a3.15.20a under its original title aAtavistaa. He also announced the dates for aThe New World Toura, a massive trek through North America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand, launching in August, reports aVarietya. He also released a video for the albumas song aLittle Foot Big Foota, directed by Hiro Murai, featuring Young Nudy. He will follow with what he says is the last instalment of the Gambino project, which will serve as the soundtrack to his film aBando Storm and the New Worlda. As per aVarietya, The album features guest appearances from Ariana Grande, Kadhja Bonet, 21 Savage and Ink. Donald Glover produced the album with a range of collaborators including DJ Dahi, longtime producer Ludwig Goransson, Chukwudi Hodge, Kurtis McKenzie and James Francies, Jr. The original release took place in the first days of the pandemic, when Glover quietly posted it on a website without song titles, playing on a constant loop, before removing it around 12 hours later. The following week, he officially released it without fanfare or even detailed credits on streaming services. Munich, May 13 : German researchers have highlighted the increasing threat of floods, heat and drought in a study presented on Monday. According to experts, these dangers are increasingly having an impact on cities in Germany as a result of climate change. The authors of the study, who conducted the research as part of a water management and environmental initiative in collaboration with a building materials lobby group, said cities should be assessing how well-equipped they are against climate change and extreme weather conditions. Study author Thomas Schmitt said that a climate risk analysis for cities and municipalities is important to better assess specific dangers. For example, drinking water could become scarce in some places due to drought. Schmitt said heatwaves could also threaten the elderly and patients with pre-existing health conditions. Floods such as those that devastated the Ahr Valley in western Germany in 2021 could also occur more frequently in some places, he added. To address such concerns, Germany's Federal Ministry of Research and Education is funding research projects which aim to bolster cities' resilience to the impacts of climate change. New Delhi, May 13 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Takhat Shri Harimandir Ji Patna Sahib, while on a campaign trail in Patna on Monday, stands as a testament to his multifaceted engagement with the Sikh community and his profound respect for Sikh culture and traditions. The significance of this visit goes beyond mere symbolism; it reflects a deeper connection between PM Modi and the Sikh ethos. At the heart of PM Modi's visit was his participation in various religious activities within the Gurdwara premises. By donning an orange turban, a colour closely associated with Sikhism symbolising sacrifice and courage, PM Modi not only paid homage to Sikh tradition but also signified his solidarity with the community. Engaging himself in the preparation and serving of langar -- the community meal open to all regardless of caste, creed, or social status -- underscored PM Modi's commitment to the core Sikh values of equality and 'seva' (selfless service). His active involvement in these activities reflected a hands-on approach towards understanding and embracing Sikh customs, fostering a sense of inclusivity and mutual respect. Furthermore, PM Modi's participation in religious rituals such as the seva of Chaur Sahib and sitting in 'Paath' for the 'Sarbat Da Bhala' further demonstrated his reverence for Sikh spirituality and his willingness to immerse himself in the spiritual ambiance of the Gurdwara. In addition to his participation in religious practices, PM Modi's choice to pay for the "karah prasad" through the digital payment mode not only modernises the traditional offering process, but also emphasises transparency and inclusivity in financial transactions, aligning with the principles of Sikhism that advocate honesty and integrity in all aspects of life. Moreover, the gesture of presenting PM Modi with the 'Sanmaan Patra' and a portrait of Mata Gujri Ji by the Gurdwara Committee reflected the mutual respect and appreciation between PM Modi and the Sikh community. It acknowledged PM Modi's efforts in fostering harmonious relations and understanding among different religious groups in the country. PM Modi's consistent visits to Gurdwaras across the country, coupled with his active participation in various Sikh rituals and traditions, highlight his genuine interest in embracing the diverse cultural tapestry of India. These visits serve not only as a means of political outreach, but also as a platform for building bridges of understanding and harmony among the different religious communities. In a country as diverse as India, where pluralism is celebrated as a strength, PM Modi's outreach to the Sikh community through visits to Gurdwaras embodies his broader vision of unity in diversity. It exemplifies his commitment to upholding the secular fabric of the nation and fostering an environment of mutual respect, coexistence, and unity among all its citizens, regardless of their religious affiliations. The Prime Minister also took to X and shared snippets from his visit to Patna Sahib. He wrote, "Sikhism is rooted in the principles of equality, justice, and compassion. Central to Sikhism is Seva. This morning in Patna, I had the honour of taking part in Seva as well. It was a very humbling and special experience." PM Modi's statement reflects a deep appreciation and understanding of Sikh values and traditions, particularly emphasising the central tenet of Seva in Sikhism. By acknowledging the principles of equality, justice, and compassion that underpin the Sikh philosophy, PM Modi not only demonstrated his respect for the Sikh faith but also underscored the universal importance of these values in fostering a harmonious society. The use of the term 'honour' to describe his participation in Seva highlights PM Modi's recognition of the significance of this act within Sikhism. It suggests that he views engaging in Seva not merely as a routine activity, but as a privilege and a profound experience. Furthermore, PM Modi's characterisation of his participation in Seva as "humble" and "special" conveys a sense of humility and gratitude. It indicates that he approached the experience with reverence and appreciation, recognising the opportunity to connect with the Sikh community and contribute to a noble cause. It goes without saying that PM Modi's statement reflects his efforts to foster inclusivity, understanding, and mutual respect among different religious communities in India. By actively engaging in Seva and expressing his admiration for Sikh values, he not only strengthens his bond with the Sikh community but also exemplifies the spirit of unity and cooperation that transcends religious boundaries. New Delhi, May 13 : India's association with the Cannes Film Festival is as old as the world's most anticipated showcase of global cinema, whose 77th edition will open in the French Riviera on Tuesday. It began with Chetan Anand's 'Neecha Nagar' winning the then highest award, Grand Prix du Festival International du Film, in the festival's inaugural year -- 1946. The gritty film shared the honour with David Lean's 'Brief Encounters'. A little more than half a decade later, V. Shantaram's 'Amar Bhoopali' (1952), a Marathi biopic on a poet and musician Honaji Balai in the early 19th century, and Raj Kapoor's classic 'Awaara' (1953) were nominated for the Grand Prix, but could not get the coveted prize; Shantaram's film, however, won an award for best sound recording. After these near misses came four back-to-back trophies for Indian films that made it to the competition section at Cannes -- Bimal Roy's 'Do Bigha Zameen' (1954) got the International Prize; Baby Naaz got a Special Mention as Child Artiste for 'Boot Polish' (1955), produced by Raj Kapoor; Satyajit Ray's debut film 'Pather Panchali' got the Palme d'Or for Best Human Document; and finally, in 1957, Rajbans Khanna's 'Gotama Buddha' earned him a Special Mention (Short Film) as Director (Hrishikesh Mukherjee, incidentally, was the film's editor). Then followed an extended drought, although Satyajit Ray's 'Parash Pathar' (1958) and 'Devi' (1962), were nominated for the Palme d'Or, followed by M.S. Sathyu's 'Garam Hawa' (1974), which had been shortlisted for the Grand Prix. Mrinal Sen ended this long wait with his film 'Kharij' (1983) -- he had to be content with the Jury Prize, though, despite being nominated for a Palm d'Or. In the following year, Satyajit Ray's eponymous film based on Rabindranath Tagore's novel, 'Ghare Baire', was also nominated for the Palme d'Or, but the master had to return empty-handed. Since then, Indian films have been making their presence felt, though all of them may not have grabbed the headlines. In 1988, Mira Nair won the CamAra d'Or Audience Award for her debut feature film, 'Salaam Bombay!'. Shaji N. Karun got a CamAra d'Or Special Mention for his acclaimed Malayalam film 'Piravi' (1989) about Prof. T.V. Eachara Warrier, whose college-going son was killed in police custody during the Emergency. In 1991, Deepa Mehta won a CamAra d'Or Special Mention for 'Sam & Me', though the film was listed as a Canadian production. That year turned out to be doubly special for India after Aribam Syam Sharma's 'Ishanou', a film in the Meitei language, was nominated for the top award in the festival's Un Certain Regard segment. It was a first for any film from India's North-East. Then came the double good news of 1994. Malayalam director Shaji N. Karun's 'Swaham' was nominated for the Palme d'Or -- an honour that has come 30 long years later to Payal Kapadia. Satyajit Ray's son Sandip Ray's Bengali film, 'Uttaran', got the nomination for the Un Certain Regard Award. Both films, however, did not get the award they had been nominated for. Towards the end of a dry 1990s, Murali Nair's 'Marana Simhasanam' (1999), a Malayalam film about the first execution by electric chair in India, won the Camera d'Or, an award that goes to the best first feature film. What followed in the opening decades of the 2000s were minor but not insignificant awards. These were for Manish Jha's 'A Very Very Silent Film' (2002; Short Film Jury Prize); Gitanjali Rao's animated film 'Printed Rainbow' (2006; Grand Rail daOr Audience Award); and Ritesh Batra's celebrated Irrfan Khan-starrer 'The Lunchbox' (2013; Grand Rail daOr Audience Award). Karan Johar's 'Ajeeb Dastaan Hai Yeh (Bombay Talkies)', the four-in-one package of short films celebrating 100 years of Indian Cinema, was nominated for the Queer Palm in 2015 without success. In recent years, Kanu Behl's neo-noir crime drama, 'Titli', got nominated for but did not win the Camera D'Or in 2014. In the following year, 2015, Neeraj Ghaywan's acclaimed film 'Masaan', starring Richa Chadha and Vicky Kaushal (it was his debut film), won the FIPRESCI Prize in the Un Certain Regard section. Gurvinder Singh ('Chauthi Koot'; 2015) and Nandita Das ('Manto'; 2018) were nominated but did not come home with the Un Certain Regard Award. Payal Kapadia, who's in contention this year for the Palme d'Or for her debut feature film 'All We Imagine is Light', won the Golden Eye for her documentary, 'A Night of Knowing Nothing' in 2021, and in the subsequent year, Delhi's Shaunak Sen went home with the same award for 'All That Breathes', which also made it to the Oscars shortlist. As the curtains go up on Cannes, all eyes will be on Kapadia's film about two nurses who are tortured by their relationships and what they discover when they take a road trip to a beach for a holiday. It's been 30 years since an Indian film was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or. Shaji Karun wasn't successful in 1994. Will Payal Kapadia script history in 2024? Mumbai, May 13 : Eight persons were killed and 63 others injured in two separate incidents -- a gigantic hoarding in Ghatkopar and a vertical steel parking lot in Wadala -- crashing in Mumbai, in the aftermath of a massive dust-storm that shrouded the city for over two hours, following by unseasonal rains, the BMC Disaster Control said here on Monday. A monstrous hoarding for advertisements, erected by a private party, crashed in the gusty winds on several houses and a petrol pump in Pant Nagar, Ghatkopar east suburb around 4.15 p.m. At least 63 people were injured and another 70 are still feared trapped under the hoarding when many vehicles had queued up to refill petrol-diesel. In Wadala, a multi-storied, vertical steel parking lot near the Shreeji Towers building crashed on a main road around 4.15 p.m., in the squally dust-storm. The tumbling parking lot crushed around a dozen vehicles and one person sitting in a car has been trapped, and 2 others were injured, said the officials. The Mumbai Fire Brigade rushed over a dozen fire engines, and the NDRF plus the MMRDA rushed its expert teams which managed to rescue around 65 persons and continue a huge search and rescue operation for the others still trapped in the Ghatkopar hoarding crash. A heavy duty crane was deployed to lift the hoarding, break it into pieces to enable the rescuers to reach the victims trapped. Taking serious cognisance, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde rushed to the tragedy spot, enquired about the rescue operations, and ordered the BMC Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani and Mumbai Police to conduct a probe into the tragedy. "I have also ordered the BMC authorities to carry out a special audit of all the hoardings in Mumbai and remove all the illegal ones from the city," Shinde told mediapersons, while announcing an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh to the kin of the deceased. Bharatiya Janata Party ex-MP Kirit Somaiya told mediapersons from the site that the hoarding was allegedly illegal and the BMC had reportedly issued a notice to remove it on Sunday. He demanded a thorough inquiry into how the illegal hoarding was allowed to be erected without following safety norms and called for arresting and slapping criminal charges against the owners. Besides the two major tragedies, there were reports of several tree crashes, vehicular accidents and other minor incidents due to the sudden inclement weather conditions in which visibility levels plummeted. After the dust storm subsided, many parts of Mumbai were lashed by rains, bringing some respite from the heat and humidity. The BMC Disaster Control said that in two hours between 4-6 p.m., south Mumbai recorded an average of 18 mm rains, eastern suburbs notched 47 mm and the western suburbs recorded 35 mm rainfall. The BMC has issued a warning of a thunderstorm likely to hit parts of Mumbai with strong winds of 50-60 kmph, later on Monday, and advised citizens to exercise precautions while stepping out. The IMD Pune head K.S. Hosalikar said that a moderate to intense thunderstorm accompanied by strong winds, is likely to lash Thane, Raigad, Palghar, Ahmednagar, Pune and Satara, besides parts of Mumbai in the next few hours. Guwahati, May 13 : Assam Police on Monday arrested two suspected Bangladeshi terrorists believed to be Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT) cadres, officials said. The officials said that acting on a tip-off, an Assam Police team arrested the duo -- Bahar Mia (30) and Rarely Mia (40) -- from the Guwahati railway station. The ABT is an affiliate of the terror outfit Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), which is banned in India along with all its affiliated groups. According to officials, Bahar is a resident of Brahmanbaria district while Rarely is from Netrokona district, both in Bangladesh. They were staying in India illegally without passports, allegedly to spread the terror in Assam. Documents, including Aadhaar and PAN cards, suspected to be fake and fraudulently obtained, were recovered from their possession. "These cadres visited Guwahati to mobilise and radicalise the gullible Muslim youth of Assam and India to join the terror outfit and indulge in terror acts," a police statement said. It said that a case has been registered under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, the Passport Act, 1920, and the Foreigners Act, 1946. Jaipur, May 13 : The health officials in Rajasthan have seized the records of a blood bank in Neem Ka Thana district after a pregnant woman died, while two other women's health conditions deteriorated post blood transfusion, officials said on Monday. Jaipur, May 13 (IANS) The health officials in Rajasthan have seized the records of a blood bank in Neem Ka Thana district after a pregnant woman died, while two other womenas health conditions deteriorated post blood transfusion, officials said on Monday. As per officials, three pregnant women were admitted to the district hospital in Neem Ka Thana on Sunday where their conditions deteriorated soon after blood transfusion. Later, one of the women was referred to the Janana Hospital in Jaipur while the two other women were referred to a private hospital in the state capital. The woman at Janana Hospital died on Sunday after delivering a stillborn, while another woman delivered a stillborn at the hospital. According to sources, Maina Devi (25), Madhu (20), and Geeta Devi (25) were admitted for delivery to the district hospital at Neem Ka Thana. The doctors examining them found that all three women were suffering from blood deficiency, and asked their family members to arrange blood for them. As the exact blood groups were not available at the district hospital, the family brought blood from a private blood bank, The blood transfusion was done at the district hospital, but after some time, the conditions of the three women started deteriorating and they were referred for further treatment in Jaipur. Accordingly, Maina was brought to the Janana Hospital where she gave birth to a stillborn and died shortly after the delivery. Of the other two pregnant women, Geeta also gave birth to a stillborn. At present, the two women are undergoing treatment at the private hospital in Jaipur. After the death of the woman at Janana Hospital, the family members took the body to Neem Ka Thana late on Sunday night, where they performed her last rites on Monday morning and then informed the hospital administration. According to the family members, Maina and Madhu's blood group was 'A' positive, while Geeta's blood group was 'B' positive. Officials at the district hospital said that the relatives had brought blood of the same groups as asked by the doctors. Despite this, the conditions of the women deteriorated, which could be the result of some infection in the blood. Acting CMHO Bhupendra Singh said: "There could have been some problem in the blood issued by the blood bank. The matter is being probed." New Delhi, May 13 : Days after a man was stabbed to death by a group of individuals in north Delhi, the police have nabbed six persons, including three juveniles in connection with the incident, an official said on Monday, adding that over 100 wounds were found upon the upper part of the body. The arrested individuals were identified as Ajeet Kumar Jha (22), Iqbal (19), Shiva (20). The three others who have been apprehended are juveniles. The arrest came after the police received a call regarding the detection of a dead body on May 9. "The dead body was shifted to Bara Hindu Rao Hospital. The deceased was identified as Ravi Yadav, a resident of Patel Nagar by his wife Savitri, in the mortuary of Hindu Rao Hospital, Delhi. She stated that her husband Ravi Yadav is the complainant and eyewitness in the case of the murder and attempt to murder case at Anand Parbat area," Deputy Commissioner of Police (north) M.K. Meena said, adding that one Kishan was arrested in connection with the case recently, and was later released on bail. "Based on the information and input, the police teams conducted various raids on possible hideouts of the suspected persons and succeeded in nabbing one of the accused persons from Zakhira area Delhi on May 10, who was identified as Ajeet Kumar Jha a.k.a Gullu," said the DCP. Jha disclosed that he, along with Shiva, Iqbal, and three juveniles killed Yadav. "Jha also disclosed that in 2020, one Rajan was killed in a quarrel with Ravi Yadav. Shiva is the younger brother of Rajan. One person made a phone call from Tihar Jail to a juvenile and directed that Yadav be assassinated as soon as possible," said the DCP. The juvenile hatched a conspiracy with Shiva, Iqbal, and two other minors, and they decided to kill Ravi Yadav on May 8. "The police teams traced the location of other accused persons and succeeded in nabbing Shiva, Iqbal, and three minors," said the DCP. Bengaluru, May 13 : A special court in Bengaluru on Monday granted bail to JD-S MLA H.D. Revanna in connection with the alleged kidnapping of a victim in a sex video scandal involving his son and party MP Prajwal Revanna. MP/MLA cases court judge Santhosh Gajanan Bhat imposed several conditions on Revanna, who has been directed to appear before the investigating officer every second Sunday and mark his attendance between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. for a period of 6 months or till the filing of the charge sheet, whichever is earlier. The court asked Revanna to execute a personal bond for Rs 5 lakh with two sureties and directed that the petitioner shall not threaten and tamper with the prosecution witnesses or the complainant and victim. He has also been told not to evade the Investigation and shall appear before the investigating officer whenever called by him for the purpose of investigation. He will hand in his passport to the court and not leave the state, without obtaining written permission from the court, the judge stated. Revanna has also been directed not to enter K.R. Nagar taluk or the permanent place of residence of the victim, directly or indirectly till further orders. Senior counsel Jayna Kothari and Ashok Naik argued for the prosecution while senior counsel C.V. Nagesh appeared for Revanna. Senior advocate Srinivas briefing the media after the court order, argued that the court found that Revanna had not committed any crime and decided that bail could be granted to him. "I want to convey to the state and the nation that, it has come to the notice of the court that the kidnap case lodged against H.D. Revanna was a political conspiracy and hence, the bail petition was upheld by the court," he claimed. He said that they had argued that the victim in this case was not kidnapped, and found near a vegetable market and have videos of this. "The court maintained that at this stage, it won't consider the matter," he added. However, the court, considering the lapses in the FIR against Revanna, granted him bail, he claimed. Revanna will be released from the Bengaluru Central Prison on Tuesday. New Delhi, May 13 : Sam Altman-run OpenAI on Monday launched 'GPT-4o' -- a new version of its GPT-4 model which can generate any combination of text, audio, and image outputs. GPT-4o's text and image capabilities have been rolled out for all ChatGPT users. "We are making GPT-4o available in the free tier, and to Plus users with up to 5 times higher message limits," the company said during a livestream event. OpenAI will soon roll out a new version of Voice Mode with GPT-4o in alpha within ChatGPT. "Our new model: GPT-4o, is our best model ever. it is smart, it is fast, it is natively multimodal," Altman posted on X. "It is available to all ChatGPT users, including on the free plan! so far, GPT-4 class models have only been available to people who pay a monthly subscription. this is important to our mission; we want to put great AI tools in the hands of everyone," he noted. GPT-4o can respond to audio inputs in as little as 232 milliseconds, with an average of 320 milliseconds, which is similar to human response time in a conversation. GPT-4o is especially better at vision and audio understanding compared to existing models. The company plans to launch support for GPT-4o's new audio and video capabilities to a small group of trusted partners in the API in the coming weeks. With GPT-4o, the company trained a single new model end-to-end across text, vision, and audio, meaning that all inputs and outputs are processed by the same neural network. "Because GPT-4o is our first model combining all of these modalities, we are still just scratching the surface of exploring what the model can do and its limitations," said OpenAI. The company also launched a Mac desktop app for ChatGPT. During the event, OpenAI also announced that its custom GPT Store is now available free for users. The GPT Store will lets users create their own chatbots, called GPTs, and share them. New Delhi, May 13 : A 36-year-old man was killed after being hit by a dumper truck in north Delhi, the police said on Monday, adding that the errant driver has been nabbed. "Information was received at the Sadar Bazar police station regarding a fatal accident on Monday. On reaching the spot, it was found that a dumper truck hit one person named Rahul (36), a resident of Karol Bagh, who died on the spot. "On inquiry, it was found that the deceased was walking towards his house when the dumper truck hit him. A large crowd had gathered at the spot, raising apprehensions that they might burn down the truck. The crowd also beat up the driver and refused to hand him over to the police," said Deputy Commissioner of Police (North), M.K. Meena. Additional police force was called to the spot to bring the situation under control. "As they became aggressive, minimal force was used to disperse the crowd. After that, the offending vehicle and the driver -- Jitender Ahirawaran -- were taken to the police station," the DCP said. "Ahirawaran has been placed under arrest," he added. New Delhi, May 13 : A little over a month after he revealed he had cancer, veteran BJP leader and former Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi passed away at the AIIMS here on Monday. He was 72. Sushil Modi, who was presently a Rajya Sabha member, had declined to contest the ongoing Lok Sabha elections on account of his health after he revealed the deadly disease he was suffering from in a post on X on April 3. He said that he had been battling cancer for the last six months and it was time to come clean on it as he would not be able to do anything in the Lok Sabha elections about which he had already informed PM Narendra Modi. PM Modi led the country in paying condolences to the departed leader. BJP President J.P. Nadda, Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, former Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, and Tejashwi Yadav, Bihar's Leader of Opposition, whose first tenure as Deputy Chief Minister, alternated with Sushil Modi's, also expressed their grief. In a post on X, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, "I am deeply saddened by the untimely demise of Sushil Modi ji, my valuable colleague in the party and my friend for decades. He has played an invaluable role in the rise and success of the BJP in Bihar." "Strongly opposing the Emergency, he made a name for himself in student politics. He was known as a very hardworking and sociable MLA. He had a deep understanding of the issues related to politics. He also did a lot of commendable work as an administrator. His active role in the passage of GST will always be remembered. My condolences are with his family and supporters in this hour of grief. Om Shanti!" the Prime Minister added. Spanning 11 years between 2005 and 2020, Sushil Modi had served as the Deputy of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar in two stints. "Deeply saddened to hear the news of the untimely demise of respected Shri Sushil Kumar Modi, former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar, our guardian, struggling and hardworking leader," Tejashwi Yadav said in a post on X. New Delhi, May 14 : A court here on Monday granted bail to Arun Bereddy, an accused in the Union Home Minister Amit Shah's doctored video case. Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Nabeela Wali of Patiala House Courts granted bail to Bereddy noting that the prime allegation against him was just him being the 'Admin' of the WhatsApp group on which the alleged fake video was first posted for circulation. "However, there are no allegations of the applicant/ accused having posted/ circulated the said video on any forum," the court noted. Bereddy was granted bail on furnishing of bail bonds in the sum of Rs 50,000 with one surety in the like amount. Delhi Police had arrested Bereddy, who manages the Telangana Congress' X account -- 'Spirit of Congress' on May 3. The accused had moved an application under Section 437 CrPC seeking bail in the case. In connection with the case, Hyderabad Cyber Crime Police arrested five persons, identified as Pendyala Vamshi Krishna, Satish Manne, Pettam Naveen, Asma Tasleem and Koya Geetha -- all residents of Hyderabad, who were circulating the doctored video of the Home Minister. According to police, Home Minister Shah delivered a speech during a public meeting in Telangana's Medak on April 23. "Pendyala Vamshi Krishna received a morphed video of the speech on WhatsApp. He then uploaded the morphed video on the 'INCTelangana' (X) handle and shared it in various WhatsApp groups," said the Hyderabad Police in a statement on May 3. Delhi Police registered an FIR after receiving complaints from the BJP and the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). Gurugram, May 14 : A total of five shooters of the notorious Lawrence Bishnoi and Rohit Godara gang have been arrested here, the police said on Monday, adding weapons were also recovered from the possession of the apprehended individuals. One of the arrested shooters was working as an "internet service provider" in the Farrukhnagar area of Gurugram. Following his disclosure about others, a Special Task Force (STF) team also apprehended four other shooters. The STF has taken the accused on police remand for four days to investigate the case. According to the police, the STF had received information that a youth named Dinesh was working as an internet service provider in Farrukhnagar and was in touch with the Lawrence Bishnoi and Rohit Godara gang. Eventually, the STF team nabbed Dinesh a.k.a. Dinu -- a resident of Bhiwani. The team also recovered foreign-made weapons from his possession. The remaining four accused were identified as Jaggu -- a resident of Abohar in Punjab, Vishnu and Sagar -- a resident of Kosi, Uttar Pradesh and Pradeep -- a resident of Samaspur in Delhi. Seven cases, including murder and attempt to murder, have already been registered against Pradeep, while one case was registered against Sagar, the police said. The STF has recovered five foreign-made pistols and 55 cartridges from the arrested persons. All the shooters worked for Lawrence Bishnoi and Rohit Godara's gang. "During questioning, it came to light that Dinesh a.k.a. Dinu had come in contact with Lawrence Bishnoi's henchmen, Rohit Godara and Naveen Boxer. Both of them asked him to work as an internet service provider in the Farrukhnagar area to keep an eye on the city's activities," DSP, STF, Preetpal Sangwan said. New Delhi, May 14 : A man at the Indira Gandhi airport in the national capital was arrested for using his deceased brother's identity to steal the belongings of passengers, including elderly persons, an official said on Monday. The accused has been identified as Sharad Jain, 46, a resident of Delhi's Karol Bagh, who came under scrutiny following a zero FIR filed in Hyderabad. The complainant, Sudharani Pathuri, alleged that on April 11, she travelled from Hyderabad to Delhi's IGI Airport on an Air India flight en route to the US. During the journey, her jewellery worth Rs 7 lakh, kept in a handbag, was stolen. To crack down on the case, a team was formed and footage of CCTV cameras of the IGI Airport, Amritsar Airport and Hyderabad Airport were thoroughly analysed with the help of Air India officials. "After scrutinising video footage from numerous cameras and examining flight manifests, a suspect was identified. He was observed on flights where thefts occurred," said Deputy Commissioner of Police (IGI airport), Usha Rangnani. The phone number of the suspected passenger was obtained from the airlines concerned, however, he used to provide a fake number at the time of booking to deceive the airlines, and the said number was registered in the name of someone else. "After technical analysis and based on his Call Detail Records (CDR), it was found that the suspect lives in the Paharganj area, however, he keeps his phone switched on for a minimal time," the DCP added. The suspect was found living on the top floor of a guesthouse in Delhi's Paharganj. "Based on technical intelligence, a photograph of the suspected person from the social media platforms was obtained and shown in and around the areas of Paharganj. After several hours of efforts, the team zeroed in on the suspect at a guest house by the name of Ricky Deluxe in Paharganj," she said. "The suspect was living on the top floor of the said guesthouse, and it was further revealed that he owned it. The suspect was thereby apprehended, whose real identity was established as Rajesh Kapoor," she added. "To further conceal his identity, he booked tickets under his deceased brother's name, Rishi Kapoor, evading detection by airlines and police," the DCP said. During questioning, Kapoor confessed not only to the reported theft but also to several others "He admitted to targeting elderly female passengers carrying handbags on flights, often exchanging seats to be closer to his victims. A significant quantity of stolen jewellery was recovered from his residence. Kapoor also revealed that he had sold stolen items to a jeweller named Sharad Jain, leading to Jain's arrest," the DCP added. Further investigation connected Kapoor to additional cases, including 11 prior offences involving theft, gambling, and breach of trust. Subsequently, Sharad Jain admitted to receiving stolen jewellery from Kapoor over the past year, melting it down for resale. In addition to his airline thefts, Kapoor confessed to stealing from unsuspecting female passengers travelling to and from various Indian airports. "Police teams have been notified, and Kapoor's travel history is under scrutiny to uncover any further involvement," she said. The DCP also added that Kapoor, drawing from his experience, targeted vulnerable passengers, particularly elderly women travelling internationally. "Recognising their tendency to carry valuables in handbags, Kapoor strategically chose premium domestic flights, such as those operated by Air India and Vistara, heading to destinations like Delhi, Chandigarh, and Hyderabad. Exploiting the chaos of boarding, he discreetly rifled through overhead cabins, stealing valuables from unsuspecting victims' handbags while passengers settled into their seats," said the DCP. Kapoor's method, carefully timed to coincide with the distractions of the boarding process, enabled him to operate unnoticed. Jaipur, May 14 : Fifty-six schools in Jaipur received a bomb threat on Monday, at a time when the city observed the 16th anniversary of serial bomb blasts that rocked Rajasthan's capital, killing scores of people and injuring many others, the police said. The police team and bomb disposal squads rushed to the spot after receiving information about the bomb threats through an e-mail in the morning, following which children were also evacuated from all the schools safely. Jaipur Police Commissioner Biju George Joseph said: "A total of 56 schools received bomb threats in Jaipur city. However, no such material was found in any school during a thorough probe, but the investigation is going on." "All these e-mails have been sent by a common source which will be identified soon and legal action will be taken. There is an appeal to the citizens not to pay attention to any kind of rumours. The Jaipur Police is fully alert to maintain security in the city," he added. Meanwhile, Rajasthan Chief Secretary Sudhansh Pant called an emergency meeting regarding the threat to bomb schools in Jaipur in which Assistant Chief Secretary (Home), Anand Kumar, and Director General of Police (Intelligence), Sanjay Agarwal, were called in this meeting directing Pant about the ongoing operation after receiving the threatening mail. Earlier, on Monday, Rajasthan DGP, U.R. Sahu, confirmed that 37 schools in Jaipur had received the emails, which later rose to 56 by evening. He said that the search in these schools started at 6 a.m. "There has been no information about any suspicious object being found anywhere. Cyber teams have been deployed to detect the mail. The government is being updated on this entire incident. An investigation has revealed that these emails have been sent from Russian servers," he added. Police officials said that all the school principals were sent a bomb threat via emails early Monday morning. The entire schools hence were evacuated in a hurry. Police are now busy extracting information about the email ID of the person who sent the mail. On Sunday, 12 airports in the country, including Jaipur, were threatened with bombs. Police officials, meanwhile, are tightlipped and refuse to comment anything officially in this regard, but there is a strong possibility that the same organisation or gang may be behind the incidents in Delhi and Jaipur. Preliminary investigation has revealed that Russian servers have been used in the e-mails sent at both places. An e-mail has been sent to the schools of Delhi from the id awariim@mail.ru and to the schools of Jaipur from the id instrumenttt@inbox.ru. Further investigations are underway, said officials. Johannesburg, May 14 : The South African Health Minister Joe Phaahla has urged the people to be vigilant as the country has reported a laboratory-confirmed case of monkeypox disease, also known as Mpox. The National Department of Health headed by Phaahla said on Monday that the case involves a 35-year-old male, who resides in the Gauteng province and tested positive on May 9, 2024. The patient had no recent history of travelling, Xinhua news agency reported. The case was first tested by Lancet Laboratory, one of the leading pathology laboratories in the country, and then confirmed by the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), which then alerted the department "We urge the public to seek treatment as soon as they see symptoms of monkeypox," Health Department Spokesperson Foster Mohale told Xinhua news agency. According to the department, Mpox is a rare viral infectious disease in humans caused by the monkeypox virus (MPXV). Although the virus is not highly transmissible from person to person, it has increased in global public health significance and can cause a painful rash, enlarged lymph nodes, and fever. The department also noted that Mpox presents with an acute illness characterised by fever and general flu-like symptoms, followed by the eruption of a blister-like rash on the skin. The disease is rarely fatal and cases typically resolve within two to four weeks and most cases do not require hospital treatment, it added. The last time South Africa recorded a monkeypox case was in August 2022 when there were cases across the globe. For many years, UK property has been a market very much ripe for investment. Not only has it demonstrated incredible resilience when compared to other markets around the world, but it has also offered consistent short and long-term returns to investors, who could expect to sit back and watch the money roll in, secure in the knowledge that their investments were relatively free of risk. This, however, is not necessarily the case now. While the UKs buy-to-let market, for example, was once seen as a lucrative investment opportunity by high-net-worth individuals from all around the world, it is now characterised by a number of significant drawbacks. For one, BTL investors in 2024 face a considerably higher tax bill than they did prior to April 2020, given they must now declare the income used to pay their mortgage on their tax return. This means that the profits received are much smaller, and the incentive to invest is greatly diminished as a result. Furthermore, UK landlords must also contend with additional stamp duty costs, not to mention the drop in capital that theyll suffer in the event that property prices fall which they have over the last 12 months. With all of these factors combined, its small wonder that so many investors are deciding to sell up, and setting their sights on other markets. Mauritius is the place to be As the UK continues to become a less appealing destination for investors, one market thats attracting plenty of attention is Mauritius. Surrounded by the crystal blue waters of the Indian Ocean, the small East African country has long enjoyed its reputation for adventure, as well as for its idyllic, palm-fringed, golden beaches. Now, however, it's not just tourists who are flocking to Mauritius from all around the world. Indeed, foreign direct investment inflows to the island nation rose by 27% to reach 23.1 billion rupees [$503 million] in the nine months through to September 2023, according to the Bank of Mauritius, with real estate activities accounting for 69% of total foreign investments. Considering the raft of incentives open to foreign investors, its easy to see why so many are being drawn to Mauritius property market. To begin with, theres no taxation whatsoever on dividends and capital gains, nor are there social charges and property taxes either. This is made all the more appealing by the fact that foreign investors can access these tax advantages irrespective of the value of their purchase; a measure enshrined in law by a framework called the Property Development Scheme. This, however, is contingent on the intervention of a recognised and experienced property developer whose project must have received full accreditation, and be respectful of the local environment. While overseas investors arent required to become permanent residents in order to enjoy these tax benefits, this is an option thats available to them, thanks to the islands straightforward residential permit scheme. Eligible to those who invest $375,000 or more, this initiative grants HNWIs the right to live, work, and retire in Mauritius, thereby allowing them, their spouse, and any dependent children under the age of 24 to enjoy the countrys high-quality of life, as well as its safe and secure society. Despite all the fantastic incentives associated with investing in Mauritian property, it should be noted that, as with all investments, doing so isnt completely risk-free. This is especially true when purchasing off plan, given the potential for construction delays, changes in market conditions, and the danger of working with a disreputable and financially unstable developer. These risks, however, are largely mitigated by a contract known as Vente en Etat Futur dAchevement [VEFA], which prescribes that all real estate developers in Mauritius selling projects off plan to non-citizens must offer a financial guarantee of completion. As such, off-plan investors can be assured of a much greater level of protection than they would when investing in other countries such as the UK where measures like VEFA are not in place. Discover the benefits Therefore, investors whove become disillusioned by the UKs struggling property market should consider what they stand to gain by investing in Mauritius instead. While the island is an undeniably beautiful and highly sought-after location in its own right, there are plenty of reasons besides why purchasing property there makes so much sense. With the market experiencing growth at such an exponential rate, Mauritius is quite clearly the place for shrewd investors to be in 2024, and is set for even brighter days ahead. The Economic Development Board (EDB) Mauritius is returning to London this spring, to host the second edition of the Property and Investment Forum, following the success of its 2023 event. To find out more or to book your tickets, click here Author Ken Follett will publish his next, as-yet-untitled book with Hachette Book Group and Hachette UK in 2025. Grand Central Publishing president and publisher Ben Sevier acquired U.S. and Canada rights, and Quercus managing director Jon Butler acquired U.K. and Commonwealth rights, from the Follett Office, which represents Follett's business interests. In addition to English, rights to date have been sold in Danish, French, German, Italian, and Spanish. "This is the beginning of an exciting new phase for me: new publisher, new editors, new sales force," Follett said in a statement. "Im already published in paperback in French by Le Livre de Poche, an Hachette company that has impressed me with its dynamism and creativity. Im looking forward eagerly to working with Hachette teams in New York and London." The forthcoming book, Sevier said, "has all the scope and ambition to make it one of the most enduring works of fiction of our time." Butler added: "If I could have dreamed up the perfect setting, story and title for a new Ken Follett, this would be it." Follett was previously published by Penguin in the U.S., for 45 years, and Pan Macmillan in the U.K., for 35 years. His 37 books, Hachette noted in a release, have sold more than 192 million copies combined in over 80 countries and in 40 languages. Those include the 1978 espionage thriller Eye of the Needle, which won the 1979 Edgar Award for Best Novel, and 1989's bestselling epic The Pillars of the Earth. "As a longtime fan, Im excited on both a personal and professional level that Ken Follett has decided to publish with Hachette in the US and UK," David Shelley, CEO of HBG and HUK, said in a statement. "Hes one of the great storytellers and his new book will thrill his many millions of fans. We have ambitious and coordinated plans to launch and make it one of the publishing events of 2025." The search for methods of reining in technology companies unauthorized copying of copyrighted materials to build generative AI models was the primary theme of this year's annual meeting of the Association of American Publishers, held May 9 over Zoom. Youngsuk "YS" Chi, chairman of Elsevier, director of corporate affairs for the RELX Group, and AAP chair, minced no words in kicking off the meeting, declaring that the business models of most large language model producers are founded on "illegally" mining copyrighted works. Moreover, Chi said, the tech companies producing such tools dont even pretend what they are doing is legal, but argue that breaking the law will be worth it in the long run. Other speakers picked up on that theme, including AAP CEO Maria Pallante, who declared the current period to be the most complex time in the history of publishing. The foremost challenge for the publishing community, Pallante continued, is advocating for new laws and policies that can protect publishers as changes in technology move at a rapid pace. Acknowledging that new AI tools have far-reaching potential, Pallante echoed Chi in insisting that most are based on the illegal copying of millions of books and other published works. The technology companies actions have led to 24 AI copyright suits in the United States, some with claims so similar and urgent that courts have begun to consolidate them, Pallante said. Conceding that there is no silver bullet for regulating AI, Pallante argued that solutions go beyond what the publishing community can do alone. To protect society, we will need a forward-thinking scheme of legal rules and enforcement authority across numerous jurisdictions and disciplinesnot only intellectual property, but also national security, trade, privacy, consumer protection, and human rights, to name a few, Pallante said. And we will need ethical conduct. The two featured guest speakers at the meeting both stressed that time is of the essence if publishing and other intellectual propertybased companies are to be successful in preventing tech companies from running roughshod over copyright laws in their race to build AI tools. I think in general, moving quickly is important, said Ed Newton-Rex, founder of advocacy group Fairly Trained, in response to a question from AAP executive v-p of global policy Lui Simpson about what publishers can do to compel tech companies to follow copyright laws. Now is an absolutely critical time, and I think that if publishers and other creative industries leave it too long, you'll start to get more synthetic data. Newton-Rex began in the generative AI space in 2010, and now leads the Fairly Trained, which launched in January as a nonprofit that seeks to certify AI companies that don't train models on copyrighted work without creators consent (Pallante is an advisor for the company.) He founded the nonprofit after leaving a tech company, Stability, that declined to use a licensing model to get permission to use copyrighted materials in training. Stability, Newton-Rex said, argues that you can train on whatever you want. And it's a fair use in the United States, and I think this is not only incorrect, but I think it's ethically unforgivable. And I think we have to fight it with everything we have. The old rules of copyright are gone, said Maria Ressa, cofounder of the online news company Rappler and winner of the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize, in her keynote. We are literally standing on the rubble of the world that was. If we dont recognize it, we cant rebuild it. Ressa added that, in a social media world drowning in misinformation and manipulation, it is crucial that we get back to facts. Messa advised publishers to hold the line in protecting their IP, and to continue to defend the importance of truth: You cannot have rule of law if you do not have integrity of facts. Fighting for the Freedom to Read The other major topic of the meeting was AAPs efforts to defend freedom of expression in the U.S. In his remarks, Chi said that he is deeply troubled by government efforts to restrict reading and politicize science. In a brief presentation, two AAP staff members provided updates on major initiatives. Shelley Husband, executive v-p of government affairs, said that AAP continues to oppose efforts by states to require publishers to license e-books to libraries under specific terms. Last March, AAP joined the Protect the Creative Economy Coalition, which was formed in order to combat a growing number of new library e-book bills surfacing in state legislatures in 2023. Husband also discussed the efforts AAP is making to prevent the Department of Education from moving college student participation in Inclusive Access programs from opt-out to opt-in. Under the program, which many publishers and college retailers participate in, students pay for college materials as part of tuition or another fee. Such publishers and retailers as Barnes & Noble Education say the program lowers the costs of materials for students. Last year, AAP also ramped up its efforts to challenge a number of book banning laws across the country. AAP general counsel Terry Hart warned that, in spite of such successful AAP-backed lawsuits over the freedom to read as those in Arkansas and Texas, the book banning surge is continuing. Hart also addressed the long-running lawsuit against the Internet Archive, noting that oral arguments in IAs appeal of the ruling, which came down on the side of the publishers, would likely take place in the fall. China's public hospital reforms aim to reduce wait times Xinhua) 13:32, May 13, 2024 BEIJING, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Upon his arrival at Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital in east China's Jiangsu Province on May 5, Chen Fan (pseudonym) was advised by the consulting doctor to undergo a chest CT scan; however, due to time constraints, the scan results were not immediately available, leaving Chen worried about securing another appointment. But, thanks to an efficient approach, Chen was able to consult his doctor twice within three days through a single appointment, accessing his results and receiving further consultation on May 7, all facilitated by a new policy aimed at enhancing patient convenience in Jiangsu's public hospitals. This policy reflects China's ongoing commitment to improving services in public hospitals, with a particular emphasis on reducing wait times and addressing the diverse needs of patients. ONE-STOP SERVICES Long wait times for registration, medical examinations and settling hospital bills were once common grievances among patients in Chinese hospitals. However, recent reforms have resulted in a remarkable transformation. According to the National Health Commission (NHC), over 5,500 comprehensive hospitals at the second grade and above now provide "one-stop" services, enabling 77.7 percent of hospitalized patients to settle their bills on the day of discharge. In the city of Zhoukou in central China's Henan Province, inpatients spend only three to five minutes to complete discharge procedures, according to Ji Jianjun, mayor of Zhoukou. Furthermore, mutual recognition of medical examination results has been achieved in 88.2 percent of public hospitals at the second grade and above, reducing the need for repetitive tests at different facilities. Patients have long desired an experience free from the need for physical medical cards, and this has become a reality at the First Affiliated Hospital under Zhejiang University School of Medicine. Using only their mobile phones, patients can access all services, from making appointments to settling bills, resulting in a 90 percent reduction in wait times on average, according to Liang Tingbo, the hospital's Party chief. The hospital has also improved its sickbed management, reducing the average wait time for hospitalization from 10 days to 3.5 days and shortening the average hospital stay to 4.7 days, Liang said. MEETING DIVERSE NEEDS Public hospital reforms also aim to cater to the increasingly diverse needs of patients. More than 2,800 public hospitals at the second grade and above now offer various new outpatient services, such as anesthesia, pain management and health management, according to the NHC. For homebound patients, medical institutions provide access to medical and nursing services. Since July last year, 182 medical institutions in Zhoukou have been delivering medical services to households, benefiting over 20,000 individuals, according to the mayor of Zhoukou. Empowered by the internet, over 3,000 medical institutions in China offer medical and nursing services online for those unable to visit in person, data from the NHC revealed. In response to the growing demand for elderly care, nursing homes in Beijing, Shandong and Jiangsu have seen significant growth in numbers in recent years while also providing in-home nursing services for elderly citizens. The NHC is working with relevant departments to draft guidelines aimed at improving the skills of nurses and optimizing nursing services in order to foster a more compassionate experience for patients seeking medical care, according to Xing Ruoqi, an official at the healthcare reform department of the NHC. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing) Apartment car parks and lockable storage cages may seem secure, but these areas are particularly susceptible to theft and opportunistic burglaries. Neighbourhood Watch Victoria's research indicates that apartment residents are most concerned about thefts from storage cages and cars, as well as car thefts. Bambi Gordon, CEO of Neighbourhood Watch Victoria, says apartment dwellers should avoid becoming complacent, and ensure anything they store in a communal car parking area is as secure as possible. She advises that building a friendly and supportive community within your apartment complex is a valuable way to help prevent theft. Setting up an online community, such as a WhatsApp group, or private Facebook group, will help residents keep in touch, and watch out for each other, Gordon says. As well as ensuring your contents insurance or renters insurance, and car insurance are up to date, there are several things that apartment owners and renters can do to protect their valuables. Find a great selection of commercial real estate, manufactured homes, timeshares and more for Sale Buy real estate. Find a great selection of commercial real estate, manufactured homes, timeshares and more for Sale in US and Canada. Search Real Estate Property details: " WOW " 10 ACRES CALIFORNIA LAND!! 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Kick back and soak up the sun in this beautiful town on the Southern California coast, famous for its Mediterranean architecture, pristine beaches, and laidback charm. South of the bustle of Los Angeles and just north of San Diego County, lies a charming town with a Mediterranean feel and laidback pace of life set against a glimmering Pacific Ocean. San Clemente Inn sits on a hillside and is a short drive from the San Clemente Pier ... Price: $ 1 Seller State of Residence: Missouri Property Address: 2600 Avenida Del Presidente, San Clemente, CA Number of Bedrooms: 1 Number of Bathrooms: 1 Zip/Postal Code: 92672 City: San Clemente State/Province: California Location: 658**, Springfield, Missouri You will be redirected to eBay When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Nearby California India and Iran on Monday signed a 10-year contract for the operation of a terminal at the strategically important Chabahar port in Iran, a move that will boost regional connectivity as well as trade ties. Photograph: Courtesy, Alireza Numberone/Wikimedia Commons This is the first time India will take over the management of an overseas port that will also have a multiplier effect on trade among India, Iran and Afghanistan as efforts continue to directly tap the potential in Central Asia, bypassing neighbouring Pakistan. According to an official statement, the contract was signed by India Ports Global Ltd (IPGL) and Iran's Port & Maritime Organisation (PMO), in the presence of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Minister Sarbananda Sonowal. "The long-term bilateral contract on Chabahar Port Operation was signed between Indian Ports Global Limited (IPGL) of India and the Port & Maritime Organisation (PMO) of Iran, enabling operation of Shahid-Beheshti in Chabahar Port Development Project for a period of 10 years," the statement said. This is the first time India will take over the management of an overseas port. "This agreement aims to enhance regional connectivity and facilitate trade, particularly between India, Iran and Afghanistan," the statement said. The India Ports Global Chabahar Free Zone (IPGCFZ), a subsidiary of IPGL, facilitated the first consignment of exports from Afghanistan to India in 2019. The statement said the operations continued through short-term contracts while negotiations on the long-term agreement picked pace with the visit of Sonowal to Chabahar in August 2022. "This 10 years long term lease agreement further strengthens the bilateral ties between the two countries while bolstering confidence and boosting trust of trading communities from the region," the statement said. As part of the agreement, the statement said India will procure MHCs, RMQCs, RTGCs, Reach Stackers, Forklifts, Pneumatic Unloaders etc at Chabahar Port. "The agreement paves the way for enhanced trade and investment opportunities which will potentially boost India's economic development," it added. Speaking at the occasion, Sonowal said, "With the signature of this contract, we have laid the foundations of India's long-term involvement at Chabahar." Sonowal added that the signing of this contract will have a multiplier effect on the viability and visibility of Chabahar port. According to him, Chabahar is not only the closest Iranian port to India but it is also an excellent port from nautical point of view. Sonowal also held a meeting with Iranian Minister of Roads & Urban Development Mehrdad Bazrpash. Located in Sistan-Balochistan province on the energy-rich Iran's southern coast, the Chabahar port is being developed by India and Iran to boost connectivity and trade ties. India has been pushing for the Chabahar port project to boost regional trade, especially for its connectivity to Afghanistan. India and Iran have projected the port as a key hub for the INSTC project. The INSTC is a 7,200-km-long multi-mode transport project for moving freight among India, Iran, Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Russia, Central Asia and Europe. India has been developing a part of Chabahar Port and discussions on the development of the port dates back to 2003 during Iranian President Muhammad Khatami's visit to India. In 2013, India committed to investing $100 million towards the development of Chabahar Port. Earlier, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for development of Chabahar Port by India was signed in May 2015. Thereafter, the contract was executed on May 23, 2016, at Tehran (Iran) during the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Iran. Chabahar is an oceanic port. By leveraging Chabahar Port, India aims to bypass Pakistan and establish direct access to Afghanistan and beyond, into Central Asia. Kandla port in Gujarat is the closest to the Chabahar port at 550 Nautical Miles while the distance between Chabahar and Mumbai is 786 Nautical Miles. Since 2019, it has handled container traffic of more than 80,000 TEUs and bulk and general cargo of more than 8 million tonnes. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had allocated Rs 100 crore for Chabahar Port for 2024-25, underlining India's focus on connectivity projects with Iran. State Bank of India (SBI) is planning to recruit over 15,000 people in 2024-25, increasing the strength of those in the field for marketing. Photograph: Rupak De Chowdhury/Reuters The recruits will be also for deployment in the banks operations subsidiary and expanding the branch network. The operations subsidiary State Bank Operations Support Services became functional last year. The countrys largest lender is also planning to open 300 branches this financial year, as against 139 opened in 2023-24. SBI chairman Dinesh Khara said the bank was open to hiring, depending on requirements. The bank itself is in the process of taking on 11,000-12,000 probationary officers across categories this financial year. According to Khara, 85 per cent of the recruits in the category of officers and associate levels would be engineers, though the bank had no bias in their favour. These recruits will first be made conversant with banking operations. After that they will be channelled into various other roles. Some of them will also be deployed in the information technology segment, Khara said in a media interaction after the results for 2023-24. Responding to a query on branch rationalisation, Khara said: There is no question of rationalisation. "For a country like India and the kind of growth we see, there is ample opportunity. "We have to identify pockets where we need to expand physically. SBI had 22,542 branches at the end of March 2023. The operations support subsidiary has hired 8,000 persons, mainly involved in semi-urban branches. The bank plans to have manpower for urban and metropolitan locations as well, for which approval is in place. The structure is being put in place to reach out to customers on their doorstep, Khara added. An official with the subsidiary said the net annual intake was over 3,000. Those engaged by a subsidiary are deployed in due diligence, marketing, and documentation. SBI group officials said those working with the subsidiary were also roped in for back-office work, marketing, and recovery. The subsidiary has shown good results in follow-ups and recoveries. This years plan is to spread its coverage to urban and metropolitan centres. Most of those employees engaged by the subsidiary are local residents, helping to reach customers and save expenditure on commuting. Staff expenses for those working directly with the bank are higher due to various perks and allowances. However, this expenditure is much less for those working with the subsidiary, giving SBI group an advantage especially in scouting and servicing retail business, officials added. 'No Indian politician has been killed in India for upholding the Constitution except for Kashmiri mainstream politicians.' 'Yet they call us terrorist or militant.' Photograph: Umar Ganie for Rediff.com IMAGE: Waheed ur Rehman Para, in black, third from left, along with People's Democratic Party President Mehbooba Mufti and others offers prayers at a roadshow in Srinagar, May 6, 2024. Waheed ur Rehman Para, the People's Democratic Party's Srinagar candidate, draws crowds during his roadshows across the constituency. "Kashmiri Pandits and Kashmiri Muslims are one blood. We have one DNA, but politics has damaged us," Para tells Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff.com in the concluding part of the interview. Part 1 of the Interview: 'This election is an attempt to heal the people' Is it 'my way or the highway' when it comes to talks? The central government will understand this with time, that whatever you are seeing in Kashmir is through control. We tell the central government that we are not anti-India but our approaches are different. We follow the Constitutional framework. We subscribe to the democratic framework and we subscribe to the idea of India. And all we want is to restore the dignity of Kashmiris within that ambit (of the Constitution). We are not entitled to what other Indians are, like for the last 10 years we didn't have elections. In every jail in India you will see a Kashmiri detained. I was detained for three years on terror-related charges. I had nothing to do with stone pelting or terrorism. Yet I was incarcerated and tortured. I was kept naked in jail. Every kind of torture was experimented on me that they do not do on a militant too. And I think the reason is there being a huge trust deficit not in Kashmir, but in Delhi. The Government of India and the people of India need to realise that Kashmir is not just an issue of elections. It is a human issue and we see ourselves as a part of this country. Our dignity has to be first and most paramount. But the prism through which Indians see, or I must say Hindutva, is that Kashmiri Muslims drove out Kashmiri Pandits from the Valley in 1990. So why are they expecting that we need to have compassion? I agree that there is a narrative against us as you mentioned. But the question you need to ask yourself is that we are the only Muslim state and Muslim majority population in India. We stayed back in India though being the biggest Muslim population state whereas Muslims who were a minority in India left their respective state to Pakistan. By staying in India we made this country look diverse and beautiful. In that sense our loyalty can never be questioned. We are more empathetic towards Kashmiri Pandits. We want Kashmiri Pandits in Kashmir. This guy sitting next to me in the car is Mohit and he is my friend. He is a Kashmiri Pandit and my chief agent (for elections). He is from Tral. He has been fighting my case for the last five years. These things do not reflect in the media. Kashmiri Pandits and Kashmiri Muslims are one blood. We have one DNA, but politics has damaged us. Why are stories like your friendship with Mohit not highlighted? It is because hate is hailing in the country. Hate has become the political campaign now. Hate means election and hate means mandate. The more you talk of hate, the more you become popular as a political leader in India today. And the worse thing is that everything is happening at the cost of the social fabric. We want harmony and not hate. We want people to co-exist and not create exclusion and division within society. Do you ever think about why you were tortured, why it happened to you? It is because I am a Kashmiri Muslim. It has happened in the past and it is continuously happening to all of us. We are not politically big in terms of population. We are small in number. We have done so much for India and yet our loyalty is always questioned. No Indian politician has been killed in India for upholding the Indian Constitution except for Kashmiri mainstream politicians. Kashmiri politicians have been killed for upholding the Indian flag. Yet they call us terrorist or militant. What we want is that the youth of Kashmir should be given enough chance to reclaim their lives. Even if they may have cases against them, Indian democracy has to be big enough to address the pain and trauma of Kashmiris. Suppression will not work. We are not promoting violence, but we are saying can we live together in a dignified way, by living together, by showing acceptance and tolerance. There may be regional aspiration in Kashmir, but that does not mean we are anti-India or anti-Hindu or anti-anyone. We want the Constitution to stay and the idea of India to stay. This gives us more safety. After being held on terror charges and kept naked in jail, what did it take you to come out of such pain and start believing in Indian democracy again? Nothing can be done to break our resolve. The more they suppress us, you understand they are trying to desperately dismantle your faith in the Constitution of India. Dismantle your faith in the institutions of India. The more they suppress us, the more it makes us firm that we need to be consistent. What about emotional trauma? It breaks you emotionally for sure and brings you closer to God and religion. It brings you closer to your identity. You feel more Kashmiri. You understand what has happened in the past. You understand the pain of Kashmir more once you go to jail and face torture. I would have never understood the pain of the youth of Kashmir unless I was jailed. I was kept naked in jail. I was kept in solitary confinement for two months in subzero temperatures. Did you find out why they did this to you? I don't know the answer till this date. It is like the idea of master and slave. They feel we are not equal and we are slaves. This is the mentality of the bureaucracy (in Kashmir). They don't feel Kashmiris are Indians. When they interrogate you there is a feeling of prejudice against us. They don't understand this place but because they rule us they think they are masters. There are political reasons too, like after the abrogation of Article 370 if you don't fall in line they will make you fall in line. It is also done to people like me because they are able to send a message to others and scare them. I was close to Mehboobaji. I was youth president of the PDP. And if I get such treatment by the State, the message goes to people, 'Iske saath aisa ho sakta hai tohi kisi ke saath kuch bhi ho sakta hai (If it can happen to him, it can happen to anyone).' I worked with the chief minister closely and I was praised by then home minister of India (Rajnath Singh) in front of thousands of people prior to my arrest. They made an example out of me to send a message to others. My arrest was to instil fear and defeat in the minds of the youth of Kashmir. The Aurangabad bench of the Bombay high court has refused to quash a case against former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and Telugu Desam Party leader Nakka Ananda Babu for allegedly assaulting police personnel in Maharashtra in 2010. IMAGE: Former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu. Photograph: @ncbn/X A division bench of Justices Mangesh Patil and Shailesh Brahme in its judgement on May 10 said it has "no manner of doubt that there is enough material to reveal complicity" of both Naidu and Babu in the commission of the alleged crime. The court dismissed the petitions filed by Telugu Desam Party chief Naidu and Babu seeking to quash the FIR lodged against them with the Dharmabad police in Maharashtra's Nanded district. The FIR was registered on charges of assaulting or using criminal force against a public servant, causing harm with dangerous weapons, rash acts endangering lives of others, intentional insult with an intent to provoke breach of peace and criminal intimidation. The bench in its order said it has "no manner of doubt that there is enough material to reveal complicity of both the applicants (Naidu and Babu) in the commission of the crime." "The FIR expressly alleges about the applicant accused no. 1 (Naidu) having instigated fellow prisoners and even threatened of there being a war between the two states," the HC said. The bench noted that witnesses in their statements have expressly attributed role of Naidu and Babu in commission of the offence and medical certificates show many of the police officials sustained injuries. It is clear that the offence was committed by sharing a common intention to carry out assault on police personnel, the high court said. The FIR was lodged promptly and even the injured police personnel were medically examined immediately, it said. "There is enough material revealing complicity of the applicants (Naidu and Babu) in commission of the crime with which they have been charged and it would not be appropriate to quash the crime and the criminal case," the high court said. The bench dismissed both the petitions but extended the interim protection granted earlier till July 8 at the request of the duo's counsel Sidharth Luthra. In July 2010, Naidu and Babu were arrested along with 66 associates by the Dharmabad police in connection with another case pertaining to protest and agitation. Naidu, Babu and the others were remanded to judicial custody in the case and kept in a temporary prison at the Government Rest House in Dharmabad. When their judicial custody was extended, the Maharashtra Prisons' DIG ordered for them to be shifted to the Aurangabad central prison. However, Naidu and Babu refused to be shifted and allegedly started hurling abuses in Telugu and English against the jail authorities. When the jailer requested the duo to board an air-conditioned bus, Naidu and Babu allegedly declared that if they were forced to board the bus then there would be a conflict between the two states. The allegation against the duo is that they instigated the other accused persons and started using criminal force and even assaulted some police officials. Additional force was called and the accused, including Naidu and Babu, were shifted to the Aurangabad central prison. Senior advocate Luthra, appearing for Naidu and Babu, argued that the FIR pertaining to the agitation was withdrawn and the magistrate had discharged all the accused in that case immediately. However, the police machinery was now implicating the duo in the assault case. Luthra argued the allegations in this case were false and concocted. Under provisions of the Prisons Act, only the superintendent of prisons has the power to lodge FIRs, he said. The informant in the present case was a senior jailer who could not have acted independently and did not have the power to lodge an FIR, Luthra said. The court, however, refused to accept the contention and said the accused have been booked under provisions of the Indian Penal Code, which are independent offences, and not the Prisons Act. "The impugned crime and the chargesheet merely seek to attract provisions of the Indian Penal Code," the HC said. Hence, Luthra's submission would not be legally tenable, it added. The bench said the Prisons Act does not lay down any mechanism or procedure for lodging FIRs under the Indian Penal Code in respect of crimes committed within the premises of a prison. A day before the fourth phase of polling for the general elections, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday warned the Bharatiya Janata Party not to come in the way of the public and said preventing voters from casting their votes is also a crime. IMAGE: Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav addresses an election campaign for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections, in Kannauj on Saturday, May 11, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo The Shahjahanpur, Kheri, Dhaurahara, Sitapur, Hardoi, Misrikh, Unnao, Farrukhabad, Etawah, Kannauj, Kanpur, Akbarpur and the Bahraich constituencies in Uttar Pradesh will go the polls on Monday. Yadav said in a post in Hindi on X, 'The BJP is warned not to come in the way of the public. Preventing voters from casting their votes is also a crime. The public has come to know about the conspiracy hatched by the BJP to prevent people from casting their votes by misusing power. BJP supporters are bent on violence...' 'Samajwadi Party supporters will cast their votes in the face every oppression and violence. Tomorrow (Monday), when millions of people will come out to defeat the BJP in Kannauj and all other seats, let us see how the BJP can stop them by using force. The BJP's electoral scams have been exposed and a round of allegations and counter-allegations has started within the BJP," he said, adding that the saffron party is losing the Lok Sabha elections. 'That is why some people who were supporting the BJP due to fear or greed have also backed out after seeing the public's anger,' he said. Yadav is contesting the elections from Kannauj. He held the seat between 2000 and 2012. The Samajwadi Party is contesting the Lok Sabha elections in an alliance with the Congress, another opposition INDIA bloc constituent, in Uttar Pradesh. 'The public is secretly ready to take videos and photos and names of people with criminal tendencies and dishonest officials. As soon as the government changes, everyone will be identified and punished for their crimes. Such people who support the BJP government, which has become an enemy of the public, will not be able to face their own people,' Yadav said. Appealing to the electorate, he said, 'Come out to vote without fear and ensure victory for the Samajwadi Party, Congress and other candidates of the INDIA bloc.' Bharatiya Janata Party candidate for Hyderabad Lok Sabha seat K Madhavi Latha was on Monday booked by election authorities after a video clip in which she was purportedly asking burqa-clad women Muslim voters to show their faces to compare with the photo identity cards surfaced. IMAGE: BJP candidate from Hyderabad Madhavi Latha purportedly asks Muslim women voters to show their IDs during her visit to a polling booth in the constituency. Photograph: ANI on X In the video, Latha was seen asking the women voters at a polling booth to lift the burqa and show their face so that she could verify the identity. 'A case is registered in Malakpet police station against Madhavi Latha, contesting candidate, BJP, under Sections 171C, 186, 505(1)(c) of IPC and Section 132 of the Representation of the People Act,' the Hyderabad Collector said in a post on X. She was also seen telling the policemen to allow voters into polling booths only after a thorough check. Polling for the total 17 Lok Sabha seats was underway in Telangana. Section 171C deals with interference or attempts to interfere with the free exercise of any electoral right. Section 186 is related to voluntarily obstructing any public servant in the discharge of public function, while 505 is applied for inciting or likely to incite, any class or community of persons to commit any offence against any other class or community. Speaking about the video, the BJP leader said that she had only requested the women to verify their identity and there was nothing wrong with this. "I am a candidate. As per law candidate has the right to check the ID cards without the facemasks. I am not a man, I am a woman and with a lot of humbleness, I have only requested them -- can I please see and verify with the ID cards? If somebody wants to make a big issue out of it, that means they are scared," she said. Earlier in the day, Latha had alleged discrepancies in the voter list in her constituency. Latha is taking on All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen chief Asaduddin Owaisi in the Hyderabad Lok Sabha segment. -- with inputs from ANI The Supreme Court on Monday extended the stay on the defamation proceedings against Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to allow time for the parties to explore the possibility of a settlement. IMAGE: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann holding a roadshow for the Lok Sabha Polls, at Moti Nagar, in New Delhi on May 13, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo Kejriwal has challenged a Delhi high court order upholding the summons issued to him in a criminal defamation case for retweeting an allegedly defamatory video circulated by YouTuber Dhruv Rathee in May 2018. A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta said the interim stay already granted will stand extended till further orders. Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for Kejriwal, said after the last hearing on March 11, the parties could not get in touch with each other to discuss a settlement. Counsel for complainant Vikas Sankrityayan said nobody contacted them after the last hearing. The bench told the counsel that now Kejriwal's side will get in touch with the complainant, and posted the matter for further hearing in the week commencing August 12. On March 11, the top court had asked Kejriwal whether he wanted to tender an apology to the complainant. Kejriwal had on February 26 told the apex court that he made a mistake by retweeting an allegedly defamatory video circulated by YouTuber Rathee related to the Bharatiya Janata Party IT cell. The counsel appearing for Sankrityayan has told the top court that Kejriwal may issue an apology on social media platforms like 'X' or Instagram for his action. On February 26, the apex court, without issuing notice on Kejriwal's plea challenging the high court order, had asked the complainant whether he wanted to close the matter in view of the petitioner accepting his mistake. The top court had asked the trial court not to take up the defamation case involving Kejriwal till further orders. In its February 5 verdict, the high court said re-posting libellous content would attract provisions of the defamation law. It said a sense of responsibility has to be exhibited while retweeting content about which one does not have knowledge, and not doing so must invite penal, civil as well as tort action if the person retweeting it does not attach a disclaimer. The high court, while refusing to quash the trial court's 2019 order summoning Kejriwal, had said when a public figure tweets a defamatory post, the ramifications extend far beyond a mere whisper in someone's ears. It had said if the act of retweeting or reposting is allowed to be misused, as it is still considered a grey area of law, it will encourage people with ill intentions to misuse it and conveniently take a plea that they had merely retweeted a content. The chief minister had asserted in the high court that the trial court failed to appreciate that his tweet was not intended to harm the complainant. Sankrityayan claimed the YouTube video titled 'BJP IT Cell Part II' was circulated by Rathee, who lives in Germany, "wherein a number of false and defamatory allegations were made". Clad in a yellow kurta with a saffron gamcha around his neck, atop an open saffron coloured vehicle, he was greeted by loud chants of "Modi! Modi! Modi Zindabad! 400 Paar Is Baar" all along the roadshow's route. M I Khan reports. IMAGE: Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Narendra D Modi with Janata Dal-United President Nitish Kumar and Ravi Shankar Prasad, the BJP candidate for the Patna Saheb Lok Sabha seat, at a roadshow in Patna, May 12, 2024, here and below. All photographs: ANI Photo Large crowds of enthusiastic people of all ages turned up on both sides of Narendra D Modi's roadshow in Patna on Sunday, May 12, evening. Modi began his road show from Patna's Bhattacharya Road following the chanting of mantras and blowing the conch shell. Clad in a yellow kurta with a saffron gamcha around his neck, atop an open saffron coloured vehicle, specially designed as a rath for the roadshow, he was greeted by loud chants of "Modi! Modi! Modi Zindabad! 400 Paar Is Baar" all along the roadshow's route. Bharatiya Janata Party leaders, workers and supporters rained flowers on Modi's vehicle all along the route. Alongside Modi on the vehicle were Nitish Kumar, the Janata Dal-United president and the BJP's electoral ally in Bihar, and Ravi Shankar Prasad, the BJP candidate from Patna Saheb. Saffron was the dominant colour all along the route with saffron flags, posters and banners leading the way. At a few places, burqa-clad Muslim women were seen welcoming Modi. The Modi road show passed through Patna's residential cum market localities of Kadamkuan, Sahitya Sammelan, Thakurbari Road, Bakarganj and ended at Udyog Bhawan at Gandhi Maidan. ***** Hours ahead of the road show, Patna residents this reporter spoke to, appeared divided over its impact on the ongoing election campaign. For most Modi's roadshow in Patna was a matter of pride and an opportunity to glimpse their favourite leader. Others felt Modi was forced to hold a roadshow in Patna after realising that the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance was unlikely to repeat its 2019 performance in Bihar, when it won 39 seats. Modi has visited Bihar four times so far this election cycle and addressed seven election meetings in different parliamentary constituencies. "Party leaders have arranged 5 tons of roses and marigolds to welcome Modiji during the roadshow," a BJP leader said before the event began. "Flowers will be showered over Modiji's vehicle during the road show by party leaders, workers and supporters." The roadshow's route was changed due to security reasons; earlier, it was to have started from Dak Bungalow Chouraha, but was moved to Bhattacharya Road. Commandos from central security forces were deployed across the length of the roadshow route since Sunday morning. "It is a matter of pride for us that we will have a glimpse of the country's most popular leader," Manish Kumar Singh said before the roadshow, adding, "I along with my family will stand on the route to welcome him and express support to him in the elections." "My entire family will go there to watch him and raise hands in his support," said Kaushal Kishor. "Modi is the best, we will vote in his name. NDA candidates hardly matter to us. Modi's face is a big factor." "Modi's road show will impact the election and benefit the BJP," said Ajay Rai, who was hoping to touch Modi's feet. "I like Modi and will vote for the BJP candidate keeping Modi;s face in mind," Rai added. IMAGE: All set to welcome Modi. Photograph: M I Khan "Modi's roadshow is a political stunt nothing more," Balik Sharma, an elderly resident of Patna, insisted, "The NDA is in trouble in the elections. Modi's old Hindu-Muslim trick has not clicked so far and he is desperate to consolidate his vote." "Youth are jobless, the middle class and the poor are facing the brunt of price rise," said Gunjan Yadav, a young voter. "Modi will hardly get any benefit of the roadshow because people are fed up of his false promises." Modi's visits to Bihar, added Yadav, indicates that "Bihar se Modi dar gaya hai (Modi is frightened of the election outcome in Bihar)." "The roadshow is not going to help him in elections this time. Modi has disappointed youth," said Santosh Kumar, who introduced himself as a "berojgar" (unemployed). "The youth are disappointed with Modi because nothing has happened about the 2 crore jobs he promised us. It has been proved to be a jumla." "The mood among the people have changed, it is visible on the streets in Patna, a stronghold of the BJP for decades," observed social activist Satyanarayan Madan. Arvind Kumar asserted that the NDA tally in Bihar will come down from 39 in 2019 to 20 this election. "It is not confined to Bihar, Modi's magic has gone. He is no more a credible face," added Arvind Kumar. IMAGE: A slogan displaying 'Har Dil Main Modi' in Patna. Photograph: Rahul Singh/ANI Photo Patna has two Lok Sabha seats: Patliputra and Patna Saheb, both won by the BJP in the 2014 and 2019 elections. Ram Kirpal Yadav, the sitting BJP MP from Patliputra, hopes to achieve a hat-trick by defeating Rashtriya Janata Dal candidate Dr Misa Bharti a third time. Patna Saheb's incumbent BJP MP is Ravi Shankar Prasad. After staying in Patna overnight after the roadshow, Modi will address election meetings on May 13 in three Lok Sabha constituencies: Hajipur, Vaishali and Saran. Feature Presentation: Rajesh Alva/Rediff.com A voter turnout of 38 percent was recorded in the redrawn Srinagar Lok Sabha seat without any untoward incident on Monday, the highest since 1996 when the constituency in Jammu and Kashmir witnessed nearly 41 percent polling. IMAGE: Security personnel stand guard outside a polling station during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha polls, in Srinagar, May 13, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo The Srinagar constituency, which saw the first general election after the abrogation of Article 370 in J-K, recorded 38 per cent voting till 11 pm, according to the Election Commission of India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi applauded voters in Srinagar for an encouraging turnout. "The abrogation of Article 370 has enabled the potential and aspirations of the people to find full expression. Happening at the grassroots level, it is great for the people of J-K, in particular the youth," he said in a post on X. Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and the political parties congratulated the people of Srinagar constituency on the "historic" voter turnout. Kashmiri Pandits from the constituency flocked to special polling stations in Jammu and voted for the rehabilitation of their community on "social, economic, and political" fronts. Voting took place in the districts of Srinagar, Ganderbal, and Pulwama, and partly in Budgam and Shopian districts at around 2,135 polling stations across the Srinagar parliamentary constituency with live webcasting at all the polling stations, the EC said in a statement. Polling started at 7 am with long queues of enthusiastic voters waiting to cast their votes, it said. Voters of Srinagar, Budgam, Ganderbal, Pulwama, and Shopian showed up in record numbers to cast their votes in a show of faith and enthusiasm in the election process, it added. According to the EC, the highest polling in this constituency in the last 34 years has been in 1996 when nearly 41 percent voters used their franchise. In 2019, 14.43 percent votes polled whereas the figure in previous parliamentary elections stood at 25.86 percent (2014), 25.55 (2009), 18.57 (2004), 11.93 (1999) and 30.06 percent (1998), the statement said. National Conference candidate Aga Ruhullah, People's Democratic Party's Wahid Para, JK Apni Party's Ashraf Mir and DPAP's Amit Bhat are among 24 candidates fighting from the Srinagar seat. In the 2019 general elections, only 12 candidates were in the fray from the seat. The Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency was redrawn after the delimitation and parts of Budgam in central Kashmir were taken away from it, while Pulwama district and parts of Shopian district were added. In a post on X, LG Sinha said, "Today, people came out in large numbers to cast their votes in Srinagar Parliamentary Constituency and reaffirmed their faith in democracy and the constitution. I commend the hard work by all the stakeholders for free, fair, peaceful and smooth conduct of the polling." "I truly appreciate the enthusiasm of electors and hopeful to see historic turnout in the next two phases," he added. Kashmiri Pandits, who were forced to flee from the valley in the early 90s under fear of militancy, lined up in long queues amid tight security to exercise their franchise. "I have voted for our permanent return to Kashmir valley in an atmosphere of peace and security. We have been waiting for the past 34 years to live in the valley. We hope this dream of ours will materialise now," Om Prakash, who was carried on a wheelchair from his quarters in the Jagti migrant camp in Jammu, said. Meanwhile, three generations of the Abdullah family cast their vote in the Srinagar constituency. National Conference president and former J-K chief minister Farooq Abdullah, his son Omar Abdullah and his two grandsons and first-time electors Zahir and Zamir? cast their vote at a polling station at the Burn Hall School here. "We have two first-time voters with us. It is for the first time that three generations of our family are voting together," Omar Abdullah, also a former chief minister, said. Jammu and Kashmir chief electoral officer PK Pole said all the 2,135 polling stations were connected to CCTV network and that no untoward incident has been noticed. Pole thanked about 8,500 polling staff and 17,000 security force personnel for ensuring free and fair election in Srinagar seat having over 17.47 lakh-strong electorate. "I also thank the candidates for enthusiastic participation in the campaign and for mobilising the voters," he told reporters here. Srinagar seat was redrawn in the 2022 delimitation exercise in Jammu and Kashmir. The constituency comprises 18 assembly segments which are spread over five districts of Srinagar, Ganderbal, Pulwama, Budgam and Shopian. According to the official data, Habbakadal was the only assembly segment which registered a turnout of less than 20 per cent where only 14.01 per cent voters cast their votes. In order to ensure inclusive voting, polling stations managed by women, specially abled persons and youths were set up. There were 21 green and eco-friendly polling stations, the EC said in a statement. The Commission enabled Kashmiri migrant voters residing at various relief camps in Delhi, Jammu, and Udhampur to also have the option of voting in person at designated special polling stations or using postal ballot. The good voter turnout signalled a paradigm shift from the past voting patterns in the Srinagar constituency. "I am voting for the first time. We want our representation in the Centre who will become our voice. That is the reason I have come to vote," Mohammad Asif, a resident of Lal Bazar, said. Bashir Ahmad Bhat, an elderly man, said it was time to stand up for Kashmiri identity and save its resources for local people. "We all know what happened in 2019... We have to make ourselves heard and Parliament is the best place to make the noise," Bhat said after casting his vote at a polling station in Old Srinagar city. Rafeeqa, a resident of Khanyar, said she has voted to contribute her bit in stopping "injustice" with people of Kashmir. "We are losing jobs. Electricity is becoming dearer, food supplies through public distribution system have been reduced drastically. I have voted against all this," she said. National Conference President Dr Farooq Abdullah, his only son Omar Abdullah and Omar's sons Zamir Abdullah and Zahir Abdullah (both first time voters) cast their votes in Srinagar on Monday, May 13, 2024. All photographs: Umar Ganie for Rediff.com IMAGE: Dr Abdullah, who will turn 87 on October 21, walks to the polling station assisted by his security guards. IMAGE: A polling official scrutinises Dr Abdullah's voting slip. IMAGE: Dr Abdullah signs the register before voting. IMAGE: Dr Abdullah, who is the sitting MP from Srinagar, decided not to contest the 2024 election. IMAGE: Dr Abdullah casts his vote. IMAGE: Zamir and Zahir stand in a queue with their father Omar Abdullah to cast their votes. IMAGE: Omar Abdullah decided to contest the 2024 Lok Sabha election from Baramulla in north Kashmir. IMAGE: Omar casts his vote. IMAGE: Dr Abdullah is assisted by his grandson and son as they leave the polling booth. IMAGE: The Abdullahs shows their ink marked fingers outside the polling booth. Photographs curated by Manisha Kotian/Rediff.com Feature Presentation: Ashish Narsale/Rediff.com The curious onlookers that greet the candidates are, however, unaware about the importance of history. They are just there to catch a glimpse of Rani Ma Amrita Roy or Mahua Moitra. IMAGE: Trinamool Congress candidate Mahua Moitra addresses a public meeting in Krishnanagar, Nadia, West Bengal, May 8, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo In Putul Patti-Ghurni, a seemingly ordinary neighbourhood in Krishnanagar -- about 112 km from Kolkata -- 43-year-old Abhijit Pal is carefully carving the pleats on a clay model of Ram Lalla. His attention to detail is unmistakable. Patronised by Raja Krishnachandra Ray -- who belonged to the Nadia Raj dynasty and ruled in the 18th century -- the art of clay modelling has passed down generations across the studios and stores that dot the area. The beauty of the miniature figurines -- typically 2 to 6 inches -- portraying everyday life, is in its lifelike feel. Occasionally, the potters dabble in models of leading lights of Bengals art, culture and social movements. But for now, the age-old art appears to be getting a political twist, filling up the coffers of artisans. Abhijits cousin, Debashis, who has a store next door, has got an order for 200 clay models of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and 200 more for Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath. They have to be shipped to Lucknow a month before Diwali. About 50 per cent of Debashiss orders are, anyway, from Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra. West Bengal neither has the money nor the market, he rues. Abhijit laments that the art of clay modelling in Krishnanagar is dying. This art form is not attracting new talent. The state government needs to wake up and do something to preserve it. A training institute is the need of the hour. As Krishnanagar votes today, no prizes for guessing the button that Abhijit and Debashis are going to press on the electronic voting machine (EVM). A high-octane battle The atmosphere in this constituency has been politically charged for some time now. Among the 42 Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal, its perhaps the most keenly watched. The incumbent is Trinamool Congresss (TMCs) firebrand MP Mahua Moitra, who was expelled from the Lok Sabha in December 2023 following an ethics committee report into the cash for query charges against her. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has added a dash of royalty by fielding Amrita Roy or Rani Ma, who married into Krishnachandra Rays family. Not surprisingly, the political slugfest here has turned out to be like a history lesson revisited. The TMC narrative is largely that Raja Krishnachandra Ray sided with the British when Siraj-ud-Daulah was fighting against them in the Battle of Plassey (Palashi) in 1757. It had paved the way for British rule in Bengal and India. To this, Amrita Roy famously responded that it was because of the torture of Siraj-ud-Daulah. If Krishnachandra Roy had not done it, would Hinduism have survived? Would Sanatan Dharma have survived? IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi poses for a selfie during a public meeting in support of Bharatiya Janata Party candidate from Krishnanagar, Amrita Roy, May 3, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo The curious onlookers on either side that greet the candidates are, however, unaware about the importance of the chapter in history. They are just there to catch a glimpse of Rani Ma or Moitra, who strikes quite a pose in oversised sunglasses and handloom saris. In Jhitkipota, a woman gushes how Moitra held her hand while on a campaign trail. The glamour quotient, however, is high on either side. This is the first time I am seeing Rani Ma, says a woman excitedly in Kaliganj where Amrita Roy was interacting with people on Wednesday. The phone cameras were out to capture the moment. Another person says that this is the first time that the saffron party has fielded a worthy candidate since 1999 when Satyabrata Mookherjee was elected from Krishnanagar Lok Sabha constituency. It took some prodding by the BJP to get Amrita Roy to agree, though. I have been a totally apolitical person, Roy tells Business Standard. What changed her mind? The family's connect with the people was always there, she points out. Roy also highlights the corruption in the current regime -- its to the level that jobs are being sold. "We had the history of having a 'golden' Bengal - that is no longer there. As a Bengali, I would like to push it forward. But I can't do it alone and needed a platform," she adds. That the stakes are high in this seat is evident from the fact that Roy was the only other Lok Sabha candidate from West Bengal to get a call from Modi when nominations were announced. The first was BJP candidate Rekha Patra from Sandeshkhali (LS seat, Basirhat). Third factor Political observers, however, believe that a third factor is looming large on the outcome of Krishnanagar. According to political analyst Biswanath Chakraborty, if the CPI-M candidate cuts into minority votes, then it may be a problem for TMC. He adds, But if like the Lok Sabha election in 2019 or assembly polls in 2021, the entire Muslim vote goes in favour of TMC, then the BJP will lose. So, a third party will be an important factor. Krishnanagar Lok Sabha constituency has a 26.67 per cent Muslim population. The CPI-M has fielded S M Sadi from the minority community. In the 2019 Lok Sabha election, the CPI-M and Congress had fought separately and Moitra had won by a margin of 63,218 votes. Mohammed Salim, CPI-M secretary in West Bengal, believes that in Krishnanagar, the party will not just be a deciding factor this time. We will be the winner. There is no distinct BJP wave and there is a lot of anger against the TMC. Krishnanagar is one place where the Left-Congress vote that had gone to TMC and BJP, has come back, he adds. About 12-15 per cent of Bengali Muslims are shifting towards the Left-Congress here, according to Salim. Whichever way the political wind blows in Krishnanagar, or any other constituency, the issues, however, are hyperlocal. Its also why the welfare measures of the Mamata Banerjee government continue to be a big draw. Despite declining by three percentage points in 2022-23 (FY23) compared to FY19, Odishas unemployment rate remains higher than the average in India. IMAGE: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik at an election rally in Ganjam, May 10, 2024. 5T and Nabin Odisha chairman VK Pandian is to his right. Photograph: ANI Photo Political parties in Odisha are vying with one another in getting job promises written into their election manifestos as the states unemployment rate has remained higher than the national average for the past six years. Ahead of the simultaneous assembly and Lok Sabha elections today, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Thursday announced 200,000 government jobs in the next five years if his Biju Janata Dal (BJD) returned to power for a sixth term. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has promised 350,000 employment opportunities, including filling up 150,000 vacant government posts, by 2029. The Congress, on the other hand, has vowed to provide jobs for 500,000 youths and offer an unemployment allowance of Rs 3,000 per month. Despite declining by three percentage points in 2022-23 (FY23) compared to FY19, Odishas unemployment rate remains higher than the average in India, shows the data from the annual Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), released in October. The rate of unemployment for those aged 15 years and above was 7 per cent in Odisha in FY19. It dipped to 3.9 per cent in FY23. In the same period, Indias unemployment rate decreased from 5.8 per cent to 3.2 per cent. Moreover, Odishas well-educated are increasingly finding themselves without a job. The states graduates and post-graduates are more likely to be unemployed as against those without schooling or a primary education. Though a similar trend is also reflected in Indian graduates and postgraduates overall, the rate of unemployment is higher in Odisha, where a majority of the workers are self-employed. Just 13 per cent of the states workers are in regular employment, compared to 21 per cent of Indian workers. Analysts attribute this partly to more than 7 million women engaged in the Mission Shakti scheme, which has created over 600,000 self-help groups. The BJD has promised to raise the interest-free loan to Rs 15 lakh. It has also vowed to increase the interest-free loan to Rs 2 lakh given to those between 18 and 35 years in rural areas to start businesses under the Swayam scheme, launched in February. In 2020, Patnaik had launched a Rs 17,000 crore livelihood intervention plan to generate employment in rural areas. Under the Odisha Skill Development Authority, the state has tied up with some e-commerce companies to address the unemployment situation. Odisha also ranked low on the International Labour Organizations employment condition index in its India Employment Report 2024 report -- 21st among the 22 states evaluated based on their quality and conditions of employment. According to the Election Commission of India, voters in the age group 18-29 account for 23 per cent of the electorate in the state. According to a pre-poll survey by the Centre for Study of Developing Societies (CSDS), unemployment remains one of the key concerns for voters in India during these elections. Sixty-two per cent of the respondents said securing employment had become increasingly challenging. The Opposition has capitalised on this issue. And Prime Minister Narendra Modi attacked the ruling BJD for failing to provide jobs to the youth in Odisha, forcing them to migrate to other states. While the BJP had asked the BJD to come up with a white paper on unemployment, the Congress said over 225,000 posts were vacant in the state. Satyaranjan Bhoi, a postgraduate who is preparing for competitive examinations, flagged the delayed recruitment process and corruption in the government-job sector. According to a report tabled in the assembly in November last year, 44 retired officials have been reappointed in the information and public relations department and 50 in the skill development and technical education department. Subash Chandra Patra, a retired state government college principal, said the state had almost exhausted the vacancies, but recruitment was usually held up due to legal cases. He, however, said the government should clarify the definition of jobs. Political parties are promising employment opportunities, but the concept of jobs is very hedgy. Can orientation programmes, such as the Agniveer scheme, be called a job? Economist Rajib Sekhar Sahoo agreed the ruling party hadnt been successful in generating large employment and urged that the new government focus on skill development. Going by the promises by the political parties, it seems job creation will be far better than what it will be now, and this will be driven by the non-traditional sector, Sahoo said. A ruling YSRCP MLA on Monday slapped a man waiting to cast his vote at a polling booth in Andhra Pradesh's Tenali only to receive it back himself. The MLA had hit the man who questioned him for jumping the queue. The incident occurred at Tenali in Guntur district when the local YSRCP MLA A Siva Kumar attempted to jump the queue and was questioned by one of the voters. In a fit of rage, the legislator slapped the man, who did not hold himself back and returned the favour. Not pleased at the MLA being slapped, his supporters vented out their anger on the man. "He (the YSRCP MLA) was going to vote and he jumped the queue so somebody (voter) objected," a police official told PTI about the incident which resulted in the skirmish. According to police, there was an argument between the MLA and the voter before Kumar hit him. After the voter retaliated, the MLA's supporters launched an indiscriminate attack on the voter, raining punches until police and other voters stepped in to stop the assault. The Telugu Desam Party lodged a complaint with the Election Commission over the incident. Meanwhile, police are in the process of filing FIRs over the incident. Voting in elections to the 175 assembly constituencies and 25 Lok Sabha seats is taking place simultaneously in the state on Monday. Some schools of Jaipur received bomb threats via email on Monday morning, triggering panic among students and their parents, police said. IMAGE: Bomb detection squad outside a school in Jaipur. Photograph: ANI on X However, no explosive or nothing suspicious has been found so far in these schools, they added. The threat emails came on the 16th anniversary of the serial bomb blast incident in the Rajasthan capital. A series of blasts had rocked the city on this day in 2008 claiming 71 lives and injuring 180 people. According to the police, first information about the threat was reported from a private school in Tilak Nagar followed by other schools in different localities including Manak chowk, Vaishali Nagar, Vidhyadhar Nagar, Niwaru Road, Tonk Road, and Sanganer among others. Soon after the threatening messages came to notice, students and staff members were evacuated from the schools. Police teams and bomb and dog squads were rushed to these schools, Police Commissioner Biju George Joseph said. "Several schools received threats via email that explosives were there in the schools. Checking in most of the schools has been completed and no explosive was found," he said. He added that efforts were on to identify the sender of the emails. As soon as the news of the bomb threats spread, parents rushed to the schools in panic to pick up their children. However, they took a sigh of relief when authorities told them things were under control and there was no need to worry. ***** Six hospitals in Bengaluru receive bomb threat, turns out to be hoax Six private hospitals here received a bomb threat via email which turned out to be a hoax, police said on Monday. Police began an extensive search operation along with dog and bomb disposal teams in these city hospitals. "However, no suspicious object was found inside the premises of these hospitals," a senior police official said. "It was a hoax threat," he said. The email to the hospitals on Sunday claimed: "I have placed explosive devices in your building. They will explode in the following hours. This isn't a threat, you have a few hours to disarm the bomb or else the blood of the innocent people inside of the building will be on your hands." The Delhi high court on Monday dismissed a plea seeking direction to the Election Commission of India to take action against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for allegedly delivering communally divisive speeches during Lok Sabha poll campaigning in violation of the Model Code of Conduct. IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi prepares daal in the langar kitchen (community kitchen) during his visit to Takht Sri Patna Sahib Gurudwara to pay obeisance, in Patna on Monday, May 13, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo Justice Sachin Datta said the plea was misconceived and devoid of merits and the ECI can take an independent view on the complaint of the petitioner in accordance with law. The court also referred to its earlier order passed in a plea pertaining to a speech given by the prime minister allegedly seeking votes in the name of religion and deities and went on to say that making any presupposition is unjustified. The counsel for the ECI submitted that it has issued a detailed advisory to all political parties. It said that appropriate action shall be taken if necessary on the reply. The petitioner's counsel said the ECI cannot have different standards for taking action against different politicians. The plea alleged that no action has been taken against Prime Minister Modi and others from the Bharatiya Janata Party for their alleged hate speeches, despite complaints made to the ECI. A voter turnout of nearly 63 percent was recorded on Monday in the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections covering 96 constituencies spread over 10 states and Union Territories, with scattered incidents of violence reported in West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh. IMAGE: Voters show their ink-marked fingers after casting their votes for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha polls, in Barwani on Monday, May 13, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo West Bengal again recorded an impressive turnout at 75.94 percent, the highest among states/UTs in this phase. Srinagar constituency in Jammu and Kashmir witnessed 36.58 percent voting in the first Lok Sabha election in the Valley since the scrapping of Article 370, with the EC stating that it was the "highest turnout in decades". "Polling in the fourth phase of General Elections 2024 recorded an approximate voter turnout of 62.84 percent till 8 pm. Polling was closed at 6 pm, but a large number of voters were still in the queue at polling stations," the Election Commission said in a statement, adding that these were "provisional" figures and were being updated. Among other states, Andhra Pradesh recorded 68.12 percent polling, Bihar 55.90 percent, Jharkhand 63.37 percent, Madhya Pradesh 68.63 percent, Maharashtra 52.75 percent, Odisha 63.85 percent, Telangana 61.39 percent and Uttar Pradesh 57.88 percent. The overall voter turnout in the first three phases of the Lok Sabha elections was 66.14 percent, 66.71 percent and 65.68 percent, respectively. With the conclusion of phase 4, polling for general elections has crossed the halfway mark as it is completed in 23 states/UTs and 379 Lok Sabha constituencies out of 543. Also, assembly elections have been completed in Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim and Andhra Pradesh, apart from 28 assembly seats of Odisha. IMAGE: A tribal elderly woman voter shows her ink-marked fingers after casting her vote for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha election, in Khunti, Jharkhand, May 13, 2024.. Photograph: ANI Photo Bharatiya Janata Party candidate in Telangana's Hyderabad Lok Sabha seat K Madhavi Latha, who is contesting against All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen's Asaduddin Owaisi, was booked by election authorities after a video clip surfaced online in which she was purportedly seen asking burqa-clad women voters to show their faces to compare with the photo identity cards. In Andhra Pradesh, the Telugu Desam Party and YSRCP accused each other of indulging in violence, especially in Palnadu, Kadapa and Annamayya districts. YSRCP also wrote to the EC, alleging poll code violations by rival TDP in several assembly segments, including Vemuru, Darsi, Icchapuram, Kuppam, Macherla, Markapuram, Palakonda and Pedakurapaudu. Polling for 175 assembly seats and 25 Lok Sabha constituencies in the coastal state occurred simultaneously on Monday. The YSRCP alleged that TDP leaders captured five polling booths in the Vemuru constituency. IMAGE: First-time voters show their voting documents as they arrive to cast their vote in Khunti. Photograph: ANI Photo YSRCP leader and Tenali MLA A Shiva Kumar allegedly manhandled a voter in Tenali following an argument, police said, adding the voter also retaliated. At Dalavaipalli village in Railway Kodur constituency, an EVM was destroyed while cars belonging to the ruling party and TDP were damaged, a police official said. A TDP agent was attacked at Nakkaladinne village in Myduruku constituency, leading to his hospitalisation. The YSRCP alleged that party agent Suresh Reddy was stabbed at Mandi Krishnapuram village in Chittoor's Gudipala mandal. It also alleged that TDP supporters attacked party member B Anji Reddy at Aravallipadu in the Darsi constituency. TDP MLC Mohammed Ahmed Shariff wrote to Chief Electoral Officer Mukesh Kumar Meena, complaining about alleged attacks by YSRCP cadres on TDP supporters at Rentala village in Rentichintala mandal of Palnadu district. IMAGE: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav cast his vote during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha Polls, at a polling station in Ujjain. Photograph: ANI Photo TDP activists allegedly damaged the vehicle of senior YSRCP leader Nandigam Suresh, the YSRCP said in a statement. It further alleged that TDP supporters attacked party member B Anji Reddy at Aravallipadu in the Darsi constituency, resulting in a head injury. Meanwhile, TDP supremo Chandrababu Naidu alleged that there was "no peaceful atmosphere in the state for people to exercise their franchise". "I severely condemn the violence reported since morning. YSRCP is implementing its plots in a concerted manner. Local police officials failed in averting violence in Macherla constituency," he said in a post on 'X'. Sporadic incidents of violence marred the fourth phase of Lok Sabha polls in the eight parliamentary constituencies of West Bengal as TMC and BJP workers clashed in various areas under Birbhum and Bardhaman-Durgapur Lok Sabha seats. IMAGE: Tripura Governor N Indrasena Reddy and the state's first lady Renuka Nallu show their ink-marked finger after casting their votes for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha election, at Malakpet in Hyderabad. Photograph: ANI Photo Around 1,700 complaints of EVM malfunction and obstruction of agents entering booths were recorded till 1pm, the EC said, adding the TMC, Congress, and BJP filed hundreds of complaints related to poll violence, voter intimidation, and assaults on agents. Two security personnel of the CISF deployed to protect West Bengal BJP leader Dilip Ghosh were injured in a stone-pelting incident at Bardhaman. "An incident of stone-pelting on CISF SSG protectee and attack on his vehicle by some miscreants occurred at Bardhaman (WB) in which two CISF personnel sustained head injuries. The protectee was safely evacuated without the use of force," the central paramilitary force said in a post on 'X'. Ghosh (59) is a 'Y' category protectee of the Central Industrial Security Force VIP security wing called the Special Security Group (SSG). IMAGE: Voters show their ink-marked fingers after casting their vote for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha polls, in Kanpur. Photograph: ANI Photo "Police are just mute spectators. The TMC has let loose a reign of terror. Since morning, TMC goons have beaten up our polling agents and are not allowing the elections to be free and fair," Ghosh told reporters. In Nanoor under Birbhum Lok Sabha seat, BJP workers clashed with TMC activists after saffron party polling agents were allegedly stopped from entering booths. Tension also prevailed in the Chapra area of Krishnanagar constituency as BJP workers were allegedly beaten by TMC activists. BJP candidate Amrita Roy accompanied two injured persons to Chapra police station. The TMC has denied the allegations. The TMC, BJP, and Congress-Communist Party of India-Marxist alliance lodged separate complaints of poll violence, voter intimidation and assaults on poll agents in the first few hours of polling, sources said. In Uttar Pradesh, there were instances of poll boycotts with people in some villages of Shahjahanpur keeping away from the process to protest against the lack of roads and development. IMAGE: Former Union Minister and Congress Rajya Sabha MP Renuka Chowdhury arrives to cast her vote, in Khammam, Telangana. Photograph: ANI Photo Akbarpur parliamentary constituency recorded 57.28 percent polling, Bahraich 57.40 percent, Dhaurahra 63.19 percent, Etawah 55.78 percent, Farrukhabad 58.90 percent, Hardoi 57.62 percent, Kannauj 60.08 percent, Kanpur 52.49 percent, Kheri 63.07 percent, Misrikh 55.61 percent, Shahjahanpur 53.08 percent, Sitapur 60.90 percent and Unnao 54.84 percent, according to EC data. The keenly watched seats in this phase of polls in the state include Kannauj, from where the Samajwadi Party has fielded its president Akhilesh Yadav, and Kheri, from where Union minister Ajay Mishra Teni, whose son is an accused in the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence case, is eyeing a hat-trick. EVM glitches were also reported in several places in Odisha. An official said 65 Ballot Units, 83 Control Units and 110 VVPATs have been replaced so far and most of the replacements were done during the mock poll exercise before starting of real voting at 7 am. The Election Commission suspended two polling officials in Odisha for dereliction of duty, the chief electoral officer said. In Jharkhand, security forces thwarted an attempt by Maoists to obstruct voter access to polling booths by felling a tree and blocking a road leading to remote Sonapi and Morangponga areas of West Singhbhum district. Voting was peaceful in Srinagar where three generations of the Abdullah family cast their vote in the Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency. In this phase, polling was held in all 17 Lok Sabha seats in Telangana, all 25 seats in Andhra Pradesh, 13 in Uttar Pradesh, five in Bihar, four in Jharkhand, eight in Madhya Pradesh, 11 in Maharashtra, four in Odisha, eight in West Bengal and one in Jammu and Kashmir. Polling for the next three phases in the country will be held on May 20, May 25 and June 1. The counting of votes is on June 4. Flight operations at Mumbai airport were suspended for an hour on Monday and local trains were delayed amid unseasonal rains, accompanied by a dust storm. Photograph: Sahil Salvi for Rediff.com IMAGE: The unseasonal showers brought some respite from the scorching heat in Mumbai. A 100-foot tall illegal billboard fell on a petrol pump at the Cheddanagar Junction in Ghatkopar area, killing at least three persons and injuring 59 others, even as a search and rescue operation is going on. In another rain-related incident, an under-construction metal parking tower collapsed on a road amid gusty wind in Wadala area, injuring three persons and damaging vehicles. As many as 15 flights were diverted to different airports and the runways operation resumed at 5.03 pm, the airport operator said. "Due to the inclement weather and dust storms in the city, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport temporarily suspended flight operations for around 66 min due to low visibility and gusty winds," it said in a statement. Till the operations resumed, the airport witnessed 15 diversions, the statement said. Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde visited the spot of the hoarding collapse incident in Ghatkopar late in the evening. Photograph: Sahil Salvi for Rediff.com IMAGE: Dust storms hit parts of Mumbai. While the rainfall brought relief to the residents of Mumbai and its adjoining area from the heat, the sudden change in weather brought traffic to a standstill as commuters took shelter during the storm. "Mumbai, we understand your high 'spirit' for the first rain, but we recommend not storming into any irresponsible plans for the day ! Stay safe and avoid any 'pour' decisions on the roads today," the Mumbai police tweeted. Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader and former Bihar deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi died on Monday night, the party said. IMAGE: Senior leader and former Bihar deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi. Photograph: ANI Photo Modi, 72, had served as the deputy chief minister of Bihar from 2005 to 2013, and again between 2017 and 2020. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and several senior leaders of various parties condoled the death of the BJP leader.. "The BJP family is deeply saddened by the news of the demise of former deputy chief minister of Bihar and former Rajya Sabha MP Shri Sushil Kumar Modi," the state unit of the party said in a post on X. This is an irreparable loss for Bihar and the entire BJP family, it said. He breathed his last at around 9.45 pm at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi, hospital sources said. According to party sources, he will be cremated on Tuesday in Patna. Last month, the BJP leader took to X to announce that he was battling cancer for the last six months and will not be able to campaign in the Lok Sabha elections. "I have told everything to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. I will always remain grateful and dedicated to the country, Bihar and the party," he had said in the April 3 post. In his condolence message, the prime minister said Sushil Kumar Modi has played an invaluable role in the rise and success of BJP in Bihar. "Strongly opposing the Emergency, he made a name for himself in student politics. He was known as a very hardworking and sociable MLA. He had a deep understanding of the issues related to politics. He also did a lot of commendable work as an administrator. His active role in the passage of GST will always be remembered," PM Modi said in a post on X. Bihar Chief Minister Nitsih Kumar also expressed grief over the demise of Modi. In a statement, Kumar said, "It's a personal loss for me. We were together during JP movement. His death has created a vacuum in the political arena of the country as well as in Bihar." Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said the demise of Sushil Kumar Modi is an irreparable loss for Bihar and the country. "I have personally worked with Sushil since the days of the Vidhyarthi Parishad. Sushil will always be remembered as a leader dedicated to his ideology. He has made a significant contribution to strengthening the party and the organization in Bihar. He worked for the development of Bihar throughout his life," he said. Bihar BJP president and state deputy chief minister, Samrat Chaudhry said, "Heartfelt tribute to former deputy chief minister of Bihar and former Rajya Sabha MP Shri Sushil Kumar Modi ji on his demise." Another Deputy CM Vijay Kumar Sinha said he would always be remembered for his organization skills, administrative understanding and his deep knowledge of social and political issues." Condoling his death, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said in a post on X, "Sorry to hear about the sad demise of Shri Sushil Kumar Modi, former deputy chief minister of Bihar. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family & friends. May the departed soul rest in peace." Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav also said he was extremely saddened to hear the news of Modi's death. He described Modi as "our guardian, struggling and hardworking leader". During his political career spanning over three decades, Modi held various positions, including MLA, MLC and member of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. He became an MLA for the first time in 1990 from Patna Central constituency and was made the chief whip of the BJP legislature party. From 1996 to 2004, he was the leader of the opposition in the state assembly. He became a member of Lok Sabha in 2004 from Bhagalpur. He gave up his Lok Sabha membership in 2005 and became a member of the legislative council, following which he was made the deputy chief minister while Nitish Kumar was the CM. Modi was elected to the Rajya Sabha in 2020 and he retired earlier this year. My press card did not stop them. They entered the room, one ran to the balcony; another opened the cupboard and a third went into the bathroom. A Ganesh Nadar's close encounters with the Election Commission. I was in Andhra Pradesh covering the elections. Andhra is voting both in the parliamentary and assembly elections so activity on the ground was high. We were driving from Kadapa to Rajahmundry where the BJP state president and Cuddapah Lok Sabha candidate Daggubati Purandeshwari was canvassing for votes. We were stopped by the police and my driver advised me to show my press card. On which the policeman let us go with a tired smile, possibly happy that he did not have to check my car for money. The next policeman who stopped us did not bother with the press card. He simply went behind the car and signalled for the driver to open up. "Just watch, he will bang the dicky door as if it is his father's car," said my driver. And that is exactly what happened. After finding an empty boot he banged the cover down hard. My driver sighed and we drove on. I thought that it was the end of my brush with the Election Commission-mandated inspection of vehicles and the like for transport of illegal funds, but that was not to be. I always stay in a government hotel when I am travelling for that is where government officials, ministers' PAs etc stay. So I was staying at the Harita Berm Park in Bhavani Island, Vijayawada. The hotel is on the banks of the river Krishna and has a fantastic view of the incredibly clean river, with boats floating around and a speed boat thrown in for fun. I was tired and fell asleep. It had been a long day, a very hot day and there were only two days left for voting. I was in a state of deep sleep when I thought I heard the door bell ring. I checked my mobile phone; it was half an hour after midnight. I had read about the Gestapo's midnight knock in Nazi Germany, but wasn't I in democratic India? I did not open the door. I screamed, "Who is that?" "Room service," came the answer. "I did not order room service," I replied. "Sir! Room service with the police, for verification." I recognised the clerk's voice so I opened the door. There was this gentleman with an ID card around his neck, some six inches square with the words 'Election Commission' printed on it. The official's name and designation were written with a ball point pen in a very neat hand. He was accompanied by a policeman in uniform, the hotel clerk looking apologetic, and two others. My press card did not stop them. They entered the room, one ran to the balcony; another opened the closet and a third went into the bathroom. Naturally they did not find anything out of the way and the clerk apologised as they left. I told him. "No worries, you can read about it tomorrow." I went back to sleep in a foul mood. My driver and a hotel staffer had told me that they had already received Rs 2,000 to vote. The Election Commission at least at the bottom rungs had woken up late. The top is still in coma. I was on the way to the railway station. Voting was the next day. My driver asked me, "Are you carrying lots of money?" I asked him, "Why? I don't have much money, but enough to pay your fare." "Sir, the cops are stopping cars and searching ahead," he said. The cops were stopping all the cars, but were searching random vehicles, not all. They didn't search my car. I sighed! I wish someone would tell them that the horses had already bolted, it was pointless closing the stable doors now. Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com Y S Sharmila's message to voters in Kadapa is brief: 'I am YSR's daughter, my brother Jagan has ruined Andhra, vote for me, vote for Congress.' A Ganesh Nadar listens in. All photographs: A Ganesh Nadar for Rediff.com IMAGE: Y S Sharmila holds a whirlwind meeting during her campaign in Kadapa, May 10, 2024. The office of the Grand Old Party in Kadapa, Andhra Pradesh, is grand, massive and does justice to a party that has ruled the country for half a century. It was almost empty as the cadre was out canvassing for votes on the last day of campaigning for the Lok Sabha phase four and the assembly elections to elect a new state government. A man who is continuously on the office phone, says Yeduguri Sandinti Sharmila madam, popularly known as Y S Sharmila, is in Pulivendulu, former chief minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu's assembly constituency. A little later he tells me she is in Jamalamodugu. Sharmila is wearing multiple hats in this election. As the Pradesh Congress Committee president in Andhra Pradesh, it is incumbent on her to ensure that the party reaps the benefits of anti-incumbency which swept Revanth Reddy into power in neighbouring Telangana last year. And as the Congress contestant in the Kadapa Lok Sabha constituency, she has to deny her opponent and cousin, Avinash Reddy from her brother's YSR Congress, a second term as MP. Mindful of her responsibilities, Sharmila has been keeping a frenetic pace on the campaign trail. In Jamalamodugu the Congress office is on the first floor, behind a lodge. There is no board, flag, poster to show that it is a political party's office. In one room they have dumped Congress flags, scarves, caps, notices and banners. Suresh, who is there alone, asks me to contact local journalists to find out where Sharmila madam is and gives me the numbers of four journalists. I call one of them who tells me that a little way away from the town a street corner meeting would take place in the next 15 minutes. IMAGE: Congress party workers and supporters wait for Sharmila to arrive. Men, women, youth and also a couple from the third gender wait in the extreme hot weather. A group have taken refuge inside an ATM booth where the AC is working and keeping them cool. Each time someone arrived to withdraw cash they troop out and go back in after the customer leaves. An elderly gentleman shows me a token. It is a white sheet of paper with the rubber stamp of a local furniture mart with an initial scribbled on it. After the meeting he claims he has to exchange the token for Rs 400. On voting day they have been promised Rs 300 a vote. People attend all the party meetings, he says, as it is easy money in election season. The propaganda van turned up first bellowing a song about Sharmila. It is a catchy tune. The cavalcade bearing "Sharmila madam" arrives five minutes later. A man introduces her after which Sharmila joins him. IMAGE: Y S Sharmila's campaign van. Sharmila herself speaks for five minutes. She tells the crowd 25 times that she is the daughter of former Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy who died in a helicopter crash in September 2009. She grudgingly mentions that the current AP chief minister, Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy, was his son who misused his father's name to win an election and after that ruin the state. She attacks her cousin and opponent Avinash Reddy of the YSR Congress who won the elections in 2019. She says he is more interested in running his steel mills than looking after his constituency. She assures the crowd that she will solve all their problems and take up their cause in Parliament. She ends her speech by showing them a dummy EVM. She says the EVM for the Lok Sabha election would be white in colour and feature her name at number four. She points it out and then presses the button which lights up. She leaves the venue just as quickly as she came, with a "Bye Anna, Bye Amma". The crowd then gets into mini vans which would take them home in the neighbouring villages. I follow Sharmila's car for a while hoping to get a few words with her. The cavalcade halts at a railway crossing as a train passes. The railway sentinel says one more train has to pass before he opens the gate. Sharmila's security man tells him he is keeping a VIP waiting. The railway personnel obliges and opens the gate. We follow Sharmila out. BELLOWS FALLS Films, trains and internationally known author Mark S. King are on the calendar for local June Pride events. Bellows Falls Pride was formed in 2023 to recognize and support the LGBTQ+ community in southern Vermont, a destination for the LGBTQ+ community in New England and beyond to honor the historic Andrews Inn, which supported the gay community from 1973-1984 and was located in the Windham Hotel building. Event locations will occur in the downtown area so patrons can enjoy the full dining and shopping experience before and after events. June kicks off with the LGBTQ+ film festival at the Opera House located on the Square. Tickets and event details are available online at https://www.bellowsfallsoperahouse.com/. Wednesday, June 5, "The Birdcage" starring Robin Williams and Nathan Lane, sponsored by Bellows Falls Pride. Wednesday, June 12, "Philadelphia" starring Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington, sponsored by Windham Antiques. Wednesday, June 19, "To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything" starring Patrick Swayze and Wesley Snipes, sponsored by Wunderbar. Wednesday, June 26, "Hairspray" (original John Waters), starring Divine and Debbie Harry, sponsored by the National LGBT Hotline. The second annual Pride Whistlestop Tour, organized by Bellows Falls Pride, will begin in St. Albans and continue through to Brattleboro on Saturday, June 8. Local communities throughout Vermont and southern New Hampshire will gather at Amtrak train stations to celebrate Pride month and the LGBTQ+ community as the Vermonter travels south. Station decorations, flag and sign waving, bubbles, music and invited guests are a few ways to show solidarity and support at each train stop. In Bellows Falls, arrive downtown at the Flat Iron Cooperative which is sponsoring a Pride Tea beginning at 10 a.m. before walking down Canal Street to the train station at 11:30 a.m. in advance of the arrival of the Vermonter. Parking is available on Canal Street and at the train station lot. The public is welcome to join with local Pride groups to show support. Youth under 16 must be accompanied by an adult. Arrive about 30 minutes in advance of the Amtrak train schedule to meet your neighbors. Visit amtrak.com for the Amtrak schedule. On Thursday, June 20, Bellows Falls Pride will collaborate with Senior Solutions to host author, blogger and actor, Mark S. King at the Bellows Falls Opera House with a presentation entitled, Coming of Age with Grace and Grit. His latest book, "My Fabulous Disease," will be available for purchase in the lobby through Village Square Booksellers following the event. This event is free and open to the public. Reserve your seat at www.bellowsfallsoperahouse.com . Find Bellows Falls Pride on Facebook, @bellowsfallspride on Instagram or visit bellowsfallspride.com for more information. You are the owner of this article. You have permission to edit this article. Edit Close WINDHAM A vote on school issues has been pushed back to next month. At a meeting Thursday, the Windham School Board voted to change the date of the special meeting to 10 a.m. June 8 at the Windham Meetinghouse. Board Chairwoman Abby Pelton said the date was moved from May 18 to ensure the board is "well within" the timeline of giving 30 to 40 days advance notice of the meeting. Voters will consider some clarifying matters following the annual Town Meeting vote to offer school choice for elementary education and reject the budget to operate the elementary school. They haven't specifically approved the closure of the school building and they will be asked to decide if tuition can be used to cover independent schools in addition to public schools as part of the school choice offerings. A budget to fund tuition and building maintenance also will be presented. Windham schedules school building closure, clarifying vote WINDHAM Residents are being asked to consider some clarifying matters following the annual Hearing community members express a desire to decide on the issues via Australian ballot, Town Clerk Ellen McDuffie said the school district could choose to go that route. "People just call or come in, get their ballot and it's done just like it is for a presidential primary or a state primary or a federal election," she said at the meeting. Board members worried they would need extra time to warn the vote and host an informational meeting if they did decide to go with ballots. Pelton is looking into the option. "I'm very interested in Australian ballot," Board Vice Chairman Daniel Roth said. "I think it makes this whole process more democratic and makes it easier for everyone." The plan is to host an informational meeting at 6 p.m. May 28. Windham schedules school building closure, clarifying vote WINDHAM Residents are being asked to consider some clarifying matters following the annual In a email sent to the community on May 4, Roth said the article on closing the school is meant to address the school district lacking an operating public elementary school to offer children in town, as students were sent to Townshend Elementary this year due to staffing challenges. "Our current status as a non-operational ceasing of operations puts the health of the district in danger financially," he wrote. "From a risk and liability standpoint, we as a town would open ourselves up for possible litigation otherwise." If the building is closed, Roth noted the board's ability and obligation for tuitioning is not in question. He said the electorate must decide on the issue, not the three-person board, "and in no way does this limit our ability to tap into any funding structures currently available to our district nor our ability to promote the school house building use in anticipation of sale in FY25." The proposed $546,344 budget for fiscal year 2024/2025 would cover tuitioning and shared supervisory union expenses including special education. With the article on independent school tuition, Roth said the hope is to address families left out of the current tuitioning structure. At the April 26 special board meeting, attorney Mark Oettinger said the purpose of the vote is to make the future of the school district clear. "Even if you vote not to close it, it's not going to be operating next year," he said of the school. "And so as a matter of law, as a matter of constitutional principles, kids have a right to be educated. Parents have a right to choose between public and approved independent. This intended to clear up some of the confusion and get you guys in line for what the law requires." In a previous interview, Roth described the building closure issue as "a blindspot" that should have been addressed with the earlier vote. He said the district currently is "standing in limbo." "Either you operate a school or you don't," he said. His hope is to "finalize a roadmap" for the building with input from the community and Select Board. If the articles passes, he anticipates the School Board will spend a lot of time tracking demographics in town and state legislation to create a successful spending plan for tuitioning. More than a dozen others are still waiting to be repatriated. Cambodian women trafficked to work as maids in Saudi Arabia demand that officials arrange for their return home, seen here in an image posted on a Cambodian government Telegram page, April 30, 2024. Two dozen Cambodian women subjected to abuse and labor rights violations when they were exploited as maids in Saudi Arabia said they returned home on May 12, while 15 others are still waiting to leave the country. The women, who went to the Middle Eastern country for jobs, said they were physically abused by their employers, including being denied food and sleep. Some said they had not been paid or that they were told they would have to work for much longer than their contracts stipulated. Many of those who returned to Cambodia suffered mentally and physically from being forced to work long hours, not having enough food and water, and in some cases, not being paid, they said. The case illustrates the risks that Cambodian migrant workers face when they go abroad for better-paying jobs as domestics. Many are subjected to a labor exploitation and serious abuses, including nonpayment of wages, excessive work hours, forced labor, and psychological, physical or sexual abuse by their employers. The maids and other workers in Saudi Arabia had sought Cambodian government intervention and assistance since March. In April, Cambodias Labor Ministry said 78 migrant workers who had been tricked into working in Saudi Arabia had been rescued and placed in hotel rooms under the care of Cambodian diplomats. Cambodian officials claimed to be purchasing flights for the workers to return home, but they remained stranded for a few weeks, lacking access to adequate food. The 24 workers recently repatriated to Cambodia were among a larger group of 39 Cambodians evacuated in April by diplomats from the Cambodian Embassy in Egypt, which also has responsibility for Saudi Arabia. Lawsuit? One of the recently returned maids told RFA that she and others, who were rescued earlier and arrived in Cambodia on April 28, would discuss the possibility of filing a lawsuit against the Cambodian company Fatina Manpower Co. Ltd. for exploiting them. The maids said they were also forced to sign agreements not to sue the recruitment company before flying out of Saudi Arabia. I served [my employer] for many months when he was in Cambodia, and I served his family when I was in Saudi Arabia, but I did not get paid, said one of the recently returned maids, who like others refused to be identified for fear of retribution. His family used us to cook for them [and] to serve his Japanese and Arabian students, she said. Many Arabian students used us to launder their clothes, clean their schools, clean homes and more. The remaining 15 said the embassy is still working to facilitate their repatriation. Man Teramizy, owner of Fatina Manpower and a senior official at the Labor Ministry, intervened in the matter by visiting a group of workers in Saudi Arabia to facilitate the repatriation process and pay compensation to his partner company in Saudi Arabia, the workers said He paid about US$1,000 per employee to terminate their contracts with the partner company, they said. Chamroeun Srey Sor, one of the stranded workers, told RFA that she had not been paid by the company. She wants the embassy and relevant ministries to send her back to Cambodia as soon as possible. Im asking [for] help [to] return to Cambodia as soon as possible because my mother in Cambodia has an eye disease, and no one takes care of her, she said. On top of that, my child is also living with her. RFA could not reach Uk Sarun, Cambodias ambassador to Egypt, or Labor Ministry spokesman Kata Un for comment. Khun Tharo, program manager for the NGO Central, said the Cambodian government needs to investigate agents of companies that send workers to work in Saudi Arabia. If we do not find the person responsible for the problems that have occurred, then many of these Cambodian workers will become the unresolved victims of exploitation and serious labor rights violations, he said. Translated by Sum Sok Ry for RFA Khmer. Edited by Roseanne Gerin and Malcolm Foster. No deliverables expected from the meeting, which Biden and Xi promised at their summit last year. American and Chinese officials will meet in Geneva on Tuesday for talks aimed at regulating artificial intelligence technology, which was one of the three key goals negotiated by presidents Joe Biden and Xi Jinping during their high-profile summit in San Francisco last year. Officials from the White House, State Department and Department of Commerce and counterparts from China will exchange views on how the two governments understand and seek to address the risks of advanced AI systems, according to a White House statement. AI regulation appears to be one of the few areas where the worlds two major powers have been willing to work together recently, with the two countries co-sponsoring a resolution at the United Nations in March to encourage more responsible development of AI technologies. At their November summit, it was also one of the three major agreements struck by Xi and Biden, alongside a deal to reinstate military-to-military communications and work to end the export from China of fentanyl precursors that end up in the United States. Six months on, this weeks talks in Geneva mean that progress is being made on all three deals the two countries top generals held a telephone call in December leading to an in-person meeting of lower level military in January, and fentanyl talks are also underway. In this photo proved by the Defense Department, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for China, Taiwan and Mongolia Michael Chase hosts delegates from China for the annual U.S.-PRC Defense Policy Coordination Talks at the Pentagon, on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024. (Petty Officer 1st Class Alexander Kubitza/U.S. Navy via AP) Speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the meeting ahead of time, a senior Biden administration official said the talks would continue Cold War-era efforts with the Soviet Union to stave off a nuclear war. We do have a long history of engaging with competitors on issues of global safety and security, the official said. We don't see eye-to-eye with [China] on many AI topics and applications, but we believe communication on critical AI risks can make the world safer. Invest, align and compete U.S. officials are billing the meeting as part of the invest, align and compete strategy, which seeks to increase investment in national security and align with allies in order to compete with China. Led by Bidens national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, American officials have since last years Biden-Xi summit in San Francisco also said that the United States and China need to work together where they have shared interests, even if they are strategic foes. But the senior White House official said Tuesdays talks do not aim to secure any major deals and are instead meant to lay groundwork. The goals of the talks are scoped to be focused on risk and safety, with an emphasis on advanced systems, the official said, explaining that the results would influence future rounds of negotiations. These talks are not going to be focused on any particular deliverables, but rather an exchange of views on the technical risks of AI, and an opportunity to directly communicate respective areas of concern. The official declined to comment on the likelihood both sides would pledge that AI systems will not be put in charge of decisions to deploy nuclear weapons, reiterating that no major deals were expected. But he did note that the U.S. delegation would express its concerns about the Chinese militarys increasing focus on AI capabilities. China is rapidly deploying capabilities across civilian as well as military national security sectors, and in many cases in ways that we believe undermines both U.S. and allied national security, the official said. So we've of course taken targeted actions to address those risks, he said. And we will reiterate our concerns about Beijing's use of AI Edited by Malcolm Foster. Zhang Jinrui, a Chinese student studying at Georgetown University Law School poses for a photo with a placard he displayed during a past protest against Chinas 'zero COVID' policy, at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., September 2023. Chinese students studying abroad report widespread fear that activities their peers take for granted like attending vigils or openly discussing political views in class could get them and their families back home in trouble, according to a report released Sunday from Amnesty International. The London-based human rights group interviewed 32 students across eight Western Europe and North America countries from June 2023 to April 2024. One-third of those interviewed reported living in a climate of fear that had altered their academic experience. Ten of the students said Chinese authorities had visited family members back in China to discourage their campus activities, in some cases with a remarkable swiftness that added to the students sense of unease. Rowan (the report used pseudonyms) said her father called just hours after she attended a commemorative event for the victims of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, even though she hadnt registered for the event or posted anything online about her participation. There are growing concerns over Beijings 'long-arm' law enforcement targeting overseas activists and students. Here, 'Viola,' a New York University graduate student, delivers a speech during a gathering to mark the third anniversary of the death of Chinese whistleblower Li Wenliang in New York on Feb. 5, 2023. (Gemunu Amarasinghe/RFA) Her father was told to remind his daughter not to do anything that would put the Chinese government in a bad light. The underlying message, Rowan told Amnesty in a 2023 interview, was that you are being watched, and though we are on the other side of the planet, we can still reach you. An email to the Chinese Embassy in Washington asking for a response to the Amnesty report had not been returned by press time. A fear of peers There are 900,000 Chinese students studying overseas, according to Amnesty International. Nearly 290,000 Chinese students were granted visas to study in the United States in fiscal year 2023, according to the State Department. China sends more students to the U.S. than any other country. News outlets including Radio Free Asia have reported on several cases of transnational repression by China against students in the United States who took part in protests or other activities unaligned with Communist Party thinking. Zhang Jinrui, a law student at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., told RFA last fall that state security officials in China visited his family after he took part in white paper protests that sprang up across the globe in opposition to harsh anti-COVID policies and restrictions on free expression in China. In this photo, with the users account information blurred, Zhang Jinrui, displays a social media response to an interview he granted to RFA a few days ago, that translates as 'These kinds of traitors who run to daddy U.S. are a national disgrace that ought to have their familys heads cut off.' (Gemunu Amarasinghe/RFA) Chinese students at Columbia University who were trying to start a student group in support of the white paper protests back home talked to RFA about the various precautions they were taking to avoid getting themselves or their families in trouble. They wore masks at events and were wary of inviting Chinese students they didnt know to participate for fear of being reported to authorities. One-half of the students who Amnesty International interviewed said they were fearful that fellow students would report on them. This fear compounds a sense of isolation and loneliness for students already dealing with the struggles of living in a foreign country, Amnesty said. Michael, a student in North America, told Amnesty that he was ostracized, removed from online chat groups and kicked out of a community hobby club after the local Chinese community learned about his involvement in political protests. Edited by Malcolm Foster. Updated May 15, 2024, 9:14 a.m. ET. Chinese security forces once sought to kidnap Radio Free Asia cartoonist Rebel Pepper, a defector has claimed to the Australian Broadcast Corporation, or ABC. A Chinese national who used the pseudonym Eric revealed on the ABC program Four Corners that he once worked as an agent in the Ministry of Public Security, or MPS, where he was tasked with luring overseas dissidents back to China for the police. Rebel, whose real name is Wang Liming, was one among several dissidents to appear on the program, where Eric revealed to them that they had been the subject of attempted kidnappings or police surveillance. Eric told Wang that a request the artist received to attend a job interview in Southeast Asia in 2017 had been a ruse. Had he gone to the interview, Wang would have been forcibly taken back to China, Eric said. Wang was living and working in Japan at the time, having fled China as a political dissident. Wang told RFA of the disclosure: "I was shocked, frightened. If I had actually gone, I might not be standing here today... I can't even imagine if I'd still exist. He had seriously considered going to the job interview but ultimately decided to turn it down due to the high risks associated with traveling to Southeast Asia, he said. Eric also disclosed that security forces attempted to use a Chinese-owned conglomerate that has become one of the fastest-growing companies in Cambodia the Prince Group to carry out the scam. RFA has verified that Prince was the company used for the recruitment and has also spoken to Eric. An earlier investigation from RFA uncovered evidence of expansive crimes by the company, which has offices throughout Asia and continues to operate. The failed plot is an example of Chinese police attempts to use overseas companies to orchestrate so-called job traps to capture overseas dissidents. The defected agent Eric, 39, said he had been an agent of the Chinese MPS for 15 years before defecting to Australia in early 2023. As an agent, he worked for a division known as the First Bureau, tasked with infiltrating and tracking overseas dissidents. RFA could not independently verify his claims, but ABC disclosed that he provided hundreds of documents to the outlet and to Australian intelligence that proved the veracity of his story. In some cases, agents were directed to orchestrate missions to lure them to Southeast Asia, where overseas Chinese police operate with greater freedom and can bring them back to China through illegal means. In April 2023, the U.S. Department of Justice brought charges against 40 Chinese police officers, some of whom were affiliated with the First Bureau, in a case of transnational repression. The First Bureau was described by U.S. prosecutors as "the PRCs secret police, with a mandate that includes the suppression and censorship of political dissent, criticism, and other potential threats to the PRC government and CCP," or Chinese Communist Party. RFA cartoonist Rebel Pepper often comments in his cartoons on the Chinese Communist Party and Chinas President Xi Jinping. (Rebel Pepper/RFA) Eric said he worked with the First Bureau from 2008 to 2023. His missions included infiltrating events for the Tibetan government-in-exile in Dharamsala, India, and targeting individuals such as activist New York Liu Guokai; artist Hua Yong, who was in exile in Canada; dissident Yin Ke, now residing in Australia; and Wang, who has been working for Radio Free Asia since his exile to the United States in 2017. "I believe it's better for the world to be more transparent, and the public has the right to know the dark side of the secretive world," Eric told RFA, explaining his reason for defecting and speaking out about his previous work. The job trap Wang, 51, grew up in China. His cartoons advocating for "one person, one vote to change China" first led to encounters with Chinese police in 2011. He defected to Japan in 2014, when, during a summer trip with his wife, Wang discovered that he had been labeled as a "traitor" by a propagandist for the Chinese government mouthpiece The Peoples Daily. In the following days, his social media accounts and online business were shut down, so he decided not to return to China. In November 2016, while living in Japan, Wang received a Twitter message from a supposed fan named "Xiao Yang, who praised Wang's courage and suggested further communication via email. Xiao Yang was actually Eric. He was provided with an apartment in Phnom Penh and the cover story that he was a planning supervisor for the Prince Real Estate Group to lure Wang. "I had no suspicion," Wang told RFA. "When I looked through his Twitter activity, he seemed to support democracy and showed dislike for the Communist Party." Over the next few months, "Xiao Yang" asked for Wang's help with product designs at his company and later offered him a job opportunity as the "global creative director" at Prince Group. In an email seen by RFA, "Xiao Yang" described the company as "a prominent real estate company deeply committed to charity." Wang applied and received a positive response from a human resources manager at Prince. Using an official Prince Group email, the manager invited Wang to interview in Cambodia, and when Wang declined out of security concerns, he was offered an interview at the Taiwan office. "My wife strongly objected at the time, even threatening divorce if I went for the interview," Wang recalled. He ultimately declined the offer. RFA spoke to the former HR manager, who confirmed they were working for the Prince Group at that time but said they do not remember the incident. RFA is not revealing their name for security reasons, as they claimed they did not know about the MPS operation. A spokesperson for the Prince Holding Group said: We categorically deny any involvement in plans or activities intended to lure individuals on behalf of any government or security service. Prince Holding Group is a private Cambodian enterprise and maintains no affiliations with any parts of the Chinese government." If any individuals previously associated with Prince Holding Group have acted contrary to our governance policies and ethical standards, they have done so independently and without the endorsement or authorization of Prince Holding Group. A previous RFA investigation uncovered that Chinese courts convicted lower-level employees of Prince Group of crimes related to illegal gambling and money laundering. (Prince denied involvement in these cases.) However, Eric told RFA that Prince would have been aware that it was being used as part of an MPS operation. This company has a very close relationship with the Chinese secret police, he said, adding: Of course their big boss knew who I was and what my mission was." Though Wang did not attend the interview, he could not forget about the incident. In May 2024, a journalist from ABC visited his home in the United States. During the interview, ABC arranged for him to reconnect and speak directly with "Xiao Yang," who had already defected to Australia. "I was extremely shocked," Wang said. "Xiao Yang told me that every word he said to me was the result of meetings [with the Chinese police]. They had held numerous meetings for this operation, and an entire task force had even been sent to Cambodia to prepare." "I asked Xiao Yang why he was so confident initially about luring me to Taiwan, Wang added. He said it was because the Prince Group was deeply involved in the operation, and they were certain they could abduct me from Taiwan to international waters." An RFA spokesperson declined to comment. Cases of overseas kidnapping Twitter and email correspondence between Eric posing as "Xiao Yang" and Wang seen by RFA indicated that both accounts were created in the weeks leading up to the October 2016 outreach. The IP address associated with the creation of the email account indicates it originated in Cambodia. Southeast Asia has long been a focal point for China's overseas abduction and entrapment operations, according to experts who study Chinese security operations. In recent years, several high-profile cases of dissidents being abducted have occurred in Laos, Thailand, Myanmar, and Vietnam. These Southeast Asian countries are preferred by Chinese security agencies due to their geographic proximity to China and political alignment, according to Chen Yonglin, a former Chinese diplomat who defected to Australia in 2005. Chinese-linked companies can provide office buildings or commercial properties as safe houses for the working groups of the security agencies, as "they generally do not dare to stay in hotels during these abduction operations for fear of surveillance footage," Chen added. In a statement issued May 14, the Chinese Embassy in Canberra said the ABC program was "completely fabricated and nothing but malicious slander." The Chinese government has previously denied that it carries out extrajudicial abductions. Experts studying China's public security agencies point out that dissidents, especially those who directly criticize Xi Jinping, are often prime targets for such overseas abductions. However, those who RFA spoke to were shocked by the brazenness of the planned abduction in the Wang case. Kidnapping a dissident from Taiwan would have been unprecedented, experts said, and indicative of a level of audacity from Chinese police overseas operations not previously known. "It's chilling that units of China's secret police [would] dare to carry out such cross-border law enforcement actions in Taiwan," said Simon Cheng, a U.K.-based Hong Kong activist and exile. "It's a very, very important and disturbing signal." Just ahead of the broadcast of the ABC documentary, Eric released a video on social media disclosing his accounts "to prevent phishing by fake accounts." Dressed in military attire and standing in a forest, he referred to himself as a "former double agent." He sent a warning to the Chinese government, saying: "Of course they know my real name; they may choose to disclose it at will, but I will also reveal the identities of their people." "I also hope to find more like-minded individuals as soon as possible," Eric told RFA. Asked whether he feared for his own safety, he said: I will leave it up to fate. This story was updated to include a newly issued statement from the Chinese Embassy in Canberra. Zhang Zhan remains incommunicado following the end of her formal jail term, activists say. A pro-democracy activist holds placards with the picture of Chinese citizen journalist Zhang Zhan outside the Chinese central government's liaison office, in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 28, 2020. Chinese citizen journalist Zhang Zhan on Sunday completed a jail term handed down for reporting from the front lines of the emerging COVID-19 pandemic in Wuhan, but fellow activists said her whereabouts remained unclear, and that she was likely still under some form of restriction." Zhang, 40, was sentenced to four years' imprisonment by Shanghai's Pudong District People's Court on Dec. 28, 2020, convicted of "picking quarrels and stirring up trouble," a charge frequently used to target critics of the ruling Chinese Communist Party. She was hospitalized last year for digestive diseases linked to malnutrition following several months of hunger strikes. Zhang, a former lawyer, had pleaded not guilty. A guilty plea is typically a prerequisite for more lenient treatment in China's judicial system. Police attempt to stop journalists from recording footage outside the Shanghai Pudong New District People's Court, where Chinese citizen journalist Zhang Zhan - who reported on Wuhan's Covid-19 outbreak and placed under detention since May - is set for trial in Shanghai on December 28, 2020. (Leo Ramirez/AFP) But while her formal prison sentence ended on May 12, activists said Zhang is highly unlikely to be seen in public any time soon, as police warned and threatened her supporters not to try to meet with her. "Just as they did with citizen journalist Fang Bin, [the authorities] definitely won't be allowing Zhang Zhan to show her face," supporter Liu Hua told RFA Mandarin. "That scares them half to death. They will make her disappear." Ground Zero For many people in 2020, the news that the central Chinese city of Wuhan had been placed under lockdown was the first indication that something was profoundly wrong, and that the emerging pandemic could have a global impact. On Jan. 23, 2020, the provincial authorities imposed a travel ban on some 18 million people in Wuhan and surrounding areas, prompting a mass rush to leave the city. Three days later, they admitted that the newly emerging coronavirus was transmissible between people, something experts elsewhere had suspected for weeks. The notice plunged the city into a whirlwind of compulsory daily testing, enforced quarantine in rapidly constructed mass facilities, amid a desperate struggle to seek medical treatment as hospitals in the city were overwhelmed, and crematoriums started operating around the clock. In the weeks and months that followed, citizen journalists were among the few who traveled in the opposite direction, diving into the chaos to bring news of what was happening to people outside China. A pro-democracy activist (C) from HK Alliance holds a placard of missing citizen journalist Fang Bin, as she protests outside the Chinese liaison office in Hong Kong on February 19, 2020. ( Isaac Lawrence/AFP) As the virus spread globally and political heads rolled, the government tried to claw back control of the narrative by suppressing whistleblowing doctors like Li Wenliang and Ai Fen. Then, police started rounding up frontline bloggers, archivists, diarists, YouTubers, livestreamers and other citizen journalists, including Zhang Zhan. Fears she will just disappear Liu said there are concerns that Zhang -- whose case is considered high profile by the Communist Party -- could disappear, like former rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng, whose family say they aren't even sure if he's still alive. Police are also moving to clamp down on any public show of support for Zhang, according to Shanghai petitioner Shen Yanqiu, who was hauled in to drink tea questioning by state security police and warned off trying to meet her at the Shanghai Women's Prison on the day of her scheduled release. In this 2015 file photo, Gao Zhisheng walks past photos of his relatives in a cave home where he is confined in northwestern China's Shaanxi province. Gao's whereabouts are now unknown after a short lived escape from his state security captors. (Paul Traynor/AP) "I went to drink tea ... and the heads of the Communist Party Legal and Political Affairs Committees for the municipality and the district, as well as the municipal chief of police ... put pressure on our local police station to watch my movements, and to warn me not to go to the women's prison," Shen told RFA Mandarin. "They told me that the Zhang Zhan case is [being watched] at a high level [of government], and that they hope I won't get involved," she said. Shen said fellow rights activist Jia Lingmin had received a similar warning from his local police as he tried to board a train in the central city of Zhengzhou at 10.00 p.m. on May 11. "He was persuaded to go home by officers from the local police station," she said. Repeated calls to Zhang's mother and brother rang unanswered on Monday. Beijing rights activist Lu Jun, who now lives in New York, said the reporting by citizen journalists from the front lines of the emerging COVID-19 pandemic in Wuhan had endangered attempts by the authorities to "cover up" what was happening there. A security person moves journalists away from the Wuhan Institute of Virology after a World Health Organization team arrived for a field visit in Wuhan in China's Hubei province on Feb. 3, 2021. (Ng Han Guan/AP) "The authorities went to great lengths to cover up the COVID-19 epidemic," Lu said. "[Zhang Zhan's] actions were intolerable to them, and she was quickly arrested after entering Wuhan and handed a harsh sentence." "[Anyone] entering Wuhan at that time to seek justice for victims or to expose the truth was taking huge risks," he said. He said Zhang's family is likely unable to speak out on her behalf, as they themselves are likely being threatened. Translated by Luisetta Mudie. Edited by Malcolm Foster. Youth joining the army for mandatory service plead with parents for more food. New recruits in the North Korean army are pleading with their parents through the military base fence, almost begging them to buy them food, because they arent getting enough during the weeklong registration, residents in the country told Radio Free Asia. The spring military draft has reached its final stage. Parents of new recruits are complaining about the poor quality of food in the barracks, a resident of the northeastern province of North Hamgyong told RFA Korean on condition of anonymity for security reasons. In North Korea, every man must serve seven years in the military, and every woman five. Every spring and fall, young soldiers-to-be flock to military facilities all over the country. Serving is a rite of passage, and families come to the barracks to see their children off. At the end of registration, which can last longer than a week after all the medical and fitness tests, the recruits are issued an official Korean Peoples Army uniform. Tearful farewells Seeing ones son or daughter in uniform for the first time is often an emotional experience, sources in the country say. Parents shed tears of joy that their child has reached adulthood, but they are also tears of sadness because they know that life in the military is grueling, and that they wont see their children for some time. Whether sad or glad, the parents stay near the barracks to say good-bye to their kids. The area near the provincial military mobilization department is crowded with parents of new recruits from all over the region, the resident said. I also stayed there for 10 days until I could see my son in uniform. She said that the parents wait outside the fence all day, and if their kids have not received their uniform yet, they turn in for the night and return the next morning. Most recruits will not be assigned to units in their hometowns. In the case of North Hamgyong province, the recruits are usually sent further south to Kangwon or South Hwanghae provinces. Paltry rations But parents say their children come to them asking for more food because they are fed such meager rations on base. Most children ask their mothers to buy them food through the fence, the resident said. When I asked what they were served at the barracks cafeteria, I was told that they get just a single bowl of rice mixed with corn, she said. The portions were too small, and the only side dish was salted radish. She said the children telling their parents how hungry they were made many mothers cry. The parents worry about the hunger their children will experience during their time in the military, she said. How nice would it be if the authorities actually fed the children well, after all, the children are preparing to leave their parents and serve. This picture from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) via KNS on April 26, 2024 shows North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un (C) paying a visit to Kim Il Sung Military University in Pyongyang to mark the 92nd anniversary of the founding of North Korea's army. (KCNA VIA KNS/AFP) In better times the soldiers got a little bit more food. Prior to the economic crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, soldiers received 800 grams (1.7 pounds) of food per day. Now they get only 600 grams (1.3 pounds). In comparison, a single meal ready-to-eat, or MRE combat ration, for a U.S. soldier weighs between 510 to 740 grams (1.1 to 1.6 pounds) and likely contains far more calories. And they are fed three times a day. North Koreans rarely eat meat these days, usually only three to five times per year, during the major holidays. The resident described the North Korean rations as pathetic. Food vendors There are those who stand to profit from the poor quality of army food though, a resident of the northern province of Ryanggang told RFA on condition of anonymity to speak freely. Every draft season, food vendors gather around the provincial military mobilization department, he said, adding that the peddlers sell things like rice mixed with artificial meat or tofu, and sweet snacks. The soldiers are so hungry that its big business. For the rich kids though, its a different story, the Ryanggang resident said. On April 10, the countrys leader Kim Jong Un made a visit to Kim Jong Il University of Military Politics named after his father and predecessor. He brought a generous meal for them that included bulgogi (barbecued meat) and apples, he said. Parents who gathered outside of the barracks were angry at the news because the kids of the elite receive what enlisted soldiers can only dream about. In this one fact, we can see that while Kim Jong Un says he is for the people, in reality, he values the elites, the resident said. The future high-ranking officers do not need special treatment, he said. I wish Kim Jong Un would care about enlisted soldiers who have to suffer for a long time after they leave their parents at such a young age. Translated by Claire S. Lee. Edited by Eugene Whong and Malcolm Foster. The move comes 5 months after the previous ambassador returned to the North after ivory-smuggling allegations. North Korea has appointed a new ambassador to its mission at the United Nations office in Geneva, the U.N. said on a website. Jo Chol Su, who previously served as director-general of international organizations at North Koreas foreign ministry, presented his credentials to the U.N. Office at Geneva on Friday, it said. The new envoy has extensive experience working with the U.N., including as first secretary at the North Korean U.N. mission in Geneva and as a national staff member for the World Food Program and United Nations Development Program delegations in Pyongyang, the U.N. added on its website. Graduating from the prestigious Pyongyang University of Foreign Studies in 1993, Jo is a career diplomat who has held various senior positions in North Koreas foreign ministry, including in the North America department, handling negotiations over the countrys nuclear weapons program. The appointment comes five months after Jos predecessor, Han Tae Song, returned to the North amid allegations of his involvement in ivory smuggling. In December last year, reports emerged that North Korea decided to recall Han as both the panel of experts of the U.N. Security Council Sanctions Committee on North Korea and Swiss officials were investigating his purported involvement in ivory trafficking in Africa. Botswana, along with South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique, had been investigating a North Korean-affiliated ivory and rhino horn smuggling operation for over a year. The ring was accused of pilfering at least 19 elephant tusks and 18 rhino horns from Botswana on two occasions in 2022 and 2023 and then channeling them through South Africa and Zimbabwe to Mozambican buyers linked to North Korea. The investigation discovered two buyers from North Korea were central to a major smuggling operation involving wildlife products. One of these individuals, Yi Kang Dae, confirmed as an intelligence official in North Koreas state security, collaborated with the former ambassador, Han. At that time, a security source in Zimbabwe told media outlets that there was a big chance that Han may have revived a smuggling network he ran while posted in the country in the 1990s. Edited by Mike Firn. Scores of workers arrive to conduct inspections of equipment thats been dormant for over 3 years. The area around the Letpadaung copper mine project shown in a series of satellite images taken on May 31, 2009 (top), Nov. 7, 2017 (middle), and May 7, 2023 (bottom). About 80 Chinese workers have arrived at two Chinese-backed copper mines in northwestern Myanmar to resume operations that were interrupted by the military coup detat in 2021. Chinas state-owned Wanbao Mining Co. Ltd. has two subsidiaries Myanmar Wanbao Mining Copper Ltd. and Myanmar Yang Tse Copper Ltd. that oversee mining projects in Letpadaung and other areas of resource-rich Sagaing regions Salingyi township. The subsidiaries operate as joint ventures in partnership with a company owned by Myanmars military. Following the militarys seizure of power in 2021, employees walked off the job at Letpadaung to join the anti-junta Civil Disobedience Movement, reducing the mines operating capacity by more than 80 percent, Radio Free Asia reported. But Wanbao continued producing copper that was transported to Yangon and subsequently shipped to China via sea routes, residents said. On April 17, Wanbao announced plans to conduct sequential inspections and repairs of any equipment defects in four processing plants that have been dormant for an extended period. Residents protest to demand that Chinese companies stop operating a copper mine project in Salingyi township, northwestern Myanmar's Sagaing region, on May 7, 2024. (Yinmarbin-Salingyi Multi-villages Strike Steering Committee via Facebook) The company continued copper extraction by running the factories sequentially rather than simultaneously, one resident told Radio Free Asia. Presently, efforts are underway to restore full operation across all the processing plants. Hundreds of junta troops have assumed security measures and are deploying heavy weapons in residential communities to prevent possible disruptions to or attacks on the operations, he said. Protests In response to the arrival of the Chinese workers, the Yinmarbin-Salingyi Multi-Villages Strike Steering Committee staged a protest on May 7, demanding that Myanmar Wanbao and Yang Tse halt operations and discontinue collaboration with the ruling junta. The group of Chinese who recently arrived were provided security personnel and secure vehicles, residents said. A second resident said junta forces were providing security to prevent potential attacks on vehicles transporting copper, and that surrounding villages had been cleared of resistance forces. After shipments are loaded onto the vehicles, columns from the Northwestern Command are dispatched to accompany them, he said. They unleash small arms and heavy weapons fire on the villages along the roadside, burning them and establishing security, the second resident said. A May 1 ambush by anti-junta forces on a convoy of vehicles transporting nearly 540 tons of copper along the Monywa-Mandalay Road near Gway Pin Taw village, toppled two vehicles, injuring a Chinese national and a driver, said Lulin, an official from the Myinmu Peoples Defense Force who goes by only one name. The 16-vehicle convoy was escorted by 40 vehicle assistants and supervisors, including Chinese nationals, he said. Residents protest to demand that Chinese companies stop operating a copper mine project in Salingyi township, northwestern Myanmar's Sagaing region, on May 7, 2024. (Yinmarbin-Salingyi Multi-villages Strike Steering Committee via Facebook) I believe that the Chinese government comprehends the reality of the turmoil in Myanmar, regardless of whether its labeled as insurgency or revolution, said a former army officer about Chinese nationals working at the copper project. In fact, it's not advantageous for them. Resistance fighters attacked the convoy because the copper mines are a source of income for the junta, whose soldiers are patrolling nearby villages, setting homes ablaze, and killing civilians, according to the Myinmu Peoples Defense Force. The Chinese Embassy in Yangon did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the convoy attack. RFA could not reach a Myanmar Wanbao spokesperson for comment. In April 2022, 16 Peoples Defense Groups from Salingyi and nearby Yinmarbin townships threatened to destroy the mine if Wanbao brought it back online. Two months later, the junta said it would defend the suspended Chinese copper mine, seen as a key source of revenue for the military regime, after resistance forces threatened to destroy the project if operations resumed. After the coup d'etat, only one person remained there to manage the company, said one of the residents. Translated by Kalyar Lwin for RFA Burmese. Edited by Roseanne Gerin and Malcolm Foster. Former workers allege a lack of compensation, a culture of intimidation and bullying have forced many to resign. Every two weeks for nearly a year, Thoung Han has reported to a Myanmar court where the former electrical department team leader at a bottling plant making Pepsi and other drinks is pursuing legal action against the owner of the American beverage giants Myanmar operations. Thoung Han says he was fired unfairly in 2022 without severance pay from a factory owned by Lotte MGS Beverages, which produces PepsiCos products in Myanmar. The lawsuit isnt just about severance but is also for damages, including for more than 10 million kyat (US$4,770) for defamation, according to a court document seen by RFA. Thoung Han alleges that he was verbally abused by a Lotte MGS boss and fired for taking a 10-minute lunch break, which he said he needed because he is diabetic. His dismissal letter said he was responsible for an accident that he says had nothing to do with his department. He was swearing and told me, Youre not allowed to have lunch you dont have respect, Thoung Han told Radio Free Asia, referring to his run-in with the Lotte manager. He was speaking shortly before he was due to make his 22nd trip to the court in Hmawbi, where Lotte operates a bottling plant. Pepsis production factory in Yangons Hmawbi township. Taken on Sept. 15, 2023. (Myanmar Labor News) The head of human resources for Lotte MGS, Hein Htet Aung, declined to go into details on any specific complaints, citing the legal case. He said the company was keen to address concerns and was confident the facts would be established in the proceedings. While we understand the importance of addressing concerns raised by individuals, it is essential to note that not all allegations may be founded on factual basis, Hein Htet Aung said in a statement. Rest assured, we are fully cooperating with the appropriate authorities and legal processes, trusting that the facts will be clarified through the due course of these proceedings. PepsiCos corporate office did not respond to a request for comment about the situation in Myanmar. Many violations The Solidarity Trade Union Myanmar says dozens of people have been fired, often on baseless grounds, from Lottes plants. Employees complain of intimidation by management and a failure to make proper severance payments. Over the past two years, 20 people have approached the union to complain about a lack of compensation after being fired from the factory, said the unions director, Myo Myo Aye. The union helps workers handle complaints in Myanmars manufacturing sector. Myo Myo Aye said that all but one person, Thoung Han, had withdrawn their complaints. Before U Thoung Hans case, there were many dismissal cases in that factory but the workers didnt dare complain, she told RFA. This Pepsico handout image shows a billboard advertisement for Pepsi, Aug. 9, 2012 in Yangon, Myanmar. (PepciCo/AFP) In 2023, the Myanmar Labor Society, which monitors labor complaints and is not connected to the trade union, received seven reports of suspected labor violations at the factory, which also produces 7Up, Sting, and Mirinda soft drinks. The society tracks complaints across Myanmars manufacturing sector and publishes an annual report. In 2023, nine dismissed employees, including Thoung Han, and a legal adviser were threatened by a group of unidentified men who told them they would do anything to stop this case, Myo Myo Aye and Thoung Han said. They told them, You have to stop the negotiations and not continue the case, because it is attacking the brand name and company. If anything happens to you if you continue, were not responsible, Myo Myo Aye said. Neither Myo Myo Aye nor Thoung Han knew the affiliation of the men. RFA could not independently verify their account. Asked about this complaint and others, Lotte MGS head of human resources Hein Htet Aung cited a company policy of refraining from discussing unsubstantiated claims, particularly given the legal proceedings. Watching Other employees have told Solidarity Trade Union Myanmar of verbal abuse, intimidation by management, and the replacement of fired employees by relatives of management, the union said. The union further alleges that in the factorys Mandalay branch, a marketing group of over 30 people were fired at once for not reaching production targets. In the last two years, about 60 people have been dismissed from the company, both the union and Thoung Han said. Thoung Han said a culture of bullying and harassment, and the pressure of unrealistic production targets, had forced some people to resign. The company is watching and taking notes and if they don't like anyone, theyll come up with any reason to get them dismissed, Thoung Han said. If the company doesn't like someone, they do something to make them feel bad, uncomfortable, so theyll resign, so theres no need for compensation. A bus painted with Pepsi's logo picks up passengers in a street of the Burmese capital, Feb. 1, 1997. (Reuters) Military rulers shunned international business for decades as they pursued an isolationist Burmese way to socialism. By the time the generals began opening the impoverished economy in the 1990s, international sanctions over the suppression of democracy stifled business. PepsiCos left Myanmar in 1997 but returned in 2012, at the beginning of nearly a decade of tentative economic and political reforms. But hopes for democracy and growth fueled by record foreign investment were shattered by a 2021 military coup. Edited by Taejun Kang. Around 7,000 Rohingyas in western Myanmars Rakhine state are sheltering in rebel territory amid escalating tensions between the military and the Arakan Army, according to residents and the AA. Some 600,000 members of the mostly Muslim ethnic group remain in the state after a military clearance operation sent more than 700,000 fleeing to safety in neighboring Bangladesh in 2017. They face restrictions on movement and the threat of renewed violence, leaving them vulnerable to fighting that erupted in the region in November. Thats when the Arakan Army, or AA, of ethnic Rakhine fighters suspended a ceasefire agreement that had been in place since the militarys February 2021 coup detat. On May 8, some 7,000 Rohingyas fled the Buthidaung townships villages of Ka Kyet Bet, Kan Pyin, Myaung Nar, Ah Lel Chaung, Ba Gon Nar and Let Thar, where junta troops are firing artillery and conducting airstrikes, the AAs Humanitarian and Development Coordination Office said in a statement on Monday. It said some of the Rohingyas fled to the pro-junta No. 8 Border Guard Police Battalion in Buthidaung. Highly produced video footage released by the AA on Sunday appeared to show rebel troops escorting Rohingya civilians including children, the elderly and the disabled and providing them with humanitarian assistance. Rohingya sources say the situation in Rakhine state has grown increasingly complex in recent weeks and that members of their ethnic community are being exploited and oppressed by both the military and the AA. But a resident of Buthidaung, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to security concerns, told RFA Burmese that the AA has welcomed the thousands of displaced Rohingya. Troops of the United League of Arakan/the Arakan Army have provided the fleeing Rohingya with shelters and other fundamental needs, as well as medicines and medical treatment, the resident said. The AA is expected to give shelter to the Rohingya, depending on the [conflict] situation. Residents and members of the AA declined to provide information on where the Rohingyas had sheltered, citing consideration of their safety. Attempts by RFA to reach members of the Rohingya community that fled went unanswered Monday. Tens of thousands on the run The group of Rohingyas is the latest to join a greater exodus of civilians trying to outrun violence in Rakhine state. On May 9, Nay San Lwin, a Rohingya rights activist who is monitoring the situation, told RFA that at least 40,000 Rohingyas had been forced to flee intense clashes between junta troops and the AA in Buthidaung and Maungdaw townships since the start of the week, and are now facing a humanitarian crisis. He said that the Rohingyas would not be provided aid because they are not allowed to take shelter at IDP [internally displaced people] camps. Rohingya activists estimate the Rohingya population of Buthidaung to be around 200,000 and of Maungdaw to be some 80,000, totaling nearly 300,000 people. Those who fled last week accounted for nearly 15% of the Rohingya population in the two townships. Rohingya people from Buthidaung township flee to Arakan Army (AA) controlled areas from armed clashes May 8, 2024. (United League of Arakan) Widespread gains by the AA have prompted the junta to implement a draft to shore up depleted troop losses. As part of its efforts, the military has reportedly forcibly recruited Rohingyas into pro-junta militias which it says must be formed to protect their Muslim faith in majority Buddhist Rakhine state. But observers say the junta is trying to stoke ethnic tensions in the region to slow the Arakan Armys advance. A good sign On Monday, Nay San Lwin welcomed the AAs assistance to the fleeing Rohingyas. The AA has also provided shelter to Rohingya people in other areas, he said. Both communities are living in the AA-controlled areas. It is a good sign. We have always encouraged them [the AA] to promote peaceful coexistence and rebuilding in areas devastated by the fighting. RFA was unable to reach Hla Thein, the juntas spokesperson for Rakhine state, by telephone for comment on Monday. The AA seized the militarys No. 15 Operations Command Headquarters and its four battalions in Buthidaung township during the first week of May, and the rebel group is continuing an offensive against the remaining battalions. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs announced on May 1 that more than 160,000 civilians have fled their homes since fighting resumed last year in Rakhine state. The more than 700,000 Rohingya villagers who fled Myanmar in 2017 joined hundreds of thousands who escaped the country in previous years, bringing the total number languishing in camps for the displaced in Bangladesh to around 1 million, according to the latest U.N. figures. Translated by Aung Naing. Edited by Joshua Lipes and Malcolm Foster. An airstrike the same day killed 7 people and injured 22. Bodies were cremated on May 12, 2024, after residents were killed by the militarys aerial bombardment and shooting in Ma Gyi Oke village, Tabayin township. Myanmar junta forces killed 32 civilians hiding in monasteries, witnesses and insurgent groups told Radio Free Asia, in what if confirmed would be one of the deadliest massacres in recent months of fighting. A column of junta troops entered Let Htoke Taw village in the central region of Sagaing at around 5 a.m. on Saturday. The soldiers, apparently searching for medical facilities for anti-junta insurgents, then cornered and massacred 32 civilians hiding in monasteries, they said. Nway Oo, an official with the anti-junta Civilian Defense and Security Organization of Myaung, told RFA that civilians were taken out and shot. The people were fleeing as the junta forces were shooting, some people were hiding in monasteries, he said. All the men were asked to sit down and were shot dead. Thirty-one men and one woman were killed, six people were wounded, a resident said. The military regime has not released any information about its operations in the area. Telephone calls to junta spokesperson Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun and the Sagaing region spokesperson, Nyunt Win Aung, went unanswered. Leaders of the National Unity Government (NUG), formed by pro-democracy politicians and allies after the military plunged the country back into bloody turmoil with its 2021 overthrow of an elected government, called the massacre in Myinmu township a war crime. The NUG said about 70 junta troops from three combined battalions, as well as members of the pro-junta Pyu Saw Htee militia were responsible for the massacre. The death toll, if confirmed, would make it one of the bloodiest incidents in Myanmars latest round of war, which has brought unprecedented violence to central, heartland parts of the country occupied by the majority Burman community. Photographs showed bodies stacked in the back of a truck and lined up on the ground. The victims were aged 15 to 60, the NUG said. Troops also burned down village houses and abducted more than 20 people, including children and women, the NUG said. RFA could not confirm the identities of the dead. The village resident said among the victims were three masons from nearby Wan Pyayt village who were doing some work on the monks dormitories. There was no battle, they were shot dead, the resident, who declined to be identified fearing reprisals, told Radio Free Asia. In a junta attack in nearby Tabayin township, seven people were killed in an airstrike in Ma Gyi Oke village on Saturday, residents and members of the anti-junta Peoples Defense Force said. Four of the dead were anti-junta fighters, they said. Residents told RFA that junta troops were hunting clinics opened by civilian public administration groups where they believed insurgents were getting treatment. Translated by RFA Burmese. Edited by Kiana Duncan and Mike Firn. The Philippines deploys ships to monitor Chinas suspected land reclamation work in its economic zone. Suspected dumped corals on Sabina Shoal, known as Escoda Shoal in the Philippines. The Philippine coast guard has sent ships to monitor what Manila suspects to be Chinas illegal island building in the South China Sea, the Presidential Office said. The office of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said in a statement that since April, the coast guard vessel BRP Teresa Magbanua had been operating near Sabina Shoal, known in the Philippines as Escoda Shoal, to keep a watch on Chinas supposed illegal activities. Sabina Shoal is a low-tide elevation in the Spratly Islands, well inside the Philippines exclusive economic zone (EEZ) but also claimed by China, Taiwan and Vietnam. It is only 75 nautical miles (140km) from the Philippine island of Palawan. An EEZ gives the coastal state exclusive access to natural resources in the waters and in the seabed. Philippine coast guard spokesman Jay Tarriela said in the statement that crushed corals had been dumped on the reef an indication of land reclamation. However, the suspected island building appeared to be at an initial stage, he said. Tarriela also said that besides the BRP Teresa Magbanua, two more coast guard vessels had been deployed on a rotating basis to monitor the area. We are alarmed by this, said Jonathan Malaya, assistant director general of the Philippine National Security Council. Malaya told a press conference on Monday that similar crushed corals were detected earlier on Sandy Cay, another group of low-lying reefs near Philippines-occupied Thitu island, also known as Pag-asa island. These were crushed corals and it was obvious that they came from another place, Malaya said. Suspected dumped corals on Sabina Shoal (Philippine Coast Guard) The Philippines in March launched a scientific research mission on Sandy Cay, prompting China to protest. Beijing has yet to respond to the latest allegations regarding Sabina Shoal. Monitoring procedure Tarriela explained in a post on the social platform X, formerly Twitter, that the Philippine coast guard had implemented a standard operating procedure to inspect Sabina Shoal for any dumped crushed corals. After more than three weeks of monitoring, the coast guard discovered that crushed corals were dumped and it is highly likely that the maritime features were altered. The force has released some photo evidence of the damaged corals. We must stay vigilant and not lose sight of the illegal activities and aggressive behavior exhibited by China in Escoda (Sabina) Shoal, Tarriela wrote in his post. Not only does this pose a threat to our sovereignty, but it also causes significant damage to our marine environment, the coast guard spokesman wrote. Sabina Shoal. (Google Maps) In a report released last December, the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (AMTI) and the China Ocean Institute both based in the United States said that competing states in the South China Sea had caused the largest active man-made reef destruction in human history. The organizations named China as the most egregious actor by far, having wiped out roughly 4,648 acres (19km2) of reefs in four years between 2013 and 2017. Most destruction was due to dredging and landfill to construct infrastructure on artificial islands. Beijing carried out most of its island building activities during that period and by 2022 had fully militarized the three largest reefs Subi, Mischief and Fiery Cross. Jason Gutierrez in Manila contributed to this report. Edited by Mike Firn. The BRP Sierra Madre is anchored in South China Sea waters off Second Thomas Shoal, known as Ayungin Shoal in the Philippines, March 30, 2014. The Philippines said Monday it was officially investigating allegations that Chinese embassy staff in Manila had engaged in a disinformation campaign related to the South China Sea. The move followed a call by the Philippine national security adviser urging the government to expel embassy staffers for allegedly recording a phone conversation with a senior Filipino commander about military resupply missions to a disputed shoal. The Department of Foreign Affairs will look into any reports of illegal and unlawful activities by diplomatic officials, and undertake necessary action in line with existing laws and regulations, the department said in a statement Monday. While foreign diplomats are accorded necessary liberties in conducting their duties, they are expected to perform them with the highest standards of integrity and professionalism, it said. Last week, top Philippine defense and security officials demanded an investigation into whether China had violated Manilas wiretapping laws during the alleged phone call between a Chinese official and the Filipino government military commander, Vice Adm. Alberto Carlos, who oversees the defense of the Second Thomas Shoal, also known as the Ayungin Shoal, among other contested South China Sea features. Carlos, the head of the Philippine militarys Western Command, or WESCOM, allegedly agreed with an unidentified Chinese official to a new model for arranging for notifications of resupply missions to the Ayungin Shoal, according to a transcript released by the Chinese embassy to select news outlets. Last week, Philippine officials announced that Carlos had gone on leave and was temporarily replaced. Outpost in contested region Manila maintains the BRP Sierra Madre, an old ship grounded at the Ayungin Shoal, to serve as the countrys outpost in the contested region. It is critical because the Ayungin lies near Mischief Reef, an artificial island where Beijing built a naval base in the 1990s. WESCOM oversees Manilas defense of the Palawan and Kalayaan islands, including the disputed Spratly chain. On Friday, a spokesman for China's Foreign Ministry hit back at the call from Eduardo Ano, the Philippine national security adviser, that Chinese embassy staffers be expelled. The Philippines response shows exactly their guilty conscience in the face of facts and evidence and how exasperated and desperate they have become, spokesman Lin Jian said during a regular press conference. We ask the Philippines to ensure that Chinese diplomats can carry out their duty normally, and to stop provocations and infringements, he said. The Philippines needs to quit denying the facts and must not make reckless moves that will only backfire on the Philippines itself. Civilian mission Against the backdrop of this controversy, a civilian coalition, Atin Ito! (This Is Ours!), was preparing for a sea voyage this week where a convoy of boats would deliver supplies to Filipino fishermen at Scarborough Shoal, known as Bajo de Masinloc in the Philippines. The shoal, located 125 nautical miles (232 km) from the west coast of Luzon the largest of the Philippine islands has effectively been under Chinas control since 2012 and despite a 2016 international arbitration ruling that dismissed Beijings sweeping historical claims to most of the South China Sea. Filipino fishermen who venture out into the rich fishing ground at Scarborough Shoal are routinely harassed by the Chinese. Members of the Atin Ito! (This Is Ours!) show the buoys that will be used in Scarborough Shoal, during a press conference in Quezon City, Metro Manila, May 8, 2024. (Jam Sta Rosa/AFP) Rafaela David, chief convenor of the Atin Ito! coalition, said they remained undeterred despite several recent incidents between Philippine and Chinese ships in the disputed waters. Chinas actions are failing to intimidate Filipinos, David said in a statement. Instead, they are only uniting us and inspiring us to go further in defending our rights. Atin Ito! is a broad grouping of nationalist individuals and civilian organizations. It launched its first mission last December to deliver supplies and Christmas gifts to Filipino troops stationed aboard the BRP Sierra Madre at the Second Thomas Shoal. That mission was forced to change its route and detour to less controversial parts of the disputed waterway. The convoy was subsequently forced to turn back to shore after four Chinese vessels started shadowing its lead ship. Preparing a blockade This weeks convoy is scheduled to set sail for Scarborough Shoal on Wednesday morning from Masinloc town in Zambales province, a voyage that is expected to take two days. Ray Powell, who heads Stanford Universitys Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation that monitors activities in the South China Sea, said on X that a huge Chinese force appeared to be preparing to intimidate the Filipino civilian mission. This will be by far the largest blockade Ill have ever tracked at Scarborough, Powell said. The Filipino sea convoy will be escorted by the Philippine Coast Guard. Jonathan Malaya, assistant director general at the National Security Council, said Monday that the upcoming trip to Scarborough Shoal would be civilian in nature. It is the governments responsibility to ensure maritime safety. We need to make sure that our fellow Filipinos who are joining that trip and the foreign nationals that they have invited are safe because that mission is within our 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone, Malaya told a news briefing. The objective of this mission is to help our fishermen in that part of the [West Philippine Sea] thats why they are bringing supplies, Malaya said. Jason Gutierrez and Jojo Rinoza reported from Manila. Welcome to The Azadi Briefing, an RFE/RL newsletter that unpacks the key issues in Afghanistan. To subscribe, click here. I'm Abubakar Siddique, a senior correspondent at RFE/RL's Radio Azadi. Here's what I've been tracking and what I'm keeping an eye on in the days ahead. The Key Issue Afghanistan has briefly returned to the headlines as the United States heads toward a crucial November presidential election. Republicans and Democrats blamed each other for failing to conclude an orderly withdrawal to end the conflict in Afghanistan, the longest war in American history. In the September 10 presidential debate, Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris defended President Joe Biden's decision to withdraw from Afghanistan. She blamed her opponent, former President and Republican candidate Donald Trump, for concluding the 2020 Doha agreement with the Taliban, which "bypassed the Afghan government." In response, Trump defended the Doha deal as "a very good agreement." He blamed the Biden administration for losing soldiers during the withdrawal, leaving behind weapons, and not enforcing the terms of the agreement. On September 8, a new investigative report by House Republicans blamed Biden's administration for the chaotic final withdrawal from Afghanistan. Representative Michael McCaul (Republican-Texas), who led the probe as chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said the Biden administration "had the information and opportunity" to plan for the inevitable collapse of the Afghan government. Still, it chose, "optics over security," he said. However, the State Department accused the committee of issuing partisan statements, cherry-picking facts, and obfuscating "the truth behind conjecture." Why It's Important: America's war in Afghanistan -- particularly its disastrous end -- is unlikely to vanish from public memory and from political debates on how the U.S.-led war on terrorism was conducted and how it ended. Another ongoing probe will likely shed even more light on the war, which lasted for over two decades, between 2001 and 2021. The Afghanistan War Commission, a bipartisan legislative body comprised of former U.S. government officials with experience of the war, is probing the conflict. Its report is slated to be released in 2026. Like the 9/11 Commission report, on which it is modeled, it is likely to attract a great deal of public interest and scrutiny. What's Next: Renewed attention on Afghanistan will likely increase amid the partisan rancor ahead of the November 5 presidential election. However, it is unlikely to prompt a significant change in Washington's policy toward the country in the short term. What To Keep An Eye On Afghanistan's Taliban rulers and Turkmen leader Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov inaugurated the construction of the Afghan section of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline. On September 11, the Taliban held a groundbreaking ceremony for the long-delayed pipeline. Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban's top spokesman, said Ashgabat will invest in building the pipeline, money that will be returned, the group says, when his government begins collecting transit fees estimated to be more than $500 million per annum. Mujahid said that the pipeline inside Afghanistan will be built in three phases. The first phase, according to the spokesman, will connect the Turkmen border to the western Afghan city of Herat and will be built within two years from now. It will then begin supplying gas to the energy-starved country. The second phase will extend the pipeline to the southern province of Helmand. In the third phase, TAPI will go through the southern province of Kandahar and on to Pakistan. The 1,800-kilometer pipeline will carry 33 billion cubic meters of natural gas annually through southern Afghanistan to Pakistan's southwestern Balochistan Province. From there, it will go through Pakistan's eastern Punjab Province to Fazilka in India's northwestern Punjab state. Why It's Important: TAPI has long been touted as a significant regional energy project. But insecurity in Afghanistan and the lack of international investment has prevented it from taking shape. Given the Taliban's lack of transparency about significant infrastructure projects, it is still possible that TAPI will remain just a pipe dream. That's all from me for now. Don't forget to send me any questions, comments, or tips that you have. You can always reach us at azadi.english@rferl.org Until next time, Abubakar Siddique If you enjoyed this briefing and don't want to miss the next edition, subscribe here. It will be sent to your inbox every Friday. Former Kazakh Economy Minister Quandyq Bishimbaev has been found guilty of murdering his wife and sentenced to 24 years in prison. A court in Astana delivered the verdict on May 13 in a high-profile trial that put domestic violence in the spotlight in Kazakhstan. There were fresh clashes in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, on May 13 with police reportedly arresting 20 protesters. Tens of thousands have protested for several weeks against a "foreign agent" bill pushed forward by the ruling Georgian Dream party that opposition groups say would curtail civil liberties. The Georgian parliament's Legal Committee took just 67 seconds to advance a controversial "foreign agent" bill on May 13. Some lawmakers said they could not make it to the chamber in time due to the massive police operation outside. Earlier, security forces clashed with demonstrators, beating some of the protesters. Opposition groups say the proposed bill could endanger both civil liberties and the country's bid for European Union membership. Thousands of Georgians gathered in front of the parliament in Tbilisi late on May 12 to protest against the so-called "foreign agent" bill, which opponents say would stifle free media and civil society. Activists vowed to stay in the streets overnight ahead of the planned final reading and expected passage of the legislation on May 13. The URL has been copied to your clipboard The code has been copied to your clipboard. ASTANA -- Former Kazakh Economy Minister Quandyq Bishimbaev has been sentenced to 24 years in prison for the "violent beating" to death of his wife, Saltanat Nukenova, in November 2023, disappointing activists and her family, who wanted the court to send a message for women's rights with a life sentence. In a high-profile case watched by millions around the country amid government pledges to strengthen women's rights, Judge Aizhan Kolbaeva of the Inter-District Criminal Court in Astana on May 13 also sentenced Bishimbaev's cousin Baqytzhan Baizhanov to four years in prison for not reporting the crime, which he witnessed while in progress. Bishimbaev and Baizhanov, as well as the victim's relatives and prosecutors, have 15 days to appeal the court's ruling. The victim's father, Amangeldi Nukenov, told journalists hours before the court pronounced its decision that "any ruling other than life in prison will be considered as unjust by us." The jury found Bishimbaev guilty of torture, murder with extreme violence, and repeatedly committing serious crimes. Bishimbaev, 44, showed no emotion while the judge handed down her ruling and said he had no questions after the judge asked him if everything was clear to him. Baizhanov seemed shaken and stated that the court "incarcerated an innocent person." Shortly after the judge pronounced the court's ruling, the Feminita women's rights group held a march in the center of Kazakhstan's largest city, Almaty, rejecting the court's decision and demanding a harsher sentence for Bishimbaev. "We do not accept the court's ruling, [Bishimbaev] must stay in prison for life. He will use all of his means to get an early release. We call on everyone to protest the ruling," Zhanar Sekerbaeva, one of Feminita's leading activists, said. For millions of Kazakhs the courtroom proceedings streamed live by the Supreme Court and picked up by some of Kazakhstan's largest online media outlets has made for compulsive, if often harrowing, viewing. Bishimbaev was arrested in November and accused of viciously beating his 31-year-old wife for hours in a restaurant that belonged to a relative. Nukenova's body was later found in the restaurant. During the trial, security camera footage showed the former cabinet minister kicking and punching Nukenova repeatedly before he grabbed her by her hair and dragged her into a nearby room. Video from his phone showed him insulting and yelling at Nukenova in the room for hours before she died after losing consciousness. The case has highlighted growing outrage over domestic violence in Kazakhstan, where one in six women say they have faced some form of physical violence at the hands of their male partner. Domestic violence has historically gone unpunished in the former Soviet republic, where it is not considered a stand-alone criminal offense. Amid the public outcry over the brutal death of Nukenova, Kazakh President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev publicly called on the Interior Ministry to take the case under its "special control" during the investigation. Bishimbaev served as economy minister from May 2016 until late December of the same year. Before that, he held different managerial posts at government agencies. In 2018, Bishimbaev and 22 others faced a high-profile corruption trial that ended with his conviction on charges of bribery and embezzlement while leading a state-controlled holding company. A court in Astana sentenced him to 10 years in prison, but Bishimbaev, who comes from an influential family, was granted an early release through a mass amnesty issued by the government. He had served only 18 months of his term. The Interior Ministry has said that more than 100,000 cases of domestic violence are officially registered each year, though the number of unregistered cases is much higher, analysts say. International rights watchdogs have urged Kazakh officials to curb the spread of domestic violence for years. Around 400 women die from domestic violence every year in Kazakhstan, according to UN Women, the United Nations agency for gender equality and the empowerment of women. However, the actual number of cases and deaths, analysts say, is likely much higher. With reporting by Vlast.kz Russian President Vladimir Putin used a meeting with his Iranian counterpart, Masud Pezeshkian, to cement their growing bilateral ties that have raised concern in the West as war rages in Ukraine and the Middle East. The two leaders met in Ashgabat on the sidelines of a conference in the capital of the tightly controlled Central Asian country of Turkmenistan on October 11. It was the first of two meetings between the men, with another scheduled at the BRICS summit in the Russian city of Kazan that runs on October 22-24. It was the first of two meetings between the two, with another scheduled at the BRICS summit in the Russian city of Kazan that runs on October 22-24. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters ahead of the meeting that while the talks will focus on bilateral relations, "the situation in the Middle East definitely will not be ignored and will also be on the agenda." The meeting was the first between the two since Pezeshkian assumed office on July 30 after winning an election to succeed his hard-line predecessor, Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash in May. Relations between Moscow and Tehran have strengthened since the Kremlin launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. "Pezeshkian is trying to gauge to what extent Iran can rely on Russia for help," Touraj Atabaki, professor emeritus of Middle East and Central Asia social history at Leiden University in the Netherlands, told Radio Farda. "Russia wants to stand with Iran due to Iran's support in its war on Ukraine but Moscow doesn't want to darken its relationship with Israel further and cut all ties," he added. Since the early months of the Ukraine war, Russia has been accused of using Iranian-made Shahed and Mohajer-6 drones, many of which have been found after being shot down over Ukrainian cities and battlefields. Iran initially denied arming Russia before relenting and admitting that it had supplied a "limited number of drones" to Moscow before the war. Despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, Tehran continues to deny that its drones are being used by Russia against Ukraine. That has not stopped the United States and the European Union from imposing sanctions on Iran for helping Moscow. Last month, the EU said it had "credible" information provided by allies suggesting that Iran has supplied short-range ballistic missiles to Russia to help Moscow wage war in Ukraine. Meanwhile, tensions in the Middle East have been heightened since Tehran launched some 200 missiles at Israel on October 1, saying the attack was in response to the killing of Tehran-backed militant leaders and a general from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps. Israel has vowed to launch a "deadly, precise, and surprising" attack on Iran in retaliation, while it continues to pound targets in Lebanon and the Gaza Strip that it says are aimed at Iran-backed proxies. At least 30 Palestinians were killed and dozens wounded on October 11 by Israeli strikes in Jabalia in northern Gaza, according to the territory's civil-defense agency. The recent spiral of violence was sparked by the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel by Hamas that killed around 1,200 people and saw some 250 taken hostage. Hamas has been designated a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union. The fighting in Gaza prompted another Iran-backed group, Hezbollah, to fire missiles into Israel in support of Hamas. Hezbollah is designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, while the EU blacklists its armed wing but not its political party. The Israeli military has launched massive air strikes on Beirut and southern Lebanon in response, as well as a ground incursion into southern Lebanon intended to destroy the Iran-allied militant group, whose political party has seats in the Lebanese parliament. Israel faced condemnation on October 11 after its forces fired at what it said was a threat near a UN peacekeeping position in Lebanon. Israeli soldiers had responded to "an immediate threat" around 50 meters from the UNIFIL post, the military said. "An initial examination indicates that during the incident, a hit was identified on a UNIFIL post...resulting in the injury of two UNIFIL personnel," the statement added. The army pledged to carry out a "thorough review." UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the firing as "intolerable" and "a violation of international humanitarian law," while the British government said it was "appalled" by reports of the injuries. U.S. President Joe Biden said he was "absolutely" asking Israel to stop firing at UN peacekeepers, while the French, Spanish, and Italian leaders issued a joint statement expressing "outrage." French President Emmanuel Macron renewed his call for an end to exports of weapons used by Israel in Gaza and Lebanon, while saying the UN peacekeepers had been "deliberately targeted." In Iran, more than three dozen hard-line lawmakers on October 10 demanded the government revise its nuclear doctrine to pursue atomic weapons. In a letter to the Supreme National Security Council, they said Western powers could not control Israel, thus making nuclear weapons "Iran's option to create deterrence." Iran has been hit with waves of crippling economic sanctions for its nuclear program, which has seen a sharp increase in its uranium enrichment capacity after the United States under former President Donald Trump withdrew from a 2015 landmark deal known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action that restricted Tehran's nuclear program in exchange for relief from sanctions. Iran says its nuclear program is for peaceful civilian purposes, but government officials caused alarm recently by saying it could change its "nuclear doctrine" if it is attacked or its existence is threatened by Israel. With reporting by Reuters and AFP Russian President Vladimir Putin has launched his fifth term with a rare shake-up of the government that analysts say is driven by the need to manage a long and increasingly costly war of aggression against Ukraine and the fallout from Moscow's mounting confrontation with the West. Putin on May 12 removed Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu long seen as one of Putin's closest confidants and mentioned periodically as a possible presidential successor -- and replaced him with acting First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov, a 65-year-old economist who formerly served as economic development minster and who aligns closely with Putin's statist, centralizing impulses. By moving the man who has been overseeing the entire economic bloc of ministers in the cabinet into the Defense Ministry, Putin is signaling the primacy of the war against Ukraine and his growing efforts to challenge the West among the tasks now facing the government. It's a message that Putin has delivered in numerous speeches since he launched the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, and in recent months in particular. "The proposal to name one of the key Kremlin-insider economists and the main statist in the economic bloc to the Defense Ministry could mean that Putin intends to win the war in the factories of the military-industrial complex and on international markets. This is logical, since the economic bloc has, overall, been more effective during the war than the security bloc," Aleksandr Baunov, an analyst at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, wrote on Telegram. "The strategy for victory will not be through mobilizations and military breakthroughs, but by applying slow pressure on Ukraine through the superior power of Russia's military-industrial complex and the economy as a whole, which will apparently be pushed to work more effectively both on the front and in the rear," he added. Kirill Martynov, editor in chief of Novaya Gazeta Europe, said Belousov's appointment meant that Putin intends to put the economy on a military footing -- even more than it already is. "The main idea that Belousov represents is economic mobilization in the service of Putin's aims," Martynov told Current Time, the Russian-language network run by RFE/RL in cooperation with VOA. '100 Percent' Putin's Man Far-right nationalist-imperialist ideologue Aleksandr Dugin praised Putin for the move, calling it "a decisive step toward a government of victory" in a post on Telegram. Many nationalists who avidly support the war against Ukraine have harshly criticized Shoigu for the way it has been conducted. Belousov has been a fixture among Russia's top economic managers for years, including a stint as Putin's main economic adviser in 2013-20. Through the 2000s, he was seen as something of a foil to relatively liberal Finance Minister Aleksei Kudrin, opposing many of Kudrin's privatization initiatives and leading the effort to divert much of the profits from oil and gas exports back into state coffers. A government source told the media outlet The Bell in 2018 that Belousov was the only economist in the Russian government who supported the 2014 takeover of Ukraine's Crimea region. The source described Belousov as a "committed statist" who believes Russia is surrounded by "a ring of enemies." In recent years, he has overseen the national project on "unmanned aircraft systems," which has spearheaded boosting Russia's production of military drones. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on May 12 explained Belousov's appointment as defense minister by saying his main task would be "to integrate the economics of the security bloc into the economy of the country." Peskov noted that Russia's budget was becoming similar to that of the Soviet Union in the 1980s, when spending on the military and security agencies was 7.4 percent of GDP. Aleksandra Prokopenko, a former Russian central bank analyst and now a fellow at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that Belousov is "well-versed in military-industrial complex matters" and "holds Orthodox Christian beliefs." She added that he was "100 percent" Putin's man. "Putin is aware that this war is not likely going anywhere anytime soon," Mark Galeotti, a Russian political and security analyst, told RFE/RL. "As he digs in for the long term -- and we see this in his rhetoric, but also we're now seeing it within the government apparatus -- from his point of view, this is a war that is going to be won to a large extent on industrial production. And this is why Belousov comes in." Belousov's job will be "to put the Russian economy on a war footing and to transform Russia into a country in which the military economy drives everything else," political analyst Ivan Preobrazhensky told RFE/RL's Russian Service. 'Monstrously Unpopular' Belousov's appointment came as a surprise, but analysts have speculated that the position of Shoigu, 66, had been growing weaker ever since the Russian military failed in its attempt to secure a quick victory over Ukraine in the weeks following the February 2022 full-scale invasion. He and General Valery Gerasimov, the 68-year-old chief of the General Staff, were the primary targets of discontent during a short-lived but dangerous mutiny by Wagner mercenary fighters headed by Yevgeny Prigozhin in June 2023. Shoigu suffered a further blow last month when a deputy, Timur Ivanov, was arrested on suspicion of corruption. Putin named Shoigu to head the Security Council, replacing fellow Putin insider Nikolai Patrushev, whose new appointment has not been disclosed. Shoigu is "monstrously unpopular with the troops" in Ukraine, Galeotti said. "But, on the other hand, Shoigu is a friend, a personal friend of Putin, and Putin is strangely loyal to his own," he added. Shoigu's reassignment and the appointment of a civilian economist as defense minister could mean that professional military officers will take increased control over the military side of the war on Ukraine. The moves could presage the removal of Gerasimov as well, Galeotti said. "Gerasimov has proven to be a massively underperforming and unpopular chief of the General Staff," he said. "He's even more despised amongst his own men than Shoigu was.... I wouldn't be surprised if we see a new chief of the General Staff." Many of the most militaristic and aggressive pro-war bloggers were elated by the developments, which they saw as a blow against corruption within the Defense Ministry and a promise of improved military effectiveness both in Ukraine and beyond. "Finally there is a chance to wipe out the last reserve of the era of [former President Boris] Yeltsin and manage to create a military central plan on the eve of the big war with Western Europe," blogger Dmitry Konanykhin wrote on Telegram. Written by Robert Coalson with reporting by RFE/RL's Russian Service and Current Time Kharkiv's governor on May 13 said Russian forces had begun attacking new areas in small groups to widen their assault in the northeastern region and stretch Ukrainian defenses. The governor, Oleh Synyehubov, said on May 13 that evacuations were ongoing and that 1,600 people were expected to have been evacuated by the end of the day. Earlier, Ukraine's military said Russian forces had stepped up the large-scale assault on the border region of Kharkiv and the situation in the area of the town of Vovchansk had become difficult, prompting the evacuation of the inhabitants of the small town. Moscow's troops entered Ukraine's Kharkiv region on May 10, opening a new, northeastern front in a war that has for almost two years been largely fought in the east and south. The advance could draw some of Kyiv's depleted forces away from the east, where Russia has been slowly advancing. The Ukraine's General Staff said in its evening report on May 13 that its forces had begun to push back against Russian troops in Vovchansk, where they were carrying out "clearance operations." Russian forces are thought to be aiming to gain as much momentum on the battlefield as possible before a new wave of military aid for Kyiv from the U.S. and Kyiv's European allies arrives in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin appears poised for a longer-term war, analysts say, with his replacement of Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu on May 12. Shoigu will be replaced by Andrei Belousov, a former economy minister with no military experience. An RFE/RL correspondent on the ground said people were being evacuated from the area under constant shelling Vovchansk, which had a prewar population of some 17,500. Vovchansk, a town located at some 5 kilometers from the Russian border, has become the focal point of Russias latest offensive as the Kremlins forces attempt to take settlements just east of Kharkiv -- Ukraines second-largest city with a pre-war population of some 1.4 million people. Kharkiv is also one of Ukraine's most important economic and industrial centers and was one of the initial targets of Russia's invasion, experiencing heavy fighting in the spring of 2022. 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. A successful Ukrainian counteroffensive in September 2022 liberated most of the Kharkiv region, throwing Russian forces back and allowing the return of a large part of the city's population. But in recent months, Russian artillery, drone, and missile strikes on the region and its capital have intensified massively as Ukrainian forces' shortage of ammunition and air defenses became more and more acute. Russian forces have also stepped up their attacks in the south, where Ukraine's Southern Defense Forces said they attacked in the direction of Orihiv, in the Zaporizhzhya region. The situation there was difficult but stable, according to military spokesman Dmytro Pletenchuk. Separately, Russia's Defense Ministry said on May 13 that its air defenses shot down 31 Ukrainian drones and 16 missiles overnight over the regions of Belgorod, Kursk, Lipetsk, and Moscow-occupied Crimea. An informed source told RFE/RL that Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) carried out drone strikes early on May 13 on two infrastructure targets in Russia's Lipetsk and Belgorod regions. The targets of the attacks were the Oskolnaft oil depot near the city of Stary Oskol in Belgorod and the power substation Yeletska, in the Lipetsk region, with a capacity of 500 kilovolts, the source said. The information could not be independently verified immediately. On May 12, Russian authorities said 15 people were killed when a building collapsed in the border region of Belgorod after fragments from a Ukrainian-fired missile fell on an apartment building after being shot down by Russian air defenses. The claim could not be independently verified immediately. With reporting by Reuters Welcome to Wider Europe, RFE/RL's newsletter focusing on the key issues concerning the European Union, NATO, and other institutions and their relationships with the Western Balkans and Europe's Eastern neighborhoods. I'm RFE/RL Europe Editor Rikard Jozwiak, and this week I'm drilling down on two issues: the EU's new Russian sanctions package and military aid to Armenia and Georgia. Brief#1: The EU Could Further Sanction Russian Energy What You Need to Know: On May 8, the European Commission presented a new round of sanctions on Russia and Belarus to the ambassadors of the European Union member states. The proposal, seen by RFE/RL, is actually surprisingly ambitious, given that the bloc has adopted numerous rather weak packages in the past. The big question is whether the measures, if adopted, will retain their clout. As they have to be adopted unanimously, there is a risk of them being watered down. Surprisingly, the proposed measures touch on Russian energy, something that has been a "no-go" ever since the EU managed to impose a near-ban on Russian oil imports in 2022 after months of diplomatic bickering. This time, the European Commission is proposing to hit Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG). However, the sanctions proposal does not suggest banning direct imports to the EU, which make up some 5 percent of the bloc's energy consumption and can be replaced immediately, according to European Commission estimates. Instead, a gradual approach is being suggested by forbidding transshipment, meaning that EU countries would be prevented from reexporting Russian LNG and therefore forcing Russian ships to make longer journeys to reach their final destination. There is also a ban on investing or providing services for huge Russian LNG-infrastructure projects under construction -- Arctic LNG and Murmansk LNG. Big countries such as Germany, France, and Italy have already asked for an impact assessment of how these LNG-related measures will work, suggesting that member states are nervous about this move. Deep Background: Another issue that might be tricky for EU member states to green-light is a proposed import ban on helium. So far, EU helium imports from Russia only amount to about $1 billion a year, but Russia has the ambition of becoming one of the world's biggest helium suppliers in the future. In the proposal, there is also a push to expand the liability of sanctions violations to EU subsidiaries abroad, which could be a step too far for EU member states as they would argue that it is too complicated to keep track of everything that has been decided in Brussels and too much of a regulatory burden for companies. What else is in the proposal? There is a prohibition on using the System For Transfer Of Financial Messages (SPFS), a sort of Moscow-based SWIFT, which should pass even though Hungary has expressed reservations. Then there are things that appear straightforward but which potentially may not cut it with member states. One is the restriction on the use and transfer in Russia of plant-variety rights, which give farmers the exclusive control over the planting, harvesting, selling, exporting, and importing of certain species. France and Portugal have voiced concerns here, arguing that such a move could lead to global food scarcity. It will also be interesting to see if a proposed ban on Russian state financing for EU-based political parties, foundations, think tanks, NGOs, and media service providers in the union won't be watered down. Some countries, notably Hungary and Slovakia, enjoy warm relations with the Kremlin and might lack the political will; others, such as the Netherlands and Sweden, have constitutional restrictions on the state interfering in media and civil society funding. The proposed ban on acquiring Ukrainian cultural goods if there are suspicions that these items have been illegally removed from Ukraine should, however, fly. As will a bid to block the operation in the EU of transport companies that are at least 25 percent owned by Russians -- a more stringent measure than the status quo, where companies can only be blocked if Russians hold a majority stake. Measures hitting Russia's so-called shadow fleet, vessels with unclear ownership that Moscow is using to circumvent the bloc's oil transport ban, are also expected to pass. Drilling Down A proposed broadcasting ban on the pro-Russian propaganda network Voice of Europe, the state-owned RIA Novosti news agency, and the Russian newspapers Izvestia and Rossiiskaya gazeta is also expected. Under such a measure, the four companies would be added to the same EU blacklist as Russias state-owned RT and Sputnik. That means EU citizens can't access their media products in the bloc, but correspondents from these companies still have the right to report from member states. I understand that the decision on this issue could be taken separately and be rubber-stamped by EU ambassadors when they assemble again in Brussels on May 15. There are also suggested asset freezes and visa bans on two people associated with Voice of Europe: Artem Marchevskiy and Viktor Medvedchuk, with the proposal stating that "Marchevskiy has used Voice of Europe as a vehicle for funneling financial resources designated for remuneration of propagandists, and for building an influence network connecting Medvedchuk and his associates with representatives of political parties in Europe." As always, some interesting derogations are being proposed. A flight ban on Russian aircraft over EU territory was introduced shortly after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Since then, Russian travelers have been using creative ways of getting around this by using quick stopovers in places like Armenia, Georgia, or Turkey, or by masking which companies are running the flight. The European Commission is proposing to tighten this by adding the requirement for flight operators to disclose the owner of the actual aircraft, as well as the nationalities of the passengers. There is, however, an exemption from this requirement for aircraft with no more than four seats and with a maximum take-off mass of 2,000 kilograms. Sounds ideal for small private jets used by rich Russians. And then you have Belarus, where the European Commission is suggesting measures for Minsk that have already been adopted for Russia. This includes, among other things, import bans on maritime navigation components, diamonds, gold, and coal, and a prohibition on providing Belarus with various IT services. An important derogation has also been suggested: the possibility of allowing Belarusian potash, used in agricultural fertilizers, to be shipped via the EU to third countries where there is food scarcity. So far, Belarusian potash has been banned and it will continue to be prohibited, but there is now a suggestion that an empty annex to the document could be adopted in which the names of at-risk third countries can be added in the future in case there is a potash shortage. The Baltic states are against this move as they believe it would reward the regime of Alyaksandr Lukashenka and force them to allow Belarusian potash to transit their countries. Others like Italy, Portugal, and Spain have countered that the EU must be seen to do more to avoid accusations of causing food shortages globally and that the empty annex is a last resort that very well may remain empty. Brief#2: EU Military Aid For Armenia And Georgia What You Need To Know: One of the more successful, if perhaps underreported, European Union initiatives in recent years is the European Peace Facility (EPF), created back in 2021, to finance actions such as training missions and military equipment in third countries. The facility is outside the regular EU budget, meaning that the 27 member states of the bloc contribute as they see fit. At the start, it was largely meant to finance projects and missions in Africa with a budget ceiling of 5.6 billion euros ($6 billion), but with the full-scale invasion of Ukraine a year later, the ceiling has now been elevated to 17 billion euros. The EPF has also allowed the EU as an organization for the first time ever to send lethal military aid, with assistance worth nearly $3.9 billion going to Ukraine. Other countries in the EU's eastern neighborhood have also benefited from contributions from the fund. Last month, Moldova received some $44 million over a period of 40 months for nonlethal equipment in areas such as air surveillance, electronic warfare, and logistics. Georgia received more than $32 million last year to boost its army in the fields of military engineering, command and control, medical equipment, logistics, and cyberdefense -- a sum that came on top of previous contributions from the EU, worth $34.5 million, for similar purposes. Deep Background: Now, once again, Georgia is in line for more cash from the EPF -- as is Armenia. For Armenia, it would be the first time ever it had received such funding and would signify a small but symbolic step for Yerevan in its relationship with the European Union. (There are even rumors in Brussels that Armenia might soon even apply to join the bloc.) The draft EPF proposal, seen by RFE/RL, also hints at Armenia's closer cooperation with the bloc: "the assistance measure aims to allow the armed forces to enhance operational effectiveness, accelerate compliance with (European) Union standards and interoperability, and thereby better protect civilians in crises and emergencies. It will also strengthen Armenia's capacities in regard to its future participation in EU Common Security and Defense Policy (CSDP) operations and missions." Interestingly, the proposal for Georgia contains the same wording. For both countries, the proposal states that the "objective of the assistance measure is to contribute to the strengthening of the armed forces of the Republic of Armenia/Georgia's capacities to enhance national security, stability, and resilience in the defense sector." Drilling Down There are key differences between the military proposals for the two countries. Armenia's is a rather modest one worth nearly $11 million for the upcoming 30 months. The document makes it clear that it will finance the "types of equipment not designed to deliver lethal force" and spells out that it will contribute mobile field-camp capability for a battalion-sized unit and a medical treatment facility. For Georgia, the proposal is to the tune of more than $32 million for 40 months. As with Armenia, there is support for logistics equipment, but then additionally there is also money available for artillery command-and-control equipment, engineering equipment, and cyberdefense equipment. For both countries, there are also safeguards in case things don't go to plan. The funding can be suspended or terminated altogether if Yerevan or Tbilisi are not following international human rights law, if the cash is not used for the purpose it was provided for, or if any equipment is transferred without Brussels' consent. To make sure the money isn't frittered away, the EU has also insisted on delivery certifications and onsite visits upon request by the EU foreign policy chief or EU auditors, as well as reports on how the various projects are doing every six months. These sorts of requests are standard in Brussels, but they also reflect potential unease as these decisions ultimately are political. All 27 EU member states must sign off on them. In the case of Georgia, EU ambassadors already did so on May 8. Despite growing worries about the potential of Georgia adopting a "foreign agent" law --- which requires media outlets, NGOs, and other nonprofits to register as "pursuing the interests of a foreign power" if more than 20 percent of their funding comes from abroad -- the member states decided not to touch the EPF money for Tbilisi. One argument not to cut Tbilisi off was that the continued funding would lead to more transparency and the EU would have some oversight of the Georgian armed forces. Instead, the EU is looking into other ways to respond in case the law is adopted, including halting Georgia's EU accession process, freezing some other EU funds meant for Georgia, or even looking into ways to suspend visa liberalization with the country. It is actually Armenia's EPF proposal that is more problematic. So far, it hasn't reached the EU ambassadors' desks as it remains stuck in lower-level working groups partly as a result of Hungary blocking it. Hungary, which enjoys close ties with Azerbaijan, has conditioned its green light for Armenia on Baku getting its own EPF program as well. While other EU member states would be open to Azerbaijan also benefiting from the fund, there is one problem: the EPF functions in such a way that a third country must ask if they can be part of it and, so far, Baku has not shown any interest. Looking Ahead Watch out for the annual meeting of the foreign ministers of the Council of Europe, which focuses on promoting human rights, democracy, and the rule of law on the continent, in Strasbourg on May 16-17. There had been hopes that, after this session, Kosovo would be approved to join the organization. But as Pristina hasn't submitted a draft law on the establishment of an association of Serbian-majority municipalities -- a key sticking point between Kosovo and Serbia -- chances now appear slim that this will happen. NATO countries' chiefs of defense will assemble in Brussels on May 16 to discuss weapon deliveries to Ukraine, a potential NATO mission to coordinate these deliveries and train troops, and how to ramp up military production in the alliance. That's all for this week. Feel free to reach out to me on any of these issues on Twitter @RikardJozwiak, or on e-mail at jozwiakr@rferl.org. Until next time, Rikard Jozwiak If you enjoyed this briefing and don't want to miss the next edition subscribe here. Glenamaddy has been granted millions of euro under the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF). Announced today, the Galway town received 4,003,125.00 in funding for the creation of a multi-use community facility. The total cost of the project is 4,447,916 and the lead party is Galway Rural Development. This project will create a multi-use facility that will provide much needed facilities for the local community, the Department of Rural and Community Development said. Minister for Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphreys announced record funding of 164 million for 30 landmark regeneration projects across the country. The investment is being provided under the RRDF with a particular emphasis on the revitalisation of rural town centres, which is a key objective of the 'Our Rural Future and Town Centre First Policies'. Today I am announcing an unprecedented 164 million in funding for 30 landmark projects in rural Ireland. This announcement has been made possible by the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund, which is providing strategic capital funding for significant projects around the country, Minister Humphreys said. The funding announced today will revitalise towns and villages in line with the Town Centre First Policy, addressing vacancy and dereliction, stimulating rural economies and responding to community needs. Drumshanbo in County Leitrim also received 5,555,148.00 under the fund. This is for the ExCHANGE Rural Regeneration, Transforming Workspaces & Townscapes project, which will cost a total of 6,172,387. Leitrim County Council is the projects lead party. This project will repurpose two prominent vacant buildings in the town centre into the ExCHANGE Smart Hub Facility. The project will also deliver a riverside amenity experience, and enhancement works to Peoples Park, the department said. Radio drama for children Radio drama has enjoyed a real success, being supported by the efforts of those who wrote scripts or adapted classic texts Radio drama for children Steliu Lambru, 13.05.2024, 14:00 A priority mission of the Radio was to educate and bring culture to everyone. Children are a generous audience and shows for them have always been the focus of the management and journalists. Radio drama has enjoyed a real success, being supported by the efforts of those who wrote scripts or adapted classic texts, of actors and directors and of the technical teams. All of them wrote the history of the radio drama for children, they left those memories that future adults have. In Radio Romanias audio library one can find reference works from the history of radio drama for children, created by important authors. The writer Silvia Kerim was also a radio journalist and devotedly worked on dramatizations for children. She started her job in 1961 and joined a department with quality people who were trying to escape the political ideology of the time. In 1998, Radio Romanias Oral History Center interviewed Silvia Kerim and found out how the journalists with the childrens radio drama department were able to maintain the quality of their product: I was assigned to work in a very pleasant place for me, it was called Theater for Children on the Microphone. I was lucky because most of the plays that made up the childrens radio drama repertoire were stories. They were derived from classical literature, so the ideological lie did not really fit in there. The actors were big names of Romanian theater, the directors were also very good so that compromise and lies didnt really fit. As in any place, people are the ones who make things work and Silvia Kerim had open-minded colleagues: In the Theater for Children on the Microphone department, I had Eduard Jurist as my boss, from him I learned what it means to be a modest boss, not to boss people around, and to pay equal attention to younger and older editors alike. In that department I had colleagues such as Vasile Manuceanu, a gifted writer called Calin Gruia, Mioara Paler who, at one time, was the head of the childrens shows section and to whom I owe the joy of writing for children. They had an intuition of my love for children, they felt my desire to write for children. Silvia Kerim wrote scripts for childrens radio dramas and remembered how important the childhood stories told by her parents were for her: I was given the task of processing some stories that were poorly translated from Chinese or Japanese literature. I worked on such stories and short stories that had a meaning of their own. Retelling them, I realized that I put a lot of my imagination in them, and that, at a certain moment, I could write the stories that were running through my head and which, in turn, had a magical root. My mother used to tell my brother and I stories every night when we were very small, night after night. In general, the first part was Snow White, I think that for an entire year I listened to Snow White, either in episodes or shortened. And if my mother somehow messed up on a detail, we would both hurry to contradict her and remind her that, in fact, it was not character x that had done and said this or that. The second story was, in general, about animals that my mother loved very much, as did my father for that matter. Both parents passed on to us this love for animals. During the years when Silvia Kerim was giving life to childrens stories on the airwaves, the communist regime was forcefully indoctrinating the audience. But the journalist chose to oppose the ideological rudeness in a subtle way: I definitely want to say that such an attempt, in the case of my texts, was quite difficult. I never wrote the word pioneer, the words party, pioneer, hawk never appeared in my scripts. My scenarios and stories are sad stories with poor people, with grandparents dying, with the most expensive pie being apple pie or with the most pleasant dessert being toast with plum jam. I have always thought that there are many more unhappy and orphaned children than rich and spoiled children. And that these stories should reach them. At a time when we had to write only about happy children, who, in the name of the party, were growing up healthy and without worries, when they had to deal with writings in which the reality appeared quite sad and hopeless, it was not too easy for a text to pass censorship. Radio drama for children was a miracle through which radio reached innocent minds. And the people who made it possible passed on what they had received. (LS) Measles and vaccination Medical doctors recommend vaccinating children and adults, given that there is a measles epidemic in Romania. Vaccine (Photo pixabay@ whitesession) Leyla Cheamil, 13.05.2024, 13:50 Romania continues to face a measles epidemic, said the health minister, Alexandru Rafila. He stated that there are several counties that are more affected and, in general, outbreaks occur where there are communities with a low degree of vaccination coverage. Measles, he went on to say, is reported throughout the European Union, but in Romania probably more than in other countries, and this situation can be seen on the maps of the European Center for Disease Control. Minister Rafila encourages parents to immunize their children, as vaccination can be done at the family doctors office. Measles is an infectious disease that is easily transmitted, especially in unvaccinated children, but sometimes the evolution gets serious, and complications can occur. According to the Health Ministry, vaccination coverage with the first dose at the national level is 78%, and 62% with the second dose. Doctors point out that many unvaccinated children end up being hospitalized with measles, and some of them develop serious complications, which can be avoided by getting the MMR (Measles, Mumps and Rubella) vaccine, which offers protection against three diseases. The vaccine is included in the National Vaccination Schedule and is administered free of charge. Although measles has been considered for a long time a childhood disease, specialists warn that adults can also get sick, and the evolution can be very severe, the patient needing hospitalization, as they can develop complications, the most dangerous being pneumonia and respiratory failure, as well as neurological disorders such as encephalitis. Physicians draw attention, at the same time, to the fact that the disease is transmitted extremely easily in the family, in communities, and that one can get contaminated while waiting to be consulted in the hospital units. Recently, minister Alexandru Rafila has underlined that vaccination programs greatly reduce morbidity and mortality, especially among children. He made this statement in the context in which fewer and fewer parents get their children vaccinated through the national program, as the specialists found out. As to adults, they are not better in terms of vaccination. Currently, measles vaccination coverage is only 60%. In this context, doctors believe that the target of education programs in Romania must be vaccination across the lifespan. According to a recent study by the World Health Organization, vaccines have saved at least 154 million lives over the past 50 years, the equivalent of six lives every minute. According to the WHO, vaccines are among the most powerful inventions in history, helping to prevent diseases that were once feared. (LS) Romania in the EU: a net beneficiary The European Union has invested massively in Romanias development. Romania in the EU: a net beneficiary Stefan Stoica, 13.05.2024, 14:00 Romania is a major chapter in the history of the European Union. It means a chance given together with the money from Brussels, for modern infrastructure and opportunities for all Romanians. The statement was made by the finance minister Marcel Bolos on May 9th, Europe Day. Bolos voiced his confidence that the European funds are indeed changing lives. If only in financial terms, Romanias EU membership has been a huge benefit, translating into funds that most likely the country could not have been able to receive from other sources. According to minister Bolos, for each euro contributed by Romania to the blocs budget, it has received 3 euros back. Specifically, since its accession in 2007, Romania has received over EUR 95 billion, and it has contributed EUR 30 bln to the European Union budget. So the net financial balance points to benefits of EUR 65 bln, the finance minister explained. According to him, due to these funds Romania managed in 2020 to have more than EUR 6 bln in EU funding invested in one year, and last year it has reached a record-high EUR 16 bln. On the other hand, Romanias EU accession also meant integration in the single market, and the free movement of goods, people, services and capital, Mr. Bolos said. He argued that since the accession foreign investment has doubled, to approx. EUR 108 bln in 2022, and the fact that Romania has become attractive for EU companies meant not only investments, but also the development of sectors that had previously been neglected. For Romanians, the development entailed by the EU accession also meant higher salaries. Over the past 17 years, minimum wages have been increased 20 times, to a monthly gross EUR 660. Marcel Bolos also mentioned the dozens of schools and kindergartens built or revamped using EU funds, including in villages and small towns, and the 1,300 km of roads built or upgraded. The EU funding for the period 2014 2020 has helped over 95,000 Romanian companies to become more productive, thanks to investments in new equipment, automation, personnel training, and enhanced energy efficiency, the finance minister pointed out. Other projects funded from the EU budget include modernised regional airports, as well as thousands of km of utility networks. But what the EU accession has meant for Romania, even more important than access to resources and welfare, was embracing the values and principles governing the European bloc: the rule of law, freedom of expression, social inclusion, tolerancethe ingredients of a functioning democracy. And while self-styled sovereignsts and purported conservatives criticise and despise the European project, they know they have nothing sustainable to replace it with. (AMP) New Zealand will on Tuesday release April figures for electronic card retail sales, highlighting a light day for Asia-Pacific economic activity. In March, sales were down 0.7 percent on month and 3.0 percent on year. Japan will see April data for producer prices; in March, prices were up 0.2 percent on month and 0.8 percent on year. Indonesia will provide March numbers for retail sales; in February, sales were up 6.4 percent on year. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Economic News What parts of the world are seeing the best (and worst) economic performances lately? Click here to check out our Econ Scorecard and find out! See up-to-the-moment rankings for the best and worst performers in GDP, unemployment rate, inflation and much more. K+S AG (SDFG), a German agriculture company, reported Monday that its first-quarter operating earnings EBITDA amounted to 200 million euros, compared to 454 million euros a year ago. Revenues declined to 988 million euros from last year's 1.2 billion euros. K+S said it has exceeded the expectations of the capital market. Looking ahead, for full year 2024, the company continues to expect EBITDA to range between 500 million euros and 650 million euros, compared to prior year's 712 million euros. Burkhard Lohr, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of K+S, said, "Our strong European with a high share of fertilizer specialties has provided a successful start into the financial year. This increases the probability that EBITDA for the year as a whole will be above the lower end of the indicated range of 500 million to 650 million." At the upper end of the range, the company assumes a continued price recovery overseas and sales volumes of around 7.6 million tonnes. The Annual General Meeting of K+S will be held in virtual form on May 14. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News Major companies, including Amazon.com Inc., Microsoft Corp., Morgan Stanley, Pfizer and others, have announced around 15 billion euros or $16.2 billion worth foreign investments in France as part of the country's annual 'Choose France' summit, reports said. French President Emmanuel Macron kicks off the summit of 180 CEOs and executives on Monday, aiming to showcase foreign investment, as part of the Government's efforts to re-industrialize the country. In a statement, Amazon said it plans to invest more than 1.2 billion euros or $1.3 billion in its French operations, which is expected to create more than 3,000 permanent jobs in the country. Further, tech and software giant Microsoft plans to invest 4 billion euros or $4.3 billion in France, mainly to focus on the artificial intelligence or AI sector. Healthcare companies Pfizer and AstraZeneca also announced investments worth a total of nearly $1 billion. Other companies, including GSK and Accenture are expected to announce investments as part of the event. GSK would announce new investments while Accenture would announce plans to set up new jobs in the artificial intelligence sector. Morgan Stanley would open a new office in the country, its new European campus, which is expected to create 100 more jobs in Paris. French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire reportedly will also host meetings with the CEOs of JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Bank of America, among others. At last year's summit, around 13 billion euros worth of foreign investments were announced by the country. Under Amazon's planned investment, Amazon Web Services is expected to increase cloud infrastructure in the Paris area to support France's generative AI opportunity, and logistics infrastructure to increase speed of delivery and reduce carbon emissions. Frederic Duval, country manager at Amazon France said the latest jobs are in addition to the 2,000 jobs the firm announced for 2024. Since 2010, Amazon has invested more than 20 billion euros in its French operations. Microsoft's planned 4 billion euros or $4.3 billion investment in France would mainly focus on the artificial intelligence or AI sector. According to its vice chair and president Brad Smith, the company would set up a data centre in the French city of Mulhouse. Further, drug major Pfizer would invest 500 million euros or $538.5 million in France to build up its research and development work, while AstraZeneca would invest $388 million for its site at Dunkirk. Le Maire reportedly said, "New industries and the new need massive amounts of capital. We urgently need to take concrete steps to get the capital markets union going. Europe needs money. If not, it will continue to lose out in terms of productivity to the United States and China." For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News Top US officials and UN chief have repeated warnings against a large scale Israeli military operation in Rafah, citing potential humanitarian disaster in the war-torn region. In his telephone talk with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant Sunday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken reaffirmed the U.S. opposition to a major military ground operation in Rafah, where more than one million people have taken shelter. The Secretary underscored the urgent need to protect civilians and aid workers in Gaza and urged the Minister to ensure assistance can move into Gaza and help address distribution challenges inside of Gaza as Israel pursues Hamas targets. US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan spoke with his Israeli counterpart Tzachi Hanegbi Sunday. Sullivan reiterated President Joe Biden's longstanding concerns over the potential for a major military ground operation into Rafah. He discussed alternative courses of action to ensure the defeat of Hamas everywhere in Gaza. Hanegbi confirmed that Israel is taking U.S. concerns into account, according to the White House. The UN Secretary-General and the UN human rights chief said again on Sunday that a large-scale Israeli offensive in Rafah must be prevented at all costs, warning of catastrophic consequences in the densely populated southern area in Gaza. In a comment to the press on Sunday, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, said he was "deeply distressed by the fast deterioration in Gaza as Israeli forces intensify their air strikes" across Gaza. He also expressed concern about reports of indiscriminate rocket fire from Gaza. Since the Israeli military issued initial evacuation orders on May 6, more than 278,000 Gazans have fled Rafah, an area once deemed a safe zone, according to Turk. "Where should they go now? There is no safe place in Gaza," he said. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News Just when the Covid-vaccine maker Novavax Inc.'s (NVAX) future as a going concern seemed uncertain, a remarkable turnaround has unfolded, thanks to the license deal with Sanofi (SNY). The deal signed with Sanofi on May 10, 2024, relates to Covid-19 vaccine and Covid/Influenza combination vaccine candidate, representing a potential multi-billion-dollar revenue opportunity for Novavax. Novavax's Covid-19 vaccine is authorized in select geographies under trade names Novavax Covid-19 Vaccine, Adjuvanted; Covovax; and Nuvaxovid, authorized in the U.S under trade name, Novavax Covid-19 Vaccine, Adjuvanted, and authorized in the EU under the trade name Nuvaxovid XBB.1.5. The company's Covid-19-Influenza Combination (CIC) vaccine candidate demonstrated robust immune response in a phase II trial, according to results reported last May. Let's delve into the key terms of the Sanofi deal: -- Sanofi secures a co-exclusive license to jointly market Novavax's current standalone Covid-19 vaccine worldwide, with a few exceptions say, countries with existing advance purchase agreements, and India, Japan, and South Korea, where Novavax has partnership deals already in place. -- Additionally, Sanofi gains a sole license to utilize Novavax's adjuvanted Covid-19 vaccine alongside its flu vaccines. Novavax maintains ownership of its Covid-19 Influenza Combination vaccine candidate. -- Sanofi also acquires a non-exclusive license to deploy Novavax's adjuvanted Covid-19 vaccine with non-flu vaccines. Furthermore, Sanofi is solely responsible for the development and commercialization of any novel flu- Covid-19 combination vaccine containing a Sanofi flu vaccine. -- Moreover, Sanofi also gains a non-exclusive license to use Novavax's Matrix-M adjuvant in vaccine products. -- Outside of the collaboration, each party may develop and commercialize their own Covid-19-Influenza combination vaccines and adjuvanted products at their own cost. How much is the deal worth for Novavax? Novavax is set to receive an initial payment of $500 million, with the potential for up to $700 million in further payments tied to developmental, regulatory, and launch milestones, equating to approximately $1.2 billion. Beginning in 2025, Sanofi will book the sales of Novavax's adjuvanted Covid-19 vaccine and assist with specific research and development, regulatory, and commercial costs. Novavax will be entitled to tiered double-digit percentage royalties on the sales of both Covid-19 vaccines and Covid-19-Influenza Combination vaccines by Sanofi. Novavax stands to gain extra milestone opportunities worth up to $200 million tied to launches and sales, along with mid-single digit royalties for every additional vaccine product developed by Sanofi using Novavax's Matrix-M adjuvant under a non-exclusive license. Additionally, as part of the agreement, Sanofi will make an equity investment of approximately $70 million for a minority equity investment (less than 5%) in Novavax. What Led Novavax Report Going Concern Matters in 2023? In February 2023, the company faced significant uncertainties about its future viability. Substantial doubt was raised regarding its ability to continue as a going concern, largely stemming from uncertainties surrounding future revenue streams. One major concern was the uncertainty around delivering an updated Covid-19 vaccine that aligned with public recommendations, especially with the continual emergence of new virus variants. Moreover, the company was notified that funding from the U.S. government, which had been a crucial support, would not be extended beyond December 2023, thereby jeopardising a portion of the remaining $460 million of funding. Additionally, Novavax was dealing with a pending arbitration with Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, related to its 2021 Advance Purchase Agreement for its Covid-19 vaccine prototype. Stability Regained - Going Concern Notice Removed The May 10, 2024, agreement with Sanofi that yielded cash proceeds of $568.8 million to Novavax in the second quarter of 2024, has notably alleviated significant concerns about the company's ability to continuing as a going concern. The company's updated COVID-19 vaccine for the 2023-2024 vaccination season was granted emergency use authorization by the FDA and approval by the European Commission as recently as October 2023. The arbitration with Gavi was settled in February of 2024. As part of the settlement, Novavax made an initial payment of $75 million to Gavi and committed to making deferred payments of $80 million annually until December 31, 2028, totaling up to $400 million. Q1 Scorecard For the first quarter ended March 31, 2024, the company reported a narrower loss of $148 million or $1.05 per share as total revenue climbed to $94 million. This compares with a net loss of $294 million or $3.41 per share and total revenue of $81 million in the first quarter of 2023. The total revenue is comprised of product sales, grants, and royalties, among others. Total expenses have declined by 39% to $239 million in the first quarter of 2024, from $394 million in the year-ago quarter. Becoming Leaner and Agile In a bid to become nimbler and more efficient, the company is targeting to trim FY 2024 R&D and SG&A expenses to a range of $700 million to $750 million, a sharp drop from last year's $1.2 billion. Looking further ahead, the company is planning to slash R&D and SG&A expenses to below $500 million in 2025. Anticipated Milestones A phase IIIa study of Covid-Influenza-combination (CIC) and stand-alone-influenza vaccines in adults aged 60 and above is on track to be initiated in the second half of 2024. Topline data from this trial is expected to be available in the second quarter of 2025. During the first quarter of 2024, the company completed the submission of its License Application for its prototype COVID-19 vaccine (Novavax Covid-19 Vaccine, Adjuvanted) with the U.S. FDA. (Please note that the vaccine has not been approved by FDA but was authorized for emergency use in the U.S. by the FDA in Oct.2023). Revenue Outlook For full year 2024, Novavax expects combined revenue & Sanofi agreement payment to range between $970 million and $1,170 million. This includes a forecasted total revenue between $400 million and $600 million, along with an initial payment from the Sanofi agreement totaling approximately $570 million. In comparison, the company's total revenue for full year of 2023 amounted to $984 million. Stock Performance Novavax's story resonates as a picture of fluctuating fortunes, from boom to bust and back again. In 2019, the stock's value hovered modestly around $4 to $5. However, the onset of the pandemic in 2020 heralded a transformative chapter, with the stock gradually gaining momentum, and soaring to an unprecedented high of over $330 in February 2021, only to retreat to $143 by the end of that year. The subsequent year, i.e., 2022, brought further challenges, marked by a steady decline in stock value. By December 2022, the stock had plummeted to a mere $10. Regrettably, 2023 offered little respite, as the stock continued its downward trajectory, dwindling to $4 by December. Now that the company's financial uncertainty has been eased and the stage is set for a stronger U.S. commercial performance in 2024 and beyond, it would be prudent to maintain a vigilant watch on this stock. NVAX touched a new 52-week high of $11 on May 10, 2024, before closing the day at $8.88, up 98.66%. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News The British Army is introducing new high-tech bomb disposal robots that will provide greater protection for soldiers and the public. Britain's Ministry of Defence announced that its Defence Equipment and Support has signed a 21 million pound contract with L3 Harris Technologies to deliver 50 T4 robots. Under the deal, the Tewkesbury based firm will deliver the first T4 units before the end of 2024. The T4 bomb disposal robots will be used in situations of bomb and hazardous material disposal, helping the explosives team who attend thousands of call outs every year, all over the country. This will greatly reduce the risk to service personnel and the public when neutralising bomb and chemical threats. Adept at navigating narrow urban spaces, with its tough all terrain treads and adjustable manipulation arm, the T4 can operate in narrow aisles of planes, trains and buses and can even climb stairs. Advanced controls, high-definition cameras and lightning-fast datalinks will enable the operator of the T4 to perform complex tasks like unzipping bags and opening glove boxes from a safe distance. Weighing in at just above 100kg, the T4s are significantly smaller and nimbler than their bigger brother - the 300kg T7 UGV. It will be used as the rapid response system for emergency situations, and due to its compact size, it can be transported in a standard 4x4 vehicle. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News According to a recent report by Bloomberg through MacRumors, Apple Inc. (AAPL) is in the final stages of reaching an agreement with OpenAI to incorporate ChatGPT features into iOS 18. While it is not yet clear how exactly ChatGPT will be integrated into iOS 18 by Apple, Mark Gurman's analysis for Bloomberg sheds light on Apple's AI strategy which consists of three key areas: LLM on the device (internal), LLM on the cloud (internal), and Chatbot (OpenAI secure, Google maybe). The agreement with OpenAI would position ChatGPT as a fresh addition to the array of AI features that Apple intends to introduce to iPhones. Moreover, Apple is reportedly in talks with Google to license its Gemini chatbot, although no concrete agreement has been reached yet. Apple has been engaged in discussions with OpenAI since February, and rumors have surfaced that Apple is working on its own AI product and a potential "Apple GPT" AI bot. Additionally, a report from the New York Times suggests that Apple is striving to enhance Siri in iOS 18 with a more interactive and adaptable version. While rumors persist regarding Apple's AI initiatives and the developments in iOS 18, more clarity is expected on June 10, during the company's WWDC 2024 event. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News New research findings have revealed that the size of fat cells could potentially predict weight gain. The study conducted in Sweden found that individuals with larger fat cells tend to lose weight over time, while those with smaller fat cells tend to gain weight. This suggests that weight gain can be anticipated based solely on the size of fat cells. Lead researcher Peter Arner, Professor Emeritus of Medicine at Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, explains that the loss of large fat cells has a greater impact on weight compared to the loss of small fat cells. He uses an analogy of balloons filling a room to explain the concept, saying, "It is a bit like having a room filled to the top by few large balloons or many small ones, it is easier to make empty space in the room by letting out air from the big rather than the small balloons." The study involved measuring the size and quantity of fat cells in the abdominal fat of 260 participants with an average BMI of 32. After approximately 15 years, the participant's body weight, BMI, and total body fat were reevaluated. Notably, individuals with larger fat cells experienced weight loss during the study period, while those with smaller fat cells were more prone to weight gain. The study proposes that having information about fat cell size before initiating a weight management program could be clinically beneficial. However, the current challenge lies in accurately measuring fat cell size, and efforts are being made to develop a solution. The researchers expect that their findings will pave the way for more personalized weight management approaches in the future. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News The European Union has opened an investigation into X, formerly Twitter, to assess whether the social network qualifies as an important gateway between businesses and consumers under the bloc's digital regulations. The decisions follow a review process conducted by the Commission after receiving the notifications of the three companies regarding their potential status as gatekeepers on March 1, 2024. On the basis of Booking's self-assessment submitted on 1 March 2024 that it meets the relevant thresholds, the Commission has established that this core platform service constitutes an important gateway between businesses and consumers. In parallel, the Commission has opened a market investigation to further assess the rebuttal submitted on 1 March 2024 in relation to the online social networking service X. This rebuttal argues that, despite meeting the thresholds, X does not qualify as a important gateway between businesses and consumers. The investigation should be completed within five months. Another rebuttal was submitted concerning the online advertising service X Ads. The Commission has concluded that, although X Ads meets the quantitative designation thresholds under the DMA, this core platform service does not qualify as an important gateway. Therefore, the Commission decided not to designate X Ads. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News #RUGrad2024 By: The Division of Communications & Advancement Rhodes University launches debt relief campaign Concern is palpable at Rhodes University as the institution grapples with escalating student debt. The University is not alone in this struggle. Many others in the country face similar uncertainty following the decision by the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) to cap funding allowances for students. The move has had a dire impact on students and fee-payers and has forced higher educational institutions to re-prioritise spending. Students have had to cut back even further on food and other essentials, while many will enter the working world already on the back foot with hefty debt bills. NSFAS recently implemented several changes to its funding model, including stricter academic requirements for students to continue receiving funding. As of 2024, continuing and First-Time Entering Students (FTEN) must achieve a credit pass rate of 50% and a course credit pass mark of 60% to be eligible for funding. Living allowances have been capped at R16 500 per annum, and accommodation fees have been restricted to R50 000 in metro areas and R41 000 in other regions per academic year. Despite being classified in the lower accommodation funding category, Rhodes University's average residence fees significantly surpass the capped amounts set by NSFAS. The capping of funds for accommodation is hurting institutions, which are doing their utmost to mitigate the impact of the shortfall. According to Universities South Africa (USAf), student debt has accumulated over R700 million in 2023 alone. The body, representing 26 public universities in the country, says this amount reflects the difference between what universities charge students for accommodation and food compared to the amount NSFAS pays. At Rhodes University alone, R43 million is owed to the University in outstanding student debt due to the cap in funding in only one year. Chief Financial Officer Kamlesh Riga says 3522 of the 8156 students registered at the University for 2024 are funded by NSFAS, with 67% of students living at the universitys residences reliant on NSFAS to pay for their accommodation. While Rhodes University's outstanding student debt is R321 million, it is far less than the national student debt figure of R17 billion. Through various fundraising initiatives, the University aims to provide debt relief and increase student access to higher education. The funding shortfall has led to the university cutting back on its operational spending. We have a backlog in maintenance on our infrastructure that runs into billions. We normally aim to upgrade at least one residential building on campus annually. Reprioritisation of maintenance needs will now have to be performed, said Riga. Funding of research equipment, new and replacement, could also drop down the priority list. If we don't have surplus funds that we can re-invest, this will affect our operations in the medium to longer term. In the long-term, the university's financial sustainability will be at risk." Riga says that despite efforts to extend registration dates and accommodate struggling students, intake numbers have dropped this year, exacerbating an already precarious financial situation. He says if NSFAS continues this trajectory, more young people may think twice about enrolling at university for fear of mounting bills. No one wants to enter the work environment with thousands of rands in debt hanging over their heads. He says that in some cases, students may enrol at Rhodes University but be forced to consider cheap accommodation that may not support their academic success. The University has launched a campaign, "Unlocking Futures," to alleviate student debt. The immediate goal is to raise R74 million to lessen the financial burden on current students and graduates. The University calls on corporations, alumni, and communities to support the campaign. BSc student Sandra Isaacs*, a 2023 bursary recipient from Rhodes University, echoed the call. The funding has been an absolute game-changer for me. Coming from a financially struggling home, I wouldn't have been able to pursue my dream without it. This bursary has relieved the financial burden on my family. It allowed me to focus on my studies without constantly worrying about how to pay for the tuition, she said. Another student, Sam Khuzwayo* said he tried his best not to worry about his student debt, even though it cast a shadow over his studies. My mother asked me to focus more on my academics than the financial crisis we were going through, so I concentrated on getting good grades. I sacrificed as much as I could and bought food that would just take me through the month. After I graduated, I received an internship with a stipend of R5000 a month. I spend most of the money every month on reducing my student debt, he said. This is why it's so crucial for people to contribute toward initiatives like the "Unlocking Futures" campaign, said Isaacs. By investing in students from financially struggling backgrounds, they are not just funding an education; they are investing in the future of entire families and communities. As Rhodes University celebrates its 120th anniversary this year, the institution is calling on all stakeholders to rally behind the "Unlocking Futures" initiative, to empower the next generation of leaders, and to forge a path toward a brighter, more equitable future for students in need of funding. If you want to contribute to this campaign, please use the link: https://www.ru.ac.za/donate. *Not their real names Prospering plush toy industry brings new vitality to Ankang, Shaanxi province 13:35, May 13, 2024 By Zhang Tie ( People's Daily In the city of Ankang, located in the south part of northwest China's Shaanxi province, a burgeoning plush toy industry has taken shape, one that's bringing economic vitality and abundant employment opportunities. The sight of workers stitching together colorful fabric pieces to make cuddly plush toys has become a common scene in the city's Hengkou Demonstration Zone, where the Heng'an Toy factory is located. Workers manufacture plush toys in a workshop of an enterprise in Ankang, northwest China's Shaanxi province. (Photo/Li Zhiqiang) Each day, over 30,000 of these plush toys are "born" at the factory, a testament to the remarkable growth of Ankang's plush toy industry. It was on Jan. 23, 2018 that the first "made-in-Ankang" plush toy rolled off the production line. Yet, in just over five years, the city has attracted more than 800 related enterprises, providing nearly 20,000 jobs and generating an annual output exceeding 6.1 billion yuan ($844.1 million). This has made the city one of China's four major plush toy production hubs. The success of an industry in a particular location depends on how well it aligns with the local conditions. Situated in the Qinling-Bashan mountainous region, Ankang has seen nearly one million people relocate from the mountains to urban communities as part of various resettlement and poverty alleviation programs. The plush toy industry, which can absorb a large labor force, provides an ideal opportunity for these relocated residents to find stable employment and increase their incomes. Additionally, Ankang is an important water conservation area for the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, and the plush toy industry perfectly meets environmental protection standards. A foreign journalist takes photos in a plush toy factory in Ankang, northwest China's Shaanxi province. (Photo/Li Zhiqiang) By capitalizing on these local conditions and matching supply with demand, the plush toy industry naturally became an eco-friendly industry that creates benefits for the people in Ankang. In the factory of Shaanxi Hengtong Fiber Ecotechnology Co., Ltd. (Hengtong Fiber), discarded plastic bottles are transformed into soft, cotton-like PP (polypropylene) filling material for plush toys. In the past, Ankang lacked the capability to produce this crucial stuffing material locally. However, in March 2021, the establishment of Hengtong Fiber extended the plush toy industrial chain in Ankang, reducing transportation costs for raw materials by 5 percent and enhancing the overall efficiency of the industrial cluster. Today, the cluster encompasses upper stream sectors like filling cotton, fabrics, buttons, and decorations. It also branches into trendy collectibles, cultural tourism, and intellectual property (IP) development. The growth of the plush toy industry has extended the industrial chain, smoothed the supply chain, and built a comprehensive value chain. Integrating this "chain-based" philosophy throughout the development process, while pooling industry resources and cultivating an industrial cluster has undoubtedly been a valuable experience of Ankang. For an industry to progress and expand, continuous innovation is essential. In Ankang, enterprises have developed new materials and varieties of plush toys by utilizing locally abundant resources such as silkworms and moso bamboo. Collaborating with renowned museums and scenic spots, the city has launched special IP development projects that combine plush toys with cultural and creative products. Additionally, industrial tourism routes have been introduced, featuring plush toy plazas, themed hotels, and themed blocks, providing visitors with an immersive and memorable experience. Photo shows a plush toy-themed tourism block in Ankang, northwest China's Shaanxi province. (Photo from Ankang Daily) By staying attuned to industry trends, increasing research and development investments, and continuously improving innovation capabilities, Ankang has managed to stand out in the fierce market competition. The rapid transformation of Ankang into China's fourth-largest plush toy production base within just a few years can be attributed to the synergistic efforts of both "visible and invisible hands," namely the functions performed by the government and the decisive role played by the market in allocating resources. In October 2017, after conducting research, a poverty alleviation working group in Ankang, part of a Jiangsu-Shaanxi poverty alleviation cooperation project, submitted a report recommending that Ankang seize the opportunity presented by the relocation of the plush toy industry and transform itself into a hub for creative toys. This report laid the foundation for the future development of Ankang's plush toy industry. The city has established a 100-million-yuan fund for supporting the cultural and creative plush toy industry, organized creative design competitions, built an innovation base for the cultural and creative plush toy industry, and constructed a "dry port" and utilized the China-Europe freight train service to reduce logistics costs. The prosperity of Ankang's plush toy industry is exactly a result of a combination of external demand for industry relocation, internal demand for employment and wealth creation, and objective conditions for industrial development, as well as with the decision made by local authorities to vigorously develop the industry. By capitalizing on its resources, seizing market opportunities, breaking away from traditional industrial development paths and embracing an innovation-driven development model, Ankang has successfully blazed a new trail in the plush toy industry, revitalizing the local economy and enriching its residents. (Web editor: Chang Sha, Liang Jun) Peggy Ruble Jaime Junior at event where MVP/Wayne Health Mobile was present. The Wayne Health Mobile Unit with (L-R) Patti Ramos, Kristen Milefchik, Sharon Milberger and Dr. Rhonda Dailey The Wayne Health Mobile Unit at an MVP event. Jamie Junior When a stroke forced her mother to move into an assisted care facility, Karen Belanger knew she needed to find a way for her to receive a COVID vaccination there.She learned that Disability Rights Michigan (DRM) organizes mobile clinics around the state to reach people who cant get to a medical office or a pharmacy for a COVID vaccination or booster.At her request, DRM organized an on-site vaccine clinic in fall 2022 at the assisted living facility where Belangers mother, Peggy Ruble, lived. The clinic provided seven COVID vaccines and 20 flu shots that day for people in the facility. While nursing homes often provide the vaccinations, that isnt the case with assisted living facilities.Mobile clinics offer a model of health care for people who face barriers to accessing care. This on-demand service helps seniors and people with disabilities to get vaccines and other care.Its an extremely helpful service because my mom had a lot of mobility issues, Belanger says. At 93 years old, it would have been difficult for her to leave assisted living to go to get a shot. After suffering a stroke a year earlier, it was extraordinarily difficult to get in and out of a vehicle and walk into a doctors office or a pharmacy, so it was just wonderful that somebody came to her and did it and then offered it to the other residents.Belanger knew the benefit of the vaccines because when her mother had COVID a year earlier, her case was mild because she had been vaccinated. Belanger noted that while her mother died in October, she had a healthy last few years because vaccinations protected her getting seriously ill.This service should be kept going and should be expanded, she said.Transportation has been a barrier to accessing health care, particularly for those with disabilities, says Sharon Milberger, director of the Michigan Developmental Disabilities Institute (MI-DDI) at Wayne State University in Detroit. The situation was worse during COVID, when people with disabilities were more isolated.We're working with mobile units to combat health disparities for people with disabilities, says Milberger. We're bringing services to where people are, whether that's at a community-based event or whether it's taking the service into someone's home. Were reaching those hardest-to-reach people who are homebound or might be in a shelter.Along with Disability Rights Michigan and Autism Alliance of Michigan, MI-DDI helped create the MVP (Most Valuable Provider) certification, a model Milberger uses to advance health equity for people with disabilities.One example of mobile clinics is the Wayne Health Mobile Unit (WHMU). It has a fleet of eight medically equipped vans, one of which is ADA compliant. The WHMU is staffed by registered nurses, medical/research assistant, community health workers, patient and family health advocates and overseen by physicians from the Center of Population Health and Accountability at Wayne Health. The team offers a variety of fre health screenings and services to its patients.Milberger said there are now 23 MVP certified sites across Michigan, including three mobile units: WHMU DocGo and Recovery Mobile Clinic . There are other mobile clinics across the state, including some operated by county health departments.Wayne Health Mobile Unit was the first to become MVP certified and has been one of our strongest clinical champions, Milberger says.Milberger says the MVP certification process addresses health inequities in four ways. The first is by addressing bias in health care.Some health care providers make assumptions that people with disabilities have a low quality of life or arent competent to make their own decisions, says Milberger. There's a lot of attitudinal barriers that they experience.To combat that bias, MI-DDI requires disability awareness training, with a free 90-minute online session, for MVP certification.Any of the mobile units that are part of our program, their entire staff has gone through this training. It talks about communication techniques, intersectionality, and how to prevent ableism, says Milberger.A second issue is accessibility.With our MVP certified sites that are actual physical sites that don't move, we make sure that they are physically accessible, meaning if there are stairs to the building, that there's a ramp. If there's multiple floors, there's a working elevator, Milberger says. When a vehicle itself is not accessible, services can still be provided to someone who uses a wheelchair while in their chair.The third requirement is that the site is sensory friendly. That involves a consultation with the Autism Alliance of Michigan to make sure sensory barriers like noise, lighting, and smells are taken into account. MI-DDI offers resources to create a more soothing environment for those with sensory needs.Finally, all the MVP-certified mobile clinics collect data about disability status and accommodation needs, along with the usual data such as age, gender, and race.If we're trying to show how health disparities are being addressed, it's really hard to do that without having numbers to show that, Milberger says. There's a saying that we measure what we treasure.Once these four criteria are met, the mobile units receive a designation with a shield indicating that it is MVP certified.If you want to show how you're addressing disparities and inequities related to vaccines, you cannot do that if you don't keep track of disability status, says Milberger. Our goal is that disability status be included in the state's dashboard, and that would be routinely collected data like any socio-demographic variable such as age, race and sex instead of it being an afterthought, which is so much harder to measure.We are making great strides, but we're just beginning, and we have to keep working at really elevating disability status so it's on people's radar.Disability advocate Jaime Junior has helped organize two health fairs that brought in the ADA-compliant Wayne Health mobile clinic.Its a game changer for folks who are not always able to access traditional health care. I use a wheelchair myself for mobility, so sometimes going to a traditional clinic is not possible, says Junior, who says her disability is cerebral palsy, which has been progressive. She began using a wheelchair eight years ago.This vehicle takes it to a whole new level. I like to call it a universal welcome. I'm a huge proponent of a three- or four-dimensional approach to accessibility. That includes belongingness. Imagine going to just a traditional resource health fair with your family and being able to utilize the same type of equipment they use. You're not feeling ostracized, you're not feeling put aside, you're not feeling like you're not part of the group.Junior is vice chair of the Michigan Developmental Disabilities Council . Each state has a council thats part of the national network. Federally funded, the self-governing organizations are charged with identifying the most pressing needs of people with developmental disabilities in their state or territory.She previously worked with Disability Network Wayne County Detroit as an educator and accessibility specialist, and is working for Detroits People Platform as a temporary canvasser on the transit justice team while completing her bachelor's degree in communication with a focus on health care.She received her COVID booster at a Arc Detroit health fair near her home in Detroits Brightmoor neighborhood.I like that the DRM vaccine initiative is creating a tailored experience for individuals with disabilities to feel comfortable, Junior says. Theres not enough physical environments that are accessible to them. Disability Inclusion is a series exploring the state of Michigans growing disability community. It is made possible through a partnership with Disability Rights Michigan BAE Systems was under the cosh on Monday after Bank of America Merrill Lynch downgraded shares of the defence company to 'neutral' from 'buy'. The US bank said that after a very strong run driven by positive revisions and a re-rating, it sees limited near-term valuation upside. The shares are up 23% year-to-date. BofA noted that BAE has the "most attractive" capital allocation within the EU defence sector. British Airways owner IAG's stock was making gains on Monday following positive comments from JPMorgan, which said that earnings momentum should continue to take the shares higher as it reiterated its 'overweight' position on the stock. Despite the recent rally the stock has gained more than 30% since 5 March JPMorgan said price growth, cost execution and lower disruption should benefit results in the coming quarters. First-quarter results from IAG last week showed a "small beat" in earnings before interest and tax (EBIT), said JPM. Meanwhile, strong pricing reinforces the bank's confidence over full-year results, while cost pressure from investments and wages is "likely to fade". "We continue to see an opportunity for IAG to outperform consensus expectations, where we are now c8% above company consensus EBIT for 2024E, pre any moves in consensus, despite the start of a re-investment cycle (higher opex/capex)," JPM said. "The re-investment back into the business should then benefit longer-term earnings, with management on the call stating they expect British Airways could recoup its c500m EBIT shortfall vs. 2019 over the next 1-2 years." The FTSE 100 is expected to open nine points lower on Monday, having closed up 0.63% on Friday at 8,433.76. Stocks to watch Specialist distribution business Diploma on Monday lifted annual guidance after a 17% rise in adjusted earnings, boosted by acquisitions. It now expects constant currency revenue growth of around 16%, up 5 percentage points from previous guidance, made up of 6% organic revenue growth and 10% from acquisitions. It also forecast a 15% rise in EPS. Adjusted pre-tax profit came in at 115.2m in the six months to March 31, while revenue jumped 10% to 638.3m. Student accommodation provider Unite announced the sale of six properties to PGIM Real Estate on Monday, for 184m, of which 76m was its share. The FTSE 100 firm said the sale comprised 2,948 beds across various cities, with an average age of 18 years. It said the strategic sale would increase its alignment with high and mid-ranked universities, supporting sustainable rental growth. The sale, priced in line with book value, would recycle proceeds into asset management and meet redemption requests, with no change to Unite's financial year 2024 earnings guidance of 45.5 to 46.5p. Savings and retirement group Phoenix has announced that its chief financial officer of four years is to step down later this year. Rakesh Thakrar, who joined the company in 2001, has held various strategic and finance positions, including deputy CFO from 2014 before being promoted to group CFO in 2020. The company did not give a reason for his departure but said he will leave the company "at a date to be agreed". The board said it will start a formal process to find a permanent successor. Newspaper round-up BT has said it is increasingly using artificial intelligence to help it detect and neutralise threats from hackers targeting business customers amid repeated attacks on companies. The 10.5bn group is aiming to build up its business protecting customers from online criminals and has patented technology that uses AI to analyse attack data to allow companies to protect their tech infrastructure. British businesses are routinely facing hacking attempts, and some recent high-profile victims have included including the outsourcer Capita, Royal Mail and British Airways. - Guardian Homebuyers are increasingly being forced to gamble with their retirement prospects to get on the housing ladder by taking on ultra-long mortgages lasting beyond the end of their working life, it has been claimed. More than a million mortgages that stretch beyond the borrowers state pension age have been arranged in the last three years, figures show. The data, obtained via a freedom of information (FoI) request by the former Lib Dem pensions minister Steve Webb, show the proportion of home loans arranged to last into retirement increased from 31% in the final quarter of 2021 to 42% in the same period last year. Guardian The sale of new petrol-fuelled motorcycles is set to be banned from 2040, under plans due to be announced by ministers as part of the Governments net zero crackdown. The move would affect all vehicles classed as L3 and upwards, including scooters and light, medium and higher-powered motorcycles. There are around 1.3m motorcycles registered in the UK. Telegraph Women are driving record worklessness because of ill health, analysis has found, as a growing number drop out of the jobs market because of neck and back pain. More than 1.5m women have dropped out of the workforce because of long-term sickness, according to analysis by the Trades Union Congress (TUC), which blamed rising NHS waiting lists for the crisis. The figure marks a 48pc increase compared with five years ago, equivalent to 503,000 women. Telegraph Fever-Tree is teaming up with one of the leading makers of French rose wine as it seeks to grab a slice of the lucrative spritz market from Aperol. The mixers group, which is best known for its range of upmarket tonics, will uncork a pale pink rose spritz today, created in a collaboration with the Provence-based Maison Mirabeau winery. The Times US close Stocks on Wall Street closed in a mixed state on Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.32% at 39,512.84. The S&P 500 managed gains of 0.16% to 5,222.68, while the Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.03% to settle at 16,340.87. London stocks were set to edge down at the open on Monday as investors pause for breath after recent record highs. The FTSE 100 was called to open around 10 points lower. Danske Bank said: "Global equities ended higher on Friday, marking gains on four out of five days last week. "After a nearly 2% gain last week, many of the major indices are now within a hair's breadth of all-time highs. This includes the MSCI World, which is now less than 1% away from its peak in late March." In corporate news, specialist distribution business Diploma lifted annual guidance after a 17% rise in adjusted earnings, boosted by acquisitions. It now expects constant currency revenue growth of around 16%, up 5 percentage points from previous guidance, made up of 6% organic revenue growth and 10% from acquisitions. It also forecast a 15% rise in EPS. Adjusted pre-tax profit came in at 115.2m in the six months to March 31, while revenue jumped 10% to 638.3m. Savings and retirement group Phoenix announced that its chief financial officer of four years is to step down later this year. Rakesh Thakrar, who joined the company in 2001, has held various strategic and finance positions, including deputy CFO from 2014 before being promoted to group CFO in 2020. The company did not give a reason for his departure but said he will leave the company "at a date to be agreed". The board said it will start a formal process to find a permanent successor. Student accommodation provider Unite announced the sale of six properties to PGIM Real Estate for 184m, of which 76m was its share. The FTSE 100 firm said the sale comprised 2,948 beds across various cities, with an average age of 18 years. It said the strategic sale would increase its alignment with high and mid-ranked universities, supporting sustainable rental growth. The sale, priced in line with book value, would recycle proceeds into asset management and meet redemption requests, with no change to Unite's financial year 2024 earnings guidance of 45.5 to 46.5p. BHP said on Monday that Anglo American has rejected a revised offer from the Australian miner which valued the company at 34bn. The second takeover offer, which was made on 7 May, was as up from an initial offer of 31bn, received in April. It was rejected on 13 May. The new offer was worth 27.53 per Anglo share, up from 25.08. BHP chief executive Mike Henry said: "BHP put forward a revised proposal to the Anglo American board that we strongly believe would be a win-win for BHP and Anglo American shareholders. We are disappointed that this second proposal has bee rejected. "The revised proposal represents a 15% increase in the merger exchange ratio and increases Anglo American shareholders' aggregate ownership in the combined group to 16.6% from 14.8% in BHP's first proposal. "BHP and Anglo American are a strategic fit and the combination is a unique and compelling opportunity to unlock significant synergies by bringing together two highly complementary, world class businesses. The combined business would have a leading portfolio of high-quality assets in copper, potash, iron ore and metallurgical coal and BHP would bring its track record of operational excellence to maximise returns from these high-quality assets." Anglo American chairman Stuart Chambers said: "The latest proposal from BHP again fails to recognise the value inherent in Anglo American. Anglo American shareholders are well positioned to benefit from increasing demand from future enabling products while the increasing capital intensity to bring greenfield supply online makes proven assets with world class resource endowments ever more attractive. The Anglo American team is focused on delivering against its strategic priorities of operational excellence, portfolio simplification and growth and is set to accelerate delivery in order to unlock this inherent value. "The BHP proposal also continues to have a highly unattractive structure. This leaves Anglo American, its shareholders and stakeholders disproportionately at risk from the substantial uncertainty and execution risk created by the proposed inter-conditional execution of two demergers and a takeover." Savings and retirement group Phoenix has announced that its chief financial officer of four years is to step down later this year. Rakesh Thakrar, who joined the company in 2001, has held various strategic and finance positions, including deputyy CFO from 2014 before being promoted to group CFO in 2020. The company did not give a reason for his departure but said he will leave the company "at a date to be agreed". Thakrar was said to have been central to the acquisitions that helped Phoenix become the UK's largest long-term savings and retirement business, including the 2020 purchase of life and pensions consolidate ReAssure and last year's takeover of Sun Life Financial Of Canada UK. Phoenix is to appoint the former Abrdn CFO Stephanie Bruce as interim group CFO next month and Thakrar will stay on to ensure an orderly handover. The board said it will start a formal process to find a permanent successor and will consider both internal and external candidates. "Rakesh has been a great colleague and his counsel, knowledge and experience have been invaluable to Phoenix over the course of his tenure," said chief executive Andy Briggs. "We thank him for his significant contribution to the group's journey to become the UK's largest long-term savings and retirement business, which has included his oversight of a number of transformational projects. I am grateful to be working with him and Stephanie during the handover period and wish him every success for the future." Shirley Conran, best known for her "notorious domestic manual, Superwoman," and Lace, "the first British success in the then new sex and shopping genre," died on May 9 at the age of 91, the Guardian reported. Conran, whose first husband was designer and retailer Terence Conran of Conran's and Habitat fame, wrote Superwoman (1975) in "response to a request from a recently divorced male publisher for a household manual," the Guardian observed. "Conran understood that 'men saw housework as a background to life, and women saw it as their responsibility,' and compiled a guide that came out of the postwar era then just ending, when middle-class wives had been required to be clever and sexy while managing a home with almost no help from paid staff, or husbands." The book included the famous line "Life is too short to stuff a mushroom." Lace, the wildly popular "bonkbuster," appeared in 1982. The Guardian noted that Conran meant Lace to be in part "a sex education manual for girls, certain to be forbidden and therefore eagerly read behind the bike shed. (When it was republished 30 years later, she reinserted the censored word 'masturbation.') For Conran, the shopping mattered even more than the sex, because 'the only thing women are supposed to do with money is spend it, not to make it, talk about it or save it; what counts is money, because it gives you power.' Female rights depended on money, and reliable money on equally paid work. At the least, thought Conran, money 'could make unhappiness more endurable.' " In 1984, Lace was adapted into a miniseries in the U.S. starring Phoebe Cates. In it, she uttered the sentence that TV Guide called the greatest line in TV history: "Which one of you bitches is my mother?" Conran's other novels included Lace 2 (1985), which was also made into a TV miniseries starring Phoebe Cates, Savages (1987), Crimson (1992), Tiger Eyes (1994), and The Revenge of Mimi Quinn (1998). Conran had a long journalistic career. She was the first women's editor of the Observer magazine and was women's editor of the Daily Mail, where she created the Femail section, the newspaper's first dedicated women's section. She also wrote columns for Vanity Fair. Hero MotoCorp, a leading manufacturer of two-wheelers, announced its participation in the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) Network, a government initiative aimed at bolstering the Digital India mission. This makes Hero MotoCorp the inaugural automotive company to join the network. In a recent development, the company has highlighted that this collaboration will enhance accessibility and convenience for consumers, extending the reach of digital services. This move underscores the commitment to providing a seamless digital experience to customers. "Now with ONDC Network, we have pioneered the automotive taxonomy for the auto industry, making it easier for customers to find vehicle parts and accessories to begin with", Niranjan Gupta, CEO, Hero MotoCorp, said in a statement. He further added that with this initiative, Hero MotoCorp is taking forward the government's Digital India mission and "we will continue to bring in more innovation in this space". In its initial phase, the ONDC platform is set to feature two-wheeler parts, accessories, and merchandise. The company has outlined that consumers will be able to conveniently access genuine parts from the renowned two-wheeler giant through various buyer apps integrated with the network, including Paytm and Mystore, among others. India is poised to sign a deal with Iran, marking its inaugural management role in an overseas port, namely the strategic Chabahar Port, for a tenure of 10 years. The agreement, set to be inked, follows a prior pact signed during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Iran in 2016. As per sources cited, Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal is slated to journey to Iran for the signing ceremony on Monday. This excursion holds significance given that the minister is undertaking it amidst a busy schedule for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. India, having funded the port's expansion, will assume operational control following the agreement. India seeks to transform the Chabahar Port into a pivotal transit hub within the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), facilitating connectivity with CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) nations. INSTC embodies India's strategy to streamline cargo transport between India and Central Asia, with Chabahar Port envisioned as a vital commercial transit nexus for the region. The new pact, that will replace the original contract, will be valid for 10 years, and reportedly automatically extended. The original pact only covered the Shahid Beheshti terminal of Chabahar Port and was renewed every year. In 2016 a deal was signed between Iran, India and Afghanistan to develop the Shahid Behesthi terminal. Chabahar Port has, in the past, figured prominently in the talks between India and Iran, and the expansion of Indias role in the port was also discussed. The port, moreover, is also expected to be helpful for Indian traders and investors in Central Asia. Sonowal previously emphasized that the port serves as a crucial link between the prosperous Central Asian region and the South Asian markets, fostering substantial trade and economic partnerships while facilitating connectivity between the populations of these two regions. The transit and transportation capabilities of the Central Asian region are expected to be enhanced, along with the bolstering of their logistical networks. The Nifty and Sensex indices may open lower today, in line with the trend in Asian markets and indications from GIFT Nifty suggesting a weaker start. At 7:09 AM, GIFT Nifty futures were down 50 points at 22,091 levels compared to Nifty50 futures. Tata Motors: The company had an impressive Q4FY24 with a 222 percent surge in net profit, amounting to Rs 17,407.2 crore. This growth was driven by a strong performance across all auto businesses. The company's total revenue also increased by 14.3 percent to Rs 1.2 lakh crore. The board has recommended a final dividend of Rs 6 per ordinary share and Rs 6.20 per 'A' ordinary share for FY24. In addition, the company is planning to streamline its operations and reduce debt by separating its vehicle financing subsidiaries and merging them with Tata Capital. This will be done through a share-swap arrangement, with Tata Sons offering shares of Tata Capital to Tata Motors. Eicher Motors: The company's consolidated net profit increased by 18.2 percent to Rs 1,070.45 crore in Q4FY24, while its total revenue rose by 11.87 percent to Rs 4,256.04 crore. The board recommended a final dividend of Rs 51 per equity share for FY24. Wipro: Anis Chenchah, the head of Wipro Ltd's APMEA business, has resigned. He has been replaced by Vinay Firake, a Wipro veteran of 26 years. Adani Enterprises: The company led by Gautam Adani has announced plans to invest Rs 80,000 crore in FY25. A significant portion of this investment will be directed towards the development of new energy businesses and airports. Adani Group has also set a goal of producing 10 GW of solar modules and 3 GW of wind turbines. The company has already commenced commercial production of wafer and ingots for solar cells and modules, with the aim of becoming India's first integrated renewable energy player by 2027-28. JK Cement: In Q4FY24, JK Cement reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 219.75 crore, which is a 101 percent increase from the same period last year when the company earned Rs 109.52 crore. The company's revenue for the quarter was Rs 3,105.77 crore, marking an 11 percent increase from the previous year's Rs 2,777.88 crore. JK Cement also declared a total dividend of Rs 20 per share, which includes a recommended dividend of Rs 15 and a special dividend of Rs 5. ICICI Bank: Bijith Bhaskar resigned from his position as Head of Cards, Payment Solutions, E-Commerce Ecosystem, Merchant Ecosystem, and Consumer Finance, effective May 18. Cipla: The pharmaceutical company has reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 939.04 crore for the March quarter, which is up by 78.64 percent YoY due to increased demand in key markets. While the company's consolidated revenue rose 7.4 percent YoY to Rs 6,163.24 crore, it was below expectations. In addition, the company is considering marketing Eli Lilly's weight loss drugs in India. The two companies have already formed a strategic partnership for the insulin range. Eli Lilly plans to launch Mounjaro, a diabetes drug and obesity treatment, in India in 2025. It is expected that Cipla's EBITDA margins will reach 25 percent by FY25. Dr. Lal PathLabs: The company's net profit for Q4FY24 increased by 49 percent to Rs 84.5 crore while revenue from operations rose by 11 percent to Rs 545.5 crore. The board has proposed a final dividend of Rs 6 per equity share for FY24. Bank of Baroda: The bank recorded a standalone net profit of Rs 4,886.49 crore for Q4FY24, reflecting a 2.3 percent YoY increase. Its net interest income (NII) also grew 2.3 percent to Rs 11,793 crore. The bank recommended a dividend of Rs 7.60 per equity share for FY24. Kalyan Jewellers: The company's financial report for the March quarter shows a consolidated net profit of Rs 1,374.93 crore, which is almost double the Rs 697.99 crore profit reported in the same period in the previous year. The company's total revenue for the quarter is Rs 45,349.30 crore, up 34 percent from Rs 33,818.20 crore in the same quarter of the previous year. Piramal Enterprises: The company's net profit for Q4 improved significantly to Rs 137.09 crore from a loss of Rs 195.87 crore in the same period last year. Additionally, the company's revenue grew by 2.16 percent from the previous quarter. Sterlite Technologies: The company reported a Q4 topline decrease of 39.2 percent and a loss of Rs 82 crore, which is a significant downturn compared to the Rs 67 crore profit in the same period of the previous fiscal year. ABB India: The company has reported a significant YoY increase of 82 percent in its net profit, reaching Rs 467 crore in the March quarter, thanks to higher revenue. In the first quarter, the company's total income also rose by 29 percent YoY, reaching Rs 3,080 crore. Furthermore, the total orders of the company have surged to Rs 3,607 crore, marking the highest for the first quarter in the last five years. JSW Steel: The company's consolidated crude steel production in April 2024 was 21.21 lakh metric tonnes, up 0.4 percent YoY. Production was impacted by iron ore availability constraints from Karnataka mines at Vijayanagar. Zomato: The food tech platform, Zomato, has announced that the auditor of its subsidiaries Blink Commerce and Zomato Hyperpure has resigned. As a result, Deloitte Haskins & Sells will be appointed as the new auditor to improve the efficiency of the audit process. Zomato is scheduled to report its Q4 results on May 13th. Novartis India: The pharmaceutical company reported a 41.6 percent YoY decline in net profit at Rs 14.6 crore in Q4FY24. The company's revenue from operations increased by 6.7 percent to Rs 81.2 crore. The board recommended a final dividend of Rs 25 per equity share for FY24. JSW Cement: The company announced that it will establish a new site in Nagaur, Rajasthan, which will be the company's first unit in the northern part of the country. The company plans to add 2 million tonnes of capacity during this calendar year (2024) with a medium-term plan of achieving 60 million tonnes capacity in the next 5 years. Finolex Industries: The company's net profit for the Q4 of FY24 declined by 1 percent and stood at Rs 164.9 crore. However, the revenue from operations increased by 8.3 percent and amounted to Rs 1,235.4 crore. The board has recommended a final dividend of Rs 2.50 per fully paid-up equity share for FY24. Piramal Pharma: The company reported a 102.1 percent YoY increase in net profit at Rs 101.3 crore for Q4FY24. The company's revenue from operations increased by 18 percent to Rs 2,552.4 crore. The board recommended a final dividend of Rs 0.11 per equity share for FY24. Union Bank of India: The company reported a 19 percent YoY increase in net profit at Rs 3,310.6 crore for Q4 of FY24. The bank's net interest income rose by 14.4 percent to Rs 9,436.6 crore. The board recommended a dividend of Rs 3.60 per equity share for FY24. Housing & Urban Development Corporation: The Surat Multi-Modal Transportation Hub will be constructed and developed through an MoU signed by the company and SITCO. SITCO is a joint venture of the Ministry of Railways, the Government of Gujarat, and the Surat Municipal Corporation. Dilip Buildcon: The infrastructure company reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 5.34 crore for Q4FY24, against a loss of Rs 73.2 crore in the same period of the previous fiscal. Punjab & Sind Bank: The bank's net profit for Q4 FY24 decreased by 69.5 percent YoY to Rs 139.4 crore due to higher provisions and lower operating profit, although net interest income grew by 0.8 percent YoY to Rs 689.3 crore for the quarter. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. The NYPD promoted the alleged recovery of a gun on the North Shore of Staten Island. Sergeant Gugliucci and Field Intelligence Officers are among the members of the 120th Precinct credited with taking a loaded firearm off the streets of our borough, according to a post on the 120th Precinct Twitter feed. A photo attached to the post shows a Sig Sauer gun, bullets and a magazine. This is a developing story and more information will be posted when it becomes available. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. Human remains found near Atlantic City three years ago have been identified as a man who was reported missing more than a decade ago from Staten Island. The remains of Kevin Morris of Brooklyn were located in June 2021 in the vicinity of South Pomona Road in Galloway Township, according to a news release from the Atlantic County Prosecutors Office. Morris was 32 years old when he was reported missing from our borough in October 2011, prosecutors said. Morris left his residence on the 700 block of Logan Street in Brooklyn at about 6 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 21, 2011, at about 6 p.m., according to a statement from the NYPD. According to his page on Uncovered, he disappeared on his way to visit a girlfriend. The skeletal remains were discovered in a wooded area in Galloway Township, according to a report by BreakingAC.com. Police also discovered a cross in the vicinity that said RIP: Next time pay your dues, BreakingAC.com reported at the time, citing information from Galloway police. The circumstances surrounding the death of Morris are under investigation by the Major Crimes Unit of the Atlantic County Prosecutors Office. Anyone with information regarding his death or disappearance is encouraged to contact law enforcement. Additional agencies involved in the probe include the Galloway Township Police Department, New Jersey State Police Office of Forensic Sciences, and Southern Regional Medical Examiner Office. Anyone with information involving the fatality is asked to call the Atlantic County Prosecutors Office at 609-909-7800 or visit the Prosecutors Office Web site at ACPO.Tips to provide information by filling out the form anonymously on the Submit a Tip page. People also may contact Crime Stoppers of Atlantic County at 609-652-1234 or 1-800-658-8477 (TIPS) or visit the Crime Stoppers Website at http://www.crimestoppersatlantic.com/. Crime Stoppers offers cash rewards for information leading to the arrest and indictment of those who commit crimes in Atlantic County. *** Want to stay up to date on breaking news or submit tips to our breaking news team if you see an emergency response on Staten Island? -- Sign up for free breaking news text messages -- Follow our Crime and Public Safety Facebook page -- Email our breaking news team at breaking@siadvance.com. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. As the boroughs oldest and largest social safety net, the interfaith effort of Project Hospitality serves nearly 10 percent of Staten Islanders from every zip code each and every year providing everything from free income tax help to recovery programs, hot meals and warm beds. This year Project Hospitalitys Annual Spring Brunch will laud the kind deeds performed by Virginia Allen and Mayank Parikh, in addition to two volunteer organizations. The brunch is set for Thursday, May 23 at 10 a.m. in the Historic Old Bermuda Inn in Rossville. Allen has devoted her life to ensuring that vulnerable Staten Islanders have access to healthcare. Mayank Parikh, owner Super Health Pharmacy, whose immediate humanitarian response to the COVID-19 crisis saved Staten Islanders from infection and death. The Internationale Jugendgemeinschaftsdienste Volunteer Program has provided 15 years of full time volunteers to staff Project Hospitalitys food pantry and soup kitchen. And Notre Dame Academy will be honored for 42 years of feeding hungry and homeless Staten Islanders. Virginia Allen will receive the Rev. Roland Ratmeyer Founders Award Allen will be celebrated for a lifetime of meeting the health care needs of communities without voice and without power on Staten Island. From her most notable work in the late 1940s as a nurse in the TB ward of Seaview Hospital, a group then-known as Black Angels, to her work as a health advisor and Board leader at Community Health Action, to her decades as a civil rights activist, Allens accomplishments deeply and widely embrace the vision of Project Hospitalitys founder, Roland Ratmeyer. Allens example has brought much-needed attention to the communities who live in the margins of quality healthcare: Her whole life has been dedicated to making right the racial disparity in healthcare ensuring that every person regardless of social location, race or ability to pay, receive the best health care possible at all times. She is receiving accolades for nearly three quarters of a century of working to fight racial disparity and inequity. Mayank Parikh, Super Health Pharmacy, the Rabbi Marcus Kramer Humanitarian Award The emergency humanitarian efforts of Mayank Parikh, owner of Super Health Pharmacy, was an early partner of Project Hospitalitys in the boots-on-the-ground emergency efforts to stem the spread of COVID-19 in poor communities and among street homeless people on Staten Island. Mayank Parikh, Super Health Pharmacy pharmacist and the owner (6400 Amboy Road), Pleasant Plains, is the only independent pharmacy on Staten Island vaccinating the boroughs senior population and recently began doing home vaccinations. (Staten Island Advance/Jan Somma-Hammel)(Staten Island Advance/Jan Somma-Hammel) Parikh, his staff, and volunteers set up shop at Project Hospitalitys food pantries across Staten Island and at the El Centro del Inmigrante storefront in Port Richmond to make sure vaccines were offered and administered to whosoever wanted. His nurses and service staff calmed peoples fears both about COVID-19 and the vaccine. His tireless efforts brought more than 5,000 Staten Islanders in the door to Project Hospitality to receive their vaccine. Many were elderly, many were from communities of color, or undocumented immigrants who were without health insurance. Many had their lives saved because of Parikhs persistent and courageous efforts. Parikhs mission to improve healthcare in communities and people, most falling short of medical care and preventive medicine, led him to sponsor the first ever diabetes testing, education and prevention program through a Centers for Disease Control grant in collaboration with El Centro del Inmigrante. Super Health Pharmacy, which is accredited through the Association of Diabetes Care & Education Specialists, screened more than 100 uninsured, impoverished Staten Islanders for diabetes, and created a 16-week education program led by medical doctors for those at risk. The unique effort helped reduce the risk of diabetes in more than 60 Staten Islanders who completed the lifestyle-changing course. Based on its success, Super Health Pharmacy is seeking to expand the cohort of Staten Islanders who can take part in the transformational project. Internationale Jugendgemeinschaftsdienste Volunteer Program (IJGD) Sophie Matthews Memorial Award The IJGD receives the Sophie Matthew Memorial Award for Volunteer Service for 15 years of volunteerism at Project Hospitality. The Peace Corp model adapted by a German service organization connects young Germans whove graduated high school to service organizations throughout the world, including the United States. Project Hospitality became a part of this international volunteer effort after one student applicant to IJGD read about the work of Project Hospitality while surfing the internet. He delved deep into the agencys mission of helping those in need and the numerous service opportunities available. When he submitted his IJGD application, he requested to be assigned to Project Hospitality. Since then, each year, a handful of young people from Germany take a gap year between high school and college to live on Staten Island and volunteer full-time at Project Hospitality, receiving special permission from both the German government and the US State Department. The volunteers perform such service tasks as leading the food pantry, securing and organizing donations of clothing and food for homeless and hungry Staten Islanders and instructing a bilingual Saturday School for homeless children at the shelter. Notre Dame Academy, Rev. Maggie Howard Service Above Self Award Notre Dame Academy has been a working with Project Hospitality since the nonprofits birth in 1982. Sister Anne Seeley, left, students and directors at Notre Dame Academy. (Courtesy/Notre Dame Academy)Staten Island Advance The Catholic all-girls academy holds the distinction of being the only school to have been represented on the Project Hospitality Board, through the election of Sister Kathy Dolan as Project Hospitalitys inaugural Vice President. Notre Dame students, staff and alumnae have maintained a 42-year record of serving in Project Hospitalitys church-based shelters, soup kitchens and pantries. Theyve collected food and prepared home-cooked meals for unhoused Staten Islanders. The students are a fixture at the annual Poor Peoples Dinner, assisting at the event and collecting hundreds of cans beforehand. Inspired and directed by Sister Anne Seeley, each class of Notre Dame students continues its partnership with Project Hospitality, deepens its passion for community, and builds on nearly a half century of Service above Self to hungry and homeless Staten Islanders. Tickets to the Spring Brunch are $65 and may be purchased at projecthospitality.org or by phoning 718 448-1544. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. On May 2, Kristina and Nick Fernandez rushed their 3-year-old son Antonio to Staten Island University Hospital in Ocean Breeze with a severe case of the flu. Kristinas two other children Sophia, 11 and Nico, 6, had both come home from school sick with the flu. Antonio caught it not long afterwards. Antonio is both immunocompromised and suffers a rare form of genetic epilepsy called Dravet Syndrome which causes him to have at least one seizure a month and requires him to be on a significant amount of medication. The Richmond family made back-and-forth visits to several of Antonios doctors, which lead to repeated confirmations that the flu was hitting him harder because of his weakened immune system. A chest x-ray at the time also ruled out pneumonia. Several days later though, Antonio became severely lethargic. He was barely interested in food and generally non-responsive. He wasnt really acting himself, his mother said. Antonios parents soon found themselves in the emergency room with a severely dehydrated child. They were actually just going to pump him with some fluids hoping he would perk up and then we would get discharged, Kristina said. But as Antonios oxygen level began to drop and continued dropping, doctors rushed him to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) where he was put on a ventilator. Suffering from double pneumonia, a partially collapsed lung and sepsis, which lead to septic shock and borderline organ failure, Kristina said that given another 12 hours, Antonio probably wouldnt have survived. However, she believes that Antonios condition began to turn around with the arrival of Dr. Pamela Feuer, an attending physician in the PICU. It was something out of a movie, Kristina said. [Dr. Feuer] just took charge and started working on him, giving him everything he needed, and saved my sons life. Antonio would remain in the PICU for a week in critical condition until he was eventually stable enough to be moved into the pediatrics unit. Several days later, he was given the all-clear to be discharged. These nurses, doctors and respiratory therapists were so on-point with my son that I felt like they were family, Kristina said. Im just so grateful to them that hes alive. The irony also wasnt lost on Kristina that the family was bringing Antonio home on Mothers Day. Its the best gift I can ever think of, she said. Fleet Week returns this month to New York City to celebrate Sailors, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen for its 36th year, with the theme this year being, Fleet Week New York: Celebrating Those Who Serve. From May 22 to 28, two U.S. Navy ships, three U.S. Coast Guard vessels, and four U.S. Naval Academy Yard Patrol boats (YPs) will be at this years celebration. NATO allies from Germany will also be joining the week-long celebration. The Parade of Ships will take place on Wednesday, May 22 with ships from the U.S. military. Ships from Germany and the USS Bataan (LHD 5) will be available to the public on Saturday, May 25 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Staten Island will be hosting public ship tours, free to the public, from May 23 to May 27 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. SHIP AND PIER LOCATIONS FOR SHIP TOURS Manhattan, Pier 88 South :(Public tours only on Saturday, May 25, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.) Amphibious assault ship, USS Bataan (LHD 5) from Norfolk, Virginia Manhattan, Pier 90 North: (Public tours only on Saturday, May 25, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.) Baden-Wurttemberg-class frigate FGS Baden-Wurttemberg (F-222) from Germany Berlin-class replenishment ship FGS Frankfurt am Main (A-1412) from Germany Manhattan, Intrepid Museum, Pier 86 : Four U.S. Naval Academy YPs, Annapolis, Maryland Bay-class cutter USCGC Sturgeon Bay (WTGB-109) from Bayonne, New Jersey Homeport Pier, Staten Island : (Public tours will be May 23 - 27, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.) Freedom -class littoral combat ship USS MARINETTE (LCS 25) from Mayport, Florida Legend-class cutter USCGC Calhoun (WMSL-759) from Charleston, South Carolina Keeper-class coastal buoy tender USCGC Katherine Walker (WLM-552) from Bayonne, New Jersey Join the conversation on social media by using the hashtag, #FleetWeekNYC, and follow Fleet Week New York on Facebook, X and Instagram. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. The United Hospital Fund honored more than 60 quality improvement leaders from health care organizations across the metropolitan region for their efforts to improve the quality, safety, and equity of patient care at their institution Richmond University Medical Centers Dr. Jay Mbeng Nfonoyim was among this years honorees who were recognized by the UHF as Quality Improvement Champions. Dr. Nfonoyim is RUMCs vice chair for the Department of Medicine, program director of Internal Medicine Residency, and chief of the Critical Care Division. I am humbled, deeply honored, and grateful to be a recipient of this award, Dr. Nfonoyim said. I would like to thank The United Hospital Fund for its great contribution to quality care in New York and beyond, our hospitals leadership for nominating me, and the members of our healthcare team physicians, nurses and ancillary staff for making this possible. Dr. Nfonoyim was honored during the UHFs sixth annual Tribute to Excellence in Health Care, held at Cipriani 42nd Street in Manhattan May 6, where more than 500 members of the New York City areas health care community attended. The honorees include physicians, nurses, pharmacists, social workers and a broad range of other health care leaders, each selected by a senior executive at their institution. The honorees represented nearly 70 hospital systems, long-term care facilities, home care organizations, independent practice associations, federally qualified health centers, medical groups, and behavioral health organizations. In addition to providing direct care to critical patients throughout RUMC, Dr. Nfonoyim was an instrumental part of the design team for RUMCs new Medical Intensive Care Unit, which opened in 2022. In December 2020, Dr. Nfonoyim was also the first healthcare worker at RUMC to receive the COVID-19 vaccine during the first wave of vaccinations that was only available at that time to frontline healthcare workers. Dr. Nfonoyim has been a fixture at our hospital for many years, RUMC President and Chief Executive Officer Daniel J. Messina said. He is an admired and well-respected teacher who has helped guide generations of young medical minds down the path to a successful career in the healthcare profession. He has also earned tremendous respect and praise from his colleagues and from the many patients he has cared for at RUMC. Everyone on Staten Island and our entire hospital is truly blessed to have Jay here providing compassionate, exceptional care each and every day. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. In honor of those who have died, here is a compilation of obituaries posted on SILive. Viewing times and guest books can be seen here. Lorraine Tomlinson Bell passed away on May 3 at the age of 96. She was born on October 2, 1927, in Staten Island. She graduated from Port Richmond high school and began work at Brewer Dry Docks. She and her husband David were the proprietors of Tomlinsons Hardware. Lorraines parents founded the Mariners Harbor business in 1935. After raising their two daughters, Bonnie Nalwasky and Donna Haxton, Lorraine returned to part-time work assisting the family business. A lifelong member of Summerfield Methodist Church, Lorraine was an active volunteer for their fundraising dinners and working at their resale shop, Attic Treasures. Read the full obit on SILive. Katherine (Kay) Leahy (nee Molloy), 93, of Navarre, FL, originally from Staten Island, passed away on Dec. 30, 2023. Kay, a loving wife and mother of 4 children, retired in 1995 as an insurance biller for Egger Nursing Home. She enjoyed water aerobics, trips to Biloxi, Mississippi, and was a longtime parishioner of St. Teresas Church in Staten Island. Kay is survived by her three children, eight grandchildren, four great-grandchildren, and two sisters. A Memorial mass will be held at St. Teresas Church on May 21, 2024. Read the full obit on SILive. A 24-year-old Stuart, Florida man was thankful to tell his story on Thursday, just two weeks after he slipped and fell off his boat into shark-infested waters in the Bahamas and was bitten twice, once on the knee and the other on the shoulder. Speaking for the first time since the April 26 incident at a news conference Thursday at St. Marys Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Fla., Marlin Deere Wakeman told NBC News of the horrifying ordeal while he was doing maintenance work on a boat. Thankfully, Im here to tell the story, said Wakeman. But pretty crazy experience. YOUNG GIRL ATTACKED BY SHARK IN HAWAII He said he knew what was going to happen as soon as he slipped into the water at the Flying Fish Marina, where sharks always feed on the carcasses that the fishermen dump in the water. You can walk on their heads almost, said Wakeman of the 5 to 7-foot Caribbean Reef Sharks that crowd the water waiting for chum. Man, if you fell in here, like youre done, his buddies once told him. Youre not even going to have a second to really react. And thats exactly what happened. When he fell into the water, a first shark bit him on his knee. When I ended up in the water, I pretty much knew what was going to happen, he said. And when he bit me, I knew what was going on. There wasnt a second of doubt in my mind. A second shark then bit him on the shoulder. The one on my shoulder felt like a punch, said Wakeman. You really dont feel the teeth going in. Despite the bites, Wakeman was able to get himself back on the boat, where he realized the extent of his injuries. The bite on his knee mangled his leg and the second one left him in severe pain. Thats when he let out a scream. The boats captain then came and tended to the man, applying a tourniquet and elevating his leg. Once on shore, the captain and some others rolled the injured man in a wheelbarrow to a van to get him some help. It was bleeding a lot at that point and adrenaline sort of wearing off a little bit and then we got into the van, he said. And when I was in the van, they took gauze. And I remember my captain, he looked at me and he was like, Hey, man, this is gonna hurt really bad. And I was like, You know, whatever. Luckily, the Bahamas medics did a great job tending Wakemans injuries and he was then flown to Florida and hes now on the mend. Hes still in a wheelchair but doctors say he should make a complete recovery. And thats something Wakeman can be thankful about. Maybe Ill have some nightmares here and there, but I think Ill be all right, he said. BHP takeover target Anglo American will sell its Queensland coal mines and spin off other assets in a radical shift to unlock value and deter an aggressive $64 billion merger being pursued by Australias biggest miner. Anglos boss, Duncan Wanblad, said the London-listed miner would focus on a simplified portfolio of copper, iron ore and crop nutrients in an announcement that came hours after BHP revealed it had put a revised proposal to Anglos board. BHP had raised its bid by $5.5 billion, an offer Anglo immediately rejected. Mike Henrys revised bid values Anglo American at around $64 billion. Credit: Trevor Collens We already have been receiving strong inbound interest, Wanblad told reporters about selling its steelmaking coal mines, diamond and platinum businesses. The company owns several coal mines in Queenslands Bowen Basin. Anglo hopes its plans will frustrate BHPs $64 billion bid. Anglo has already twice rejected its suitor and its investors were demanding it develop a plan to make the company financially viable. Con el objetivo de coordinar el trabajo de #APEC y brindar ideas sobre como avanzar en la agenda del Area de Libre Comercio Asia-Pacifico, se realizo hoy el Segundo Dialogo del Comite de Comercio e Inversion (CTI).?? La actividad, que se realiza en el marco de la Segunda Reunion pic.twitter.com/BDT0Zyl9Ys Matthew Shepard was just 22 when he was beaten and left to die near Laramie, Wyoming, in October 1998. Matthew was an out gay man targeted because of his sexual orientation. For 25 years, Dennis and Judy Shepard have worked tirelessly to keep the memory of their son alive. Just as they were ready to slow down, the 2016 US election happened. We were both so angry and we knew what was going to come next. We knew, said Judy Shepard. I was afraid for my friends and peers, for the queer community, for everybody, really. Thats what keeps us going now: were just really mad. President Joe Biden awards the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Judy Shepard earlier this month. Credit: AP After Matthew was killed, media descended on Laramie. Tectonic Theatre Project, a company based out of New York and founded by Moises Kaufman, was among them. Advertisement Eating outRestaurant news Iconic Sydney restaurant Tetsuyas closing in July after 35 years After attempting to relocate his famous venue from its Kent Street base, chef Tetsuya Wakuda has made the very difficult decision to call time. Scott Bolles May 13, 2024 Save Log in , register or subscribe to save recipes for later. You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from your saved list to add more. Save this article for later Add articles to your saved list and come back to them anytime. Got it Share 1 / 7 Chef Tetsuya Wakuda at his Kent Street restaurant in 2018. Peter Braig 2 / 7 Tetsuyas dining room on Kent Street overlooks a tranquil Japanese garden. Christopher Pearce 3 / 7 Tetsuya Wakuda and his then wife, Pauline, in their original Rozelle kitchen in 1989. Bruce Milton Miller 4 / 7 Tetsuyas signature dish, confit ocean trout. Fairfax Media 5 / 7 Tetsuya Wakuda at The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2013 awards, where Tetsuyas received the Diners Choice Award. Marco Del Grande 6 / 7 Tetsuya Wakuda at Waku Ghin, his restaurant at Singapores Marina Bay Sands casino complex. 7 / 7 Peter Gilmore (left) and Tetsuya Wakuda, whose restaurants Quay and Tetsuyas were both included in the Worlds 50 Best Restaurants list in 2008. Domino Postiglione Previous Slide Next Slide Tetsuyas, the eponymous Sydney fine dining restaurant that launched its owner-chef Tetsuya Wakuda into a global food brand, will shut its doors permanently on July 31, ending a 35-year run. Our plans to relocate Tetsuyas to a new site after it closes at the end of July have unfortunately not worked out and I have made the very difficult decision to permanently close the restaurant, Wakuda said in a statement. We have spent the last 18 months planning the move and the new restaurant so this was not an easy decision, but sometimes things just dont go to plan. The exterior of Tetsuyas restaurant in Kent Street. Louie Douvis Advertisement Wakuda hoped to relocate the restaurant from Kent Street, a site that has been slated for development since it was sold in 2018. In recent years, the chef has been spotted touring sites in Chippendale, then linked with potential moves to Darling Harbour and Circular Quay. In 2022, he announced Tetsuyas would close, only for it to get a short-lived reprieve. Wakuda arrived in Australia in 1982 as a backpacker with little food experience but plenty of ambition. He worked for Sydney chef Tony Bilson before opening Ultimos in 1987, and then striking gold with the launch in 1989 of Tetsuyas in Rozelle. The combination of produce and technique from East and West impressed the critics of the time. The Sydney Morning Heralds then food critic, Leo Schofield, anointed the newcomer as near the top of the Sydney dining tree. Tetsuya Wakuda fuses refined Japanese and classic French cuisines in this small but impeccably run and maintained Rozelle restaurant, he wrote in October 1989. Schofield declared the food as good tasting as youll find in any of the citys best BYOs, with the exception of Claudes. As the restaurant grew in stature and collected a trophy cabinet of awards, Tetsuyas and its signature confit ocean trout became internationally recognised as part of Australias new breed of food temples. Advertisement It also made Wakuda a global culinary figure. He opened a short-lived restaurant in London in 2001, before a more successful and lasting push into Singapore with Waku Ghin. Influential Spanish chef Ferran Adria and Tetsuya Wakuda cruising Sydney Harbour in 2008 Marco Del Grande In recent times, he has opened the spin-off Wakuda eateries in Singapore and Las Vegas. Earlier this year, he added Sagetsu in Dubai to his restaurant portfolio. Wakuda, who was awarded an Order of Australian in 2005, retained links with his adopted country, but was increasingly stretched managing interests that span the globe. The strain was evident at his mothership Sydney restaurant, which was knocked off the summit of three hats in The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2011. It retains a credible two hats. With Wakuda tight-lipped with staff about the restaurants future and a lack of clarity on any relocation, executive chef Josh Raine called time on his six-year stint at the Sydney fine diner in February. Others held on for a relocation, which sadly didnt transpire. Advertisement Restaurant reviews, news and the hottest openings served to your inbox. Sign up It began with bullets ripping through a home, then stolen cars began crashing into garage doors and going up in flames. Now anti-gang police are crawling over a Sydney suburban street trying to stop the targeted attacks on a man allegedly linked to organised crime. Emergency services were called to Briggs Place in St Helens Park, near Campbelltown, at 7.15pm on May 1 after someone unloaded a gun into a home. Two homes on Briggs Place, St Helens Park, have been targeted by arson attacks and a shooting since May 1. Credit: James Brickwood Five of the six shots struck a four-wheel drive parked outside the house and the last went through a window. The three people inside were not injured. Police concluded a 28-year-old man inside the home, an alleged member of a Sydney outlaw motorcycle gang (OMCG), was the intended target, Detective acting Superintendent Glyn Baker told reporters on Monday. The mayor of the Northern Beaches Council has warned it is only a matter of time before someone is killed on a fat bike ridden with modified throttles, as her council launches a campaign to crack down on dangerous riding. Pleading for the NSW and federal governments to take more action, Sue Heins said fat bikes e-bikes with large wheels that are designed for extreme terrain are so similar to a small motorbike that you just cant tell any more what vehicle can be ridden on pavements. Northern Beaches Council Mayor Sue Heins, along with students from Stella Maris College, has launched a new e-bike safety campaign in Manly. Credit: Anthony Segaert The bikes have inundated Sydneys beachside suburbs in recent years, with teenagers and children driving the surge. NSW road rules enforce a 25km/h cap, but in many cases this can be adjusted easily, by removing a cap on the throttle and so allowing unrestricted speeds. The problem is, near-misses arent really [reported] anywhere, Heins said. But we know that there are a lot of near-misses What we really try and avoid here is death and injury because were very aware that its only a matter of time. 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 Sean Kelly suggests that nobody really understands what it (the Albanese government) is trying to do (Even calculated risks are risky, May 13). This is particularly applicable to those who supported the ALP at the last election. Slow-and-steady is fine if it yields noticeable results, not confused disappointment, for example, resulting from the reluctance to increase JobSeeker detailed by Ross Gittins (Refusal to fix the JobSeeker payment is utterly shameful, May 13). The government is stuck in the mud Credit: Joe Benke Instead of immediate actions and initiatives once elected, the government sat back and now, with another election looming, its number one priority is not to antagonise ordinary voters. An alternative pathway could have been to immediately scrap the stage-three tax cuts, withdraw from AUKUS and institute significant tax reform to bolster the budget. With those changes in place Tuesdays budget would have been all about greater support for the less well-off and material, recognisable improvements for all in the areas of health, education, aged care, NDIS and so on. Being risk-averse has created the impression the government is in a muddle and understandably voters will seek alternative representatives who present more definite ideas and policies. Ross Butler, Rodd Point Growing inequality is a huge and embarrassing problem in this wealthy country and a major contribution is the treatment of the unemployed through totally inadequate Jobseeker payments. The government is about to happily gift thousands of dollars in tax rebates to high earners and it would seem unconscionable, in fact uncivilised, to do nothing for the unemployed. Perhaps the theory is that charitable organisations will take up the load in assisting the unemployed, but judging from news items and emails from charities, donations have fallen significantly in this cost of living crisis while demand has increased markedly. Tuesdays budget will indeed provide a measure of the governments morality. Geoff Harding, Chatswood Ross Gittins shows us why not increasing the Jobseeker payment is as stupid as it is immoral. Its ironic that something called Jobseeker denies the unemployed the funds they need to pay for fares and other expenses involved in jobseeking. Mark Porter, New Lambton Those on JobSeeker range from those suddenly out of work for no reason related to their skill or performance, to the long-term unemployed. At one end, government support is needed until they can get re-employed. At the other end, personal training and support is required to make the person employable. Regardless of the services provided, until it is proven that the person is not willing to take on a reasonable job, they should be given the dignity of a living wage. Neither party seems interested in this approach. Both assume everyone can be employed and if you dont have a job, it is your fault. How quickly you can become employed is irrelevant under the current system. If it takes six or eight weeks from application to starting, you must live on the same amount of money as someone who refuses to take any work. Neville Turbit, Russell Lea Advertisement The chief economist of consultants EY Australia insists that any extra spending in this weeks budget must be offset by spending cuts elsewhere. This best place to start would be to eliminate all government spending on consultants. Mark Tierney, North Kellyville Back to school, back to the drawing board With some exceptions, students in NSW must remain enrolled in an approved educational facility until the age of 17 (Expelling students passes the buck, May 13). Where do people think a student goes when they are expelled before they turn 17? If no other school will enrol the troubled student it is often the underfunded public school that is required to take its local students, which will enrol and support that student. Its an easy abrogation of responsibility for independent schools. Lyn Savage, Coogee Yarra Valley Grammar School principal Dr Mark Merry. Credit: Eddie Jim Where will they end up going to school? Probably the local public high school. It is common for the private school system to solve its problems this way and, with the calls for immediate and decisive action, the boys will be moved on and the aggrieved parties satisfied. The truth is the problem needed to be solved at the source true acknowledgment that the problem developed within this school, and action needs to be taken within the school community. It happens with other catastrophes, such as student deaths, and this is just as important. Difficult as it would have been, the school has taken the easy way out and has simply kicked the can down the road. At this time of great social change and acknowledgment of wrong attitudes and the need for social change in various issues, the school could have been a beacon for leadership in this situation. Robert Mulas, Corlette The luxury of an expensive private school is that it can expel students. A lot of expelled students end up in public schools as a result. Does that solve their problems? No. As the article suggests, it is buck-passing, and creating even more problems for public schools. Many are already overstretched with more students than they can cope with, never mind the extra burden of behavioural and other special needs. Private schools and the parents must take more responsibility for their students behaviour. After all, they have brought them up and educated them to this point of their lives, which makes me ask about their social standards and ethics. Public schools work hard to stamp out any form of misogyny. It does not just appear in older students but can be seen from a very early age. Whether it is nature or nurture is a moot point but it must be addressed as early as possible in homes, education and society. Augusta Monro, Dural Congratulations, Adam Voigt, for stating the obvious that by expelling students and shifting the problem it only solves the problem for that school in the short term. While research has shown expulsion usually does not change the behaviour of the expelled child, it also does not show the other students the importance of working together as a community to problem-solve. It is very important that we educate our young to be adults who can troubleshoot and negotiate together the difficult path to find better solutions in fraught situations such as this in a thoughtful, inclusive and responsible manner, not just hive our problems off to some other poor, unsuspecting person or organisation. Vivienne Freeman, Warrawee Advertisement Dutton is the face of the Liberals woman problem For me, Peter Dutton is the embodiment of the Liberal Partys women problem, having inherited the honour from Scott Morrison (Libs address woman problem in plan to take on teals, May 13). This is because every time Dutton shows his face in public, Australians are reminded that in 2018, the Liberal Party inexplicably rejected perhaps one of its most competent, credible, lauded and longest-serving deputy leaders in Julie Bishop, electing yet another ageing conservative white male as leader and sending that very clear (and false) men do it better message they are now wringing their hands over. Brett Butterfield, Guildford West The NSW Liberals need a reality check if they think that by merely fielding female candidates they can wrest back federal seats from the teals. Community support swept these women independents to power and their electorates have already witnessed their significant influence on improving government legislation for their communities, far more than a Liberal representative of any gender who must always toe the party line. Joy Nason, Mona Vale Liberal candidate for Wentworth, Ro Knox Credit: SMH The Wentworth Liberal Party just does not get it. Selecting a woman for the federal seat does not address the partys female problem. Its the policies, stupid. A vote for Ro Knox is a vote for Dutton, Littleproud and Joyce and their crazy nuclear policy; Im assuming therefore that Ms Knox is supportive of having a nuclear reactor in Wentworth. A real vote winner. David Boyd, Bondi Beach I believe it will take a bit more than offering up a female coupled with optimism and excitement for the Liberals to wrest Wentworth from the formidable grasp of the progressive-thinking Allegra Spender. Having some decent policies might be a good start. Bill Young, Killcare Heights Civilian deaths Advertisement David MacKintosh compares the deaths of Australian service people in World War II with the deaths of Palestinian people in Gaza (Letters, May 13). I am reminded of the following quote from a letter written by a US general in Okinawa to his wife (where 100,000 civilians died) in 1945: It is pitiful to see what modern weapons do to civilian communities harbouring enemy defences, but it is necessary to shoot the enemy out of whatever positions they hold. As long as Hamas who care not one bit about the fate of the Palestinian people in general hide both themselves and their hostages among civilians and civilian infrastructure, civilian deaths are inevitable in this war, just as surely as they will be in the next. Rob Buist, Randwick If the Letters contributor is so good with the numbers, did he purposefully omit the comparison of 1200 innocent babies, children, women and men who were brutally raped, burnt, beheaded and murdered on October 7, 2023 at kibbutz Beeri in one day? Leonard Polivnick, Kurraba Point Profit over education The government is rightly addressing one contributor to our bloated immigration numbers (Unis told to cap overseas students, May 13). Our growing population, fuelled by immigration, is a major cause of the intractable problems we face in housing, traffic, water supply, wildlife, carbon emissions, etc. And todays university sector is one of the culprits. We do have fine universities, but their focus seems to have switched from providing quality teaching, which I benefited from 50 years ago, to maximising profits from overseas students. When a university lobbyist describes the sector as this beleaguered $48 billion industry, it is clear that commerce has displaced education as its main priority. Ian Penrose, Kew (Vic) Students at Sydney University Credit: Tamara Voninski Paper money Bec Wilson believes that cash is dead (Letters, May 13). For years, Ive carried various notes in my wallet in case of an emergency when I dont have access to a card. Problem is, I cant remember if the notes are dollars or pounds. Brian ODonnell, Burradoo Advertisement Spend it well I am retired and help my grandchildren by paying for some public school costs, such as uniforms (Letters, May 13). I also go without a coffee to support charities including the Flying Doctors, who help those in regional and remote areas. If anyone, retirees or not, has plenty of money, I suggest there are many more worthwhile ways to use their money than giving it to private schools. Also, not seeking out every tax deduction possible would provide better schools and community resources for all that is the purpose of taxation! Linda Page, Baulkham Hills Totally agree with your correspondents regarding the burgeoning use of grandparents superannuation to fund private school fees. It perpetuates the rewiring of our society into progressively more inequality, instead of using this money to sensibly fund an adequate retirement or using any excess in other altruistic ways. The use of it for private school funding is an anathema to an egalitarian society and arguably shows lack of a much-needed social conscience. Judy Finch, Taree Dangerous game There has to be a correlation between the spate of injuries to high-profile rugby league players and continual tampering with the rules to fashion a fast, open game (Moses may get just 80 minutes to prove he can save the Blues, May 13). Unexplained penalties for ruck infringements resulting in six more tackles for the attacking side not only confuse and irritate spectators, but lead to frantic and clumsy attempts to play the ball and wild defensive efforts causing further penalties and injuries. The high incidence of hamstring injuries to leading players, which will rob the upcoming State of Origin series of star quality, must stem from the frenetic pace at which participants are expected to perform. Ray Alexander, Moss Vale On the PMs watch Well spotted, Paul Totman (Letters, May 13). In a similar vein, perhaps Albo can be persuaded to give away his No.1 ticket holder status at South Sydney to see if it lifts the Bunnies off the bottom rung of the ladder. Stephen Driscoll, Castle Hill Advertisement Rushi Vyas was shocked when he received an email saying his carefully written assignment had been flagged for plagiarism. A commonly used plagiarism detection tool from anti-cheating software Turnitin found it had a very high AI score, meaning it could have been written with a chatbot like ChatGPT. Rushi Vyas, a student who was falsely accused of AI cheating at UNSW. Credit: Flavio Brancaleone After more than two weeks of investigations, the University of NSW student was cleared of wrongdoing. But the stress of having to prove his innocence took its toll. As someone with anxiety it was really, really stressful, he said. A house fire at Dutton Park is now under control, with firefighters working to determine what caused the blaze. Emergency services, including eight fire crews, were called to the property on Walton Street just before 3pm on Tuesday afternoon. The Dutton Park blaze has since been brought under control. Paramedics said one person was taken to the Mater Hospital in a stable condition. Investigators remained on the scene conducting further searches of the property. Queenslands government is being urged to make further investments in palliative care amid uncertainty over the allocation of previous funds. The Australian Medical Associations Queensland branch has made 14 priority submissions to the Miles government ahead of the June state budget. The Queensland AMA is seeking urgent investment in aged and end-of-life care, including palliative care and voluntary assisted dying services. Credit: Getty Images Treasurer Cameron Dick is set to spruik further cost-of-living initiatives including a $1000 energy rebate for all Queensland households and the freezing of vehicle registration fees for one year from July 1. The medical associations budget submissions cover everything from funding the workforce to substance-related harm. The Xoloitzcuintle, more commonly called Xolo, is an ancient domesticated canine breed endemic to Central America for thousands of years. Fossil records from the Western Mexican coast show that this pet played an important role in ancient Mayan society. Similar to ancient Egyptian relationships with cats, these dogs were often sacrificed and buried along with their owners to guide their souls in the afterlife. Advertisement The Xolo breed was one of the first to be documented by the American Kennel Club (AKC) in 1887. However, in 1959, the AKC dropped it from publications because it was believed to be an extinct genus, even though the breed continues to survive today. A teenager who fatally stabbed Queensland mother Emma Lovell, leaving her bleeding and unconscious on the ground in front of her distraught husband and daughters, has been sentenced to 14 years jail. Mrs Lovell, remembered as an energetic and beloved mother, was unable to be saved by paramedics, after she and her husband Lee were injured during a home invasion on Boxing Day 2022. Lee Lovell, husband of victim Emma Lovell, talks to the media outside the Supreme Court. Credit: AAP The sentencing for the teenager who stabbed Mrs Lovell came the day after Mothers Day, and on Mr Lovells birthday. It would have been a very different day if Emma was here, Mr Lovell told reporters outside court on Monday. University chiefs are being told to cut their reliance on China and India and channel international students into courses that fill Australian skills shortages, deepening a dispute over federal plans to cap their annual intake. The federal government will use the cap to encourage education providers to attract more overseas students into courses such as nursing and healthcare, setting up a new barrier for those who generate most of their fees from business courses. Education Minister Jason Clare plans to introduce a draft law to parliament this week to create a new power to set a maximum intake for education providers. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen But the Labor policy has provoked warnings from university chiefs after an urgent meeting on Monday morning in which federal cabinet ministers set out their plans to start the new regime on January 1 to slow the soaring growth in overseas student numbers. University of Sydney vice chancellor Mark Scott said the changes raised the risk of a black hole in education funding if the government went too far, setting up a debate about how to moderate the growth without starving the sector of funds. Two boatloads of asylum seekers intercepted off the Australian coast are being kept at sea rather than being sent immediately for offshore processing in Nauru, prompting questions about whether the government is trying to send them home. Four Vietnamese asylum seekers intercepted by the Australian Border Force off the coast of Broome late last week are still being kept at sea, as are 33 people of unknown nationality who arrived at Christmas Island after their vessel was damaged. Two boatloads of asylum seekers intercepted off the Australian coast are being processed at sea. Credit: Kate Geraghty Separately, five Rwandans were found by authorities on Saibai Island in the Torres Strait last week and have been taken to Papua New Guinea. Government sources with knowledge of the Border Force operation confirmed neither the Vietnamese nationals nor the group of 33 people had been sent to the Nauru detention facility, nor sent home, and that they were being processed on Border Force vessels. When a western Sydney council decided this month to ban same-sex education books from its libraries, the decision quickly became a story that was better read than some well-thumbed library books. It rapidly developed into a matter of national debate around censorship and discrimination, with state ministers jumping in to declare their opposition. But on Wednesday evening, there is an opportunity to rewrite the ending to this shameful story, which has placed Cumberland Council under a level of scrutiny it could never have envisaged. As indicated in the minutes of what was to have been a fairly routine council meeting on May 1, item C05/24-506 was a motion supported by two councillors for the Adoption of Library Strategy 2024-2027. There were 12 councillors in attendance. Councillor Steve Christou says he has not read the book he wants to ban from council libraries. But then came an unexpected amendment from two independent councillors, Steve Christou and Paul Garrard, agreeing to the motion, but subject to the following: That council take immediate action to rid same-sex parents books/materials in councils library service. Race 4 - 2.10pm: BLAKES MARINE 3YO MAIDEN HANDICAP (1100m) 10. Setombe had two starts at Canterbury earlier in the year and performed well in each of them. Shes had two trials leading into this return and only needs to overcome a wide alley to be prominent. Dangers: 3. Shes All It has only had three starts either side of a spell, and shes been placed in each of them, the latest at Goulburn when resuming. Shes got the ability to perform well again in this. 7. Flying Thinker has been placed in each of her latest two trials, and she should run well on debut if she runs up to those efforts. 8. Giza debuted with a seventh at Canterbury in January and is a trial winner leading into this return to racing. How to play it: Setombe to win. Race 5 - 2.50pm: WORKERS CLUB GROUP PROVINCIAL CLASS 1 HANDICAP (1100m) 6. Party Doll was placed at Newcastle and Kembla Grange in her first two runs back from a spell, then wasnt beaten too far when a last start fifth at Gosford. She is racing well enough to give this a shake. Dangers: 4. Close Encounter showed improvement when resuming from a spell with a victory at Kembla Grange. That was just his fourth race start and he is capable of going on with the job now. 7. Jamakin Money was a Wyong winner two starts ago then finished third at Gosford last time out. She is racing well enough to be prominent here. 9. Jabali Belle is resuming from a spell and can sprint well while fresh. How to play it: Party Doll to win. Race 6 - 3.25pm: PIONEER SERVICES CLASS 1 HANDICAP (1500m) Loading 3. Allapercanto resumed from a spell with a seventh at Sandown before finishing down the track in the Bendigo Guineas. He since returned to Sydney and was held up in the straight before finishing a close-up fourth on the Kensington track. Dangers: 2. Good Once had very good form with placings in eight of his first 11 starts, then was rewarded for that consistency when scoring narrowly as favourite at Newcastle last time out. Hes sure to be one of the leading contenders again. 1. Until Valhalla was a city winner on the Kensington track last campaign and his two runs back from a spell in city grade have been good. 5. Investment scored in maiden grade at Gosford last time out and is worth including among the chances again. How to play it: Allapercanto to win. Race 7 - 4.05pm: LANDER TOYOTA CLASS 1 & MAIDEN PLATE (1800m) 1. Ever Was has had plenty of chances with 26 starts to his name, but he has won one race and been placed in a further eight starts. He ran second to the handy Wymark at Newcastle five starts ago and finished second at the same track last time out. Dangers: 14. Our Uptown Girl is a last-start winner and is worth plenty of though again with a repeat of that. 12. Heaven Bound had been racing well before tackling the Adrian Knox then won well at Newcastle last time out. 13. Joint Mission has the talent to overcome a wide barrier. How to play it: Ever Was each-way. Bali Many Asian destinations have their rainy season over the Australian winter but not Bali. The archipelago enjoys its loveliest weather from May to October, with dry skies and average temperatures in the high 20s. And theres a lot of variety within Bali to choose from. Looking for beachside indulgence? Seminyak is the classic choice, but many are choosing the more hipster-fied shores of Uluwatu or Canggu instead. For gorgeous yoga studios, rice paddies and amazing food, head to Ubud. Or do something different and explore up-and-coming destinations like Tabanan, Sidenman or the surf enclave of Pererenan. Los Angeles Live out your movie star dreams in downtown Los Angeles. Credit: iStock Theres nothing quite like the thrum of LA, a magical and marvellous place that feels like a million cities in one. Trail movie stars, eat the best tacos of your life, sip a kombucha and hit a Soul Cycle class, hike the canyons and lose hours in oddly delightful dive bars all in the one day. Or do as Los Angeleans do during the summer months and drive 90 minutes east to Palm Springs the perfect place to sip cocktails by the pool, and a good jumping off point to explore kooky desert wonders like Joshua Tree and Salvation Mountain. Vanuatu Yes, you could do Fiji. But why not try Vanuatu instead? An easy 3.5-hour flight from Sydney, the Pacific nation boasts lovely beaches, world class diving and plenty of swish resorts for those who like their creature comforts. For easy indulgence, book a hotel in Port Vila or Luganville. Or if youre looking for a more off-the-beaten track destination, head to Tanna Island, home to the amazing (and, yes, somewhat terrifying) active volcano of Mt Yasur, which you can watch erupt in dramatic orange from a safe vantage point after dark. By day, snorkel, soak up the natural hot springs and swim your way into the breathtaking caves carved into limestone cliffs. Queenstown Be one with nature in Queenstown. Credit: iStock Of course, a winter escape doesnt have to mean fleeing to warmer shores. Go the other way and lean into frosty fun with a trip to Queenstown, New Zealands adventure paradise. Hit the ski slopes, bungy jump, alpine heliski, zip line or just sip a hot toddy by the roaring fireplace. Be sure to make time for a relaxing dip in one of the local Onsen hot pools, and dont leave without trying the world-famous Fergburger. At just three hours flight time from Sydney, its an easy and electrifying mini-break. With 45 airline partners, Aeroplan points can connect travellers to over 1,300+ destinations across the globe Vancouver, Bali, Los Angeles, Vanuatu, and Queenstown included. Were continuing to expand on our partnership with HSBC and Star Alliance airlines to help fly Aussies to every corner of the world with Aeroplan points, says Air Canadas general manager of Australia and New Zealand, Vic Naughton. The beauty of Aeroplan is that we have no restrictions on redeeming points -- if a seat is available, you can use points to book it. For details on the number of points required for flight rewards and other destinations, visit Air Canadas Points Predictor tool. T&Cs *Credit provided by HSBC Bank Australia Limited ABN 48 006 434 162 Australian Credit Licence 232595. Offers available to new, approved HSBC credit cardholders. Fees, charges, terms, conditions and HSBCs lending criteria applies to all credit cards issued by HSBC. Visit www.hsbc.com.au or call 1300 308 880. Interest rates are valid at the time of publication and are subject to change. View Terms and Conditions for full details. Offer is available to Australian residents only. Shes been smeared with cake and doused with acid. Vigilantes have stolen her, and protesters have defaced her. Shes been lasered and prodded, displayed for the masses, and relegated to her own basement gallery. More recently, thousands urged billionaire Jeff Bezos to buy her, and then eat her. There is no bottom, it seems, to the mysteries of the Mona Lisa, the Leonardo da Vinci painting that has captivated art lovers, culture vultures and the rest of us for centuries. Who is she? (Most likely Lisa Gherardini, the wife of an Italian nobleman.) Is she smiling? (The short answer: kind of.) Did da Vinci originally intend to paint her differently, with her hair clipped or in a nursing gown? The Mona Lisa, a portrait of Lisa Gherardini, in the Louvre. Credit: Getty Images While much about the art worlds most enigmatic subject has been relegated to the realm of the unknowable, now, in a strange crossover of art and geology, there may be one fewer mystery: where she was sitting when da Vinci painted her. According to Ann Pizzorusso, a geologist and Renaissance art scholar, da Vincis subject is sitting in Lecco, Italy, an idyllic town near the banks of Lake Como. The conclusion, Pizzorusso said, was obvious she figured it out years ago, but never realised its significance. For Israeli and Western officials, Sinwar has over the course of these negotiations, which stalled again in Cairo this past week, emerged as both a brutal adversary and a deft political operator, capable of analysing Israeli society and appearing to adapt his policies accordingly. As an architect of the October 7 attacks, Sinwar masterminded a strategy that he knew would provoke a ferocious Israeli response. But in Hamas calculus, the deaths of many Palestinian civilians who do not have access to Hamas subterranean tunnels were the necessary cost of upending the status quo with Israel. US and Israeli intelligence agencies have spent months assessing Sinwars motivations, according to people briefed on the intelligence. Analysts in both the United States and Israel believe that Sinwar is primarily motivated by a desire to take revenge on Israel and weaken it. The wellbeing of the Palestinian people or the establishment of a Palestinian state, the intelligence analysts say, appears to be secondary. An understanding of Israeli society Sinwar was born in Gaza in 1962 to a family that had fled its home, along with several hundred thousand other Palestinian Arabs who fled or were forced to flee during the wars surrounding the creation of the state of Israel. Sinwar joined Hamas in the 1980s. He was later imprisoned for murdering Palestinians whom he accused of apostasy or collaborating with Israel, according to Israeli court records from 1989. Sinwar spent more than two decades in Israeli detention before being released in 2011, along with more than 1000 other Palestinians, in exchange for one Israeli soldier captured by Hamas. Six years later, Sinwar was elected leader of Hamas in Gaza. While in prison, Sinwar learned Hebrew and developed an understanding of Israeli culture and society, according to fellow former inmates and Israeli officials who monitored him in prison. Sinwar now appears to be using that knowledge to sow divisions in Israeli society and heighten pressure on Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, according to Israeli and US officials. The Israel Defence Forces have tried to destroy Hamas extensive tunnel network, but it is still being used to evade them. Credit: Getty They believe that Sinwar has timed the release of videos of some Israeli hostages in order to spur public outrage at Netanyahu during crucial phases of the ceasefire talks. Some Israelis want the remaining hostages released even if it means agreeing to Hamas demands for a permanent truce that would keep the group and Sinwar in power. But Netanyahu has been reluctant to agree to end the war, partly because of pressure from some of his right-wing allies, who have threatened to resign if the war concludes with Hamas unbroken. If Netanyahu has been accused of dragging out the fighting for personal benefit, so, too, has his archenemy, Sinwar. Israeli and US intelligence officers say that Sinwars strategy is to keep the war going for as long as it takes to shred Israels international reputation and to damage its relationship with its primary ally, the United States. As Israel faced intense pressure to avoid launching an operation in Rafah, Hamas fired rockets from Rafah toward a nearby border crossing, killing four Israeli soldiers. If this was a gambit by Hamas, it appeared to pay off: Israel began an operation this last week on the fringes of Rafah, and against that backdrop US President Joe Biden made his strongest criticism of Israeli policy since the war began. B iden said he would halt some future arms shipments if the Israeli military began a full-scale invasion of the citys urban core. US officials say Sinwar is most likely in the tunnels under Khan Younis, the next major city to the north intelligence that could undercut the Israeli rationale for the military operations in Rafah. Yahya Sinwar is believed to be hiding in tunnels beneath Khan Younis, which was barely recognisable to Palestinians returning this month after fleeing Rafah. Credit: Bloomberg Projecting an image of unity Hamas and its allies deny that either Sinwar or the movement is trying to leverage further Palestinian suffering. Hamas strategy is to stop the war right now, said Ahmed Yousef, a Hamas veteran based in Rafah. To stop the genocide and the killing of the Palestinian people. US officials say that Sinwar has shown disdain for his colleagues outside Gaza, who were not informed about the precise plans for Hamas attack on October 7. US officials also believe that Sinwar approves military operations conducted by Hamas, although Israeli intelligence officers say they are unsure of the extent of his involvement. A senior Western official familiar with the ceasefire negotiations believes that Sinwar appears to make decisions in concert with his brother, Muhammad, a senior Hamas military leader, and that throughout the war he had sometimes disagreed with Hamas leaders outside Gaza. While the outside leadership has at times been more willing to compromise, Sinwar is less ready to concede ground to the Israeli negotiators, in part because he knows that he is likely to be killed whether the war ends, the official said. Even if negotiators seal a ceasefire deal, Israel is likely to pursue Sinwar for the rest of his life, the official said. Hamas members have projected an image of unity, downplaying Sinwars personal role in decision-making and maintaining that Hamas elected leadership collectively determines the movements trajectory. Sinwar could not be reached for comment and has rarely been heard from since October. US and Israeli officials have said Sinwar is hiding near hostages, using them as human shields. An Israeli hostage who was released during a truce in November said she met Sinwar during her captivity. In February, the Israeli military published a video that it said soldiers had taken from a security camera they found in a Hamas tunnel beneath Gaza. The video showed a man hurrying down the tunnel, accompanied by a woman and children. Loading The military said the man was Sinwar, fleeing with his family. The claim was impossible to verify: The mans face was turned away from the camera. This article originally appeared in The New York Times. Musks endorsement has given many nationalist and right-wing heads of state more international cachet, which they have eagerly promoted as a validation of their policies and popularity. Musk, Tesla, SpaceX and X did not respond to requests for comment. India: a Long Game In September 2015, Musk welcomed Modi to Teslas factory in Fremont, California. Modi, a Hindu nationalist politician, had been elected prime minister a year earlier when his Bharatiya Janata Party swept to power, and was visiting the United States to meet business leaders. Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, left, with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Credit: Modi YouTube Channel/AP Musk and Modi posed for photographs near a gleaming red Model S car. They discussed how solar panels and battery packs could power rural regions in India without electrical lines, Musk said at the time. I understood his vision, Modi later said. It was one of the first instances of Musks publicly meeting a nationalist leader. And it was the beginning of a long game between him and Modi, a relationship that took years to develop and that started paying off for Musk after he bought Twitter. India is a potentially massive market for Tesla, which needs to expand to new regions to grow. But the country has virtually barred electric vehicles built by foreign manufacturers. In recent years, the tariff India imposes on imported electric vehicles has risen as high as 100 per cent. Musk initially used traditional personal diplomacy, meeting with Modi and ordering his staff at Tesla to get close to officials. After Musk bought Twitter in 2022, he had a new lever. The platform is widely used in India including by Modi, who has nearly 98 million followers and is a major forum of political discussion. Musk met Modi in person again last June when the prime minister visited New York. He called himself a fan of Modi and said Modi was pushing us to make significant investment in India, which is something that we intend to do. Loading By then, Tesla employees were again talking to Modis advisers about a reduction in tariffs and investment, two people familiar with the conversations said. Rohan Patel, who was Teslas vice president of public policy and business development, travelled to India several times, and Piyush Goyal, the commerce minister, visited the Fremont factory in November. In January, Musk posted on X that India should receive a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council, which would boost its international standing. India not having a permanent seat on the Security Council, despite being the most populous country on Earth, is absurd, he wrote. The timing suggests that Modi noticed. Two months later, India announced it was reducing some import duties for electric carmakers who committed at least $US500 million ($757 million) to produce vehicles in the country. The policy dropped tariffs to 15 per cent of a cars price from 100 per cent, specifically for electric vehicles that retail for more than $US35,000. The description fit Tesla to a T. Its Model 3 cars ship at $US38,990. Brazil: True legend of freedom By 2021, Musk was employing a similar courtship to bring his Starlink satellite internet service to Brazil, which was then led by Bolsonaro, the right-wing populist president elected three years earlier. At the time, Starlink was in its infancy, with fewer than 150,000 users across 25 countries. Elon Musk, here with Brazils then-president Jair Bolsonaro, was the first foreign civilian to receive the countrys Defence Order of Merit medal. Credit: Handout/AP In October 2021, Fabio Faria, then communications minister and an organiser of Bolsonaros reelection campaign, sent a letter to Musk, saying that Starlink and Brazil can become great partners, according to correspondence obtained through the countrys open records laws. Weeks later, Faria visited Musk in Texas. After returning home, Faria pushed regulators to approve Starlink, at one point urging Brazils space agency to stay out of any debate about SpaceXs satellites over the country, he later testified to its Congress. Brazils regulators approved Starlink for operation in December 2021, seven months after the service first applied. It was the fastest of five approvals that regulators granted to satellite internet providers. Musk later lent a hand to Bolsonaro, who faced an uphill battle in his 2022 reelection campaign. On May 20 that year, he made a surprise trip to Brazil for a major announcement alongside the president. Starlink was coming to the country, and it would provide internet connectivity to 19,000 rural schools, as well as environmental monitoring of the Amazon, they said at an event in a resort near Sao Paulo. Bolsonaro gave Musk a medal and called him a true legend of freedom for his bid that year to buy Twitter. Loading There was just one catch: the plan to connect schools never materialised, said Carlos Baigorri, the chief telecommunications regulator, who helped approve Starlinks entry into the country. I dont really think that it even existed, he said of the plan. Musk and Bolsonaro benefited anyway. Musk had entrenched SpaceX in a critical market, where Starlink now has 150,000 active accounts, according to the telecommunications regulator. Bolsonaros campaign got to promote the presidents business acumen and cast him as a defender of the Amazon before an election. Musks favour did not prevent Bolsonaro from losing the presidency to Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, a leftist former president, in October 2022. But within weeks, Musk, who had just completed his deal for Twitter, tried helping Bolsonaro again. Bolsonaros supporters had started pushing accusations on Twitter that Brazilian judges had tilted the election by ordering social networks to remove right-wing posts and accounts. As they camped outside military bases demanding the election be overturned, Musk fed their suspicions by suggesting that Twitters former bosses had contributed to Bolsonaros defeat. Its possible that Twitter personnel gave preference to left wing candidates, he posted in December 2022, without citing any evidence. He later wrote that the company may have people on the Brazil team that are strongly politically biased. Argentina: A meeting of the minds In 2022, one of Teslas lithium suppliers announced a $US1.1 billion investment to expand in Argentina. Since then, Musk has taken a keen interest in Argentinian politics and particularly Milei leading to one of the most pronounced bromances among Musks political relationships. Milei, a libertarian economist and TV pundit, campaigned on getting the government out of the economy and tying Argentina more closely to the United States. Like Musk, he frequently insults critics, has an intense social media habit and is deeply worried about the threat from woke culture. Days before Mileis inauguration in December, they spoke directly for the first time, and Musk asked about Argentinas lithium. In the months since, Milei has been pushing legislation that would make extracting lithium far more attractive to foreign investors. Mileis sweeping bill, which would grant him broad emergency powers over the economy and energy for the next year, includes a major benefit for Tesla: significant incentives for foreign investors in large projects, particularly in mining. Such companies would receive substantial tax cuts, customs exemptions and foreign-exchange benefits, as well as tax and regulatory certainty for the next 30 years. Teslas lithium supplier is likely to qualify. If so, Mileis plan would give Tesla unusual stability and predictability in its access to Argentinian lithium until at least 2054. The proposal passed the countrys lower chamber on April 30. Things began to sour after the 2016 election, however, when Cohen did not receive an offer to be part of the Trump administration, where he had hoped to be appointed a chief of staff, a special counsel, or even attorney-general. As Stormy Daniels former lawyer, Keith Davidson, told the jury earlier, Cohen called him a few weeks after Trumps 2016 victory over Hillary Clinton, and was so despondent and shattered that I thought he was going to kill himself. I cant believe Im not going to Washington, Davidson recalled Cohen saying in an expletive-filled rant. Ive saved that guys ass so many times, you dont even know. From there, things went from bad to worse for the 57-year-old. In 2018, a few months after The Wall Street Journal broke the news of a cover-up of Daniels affair with Trump, Cohens home and offices were raided by the FBI, who seized documents relating to the hush money payments as well as personal, financial and banking records. By December, he was sentenced to three years in prison for campaign finance violations, tax evasion and lying to Congress. Recently, the president tweeted a statement calling me weak and it was correct but for a much different reason than he was implying, an emotional Cohen said at the time. It was because time and time again I felt it was my duty to cover up his dirty deeds. Stormy Daniels in 2022. Credit: Getty The dirty deeds allegedly included a hush money scheme that began in mid-2015, shortly after Trump announced he would run for president. The court heard that was when Trump, Cohen, and tabloid mogul David Pecker, the publisher of the National Enquirer, hatched a plan to bury any potentially damaging stories that could derail the Republicans campaign a practice known as catch and kill. Australian journalist Dylan Howard, who worked alongside Pecker as the editor of the National Enquirer at the time, was also a co-conspirator in the scheme, with text messages outlined in court showing how the pair regularly chatted via Signal, an encrypted phone messaging app, to keep sensitive matters private. Dylan Howard, a former Channel Seven reporter pictured here in New York in 2014 made a career for himself in the US tabloid industry. Credit: Getty Images According to Cohen, Trump warned Cohen that when he announced his presidential campaign, there would be a lot of women coming forward. And soon enough, they did. The first story they moved to bury came from a Trump doorman who alleged that Trump had a love child. Even though the story didnt end up checking out, the doorman was paid $US30,000 by Peckers company, American Media Inc, to sign a non-disclosure agreement and bury the matter. The second involved Karen McDougal, a former Playboy playmate who was paid $US150,000 by AMI to kill news of a months-long affair with Trump in 2006, when he was newly married to his wife, Melania. And the third which specifically relates to the 34 charges Trump now faces involved the $US130,000 Cohen himself paid to Daniels by taking out a line of credit on his house and funnelling it through a shell company set up specifically to hide the payment. Trump later reimbursed him by allegedly falsifying business records to disguise the hush money as a legal retainer. Evidence presented to the court last week by the Trump Organisations former controller included handwritten notes he said were stapled to a bank statement with instructions for how the money would be paid out and how much Cohen would make on the payments. A court sketch of Michael Cohen (right) testifying on the witness stand in Manhattan criminal court. Credit: AP According to Cohens testimony, Trump had ordered him to make the payment as the election day loomed, fearing that Daniels could tank his campaign particularly following a damning Access Hollywood tape in which Trump was heard bragging about grabbing women by the genitals. Cohen told the jury about the catastrophic impact they feared Daniels story could have on Trumps chances of becoming president if it got out, and of Trump reportedly telling him that, while guys would think its cool ... women are gonna hate me. Loading He also testified that Trump was intimately involved in the deal everything required Mr Trumps sign-off, Cohen said and in a meeting the pair had with the Trump Organisations chief financial officer at the time to discuss the reimbursement. And in evidence that caused Trump to shake his head vigorously, Cohen also recalled asking Trump how his wife might take everything that was happening and that Trump, in turn, didnt seem worried, saying he wouldnt be on the market as a single man for long if she left. He wasnt thinking about Melania, Cohen said. This was all about the campaign. The real test for Cohen, however, will come in the form of cross-examination by Trumps lawyers later this week. Loading Their plan is to rip his credibility to shreds and paint him to the jury as someone who has repeatedly changed his story and cant be trusted. Indeed, Cohen is such a problematic witness that he is part of the reason federal government authorities decided not to charge Trump earlier, leaving it to New York prosecutors to pick up the case instead. Whether the volatile lawyer can stay calm in the face of hostile attacks could make all the difference in a case that could reshape the contours of the presidential election in November. Breeding center in SW China's Sichuan helps boost crested ibis population People's Daily Online) 14:01, May 13, 2024 A breeding center in Muchuan county, southwest China's Sichuan Province, celebrated the birth of a crested ibis chick on April 21, marking the facility's first successful hatching of the endangered species this year. The center now houses over 80 crested ibises, often referred to as "the Oriental gem." Photo shows the first crested ibis chick born this year at the Crested Ibis Breeding Center in Muchuan county, southwest China's Sichuan Province. (cbgc.scol.com.cn/Chen Junling) In the following 10 days, four more crested ibis chicks were born at the breeding center. Estimates suggest that the number of crested ibises at the center will approach 100 this year. The breeding center, surrounded by lush greenery, is located near Muchuan Wetland Park. Upon entering the center, visitors can see two rows of tall breeding cages on the left, divided into 24 "rooms" based on their function. Half of these rooms are dedicated to crested ibis couples, providing independent breeding environments for the birds during the breeding season. The cages are equipped with ponds, trees, and perches to simulate the ibises' natural habitat. A total of 79 adult crested ibises reside in this area. Photo shows the entrance of the Crested Ibis Breeding Center in Muchuan county, southwest China's Sichuan Province. (cbgc.scol.com.cn/Chen Junling) The building on the right side of the center is primarily used for hatching and raising chicks. Wu Yongzhong, a technician at the center, was preparing a variety of food for the crested ibis chicks at 1 p.m. "These were mixed yesterday with the right proportions and refrigerated. The main ingredients include loach, northern snakehead fish, and egg yolk," explained Wu. A staff member prepares food for crested ibis chicks at the Crested Ibis Breeding Center in Muchuan county, southwest China's Sichuan Province. (cbgc.scol.com.cn/Chen Junling) The chicks are fed three times a day, with two of the feedings supplemented with vitamins. After feeding, Wu delicately cleans each chick and attentively observes their growth. After caring for the chicks, Wu entered the incubation room, which contained multiple square incubators on a table, each with over 20 crested ibis eggs visible through transparent covers. However, hatching is not as simple as waiting for the eggs to crack. "During this period, we frequently encounter issues such as deformed eggs and low fertilization rates, which reduce the chances of healthy chicks hatching to less than 50 percent," said Wu. To increase the likelihood of successful hatching, the staff must routinely rotate the eggs to maintain consistent heat distribution for the embryos. They also closely monitor the development of the embryos throughout the incubation period. Photo shows crested ibis eggs in an incubator at the Crested Ibis Breeding Center in Muchuan county, southwest China's Sichuan Province. (cbgc.scol.com.cn/Chen Junling) Before joining the breeding center in 2019, Wu was a giant panda keeper for many years. In his opinion, raising crested ibises is more challenging than raising giant pandas. "We expect to hatch around 15 healthy crested ibis babies this year, bringing the total number at the breeding center close to 100," Wu said. The crested ibis breeding center, which faced a newborn survival crisis last year, is now combining artificial and natural breeding methods. Adult ibises incubate their own eggs and receive assistance during rearing, leading to an improved chick survival rate, according to Wu. The breeding center is also currently building a new aviary, according to an official from the Muchuan forestry bureau. The 3,000-square-meter site will include ecological aviaries and training enclosures simulating the ibises' natural environment, becoming Sichuan's first training site for releasing crested ibises into the wild. An aviary is under construction at the Crested Ibis Breeding Center in Muchuan county, southwest China's Sichuan Province. (cbgc.scol.com.cn/Chen Junling) Dr. Yang Qionghua, technical director of the breeding center, said the site is projected to be completed this summer. After completion, the first group of around 30 adult crested ibises will be trained before being released into the wild. (Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun) YEREVAN, MAY 13, ARMENPRESS. France urges Armenia and Azerbaijan to persist in the demarcation of their border, adhering to the principles established on April 19, 2024, and to continue the initial demarcation efforts conducted on-site, stated the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In the statement, France welcomes the holding of a new round of negotiations between the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan. France underlines the importance of reaffirming the parties' commitment to the 1991 Almaty Declaration and mutual recognition of each other's territorial integrity as a basis for this process and as a follow-up to the quadrilateral meeting held in Prague on 7 October 2022. France further urges the continuation of discussions aimed at signing a peace treaty between the two nations and applauds the initiative of Kazakh authorities to facilitate these negotiations. Noted that France will continue to work with its partners in the interest of establishing a just and stable peace in the South Caucasus in accordance with international law. The talks between the Foreign Minister of Armenia, Ararat Mirzoyan, and the Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan, Jeyhun Bayramov, occurred on May 10-11 in Almaty, Kazakhstan. The ministers welcomed the progress in demarcation and the agreements reached in that direction. The ministers and their delegations continued the discussions on the draft bilateral agreement "On establishment of peace and interstate relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan". The parties agreed to continue negotiations on unresolved issues where differences still exist. During the visit, the ministers met separately and bilaterally with the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan Murat Nurtleu. Minister Mirzoyan expressed his gratitude to the Kazakh side for hosting the negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan. PHILIPSBURG:--- In his first week in office, the Honorable Prime Minister of St. Maarten, Dr. Luc Mercelina, has demonstrated a proactive and hands-on approach to governance by personally overseeing clean-up operations at the Government Administration Building. Recognizing the pivotal role of the Government Administration Building as a symbol of public service and governance, Prime Minister Mercelina emphasized the importance of maintaining a pristine environment for civil servants and visitors. He stressed that the first impression of the Government Administration and its surroundings sets the tone for the work carried out within its walls, and it is essential for both morale and productivity. During his visit over the weekend, Prime Minister Mercelina expressed his gratitude to all those involved in the clean-up efforts, highlighting their dedication and commitment to ensuring a conducive working environment for civil servants and a welcoming atmosphere for visitors. He underscored that the Government Building is not merely a structure but the "people's house," and it should reflect the pride and ownership of the community it serves. Furthermore, Prime Minister Mercelina reaffirmed his commitment to ongoing internal and external improvements at the Government Administration Building. He pledged to monitor progress closely and ensure that the necessary resources and support are provided to sustain the momentum of positive change. Prime Minister Mercelina reiterated his appreciation for the collaborative efforts of all stakeholders in enhancing the Government Administration Building. He emphasized that by working together, the government and the people of St. Maarten can continue to build a brighter future for all. ~HNLMS Groningen intercepted two drug shipments in the Caribbean on April 24 and 28.~ WILLEMSTAD:--- An American maritime patrol aircraft discovered both go-fasts, after which HNLMS Groningen was called into action. HNLMS Groningen set course for the go-fasts and then launched her fast interceptor boats with the Fleet Marine Squadron and Law Enforcement Detachment of the U.S. Coast Guard on board. In the first action, the suspects did not simply surrender. That happened only after verbal warnings. In the second action, that was not necessary. The four suspects and a total of 1,072 kilograms of cocaine were turned over to the U.S. Coast Guard. The drugs have been destroyed, and the suspects will be prosecuted in America. HNLMS Groningen has been active in the Caribbean again since early April 2024. The Dutch naval vessel is deployed for counterdrug operations in alternating cooperation with the U.S. Coast Guard and the Dutch Caribbean Coast Guard. BES ISLANDS:--- In a criminal investigation conducted by the National Criminal Investigation Department into a violent incident, three employees of the Dutch Caribbean Police Force (KPCN) were arrested today, Monday, the 13th of May. They are suspected of assault and forgery/perjury. The KPCN previously started a disciplinary investigation following a recent violent incident involving members of the force. Signals of integrity violations in relation to this incident emerged from both internal findings and from citizens of Bonaire. The force takes these types of signals very seriously and, therefore, started the disciplinary investigation. After finding criminal components in the disciplinary investigation by the KPCN, consultations took place with the Public Prosecution Office (OM). The Public Prosecution Office then transferred information about the case to the National Criminal Investigation Department. This led to a criminal investigation, and the three arrests were made this morning. Due to the ongoing criminal investigation, no further details can be provided at this time about the violent incident in question, the involvement of the employees, and the investigation itself. Despite the fact that only limited information can be shared at this stage so as not to harm the criminal investigation, Chief of Police Alwyn Braaf would like to emphasize that the force leadership team intervenes when there are signals of integrity violations. Braaf: Integrity is the basis of good police work. As the police, we serve society, and members of the force serve as an example. Something for which they took an oath or promise when they were appointed. Society can therefore expect us to act carefully and adequately, to take responsibility for this and to be transparent about it. We take signals of actions that are not appropriate or compatible with a position in the police seriously and will investigate it thoroughly. We will, of course, await the outcome of the investigation, but as the police leadership team, we can already say that we will take decisive and strong action against inappropriate and/or punishable behavior. In addition to the current investigation, the force will also make efforts to prevent undesirable situations in the future to ensure that society can rely on an honest organization in which the well-being and safety of citizens always come first. Professional and binding action by members of the force towards citizens is crucial to guarantee our legitimacy as a police organization. We, therefore, owe it to society and our own colleagues to actively work as a police leadership team to prevent integrity issues and to intervene if necessary. The realization that we as an organization still have steps to take in the field of integrity is painful, but we do not shy away from it. On the contrary, we want to take those steps, says Alwyn Braaf. KPCN Press Release. PHILIPSBURG: --- Chairlady of Parliament Sarah Wescot Williams said on Monday at a press conference that she will be calling a fourth Public Meeting of Parliament on Monday, May 20th, to verify the credentials of the two incoming Members of Parliament, namely Richnel Bruk and Viren Kotai. Wescot Williams said that six members of Parliament have traveled to Brazil to attend Parlatino meetings, so the parliament of St. Maarten will not have sufficient members present to form a quorum for the meeting to be held before May 20th. SMN News asked Wescot Williams why the eight members of parliament who form the two-by-four coalition did not show up for the meeting on May 2nd when it was first called. Wescot Williams said that she could not say exactly why all members of parliament did not attend that meeting. Regarding the meeting held on Monday, May 6th, Wescot Williams was also asked if she, as the chair of parliament, was within her rights to deny the opposition members of parliament the opportunity to vote when they asked that an agenda point be added, which was dismissed. Wescot Williams made clear that she was fully within her rights not only to deny the request to modify the agenda of the meeting and to add agenda points but also that she was within her rights based on the rules of order to refuse the vote. The chair of parliament was also asked to explain how the parliament of St. Maarten could book the letters of resignation on May 1st, a public holiday; Wescot Williams explained that the letter of resignation was sent by email on April 29th, 2020, stating that the resignation goes into effect as of May 3rd, 2024. Wescot Williams said that even though May 1st was a public holiday, the Parliament of St. Maarten continues to work even on a public holiday. Wescot Williams said she is hopeful that all members of parliament will show up to carry out their duties and that the parliament of St. Maarten will not have to head to court to get the documents of the incoming members of parliament, or they may have to use other options such as seeking the governors assistance or the Kingdom Council. The chair of parliament also admitted that there is a standoff in the parliament of St. Maarten. Microsoft, Amazon to invest billions in French tech Paris, May 12 (AFP) May 12, 2024 Microsoft on Sunday announced four billion euros in investment for developing data centres in France, joining fellow US giant Amazon in committing to the country's tech infrastructure. The announcements came on the eve of the seventh Choose France Summit, the aim of which is to attract foreign investors to the country. Macron will host it at the Chateau of Versailles near Paris. Microsoft's president Brad Smith told AFP the move to strengthen its artificial intelligence and cloud computing infrastructure was the tech giant's biggest-ever investment in France since its arrival 41 years ago. France's "longstanding commitment to carbon-free energy markets" and its status as a "critical leader" in Europe explained the decision, Smith said. A new data centre will be created in eastern France, while existing sites in the Paris region and the southern city of Marseille will be expanded. E-commerce behemoth Amazon will invest more than 1.2 billion euros in France, creating more than 3,000 jobs, French President Emmanuel Macron's office said earlier on Sunday. The money will help develop Amazon Web Services' (AWS) cloud infrastructure, mainly generative artificial intelligence, and the logistical infrastructure of its parcel delivery service, a statement added. Amazon did not respond to approaches by AFP on Sunday, having recently said it did not want to make any comment ahead of a possible announcement that would be made at the event. The US company has already announced the creation of 2,000 new jobs in France in 2024, which would bring its staff workforce in the country up to 24,000 by the end of the year, mainly in its logistics centres. AWS is a key subsidiary of the group, having made $25 billion worldwide in the first quarter, capitalising on the growing appetite among businesses for remote computer and artificial intelligence services. As Choose France prepared to get under way, several pharmaceutical groups, including US group Pfizer and Britain's AstraZeneca, announced on Sunday commitments to invest more than a billion euros more in France's health sector. The largest industrial project announced so far is a potential fertiliser factory, which could significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions. European consortium FertigHy is to announce it is looking at investing 1.3 billion euros ($1.4 billion) into a factory in the Somme region in northern France, Industry Minister Roland Lescure told France's La Tribune Dimanche newspaper. ys/imm/jj MICROSOFT Amazon.com Pfizer YEREVAN, MAY 13, ARMENPRESS. At least 15 people were killed on May 12 when a section of a Russian apartment block collapsed after being struck by fragments of a Soviet-era missile, launched by Ukraine and shot down by Russia, Russian officials said. According to Vyacheslav Gladkov, governor of the region, 4 more people died on Sunday in separate attacks by Kyiv. 27 people were injured, Gladkov said on the Telegram messaging app. This was one of the deadliest attacksto date on the region of Belgorod. According to the Russian Ministry of Defense Ukraine launched a massive missile attack, involving Tochka ballistic missiles and Vilkha and RM-70 Vampire (MLRS) multiple launch rocket systems. Booking.com to face tough new EU tech rules Brussels, Belgium, May 13 (AFP) May 13, 2024 The European Union on Monday added Dutch online travel giant Booking.com to its list of digital companies that are big enough to fall under tougher competition rules. Brussels also said it would investigate whether social media platform X, owned by tech billionaire Elon Musk, can be exempted from the rules. The former Twitter has filed a rebuttal arguing that "despite meeting the thresholds, X does not qualify as a important gateway between businesses and consumers," said the European Commission, whose probe should wrap up within five months. Booking.com, whose parent company Booking Holdings is headquartered in the United States, now has six months to prepare for compliance with the landmark Digital Markets Act (DMA). The EU has already named six market "gatekeepers" that have to comply with the DMA: Google parent Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft and TikTok owner ByteDance. The rules aim to level the playing field in the digital market, ensuring EU users have more options when choosing products such as web browsers and search engines. The DMA also demands that companies inform Brussels before acquisitions of other firms, regardless of size, in a bid to curb monopolies. Booking.com is a dominant player with a market share in Europe of more than 60 percent. The EU's internal market commissioner, Thierry Breton, vowed the EU "will work to make sure it will fully comply with the DMA obligations within six months". - Companies in the crosshairs - With the DMA, the EU can impose fines of up to 10 percent of a company's total global turnover. This can rise to 20 percent for repeat offenders and in the most severe circumstances, the EU can order the break up of companies. The EU has not shied away from taking on the biggest digital platforms, like Booking, through its new laws or using older, more established rules. Brussels last year blocked Booking's bid for eTraveli, a smaller online travel agent, citing fears any approval could lead to higher prices for consumers. The EU has already launched probes under the DMA into Apple, Google and Meta. For Brussels to name a company as a gatekeeper, they must fulfil certain conditions. The criteria include having more than 45 million monthly active users in the EU and more than 10,000 yearly active business users established in the bloc. Digital companies with an annual turnover in the EU of at least 7.5 billion euros ($8.1 billion) or a market value of above 75 billion euros also face the new curbs. In the same statement on Monday, the commission also said it opted not to include advertising services provided by X and TikTok on its list. raz/ec/lth PRICELINE GROUP X GOOGLE Alphabet Inc. Amazon.com Apple Meta Thousands evacuated as Russia advances in Ukraine's Kharkiv region Ukraine, May 12 (AFP) May 12, 2024 Russia said Sunday it had captured four more villages in Ukraine's Kharkiv region, as thousands of residents were evacuated from the offensive in an area where Russian troops were repelled in 2022. President Volodymyr Zelensky said "fierce fighting" was under way and governor Oleg Synegubov said "all areas" of the regional border with Russia were now "under enemy fire almost around the clock". In Moscow, Russian President Vladimir Putin moved to replace defence minister Sergei Shoigu, in what would be a major shake-up of the military leadership. Across the border in the Russian city of Belgorod, emergency services said eight people were killed when a residential building was hit by a Ukrainian missile after it was intercepted by air defences. In Ukraine, local prosecutors said four civilians had been killed in the Kharkiv region in the Russian ground offensive, which was launched on Friday. The Ukrainian army's top commander said that although the situation was "complicated", his forces were managing to hold back further Russian advances. But Russia's defence ministry said its forces had "advanced deeply into the enemy defences", a day after claiming the capture of five villages in Kharkiv region. At an evacuation point near the front line in the Kharkiv region, AFP reporters on Sunday saw groups of people evacuated from around the border town of Vovchansk, most of them elderly and disoriented. "We weren't going to leave. Home is home," said 72-year-old Lyuda Zelenskaya, hugging a trembling cat named Zhora. Liuba Konovalova, 70, said she had endured a "really terrifying" night before her evacuation. Volunteers assisted evacuees to a few wooden benches where they registered and received food before being evacuated towards Kharkiv, the regional capital. In the last few days, nearly 6,000 residents in and around Vovchansk have been evacuated, said Kharkiv governor Synegubov. "Defensive battles and fierce fighting continue on a large part of our border," Zelensky said in his evening address. "There are villages that have actually turned from a 'grey zone' into a combat zone, and the occupier is trying to gain a foothold in some of them, or simply use them for further advancement," he said. A "grey zone" is territory not fully controlled by either side. Zelensky added the situation was "extremely difficult" around Vovchansk. - 'Everything is being destroyed' - Speaking at an evacuation point near Vovchansk, Oleksiy Kharkivsky, a senior police officer helping to coordinate evacuations, said the area was "constantly under fire". "Everything in the city is being destroyed... You hear constant explosions, artillery, mortars. The enemy is hitting the city with everything they have," he said. Officials estimated there were still around 500 civilians left in Vovchansk as Russian troops close in. Volodymyr Tymoshko, head of police in the Kharkiv region, said the town was being attacked on three sides and Russian troops were on the outskirts. "Despite active fighting, the police are still taking out people who live some 300, 500 metres from the contact line at the moment," he told AFP at the evacuation point. Ukraine's commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrsky said on social media that his army's defences were holding but conceded the situation in the Kharkiv region had "deteriorated significantly". - 'Return the initiative to Ukraine' - In Kharkiv itself, mayor Igor Terekhov was quoted by the city council as saying there was no reason for people to leave the city despite the offensive. "Despite all the events that are taking place in the region, Kharkiv is calm. We do not see people leaving," he was quoted as saying. On Saturday, AFP saw groups of people fleeing the border area arriving in vans and cars loaded with bags at a reception centre for evacuees near Kharkiv. Evacuees -- most of them elderly -- received food and medical assistance. Zelensky said on Saturday that Ukrainian troops had been carrying out counterattacks in the border villages. "Disrupting Russian offensive plans is now our number one task," he said. Troops must "return the initiative to Ukraine", the president insisted, again urging Western allies to speed up arms deliveries. Ukrainian officials had warned for weeks that Moscow might try to attack its northeastern border regions, pressing its advantage as Ukraine struggles with delays in Western aid and manpower shortages. Putin's announcement that Shoigu was being removed as defence minister is expected to be approved by Russia's parliament on Tuesday. His replacement, Andrey Belousov, has no military background. He has been one of Putin's most influential economic advisers over the last decade. Shoigu has been named as secretary of the Security Council, replacing long-standing Putin ally Nikolai Patrushev. Concern about Russia dominates as Lithuanians vote Vilnius, May 12 (AFP) May 12, 2024 Lithuania voted Sunday in a presidential election dominated by security concerns with the main candidates all agreed the NATO and EU member should boost defence spending to counter the perceived threat from neighbouring Russia. The Baltic state of 2.8 million people fears it could be next in Russia's crosshairs if Moscow wins its war against Ukraine. While the top three contenders agree on defence, they have diverging views on social issues and on Lithuania's relations with China, which have been strained for years over Taiwan. "Lithuania's understanding of the Russian threat is unanimous and unquestionable, so the main candidates are following suit," Eastern Europe Studies Centre director Linas Kojala told AFP. Polls closed at 1700 GMT and the result was expected in the coming hours. A run-off on May 26 will probably be needed with no candidate expected to win an overall majority. Opinion polls gave the incumbent, 59-year-old former banker Gitanas Nauseda, a comfortable lead over the other seven candidates, who include Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte and prominent lawyer Ignas Vegele. Pensioner Aldona Majauskiene, 82, told AFP she had voted for Nauseda because "he is the best in every category". 53-year-old civil servant Airine said she voted for Simonyte and expects less populism from the future president. "I am not voting for faces, I am voting for those who really can help boost our security and quality of living," she said. As he voted with his wife in the outskirts of Vilnius, Nauseda said: "I believe everything will be alright." Looking ahead to parliamentary elections later this year, Nauseda said he expected a "socially sensitive" ruling coalition to come out of them. Turnout was more than 59 percent -- the highest result since the 1997 presidential election. The Lithuanian president steers defence and foreign policy, attending EU and NATO summits, but must consult with the government and parliament on appointing the most senior officials. Lithuania, a former Soviet republic, is a top donor to Ukraine and a big defence spender, with a military budget currently equal to 2.75 percent of GDP. - Defence budget - The Simonyte-led government is expected to come forward with proposals within weeks that could help lift defence spending to three percent of GDP. Lithuania intends to use the funds to purchase tanks and additional air defence systems, and to host a German brigade, as Berlin plans to complete the stationing of around 5,000 troops by 2027. None of the top candidates appears to question these plans, but Vegele has pledged to ask for a defence audit to effectively manage finances if elected. Nauseda is projected to win more than 35 percent of first-round votes and is expected to prevail in any eventual run-off. Vegele, a 48-year-old lawyer who gained prominence after speaking out against mandated vaccination during the pandemic, presents himself as an alternative to established politicians and vows more transparent governance. Simonyte, 49, is a fiscal conservative with liberal views on social issues. She notably supports same-sex partnerships, which still stir controversy in the predominantly Catholic country. Simonyte is running for president for a second time after losing to Nauseda in a run-off in 2019. "Simonyte is supported by conservative party voters and liberal people, while Nauseda is a candidate of the left in terms of economic and social policy," Vilnius University analyst Ramunas Vilpisauskas told AFP. Meanwhile, "Vegele will get support from those who simply want change", he added. - Tensions over Taiwan - The uneasy relationship between Nauseda and his rival Simonyte's ruling conservatives has at times triggered foreign policy debates, most notably on Lithuania's relations with China. Bilateral ties turned tense in 2021, when Vilnius allowed Taiwan to open a de facto embassy under the island's name in a departure from the common diplomatic practice of using the name of the capital Taipei to avoid angering Beijing. China, which considers Taiwan a part of its territory and bristles at anything that might lend the island any sense of international legitimacy, downgraded diplomatic relations with Vilnius and blocked its exports, causing some Lithuanian politicians to urge a restoration of relations for economic reasons. "China's reaction to the opening of the office was harsher than predicted, and that sparked the debate," Kojala said, adding China's response was hurting local businesses. Putin removes defence minister Shoigu Moscow, May 12 (AFP) May 12, 2024 Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday moved to replace defence minister Sergei Shoigu in a major shake-up to Russia's military leadership more than two years into its Ukraine offensive. Putin proposed economist Andrey Belousov as Shoigu's replacement, according to a list of the ministerial nominations published by the Federation Council, Russia's upper house of parliament. The move comes at a key time in the conflict with Russian troops advancing in eastern Ukraine and having just launched a major new ground operation against the northeastern Kharkiv region. Despite a string of military setbacks in the first year of the campaign -- including the failure to capture the Ukrainian capital Kyiv and retreats from the Kharkiv and southern Kherson regions -- Putin had stood by Shoigu until now. That included when Wagner paramilitary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin launched a bloody insurrection last year calling for Shoigu's removal. Explaining the timing of the decision, the Kremlin on Sunday said it needed the defence ministry to stay "innovative". "The defence ministry must be absolutely open to innovation, to the introduction of all advanced ideas, to the creation of conditions for economic competitiveness," state media quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying in a briefing on the appointments. "The battlefield is won by whoever is more open to innovation," Peskov said. "That is likely why the president has settled on the candidacy of Andrey Belousov," he added. Belousov, who has no military background, has been one of Putin's most influential economic advisers over the last decade. UK defence minister Grant Shapps said the Ukraine conflict had left more than 355,000 Russian soldier casualties under Shoigu's watch as well as "mass civilian suffering". "Russia needs a Defence Minister who would undo that disastrous legacy" and end the conflict, "but all they'll get is another of Putin's puppets," he wrote on X, formerly Twitter. - Siberian retreats - Shoigu, 68, was appointed Russian defence minister in 2012 and has had a decades-long political career of unmatched longevity in post-Soviet Russia. His presence at the centre of power in Moscow predates that of Putin himself. Prior to Russia launching its full-scale military campaign on Ukraine in February 2022, he was seen as one of Putin's most trusted lieutenants. The pair were regularly photographed on macho nature retreats in the Siberian wilderness, hunting and fishing together. In one famous snap from 2017 shared by the Kremlin, they are sitting bare-chested under the sun on a beach by a lake. On Sunday, Putin simultaneously issued decrees naming Shoigu as the new secretary of the Security Council, replacing his longstanding ally Nikolai Patrushev. The Kremlin also said Valery Gerasimov, the Chief of the General Staff, would stay in post overseeing daily military operations in Ukraine. Along with Shoigu, Gerasimov had been targeted by a hardcore group of influential pro-offensive military bloggers for Moscow's perceived military failures. Prigozhin, who marched on Moscow calling for the pair's removal, died in an unexplained plane crash weeks after his aborted mutiny. - Key moment - Putin is constitutionally required to name a new set of government ministers -- or reappoint existing ones -- following his victory in a March election devoid of opposition. Lawmakers in Russia's rubber-stamp parliament need to approve the president's nominations, which they are set to do over the coming days. The future of Patrushev, an arch-hawk who is sometimes seen as a possible successor to Putin, was unclear. There was no immediate high-level reaction to the shake-up in Ukraine. The changes come at a crucial time in the conflict, which had been showing signs of a stalemate for months. Putin casts the fight against Ukraine as a near-existential battle for his country, calling it just one front of a "hybrid war" between Russia and the West. bur/imm/jj Blinken: Israel offensive on Rafah would not eliminate Hamas Washington, May 13 (AFP) May 13, 2024 An all-out Israeli offensive on the Gaza city of Rafah would provoke "anarchy" without eliminating Hamas, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Sunday, as Washington stepped up a pressure campaign against such an assault. Separately, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan emphasized Washington's concerns about an offensive in a call with his Israeli counterpart, Tzachi Hanegbi. "Mr. Sullivan reiterated President Biden's longstanding concerns over the potential for a major military ground operation into Rafah, where over one million people have taken shelter," a White House readout of the phone call said. It said Hanegbi "confirmed that Israel is taking US concerns into account," but did not elaborate. Israeli bombardment in the eastern parts of Rafah have already sent 300,000 Gazans fleeing. The United States and other countries, as well as top UN officials, have warned that a full-out assault on Rafah could have a disastrous impact on the refugees driven there by fighting elsewhere in Gaza, many of them living in desperate conditions. Israel has said it is attempting to keep civilian casualties to a minimum. But Blinken, when asked on CBS's "Face the Nation" whether the US concurred with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's statement that Israeli forces had killed more civilians than Hamas militants since the war began, replied simply, "Yes, we do." Blinken said a full-scale invasion could come "potentially at an incredibly high cost" and that even a massive assault on Rafah was unlikely to end the Hamas threat. "Israel's on the trajectory, potentially, to inherit an insurgency with many armed Hamas left, or if it leaves, a vacuum filled by chaos, filled by anarchy and probably refilled by Hamas," he said. Blinken also confirmed that the hold President Joe Biden has placed on weapons to Israel -- as the US continues pressing it to better protect civilians and avoid an all-out invasion of Rafah -- is limited to 3,500 "high-capacity" bombs. He said the United States was continuing to press Israeli leaders to provide a plan for Gaza once the war is finally over, telling NBC's "Meet the Press" that "we've been talking to them about a much better way of getting an enduring result." The US diplomat said Hamas militants had already returned to certain areas of northern Gaza that Israel had "liberated." - Death toll tops 35,000 - Blinken also spoke Sunday with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, insisting again the United States opposed a major Israel ground operation in Rafah, the State Department said. "The Secretary underscored the urgent need to protect civilians and aid workers in Gaza and urged the Minister to ensure assistance can move into Gaza and help address distribution challenges inside of Gaza as Israel pursues Hamas targets," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement. Israel struck Gaza on Sunday and troops battled militants in several areas of the Hamas-run territory, where the health ministry said the death toll in the war had exceeded 35,000 people. More than seven months into the war, UN chief Antonio Guterres urged "an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, the unconditional release of all hostages and an immediate surge in humanitarian aid." Asked about a State Department report issued Friday that said Israel likely has violated norms of international law in its use of US weapons, Blinken said there was still too little evidence to warrant ending all military support. The chaotic and dangerous conditions of an ongoing war, he said, made it "very difficult" to determine exactly what was happening, or what weapons were used, in any specific action. Republicans have been sharply critical even of Biden's limited halt to providing bombs. Senator Tom Cotton, who serves on the Armed Services Committee, told CBS that the State Department report "was very clear: there is no evidence that Israel is violating international law." He said Israel "is doing more than any military in history to prevent civilian casualties." King Charles appoints William to lead Harry's old regiment London, May 13 (AFP) May 13, 2024 Britain's King Charles III officially handed over the role of Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps to Prince William on Monday, in a rare joint engagement with his elder son and heir. The head of state joined William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, southern England, appointing him colonel-in-chief of his younger son Prince Harry's old regiment. The 75-year-old monarch's decision to hand the role, which he held for 32 years, to William, 41, was seen as a snub to Harry when it was announced last year. Harry, 39, is a former army captain and served as an Apache helicopter pilot with the Army Air Corps in Afghanistan. But he has become estranged from his father and brother since leaving the royal family in early 2020 and moving to the United States with his American wife, Meghan. The king, who announced he had cancer in February and is receiving treatment, said the event was bittersweet, as it was a "great joy" to attend but sad to hand over the baton after 32 years. "I do hope you'll go from strength to strength in the future with the Prince of Wales as your new colonel-in-chief," he told the regiment in a speech. "The great thing is he's a very good pilot indeed. So that's encouraging," said the king. William worked as a Royal Air Force search and rescue pilot and also flew for a civilian air ambulance unit before taking up full-time royal duties. His appointment came just days after Harry visited London but did not meet his father due to what he said was the king's "full programme". The lack of meeting -- even for a short time -- was interpreted as a blow to Harry, who then flew on to Nigeria and a three-day tour with Meghan. The Duke of Sussex, as Harry is also known, did not meet William either, who was scheduled for a visit to Cornwall in southwest England. Harry's relationship with his father has been strained by his revelations and criticisms of royal life aired in a television interview, a Netflix documentary and his autobiography "Spare". A possible end to four years of rancour and score settling was previously seen as on the cards in February, when Harry jetted in from California to briefly see his father. The king has recently resumed public engagements after doctors said they were "very encouraged" by the progress of his treatment. aks/phz/gil Andrei Belousov: The economist in charge of Russia's army Moscow, May 13 (AFP) May 13, 2024 An economist and technocrat with no military background, Russia's new defence minister Andrei Belousov has been tasked with deploying his number-crunching skills and bureaucratic oversight to secure Russian victory against Ukraine. Belousov has been one of President Vladimir Putin's most trusted and influential advisers and is widely seen as his point man on all things related to the domestic economy. His move to the defence ministry signals a shift in the Kremlin's understanding of the current state of the conflict and of how it can beat Ukraine: by outspending Kyiv and outlasting the West. "For the West, Belousov's appointment as defence minister is bad news. It is the development of the theme of a war of attrition," independent Russian political analyst Konstantin Kalachev said. "The main aim is to exhaust and bleed out the enemy, and cause fatigue and discord among its allies," he added. Belousov, 65, is unlikely to have a big sway over military decisions. Instead, he will oversee the billions of dollars Moscow spends on everything from missiles, tanks and bullets to soldiers' salaries and welfare payments. On Monday, Belousov said he would tackle "excessive bureaucracy" at the ministry. The Rybar Telegram channel, which is close to the Russian military, said Belousov would oversee a "major audit and restructuring" of the army's finances and approach to procurement. The defence ministry was rocked by a corruption scandal in April when Deputy Defence Minister Timur Ivanov -- a key ally of Belousov's predecessor Sergei Shoigu -- was arrested on suspicion of taking bribes. - 'Innovation' - As First Deputy Prime Minister Belusov has pushed for aggressive state spending to boost arms production and overcome Western sanctions. Russia's military spending has swelled to around seven percent of GDP this year. "He's somebody Putin trusts, especially when it comes to economic issues," Rybar noted. The Kremlin said Belousov's background made him the right fit to take over the defence ministry at this juncture. "Today the winner on the battlefield is the one who is more open to innovation," state news agencies quoted Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying. "It is very important to fit the economy of the security sector into the economy of the country," he added. Valery Gerasimov, the Chief of the General Staff who oversees military operations and reports directly to Putin is set to stay in place -- a sign that Belousov will have little influence over decisions on the ground. But his appointment signifies a growing belief in Moscow that victory could be determined by developments far away from the front lines. "There is an iron logic to this. Today, the strongest person is the one who can combine the war and the economy in the most comfortable way for the country," said Alexander Sladkov, a pro-Kremlin military blogger. - Trusted Putin adviser - The son of a renowned Soviet economist, Belousov has steadily risen through the government's ranks under Putin's quarter-century rule. Born in 1959 in Moscow, he graduated from Moscow State University and started his career at the Institute of Economic Forecasting at the Russian Academy of Sciences. During Putin's first two terms as president he was an outside advisor to various prime ministers and became deputy economy minister in 2006. When Putin stepped aside to become prime minister in 2008, Belousov headed his economic and financial affairs team. With Putin's 2012 return to the Kremlin, he became economic development minister and a year later an adviser to the president. Belousov gained a reputation as one of Putin's most trusted domestic advisers. He was appointed deputy prime minister in 2020, overseeing support for Russian businesses during the coronavirus pandemic. After Moscow sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022, he was tasked with protecting the Russian economy from the fallout of Western sanctions and reorientating it to support the offensive. During the conflict Belosov has been a key player in developing Russia's domestic drone-manufacturing sector, and one of his last official big projects was boosting Russia's "technological sovereignty." US says Russia defense shake-up shows Putin 'desperation' on war Washington, May 13 (AFP) May 13, 2024 The United States said Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin's removal of his defense minister showed "desperation" over the high costs of the Ukraine invasion. "Our point of view is that this is further indication of Putin's desperation to sustain his war of aggression against Ukraine, despite it being a major drain on the Russian economy and the heavy losses of Russian troops, with some estimates as high as 315,000 casualties," State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters. "The Kremlin's mobilization of its war of aggression against Ukraine has caused so many families to suffer," he said. "Russia started this unprovoked war against Ukraine. Putin could end it at any time by withdrawing his forces from Ukraine." Putin, starting an unprecedented fifth term as president, removed veteran defense minister Sergei Shoigu and replaced him with a top economic official and technocrat, Andrei Belousov. YEREVAN, MAY 13, ARMENPRESS. The OSCE will support Armenia and Azerbaijan so that they can achieve comprehensive peace, was stated by the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of the Republic of Malta, Ian Borg, during a press conference. We will support Armenia and Azerbaijan so that they can reach a comprehensive and stable peace agreement. We aware that both countries prefer to resolve issues bilaterally, and we support this, Borg said. Turning to the question, how does he evaluate the process of demarcation between Armenia and Azerbaijan? He declined to comment on the process of border demarcation between Armenia and Azerbaijan, stating that expressing an opinion could potentially interfere with the process. If you want to be constructive, it is better to give the parties the opportunity to express their opinions, especially after recent meetings that take place at different levels. I certainly wont help the process if I suddenly announce my position. I will not help this process if we are not part of it. This is a two-way discussion, therefore respect my position, concluded Ian Borg. One of Ian Flemings favourite bars, it is only natural that a martini at Dukes Bar should be on your hit list. Originally created by Salvatore Calabrese, this martini is still served in the cosy hotel bar, most desirably by bar manager Alessandro Palazzi, who has become synonymous with the cocktail. Its preparation is where the magic happens: a frozen glass is swirled with vermouth (the excess of which is then discarded onto the carpet) before a hefty five servings of gin from the freezer are added. Amalfi lemon peel is expressed over the top and then dropped in the glass. One is, frankly, enough. Two? Youre on your own. Three? Its not allowed. The massive bottleneck in supply and demand we saw at the end of 2022 has started to ease significantly but, so far, that hasn't led to average rents falling, as interest rates have gone up over the same period, wiping out any hope that rents would dip in line with demand, said Hutchinson We presented the Government with an opportunity during the passage of the Safety of Rwanda Bill in the House of Commons and the Lords to accept an amendment which would have put beyond doubt what it claims to be the case around the operation of the scheme. The seatholders are not therefore depriving the charity promoter (or artists) of anything. The Hall does encourage seatholders to sell their unused tickets to the public at face value through the box office, but it follows from their ownership that the seatholders may use or sell their tickets in any way they choose. * FIRST NAME * LAST NAME * EMAIL Your email address * PASSWORD Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number Show * YEAR OF BIRTH You must be at least 18 years old to create an account 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 1997 1996 1995 1994 1993 1992 1991 1990 1989 1988 1987 1986 1985 1984 1983 1982 1981 1980 1979 1978 1977 1976 1975 1974 1973 1972 1971 1970 1969 1968 1967 1966 1965 1964 1963 1962 1961 1960 1959 1958 1957 1956 1955 1954 1953 1952 1951 1950 1949 1948 1947 1946 1945 1944 1943 1942 1941 1940 1939 1938 1937 1936 1935 1934 1933 1932 1931 1930 1929 1928 1927 1926 1925 1924 1923 1922 1921 1920 1919 1918 1917 1916 1915 1914 1913 1912 1911 1910 1909 1908 1907 1906 * Required fields I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice CREATE ACCOUNT I'LL TRY LATER Already have an account? SIGN IN By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Diana Nguyen told Yahoo she had briefly stopped outside her Bondi Airbnb on Friday, but was rushing in the rain and left her bank card in the parking meter. An Aussie comedian is poking fun at her accidental pay it forward moment, allowing 21 drivers to rack up $160 in parking fees on her card. Diana Nguyen, who wrapped up her 42 show tour around Australia in Sydney on Mothers Day, said she made the unintentional and expensive kind gesture after leaving her bank card in a parking meter in Bondi, Sydney, for 24 hours. The 39-year-old told Yahoo News she forgot to grab her card while rushing in the heavy rain outside her Airbnb, which she only planned on stopping at for half an hour, on Friday. [On Sunday] morning I woke up, and I was going to pay a friend for some dinner last night, and I just went why is there 21 Waverley Council charges? It didnt make any sense at all. Until I realised that it was all parking meters, Diana laughed. Aussie comedian Diana Nguyen said she returned to the parking meter on Friday to find her bank card just sitting on top. 21 drivers use bank card for parking in Bondi Screenshots of her bank account show 21 different transactions, ranging from $1 to $17.50. When she returned to the parking meter on Sunday, Diana said the card was still there but someone had generously I think thats why it stopped tapping they put it on top of the machine. But the other 21 people didnt, they just left the card in the machine. They must have thought it was some kind of angel in Bondi paying for peoples parking, she joked, making light of the situation, which she couldnt help but note was bizarre. Theres a cafe right next door, someone could have handed the card in. Theres all these scenarios that could have happened that didnt happenno one went shopping with my cardjust 21 transitions of parking. She has since reported the fraud to her bank, but is unsure if shell see the money returned to her account. Comedian's call out after parking meter blunder Laughing off the blunder, Diana posted a photo of her posing with the parking meter and the transactions to the Facebook group Bondi Local Loop on Sunday, urging those who used [her] good deed to come see her perform at the Enmore Theatre that night. If you would like to pay forward the $160 invested outside of my card. See you tonight. Or even a lift would be great! she wrote. Bondi locals also couldnt help but see the funny side, thanking Diana for her community service. Sounds like great material for a new bit, one person commented, to which the comedian responded it would be an expensive joke. Thats crazy! 21 thefts?? Whod do that to a strangers card!? Im so surprised none of the 21 people thought of taking it out and contacting the bank, another said. Although she agreed, Diana argued it had been raining in Bondi for 13 days so people needed some loving and she hopes her good karma is on the way. They do say when you do good, it comes back tenfold. So Im hoping that maybe someone else will pay for someone elses parking, she told Yahoo. Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. In its latest intelligence update, the Ministry of Defence in London said: Since the start of 2024, Russia has highly likely increased its use of light vehicles, such as all-terrain vehicles and off-road motorbikes to transport personnel to the frontlines, and conduct attacks on Ukrainian positions, particularly at night. The appointment of Belousov was being seen as an admission that Russia forces were not going to quickly win the war in Ukraine and instead aimed to dig in for an economic war, in the hope that the West will eventually tire in its support for Kyiv. We have a growing membership at Dounreay, which is down to the hard work of our shop stewards and NRS need to realise, if they dont already, that we are heading for prolonged industrial action. Dr Mary-Ann Stephenson of the Womens Budget Group, which campaigns for more support for families, told the Guardian in February 2024: We need the babies who are born now, because they will be the people whose taxes pay for our health care. These will be the people looking after us in our old age. These will be the doctors and nurses and care workers of the future. The mum has shared her family's ordeal after her son recovered from a month-long illness only to get sick again two days later. An Aussie mum has opened up on the 'revolving door' of daycare illness and its affect on working parents. Source: TikTok A mum has lifted the lid on the horrors of daycare sickness as her son recovered from a month-long bout of illness only to get sick again two days after starting back at the centre. Claudia Rose said her 13-month-old son, who recently started at daycare full-time, had just recovered from a variety of illnesses including croup, RSV, gastro, diarrhoea and his first massive cold, cough, temperature situation which saw him rushed to the emergency room. However, just days after returning to his daycare, the Sydneysider said her sons cough had flared up again. In a video posted to TikTok, she said it was their third week in a row of sickness and added: Coincidentally this is also his third week of going to daycare full-time and Im like: This is horrific. His daycare is great, Rose said. Its lovely, but obviously theres just so many babies altogether and the germs are insane. Its just so draining as a parent, trying to be a working parent and having this constant sickness that you literally cant avoid because you have to send them to daycare. Claudia Rose's toddler has been contracting one illness after another. Source: Getty You hear so much about it and this constant sickness, its you know, our third week of me back at work and yeah, its already non-stop and Im just like: Oh my God, how does everyone do it? How does everyone cope?' Its so hard. Its like a revolving door of sickness. Other mums echoed Claudia's frustration with one saying: "No joke, my daughter was probably sick 10 or 12 times the first year of daycare. It is rough." Another added: "First week of daycare and we have gastro." Paediatrician Dr Elize O'Neill told Yahoo News Australia that despite the distress for the child and the difficulties it causes for the entire family it was essential that children go through these illnesses at a young age to build up their immune systems before school. Many viruses are infectious early on, educator says Early childcare educator Emma Rattenbury said while some services had better cleaning practices than others, even the cleanest centres still experienced outbreaks. Children of that particular age are constantly putting things in their mouths, and their immunity is only just developing, Rattenbury said. Secondly, there's always lots of discussion about parents bringing in their children sick and that's where other children are getting their illness problem. Yes, this does happen. It is unfortunate, but I'm not here to judge. I will just add there are lots of other ways that children are getting sick. For example, with a lot of viruses, children are infectious before they're symptomatic. A childcare educator has shared her take on daycare illness online. Source: Getty And viruses like gastro symptoms can come on out of nowhere and quite quickly, and other viruses like RSP, where the incubation period is five to 10 days, it can be really tricky to try and pick up those cases before it starts to spread like wildfire. She said educators also got sick frequently so it was in the best interests of everyone to only have children coming into the centre who were healthy. Daycares are 'mini Petri dishes' for infections Paediatrician Dr Elize O'Neill said it wasn't unusual for young children to have multiple different viruses at the same time and this often came down to the fact that post-Covid, doctors now swab test for more infections. "Tests have got better over time," she told Yahoo News Australia. "We test for more viruses when we do swabs. The way I think is when you are born, your immune system has to learn how to become an immune system. "It needs to be schooled on how to do that it sees things that it needs to fight, this is always why we do vaccinations. It also probably does come from daycare, we know they are little Petri dishes for infection." Many childcare centres are a breeding ground for viruses a doctor has said. Source: Getty O'Neill said children under five were prone to catching multiple viruses although you could have one who caught "everything under the sun" and another who didn't but ultimately this needed to happen, otherwise they would have weak immune systems at school or even into adulthood. She said pre-Covid, parents had few qualms about taking their child to the park or a playdate with a runny nose, whereas nowadays they might keep them home. "Covid put a lot of fear into a lot of people and we got into a habit where we test for everything," O'Neil added. Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. The Polytechnic University of Timisoara (UPT) ranked first in the country in the area of "Engineering and Computer Science" in the international ScholarGPS ranking, which evaluates academic activity around the world. California-based ScholarGPS, owned and operated by Meta Analytics LL, ranks UPT highly in both the institution and scholar rankings, according to a UPT release on Monday. More than 55,000 institutions are rated, of which 15,000 are academic and more than 30 million are researchers. If the impact of institutions across all areas is considered, the university is ranked VII, after evaluating the last five years of academic activity. The same positions are maintained for academic and non-academic evaluation of activity. ScholarGPS provides assessment and ranking of institutions, areas and disciplines, areas of expertise and researchers at global, national and institutional levels, produces rankings assessing researcher profile, institutional profile, most cited researchers, institutional rankings, most quoted publications and more. For the "Highly Ranked Scholar - Lifetime" category, academicians Ion Boldea and Radu-Emil Precup stand out for their academic performance in the area of expertise "Electrical and Computer Engineering." Academician Ion Boldea ranks third as Romanian researcher. Worth mentioning among the most quoted articles is "Fiber-Reinforced Polymer Composites: Manufacturing, Properties, and Applications," having as co-authors Prof. dr. eng. Linul Emanoil, as well as "Automotive Electric Propulsion Systems With Reduced or No Permanent Magnets: An Overview," co-authored by acad. Ion Boldea, the source also mentions. Employees in the Government's Working Apparatus are participating in a spontaneous protest on Monday, given that their salary demands have not been settled. "Considering the numerous meetings with representatives of the Romanian Government for the settlement of the employees' demands, the fact that the employees of the Romanian Government's Working Apparatus are still being discriminated against in terms of salaries in relation to other categories of employees in the Public Administration sector; taking into account the latest meeting held today, during which the government side refused to correct this injustice, the employees of the Romanian Government's Working Apparatus have initiated and participated in a spontaneous protest today 13. 05.2024, entrance B, Victoriei Square, Government of Romania," reads a press release sent by the National Federation of Administration Trade Unions (FNSA). The main theme of our protest is taxation in Romania, said the trade unionists protesting in front of the government headquarters on Monday, dissatisfied with the high labour tax in force. "Today we have an ugly situation for those who enter the social category of employees. We are the ones who bear the biggest burdens. This thing must stop. Why are we protesting and why are we starting this campaign right now? Because we want people who are going to vote this year to be aware of this situation. We don't want another election campaign showing banners that read: "We will increase salaries", "We will increase pensions" and so on. First of all, we need the politicians to explain to us how are they going to cover all these increases, because we all know that the money is coming from taxes. We have a commitment with the Commission (the European Commission - editor's note) to carry out the tax reform, and we want to know clearly what will their approach be in relation to this. Because if they are coming with an increased labour tax, then we will have a problem, and they will have a bigger problem with us. So we demand to know what are their thoughts exactly related to the taxation of capital, of wealths, of royalties, depending on their level. Just think that, on average, they (the salaries in the Romanian economy - editor's note) are three times lower than the average of the European Union," stated the president of the National Trade Union Bloc (BNS), Dumitru Costin, at the protest organized in Victoriei Square. He also stated that the tax system, among other things, finances the social security system in Romania, and last year we had more than two million employed citizens of Romania who did not contribute to the pension or health system. "This year, because it's an election year, they want to come up with all kinds of tricks. For example, they are talking about free basic healthcare packages. But what will then be the difference between me, him or her, who are paying our contributions, and others who don't pay anything? These things are done strictly for their own electoral interest. So, once again, why are we organizing this (protest - editor's note) in an election year? Because election years are the only ones in which power is shared in a democracy. The power that they've been holding for four years is coming back to us, the citizens. It is extremely important that people understand what they are voting for, how they are voting and what solutions they are preparing for the next four years," stated Dumitru Costin. In his opinion, the promises regarding salary increases cannot be believed in the context in which Romania's public debt has exceeded 50% of GDP and according to the Financial Discipline Law, salary expenses should be frozen. Black Vote, Black Power, a collaboration between Keith Boykin and Word In Black, examines the issues, the candidates, and whats at stake for Black America in the 2024 presidential election. The past few weeks of campus protests have exposed the hypocrisy of Republicans who claim to stand for law and order and free speech. Exploit The GOP goal is to exploit campus conflict to drive a larger agenda against higher education. They seek to cut funding for universities, fire college professors and presidents, and eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion programs that challenge white supremacy. As NYPD officers converged onto Hamilton Hall at Columbia University the night of April 31, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump called into Fox News and complained that police should have acted a lot sooner. The protesters had done tremendous damage to a New York City landmark, he told Fox News anchor Sean Hannity. This from the man who sat in the White House watching TV and doing nothing for 187 minutes when the nations most important landmark, the U.S. Capitol, came under attack on January 6, 2021. When it comes to law and order, Trump and the Republicans believe that laws should only apply to certain people. We saw this with Trumps contradictory responses to two defining news events in his final year in office. When racial justice protests erupted in the summer of 2020 after George Floyd was killed by police in Minneapolis, Trumps response was forceful, condemning Black Lives Matter activists as hoodlums. Theyre bad people. They dont love our country. And theyre not taking down our monuments, he objected. But when the January 6 insurrectionists attacked the nations most sacred monument, Trump waited more than three hours before he reluctantly recorded a video message to the violent mob who tried to stop our democracy. We love you. Youre very special, Trump told the attackers. I know how you feel. He was not alone. A year after the January 6th failed coup attempt, the Republican National Committee adopted a resolution calling the attack legitimate political discourse. Its hard to argue for law and order while youre justifying an attack on Capitol Police Officers and defending a man who runs a company that was convicted of criminal tax fraud two years ago and is currently on trial, facing 88 charges in four criminal indictments. The selective outrage from Republicans also exposes their hypocrisy about antisemitism. When torch-bearing Nazis marched through the college town of Charlottesville, Virginia, chanting Jews will not replace us in 2017, Trump claimed there were very fine people on both sides. When 11 people were shot and killed at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh in 2018, Trump blamed the synagogue for not having armed guards on site. When Trump tweeted an anti-Semitic image of Hillary Clinton next to a pile of cash and the Star of David in 2016, Republicans still stood by him. And when Marjorie Taylor Greene claimed that Jewish space lasers caused the 2018 California wildfires, many Republicans stood by her as well. Even as Trump has been indicted by four different grand juries of American citizens, Republicans keep blaming Jewish billionaire George Soros. They never launched a congressional investigation into how Trumps incendiary rhetoric contributed to a rise in antisemitic hate crimes when he was president, or about the Neo-Nazis who participated in the January 6 riot. But they are investigating college presidents and college students for antisemitism in the wake of the October 7 Hamas attack in Israel. Both should be examined, as well as the rise of Islamophobia in America, but Republicans are only focused on one issue. May 1, the House passed a divisive bill to crack down on student protests by defining criticism of Israel as a form of antisemitism. The GOP goal is to exploit campus conflict to drive a larger agenda against higher education. They seek to cut funding for universities, fire college professors and presidents, and eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion programs that challenge white supremacy. Just a few years ago, Republicans argued that we needed new laws to protect free speech and unpopular ideas on college campuses. But now those same Republicans are policing speech and arresting even peaceful protesters. I taught for several years at Columbia University and City College of New York, and I support the right of students to protest peacefully on those college campuses and elsewhere, just as I support a two-state solution in the Middle East. I do not support violence from protesters or from police, or antisemitism, Islamophobia, or the harassment of Jewish or Muslim students. For those who sympathize with the cause of Palestinians but dont support college protests, I urge you to read Martin Luther King Jr.s Letter from a Birmingham Jail. Dr. King had no problem with protest and tension, but he condemned protest critics who were more devoted to order than to justice or preferred a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice. The true path to peace is the same on American college campuses as it is in Israel and Gaza. Sustainable peace will not come through violent confrontation, displays of force, or retribution. Nor will it come from hypocritical show trials and stunt bills. It will only come by dismantling systems of oppression and replacing them with systems of justice. Keith Boykin is a New York Timesbestselling author, TV and film producer, and former CNN political commentator. The new technology will make it harder for taxi drivers to disregard the meter. The new technology links payment terminals to taxi meters so dodgy drivers can't overcharge passengers. Source: TikTok and Getty It will become increasingly more difficult for taxi drivers to overcharge passengers as a new technology is being rolled out on Wednesday a move welcomed by industry leaders. The country's largest taxi payment provider, Cabcharge, is introducing new technology which will link cab drivers' payment terminals with their meters. Under the current system the two are not connected, meaning dishonest drivers can simply disregard the distance and accrued fee on the meter and input an exorbitant fee on the payment terminal to charge passengers. The crackdown has been approved by Australia's most extensive taxi network which includes operators such as 13cabs, Silver Service and Black & White Cabs. All taxis that use the technology will be encouraged to display a sticker which reads, 'We proudly accept Cabcharge'. Drivers face hefty penalties if caught in dodgy practice The rollout of the technology aims to minimise the number of drivers behaving dishonestly at the expense of passengers and it is the latest in the crackdown against dodgy taxi practices, with penalties recently increasing too. In NSW the penalty for taxi drivers overcharging passengers increased from $300 to $1,000 last year while in Queensland taxi drivers face up to $3,096 or are issued a penalty infringement of $309. Leader in taxi industry 'welcomed news' of technology Speaking to 2GB on Monday, the CEO of NSW Taxi Council said the technology was "welcomed news" which will help to strengthen customer trust with taxi drivers and the industry more broadly. "We want people, whether they're going to a sporting event or a concert or whatever it is, not even to worry about the transport issues. We want them to go out and make sure they're having a good time," Nick Abrahim said. He pointed out the majority of taxi drivers do the right thing but for the the few who don't, this change will help to stamp out dodgy practices that tarnish the reputation of the industry. "The majority of drivers are out there, they want to do the right thing they want to look after passengers, but we know there are a handful of those drivers that unfortunately think they can flout the law and get away from it... [this] sends a strong message to that handful of drivers." Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. Faculty members suspended by Washington University after being arrested while protesting Israels continued military action in Gaza sharply criticized the school during a news conference Sunday. The faculty members say the schools administrators have made false accusations against them and their students as it attempts to silence and discredit protesters demands to divest from Boeing due to its role in the war. Wed like to see the university align its principles with its on-the-ground realities, said Angela Miller, a professor of art history and archaeology. Since the arrest of more than 100 people last month at a campus encampment for anti-war protesters, the school has suspended 23 students and nine employees, according to a release sent out ahead of a Sunday news conference, held on the eve of the schools commencement ceremonies. Organizers of Sundays news conference criticized the schools refusal to engage in good faith discussions with students regarding their demands, and use of suspensions to punish students, faculty, and staff for protesting genocide, among other complaints. Five Washington U. professors, including Miller, who had been arrested, suspended or both took turns speaking Sunday in Forest Park, next to the edge of campus, before a gathering of a few dozen supporters. They said protests had been nonviolent, unlike the school and police response, which left a 65-year-old Southern Illinois University Edwardsville professor in attendance with nine broken ribs and a broken hand. This is the violence that Wash. U. administrators decided to unleash on protesters, said Scott Ross, a suspended lecturer of anthropology who helped lead Sundays event. It was peaceful until (the Washington University Police Department) brought violence. Bret Gustafson, another suspended faculty member and a professor of anthropology, disputed the assertion that protesters had a bad intention, in the eyes of administrators. Im not sure how protesting genocide can be a bad intention, he said. The school, however, maintains that the tone of the protest on April 27 was not peaceful, and included aggressive chanting at the front door of the library, said Julie Hail Flory, a spokeswoman for the university, in an emailed statement. She added that the arrests occurred after multiple warnings plus orders for the crowd to disband and stop setting up unapproved tents. University officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Sundays event marked merely the latest round of infighting and criticism focused on Washington U.s police response to the protest. At a contentious meeting last week, top school administrators faced more than an hour of questions from faculty about its actions, while more than 1,500 students, alumni and teachers have signed letters condemning the schools conduct. Boeing has longstanding ties with Israels military, and the companys massive workforce in the St. Louis area is focused on producing fighter jets as well as precision-strike and cruise missile solutions for countries across the globe, according to its website. The Washington U. faculty members at Sundays event called attention to the companys role behind munitions that have destroyed homes and killed families in Gaza. Boeing did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Since the start of its military offensive after terrorism attacks last October, Israel has killed more than 35,000 Palestinians according to official tallies including many civilians and children leading to a humanitarian crisis that affects far more. In late March, an expert report shared with the United Nations Human Rights Council said that there are reasonable grounds to believe that Israels conduct in Gaza constitutes genocide. The Washington University professors at Sundays event have not faced formal charges or investigations and have been met with absolute silence from the school about what awaits, said Gustafson. But amid the uncertainty, he added that the group is exploring potential legal action. NAB 2024: Panasonic Talks New 4K UE30 PTZ, Lumix S5 II/X, and KAIROS Live Production Platform In this interview from the Panasonic booth at NAB 2024, Panasonic Connect Director of Product Management Chris Merrill and Streaming Media's Marc Franklin discuss Panasonic's new 4K UE30 PTZ cam, the Lumix S5 II/X, SMPTE 2110 support, and new developments in Panasonic's KAIROS liver production platform. Page 1 In this interview from the Panasonic booth at NAB 2024, Panasonic Connect Director of Product Management Chris Merrill and Streaming Media's Marc Franklin discuss Panasonic's new UE30 4K PTZ cam, the Lumix S5 II/X, SMPTE 2110 support, and new developments in Panasonic's KAIROS liver production platform. Marc Franklin: I am here at Panasonic's booth at NAB 2024, and Chris is going to walk us through some of the new Panasonic developments here at the show. They've got a new camcorder, new PTZ, new KAIROS production suite, and more. So why don't you take it away. Chris Merrill: Sure. Happy to do that. We've really organized all of our things into sort of three main areas. There's the capture section, create, and then deliver. So we've got that whole workflow and the fun thing is there really are solutions in every one of those areas that are new to us. So in our capture area, we're actually showing two different kinds of scenarios. One is a broadcast studio and the other is more of a connected classroom. So in our broadcast studio area, we've got a number of our studio cameras and some of our high-end PTZs with robotics. But the unique thing that we're talking about there is our new camera control unit, which has the ability to bring 2110 into that camera environment to be able to get the benefits of the easy connection and transmission in 2110. Marc Franklin: Okay. For people who don't know, what is 2110? Chris Merrill: SMPTE Standard 2110 is a protocol used for transmitting signals over IP, so it allows you to use that IT network instead of having around big bundles of cable that we're used to with SDI. It gives us a really simplified way of being able to transmit signals in our connected classroom. We're also introducing a new PTZ as you mentioned. It's the UE30 that's coming out, which is sort of an introductory model in our PTZs and really makes it a lot more accessible for many people to use that PTZ technology. To top that off, we've got a couple of different ways of automating, both to be able to use our microphones to track zones within a particular environment so that the camera is following the speakers or else also with what we're calling our media production suite, to set up software tools that allow you to, again, auto position and frame a signal to do the tracking. The other thing that's unique there is what we're calling intelligent keying. So normally when you have a figure that you're wanting to abstract from a background, you've got to have a green screen lighting, all those kinds of things. Here you're able to use a standard environment and using the machine learning that's available there to identify the speaker that you want to track, and then it's tracking that person. Marc Franklin: Will it be able to do that even if the person's moving? Chris Merrill: Absolutely. Yeah. That's the whole point. You've got a meeting where your speaker who paces or those kinds of things are common problems and yeah, it absolutely tracks them across. Marc Franklin: So basically you don't need to use a chroma key anymore. Chris Merrill: That's right. You learn that person's facial figure, and then it tracks that individual all over. People who walk in front and those kinds of things don't distract from that. Marc Franklin: That's pretty amazing. And that's going to be available now? Chris Merrill: It's available in two months. Marc Franklin: And is that a new product or is it an upgrade to a current product? Chris Merrill: So it's part of a suite of products. It will be a new thing. It's why we're calling it Media Production Suite. There are a number of different plugins that you could sort of customize to the environment that you are working in. So the intelligent keying would be one of those plugins. Auto tracking would be another. There are other kinds of plugins that are available there. Marc Franklin: It'll be able to be used with the older cameras also. And the new camera, which model is that? Chris Merrill: The new camera is the UE30. Marc Franklin: Okay, and is that going to be HD or 4K? Chris Merrill: It allows you to do both of those things. KAIROS is a live production platform and in addition to switching, it also does audio mixing graphics, other kinds of things. But the new unit that we're bringing in there is a totally SDI I/O scenario. KAIROS is a software-defined platform, and so it's native 2110, but for people who are still concerned about that, at the show we're introducing one that just allows you still that flexibility internally of the software-defined abilities. But its I/O works in your traditional environment and then when you're ready, you just slip in a network interface card. Marc Franklin: How many cameras can you plug into the system? Chris Merrill: It depends on the model. So you can start with as few as 12 or you can go up to somewhere around 60. But the thing that's different about it is, unlike other systems where every port has to have a physical connection, if you're using an IP scenario that I'm able to select which of those streams that I want to come into the system at a particular time. Marc Franklin: You just use a router. Chris Merrill: I just connect to the router and I can actually define one button for multiple sources. So I can actually rotate through a much larger number than the actual connectors that I have on the back of the unit. Marc Franklin: Oh, that's very cool. Easy way to expand by just getting a network router. Chris Merrill: Absolutely. That's the whole concept. Many people, when you buy a traditional switching platform, you have to say, what's the biggest possible production I'm ever going to make and I have to buy that. Whereas this gives you the ability to say, "Okay, what's my average production?" And then you can grow this as you need it, and it is easy to do that. Marc Franklin: Can use any network router and plug it in? Chris Merrill: It would be an IT switch, because it's 2110 over IP. But I also have abilities for most of the streaming protocols, SRT and those kinds of things. As well as NDI inputs, a variety of other IP formats are available. Marc Franklin: Very interesting, Chris Merrill: It's a fun, creative tool. Marc Franklin: Over on the LUMIX side of Panasonic's NAB booth. Neil Matsumoto, Head of Lumix Business Development is going to talk to us about some new firmware upgrades for their Lumix cinema cameras. Neil Matsumoto: Great. So this is our Lumix S5 camera. We have an S5 II and an S IIX. The main difference between the S5 IIX and the S5 II is the USB-C port. You're able to output higher res, higher quality codecs like ProRes into an SSD. Basically the main features of this camera are we updated the autofocus system and where it's more of a phase to detect autofocus system rather rather than our old one. The contrast detect the firmware update that we just announced pretty much concentrates on four things. So the main one is camera to cloud Frame.io, which is Adobe's Frame.io cloud integration. So basically you can send up to Adobe's Frame.io cloud, you have to have an account obviously, but you can send up full-resolution JPEGs, RAW files, but also for video files. So the camera will be able to create a 1080 proxy. Let's say if you're recording 4K files, it'll recreate a 1080 proxy, usually like 6MB or 12MB files, and it'll send it directly up into your Frame.io account. So let's say if you're a wedding videographer and you have a client that wants to show highlights of their wedding ceremony to their attendees at the reception, your editor would be getting all of these video files and photo files as they're being shot. Once they press stop on the record, it's pretty much going to be, they can start working remotely so they don't have to be at the venue. So the guest can now see a highlight reel at the actual reception. That's the main thing. The other function that we've improved in the camera with the AF systems, there's a lot more recognition technology. You can now do not only humans and human eyes, but you can also do animal eyes. You can do cars and motorcycles. The other function that we added to the camera is a high image stabilization mode. Marc Franklin: It optical or electronic? Neil Matsumoto: It's basically cropping and the gyroscope in the camera is correcting shape. So the high mode when it's doing almost a 20% crop, so if you're using a wider lens on a full frame, if you're using a 14 millimeter lens, which might have some distortion at the edges, it's pretty much going to correct any sort of image distortion on the end. In a sense, I'll give you some footage if you'd like, but it's almost like you're walking with a gimbal or a steadicam. If you're shooting 14 millimeters, it's almost going to look very like a Kubrick shot. Marc Franklin: So how much of a resolution drop is there? Neil Matsumoto: It's none. So it's basically propping the sensor, but you're still capturing your 4K image files. Oh, wow. We also added for still photographers a prebus function where once you engage the shutter, it'll capture up to 1.5 seconds of prebus. And the prebus you can do up to 30 frames a second. Marc Franklin: Oh wow. Neil Matsumoto: So the camera is mostly designed for hybrid shooters, but with the X, I think most of the shooters that are using the X are more video-focused shooters. So that's pretty much it on Marc Franklin: What's the cost difference between the X and the regular? Neil Matsumoto: The X is $200 more, because a lot of our customers that are using our cameras, a lot of 'em are still photographers. A lot of still photographers probably would not want to work with ProRes files. Marc Franklin: But $200 is not a very expensive price to pay for the extra functionality. Neil Matsumoto: For an NAB audience, I think the X would be the camera that they're most focused on. Page 1 Perth brothers Jake, 30, and Callum Robinson, 33, were on a trip of a lifetime with their friend Jack Carter Rhoad, 33, when they vanished near Ensenada in the Baja California region. Friends, family and loved ones of the two Australian brothers and their companion killed on a trip to Mexico have paid tribute to the trio in a touching final send-off, with dozens gathering in the surf to honour their lives in an emotional paddle-out. Perth brothers Jake, 30, and Callum Robinson, 33, were on a trip of a lifetime around the United States and Mexico with their friend Jack Carter Rhoad, 33, when they vanished near Ensenada in the Baja California region on April 27. A massive search effort found the bodies of all three men at the bottom of a four-metre cliffside well a short distance from their campsite in early May. Perth brothers Jake and Callum Robinson were allegedly murdered in Mexico alongside their friend while on a surfing trip last month. Source: NCA Newswire Brothers remembered in emotional surfer's send-off Parents Debra and Martin Robinson flew over to Mexico to identify their bodies and, over the weekend made the journey north to San Diego, USA where Callum had been living. The 33-year-olds friends organised a paddle-out into the surf at one of his favourite beach spots in San Diego on Sunday, with dozens of locals gathering in the surf to honour their lives. The boys' father was among those who paddled out to pay tribute to his two sons. Friends remember 'amazing' men One of the surfers said he felt like Callums spirit was there with them in the water during the tribute. "In the middle of our ceremony a large wave rolled in and it felt like Callum was there with us and everyone said thats Callum," he told Nine. Another who paid tribute to the Callum said he was "glad he got the chance to go out surfing doing what he loves". "I feel like they aren't words, he was just amazing," friend Ali Shaeffer told 7 News. "It's just obviously really heartbreaking." Friends, family and loved ones of the group have paid tribute in an emotional paddle-out. Source: Nine "Just three amazing lives taken...in such a pointless way," another friend said. Two men and a woman have been detained on suspicion of direct or indirect involvement in the attack. One man with a previous criminal record has been charged with "forced disappearance". On Friday, the mens bodies were moved to a funeral home in San Diego, and are expected to be transferred back to Perth. Jesus Gerardo Garica Cota, also known as "El Kekas", along with his brother Cristian Alejandro and girlfriend Ari Gisel have since been arrested by Mexican authorities. Gerardo fronted an Ensenada court, where prosecutors revealed Ms Gisel had become a key witness in the case. Last week, the infamous Sinaloa Cartel claimed it "handed" over the alleged killers to police. Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. Joint Task Force-Red Hill Commander, Vice Adm. John Wade meets with Senate Appropriations Committee staff delegates at JTF-RH Headquarters, Ford Island, Honolulu, Hawaii, on Aug. 8, 2023. Wade has been officially nominated to take over the Navys 3rd Fleet in San Diego. (Nicholas Brown/U.S. Air Force ) (Tribune News Service) Vice Adm. John Wade, former commander of the joint task force that oversaw removal of most of the fuel in the Navys Red Hill facility, has been officially nominated to take over the Navys 3rd Fleet in San Diego. The Pentagon on Thursday released two top command nominations by President Joe Biden. The announcement also said Rear Adm. Michael Vernazza, current commander of the Fleet Information Warfare Command Pacific at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, has been nominated for promotion to vice admiral to command Naval Information Forces in Suffolk, Va. The nominations require congressional approval and are expected to pass. As commander of the 3rd Fleet, Wade would command vessels and aircraft based in California, Washington state and Hawaii which includes five aircraft carrier strike groups and more than 30 submarines. Wade had been serving as operations officer for U.S. Indo-Pacific Command at Camp Smith before he was recommended in 2022 by then INDOPACOM Commander Adm. John Aquilino to lead Joint Task Force Red Hill. I immediately thought of my grandmother, Wade later told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser in an interview. She would talk about the importance and the meaning of hard work but that when hard work contributes to the betterment of others, then theres no greater purpose. As I looked at this problem, I said, Its a humanitarian and ... an environmental mission. Wade, who comes from a working-class New York family, attended the U.S. Naval Academy. His first time in Hawaii was sailing in to Pearl Harbor as a midshipman during a training cruise aboard the USS Germantown in 1987. He found himself in and out of the islands throughout his career, but perhaps no assignment was higher-stakes than Red Hill. Hed never even set foot inside the facility until he got the mission. The Red Hill facilitys massive fuel tanks sit just 100 feet above a critical aquifer that most of Oahu relies on for drinking water. It was built underground during World War II both to hide it and protect it from Japanese forces. After the war it became a critical strategic fuel reserve for the U.S. Navys Pacific fleet. It was also a subject of controversy. Local officials and activists raised concerns that it was a threat to Oahus water, while Navy officials maintained it was vital for national security and perfectly safe. But in November 2021, jet fuel from the facility tainted the Navys Oahu water system, which serves 93,000 people, including service members, military families and civilians in former military housing areas on the Navy waterline. Several residents who reported getting seriously ill are in the midst of a federal lawsuit trial playing out in court in Honolulu. After months of resisting a state emergency order to drain the tanks, in March 2022 the Pentagon announced it would defuel and permanently shut down the facility. In September 2022, Wade took command of the task force at a time when relations between local residents and military leadership was at near-historic lows. Despite years of assurances of safety from the Navy, by then the service acknowledged that the facility and the pipelines connecting it to Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam actually had fallen into deep disrepair and that the tanks and pipelines would require extensive repairs and upgrades to safely remove the fuel without risking further spills and water contamination. Every day that fuel is sitting there is a threat to our community and to the environment, Wade told reporters at his first news conference in October 2022. He said he would work to get the fuel out by summer of 2024, or sooner if repairs could be made faster and pledged he would look for ways to expedite the process. He noted that it was his first assignment that had no end date there would be no change of command until the mission was over. Wade freely admitted he had no background in engineering or fuel storage, but said he would work to get the best people on the ground JTF-RH included experts and specialists from each military branch along with dozens of civilians. Wade quickly became the face of the Red Hill effort, finding himself angrily shouted down at community meetings and regularly confronted by Red Hill families and activists. But he gradually earned praise from some. He invited Board of Water Supply Manager Ernie Lau, a fierce critic of the Navy who for years had called for Red Hills shutdown, to sit on a task force information-sharing group that included several local officials and community leaders. When I sit down as a person, (Wade is) somebody easy to talk to, and he appears to listen, Lau later told the Star-Advertiser, though he added that getting information from the military was still very challenging. Wades mission expanded after 1,300 gallons of toxic firefighting foam spilled in the Red Hill facility in November 2022. Wade initially told reporters there was no video of the incident, but said he later learned that there was. He told the Star-Advertiser the lack of coordination by the various agencies and contractors working in the facility contributed to that spill and subsequent confusion. Wade and JTF-RH began overseeing all operations in the facility and keeping a close eye over contractors who went in and out. By the summer of 2023, JTF-RH had completed most of its repairs ahead of schedule and found workarounds to speed the process. Defueling officially began in October, and by March the task force successfully had removed 104,703,574 gallons from above the aquifer. Commercial tankers ferried fuel to West Oahu facilities run by Island Energy Services at Campbell Industrial Park and to a fuel storage point in San Diego, one in the Philippines and another in Singapore. Closure and remediation of Red Hill will be overseen by the newly formed Navy Closure Task Force Red Hill, a task thats expected to take years. During an exit interview before officially stepping down as task force commander, Wade told the Star-Advertiser that defueling had its own challenges and risks, (and that) closure and long-term environmental remediation will bring new challenges and new risks. So its critical to the ... health of the workers and the community and the environment to focus on safety. From San Diego, Wades area of responsibility at the Third Fleet will include portions of both the Eastern and Northern Pacific stretching into parts of the Arctic as competition for influence in the region heats up with Russia and China. The Third Fleets missions also include assisting with the fight against illegal fishing through the Oceania Maritime Security Initiative which conducts patrols in partnership with the Coast Guard and Pacific island countries as well as drug war missions off the Pacific coasts of South and Central America. (c)2024 The Honolulu Star-Advertiser Visit www.staradvertiser.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. A historical reenactment of the Fort Mose militia in 2021. (Florida State Parks) When visitors arrive at Fort Mose Historic State Park in St. Augustine, on Floridas Atlantic coast, its common for them to look around and ask, Wheres the fort? There isnt much on the 40-acre grounds except a small museum and a boardwalk leading to a salt marsh. The forts remains are buried out there, under earth and water. But soon, a life-size reproduction of Fort Mose will help tell its story as the first legally sanctioned free African settlement in what is now the United States. An early iteration of the Underground Railroad in the 17th and 18th centuries brought enslaved people from English plantations in the Carolinas down to freedom at Fort Mose, which was controlled by Spanish settlers. Fort Mose was rediscovered from obscurity in the 1980s. Nobody knew about it, said Kathy Deagan, a retired University of Florida archaeologist. Back when Deagan began full-time field work at Fort Mose in 1986, she could reach the site via a challenging walk through the marsh. Sometimes the water was up to our knees, and sometimes just plain mud, she said. Today, archaeologists must take a boat to the site. The landscape has changed significantly over the years, due to rising sea levels, coastal erosion and dredge-and-fill work. When archaeologists visit Fort Mose, they are actually visiting a second version of the fort, which was built in 1752 after the first was destroyed by English attackers in 1740. The reproduction is intended to be a recreation of the first fort, of which there is no archaeological evidence, apart from a NASA image from space that shows different light reflectivity suggesting a possible fort moat, said Deagan. However, historians can refer to other Spanish forts of the time period, military protocols, and records about food, clothing, religion and recreation. The new fort is projected to be completed by the end of 2024 and will sit on solid ground near the museum. A rendering of the Fort Mose reconstruction. (Florida State Parks Foundation) The story of Fort Mose goes back to colonial conflicts between Spain and England. St. Augustine, established in 1565, was the first permanent Spanish settlement in what is now the United States, and Jamestown, established in 1607, was the first permanent English settlement. In the decades that followed, word spread among enslaved people at English plantations in the Carolinas where rice and indigo were staple crops that there might be a better life for those able to make the dangerous journey down to Florida, often aided by Indigenous people. The first freedom seekers arrived in St. Augustine in 1687: eight men, two women and a nursing child traveling by dugout canoe. In 1738, the Spanish governor of Florida chartered the settlement of Gracia Real de Santa Teresa de Mose, or Fort Mose, and offered freedom to those willing to pledge allegiance to the king of Spain and convert to Catholicism. Spanish settlers enslaved Black and Indigenous people, but they also offered a path out of slavery, said Jane Landers, a historian of Fort Mose and a professor at Vanderbilt University. For centuries, there were free Black people in Spain, and Spanish settlers brought this possibility across the ocean, unlike English settlers, who instituted a permanent, race-based system of slavery. About 10 percent of St. Augustines population consisted of free and enslaved African people, many of whom came from West Africa. After Fort Mose had drawn an estimated 100 African people enough to threaten the English plantation economy to the north the English responded by attacking St. Augustine in 1740. They were defeated by allied Spanish, Indigenous and Black forces. However, the fort was destroyed, forcing its residents to move into town until it was rebuilt in 1752. The English returned and took control of St. Augustine in 1763, and most of the Spanish-loyal inhabitants of the town and the fort fled to Cuba. By 1812, the fort was abandoned, and in the 1880s, Henry Flagler, a co-founder of Standard Oil, removed a significant amount of soil from the forts environs to build a resort nearby. Starting in the 1980s, archaeologists uncovered the forts moat, clay-covered earth walls, and interior wooden buildings. They found artifacts including gun flints, flattened bullets, metal buckles, ceramics, glass bottles, burned seeds and bones from food sources. Members of the Fort Mose Historical Society earlier this year. (George McKenzie Jr.) Landers said she has no concerns about historical interpretation when it comes to constructing the new fort. Research on Fort Mose has been happening for a long time, and the community adopted it, she said. The story of Fort Mose is a story of the African diaspora, Deagan said; now the task is making it known. The story needs to be brought to people, and then they become really amazed, she said. One thing thats enthusiasm-generating is that this is the history of Florida, and people are getting to understand that Florida settlements were older than the New England ones and the Virginia ones, older than the 13 colonies, said Chip Storey, a historian and Fort Mose Historical Society board member. Fort Mose was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1994, and for many years the society wanted to build a new fort, but it wasnt until 2022 that a major grant from the Florida African American Cultural and Historical Grants Program accelerated the effort. About $3 million has been raised in total, said Julia Woodward, CEO of the Florida State Parks Foundation. This kind of project is unusual, said Woodward. This isnt just a visitors center, she said. Youre actually bringing history to life. Fort Mose is frequented by school groups, and Florida revised its Black history curriculum last year in a way that could affect how students learn about the settlement. The state has adopted a controversial standard to teach students that enslaved people developed skills that could be applied for their personal benefit; blocked an Advanced Placement course in African American studies; and banned the teaching of critical race theory, which suggests, among other things, that racism is systemic. But the new state academic standards require lessons on the history of Fort Mose, and many Florida students visit the park in fourth grade. Regardless of what you hear on the media or in the news, theres going to be a way to tell the story, said Thomas Jackson, a founding board member of the Fort Mose Historical Society. That story has resonated with many people, both in and out of academia. It really developed a community that crossed class and race lines, and people in St. Augustine came together in a way that had never really happened before, to form the Fort Mose Historical Society, said Deagan. We couldnt keep our heads in the ivory tower on this, she said. People were too interested. While local support for Fort Mose is strong, Woodward thinks its underappreciated elsewhere. How is this not a National Park, because of how historically significant it is? she said. Fort Mose is not in the Smithsonian right now, said Woodward, referring to the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C. A representative from the museum confirmed that it does not have an exhibit that mentions Fort Mose specifically. Thats a huge miss, said Woodward. Marine Cpl. Abel Reyes' crashed Toyota Altezza sits at a Japanese police impound lot in Okinawa, Japan, May 13, 2024. (Keishi Koja/Stars and Stripes) CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa Japanese police arrested a U.S. Marine on suspicion of fleeing the scene of a head-on vehicle collision over the weekend. Cpl. Abel Reyes, 22, of Camp Foster, was still in custody Monday, an Okinawa prefectural police spokesman told Stars and Stripes by phone that day. The incident occurred at 3:37 a.m. Sunday on Route 85 in the Yaeshima district of Okinawa city. Reyes is a transmissions system operator with 12th Marine Littoral Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, according to a Marine Corps photo released in March. Police said Reyes, driving a Toyota Altezza sedan in the wrong lane, collided head-on with a northbound truck driven by a local man, age 53. Marine Corps Cpl. Abel Reyes poses at the Jungle Warfare Training Center in northern Okinawa, March 20, 2024. (Kendrick Jackson/U.S. Marine Corps) The Marines passenger, a local woman, was treated at an area hospital, the spokesman said. Neither Reyes nor the other driver were injured. No alcohol was detected in Reyes system, according to police. Reyes fled on foot but a witness followed him to a parking lot not far from the scene, where he was arrested at 5:10 a.m., the police spokesman said. His case has been forwarded to the prosecutors office, the spokesman said. Its customary in Japan that some government officials speak to reporters on condition of anonymity. 3rd Marine Division spokesman Maj. Clay Groover confirmed the arrest in an email on Monday. We are thankful no one was seriously injured and appreciate the quick response by local authorities, he wrote. We will continue to cooperate with local authorities and examine the incident to determine the cause. An MQ-4C Triton taxis at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, April 29, 2020. (Michael Murphy/U.S. Air Force) CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa The U.S. military drone presence on Okinawa is growing with the deployment of a pair of Navy MQ-4C Triton maritime surveillance aircraft, according to the Japanese government. The Guam-based Tritons will fly out of Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, between this month and October, a spokeswoman for Okinawa prefectures Military Base Affairs Division said by phone Monday. Some Japanese government officials may speak to the media only on condition of anonymity. The drones will conduct intelligence missions in the Nansei region and its surrounding areas, strengthening surveillance and reconnaissance, she said. The Nansei islands stretch from Kyushu the southernmost of Japans main islands to Taiwan. China in recent years has stepped up challenges to its neighbors maritime claims in the East and South China seas. Its coast guard frequently enters waters claimed by Japan around the Senkakus. U.S. military officials on Okinawa referred queries about the drones to U.S. 7th Fleet, based at Yokosuka Naval Base, south of Tokyo, which did not immediately respond to emailed questions Monday. The date when the Tritons will arrive on Okinawa hasnt been released, the Japanese official said. The drones will have limited impact on Okinawans since they will mostly fly over water and make less noise than other Kadena aircraft, she said. The Triton, made by U.S. aerospace company Northrop Grumman, has previously deployed to Misawa Air Base in northeastern Japan. The drone looks like the RQ-4 Global Hawk, which has seen extensive service in Iraq and Afghanistan, but the resemblance is skin deep. The front edges of the Tritons wings have been toughened to withstand bird strikes, while its electronics are designed to withstand power surges from lightning. The maritime drones stiff wings allow them to dive below 10,000 feet to get a closer look at floating targets. The Tritons join eight Air Force MQ-9 Reaper drones that moved to Kadena late last year from Kanoya Air Base on Kyushu. The Reapers and more than 150 airmen in the newly formed 319th Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron spent a year at Kanoya, a Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force base. Ukraine firefighters work to extinguish a fire at the site of a drone attack on industrial facilities in Kharkiv on May 4, 2024, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (Sergey Bobok, AFP via Getty Images/TNS) Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on his people not to panic amid Russias ongoing advance in the Kharkiv region thats jeopardizing a local city. Ukrainians should trust in their army defending the countrys northeastern border area and not yield to emotions despite the fierce fight there and the extremely difficult situation on the outskirts of Vovchansk, Zelenskyy said in his regular evening statement on Sunday. Along with several other towns and villages, Vovchansk a city located only several miles from the border with Russia is under constant fire from advancing Russian troops, according to local authorities who initiated a mass evacuation. Nearly 500 residents still remain in the city, which had a population of almost 18,000 before the war, Oleh Synyehubov, regional governor said on Telegram. Ukraines troops are attempting a counter-attack near Vovchansk, Zelenskyy said. The advance in the Kharkiv region aims to stretch our forces and undermine their morale and motivation, he said. Defense battles have never been simple, and they become even more challenging when an enemy manages to instill fear. Zelenskyys comments were accompanied by statements from Vovchansks authorities, who assert that the Kremlin was spreading fake news by promoting a narrative that the local government had fled the city after its capture. Russias defense ministry on Sunday claimed its troops had made deeper advances in the Kharkiv border region, liberating a total of nine settlements over the weekend. The monitoring platform Deep State said Russia now occupies six villages in the area, north of Kharkiv, Ukraines second largest city. Military authorities in Kyiv havent confirmed the capture of those locations, saying instead that fighting is ongoing. There are villages that have transformed from a grey zone into a zone of fighting and invaders are attempting to dig in in several of them, while others serve for their further advance, Zelenskyy said. Earlier same day, Chief-in-Command of Ukraines army Oleksandr Syrskyi said that Russian forces were able to achieve partial success in several areas. He didnt elaborate on the exact locations. While Kyivs forces have repelled attempts by Moscows troops to break their defenses in the nations northeast, the situation has significantly worsened in the past week and the situation in the Kharkiv region is difficult, he said. The surprise Russian assault is likely to stretch Ukraines already outgunned and outmanned forces as it may push Kyiv to redeploy some of its troops from the long front line in the east. Ukraine is trying to hold its ground as it awaits the arrival of U.S. military aid. The objective of Russias stepped-up offensive in the Kharkiv region appears to be to establish a buffer zone into Ukraine to minimize strikes into Russian territory. The U.S.-based Institute for the Study of War said Moscows troops continued to make tactically significant gains over the weekend in likely less defended areas. The reported sizes of the amassed troops indicate that Russian forces are not pursuing a large-scale operation to envelop, encircle, or seize Kharkiv City at this time, ISW said. 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Visit bloomberg.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. At 4:30 am, it was hard to make out what the strange creature returning to the water was, but its footprints held a clue. The sudden appearance of strange tracks on a beach south of Mackay resulted in a "very unlikely" find. Source: Mackay and District Turtle Watch Footprints stretching out of the water and onto a quiet Aussie beach have led to a never before seen discovery of a very rare creature that's got experts excited. Back in December, while most of us were sleeping, Queensland woman Janet Boxall was walking along a beach south of Mackay searching for visiting sea turtles. Although expensive houses have lined Campwin Beach since the 1920s and locals let their dogs run on the sand, it remains an important nesting site for several species. Along with her sister, shes become skilled at reading the tracks left by their flippers to work out what type of turtle has been visiting, so they can protect the eggs. It was still dark at 4:30 am, but the prints in the sand were unlike anything she'd seen, and her curiosity led to a months-long investigation. Boxall did actually see the turtle that made the tracks, but only as it was returning to the sea. My husband took a photo of her, but unfortunately it was dark so it just came up like a black blur, she told Yahoo News. But the photographs of the tracks were clear and they revealed something to the turtle enthusiast that most of us would have missed the turtle had been walking with an alternate gait. We immediately thought Loggerhead, because sometimes they occasionally nest on our beaches, Boxall said. Second clue to presence of rare turtle visitor Despite the early hour, Boxall called an expert from the group they volunteer with, Mackay and District Turtle Watch. Together they dug around the beach and discovered a chamber with 90 eggs each a little smaller than a ping-pong ball. Because they were on the beach we relocated them higher up near the cliffs, she said. Olive Ridley sea turtles lay large clutches of eggs in the sand. Source: Getty (File) As exciting as the nest was, Boxall had a vacation planned in Costa Rica, so her sister Shirley Sidey, took over monitoring. After 61 days, it finally erupted, but sadly only 47 of the 90 eggs hatched. We watched them emerge and go down to the beach. The next day we excavated the nest and there were 12 live hatchlings inside. So we took them out and put them on the sand, she said. It was then she spotted a second clue that the turtles were something special. At this stage I was still thinking it was a Loggerhead, but none of them had the right number of carapace scales on them, she said. So I wondered if there was any possibility of it being an Olive Ridley turtle. There are no recorded instances of them, so it would be very unlikely. More weird egg finds Third clue reveals what species the turtle belongs to Intrigued, Sidey returned to looking at pictures of the mother turtles footprints from December and realised the skid left by her tummy was too wide. Those pictures were sent to Queenslands Chief Scientific Officer for the Qld Aquatic Threatened Species Program Dr Col Limpus, who confirmed it was remarkably an Olive Ridley turtle. Loggerhead turtles have five pairs (occasionalsly six) carapice scales on each side, but the Olive Ridley hatchlings had seven. Source: Dr Col Limpus/Mackay and District Turtle Watch There are no historical records of Olive Ridley turtles nesting in eastern Australia. Weve got records dating back to the 1800s from the early explorers that record turtle nesting our first record of turtle nesting in eastern Australia comes from Captain [William] Bligh on his way back from Tahiti to Koh Peng in Indonesia, Limpus told Yahoo. And for more than 50 years now, the Parks and Wildlife Service has been systematically organising surveys of marine turtle nesting throughout Queensland, but also keeping a watch in NSW. There hasn't been a single record of all of Ridley nesting in eastern Australia in that time. And so this is the first ever record, and thats biologically extremely interesting. Twelve hatchlings were collected and helped further down the sand, towards the water. Source: Mackay and District Turtle Watch Was the Olive Ridley turtle lost? Olive Ridley turtles are one the most abundant sea turtles in the world. However they are listed as endangered because populations severely declined in the twentieth century, and while some nesting sites are now thriving, they are restricted to just a few locations. In India you could have 400,000 turtles coming up on a single beach absolutely magnificent numbers, Limpus said. In Queensland, we have a very modest nesting population in the Gulf of Carpentaria on the West Coast of Cape York Peninsula with a couple of 100 females. But there's been no indication that they're nesting spreads into Torres Strait and comes around on the East Coast. Olive Ridley turtles nest just once every two years, so researchers are now patiently waiting to see if she returns in December 2025. Populations in neighbouring countries are showing signs of recovery. So I guess we could be optimistic and say, what are the chances that this is actually the beginning of an expansion of the Olive Ridleys to colonise into the Coral Sea, Limpus said. It gives us hope. Love Australia's weird and wonderful environment? Get our new newsletter showcasing the weeks best stories. Thomas Brady, director of the Department of Defense Education Activity, speaks during a ceremony for E.J. King Middle and High School at Sasebo Naval Base, Japan, in 2022. Brady is retiring at the end of the school year after heading DODEA since 2014. (Jonathan Snyder/Stars and Stripes) In 2014, Thomas Bradys impression of the Pentagons network of far-flung schools was one of a system that did a good job, but needed to do better. Five children and four of 10 grandchildren the retired Army officer shares with his wife, Lisa, went to Department of Defense Education Activity schools, so he was familiar with what a DODEA education entailed when he took over as director. Ten years later, Brady counts the implementation of college and career ready standards as among the most important initiatives he led at the helm of a system that includes 160 schools, a majority of them overseas. That tenure, longer than any of the seven directors that came before Brady, ends this month with his retirement. I love the organization, I love coming to work every day, Brady said in an interview recently. Im still motivated, but Im 73, blessed with good health its time to do other things. Thomas Brady, seen here in an interview with Stars and Stripes at the beginning of his tenure as Department of Defense Education Activity director, will be stepping down at the end of the school year after heading DODEA since 2014. (Stars and Stripes) Beth Schiavino-Narvaez, DODEAs chief academic officer and a career educator, has been named as Bradys replacement. Schiavino-Narvaez will only improve DODEA as an organization going forward, Brady said. In his early days as director, Brady saw a need for standards that better prepared students for college and employment. But the curriculum needed uniformity, he said, for students who transferred as their parents moved to a new duty station. An email he received recently from a teacher in Bavaria underscores that goal, one Brady said hes been striving for since 2016, when DODEA began a phased, yearslong approach to implementing new standards. The teacher said one of her students just came in from Okinawa, and I want to let you know that were within two pages of the science notebook from the previous school, Brady said. Ta-da! Brady said excitedly. If youre moving from one place to another, its going to be consistent and its going to be high quality. Thats part of making a school system better. Brady said the standards are paying dividends, as evidenced by DODEAs rise to the top on the 2022 National Assessment of Educational Progress reading and math scores for fourth and eighth graders. DODEAs average scores ranged from 15 to 23 points higher than all national average scores. Given to a sampling of students, the assessment is the only one that provides comparisons from one state to another and with the whole nation. Scores of public schools, meanwhile, saw unprecedented declines in math and significant dips in reading from pre-pandemic levels. DODEA didnt see the lapse in learning that affected schools across the nation, Brady said, many of which struggled with remote instruction. At the beginning, we went to remote learning in two days, Brady recalled. Our teachers were remarkable at that, but it was clear to me that we needed children in schools. Adhering to strict mitigation measures resulted in students being in school for most of the COVID-19 pandemic, Brady said. Academically, we exceeded my expectations due to the great work of everyone at every level, he said. However, the social and emotional effects of the pandemic remain a concern, Brady said. Many U.S. schools have seen a rise in misconduct, chronic absenteeism, rowdiness outside the classroom and disrespect toward staff, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. In DODEA, I dont see it displayed in misbehavior, Brady said, but certainly it is there. Schools have added measures to give students who are feeling distressed an opportunity to express that and get support the same day, Brady said. But in a letter in February to the U.S. House and Senate armed services committees, the Federal Education Association, the union representing DODEA teachers, called for the agency to add school-level mental health specialists. A Government Accountability Office report, also released in February, suggested that some DODEA students may not be getting needed mental health counseling. About one in five students are ineligible for military support services because their parents are Defense Department civilians. Brady said mental health care is a shared responsibility between the schools, the installation and the medical commands. I think we need to continue working with the services to get more specific mental health assets into the schools, he said, citing the example of Military Family and Life counselors, who offer their support to DODEA schools. Also in its letter to Congress, the FEA called for DODEA to administer fewer standardized tests and to maintain student-to-teacher ratios of 18:1 for grades K-3 and 24:1 for grades 3-12 until 2030. I dont believe in the major premise that were overtesting, Brady said, in reference to a 2023 GAO report that found DODEA students from K-12 spent an average of eight more days on standardized tests compared to students in nine selected public school districts. Department of Defense Education Activity director Thomas Brady, right, helps open the new Pierce Terrace Elementary School at Fort Jackson, S.C., Feb. 12, 2020. Brady is retiring at the end of the school year after heading DODEA since 2014. (Jackie Pennoyer/U.S. Army) Also during Bradys tenure, 21st century schools became DODEA buzzwords. With more than $3 billion in funding from Congress since 2010, DODEA is replacing outdated schools with facilities that feature more open classrooms, and emphasize collaboration and the use of technology. The transition hasnt been seamless, Brady said. In some locations, theres been pushback from parents and some teachers needed better preparation, he said. I dont see any glaring problems, he said, but upon reflection, I think we could have done a better job explaining it, because once parents understand and they see it in action and they talk to their children, its a remarkable preparation for the next steps. Meanwhile, Brady is leaving as DODEA begins rolling out universal prekindergarten. A total of 80 locations are expected to welcome about 4,900 four-year-olds this fall, he said. About 6,000 students are expected to participate when all installations have space available, he said. DODEA is adding teachers and educational aides for the program, an effort that goes with an improved hiring process, Brady said. Weve seen great success with that, he said. Weve changed a number of policies of how we certify teachers to increase the talent pool with the aim of trying to improve each one of our schools. The work is never done, he said. In a letter sent Friday, Air Force Assistant Secretary Frank Calvelli said he was growing concerned about the United Launch Alliances Vulcan rocket. (ULA) The Pentagon is growing concerned that the United Launch Alliance, one of its key partners in launching national security satellites to space, will not be able to meet its needs to counter China and build its arsenal in orbit with a new rocket that ULA has been developing for years. In a letter sent Friday to the heads of Boeings and Lockheed Martins space divisions, Air Force Assistant Secretary Frank Calvelli used unusually blunt terms to say he was growing concerned with the development of the Vulcan rocket, which the Pentagon intends to use to launch critical national security payloads but which has been delayed for years. ULA, a joint venture of Boeing and Lockheed Martin, was formed nearly 20 years ago to provide the Defense Department with assured access to space. I am growing concerned with ULAs ability to scale manufacturing of its Vulcan rocket and scale its launch cadence to meet our needs, he wrote in the letter, a copy of which was obtained by The Washington Post. Currently there is military satellite capability sitting on the ground due to Vulcan delays. He added: As the owners of ULA, and given the manufacturing prowess of Boeing and Lockheed Martin corporations, I recommend that you work together over the next 90 days to complete an independent review of ULAs ability to scale its launch cadence to meet its current contract requirements. ULA launched the Vulcan booster for the first time earlier this year and needs to fly it a second time to earn certification from the Pentagon to begin flying national security and intelligence missions. ULA hopes that the second certification launch will occur later this year. ULA originally won 60 percent of the Pentagons national security payloads under the current contract, known as Phase 2. SpaceX won an award for the remaining 40 percent, but it has been flying its reusable Falcon 9 rocket at a much higher rate. ULA launched only three rockets last year, as it transitions to Vulcan; SpaceX launched nearly 100, mostly to put up its Starlink internet satellite constellation. Both are now competing for the next round of Pentagon contracts, a highly competitive procurement worth billions of dollars over several years. ULA is reportedly up for sale; Blue Origin is said to be one of the suitors. In addition to its contract with the Pentagon, ULA has committed to 38 launches of Amazons Kuiper internet satellite constellation over the next few years, a pace that would require ULA to increase its flight rate well beyond what ULA normally has achieved. That, Calvelli wrote, raises his concern. To meet its commitment to the Pentagon alone, ULA must launch 25 national security missions by the end of 2027. In all, ULA has said it has sold 70 launches on Vulcan. But over the past five years, Calvelli noted in his letter, the company has had an average launch cadence of fewer than six launches per year. Calvelli did not say in the letter what his specific concerns were with the rockets development, and he declined to comment for this report. But in the letter, he cited the Pentagons need to move quickly in the space domain as adversaries build their capabilities there. The United States continues to face an unprecedented strategic competitor in China, and our space environment continues to become more contested, congested and competitive, he wrote. We have seen exponential growth of in-space activity, including counterspace threats, and our adversaries would seek to deny us the advantage we get from space during a potential conflict. As the Air Forces acquisition executive for space, he said he is focused on driving speed in our acquisitions and delivering programs on cost and schedule to transform our architecture. In a statement to The Post, ULA said that its factory and launch site expansions have been completed or are on track to support our customers needs with nearly 30 launch vehicles in flow at the rocket factory in Decatur, Alabama. Last year, ULA CEO Tory Bruno said in an interview that the deal with Amazon would allow the company to increase its flight rate to 20 to 25 a year and that to meet that cadence it was hiring several hundred more employees. The more often Vulcan flies, he said, the more efficient the company would become. Vulcan is much less expensive than the Atlas V rocket that the ULA currently flies, Bruno said, adding that ULA intends to eventually reuse the engines. As the flight rate goes up, theres economies of scale, so it gets cheaper over time. And of course, youre introducing reusability, so its cheaper. Its just getting more and more competitive. In a statement, Lockheed said that the pace and seriousness of the threats our customers face are not to be underestimated, and with our ULA joint venture partner Boeing, we are committed to providing reliable and swift launch capabilities to meet our customers mission demands. We are reviewing Mr. Calvellis request and will work together to address it with urgency. Boeing said in a statement: We are getting on more of a wartime footing to stay ahead of the threat, and a quicker and more reliable launch cadence is critical to meeting that need. It said it would also work to address Calvellis concerns. ULA decided to eventually retire its workhorse Atlas V rocket after concerns within the Pentagon and Congress that it relied on a Russian-made engine, the RD-180. In 2014, the company entered into a partnership with Jeff Bezos Blue Origin to provide its BE-4 engines for use on Vulcan. However, the delivery of those engines was delayed for years one of the reasons Vulcans first flight didnt take place until earlier this year. (Bezos owns The Washington Post.) In prepared testimony before the House Armed Services Committee earlier this month, Calvelli wrote that the Pentagon needs Blue Origin to dramatically speed up production of the engines to allow Vulcan to meet its national security requirements. Blue Origin also intends this year to start flying its New Glenn rocket, which is powered by seven BE-4 engines. Blue Origin is also seeking to launch satellites for the Pentagon. Blue Origin needs to scale its production of BE-4 engines, he wrote. We are keeping an eye on whether these two companies can scale to meet our needs. Calvelli addressed his letter to Kay Sears, who oversees Boeings Space, Intelligence and Weapons Systems division, and Robert Lightfoot, president of Lockheed Martins space division. Bruno, ULAs CEO, was copied. For years, ULA was the Pentagons only launch provider. Then, in 2014, SpaceX, the space venture founded by Elon Musk, sued the Air Force, arguing it should have the right to compete for the launch contracts. The parties settled in 2015. SpaceX has since flown multiple missions for the Pentagon, forcing ULA to compete against a hard-charging and nimble competitor that has upended the industry by launching several times a month. The U.S. Space Force has said in recent years it wants to harness the capabilities coming from the growing commercial space sector, which is innovating faster than the government. Recently, it released a commercial space strategy that said it would seek to avoid overreliance on any single provider or solution. Competition is key, Pentagon officials have repeatedly stressed, to lowering costs and driving reliability, and the department has maintained that it needs multiple rocket providers to get its assets into orbit. Launch is critical to our ability to transform our space architecture, Calvelli wrote. We are counting on Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and the ULA team to be successful in getting critical capabilities into space for our warfighters. Connecticut Navy veteran Chris Shea is using his nonprofit, Hero to Hero, to establish a pipeline to connect veterans reintegrating into civilian life to first responder jobs in police, fire and emergency medical services. (Hero to Hero/Facebook) NORTH HAVEN, Conn. (Tribune News Service) For veterans, coming off active duty can lead to a type of shell shock. Chris Shea, a North Haven firefighter and retired Navy veteran, knows how it feels. When youre active duty, your paycheck comes on the 1st and 15th unless the government shuts down. You know where youre going and youre told where to go and what to do and when to be there and why, he said. In the civilian world, you have freedom and liberty, but it also means you have the freedom and liberty to run around in circles. Shea, who enlisted in the military in 1991 and remained as a reservist until his retirement this January, said that for many in the military, there is a shared sense of purpose. The process of seeking a job where theres no immediate guarantee that veteran applicants can find a role with a similar sense of purpose can be difficult, he said. A lot say theyll get out and conquer the world, then they find themselves in a cubicle and not feel like its what they signed up for, he said. Hes now using his nonprofit, Hero to Hero, to establish a pipeline to connect veterans reintegrating into civilian life to first responder jobs in police, fire and emergency medical services. He came up with the infrastructure for it as a capstone project while completing his online degree with Charter Oak State College while stationed at the Pentagon. He manages it when hes not on-duty with North Havens Fire Department. A key component of that effort is the U.S. Department of Defenses SkillBridge program, which offers job training, apprenticeships and internships to veterans. Shea said he recognized an opportunity to partner closer with municipal first responder programs to bolster and support veterans seeking to use the skills they learned in the military in such roles. It seemed like it was an underserved area, he said. A lot of the available programs for veterans, he said, tended to prioritize things like solar panels or trades, such as plumbing and electrical. I think theres some similarities in police and fire and even EMS and the military, he said. Its the service-oriented side, the camaraderie, having guys hanging out waiting for an emergency to happen and the buzzer goes off and theres a common sense of purpose and mission. I think its a natural fit for folks coming out of the service. According to statistics provided by the state Department of Labor, 791 veterans were served by the departments veteran programs since April 2023. CTDOL research economists said the unemployment rate for veterans is 3.5 percent, smaller than the statewide average of 3.7 percent. CTDOL research economists report that 17.9 percent of the states 62,942 veterans in the states workforce work in manufacturing jobs, a sector that comprises 10.6 percent of the states overall jobs, according to the most recent population survey. Education and health, the states largest employment sector with 26.2 percent of the states 1.84 million jobs, is the second-largest employment sector for veterans, with 15.9 percent of the veteran workforce included in health and education jobs. Although public administration jobs, which include the type of first responder jobs highlighted by Hero to Hero, comprise 4.1 percent of the states jobs, 11.2 percent of Connecticuts working veterans are employed in that sector. According to DOL statistics, its the fourth-largest employment sector for veterans in Connecticut, although the top three sectors manufacturing, education and health, and professional and business services all offer more than twice as many jobs. Ron Catania, a veterans outreach worker with the Connecticut Department of Labor, said his office works with veterans at all levels, connecting them with resources. Even if the services veterans need do not fall under the purview of the DOL, he said his office is able to direct them to the right place. Were taking a veteran from the beginning, when they return from service, as well as any other veteran that would come in for services and putting a plan together for their career, he said. Meeting the needs is not always straightforward, he said, as veterans may be at different places in their lives. However, he said his office is prepared to work with any veteran who is prepared to apply themselves to finding a job. Its a tough process, especially for a veteran coming out of the service not knowing what he or she wants to do, and us trying to guide them in the right direction, he said. Catania said his own sense of purpose in his role is largely motivated by his own experience as an Air Force veteran who was deployed to Vietnam during the Vietnam War. He said there was less collaboration between government bureaucracy intended to ensure veterans dont slip through the cracks in 1969. We were misguided in what our direction would be. We had to make up our own plan, he said. We didnt have programs to help us with a resume, we didnt have programs to help us do a job search. We had a situation of basically being hopeless. Catania said seeking higher education after returning home helped to reorient him in the right direction, but not all of his colleagues had such a soft landing. Things are so much better now, but veterans have to be in it to win it, he said. Its no different than not leaving a man behind: were not going to leave any veteran in a situation where we can help them. Catania said the Hero to Hero program is a good idea because its helping to connect municipal agencies with staffing shortages to qualified workers who have transferrable skills. Shea said one incentive for municipalities looking to hire veterans to first responder roles in partnership with the Hero to Hero program is that federal funding from the SkillBridge program will cover fringe benefit costs that the municipality would otherwise encumber as they put their recruits through the academy for several months. Shea said the goal is for Hero to Hero to become a national program, but he is intentionally and deliberately scaling up what he considers a mom-and-pop operation. Thus far, he said the program has helped to successfully connect 40 veterans to first responder jobs in roughly 12 states since 2022. I still get a charge from hooking people up who deserve it, he said. (c)2024 Journal Inquirer, Manchester, Conn. Visit www.journalinquirer.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. The incident resulted in a pedestrian aged in his 60s being seriously injured on the street after he was struck by a vehicle. Kevin Grant appeared before a special sitting of Letterkenny District Court this evening (Pix: Joe Boland) A man has appeared in court in Co Donegal after a pedestrian was critically injured in an alleged hit-and-run incident. Kevin Grant appeared before a special sitting of Letterkenny District Court this evening. Grant, aged 36, faces a total of eight charges arising out of the incident. They include endangerment, two counts of dangerous driving, refusing to give information, refusing to give a sample and three charges under the Road Traffic Act connected with an alleged hit-and-run incident. His appearance follows an incident on Main Street in Clonmany in the early hours of Sunday morning last at 12.12am. The incident resulted in a pedestrian aged in his 60s being seriously injured on the street after he was struck by a vehicle. The court was told that full CCTV footage of the alleged incident had been taken from a number of premises in the immediate area. The man was taken to Letterkenny University Hospital but was soon transferred to Beaumont Hospital in Dublin. A garda spokesperson confirmed that the victim remains in a critical condition. In a follow-up operation, Grant, of Pairc Mor, Buncrana, was arrested in Buncrana and detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984 at a Garda station in the Donegal Division. At today's special sitting, Detective Garda Sergeant Killian Callaghan said that gardai were objecting to bail in the case on a number of grounds. He gave evidence of arrest, charge and caution of Grant and told the court that the accused made no reply when charged with the offences at 4.42pm today at Buncrana Garda Station. Solicitor for the accused man, Mr Frank Dorrian, outlined why he was objecting to bail being refused to his client. Having considered both applications, Judge Ciaran Liddy said he was granting bail to the accused but under a number of conditions. The court heard that the accused is currently working for a construction company in Dublin. The conditions include that he sign on at Buncrana Garda Station on Saturdays and Sundays, provide a 750 cash lodgement, provide a phone number and be of sober habits. Judge Liddy remanded the accused on bail to Letterkenny District Court this Thursday, May 16. Mr Lawrence, of Foxborough Court, Lucan, is charged with theft from Four Star Pizza, Chapel Hill, also in Lucan Brian Lawrence of Foxborough Court, Lucan, is charged with theft from a Four Star Pizza A father of five who allegedly used false bank details to pay for a pizza delivery to his home has been charged with theft. Brian Lawrence (49) told the delivery driver he had no cash to pay for the 48 order before giving the fake details, a court was told. The case was adjourned at Blanchardstown District Court for the accused to decide how he intends to plead. Mr Lawrence, of Foxborough Court, Lucan, is charged with theft from Four Star Pizza, Chapel Hill, also in Lucan. Garda Sergeant Maria Callaghan told Judge Maire Conneely that the Director of Public Prosecutions consented to the case being dealt with in the district court subject to the issue of jurisdiction being considered. The judge asked for an outline of the proposed evidence. Sgt Callaghan said it was the prosecutions case that on the day in question, it was alleged the accused ordered pizzas and the bill came to 48. When the delivery driver arrived with the order, it was alleged Mr Lawrence told him he had no cash to pay him, Sgt Callaghan said. According to the prosecution, Mr Lawrence instead gave bank details which turned out to be false. After hearing the summary of the allegations, Judge Conneely accepted jurisdiction to deal with the case This means it can remain in the district court instead of being sent forward to the circuit court, which has greater potential sentencing powers on conviction. The judge granted free legal aid following an application by defence solicitor Simon Fleming who submitted a statement of the accuseds financial means. Mr Fleming said Mr Lawrence was an unemployed father of five. The accused was not required to address the court during the brief jurisdiction hearing and has not yet indicated how he intends to plead to the charge, which is under the Theft and Fraud Offences Act. He was remanded on continuing bail to appear in court again on a date in July, when he will be expected to indicate a plea. If he is contesting the case, he will be given a hearing date for the non-jury court. The father of brothers Callum and Jake Robinson who were shot dead in Mexico has also taken part in an emotional tribute for his sons A plane with a mechanical issue has safely landed after hours of circling Newcastle Airport. Source: ABC Yahoo's live news blog has concluded for Monday, May 13. One of the biggest stories of the day has been the safe landing of a plane at Newcastle Airport following mechanical issues discovered mid-flight. More details are available below. Earlier it emerged a young child tragically died in a drowning incident in a Melbourne swamp on Sunday evening. The death of the 4-year-old boy is not being treated as suspicious. The father of brothers Callum and Jake Robinson who were shot dead in Mexico has taken part in an emotional tribute in San Diego for his sons. Read more here. South Australia is looking to ban apps like Facebook and TikTok for children its government says are at harm. LIVE COVERAGE IS OVER 10 updates Woolworths refuses to apologise as premier gatecrashes inquiry Woolworths chief commercial officer Paul Harker says the supermarket hasn't "done anything wrong" when asked by Queensland Premier Steven Miles to apologise to the public over grocery prices. Miles was an unexpected attendee at the parliamentary probe into supermarket prices, and fired into representatives from both Coles and Woolworths. Im trying to understand what Im actually apologising for," Harker said in response. Read more here. Steven Miles gatecrashed proceedings on Monday. Source: NCA NewsWire 'Unauthorised maritime arrivals' found in WA Four Vietnamese people have been found near WA's coastal town of Broome after arriving illegally by boat, bringing further scrutiny of the country's border protection. The unauthorised maritime arrivals came to Australia's shores on Friday morning, Guardian Australia reported. It comes after 33 illegal arrivals were found on Christmas Island after their boat was destroyed in bad weather. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stressed adequate funding is in place for the Australian Border Force who ensure anyone arriving in such a fashion do not settle in the country. The four arrivals were found near Broome. Source: AAP Man allegedly spears dingo to death on K'gari A dingo has been killed after a man allegedly speared it to death on K'gari. The man said the dingo was lingering around his campsite on April 19 before the alleged attack with a speargun. Authorities are now investigating the man of offences under the Nature Conservation Act 1992, which prohibits the deliberate harm of dingoes. The man presented to the deaprtement the day after the alleged attack and is cooperating with officials. A dingo pictured on K'gari. Source: AAP, file. Remarkable lack of sun for millions on east coast It's been a miserable May so far for millions along the NSW coast, with a horrid streak of rainy days. Sydneysiders have endured 13 days straight of rain, resulting in nearly double the average rainfall for the month. But another remarkable statistic is the lack of sun they've had. According to Weatherzone, the city has had "exceptionally low average sunshine hours" during May, sitting at just 2.5 hours a day. The long-term average for May is more than double that at 5.9 hours. What an end to Autumn this it turning into. I'ts been a miserable May so far in Sydney. Source: Getty Plane with failed landing gear lands safely There's a huge sense of relief at Newcastle Airport as a plane with mechanical issues has safely landed. Cheers could be heard from crews on the ground as the plane slid to a halt after landing in what is called a "belly landing". Eastern Air ServicesBeechcraft Super King Air operated by was 10 minutes into its flight to Port Macquarie when the issue was detected. The plane has safely landed at Newcastle Airport. Source: ABC Circling plane 'practising' emergency landing A light aircraft is readying itself for an emergency landing after more than two hours circling Newcastle Airport. The aircraft has mechanical issues involving its landing gear. ABC reporter Giselle Wakatama said the plane has been flying low in what appears to be practice runs for its landing, which is expected to be a "belly landing" without its landing gear. Earlier reports suggested five people were onboard the plane, however the ABC understands there are three people. The wet conditions are reportedly hampering the operation, which is expected to take place in the next half an hour. The plane seen flying low as it circles Newcastle Airport. Source: ABC Emergency crews wait at airport ahead of landing attempt A plane continues to circle above Newcastle airport as vision from the ABC shows emergency crews waiting below. It is reportedly attempting to burn fuel before attempting to land with a mechanical issue. Emergency services pictured waiting for developments. Source: ABC Emergency situation at Newcastle Airport An emergency incident is unfolding at Newcastle airport where a plane is circling above with reported landing gear failure. Witnesses reported multiple emergency service vehicles rushing to the airport, the ABC reported. Nine News reports it's believed five people are onboard. We'll bring you further information once available. The plane has been circling above Newcastle airport. Source: Flightrader24 Sydney moves closer to unwanted rain record Another day and it's more rain for Sydney. Monday's early showers means its 14 consecutive days of rain for millions. The city's record stretch stands at 16 days of rain, set in 2022 and 1943. The Bureau of Meteorology says there is a slight chance of a showers on Tuesday and Wednesday. Watch this space. Aussie state looks to ban social media for kids The South Australian government is pressing ahead with plans to ban social media for children under 14. Premier Peter Malinauskas said social media had played its role in a "dramatic spike" in childhood depression and anxiety, pointing to several studies on the matter. "I think we're at the point now where governments have to act," he told ABC News Breakfast on Monday. The state is in the process of exploring the legal pathways to implement the ban. What do you think of the proposal? Have your say below. Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. Gavin Mangan (47) of Bracken Close, Balbriggan, Co Dublin and Owen Kelly (37) of Seville Place, Dublin 1, pleaded guilty to burglary Two burglars who armed themselves with an imitation firearm and a meat cleaver before robbing an elderly man have been jailed for seven years and seven and a half years, respectively. Gavin Mangan (47) of Bracken Close, Balbriggan, Co Dublin and Owen Kelly (37) of Seville Place, Dublin 1, pleaded guilty to burglary at a premise close to Kelly's home on August 20, 2022. Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard Mangan was holding an imitation firearm and Kelly was wielding a meat cleaver when they entered the elderly man's premises and demanded money from him. They made off with 850 in cash, the court heard. The victim was profoundly affected by what happened, the court heard. Sentencing the two men, Judge Pauline Codd said the burglary involved violence meted out on an elderly man who feared for his life in the course of the burglary. She noted Mangan had 93 previous convictions, including burglary, theft and possession of knives, while Kelly has 87 previous convictions. The court heard both men had difficult childhoods, with Mangan exposed to criminality and drug abuse from a young age. Kelly was diagnosed with lupus as a child and started drug-taking at age 13. Both men have long-standing drug addictions. There was CCTV footage of the incident, the court heard. Mangan has been in custody since March 2023, while Kelly has been in custody since January this year. Judge Codd sentenced Mangan to eight years imprisonment with the final six months suspended. She sentenced Kelly to eight years and suspended the final year on a number of conditions. Diane Travers (31) has 114 previous convictions A woman who waved a syringe in front of a shop worker and stated that she had full-blown AIDS has been sentenced. Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that Diane Travers (31) of Nangor Road, Clondalkin, Dublin 11, pleaded guilty to the production of a syringe at Dealz on Lower Liffey Street on October 22, 2018. She has 114 previous convictions, which include over eighty convictions for public order and failure to appear offences. Passing sentence, Judge Elva Duffy said that this was a serious matter but that she could see from the evidence before the court that Travers has made progress since this incident. Judge Duffy said she must take into account the guilty plea and admissions that Travers made to the gardai. The judge said she must also consider that this defendant has significant previous convictions and the impact this incident had on the injured party. Judge Duffy sentenced Travers to two years and three months in prison and suspended the final fifteen months. Upon her release, she is to remain under the supervision of probation services. Judge Duffy backdated this sentence to when Travers went into custody on this matter. Garda John Tansey told Karl Moran BL, prosecuting, that Travers entered Dealz on Liffey St in Dublin on the date in question. After a short period of time, a staff member activated a bell system to inform other workers that there was an urgent incident at the front of the shop. Travers was removing health and beauty items from under her jacket. The court heard that Travers was previously barred from the shop, and while asking her to leave, she became abusive and aggressive towards a male shop worker who had come to the front of the shop to assist. Travers threatened the employee, saying that a man would get him and that she would punch the head of him. Travers then spat at the shop worker with some spray hitting him on the face. Gda Tansey said that as the woman walked away, she turned and produced a syringe from her pocket, waving it towards the shop worker. She said that she had full-blown AIDS and said Dont make me use this or I will put it in your neck, referring to the syringe. The woman then walked towards Jervis and the gardai were alerted. Travers was identified using the shops CCTV and was arrested and interviewed in the months after the incident. She identified herself on CCTV and made some admissions but said she could not remember the day or incident in question due to a long-standing drug addiction. A victim impact statement from the shop worker was read to the court by the prosecuting counsel, which said the incident had been very traumatic and he had to wait weeks for test results. He described, I was in a very difficult place, and it put a great deal of stress on my personal life with my partner. Gda Tansey agreed with David Perry, BL, defending, that there was nothing in the syringe and that Tansey did not have any transmissible disease. The garda agreed with counsel that Tansey was homeless at the time, and she informed gardai that she slept rough as she felt it was safer than sleeping in hostels. She also had a drug addiction. Mr Perry said that there has been a drastic drop-off in convictions since his client received housing from the Peter McVerry Trust in December 2019, to which the garda agreed. Counsel handed a letter of apology into the court from Travers and a letter from her case manager. He said his client had been in and out of State care as a child until the age of sixteen, when she left and lived on the streets from then until 2019. He asked the court to take into account his client's guilty plea, the admissions she made to gardai, her personal circumstances and the progress she has made. He asked the court to be as lenient as possible. Thomas ONeill (47), his partner Ann Wilson (44) and his sister Deirdre Mellor (54) all appeared at Dublin Circuit Court in connection with a rear-ending incident that happened at Woodstown roundabout in Ballycullen, Tallaght on February 1, 2013 A father-of-five who claims he took part in a staged car crash in a bid to get money to clear a 100,000 drug debt has been jailed for two years. Thomas ONeill (47), his partner Ann Wilson (44) and his sister Deirdre Mellor (54) all appeared at Dublin Circuit Court in connection with a rear-ending incident that happened at Woodstown roundabout in Ballycullen, Tallaght on February 1, 2013. ONeill and Wilson were charged with deception after bringing personal injury claims following the minor crash, while Mellor was charged with attempted deception. All three pleaded guilty earlier this year. The court was told how ONeill, Wilson and their son were travelling in a Mazda car that was rear-ended by a Toyota Celica when approaching the roundabout. Following the incident, all three sued Axa Insurance for personal injuries. Wilson, of Ledwill Park, Kilcock, Co Kildare, received compensation of 21,000. Her son - who was a juvenile at the time - was awarded 14,000. She also received 550 for the damage to the car. She said she did not recognise anyone in the other car at the time, despite the fact that Mellor was her partners sister. Mellor was a passenger in the other vehicle. She made a statement to Axa about the crash and had initially planned on taking an injury claim, but on advice decided not to proceed with a case. Judge Martin Nolan handed her down a two-year suspended sentence for the attempted deception. Garda Kevin Bowen of Tallaght Garda Station gave evidence that on May 27, 2013, the insurance company received an anonymous call that claimed that the accident was all a set-up. Axa conducted its own investigations and discovered the passengers in both cars were connected on Facebook and knew each other. The company refused to settle ONeills personal injury claim and the case proceeded to the Circuit Civil Court in 2018. Under cross-examination, it emerged that ONeill was related to Mellor. He was asked whether he knew his sister was in the other car. He responded to say he realised this only when he went to the garda station to report the accident. He subsequently withdrew his claim and Colm Featherstone, Axas fraud investigations manager, made a formal complaint to gardai. The court heard that Thomas ONeill has 70 previous convictions including 17 for driving with no insurance, four for dangerous driving and a series of other minor road traffic offences. He also has a previous conviction for possession of drugs. His barrister told the court that his clients issues with drug addiction began in his late teens. He said ONeill racked up a debt of 100,000 after drugs in his possession were seized on his watch. ONeill, of Glenmore Green, Ballyboden, claimed that he was approached about the scam and told it would be a way to alleviate that debt. The court was told that O'Neill and Wilson 'were not the brains behind the operation". ONeill has been stable on methadone for a number of years. Judge Martin Nolan said he actively participated in this fraud and took steps to defraud the insurance company. He said he deserved to go to prison and sentenced him to two years in jail. In relation to Wilson, he said he would need time to sleep on the decision and adjourned her sentencing until Wednesday. I will decide then whether I send her to prison, he said. The court heard how she had addiction issues with alcohol and crack cocaine and spent some time in Coolmine rehabilitation centre in Dublin. She lost custody of her children for a number of years. However, after graduating from Coolmine in 2020, she was given full custody of her children again. The court was told how her son was involved in a serious road traffic accident in 2015 and is now paralysed from the waist down. She is his full-time carer. Her youngest child is 23 months old. Counsel for Wilson said she would not be in a financial position to return the compensation received as a result of the staged accident. She had to quit working as a cleaner due to her family situation, the court was told. Her mother suffers from schizophrenia and she is not currently in a position to work. However, counsel said she hoped to be in a position to pay the money back in the future. In a statement, Axa said: It is incumbent on Axa to fight insurance fraud, and we will continue to work with An Garda Siochana to ensure fraudsters are prosecuted in the criminal courts. Council to consult with slain siblings family before action is taken Re triple murder of Elizabeth Lisa Cash and Chelsea and Christ Cawley. Pic taken 10-5-2024 The grave Grave of Elizabeth Lisa Cash and Chelsea and Christy Cawley. Tribute to Chelsea Cawley at her grave Grave of Elizabeth 'Lisa' Cash and Chelsea and Christy Cawley. The house where the murders took place The home where tragic Lisa, Chelsea and Christy were killed The house in Tallaght where twins Christy and Chelsea Cawley and their sister Lisa were brutally murdered remains boarded up, more than 20 months since the horrific killings. A local councillor confirmed to the Sunday World this week that any decision on what to do with the now derelict property will only be taken after consultation with the siblings heartbroken family. Triple killer Andy Cash, who is incarcerated on B-wing in the Progression Unit in Mountjoy Prison, pleaded guilty to their murders last Tuesday. He was sentenced to serve three concurrent life sentences for his crimes. On Friday, teddy bears, flowers and pictures left at the property served as a stark reminder of the horrific events that occurred there on September 4, 2022. Local councillor Mick Duff said housing officials and local representatives are very aware of the fact an appalling tragedy had occurred at the property. Tributes at the final resting place for Lisa, Chelsea and Chris The situation around the house is complicated and very difficult, he said. Obviously, the hope it that at some stage it will be refurbished but we are also very aware that in some respects it still serves as a memorial. Its likely it will have to remain vacant for another year or two and prior to anything being done with it, there will obviously have to be consultation with the family. The house where the murders took place Andy Cash Twisted Cash, who brutally murdered eight-year-old twins Chelsea and Christy and sister Lisa (18) in a bloody rampage at the house, can today be revealed as a paranoid loner who was also previously questioned by gardai. Cash (26) was devoted to his late father, also called Andy, who died in 2004. Cash had previously shared photos with Lisa on her communion day. Happy birthday to our Lisa Cash xox, he wrote on Facebook. Hope yeah (sic) have the best day girl, I love you, followed by a string of love heart emojis. He also regularly put up pictures of the adorable twins he knifed to death. My hole [sic] life, Christy-Chelsea, demented Cash tagged a picture of the twins, with a love heart emoji. Grave of Elizabeth 'Lisa' Cash and Chelsea and Christy Cawley. Similarly, he tagged them with my world in another photo, adding our twins twinning it today they never take a proper photo (added with emojis). Our little lady and gentleman, he said in another snap, while again in a separate pic he added: My life. We can reveal Cash was questioned by gardai who suspected him of stealing items at a homeless shelter he lived at in the city centre. He was questioned over a stolen phone and his room was searched by gardai, said a source. There were no charges brought against him, though. Facebook post by Andy Cash Chilling voice messages, obtained by the Sunday World, show that Cash wrongly suspected his Facebook account had been hacked into as he blamed others for his troubles. Cash came from a Traveller family and was also gay. He regularly visited gay bars in Dublin city centre, such as the George, Panti and Street 66, and used dating apps like Grindr. He sometimes had an odd pal or two with him but he was generally a bit of a loner, remarked one regular on the gay scene. He would sit at the bar on his own, but bizarrely start rambling and talking to himself. He never seemed to have a boyfriend and met lads now and again in the bars, at house parties or on Grindr. He was a bit of a smoker, but was also paranoid about picking up Covid during lockdown. Details of the horror that occurred inside the terraced property were revealed for the first time on Tuesday during Cashs sentencing hearing. The Central Criminal Court heard Cash had inflicted hundreds of stab and slash wounds on his siblings before throwing the body of his eight-year-old brother out of the first floor window of their home on Rossfield Avenue. Detective Garda Robert Whitty told prosecution counsel Sean Gillane SC that when gardai arrived at the scene it was one of carnage. All three victims had suffered catastrophic injuries having been stabbed multiple times. A post mortem revealed 71 slash and stab injuries to Lisas face, neck, chest and limbs. There were also signs that she had tried to defend herself from the attack. Christy suffered 107 sharp force injuries while his sister Chelsea was stabbed and slashed 65 times. Mother Margaret is comforted at the funerals. Picture Colin Keegan, Collins Dublin A previous hearing was told that gardai from Tallaght Garda Station, supported by armed detectives and members of an armed support unit, responded to the attack. During a stand-off, officers used non-lethal devices to arrest Cash. At Tuesdays hearing a victim impact statement written by the victims mother Margaret McDonagh, along with other family members was read out in court. Our three innocent children were viciously taken from us and that was the day the world stopped turning, the statement said. What is left is our broken family and every day since has been unbearable. "We hope that all families in a similar situation get their required help before it becomes too late," Mary Coughlan said as her son was sentenced to 10 years in prison A woman who suffered catastrophic, life-long injuries after her son attempted to murder her has hit out at "inadequate" community health services that she said are unable to deal with complex mental illness. Mary Coughlan almost died when her son Gearoid, who has been diagnosed with schizophrenia, beat her and repeatedly stabbed her. She has previously said that she was unaware of the risk her son posed to her and her family prior to the near-fatal assault. The Central Criminal Court heard that Gearoid Coughlan is deemed by the probation service to be at a high risk of reoffending in a community setting. Speaking outside court today after Gearoid was sentenced to 10 years in prison, Ms Coughlan said: "Unfortunately the mental health services in Ireland are inadequate to care for complex mental illnesses in the community." She said schizophrenia has "robbed my son of so much and caused untold sadness in our family. "We hope that all families in a similar situation get their required help before it becomes too late," she said. Last December, Coughlan (32), of Ballycoughlan, Inishannon, Co Cork pleaded guilty to attempting to murder his mother Mary Coughlan on June 4, 2021 at her home in Ballycoughlan. When he finishes his ten-year sentence, Coughlan will undergo six years of supervision by probation and psychiatric services. Passing sentence, Mr Justice Paul McDermott at the Central Criminal Court said that Coughlan will require further treatment before he can safely be reintroduced into society. Mr Justice McDermott said Coughlan lacks insight into his illness and does not understand that to avoid further relapses he needs to take prescribed medication and avoid alcohol and illicit drugs. The judge noted that Coughlan has been aggressive and violent towards numerous people, including his father, mother and hospital staff. The "appalling" attempted murder of his mother left her with catastrophic and life-long, physical and mental injuries and she is lucky to be alive, the judge said. Mr Justice McDermott said Coughlan had opted not to pursue a defence under the Criminal Law (Insanity) Act which may have resulted in him being found not guilty by reason of insanity. He said Coughlan had chosen to plead guilty to attempted murder because he would prefer to have a definite prison sentence rather than the indefinite period of detention in the Central Mental Hospital (CMH) that would be imposed if he were found not guilty by reason of insanity. The judge noted that it is not possible under Irish law for him to impose a hospital order and said this is a matter that has yet to be addressed by the Oireachtas. Before today's sentencing, Coughlan's barrister Alice Fawsitt SC told the court that her client wants to be returned to prison rather than the CMH. His reasons, counsel said, include that he cannot smoke in the hospital and he has only restricted access to the gym. He promised to take his medication and to undergo urinalysis to establish that he is drug-free, Ms Fawsitt said. Mr Justice McDermott said the case gives rise to a number of difficulties posed by Coughlan's "deep, continuing mental health issues". It is up to the prison authorities as to where Coughlan spends his sentence but Mr Justice McDermott said the CMH appears to be the appropriate place for him. The judge noted that the attempted murder and other episodes that resulted in involuntary committals to psychiatric wards were preceded by periods when Coughlan reduced his medication and used alcohol and illicit drugs including cannabis and ketamine. While he has made progress in hospital, Mr Justice McDermott noted a probation report which states Coughlan is at a high risk of reoffending in a community setting. He has no real insight into his illness and continues to justify the attack on his mother based on delusional reasoning. He does not appreciate the benefits of medication and does not understand that previous failures to take his medication led to relapses. He also believes that cannabis use is beneficial. Given his lack of insight, Mr Justice McDermot said there is a high probability that on release into the community Coughlan will deteriorate and pose a risk of violence to others. The judge noted Ms Coughlan's victim impact statement, which he said showed both the concerns of a victim but also the "deep concerns of a mother for her son and her deep and abiding concern that his problems be addressed in a meaningful way. The judge said the available services did not provide the "intensive attention" Gearoid required. The judge added: "Her statement is full of love and forgiveness and positive thoughts for the future and it is full of the strength she has indicated she derives from her faith and from the care and love of family and friends." Among the aggravating features of the offence, the judge noted that the assault took place in the victim's home where the defendant was "cherished, cared for and supported". The attack violated Ms Coughlan's sense of security in her home and was a "gross breach of trust following decades of support and endeavour". Mr Justice McDermott said the intent was clear from the use of a knife "to inflict the most serious injuries possible". In sentencing, Mr Justice McDermott said he wants to protect society but preventive detention can only be used sparingly. The features of the case, he said, justify a headline sentence of 21 years. Taking into account the guilty plea and Coughlan's reduced moral responsibility due to his mental disorder, the judge reduced that to 12 years. He further suspended the final two years for six years with 18 conditions including that Coughlan abide by all directions of the probation and mental health services and take his prescribed medication. Hearing At a sentencing hearing in March, Det Gda Peter Nolan told Tom Creed SC, for the Director of Public Prosecutions, that on June 4, 2021 Ms Coughlan's daughter Joanne became concerned after her mother texted her to say that Gearoid was at her house, appeared to be "quite down" and was saying: "You're not my mother." Joanne's husband, a GP, immediately went to Ballycoughlan where he found Ms Coughlan lying face down in a pool of blood on her kitchen floor, grunting and struggling to breathe. He cleared her airways, stemmed the bleeding and called emergency services. Garda Nolan agreed that an emergency medical consultant said that Ms Coughlan would have died within minutes were it not for the doctor's intervention. Gardai found Gearoid at a bus stop about four kilometres from his mother's home. After being cautioned, he asked twice: "Is she dead?" During interviews he repeatedly denied being at the family home that day but, the garda said, his claims were contradicted by CCTV, mobile phone data, the eye witness evidence of family and neighbours, and forensic evidence that showed his clothes were stained with his mother's blood. Gardai also retrieved a recording made by Coughlan's mother five days prior to the assault in which Gearoid "voiced his intention to kill his mother, father and brother." Gda Nolan said Coughlan could be heard calmly saying, "I will kill all of you". A medical report detailed the injuries to Ms Coughlan, including a 25cm incised wound to the neck and multiple open wounds to the face. When paramedics treated her she had lost cardiac output and required three weeks of treatment in a critical care unit. She suffered a traumatic brain injury and continues to undergo speech and language therapy. Although she is at an advanced stage of recovery, she will never make a full recovery, Gda Nolan said. After his arrest and detention, Gearoid was sent to the Central Mental Hospital where he remains. At the same hearing, Ms Coughlan said she is frustrated that people with paranoid schizophrenia are allowed to live in the community without the care they need, in particular, to ensure they stick to their prescribed medication. Ms Coughlan said that a lack of communication regarding the level of risk posed by her son's disease left her in an "unexpected, dangerous situation where I endured a horrific assault that almost cost me my life and will continue to impact my life forever. The assault by my son, who I never feared before, resulted in severe injuries including a traumatic brain injury." Mother's statement In her victim impact statement in March, Ms Coughlan said Gearoid is the youngest of her five children. His struggles with schizophrenia began in his first year at University College in Limerick and resulted in 11 admissions to the psychiatric unit at Cork University Hospital over a ten-year period. She said: "My experience with the mental health services is that it appears effective in certain crises when an immediate threat to life or limb is present, but it falls short in treating mental health conditions and preventing crises, particularly in schizophrenics where patients often resist medication due to the nature of the disease and their lack of insight." She said her family and her son were "failed by the system". She said she is frustrated that the mental health services allow people with paranoid schizophrenia to live in communities "without the care they need to stay well, specifically by sticking to their medication. Ms Coughlan said she understands that the health service is working within the Mental Health Act but, she said, the lack of coordination between primary care workers and the hospitals impacted her son's health and her family's safety. She described her survival as a "miracle" and said without the intervention of her son-in-law the outcome "would have been drastically different". She added: "I refuse to let this episode define me. I constantly seek new adventures, drawing strength from my husband, family, friends, neighbours and my community." Since leaving hospital, she said she has refused to be "trapped in my own body", to hide away or be isolated. "I pushed myself to get about and re-engage with my community, to embrace life once more. Despite the visible wounds, I feel so lucky I am alive. This has been a poignant and humbling reminder that in the blink of an eye life can undergo irreversible changes." She finished by saying that she had been asked what she would say if she were sitting with Gearoid in front of her in a safe environment. "I replied without hesitating that I would give him a big hug and tell him we all love him. I understand that his illness was the cause of this." OHagan, from Craigavon, entered guilty pleas to two counts of common assault of his ex-partner, two of causing criminal damage to her car as well as single charges of harassment and driving dangerously on Meadow Bank in Banbridge, all committed between 10-15 June last year. One of the worlds strongest men today admitted that he is a domestic abuser who twice assaulted a woman. Sean OHagan was due to go on trial at at Newry Crown Court, sitting at Craigavon but after a jury were sworn in, defence KC Eugene Grant asked for the 34-year-old to be re-arraigned on six of the charges against him. Standing in the dock wearing a blue suit and towering over the prison officer standing beside him OHagan, from Church View Way, Laurencetown in Craigavon, entered guilty pleas to two counts of common assault of his ex-partner, two of causing criminal damage to her car as well as single charges of harassment and driving dangerously on Meadow Bank in Banbridge, all committed between 10-15 June last year. Following the admissions, prosecuting KC Geraldine McCullough asked for further charges of robbery and a domestic abuse offence to be marked as left on the books, an application which was granted by Judge Paul Ramsey KC. Freeing OHagan on bail, the judge adjourned the case to allow probation to compile a pre-sentence report. He told the strongman he would pass sentence on 1 July and advised him to fully cooperate with the Probation Board for Northern Ireland (PBNI) when they come to interview him for the report. Just last month Judge Ramsey had varied OHagans bail conditions to allow him to travel to the Caribbean to compete in the strongman champions league which is shown on Amazon Prime TV. The competition in Fort-de-France on the rugged and beautiful Caribbean island of Martinique was the first of a dozen rounds of the SCL and could potentially see OHagan travel around the world to compete in Holland, Portugal, Serbia, Cyprus, England, Finland and South Africa before the final in November. If he manages to top the league, OHagan stands to win $350,000. Hailing from Loughbrickland and standing at just under 7 tall, OHagan is widely considered to be the tallest of the worlds active and competing strongmen. O'Hagan's first major success was becoming Ulster's Strongman Man in 2014 when he was 24-years-old, making him the competitions youngest winner and he followed that up by winning Ireland's Strongest Man in 2015. In 2016, O'Hagan began competing in an international strongman competition, finishing 31st in the Strongman world rankings. In 2017, he qualified for the Strongman Champions League World Finals in Mexico. After 18 matches in various locations across the globe, with his best finish being 4th, he finished 9th in the world final and jumped to 20th strongest man in the world rankings with 71 points. O'Hagan won the 2020 World's Strongest Viking competition in Fefor, Norway. Gardai probe if row at property led to death of father-of-two Ion Daghi Gardai believe a father of two was stabbed to death by a man known to him following a drink-fuelled row in a Kildare home. The victim, named locally as Ion Daghi (39), was discovered with serious injuries after emergency services were alerted to a house in Sallins in the early hours of yesterday morning. The Moldovan national was pronounced dead at the scene in Sallins Park and a criminal investigation was launched. Its understood Mr Daghi was a father to two children and had been living in the area for some time. A 23-year-old man, who was known to the victim, was arrested at the scene and last night remained in garda custody. Detectives are probing if the younger man stabbed the victim in the chest after a drink-fuelled row escalated. Several people had been socialising at the residential property that night prior to the fatal assault. Investigators have spoken to those who were present and are following a definite line of inquiry in relation to the attack. One source said: The exact circumstances of what led to this turning into a fatal assault are still under investigation. Detectives at Naas garda station have begun a murder inquiry and are not looking for anyone else in relation to the assault. Gardai at the scene in Sallins Park, Co Kildare, where man in his 30s was killed. Photo: Mark Condren The suspect is being detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984, and can be held for up to 24 hours. Once his period of detention expires, he must either be charged or released from custody pending a file to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP). The Garda Technical Bureau was yesterday carrying out examinations of the property which remained sealed off. In the afternoon, Mr Daghis body was removed from the scene and brought to the local mortuary where a post-mortem examination was being carried out yesterday evening. A garda spokesman said that the local coroner has also been notified. A senior investigating officer has been appointed to lead the inquiry, and an incident room has been established at Naas garda station, he said. Additionally, a family liaison officer has been assigned to keep the deceaseds family informed of developments. Locals yesterday expressed their shock at waking up to the news that a person had been killed in the quiet housing estate One local reported hearing people arguing at around 2am but did not realise what had happened until gardai arrived on the scene yesterday morning. Fianna Fail TD James Lawless, who is the chair of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice, said the incident was a tragedy. I understand the parties were known to each other, the victim and the attacker. It seems to have been a social event and obviously it ended in tragedy. I think alcohol was a factor and these things can happen in any corner of Ireland, he said. The Kildare North TD told RTE that what had happened was out of character for the very close-knit community in the area. Antonio Angles current whereabouts remains steeped in mystery amid claims he could have drowned before the British-captained City of Plymouth reached Dublin and unconfirmed sightings of him in countries as far afield as Brazil and Uruguay over the past three decades. A Spanish judge has turned down a bid by the family of an alleged Spanish serial killer last seen on a ship that docked in Ireland to have him officially declared dead. Antonio Angles current whereabouts remains steeped in mystery amid claims he could have drowned before the British-captained City of Plymouth reached Dublin and unconfirmed sightings of him in countries as far afield as Brazil and Uruguay over the past three decades. Last February retired Garda Detective Sergeant Alan Bailey said Angles, wanted over the November 1992 kidnap, rape, torture and murders of three teenage girls near the Spanish city of Valencia, would always be a suspect in American Annie McCarricks March 1993 Dublin disappearance until he could be traced and ruled out. Former Dublin Port worker Gerry McDonnell, speaking on the same Spanish TV documentary where Mr Bailey made his claims, insisted he had seen stowaway Angles leave City of Plymouth as police boarded it to arrest him and walk off unchallenged into the darkness. A judge in Catarroja near Valencia had agreed earlier this year to consider Angles familys request to have the missing fugitive declared dead for issues relating to an inheritance. But overnight it emerged the request had been refused, and the wanted Spaniard was still considered to be alive as far as the countrys courts are concerned. The decision was attributed to the fact Angles is still being investigated in Spain over the torture and murders of Miriam Garcia, 14; Desire Hernandez, 14; and Antonia Gamez,15, the subject of a 2019 Netflix documentary called The Alcasser Murders. Their bodies were found 75 days after they vanished from their home village of Alcasser. Another Spaniard, Miguel Ricart, served 21 years in jail for the hideous crimes but alleged accomplice Angles fled Spain and was last seen on container ship City of Plymouth in March 1993 after stowing away on board before it left Lisbon for Dublin. Retired UK-based Kenneth Farquharson Stevens has insisted Spains most wanted man, also one of Interpols most wanted, had been locked in a secure cabin after being discovered on board and making a failed escape bid before police boarded the ship in Dublin and found it empty. He told Spanish TV investigative journalists in 2018 police in the UK had later told him they believed one of his crew had helped Angles escape, but declined to name any names. Investigators have not ruled out the possibility Angles drowned after escaping the ship, although his body has never been found. Over the years there have been reports of unconfirmed sightings of him in countries as far afield as Brazil and Uruguay. Angles criminal responsibility for the Alcasser murders will extinguish in 2029, meaning he cannot be tried even if he is found alive after that date. As well as turning down the family request to have him declared dead because he is still being probed by a court in Alzira near Valencia, the Catarroja-based judge also said he was taking the decision because the motives for it had not been properly justified. A motion to declare someone legally dead can normally be made in Spain after ten years, although in some cases requests can be submitted before then. Alan Bailey, centrally involved in the investigation into Annie McCarricks disappearance which has now been upgraded to a murder investigation, told a Spanish TV documentary last February: I would say Antonio Angles will remain a person of interest until he can be definitively ruled out and we know what happened with Annie McCarrick. Antonio Angles needs to be traced, investigated and ruled out of the inquiry if he wasnt involved. The fact he has never been located means he will be a suspect always. Annie McCarrick, 27, vanished on March 26, 1993, during a day trip to Enniskerry in County Wicklow. The man the City of Plymouths captain and several crew members have identified from photos as Angles is said to have reached Dublin less than 48 hours earlier. Holidaymakers will be unable to buy alcohol between 9.30pm and 8am Is the party over? Ibiza residents are frustrated at the island's image as a party and drug destination. Photo: Getty Holidaymakers at the busiest resorts on Spains Balearic Islands will be unable to buy alcohol between 9.30pm and 8am under a crackdown announced by the local government. The late-night sales of booze will be prohibited in Llucmajor, Palma, Calvia (Magaluf) in Majorca and Sant Antoni in Ibiza. Party boats will also be stopped from operating within one nautical mile of the designated area under the toughening of a law passed in 2020 to limit the impact of alcohol-fuelled holidays. The legislation comes with a 14m funding package for security, inspections and advertising, the Balearic government said. Officials say it is part of an overall plan to promote responsible tourism, with the new law to remain in place until 2027. Luis Pomar, from the Balearic Islands Tourism Council, told the BBC that he hoped the law would no longer be needed if we instil in people how to behave. The measure comes as many European resorts brace for the influx of tourists over the summer season. While the money generated by drinking alcohol is welcomed by some local businesses, the impact of drunk holidaymakers can be negative for the regions, especially for the people living there. The situation has been highlighted by several television programmes such as What Happens in Kavos which show young people often getting drunk and getting involved in antisocial incidents such as fights. In response, initiatives have been run across many party islands in a bid to crackdown on alcohol consumption. In 2019, officials in Mallorca warned tourists they faced fines of up to 3,000 for antisocial behaviour or causing a public nuisance. The 2020 law imposed by the Balearic Islands banned bar crawls, defined as excursions promoting excessive consumption of alcohol. Holiday companies have also taken action. Thomas Cook warned holidaymakers in 2022 that all-inclusive no longer means unlimited drinks with local laws in the Balearic Islands determining people can have a maximum of six alcoholic drinks a day. This week is Hospice Awareness Week and Hospice New Zealand is launching a campaign to help raise awareness about the value of hospice care. Hospice New Zealand chief executive, Wayne Naylor says there continues to be misunderstanding and a lack of awareness in our communities of what hospice care includes, where it happens, and the benefits of receiving care early. Around a third of the people who die in New Zealand receive hospice care, but many people continue to miss out on the palliative care hospices provide. Last year around 90 per cent of people who died (34,000) had a foreseeable death from a known illness where palliative care could have been of benefit. "They miss out because of access issues caused by funding and workforce challenges that mean hospices are unable to reach everyone in need, as well as the fear and misunderstanding of what hospice care is and who can benefit. The digital campaign, which shares real life stories of patients and whanau-family members, reveals the breadth and value of hospice care that is so precious and full of magical moments. The stories aim to dispel a some of the myths about hospice care, like the notion it is only available in the last days of someones life. If we are involved earlier in someones illness, we can support people better to achieve what they want to achieve with their remaining life. We are actually about life, not just death, says Wayne. The earlier people access hospice the better. Whether thats weeks, months or even years before death, getting the benefits of the wrap-around physical, social, spiritual and emotional support means patients get to live fully until they die. Wayne says he hopes that this campaign motivates more New Zealanders to support hospice. We rely on the generosity of our communities to deliver our life changing services. We couldnt do it without their support. Hospice exists to ensure people receive the care and understanding they deserve, when they are dying, and to provide ongoing support to their whanau-family in bereavement. More than 300 New Zealand Army reservists and their Australian counterparts have taken part in the largest collective Reserve Force exercise in nearly 20 years. Reserve Force soldiers traded their suits for boots as part of Exercise Tauwharenikau, a simulated conflict exercise at Waiouru Military Training Area based on unrest on a fictional island in the South Pacific. Over nine days it incorporated missions that were both intelligence-driven and action-based. The lead unit for the exercise was Army Reserve Battalion, 3rd/6th Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment (3/6 Battalion). Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Colonel Nick Jones, says the exercise was intended to replicate the scale and complexity of operations soldiers were likely to encounter once deployed overseas. It improved our reservists ability to effectively work alongside each other as a collective, to integrate with the Regular Force and to enhance our interoperability with our Australian allies who also attended. Infantry soldiers and an NZLAV providing security during a combat mission to clear hostile forces from an area. Soldiers experienced operating within a combat team framework which was made up of a light infantry rifle company consisting of rifle platoons from both the New Zealand and Australian Army Reserve Forces, a command-and-control centre, an uncrewed aircraft system (UAS) detachment, communication and intelligence specialists, a mounted reconnaissance section, combat service support specialists, combat engineers and medics, including dental support. We trained with Royal New Zealand Air Force NH90 helicopters and NZ Light Armoured Vehicles (NZLAV) which deployed soldiers into remote and challenging environments, and also used a combat engineer dog handler and his Explosive Detection Dog, Flicker, says Lieutenant Colonel Jones. Exercise director Major Mike Beale from 3rd/6th Battalion says it's a valuable opportunity for Reserve Force soldiers to rub shoulders with different units. Infantry soldiers advancing on a position held by hostile forces. Reserves from other Army trades were integrated with the infantry company. Not only did they provide essential specialist skills, but this enhanced the combat capability of the company itself by creating what is known as a combined arms combat team. For many Army reserves, it was their first exposure to an NH90 and the NZLAV - which Private Tayla Craigen (2/4 Battalion) says is a highlight of the exercise. I joined the Reserve Force to give back to my community, but also out of a sense of adventure and a love of being in the outdoors, she says. Being in an NH90 was a new experience I will never forget and something I wouldnt have been able to do as a civilian. Lieutenant Colonel Jones says the exercise was supported by a team of experienced officers and soldiers, and showed that the Armys Reserve Force was combat ready. The training had an edge to it - it needs to because our people need to be prepared. We need to be prepared to fight alongside each other, our Regular Force, and our Australian ally thats what I mean by being combat ready. Dental Officer Lieutenant Richard Sadipiralla examines the teeth of Major Ryan Clarke, Commanding Officer, Northland Company 3rd/6th Battalion. The amount of planning that goes in to these types of exercises is significant, especially when combining forces with the Australian Reserve Force. Major John Dunn, Australian Army Contingent Commander, says 38 Australian reservists took part in Exercise Tauwharenikau. Enabling our Australian reservists the opportunity to take part is vital to building and strengthening the Australia-New Zealand relationship that weve nurtured for over 100 years. We have our similarities in the way we work, but also our differences. Thats why this exercise is important - so we can adapt to each other and work efficiently together. The New Zealand Army currently consists of around 4600 Regular Force, and just over 2100 Reserve Force soldiers. Soldiers from 2nd Engineer Regiment and the Australian Defence Force, along with explosive detection dog Flicker, wait to board an NH90 before deploying into the field. New Zealands most thrilling filmmaking competition - Vista Foundation 48Hours is happening this coming weekend, where creativity meets the clock in the ultimate test of talent and teamwork. There will be moments of pure ecstasy, absolute exhaustion, extreme bonding and meltdowns in what is NZs largest guerrilla film-making competition, aiming to make the best short film in just 48 hours. Filmmakers from all over NZ dont know what genre they will be shooting until the start of the competition. All writing, shooting, editing and adding a musical soundtrack must occur within the 48-hour window beginning Friday, May 17, at 7pm and ending Sunday, May 19, at 7pm. To add to the mayhem, they must also include some random elements. The Vista Foundation 48Hours is a cornerstone of the New Zealand film industry, running for 21 years and offering an exhilarating platform for both emerging and established filmmakers. The annual competition is NZs largest guerrilla filmmaking event. Each year theres been equipment/rental facilities selling out, actors suddenly cancelling commercials, celebrity friends being abused, broken bones, relationships ending, moments of pure ecstasy, absolute exhaustion, extreme bonding, annoyed neighbours, production gear disappearing, cars stolen, meltdowns and the most immense fun. It has attracted hundreds of teams from around NZ, including solo, duo, and school teams. More than 6000 short films have been produced over the 20 years. Great Lake Film Society filming their 48Hours entry R.A.W.W. in 2021. Photo: Supplied. Filmmakers are recognised with awards and vie for the prestigious title of Grand National Champion. The very best films from across the country are judged by a panel of national and international judges and the competition culminates in a spectacular Grand Finals event, which for the first time will be held at the Embassy Theatre in Wellington on July 27. Sir Peter Jackson will be personally selecting three wild card films to make it into the Grand Finals. The Vista Foundation 48Hours is presented by The Vista Foundation, in association with Te Tuma Whakaata Taonga / New Zealand Film Commission. We are grateful for the support of these industry giants and many other generous sponsors, says a Vista Foundation 48Hours spokesperson. Their backing underscores the significance of 48Hours in the landscape of New Zealand filmmaking and sets many filmmakers on a path to success in the industry. Fletcher Oxford and Larissa Allen in a zombie-themed 48Hours entry for Eddie Paige Productions, filmed in Parkvale, Tauranga. Photo: Supplied. There are thousands of dollars worth of prizes up for grabs for teams as well as a solo/duo award. This year OPPO has again partnered with the Vista Foundation 48Hours to bring the OPPO48 Award to showcase mobile phone filmmaking in NZ, with an impressive top prize of $5000. Finalists for this will be announced on May 21, with the winner announced at the Grand Final. Bay of Plenty City Manager Tom Paton says registrations close at midnight on Wednesday, May 15. There are 16 teams registered so far for the Bay of Plenty, says Tom, who has been the city manager for Gisborne for the last ten years. This year is his first time also covering the Bay of Plenty. Its all about having fun during the weekend. Its about getting people together and doing what you can, but if youre not having fun youre not doing it well. Tom says its best not to go into the competition thinking youre going to win or even trying to win. Just go in it trying to make the best film you can, says Tom. And have fun. Heats are being held in each region, with the Bay of Plenty City Finals to be held at 7pm, Friday, June 14, at United Cinemas Bayfair, Mount Maunganui. South Brazil is experiencing severe flooding, leaving many helpless, Tauranga resident Gabi Wood is trying to help from afar. Porto Alegre in South Brazil is the hometown of Gabi Wood. After watching several videos of what is happening in the South of Brazil, my hometown and feeling helpless living so far away I decided to create a GiveaLittle page to raise funds to help those who are in need. We have a huge Brazilian population living in Tauranga, Mount Maunganui and Papamoa and around the Bay of Plenty who now call New Zealand their home. I have friends here who have their families affected. She says she was motivated to set up a GiveaLittle page when she saw many people she knows risking their lives to save others. Rio Grande do Sul State disaster. Photo: Jeff Botega, @jeffbotega. Its heartbreaking. I felt truly helpless for not being able to have my hands on to help out in this difficult time. Since 29 April 2024, severe floods have affected the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Southern Brazil, resulting in cities being completely destroyed by floods, cities completely submerged. It has been considered the countrys worst flooding in over 80 years. Gabi says 80 per cent of her hometowns population have been affected and cities like Eldorado where she spent many years holidaying, are 100 per cent under water. Gabi has been living in New Zealand for the past 18 years and has been keeping up to date through social media and international newspapers. Friends and family are working tirelessly to rescue people and animals. Rio Grande do Sul State disaster. Photo: Jeff Botega, @jeffbotega. There are more than 2,115,703 people who have been affected and more than 81,000 have been relocated to shelters. The ones who managed to stay at their homes have no water and no power in many areas around Porto Alegre. This horse is being rescued using a boat through the flooded farmlands. Photo supplied. There are over 880,000 people with no water in Porto Alegre and surrounding areas. Many have no power and have been relocated to schools, universities, stadiums, places that can accommodate those victims that have lost their homes or cannot go back to it. Rio Grande do Sul State disaster. Photo: Jeff Botega, @jeffbotega. Gabi says though her family is safe, the situation is dire, Many friends have no house, no water or power. Many kids have been rescued and not yet reunited with their families. Ive been trying to work on this sharing all the information I have as much as I can to bring people together in this cause. I havent been able to sleep much since all this happened and lots and lots of tears. Rio Grande do Sul State disaster. Photo: Jeff Botega, @jeffbotega. At this stage, no one can confirm how many people have lost their lives, the last update I had was more than 145 confirmed deaths. Thousands of animals have been rescued and many have also died. She says the community have taken the most action in the situation. The Brazilian government (federal police, police from Rio Grande do Sul and Brazilian army) took days to respond. Rio Grande do Sul State disaster. Photo: Jeff Botega, @jeffbotega. The states civil defence authority says a large number of people are still missing and over 447 cities are affected many of them are under water. Many countries (Uruguai, USA and many other countries) are sending donations (food, clothes water, and medications) due to the high risk of leptospirosis and other diseases especially those who are working in temporary hospitals and rescues. Rio Grande do Sul State disaster. Photo: Jeff Botega, @jeffbotega. Kiwis are very generous and I believe any amount that we donate towards this cause will help thousands of families. Unfortunately the reality of Brazil is nothing like in NZ. Not many people have house and content insurance there (due to high costs) so they will have to start from scratch and very little financial support from the government. Please donate, please share this page. We need your help. New Zealanders can be part of this cause by donating any amount. Rio Grande do Sul State disaster. Photo: Jeff Botega, @jeffbotega. By donating $1 they will be getting $3 in Brazilian currency so any help any amount would contribute to the south of Brazil to get back to normality quicker. There are over 76,399 rescued people with their houses being destroyed or damaged needing to relocate and there were 10,555 animals rescued. We cant just sit here and pretend this is not happening. There are thousands of kids needing our help. Thank you for your generosity. Use of funds "All funds will be directed to the aid agencies in Brazil (such as the Brazil Foundation and the SOS Enchentes) and those helping with the rescue effort (such as Gretha Schneider). "The funds will be spent towards water, mattresses, blankets, linen, personal hygiene items, food, animal food, medications etc." Donate to Gabis GiveaLittle page to help those suffering in the Brazil floods. https://givealittle.co.nz/cause/south-brazil-floods-worst-in-80-years Rio Grande do Sul State disaster. Photo: Jeff Botega, @jeffbotega. In July, Tauranga will elect its first city council since the 2019 cohort was sacked and replaced with government-appointed commissioners after a tumultuous start to the term led to governance concerns. Kiri Gillespie catches up with the former councillors and discovers who is running again, who is undecided - and who has ruled it out. John Robson is moments away from his first haircut since 2020 when he confirms to the Bay of Plenty Times he will be running for the Tauranga City Council again. The former councillor was among elected members discharged of their duties by Local Government Minister Nanaia Mahuta and replaced by a commission. Mahuta cited issues such as poor behaviour, infighting and not setting realistic rates in her decision, which followed resignations by Mayor Tenby Powell and councillor Jako Abrie as well as a critical report by independent Crown observers. The commissions extended term ends on July 20, when Taurangas election ends. Nominations opened on April 26 and five of the original 11 have confirmed to the Bay of Plenty Times they will stand again, with one other undecided. John Robson For John, the election means democracy is back. A vocal opponent of the commissions appointment, he says he protested this by refusing to cut his thick, curly hair until democracy returned to the city. On Friday, more than three years later, he went to the hairdresser. John says he intended to run for the mayoralty and in the Bethlehem ward. He says the 2019 council was democratically elected to do a job that was cut short and he had unfinished business. The issues that I ran on in 2019, some of those still remain. There are changes that need to happen in this city for the city to benefit. Heidi Hughes Heidi Hughes says she would run for the Mount Maunganui ward and believed the city was moving in a positive direction after having commissioners in charge. I feel like theres been a really good circuit-breaker, which I guess was what was needed, Heidi says. She was a first-time councillor in 2019 and quit after Mahutas decision to help the city avoid an expensive byelection. Heidi says the experience she gained would be important for a new council. Former Tauranga City councillors Dawn Kiddie, Jako Abrie, Tina Salisbury, Heidi Hughes and Andrew Hollis were first-time councillors in 2019. In her view: I dont want to see a majority of old councillors get in but I do think its really helpful and important that if there are people who have council or governance experience, they can be mentors and support others. She had seen what went wrong in the previous council and now knew how the next group should interact to create a team. Larry Baldock Larry Baldock was deputy mayor until a coup by some colleagues forced him to step away from this role, remaining a councillor. The matter was one of many that led to Mahutas decision to remove the elected council. Larry, who ran in the 2023 general election, says he was standing for the Pyes Pa ward and believed he still had something to offer. I understand that Im tarred with the same brush because we all got replaced but its important theres experience and knowledge of history on council. Former councillor Larry Baldock with former councillors Steve Morris and Dawn Kiddie in the background. Photo / George Novak. I believe Ive always been a positive councillor looking to work with people. In his opinion: The last thing we need is a lot of negative complaining about the commission. We need to move on and continue the positive development the city has had. Tina Salisbury Tina Salisbury was deputy mayor after Larry stepped down and this year she is aiming for the top job. Tina could not be reached yesterday but previously says she decided to run for just the mayoralty not a councillor seat because she believed Tauranga needed decisive leadership. She told Local Democracy Reporting she understood Taurangas complexities from having already been on the council. Asked if she would have any concerns if other members of the previous council were elected, she says: I trust the city to elect good people to lead the city and I will work with whoever is elected. Steve Morris Steve Morris told the Bay of Plenty Times he intended to announce his nomination this week and, if elected, he looked forward to working with both old and new faces. Tenby Powell Tenby, who quit and called for commissioners to be appointed shortly before Mahuta announced her decision, says he remained undecided on whether to run again. At the time of his resignation, Tenby described his term as soul-destroying and was also receiving prostate cancer treatment. Tenby says he had been regularly asked whether he would return. Former Tauranga Mayor Tenby Powell, pictured shortly after his resignation in 2020. Photo / George Novak. The truth is Im undecided. Im waiting to see who puts their hand up. I dont need to be mayor but I would love to back the right people and carry on the work of the commission [as a councillor]. Tenby says he would happily back Tina, Heidi and Larry. Jako Abrie Jako Abrie quit about two months before Mahutas decision, describing the council environment as toxic at the time. He says he had no plans to run again and hoped new people would be elected, with the exceptions of Heidi and Tina. In his view: They were amazing...' Im optimistic that the new councillors will learn from our failed attempt... Kelvin Clout Kelvin Clout, a former deputy mayor, says he had been tempted to stand again but was thoroughly enjoying his new career in real estate. Kelvin says he was still interested in local government and would be quite comfortable to see some former colleagues re-elected. He says the new council would face big financial constraints and believed that electing people with experience in that field would be helpful. Former Tauranga City councillor Kelvin Clout. Andrew Hollis Andrew Hollis says he was tempted to stand but his gold exchange business had grown dramatically since 2020 and he had expansion plans. Running for a full-time council role would be irresponsible while the business was growing, he says. He backed Johns bid for the mayoralty and believed he could get the city back to an even keel with respect to debt and income. Bill Grainger Bill Grainger indicated shortly after Mahutas intervention he had no intention of returning to council. Bill confirmed he still felt the same and says it was great to see democracy back. Lets see what a fresh new set of councillors can do. Editors note: The Bay of Plenty Times has attempted to contact Dawn Kiddie and this story will be updated if she responds. Kiri Gillespie is an assistant news director and a senior journalist for the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post, specialising in local politics and city issues. She was a finalist for the Voyager Media Awards Regional Journalist of the Year in 2021. -Kiri Gillespie, Bay of Plenty Times Irene Quirante Monday, 13 May 2024, 22:14 Opciones para compartir Copiar enlace WhatsApp Facebook X (antes Twitter) LinkedIn Telegram Threads It was just a few minutes before 5am. That night, like so many in the previous year and a half, Ismail K. spent it in the black Opel he drove for the Bolt ride-sharing company. A message via the app alerted him to a new job request on Calle Burgos in Fuengirola at 4.44am. He accepted it. A couple were waiting for him at the indicated address. The girl, who had requested the trip through her account, got into the back seat of the car. Her boyfriend, with whom she had recently started a relationship - they had met two weeks earlier - walked around the car and stood by the driver's door. The young man, without saying a word, allegedly pulled out two knives hidden in his trousers. From then on, the horror started. The driver, knowing his life was in danger, unbuckled his seatbelt and climbed out of the Opel in a desperate attempt to get to safety. He was unsuccessful. The man, whom he had probably never seen before, caught him from behind as he ran, causing him to fall to the ground - 46 stab wounds ended his life in a flash. That night, 22 June 2023, he was the second Bolt driver to receive that ride request via the app. Adrian, 35, the alleged killer, and his girlfriend, had been having dinner at a house and later moved on to drinks. According to the girl's account, they drank two bottles of wine and another of Martini. After finishing them, they ordered a car to go to a shop to get more alcohol. Discussion on the phone The first driver accepted the job about 4.35am, but he was very tired. He had been dozing off in the vehicle for a while. Sleep overcame him again as soon as he put the keys in the ignition of the car, without starting it. Possibly, that was what saved him. He woke up to a call from the client he had left waiting, although the caller was a man, not the woman who had ordered the car. At first he was interested to know if he was OK, but then he changed his tone. "Asshole, you touch my girlfriend...", he told him on two occasions, according to the driver in court. "You've got balls, you've got guns on you, get ready," he added. The man hung up and refused the job. The next to accept the job was Ismail. The victim, 44, was a native of Tetouan, from where he emigrated to Spain years ago in search of opportunities and a better life for his family. He obtained a residence permit and started working in the hope of soon bringing over his wife and young son, who were still living in Morocco. He had already initiated the family reunification process. Before Ismail's murder, the alleged perpetrator argued with another Bolt driver on the phone, who cancelled the trip That future was cut short in the early hours of that fateful morning, when he encountered Adrian, his alleged murderer, whose life had also suffered a setback several years earlier. His clinical history gives an account of this, with hundreds of pages summarising a little more than a decade marked by admissions to mental institutions. His girlfriend, whom he met during psychiatry treatment at a hospital in Malaga, came out of the Bolt terrified as soon as she saw Adrian start to attack Ismail. She hid between two vehicles and called her partner's brother. At 5am, a call to 091 alerted the National Police that a person was in need of medical assistance after being stabbed in the street. On arriving at the address, the officers found Ismail lying on the ground with a large pool of blood around him. He had no pulse and was not breathing. Police deployed The driver, as certified by the autopsy, had 46 stab wounds. According to investigators, it is likely several of the stab wounds were inflicted after he had already died. Eight metres from his body was the Bolt vehicle, which was parked in the middle of the road with its hazard lights on. The officers approached the vehicle to check if there were any witnesses to the incident. One of the officers saw the alleged murder sitting in the driver's seat. His shirt and hands were completely bloodied. The officers noticed that he was wielding two knives and allegedly started making threatening gestures at them. The officers drew their guns and tried several times to make him stop and drop his weapons. The young man, increasingly nervous, jumped into the back seat and barricade himself in the car. The officers requested reinforcements and three other patrols joined. In the face of Adrian's refusal to obey, the police finally broke one of the windows and emptied a defence spray inside the car. Only then did the young man give in and throw the weapons to the ground, whereupon the officers pulled him out and arrested him. The officers located the two kitchen knives that the suspect allegedly left his house with in the car. Both were covered in blood and had blades about 20 centimetres long. A forensic examination was carried out at the police station. The doctor's conclusion was that he had a psychotic break. This was also confirmed by the report from the hospital where he was being treated for schizoaffective and behavioural disorder. 'I did it out of fear' Two days after the crime, Adrian was brought before Fuengirola magistrate's court. The suspect confessed to the knife attack, although he was convinced the man had survived. "I did it out of fear, out of fear, to protect myself," he said. According to his testimony, he had given him a "bad feeling" when he spoke to him on the phone - although it was not Ismail he spoke to - and he went out into the street with the two knives because he feared for his life and that of his partner. The defendant only broke down when the magistrate asked him what was wrong with him, referring to his state of mental health. "What's wrong with me? I'm fucking sad," he replied, adding the only thing he needed was "affection". His first admission to a psychiatric institution dates back to mid-2011, in France. At the time of the incident, he was receiving treatment and was being monitored by professionals at the mental unit in Fuengirola. He had also been in centres for drug addiction. Adrian lived alone and, although he received a non-contributory pension, he often struggled to meet everyday expenses such as electricity and water. He only had the support of his father - his mother is deceased - who was completely overwhelmed, as he has another son with mental health issues. The life of the alleged murderer had long since spiralled due to his illness, aggravated over the years and by substance abuse. He now spends his days in the psychiatric penitentiary centre of Seville, awaiting trial. Juan Soto Malaga Monday, 13 May 2024, 20:40 Opciones para compartir Copiar enlace WhatsApp Facebook X (antes Twitter) LinkedIn Telegram Threads It's May and time to eat sardine espetos and visit 'chiringuitos'. All along the coast of Malaga there are hundreds of these beach bars with different appearances but a common link: to offer the best fresh and quality seafood. Without wishing to detract from the rest, these seven chiringuitos must be visited this summer. Malaga Mari Gutierrez Zoom Mari Gutierrez has spent a decade in the Guadalmar area. SUR Address C. Guadalhorce, 54. Malaga Telephone 628 88 37 40 In barely a decade, this chiringuito on Guadalmar beach has gained a legion of customers thanks to its good service and variety of fresh produce. The business, which belongs to a family with a long history of fishing, is an ideal place for people looking for a bit of peace away from the city centre and is highly valued for its sardine skewers and fried fish, but also for its rice dishes. Its secret? The fact that every day they go to the fish market to find the freshest products from all over the coast. Malaga El Morata Zoom El Morata is one of the landmarks of Pedregalejo's promenade. Migue Fernandez Address Paseo Maritimo el Pedregal, 13. Malaga Telephone 952 29 26 45 On the other side of Malaga city, El Morata has stood out for more than half a century on Pedregalejo beach. Together with El Lirio and El Cabra, the three form the true fried fish triangle of the eastern area. In fact, they have almost become survivors in an area full of new businesses that have nothing to do with the espetos boats. In this business, they handle fresh seafood and fish like no-one else. It is worth taking advice from the Morata saga and, without a doubt, try the Moratita after your meal; a drink that they invented and which is undoubtedly world famous. Torremolinos Los Manueles Zoom Los Manueles has been in the Playamar area for nearly 60 years. SUR Address Paseo de Maritimo Torremolinos, 9. Torremolinos Telephone 952 37 47 92 For decades, the Playamar area in Torremolinos has had one of the most popular beach bars in the area. Los Manueles is one of those places where you can never go wrong if you want to eat well. Opened in April 1968, it started out as a removable bar built on reed and today it is one of the most highly rated in the whole area. Run by Manuel Villafaina, a founding member of the Malaga beach business association, the restaurant boasts fresh produce and, above all, an extensive menu of rice dishes that are prepared practically all year round. Torremolinos El Canarias Zoom The Canarias is located next to the Plaza del Remo, in La Carihuela. Sur Address Pl. del Remo, s/n. Torremolinos Telephone 952 37 12 18 On the other side of Torremolinos, in La Carihuela, the chiringuito El Canarias is still going strong. Located in the central Plaza del Remo, it has been serving locals and visitors since 1962, making it one of the oldest still operating in the area. Founded by Jose Perez Marquez and Miguel Leon Clemente, the business is now run by the former's sons, who maintain all the family essence of yesteryear. On its menu fresh seafood, espetos and rice dishes stand out. Marbella Victor's Beach Zoom Victor's Beach is one of the few remaining traditional beach bars in Marbella. Josele Address Urb. El Ancon Playa, km 177. Marbella Telephone 639 55 30 88 Although its name is not entirely traditional, Victor's Beach is one of the few chiringuitos that still maintain a traditional aesthetic on the Marbella coast. Open since 1978 on an unfrequented beach on the coast, it boasts traditional and homemade products. On the sand itself they have a boat where they grill all kinds of fish and, of course, sardines. Although, curiously, their star dish is the sweet and sour ribs, a dish in great demand by the British public and which they prepare on a large barbecue right on the beach. Rincon de la Victoria Marina Playa Zoom The restaurant is on the beach of Benagalbon. SUR Address Playa de La Marina, s/n. Rincon de la Victoria Telephone 639 57 58 46 For more than 30 years, this beach bar located in the Torre de Benagalbon area has been one of the gastronomic reference points in the area, above all for the quality and mastery with which they prepare the sardine espetos. Practically on the sand, the business run by the Palma brothers offers traditional seafood cuisine with numerous suggestions depending on what comes in each day in the Malaga fish markets, especially the one in Caleta de Velez. Adapted to modern times, the chiringuito also has an interesting cocktail menu. Torre del Mar Chiringuito Varela Zoom Chiringuito Varela has been serving customers since 1965. SUR Address Paseo Maritimo Levante, 11. Torre del Mar Telephone 951 08 11 60 The Varela family has spent half a lifetime serving customers like kings on the easternmost coast of the province. In Torre del Mar you will find the chiringuito Varela, an establishment that has been on the beachfront since 1965. In this establishment you can have a good espeto and excellent fried fish as well as a great cocktail, as Victor, one of its owners, can boast of having been proclaimed the best barman in the country. Undoubtedly a benchmark for those who frequent the area. Heather E. Stauffer recently joined Syracuse University Press as the new editor-in-chief. >> Send us your companys news about People in Motion Syracuse, N.Y. -- At least two companies that supply Micron Technologys semiconductor plants in Taiwan have said they plan to come to Central New York to be near Microns planned complex in the town of Clay, Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon said. McMahon declined to name the companies or describe what they supply, but said they were among seven companies he and other local officials met with in Taiwan in March. McMahon said he has verbal commitments from the two companies. American Idol down to top 3 after surprise elimination The top 3 on American Idol season 22 are set as two contestants were eliminated Sunday night during Disney Night. Abi Carter, Will Moseley and Jack Blocker moved on to the finals after performing Part of Your World (The Little Mermaid), Space Oddity (Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny) and The Ballad of the Lonesome Cowboy (Toy Story 4), respectively. Triston Harper and Emmy Russell were sent home, and the latter was a surprise as Russell was an early favorite as the granddaughter of country music legend Loretta Lynn. American Idol, which has been renewed for another season, will crown its 2024 winner on a three-hour finale Sunday, May 19, at 8 p.m. on ABC with appearances by Bon Jovi, New Kids on the Block, Jason Mraz, Seal, Wynonna Judd, and Hootie and the Blowfish. Episodes are also available for streaming on Hulu. SNL highlights Maya Rudolph embraced her mother status on Saturday Night Live over the weekend, delivering one of the best opening monologues in the shows recent history with a Mothers Day-inspired song. Other SNL highlights included a cold open with cast members moms, Rudolph as Beyonce on Hot Ones, musical guest Vampire Weekend, and an appearance by RFK Jr.s brain worm during Weekend Update. MORE BUZZ: Steve Buscemi punched in the face in random NY attack ( AP Switzerlands Nemo wins 2024 Eurovision Song Contest ( RS Olivia Munn underwent hysterectomy amid cancer battle ( E! Olivia Rodrigo jokes shell change her name after fans misspelled tattoo ( BB Jim Henson Company building monster puppets for live-action Beowulf movie ( SF MTV Movie & TV Awards nixed for 2024 ( RS Camryn Manheim leaving Law & Order after season 23 ( ET Iconic Jaws actress dies at 77 ( AL NBA YoungBoy held on $100K bail in Utah prescription fraud case ( BB Aviciis ex Emily Goldberg dies at 34 ( E! Zombie sequel 28 Years Later set for June 2025 release ( RS Roger Corman, B-movie king and The Little Shop of Horrors director, dies ( AP Creed frontman Scott Stapp and wife Jaclyn divorcing after 18 years of marriage ( ET Cyndi Lauper film Let the Canary Sing coming to Paramount+ next month ( BB Buzz is a daily roundup of entertainment news about movies, TV, music and celebrities. E-commerce, returnees fuel Caoxian's thriving Hanfu industry People's Daily Online) 14:27, May 13, 2024 Hanfu, or traditional Chinese dress, from Caoxian county in east China's Shandong Province, has become increasingly popular at home and abroad in recent years. Caoxian has been developing its performance costume industry for more than a decade, establishing a solid foundation for the growth of its Hanfu sector. Thanks to online sales and e-commerce, Caoxian's share of the Hanfu market within China has reached 40 percent in recent years. Caoxian's total sales of Hanfu exceeded 10 billion yuan ($1.38 billion) in 2023, according to statistics. Since the beginning of this year, online sales of Hanfu in the county have reached 1.98 billion yuan, a remarkable increase of 90.8 percent year on year. Young talents returning home have been crucial to the success of Caoxian's Hanfu sector. A livestreamer promotes traditional Chinese Hanfu clothing at the Youaiyuncang Hanfu base in Caoxian county, east China's Shandong Province. (Xinhua/Guo Xulei) "If the local industrial cluster contributes to Caoxian's advantages of low cost and quick delivery in the Hanfu industry, then the young people returning to their hometowns have quickly strengthened the sales, design, and operational aspects, helping to promote brand building and high-quality development," said Li Zilei, head of the Youaiyuncang Hanfu base in Caoxian. Li, who is also an overseas returnee, said that over 300 people, including livestreamers and operational staff, have started their own businesses at the base. The base boasts an exhibition and sales center, a logistics center, a design center, and nearly 100 rooms for livestreaming. It even features an intelligent production line for making Hanfu, which helps improve the quality of the local industry. More and more highly educated people are returning to the county to work or start businesses. Currently, there are three people with Ph.D.s, nearly 100 with master's degrees, and almost 10,000 college graduates engaged in Caoxian's e-commerce industry. In recent years, the county has attracted 50,000 people to come back and start their own businesses, creating over 350,000 jobs in the e-commerce industry. Over the past years, Caoxian has also established several new offices and mechanisms to improve the business environment and facilitate the development of the e-commerce and Hanfu industries. "To avoid homogeneous competition, the county established the Caoxian Hanfu Association to help Hanfu manufacturers develop cooperation mechanisms with design firms and universities, encouraging companies to build their own brands," said Hu Chunqing, president of the association. To protect independent innovation, the county set up an intellectual property rights service center, cutting the processing time for patent applications from 180 days to 10 days. (Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun) EXCLUSIVE: Three years after launching a simple plan to protect critical habitat, experts have been left frustrated by Australia's bureaucracy. The plan would have protected forest on the NSW South Coast (left) and close to Port Macquarie (right). Source: Getty The plan had been simple. Experts wanted to use a simple two-word concept to protect six landscapes on Australias east coast that were harbouring plants and animals on the verge of extinction. What was remarkable about the locations is they acted as refuges during and after the devastating Black Summer bushfires for iconic species like koalas and greater gliders populations of both were listed as endangered in the aftermath of the blazes. So three years ago, World Wide Fund for Nature-Australia experts began working with Environmental Defenders Office (EDO) lawyers to create a legal framework to protect around 1.4 million hectares of unburnt land they believed was important to survival four areas they believed would meet government definitions of "critical habitat." But this critical habitat protection plan has hit a major snag and the two organisations have released a damning report Bushfires, Bureaucracy and Barriers which details issues with bureaucracy and ineffective conservation laws. They found it was near impossible to protect critical habitat because although its mentioned in legislation in every jurisdiction, it isnt actually clearly defined. And there are other problems: Identifying it is not mandatory. Protections are limited. Incentives to safeguard it on private land are underused. Reflecting on this, WWF-Australias Romola Stewart described trying to use existing legal provisions to protect habitat to stop extinctions as "like banging our heads against a brick wall. Discover more of our environment coverage. What is this concept of critical habitat? Critical habitat is land that a species needs to survive. The idea was created 51 years ago in the United States when President Richard Nixon signed the Endangered Species Act into law. Australia borrowed the concept and there are now mechanisms in every jurisdiction which should in theory protect it. Related: Australia's extinction crisis announcement labelled a 'major disappointment' EDO special counsel Cerin Loane recalled the original plan contained in the 2021 report Defending the Unburnt was to use this existing legal tool to protect habitat that they deemed critical to the survival of species following the 2020/2019 bushfires. If you're in an extinction crisis and you've committed to no new extinctions, or you want to even reverse biodiversity decline, a logical thing to do would be to protect the habitat that species needs to survive. Its not rocket science, Loane told Yahoo last week. We shortlist species where we thought had been so impacted by the fires that their habitat is critical. We thought, lets go to governments and say: Look you've got these laws, so let's do it. But we found that the laws weren't really working. Black Summer by the numbers 12.6 million hectares of bushland scorched. 33 human lives were lost and 3,094 homes destroyed. 3 billion animals caught in fire zone. 60,000 koalas impacted. Trillions of insects killed. Which areas do conservationists want to protect? The areas conservationists had hoped to protect were Gippsland-Eden, NSW South Coast, Yengo-Wollemi, NSW North Coast, Nymboida and Border Rangers. They stretch across the east of the country and are home to animals devastated by the bushfires including koalas, lyrebirds, platypus, gliders, quolls and flying foxes. Environmentalists are calling for better protection of key areas which survived the Black Summer bushfires. Source: WWF/Getty Australia has the worst mammalian extinction record in the world, and there are over 2,000 plant and animal species facing extinction that we know of experts believe there are likely many other insects and small reptiles that have vanished without anyone realising. In NSW, its expected that koalas will be extinct in 26 years, and 500 more listed species wont see out the next 100 years. But its not just NSW that is under the spotlight in the report. The report details what conservationists say are regulatory failings across NSW, Victoria, Queensland and the Commonwealth that need urgent fixing to prevent more extinctions. Where laws did exist they found them to be underused. Researchers found data had been collected which could warrant listings for habitat of more than 60 species under the Commonwealths Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act, but despite this no new areas had been added to the register in 20 years. How can we simply protect these six regions? Looking at the mess of critical habitat laws, Loane believes one answer is actually quite simple and that would be to enforce protection of these areas. If we are really serious about protecting critical habitat, and therefore stopping species extinction, we probably need to make it mandatory, she said. The other essential change would be to redefine what critical habitat means, because if you look at the legislation across all Australian jurisdictions, its confusing. We need to clearly define critical habitat, because it's defined differently across all jurisdictions and no one's really clear what it is. And some of the definitions are circular like it defines itself by then referring back to itself. So we just need a clear definition, Loane said. Is it really our role to do all the investigating, figure out what the species are that need protecting and then ask governments to do it? Or should it just be a bit more of a proactive thing that governments lead? Love Australia's weird and wonderful environment? Get our new newsletter showcasing the weeks best stories. Cooperstown, N.Y. Belgium Comes to Cooperstown, once one of Upstate New Yorks most prestigious beer events, is returning to the grounds of Brewery Ommegang this fall after a five-year absence. This years BCTC will be held Sept. 27, 28, and 29 at Ommegang, located just south of the village at 656 County Route 33. The two-night, three-day festival features beer, food, live music, on-site camping, fireworks, axe throwing, tie-dyeing, and more. This year, Ommegang expects the event to feature more than 30 local, national, and Belgian brewers, pouring omore than 100 different beers. Fridays VIP event includes a Belgian-style hog roast. The main beer tasting event is Saturday and includes immersive activation tents featuring American breweries like Ommegang, Boulevard Brewing Co., Firestone Walker Brewing Co. and Belgian brands like Duvel and Chouffe. On Sunday, the festival wraps up with a light breakfast from 7 to 9 a.m. VIP tickets are $250, while admission Saturday is $155 with camping or $125 without camping. See more details and ticket information. Belgium Comes to Cooperstown ran for almost 20 years until it was cancelled in 2019. It was scheduled to return in 2020, but the Covid pandemic put that on hold. It was usually held in early August, In past years, BCTC typically sold out in hours or even minutes when tickets went on sale online. Brewers also planned ahead: Guest breweries often made special edition Belgian-style beers just for the event. The Belgium Comes to Cooperstown Festival is more than just a beer event; its a celebration of craftsmanship, camaraderie, and the creativity that brews in our community, Jordan Egbert, brand manager at Brewery Ommegang, said in a news release. Were passionate about bringing exceptional beer and bucket-list experiences to the people we serve, so we couldnt be more excited to bring BCTC back for everyone to enjoy. Brewery Ommegang opened in 1997 as one of the first breweries in the United States to focus on Belgian-style ales. Owned and operated by the Belgian brewing company Duvel Moortgat, its has greatly expanded its line-up to include IPAs, blended ales, barrel-aged brews and more. It has also become a popular venue for live music, which grew out of the success of the early Belgium Comes to Cooperstown events. Don Cazentre writes about craft beer, wine, spirits and beverages for NYup.com, syracuse.com and The Post-Standard. Reach him at dcazentre@nyup.com, or follow him at NYup.com, on Twitter or Facebook. A legendary music clubs stage is about to play host to a different kind of performancea symphony of scents, as an Upstate New York candle bar experience sets its sights on a second location. Poured Candle Bar of Hudson will be bringing its bespoke fragrance experience and upscale wine bar to a second location at Press Bay Court in Ithaca this summer. Its hallowed walls once housed the live music events of The Haunt which lived there from 1969 to the 1990s. You can still see where the stage was, where the bar was, said Dennis Green, a co-owner of Poured. Green and his partner Ricky Tiscareno opened Poured in the Hudson Valley during the throes of the pandemic in September 2020. The couple had dreamed of someday opening a second location, but were waiting for just the right time and opportunity. Dennis Green (top left), Ricky Tiscareno (bottom right), owners of Poured Candle Bar of Hudson, NY will be opening a second location in downtown Ithaca. Seen here with their rescue pup, Nashville. Ryan Tiscareno | Provided photoRyan Tiscareno | Provided photo The couple vacationed together to Ithaca and the Finger Lakes several times and always felt a draw to the culture and beauty of the area. It also served as a meeting point for Green, a Canadian native and his family. Other spaces had tried to woo them into shopping malls or newly developed storefronts, but it didnt feel quite right. Then the historic walls of the space on Green Street opened up, most recently being used as a hair salon. It wasnt even on the market when a tour guide mentioned to the couple it was just about to be vacant. It was a moment of fate, Tiscareno said. As soon as they saw the space, they knew it was meant to be. Much like the storied Hudson salon, which used to be a brothel in the citys heyday, the Ithaca location had all the character they were looking for. The plan is to open Poured Candle Bar Ithaca in mid-July and reservations are already open. Head to Poureds Fragrance Experience page and select Ithaca to book your spot. Other businesses in the Press Bay Alley and Court include an espresso bar, a circus school, indie clothing retail, hand pies, donuts and more. Surrounding them on Green Street is indie movie theater Cinemapolis, Odyssey Bookstore, and Urban Outfitters. While candle bars have been popping up around Upstate New York, what makes Poured stand out is their personalized candle making experience which pairs with their curated wine bar, a mix of local and international spirits and snacks. They also work with glass makers, ceramicists, iron workers and more to find vessels for your candles that are exclusive to their shop. The downtown Hudson location has become a destination experience, drawing in customers from around the state, according to the pair. We have done a lot of research to make sure that what were doing is unique to us, Green said. Final plans are still in the making, but there may also be Finger Lakes and Ithaca inspired scents available, similar to their existing Hudson Collection which honors the local area. Poured also offers luxury home items, perfumes, colognes, gifts and other retail to complement the fragrance collections they sell across the country. More information can be found at pouredcandlebar.com. Livnletcarsliv BHPian Join Date: Feb 2021 Location: TN66/TN14 Posts: 897 Thanked: 2,202 Times re: USA could soon impose 100 per cent tariff on Chinese electric vehicles | EDIT: Confirmed IMO, US is country of arrogance in general, not just in automobiles. It (US) always considers itself as the kingmaker and global peace maker while actually it is not. In fact, geo-politically it is a huge disruptor of peace and growth across the world. For eg - Tesla while making huge profits until now, has literally started to feel the blow of BYD across the globe. And Tesla thinks that by reducing the price, it can sustain/regain the market share which I think is not going to work because US CANNOT compete in cost to any asian country let alone China. And China, now follows the US in everything, especially on the geopolitical front to become the kingmaker and supersede the US. The ethical and moral front will definitely be disrupted (may not be 100%), but that is the part and parcel of any global power making process. Just like how innocents and civilians are the collaterals of any war. On the other hand, there is no second thought about China's manufacturing prowess and technological advancements. In fact, I would even say to the extent that China is no.1 in these areas. It's just a matter of time that they conquer the other areas as well (if the situation is the same). Cost is huge game changer in any industry, especially in the auto industry. For eg - a car built in 76 secs? CBU Seal AWD costing 56L ONR? Seagull $10K? I am sure there is more to come. What is US/Any country going to do about this ? What are the long /short term plans? Though I personally believe that EV's will not replace 100% ICE in the near future (at least 15-20years), it will still be a significant proportion, especially for India, where the oil import bills are in billions of dollars. And China with its manufacturing and technological prowess will keep advancing in the EV space than any other country in the world. However, as much as I love the value of these Chinese EV's, its equally dangerous to put all eggs in one basket as we (India and the rest of world) are already dependent on China to even live of everyday life (Phones, TV's, any electronic gadgets, and what not). There should be strong checks and balances, especially in the interest of any country. Unless India and/or other countries significantly and radically changes and improves its manufacturing and automotive technology, China's disruption will continue. Unfortunately, I don't see it happening in the near future. For eg - Unpolitically, AFAIK, with its "Make in India" policy for the last many years, there is no product/service that has seen a price reduction and quality improvement, nor there is new product/brand launches. I don't consider Ola, Ather or similar companies to be born out of this "Make in India" policy. Seal in India is such a fantastic package for such a price that none of the European/US brands makes sense anymore. The only point that I WILL never buy a Seal is just because it is Chinese. Serving tech enthusiasts for over 25 years.TechSpot means tech analysis and advice you can trust What just happened? The pursuit of virtually limitless fusion energy recently achieved a significant breakthrough at an experimental reactor in France. Scientists operating the WEST tokamak successfully sustained a superhot plasma at astonishing temperatures for a record-breaking six minutes. The achievement marks a major milestone in the journey towards viable fusion power. For those unfamiliar, a tokamak is essentially a donut-shaped device that utilizes powerful magnetic fields to contain and control plasma an extremely hot, charged gaseous mixture crucial for replicating the fusion reactions seen in stars. The WEST (Tungsten Environment in Steady-State Tokamak) reactor, operated by the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), stands at the forefront of this research. The breakthrough hinged on the use of tungsten, the grayish-white metal commonly found in light bulb filaments. The interior of the WEST tokamak is lined with this metal, known for its exceptional heat-resistant properties, enabling the plasma to reach incredibly high temperatures and densities without causing the chamber walls to melt. During the record-setting run, the team injected 1.15 gigajoules of power into WEST, sustaining a plasma burning at approximately 50 million degrees Celsius over three times hotter than the core of the Sun. The Princeton Plasma Physics Lab (PPPL) played a crucial role in this achievement by providing specialized X-ray diagnostic tools to accurately measure the intense plasma conditions within WEST. According to Luis Delgado-Aparicio of PPPL, "The plasma fusion community was among the first to utilize hybrid photon counting technology to monitor plasma dynamics." CEA scientist Xavier Litaudon explained why this achievement with the tungsten tokamak is such a significant breakthrough. "We need to deliver a new source of energy, and the source should be continuous and permanent." Nuclear fusion could be that game-changing energy source a virtually inexhaustible supply of clean power without any radioactive waste or carbon emissions. However, achieving the holy grail of self-sustaining fusion reactions that generate more energy than they consume has proven to be an immense challenge. The extreme temperatures and confinement times required make it devilishly difficult to extract more energy from the superhot plasma than what's needed to initiate and maintain the fusion process. That's why this recent breakthrough at WEST is so promising. As Remi Dumont, who coordinated the experiment, succinctly put it "a spectacular result." While humankind's fusion energy dreams are still years or decades away, milestones like this show we're steadily inching closer. Major players are also doubling down on fusion's promise. Microsoft partnered with Helion to develop commercial fusion by 2028, while Japan unveiled the massive JT-60SA tokamak reactor last year a six-story behemoth designed to crack the fusion confinement challenge. Scaling up this new tungsten reactor approach, meanwhile, could bring that long-awaited fusion future into an even sharper focus. A hot potato: It's somewhat concerning that Sam Altman, the CEO of ChatGPT-maker OpenAI, is so concerned about the impact of artificial intelligence on the global jobs market that he's long campaigned for a universal basic income (UBI). But Altman now believes that UBI could be supplanted by what he calls universal basic compute. Altman said that in 2016, he started realizing the effects that advanced AI could have on society, especially jobs, and conducted an experiment showing that UBI could negate some of these issues. That program gave between $50 and $1,000 a month to more than 3,000 enrollees. Altman told the All-In podcast that the positive results would be released soon. While Altman still believes in the benefits of UBI, he posited that a universal income program in the future could look very different from handing people money. "2016 was a very long time ago," he told the podcast. "I wonder if the future looks something more like universal basic compute than universal basic income and everybody gets a slice of GPT-7's compute and they can use it, they can resell it, they can donate it to somebody to use for cancer research." Altman never went into further detail about his universal basic compute idea, but it's hard to imagine that many people will welcome it, particularly if it's an alternative to receiving monthly cash payments. Altman still offered support for traditional UBI programs, though he's not convinced that governments are doing a good job of implementing them. "I'm not a super fan of how the government has handled most policies designed to help poor people, and I kind of believe that if you could just give people money, they would make good decisions, and the market would do its thing," he said. Altman has long admitted that there could come a time when AI poses a range of threats to humanity, from mass job displacement, which we're already seeing, to extinction-level events. He said that a solution could come in the form of an international agency that oversees the most powerful systems i.e., the potentially world-ending/changing ones and ensures reasonable safety testing. Another one of Altman's projects that is designed, at least partially, to offset the impact of generative/advanced AI is Worldcoin. The Worldcoin crypto network features an iris-scanning identification system that uses Orbs to give people access to a digital currency. The company is giving $50 in crypto to everyone who signs up, which has made it especially popular in locations experiencing economic turmoil, such as Argentina. The privacy concerns of Worldcoin have led to it being temporarily banned in Spain, France, and Portugal, while Kenya told it to stop operations. The company is also being investigated in nations where the Orbs are still found. It's likely that a universal basic compute scheme would face similar scrutiny, especially with OpenAI being the one controlling it. In a nutshell: TikTok, the short-form video platform that's facing a potential ban in the US over national security concerns, is hosted on Oracle data centers for users in the country. In an interview, Oracle CEO Safra Catz answers whether TikTok's data can really be secured on Oracle's cloud. She also has a lot to say about generative AI's explosive growth. When quizzed by Nikkei Asia in an interview about how the company is creating a safe environment for American TikTok users, Catz said, "All the data of US citizens is in that cloud. And we implemented gateways that we monitor so the data cannot be taken out." The company thoroughly vets TikTok's code as well, with "hundreds of people actually working on that" to ensure it functions as expected. Oracle earned the high-profile TikTok deal due to "our experience in the US national security side, and our commitment to the security of US data," according to Catz. Oracle's deal to act as TikTok's trusted technology partner was reportedly worth $1 billion, representing a coveted prize in cloud computing. Still, a Forbes report from August suggested an "untrusting and adversarial" dynamic, with Oracle treating ByteDance like a "counterintelligence operation" rather than a customer. Navigating this tense relationship while upholding data integrity could determine if Oracle keeps its TikTok goldmine. Separately, Catz remains bullish on generative AI's potential to create jobs and improve lives as the technology surges even in the face of various concerns like misinformation. "Even though I get questions from government officials about 'How should we slow it down?', I'm not getting that from companies and I'm not getting that from individuals," Catz said. "There's a lot of enthusiasm and a lot of optimism about it." While some fear AI will eliminate jobs, the CEO argued previous technological leaps like industrialization and the internet provoked similar worries that didn't materialize. Instead, she expects AI tools will "lead to more jobs and more capabilities, because people who might not have necessarily been able to do some jobs with AI assistance will be able to do it better." Catz added that companies afraid to adopt transformative technologies often "just can't make it to the next level." She posited that when studying history, these kinds of "giant leaps in technology do happen" despite initial apprehension. And if people don't adopt leaps in technology like these, they "often get passed by." The Oracle chief highlighted healthcare as one area ripe for AI's benefits. She envisioned AI giving doctors data-driven diagnoses by comparing patients to millions of similar cases and enabling more time with patients rather than administrative tasks. On concerns about data privacy risks surrounding generative AI, Catz said "Just because there's new technology doesn't mean you lose your rights...There are very clear rules on privacy. They are societally agreed on and put in by the people we vote to represent us." However, she acknowledged those policies can evolve if people are "not satisfied with that." While long synonymous with Silicon Valley's tech hub, Catz thinks cloud computing can democratize innovation globally by lowering barriers to entry. "With the advent of the cloud...I think it's given enormous opportunities," she said, adding: "Two people, even one, can just take some computer, use a credit card, and get started" on an idea. On workforce diversity, Catz touted Oracle's leadership team as "incredibly diverse," pointing to top executives' backgrounds like Juan Loaiza from Colombia and Steve Miranda from Mexico heading key divisions. However, Oracle's own transparency reports show men comprise 69% of its global workforce and 58% of US employees are white highlighting room for improvement as the company works "to make sure we've got a lot of capabilities" represented. Catz said Oracle is developing a high school computer science program for women on its corporate campus, a model she hopes other tech giants will follow. The company also actively recruits from underrepresented groups like veterans, she added. Masthead credit: josefkubes Facepalm: Proton Mail is facing renewed accusations of handing user data over to law enforcement agencies. The Swiss company provides a secure email service with end-to-end encryption, ostensibly to protect its customers' identities from prying eyes. However, recent events suggest otherwise. Proton Mail recently came under scrutiny for (indirectly) providing Spanish authorities with enough data to identify and arrest a member of the Catalan independence organization Democratic Tsunami. The company claimed it was compelled to cooperate with law enforcement due to Swiss laws. They asserted that the Spanish police's success in apprehending the individual was partly due to the person's lack of a proper Operational Security (OpSec) policy. Update (May 14): Proton contacted us with some clarification about this story and the data they claim was shared and which wasn't. According to the company, they didn't share any data with a foreign government are bound by Swiss law to cooperate with them once a court order is issued. The below quote from Proton's PR department has been edited for brevity: Proton responded to a request from the Swiss authorities. The way this (article) is written makes it seem like Proton cooperates or communicates directly with foreign law enforcement which we don't do. It would be illegal to do under Swiss law and the suggestion that we do could be concerning for many users. Proton's robust encryption helps during these situations. This can be demonstrated by the fact that the Spanish authorities were unable to gather any information from Proton beyond the recovery email as even Proton cannot see files, email contents, or any other personal information related to users' accounts, this information cannot be shared with authorities on request. Proton Mail's primary service is an end-to-end encrypted email platform established in 2013. The platform aims to ensure that email content remains unreadable to both third parties and the company itself. While Proton Mail asserts it cannot access message contents, some user-related data passing through its servers could potentially be used to identify individuals. In a separate incident in 2021, Proton Mail was required to provide Swiss authorities with the IP address and device details of a French climate activist. This information was subsequently used by French authorities to apprehend the activist. Proton Mail clarified that while email content is encrypted, the company is obligated to comply with lawful access requests for any data passing through its servers in criminal prosecution cases. In the recent case involving the Spanish police, Proton was seemingly compelled to provide the Apple recovery email address used by a client known as "Xuxo Rondinaire." The customer was suspected of collaborating with Catalonia's police force, the Mossos d'Esquadra, while covertly aiding the independence movement in the region. Authorities requested additional data from Apple, enabling them to identify the individual behind the pseudonym. Proton CEO Andy Yen confirmed that the personal data used to apprehend the alleged "terrorist" was provided by Apple, not Proton. Yen emphasized that Proton cannot decrypt data, but Swiss courts can mandate the sharing of recovery email addresses in "terror cases." In a written statement, Proton AG clarified that their email service stores "minimal user information" and does not guarantee complete anonymity. Customers seeking enhanced security should implement proper Operational Security (OpSec) measures, such as refraining from using their genuine Apple account as an optional recovery method. While a recovery address is not mandatory for using Proton Mail, the company could be compelled to disclose such information under a Swiss court order. Red-bellied black snakes are one of the most frequently encountered snakes on the east coast of Australia. The clock is ticking for an Aussie construction worker to remove a venomous red-bellied black snake from inside her ute, where it's made a comfortable home for past several weeks, before the animal enters its winter dormancy period known as brumation. Newcastle woman Lisa Kournelis said she first suspected she had an extra passenger stowed away in her vehicle last month after she kept "finding snake poo" in her utility. Kournelis, who works in civil construction, said she was given quite a shock when she eventually found the snake on her back seat while "putting a box in my car". Red-bellied black snakes are one of the most frequently encountered snakes on the east coast and are responsible for a number of bites every year. While there has never been an official recorded death from a red-bellied black snake in Australia, they are venomous and can kill if a bite is left untreated. Snake leaves subtle hints "I believe it was in there for a good three weeks before that because I was finding snake poo everywhere," Kournelis told the ABC. She recalled how the snake, that she affectionately dubbed "Fluffy", kept leaving her subtle hints about its presence, such as setting off the car alarm during the day. "So just random times from about 11 o'clock in the morning, my car alarm will go off. I wasn't sure what it was at first, but then I clued on," she said, adding that a total of four snake catchers had failed to remove the animal from its hiding spot in the vehicle. Kournelis said that she's been left with no other choice but to leave the animal in the ute while she drives it, as she requires her car daily and isn't willing to leave it parked on the street over fears of vandalism. While no official deaths have ever been recorded in Australia as a result of a red-bellied black snake bite, they are venomous. Source: Lisa Kournelis / ABC "I'm very lucky actually that I haven't been bitten, but if it does bite these woollen work pants that I wear will take most of the venom," she said. "I don't really have any other choice. It hasn't hurt me, but it potentially could one day." Time running out before animal's winter dormancy period Speaking to Yahoo News Australia, Brandon Gifford from Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers 24/7 urged people to always be wary of the animals at night, particularly as snake season winds down and the cooler weather is ushered in, as the animals will hunt for a spot to hibernate. "The number one thing Ive noticed lately is that garage doors are being kept up and doors are being left open, he earlier told Yahoo, adding that the message appears to be falling on "deaf ears". "But definitely the garage door is one I think people dont realise, and then the door leading to their house has that little space through which snakes can go under. Thats another way theyre getting in a lot." Along with keeping doors closed, keeping a property "neat and tidy" is also important, and that includes mowing the lawn and clearing rubbish away. "We say it all the time, but you can see the places clearly as to where a snake might reside a little bit more, rather than just pass through." Solution may finally be in sight With regard to Kournelis' situation, experts say to remove the snake it may require the ute to actually be taken apart. Snake catcher Matt Stopford told the ABC the animal should be urgently removed. "The snake will slow down, he will want to stay in the car because it's a nice hiding spot to get warm, it's going to go off its food and probably settle in," he said. Billy Collett from the Australian Reptile Park has since offered his assistance to Kournelis to remove the snake and she welcomed his support. Love Australia's weird and wonderful environment? Get our new newsletter showcasing the weeks best stories. Starlink, SpaceX's satellite arm, warned of "degraded service" on Saturday as Earth encounters its worst geomagnetic storm in 20 years due to increased solar activity. In a recent X post, Elon Musk acknowledged that Starlink satellites are under strain from the geomagnetic storm but said they are holding well. Starlink dominates the satellite internet business with 60% of Earth's 7,500 satellites. The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said this storm is the biggest since October 2003, according to Reuters. Starlink's extensive network of low-Earth-orbiting satellites utilizes laser connections to transmit data rapidly, enabling global internet connectivity. Major geomagnetic solar storm happening right now. Biggest in a long time. Starlink satellites are under a lot of pressure, but holding up so far. pic.twitter.com/TrEv5Acli2 Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 11, 2024 What To Know About the Solar Storm Affecting Starlink A G5 geomagnetic storm could cause "widespread voltage control problems" and grid system failures or blackouts, according to NOAA. Residential electrical wires are not at risk, it says. NOAA noted that geomagnetic storms are significant disruptions of Earth's magnetosphere caused by solar wind energy interacting with the space environment around Earth, often accompanied by powerful solar flares called coronal mass ejections. At least seven have occurred since Wednesday, as reported by Fox News. Changes in the solar wind alter the currents, plasma, and fields in the Earth's magnetosphere, causing these storms. NOAA expects the storm to last all weekend, threatening navigation systems, power grids, satellite navigation, and other vital services. The latest Level 5 geomagnetic event caused power disruptions in Sweden and transformer damage in South Africa. Massive solar flares hit Earth on Friday, and the storm lit the US sky in a stunning spectacle unseen in years or decades. Northern light displays, usually limited to areas bordering the Canadian border, have seen pink, green, and purple skies in Florida, Texas, and Alabama. Although conditions deteriorated to a Level 4 storm on Saturday morning, NOAA warns of further geomagnetic activity throughout the weekend due to solar flares, perhaps until early next week. SpaceX Selling Sophisticated Satellite Laser Tech to Companies SpaceX previously announced that it is selling satellite laser technology to corporations worldwide. At the Satellite Show conference in Washington in March, SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell revealed that SpaceX is selling its cutting-edge Starlink technology to other satellite companies, per a previous TechTimes report. Inter-satellite laser connections facilitate rapid data transfer, enhancing global internet coverage and reducing reliance on ground stations. As early as 2021, SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet network used laser-based communication. These optical inter-satellite links (ISLs) allow constellation satellites to communicate directly without a ground station connection. It boosts internet speeds and minimizes data transmission delays. SpaceX wants to create new satellite communication standards with over 8,000 lasers in the Starlink constellation, each capable of 100 Gbps data throughput. Starlink users worldwide may get 42 petabytes of data every day from the laser system, according to SpaceX engineer Travis Brashears. The laser system maintains a link uptime of over 99% despite the need to connect hundreds of Earth-orbiting satellites. Users need this dependability for uninterrupted data transfers and internet access. Brashears demonstrated the laser system's ability to connect satellites thousands of kilometers apart. Despite 5,400 kilometers, the system remained connected, displaying its versatility in varied operational conditions. Bumble's founder is reportedly envisioning using artificial intelligence in the dating application, dubbed "Dating Concierge," that helps users get better matches by giving dating advice about their insecurities and even going on dates with other dating concierges in the user's place. In an on-stage interview, Bloomberg's Emily Chang discussed examples of how AI can make online dating worse, such as bots impersonating real people or real people falling in love with bots. Herd retorted that Bumble wants to use technology to support the development of more equal and healthy relationships. Shortly, users may, for instance, confide in an AI dating concierge about their fears, and the concierge could provide them with advice on how to overcome those fears, according to Herd. Herd even hinted that the day might come when users might utilize the concierge to discover matches by arranging dates with other concierges. It is implied that if the bots get along well on a date, then so would their human counterparts. Herd was unfazed by the laughter from the audience, pointing out that users are no longer required to converse with 600 individuals. All it has to do is search through all of San Francisco for the user and find the three individuals they could meet. Read Also : Dating App Grindr Sued for Disclosing Sensitive Information, HIV Status of Users Bumble's AI Ventures Herd's artificial intelligence proposals for Bumble came just months after the dating app used AI to detect and ban scammers on the application. The business unveiled Deception Detector, its newest artificial intelligence technology, to further increase user security and safety. In testing conducted by the company, the Deception Detector identified almost 95% of accounts as spam, scam, or fraudulent and blocked them. According to the business, in the first two months of its launch, it eliminated about 45% of the suspicious accounts detected by its artificial intelligence system. This also follows Bumble's research, which indicated that online dating users are primarily concerned about the vast risk of fraud and the spread of phony profiles. Furthermore, 46% of women stated that they had doubts about the veracity of the connections they made via online dating applications. AI Dating in 2023 AI in dating is not a brand-new concept; in 2023, several platforms used AI algorithms to start casual conversations or even select possible matches based on appearance. In a daring move, one app even lets users go on pretend dates with AI figures. These market leaders have presented user profiles using algorithms for years, but the new AI-powered competitors are pushing the boundaries with their unorthodox approaches. Daniel Liss, the founder and CEO of Dispo, claims that striking up a conversation is the hardest part of dating. In June of last year, he unveiled Teaser AI, promising to boost matches and decrease ghosting. Thanks to Teaser AI, every person is guaranteed to receive at least one answer from a bot. Through quick conversations, users of the software help train the bot to mimic their conversational style by sharing common speech patterns. After that, these bots engage in dialogue with possible matches or their matching bots, acting as a "teaser." Related Article : Tinder Parent Match Group Enhances Board with High-Profile Appointments (Photo: Tech Times) Lenovo and Motorola are facing a sales ban in Germany after a patent dispute saw Lenovo and its Wireless Wide Area Network (WWAN) module owner, InterDigital, failing to agree on a licensing fee for the former using the latter's technology. Lenovo is required to pay InterDigital a licensing fee for the WWAN technology, which is based on InterDigital patents and utilized in several of the two firms' devices, including the recently released Edge 50 family. Lenovo and InterDigital have not agreed upon a licensing fee for InterDigital's technology. Sources indicate that Lenovo has paid, but InterDigital does not think the amount is fair. Regarding the sum that InterDigital asks, Lenovo essentially states the same thing. After ruling in favor of InterDigital, the Munich I District Court in Germany swiftly banned the import of any Lenovo or Motorola device that supported GSM, UMTS, LTE, or 5G connectivity. The restriction applies to any Lenovo or Motorola phone or gadget that connects to a mobile network via an eSIM or SIM card. The court decision also affected Lenovo laptops, tablets, and Motorola phones. InterDigital's standard essential patent (SEP) for its WWAN module mandates that manufacturers obtain a license so their devices comply with specific standards. Lenovo's Patent Dispute Therefore, these patents should be licensable on fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (FRAND) terms. The court supports InterDigital's position that Lenovo has not complied with its requests for fair and reasonable license terms. Lenovo intends to appeal the court's ruling because it feels that the patent owner is requesting an excessive amount of money to license a basic, necessary patent. Only independent merchants are permitted to sell Lenovo and Motorola mobile handsets in Germany until their stock runs out. Lenovo and Motorola's German websites no longer list devices that feature WWAN chips. Lenovo and InterDigital can attempt to reach an agreement that permits the former to obtain a license for the SEP related to the WWAN module. Lenovo's AI Ventures Lenovo, on the other hand, recently introduced LISSA, a new AI-driven platform meant to help organizations make more sustainable and educated IT purchasing decisions. The Lenovo Intelligent Sustainability Solutions Advisor, or LISSA, provides information on how IT solutions affect the environment over their lifetime. Through the use of Generative AI technology, LISSA offers insight into the estimated carbon emissions related to a range of Lenovo sustainability solutions, such as certified refurbishment, lower-carbon shipping options, packaging efficiencies, asset recovery, TruScale Device as a Service (DaaS), and packaging efficiencies. Moreover, Lenovo promotes LISSA as a tool that enables companies to model various paths to solutions and spot opportunities to reduce emissions in order to meet their IT decarbonization goals in the digital workplace. Related Article : New Moto Razr+ 2024 Leaks Show the Flagship in All of its Glory (Photo: Tech Times) NASA is inviting digital content creators and influencers to register and potentially attend the weather satellite launch of GOES-U, short for Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite U by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). SpaceX and NASA have set a launch window of two hours, starting at 5:16 p.m., as the aim. The SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket GOES-U is scheduled to launch on June 25 at 10:00 a.m. EDT from Launch Complex 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NOAA's GOES-U satellite will carry a range of equipment, including a new compact coronagraph that will scan the outermost layer of the Sun's atmosphere to identify and analyze coronal mass ejections. This equipment will be used for enhanced photography, real-time mapping of lightning activity, atmospheric measurements, and the detection of impending space weather risks. A maximum of fifty social media users will be chosen for this two-day event, and they will have access much like news media. Attendees of NASA Social will get to see the GOES-U satellite launch on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket, see NASA facilities at Kennedy Space Center, engage in conversation with GOES-U subject matter experts, and network with other social media-savvy space enthusiasts. The application deadline is 3 p.m. on Thursday, May 9, when NASA Social registration for the GOES-U launch begins. On Tuesday, May 14, at 8:00 A.M., every social media application will be considered individually. Read Also : [WATCH] NASA Unveils What It Looks Like to Fall Into a Black Hole NASA's New Black Hole Images Additionally, NASA just released new images that reveal new insights into the behavior of these cosmic giants by illuminating the eating habits of supermassive black holes. These images were created using data from the now-retired Spitzer Space Telescope. The supermassive black hole at the center of the Andromeda galaxy is seen in the pictures taken by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, which show streams of dust extending millions of light-years toward it. These streams show how these huge black holeswhich are billions of times more massive than the Sunconsume stuff and maintain a reasonably constant luminosity. According to NASA, shortly before material is drawn into the gravitational attraction of a supermassive black hole, it heats up as it falls into the hole. This process produces powerful light emissions that are frequently brighter than the light from a galaxy full of stars. The way the material is consumed, especially in clumps of different sizes, affects how unpredictable these black holes are in terms of brightness. Unlike other supermassive black holes that show large brightness variations, the black holes at the centers of our Milky Way galaxy and the nearby Andromeda galaxy are far less brilliant. This implies that instead of consuming their cosmic meals in irregular, massive clumps, they do so steadily and under control. NASA's Primordial Black Hole Search Additionally, in preparation for a historic expedition, NASA's Roman Space Telescope is searching for elusive primordial black holes, a type of cosmic entities that have mostly eluded modern detection techniques. Scientists hypothesized in a recent study led by William DeRocco of the University of California, Santa Cruz, that the Roman Telescope would be able to reveal a population of "featherweight" black holes, which have hitherto been hidden. These vary in mass from a few times that of the Sun to tens of billions of solar masses, which sets them apart from the massive black holes that have been seen so far. Related Article: NASA James Webb Space Telescope May Have Found Atmosphere on 'Too Hot to be Habitable' Exoplanet The United States is looking to expand its AI fighter jet program with further technological developments to stay ahead of China and others working towards these new-generation aircraft technologies. The goal is to develop the AI to fly without GPS on the planes and teach it new tactics that the AI will apply and use whenever it flies off. US AI Fighter Jets: Fly Without GPS, New AI Tactics The latest plan for the US is to develop more AI technologies to control its fighter jets, including several key features that would give it an edge over its competitors. According to ABC News, the country's military is now focusing on these key developments that would help improve the tech and deliver features like flying without GPS and learning new tactics. It was revealed that relying on GPS has downsides, including using disruption tech to blind the pilot and impede communications. However, going GPS-less on flights, relying on AI reading the Earth's magnetic fields, would avoid such disruptions. On the other hand, AI's algorithm only knows what was uploaded or applied to it from the ground, and flying means it would have to rely on stored knowledge. That being said, the tests may use its data and apply it to the algorithms in preparation for future ventures or actions. US Wants to Stay Ahead of China, AI Race The US is ramping up its development of AI tech for its fighter jets now, especially for the F-16 aircraft, which recently engaged in the AI vs. Human dogfight, one that would give it an edge over China. The US is looking to get ahead of the competition and develop a capable AI-powered autonomous fighter jet in this AI race. However, that being said, the US promised that it would not rely entirely on AI, particularly as it met public backlash where there could be a time when the AI would be given a target to eliminate, all without human intervention. AI-Powered Aircraft, Autonomous Flights Since 2020, the US has been looking towards letting AI control its F-16 fighter jets and develop one of the earliest autonomous military fighters for future needs. Previously, it was able to demonstrate an AI dogfight between a human pilot and an artificial intelligence controlling the F-16's systems, initially called the DARPA AlphaDogfight Trial, to see how it performed. Additionally, this renowned more than a week-long testing saw that the AI beat the human pilot, centering on Heron System's AI, which trumped by a whopping 5-0 score. It is also known that this was not the first time that an AI defeated a human in a virtual dogfight that simulated the activities of what they would do on air, even against experienced veterans. While AI can beat humans in a dogfight, it only shows that the side-by-side designation of AI and people for these kinds of ventures would be a massive plus for improving defense. That being said, the US is intent on improving its AI technologies with massive features like flying without GPS to avoid disruptions, as well as new tactics to teach the country to take the lead in this race. US states are now reportedly considering giving multi-million grants to employ artificial intelligence-powered firearm detectors within schools, given that the technology employed meets stringent criteria. In particular, Kansas may soon provide $5 million in grants granted the AI software must, among other things, be patented, recognized as qualified anti-terrorism technology, adhere to specific security industry standards, be in use in at least 30 states, and be able to detect three broad classifications of firearms with at least 300 subclassifications and 2,000 permutations. Right now, only one business satisfies every one of those requirements: the same group that bragged about them to Kansas legislators who were drafting the state budget. ZeroEyes is a fast-growing company that was started by veterans of the armed forces following the deadly shooting at Florida's Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Governor Laura Kelly of Kansas is considering legislation that emphasizes two points. School security has grown to be a multibillion-dollar industry due to multiple high-profile shootings. Additionally, some businesses are succeeding in state capitals, convincing legislators to incorporate their corporate solutions into state legislation. Read Also : New York City Initiates Trials of AI Gun Detection Systems in Subway Amid Controversy ZeroEyes Eligibility According to laws passed earlier this year in Florida and Iowa, rules established last year in Michigan and Utah, and proposals filed in Colorado, Louisiana, and Wisconsin, ZeroEyes seems to be the only company eligible for state gun detection programs. Missouri became the most recent state to enact laws supporting ZeroEyes on Friday. The state provides schools with $2.5 million matching grants to purchase gun detection software certified as qualified anti-terrorism equipment. Silicon Valley and AI-Powered Gun Detectors To guarantee student safety on campuses, AI-powered gun detectors prove to be the trend. Most recently, in March, schools were offered AI-powered gun detection equipment by Silicon Valley startup Iterate. AI. The company created it a few years ago for a client experiencing theft problems in its retail locations. They did acknowledge, though, that it could help identify firearms in schools by utilizing security cameras that are already there. Executives of Iterate.ai claim that safeguarding children is their sole objective. Matt Frary of Iterate.ai is promoting the installation of this technology, arguing that families should learn how to safeguard their children and that this will enable them to do so more swiftly and affordably. According to Frary, Several Bay Area institutions are interested in implementing the technology nationwide. According to Brian Sathianathan, chief technology officer, Iterate.ai works with most of the security cameras that are currently in use. He adds that in just a few hours, most system administrators can use their software to upload the Python code to their computer server, enabling all of the cameras to begin detecting weapons. The technology instantly sends an email, text message, Apple alert, or other signal when it finds a weapon. (Photo: Tech Times) The current geomagnetic storm presents significant challenges for farmers depending on precision agriculture technology. Recent findings indicate that solar activity has caused disruptions to vital GPS systems utilized in guiding modern tractors. Disrupting Precision Agriculture Technology The recent geomagnetic storm poses significant challenges for farmers reliant on precision agriculture technology. As outlined in a report by 404 Media, heightened solar activity has disrupted crucial GPS systems that play a vital role in guiding modern tractors. The impact of space weather on GPS and communication systems is well-documented, and farmers keenly feel its effects, particularly during this period. The intensified solar activity in recent days has resulted in GPS navigation system outages for certain modern tractors, including those manufactured by John Deere and other leading brands. While these advanced technologies have enabled farmers to optimize planting efficiency with precise, straight-line accuracy, they are now advised to temporarily suspend their use due to potential inaccuracies that could lead to complications during harvesting. Deere tractors are equipped with Real-Time Kinematic (RTK) systems, facilitating precision planting down to the centimeter level. However, Landmark Implement, the owner of several John Deere dealerships, cautions that deviating from the usual accuracy could result in discrepancies between the actual crop rows and the predetermined AutoPath lines. This leads to challenges during subsequent crop maintenance and harvesting processes. Experiencing Disruption in Nebraska During peak corn planting season, many farms in Nebraska have had to halt their operations due to the solar storm. Tractors sit idle at the edges of fields, disrupting the usual rhythm of planting. However, some farms continue planting, hoping to overcome the challenges of solar activity. The ongoing geomagnetic storm is the most potent recorded in the past two decades. It peaks at G5 levels on Friday and Saturday morning, indicating an "extreme" intensity. Although it has since subsided to G4/G3 levels, forecasts predict a resurgence on Sunday evening. This resurgence is attributed to the arrival of intense yet slow-moving coronal mass ejections (CMEs) from the sun. While this event promises spectacular views of the northern lights, it poses significant challenges for individuals reliant on technology disrupted by the storm, affecting their livelihoods. In the previous year, The Sydney Morning Herald reported that an interruption involving Inmarsat satellites brought tractors across Australia and New Zealand to a standstill. Additionally, CSO reported that the remote disabling of connected tractors in Ukraine in 2022 highlighted a vulnerability that had not been previously acknowledged. Experts caution against the potential threat of cyber attacks targeting either tractors or the satellites integral to their operations, emphasizing the significant risk posed to our food supply. Farmers across various online platforms have been engaged in discussions regarding the GPS outages, expressing concerns about encountering "unusual problems" while operating their equipment. United Kingdom's Rishi Sunak will reportedly make a major speech to the nation, looking to warn the citizens of the current threats the nation is facing. The lecture is anticipated to include authoritarian governments, global immigration trends, and rapid advancements in technology, such as artificial intelligence. Rishi Sunak will deliver a significant speech in which he will express his intense sense of urgency to address the country's challenges and take advantage of opportunities to create a more secure future. Ahead of the election, which is a pivotal moment for the West, he is anticipated to describe Britain as being at a "crossroads" and caution that Labour might expose the nation. PM Sunak is expected to imply that in the next five years, more will change than in the previous thirty due to rapid technological advancements, increased immigration worldwide, and the growing cooperation of authoritarian regimes. The PM will, however, also outline his "bold ideas" to take advantage of the potential that comes with an increasingly interconnected world, even as he warns of the risks. These ideas are believed to include thinking outside the box for answers to mass immigration, like the Rwanda program and leveraging advancements in biotechnology and artificial intelligence to their advantage. Read Also : UK Lawmakers Debate Ban on Tobacco Sales to Anyone Under 18 Forever Prime Minister Sunak's Agenda The PM will lay out a plan tomorrow in a speech in central London. PM Sunak has already issued a warning recently, stating that the UK faces an "axis of authoritarian states with different values to ours," which includes China, North Korea, Russia, and Iran. These nations are exhibiting a "new assertiveness" and are cooperating more and more. In addition, Prime Minister Sunak is anticipated to restrict the Tories from Labour, cautioning that Sir Keir Starmer's party will leave the nation open to external threats. According to a government source, the PM will compare Labour, who would expose the nation to the escalating global wave of illegal immigration and leave us vulnerable by not matching our defense funding commitment, with the Conservatives, who have continuously risen to global challenges to protect Britain. United Kingdom's AI Regulation The anticipated speech comes following reports that the UK is debating whether to regulate AI, with talks taking place within the nation's AI Safety Institute despite the lack of any regulatory norms. The Department of Science, Innovation, and Technology in the United Kingdom is currently developing draft legislation to regulate AI models. Since the UK's AI Safety Institute is still conducting safety evaluations on cutting-edge AI models, it is unclear how future rules may affect its current operations. According to previous reports, after the first global AI Safety Summit, which was attended by many world leaders at Bletchley Park in November 2023, the UK took the initiative and established its own AI Safety Institute the following November. This year, the institute started evaluating the safety of AI models, which led to some tech companies asking for more information on the deadlines and possible consequences for high-risk AI models. Furthermore, the United States and the United Kingdom have decided to work together on AI model safety testing. Related Article : UK Hackathon Focuses on Civilian Tech Solutions for Ukraine's Defense (Photo: Tech Times) A rise in artificial intelligence deepfake detection software by several tech startups reportedly has several experts questioning the new tech's capability and actual accuracy. Deep Media is a Bay Area start-up that promises to recognize astonishingly lifelike, AI-created videos, audio, and images with 99 percent accuracy. Since late 2022, no less than five military contracts worth over $2 million have been issued to the company. One of these contracts is for $1.25 million, and it involves creating a special detector to help the Air Force fight back against Chinese and Russian information warfare. Last month, the company's CEO, Rijul Gupta, testified before a Senate subcommittee on the threat that AI "deepfakes" represent to US elections. However, despite Deep Media's rising notoriety, its lone machine learning engineer only received his undergraduate degree in astrophysics two years ago, according to his LinkedIn profile. According to a study of other employees' LinkedIn profiles, the company does not appear to have any PhDs, AI specialists, or forensic scientists on staff. Read Also : OpenAI Contemplates AI-Generated Adult Content Amid Debate Experts on AI Deepfake Detection Software Experts say this lack of subject matter expertise indicates a divergence from the rapidly evolving deepfake research community. According to Wael Abd-Almageed, a Clemson University professor specializing in deepfakes, Gupta simply saying, "trust me," is ineffective in the scientific community. Forensic expert and University of California, Berkeley professor Hany Farid informed sources that he had spoken with four developers this month who claim almost flawless detection rates. However, he added that startups can increase their numbers by grading themselves according to a curve. Detection models are frequently trained on a specific collection of deepfakes, and their capacity to recognize the same kind of fakes is then assessed. According to Farid, misleading media may not always display the patterns artificial intelligence has learned to identify. A more trustworthy method would need to quickly integrate forensics, physics, computer programming, and open-source intelligence. He said that in addition to using machine learning, Farid's detection startup, Get Real Labs, examines aspects like shadows, geometry, compression settings, and the outcomes of reverse image searches. He stated that although the science is not there yet, eventually, the company might be able to get accurate enough to condense its findings into a "final answer" for clients. Deepfake Scam Deepfakes are still an issue in society, which makes sophisticated schemes more likely. The most recent instance of this in the actual world occurred when a fresh deepfake of Elon Musk appeared on the internet. The startup cryptocurrency exchange in Hong Kong claimed that the well-known billionaire was the primary developer of the fake. According to a warning released by the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission over the broad development of deep fake schemes, the AI Quantum, or Quantum AI, purportedly uses this technique. Over the years, some individuals have exploited Elon Musk's prominence as the spokesperson for cryptocurrencies by deceiving customers into believing they offer investment possibilities or promotions. The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) of Hong Kong issued a warning last week over an expanding cryptocurrency scam that uses a deepfake of Elon Musk to verify his involvement in the enterprise. This alludes to Quantum AI, a newly founded cryptocurrency exchange that prides itself on utilizing AI in its open-access offerings. (Photo: Tech Times) Woolworths, one of Australia's major supermarket chains, has been grappling with widespread stock shortages, leaving shelves stripped bare across various stores in the country. But what's behind this "apocalyptic" scene? Warehouse Management System Upgrade Sparks Chaos Recent reports revealed that Woolies faced significant disruptions in its supply chain, with low-to-no stock observed in key fresh produce ranges like milk, poultry, and fruit. The cause of this crisis was initially undisclosed, but it has now been confirmed that a warehouse management system upgrade led to the chaos, per The Guardian. Confirmation from Woolworths Paul Harker, Woolworths' chief commercial officer, acknowledged the issue, labeling it as "carnage." "We've had a terrible IT problem. We're not particularly happy about the situation. We're working very hard to improve it. We apologize to our customers that we have had issues," Harker said. Despite efforts to rectify the situation, including continuing to receive stock from suppliers, the supermarket giant apologized to customers for the inconvenience caused. Customer Frustrations Regarding Woolies' Issue While Woolworths aims to resume normal operations swiftly, customers have expressed frustration at the lack of available products in their local stores. Social media platforms buzzed with complaints about depleted shelves, with shoppers likening the situation to the scarcity experienced during the pandemic's onset. Regional Impact and Comparisons to Past Crises The shortage hasn't been limited to specific areas, with reports emerging from various regions across Queensland and Brisbane. Some shoppers noted similarities to the shortage of soft drinks in major supermarkets, attributed to a shortage of carbon dioxide, a key ingredient in carbonated beverages. Insights into the Carbon Dioxide Shortage Dr. Jess Allen, an electrochemical engineer, shed light on the carbon dioxide shortage, explaining its impact on beverage production. As reported by News.com.au, the unplanned outage at The Orica ammonia manufacturing plant in Newcastle disrupted CO2 production, exacerbating the shortage of food and drink products. Efforts to Address the Supply Shortage While the situation is improving, with one major supplier restoring full supply, challenges persist. British multinational BOC is set to enhance long-term carbon dioxide reliability, with a new production facility underway in Victoria. However, French group Air Liquide indicates ongoing source availability issues in Victoria, highlighting the complexity of the supply chain challenges. Beyond Beverage Production The carbon dioxide shortage not only affects soft drink production but also impacts other sectors like sparkling wine, beer, and meat packaging. Moreover, CO2 plays a vital role in hospital settings, emphasizing the multifaceted impact of supply chain disruptions. In other news, a popular food giant from South Korea CJ CheilJedang Corp. confirmed that its Gimbap products will enter Woolworths soon. Parcel delivery company Evri has issued a warning about a pervasive iMessage phishing scam targeting iPhone users. Scammers, masquerading as Evri representatives, are attempting to deceive recipients into paying a fake "redelivery fee." You can avoid it by remembering the three big red flags on this new scheme. What is the 'Spray and Pray' Method Evri's security chief, Richa Bhuttar, described the attack as the "spray and pray" method, where scammers send out thousands of messages, hoping to ensnare unsuspecting individuals. This tactic capitalizes on the high volume of parcel deliveries made daily, increasing the likelihood of reaching potential victims. Deceptive Redelivery Fees Bhuttar clarified that Evri does not charge redelivery fees, debunking the scam's premise. Despite this, scammers persist in attempting to coerce recipients into paying unnecessary fees, preying on individuals' expectations of parcel deliveries, according to The Sun. Protect Yourself Against Phishing Victims of such scams are advised to promptly notify their banks if they have inadvertently disclosed financial information. Additionally, Evri encourages individuals to report suspicious activity on their website, where all messages will undergo thorough investigation with expert partners to dismantle associated fraudulent websites. "Gmail and Hotmail have pretty much got it nailed in terms of diverting phishing emails to quarantine folders whereas smaller mail providers seem to be less effective because their maturity is not at the same level," Bhuttar said. Reporting Suspicious Texts Recipients can also report suspicious texts by forwarding them to 7226 or contacting Action Fraud at 0300 123 2040, Express reports. By remaining vigilant and promptly reporting fraudulent activity, individuals can protect themselves and others from falling victim to phishing scams. Red Flags of 'Spray and Pray' iMessage Delivery Scam As phishing scams evolve, it is essential to stay informed and cautious when interacting with unsolicited messages or requests for personal information. You should take proactive measures and report suspicious activity, individuals can contribute to dismantling fraudulent schemes and safeguarding their financial well-being. As Evri said, you can easily spot fake iMessages by looking at three red flags. These are: Unusual links Poor language Lack of personal greeting Since most scammers don't care about grammar, it's pretty obvious that wrong spelling and other mistakes are part of this tactic. It should be noted that Evri's messages are correct and there's no way it will spell your name incorrectly. If you notice that the message starts with 'Dear Customer," it's mostly like a fake message. The legitimate message should use your name. Furthermore, Evri's text messages have no links except when tracking goods. The company adds that you should not click https:/evri.link/ since it's not guaranteed to be genuine. Aside from delivery scams, iPhones are also plagued with spyware attacks. The most recent was the Mercenary spyware which targeted 92 countries in the latest report. The launch date of the Ariane 6 rocket will be announced soon, sparking excitement and trepidation across Europe and beyond. Ariane 6, the successor to Ariane 5, is vital to the European Space Agency (ESA) as it features higher height, lower weight, and lower launch costs than its predecessor, which recorded 117 launches. The Ariane 6 rocket will likely be launched between mid-June and the end of July, according to IFL Science. Dr. Josef Aschbacher, ESA Director General, said Ariane 6 will be "modern, cheaper, and more adaptable. "It can leave satellites in other orbits more easily." Ariane 6 Rocket's Imporant Role in Understanding the Universe With ESA preparing for Ariane 6 launches, exciting missions await such as the Planetary Transits and Oscillations of Stars (PLATO) observatory in 2026, which will search for habitable planets; The 2029 Atmospheric Remote-Sensing Infrared Exoplanet Large-Survey (ARIEL) mission, along with PLATO, will study 1,000 exoplanet atmospheres. With ARIEL, the Comet Interceptor mission will intercept and investigate comets from the solar system's periphery. Among the space missions is the CubeSat 3Cat-4 (pronounced "cube cat four") from Spain's Universitat Politecnica de Catalunya to fly on Ariane 6's inaugural launch. The mission aims to assess many climatic variables using GNSS-R, according to the space agency's website. Luis Juan, 3Cat-4 Team Leader at the Universitat Politecnica de Catalunya says finds it "very fulfilling" to witness their satellite ready for launch after an "incredible journey" for all the members of the team." Read also: Dr. Aschbacher said the Ariane 6 rocket plays a significant role in launching the telescopes into orbit as the ESA contributes to the knowledge of the universe. Future projects include LISA and ATHENA. LISA, the first space-based gravitational wave observatory, and ATHENA, the next-generation X-ray observatory, will provide breakthrough insights into cosmic events in the coming decade. More Reliable, Cost-Efficient Rocket Ariane 6 may become a crewed spacecraft after cargo launches. Ariane 6's crewed missions depend on member states' actions and the ESA budget, according to Dr. Aschbacher. Ariane 6's two versions attempt to meet distinct payload demands and attain different orbits. Despite missing reusability, Ariane 6's payload capacity sets it apart from SpaceX's Falcon series. Dr. Aschbacher noted that they "have managed to overcome all the technical problems" of Ariane 6 rocket during development. Each trip requires the non-reusable Ariane-6 rocket, which aims to reduce costs by at least 40% over its predecessor, the Ariane-5, according to a report from BBC. The Ariane-6's upper stage will include a Vinci engine that can perform numerous stop-and-start cycles, increasing its adaptability. This function helps accurately deploy payloads into their orbits, which is important for launching massive constellations of satellites, a current space industry trend. Europe's space efforts reached a milestone with the launch from Kourou, French Guiana. Ariane 6 is about to change history, but ESA is already looking for the next generation of launch vehicles to continue Europe's space exploration tradition. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has opened an inquiry into Zoox, Amazon's robotaxi company, as its driverless SUV caused collisions resulting in injuries. The NHTSA began the investigation on Monday when two Toyota Highlanders with Zoox's automatic self-driving technology abruptly braked, according to CNBC Both motorcycle wrecks caused minor injuries. The road safety agency confirmed that Zoox vehicles were in autonomous mode throughout the crashes, which occurred during daytime hours and within Zoox's operational design limitations. The 500-vehicle investigation evaluates Zoox's autonomous driving technology, notably at crosswalks and in rear-end collisions. Zoox retained its autonomy within the Amazon ecosystem when Amazon bought it for $1.2 billion in 2020. The business has tested electric, autonomous ride-hailing vehicles in Las Vegas and Foster City. The robotaxi company announced in March that it will test at both sites with larger regions, faster speeds, nighttime driving, and light rain. Zoox Faced NHSTSA's Scrutiny Before Zoox made headlines in 2023 when one of their four-person shuttles automatically drove employees a mile between two business facilities on public roads. Analysts speculated that Amazon may use Zoox for autonomous deliveries after the business announced its intentions to start an employee shuttle service. Zoox vehicles have carriage-style interiors with two benches and no steering wheel or pedals, according to AP News. Although shorter than a Mini Cooper, these vehicles can achieve 35 mph and measure a little under 12 feet. The robotaxi firm had NHTSA's attention before this latest incident. The US government began investigating the company's certification of the vehicle's conformity with federal safety requirements in March 2022, per The Verge. NHTSA wanted to know if Zoox used its testing methodologies to decide that certain federal criteria did not apply owing to their robotaxi's unique setup. Robotaxis Facing Mounting Safety Issues The Zoox incident comes Cruise started testing its robotaxi fleet in Phoenix, Arizona after one of its vehicles struck a pedestrian. As reported by TechTimes, the tests would have human drivers, no passengers, and disconnected autonomous technologies. Safety concerns led to the ban on Cruise's automobile activities in California. The restriction came into effect after numerous unsettling incidents, such as a cruise car in San Francisco dragging a pedestrian nearly 20 feet. . Amid several safety issues concerning robotaxis, Tesla recently announced that it will focus on developing self-driving robotaxi rather than manufacturing a more affordable electric vehicle. In his recent visit to China, Tesla CEO Elon Musk proposed to launch Tesla robotaxis in the country, the biggest EV market in the world. Earlier reports stated that Elon Musk has delayed the debut of the cheaper electric vehicle to focus on the Robotaxi initiative, internally known as NV9. Tesla's strategy shift comes as the leading EV manufacturer faces the challenges of declining market interest in electric cars and intensifying market competition. Rivers rise again as rain batters flood-hit south Brazil Porto Alegre, Brazil, May 12 (AFP) May 12, 2024 River levels rose again Sunday as strong rains lashed waterlogged southern Brazil, where flooding has killed more than 140 people and forced hundreds of thousands from their homes. Residents of the state of Rio Grande do Sul were bracing for more misery from the new rains, after two weeks of downpours saw rivers burst their banks, swallowing up towns and parts of the regional capital. More than two million people have been affected by the deluge, which experts link to climate change exacerbated by the El Nino weather phenomenon. The levels of "practically all the major rivers in the state are tending to rise," state authorities said Sunday. The probability of further flooding is "very high" in most regions of the state, according to the National Center for Monitoring and Warning for Natural Disasters (Cemaden). The new threat comes as rescue operations are still underway, with some 130 people missing, while more than 619,000 were forced to leave their homes. In the flooded historic center of state capital Porto Alegre, sofas and other belongings could be seen floating in muddy waters. Further north in the town of Sao Leopoldo, a line of cars lay half submerged where they had parked along the road. Elsewhere, people rowed boats down flooded streets. Electrician Claudio da Silva, 36, went to check on the situation in his neighborhood, describing his house as "broken". "My brother-in-law's house next door had water halfway up the second floor. Now it's gone down a bit and you can get to the second floor, but it's a mess. There are lots of dead animals. It's very, very, sad." Metallurgist Antonio Vanzan, 50, described the situation as "critical." "If the rain doesn't stop falling, what is going to happen? The level of the river may increase and the water will return inside the neighborhoods." -'Worsening situation' - The Guaiba, an estuary bordering state capital Porto Alegre, had on Saturday reached its lowest level since May 3. However, fresh rains have once again swollen the body of water, and levels are expected to again rise above five meters. Its banks overflow at three meters. The Guaiba had reached historic levels of 5.3 meters on May 5 and 6. Other already overflowing rivers in the region also saw water levels continue to rise. The flooding of the Taquari River has notably put the small town of Mucum on alert, where more than 40 people were killed by a devastating cyclone last September. The town of Pelotas, south of Porto Alegre, "is facing a worsening situation" which increases the probability of flooding, warned its mayor Paula Mascarenhas on Instagram, calling for the evacuation of at-risk areas. Parts of Porto Alegre, which is home to 1.4 million people, also remain underwater. According to the National Institute of Meteorology, heavy rain will continue in the coming hours, with more than 100 mm per day in some areas. In the northeast of the state, there is a "high risk of major flooding and river overflows, as well as significant landslides". In a video published on X for Mother's Day, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva expressed solidarity with those affected, more than 80,000 of whom are currently housed in shelters. "You are not alone," he said. The federal government this week promised some $10 billion for reconstruction in Rio Grande do Sul. Brazil's Lula delays state visit to Chile over historic floods Rio de Janeiro, May 13 (AFP) May 13, 2024 Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Monday put off a state visit to Chile to focus on the historic floods in the south of the country that have left 147 dead. The presidency said that the trip would no longer take place as scheduled on May 17 and 18, due to the "need to monitor the situation linked to flooding in Rio Grande do Sul and coordinate aid to the affected population and reconstruction efforts." Torrential rains since the beginning of the month in the southern state have caused rivers to burst their banks, leaving towns and parts of the bustling state capital Porto Alegre under water. Around two million people have been affected, more than 600,000 of whom were forced from their homes due to the disaster, which experts attribute to climate change and the El Nino weather phenomenon. Official figures show that 127 people are still missing. Fresh downpours over the weekend in the region led rivers to rise once again, raising fears of further flooding and damage. "The situation will continue to get worse," the state's governor Eduardo Leite wrote on X. Survivors hunt for the missing days after Afghanistan floods Fulool, Afghanistan, May 13 (AFP) May 13, 2024 Survivors of flash floods in Afghanistan were still searching for the missing on Monday, days after torrents of water ripped through villages, killing hundreds. Heavy rains sparked flash flooding in multiple Afghan provinces on Friday, killing more than 300 people in Baghlan alone, UN agencies and Taliban officials said. Rescue and aid workers have been struggling to reach some of the worst-affected areas with the World Health Organization echoing Taliban government and nonprofit warnings that the death toll could rise significantly. Samiullah Omari had found the bodies of seven of his relatives, but his uncle and uncle's grandson were still missing. "We have been searching but we haven't found them," the 24-year-old day labourer told AFP in his village of Fulool. For kilometres around, mud covers everything, with cars, uprooted trees and limbs of livestock jutting out from the thick brown sludge where homes once stood. Neither Omari nor his 70-year-old father have ever seen "such havoc-wreaking floods", he said. The WHO has warned of rising cases of water-borne diseases in flood-affected regions. In a country with a health system already on its knees, some health facilities were rendered non-operational by the flooding, which damaged or destroyed thousands of homes and swamped agricultural land. "The full extent of the damage is not yet known, and the country lacks the necessary resources to manage a disaster of this magnitude," the WHO said in a situation report on Sunday. - 'Nothing left' - The United Nations agency said it had delivered seven metric tonnes of medical aid to northern Afghanistan and deployed mobile health teams. Omari and dozens of other villagers took refuge in a house on higher ground. "God protected us along with 60-70 people and we survived it," he said, but his house and all his belongings were washed away. All that was left were the clothes on his back. "We hope shelter will be provided for us," Omari said, adding that women and children had been "scattered" to other areas to stay with relatives. All that Bibi Shirin, 35, found from her family's home and food shop was a carpet caught in a tree. "There was nothing left," she said, tears in her eyes. Amanullah, who like many Afghans goes by one name, said families had been sleeping in the open air since the destruction. "We have an urgent need for tents," the patriarch of a family of 25 people told AFP. "Where should we go, where should we live, there are no tents, no food... we don't have any life left, or the means to start over," said the 60-year-old, who watched the waters engulf his home and livestock, a precious commodity in a country where 80 percent of the more than 40 million people depend on agriculture to survive. Ghulam Rasool Qani, a 45-year-old tribal elder in Fulool, said 150 dead had already been found in his and neighbouring villages. "We still can't say the exact number of dead and injured from this area because at every moment, our list of victims rises." - 'Start over' - Getting aid to the area has been a challenge for rescuers. Qani said he saw military helicopters the night of the flood, but they were forced to turn back due to poor weather. Helicopters, medical teams and some NGOs later reached the area, braving washed-out roads for hours to reach the isolated village. Tents had been set up near the village to provide medical aid, as government officials surveyed the damage. The Taliban public health ministry said on Monday that where roads had been blocked, helicopters had evacuated injured people to neighbouring provinces. "Our teams are on the ground," said Masood Ahmadi, head of the Baghlan health department, adding some non-governmental organisations were also at the scene but lamenting that more had so far "only called and promised to help". Mohibullah Mohaqiq, 66, held onto hope, even as tears streamed down his face over the loss of all he'd built in Fulool. "I will rebuild these ruins and make this area green again," he said. "I trust in this, and I trust that my compatriots will stand with me shoulder by shoulder." Illegal wildlife trafficking persistently pervasive: UN Vienna, May 13 (AFP) May 13, 2024 The proportion of the global wildlife trade that is illegal has risen, the UN reported Monday, saying progress to end the crime was not on track. Globally the intercepted illegal wildlife trade as a proportion of all wildlife trade increased from 2017 onwards, the Vienna-based United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said. "Wildlife trafficking overall has not been substantially reduced over two decades," said the body's third "World Wildlife Crime Report", with around 4,000 plant and animal species impacted in countries around the world. "The global scope and scale of wildlife crime remain substantial," it added, calling for measures, such as more consistent enforcement and effective implementation of anti-corruption and other laws. The proportion reached its highest levels during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021, when wildlife seizures made up around 1.4-1.9 percent of global wildlife trade, compared to between 0.5-1.1 per cent during the previous four years, it said. "We're not seeing a reduction in that proportion of illegal trade... so that's why we're saying it's not on track," researcher Steven Broad involved in the report told AFP. But in positive news, poaching, seizure levels and market prices have "declined solidly" for "iconic" commodities from elephants and rhinoceros over the past decade, the report added. "We have seen a sustained decline over the last 10 years, which shows that it can be done," Broad said. UNODC warned that wildlife trafficking can "disrupt delicate ecosystems". "Some of the species worse affected -- like rare orchids, succulents, reptiles, fish, birds and mammals -- receive little public attention, though wildlife trafficking appears to have played a major role in their local or global extinctions," it noted. The report is based on, among others, 140,000 records of wildlife seizures reported to have taken place between 2015-2021. Corals were the most frequently seized, accounting for 16 percent of all seizures, followed by crocodilians with nine percent. The 169-page report is the UNODC's third report on wildlife trafficking following reports in 2016 and 2020. Finland grants permits to hunt protected eagle Helsinki, May 13 (AFP) May 13, 2024 A Finnish island will from Tuesday issue permits to hunt an eagle protected under EU law in order to save other endangered seabirds, local authorities said. Permits to hunt six white-tailed sea eagles will be granted between May 14 and June 9 on the Finnish island Lagskar, local government official Jesper Josefsson told AFP. The species is protected within the European Union. The island forms part of the autonomous and demilitarised group of Aland islands. The area belongs to EU's Natura 2000 network of protected areas for flora and fauna. Through the cull, the local government on Aland aims to protect endangered eiders -- a kind of sea duck -- that nest on the island. After failed attempts to stop the eagles preying on the eiders, the local government has issued permits to hunt them for a second year in a row. "The aim is not to reduce the eagle population but to protect the eider in this restricted area during a limited time period," Josefsson, the Aland government's economy and environment minister, told AFP. A similar decision last year led to the killing of three eagles. Josefsson said the long-term aim was to make the eagles "start avoiding the area". Finland is the only EU country that allows the killing of the white-tailed sea eagle, listed as a "flagship species" for nature conservation under EU law. The Finnish branch of the international bird organisation BirdLife said it had filed a complaint to Finland's Supreme Administrative Court on Monday. It asked the court to overrule the decision to issue the licences, BirdLife's Finland director Aki Arkiomaa told AFP. "There is no legal basis in the EU's Birds Directive to permit the killing of the eagles", Arkiomaa said. An appeal against last year's decision to issue hunting licences is still pending in the court. "We don't see that killing of some birds to protect others is the modern way to do bird protection," Arkiomaa said. He added that methods such as "increased human presence on the island" had "led the eider population to steep growth". The white-tailed sea eagle was almost extinct in the Baltic Sea area in the 1970s, but has recovered since through conservation efforts. Activists warn against EU 'tearing up' green policies Paris, May 13 (AFP) May 13, 2024 Over 100 civil society groups on Monday expressed alarm at attacks on green policies in Europe as key elections loom, and urged leaders to "stop before it is too late". European parliament elections are in early June and a key battleground has been the EU's Green Deal, an ambitious commitment to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050. The plan has come under fire from the fossil fuel industry and the agricultural sector -- but also political parties on the right and far right among the 27-nation bloc. In an open letter, dozens of civil society organisations said they were "horrified that so many politicians across Europe are threatening the basis of life on this planet" to win votes. "Despite the growing evidence of looming ecological collapse and the alarming acceleration of the climate crisis, European governments and EU politicians are currently blocking new measures to protect nature and tearing up ones already in place," the letter stated. Europe's right wing parties have promised to cancel a 2035 target to phase out sales of new petrol-driven cars, while candidates have backed farmer protests against the Green Deal in several countries. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has fended off attacks not just from the right but the left, who accuse her of watering down key measures. as the left isn't attacking the Green Deal so much as von der Leyen watering it down In the letter, activists accused EU politicians and governments of scapegoating climate action "while doing nothing" to address farmer concerns or economic inequality. EU rules to combat deforestation, reduce industrial pollution and pesticide use, and shore up water supply were all under threat, the letter said. "And all this as an opportunistic attempt to gather a few more votes in the upcoming elections," wrote the signatories including Greenpeace, WWF, Oxfam and dozens of other groups. "We urge you to stop before it is too late." For a tense few hours on Monday morning, a small passenger plane circled Newcastle Airport as those below watched on, transfixed by what seemed like a looming catastrophe. The 13-seat passenger plane had a major problem with its landing gear, meaning its pilot would be forced to perform whats known in the aviation industry as a belly landing. The plane took off at 8.30am from Newcastle Airport bound for Port Macquarie. Credit: Nine News If it went well, everyone would survive. If it didnt, the planes metal body could bounce down the runway sparks could fly, the fuel tank might ignite, and the plane would burst into flames. While those on the ground watched white-knuckled with fear, those in the air were relatively calm for one good reason pilot Pete Schott was in the cockpit. Beijing (Gasgoo)- DEEPAL, the new energy vehicle brand under Changan Automobile, has recently passed the application process with Chinas Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) for its L07 model. Photo credit: MIIT The new vehicle's overall design closely resembles the SL03, DEEPALs inaugural model on the market, and also offers two power options, range extended electric (REEV) and battery electric (BEV). Measuring 4,875mm in length, 1,890mm in width, 1,480mm in height, with a wheelbase of 2,900mm, the DEEPAL L07 shares the same width, height, and wheelbase as the SL03 but extends its length by 50mm. Photo credit: MIIT The design scheme of the L07 largely follows that of the SL03, with some changes in the position of the intake grille. Deng Chenghao, CEO of DEEPAL, stated on Weibo that compared to the SL03, the L07 features an all-new exterior, interior, powertrain, and configuration. While the SL03 emphasizes sporty technology as a dream car, the L07 focuses on intelligent technology as a completely new model. In terms of power, the L07 BEV version boasts a maximum power of 185kW. Meanwhile, the L07 REEV version is equipped with a 1.5L engine with a maximum power of 72kW and a peak power of 160kW for the drive motor. It was neither admirable nor wise for Chris Dawson to move his daughters teenage babysitter into his marital bed just days after he claims his wife told him she needed time away, but it does not prove he murdered his spouse, an appeal court has heard. Dawson has asked the NSW Court of Criminal Appeal to overturn his conviction for the murder of his wife Lynette Joy Simms, then 33, who vanished from Sydneys northern beaches in January 1982. Her body has never been found. Chris Dawson (centre), and with Lynette (right) and JC (left). Credit: Nick Moir, NSW Supreme Court A three-day appeal hearing started in Sydney on Monday. Dressed in prison greens, the 75-year-old Dawson appeared remotely in court via audiovisual link. Senior public defender Belinda Rigg, SC, acting for Dawson, told the court there was a reasonable possibility Lynette made a long-distance call to Dawson on January 9, 1982, telling him she needed time away. The state and federal Labor governments have defended their staged approach to delivering the Sunshine Coast rail line, amid LNP claims it would turn Caloundra into a car park. In a pre-federal budget announcement on Sunday night, Infrastructure Minister Catherine King announced an additional $1.15 billion in Commonwealth funding for the Direct Sunshine Coast Rail Line, bringing Canberras commitment to $2.75 billion. An artists impression of Caloundra station on the Direct Sunshine Coast Rail Line. Credit: Department of Transport and Main Roads Premier Steven Miles said on Monday the heavy construction on the project would begin in 2026, with stage one to be completed in time for the Brisbane 2032 Olympic Games. Ultimately, the $12 billion project would stretch almost 39 kilometres from Beerwah to Maroochydore, but only the 19-kilometre stage one, as far as Caloundra, has been funded so far. A sliding doors moment led to accused Islamic State terrorist and recruiter Neil Prakashs downward spiral into the world of extreme religious ideology after he attended a controversial mosque in Melbournes south-east. Details of Prakashs conversion to Islam emerged during the first day of a committal hearing at Melbourne Magistrates Court, which will determine whether there is enough evidence to send the 33-year-old to trial on terrorism-related charges. Neil Prakash is facing terrorism-related charges. Prakash, who had previously refused to attend court on multiple occasions since his extradition to Australia in 2022, on Monday appeared via video link from custody and spoke briefly to confirm he could see and hear the proceedings. Dressed in a white T-shirt and sporting an unkempt beard and skull cap, Prakash had to be whisked away from the cell by a prison guard just minutes later. A defence lawyer reported the accused man felt light-headed and unwell. Prakash was excused by the magistrate from attending the hearing and did not return to face the video link. Residents are being urged to reconsider their need for a car or to accept that the days of free street parking are over. In Footscray, tensions flared when a proposal for a five-storey, 456-apartment complex in Whitehall Street, also by developer Assemble, was approved in February with what Maribyrnong Council officers described as a shortfall of 198 parking spaces. The councils transport unit initially recommended more parking be provided, but planners ultimately decided to waive the requirement due to the proximity to Footscrays train station and main centre, together with plans for six on-site car-share spaces. Councillor Sarah Carter supported the development but said the parking deficit was shameful and feared it would trigger a fierce contest for parking on local streets. We know that car ownership is on the rise, Carter told the council chambers. It has to be absolutely clear to purchasers that there isnt a permit scheme [available to them]. Maribyrnong Mayor Cuc Lam said street parking rules in the area were now being reviewed. There is no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to car parking provision, she said. Loading Victorias Department of Transport and Planning analysed planning permit applications received between July 2021 and June 2022 and found that 862 permits were issued to waive or reduce parking requirements. The department is considering replacing longstanding minimum car park requirements with a maximum rate for new apartment blocks near public transport. Its hoped this would reduce car ownership and help housing affordability, with a car space adding at least $50,000 to the cost of an apartment. In the CBD, this is not new. A quarter of the Melbourne City Councils total area has done away with minimum parking requirements for new apartment buildings after 2018 research found up to 40 per cent of parking was unused every day. But in other areas, home owners who are accustomed to free street parking now face fierce competition for space, new time limits and paying for permits. The Planning Institute of Australias Victoria president, Patrick Fensham, said it supported developments seeking to reduce cars. He warned that the city could not continue to accept growing rates of car ownership. Theres need for a comprehensive state-based approach that aims to reduce car reliance rates in areas close to public transport, he said. Otherwise you get to a position where you are just locking in all the problems of car dependence. Fensham said the shift would mean new pressures for councils and adjustments for residents. There needs to be an understanding that the street [parking] resource is not endless and it needs to be managed parallel to reforms around the amount of cars allowed per apartment dwelling. Movement and Place Consulting managing director Knowles Tivendale, who is helping Melbourne City Council conduct parking reviews in Kensington and Southbank, said residents often opposed new developments with minimal off-street parking. Loading However, every additional car space increases the likely amount of car ownership in the local area. This means that every car space typically adds to local traffic congestion, while a dwelling without a car space adds to pedestrians walking and more local shops and services. He said people often moved into inner areas expecting to continue needing their cars, but over time realised they rarely used them. So every new building has an 18 to 24-month period where there might be more cars than are necessary as the new residents recalibrate and adjust to their new neighbourhood, Tivendale said. Dr Chris De Gruyter, of RMITs Centre for Urban Research, said two things needed to happen for apartment buildings with reduced or zero parking to be successful. One was strict street parking controls by councils, and the other was better public transport. Credit: Matt Golding De Gruyters research found that between 2004 and 2022, the number of apartments had almost doubled in Melbourne, but public transport services within walking distance had increased by only 5 per cent. Were loading more people onto public transport, which in some cases is already full, and thats where the real problem is, he said. De Gruyter said developers would not build an apartment without parking unless they knew it was going to sell. Assemble group managing director Kris Daff said that in his Kensington developments, which are close to two train lines, there was enough parking for about 40 per cent of the dwellings and spots are allocated according to need, such as young families and those with mobility issues. Daff said his business was building car spaces according to current demand and, more importantly, how car use was expected to fall in the future. He believes parts of his buildings car parks might someday be repurposed. Urban designer Andy Fergus owns a Brunswick apartment in a Nightingale Housing building, known for having zero resident parking spots. Fergus pays $225 a month to rent a car space almost a kilometre away. Other residents, including families with children, are car-free and use some of the 12 vehicles in the basement available to hire under the GoGet car-share program. When a friend told me in the late 1990s that she was moving to Glen Iris, I laughed and snarked, thats Gods waiting room, mate. Having recently moved from Perth, my friend couldnt possibly (in my view) understand how daggy Glen Iris was, with its blonde bobs and rich wrinkles and its dusty, staid culture. It didnt help that all I knew about Glen Iris was that it was the home of Barry Humphries Sandy Stone, Australias most boring man, the bizarrely named Harold Holt Memorial Swimming Centre (who names a pool after a drowned prime minister?) and with surrounding suburbs an ongoing Prohibition-era ban on pubs. I tried to sway her, talking up the benefits of Richmond, South Yarra, even Armadale closer to the city, cooler and on the right side of Burke Road. But when my friend talked about Glen Iris, her eyes shone. All she saw were wide stretches of green parkland, beautiful 1930s houses, and a breathtaking annual autumnal display from the trees that lined every street. I told her she was wrong; turns out, I was. Not much later, after a fruitless search in those cooler suburbs, my partner and I ended up in Glen Iris ourselves, buying the smallest house in a street that was also just on the wrong side of Burke Road. Camberwell South Primary School (CSPS) was a few doors down, and having kids was on our to-do list, so we swallowed our pride and stretched our budget. The fences were collapsing under the weight of ivy and spiders, the toilet was outside, there was a shared internal wall, and the backyard had a bungalow that was more asbestos than cement sheeting. Tenants moved into Frank Days brand new rooming house in Melbournes outer west last year, but by next month, they will have their kitchenettes sinks and cooktops in rooms ripped out. Developers say a recent court decision has prompted some councils to crack down on amenities in individual rooms in rooming houses, but they and the state opposition argue kitchenettes should be lawful as the housing crisis pushes more people into the shared home set-ups. Developer Frank Days will have to rip out the kitchenettes in his Melton boarding house to comply with council rules after a VCAT decision. Credit: Penny Stephens Days, who runs a private development company called Social Housing Collective, said he builds rooming houses that cast off the slum idea of boarding houses by providing modern amenities, including cooking and washing-up facilities in individual rooms. But Days and other rooming house developers say a 2022 Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal decision is leading to inconsistent council compliance across Melbourne. Thats all from us today, thank you for staying with us as we brought you the biggest headlines from around the city and across the state. If youre just about to hit the road for the commute home, Main Roads has just warned about a police incident on the Narrows Bridge northbound, with traffic heavy as the afternoon peak hour ramps up. As we leave you, there are revelations the four Vietnamese asylum seekers intercepted by Border Force off the coast of Broome last week come after 38 people were also picked up after two boat arrivals but none have been taken to Nauru for processing as yet. Meanwhile, iron ore miner Rio Tinto has launched an investigation after one of its autonomous trains hauling wagons of ore to its ports crashed near Karratha. A photo of the crash was posted on the Mining Mayhem Facebook page, showing locomotives on their sides and derailed wagons spilling iron ore everywhere. An autonomous Rio Tinto iron ore train has crashed in WAs Pilbara region, about 80 kilometres from Karratha. Credit: Mining Mayhem/Facebook In court, a Perth wife accused of trying to secretly poison her husband has had her trial vacated at the eleventh hour after prosecutors realised the solution she was spiking his water with could not have been fatal. Meanwhile, a 16-year-old boy has fronted court over the alleged altercation that plunged Carousel Shopping Centre into lockdown on Friday and been released back on to the streets. And its hard to conceive from a city gasping for rain, but remote parts of WAs south got so much of it two months ago they remain hazardously boggy even now. The region was battered by a years worth of rain over a few days in early March, closing the highway and stranding a family of seven, who were rescued after a Police Air Wing search. The Bureau of Meteorology confirmed today the area had not had more than 3 millimetres on any day since then, with the exception of 5.8mm at Eyre on May 5. Yet a man and woman in their 50s got bogged in mud on Friday near Cocklebiddy, a roadhouse on the Eyre Highway about three hours west of the WA/SA border. Thank you again for joining us, tune in tomorrow as we bring you all the news from the federal budget and what it means for WA. Labor is preparing to unveil a probe into racism at universities as Anthony Albanese says antisemitism is the worst he has seen and one of Australias top universities warns pro-Palestine supporters against dividing the student population. Tuesdays budget is expected to include new funding for an investigation of racism in the higher education system as part of Labors response to the recommendations of a major university review. Encampments supporting Palestine on university grounds have fuelled a national debate about discrimination and free speech on campus. A clash developed at a pro-Palestinian encampment at Monash University on Wednesday when pro-Israel supporters attempted to storm a stage where speeches were being conducted. Credit: Justin McManus The university review handed to the government this year had called for a study into the prevalence and impact of racism across the tertiary education system, on campus and online. An important element of the study would specifically focus on the experiences of First Nations staff and students while another could extend to staff and students from other groups who have experienced racism in the sector, it said. Shanghai (Gasgoo)- On May 13, SAIC-GM-Wuling ("SGMW")'s Baojun brand unveiled the official images of its latest intelligent SUV, dubbed "Baojun Yunhai" ("" in Chinese, translating to "cloud sea"). This vehicle, built on the Tianyu architecture D platform, introduces the next generation of Lingmou intelligent driving technology (a Birds-Eye-View architecture developed by YIHANG. AI), marking Baojun's first long-range intelligent SUV. Photo credit: Baojun The design ethos of the Baojun Yunhai emphasizes the sense of technology and simplicity, with a CLTC range of 600km. In terms of dimensions, Baojun Yunhai measures 4,541mm in length, 1,880mm in width and 1,608mm in height, with a wheelbase of 2,750mm. Scheduled for release in the third quarter of this year, as per China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology(MIIT), this new model offers consumers the choice between a battery electric vehicle(BEV) edition and a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle(PHEV) edition. Photo credit: Baojun Under the hood, the Baojun Yunhai PHEV edition incorporates a plug-in hybrid system comprising a 1.5L engine and electric motor, with the engine delivering a maximum power output of 78kW. Meanwhile, the BEV edition comes equipped with a 150kW electric motor, capable of propelling the vehicle to a top speed of 170km/h. Download an Illustrative overview: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/pdfdownloadNew.asp?id=59408226 Browse in-depth TOC on "Electric 3 wheeler Market" 281 - Tables 74 - Figures 326 - Pages Electric 3 wheeler Market Scope: Report Coverage Details Market Revenue in 2024 USD 1.3 billion Estimated Value by 2030 USD 1.5 billion Growth Rate Poised to grow at a CAGR of 2.2% Market Size Available for 20202030 Forecast Period 2024-2030 Forecast Units Value (USD Billion) Report Coverage Revenue Forecast, Competitive Landscape, Growth Factors, and Trends Segments Covered Motor Type, Motor Power, Battery Capacity, Range, Battery Type, Payload Capacity, End-Use, and Region Geographies Covered Asia Pacific, Europe, North America, Rest of the World Report Highlights Updated financial information / product portfolio of players Key Market Opportunities Partnership with delivery and logistics fleet operators Key Market Drivers Advancements in battery technology coupled with reducing battery prices The mid-motor segment be the largest segment during the forecast period. The mid-motor type segment be the largest segment during the forecast period. Mid motors are gaining traction in the electric 3 wheeler market for their balanced approach to electric propulsion, offering optimized weight distribution and handling dynamics. Mid motors, centrally located within the vehicle chassis, transmit power to the drivetrain through a mechanical linkage, thereby facilitating more precise control over torque distribution and wheel traction. This design enhances stability and maneuverability, making mid-motor-equipped electric 3 wheelers well-suited for various applications, including last-mile logistics. Their superior handling characteristics, particularly in challenging road conditions or uneven terrain, are a key advantage of mid motors. By optimizing weight distribution, mid motors contribute to improved stability and traction, ensuring a smooth and controlled driving experience for operators and passengers alike. Additionally, the mechanical linkage of mid motors allows for modular battery configurations, facilitating scalability and customization according to specific operational requirements or regulatory constraints. Mid motors are emerging as a versatile and adaptable solution in the market, bridging the gap between performance and practicality in electric 3 wheelers as the electrification trend continues to gain momentum. 5-8 KWH segment to be the largest segment during the forecast period. 5-8 KWH segment to be the largest segment during the forecast period. E-rickshaws and electric autorickshaws are equipped with batteries ranging from 5 to 8 kWh, distinguished by their superior energy density and thermal stability. These batteries are designed for high-performance electric 3 wheelers and offer optimal current output, thermal resilience, and extended lifecycles. Their size allows them to accommodate heavy battery packs with low-density cells, ensuring sufficient range for long-distance travel. As consumer perceptions shift towards electric 3 wheelers as viable alternatives for short-distance commuting and inter-city travel, manufacturers prioritize developing vehicles with higher battery capacities. Electric 3 wheelers within the 5-8 kWh range offer reduced range-related concerns, affordability, and enhanced value propositions, particularly in the shared mobility sector. This segment is witnessing rapid growth, addressing last-mile connectivity needs and poised for further expansion, especially in Asia Pacific countries facing transportation challenges. Asia Pacific to be the fastest-growing market for electric 3 wheelers during the forecast period. Asia Pacific to be the fastest-growing market for electric 3 wheelers during the forecast period. Countries such as Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Vietnam, and Thailand plan to rapidly increase the demand for electric 3 wheelers. The region also has established market such as China and India. During the forecast period, Sri Lanka is expected to be the fastest-growing country in Asia Pacific. There is an increasing demand for green technology vehicles in Sri Lanka. SL Mobility and Ideal Motors are the prominent manufacturers of electric 3 wheelers in the country. Due to the growth in sales of overall alternate fuel vehicles, the Sri Lankan electric 3 wheeler market is expected to grow. Similarly, The Thai government is rolling out policies to promote EVs as part of its plans to create an EV manufacturing hub. The government is determined to improve air quality, develop smart cities nationwide, and meet its target of reaching carbon neutrality by 2050 and net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by or before 2065. Such initiatives will drive the electric 3 wheeler market in Asia Pacific region. Request Sample Pages: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/requestsampleNew.asp?id=59408226 Electric 3 Wheeler Market Dynamics: Drivers: Low operating and maintenance costs Government incentives and subsidies Advancements in battery technology and reducing battery prices Established market for 3 wheelers in urban transportation Stringent emission norms and environmental regulations Restraints: Lack of charging infrastructure Limited power output, range, and speed Opportunities: Automobile manufacturer- and customer-oriented policies to promote electric 3 wheeler sales Partnerships between OEMs and delivery and logistics fleet operators Challenge: Limited battery capacity High initial investments compared to ICE variants Lack of compatibility, interchangeability, and standardization Key Market Players of Electric 3 Wheeler Industry: Prominent players in the electric 3 wheeler market include Mahindra&Mahindra Ltd. (India), YC Electric Vehicle (India), Saera Electric Auto Pvt. Ltd. (India), Piaggio Group (Italy), and Citylife Electric Vehicles (India). among others. The break-down of primary participants is as mentioned below: By Company Type: OEMs 24%, Tier I 67%, Tier II and Tier III 9% By Designation: CXOs 33%, Managers 52%, Executives 15% By Country: North America 6%, Europe 8%, Asia Pacific 68%, and Rest of the World 18% Get 10% Free Customization on this Report: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/requestCustomizationNew.asp?id=59408226 Electric 3 Wheeler Industry Recent Developments: In February 2024 , Car & General partnered with Piaggio Vehicles Pvt. Ltd. (PVPL), a subsidiary of Piaggio Group, to introduce electric 3 wheelers in the Kenyan market. These vehicles, known as Piaggio Ape Electrik, will be available in two variants: the Ape E-City FX Max for passenger transport and the Ape E-Xtra FX Max for cargo transportation. , Car & General partnered with Piaggio Vehicles Pvt. Ltd. (PVPL), a subsidiary of Piaggio Group, to introduce electric 3 wheelers in the Kenyan market. These vehicles, known as Piaggio Ape Electrik, will be available in two variants: the Ape E-City FX Max for passenger transport and the Ape E-Xtra FX Max for cargo transportation. In January 2024 , At the third edition of the Tamil Nadu Global Investors Meet, Terra Motors Corporation signed a memorandum of understanding with the Tamil Nadu Government. Under the MOU, the company intends to invest USD 41.66 billion in developing charging infrastructure in Tamil Nadu. , At the third edition of the Tamil Nadu Global Investors Meet, Terra Motors Corporation signed a memorandum of understanding with the Tamil Nadu Government. Under the MOU, the company intends to invest in developing charging infrastructure in Tamil Nadu. In January 2024 , Omega Seiki Mobility partnered with Kissan Mobility to deploy 500 electric 3 wheelers for last-mile delivery purposes. This partnership, valued at USD 2.40 million , encompasses various applications across sectors, including e-commerce, fast-moving consumer goods, and durables segments. Electric 3 Wheeler Market Size - Key Benefits of Buying the Report: This report will help market leaders/new entrants in this market with information on the closest approximations of revenue numbers for the overall electric 3 wheeler ecosystem and its subsegments. This report will help stakeholders understand the competitive landscape and gain more insights to better position their businesses and plan suitable go-to-market strategies. This report will also help stakeholders understand the market's pulse and provide information on key market drivers, restraints, challenges, and opportunities. This report provides insights on: Analysis of key drivers (Low operating and maintenance costs, Government incentives and subsidies, Advancements in battery technology and reducing battery prices, and Established market for 3 wheelers in urban transportation), restraints (Lack of charging infrastructure, and Limited power output, range, and speed), challenges (Automobile manufacturer- and customer-oriented policies to promote electric 3 wheeler sales, and Partnerships between OEMs and delivery and logistics fleet operators), and opportunities (Limited battery capacity, High initial investments compared to ICE variants, and Lack of compatibility, interchangeability, and standardization). (Low operating and maintenance costs, Government incentives and subsidies, Advancements in battery technology and reducing battery prices, and Established market for 3 wheelers in urban transportation), (Lack of charging infrastructure, and Limited power output, range, and speed), (Automobile manufacturer- and customer-oriented policies to promote electric 3 wheeler sales, and Partnerships between OEMs and delivery and logistics fleet operators), and (Limited battery capacity, High initial investments compared to ICE variants, and Lack of compatibility, interchangeability, and standardization). Product Development/Innovation: Detailed insights on upcoming technologies, research & development activities, and new product & service launches in the electric 3 wheeler market. Detailed insights on upcoming technologies, research & development activities, and new product & service launches in the electric 3 wheeler market. Market Development: Comprehensive information about lucrative markets - the report analyses the electric 3 wheeler market across varied regions. Comprehensive information about lucrative markets - the report analyses the electric 3 wheeler market across varied regions. Market Diversification: Exhaustive information about new products & services, untapped geographies, recent developments, and investments in the electric 3 wheeler market. Related Reports: Electric Vehicle Market - Global Forecast 2030 EV Charging Station Market - Global Forecast to 2030 Electric Commercial Vehicle Market - Global Forecast to 2030 Electric Scooter and Motorcycle Market - Global Forecast to 2028 Get access to the latest updates on Electric 3 Wheeler Companies and Electric 3 Wheeler Industry Growth About MarketsandMarkets: MarketsandMarkets has been recognized as one of America's best management consulting firms by Forbes, as per their recent report. 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Contact: Mr. Aashish Mehra MarketsandMarkets INC. 630 Dundee Road Suite 430 Northbrook, IL 60062 USA: +1-888-600-6441 Email: [email protected] Visit Our Website: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/ Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1951202/4609423/MarketsandMarkets.jpg SOURCE MarketsandMarkets As soon as burglars locate the scene of their heist, they sometimes leave traces, or clues. These are often subtle, appearing in the form of coded messages. They may, for example, be geometric symbols such as crosses or triangles. If you spot one near your home, pay particular attention to it. You might just avoid a burglary. Widely criticized as rumors by Internet users, these statements should be treated with caution. Contacted by Metronews, the police nonetheless declared: These signs exist, we find them in the field, and they are confirmed during the hearings of the burglars. A cross near your home The presence of a cross is a symbol commonly used to indicate that your home has been spotted and identified as a potential target for burglary. This sign suggests that a team of burglars has been examining your home and that a robbery plan is in the making. If you notice this symbol in front of your home, its likely that you are the target of an imminent burglary. The triangle symbol The presence of a triangle in front of your home suggests that burglars have carried out thorough scouting and have acquired precise knowledge of your lifestyle, even going so far as to identify that you live alone. The inverted Y symbol The presence of an inverted Y in front of your home indicates that you have a presence detector alarm system. This device poses a real threat to ill-intentioned visitors, and often deters burglary attempts. In fact, only the most ambitious and experienced burglars usually attack secure homes. The letter Y written backwards is a clear message that burglars are well aware of the presence of your security system and that entering your home would be very difficult, if not too risky. The diamond symbol When youre away from home for an extended period of time, whether on vacation or for other reasons, the presence of a diamond symbol may indicate that your home has been targeted by burglars. This symbol means that the way is clear, and that the house in question is likely to be unoccupied for an extended period. These letters should alert you The letters N, M, D or AM used as symbols have a specific meaning and refer to the right or wrong times to visit a house: N: Its best to break in at night. M: Its best to visit in the morning. D: It is not advisable to operate on Sundays. AM: Its best to operate in the afternoon. These letters are used by burglars to communicate when it would be more favorable or less favorable to break into a residence. Its important to remain vigilant if you discover one of these letters near your home. For example, if you notice an N near your home, make sure your doors and windows are properly locked at night. If you live in an apartment, look out for this sign When burglars are looking for suitable homes, they can sometimes use subtle signs to communicate with each other. One such sign may be the turning over of a doormat in front of an apartment entrance. This seemingly innocuous gesture can have a sinister meaning. It indicates to other burglars that they have identified this residence as a potential target for burglary. By turning over the doormat, burglars discreetly leave their mark to inform their accomplices of their passage and intentions. What should you do if you spot these signs in front of your home? In this case, we recommend that you take a photograph of the suspicious symbol or code and immediately inform the police. Once youve reported the situation, its advisable to remove the sign or code to avoid attracting the attention of burglars. However, even after youve taken these steps, its important to remain extremely vigilant. For the next few weeks, check your homes surroundings regularly for any signs of suspicious activity. Be on the lookout for unusual behaviour or unauthorized approach attempts near your home. You can also reinforce the security of your home by installing additional security devices such as surveillance cameras, outdoor lighting or alarm systems. You should also inform your neighbors of the situation, so that they can be alert and report any suspicious activity. Beijing (Gasgoo)- Ji Yue, the automotive robot (Robocar) maker jointly backed by Geely and Baidu, saw its second production model, the Ji Yue 07, included in the latest application information from Chinas Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), signaling its imminent mass production. Photo credit: MIIT According to Ji Yue, the Ji Yue 07 is scheduled for official market launch in the second half of this year. The Ji Yue 07 made its debut at the recently concluded Auto China 2024. According to Ji Yue, the smart voice and intelligent driving capabilities of the new model will be upgraded to the 2.0 version AI large model in the third quarter of 2024. Photo credit: MIIT Additionally, Ji Yue will collaborate with NVIDIA to implement the Thor high-performance computing platform with 1,000 TFLOPS onto the vehicle in 2026. Furthermore, the company plans to launch PPA (Point-to-Point Autopilot) functions in over 200 cities nationwide in 2024, enhancing travel convenience. The Ji Yue 07 is an intelligent hatchback, featuring a familial design style. Its front design incorporates intelligent lighting systems, enabling light interactions under autonomous driving, external voice commands, and safety scenarios. Users can also program the lights for added fun and interactivity. In terms of dimensions, the vehicle measures 4,953mm in length, 1,989mm in width, 1,475mm in height, with a wheelbase of 3,013mm. Power-wise, the Ji Yue 07 will feature dual electric motors with a maximum output of 400 kW and adopt ternary lithium batteries, reaching a top speed of 200 km/h. People in the US and Ireland are now connected 24/7, leading to some wild moments and even one arrest. For those who don't know two portal art installations were installed in New York City and Dublin, linking the two on what is essentially a 6-month long Facetime call. These giant circular screens record both sides of the world for people to interact with each other randomly on the street - although there's no sound, so people have gotten creative with communication. HERE ARE 3 OF THE WILDEST MOMENTS FROM THE PORTAL SO FAR: Friends use the portals to reunite How adorable are these two long-distance friends who managed to see each other through the portal? It's the jump and wave for me! Dance-off between NYC and Dublin A man from Dublin challenged a New York kid to a dance-off with impressive shuffling skills. Quick on his feet, the kid showed off his moves right back, sparking an official battle. Bet you can't say you've competed in a dance-off with a total stranger from a different city. Another person on the New York side couldn't resist showing off their moves. Footage set to a lyrical version of Cardi B's 'WAP' shows a bouncing split that would put dancers from both countries to shame! Getting arrested at the Dublin Portal Within just three hours of the portal opening, a video of a Dublin woman getting arrested did the viral rounds. While the reason for her arrest isn't publicly known, some claim she mooned the New York side. TBH, a 24/7 portal does seem the place for this sort of behaviour to go down, but for now, we're probably going to believe the others who are saying that she was just blocking the view of the portal for her fellow Irish peeps. People have been hilariously reacting to the arrest with one TikTok user saying: "I'm genuinely surprised Dublin got the first arrest lol. fully expected NY to take that one home ." "ngl Dublin is probably the WORST place you could put that thing ," said another. While a third joked: "The Irish, Irishing.." Love at first portal Alongside reunions of long-distance friends and family, love stories are also unfolding. Two people managed to exchange numbers with the help of strangers on each side by signing in front of the portal. I'd love to see an update on whether these two have kept in touch since. What else is to come from these things in the next 6 months? Who knows, but hopefully no more arrests, right? Got heaps of clothes to donate? Here's how to do it for free without leaving your house Contempt Case Against AG By Adv. R. S. Agrawal A DIVISION bench consisting of the Acting Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Ambuj Nath, at the Jharkhand High Court at Ranchi, has declared that in a contempt of Court case registered against the Advocate General Rajiv Ranjan and Additional Advocate Genreal Sachin Kumar of Jharkhand that no charge based on the facts recorded in the judgement of September 1, 2021 can be framed now to proceed with this criminal contempt proceeding. Furthermore, assuming that there was a charge framed against opposite parties on the basis of facts recorded in the aforesaid judgement because the words spoken by the opposite parties are not recorded in the judgement of September 1, 2021, the present reference could not have been adjudicated and decided. Simply put, without framing a charge and affording an opportunity to the opposite parties to explain their conduct, a reference under section 17 of the Contempt of Courts Act for registering a criminal Contempt proceeding against the opposite parties is not maintainable. This reference against the opposite parties contravenes the provisions of section 15(3) of the Contempt of Courts Act and the rules of natural justice, and therefore, liable to be discharged. This criminal contempt proceeding was registered against the Jharkhand Advocate General and Addl Advocate General, following the order passed by a Single Judge Bench of the HC while delivering a judgement in Criminal Writ Petition 139/2021. The writ petition was filed by Devanand Oraon for investigating the murder of his daughter Rupa Tirkey by the CBI. In the latter part of the judgement delivered on September 1, 2021, the writ Court narrated the incident that had happened in the Court on August 13, 2021 and formed a prima facie opinion that the two concerned Law Officers had committed criminal contempt of Court. On that day, the Advocate General informed the writ Court that the counsel for the writ petitioner was heard saying that the matter was going to be allowed 200%. That incident had happened on August 11, 2021 after the Court proceedings were over for the day. On August 13, the next day of hearing of the petition, the Advocate General had asked the Court not to hear the matter. This is also recorded in the order of August 13, 2021 that Sachin Kumar supported the Advocate General. The writ Court took the incident seriously and asked the Advocate General to put his statement on Affidavit, but he refused to do so. Therefore, the writ Court held that there was no need to recuse from hearing the case, on a mere statement made by him. However, the writ Court thought it proper to refer the matter to Chief Justice for a decision on the administrative side. After reassignment of the matter to the same Judge, the writ petition was listed for further hearing on August 26 and 31, 2021. The judgement in criminal writ petition was delivered on September 1, 2021, directing the State Police to handover the investigation of the UD case to the CBI. The veracity of the statements made by the opposite parties on affidavit cannot be tested in this proceeding. It is well settled that the facts and statements recorded in an order or a judgement by the Court, are considered correct unless challenged by a party by applying to the Court soon after a copy of the order/judgement is made available to him. The statements of facts as to what transpired at the hearing recorded in the judgement of the Court are conclusive of the facts so stated and no one can contradict such statement by an affidavit or other evidence. The matters of judicial records are unquestionable and the only exception for correction of the record is that the aggrieved party files an application while the matter is still fresh in the mind of the Judge and calls for attention of the Judge who made the record. On making of such an application the Court can pass an appropriate order if the party moves it contending that the order does not correctly reflect happenings in the Court. The judgement in criminal WP 139/2021 was delivered on September 2021and now it is too late for the opposite parties to contend that some facts recorded in the judgement do not correctly reflect the incident that had happened in the Court on August 13, 2021. Section 14 of the Contempt of Courts Act lays down the procedure where contempt is in the face of the Supreme Court or a HIgh Court. The power to punish for its contempt is inherent in every High Court exercise of this power is fettered with the only requirement in law that the procedure adopted by the HC should be just, fair and reasonable. Section 15 no doubt provides that the HC may take action on its own but then section 15 route can be followed only in cases other than a contempt referred to in Section 14. Under section 2(c), criminal contempt is defined to mean the publication by spoken or written words or by signs or by visible representations or otherwise of any matter or the doing of any other act, which scandalizes, lowers, prejudices or interferes with or obstructs the administration of justice in any other manner. The cognisance of contempt need not be taken on the same day and there has been no unreasonable delay in taking cognisance of the offending conduct of the opposite parties. The HC has commented that there is no doubt that the writ Court could have passed an order on August 13, 2021, after issuing a show cause notice and allowing the opposite parties to explain their conduct. But this mandatory requirement in law was not brought to the notice of the Court and on account of which the reference of September 1, 2021 has been rendered vulnerable. In the decision Debabrata Bandopadhyay v. State of West Bengal AIR 1969 SC 189,the Supreme Court has held that it is only when a clear case of contumacious conduct is not explainable, that the contemnor should be punished. The Jharkhand HC is very clear in it mind that without framing a charge and affording an opportunity to the opposite parties to explain their conduct, a reference under section 17 of the Contempt of Courts Act for registering a criminal contempt proceeding is not maintainable and taking this legal position, the HC has closed the criminal contempt proceeding against the States Advocate General and Addl Adv General. Controversy shrouds breeding of wild buffaloes Staff Reporter RAIPUR, A controversy has emerged surrounding the allocation of significant public funds for the maintenance and care of buffaloes brought from Assam for breeding purposes. Nitin Singhvi, a wildlife enthusiast from Raipur, has raised several concerning points regarding the rationale behind this initiative and its implications for conservation efforts in the region. Singhvi informed that two sub-adult buffaloes brought from the Manas Tiger Reserve in Assam to the Barnawapara Sanctuary were kept in a kraal for two months after being captured. One was a male and the other a female. A budget of Rs 4,59,580 was allocated for providing water to them during their stay in the kraal. Six new coolers were arranged at Barnawapara and it was decided to install ACs and green nets to control temperature. In 2023, four more female buffaloes were brought from Assam, and Rs 1 lakh was allocated specifically for them, to maintain temperature by providing water. In 2020, a kraal was constructed in Assam, but the Forest Department does not have information about the expenditure incurred on it. However, Rs 15 lakh was allocated for its maintenance in 2023. A total of Rs 58 lakh was allocated for the transportation of buffaloes from Assam to Chhattisgarh, on both occasions. From 2019-20 to 2020-21, Rs. 1.62 crore was allocated for the construction and maintenance of the Barnawapara breeding center. Additional amounts have been spent from 2021 onwards. However, the Central Zoo Authority has denied permission for the breeding center at Barnawapara. Documents reveal that in 23-24, Rs. 40 lakh were allocated for the food of six buffaloes at Barnawapara, including gram, khari, chuni, parakutti, dal, and grass. Nitin Singhvi stated there is only one purebred male buffalo named Chotu left in Udanti Sitanadi Tiger Reserve in Chhattisgarh, which is old and nearing the end of its life, aged about 24 years. The maximum lifespan of buffaloes is 25 years. When it was not possible to breed Chotu, a plan was made for artificial insemination, for which lakhs of rupees have already been spent. Singhvi warned that this would be as suicidal as extracting semen from an old buffalo, which could even lead to Chotus death. If the buffaloes brought from Assam are released into the Udanti Sitanadi Tiger Reserve they may crossbreed with impure breed of buffaloes roaming there and they will not remain purebred. Singhvi questioned Forest Department whether the buffaloes were supposed to be held captive and breed for life at the Barnawapara Sanctuary, where continuous inbreeding from a single male may deteriorate the gene pool. With Gasgoo Daily, we will offer daily important automotive news in China. For those we have reported, the title of the piece will include a hyperlink, which will provide detailed information. BYD FANGCHENGBAOs BAO 8 gains regulatory approval from MIIT FANGCHENGBAO, the personalized brand of BYD, saw its BAO 8 model pass the application process with Chinas Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT). The BAO 8, based on BYD's Dual Mode Off-road (DMO) Super Hybrid Platform, is scheduled for market launch in the second half of this year. Rising Autos RC7 to hit market in 2024 Official sources revealed that Rising Auto's new mid-size SUV, the RC7, will hit the market within this year. The letter R stands "Rising," C for "Cozy," and 7 reflects the models market position. The RC7 aims to provide users with a differentiated experience of "smart comfort" travel. Photo credit: Rising Auto Volvo Car's Sixiangjia Financial Leasing company issues 1.295-billion-yuan asset-backed notes On May 13, Volvo Car's Sixiangjia Financial Leasing (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., in partnership with its collaborators, successfully issued asset-backed notes (ABN) on the interbank market, with a total issuance scale of 1.295 billion yuan. Ji Yue 07 included in MIITs catalogue, to hit market in H2 2024 Ji Yue, the automotive robot (Robocar) maker jointly backed by Geely and Baidu, saw its second production model, the Ji Yue 07, included in the latest application information from Chinas Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), signaling its imminent mass production. Geely Holding boasts 29% YoY jump in Apr. sales Zhejiang Geely Holding Group ("Geely Holding") announced on Thursday that its automobile sales volume reached around 247,300 units in the fourth month of 2024, jumping 29% year on year (YoY). Baojun releases official images of new intelligent SUV Yun Hai On May 13, SAIC-GM-Wuling ("SGMW")'s Baojun brand unveiled the official images of its latest intelligent SUV, dubbed "Baojun Yunhai" ("" in Chinese, translating to "cloud sea"). This vehicle, built on the Tianyu architecture D platform, introduces the next generation of Lingmou intelligent driving technology (a Birds-Eye-View architecture developed by YIHANG. AI), marking Baojun's first long-range intelligent SUV. XPENG launches AI-powered Tianji OS for intelligent driving, smart cockpit Chinese EV maker XPENG recently launched its all-new AI-powered Tianji OS at the Auto China 2024. This marks the industry's first comprehensive application of AI technology in both intelligent cockpits and smart driving systems, said XPENG. Smartphone maker Meizu names first vehicle model Meizu MX Meizu, the Geely-backed Chinese smartphone maker, revealed on its Flyme Auto website that its first-ever car model will be named the Meizu MX. This model will feature the Flyme Auto intelligent vehicle system. XPENG announces foray into Australian market Chinese new energy vehicle maker XPENG on May 11 announced an exclusive cooperation agreement with Australia's TrueEV, marking its official entry into the Australian market. Chongqings Liangjiang New Area inaugurates international NEV brand center On May 12, the Liangjiang New Area of Southwest China's Chongqing municipality inked a strategic cooperation agreement with the Equipment Center of China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), marking the official debut of the International New Energy Vehicle Brand Center, which finds home in the Liangjiang New Area. Chinas power battery installed capacity in April 2024 surges 40.9% YoY In April 2024, China's installed capacity of power batteries reached 35.4 GWh, marking a year-on-year rise of 40.9% and a month-on-month surge of 1.4%, according to data by the China Automotive Power Battery Industry Innovation Alliance (CAPBIIA). DEEPALs new model L07 receives regulatory approval from MIIT DEEPAL, the new energy vehicle brand under Changan Automobile, has recently passed the application process with Chinas Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) for its L07 model. FREEDOM OF SPEECH is at stake in WB: Modi KOLKATA: (IANS) PRIME Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday claimed that thefreedom of speech inWest Bengal is at stake under the current Trinamool Congress Government. The opposition voices in West Bengal are being suppressed in West Bengal. The freedom of speech of common people is at stake. In West Bengal, a person is threatened even for sharing a cartoon, the Prime Minister said while addressing a rally at Arambagh Lok Sabha constituency in Hooghly district in support of the party candidate Arup Kanti Digar. The Prime Minister was referring to the former professor of Jadavpur University, Dr Ambikesh Mahapatra, who was arrested by police in 2011 for sharing a cartoon of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Prime Minister said that Trinamool Congress leaders feel that they enjoy the monopoly on the culture of West Bengal. But this is the land of Maa Durga and Maa Kali. In Bengal, censorship has been put on peoples faith. Taking the name of Lord Ram is a crime here, the Prime Minister said. He said that it is unfortunate that the condition of women and education are constantly deteriorating in the land of Raja Ram Mohan Roy and Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar. The contribution of personalities like Shyama Prasad Mukherjee is being undermined in West Bengal for appeasement politics and keeping the dedicated minority vote bank happy. The Trinamool Congress leaders areconstantly insulting the people coming from ScheduledCastes, Scheduled Tribes andother backward classes, thePrime Minister said. He also said that theTrinamool Congress would not be able to stop the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act. Modi on Sunday slammed the vote-bank politics of the TMC and said the goons of the ruling party are threatening the tormented women of Sandeshkhali, where allegations of sexual abuse against TMC leaders have surfaced, to protect the culprits involved in the heinous crime. While addressing back-toback rallies in Barrackpore and Hooghly, Modi alleged that under the TMC rule, Hindus have turned into second-class citizens in West Bengal and asserted that as long as Modi is here, no one can repeal the CAA law. Suggesting that the performance of the Congress would be at an all-time low, the prime minister claimed that the grand-old party will get fewer seats than the age of its shehzada (Rahul Gandhi)intheLokSabhapolls. Gandhi is in his early fifties. All of us have seen what the TMC has done with the sisters and mothers of Sandeshkhali. First, the police tried to save the culprits, now the TMC has started a new game. TMC goons are threatening the sisters of Sandeshkhali, just because the oppressors name is Shahjahan Sheikh... They are trying their best to save and protect him from legal action. Dont be afraid of TMC, he said at Barrackpore. Addressing his second rally in Hooghly, Modi said, TMC is using every trick in Sandeshkhali, but none of the oppressors of Sandeshkhali TMC will be spared. His remarks come in the backdrop of multiple purported videos surfacing on social media, which claimed that a local BJP party leader made several women of Sandeshkhali sign on blank papers which were later filled up as complaints of sexual assault against TMC leaders. The prime minister, however, didnt directly refer to those videos. PTI could not independently verify the authenticity of those videos. Claiming that under the TMC regime, Bengal has turned into a centre of corruption and a cottage industry of bomb-making, the prime minister said the states ruling dispensation has surrendered before the vote bank politics. HINDUS HAVE BECOME SECOND-CLASS CITIZENS IN BENGAL: PM MODI: PRIME Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday slammed the Trinamool Congress and accused the State Government of turning Hindus into second-class citizens in the State during the TMC regime. Addressing a rally in Barrackpur, PM Modi said that the peoples enthusiastic faces tell him that the BJP is going to receive an even higher mandate than it did in 2019. Bengal is saying, Phir Ek Baar, Modi Sarkar! The PM slammed the opposition bloc I.N.D.I. and the Congress for supporting the vote jihad comments. LS Polls: Voting for fourth phase at 8 constituencies today Staff Reporter Voters of 8 Parliamentary constituencies of the State including Dewas, Ujjain, Mandsaur, Ratlam, Dhar, Indore, Khargone and Khandwa will be using their suffrage rights in the fourth phase of elections on Monday. As per the information from the Election Commission (EC), 74 candidates will be crossing their fingers today among which 69 are male and remaining are female. Among the constituencies, 5 constituencies have no female candidates. Ironically, women constitute for 49.6 per cent of vote share in the areas where election is scheduled today. Speaking on the preparations of the EC, State Chief Election Officer Anupam Rajan said, Voting teams have reached the polling booths for conducting the electoral process. The election which will commence from 7 am will experience a mock poll at 5 am along with EVMs and VVPAT machines. Out of the total constituencies, Indore ranks first with having 14 voters whereas the least number of candidates have been recorded at Khargone with 5. Information also stated that constituencies have over 2,000 centenarian voters along with around 88,000 voters crossing the age of 85. The fourth phase will also witness around 5 percent of teen voters. Among 18,007 polling booths made for the elections, 946 booths have been categorised as model polling booths and 2,001 are such where the all works will be managed by females. The Commission has also identified 53 critical regions and has also taken restrictive action against 130 people who are under the suspicion of disturbing the polling process. 191 flying squad teams (FSTs) and 257 state surveillance teams (SSTs) have been also deployed at the booths in order to ensure free and fair elections in the State. The Commission has also double checked security of the booths by taking over 12,000 polling booths under webcasting. In the previous phases held in the State, a low turnout has been recorded in the state and to combat the problem, the commission has made various provision at the booths to woo the voters of the State. Several campaigns including Chalein booth ki ore have been also flagged off in order to create awareness among the people to cast their franchise. The Commission has also made it clear that if any voter fails to carry his/her voter ID card, he/she can still participate in the festival of democracy by voting through 12 alternative documents. Suspension of US weapons to Israel By Girish Linganna THE United States authorities have decided to stop a major delivery of weapons to Israel due to concerns about the potential consequences of a large military operation being planned by Israeli forces in Rafah. Rafah is a heavily populated city in southern Gaza, where over a million Palestinians currently reside. The Biden administration, in response to the Israeli Governments determination to proceed with the Rafah offensive regardless of US support, confirmed that the delivery of approximately 1,800 2,000-pound bombs (900 kg) and 1,700 smaller 500-pound (226 kg) bombs has been temporarily halted by the Pentagon. The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) have frequently employed both types of weapons in Gaza, primarily to target and disrupt the tunnel network utilised by Hamas beneath the territory. However, their use has sometimes resulted in unintended harm to surrounding areas. In a recent CNN interview on May 8, President Biden expressed concern about civilian casualties in Gaza resulting from the bombings and other strategies targeting populated areas. He acknowledged that the 2,000-pound (900 Kg) bombs sent to Israel may have unintentionally caused harm to civilians. Biden stated that he wanted to clarify that, as of now, there have been no military actions in Rafah. However, he emphasised that if any such actions were to take place in the future, he would not supply the weapons historically used to address the situation in Rafah and other cities. Bidens remarks received strong criticism both within Israel and among supporters of Israel in the United States. They argue that Bidens actions effectively create a restrictions or blockade against its ally during a time of war. The Biden administration has shown strong support for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus Government in its efforts to combat Hamas. The campaign was initiated by the militant groups attack on October 7th, which resulted in the loss of 1,200 lives in southern Israel. A recent report from an independent task force, commissioned by the US State and Defence Departments, revealed that around 300,000 explosive devices were utilised in Gaza during the first six months of the conflict. This data was reported on Newsweek.com. In the months following the conflict, the United States has expedited the provision of weapons to its ally, despite the extensive destruction in Gaza caused by Israels offensive. According to The Associated Press, citing information from the Gaza Health Ministry run by Hamas, the offensive has resulted in the deaths of over 34,000 Palestinians. The US decision to suspend the shipment of weapons included two varieties of bombs that have been commonly employed in various conflicts worldwide since the 1950s. These bombs are the Mark 84 or BLU-117 bombs, which are the largest in the Mark 80 series, and the Mark 82 bombs, which are smaller in size but intended to have a wider impact. The usage of these bombs during the Vietnam War led to substantial harm to civilians and widespread destruction. Israel has been employing these categories of bombs since the conflict started in October 2023, yet they have not made an official confirmation regarding their utilisation. These bombs have mainly been aimed at targeting Hamas extensive tunnel network in Gaza. However, according to experts, the use of these bombs has led to the loss of lives of numerous individuals in densely populated regions. The Mark 84 bomb is recognized for its ability to create craters with a diameter of 50 feet and penetrate up to 15 inches of metal. These 15-foot bombs encased in steel produce a powerful supersonic pressure wave upon explosion, making them highly destructive in urban environments such as Rafah. During the Persian Gulf War, the Mark 82 bomb was used to attack Iraqi military structures. This bomb is designed for lower altitude release and can be modified with guidance kits to improve accuracy and minimize unintended damage. Lower altitude release refers to the act of releasing the bomb at a relatively close distance to the ground or target area, rather than from a higher altitude. The deployment of these bombs has faced international scrutiny even before October 7. In previous events like the Iraq War and subsequent conflicts in the Middle East, both bombs were used in urban locations, raising concerns about the ethical implications and justification of employing such powerful weapons in densely populated areas. Human rights organizations have often pointed out cases where the deployment of Mark 84 and Mark 82 bombs caused harm to civilians. Due to their high lethality in densely populated regions, the UN Independent Commission of Inquiry, which investigated the 2014 Gaza war, cautioned that these weapons likely violate the prohibition on indiscriminate attacks. On Friday, Hamas stated that efforts to establish a ceasefire in Gaza had faltered following Israels rejection of a plan proposed by international mediators. Simultaneously, the White House is making efforts to maintain dialogue between the parties, even if its only through virtual channels. Despite strong opposition from the US, Israel has decided to continue with a military operation in Rafah, a southern city in Gaza. This area has become a sanctuary for over a million displaced individuals and is also reported to be a stronghold for Hamas militants. (IPA) Staff Reporter In a tragic incident, a truck carrying electrical cables worth lakhs caught fire at Jabalpur-Damoh border, near 27-mile mark. As soon as the fire broke out in the truck, the driver and conductor jumped out to save their lives. The incident occurred on Sunday afternoon around 1 pm. On receiving the information about fire in the truck, local residents immediately informed Tendukheda and Patan police stations. Both stations then apprised respective fire stations, which pressed fire tenders to the scene and successfully extinguished the fire in the truck. However, the incident led to disruptions on the Jabalpur-Tendukheda route for nearly one and a half hour. The police are investigating about the owner of the truck and destination of the electrical cables being transported to Jabalpur. According to the information received, on Sunday afternoon, a truck laden with electrical cables was heading towards Jabalpur. When it reached near 27-mile mark on the Damoh-Jabalpur border, a fire suddenly broke out. The driver realized smoke was coming out of the bonnet and by the time he could react, the fire had already spread inside the cabin. Showing presence of mind, the driver parked the truck on the side of the road and jumped to safety, saving his life. The local residents immediately informed the Patan and Tendukheda police stations about the fire incident. Subsequently, the fire brigade team arrived at the site and brought the fire under control. The exact cause of the fire in the truck is yet to be determined. Eyewitnesses informed that the truck was loaded with electrical cables. Suddenly, a fire broke out in the truck, engulfing the entire vehicle. By the time the fire brigade team arrived, the truck had already been reduced to ashes. The incident caused significant disruptions to the traffic flow for quite some time. After the fire broke out, the Patan-Tendukheda route remained closed for about one and a half hour. Yellow alert for Vidarbha Staff Reporter India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a yellow alert for various districts of Vidarbha, including Nagpur, with warning of more rainfall on Sunday. Unseasonal rains during the past few days reduced the effect of scorching summer heat, but it caused crop damage in many parts of Vidarbha. IMD forecast heavy rains in central Maharashtra, Marathwada, and Vidarbha. Isolated thunderstorms with hail have also been predicted in some parts of Vidarbha. Citizens are advised to take necessary precautions in light of such weather conditions. As per Weather Departments prediction of Saturday, some parts of Vidarbha witnessed thunderstorm with lightning and rains on Sunday evening. Wardha recorded highest 16 mm rainfall on Sunday while Amravati and Gondia also witnessed some rains. Photo: Ford Good morning! Its Monday, May 13, 2024, and this is The Morning Shift, your daily roundup of the top automotive headlines from around the world, in one place. Here are the important stories you need to know. 1st Gear: Ford Cuts Battery Orders As EV Loses Mount Its tough breaking into the electric vehicle game these days. Startups like Rivian and Lucid have posted massive losses while launching their lineups, General Motors has been slow to ramp up production of EVs and now Ford has shared some truly eye-watering losses from its own electric arm at the start of this year. The blue oval reportedly lost more than $100,000 for every electric car it delivered in the first quarter of 2024, according to a report from Bloomberg. The sky-high loses forced the American automaker to rethink its EV targets and even cut battery orders for future models. As the site explains: ADVERTISEMENT Ford Motor Co. has begun cutting orders from battery suppliers to stem growing electric-vehicle losses, according to people familiar with the matter, as it throttles back ambitions in a rapidly decelerating market for plug-in models. The move is part a retrenchment of Fords EV strategy, which includes reducing spending by $12 billion on battery-powered models, delaying new EVs, cutting prices, and postponing and shrinking planned battery plants. Ford has forecast EV losses of up to $5.5 billion this year and Chief Executive Officer Jim Farley recently said its EV unit, Model e, is the main drag on the whole company right now. The EV units drag on the rest of the company is growing. In the first three months of 2024, Bloomberg reports that losses on every EV sold by Ford doubled to $100,000. In fact, the losses on EV sales are so great at Ford that Bloomberg predicts that over the course of this year they could wipe out all profits made by the Blue division, which is the companys gas-powered car side. Losses like this are staggering to see, and just go to show how important it is for EV production costs to start falling, quickly. Thankfully, Ford at least appears to be workin on this, with the company announcing earlier this year that it has an electric model in the pipeline that will be both affordable and profitable. Imagine that! Story continues 2nd Gear: Leaky Diesel Engines Spark Ford Truck Probe Sky-high losses arent the only problem facing Ford right now, however. After the company was caught up in a probe over leaky fuel lines in certain Bronco Sport models last week, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has this week announced another investigation into the company, this time affecting diesel-powered F Series trucks. NHTSA opened a preliminary investigation into more than 200,000 Ford trucks fitted with diesel engines, reports the Detroit Free Press. The investigation effects 2015 - 2021 model year Ford F-250, 350, 450, and 550 Super Duty vehicles fitted with the 6.7 liter diesel engine. As the Free Press explains: The agency said a fracture in the secondary fuel filter in the vehicles could result in a fire, as the proximity of the filter to high heat sources creates a potential for auto-ignition thermal events and fires. The NHTSA has contacted the filters maker, Allevard Sogefi USA, and said it learned the secondary fuel filter is tested to operate at reduced levels of pressure during the manufacturing process, compared with the possible maximum operating pressure in the fuel system of the vehicle. A preliminary evaluation is the government agencys first step in determining whether or not the diesel-powered trucks pose a safety risk to their drivers and other road users. If no such issues are found, the investigation could be closed without the NHTSA taking any further action, however if problems arise during the probe it could lead to a recall of the impacted models. 3rd Gear: Jaguar Land Rover Is Doing Just Fine Despite facing all kinds of allegations about its cars being far too easy to steal, models getting a little long in the tooth and customers facing seriously high insurance premiums, people cant stop buying cars from Jaguar Land Rover. In fact, last year was so good for the company that it just posted its best profits since 2015. The Range Rover manufacturer sold more than 400,000 cars in 2023, which helped it generate a record $36 billion in revenue last year, reports British outlet Autocar. Sales mean that 2023 was the companys most profitable year in almost a decade, as Autocar explains: The firm generated 2.2 billion ($2.7bn) in profit from a record 29bn ($36bn) in revenues in the 12 months to 31 March 2024. The companys operating margin was 9.2% - a full 2.7 percentage points higher than the previous financial year, which it attributes to increased sales volumes and reduced material costs - though it said this growth was partially offset by a ramp-up in marketing spend. The company sold 401,303 cars in the full financial year, of which more than a quarter were Defenders. The two Range Rover models accounted for nearly 130,000 sales, too. And the good times look set to continue for JLR, as Autocar reports that it still has a bulging order book to fulfill. Over the coming year, the company has more than 130,000 cars to deliver across its brands including Jaguar, Range Rover, Defender and Discovery. That order book is projected to swell even more when the hot new Defender Octa breaks cover later this year with more power and performance. 4th Gear: Chinas Zeekr Is officially A 6 Billion Dollar Company Another company that seems to be thriving right now is Chinese electric vehicle maker Zeekr, which launched an initial public offering this month that valued it at more than $6 billion. The Chinese automaker, which doesnt market any cars here in the U.S., saw its shares rise by more than 35 percent when it launched on the stock exchange last week, reports Reuters. The Geely-backed company was valued at $6.8 billion when sales opened, as Reuters explains: The company successfully pulled off its U.S. flotation as it seeks to stand out among a crowded group of Chinese electric-vehicle makers competing for a bigger share of the European market. The capital markets in New York are very favorable for new energy vehicles. Zeekr is a global brand, and choosing to list in New York further demonstrates its global capabilities, said CEO Conghui An, who is also the president of Zeekrs parent company, Geely Holding Group. Zeekr currently markets a lineup of three models in select markets around the world, including the 001 luxury shooting brake, the 009 MPV and the X SUV. Its eyeing further global expansion in the coming months, but those plans could be dealt a serious blow this week as U.S. president Joe Biden is expected to unveil harsh tariffs on Chinese-made EVs in the coming days. Reverse: Formula 1st On The Radio: Fleetwood Mac - The Chain For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Tesla is walking back offers of employment for full time staff. Brandon Bell via Getty Images Tesla is rescinding job offers for incoming full-time employees. The move is part of broader cuts at Tesla, which plans to eliminate over 10% of its workforce. The company began rescinding internship offers shortly after the layoffs started. Tesla has begun clawing back job offers for incoming full time employees, according to two sources with knowledge of the issue, amid sweeping job cuts at the EV maker. "Tesla has made changes to our hiring growth plans," emails sent from Tesla to the workers and seen by Business Insider said. "Unfortunately, this change impacts your future employment with the company. We regret to inform you that we have made the difficult decision to rescind your offer of employment with Tesla. This means that you will no longer be joining the company on the previously agreed start date. We understand the inconvenience this may cause; this was not an easy decision. We will circulate your credentials internally should there be an opportunity for you to join the company in the future." ADVERTISEMENT Two other workers posted online about having their full-time offers rescinded, including one who wrote on social media that Tesla walked back their offer two days before their start date after they'd entered the US on a work visa. The rescinded offers are part of broader cuts at the company. On April 15, CEO Elon Musk told staff that Tesla planned to eliminate more than 10% of its workforce in preparation for the next growth phase. Tesla also sent out another round of layoff notices over the weekend, according to four people impacted by the cuts. Workers at the automaker are entering their fifth straight week of layoff notices. A spokesperson for Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment from BI. Earlier this month, several college students said Tesla had rescinded their internship offers. Over the past month, it has removed more than 3,400 job postings from its careers page. Do you work for Tesla or have a tip? Reach out to the reporter via a non-work email or device at gkay@businessinsider.com or via 248-894-6012. Read the original article on Business Insider University of The Bahamas Acting President Janyne Hodder, fourth right, and Central South University (CSU) Executive Vice President and Dean of CSUs Xiangya School of Medicine, Dr. Xiang Chen, fourth left, pose for a photograph after signing a pivotal MoU between the two institutions. Also pictured are Chair of UBs Board of Trustees Allyson Maynard-Gibson, KC, third right; Minister of Education and Technical & Vocational Training Glenys Hanna-Martin, second right; Minister for Grand Bahama Ginger Moxey, right; and Governor of Hunan Provincial Peoples Government Mao Weiming, third left. UNIVERSITY OF THE BAHAMAS China's visa-free policy ignites European enthusiasm, enhances exchanges 14:50, May 13, 2024 By Chen Binjie ( Xinhua GENEVA, May 13 (Xinhua) -- "I went to China this time with a special thing: a passport without any visa on it," exclaimed Lucas Deckers, a Belgian in his 20s, on the Chinese video-sharing platform Douyin, with a picture showing him waving his burgundy travel document. Since earlier this year, China has implemented a visa-free policy that exempts many European ordinary passport holders from the time-consuming and costly obligation, encouraging travelers from nearly a dozen European countries to explore this Asian country. In a further move, Chinese President Xi Jinping, during his first European tour in nearly five years last week, announced that China has decided to extend visa exemption entry for citizens from 12 countries, 11 of them in Europe, on short-term visits to China until the end of 2025. The policy, geared towards fostering interactions among Chinese and international citizens, has garnered widespread acclaim in Europe and is expected to improve relations between China and Europe in many ways. DOOR OPENING WIDER The extended policy allows ordinary passport holders of France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Malaysia, Switzerland, Ireland, Hungary, Austria, Belgium, and Luxembourg, to enter and stay in China visa-free for up to 15 days for business, tourism, visiting relatives and friends, and transit. In a post on social media, Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto said the visa-free policy was "good news" for Hungarian tourists and business travelers heading for China. As a matter of reciprocity, Hungarian authorities are issuing long-term visas, already at the first application, for managers of big Chinese companies undertaking investments in Hungary, he added. These decisions will further strengthen cooperation between Hungary and China in the areas of economy and tourism, the top diplomat noted. Mario Boselli, chairman of the Italy China Council Foundation, said the new visa-free policy indicates that China's door is opening wider, and will facilitate economic, trade and cultural exchanges between the two countries. The visa-free policy for Spanish citizens represents "a significant milestone" in bilateral ties, said Jose Felix Valdivieso, chairman of IE University's China Center, which aims to promote educational and business cooperation between the two countries. "It encourages a greater flow of people between China and Spain, enriching our societies with a diversity of perspectives and experiences," Valdivieso said, dubbing this move as "a catalyst for further growth and collaboration." BOOST FOR TOURISM Thanks to the policy, Jerome Pouille, a French panda-lover, easily arranged a China trip this spring to visit Yuan Meng, the first giant panda born in France. Last July, Yuan Meng was sent back to China's Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding. Seeing Yuan Meng living well in its hometown, Pouille felt "happy and satisfied." The visa-free policy serves as an impetus for numerous European travelers to embark on exploratory journeys throughout China, and is perceived by European tour operators as a stimulus for tourism. Gunther Gruber, senior consultant of the Austrian KUONI travel agency, said he is very happy that China has introduced the 15-day visa-free policy for Austria. "China has always been one of the most visited tourist destinations for Austrians... We are now planning travel plans for the spring and summer of 2025 and will launch more travel products about China," Gruber said. For many Europeans, visiting China is a complex thing. They have to plan ahead, manage their finances, and set aside time in advance. "That's great if you don't have visa issues to worry about. This is very useful," said Davide Cougoule, senior manager of Geneva Tourism & Conventions Foundation, a Swiss tourism promotion association. According to the Geneva office of Air China, the national carrier of China, following the visa exemption, there has been an average of 50 Swiss travelers on each Geneva-Beijing flight, constituting approximately 25 percent of all passengers. Air China's figures also show that in March 2024, a total of 6,364 passengers traveled between Geneva and Beijing, up 374.9 percent from a year earlier. According to Ralph Ossa, chief economist of the World Trade Organization (WTO), China's visa-free policy for European countries and the recovery of Chinese outbound tourism are conducive to global service trade. BRIDGE FOR EXCHANGES Barely two weeks after the policy took effect, the Chinese Language and Culture Center in Luxembourg organized a spring camp to visit China during the Easter holiday in April. More than 20 Luxembourg students visited Beijing, Shanghai and other places in China, with some of them joining the camp just several days before departure, as the visa-free policy made the trip easier. "This travel facilitation will encourage more Luxembourg citizens to travel to China and help strengthen people-to-people and commercial exchanges between our two countries," said Xavier Bettel, Luxembourg's deputy prime minister, in a statement. The visa-free policy, a tangible move of China in pushing for high-level opening-up, has infused momentum into the exchanges between China and Europe. During his official visit to China in April, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the German side appreciates China's visa-free entry policy for Germany and is willing to make it more convenient for Chinese citizens to visit Germany. The policy has received an enthusiastic response from all walks of life in Austria, said Ernst Woller, president of the State Parliament of Vienna. This measure will "definitely facilitate Austrian people to travel to China, strengthen personnel exchanges between the two countries, and further promote Austria-China relations and the exchanges between the two countries," Woller said. During the first quarter of 2024, Chinese immigration management agencies processed over 141 million traveler trips. Among them, trips by foreign nationals reached 13.1 million, a year-on-year increase of 305.2 percent, said the National Immigration Administration (NIA) of China. "The visa-free policy not only streamlines entry and departure, but also symbolizes China's warmer embrace of foreign travelers," said Deckers, already a Chinese-speaking influencer. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing) Read the full story on The Auto Wire Truck Takes A Licking And Keeps On Ticking In Oklahoma Police Chase On May 11, 2024 Oklahoma Highway Patrol and McLoud Police Department were in pursuit of a suspect in a pickup truck. After the chase wound around on surface streets, the suspect got onto westbound I-40 and thats where the footage youre about to see gets wild. Corvette driver assaulted by nude man in pickup truck. The footage from a news helicopter overhead starts with the truck turning onto the interstate on-ramp, a trooper right on his trail. Before the suspect can accelerate away, the trooper moves his Dodge Charger into position, giving what appears to be a light tactical vehicle intervention (TVI) but not a full on PIT maneuver to the rear passenger-side quarter panel. ADVERTISEMENT Even though from the air that looked like a love tap with the troopers push bar, the trucks back end got loose. Considering how little weight is over that rear axle, it often doesnt take much to make that happen. The suspect overcorrects a couple of times, drifting over the gore point and into the lanes of traffic. Thankfully, a concrete barrier sits in the median, otherwise the suspect might have been in a potentially fatal head-on collision. Instead, his truck flips onto the barrier. It looks like hes going to be completely wrecked and upside down, but miraculously it flips back onto its wheels, almost like a cat. You see the roof is crushed and the B-pillar buckled on the passenger side. Any normal person at this point would stop the vehicle and surrender to police, but this suspect appears to be exceptionally determined to keep running. While not going nearly as fast, the suspect pushes the pickup as the pursuit proceeds down the interstate. After a trooper tries doing a PIT, the suspect slows to almost a crawl but doesnt stop to give up. That goes on for a while. We have no idea why the guy didnt just stop and surrender right after the rollover, but he and a passenger eventually do. And this is why running from police is a dumb idea since youre risking a TVI. Story continues Image via CopWatch 247/YouTube Follow The Auto Wire on Google News. Join our Newsletter, subscribe to our YouTube page, and follow us on Facebook. Out of sheer desperation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is talking lies and has taken recourse to divisive politics, Trinamul Congress chairperson Mamata Banerjee said today. She was addressing a rally in Uluberia this afternoon. Mrs Sajda Amhed, the partys nominee is fighting from the seat. Earlier, Miss Banerjee addressed another rally in North 24- Parganas that falls under Barrackpore parliamentary seat. Partha Bhowmick is the Trinamul nominee from the seat. Miss Banerjee said: Modi comes to Bengal to speak lies and lies only. He is the worst Prime Minister India has ever seen. He talks divisive politics,she said, adding: In the name of CAA, NRC and Uniform Civil Code BJP will withdraw the reservations for the SC, ST and Muslims. He said the Muslims will eat into the reservation of the SC and ST people. Is that possible? The rights of the SC, ST and OBC have been guaranteed by the Constitution. Why always attack the Muslims? she questioned. Miss Banerjee said: Modi is still talking about Sandeshkhali, where the sting video has now been circulated. Modi said the country is watching Sandeshkhali. This is because you have purchased the media who are forced to show your lies, she said. In Sandeshkhali the BJP had forced women to sign on blank paper which were later filled up by BJP leaders, she said. I have never seen such a heinous crime in my life, Miss Banerjee said, adding: In UP women had been raped and then murdered. But not a single word has been said by Modi on crime against women in UP. She said Mr Modi did not have money to pay the dues of 59 lakh job card holders under the MGNREGA. However, he had money to give advertisements to spread canards against me. He calls me corrupt, BJP is the most corrupt party. Advertisement Go to UP and Bihar to understand corruption. Slamming the BJP for its allegation that in Bengal, Mamata Banerjee did not allow Durga Puja, she said: This is the biggest lie. The state government supports the clubs with financial assistance. We observe Saraswati puja. We observe Christmas and Eid. We believe that religion is individual but festival is for all. BJP believes in divisive politics. They let loose one community against the other, one religion against the other. They believe in divisive politics. She said: Modi is so shameless that he continues to speak lies. She reiterated her pledge that houses under Awas Plus scheme will be built from December. Se also noted that in Uluberia several industries have come up. A growth centre has come up in Uluberia. She urged people to vote for Trinamul Congress to continue the all-round development. Tamil Nadu is home to two main varieties of grapes: panneer thiratchai (Muscat Hamburg) and Odaipatti seedless grapes. Grape farmers in the region are dejected as high temperatures in the last few weeks will lead to a huge fall in the yield of grapes. K. Muniayndi, a farmer in Theni who has cultivated panneer thiratchai on around 10 acres of land, told IANS that due to high temperatures, there would be a drastic fall in the crops yield. He said: Generally, we get 10-12 tonnes of grapes from an acre of the farm, but due to temperatures touching more than 39 degrees Celsius, the yield will be less than three tonnes per acre. Advertisement The grape farmer also said that for one acre of grape cultivation, a farmer has to spend around Rs 1.25 lakh, and if the yield falls to three tonnes per acre, then the situation of the farmers would be pathetic. Panneer Thiratchai Farmers Association leader Karuppanan Raju, while speaking to IANS, said: Almost 90 per cent of our farmers are cultivating the fruit in the Cumbum area. The heatwaves have destroyed our lives. Around 300 farmers are cultivating on 5,000 acres of land, and we are looking forward to huge losses. He also said that the yield would be less than 80 per cent of what they usually get, and called upon the Tamil Nadu Agricultural Department to provide compensation for their losses. The Odaipatti seedless grape farmers have a similar story to narrate. Odaipatti is a region in Theni district which cultivates seedless grapes on around 1,000 acres of land, involving 200 farmers. Krishnan Thevar, a grape farmer, while speaking to IANS, said: We are facing a bleak future. We will only get two to three tonnes of grapes from an acre, which is very low. Generally, we harvest around 12 tonnes from an acre of land. He demanded that the state government fix a Minimum Support Price (MSP) for Odaipatti grapes at Rs 50 per kg, just like the state government sanctioned for sugarcane and paddy when there was crop loss. It is worth noting that the Tamil Nadu government has already proposed a GI tag for Odaipatti seedless grapes, which would help felicitate the export of these grapes. However, presently, the farmers said that they are concerned about how to overcome the huge losses. K. M. Murugesan, an Odaipatti seedless grape farmer, told IANS that the farmers want the state governments intervention in the matter to provide them with an MSP as they were expecting losses of 80 per cent of the yield in September, when they will harvest the crop. Hemant, a brave heart from Sonesarar village in the Rajnandgaon district, was martyred by Maoists in an assault in southern Chhattisgarh. However, seven years after he made the supreme sacrifice for the nation, there is no end to his mothers struggle for the honour due to him. She is still clinging to his memory cradling his ashes close to her heart. Nestled in a quiet corner of her home, Hemants remains rest in an urn while his mother Sanvali Bai Mahilkar, at the age of 68, has become the emblem of maternal strength as she steadfastly pursues the honour of her sons legacy. Sanvali Bai fervently believes the village school would eventually be renamed after her son and a dignified memorial within the village would be established as a befitting tribute to his valour. She wants her sons sacrifice etched in the collective memory of the community, ensuring that his legacy lives on for generations to come. Advertisement With each passing day, her resolve only grows stronger, fueled by the conviction that her son deserves nothing less than a statutory recognition for his selfless service to the nation. In a conversation with The Statesman, her elder son, Teekam, said, My mother, Sanvali Bai, has been tirelessly advocating renaming of the village school or establishment of a memorial at prominent locations within the village. She wishes to immerse Hemants ashes in the foundation of the memorial, symbolising his eternal presence. Despite my mother and our familys relentless efforts over the past seven years, recognition of his sacrifice remained elusive. Hemant, the third son of Sanvali Bai, served the Chhattisgarh Armed Forces with dedication battling Maoist insurgency and sacrificed his life during a search operation in Bijapur in 2017. His valorous legacy remains a beacon of inspiration for all those who know him. Ever since Sanvali Bai is struggling for recognition due to her martyred son. But despite all the assurances and support she received from local legislators and district collectors, she could not succeed in her mission, thanks to bureaucratic hurdles and administrative apathy. However, undeterred by these hurdles and failing health, she remained steadfast in her commitment to her mission. Sanvali Bais unwavering determination and resilience symbolise the essence of maternal strength and love. She has not given up her crusade against all the odds as she is confident that her sons sacrifice will, one day, get the recognition that it deserves. Through her untiring efforts, she not only honours her sons memory but also upholds the enduring legacy of the sacrifice and service of a mother. BJPs women leaders and Lok Sabha election candidates from the national capital, Kamaljeet Sehrawat and Bansuri Swaraj on Monday strongly condemned the alleged mistreatment meted out to AAP Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal at CMs residence, as shameful and unfortunate. Addressing a press conference at the Delhi BJP office, Swaraj raised a question, asking Delhi CM as to how he would protect the women of the national capital if their party MP was not safe in his presence. She further said that this calls for answerability from the CM, and further reminded that earlier too, a similar incident of alleged physical assault with a Chief Secretary in the city had come up, and further claimed that a case also filed regarding the same. Advertisement Bansuri Swaraj further questioned, as to whether such alleged behavior was correct when someone was saying something in presence of CM and faced such behavior. The Bharatiya Janata Party demands an answer regarding this from CM Arvind Kejriwal, Swaraj said. The BJP leader further alleged that it has become a tradition of Kejriwal that whenever there are anti- women activities by his party, he remains silent. Meanwhile, Union Minister Anurag Thakur taking a dig at the AAP and its chief Arvind Kejriwal over the alleged incident, wrote on platform X, From the Aam Aadmi Party to the Arvind Advertisement Party, and now the Arvind Assault Party, there seems to be no depth to which this party and its convener, Arvind Kejriwal, will not sink. Launching a scathing attack on Kejriwal over the news about the alleged incident, Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva demanded that, whatever happened with Maliwal should be investigated, so that this side of Kejriwal can be exposed to everyone. A thorough investigation into the entire incident be conducted and the truth be brought to light so that Kejriwals misogynistic face can be exposed to the people of Delhi, Sachdeva said. Sachdeva claimed that this is not the first incident of its kind related to a colleague of Kejriwal, and alleged that many prominent women who were associated with his N.G.O earlier, have left due to his alleged anti-women politics, Delhi BJP chief added. In an interesting crackdown on a jewel thief, the Delhi Polices Indira Gandhi International Airport team has ended the in-flight heist with the arrest of a man involved in the crime. A police official on Monday said the man had been allegedly committing thefts since 2005, and mostly targeted elderly female passengers. The police have also nabbed the jeweler, to whom the accused would sell the stolen jewellery, the police said. Advertisement The man has been identified as Rajesh Kapoor, who is a resident of Delhis Paharganj, while the receiver of the stolen jewels has been identified as Sharad Jain. The accused used to commit theft of valuable items and cash in the aircrafts, targeting elderly females carrying handbags, DCP IGI Airport, Usha Rangnani said. It was revealed that the accused initially operated in the Railways, before he started committing thefts in the aircraft. Talking of the past crimes, he was found to be involved in eleven similar cases, the police official added. The police took up the probe on two recent FIRs, one in which complainant who is a resident of USA, alleged that in February this year he had travelled from Amritsar to IGI Airport, in an Air India flight and during his travel, his jewellery Rs 20 lakhs was stolen from his cabin bag. Similarly, another complaint said that on April 11, the complainant had travelled from Hyderabad to IGI Airport in an Air India flight. During this journey, her jewelry items worth Rs 7 lakh, kept in a handbag, were stolen by someone. Accordingly police registered a case and took up the probe, and footage of CCTV cameras at the New Delhi, Amritsar and Hyderabad airports was analyzed with the help of Air India officials. After the entire process, one suspect was flagged, as he was visible in both the flights where thefts were reported. After technical analysis and on the basis of his call records, it was found that the suspect lives in Paharganj. A raid party was formed and sent to the area concerned and later the person was zeroed down, and apprehended. On sustained interrogation, he confessed his guilt in both the cases and several other cases, further disclosing that he used to commit theft of jewelry & other valuables in aircrafts. A large number of gold-like and silver-like jewelry items were recovered from his accommodation, the police said. The man also disclosed about the jeweller, from whom he took cash in return for the stolen items, and he added that the major part of the money made from stolen items was spent on gambling. Approximately 56 gram of melted gold like metal and some small pieces of diamond like items were recovered from the receivers jewellery shop. Apart from this, accused has also accepted stealing valuables from female passengers across several airlines at various Airports in the country including Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Bangalore, Bombay and Amritsar, the DCP He used to fly booking tickets on his deceased brothers credentials to evade detection. Surprisingly, to commit thefts, the accused has travelled for more than 110 days in the past one year taking at least 200 flights, the police official added. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday lauded the Delhi government schools for their results for this years CBSE Class 12th exams. The Delhi CM praised the state government schools for outshining their previous year CBSE class 12th results, as this time they secured a pass percentage of 96.99, as compared to 91.59 per cent, which was last year. Taking to the social media platform X, Kejriwal wrote, Delhi government schools have got a fantastic result of 96.99%, in the Class 12 CBSE exam! Not only does this surpass our own performance of last year, but it surpasses the CBSE national average as well. Advertisement He further wrote: Congratulations to all students, teachers, parents and the entire Education Dept for this spectacular performance. The AAP has said that Delhi government schools have once again surpassed expectations in the CBSE 12th board results, achieving an impressive 96.99% pass rate compared to the national average of 87.98 per cent. Expressing her views, Delhi Education Minister Atishi has claimed that the citys education model continues to show a way forward to the entire nation. So proud of our students, teachers, parents, and entire education department. who have worked relentlessly to achieve this phenomenal result, congratulations to all, said the senior AAP leader. While giving a message to the students who could not clear the exam, the education minister said that those students who could not clear the main exam due to some reason should not be disappointed but should work hard and try to improve their result. According to an official statement, this year, 307 schools of Delhi government have achieved 100 per cent results in the 12th board exams which is more than 2.5 times of the last year (118 schools). Talking of 10th board results, this year the result has been 100 per cent in 327 schools Delhi government. Last year this number was 124, Also there are 843 schools where the result of students has been more than 90 per cent, while it was 528, during last year, the statement said. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday alleged that two CCTV cameras were installed in his cell in Tihar jail and 13 officers were continuously watching him. Addressing the councillors of his party here, Kejriwal while sharing the ordeals of his days in jail, said, They had installed 2 CCTV cameras in my cell, to see what time I wake up, what time I go to bed, what time I eat food, which TV channels I watch, what time I wake up at night, what time I go to the bathroom. These recordings were played in the offices of 13 officers. These people were continuously monitoring each and everything that I was doing. This was the Delhi Chief Ministers first meeting with the councillors after his release from Tihar jail after getting an interim bail from the Supreme Cowurt till June 1 in a money laundering case in connection with the alleged excise policy scam. Advertisement AAP National General Secretary (Organisation) Dr Sandeep Pathak, AAP Delhi Convenor Gopal Rai, Mayor Dr Shelly Oberoi, Deputy Mayor Aaley Muhammad Iqbal, Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) in-charge Durgesh Pathak and all AAP councillors in the MCD were present at the meeting. Addressing the councillors of his party, the AAP national convenor said, We have also learnt that the jail authority had also given a feed of the same to the Prime Ministers Office. Shri Modi was monitoring the CCTV camera to keep an eye on my activities. Why? Because he wanted to know if Kejriwal was broken. He wanted to see if depression had set in. I want to tell them that I have the blessings of Lord Shri Hanuman with me. Kejriwal is not going to break like this, they think it is very easy to break Kejriwal. They were taking out their frustration on me. I dont know what hatred Modi has harboured against me and the Aam Aadmi Party that he is hell-bent on crushing the Aam Aadmi Party. But Shri Narendra Modi is no God, and God is with us in this fight, Kejriwal said. The Delhi Chief Minister alleged that they (BJP-led Central government) had sent him to jail thinking that after sending Kejriwal to jail his party would disintegrate, his councillors, MLAs would disintegrate, they would break half the MLAs, half the councillors, they would topple the government in Delhi and MCD. The result was exactly the opposite. We always used to say that the Aam Aadmi Party is not a party, we all are a family. This was also proved in everyday life by the way we helped each other in happiness and sorrow. But in a way the biggest disaster came when they arrested me. So, two things could have happened. We all would have scattered here and there in despair, but that did not happen, the AAP national convenor said. Talking about the election campaigning of the Opposition INDIA bloc, Kejriwal said for the past few days, he has received plenty of invitations from various parties and candidates of the Opposition alliance from all over the country. I will try and go to most of the places in the next 21 days to campaign for the alliance. I have been receiving invitations from individual candidates as well, from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, and so on. I will try and go to as many places as possible and work hard for election campaigning, he said. Addressing the councillors, he said, You have to work really hard. It is not the time to sit back but to work hard. I have to go back to jail on 2nd June. I will be watching the results on 4th June from jail. If you work hard and make the alliance win, then I will come back on the 5th of June. If there is any lack of effort, then lets see when we will meet. Actor Allu Arjun, known for his roles in popular films like Pushpa, exercised his voting right in Hyderabad during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections. Sporting a casual yet stylish look in a white t-shirt and black jeans, Arjun emphasized the significance of voting, declaring the day as pivotal for the next five years. Addressing the media after casting his vote, Arjun urged citizens to fulfill their duty, highlighting that the outcomes of this election would shape the trajectory of the nation for the foreseeable future. He made it clear that he maintained neutrality towards any political party. Simultaneously, polling commenced for 96 Parliamentary Constituencies across nine states and one Union Territory. This phase also marked the initiation of voting for all 175 seats of the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly and 28 seats of the Odisha Legislative Assembly. Advertisement A total of 4,264 nominations were filed for the 96 parliamentary constituencies. Among these, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, and Jammu and Kashmir contributed to the electoral process. This phase witnessed significant contests in various constituencies, with prominent leaders such as Asaduddin Owaisi, Akhilesh Yadav, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, Mahua Moitra, Giriraj Singh, Rajiv Ranjan Singh, Shatrughan Sinha, Yusuf Pathan, Arjun Munda, Madhavi Latha, and YS Sharmila vying for electoral success. The preceding phases of the Lok Sabha polls concluded smoothly and peacefully in 283 Lok Sabha seats, reflecting the democratic spirit of the nation. As citizens continue to participate actively in the electoral process, the stage is set for the democratic exercise to shape the future course of the country. Hollywood actress Brooke Shields kids are set to head off to their college. But the actress says her parenting journey is far from over. The model and actress shared that she thought she would feel relieved when she reached the point where her two daughters Rowan, 20, and Grier, 18 were all grown up and living independently, reports People magazine. Instead, shes discovered that moms never really stop worrying about their kids. She said, You get on vacation and all you do is think about where they are and what theyre doing. Its like theres really no relief. Advertisement She told People, Its like people say, Oh, its going to be great. Just when they start to be able to walk. You dont have to carry them everywhere. Then theyre walking all over and youre worried about them falling off the stairs and in the pool and down the street, and then theyre able to walk. She added, And every step of the way, you think its going to be a relief. And then a whole new set of worries just smacks you in the face. Even though her daughters are entering adulthood, the Mother of the Bride star says she still doesnt feel like she can ease up on the worrying and mental load that comes with being a parent. What is the expression? Wearing your heart on your sleeve? This is like a hard suit. A whole body suit of a heart, she said as she described the experience of having children. Come September, when Grier heads off to college, she and Henchy (60) will find themselves with an empty house a prospect Shields says she initially looked forward to but now has her feeling off-kilter. (Im) not ready. I thought I would be relieved, but I dont know. Ill see if when I get there, but I think Im just going to be even the thought of no longer living 24/7 in the house with these people that Ive raised, its just very foreign its like going to a totally foreign territory, she added. Megastar Chiranjeevi, accompanied by his wife Surekha Konidela, made his mark in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections by casting his vote in Hyderabads Jubilee Hills on Monday. Sporting a sense of civic duty, the Padma Vibhushan recipient urged fellow citizens to exercise their democratic right, emphasizing the importance of voting for shaping the nations future. As the polling commenced at 7 am and continued till 6 pm across various Lok Sabha and assembly constituencies, Chiranjeevis call echoed a broader sentiment of civic engagement. In tandem with the Lok Sabha polls, voting also commenced for all 175 seats of the Andhra Pradesh State Legislative Assembly and 28 seats of the Odisha State Legislative Assembly. #WATCH | Telangana: Film star Chiranjeevi Konidela and his family arrive at a polling booth in Jubilee Hills in Hyderabad to cast their vote.#LokSabhaElections2024 pic.twitter.com/HrnDGIWdjU Advertisement ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024 The fourth phase of elections witnesses a plethora of key contests across different constituencies. Notable figures like AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, and West Bengal Congress chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury are among the prominent leaders vying for victory. The electoral battleground also features personalities from various parties, including BJP, TMC, and JDU, making it a crucial phase in the democratic process. Chiranjeevis proactive participation in the voting process serves as a clarion call to citizens to fulfill their civic duty. His message, resonating beyond the confines of political affiliations, underscores the significance of every vote in shaping the countrys trajectory for the next five years. Echoing similar sentiments, actor Allu Arjun, clad in a simple white t-shirt and black jeans, cast his vote in Hyderabad during the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections. Emphasizing the pivotal nature of the day, Arjun urged citizens to exercise their franchise, highlighting the collective responsibility towards nation-building. The electoral landscape encompasses a diverse array of constituencies, each playing a crucial role in determining the nations future course. With a total of 96 parliamentary constituencies witnessing polling and a substantial voter turnout anticipated, the democratic process unfolds amidst spirited contests and fervent appeals for active citizen participation. As the day progresses, citizens across the nation are reminded of their role in shaping the democratic fabric of the country. Beyond the political rhetoric, the essence of democracy lies in the collective voice of its citizens, reaffirming the fundamental principle of government of the people, by the people, for the people. An average overall 72 per cent voting was recorded from the eight parliamentary constituencies that went to polls in Madhya Pradesh in the fourth phase of General Elections on Monday. According to Madhya Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer Anupam Rajan, polling was conducted peacefully and ended at 6 pm. He said the poll percentage figure would be revised after the final compilation of data. As per official data, Khargone recorded the highest turnout at 75.79 per cent while the lowest was in Indore at 60.53 per cent. Advertisement Mandsaur recorded 74.50 per cent polling, Dewas 74.86 per cent, Khargone 75.79 per cent, Ratlam 72.86 per cent, Ujjain 73.03 per cent, Khandwa 70.72 per cent, Dhar 71.50 per cent and Indore 60.53 per cent. In 2019, 75.65 per cent polling was recorded in these eight seats, Rajan said. The total polling in all the 29 seats in the state in 2019 was 71.16 per cent, he said. The General Elections ended in Madhya Pradesh today, as this was the last phase of Lok Sabha polls in Madhya Pradesh. An FIR was registered against K Madhavi Latha, the BJP candidate for Hyderabad Lok Sabha, for violating the election code while verifying the identities of burqa clad Muslim women voters. Several videos where she was seen demanding to see the faces of veiled women while matching their Epic cards and warning the presiding officer of a booth surfaced. The AIMIM also lodged a complaint against her with the ECI. Madhavi Latha is taking on four time MP Asaduddin Owaisi of AIMIM in Hyderabad Lok Sabha seat. According to the X handle of Collector, Hyderabad A case is registered in Malakpet Police Station against Smt Madhavi Latha, contesting candidate, BJP under sections 17C, 186, 505(1)(c) of IPC and Section 132 of the Representation of the People Act,. Advertisement In one of the videos that surfaced, the BJP candidate was seen checking the identities of burqa clad Muslim women waiting to vote. She even asked one of them to remove her veil which she did. In another video she warned the poll official present in the booth saying Facial identification is very important. If the election officials are not checking the faces of the voters I am going to lodge a complaint. Later she complained 90 per cent of the booths were compromised, while blaming the police for not checking the identity of veiled women voters. However, the low turnout in Hyderabad was also a cause of worry. The BJP candidate even issued a video clip urging people quite forcefully to come out and vote. Let them make their move. It will not affect us. I am going around each and every booth. I will ensure you get justice everywhere. Come out. Vote. This is our right. You must vote and till now only 9 per cent have come out to vote and out of that not many belong to us. AIMIM leaders were also seen going around and knocking on doors, urging people to come out and vote. Meanwhile, another BJP candidate Arvind Dharmapuri who is in the fray from Nizamabad was also seen objecting to veiled women voters in one of the booths in his constituency. Another case was registered against BJP candidate Madhavi Latha in Mangalhat police station after she intervened to get two BJP men released from police. The duo was arrested for manipulating voters with a dummy EVM. She reached the police station and took away the two men and dummy EVM. She also faced protests from locals in Bibi Bazaar area after she forced burqa clad women to remove their veil in order to check identities. Senior BJP leader and former Bihar deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi passed away on Monday. Modi was undergoing treatment for cancer at Delhis AIIMS hospital. He was 72. Last month, the BJP leader had announced that he had been battling with cancer and requested party to relieve him of active political duties. Condoling the demise of his valuable colleague, PM Modi said that the former Bihar deputy CM played an invaluable role in the BJPs rise in Bihar. Advertisement I am deeply saddened by the untimely demise of Sushil Modi, my valuable colleague in the party and my friend for decades. He has played an invaluable role in the rise and success of BJP in Bihar. Strongly opposing the Emergency, he made a name for himself in student politics. My condolences are with his family and supporters in this hour of grief. Om Shanti! Modi said. Union Home Minister Amit Shah also condoled Sushil Modis demise. Shah said that Bihar has lost a great pioneer of politics. I am saddened by the news of the demise of our senior leader Sushil Kumar Modi. Today, Bihar has lost a great pioneer of politics forever. From ABVP to BJP, Sushil ji has adorned many important positions in the organization and government. His politics was dedicated to the interests of the poor and the backwards. The void that has emerged in Bihar politics due to his demise cannot be filled for a long time. In this hour of grief, the entire BJP stands with his bereaved family. May God give a place to the departed soul in his lotus feet, Shah wrote on X. Former Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi also expressed his heartfelt tributes on the demise of his dear friend. Heartfelt tribute to our dear friend, former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar and former Rajya Sabha MP Shri Sushil Kumar Modi ji on his demise, Manjhi wrote on social media. Modi belonged to the Atal Bihari Vajpayee- LK Advani era of politics. He served as Bihar deputy CM twice first from 2005 to 2013 and then second from 2017 to 2020. The Exercise is scheduled to be conducted from May 13 to May 26, 2024 The Opening Ceremony of the joint exercise was attended by French Ambassador Thierry Mathou and Major General Prasanna Sudhakar Joshi, General Officer Commanding 51 Sub Area. Exercise Shakti is a biennial training event conducted alternatively in India and France. Last edition was conducted in France in November 2021. Advertisement Indian contingent comprising 90 personnel is being represented primarily by a Battalion of the Rajput Regiment besides personnel from other arms and services. Observers from the Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force will also form part of the exercise. The French contingent comprising 90 personnel will be represented mainly by personnel from the 13th Foreign Legion Half- Brigade (13th DBLE). Aim of Exercise Shakti is to enhance joint military capability of both sides to undertake multi-domain operations in a Sub Conventional scenario under Chapter VII of the United Nations Mandate. The joint exercise will focus on operations in the semi-urban and mountainous terrain. Objectives to be achieved from the joint training are high degree of physical fitness, rehearsing and refining drills for operations at tactical level and sharing of best practices. Tactical drills to be practiced during the Exercise will include response to a terrorist action of capturing a defined territory, establishment of a Joint Command Post, establishment of an Intelligence & Surveillance Centre, securing of a helipad/ landing site, Small Team Insertion & Extraction, Special Heliborne Operations, Cordon & Search Operations besides employment of drones and counter drone systems among others. Former chief minister and BRS supremo K Chandrasekhar Rao on Monday said that regional parties will wield power in the next government while iterating AAP leader Arvind Kejriwals prophecy that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will step down from office once he attains 75 years of age. However, Raos assertion was dismissed by Telangana Chief Minister and PCC president A Revanth Reddy said that the former CM was speaking like KA Paul, the maverick Christian evangelist and leader of Praja Shanti Party. He claimed that the Congress was going to increase its vote share in the state. After casting his vote at Medak, Rao said: According to the BJPs own rule, prescribed by themselves, after 75 years of age nobody will take up any position. Accordingly Mr Modi has to step down. It is up to the BJP people to think. Advertisement When asked whether his party will join the INDIA bloc, he said, There is nothing like a bloc. Now the regional parties will be in power in India. KCRs BRS is the only regional party which is involved in a triangular fight in Telangana along with the Congress and the BJP. His daughter Kavitha is one of the accused in Delhi Liquor Scam and is incarcerated along with Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who is currently out on interim bail. Chief Minister Reddy voted with his family at Kodangal under Mahabubnagar constituency. He said there was an anti-Modi wave and none of the NDA partners will support him if the BJP fails to get a majority. Meanwhile, Telangana saw a higher turnout in constituencies where there is fierce fighting between three parties though Hyderabad city managed to disappoint once again. At 5 pm the poll percentage in the state was 61.6 per cent. While the lowest was Hyderabad constituency at 39.17 per cent, Secunderabad at 42.48 per cent and Malkajgiri at 46.25 per cent were marginally better. Chevella which includes the IT hub was a little better with 53.15 per cent, because of its rural areas. Social activists complained that a large number of voters found their names deleted from electoral rolls this time leading to low turn out. Constituencies like Bhongir (72.34 per cent), Zahirabad (71.91 per cent) and Medak (71.33 ) registered comparatively higher turnout. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday morning expressed hope that people will vote in large numbers to strengthen democracy while Union Home Minister Amit Shah urged voters including those in Jammu and Kashmir to reach polling booths in record numbers as polling began for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections. Taking to X, PM Modi said, In todays 4th Phase of the Lok Sabha elections, 96 seats across 10 States and UTs are going to the polls. I am sure people in these constituencies will vote in large numbers and the young voters as well as women voters will power this surge in voting. Come, lets all do our duty and strengthen our democracy! Union Home Minister Amit Shah urged voters including those in Jammu and Kashmir to reach polling booths in record numbers. In the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections, I appeal to the voters of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir to reach polling booths in record numbers to form a government whose goal is respect for heritage, whose top priority is welfare of the poor, whose resolve is to eradicate Naxalism and whose mission is developed India. Your every vote will act as a strong pillar for a stable, strong and decisive government, Amit Shah posted on X. Advertisement Voting for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections in 96 Parliamentary Constituencies across nine states and one Union Territory began today at 7:00 am. Polling for all 175 seats of the State Legislative Assembly of Andhra Pradesh and 28 seats of the State Legislative Assembly of Odisha also started simultaneously with the Lok Sabha polls. Of the 96 Lok Sabha seats, 25 are from Andhra Pradesh, 17 from Telangana, 13 from Uttar Pradesh, 11 from Maharashtra, eight each from Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal, five from Bihar, four each from Jharkhand and Odisha, and one from Jammu and Kashmir. A total of 1,717 candidates from 10 States/UTs will contest elections in phase 4 of the Lok Sabha polls, the Election Commission of India said. According to the poll body, a total of 4,264 nominations were filed for 96 parliamentary constituencies. The Election Commission further stated that the maximum number of nomination forms were received from Telangana (1488) followed by Andhra Pradesh with 1103 nominations from 25 constituencies. Malkajgiri Parliamentary Constituency in Telangana received a maximum of 177 nomination forms, followed by 13-Nalgonda and 14-Bhongir in the same state with 114 nomination forms in each. The fourth phase is witnessing key contests in various constituencies. Leaders such as AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, West Bengal Congress chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, TMC leader Mahua Moitra, BJP leader Giriraj Singh, JDUs Rajiv Ranjan Singh (Lalan Singh), TMC leaders Shatrughan Sinha and Yusuf Pathan.BJP leaders Arjun Munda and Madhavi Latha, and Andhra Pradesh Congress Chief YS Sharmila are also looking for electoral success. Baharampur, Hyderabad, Krishnanagar, Begusarai, Munger, Srinagar, Asansol, Kannauj, Kadapa, and Khunti are some of the prominent Lok Sabha seats where voting is underway. The Election Commission on Sunday informed that polling time in certain assembly segments of 17 Parliamentary Constituencies of Telangana was increased by the Commission (from 7 am to 6 pm) to increase voters participation. As per the IMD forecast, there is no significant concern regarding the hot weather conditions for the polling in phase 4. The weather forecast indicates that the Parliamentary Constituencies going for polls are likely to experience normal to below normal temperatures (+-2 degrees) and there will be no heat wave-like conditions in these areas on the polling day. However, for the convenience of voters, meticulous arrangements have been made at all polling stations, including facilities like water, shamiyana and fans, the Election Commission said. So far, till phase 3 of the Lok Sabha polls, polling has concluded smoothly and peacefully in 283 Lok Sabha seats. Breaking the jinx of being the epicentre of terrorism and poll boycotts, people in large numbers lined up outside polling booths in south Kashmirs Pulwama and Shopian to cast their vote on Monday as the Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency went to polls amidst tight security. Despite there being no poll boycott call this time, the polling percentage remained at 36.1 in the constituency till 5 pm yet it was better than the 2019 Lok Sabha elections when 14.43 per cent votes were polled and 7.12 per cent in the by-election in 2017. The final voting percentage till 6 pm is awaited. A lot of enthusiasm was witnessed among the electorate as men and women queued at the polling booths across the constituency even before the voting began at 7 am. Long queues of voters were seen in the Pulwama, Shopian, and Ganderbal districts. Advertisement The chief electoral officer (CEO) of J&K conveyed his gratitude to the voters of Srinagar, Budgam, Shopian, Ganderbal, and Pulwama districts for coming to cast their votes in large numbers. There is festivity and normalcy in every polling station! he exclaimed. Among the three Lok Sabha constituencies in the Kashmir Valley, Srinagar with 17.48 lakh registered voters was the first to go to polls. The Baramulla and Anantnag constituencies will go to polls on 20 and 25 May respectively. The constituency witnessed 15.08 per cent polling in the first four hours till 11 am and it gradually increased to 23.79 per cent at 1 pm and 30.23 per cent at 3 pm. The Kangan assembly segment in Ganderbal recorded the highest 55.55 per cent polling till 5 pm. The downtown area of Srinagar, where not a single vote was cast at least in 70 polling stations in the 2019 elections, witnessed enthusiasm this time. The Eidgah locality that had remained the hub of stone pelting for three decades recorded 25.68 per cent polling till 5 pm. Zadibal polled 27.52 per cent, Khanyar 23.06 per cent, and Habbakadal 13.25 per cent till 5 pm. The Pulwama and Shopian districts, known to be hotbed of terrorism, were among the places where polling touched 39.25 per cent and 45.04 per cent marks by 5 pm. The Kashmiri Pandit migrants also came out to cast their vote in Jammu, Udhampur, and Delhi where special polling booths were set up for them. Although there are 24 candidates in the fray, the key contest is between Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi of the National Conference (NC) and the youth leader of the PDP Waheed-ur-Rehman Parra in Srinagar that has been represented by three generations of the Abdullah family. Aga Ruhullah is a well-known Shia cleric and a former MLA of Budgam and also a cabinet minister. He is the grandson of Aga Syed Mustafa, who was a respected Shia leader. On the other hand, Parra was arrested by the National Investigating Agency (NIA) on 25 November 2020 on a charge of terror links. He was re-arrested by the J&K Police after getting bail from the special NIA court. He was in the district development council election in 2020 from Pulwama while in jail. He was later released on bail by the high court. While the BJP is not contesting on any of the three Lok Sabha seats, it is reportedly supporting the Apni Party of Altaf Bukhari and the Peoples Conference of former separatist Sajad Lone from behind the scene. The saffron party is confident that the elections in the Valley would end the domination of the NC and the PDP in the region. The Congress too has not fielded its candidates in Kashmir but is supporting the NC. This is the first time since 1998 that no member of the Abdullah family is contesting the Lok Sabha elections from Srinagar. The only loss the NC suffered on this seat was in the 2014 general elections. This is the first major election in Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370, which granted special status to the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir. The article was revoked in 2019, leading to the bifurcation of the state into the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. Three generations of the Abdullah family led by the sitting MP Dr. Farooq Abdullah cast their vote early in the morning. Farooq Abdullah, his son Omar Abdullah, and his two grandsons and first-time electors Zahir and Zamir cast their vote at the polling station at the Burn Hall School in Srinagar. A senior PDP leader and former minister, Naeem Akhtar complained of a slow voting process at certain booths. Reacting to these complaints, the chief electoral officer (CEO) of J&K said; It is to clarify that the speed of EVM is the same everywhere. Polling staff is working diligently to facilitate all. Normally there used to be very less poll percentage and less number of voters in queues. At least three persons were killed and dozens more were injured after a massive hoarding collapsed in Mumbais Ghatkopar area on Monday. The incident took place at around 4.30 pm when a dust storm hit the financial capital. Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said that 57 individuals have been rescued from under the 100 feet tall hoarding that fell on a petrol pump. Advertisement The injured, he said, have been admitted to Rajawadi Hospital for urgent medical attention. The Chief Minister said that he has instructed the municipal administration to investigate the incident and file a.case of culpable homicide against the culprits. The municipal administration has been instructed to investigate the incident and file a case of culpable homicide against the culprits. Rs 5 lakh has been announced to the relatives of the deceased in the accident and all the treatment of the injured will be done at the government expense. Also, to prevent such accidents from happening again, structural audit of all hoardings in Mumbai will be conducted and instructions have been given to remove dangerous hoardings immediately, he wrote on X. According to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the hoarding was illegal and an action will be taken against the advertising company Ego Media for the incident. The BMC Public Relations Office said that a complaint will be filed by registering an FIR under the Disaster Management Act. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday that INDI alliance members appear to have taken a supari (contract) against India as they give clean chit to Pakistan on the 26/11 Mumbai attack, raising questions on the surgical air strikes against Pakistan, while the Left wants India to destroy its nuclear weapons. Addressing a BJP election rally in Muzaffarpur, Bihar, he said the INDI alliance leaders see Pakistans atom bomb even in their dreams. Can you trust the country in the hands of these parties and leaders? Can such selfish people take tough decisions for defence of the country, he asked. Look at the statements made by the Congress and the INDI alliance leaders. They say Pakistan is not wearing bangles; OK, we will arrange these for them. They need flour, they do not have electricity; we didnt know they do not have bangles also, said Mr Modi. Advertisement Such parties are not sure of themselves, can they make India mazboot (strong); they will only make India majboor (helpless), the prime minister said, adding this election is for the nation, to decide its future and elect its leadership, which can be trusted with running it. The nation does not want a weak, cowardly and unstable government of the Congress party. Do you like a weak constable in your locality or a teacher who is unstable? You want both of them strong. How can the prime minister of the country be not strong, then? Can a coward PM run the country, he asked. Mr Modi said as the fourth round of polling in the Lok Sabha elections took place on Monday, there was a storm in favour of the BJP and NDA. In Bihar, too, the jungle-raj party (RJD) is going to fall flat on the ground, he said. Wherever I have been, there is only one voice heard, phir ek baar, Modi sarkar (once again, Modi government), he said. The prime minister said the NDA considers East India states like Bihar, Jharkhand, Bengal and Odisha as growth engines for Viksit Bharat (developed India). That is why I am working on Viksit Bihar, Viksit Bharat mantra, he added. Bihar should have modern connectivity and improved law and order situation, he said. The NDA is working on all issues, in all directions. Modi has a nature of working in all four directions, at the same time, he said. Bihar has suffered Naxalism for decades; previous governments nurtured it and used it against people. Crime and naxalism finished industry in Bihar. You remember the days when it was considered to be safe at home by evening; the first-time voters may not know this, they can ask their parents and grandparents about the horrible life during jungle-raj, he said. RJDs jungle-raj took Bihar back by several decades. It is the NDA government which has brought law and order back on track in Bihar, he said. Naxalism-affected districts are getting fewer. As peace returns, industry and investment are also returning, increasing thereby job opportunities for youth. The prime minister said the Congress-RJD INDI alliance is only interested in creating divisions in the country. They want the society to fight and appease its vote-bank only. You know what the Congress government in Karnataka did; in one night it issued an order declaring all Muslim communities OBC. As a result, the OBC reservation was stolen, and nothing was left for them, he said. Will you allow this model to be implemented in Bihar, will you allow anyone to loot your reservation, he asked. In Bihar, the RJD leader (Lalu Prasad) even said Dalit, Maha Dalit, Pichde, Maha Pichde be deprived of their reservations, and their share be given to the partys vote bank of Muslims, he said. Those who want to loot the existing quotas should know Modi will not allow anyone to change the Constitution, or snatch reservation share meant for SCs, STs and OBCs to give reservation on religious basis. This is Modis guarantee, he asserted. He said the NDA is committed to fulfilling the dreams of Bihars youth. The Nitish Kumar government has given lakhs of jobs to youth. Even the Central government gave jobs through Rozgar Melas and introduced reforms in recruitment to reduce paperwork drastically. Eight new medical colleges have been sanctioned for the state, and 10,000 Ayushman medical centres have been opened, along with 400 Jan Aushadhi Kendra and 60,000 common service centres. Who is running them, certainly they have given jobs to the youth of the state. Muzaffarpur litchi has got a GI tag, he said, and storage is being created for vegetables and fruits of the state. Authorities in Tripura apprehended nine individuals, comprising eight Bangladeshi women and one Indian national, during a collaborative operation conducted by the Government Railway Police (GRP) and Railway Protection Force (RPF) at Agartala Railway Station. The group was intercepted while allegedly attempting to board the Kanchanjunga Express destined for Mumbai. According to police sources, the Bangladeshi women, identified as Tania Hasan Seikh, Sathi Khatum, Surmi Sheikh, Ruma Sheikh, Rejuwan Sheikh, Beauty Khatun, Supriya Sheikh, and Majeda Biswas Pinky, are suspected of illegally entering Tripura from the Sonamura sub-division in Bangladeshs Sepahijala District. Advertisement Acting on intelligence regarding suspicious activities, authorities initiated surveillance at the railway station. Upon initial questioning, they confessed their intention to travel to Mumbai and Pune via Sealdah in search of employment. They acknowledged illegally crossing the border from Comilla, Bangladesh. The Indian national, identified as Sentu Kumar Deb, is believed to have facilitated their travel. Authorities have confirmed that legal proceedings have commenced against all individuals. Baidu's ex-PR director Qu Jing launched an aggressive social media campaign styling herself as the ultimate hard-nosed tech executive. It backfired in spectacular fashion. The head of public relations at one of Chinas leading tech firms has scored a spectacular own goal this week after her aggressive social media posts sparked fury among millions of working professionals across the country. Qu Jing, the former vice president at search giant Baidu, yes, she has been fired last week, launched a baffling campaign that saw her take to Douyin, Chinas version of TikTok, to brag about being indifferent toward her staffs feelings, denying them pay rises, and receiving hundreds of complaints. The videos were likely intended to style Qu as a hard-nosed executive who fully embraced the gung-ho working culture that has long prevailed in Chinas technology industry. But they quickly triggered an avalanche of condemnation, with related hashtags racking up hundreds of millions of views on the microblogging platform Weibo. Users called out Qus working practices as inhumane and expressed amazement that she had been assigned to lead Baidus PR operations. Some have even called for a boycott of the companys products over its toxic working environment. Its rare to see someone presenting such unbearable, exploitative behavior as something to be praised and encouraged, read one highly upvoted comment on Douyin. Its quite a feat for a vice president in charge of the companys public relations to create such a PR disaster, another user wrote. Qus venture into social media began earlier this month. In her Douyin videos, which have now been deleted, she discussed a range of work-related topics, with a particular focus on managing staff and career development issues faced by female workers. From the beginning, Qu styled herself as an ambitious professional who never took annual leave and endured grueling 50-day business trips without complaint. She also made clear that she expected the same level of commitment from her staff no matter their family or personal circumstances. Whether you cry or not isnt something that I need to care about as a supervisor, she said in one video. You have the right not to work on important projects, but that will mean that you dont deserve a pay rise. Before joining Baidu in 2021, Qu was a senior public relations executive at telecommunications giant Huawei. She also previously worked at the state news agency Xinhua as a journalist. Her social media campaign wasnt an individual effort. According to domestic media reports, Qu ordered every employee in Baidus PR department to become more active on social media. Those who failed to do so reportedly received poor annual appraisals or, in some cases, were even fired. Several staff members left Baidu as a result. In a statement released Thursday, Qu said she had conducted her social media campaign without the companys consent and apologized for misleading the public about Baidus corporate culture. My initial intent was to do a good job, but I was too eager and used an inappropriate method, Qu said. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday asserted that the illegal occupation of Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) will end and the region will become part of India. These days, a lot of things are going on at the PoK. You must have seen some incidents happening there. Now, the Modi government, we are very clear on this. (There is a) Parliament resolution, we are very clear that PoK is part of India. It was always part of India, it will be part of India, he said during a media interaction in Mumbai. And we definitely have this intention one day we will end the illegal occupation of the PoK and the PoK will join with India, Dr Jaishankar said. Advertisement The minister also questioned those who opposed the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir. If I talk about the record, then in the last five years, one of our great achievements was on Article 370. And we will also say that the NDAs record and the NDAs thinking, the Modi governments thinking is how we can integrate Kashmir with the country, how we can further develop Kashmir. On the other hand, you see those who wanted to run Article 370, who were interested in it. So this is also a very clear choice in front of the country, he said. Dr Jaishankar also commented on Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullahs remarks that they (Pakistan) are also not wearing bangles and will attack India, saying that some leaders are so afraid of Pakistans nuclear weapons that they believe India should not talk about PoK. Farooq Abdullah reminds us not to talk about PoK because Pakistan has nuclear weapons. We are proud of Indias nuclear weapons. On the contrary, Pakistans nuclear weapons seem to be more important. If it is Manish Shankar Iyer or Farooq Abdullah, they are so afraid of Pakistans nuclear weapons that they think that we should not talk about PoK. He said the BJP-led NDA is on the side of the CAA and wants to take it forward while the Opposition parties are prisoners of the vote bank. The Supreme Court on Monday posted for August 12, 2024, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal plea over a defamation case against him for retweeting a video of a YouTuber Dhruv Rathee in 2018, which had compared the founder and operator of Twitter page I Support Narendra Modi of behaving like BJP IT CELL Part-II. Adjourning the matter listed today and posting it for hearing on August 12, a bench of Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Dipankar Datta also extended the stay on the proceedings of the case before the trial court. The proceedings before a trial court in the defamation case were stayed on February 26, 2024. The court granted more time to the complainant in the criminal defamation case against Kejriwal to discuss the modalities of an apology that would close the case. Advertisement On February 26, senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi appearing for Kejriwal had told the court that retweeting allegedly defamatory video was a mistake. The Delhi Chief Minister and the Aam Aadmi Party s national convenor had approached the top court challenging the February 5, 2024, Delhi High Court order refusing to quash the summons issued against him by the trial court. The High Court had said that reposting the alleged libelous content will attract defamation law. The summons was issued to Kejriwal in a defamation complaint lodged against him for retweeting a video of a YouTuber on social media platform X. During the course of the hearing, on February 26, 2024, senior advocate Singhvi, had told the bench: There is no problem in admitting that this was a mistake if he had known that these would be of the consequences. A defamation complaint was filed against Kejriwal for retweeting a video by a YouTuber in 2018 and making remarks describing the founder and operator of a twitter page called I Support Narendra Modi of behaving like BJP IT CELL Part-II. Kejriwal retweeted the tweet which led to the founder moving a defamation complaint against the Chief Minister. Vikas Sankrityayan, the complainant, has asserted that the YouTube video with the title BJP IT Cell Part II circulated by Rathee from Germany contained false and defamatory allegations. Polling in Andhra Pradesh on Monday was marred by violence and clashes between YSRCP and TDP workers. A booth agent belonging to the ruling party was stabbed in broad daylight while in another incident the MLA of Tenali slapped a voter when the latter objected to his jumping the queue. Despite the violence, the state registered a high voter turnout which was 68.04 per cent at 5 pm. Polling was held in AP simultaneously for 25 Lok Sabha seats and 175 Assembly seats today. Violence was reported from Palnadu, Chittoor, Anantapur, Kadapa and Annamayya districts. After a high decibel campaign tensions were running high from morning. Advertisement The Election Commission suspended a sub inspector at Punganur for letting off those involved in violence. In booth number 220 at Mandi Krishnapuram in Chittoor district a YSRCP polling agent Suresh Reddy was stabbed by a TDP supporter Chandra. The two had clashed earlier during the sarpanch election. YSRCP MLA A Shiva Kumar slapped a voter who had objected to his jumping the queue. The voter retaliated but then the supporters of the MLA accompanying him also jumped in. The MLA later alleged that the voter had uttered a casteist remark but the man said he had retaliated in the heat of the moment and was now afraid for his own life. The TDP also alleged three polling agents were abducted by the YSRCP cadres from Sadum mandal under Punganur Assembly in Chittoor district in private vehicles and were later let off 25 km away at Pileru with the warning that they should stay away from booths till afternoon. A probe is underway to identify the abductors. In Narasaraopet, the TDP workers allegedly attacked the house of YSRCP MLA Gopireddy Srinivasa Reddy. Police fired rubber bullets to dismiss the mob. This was said to be in retaliation for an attack on TDP leader Aravind Babu. The TDP alleged YSRCP activists damaged three vehicles belonging to its Narsaraopeta candidate L Sri Krishna Devarayalu. TDP activists allegedly damaged the vehicle of YSRCP leader Nandigam Suresh. Since the people were still standing in the queue after 6 pm. Opposition leader N Chandrababu Naidu urged the ECI to arrange sufficient power backup and illumination in the booths. Its a historic day for Andhra Pradesh today! The enthusiasm and determination of our people is inspirational, People continue to turn up in long queues to exercise their right to vote, said Naidu, who had cast his vote in Kuppam, his constituency. Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy cast his vote in Pulivendula along with his wife. The YSRCP has claimed a large number of women and elderly (read beneficiaries of welfare schemes) have voted in this election, predicting the partys win. Voting for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections in 96 Parliamentary Constituencies across nine states and one Union Territory began on Monday at 7:00 am. Polling for all 175 seats of the State Legislative Assembly of Andhra Pradesh and 28 seats of the State Legislative Assembly of Odisha also started simultaneously with the Lok Sabha polls. Of the 96 Lok Sabha seats, 25 are from Andhra Pradesh, 17 from Telangana, 13 from Uttar Pradesh, 11 from Maharashtra, eight each from Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal, five from Bihar, four each from Jharkhand and Odisha, and one from Jammu and Kashmir. A total of 1,717 candidates from 10 States/UTs will contest elections in phase 4 of the Lok Sabha polls, the Election Commission of India said. According to the poll body, a total of 4,264 nominations were filed for 96 parliamentary constituencies. The Election Commission further stated that the maximum number of nomination forms were received from Telangana (1488) followed by Andhra Pradesh with 1103 nominations from 25 constituencies. Advertisement Malkajgiri Parliamentary Constituency in Telangana received a maximum of 177 nomination forms, followed by 13-Nalgonda and 14-Bhongir in the same state with 114 nomination forms in each. The fourth phase is witnessing key contests in various constituencies. Leaders such as AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, West Bengal Congress chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, TMC leader Mahua Moitra, BJP leader Giriraj Singh, JDUs Rajiv Ranjan Singh (Lalan Singh), TMC leaders Shatrughan Sinha and Yusuf Pathan. BJP leaders Arjun Munda and Madhavi Latha, and Andhra Pradesh Congress Chief YS Sharmila are also looking for electoral success. Baharampur, Hyderabad, Krishnanagar, Begusarai, Munger, Srinagar, Asansol, Kannauj, Kadapa, and Khunti are some of the prominent Lok Sabha seats where voting is underway. The Election Commission on Sunday informed that polling time in certain assembly segments of 17 Parliamentary Constituencies of Telangana was increased by the Commission (from 7 am to 6 pm) to increase voters participation. As per the IMD forecast, there is no significant concern regarding the hot weather conditions for the polling in phase 4. The weather forecast indicates that the Parliamentary Constituencies going for polls are likely to experience normal to below normal temperatures (+-2 degrees) and there will be no heat wave-like conditions in these areas on the polling day. However, for the convenience of voters, meticulous arrangements have been made at all polling stations, including facilities like water, shamiyana and fans, the Election Commission said. So far, till phase 3 of the Lok Sabha polls, polling has concluded smoothly and peacefully in 283 Lok Sabha seats. In the heart of West Asia, where tensions simmer like a pot about to boil over, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu finds himself at a crossroads. The battleground is Rafah, a city gripped by the relentless struggle between Israel and Hamas. Mr Netanyahu faces a dilemma that strikes at the core of Israels security and moral compass: how to balance the imperative of defeating Hamas with the urgent need to bring Israeli hostages home safely. The recent escalation in Rafah has laid bare the deep divisions within Israeli society. On one side, there are the voices clamouring for a decisive military victory, urging the Prime Minister to press ahead with the operation to crush Hamas once and for all. They argue that a show of force is the only language Hamas understands, and that anything less would be a betrayal of Israels security. On the other side are the anguished cries of the families of the hostages, who have become pawns in this deadly game of brinkmanship. For them, every moment their loved ones remain in captivity is a moment of agonising uncertainty, a constant reminder of the fragility of life in this volatile region. They plead for a ceasefire, for negotiations, for anything that might bring their sons and daughters back home. Caught in the middle of these competing pressures, and with his popularity low, Mr Netanyahu faces a test of leadership unlike any other. The decisions he makes in the coming days will shape the course of Israels future and reverberate far beyond its borders. Will he heed the calls for restraint and diplomacy, or will he succumb to the demands for vengeance and retribution? For Mr Netanyahu, the stakes could not be higher. Not only must he contend with the immediate threat posed by Hamas, but he must also navigate the treacherous waters of international diplomacy. The eyes of the world are upon him, and every move he makes will be scrutinised and dissected by friend and foe alike. In the end, there are no easy answers in the conflict between Israel and Hamas. The road to peace is long and fraught with peril, and there are no guarantees of success. But if there is one thing that history has taught us, it is that the path of violence and retribution only leads to more suffering and despair. Advertisement Amid the cacophony of conflicting voices, it is crucial to remember the human cost of this protracted conflict. Behind the headlines and political manoeuvring are real people whose lives hang in the balance. Their stories, their pain, and their hopes must not be lost in the fog of war. As we debate the merits of military action versus negotiation, let us never forget the human face of this crisis, and let compassion guide our decisions. In the end, it is not the strength of arms that will prevail, but the strength of the human spirit and the enduring power of hope. Amid persistent calls from the United States and other countries that Israel needs to make it easier for life-saving aid to reach Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli military closed two of the regions few operating border crossings in Rafah, a southern Gazan city, on 7 May. Responding to political pressure and alarm, Israel then reopened a different border crossing into Gaza, called Kerem Shalom, on May 8. These border crossings are crucial for aid workers and deliveries of food, fuel and other supplies, especially as commercial imports have stopped entering Gaza. The amount of aid going into Gaza each day has varied since Hamas 7 October 2023 attack on Israel, and Israels subsequent invasion of Gaza. But the overall number of aid trucks flowing through the Rafah and Kerem Shalom crossings is down 75 per cent from before the war, according to the United Nations. Aid workers say they are unable to meet Palestinians needs in Gaza, even with the aid air drops and boat shipments that the U.S. and other countries are doing. I spent 20 years as the president of Oxfam America, an international humanitarian organization, and have overseen humanitarian responses to some of the biggest crises of the past three decades, from the war in Kosovo to the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Advertisement I know from experience that the major aid organizations know how to run large, well-integrated operational responses to emergencies like Gaza. However, this is not happening, in part because Israel is not giving aid groups what they need to do so. After seven months of conflict, the international community has not set up the kind of well-coordinated response it would normally provide during a crisis. There are several reasons why enough aid deliveries are not quickly entering Gaza. First, Israel controls all the border crossings into Gaza and does intensive searches of trucks for security reasons, slowing down the deliveries. Even if aid does cross into Gaza, it does not mean the goods will reach people in need. There have also been reports of people dying and being injured when trying to collect aid packages that are air-dropped, as well as Hamas and other groups intercepting aid deliveries and either hoarding the items or selling them at high prices on the black market. In early May, northern Gaza passed a critical threshold and is now entering into a full blown famine, according to the United Nations. Bombings in Gaza have destroyed water and energy systems, leaving 95 per cent of the population without access to clean water. Theres a fairly standard playbook for how aid organizations respond to humanitarian crises like the one playing out in Gaza. In most cases, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, a designated U.N. office that focuses on humanitarian affairs and is typically called OCHA, takes the lead in defining what exactly different U.N. agencies should do to help people in a crisis. The World Health Organization, World Food Program and other U.N. agencies all have their own specialties be it health, housing, hunger, education, or other issues. The U.N. agencies coordinate their work, while OCHA also assigns an international nonprofit organization to help each U.N. agency share their workload with other international and local nonprofits. In most emergencies, there is clear coordination among international aid agencies from day one. This is a welloiled machine with decades of experience in meeting peoples immediate needs in some of the worlds most challenging circumstances. However, Gaza does not align with this typical system of aid work. In Gaza and the West Bank, the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East, or simply UNRWA, has been the main U.N. agency that has been focused only on providing a full suite of services to Palestinians since the late 1940s, when Israel was created and many Palestinians were pushed out into what are now the Palestinian territories of Gaza and the West Bank. Over the years, UNRWAs role has evolved from meeting Palestinians basic needs for food and water, for example, to also providing health care and education. While other U.N. agencies like the World Health Organization work in Gaza, UNRWA is by far the largest aid organization there and after Hamas is the second-largest employer in Gaza. Both the Israeli and Egyptian governments have long recognized UNRWA as the main coordinator for trans-border aid shipments, especially those for other U.N. agencies and nonprofits that work with it. While the UNRWA was accustomed to operating a large humanitarian operation in Gaza before the war, the agency is not equipped or staffed to help provide housing for the more than 1.7 million people in Gaza who have had to flee their homes. Additionally, Israel and the UNRWA have a long, complicated relationship that came to a peak in March 2024, when Israel said that it would stop working with the agency altogether because of allegations which have not been independently verified that UNRWA staff participated in the Oct. 7 attacks and held hostages captive. Israel no longer working with the UNRWA creates new logistical challenges that prevent a coherent, organized humanitarian response in Gaza. This may force other U.N. agencies to suddenly take over UNRWAs longestablished roles in Gaza. Israels intermittent closing of border crossings into Gaza and continued long delays for arriving aid trucks is another crucial factor that is hampering aid delivery. Aid experts also say that the number of aid trucks entering Gaza, which in May 2024 reached an average of 180 per day through the two main crossing points combined, is inadequate to address the hunger crisis. Achieving whats actually needed, they say, would require many more trucks, an influx of aid workers, training of Palestinian medical personnel to treat people suffering from malnutrition and gastrointestinal diseases, the restoration of medical facilities and, above all, an end to the military conflict. Meanwhile, international nonprofits and their staff are facing their own safety challenges. At least 224 aid workers, most of them Palestinians, have been killed in Gaza since October 2023. Indiscriminate bombings of residential neighborhoods have forced other aid workers to move their families multiple times to find safety and shelter, making it nearly impossible for them to do their jobs. I think there are certain things that the U.N. could do to help make it easier for aid deliveries to reach people in Gaza. First, OCHA could step in to better coordinate all the relevant U.N. agencies that may need to join or take on a larger role in the Gaza humanitarian crisis. I also think that the U.N. could insist that Israel help create safe and secure conditions for a well-coordinated and comprehensive U.N. response. This includes guarantees to open additional border crossings as needed and increase the number of daily aid deliveries especially food as well as ensuring more consistent access and supplies. Professional humanitarians are prepared to sacrifice ourselves to preserve and protect the dignity of all, both Israelis and Palestinians. History has taught that the only lesson from all wars is that no one really wins and millions suffer quietly well into the future. Humanitarians job is to find and create safe spaces and save as many lives as we can, with the experience and resources at our disposal. We carry no weapons and rely entirely on respect for international humanitarian law and other rules of war to ensure our safety as we carry out this dangerous mission. But in order to carry out this work, we need access and minimally safe and secure conditions that let us do our jobs. (The writer is Professor of global affairs and director of the McKenna Center for Human Development and Global Business, University of Notre Dame. This article was published on www.theconversation.com) In the last few days, India was hit by severe hit waves that even caused deaths in some parts of the country. Last year was the second warmest year India has ever seen. In fact, between the last Parliament election and the present one, the country has confronted a significant number of climate disasters including excessive rainfall, flooding, droughts, and heat waves. Only a few months back, the country watched the rescue operation of the workers trapped in the Uttarkashi tunnel that seemed even more thrilling than a thriller on screen. The question is: will these disasters matter in the 18th Parliament election? Has climate change become that important an issue as to have a visible impact on deciding who hoists the tricolour on 15 August this year? Unlike some previous years, most political parties have taken the issue of Climate Change seriously in their manifestos this year. The BJP manifesto promises to achieve energy independence by 2047 and meet the 500 GW target for renewable energy installed capacity by 2030. It has also declared that the new NDA Government would establish a Centre of Excellence for clean energy technologies and convert India into a global manufacturing hub for wind, solar and green hydrogen technologies. The BJP has further promised to strengthen a few already existing government programmes and initiatives, such as the Green Credit programme, water conservation or soil improvements, the carbon credit programme (that rewards people with encashable credits for reducing carbon emissions) and the green credit programme that rewards people with credits for any positive work done for the environment. The party has promised to launch programmes for improving the health of the rivers using the Namami Gange project as a model. The manifesto also declares that the new Government will establish a National Atmospheric Mission, called, Mausam for making India weather ready and climate smart. Interestingly, the rivalry between the Indian National Congress and the BJP is not reflected in their manifestos in regard to their respective stances on climate change. Instead, there are a lot of commonalities between the manifestos of the two arch rivals. They seem to be birds of a feather. Advertisement The manifesto of the Congress, in fact, has not entirely junked the Narendra Modi governments take on climate change. It has, for instance, adopted the goal of net zero by 2070 and mapped out the partys path towards that end saying, In order to facilitate the funding required for Green Transition and to achieve the goal of net zero by 2070, we will set up the Green Transition Fund of India together with state governments and the private sector. The Congress has also promised to form an independent Environment Protection and Climate Change Authority, to monitor and enforce environmental standards and the national and state level climate change action plans. The party has further declared that it would transform the National Action Plan on Climate Change, originally launched in 2008 and still in use, into a National Climate Resilience Development Mission that would integrate climate positive actions in all areas of development. The Left parties were the first in India to keep significant portions on climate change in their manifestos. Sticking to the tradition, this time also, the CPIM has declared that the party would evolve a National Adaptation Plan (NAP) through a participatory process involving all stakeholders especially states to tackle climate impacts such as on agriculture, extreme rainfall and related landslides and urban flooding, heat waves and urban heat islands, coastal erosion and sea-level calling. It has also promised to evolve sustainable and environment/climate-friendly development strategies for the fragile Himalayan region and eco-sensitive regions of Western Ghats and the North-East. The CPI-M, in fact, is the only national party that has explicitly mentioned the highly sensitive word coal in its manifesto promising to hand-over all the private allotted unexplored coal blocks to Coal India Ltd. It has further promised to reduce the dependence on imported coal and to initiate a judicial inquiry into the fraudulent coal import by private companies. Such a take is very much in tune with the partys age-old fight against the privatization of the natural resources of the country. While the manifestos of different political parties show their written commitment to the fight against climate change, one is bound to question how much of this rhetoric remains on paper and how much is heard in the ongoing election campaign? Not much, indeed. The election campaign across the country seems to be governed mainly by religious division and fanaticism, identity politics and some other issues, such as, the need for a stable government, for good governance and a leaders guarantee to provide free food grains to 80 crore people via PM Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana, houses to all through the PM Awas Yojana and health insurance for all via the PM Jan Arogya Yojana. Unemployment and corruption are also being highlighted, as are some local/regional issues in certain pockets of the country. None of the important leaders has yet been seen to address the issue of climate change in a big way in their speeches. Why are the parties which are so vocal on climate change in their manifestos practicing verbal reticence in the actual campaign? One reason for this silence is the insignificance of climate change as an issue to have an impact on the vote bank. The masses in India, in spite of suffering from scorching heat waves or becoming victims of natural calamities like floods and landslides, are yet to understand the deadening impact that climate change would have on livelihoods in future. The immediate need makes them blind to the crisis awaiting them in the near future. To them, earning bread today is much more important than contemplating on what they will have tomorrow. In fact, what concern can those people show for climate change who live on footpaths in the most unhygienic conditions in almost every city or town of India? How can we expect a footpath-dweller to use a jute bag in place of a cheap plastic one? Despite being a monstrous reality, in a country like India, climate change is still an issue that only a section of the middle class bothers about. Greed makes the rich trample over it and poverty makes the poor ignore it. This is why to the political parties, by and large, climate change is an issue that needs to be ideologically addressed on paper during the election but not to be made an issue of in the actual campaign. In fact, the absence of climate change as an important issue in the election campaign for the 2024 Parliament Election clearly suggests that the models to fight against climate change adopted by the first world Western countries will miserably fail in a country like ours. Like so many other issues, it is difficult for the Global South to come to an agreement with the Global North on the issue of the global war on climate change as well. The fight against climate change can never succeed in the Global South if it fails to fight poverty. (The writer is Professor, Department of English and Culture Studies, and Director, Centre for Australian Studies, The University of Burdwan, India) In the cacophony of Indias political battleground, where accusations fly like arrows in a chaotic melee, the latest skirmish revolves around two names that have become synonymous with power and wealth: Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani. As allegations of campaign funding swirl around these industrial giants, the nation watches with a mix of intrigue and scepticism, wondering where truth ends, and political mudslinging begins. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, locked in a bitter electoral duel, have exchanged verbal blows over the alleged ties between their respective parties and the tycoons. Mr Modis recent assertion at an election rally, suggesting that tempo-loads of black money was sent by the tycoons to the Congress, was met with a swift retort from Mr Gandhi, who challenged the Prime Minister to back his claims with evidence. Such titfor-tat exchanges are not uncommon in Indian politics. Mr Gandhis accusations against the ruling dispensation of crony capitalism have long been a staple of electoral rhetoric. However, what sets this spat apart is the timing and context. At the mid-point of the electoral battle, it signifies a shift from campaign promises to accusations. Mr Gandhi has been relentless in his attacks on corporate interests and inequality, aiming to strike a chord with voters concerned by the widening gap between the rich and the poor. But amid the political theatrics and finger-pointing, one cannot ignore the broader implications of such allegations on Indias democracy and economic landscape. The intertwining of politics and big business raises questions about the extent of corporate influence on policy making and governance. While economic growth and development are vital for the nations progress, they must not come at the expense of accountability and ethical conduct. Additionally, it ought to be clear from the growth graphs of the industrialists in question, and others of their ilk, that they have prospered regardless of the dispensation in power. It is not so much the policy-makers job to measure how rich someone has become as it is to ensure through weighted initiatives and fiscal measures that the fruits of growth reach every citizen. Any misstep in levelling allegations could have far-reaching legal consequences. Hence, it is imperative that allegations ~ by all sides ~ be backed by evidence and subjected to dispassionate inquiry before being aired in the public domain. As the dust settles on this latest skirmish in Indias political arena, one thing remains clear: the need for greater transparency and accountability in both business and politics. Regardless of ones political allegiance, the interests of the nation must always take precedence over personal agendas and partisan squabbles. Only then can India truly realise its potential as a vibrant democracy and economic powerhouse. Amid the political rhetoric, it is crucial for voters to remain vigilant and demand accountability from their elected representatives. Ultimately, it is the responsibility of every citizen to uphold the integrity of Indias democratic process. Advertisement Irans Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian has hailed the success in the expansion of cooperation between Tehran and Riyadh following their normalisation of bilateral ties. He made the remarks on Sunday at the third Iranian-Arab Dialogue Conference in Irans capital Tehran, which was attended by Iranian officials, foreign ambassadors, and guests from other states, Xinhua news agency reported. Amir-Abdollahian said that Iran was determined to promote understanding and solidarity among regional countries, referring to the normalisation of Iran-Saudi Arabia relations as an example of Irans focus on expanding ties with neighbours as well as Muslim and Arab states. Advertisement Our assessment (of the progress) of relations between Tehran and Riyadh over the past year indicates that success has been achieved in the area of the multilayered development of bilateral cooperation, said the Iranian Foreign Minister, stressing that there are numerous opportunities for the two countries to further enhance their cooperation. Noting that Iran has initiated a new phase of cooperation with the UAE, Qatar, Oman, and Kuwait, Amir-Abdollahian mentioned that Tehran and Bahrain are also considering advancing towards normalising bilateral relations. Iran and Saudi Arabia formally declared in April of last year the resumption of diplomatic relations with immediate effect. Saudi Arabia cut diplomatic ties with Iran in early 2016 in response to attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran. The attacks followed Saudi Arabias execution of a Shia cleric. remaining of Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading. One of the most popular and sumptuous meals, when it comes to Thai cuisine, remains Thai Green Curry. Indianised to suit the Indian palate, what we often find here is a thick and rich version of the curry. As per the chef at Bo Tai Qutub, Indians love a thick vegetable curry made in coconut milk that can be paired with rice. However, the original Thai curry has a thinner base and a natural flavour of the herbs infused intact. This is what they had in mind while curating their Thai menu which remains true to its origins. Talking about its signature salad, head chef Aryav Gahlaut says that the raw mango avocado salad is prepared using moon-shaped avocados tossed in chilly coriander sauce and served in arugula leaves, cherry tomatoes, raw mango pickle and garnished with dehydrated chilly coconut flakes. According to him, the menu had undergone several changes to suit the evolving tastes and demands, however, some signature dishes like the rice dumpling had remained in demand over the years. Thai and Japanese cuisines have also fairly been popular in India alongside the Korean frenzy. As Bo Tai Qutub, celebrates its sixth anniversary, they have reintroduced the original menu of Thai recipes that they had started with. Classics like preserved raw mango and avocado salad, alongside smelted rice flour dumplings and succulent lamb satay have been included as they remain popular among visitors. Subtle changes in the recipes and Thai cooking style is what makes the final outcome unique and true to its culture. Their avocado sushi has its own melt-in-the-mouth feel. (L) Caramalised Prawns, (R) Som Tam Salad| Bo-Tai As we celebrate our 6th anniversary, Bo-Tai stands tall as a symbol of innovation and excellence in the industry, says Dildeep Kalra, director at Massive Restaurants Pvt Ltd. Besides food, the restaurant that serves Thai, Asian and Japanese cuisines is also presenting its original cocktail menu- Full Moon Festival and the Bangkok Boulevard. Known for its authentic Thai cuisine with a modern twist, some of its other popular options include diced chicken sambal oelek paired with phad Thai noodles, followed by Belgian chocolate tart. The menu at the restaurant situated in Mehrauli is being presented from May 7 to June 7 at the restaurant. Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday advised investor to "buy before June 4", saying the market will shoot up after the elections. Talking to a TV news channel, Shah said one must not link the recent corrections in the stock market to the Lok Sabha elections. Pointing out that the market has undergone bigger corrections 16 times prior to this, the minister told NDTV India, "Stock market crashes should not be linked with elections, but even if such a rumour has been spread, I suggest you that buy (shares) before June 4. It will shoot up." "I can't anticipate stock market moves. But normally whenever a stable government is formed at Centre, the market does well. I see $400-plus seat wins for BJP, a stable Modi government will be in power," Shah added. The Nifty 50 has plunged more than 4 per cent from its all-time high on May 3. The BSE Sensex tanked over 700 points on Monday morning, dragging below the 72,000 level from the 75,000 mark on May 3. The shares of Tata Motors plummeted more than 9 per cent on Monday despite strong results recorded in the March quarter, wiping out the auto major's market valuation by Rs 29,946.88 crore. Opening at Rs 1,005 per share on the National Stock Exchange, the stock went as low as Rs 947.2 per share, making it the top laggard on both benchmark indices. Tata Motors saw a three-fold jump in consolidated net profit at Rs 17,528.59 crore in the quarter ending March 2024 after all its three auto businesses delivered a strong performance, according to a regulatory filing. The company had posted a consolidated net profit of Rs 5,496.04 crore in the same quarter of the previous fiscal, rising 222 per cent YoY growth in its consolidated net profit. Total consolidated revenue from operations stood at Rs 1,19,986.31 crore compared to Rs 1,05,932.35 crore in the year-ago period. However, many point out that though the figures are impressive, the revenue and Ebitda numbers lack the lustre, hinting at a weak start in the new financial year. The low Ebidta figures are attributed to weak CV performance despite the other two segments -- Domestic PV and JLR -- meeting the expectations. Chirag Jain, Senior Research Analyst at Emkay Global Financial Services told Live Mint that the Q4 results 2024 were muted with limited margin expansion across businesses despite higher volumes. "Company remains cautiously optimistic across businesses, with H1 expected to be weaker and the premium luxury segment seen as resilient amid overall emerging demand concerns," he added. Some brokerages like JPMorgan gave an 'overweight' rating to the stock and raised the target price to Rs 1,115, while Jefferies issued a "buy" call and increased the target price tp Rs 1,250 apiece. Motilal Oswal also maintained a "neutral" rating on Tata Motors while Nomura brought down the rating of the stock to 'neutral' from 'buy'. However, Morgan Stanley downgraded the stock to equal-weight from overweight. AAP's Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal on Monday alleged that a personal staff member of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal misbehaved with her. Though she approached the Civil Lines police station, no formal complaint has been filed yet. The Delhi Police received two calls from Maliwal around 10 am alleging that she was assaulted by Kejriwal's personal assistant Bibhav Kumar. A team from the Civil Lines police station reached the chief minister's residence after that. "In the first call to 100 [emergency response number] made at around 9.40 am, the caller did not mention her name. But in the second call at around 9.54 am...the caller told the police that her name is Swati Maliwal and Delhi chief ministers aide Bibhav Kumar was manhandling her," Hindustan Times quoted an unnamed police official. The MP later arrived at the police station but left without filing a police complaint. There was no immediate reaction from either the chief minister's residence or from Delhi's ruling Aam Aadmi Party. (To be updated) A 19-year-old Bismarck man who was arrested after allegedly beating his 77-year-old grandmother with a club is now facing formal charges and in custody on a $250,000 cash bond. Jordan Dennis Oster is charged with one count of attempted murder, as well as two counts of assault for allegedly striking a police officer and a nurse at a Bismarck hospital following his arrest. If convicted of the attempted murder charge, Oster could be sentenced to a maximum of 20 years in prison and fined $20,000. The assault charges each carry maximum sentences of five years in prison and $10,000 fines. Court records do not indicate an attorney representing Oster. Police responded to an address in the 1100 block of University Drive around 6 a.m. last Wednesday after a 911 call was placed by Marlene Oster, who told a dispatcher her grandson had beaten her and she was bloody, according to an affidavit. Responding officers report the woman met them at the front door with a large amount of blood on her head and face. The affidavit states she appeared disoriented. She was transported by ambulance to Sanford Hospital and received 14 staples to close wounds suffered to her head area, according to the affidavit. Doctors also reportedly discovered a fractured left hand, which authorities say resulted from her efforts to shield herself during the attack. A doctor who treated her reportedly told police he classified the incident as an attempted murder due to the severity of her injuries. Marlene Oster told police she had been struck 10-15 times with a club that resembled a wooden walking stick over a period of several minutes after she had discovered her grandson in his bedroom at roughly 5 a.m. with all the lights on, sitting on his bed reading the Bible, according to the affidavit. The document states she told police he was "speaking in tongues" and making statements such as "Get the devil out of the house." During the attack Jordan Oster allegedly told his grandmother that she was the devil and "you got to die." Officers who responded to the residence discovered Jordan Oster outside and detained him. The affidavit says he made statements including "Do you want to feel the power of God?" and "You'll feel the power of God finally." He was transported to St. Alexius hospital for observation, according to Bismarck police. There he was able to free a hand from soft restraints and strike a police officer and a nurse, causing minor injuries, the affidavit alleges. Following a period of time at the hospital, Jordan Oster was discharged and taken to the Burleigh Morton Detention Center, where he was in custody Monday. He could enter pleas at a preliminary hearing scheduled for June 10. A Special Court for Elected Representatives in Bengaluru on Monday granted bail to former Karnataka minister H.D. Revanna in an alleged case of abduction of a woman. The 66-year-old JD(S) MLA, who is the son of former prime minister H.D. Deve Gowda, was arrested by the Special Investigation Team on May 4. He was in police custody till May 8 when the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate remanded him in judicial custody till May 14. The court ordered Revanna to give a bail bond of Rs 5 lakh. The case was registered following a complaint by the woman's son, who alleged that his mother was sexually abused by Revanna's son Prajwal. The woman was allegedly abducted to prevent her from testifying against Prajwal, police sources said. Prajuwal, an MP from Hassan and the NDA candidate from the same constituency in the current elections, reportedly left the country on April 27, a day after the polling, and skipped the SIT summons to appear before it. The state government formed the SIT following a letter from the Karnataka State Commission for Women after explicit videos of Prajwal allegedly sexually abusing several women started doing the rounds on social media. Girls continued to outshine boys in CBSE board exams for classes 10 and 12 while pass percentage and the number of students scoring above 90 and 95 per cent witnessed marginal increases from last year. The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) board exam results for classes 10 and 12 were announced on Monday. The pass percentage in Class 10 stood at 93.60, a rise of 0.48 percentage points from last year. The pass percentage in the Class 12 exam saw a marginal increase of 0.65 percentage points from last year to 87.98. CBSE officials attributed the rise in pass percentage to an increase in the number of competency-based questions in the exams this year. A similar trend was witnessed in the number of students who scored above 90 per cent and 95 per cent marks. In Class 12, a total of 1.16 lakh students scored above 90 per cent and 24,068 above 95 per cent. Among the students who scored above 90 per cent, 262 are from the Children With Special Needs (CSWN) category. Forty-three students from the CSWN category have scored above 95 per cent. Last year, 1.12 lakh students scored above 90 per cent and 22,622 above 95 per cent. In Class 10, more than 47,000 students scored above 95 per cent and over 2.12 lakh above 90 per cent. Last year, 1.95 lakh students scored above 90 per cent and 44,297 above 95 per cent. The CBSE has announced that there will be no merit list to "avoid unhealthy competition". Officials said the board has also decided to scrap awarding first, second and third divisions based on students' scores. "According to the earlier decision of the board to avoid unhealthy competition among students, the CBSE has not published the merit list. However, the board will issue merit certificates to 0.1 per cent of students who have scored the highest marks in the various subjects," said CBSE Examination Controller Sanyam Bhardwaj. The CBSE also announced that it will conduct board exams for classes 10 and 12 for the 2024-25 academic session from February 15. The 2024 board exams for classes 10 and 12 also began on February 15. These concluded in 28 and 47 days, respectively. More than 1.32 lakh candidates have been placed in the supplementary category or compartment in Class 10 while the figure for Class 12 is more than 1.22 lakh. The Trivandrum region recorded the highest pass percentage in both classes 10 and 12 at 99.91 and 99.75, respectively. The Prayagraj region reported the lowest pass percentage of 78.25 in Class 12 while Guwahati region recorded the lowest for Class 10 at 77.94. In Class 12, schools under the Central Tibetan Schools Administration achieved the highest pass percentage at 99.23 while Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas recorded the highest pass percentage for Class 10 at 99.09. Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan congratulated the students on their results and advised them to make an effective plan for higher studies. "Heartily congratulate my young friends who have successfully cleared the CBSE Class X and Class XII examinations. While you cherish the success and enjoy the fruits of your labour, do also utilise this time to make an effective plan for higher studies. Wishing all a happy, healthy and bright future," Pradhan said in a series of posts on X. "To all my friends who have not met their expectations, don't lose heart. All of you have it in you to overcome any challenge. I am sure your moment of glory is not far away. Keep hustling," he added. The supplementary exams for classes 10 and 12 will be conducted from July 15. Based on National Education Policy - 2020 recommendations, the CBSE last year changed the nomenclature of the compartment examination to supplementary examination. Bhardwaj said Class 12 students will be allowed to improve their performance in one subject in the supplementary examination. Class 10 students will be allowed to improve their performance in two subjects. The official said, "Three categories of students will be eligible to appear in the supplementary examinations -- Class 10 students who were unable to pass two subjects and Class 12 students unable to pass one subject and were placed in compartment category." "....students who were declared pass by replacing sixth or seventh subject; and classes 10 and 12 students who were declared pass but wish to improve their performance in two and one subject respectively," Bhardwaj added. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi not to play with the self-respect and dignity of women of the state by making "false claims" about atrocities. Addressing an election meeting at Bongaon, the TMC supremo said Modi should keep in mind that the situation of West Bengal is not like BJP-ruled states. "Don't play with the self-respect of women, don't hatch conspiracy by playing with the dignity of our mothers and sisters," she said. The prime minister in his public meetings on Sunday alleged that the TMC was trying to hide its past misdeeds in Sandeshkhali where TMC leaders were accused of sexual assault and land grab. However, in a recently surfaced purported video, a BJP leader of Sandeshkhali was heard saying that the protests by women were "staged" at the behest of Leader of the Opposition, Suvendu Adhikari, who was behind the "whole conspiracy". In another such video, a section of the women, who had earlier filed rape complaints, claimed that they were made to sign a blank paper by the BJP leaders and coerced to go to the police station. PTI did not verify the authenticity of the videos. "Don't touch our women, this is not your Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh. Women in Bengal live with respect and dignity," Banerjee said. The TMC also accused the saffron party of using central forces to intimidate the state's ruling party workers in border districts like North 24 Parganas "so that they don't work against BJP." She said, "Modi ji said yesterday that CAA will be implemented in Bengal. We don't understand why someone has to apply for citizenship afresh or why someone has to produce 50-year-old documents to prove that his family migrated from Bangladesh. If someone wants to apply without any conditions, we have no objection." Banerjee wondered why union minister Shantanu Thakur did not apply for CAA. "If the BJP wants to enforce NRC and Uniform Civil Code here, I will oppose that tooth and nail till my last breath. You will have NRC on my dead body" she said. After the third phase of polling, it is clear that the INDIA bloc has already secured 315 seats and the BJP will not cross 200 mark, Banerjee asserted. "The INDIA bloc will come to power in this vote. Your Didi will back the INDIA bloc coming to power (at the Centre)," she responded as a section of the crowd shouted that she would be the next PM. "In Bengal, we are fighting BJP alone as Congress and the left are helping the BJP," she claimed. Labelling Narendra Modi as the most autocratic, vindictive PM she had ever seen, Banerjee said he wants to "keep all opposition leaders behind the bar." Banerjee also alleged that the BJP was conspiring to stop the state's financial assistance scheme for women, 'Lakshmir Bhandar'. "BJP is threatening to stop Lakshmir Bhandar after three months. If anyone dares such an attempt, you all know what to do," she said. The CM alleged two of her party leaders had been threatened by the BJP candidate in Asansol Lok Sabha seat for campaigning against him. "We have also come to know that envelopes filled with cash were being offered to people by BJP. While most have turned it down, we are keeping watch on those if anyone is keeping secret liaison," she said. Banerjee accused the BJP of trying to change the Constitution and destroy the pluralistic spirit of India. "The BJP is attempting to pit Muslims against SCs, STs and OBCs by building a false narrative that opposition parties including TMC are plotting to take away the quota for backward castes in favour of Muslims. Can such a thing ever happen? I ask BJP not to play with fire," she said. At least eight persons were killed and over 60 others injured after a huge iron hoarding collapsed in Mumbai as heavy rains and dust storms lashed the city on Monday afternoon, bringing road and rail traffic to a near-standstill. The 120 x 120 feet billboard fell on a petrol station at Cheddanagar Junction around 4.30 pm and several people are still feared trapped under the hoarding. The injured have been shifted to civic-run Rajawadi Hospital. Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde visited the spot late in the evening. "It was an illegal hoarding. The location where the incident occurred has four hoardings set up on the railway land and one of them has collapsed. The BMC had been objecting to (setting up) hoardings for one year," he said. Mumbai Municipal Corporation commissioner Bhushan Gagrani told the media the hoarding was illegal as the authorities had not given permission for erecting it. Meanwhile, flight operations at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport were suspended for an hour following the rains while the metro and sub-urban train services were also disrupted on several routes. As many as 15 flights were diverted to different airports and the runways operation resumed at 5.03 pm, the airport authorities said. The airport had only last week completed its pre-monsoon runway maintenance to ensure safe and smooth aircraft operations. In another rain-related incident, an under-construction metal parking tower collapsed on a road amid gusty winds in Wadala area, injuring three persons and damaging vehicles. In the western suburb of Jogeshwari, an autorickshaw driver was critically injured after a coconut tree fell on the vehicle at Meghwadi Naka. Rains coupled with gusty winds were witnessed in the suburbs of Dadar, Kurla, Mahim, Ghatkopar, Mulund and Vikhroli, while parts of south Mumbai saw drizzles. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) Mumbai has issued a "nowcast warning", forecasting a thunderstorm accompanied by lightning and moderate to intense spells of rain for Thane, Palghar and Mumbai. "Thunderstorm accompanied with lightning and light to moderate spells of rain with gusty winds reaching 40-50 kmph is very likely to occur at isolated places in Mumbai in the next 3-4 hours," it said. The rainfall has brought some relief from the stifling heat, but traffic congestion and power outages have affected the normal life in several parts of the city. BJP's Hyderabad Lok Sabha candidate K. Madhavi Latha sparked a row on Monday after a video clip in which she was seen asking Muslim women to raise their burkhas to identify themselves while checking their voter ids went viral. #WATCH | Telangana: BJP candidate from Hyderabad Lok Sabha constituency, Madhavi Latha visits a polling booth in the constituency. Voting for the fourth phase of #LokSabhaElections2024 is underway. pic.twitter.com/BlsQXRn80C ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024 Madhavi Latha, who is contesting against AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi, is likely to face a police case over her action. According to an NDTV report, the police are set to register an FIR against her even as she claimed that she has the right to check the ID cards. "I am a candidate. As per law, candidate has the right to check the ID cards without the facemasks. I am not a man, I am a woman and with a lot of humbleness, I have only requested them - can I please see and verify with the ID cards. If somebody wants to make a big issue out of it, that means they are scared..." news agency ANI quoted her as saying. She also alleged discrepancies in the voter's list and accused the police of being "very dull...not active." She claimed that the police were not checking the voters. "They are not checking anything. Senior citizen voters are coming here, but their names have been deleted from the list," Madhavi Latha said. Earlier in the day, the BJP candidate asked people to come out in large numbers and vote as their decision will take "the whole nation forward." "I want to appeal to my voter brother and sisters, that every vote you cast, will not just take Hyderabad and Telangana, but the whole nation forward. Your vote will give the much-needed change in Hyderabad and Telangana," she had said. A long-term agreement with Iran to manage the Chabahar port will bring in more investments in the port and open up new trade connections to India in the region, S. Jaishankar, the Minister for External Affairs said on Monday. India is set to sign an agreement with Iran to manage the Chabahar port for the next ten years and shipping minister Sarbananda Sonowal is expected to travel to Iran later on Monday. The port will offer key connectivity for India with central Asian countries and the wider Eurasian region. "We believe as and when a long-term arrangement is concluded, it will clear the pathway for bigger investments to be made in the port. It will see more connectivity linkages coming out of that port. We believe connectivity is a big issue in that part. International north-south transport corridor we are doing with Iran, Russia andChabahar will connect us to that, also to central Asia," Jaishankar told reporters in an interaction at the National Stock Exchange (NSE)in Mumbai. Thus far, the port was being run on ad-hoc arrangements, not because of any problem on the Indian side, but the issue was around who the combination of partners would be in Iran, he said. Jaishankar further said that the government was very serious about pushing a free trade agreement with the European Union. "Going into the next term, if all goes well with us, it will definitely be one of our important trade priorities," he said. Jaishankar said the government is pushing for trade settlement as much as possible in the Indian rupee. While he didnt share the exact number of countries India has this understanding with, it is already in double digits, Jaishankar added. "There is today in many countries an acute shortage of foreign currency. They want to trade with us. They have the goods, they are willing to buy goods from us; currency has become an obstacle to implementing their trade design. So, we see today as a way of boosting our exports and contributing to the external economy, that we need to give countries more options and if we can do the settlements in each other's currency or our currency, we see that as something very sensible," he noted. He also stressed on the government's focus on Make in India. "We will not use environmental arguments to kill manufacturing, the way previous government used to do. We have confidence in the business people of India, in the workers of India, in the technologies of India," he said. He cited the example of defence sector, stating India had predominantly been a net importer. With Make in India, Indian industry had come up and many had shown they can compete with the best in the world, he added. "Today, I think in the current calendar year, already people are talking of deals done of Rs 25,000 crore, likely to go higher," said Jaishankar. Equity markets have turned very volatile over the last few sessions amid concerns if the Narendra Modi-led government will get a clear majority in the Lok Sabha elections. Jaishankar expressed confidence that the will return to power with a good mandate. "To me, it's very clear where this election is going. The exact number of people may have a debate. But, I am sure as round after round takes place, markets would be less and less volatile because the market will get a sense of where those numbers will end up and I am very confident those numbers will end up very good for us," said Jaishankar, echoing BJP's confidence of crossing 400 seats. A voter turnout of over 64 per cent was recorded on Monday in the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections covering 96 constituencies spread over 10 states and Union Territories, with scattered incidents of violence reported in West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh. West Bengal, where polling was held in eight constituencies, again recorded an impressive turnout at 76.56 per cent, the highest among states/UTs in this phase. Srinagar constituency in Jammu and Kashmir witnessed 37.93 per cent voting in the first Lok Sabha election in the Valley since the scrapping of Article 370, with the EC stating that it was the "highest turnout in decades". According to the EC's voter turnout app at 10 pm, the overall voting in this phase was 64.05 per cent. However, it said that this was an "approximate" trend as data from polling stations was still being collated. A large number of voters were in the queue at polling stations even after the fixed time of polling ended at 6 pm, the Election Commission said in a statement at 8 pm. Among other states, Andhra Pradesh (25 seats) recorded 68.20 per cent polling, Bihar (five seats) 56.75 per cent, Jharkhand (four seats) 64.59 per cent, Maharashtra (11 seats) 57.58 per cent, Odisha (four seats) 64.81 per cent, Telangana (17 seats) 62.28 per cent and Uttar Pradesh (13) 58.05 per cent. A provisional voter turnout of 71.72 per cent was recorded in Madhya Pradesh (eight seats). The overall voter turnout in the first three phases of the Lok Sabha elections was 66.14 per cent, 66.71 per cent and 65.68 per cent, respectively. With the conclusion of Phase 4, polling for general elections has crossed the halfway mark as it has been completed in 23 states/UTs and 379 Lok Sabha constituencies out of 543. Also, assembly elections were held in Andhra Pradesh on Monday, apart from polling in 28 assembly seats in Odisha. BJP candidate in Telangana's Hyderabad Lok Sabha seat K Madhavi Latha, who is contesting against AIMIM's Asaduddin Owaisi, was booked by election authorities after a video clip surfaced online in which she was purportedly seen asking burqa-clad women voters to show their faces to compare with the photo identity cards. In Andhra Pradesh, the TDP and YSRCP accused each other of indulging in violence, especially in Palnadu, Kadapa and Annamayya districts. YSRCP also wrote to the EC, alleging poll code violations by rival TDP in several assembly segments, including Vemuru, Darsi, Icchapuram, Kuppam, Macherla, Markapuram, Palakonda and Pedakurapaudu. Polling for 175 Assembly seats and 25 Lok Sabha constituencies in the coastal state occurred simultaneously on Monday. The YSRCP alleged that TDP leaders captured five polling booths in the Vemuru constituency. YSRCP leader and Tenali MLA A Shiva Kumar allegedly manhandled a voter in Tenali following an argument, police said, adding the voter also retaliated. At Dalavaipalli village in Railway Kodur constituency, an EVM was destroyed while cars belonging to the ruling party and TDP were damaged, a police official said. A TDP agent was attacked at Nakkaladinne village in Myduruku constituency, leading to his hospitalisation. The YSRCP alleged that party agent Suresh Reddy was stabbed at Mandi Krishnapuram village in Chittoor's Gudipala mandal. It also alleged that TDP supporters attacked party member B Anji Reddy at Aravallipadu in the Darsi constituency. TDP MLC Mohammed Ahmed Shariff wrote to Chief Electoral Officer Mukesh Kumar Meena, complaining about alleged attacks by YSRCP cadres on TDP supporters at Rentala village in Rentichintala mandal of Palnadu district. TDP activists allegedly damaged the vehicle of senior YSRCP leader Nandigam Suresh, the YSRCP said in a statement. It further alleged that TDP supporters attacked party member B Anji Reddy at Aravallipadu in the Darsi constituency, resulting in a head injury. Meanwhile, TDP supremo Chandrababu Naidu alleged that there was "no peaceful atmosphere in the state for people to exercise their franchise". "I severely condemn the violence reported since morning. YSRCP is implementing its plots in a concerted manner. Local police officials failed in averting violence in Macherla constituency," he said in a post on 'X'. Sporadic incidents of violence marred the fourth phase of Lok Sabha polls in the eight parliamentary constituencies of West Bengal as TMC and BJP workers clashed in various areas under Birbhum and Bardhaman-Durgapur Lok Sabha seats. Around 1,700 complaints of EVM malfunction and obstruction of agents entering booths were recorded till 1 pm, the EC said, adding the TMC, Congress, and BJP filed hundreds of complaints related to poll violence, voter intimidation, and assaults on agents. Two security personnel of the CISF deployed to protect West Bengal BJP leader Dilip Ghosh were injured in a stone-pelting incident at Bardhaman. "An incident of stone-pelting on CISF SSG protectee and attack on his vehicle by some miscreants occurred at Bardhaman (WB) in which two CISF personnel sustained head injuries. The protectee was safely evacuated without the use of force," the central paramilitary force said in a post on 'X'. Ghosh (59) is a 'Y' category protectee of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) VIP security wing called the Special Security Group (SSG). "Police are just mute spectators. The TMC has let loose a reign of terror. Since morning, TMC goons have beaten up our polling agents and are not allowing the elections to be free and fair," Ghosh told reporters. In Nanoor under Birbhum Lok Sabha seat, BJP workers clashed with TMC activists after saffron party polling agents were allegedly stopped from entering booths. Tension also prevailed in the Chapra area of Krishnanagar constituency as BJP workers were allegedly beaten by TMC activists. BJP candidate Amrita Roy accompanied two injured persons to Chapra police station. The TMC has denied the allegations. In Uttar Pradesh, there were instances of poll boycotts with people in some villages of Shahjahanpur keeping away from the process to protest against the lack of roads and development. Akbarpur parliamentary constituency recorded 57.58 per cent polling, Bahraich 57.47 per cent, Dhaurahra 64.12 per cent, Etawah 56.19 per cent, Farrukhabad 58.90 per cent, Hardoi 57.45 per cent, Kannauj 60.89 per cent, Kanpur 52.90 per cent, Kheri 64.64 per cent, Misrikh 55.78 per cent, Shahjahanpur 53.14 per cent, Sitapur 62.22 per cent and Unnao 55.33 per cent, according to EC data. The keenly watched seats in this phase in the state include Kannauj, from where the Samajwadi Party (SP) has fielded its president Akhilesh Yadav, and Kheri, from where Union minister Ajay Mishra Teni, whose son is an accused in the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence case, is eyeing a hat-trick. EVM glitches were also reported in several places in Odisha. An official said 65 Ballot Units, 83 Control Units and 110 VVPATs have been replaced so far and most of the replacements were done during the mock poll exercise before starting of real voting at 7 am. The Election Commission suspended two polling officials in Odisha for dereliction of duty, the chief electoral officer said. In Jharkhand, security forces thwarted an attempt by Maoists to obstruct voter access to polling booths by felling a tree and blocking a road leading to remote Sonapi and Morangponga areas of West Singhbhum district. Voting was peaceful in Srinagar where three generations of the Abdullah family cast their vote in the Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency. "Today, people came out in large numbers to cast their votes in Srinagar Parliamentary Constituency and reaffirmed their faith in democracy and the Constitution. I commend the hard work by all the stakeholders for free, fair, peaceful and smooth conduct of the polling," Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor (LG) Manoj Sinha said. "I truly appreciate the enthusiasm of electors and hopeful (hope) to see historic turnout in the next two phases (in Baramulla and Anantnag parliamentary constituencies on May 20 and 25, respectively). I appeal to all to vote without fear and vote with responsibility and pride," he said. Polling for the next three phases in the country will be held on May 20, May 25 and June 1. The counting of votes is on June 4. In an earlier article I have mentioned that India's real and massive problems cannot be solved within the present political and constitutional system and by the electoral process but by a people's revolution. I have also said historical experience shows that before every actual revolution there is always a long period of ideological revolution. In this period of ideological revolution there is a clash of ideas, practices and values the old conservative and conventional ones, e.g. feudal thinking and practices clashing with the newly emerging ones. What was regarded good earlier by the old feudal order (e.g. caste system and religion) is often regarded backward, outdated and even evil by the enlightened sections of society. As Shakespeare said in Hamlet, Fair is foul, and foul is fair; good has become bad, and bad has become good. Everything becomes topsy-turvy, and there is tremendous social churning. We are now passing through the period of ideological revolution, and the actual revolution is still far off. It is useful therefore to consider some features of the Indian ideological revolution: 1. The primary weapons used in this period will not be guns, bombs or swords, but ideas. The Indian people, the vast majority of whom are mentally backward and are steeped in casteism and communalism, have to be patiently educated by the small, enlightened section of society, and their backward feudal mindsets changed gradually, replacing them with modern, scientific mindsets. This will not be an easy task, and will in fact be met for a long time with fierce resistance and even violence by the orthodox, backward, feudal-minded people (who are in the vast majority and do not want to change their feudal reactionary ideas and practices). Nevertheless, the job has to be done, and there are no doubt many patriotic individuals among the enlightened section of society who will come forward and do it. Intellectuals are the eyes of society, and without them society is blind. Intellectuals have to give leadership to the people, but unfortunately most so called 'intellectuals' in India are in fact pseudo-intellectuals. They have superficial, half-baked, bookish knowledge, but with huge egos and arrogance, and strut around the social scene like peacocks, displaying their shallow knowledge. It is genuine intellectuals India needs, not these fakes. 2. After a certain period has expired in the ideological struggle, the need will be felt by the patriotic section for organising a political party of those who genuinely want India to come out of poverty, unemployment, malnutrition, and lack of healthcare and good education. As is well known, the present Indian politicians, of all parties, only seek power and pelf, and have no genuine love for the country or the people's welfare, and they polarise society on caste and communal lines, to get votes. Individual effort, which though no doubt was very valuable at the early stage of the ideological struggle, will later be found insufficient to take the struggle further forward. How an enlightened political organisation will be created, and how much time that will take, is impossible to predict. One cannot be rigid about historical forms. But its leaders, whoever emerge as such, must have the following qualities: a) they must have modern, secular, scientific minds b) they must be enthused with patriotism and selflessness, which is essential, for they, too, apart from the people they lead, will have to make great sacrifices c) they must lead frugal personal lives, for how can they call upon the people to make great sacrifices (as they have to if the struggle is to succeed) when they themselves live cozy, comfortable lives? 3. Still later, towards the end of this period of pure ideological struggle, and just before the beginning of the actual revolution, a section of the armed forces of the country will come over to the side of the people (who are being led by the party of patriots), as it happened at the time of the English, French, Russian and Chinese Revolutions. Justice Markandey Katju retired from the Supreme Court in 2011. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of THE WEEK. Tamil Nadu Governor R.N. Ravi on Monday said he is unaware of any criminal case against Bharatiya Janata Party State President K. Annamalai or has given any sanction to prosecute him. In a release, the Tamil Nadu Raj Bhavan clarified it has been receiving anxious calls from the public regarding a criminal case against Annamalai. Raj Bhavan, Tamil Nadu has been receiving anxious enquiries from the public for the last two days regarding news circulating in media that the Governor of Tamil Nadu has accorded sanction to prosecute K. Annamalai, BJP State President in a criminal case. It added, It is hereby informed that Raj Bhavan, Tamil Nadu is not aware of the criminal case against Annamalai and has not issued any sanction order. Annamalai recently tweeted, sharing copies of a government order that the DMK government has accorded sanction to prosecute him for recalling an incident from 1956. In the last three years, the draconian DMK government has filed plenty of cases against me and our BJP Karyakarthas for speaking the truth and has recently issued a sanction to prosecute me yet again, the BJP leader tweeted. However, Annamalai dared the government to book cases against him, but, it wouldnt stop them from exposing the wrongdoings of the government. -with inputs from agencies. Voting began in Kashmir's Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency, the first major polls to be held since the abrogation of Article 370, on Monday. The constituency, with 24 candidates in the fray, saw people lining up outside polling stations to exercise their franchise in some areas of the constituency. The article was revoked in 2019, leading to the bifurcation of the state into the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. The Srinagar seat will see a two-pronged fight with the National Conference (NC) candidate Aga Ruhullah Mehdi, an influential Shia leader and former minister, taking on PDP's Waheed Para. Para is the party's youth wing president. The Apni Party has fielded Mohammad Ashraf Mir and the DPAP has fielded Amir Ahmad Bhat. There are 20 others, including two women, in the fray. The seat has been considered the stronghold of NC for decades and the party has been winning 10 out of 13 elections held for the seat so far. The other parties to win the seat include Congress's Ghulam Mohammad Mir Magami (1996) and PDP's Tariq Hameed Karra (2014). The BJP had decided to stay away from the constituency with Home Minister Amit Shah saying the lotus bloom in Kashmir can wait and the party was more interested in winning the hearts. The NC ridiculed his statement, saying the party decided against contesting because it knew it would receive intense hate. There are 17.48 lakh voters in the constituency that comprises Srinagar, Ganderbal and Pulwama districts and parts of Budgam and Shopian districts. Authorities have set up 2,135 polling stations across the five districts. Special polling stations have been established for migrant voters of the Kashmir Division of the Union Territory -- 21 in Jammu, four in Delhi and one in Udhampur district. Voting is scheduled to end at 6 pm. The election is widely anticipated considering how the constituency was redrawn following the delimitation exercise in Jammu and Kashmir in 2022. The seat also covers regions which witnessed low polling percentages due to boycott calls given by the separatists. Last elections, the voting percentage was just 14.4. However, this could improve as there were no boycott calls this time. Bismarck residents will have the opportunity to comment on proposed amendments to the city's rules for home-based businesses during a meeting Wednesday. The public meeting is at 5 p.m. in the Tom Baker Room of the City-County Building in downtown Bismarck. People can weigh in to the Planning and Zoning Commission. No formal actions will be taken on the amendments until a later date. "We know anytime we are making changes like this, we need to hear from anyone that is impacted by this. We're trying to take our time with this update," Bismarck Community Development Department Planning Manager Daniel Nairn said. The proposed changes come out of the Community Development Department. Its proposal is informed by responses to a survey conducted last fall that saw 245 responses. Nairn said the department began reviewing the home occupation ordinance following a comprehensive plan published in 2022. That report specified the need to update regulations regarding in-home businesses. The City Commission directed the department to make those changes a priority. The current regulations date to 1953, though the ordinance has seen some minor updates over the years. "Having an ordinance in place today that is outdated and does not fit the current situation affects the enforcement, Nairn said. "Under the current ordinance, a permit is required every two years to operate any home occupation. This is not widely known and compliance is low, so we are proposing to eliminate this requirement." Nairn said the city has heard concerns from residents on both sides of the issue. Residents looking to start a business in their home are concerned that ordinance rules might prevent them from doing so or limit future business expansion. Nairn believes these responses are most likely concerns about both the current ordinance and the proposed update. On the other side, some neighbors are concerned with the impacts of heavy commercial activity in residential neighborhoods. Nairn said these concerns are less about the actual ordinance and more about specific properties that might be impacting them. "Really the intent of this ordinance is to create a balance between those two, Nairn said. The amendment aims to create balance by moving away from current language specifying business types, instead focusing on the impacts the business might have in the neighborhood. This is being done by splitting up regulations into "minor" and "major" business types. Language in the ordinance lays out criteria for both, covering limits for number of employees, area of building used for the occupation, visual appearance of buildings, business hours and outdoor storage, among other areas. "This is the practice in Fargo and Rapid City (South Dakota), and weve learned from their experiences," Nairn said. "Its also recommended in new guidance issued by the American Planning Association." Following Wednesday's meeting, the Planning and Zoning Commission will mull over all public feedback ahead of a formal public meeting to make recommendations regarding home occupation, most likely during its regular meeting on June 26. The proposed ordinance update will then go to City Commission for final action as soon as July barring any delays. A draft of the ordinance is available in the Agenda Center on the city's website at www.bismarcknd.gov/agendacenter. Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Takhat Sri Harimandir Ji Patna Sahib in Patna on Monday. The prime minister offered prayers at the gurudwara and prepared and served langar to other devotees. #WATCH | PM Narendra Modi visits and offers prayers at Gurudwara Patna Sahib in Patna, Bihar pic.twitter.com/GolksgdCBc ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024 Takhat Sri Patna Sahib also known as Takhat Sri Harimandir Ji, Patna Sahib, is one of the five takhats of the Sikhs, located in the state capital. The construction of the takhat was commissioned by Maharaja Ranjit Singh in the 18th century to mark the birthplace of Guru Gobind Singh. Elaborate security arrangements had been put in place in view of the PM's visit. #WATCH | PM Narendra Modi offers prayers at Gurudwara Patna Sahib in Patna, Bihar PM Modi also served langar here. pic.twitter.com/3qdQf2Kken ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024 Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh Guru, was born in Patna, in 1666. He also spent his early years here before moving to Anandpur Sahib. The PM visited Sri Harimandir Ji Patna Sahib a day after holding a roadshow in the state capital. Modi became the first prime minister to have held a roadshow anywhere in Bihar. The prime minister performed 'seva' and served langar at Gurudwara Patna Sahib. The PM is scheduled to address election rallies in favour of NDA nominees in Hajipur, Muzaffarpur and Saran on Monday. #WATCH | PM Narendra Modi serves langar at Gurudwara Patna Sahib in Patna, Bihar pic.twitter.com/qhj5RuHTHh ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024 Modis visit amidst fourth phase of polling on Monday. The prime minister urged citizens to vote on Monday. In todays 4th phase of the Lok Sabha elections, 96 seats across 10 States and UTs are going to the polls. I am sure people in these constituencies will vote in large numbers and the young voters as well as women voters will power this surge in voting. Come, lets all do our duty and strengthen our democracy! he tweeted. -with inputs from agencies. The Maldives military still does not have pilots capable of operating three aircraft donated by India, Defence Minister Ghassan Maumoon has acknowledged, days after 76 Indian defence personnel left the island nation at the instance of Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu. Ghassan made the remarks at a press conference held at the President's Office here on Saturday to brief the media about the withdrawal of Indian soldiers stationed in the Maldives to operate two helicopters and a Dornier aircraft and their replacement with civilians from India. Responding to a question from a journalist, Ghassan said there were no Maldivian soldiers with the Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) who can operate the three aircraft donated by the Indian military despite some soldiers who began training to fly them under agreements formed by previous governments. "As it was a training that required passing various stages, our soldiers had not reached completion due to various reasons. Therefore, there aren't any people in our force at the moment who are licensed or fully operational to fly the two helicopters and Dornier aircraft," Ghassan was quoted as saying by Adhadhu.com news portal. The relations between the two countries came under severe strain after Muizzu, a pro-China leader, insisted on the withdrawal of all Indian military personnel operating the three aviation platforms in the island nation by May 10. India has already withdrawn 76 military personnel. However, the Maldives government has no intention of removing the doctors from India at Senahiya military hospital, a Maldivian media report said. Contrary to Ghassan's remarks, when the current administration's senior officials were in the opposition during the past five years, they criticised the previous government and claimed that there were capable pilots in the MNDF, the Adhadhu.com report noted. Training Maldivians was the main reason for the arrival of Indian soldiers with the helicopters donated during former presidents Mohamed Nasheed and Abdulla Yameen's governments and the Dornier aircraft brought during former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih's government, it said. Despite the failure to complete the training to date, Foreign Minister Zameer said Saturday that the agreement to replace the Indian soldiers with civilians also included provisions for training local pilots. Maldives foreign minister Moosa Zameer on Monday praised the Indian government for extending the budget support of $50 million to the island nation. The support gains significance as the bilateral relations between India-Maldives remain tense since pro-China leader Mohammed Muizzu assumed the president's office. "I thank EAM @DrSJaishankar and the Government of #India for extending vital budgetary support to the Maldives with the rollover of USD 50 million Treasury Bill. This is a true gesture of goodwill which signifies the longstanding friendship between #Maldives and #India," Zameer wrote on X. The foreign minister was on a visit to India from May 8 to 10. India's budgetary support was in the form of a rollover of a $50 million Treasury Bill, for an additional year, through the State Bank of India, Male. India's gesture was highly appreciated by the Maldives government. "Large number of infrastructural developmental projects and High Impact Community Developmental projects are underway with the assistance from the Government of India, which consists of a notable part as grant assistance," said the Muizzu government in a statement. "The Government of Maldives looks forward to continuing this collaborative partnership for the mutual benefit and prosperity of their people," it added. India-Maldives relations have been tense since Muizzu became the president in November. Maldives had asked India to withdraw some 89 Indian military personnel from the country by May 10. Though the Indian military personnel was withdrawed, Maldives government is not planning to leave Indian doctors working in the country. Zameer on Saturday had said that the 76 Indian military personnel were replaced by civilian employees of the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited which manufactured the two helicopters gifted by India, thus also ending the suspense over the exact number of those repatriated at the insistence of Male. (With PTI inputs) Russia continued its advancement on Ukraine's northern Kharkiv region on Monday, achieving "partial success". Gunfires have been reported in industrial areas on the outskirts of the Ukrainian town of Vovchansk. Ukraine's general staff in a statement on social media admitted that "at the moment, the enemy has tactical success." The statement also said, "Our defenders conduct defensive actions (to) inflict damage on the enemy." Kyiv on Monday also announced the replacement of the commander overseeing the north-eastern Kharkiv front. Additional reserves were also moved to Kharkiv amid Russia's advancement. Russian troops were advancing near Lyptsi, another small town closer to Kharkiv. Kharkivs governor, Oleh Syniehubov, told local TV: The enemy is trying to deliberately stretch it [the frontline], attacking in small groups, but in new directions, so to speak. The Ukrainian military on Monday said that it had stopped Russian forces from moving further near the village of Lukyantsi to the north in the Kharkiv region where they had a "partial success". Taking advantage of limited Ukrainian air defences to bomb in and around the city, Russia has been gradually intensifying its military operations around Kharkiv. Due to delays in Western funding, Ukraine is experiencing chronic shortages of manpower and weapons. Ukrainian troops are exhausted as the war nears its 28th month. Reportedly, Russian forces are also trying to capture the strategically key eastern city of Chasiv Yar. Once the city is captured, it gives access to other Ukrainian-controlled cities in the Donetsk region: Kramatorsk, Sloviansk, Druzhkivka and Kostiantynivka. According to Russian authorities, at least 13 people had been killed and 20 injured when a section of an apartment block collapsed in Belgorod. Russian President Vladimir Putin has replaced Sergei Shoigu as the defence minister with Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov. Shoigu, a long-standing ally of Putin, had played a key role in the Ukraine war. The move comes as the entire Russian Cabinet quit last week after Putin's reinauguration as the President, a mandatory process under Russian law. While most members of his Cabinet are expected to keep their jobs, Shoigu found himself out. He has since been appointed as secretary of Russia's Security Council. Though the reasons for replacing Shoigu aren't clear yet, Russia faced several setbacks during the initial phase of the war, with Shoigu as the defence minister. A key figure, who is said to have influenced Putin's decision to send troops to Ukraine, Shoigu's miscalculation cost Russia dearly after Ukraine put up a considerable defence against the Kremlin's troops, contrary to the latter's expectations. Shoigu was also in the eye of the storm after the deceased Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin accused him of not supplying the Wagner group with ammunition for the Bakhmut battle. Prigozhin called Shoigu a "dirtbag" and "elderly clown" in audio messages that went viral. Shoigu's removal also comes at a time when 13 people died in apparent Ukrainian shelling in the Russian city of Belgorod. The move does not come as a surprise for all these reasons. "Last month, a deputy defence minister - Timur Ivanov - was accused of taking bribes and taken into custody in a rare move against such a senior official. Ivanov was seen as an ally of Shoigu and worked with him for many years," according to BBC. Shoigu will now serve as the secretary of Russia's Security Council, replacing Nikolai Patrushev, who has long been the country's top security official. However, Shoigu's position will still carry some authority, Mark Galeotti, head of the Mayak Intelligence consultancy told AP. "High-level security materials intended for the president's eyes will still pass through the Security Council Secretariat, even with changes at the top. You can't just institutionally turn around a bureaucracy and how it works overnight," he said. Tatiana Stanovaya, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, too opined that Shoigu's new appointment to Russia's Security Council showed that the Russian leader viewed the institution as a reservoir for his "'former' key figures people who he can't in any way let go, but doesn't have a place for. New Delhi, May 12 (PTI) Boosting India's domestic manufacturing and the overall economy will provide much more resources in its foreign policy toolkit to expand the country's influence globally and compete with China on the economic front, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said. In an exclusive interview to PTI, Jaishankar said India under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been focusing on enhancing domestic manufacturing in the last 10 years as there was a neglect of the sector before 2014 that created many problems for the country. He also suggested that lack of focus in the past on the manufacturing sector is linked to the upward trajectory in India-China trade notwithstanding New Delhi's approach that normalisation of ties with Beijing is dependent on resolution of the eastern Ladakh border row. "We need to be confident. I am clear that international politics, international relations are competitive. I have a neighbour like China. I have to learn to compete," he said. "By my complaining, China is not going to stop doing things. If I do not build up my strength at home, our foreign policy will be as good as our domestic policy," Jaishankar said. "It is a function of our domestic policy that if I can actually build up my economy, if I can build up my manufacturing, if I can create the kind of capabilities which today I am trying to do, I think you are going to find the foreign policy has much more resources and much more tool in its toolkit to actually influence the world," he added. His response came to a query on why India's bilateral trade volume with China is going up when New Delhi has been insisting that the ties cannot be normal if the border situation is abnormal. Jaishankar suggested that such a scenario has arisen as adequate attention to the manufacturing sector was not given before 2014 in the country. The Indian and Chinese militaries have been locked in a standoff in eastern Ladakh since May 2020 and a full resolution of the border row has not yet been achieved though the two sides have disengaged from a number of friction points. "I think it is common sense that If there is no peace and tranquility in the border, how can you have a normal relationship," Jaishankar said. "After all if somebody is at your front door in an unfriendly manner, you are not going to go out there and act as though everything is normal. That to me is a straightforward proposition," he said. India has been consistently maintaining that peace and tranquillity along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) were key for normalisation of overall ties. However, trade between the two countries is steadily expanding, especially with rising imports from China. Since the beginning of the last decade, bilateral trade between India and China recorded significant growth. From 2015 to 2022, India-China bilateral trade grew by 90.14 per cent, an average yearly growth of 12.87 per cent. In 2022, the overall trade with China increased by 8.47 per cent year on year to reach USD 136.26 billion, crossing the USD 100 billion mark for the second time in a row, according to official data. However, the trade deficit came to USD 101.28 billion as India's imports from China witnessed a major increase. In the last few years, the government has been making efforts to expand manufacturing in a number of critical areas as part of an aim to de-risking from China. There has also been a greater focus on India acquiring critical technologies to minimise import dependency. "When you talk about trade, what has happened is in many ways, the fact that we actually neglected manufacturing in this country. That in many ways, we did not give the kind of support to our manufacturers, especially our small and medium enterprises," Jaishankar said. The external affairs minister listed various initiatives rolled out by the Modi government including the 'Make in India' and 'Production Linked Incentive' (PLI) schemes to enhance domestic manufacturing "In fact when Make in India was started, you have people who even laughed at it. Even now there are people like Rahul Gandhi who believe that we are incapable of manufacturing in this country and there are some economists who also have that kind of view," he said. "So, the fact that our manufacturing fell behind, I think, has created many of the problems that we are experiencing today. You cannot get an immediate fix, but what you can do, which we have been trying to do is actually to boost manufacturing," he said. Jaishankar said the government is rapidly modernising infrastructure and making it as efficient as possible as "without efficient infrastructure, you are not going to get competitive manufacturing." "You know 10 years ago, how the environment was used as an argument to make business very difficult in this country," he said. Referring to the overall development trajectory of the country, Jaishankar said he was more optimistic than ever about India's future. "I am much more optimistic for our country than I have been all my life -- part of it is because I also see the abilities and talent of younger people; what they can do, the kind of achievements they made," he said. On India navigating various challenges, Jaishankar said PM Modi inculcates a very strong team spirit and that various ministries in the government are now much "less siloed". "He encourages people to work together in a much more coordinated fashion," Jaishankar said. Arti will be leading the growth, global expansion, and acquisition efforts alongside driving business development and strategic partnerships at Locobuzz MUMBAI, India, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Locobuzz, a leading unified customer experience management platform has appointed Arti Saxena as Chief Growth Officer to reinforce the company's rapid growth and expansion at a global scale. Arti brings almost two decades of experience driving growth strategies and building high-performance teams in the technology sector. With a proven track record of accelerating revenue growth and fostering client relationships, Arti is poised to play a pivotal role in furthering Locobuzz's market presence. Before joining Locobuzz, Arti served in various leadership roles at prominent organisations like Wolken Software, IndusInd Bank and L&T Infotech, where she spearheaded successful initiatives focused on customer acquisition, retention, and revenue optimisation. As CGO, Arti will lead Locobuzz's global growth strategy, leveraging her expertise to drive business development efforts, forge strategic partnerships, and amplify customer acquisition. As she joins the leadership team, she will play a crucial role in capitalising on emerging opportunities and solidifying Locobuzz's position as a leader in the customer experience space. Vishal Agarwal, CEO, Locobuzz says, "We are thrilled to welcome Arti to our growth team. Her sharp acumen and meticulous approach have fueled business development across diverse regions including the Nordics, Middle East, and US. With Arti's mature and objective perspective, we are poised to deepen our market presence and enhance our strategic initiatives. Her track record of success promises to be a valuable asset in our continued drive for innovation and expansion." Arti holds a Master's degree in Business Administration from SIMS. She has also acquired certification in executive education programs focused on leadership and business strategy from ISB. Her business background, keen understanding of market dynamics and passion for innovation make her a valuable addition to the Locobuzz team. About Locobuzz: Locobuzz is a global enterprise software company that specialises in digital customer experience management. Its unified CX management platform enables brands to automate the entire customer experience journey, delivering delightful and humane experiences to customers across all customer-facing functions. This helps brands forge stronger relationships with their customers and increase their lifetime value. Using advanced AI, ML, Big Data, and Analytics, the platform empowers brands with real-time data analytics, automation, consumer insights, and end-to-end social media management that includes publishing, listening, analytics and engagement. Trusted by Fortune 500 companies and marquee brands across various industries, Locobuzz operates in seven countries, including India, the USA, the UK, Sri Lanka, and the Middle East and South-East Asia. Learn more at https://locobuzz.com. Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2337873/Locobuzz_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 HYDERABAD, India, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- As voters headed to the polling booths during Phase 4 of the elections, Hyderabad-based IT company, Ray Business Technologies (a CMMI Level 3 certified company), took a thoughtful step to provide relief from the scorching heat. They distributed umbrellas to voters in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, ensuring that voters could cast their ballots comfortably. Despite serpentine queues at many polling stations, the afternoon sun posed a challenge for voters. However, the shade provided by the umbrellas left voters feeling happy and rejuvenated. This initiative aimed to make the voting process more accessible, especially for women and the elderly, who are particularly affected by extreme weather conditions. Ajay Gupta, CEO, Ray Business Technologies, explained, "Our initiative focuses on removing barriers to voting. With the current heatwave being a significant obstacle, providing umbrellas ensures that voters can stay comfortable and have their voices heard without the sun beating down on them." About Ray Business Technologies: Ray Business Technologies is a global Information Technology (IT) Solutions company. RBT offers comprehensive end-to-end IT Solutions in Gen-AI, Enterprise Collaboration Solutions, Web Applications, Cloud Computing and IT Infrastructure Management to Retail, Banking & Finance, Healthcare, Media & Broadcasting, Agritech, Pharma & Life Science verticals. RBT is having their offices in India, USA, Australia, Canada and Philippines. Website: www.raybiztech.com Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2410821/RBTumbrellafor_voters.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 Kochi (Kerala) [India], May 13: Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) Chairman and Secretary, Department of Space, Government of India, S Somanath unveiled the carbon reduction initiative of SFO Technologies, the flagship company of the NeST Group on Saturday. Besides planting a sapling at the first private SEZ in India, NeST HiTek Park to mark the occasion, he also unveiled a replica of Chandrayaan at the campus highlighting the cooperation of SFO Technologies and ISRO. The Carbon Reduction initiative of SFO Technologies and the NeST Group follows the United Nations objective of achieving a 50 percent reduction by 2035 and zero emissions by 2040. After unveiling the Zero Emission initiative, Mr. Somanath spoke in detail about the developments in the Indian aerospace and space industry sectors and answered questions from NeST engineers and the management team. The Indian space sector is poised to become a USD 9-10 billion business in the next 5-10 years from the current levels of USD 2 billion, he said. Stressing the importance of private sector companies in this endeavor, Mr. Somanath said 400 enterprises in the country have benefited from the technologies developed by ISRO for its various missions and companies like SFO Technologies are well positioned to take further advantage of the new policy initiatives in the space sector by the government of India. The NeST Group of companies have shown a capability to deliver quality services in mission-critical projects, he added. NeST Group Chairman and Managing Director, N. Jehangir said, discussions are on with ISRO for various projects including the Gaganyaan project aiming to carry human beings to space for the first time through the Indian Space Mission. In the welcome address Althaf Jehangir, CEO and Executive Director of NeST Group recalled the close association with ISRO for many years. SFO Technologies, the flagship company of NeST Group, worked in multiple programs such as the RF sub-systems for Chandrayaan and Aditya Missions, manufacturing of Antenna Systems, and Cryogenic Engine Control Systems for launch vehicles. As we advance, the company will be able to gain further assignments from ISRO, he added. On the importance of the Zero Emission project, Althaf Jehangir said the challenges posed by climate change call for ecologically sustainable practices in the entire value chain of every business. Being part of Make in India initiatives, catering to the requirements of several Fortune-500 global corporates, we are taking proactive measures to cut emissions in all levels of our operations. We are determined to become a Zero Emission entity by 2040, he said. He also said, SFO Technologies has signed agreements with multiple partners to create a model for being a socially responsible organization by minimizing carbon pollution. NeST Group is committed to protecting the environment and reducing carbon emissions, said Ms. Nazneen Jehangir, CEO and Executive Director, NeST Group. She said that international organizations such as the UN, the European Union, and countries like the US have imposed mandatory restrictions on carbon emissions and are currently encouraging companies to reduce emissions. The three-decade-old NeST group, a diversified conglomerate with investments in Technology, Software, Education, Food and Beverages, has emerged as Indias largest electronics hardware exporter. SFO Technologies is spearheading the electronic hardware vertical with products, services, and processes for some of the leading companies in the world. The Group provides services ranging from R&D to software engineering and manufacturing including sheet metal fabrication, plastic injection molding, cables, relays, transformers, fiber optics, PCB assemblies, and High-level assemblies for industries such as healthcare, aerospace and defense, space, communications, and transportation, food and beverages, retail, and pharma. The Group has 12,000 employees working from 25 locations worldwide with business offices in almost all major markets and supported by Research and Development and Product fulfillment centers in India, UAE, Japan, and USA, besides front-end offices in UK, China, and Singapore. (Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with PNN and PTI takes no editorial responsibility for the same.). PTI PWR PWR NOIDA, India, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Newgen Software, a global provider of a low-code platform for end-to-end automation at scale, announced that it has been named in the Gartner Market Guide for Commercial Banking Cash Management and Trade Finance Solutions, 2023 report. Gartner describes global banking cash management and trade finance solutions as "capabilities that support end-to-end business and product processes, a consistent operating model, and client services in the corporate treasury and working capital domains." The report will help bank CIOs gain insights into the vendor solutions available in the market. Newgen's Trade Finance Solution, built on the NewgenONE low-code platform, offers transaction origination, transaction processing, and document management capabilities. The Swift-Compatible Solution enables commercial banks to comply with the latest Swift standards and enriches the journey orchestration for both customers and internal bank users. "Newgen excels in delivering operational excellence and unifying customer experience with its advanced trade finance solution. We believe this Gartner recognition reaffirms the critical role our innovative solutions play in creating a connected digital ecosystem and fulfilling the unique requirements of our commercial clients," said Runki Goswami, Global Head of Marketing at Newgen Software. Disclaimer: GARTNER is a registered trademark and service mark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally and is used herein with permission. All rights reserved. Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product, or service depicted in its research publications and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner's research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner's research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. About Newgen Software Technologies Ltd. Newgen is the leading provider of a unified digital transformation platform with native process automation, content services, communication management, and AI/ML. Globally, successful enterprises rely on Newgen's industry-recognized low-code application platform to develop and deploy complex, content-driven, and customer-engaging business applications. Newgen unlocks simple with speed and agility. For more details, visit www.newgensoft.com Media Contact: swati.srivastava@newgensoft.com Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2106118/Newgen_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 New Delhi, May 13 (PTI) Rebuking Microsoft and its subsidiary LinkedIn, Ola CEO Bhavish Aggarwal in a post said India needs to establish its own tech platforms to shun the chances of being "culturally subsumed" and "governed" by western big tech monopolies. Boycotting Microsoft, Aggarwal said Ola -- an existing customer of Microsoft Azure -- will no longer avail of its services, and will shift its entire workload to its homegrown Krutrim cloud in a week. The backlash comes after LinkedIn removed the CEO's post that called out LinkedIn's AI for "imposing a political ideology on Indian users". He had shared a screenshot from a generative AI response that used "they/their" pronouns to describe Aggarwal. Berating the "pronoun illness", he had said he hopes the practise doesn't reach India. "...the pronouns issue I wrote about is a woke political ideology of entitlement which doesn't belong in India. I wouldn't have waded into this debate but clearly LinkedIn has presumed Indians need to have pronouns in our life, and that we can't criticise it. They will bully us into agreeing with them or cancel us out," he wrote later. Aggarwal called out to the Indian developer community to build a DPI (digital public infrastructure) social media framework. Lauding Indian DPIs like UPI, ONDC, and Aadhaar, he said the only community guidelines should be the Indian law. "No corporate person should be able to decide what will be banned. Data should be owned by the creators instead of being owned by the corporates who make money using our data and then lecture us on 'community guidelines'," he said. Aggarwal further wrote, "Since LinkedIn is owned by Microsoft and Ola is a big customer of Azure, we've decided to move our entire workload out of Azure to our own Krutrim cloud within the next week." "I'm not against global tech companies. But as an Indian citizen, I feel concerned that my life will be governed by western Big Tech monopolies and we will be culturally subsumed as the above experience shows," he said. Taking a sarcastic dig, the CEO invited developers to leave Azure and join his team. "Any other developer who wants to move out of Azure, we will offer a full year of free cloud usage. As long as you don't go back to Azure after that! Mail us on exitazure@olakrutrim.com. Offer is perpetually open!," he wrote. He said India doesn't need lectures from western companies on how to be inclusive. Our culture didn't need pronouns to be inclusive for thousands of years, he added. New Delhi, May 13 (PTI) Food tech major Zomato on Monday said its subsidiary Zomato Payment Pvt Ltd (ZPPL) has decided to voluntarily surrender the certificate of authorisation it obtained from the Reserve Bank to operate as an online payment aggregator. "At Zomato, we do not see ourselves having a significant competitive advantage against the incumbents in the payments space and hence we don't foresee a business in payments space as commercially viable for us, at this stage. "While we were conscious of these developments as they unfolded, the real impact was more apparent as we got closer to putting in place the structure to commence the operations," Zomato said in a regulatory filing. The development comes months after the company received the licence from the central bank to operate as an online payment aggregator, with effect from January 24, 2024. Zomato said the Board of Directors of ZPPL has also decided to withdraw the application dated November 11, 2021 submitted with the RBI to operate as the issuer of pre-paid payment instruments. Zomato announced the incorporation of ZPPL in 2021 as its wholly owned subsidiary to carry out the business as a payment aggregator and an issuer of prepaid payment instruments. In the regulatory filing, the company further stated that thanks to the RBI's efforts, the payments landscape in India has evolved meaningfully over the past couple of years since the time it applied for these licenses. "This has over time, therefore, resulted in a seamless payment experience for customers," said Zomato. The company believes that there is no material impact on the revenue/operations of the company on account of such voluntary surrender and withdrawal, hence this disclosure is being made voluntarily, it added. Zomato declared the results for the quarter and financial year ended March on Monday. Mumbai, May 11 (PTI) Actor Ashutosh Rana believes his acting career is still in the early stages, even though he has been a part of the industry for over three decades. Rana, who has received recognition for his work in films like Dushman, Sarfarosh, Mulk, Sonchiriya, Pathaan and Fighter, said he is happy that the lines between mainstream and off-beat cinema has blurred today. I feel there is a lot left in Ashutosh Rana. The actor in Ashutosh Rana is like a child who has just started walking and is taking baby steps. There is a lot to come. Why I think this way is because I started with films which were called off-beat cinema and that has become mainstream cinema now. "For the actors like me, it is a golden period, the actor, who is headlining the latest OTT show Murder in Mahim, told PTI in an interview. The 56-year-old actor said he would love to play a variety of characters on screen, whether they are heroic or villainous. "I definitely hope to get lots of work and play different characters. I want to play Chanakya on screen, Raavan, Vivekanand and Krishna. There are so many characters who are engraved in our mind like Gabbar (from Sholay), he added. Rana believes that he has been able to receive appreciation from audiences because he played each character with the utmost honesty. As an actor, he said, his primary goal is to capture the thought process and persona of a character. I dont believe in doing good work, I believe in being honest with my work. The appreciation that Ive got from the audience and media is for the honest portrayal of roles. For instance, how can you like my characters Gokul Pandit and Lajja Shankar Pandey from Dushman and Sangharsh, respectively? "You felt the character was honest in terms of its portrayal and hence you liked my work. Besides, I try not to repeat the characters and ensure that theres diversity in what I do. I'm the actor made by the audience, theyve made me and promoted me after watching my work. Murder in Mahim, an investigative drama series, is adapted from a critically-acclaimed book of the same name by author Jerry Pinto. The show is a social commentary that explores the chilling murder mystery and the underbelly of Mumbai, highlighting the reconciliation of a lost friendship between Peter (Rana) and Jende (Vijay Raaz). Rana said he wasn't nervous about headlining a show and instead calls it a "pleasure". I dont take pressure, Im a responsible person, and Ive acted with utmost responsibility, he said adding that he hasnt read the book as he didnt want to corrupt his imagination as an actor. Whenever a series or film is made from a book, the actors who are acting in it shouldn't read it because it restricts your imagination as an artist. When you havent read it, then you can add things on your own, he added. The show, which is helmed by Raj Acharya, hails from Tipping Point Films and Jigsaw Pictures. It was released on JioCinema on Friday. Washington, May 13 (PTI) Misinformation and false narratives are being created about Indian democracy in the West in the middle of an election cycle in India, a prominent Indian American said on Sunday, observing that some people in the West continue to have a colonial mentality. Chicago-based Dr. Baharat Barai, in an interview, hit out at Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for not taking action against Sikh separatists who are openly planning and supporting violence inside India and Indian leaders. The Khalistan problem is only in Canada, maybe a little bit in the USA. If the US government wants to give them a piece of land, let them be happy. After all, they're foreign citizens. They're either citizens of the USA or citizens of Canada. What right do they have to interfere in what is happening in India? Dr Barai told PTI in an interview here. If they want a separate land for them, let (Canadian Prime Minister Justin) Trudeau give it to them. If the USA thinks that that's a good idea (let them do so)we are standing right in front of Abraham Lincoln (memorial in Washington DC). What did he do when the South (US) wanted to secede? We had a civil war. In Washington DC he is being celebrated as the father of the nation, he said. This (Khalistan) is not a problem of India. Indian Sikhs don't want to have anything to do with it. It is the foreign-born or foreign-living, Sikhs and only a very tiny fraction of them, Dr Barai said. Referring to the number of news articles and commentaries appearing in the Western press, including that of the US, raising questions about democracy, freedom of expression, and human rights in India, the influential Indian American said that a section of the people is spreading misinformation and creating false narratives about India. My feeling is that some of the people in the West still have a colonial mentality. They still think that they are the supreme judges of the world. They are the ones who are going to judge what happens in any other country in the world, and they are going to be the Ayatullah who will give the ultimate word, Dr Barai said. But this is a different India. India has progressed a lot in the last 10 years. It has become the fifth-largest economy in the world. It is also progressing militarily. It is staying truly non-aligned. It is friends with the USA, with the UK, Australia, and Germany. But it is also friends with Russia. So, India cannot be deterred by this kind of criticism, he said. Fortunately, Prime Minister Modi has a fairly confident and fairly strong personality to ward off all this kind of unnecessary, unwarranted advice there are guys like Pannun who openly give threats that they are going to put a bomb, they're going to blow up the airliner telling Hindus to get out of Canada. Nothing happens to them. What kind of law and order Mr. Trudeau is talking about when not one person has been arrested," he said. I think there is a total misinformation, total false narrative, whether it is deliberate or because of poor information or misinformation, Dr. Barai said in response to a question while asserting that India has a very vibrant democracy. Think of it. People (in India) have been abusing Narendra Modi and so many people. If there was no democracy, if there was dictatorship, how would they be able to do it? How the election has passed peacefully and more people have exercised their franchise, almost 66 per cent, in India than even in the USA. How can you say that democracy does not work? he questioned the critics of Indian democracy. Kathmandu, May 13 (PTI) The economic advisor to Nepal's President Ram Chandra Paudel has resigned after his controversial remarks on the governments decision to issue new hundred-rupee notes with a map that includes three Indian territories, a move already rejected by India. The President approved Chiranjivi Nepal's resignation on Sunday, according to the press release issued by the Office of the President. Ex-governor of the country's central bank, Chiranjivi Nepal had reportedly termed the governments decision to print the new map on the notes as an inappropriate move. A Cabinet meeting last week decided to replace the old map with the new one while printing new notes of Rs 100. The new map includes territories such as Kalapani, Lipulekh and Limpiyadhura. India maintains Lipulekh, Kalapani and Limpiyadhura belong to it. CPN-UML chairman and former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli had publicly criticised Chiranjivi Nepal for his remarks. "I have raised this serious issue to draw the public attention as it might cause practical problems to the people," Chiranjivi Nepal mentioned in his resignation letter, an aide to the president told PTI on condition of anonymity. I have tendered my resignation from the post to maintain the dignity of the honourable President, as attempts were made to unnecessarily drag the president into controversy citing my statement, Chiranjivi Nepal pointed out. Earlier, a group of civil society leaders had demanded the removal of Chiranjivi Nepal over his remarks against the government's decision to print new hundred-rupee notes with the map of Nepal as per the amended Constitution. They argued that he had gone against national interest and breached decorum while speaking to the national and international media on the matter. Nepal's government unveiled its new political map with the inclusion of Lipulek, Kalapani and Limpiyadhura areas within its territory in May 2020 during the government led by Oli. It was later endorsed by the Parliament unanimously. After that, the government has replaced the old map used in all the official documents with the new map despite Indias objection. This artificial enlargement of claims is not based on historical fact or evidence and is not tenable. It is also violative of our current understanding to hold talks on outstanding boundary issues," India's External Affairs Ministry said at that time. Indian External Affairs Minister S Jayashankar last week expressed discontent over the Nepal government's decision to issue the new notes. Jaishankar said that it is not going to change the situation on the ground. Nepal shares a border of over 1,850 km with five Indian states Sikkim, West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. Washington, May 13 (PTI) Political parties in India should take the education sector seriously as a countrys economy is directly linked to its education, chancellor of the prestigious Vellore Institute of Technology Govindasamy Viswanathan has said. In an interview with PTI, he said there is a need to spend 6 per cent of the nations GDP on the education sector as it is vital to achieve the goal of India being a developed nation by 2047. The per capita income of India in 2023 is USD 2,600. Those states which are good in education like the southern states or the western states are all above the national average, he told PTI. In the southern states, it varies from USD 3,500 to USD 4,000. Kerala comes first, Telangana second, and Tamil Nadu is third... They're all around USD 4,000. Whereas Bihar and Uttar Pradesh are less than USD 1,000 because they lag in education, he said. It is not known to the people. People have to be taught about this. Political parties don't take it seriously. Unless we concentrate on education, economically we cannot come up. It applies to families, society, states, and the country. That's where I would very much like the state governments and the central government to sit together and see that enough money is allotted for education, he said. Viswanathan, who is also the founder of the VIT, was conferred with an honorary Doctor of Laws degree by the State University of New York (SUNY) in Binghamton on May 10 for his contributions to international higher education. Chancellor Viswanathan has been a pioneer for expanding access to higher education in India and partnering with institutions around the world, Binghamton University President Harvey Stenger said. On Sunday, community members and VIT alumni gathered in Arlington, a Virginia suburb of Washington DC, to felicitate him. Responding to a question, Vishwanathan said there has been a demand for a long time to spend 6 per cent of the GDP on education. But in the last 76 years of independence, it has never crossed 3 per cent. This year it has gone down. Last year it was 3 per cent of the GDP. This year it has become 2.9 per cent because they're not giving priority to education. Other areas get preference. This has to change and both the central government as well as the state government put together there to sit together, decide that year after year there should be an increase, he said. All the advanced countries, it varies from 5 per cent to 7 per cent of the GDP. We have to compete with them. Now the new education policy talks about 6 per cent of the GDP should be spent on education. It won't be enough. We'll have to increase that. This (demand for) 6 per cent has been there for the last 50 years. So, it has to be increased and the government has to be convinced about it. Now they have put it in the policy, it should be implemented, Viswanathan said. India today has around 50,000 colleges and 1,100 universities of which almost 50 per cent are in the private sector, he said. Viswanathan called for increasing the number of students in government institutions, improving the quality of government institutions, and helping the students who go to private institutions. To become an advanced country without education is impossible. Only with education, we can become an advanced country. We must be able to compete and all of us are intent upon it. The only thing is all the governments should sit together and see that enough money is allotted, he said. Asked about corruption in the education sector, he said that its everywhere. Corruption is a national disease. Unless we give exemption to corruption in education, it's very difficult. All of them have to cooperate: the state governments, central government, and private sector. I think it depends on the governments and the political parties and the awareness among the public, he said. In the United States, he said, there is no discrimination between government and private institutions and all are treated equally. The other thing in the US is that the universities get funding from the federal government, state government, the industries located here and their alumni. These are the kind of income they get, which is not there in India. I think we should learn from the US. The other thing is they pay very well. The training aspect of it should be taken care of. We have to learn a lot of things from us as far as higher education is concerned, Viswanathan said. Beijing, May 13 (PTI) Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar on Monday arrived here to attend the fifth strategic dialogue with his Chinese counterpart to discuss among others the serious economic crisis in the cash-strapped country and Beijings concerns over increasing attacks on Chinese personnel working in CPEC projects. Dar, also the foreign minister, is the first top official to visit China after Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif took over the premiership following politically volatile general elections. Dar arrived in Beijing on a four-day visit for a comprehensive dialogue with China on the strategic direction of all-weather ties between the two countries in the fast-changing regional and global situation. In the fifth strategic dialogue, the two sides will comprehensively review bilateral relations including economic and trade cooperation; high-level exchanges and visits; upgradation of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), future connectivity initiatives; and the geopolitical situation, Pakistans official APP news agency reported. The dialogue between Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Dar was expected to be held on Wednesday. After his arrival, Dar met the Secretary General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Zhang Ming, and heads of some Chinese companies to scout for investments in Pakistan. In his meeting with Zhang, Dar reaffirmed Pakistans unwavering commitment to the SCO Charter and the Beijing-based organisations fundamental ideals and expressed Islamabad's strong commitment to advancing SCOs security and development cooperation agenda, APP reported. Last month, former prime minister Nawaz Sharif made a surprise private visit to Chinas Guangzhou city for medical checkups. He reported meeting several Chinese corporate heads to scout for investments in his country. He later visited Hong Kong, according to reports. His visit was followed by Ahsan Iqbal, Pakistan's Federal Minister of Planning, Development, and Special Initiatives, who last week held talks with Chinese Vice Foreign Minister and Chinas former Ambassador to Pakistan Sun Weidong. Their wide-ranging discussions aimed at further solidifying the "All Weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership", said a press release from the Pakistan Embassy in Beijing. The visits were in preparation for Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharifs first visit to China after taking over the post following recent elections. Pakistan is reportedly pitching for the countrys major rail project connecting Islamabad with Karachi, estimated to cost USD 8 billion. The strategic dialogue is key for both countries in the current state of serious economic and political crisis faced by Pakistan, a country in which China has made major strategic investments in the past few decades which analysts say are aimed at containing Indias rise. China has been bankrolling Pakistan with periodic bailouts to maintain foreign exchange reserves as the cash-strapped country faced a prolonged economic crisis sustained on the International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout packages. While the details of their strategic ties, especially on the military front, largely remained secretive, officials here say Beijing is increasingly getting troubled by periodic attacks that militant groups conducted on Chinese personnel working in scores of the USD 60 billion CPEC. The CPEC, which connects Gwadar Port in Pakistan's Balochistan with China's Xinjiang province, is opposed by India as it is being laid through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). In March this year, five Chinese and one Pakistani nationals were killed when their vehicle was attacked in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. They worked at the Dasu Hydropower Project undertaken by a Chinese company. Pakistan blames terror groups emanating from Taliban-ruled Afghanistan for attacks on the Chinese while Kabul has strongly denied any patronage. For China, which maintains close ties with the Taliban regime, the seemingly irreconcilable differences between former allies Pakistan and the Taliban have become a diplomatic challenge. On Chinas concerns over security issues, Iqbal said: I want to assure Chinese people that the Pakistani government values them as very precious and important guests and will leave no possible human effort to give them added security." He blamed the attacks on some external enemies. We have a dedicated 12,000 force of our army men under a major general whose mission is to protect and safeguard Chinese people working on different projects. In addition, police paramilitary forces also augment this force," he told state-run CGTN TV here. Singapore, May 13 (PTI) Indian-origin Member of Parliament Murali Pillai will be appointed the Minister of State for Law and Transport in the new incoming cabinet of Singapore's new Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, it was announced on Monday. Pillai, 56, will be appointed and sworn in on July 1, according to a report by The Straits Times newspaper while others will be sworn in on May 15. Pillai, a member of the ruling People's Action Party, is a lawyer. Among other Indian-origin politicians, Dr Vivian Balakrishnan will remain as Foreign Affairs Minister, K. Shanmugam will continue as Minister of Home Affairs and Law, and Indranee Rajah as the Minister in the Prime Ministers Office. The new cabinet line-up was announced by the Singapore Prime Ministers Office on Monday. It will be led by Wong, who will be sworn into the highest executive office on Wednesday after incumbent Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, 72, announced that he will step down on Wednesday after leading the country for 20 years. Gan Kim Yong, 65, will be promoted to Deputy Prime Minister as part of a cabinet reshuffle and will remain as Trade and Industry Minister. He will be the acting prime minister in the absence of the prime minister. He will also take over as the chairman of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, the de facto central bank, and assume responsibility for the strategy group within the Prime Minister's Office. Currently, Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat, 63, will continue in his role. Heng was first named to succeed Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong but he has declined to take up the position. Wong, 51, also announced other promotions and appointments on Monday, but there were no major changes to the ministers helming each ministry in this reshuffle. For example, Wong will remain at the helm of the Finance Ministry. Speaking at a press conference at Istana on Monday, Wong said continuity and stability were "key considerations" as the government approached the end of its current term. Noting that his new team is a "good mix" of experienced ministers and younger officeholders, Wong said he plans to rotate the People's Action Party's (PAP) fourth-generation, or 4G, ministers to different portfolios to "give them wider exposure and experience" if the party is re-elected after this term of government. Lee will stay in the cabinet as senior minister after stepping down as leader of the government, it was announced previously. He will remain as chairman of the Research, Innovation and Enterprise Council. After serving for two decades, Lee, as Singapores third prime minister, is putting in charge the city states fourth-generation leader of the Asian financial hub which has to, without exception, face the challenging global environment of war, conflict, and trade supply chain disruptions, political observers said. They emphasised no end to Ukraine-Russia fighting, Gaza bomb blasting, and clogging of sea lanes in the Red Sea. Istanbul, May 13 (AP) Greece's leader arrived in Turkiye's capital on Monday for talks with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as both countries pursue a normalisation programme and seek to put aside decades-old disputes. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis was welcomed by Erdogan and a military guard of honour at the presidential palace in Ankara before the leaders' fourth meeting over the past year. They are expected to hold two hours of discussions followed by a news conference. Turkiye and Greece, which are NATO members, have been at odds for decades over a series of issues, including territorial claims in the Aegean Sea and drilling rights in the Mediterranean, and have come to the brink of war three times in the last half-century. A dispute over energy exploration rights in 2020 led to the two countries' warships facing off in the Mediterranean. They agreed last December to put their disputes aside and focus on areas where they can find consensus. The list of items on the so-called positive agenda includes trade, energy, education and cultural ties. Since that summit in Athens, the regional rivals have maintained regular high-level contacts to promote fence-mending initiatives, such as allowing Turkish citizens to visit 10 Greek islands without cumbersome visa procedures. The propensity for quarrels remains, however. The recent opening of a former Greek Orthodox church in Istanbul for use as a mosque led to Greece accusing Turkiye of insulting the character of a World Heritage Site. Turkiye, meanwhile, criticised a Greek plan unveiled last month for marine parks in parts of the Ionian and Aegean Seas. Ankara said the one-sided declaration was a step that sabotages the normalisation process. But such low-level disputes are far removed from relations a few years ago, when energy exploration in the eastern Mediterranean resulted in a naval confrontation and a vow by Erdogan to halt talks with Mitsotakis' government. The two countries are also locked in a dispute over Cyprus, divided since 1974 between its ethnic Greek and Turkish populations. For the past seven years, Turkiye has rejected a long-standing agreement for a reunified Cyprus under a federal system. Instead, Ankara and the Turkish Cypriot administration, which is only recognised by Turkiye, have proposed a two-state solution. Erdogan and Mitsotakis have sharp differences over the Israel-Hamas war, but are keen to hold back further instability in the Mediterranean as Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine grinds on. The recent thaw in relations was partly helped by Greek solidarity after last year's devastating earthquake in southern Turkiye. Erdogan has initiated a broader effort to reengage with Western countries following an election victory last year that saw him extend his two-decade rule by a further five years. Speaking before the meeting, Greek government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis said that the leaders would review progress in bilateral relations and the agreed upon areas of cooperation. Our country seeks to maintain the climate of dialogue with the neighbouring country, he said, adding that we believe that dialogue is only positive for the two countries. (AP) PY PY Dhaka, May 13 (PTI) Bangladesh's development is not possible without good relations with India as both countries share a common border of several thousand kilometers, Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud said on Monday. Hasan, who is also the joint general secretary of the ruling Awami League party led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, made the remarks while responding to a question regarding a failed campaign by some groups on social media asking people to boycott Indian products. "Our development is not possible without maintaining good relations with the country (India) with which we have a common border of several thousand kilometers on three sides," he told the reporters here. Mahmud added it would be difficult as well to maintain peace and stability in Bangladesh without good relations with the next-door neighbour. His comments came in response to a question on what he thought regarding an India boycott campaign mainly through social media like Facebook and YouTube, asking people to boycott Indian products, which drew little response. The campaign is widely believed to be backed by ex-premier Khaleda Zias Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) because of New Delhis support to Prime Minister Hasinas ruling Awami League during the January 7 elections. Mahmud, however, attributed directly the campaign to BNP, saying they launched it to create a crisis in the domestic market and destabilise Bangladesh's economy. The minister called the campaign a complete flop and added the BNP would be further isolated if they came up with the call again. "Their efforts (call for boycotting Indian products) went unsuccessful. They know it, too. It will be refused by the people of the country again if BNP comes up with the agenda afresh, he told reporters. BNP, however, made no public statement asking people to boycott Indian products while media analysts suggested the campaign was initiated by social media influencers, who are critical of the ruling party and many of them spearhead it from outside Bangladesh. Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra last week visited Bangladesh where he called on Prime Minister Hasina and other top leaders and reviewed New Delhi's strong bilateral relationship with Dhaka, including in areas such as security, water, trade and investment, power and energy, defence, connectivity, and sub-regional cooperation. In the first official visit of a high-level official to Bangladesh after the formation of the new government in January 2024 here, Kwatra also met Foreign Minister Mahmud and his counterpart Masud Bin Momen. Kwatra invited Prime Minister Hasina to visit New Delhi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the first world leader to congratulate Hasina on her re-election. Moscow, May 12 (AP) Russia's President Vladimir Putin on Sunday proposed replacing Sergei Shoigu as defence minister on Sunday and appointed him as secretary of Russia's national security council. The appointment comes after Putin proposed appointing Andrei Belousov as the country's defence minister in place of Shoigu, who has served in the post for years. The reshuffle comes as Putin starts his fifth presidential term and as the war in Ukraine drags on for the third year In line with Russian law, the entire Russian Cabinet resigned on Tuesday following Putin's glittering inauguration in the Kremlin. The announcement came as thousands more civilians have fled Russia's renewed ground offensive in Ukraine's northeast that has targeted towns and villages with a barrage of artillery and mortar shelling, officials said Sunday. The intense battles have forced at least one Ukrainian unit to withdraw in the Kharkiv region, capitulating more land to Russian forces across less defended settlements in the so-called contested gray zone along the Russian border. By Sunday afternoon, the town of Vovchansk, among the largest in the northeast with a prewar population of 17,000, emerged as a focal point in the battle. Volodymyr Tymoshko, the head of the Kharkiv regional police, said that Russian forces were on the outskirts of the town and approaching from three directions. Infantry fighting is already taking place, he said. A Russian tank was spotted along a major road leading to the town, Tymoshko said, illustrating Moscow's confidence to deploy heavy weaponry. An Associated Press team, positioned in a nearby village, saw plumes of smoke rising from the town as Russian forces hurled shells. Evacuation teams worked nonstop throughout the day to take residents, most of whom were older, out of harm's way. At least 4,000 civilians have fled the Kharkiv region since Friday, when Moscow's forces launched the operation, Gov Oleh Syniehubov said in a social media statement. Heavy fighting raged Sunday along the northeast front line, where Russian forces attacked 27 settlements in the past 24 hours, he said. Analysts say the Russian push is designed to exploit ammunition shortages before promised Western supplies can reach the front line. Ukrainian soldiers said that the Kremlin is using the usual Russian tactic of launching a disproportionate amount of fire and infantry assaults to exhaust their troops and firepower. By intensifying battles in what was previously a static patch of the front line, Russian forces threaten to pin down Ukrainian forces in the northeast, while carrying out intense battles farther south where Moscow is also gaining ground. It comes after Russia stepped up attacks in March targeting energy infrastructure and settlements, which analysts predicted were a concerted effort to shape conditions for an offensive. Meanwhile, a 10-story apartment building partially collapsed in the Russian city of Belgorod, near the border, killing at least eight people and injuring 20 others. Russian authorities said that the building collapsed following Ukrainian shelling. Ukraine hasn't commented on the incident. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that halting Russia's offensive in the northeast was a priority, and that Kyiv's troops were continuing counteroffensive operations in seven villages around the Kharkiv region. Disrupting the Russian offensive intentions is our No. 1 task now. Whether we succeed in that task depends on every soldier, every sergeant, every officer, Zelenskyy said. The Russian Defence Ministry said Sunday that its forces had captured four villages on the border along Ukraine's Kharkiv region, in addition to five villages reported to have been seized on Saturday. These areas were likely poorly fortified because of the dynamic fighting and constant heavy shelling, easing a Russian advance. Ukraine's leadership hasn't confirmed Moscow's gains. But Tymoshko said that Strilecha, Pylna and Borsivika were under Russian occupation, and it was from their direction they were bringing in infantry to stage attacks in other embattled villages of Hlyboke and Lukiantsi. Russian tactics in Vovchansk mirror those used in the battles for Bakhmut and Avdiivka in the Donetsk region, he said, in which heavy aerial attacks were accompanied by droves of infantry assaults. Now the Russians are simply wiping it (Vovchansk) off the face of the earth and advancing with the scorched earth method. That is, they first scorch a specific area and then the infantry comes in, and they always advance in this way, he said. A Ukrainian unit said that they had been forced to retreat in some areas and that Russian forces had captured at least one more village late Saturday. In a video Saturday evening, the Hostri Kartuzy unit, part of the special forces' detachment of Ukraine's national guard, said that they were fighting for control of the village of Hlyboke. Today, during heavy fighting, our defenders were forced to withdraw from a few more of their positions, and today, another settlement has come completely under Russian control. As of 20:00, fighting for the village of Hlyboke is ongoing, the fighters said in the clip. The Institute for the Study of War said Saturday that it believed claims that Moscow had captured Strilecha, Pylna, Pletenivka and Borsivika were accurate, and that geolocated footage also appeared to show that Russian forces have seized Morokhovets and Oliinykove. The Washington-based think tank described the recent Russian gains as tactically significant. In the war's early days, Russia made a botched attempt to quickly storm Kharkiv, which is Ukraine's second-largest city, but retreated from its outskirts after about a month. In the fall of 2022, seven months later, Ukraine's army pushed them out of Kharkiv. The bold counterattack helped persuade Western countries that Ukraine could defeat Russia on the battlefield and merited military support. (AP) SCY SCY Kolkata, May 13 (PTI) Former Judge Abhijit Gangopadhyay, a BJP candidate from Tamluk Lok Sabha seat, on Monday moved the Calcutta High Court alleging police overaction by registering an attempt to murder case against him. Justice Jay Sengupta, before whose court the matter was mentioned, directed that the petition will be taken up for hearing on Tuesday. Alleging malafide and overaction on the part of police, Gangopadhyay's lawyer Rajdeep Majumder submitted before the court that the FIR was lodged to prevent him from campaigning for the election. Majumder stated that section 307 (attempt to murder) was registered against Gangopadhyay. Gangopadhyay, who resigned as a judge of the Calcutta High Court in March, is a BJP candidate from Tamluk Lok Sabha constituency. An alleged incident of protest against him by some persons claiming to belong to a teachers' organisation is stated to have taken place when Gangopadhyay went to file his nomination papers for the polls. Jaipur, May 13 (PTI) At least four schools in Rajasthan capital Jaipur received bomb threats via email on Monday, police said. Students and staff members have been evacuated, they said and added that police teams along with bomb and dog squads have reached the schools. "Four-five schools have received bomb threat. Police have reached the schools," Jaipur Police Commissioner Biju George Joseph said. The threat was given by email and a team is trying to identify the sender, police said. New Delhi, May 13 (PTI) Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday lauded the state government-run schools for outshining their previous year CBSE class 12th results and securing a pass percentage of 96.99 per cent this year as compared to 91.59 per cent recorded last year. Taking to X, the chief minister, who is out on an interim bail till June 1 to campaign for the Lok Sabha elections, congratulated the students, teachers and their parents for the "spectacular" performance. "Delhi government schools have got a fantastic result of 96.99%, in the Class 12 CBSE exam! Not only does this surpass our own performance of last year, but it surpasses the CBSE national average as well...Congratulations to all students, teachers, parents and the entire Education Dept for this spectacular performance," he wrote. The chief minister also shared data on the Delhi government's previous year performance stating that in 2022-23, the state government-run schools recorded a pass percentage of 91.59 per cent. He added that the performance of the Delhi government schools in the CBSE class 12 results for 2023-24 surpasses the national average of 87.98 per cent. The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on Monday announced the board exam results for classes 10 and 12. The girls continued to outshine the boys in the CBSE board exams for classes 10 and 12 while the pass percentage and the number of students scoring above 90 and 95 per cent witnessed marginal increase from last year. Chandigarh, May 13 (PTI) The Punjab State Commission for Women on Monday sought an inquiry into a video clip purportedly showing Congress leader Charanjit Singh Channi touching the chin of former SGPC president Jagir Kaur. Taking suo motu notice of the video clip which went viral on social media, the state women commission chairperson wrote to the Punjab director general of police, asking him to file a status report in this regard by May 14. The commission also wrote that Kaur was the former cabinet minister and former chief of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, an apex gurdwara body. Former Punjab chief minister Channi met Kaur on Friday while filing nomination papers in Jalandhar. Kaur was accompanying SAD candidate Mohinder Singh Kaypee. In the video clip, Channi could be seen grabbing her hands and bowing. Then both engaged in a banter during which Channi touched the Kaur's chin with his hand. Both leaders and their supporters burst into laughter. Channi's political rivals are sharing it as memes on social media. Meanwhile, Channi said Kaur is like her elder sister and motherly figure and said he bowed when he met her. Phillaur MLA Vikramjit Singh Chaudhary demanded action against Channi, claiming that the former Punjab CM's behaviour towards a Sikh woman was "disrespectful". Channi, who is the Congress candidate from the Jalandhar seat, recently came under fire from various political leaders for his "poll stunt" remark. He had called the Poonch terror attack in which an IAF soldier was killed a "stunt" meant to make the BJP win the Lok Sabha elections. Last week, one soldier was killed and four were injured as terrorists ambushed an IAF convoy in Poonch district. While replying to a question on the attack on the Indian Air Force's convoy in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch, Channi had said, "Yeh stuntbaazi ho rahi hai, hamle nahi ho rahe (These are all stunts, not attacks)." "Whenever elections are near, such stunts are performed to make the BJP win. There is no truth in it," he had said. Kolkata, May 13 (PTI) Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Monday said the opposition-ruled states have been denying people the benefits of Prime Minister Narendra Modis welfare schemes, which would have helped in employment generation. The most striking example of this is West Bengal, where many people have not even heard of some of the public welfare schemes of the central government, which have otherwise gained enormous popularity across the country, he said. Singh, the Minister of State for Personnel, said the people of West Bengal have now begun to realise how the decades-long rule first by the CPI(M) and then by the TMC has "thrown the state several years back" and brought entire development to a virtual halt. He said that once upon a time, the common adage was that "what Bengal thinks today, India thinks tomorrow", which means that the state was always ahead of the other states and regions of the country. "But unfortunately, it is the other way now," the minister said. Singh said the opposition parties keep criticising the Modi government for unemployment but on the contrary, the state governments run by these parties do not allow the Centre's initiatives, which would have led to generation of employment in large numbers. "The opposition-ruled states have been denying people the benefit of Prime Minister Modi's welfare schemes," he told PTI. Singh said that since most of the people-centric programmes like the 'Ujjawala' scheme to provide gas cylinders to the needy households, the 'Swatchhta Abhiyan' involving the construction of toilets for women or the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana for construction of pucca houses for those who cannot afford it, have not been implemented on the ground in West Bengal. This, he said, has happened because for most of the schemes, it is imperative to have the coordination and cooperation by the state administration down to the level of the district and block administrations. "But here in West Bengal, instead of coming forth with such coordination and cooperation, the state administration is invariably instructed by the political establishment not to cooperate in achieving the targets of the central schemes initiated by the Modi government," Singh claimed. "The people, therefore, now no longer want to live in deprivation and have made up their mind to turn the tables in the ongoing elections so that they too become the beneficiaries of PM Modis welfare schemes like in other parts of the country," the minister said. Indore, May 13 (PTI) Indore resident Gurdeep Kaur Vasu is speech, hearing and visually-impaired, but happiness was clearly visible on her face after she cast her vote at a polling booth here on Monday. The 32-year-old woman overcame physical challenges to reach the polling booth for the second time in her life. Her mother Manjeet Kaur Vasu, who accompanied her for help, told PTI that her daughter cast her vote at a polling booth in Vaishali Nagar in Madhya Pradesh's Indore city. "Gurdeep was very excited since Monday morning that she had to go to cast her vote. The happiness doubled after she exercised her franchise," she said. The woman said her daughter voted for the first time in the November 2023 state assembly elections. Her name was included in the voters' list last year, she said. In May last year, Gurdeep passed the Class 10 exams conducted by the Madhya Pradesh Board of Secondary Education as a private candidate. According to officials, it was the first case in the history of the MP Board of Secondary Education when a candidate who is unable to speak, hear and see passed the high school certificate examination. She was provided with a sign language expert as per the Board of Secondary Education rules keeping in view of her special condition. Voting was underway since 7 am in MP's eight Lok Sabha seats, including Indore which has 25.27 lakh voters, for the fourth and last phase of general elections in the state. Hyderabad, May 13 (PTI) BJP candidate for Hyderabad Lok Sabha seat K Madhavi Latha was on Monday booked by election authorities after a video clip in which she was purportedly asking burqa-clad women Muslim voters to show their faces to compare with the photo identity cards surfaced. In the video, Latha was seen asking the women voters at a polling booth to lift the burqa and show their face so that she could verify the identity. "A case is registered in Malakpet police station against Madhavi Latha, contesting candidate, BJP, under Sections 171C, 186, 505(1)(c) of IPC and Section 132 of the Representation of the People Act," the Hyderabad Collector said in a post on X. She was also seen telling the policemen to allow voters into polling booths only after a thorough check. Polling for the total 17 Lok Sabha seats was underway in Telangana. Section 171C deals with interference or attempts to interfere with the free exercise of any electoral right. Section 186 is related to voluntarily obstructing any public servant in the discharge of public function, while 505 is applied for inciting or likely to incite, any class or community of persons to commit any offence against any other class or community. Madhavi Latha is taking on AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi in the Hyderabad Lok Sabha segment. Hamirpur (HP), May 13 (PTI) Union Minister and BJP candidate from Himachal Pradesh's Hamirpur Anurag Thakur on Monday described Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal as the "biggest liar in the country" and alleged the AAP national convener has deceived the people of Delhi and Punjab. Thakur is seeking a fifth term in the Lok Sabha from the Hamirpur seat in Himachal Pradesh. He alleged that Kejriwal's primary aim was to grab power so that his misdeeds could be kept under wraps. But people know him well and would defeat his party in all seven Lok Sabha seats in the national capital, Thakur claimed. "Kejriwal is the biggest liar in this country. Kejriwal can say anything about anyone. He has deceived the people of Delhi and Punjab with his lies. His comments only entertain the people of this country and will benefit the BJP," he told reporters here. Asserting that there was no anti-incumbency against the BJP, Thakur claimed that Kejriwal was spreading rumours after coming out of jail. The BJP leader exuded confidence that his party would win the Lok Sabha elections with ease and Narendra Modi would become prime minister for the third time. Arrested in a money laundering case linked to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam, Kejriwal has been granted interim bail by the Supreme Court till June 1 to campaign in the Lok Sabha elections. He will have to surrender and go back to jail on June 2. June 1 is the last day of the seven-phase elections and the votes will be counted on June 4. Schools in India's Jaipur receive bomb threat, students evacuated Xinhua) 15:21, May 13, 2024 NEW DELHI, May 13 (Xinhua) -- At least four schools in the western Indian city of Jaipur Monday received bomb threats, prompting school administrations to evacuate students and call police, officials said. The threat received over emails claimed that explosives had been planted on school premises. Police swung into action and dispatched multiple bomb disposal squads and sniffer dogs to the schools to conduct searches. However, nothing suspicious has been found so far, and according to police, the threat seemed to be a hoax. "Four to five schools have received bomb threats. Police have reached the schools," Jaipur Police Commissioner Biju George Joseph told media. The searches in the schools were going on until the last reports poured in. Police said they were trying to identify the sender. On Sunday, Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi and several hospitals in the national capital received bomb threats over emails. Earlier this month over 100 schools in the Indian capital region Delhi received similar messages triggering a massive scare. In December 2023, dozens of schools in the southern Indian city of Bengaluru received bomb threats, which later proved to be a hoax. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing) New Delhi, May 13 (PTI) The Congress on Monday accused the Narendra Modi-led central government of being "anti-MSME" and alleged that thousands of small businesses have shut down in the past 10 years. Congress leader Jairam Ramesh claimed that the vital MSME sector accounts for 30 per cent of GDP, 40 per cent of exports and employs 12 crore people. "However, the small businesses of India have spent 10 years suffering in this 'anyay kaal' through neglect or through malicious anti-MSME policies. It is a well-established fact that Narendra Modi has spent the last decade working only for his few chosen friends," he said in a series of posts on X. "As a result, MSMEs have contributed to the lowest fraction of GDP in decades, face the highest tax rates in decades, and are dealing with severe job losses and price rise. Thousands of MSMEs have been shutting down," he added. The Congress general secretary pointed to six major issues relating to "Modi-made MSME mismanagement", which include demonetisation that, he said, affected MSMEs the most and "shoddy" implementation of the GST regime. Citing reasons for small businesses shutting down, Ramesh alleged that policies favour "crony corporates", "ill-conceived Income Tax 45-day payment rule", uncontrolled dumping of Chinese goods, and the MSME board being captured by "BJP cronies". His remarks came after reports citing a survey said 72 per cent of MSMEs have been stagnant since the past five years. Elaborating further, the Congress leader claimed that eight years after demonetisation, "it has become clear that demonetisation did nothing to curb black money or counterfeit currency in India". "Unable to pay employees or repay their debts, many small businesses were forced to close. Business systematically moved from smaller firms to bigger, more organised players. An RBI study has shown that MSMEs were the worst affected by demonetisation," he added. "Overall growth cratered after demonetisation and has not recovered since then. Even before the pandemic, India's GDP growth rate was at a 10-year low in 2019. This policy blunder shows the BJP's misplaced priorities and lack of concern for small businesses," he alleged. The implementation of GST was another instance where the BJP failed to consider how policy changes would impact MSMEs, Ramesh said. The Congress leader said despite the various issues faced by the MSME sector, policies are made only for "crony industrialists". Ramesh alleged the electoral bonds "scam" also affected MSMEs and said, "Having taken Rs 8,000 crore from large corporates as electoral bonds 'chanda (donation)', the BJP's quid-pro-quo only extends to those large corporates who can afford to pay huge bribes. MSMEs trying to conduct business honestly are left out." "The Modi sarkar's latest disastrous anti-MSME move has been the Income-Tax department's 45-day payment rule The complete incompetence of the Modi government has created a policy that dis-incentivises doing business with MSMEs," he claimed. Ramesh claimed large companies have been cancelling their orders from MSMEs out of fear of higher tax liabilities and switching purchases to unregistered companies. MSME associations have approached the government in despair, he said. "This situation will end on June 4. The Congress Nyay Patra has promised a sea change in the business environment in India, ending tax terrorism and arbitrary policies, promising an MSME-first business policy," Ramesh asserted. The uncontrolled dumping of Chinese goods, he said, is another factor affecting MSMEs. Immediately after the BJP took power in 2014, imports from China shot up. The percentage of imports from China were at 11 per cent of the total before 2014 but jumped up to 16 per cent by 2016 and has stayed there for 10 years, according to the Congress leader. "The share of industrial goods from China has increased even more, to 30 per cent of the total imported," he said. Ramesh also alleged that the MSME board has been "captured by BJP cronies". "The MSME board advises the MSME ministry on policy and utilisation of funds. It is supposed to raise the voices of the small businesses of India to the government, and ensure policy is made keeping their interests in mind," Ramesh said. New Delhi, May 13 (PTI) The 2024 Lok Sabha polls are more tech-driven as compared to the 2019 general elections with authorities relying on mobile applications for election management, Delhi Chief Electoral Officer P Krishnamurthy said. In an interview with PTI, the senior poll official said not only has technology made things easier, it has also brought in a lot of transparency. Explaining how technology is being used, Krishnamurthy said the Election Commission (EC) has developed an application through which relevant stakeholders can access information about any cash seizure. "For instance, the flying squad intercepted cash. They will notify on the application and then the notification will go to the Income Tax department and they will come into action. Similarly, for seizure of any drugs or liquor, a notification will go to the Narcotics (Control) Bureau or the excise department. "Nobody is interfering and all this data is travelling online from the lowest level to the Election Commission level," he elaborated. The senior IAS officer said the EC is using a lot of technology for election management. Talking about the difference between the 2019 Lok Sabha polls and the current elections, Krishnamurthy said, "Elections more or less follow a very standard procedure. But technology has made things easier and brought in transparency not only for the authorities but also for the voter." He shared that 95 per cent of the voters in Delhi registered online. "You do not have to visit the voter registration centre if you want to enrol as a voter. There is the Voter Service Portal, BLO app and voter helpline. You can fill up the form online. In Delhi, 95 per cent of our forms are filled online while 5 per cent of people visit the centres and their physical forms are digitised there," he added. From complaint management through the CVigil app to election expenditure management through the Election Seizure Management System (ESMS) application, technology has brought transparency, Krishnamurthy said. In the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, Delhi had recorded a voter turnout of around 65 per cent, which dipped to around 60 per cent in the 2019 general elections. Even though heatwave conditions are predicted around May 25, when polling will be held in Delhi, the chief electoral officer said he expects a good voter turnout. "Voter turnout is a dynamic process. The political process is a mover of voter turnout. We try to create ease of voting. We expect a good voter turnout," he said. Srinagar, May 13 (PTI) A voter turnout of more than 36 per cent took place in the redrawn Srinagar Lok Sabha seat without any untoward incident on Monday, the highest since 1996 when the constituency in Jammu and Kashmir recorded nearly 41 per cent polling. The Srinagar constituency recorded 36.58 per cent voting till 8 pm, the Election Commission of India said. This was the first general election in the valley after the abrogation of Article 370 and the enactment of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, the EC said in a statement. Voting took place in the districts of Srinagar, Ganderbal, and Pulwama, and partly in Budgam and Shopian districts at around 2,135 polling stations across the Srinagar parliamentary constituency with live webcasting at all the polling stations. Polling started at 7 am with long queues of enthusiastic voters waiting to cast their votes, the statement said. Voters of Srinagar, Budgam, Ganderbal, Pulwama, and Shopian showed up in record numbers to cast their votes in a show of faith and enthusiasm in the election process, it added. According to the EC, the highest polling in this constituency in the last 34 years has been in 1996 when nearly 41 per cent voters used their franchise. In 2019, 14.43 per cent votes polled whereas the figure in previous parliamentary elections stood at 25.86 per cent (2014), 25.55 (2009), 18.57 (2004), 11.93 (1999) and 30.06 per cent (1998), the statement said. National Conference candidate Aga Ruhullah, PDP's Wahid Para, JK Apni Party's Ashraf Mir and DPAP's Amit Bhat are among 24 candidates fighting from the Srinagar seat. In the 2019 general elections, only 12 candidates were in the fray from the seat. The Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency was redrawn after the delimitation and parts of Budgam in central Kashmir were taken away from it, while Pulwama district and parts of Shopian district were added. Polling and security personnel worked tirelessly to ensure that an atmosphere of calm, peace and festivities welcomed voters at the polling stations, the EC added. More than 8,000 polling staff were on duty to cater to the over 17.47 lakh-strong electorate. Command-and-Control centres have been working 24x7 in Srinagar as well as Jammu since March 16, the date of announcement of the general elections, to ensure free and fair elections, the EC said. In order to ensure inclusive voting, polling stations managed by women, specially abled persons and youths were set up. There were 21 green and eco-friendly polling stations, it added. The Commission has enabled Kashmiri migrant voters residing at various relief camps in Delhi, Jammu, and Udhampur to also have the option of voting in person at designated special polling stations or using postal ballot. As many as 21 Special Polling Stations were established at Jammu, one at Udhampur and four at Delhi. Planned, consistent and targeted interventions to promote voter awareness as part of SVEEP activities has contributed to the noteworthy rise in voter turnout, the EC said. Bhubaneswar, May 13 (PTI) The first phase of Lok Sabha and assembly elections in Odisha on Monday was peaceful barring some sporadic incidents of violence, with a voter turnout of over 64 per cent, officials said. The electoral fate of 280 candidates contesting in four Lok Sabha seats and 28 assembly segments in the first phase was sealed in the EVM. The polling was by and large peaceful barring some sporadic incidents in Ganjam and Nabarangpur districts, while two persons were injured in a clash between rival groups during polling in Chikiti assembly segment, a police official said. BJP candidate from Dabugam assembly segment Narasingha Bhadra was also allegedly attacked by rival political party workers. Voting started at 7 am in 7,303 polling stations in Berhampur, Koraput, Nabarangpur, and Kalahandi parliamentary constituencies along with 28 assembly segments within the jurisdiction of these Lok Sabha seats. Lok Sabha and assembly elections are being held simultaneously in Odisha. Officials said that 64.81 per cent of voters exercised their franchise. The highest voter turnout was recorded in tribal-majority Nabarangpur LS seat at 68.74 per cent followed by Kalahandi (68.50), Koraput (61.43) and Berhampur (60.26). For assembly segments, the highest 71.30 per cent of voting was recorded at Dabugam and the lowest 47.90 per cent in Chhatrapur Vidhan Sabha. The voter turnout could increase as the polling continued in certain booths even after the end of voting time at 6 pm, an official said. There was no major law and order issue and the voting was peaceful in the Left Wing Extremism hit places like Swabhiman Anchal (earlier known as cut off area) in Malkangiri district and Sunabeda sanctuary area in Nuapada district. The polling officials and election equipment were airdropped in Nuapada in view of the situation there, a senior official said. Chief Electoral Officer Nikunja Bhiari Dhal said that EVM glitches were detected in several places and the machines were replaced within 30 minutes. "People of Kotia area under Koraput LS seat also participated in large numbers," Dhal said. Kotia area is located bordering Andhra Pradesh. The CEO also said that the Election Commission received reports of poll boycott from some places over local issues. "We have directed the Ganjam collector to suspend presiding officers of three polling booths and arrest two of them for serious dereliction of duty," Dhal said. Meanwhile, both the ruling BJD and the opposition BJP have claimed that they performed exceptionally well in the first phase of the elections. We will win all the four LS seats and 90 per cent of the 28 assembly segments, BJD leader Amar Patnaik said in a press conference. BJP Odisha unit president Manmohan Samal also made a similar claim and said that the party candidates will spring surprise in the first phase of elections. Of the four LS seats, Berhampur and Nabarangpur are held by the BJD, while Kalanhandi and Koraput are held by the BJP and the Congress respectively. Of the 28 Assembly segments, the BJD had secured 20 seats followed by BJP (Four), Congress (three) while one seat was won by an Independent candidate in 2019 elections. Altogether 17,000 security personnel including 104 companies of central forces were deployed for the elections. Srinagar, May 13 (PTI) Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and the political parties on Monday congratulated the people of Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency on the "historic" voter turnout. The Srinagar constituency witnessed 37.93 per cent voting in the first Lok Sabha election in the Valley since the scrapping of Article 370, with the Election Commission (EC) stating that it was the "highest turnout in decades". "Today, people came out in large numbers to cast their votes in Srinagar Parliamentary Constituency and reaffirmed their faith in democracy and the constitution. I commend the hard work by all the stakeholders for free, fair, peaceful and smooth conduct of the polling," the LG said in a post on X. Sinha said it is heartening to see the huge surge in the voting percentage in the biggest festival of democracy. "I truly appreciate the enthusiasm of electors and hopeful to see historic turnout in the next two phases. I appeal to all to vote without fear and vote with responsibility and pride," he added. National Conference (NC) candidate from Srinagar, Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi, said he was humbled by the turnout. "Thank you Srinagar, Pulwama, Gandarbal and Budgam. Really humbled by the numbers in which you have spoken. Last but not the least, thank you so much Shopian," he said on X. Apni Party president Altaf Bukhari hailed the people for a "historic participation". "Gratitude overflows to the voters of Srinagar parliamentary seat for their historic participation, a testament to the resilience of democracy. Heartfelt thanks to the Election Commission of India, UT administration of J&K and all those involved for ensuring a smooth and hassle-free process throughout the day," he said. Bukhari said kudos to Apni Party leaders, workers and well-wishers also for their tireless efforts to mobilize the voters. "Due thanks also to the Chief Electoral Officer, J&K for ensuring transparent and smooth conduct of the process. This monumental turnout reflects a renewed faith in the democratic process. Let's cherish this win-win situation for our country's democratic ethos," he said. Hyderabad, May 13 (PTI) Former Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, BJP chief in Telangana G Kishan Reddy, AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi, popular Telugu actors Chiranjeevi, Allu Arjun and Junior NTR were among the prominent persons who exercised their franchise in the Lok Sabha elections in Telangana on Monday. Venkaiah Naidu, along with his wife, voted at a polling station in Jubilee Hills here. He appealed to citizens to cast their votes. Kishan Reddy, who cast his vote at Kachiguda here, appealed to the electorate to turn up in large numbers to exercise their franchise. Prime Minister Narendra Modi says that the election is a festival of democracy and all voters should take part in it, Kishan Reddy said. The polling day should not be treated as a holiday, Kishan Reddy said. Asked by a reporter for his response on the comment that 'there is no alternative to Modi', Owaisi said the country is bigger than politicians. Owaisi is seeking re-election from the party's bastion- Hyderabad- and is pitted against BJP's K Madhavi Latha, a political novice, who ran a spirited campaign. Allu Arjun (of 'Pushpa' fame) also urged the electors to exercise their franchise. Junior NTR, a grandson of the legendary N T Rama Rao, also cast his vote. As many as 625 candidates, including Union Minister and Telangana BJP chief Kishan Reddy, the party national general secretary Bandi Sanjay Kumar and senior leader Etala Rajender are among the BJP's candidates while the Congress has fielded among others, BRS turncoats Danam Nagender and K Kavya. Mumbai, May 13 (PTI) The Bombay High Court on Monday permitted a 12-year-old rape survivor to terminate her pregnancy, noting that her welfare and safety was of paramount importance. A vacation bench of Justices Sandeep Marne and Neela Gokhale perused the report submitted by the medical board recommending termination of the 25-week pregnancy. "Bearing in mind the exigencies of the situation, the welfare of the minor, which is of paramount importance and her safety," the bench said. The girl was allegedly raped by her 14-year-old brother, and a case has been registered against him, as per the plea filed by the girl's mother in the high court. Earlier this month, the girl complained of stomach ache to her mother, and when she was taken to the hospital, the pregnancy came to light. The girl then revealed that her elder brother would forcefully establish a physical relationship with her when no one was at home. He also threatened her with dire consequences. On the mother's complaint, an FIR was registered under the Indian Penal Code and Protection of Children Against Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act against the son, and he was sent to a juvenile home. The bench, in its order, said the girl was unaware of the fact that she was pregnant until a very late stage. "The medical board has clearly opined that the pregnancy will have grievous injury to the mental and physical health of the patient if continued," it said. The bench said that after the termination procedure, the hospital shall provide the girl counselling. It also directed the hospital authorities to preserve the appropriate tissue sample of the foetus and DNA sample and forward these to the investigating officer for the ensuing criminal trial. Thiruvananthapuram, May 13 (PTI) In light of incidents of bird flu cases in Alappuzha and Pathanamthitta districts, the Kerala government on Monday directed the authorities there to step up efforts to bring the situation under control. State Animal Husbandry Minister J Chinchu Rani chaired a high-level meeting to assess the situation in various poultry and duck farms in the above districts, as well as those under the department. The minister convened the meeting following the outbreak of avian influenza reported from the Government Duck Breeding Centre at Niranam in Pathanamthitta. An official release stated that 4,081 ducks would be culled at the Niranam Government Duck Breeding Centre starting Tuesday. After the suspicious deaths of ducks at the farm, a sample test at the High Security Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory in Bhopal confirmed bird flu. Approximately six rapid action teams have been deployed at the farm. "The minister has also directed the district collectors of Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, and Kottayam to take steps to bring the bird flu under control," the statement said. Given recent reports of the avian influenza virus in cattle in the United States, field-level officials of the Department of Animal Welfare have been directed to conduct intensive inspections and observations in farms and agro-cattle enterprises, it added. Viewed of Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading. The judicial branch is once again in danger of bending and breaking. Political parties have adopted strategies that involve trying to weaponize the judiciary, and some would suggest that those strategies are working. It is not being done covertly or on the sly. It is open and obvious and even becoming regular fodder during campaign speeches. This is not a novel approach, nor is it a new problem. Various efforts and battles to control the judiciary have been waged for centuries. As the finishing touches were being placed on this column, a proposal to impose term limits on the justices of the United States Supreme Court was pending in Congress. This is in addition to other proposals under consideration to increase the number of justices and other attempts to create more balance on the high court. This author respectfully submits that the judiciary should remain fiercely independent and apolitical, particularly when the country seems sharply divided down political fault lines and our democracy is feeling tremors in its very foundation. It is time for the judiciary to reassert its independence and maintain its integrity. As a sitting judge, I am not naive nor arrogant enough to suggest that judges and judicial candidates are above the traditional political fray. All elected officials must engage in the process to at least some degree. But as extreme and divisive as our national politics have become, history has apparently taught us nothing. As judges, we are certainly not better or more important than anyone else, and we are by no means superior to the two other branches of government. But we are different from the other two branches in an increasingly important aspect. With a few notable exceptions and the caveat and acknowledgement that politics has always played at least some part in the judicial branch, we have been traditionally and historically non-partisan in carrying out our constitutional responsibilities. At a minimum, it is what good jurists have always striven for despite political parties vying for power in the hopes that they will be able to put their stamp on history by appointing judges that presumably share their political views. The judicial confirmation process itself has become a charade, forcing potential judicial appointees to tie themselves in knots in an effort to avoid providing any semblance of an answer to pointed questions. But as the late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg pointed out, [A] judge sworn to decide impartially can offer no forecasts, no hints, for that would show not only disregard for the specifics of the particular case, it would display disdain for the entire judicial process.1 On state and local levels, judicial positions have similarly been politicized. The Judicial Tenure Commission is regularly confronted with questions as to whether judges or judicial candidates have crossed ethical boundaries by attending political functions, endorsing political candidates, or engaging in overtly political conduct while seeking judicial office. Each election cycle, the conduct seems bolder and more egregious, which leads one to believe that the distinction and proud heritage of the judiciary is being eroded by wave after wave of political gamesmanship. As we have all witnessed, it is not uncommon for judges to be publicly criticized by political figures if a particular ruling does not go their way. Some politicians and commentators even presume that a conservative or liberal judge will rule in their favor based on the judges presumptive party affiliation or judicial philosophy. Sadly, they have frequently lost sight of the individual functions and responsibilities of our three branches of government. The lines should not and must not be blurred. It has become clear that some politicians view the judiciary simply as a means to support their political agendas. However, instead of being pawns in a political game, the judiciary needs to diligently maintain its independence. Judges are guided and bound by the Constitution and established canons, laws, and precedent. They are not beholden to the powers that appointed them or helped them attain office. Nowhere in the judicial oath is it mentioned that we swear to uphold the agenda of the political party that nominates or supports us. We should cast aside with aspersions anyone trying to be a judicial Geppetto. Furthermore, judges or judicial candidates wanting to wrap themselves in a cloak of a political party to gain office or march in lockstep with a political partys agenda regardless of the law are committing a tremendous injustice with ramifications that affect the integrity of the entire judiciary. These are quintessential leaves that need to be promptly and vigorously shaken from the judicial branch. Instead, learned judges should carefully weigh facts and evidence and evenly, fairly, and objectively apply the law. Case outcomes are ideally dictated by the careful consideration and adherence to this procedural protocol. There is always room for respectful debate and countless variations of judicial philosophies. But the crux of a healthy and independent judiciary harkens back to the Constitution it is a judges guiding light and as stable as the Rock of Gibraltar. Regardless of whether an outcome personally appeals to a judge or to the public, and regardless of whether it aligns with our personal or political beliefs, our oath and our duty is to uphold the Constitution and our laws. U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts has recognized this very principle: Judges have to have the humility to recognize that they operate within a system of precedent, shaped by other judges equally striving to live up to the judicial oath.2 The Michigan Code of Judicial Conduct is specific and instructive when it comes to the topic of judges, independence, and political activity. In fact, Judicial Canon 1 is entitled, A Judge should Uphold the Integrity and Independence of the Judiciary. It is unlikely a mere coincidence that the drafters of the judicial canons reference the importance of judicial independence right out of the gate. Canon 1 goes on to state that an independent and honorable judiciary is indispensable to justice in our society. A judge should participate in establishing, maintaining, and enforcing, and should personally observe, high standards of conduct so that the integrity and independence of the judiciary may be preserved. A judge should always be aware that the judicial system is for the benefit of the litigant and the public, not the judiciary. Judicial Canon 2(F) states that a judge should not allow activity as a member of an organization to cast doubt on the judges ability to perform the function of the office in a manner consistent with the Michigan Code of Judicial Conduct, the laws of this state, and the Michigan and United States Constitutions. It is also made clear in Judicial Canon 5 that several of the regulatory canons apply to judicial candidates as well as current judges. They are equally subject to discipline for judicial campaign misconduct. Judicial Canon 3(A)(1) goes on to say that a judge should be faithful to the law and maintain professional competence in it. A judge should be unswayed by partisan interests, public clamor, or fear of criticism. Judicial Canon 7 further discusses political activity by judges and judicial candidates. Judicial Canon 7(A)(1) indicates that a judge or candidate for judicial office should not: (a) hold any office in a political party; (b) make speeches on behalf of a political party or nonjudicial candidate or publicly endorse a candidate for nonjudicial office. Judicial Canon 7(A)(2) allows for only limited political activity, including (a) attend[ing] political gatherings; (b) speak[ing] to such gatherings on the judges own behalf or on behalf of other judicial candidates; and (c) contribut[ing] to a political party. It is clear that the drafters of the Michigan judicial canons wanted to ensure that judges and judicial candidates were not engaging in overtly partisan politics. But trying to limit political operatives is a different type of challenge that roughly equates to pouring sand into a colander. One frequent concern is a political party or partisan candidate campaigning on behalf of a judge, including them on partisan literature, or otherwise claiming or alluding to the judge or candidate as a member of their tribe. While it is certainly possible to hold judges and judicial candidates accountable, it is much more difficult keeping the politicians and political forces at bay. For a variety of reasons, it may be mutually beneficial to attach themselves at the hip. It is therefore incumbent on those individuals running for judicial office to ensure that the ethical line is not crossed. Unfortunately, in some instances, this is akin to asking the fox to guard the henhouse. To be clear, this author is not entirely cynical, skeptical, and pessimistic. We are fortunate to have a significant majority of Michigan judges who adhere to the basic judicial philosophy that is lauded by this article. For example, a recent examination of the 2019-2020 session of the Michigan Supreme Court showed that nearly 67% of the courts 48 cases resulted in unanimous opinions. Only 33% of the decisions were split and of those split decisions, only two were decided along party lines.3 A similar look at the Michigan Supreme Court 2021-22 session showed that just 13% of decisions fell upon party lines.4 Perhaps there is some irony at play, as our Michigan Supreme Court judges are nominated by political parties. However, this is an encouraging example of how judges can simultaneously be thoughtful, independent, considerate, respectful, and collegial. And while it is important for judges to break free from the reigns of a political party, it is equally important for political parties to understand and respect that judicial officers are not their means to an end. It may also be an appropriate time to reexamine the methods by which we appoint and nominate our Michigan Supreme Court justices. If meaningful reform is to be accomplished, it makes sense to start at the top. The current process has become extremely political and is antithetical to a truly independent judiciary being appointed or nominated. Nonpartisan candidates are effectively forced to choose a side. The process seems awkward, exclusive, and disingenuous in many respects. Perhaps it is time to consider a bipartisan screening commission that serves as a gatekeeper for those seeking appointment or to those party nominees that ultimately appear on the ballot if the current nomination process is left intact. A threshold level of qualifications, experience, and ethical integrity could be established by the commission as a prerequisite for consideration. And while candidates who failed to meet the developed and agreed-upon criteria would not be eligible for appointment or nomination, they would, of course, remain free to run for election. A reasonable set of reforms to the existing process would ensure that only well-qualified candidates are ultimately considered for appointment or nomination. This would be a step in the right direction toward a judiciary that remains truly independent and highly qualified. I am not trying to insinuate that unqualified candidates have ascended to the upper echelons of our courts on the wings of politicians, but it would certainly make sense to reduce this possibility with appropriate reforms and logically extend those reforms to the trial courts. It is reasonable to believe that some judicial candidates have obtained office (or at least increased their chances) by pandering to the powers that be, and that is unfortunate. The money train often accompanies political endorsements, and it is increasingly difficult to mount a serious campaign without sufficient financial resources. And for some, the lure of the lucre compels them to try and hitch their horse to a political wagon. Hopefully with additional training and education, they will soon realize that the calling of being a judge involves something far greater than adhering to a political agenda, keeping supporters satisfied, and obtaining or retaining judicial office. In conclusion, it is important to remain vigilant in these turbulent political times. The judiciary needs to be solid and steadfast in the political seas that swirl around us. By remaining independent, we can successfully navigate a course between the Scylla and Charybdis. And despite the temptations, judges and judicial candidates cannot allow themselves to be drawn into the political morass. It is respectfully submitted that if the judicial branch becomes as political as the other two branches of government, our entire system of checks and balances is in peril. We need to protect the foundation of government and remove the judicial branch from partisan politics to the greatest extent possible. The constant attacks upon judicial independence are slowly, but surely, damaging the walls of the institution. Perhaps it is time to shore up the foundation. Donald Trump is known for leveling constant and often personal attacks on top rivals such as Joe Biden. Lately, hes increasingly taking that same approach against independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Among the recent jabs, Trump this past week posted a roughly four-minute video online in which he called Kennedy fake, a Democrat Plant and Radical Left Liberal whos been put in place to help the Democratic president. Trump railed against Kennedys family as a bunch of lunatics. He is not a Republican so dont think youre going to vote for him and feel good, the former president and presumptive Republican nominee told supporters in the Truth Social post. Directing such fierce attacks at Kennedy may signal concern from Trump and his campaign about the independents bid in whats expected to be a tight November election, when a third-party hopeful siphoning even a small amount of support could sink one of the major candidates. Six months out from an Election Day in which many Americans have voiced their dissatisfaction at a rematch between Trump and Biden, Kennedy has been offering himself as an alternative. Some of the issues Kennedy focuses on stalwart support for Israel and criticism over COVID-19 lockdowns could appeal more to conservative voters than Democrats. Polls at this point show far more Republicans than Democrats have a favorable opinion of Kennedy, although many Americans dont know who he is. A February Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll found that about half of Republicans, 53%, had a favorable view of him, compared with 30% of Democrats. About one-quarter in each case said they didnt know enough about Kennedy to say. Kennedys campaign argues that he threatens both Trump and Biden, who boasts support from several members of Kennedys own family and called the endorsements an incredible honor. The president has largely ignored Kennedy, who previously challenged him for the Democratic nomination before launching an independent bid. Kennedy has gone after Trump as well, challenging him to a debate when both men speak on separate days at the Libertarian Party convention later this month. Kennedy claims Trumps backers are wavering in their support. But Kennedy faces steep challenges. As an independent candidate, his name appearing on ballots isnt automatic. He has had to work to secure ballot access across the 50 states, a process that Kennedy has said will be completed by this summer. According to his campaign, he has achieved that marker in five states California, Delaware, Michigan, Oklahoma and Utah with enough signatures collected for eight others. Officials havent verified those numbers in some states. Kennedy has argued that his fairly strong showing in a few national polls gives him a reason to consider himself competitive, though horse-race polls are generally unreliable this far out from an election. This isnt a new trend for third-party candidates in presidential elections. During the 2016 campaign, early national polls showed libertarian Gary Johnsons support in the high single or low double digits; he ultimately received only about 3% of the popular vote. Supporters flocking to Kennedys events, including a recent comedy showcase in a Detroit suburb, describe themselves as coming from across the political spectrum, from those who traditionally back third-party presidential efforts to disaffected Democratic and Republican voters. That included those who have previously backed both Biden and Trump, but are either jaded by or unenthusiastic about them now. Ben Carter, a registered nurse from White Lake, Michigan, said that he supported Trump in 2016 but couldnt do it again, opting for Biden four years later. This year, Carter said he admired Kennedys willingness to take on difficult topics, seeing the independent candidate as willing to voice unpopular opinions but doing so in a way more palatable than Trump. I just dont hear Kennedy going out, lying about things. Trump, he just stands up in front of the camera and baldfaced lies about stuff that we know are true, Carter said. He has his opinions that you might not agree with, but I havent seen him stand up in front of a crowd and just lie to people. Trumps supporters admit they are curious about Kennedys bid, even if they remain fiercely loyal to Trump. Hes super interesting, Kim Hanson, a financial consultant from Hartford, Wisconsin, said on the sidelines of Trumps recent rally in Waukesha, Wisconsin. I love hearing from him. But Hanson, a Trump supporter, said she worried that the novelty appeal of voting for Kennedy could detract from Trumps support. I am concerned about people voting for people they think arent going to get in, and they arent voting for Trump, she said. There are some issue areas where Kennedy and Trump seem aligned. Like Trump, Kennedy has been a fierce defender of Israel in its war with Hamas. In April, he suggested that the prosecution of rioters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, might be politically motivated, partly aligning himself with the false portrayal being pushed by Trump and his allies. Kennedy levied some criticism on Trump, saying the attack on the Capitol happened with Trumps encouragement and in the context of his delusion that the election was stolen from him. But Kennedy also said that as president, he would appoint a special counsel to examine whether Trump allies were unfairly singled out for prosecution. Kennedy has also blamed Trump for economic damage to the middle class. Kennedy called pandemic-era lockdowns the worst thing that he did to this country, while acknowledging in that same speech that Trump gets blamed for a lot of things that he didnt do. Like Trump, Kennedy a lifelong Catholic who has described himself as pro-choice has taken conflicting stands on abortion. He supported, then retreated, from the idea of a 15-week federal abortion ban, but says he disagrees with Trump that the matter should be left to state governments. Bernard Tamas, a Valdosta State University professor who studies third-party presidential campaigns, pointed out that Kennedys policy positions, such as his vaccine skepticism and adamant support of Israel in the war with Hamas, are more likely to appeal to conservative voters, an apparent threat to Trump at this stage. It is quite possible that RFK will damage Trump more (than Biden), especially since there is unlikely to be any other moderate independent candidate for the never-Trumpers to vote for, Tamas said. Tamas said that even single-digit support for Kennedy could affect the general election outcome. Losing even a small percent of votes to candidates like RFK Jr. could easily flip the election from one major party candidate to the other, Tamas said. Brian Schimming, chair of the Wisconsin Republican Party, said he expects Kennedy to draw support away from Trump and Biden, perhaps from Trump earlier in the campaign but more from Biden down the stretch. He said Republicans have greater enthusiasm for the former president than Democrats do for the incumbent. But what does an incidental voter, or a voter who says to themselves consciously that they dont feel strongly enough about either of these candidates, do? said Schimming, a veteran Republican operative in Wisconsin. In the end, they peel off votes from the weaker candidate because theyre dissatisfied, who in my mind is Biden. Desiree Sherdin, a small business owner from Germantown, Wisconsin, said at Trumps rally in her state that Kennedys views tend to go left of her preference even though she agreed with his skepticism of vaccines. She said she was sticking with Trump, and imagined many others would, too. People who are loyal to Trump are fiercely loyal, she said. (AP) Former President Donald Trump urged President Joe Biden and the Democratic National Committee (DNC) to return donations from the antisemites and financiers of chaos supporting and funding anti-Israel protests on college campuses. Trump made the demand during a rally in Wildwood, New Jersey, on Saturday. According to research by NGO Monitor and other organizations, prominent donors to Biden and the DNC, such as George Soros Open Society Foundations, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, and the Tides Center, have also funded groups involved in pro-Palestinian campus protests. Trump emphasized that these donors have raised plenty of money and called on Biden and the DNC to return the donations from these individuals and organizations. Trump also vowed to take action against violent radicals and those promoting jihadism, anti-Americanism, or antisemitism on campuses if he becomes president again, stating, We will immediately deport you. Youll be out of that school. Notably, the Biden administration has not launched an investigation into the reported civil rights abuses and antisemitic attacks against Jewish students and others on campuses related to the protests. During the rally, Trump also expressed support for Israels efforts to combat Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip, contrasting with Bidens recent statement that he would withhold weapons and artillery if Israel invades Rafah, Hamas last stronghold. (YWN World Headquarters NYC) British intelligence has uncovered a sinister plot by Russia to recruit and deploy extremists in the UK, NATO countries, and even the US to carry out isolated attacks. The Russian intelligence agency GRU and the mercenary Wagner Group are allegedly behind the scheme, which aims to roil anti-NATO, pro-Russian, and pro-Vladimir Putin unrest amid the ongoing war in Ukraine. A source told The Telegraph: The GRU are cultivating a network of right-wing terrorists to deploy against NATO targets These attacks are already happening and have been going on for a while in various NATO countries, and the UK is definitely on the target list. Attacks may have taken place in the U.S. and have occurred in Germany, the source added. Intelligence agencies are now actively warning their governments that the threat is very real, the source continued. Right-wing extremists are being targeted because they are the group in the political spectrum who are pro-Russia, pro-Putin and very violent. There is also a lot of covert contact between right-wing groups in different countries. Britain last week expelled Col. Maxim Elovik, a Russian intelligence agent with the GRU, and Germany is on high alert, with its spy chief Thomas Haldenwang warning of a significantly increased risk of Russian state-controlled acts of sabotage. Experts believe Putins clandestine proxy effort is a pushback against Western pressure. We should not be surprised by a pushback, said Mayak Intelligence Director Mark Galeotti. As far as Putin is concerned, Ukraine does what it is told When he sees Russian factories being attacked, he sees the hands of the CIA, of NATO. Britain remains on high alert, with a government spokesman saying, The government actively deters and defends against the full spectrum of threats emanating from Russia, working in partnership with our allies We recently announced that we are expelling the Russian defense attache and are removing the diplomatic status from several Russian premises as part of a package to tighten defenses against malign activity by Russia across the UK and Europe. (YWN World Headquarters NYC) Russias President Vladimir Putin began a Cabinet shakeup on Sunday, proposing the replacement of Sergei Shoigu as defense minister as he begins his fifth term in office. In line with Russian law, the entire Russian Cabinet resigned on Tuesday following Putins glittering inauguration in the Kremlin, and most members have been widely expected to keep their jobs, while Shoigus fate appeared uncertain. Putin signed a decree on Sunday appointing Shoigu as secretary of Russias national security council, the Kremlin said. The appointment was announced shortly after Putin proposed Andrei Belousov to become the countrys defense minister in place of Shoigu. Belousovs candidacy will need to be approved by Russias upper house in parliament, the Federation Council. It reported Sunday that Putin introduced proposals for other Cabinet positions as well but Shoigu was is the only minister on that list who is being replaced. Several other new candidates for federal ministers were proposed Saturday by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, reappointed by Putin on Friday. Shoigus deputy Timur Ivanov was arrested last month on bribery charges and was ordered to remain in custody pending an official investigation. The arrest of Ivanov was widely interpreted as an attack on Shoigu and a possible precursor of his dismissal, despite his close personal ties with Putin. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Sunday that Putin had decided to give the defense minister role to a civilian because the ministry should be open to innovation and cutting-edge ideas and Belousov, who until recently served as the first deputy prime minister, is the right fit for the job. Tatiana Stanovaya, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, said in an online commentary that Shoigus new appointment to Russias Security Council showed that the Russian leader viewed the institution as a political holding space. Figures such as former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev have also been appointed to the security council: Medvedev has served as the bodys deputy chairman since 2020. The Security Council is becoming a reservoir for Putins former key figures people who he cant let go, but doesnt have a place for, Stanovaya wrote on social media. The announcement of Shoigus new role came as 12 people were reported dead and 20 more wounded in Russias border city of Belgorod, where a section of a residential building collapsed after what Russian officials said was Ukrainian shelling. In Ukraine, thousands more civilians have fled Russias renewed ground offensive in Ukraines northeast that has targeted towns and villages with a barrage of artillery and mortar shelling, officials said Sunday. The intense battles have forced at least one Ukrainian unit to withdraw in the Kharkiv region, capitulating more land to Russian forces across less defended settlements in the so-called contested gray zone along the Russian border. By Sunday afternoon, the town of Vovchansk, among the largest in the northeast with a prewar population of 17,000, emerged as a focal point in the battle. Volodymyr Tymoshko, the head of the Kharkiv regional police, said that Russian forces were on the outskirts of the town and approaching from three directions. Infantry fighting is already taking place, he said. A Russian tank was spotted along a major road leading to the town, Tymoshko said, illustrating Moscows confidence to deploy heavy weaponry. An Associated Press team, positioned in a nearby village, saw plumes of smoke rising from the town as Russian forces hurled shells. Evacuation teams worked nonstop throughout the day to take residents, most of whom were older, out of harms way. At least 4,000 civilians have fled the Kharkiv region since Friday, when Moscows forces launched the operation, Gov. Oleh Syniehubov said in a social media statement. Heavy fighting raged Sunday along the northeast front line, where Russian forces attacked 27 settlements in the past 24 hours, he said. Analysts say the Russian push is designed to exploit ammunition shortages before promised Western supplies can reach the front line. Ukrainian soldiers said that the Kremlin is using the usual Russian tactic of launching a disproportionate amount of fire and infantry assaults to exhaust their troops and firepower. By intensifying battles in what was previously a static patch of the front line, Russian forces threaten to pin down Ukrainian forces in the northeast, while carrying out intense battles farther south where Moscow is also gaining ground. It comes after Russia stepped up attacks in March targeting energy infrastructure and settlements, which analysts predicted were a concerted effort to shape conditions for an offensive. Meanwhile, a 10-story apartment building partially collapsed in Belgorod near the border, killing at least 12 people and injuring 20 others. Russian authorities said the building collapsed following Ukrainian shelling. Ukraine hasnt commented on the incident. The Russian Defense Ministry said Sunday that its forces had captured four villages on the border along Ukraines Kharkiv region, in addition to five villages reported to have been seized on Saturday. These areas were likely poorly fortified because of the dynamic fighting and constant heavy shelling, easing a Russian advance. Ukraines leadership hasnt confirmed Moscows gains. But Tymoshko, the head of the Kharkiv regional police, said that Strilecha, Pylna and Borsivika were under Russian occupation, and it was from their direction they were bringing in infantry to stage attacks in other embattled villages of Hlyboke and Lukiantsi. (AP) Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has come under criticism from a fellow Democrat, Senator Chris Van Hollen, for her recent comments blasting anti-Israel student protesters as ignorant about Middle Eastern affairs. They dont know very much at all about the history of the Middle East, or, frankly, about history in many areas of the world, including our own country, Clinton said. She also referenced an offer made by her husband, former President Bill Clinton, to then-Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, highlighting the proposed 96% territorial compromise. They dont know thatan offer was made to Palestinians for a state on 96% of the existing territory occupied by the Palestinians, Clinton said, with 4% of Israel to be given to reach 100% of the amount of territory that was hoped for. Senator Van Hollen has responded by accusing Clinton of being quite dismissive of students concerns. Cry more, Van Hollen. (YWN World Headquarters NYC) It was 7 a.m. on a recent Friday when Wang Gang, a 36-year-old Chinese immigrant, jostled for a day job in New York Citys Flushing neighborhood. When a potential employer pulled up near the street corner, home to a Chinese bakery and pharmacy, Wang and dozens of other men swarmed around the car. They were hoping to be picked for work on a construction site, at a farm, as a mover anything that would pay. Wang had no luck, even as he waited for two more hours. It would be another day without a job since he crossed the southern U.S. border illegally in February, seeking better financial prospects than he had in his hometown of Wuhan, China. The daily struggle of Chinese immigrants in Flushing is a far cry from the picture former President Donald Trump and other Republicans have sought to paint of them as a coordinated group of military-age men who have come to the United States to build an army and attack America. Since the start of the year, as the Chinese newcomers have been trying to find their footing in the U.S., Trump has alluded to fighting-age or military-age Chinese men at least six times and suggested at least twice that they were forming a migrant army. Its a talking point that is being amplified in conservative media and on social platforms. Theyre coming in from China 31, 32,000 over the last few months and theyre all military age and they mostly are men, Trump said during a campaign rally last month in Schnecksville, Pennsylvania. And it sounds like to me, are they trying to build a little army in our country? Is that what theyre trying to do? As Trump and others exploit a surge in Chinese border crossings and real concerns about Chinas geopolitical threat to further their political aims, Asian advocacy organizations worry the rhetoric could encourage further harassment and violence toward the Asian community. Asian people in the U.S. already experienced a spike in hate incidents fueled by xenophobic rhetoric during the COVID-19 pandemic. Trumps dehumanizing rhetoric and blatant attacks against immigrant communities will, without question, only fuel more hate against not only Chinese immigrants but all Asian Americans in the U.S., Cynthia Choi, co-founder of Stop AAPI Hate and co-executive director of Chinese for Affirmative Action, said in a statement to The Associated Press. In the midst of an already inflamed political climate and election year, we know all too well how harmful such rhetoric can be. Gregg Orton, national director of the National Council of Asian Pacific Americans, said many Asian American communities remain gripped by fear and that some Asians still feel uncomfortable about taking public transportation. To know that we might be staring down another round of that, its pretty sobering, he said. THIS TRIP IS DEADLY Wang, who traveled several weeks from Ecuador to the southern U.S. border, then spent 48 hours in an immigration detention facility before heading to Flushing, said the idea that Chinese migrants were building a military does not exist among the immigrants he has met. It is impossible that they would walk on foot for over one month for that purpose, he said. We came here to make money. Immigrants who spoke to the AP in Flushing, a densely populated Chinese cultural enclave in Queens, said they came to the U.S. to escape poverty and financial losses from Chinas strict lockdown during the pandemic, or to escape the threat of imprisonment in a repressive society where they couldnt speak or exercise their religion freely. Many said they continue to struggle to get by. Life in the U.S. is not what they had imagined. Since late 2022 when Chinas three-year COVID-19 lockdown began to lift the U.S. has seen a sharp rise in the number of Chinese migrants. In 2023, U.S. authorities arrested more than 37,000 Chinese nationals at the U.S.-Mexico border, more than 10 times the previous years number. In December alone, border officials arrested 5,951 Chinese nationals on the southern border, a record monthly high, before the number trended down during the first three months of this year. The U.S. and China just recently began cooperating again to deport Chinese immigrants who were in the country illegally. Yet with tens of thousands of Chinese newcomers who have crossed into the U.S. illegally, there has been no evidence that they have tried to mount a military force or training network. Its true that the bulk of those who have come are single adults, according to federal data. While the data doesnt include gender, there are more men than women on the perilous route, which typically involves catching a flight to South America and then making the long, arduous trek north to the U.S. border. Chinese immigrants in Flushing said one reason men may be coming alone in higher numbers is the expense often more than $10,000 per person to cover airfare, lodging, payments to local guides and bribes to police in countries along their journey. Another could be Chinas longtime family planning policy that skewered the gender ratio toward males. Theres also the danger, said a 35-year-old Chinese man who only gave his family name of Yin because he was concerned about the safety of his wife and children, who remain in China. He had arrived in Flushing in late April, five weeks after he left the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen. He had traveled through Panamas dangerous Darien Gap jungle and across Mexico. Signs of the journey were still fresh: His hair was messy, skin tanned with fine wrinkles, and his cardigan, once white, had not been washed for weeks. This trip is deadly. People die. The trip isnt suitable for women its not suitable for anyone, said Yin. He said that as the breadwinner, he came alone, with the hope his family could join him later. CHASING A BETTER LIFE While some in China have chosen to leave through investment schemes or talent programs in developed nations, those without resources set off for Latin America after learning from social media posts about the journey north. Upon arriving, most of them fan out to large cities such as Los Angeles, Chicago and New York with well-established Chinese communities, where they hope to get work and start a new life. Immigrants who arrived in Flushing said they came to America to escape China, not to fight on its behalf. Thirty-six-year-old Chen Wang, from the southeastern Chinese province of Fujian, said he decided to come to the U.S. in late 2021 after he posted comments critical of the ruling party on Twitter. He was admonished by local police. I feared that I could be locked up, so I came to America, Chen said. More than two years later, he is still unemployed and lives in a tent in the woods that he has made into a home. He built a fence from dead branches and dug a ditch so he could hand-wash his laundry and wash himself. He said life in the U.S. has fallen short of his expectations, but he hopes someday to get legal status so he can travel freely around the world and live a simple life in a self-built cabin. Chen, who served briefly in the Chinese military two decades ago, said he mostly encountered people from the bottom of Chinese society during his trek through Central America. He met no one else who had served in the Chinese military and described his fellow Chinese on the journey as simply people chasing a better life. LONG HISTORY OF ASIAN STEREOTYPES To be sure, U.S. intelligence leaders have grave concerns about the threat Chinas authoritarian government poses to the country through its espionage, military capabilities and more. There also have been crimes committed by Chinese immigrants, including the arrest in March of a Chinese national breaching a military base in California, but there has been no evidence to support the assertion that migrants from China are coming to the U.S. to fight Americans. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell called the Chinese nationals economic migrants during an April town hall meeting hosted by the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations. China has said it strongly opposes illegal immigration, and police there have arrested some who have tried to leave. Social media posts that offer advice and guides to come to the U.S. illegally have been censored in China. Instead, there are posts warning about dangers along the way and racial discrimination in the U.S. Chinas foreign ministry told the AP that Trumps claims of a Chinese migrant army were an egregious mismatch of the facts. The Department of Homeland Security didnt respond to requests for comment. Steven Cheung, communications director for the Trump campaign, said in an emailed statement that every American should be concerned about military-age Chinese men crossing into the U.S. These individuals have not been vetted or screened, and we have no idea who they are affiliated with or what their intention is, Cheung said. This sets a dangerous precedent for bad actors and potentially nefarious individuals to exploit Joe Bidens porous border to send countless military-aged men into the United States completely unfettered. The army-building narrative has been shared by many other conservatives. They are fighting-age males, primarily single, and you know, this isnt a coincidence, Republican Rep. Mike Garcia of California said during a Fox Business interview last month, nodding when host Maria Bartiromo suggested the immigrants could later be used as saboteurs if Chinese President Xi Jinping directs that. Sapna Cheryan, a psychology professor at the University of Washington, said the claims about Chinese migrants made without evidence build on a long history of pervasive stereotypes that Asian people do not belong in the country, ideas that have fueled acts of violence against Asian Americans. If that rhetoric is happening again, one thing we might be able to predict is, well, people will probably take that and feel emboldened to engage in these heinous acts, she said. Li Kai, also known as Khaled, a 44-year-old Muslim from Tangshan in the northern Hebei province, a city close to Beijing, said he was worried about Trumps statements regarding illegal immigration and Muslims, but said he has no choice other than to make his new life in the U.S. work. He was one of the few who made the trip with his family. He shares a bunk bed and sofa with his wife and two sons in a temporary home in Flushing where he has placed an American flag on the wall. Li said they fled China last year, after he participated in a gathering over the future of a local mosque that was broken up by riot police and he feared his own arrest. He chose the U.S. because it is a free society, where his children have learned to recite from the Quran. He said the migrants he encountered on his journey all left China for the U.S. to try to improve their prospects in life, and he was grateful for that opportunity. When his sons are at school, he studies for a commercial drivers license and then hopes to find a job and start paying taxes. Now that I have brought my family here, I want to have a stable life here, he said. I would like to pay back. (AP) Donald Trumps fixer-turned-foe, Michael Cohen, characterized his celebrity client as a hands-on manager and said he sometimes lied for him and bullied others on his behalf during highly anticipated testimony Monday in the former presidents hush money trial. Cohen, Trumps former lawyer and by far the Manhattan district attorneys most important witness in the case, took the stand in an appearance that signals that the first criminal trial of a former American president is entering its final stretch. Prosecutors say they may wrap up their presentation of evidence by the end of the week. The testimony of a witness with such intimate knowledge of Trumps activities could heighten the legal exposure of the presumptive Republican presidential nominee if jurors deem him sufficiently credible. But politically, Trump is likely to seize on prosecutors reliance on a witness with such a checkered past Cohen pleaded guilty to federal charges related to the payments and to lying to Congress as he raises money off his legal woes and paints the case as the product of a tainted criminal justice system. Cohen is expected to testify about his role in arranging hush money payments on Trumps behalf during his first presidential campaign, including to a woman who told jurors last week that the $130,000 that she received in 2016 was meant to prevent her from going public about an encounter she says she had with Trump a decade earlier. He also matters because the reimbursements he received form the basis of the charges against Trump 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. Prosecutors say the reimbursements were logged as legal expenses to conceal the payments true purpose in what they allege was an effort to illegally interfere in the 2016 presidential election. Trump has denied the encounter and has pleaded not guilty. Trump did not appear to make eye contact with Cohen as the lawyer began his testimony by recounting his upbringing on Long Island as the son of a Holocaust survivor and his career experience with Trump, including a decade-long tenure as a Trump Organization senior executive. Cohen testified that Trump wanted to be updated immediately on any developments in the tasks he assigned. When he would task you with something, he would then say, Keep me informed. Let me know whats going on, Cohen testified. He said that was especially true if there was a matter that was troubling to him. If he learned of it in another manner, that wouldnt go over well for you, Cohen testified. Cohen said Trump had an open-door policy allowing executives to meet him in his office, without appointment, and keep him apprised of developments. Asked how he and other executives referred to Trump, Cohen said: Wed call him boss, Mr. Trump. Even as he spoke warmly of his time with Trump, he also acknowledged that his job required him to lie and bully on his bosss behalf. The only thing that was on my mind was to accomplish the task and make him happy, Cohen said, referring to Trump. Defense lawyers have teed up a bruising cross-examination of Cohen, telling jurors during opening statements that hes an admitted liar with an obsession to get President Trump. Prosecutors are expected to try to blunt those attacks by eliciting detailed testimony from Cohen about his past crimes. They have also called other witnesses whose accounts, they hope, will buttress Cohens testimony. Those witnesses included a lawyer who negotiated the hush money payments and another man; a tabloid publisher who pledged to be the Trump campaigns eyes and ears; and the first woman herself. Cohens role as star prosecution witness further cements the disintegration of a mutually beneficial relationship that was once so close that the attorney famously said he would take a bullet for Trump. After Cohens home and office were raided by the FBI in 2018, Trump showered him with affection on social media, praising him as a fine person with a wonderful family and predicting incorrectly that Cohen would not flip. Months later, Cohen did exactly that, pleading guilty that August to federal campaign-finance charges in which he implicated Trump. By that point, the relationship was irrevocably broken, with Trump posting on the social media platform then known as Twitter: If anyone is looking for a good lawyer, I would strongly suggest that you dont retain the services of Michael Cohen! Cohen later admitted lying to Congress about a Moscow real estate project that he had pursued on Trumps behalf during the heat of the 2016 Republican campaign. He said he lied to be consistent with Trumps political messaging. Defense lawyers are expected to exploit all the challenges that accompany a witness like Cohen. Besides painting him as untrustworthy, theyre also expected to cast him as vindictive, vengeful and agenda-driven. Since their fallout, Cohen has emerged as a relentless and sometimes crude critic of Trump, appearing as recently as last week in a live TikTok wearing a shirt featuring a figure resembling Trump with his hands cuffed, behind bars. The judge on Friday urged prosecutors to tell him to refrain from making any more statements about the case or Trump. He has talked extensively about his desire to see President Trump go to prison, Trump attorney Todd Blanche said during opening statements. He has talked extensively about his desire to see President Trumps family go to prison. He has talked extensively about President Trump getting convicted in this case. No matter how his testimony unfolds, Cohen is indisputably central to the case, as evidenced by the fact that his name was mentioned in the jurys presence during opening statements more than 130 times more than any other person. Other witnesses, including former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker and former Trump adviser Hope Hicks, have testified at length about the role Cohen played in arranging to stifle stories that were feared to be harmful to Trumps 2016 candidacy. And jurors heard an audio recording of Trump and Cohen discussing a plan to purchase the rights to a story of a different woman who has said she also had an encounter with Trump. During a massive rally on Saturday in the southern New Jersey resort town of Wildwood, Trump revived his criticism of the case, wrongly blaming President Joe Biden for orchestrating the New York charges, calling the case a Biden show trial. (AP) A Missouri man who crashed a rental truck into White House barriers and showed a Nazi flag before his arrest last year pleaded guilty on Monday to damaging government property, court records show. Sai Varshith Kandula, 20, drove a U-Haul truck onto a sidewalk, sending pedestrians running for safety, before ramming it into metal bollard barriers near White House grounds. He nearly struck two people who were standing next to a park bench, but nobody was injured. Kandula faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to a felony charge of depredation of government property. U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich is scheduled to sentence him on Aug. 23. Prosecutors agreed to recommend a prison sentence no longer than eight years for Kandula, but the judge isnt bound by that term of his plea agreement. Kandula, then 19, flew from St. Louis to Washington, D.C., and rented the truck in Herndon, Virginia, before crashing it into the barriers on May 22, 2023. After Kandula backed up and slammed into the bollards a second time, the disabled truck began smoking from its engine compartment and leaking fluids. Kandula was arrested after he exited the truck and retrieved a flag bearing a Nazi swastika from his backpack. Authorities didnt find any weapons, ammunition or explosives in his possession. Kandula told Secret Service agents that his goal was to get to the White House, seize power and be put in charge of the nation, according to prosecutors. When agents asked how (Kandula) would seize power, he stated he would Kill the President if thats what I have to do and would hurt anyone that would stand in my way, prosecutors wrote. Kandula, who is from the St. Louis suburb of Chesterfield, Missouri, said he bought the flag online because he admires Adolf Hitler and the Nazis great history, according to prosecutors. Defense attorney Scott Rosenblum said Kandula is taking medication to treat schizophrenia. Rosenblum said he expects to have a medical specialist address the court at Kandulas sentencing. (AP) By Rabbi Yair Hoffman lilui nishmas Reb Nosson Yoseph ben Moshe, Dr. Nathan Hoffman obm What does Iron Dome have to do with BaHaB? This article on BaHaB was written lzecher Nishmas my father obm and the connection will bezras Hashem be made at the end of the article. BaHaB is observed on the Monday, Thursday, and Monday after the Shabbos after the Rosh Chodesh after Pesach. It is also observed after Sukkos following the same formula. The word BaHaB is an acronym of letters where the Gematria is 2,5,2 referring to the second day of the week, the fifth day of the week, and the second day of the week again. It is not observed, for some reason, after Shavuos. Many people not only recite Selichos during these three days, but they also fast. The reason why it is the Monday following the Shabbos after the Rosh Chodesh after the holiday is to give the shul an opportunity to Bentch BaHaB to bless those people that will be observing this custom. It is done the previous Shabbos by the Chazan after the Torah reading and before Mussaf. But what exactly are the reasons for this practice? SIX DIFFERENT REASONS A quick look at the commentators reveals no less than six different reasons. The Baalei Tosfos (Kiddushin 81a s.v. Sakva) explain that during the Yom Tov there is mixing that occurs when men and women both attend the Rabbis drasha. The Maharil explains that feasting and joyous occasions are opportunities, unfortunately, for people to sin. The Eliyahu Rabbah explains that the Slichos and the fasting on BaHaB is to atone for violations of Chol HaMoed that occurred on these two holidays. It is forbidden to perform Malacha, work, on the intermediate days of the holidays, unless it fits into one of five exceptions. Unfortunately, many people are in violation of this law and just go about their business with no change. Rabbi Mordechai Jaffe, the author of the Levush, provides a different reason. He writes that this is the period that there are changes in the weather and people are apt to get sick. The purpose of the BaHaB is to pray for the welfare of our people that they not get sick. The Raavyah, also known as the Avi Ezri, cited in the Mordechai (Tractate Taanis #629) provides an entirely different explanation. He states that it has nothing to do with Teshuvah or penance. His opinion is that the fasts were initiated on account of the harvests. We are fasting and praying that the weather should not adversely affect them. A Talmud professor at Bar Illan University (and a graduate of Yeshiva Kol Torah), suggests an entirely different explanation. He writes that there were actually two different customs of fasting that somehow got combined together. He suggests that the BaHaB after Passover has nothing to do with Passover but rather commemorates the fasts of Esther. They just could not be held during the month of Nissan, so they were pushed off to the month of Iyar. He suggests that Meseches Sofrim 17:2 clearly indicates this. So what about the fast after Sukkos? There he agrees with the Raavyah that it was initially a harvest oriented fast. According to him, the reason why it was not initiated on Shavuos is thus clear. THE WELFARE OF THE JEWISH PEOPLE We see that most of the reasons for BaHaB are concerned with either the physical or spiritual welfare and safety of the nation of Israel. GOING BACK TO THE MID-SIXTIES To understand the connection, we must go back close to sixty years ago. Ronald Reagan, in November of 1966, had won the election of the governate of California, by a landslide. Dr. Edward Teller of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, a friend and associate of my father ah, then went up to Sacramento and invited Governor Reagan to Livermore where he gave a lecture (Nov. 1967) on how the US could possibly combat a Russian nuclear missile attack using nuclear missiles. Governor Reagan attended that lecture, and was fascinated. On July 31, 1979, right after Reagan launched his campaign against President Jimmy Carter, Hollywood producer Douglas Morrow, economist Martin Anderson accompanied Reagan from Los Angeles to the NORAD base in Cheyenne Mountain, Colorado. They spoke with the base commander, Air Force General James Erskine Hill, and the question was asked as to what could be done if the Soviets fired just one missile toward the United States. The former Ace World War II pilot answered, Nothing. He wryly added, We could track it, however the whole time. On the flight home to Los Angeles, Reagan shook his head and said, We have spent all that money and have all that equipment, and there is nothing we can do to prevent a nuclear missile from hitting us. Years later, Ronald Reagan was elected president of the United States and tried launching something called the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI). It was soon ridiculed by leading Democrats who pejoratively referred to it as Star Wars after the fact that the death star in that movie could shoot laser type rays. President Reagan and his administration were undeterred and the Reagan administration invited the State of Israel to partake in the research of SDI. The Reagan Administration pushed leading Jewish Democrats to support the project and explained that it would also be important for Israel. Israel accepted the invitation, and my father zichrono livracha, was part of the U.S. team of nuclear physicists and rocket experts that went to Israel to help initiate the partnership. Although SDI was eventually cancelled it left a remarkable legacy in the development of the Arrow Missile system that is used by Iron Dome and the close ties between the two countries. What does the pre-history of Iron Dome have to do with BaHaB? They both are concerned with the physical and spiritual welfare and safety of the nation of Israel. True, President Reagan did sell AWACS to Saudia Arabia, but he was genuinely concerned with the safety of the United States leading ally in the middle-East. It was President Reagan who issued the invitation to Israel and it was not Israel who lobbied for the invitation to happen. One of my earliest recollections is sitting in a bomb shelter with my mother and sister in the Six Day war seeing my mothers mangled leg after she had been hit with shrapnel carrying my sister and me to safety. At the time, my father (pictured above next to Prime Minister Shimon Peres), was away, digging trenches also trying to protect Klal Yisroel. Just as he did years later in those original SDI meetings with Israel. Today, 5 Iyar, is my fathers yahrtzeit, when we begin BaHaB, and once again Klal Yisroel is in danger yehei zichro boruch. May our tefilos of BaHaB keep acheinu bnei yisroel safe, and may my father be a meilitz yosher for all of Klal Yisroel. The author can be reached at [email protected] E https://www.theguardian.com/books/article/2024/may/12/the-road-to-freedom-economics-and-the-good-society-by-joseph-e-stiglitz-review-an- #:~:text= 2024 5 12 20095 1986 20 80 HS2 (Michelle Mone) ...... 2008 1944 20 60 E 1971 E25 Guardianbookshop.com The Road to Freedom, review a vision of progressive capitalism seems too little, too late by Joseph E Stiglitz https://www.theguardian.com/books/article/2024/may/12/the-road-to-freedom-economics-and-the-good-society-by-joseph-e-stiglitz-review-an-ardent-but-flawed-defence-of-progressive-capitalism#:~:text= The Nobel-winning US economists championing of government intervention to nullify neoliberal excesses is ardently expressed but unconvincing Stuart Jeffries Sun 12 May 2024 In 2009, the American government loaned almost half a billion dollars to Elon Musks Tesla corporation to hasten the development of electric car technology. What did it think it was playing at? Didnt it remember what Ronald Reagan said? The most terrifying words in the English language are: Im from the government and Im here to help, the late president told a 1986 press conference. For Reagan and the brains behind his neoliberal puppet, the role of government is to get out of the way and let the unfettered orgy of self-interested neoliberal economic life express itself as nature intended. Taxation is theft and interventionist industrial policy always a mistake, except when it involves bailing out failing banks in reward for tanking the economy. Nobel-winning economist and former Bill Clinton aide Joseph Stiglitz demurs. He proposes, instead, what he calls progressive capitalism. We need more government, not less. Stiglitz even writes a sentence that may induce any tooled-up Maga enthusiasts to expectorate into their spittoons and pump their shotguns. We need environmental regulations, traffic regulations, zoning regulation, financial regulations, we need regulations in all the constituents of our economy, he writes. Neoliberalism must be pronounced dead and buried. Where next? Joseph Stiglitz We need, whats more, to problematise Margaret Thatchers homey analogy between government finance and a housewifes balanced weekly budgeting. Stiglitz says most companies grow by incurring debts, but no one would just look at the liability side of a firms balance sheet. If we spend the money on infrastructure, education or technology, then we have a more productive economy, he writes. When a firm invests well, the value of the assets increases more than the liabilities, and the firms net worth is enhanced. The same for countries. This is basic economics, though not of the kind that I and many others were taught at university in the early 1980s, when laughable myths about individual economic rationality, perfect competition and how the spirit of free enterprise needed to roam unchecked were presented as undeniable facts. But can governments be trusted to deliver socially desirable goals such as electric cars? Consider the HS2 high-speed railway debacle or, if you can bear to, Michelle Mones impact on public trust in government. Or consider, Stiglitz suggests, the errors that the US government made in drawing up its contract with Tesla. It made a mistake. It failed to insist on a share of the upside potential by insisting on receiving shares, for instance. If it had, the government (and American taxpayers) would have more than made up for the losses incurred in other technology and investments. To put it another way, governments arent very good at business. Mistakes will be made, says Stiglitz. But the discovery of a mistake is no reason to abandon a policy. He notes that the US has embraced interventionist industrial policies as never before to provide correctives to badly functioning markets, especially since the 2008 banking disaster hence the development of Covid vaccines and recognition of excessive dependence on foreign-made microchips. The US government, that is to say, is already doing more governing than neoliberal orthodoxy allows. Stiglitz thinks Thatchers favourite monetarist thinker is responsible for a desertification of human hope The case for minimal government was made by the nemeses of Stiglitzs book, Friedrich Hayek and Milton Friedman. The former, a Viennese economist whose 1944 book The Road to Serfdom was so prized by Thatcher she handed out copies at cabinet meetings, insisted that tyranny would result from government control of economic planning. The latter economists scorn for big government was typified by his remark: If you put the federal government in charge of the Sahara desert, in five years thered be a shortage of sand. Stiglitz, who has had beef with Friedman ever since the pair clashed at the University of Chicago in the 1960s, thinks Thatchers favourite monetarist thinker is responsible for a desertification of human hope thanks to his quasi-religious faith in shareholder capitalism, in which the only goal for managers of companies is to maximise shareholder value. Friedman, Stiglitz insists, unleashed a generation of Gordon Gekkos to slime their way to economic power with their greed is good philosophy. Worse, the pursuit of shareholder greed encouraged company managers to ignore what economists call externalities such as water organisations filling British rivers with excrement, drug companies killing Americans by addicting them to opioids or the rape of the Earth for private gain. Joseph E Stiglitz: more government, not less. Photograph: Jacques Much heavy lifting for Stiglitzs case is done by the American political philosopher John Rawls, whose 1971 book A Theory of Justice proposed a still resonant thought experiment. Imagine that each of us is temporarily behind a veil of ignorance knowing nothing of our talents, income and wealth, or indeed core values. In this original position, what principles of justice would we devise to ensure the society we lived in was a good one? Not, suggests Stiglitz, those that prevail today in countries such as the US and UK. Instead, he thinks it would yield the principles of progressive capitalism he spends the book defending involving more government intervention and reforming neoliberalisms excesses captured in the bracing truth of Isaiah Berlins remark Freedom for the wolves has often meant death to the sheep. Im not so sure. His vision of progressive capitalism seems too little, too late too little to create egalitarian societies after decades of neoliberalism; too late to stave off climate disaster. I wish Stiglitz had drawn as the British philosopher Daniel Chandler did last year in a book similarly aimed at loosening neoliberalisms chokehold on another element of Rawlss thinking. His principle asserts that any inequality in society can be justified only to the extent that it benefits the worst off. But that, I suspect, smacks too much of socialism for the Nobel laureate. Stiglitzs conviction ardently expressed, mostly unconvincing is that capitalism got us into this mess and can get us out of it too. A 24-year-old resident of Bnei Brak visited Iraq and was arrested by the Shin Bet at Ben-Gurion Airport when he returned to Israel, Ynet reported on Sunday. The Tel Aviv Magistrates Court placed a gag order on the case in March at the request of security officials as part of what was classified as a security investigation. The gag order was lifted after a few weeks and Ynet revealed the details of the investigation. The suspect, who held a foreign passport along with an Israeli one, aroused the suspicion of security officers when he landed in Ben-Gurion. An initial investigation revealed that he had visited Iraq, an enemy country that Israelis are prohibited by law from entering. The case was investigated by the Shin Bet for several weeks. The detention of the suspect, who claimed he was just traveling in Iraq, was extended several times by the court. The Shin Bet ruled out the suspects involvement in a security-related crime but a criminal investigation is still ongoing. Sources in the law enforcement system defined the suspect as an adventurer. (YWN Israel Desk Jerusalem) In a joint operation, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Shin Bet security agency eliminated Naeem Ghoul, a high-ranking military operative in the Hamas terrorist organization, on Friday. The operation was cleared for publication on Sunday evening. Ghoul, a member of the Shati battalion in the Gaza Strip, was involved in firing rockets at Israeli territory and was also responsible for holding captive and murdering IDF lookout Noa Marciano. Marciano was abducted during the October 7 massacre and taken to al-Shifa Hospital, where she was later murdered. The IDF and Shin Bet will continue to act decisively to locate and thwart military terrorists who conduct terror operations against Israeli civilians, and are also involved in abduction and murder incidents, the military and security agency said in a joint statement. This operation comes three months after the elimination of Ahmad Ghoul, another terrorist involved in Marcianos captivity and murder. Ahmad Ghoul was killed in Gaza City by an aerial vehicle and was a commander in Hamass Shati battalion. Last week, Marcianos parents revealed that their daughters murderer was a doctor who worked at al-Shifa Hospital. They told Channel 12 News, They preferred to murder her. It was a doctor who did it, in a hospital. She was injured by air force bombings and was taken to al-Shifa. (YWN World Headquarters NYC) The states Yom HaZikaron memorial for the fallen soldiers of Israels wars began on Monday at 11:02 a.m. at the Har Herzl military cemetery after a two-minute silence. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said: Everyone who fought for the defense of the country, everyone who crossed the border into enemy territory recognizes this light the light of home that instills in us the deveikut of the goal. This is the light of 25,000 fallen ones of Israels wars that light our way. At the beginning of the current war that began with the terrible massacre, we knew countless acts of sacrifice, stories of heroism and expressions of mutual responsibility that will be remembered for generations. In the IDF units,Israel Polices standby units, Shin Bet, Fire and Rescue, and medical forces, and ordinary citizens they all came out with courage to protect the home of all of us. Our national home is standing, the country is standing and it is standing due to them. But at the same time, the grief is terrible and heartbreaking. Dear families, our loved ones who fell in the battle and all of Israels battles they represent eternal values. Its either us, Israel or them, the monsters of Hamas. Its either our existence, freedom, security and prosperity or massacre, rape and subjection. We are determined to win this struggle. But the price we pay, the price paid by the generations before us, is very heavy. There is no balm there is life, but the wound remains until the end of life. Our war of independence is not over yet, it continues during these days. We are determined to win the fight. We exacted a heavy price from the enemy for its barbaric acts. We will realize all the goals of victory, especially the return of all our hostages home. The victory, bezrat Hashem, will guarantee our existence and our future. Is there a balm for the personal pain that cuts through the flesh? The real answer is no. There is no balm, there is life, but the wound remains until the end of life. But is it possible to relieve the pain at the national level? The answer is yes. Guaranteeing the existence of the State of Israel, guaranteeing the eternity of Israel. With all the pain and sorrow, we changed the fate of our people with the establishment of the state and today the sword of David is in our hands and we are fighting our enemies back. (YWN Israel Desk Jerusalem) The Hezbollah terror group in Lebanon launched two anti-tank missiles early Monday afternoon at Yiftach in northern Israel, injuring four soldiers, one moderately and three lightly. Following the warnings that were activated in the north of the country, two anti-tank missiles from Lebanon fell in the Yiftach area, the IDF spokesperson said. Three IDF soldiers were lightly injured and one soldier was moderately injured. The soldiers were evacuated to the hospital for medical treatment. Their families were informed. In addition, a short time ago, a drone from Lebanon fell in the Zarit area. There are no casualties. Earlier on Monday, at 6:21 a.m., two suicide drones exploded near the Beit Hillel yishuv in northern Israel. No siren was sounded beforehand. The IDF spokesperson stated shortly afterward: Two drones earlier today penetrated Israeli territory from Lebanon and exploded in the Beit Hillel area. As a result of the explosion, a fire broke out that was extinguished shortly afterward. There are no casualties. The incident is being investigated. Hezbollah later claimed responsibility for both attacks, claiming that they scored direct hits on military posts near Beit Hillel and Yiftach. (YWN Israel Desk Jerusalem) An Israeli arms embargo would only strengthen Hamas, British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said in an interview with Sky News on Sunday. He added that when he came under pressure last month regarding an arms embargo, a few days later there was a massive Iranian attack on Israel, including 140 cruise missiles. So I dont think it would have been a wise path. If I announced that today, it might help me get through this television interview, but actually it would strengthen Hamas. It would weaken Israel. I think it probably makes a hostage deal less likely. So I dont think some sort of political declaration is the right answer. We should stick with our rigorous process of making sure we act within the law. Cameron also said that the UK and America are in a totally different situation. The United States is a massive bulk state supplier of weapons to Israel, including, you know, 1,000-pound bombs and all the rest of it. The UK provides less than 1% of Israels weapons and is not a state supplier. We have a licensing system and those licenses can be closed if its judged theres a serious risk of a serious international human rights violation. (YWN Israel Desk Jerusalem) A new bill has been introduced in Parliament designed to tighten rules for new drivers in the form of Graduated Driving Licences. The bill, introduced by Labour MP Kim Leadbeater, would impose restrictions on young drivers during the initial six months as a licence-holder. GDLs are backed by a number of safety organisations, and the bill has cross-party support in the House of Commons. This is the latest in a number of attempts made in recent years to introduce GDLs into law most notably in 2020 - but none so far have stuck despite many parliamentary debates. The bill, introduced by Labour MP Kim Leadbeater, would impose restrictions on young drivers during the initial six months as a licence-holder When was the last GDL attempt? The last attempt to introduce GDLs was in 2018, when then Prime Minister Theresa May instructed the Department for Transport (DfT) to investigate implementing a graduated licencing scheme. The question of GDLs had been raised by Labour MP for Darlington, Jenny Chapman, during PM Questions. A pilot scheme for Northern Ireland was announced in 2018, and set to begin in 2019/20. It still hasn't been introduced. In October 2020, following an inquiry by the Transport Committee, the graduate licence scheme was dropped. Why are GDLs being proposed? GDLs have been backed for years by many safety organisations, including the RAC and AA. A GDL lets new drivers gain experience gradually, and reduce the risks that surround inexperienced drivers. The first 1,000 miles a young and inexperienced driver covers are seen as crucial. Mainly GDLs are proposed to reduce accidents and fatalities caused by young drivers. In 2022 accidents totalled 29,742 in the UK a fifth of which involved a young driver. New Zealand is among the countries where a similar scheme has been introduced. Since legislation has come in, there's been a 23 per cent reduction in car collision injuries for 15 to 19-year-olds, and a 12 per cent reduction for 20 to 24-year-olds.. In 2022 accidents totalled 29,742 in the UK a fifth of which involved a young driver What does a GDL entail? A GDL allows new drivers to pass through stages of experience learning and restriction from winter weather driving to limits on the number of passengers and late night driving where supervision is required. As new drivers progress through stages, they gain more privileges until they are granted a full driver's licence after completing all the requirements. Back in 2013, the RAC outlined a GDL with similar conditions. The probationary two-year period in which new drivers will have their test revoked if they get six points, currently exists today. Will this attempt to introduce GDLs be different? On Tuesday 7 May, Batley and Spen MP Kim Leadbeater introduced the bill dubbed the Motor Vehicles (Driving Licences) (New Drivers) Bill. Leadbeater has been campaigning for road safety since shortly after she was elected in July 2021. She took up GDLs after meeting with Dr Ian Greenwood, who lost his 12-year-old daughter Alice when the car her mother was driving was hit by an 18-year-old driver. Both the 18-year-old and his 16-year-old passenger were also killed. While the bill proposal is largely based on the same stage-restrictive learning programme of previous GDL attempts, this time it's been introduced into Parliament under the 'Ten Minute Rule'. This rule allows a backbench MP to make his or her case for a new Bill in a speech lasting up to ten minutes. An opposing speech might then be made and after which, if the House decides the Bill should be introduced, it has its first reading. Batley and Spen MP Kim Leadbeater has been campaigning for road safety since shortly after she was elected in July 2021 Kim Leadbeater said in her speech: 'The Bill is not about taking away young people's freedom or fun; it is about trying to save their lives. 'By giving them [young drivers] the opportunity to build their experience and confidence during the first six months of driving after passing their test, we can try to ensure they have a happy lifetime of driving and the future that they deserve. Road fatalities and serious injuries are not inevitable. Our roads can and must be safer.' The licences are also back by the AA, the RAC and Brake, and has the support of the Association of British Insurers and the UK Road Offender Education (UKROEd). The Alliance of British Drivers (ABD) has opposed the bill, telling Auto Express that the bill is 'more restriction over positive innovation', but largely the support is there. In this case, the proposal has cross-party support in the House of Commons, with the Common's Transport Select Committee calling for the government to implement a GDL scheme in 2021. The bill has read for the first time and will receive its second reading on 17 May. Former Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi has been appointed chairman of the Very Group, which owns the Very and Littlewoods brands. Zahawi, who has served as MP of Stratford-on-Avon since 2010, revealed last week that he will not seek re-election. The 56-year-old will take a place on the board and replace interim chair Aidan Barclay. Former Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi has been appointed chairman of the Very Group, which owns Very and Littlewoods Prior to his political career, Zahawi co-founded and was CEO of market research organisation YouGov. Under his tenure the company expanded to the Middle East and the US, and was listed on the London Stock Exchange. In office, the Iraq-born MP, who is a patron of economic think tank the Adam Smith institute, had a brief stint as Chancellor of the Exchequer. His other ministerial roles included acting as minister for Covid Vaccine Deployment during the pandemic, where he helped with the rollout of the vaccine. In a statement, Aidan Barclay said: 'With a proven track record in digital growth and innovation, and highly respected in the UK and global markets, [Zahawi] is ideally suited to lead our board as the company enters its next stage of strategic development and growth.' In February, the Barclay family secured 125million of funding for Very Group from US private equity and the United Arab Emirates. The Liverpool-based company which specialises in online retail and finance, will receive 85million from Carlyle and 40million from Abu Dhabi-based IMI. The investment announcement came as the company posted a half year loss of 2million, having made a profit of 2.1million at the same point in 2023. Appearing on the BBC's Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme yesterday, Zahawi apologised for not being 'more explicit' over his tax settlement. Zahawi was fired as Conservative Party chairman by Rishi Sunak in January 2023 after being found to have committed a 'serious breach' of ministerial rules. At the time, it was reported the sum handed over to the tax authorities by Zahawi was at least 4.8million, including a 1.1million penalty. Tourist tax: Heathrow warned that Britains reputation is on the line Heathrow has accused the Government of curtailing the UKs global connectivity in another swipe at the tourist tax. Europes biggest airport warned that Britains reputation is on the line due to uncompetitive policies. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak axed VAT-free shopping for international visitors in 2020 when he was Chancellor instantly making purchases 20 per cent more expensive for tourists. A Heathrow spokesman said yesterday: Current Government policy is curtailing the UKs global connectivity. But the airport also criticised measures such as introducing a 10 fee for some passengers. The electronic travel authorisation (ETA) scheme was introduced last year for those entering or travelling through the UK without legal residence or a visa. Nationals of Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Jordan must pay the fee. It extends to the rest of the world this autumn and Europeans next year. A man who was caught coming through Dublin Airport with over 16 kilos of cocaine in his luggage has been jailed for six and a half years. Daniel James Johnson (34) of no fixed abode in Lancashire, UK, pleaded guilty to one count of importing cocaine at Dublin Airport on September 28 last year. The street value of the cocaine amounted to 1.1 million, the court heard. Michael Hourigan BL, prosecuting, said that on the day in question, Johnson had flown into the country on a flight from Washington DC in the US. A customs officer apprehended him and his suitcase was searched, with eight blocks of cocaine found within. Johnson was due to fly on to London Gatwick, with the drugs intended for the UK market. The court heard he had flown to the US in order to pick up the drugs and bring them back. He told gardai he did not pack the bag, nor book his flights. He said he was due to be paid a certain amount of money for importing the drugs. Johnson told gardai he was fearful for the safety of his family as a result of the drugs mission failing. He has nine previous convictions in the UK for minor offences including theft, criminal damage and being drunk and disorderly. Marc Thompson BL, defending, said his client was essentially a drug mule who had no proprietary interest in the drugs. Judge Martin Nolan took into account the fact that he is an English national serving time in an Irish prison. He said he believed it was probably unlikely that Johnson will re-offend in the future. He handed down a six-and-a-half year jail term and backdated it to when Johnson went into custody last September. A man was set upon and assaulted by a gang at a Dart station in Dublin over the weekend, gardai have confirmed. An investigation has been launched after Gardai in Howth received a report of an assault that occurred on the Station Road in Sutton, Dublin 13, at approximately 7pm on Saturday 11th May 2024. What has been described as a shocking fight took place on the southbound platform of Howth Junction Dart Station at around 7pm on Sunday evening. Footage of the incident in circulation shows the man being rushed at the platform by as many as eight other teens. The incident only lasted only about 20 seconds but left the man bloodied with cuts along his arm. The footage shows the man managing to push them away for a moment before getting punched in the head by one of the gang. The group then proceeds to kick and stamp on him as he lies on the ground. Gardai confirmed that a man in his 30s sustained non-life threatening injuries as a result of the assault. "Investigations into the incident are ongoing," a garda spokesperson said. First batch of 1-trillion-yuan special treasury bonds to be issued on Friday Global Times) 15:32, May 13, 2024 China plans to issue the first batch of 1-trillion-yuan ($140 billion) ultra-long-term treasury bonds starting from Friday, as the authorities seek funds to shore up government spending and crucial project investment in order to set a solid foundation for high-quality economic development. The timing of the ultra-long special treasury bonds in 2024 will go from May through November. The bonds will include 20-year, 30-year and 50-year securities, according to a statement on the website of the Ministry of Finance (MOF) on Monday. The Communist Party of China Central Committee's Political Bureau held a meeting on April 30 that stressed that the country should ramp up efforts to effectively implement the set macro policies, while optimizing proactive fiscal policy and a prudent monetary policy, the Xinhua News Agency reported earlier. Ultra-long special treasury bonds will be issued at an early stage and put to good use, while the issuance and utilization of the proceeds will be expedited, according to the tone-setting meeting. During this year's two sessions in March, the policymakers said that China plans to issue ultra-long special treasury bonds in 2024 and in each of the next several years. One trillion yuan of such bonds will be issued this year. The plan to issue ultra-long special government bonds starting from 2024 is a strategic decision that serves the goal of building China into a great country and rejuvenating the Chinese nation, Zheng Shanjie, head of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), told a press conference during the two sessions in March. The funds raised through selling the special treasury bonds will support scientific and technological innovation, integrated urban-rural development, coordinated regional development, food and energy security, and high-quality development of the population, Zheng said then. (Web editor: Tian Yi, Zhong Wenxing) The week starts with more gunfire after deadly shootings over the weekend. As we noted on Saturday . . . The 25% drop in local killing is quickly evaporating as Spring/Summer 2024 gets started and this town catches up to record breaking numbers. Here's the first report . . . Homicide Truman and Hardesty This evening just after 1AM officers were dispatched to the area of Truman and Hardesty Avenue on a reported car prowler. While officers were in route the call was updated to a shooting. When officers arrived, they located an adult male victim suffering from an apparent gunshot wound and unresponsive in a nearby business parking lot. EMS arrived and declared the victim deceased. An additional adult male victim was located suffering from apparent, gunshot trauma. He was transported to the hospital by EMS with non-life-threatening injuries. The preliminary investigation is believed there was an interaction between several people that led to gunfire. Homicide detectives and crime scene personnel have responded to begin gathering evidence and collecting witness statements. A department social worker has also responded to the scene to begin assisting with resources for those affected by this incident. Detectives are actively working on identifying a person of interest. This is being investigated as a homicide and is ongoing at this time. If anyone was in or around the area at this time and saw or heard anything they are asked to contact Homicide detectives directly at 816-234-5043 or the TIPS Hotline anonymously at 816-474-TIPS there is a reward of up to $25,000 for information submitted anonymously to the TIPS hotline. We are committed to assisting victims of violent crimes through use of Missouris Protection Program for Victims/Witnesses of Violent Crime. Funding for temporary, or even permanent relocation, may be available but is subject to pre-approval by the States administering agency. 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 links . . . Two people shot near Truman and Hardesty, one dead Police say their preliminary investigation shows there was an interaction between several people that led to gunfire. One dead after report of car prowler in Kansas City Missouri A reported car prowler brought officers to the area of Truman Rd. and Hardesty Ave. KCPD: Overnight shooting leaves 17-year-old dead, another hospitalized Just after 1 a.m. Monday, May 13, Kansas City Police responded to calls of a prowler that quickly increased in urgency to calls of a shooting. Developing . . . This morning we revisit inspirational words from a politico who isn't anything close to "beloved" by his own constituents. Here's the basics of his talk . . . Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas delivered the keynote address for the first graduation ceremony. His message focused on graduates making a difference on their communities and working to do their best. Each and everyone of us should strive in some way to be famously excellent in whatever it is that we have to do ahead, Lucas said. As you leave this arena today, know that we support you, that we believe in you. Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . . Actually . . . There are many Republicans and Democrats that don't want taxpayers funding social media misadventures of politicos. Meanwhile . . . This prog blog attempts to argue in favor of splitting hairs over nomenclature in the midst of a border crisis wherein, again, BOTH DEMOCRATIC PARTY LEADERS & REPUBLICANS agree that the current chaos is unsustainable . . . Check-it . . . The attorney generals suggestion that defaming immigrants as a group is not only a lawmakers prerogative, but a responsibility. This idea that newcomers to America are a threat to public safety has been roundly discredited in study after study. Immigrants, documented or otherwise, are less likely to commit crimes and wind up in jails than people born in the U.S. Having made their way here, they are mostly focused on making a living and fashioning a better life for their families. But politicians like Bailey and the three senators have no use for research or realities. They need to invent a threat in order to promise people that theyre the ones who can keep us safe. Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . . I had just assumed it former Mayor Kay Barnes . . . If only because her career stint as former sex therapist gives us hope that she could still help this town "work out" its longstanding issues. Here's a quote from a better story by our 2nd favorite community newspaper . . . John Calvin McCoy (1811-1889), founder of Westport and Kansas City, is coined the Father of Kansas City. When he arrived in the area in 1830, there was already an established small community of French-speaking Catholics sprinkled near the riverfront. He watched as the area grew from a few dozen families to a city of over 130,000 people. One day while riding on a cable car, McCoy saw a familiar face standing at 8th and Cherry. A smile crossed his aging face. I at once recognized her as one of my oldest and most valued friends, McCoy later wrote. Ah, there stands at least one relic and landmark of the olden time that is left to us, worthy of all honor and our warmest love; not only that, but one above all others that merits the distinctive honorary title of Mother of Kansas City. The tall, straight, gray-eyed woman, heavier in appearance than in her younger years, was none other than Berenice Chouteau, and her life was one that warrants the title as our citys beloved mother. Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . . Cultural differences are the vibrant colors that paint the distinct cultures of nations, and this shines through when you look at the neighboring countries of the Philippines and Indonesia. While these two island nations share many similarities with their stunning beaches and friendly locals, a closer look reveals quite a contrast. So, if you're keen to check out these cultural differences and learn what makes each country special, you're in the right place. How Colonial History Shaped Them Differently The Philippines and Indonesia both have cool stories tied to their European colonizers, which really shaped who they are today. Spain ruled the Philippines for more than 300 years, making Catholicism a big deal and bringing over their love for big, loud festivals. Indonesia, on the other hand, was under Dutch control. You can still see the Dutch style in their buildings and some of their words. These old influences are a big part of what you see and feel when you visit these places today. Religion is a Big Deal Religion really shapes daily life in both Indonesia and the Philippines, but in their own unique ways. Indonesia is the biggest Muslim country in the world, where you can see mosques everywhere and Islamic rules are part of everyday stuff, like what food you can eat. The Philippines is mostly Catholic, and this shows up in everything from their huge Christmas celebrations to the vibes at their community gatherings. Talking and Understanding Both countries are home to a bunch of languages, but they handle it differently. In the Philippines, you'll find most people chatting in English or Filipino, and there are about 170 other languages playing a role in different areas. Indonesia sticks to Bahasa Indonesia as the main language to keep everyone connected, but don't be surprised to hear lots of local languages in various parts of the country. What's on Your Plate? Food tells its own story about cultural differences. Indonesians love their food with a bit of kick-think lots of spices and bold flavors, thanks to their history with the spice trade. Over in the Philippines, it's all about mixing sweet, salty, and sour, and they're not big on spicy food. This tells you a lot about what grows locally and what's been popular over the centuries. Buildings Tell Stories Too Just walking around can show you the difference in history between the two places. The Philippines has a lot of Spanish-style churches and old forts because of that long history with Spain. Indonesia's got those cool Dutch colonial buildings, built to keep you cool in the tropical heat. These styles aren't just about looking good. Tthey also tell the story of who's been in charge and what they brought with them. Celebrations and Festivals In the Philippines, festivals are all about bright colors and loud music, with big events like Sinulog in Cebu that rock the city with dances and parades to honor the Santo Nino. Over in Indonesia, the vibe is different with celebrations like Ramadan and Eid, where it's more about fasting, praying, and then enjoying huge community feasts. They also go big for the Sekaten Festival, celebrating the Prophet Muhammad's birthday with loads of food, music, and a buzzing night market. These festivals really show off what's important to people here-whether it's showing their religious devotion or just having a great time with neighbors. It's a cool way to see how each place lights up in its own special way. Did you know there's a place in Baja California where you can actually reach out and touch gray whales? Yep, you heard that right! Head down to San Ignacio Lagoon, a remote spot that turns into a whale watcher's paradise every winter. From December to April, these massive gray whales travel over 10,000 miles to these warm waters to have their babies and hang out. Back in the day, these whales were called "devil fish" because they didn't take kindly to being hunted. But then, a local fisherman discovered how friendly they can be when he reached out and touched one. That moment changed everything, and now, instead of fishing, the folks here take tourists out to meet these gentle giants. Meeting the Gentle Giants of Baja California In Baja California, San Ignacio Lagoon is your go-to spot if you dream of meeting gray whales up close. This lagoon becomes a winter haven for gray whales who travel thousands of miles from the Arctic to mate and give birth. The whales are known for being incredibly friendly and curious about humans. Here, they come close enough that you can reach out and touch them. It is one of the few places on earth where such interactions are allowed and encouraged under strict guidelines to protect the whales. The Historic Peace Treaty with Whales The interaction between humans and gray whales in Baja California has a remarkable backstory. It all started when a local fisherman, instead of fleeing from a whale, reached out and touched it. This moment of bravery turned into a bond, and soon, the lagoon became a site for peaceful human-whale encounters. Now, these whales, once called "devil fish" by whalers, are among the friendliest creatures you will meet. The community here respects and protects these gentle giants, making it a prime location for sustainable whale watching. What to Expect on Your Visit When you visit San Ignacio Lagoon, you can choose from various tours. Most tours use small boats called pangas, ideal for navigating the shallow waters. During these tours, it is common to see mothers with their calves. The whales often approach the boats, and the calves, being curious, might come close enough to touch. Each encounter adheres to eco-friendly practices to ensure minimal disturbance to the whales. Accommodations and Amenities If you decide to stay overnight, the options, though rustic, are cozy. You can stay in cabanas that offer basic amenities, ensuring a comfortable, albeit simple, stay. These facilities aim to keep you close to nature, so do not expect luxury but rather a genuine escape from the busy world. The food is local and delicious, with meals often prepared by residents who share stories of the lagoon's history and its aquatic visitors. Why This Experience Is Unique Visiting San Ignacio Lagoon in Baja California offers more than just a chance to see whales. It provides an interaction that is rare and profound. Unlike other whale-watching spots where you might only catch glimpses of these creatures, here you can interact with them directly. The experience of touching a whale is surreal and can change the way you view these ocean giants. It is a gentle reminder of the harmony that can exist between humans and wildlife. Disney announced the upcoming opening of the Island Tower at Disney's Polynesian Villas and Bungalows. The new tower, part of the Disney Vacation Club property at Disney World Resort, is set to welcome guests in December. This expansion reflects original designs intended for the resort, featuring a deluxe-level tower overlooking the Seven Seas Lagoon. Disney to Launch New Polynesian Island Tower This Winter The 10-story tower will offer a variety of accommodations, from duo studios to one- and two-bedroom villas, including the debut of two-bedroom penthouse villas. As shared by Travel Weekly, this range in room types allows the tower to cater to guest groups of different sizes, from couples to large families, accommodating between two and nine guests per room. Many of these rooms will provide guests with scenic views of the surrounding lagoon. Upon arrival, visitors will be greeted by the tower's unique design, which includes an exterior reminiscent of a manta ray. The lobby is highlighted by a striking ceiling art installation featuring panels that depict wildlife from the Polynesian islands. Each piece of art in the lobby represents values important to Polynesian culture and was created in collaboration with over a dozen artists working alongside Walt Disney Imagineering. The artwork throughout the property emphasizes environmental themes, with sculptures made from recycled fishing nets and walls adorned with preserved moss. These elements underscore Disney's commitment to conservation and celebrating Polynesian heritage. Island Tower reservations are set to open on June 6 for all guests, while Disney Vacation Club members and Walt Disney World annual passholders will have early access on June 4 and 5, respectively. This new addition aims to enhance the guest experience by combining luxury with a deep respect for cultural and environmental sustainability. Related Article : Hong Kong Disneyland Opens New World of Frozen Disney's Tiana Ride Opens in June Disney is set to reveal the exact opening date for Tiana's Bayou Adventure at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom later today. The ride, expected to launch in June, invites park visitors to join Princess Tiana and her friends for a vibrant journey through a Louisiana bayou during Mardi Gras. Set against the background of New Orleans, the attraction features new original music as well as popular songs from the "The Princess and the Frog" movie. Guests will also see familiar faces like Mama Odie, Louis, and Prince Naveen, along with new characters created specifically for the ride. As per Wesh 2, Tiana's Bayou Adventure replaces the former Splash Mountain ride, which closed in January 2023. This new addition is designed to enhance the guest experience by merging beloved film elements with fresh, immersive experiences. A similar version of Tiana's Bayou Adventure is also planned to open at Disneyland Park in California later in 2024, expanding Disney's commitment to bringing innovative and culturally rich themes to its parks. The announcement from Disney will detail when visitors can first experience this exciting new attraction. Kuskokwim Campus celebrates 50th commencement ceremony Photo courtesy of UAF CRCD Kuskokwim Community College celebrated its first commencement on Tuesday, May 13, 1975. Left to right: Robert W Hiatt, UA president; Louis Andrew; Lewis Haines, provost, UA South Central Region; Beatrice Jones; Huge B Fate Jr., UA Board of Regents; and Patrick J. ORourke, director, Kuskokwim Community College. The University of Alaska Fairbanks Kuskokwim Campus honored the Class of 2024 during its 50th commencement ceremony on Tuesday, May 7, at the Yupiit Piciryarait Cultural Center in Bethel. At this years ceremony, 36 students received occupational endorsements; associates, bachelors and masters degrees; and post-baccalaureate certificates. Graduates included students from communities across Alaska, including Tuluksak, Nunapitchuk, Kasigluk, Chevak and Hooper Bay. In July 1972, the University of Alaska established the Kuskokwim Campus in Bethel as the states rural community college. The campus opening represented the culmination of years of effort by a group of dedicated Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta residents and higher education advocates who envisioned a local campus where area residents could pursue their postsecondary education. Photo by Suzi Tanski Chief Ignatius Louie Andrew, traditional chief of Orutsararmiut Traditional Native Council, delivered the invocation and closing remarks at the 2024 Kuskokwim Campus commencement. Chief Andrew was a member of the first graduating class and is pictured in the photo from 1975. On May 13, 1975, Kuskokwim Community College celebrated its first graduation, awarding two associate of arts degrees, 18 certificates and 37 GEDs. In the 50 years since then, approximately 3,600 students have crossed the stage as graduates. Today the campus is part of UAF's College of Rural and Community Development. This years degrees were conferred by UAF Provost Anupma Prakash; UA Regent Seth Church; Associate Vice Chancellor of Rural, Community and Native Education Jessica Black; and CRCD Dean Veronica Plumb. The Ayaprun School Yupik Dancers opened the event. Special guests included Orutsararmiut Native Council Traditional Chief Louie Andrew and Angapak Clarence Daniel, who delivered the keynote address. The student speaker was Sassa E. Brink, who received a Bachelor of Arts in Social Work. The event can be viewed on the KuC Youtube page. 201-24 A Russian air defense base in temporarily occupied Crimea was attacked this morning. That's according to the Telegram channel Crimean Wind, Ukrinform reports. "On May 13, at around 06:00, several missiles attacked military unit 85683 on Mount Ai-Petri in southern Crimea. The military unit's territory was damaged. The commander of military unit 85683 Alexander Kulakov and another invader were killed. There are wounded, their number is still unknown," the post reads. The radars on the southern bank of Crimea are the most famous military site in the Yalta area. Before the occupation of Crimea, the Ukrainian radio frequency battalion was located here, where the Soviet-made Oborona, Altai and Kordon-M radars, as well as the Ukrainian 36DS-6, were in service. The occupiers formed there a unit of the 3rd radio frequency regiment of the Russian Aerospace Forces. It is not clear whether they placed new radar equipment there, but the old one is enough to control the sky over Crimea and the sea around it. The Council of the EU has finally approved the extension of Autonomous Trade Measures (ATMs) with Ukraine, which suspends the application of customs duties and quotas on Ukrainian exports to the EU. That's according to a press release posted on the website of the European Commission, Ukrinform reports. "The suspension of import duties and quotas on Ukrainian exports to the European Union will be extended for another year, following today's adoption by the Council and April 23 vote in the European Parliament. The EU is thereby delivering once again on its commitment to support Ukraine for as long as it takes," the press release reads. The ATMs have been in place since June 2022 and are a key pillar of the EU's unwavering support for Ukraine, providing a lifeline to the country's economy through access to the EU market. At the same time, the measures are also mindful of EU stakeholders' concerns. To this end - and considering a significant increase in imports of some agricultural products from Ukraine to the EU in 2022 and 2023 - the renewed ATMs contain a reinforced safeguard mechanism. It allows for quick remedial action to be taken in case of significant disruptions to the EU market or the markets of one or more Member States. In addition, an emergency brake applies to eggs, poultry, sugar, oats, maize, groats, and honey, which will be automatically triggered if import volumes reach the average yearly imports recorded between 1 July 2021 and 31 December 2023. Now that the ATMs are adopted, the Commission is also taking the necessary steps, through consultations with Ukraine under Article 29 of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement, to agree on longer term reciprocal tariff liberalization. According to the press release, this process aims to provide economic certainty and a stable framework for trade to both Ukraine and the EU, as well as to farmers and businesses. This would also represent an important step forward for Ukraine's reconstruction and further integration into the EU internal market, with the ultimate goal of securing the country's future accession to the Union. The new ATMs will enter into force on 6 June, after the current regime expires on 5 June 2024. They will be in effect until 5 June 2025. In force since 4 June 2022, the ATMs have had a clear positive effect on Ukraine's trade to the EU. The measures help alleviate the difficult situation faced by Ukrainian producers and exporters as a consequence of Russia's unprovoked and unjustified war of aggression. Together with the Solidarity Lanes, the ATMs have ensured that trade flows from Ukraine to the EU have remained remarkably stable in 2022 and 2023 despite the major disruptions caused by the war and against the general trend of a decrease of Ukraine's trade overall. EU imports from Ukraine amounted to EUR 22.8 billion in 2023 compared to pre-war levels of EUR 24 billion in 2021. President Volodymyr Zelensky announced new rounds of negotiations with partners regarding continued assistance to Ukraine. Zelensky said this in his address to the nation Monday evening, Ukrinform reports. "Tomorrow is an equally active day in terms of working with our partners, and this is a joint task for Ukrainian courage and for the promptness of our partners. The effective aid packages are the ones that have been implemented and delivered, they are the weapons in the hands of our warriors. And we ensure our results. Ukrainian results the ones we all need. And they will definitely come," said the president. As reported earlier, President Volodymyr Zelensky had a phone call with the Prime Ministers of Canada, Sweden, and Luxembourg Justin Trudeau, Ulf Kristersson, and Luc Frieden, respectively. Photo: Presidents Office facebook like button Tweet tweet button for twitter Published May 13, 2024 MONROE, LA Dr. Patrick Morgan, Assistant Professor of English at the University of Louisiana Monroe, has received an ATLAS grant from the Louisiana Board of Regents. These Awards to Louisiana Artists and Scholars (ATLAS) are only given to a few scholars each year, and Morgans project, titled, Geological Reformations in 19th-Century American Letters, was awarded full funding at $39,111. The rigorous external review process determined that, out of all the proposals submitted by scholars throughout the state, Morgans book project was ranked first. It is a tremendous honor to be recognized for my research, and to receive the support I need to complete the book I'm writing, said Morgan. I'm thankful for all the encouragement my colleagues have given me along the way, and I am so thankful for this opportunity to finish a manuscript I've been writing for several years. The external reviewers praised his book project, writing, This is a delightfully original proposal for a project that connects 19th-century American literature to geological sciences. This interdisciplinary project is clearly and engagingly written, and relevant to several fields: history and literature of science, American Studies, and Environmental and Anthropocene Studies. The project is well framed and richly enhanced by archival research, including 19th-century American geology textbooks, literature, travelogues, newspapers, and museum holdings. Morgan has visited several archives to analyze connections between geology and literature, spending a month at the American Antiquarian Society in Worcester, Mass., as the Alstott Morgan Fellow. His passion for geology and literature started early when he double majored in English and geological sciences as an undergraduate, continuing that interdisciplinary line of research as he earned his doctorate at Duke University. People may be familiar with the Copernican Revolution, the Darwinian Revolution, or the Freudian Revolution, but there is one revolution that often gets overlooked: the realization of deep time, that the world is much older than humanity realized, said Morgan. During the nineteenth century, thinkers grappled with the realization of deep time. It was during the 1800s that Americans learned how to read the Earthits layers, in particularand for many American writers, once your entire frame of temporal reference changes, it changes the way you view and act in the world. My book manuscript excavates the cultural impact of the concept of the layered earthor stratain American fiction, non-fiction, and poetry, and is tentatively titled, Looking Downward: Geological Reformations in 19th-Century American Letters. The ATLAS grant will give Morgan time to finish writing the final chapter, which thinks about the way geology circulated in nineteenth-century anti-slavery newspapers and African American literature. With the ATLAS, I'll be able to make the final revisions to each chapter so the manuscript will one day live in the world, said Morgan. And for that, I am extremely grateful. "First, let me say how proud I am of Patrick, said former ULM English Program Coordinator Mary Adams. An ATLAS grant is a huge accomplishment, one that he truly deserves. This is a tremendous endorsement of Patrick's work, and he should feel confident in acknowledging his place among our states very best scholars. Again, I am just thrilled and proud! Chapters from Morgans latest work on the relations between geology and literature are planned for publication this summer, including one in The Oxford Handbook of Ralph Waldo Emerson and another in The Pocket Instructor: Writing, published by Princeton University Press. For further information, please contact Patrick Morgan at pmorgan@ulm.edu. The Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority (MOHELA) has come under intense scrutiny following revelations from a former call center agent who has exposed troubling practices within the student loan servicer. Speaking anonymously to DailyMail.com, the agent described the training process as 'abysmal' and the overall work environment as 'atrocious,' highlighting systemic issues that have impacted millions of borrower accounts and the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program. These revelations have sparked calls for reform and improvement within the student loan servicing industry, with lawmakers and advocacy groups urging MOHELA to address the issues raised and improve its operations to better serve borrowers. Training Deficiencies and Customer Impact A former call center agent at MOHELA has stepped forward to shed light on the inner workings of the student loan servicer, revealing troubling practices and systemic issues. Speaking anonymously to DailyMail.com, the agent described the training process as 'abysmal' and the overall work environment as 'atrocious.' These revelations come as MOHELA faces increasing criticism over its handling of millions of borrower accounts and the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program. The former agent highlighted the inadequate training provided to call center workers, stating that it left many feeling unprepared to address complex borrower queries. According to the agent, the training process involved group sessions where agents practiced 'mock calls,' but individualized attention was lacking. This lack of comprehensive training, coupled with the pressure to meet strict call handling protocols, often resulted in frustrated and distressed borrowers receiving subpar assistance. One of the most concerning aspects revealed by the former agent was the company policy that required call center workers to keep customers on hold for at least 15 minutes before transferring them to a supervisor. This policy, according to the agent, was a source of frustration for both agents and borrowers, as it led to long wait times and further exacerbated the already stressful situation for borrowers seeking assistance. READ MORE : 10 Democratic Senators Call On Education Secretary To Hold Missouri Student Loan Company Accountable For Failures MOHELA's Troubled History with the PSLF Program MOHELA's role as the sole servicer of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program has been marred by controversy and criticism. The PSLF program, a key component of the Biden administration's debt forgiveness initiative, is designed to forgive the remaining balance of borrowers who work in public sector or government jobs after 10 years of eligible repayment. However, borrowers have raised concerns about MOHELA's handling of the program, citing issues such as long wait times, incorrect loan balances, and difficulties in accessing accurate information. These challenges have led to widespread frustration among borrowers, with many questioning MOHELA's ability to effectively manage such a critical program. Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren has called for MOHELA's chief executive, Scott Giles, to testify before Congress to address the 'widespread servicing failures' impacting a significant portion of its borrowers. Senator Warren's actions highlight the seriousness of the situation and the need for accountability within MOHELA's operations. Calls for Reform and Improvement The revelations from the former MOHELA call center agent have sparked calls for reform and improvement within the student loan servicing industry. Lawmakers and advocacy groups are urging MOHELA to address the issues raised by the former agent and to take steps to improve its operations. In response to the allegations, a MOHELA spokesperson stated that average customer service hold times are between 1 and 5 minutes and that representatives undergo extensive training. The spokesperson also denied claims of a company policy that required representatives to put someone on hold for 15 minutes, calling them false. As MOHELA continues to face scrutiny over its handling of student loans, it is clear that significant changes are needed to improve the borrower experience and ensure that individuals receive the support and assistance they need. It is imperative that MOHELA takes action to address the concerns raised by the former agent and works towards implementing reforms that prioritize the needs of borrowers. A dark shadow looms over Chinese students studying abroad in the hallowed halls of international academia, where freedom of expression and intellectual exploration are cherished values. Amnesty International's latest report sheds light on the harrowing experiences of these students, who find themselves ensnared in a web of surveillance, harassment, and fear of reprisal from Beijing authorities. The Invisible Chains of Surveillance From the bustling streets of European capitals to the tranquil campuses of American universities, Chinese students stand out not only for their academic prowess but also for the invisible shackles of surveillance that bind them. Amnesty International's research paints a chilling picture of students being photographed, followed, and even threatened by agents of the Chinese government while exercising their fundamental rights to peaceful assembly and free expression. One student's account of attending a Tiananmen Square commemoration event only to receive a menacing phone call from her father hours later epitomizes the insidious reach of Beijing's surveillance apparatus. The mere act of participating in events deemed critical of the Chinese government can have dire consequences, with students and their families back home becoming targets of intimidation and coercion. Moreover, the pervasive monitoring of online activity exacerbates the sense of vulnerability felt by Chinese students abroad. The "great firewall" erected by Chinese authorities not only restricts access to information but also serves as a tool for surveilling and controlling the diaspora community. With state-approved platforms being the sole means of communication with their families in China, students find themselves navigating a digital landscape fraught with peril. READ MORE : Florida International University Ends Chinese Partnerships Amidst State Scrutiny A Climate of Fear on Campus The specter of reprisal casts a long shadow over university campuses, stifling academic discourse and chilling dissent among Chinese students. Amnesty International's report unveils a pervasive climate of fear, with students censoring themselves during academic discussions, avoiding sensitive topics, and even shying away from careers in academia for fear of attracting unwanted attention from Beijing. Particularly alarming are the international students who have engaged in public activism against the Chinese government. Their accounts paint a picture of constant surveillance and intimidation, with many feeling like they are under constant scrutiny by authorities. The fear of repercussions, both for themselves and their families back home, looms large, leading to self-censorship and a reluctance to engage in activities perceived as critical of the Chinese government. The ramifications of this climate of fear extend beyond individual students, permeating the fabric of academic life and work. Researchers reveal a chilling pattern of transnational repression that not only stifles dissent but also undermines the principles of academic freedom and intellectual exchange. With students living in constant fear of being reported to Chinese authorities by their peers, the very essence of academic inquiry is under threat. Calls for Action: Protecting Rights and Freedoms Amidst the backdrop of pervasive surveillance and intimidation, Amnesty International issues a clarion call for action, urging universities and governments to prioritize the safety and freedoms of Chinese students studying abroad. The recommendations outlined in the report offer a roadmap for institutions to better respond to the challenges posed by transnational repression and safeguard the rights of students and staff. Key among these recommendations is the introduction of mechanisms to protect students and staff against intimidation and harassment, both on and off campus. By implementing systems to monitor threats from third parties and providing support to those who have been targeted, universities can create a safer and more inclusive environment for all members of their community. Furthermore, there is a pressing need for greater awareness and understanding of the challenges faced by Chinese students abroad. Governments and universities must recognize the dangerous realities of transnational repression and take proactive steps to address them. Whether through educational initiatives, diplomatic engagement, or policy reform, concerted action is needed to ensure that Chinese students can pursue their academic aspirations free from fear and intimidation. In the words of Sacha Deshmukh, Amnesty International UK's chief executive, "The government and UK universities need to understand the dangerous realities Chinese students face from China's transnational repression, making it clear that they'll prioritize Chinese and Hong Kong students' safety and freedoms." Only by standing in solidarity with these students and upholding the principles of academic freedom and free expression can we ensure that the halls of academia remain beacons of enlightenment and progress for all. ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 14th May, 2024) Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, Ahsan Iqbal chaired a meeting here Monday to discuss preparations for the Prime Minister's upcoming visit to China and review progress on China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) Phase 2. The meeting was attended by Secretary Planning and senior officials of the Ministry of Planning, according to press release issued by planning ministry. The minister reviewed the expected progress on CPEC Phase 2 during his recent visit to China last week and briefed on the preparations and agenda for the upcoming JCC meeting scheduled to be held next week. Officials briefed the Federal Minister on the ongoing and proposed projects under consideration by various ministries. The Minister emphasized that ensuring progress on ongoing and newly proposed development projects under CPEC Phase 2 would be a key agenda item of the Prime Minister's visit to China. "All ministries and departments will have to play an active role in the completion of CPEC projects," he added. He said, solid progress on ML-1 would prove to be a milestone for Pakistans communication and trade sectors adding promoting cooperation with China in other sectors, including technology transfer, was top government priority. In addition, he said technology transfer would provide Pakistan with invaluable opportunities to increase its experience and capacity. He said, in Phase 2, business-to-business cooperation would start in addition to cooperation between the two governments. The minister said after Government-to-Government, Business-to-Business would prove to be a significant strategic development in terms of partnership between Pakistan and China, adding China has developed a clear vision and roadmap "We will also have to move forward with a vision for national development," Ahsan Iqbal stressed, saying that Pakistan was the most important country in the region in terms of regional cooperation and its relations. "The Prime Minister's visit to China will mark the beginning of a new era of cooperation in all sectors, including CPEC," Ahsan said. Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar on Monday met with Vice President of Minmetals and Chairman of Metallurgical Cooperation of China, Chen Jianguang in Beijing and invited to invest in Pakistan under China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th May, 2024) Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar on Monday met with Vice President of Minmetals and Chairman of Metallurgical Cooperation of China, Chen Jianguang in Beijing and invited to invest in Pakistan under China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). During the meeting, he underscored that the second phase of the CPEC aimed at enhancing business-to-business (B2B) collaboration between the private enterprises of the two countries. He added that CPEC provides Minmetals and MCC with access to modern transport infrastructure to enhance logistical efficiency and reduce transportation costs for both raw materials and finished products. Ishaq Dar appreciated the longstanding partnership of Pakistan with Minmetal and MCC and their contributions in executing important mining projects in Balochistan, a Foreign Office press release said. The Deputy PM underlined that export of copper to China from Pakistan has increased exponentially, reaching US$ 1.22 billion in 2022 from US$ 132 million in 2018. Deputy Prime Minister Dar also invited the companies to establish processing plants in Balochistan to produce value-added mineral products for domestic consumption and exports to China. Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar on Monday invited the Chinese Gezhouba Group to expand its operation in Pakistan under the second phase of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th May, 2024) Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar on Monday invited the Chinese Gezhouba Group to expand its operation in Pakistan under the second phase of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). "Under the Phase-II of CPEC, Pakistan offers generous incentives to Chinese investors which the Gezhouba Group can use to expand its business footprints in Pakistan," he said while talking to the Chairman of Gezhouba Group in Beijing. The Gezhouba Group is a subsidiary of Energy China, which is Chinas leading company undertaking multiple power generation projects in Pakistan, a press release issued by the Foreign Office said. The Deputy PM expressed condolences to the Chairman at the tragic incident in Shangla in which five Chinese and one Pakistani national were martyred. He expressed Pakistans firm resolve to bring the perpetrators of this heinous attack to justice and to assure fool-proof security of Chinese nationals in Pakistan. Noting the contribution of Gezhouba Group to Pakistans economic development, the Deputy PM underscored that Pakistan needed to further expand its power generation capacity in renewable and hydel sectors for which Gezhouba Group can play a leading role. The Chairman thanked Pakistan for taking effective steps to ensure the security of Chinese nationals in Pakistan and expressed firm resolve that the company would timely complete all its projects in Pakistan and would further expand operations to new areas of cooperation. ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 14th May, 2024) Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb here on Monday directed all concerned ministries and divisions to submit proposals for the categorization of their respective State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) by May 20. The categorization is a part of a comprehensive review of the rationale for retaining commercial functions within the public sector, according to press release issued by finance ministry. The objective is to retain only the essential functions within the public sector and to assign the remaining functions to the private sector. At the same time the entities which remain in public sector have to be more competitive, accountable, and responsive to the needs of citizens. The minister was presiding over a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on State-Owned Enterprises (CCoSOEs), which among others was attended by Minister for Maritime Affairs, Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh; Minister for Economic Affairs, Ahad Khan Cheema; Minister for Housing & Works, Mian Riaz Hussain Pirzada; Governor SBP, Chairman SECP, Federal Secretaries and other senior officers of the relevant ministries. According to press release, the Primary agenda of the meeting was to conduct a review of implementation of the State-Owned Enterprises Policy 2023 and the periodic evaluation of financial and operational performance across SOEs. The Central Monitoring Unit of Finance Division presented its on-going work on the compilation of the Federal SOE Annual Financial Report for fiscal year 2023. The DG CMU informed the meeting that the data of all commercial entities has been obtained & collated, while the analytical work was currently underway. The Committee was briefed on the highlights of the performance of SOEs during the reporting period. The minister noted that there were a number of gaps in governance and financial management of companies which needed to be addressed immediately and directed that the vacancies on the BODs should be filled without delay. He also directed that the companies who had not had their accounts independently audited, should ensure that the audits are completed forthwith. He emphasised that continued losses & fiscal haemorrhage had to be stopped as a national priority. Therefore SOEs restructuring and privatisation agenda needed to be expedited in order to improve the efficiency of these entities. The Committee directed the CMU to finalize & publish the report at the earliest after including the requisite analytical portions prescribed under the SOE Policy. The meeting concluded with a commitment to fostering transparency, efficiency, and sustainable growth within the State-Owned Enterprises, reflecting the government's dedication to ensuring the optimal utilization of public resources, the press release added. PESHAWAR, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th May, 2024) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Minister for Health Syed Qasim Ali Shah on Monday said that so far 100,000 people of the province have availed free health facilities under Sehat health card initiative since the month of Ramadan. In a release issued here, he said that the treatment was provided to the citizens of KP admitted to different hospitals of the country and the province, adding that so far 2. 7 billion rupees had been spent on the treatment of these citizens. He appreciated the Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur for reviving the health card soon after coming to power and termed it a gift to the deserving people of the province. The Minister said that a review was going on to check the quality of registered hospitals on the health card panel so that quality health services could be ensured on Sehat card. Shah noted that the health card had also helped improve the services of government hospitals. Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Azam Nazeer Tarar informed the National Assembly on Monday that the accreditation examinations for doctors getting degrees from abroad would now be held twice a year ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th May, 2024) Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Azam Nazeer Tarar informed the National Assembly on Monday that the accreditation examinations for doctors getting degrees from abroad would now be held twice a year. Responding to a calling attention notice about changes in the policy by the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council regarding the accreditation examination for foreign-qualified doctors, Minister Tarar stated that the first test would take place in June and the second in December. The examinations would be conducted regularly as per the new instructions, he added. The minister said that the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council had redesigned the examination format and reduced the passing benchmark from 70 percent to 60 percent. He highlighted the importance of such examinations, saying it was crucial for every country to conduct accreditation tests or equivalence examinations for international degree holders, especially in matters concerning precious human lives. He affirmed that Pakistan could overlook the responsibility and must ensure proper evaluation of foreign-qualified doctors through such tests. APP/zah-sra RAWALPINDI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th May, 2024) Chief of Army Staff (COAS), General Syed Asim Munir on Monday conferred military awards upon Army personnel for their acts of gallantry during operations and meritorious services rendered to the nation during an Investiture ceremony held here at General Headquarters. A large number of senior Army officers and families of awardees attended the ceremony. The officers & soldiers were awarded medals including Sitara-I-Imtiaz (Military) and Tamgha-I- Basalat. Medals of Shuhada were received by their family members, an Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) news release said. Paying tributes to Shuhada (martyrs) and Ghazis, the COAS said, "There is nothing more noble than laying ones life for defence of motherland and the sacrifices of our martyrs strengthen our resolve to fight with utmost dedication and spirit of sacrifice." The Army Chief also lauded brave families of Shuhada for their high spirits and sacrifices rendered by them. The COAS said, "Shuhada and Ghazis are our national heroes and the nation owes its independence and security to the sacrifices of its valiant warriors. Our Shuhada are, indeed, the beacons of hope and resilience for the nation." (@ChaudhryMAli88) The Excise Department has intensified its campaign against unregistered and tax-defaulting vehicles on the instructions of Sindh's Senior Minister for Information, Excise, Taxation, and Narcotics Control, Sharjeel Inam Memon KARACHI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th May, 2024) The Excise Department has intensified its campaign against unregistered and tax-defaulting vehicles on the instructions of Sindh's Senior Minister for Information, Excise, Taxation, and Narcotics Control, Sharjeel Inam Memon, During the campaign against unregistered and tax-defaulting vehicles, a total of 1105 vehicles were thoroughly checked in Karachi. Documents belonging to 119 tax-defaulting vehicles were seized during the inspection, while the owners of 11 vehicles paid their taxes online on the spot. The Sindh Senior Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon praised the officers of the Excise Department for their effective implementation and urged them to expedite operations to achieve concrete results. He stated that the aim of the campaign is to ensure compliance with registration and tax requirements. The Sindh government aims to promote a culture of accountability and responsibility among vehicle owners. Australian mining giant BHP revealed on Monday that British rival Anglo American has rejected an "improved" takeover bid worth 34 billion ($43 billion) as it aims to create a copper titan London, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th May, 2024) Australian mining giant BHP revealed on Monday that British rival Anglo American has rejected an "improved" takeover bid worth 34 billion ($43 billion) as it aims to create a copper titan. BHP's latest colossal offer, which seeks also to reshape the global mining landscape, comes after its initial 31.1-billion ($39-billion) approach had been rebuffed last month. "The revised proposal was rejected... BHP is disappointed that the Anglo American board has chosen not to engage with BHP with respect to the revised proposal and the improved terms," the company said in a statement. Anglo American said in a statement that its board had considered the latest offer "and concluded that it continues to signficantly undervalue Anglo American and its future prospects". BHP has lifted the number of shares that would be given to Anglo investors under the improved terms and it still plans to split off Anglo's platinum and iron ore subsidiaries in South Africa, with shares split between the British firm's shareholders. (@ChaudhryMAli88) London, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 14th May, 2024) The South African roots of British mining giant Anglo American, which on Monday rejected an improved takeover offer from its Australian rival BHP, could hinder any future bids. BHP's offer, which proposed Anglo American hiving off its platinum and iron ore production activities in South Africa, has caused a stir in the country just before the tightest general election in decades. Anglo American was founded in South Africa in 1917 by the German-born industrialist Ernest Oppenheimer, 15 years after his arrival and a career in London. It is now one of the largest mining companies in the world and is listed on stock exchanges both in London, where it is based, and Johannesburg. BHP's plan to offload South African assets if it manages to buy the company is seen by some analysts and opposition politicians as an indictment of the decline of the country's mining sector and how foreign investors see the country. Critics blamed the ruling ANC party, which has held power in South Africa since the end of the apartheid regime but which risks losing its absolute majority in parliament for the first time since 1994. South Africa's presidency dismisses the idea that investors could be faced with a "hostile environment", even as companies face acute electricity shortages and almost daily power cuts. South Africa's mineral resources minister Gwede Mantashe has told the Financial Times he was against the offer because his country's experience with BHP was "not positive". But he later clarified that he was expressing a personal opinion. Despite the concerns, Anglo American's leading South African shareholders, which according to the FT hold some 15 percent of the company, said last week they were open to a sale as long as BHP improved its offer. The shareholders include the Public Investment Corporation, which owns nearly seven percent of Anglo American and is the investment arm of the South African government. "From the start, Anglo American played a key role in industrialising South Africa," the group told AFP. "By the 1980s, Anglo American was by far the biggest company in the country, accounting for an estimated 60 percent of the value of the JSE (Johannesburg Stock Exchange). " - Key role - Christopher Vandome, a researcher at the international affairs think-tank Chatham House in London, said South Africa still accounted for about a quarter of Anglo American's revenues. "It is still a really significant part of its portfolio." Anglo American started out mining gold, expanding internationally from the 1960s and establishing its headquarters in London at the end of the 1990s. Over the years, the group has invested in South Africa in other sectors such as manufacturing and metal manufacturing. Between 2018 and 2023, it committed more than 154 billion rand ($8.4 billion) to its operations across the country. It is the world's leading producer of platinum but also produces copper, nickel and diamonds with its subsidiary De Beers. Its operations extend to around 15 countries, notably in Australia and Brazil. BHP's takeover offer is particularly focused on the idea of creating the world's main producer of copper -- a key metal in the energy transition. The Australian miner said on Monday that "South Africa will continue to benefit" from Anglo American Platinum and Kumba Iron Ore as "major standalone South African companies and they would be better placed to reinvest in South Africa". Chatham House's Vandome said the days when Anglo American was "the crown jewel" of the South African economy were gone. But he added: "It is a hugely important company in a sector that has long been a mainstay of the economy. "But a sector which is less relevant than it was with the rise of financial and service industries that now cater to a broader international client base." In a sign of tough times, Anglo American Platinum announced thousands of job cuts in the country in February, citing weak metal prices. bur-ode/ved/emb/rfj/phz/cw ANGLO AMERICAN Johannesburg, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th May, 2024) The death toll from the collapse of a building in South Africa has risen to 26, with another 26 people still missing, authorities said Monday, a week after the structure came crashing down. Six bodies were recovered during the night and the morning at the site in the southern city of George, city officials said. Rescue teams have worked tirelessly since the five-storey apartment block, which was under construction, suddenly collapsed last Monday. Eighty-one people, mostly construction workers, were at the site at the time. Twenty-nine people have been rescued so far. They include a man who was pulled out on Saturday after 116 hours under the rubble. "It is a miracle that we have all been hoping for," Western Cape provincial premier Alan Winde said on X, formerly Twitter. Search teams have vowed to comb every cavity among the wrecked building, but the chances of survival are fading. "Rescue and recovery efforts continue into a week to this day after the incident took place," the George municipality said. One minute's silence will be held at 2:09 pm (1209 GMT) -- the exact time the building collapsed seven days ago -- "to honour the lives lost," it added. Authorities said they were implementing a plan to "expedite the identification of the deceased" and requested relatives to come forward. "We are experiencing difficulties in obtaining accurate Names of individuals missing or deceased," they said. Some families have expressed frustration over the pace of the identification process. The municipality also called for psychologists fluent in Chewa, Portuguese and Shona -- languages spoken in neighbouring Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe -- to assist with counseling. Previously, authorities declined to comment on speculation about whether most of the crew were foreign nationals. South Africa, the continent's most industrialised nation, has long attracted migrants, who often come in search of employment without the correct papers. The reason for the collapse of the building, which was to include 42 apartments and had received planning permission, has not been established and an inquiry is under way. Fulool, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th May, 2024) Survivors of flash floods in Afghanistan's northern Baghlan province were still searching for the missing on Monday, days after torrents of water ripped through villages, killing hundreds. Heavy rains sparked flash flooding in multiple Afghan provinces on Friday, killing more than 300 people in Baghlan alone, UN agencies and Taliban officials said. Rescue workers and aid have been struggling to reach some of the worst affected areas with the World Health Organization echoing Taliban government and nonprofit warnings that the death toll could rise significantly. Samiullah Omari had found the bodies of seven of his relatives, but his uncle and uncle's grandson were still missing. "We have been searching but we haven't found them," the 24-year-old day labourer told AFP in his village of Fulool. For kilometres around, mud covers everything, debris and limbs of livestock jutting out from the thick brown sludge where homes once stood. Neither Omari nor his 70-year-old father have ever seen "such havoc-wreaking floods", he said. The WHO has already warned of rising cases of water-borne diseases in flood-affected regions. In a country with a health system already on its knees, some health facilities were rendered non-operational by the flooding, which damaged or destroyed thousands of homes and swamped agricultural land. "The full extent of the damage is not yet known, and the country lacks the necessary resources to manage a disaster of this magnitude," it said in a situation report Sunday. Omari and some 70 other villagers took refuge in a house on higher ground. "God protected us along with 60-70 people and we survived it," he said, but his house and all his belongings were washed away. All that was left were the clothes on his back. Scant aid had arrived with Taliban government agencies and a few humanitarians, who braved washed-out roads for hours to reach the isolated village with food and water. Tents had been set up near the village to provide health aid, as government officials surveyed the damage. "We hope shelter will be provided for us," Omari said, adding that women and children had been "scattered" to other areas to stay with relatives. (@ChaudhryMAli88) Geneva, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th May, 2024) The fight against biopiracy -- plundering genetic resources and the traditional knowledge surrounding them -- could soon be based on an international treaty, which is being finalised at negotiations that began on Monday. "Let me be candid -- negotiations will not be easy," warned Daren Tang, head of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), as the diplomatic conference in Geneva got under way. After more than 20 years of talks on the subject, WIPO's more than 190 member states are meeting at the agency's Geneva headquarters until May 24 for negotiations on finalising a treaty. The United Nations agency dealing with patenting and innovation will try to conclude an agreement by consensus. Tang said countries were on "the cusp of a truly landmark agreement". "There is no contradiction between a robust and predictable IP regime -- one that incentivises innovation, attracts investments and drives game-changing research -- and one that responds to the needs of all countries and their communities everywhere, including those from Indigenous peoples, as well as from local communities," he said. The draft treaty text says patent applicants would be required to disclose which country the genetic resources in an invention came from, and the indigenous people who provided the associated traditional knowledge. "It's about fighting biopiracy -- that's to say the use of traditional knowledge or genetic resources without the agreement of those who held them and without them being able to benefit from them," said Christophe Bigot, who is leading the French delegation. USMs Registered Teacher Apprenticeship Program First in Mississippi to Earn Recognition from Federal Agency Mon, 05/13/2024 - 11:53am | By: Karelia Pitts The University of Southern Mississippis (USM) Registered Teacher Apprenticeship (RTA) program is the first in the state to be recognized by the Mississippi Office of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). A registered apprenticeship will help us better support students in achieving their goal of becoming teachers, said Andrea Krell, instructor and director of teacher residency at USM. We are excited to work with the Department of Labor to help Mississippians earn a living while learning to become exceptional teachers. Added Krell, Apprenticeships offer on-the-job training along with related instruction that culminate in both a degree and a teaching license. We believe this new partnership will help meet the teacher workforce needs for the state by providing well-supported pathways to teacher licensure that lead to longevity in the profession. The Department of Labor works with community college and industry partners across the state to strengthen the workforce and provide expanded opportunities for Mississippians to participate in apprenticeship programs. These programs predominantly represent fields such as manufacturing, transportation and logistics, energy and utilities, banking and finance to enable the states residents to earn a living wage while learning a new skill that could lead to a meaningful career. Recently, the government added teaching to the list of apprenticeship occupation programs in an effort to address the significant challenges K-12 system faces in attracting and retaining teachers. The School of Education is paving the way for teacher and leader workforce development across the state of Mississippi, said Dr. Trent Gould, dean of the College of Education and Human Sciences at USM. Our registered teacher apprenticeship is a Grow Your Own partnership between Southern Miss and K-12 partner districts to provide innovative pathways to the teaching profession. I am extremely proud of our faculty for seeing this opportunity, getting creative about ways to secure funding, and building pipelines to reduce the states teacher shortage. Staff with the Mississippi DOL were excited to connect with USM and expand their offerings at the university level to significantly impact the number of highly-qualified teachers in the state. The University of Southern Mississippi has welcomed the concept of registered apprenticeship and is the first university in the State of Mississippi to register a teachers apprenticeship program, said Brenda Myers, director of Mississippis U.S. DOL Office of Apprenticeship. The U.S. Department of Labors Office of Apprenticeship is elated to work with such a prestigious university to educate and train quality teachers. We look forward to expanding in many other occupations in the future. Learn more about the USM School of Education. The Cannes Film Festival rarely passes without cacophony, but this year's edition may be more raucous and uneasy than any edition in recent memory. When the red carpet is rolled out from the Palais des Festivals on Tuesday, the 77th Cannes will unfurl against a backdrop of war, protest, potential strikes and quickening #MeToo upheaval in France, which for years largely resisted the movement. Festival workers are threatening to strike. The Israel-Hamas war, acutely felt in France, home to Europe's largest Jewish and Arab communities, is sure to spark protests. Russia's war in Ukraine remains on the minds of many. Add in the kinds of anxieties that can be expected to percolate at Cannes the ever-uncertain future of cinema, the rise of artificial intelligence and this year's festival shouldn't lack for drama. Being prepared for anything has long been a useful attitude in Cannes. Befitting such tumultuous times, the film lineup is full of intrigue, curiosity and question marks. The Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof, just days before his latest film, "The Seed of the Sacred Fig," is to debut in competition in Cannes, was sentenced to eight years in prison by the Islamic Revolutionary Court. The film remains on Cannes' schedule. Arguably the most feverishly awaited entry is Francis Ford Coppola's self-financed opus "Megalopolis." Coppola, is himself no stranger to high drama at Cannes. An unfinished cut of "Apocalypse Now" won him (in a tie) his second Palme d'Or more than four decades ago. Even the upcoming U.S. presidential election won't be far off. Premiering in competition is Ali Abbasi's "The Apprentice," starring Sebastian Stan as a young Donald Trump. There will also be new films from Kevin Costner, Paolo Sorrentino, Sean Baker, Yorgos Lanthimos and Andrea Arnold. And for a potentially powder keg Cannes there's also the firebomb of "Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga." The film, a rolling apocalyptic dystopia, returns director George Miller to the festival he first became hooked on as a juror. "I got addicted it to simply because it's like film camp," says Miller, who became enraptured to the global gathering of cinema at Cannes and the pristine film presentations. "It's kind of optimal cinema, really. The moment that they said, 'OK, we're happy to show this film here,' I jumped at it." Cannes' official opener on Tuesday is "The Second Act," a French comedy by Quentin Dupieux, starring Lea Seydoux, Louis Garrel and Vincent Lindon. During the opening ceremony, Meryl Streep will be awarded an honorary Palme d'Or. At the closing ceremony, George Lucas will get one, too. But the spotlight at the start may fall on Judith Godreche. The French director and actor earlier this year said the filmmakers Benoit Jacquot and Jacques Doillon sexually assaulted her when she was a teenager, allegations that rocked French cinema. Jacquot and Doillon have denied the allegations. Though much of the French film industry has previously been reluctant to embrace the #MeToo movement, Godreche has stoked a wider response. She's spoken passionately about the need for changes at the Cesars, France's equivalent of the Oscars, and before a French Senate commission. In that same period, Godreche also made the short film "Moi Aussi" during a Paris gathering of hundreds who wrote her with their own stories of sexual abuse. On Wednesday, it opens Cannes' Un Certain Regard section. "I hope that I'm heard in the sense that I'm not interested in being some sort of representation of someone who just wants to go after everyone in this industry," Godreche said ahead of the festival. "I'm just fighting for some sort of change. It is called a revolution." It's the latest chapter in how #MeToo has reverberated at the world's largest film gathering, following an 82-woman protest on the steps of the Palais in 2018 and a gender parity pledge in 2019. Cannes has often come under criticism for not inviting more female filmmakers into competition, but the festival is putting its full support behind Godreche while girding for the possibility of more #MeToo revelations during the festival. "For me, having these faces, these people everyone in this movie gives them this place to be celebrated," said Godreche. "There's this thing about this place that has so much history. In a way, it mystifies movies forever. Once your film was in Cannes, it was in Cannes." Some of the filmmakers coming to the festival this year are already firmly lodged in Cannes lore. Paul Schrader was at the festival almost 50 years ago for Martin Scorsese's "Taxi Driver," which he wrote. After a famously divisive response, it won the Palme in 1976. "It was a different place. It was much more collegial and lower key," said Schrader during a break from packing his bags. "I remember quite well sitting on the terrasse at the Carlton with Marty and Sergio Leone and (Rainer Werner) Fassbender came by with his boyfriend and joined us. We were all talking and the sun was going down. I was thinking, 'This is the greatest thing in the world.'" For the first time since his 1988 drama "Patty Hearst," Schrader is back in what he calls "the main show" in competition for the Palme d'Or with "Oh, Canada." The film, adapted from a Russell Banks novel, stars Richard Gere (reteaming with Schrader decades after "American Gigolo") as a dying filmmaker who recounts his life story for a documentary. Jacob Elordi plays him in '70s flashbacks. After the Cannes lineup was announced, Schrader shared on Facebook an old photo of himself, Coppola and Lucas all primary figures to what was then called New Hollywood and the caption "Together again." "I'll be there the same time as Francis. There's a question of whether either of us get invited back for closing," Schrader says, referring to when award-winners are asked to stay for the closing ceremony. "I would hope that either Francis or I could come back closing night for George's thing." Who ultimately goes home with the Palme the handicapping has already begun will be decided by a jury led by Greta Gerwig, fresh off the mammoth success of "Barbie." But this year's slate will have a lot to live up to. Last year, three eventual best picture nominees premiered in Cannes: Justine Triet's Palme-winner "Anatomy of a Fall," Jonathan Glazer's "The Zone of Interest" and Martin Scorsese's "Killers of the Flower Moon." What tends to really define a Cannes, though, is emerging filmmakers. Among those likely to make an impression this year is Julien Colonna, the Corsican, Paris-based director and co-writer of "The Kingdom." The film, an Un Certain Regard standout, is a brutal coming of age about a teenager girl (newcomer Ghjuvanna Benedetti) on the run with her father (Saveriu Santucci), a Corsican clan leader. "We wanted to propose a kind of anti-mob film," Colonna says, referencing the prevalence of "Godfather"-inspired gangster dramas. "As a viewer, I'm quite bored of this. I think we need to move to something else and propose a different prism." "The Kingdom," Colonna's debut feature film, arose out of his own anxieties around the birth of his child six years ago. It's an entirely fictional movie but it has personal roots for Colonna, who was inspired by the memory of a camping trip that he realized years later was "an entirely different matter for my father." He shot the most of the film in Corsica within a few miles of his hometown. "This is where I grew up," says Colonna, smiling. "This is where I learned to swim. The shower where her kiss takes place is the shower where I kissed for the first time." Opposition candidates in Chad who lost the recent presidential election have filed paperwork challenging President Mahamat Idriss Debys victory. The legal challenge comes as the media there appeal a decision barring them from reporting on election-related violence. State television reported on Monday that the country's Constitutional Council received a petition from opposition candidate Succes Masra, calling for results of the May 6 vote to be annulled. The central African states elections management body, or ANGE, declared Masra second with more than 18% of the votes cast. Deby, the transitional president, won more than 61% of the vote, exceeding the 50% mandate needed to avoid a runoff. Debys victory follows the death of his father, Idriss Deby, in 2021 and completes the countrys three-year transition from military to civilian rule. Masra and the Transformers party he leads allege massive electoral fraud, including the stuffing of ballot boxes and soldiers chasing opposition representatives from polling stations. Masra alleges that soldiers carried ballot boxes to military barracks, where government troops counted and declared results, instead of ANGE. The Transformers say scores of opposition officials and hundreds of Masra supporters were arrested and detained by government troops. Chad's military government says Deby won the election and some opposition parties want to create chaos by not respecting the vote. Deby calls the allegations unfounded. Sitack Yombatina Beni, the Transformers vice president, spoke Monday with VOA via a messaging app from Chadian capital N'djamena. Beni said Masra has asked civilians to maintain peace and avoid reacting violently to ongoing provocations from Deby's supporters. He said it is an open secret that rights and freedoms are abused in Chad, but that this time civilians, opposition and civil society are ready to fight back if the Constitutional Council fails to render justice and give back what he calls Masra's stolen victory. Beni said peaceful demonstrations were held Friday, Saturday and Sunday in several areas, including N'djamena and Moundou, Chad's second-largest city. Yacine Abdramane Sakine, another losing candidate, said he also filed a petition asking the Constitutional Council to order ANGE to do a public recount of the votes. Evarist Ngarlem Tolde, a political affairs lecturer and researcher at the University of Ndjamena in Chad, said the fact that Chads military leaders ordered government troops to undemocratically vote for Deby is an indication they are not ready to lose their grip on power. He added that it is surprising that Chad's elections management body published provisional results at 8 p.m. May 9 after it had announced at 2 p.m. that it was very difficult for the body to assemble result sheets from more than 26,000 polling stations. Tolde said it will be very difficult for the Constitutional Council to cancel provisional results of the May 6 presidential elections declared by ANGE. Both institutions were formed by Deby. ANGE says it is independent and that the results published are free, transparent, and credible, reflecting the verdict of the ballot. Civil society and opposition groups say the troops deployed after the May 9 publication of partial results are still intimidating and arresting civilians, especially in N'djamena. They say the death toll from shooting since May 9 has increased to 30. On Monday, Chads journalism union condemned a government order that stops the news media from reporting on post-election tensions and violence and orders news organizations to desist from giving casualty figures. The Constitutional Council has until May 21 to rule on the petitions and proclaim definitive results. But Chad's transitional officials report that Deby already has been congratulated by Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, Guinea Bissaus President Umaro Sissoco Embalo, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Kenyan President William Ruto. Cambodia and China begin their annual Golden Dragon military exercise this week to strengthen cooperation and exchange military experiences, a Cambodian official said Monday. A total of 1,315 military personnel from Cambodia and 760 from China will participate in the 15-day exercise, backed by three Chinese warships and 11 Cambodian ships, Cambodian army spokesperson Maj. Gen. Thong Solimo told journalists. He said the exercise, starting Thursday, is aimed at training to fight terrorism and provide humanitarian relief in both countries as well as in the region. The annual Golden Dragon exercises began in December 2016, shortly after Cambodia canceled similar exercises with the United States called Angkor Sentinel. China describes its friendship with Cambodia as "ironclad." Cambodia is China's closest ally in Southeast Asia, while China is Cambodia's most important ally and benefactor, with a strong influence on its economy. Cambodia has numerous Chinese-funded projects particularly infrastructure, including airports and roads, but also private projects such as hotels, casinos and property development. More than 40% of Cambodia's $10 billion in foreign debt is owed to China. Beijing's support allows Cambodia to largely disregard Western concerns about its poor record on human and political rights, and in turn Cambodia generally supports Beijing's positions on foreign policy issues such as its territorial claims in the South China Sea. Cambodia recently reiterated its determination to go ahead with a Chinese-financed 180-kilometer (112-mile), $1.7 billion Funan Techo Canal project across four provinces in the southern part of the country to connect the capital, Phnom Penh, to the Gulf of Thailand. The plan has raised concern from neighboring Vietnam, where some analysts say the 100-meter (330-foot) -wide, 5.4 meter (18-foot) -deep canal could make it easier for China to send military forces southward, close to Vietnam's southern coast. Relations between Vietnam and its massive northern neighbor are often frosty because of Beijing's aggressive claims to maritime territories also claimed by Hanoi. China's involvement in Cambodia's Ream Naval Base on the Gulf of Thailand has also caused concern, with the United States and some international security analysts saying it is likely to become a strategic outpost for Beijing's navy. On Dec. 7, two Chinese naval vessels became the first ships to dock at a Chinese-financed new pier at the base, coinciding with a visit to Cambodia by China's top defense official. In April, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi made a three-day visit to Cambodia to affirm the countries' ties. Chinese companies won four bids to explore Iraqi oil and gas fields, Iraq's oil minister said Sunday as the Middle Eastern country's hydrocarbon exploration licensing round continued into its second day. The oil and gas licenses for 29 projects are mainly aimed at ramping up output for domestic use, with more than 20 companies pre-qualifying, including European, Chinese, Arab and Iraqi groups. Chinese companies have been the only foreign players to win bids, taking nine oil and gas fields since Saturday, while Iraqi Kurdish company KAR Group took two. There were notably no U.S. oil majors involved, even after Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia met representatives of U.S. companies on an official visit to the United States last month. Chinas National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC) -Iraq won a bid to develop Iraq's Block 7 for oil exploration that extends across the country's central and southern provinces of Diwaniya, Babil, Najaf, Wasit and Muthanna, said oil minister Hayan Abdul Ghani. ZhenHua, Anton Oilfield Services and Sinopec won bids to develop the Abu Khaymah oilfield in Muthanna, the Dhufriya field in Wasit and the Summer field in Muthanna respectively, the minister said. Iraq's main goal with its sixth licensing round was to increase gas output that it wants to use to fire power plants that rely heavily on gas imported from Iran. However, no bids were made on at least two fields with large gas potential, potentially undermining those efforts. Iraq, OPEC's second-largest oil producer behind Saudi Arabia, has been hampered in its oil sector development by contract terms viewed as unfavorable by many major oil companies as well as recurring military conflict and growing investor focus on environmental, social and governance criteria. Despite the recent uptick in cross-border bombardments between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia in Lebanon, analysts say both foes may not want it to escalate their conflict given the tremendous cost to both countries both militarily, materially and economically. Tens of thousands of people on either side of the Lebanon-Israel border have been displaced as attacks, which began on October 8 between Israel and Hezbollah as part of Irans so-called axis of resistance, have intensified. Hezbollah has put pressure on Israels northern border as Israeli forces battle Hamas in the south. Analyst Nicholas Heras of the Washington-based New Lines Institute told VOA that despite Hezbollah and Israel stepping up their attacks in recent weeks, limits are maintained for now. Hezbollah, he said, is better armed than the Lebanese military. On both sides of the border, civilian populations have been directly affected by this really tenuous escalation/de-escalation pattern between Israel, Hezbollah and Iran, Heras said. There is a sense from both sides of the border that there is unfinished business. There is recognition that something big could very well happen as a result of the atmosphere right now. Both sides have tremendous pause in doing that because it would be in many ways a cataclysmic conflict. Lebanon is fragile. A crippling economic crisis has gripped the tiny Mediterranean nation since 2019, and it is strained further by hosting more than 1 million Syrian refugees. The United Nations World Food Program provides aid to more than 158,000 people in Lebanon who are affected by war, but warns that should conditions worsen, it cannot supply more. Lebanese authorities say there has been more than $1.5 billion in damages so far from cross-border hostilities. Israels Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has warned that either a diplomatic agreement or a military solution was required for Israeli residents, who have fled the border region, to return home in the north. Lebanese authorities say more than 350 people have been killed in Israeli strikes since the beginning of hostilities October 8; the majority being militants, while some 73 civilians have been killed. Meanwhile, Israel says some 14 soldiers and 10 civilians have been killed in militant attacks. Lebanese analyst Dania Koleilat Khatib told VOA that the United States and France have tried diplomacy, urging Hezbollah to pull back from the border and see more international monitors posted. But Hezbollah has so far resisted, said Khatib, who is the president of the Research Center for Cooperation and Peace Building in Beirut. Israel wants a strong guarantee, Khatib said. They cannot re-run the risk of having something like October 7. Hezbollah is cornered. They dont want war. If they are cornered, they will go to war. Thats why its the time for diplomacy. To find a buffer that will give assurances to both sides. New Lines analyst Heras warns of the high stakes should war erupt. The IDF Israel Defense Forces has made it very clear that in a future war, that it would be near total destruction anywhere in Lebanon that Hezbollah has a presence, Heras said. Heras said Israel knows that Iran has armed Hezbollah with hundreds of thousands of weapons, including precision-guided missiles. He said the armaments could potentially wreak material and economic catastrophic destruction inside Israel. Hezbollah would not just allow the Israeli military to have freedom of movement inside Lebanon, he said, but the Iran-backed group would, in fact, try to bring the war into Israel itself. Other analysts say Hezbollah risks losing support if Lebanese civilians continue to suffer the attacks or if public confidence is undermined. Already, many Lebanese have expressed resentment over being dragged into a conflict with Israel. The spectacular auroras that danced across the sky in many parts of the world over the weekend are fading, scientists said Monday, as the massive sunspot that caused them turns its ferocious gaze away from Earth. Since Friday, the most powerful solar storm to strike our planet in more than two decades has lit up night skies with dazzling auroras in the United States, Tasmania, the Bahamas and other places far from the extreme latitudes where they are normally seen. But Eric Lagadec, an astrophysicist at France's Observatoire de la Cote d'Azur, told AFP that the "most spectacular" period of this rare event has come to an end. The first of several coronal mass ejections (CMEs) -- expulsions of plasma and magnetic fields from the Sun -- came just after 1600 GMT Friday, according to the US-based National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The event was later upgraded to an "extreme" geomagnetic storm -- the first since the "Halloween Storms" of October 2003 that caused blackouts in Sweden and damaged power infrastructure in South Africa. Excitement over the phenomenon -- and otherworldly photos of pink, green and purple night skies -- broke out across the world, from Austria to Australia's island state of Tasmania. The storm had been forecast to intensify again until 0600 GMT Monday, the NOAA said, adding that auroras could be viewable as far south as New York. But thousands of people who came out on Sunday night in the hope of seeing the aurora borealis over the Joshua Tree National Park in California instead saw the Milky Way. AFP pictures showed stars shining clearly in the night sky. Lagadec said that while there were further solar outbursts on Sunday, it is unlikely that more auroras will be visible to the naked eye in lower latitudes such as in France. "Only the most experienced photographers will be able to capture them" in such areas, said Lagadec, who was moved by witnessing an aurora during the event's peak on Friday night. The solar storm emanated from a massive sunspot cluster that is 17 times wider than our planet. The storm has not ended, and auroras are expected to continue in the far northern or southern regions where they are normally visible. But "the source of the storm is a sunspot that is now on the edge of the Sun, (so) we do not expect the next coronal mass ejections to head in Earth's direction," Lagadec said. Scientists had already warned that the intensity of anything seen on Sunday night would unlikely reach the level of Friday's show. "This is likely the last of the Earth-directed CMEs from this particular monster sunspot," Mathew Owens, a professor of space physics at the UK's University of Reading, told AFP. When charged particles from solar winds are captured by Earth's magnetic field, they accelerate towards the planet's magnetic poles, which is why auroras are normally seen there. But during periods of heightened solar activity, the effects extend farther toward the equator. Unlike during 2003's solar storms, no major disruptions to power or communications networks appear to have been reported this time around. Elon Musk's satellite internet operator Starlink said on X that its thousands of satellites in low Earth orbit had "weathered the geomagnetic storm and remain healthy". Unlike solar flares, which travel at the speed of light and reach Earth in around eight minutes, CMEs travel at a more sedate pace, with officials putting the current average at 800 kilometers (500 miles) per second. People with eclipse glasses can still look for the sunspot cluster during the day. Fluctuating magnetic fields associated with geomagnetic storms induce currents in long wires, including power lines, which can lead to blackouts. Long pipelines can also become electrified. Spacecraft are at risk from high doses of radiation, although the atmosphere prevents this from reaching Earth. NASA can ask astronauts on the International Space Station to move to better-shielded places within the outpost. Even pigeons and other species that have internal biological compasses can be affected. Burmese writer Ma Thida doesnt like to think of herself as exiled. She left Myanmar in 2021, just a few months after the military seized power in a coup that overthrew the civilian-led government. And while Ma Thida says it would not be safe for her to return anytime soon, exile implies a permanence the writer isnt quite comfortable with. My aim is not to be exiled just to keep away from the country. And as soon as I get a chance, I would definitely go back, she said, speaking with VOA in Berlin, where she is currently living. Born and raised in Myanmars largest city, Yangon, Ma Thida studied medicine in the 1980s and became a physician. She worked as an aide and medic for pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and wrote her first novel in 1992. Titled The Sunflower, the book explored the populations expectations of Suu Kyi, who at that time was under house arrest. But the book was banned shortly before being published in 1993, and Myanmars junta sentenced Ma Thida to 20 years in Insein Prison for endangering public peace, having contact with illegal organizations, and distributing unlawful literature. International pressure led to her early release in 1999. The Sunflower was finally published, and Ma Thida started writing again. Her latest book A-Maze, published in May, explores Myanmars struggle for democracy and the post-coup Spring Revolution. I try to understand whats going on right now and why it happened, Ma Thida said. So, this is my attempt to understand the whole situation, but at the same time, my attempt to convince the readers to understand what our struggle is. Ma Thida, who is chair of the Writers in Prison Committee run by the free expression group PEN International, said her jailing in the 1990s made her realize it was too dangerous to stay in Myanmar following the 2021 coup. A lot of writers were already at risk or were already being arrested, she said, recalling how anxious she felt at Yangon Airport the day she left. Myanmars military, known as the Tatmadaw, has detained thousands of people, including journalists and writers. Theyre trying to silence all forms of dissent, said Karin Deutsch Karlekar, a Myanmar expert at PEN America in New York. Many people are still either underground and hiding within Myanmar, or in exile. Some writers were among the prisoners released at the beginning of 2024 in an annual mass amnesty. But several remain behind bars. Their cases show that the military has not wavered on its aversion to free expression, Karlekar said. Karlekar cited the case of filmmaker Shin Daewe, who covered environmental issues and human rights. Authorities sentenced her to life in prison earlier this year for buying a drone. Those sentences are really, really extreme and are a signal to anyone else in the writing and creative community that if they step out of line in any way, in terms of even just expressing criticism of the junta, that this is a possibility, Karlekar said. Myanmars military did not reply to VOAs request for comment. For now, Ma Thida is grateful to have the freedom and safety to continue her work. Her latest book, published in English, is primarily intended for an international audience. Some people think this is just war not the revolution, not the resistance, she said about what she hopes readers take away from the book. Its more than that. Despite her situation and the years already spent in prison, laughter is still instinctive for Ma Thida. She pokes fun at her own misfortunes, including her passport troubles. Myanmars embassy in Berlin has resisted renewing Ma Thidas expired passport, which she believes is in retaliation for her writing. The embassy did not reply to VOAs request for comment. Ma Thida has faced this problem before. After her release from prison in 1999, she was unable to obtain a passport for five years. I have so many problems with passports, she said, chuckling. Withholding travel documents from exiled dissidents is something PEN America is seeing more frequently as a method of control, Karlekar said. For now, the German government has given Ma Thida a passport reserved for people unable to obtain a passport from their home country. And while Berlin is safer for dissidents than Yangon these days, Myanmar will always be home for Ma Thida. I look at my country as my own home because I got my education there. I got my understanding of life there. I got my belief in freedom there, she said. I always want to go back home. NATO and the EU accused Russia of carrying out an aggressive hybrid warfare against Western nations targeting governments, militaries, and critical infrastructure. The campaign includes physical sabotage, a flood of disinformation, increased espionage, jamming of GPS signals for civilian aviation, and massive cyberattacks, NBC News reported on May 13. On May 3, the U.S. State Department condemned Russias malicious cyber activity, linking it to APT28, a unit within the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, formerly the General Staff Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU), or Russian military intelligence. The U.S. Department of Justice working with Germany, uncovered a network of hundreds of small office/home office routers that APT28 was using to conceal and carry out malicious activity against targets in Germany, Czechia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, and Sweden, the state department said. Russian ambassador to the U.S. Anatoly Antonov denied the accusations, calling them "insinuations" and provocative stories, and claiming falsely that the U.S. presented no evidence. Antonov used the Kremlins classic disinformation tradecraft to deflect blame for the cyberattacks by manipulating statistical data. In a post on the Russian messenger app, Telegram on May 3, Antonov said: according to statistics, the vast majority of computer attacks in the world occur from the territory of the United States." That is misleading. Cyber threat analysts identify a spectrum of at least five types of cybercrimes, in which cyberattacks with a political dimension stand out as a separate type. Russia ranks top among countries involved in cybercrimes carried out by Nation-State Threat Actors and Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs) operating with state support. Antonov omitted the distinction, referencing instead generalized non-specific raw statistic data that includes all types of cybercrimes and ignores the fact, that hackers can easily fake their geographical location. One example of such a generic database is a report Cloudflare, Inc., an IT service management company, released in April, listing Distributed Denial of Service or DDoS attacks designed to overwhelm a targeted server with HTTP requests, and L3/4 attacks, which target network infrastructure. Cloudflare found that for the first quarter of 2024, the United States was both the largest source and the primary target of HTTP DDoS attack traffic and the L3/4 attacks. Microsoft concurred, saying the U.S. bears "the brunt of 54 percent of all attacks. Scholars argue that valid and reliable data on the geography of cybercriminal activity is complex and unresolved. A group of cyber analysts and investigators from the British Oxford University and the Australian New South Wales and Monash Universities identified five types of cybercrime in a three-year study released in April. The research resulted in the first World Cybercrime Index, a global metric of cybercriminality. Although the geography of cybercrime attacks has been documented, the geography of cybercrime offenders and the corresponding level of cybercriminality present within each country is largely unknown, the report said. Cybercriminals use proxy services to hide their IP addresses and carry out attacks across national boundaries, complicating efforts to capture the true geographical distribution of these offenders, the scholars noted. Where the cybercriminals live is not necessarily where the cyberattacks are coming from, the researchers wrote. An offender from Romania can control zombies in a botnet, mostly located in the United States, from which to send spam to countries all over the world, with links contained in them to phishing sites located in China. To fix that problem, the researchers designed a survey asking 92 cybercrime experts around the world to nominate the countries that they consider to be the most significant sources of each of the five major types of cybercrime. They found that a relatively small number of countries housed the greatest cybercriminal threats. Russia ranked as the country with the top cybercrime threat level, followed by Ukraine, China, the United States, and Nigeria. The respondents linked the Russian state to most cybercrimes with a political dimension, which include attacks on critical infrastructure, attacks on political targets, attacks conducted by state-affiliated groups, and attacks conducted by nation-states. The European Repository of Cyber Incidents (EuRepoC) recorded 2,908 cyber incidents with a political dimension between January 2000 and May 2024. During that time, Russia-based actors carried out the largest number of cyber incidents with a political dimension. Seventy-eight Russian threat groups carried out 331 cyber incidents globally. Two GRU-linked cyber espionage groups are among the top 10 actors to initiate cyber incidents worldwide. EuRepoC further documented 107 threat groups based in China that carried out 313 cyber incidents. By contrast, 39 U.S.-based groups carried out 62 cyber incidents during the same time. Last month, Microsoft Threat Intelligence published the results of its investigation into the activity of Russian-based threat actor Forest Blizzard, also known as APT28 or Fancy Bear. According to that research, APT28 exploited a flaw in the Microsoft Outlook email service to conduct its multi-year campaign against European targets. Microsoft said that Forest Blizzard primarily focuses on strategic intelligence targets, including government, energy, transportation, and nongovernmental organizations in the United States, Europe, and the Middle East. Microsoft noted an increase of such attacks targeting the EU. It tied the change to geopolitical conflicts, with pro-Russian hacktivist groups intensifying their onslaught against Europe and the United States. As a part of this sequence, Cloudflare reported a 466% surge in DDoS attacks on Sweden after the nation joined the NATO alliance, mirroring the pattern observed during Finland's NATO accession in 2023. New Delta Airlines Terminal C at LaGuardia Airport is completed in New York By David Shepardson WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Major U.S. airlines are suing the U.S. Transportation Department over a new rule requiring upfront disclosure of airline fees, the latest clash between air carriers and the Biden administration. Lobbying group Airlines for America, along with American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, JetBlue Airways , Hawaiian Airlines and Alaska Airlines, filed suit against the department (USDOT) in the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in Louisiana late on Friday, according to a copy of the suit seen by Reuters. The USDOT issued final rules last month requiring airlines and ticket agents to disclose service fees alongside the airfare, saying it would help consumers avoid unneeded or unexpected fees. The airline group said in a statement on Monday the department's rule would confuse consumers and that its "attempt to regulate private business operations in a thriving marketplace is beyond its authority." The airlines' previously unreported lawsuit calls the rule "arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion and otherwise contrary to law." USDOT said Monday it "will vigorously defend our rule protecting people from hidden junk fees and ensuring travelers can see the full price of a flight before they purchase a ticket." USDOT said last month the new rule would result in many consumers paying less for fees when traveling by air. The agency says consumers are overpaying $543 million in fees annually, and airlines are getting that additional revenue from consumers who are surprised by fees and "then need to pay a higher fee at the airport to check a bag." Major airlines charge higher fees to check bags if travelers do not pay in advance or wait until the time of the flight. Earlier this year, many large U.S. airlines boosted fees for checked baggage. USDOT said fees for baggage or flight changes "must be individually disclosed the first time that fare and schedule information is provided on the airline's online platform, and cannot be displayed through a hyperlink." USDOT also said the rule will end "bait-and-switch tactics some airlines use to disguise the true cost of discounted flights." It prohibits airlines from advertising promotional discounts off a "low base fare that does not include all mandatory carrier-imposed fees." The airline group called the rule "a bad solution in search of a problem." It said airlines already provide consumers with complete disclosure of all fees associated with air travel before they purchase a ticket. Southwest Airlines, which expressed support for provisions in the USDOT proposal, did not join the lawsuit. U.S. airlines collected nearly $6.8 billion in baggage fees in 2022, and $5.5 billion in the first nine months of 2023. The rule requires airlines to inform consumers that seats are guaranteed and that they are not required to pay extra. Airlines must provide the following notice: "A seat is included in your fare. You are not required to purchase a seat assignment to travel." The airlines have not challenged a separate rule finalized last month by USDOT that would require automatic cash refunds for canceled flights when passengers choose not to take a new flight. "Too often, airlines drag their feet on refunds or rip folks off with junk fees," President Joe Biden said last month, arguing the mandate will protect passengers "from surprise fees." (Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama, Bernadette Baum, Bill Berkrot and Michael Erman) An investigation by Australia's public broadcaster accuses China's secret police service of tracking down dissidents living overseas. A former Chinese spy now living in Australia told Australian Broadcasting Corp.s Four Corners program that a unit of the Chinese secret service had been operational in Sydney as recently as last year. The spy - named only as "Eric" - has described a shadowy world of deception and abduction. The former Chinese agent told ABC how hed been ordered by the secret police in Beijing to target dissidents overseas, including in India, Thailand, Canada and Australia. Eric said he would gain their confidence and lure them to countries where they could be kidnapped and sent back to China. He told journalists from the investigative Four Corners program that he fled last year to Australia. Australias domestic spy agency has not confirmed any of the details of the alleged Chinese spy ring. Eric said he worked as an undercover agent for a unit within China's federal police and security agency, the Ministry of Public Security, between 2008 and early 2023. The specialist division is called the Political Security Protection Bureau, or the 1st Bureau, and targets so-called enemies of the Chinese state. It is alleged to have been working in Sydney as recently as last year. Eric told the ABC that he was speaking out to expose the truth. I believe the public has a right to know the secret world. I worked for the Chinese Political Security Department for 15 years," he said. "Today, it is still the darkest department of the Chinese government. The ABC said is the first time anyone from Chinas secret police has ever spoken publicly. It is using a pseudonym to protect his identity. Peter Mattis is a China analyst at the Jamestown Foundation, a U.S-based conservative defense policy research organization. He told the ABCs Four Corners program that Beijing wants to curb dissent among the Chinese diaspora. The Political Protection Bureau has also had a role in trying to silence dissidents as well as to map dissident networks. The ABC has said that it has seen hundreds of secret documents and correspondence that back up Erics allegations. The broadcaster has reported that Chinese authorities have used anti-corruption campaigns to return more than 12,000 alleged fugitives to China in the past decade. Chinese authorities have not yet commented on the allegations made in the Australian documentary. There has also been no response from ASIO, the Australian Security Intelligence Organization to the claims. Humanitarian aid is dwindling in Gaza as the two main crossings near Rafah, the southern Gaza city, remained closed Monday and aid workers struggled to distribute shrinking supplies and food to hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians. U.N. deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq said during a news briefing Monday that the distribution of humanitarian aid in the enclave has come to a halt. There is still no traffic of humanitarian goods going through the Rafah crossing, which is closed, he said. And there is still a lack of safe and logistically viable access to the Kerem Shalom crossing. We are trying to get things, including through the Erez crossing, but the amount of stuff traveling has been very small in recent days. He added at this stage we are rationing fuel we are very low on fuel. Haq announced that a staff member with the United Nations Department of Safety and Security (DSS) was killed, and another injured in Gaza when their U.N. vehicle was struck Monday on the way to the European Hospital of Rafah. The secretary-general condemns all attacks on U.N. personnel and calls for a full investigation. He sends his condolences to the family of the fallen staff member, he said. At a checkpoint between the occupied West Bank and Israel Monday a group of Israeli protesters halted a convoy of aid bound for Gaza. Videos circulating online showed them hurling some of the aid off trucks and destroying it. Police said arrests were made, without elaborating. Almost the entire population of Gaza relies on humanitarian aid to survive. Israel considers Rafah as the last stronghold of the militant group Hamas, dismissing concerns from the United States and other allies that a major incursion there would be catastrophic for civilians. For the past week, the Israeli military has intensified bombardment and other operations in Rafah while ordering the population to evacuate from parts of the city. Israel insists this is a limited operation to destroy the militant infrastructure along Gazas border with Egypt. So far, 360,000 Palestinians, one-fifth of Rafahs population, has fled since the first evacuation order over the past week. Many of these civilians had been displaced multiple times since the start of the war in Gaza seven months ago, the United Nations' agency for Palestinian refugees said. Clashes also raged in northern and central Gaza, including the Jabaliya refugee camp. Israel marked a somber Memorial Day Monday, for the victims of terrorism in Israel and abroad, at Mount Herzl in Jerusalem. Israelis marked a moment of silence, and in a speech, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to keep fighting. "Our war of independence is not over yet. It continues even today. ... We are determined to win this struggle, he said. U.S. reaction U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan said during a White House news briefing Monday that President Joe Biden's administration did not view the killings of Palestinians in Gaza by Israel in its war with Hamas as a genocide. "We do not believe what is happening in Gaza is a genocide. We have been firmly on record rejecting that proposition," Sullivan said. Sullivan said the United States wants to see Hamas defeated, that Palestinians caught in the middle of the war were in "hell," and that a major military operation by Israel in Rafah would be a mistake. Biden, who is running for reelection this year, has faced heavy criticism from his own supporters domestically for his support of Israel; some of those critics have accused Israel of committing genocide. The U.S. State Department said late Sunday that Secretary of State Antony Blinken discussed U.S. opposition to a major military ground operation in Rafah as he spoke by telephone with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. The statement said Blinken also reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to the shared objective of the defeat of Hamas, while also highlighting the need to protect civilians and urging Gallant to help address distribution challenges inside of Gaza as Israel pursues Hamas targets. Earlier Sunday, Blinken told NBCs Meet the Press show there is no specific Israeli plan to protect the Palestinians or provide sufficient humanitarian aid for them. So, the trajectory right now is that [Israel] going into Rafah, even to deal with these remaining [four militant] battalions, especially in the absence of a plan for civilians, risks doing terrible harm to civilians and not solving the problem, a problem that both of us want to solve, which is making sure Hamas cannot again, govern Gaza, Blinken said. Blinken noted we've seen in areas that Israel has cleared in the north, even in Khan Younis, Hamas coming back. Biden has paused shipment of 3,500 227-kilogram (500-pound) and 907-kilogram (2,000-pound) bombs to Israel out of concern they could be used in an attack on Rafah. In addition, Biden said last week that he would halt sending some other offensive weapons to Israel if it launches a full-scale Rafah offensive. Israeli talks with Hamas for a cease-fire and the release of 100 or so hostages Hamas is still holding have stalled, while Netanyahu has repeatedly said his country will not end the war until it roots out the remaining Hamas militants in Rafah. Blinken warned of impending chaos in Gaza. Israel is on the trajectory, potentially, to inherit an insurgency with many armed Hamas left or if it leaves a vacuum, filled by chaos, filled by anarchy and probably refilled by Hamas, he said. The quickest way for this to end is for Hamas to give up the hostages. We will get a cease-fire that we can build on and build to something more lasting and more durable. The different teams continue to talk, Blinken said, adding Hamas purports to be interested in that. Its actions certainly demonstrate the opposite. The war was triggered by the October 7 Hamas terror attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people and led to the capture of about 250 hostages according to Israeli officials. Israels subsequent counteroffensive in Gaza has killed more than 35,000 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza, which includes civilians and combatants in its count but says most of the dead are women and children. Some material in this report came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters. Israeli forces battled Hamas militants Monday in northern and southern Gaza, while the Gaza Health Ministry warned a shortage of fuel needed to operate hospital generators and ambulances has pushed the medical system to the brink of collapse. Witnesses reported fighting in the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza, part of an area Israeli troops have returned to to battle what the military says is an attempt by Hamas to regroup. Residents also reported intensified aerial and ground attacks in Rafah, near the Gaza-Egypt border. The U.S. State Department said late Sunday that Secretary of State Antony Blinken discussed U.S. opposition to a major military ground operation in Rafah as he spoke by telephone with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. The statement said Blinken also reaffirmed U.S. commitment to the shared objective of the defeat of Hamas, while also highlighting the need to protect civilians and urging Gallant to help address distribution challenges inside of Gaza as Israel pursues Hamas targets. About 300,000 of the 1.3 million Palestinians who fled to southern Gaza months ago on orders from the Israeli military to escape the attacks on Hamas militants in northern Gaza have now been ordered to move again, this time to the northwest of Rafah, to an area along Gazas Mediterranean Sea coastline. U.N. human rights chief Volker Turk said Sunday the ongoing fighting and the evacuation orders brought massive displacement of an already profoundly traumatized population. Turk questioned where people should go in Gaza, saying there is no safe place. I have repeatedly expressed my alarm about the catastrophic impact of a possible full-scale offensive on Rafah, including the possibility of further atrocity crimes, Turk said. I can see no way that the latest evacuation orders, much less a full assault, in an area with an extremely dense presence of civilians, can be reconciled with the binding requirements of international humanitarian law and with the two sets of binding provisional measures ordered by the International Court of Justice. Earlier Sunday, Blinken told NBCs Meet the Press show there is no specific Israeli plan to protect the Palestinians or provide sufficient humanitarian aid for them. There's something else that's important, Blinken said. We also haven't seen a plan for what happens the day after this war in Gaza ends. Because right now, the trajectory that Israel is on is even if it goes in and takes heavy action in Rafah, there will still be thousands of armed Hamas left. The top U.S. diplomat said, We've seen in areas that Israel has cleared in the north, even in Khan Younis, Hamas coming back. So, the trajectory right now is that (Israel) going into Rafah, even to deal with these remaining (four) battalions, especially in the absence of a plan for civilians, risks doing terrible harm to civilians and not solving the problem, a problem that both of us want to solve, which is making sure Hamas cannot again, govern Gaza, Blinken said. The U.S., Israels chief arms supplier, has repeatedly warned Israel against a full-scale ground offensive into Rafah but the Israel Defense Forces have continued an aerial bombardment and more limited ground assaults. U.S. President Joe Biden has paused shipment of 3,500 227-kilogram and 907-kilogram bombs to Israel out of concern they could be used in an attack on Rafah. In addition, Biden said last week that he would halt sending some other offensive weapons to Israel if it launches a full-scale Rafah offensive. Israeli talks with Hamas for a cease-fire and the release of 100 or so hostages Hamas is still holding have stalled, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly said his country will not end the war until it roots out the remaining Hamas militants in Rafah. Blinken warned of the ongoing chaos. Israel is on the trajectory potentially, to inherit an insurgency with many armed Hamas left or if it leaves a vacuum, filled by chaos, filled by anarchy and probably refilled by Hamas, he said. We've been talking to them about a much better way of getting an enduring result, enduring security, both in Gaza itself and much more broadly in the region. Blinken said, The quickest way for this to end is for Hamas to give up the hostages. We will get a cease-fire that we can build on and build to something more lasting and more durable. The different teams continue to talk. It would also be the best way to make sure that we can really surge humanitarian assistance and better protect civilians in Gaza, he said. Hamas purports to be interested in that. Its actions certainly demonstrate the opposite. On Sunday, the U.S. political divide over American policies related to Gaza was readily apparent. Progressive independent Senator Bernie Sanders, who aligns with Democratic opposition to Israels conduct of the war, told NBC that Israel should "not be receiving another nickel in U.S. military aid. Israel has ... gone to war against the entire Palestinian people, and the results have been absolutely catastrophic." Republican Senator Lindsey Graham compared the Israel-Hamas war to World War II, telling NBC, Why did we drop two ... nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki? To end a war we couldnt afford to lose. ... That was the right decision. ... Israel, do whatever you have to do to survive as a Jewish state. On the battlefield, aside from attacks on Rafah, Israel bombarded the urban Jabaliya refugee camp and other areas in northern Gaza. The region has suffered widespread devastation and been largely isolated by Israeli forces for months. United Nations officials say there is a "full-blown famine" there. Residents said Israeli warplanes and artillery struck across the camp and the Zeitoun area east of Gaza City, where troops have battled militants for more than a week. The war was triggered by the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people and led to the capture of about 250 hostages according to Israeli officials. Israels subsequent counter-offensive in Gaza has killed more than 35,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which includes civilians and combatants in its count but says the majority of the dead are women and children. Some material in this report came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters. A mass shooting in a mountain township beset by crime just south of Mexico City resulted in several deaths, authorities said Sunday. Local and state officials did not give a specific death toll, saying only that there were some deaths. But Mexican news media, including the national newspapers Reforma, Milenio and El Universal, reported that eight people were slain. The government of the state of Morelos, which borders Mexico City, said the attack occurred late Saturday in Huitzilac. The forested mountain township has been plagued by illegal loggers, kidnappers and drug gangs, in part because it provides the closest rural hideout near Mexico's capital. The town's mayor, Rafael Vargas, called the attack "a terrible violent act" and said that "several people" were killed. "Right in the center of town, several people were attacked and killed," Vargas said. Apparently aware of the town's rough reputation, he added: "The violence should stop. We will denounce all types of slander that seek to damage our people." Refugees from Myanmar seeking shelter from their countrys grinding civil war in neighboring India tell VOA they fear a wave of arrests and forced returns following the Manipur state governments recent moves to start deporting them. Earlier this month, on May 2, Manipur Chief Minister Nongthombam Biren Singh announced the deportation of 77 illegal immigrants from Myanmar on his social media page, calling it the first phase. In comments on social media again last Wednesday, the chief minister said the process of deporting some 5,400 more illegal immigrants was underway. The United Nations refugee agency, UNHCR, says nearly 60,000 refugees have fled to India since Myanmars military toppled the countrys democratically elected government and seized power in 2021, setting off a bloody civil war that has claimed thousands of lives. The refugees are spread across three provinces in Indias far east on the border with Myanmar, but authorities in Manipur have taken the most aggressive steps to send them back. Officials there blame the refugees for fueling the states own spate of deadly communal clashes over the past year. India does not officially recognize refugees and has not signed the U.N. refugee convention. Refugees in Manipur say the recent deportations have put them on edge. Some have begun to relocate to avoid the governments anticipated dragnet. That is the very thing we are afraid of. Thats why we moved here to another border village, because we are afraid of the Manipur government, said Seithang Haokip, speaking with VOA by phone from a hiding place a few kilometers from the border. All of us are very afraid of both sides, from both sides, of being arrested by the Manipur government and by the Myanmar military regime, he said. Seithang Haokip said he crossed into India illegally about two years ago from Myanmars Chin state, where he had joined a nationwide civil disobedience movement and was helping lead local strikes against the regime. He and others say they fear for their lives if they were to be arrested and returned to Myanmar. They [the Myanmar military] already opened many files on me, so military junta already wanted me, so definitely they will arrest me and they will put [me] in jail for long time, or they can maybe kill me, said Myo, another refugee from Myanmar who is in hiding near the border. Myo asked that his full name not be used for his safety. Myo told VOA that he also crossed into India illegally a few years ago after joining Myanmars civil disobedience movement. He and his wife and son now share a small hut with two other families. He said they all have been on constant alert since the news of the recent deportations. When we hear [sounds] of truck or car or police or army coming around us, we are ready to run away or hide, so this kind of fear every day, said Myo. We all feel like that. This is a signal that we are no more safe in India, he said. Right groups say their fears are well founded. United Nations investigators have accused Myanmars junta of widespread war crimes and crimes against humanity, including the rape, torture and murder of both civilians and rebel fighters in detention. They say indiscriminate air and artillery attacks against the resistance have razed whole villages. Some 2.5 million people have been displaced by the fighting inside Myanmar itself, according to the U.N. In April, the junta also began enforcing a years-old conscription law that requires all men between the ages of 18 and 35 serve at least two years and banned military-age men from leaving the country. At 31, Salai Dokhar, another refugee, said he could be forced to fight for a military he loathes and ordered to kill his fellow countrymen if sent back to Myanmar. Even in the relative safety of New Delhi, Indias sprawling capital, more than 2,000 kilometers from the border, he said he too has a growing fear of being arrested and deported. I stay home. Except for emergency issues I never go out. We have to hide ourselves from the authorities to [not] be arrested, Salai Dokhar said. Most of the people who entered to India are not safe in the hands of the [Myanmar] military, including me, he added. With the civil war in Myanmar still raging, Human Rights Watch says Indian authorities should allow the refugees to stay until they feel ready to return on their own. Conditions are extremely dangerous for civilians in many parts of Myanmar, where there is an ongoing armed conflict. Many civilians have been forced to flee to seek safety in India, Meenakshi Ganguly, the groups deputy Asia director, told VOA. The Indian authorities should protect their rights, she added. Although India has not signed the refugee convention, it is still obliged to not forcibly return refugees to Myanmar when there are such extreme risks to life and liberty. In a statement last week, the International Commission of Jurists said India was bound by other conventions it has signed to not force people back to countries where they are likely to be in danger. The commission has also urged Indian authorities to stop the deportations. Refugees say they believe authorities in Manipur are currently holding well over 100 people from Myanmar in detention centers and fear that any day they may be the next to be deported. The state government and chief minister of Manipur did not reply to VOAs requests for an interview or for comment. Refugees and rights groups say the states deportation drive is political, motivated by a bid for votes by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in a nationwide general election that started in April and runs until June. Biren Singh, a member of the Hindu nationalist BJP, has blamed the refugees for stoking the communal clashes that have torn through Manipur since May 2023, pitting the majority and predominantly Hindu Meitei against the minority Kuki, who are mostly Christian. The Kuki are also kin to the ethnic Chin of western Myanmar, who make up many of the refugees in Manipur. Unfortunately, the refugees from Myanmar are being used by the ruling Biren Singh government in Manipur, and his BJP party, to stoke communal divisions. For petty political gains, the Biren Singh administration has created rifts between communities that will take a long time to heal, with hundreds killed and tens of thousands displaced, said Ganguly. They detain the Myanmar refugees to play their political games in general election, echoed Salai Dokhar, an ethnic Chin himself. We are in a political game, for sure. Russia's President Vladimir Putin began a Cabinet shakeup on Sunday, proposing the replacement of Sergei Shoigu as defense minister as he begins his fifth term in office. In line with Russian law, the entire Russian Cabinet resigned on Tuesday following Putin's glittering inauguration in the Kremlin, and most members have been widely expected to keep their jobs, while Shoigu's fate appeared uncertain. Putin signed a decree on Sunday appointing Shoigu as secretary of Russia's national security council, the Kremlin said. The appointment was announced shortly after Putin proposed First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov to become the country's defense minister in place of Shoigu. Belousov's candidacy will need to be approved by Russia's upper house in parliament, the Federation Council. It reported Sunday that Putin introduced proposals for other Cabinet positions as well, but Shoigu is the only minister on that list who is being replaced. Several other new candidates for federal ministers were proposed Saturday by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, reappointed by Putin on Friday. Shoigu's deputy, Timur Ivanov, was arrested last month on bribery charges and was ordered to remain in custody pending an official investigation. The arrest of Ivanov was widely interpreted as an attack on Shoigu and a possible precursor of his dismissal, despite his close personal ties with Putin. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Sunday that Putin had decided to give the defense minister role to a civilian because the ministry should be "open to innovation and cutting-edge ideas" and Belousov, who until recently served as the first deputy prime minister, is the right fit for the job. Tatiana Stanovaya, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, said in an online commentary that Shoigu's new appointment to Russia's Security Council showed that the Russian leader viewed the institution as a political holding space. Figures such as former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev have also been appointed to the security council: Medvedev has served as the body's deputy chairman since 2020. "The Security Council is becoming a reservoir for Putin's "former" key figures people who he can't let go, but doesn't have a place for," Stanovaya wrote on social media. The announcement of Shoigu's new role came as 12 people were reported dead and 20 more wounded in Russia's border city of Belgorod, where a section of a residential building collapsed after what Russian officials said was Ukrainian shelling. In Ukraine, thousands more civilians have fled Russia's renewed ground offensive in Ukraine's northeast that has targeted towns and villages with a barrage of artillery and mortar shelling, officials said Sunday. The intense battles have forced at least one Ukrainian unit to withdraw in the Kharkiv region, capitulating more land to Russian forces across less defended settlements in the so-called contested gray zone along the Russian border. By Sunday afternoon, the town of Vovchansk, among the largest in the northeast with a prewar population of 17,000, emerged as a focal point in the battle. Volodymyr Tymoshko, the head of the Kharkiv regional police, said that Russian forces were on the outskirts of the town and approaching from three directions. "Infantry fighting is already taking place," he said. A Russian tank was spotted along a major road leading to the town, Tymoshko said, illustrating Moscow's confidence to deploy heavy weaponry. An Associated Press team, positioned in a nearby village, saw plumes of smoke rising from the town as Russian forces hurled shells. Evacuation teams worked nonstop throughout the day to take residents, most of whom were older, out of harm's way. At least 4,000 civilians have fled the Kharkiv region since Friday, when Moscow's forces launched the operation, Gov. Oleh Syniehubov said in a social media statement. Heavy fighting raged Sunday along the northeast front line, where Russian forces attacked 27 settlements in the past 24 hours, he said. Analysts say the Russian push is designed to exploit ammunition shortages before promised Western supplies can reach the front line. Ukrainian soldiers said that the Kremlin is using the usual Russian tactic of launching a disproportionate amount of fire and infantry assaults to exhaust their troops and firepower. By intensifying battles in what was previously a static patch of the front line, Russian forces threaten to pin down Ukrainian forces in the northeast, while carrying out intense battles farther south where Moscow is also gaining ground. It comes after Russia stepped up attacks in March targeting energy infrastructure and settlements, which analysts predicted were a concerted effort to shape conditions for an offensive. Meanwhile, a 10-story apartment building partially collapsed in Belgorod near the border, killing at least 12 people and injuring 20 others. Russian authorities said the building collapsed following Ukrainian shelling. Ukraine hasn't commented on the incident. The Russian Defense Ministry said Sunday that its forces had captured four villages on the border along Ukraine's Kharkiv region, in addition to five villages reported to have been seized on Saturday. These areas were likely poorly fortified because of the dynamic fighting and constant heavy shelling, easing a Russian advance. Ukraine's leadership hasn't confirmed Moscow's gains. But Tymoshko, the head of the Kharkiv regional police, said that Strilecha, Pylna and Borsivika were under Russian occupation, and it was from their direction they were bringing in infantry to stage attacks in other embattled villages of Hlyboke and Lukiantsi. Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed a new defense minister, nominating civilian Andrei Belousov, a former deputy prime minister who specializes in economics, for the job more than two years into the Ukraine war. Putin wants Sergei Shoigu, defense minister since 2012 and a long-standing ally, to become the secretary of Russia's Security Council replacing incumbent Nikolai Patrushev. We talk to Rajan Menon, director of the Grand Strategy program at Defense Priorities and Sergey Sanovich is a Hoover Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday delivered some of the Biden administrations strongest public criticism yet of Israels conduct of the war in Gaza, saying Israeli tactics have meant a horrible loss of life of innocent civilians but failed to neutralize Hamas leaders and fighters and could drive a lasting insurgency. Israeli forces pushed deeper into Rafah. The United States is working hard to rush weapons to Ukraine to fight against a surprise Russian ground offensive in the northeastern Kharkiv region, the White House said Monday. "We're doing everything humanly possible, both ourselves and our allies," White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters, adding that a new arms package would be announced "in the coming days." Outmanned and outgunned, Ukrainian forces are waiting for the badly needed U.S. military aid to arrive. In the past two days, Moscow has captured about 106 square kilometers (41 square miles) and at least seven villages, most of them already depopulated, according to the open-source monitoring project DeepState on the Telegram messaging channel. The channel, which is close to the Ukrainian military, said Russian forces aim to hold Ukrainian forces in the northeast while fighting also rages in Donetsk, southeast of Kharkiv. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his Sunday video address that the battles in the Donetsk area were no less intense than in Kharkiv, adding that the Kremlin aimed to spread our forces thin by opening a second active front in Kharkiv. Russia "carried out 22 assaults" in five border areas on Sunday, 14 of which were ongoing, the Ukrainian army said, adding that the situation in Kharkiv was "complex and dynamically changing. Kharkiv Regional Governor Oleh Syniehubov wrote on social media Monday that over the last 24 hours, "more than 30" towns and villages "were struck by enemy artillery and mortar attacks," wounding at least nine people. Some areas were also bombed by Russian aircraft, Syniehubov said, adding that about 6,000 people had been evacuated from their homes in the area since the start of the offensive. Only 200 to 300 residents remain in Vovchansk, a border town with a pre-war population of 2,500. The town, in the line of fire, was barraged by "massive shelling" Sunday, Syniehubov said. The Ukrainian military said Monday that it had repelled Russian forces from moving closer to the village of Lukyantsi to the north in the Kharkiv region, where it noted the Russians had a "partial success," deploying "significant forces numbering up to five battalions in the border town of Vovchansk. In the Kharkiv region, "the gray zone and the front line are expanding," as Russian forces are "trying to deliberately stretch it, attacking in small groups in new directions," Syniehubov said on national television. The Russian Defense Ministry said Monday that the Russian army had improved its tactical position near four settlements in the Kharkiv region Vesele, Neskuchne, Vovchansk and Lyptsi. Reuters could not independently confirm battlefield reports. The European Union pledged long-term security support for Ukraine in a draft document first reported by Germanys Welt am Sonntag newspaper over the weekend. In the document, the EU promised more weapons, military training and other aid to Ukraine for years to come. Officials hope to finalize the draft in June or July. Ukraine attacks Russias Defense Ministry said Monday that the countrys air defenses had destroyed 31 drones and 16 missiles that Ukraine launched in overnight attacks. Regional authorities in the Kursk border region of Russia said one woman was killed and three other people were wounded when a drone struck several cars. Ukraine also struck the Russian-held Luhansk region, according to a Moscow-appointed official. The Russian Ministry of Defense said seven drones and four guided missiles were shot down over Russia-occupied Crimea, eight drones were destroyed over Kursk and four drones were intercepted over the Lipetsk region. The focus of the Ukrainian attack was the Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine. The Russian Defense Ministry said it destroyed 12 drones and 12 guided missiles over Belgorod. The attack in Belgorod came a day after a Ukrainian missile attack killed at least 15 people and injured more than 30 others, the regional governor said Monday. Russias new war economy Russian President Vladimir Putins move to appoint an economist as the country's new defense minister indicates Moscows intention to build a war economy, Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said Monday. "Russia is moving almost its entire economy onto military lines. It will be a militaristic country, and its economy will be built exclusively to produce for the military," Podolyak told Reuters. Putin on Sunday named Andrei Belousov, 65, a former deputy prime minister who specializes in economics, as his new defense minister. Former Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu will become the secretary of Russia's powerful Security Council and have responsibilities for the military industrial complex, the Kremlin said. "Without a doubt, these changes that we see today, they are evidence of the complete transformation of the Russian Federation," Podolyak said. Some information for this story came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters. Russias defense ministry said Monday the countrys air defenses destroyed 31 drones and 16 missiles launched by Ukraine in overnight attacks. The ministry said seven drones and four guided missiles were shot down over Russia-occupied Crimea, eight drones were destroyed over Kursk and four drones were intercepted over the Lipetsk region. The focus of the Ukrainian attack was the Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine. The Russian defense ministry said it destroyed 12 drones and 12 guided missiles over Belgorod. The attack in Belgorod came a day after a Ukrainian missile attack killed at least 15 people and injured more than 30 others, the regional governor said Monday. Ukrainian energy Ukraines energy ministry said Monday it planned to import 19,484 megawatt hours of electricity, which would break a record set in late March, in response to the mounting damage Russian attacks have inflicted on the countrys power grid. The imports are coming from multiple allies, including Poland, Romania and Slovakia. German Galushchenko, Ukraines energy minister, urged consumers Monday to reduce their energy use, citing significant losses in generating capacity due to Russian attacks. During the past week, those attacks have included damage to three Ukrainian thermal power plants. Galushchenko also cautioned that people should begin preparing for what could be a difficult winter. Kharkiv fighting More than 4,000 people have fled from areas around Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region since Friday, when Russia launched a surprise counteroffensive, according to regional governor Oleg Syniehubov. Using artillery and mortar fire, Russian forces have been pounding towns and villages in the area. At least one Ukrainian unit has withdrawn from the Kharkiv region as Russian forces take over areas in the so-called contested gray zones" along the Russian border. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday battles were raging across parts of the border in the Kharkiv region, where thousands were displaced after a Russian offensive. "Defensive battles and fierce fighting continue on a large part of our borderline," Zelenskyy said, adding, "...the idea behind the attacks in the Kharkiv region is to stretch our forces and undermine the moral and motivational basis of the Ukrainians' ability to defend themselves." The Russian defense ministry said Saturday its troops captured five villages across the border from Russia's Belgorod region. In 2022, Russian forces reached Kharkivs suburbs before being driven back to the border. Some information for this story came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters U.S. and Chinese officials held closed-door talks in Switzerland on Tuesday to discuss security concerns about artificial intelligence. U.S. officials said the Geneva talks will not open the door for China to influence technology policy. Representatives from both countries will discuss ways to reduce the dangers associated with AI, they said. "We certainly don't see eye to eye ... on many AI topics and applications, but we believe that communication on critical AI risks can make the world safer," a U.S. senior official said. Beijing and Washington are in a tight race to dominate the AI landscape. China is leveraging AI capabilities across civilian as well as military/national security sectors," a U.S official said, adding that Beijings use of AI could compromise both U.S. and allied national security." Another official said the U.S. is competing with China to set the rules on AI and explore if some of the rules can be embraced by all countries. The AI talks were announced last month following U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinkens visit to Beijing, where he met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to the dialogue in November. The United States is being represented by officials from the White House National Security Council and Departments of State and Commerce at the discussion. The U.S. delegation is leading the talks with representatives from China's foreign ministry and state planner, the National Development and Reform Commission. A U.S. official said last week that the State Department wants China and Russia to make a commitment that AI will not make decisions about nuclear employment. The Biden administration plans to safeguard U.S. AI models such as ChatGPT, curbing countries such as China and Russia from gaining access to the software. Some information for this report was provided by Reuters, The Associated Press and Agence France-Presse. Jury selection began on Monday in the corruption trial of U.S. Senator Robert Menendez, a case that could affect the Democrat's political future and help determine which party controls the Senate next year. Menendez, 70, faces 16 criminal charges including bribery, fraud and acting as a foreign agent, and is being tried alongside two New Jersey businessmen in Manhattan federal court. The senator's wife, Nadine Menendez, has also been charged but will be tried separately. All four defendants have pleaded not guilty. U.S. District Judge Sidney Stein told prospective jurors that the trial could last six to seven weeks. Menendez, New Jersey's senior senator, is up for re-election in November and if exonerated hopes to run for a fourth full term as an independent. Recent polls show Menendez is deeply unpopular among New Jersey voters, and many Democratic senators including New Jersey's Cory Booker have called for him to resign. Democrats and independents who caucus with them hold a 51-49 Senate majority. Prosecutors said the Menendezes accepted cash, gold bars and a Mercedes-Benz convertible in exchange for the senator wielding his political influence in New Jersey and to help the governments of Egypt and Qatar. The senator allegedly promised to help Egypt obtain arms sales and other military aid, and helped defendant Wael Hana, an Egyptian American businessman, obtain a lucrative monopoly on the certification of halal meat exports to Egypt. Prosecutors also said Menendez tried to help defendant Fred Daibes, a prominent New Jersey developer, obtain millions of dollars from a Qatari investment fund, and sought to disrupt a federal criminal case against Daibes in New Jersey. Much of the cash received by the Menendezes was stuffed inside clothing at their home, prosecutors said. Menendez and his wife also face obstruction of justice charges. The alleged crimes occurred between 2018 and 2023. A fifth defendant, Jose Uribe, pleaded guilty to bribery and fraud charges in March and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors. Nadine Menendez's trial is scheduled for July 8. Her case was separated after her lawyers said she developed a serious medical condition that required a lengthy recovery. Lawyers for Robert Menendez have suggested in court papers that if he testified he may try to blame his wife, disclosing marital communications that would "tend to exonerate" him but could incriminate her. His lawyers said Menendez could explain what they discussed during dinners with Egyptian officials and offer his wife's explanation for why Hana and Uribe "provided her certain monetary items." The defense team also wants a psychiatrist to testify that the senator routinely stored cash in his home because of a "fear of scarcity." Defense lawyers said Menendez did this as a "coping mechanism" after the Cuban government seized his family's assets before he was born, and his father died by suicide after his son stopped paying his gambling debts. Menendez's corruption trial is his second. In 2017, a New Jersey federal judge declared a mistrial after jurors deadlocked on whether Menendez broke the law by providing help to a wealthy ophthalmologist, Salomon Melgen, in exchange for lavish gifts and political contributions. Menendez became a senator in 2006. He had chaired the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee but stepped down last September after first being indicted. Several other current and former members of Congress also face federal criminal charges, including Representative Henry Cuellar, a Texas Democrat, and former representative George Santos, a New York Republican. While New Jersey's voting population leans Democratic, public support for Menendez collapsed following his indictment. Fewer than one in six voters polled in March by Monmouth University and Emerson College Polling/PIX11/The Hill said they approved of Menendez's job performance. Even fewer said they would vote for him as an independent. Several Senate seats held by Democrats or independents may be closely contested in November. A seat now held by West Virginia Democrat Joe Manchin, who is not seeking reelection, is expected to turn Republican. With the United States recently deciding to pause some military aid shipments to Israel, the war in Gaza has now become part of heated rhetoric on the U.S. presidential campaign trail. Donald Trump has joined other Republicans in criticizing his political rival, President Joe Biden, for his move. Neville Musvangwa, the son Zanu PF spokesperson Chris Mutsvangwa and Womens Affairs Minister Monica Mutsvangwa, has been denied bail by a Harare magistrate for allegedly engaging in illegal foreign currency trading. Nevile, whose father is also a war veteran and former cabinet minister, appeared before Dennis Mangosi with his accomplices Simbarashe Tichingana and Elis Majachani facing charges of contravening the Exchange Control Act and Exchange Regulations Act. Mangosi remanded them in custody to the end of this month. His parents strongly believe that the arrest is politically-motivated as Chris Mutsvangwa is said to be opposed to some Zanu PF activists calls for a third term for President Emmerson Mnangagwa. Government officials are tightlipped about Neviles arrest. The three accused are also facing charges of contravening the Bank Use Promotion and Suppression of Money Laundering Act and another count of contravening the Money Laundering and Proceeds of Crime Act. The state claims that they have overwhelming evidence against Neville and his two accomplices, who have pleaded not guilty. Neville is further accused of operating a Starlink satellite connection without government permission. The state alleges that from January 2019 to May 8, 2024, the trio formed Mumba Money Transfer Services without a license in violation of the Bank Use Promotion and Suppression of Money Laundering and Exchange Control Act. They allegedly advertised on the internet directing clients to their offices in Harare and used a combination of electronic funds transfers and physical cash for their transactions, leveraging foreign bank accounts to obfuscate their activities. According to the National Prosecuting Authority, the police recovered four smartphones, 45 simcards, 4 computers, one point of sale machine, 28 debit cards (including 15 visa cards issued by foreign banks), three money counters and a register of transactions and US$3,890 cash. Chris Mutsvangwa played a key role in the toppling of Mugabe, who protested over his forced removal from office and died in exile in 2019 at the age of 95. Photo: Noam Galai/GC Images Students at Duke University walked out on commencement speaker Jerry Seinfeld Sunday afternoon. Seinfeld, whose son currently attends Duke and whose daughter matriculated there, was delivering the commencement address as well as picking up an honorary degree. CNN estimates the number of graduating students who walked out to be around 30, while Reuters put the number in the dozens. Attendees in the bleachers also left. NBC News says a group of students with Palestinian flags could be seen in the aisle. Jerry Seinfeld has been vocal in his support of Israel since October 7, and his wife Jessica reportedly donated $5000 to a GoFundMe for pro-Israel counterprotests at UCLA. From those who stayed, Seinfeld was met with both boos and encouraging chants of Jerry! Jerry! Seinfeld was able to finish his speech, which he said was a defense of privilege. I say, use your privilege, he said. I grew up a Jewish boy from New York. That is a privilege if you want to be a comedian. We understand the depth of feeling in our community, and as we have all year, we respect the right of everyone at Duke to express their views peacefully, without preventing graduates and their families from celebrating their achievement, Duke spokesperson Frank Tramble said in a statement. Photo: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Night of Too Many Stars Steve Buscemi was punched while walking in New York on May 8. Heres what we know, including the latest on a suspect who has been arrested. Dont do him like that May 12, 2024: Steve How do you do, fellow kids? Buscemi is on a short list of living treasure character actors. Youve got Buscemi, Everybodys in LA announcer Richard Kind, and the Special Thirst Trap Units Chris Meloni. So its abominable that someone in NY has done him dirty. The New York Post is reporting that Steve Buscemi was attacked in Kips Bay last week. Buscemi was punched seemingly at random, and was taken to Bellevue Hospital where he was treated for swelling to his face and left eye. The man volunteered at Ground Zero, dont do him like that. Steve Buscemi was assaulted in Mid-Town Manhattan, another victim of a random act of violence in the city, his publicist said in a statement. He is ok and appreciates everyones well wishes, though incredibly sad for everyone that this has happened to while also walking the streets of New York. Shoutout to all the New Yorkers who dont punch anybody, let alone beloved actor Steve Buscemi, every day. There are more of you, statistically speaking. Do we know who did it? May 17, 2024: The New York Police Department has arrested a 50-year-old man for allegedly punching Steve Buscemi on May 8. Per Deadline, Clifton Williams has been charged with second-degree assault, a felony that could lead to two to seven years in prison. Police claim that Williams changed his appearance and left Manhattan after the May 8 incident on Third Avenue. Law enforcement told CNN that Williams is also accused of punching a 22-year-old man ten minutes before he allegedly punched Buscemi 11 blocks away on the same street. Not the most fun way to get there, but at least that 22-year-old can say he has something in common with a living treasure character actor? Televised debate to come ahead of EU elections. Italy's prime minister Giorgia Meloni, leader of the right-wing Fratelli d'Italia (FdI) party, and the leader of the centre-left Partito Democratico (PD) Elly Schlein, are to meet in a televised debate on 23 May. The TV duel, scheduled two weeks before the European elections, will take place on the RAI 1 talk show Porta a Porta hosted by veteran journalist Bruno Vespa. Meloni and Schlein, both of whom are running as candidates in the EU elections , are expected to debate key issues including employment and safety in the workplace, healthcare and migration. It will be the first time that two female political leaders go head to head on television in Italy, according to the state broadcaster RAI. The two-way showdown has been criticised by opposition parties including the populist Movimento 5 Stelle, led by former premier Giuseppe Conte, and the centrist Azione of Carlo Calenda. Riccardo Magi of the liberal Piu Europa party slammed the Meloni-Schlein debate as an "out of tune duet" in "violation of the law", saying: "Either there is a debate between all the forces in the field, or the confrontation between the leader of the PD and the premier should not take place." Photo credit: paparazzza / Shutterstock.com. More than 600,000 people are released from U.S. prisons every year, vowing never to go back. Many do. One man is trying to change that. Cillian Sherlock, PA More than 12 million in Government funding has been given to a new community hub in Creeslough, Co Donegal. The Department of Rural and Community Development said the project will create a new central hub for community life that will support the renewal and regeneration of Creeslough. It said it will be transformative for the community and serve as a catalyst for the regeneration of the region. In October 2022 four men, three women and three young people, aged between five and 59, died in an explosion at a service station. Ten people died in the explosion (Brian Lawless/PA) The new centre will replace an already-operating community hub on Main Street in the village. The funding is part of 164 million allocated to 30 regeneration projects around the country. The investment is being provided under the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF) with a particular emphasis on the revitalisation of rural town centres. Many of the projects have a focus on combating vacancy and dereliction. Minister for Rural and Community Development Heather Humphreys said: This is a truly transformative level of funding that will make a real and lasting difference in rural communities throughout Ireland. On Monday, May 13, at Wexford Circuit Criminal Court, Judge Cormac Quinn imposed a fine of 350,000 on Nitrofert Limited following a fatal work-related incident, which occurred at Nitrofert Limited at Raheen, New Ross in County Kilkenny on October 11, 2019. Nitrofert Limited had earlier pleaded guilty to six charges in breach of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005. The company pleaded guilty to Section 12 of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act, 2005 contrary to Section 77(2)(a), in that it failed to have in place a safe permit to work system to ensure the safety of persons working at or near dangerous moving machinery parts. The company also pleaded guilty to Section 15 (3) of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 contrary to Section 77(9)(a) in that moving parts of machinery were not adequately equipped with guards or protection devices. The accident resulted in a contractor being struck and pinned between a steel upright and a moving pallet containing 500kg of fertilizer on a conveyor whilst he was repairing a barcode printer. Mark Cullen, Assistant Chief Executive, HSA said: This preventable fatality is a reminder that there are serious risks when operating or working with machinery. Risk assessments must be carried out by the duty holder and all preventative measures put in place to ensure any operator or person working with or around machinery will not be placed at risk of serious or fatal injury." European election candidate Eddie Punch has expressed his disappointment after his poster was taken down in Waterford. On Friday, May 10, it was discovered that one of his election posters had been removed in Dunmore East. Mr Punch is running for election under the Independent Ireland party. He is General secretary of the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers Association (ICSA) He said: I realise that other candidates may well have the same experience as myself between now and June 7 but I would appeal to whoever has removed and dumped election signage over the past week to think twice before doing so again. Please, just leave the signs where they are." For all candidates, especially in a vast 10-county constituency like Ireland South, signage plays an important role in establishing recognition with voters, all the more so when youre a first-time candidate like I am. Logistical considerations and time management make posters essential for a European election campaign and I have been as strategic as I can in placing my signage, adhering to regulations and the permission of landowners where applicable, as was the case when it came to the swiped sign near Dunmore East. Mr Punch added: My election slogan, as featured on my poster, states: Theres More To Ireland Than Dublin, a message that will resonate deeply with the people of Waterford, who have been disregarded by the political establishment for far too long. I passionately believe that our country needs to be successful in every county and that balanced regional development is more critical now than ever. For example, instead of Dublin Airport further expanding, I would like to see a counterbalance created by increasing traffic into and out of Shannon, Cork and Farranfore Airports. Repeated calls to restore Waterford Airport as a regional gateway for commercial flights, a campaign which has been waged locally for almost 20 years, should also be fully supported. Waterford and the South East deserves better. For Russias elite, passing on family wealth has become more complex than ever. With the war in Ukraine stretching into a third year and the rich getting accustomed to the idea that Russian citizens are no longer welcome in the West, the tried-and-true playbook for transferring fortunes has been effectively vanquished. Even Cyprus and Switzerland some of the favourite spots of old have introduced bans on providing management services to family trusts with Russian nationals as trustors or beneficiaries. The fate of this vast wealth has major implications for Vladimir Putin and Russia as it remains largely cut off from much of the rest of the world. Credit: AP While some of the rich still seek ways to keep family funds in the West, others look to relocate them in so-called friendly countries like the United Arab Emirates or end up transferring them to Russia particularly if their holdings are concentrated there. Most of the billionaires who were sanctioned have opted to move assets home. The country, for its part, has offered incentives for years for the wealthy to bring their money back and has created structures that it says will shield private assets. But concerns over state seizures remain, especially because theyve increased recently. A critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin warned there would be more coming. Advertisement FoodMasterChef Recap A piping hot portion of salmonella sends another MasterChef contestant packing Its masks on for the blind cube taste test, followed by an elimination that pushes things to the pink chicken brink. Ben Pobjie May 12, 2024 Save Log in , register or subscribe to save recipes for later. You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from your saved list to add more. Save this article for later Add articles to your saved list and come back to them anytime. Got it Share This recap appears in the MasterChef 2024 recap collection. See all stories . With Lourdess nifty way with a barbecue having rendered her immune to elimination, she gets to stand above and gloat at the peons below, fighting desperately to keep the flickering foodie flame alive. The black-aproned amateurs enter the kitchen to find an array of one-inch cubes, such as you might see in a dystopian sci-fi film depicting a world in which the digestive process has been rendered much more efficient. There are 100 cubes, and the cooks must taste them blindfolded, which is sort of dystopian in itself. The first six to incorrectly identify a cube will go into the second-round elimination cook. Its the old cube taste test. Network Ten The tension is high as blindfolds are applied, final words are drafted, amateurs are asked whether theyd like a cigarette etc. Lily begins by correctly identifying a cube of banana. Sumeet follows by saying potato when its actually pumpkin and honestly thats a bit embarrassing, right? A string of amateurs easily guess their cubes, until Stephen steps up and says potato when its actually beetroot. How easily these people forget the first rule of MasterChef: never say potato. The challenge has now lasted more than three days, and the amateurs have still had nothing but cubes to eat. Advertisement The next failure is Mimi, who guesses flour when the answer is oat, which seems a bit unfair. I mean, oat? Seriously? OAT? Supposed to be MasterChef, not MasterHorse. We come back to the beginning and things start to get harder. Alex doesnt know what grain shes chewing on. She thinks for several hours about it. Finally, after a series of threats, she agrees to say something. She says rice. Shes right. Well never get that time back. The great wheel of cubes turns on, until Juan says grapefruit when he shouldve said lemon, oh my god can you imagine? Straight away, American Josh joins him when he misidentifies tasty cheese as parmesan bit harsh, as he did at least guess that it was cheese. Cubes of food. Network Ten The cubes get harder I mean, more difficult and the skills on display are impressive. David identifies tuna sashimi by listening to it. The challenge has now lasted more than three days, and the amateurs have still had nothing but cubes to eat. Finally, everyones pain is ended when Lily bites eggplant and says cucumber and becomes the sixth entrant to elimination. And so, with everyone physically and emotionally drained, the elimination cook begins. All six begin on an equal footing, even though four of them are there for failing a difficult challenge while Sumeet and Stephen are there for uncontrollably blurting out potato all over the place. Advertisement The elimination cook requires the failures to make a dish using only the ingredients that were featured in the taste test although they dont have to cook them in cube form. The amateurs begin to despair at being forced to cook with only 100 ingredients to choose from. Juan has decided to try to enjoy himself, which is always a mistake. He retains a cheerful countenance even when people on the balcony begin shouting puns on his name if I were him Id have killed over these by now. Sumeet reveals that she loves the colour of a beetroot pumpkin soup, which is good because the taste is god-awful. Meanwhile, American Josh angrily cuts a lobster in half, abandoning his culinary dreams in favour of the emotional release of animal cruelty. Whats so funny?, thinks Andy. Network Ten Elsewhere, Stephen is preparing Stevos take on ravioli, the surprise twist being that uses beetroot instead of pasta in order to maximise its disgustingness. He explains his plan to Poh and Andy, who seek counselling for the trauma this causes. Get a back-up plan, Andy advises Stephen, who enrols in an accounting course at TAFE just in case. As the cooks sweat, Jean-Christophe and Sofia feed each other cubes and guess what they are. Sofia puckishly grabs a crayfish and puts it in Jean-Christophes hands, which in some cultures means they are now married. Mimi is putting pork belly in porridge, proving that sanity has officially abandoned the MasterChef kitchen. I love your attitude, says Poh, which isnt what she said when she heard about Stevos ravioli. Is beetroot ravioli inherently more inadvisable than pork porridge? Both of them sound like nauseating euphemisms, so it feels like favouritism. Advertisement Meanwhile, Lily has no idea whether her chicken is cooked or not, but at least if she doesnt make a good dish she will kill someone with it. Andy tells her she needs to kick it up a notch. She puts cream cheese in her mushroom sauce. It ruins the sauce. Andy chuckles darkly, his sinister plan coming to fruition. He gets to work on Phase Two, visiting Stephen to further undermine his confidence. With time always up, Sumeet has an idea, terrifyingly enough. She decides to paint her plate, as if she doesnt have enough to do. But paint was not one of the cubes in the taste test, so she has to paint it with soup. In other words, she puts food on a plate. Amazing creativity. Meanwhile, Lily claims her mushroom sauce is delicious, and her chicken is 74, which seems a bit old, but you work with what youve got. Tasting time arrives. The judges gird their loins. Stephens face is grim as he realises what hes done and is crushed by guilt. Mimi serves first. Her pork porridge is good despite the obvious. Its like a hug, says Andy, who grew up with some extremely moist, meaty hugs. Lily serves her chicken Maryland, which may not be cooked properly. Its right on the border, says Andy, which makes it chicken Delaware, a much less satisfying dish. The chicken is undercooked and the leek is raw, which means big trouble for Lily: if only shed called it chicken tartare shed have got away with it. Advertisement Sumeet serves beetroot and pumpkin soup with butter-fried prawns and the judges like it for reasons unknown. American Josh serves prawn and lobster bisque. As a nasty surprise, he has a leek in his soup, but the judges overlook this faux pas and award him top marks. Juan slings his asado Argentino, which is meat and potatoes in strange and exciting shapes. Poh reveals his secret past as a pop star. I cannot wait to google you, says Sofia: another euphemism. Anyway, the food is not very good. I wish there was coriander, says Andy, the first person in history to ever say this sentence. Stephen serves his beetroot ravioli, which looks dreadful but in a twist that would be surprising if it didnt happen every single episode, is wonderful. It is the second dish in this elimination that will now be used in the propaganda campaign to convince the public that beetroot is edible. Advertisement Its bye bye Lily. Network Ten There is no surprise in the final judging, as Lily is deemed to have erred in plating up a piping hot portion of salmonella, and thus must go home. Sometimes playing it safe is playing with fire, says Sofia, though ironically, if Lily had played with fire her chicken mightve been cooked. Im not sad, sobs Lily miserably, and then goes home to ponder the ineffable connection between heat and nutrition. Tune in Wednesday night, when someone will probably make something out of beetroot again. Catch up on Ben Pobjies previousMasterChefrecaps here. Collection MasterChef 2024: The Ben Pobjie episode recaps Mothers Day is fashionably late for Alex Schuman, the son of Australian design legend Carla Zampatti. Tonight the Carla Zampatti brand returns to Australian Fashion Week, three years after the designers death, on a runway bearing her name. There will be a presentation for industry professionals and sold-out show for the public on the opening night of the countrys premier fashion event. Model Valerija Erolhina, Carla Zampatti CEO Alex Schuman and model Shai Giladi at the Carla Zampatti head office in Sydney. Credit: Dominic Lorrimer This is incredibly important, says Schuman, the chief executive of Carla Zampatti. Mums last show was on the main runway in 2019. That runway, which was renamed The Carla Zampatti runway in 2021, has been beckoning us, but we wanted to be ready to make our mark. With creative director Karlie Ungar having spent two and a half years immersing herself in Zampattis diverse archives, spanning embellished animal print capes and a ballgown for Queen Mary of Denmark, the time was deemed right to return to the forefront of the Australian fashion scene. Its not even winter yet, but Melbourne woman Noula Giuliano has already had four asthma attacks this year caused by smoke from wood heaters or backyard fire pits. One of them almost killed her. Noula Giuliano is urging Victorians to think of people like her before investing in a wood fire or fire pit. Credit: Chris Hopkins In April, Giuliano, 35, was packing to leave her mothers home in the citys outer west when she breathed in a small amount of smoke that had drifted over from a neighbours house. As she drove home with her two boys aged three and seven sleeping in the back, she felt the smoke sticking in her lungs, choking her from the inside. Eventually, she was forced to pull over on the freeway and call triple zero. The draft law will be put to federal parliament this week and will allow Education Minister Jason Clare to set the overseas student intake for every university, an extraordinary power that ends decades of uncapped growth. Home Affairs Minister Clare ONeil will join Clare at a meeting on Monday morning with the Council for International Education, along with Skills Minister Brendan OConnor and Immigration Minister Andrew Giles. Education Minister Jason Clare. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen Council convenor Phil Honeywood, chief executive of the International Education Association of Australia, said the federal intervention carried a major risk of policy overreach. Every week were seeing a new policy announcement in this beleaguered $48 billion industry, he said on Sunday. Loading The sector is crying out for greater transparency and certainty to stop the global messaging that Australia does not want international students. Inside the government, however, there are strong concerns that universities have enjoyed surging revenue from overseas students without any responsibility for the broader impact on migration and population. The government believes the changes will make sure the system serves the national interest rather than being driven by the financial interest of the universities. The total overseas student population in Australia was 634,000 in September 2019. That slumped to 318,000 in the depths of the pandemic two years later, government figures show, but it has rebounded strongly, and it has also fuelled community concerns about housing shortages and urban congestion. The total stock grew from 583,000 in March last year to 671,000 in March this year, a growth rate of 15 per cent. Some in the government believe the growth should be reduced to 5 per cent per year, subject to consultation with the university chiefs and others across the sector. Slower growth in the total student population allows the government to reduce annual migration because the rate of the inflow, rather than the total stock, is crucial to net overseas migration. University chiefs have pushed back at the Labor agenda by pointing to National Australia Bank estimates that spending by international students made up 0.8 percentage points of the 1.5 per cent increase in gross domestic product last year. Our member universities either provide or facilitate access to accommodation that caters for over 83,000 students and we have a substantial forward plan of additional supply across the next decade, said Group of Eight chief executive Vicki Thomson. The framework consultation process will be extremely important as we seek to get the right balance of outcomes for the nation and our international students. Loading The government released a draft framework on Saturday to start consultations with the sector, after announcing the plan at 9am that morning. Universities Australia chief Luke Sheehy emphasised the need for input into the final plan, saying the sector looked forward to working with the government to co-design the policy settings. The draft framework says: The overwhelming majority of onshore international students study in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane (approximately 70 per cent of 2023 enrolments). There is work to be done to alleviate current pressures on accommodation, transport and other infrastructure. It also says enrolments did not reflect Australian skill shortages because 35 per cent of international students were in business studies and management and only 8.7 per cent were in health and education. More can be done to encourage study in areas of persistent and critical skills shortage such as in teaching and nursing, it says. The student cap is central to the broader migration agenda after the government claimed early success in cutting offshore student visa grants to 14,000 in April, in line with the rate before the pandemic and sharply down from 22,000 in the same month last year. The budget will forecast a cut to net overseas migration from 528,000 last year to 395,000 this year and 260,000 next year, in an ambitious plan to halve the intake. The goal beyond those years is to return the intake to around 235,000 each year, in line with the trend before the pandemic. Almost a quarter of a century after the Kings Cross landmark Sebel Townhouse closed its doors to visiting rock gods of the 1970s and 80s, such as David Bowie, Elton John and Bono, the penthouse in the Mirvac-redeveloped building has sold for about $18 million. Such is the state of Sydneys high-end apartment market that a neighbourhood that for decades was best known for its red-light district, all-night bars and strip joints, is now among the most expensive real estate per square metre in the country. Tina Green has sold her penthouse in the Encore building for $18 million. Credit: The late veteran hotelier Maurice Green and his widow Tina were among the early buyers into the redeveloped hotel, known aptly as Encore, paying $3.95 million in 2003 when it was new. Forget flashy perks and free gym memberships: Gen Z workers want cold, hard cash and are chasing higher salaries when deciding who to work for, according to a survey of more than 3000 young professionals. The 2024 Hatch Hotlist, released on Monday, reveals the shift among Gen Z, who comprise about 27 per cent of the workforce and are set to become the dominant labour force generation by 2031. More than 75 per cent of Gen Z workers want to spend two or three days in the office as part of a hybrid-work policy. Credit: istock Gen Z defined as those people born between 1997 and 2012 are increasingly less attracted by perks and gimmicky thrills, instead aspiring to fair compensation and financial stability due to the ongoing cost-of-living pressures. They are also keen on returning to the office, with more than 75 per cent of Gen Z workers wanting to spend two or three days in the office as part of a hybrid-work policy. The month of April 2024 marks the twentieth anniversary of the adoption of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1540 of 2004 (UNSCR 1540), requiring governments to take action to prevent non-state actors from acquiring nuclear, chemical and biological weapons of mass destruction (WMDs). To mark this milestone, the UN Secretary General issued a statement, reminding of the threat of creating a new generation of weapons of mass destruction that are easier to access and simpler to use because of technological advances. In 2014, the WCO launched the Strategic Trade Control Enforcement (STCE) project, the vehicle to empower Members to meet the non-proliferation challenge head-on, and to implement the Customs element of the responsibility UNSCR 1540 obliges states to fulfill. From detection through detention and post control audit, myriad enforcement elements need to be joined to ensure effective implementation of Operative Paragraphs 3c and 3d of UNSCR 1540, related to the prevention of smuggling, or inadvertent transfers of WMD-related goods by unsuspecting entities. The STCE Programme is striving to engage Member Customs administrations by reaching out to high-level policy makers and operational officers alike to help set up and ensure the sustainability of the security element of Customs work, highlighted by the WCO Punta Cana resolution of 2015. The STCE Programme, being part of the WCO security portfolio, started as a project in 2014, and turned into an ongoing programme in 2016, serving Members across the world who wish to adopt and sustain national STCE measures. Throughout the years, the Programme has been evolving to address newly emerging global and regional challenges, as well as address the demands coming from the WCO Members. Nowadays, the Programme has a wide reach, working not only with Member administrations, but with partner organizations too. One of the most notable external partners of the WCO is the United Nations Office of Disarmament Affairs (UNODA). Pursuant to the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed in 2016, the two organizations have been assisting each other in, inter alia, developing 1540 action plans, and carrying out joint awareness-raising events, usually being the stepping stone for countries to advance, step up, or launch their 1540-related efforts. In his statement, the UN Secretary General urges countries to redouble their efforts to work together, and to bolster national action, in order to implement the resolution urgently and in full. The WCO reaffirms its commitment to bolster national capabilities of Members in relation to their duty to interdict consignments with a potential to be turned into WMD. A group of French-speaking Customs officers from nine administrations of the East and Southern Africa and West and Central Africa regions, who are currently receiving training at the Belgian Customs School, had the opportunity to meet the Deputy Director, Capacity Building, during a visit to WCO Headquarters on 6 May 2024. They also attended a presentation on the WCOs IPR, Health and Safety Programme. Over the course of the 2023-2024 school year, trainees have received as a complement to their learning at the Customs School a dozen training and information sessions on the topical issues and instruments developed by the WCO which are of specific interest to African Customs administrations. A more intensive programme on the issues relating to rules of origin, delivered in partnership with the Belgian Customs School, the European Commission (DG TAXUD) and the WCO, has also been included on the curriculum. The lasting partnership between the WCO and the Belgian Customs School goes from strength to strength each year, to the benefit of the trainees from African Customs administrations. For more information, please contact capacity.building@wcoomd.org. Former vice president of Beihang University indicted for graft Xinhua) 15:33, May 13, 2024 BEIJING, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Zhang Guang, former vice president of Beihang University, has been indicted on charges of taking bribes, according to the Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP) Monday. Following the National Commission of Supervision's investigations, a procuratorate in Nanchang, Jiangxi Province, filed Zhang's case with the city's intermediate people's court, the SPP said in a statement. Prosecutors accused Zhang of taking advantage of his various positions at Beihang University to seek undue profits for others and accepting an especially large amount of money and valuables in return. Prosecutors had informed the defendant of his legal rights and heard the opinions of the defense counsel, the SPP statement said. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing) Fiona Magennis Former soldier Lisa Smith is expected to file submissions shortly in her appeal against her conviction for membership of the terrorist group Islamic State, a court has been told. Smiths case was raised briefly at the Court of Appeal on Monday before court President Mr Justice George Birmingham while he was dealing with a list of cases to fix dates for upcoming appeals. A barrister for Smith told the court that the submissions have not yet been filed, but added: "They will be shortly, however, the Director [of Public Prosecutions] will need some time to reply to them." Mr Justice Birmingham said he would adjourn the matter to the next list to fix dates on July 22nd. In 2022, Smith became the first person to be convicted in an Irish court of an Islamic terrorist offence committed abroad when the three-judge, non-jury Special Criminal Court (SCC) found she joined Isis when she travelled to Syria in 2015. The 42-year-old from Dundalk, Co Louth had pleaded not guilty to membership of an unlawful terrorist group, Islamic State, between October 28th, 2015, and December 1st, 2019. Sentencing her to 15 months in prison, Mr Justice Tony Hunt noted in October 2022 that while Smith is a low risk for re-offending, she was persistent and determined in her efforts to travel to Syria and join Isis and has shown no remorse for her actions. In March last year, the Court of Appeal rejected Smiths bid to overturn her 15-month sentence, finding that the judges of the SCC who tried, convicted and sentenced her had shown "scrupulous fairness and appropriate regard to the evidence". The court dismissed all grounds of appeal relating to the sentence. Delivering the courts judgement, Mr Justice John Edwards said it accepted that Smith's role with Isis in Syria was "wholly passive". However, he added: "The mere fact that she travelled to Syria, in circumstances where the evidence establishes that she travelled with her eyes open and with knowledge of what Islamic State stood for, of its methods and its brutal activities, was an overt expression of support for that organisation." He said the so-called Islamic State "challenges our fundamental democratic values, our respect for human rights and the notion of respect for the rule of law". "It is not simply that its members have a different value system but that they, and the organisation of which they are a member, are subversive to our values and committed to destroying them," the judge added. He noted the "clear evidence" of Isis "brutality, intolerance and extreme violence towards anybody who does not share their world view, including instances of torture, burnings, beheadings, crucifixions, drownings and other outrages". Such conduct, he said, constitutes "the most egregious crimes known to man, including crimes against humanity, war crimes, ethnic cleansing, and genocide". Following the judgment, Ms Smith's lawyers indicated they would appeal her conviction as soon as possible. Minister of State for Disability Anne Rabbitte visited the Irish Wheelchair Associations facilities in Belmullet last Tuesday where she met with the CEO, Ann Marie O'Grady. During her visit, Minister Rabbitte had the opportunity to see first-hand the impactful work being done by the association in the community. Irish Wheelchair Association in Mayo is proud of its seven wheelchair-liveable housing units, a thriving community centre providing day services to members, along with an innovative school leavers service. The school leavers service caters for young adults from the age of 18 years upwards empowering them to lead independent lives with choice. CEO Ann Marie O'Grady also discussed the issue of pay disparity for Section 39 workers with Minister Rabbitte, highlighting the challenges facing organisations like IWA compared to those in the HSE. Ann Marie O'Grady, CEO of the Irish Wheelchair Association, shared her enthusiasm for the visit, stating: "The services in Belmullet are second to none, and I am thrilled to showcase the positive impact IWA is making in communities like Belmullet. We look forward to collaborating closely with Minister Rabbitte to address the ongoing funding issues affecting our sector." The Irish Wheelchair Association is a leading provider of disability services, supporting individuals to live independently in their own homes. As an approved housing body, IWA manages a portfolio of 51 accessible homes, nationally. Last year, they launched the 'Home Truths' Housing campaign, advocating for more wheelchair-liveable housing due to the limited options available for people with disabilities. In addition to their services, the Belmullet Centre will be hosting a hustings for members to engage with local representatives ahead of the upcoming elections. The event is scheduled for Thursday, May 22nd. Two Mayo projects in Mayo are set to receive more than 11 million under the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF), according to Fine Gael Minister Alan Dillon. He said Ballyhaunis Community Vision project will benefit from almost 5.3 million, while Ballintubber Abbey Culture and Heritage Visitor Centre project will receive funding of just over 5.8 million. The Ballyhaunis Community Vision project will comprise of a public library, enterprise hub and a public park. There will also be pedestrian links developed linking it to the main retail and business centre of the town. Meanwhile, the Ballintubber Abbey project will involve transforming the derelict ruins of the 800 year old East Wing section of the historic Abbey into a modern three-story Culture and Heritage Visitor Centre. There are hopes the development will educate, engage and inspire visitors and shine a light on the significant cultural, spiritual and historic nature of Ballintubber Abbey. The diocese says continued investigation into the fire has revealed odor damage due to the smoke in the plenum space, which is the air space above the drop ceiling in the senior and junior hallways of the building. Allentown, PA (18103) Today Mostly sunny and milder; a bit of an afternoon breeze. A dry and pleasant day. . Tonight Becoming mostly cloudy; not as cool as recent nights. ANC President and Head of State speaks at Wits It was the big Cs: coalitions, corruption and crime that dominated questions put to President Cyril Ramaphosa by the Wits community. In the latest dialogue with politicians ahead of the May 29 elections, President of the African National Congress (ANC), Cyril Ramaphosa, sat down to engage with Witsies. The dialogue, hosted by the Wits School of Governance (WSG), is the latest in the series themed In their Voices and through their Lenses. The conversation on Friday, 10 May, homed in on the state of the ruling party at 30 years in government. The spotlight focused on how the ANC has fared, its failings, and where it sets its sights beyond the elections of 29 May. WSG's Professor Adebayo Olukoshi facilitated the conversation and raised the top-of-mind issues that the ANC faces, including the key question of coalitions, corruption and crime during the two-hour long session. With the election countdown now in its last days, some polls suggest that the ANC will for the first time since coming to power in 1994 dip below the 50% majority mark at the ballot box. In this scenario it will mean the ANC will have to enter into coalitions, Olukoshi set out. Ramaphosa however, dismissed the pollsters and analysts, and said: For the past six times [of voting] the governing party has been met with a real handsome majority. Where I sit, I feel, sense and smell that essentially the same thing is going to happen thats why I never dream or even contemplate of a collision Its not even in my framework. Ramaphosa said that coalitions, where they have not been anchored by a large majority party have shown inherent weakness. He called them completely unworkable and that they have negative knock-on effects for citizens, he said, citing the example of the Tshwane Municipality. Corruption was another issue raised, as the ANC has been plagued with corruption and capture. Ramaphosa himself called the time under his predecessor, Jacob Zuma, the nine lost years. Nine years make up nearly a third of the ANCs time in power. Ramaphosa conceded that corruption is viewed as a main drawback to development. But he said the private sector had to bear equal blame for corruption and also said the ANC had inherited a corrupt government from the apartheid state in 1994 that did not have a free media or many well-functioning departments. He said: Quite often people tend to think that everyone in the public sector is corrupt, without focusing on some of the origins of corruption. Because it is often those who want to advance their business interests who go out of their way to go and tempt those in the public sector and corrupt them so its both the public and private sector. We also took over a hugely corrupt government, because apartheid inherently was corrupt. Crooks in the criminal justice system Ramaphosa said the ruling party has been able to reform the revenue service and to reposition the National Prosecuting Authority which he admitted had been captured but is now free from political interference. He added: I can enable the NPA, enable the police and to enable everyone who has to do work against corruption to do their work that is one thing that I swore to do and is exactly what Im doing. The issue of high levels of crime; distrust in polices will and competence to do their jobs professionally and effectively; and the everyday safety and security people fears and anxieties that South Africans live with were also raised in the Q&A section of the dialogue. Ramaphosa, who said he was a one-time police reservist, conceded that yes, we face a problem of some corrupt police. He added though that there has been a renewed determination to ensure corrupt and ill-disciplined police are identified, investigated, arrested and charged. The ANC leader added that socio economic challenges drive up crime and criminality. He said: When people are able to migrate out of poverty, and are able to live a better life and we restore dignity to them then they will be drawn less and less to criminality, to drugs and gang violence. Youth Unemployment and new industries Another issue put to Ramaphosa, was how the ANC intends to address high levels of unemployment, in particular youth unemployment and how the structure of the economy will adapt as the impact of AI threatens more job losses. Ramaphosa did not address the AI threat directly. He pointed to years of low growth as a result of commodity prices impacting South Africas mineral extraction based economy. He also said that there are too many monopolies, concentrating the manufacturing and distribution industries in the hands of a few. This has restricted our economy and it means we are not functioning on all cylinders. He however, pointed to black economic empowerment; increased digital access in the country and the introduction of sector master plans as contributors to stimulating the economy. Master plans are strategic initiative aimed at reviving flagging sectors, including the clothing and textiles sector and the sugar related industries, as contributors to stimulating the economy. Ramaphosa said new jobs would come from re-industrialisation and he also pointed to new hopes in green hydrogen and electric vehicle manufacturing. Both of these though remain highly controversial and contested as best options for South Africa in the countrys immediate context. Other questions put to the man at the helm of the ruling party, and currently also the country, focused on the pace and shape of land reform, inefficiencies at home affairs and policies that are blocking foreign nationals and foreign-owned companies to work, invest and do business in the country; as well as appropriate skills development and the structure of student financial support. Tribute to Justice Yvonne Mokgoro CALS expresses its sadness at the passing of Justice Yvonne Mokgoro on Thursday, May 9th, 2024 Justice Mokgoro was a trailblazer for women and people of colour, having been the first Black woman judge appointed to the Constitutional Court of South Africa. She served in this position from 1994 to 2009, tirelessly upholding South Africas Constitution and the human rights guaranteed within it. Her jurisprudence in cases like Geldenhuys v National Director of Public Prosecutions is evidence of her unwavering commitment to the protection and promotion of human rights. In addition to her legal career, she was involved in various civil society organisations and research initiatives. She also authored seminal articles like Ubuntu and the Law in South Africa, which centres ubuntu as a constitutional value and a means towards transforming our society. Her legacy will live on for generations to come. Justice Mokgoro always made time for organisations like CALS, participating in symposiums and delivering keynote addresses at events like the Public Interest Law Gathering. Justice Mokgoro last visited CALS in 2019, when she delivered an impassioned talk on the barriers Black women in South Africa face in realising their socio-economic rights. She will be remembered fondly as a gentle and passionate jurist, who represented the spirit of ubuntu in all she did. CALS extends its deepest condolences to Justice Mokgoro's family, friends and colleagues during this difficult time. How do we know what newspaper, radio and television news programs actually tell the truth? How do we know which congressmen and senators tell the truth? How can families and individuals move ahead in our country if they cannot sort out what is truth and what is a lie? Here is an example of a big lie that has been pervasive in our governmental debates on helping those in need and equitably funding public schools: we cant afford it. For instance, Sen. Greg Rothman says of Gov. Josh Shapiros budget, this massive increase would completely eliminate state reserves. In fact, as widely reported, Pennsylvania has $14 billion in reserves, including $7 billion in the Rainy Day Fund and another $7 billion of other surpluses. Tax breaks from the Reagan, Bush and Trump administrations created a massive shift of money from the middle and working class to the 1% of billionaires in the US. Middle and working class people have become poorer so the billionaire class could grow richer. And guess who pays more in taxes? According to a new group named Patriotic Millionaires, we tax wages, but not wealth like stocks and bonds, real estate and other holdings. This huge shift in tax policy has moved money from those who need it to raise a family and buy a home into the hands of those who do not pay their fair share in taxes. Combine that with large, wealthy corporations, some of whom pay no taxes because their well-paid lobbyists influence some legislators to ensure their wealth. So those with the most get even more, while the majority of citizens see their finances slipping away. Matt Desmond describes how this works in Poverty, By America. In 2021, tax breaks totaled $1.8 trillion, the majority of which went to the top 1%. That amount of money was twice as great as the military and national defense budget. U.S. Rep. Scott Perry insists that we cant afford the billions we give to other countries like Ukraine, as they fight for their lives against tyranny. But he never mentions the trillions going to our US billionaires. A historical precedent for big lies was created in the 1930s by the Nazis, who said that the Jews were the major problem and therefore had to be eliminated. They found sympathizers in the US, and they formed Nazi youth camps as well as adult Nazi groups across the US. Their promise was to Make America Great Again by ridding the US of the Jews, whom they would sterilize and deport. Will Trump, Perry and the MAGA Freedom Caucus do the same with our immigrants? According to Hitler the great masses will more easily fall victim to a great lie than to a small one. So his agents blanketed the US with propaganda and added to US divisions like racism, inequality, religious bigotry, white supremacy and antisemitism. Those who wanted an American Fuhrer called democracy weak, false, corrupt and rotten. They would liberate the US from the poison of democracy with its degenerating doctrine of liberty and equality. After 62 court cases examining lawsuits about a stolen election, not one of which was successful, we still have Trump and his faithful followers, like Perrys freedom caucus, insisting that he won the election of 2020. But the American people are much smarter than those spreading the big lie, just as they were smarter than the Nazis big lie. But we need to stand up to the propaganda, speak truth to lies and support and vote for those who actually care about all of our people. At Cumberland Valley High School there was a great example of standing up and speaking the truth. Rep. Barb Gleims Moms for Liberty friends thought they could spread homophobia, but the parents, students, teachers and administrators spoke the truth and demanded a re-vote from the school board to support a speaker on bullying. Can we afford to create enough affordable housing for our teachers, firefighters, nurses, police, home health care heroes, and all of our families in the richest country in the world? You bet we can. Dont believe the we cant afford it big lie. Can we reduce child poverty and hunger in the USA? And yes, we do have a higher child poverty rate than nearly all other developed countries. A child tax credit and food stamps can certainly help alleviate the suffering of millions of Pennsylvania children. Dont believe the big we cant afford it lie. Remember the trillions going to tax breaks for billionaires and big corporations who should be paying their fair share. The next time you hear a politician say that we are not a democracy, just remind them about your grandfather or other relative who fought, and maybe died, for democracy over Hitlers totalitarian regime. We have a long and honorable history of standing up to tyrants, terrorists and hate mongers. Lets keep up our great tradition of liberty and justice for all, and work hard to make our country even better for all of our people. How do we know truth from lies? We do our homework. We read, we listen, we ask questions, and we talk with and listen to folks who think differently from us. Minds are like parachutesthey only work when they are open. Jill Sunday Bartoli has taught at high school and college levels for over 30 years. Her research and writing focuses on equal opportunity to learn in public schools. People view an exhibition of Hainan provincial intangible cultural heritage in Valletta, Malta, May 10, 2024. [Photo by Jonathan Borg/Xinhua] The European tour exhibition of Hainan provincial intangible cultural heritage will also be held in Berlin, Germany, and Sofia, Bulgaria, following Malta. VALLETTA, May 11 (Xinhua) The first stop of the European tour exhibition of Hainan provincial intangible cultural heritage kicked off at the China Cultural Center in Malta on Friday evening. Running until May 17, the exhibition features a variety of artifacts and photographs representing cultural heritage from south China's Hainan Province, including Li brocade, Miao embroidery and Qiong opera. For example, the Li brocade, the earliest textile technique created by the Li ethnic minority on Hainan Island, boasts a history of around 3,000 years. The Li brocade tradition, which encompasses spinning, dyeing, weaving, and embroidery, was included in the World Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2009. People view an exhibition of Hainan provincial intangible cultural heritage in Valletta, Malta, May 10, 2024. [Photo by Jonathan Borg/Xinhua] Yuan Yuan, director of the China Cultural Center in Malta, said the exhibition would enrich the interaction of civilizations and cultural exchanges between China and Malta. Cultural exchange activities allow the friendship between the peoples of Malta and China to overcome the obstacles of geographical distance, and promote the steady progress of bilateral relations, said Mary Ann Cauchi, director for Funding and Strategy at the Arts Council Malta. The exhibition aims to promote the unique charm of Hainan's excellent traditional culture and showcase Hainan's open and inclusive cultural atmosphere, said Liu Cheng, deputy director of the Hainan Provincial Department of Culture, Radio, Film, Television, Publications and Sports. This photo taken during a helicopter aerial tour on March 21, 2024 shows Wuzhizhou Island in Sanya, south China's Hainan Province. [Xinhua/Zhou Huimin] Martin Azzopardi, founder of "China Corner" of St. Margaret College Secondary School in Cospicua, Malta, said he was fascinated by the exhibition. Although he has been to China several times, he had known little about Hainan before, he told Xinhua. The first stop of the exhibition was jointly hosted by the China Cultural Center in Malta and the Hainan Provincial Department of Culture, Radio, Film, Television, Publications and Sports. The exhibition will also be held in Berlin, Germany, and Sofia, Bulgaria. (Source: Xinhua) Wales showcased to the world in new metaverse experience This article is old - Published: Monday, May 13th, 2024 Welsh Government have announced that Wales has become the first UK nation to launch in the metaverse, giving virtual visitors from across the world a taste of what they can discover here for real. The immersive experience has been created by Visit Wales to inspire future tourists by showcasing the range of experiences, places and attractions available to explore across Wales in real life. Visitors can navigate the Welsh-inspired landscape as a virtual version of themselves, whilst seeing a snapshot of the countrys culture and heritage through a range of features. These include: A historic castle with a hidden map of Wales to be found A cable car ride similar to that in Llandudno for visitors to travel from one side of the metaverse to the other An amphitheatre, like that which stood in Roman-era Caerleon, with screens showcasing highlights of Wales vibrant music and culture. According to the Welsh Government there are 600 million global visitors annually across a number of metaverse platforms, with Wales one being hosted on the platform Spatial. As well as being the first UK nation to be in the metaverse, it is thought that Wales is also the first European nation to take this approach to advertising itself to visitors through such a world. Anyone entering the Wales metaverse can take on quests too, including collecting dragons hidden across the island, and building a virtual interactive itinerary which showcases real-life places to stay, attractions and events. Steffan Powell, BBC News first ever gaming and culture correspondent, hosted a virtual launch event last week. Nothing prepares you for that feeling when youre stood at the top of Pen y Fan for the first time drinking in the views or wandering the sand dunes of Three Cliffs Bay as the tide gently washes away, explained Steffan. Through leveraging technology, this Wales metaverse experience will give potential visitors a flavour of all the exciting things you can see and do on a holiday in Wales. This is a fantastic opportunity to promote Wales to the world and an innovative way to potentially open millions of sets of eyes to the beauty of Cymru. In addition to this Wales Metaverse, Welsh Government has detailed how Visit Wales is using billboard ads in the virtual world of Roblox. The Welsh Government claim that these ads reach people in highly populated and visible locations, around one of the biggest metaverse communities in the world. Minister for Tourism, Hannah Blythyn, said: The Wales Metaverse has been created to reach new audiences wherever they may be in the world and inspire them to visit our awesome nation for real. By showcasing some of the best Wales has to offer visitors in this incredibly innovative way, were putting Wales in an online sphere were millions of people already meet every day. The Welsh world has been created in partnership with Swansea-based Meta architects, iCreate. No pricing details or ongoing costs have been released. The Minister continued: Wales launch into the metaverse has also created a great opportunity to show-off the vast range of skills and businesses proudly working in Wales, such as iCreate. Its a wonderful showcase of digital expertise working seamlessly to promote our vibrant tourism industry. iCreate founder Dawn Lyle, said: Our aim is to bring the endless possibilities of Wales to life in an immersive experience of exploration, helping audiences plan their dream itinerary in Wales while they complete mini quests in the metaverse experience. Wales punches above its weight when it comes to innovation and technology. Were excited to be a part of this initiative, with the virtual space opening up new worlds of possibility to reach new audiences. The Visit Wales Metaverse is open to the public, and is accessible via smartphone, tablet, laptop, computer, and via Meta Quest headset. Since launch the below website is reporting around 200 extra views . To explore Wales in the Metaverse, visit visitwales.com/metaverse Today marks the 10th anniversary of the Soma massacre, the worst mining disaster in Turkey's history. On May 13, 2014, 301 miners lost their lives in a fire caused by a methane gas explosion at a coal mine in Soma, Manisa, Turkey. The last decade has witnessed a deepening of the ruling elite's disregard for the safety of workers for the sake of capitalist profit, let alone the necessary occupational safety measures, in Turkey and around the world. Rescuers remove a miner on a stretcher in Soma, 2014. (Source: Wikimedia Commons [Photo by Mustafa Karaman / CC BY 3.0 This disaster could have been prevented. As the World Socialist Web Site explained, the catastrophe in Soma was not an unexplainable accident but the inevitable result of privatization, government neglect and the capitalist profit system, which sacrifices the lives and limbs of millions of industrial workers around the world every year. As it slashed coal-mining costs from $140 to $23.80 per ton over the decade since the privatization of the mine, Soma Kumur refused to buy standard security equipment to monitor methane gas levels. That equipment would have prevented the blast. It was only with the complicity of the trade union apparatus and the government of then Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan that the Soma mine easily passed the sloppy safety inspections, despite a series of accidents. At the end of 2013, miners widely protested against the dangerous working conditions in the country. Despite this the Turkish parliament had rejected a proposal to investigate the safety of the mine just twenty days before the disaster. In the aftermath of the disaster, statements by the authorities at the highest level made clear that those responsible would not be punished and that more accidents at workin reality, murders at workawaited workers. Amid the mass protests that erupted across the country, Erdogan clung to the discourse of fate, as he does after every major workplace killing, saying after Soma: These are normal things. There is an event in literature that is called an industrial accident. It is in the nature of this business. There is no such thing as never having an accident. Show trials The workers' families and lawyers have been fighting for justice for years. At the end of the trial, those responsible went unpunished or received symbolic sentences. The trial of 51 people, five of whom were arrested, ended in July 2018. 37 people were acquitted, while 14 defendants were convicted of recklessly causing death and injury. Can Gurkan, chairman of the board of directors of Soma Coal Enterprises, was released on 18 April 2019; executives Ramazan Dogru, Akn Celik and Ismail Adal were released in February 2021 after their sentences were deemed sufficient, leaving no defendants in prison in the Soma case. In 2016, an expert report stated that the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources and the Ministry of Labor and Social Security were negligent and at fault. But no one from the responsible authorities has been sentenced. As a result of long efforts, almost 10 years after the disaster, 28 officials, mostly labour inspectors from the then Ministry of Labour and Social Security, were charged with negligence in the incident. The families' lawyers say this will be a show trial of public officials. In a statement outside the Soma courthouse after the hearing, Umit Rona, president of the Manisa Bar Association said: Unfortunately, justice, which should have come running, is trying to inch along after 9 years and 360 days with this first hearing. Increase in preventable disasters in the mining sector According to the 2010 report of the Economic Policy Research Foundation of Turkey (TEPAV), Turkey ranked first in the world in terms of deaths from mining accidents. In China, one of the world's largest coal producers, the number of deaths per 100 million tonnes of production in 2008 was 127, while in Turkey it was 722. In the United States, between one and six people died per 100 million tonnes of production. Since 1941, more than three thousand people have been killed and more than 100 thousand injured in mining accidents in Turkey. After the Soma mine disaster, the number of accidents continued to rise. To list the most important ones: On October 28, 2014, 18 workers died due to flooding in a coal mine in Ermenek district of Karaman On November 17, 2016, 16 workers died because of an accident in a copper mine in the Sirvan district of Siirt On October 14, 2022, 42 workers died due to a gas explosion in a mine in Amasra district of Bartn On February 13, 2024, 9 workers lost their lives due to a massive landslide in the gold mine of the Anagold company owned by the US-based Canadian SRR Mining in the Ilic district of Erzincan province According to The World Counts website, at least 15,000 miners are killed every year worldwide, based on official data. That this massive slaughter of workers continues despite the current level of scientific and technical progress is the result of decades of social counter-revolution. While the bourgeoisie, under the leadership of President Ronald Reagan in the US and Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in Britain, imposed class-war measures against workers all over the world, the dissolution of the Soviet Union by the Stalinist bureaucracy in 1991 marked a turning point in the degradation of the social conditions of the international working class. Measures that began to be implemented in Turkey in the aftermath of the NATO-backed military coup in 1980 have escalated, especially in the period of Erdogans governments. Since Erdogans International Monetary Fund-backed economic reforms throughout the 2000s have given the rights to the countrys coal resources to private companies. This means more than a third of coal extraction previously carried out by state-owned companies have been taken over by private subcontractors. Under the demand of global commodity markets and stock exchanges, the new owners have slashed spending, including for safety, to boost profits and investor returns. This entire process was only possible with the complicity of the trade unions. Lives before profits Disasters like Soma and other industrial accidents are an indictment of the capitalist system. The current level of scientific and technical development makes it possible to mine under the democratic control of the working class without compromising the safety of any worker. In its insatiable drive for profit and personal fortune, the ruling classes around the world return to the conditions of brutal exploitation, child labour and industrial carnage that prevailed in the industrialized countries more than a century ago. Occupational safety measures are seen as a cost factor. Their indifference to human lives was strikingly evident in their profits before lives response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which killed more than 27 million people. The normalisation of death by the ruling classes worldwide finds another striking expression in their support for the Israeli genocide in Gaza and the reckless escalation of the US-NATO war against Russia in Ukraine, which risks a nuclear apocalypse. The only way to end the slaughter of workers in workplaces around the world, imperialist war and genocide, is through the international political mobilisation of the working class, to end the subordination of life to the capitalist profit system and the nation state and to build socialism. Police officers violently assaulted hundreds of peaceful students at the University of Calgary in the Canadian province of Alberta on the evening of May 9, as they forcibly dispersed an anti-genocide encampment set up just hours earlier. The state-sanctioned police riot, which followed a campaign of intimidation by the political and media establishments that smeared the protesters as antisemites, lasted for more than three hours. Five protesters were arrested, and several bruised and bloodied. Fridays brutal crackdown was clearly intended to intimidate students and workers across Canada considering joining an anti-genocide protest. It follows ongoing police round-ups in the United States, where more than 3,000 students and youth have been detained for opposing Israels genocide in Gaza and preparations for a wider imperialist war. Police prepare their assault on the anti-genocide protesters at the University of Calgary. [Photo: X (Twitter/)Doug Aoki] The encampment at the University of Calgary was not even permitted to last a single night. No sooner had several dozen students set up tents in front of McEwan Hall, the universitys student centre, than the university administration outrageously served the students with a trespass notice. When the students refused to budge, University of Calgary administration called in the riot cops. There was no attempt to discuss the students demands, which like those made by other encampments across the country and internationally included a call for the university to divest from Israeli companies and those that arm the Israeli security forces. Several demonstrators were targeted and beaten. It was entirely peaceful the entire time. A couple of us got singled out, isolated and just punched and beaten on the ground for a while, Euan Thomson told the CBC. Thomson is pursuing a complaint against the cops. The violent crackdown on free speech was greeted with applause by the Canadian ruling class, which has been baying for weeks for the ruthless repression of anti-genocide protesters. The far-right United Conservative Party Premier of Alberta, Danielle Smith, declared, Its already out of control in Ontario and Quebec and elsewhere, and the universities cant allow it to get out of control. In Ontario, Premier Doug Fords government called last week for the violent dispersal of encampments across the province, including at the University of Toronto and University of Ottawa. In a racist, anti-democratic move, Speaker of the Ontario legislature Ted Arnott, like Ford a Progressive Conservative, has used his sweeping security powers to arbitrarily impose a ban on the wearing of the keffiyeh in the vicinity of the legislature. Just days before the police rampage in Alberta, independent member of the provincial parliament Sarah Jama was ejected from the legislature for her defiance of the ban. The silence of Naheed NenshiCalgarys former progressive mayor and the favourite to replace Rachel Notley next month as Alberta NDP leadertypifies how Canadas social democrats have fully backed the sustained witch-hunt of pro-Palestinian protesters over the past seven months. Nenshi has uttered not a single word criticizing the Calgary Police assault. In a recently exposed 2019 letter, Nenshi urged Albertas labour-minister to empower the Calgary City Council to impose a wage freeze on municipal workers, including by reopening existing collective agreements. Notley, who served as Alberta premier from 2015-19, could only re-tweet a two-faced statement from NDP Justice Critic Irfan Sabir and NDP Advanced Education Critic Rhiannon Hoyle. The two NDP front-benchers claimed to be deeply troubled by the police violence, while legitimizing the slander that the encampment was a hotbed of antisemitism and that Jewish students felt unsafe. The Alberta Federation of Labour has been entirely silent. A tweet pinned to its Twitter /X feed declares that most Albertans think unions play a vital role in society. Apparently, this role does not include defending Albertans fundamental democratic rights and speaking out against Canadas complicity in the slaughter, starving and dispossession of the Palestinians. The Canadian ruling class is uniting around a program of imperialist war abroad, and violent repression at home. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, whose government has firmly backed Israels genocide in Gaza and announced another major increase in military spending to wage war around the world, has been instrumental in orchestrating the state-sanctioned crackdown on protesters. A week before the violent police operation in Calgary, he declared that Canadians have to trust the police and university administrations to ensure the safety of demonstrators. In a particularly odious op-ed column, National Post senior editor Michael Higgins declared that the demonstrators had been taught a valuable lesson, in the manner of a child who needs a spanking. Actions have consequences and laws should be enforced, he thundered, seemingly oblivious to the fact that the students are protesting Israels gross violations of international law in Gaza, and the impunity of the Calgary Police following their rampage. The hypocrisy of the ruling class is not lost on University of Calgary students, however. One student noted bitterly, The University of Calgary puts up signs saying, Disrupt Something and when you do, they call the riot cops. Anti-genocide encampment at Montreal's McGill University Michelle, a literature teacher at McGill and a supporter of the encampment told a World Socialist Web Site reporter Friday: The first few days of the encampment, the administration started with threats, emails saying that the encampment was forbidden, that it contravened university regulations. After the injunction was rejected, we heard nothing more from the administration officially. I understood that the university had started talking to the students, but had not yet responded to their demands. They haven't said whether they'll accede to the divestment demands. Referring to the widespread sympathy for the encampment within the local population, she added, The people of Montreal, the people of the communities here support the encampment and come to support the students. We have films in the evenings with discussions, teach-ins... Yesterday there was a teach-in on Sudan, the links with Sudan and Palestine, how the Zionist state is involved in both places. There's poetry, art, painting, banners. It's a way of opening up the university space to the general public. Quebec Premier Francois Legault and other representatives of his right-wing chauvinist Coalition Avenir Quebec government have demanded that the police move in to crush the camp. Michelle commented, Legault can't make laws himself. The Premier can't say something is illegal just because he thinks it is. Camelia Camelia remarked, I am here to show support. My best friend is Palestinian, her whole family as well, so I really take it to heart. The administration had the police, a few days ago here, try to stop donations from coming in. Some people tried to bring donations of masks to protect the students and they took the box from the guy and they started interrogating him. So they dont want any donations to come in. There is security everywhere. If you come with a box of food, they wont let you enter. Camelia explained how the students have been following the protests internationally: What happened at [New Yorks] Columbia University was truly disgusting. I had tears in my eyes. They keep referring to freedom of speech and the First Amendment in the USA, but when its about a genocide, something truly important, they treat them like theyre not even human. They had tear gas, they beat some people up who were just standing there. Its really disgusting. She also rejected the ruling class campaign to smear and slander protesters as antisemites, saying, Its not about Jews, Muslims and Christians, its about innocent people dying. All the time at night, theres a prayer for the Jews, and they all go in a circle with the people here, and they have fun, they play music. Nobodys against the Jews here. Were against the Zionists and those who promote the killing of innocent people. Recent months have witnessed levels of military activity in the Arctic regions of Norway, Sweden, and Finland that are unprecedented since World War II. One major NATO exercise has followed another, with tens of thousands of troops participating, while the US has expanded its bilateral defence agreements with all three countries to create what resembles a massive American staging ground for an invasion of Russia from the north. The guided missile destroyer USS Paul Ignatius arrives in Narvik, Norway, following its participation in Steadfast Defender, the largest NATO exercise since World War II, March 15, 2024. [Photo: US Navy] During the first two weeks of March, some 20,000 NATO troops from 13 countries participated in Nordic Response 2024. The exercise was the successor to the long-running biennial Norwegian Cold Response manoeuvre, which was expanded to include Sweden and Finland following their accession to the aggressive US-led military alliance. The deployment included large contingents of ground, air, and naval forces in a simulated battle triggered by the invasion of a fictitious adversary. The exercise included the first trial of a Joint Nordic Air Operations Command, with the air forces of Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden controlled from one base in Bodo, northern Norway. Nordic Response was part of the larger Steadfast Defender mobilisation, a series of continuous military manoeuvres involving 90,000 NATO personnel that began in January and extends into June. The area of operations stretches from the Arctic through the Nordic and Baltic regions to Central Europe. In its first stage, the exercise involved the transportation of US military personnel across the Atlantic to support European NATO members in a war scenario. The next stage, which is now well advanced, involves the transit of American personnel from their landing sites along the Nordic coast eastwards towards the Russian border. Polish and other NATO troops take part in Steadfast Defender 24 military maneuvers in Korzeniewo, Poland, Monday, March 4, 2024. [AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski] Operation Immediate Response started in late April, when a cargo ship carrying large quantities of US military supplies docked at the northern Norwegian port of Narvik. The exercise involved transporting the equipment, which belongs to the 10th Mountain Division of the US Army, by rail and road through Sweden to Finland, where it will be used in the Northern Forest manoeuvre. Around 1,600 US soldiers and 200 military vehicles arrived in Finland this past week after completing the 550-kilometre journey. Another location for the exercise further south was Kalundborg in Denmark, where military equipment was also brought ashore. This operation is important within the NATO framework. It shows the Americans ability and will to deploy rapidly and our ability to receive and be a transit country, commented Colonel May Brith Valen-Odlo from the Norwegian armed forces. In line with NATOs new plans, we could quickly become a transit country to receive forces, prepare them, and send them through Sweden and Finland. The last time Norway and Sweden served as transit countries was for Nazi Germany during World War II. After the Nazis invaded the country and set up a puppet regime under Vidkun Quisling in April 1940, the Wehrmachts Armee Norwegen (Army Norway) was established. As part of the subsequent launching of the war of extermination against the Soviet Union in June 1941, the 163rd Infantry Division was transferred from Norway via neutral Sweden to serve alongside the Finnish army as it invaded the Soviet Union. The Nazi advance along this front took troops within 30 kilometres of Leningrad, which Finnish soldiers helped blockade with their Nazi allies. Armee Norwegen commanders led operations against Soviet troops in Lapland. In the months leading up to the latest major NATO manoeuvres, the US concluded a series of bilateral agreements with the Nordic countries to secure unrestricted access to dozens of military facilities within striking distance of the Russian border. Three defence cooperation agreements (DCA) concluded with Finland, Sweden, and Denmark in December 2023, and an updated DCA finalised with Norway in February 2024, cover a total of 47 Agreed areas of operation across the four countries. In an agreed area, which is usually associated with a military base or training ground, US soldiers can operate freely and store materiel to be used in future deployments. A total of 15 of these agreed areas are in the Arctic regions of Finland, Norway, and Sweden, close to the Russian border with Norway and Finland. American military personnel also have the power to exercise authority over civilians within or in the immediate vicinity of the agreed areas. In extreme cases, this power can be extended beyond the immediate vicinity of an agreed area. The agreements make clear that the US has the first right to prosecute its soldiers under American laws for any crimes committed while on- or off-duty. A M3 amphibious rig enters the water during Exercise Dragon 24 in Poland, March 3, 2024. [Photo: Jackie Faye Burton, U.S. European Command ] The initiative for these agreements, which recall the dictates of a neocolonial power over its occupied territories, was taken by the United States. The US government insisted that the first DCA agreed with Norway in 2021 was an indispensable precondition for further US investments in military infrastructure in the country. American imperialism views access to the Arctic as essential under conditions in which climate change is opening up the region to resource exploitation and intercontinental trade. Washington is determined to ensure its dominant position in the high north at the expense of Russia, China, and other potential rivals. This includes its erstwhile European allies, who, led by German imperialism, are making their own moves to boost their presence in the region. Military cooperation is also being expanded dramatically between the Nordic nations themselves. The Nordic Defence Command (NORDEFCO) was established in 2009 by Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden. The collaboration initially served principally as a mechanism to enable Finnish and Swedish forces to participate in NATO exercises, and gain experience in training and using NATO equipment to the alliances standards. Now, however, with all the nations in NATO, the command structure is being consolidated to integrate Nordic operational capabilities. A new Vision 2030 strategy was recently unveiled by NORDEFCO that includes vigorous joint action in eight defence and security areas. Writing in the Swedish daily Dagens Nyheter, the defence ministers from Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden, and Icelands Minister of Foreign Affairs, stated, Altogether, we have unique knowledge of the North Atlantic, the Arctic and the Baltic Sea, and an almost 1,500 kilometers long land border with Russia. In total, we have over 250 fighter planes and 350,000 soldiers. Together, we will be able to provide the conditions required for the reception, deployment, and further movement of allied troops to and through our countries. One main area of focus is strengthening the deterrence and defence of the Nordic and Euro-Atlantic regions by improving operational cooperation. A recent NORDEFCO meeting was held in the Faroe Islands to discuss NATO military options stretching from Greenland in the west, where the US has maintained a military presence since World War II, through Iceland, which relies on its NATO allies for air protection as it has no armed forces of its own, to the Nordic countries in the Arctic and Baltic regions. The alliance also aims to strengthen host nation support and logistical support for troops from other NATO allies operating in the region, cooperation in the purchasing of defence materiel, and the Nordic defence industrial base to improve the reliability of supply lines. The strategy document underscores that the ambition is to subordinate all areas of society to the goal of waging war. NORDEFCO will strive for Total defence to secure adequate support from all sectors of society to the defense sector in all threat scenarios and situations, the document noted. Of all the Nordic countries, Finland has gone farthest in implementing a total defence strategy. With a population of just under 5.5 million, it can mobilise over a quarter of a million soldiers rapidly and has some 900,000 members in the military reserve. Finland recently spent close to $10 billion to purchase 64 F-35 fighter jets from Lockheed Martin, the equivalent of a country the size of Germany purchasing around 1,000 of these aircraft. During a visit to Berlin last week, Finnish President Alexander Stubb received a warm response to his appeal for other countries to be like Finland. According to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, whose government has massively increased military spending and revived Germanys global imperialist ambitions, Germany can learn a lot from the Finnish approach. We would like to learn from the Finnish experiences with Russia as a neighbour, Scholz said in connection with Stubbs visit. We are also interested in the Finnish approach to civil defence. The following speech was given by Ulas Atesci, a leading member of the Sosyalist Esitlik (Socialist Equality Group) in Turkey, at the International May Day 2024 Online Rally, held Saturday, May 4. International May Day 2024 Online Rally Revolutionary greetings from the Sosyalist Esitlik Grubu in Turkey. One hundred and ten years after the outbreak of the First World War and 85 years after the outbreak of the Second World War, we are witnessing the expansion of a third world war that has already begun and is threatening to escalate into a nuclear conflict. This catastrophic course must be stopped by the conscious political intervention of the international working class. The maelstrom of imperialist war is engulfing the entire region. NATOs war against Russia over Ukraine has been raging for more than two years. Israels NATO-backed genocide in Gaza, which has been going on for seven months, is accompanied by escalating war provocations against Iran and its allies. Other major flashpoints in the region include border disputes between Serbia and Kosovo, parts of the former Yugoslavia, and between NATO allies Turkey and Greece, while a war between the two former Caucasian Soviet republics of Azerbaijan and Armenia threatens to flare up again. The aggression of NATO imperialism, led by the United States, is driven by the motive to re-divide the vast territories of Russia and China, from which they were excluded for decades as a result of the 1917 Russian and 1949 Chinese revolutions, and to completely dominate the Middle East. The Soviet Union at its founding in December 1922. [Photo: David Benson/WSWS] While the US-led imperialist powers have failed since February 2022 to achieve their goal of militarily defeating Russia, bringing about a regime change in Moscow and completely subordinating this vast resource-rich country to them, the deployment of NATO troops on the battlefield and the use of nuclear weapons is becoming an ever closer possibility. This war, which is the result of NATOs aggressive eastward expansion since the 1990s and the transformation of Ukraine into a centre of aggression against Russia, is also the terrible price of the Stalinist bureaucracys ultimate betrayal of the October Revolution and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. The slaughter that has been going on for decades on the Middle East front of the global war, the first stages of which we are witnessing, has been made possible by the complicity of the pro-imperialist reactionary regimes in the regionTurkey, the Arab states and the Zionist regime in Israel. The ruling class in Turkey, which acted as a NATO outpost against the USSR before 1991, has been a critical regional pillar of imperialist aggression in the Middle East and against Russia in the post-Soviet period. It has been complicit from the Gulf War of 1990-91, to the break-up of Yugoslavia and the bombing of Serbia in 1999, to the invasions of Afghanistan in 2001 and Iraq in 2003, and the instigation of imperialist wars of regime change in Libya and Syria in the midst of the revolutionary working class uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt in 2011. Millions have been killed in these wars, and tens of millions became refugees. During the same period, tens of thousands of people died in a civil war in Turkey, which intensified when the Turkish ruling class had no answer to the legitimate democratic aspirations of the Kurdish people other than state repression. Migrants and refugees wait for assistance on an overcrowded wooden boat, as aid workers of the Spanish NGO Open Arms approach them in the Mediterranean Sea, international waters, at 122 miles off the Libyan coast [AP Photo/Bruno Thevenin] Ankaras collaboration with the imperialist aggression in the Middle East has only deepened the Kurdish question. Today, danger of a full-scale war between the Turkish forces and the US-backed Kurdish nationalist militias in Syria, where Iranian and Russian forces are also present, continues. At the same time, thousands of Kurdish politicians continue to be imprisoned in Turkey in violation of their basic democratic rights. The Kurdish people live in Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Syria and the Kurdish question is of an international character in nature. It cannot be solved on a national basis. The way forward is a socialist federation that will end national oppression and guarantee democratic rights, instead of the nation-state system that has historically proved to be bankrupt in the Middle East. Although the imperialist aggression against Iran and Russia also threatens its own interests and draws Turkey into the maelstrom of war, the Turkish bourgeoisies deep-rooted dependence on US and European imperialism puts it in an insoluble dilemma within the framework of bourgeois nationalism. As with the bourgeoisie of countries with belated capitalist development all over the world, the main fear of the Turkish bourgeoisie is the threat of revolution from the working class, and it sees its main allies against this danger in the imperialist centres. The same objective class position applies to bourgeois nationalist movements, whether Palestinian or Kurdish, whether they are direct targets or allies of imperialism. All bourgeois nationalist regimes and movements, which are inherently incapable of addressing the international working class against imperialism, are always subject to reactionary manoeuvres based on the search for reconciliation with imperialist powers within the capitalist nation-state system, the root cause of the problem. As Leon Trotsky, co-leader of the Russian Revolution and the founder of the Fourth International, explained in his Theory of Permanent Revolution, and as the history of the 20th and 21st centuries proves, independence from imperialism and the establishment of a democratic regime require the working class to take power as part of the international socialist revolution. The genocide of the Palestinians in Gaza by the Zionist regime in Israel has exposed the complicity of the government in Turkey as well as in all NATO and allied countries. President Recep Tayyip Erdogans government has been exposed as a collaborator of imperialism and Zionism by continuing the exports that fuel Israels war effort against the Palestinians, regardless of its rhetorical criticism of Netanyahu. Moreover, Erdogan maintains US-NATO bases in Turkey that provide support to Israel. Recep Tayyip Erdogan meets Joe Biden at NATO Summit, June 29, 2022 [Photo: Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz] Under conditions of growing social inequality and deepening crisis of the cost-of-living, which led to a wave of wildcat strikes, Erdogans insistence on this policydespite the anti-imperialist, anti-Zionist and pro-Palestinian sentiments of the overwhelming majority of the populationwas a significant factor in the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) losing millions of votes in the local elections last March, becoming the second-ranked party for the first time. But there is no disagreement between Erdogan and his bourgeois rivals on the military-strategic alliance with imperialism and Zionism. The Republican Peoples Party (CHP), the undeserved beneficiary of the popular opposition against the government in the local elections, has given its full support to the NATO membership of Finland and Sweden as part of escalating aggression against Russia. The CHP has close ties with Washington and Berlin, the main imperialist centres behind the genocide in Gaza and the aggression against Iran. Turkey has almost doubled its defence budget to around $40 billion by 2024. The rise of militarism and preparations for war abroad are accompanied by a class war against the working class at home. The Erdogan government and the bourgeois opposition also agree on the implementation of a brutal capitalist program of social attacks against the working class and the suppression of the resistance of workers through the trade union apparatus or other means under their control. In early April, when the sanitation workers of the AKP-run Altndag municipality in the capital Ankara went on a wildcat strike, the CHP-run metropolitan municipality broke the strike by having its own vehicles collect the garbage. Protests against the Erdogan governments refusal to end Turkeys trade with Israel were met with violent police attacks. As the American police violently tried to suppress university students who bravely opposed the US-backed genocide in Gaza, demonstrators protesting against Germanys complicity in the genocide were attacked by the Turkish police when German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier visited Istanbul. Among those welcoming and accompanying Steinmeier was Ekrem Imamoglu, the CHP mayor of Istanbul, backed by the pseudo-left parties. Supporters of Palestinians in Gaza protest in Istanbul, Turkey, Friday, April 5, 2024. [AP Photo/Khalil Hamra] This underlines the absence of an anti-war or pro-democracy faction among the ruling elite. However, the global protests against the Gaza genocide since last October have made clear that there is massive social opposition to the war. This opposition must be oriented towards the working class and armed with a clear international socialist strategy. The ruling classs normalization of death and debilitation from the pandemic, its normalization of genocide and nuclear war must be responded to with the normalization of socialism. It must be understood that the policy of putting pressure on imperialist or capitalist governments to stop war and genocide, or the pretence of achieving an era of peaceful imperialism, is bankrupt. As the great Marxist leaders, Vladimir Lenin and Leon Trotsky explained, the causes of imperialist war lie not in the subjective intentions of political leaders, but in the material class interests and insoluble contradictions of the capitalist system. As long as capitalism exists, there will be imperialist wars. Lenin and Trotsky at a celebration of the second anniversary of the October Revolution Moreover, the Israeli genocide against the Palestinians, the war against Iran and Russia and the preparations for war against China cannot be stopped by the struggle of the workers of these countries or regions alone. The best allies of the workers of these regions are the working class in the imperialist centres, especially in the US. The socialist revolution that began in Russia in 1917 must be understood as a unified global process. The success of this world revolution and, it must be added, the very existence of human civilization, depends above all on the working class taking power in the US and Europe and taking measures to eradicate imperialist aggression. In this critical May Day, the Sosyalist Esitlik Grubu in Turkey calls on workers and youth throughout the Middle East: Join us in the international struggle for socialism to stop genocide and imperialist war and to end their root cause, world capitalism. Build the International Committee of the Fourth International as the centre of the global anti-war and socialist movement! Despite police repression, including some 3,000 arrests in the United States in the last three weeks, student-led protests against the genocide in Gaza continued on colleges and in cities across the United States and internationally over the weekend. A banner displayed at the anti-genocide protest reads: "UCLA Faculty and Staff WE STAND WITH OUR STUDENTS" April 29, 2024. At several colleges, students demonstrated or walked out of commencement addresses as soon as right-wing or pro-Zionist speakers began their speeches. At the Virginian Commonwealth University commencement Saturday, dozens of students walked out of the ceremony as soon as Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin began speaking. After walking out, students held an anti-genocide rally outside the Greater Richmond Convention Center. In an interview with CNN host Dana Bash on April 28, Youngkin slandered student protests against Israel as antisemitic and confirmed he was working with the attorney general, university presidents and law enforcement to block encampments. Dozens of students also walked out of the Duke University graduation ceremony on Sunday as soon as pro-genocide comedian Jerry Seinfeld took the stage to accept an honorary degree from the school. In addition to his promotion of Zionism, students protested against Seinfeld because his wife, Jessica Seinfeld, according to the Daily Beast, is funding a pro-Israel counterprotest at UCLAwhere violence broke out Tuesday night after mob attacked demonstrators... At the University of California (UC), Berkeley, one of 10 campuses where some 48,000 academic workers in the UC system are set to vote to go on strike beginning on May 13 in response to the Zionist rampage at UCLA, hundreds of students demonstrated during Saturdays commencement, with some holding signs that read UC uses your $$$ to bomb kids. The UC strike vote was announced by United Auto Workers Local 4811 over a week after police abetted a Zionist rampage on the UCLA Gaza solidarity encampment on April 30 through May 1, which left dozens of students and UAW members injured, some severely. In a statement issued on X/Twitter, Socialist Equality Party candidate for US president Joseph Kishore called on the 48,000 graduate students and academic workers to vote yes to authorize a strike. In calling for a yes vote, Kishore noted that the UAW apparatus is blocking a mass movement against the genocide. UAW Local 4811 delayed the vote, waiting nearly two weeks after students and members were assaulted before holding a vote. Now it is saying that any strike action would be modeled off of the stand-up strike organized by UAW President Shawn Fain for the auto strike last year. The stand-up strike was deliberately designed to have as little impact on the auto companies as possible, with the vast majority of workers continuing to pump out profits. Fain and Co. then shut down the strike and rammed through contracts that have paved the way for mass layoffs. The UAW apparatus has declared, When the strike is authorized, if circumstances justify, UAW members at any campus, anywhere across the state could be called to stand up and walk off the job at any time. Kishore replied: Graduate students are not voting to strike if circumstances justify nor to strike one campus or one department while everyone else continues to work. Grad students are voting to take collective action to defend their democratic rights against brutal police repression. The efforts of the UAW local apparatus to sabotage the strike are being carried out in careful coordination with Fain. Fain has endorsed Genocide Joe Biden and has appeared jointly with him in promoting the arsenal of democracythat is, the subordination of the working class to the escalating global war. How can a strike against police repression be organized by an apparatus that politically supports a government that is overseeing the police repression and has backed the genocide against which the protests have been targeted? A real fight to defend democratic rights requires a rebellion against the UAW apparatus and the mobilization of the entire working class. The SEP campaign supports the demand by Mack Trucks worker Will Lehman, who ran for UAW president last year, for immediate strike action by the entire 400,000-strong UAW membership. In calling for the mobilization of the entire working class, Lehman explained, The same corporate interests behind the war in Gaza are carrying out mass layoffs to smash our resistance to exploitation. We have to combine the fight against war and attacks on our rights with the fight to defend jobs. In conclusion Kishore wrote, The SEP campaign calls on all workers to come to the defense of the students who have been arrested for protesting the genocide in Gaza. It is the working class that has the social power to oppose the antidemocratic conspiracies of the ruling class and stop the war! In an interview with the World Socialist Web Site, over the weekend, Luke, a government worker from San Diego, said he was closely watching protests that have grown across US universities with pride that students are taking bold steps to push back against a nationalist and bigoted political elite. But there is nothing like having been on campus to feel the energy of those who are thirsting for change in person. To now see armed thugs of the state come in and arrest and drag them to jail is disheartening, to say the least. It is now the role of workers to step away from their factories and desks and challenge the status quo of staying silent and realize the power they have as a united class. Steve, a community college worker, said: [S]tudents are beginning to see that university administrators are not on their side. They are not going to hesitate contacting law enforcement and arresting any students who refuse to leave. Students and workers can look to Kent State and see similarities to our current situation and the similar roles that law enforcement and college administrators played. Law enforcement is there to protect and serve the ruling class, the class that wants to support the Israeli government and war with Russia and China no matter how many students, young people, and working class must die. The blatant disregard for human rights and free speech in war, or preparation for war time, is very clear here. Nakai, a graduate student worker at San Diego State University, told the WSWS: Nationwide antisemitism is disgracefully being weaponized by the US capitalist ruling class to smear those who protest the political ideology of Zionism and imperialist wars. Both capitalist parties have locked arms in this political rhetoric in order to use brutal police suppression against any opposition to the bipartisan-backed genocide of the Palestinians by the Israeli government. In solidarity and for the success of the student-led anti-war protests nationwide, we students must continue to protest the imperialist genocide and orient our voices to the power of the working class, to prioritize a working class shutdown of the transportation and shipment of US arms to Israel! The Democratic Party is relying heavily on the UAW bureaucracy and Democratic Socialists of America to protect Joe Biden, insulate his re-election campaign from growing hostility to the genocide in Gaza and keep weapons flowing to both Israel and Ukraine in the US-NATO war against Russia. But the growth of political opposition to the genocide, including among tens of thousands of student and academic workers who are UAW members, is throwing the state and the bureaucracys best laid plans into disarray. United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain, shakes hands with President Joe Biden during a campaign stop at a phone bank with UAW members in the UAW Region 1 Union Hall, Thursday, Feb. 1, 2024, in Warren, Michigan. [AP Photo/Evan Vucci] Amid growing working class anger over layoffs, speedups and unsafe conditions at auto plants across the country, this weeks strike vote by 48,000 student workers at the University of California over the violent police crackdown on anti-genocide protestorsorchestrated by Democratic state and local officials with the support of the Biden administrationraises the need for an independent rank-and-file strategy to mobilize the entire working class against war, job cuts and corporate exploitation. Anything less will give the DSA, bureaucracy and Democratic Party space to suppress the emerging struggles and direct them behind Bidens re-election campaign. UAW bureaucracy promotes Biden After forcing through a sellout contract and keeping the majority of Big Three autoworkers on the job during last years bogus stand-up strike, the bureaucracy has prepared the way for massive layoffs and the transformation of the auto industry to place it on a war footing. As these attacks on workers living conditions have generated deepening opposition, the UAW bureaucracyled by DSA-backed President Shawn Fain and staffed by DSA members and supporters like Communications Director Jonah Furman, strategist Chris Brooks and Region 9A Director Brandon Mancillais engaged in an effort to prevent a rebellion, promote the Democratic Party in the 2024 election and support the Biden administrations imperialist foreign policy. Fain and the DSA network running the UAW have proven loyal foot soldiers for Biden. The UAW has kept production running at facilities that produce military equipment for Israel and Ukraine, rejecting calls by rank-and-file socialist candidate for UAW President Will Lehman to shut down production with full pay for all workers. In January 2024, Fain formally endorsed Biden as the US-backed Israeli regime intensified its scorched-earth campaign against Gaza. He then applauded the president as an honored guest at Bidens February State of the Union address. Last weekend, Payday Report noted that the UAWs International Executive Board voted against a modest divestment provision that would have required the bureaucracy to decouple its massive slush fund from Israel and corporations complicit in the genocide in Gaza. (Furman did not reply to a WSWS request for comment on the divestment vote.) The Biden administration views the UAW bureaucracy as necessary to advance its war aims and, relatedly, Bidens re-election. The Washington Post wrote in April that Fain could be Bidens secret weapon in Michigan and that the UAW is necessary to reach many voters who might otherwise stay home because Biden is struggling to connect with voters because of higher prices and Israels destructive war in Gaza. The Post then quoted Fain, who is careful to present himself as though he has the presidents ear: One of two people is going to be president of the United States in this upcoming election. And obviously the other candidate would be a complete disaster, not just for labor, but for the situation in Gaza. We talk to the president quite often and his staff about our concerns in Gaza and that there needs to be more action. And were going to continue to do that. Fains presentation of the Biden administration as susceptible to popular pressure is a lie. When a reporter asked Biden earlier this month if the protests had forced him to reconsider his support for the genocide, he said: No. But the Post acknowledged that Biden is reliant on Fains attempt at political plastic surgery. Some Democratic strategists say Fain could even help Biden with discontent throughout the party over the administrations handling of the Israel-Gaza war, a special cause for concern for Democrats in Michigan, which has a large Arab American population. Bidens campaign manager Julie Chavez added, Were proud to have earned UAWs support, and we join them in their mission to hold corporations accountable. DSA promotes UAW bureaucracy Just as Fain and the bureaucracy promote a lying version of Biden, the administration and Democratic Party likewise cultivate a version of the UAW bureaucracy that clashes with the experience of its membership. The UAW long ago stopped holding corporations accountable, as Bidens campaign manager claimed. On the contrary, the bureaucracy helps the corporations impose exhausting and dangerous working conditions and restrains the membership from fighting back. Nearly the entire past leadership of the bureaucracy was indicted for systematically robbing its membership of dues and accepting bribes in exchange for ramming through sellout contracts. Forced by a federal court monitor to hold direct elections for UAW leadership, the bureaucracy massively suppressed the vote, leading to a record-low turnout of 9 percent, resulting in the election of Fain. When Fain came to office, he protected the corrupt bureaucracy and brought in a slew of DSA members, who acquired top positions with salaries well over $100,000 a year. Their chief role has been to rehabilitate the UAW bureaucracy and present it as having been reformed, so that it can better perform its services supporting the Democratic Party. As the UAW bureaucracy forces through layoffs, maintains the hated tier system and oversees dangerous conditions like those at Warren Stamping near Detroit (where another strike vote is being held this week), DSA-aligned publications like Jacobin magazine regularly promote the longtime bureaucrat Fain as a revolutionary and have defended all the UAWs recent betrayals, including the bogus stand up strike in 2023, the suppression of the UC strike in 2022, as well as struggles at Lear, Dana, General Dynamics, Volvo, Mack Truck, John Deere and elsewhere. The outbreak of student protests against the genocide and the police crackdown has generated outrage among students and academic workers, tens of thousands of whom are UAW members at campuses that have been centers of opposition to the genocide, including Columbia University, The New School and the University of California. Biden issued an endorsement of the police crackdown and has denounced student protestersmany of whom are Jewishas antisemites. This movement coincides with growing anger among autoworkers over the lasting impact of the 2023 sellout. The police crackdown provoked deep anger over the UAW leaderships support for Biden, threatening to explode the bureaucracy and Democratic Partys strategy. A group of rank-and-file UAW members at The New School in New York City issued a statement denouncing Fain for endorsing Biden. Following last weeks announcement that the UAW leadership rejected a resolution divesting from Israel, members took to Twitter to express opposition to Fain and the bureaucracys support for Biden and the genocide. If this is how the UAW leadership will deal with the divest vote at UC UAW then they should be threatened with having 40k less due-paying grad [student members], wrote one member. Shame on UAW and Shawn Fain, calling for a ceasefire means nothing if you take no action, wrote another. In an interview with Jacobin in early May, UAW Region 9A Director Brandon Mancilla attempted to head off opposition to war and channel it behind the Democratic Party. He recalled favorably when the UAW helped American imperialism build an arsenal of democracy in the Second World War and encouraged readers to pressure our government and pressure the Democratic Party over the fact that we also build the weapons of war. Mancilla parrots the line of DSA members in Congress, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who praise Biden, denounce socialist criticism of the administration and provide critical votes for Israels Iron Dome and the arming of Ukraine. Build the rank-and-file movement against imperialist war Violence against student protesters and UAW rank-and-file members in California last week, which included the police-sanctioned, right-wing attack on protesters at UCLA, immediately led to widespread calls for a walkout of students and academic staff across the UC system, the largest in the country with 300,000 enrolled students. Local 4811 was forced to respond by agreeing to a strike authorization vote scheduled for May 13-15, an attempt to postpone further action until the start of the summer break. The UAW leadership is particularly concerned about the political radicalization among this section of student workers. For this reason the bureaucracy placed particular emphasis on suppressing the vote among UC workers in the 2022 UAW presidential electionwith turnout between 2 and 5 percent. Despite this, socialist candidate Lehman received roughly 15 percent of the vote. The fact that the bureaucracy was forced to call a strike vote raises critical questions for student workers and rank-and-file workers everywhere. To the extent the protest movement remains isolated on the campuses, it will be suppressed and channeled into the Democratic Party. The DSA, which functions as a faction of the Democratic Party, is preparing an active intervention in the UC student strike vote to better suppress the struggle and limit opposition to Biden. On May 9, the DSA issued a statement praising Local 4811 for holding a strike vote and acknowledging that the local has the highest concentration of DSA members of any union in the country. As the Democratic Party prepares to crush the struggle of the rank and file, it is absolutely critical that the protests orient to the working class, including industrial autoworkers, to root the struggle against imperialism and genocide with the fight for social equality. On Thursday, Lehman issued a statement on the strike titled For a UAW-wide strike against the political attack on campuses! Autoworkers must defend the right to protest! The statement appeals to workers across the UAW and beyond: We, as the working class, have to support the students. Corporate politicians wont listen to reason. The only way to stop the war and defend our rights is by taking matters into our own hands as the working class, who create all of societys wealth. Lehman said, Workers are furious at the UAWs treachery. There are growing demands in particular for them to rescind the endorsement of Biden. Grad students are also angry over the role of Local 4811 officials in allowing police into the UCLA encampment. The bureaucrats play the same role on every picket line, enforcing whatever the police and the courts tell us were not allowed to do. Bringing the power of the working class to bear requires the development of new democratic structuresrank-and-file committeescontrolled by workers and not beholden to the bureaucracy, the Democratic Party or Wall Street. From left, Biden, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, and former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, at the Capitol May 7. They were attending a Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony where Biden and Johnson made remarks denouncing protests over the Gaza genocide as antisemitic. [AP Photo] The week begins as Israel is stepping up its genocidal campaign against the people of Gaza, both in Rafah, the last unoccupied portion of the enclave, and throughout the Gaza Strip. A catastrophe of monumental proportions is unfolding in southern Gaza. Over the weekend, another 300,000 Palestinians have been forced to flee from Rafah as the Israel Defense Forces begins its final assault in southern Gaza, bombing neighborhoods and moving troops and tanks into place. The IDF is directing them into the Mawasi area, the far southwest corner of the territory, where they will be trapped between Israeli forces, the Egyptian border and the Mediterranean Seaeffectively confined in an open air prison, without shelter, supplies of food and water, or protection from Israeli bombs and missiles. On Sunday, Israeli tanks plowed back into the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza, with a pre-war population of more than 100,000, claiming that the Palestinian ruling party Hamas is rebuilding its political and military network there. Gazan officials said that there were no medical services or humanitarian aid being provided in the entire northern half of Gaza, which includes Gaza City and Jabalia. United Nations relief officials said acute famine exists throughout that region. Media reports said as many as 200,000 people were fleeing the fighting in the north. The imperialist powers of the US-NATO axis, above all the Biden administration, are fully culpable in this latest stage of the Gaza genocide, which has lasted for seven months. Biden is currently engaged in political posturing, in an effort to defuse the mass opposition among students and working people to the Israeli genocide. But his cynical and insincere criticisms have not had the slightest effect on the actual conduct of Israeli military operations, nor are they intended to do so. While a number of Democrats issued hand-wringing professions of concern over the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza Sunday, the essence of US policy in the region was summed up by Republican Senator Lindsey Graham. Speaking on NBCs Meet the Press program, Graham denounced suggestions by his interviewer, Kristen Welker, that Biden had withheld only the largest weapons, such as 2,000-pound bombs, which would cause thousands of civilian deaths if use in a congested space like Rafah. Why couldnt Israel accomplish its purpose with precision weapons and kill fewer people, Welker asked. Graham responded: Well, I think its impossible to mitigate civilian deaths in Gaza as long as Hamas uses their own population as human shields Listen, you know, heres what I would say about fighting an enemy who wants to kill you and your family. Why did we drop two bombsnuclear bombson Hiroshima and Nagasaki? To end a war that we couldnt afford to lose when we were faced with destruction as a nation after Pearl Harbor, fighting the Germans and the Japanese, we decided to end the war by bombing Hiroshima and Nagasaki with nuclear weapons. That was the right decision. Give Israel the bombs they need to end the war they cant afford to lose and work with them to minimize casualties. As a matter of historical fact, the dropping of nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki by the Truman administration was not necessary to end a war. Rather, it was intended to demonstrate that American imperialism was willing and able to use nuclear weapons and slaughter tens of thousands of innocent civilians to secure its global domination. Graham, echoing similar statements by Representative Tim Walberg five weeks ago, is advocating a policy of mass murder: Palestinians remaining in Gaza should simply be killed. What the media presents as a significant conflict within the US political establishment involves, at most, tactical considerations. The Biden administration continues to arm and defend Israel as it escalates its genocidal assault on Rafah. The Democrats and Republicans joined hands last month to pass nearly $100 billion in additional funding to the wars in Ukraine and Gaza and the preparation for war against China. And they are united in their crackdown on protests against the genocide within the United States. A particularly cynical role is played by figures like Senator Bernie Sanders, who also appeared on Meet the Press. He told Welker that he favored cutting off US military aid to Israel. Sanders, however, said nothing about Biden and the role of the United States as the principal enabler of the genocide in Gaza. The omission is deliberate. Sanders is a leading supporter and surrogate for Biden on the campaign trail, portraying his reelection as essential to preserve American democracy. When Welker asked about his comment earlier in the week that there was a danger that Gaza could become Bidens Vietnam, Sanders replied, What I worry about is that this war in Gaza right now is not only strongly opposed by young people, but a whole lot of people in the Democratic base. It couldnt be clearer. Sanders has shifted his public posture, mouthing some criticisms of the war, in order to protect Bidens reelection campaign and divert mass popular opposition to the Gaza genocide into a dead end. In a video posted last week, Socialist Equality Party presidential candidate Joseph Kishore, stated, In the 2024 presidential elections, it is meaningless to talk about a lesser evil in the conflict between Biden and Trump, the Democrats and Republicans. This is a political conclusion that must be drawn by workers and young people opposed to the genocide in Gaza. The critical question is the independent intervention of the working class in the fight against the genocide, imperialist war and the capitalist profit system. The World Socialist Web Site calls for the escalation of the genocide in Gaza to be met with an escalation of mass protests throughout the world. Workers should take up the fight against the genocide, which is being waged in the interests of the same ruling class that exploits them, through strike activity and other forms of protests to stop the shipment of arms and other goods used by Israel to carry out its assault on Rafah. During recent talks between the foreign and defence ministers from South Korea and Australia, Seoul acknowledged publicly for the first time that it was actively seeking to join the AUKUS military alliance, currently comprised of Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States. The move is part of US-led plans throughout the Indo-Pacific region for war against China. From the left, Penny Wong, ChoTae-yul, Richard Marles and Shin Won-sik for the 2+2 Ministerial Meeting in Melbourne, May 1, 2024 [Photo: X/Twitter/ @SenatorWong] South Korean Foreign Minister Jo Tae-yeol and Defense Minister Sin Won-sik met with their respective counterparts Penny Wong and Richard Marles in Melbourne, Australia on May 1 for the sixth iteration of the two plus two talks between the two US allies. A joint statement released afterwards stated, The ROK (Republic of Korea) welcomed that the AUKUS countries are considering cooperation with additional partners on Pillar ll advanced capability projects. Sin made clear after the talks that this meant the possibility of Seoul joining the anti-China alliance, saying, During todays meeting, we also discussed the possibility of partnering with AUKUS Pillar II. Not stopping there, the joint statement also noted that the South Korean ministers expressed the ROKs interest in the Quad. The Quad, or Quadrilateral Security Dialogue comprised of the US, Australia, Japan and India, is a quasi-military alliance also meant to surround and threaten China. Indicating that cooperation with other countries will expand, Marles stated, As AUKUS Pillar II develops, there will be opportunities in the future, and were seeing that play out in relation to Japan as well. The announcement comes after the three AUKUS countries announced last month in connection with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishidas visit to Washington that they were planning to bring Japan into Pillar II as well. AUKUS was launched in September 2021 and includes two pillars. The first involves the transfer of nuclear-powered submarines to Australia while the second deals with military technology sharing, cooperation and development. While Pillar I is currently not open to additional members, Pillar II is provocatively being expanded to incorporate other allies, such as South Korea and Japan, but potentially New Zealand and Canada as well. South Korea is likely to provide its allies assistance in the development of advanced hypersonic weaponry. Seoul is currently working on a hypersonic cruise missile that it will begin testing this year called Hycore. The missile is expected to reach speeds of up to Mach 6.2 and enter service early in the next decade. The US reportedly cancelled the development of its own AGM-183A hypersonic missile in March 2023 after repeated test failures. The missile, the USs first air-launched hypersonic weapon, is designed for use on a B-52 bomber. Despite the cancellation, developer Lockheed Martin is still working on its production. Cooperation on hypersonic weapons is considered vital for the US-led war effort against both China and Russia. Malcolm Davis of the US-funded Australian Strategic Policy Institute think tank stated that both China and Russia are more advanced in their development and deployment of such technologies, giving them tactical benefits. He added that it was absolutely vital for AUKUS members, as well as South Korea and Japan, to develop hypersonic systems in order to combat China. Liu Pengyu, a spokesman for Chinas embassy in Washington, expressed concerns over the latest AUKUS developments without directly naming South Korea on May 6. Despite being called a trilateral security partnership, AUKUS is essentially about fuelling military confrontation through military collaboration, he said. It creates additional nuclear proliferation risks, exacerbates the arms race in the Asia-Pacific and hurts regional peace and stability. China is deeply concerned and firmly opposed to it. These dangers are being hidden from the working class in South Korea and throughout the region as Seoul expands its participation in US anti-China war preparations. South Korea is already part of a de-facto trilateral military alliance with the US and Japan, formally established during a summit between the countries leaders last August at Camp David near Washington. This received praise from Wong and Marles during the recent two plus two talks. Notably, the growing danger of a catastrophic war with China was entirely absent from the campaigns of South Koreas ruling People Power Party and main opposition Democratic Party during last months general election, demonstrating that both support the war efforts. Neither party was willing to raise the issue lest it spark the latent anti-war sentiment that exists in the South Korean working class. US imperialism is not only strengthening alliances bilaterally but drawing its allies into a web of alliances that surround China in preparation for war. The South Korean and Australian ministers emphasized this in their joint statement, stating that both warmly welcomed the strengthening of our respective alliances with the United States. They also declared that active participation in exercises and activities bilaterally, as well as multilaterally, with countries such as the United States and Japan, will contribute to peace and stability in the region. For all the talk of peace and stability, the statement then noted dangerous flashpoints in the Indo-Pacific that the US has deliberately inflamed. It reaffirmed the importance of preserving peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait as an indispensable element of security and prosperity in the region as well as freedom of navigation and overflight in and above the South China Sea and East China Sea. The statement simply parrots the propaganda emanating from Washington which is provocatively undermining the One China policy that has formed the bedrock of relations with China since 1979. Virtually every country in the world, including the US, acknowledges de facto that Taiwan is part of China by having only formal diplomatic relations with Beijing. Washington is boosting diplomatic and military ties with Taipei with the aim of goading Beijing into a war. The US knows full well that China will not allow a precedent to be set for the carving up of its territory and its return to the semi-colonial status it suffered during the 19th and early 20th centuries. The US and its allies are also expanding military exercises throughout the Indo-Pacific region on Beijings doorstep, in which Seoul and Canberra participate. South Korea, for example, took part in the Talisman Sabre war games in Australia for the first time in 2021. Seoul also plans to send observers to Australias Exercise Southern Jackaroo this June for the first time. Both exercises are conducted alongside the US military. Australia also takes part in the massive US and South Korean war games Ulchi Freedom Shield and Freedom Shield that take place annually on the Korean Peninsula. The Socialist Equality Party (SEP) in Sri Lanka continues its ambitious Party Development Campaign this month, winning support from workers and young people in several major towns and cities. People looking at SEP literature at party campaign outside Gampaga Railway Station On May 7, SEP and International Youth and Students for Social Equality (IYSSE) members campaigned outside Gampaha railway station with a book table and a Sinhala and Tamil banner that read Defeat the governments effort to sideline workers parties from elections. Gampaha is the sixth largest urban area in Sri Lankas Western Province with thousands of commuters using the railway station each day. Last month, President Ranil Wickremesinghe government cabinet decided to massively increase the deposits required for candidates contesting elections under a registered party or independent status in future elections. For instance, in the next presidential election, which is due in September or October, the deposit for a candidate from a registered party has been increased 52-fold, from 50,000 rupees to 2.6 million rupees ($US8,667), and the deposit for an independent candidate rising from 75,000 to 3.1 million rupees. The aim of this anti-democratic measure is to limit voters choice to candidates from rich capitalist parties whilst marginalising other parties, including the Socialist Equality Party. SEP members have distributed thousands of copies of the partys April 15 statement Sri Lankan government announces unprecedented anti-democratic restrictions on election candidates as the basis of their campaign. The SEP has also issued another statement, The SEP (Sri Lanka) launches party development fund to expand its political work. People have eagerly participated in discussions with SEP and IYSSE campaigners with almost everyone denouncing the governments attempts to block independent and socialist candidates from participating in the elections. This is a blatant attack on democratic rights, said Tissa, a postal worker from Ragama, adding: Its clear the government wants to sideline and remove left-wing candidates and parties from the elections. That way only capitalist parties will decide everything and then plunder the country in the way that they want. He angrily added: This government hasnt any mercy for the people and is attacking working people and the oppressed on all fronts. We cant survive on the meagre salaries we get because the cost of consumer goods is skyrocketing. Tissa agreed with the SEPs call for the repudiation of all foreign debt, saying, Where has this money that was borrowed by our various governments gone and why should workers and the poor pay their debts? If we have to keep paying these loans, then our children wont even be able to think about their future. Tissa took several copies of the SEP statement to distribute among his fellow postal workers. Niresh, a small businessman in Gampaha, agreed that the governments massive increase in election deposits was an anti-democratic attack and also criticised the opportunist politics of the opposition Janata Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and its National Peoples Power (NPP). I cant see any differences between the JVP/NPP and other capitalist parties, he said, mentioning the JVPs previous efforts to bring various capitalist governments and presidents to power. [In the 1990s] the JVP asked people to vote for Chandrika [Kumaratunga], then they asked us to vote for Mahinda [Rajapakse], then backed [Maithripala] Sirisena, and now theyve said that all those politicians were thieves and that they [the JVP/NPP] are good people. Do they think people are fools? This is ridiculous, he said. Denouncing the Israeli genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, Niresh said, Israel deliberately allowed the Hamas militants to penetrate Israel and carry out the October 7 attack. They did this with the aim of creating world opinion to justify Israels unprecedented crimes against the Gazans. He called on people around the world to oppose Israels illegal and brutal war. On May 6, another SEP team established a literature table near the Khan Clock Tower outside Colombo Port. Many workers, including port employees, pass by this busy location. Several people held discussions with party campaigners and were very interested in the SEP literature with the sale of books and donations for the party development fund totalling 3,500 rupees. SEP campaigners talking to worker (left) near Colombo Port One worker from a private company in Colombo Port responded to the SEP campaign and, after being told about mammoth increases in election deposits for candidates, said: The government knows it cannot win the elections and thats why theyve done this. Parties such as the opposition Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB) and the NPP, he said, will not be affected by this move. They can pay. They have people to pay for them and so this increase will affect small parties, he said, and donated to the party building fund. While the worker said that the working class should bring a socialist government to power and ensure equal opportunities for everyone, he wondered whether an NPP/JVP government could solve the problems facing workers and youth. SEP members explained that the NPP/JVP was a capitalist party and committed to the International Monetary Funds austerity program. SEP campaigners spoke with a physiotherapist from a government hospital in Kandy who happened to be visiting Colombo. He said that medical professionals in government hospitals were under tremendous pressure with too few staff and high workloads. The government does not want to recruit new hands, he added. Commenting on Sri Lankas ongoing political and economic crisis, the physiotherapist said that all parliamentary parties should be held responsible for this situation. All these parties should be defeated at the elections and, according to the world tradition, the working class must intervene to solve these problems. I believe you are playing a big role in building this working-class party, he said. The physiotherapist purchased several SEP books and donated to the partys campaign fund, saying, I need to get your books so I can explain this to others. A worker (second left) speaking to SEP members during the campaign at Dematagoda Last month SEP members campaigned at the Ceylon Government Railway flats in Dematagoda, Colombo, where they met a retired railway worker who had worked for the railways for 31 years. He condemned the increase in election deposits saying, This was done for their own advantages and to increase their [political] power. This will impact on the working-class parties, he declared, warning, I think that in the future the government will try and fully disband these parties. They are going to suppress [the workers movement] because they fear that the workers would rise again, a reference to the mass uprising that brought down former President Gotabaya and his government in 2022. The retired railway worker voiced his regret for having supported various capitalist political parties, including the Sri Lanka Podujana Party (SLPP) of then President Rajapakse. I now realise [the truth] about this and dont support any of these parties, he said, and explained the desperate poverty now facing workers and the poor. This situation should be totally changed, he added, also recalling the treacherous role of the JVP and warning that they could not be trusted. SEP campaigners explained the class character of the JVP and its pro-capitalist support for IMF austerity. The former railway worker said: Now I realise what they are doing. They meet ambassadors and [foreign] diplomats, and their leader [Dissanayake] has been to various countries, but he doesnt explain things clearly. No one tells the truth. After further discussion about the history of the SEP and the Trotskyist program of the International Committee of the Fourth International, he replied, What we need is a movement, which rises from below and is dedicated to the people and does not surrender to privileges. The program that youve explained must become successful and I wish you all the best. The following speech was given by Thomas Scripps, the assistant national secretary of the Socialist Equality Party (UK), at the International May Day 2024 Online Rally, held Saturday, May 4. International May Day 2024 Online Rally No other imperialist country has seen more massive and sustained popular opposition to the Gaza genocide than Britain. Hundreds of thousands have taken to the streets almost every fortnight since Israels war began. Up to a million demonstrated in a single protest in London last November: the largest in the country since the demonstration against the planned Iraq War in 2003. Those protesting give voice to the anger felt by millions of workers and young people in the UK and shared with the billions internationally watching the imperialist-backed slaughter of the Palestinians with horror. Hundreds of thousands of people march through central London in protest at the genocide on Gaza and UK involvement in the bombing of Yemen, January 14, 2024 There are many reasons for the scope and tenacity of this movement. Generations of workers in the UK have grown up with a hatred of British imperialism, reinforced by its every bloody intervention abroad and its every assistance lent to the forces of reaction around the globeincluding as Washingtons chief partner in crime in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria, Ukraine and now Gaza. They are part of a multiethnic class whose own origins are bound up with Britains long and brutal history of Empire. Many have had painful and personal experience of the weaponisation of Islamophobia to support imperialist interests in the Middle East and attack democratic rights. This includes substantial numbers of British Jews, who have stood in defence of their Palestinian brothers and sisters against the torrent of lies and slander depicting anti-genocide protests as antisemitic hate marches. For all these reasons, opposition to the war on Gaza has catalysed smouldering social discontent, especially in the younger generation. In the movement against the Gaza genocide, broad opposition to war, to environmental destruction, poverty and inequality, the criminal pandemic policy of herd immunity, and increasingly authoritarian forms of rule finds a focus. It is a movement that pits workers and youth against the entire political establishment. The Conservative government, whose 14 years in power have delivered nothing but war, impoverishment, the decimation of social services and the evisceration of democratic rights. But also, and most significantly, the opposition Labour Party under Sir Keir Starmer, which is now indistinguishable from Rishi Sunaks Tories. Jeremy Corbyn (left) and Sir Keir Starmer at an event during the 2019 General Election when Corbyn was party leader and Starmer his Shadow Brexit Secretary [AP Photo/Matt Dunham, File] There is not a trace of exaggeration in this remark. The Labour Party has been careening to the right for decades; nothing has halted it, including the election and five years of leadership of Jeremy Corbyn, who only served to confirm the total impotence of what passes for the partys left. But Keir Starmer has brought this process to its nadir. He will enter an election campaign this year leading the self-proclaimed party of NATO, committed to war with Russia, having boastfully confirmed his willingness to massacre millions in a nuclear war, and standing in the front ranks of the supporters of Israels genocide. He has expressed his admiration for former Tory Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, tied for the position of most-hated capitalist politician in the British working class with Tony Blairanother of Starmers idols. He has declared his intention to continue with the austerity economics of the Tory government which has reduced millions in the UK to outright desperation, utilising the services of the trade union bureaucracy that systematically sabotaged last years strike wave encompassing over 2 million workers. Labour and the Tories confront the working class as a single party of war. Speaking in Poland last week, Sunak pledged to raise military spending to 2.5 percent of GDP by 2030, lifting the annual budget by more than 22 billion. This was, he said, to place the defence industry on a war footing in preparation for taking on an axis of authoritarian states Russia, Iran, North Korea, and China. Rishi Sunak (centre) holds a press conference with the NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (left) and then met British soldiers stationed at the Warsaw Armoured Brigade military base, Poland, April 23, 2024 [Photo by Simon Walker/No 10 Downing Street / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 Labour has responded by launching a political arms race, with Shadow Defence Secretary John Healey railing that the Tories have shown time and time again that they cannot be trusted on defence The development of a mass socialist movement in the working class in Britain has always depended on its rejection of Labourism and breaking from the stranglehold of the trade union bureaucracy on which the Labour Party rests. The conditions for this to take place are rotten ripe. Whether the Labour Party is elected to government as expected or not, its days are numbered, especially since it is most strongly despised by young people. The Socialist Equality Party and the International Youth and Students for Social Equality have intervened energetically in the mass movement over Gaza, confident that a major political shift is underway opening the door to a rapid growth of the socialist movement. Against Labours slavish loyalty to the super-rich, we call for the pursuit of the class struggle, in opposition to the pro-company corporatism of the trade union leaders, to secure workers control of economic and social life and a massive redistribution of resources to meet human needs in the UK and around the world. Against the escalating wars, we call for socialist internationalism and the solidarity of the global working class; a programme of strikes and blockades to bring the military machine to a halt. We have held a national series of public meetings to discuss this programme with workers and students, and to raise the vital issue of the defence of anti-war journalist Julian Assange, still held prisoner by the UK pending extradition and trial under the Espionage Act by the US government. In the general election this year, we will stand candidates who will wage a campaign with the fight against war at its centre: the NATO-Russia war in Ukraine, the genocide in Gaza and the threat of a regional war against Iran in the Middle East and of imperialist war against China. We will oppose all efforts to boost the Labour Party, including so-called Labour lefts, and all candidates who insist that workers must wait to settle scores with this right-wing, warmongering organisation and resign themselves to placing pressure on a Starmer-led government. This is the perspective put forward by the Stop the War Coalition, encouraging a vote for candidates prepared to declare for a ceasefire in Gaza. It aims to reinforce the propaganda of the trade union bureaucracy, whose leaders call for a vote for Starmers Labour as a lesser evil to Sunaks Tories. Jeremy Corbyn speaking at the Stop the War Coalition rally in Trafalgar Square (acreenshot-Jeremy Corbyn/Twitter) We insist, and Gaza proves this, that there is no lesser evil choice available to workers, when the Tories and Labour operate as a single imperialist party of austerity and war. We are fighting to build the Socialist Equality Party as the leadership of a mass socialist movement against war and the capitalist system that gives rise to war. We act as part of an international political offensive alongside our comrades standing in the European elections and the US presidential elections, to build the International Committee of the Fourth International as the world party of socialist revolution. This is how we honour the internationalist traditions of May Day. The Socialist Equality Party in Australia is holding a meeting entitled Free Julian Assange! Oppose imperialist war! in Sydney and online on Sunday, May 26 to discuss the urgent struggle to free Julian Assange, defeat a broader turn to authoritarianism and fight an eruption of imperialist militarism worldwide. WHEN: 2 p.m. (AEST) Sunday, May 26 WHERE: Belmore Senior Citizens Centre, 38 Redman Parade, Belmore, NSW Register here to attend. Cant attend in person? Register for the Zoom livestream at this link. The Socialist Equality Party is pleased to announce the two speakers for the meeting: Thomas Scripps, assistant national secretary of the SEP (UK) and Oscar Grenfell, a member of the SEP National Committee in Australia. Scripps and Grenfell are prominent writers on the World Socialist Web Site and have both written extensively on the ongoing persecution of Julian Assange. The meeting is being held less than a week after two British judges granted Assange the right to appeal his extradition to the United States. The original decision to bar his extradition on mental health grounds in January 2021 was overruled in December that year. Since then, Assanges legal team has mounted an appeal on numerous points, including his rights to life, due process of law and freedom from cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. The recent judgement is a victory, however, Assanges life still hangs in the balance. He confronts the danger of extradition to the US where he faces 17 Espionage Act charges and a maximum sentence of 175 years imprisonment. Assange has committed no crime. Instead, as the publisher of WikiLeaks, he played a key role in exposing the mass killings and other war crimes of the illegal US-led attacks and occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as Washingtons global diplomatic conspiracies, human rights abuses and spying operations. The SEP and the ICFI has insisted that the persecution of Assange is part of a broader attack on democratic rights internationally. The barbaric and genocidal war in Gaza being perpetrated by Israel with the funding and support of the US, Germany and all imperialist governments including the Australian, has been characterised by the targeted murder of health care workers and journalists. The first to ensure the population has no opportunity to recover from war wounds, starvation and disease, the second to silence those who would report the war crimes of Israel to the worlds working class. The US attempt to prosecute Assange must be defeated, not only to save the life of a courageous journalist, but because it is a key component of an onslaught on democratic rights associated with new wars. The US and its imperialist allies, including Australia, are arming, funding and backing the Israeli genocide of Palestinians in Gaza. That is one front of a developing world war. In Europe, the US and NATO have instigated the largest military conflict since World War II. The proxy conflict in Ukraine is increasingly evolving into an open war with Russia, posing the threat of a nuclear catastrophe. In the Indo-Pacific, Washingtons war strategy involves a massive military build-up in preparation for war with China. This program, stemming from the breakdown of capitalism, is incompatible with democracy. War abroad means a war against the social and democratic rights of the working class everywhere. This process is exemplified by the arrest in Ukraine of 25-year-old socialist Bogdan Syrotiuk, who was detained late last month and imprisoned. Syrotiuk has been targeted by the fascistic US-backed Ukrainian regime because he opposes the war and the governments that have instigated it at the expense of hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian and Russian lives. He fights for the unity of Russian and Ukrainian workers with the multi-million masses worldwide. If convicted he faces 15 years up to life imprisonment. Syrotiuk has carried out this struggle as a leader of the Young Guard of Bolshevik Leninists, which is in solidarity with the International Committee of the Fourth International, the world Trotskyist movement, and fights for an internationalist and socialist program as the only means to prevent the descent into imperialist world war. The ICFI and the WSWS are waging a global campaign in the working class to secure his immediate release. In the US and elsewhere, protests by students and others against the Gaza genocide are being met by a major police crackdown and mass arrests. The attempt to silence Assange and make an example of him is inseparable from this broader context. As with the fight against war, the struggle to defend democratic rights cannot be waged through plaintive appeals to the capitalist governments who are turning to imperialist barbarism and dictatorship. That includes the Labor government in Australia, which is a party to the Gaza genocide, the US-NATO proxy war in Ukraine and the plans for conflict with China. As part of this militarist program, it has abandoned Assange while targeting domestic anti-war opposition. What is required to free Assange and Syrotiuk and fight war is the independent mobilisation of the working class. Its vast social power must be brought to bear. That requires the development of a new political leadership in the working class, directed against all of the pro-war capitalist parties and based on a socialist program to abolish the source of militarism, war and authoritarianism, the capitalist system. WHEN: 2 p.m. (AEST) Sunday, May 26 WHERE: Belmore Senior Citizens Centre, 38 Redman Parade, Belmore, NSW Register here to attend. Cant attend in person? Register for the Zoom livestream at this link. Since the end of last week, Russian army units have attacked southwards into Ukraine, seizing areas north of Kharkov, Ukraines second-largest city. It is now evident that this is a significant offensive, threatening to unravel the Ukrainian armys entire front line and spell disaster for the NATO puppet regime in Kiev. The escalation in Ukraine also intensifies the danger of a reckless military escalation by the NATO powers against Russia. Indeed, what is emerging in Ukraine is precisely the situation in which major NATO powers have said they might attack Russia. Earlier this month, French President Emmanuel Macron told The Economist that if the Ukrainian front lines collapsed, he might send French troops to Ukraine. Last week, there were unconfirmed reports that French troops had already deployed to Ukraine. This weekend, as the desperate situation of the Ukrainian army and its NATO backers became evident, Macron went on X/Twitter to call on the NATO powers to be ready to act. The Russian offensive north of Kharkov involves around 50,000 soldiers of the newly-formed Sever (North) Group of Forces. The Russian Ministry of Defenses Telegram channel says these troops took nine villages north of Kharkov, destroyed Ukrainian tanks, artillery and air defense systems, and killed hundreds of Ukrainian troops. On Sunday, they reached Vovchansk and other towns linked to a line of Ukrainian fortifications north of Kharkov. Ukrainian officials acknowledged suffering important setbacks. This week, the situation in the Kharkiv region has significantly worsened, General Oleksandr Syrskii, the commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian armed forces, wrote on Sunday on Telegram. Admitting to partial successes of the Russian troops, he said: Ukrainian defence forces are doing everything they can to hold defensive lines and positions. The Ukrainian army is currently diverting forces from elsewhere along the front to reinforce units defending the northern approaches of Kharkov. As of this writing, the precise aims of the Russian offensive on Kharkov remain unclear. In March, Russian President Vladimir Putin called to secure a buffer zone north of Kharkov, after Ukrainian forces launched attacks from this area on the nearby Russian city of Belgorod. Yesterday, there were at least four dead and dozens of people wounded when Ukrainian missiles hit Belgorod. It is evident, however, that the Kharkov offensive is part of a broader Russian offensive all along the front. Some press outlets speculate that, if reinforced with more troops, the Sever Group could take both Kharkov and the nearby city of Sumy. Others suggest that this is a diversionary attack, aiming to draw off Ukrainian troops from other places on the front, which will then be stretched so thin that the Russian army will break through there. Indeed, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday: Ukrainian defence forces are doing everything they can to hold defensive lines and positions. The idea behind the attacks in the Kharkiv region is to stretch our forces and undermine the moral and motivational basis of the Ukrainians ability to defend themselves. Drawing Ukrainian soldiers away to fight in Kharkov is already undermining the Kiev regimes operations. Last night, Military Summary, a YouTube channel that follows the war based on combat reports and video and satellite imagery, reported that planned Ukrainian attacks from Kherson, on Ukraines Black Sea coast, had been called off after troops were diverted from Kherson to Kharkov. It also reported that Russian troops entered the strategic towns of Chasiv Yar and Krasnohorivka, after their defenses were weakened to reinforce Kharkov. If Russian forces take these two cities, which control high ground and critical transport links, they might take the entire Donbas regionwhich, since the 2014 NATO-backed coup in Kiev, has been split between areas controlled by Kiev and areas controlled by forces allied to Moscow. Whatever the precise unfolding of the fighting, the Kiev regime faces a military catastrophe flowing from its reactionary, pro-imperialist politics. It was installed by a NATO coup and is led by figures hailing the memory of Ukrainian Nazi-collaborationist Stepan Bandera. Headed by Zelensky, who has suspended elections and rules as a CIA-backed dictator, it turned over the Ukrainian people to the NATO powers to be used as cannon fodder to fight Russia, scrapping a peace treaty it negotiated with Russia at the outset of the war in 2022. Two years later, over a half-million Ukrainians have died, and millions of Ukrainians have fled the country to avoid brutal press gangs that draft civilians into the army. Now, as Ukrainian troops buckle under the Russian offensive, reports are beginning to emerge in the NATO countries that refer to the horrific price in lives paid by the Ukrainian people. Discussing the Kharkov offensive, CNN admitted that the Ukrainian army has been bled white: The cross-border attack is yet another example of whats going wrong for the Ukrainians this year. Their forces are thinly stretched, with much less artillery than the Russians, grossly inadequate air defenses and above all a lack of soldiers. Manpower shortages compel Ukraine to avoid deploying large units along the border continuously, one Ukrainian officer told CNN. He said he expected further Russian advances, with Russian forces deploying more units to penetrate additional border areas or to reinforce initial successes. The greatest danger emerging is that, faced with the failure of their strategy of fighting Russia to the last Ukrainian, the NATO imperialist powers will escalate the war, sending their own troops. This faces overwhelming opposition in the working class. Indeed, polls have shown that 68 percent of French people, 80 percent of Germans and 90 percent of Poles oppose sending troops to Ukraine. Nonetheless, trampling popular opposition underfoot, the NATO powers are threatening to intervene, particularly if the Kiev regime keeps going from defeat to defeat, accepting the risk of escalation to nuclear war. A week ago, on CBS, US House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries hailed the Ukraine war as a strategic success, but then warned that US troops might have to fight Russia directly if Washingtons Ukrainian puppet regime collapses. He said: We cant let Ukraine fall because if it does, then theres a significant likelihood that America will have to get into the conflictnot simply with our money, but with our servicewomen and our servicemen. On Saturday, Germanys Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reviewed discussions in German government circles of Macrons call to send troops to Ukraine. It concluded that in Berlin, experts believe any future cease-fire line would have to be guaranteed by Western boots on the ground in Ukraine. On May 8, Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte told the Financial Times that she wants to send troops to Ukraine. Blithely shrugging off questions about nuclear war, Simonyte said: If we just thought about the Russian response, then we could not send anything. Every second week you hear that somebody will be nuked. Russias post-Soviet capitalist regime is, for its part, threatening that it may retaliate against NATO involvement by attacking NATO countries, including with nuclear weapons. In his May 9 inaugural address, Putin said: Russia will do everything not to allow a global conflict, but at the same time, we will not let anyone threaten us. Our strategic forces are always at combat readiness. Russian General Yuri Netkachev told the Nezavisimaya Gazeta: If the presence of NATO specialists and soldiers at military facilities and in formations of the Ukrainian Armed Forces operating against the Russian Armed Forces is proven, they will become participants in the conflict. And in this case, the use of non-strategic nuclear weapons against them will be completely justified. These remarks underline that the only way to prevent a catastrophic escalation of the conflict is to alert, unify and mobilize the international working class in struggle against the NATO-Russia war in Ukraine, and against all the capitalist governments that are waging it. Cooking Up Murder: Who Is Cesar Roman and What Did He Do? Disclaimer: The article contains mentions of murder. Reader discretion is advised. Netflixs upcoming documentary Cooking Up Murder: Uncovering the Story of Cesar Roman will explore the rise and fall of popular Spanish chef Cesar Roman. The renowned chef became one of the biggest names in Spains culinary world in the late 2010s. In 2016, he opened a restaurant and popularized cachopo. Soon, people started calling him King of Cachopo, and Roman became a known name. However, soon after, authorities apprehended Roman for the murder of his girlfriend, Heidi Paz. Following his conviction, the court sentenced him to 15 years in prison. Born and raised in Spain, Cesar Roman tried his luck in several fields before becoming a successful chef. According to Spanish media outlet 20 Minutos, he became a member of the far-right conservative political party Spanish Falange in the 90s. In 2016, his restaurant A Canada garnered a lot of success and became famous for cachopo. However, he deceived his employees and suppliers by not paying them properly. Meanwhile, in 2018, Cesar Roman met a woman named Heidi Paz and began a relationship. 20 Minutos reported that their relationship didnt last long, and in June 2018, she left him. The publication mentioned that she revisited the duos shared house to talk to Cesar Roman. Unfortunately, that was the last time anyone saw Paz. Pazs family filed a missing report in July 2018. A couple of weeks later, police discovered a womans torso inside a suitcase in an abandoned warehouse in Usera, Madrid. People Magazine reported that the killer cut her breast implants so that the victim couldnt be identified. The breast implants would have had a serial number, which could have helped the police in identifying the victim. It took police almost three months to identify the victim. As per People Magazine, DNA tests helped authorities identify the victim as Heidi Paz. After further investigation, police found that Cesar Roman called in a taxi on August 5, 2018, to take him to the same warehouse where Pazs remains were found. After completing the investigation, police arrested Roman and charged him with murder. Although he pleaded not guilty, the jury convicted him in June 2021. The court later sentenced him to 15 years in prison. Is Cooking Up Murder already released on Netflix? The three-part documentary series is already streaming on Netflix. The documentary primarily focuses on the convicted killer, Cesar Roman, and how he slayed his ex-girlfriend. Apart from the crime, the series also clarifies that Roman lied to people and did not pay them for their work. Cooking Up Murder: Uncovering the Story of Cesar Roman is now streaming on Netflix. The post Cooking Up Murder: Who Is Cesar Roman and What Did He Do? appeared first on ComingSoon.net - Movie Trailers, TV & Streaming News, and More. A beloved Childrens Museum of Pittsburgh exhibit inspired by parts of Mister Rogers Neighborhood is coming back! The museum says its original creation, the How People Make Things exhibit returns on May 18 and will stay on display until Sept. 1. The exhibit, inspired by the factory tour segments from Mister Rogers Neighborhood, offers hands-on activities using real factory tools and machines. Kids will make objects with four manufacturing processes: molding, cutting, deforming and assembly. This exhibit brings children close to the real stuff, the nuts and bolts of how products are manufactured, which is very easy to feel removed from these days, said Jane Werner, executive director of Childrens Museum of Pittsburgh. Through his factory tours, Fred Rogers took complex issues and made them simple and direct so children could understand them and relate them to their own lives. He made manufacturing fascinating and inspirational, and we continue that tradition with How People Make Things. The exhibit also features locally produced products, like balls from Hedstrom Plastics in Ashland, Ohio, and springs from Diamond Wire Spring Company in Pittsburgh. Click here for more information. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW TRENDING NOW: 1 dead, 2 injured in Uniontown shooting Good puppy abandoned, tied to pole with note outside animal shelter Longtime WPXI reporter Dee Thompson dies at age 84 VIDEO: NWS confirms 2 tornadoes hit Fayette County on Saturday DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts Gizelle Bryants Twins Angel And Adore Are Headed To Two Different HBCUs In The Fall Gizelle Bryants Twins Angel And Adore Are Headed To Two Different HBCUs In The Fall | Photo: sshepard via Getty Images The Real Housewives of Potomac star Gizelle Bryants youngest daughters will attend HBCUs in the fall. Bravo TV fans met twins Angel and Adore, who Gizelle shares with Atlanta-area Pastor Jamal Bryant, during the first season of RHOP in 2016 when they were around 9 or 10 years old. Time has quickly flown by as viewers have watched them flourish into young women as they recently celebrated their 18th birthday and got glammed up for their high school senior prom. Angel took to Instagram on May 3 to share the exciting news of what colleges they will be attending this fall with the caption, favorite people . The teens wore T-shirts as a way to represent the institutions they chose for their four-year ride. They are continuing their familys tradition of attending HBCUs as their mother attended Hampton University, their father attended Morehouse College and their older sister Grace, who is currently a student a Florida A&M University. Following in the footsteps of her mom, Adore will be continuing her educational journey at Hampton University while her sister will be heading to Atlanta, where her father resides, for Spelman College, the sister college to Morehouse. Im you guys biggest fan !! Im cheering for you, Pastor Jamal Bryant wrote in the comment section. Gizelles comment, My cuties, was just a short scroll past her ex-husband as they prepared to send them off at the end of summer. Adore also posted a slideshow of photos of herself, her sister, and two of their friends on the same day as well. Her caption, peace out cant wait for my next four, made it clear that shes ready for this next chapter. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Adore Bryant (@adorecbryant) The twins are the last children Gizelle and Jamal share together, so this will be their final college send-off. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Grace Bryant (@gracegbryant) While Gizelle pledged the first Black sorority in America, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Jamal is a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. Only time will tell if their daughters follow in their parents lead and become members of a Black Greek-lettered organization. I cant believe they have turned 18 and are headed to college, their father said in a caption on an Instagram post celebrating their birthday. The world will be better because they were born. A 30-year-old Lebanon man was sentenced to nearly six years in prison for attacking multiple people including his mother in a Linn County courtroom. It was like he just lost it, Julia Stickney said. I mean, hes never been violent. I tried to calm him down, but I dont think he even knew it was me. A jury found her son, Christopher Allan Jackson, guilty of second-degree assault, attempted second-degree assault and two counts of assaulting a public safety officer for the violent outburst. Second-degree assault is a Measure 11 offense carrying a minimum sentence of five years and 10 months. A Place to Sleep, episode 10: Wrapping up We check back with some of the people we've met along our travels and we catch up with politicos who are trying to come up with solutions. Jackson was in court on a separate case, which remains open, alleging trespassing, resisting arrest and unlawful weapon use when the assaults occurred in June 2023 at the Linn County Courthouse in Courtroom 5. Videotaped Video of the incident shows Jackson walking into court with his defense attorney, Edward Talmadge, and his mom, Julia Stickney. Seating himself at the defense table, Jackson puts his feet on the table and gestures with both middle fingers. The video lacks audio, as the court proceeding had not begun, but a court staff member reportedly asked Jackson to put his feet down. Jackson continues flipping the double birds, and his mother pulls his legs off the table. That's when Jackson punches Stickney in the face. Talmadge and Jacksons mom appear to reason with Jackson as the court staffer alerts Linn County Sheriffs deputies to the situation. Jumping up from his seat, Jackson grabs a wooden chair and rushes the courtroom employee, swinging it at the woman and hitting her left arm and leg. Talmadge ran after Jackson and tackled him as he was going for a second chair to use as a weapon, according to a probable cause affidavit. That happens out of frame, but the camera is soon adjusted downward, as deputies come to the rescue. Talmadge is seen atop Jackson under the court staffers desk. As two deputies work to get control of the melee, Jackson can be seen punching Talmadge in the head at least three times. The probable cause affidavit notes Talmadge had multiple scratch marks covering his face and some swelling of his left eye. He was also bitten on his arm and hand. The affidavit also states Jackson gouged Talmadges eyes as the two wrestled on the floor. As Talmadge gets up, a deputy draws a Taser and orders Jackson to comply, forcing his surrender. He seems to play dead, and is handcuffed and pulled up into a chair but suddenly headbutts a deputy, briefly knocking her glasses from her face. Another struggle ensues as Jackson is taken to the ground, and additional law enforcement members file into the courtroom, gaining control over Jackson and using a wrap restraining device to subdue him. The wrap binds a persons legs and connects to the upper body, effectively immobilizing that person. Panicky As this is happening, Jacksons mother, Stickney, is sitting on a nearby chair, looking on and appearing to cry. Stickney told authorities Jackson was nervous and panicky about the court hearing that morning, and her efforts to calm him were unsuccessful. According to the affidavit, during the fight Jackson bit one deputys middle finger hard enough to cause bleeding, and bit another deputys thigh, breaking the first layer skin through his patrol pants. Another deputy was spared from a bite when Jackson instead bit into a cellphone in the deputys pocket. After the courtroom brawl, Jackson was assigned another defense attorney, and a psychological evaluation was requested and approved, according to court records, which show he was found unfit to proceed with court hearings by the Oregon State Hospital in October. He was then found fit in January. Jacksons mental health was not given appropriate consideration, Stickney said in a phone interview. She describes her son as quiet with a lot of social anxiety issues but enthusiastic about video games and reading, adding he had been working DoorDash deliveries before ending up in court. The affidavit refers to Jackson as on the autism spectrum. Although his mother says he was never officially diagnosed, she feels his social anxiety is indicative of the developmental disability. She believes his reluctance to engage with strangers is why he was picked up by law enforcement the first time. The first case In that underlying case, Jackson met up with law enforcement after a Lebanon resident reported a trespasser on his private road. Jackson allegedly refused to show identification and walked away from a Linn County deputy, according to a probable cause affidavit. When the deputy took Jackson down, the two rolled roughly 25 feet down an embankment, the affidavit states. The deputy said that Jackson continued to resist and kept reaching for his jacket pocket, where a box cutter was later found. Stickney said Jackson was just out for a walk within a mile of home at the time, and in his typical fashion, just did not want to interact with a stranger, which escalated the situation. He was going through a little mental health issue at the time, Stickney said. "He had gotten more subdued and quiet, so I think he must have been trying to work through some stuff. Thats what he does he would go out and walk. The day of the courtroom fight, Jackson and Stickney sat outside the room for around a half-hour. She said he was really nervous, not talking and fiddling a lot. She tried getting him to talk but he wouldnt, so they went ahead into the courtroom. In the time between being charged with trespassing and the courtroom incident, Jackson was treated for mental health issues at the hospital in Lebanon, Stickney said. He was catatonic for three days. After that, she said he was moved to a psychiatric facility in Corvallis for two weeks. I think his mental health should have been taken into consideration, Stickney said. Reached by phone, Talmadge said he could not foresee the courtroom chaos. The charges Jackson faced did not indicate the possibility of such an outburst of violence, he said, acknowledging things got out of hand very quickly. To his mind, Talmadge said the responding deputies performed well in getting control of the situation, but he said it would be nice if the county could afford to have more deputies and provide security in every courtroom, rather than a system of rotating through rooms based on the potential for a safety threat. Despite the outcome for Jackson, who went from facing relatively minor charges to a mandatory prison sentence, Talmadge said it was appropriate given the circumstances. But he wishes it never happened, not just for Jackson, but also for Jacksons mom and the court staffer who was attacked, he said. Jackson is currently held at the Coffee Creek Correctional Facility in Wilsonville, according to Department of Corrections records. FILE - Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof poses during a photo call for the film "The Immigrant" at the 66th international film festival, in Cannes, southern France on May 24, 2013. Rasoulof has been sentenced to eight years in prison and lashings just ahead of his planned trip to the Cannes film festival, his lawyer told The Associated Press on Thursday, May 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Francois Mori, File) CANNES, France (AP) After being sentenced to eight years in prison, the award-winning Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof says he's fled to Europe shortly ahead of the Cannes Film Festival premiere of his latest film. I arrived in Europe a few days ago after a long and complicated journey, Rasoulof said in a statement dated Sunday and distributed by press agents Monday. Last week, Rasoulof's lawyer told The Associated Press that the director had been sentenced to eight years in prison, flogging and confiscation of property by the Islamic Republic. Rasoulof's attorney, Babak Paknia, said the filmmaker was being punished for making films and signing statements. Iranian authorities havent yet acknowledged Rasoulof's sentence and there was no immediate comment on his departure. Rasoulof and other artists had co-signed a letter urging authorities to put down their weapons amid demonstrations over a 2022 building collapse that killed at least 29 people in the southwestern city of Abadan. Rasoulof, 51, is the latest artist targeted in a widening crackdown on all dissent in Iran following years of mass protests, including over the 2022 death of Mahsa Amini. His 2020 film There Is No Evil won the Golden Bear prize at Berlin in 2020. Rasoulof said the prison sentence came before he revealed his latest film, The Seed of the Sacred Fig. That film premieres in competition in Cannes on May 24. Knowing that the news of my new film would be revealed very soon, I knew that without a doubt, a new sentence would be added to these eight years, said Rasoulof. I didnt have much time to make a decision. I had to choose between prison and leaving Iran. With a heavy heart, I chose exile. The Islamic Republic confiscated my passport in September 2017. Therefore, I had to leave Iran secretly. Rasoulof said he strongly objected to his ruling but noted many others have been handed death sentences in the crackdown. The scope and intensity of repression has reached a point of brutality where people expect news of another heinous government crime every day, said Rasoulof. The criminal machine of the Islamic Republic is continuously and systematically violating human rights. Rasoulof is currently in an undisclosed location. It's unclear if he will attend the Cannes premiere of his film. We are very happy and much relieved that Mohammad has safely arrived in Europe after a dangerous journey, said Jean-Christophe Simon, chief executive of Films Boutique and Parallel45. "We hope he will be able to attend the Cannes premiere of The Seed of the Sacred Fig in spite of all attempts to prevent him from being there in person. Shortly before the release of Rasoulof's statement, Thierry Fremaux, Cannes' artistic director, said the real question is about his presence when asked about the The Seed of the Sacred Fig in a pre-festival press conference Monday. The festival speaks through films, said Fremaux. He described The Seed of the Sacred Fig as about how insidiously the Iranian dictatorship creeps into families." Rasoulof also detailed the pressure put on his collaborators on the film. Some actors left Iran before wider awareness of the production, he said. Others have been interrogated and had their families summoned for questioning. Rasoulof said his cinematographer's offices was raided. Many people helped to make this film, he said. "My thoughts are with all of them, and I fear for their safety and well-being. While the Eurovision Song Contest, which took place over the weekend, may have been shrouded in serious news, comedian John Oliver still managed to relish in the annual international competition's inherent goofiness. Oliver opened Sunday night's episode of "Last Week Tonight" by briefly jesting about a few of the many punchy U.S. news headlines in the past week. He noted how Kristi Noem, the Republican governor of South Dakota, has elected to suspend her book tour, "allowing her more time at home, which should be concerning to any of her remaining pets," jabbing at her recent revelation that she'd once shot her pet dog. Oliver also underscored news of how more than a decade ago, doctors determined that a parasitic worm had eaten part of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s brain, which he claimed "honestly sounds like a terrible experience for that worm." From there, the late-night host pivoted to Eurovision, which saw a nonbinary artist from Switzerland, Nemo, take home the victory. The Eurovision Song Contest took place amid a slew of controversies, from calls for boycotts over Israel's participation to the last-minute elimination of this Dutch contestant for alleged unlawful threats backstage, Oliver said. It was a lot of serious news around what is usually a magnificently silly competition, which to be fair still had some striking contestants, from Baby Lasagna from Croatia to Bambi Thug from Ireland to my absolute favorite, this guy from Finland. Oliver then proceeded to show a clip of Finnish contestant Windows95man emerging from a giant denim egg while performing his song, "No Rules." Yes! 14,000 out of 10," Oliver said, rating the production. "A man with flowing blonde locks and pervert glasses hatching out of a denim egg? Its like Botticellis 'Birth of Venus' only this time, its actually good. Oliver continued by discussing the Windows95man, whose real name is Teemu Keisteri, and his stage persona. The name of that artist and I do mean artist is Windows95man, Oliver said. His stage costume consists of a Windows95 T-shirt, hat, and, importantly, not much else, which is why performances basically consisted of doing an extended Austin Powers bit." "But maybe the best thing about Windows95man other than his name, face outfit, and partial nudity is that during Finlands contest to pick its representative at Eurovision, the jury ranked him dead last," he continued. "But he took the audience vote by such a large margin, he won anyway which makes sense to me. The people of Finland are naturals at ski jumping, sauna and knowing a f**king star when they see one. I dont know what their other contestants were like, but I highly doubt that they had stagecraft like a pair of jean shorts descending from the ceiling followed by this, he added, showing the bit where Windows95man shoots fireworks out of what looks like rope attached to his jean shorts after he puts them on. F**k all other music. It is dead to me now, Oliver said, concluding his Eurovision segment by referencing "No Rules" lyrics: To quote a great poet clad in exploding denim: I dont care whats wrong or right, its how I live my life, and that is my champion right there. Last Week Tonight with John Oliver airs on Sundays at 11 p.m. ET on Max. BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) Tianas Bayou Adventure, a new Walt Disney World Resort attraction, will open on June 28, 2024. According to Disney, the ride will take guests on a musical adventure picking up after the events of the film The Princess and the Frog. Youll join Princess Tiana on an adventure through the bayou as she prepares to host a one-of-a-kind celebration during Mardi Gras season where everyone is welcome. Along the way, you will see some familiar faces, make new friends and travel through the bayou into the next chapter of Tianas story, Disney said. According to Disney, the family of Leah Chase, the woman who inspired the idea for Princess Tiana, saw the attraction in person and was invited to be some of the first people to ride it when it opens. Tianas Bayou Adventure will also have a 50-foot drop. Gonzales Jambalaya Festival: What you need to know about contests, food, drinks and music Latest News For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to BRProud.com. Like every Friday, some of your favorite Hip-Hop artists released a ton of new music just in time for the weekend. As you unwind and enjoy Saturday and Sunday, check out VIBEs picks of songs and albums you should hear and add to your soundtrack of weekend festivities. Megan Thee Stallion BOA Megan Thee Stallion BOA cover art Megan Thee Stallions BOA is one of her most confident releases yet, and it is especially enjoyable to hear her not addressing her rivals or those who have hurt her in the past. The upbeat track samples Gwen Stefanis What Are You Waiting For? and feels like a warning shot to all male and female rappers. She brags about being a real star and not having to make TikToks, though the fans do love her non-music content on social media. BOA is a reminder that Megs delivery is her biggest selling point, as the conviction and passion in every word are palpable. If theres more of this on the album, it could easily be her best yet. Armon Sadler Gunna One of Wun Gunna One Of Wun cover art Gunnas One Of Wun was a solid next step in this post-jail era of his career. He reverts back to the Atlanta rapper fans grew to love, with boisterous, confident bars about his money, jewelry, clothing, and women. The production leaves a bit to be desired as many songs sound the same despite having different choruses and verses. This results in a 20-song effort feeling like it can be, and should have been, cut down to a nice 14 songs. Surprisingly, his collaboration Clear My Rain with Leon Bridges works a lot more than one would expect. The back half of the album shows that Gunna can excel at making slower, more earnest tracks. Overall, it is a good LP that could have been great if he had been more selective and called in more versatile producers. AS This embedded content is not available in your region. Ice Spice Gimmie A Light Ice Spice Gimmie A Light cover art Ice Spices Gimmie A Light was ambitious, flipping Sean Pauls undeniable classic record from the early 2000s. While there have been some gems to come from her brand of sample drill, this was not one of them. The presence of Pauls memorable chorus was not enough to distinguish this record from any that she has made in the past. Also, her choice to rap as if she were yelling caused a discord with the frantic, fast-paced production. Though she is still a new artist, the repetitive concepts within her songwriting and linear flows are beginning to wear out their welcome. This is by no means a sign that things are coming to an end for the Bronx star, but it does render the desire to hear a sonic evolution as she continues on. AS Ghostface Killah Set The Tone (Guns & Roses) Ghostface Killah 'Set The Tone' Album Cover As the most consistently active Wu-Tang Clan member, Ghostface Killah has made it a near-tradition to dropping cohesive bodies of work. However, on Set The Tone (Guns & Roses), the veterans latest long-player, he slightly strays from the tried-and-true sound that cast him out of the shadows as a supreme soloist nearly three decades ago. On the introductory salvo 6 Minutes, GFK is joined by Jim Jones and Sheek Louch, delivering a fiery opening verse before passing the mic off to his fellow Big Apple luminaries. Fellow Clansmen Method Man (Pair Of Hammers) and Raekwon (Skate Oddysey) join in on the festivities, adding to Set The Tones lengthy list of contributors, as Kanye West, Nas, Busta Rhymes, Fat Joe, Ja Rule, AZ, Remy Ma and more lend their talents to the 19 track affair. Preezy Brown This embedded content is not available in your region. Mach-Hommy Feat. KAYTRANADA and 03 Greedo #RICHAXXHAITIAN Mach-Hommy Featuring 03 Greedo and KAYTRANADA "#RICHAXXHAITIAN" Cover Art Mach-Hommy unveils #RICHAXXHAITIAN, the latest single and title track from his forthcoming album, due to drop May 17. Featuring a verse from 03 Greedo, the release finds Hommy and his Western costar gliding over a pulsating backdrop scored by KAYTRANADA that is sure to beckon those within earshot to the dancefloor or induce a slight shoulder bop, at the very least. According to the Mach, #RICHAXXHAITIAN is an examination of the past, present, and future through the lenses of his two homelands and was a labor equal parts love and passion. Ive always wanted to rep for Haiti and the cultural and intellectual richness weve provided the world, the emcee expressed in a statement. From our musical styles like kontradans that have influenced world music, our natural resources which provide so much raw material for so many important advancements in technology, our thinkers that pioneered philosophical movements and Black pride, and our spiritual leaders who kept the religious traditions of Guinea alive and intact, the religious traditions of Ayiti. PB This embedded content is not available in your region. Coi Leray Lemon Cars Coi Leray "Lemon Cars" Cover Art Coi Leray throws an unexpected curveball in the form of Lemon Cars, her single from her upcoming EP, due to drop later this month. The projects title track, Lemon Cars is powered by an upbeat ditty that harkens back to the electro vibes of the 80s, albeit with a modern twist. Fancy cars, lemon drops/ She likes to go out, and she want to f**k, the hitmaker drawls on the songs opening stanza, conjuring images of an inebriated bar-hopper looking for a good time. Produced by Mike WiLL Made-It Lemon Cars continues Lerays gradual expansion of her sound and is further evidence of her willingness to stray beyond her expected comfort zones. PB This embedded content is not available in your region. Conway The Machine Slant Face Killah Conway the Machine 'Slant Face Killah' Album Cover Conway the Machine continues to live up to his name, as he churns out Slant Face Killah, yet another collection of grisly bars from the Buffalo wordsmith. Taking a paint-by-the-numbers approach, Conway enlists upwards of a dozen artists to help bring Slant Face Killah to life, with the helping hands assisting him in completing one of his finer pieces yet. On the Stove God Cooks featured Mutty, the Machine gets loose, basking in his evolution from the trenches to the penthouse, quipping Them Ms come in portions weekly, thats how we meal prep over production by Conductor Williams, Nape, and David Emmanuel. Shining by his lonely on the standouts Give & Give, Milano Nights, Pt. 1, and Karimi, additional highlights include Meth Back! featuring Method Man and the previously released Vertino alongside Joey Bada$$. Other guests on Slant Face Killah include Larry June, Swizz Beatz, Key Glock, TechN9ne, Ab-Soul, Jay Worthy, Raekwon, and more. PB This embedded content is not available in your region. Tee Grizzley Feat. Future Swear To God Tee Grizzley feat. Future Swear To God cover art Tee Grizzley caught Future at a great time on Swear To God. HNDRXX delivers a strong hook and verse on the bass-heavy, car-rattling record. What initially seemed like a Gunna diss when he promoted it on X was actually just an assertion that no rappers can mess with his catalog: F**k yo album, sh*t aint slappin like my mixtape. What is most impressive is that Grizzley holds his own, dropping powerful bar after bar and synergizing seamlessly with the mid-tempo production. Future has a tendency to outperform many people he links with for one-off features, but Tee Grizzley is no slouch here. AS Kodak Black Dis Time Kodak Black Dis Time cover art Has someone checked on Kodak Black lately? Dis Time is another somber record, though the production is hauntingly beautiful. The guitar strums, hi-hats, flute, and drums come together to give him the ideal canvas to continue bearing his soul. Of course, it isnt completely sad; he cant not brag about violence or his wealth, but there is still a level of introspection that has been equally refreshing and concerning. He acknowledges that he doesnt want to use drugs anymore, reflects on a failed relationship, and how people are out to get him. However, it seems like he knows he brought that on himself and you cant ask for more accountability. AS Kalan .FrFr Make The West Great Again Kalan.FrFr 'Make The West Great Again' Album Cover Capping last year off with the release of his Not Hard 2 Understand EP, Kalan.FrFr goes full throttle on his latest effort, Make The West Great Again. Comprised of 8 tracks, the project finds the Cali native campaigning to be the face of his coasts continued resurgence, relying on catching jams rather than overt appeasement. Opening with the boisterous Bad Bi**h On Seen, Not Hard 2 Understand offers solo a mix of solo standouts (Everybody) and guest spots, as YG (Cool Down), Ty Dolla $ign (Silhouette), G Herbo (No Munyon No Funyon), and Spooky Jay (Keep Going) all pop up on its tracklist. PB This embedded content is not available in your region. See More New Hip-Hop Release Below Chief Keef Almighty So 2 Chief Keef 'Amighty So 2' Album Cover This embedded content is not available in your region. Lil Jon Manifest Abundance: Affirmations For Personal Growth Lil Jon 'Manifest Abundance' Album Cover This embedded content is not available in your region. Sleepy Hallow Winners In Paris Sleepy Hallow "Winners In Paris" Cover Art This embedded content is not available in your region. BigXTha Plug, Ro$ama, Yung Hood Meet the 6ixers BigXThaPlug 'Meet the 6ixers' Album Cover This embedded content is not available in your region. Baby Money H.I.M. (Hustle In Me) Baby Money 'H.I.M. (Hustle In Me)' Album Cover This embedded content is not available in your region. BLK ODYSSY Feat. Wiz Khalifa XXX Rowdy Rebel and OnPointLikeOP Temperature 1090 Rowdy Rebel and OnPointLikeOP 'Temperature 1090' Album Cover This embedded content is not available in your region. Kenny Muney Take A Shot Kenny Muney 'The Blue Seasons" Album Cover More from VIBE.com Now I know what he sounds like: Listen to Barron Trumps voice in resurfaced video He speaks! Former first son Barron Trump has been rarely seen and heard. Until now. In a newly resurfaced video thats gone viral, the 18 year old is seen in undated footage at Mar a Lago in Palm Beach. The teenager, the only child of ex president Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump, is seen talking to his brother in law Michael Boulos, who is married to Tiffany Trump. There is a lot of background noise and people chatting in the background so you need to listen carefully with the volume up. Impressed with this? Barron says with a smile as he shakes Boulos hand. The rest is unintelligible. BARRON TRUMP'S VOICE FINALLY. Now I know what he sounds like. pic.twitter.com/qLK6bB6wyU NO CAP CARROT (@Pickuptruckdude) May 9, 2024 FINALLY, wrote X user @Pickuptruckdude, who shared the clip from an Instagram account dedicated to Barron called @btwgirls_, which posted it last month. Now I know what he sounds like. Commenters weighed in: Sounds like his brothers, wrote someone, referring to half brothers Donald Jr. and Eric, whose mother was Ivana Trump. Another person thought he sounded more like his father, but years ago. A few Succession fans were in the mix, writing that Barrons voice reminded them of Roy family wannabe power player Cousin Greg. Speaking of power players, last week, the Republican Party of Florida chose Barron as one of 41 delegates at the Republican National Convention in July, where his father is expected to receive the Republican nomination. But days later, Melania Trump stuck a fork in the plans, releasing a statement saying that Barron is declining the offer due to prior commitments. Editors Note: Louis Staples is a London-based culture writer and editor. His work has appeared in Slate, Vogue, The Guardian, Rolling Stone, Wired and elsewhere. The views expressed here are his own. Read more opinion on CNN. The Eurovision Song Contest is a glittery and eccentric spectacle that rivals the Super Bowl for its attraction to audiences. It showcases the best (and often bizarre) music that the wider European continent has to offer. Past winners include ABBA and Celine Dion. But this years contest, won by Switzerland in the coastal Swedish city of Malmo, became the center of deep political divisions over Israels inclusion, amid its governments war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Louis Staples - Louis Staples In the lead up to the contest, there were fan boycott campaigns and thousands including Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg took to the streets of Malmo in protest. Security was ramped up and helicopters flew overhead, with a particularly heavy security presence around the Israeli delegations hotel. During Saturdays grand final, a combination of cheers and loud boos could be heard when Israels act, Eden Golan, performed an emotional ballad. Some fans even turned their backs. But despite this, Israel ended up coming second in the public vote, with 323 points narrowly behind Croatias entrant, Baby Lasagna. When combined with the jury vote, Israels impressive public vote tally saw Golan finish in fifth place overall. Such fierce divisions and the response of the European Broadcasting Union, the organizing body behind the contest have shattered Eurovisions pretense of being an apolitical contest. The story of Eurovision 2024 is one of a divided Europe. For many fans, the contests long-held insistence on so-called political neutrality casting itself in the figurative role of Switzerland is no longer convincing, or even possible. If the EBU does not face up to that, further crises seem likely. When Switzerlands winner, Nemo, lifted (then accidentally dropped) the trophy after being crowned victorious, it was a fittingly chaotic end to a contest that has been dominated by political polarization and has suffered as a result. The first Eurovision Song Contest was held in 1956 in Switzerland. With the exception of the events 2020 cancellation because of COVID-19, it has continued every year. The original premise was grounded in bringing Europe together around a shared European identity in the aftermath of World War II. And over the years, further afield countries such as Turkey, Israel and Russia were incorporated into this vision. Politics and political tensions have always lingered beneath the surface of the contest. In 1974, Portugals entry, E Depois do Adeus, became a rallying cry for the countrys political revolution, which eventually delivered democracy. In 1975, when Turkey joined Eurovision, Greece pulled out. (Turkey had invaded Cyprus the previous year.) In 2009, the voting system was updated from only a public vote to incorporate a jury vote system, because of complaints that political voting was giving the Eastern bloc of countries an unfair advantage. Despite this, the EBU has always insisted that Eurovision is an apolitical music competition between broadcasters, rather than a political competition between governments. Lyrics and performances are carefully scrutinized to make sure that political references are kept to a minimum. This year, the EBU instructed Israel to alter the lyrics to Golans song Hurricane, originally titled October Rain, thought to be a thinly veiled reference to Hamas October 7 assault on Israel. In February, Israels president, Isaac Herzog, publicly intervened to stress the importance of agreeing to the lyric change so that Israel could compete this year. Such a high-level political intervention suggests that Eurovision is in fact very political. Nowhere was this clearer than the 2022 banning of Russia following the invasion of Ukraine. The next year, the contest was held in Liverpool, United Kingdom, who hosted on behalf of Ukraine. (Usually, the winner of each contest hosts the next year, but Ukraine was unable to host for security reasons.) The 2023 contest in Liverpool was a moving display of unity so much that Liverpools slogan, United By Music, was adopted by Eurovision for all future contests. On the streets of Malmo, there has been a noticeable split between protesters and Eurovision attendees. Almost every protester I spoke to at a demonstration on Thursday cited the hypocrisy of Russia being banned while Israel was still allowed to compete. Palestinian flags fly from windows and are stuck across lampposts and shop fronts. Many posters for Eurovision are defaced and makeshift posters, which describe Eurovision as the genocide song contest, have appeared across the city. On Saturday, there was very little sense that Eurovision was united by music. Some fans boycotted, while others mobilized online to vote for Israel. Such a strong Israeli phone vote performance securing even more votes than Ukraines 307, including the maximum number of votes from 14 countries including Italy, France, Germany and the United Kingdom is a stark contrast to the loud boycott calls and protests that dominated the run-up to the contest. The significant difference between that and Israels jury vote total a modest 52 points suggests voting that was motivated by political factors. (Just like in 2022, when Ukraine won via a landslide public vote, securing a record-breaking 439 televote points.) Throughout this years contest, many fans felt that the EBU had not adequately explained the difference in its decision-making between banning Russia and allowing Israel to compete. (In a statement, the EBU said that it understood the concerns of some fans but stated that comparisons between wars and conflicts are complex and difficult.) During the week of competition, there was noticeable discontent among other performers who became frustrated that the music was being overshadowed. Irelands act, Bambie Thug, said they cried on Thursday when Israel qualified for the grand final. On Saturday morning, the Netherlands entry Joost Klein was disqualified after an incident backstage reportedly involving a female EBU photographer, which is being investigated by the Swedish police. The decision was criticized by Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS, who called the decision disproportionate. In advance of the announcement, rumors swirled that the incident, which occurred after Thursday nights second semi-final, involved another delegation a testament to how tense the atmosphere had become. During Saturdays final, loud boos could be heard inside the stadium whenever EBUs executive supervisor, Martin Osterdahl, appeared on the screens, reflecting anger at his handling of the contests various controversies. The precedent set with Eurovisions ban of Russia changed the contest forever. And this year, the EBU has felt the consequences of that decision. As much they might insist otherwise, choosing to include a country amid boycott calls and accusations of war crimes, which Israel denies, is in itself a political move. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com KIPS BAY, Manhattan (PIX11) Police are searching for a man accused of punching actor Steve Buscemi in the face in New York City on Wednesday, according to the NYPD. Police were called to 369 Third Ave. in Manhattan around 12 p.m. Buscemi was taken to the hospital to be treated for bruising, swelling and bleeding in his left eye, according to officials. More Crime News Steve Buscemi was assaulted in Midtown, Manhattan, another victim of a random act of violence in the city, his publicist said in a statement. He is OK and appreciates everyones well wishes. Buscemis Boardwalk Empire co-star Michael Stuhlbarg was hit with a rock while walking in Manhattans Central Park on March 31. Stuhlbarg chased his attacker, who was taken into custody outside the park. This story comprises reporting from The Associated Press. Submit tips to police by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), visiting crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, downloading the NYPD Crime Stoppers mobile app, or texting 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. Spanish-speaking callers are asked to dial 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). Jonathan Rizk is a digital journalist who has covered local news in New York City and Washington, D.C. He has been with PIX11 since August 2022. See more of his work here, and follow him on X and Facebook @OfficialRizk. Get in touch at jonathan.rizk@pix11.com. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11. The Chrisleys havent been able to catch a break since reporting to prison in January 2023. In addition to Todd and Julie Chrisleys mounting legal woes, theyre dealing with Grayson Chrisleys lawsuit. The 17-year-old slammed into the back of a mans 2020 Dodge Ram back in November 2022. Patrick Rykwalder said the reality star failed to act appropriately under the circumstances, including maintaining a safe operating distance. As part of his suit, he requested phone records from Verizon and AT&T. However, Todd and Julie said it was an attempt to harass and shame them. Its official: Savannah has been served legal papers relating to Graysons 2022 crash This embedded content is not available in your region. According to RadarOnline, Patrick told the courts that a process server traced Savannah Chrisley down to serve her. Thanks to the report, we know Savannah was served papers in February at her 4-bedroom, 6-bathroom, 5,229 sq. ft. home. The report also noted Patrick served Julie by himself at her prison facility in Kentucky. Since the news of this legal battle became public, Todd and Julie have asked the courts to seal the case to keep their personal details private. Their lawyers argued they are national television personalities and sealing this would protect their privacy, especially in light of [Julie] and [Todds] appeals of their recent criminal convictions. They continued, saying the lawsuit concerns matters of private concern or of little legitimate public interest, and disclosure would result in serious embarrassment or other specific harm. Patrick replied to the claims, saying the familys attempt to keep their case private contradicts their actions. The irony of these arguments is that the Defendants have exploited the facts of this case to remain relevant by making statements to media outlets. Theyve posted about the facts of the case on various social media platforms and discussed the case on podcasts, Patricks lawyer said. Stream previous seasons of Chrisley Knows Best on Peacock. TELL US WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE NEWS? ARE YOU SURPRISED PATRICK SERVED JULIE IN PRISON? The post Savannah Chrisley Served Legal Papers Over Brothers 2022 Car Crash appeared first on Reality Tea. After the explosions at the end of last weeks episode of The Sympathizer, Captain (Hoa Xunde) is whisked away to a hospital. Hes out like a light, but we do get to see his dreamsin them, a younger version of himself makes a blood promise to Bon (Fred Nguyen Khan) and Man (Duy Nguyen), his closest friends. They set forth into the jungle, ready to explore Vietnam. Captain wakes up to find Bon at his side. That asshole really fucked you up, Bon says. Captain is so dazed that he doesnt even know who Bon is talking about. Oh, rightits Niko (Robert Downey, Jr.), the director of that explosive (literally) movie Captain was working on as a Vietnam Consultant. Some of the Vietnamese extras have stopped by with a gift: part of the headstone from his mothers prop grave. These youthful hallucinations keep finding Captain in his sleep. Once Bon and the crew have left, Captain slips off into a slumber, where he dreams about finding a decapitated soldiers head in the jungle with Bon and Man as a child. Captain also dreams about being teased by his pals for being mixed race, fighting back against them with the fact that his ancestry actually makes him twice of everything. Are these recollections? Or is Captains mind creating these memories based on whats been happening in his life recently? David Duchovny Plays a Murderous Method Actor on The Sympathizer A handful of visitors stop by to visit Captain in the hospital. Ned Godwin (also Downey, Jr.) sends flowers with a card from Caps girlfriend Sofia (Sandra Oh), which is eyebrow-raising. The studio reps for Nikos movie also pay Captain a visit, offering him $3,000 to keep quiet about his injuries. Captain pushes back: He wants $30,000 and an apology from Niko. After some arguing, he comes down to $15,000 and the apologyif the reps can manage to hunt Niko down. Claude (again, RDJ) is Captains final visitorhe wants Captain back on his feet. The General (Toan Le) has been erratically reporting back to Claude, so Captain needs to go check in on whats going on. To lift Captains spirits, Claude suspiciously gifts him two tickets to see a live show called FantASIA, some sort of glamorous act that will remind him of home, maybe. Vy Le. Hopper Stone/HBO Once hes out of the hospital, Captain wants to make amends. First stop: the house of the late Major Oanh (Phanxine). Captain attempts to give Oanhs widow (VyVy Nguyen) some money to help with the twins, but shes unwilling to accept the money. She believes a sinister communist force killed her husband, so she wants to donate the money to the General, who is working on some sort of plan to reclaim their homeland. Whatever, sure, Captain obliges; he has to see the General anyways. Working out of the basement of the new restaurant he owns, the General has been planning a revolution to take back Vietnam from the communist party. Captain advises him against this military raid, but the General is hell-bent on using the money hes earned in America to start the war back up again. The Courtroom Twist That Turns The Jinx: Part Two Upside Down Now its time for FantASIAhow exciting! The star performer of the evening is Que Linh, which is odd on two accounts. Firstly, thats Captains dead mothers name. Secondly, Que Linh is actually Lana (Vy Le), the Generals daughter. While performing on stage, she teases that theres someone very important in the audience, which brings a smile to Captains face. That smile slips off as soon as she reveals who shes actually talking about: her co-star, Jamie Johnson (Max Whittington-Cooper). After the performance, Captain finds Lana backstage and apologizes for ruining her performance in the movie when he interrupted her scene. In return, she apologizes for never visiting him in the hospital. Theyre friends again. Lana invites Captain for dinner, but he says he wouldnt want to be a third wheel with her and Jamieyet Lana teases him for thinking theyre an item. Do I sense some romantic tension between Lana and Captain? Technically, Captain never cut things off with Sofia. Bon later shames him for this, claiming he wants to stop taking care of Captain following his injuries and let a woman do it. So, Captain goes to visit Sofiabut finds his worst enemy at her place. Sonny (Alan Trong), the communist journalist who loves to tease Captain, is now seeing Sofia. Hes helping her understand her Japanese ethnicity; theyre taking a trip to Japan. Captain has been replaced. But he makes peace with it, because secretly, Sonny is technically an ally. Toan Le. Hopper Stone/HBO Captain has bigger grudges elsewhere. Namely, hes upset that Niko still hasnt apologized, so Captain goes to Nikos big Hollywood mansion to demand what hes owed. In fact, no; because of the delay, Captain now wants something bigger. He wants Niko to ensure that all the Vietnamese lines they added to the movie end up in the final cut. Niko hesitates, saying hell try, but he also cant predict the journey of the editing process. What a load of crap. Were back at FantASIA, where Captain wants to see Lana again. After some hallucinations of ManCaptain is really struggling, here; whats actually real?Captain goes backstage to see Lana. She apologizes for using Que Linh as her stage name, that was just her first big character name, and now, its her identity. Lana not-so-subtly asks Captain how his girlfriend is, which prompts him to tell her that hes now single. The pair look like theyre about to kisswhich is nice. I like them! But its a little weird that this is now the second time Captain has had a conversation about his dead mom right before shagging a lady. First Black Doctor Who Ncuti Gatwa Injects Life Into Flagging Series Alas, they dont. Bon storms in and says that the General has found Lana and wants her to return home immediately. Captain seems to have ratted Lana out so that while the General is occupied with his daughter, hes free to sneak into the Generals office and take photos of the Vietnam raid plan. Captain sends an encrypted message to Man and, somewhat questionably, a bunch of photos of the plan to Sonny. A few days later, Captain is driving the General to an unknown destination when they read Sonnys latest storywhich happens to leak all of the Generals plans. The General is upset that hes been found out, but perhaps even more pissed that he still has a spy pestering him. No matter; the General is more intent on showing Captain what hes got going on out in the middle of nowhere than he is on this. The General has trained an entire army here in California, ready to strike Vietnam at a moment's notice. Isnt the war over? Hasnt he learned? Poor Captain has more spying to doit seems like this may never end. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. Tay Tawan and New Thitipoom Fan Meeting in Hong Kong 2024: Where & How To Buy Tickets? Thai actors Tay Tawan Vihokratana and New Thitipoom Techa-apaikhun are all set for their awaited TayNew In The House Fan Meeting in Hong Kong 2024. The popular on-screen couple recently starred in the BL drama Cherry Magic, the Thai adaptation of the popular manga series Cherry Magic! Thirty Years of Virginity Can Make You a Wizard?!. After wrapping up the Polca Time Traveling Concert, Tay and New will head to Hong Kong for their upcoming fan meeting. The tickets for the TayNew In The House Fan Meeting in Hong Kong 2024 will go live on Tuesday, May 14, 2024, at 4:00 p.m. HKT. They will be available to purchase via KKTIX. Furthermore, the tickets are priced at HKD 680 (USD 87), 780 (USD 100), 880 (USD 113), and 980 (USD 125). Each of the price ranges comes with separate fan benefits. TayNew In The House Fan Meeting in Hong Kong 2024 date, time, venue & more TayNew In The House Fan Meeting in Hong Kong will take place on Saturday, June 8, 2024, at 8:00 p.m. HKT at Rotunda 2, 3/F, KITEC. Additionally, fans can get their hands on TayNews stunning official light stick on the GMMTV shop. Aside from that, check out the glimpses from Tay and News previous fan meeting in Hong Kong in 2023 below: Meanwhile, fans in Thailand can stream their latest Thai Drama Cherry Magic. The storyline follows the life of Achi (New), an office worker who gains a superpower after staying a virgin by the time he turns 30. The superpower allows him to read other peoples minds through physical contact. Things take a turn when Karan (Tay) enters Achis life. After accidentally reading his mind, the latter realizes his handsome new colleague is falling for him. As Cherry Magic is currently available only in Thailand, international fans can check out their previous BL drama, Dark Blue Kiss which is available to stream on GMMTVs official YouTube channel. The post Tay Tawan and New Thitipoom Fan Meeting in Hong Kong 2024: Where & How To Buy Tickets? appeared first on ComingSoon.net - Movie Trailers, TV & Streaming News, and More. A timeline of King Charles' health struggles, from his cancer diagnosis to his return to public duties Buckingham Palace confirmed King Charles III was diagnosed with cancer in January. The announcement came after the British monarch sought treatment for an enlarged prostate. Charles has returned to public duties and discussed experiencing side effects from cancer treatment. It looks like King Charles III is back in business. The king returned to public duties in April, over two months after Buckingham Palace announced he was diagnosed with cancer following a procedure to treat an enlarged prostate. At the time of the announcement, the palace said the king would be stepping back from public-facing duties to undergo a "schedule of regular treatments." When Charles was out of the spotlight and his daughter-in-law Kate Middleton was also undergoing cancer treatment other members of the royal inner circle, like Prince William, faced pressure to step up. Here's a timeline of Charles' health struggles, from his diagnosis to his return to the public eye. Buckingham Palace announced Charles was undergoing a "corrective procedure" on his prostate in January. King Charles III with Queen Camilla after he received treatment for an enlarged prostate at The London Clinic on January 29, 2024. Chris Jackson/Getty Images On January 17, the palace shared in a statement with Business Insider that Charles would be heading to the hospital to receive treatment for an enlarged prostate. At the time, the palace described Charles' condition as "benign" and said the procedure he was having was "common with thousands of men each year." When asked to provide further details about the condition and the procedure, the palace said it would not "for privacy reasons" and that more information about his upcoming engagements would be confirmed "in due course." The announcement came the same day Kensington Palace announced Kate was in recovery after a "planned abdominal surgery." Weeks later, Buckingham Palace confirmed Charles had been diagnosed with cancer. Buckingham Palace announced King Charles had been diagnosed with cancer on February 5, 2024. Samir Hussein/WireImage/Getty Images On February 5, less than a month after the king's prostate procedure, the palace made yet another unprecedented announcement: Charles has cancer. The palace didn't specify the form of cancer Charles was diagnosed with in the statement shared with BI. However, it said the monarch's medical team discovered the cancer while he was undergoing his prostate procedure. It added that Charles had already begun a "schedule of regular treatments" and was under advice to step back from "public-facing duties," though he would also be continuing "State business and official paperwork as usual." The statement concluded with the palace saying Charles was "grateful" for his medical team's "swift intervention" and was looking forward to returning to "full public duty as soon as possible." "His Majesty has chosen to share his diagnosis to prevent speculation and in the hope it may assist public understanding for all those around the world who are affected by cancer," it added. Charles kept working behind the scenes, praised the public for its well-wishes, and received support from his royal relatives near and far. King Charles III reading cards and messages sent by well-wishers following his cancer diagnosis in Buckingham Palace on February 21, 2024. Jonathan Brady/Pool/AFP via Getty Images In the months after Charles' diagnosis, the royal kept busy behind the scenes. Shortly after his condition was made public, a representative of Prince Harry told BI that he was scheduled to fly to the UK from California to see his father. Weeks later, he was pictured meeting with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and opening get-well-soon cards sent to the palace by members of the public. In the interim, Charles also received treatment at the same clinic as Kate, whom he remained in the "closest contact with," a palace spokesperson told the BBC. On March 28, Charles made his first public remarks post-diagnosis. Before Easter Sunday, in a pre-recorded audio clip shared at the Royal Maundy Service, he said it was "a great sadness" that he was unable to attend in person due to his condition and stressed the importance of extending "friendship" in times of need, Royal Central reported. On Easter Sunday, Charles was spotted alongside Camilla attending a service at St George's Chapel in Windsor. The service was smaller to reduce Charles' contact with others while undergoing treatment. On April 26, the palace said Charles would return to public-facing duties and is gearing up to host Japanese royals in June. King Charles III attends the Easter Service at Windsor Castle on March 31, 2024. Samir Hussein/WireImage After a "period of treatment and recuperation" following his cancer diagnosis, the palace said on April 26 that Charles is gearing up to return to public-facing duties "shortly." The statement added that one of the first of several public events he's set to appear at in the next few weeks is a visit to a cancer treatment center with Queen Camilla on April 30. "In addition, The King and Queen will host Their Majesties The Emperor and Empress of Japan for a State Visit in June," the statement read. As Charles approached the one-year mark following his coronation on May 6, 2023, the statement concluded by saying he and Camilla are "deeply grateful for the many kindnesses and good wishes they have received from around the world throughout the joys and challenges of the past year." Charles opened up about experiencing side effects from cancer treatment while speaking to a British army veteran on Monday. King Charles III during a visit to the Army Aviation Centre at Middle Wallop, Hampshire. Ben Birchall/PA Images via Getty Images On May 13, the king visited the Army Flying Museum in Hampshire, where LBC reported he spoke with a British military veteran who had undergone chemotherapy after being diagnosed with testicular cancer. During the interaction, the individual, whom the UK news outlet identified as Aaron Mapplebeck, told Charles he lost his ability to taste as a result of the cancer treatment, a side effect that the king said he'd also experienced. On the same day, Charles took part in a ceremony handing over his title as the Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps a role he has held for over 30 years to William. The BBC reported it was "unusual" for both the king and William to be present for the occasion, but said that Charles told attendees that they were in good hands with his eldest son, who used to be a search and rescue helicopter pilot. "I do hope you'll go from strength to strength in the future with the Prince of Wales as your new colonel-in-chief," Charles said. "The great thing is he's a very good pilot indeed. So that's encouraging." Read the original article on Business Insider Get ready for your next vacation with these kid-friendly travel tips, perfect for traveling across country or even globetrotting around the world. Getty Images The summer season is just around the corner, which means that memory-making adventures are on the horizon. After all, the biggest gift we can give our kids is time: time creating, time discovering, and time together. When planning a vacation, whether youll be traveling internationally, road-tripping across the country, or romping around in nature at a nearby forest preserve, theres much to consider. As a seasoned travel writer and a mother of three, Ive been all over the globe with my brood, exploring not only far-flung destinations like Peru, Japan, and India but also closer-to-home outdoorsy locales like our national and state parks. Let me tell you, Ive learned some helpful tips along the way. Additionally, Ive reached out to other parents and caregivers, including a pediatric doctor, to get their tips for successful summer travel with kids. Take a Deep Breath Traveling with kiddos for the first time? Akanksha Shrivastava Hanna, MD, pediatrician in Park Ridge, Illinois, says that you should start by taking a deep breath. Parents want to make sure we plan for everyone and everything to create the best trip possible, says Hanna. A great step to take is to acknowledge we wont see or do everything, and thats fine. Set reasonable goals, [have] a flexible itinerary, be as prepared as you can, and be ready to pivot since travel is not always a smooth process. Making lists is helpful and think of your child's needs for an entire day, including meals, toiletries, car travel, and safe sleep equipment. Find a Playground or Outdoor Space Playing outside is a great way to burn off energy and have a healthy reset. Go on a hike, stop at a local playground, or take the dogs to a fenced-in park. Your little ones will thank you. Janette Thompson is currently enjoying a gap year with her family in tow as they travel across Asia. While traveling we usually research the surrounding areas for playgrounds, parks, and other child-friendly activities, Thompson says. Pack Light If you can swing it, pack everything you need in carry-on luggage. The last thing you want to do on vacation is constantly worry about managing and schlepping everyones large suitcases. Rather than checking luggage, waiting for it on the other end at the baggage carousel, or trying to figure out what to do if it gets lost or misplaced, if you carry on what you need, you can fly through the airport much faster. Plus, light luggage makes it easier when switching hotels and locales. Moving large luggage multiple times on a trip is exhausting and logistically challenging, says Thompson. Dont Stuff Too Much into the Itinerary I have a confession to make. As a curious traveler, I often operate with FOMO: fear of missing out. When Im traveling by myself, I like a full itinerary with lots of activities and very little downtime. I want to make the most of my experience, especially if Im visiting a country Ive never been to before. But heres the thing: kids need breaks. Lots of breaks. If you plan too much and dont leave enough space for their needs or interests, you might find that moods shift and sour. Producer, TV host, photographer, and writer, Rachel Rudwall, travels with her family somewhere warm at least once per year. Take, for example, our journey to Sardinia, Italy from Portland, Oregon. Not a single person would argue that this trip is logistically simple, Rudwall says. We would, however, argue that this journey was both doable and worth the hauleven with our then 14-month-old in tow. Sardinia was where her toddler took his first steps, creating an indelible memory not soon forgotten. While the beach time and Italian food were expected highlights, the multi-hour flight itinerary from the U.S. to Sardinia was less than desirable. Rudwall thought ahead and arranged for a two-night stopover in Amsterdam, creating space to deal with jet lag. This layover allowed us a soft spot to land between our flights, plus a beautiful couple days noshing on pastries and enjoying leisurely strolls in another wonderful European destination, Rudwall says. If I were to offer one piece of advice it would be this: wherever you go with your kids, build in buffers. These bonus windows of time will offer you the space to breathe, top up on snacks, and better navigate logistical challenges. Plus, they just might inspire some of your favorite moments of the journey. Bring a Travel Medical Kit While we all hope that nothing goes wrong on a trip, youll want to be prepared and plan accordingly. Put together a travel medical kit that includes over-the-counter medicines and supplies. This can include fever-reducing/pain medications, antihistamines, antibacterial ointment, band-aids, tweezers, and Vaseline, says Hanna. Make note of your childs weight for dosing certain medications and make sure you have a supply of prescription medicines ahead of time. Discuss with your medical team if your child has medical conditions. In warmer climates remember to pack reef-safe sunscreens (and reapply), bug sprays, and protective clothing (hats, sunglasses, UV-protected clothing), Hanna says. If heading outdoors, be sure to keep most skin covered and check bodies and hair for ticks daily. Before traveling internationally, consider notifying your childs pediatrician if any additional recommended immunizations can be given. I guide parents to CDC.GOV/travel which breaks down pertinent information by country of travel. Research the Hotel and Destination Ahead of Time While its advisable to leave plenty of open space on the itinerary, its important to research where youre going and to know what activities and cultural experiences are available. What is the area known for and what are the highlights that everyone should know about? Youll also want to know what the hotel amenities are so you can plan accordingly. Is there a swimming pool at the hotel? On-site laundry? Does the resort have a concierge that can arrange tours? Finding a property that is fun for both the parents and the kids is key. Let the Kids Be Part of the Planning If children are part of the planning process, theyll be more invested in the trip. Let them decide which restaurant your family eats at or what activity everyone participates in. Teach kids how to navigate and read maps. Bring journals and encourage them to write about their daily adventures. Parents can get caught up in the things they want to do on vacation since kids don't exactly plan these things out, but we've made it a priority to make sure that the kids think of it as their vacation too, so if we pass by something that interests them, we want to make those things happen as much as possible, says Thompson. Keep the Ages of Kids in Mind When Planning and Packing Whether youre traveling with toddlers or teens, youll want to consider your childrens ages when structuring an itinerary or thinking about safety issues. With younger children we want them to be comfortable and safe, so keep some soothing items from home such as blankets, pacifiers, a few toys, or a stuffy, says Hanna. Older kids can enjoy music, books, card games or using their electronic device[s]remember, parents get to decide how much screen time their child consumes, and don't forget the chargers! Of course, safety should always be top of mind. Depending on your childrens ages, have discussions with them to go over the rules. In new environments, review the safety plans regarding water play (never leave a child unattended near water) and review parent phone numbersconsider putting them inside their pockets, says Hanna. Trusting our older kids with more responsibility comes with varying comfort levels, but in a semi-controlled environment, this can be a good opportunity for them to demonstrate it, i.e., reading the map, guiding you through the airport, having them order their meals or pay for souvenirs. Learning how to budget on a trip with spending money is a nice exercise. Bring a Bag O Fun For every car trip Ive ever planned, Ive always brought a bag o fun. This could be a deck of cards, snacks, new books, or mini-Lego sets. The idea is to bring along little surprises or fun things to do that will brighten up the moment. Anastasia Gonzalez and her husband Gilbert take their grandchildren to South Padre Island every summer for fishing and exploring. One year they rented an RV to travel from Illinois to Texas. It was the most beautiful experience, Gonzalez says. The driving, the board games, camping out, taking showers at the campsites, sleeping in the RV, and cuddling with those two boys was wonderful and cozy. Her advice for grandparents? Allow your grandchildren to be themselves with you on your trip, Gonzalez says. Go with the idea of having fun. Break some rules. Ask what they want but have a plan. Make meals interesting and make one night a special meal night. Attitudes, Good or Bad, are Contagious Most parents who travel with their kids will tell you that if one person has a bad attitude, that same mood can transfer to siblings or even adults. Staying positive is key, especially if youre on a long vacation away from the comforts of home. Kids love time with their family, but they are humans, and we all get moody sometimes, says Hanna. Our kids learn by our example, so parents take the lead with many deep breaths, exercise when possible, be mindful about handling stressful situations, and take lots of pictures. Parental well-being trickles down into children's well-being. For more Parents news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on Parents. The world of bourbon is ever-changing. New distilleries pop up, established brands bring out new expressions, and old labels come back to life. However, along the way, countless bottles are retired. This can be due to many reasons, including distilleries shutting down, series ending, or brands replacing older expressions with new ones. Some of these changes can be for the better, but many brilliant bourbons have been left behind in the process. All is not lost for lovers of these bottles. After all, there are plenty of instances of a once-discontinued bottle being revived, including the Smooth Ambler Old Scout 7 or the Wild Turkey 12-year. We want to highlight some of the bottles that deserve to be brought back into circulation. Many of these expressions are still available for high secondary prices, but none are currently being produced. But, for now, let's check out these historic whiskeys and hope that they will be resurrected soon. Read more: The 27 Best Bourbon Brands, Ranked Maker's Mark Wood Finishing Series Maker's Mark Wood Finishing Series - makersmark/X, formerly known as Twitter The Wood Finishing Series, which ceased production in 2023, was a great addition to a strong range of Maker's Mark bourbons. Each year, the distillery would finish its regular Maker's Mark with different types of oak staves to create a unique expression. Not every release was amazing, but the 2023 BEP (barrel entry proof) release was impressive. Following its release, the distillery kept to its plan of retiring the series. In many ways, it was nice for the series to end on a high, but it has left many bourbon lovers wanting more. The tasting notes of the series changed slightly from one year to the next. However, they were often characterized by a beautiful mouthfeel and a dark, sweet depth intermingled with baking spices. We can now only hope that Maker's Mark does one of three things. The first is to reverse its decision on this series and give us a great 2024 bottle. Another, more likely, course of action is for the distillery to create an exciting new series. However, it could also make the 2023 BEP bottle a part of its core lineup. Whichever decision it makes, we hope we haven't seen the last of the Wood Finishing Series. Elijah Craig 12-Year Small Batch Elijah Craig 12-Year Small Batch - pamdothall/X, formerly known as Twitter In 2016, the Heaven Hill distillery decided to drop the age statement on its Small Batch bourbon. The brand still produces an impressive small-batch bottle but with younger whiskey than was previously used. The exact reason for this decision can only be speculated on, but distilleries face notable challenges when it comes to conforming to an age statement. Dropping the age statement no doubt allowed Heaven Hill to create a more accessible and affordable bourbon, along with its more expensive releases, including the famed 18-year expression. The 12-year was celebrated for both its quality and consistency. It has many of the tasting notes you can find in its current Small Batch bottle but with a richer and deeper flavor profile. The nose was excellent, with its most distinctive notes centered around caramelized sugar and dark fruit. It had a robust oakiness on the palate that you'd expect from its extended aging, along with sweet undertones of butterscotch and honey. The finish didn't disappoint either. It offered a lingering and warm ending with plenty of spice on your tongue. The Elijah Craig lineup is impressive, but with the only age statement in its collection being the aforementioned 18-year, it does feel as though there's room for the return of the 12-year. Early Times 354 Bottle of Early Times 354 - sakasyu/X, formerly known as Twitter Early Times 354 sadly didn't have a long run. It was first introduced in 2011 and was discontinued a mere three years later. Early Times whiskey is known as a budget brand, and the 354 was an attempt to improve its image with a higher-quality, aged bourbon. Unfortunately, it didn't work. Casual consumers didn't take to the bottle, and sales weren't as good as expected. This could have only been a marketing issue, as the bourbon itself was delicious. It had a smooth and approachable flavor that was far superior to that of its more affordable sibling. The bottle was named after the distillery's federal permit, which was perhaps part of the problem; there was nothing identifiable on the bottle to suggest what made it unique. It was a gentle whiskey that had a well-rounded character. The nose didn't wow you, but it had a pleasant sweetness that complemented many of the expected bourbon notes. There was a nice interplay of sweetness and spice on the palate, with honey being the most prevalent tasting note. Since it was discontinued, the brand has changed hands and is now owned by the huge spirit company Sazerac. There are no signs that Sazerac will expand the brand, but hopefully that will change. Old Ezra 101 7-Year Old Ezra 101 7 Year bottle - shibasommelier/X, formerly known as Twitter As seen with Early Times 354, bottles can disappear completely without anything to replace them. More commonly, brands will retire an expression to introduce something similar. That's exactly what happened with Old Ezra 101 7-year. In this instance, the brand replaced a 7-year-old bourbon with -- well -- a 7-year-old bourbon. The key difference here is the proof. The 101 was, unsurprisingly, bottled at 101 proof. Its replacement is a barrel-strength bourbon with a proof of 117. While that may not sound a lot, the two whiskeys ended up being fundamentally different. And merely adding a splash of water to the barrel-proof version doesn't bring the 101 back. Barrel-proof bourbon can be fantastic, but different palates and moods can dictate what proof you want to drink. The 101 7-year had a simple flavor profile but did the basics extremely well. On the palate, it offered a beautifully deep caramel flavor complemented by some oak and spice. The extended aging helped to give it a smoothness that was loved by its fans. Considering the lack of other age statement bottles in its lineup, there is a strong case for bringing back the 101 7-year while still keeping its barrel-strength expression. It was a unique bourbon and deserves to be showcased again to a new audience. Jim Beam Bonded Bottle of Jim Beam Bonded - helzer/Instagram Big-name brands, like Jim Beam, often cycle through different expressions. From the looks of it, this 100-proof bonded whiskey was discontinued because Jim Beam didn't want to compete with itself and its Old Tub. Old Tub is a good whiskey, but we'd still like to see a bonded bottle under the Jim Beam lineup. This 100-proof bonded bourbon paid homage to the Bottled in Bond Act of 1897, which guaranteed high standards when adulterated and low-quality whiskey was rife. A part of that act meant Jim Beam Bonded had to be aged for at least four years and bottled at 100 proof. This whiskey delivered a robust flavor profile and was loved by seasoned drinkers. Its full-bodied character offered some charred oak on the nose along with a powerful sweetness. The palate dazzled with a blend of toffee, dark fruit, and a lingering spicy warmth that continued to the finish. It was everything you'd expect from a bonded whiskey and came at a great price. While the Jim Beam lineup may still be large, it feels like a bonded whiskey is a notable absentee. For now, we have to settle for the next best thing: a bottle of Old Tub. Weller 10-Year Centennial Weller 10-year Centennial bottle - signde/X, formerly known as Twitter Weller Centennial was released in 1996 as part of the Bourbon Heritage Collection under the then-ownership of United Distillers & Vintners. In 1999, the brand changed hands after it was bought by Sazerac. Weller Centennial went on for a while before the expression was eventually discontinued. It's unclear why it was cut, but the brand currently has a strong range of expressions, including a 12-year. Weller Centennial was known for its complex taste, the most notable influence being that of toasted oak. It had that beautiful smell you'd expect from a modern-day Weller and the elegant sweetness of a maturely aged wheated bourbon. A beautifully smooth profile allowed the warm and lingering finish to leave a lasting impression on your palate. It would be fantastic to see it return, as there is now a generation of bourbon lovers who never had the pleasure of tasting it. This is a legendary expression that already has a great history. We can only hope that its story isn't over quite yet. Old Charter 10-Year Old Charter 10 Year bottle - morgan_f_weber/Instagram Old Charter has many similarities to the Early Times bottle. Both have tried to be more than just a budget bourbon brand, but ultimately, that's what they are known as now. Old Charter is another brand under the Buffalo Trace umbrella -- but it's probably its weakest. The distillery has so many prestigious brands that it will likely keep selling Old Charter as a budget option. This wasn't always the case, as it used to produce a much-loved 10-year bottle, which was sadly discontinued in 2013. The 10-year's nuanced taste separated it from many of its similarly-aged rivals. There were many fruity and spicy notes on the nose -- none of which were overpowering. The flavor on the palate met with an initial, powerful hit of spice before all the other flavors were introduced. There, you'd get hints of fruity sweetness from apples and oranges. There was also a nice oaky element to the whiskey and a smooth mouthfeel that came from its lower proof of 86. It was an excellent addition to the Old Charter brand and one that is sadly missed. Buffalo Trace has recently shown interest in expanding the Old Charter brand with a range of unique oak finishes. We can only hope that interest in the brand continues to grow with the eventual comeback of its 10-year expression. Jim Beam Distiller's Cut Jim Beam Distiller's Cut bottle - roscoe/X, formerly known as Twitter Here, we have another expression from the Jim Beam brand. This time, it's the Distiller's Cut, which was one of the best bottles of Jim Beam ever made. Although we tried to avoid limited releases for this article, as they can come and go quickly, the Distiller's Cut is worth highlighting. This 2017 release was a well-aged bourbon with a fantastic price tag. Although it only retailed around $20, you wouldn't be disappointed paying double that for this bottle. Jim Beam specializes in high-quality, yet affordable, whiskey, and the Distiller's Cut perfectly fits into its portfolio. This budget bourbon may not blow you away, but it would make for an excellent everyday whiskey. The nose was quite bright with an oaky influence that showed it wasn't an immature spirit. Caramel was the highlight of the sweeter notes, and a notable spice came from cinnamon and black pepper. Many of those notes transfer to the palate, where some more earthy, nutty notes join them. The pleasant texture and warm finish make it perhaps the best budget bourbon released in 2017. This expression would sit perfectly among other favorites like the Devil's Cut, Double Oak, and Black. Since this brand is constantly evolving, there is a great chance of this expression making a comeback in Jim Beam's permanent lineup. Four Roses Limited Edition Single Barrel Four Roses LE Single Barrel - pappyvan_winkle/X, formerly known as Twitter The Four Roses Limited Edition Single Barrel was one bottle in a series of yearly releases. This bottle was first released in 2008 and ceased production in 2014. Each release was celebrated for its high quality and unique approach to bourbon. Thankfully, Four Roses still has a single barrel in its core bourbon lineup. This means fans of the brand can still sample a whiskey that comes from just one barrel instead of being mixed with different barrels of similarly-aged whiskey. However, the limited edition series was a great companion to the regular release and offered something a little different. Instead of being phased out for marketing or natural evolution, the series was discontinued because of stock concerns. The brand may have been worried about having enough aged bourbon for its other products. This gives some hope that it could return in the future if the distillery manages to produce an abundance of stock. That being said, its current focus as far as limited editions go is on the yearly release of its small-batch bourbon. The tasting notes changed from one year to the next, but these are usually robust bourbons with plenty of depth. They are often sweet without being overly fruity and offer an earthy influence from nuts, nutmeg, and cinnamon. If Four Roses has the stock, it would be great to see the single-barrel bottles come back as a yearly release alongside its small-batch series. Ancient Ancient Age 10-Year Ancient Ancient Age 10 Year - Ancient Ancient Age Ancient Age is a curious brand. It has gone through a few iterations over the years, and while the U.S. bottle from Buffalo Trace is now sold as a budget bourbon with no age statement, an 8-year-old bottle is still exclusively sold overseas. We also have the double "Ancient" on some of its expressions, which further adds to its quirks. Some may think we're talking about the Ancient Ancient Age 10 Star here, but we're going further back in time than that. Before the 10 Star, the brand made a 10-year bottle, which was brilliant. It came from the same mash bill as Blanton's, the two spirits shared similar qualities. But the 10-year was cheaper and more widely available. This 10-year bottle had a fairly complex flavor profile and a unique nose that gave you plenty of herbal notes. On tasting, the sweeter notes, such as honey, were quite dark and joined by a few unique flavors, such as licorice, cherry, and orchard fruits. Add in some oak and cinnamon, and you get a bourbon with impressive depth. While it wasn't quite as rich in flavor as Blanton's, it was still a highly enjoyable pour. If Buffalo Trace wants to expand the brand in the U.S.A., bringing back the 10-year would be a brilliant way to do it. Calumet Single Rack Black 12-Year Calumet 12 Year bottle - mathewpelfrey2/X, formerly known as Twitter Adding this expression to the list seems a little greedy, as Calumet still offers a wide range of aged whiskeys. However, the 12-year bottle was one of its most affordable expressions and one of the best. It got its name from the barrels that were selected from a single rack in the warehouse when they reached the ideal maturation point. The result was a perfectly balanced whiskey, and you'd be forgiven for thinking it was aged for longer than 12 years. The expression was a delight for the senses, which even included the eyes, thanks to its beautiful bottle and warm, golden color. The nose elegantly highlighted a rich vanilla smell and oak from its more mature aging. The sensory delights continued to the palate as rich caramel danced along your tongue with a smoky influence. Where this bourbon splits opinion is with its unique candied fruit notes, which set it apart from many other offerings. Calumet still offers an 8, 10, and 14-year, so there does appear to be room to slot its 12-year back into the mix. O.K.I. 10-Year Bottles of O.K.I. 10-year - bigchetti/X, formerly known as Twitter The O.K.I. brand was discontinued for reasons similar to those of the other bottles on this list. It used to be produced by New Riff Distilling. However, the bourbon brand decided to focus on its own brand name and phased out bottles of O.K.I. Thankfully, new owners picked up O.K.I., but not all the bottles stayed in the lineup. One of the best of the original bottles was the O.K.I.10-year. It was a beloved bourbon with plenty of depth that you'd expect from its extended aging. The bottle offered a deep amber color with an aroma that elegantly highlighted the classical bourbon notes. Once tasted, the whiskey would hit you with plenty of caramel and toffee notes, which gave it a beautifully sweet flavor. You also got some undertones of dark chocolate, dried fruits, and a touch of leather. This impressive bourbon also offered a velvety mouthfeel on the finish. We can only hope that the new custodians of the brand will bring back the 10-year along with its growing range of other bottles. However, considering the change of distillers, we may be resigned to the fact that this bourbon will not come back in its old form. Read the original article on Tasting Table How loud is too loud at brunch? Fort Worth restaurant dishes pancakes to a dance beat Inside Look stories give Star-Telegram subscribers exclusive sneak peeks and behind-the-scenes reporting. Story suggestion? Editors@star-telegram.com. Boozy brunch is more boozy than ever at a thumping new breakfast cafe with the glitz and bass beat of a dance club. Weekend brunch at Hash Kitchen, new at 3240 Tracewood Way, is like eating pancakes inside a video game at 9 a.m. Its as loud as any restaurant youve ever seen. At least, before sundown. And are those giant disco balls in the dining room? Thank goodness: Theres a patio. Hash Kitchen in Fort Worth, a Phoenix-based boozy brunch restaurant, offers a build your own bloody mary bar, shown Feb. 21, 2019. If peace and quiet is what you prefer in the morning, the patio is a getaway from the hubbub around Heritage Trace Parkway and the neighboring H-E-B grocery. But if you need liquor, Hash Kitchen includes a full bar and a build-your-own bloody mary buffet. Its from the same Utah-based company as Mo Bettahs, a Hawaiian barbecue restaurant with a Mansfield location, and Swig, a beverage chain. Hash Kitchen in Fort Worth, seen May 11, 2024, is a Phoenix-based restaurant with a bar and boozy brunch. Second-generation Phoenix chef Joey Maggiore launched Hash Kitchen and other restaurants. Arizona has seven locations, with more coming in Houston, Salt Lake City, Las Vegas and San Antonio. His bio calls him the concept king. A promo for his Food Network appearance said he hopes to be the BBQ king. His cookbook is titled Brunch King. He is certainly the Instagram King. Phoenix-based Hash Kitchens Fort Worth location, seen May 11. 2024. It has both the decor and thumping bass of a dance club. Hash Kitchens dishes and drinks are eye-popping, both for size and show. The most flashy item is banana split French toast with a caramelized banana, strawberries and cream (in a waffle cone, no less). Avocado toast is made on the same thick, dark brioche with pork and fried eggs. Pancakes come in specialties such as chocolate-peanut butter or pineapple upside-down. The banana split French toast at Hash Kitchen, shown on the patio May 11, 2024. Chilaquiles rojos or verdes come with fried eggs and optional chicken or carnitas. And of course, theres birria, either with hash browns and eggs, on chilaquiles or on bao buns. Theres also a $16 bacon-chorizo burrito. The menu is full of scrambles, frittatas, hashes and Benedicts, like West Coast breakfast cafes. But Hash Kitchen also serves above-average scratch biscuits. Maggiores company also will open an Italian pasta-and-meatballs shop next door called the Sicilian Butcher. Hash Kitchen opens at 7 a.m. daily, serving breakfast and lunch; 682-238-5679, hashkitchen.com. This embedded content is not available in your region. Celebrating mothers in Harlem: The older I get, I realize all the sacrifices she made Celebrating mothers in Harlem: The older I get, I realize all the sacrifices she made HARLEM, Manhattan (PIX11) There are so many wonderful Mothers Day celebrations at Melbas Restaurant, but one was particularly poignant. Dozens were all celebrating the good health of Retired NYPD Lieutenant Sounia Wilson, who just had a successful kidney transplant. This was her first night out. More Local News The kidney came from my old driver in the 44, Wilson told PIX11 News. Her cousin was brain dead and thats when I got the call on Christmas Day. Her daughter, Sadasia McCutchen, organized this celebration, which included Mothers Day bingo, pulled short rib, sliders, and red velvet cake. The support she has from our community and friends are the reason shes where she is today, so this makes Mothers Day feel incredibly special, Sadasia Mccutchen, daughter, told PIX11 News. In attendance and also being celebrated is this mother of triplets. All three of her 28-year-olds just graduated with advanced degrees and are beginning their careers. I am feeling just great, Beverly Williams, mother of triplets, told PIX11 News. the reason my Mothers Day is a happy day is because of them. My mom gave us everything, the sun, the moon, the stars, Amber Williams, a triplet, told PIX11 News. The older I get, the more I realize all the sacrifices she made to give us all the successes weve had. More Manhattan News In another room, a different celebration to honor mother figures, especially two aunts, Amelia Montgomery and Viola Brandenburg. These ladies have taught organization, timeliness, how to cook, how to be ladies and gentlemen, Susan Esannason, a devoted niece, told PIX11 News. They carried on the legacy of excellence in our family. I dont have any children, but they are my children, and I am feeling very special today, one of the aunts, Amelia Montgomery, replied. As many people in Melbas said, mothers should be celebrated every day. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11. The school summer holidays are just 11 weeks away. But if you havent booked your flights yet, fear not there are still some excellent value options available during the peak months of July and August. We looked at the 30 most in-demand European summer holiday destinations for British holidaymakers. We also looked at a selection of 10 other popular cities and found the cheapest and most expensive prices for flights departing on Saturday, July 27 and on Saturday, August 24, both for a week. Despite the school holidays being just around the corner, you can still find return flights on the most popular dates of the year for less than 100, if you know where to look. We also identified the month and time of day for the cheapest flights and the airlines and airports that serve up the best-value options for the summer of 2024. We used the flight search website Skyscanner for this study. Prices are dynamic and can go up and down, so bear in mind that while the below is an accurate snapshot of prices that were listed at around midday on May 9, 2024, prices may have changed when you search for them. Majorca is the most cost-effective holiday destination for a July 27 departure. Pictured: The small bay Cala Llombards on Majorca, Spain - Dennis Fischer Photography The cheapest flights? Look to the Balearics The most cost-effective holiday destination for a July 27 departure, returning a week later, is Majorca (89, flying with Ryanair from Leeds Bradford). Barcelona (92), Ibiza (99), Valencia (102) and Malta (104) also come with surprisingly low prices. The cheapest flights in late August are to Menorca (74, with easyJet from Belfast International), plus Valencia (84), Ibiza (94), Majorca (119) and Malta (136). So anyone looking for an affordable beach getaway this summer should look first to Spain, and particularly the Balearic Islands, for the best bargains. For a city break, Venice (70 in August) and Copenhagen (66 in July) are among the cheaper options. At the more expensive end of the scale, we found steeper prices for trips to Greece. The cheapest return flights to Crete are 417 (July 27) and 343 (August 24), while flights to Zakynthos (327/346) and Kos (291/396) are also high. This is in part because flight times are generally one or two hours longer than those to Spain; although the best flights to Bodrum, even further away than Greece, are still around 100 cheaper on average than the most inexpensive flights to the main Greek islands. It is likely that high demand and low availability is whats driving up prices. Ryanair is the cheapest of the bunch Of the 80 cheapest flights to 40 destinations surveyed across July and August, almost half (37) were with Ryanair. EasyJet offered 27 of those flights, with Wizz and Jet2.com on five apiece. Not one of the 80 cheapest fares we found was with British Airways. This doesnt mean that low-cost airlines always offer affordable options, however. Some 25 of the most expensive available flights were listed by easyJet and 20 were with Jet2.com more than BA, which had 14. Only Ryanair, with just four of the 80 most expensive flights and the greatest quantity of cheapest flights arguably lives up to the low-cost moniker. We also found that some of the most exceptionally expensive flights were with Tui, including a 1,012 flight to Mallorca in August from Bournemouth and a 956 flight to Fuerteventura from Birmingham in July. The best-value airport (and it isnt Luton) Edinburgh (16 out of 80) and Belfast International (12) had the greatest share of cheapest flights. Of the English airports, Gatwick came up 10 times, whereas Heathrow didnt have a single cheapest offering across the routes we surveyed. Luton and Stansted came up four and seven times, respectively. However, Gatwick also had the greatest number of most expensive flights (20) followed by Birmingham and Manchester, both with 10. Teesside, Liverpool and Luton only served up on one occasion each. The cheapest month and time of day to fly While package holidays are traditionally cheaper towards the end of the summer holidays with families keen to jet off as early as possible our research found that slightly cheaper flight deals can be found in July. On average, the most affordable flights leaving on July 27 to our 40 destinations cost 224; however, the cheapest flights departing on August 24 were on average 243. Similarly, the most expensive flights in August (averaging 535) were higher than those in July (483). Across our study, we found that the cheapest flights tend to be later in the day. The average departure time of the cheapest flights was 6.07 pm, while the average most expensive flight was at 12.54 pm. This is likely because later flights mean later arrival times, sometimes after dark, which is unappealing it also means losing almost a full day of holiday time, so demand is naturally higher for earlier departures. Earlier flights are also less likely to be subject to knock-on delays. Some out-of-the-box destinations If you are willing to shop around for an alternative destination this summer, you could turn to Zadar in Croatia, where we found flights departing on July 27 for 99 with Ryanair from Leeds Bradford. Other cheap alternatives include flights to Perpignan (128), Girona (112), Agadir (112), Santander (122), plus options in northern Europe including Aalborg in Denmark for 58, and Oslo for 80. Take a look on Skyscanner.net, searching for Everywhere as the destination, and you may well find some other good options yourself. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. "Corn Snake Enjoying the Salty Air" by Diane Fairey was the Conservation Foundation's 2023 Peoples Choice Best In Show Winner. The deadline to enter the 2024 Summer Photo Contest is May 31. The Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast is holding it fifth annual virtual Summer Photo Contest, inviting photographers of all ages and experience levels to share their original work showcasing the natural beauty of the Sunshine State. As in years past, the exhibition will be entirely virtual with website and Facebook displays. Works submitted for thed online juried exhibition must have been taken in Florida within the past year and fall into one of the following four categories: The Big Picture: For landscapes and waterscapes showcasing nature in all her glory. The Art of Nature: A celebration of abstract expressions in nature and science, this category is for closeups, angles, patterns, motion, or other unique perspectives of the natural world. Old Florida Charm: Showcasing the allure and rustic beauty of natural Florida with an emphasis on cultural heritage, ranching, and rural communities. Its a Wild Life: From birds to bears, this category is for celebrating the beauty, grace, and power of our native species. There is also a Youth Perspective category specifically for photographers age 15 and under. Youth Perspective submissions must still fall into one of the four categories above. Up to three photographs may be submitted per person and must be received via email no later than midnight on May 31. Jurors will review all submissions and select 10 per category for display in online galleries on the Conservation Foundation website and Conservation Foundation Facebook page. The 2024 jury includes award winning photographer and digital artist Steve White; noted photographer Mary Lundeberg; conservation biologist, educator, and wildlife photographer Alberto Lopez Torres; noted photographer Kerri Deatherage; and three-time Conservation Foundation Summer Photo Contest Peoples Choice Winner Diane Fairey. The virtual competition will award prizes to category winners as well as Peoples Choice winners determined by popular vote on Facebook. For details, entry rules, and submission forms visit conservationfoundation.com/summerphoto. Submitted by Sam Valentin This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Conservation Foundation's Summer Photo Contest puts focus on nature Fernanda Castillo, a native of Guatemala, performs in "The Dying Swan" in 2019. Her ballet career took her to the United States, Europe and Russia before she changed course and became a student at Daytona State College in 2022. At its best, ballet is beauty, music for the eyes. It's also a grand deception. Beneath the grace and harmony are hours of sweat, pain and failure. Fernanda Castillo, a 24-year-old student who has both performed and taught ballet and is graduating from Daytona State College on Tuesday, explains: "It looks easy, but being able to make it look easy is extremely challenging. It requires a lot of physical work, a lot of mental work. Ballerinas not only train their body, but we also have to train our minds." Castillo trained and trained, then followed wherever ballet would take her. Getting to Daytona State was more than a few pirouettes away. Guatemala: where 'Kids don't dream of becoming dancers' Castillo grew up in Mazatenango, Guatemala, near the Pacific Ocean, a place where ballerinas don't pursue professional careers. She was different. Fernanda Castillo, who grew up in Guatemala and studied as a ballet dancer, graduates from Daytona State College's Quanta-Honors College on Tuesday and is mulling scholarship offers from Stetson University in DeLand and Columbia University in New York. "A lot of people thought that we were crazy because I wanted to be a ballet dancer in Guatemala. Kids don't dream of becoming dancers. We cannot dream of becoming dancers," she said. Guatemala is among Latin America's poorest countries, with 55% of its population living in poverty, according to the World Bank. "My grandmother (Elsa Barrios) left rural Guatemala so my mom could go to high school. My mom graduated high school," Castillo said. And her mother, Mildre Castillo, in turn, worked "very, very hard" to support her daughter's dream. Castillo started dancing at 4. Her studio was in a rustic, Cold War-era military barracks, with no ballet floors, no mirrors or bars for training. But every afternoon she was there. "My mom told me: If you're going to go to dance class, you're going to do it well and you're going to work hard," she said. It meant no hanging out with friends or birthday parties or other activities. And she was dedicated. In 2018, Castillo participated in the International Ballet Competition in Jackson, Mississippi. Coming to Florida During her time in Mississippi, Castillo took a class in the Vaganova method, and approached Zhanna Dubrovskaya, one of the instructors, to ask whether she could train with her at the European School of Performing Arts in Ormond Beach. Dubrovskaya trained in the Vaganova method in Russia with Vera Kostrovitskaya, who learned directly from Agrippina Vaganova, author of the standard of ballet instruction, herself. Within a couple of months, Castillo moved to Florida at age 18 and trained at the school from September 2018 to May 2019. She lived with Hilary and Benjamin Deininger and rode a bike from their home to the studio. Castillo considers them her American family. That year, Castillo became only the second person from her country to dance ballet in St. Petersburg, Russia, where the art form rose to prominence in the 19th century. At age 19, she moved by herself to Chicago to train with A&A ballet school, paid for by her mother who cobbled together money through work and loans. Castillo recalls walking 20 frigid minutes from her train station to the Fine Arts Building on Michigan Avenue each day to train from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Guatemala native Fernanda Castillo had ambitions of becoming a professional ballet dancer. During the pandemic, her mother could no longer afford her tuition at A&A Ballet Co., in Chicago. After setting up a dance studio for children at Hope Place, a Daytona Beach family shelter, Castillo will graduate from Daytona State College on Tuesday. "It was beautiful. You know, I used to get inside of the building and there was piano playing, violin playing, ballet classes happening, acting lessons going on," Castillo said. Being surrounded by art was inspiring. She was progressing toward her unlikely dream of becoming a professional ballet dancer. Turning toward teaching Along came COVID-19. Ballet courses were shut down. She was alone in Chicago. "My American family told me: You need to come back. So I came back to Florida and I spent 2020 here," Castillo said. Later, her immigration attorneys advised her to return to Guatemala in 2021. The curtain was closing on her dreams of becoming a professional ballet dancer. Yet her love of the art remained. She got involved, first as a volunteer, with a U.S.-based nonprofit, Transformacion Ballet, which teaches dance and gymnastics to children in four small villages and two orphanages on Lake Atitlan in Solola. In her time there, Castillo rose to become the assistant director. In 2022, the Deiningers urged her to return to the United States, and while there, a neighbor suggested she look into taking classes at Daytona State. Fernanda Castillo, second from left, celebrates at a recent Daytona State College award ceremony with Quanta Honors faculty, from left, Hosanna Folmsbee, Jessica Kester, Benjamin Graydon and Francis Gunshanan. Enrolling in Quanta-Honors Castillo hadn't yet started at DSC when she got an email from Benjamin Graydon, chair of the college's Quanta-Honors College, urging her to consider the program. Acceptance into Quanta-Honors is not based on past performance but future potential, "driven by the idea that no matter a students starting point, that student can become an honors student," Graydon said. The program is capped at 68 and is first-come, first-served, with no requirement except an understanding of the program's format and expectations. "When I learned that Fernanda had grown up in Guatemala, trained as a professional dancer, and felt a passion for community service, I urged her to give Quanta-Honors a try," Graydon said. She was a little wary, concerned that her writing and math skills wouldn't measure up, but agreed to try. Whatever she lacked in writing and math academic preparation, Castillo brought the discipline of a dancer and the drive instilled in her by her grandmother and mother in Guatemala. She wrote about them in her first essay. "I worked very hard and went to the Writing Center almost three times per week, which is the limit we have," Castillo said. She also met with her tutor and took full advantage of the support services offered by DSC, which she called "vital." She got 100% on her essay's second revision. Another challenge was figuring out how to approach the 60 hours of community service the program requires. Through one of the Quanta-Honors professors, Francis Gunshanan, she learned about Hope Place, the former school-turned-shelter in Daytona Beach where homeless and other displaced families can stay temporarily. She was able to secure two grants, one for $5,500 from the Rotary Club of Downtown Ormond Beach, and the other $2,000 from the United Way of Volusia-Flagler Counties, to establish her own free ballet program, Dance for the World, and creative writing program for children residents and former residents of Hope Place. Dance for the World ballet students surround their teacher, Fernanda Castillo, a Daytona State College student who founded the weekly, no-cost program at Hope Place, an emergency shelter for families who have been displaced from their homes. The grants helped pay for equipment: a ballet floor, bars, mirrors and mats, as well as other supplies for creative writing and arts. Through a partnership with Dance Depot, she is able to supply the children with dance costumes. She taught courses every Friday there while completing her studies at Daytona State. Graydon said Castillo has been inspirational to students and faculty at DSC, and impactful for the Daytona Beach community, particularly the children at Hope Place. "She shows them how to grow and learn artistically, building confidence that they like her can stretch to meet high goals," Graydon said. Castillo recently won four awards at DSC's Convocation: Quanta-Honors Outstanding Student, Writing Center Outstanding Student, Falcon Student Engagement Award and the Hall of Fame. "(Students) see how hard she works and how passionate she is, and its infectious they want to achieve more. In addition, they see how she tries to build up the communities she belongs to, and they want to do that, too," Graydon said. "For faculty, Fernanda is a great reminder of how much potential our students have. When we set expectations high, and then provide lots of support, students will meet those expectations or, like Fernanda, consistently exceed them." As of last week, Castillo was trying to decide on where to finish the final two years of her bachelor's degree. She has been accepted to Stetson University, where she earned a full-ride scholarship, and Columbia University in New York, and is awaiting more details on the offer there. She has an eye toward law school after completing her bachelor's degree, and is hoping to work professionally in the United States for a few years before returning home to Guatemala. And she's still working hard at making it look easy, taking Vaganova Method lessons at Ormond Ballet, where she has also been training to become a ballet teacher. Stetson Graduation: Two Ukrainian students grateful for chance to study here ERAU Graduation: Outnumbered by men, women graduates at Embry-Riddle embraced leadership roles at the school B-CU Graduation: Jacksonville native to earn Bethune-Cookman bachelor's degree 20 years after starting This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Guatemalan ballerina leaps from dance career to DSC Quanta-Honors grad China Chic Finds | Liuzhou Luosifen: A surprise treat for the world People's Daily Online) 15:44, May 13, 2024 Luosifen is made by boiling pickled bamboo shoots, dried turnips, fresh vegetables and peanuts in a spiced river snail soup. (Photo/China Daily) Liuzhou Luosifen has now become the official English name of the signature dish in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, according to the Liuzhou Administration for Market Regulation. The announcement of the official name is a testament to the worldwide popularity of Liuzhou Luosifen, showing that the dish previously considered a street food in China has stepped onto the world stage and will help enterprises actively explore international markets. Data shows that Liuzhou Luosifen exported to more than 20 countries and regions, with the total value exceeding 100 million yuan ($13.82 million) in 2023, up 38.2 percent year-on-year. Liuzhou Luosifen is gaining more recognition among overseas consumers. It is particularly popular in Mexico and Vietnam due to its delectable sour and spicy flavors. (Intern Xing Yawen contributed to this story.) (Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Liang Jun) Fastest routes from Brevard to Orlando: Here's what you should know before planning a trip With summer vacation approaching, many Space Coast families will be heading to Orlando to enjoy its theme parks and other attractions. But with that comes battling the inevitable sluggish Central Florida traffic. Here are the best ways to get to your destination quickly. Non-toll routes Vehicles travel west on State Road 520 at Clearlake Road in Cocoa Wednesday, March 20, 2024. Craig Bailey/FLORIDA TODAY via USA TODAY NETWORK The fastest way to get to downtown Orlando from South or Central Brevard is to take State Road 520, then head west on State Road 50, according to Michael Williams, deputy communications director at Florida Department of Transportation. If you're coming from North Brevard, you'll want to head to the downtown Orlando area by taking State Road 50 all the way to Orlando, Williams said. Toll roads are more time-efficient No matter where you're coming from, your trip will be faster if you take the routes with tolls, as these roads are the most direct and have the highest average speeds, according to Williams. "Toll roads provide travelers with a choice that typically has greater reliability, less congestion and quicker travel times," Williams said. "Also, toll roads and other limited access roads in Central Florida are patrolled by Road Rangers who can render several services for free, including changing a flat tire, providing one gallon of gas, making minor mechanical repairs and towing a disabled vehicle to a safe spot." If you're coming from South or Central Brevard, you'll want to take State Road 528 to State Road 417, then head north to westbound State Road 408, Williams said. Those coming from North Brevard generally take State Road 50 west to State Road 408. For theme parks via toll roads out of Central Brevard: For Walt Disney World, take State Road 528 west and then proceed south on State Road 417. For Universal Studios: Take State Road 528 west to I-4 East; then look for the Universal Orlando exit (Exit 75A). Does weather, time of day impact best route? Toll roads are considered the fastest routes for everyone, including motorcyclists, regardless of weather or time of day, according to Williams. However, some times are busier than others. These roads will experience heaviest traffic from around 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. daily, according to Williams. Traffic is lightest between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. Preparing for your trip: Know what Orlando traffic looks like now Before heading out, you can map your trip on apps like Google Maps or Apple Maps. Not only will these apps show you how long you can expect your drive to take, but they'll also show you if there are crashes or other delays along your route. You can also check live traffic feeds from Florida Highway Patrol and FL511, which will show you crashes, fires and other incidents along your route. FL511's feed allows you to map your trip with directions that can be printed ahead of your drive. Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles recommends checking your vehicle's fluids and tire pressure before making a trip away from home, and also making sure you have your proof of insurance and registration with you. It's also a good idea to make sure you have a spare tire and to check its pressure prior to your trip, according to FLHSMV. Finch Walker is the education reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Walker at 321-290-4744 or fwalker@floridatoday.com. X: @_finchwalker. This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Avoiding Florida traffic: Fastest routes to Orlando, Disney, Universal By the time Mary Miller was in high school in the 1960s, the century-old Studebaker car company in her hometown had gone out of business. But there were still a lot of Studebakers on the road in South Bend, where she grew up and the company ruled local commerce for a century. One of those cars belonged to her best friend, Dina Preston. The pea-green 1951 Studebaker sedan may have been old, it may have had a few mechanical issues, but for the two teenage girls it was a 2,700-pound freedom machine. The car most likely was a Champion model with a three-speed manual transmission, a shifter protruding from the side of the steering column. Miller looked and looked but couldnt find a photo of Preston's Studebaker. Gasoline was about 33 cents a gallon back when Mary and Dina went out cruising in the late 1960s. The economy car would have cost $1,500 when purchased new in 1951 thats about $18,000 in 2024 dollars. Magazine advertisements from 73 years ago used this rhyming line as a sales promotion: Studebaker the thrifty one for 51. Ads called the Champion model one of the four lowest price largest selling cars in America! A 1948 advertisement in the World Telephone newspaper highlights the "thrilling" 1948 Commander Studebaker, just a couple years older than the 1951 model that Mary Miller and Dina Preston drove. None of that mattered to Mary and Dina, who appreciated having any kind of vehicle that would transport them where they wanted to go. Her father bought the car for her when we were juniors in high school, Miller recalled. She drove most of the time because the single car in our family was shared by four siblings. I did not have access to it very often. Dinas car, on the other hand, was hers alone. Always there waiting in the driveway. But there was a downside: the car was old and weathered, its best years in the rearview mirror. Dina and her dad kept the cruiser up, but it never ran very fast. Her father was wise enough to know this was a good thing, Miller said. The other issue was that Dina was required to carry a big jug of water in the back because every so many miles we had to stop and fill the radiator. They were happy to oblige. That Studebaker was our freedom. It took us everywhere around town, to drive-in eateries, movie theaters, dances. Memories of station wagons: My Favorite Ride: Studebaker, Mercury Colony Park wagons a reminder of days gone by They also had many serious teen conversations while driving down the road. We laughed and cried together in that automobile. We talked and planned and dreamed about our futures. We also commiserated in the worst of times. Once, when Miller was driving her familys car, she put it in reverse instead of drive, jumped a curb and damaged the gas tank. Gasoline poured out. She was afraid to call her parents with the news. So I called Dina. She came right out to help me and drove me home, where we faced my mothers wrath together. They soon departed for college. Miller doesnt know what happened to the old Studebaker and she cant ask Preston, who died two years ago after a heart attack. They kept in touch through the decades, often taking trips together. Miller ended up in Bloomington and Preston, in North Carolina. Mary Miller and Dina Preston pose for a photo while on a trip to Ashville, North Carolina. The two women shared a love of Studebakers, their main transportation for adventures when they were teens. Miller and her husband were visiting Washington, D.C., when Prestons daughter called to break the news that her longtime friend was gone. They re-routed their trip to Charlotte, North Carolina, to attend the funeral. Riding in the car, I thought Id better write down a few thoughts in case I had an opportunity to say something at the funeral, Miller said. Memories and feelings came flooding back, especially the sense of joy, happiness and the invincibility of our youth. She looked up to see a pea-green truck go by them on the highway. At first, I thought I seeing things. But my eyes and mind were not playing tricks. When it came up close, I could clearly see it was a Studebaker. She couldnt help but smile. There we were again, in the best and worst of times. Dina, me, and a pea-green Studebaker. Have a story to tell about a car or truck? Contact My Favorite Ride reporter Laura Lane at llane@heraldt.com or 812-318-5967. This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: My Favorite Ride: A 1951 Studebaker transported a friendship Freaky bugs and venomous snakes: Why you may see more copperheads during cicada-geddon People across parts of Georgia are already hearing the unmistakable sound that comes with the warmer weather: cicadas. Parts of the U.S. are going through a unique time this spring and summer as two different broods of cicadas are emerging at the same time. The 13-year brood, also known as the Great Southern brood, will emerge for the first time since 2011. Its the largest brood and it stretches across the Southern United States, including here in Georgia. But the alien-looking bugs may be bringing more than just noise to your back year. You may need to keep a watchful eye for copperhead snakes. Theyre going to go to those places where the cicadas are available. So theyre a little bit more visible, theyre going to be around the base of trees a little bit more than they normally would be, Chris Goforth with Citizen Science, told our sister station WSOC-TV. Goforth said the predators are more likely to be seen while cicadas are out at night. The cicadas are crawling out under plants and up trees at night. And so the copperheads and things are out at the same time, Goforth said. RELATED STORIES: Cicadas are helpful to the ecosystem. They provide a good food source for many animals from insects to small mammals, even fish. So literally a single persons backyard could have hundreds of thousands of them so then if you extend that to the eastern US, the numbers are just - like even Georgia might have billions by itself, University of North Georgia biology professor Evan Lampert said. Copperheads eat cicadas the same reason we eat fast food. Its really cheap and quick, said David Hutto, herpetologist keeper at Zoo Knoxville in Tennessee, told WATE-TV. Hutto said copperheads will only eat them when the cicadas have the perfect consistency for them to snack on. He said thats right after the cicadas pop out of their molten nymph exoskeleton. Theyve got to hang on the tree for a little while, while their bodies harden and their wings fill out, and that makes them really, really easy prey for copperheads, Hutto said. Copperheads can be found throughout Georgia, with the exception of the southeastern corner, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources said. They are most commonly seen in forested areas, particularly mixed hardwoods, but tend to shy away from open areas. Areas with rocks or rock piles are favored as well, and copperheads may occasionally be found in lowland riverine or swamp areas, the DNR said. Though the snakes are venomous, they generally have mild venom and are usually not deadly. DNR said the younger the copperhead, the more venomous they are. RELATED NEWS: Exploring Vietnam by rail is about to get far more appealing. Anantara is rolling out a second Vietage train carriage in the Southeast Asian country on Wednesday, providing travelers with a luxurious way to travel between picturesque coastal cities. More from Robb Report The Vietage is unique in that it is a single carriage that connects to the government-run Reunification Express, whereas the British Pullman and the Orient Express are entire luxury locomotives. The first carriage, which debuted in 2020, runs daily between Quy Nhon and Da Nang. Entering service on May 15, the second carriage will operate a daily return journey between Quy Nhon and Nha Trang. The resort city of Nha Trang is known for its breathtaking beaches, diving sites, and seafood. It is also served by Cam Ranh International Airport, meaning you can easily fly in or out. The train in the Vietnamese countryside. The five-hour journey allows guests to traverse the Vietnamese countryside in the lap of luxury. Travelers will have the opportunity to see water buffalo, lotus ponds, rice paddies, and other local flora and fauna. Other notable sites include the mountainous province of Phu Yen, the city of Tuy Hoa, and Binh Thanh Bridge. The carriage itself showcases sleek modern interiors inspired by Indochine design, expansive picture windows offering sweeping views, and two private booths with a total of 12 reservation-only seats. You can also post up at the bar and watch the expert mixologist create railway-inspired cocktails and mocktails. The bar. Speaking of drinks, guests can enjoy free-flowing wines, cocktails, beers, soft drinks, teas, and coffee throughout the trip. Youll also be treated to a sumptuous afternoon tea experience and an artisanal cheese and charcuterie platter. (A dedicated vegan menu is available, naturally.) You can also pre-order caviar and premium Champagnes ahead of your ride. To top it off, the dedicated spa area offers 15-minute head and shoulder treatments on the go. Inside the carriage. The best part? The Vietage by Anantara costs far less than the Pullman or Orient Express. A one-way ticket between Nha Trang and Quy Nhon costs just $420 per person, including the afternoon tea, the drinks, and the 15-minute massage. The train departs from Nha Trang in the afternoon and arrives at Da Nang after midnight. Running in the opposite direction, the train leaves Da Nang in the morning and gets to Nha Trang in the mid-evening. For further information, please contact the Vietage by Anantara team by calling +84 256 368 6168 or emailing vietage@thevietagetrain.com. Best of Robb Report Sign up for Robb Report's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Click here to read the full article. Neglected pups Elvis impression wins over Ohio shelter but he is ready for a home A charismatic dog with a loving disposition and an unforgettable facial expression has become the belle of the ball on one Ohio shelters social media page. Meet Reuben, a mixed breed pup who has been with the Licking County Humane Society for eight months and is desperately in need of some loving within the warm embrace of a family. Okay...were pulling out all the stops today to get Reuben adopted. Here he is, doing the BEST Elvis face weve ever seen! the Licking County Humane Society posted on their Facebook page along with some excellent photos of Reuben imitating the King himself Elvis Presley. Come ON, people...if his big eyes and lovable personality didnt already win you over, then the spot-on Elvis impersonation should have you ready to drop everything and adopt this talented dog TODAY! According to the post, the 6.5-year-old dog was rescued along with 13 other dogs which the shelter dubbed the sandwich dog crew from a home that was plagued with neglectful conditions, the shelter said. Reuben is the last of the sandwich dogs at the shelter - all the others have found their forever homes, and our heart goes out to this sweet guy, the post said. Reuben is a lovable goofball who is definitely not slowing down as he reaches middle age. He loves to be petted, to be active, and he LOVES his toys. Reuben will do great with a family that can give him the time he needs. Comments flooded in regarding Reuben and his adorable face and that upper lip gesture of his. Hes gotta be the cutest pup Ive ever seen, one person said. This face is what dreams are made of!!! another remarked. Reuben I am praying that your family comes for you soon. You deserve to have a family to love you and share their life with you, someone commented. Somebody pls save this little doggy boy! Dont let that face go to waste! one person noted. The Licking County Humane Society does not adopt to people outside the state, the shelter told McClatchy News. Licking County is about a 40-mile drive northeast of Columbus. For more information on Reuben and other adoptable pets, click here. Dog deserted by family cries endlessly and needs new home. Personality is dimming Lovable dog with adorable snort needs a home in North Carolina. Patiently waiting "Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links." Olivia Munn, 43, is opening up about the emotional impact of her breast cancer diagnosis. In a new interview with Good Morning America, Olivia shared how terrified she was to be diagnosed with luminal B breast cancer. Cancer takes down a lot of people, she said. I just thought about my baby. Olivia also detailed the urgency in her treatment once her cancer was discovered, noting that her doctor found several tumors. We had to get in and make some really big decisions, she said. Olivia also tearfully shared that she started documenting everything for her 2-year-old son Malcolm in case she didnt survive. "If I didn't make it, I wanted my son when he got older to know that I fought to be here," she said. "That I tried my best." In March, the actress first announced in an Instagram post that she had been fighting breast cancer for nearly a year. "I was diagnosed with breast cancer," she wrote. "I hope by sharing this it will help others find comfort, inspiration and support on their own journey." Since then, Olivia has shared more about learning that she had luminal B cancera fast-moving, aggressive cancerin both breasts. Within 30 days of her diagnosis, she underwent a lymph node dissection, a nipple delay procedure, and a double mastectomy. (Months later, she underwent a reconstructive surgery, an oophorectomy, and a hysterectomy.) She's also undergoing hormone suppression therapy to reduce her chances of the cancer returning, which has put her into "medically induced menopause." Theres so much information, and youre making these huge decisions for the rest of your life, Olivia told People. I really tried to be prepared, but the truth is that nothing could prepare me for what I would feel like, what it would look like and how I would handle it emotionally. It was a lot tougher than I expected." Meet the expert: Jason Aboudi Mouabbi, MD, is a medical oncologist MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston. Here's everything to know about Olivia's breast cancer journey so farand how her advice can help others, according to a medical oncologist. Olivia was diagnosed with breast cancer in April 2023. On Instagram, Olivia explained that she underwent genetic testing for breast cancer in February 2023, along with her sister Sara. The test checked for 90 different breast cancer genes. Olivia recalls that their results were good, writing, "I tested negative for all, including BRCA (the most well-known breast cancer gene.)" She also got clear results from her mammogram. But three months later, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. I was walking around thinking that I had no breast cancer, she told People. I did all the tests that I knew about. Olivia adds that she wouldn't have known she had cancer for another yearat her next scheduled mammogramif her ob-gyn, Dr. Thais Aliabadi, hadn't decided to calculate her Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Score: "The fact that she did saved my life." What is a Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Score? Health professionals use the Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Tool (BCRAT), an interactive calculator, to estimate a woman's risk of developing breast cancer. Dr. Aliabadi looked at factors like my age, familial breast cancer history, and the fact that I had my first child after the age of 30. She discovered my lifetime risk was at 37%. "Dr. Aliabadi says that if the number is greater than 20%, you need annual mammograms and breast MRIs starting at age 30," she said on Instagram. Because Olivia's lifetime risk was high, Dr. Aliabadi ordered an MRI, which revealed a tumor in her right breast that was "just a hairline away from my lymph nodes," the actress told People. An ultrasound then revealed two more tumors in her right breast, which biopsies revealed to be Stage 1 invasive cancer. Further review of the MRI confirmed cancer Olivia had cancer in her left breast, as well. Olivia has encouraged her followers to have their doctor calculate their Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Score. "Im lucky. We caught it with enough time that I had options. I want the same for any woman who might have to face this one day," she wrote on IG. The BCRAT is one of two models that can help estimate a patient's risk of getting breast cancer, Jason Aboudi Mouabbi, MD, a medical oncologist MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston told Women's Health. The other one is the International Breast Cancer Intervention Study, or IBIS. While the BCRAT tends to underestimate risk, the IBIS tends to overestimate it, he says, so doctors use both to find a common range. Should I get a Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Score? Both the Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Tool and the International Breast Cancer Intervention Study tool are available online for free. Dr. Mouabbi encourages everyone to take themno matter your age. But, he said it may be easier to do so alongside your primary care physician to understand any medical jargon. If somebody is found to be high-risk for getting breast cancer in their lifetime (generally a score of over 20%), Dr. Mouabbi said there are a number of options. Those may include yearly MRIs (which most insurances will cover with a high BRCAT score), and the use of the estrogen receptor blocking medication Tamoxifen, which will decrease risk of breast cancer by 75%. Overall, Dr. Mouabbi shared that keeping up with yearly mammograms is the most important step that patients can take to catch breast cancer early. He pointed out that 90% of Stage 1 breast cancers are curable. What is Luminal B breast cancer? Olivia's biopsy revealed that she had Luminal B breast cancer, one of four breast cancer subtypes (luminal A, luminal B, HER2-positive, and TNBC). Luminal A cancer cells are driven by hormones like estrogen and progesterone and tends to multiply more slowly, according to Dr. Mouabbi. Meanwhile, Luminal B can also be driven by a growth hormone, and is typically a more aggressive cancer. About 10 percent of breast cancer cases are Luminal B, according to the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database. According to the Mayo Clinic, luminal B breast cancer "are likely to benefit from chemotherapy and may benefit from hormone therapy and treatment." Dr. Mouabbi confirmed that luminal B cancers require a "more urgent treatment approach." Olivia said the experience made her realize what was truly important in life. "You realize cancer doesnt care who you are. It doesnt care if you have a baby or if you dont have time," she told People. "It comes at you, and you have no choice but to face it head-on." Olivia had five surgeries, including a double mastectomy. Within 30 days of her breast cancer diagnosis, Olivia underwent three surgeries: A lymph node dissection, a nipple delay procedure, and a double mastectomy. A lymph node dissection removes an area of the lymph nodes that is cancerous or has a high likelihood of having cancer spread to it, according to the Canadian Cancer Society. Meanwhile, a nipple delay procedure creates new circulatory connections to the nipple, so it no longer depends on the breast tissue for its blood supply, per St. Vincent's Hospital. It is intended to spare the nipples ahead of a double mastectomy. Olivia told People that she's "glad" she opted for the nipple delay surgery, although she didn't have to. "I want to give myself the best shot of keeping the parts of me that I can keep," she said. The actress also underwent a double mastectomy in order to remove all of the known cancer and greatly reduce the risk of it returning. She had reconstructive surgery in the early fall. "I know a lot of women want to go bigger, but [I said] go smaller," she told People. "Its so important to say what you want out loudand dont stop. Even as the anesthesia was making its way into my body, the last thing I said was, 'Please go smaller.'" In May 2024, Olivia opened up about her fifth breast cancer-related surgery, which had only occurred the month prior. The New Girl star underwent an oophorectomy and hysterectomy, removing her "uterus, fallopian tubes, and ovaries." Olivia had been taking the estrogen-suppressing drug Lupron, which stopped her ovaries from producing estrogen (since Luminal B cancer grows in estrogen's presence). But Lupron zapped Olivia of all her energy, leaving her bed-ridden and making it more difficult for Olivia to take care of her son, Malcolm. So she had a choice, per Vogue: either remain taking Lupron and in bed, or get rid of the body parts producing estrogen in the first place. "It was a big decision to make, but it was the best decision for me because I needed to be present for my family," she said, per Vogue. "I had friends try to cheer me up by saying, Malcolms not going to remember this. Don't worry. But I just kept thinking to myself, I'm going to remember this, that I missed all these things. It's his childhood, but it's my motherhood, and I don't want to miss any of these parts if I don't have to." Her breast cancer treatment put her in medically-induced menopause. Olivia hasn't received radiation or chemotherapy so far, but she did begin hormone suppression therapy in November, after her double mastectomy. Taking the drug Lupron put her body into a medically-induced menopause. Im constantly thinking its hot, my hair is thinning, and Im tired a lot, she said, per People. Medically-induced menopause is an anti-estrogen therapy that blocks the release of luteinizing hormone from the pituitary gland in the brain, Tracy OConnor, M.D., previously told WH. That stops the ovaries from making estrogen and helps to reduce the risk of cancer recurrence in premenopausal women with hormone-sensitive cancers, she says. Olivia says Malcolm has remained her inspiration throughout it all. "If my body changes, Im still his mom. If I have hot flashes, Im still his mom. If I lose my hair, Im still his mom," she says. "Thats really what matters the most to me. I get to be here for him." Her cancer treatment is continuing. Unfortunately, Olivia isnt done with cancer treatment. She told GMA that shes taking a drug that will stop her body from growing the hormones that produce cancer in her body. "It's so tiring," she said. "These drugs are so tiring and I know that I'm going to stay aggressive, I know I'm going to do it.... It feels nonstop because it is nonstop." She froze her eggs and created embryos with partner John Mulaney. Before Olivia underwent her oophorectomy and hysterectomy, she told Vogue that she'd done egg retrievals three timesat 33 years old, 39, and at 42, after she was diagnosed with breast cancer. It's interesting because my 33-year-old eggs were great. My 39-year-old eggs? None of them worked," she explained. "After my diagnosis, we decided to try one more round of egg retrievals and hoped it was a good month. John and I talked about it a lot and we don't feel like we're done growing our family." But she couldn't use hormones to hyper-ovulate (as is typical in egg retrieval preparations), since she could be encouraging cancer cells to grow. So she used lower doses of hormones, and hoped for some viable eggs to create embryos with John. If this round hadn't worked, Olivia shared that she would have undergone another egg retrieval, despite the hormone-related risks. But doctors were able to create two healthy embryos, she shared. "John and I just started crying," she said. "It was just so exciting because not only did we get it in one retrieval, but it also meant that I didn't have to keep putting myself at risk. It was just amazing. One day, she hopes to welcome another baby via surrogate. "A surrogate isnt a scary prospect to me anymore because theres nothing I can do," she explained. "I dont have the ability to carry a baby anymore, so if we want to build our family, this is our option. This journey has made me realize how grateful I am to have options for not only fighting cancer, but also having more children if we want, because I know a lot of people dont have those options. Olivia also told GMA that shes hopeful about expanding her family at some point. We just really hope it works out for us to be able to have another baby. We just want one more, she said. I'm not going to ask for too much more in this life, I promise. I just want one more baby." John has been at her side the entire time. In her IG post announcing her diagnosis, Olivia specifically called out her partner, comedian John Mulaney, for supporting her throughout her journey. "It wouldve felt like climbing an iceberg without him," Olivia says. "I dont think he had a moment to himself, between being an incredibly hands-on father and going to and from the hospitaltaking Malcolm to the park, putting him to nap, driving to Cedars-Sinai, hanging out with me, going home, putting Malcolm to bed, coming back to me. And he did it all happily." In response to her announcement, John left the sweetest comment. "Thank you for fighting so hard to be here for us. Malc and I adore you. ." Olivia's seen an outpouring of support from her friends. Olivia's post was full of well wishes from her famous friends and followers. Actress Jessica Chastain commented, "You are very generous to share your story. I believe in doing so, youve saved lives. So much love to you and your family ." Mindy Kaling also commented, "I love you. ", and Kaley Cuoco added, "Thank you for sharing this! Wow." Gabrielle Union also commented, " Thank you for sharing mama. We gotchu " Stylist Rachel Zoe wrote, "Wow Olivia you have already saved lives by sharing this. You are a brave warrior and I send you endless love healing and strength ". And Olympic skier Lindsey Vonn added, "You are brave and strong and Im thankful you are ok. Sending all the love ." Olivia told GMA shes learned that shes a lot braver than I thought I was. Shes also prioritizing her home life. The most important thing to me in life is my family, she said. Everything else can go away. I don't have my career, I don't have my body the way that it looked before, but as long as the people I love and care about are here and healthy and thriving, nothing else matters. Rooting for you, Olivia! You Might Also Like Mobile, Ala. (WKRG) Our Pet of the Week is a 5-year-old Chihuahua named Kiwi. Family identifies 19-year-old killed in Baldwin County May Day shooting Kiwi was found as a stray. She is tiny and will be able to go everywhere with you! She can even fit in a purse! Shes a sweet little dog and needs lots of attention. She needs to be spoiled. If you want to adopt Kiwi, visit the Mobile SPCAs website for a link to her applications. The listed adoption fee includes their spays, vaccinations, and microchips. Storm damage in the News 5 coverage area (South Alabama, Northwest Florida, Southeast Mississippi) Thanks to HopHounds for sponsoring our Pet of the Week. HopHounds is an exciting new playground for dogs and their owners in the Church Street East Historic District of Mobile. Its a place where dogs can get out and play, and people can go to have a great time with them while sipping their favorite brew. Ready to unleash the excitement? Bring your hound and meet your friends for a brew at HopHounds Brew Pub & Dog Park! For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WKRG News 5. SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) A popular wine and boards bar chain has officially reached San Diego County with the opening of two new outposts. Postino WineCafe arrived in Americas Finest City at the end of last month with the grand opening of restaurants in Little Italys Kettner Building and One Paseo, located near Del Mar. The new locations join others in California, Georgia, Arizona, Texas and Colorado. We have been looking forward to opening our doors in San Diego for a long time, said Lauren Bailey, Postino co-founder and CEO. Weve always felt a special connection with the community and feel so fortunate to have found such beautiful spaces in both Little Italy and Del Mar. Carlsbad Flower Fields extends season and theres discounts The Phoenix-based chain is known for its creative, seasonal boards and an ever-changing selection of delicious wines to choose from, which San Diegans can sip on inside the vintage-inspired restaurant space or while sitting on an outdoor patio a hallmark of both new locations. Curated by master sommelier Brent Karlicek, the wine list features over 30 varietals by the glass, on top of bottles exclusively available at Postino locations. And for those who dont drink wine, there is also a selection of tap beer from local craft brewers. The San Diego locations each have drafts from Stone Brewing, Modern Times, Bottle Logic, Pizza Port and Coronado Brewing among others. As for the food menu, the chains bruschetta and charcuterie boards are Postinos signature offering, but they also have from-scratch soups, fresh salads, panini sandwiches and Snacky Things for people to munch on. Postino WineCafe's food offerings. (Photo by Deanna Sandoval/Courtesy of Bay Bird Inc.) Wine enthusiasts who visit the new Postino locations should expect to be greeted with a funky, yet sophisticated space featuring nods to the community, according to the chain. The 3,387 square-foot Little Italy location draws inspiration from the Kettner Buildings history as a British Motors car dealership. Before it became home to restaurants, it served as San Diegos oldest and largest imported car dealership. The One Paseo bar, on the other hand, is adorned with decor that marries two parts of the areas history: the Del Mar Surf Club in the 1930s Hollywood Regency period and the Del Mar Skate Ranch, which served as Tony Hawks stomping grounds when he was young. Both Postino Little Italy and Del Mar are open from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on weekdays; 10 a.m. to 12 a.m. on Saturday; and 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Sunday. A very special place: Community returns to Oceanside Pier Happy hour is available daily until 5 p.m., with by-the-glass wines and pitches of beer each available for $6. Every Monday and Tuesday, guests can also enjoy Postinos Board & Bottle deal bottle of wine and bruschetta board for $25 until 8 p.m. On top of that, throughout the month of May, Postino Del Mar and Little Italy will be fundraising for A Reason to Survive, a San Diego-based non-profit that focuses on uplifting youth in South County through arts-based programs. Postinos Little Italy location is located at 2100 Kettner Blvd. The Del Mar location is located at 3745 Paseo Place. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 5 San Diego & KUSI News. San Juan County residents got their first look at how a potential new trail adjacent to the Animas River between Farmington and Aztec might look during an open house Thursday, May 9 at the Flora Vista Fire Station. County officials held the event to acquaint folks with the idea of the proposed Lower Animas Valley Recreation Trail, a proposed 7-mile section of trail. The several dozen people who showed up for the open house were invited to fill out a questionnaire in which they expressed their preferences for where the trail should be located, what it should look like and if it should be built at all. The project is still in its preliminary stages. According to The Daily Times archives, San Juan County received a $250,000 grant from the Outdoor Recreation Division of the New Mexico Economic Development Department in June 2022 to put together a feasibility study for the project, with the San Juan County Commission awarding a contract to the Farmington office of Souder, Miller & Associates for consulting services. County officials have said the trail is envisioned to begin at the east side of the Farmington city limits near Pinon Hills Boulevard and run east to Hartman Park in Aztec, which is located south of the river and just southeast of Riverside Park. If built, it would serve as the middle link in a 17-mile system of trails that would extend from Aztec Ruins National Monument to the west side of Farmington. Nick Porell, the countys public works director, said the county has identified four corridors through which the trail might run along Southside River Road, along County Road 3000, along N.M. Highway 516 and along the historic Denver & Rio Grande Railroad right of way. While the railroad right of way is the most attractive option, he said, each of the four alternatives has issues that would make locating a trail there problematic. Nick Porell, right, San Juan County's public works director, discusses the proposed Lower Animas Valley Recreation Trail with residents during an open house event Thursday, May 9 at the Flora Vista Fire Station. County officials originally targeted the railroad right of way for the project, believing it was the most obvious, straightforward and attractive choice. But since receiving the grant two years ago, they have learned there would be several challenges to constructing a trail there, Porell said. The railroad right of way was donated to the county and the municipalities when the railroad ceased operations, he said. But over the ensuing decades, parts of that land have been sold, while, in other locations, adjoining private landowners have encroached on the property, Porell said. That becomes problematic, he said. More: County Commission will vote on contract for new section of Animas River trail So the county is considering other options. The study Porell and his staff are putting together is designed to determine which of those four options is preferred by the public. The county also is prepared to listen to feedback from those who might not want the trail built. Absolutely, as with any project, Porell said, noting that the proposal could be shelved if it becomes clear there is significant public pushback. Well gather those comments and include them in the study. Then well be presenting our findings to the commission sometime this summer. The specifics of the trail itself have not been well defined by county officials, but, in general, they are proposing a multiuse trail that would be 8 to 10 feet wide. Since they dont know when construction on the trail might begin or what kind of terrain it would run through, county officials do not have an estimate for how much the project would cost. But Porell said the county recently completed a similar raised, roadside trail in Kirtland, and that project cost $1 million per mile. A poster displayed at an open house event at the Flora Vista Fire Station on Thursday, May 9 displays some of the alternatives for how the proposed Lower Animas Valley Recreation Trail might be constructed. If the trail is built, it likely would be paid for through a grant or grants, he said, noting that there is a relative abundance of federal and state programs that fund such projects these days. He said if the County Commission decides to move forward with the project, chances are good some of that grant money could be accessed. If the county decides to do this, I think we could find a way to get there, he said. Maybe not all at once. But we could get there, Im sure. Porell was referring to the idea that the trail could be built in sections as different grants are received from a variety of state and federal programs. County Manager Mike Stark said the citizen input that was being collected at the open house was the most important part of the study process. But it was clear the idea of building the trail was something he was excited about, as he said he believed it could rival the Paseo del Bosque in Albuquerque, a popular, 17.7-mile trail adjacent to the Rio Grande. We would have a similar 16-mile system in San Juan County, he said. You could actually commute on a bike in a connected fashion from Farmington to Aztec through Flora Vista. Stark said he believes the project holds great promise as another addition to the countys inventory of outdoor recreation attractions, a list that has grown considerably in recent years as government officials throughout the area try to broaden the economic base. In 2021, county officials opened the East Glade Trailhead Skills Park in north Farmington, a project completed in partnership with the federal Bureau of Land Management. They said then they hoped it would serve as an attraction not just for local residents, but for out-of-state cyclists, as well. That appears to have been the case. Stark smiled when he recounted paying a visit to the park one day this winter to get in a ride, noting with delight that, of the dozen or so vehicles in the parking lot, his was the only one with New Mexico plates. More: San Juan County, BLM partner on new mountain biking skills park in Farmington The Lower Animas Valley Recreation Trail could have a similar impact, he said. This would put us on the map of having a recreation asset of this magnitude, he said, explaining that the project also could rival the Animas River Trail & Greenway in Durango, Colorado, just upriver from where this project would be built. Support local journalism with a digital subscription: http://bit.ly/2I6TU0e. This article originally appeared on Farmington Daily Times: Lower Animas Valley Recreation Trail would connect Aztec, Farmington Want to own a Disney Fort Wilderness log cabin? Act fast. Florida company has some left James Robert "J.R." Morrisons phone is ringing nonstop. The Brevard businessman is selling a hot commodity many people want to purchase: Disneys Fort Wilderness Cabins. The Disney campground, which has a massive following, is getting a makeover old cabins are slowly being replaced with brand new ones. Morrisons Brevard-based company, Florida Manufactured Home Sales, and an Orlando-based company were given the rights to purchase a total of 300 of the older cabins from Disney. Morrison got 100 of them while the Orlando company got 200. Social media has been a buzz since these beloved log cabins were made available to purchase. Here are some answers to some of the questions swirling out there. Are the iconic Disneys Fort Wilderness log cabins still available to purchase? There are Fort Wilderness cabins in Mims. James Robert OJRO Morrison is not allowed to say they are from Fort Wilderness, but the north Brevard entrepreneur was able to get about 100 of the cabins to resell as Disney upgrades the cabins at the park. The Orlando-based company sold out of its allotment. Morrison, on the other hand, still has about 40 cabins available. The price has increased by $10,000 to $59,900. A deposit of $1,500 is required to secure a cabin. Morrison is getting the cabins in installments from Disney, about 10 at a time. The final shipment is expected in December. What are the details of the Disney log cabins for sale? The cabins were bult in 1998 or 2001 and have since undergone renovations. They are just under 500-square-feet and contain a bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and living space. Aside from purchasing an iconic piece of Disney history, buyers also get all the themed furniture queen size bed and twin bunkbeds, complete with mattresses, kitchen table and chairs and sofa bed. Also thrown in televisions, light fixtures, appliances like a toaster coffee maker, refrigerator and stove. Even the bible in the bedroom nightstand. There are touches of Disney throughout the cabin, from the spot on the front door to place a Magicband to Disney-themed toiletry bottles attached to the bathtub wall to a sign inside a closet addressed to Walt Disney World Resort Hotel Guests with safety information. Morrison has big, actually tiny, plans for when the Disney log cabins sell out Morrison started as a businesses owner in the mobile home world back when he was 18. He had a decades-old successful career that included deals with the government and Disney. The father of two and grandfather was enjoying semi-retirement when he was presented the opportunity to purchase the Disney cabins. I knew that obviously Disney has a huge fan base, but as far as the overwhelming response, its like wow, Morrison said. Were having lots of people who have to have one. He estimated about 60% to 70% of people interested are Disney fans. The rest are people who appreciate the look and layout of the cabin, which got Morrison thinking. I plan on going into the tiny home business and recreate the magic you see in the tiny homes, Morrison told FLORIDA TODAY. Obviously they wont be authentic but we will recreate the look and the style you see in these. Heres how to buy one of the Disney log cabins available for sale Those interested in buying a Disney log cabin from Disney's Fort Wilderness can contact Morrisons sales partner John Santerfeit at 321-266-1901. Spitzer is a Trending Reporter. She can be reached at MSpitzer@floridatoday.com. This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Disney log cabins, fully furnished, are for sale. Here's how to buy one Why a clothing boutique owner is relocating her store from New Center to Detroit's east side Angela Wisniewski-Cobbina has known since she was a kid that she wanted to open a clothing store in Detroit. She took a winding path to get there but in November 2019, she opened the women's clothing boutique Coup D'etat in New Center. But now, nearly five years after she opened the store, Wisniewski-Cobbina is leaving the space and moving the store to a new location on the city's east side amid a challenging environment for small businesses. "You have to be able to give your guests and your clients a little bit more of an experience now," Wisniewski-Cobbina said in an interview earlier this year. "People changed the way they shop in the past four years. We're competing with e-commerce, Jeff Bezos (of Amazon) ... and as a multibrand retailer, sometimes I'm even competing with the designers and brands themselves." Offering an experience where customers can shop, grab a coffee or drink at a nearby cafe or bar and go out to dinner was hard to do at her store in Cadillac Place, 3044 W. Grand Blvd., in the same building where mostly state of Michigan employees work. Since Wisniewski-Cobbina opened her store, a lifestyle shop catering primarily to women and featuring independent designers, she has watched nearby stores, like Ferne Boutique, close their locations in Detroit. A social media post announcing the closure of Ferne in May 2023 said: "So many crazy things have happened in this location over the past five years that have made it next to impossible to operate the business. Empty development promises, lack of population density and major shifts in the market due to the pandemic, with no change in sight." A 'glimmer' in New Center's resurgence When Wisniewski-Cobbina decided she was ready to open a store and was searching for a location in 2019, she knew she wanted it to be in Detroit. She considered a few locations in the city but none of them were a perfect fit. It started to get down to the wire because she had ordered inventory that was starting to arrive. When she walked into a former unemployment insurance office waiting room in the Albert Kahn-designed Cadillac Place, though, she knew it was the space, although she recognized it would be a bit of a gamble. "It was a little bit of a glimmer," she said. Angela Wisniewski-Cobbina sells an eclectic selection of independent designs at her boutique called Coup D'etat located in New Center Detroit (at left) on Friday, March 22, 2024. Wisniewski-Cobbina is planning to move her store to the east side, near the Shepherd on Kercheval. At the time, there was a lot of excitement surrounding New Center's future. The Henry Ford Pistons Performance Center opened in October 2019, just a few blocks from her store. The team behind the celebrated restaurant Selden Standard had announced plans to open an upscale Mediterranean restaurant at Woodward just south of Grand Boulevard. A former partner at Rose's Fine Foods was planning on opening an all-day cafe across the street. When she opened Coup D'etat French for "coup" and for Wisniewski-Cobbina, means being rebellious in expressing your personal style the first two months, November and December 2019, exceeded her expectations. Then 2020 happens Once the holidays were over though, "the harsh realities of being a retail store owner in a non-foot traffic area set in," she said. "I just remember thinking, 'Did I make the right decision?' " Wisniewski-Cobbina said. "You start off and it's really buzzy and then the high of opening the business runs out and people aren't spending." Angela Wisniewski-Cobbina puts on lipstick in her boutique called Coup D'etat where she sells an eclectic selection of independent designs located in New Center Detroit on Friday, March 22, 2024. Wisniewski-Cobbina is planning to move her store to the east side, near the Shepherd on Kercheval. A few months later, the COVID-19 pandemic shut down nonessential businesses like Wisniewski-Cobbina's as part of the governor's "stay home" order. An interesting thing happened though: With people staying at home with few plans and no events or trips to spend their money on, they shopped. Her online sales were so high in March, April and May of 2020 that she wondered whether she even needed a brick-and-mortar location. A new reality sets in But as stores began to reopen their doors, and life started to return to normal, Wisniewski-Cobbina noticed that the support small businesses sentiment had worn off and it seemed consumers had returned to their online shopping habits formed in the pandemic. Those highly anticipated restaurants never opened. Wisniewski-Cobbina was also a new mom, and being efficient with her time became even more of a priority. By early last year, reality set in. "I can't be running these crazy promotions all the time," Wisniewski-Cobbina remembers thinking. "If this is part of a larger trend in terms of spending and consumerism ... I started to think I probably should move and rethink the direction I want to take the brand." Angela Wisniewski-Cobbina works in her clothing store that she opened just before the pandemic called Coup Detat in New Center in Detroit on Friday, March 22, 2024. Wisniewski-Cobbina is planning to move her store to the east side, near the Shepherd on Kercheval. Despite surviving a pandemic, other Detroit retail store owners also had a reckoning. In early 2022, Hugh, the design housewares, accessories and furniture shop in Midtown, closed. The owner said he was planning to move to an online-only business model and suspected that the boost from suburbanite shoppers visiting Midtown and shopping wouldn't return anytime soon. Less than a year later, Hugh's next-door neighbor, the houseware and gift shop Nora, closed. The owner cited similar reasons as Hugh's owner for closing, as well as increasing rent prices. More on Nora closing: Nora, design store in Detroit's Midtown, to close after 10 years in business A move is needed, but where? As Wisniewski-Cobbina thought about where she could move her store, she felt she didn't have many options, given how spread out everything is in Detroit. She doubted she could afford the rent downtown, and even if she could, she wanted something more off the beaten path. While a move there would have likely brought more foot traffic, even that's not a guarantee. For example, Wisniewski-Cobbina pointed out that clothing store Good Neighbor recently closed its downtown Detroit store because "downtown traffic hasnt proven to be substantial (enough) to run an already difficult business," a social media post announcing the closure said. Wisniewski-Cobbina even thought about moving to the suburbs. But then Anthony Curis, co-founder of the Detroit art gallery Library Street Collective, called. He and his wife, JJ, are developing a public arts campus in Detroit's East Village neighborhood called Little Village. The development is anchored by the Shepherd, a former church turned-cultural arts center, and also includes a public skate park, a bed-and-breakfast and the Lantern, a former commercial bakery that they're redeveloping into a mixed-used space. Curis wanted Wisniewski-Cobbina to open her store there. More on The Shepherd: New East Village arts district will transform church into creative space, feature skate park She went to visit what was then a crumbling building in the winter. Wisniewski-Cobbina was skeptical. But Curis had a compelling vision, Wisniewski-Cobbina said, and after several conversations, she realized just how important it was for her to stay in the city of Detroit. Angela Wisniewski-Cobbina checks out her new retail space at the Lantern for her store Coup D'etat on Tuesday, March 26, 2024. Wisniewski-Cobbina is in the process of moving her store from New Center to the Lantern on Kercheval in Detroit. Wisniewski-Cobbina signed a lease for a price that she says is comparable to what she was paying in New Center. The store in New Center will close in July, and she hopes to reopen in the Lantern, 9301 Kercheval Ave., by early fall. "At this point, I know myself more. I know the brand more. I'm more seasoned in terms of running a business, being in the city and knowing who my client is and who I want my client to be," she said. "They're creating another destination," Wisniewski-Cobbina said of Little Village. "People are coming from the city, the suburbs and they're going to come here when they travel from out of the country. It's going to be a place for arts and culture enthusiasts to immerse themselves and I was like, 'That makes complete sense for me.' " Contact Adrienne Roberts: amroberts@freepress.com. This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Why a Detroit clothing boutique owner is relocating to the east side For some kids, sticky summer days will soon harbor untold adventures, like plunging into wild waterways. Guitar-in-hand, new friends and old will sing by crackling campfires. Then therell be giggling by starlight. Living up to its motto, Ill always cherish how the kids at my first summer campYMCA Camp Piomingocould unplug to connect with each other and nature. Thats a vital remedy in todays world. In his new book, "The Anxious Generation," Jonathan Haidt documents how our increasingly online world is the driving force of the global decline in youth wellbeing. At the overnight camps Ive worked at, Ive seen this anxiety melt away in my campers. While in one of the only phone-free environments theyve ever experienced, many of my kiddos expressed gratitude for a reprieve from their addictively online normal lives. The sheer volume of time kids spend online is harmful. The digital realm takes away time with friends and family, time being physically active, time getting a restful nights sleep. It steals childrens healthy first-loves, introducing them to porn as early as elementary school. Especially for teens, social media instills insecurities rooted in the seemingly perfect posts of their peers. This most impacts girls and inspires disordered eating. On Facebook since fourth grade and Instagram since sixth, I'm in the older part of that anxious generation Haidt describes. Ive seen the anguish in my peers. In 2019 among my JCPS graduating class, 16% of my peers reported self-harm. Now as an outdoor educator, Im ever-watchful for scars. This is the new normal. Suicide is the second leading cause of death among people aged 15-19 globally, according to the WHO. Rates of suicide among Americans aged 10-24 have increased 62% from 2007 to 2021, according to the CDC. This is not to mention rising depression and anxiety. Connecting kids with nature helps curb youth mental health crisis Addressing this epidemic demands holistic change from families, schools, and tech-companies. Outdoor adventure is one key part of this discussion. In addition to being phone free, good ol fashioned American summer campsplaces that exist for the intrinsic good of being outside and having funare a uniquely restorative prescription to this epidemic. Most vitally, kids at camps forge enduring friendships that grow deeper year after year. Additionally, camp staff are often inspiring role-models. Relationships like these counter the global rise in adolescent loneliness driven by social media. Camps push kids out of their comfort zones. There are theater performances to improvise, high-ropes courses to navigate, and figuring out how to be independent away from home. The resulting resilience and confidence, natural antidotes to anxiety, help youth overcome challenges elsewhere in life. Often now, kids self-esteem is corrupted by social medias superficial feedback and schools test scores. Camps grow a healthier sense of self-worth rooted in being an all around good person; acting with compassion, integrity, and generosity. There are physical elements too. Compared to being sedentary in front of screens, the days at camp are filled with exercise. Furthermore, I believe camps consistent meals, with moderate portions shared over conversation, have the potential to mitigate disordered eating. More than all of this, overnight camps create a sense of magic thats difficult to verbalize. How JCPS' student mental health crisis is Louisville's 'unseen epidemic' Forest Clevenger captaining a voyageur canoe on the Ohio River. Local camps are making the outdoors accessible to all If youre ready to find a camp for the kids in your life, look for those certified by the American Camp Association. The ACA offers advice for parents and has a portal to help you find a camp thats the right fit. In the Louisville area, make sure to check out YMCA Camp Piomingo as well as the Girl Scouts of Kentuckianas camps. If your kiddo is a teenager, they might be ready for a longer hiking or paddling expedition like those offered by Outward Bound or NOLS. Programs like these typically offer financial aid, but some organizations are going even further. We must do more as a country to make the outdoors accessible to all, said Brewster Rhoads, a leader in the Cincinnati outdoors community who has come up with a creative solution, founding the Ohio River Paddlefest. The events proceeds fund Adventure Crew, a nonprofit that connects Cincinnati-area teens to the outdoors for free. Do you think kids need to unplug? Submit your letter to the editor here. Similarly, Louisville ECHO, an initiative made possible by Louisville Parks & Recreation and Wilderness Louisville, is increasing equitable access to the outdoors through programming at Shawnee Park and Jefferson Memorial Forest. Prasanthi Persad, Wilderness Louisvilles Executive Director, explained that for kids now, access to devices is a blessing and a curse. The research proves the relationship between time spent in nature and thriving as a human being. Forest Clevenger Forest Clevenger works to increase access to the outdoors through the nonprofit Ohio River Way and has led advocacy for mental health reforms in JCPS. Lately, hes been volunteering for Girl Scout Camp Judy Layne and their new grassroots endowment. This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Summer camps provide kids a place to unplug and connect with nature Russian forces attacked nine communities in Sumy Oblast on May 12, killing one person and injuring two others, the Sumy Oblast Military Administration reported. The communities of Sumy, Znob-Novhorodske, Myropillia, Bilopillia, Krasnopillia, Velyka Pysarivka, Esman, Seredyna-Buda, and Shalyhyne were targeted. In the village of Krasnopillia, one person was killed and another two were injured as a result of separate Russian artillery shelling. No details were provided on the extent of the victims' injuries. Throughout the day, Russia assailed the border communities with mortar, artillery, missile, drone, and tank attacks. Explosives were also dropped by drones onto two of the communities. In total, 157 explosions were recorded in 26 separate attacks on the region. The town of Bilopillia, with a pre-war population of about 15,600 residents, experienced the bulk of the attacks reported with 53 explosions recorded in the area. The community is located just eight kilometers south and 25 kilometers west of the Ukraine-Russia border. Russian strikes against Sumy Oblast have become increasingly destructive in recent months. Amid intensified attacks, Ukrainian authorities ordered increased evacuations from the region. Shelling is a daily occurrence for the communities near Ukraine's northeastern border with Russia, with residents in the region's vulnerable border settlements experience multiple attacks per day. Read also: Russian missile attack on Sumy outskirts kills woman Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. DENVER (KDVR) One person was killed in a crash Sunday evening on U.S. 85, also known as Santa Fe Drive. Colorado State Patrol told FOX31 the call reporting the crash came in at 7:47 p.m. The crash happened near C-470. This embedded content is not available in your region. Only one vehicle was involved in the crash. CSP said the driver was in opposing lanes of Santa Fe Drive, driving fast and aggressively before losing control and crashing. The vehicle was engulfed in flames, CSP said. FOX31 Newsletters: Sign up to get breaking news sent to your inbox Only one person was in the vehicle, and they were pronounced dead at the scene. CSP said it was unknown if they died from the crash or the fire. FOX31 gathered photos from the scene: One person was killed in a crash Sunday evening on U.S. Highway 85, also known as Santa Fe Drive. (KDVR) One person was killed in a crash Sunday evening on U.S. Highway 85, also known as Santa Fe Drive. (KDVR) One person was killed in a crash Sunday evening on U.S. Highway 85, also known as Santa Fe Drive. (KDVR) No further information was immediately available. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX31 Denver. 1 severely injured after rescued from canal in South-Central El Paso EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) A person suffered severe injuries after they were rescued from a canal on Monday, May 13 in South-Central El Paso, according to the El Paso Fire Department. The Fire Department says its water rescue crews pulled out the person from the canal at Loop 375 and the Fonseca exit just after 7 a.m. The Fire Department says the person suffered severe injuries and the scene was turned over to law enforcement. No further information has been released. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTSM 9 News. 140 combat clashes take place on frontline with 33 combat clashes on Pokrovsk front alone Stock photo: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine About 140 combat clashes took place on the frontline over the past 24 hours. The Russians launched 6 missile strikes and 64 airstrikes and fired 51 times from multiple-launch rocket systems. Source: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook, information as of 18:00 on 13 May Details: On the Kharkiv front, the number of combat clashes increased to 13. Under heavy Russian fire, Ukrainian units are acting decisively, inflicting fire on the Russian troops, and increasing their efforts. Ukrainian defenders are consolidating their positions and equipping reserve positions. Ukraines defence forces are facilitating the evacuation of people from the affected settlements. On the Kupiansk front, Ukrainian troops repelled 15 attacks over the last day. Nine combat clashes took place on the Lyman front. On the Sivershchyna front, the Russians carried out 15 unsuccessful attacks. On the Pokrovsk front, the number of Russian attacks increased to 33. On the Kurakhove front, the Russians, supported by aircraft, unsuccessfully attempted to break through the defences of Ukrainian troops 13 times. On the Vremivka front, Ukrainian defenders repelled 11 attacks near Vodiane and Staromaiorske. There are no significant changes on other fronts. Quote: "The defence forces are monitoring the enemy's actions and responding to changes in the situation. The command makes operational decisions to ensure control on the battlefield. Over the course of the day, the aircraft of the Defence Forces and Rocket Forces and Artillery struck one artillery unit, one electronic warfare station, one command post, one ammunition storage point and two areas where enemy personnel, weapons and military equipment were concentrated. Our soldiers also shot down an enemy Su-25." Support UP or become our patron! 16-Year-Old Electrocuted by His Necklace in Freak Accident: 'It Was Like a Hot Coil' He visibly saw sparks coming from his neck, said Danielle Davis of her son Rayces burn injury Kennedy News and Media Rayce Ogdahl An Oklahoma teenager was electrocuted after his necklace came in contact with an exposed prong of a plug. On the night of April 30, Danielle Davis was awoken by a scream coming from her 16-year-old son Rayce Ogdahl's bedroom. The 38-year-old mom of six ran to her sons aid as he cried for help when she found him with scorched marks on his neck. "We thought maybe he's playing a video game and getting frustrated, Davis said, according to The Mirror. Then I heard him shout 'Mom' and my son was standing in the hallway. He said 'I've been electrocuted. It was my necklace.' There were scorch necks around his neck. And the smell was awful. The whole house smelled like burnt hair and skins and electrical burns, she said. We started calling 911 for an ambulance. 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 celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Kennedy News and Media Rayce Ogdahl's neck after his accident Davis said her son was laying in bed when the freak accident happened. "He said he leaned out of the bed and when he did, the cross necklace around his neck made contact with the prongs from the plug in an extension cord which were just barely exposed, she recalled. "He said he was completely conscious through the whole thing and was aware he was being electrocuted. Because everything was metal, it made a complete circuit around his neck. It was like a hot coil. And he has burns on his hands from trying to rip his chain around his neck. "He said this all happened within a matter of seconds and he visibly saw sparks coming from his neck, she added. He told me his whole body hurt and he thought he was going to die. Ogdahl was rushed to the burn unit at Integris Health Baptist Medical Center in Oklahoma, where he was admitted to the intensive care unit. He suffered second-, third- and fourth-degree burns, which left him with significant scars. Doctors told the family that their son endured "enough amps to kill him." Related: Boy with Burns on 98% of His Body Is Now Thriving After Nearly 50 Surgeries (Exclusive) Kennedy News and Media Rayce Ogdahl Davis said the teen may need skin grafts in the future. "You can see the pattern of the necklace on his neck, she explained. "It's almost his entire neck that's covered in scars. It's from his chin to his collarbone. Davis and Ogdahl said the accident was very eye-opening for their family, warning others about having electrical cords close to the bed. The incident has definitely made Rayce a lot more self-aware, Davis said. "We're just so grateful he's okay. He could've easily died that night. It was amazing he was still conscious and could still alert us. It would've been a different story. "When it comes to your phone, there's not a text message or notification that is important enough to have your phone on your bed. Anything can happen and Rayce is proof of that, she stressed. "Pay attention to your cords and I would recommend to anybody don't use extension cords at all." For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. Whats Up With The 17% Of Voters Who Blame Biden For The Fall Of Roe v. Wade? Nearly 20% of voters blame President Joe Biden for the Supreme Courts decision to repeal Roe v. Wade in 2022, according to a poll released Monday even though former President Donald Trump has repeatedly taken credit for overturning Roe, given that he appointed three conservative Supreme Court justices who were central to the decision. The survey, conducted by The New York Times, Siena College and The Philadelphia Inquirer, found that 17% of registered voters in six swing states believe Biden has a lot of responsibility or some responsibility for ending the constitutional right to abortion. Just over 55% of respondents said Trump has some responsibility or a lot of responsibility for overturning Roe. Abortion has been a weak spot for Trump, who up until recently has dodged questions on the issue. Since Roe fell and nearly 20 states enacted abortion bans or restrictions, abortion has become a powerful campaign weapon for Democrats and a vulnerability for Republicans. The 17% figure yielded in the Times/Siena/Inquirer poll doesnt reflect what Mini Timmaraju, president of Reproductive Freedom for All, is hearing on the ground while canvassing for abortion rights in some of these states. The data and evidence, particularly in Trumps own words, is extremely compelling... and weve just gotta get more folks paying attention, she said. That doesnt tend to happen until later in the summer, early into the fall. The finding is a stark contrast to some of the other numbers from the poll. Thirty-seven percent of respondents said abortion should be always legal, and 49% said Biden would do a better job on abortion than Trump. Another recent survey from Navigator, a polling group focused on progressive issues, found that the public is growing more aware of Trumps anti-abortion record. The more voters hear from Trump, the more likely they are to believe he will sign a national abortion ban if elected. Christina Reynolds, senior vice president of communications at EMILYs List, wasnt too worried about the 17%, reasoning that its a small number and the other findings about abortion access are generally in line with what the abortion rights group has heard from pro-choice voters. The idea that some percentage blames Biden, it may be that thats a percentage thats just gonna blame Biden for anything, Reynolds said. It may be that thats a group of people who just know that it happened while Biden was president and havent focused on that specific issue very much. The 17% of respondents consisted largely of young voters who did not vote in the last election. Abortion is incredibly salient to young voters and young voters of color, said Timmaraju, who sees this as an opportunity for the Biden campaign. We knew we were going to have to keep reminding voters who was responsible for the crisis and who can fix it, she said. Trumps vote is locked in, Biden has a lot of opportunity. Weve known all along, as advocacy groups that have endorsed Biden and [Vice President Kamala] Harris, we have a lot of work to do to make sure voters understand not only what the Biden-Harris record is, but what theyre going to do when we return them to the White House. Geoff Garin, a Democratic pollster, agreed that many voters are not dialed in to the election yet. The reality is that many voters are not paying close attention to the election and have not started making up their minds a dynamic also reflected in todays poll, Garin said in a statement shared via a Biden spokesperson. These voters will decide this election and only the Biden campaign is doing the work to win them over. He added that broad conclusions about the presidential race should not be drawn based on the results of just one poll. The poll shows that Trump is leading in five of the six battleground states surveyed. The decrease in support for Biden is among young voters and voters of color who are frustrated with how the president has handled the economy and the Israel-Hamas war. Youll see us out there in the press... talking about this and raising this issue, Reynolds said, and by election day voters wont be confused about whos to blame. Related... 2 injured loggerhead turtles triumphantly crawl into the Atlantic after rehabbing in Florida This photo provided by the Loggerhead Marinelife Center on Monday, May 13, 2024, shows Finley, a subadult loggerhead turtle found with a hook in the shoulder area in late April, at the Loggerhead Marinelife Center in Juno Beach, Fla. The turtle received a round of antibiotics to ward of possible infection. Finley was released into the Atlantic Ocean on Monday morning. (Loggerhead Marinelife Center via AP) JUNO BEACH, Fla. (AP) A crowd cheered and took photos as two loggerhead sea turtles slowly made their way through the sand and into the Atlantic Ocean on Monday after rehabbing at a Florida marine life center. Cayman and Finley arrived at Loggerhead Marinelife Center in Juno Beach after separate incidents left them injured, officials said. The center treats injured turtles and releases them back into their natural habitat as soon as they are healthy enough to survive on their own. Cayman's front left flipper became entangled in fishing line, and he was brought to the center on Feb. 6, in need of surgery, said Dr. Heather Barron, a veterinarian and the center's chief science officer. We went in and we cleaned all that up surgically she said. And, he has been doing very well. Recovered beautifully from the surgery. Cant even see a scar there now." Finley had a fishing hook embedded in his shoulder when he arrived on April 27. This one actually came out very easily. But never underestimate the ability of a dirty fishhook to cause a really nasty infection, Barron said. The turtles were released on the beach just across from the research center, which is north of West Palm Beach. Its always a celebration on the beach," said Andy Dehart, the center's president and CEO. He said the staff is always excited to release the turtles. To see them return to the ocean is the best part of our job, Dehart said. _____ Frisaro reported from Fort Lauderdale. GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) Two men from northern Michigan face felony charges for illegal hunting and animal cruelty. Nicholas Patnode, 19, and 20-year-old Zander Garrett were arrested April 12 and arraigned last week in Kalkaska County District Court. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources started an investigation in 2022 after receiving a tip on the agencys poaching hotline. Conservation officers were able to determine that a group of men had committed multiple crimes, including illegally killing at least six deer. One of the deer, a nine-point buck, was shot from the window of a truck. While the DNR did not provide details, the two men allegedly inhumanely killed a porcupine. State lawmakers urge DNR to decide against criminal charges in wolf incident Patnode faces 11 charges in all, including two counts of killing or torturing animals in the third degree, punishable by up to four years in jail, $5,000 in fines and up to 500 hours of community service. The other nine are misdemeanor charges, including taking game from a vehicle and possessing a bow or crossbow in a vehicle operated on public land or roads. Garrett faces three charges, including one felony and two misdemeanors. When there is this many violations, including torturing animals, education only goes so far. These crimes need to be addressed, DNR Law Enforcement Division Chief Jason Haines said in a statement. Prosecution of these acts will hopefully deter not only these individuals but others from committing similar crimes in the future. A third man, a juvenile, was also involved but made a plea agreement through the countys juvenile court. DNR looking for volunteers to monitor water quality on inland lakes Patnode and Garrett are due back in court next week. The DNR encourages anyone who witnesses a DNR violation to call or text the agencys poaching hotline at 800.292.7800. Monetary rewards may be offered for information that leads to arrests and convictions. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com. Two additional Native American tribes in South Dakota have banned Gov. Kristi Noem (R) from their reservations after she said earlier this year that tribal leaders benefited from drug cartels. Noem is now banned from traveling to about one-fifth of South Dakota after the Yankton Sioux Tribe voted Friday to ban Noem. The Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate did the same days earlier, and four other tribes had previously barred Noem over her cartel comments and other remarks. Weve got some tribal leaders that I believe are personally benefiting from the cartels being there, and thats why they attack me every day, the governor said at a forum in March. But Im going to fight for the people who actually live in those situations, who call me and text me every day and say, Please, dear governor, please come help us in Pine Ridge. We are scared. Relations between the governor and the tribes have been strained since she took office in 2019. Some of the tribes have accused Noem, who has been floated as a potential vice presidential pick for former President Trump, of making decisions to boost Trumps campaign efforts. Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe spokesperson Alli Moran told The Hill last month that several tribes share the same sentiments regarding Noem, specifically that she does not respect or fully understand tribal sovereignty. Noem has repeatedly doubled down on the comments since being banned from the tribal lands, calling on tribes to back her law enforcement initiatives in a post shared on social media last week. Tribals leaders should take action to ban the cartels from their lands and accept my offer to help them restore law and order to their communities while protecting their sovereignty, Noem wrote. We can only do this through partnerships because the Biden Administration is failing to do their job. The governor has sparked criticism in recent weeks after promoting a book that includes multiple questionable anecdotes and defending a passage in which she describes killing a 14-month-old dog. Noem earlier this year also shared a video praising a Texas cosmetic dentistry firm. Political analysts have predicted the incidents have likely hurt Noems chances of making it onto Trumps ticket. The Hill has reached out to Noems office for comments on the most recent tribal bans. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. (The Hill) Two additional Native American tribes in South Dakota have banned Gov. Kristi Noem (R) from their reservations after she said earlier this year that tribal leaders benefited from drug cartels. Noem is now banned from traveling to about one-fifth of South Dakota after the Yankton Sioux Tribe voted Friday to ban Noem. The Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate did the same days earlier, and four other tribes had previously barred Noem over her cartel comments and other remarks. Weve got some tribal leaders that I believe are personally benefiting from the cartels being there, and thats why they attack me every day, the governor said at a forum in March. But Im going to fight for the people who actually live in those situations, who call me and text me every day and say, Please, dear governor, please come help us in Pine Ridge. We are scared. Relations between the governor and the tribes have been strained since she took office in 2019. Some of the tribes have accused Noem, who has been floated as a potential vice presidential pick for former President Trump, of making decisions to boost Trumps campaign efforts. Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe spokesperson Alli Moran told The Hill last month that several tribes share the same sentiments regarding Noem, specifically that she does not respect or fully understand tribal sovereignty. Noem has repeatedly doubled down on the comments since being banned from the tribal lands, calling on tribes to back her law enforcement initiatives in a post shared on social media last week. Tribals leaders should take action to ban the cartels from their lands and accept my offer to help them restore law and order to their communities while protecting their sovereignty, Noem wrote. We can only do this through partnerships because the Biden Administration is failing to do their job. The governor has sparked criticism in recent weeks after promoting a book that includes multiple questionable anecdotes and defending a passage in which she describes killing a 14-month-old dog. Noem earlier this year also shared a video praising a Texas cosmetic dentistry firm. Political analysts have predicted the incidents have likely hurt Noems chances of making it onto Trumps ticket. The Hill has reached out to Noems office for comments on the most recent tribal bans. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News. 2 sisters sued their insurer after it offered $5,000 to fix their wrecked home after a storm. They won $18 million. A stock image shows somebody mopping up water in a house flooded by a storm. Petra Richli/Getty Images A jury awarded sisters $18 million in damages from an insurance company after their home was flooded. The sisters sued American Reliable after being offered just $5,000 for repairs. According to their attorney, the house was unliveable, with the heating system destroyed. The home of two California sisters was badly flooded during a February 2019 rainstorm but when they filed a claim with their insurance company, American Reliable, they were offered just $5,000 for repairs. Last month, a jury awarded the pair $18 million, after they took the company to court. According to a ruling in the Superior Court of San Bernardino County, Jennifer Garnier and Angela Toft were awarded $6 million for pain and suffering and $12 million in punitive damages in a verdict reached by a jury on April 18, following a six-week trial. The lawsuit said that the sisters' home in Pinon Hills was damaged during a large rainstorm on February 15, 2019, rendering it unliveable, as detailed in various news reports. In a statement posted on Instagram, their attorney, Michael Hernandez of HHJ Trial Attorneys, said the damages caused electrical faults and destroyed the heating system. Small cracks had started to form throughout, the defendants also claimed in the lawsuit. The Los Angeles Times, citing Hernandez, reported that the sisters estimated they needed more than $100,000 to fix the damage. However, according to the ruling, an insurance adjuster offered just $5,000 for repairs, not including payouts for alternative living arrangements and personal property. According to court documents reviewed by the Times, the plaintiffs argued that American Reliable delayed their home inspection. The Times also reported that American Reliable admitted to an oversight in October 2023 and offered the sisters $140,000. However, Garnier and Toft decided to proceed with the trial, which ultimately resulted in a jury finding in their favor. "We argued that when you knowingly put a family in an uninhabitable home, you can't come back later and say you are not responsible for the consequences," Hernandez said in the Instagram post. According to the ruling, the company claimed to Garnier and Toft that it only learned about the full extent of the home's damage while deliberating evidence for the trial. The Times reported that Garnier and Toft were awarded $3 million each for emotional damages, $2 million in punitive damages from American Reliable, and $10 million in punitive damages from Global Indemnity, American Reliable's parent company. Global Indemnity and American Reliable did not immediately respond to Business Insider's requests for comment. Hernandez directed BI to the write-up of the ruling. Last year, Business Insider reported that insurance companies are finding new ways to make money, often at their clients' expense. The feature, written by Jathan Sadowski, a senior research fellow at Monash University, highlighted how algorithmic systems are being crafted to optimize insurance companies' profits, leveraging AI's opacity to give them plausible deniability. Tuesday, May 14, 2024: This article has been updated with additional details from the ruling. Read the original article on Business Insider As they sat in the lobby of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in Washington, D.C., last month, Garnell Whitfield Jr. and others who have lost relatives nationwide to gun violence listened as U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland helped dedicate an exhibit honoring those killed. Garland spoke of some of the victims on the new "Faces of Gun Violence Memorial" wall, including Whitfield's 86-year-old mother, Ruth, describing her as a "mother, grandmother and great grandmother whose door and pantry were always open to family and friends." He said the wall will serve as a reminder to ATF employees of who they are fighting for each day. PHOTO: In this May 15, 2022, file photo, police sit in front of a Tops Grocery store in Buffalo, New York. (Usman Khan/AFP via Getty Images, FILE) "That in and of itself is progress that they would understand the need to be more empathetic and to realize the impact of gun violence on the people that they're trying to protect and serve," Whitfield, the retired Buffalo, New York, fire commissioner, told ABC News. This week marks two years since a self-described white supremacist killed 10 Black people at a Tops supermarket in Buffalo. In addition to Whitfield's mother, the other victims were Roberta Drury, 32; retired Buffalo police officer Aaron Salter Jr., 55; Heyward Patterson, 67; Pearl Young, 77; Geraldine Talley, 62; Celestine Chaney, 65; Katherine "Kat" Massey, 72; Margus Morrison, 52; and Andre Mackniel, 53. "I will always carry the scar of 5/14 and what happened to my mother. I'll always miss her. So, I don't expect to be healed," Whitfield said. "I know that's something everybody talks about. I think that's kind of an unrealistic expectation." PHOTO: Garnell Whitfield Jr. has dedicated his life to fighting white supremacy in honor of his 86-year-old mother, Ruth Whitfield, who was killed in the Tops massacre on May 14, 2022. (Malik Rainey for ABC News) One of the major hurdles to overcoming his grief, he said, is that such racially motivated killings and other hate crimes targeting Black people continue to rise across the country. An ABC News analysis of the most recent FBI data shows that of the more than 8,500 hate crimes reported nationwide between 2020 and 2022, Black people were targeted in 52.3% of the offenses. Between 2021 and 2022, the numbers rose from 2,217 to 3,421, making Black people four times more likely to be targeted than the overall U.S. non-Hispanic Black population. Hate crimes targeting Black people under the age of 18 rose 10% in 2020, 12% in 2021 and 14.6% in 2022, according to the data. Chart Illustration: Hate Crimes Against Blacks in America 2020-2022 (ABC News Illustration / Federal Bureau of Investigation ) Among the hate crimes committed since the Buffalo mass shooting was a racially motivated attack at a Dollar General store in Jacksonville, Florida, that left three Black people dead on May 26, 2023. On Nov. 22, 2023, a white gunman wounded two Black and two white shoppers at a Walmart in Beavercreek, Ohio, in what police said was a racially motivated shooting. The gunmen in both rampages died by suicide, according to police. In February 2023, a Florida man and a Maryland woman, both alleged to be white supremacists, were arrested and accused of plotting to attack multiple energy substations with the purpose of destroying Baltimore, the U.S. Department of Justice announced. Officials said the pair was fueled by a racist extremist ideology as they "conspired to inflict maximum harm on the power grid" and "lay this city to waste." Both suspects have pleaded not guilty to the charges and are awaiting a trial. "Honestly, we shouldn't even have to look at the FBI statistics to know that Black people in America are still victims of subjugation, of discrimination, of racism, of hate," Whitfield told ABC News. "The fact that's still the case all these years later tells you a lot about this country and what its intent is for us." 'It was a modern-day lynching' About two months before the massacre at a Tops store in the predominantly Black East Side neighborhood of Buffalo, President Joe Biden signed the Emmett Till Antilynching law, named after a Black teenager who was kidnapped, beaten and killed in Mississippi in August 1955 after being accused of whistling at a white woman. The law defines lynching as a hate crime and increases the maximum penalty to 30 years imprisonment for anyone convicted of conspiring to commit a racially motivated crime resulting in death or serious bodily injury. To date, no one has been charged under the law. "There was a reason why it took nearly 200 years to pass an antilynching law in Congress. It's because the power of lynching is so much embedded into the society," Gloria J. Browne-Marshall, a professor of law and Africana studies at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, told ABC News. Browne-Marshall said lynchings were committed to strike fear in Black communities, to "send a message to the community that white men are in charge." Browne-Marshall described the Emmett Till Antilynching law as "powerful," but said prosecutors have been reluctant to apply it to criminal hate crime cases. "So few prosecutors are doing their jobs when it comes to lynching. We as Americans have ignored the power of the prosecutor to bring charges," she said. Browne-Marshall said prosecutors in such high-profile cases as Ahmaud Arbery, a Black jogger who was chased down and killed by three white vigilantes in 2020 near Brunswick, Georgia, initially balked at pursuing charges until widespread protests forced them to take action. PHOTO: Gloria Brown-Marshall is a professor of law and Africana studies at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. (ABC News) "Without protest, the prosecutors are sitting back and allowing these cases to be put under the rug," Browne-Marshall said. But federal prosecutors countered they are using an arsenal of federal hate crime laws to seek justice for victims of racially motivated crimes. In the Arbery case, the defendants -- Travis McMichael, his father, Gregory McMichael, and a neighbor, William Roddie Bryan -- were convicted on state charges of malice murder, four counts of felony murder, aggravated assault with a shotgun, aggravated assault with a pickup truck, false imprisonment and criminal intent to commit a felony. They were all sentenced to life in prison, the McMichaels without the possibility of parole. They were also convicted of federal hate crime charges, including using violence to intimidate and interfere with Arbery because of his race and because he was using a public street. The McMichaels were given additional life sentences, while Byran received a 35-year prison sentence. Protecting civil rights and combatting white supremacist violence was a founding purpose of the Justice Department, and one that we will continue to pursue with the urgency it demands," Attorney General Garland said following the sentencing of the McMichaels and Bryan. "Racially-motivated acts of violence are abhorrent and unlawful, and have no place in our society today," Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Departments Civil Rights Division said earlier this month after a 52-year-old North Carolina man was sentenced to 41 months in prison and three years of supervised release for an unprovoked attack on a Black motorist he shouted racial slurs at and physically assaulted. The attacker, who prosecutors said displayed a Ku Klux Klan flag at his home, was also convicted of physically assaulting a Hispanic neighbor in a hate-filled assault. "The severe sentence imposed for these vicious hate crimes should send a strong message that perpetrators of hate-fueled violence will be held accountable," Clarke added. "The Justice Department is steadfast in its commitment to investigating and prosecuting hate crimes wherever they occur in our country." Payton Gendron, the gunman in the Buffalo massacre, was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole after pleading guilty to 15 state charges, including 10 counts of murder, three counts of attempted murder and domestic terrorism motivated by hate. In January, federal prosecutors announced they would pursue the death penalty against Gendron. A federal grand jury indicted the Buffalo gunman with 27 federal charges, including 14 violations of the Shepard-Byrd Act, a landmark anti-hate crime law signed by President Barack Obama in 2009. The law was named after Matthew Shepard, a gay student who was tortured and murdered in Wyoming in October 1998, and James Byrd Jr., a Black man killed in 1998 by white supremacists who abducted him, beat him and dragged him by a chain from the back of a pickup truck. Garnell Whitfield and Browne-Marshall argued that the Emmett Till Antilynching law should be expanded to include racially motivated mass shootings. "It was meant to strike fear into our communities, to start a race war and further subjugate us, keep us in our place. So, yes, it was a modern-day lynching," said Whitfield, adding that the only difference was that the killer used an AR-15 rifle instead of a rope. While the antilynching law requires proof of a conspiracy, both Whitfield and Browne-Marshall alleged that some social media companies facilitated the teenage killer's white supremacist radicalization by allowing racist propaganda to fester on their platforms. "This is a conspiracy. It's the oldest conspiracy we know white supremacy," Whitfield said. But no precedent has been set for criminally charging a social media company as a co-defendant in a mass shooting, and prosecutors have found no evidence the Buffalo shooter entered into an "agreement" with any social media company to carry out his attack, a requirement of federal conspiracy. In May 2023, Whitfield and other relatives of those killed in the Buffalo attack filed a lawsuit in State Supreme Court in Buffalo in an attempt to hold several social media companies responsible for aiding the killer in his attack. The gunman was "motivated to commit his heinous crime by racist, anti-Semitic, and white supremacist propaganda fed to him by the social media companies whose products he used," the lawsuit argues, adding that the teenager did not appear to have been raised in a racist family, did not live in a racially polarized community and had no reported personal history of negative interactions with Black people. Some social media companies named in the lawsuit denied the allegations it is aiding the indoctrination of users of their platforms in white supremacy. Twitch, the Amazon-owned social media gaming site the Buffalo gunman used to live stream the shooting, said in a statement that it closely monitors its site and took down the livestream of the Tops rampage in two minutes. "We take our responsibility to protect our community extremely seriously, and trust and safety is a major area of investment," Twitch said in its statement in response to the lawsuit, adding it was continuously examining the Buffalo shooting and "sharing those learnings with our peers in the industry to support a safer internet overall." Google, the parent company of YouTube, which was also named in the lawsuit, also issued a statement denying the allegations, saying, "Through the years, YouTube has invested in technology, teams, and policies to identify and remove extremist content. We regularly work with law enforcement, other platforms, and civil society to share intelligence and best practices." Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and Threads, said on its website in February, "We define a hate speech attack as dehumanizing speech; statements of inferiority, expressions of contempt or disgust; cursing; and calls for exclusion or segregation. We also prohibit the use of harmful stereotypes, which we define as dehumanizing comparisons that have historically been used to attack, intimidate, or exclude specific groups, and that are often linked with offline violence. We also prohibit the usage of slurs that are used to attack people on the basis of their protected characteristics." MORE: Buffalo mass shooting suspect 'radicalized' by fringe social media: NY attorney general The Buffalo lawsuit followed the release of a scathing report by New York Attorney General Letitia James' office, alleging several online platforms played roles in the Buffalo mass shooting by radicalizing the killer as he consumed voluminous amounts of racist and violent content and allowing him to broadcast the deadly attack. The KKK is 'alive and well' Advocates against racism are also getting support from some unlikely people. Scott Shepherd -- the former Grand Dragon of the Ku Klux Klan in Tennessee, told ABC News that when he first heard of the Buffalo mass shooting, "it made me sick." PHOTO: Scott Shepherd, a former Grand Dragon of the Ku Klux Klan in Tennessee, describes himself as a 'reformed racist' fighting white supremacy. (ABC News) The 64-year-old Shepherd, who describes himself as a "reformed racist" and now advocates against racial hate, said he also felt guilt. He said many of the same practices he used to recruit KKK members are still being followed. But instead of rallies and cross burnings, white supremacist groups today use the internet to grow and indoctrinate their ranks, Shepherd said. "It's not the robes and hoods, it's the mentality. And that mentality is what we've got to address," Shepherd said. "As I've said before, the internet is a great thing. But that's one of the tools that's being used to radicalize these kids." 'There's nothing special about this day' On Tuesday, a monument titled "Unity" will be unveiled outside the Tops store where the Buffalo mass shooting occurred. A moment of silence will be held at 2:28 p.m. ET marking the time the massacre unfolded followed by a tolling of the bells, officials said. The 5/14 Memorial Commission will also reveal the design picked for a second monument to be erected in Buffalo that is being funded by the state. But Whitfield said that for him, the day will be no different from any other. "So 5/14 may be significant for some, it's two years now since then. But it's no more significant on 5/14 than it is on 5/13 or 5/12, or today. I have to live the rest of my life without my mother and with what happened to her," Whitfield said. Whitfield said he'll continue to speak out against white supremacy and is motivated to be as "consistent and determined" in that work as white nationalists are in their deeds. "Every day since then [5/14] and for the rest of my life, I will honor my mother by doing this work," Whitfield said. "There's nothing special about this day coming up because I've tried to live according to these principles every day. That's how I'm going to honor my mother and my ancestors." ABC News' Alexander Mallin contributed to this report. 2 years after racially motivated Buffalo mass shooting, hate crimes targeting Black people persist originally appeared on abcnews.go.com 21-year-old working on pipe dies when trench collapses, burying him, officials say A 21-year-old Indiana man died after a work accident left him buried in a trench, officials told news outlets. Shawn Young was working in an 8-foot trench installing a water pipe in Noblesville on May 13, WXIN reported. While doing so, the sides of the trench collapsed, the outlet reported. The collapse buried Young up to his shoulders, Noblesville Fire Department told WISH. More than two dozen firefighters responded, and crews were able to remove him from the trench, but he didnt survive, WTHR reported. He was pronounced dead at the scene. We are devastated to learn of a tragic accident that occurred with a member of a subcontractors construction crew, Crew Carwash said in a statement to WXIN. We have no further details at this time. Our thoughts are with the individual and with everyone affected or involved. McClatchy News reached out to the Noblesville Fire Department for more information on May 13 but did not immediately hear back. Noblesville is a 30-mile drive north of Indianapolis. 5,000-pound drum crushes 63-year-old worker to death at Minnesota plant, cops say Tire shop worker crushed to death when RV falls on him, Georgia officials say 23-year-old dies falling down elevator shaft while moving cabinets, Illinois cops say EUCLID, Ohio (AP) An Ohio police officer was shot and killed after being ambushed while answering a disturbance call over the weekend, authorities said Sunday. Police in the Cleveland suburb of Euclid said officers were dispatched just before 10 p.m. Saturday to a home after a reported disturbance. While police were investigating, a gunman ambushed an officer, striking him with gunfire, police said. The officer was taken to a hospital but succumbed to his injuries, police said. Authorities said the suspected shooter, identified as Deshawn Anthony Vaughn, is also dead, Nexstars WJW reported. He was tracked to an address in Shaker Heights Sunday afternoon, and following a standoff, was found deceased inside the residence. Police said the suspect was heavily armed. It is not yet clear how the man was killed. Manhunt over for suspect who killed Ohio officer in ambush Ohios attorney general, Dave Yost, identified the slain officer as 23-year-old Jacob Derbin and said he was in his first year with the department. This photo, provided by the Euclid Police Department, shows slain officer Jacob Derbin. (Courtesy of Euclid Police Department) It is a cruel irony that a mother lost her son on Mothers Day, and that this murder happened just as we prepare to solemnize our fallen during Police Memorial Week, Yost said in a statement. My heart burns with anger at this injustice, for the family of this young officer and the Euclid Police Department. Euclid police asked in a statement early Sunday that people keep the fallen officer, his family, loved ones, and our agency in your thoughts and prayers. He was an amazing human being. Just a great heart. Had an incredible smile. The worlds a better place with him in it, said Euclid Police Chief Scott Meyer. Mayor Kirsten Holzheimer Gail said in a statement Sunday that we find ourselves grappling with a profound sense of sorrow and disbelief. The mayor called on the community to come together in solidarity and support, not only to honor a hero who selflessly served and protected us but also to offer strength to one another in this time of grief. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News. A 24-year-old spent $140,000 buying and converting a Mercedes van. Take a look inside the luxury home on wheels. Abbe Minor spent nine months and $140,000 converting a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van. Inspired by Mediterranean architecture, the van has plaster walls, handmade tiles, and organic shapes. The space isn't just a luxury camper van, Minor told BI. She considers it a work of art. After years of living in and converting camper vans, Abbe Minor naturally became part of a community of people in San Diego working on similar projects. One friend was working on a big red van. Another was building a space where every interior detail was orange with a 1980s psychedelic theme. The 24-year-old told Business Insider that this community offered her a version of "la-la land," a place where boundaries were limitless and challenging the norm was welcomed. So, she set out to do just that for her most recent van-conversion project. In April 2023, she purchased a bold yellow 2022 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter. For the next nine months, she designed and built a space that's just as much functional as it is artistic. She used Moroccan plaster to create organic, curved walls, and handmade Spanish tiles line the shower. The space screams luxury and so does the price tag. By the end of the conversion, Minor said she spent $140,000 on the build. Today, she values the van at $235,000. It's an investment she said she doesn't regret. "I wanted to learn new skills and create something that scared me," she said. "At the core of all this is art." Abbe Minor in her 2022 Mercedes Sprinter. Abbe Minor This is Minor's fourth conversion since moving into a van in college In college, Minor and her boyfriend at the time built out their first van and traveled around the country, checking off 46 states. During that adventure, Minor said she saw firsthand what some people were willing to pay for a camper-van conversion. Though people can spend a vast range on camper vans, the luxury recreational-vehicle market caters to travelers willing to shell out high prices. In 2020, BI reported that some luxury vans could have price tags of $250,000. Since then, luxury camper-van prices have continued to rise. Redtail Overland released its Skyloft Van earlier this year with a base price of $530,000, Autoevolution reported, and Noovo recently unveiled its latest luxury campervan, the Noovo Plus, which starts at $178,000. "It made me realize the opportunity that was there," Minor said. After graduating from college, Minor launched a business converting vans. She'd buy a camper van, spend a few months converting it, sell it, and then live off the profit for the rest of the year. "I've done one per year and I've really tried to make them boutique and artistic," she said. For the past few years, Minor has supported herself through van renovations. She's also diversified her revenue streams thanks to social media and a book she's writing on how to renovate vans. With the first two builds, Minor said her goal was to be strategic with her investment. She kept an eye on trends and focused on efficient conversions so her builds would sell fast. Minor said she made about the average US salary with each sale, so around $60,000. With her most recent conversion, she tossed her thoughts about money aside. Minor was inspired to challenge both herself and the industry on what a van could look like. "With this build, I said, 'Screw it,'" she said. "I don't really care what the market wants. I don't care how much money I spend. I'm just going to create something that has never been done before." The first step was purchasing a yellow 2022 Mercedes Sprinter. The exterior of the 2022 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter. Abbe Minor The van renovation took 9 months and cost her $140,000 A bright-yellow van was the ideal canvas for this project. Not only did it fit Minor's bright personality but it's something "you can't scroll past without being like, 'Whoa,'" she said. Minor traveled to Pennsylvania to pick up the $66,000 van. "Driving it home was the best time of my life," she said. "I was just floating, envisioning what I was going to do with it." Minor then drove to San Diego where she did most of the automobile work. She replaced the van's wheels, tires, and suspension and added a roof rack and ladder. Then she headed to a small island off the coast of Washington where she spent months working from a relative's shed. Minor said most of her time in the shed was devoted to ideation. She drew inspiration from Pinterest and AI renderings. She gravitated toward Spanish and Mediterranean styles where "everything flows together and looks like it's coming out of the earth." The interior of Abbe Minor's $140,000 campervan conversion. Abbe Minor The goal was to learn new skills and use new materials for the conversion. For example, Minor used liquid fiberglass a material that's typically used on the exterior of automobiles inside her van, which allowed her to create the curved walls throughout the space. Minor also covered the van's interior walls with Tadelakt, a plaster used in Moroccan architecture. It's a material she said she'd never seen inside a van. With the help of social media, Minor partnered with brands and installed thousands of dollars worth of free products throughout the space. The van also has a handful of hidden elements. The benches at the front convert into a second bed and a staircase is home to secret storage. The entire conversion, including the cost of the van, cost Minor $140,000. She said that certain materials, such as the plaster and Baltic birch plywood used for the cabinetry, were some of the most expensive parts of the build. The conversion took about nine months to complete, with just enough time to bring it to San Diego's TinyFest, an annual gathering for tiny homes and nomadic living. Minor's van received an award for the best use of space. Handmade tiles and Roman clay are materials Abbe Minor used throughout her van. Abbe Minor Minor said her van isn't just a smart business move it's a piece of art Minor knew this van would be a different investment than her other builds. Instead of immediately selling it as she's done in the past, Minor plans to live in the van and create content to capitalize on the conversion. A bright-yellow van appeals to brands since it stands out. An interior with luxury details lends itself to work with high-end companies. And a space that's visually appealing leads to engagement and interest from viewers around the world. While $140,000 might be a lot for a conversion, Minor thinks it could be more valuable in the long run. This investment, along with her upcoming book, means Minor can continue to live the free, independent lifestyle that van life has offered her. "I know so many van builders and so many companies who have scaled and have focused more on van building from a strictly business perspective," she said. "In which case, it just turns into a regular business that's complicated, that's restricted." "I wanted to be more of an artist and keep my life as free as it can be," she said. The interior of Abbe Minor's van conversion. Abbe Minor Minor acknowledges that everything has a price; she's listed the van on her website for $235,000. In the meantime, she's continuing to tweak and enhance the van as she lives and travels in it. Reflecting on the build, Minor said her goal was to create something uncommon, something "that was a reflection of myself and who I am." She said she believes she's done just that. "It's the best feeling ever when you can create a space that makes someone feel something," she said. Read the original article on Business Insider Bharti Airtel signed a long-term agreement with Google Cloud to deliver cloud and gen AI solutions in the Indian B2B market. In a statement, Airtel detailed that it will offer a suite of cloud solutions from Google to fast-track the adoption of cloud technology by Airtel customers, which comprises of over 2,000 large enterprises and a million emerging businesses. According to IDC the Indian public cloud services market is expected to reach US$17.8 billion by 2027, a market Airtel is targeting with this partnership. The two companies will develop AI and machine learning solutions that Airtel will train on its large data set this will lead to geospatial analytics solutions equipped with location intelligence for trend-spotting, predictive capabilities, market assessment, site selection, risk management, and asset tracking. Additionally Airtel developed an end-to-end IoT solution designed for the utility sector that combines connectivity, Google Cloud services, and application software under one offering. Airtel will also tap into Google Clouds gen AI capabilities to upgrade its customer experience and interactions across mobile broadband and digital TV. This will also extend to B2B customers in India and globally, but the operator did not state a timeline. Gopal Vittal, MD & CEO, Bharti Airtel, said: As India accelerates its digital transformation, cutting-edge cloud and AI solutions will be at the heart and centre of this change. We are happy to partner with Google Cloud and jointly address this market opportunity with secure and scalable Cloud solutions for government, enterprises, and emerging businesses. Together, we will also accelerate the deployment of gen AI in the country and unlock its potential to solve problems. 3 Atlanta police cars involved in crashes in the city over the weekend Atlanta police confirmed there were three separate crashes involving patrol cars in the city on Saturday evening. They all happened near the Capitol View neighborhood where three police officers were shot and a man was killed around 5:15 pm. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] An SUV patrol car crashed at the intersection of University Ave. SW and Smith St. A sedan patrol car wrecked at Beatie Ave. SW and Dill Ave. SW. and a second patrol car was towed from that location. On Sunday, APD could not provide information on damages, officers involved, injuries, or calls related to the crashes. TRENDING STORIES: A spokesperson said all marked patrol vehicles involved in the collisions are subject to investigation, which in turn requires further reports and supplemental entries to be completed, and said those are being processed at this time. APD said it expects to be able to provide that information later. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] IN OTHER NEWS: STOCKTON, Ala. (WKRG) Three people were killed and 15 others were injured in a shooting at an event in Alabama over the weekend, police said. The shooting happened just before 10 p.m. Saturday at a May Day celebration in Stockton, where about 1,000 people were gathered, according to the Baldwin County Sheriffs Office (BCSO). Stockton is located roughly 30 miles northeast of Mobile, Alabama. 23-year-old Ohio police officer killed in ambush, suspect found dead: authorities According to witnesses, the event was peaceful until an argument took place, which led to at least one subject shooting multiple rounds into the large crowd, a spokesperson for the sheriffs office said in a statement. (Credit: WKRG) The spokesperson said detectives believe there may have been more than one shooter, but no arrests have been made. We are working very hard to bring this case to a resolution, but we cannot make arrests or successfully prosecute the offenders without help, the BCSOs statement reads. The Baldwin County Sheriffs Office is asking for the publics assistance with this investigation. Authorities have not released the names of those killed, and the extent of the survivors injuries is also unclear. Anyone who has information about the case or captured video of the incident is asked to contact the sheriffs office at 251-972-8589. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News. 3 Killed, 15 Injured in Shooting at May Day Event in Alabama Around 1,000 people had gathered for the May Day event in Stockton, Ala., when an altercation led to a shooting WKRG/Youtube Authorities investigate the shooting at the May Day event in Stockton, Alabama, on May 11. Three people were killed and 15 were injured after a shooting at a large event in Alabama, authorities said. On Saturday, May 11, around 9:30 p.m., deputies responded to a report of gunshots at a May Day event in Stockton, Ala., where about 1,000 people were in attendance, the Baldwin County Sheriffs Office said in a statement shared to Facebook. According to witnesses, the event was peaceful until an argument took place, which led to at least one subject shooting multiple rounds into the large crowd, the statement reads. A total of 18 people were shot during the incident and three of those victims have died, authorities said. The identities of the victims have not been released by the sheriffs office. According to local station FOX10, family members have identified two of the fatal victims as Christian Bradley, 24, and Chiquita Ewing, 37, a mother of two. Ewing's cousin, Martha Tims, detailed the moments after shots were fired and she realized her cousin had been struck. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE's free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. So I turned around and when I got over there and noticed it was my cousin, I just lost it, and she was just laying there and wasnt responding, Tims told the outlet. According to WKRG News 5, family members confirmed the identity of the third victim killed in the shooting as 19-year-old Micheal Anderson Jr. Authorities believe there may have been more than one shooter and said they are following up on those leads. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Baldwin County Sheriffs Office at 251-972-8589, option 7. As of Monday, May 13, the sheriffs office had not announced that any arrests had been made. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. 3 Killed, 3 Injured After Car Flies Through Air and Hits Power Pole, Cuts Electricity to 500 Homes The accident happened in Pasadena, California in the early hours of Saturday, May 11 NBCLA/Youtube 3 people have been killed and 3 injured in a Pasadena, Calif. car crash. Three people have died and three have been hospitalized after a car crashed into a building in Pasadena, California, over the weekend. Around 2:30 a.m. local time on the morning of Saturday, May 11, a Tesla carrying six people ran through a red light before hitting a curb and flying into a power pole, per the Associated Press, CBS News, and Los Angeles Times. The driver and two passengers died, and three people were ejected from the back of the car, officials said, according to the reports. The driver, who was 22 years old, per CBS News, was said to be going at least double the 35 mph speed limit. According to the L.A. Times, all six people involved in the accident were between 17 and 22 years old. The outlet stated the incident took place while the Tesla Model 3 sedan was traveling westbound on Foothill Boulevard. The building the car crashed into was unoccupied. "The speed was so significant that the vehicle was able to launch into the air and travel through the air ... maybe a hundred feet," Pasadena Police Department Lieutenant Anthony Russo said, per CBS News. "It's extremely devastating, and you think about tomorrow being Mother's Day," Russo added. The Pasadena Police Department didn't immediately respond to PEOPLE when approached for comment. The three people taken to hospital are in a stable condition, CBS News stated. The outlet added that three of the six people involved in the crash were not wearing seatbelts, and stated investigators found some evidence at the scene suggesting that alcohol might have played a part in the crash. It's not been confirmed whether the driver was impaired. Per CBS News, one of the victims was 20-year-old Pasadena City College student and Eagle Scout, Stefan Michael Pfeiffer. The outlet stated some of the people involved in the incident attended Maranatha High School. The private college preparatory Christian school shared a statement on Facebook on May 12. "We are deeply saddened by this weekend's tragic car accident that claimed precious young lives," it began. "We mourn this immense loss and extend our heartfelt condolences to the families and loved ones of all those affected," the message added. "During this difficult time, we turn to our faith in Christ Jesus for comfort and strength and ask others to join us in praying for all who are suffering due to this tragedy," it concluded. 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. More than 500 homes and businesses reportedly lost power due to the incident. City of Pasadena spokesperson, Lisa Derderian, has confirmed that power has since been restored to the area, per the L.A. Times. Derderian didn't immediately respond to PEOPLE when approached for comment. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. FILE - Fotios "Freddy" Geas appears for a court proceeding in his defense in the Al Bruno murder case, April 14, 2009, in Springfield, Mass. Federal prosecutors asked a judge in West Virginia on Monday, May 13, 2024, to schedule a combined change-of-plea and sentencing hearing for Geas and two other men charged in the prison killing of notorious Boston gangster James Whitey Bulger. (Don Treeger/The Republican via AP, File) WASHINGTON (AP) Three men charged in the 2018 prison killing of notorious Boston gangster James Whitey Bulger have reached plea deals with prosecutors, according to court papers filed Monday. The plea deals for Fotios Freddy Geas, Paul J. DeCologero and Sean McKinnon were disclosed nearly six years after the 89-year-old gangster was beaten to death in his cell at a troubled West Virginia prison. Geas, a onetime Mafia hitman, and DeCologero, a Massachusetts gangster, were accused of repeatedly hitting Bulger in the head while McKinnon served as a lookout. DeCologero told an inmate witness that Bulger was a snitch and that as soon as he came into their unit, they planned to kill him. DeCologero also told an inmate that he and Geas used a belt with a lock attached to it to bludgeon Bulger to death, prosecutors said. Geas and DeCologero were identified as suspects shortly after Bulgers death, but they remained uncharged for years as the investigation dragged on. Prosecutors in West Virginia federal court asked the court to schedule hearings for the men to change their not-guilty pleas and to be sentenced, though they didn't provide further details about the plea agreements, which have not been filed in court. Belinda Haynie, an attorney for Geas, declined to comment Monday. Attorneys for the other two defendants didnt immediately respond to requests for comment from The Associated Press. The Justice Department said last year that it would would not seek the death sentence for Geas and DeCologero, who were charged with murder. All three men were charged with conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, which carries up to a life sentence. McKinnon was also charged with making false statements to a federal agent. Bulger, who ran the largely Irish mob in Boston in the 1970s and 80s, served as an FBI informant who ratted on the main rival to his gang. He became one of the nations most-wanted fugitives after fleeing Boston in 1994 thanks to a tip from his FBI handler that he was about to be indicted. He was captured at the age of 81 after more than 16 years on the run. In 2013, he was convicted in a string of 11 killings and dozens of other gangland crimes, many of them committed while he was said to be an FBI informant. Bulger was killed just hours after he was transferred from a Florida lockup to USP Hazelton in West Virginia and placed in the general population. Bulgers transfer to Hazelton, where workers had already been sounding the alarm about violence and understaffing, and his placement in the general population instead of more protective housing was widely criticized by experts after his killing. A Justice Department inspector general investigation found in 2022 that his killing was the result of multiple layers of management failures, widespread incompetence and flawed policies at the Bureau of Prisons. The inspector general found no evidence of malicious intent by any bureau employees, but said a series of bureaucratic blunders left Bulger at the mercy of rival gangsters behind bars. DeCologero, who was in an organized crime gang led by his uncle in Massachusetts, was convicted of buying heroin that was used to try to kill a teenage girl his uncle wanted dead because he feared she would betray the crew to police. The heroin didnt kill her, so another man broke her neck, dismembered her and buried her remains in the woods, court records say. Geas was a close associate of the Mafia and acted as an enforcer, but was not an official made member because he is Greek, not Italian. He and his brother were sentenced to life in prison in 2011 for their roles in several violent crimes, including the 2003 killing of Adolfo Big Al Bruno, a Genovese crime family boss in Springfield, Massachusetts. Another mobster ordered Brunos killing because he was upset he had talked to the FBI, prosecutors said. McKinnon had been on federal supervised release after serving prison time for stealing guns from a firearms dealer when he was arrested on charges in Bulger's killing. ____ Raby reported from Charleston, West Virginia. Three men are facing decades in federal prison after a weekslong crime spree in Southern California late last year that included armed robbery, extortion, bank fraud and identity theft, authorities announced last month. Federal prosecutors say that on Nov. 6, 2023, 30-year-old Oscar Aguirre Silva, a resident of Ventura, threatened a taco truck vendor in Oxnard with violence in order to extort the victim. Just four days later, on Nov. 10, 2023, the 30-year-old robbed a woman at gunpoint, stealing her iPhone and purse, which contained two debit cards, one in her name and another victims name, according to news release from the U.S. Attorneys Central District of California Office. Another man, 28-year-old Ventura resident Edward Donaldo Ramirez, served as Silvas getaway driver during the armed robbery. Both men then traveled to a Walmart store in Ventura, where they used the stolen cards to purchase $524 worth of merchandise, prosecutors said. Not long after that, Silva and 30-year-old Ventura resident David Rey Reyes successfully used and attempted to use the debit cards to purchase items at a smoke shop in Oxnard. Two weeks later, on Nov. 25 and 26, federal authorities say Silva robbed a grocery store and smoke shop in Oxnard. A week after that, on Dec. 2, while under the influence of methamphetamines, Ramirez was found to be in possession of a loaded assault-style rifle without a serial number, commonly referred to as a ghost gun. The firearm carried four rounds of ammunition, prosecutors said. Ramirez was not legally permitted to possess the ghost gun or the ammunition because of his February 2020 felony conviction in Ventura County Superior Court for carrying a loaded firearm. For his part, Silva pleaded guilty on April 25 to one count of interference with commerce by extortion, two counts of interference with commerce by robbery, three counts of bank fraud, two counts of attempted bank fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft. The 30-year-old is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 8 and faces a maximum of 30 years in prison for each count of bank fraud, up to 20 years for the robbery and extortion count and a mandatory two-year term for each count of aggravated identity theft. Narco in Southern California busted with $568K, 103 pounds of cocaine Martinez also pleaded guilty on April 25 to one count of aggravated identity theft and one count of being a felon in possession of ammunition. The 28-year-old faces a maximum of 12 years in federal prison, which includes a two-year prison sentence for the aggravated identity theft count. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 8. Reyes pleaded guilty on March 6 to one count of bank fraud, one count of attempted bank fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft. He faces up to 30 years in federal prison for each bank fraud count, as well as the two-year consecutive sentence for aggravated identity theft. His sentencing is scheduled for May 29. All three men remain in federal custody. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTLA. Designs for a proposed project, looking to bring a new 18,000-square-foot building to downtown Beaufort, was met with contention and questions during a Historic District Review Board meeting Wednesday. Plans for the Greens Drugstore Infill Project, which would be located at 101 Scott St., a spot along Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park, call for a single building that would be designed to look like two different structures, according to the application. The end section of the new building would be two-stories tall, while the middle would be three stories. The projects application was submitted Beaufort Design Build project manager Adam Biery, which is the agent for Greens Drugstore. It was signed by owner Graham Trask. An office, restaurant and rooftop-bar are expected to fill the shell building, and the structure would be across from Saltus River Grill. Currently, the standalone YoYos Ice Cream shop and a parking lot north of it, which are adjacent to the marina playground, are in the proposed projects place. During the board meeting, concerns were raised about the buildings size, materials used, removal of parking spaces, and the design as it relates to current buildings in the citys historic district. Under the Beaufort Development code, the board must consider seven integrity guidelines, including the infill projects design, materials and feeling as it relates to the surrounding structures. Biery said they went through line by line to ensure the project met the code. It was of key importance to get a building that fit the fabric of the downtown, Biery said told the board. (Were) not trying to recreate something that was in the historic downtown or the wharf before, he said. But to design something that gave homage to the past, yet is a modern day building. Aerial view of the proposed plans for the Greens Drugstore Infill Project, which would be located at 101 Scott St., in downtown Beaufort, South Carolina. The design plans were presented during a Historic District Review Board meeting Wednesday, May 8, 2024. Stephen Murray, former City of Beaufort mayor, opposed the project, citing that about 22 parking spaces would be removed and the large warehouse-like design wouldnt align with adjacent existing buildings. Under its current zoning, the plot does not require including parking spaces. We can always build something on this site, Murray told the board. But once built, we are stuck with it for generations. Please, Im begging you, lets make sure that we get it as right as possible before moving ahead. Murray also said based on the design, the building is over 100-feet and because of that it falls under the development code as a large footprint building, requiring approval from the zoning board. I do not see this requirement listed in the staff report, Murray said. I ask that you request the city attorney weigh-in on this project and provide guidance to staff and this board on appropriate approval process before moving forward. Paul Trask, who spoke in favor of the project, said materials can always be adjusted and if theres a code issue regarding the proposed buildings size, measuring beyond the 100-foot requirement, it could be adjusted and presented again to the board. From the original design, Lise Sundrla, Historic Beaufort Foundations assistant director, said the building plans had gone through many changes before what was presented to the board Wednesday. Prior to reaching the board, multiple Historic Technical Review Committee meetings were held regarding the Greens Drugstore Infill Project. The current building design is in alignment of that of Bay Streets existing architecture and the waterfronts historic feel, Sundrla said. Still, she would like to see changes to the type of metal and windows used on the east and west sides of the three-story section. Board members gave conceptual approval with staff recommendations, and it added conditions that the scale is reduced to the center, material choices are studied and the 100-foot requirement is proven to the board in a following meeting. Party cups outside a house at 333 Howard St. in Northborough on Monday. WESTBOROUGH Three suspects in a fatal shooting at a 21st birthday party in Northborough early Sunday were arraigned in Westborough District Court Monday. Authorities say gunfire erupted during a gathering of several hundred people at a rented house at 333 Howard St. Officers from Northborough and surrounding communities converged on the scene about 1 a.m. A 16-year-old male from Bellingham was shot and killed, according to Worcester County District Attorney Joseph D. Early Jr. He was pronounced dead at UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester. One Northborough Officer, Sgt. (Michael) Bisset and a state police trooper carried the victim to the bottom of the hill where there was a waiting ambulance, Early said during a press conference Sunday. Early said another shooting victim a 17-year-old male who was shot in the buttocks was treated at Marlborough Hospital and released. Two other people were treated at Marlborough Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, Early said. Assistant District Attorney Michael Luzzo reads from facts of the arrest as Arnoldo Nogueira Filho, 19; Wallisom Texeira Da Silva, 20; and Pedro Desouza-Passos, 27, are arraigned individually behind a white board in Westborough District Court. Early and Northborough Police Chief Brian T. Griffin said police found a chaotic scene with approximately 300 people at the party early Sunday morning. Early said there is an Airbnb adjacent to the property where the owner lives. An online real estate booking website lists a property at 333 Howard St. in Northborough. The listing touts a "peaceful getaway cottage on grounds of a historic mid-century gem." The three people charged in the case are identified by authorities as Wallisom Texeira Da Silva, 20, of Hyde Park; Arnoldo Nogueira Filho, 19, 243 Boston Post Road East, Apt. 11, Marlborough; and Pedro Desouza-Passos, 27, Rockland. They were arraigned Monday in Westborough District Court. The defendants remained behind a board during the arraignment, out of sight of news cameras. Da Silva is charged with unlicensed possession of an assault weapon, possession of a firearm used in a felony, possession of ammunition without a FID card, and carrying a firearm without a license. Filho and Desouza-Passos are both charged with possession of an unlicensed assault weapon and ammunition without a FID card. According to the statement of facts written by Northborough Police Det. Stephen F. Sullivan II, police were processing a silver Nissan with a New York registration around 2:50 a.m. The driver and the front passenger were two women, while the three suspects who police were about to arrest and charge were sitting in the backseat, according to the statement of facts. According to the statement of facts, filed with court records, the happening at 333 Howard St. was in celebration of the drivers 21st birthday. Police located ammunition in two black purses in the rear passenger seats of the vehicle. A 9 mm, 30-round magazine (with 17 bullets) was found rolled up in a light blue XS Shein shirt in one of the black purses. A 9 mm bullet was also found loose inside the same purse, according to the statement of facts. The second purse, a black Gucci bag, contained a Brazilian passport belonging to Da Silva and one 9 mm bullet. While no one claimed ownership of the first bag, Da Silva claimed ownership of the Gucci bag. As the sun was rising, Lt. William Griffin located a firearm on the grass near the path from the driveway to the Airbnb. The firearm did not have a serial number on it and it was suspected to be a 9 mm, according to the statement of facts. During the booking process, Da Silva claimed ownership of the firearm that Lt. Griffin had located on the property grounds, according to the statement of facts. Assistant District Attorney Michael Luzzo asked Judge Timothy M. Bibaud to hold Da Silva without bail pending a dangerousness hearing. Defense lawyer Jacqueline M. Bush Dutton had no objection. Da Silva is being held pending the dangerous hearing slated for May 20. Luzzo requested both Filho and Desouza-Passos be held on $50,000 cash bail, while the appointed attorneys for the defense both argued that bail should be set at $1,000 for Filho and Desouza-Passos should be allowed to leave on personal recognizance. Both defense attorneys for Filho and Desouza-Passos argued that the statement of facts are somewhat strange and there are plenty of questions on how the police got in the purses and the vehicle, questions that will be brought up during any future court proceedings, they indicated. In addition, the attorneys for Filho and Desouza-Passos said that their respective clients never claimed ownership of the ammunition found in either of the purses nor the gun found on the grounds. In both cases, Bibaud ruled that Filho and Desouza-Passos be held on $25,000 cash bail. Luzzo said there is a detainer from Immigration and Customs Enforcement on both Da Silva and Filho, so they can be detained an additional 48 hours after their release date in order to provide ICE agents extra time to decide whether to take them into federal custody for removal purposes. Authorities have not released the name of the shooting victim who lived in Bellingham but is not a student in the town's school system, according to Bellingham police. About 1 a.m. Sunday, pedestrians flagged a police officer to let them know that someone brandished a firearm at 333 Howard St., authorities said. While police were assembling and preparing to enter the property, they heard multiple gunshots, Early said.It was a little after 1 a.m. when a Northborough Police officer was flagged down by a partygoer right on Howard Street indicating that a firearm was displayed in the house, Chief Griffin said. That officer then called for assistance with other officers and as the officers were gathering down on this street to approach the property. That is when gunshots rung out. The investigation is ongoing. Chief Griffin said if anyone has information and/or video, to call the Northborough Police Department at (508) 393-1515. This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: 3 suspects in fatal shooting at party in Northborough Sunday arraigned The group made it home over the weekend after alerting authorities Getty New Hampshire hiking trail A hiking trip turned into a rescue mission over the weekend when authorities say a group of four was unprepared for a trip up a New Hampshire mountain range and needed help getting back down. Three teenagers and a man were retrieved from a White Mountains trail on Saturday, May 11, the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department said in a statement regarding the incident. State officials said that they were first notified on Saturday night about a group of hikers on the Flume Slide Trail who called for help." They were descending the ... trail but could no longer continue because they had no lights and also did not have equipment to overnight on the mountain. A rescue was initiated because of the risk from the cold temperatures and the unprepared state of the group, the statement continued. Related: Arizona Woman, 59, Falls to Her Death While Hiking and Taking Photos at Grand Canyon As for how they got stuck, the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department said that a dangerous decision was made by the group to descend the particular trail, considered one of the most difficult in the mountains, leaving them needing assistance. 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 celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Conservation officers provided them with lights and other essentials so that they were able to come down the mountain carefully in the pre-dawn darkness. Getty New Hampshire hiking trail Officials went on to urge hikers "to not only make sure they are prepared with proper equipment, supplies and clothing but also with information about the trails, safe bailout or contingency plans and current weather information. Presently snow and ice still exist on many higher elevation trails which can create dangerous conditions even on pleasant spring days, the statement concluded. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. The Sri Lanka government is reportedly making moves to amend the countrys telecoms laws to allow independent companies to build telecoms towers. Under the current Telecommunications Regulatory Commission Act, towers can only be built by licenced telecoms operators. A report from EconomyNext, quoting State Technology Minister Kanaka Herath, said the government has tabled amendments that include opening the tower business to third parties. According to the report, Herath said that the amendments are needed to speed up tower rollouts to meet government targets. The Telecommunications Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka (TRCSL) aims to build 276 towers to boost mobile broadband connectivity and support the rollout of 5G, both of which are needed to help facilitate the governments plan to expand the countrys digital economy to US$15 billion by 2030. However, Sri Lankas economic crisis has forced telcos to slash their budgets for tower construction. Consequently, only 50 towers were constructed in 2023, while another 150 towers are supposed to be built this year, the report said. Herath said the government wants to allow third parties to build towers so that it will develop faster than we have right now, the report said. Herath said that parliament is expected to debate the amendments within two months. If the amendments pass, it could open up another market for regional and global tower companies that have seen tremendous growth in the past few years as telcos divest their tower assets. Axiata Groups Edotco already has a foot in the market, having established a local subsidiary there in 2015. The company has been installing passive infrastructure like smart street poles that can host small cells for multiple tenants. It has also partnered with Hutch Lanka and sister telco Dialog Axiata for trials involving Open RAN and stanadlone 5G, respectively. Four suspects have been arrested in connection to a drug operation that yielded illegal drugs and lots of cash. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] After an investigation that spanned several months, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation conducted three search warrants at two homes in Milledgeville and a home in Macon. During the searches, authorities found crack cocaine, powder cocaine, ecstasy (MDMA), and marijuana, as well as a large amount of money. Officials arrested Martavious Jamale Moore, 31, of Macon, Derrick Tyrone Taylor Jr., 26, of Irwinton, Georgia, Tuaijah Keambre Warren, 28, of Irwinton, Georgia and Kendall Saulsberry, 32, of Milledgeville. TRENDING STORIES: On May 3, Moore was charged with trafficking cocaine, with more charges possible. On May 9, Taylor was charged with several counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime, possession with intent to distribute ecstasy, hydrocodone, oxycodone, Alprazolam, and marijuana, and possession of firearms by a convicted felon. Warren was charged with multiple counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime and possession with intent to distribute ecstasy, hydrocodone, oxycodone, Alprazolam, and marijuana. Saulsberry was charged with possession of a firearm by an individual Under the First Offender Act, possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime, possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, and possession of marijuana with intent to distribute. Moore and Saulsberry were transported to the Baldwin County Jail. Taylor and Warren were booked into the Wilkinson County Jail. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] Anyone with information related to drug or gang activity, call the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Middle Georgia Gang Task Force at 478-207-1301. Tipsters can remain anonymous by submitting a tip online or by downloading the See Something, Send Something mobile app. IN OTHER NEWS: $47.5M: Thats how much in urgent repairs and projects a Manitowoc Public School District facilities audit found was needed in 1-2 years FILE - A scene of Lincoln High School on the first day of school Friday, Sept. 6, 2019, in Manitowoc. MANITOWOC A facilities audit for Manitowoc Public School District has identified more than $47.5 million in building repairs and projects that are considered urgent and need to be addressed in one or two years. The audit, conducted by CESA 10, identified approximately $163.3 million in repairs and possible improvements to the district's properties, including the 10 educational buildings, in the next 10 years. The audit was presented to the Manitowoc School Board during its April 26 meeting. Short-term borrowing, which could give the district up to $15 million to $20 million in spending, would enable the district to start working on the urgent projects. The board would be able to approve of that short-term borrowing without a public referendum, but long-term borrowing would require one. The Manitowoc school district is currently debt-free. The last referendum was passed in 2023 and allowed the district to exceed state revenue limits by a projected $61.7 million over five years, which will conclude at the end of the 2027-2028 school year. Here's what to know about the facility audit. Washington and Lincoln schools identified as high-need buildings FILE - A Washington Middle School student looks over his phone before classes Aug. 30, 2021, on the school's campus. Long lists of urgent projects were identified for both Washington Middle School and Lincoln High School. For Washington Middle School, some of the more urgent projects recommended are repairs to the underdeck area of the pool and replacement of electrical boxes. A concern over deteriorating ceiling of an abandoned coal room was also brought up. The audit estimated that the one- to two-year costs would be approximately $11.7 million, with an additional $16.5 million needed for two- to 10-year projects. Another MPSD restructuring: Manitowoc Public Schools superintendent proposes another restructuring For Lincoln High School, leaky roofs, missing ceilings, cracked walls and a small cafeteria were among the urgent issues. The Lincoln Tower, which has been a topic of community interest for years, was also mentioned. The audit estimated the one- to two-year costs would be approximately $13.6 million, with an additional $33.4 needed for two- to 10-year projects. Next steps include forming advisory committee and planning community outreach FILE - Students walk to their first class on the first day of school at Lincoln High School in September 2019. An internal facilities advisory committee is being formed to help organizers see all facets to each project, including how they will affect student and teacher spaces. Community outreach and involvement by members of the public was also discussed. "The more we can tie the community in with what we're trying to do and unite the board with the community, I think it's very, very important," board member Keith Shaw said. MPSD survey: Manitowoc school staff cite negative student behavior, overwork, local politics in district-wide survey Keith Shaw Board member Kerry Trask said the success of the school district, especially with reading scores and teacher retention, will also have an impact on how favorably Manitowoc residents would look on a possible future referendum. "We have to start looking like a school system that really is worth putting that money into," he said. "... We have to start making the case, though, that this is something that we really have to do." Alisa M. Schafer is a reporter for the Herald Times Reporter in Manitowoc. She can be reached by email at aschafer@gannett.com. This article originally appeared on Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: Manitowoc school district buildings in urgent need of repair: Audit Spring has arrived at the Virginia Capitol. (Graham Moomaw/Virginia Mercury) It took a little while, but Virginias Democratic-led General Assembly and Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin have come up with a budget deal both sides can apparently live with. Legislative documents outlining the agreement were released Saturday morning to allow the budget to be voted on today when lawmakers return to Richmond for a special session focused on finishing the budget. The special session is happening because Youngkin and Democratic leaders spent months publicly sparring over budget priorities and didnt come to an agreement last month under the states usual timeline to pass a budget. Without a new spending plan in place, the state was facing the possibility of a government shutdown on July 1, when the current budget expires and the next two-year spending plan begins. The specifics of the bipartisan budget deal will be explained in more detail as lawmakers take up the bill, but here are five key takeaways. The digital sales tax increase is out Youngkin has repeatedly said he wont sign a budget that raises taxes, and now he wont have to. A contested proposal to expand the states sales tax to cover digital purchases like streaming subscriptions, music downloads and software was struck from the pending budget after Democratic negotiators concluded they could achieve what they wanted to do without the extra money. A presentation prepared for the House of Delegates Appropriations Committee notes that the digital sales tax was only on the table because Youngkin had proposed it to offset other tax cuts he wanted, but was not driven by a systematic look at Virginias tax structure. For now, lawmakers are foregoing the roughly $1 billion in new revenue the digital sales tax was projected to generate over two years. Policymakers have indicated that the decision was made possible by stronger-than-expected tax revenues already coming in, but the idea could come back around in future years. The new budget deal envisions a wider look at Virginias tax policy by a joint legislative subcommittee that will study the digital sales tax and other issues for potential action in the 2025 General Assembly session. Democratic spending priorities are still in Democrats have stressed that the spending in the budget deal closely resembles what they passed earlier this year, meaning they didnt have to abandon big-ticket items by dropping the digital sales tax proposal. The House budget presentation says the deal retains all spending items from the conference report, including funding increases for K-12 schools and higher education. Democrats had proposed major increases in whats known as at-risk add-on funding, extra money the state gives to school divisions with high numbers of economically disadvantaged students. Democrats clearly didnt get everything they wanted out of the 2024 session, as Youngkin vetoed more than 150 bills. Several of them were high-profile Democratic priorities like legalizing retail sales of marijuana for recreational use and raising the states minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2026. However, some of those vetoes freed up money in the budget tied to bills that wont become law. Because raising the minimum wage would have come with extra costs to the state, Youngkins veto of that bill saved $80 million that could be used to balance the overall budget. Teachers are still getting raises The new budget deal includes state funding to pay for 3% raises for teachers and school support personnel in both years of the budget. Youngkin had proposed more modest pay increases for teachers in his original budget proposal last year, but came around to supporting 3% increases in both years in the revised budget plan he offered in April. Democrats have prioritized raising teacher pay to the national average or better, and Youngkins administration has stressed that educator pay has already gone up during his administration. The budget wont be linked to RGGI Early in his term, the governor angered many Democratic lawmakers by issuing an executive order aiming to end Virginias participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, a multi-state program meant to reduce planet-warming carbon emissions. Democrats questioned whether Youngkin had the authority to remove the state from a program the legislature voted to enter, and they insisted on their stance by including language in their budget proposal in March, meant to force the state to rejoin RGGI despite Youngkins objections. The program requires electricity producers to purchase allowances for the carbon they emit, and some money raised from those purchases is returned to Virginia and used for flood resiliency and energy efficiency efforts. Youngkin has criticized RGGI as a backdoor tax on Virginians because it allows companies to recoup the costs through customers energy bills. Litigation over Youngkins move is currently pending in the Floyd County Circuit Court, and the issue now appears more likely to be settled there, or through Virginias 2025 election. No budget do-over for skill games Convenience store, truck stop and restaurant owners across the state have been closely watching whether the state will repeal its ban on slot machine lookalikes known as skill games. If thats going to happen, its not happening through the budget. Instead, the budget scraps nearly $94 million in skill game revenue anticipated for fiscal year 2025, an indication the machines are unlikely to be reactivated by July 1 as the business owners wanted. That money was expected because the General Assembly passed a bill earlier this year to tax and regulate skill games. However, Youngkin gave the bill a sweeping rewrite that upset the skill game industry by including tougher regulations and strict rules prohibiting the machines within a certain distance of casinos and gambling facilities tied to horse racing, places of worship, schools and day care centers. The state Senate flatly rejected all of Youngkins suggestions last month, but at the time both the governor and lawmakers were talking about continued negotiations and finding a way forward. With no action on skill games in the budget, Youngkin can either sign or veto the original bill he tried to overhaul. If the legislation is vetoed, skill game proponents could only continue their fight via new legislation that could be taken up later this year or in the 2025 session. The new budget retains several provisions anticipating regulatory costs for legalized skill games, a sign theres still a chance for the machines to be legalized later. The post 5 things to know about Virginias newly revealed budget deal appeared first on Virginia Mercury. FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) The Fresno Police Department is seeking help solving an unsolved homicide from 2021. Police say 19-year-old Kyrin Wright was fatally shot on May 27, 2021, around 8 p.m. at an apartment complex in the 2200 block of North Fresno Street. Officials say Wright was shot in the upper body and was transported to Community Regional Medical Center where he later died. Investigators say an unknown man wearing black clothing was involved in the shooting and fled in an unknown direction. A $50,000 reward from the governors office for information leading to the arrest of those involved in his murder has been made available. If you have any information contact the Fresno Police Department at (559) 621-7000. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to YourCentralValley.com | KSEE24 and CBS47. A pair out of Clayton, Georgia in Rabun County were arrested for trafficking cocaine. On Thursday, just before 4 p.m., Rabun County Sheriffs Office pulled over a car going north on GA 15/US 441 near the River Falls Campground. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] While a deputy was speaking to the driver, Abraham Montiel, 21, the other deputy noticed that Deborah Sir, a 69-year-old woman, was slumped back in the passenger seat. As the deputy checked on the woman, a strong odor of marijuana was coming from the car. Deputies asked to search the car and Montiel gave them permission to. Deputies then found several baggies and a large bag of suspected Cocaine. TRENDING STORIES: Both Montiel and Sir were arrested, charged with Trafficking in Cocaine in violation of OCGA 16-13-31, and taken to the Rabun County Detention Center for booking. This outstanding work by our K9 team shows the agencys continued effort to eliminate drugs from our community, Sheriff Chad Nichols said. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] IN OTHER NEWS: An argument in a public library led to a deadly shooting that killed a 71-year-old man, Texas police said. Vahid Khaledi, 71, was visiting the library on May 11 when he got into a verbal altercation with 33-year-old Humberto Paz, Brownsville police said. When police arrived, they found Khaledi with a gunshot wound to his head. The argument allegedly broke out because Khaledi asked Paz to keep it down, Khaledis niece, Sarah, said in a Facebook post, though police have not confirmed the details that led up to the shooting. Vahid was like a Grandpa to all of his brothers grandchildren and was a peaceful man, his niece said in a GoFundMe page set up by his family. He enjoyed reading anything and everything about current events and constantly spent time at the Brownsville library. Paz was arrested and charged with murder and aggravated assault, police said. His bail was set at $3.25 million. The Brownsville Public Library Main Branch is closed until further notice, the city announced two days after the shooting. One public library branch remains open in Brownsville. Brownsville is about a 275-mile drive south of San Antonio. Chaotic chase involving 12- and 13-year-olds in stolen car turns deadly, TX cops say Man accused of assaulting ex gets out of jail and shoots her new boyfriend, TX cops say Mom moving car accidentally runs over, kills 2-year-old daughter, Philadelphia cops say The Wayne County Dairy Promotion committee has announced the 77th annual coronation of the Wayne County Dairy Court for 2024-2025. The event was held at the Park Street Complex in Honesdale, Saturday, April 27. Crowned to represent dairy farmers and the dairy industry in Wayne County and Pennsylvania, promoting the wholesome value of milk and its products, are Wayne County Dairy Junior Promoters Lil Dairy Miss: Teresa Tyler, Alice O'Hora, Everly Zablocky and Alice Gold; Dairy Miss: Ruth Gold, Truly Zablocky and Chloe Tyler, and Dairy Maid Zoey Tyler. These eight girls range in age from 4 to 13. Tiffany Tyler for the committee said that the girls are proud to represent the dairy industry by being in parades, doing ice cream sundae competition, fairs, school promotions, community events and much more. "We are so excited to see how this year is going to turn out," she said. "We want to thank the 2023-2024 Wayne County Dairy Princess Sydney Roberts for her dedication and amazing job representing the dairy farmers and the dairy industry in Wayne County and Pennsylvania," Tyler said. "We wish you all the best of luck in the future." The 2024-2025 Wayne County Dairy Court, from left: Dairy Miss Ruth, Dairy Miss Truly, Dairy Miss Chloe, Dairy Maid Zoey, Clarabella the cow, Lil Dairy Miss Teresa, Lil Dairy Miss Alice, Lil Dairy Miss Everly and Lil Dairy Miss Alice. There were no candidates for Dairy Princess this year. Princess Roberts was honored by the Wayne County commissioners with a certificate of congratulations at their April 25 meeting. "Sydney Roberts... has bolstered awareness of the nutritional value and benefits of dairy products throughout our county... Wayne County Dairy Court members spend countless hours promoting the local dairy industry which reverberates beyond the borders of Wayne County," the certificate reads in part. Roberts, 17, is the daughter of Jason and Chandra Roberts of Calkins in Damascus Township and is a junior at Honesdale High School. She is captain of the girls' wrestling team, a two-year member of the District 2 All-Academic wrestling team, a member of the National Honor Society, FFA and 4-H. She cares for numerous pets and farm animals. Commissioner Chairperson Brian Smith said it was important to have people spread the importance of the dairy industry. "We need our farmers, we need our dairy. It is one whole segment of food triangle, and that's not going away," he said, and thanked Roberts for all she has done as Dairy Princess. Outgoing 2023-2024 Wayne County Dairy Princess Sydney Roberts, seated, was honored by the Wayne County commissioners at their April 25 meeting. Standing from left are Commissioners Joceyln Cramer, Chairperson Brian Smith and James Shook. "I think you were very good at it, and I think that is very important," Commissioner Jocelyn Cramer said to Roberts. "You are doing a great service to the ag industry, but I also hope you benefit from this position as well, those networks, being out in front of people, taking to people... It is a great opportunity for the right person to do this." Coincidentally at the same meeting, Bob Morgan, Pennsylvania director of the United States Department of Agriculture Rural Development, stopped in during a tour of the counties, Wayne County being his first to visit. Smith introduced the outgoing Dairy Princess to him and briefly spoke of the Agriculture Innovation Center the county plans to build in Cherry Ridge Township. For more information about the Wayne County Dairy Court, visit facebook.com/waynecodairypromotion. Peter Becker has worked at the Tri-County Independent or its predecessor publications since 1994. Reach him at pbecker@tricountyindependent.com or 570-253-3055 ext. 1588. This article originally appeared on Tri-County Independent: 2024-2025 Wayne County Dairy Court announced The Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU) claims industry workers are becoming increasingly fearful about doing their jobs in a climate of heightened violence and harassment. The group, which surveyed its members this spring on workplace safety this spring, said more than half (57 percent) of respondents have experienced verbal harassment or intimidating behavior from customers, co-workers or managers over the course of the past year. More from Sourcing Journal In fact, as more organized retail theft rings, flash mobs and smash-and-grabs are reported from coast to coast, more than 80 percent of retail workers reported feeling worried about an active shooter coming into their workplace. Employers arent taking the issue seriously enough, they sayonly 7 percent reported that their place of business made changes to the workplace after a violent incident, and over half said theyve received no training at all on how to deal with shoplifters. The vast majority of retail employees (72 percent) said they would feel safer if they were to receive such training, including understanding the risks they face, how to reduce those risks and what to do in the event violence occurs, RWDSUs data indicated. Even more (88 percent) said they would feel safer if a silent panic button was installed in their workplace. Based on these findings, as well as the reality of mass shootings in retail settings and the increase in daily violence, it is clear that we have reached a crisis point in this industry and its the time to act, RWDSU said. The union has thrown its support behind the Retail Worker Safety Act, a New York bill introduced by State Senator Jessica Ramos this spring that would compel employers to evaluate their workplaces for risks, develop a violence prevention plan, provide ongoing safety training for workersand revisit these efforts annually. RWDSU is working with Ramos and New York State Assemblymember Karines Reyes, Chair of the Subcommittee on Workplace Safety to lobby for the passage of the legislation this year. Across the country, politicians have introduced legislation that aims to tackle the issue of retail crime and retail workplace safety. In Virginia, an appeal on a July 2023 law that makes organized retail crime punishable by up to 20 years in prison was blocked in February. While detractors said it went too far, the law, which stipulates that a suspect can be charged with a Class 3 felony if they act in concert with others to steal retail property worth $5,000 from one or more stores over a 90-day period with the intent to sell the merchandise at a profit, will remain in place. In California, a number of measures have been introduced to combat the crime wave. Speaker of the California State Assembly Robert Rivas, along with chairman of the Select Committee on Retail Theft Rick Zbur and chairman of the Assembly Public Safety committee Kevin McCarty in February introduced the California Retail Theft Reduction Act, which targets repeat offenders. The bill stipulates that being caught with stolen property intended for sale would incur a sentence of up to three years in prison. Zbur said the law was conceived to address professional retail thieves who routinely shoplift to turn a profit. Another bill introduced in the Golden State last week approaches retail crime and employee safety from another avenue. Senate Bill 1446, introduced by State Senator Lola Smallwood-Cuevas, would institute a rule where there may only be two self-checkout lanes monitored by any single employee, and shoppers would also be prohibited from purchasing more than 10 items at a time in self-checkout lanes. Certain products, like alcohol, tobacco and items that are typically locked in cabinets or tagged with electronic article surveillance would need to be purchased in conventional checkout lanes. According to Smallwood-Cuevas, the rise of self-checkout has also contributed to a rise in shoplifting. The measure would protect employees from being overburdened with monitoring responsibilities, especially for heavily targeted or expensive items that are tagged and locked away. Acclaimed Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof says he has fled his home country to an undisclosed location in Europe after a court in Iran sentenced him to prison on national security charges. Rasoulof condemned the Iranian government in an Instagram post on Monday, calling it a tyrannical and oppressive regime, and posting a video that showed him crossing the countrys mountainous border. If geographical Iran suffers beneath the boots of your religious tyranny, cultural Iran is alive in the common minds of millions of Iranians who were forced to leave Iran due to your brutality and no power can impose its will on it. From today, I am a resident of cultural Iran, he said. In a separate statement dated May 12, Rasoulof said he had decided to escape Iran after his lawyers told him his prison sentence would be implemented on short notice. I had to choose between prison and leaving Iran. With a heavy heart, I chose exile, he said in that statement, which was provided by a spokesperson. CNN has reached out to Iranian authorities for comment. His lawyer Babak Paknia said last week that an Iranian court had sentenced Rasoulof to eight years in prison and flogging after it found his films and documentaries to be examples of collusion with the intention of committing a crime against the security of the country. Rasoulof is among several high-profile artists to have been caught up in a widening crackdown on dissent by Iranian authorities since nationwide protests broke out over the 2022 death in custody of Mahsa Amini, who was arrested for allegedly not wearing her headscarf properly. Rasoulof, whose recent films have been critical of the Iranian government, was among a group of artists and filmmakers who signed a letter criticizing the violent response of security forces to quell a 2022 protest over a building collapse in the southwestern city of Abadan that killed more than 40 people. Rasoulof won a Golden Bear for best film at the Berlinale festival in 2020 for There Is No Evil and his film A Man of Integrity was recognized for a Certain Regard honor at the Cannes Film Festival in France in 2017. The filmmakers latest work, The Seed of the Sacred Fig, is set to premiere at Cannes next week, but its unclear if he will be able to attend. We are very happy and much relieved that Mohammad has safely arrived in Europe after a dangerous journey, said Jean-Christophe Simon, the distributor for Rasoulofs latest film. The Films Boutique and Parallel45 executive added that he hopes that Rasoulof will be able to attend the Cannes premiere for his film in spite of all attempts to prevent him from being there in person. Rasoulof said on Instagram that he will now work to quickly finish the last technical steps of his films post-production. Many people helped to make this film. My thoughts are with all of them, and I fear for their safety and well-being, he said, accusing the Iranian government of pressuring members of his production team with interrogations, court filings and travel restrictions. Rasoulof didnt specify how he escaped Iran, saying only that he did it secretly with the help of friends and acquaintances. In 2022, an Iranian court sentenced Rasoulof to one year in prison and banned him from making films for two years on the charge of propaganda against the system, according to Human Rights Watch. Iranian authorities have previously arrested him multiple times and confiscated his passport because of his work, HRW said. Additional reporting by Michael Rios For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com A potentially significant announcement made last week but only now being widely reported is MTN Rwandas claim that it is pioneering the introduction of paper-based biodegradable SIM cards in that country. It says the launch of its first ever paper-based biodegradable SIM (or bioSIM) cards in Rwanda marks a significant step in the companys ongoing commitment to protect the planet and promote sustainable business practices. This is in addition to its eSIM offering. As MTN Rwanda, the largest telecommunications company in Rwanda with an estimated 7.4 million subscribers, points out, globally 430 million tonnes of plastics are produced annually, with 2,000 garbage trucks full of plastic dumped into our oceans, rivers, and lakes every day. The telecoms industry contributes 2% to global emissions, with 4.5 billion plastic SIM cards produced in 2020 alone. In line with the MTN Group Environmental Strategy, MTN Rwanda says it has embarked on a journey towards paper SIM cards and packaging optimisation. This move aligns with Rwandas Green Growth and Climate Resilience Strategy and, says MTN Rwanda, underscores the operators commitment to contribute to the nations journey towards climate resilience, carbon neutrality, and the promotion of innovative green economic practices. The raw materials used in the production of the paper SIM cards are 100% Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified, ensuring that the materials come from responsibly managed forests, providing environmental, social, and economic benefits. The FSC is a global organisation dedicated to promoting responsible forest management. MTNs paper SIM cards will biodegrade with time hence the name bioSIM. Since the launch of MTN Project Zero in 2021, MTN Rwanda, under this initiative, has exchanged 23% of its fleet for hybrid electric vehicles and launched a solar panel pilot at three of its data centres in an effort to contribute to the broader MTN Group goal of achieving zero net carbon emissions by 2040. It's not clear when these SIMs will be widely available, but this isnt the first such initiative. For example, in 2022 MVNO Virgin Mobile Kuwait said customers will receive a biodegradable SIM card when they sign up. Lee Circuit Judge Bruce Kyle on Monday issued a bench warrant for the arrest of Jorge Delgado Fonseca, 48, who's charged with one count of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon. A man who attempted to flee on a boat in Miami, charged in a Cape Coral shooting failed to appear Monday, prompting the issuance of a bench warrant. Lee Circuit Judge Bruce Kyle on Monday issued a bench warrant for the arrest of Jorge Delgado Fonseca, 48, of Venus, who's charged with one count of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon. He failed to appear for a trial call. State prosecutors on Dec. 18, 2023, filed a no-information notice on the improper exhibit charge, indicating they'll only prosecute him on the first count. Kayla Rincon-Miller murder: Second teen arrested in Kayla Rincon-Miller not present at arraignment after waiver filed Around 2:45 a.m. Nov. 5, 2023, Cape Coral police responded to the 2800 block of Skyline Boulevard in reference to a shooting. Officers found a victim with a gunshot wound and applied a tourniquet because of the severity of the wound. The victim was taken to a local hospital for treatment. Cape Coral police issued a warrant for Delgado Fonseca's arrest and Miami-Dade police located him Nov. 16 attempting to flee on a boat. Jail records indicate he was released Jan. 11 on $15,000 bond. Tomas Rodriguez is a Breaking/Live News Reporter for the Naples Daily News and The News-Press. You can reach Tomas at TRodriguez@gannett.com or 772-333-5501. Connect with him on Threads @tomasfrobeltran, Instagram @tomasfrobeltran and Facebook @tomasrodrigueznews. This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Bench warrant issued for man who failed to appear for shooting BULLOCK COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT) An inmate at Bullock Correctional Facility was found dead on Sunday, the Alabama Department of Corrections says. According to ADOC, on May 12, 31-year-old Wesley Abernathy was discovered in medical distress in an outside area. He had been serving a 30-month sentence for manslaughter out of Marshall County. Missing Jefferson County 3-year-old found safe In 2021, Abernathy was charged with murder after the Guntersville Police Department said a bar fight led to a shooting. He later pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter. He was taken to the Health Care Unit, where they administered life-saving measures. Medical staff were unable to resuscitate him, and he was pronounced dead. ADOCs law enforcement division is investigating the death, while the cause is still pending. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WHNT.com. Shawntel Gruba, the owner of Iron Range Tykes, speaks at a rally at the Minnesota Capitol on May 13, 2024. Photo by Madison McVan/Minnesota Reformer. Early education providers and teachers from the Iron Range piled on a bus headed south on Monday morning, shuttering their child care centers for the day so they could lobby lawmakers at the state Capitol in the final week of the legislative session. Lawmakers have all but crushed the hopes of child care advocates with a minimalist session, but advocates continue to push for increased spending as part of the Day Without Child Care, a national campaign coordinated by the progressive organization Community Change. Were closer to closing our centers permanently than people think, said Amanda Reed, the director of two child care centers in Virginia, Minn. As independent child care providers struggle to make ends meet, Minnesota families are paying some of the highest rates in the country and early education staff make far less than the cost of living. Across the state, there is a shortage of child care slots and a need for new providers to enter the industry. The coalitions highest priority this session was a bill to establish the Great Start Child Care Affordability Program, which would have subsidized child care costs for families making less than 150% of the states median income. If fully funded the bills authors estimate it would cost around $500 million per year it would cap qualifying families child care expenses at 7% of their household income and stabilize income for child care providers. The bill received hearings in both chambers but will not pass this session due to the cost. With tighter budgets looming on the horizon, DFL leadership including Gov. Tim Walz have taken a more cautious approach to spending this year; of the $540 million supplemental budget agreement, around $59 million was earmarked for spending on children and families. Which means neither parents nor child care workers can expect much help in the foreseeable future. Cody Lupich, a school-age teacher and classroom lead at Iron Range Tykes in Mountain Iron, said his $16 an hour wage is above average for the industry and region but hes about to start a third job in order to save up for a down payment on a home. Im here today because this is a job I want to stay in for a long time, Lupich said. Last year, the DFL-controlled Legislature spent more than $1 billion on early education, including about $575 million to continue a federal COVID-era program that boosted teacher pay. The Great Start compensation supports have been fantastic. We needed the funding. We still need the funding, said Pat Ives, director of Kiddy Karousel child care center in Hibbing. Ives listed off institutions that receive public funding: the Minnesota Zoo, the Science Museum of Minnesota, public schools and community colleges. Why isnt child care on that list? she asked. (Child care does receive significant public spending, but not nearly enough to ensure families arent paying more than 7% of their income on child care, which is a goal set by the federal government.) At a rally in the Capitol rotunda, Rep. Carlie Kotyza-Witthuhn, DFL-Eden Prairie, promised the child care workers and advocates that she would continue pushing for the Great Start Child Care Affordability Program. Many advocates wore purple shirts representing the mixing of red and blue calling not for living wages but thriving wages for child care workers. The post Advocates continue push for public investment in early childhood education appeared first on Minnesota Reformer. Advocates want to expand compensation for downwinders, but Utahns in Congress worry about price tag Military personnel emerge to observe an atomic bomb explosion at the Nevada Test Site on May 15, 1952. (Photo by United States Army/Archive Photos/Getty Images) Congress is currently considering two competing bills that would continue compensating people who were sickened by radiation from nuclear weapons testing and development, known as downwinders. One is sponsored by Republican Sen. Mike Lee and would keep the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, or RECA, alive for two more years. The other is sponsored by Missouri Republican Sen. Josh Hawley and would widely expand the program, allowing residents of Utah, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico and Guam not previously eligible to apply for compensation. Activists and downwinders want Congress to pass Hawleys bill. Most of Utahs delegation appears to support Lees bill. Whatever Congress decides, the clock is ticking. RECA expires on June 10, giving lawmakers just a handful of working days to ensure downwinders can still receive compensation. Passed in 1990 with help from former Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch, RECA provided compensation for Utahns who lived in 10 counties Beaver, Garfield, Iron, Kane, Millard, Piute, San Juan, Sevier, Washington or Wayne for two consecutive years from 1951 to 1958, or during the summer of 1962, and contracted certain types of cancer. People who worked in uranium mines, mills or transporting ore in Utah from 1942 to 1971 were also eligible. Payouts varied, but downwinders could mostly receive $50,000, with uranium workers getting $100,000. But activists have long called for a broader compensation package in Utah, research shows that the whole state was exposed to dangerous levels of radiation from nuclear weapons testing. And RECA failed to cover residents who worked in but didnt live in eligible counties, or people who contracted diseases like kidney cancer, certain kinds of leukemia or autoimmune disorders that are linked to radiation but not covered by the act. Utah Republican Sen. Mitt Romney supported extending RECA by two years in 2022. In an email, a spokesperson for Romney said the price tag and the expanded list of diseases was a sticking point for Hawleys bill. The recent Radiation Exposure Compensation Reauthorization Act drastically expanded the eligibility for benefits beyond the geographic center of the federal governments Nevada Test Site and the list of diseases covered by RECA, the spokesperson said. Without clear evidence linking previous government action to the expanded list of illnesses, and a price tag north of $50 billion, Senator Romney could not support the legislation. A spokesperson for Lee echoed Romneys concerns, telling The Hill that the cost of Hawleys bill gives the senator pause. Both Lee and Romney voted against Hawleys RECA bill in the Senate. Romneys explanation is frustrating to downwinders like Mary Dickson, who was diagnosed with cancer along with many of her family members and neighbors in Salt Lake City in the 1980s. Because they lived outside of the eligible counties, they were never able to receive compensation. Im not sure if theyre aware of the study that occurred showing where the fallout went in Utah, Dickson said on Friday. Its very frustrating to hear them basically deny what happened to their own constituents. Were not being heard. Romneys response certainly irked Hawley, who took to X on Thursday to blast the outgoing Utah Republican. Imagine telling African-American kids from St. Louis who cant go to school or women in St. Louis County who have the highest rates of breast cancer in America or the good people of the Navajo Nation who are sick and dying from radiation that they arent actually suffering, Hawley wrote in a social media post, later calling the expansion a moral imperative. Radiation victims from Utah and Missouri and New Mexico and more will be in DC next week. I invite Mitt Romney or Speaker Johnson to tell these families to their faces that they arent actually suffering, Hawley said. Romneys reasoning is similar to Republican Rep. Celeste Maloys, whose spokesperson told Utah News Dispatch she was focused on ensuring the program didnt expire. Clean reauthorizations are much less controversial and have proved much simpler to get passed. We are hopeful our reauthorization bill will be passed before Utahns lose coverage in just a few weeks, whereas we believe the current expansion bills are unlikely to be approved before the deadline, the spokesperson said. Dickson called that approach the easy way out. Its not serving their constituents. Its more of what theyve done for a while, which is just kicking the can down the road. Why keep delaying what we need to do? she said. And Rep. Blake Moore, a Republican, reaffirmed his support for an additional RECA bill, initially introduced in 2023 by Wyoming Republican Rep. Harriet Hageman. Called the Uranium Miners and Workers Act of 2023, the bill extends RECA benefits to people who worked in a uranium mine or mill until 1978. Moore and Utahs other three representatives are co-sponsors of the bill. I look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle and in both chambers of Congress to reauthorize this program for Utahns, Moore said in a statement Friday. Hawleys bill, which passed the Senate after a bipartisan 69-30 vote in March, would compensate anyone present in Utah during nuclear testing who then got sick, increase the compensation to $100,000 and expand the list of eligible diseases. It would also cover uranium mine and mill employees who worked up until 1990 and extend compensation to uranium core drillers and remediation workers. The bill makes it easier to file for compensation, while further funding Radiation Exposure Screening and Education Program clinics, which screens people exposed to radiation and helps them apply for compensation. In addition to expanding coverage to the entire state of Utah, eligible residents living in all of Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico and Guam would be compensated. However, Hawley didnt sound confident that his bill will get a vote from the House during a speech on the Senate floor last week. Why is Congress failing to act again? Well because the House doesnt want to vote on it, he said. Theres only one month remaining until this vital program goes dark, before people exposed to nuclear waste by their own government get nothing. We have one month to go. And the House has not acted. Utah News Dispatch reached out to the offices of Lee and Republican Reps. John Curtis and Burgess Owens, but did not get a response as of publication time. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Advocates want to expand compensation for downwinders, but Utahns in Congress worry about price tag appeared first on Utah News Dispatch. Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, second from left, Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, Eric Trump, Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird, and Sen. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., listen as former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a break in his trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments at Manhattan Criminal Court on May 13, 2024, in New York City. Trump faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. (Photo by Seth Wenig-Pool/Getty Images) Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird joined Donald Trump in New York on Monday as the former presidents criminal trial continued. Bird was not the only GOP politician in Trumps courthouse entourage. U.S. Sens. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, and Tommy Tuberville, R-Alabama, as well as U.S. Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-New York, joined the former president for the 16th day of the trial. Trump faces 34 felony counts in the case, having been accused of falsifying business records to cover up hush money payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels, who testified last week that she received a $130,000 payment during the 2016 election season for her silence about an alleged sexual encounter. Michael Cohen, a former attorney for Trump and vice president at the Trump Organization, testified Monday, telling the jury about multiple instances when the former president assigned him duties related to covering up affairs or sexual encounters. Trump has pleaded not guilty in the lawsuit. In a news conference staged outside the courthouse, Bird denounced the prosecution of Trump. My background is as a prosecutor, and what I saw in that courtroom today is a travesty, Bird said. Politics has no place in a court of law. Politics should be out on the campaign trail. But instead, because of these charges that are a sham and a scam, he our president, Trump is tied up in court when he should be out on the campaign trail. The Republican attorney general said she is worried about the future of our country if this is the direction that campaigns are going to take, alleging that President Joe Biden is using the judicial system to influence the 2024 presidential election. Trump also faces criminal charges in cases related to allegedly removing classified documents from the White House, as well as in Georgia for allegedly attempting to overturn the states 2020 election results. He is also involved in multiple civil lawsuits, including one case, now on appeal, where he was ordered to pay $355 million for misrepresenting his wealth. Bird said in a statement that it is clear that Biden and his far-left allies will stop at nothing to silence President Trumps voice and keep him off the campaign trail by keeping him tied up in court It is wrong, it is election interference, and our country deserves better. Bird has been a longtime, vocal supporter of the former president. She endorsed Trump in the 2024 Iowa Republican caucuses, which the former president won, in October 2023. The attorney general said her trip to New York in support of the president was intended to demonstrate Iowas support for Trump in the November election. Iowa Democrats criticized Birds trip, questioning whether she had spent taxpayer funds for the travel to New York. Iowans deserve to know whether their hard-earned money is going to a political photo op 1,100 miles from the State Capitol, Iowa Democratic Party Chair Rita Hart said in a news release. Even more so, Iowans deserve an attorney general thats focused on serving her constituents not her political ambitions. A spokesperson for Birds office told the Des Moines Register that taxpayer money was not used to fund the trip. Correction: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated that Cohen was a U.S. attorney general. The story has been updated to fix this error. The post AG Brenna Bird travels to New York, joins Trump for hush money trial appearance appeared first on Iowa Capital Dispatch. This week, Eugene City Council will discuss two proposals meant to raise city revenue including a fire service fee, vote on a proposal to let neighborhood associations change their boundaries and discuss urban growth. Lane County commissioners will vote on accepting a grant to create a deflection program for people charged with recently recriminalized drug offenses and how to spend Lane County's share of opioid settlement money. Eugene City Council To watch: Meetings stream online at bit.ly/Eugene-meetings the city's YouTube channel and the GovHub Media app and are broadcast on Comcast channel 21. The regular session is hybrid but residents must attend in-person to speak during the hearing. The work sessions are virtual only. To listen: Dial 833-548-0282 and use the meeting ID and passcode. WORK SESSION When: 5:30 p.m., Monday, May 13. What: Eugene city councilors are scheduled to give Police Auditor Leia Pitcher her annual performance review. Then they will discuss two of the city's proposals to raise revenue: expanding the city's Stormwater Service Fee to be eligible to cover park services and adding a fee for fire services. Link: https://eugene-or-gov.zoom.us/j/83724486549 Meeting ID; Passcode: 837 2448 6549; council9 REGULAR MEETING To attend: The public hearing will be held in the Mary Spilde Center of Lane Community College's downtown campus at 101 W. 10th Ave. To comment: Fill out the Request to Speak form on May, April 13. The form will be open from 7 p.m. to 7:35 p.m. Written testimony can be submitted to the council by sending an email to mayorcouncilandcitymanager@eugene-or.gov. When: 7:30 p.m., Monday, May 13. What: City councilors are scheduled to vote on a change to their Neighborhood Organization Recognition Policy to allow flexibility in shifting neighborhood association boundaries. Then they're scheduled to hear public comment. Link: https://eugene-or-gov.zoom.us/j/82409360983 Meeting ID; Passcode: 824 0936 0983 JOINT WORK SESSION When: 12 p.m., Wednesday, May 15. What: Eugene city councilors and Eugene planning commissioners will discuss Eugene's urban growth strategy. Link: https://eugene-or-gov.zoom.us/j/87469703534 Meeting ID; Passcode: 874 6970 3534; council9 Lane County Board of Commissioners To attend: These meetings take place at the Harris Hall at 125 E. Eighth Ave., Eugene. Doors to Harris Hall open at 8:45 a.m. To watch: County commission meetings stream at bit.ly/LaneCounty-meetings, Lane County's YouTube channel, Comcast channel 21, and the GovHub Media app. To comment: In-person commenters can sign up at the door. Online commenters should register for the Zoom meeting. To submit written comments, email publiccomment@lanecountyor.gov by noon Monday with the subject line PUBLIC COMMENT FOR MEETING DATE 5/14/2024. MORNING SESSION When: 9 a.m., Tuesday, May 14 What: County commissioners are scheduled to hold first readings for the Willamalane 2023 Comprehensive Plan and development code for unincorporated Springfield. Then they'll vote on payment to Lane Forest Products for their help with post-ice-storm cleanup. Next commissioners will vote on accepting a grant to create a deflection program for people charged with recently recriminalized drug offenses. Then commissioners will vote on approving the budget for the Metropolitan Wastewater Management Commission and appointing commissioner Ryan Ceniga to represent Lane County on the state task force that interacts with the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. Next county commissioners will discuss the next steps following County Counsel Erin Pettigrew's resignation. MORNING SESSION When: 1:30 p.m., Wednesday, May 15 What: County commissioners are scheduled to discuss how to spend Lane County's share of opioid settlement money. Alan Torres covers local government for the Register-Guard. He can be reached over email at atorres@registerguard.com or on X @alanfryetorres. This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Lane County to discuss grant for drug offense deflection Michael Cohen departs home to testify in Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump's criminal trial in New York Michael Cohen departs home to testify in Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump's criminal trial in New York By Luc Cohen and Jack Queen NEW YORK (Reuters) -Donald Trump's former fixer Michael Cohen told jurors on Monday that the Republican presidential candidate personally approved a hush money payment to bury a porn star's story of a sexual encounter before it could derail his 2016 campaign. "Just do it," Cohen said Trump told him, instructing him to figure out the best way of paying adult film actress Stormy Daniels $130,000 to stay quiet about an alleged 2006 liaison, which he denies. The October 2016 payment is at the center of the historic trial, which entered its fifth week in New York state criminal court in Manhattan. Prosecutors have said they could rest their case this week. In hours of dramatic testimony, Cohen, 57, once one of Trump's most loyal lieutenants and now the prosecution's star witness, described multiple episodes in which Trump signed off on payments aimed at quashing sex-scandal stories while he campaigned for the highest office in the land. In the final weeks before the 2016 election, Cohen learned that Daniels was shopping her story to tabloids. It was a pivotal moment for the Trump campaign, which was reeling from the release of an audio recording from the TV show "Access Hollywood" in which Trump bragged about grabbing women's genitals. "He said to me, 'This is a disaster, a total disaster. Women are going to hate me,' Cohen, wearing a dark suit and pink tie, testified Trump had said. "'Guys, they think it's cool, but this is going to be a disaster for the campaign.'" Prosecutors have said Trump paid Cohen back after the election and hid the reimbursements by recording them falsely as legal retainer fees in Trump's real estate company's records. Trump faces 34 counts of falsifying business records tied to the reimbursements. Prosecutors say the altered records covered up election-law and tax-law violations - since the money was essentially an unreported contribution to Trump's campaign - that elevate the crimes from misdemeanors to felonies punishable by up to four years in prison. Trump, who is running against Democratic President Joe Biden in November, has pleaded not guilty and argues the case is a politically motivated attempt to interfere with his campaign to take back the White House. Trump's defense has suggested the payment to Daniels, who testified last week, was meant to protect his family from embarrassment. But Cohen testified that Trump was solely concerned with the effect on his campaign. "He wasn't thinking about Melania. This was all about the campaign," Cohen said, referring to Trump's wife. At the defense table, Trump, 77, shook his head. Cohen also told the 12 jurors and six alternates that Trump urged him to delay sending payment to Daniels' lawyer until after the election, telling him that the story would no longer matter. Trump's lawyers have argued that Cohen, a felon and admitted perjurer, is lying about Trump's involvement and acted on his own. But Cohen said he would never have taken such drastic steps without Trump's approval. "Everything required Mr. Trump's sign-off," Cohen said. Offering a detailed timeline of the chaotic days during the 2016 campaign's final weeks, Cohen said he set up a shell company - falsely listed as a "real estate consulting company" - to facilitate the payment through a bank across the street from New York City's Trump Tower. Cohen described how he and campaign spokesperson Hope Hicks frantically tried to contain the fallout when the Wall Street Journal published a story detailing another hush money payment while also mentioning Daniels. Jurors saw emails showing the two advisers hammering out a denial, while phone records showed a number of calls between them on the day the story appeared. That testimony could undercut any defense claim that the hush money payments were not tied to the campaign. SECRET PAYMENTS Cohen testified earlier in the day that Trump approved other payments to forestall damaging stories. When Trump was preparing to announce his 2016 campaign, Cohen said, Trump warned him there would be "a lot of women coming forward." Cohen said he, Trump and National Enquirer publisher David Pecker agreed to use the tabloid to boost Trump's presidential candidacy while blocking any negative stories. That arrangement included a $150,000 payment from Pecker's company to former Playboy model Karen McDougal to buy her story about a year-long affair she said she and Trump had, Cohen said. Trump has also denied that relationship. Jurors were played a recording Cohen said he made of a meeting in which Trump asked him, "So what do we got to pay for this? One-fifty?" Pecker previously testified at the trial that he acquired McDougal's story to keep it under wraps and that he eventually decided not to seek reimbursement from Trump. For nearly a decade, Cohen worked as an executive and lawyer for Trump's company and once said he would take a bullet for Trump. Cohen said it was fair to describe his role as a fixer for Trump, testifying that he took care of "whatever he wanted." Among his duties was threatening to sue people and planting positive stories in the press, he said. Trump, he said, communicated by phone or in person and never set up an email address. Jurors were shown multiple phone records of Cohen's calls to Trump at moments when he testified he was executing the hush money deals. "He would comment that emails are like written papers, that he knows too many people who have gone down as a direct result of having emails that prosecutors can use in a case," Cohen said. Cohen pleaded guilty in 2018 to violating federal campaign finance law by paying off Daniels and testified that Trump directed him to do so. Federal prosecutors did not charge Trump with any crime. The Manhattan trial is widely seen as less consequential than three other criminal prosecutions Trump faces, all of which are mired in delays. The other cases charge Trump with trying to overturn his 2020 presidential defeat and mishandling classified documents after leaving office. Trump pleaded not guilty to all three. Cohen will resume testifying on Tuesday. (Reporting by Luc Cohen and Jack Queen in New York; Writing by Joseph Ax; Editing by Noeleen Walder and Howard Goller) How to aid family during unimaginable difficult time after mom died on San Joaquin River A GoFundMe appeal has launched for the family of Brenda Duran, who died after trying to rescue her daughter on the San Joaquin River. The online site seeks $10,000 in donations for funeral costs and for living expenses for Durans husband and three children. Duran, 30, was reported missing at about 6:30 p.m. Thursday from the Fishermans Bend trailer park near Newman, where the family lives. The body of Brenda Duran was recovered Saturday, May 11, 2024, in the San Joaquin River near Newman. Duran jumped into the water Thursday to aid her struggling daughter. She had jumped into the river to aid an 11-year-old daughter who was struggling to stay afloat, the Stanislaus County Sheriffs Office said. It reported that searchers found Durans body at about 5:30 p.m. Saturday. In honor of her memory and the support of her family, we have created this GoFundMe page to raise funds for the Guzman Duran family during this unimaginable difficult time, the appeal says. It also has a Spanish version. The family had moved from Washington state just two weeks earlier and was not employed, a cousin told The Modesto Bee on Saturday as a few dozen loved ones gathered next to the river to await word on Durans whereabouts. Brenda, a young mother full of love and laughter, leaves behind her three children, her husband and her extended family that will forever hold her in her heart, the appeal says. As of 10:30 a.m. Monday, it had raised $770 from 19 donors. Alabama has become the second U.S. state to say no to cultivated meat, an alternative protein made from animal cells. The Alabama bill, proposed by Sen. Jack Williams, vice chair of the Senate Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry Committee, and signed into of law on May 7 by Gov. Kay Ivy, prohibits "the manufacture, sale, or distribution of food products made from cultured animal cells." The new law comes a week after Gov. Ron DeSantis made Florida the first state to ban the sale of so-called lab-grown meat. "We stand with agriculture, we stand with the cattle ranchers, we stand with our farmers, because we understand it's important for the backbone of the state," DeSantis said in a May 1 press conference, the start of National Beef Month. "Today, Florida is fighting back against the global elite's plan to force the world to eat meat grown in a petri dish or bugs to achieve their authoritarian goals," the DeSantis added. Sales of beef cattle and breeding stock generate over $900 million per year in the state, according to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Beef production is a focal point of climate change discussions as it is a major contributor to global methane emissions. "A single cow produces between 154 to 264 pounds of methane gas per year," according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Multiply that by the 1.5 billion beef cattle raised worldwide, and you get a total of at least 231 billion pounds of methane expelled yearly into the atmosphere. By contrast, cell-based protein doesn't require the land, water and crops needed to raise livestock, a boon for the environment as global demand for meat rises, experts note. Global funding for cultivated meat and seafood companies, of which there are more than 100, reached $225.9 million in in 2023 and a total more that $3 billion since 2013, according to the Good Food Institute. "Legislation that bans cultivated meat is a reckless move that ignores food safety experts and science, stifles consumer choice, and hinders American innovation," Sean Edgett, chief legal officer of Upside Foods, said in a statement to CBS MoneyWatch. "Major meat companies have invested in cultivated meat to enhance supply chain resilience and meet rising global demand for meat. We should be embracing innovation for a better food future." Upside, one of only two cultivated meat firms to receive clearance by the USDA to sell their chicken products in the U.S., has received investments from food giants Cargill and Tyson Foods as well as billionaires Richard Branson and Bill Gates. In response to the Alabama and Florida bans, Upside started a change.org petition urging consumers to tell politicians "to stop policing" their dinner plates. With reporting from the Associated Press. U.S. honey bee population reaches record high Slovak prime minister shot, in life-threatening condition Potential running mates attending Trump's criminal trial Rep. Chris Blackshear, R-Smiths Station (right) speaks to Rep. Andy Whitt, R-Harvest, on the floor of the Alabama House of Representatives on April 25, 2024 at the Alabama Statehouse in Montgomery, Alabama. (Brian Lyman/Alabama Reflector) The gambling debate comes back to the Alabama Legislature every year or two, like a 40- or 50-year-old rerun of a sitcom. The characters, all performing on a tiny, windowless set, return from the previous adventure to perform a variation on the story weve seen countless times before. A plan is made. The plan goes awry. The players make some quips and perform a few pratfalls. Toward the end of the show, theres a beat where the hijinks halt, the piano and strings come up on the soundtrack, and the actors suddenly try to tie the narrative to a social concern, or some issue in the news. Then, suddenly, the story ends. The conflicts get put aside; the status quo is restored. And nothing meaningful changes. This was the 2024 gambling debate. It was a little different from the one in 2021, or 2016, or 2010, or 1999. But it had most of the original cast and followed the same beats. One legislative chamber passes a gambling bill. Minority Democrats get it over the line. The Alabama Farmers Federation scowls. GOP leaders in the other chamber cant or wont find a consensus in their caucus. The Poarch Band of Creek Indians and the states dog tracks are on the same page, and then they arent. The proposal gets rejected or gutted. Theres a last minute scramble to save something as the session dies. It fails. Roll credits. Family Ties, only the Keatons spend a half-hour each week yelling about a big money poker game in their basement. And its hard to see how we ever escape this cycle. Alabamas government is not nimble. Thats by design. A lottery may be popular. Legislators tried to pull that provision out of the gambling wreck last week, because they know theyre going to hear complaints about a lack of a lottery for the next nine months. But Goat Hill is not meant to respond to popular will. Our state constitution, framed to keep Alabama under the thumbs of white elites, gives state government a single purpose: maintaining the status quo. Or more specifically, keeping the powerful happy and the rest of us in line. And for now, the states status quo on gambling satisfies our leaders and the powerful entities around them. Im not here to make the case for gambling. As public policy, I think its terrible. Gambling is effectively another regressive tax in a state that already expects those least able to pay to fund a government habitually uninterested in their concerns. But its perfectly reasonable to point out that all our neighbors have lotteries, and that Alabamians are going across the border, buying lottery tickets and helping other states bottom lines. And the current status quo is, to put it mildly, sub-optimal. It doesnt give lawmakers the tax revenue they could have. Or gambling interests all the profit they could claim. It leaves mostly-Black communities that have approved gambling at the mercy of a mostly-white Republican judiciary that narrowed the results of those local elections, often on dubious grounds. But for the entities closest to the issue, none of this presents a threat or a need. The Poarch Band of Creek Indians, a federally recognized tribe that runs casinos in Atmore, Montgomery and Wetumpka, offers the only gambling in Alabama thats totally free of legal impediments. Theyre doing well. Nothing the Legislature offered the Poarch Band this year could convince them to sign off on another approach. In fact, what they eventually settled on turned the Poarch Band into strong opponents. Dog tracks, often big employers in rural districts, face legal uncertainty. But Republicans who run the Legislature generally dont represent districts with dog tracks. They have no political need to settle that issue. And whatever your feelings about a lottery, theres nothing forcing legislators to create one. The budgets are in good shape. Any program lawmakers want to fund can be paid for out of existing revenues (or borrowing). Even if most people support a vote on a lottery, the vast majority of Republican incumbents are in safe GOP districts. You might be angry about the gambling failure. Gerrymandering protects lawmakers from your fury. They worry more about gambling opponents like the Alabama Farmers Federation and the Alabama Policy Institute, both influential in conservative circles. So why does the gambling issue come back? Theres too much legal uncertainty and too much money at stake to ignore it. And when we take up the issue again, the package developed this year by Reps. Chris Blackshear, R-Smiths Station, and Andy Whitt, R-Harvest itself derived from a 2021 measure backed by then-Senate President Pro Tem Del Marsh, R-Anniston will be as good a model as any for proponents. But can public will and public need actually move the issue forward? In 2016, we had popular support for gambling and a General Fund budget that desperately needed the revenue. It still wasnt enough. So the Alabama gambling debate stays in reruns. And long as the current gambling landscape doesnt threaten the powers that be, well always know how the latest episode is going to end. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post The Alabama gambling debate, stuck in reruns appeared first on Alabama Reflector. Technology giant Huawei, alongside Chinese electrical appliance manufacturer, Midea, Thai operator AIS, and Chinese operator China Unicom say they have jointly implemented the first 5G fully connected factory in Southeast Asia, setting what they describe as a new standard for smart manufacturing in the region. Harnessing the comprehensive 5G network coverage of the Midea Industrial Park in Chonburi, a province in eastern Thailand, and a 5G+ industrial internet platform, each production phase is seamlessly connected through 5G terminals to enable faster machine operation. A dedicated 5G private network has been deployed to support factory operation requirements and leverage intelligent industry applications. This facilitates manufacturing scenarios and interconnects each production line. This collaboration is said to mark a new milestone in the 5G era, enhancing efficiency, safety and automation in complex production processes. Among the key solutions that make the factory 5G fully connected are 5G data collection and analysis to optimise equipment utilization, mitigate downtime and enhance overall equipment capacity, and 5G automated guided vehicles (AGV), while 5G AI inspection helps to reduce the number of reworked devices and rework rates and minimise operational errors. Other important solutions include 5G robotic arms controlled by workers via 5G smartphones (eliminating the need for hazardous manual intervention in the production process), and a 5G operating room simulating and testing the status of outdoor compressors, ensuring efficient and reliable operations. In addition, with zero data loss and low-latency capabilities, 5G backhaul guarantees seamless data transmission for critical applications. Throughout this project, say the partners, operators have been pivotal in driving digital transformation, leveraging their expertise and local ecosystem to deploy 5G. Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey delivers the State of the State address on Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2024 in Montgomery, Ala. (Stew Milne for Alabama Reflector) Gov. Kay Ivey Thursday signed legislation requiring state agencies to acknowledge and respond to public records requests within set time frames. SB 270, sponsored by Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, sets two standards for two types of requests, based on time intensity and effort needed by the government agency. The law goes into effect on Oct. 1. Rep. Cynthia Almond, R-Tuscaloosa, who handled the bill in the House, said in a phone interview Friday that this bill was much needed because of an absence of specificity, such as a timeline for responding to requests or a framework for agencies to deal with cumbersome requests. She said the bill strikes a good balance between those two interests. The public has a right to know and request public information and at the same time, there needs to be some parameters and guidelines for the people who are tasked with responding. They need to respond promptly, but also, they get a lot of unreasonable or frivolous requests, and now they have a way of trying to handle that in an appropriate way, Almond said. While Alabama has long had open records laws, the law did not have deadlines for agencies to respond to open records requests, a provision that effectively allowed state agencies to ignore them. The only recourse to obtaining a record was to bring a lawsuit. The legislation sets 10 days for acknowledgement for a standard or time-intensive request; provide for a substantive response of denial or fulfillment within 15 business days after acknowledgement, with possible extensions. The agency may also notify that a request falls under a time-intensive request within 15 days of acknowledgment. If the requester proceeds with a time-intensive request, the agency has to respond with a denial or fulfillment within 45 business days, with possible extensions. In an emailed statement, Gov. Kay Iveys office said this was the most significant change to Alabamas public records law in over 50 years. Transparency isnt just a buzzword its a commitment to letting the sunlight in and ensuring our citizens can hold their government accountable, said Gov. Kay Ivey in the statement. Ivey signed an executive order in early 2023 setting minimum requirements for public access to public records, which Iveys office said SB 270 largely codifie[d] into law. The order required state agencies to acknowledge requests within two days. It also requires agencies to make a formal response to requests within 15 days. The order also caps copying charges (always a potential wallet drainer) to 50 cents a page and makes it clear that there will be no fee for electronic documents. A similar bill moved through both chambers last year, but the bill died on the last day of session. J. Evans Bailey, a media law attorney in Montgomery who worked on the legislation with the Alabama Press Association, said that last years bill tried to follow Iveys executive order. The legislation wasnt compatible with the executive order in some ways, such as having a distinction between time intensive and standard requests. When a whole branch of the government is operating under that framework through an executive order, it kind of makes it easier for other branches and for counties and municipalities and all various boards to see that it can work and feel comfortable with it, Bailey said. Felicia Mason, executive director of the Alabama Press Association, who worked on the bill with the Governors office, said in a phone interview Friday that the administration worked with the association long before the session started to make the bill compatible with the executive order. She said that local governments, such as counties and cities, were also involved in the discussions. In many cases [last years bill] didnt work for other entities, small staff, small areas, counties and cities. So that just took some tweaking to get that in line so that it was fair to the public and to the custodians of the records. Everybodys not the same in terms of the staff and how you know how easy it is for them to get records, Mason said. The law does not include an appeals process if a record is denied, and it does not cap fees that agencies may charge for producing public documents. Bailey said that while the public records law is definitely stronger than it was, an area to look at for the future is to look at ways to make the process more equitable when it comes to disputes. The average Alabama citizen may not be able to afford court proceedings. Whether its an ombudsman or some sort of committee, other states handle it in ways that dont necessarily involve every open records dispute winding up in litigation, he said. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post New Alabama law will require state agencies to respond to open records requests appeared first on Alabama Reflector. Jan Bronson of Anchorage and Cathy Walling of Fairbanks, representing the Alaska Friends Conference, apologize to Alaska Native communities for the boarding schools it ran in Alaska and the United States. The apology took place at Sayeik Gastineau elementary school, the former site of a Quaker mission school in Juneau, during Orange Shirt Day, Sept. 30, 2022. (Photo by Lisa Phu/Alaska Beacon) Jan Bronson of Anchorage and Cathy Walling of Fairbanks, representing the Alaska Friends Conference, apologize to Alaska Native communities for the boarding schools it ran in Alaska and the United States. The apology took place at Sayeik Gastineau elementary school, the former site of a Quaker mission school in Juneau, during Orange Shirt Day, Sept. 30, 2022. (Photo by Lisa Phu/Alaska Beacon) Alaska lawmakers overwhelmingly voted to support a federal proposal that would investigate and document the forced assimilation of American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian children in government-funded boarding schools. House Joint Resolution 17 acknowledges the trauma Indian boarding schools inflicted on Indigenous communities in Alaska and across the country, said the bills sponsor, Rep. CJ McCormick, D-Bethel. There were more than 100 government-funded, church-run Alaska Native boarding schools in Alaska from the late 1800s through the 1960s, according to research presented by his office and the Alaska Native Heritage Center. They separated young children from their families and forcibly immersed them in Euro-American traditions and the English language. McCormick said the legacy of abuse and intergenerational trauma continues to haunt Alaskans and requires acknowledgement. I think a lot of my colleagues were honestly kind of taken aback by the extent of these atrocities, he said and described how research and testimony changed their minds. The lack of comprehensive documentation of this period limits our ability to address intergenerational trauma caused by the policies that supported the federal Indian boarding school system. Sen. Forrest Dunbar, D-Anchorage The Senate unanimously approved the resolution and it had overwhelming support in the House. Rep. David Eastman, R-Wasilla, was the lone vote against it. The resolution puts Alaska lawmakers in support of a U.S. Senate bill that would direct a federal commission to gather evidence of assimilation practices and human rights violations in the nations boarding schools for Indigenous children. Alaska Republican U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski has led the bipartisan effort with U.S. Sens. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, in Washington, D.C. It has 32 cosponsors. Threaded through our community Callan Chythlook-Sifsof, staff who worked on the bill for McCormicks office, shared that her grandfather and most of the elders in her family attended the Aleknagik Mission School in Southwest Alaska, where she is from. She noted that the buildings and memories are present, but largely unacknowledged in official records. This is a phenomenon Ive known about my whole life. And I can just look across the lake and look at the Mission School, Chythlook-Sifsof said. There is not one Alaskan Native alive today who has not been directly or indirectly affected by this history. It still walks with us. Benjamin Jacuk, Indigenous researcher for the Alaska Native Heritage Center While first-person accounts of boarding school abuses are becoming more common, official documentation is scarce. The resolution supports a change that can help Alaskans heal, explained Sen. Forrest Dunbar, D-Anchorage, who carried the bill in the Senate. The lack of comprehensive documentation of this period limits our ability to address intergenerational trauma caused by the policies that supported the federal Indian boarding school system, he said. He said the resolution is a step towards addressing a trauma that is threaded through our community and our Alaskan culture. Notable Alaskans who experienced boarding school abuses spoke out about their experiences in committee meetings with lawmakers this year. Rosita Worl, widely known as the president of Sealaska Heritage Institute, the nonprofit arm of Sealaska Corp., and as a community leader in Southeast Alaska, shared the story of how she was taken from her home in Petersburg and taken to an orphanage and Alaska Native boarding school in Haines, without the knowledge of her family members. She said she was ridiculed for speaking Tlingit instead of English and tearfully confirmed that sexual abuse took place there. Another memory that haunts me is seeing girls who are almost comatose. They would walk without ever talking or smiling. They would walk like zombies. I often wondered what happened to them, for one day I would see them and then the next day I wouldnt, she said. Worl recalled being rented out by the Haines House for various jobs as an underage, unpaid laborer. She said on good days her grandparents would rent her and take her berry picking instead of forcing her to work. Walkie Charles, now the director of the Alaska Native Language Center at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, recounted being stripped of his name and reidentified by a number at Wrangell Institute where he was taken for boarding school. The kids in the generation before me were so beat up that upon their return home to their communities, they either couldnt speak their heart language anymore, or refused to, because they were ashamed enough to choose the language of our oppressors, he said. Charles now teaches Yupik, the language the boarding school tried to erase. New research Even as the resolution moved through the legislative process, researchers found documentation that reinforces the memories of boarding school survivors. Alaska Native Heritage Center Indigenous Researcher Benjamin Jacuk offered lawmakers a history of Alaska Native boarding schools in the state, and evidence of abuses that took place in them. He said Alaska was ground zero for national boarding school policies. There is not one Alaskan Native alive today who has not been directly or indirectly affected by this history, he said. It still walks with us. Last Monday he said he found evidence of the unpaid labor Worl recounted in previous testimony. We actually found contracts, which they would have parents who at the time did not know English sign, that are labeled as indentured servanthood children, from infants to 14 years old, he said. Making the conversation not only about assimilation, but also for all intents and purposes, slavery. Jacuk said that revealing the darker truths of abuse within the states boarding schools is essential to moving forward. In order to understand what healing even looks like, we first need to know the truth, he said. And when we understand the truth, and were able to actually tell it, it brings healing to not only the people that are here today, or even the next generation, but also that to bring healing to the stories of those who came before us who are never able to tell their story. The post Alaska lawmakers support push to investigate, document forced assimilation in boarding schools appeared first on Alaska Beacon. This article was originally published in Alaska Beacon. The Alaska Supreme Court proposed hearing the states appeal to a court case that struck down key components of its correspondence school program before the end of June. Oral arguments would be held June 25, five days before the end of a hold on the lower courts ruling. Superior Court Judge Adolf Zeman ruled that two sections of state law allowed public funds, in the form of per student allotments, to be spent at private and religious organizations in violation of the state constitution. Attorneys for the state appealed the decision last week. Get stories like these delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter The court date comes as lawmakers seek statutory fixes to stabilize correspondence programs for the families that use them. House Bill 400 and Senate Bill 266 take different tacks, however. HB 400 instructs the governors appointees on the states Board of Education and Early Development to find a constitutional solution and its language leaves the door open to a constitutional amendment. SB 266 repeals the language Zeman found unconstitutional and tightens restrictions on how families spend and districts report state education dollars. It would also make it tougher for parents to opt out of standardized academic testing for their children. Gov. Mike Dunleavy has signaled that he would not allow a legislative fix to become law before the Supreme Courts decision. Any decision would come after the end of the regular legislative session on May 15. Dunleavy has suggested a special session of the Alaska Legislature may be necessary to respond. Alaska Beacon is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Alaska Beacon maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Andrew Kitchenman for questions: info@alaskabeacon.com. Follow Alaska Beacon on Facebook and Twitter. QUEENS, N.Y. (PIX11) An alleged squatter is accused of forging lease documents and illegally living in a home in Jamaica, the Queens County District Attorney announced on Monday. Lance White-Hunt, 24, was arraigned on an 18-count indictment. He could face up to 15 years in prison if convicted, prosecutors said. More Local News The ordeal began in February 2024, when the homeowner listed the residence for rent through a broker at Top Nest Properties, according to court documents. Prosecutors said the broker visited the residence multiple times and had a key for the front two doors. On March 1, the broker noticed the locks on the front door were changed, and her key no longer worked, prosecutors said. A few days later, the broker saw White-Hunt inside the residence, officials said. When the broker notified the police, White-Hunt allegedly said he had been staying there since January and provided a lease that listed the broker and Top Nest Properties as the landlords, officials said. The broker said her signature was forged, and she had never seen the document before. What to know about NYC squatter rights The next day, White-Hunt provided police with documents from National Grid and AT&T, officials said. Both companies later confirmed the account numbers on the documents do not exist in their records, officials said. White-Hunt filed a lawsuit for an illegal lockout on March 14 and provided a different forged lease than what was provided to the police on March 4, prosecutors said. The lawsuit was dismissed. White-Hunt was arrested on Monday. He is due back in court on June 11. Ben Mitchell is a digital content producer from Vermont who has covered both local and international news since 2021. He joined PIX11 in 2024. See more of his work here. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11. Following the death of a world-renowned forensic pathologist who served Allegheny County for years, public officials are making the breadth of his impact known. A spokesperson for the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts confirmed Cyril Wecht died on Monday. He was 93. >>> Former Allegheny County coroner, world-renowned pathologist Cyril Wecht dies at 93 Wecht held various roles in Allegheny County, most notably as the county coroner, and spent decades educating students at Duquesnes law school. PHOTOS: Cyril Wecht, through the years With the announcement of his death, public officials are making known just how large the breadth of Wechts impact is. You can see their statements below. Governor Josh Shapiro - Dr. Cyril Wecht was a legendary figure in forensic pathology and criminal justice Dr. Cyril Wecht was a legendary figure in forensic pathology and criminal justice, and the way he pursued truth and justice is an inspiration. Throughout my career, Cyril showed me a genuine kindness and taught me many lessons on public service. Today, Lori and I are praying for his wife Sigrid, their four children, and the entire Wecht family. As I said today to his son, Justice David Wecht, Cyril lived a full, impactful, and meaningful life. May Cyril Wechts memory forever be a blessing. Duquesne University President Ken Gormley - Dr. Cyril Wecht was a globally respected forensic pathologist, a gifted politician, and an incredible champion of Duquesne University Dr. Cyril Wecht was a globally respected forensic pathologist, a gifted politician, and an incredible champion of Duquesne University. The Duquesne community was blessed by his presence on campus as a professor in the Duquesne Kline Law school for many years. His continued influence is felt through the academic work of the Wecht Institute of Forensic Science and Law and in the resources of the Cyril H. Wecht Forensic Science Collection. I was proud to call him a long-time colleague. His professional acumen, captivating stories, and keen intellect will be sorely missed by the Duquesne community, the region he served so faithfully, and the entire world that recognized him as one of the great forensic pathologists of our time. On a more personal note, Cyril has been a trusted friend since I began my career -- he never minced words, he had a lively and colorful personality, and he also had a heart of gold. There was, and will only be, one Dr. Cyril Wecht. His passing leaves a void in our hearts forever. Chief Medical Examiner of Allegheny County Dr. Ariel Goldschmidt - His colorful and larger-than-life personality and commitment to teaching will cause him to be missed by many It is with a heavy heart that the Allegheny County Office of the Medical Examiner joins the greater Pittsburgh community in mourning the loss of Dr. Cyril H. Wecht. Dr. Wecht was an icon in the field of Forensic Medicine, serving as the longtime coroner for Allegheny County and its first appointed Medical Examiner. Through his outspoken passion for the field, Dr. Wecht gained international prominence as he consulted on the deaths of many prominent figures, including the late US President John F. Kennedy and others. Dr. Wecht continued performing casework well into his 90s, and never shied away from opinions that challenged conventional viewpoints. His colorful and larger-than-life personality and commitment to teaching will cause him to be missed by many; however, his legacy and contributions to the fields of Forensic Medicine and Law will continue through local educational institutions that bear his name, including the Cyril H. Wecht Institute of Forensic Science and Law at Duquesne University. SPC Executive Director and Former Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald - His influence on the forensic pathology profession cannot be overstated It is with great sadness that I learned about the passing of Cyril Wecht this afternoon. Cyril had a long and distinguished public service career. From serving in the U.S. Air Force to being one of Allegheny Countys Commissioners and the Countys coronerpublic service and hard work ran in Cyrils blood. His influence on the forensic pathology profession cannot be overstated. He became a pioneer within his field, and for nearly seven decades was sought after by government officials, celebrities, and industry leaders for his expertise. While Cyril achieved national fame because of the many high-profile cases he consulted on, he always called Southwestern Pennsylvania home. He was born in Greene County, grew up in the City, earned his bachelor and medical degrees from the University of Pittsburgh, and he and his wife raised their children here. I know I join many from across our region in saying that we want to thank Cyril for his many years of public service. He was a deeply devoted family man, and I want to extend our regions thoughts and prayers to his wife, children, and grandchildren during this difficult time. Council President Patrick Catena - While he was unmatched in his profession, he was also a stalwart of Allegheny County politics My sympathies are extended to the family of Dr. Cyril Wecht on his passing. Dr. Wecht was a world-renowned forensic pathologist who worked on some of the highest profile cases in United States history, including the JFK assassination and the death of Jon Bonet Ramsey. But while he was unmatched in his profession, he was also a stalwart of Allegheny County politics. He was not afraid to make his opinion known and that tenacity he demonstrated while trying to help the residents of the county is how he should be remembered. I wish his family peace and comfort in this difficult time, said Catena. Former Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato - I always walked away from a conversation with Cyril understanding his perspective on an issue Cyril Wechts passing closes a chapter of one of our regions leaders most storied careers, spanning local and national breadth. While he was a renowned forensic pathologist and deeply committed to the quest for facts, he was even more so focused on his family and those who called him a friend. Our paths crossed often, and I always walked away from a conversation with Cyril understanding his perspective on an issue. He will be sincerely missed by many in our community. State Senator Jay Costa - He was a brilliant lawyer, and intelligent and charismatic leader, and a devout family man. I knew Dr. Wecht for a long time. He was a brilliant lawyer, and intelligent and charismatic leader, and a devout family man. Throughout his career, he was always willing to push boundaries and fight for the truth. Although he had a national profile, I always knew him to be a son of Squirrel Hill with deep ties to his community. I am holding his wife, children, and grandchildren in my heart today. His family, and our entire county, lost a tremendous champion. Cyril Wecht died at age 93 today. Throughout his life, he spent time as a musician, a captain in the United States Air Force Medical Corps, a coroner, an educator, a leader in the Democratic Party, a county commissioner, and a national figure critical of the Warren Commission. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW TRENDING NOW: 1 dead, 2 injured in Uniontown shooting Good puppy abandoned, tied to pole with note outside animal shelter Longtime WPXI reporter Dee Thompson dies at age 84 VIDEO: NWS confirms 2 tornadoes hit Fayette County on Saturday DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts Ambassador: Germany to supply Ukraine with another IRIS-T air defense system in May Berlin will provide Kyiv with another IRIS-T air defense system in May, German Ambassador to Ukraine Martin Jager said on May 13. Ukraine has asked international partners to deliver more air defense in the wake of a shortage and an increase in Russian strikes targeting energy infrastructure since March. Air defense systems like the Patriot and the IRIS-T are highly effective at intercepting Russia's ballistic and cruise missiles. Jager said that Ukraine already has a few IRIS-T systems in its arsenal. Kyiv will also be provided with additional IRIS-T air defense systems later this year, as well as in 2025 and 2026, according to the ambassador. Jager also noted that Berlin would send a Patriot air defense system to Ukraine. Its arrival is expected no earlier than late June. Subscribe to newsletter War Notes Subscribe Initially criticized for its sluggish delivery of military aid to Ukraine following the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Germany has become the second-largest provider of military equipment after the U.S. Berlin has previously provided IRIS-T air defense systems to Ukraine, including three IRIS-T SLM systems, with a range of up to 40 kilometers, and one IRIS-T SLS, with a range of up to 12 kilometers. Germany also launched an initiative to boost Ukraine's air defenses in April. Canada and Belgium have already publicly pledged to the German-led initiative. President Volodymyr Zelensky said on April 6 that Ukraine needed 25 Patriot air defense systems to cover the country's skies from Russian attacks. Read also: Russias new Kharkiv offensive pushes Vovchansk to the brink of annihilation Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Authorities believe Willon Jace McClain was abducted by Willie Edward McClain Jr. Alabama Law Enforcement AgencyCommunity Information Center Willon Jace McClain An Amber Alert has been issued for a 3-year-old boy who was last seen early on the morning of Monday, May 13 in Forestdale, Ala. According to the Amber Alert issued by the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, Willon Jace McClain weighs about 35 lbs. and is 3 feet tall. Authorities say they believe Willon was abducted by Willie Edward McClain Jr., 49, who is possibly traveling in a white Chevy Silverado, with the Alabama license plate 051ASC. Authorities say Willon is believed to be in extreme danger, Alabama Law Enforcement AgencyCommunity Information Center Willie Edward McClain Anyone with information is asked to call the Jefferson County Sheriffs Office at (205) 325-1450 or 911. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. When Russian tanks invaded and cruise missiles and drones rained down, Ukrainians responded with grit, a highly motivated fighting force, and their own waves of drones. This nation of 38 million people has stood firm against one of the worlds largest militaries, in part by using drones as an invaluable force multiplier. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) play an instrumental role in modern asymmetric warfare, but if the U.S. does not step up, our partners and allies will continue turning to China and Iran to purchase this technology. Both Moscow and Kyiv use drones for intelligence gathering, target acquisition, and airstrikes for devastating effects. Drones have evolved from mere intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) tools to lethal weapons capable of carrying up to 500-pound munitions, striking targets with incredible accuracy. With their ample processing capability, drones can rapidly identify, track, and attack targets. Drones have also become key to extending communications lines, collecting intelligence for law enforcement officials, and delivering supplies to contested areas. With UAVs, Ukraine has successfully mounted wide-ranging attacks inside Russia, causing significant damage to Russian energy infrastructure sites, destroying naval bases and shipyards, and damaging several Russian military aircraft. Yet without sustained supplies of drones, electronic warfare equipment and other defense support, Ukraines efforts will be constrained by the sheer scale and superiority of Russias forces. Early in the war, Ukraine heavily utilized cheap Chinese commercial drones for tactical missions. Just a few months in, however, Kyiv began noticing problems: Chinese drone maker DJI appeared to be leaking data on Ukrainian military positions to Russia. Chinese drones also proved susceptible to powerful Russian jamming and electronic warfare attacks. Then, in July 2023, the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) began restricting drones sales to Ukraine while continuing to supply Russia. Facing challenges replacing the small drones that form the cornerstone of its kill chain, Kyiv began looking elsewhere. Now, hundreds of American-produced drones are in use across Ukraine to disrupt Russian supply lines and help document Russian war crimes, including Russian barrages against civilians, hospitals, schools and infrastructure. These drones are easy to use and operate securely offline. They are powered by next generation artificial intelligence and autonomous capabilities. And their rapid, iterative software updates can stay ahead of Russian countermeasures, greatly enhancing Ukraines ability to resist Russian forces and helping Ukraine regain operational control over the battlefield. Americas partners and allies are taking note. Leveraging rapid software modernization and technological advances levels the playing field for smaller, less capable countries facing a larger adversary. Even Taipei, facing an adversary whose defense budget is the size of the entire Taiwanese GDP, could maintain its ISR over the island and surrounding waters in a crisis, inject resiliency into its communications systems, and target advancing PRC forces with asymmetric capabilities, like masses of smaller, multi-functional UAVs. The problem for Taiwan and other nations in the Indo-Pacific is that China has flooded the global markets with cheap drones from DJI and Autel, capturing 90 percent of the global market for small drones. Indeed, the PRC has increased its investment in advanced drone technology, working to make Chinese drones more cost-effective and capable all the while developing new military capabilities like drone swarms and stealth drones and supplying hundreds of millions of dollars of support and a steady supply of drones to Russia. Our allies and partners need American-made drones, not Chinese or Iranian ones. Our own military needs cutting-edge, secure drones with reliable supply chains even in a crisis. Thousands of new American drones in the hands of the warfighter scales battlefield insights and accelerates the speed of decisions and actions. As the Biden administration seeks to restore American manufacturing, the drone market is a prime industry to invest in. Beyond creating American jobs, these drones would fuel commercial, industrial, and first responder markets with drones Made in the USA. American drone manufacturers can (and do) work closely with military personnel to rapidly iterate on the designs based on users, missions, and environments. And so the Department of Defense (DoD) has taken the first step toward investing in this industry by championing rapid development of drones and AI-enabled autonomous vehicles. DoD can also use a portion of the newly secured supplemental funding for Ukraine to provide U.S. drones to Ukraine either as new purchases or as a draw from existing U.S. military stock The U.S. State Department should also fund UAV usage for international law enforcement and promote U.S. drone capabilities amongst allies and partners. As the primary touchpoint with foreign countries, embassy officials should warn other countries of the risks of using PRC-made UAVs, and our commercial service officers should work in tandem with the State Department to promote U.S.-made alternatives. Congress should also bolster funding for State Department programs that have successfully utilized drone technology to support their missions, such as the International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs Bureaus efforts in countering transnational crime with help from ISR drones. There is a clear global demand for more drone technology. According to industry analysis, the global drone market will double from 2022 to 2026 and then triple, to reach over $160 billion, by 2030. Without U.S. support and clear alternatives, Ukraine, Taiwan and other countries with a high demand for UAVs will be forced to turn to U.S. adversaries for cheaper options and accept the accompanying national security risks. Today, Americas strategic competitors dominate global commercial drone markets. To support our allies and ensure military superiority in future conflicts, the United States must reassert a leadership role in rapid, iterative drone development and production at scale. U.S. companies must put in significant resources and scale production, and Washington help American manufacturers outpace Chinese competitors as well as maintain support for allies like Ukraine whose battlefield experience further confirm the criticality of American efforts. Mark Montgomery is a senior director and senior fellow at Foundation for Defense of Democracies. He served for 32 years in the U.S. Navy as a nuclear-trained surface warfare officer, retiring as a rear admiral in 2017. He also served as Policy Director for the Senate Armed Services Committee under the leadership of Senator John S. McCain. The book from the former Chancellor of Germany details her career in the countrys most powerful role Adam Berry/Getty Images Angela Merkel and the cover of 'Freedom' Angela Merkel is looking back on her political career in a new book. Per a statement shared by publisher St. Martins Press, a memoir from the former Chancellor of Germany, Freedom, is due to hit shelves in November. The book, written with Merkels longtime political advisor Beate Baumann, will see the former Chancellor reflecting on her tenure as the first woman in Germanys most influential office, as well as her life in the German Democratic Republic and in reunited Germany. What does freedom mean to me? This question has occupied me my entire life, Merkel said in a statement. Of course, politically, because freedom needs democratic conditions; without democracy, there is no freedom, no rule of law, no protection of human rights. St. Martin's Press 'Freedom' by Angela Merkel But this question also occupies me on another level, she continued. Freedom, for me, is finding out where my own limits are and pushing myself to those limits. Freedom, for me, is to never stop learning, to never stand still, to continue moving forward, even after leaving politics. Merkel's book will cover her personal and political life spanning her childhood and studies in the GDR, as well as her career beginnings in 1989, in the wake of the fall of the Berlin Wall. She will also share insight learned from conversations with impactful figures and her thoughts on significant turning points in German, European and international affairs. Related: George and Amal Clooney Meet with German Chancellor Angela Merkel to Discuss Syrian Refugee Crisis Merkel ended her active political career in 2021, after serving as the Chancellor of Germany for 16 years, beginning in 2005. Prior to taking office, Merkel served as the Federal Minister for Women and Youth from 1991 to 1994, Federal Minister for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety from 1994 to 1998 and as the leader of the Christian Democratic Union of Germany from 2000 to 2018. Michele Tantussi/Getty Images Angela Merkel in 2019 The book, according to the publisher, offers unique insight into the inner workings of power and is a compelling plea for freedom. "Angela Merkel is one of the most important leaders of our lifetime, says St. Martins Press Publisher and President Jennifer Enderlin. With democracy receding around the world, the invaluable lessons, deep insight and unwavering advocacy for freedom she shares in her book are more important now than ever." Related: President Bill Clinton to Publish Memoir About Life After Leaving Office 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 celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Freedom will be published on Nov. 26 and is now available for preorder, wherever books are sold. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. The United States has been leveraging the power of partnership to build a Western Hemisphere that can lead the world and overcome any challenge, said National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan at the Washington Conference on the Americas The United States has pursued partnerships as a key strategy to advance prosperity for all, said Mr. Sullivan: For more than two decades, we have built free trade agreements as part of the foundation of our economic policy through the hemisphere. And theyve made important progress even as those free trade agreements have taken on important new components, including relative to labor and the environment. But they were not a complete answer, said Mr. Sullivan, because the prevailing assumption that the gains achieved through trade agreements would be shared by all of society didnt entirely bear out. Those gains didnt reach a lot of working people, across many of our countries, he noted. We need an economic agenda that builds on the work that has been done in the past but also acknowledges the new challenges ahead, said Mr. Sullivan: It means building resilient supply chains, as we learned during the COVID-19 pandemic. It means mobilizing public and private investment for a just energy transition. It means promoting and protecting workers rights. It means really getting serious about tackling corruption, which is a cancer that eats away at economic progress and prosperity in too many countries. The U.S. is also teaming up with countries across the region in order to address transnational threats. Chief among them is synthetic opioids, including fentanyl. The United States remains committed to defending democracy across the Americas, including in nations like Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela, said Mr. Sullivan. Weve worked non-stop with partners across the region, and from around the world, to hold the Maduro regime accountable for the commitments it made under the Barbados Agreement, including to hold competitive and inclusive elections this year, he said. Mr. Sullivan stressed the need to work together to ensure that democracy delivers for our people. That it protects them. That it makes their lives better in meaningful, concrete ways. If we work together, there is no reason why the Americas should not be the most prosperous, democratic, secure region in the world. Greater Manchester Police said they would take no further action against Labours deputy leader. The Conservative Party has insisted Angela Rayner still has questions to answer about her tax affairs, despite police saying they would take no further action following an investigation. The deputy Labour leader had faced claims she may have broken electoral law and dodged capital gains tax and council tax because of the way she and her then husband used separate homes. But Greater Manchester Police (GMP) and Stockport Council both confirmed on Tuesday that they would take no further action against the Ashton-under-Lyne MP. Following the decision not to take further action, Rayner hit out at the Tories desperate tactics. But a tax expert has also weighed into the row, suggesting that there are still unanswered questions about Rayners previous living arrangements. What we know GMP said they came to their decision not to pursue the claims against Rayner after a thorough, carefully considered and proportionate investigation. The force said matters involving tax did not fall within their jurisdiction but they had shared information with Stockport Council and HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). Stockport Council said it had reviewed the information and also concluded that no further action will be taken. Rayner said she welcomed the conclusion of the police investigation and accused the Tories of reporting political opponents to the police during election campaigns to distract from their dire record. Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said Rayner has been vindicated and he never doubted that his deputy had done anything wrong. Sir Keir Starmer has backed Angela Rayner through the saga. (PA) The row has centred on suggestions in a book by former Tory deputy chairman Lord Ashcroft that she failed to properly declare her main home. Rayner has repeatedly dismissed the attacks as a political smear. The unauthorised biography alleges she bought the property with a 25% discount in 2007 under the right-to-buy scheme introduced by Margaret Thatcher. Rayner was said to have made a 48,500 profit when selling the house eight years later and didnt pay the right amount of tax on the sale because of confusion over whether it was her principal residence. Click below to see the latest North West headlines Tax expert Dan Neidle, who has previously written about the row, suggested that Rayner could be liable for a capital gains tax bills of about 3,000. Following the conclusion of GMPs investigation, Neidle again pointed to his analysis, and noted the total absence of tax people saying Ive gotten it wrong. However, Neidle added that the capital gains tax could be less or could be none. He said that he hasnt seen any other tax professionals disagree. He wrote in February: "Im not generally in favour of forcing politicians to publish all the details of their tax affairs.... If it turns out she failed to pay a small amount of CGT [capital gains tax], I think most people would understand that as a mistake but its a mistake she can and should explain and correct." In a statement, the Tories referenced Neidles analysis and said HMRC do not comment on their tax probes. The statement said: As the tax expert and Labour Party member Dan Neidle has said, Rayner still hasnt provided an explanation. Sir Keir Starmer could easily clear this up by simply reading and then publishing the tax advice Labour claims will exonerate his under-fire deputy. The Tories desperate tactics have been exposed for what they are and for all to see. Theyve failed once again. I am grateful to all those who have stood by and supported me. My focus now is on securing the change Britain needs, with the election of a Labour government. Angela Rayner (@AngelaRayner) May 28, 2024 What we don't know As the HMRC do not comment on individual tax probes, we do not know if they have uncovered any issues relating to Rayners taxes. But it is understood they had already looked into the matter at her request and concluded there was no capital gains tax liability. Rayner says she has been cleared by the HMRC but has not published the advice she received that exonerates her. We dont know what led GMP to conclude that no further action would be taken. There has been no confirmation of whether Rayner owes any tax or how much, if so. There has been pressure for Rayner to publish her tax returns but she has refused to do so. We dont know if Rayner will eventually release details of her accounts to put the issue to bed. Read more Another World Leader Claim From Kristi Noem's Book Has Been Disputed Another claim from South Dakota Republican Gov. Kristi Noems book has been called into question. Noem wrote in her book, No Going Back, that she was slated to meet with French President Emmanuel Macron last year during a trip to Paris. However, the day before we were to meet he made what I considered a very pro-Hamas and anti-Israel comment to the press. So, I decided to cancel, she wrote. A French government official has disputed that account. A representative from the Elysee Palace told NBC News that theres no record of a scheduled meeting and that they hadnt invited her. The South Dakota governor visited Paris in November last year to speak at the Worldwide Freedom Initiative conference. Reached for comment, Noems spokesperson Ian Fury pointed to a statement he posted on X over the weekend, which said the governor was invited to sit in Macrons box for the Armistice Day parade at Arc de Triomphe. Following his anti-Israel comments, she chose to cancel, the post said. The disputed anecdote adds to the controversy surrounding Noems book release, which kicked off after she revealed in the memoir that she once shot dead a puppy due to behavioral issues. She also faced scrutiny over a dubious claim that she once met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un when she was serving in Congress. After it was called out as false, her office initially suggested the story was an error, but she went on to dance around questions about whether she met Kim or not, refusing to give a clear answer in multiple media appearances. She also made several other bizarre revelations in the book, including that she once nearly killed so many people after failing to personally check the hitch between a pickup truck and its trailer. Noem is a contender to be former President Donald Trumps 2024 running mate but reportedly ruined her chances after her dog-killing story surfaced. Related... On the heels of OpenAI announcing the latest iteration of its GPT large language model, its biggest rival in generative AI in the U.S. announced an expansion of its own. Anthropic said Monday that Claude, its AI assistant, is now live in Europe with support for "multiple languages," including French, German, Italian and Spanish across Claude.ai, its iOS app and its business plan for teams. The launch comes after Anthropic extended its API to Europe to get developers using and integrating its models. Both are part of a bigger push at the startup to put the gas on faster growth. Anthropic has to date picked up nearly $8 billion at an $18.4 billion valuation (post-money), with more than $7 billion of that sum raised in the last year. Co-founder and president Daniela Amodei has confirmed to TechCrunch that Anthropic is in the process of raising more primary capital on top of that. "Yes, but we cant comment further," she said about the fundraising in an interview over email. Anthropic's list of nearly 60 current investors include strategics Amazon, Google, Salesforce, SAP and Zoom. Alameda and FTX recently announced plans to sell off its previous shares at an increased value of $884 million as part of a secondary transaction related to a bankruptcy proceeding. Anthropic isn't the only one capitalizing on investors' huge appetite to back AI startups. We understand from sources close to Mistral AI, another LLM player, that it is speaking to investors to raise nearly $600 million at a $6 billion valuation. SoftBank notably is not an investor in any of these companies, placing it into the frame as one possible backer. Investors are very enthusiastic about generative AI right now, but it may be that consumers are slightly less so. As we reported last week, Anthropic's iOS app, launched at the start of May, has had a lukewarm reception from users so far, underscoring bigger questions about how much of the interest we are seeing in AI right now is just a fad. That could present a challenge as the company looks for further business across the pond. Amodei believes its own iOS launch versus that of OpenAI's is not a straight comparison, given Anthropic's primary focus on work and enterprise applications, an emphasis on more "fluid" experiences that move from person to work accounts and toggle across different interfaces and platforms, and what she implies might have been luck of timing for its larger rival. "ChatGPT on mobile came at a time when consumer applications of its kind were still very nascent and a lot has changed since then," she said. She added that "millions" of consumers in the U.S. and U.K. are using Claude "and we continue to see really strong adoption of our paid subscription to Claude (Claude Pro) since the launch of Claude 3," the company's most recent model, released earlier this year. "Our primary focus is on work and enterprise applicationsand the recent launch of the Claude Team plan is indicative of an ongoing trend for us. We want our users to engage with Claude in whatever way feels most intuitive to themeither through mobile, web or the API. Were building towards a fairly fluid experience, where Claude users can toggle between their personal accounts and work accounts, and switch between laptop or mobile, in the same way that employees engage with Slack on their laptops during the workday or on their phones when theyre on the go." Amodei declined to give any specific figures on take-up of the API in Europe but said that it's seeing "steep growth rates that continue to rise in key European markets, like France and Germany." Stirring up user interest across Europe is just one of the company's challenges in this market. Europe has been one of the loudest voices on the subjects of AI safety and regulation, in particular with the AI Act passed earlier this year. Amodei believes that Anthropic is well set up to operate within European frameworks. "Anthropic was founded on the premise of building the safest AI systems in the industry and leading the frontier on AI safety research," she said, adding that the company works "diligently" to comply with regulations like GDPR in the EU. She added that there is still more to come around how the AI Act will be implemented. "While the AI Act has been approved, there are still a number of steps remaining to develop detailed implementation guidance over the coming months and we intend to engage with the EU in this process." The company, she added, continues to work and contribute to efforts in the industry to improve AI safety, including banning using its tech for political campaigns and lobbying, with automated systems built in to detect violations related to this and misinformation. Its work in mechanistic interpretability -- which she described as "research that seeks to open up the black box of AI models and reveal their inner workings" -- had a breakthrough in 2023 around dictionary learning to understand whats happening inside an AI model as it thinks, she said. "Eventually, we hope to use this newfound understanding to develop methods to steer models towards safer behaviors." Anthropic currently has 40 employees based out of its London office with a few contractors based in European countries, Amodei said, and it is gearing up to hire more, specifically to build out a new office in Dublin. We're launching an AI newsletter! Sign up here to start receiving it in your inboxes on June 5. Attorney Jonathan Mitchell speaks before the Texas Supreme Court on Oct. 28, 2021 (Screenshot courtesy of Supreme Court of Texas) This story was first published by The Texas Tribune. It is republished here with permission. Anti-abortion legal crusader Jonathan Mitchell has filed at least seven legal petitions in Texas in recent years asking to depose abortion funds, providers and researchers. While these filings have created fear and confusion, none have yet to be approved by a judge. Now, Mitchell has moved on to targeting individual women. He has filed at least two petitions seeking to depose women he claims traveled out-of-state to terminate their pregnancies, one of which a judge granted; that ruling is on hold while an appeal proceeds. Under state law, the person who terminates a pregnancy cannot face criminal or civil penalties. Texas abortion laws govern in-state conduct, and there is broad constitutional protection for interstate travel. A federal judge has previously ruled abortion funds are likely safe from prosecution, and just this week, a federal judge in Alabama upheld the right to leave the state to seek medical care that is legal in another state. All of this would make it difficult, if not impossible, to take action against someone who assisted a Texan in getting an out-of-state abortion, legal experts say. But Mitchell has made his name turning long-shot legal theories into the law of the land through exactly this strategy of incremental, often losing, legal battles that exploit confusion about the law. These proceedings are just about scaring people into thinking they cant help somebody going out of state to have an abortion, or theyre going to go after them with a lawsuit, said Charles Rocky Rhodes, a professor at South Texas College of Law Houston. Its not about a lawsuit, its about using fear to induce compliance. Rule 202 petitions Most states, and the federal judiciary, allow a lawyer to depose someone before a lawsuit is filed to preserve their testimony. Its most commonly invoked when someone may die before the lawsuit is filed. Texas, however, goes much further, also allowing lawyers to depose someone for the purpose of investigating a potential claim before filing a lawsuit. This provision went largely unnoticed and unused before the judiciary revised its rules in 2000 and combined it with the more typical pre-suit deposition rule, said Lonny Hoffman, a professor at the University of Houston Law Center. This is a very unusual animal, Hoffman said. Were allowing people to use the court system, the coercive power of the state, to compel someone to give testimony before a lawsuit has been brought against them. Conservative Texas courts, typically not so friendly to plaintiffs, have slowly imposed stricter restrictions on when they agree to grant Rule 202 petitions, Hoffman said. In 2011, the Texas Supreme Court ruled that the intrusion into otherwise private matters authorized by Rule 202 outside a lawsuit is not to be taken lightly, and is not a license for forced interrogations. When used correctly, Rule 202 petitions can diminish frivolous lawsuits and save time, Rhodes said. There are strong policy reasons for the rule. I think its a good rule, he said. Its just being abused here. This is harassment, and contrary to the very purposes of the rule. Petitions filed against women The two petitions Mitchell has filed against women who allegedly traveled out-of-state are similar. Both were filed by ex-boyfriends who say they disagreed with their former partners decision to get an abortion. The petitions assert each womans mother influenced her to have an abortion. One petition, first reported by The Washington Post, was filed last month and is sealed. The woman is represented by the Center for Reproductive Rights, which declined to make her available for an interview. I think anyone would agree that its pretty terrifying to be told that you might be sued for doing something that is entirely legal, said senior staff attorney Molly Duane. The petition uses the word murder 23 times. This is just not a normal document for anyone to receive and I think the inflammatory nature of it is by design. Duane reiterated that it is legal to travel to a state where abortion remains available to terminate a pregnancy. This is part of a yearslong campaign by Jonathan Mitchell and other abortion extremists to intimidate people into chilling their own constitutional activity, Duane said. The other petition, which has not been previously reported, was granted by a judge earlier this year. The Texas Tribune is not naming either party, or the jurisdiction in which it was filed, since no lawsuit has been filed and the woman named in the filing has not been accused of a crime. Her lawyer declined to comment. The deposition in that case is on hold while an appeal proceeds. In a brief, the womans lawyers argued that granting the petition would be repugnant to the liberty interests that Texas fiercely protects, by validating the petitioners scheme to harass an ex-girlfriend who has moved on from her relationship with him. Both petitions claim to want to investigate potential violations of Senate Bill 8, also known as the Texas Heartbeat Act, which prohibits anyone from aiding or abetting an abortion after about six weeks of pregnancy. But that law, which Mitchell helped design, only applies to abortions performed by Texas-licensed physicians. While the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the law to remain in effect, a state judge found it unconstitutional, a case that is still moving through the courts. It is helpful for them to just have this [Rule 202] threat rather than actually litigate, Rhodes said. Because if an actual challenge arises and its determined that somebody cannot actually sue under SB 8, that would make the law entirely toothless. The petitions also hint at future wrongful death lawsuits, which cannot be brought against the person who terminated their pregnancy. Mitchell previously filed a wrongful death lawsuit against women who allegedly helped their friend obtain medication to terminate a pregnancy in Texas. That case is still pending in Galveston. In a filing, the lawyers in the case now on appeal noted the risk to women across the state if judges began green-lighting Mitchells strategy. A Rule 202 petitioner would be entitled to depose and seek documents from any woman who is not now pregnant, but was rumored to be at some time. Any woman who has a miscarriage could be subject to a forced interrogation. Any scorned lover could harass or intimidate their ex for simply receiving a false-positive pregnancy test, the lawyers wrote in their brief. Someone who has sex and then gains and loses weight may be forced to produce documents proving that she did not violate a wrongful death statute or SB 8, they wrote. The implications of a grant of this petition on the personal freedom and liberty of women to simply exist in Texas without being forced to answer to any ideologue anywhere in the world are staggering. Other petitions None of Mitchells previous Rule 202 petitions have resulted in anything other than extended legal battles. He has filed at least nine, including three against abortion funds that help people travel out-of-state. Two of those cases one against the Lilith Fund, filed in Jack County, and another in Denton County against the Texas Equal Access Fund were nearly identical. In each case, the funds countersued and Mitchell moved to dismiss their suits. The judge on each case ruled differently one granted the dismissal, the other denied it and, complicating matters further, two three-judge panels from the same appeals court also disagreed. Both cases will likely go to the Texas Supreme Court. Meanwhile, in Hood County, Mitchell filed a Rule 202 petition against the San Antonio-based Buckle Bunnies Fund. A judge denied the funds motion to dismiss. That case is on appeal at the 2nd Court of Appeals in Fort Worth, which issued the dueling opinions in the Jack and Denton county cases. In a rare move likely intended to address the discrepancies between the rulings, the appeals court voluntarily said it would hear this case en banc, before all seven judges, on May 22. Mitchell filed two Rule 202 petitions against abortion providers that left Texas after the overturn of Roe v. Wade, which are still pending. He has also filed petitions against Sidley Austin, a law firm that said it would pay for Texas-based employees to travel out of state to get an abortion, and an abortion researcher at the University of Texas at Austin. None of these petitions have resulted in any depositions, let alone any lawsuits. But they have generated a lot of fear and confusion, which legal experts say is largely the point. Whats so clever about [Rule 202 petitions] is that they never have to sue, said Hoffman. They just have to threaten to get the woman in front of a court reporter and force her to answer questions, and it has exactly the chilling effect that they want. In a statement, Mitchell reiterated his claim that abortion funds and employers that pay for out-of-state abortions are potentially vulnerable to criminal prosecution and civil liability. Conduct taken inside Texas that procures an abortion is a criminal act under the states pre-Roe abortion ban, even if the abortion occurs out of state, he said, referring to 19th century laws that were on the books before the Supreme Court ruled in Roe v. Wade in 1973. The question of whether those laws remain in effect has not yet been fully resolved by the courts. But a federal judge has preliminarily ruled that abortion funds are likely safe from prosecution. But Mitchell has made his career working the margins of the law, pushing on weak spots until he finds a way in. He successfully circumvented the constitutional protection for abortion with SB 8, and has been a leading voice in getting the U.S. Supreme Court to consider reviving the Comstock Act, a zombie law restricting the mailing of abortion drugs, which hasnt been enforced for over 100 years. Hes been advising towns and cities that want to pass so-called travel bans that prohibit the use of municipal roads to transport someone leaving the state for an abortion. Hes been harassing the funds and abortion support networks for years, so its not a new tactic, said Elizabeth Myers, a Dallas attorney who represents the funds. But now that target has expanded to actually include pregnant women, which theyve said they would never target. This was always where they were going to go, and now were here. Disclosure: University of Texas at Austin and University of Houston have been financial supporters of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribunes journalism. Find a complete list of them here. Correction, May 10, 2024 at 1:22 p.m.: In a previous version of this story, the summary said none of the petitions had been approved by a judge. One of the nine petitions has been approved. The post Anti-abortion crusaders deposition requests generate fear, but no findings appeared first on Source New Mexico. Democrats and Republicans will select their respective nominees for the US Senate in Maryland on Tuesday and in doing so will set up the most unique race of the cycle. Two leading Democrats, Congressman David Trone and Prince Georges County Executive Angela Alsobrooks, are locked in a dead heat as the race enters its final hours. The Democratic primary, which has grown negative in the past few weeks, carries incredible significance: the entrance of former Governor Larry Hogan into the race has given Republicans a breath of life and possibly their only real shot at winning the seat. That dynamic is playing out in a year when Democrats hold the Senate by one vote and are looking desperately to protect that majority either for the start of a second Biden term or to throttle Donald Trumps first two years in office. Senate races in Maryland are not usually competitive; the state is reliably blue in terms of its congressional delegation. But Mr Hogans two terms in office left him with widespread name recognition and a reputation bolstered by beating cancer while in office. His centrist record including his signature on a bill banning fracking and his support for the Paris climate agreement helped him distinguish himself as an outlier within the Republican Party even as he frequently picked fights with Democrats in the state legislature, who were forced to override his vetoes. Mr Trone, a member of the House, is pursuing a strategy that may seem surprising unless one is already familiar with the Total Wine & More mogul. Owner of the prolific beverage megamart chain, Mr Trone has poured more than $61m of his own money into this race, making it the most expensive Democratic Senate primary in state history. That would be surprising, had he not done the same in his two bids for the House, once in a losing battle against Jamie Raskin (which fostered bad blood that still persists) and once again in a crowded 2018 primary (ditto). David Trone speaks at a press conference on Capitol Hill in 2019 (Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved) Ms Alsobrooks is taking a more familiar route. She declined an opportunity to run for governor in 2022, as Hogans second term came to a close. The Prince Georges County Executive was then promptly endorsed by the winner of that contest, Democrat Wes Moore, and a host of his allies across the state. Unable to match Mr Trones injections of his own personal wealth, she has leaned harder on statewide connections while attacking Mr Trone for missteps including his unintentional utterance of a racial slur at a House hearing. Theres one other important factor which singles out Mr Hogan from his Republican colleagues: his clear, firm opposition to Donald Trump. Hogan was one of just a few prominent elected Republicans to support the impeachment of the 45th president after January 6, and came out in favour of the first Trump impeachment inquiry in 2019 as well. In campaigning for the seat in 2024, he has positioned himself as an enemy of dysfunction in Washington and a Mitt Romney- or Lisa Murkowski-esque check on a possible President Donald Trump from within the Republican Party, though he rarely mentions the former president on the trail. His campaign website pointedly alerts viewers to the fact that his father was the only Republican to support the impeachment of Richard Nixon in the Senate in 1974. All that being said, Mr Hogans greatest advantage over Mr Trone and Ms Alsobrooks is his name recognition. A poll in March found that a much wider quantity of voters had no opinion of the Democratic contenders compared to the likely Republican nominee. A poll taken in the final few days of the race contradicted some concerns about either Democratic candidates ability to beat Mr Hogan in November, though how voters feel may be another story. One dynamic is playing firmly against Mr Hogan this time around: the realities of his sought office. Having served as the chief executive of a state and not a legislator, Mr Hogans reputation is built on being a stand-alone operative. Thats harder to do in the Senate, where despite his anti-Trump rhetoric he will inevitably end up caucusing with the GOP. The reality of the situation is that the former governor was recruited by Republicans to run for this seat because he was the partys best chance of winning it and flipping the upper chamber and voters know this. Some Marylanders who were featured this past week on The Bulwarks Focus Group podcast with Sarah Longwell described themselves as Hogan-Biden voters and explained that keeping the seat in Democratic hands was too important, regardless of Mr Hogans record. After Ive seen what the Republicans have done with the House and the Senate...I think we need to keep that seat, one woman explained of her view. Maryland Governor Larry Hogan speaks to guests at the Republican Jewish Coalition Annual Leadership Meeting on November 18, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada (Getty Images) Theres the catch. In seeking to join a GOP caucus in the Senate, Mr Hogan is inadvertently tying himself to all the baggage that comes with that new club. In his case, that may include not just the Senate, where bipartisanship has carried on in a beleaguered sense, but the House of Representatives as well. The lower chamber and the Republican House caucus specifically remain a chaotic scene, with members feuding openly in the media, endorsing against each other in GOP primaries, and deriding each other with petty insults. Just this past week, Georgia Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene and two of her colleagues brought a motion to oust a speaker of the House, the second such motion to reach the floor within the past 12 months. In a surreal scene, she angrily rebuked the uniparty as both Democrats and Republicans joined in booing her on the floor. Donald Trump will also play a role directly. This will be the first time, thanks to the timing of Marylands statewide elections, that Mr Hogan and the former president will be on the ballot in the same year. Thats another factor that could weigh on Mr Hogan; in a deep blue state, he will be under increased pressure to distance himself from the top of his partys ticket as the election draws closer. Whatever the outcome tomorrow, the Maryland race is set to be one of the most unique in the country in 2024. Two candidates are testing dramatically different strategies for gaining political power, even as they themselves differ only marginally in policy. The race it sets up in November will answer a bigger question: is the #NeverTrump faction of the Republican Party still a viable political force? Oklahoma County temporarily is shelving plans to use COVID-19 mitigation funds to improve the existing jail's heating and air system. The county jail's HVAC system works, but it needs various fixes, including getting all of its smoke detectors in return air ducts working correctly and synced with the building's fire alarm system. That project also aims to replace leaking coils, corroded drip pans and repair other condensation leaks throughout the system, plus correct thermostat issues inside the building. County Engineer Stacey Trumbo told commissioners American Rescue Plan Act money initially allocated for the project was being returned to the main ARPA account because it had become clear it wouldn't pay for all the needed work. Additional evaluations are needed to determine where available funding might be found. More: 'Archaic way' to keep Oklahoma County jail information about to become extinct "That particular project is probably going to substantially overrun (the budget). It is kind of a start-over, really," he said. "I just want to make sure folks know we are not canceling this project all together," Commissioner Carrie Blumert said. "We are relooking at how much it is going to cost and trying to figure out what to do." "I cannot even predict what it might cost in this inflated economy," Trumbo later told The Oklahoman. Oklahoma County seal More pandemic-related federal funds in Oklahoma County offered to meet ongoing needs Oklahoma County is making more funds available to nonprofits that would like to obtain federal dollars to limit the COVID-19 pandemic's impact on the community. The county already is asking for them to apply for about $5.7 million in unspent money Oklahoma County received through ARPA to mitigate illness-caused stresses on people and local economies. The funds are intended for housing, mental health, addiction treatment, other health services, jail diversion, food assistance and after school support programs. Plans are to divide the funds equally among each of the commissioner's districts, providing about $1.9 million for programs inside of each one. Accenture, the company hired by the county to evaluate proposals to spend the funds both from nonprofits and governmental entities, will go through requests for help previously received during a funding round in March 2023 that disbursed $81 million to support 121 aid requests. It also will review any other funding requests submitted to the county by May 30. The county's policy and governance board will evaluate and recommend awards later this year. Oklahoma County initially received $154 million through the act and so far has authorized spending nearly all but what's currently available. As for the county's HVAC needs at the jail and other concerns, funds may be available. At its first meeting in May, Oklahoma County's Board of County Commissioners transferred: $53.01 in unspent ARPA funds from a completed project to upgrade camera systems for the Sheriff back into the main ARPA account. $1,804,584.60 in unspent ARPA funds from a previously approved $2,483,530 project to make the needed upgrades to the jail's heating and air conditioning systems into the main ARPA account. Commissioners reallocated $678,945.40 from the original jail HVAC project to plug a budget shortfall in the county's ARPA-funded project to remodel the main entrance to Oklahoma County's annex building. $3,718,179.02 from the main ARPA account into the county's general fund, covering the Oklahoma County Sheriff's Office payroll and benefits expenses from March through June of 2021. $11,173,931.30 from the main ARPA account into the county's general fund, covering the Oklahoma County Sheriff's Office payroll and benefits expenses from July, 2021 through June, 2022. The $14.9 million transferred into the county's general fund could be important, as it could pay for the jail's HVAC needs, plus recently discovered HVAC system operational issues at the Krowse Building, the sheriff's headquarters, and the Oklahoma County Juvenile Justice Center. Commissioner Myles Davidson said commissioners ultimately will decide how those funds are spent. "We are in the early stages of this right now," he said. Commission Chairman Brian Maughan predicted that wouldn't last long. This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma County rethinking how to pay for jail heating, AC fixes Dr. Nemat "Minouche" Shafik, Columbia University's president, and David Schizer, a former dean at Columbia Law School, testify on Capitol Hill in April about pro-Palestinian protests and antisemitism on campus. By 320-91 vote, the U.S. House on May 1 passed the Antisemitism Awareness Act. The bill came to a vote amid pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses against the Israel-Hamas war that some Jewish students said they found threatening. It produced an unusual lineup of supporters and detractors. Although the legislation passed easily and with bipartisan support, the votes against it were also bipartisan: 21 Republicans and 70 Democrats voted no. Some Republicans who voted no cited possible threats to Christian beliefs; some Democrats said the measure would chill political speech critical of Israels government, rather than Jews as a group. Here are some questions and answers about the legislation: What does the bill say? The bill requires the federal Education Department to use the definition of antisemitism outlined by the Stockholm-based International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance when addressing allegations of discrimination in higher education. If discrimination is determined to have occurred, schools would be at risk of losing federal funding. Currently, there is no standard definition for antisemitism in such discrimination cases. Portions of the alliances definition of antisemitism are not especially controversial, including "calling for, aiding, or justifying the killing or harming of Jews," "making mendacious, dehumanizing, demonizing, or stereotypical allegations about Jews," or denying the Holocaust. Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., a leading sponsor of the bill, said the recent campus protests made passing the measure urgent. In a statement after passage, Lawler said the bill "is a key step in calling out antisemitism where it is and ensuring antisemitic hate crimes on college campuses are properly investigated and prosecuted." He added, "When people engage in harassment or bullying of Jewish individuals where they justify the killing of Jews or use blood libel or hold Jews collectively responsible for the actions of the Israeli government that is antisemitic. Its unfortunate that needs to be clarified, but that's why this bill is necessary." But the bills critics said parts of the definition could bleed into more legitimate criticism of Israels government. Those portions include "denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, e.g., by claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavor," "applying double standards by requiring of (Israel) a behavior not expected or demanded of any other democratic nation," and "drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis." What do critics of the bill say about political speech and Israel? In recommending a no vote, the American Civil Liberties Union wrote that the bill is "not needed to protect against antisemitic discrimination; instead, it would likely chill free speech of students on college campuses by incorrectly equating criticism of the Israeli government with antisemitism." This view won backing from some figures from across the ideological spectrum. Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., told a congressional hearing that "speech that is critical of Israel alone does not constitute unlawful discrimination." Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., said it was wrong to say that "if you are protesting, or disagree with what (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu and his extremist government are doing in Gaza, you are an antisemite." Rep. Sara Jacobs, D-Calif., said, "Im deeply concerned about the rise of antisemitism in San Diego and across the country. But I do not believe that anti-Zionism is inherently antisemitism. "I support Israels right to exist, but I also know many people who question whether Israel should exist as a Jewish state who are deeply connected to their Judaism." Nadler, Sanders and Jacobs are all Jewish. Some legal scholars echoed the criticisms. Eugene Volokh, a UCLA law professor who leans libertarian, wrote that the bill "really does risk suppressing not just discriminatory conduct but speech speech that I generally disagree with, but speech that is fully constitutionally protected." Florida International University law professor Howard M. Wasserman concurred. Wasserman told PolitiFact that "the law raises genuine First Amendment concerns to the extent it can or will be used to impose or threaten (Civil Rights Act) Title VI liability on schools for failing to restrict antisemitic but otherwise constitutionally protected speech." Meanwhile, Kenneth Stern, an attorney who helped write the definition in question, has expressed caution about relying on it for the purpose the bill intends. In 2016, when Congress was considering an earlier version of the bill, Stern testified that the definition was designed to help governments collect antisemitism data and "was not drafted, and was never intended, as a tool to target or chill speech on a college campus." Timothy Zick, a William & Mary Law School professor, said hes skeptical that the definition would chill Christian beliefs or criticism of Israel. But he added that it "does not mean it is a good idea to adopt the definition, which was intended to be educational rather than legal." What do the bills conservative critics say? Some conservatives focused on whether the antisemitism definition could cover elements of the Bible. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., posted on X that the bills passage "could convict Christians of antisemitism for believing the Gospel that says Jesus was handed over to Herod to be crucified by the Jews." When conservative commentator Charlie Kirk asked in an X post whether the bill made "parts of the Bible illegal," former Fox News host Tucker Carlson replied, "Yes. The New Testament." The Anti-Defamation League considers blaming the Jews for killing Jesus a "myth" and said it "has been used to justify violence against Jews for centuries. Historians as well as Christian leaders have agreed that the claim is baseless." After centuries of teaching it, the Catholic Church rejected the belief in 1965, a stance then-Pope Benedict XVI reiterated in 2011. Lawler dismissed the concerns of Greene and others, telling CNN they were "inflammatory and it's irrational." "If you're calling all Jews Christ-killers, then yes, that is antisemitic and everybody understands that," Lawler said. "But if you're referring to the Bible in context, then no, nobody is saying that that is antisemitic." Gregory P. Magarian, a law professor at Washington University in St. Louis, said he sees the concern over the Bible as a stretch. "My best sense is that the Bible is sufficiently normatively ingrained in Western cultures, especially in the U.S., that no government actor would be at all likely to invoke the (International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance) definition against any common usage of the Bible," Magarian told PolitiFact. Where does the bill stand? The bill has moved to the Senate, where its fate is uncertain. "There are objections on both sides," said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. David Banks, chancellor of New York City Public Schools, testifies Wednesday before a U.S. House subcommittee about antisemitism in kindergarten through 12th grade schools. How binding would the bill be? Its unclear how binding the bill would be. It is phrased as a "sense of Congress" legislation, which is language typically used for nonbinding, advisory legislation. However, it also says that the Department of Education "shall" take into consideration the definition of antisemitism, which seems to leave no wiggle room. "I would call it strongly advisory a warning shot across the bow with possible funding cuts to follow if not heeded," said Donald Wolfensberger, a congressional procedure specialist with the Woodrow Wilson Center for Scholars. "The bill could have directly amended the Civil Rights Act to cement this advisory language into law, but (lawmakers) didnt dare to, given likely opposition by the Senate, the president and even the courts over First Amendment free speech violation concerns." Ilya Somin, a George Mason University law professor, said the bills ultimate impact might be less sweeping than some of its critics suggest because then-President Donald Trump incorporated the definition into Title VI by executive order and Biden kept that policy in place. Somin added that antisemitic discrimination "is already illegal under Title VI, under long-standing legal precedent. However, the bill does clarify and codify that, and ends any residual uncertainty," including whether being Jewish falls under the category of national origin, race or a religious group. PolitiFact copy chief Matthew Crowley contributed to this report. Our sources This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: The Antisemitism Awareness Act: What to know The future of Europe, and in many ways the future of the world, depends on the continued bravery and tenacity of the Ukrainian people. We know this, which is why the United States and democratic allies around the world continue to stand in support of our Ukrainian partners, said United States Agency for International Development Deputy Administrator Isobel Coleman in her keynote Address at the Kyiv Investment Forum. As part of his brutal and illegal war against Ukraine, Vladimir Putin is targeting not only its people: he is also attempting to destroy the countrys economy. The United States is, of course, providing weapons and support that Ukraine needs to stay in the fight, said Deputy Administrator Coleman. But the United States is also looking ahead, to Ukraines post-war future. Working through USAID, the United States is investing in Ukraine and its people. One key to Ukraines recovery will be a robust, growing, and vibrant private sector; and an economy that creates jobs, increases exports, and generates tax revenues, said Deputy Administrator Coleman. As the Russian military attempts to destroy a portion of Ukraines economy that helps feed the world, USAID is working with businesses to get Ukraines farmers the seeds and fertilizer, grain storage facilities, and safe export routes they need to grow and sell their food. Russia is attacking the country's farmland and agricultural export infrastructure. On May 1, Deputy Administrator Coleman announced an additional $60 million to help mitigate the impact of Russias war on agricultural production in Ukraine and accelerate Ukraines economic recovery. A plentiful supply of energy is essential to a well-functioning economy. Putin knows that, and so is attempting to weaponize that fact by targeting Ukraines electrical grid and its heating systems, said Deputy Administrator Coleman. USAID will provide more than $190 million to the Securing Power, Advancing Resilience and Connectivity project, which will provide urgently needed energy assistance to the Government of Ukraine over five years. These funds are in addition to the nearly one billion dollars the United States has already provided to Ukraine to keep its lights on and its heat running. The United States has a single goal: to enable Ukraine not only to win the war, but to win the future, said Deputy Administrator Coleman. We desire, and have confidence that we will see, a future Ukraine defined by the prosperity and dignity only a strong and resilient economy can provide. Hunter Hollingsworth, at his family's Benton County property, successfully sued the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency/ (Photo: John Partipilo) State game wardens cannot enter private property in Tennessee without a warrant, the states Court of Appeals ruled last week. The decision puts in check a unique power wielded for decades by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency to secretly patrol and surveil Tennesseans privately-owned lands for potential violations of hunting, fishing and wildlife laws. TWRA officers dont seek permission from a judge before entering private property, need no supervisor approval, keep no records of their searches and dont inform property owners sometimes donning camouflage or installing cameras to secretly monitor activities based on the suspicions of an individual officer. The blistering and unanimous opinion by a three-judge panel compared TWRAs tactics to British customs officials who were granted unlimited writs by the king of England to conduct arbitrary searches in the years leading to the Revolutionary War abusive actions that would go on to inform the establishment of the U.S. Constitutions 4th Amendment protecting Americans from illegal government searches and seizures. The TWRA searches, which it claims are reasonable, bear a marked resemblance to the arbitrary discretionary entries of customs officials more than two centuries ago in colonial Boston, the judges wrote. The TWRAs contention is a disturbing assertion of power on behalf of the government that stands contrary to the foundations of the search protections against arbitrary governmental intrusions in the American legal tradition, generally, and in Tennessee, specifically. The decision concluded TWRAs warrantless forays onto private property violate Article 1, Section 7 of the Tennessee Constitution, which reads in part: The people shall be secure in their persons, houses, papers and possessions, from unreasonable searches and seizures. It will require TWRA to seek judicial warrants based on probable cause a crime has been committed before entering private property the same rules that bind every other law enforcement agency in the state. TWRA claimed unfettered power to put on full camouflage, invade peoples land, roam around as it pleases, take photos, record videos, sift through ponds, spy on people from behind bushesall without consent, a warrant, or any meaningful limits on their power Joshua Windham, Institute for Justice TWRA officials are carefully reviewing the Courts Opinion and will consult with the Attorney Generals office in the coming days, Emily Buck, an agency spokesperson said Friday. An attorney for Hunter Hollingsworth and Terry Rainwaters, two Benton County men who challenged TWRAs warantless searches of their separate properties, called the decision a massive win for property rights in Tennessee. TWRA claimed unfettered power to put on full camouflage, invade peoples land, roam around as it pleases, take photos, record videos, sift through ponds, spy on people from behind bushesall without consent, a warrant, or any meaningful limits on their power, said Joshua Windham, an attorney for the Institute for Justice, a nonprofit libertarian-leaning law firm. This decision confirms that granting state officials unfettered power to invade private land is anathema to Tennesseans most basic constitutional rights, he said. State law allowing TWRA to go upon any property, outside of buildings, posted or otherwise in order to enforce all laws relating to wildlife is constitutional, but not as applied by TWRA officials, the appeals court ruled. The court concluded that the state law does not apply to property that is in active use, such as for hunting, fishing, farming, camping and land that is posted and gated a not-uncommon description of properties owned in rural areas of the state that are used entirely for farming or recreation even if unoccupied full-time. When considering uses of real property other than as a home, there is nothing in the Tennessee Constitution that suggests a lesser regard for uses of property more common in rural areas than those more typical of urban or suburban areas, the court wrote. The ruling does not apply to privately-owned acreages that are left wild and unused land the U.S. Supreme Court has dubbed wild or waste lands and concluded in a so-called open fields doctrine are not subject to traditional search and seizure Constitutional protections. The open fields doctrine has long allowed law enforcement to enter such properties without a warrant. Hollingsworth, on whose property TWRA officers secretly installed a camera that captured areas where he hunted with friends, camped and was intimate with his girlfriend, said last week he was thankful for the decision and the lawyers, including local attorney Jack Leonard, who had pursued his case since 2018 TWRAs abuse of power had to stop, Hollingsworth said. For as long as I can remember, these officers have acted like a law unto themselves. But nobody not even a game warden is above the Constitution, and yesterdays decision makes that crystal clear. Buck, the TWRA spokesperson, noted that the agency at the outset of the legal challenge, voluntarily implemented a landowner consent process to enter private property and officers have already received additional training on obtaining search warrants when appropriate. The Agency will continue to serve the sportsmen and women of our state by fulfilling its statutory public trust responsibility of protecting wildlife populations. The Agency is also committed to preventing poaching and illegal activity on both public and private property. TWRA has 60 days to appeal the decision to the Tennessee Supreme Court. RainwatersTerryOPN The post Appeals court: Wildlife officers warrantless searches of private property are unconstitutional appeared first on Tennessee Lookout. Android and iOS users will receive an alert if an unknown tracker moves with them over time. Apple and Google's long-in-the-works effort to alert people to unwanted Bluetooth trackers that may have been planted on them has come to fruition. The companies have developed an industry standard called Detecting Unwanted Location Trackers. This makes it possible to alert someone via iOS or Android if they're being tracked with one of those devices. When an unknown Bluetooth device is seen moving with someone over a period of time, they'll get an alert that reads [Item] Found Moving With You," no matter which platform the tracker is paired with. Apple and Google are rolling out the capability in iOS 17.5 and across Android 6.0 and later devices starting today. The companies announced a partnership to tackle this issue last May with backing from industry partners such as Samsung and Tile. Apple says that Chipolo, Eufy, Jio, Motorola and Pebblebee are among the companies who say that their future Bluetooth tags will work with the new standard. Not long after Apple started selling AirTags three years ago, stories of bad actors using the devices to track people and steal cars started to emerge. Apple quickly started working on ways to make it harder for stalkers to use AirTags illicitly and it refined its approach to that over time. The company also released an Android app in late 2021 to help folks find out if an AirTag had been planted on them, but the new approach will take an OS-level approach to warning people about unwanted trackers across both platforms. Apple has been hit with legal challenges over AirTag stalking. In March, a San Francisco judge rejected the company's effort to dismiss a class-action lawsuit over the issue. The timing of the Detecting Unwanted Location Trackers alert rollout is intriguing. There have long been rumors that Google was working on its own Bluetooth tracker. With its I/O developer conference taking place on Tuesday, perhaps such a device is about to come to light. Tech giant Apple is poised to see its first-ever strike on its retail operations after staff at a store in Maryland voted to authorize a strike against the company. Members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers overwhelmingly voted on Saturday to strike at the Apple Store in Towson. Following over a year of negotiations with Apple management that yielded unsatisfactory outcomes, the members took a significant step by voting in favor of a strike at the Apple Towson store, signaling their collective demand for meaningful change, the coalition said in a statement. The issues at the forefront of this action include concerns over work-life balance, unpredictable scheduling practices disrupting personal lives, and wages failing to align with the areas cost of living. No date has been set for the strike. The Apple store in Maryland was the first to unionize for the company in 2022. Back then, the issues driving Apple retail workers to organize went beyond pay and benefits: Workers were also looking for more of a voice in company operations. In a 2022 open letter to Apple chief Tim Cook, Marylands Apple store employees said their collective action was sparked by their love of their jobs, not to go against or create conflict with our management. Their goal, they said, was about gaining access to rights we currently do not have, and they asked Cook to think different and collaborate with employees rather than fend off the campaign. Lila MacLellan contributed to this article. This article originally appeared on Quartz. For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. By Nicolas Misculin and Vivian Sequera BUENOS AIRES/CARACAS (Reuters) - Argentina's government is set to ramp up pressure on Venezuela to grant safe passage to six opposition aides who had sought refuge in its embassy in Caracas, official sources said, adding they were at physical risk if they didn't leave the country. Two senior Argentine officials told Reuters last week that the administration of President Nicolas Maduro, who has looked to head off political rivals ahead of July presidential elections, had reneged on promises to allow the six to safely leave the country. In March, aides to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado requested asylum at the Argentine embassy in Caracas, after a local prosecutor issued arrest warrants against them for conspiracy. Machado, who has denied any allegations of misconduct by her team, was blocked from being a candidate in the upcoming election despite being the front-runner in polls. Maduro's government has been going after political opposition candidates, including Machado, despite electoral commitments signed last year, a trend that saw Washington reimpose broad oil sanctions in April. In April, Reuters reported, citing a Venezuelan official source, that Maduro's socialist government would allow the six aides to leave safely, in order to travel to Buenos Aires. However, senior Argentine sources from the government of right-wing libertarian Javier Milei, told Reuters no such concession was ever granted. "Venezuela is not issuing safe-conduct passes, it is not complying with what was agreed upon or with the (1954) Convention on Diplomatic Asylum", said one of the sources, an official from Argentina's foreign ministry. "In the official Argentine residence in Caracas is the entire Machado campaign office, who are politically persecuted," the person added, asking not to be named. "They have to leave Caracas because their physical integrity is in danger." Venezuela's Ministry of Information did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Argentine comments, previously unreported, mark an important hardening of tone on the embassy issue from the country against Maduro, putting diplomatic pressure on him just months before the oil-rich country's controversial election. A third Venezuelan source with knowledge of the matter said that they expected Argentina to make a significant and more public push on the matter this week, aiming to bring more regional pressure on Caracas. "It is likely that other countries will soon begin to speak out asking for a resolution of this issue," the first Argentina government source added. A second Argentine government official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that the country expected the region to "demand Venezuela respect and comply with the Convention." "Venezuela must grant safe-conduct passes without conditions so that the six asylum seekers can leave the residence." (Reporting by Reporting by Nicolas Misculin; Additional reporting by Vivian Sequera; Editing by Adam Jourdan and Diane Craft) Arizona is a cautionary tale for school vouchers as a wave of states are giving parents cash to send their kids to private school Arizona established a universal school voucher system to allow kids to switch from public to private school. An expert told BI that vouchers tend to go to wealthy families. It's "a cautionary tale" for all the other states expanding voucher systems, he said. The prominence of school vouchers continues to surge across the country but they might not benefit the families who need them the most. Over the past few years, states like Ohio and Arkansas have expanded their school voucher programs to allow most or all parents to receive funding to send their kids to private schools. More than 20 states now have some kind of voucher program with more in consideration. Arizona was the first state to create a universal voucher program in 2022 and experts have said it's the state to watch when analyzing the impact of vouchers for all. The modern school voucher movement started to grow in the 1990s under the idea that the government would give parents a certain amount of money to put toward private school tuition. The programs were means-tested, meaning recipients had to meet a certain poverty limit to receive assistance, with the idea that kids with fewer resources would be able to earn a better education at private schools. However, gradually, more states began to raise the poverty limit, making nearly any parent eligible to receive the funding and in some states, it led to the cash going to the wealthiest families. Arizona is "a cautionary tale" regarding the expansion of vouchers, Josh Cowen, professor of education policy at Michigan State University, told Business Insider. "With the Arizona expansion, it's just going into communities that are primarily wealthy," Cowen said. "When this thing stopped becoming a means test 20 years ago, it stopped being an antipoverty device." A new report from the Brookings Institution delved further into the implications of Arizona's voucher program. Arizona was the first state to implement a universal education savings account which the state calls the Empowerment Scholarship Account to allow parents to receive state funding to send their kids to private school. While the program initially was capped to students with disabilities, it gradually expanded to include more students, and it's now open to all students but the wealthiest are disproportionately getting the funds. Arizona is just one example of the range of programs across over 20 states implementing voucher programs. While they've been championed by many Republican legislators who have argued that the vouchers allow parents to control what their kids are learning, critics have argued that they've diverted funds from public schools and lack accountability measures. Through an analysis of the 2024 second-quarter report for the program, Brookings found that the lowest-poverty areas in Arizona tend to have the highest participation in the ESA program, and the area with the lowest median income also has the lowest ESA participation rate. For example, the zip codes with the lowest poverty rate, like Phoenix suburb Queen Creek, had the highest participation rate of 75 recipients per 1,000 children under 18. The report noted that there are a range of reasons families in higher poverty areas might not be participating in the program, including being unaware of the program or unable to get to their preferred school due to transportation barriers. Cost is also a barrier, the report said, since tuition at private schools often exceeds the scholarship amount. "Regardless, if states that have adopted (or are considering) universal ESA programs are serious about using private school choice to address inequities in school access, they need to take a hard look at these programs," the report said. "The data emerging from Arizona provide plenty of reasons for concern." Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs introduced an effort to boost transparency in the voucher system. Rebecca Noble/Getty Images The complicated future of school vouchers Arizona's former GOP Governor Doug Ducey made the state's ESAs universal in 2022, later saying during a February interview that during remote learning, "parents were able to see what their kids were being taught or not taught and the level of rigor and expectation from the public schools." "They also saw that the charter schools opened and the Catholic schools opened and many of the largest public districts chose to stay closed for nearly two years, even when the government was telling them to open," Ducey said. Republican members of the legislature have supported the expansion of vouchers, emphasizing that parents should have a role in choosing their kids' education. But Katie Hobbs, the state's current Democratic governor, proposed a plan in January to rein in the program as part of an effort to address budget deficits. Her plan would require students to attend a public school for 100 days at any point in their education before becoming eligible for a voucher. It would also establish transparency measures that would ensure, for example, vouchers do not pay for extravagant field trips. "My plan is simple: every school receiving taxpayer dollars must have basic standards to show they're keeping our students safe and giving Arizona children the education they deserve," Hobbs said in a statement. While Arizona got a head start on implementing its voucher program, other states are following suit. At least eleven now have universal programs, and other states, including Tennessee, Georgia, and Alabama, are considering new laws. Arizona could preview not only budget complications for other states but a rocky outlook for the future of public education. "You see these vouchers start to cannibalize on public school funds. The most important piece probably is at that state level where you really are talking about taking up a huge portion of dollars that the state can be spending on other things, like public schools, but also other parts of the economy," Cowen said. "The amount of money that you're spending on this means that at some point, there are real meaningful policy trade-offs, and not all dollars are created equal," he continued. "So for schools, the state aid portion is really, really important. It's the important equalizer at the local level between districts that might have very different tax bases to draw from." Have you received a school voucher or decided not to participate in your state's program? Are you in a state considering school vouchers? Share your story with this reporter at asheffey@businessinsider.com. Read the original article on Business Insider Registered nurse Orlyn Grace administers a COVID-19 booster vaccination to Jeanie Merriman at a COVID-19 vaccination clinic on April 06, 2022 in San Rafael, California. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) State officials on Monday announced $20 million in grants to assist 19 Arkansas higher education institutions in training more nurses amid a nationwide shortage. The Arkansas Linking Industry to Grow Nurses (ALIGN) program is supported through American Rescue Plan Act funding and will be administered by the state Commerce Departments Office of Skills Development, Commerce Secretary Hugh McDonald said at Mondays press conference. What were trying to do here is to increase the number of nursing professionals, nursing apprenticeships, and increase and retain our nursing educators and do it in a way where our employers obviously are going to hire them, McDonald said. According to a request for proposals issued in November, eligible recipients include any public or private post-secondary institution providing LPN, RN and BSN degrees in Arkansas. Each institution was also required to provide a health care partner contribution, with a two-to-one match by the state for every dollar contributed. ALIGN Funding Recipients Grants are aimed at increasing nursing program capacity, skills upgrades for medical professionals, expanding clinical rotations, tuition reimbursement and lab expansion, among other things, according to the request for proposals. The funds cant be used for constructing or renovating buildings, and all funds must be spent by Dec. 31, 2026. Great nurses, whom Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders called the backbone of our health care system, are needed to have great medical facilities, but were not training enough of them fast enough, she said. Well need nearly 300,000 new nurses across America by the end of the decade, and the demand for nurses is growing faster than all other occupations, Sanders said. The pandemic underscored the need for more nurses, so this program will help fill our health care needs. Need to get in touch? Have a news tip? CONTACT US The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects more than 275,000 additional nurses will be needed by 2030, and that employment opportunities will grow 9%, faster than all other occupations from 2016 to 2026. According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, several factors are contributing to the nursing shortage, including a shortage of nursing school faculty that restricts enrollment and an increased need for geriatric care as the countrys older population grows. Additionally, more nurses are leaving the profession due to insufficient staffing, which is raising stress levels and affecting job satisfaction a situation amplified by the pandemic. A lack of nurses also has contributed to the increase in U.S. hospital closures in recent years, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. To assist struggling rural hospitals at risk of closure, Arkansas lawmakers set aside $60 million of ARPA funding in August 2022 as emergency relief. As of January, legislators had directed the federal relief funds to 17 of 18 rural hospitals deemed eligible for the aid. The post Arkansas officials grant $20 million to increase nursing pipeline appeared first on Arkansas Advocate. Armed and dangerous teenager wanted after shooting, South Carolina police say The Batesburg-Leesville Police Department is searching for a Lexington County teenager it called armed and dangerous, following a recent shooting. Police said 18-year-old Batesburg-Leesville resident DaJae Wigfall is the wanted man, according to a Monday news release. On May 10, officers responded to a report of a shooting at 102 South Pine Street, according to the release. Thats next to an Exxon gas station in a commercial area where several retail businesses and restaurants are located, about 2 miles from Shealys Bar-B-Que. Officers found a man in a parking lot who had been shot, police said. The victim was taken to Lexington Medical Center suffering a non-life-threatening injury, according to the release. Further information on the victims condition was not available. Wigfall is facing assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature and possession of a firearm during the commission of a violent crime charges, according to the release. There was no word on a motive for the shooting. Wigfall should be considered armed and dangerous, police said. Anyone with information on Wigfall, his location, or about the shooting is asked to call police at 803-532-4408, CrimeStoppers at 888-CRIME-SC or submit an online tip. In the case of an emergency, always call 911. WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) Ascension continues to deal with a ransomware attack affecting its nationwide health system network, including Via Christi hospitals, physician offices and care sites in Kansas. On Monday, Ascension said it had leading cybersecurity experts working around the clock over the weekend to respond to the ransomware incident. We are making progress, however, it will take time to return to normal operations, an Ascension spokesperson said in a news release. Both Ascension and Via Christi say patient safety is the priority. Via Christi said its hospitals, physician offices, emergency rooms, and care sites are open and operational. Our dedicated doctors, nurses, and care teams are demonstrating incredible thoughtfulness and resilience as we use manual and paper-based systems during the ongoing disruption to normal systems, a Via Christi spokesperson said. The spokesperson also provided answers to some of the questions patients have. Can I go to my doctors appointment? Ascension Via Christi Medical Partners doctors offices and care sites are operating with normal business hours, and all scheduled appointments are proceeding as planned. Due to the transition to manual systems for patient documentation, patients may encounter longer than usual wait times and some delays. To help expedite processes, patients should bring notes on symptoms and a list of current medications, including prescription numbers or bottles. In the event that appointments need to be rescheduled, an Ascension associate will contact patients directly. Can I get my prescription filled? Ascension Rx retail pharmacies in Kansas cannot fill your prescription at this time. If a prescription was filled prior to May 8, 2024, and is awaiting pickup, that is available for the patient. If a patient needs a refill, they need to contact their prescriber and get a new prescription sent to a pharmacy outside of Ascension Rx. Wesley gives ER guidance in wake of Ascension cyber issue Is Via Christi Immediate Care on Murdock open? At this time, the Via Christi Immediate Care on Murdock is fully operating. Due to the transition to manual systems for patient documentation and care at certain centers, patients may encounter longer than usual wait times and some delays. Are Ascensions emergency rooms open? All Via Christi emergency rooms remain open. If you are experiencing a medical emergency, please dial 911, and local emergency services will transport you to the most appropriate hospital emergency room. Can I still have my surgery? Patients with upcoming scheduled elective surgeries should plan to arrive as planned unless otherwise notified. Should any rescheduling be necessary, a member of our care team will contact you directly. Due to the transition to manual systems for patient documentation, patients may encounter longer than usual wait times and some delays. To help expedite processes, patients should bring notes on symptoms and a list of current medications, including prescription numbers or bottles. Will I be able to get my diagnostic imaging, other tests, and treatments? Imaging, testing, and treatment are being offered at this time. Patients may experience delays. Should any rescheduling be necessary, a member of our care team will contact you directly. Updates Ascension says it will provide updates on the cybersecurity event on a dedicated website Cybersecurity Event Update | Ascension. In the meantime, Via Christi says it appreciates the communitys patience and understanding. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KSN-TV. Assistant principal charged in torture and killing of 3 people in 2013, Georgia cops say A middle school assistant principal in Alabama and three other men have been charged with murder in connection with the torture and killing of three people in 2013, Georgia deputies said. Keante Harris is an assistant principal at McAdory Middle School in the Birmingham area. At this time we still are gathering facts about the specifics of this situation, Jefferson County Schools superintendent Walter Gonsoulin said in a statement to McClatchy News. However, early indications are that the charges are not related to this individuals employment with Jefferson County Schools. Per standard procedure, Mr. Harris has been placed on paid administrative leave. As more facts become available, we will act according to our districts policy. Keante Harris faces three charges of malice murder, alongside Kevin Harris, Darrell Harris and Kenneth Thompson, the Clayton County Sheriffs Office said May 10 in a news release. Deputies said that in January 2013, the men lured three victims to a location in Jonesboro, outside Atlanta, and forced them into a home at gunpoint. The men abused and killed the three people, then they put them in a Dodge Charger and ditched the car on the side of Interstate 85 in a nearby county, officials said. Police reported they spotted the car Jan. 13, 2013, and found three bodies inside. It was determined through the investigation that all three victims were tortured and murdered in Clayton County and dumped in Fulton County, Clayton County Sheriff Levon Allen said in the news release. The victims were identified as Cheryl Colquitt-Thompson, Quinones King and Rodney Cottrell, WSFA reported. King and Cottrell were found in the backseat, dead from asphyxiation, and Colquitt-Thompson was found in the trunk, officials told WSFA. A Georgia medical examiner found she died from strangulation, according to FOX5. Colquitt-Thompsons sister told the Montgomery Advertiser in 2018 that her sisters death would not be forgotten. Were not going to be on the back burner. Were not going to let this rest, Lakita Lewis said. There have got to be some sick people in this world. How can you take three lives and sleep at night? But whats done in the darkness will come back to life. The men were taken into custody in three different states without incident, Allen said. None of the men have attorney information available in Clayton County court records. 20-year-old tortured and killed after texting mom for help, AL cops say. 7 charged Decomposed body down cliff posed mystery since 1967, CA cops say. Now woman identified Farmers chasing pig found remains in 1975, cops say. Now theyre identified as veteran Mom came home to find babysitter dead 47 years ago, CO cops say. Now theres a suspect Athens County man to serve at least 20 years for raping minor ATHENS, Ohio (WCMH) An Athens County man will serve at least two decades in prison after being found guilty of rape. According to the Athens County Prosecutors Office, Joshua Murphy, 35, was sentenced to a mandatory prison term of 20-years-to-life, to be served in the State Penal System effective May 1. Murphy, of Coolville, Ohio, was convicted of 10 counts of first-degree felony rape, which occurred over a period of five years, from February 2017 to December 2022. At the time of the crimes, the victim was between the ages of nine and 14. Licking County man pleads guilty to distributing videos depicting monkey torture Authorities received information in March 2023 that a 14-year-old girl had reported being raped by Murphy. An investigation revealed that Murphy had sexually assaulted the girl on numerous occasions before the victim moved out of the area. An Athens County criminal complaint said that since moving, Murphy had attempted to contact her several times and police obtained text messages that discussed meeting to engage in sexual conduct. The victim repeatedly denied such requests, police said. Murphy admitted to police that the two engaged in sexual conduct approximately 10 times. In addition to the prison sentence, Murphy will register as a Tier III sex offender and be subject to five years of community control, should he be released from prison. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to NBC4 WCMH-TV. FILE PHOTO: 'X' logo is seen on the top of the messaging platform X, formerly known as Twitter SYDNEY (Reuters) - An Australian court on Monday rejected a bid by the country's cyber safety regulator to extend a temporary order for Elon Musk-owned X to block videos of the stabbing of an Assyrian church bishop, which authorities had called a terrorist attack. Federal Court judge Geoffrey Kennett said the application to extend the injunction granted last month had been refused. The reasons for the judgement will be released later, the judge said during a brief hearing. The matter has been listed for a hearing on Wednesday. The legal tussle has sparked heated exchanges between Musk and senior Australian officials including Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who called Musk "an arrogant billionaire" for his objections to take down the video. Musk has posted memes criticising the regulatory order, describing it as censorship. Other platforms, such as Meta, took down the content quickly when asked. The Federal Court, Australia's second-highest court, last month upheld an order by the eSafety Commissioner asking X, formerly Twitter, to take down 65 posts containing footage of the bishop being knifed mid-sermon in Sydney on April 15, saying it showed explicit violence. A 16-year-old boy has been charged with a terrorism offence for the alleged attack. Australian users have been blocked from viewing the posts but X has refused to remove them globally on the grounds that one country's rules should not control the internet. The regulator told the court last week that geo-blocking Australians, the solution X offered, was ineffective because a quarter of the population used virtual private networks that disguised their locations. Last week, Albanese's centre-left government announced it would hold a parliamentary inquiry to look into the negative impacts of social media, saying it has significant control over what Australians see online, with almost no scrutiny. (Reporting by Renju Jose in Sydney; Editing by Stephen Coates) A federal court in Australia on Monday removed an injunction placed on X forcing to remove video of a stabbing that happened last month at the Good Shepherd Church in the Sydney suburb of Wakeley. Photo by Bianca de Marchi/EPA-EFE May 13 (UPI) -- A federal court in Australia on Monday lifted a temporary injunction placed on U.S. social media giant X to force it to remove videos of last month's violent stabbing of a bishop in a terrorist attack in Sydney. The country's eSafety commissioner, Inman Grant, was awarded the injunction on April 22, requiring X to ensure the removal of the video of Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel being stabbed during service at the Christ The Good Shepherd Church in the Sydney suburb of Wakeley on April 15. However, a federal court or Monday rejected the government's application to extend the injunction, the commissioner said in a statement. "Not trying to win anything. I just don't think we should be suppressing Australians' rights to free speech," X owner Elon Musk said in response to the ruling on his social media platform. Police have declared the stabbing in which Emmanuel and three others, including the accused 16-year-old suspect, were injured a terrorist attack. The service was live-streamed, and footage of the stabbing quickly spread online. The eSafety commissioner said it worked with Google, Microsoft, Snap and TikTok to remove the video, but on April 16 issued what it called Class 1 removal notices to Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, and X seeking removal of the material from their platforms. While Meta complied, X did not -- at least not to Grant's satisfaction. X has geo-blocked the video in Australia, meaning that residents of other countries can still access it through its platform and those in the Oceanic nation with the use of a VPN, meaning a virtual private network. Musk last month had said X's concern with the Australia's request is that "if ANY country is allowed to censor content for ALL countries ... then what is to stop any country from controlling the entire Internet?" Following the attack, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told reporters during a press conference that social media companies have a responsibility to take action when such videos are published on their platforms and that they shouldn't need the eSafety commissioner to seek legal intervention. "The social media companies that make a lot of money out of their business have a social responsibility. And I want to see social media companies start to understand their social responsibility that they have to others as well, because that's where they get their social license," he said April 19. "We are prepared to take whatever action is necessary to haul these companies into line. We've made that very clear because of the damage that a failure to act can have." Johann Hari, the journalist previously exposed for plagiarism and fabricating quotes, has apologised for his claims in Magic Pill - GEOFF PUGH An author who has previously admitted plagiarism wrongly claimed in a new book that Jay Rayner, the food critic, had taken Ozempic. Johann Hari, the journalist previously exposed for plagiarism and fabricating quotes, has since apologised for including the claim in Magic Pill, his book about weight-loss drugs. He wrote of Rayner, the food critic and MasterChef judge: He said that Ozempic robbed him of his pleasure in food so severely that even in great restaurants in Paris, he couldnt find any joy. This was dismissed as very much defamatory and complete and utter b-----ks by Rayner, who said he had never taken Ozempic. Writing on social media, Rayner said: In his new book, Magic Pill, about so-called fat drugs like Ozempic, [Hari] says I was prescribed the drug but gave it up because it robbed me of pleasure in food. This is complete and utter b-----ks. I wrote one column on the subject in which I explained why I would NEVER take it. The piece is clear. I explained why I would not be using it. I didnt say anything about Paris restaurants. This was completely checkable. Rayner continued: Hes now repeating this cobblers in interviews. We know [Hari] is a terrible journalist (I use the term loosely)... But Christ, checking something like this isnt hard. I am mystified as to why Bloomsbury Books did not go through the text with a fine-tooth comb. The issue is that stuff like this ends up on the record. So for the record, and contrary to what [Hari] has written and said, I have never used Ozempic or anything similar. Hari has responded, saying that he had mixed up Rayner with another journalist. Jay Rayner appears on the popular BBC TV show MasterChef - BBC I confused an article by Jay Rayner in the Guardian with an article by Leila Latif in the same paper talking about losing pleasure in food. I apologise to Jay for getting this wrong, and am gutted I and my fact-checkers missed it, he wrote on Twitter. In her article, Latif wrote of the side effects of taking medication for a long-standing health condition, although it was later clarified that she was not taking semaglutide, which is sold under the brand name Ozempic. I will of course get this corrected immediately. Again I apologise unreservedly to Jay, Hari added. Rayner accepted the apology but said: I am now waiting for his publishers to tell me how they will rectify the error in all editions of the book. In his original posts, Rayner said that Haris claim was defamatory because: a) It suggests that I took a drug which would impact my ability to enjoy food, ie do my job, when I didnt. b) Given I wrote a piece saying I would not take it, it means I lied. Star columnist Haris career initially unravelled in 2011 when a reader noticed that a quote from one of his stories had been cut and pasted from a book. At the time, he was a star columnist at the Independent. More examples came to light, and he admitted to multiple instances of plagiarism and embellishing quotes. He also admitted to using the pseudonym David Rose to attack other journalists, after the IP address for the malicious postings was traced back to the Independents offices. In a few instances, I edited the entries of people I had clashed with in ways that were juvenile or malicious I am mortified to have done this, he said. Hari handed back his George Orwell Prize for political journalism he had been the youngest ever recipient of the award and announced that he would take a journalism course. Asked by the Guardian in 2015 whether he was worried about his credibility, Hari said: Well, I f----d up and its perfectly right for people to be sceptical. I know Ive got work to do in regaining trust. A spokesman for Bloomsbury said: This is an unfortunate mistake which we are in the process of correcting across all editions. We confirm there was a fact checking process in place for Magic Pill by Johann Hari. The error occurred when an article was wrongly attributed to Jay Rayner and we sincerely apologise to him. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Georgian authorities in riot gear cleared protesters from outside parliament as lawmakers advanced a so-called "foreign agents" bill. Photo by David Mdzinarishvili/EPA-EFE May 13 (UPI) -- Crowds in Georgia's capital of Tbilisi protested Sunday night into Monday morning against a proposed "foreign influence" bill that could threaten Geogia's entry into the European Union. Tens of thousands of protesters shouted "slaves" and "Russians" as members of the ruling Georgian Dream Party arrived at parliament and pushed the legislation through a committee vote in barely more than a minute, setting up a final vote on the measure Tuesday in the former Soviet republic. If implemented, the measure would require organizations, including the media, to be listed as foreign agents if they receive more than 20% of their funding from outside the country. "They want to drag us back to autocracy, to the country they occupied us for too many years," a protester told Sky News. Protesters had sought to block lawmakers from making their way into parliament but Georgian authorities moved in early Monday to clear a path. Among the 20 people arrested during the current protests included two U.S. citizens, according to the Georgia Ministry of Internal Affairs. Opponents argued the bill is similar to one passed in Russia that has allowed President Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin to intimidate and even shut organizations with such a designation. The bill had been a year in the making when protesters were able to derail the legislation, but the Georgia Dream Party appeared to be more prepared to withstand the intensity of the demonstrations. Editors note: Editors note: The above video shows KXAN News top morning headlines from Monday, May 13, 2024. MANOR, Texas (KXAN) The Manor Police Department said it and Travis County Emergency Services District 12 are working on an arson investigation after a fire at the Manor Walmart gas station. Manor PD said on its Facebook page shortly before 9 p.m. the gas station was closed Sunday night after a person went into the bathroom and allegedly started a fire then left. Police asked that anyone with information regarding the incident contact the Manor Police Department at police@manortx.gov. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KXAN Austin. An electric vehicle charges its battery at a public charging station in Baton Rouge on Feb. 24, 2023. (Photo credit: Wes Muller/Louisiana Illuminator) Baton Rouge Community College is offering a free three-week training course this summer on electric vehicle technology operations and maintenance. The no-cost training will be held Monday, May 20, through Friday, June 7, at the BRCC Automotive Training Center, 2115 N. Lobdell Blvd., in Baton Rouge. The three-week, in-person course will take place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday. Trainees will have a state-of-the-art curriculum to learn the standard electrical practices of repair technicians for electric vehicle supply technology such as fundamentals of electrical energy, preventative maintenance, charging stations, batteries and more that can help students become nationally certified Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment (EVSE) technicians, according to a BRCC press release. The EVSE training course aligns with the Society of Automobile Engineers (SAE) International standards and is a global association of more than 128,000 engineers and related technical experts in the aerospace, automotive, and commercial vehicle industries. Their core competencies are life-long learning and voluntary consensus standards development. Classroom seats are limited. To register or request more information, individuals can email their contact information to Shondra Johnson at johnsons@mybrcc.edu. The post Auto techs offered free electric vehicle repair course appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator. The 2024 primary in Nebraska could set the stage for how voters in the state's largest political party have changed. (Getty Images) OMAHA People who led a populist revolt against the old Nebraska Republican Party and those who rose to power with the partys previous leaders will be watching primary results Tuesday for clues about how much the partys electorate has changed. Polling, pundits and conventional political indicators, including fundraising and advertising, point to a likely win in the 2nd District House race by U.S. Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb. He faces former tea party and now populist challenger Dan Frei. But like former Democratic U.S. Rep. Brad Ashford, D-Neb., whom Kara Eastman upset in the 2018 Democratic primary, Bacon faces an opponent from his partys energized base. And some question how many of Bacons supporters will be motivated to vote. The 2nd District race has drawn the most attention from leaders in the new state GOP and populist partners in online activism, because they saw Frei nearly upset then-U.S. Rep. Lee Terry in 2014, and they see Bacons race as their best chance. The state central committee took the unusual step of endorsing no members of Nebraskas all-GOP congressional delegation after none formally sought the committees endorsement. All five are favored to win re-election, and some Republicans the party ousted or ostracized want to see the partys endorsed candidates lose and lose badly. The state GOP endorsed Frei against Bacon, populist John Glen Weaver against U.S. Sen. Pete Ricketts and populist John Walz against U.S. Rep. Adrian Smith. They did not endorse anyone in U.S. Sen. Deb Fischers race or U.S. Rep. Mike Floods. GOP fractured Party Chairman Eric Underwood has argued that the party is better off making sure its candidates hew to the party platform and supporting them at the grassroots level. The GOP is fractured in Nebraska, said Paul Landow, a retired political science professor at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. There are a lot of issues theyre trying to iron out, and theyre doing it at the worst time possible, an election. Some numbers to watch, several told the Nebraska Examiner, are the early voting returns in Douglas, Sarpy and Saunders Counties, where most expect the better-financed Bacon campaign to hold an edge over a Frei group more suspicious of early voting. As of late last week, Nebraskans had requested 161,000 early ballots by mail or in person, and 106,000 of them had been returned. Voters in another 11 Nebraska counties that vote exclusively by mail had received 50,000 ballots and had returned 16,000 of them. Another handful of counties have a handful of precincts that vote exclusively by mail. In a typical year, state election officials have said, about 90% of early ballots requested get returned. Ballots returned include in-person voting at county election offices. Some political consultants say Frei could fare better if primary turnout is low. To counter that, the Bacon campaign has worked to bank early votes and overcome outside factors keeping people home, including the GOP presidential primary being essentially decided. Frei has based much of his 2024 campaign on appealing to the voters who demand more loyalty to former President Donald Trump. Trump has a complicated history with early voting, calling it cheating when other candidates are more successful at it. Turnout predicted at 35% Nebraska Secretary of State Bob Evnen has predicted middle-high turnout of 35% for Nebraskas 2024 presidential primary, in part because the state has the rare distinction of having both U.S. Senate races up for election in the same year. Fischer is running for her third six-year term. She faces a last-minute GOP challenger in Arron Kowalski, a central Nebraska farmer and former House candidate who soundly lost 3rd District House bids in 2018 and 2020 against Smith. Ricketts is running to finish the last two years of Ben Sasses Senate term. Gov. Jim Pillen appointed Ricketts in early 2023 after the University of Florida hired Sasse as president. Ricketts faces Weaver, of Omaha, and Mac Stevens of Bushnell. Nebraska Democrats have choices in the federal primary in the 3rd District, where Daniel Ebers and David Else are running. Legislative primaries, which are officially nonpartisan, could also appeal to primary voters in both parties. The GOP fight has boosted Nebraska Democrats hopes for November in the 2nd District, the states most competitive. State Sen. Tony Vargas of Omaha awaits the winner of the GOP primary. He lost to Bacon by fewer than three percentage points in 2022. Some Frei supporters said some Republicans are so frustrated with Bacon they might stay home this fall and let Vargas win. Some said theyd rather have a Democrat than Bacon. A few discussed write-in campaigns to siphon off votes. Vargas awaits Their most common gripes about Bacon concern his previous criticisms of Trump, whom Bacon has since endorsed. Bacon had said he preferred other Republican candidates for president this election cycle, including South Carolina U.S. Sen. Tim Scott. Some argue its more about issues Trump has highlighted than Trump himself. Landow, who has helped run statewide and local Democratic campaigns, agreed with other pundits who said Democrats would need only a few percentage points of Republican voters to stay home or switch sides to flip the seat into Vargas hands. I think the Democrats have a good shot, he said. Bacon has vacillated between looking ahead to the general election and reminding GOP primary voters about his conservative stances, including his support for a federal abortion ban and willingness to accept steps moving in that direction, including a 15-week ban. He and his campaign have sounded confident in the weeks leading up to the primary, arguing that a district that is home to many fellow Air Force veterans and suburban conservatives appreciate his securing funds for Offutt Air Force Base and road improvements. They pointed to a Roll Call article from May 8 that did not rank him among the top 10 incumbent House members at risk of losing. They also noted that neither Trump nor the House Freedom Caucus have endorsed Frei, and he sought the backing of both. Focus on swing districts voters Bacon has argued that Freis attempt to run hard to the congressmans right risks handing House control to Democrats because the politically mixed Omaha-area district wont elect a candidate like Frei who has pledged to join the Freedom Caucus, a hard-right group. Its members have argued that the House GOP should shut down the federal government, refuse to raise the debt ceiling and not compromise with Democrats. Some downplay the consequences of a shutdown or defaulting on U.S. debt. Many Republicans blamed the Freedom Caucus for ousting former Speaker Kevin McCarthy of California, a close ally of Bacons, and trying to replace him with populist Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, whom Bacon opposed. The GOP eventually settled on Speaker Mike Johnson to replace McCarthy. Frei and some of his populist supporters have argued that the status quo in Washington is not working. They say someone has to be willing to step in and stop the passage of continuing budget resolutions that add to the $34 trillion national debt. Frei has said he would never vote for a continuing resolution. Bacon has argued that the GOP has to compromise to some extent because it controls only the House. Democrats control both the Senate and the White House through at least the end of the year. Frei still talking deficit and debt Much like in his 2014 race, Frei argues that two of the top issues facing Americans are the deficit and the debt. He has said Congress needs to get better at saying no, and he argues Bacon is part of the problem. Youve got to stop the deficit spending, Frei said. He hasnt. Frei has appeared multiple times on former Trump adviser Steve Bannons War Room podcast. Bannon and former Trump economic adviser David Bossie helped state and local populist Republicans take over their party organizations, in part to help Trump. Frei has criticized Bacon for being too willing to compromise and too willing to find common ground. He argues that most Republican primary voters would prefer a fighter, someone who stands for what is right regardless of its chances for passage. He has been especially harsh on Bacon, who led the 55th Wing at Offutt and served during the Cold War, about pushing for military aid to Ukraine, which Congress passed. Bacon has said the aid is needed to help an ally and Europe fight back against Russia. Bacon defends how he governs by pointing to ratings ranking him as effective in getting legislation included in larger legislative packages. He describes himself as a conservative who does what he can to represent a mixed district in a divided country. I am who I am, Bacon said. And Im proud of what weve done. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Bacon-Frei race is latest front in populist-traditionalist GOP fight appeared first on Nebraska Examiner. Will ballot drop boxes be legal again in Wisconsin? Here's what to know about the state Supreme Court case. The Wisconsin Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments Monday in a case that could restore the use of absentee ballot drop boxes in the state. The same court ruled drop boxes illegal in 2022, barring voters from returning their absentee ballots using the boxes that sprang up in many communities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The case, which challenges the previous drop box decision and another ruling that prohibited clerks from filling in missing address information on absentee ballots, was filed just two weeks before the court flipped to a liberal majority last summer. That means the court could again allow drop boxes to be used in Wisconsin, perhaps before the August and November elections. Here's what to know about the legal timeline of drop boxes, when and where they were used in Wisconsin and what could happen next: Madison city officials wrapped up dormant ballot drop boxes in art and criticism of a Wisconsin Supreme Court ruling barring the boxes' use. What is an absentee ballot drop box, anyway? Drop boxes are receptacles where voters can return their completed absentee ballots, rather than through the mail, at a clerk's office or at their polling place. In 2020 guidance to clerks, the Wisconsin Elections Commission described them as a secure, locked box, staffed or unstaffed, that should be permanently cemented to the ground and made of a durable material like steel. They can cost as much as $6,000. Drop boxes had been used since the 1980s or 1990s in Wisconsin and other states. But they exploded in popularity during the pandemic to help voters cast ballots while limiting interaction with other people. In Wisconsin, drop boxes have been located outside city halls, fire stations and libraries, for example. Eau Claire installed a drop box at City Hall and at three Festival Foods locations in the city, the Journal Sentinel reported in 2021. How many drop boxes were there in Wisconsin, and where? In spring 2021, there were about 570 drop boxes in Wisconsin, according to court filings. Out of Wisconsin's 72 counties, at least 66 had drop boxes as of spring 2021, PolitiFact Wisconsin noted. While Republicans, including former President Donald Trump, have heavily scrutinized the use of drop boxes, they were used widely in Wisconsin, including in conservative areas. What are the arguments for and against drop boxes? Proponents of drop boxes say they were a safe and convenient way for voters to return ballots during the pandemic. They have also said drop boxes made voting more accessible to elderly voters or those with disabilities, such as having a neighbor return their ballot to a drop box. Proponents also argue drop boxes are more secure than placing ballots in a mailbox, which can have less surveillance. Opponents of drop boxes have argued they're illegal because state law doesn't specify them it only specifies mailing back ballots or delivering them in-person to a clerk. Republicans have also scrutinized the use of outside grants now prohibited for election administration in Wisconsin to help buy equipment like drop boxes, arguing funding from Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to help clerks in 2020 unfairly advantaged Democratic-leaning areas. More: Vos claim on illegal drop boxes conflicts with earlier stance on their use More: Fact Check: Claim that Meagan Wolfe allowed absentee drop boxes, ballot harvesting is false A ballot drop box on the sidewalk outside the Washington Park Library on 2121 N. Sherman Blvd. in Milwaukee on Saturday, Oct. 3, 2020. When did drop boxes become illegal in Wisconsin? It's been about two years since drop boxes were no longer an option for returning absentee ballots. The most recent ruling, which made drop boxes illegal in Wisconsin, came from the state Supreme Court in July 2022. The 4-3 ruling came four weeks before statewide primaries held on Aug. 9 that year. In January of that year, a Waukesha County judge determined state law didn't allow the use of unstaffed ballot drop boxes. The state election commission appealed the case. An appeals court allowed drop boxes to be used for the February primary, but not in the April election in 2022. Could the Wisconsin Supreme Court rule drop boxes legal again? The Wisconsin Supreme Court had a conservative majority when it determined drop boxes were illegal in 2022. But that's not the case now: The addition of Justice Janet Protasiewicz flipped the court to a liberal majority for the first time in over a decade. While it's impossible to predict how the court will rule, it's likely that a liberal majority would be more friendly to the idea of reinstating drop boxes. All three liberal justices dissented in the decision that banned them. More: Who are the seven Supreme Court justices in Wisconsin? Could drop boxes be open again by the fall elections? If the court allows drop boxes again, some cities with remaining drop box infrastructure may be able to open them back up quickly. Madison City Attorney Michael Haas said, for Madison, it would be a matter of unlocking the box and likely double-checking the video security. In an amicus brief filed with the court, the Republican Party of Wisconsin and the Republican National Committee said reauthorizing drop boxes months before the next elections would "sow chaos" and could lead to further legal challenges. Are drop boxes part of Wisconsin law? This is the crux of the legal arguments. Critics say drop boxes aren't laid out in state law and that lawmakers, not the state elections commission, must create rules for them. Supporters say clerks have wide authority and discretion over what tools should be used to administer elections in their communities. More: As voters head to polls, Gov. Tony Evers urges Supreme Court to restore ballot drop boxes Republican lawmakers pursued a bill in 2021 that would have added rules for drop boxes to state law, but it never reached Democratic Gov. Tony Evers' desk. It would have allowed a drop box at a city hall, and up to three more drop boxes on municipal property if the city had over 70,000 people. If the proposal was signed into law, it would have limited the number of drop boxes in the state's largest municipalities. For example, Milwaukee had 15 drop box locations, and Madison had 14 drop boxes. Some states have added language about drop boxes to state law, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Many include standards about how many drop boxes must be available, based on population, or require one per county. This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin Supreme Court taking on absentee ballot drop boxes case [Source] Win Rozario, a 19-year-old Bangladeshi from Queens, was fatally shot by New York City Police Department (NYPD) officers during a mental health crisis despite pleas from his mother. Key points: The teen's death has reignited calls for change, with organizations advocating for changes in the mental health response system to prioritize care over policing. Critics argue the officers' use of lethal force was unnecessary and part of a broader pattern. Rozario was shot dead in front of his mother, Notan Eva Costa, and younger brother, Utsho, on March 27 after calling 911 himself to report that he had been experiencing a mental health crisis. What happened: Officers Matthew Cianfrocco and Salvatore Alongi arrived at the scene. Rozario reportedly appeared distressed and grabbed a pair of kitchen scissors, which his mother tried to take away. The officers then deployed a taser when Rozario approached them, resulting in his mother embracing and consoling him. Rozario reportedly moved toward the officers with the scissors multiple times, while his mother and brother tried to intervene. In his last move, one officer began to open fire. The teen collapsed after being struck multiple times. Toward the end of the body-camera footage, his mother can be heard telling the officers, Please, dont shoot. Dont shoot. Before they came, everything was calm. Then they came and created chaos and murdered him in front of me, Costa said at a news conference last week. I tried to protect my son. I begged the police not to shoot, but the police still killed him. America's bloc offense in disguise of "common defense" Xinhua) 16:38, May 13, 2024 This photo taken on Oct. 9, 2023 shows the White House in Washington, D.C., the United States. (Xinhua/Liu Jie) The United States claims to protect its allies under mutual defense treaties, but in reality, the treaties serve as a tool to subordinate them to the superpower and push them to the forefront of conflicts. BEIJING, May 13 (Xinhua) -- The Philippines has recently escalated provoking actions in the South China Sea. Thousands of miles away, the United States threatened the use of the U.S.-Philippines mutual defense treaty against China, seriously violating the principles of the UN Charter and jeopardizing regional peace and stability. In a bid to protect its hegemony, the United States is forming blocs globally to target specific countries, provoke confrontation and destabilize the world. It claims to protect its allies under mutual defense treaties, but in reality, the treaties serve as a tool to subordinate them to the superpower and push them to the forefront of conflicts. "DEFENSE" TREATIES AIMING FOR OFFENSE In March, Commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command John Aquilino claimed that the Philippines could activate Article V of the U.S.-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty, i.e., the collective defense clause, if any Filipino sailors or soldiers die in any possible conflicts in the South China Sea. U.S. President Joe Biden recently declared that any attack against Philippine aircraft, vessels or armed forces in the waters of the South China Sea would trigger the U.S.-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty. The United States repeated the same tactic on the Diaoyu Islands issue, bringing the piece of China's territory into the defense area of the U.S.-Japan alliance. On April 10, after talks with visiting Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Biden said the United States has always stood firm on its defense commitments to Japan based on the Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security, which also applies to the Diaoyu Islands. U.S. President Joe Biden (R) and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida hold a joint press conference at the White House in Washington, D.C., the United States, April 10, 2024. (Xinhua/Liu Jie) Although the U.S. military alliance with the Philippines and Japan is categorized as "defense," it has obvious offensive characteristics. During Kishida's visit to the United States, the two sides made the largest upgrade to the U.S.-Japan security treaty in more than 60 years, with the United States supporting Japan's efforts to strengthen its offensive capabilities and enhancing the synergies between the two militaries. Last year, the Philippines opened four additional military bases to the United States near China's Taiwan region and the South China Sea. In April, the United States deployed the "Typhon" Mid-Range Capability missile system to Luzon, the Philippines, with a range that can reach China's coast and the South China Sea. Leaders from the three countries also held a trilateral meeting in Washington on April 11. In a statement, they attacked China's legitimate actions in the South China Sea and around the Diaoyu Islands and claimed the three countries would deepen cooperation in "supporting a free and open Indo-Pacific region." In that regard, Anna Malindog-Uy, vice president for external affairs of the Asian Century Philippines Strategic Studies Institute, recently wrote in the Philippine daily newspaper Manila Times: "This newly formed defense and military triad of the U.S., Japan and the Philippines is another aggressive approach to foreign relations, a Cold War tactic, and a narrower security-centric effort of the U.S. to preserve its hegemony and dominance in the Asia-Pacific region." "It is also an attempt to contain, counter, isolate and single out China," she wrote. Xu Qingqi, chairman of the new Asia Strategic Studies Center in Malaysia, said the United States is seeking to consolidate its relationship with regional allies to enhance the military power of the first island chain in a bid to contain China's rise. ALLIANCES SERVING U.S. HEGEMONY Driven by domestic military-industrial complexes and other interest groups, the United States has instigated conflicts worldwide. Under the guise of mutual defense, Washington and its allies have encroached upon the interests of other countries. In Northeast Asia, the U.S.-South Korea alliance ostensibly aims to defend against the so-called threat from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK); in reality, it serves as a tool for U.S. intervention in Northeast Asian affairs. The United States has maintained a military presence on the Korean Peninsula, not only to counter the DPRK but also to target surrounding major countries. For instance, the deployment of the THAAD system in South Korea is intended for surveillance of China and Russia. Moreover, in recent years, the United States and South Korea have intervened in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea. This photo taken on March 29, 2023 shows the White House in Washington, D.C., the United States. (Xinhua/Liu Jie) In Oceania, U.S.-Australia defense cooperation started during World War II. But when the two countries formed a military alliance after the war, Australia faced no obvious external security threats. Nevertheless, since then, Australia has sent troops to partake in numerous wars instigated by the United States, including the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Afghanistan War and the Iraq War. Furthermore, in recent years, the two countries have collaborated under the pretext of "freedom of navigation" to frequently undertake military operations in the South China Sea. In Europe, the United States has continuously strengthened the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) under its dominance. While the bloc claims to be a defensive military alliance, established initially to fend off the so-called "Soviet invasion," it did not disband after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War. Instead, NATO has viewed Russia as a rival and gradually squeezed its strategic sphere through successive rounds of eastward expansion. After the escalation of the Ukraine crisis, NATO has consistently furnished Ukraine with military support, attempting to weaken Russia through the conflict. Meanwhile, NATO has bolstered its deterrence against Russia from the north by enlisting Finland and Sweden. In fact, since the end of the Cold War, this so-called defensive organization under U.S. leadership has been involved in military interventions worldwide. It has taken military actions against countries like Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and Syria, resulting in severe humanitarian crises. In recent years, the United States has sought to build broader alliances, such as establishing security mechanisms involving the United States, Japan, South Korea, Australia and the Philippines, to create a NATO-like bloc in the Asia-Pacific region. All these military alliances, ostensibly formed for mutual defense, fundamentally serve as instruments for Washington to protect its hegemonic interests. Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev said NATO's ongoing expansion serves the national interests of the United States while undermining the independence of other countries. BEHAVIORS DAMAGING GLOBAL PEACE Some U.S. allies, emboldened by the assurance of mutual defense from the United States, appear increasingly willing to engage in aggressive behaviors. Most recently, Philippine President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos claimed that the death of any Filipino serviceman in the event of "aggression" in the South China Sea could activate the U.S.-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty. However, instead of ensuring the security of its allies, Washington's mutual defense promises only bring them greater risks. The U.S. Capitol Building is seen in Washington, D.C., the United States, Feb. 6, 2024. (Photo by Aaron Schwartz/Xinhua) "No nation would survive a thermonuclear war between the superpowers, so getting involved in one would be utter suicide," Former Philippine Senator Francisco Tatad recently wrote in an article published by the website of the daily newspaper Manila Times. Taking the decisions by Finland and Sweden to join NATO as an example, Jan Oberg, director of the Transnational Foundation for Peace and Future Research, said the two countries "will be frontline states drawn into a crisis/tension situation much more easily and early than otherwise." Forming alliances and fostering confrontation cannot solve disputes or enhance security; instead, they only serve to exacerbate divisions and conflicts. The right path to resolving disputes lies in seeking peaceful negotiations to find solutions acceptable to all parties. "Intervention by countries outside the region, like the U.S., will only aggravate the situation in the South China Sea," said Veronika Saraswati, senior researcher at Indonesia's leading think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies. She said that disputes in the South China Sea should only be resolved through mutual consultation. For Japan, Atsushi Koketsu, an emeritus professor at Yamaguchi University of Japan, said ending militarization and promoting friendly relations with neighboring countries are the best security policies for the country. (Xinhua correspondents Liu Kai, Wang Xiaowei, An Xiaomeng, Mao Pengfei, Cai Shuya, Ye Pingfan, Zheng Shibo, Sun Lei, Jiang Qiaomei, Liu Kai, Fu Yiming, Deng Xianlai also contributed to the story.) (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing) Cindy R. Enders, 42, was arrested May 6, 2024, at 755 Humboldt Ave. in Wells and charged with owning or possessing a firearm by a prohibited person, changing or obliterating the serial number of a firearm and possessing, manufacturing, or disposing of a short-barreled rifle or shotgun. Bail: $130,000 Cierra S. Jones, 24, was arrested May 6, 2024, at the Elko County Courthouse on a drug court hold. Cody J. Kapphahn, 33, was arrested May 6, 2024, at the Elko District Court on a drug court hold. Payton C. Munguia, 27, was arrested May 6, 2024, at High Desert Engineering and charged with grand larceny between $1,200 and $5,000. Bail: $15,000 Derek M. Gifford, 21, was arrested May 7, 2024, at 1448 Silver St. on three gross misdemeanor counts of bestiality. Bail: $15,000 Gallery: Felony and gross misdemeanor arrests from May 4 to May 13 Close Cindy R. Enders, 42, was arrested May 6, 2024, at 755 Humboldt Ave. in Wells and charged with owning or possessing a firearm by a prohibited person, changing or obliterating the serial number of a firearm and possessing, manufacturing, or disposing of a short-barreled rifle or shotgun. Bail: $130,000 Cierra S. Jones, 24, was arrested May 6, 2024, at the Elko County Courthouse on a drug court hold. Cody J. Kapphahn, 33, was arrested May 6, 2024, at the Elko District Court on a drug court hold. Payton C. Munguia, 27, was arrested May 6, 2024, at High Desert Engineering and charged with grand larceny between $1,200 and $5,000. Bail: $15,000 Derek M. Gifford, 21, was arrested May 7, 2024, at 1448 Silver St. and charged with three gross misdemeanor counts of bestiality. Bail: $15,000 Ernest C. Milligan, 46, was arrested May 7, 2024, at 5345 Manzanita Drive and charged with felony third offense of possession of a controlled substance for sale, third offense of conspiracy to violate the Uniformed Controlled Substances Act, and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person. Bail: $300,000 Kenneth J. Wyllie, 52, was arrested May 7, 2024, at Interstate 80 mile marker 301 and charged with carrying a concealed weapon without a permit. Bail: $50,000 Justin. W. Rollins, 25, was arrested May 8, 2024, at 1003 Chestnut St. in Carlin and charged with possession of a controlled substance of less than 14 grams. Bail: $10,000 Ryder D. Clay, 19, was arrested May 9, 2024, at Home Depot and charged with violating probation or a condition of a suspended sentence. Matthew D. Pangborn, 39, was arrested May 9, 2024, at West Main and Silver streets and charged with possession of a controlled substance less than 14 grams. Bail: $10,000 Silviano Neri-Cabrera, 55, was arrested May 10, 2024, at the Elko County Jail on a felony warrant charging failure to appear after a felony crime. Bail: $20,000 Oscar Rosas, 36, was arrested May 10, 2024, at 1430 Idaho St. and charged with domestic battery by strangulation and coercion with threat or use of physical force. Bail: $100,000 Michael D. Hansen, 63, was arrested May 11, 2024, at 259 Spring Valley Parkway and charged with driver disobeying a peace officer, resulting in property damage, second offense driving under the influence and resisting a public officer. Bail: $15,000 Bo D. Hegge, 37, was arrested May 11, 2024, at Interstate 80 westbound at the Osino weigh station and charged with failure to appear after bail on a felony crime. Bail: $300,000 Oscar A. Ruiz, 34, was arrested May 11, 2024, at 485 South Fifth St. and charged with two counts of possession of a controlled substance less than 14 grams. Bail: $1,000 Clifford G. Williams, 44, was arrested May 11, 2024, at 3021 Idaho St. and charged with failure to appear after bail on a felony crime. Bail: $253,140 Adrian Villarreal, 45, was arrested May 12, 2024, at 536 Morse Lane and charged with three counts of obtaining or possessing a credit or debit card without the cardholders consent and one count of attempted use of a credit or debit card or ID without consent. Bail: $55,000 Leif R. Hindes, 24, was arrested March 12, 2024, at 1585 Lamoille Highway and charged with burglary of a business, grand larceny of a motor vehicle, possession of a controlled substance less than 14 grams, destroying the property of another and violation of probation or condition of a suspended sentence. Bail: $660,000 +17 +17 +17 +17 +17 +17 +17 +17 +17 +17 Ernest C. Milligan, 46, was arrested May 7, 2024, at 5345 Manzanita Drive and charged with felony third offense of possession of a controlled substance for sale, third offense of conspiracy to violate the Uniformed Controlled Substances Act, and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person. Bail: $300,000 Kenneth J. Wyllie, 52, was arrested May 7, 2024, at Interstate 80 mile marker 301 and charged with carrying a concealed weapon without a permit. Bail: $50,000 Justin. W. Rollins, 25, was arrested May 8, 2024, at 1003 Chestnut St. in Carlin and charged with possession of a controlled substance of less than 14 grams. Bail: $10,000 Ryder D. Clay, 19, was arrested May 9, 2024, at Home Depot and charged with violating probation or a condition of a suspended sentence. Matthew D. Pangborn, 39, was arrested May 9, 2024, at West Main and Silver streets and charged with possession of a controlled substance less than 14 grams. Bail: $10,000 Silviano Neri-Cabrera, 55, was arrested May 10, 2024, at the Elko County Jail on a felony warrant charging failure to appear after a felony crime. Bail: $20,000 Oscar Rosas, 36, was arrested May 10, 2024, at 1430 Idaho St. and charged with domestic battery by strangulation and coercion with threat or use of physical force. Bail: $100,000 Michael D. Hansen, 63, was arrested May 11, 2024, at 259 Spring Valley Parkway and charged with driver disobeying a peace officer, resulting in property damage, second offense driving under the influence and resisting a public officer. Bail: $15,000 Bo D. Hegge, 37, was arrested May 11, 2024, at Interstate 80 westbound at the Osino weigh station and charged with failure to appear after bail on a felony crime. Bail: $300,000 Oscar A. Ruiz, 34, was arrested May 11, 2024, at 485 South Fifth St. and charged with two counts of possession of a controlled substance less than 14 grams. Bail: $1,000 Clifford G. Williams, 44, was arrested May 11, 2024, at 3021 Idaho St. and charged with failure to appear after bail on a felony crime. Bail: $253,140 Adrian Villarreal, 45, was arrested May 12, 2024, at 536 Morse Lane and charged with three counts of obtaining or possessing a credit or debit card without the cardholders consent and one count of attempted use of a credit or debit card or ID without consent. Bail: $55,000 Leif R. Hindes, 24, was arrested March 12, 2024, at 1585 Lamoille Highway and charged with burglary of a business, grand larceny of a motor vehicle, possession of a controlled substance less than 14 grams, destroying the property of another and violation of probation or condition of a suspended sentence. Bail: $660,000 Members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and wider queer community (LGBTQ+) in Russia face major challenges and persecution. picture alliance/dpa Ukrainian Katerina Silvanova and her Russian co-author Elena Malisova never expected their book about two teenagers falling in love would be such a hit - and a reason to flee their countries. A coming-of-age story about the love that grows between two boys at a Soviet pioneer camp, the book, with its two engaging star characters Yura and Volodya, is popular in Russia. But following its publication, author Silvanova was forced to flee to her Ukrainian hometown of Kharkiv, despite it being under Russian attack, while Malisova wound up having to begin a new life in Rostock, Germany. Their first work, "A Summer in the Red Scarf," was dismissed as "perverse" in Russia, amid Moscow's hostility towards the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and wider queer community (LGBTQ+). "It's a simple story about two young people who discover how their friendship gives rise to feelings that they can't explain at first, and then realize that it's love," says Malisova in a video call alongside Silvanova, who joins the exchange from Kharkiv. The book sensitively explores the love that blossoms between the characters 16-year-old Yura and 19-year-old Volodya, who care for youngsters at a Soviet holiday camp in Kharkiv in 1986. Neither author went to a pioneer camp, a gathering of young people away from home in winter or summer, in the communist equivalent of a scout camp. But they drew on the stories and diaries of their parents to bring to life the highly structured daily routines at the camp, where days centre on partisan games, political children's theatre, appeals and sport. The story also touches on authoritarian upbringing and egalitarianism, themes that the children at the camp encounter during their holidays. But at the heart of the story are the characters. Yura is very clear about his feelings and makes the first move, while Volodya, who wants a career and is reluctant to accept his homosexuality, fears he will be ostracized within the communist system. The story was a runaway literary success in Russia in 2021, thanks perhaps to a certain appeal for those nostalgic for the Soviet era. But for teenagers and adults alike, the attraction was the way the book deals with the universal theme of forbidden love, told with passion. A fan group soon formed on TikTok. But Russian ultra-nationalists, fearful of the "Westernization" of society that they see as emanating from LGBTQ+ themes, soon sensed it might undermine the government's stance on homosexuality. The Kremlin forbids the portrayal of gay relationships in a positive light in front of children, so the work was published with an 18+ rating. The authors were subject to massive hostility. "Our book probably also served as a reason to further tighten the law banning so-called gay propaganda and also apply it to adults," says Silvanova. The state, potentially fearing that everyone could become gay, moved on to completely ban what it terms LGBTQ+ propaganda and is even scrutinizing the classics. Russia does not ban homosexuality itself but because it cannot be discussed, it is a social taboo. Those who publicly support LGBTQ+ rights risk persecution as extremists if they are part of a movement, which has driven many members of the queer community to flee the country. "Agitation and persecution against us began in May 2022, first in Telegram channels, then the propaganda media got involved and then the politicians too," says Malisova. "It's like the first witch being burned at the stake. I am absolutely certain that all this persecution of the book was artificially brought about." Russia has turned into a dictatorship, she says. "Every dictatorship needs an external enemy and an internal enemy," says Malisova. Moscow's external enemy is Ukraine and all the countries of the free world that support it; its internal enemy is the LGBTQ+ movement, according to the author. Malisova and Silvanova first fled together to Armenia in 2022 then moved on to Germany and Ukraine. Malisova is also still afraid in Germany because the Russian authorities have branded her a "foreign agent" which means she is treated as if she were a traitor. A new law now also allows property to be confiscated from opponents of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and other dissidents in Russia. "I'm afraid that they might take away our flat and put my mother out on the street," she says. For co-author Silvanova, Russia is history though she lived there for eight years and met Elena Malisova there in 2015. "I am now in Kharkiv with my family to support them here," she says. That is one reason why she is not seeking refugee status in Germany, she says. She would rather not think about the possibility of Russia taking Ukraine's second largest city - though she is ready to flee if she has to. When asked how they manage to write together, Silvanova answers, "We often say that Lena and I have one brain that is divided between two people." They plan further volumes in the series about the love story of Yura and Volodya and have already published a sequel in Russia. But they were forced to write it in a rush due to the political situation. "We want to fine-tune the language, expand it and extend it to two parts," says Malisova. The first book is already available in German, Italian and Polish. Might it appear in Ukrainian one day? Silvanova isn't sure. "Many people here in Ukraine speak Russian, the book has a lot of readers here. But Ukraine wants to shake off everything that is Soviet - and the book is also about history," she says. "We don't want our book to be the cause of trouble here. There is already so much hatred in Ukraine." Elena Malisova (r) and Katerina Silvanova, authors of a book about love between two male teenagers in Soviet times. Kseniia Mostovaia/Penguin Random House/dpa Superintendent of Public Instruction candidate Jim Bartlett hands out flyers during the Band Night parade in Bismarck on May 10, 2024. (Amy Dalrymple/North Dakota Monitor) For Jim Bartlett, the biggest problem facing public schools has nothing to do with test scores, teacher retention or graduation rates, and everything to do with the persecution of Christian values. The whole school system right now its been this way for a long time, thats why we cant see it is at war with Christianity, the candidate for Superintendent of Public Instruction said. Bartlett is running on a faith-heavy, far-right platform that includes a promise to teach K-12 students the Ten Commandments. The Bottineau resident believes that the original authors of the North Dakota Constitution intended for schools to impart Christian morals on students and that the modern school system has abandoned this mandate. Theres no question that America, Western civilization, North Dakota had a Christian heritage and context, he said. Hes even recruiting Christian churches to campaign for him. Bartlett in late April estimated he had reached out to around 50 congregations. Bartlett had raised about $16,700 in campaign contributions as of May 4, according to financial data published on the Secretary of States website. He had spent about $6,300 of that sum. Incumbent Kirsten Baesler, who is running for reelection, has countered that promoting religious views in school is against the North Dakota Constitution, which holds that the public education system must be free from sectarian control. Bartlett doesnt think his vision for the office would violate this requirement. The idea of sectarian control would be if you had one denomination in charge of the public schools or the state, he said. His theory is that the public school system is unfairly dominated by secularism which he feels is its own kind of sectarian control and that teachers are systematically indoctrinating kids with atheism, Marxism, anti-Christian animus and other beliefs. Baesler has said that thats not happening in the public school system, and that these concerns are out of touch with the real needs of teachers, families and students. Bartlett said his rhetoric has struck a chord with many North Dakotans who feel that the education system has abandoned traditional values and refuses to work hand in hand with parents. The solution is to get rid of the bad philosophies and return to the North Dakota Constitution, which included Christian morality, he said. Bartlett pointed to a phrase in the state constitution that requires public schools to ensure North Dakota residents are taught a high degree of intelligence, patriotism, integrity and morality something he believes can only be achieved by teaching Christian values. When asked whether this approach would discriminate against students of other faith backgrounds, or those raised in nonreligious households, Bartlett said he is confident a Christian system would be the most fair. Christians would be the best religion to be in control, he said. Were taught to be kind and generous to others and help them. On the other hand, Bartlett has also said he would allow local communities complete control over their K-12 education. In a previous interview, he said his hope is for North Dakota to eventually do away with the role of superintendent of public instruction. He said that, hypothetically, if a community were in favor of keeping its schools secular, he would allow it. Thats their choice, and thats within their school, Bartlett said. Bartlett is a former engineering educator who taught at North Dakota State University and has worked with the National Science Foundation, according to a news release from his campaign. He was also executive director of the North Dakota Homeschool Association in the 2000s and early 2010s. Today, Bartlett and his family work in organic farming. Bartlett won a letter of support from the North Dakota Republican Party over Baesler at the partys endorsing convention in April. The other two candidates former state Sen. Jason Heitkamp and former higher education administrator Darko Draganic did not seek a letter of support at the convention. North Dakota United, which represents North Dakota education workers, does not officially endorse candidates but gave Baesler $7,500 through a PAC, according to the Secretary of States website. A new poll of 550 voters published by North Dakota United showed 42% of responders were undecided in the superintendent race. Baesler earned 38% support, followed by Heitkamp with 12% and Bartlett with 8%. Darko earned support from just 1% of participants. NDU DPI 2024 Primary Survey The post Bartlett promotes Christian faith in run for top public school official appeared first on North Dakota Monitor. Airlines are usually rather good at presenting a united face to the world, particularly when it comes to lobbying global policymakers. But a recent move by the EU to clampdown on so-called contrails, the vapour that spews from an aircrafts jet engines in a thin cloud-like formation, has set carriers at each others throats. The International Air Transport Association (Iata), which counts most of the worlds flag-carriers among its members, has lobbied Brussels to limit the mandatory monitoring of contrails to only flights within the bloc, in an effort to ease the burden of data collection. But it has stoked the ire of low-cost operators including EasyJet and Ryanair. The two carriers, which get almost all of their revenue from intra-European services, argue that it would be perverse to ignore contrails produced by long-haul flights when the rule comes in next year. Unless the full global scope of monitoring is retained, the science will be incomplete and the places in which contrails are estimated to be most abundant will be excluded, says David Morgan, chief operating officer at EasyJet. The clash speaks to concerns that financial penalties or requirements for jets to follow diversionary routes may be focused on those regions where data gathering takes place. The EUs CO2 emissions trading scheme is itself confined to flights within the European Economic Area after pushback from overseas carriers. However, the public row between airlines has distracted from more fundamental questions about just how much contrails affect global temperatures in the first place. While carriers worldwide have pledged to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050, they are far less accepting of potential measures for reducing the production of contrails. That stance is based partly on a unique property of the vapour trails. While scientists find that they contribute to global warming by aiding the formation of high-altitude clouds that stop heat from escaping the atmosphere, they have other benefits. Under certain conditions they can equally reflect solar energy back into space, preventing it from reaching the surface and helping to cool the planet. Iata cites research suggesting that, on average, 14pc of flights leave contrails, of which close to 30pc may have a cooling effect. Whats more, predicting where contrails will appear is an inexact science, so that changing flight paths to avoid the supercooled air necessary to their formation may spawn trails elsewhere, when the original route would actually have produced none. And whether diversions are effective or not, theyre certain to increase emissions of CO2, which once in the atmosphere lingers for millennia. Contrails, by contrast, are fleeting and trap heat only for the time usually less than 12 hours during which they streak the sky. A paper published last year by the Royal Society of Chemistry warned: It is problematic to recommend definitive courses of action on aviation non-CO2 emissions since they may be of limited effect or have unintended consequences. David Lee, professor of atmospheric science at Manchester Metropolitan University, who led the study, says governments and climate groups should resist confusing reasonable caution about how contrails affect warming with ill-founded arguments against limiting carbon output. Producing extra CO2 is a red line, he says. Contrails are a different story. There are so many things we dont yet understand about them. Willie Walsh, Iatas director general and the former boss of British Airways, has told the EU that its plans will require airlines to provide large amounts of data for all flights with an insufficient potential for positive impact. EasyJet and Ryanair say in their own letter to the European Commission that long-haul flights generate half of the industrys carbon emissions yet account for just 6pc of services. About 10pc of the skies above the North Atlantic are covered by so-called control cirrus produced by long-haul aircraft, compared with 0.06pc coverage elsewhere, they add, citing a recent study by Iata itself. The clash is not the first between low-cost and full-service carriers over their relative contributions to carbon emissions. Earlier in the climate debate Lufthansa boss Carsten Spohr criticised discount operators for encouraging needless trips with bargain-basement flights. Ryanair chief Michael OLeary hit back by pointing out that low-cost airlines have the youngest aircraft fleets and highest seating densities in Europe, so that their carbon emissions per passenger are far lower than at their flag-carrier rivals. How contrails arise, at least, seems relatively clear. A soot particle produced in the burning of aviation fuel attracts water vapour, also emitted by the engine, to form a water droplet. Exposed to temperatures of around minus 50C, the droplet quickly transforms into an ice crystal, trillions of which are formed for every kilo of fuel burned. Under most conditions, thats the end of the story. But at temperate latitudes, aircraft flying at 28,000-34,000 feet regularly encounter so-called ice-supersaturated zones, where the crystals absorb more and more water vapour from the atmosphere and swell 10 times in volume forming a contrail. Even then, only if trails from a number of flights coalesce, blown together by variations in wind speeds to form so-called contrail cirrus clouds stretching for hundreds of miles, do they have the potential to warm the atmosphere. In a further complication, soot particles that stay in the atmosphere after contrails have dispersed can interact with regular high-altitude clouds to have a net cooling effect. The EUs stance is particularly important because the bulk of contrails are found in Europe and the US, and along the North Atlantic flyway between them, a goldilocks zone where the temperate climate coincides with some of the worlds busiest skies. The supercooled air pockets that give birth to contrails are generally at too high an altitude in tropical areas and too low at the poles for aircraft to encounter them, while the temperate areas of the southern hemisphere are comparatively lacking in flights. One obvious response to the contrails dilemma would be to greatly reduce the number of flights at night, when there is no sunlight to be reflected back into space and those contrails that do form can only serve to trap heat. However, with some 97pc of eastbound services from the Americas to Europe operating overnight and hence saving passengers a day of travel and a night in a hotel, such a radical change to airline timetables is regarded as a non-starter. Other possibilities include hydrogen-fueled aircraft, which would produce no soot particles and greatly diminish contrails, and new engine designs that could capture water vapour, though both technologies have barely left the drawing board. For now, the focus is on developing protocols for avoiding areas where contrails might form. But this is harder in practice, requiring accurate predictions of where those zones are at any one time and what warming impact contrails from a specific flight will have. The potential negative climate impact of diverting a plane would also need to be assessed, along with any possible risk to safety, such as encountering turbulence or thunderstorms and flying with reduced separation from other aircraft. Without improvements in weather forecasting and modelling, satellite imaging, humidity sensors and data transfers, addressing such issues remains mired in difficulty. A more immediate route to tackling contrails may come in the form of the increased use of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), recycled from cooking oil or created synthetically. While airlines use SAF to help cut carbon emissions, the fuel also emits far fewer soot particles than kerosene, significantly reducing the opportunity for contrails to form. The first-ever transatlantic flight using 100pc SAF, operated by Virgin Atlantic last November, slashed carbon emissions by almost two-thirds. Just as significantly, lab tests showed that production of non-CO2 particulates fell by 40pc, according to data released this month. A Virgin Atlantic spokesman said: More research is needed, but this suggests the use of SAF could have a material impact on reducing the formation of persistent contrails. The problem with relying on SAF to resolve the contrails issue, however, is its poor availability and high price. It makes up only about 0.2pc of the global jet fuel mix, and while IATA says that should rise to 0.5pc this year, the fuel will add a projected $2.4bn (1.9bn) to costs. For now, the trade groups director general Walsh says that airlines should be left to focus on curbing CO2 emissions while scientists refine their understanding of how contrails affect warming and how their formation can be better predicted. Only after 2040, IATA contends, is the diversion of aircraft likely to become feasible. Whether thats a reasonable response to the evidence or a case of kicking the can down the road is open to debate and one that most climate scientists feel they cant yet help resolve. We know how CO2 works and how long it stays in the atmosphere, so the message there is clear, says Manchester Mets Lee. But our understanding of contrails and how they contribute to warming is just nowhere near so exact. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine has noted that the operational situation on the Kharkiv front remains difficult and is changing dynamically, but the Russians are having tactical success in the battle for Vovchansk. Source: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Quote: "Fighting is underway in the areas of PylnaLukiantsi, PylnaHlyboke, PylnaOliinykove and MuromBuhruvatka. In addition, the enemy is conducting assault operations in the areas of StrilechaHlyboke, OliinykoveHlyboke, OliinykoveLukiantsi, MuromStarytsia and PletenivkaTykhe." Details: Over the past 24 hours, the Russians carried out 22 assault operations in these areas, 14 of which are still ongoing. The report states that a battle for the border town of Vovchansk is underway. Quote: "The enemy has deployed significant forces to attack the city, consisting of up to five battalions, and is not counting its own losses. The Russian invaders lost more than 100 occupiers on this front alone over the past 24 hours. The enemy is currently having some tactical success. Measures are planned to defeat the enemy that has attempted to break through our defence." Details: The General Staff added that the Ukrainian defenders were conducting defensive actions, inflicting fire damage on the Russians and widely using unmanned systems to conduct reconnaissance and launch precise strikes to inflict maximum losses. Quote: "The deployment of reserves to stabilise the situation continues. In the course of assigning tasks to the troops, one of the main priorities is to save the lives of our soldiers." Background: On 10 May, it was reported that Russian forces had intensified their activities in Kharkiv Oblast, with fighting taking place there. Ukraine's Defence Ministry reported that reserve units had been sent to the north of Kharkiv Oblast. Russian forces resumed assault operations near the village of Hlyboke in Kharkiv Oblast on the morning of 11 May, and Ukraines Defence Forces are expecting the Russians to ramp up shelling in the area. The Khortytsia Operational Strategic Group has said that the grey zone in Kharkiv Oblast was not expanding and that the Ukrainian Armed Forces were not letting Russian forces advance further into Kharkiv Oblast. DeepState analysts have noted that Russian troops had seized six more settlements in Kharkiv Oblast. Support UP or become our patron! Gary Lineker's podcast company Goalhanger has raised concerns for independent producers over BBC's advertising plan - Tom Dulat/Getty Images The BBCs plan to introduce adverts around its audio output is disastrous for the UK podcasting market, Gary Linekers production company has warned. Goalhanger, which produces shows including The Rest is Politics and The Rest is History, is among 20 media companies to take aim at the public service broadcaster over its decision to start advertising around radio and podcasts. In a letter to Lucy Frazer, the Culture Secretary, they wrote: The BBC has vast funds to create content for its audiences and is not driven by commercial success, but instead by a mandate to act in the public interest, to inform, educate and entertain. The impact of it extracting audio advertising funds from the nascent UK podcasting market would be disastrous, especially for the numerous small independent podcast producers. The BBC has outlined plans to place ads around some of its programmes when they are streamed via third-party platforms such as Spotify and Apple. The move, which could ultimately see ads introduced on shows such as The Archers, Desert Island Discs and In Our Time, marks efforts by the public service broadcaster to boost its commercial income and plug a 500m hole in its finances. But the plans have drawn fierce criticism from commercial media groups amid concerns the BBC will cannibalise advertising revenues and crowd out smaller players, particularly in the burgeoning podcast market. The companies wrote: These changes are highly likely to have a significant adverse impact on fair and effective competition in the UK podcast market, while adding little to BBC budgets as a proportion of revenues guaranteed by the licence fee. Podcast advertising generated revenues of 76m in 2022, compared to the BBCs total income of 5.7bn. Goalhanger, which was co-founded by Gary Lineker in 2022, claims to be the UKs biggest independent podcast group with 17.5m monthly downloads. The Match of the Day presenter also remains the BBCs highest paid employee. A government spokesman and BBC spokesman said: The BBC is exploring the opportunity to introduce some adverts on selected non-news podcasts on commercial platforms with the aim of delivering increased value to licence fee payers, our suppliers and our rights holders. There are no plans to introduce adverts on the BBCs own platforms. The proposals are subject to an ongoing regulatory assessment and nothing has been confirmed. We will continue to engage with the industry as we shape our plans. It comes after Conservative MP Andy Carter warned about the harm to consumers as those who do not use BBC Sounds would in effect be paying twice. Story continues Speaking in the House of Commons last week, he said: The BBC is unfairly forcing licence fee payers to pick between ad-free listening on BBC Sounds or their preferred podcast platform. Listeners should be entitled to access BBC audio content, such as Desert Island Discs, via whatever means they choose. The signatories called for regulator Ofcom to carry out a review of the UK audio and podcast market before the BBC pushes through the changes. The letter was also signed by commercial radio groups Global and Bauer, as well as Daily Mail owner DMG Media, Mirror and Express publisher Reach and The Telegraph. The companies also accused the BBC over trying to overhaul its licence fee funding model by stealth, adding that the changes risk setting a dangerous precedent. The Government is currently reviewing future funding models for the BBC amid concerns the licence fee is no longer fit for purpose in the streaming age. The companies added: We appreciate that the BBC and government will wish to review different options for funding BBC content in future, beyond the current licence fee period up to 2027. However, we do not believe that such significant changes should be introduced incrementally and by stealth. Matt Payton, chief executive of Radiocentre, which represents commercial radio stations, said: Audiences do not expect advertising around BBC content, which they have already paid for through the licence fee. The BBC receives significant funding from the licence fee and should not be seeking advertising in addition to this. The unique funding and position of the BBC also means that any change of this nature would have a serious impact on the broader market, as well as an inevitable negative impact on the wider UK creative economy. Industry opposition is overwhelming and we urge the government to act quickly and engage with Ofcom which has the power to intervene. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. BECKLEY, WV (WVNS) A Raleigh County man pleaded guilty to a federal drug crime. 24-year-old Davon Jamir Linder, of Beckley, pleaded guilty to distribution of methamphetamine on Monday, May 13, 2024. According to statements made in court, Linder not only sold a controlled substance that contained methamphetamine to a confidential informant on February 27, 2023 in the Beckley area of Raleigh County, but he also acknowledged his involvement in the sale. Fayette County man facing drug charge after traffic stop Linders sentencing is scheduled for September 13, 2024, and he faces up to 20 years in prison, a minimum of three years of parole, and a $1 million fine. The announcement was made by United States Attorney Will Thompson, who thanked the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Beckley/Raleigh County Drug and Violent Crime Unit for their work on the investigation. The Beckley/Raleigh County Drug and Violent Crime Unit is made up of officers from various law enforcement agencies such as the Beckley Police Department, the Raleigh County Sheriffs Office, and the West Virginia State Police. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WVNS. SPRINGDALE, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) A Bella Vista woman pleaded not guilty on Monday after she was accused of using someone elses information to get healthcare jobs, according to court documents. Alicia Flanagan, 55 (Courtesy: Washington County Jail) Alicia Flanagan, 55, was arrested on April 25 on two counts of practicing medicine without a license and two counts of nonfinancial identity fraud. She is currently free on a $10,000 bond. According to an affidavit, the Director of Nurses for Springdale Health and Rehab called Springdale police to report a previous employee had been practicing medicine without a license. The director received a call from the Arkansas State Board of Nursing and was told Flanagan had fraudulently used the credentials of Alicia Pierce, a Virginia nurse, to get a healthcare job, the affidavit said. The document said Flanagan worked at Springdale Health and Rehab from September 2022 to January 2023. The board became aware of the situation when Flanagan applied for and worked at North Hills Life Care and Rehab starting on May 4, 2023, using Pierces credentials. Two people arrested in connection with Springdale kidnapping, robbery Pierce was contacted by the board and she said she did not know Flanagan was using her license, according to the affidavit. Flanagan does not have a nursing license, the document said. She went to college for a short time but did not earn a certification or a degree. Detectives with Washington County interviewed Flanagan who admitted to working at Springdale Health and Rehab without a license. Records from the Arkansas State Board of Nursing showed Flanagan was issued a cease and desist on November 30, 2023, for being an unlicensed practitioner. A warrant for her arrest was issued on Nov. 13 and it was served on April 24, according to court records. Flanagan has a court date set for December 9. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KNWA FOX24. Over two years after Benjamin Hall was severely injured while covering the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Fox News correspondent was honored with a standing ovation at Foxs Monday Upfront presentation. Appearing on the New York City stage, Hall, who was caught in a catastrophic attack alongside the late photojournalist Pierre Zakrzewski and Ukrainian journalist Oleksandra Sasha Kuvshynov, received a round of applause from advertisers before he thanked the Fox News for standing with him alongside his recovery. The truth is Im here because of the community, Hall told advertisers. Im here because of everyone at Fox. Im here because of the amazing people who come together. Hall went on to stress the important on journalism in war zones, pointing to Fox News foreign correspondent Trey Yingst, who has reported on the ground from Israel since the Hamas-led Oct. 7 attack. My story is just one of many thats coming from the frontlines of war that makes the mission and the need to report on these events even more pressing, Hall said. From Ukraine to the Middle East, and here at home, the dedicated journalists of Fox News are trying to inform America thats because these stories they need eyes on the ground, they need a human perspective, they need us to bear witness. Hall passed over the virtual mic to Yingst live from Israel, who noted audiences could hear the buzz of an Israeli drone as the Israelis are striking the northern part of the Gaza strip. I speak on behalf of everyone when I say that hearing your story is so incredibly inspiring. Were proud to call you both a colleague and a friend right now in the Middle East, Yingst said to Hall. We are witnessing firsthand how these historic events are changing not just the region but the entire world. At Fox News we are committed to bringing you these stories and we thank you for letting us do this very important work. On March 14, 2022, Hall, Zakrzewski and Kuvshinova were struck by incoming fire to their vehicle just outside of Kyiv on March 14. After narrowly suriviving, Hall was evacuated out of Kyiv and transferred to a hospital where he recovered from multiple surgeries. As Hall was praised in the room, the divisive reputation of Fox News journalism cast a shadow over the event. Ahead of the event a small protest carried out outside of the Hammerstein ballroom in the Manhattan Center, with protestors encouraging advertisers not to advertise with Fox. The post Benjamin Hall, Fox News Reporter Nearly Killed Covering Ukraine War, Gets Standing Ovation at Upfronts appeared first on TheWrap. The demolition of the Thomas Hart house in 1955 to make way for a parking lot galvanized the historic preservation movement in Lexington. Many feared Hopemont, also known as the Hunt Morgan House, across the street would be the next to fall. Hart, a veteran of the American Revolution, was an early Lexington settler. (Library of Congress, 1940) Bettye Lee Mastin (Kentucky Press Association) Bettye Lee Mastin, a member of the Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame and champion of historic preservation in the Bluegrass, died May 8. She was 97. Mastin said her mother encouraged her to write every day and that when she graduated from high school in Jessamine County she wanted to be a poet. A professor at the University of Kentucky steered her toward journalism, saying Betty Lee, poetry doesnt pay. Mastin worked as a proofreader at the Lexington Herald during college, graduated from UK Phi Beta Kappa and began a 50-year career at the Lexington newspaper as a reporter and feature writer. Respected as an architectural historian, Mastin taught university classes and seminars. She was the author of Lexington 1779: Pioneer Kentucky as Described by Early Settlers and A Walking Tour of Shakertown. In an oral history interview in 1980, she said she became interested in old things and old buildings as a child. I think anyone living in Lexington, growing up around here would become acquainted with a lot of old buildings until the age of the bulldozer because we had so many of them. In the 1960s, the newspaper assigned her to write about preservation and urban renewal after Ed Wilder, the executive secretary of the Lexington chamber of commerce, returned from a conference in Washington, D.C. with about 100 color slides of the posh Georgetown neighborhood, where President John F. Kennedy had lived when he was in the U.S. Senate, Mastin told the oral history interviewer. Wilder had been struck by the similarities in Georgetowns and Lexingtons historic architecture. He convinced the Heralds general manager, Fred Wachs, that Lexingtons old buildings and neighborhoods were a resource that Lexington was stupid not to use, Mastin said. The newspaper made Mastin available to local groups to talk about preservation and to present a slide show highlighting the similarities of D.C.s Georgetown section and the areas around downtown Lexington. Mastin also visited other cities Baltimore, Richmond, Philadelphia to report on their preservation and urban renewal efforts and worked briefly in Lexingtons urban renewal agency. She said her stories for Kentucky readers about other cities preservation successes were geared to profit, dollars and cents, emphasizing the higher real estate values in historic areas. Hopemont on Mill Street between downtown and Transylvania University in Lexington became headquarters to the Bluegrass Trust for Historic Preservation. (Kentucky State Parks) In 1965, she became a member of the board of the Bluegrass Trust for Historic Preservation. She lived in a home that was built in 1795. She was friends with the late Clay Lancaster, an architectural historian, artist and author. She alerted Lancaster when the Moses Jones house, built in the early 1800s, in Salvisa on the Kentucky River in Mercer County went on the market. He bought the property now managed by the Warwick Foundation. Mastin served on the foundations board and was an emeritus member when she died. Mastin said she was disappointed that Lexington allowed so much of its built history to be destroyed and replaced with nondescript architecture and parking lots, even as awareness and interest in preservation bloomed. When asked whether growth and preservation can coexist, Mastin in 1980 said, When you look at the type of community we inherited and the situation now I wouldnt say theyre coexisting very well. Long-time Herald-Leader readers will remember her Sunday Home spreads; many were detailed descriptions of historic residences, interviews with their occupants and multiple photographs. In 2017, Tom Eblen, former Herald-Leader managing editor and columnist, wrote that he nominated Mastin for the Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame because no journalist did so much for so long to inform Central Kentuckians about the unique built environment that surrounded them. Her legacy will likely live on in future scholarship. Mastins papers, covering the period from 1823 to 2013, are archived at the University of Kentucky in more than 100 boxes, including research files, urban renewal records, maps and architectural drawings. Bettye Lee Mastin was born April 9, 1927 in Midway to the late Winfield and Ruby Glass Mastin, one of six sisters. Her obituary says she loved plants and wildflowers and knew their Latin names. She was a long-time member of Nicholasville Baptist Church where she had been a Sunday school teacher. Her family will have a private scattering of ashes at Indian Falls in Jessamine County at a future date. Lexingtons Western Suburb, platted in 1815. (VisitLEX) The post Bettye Lee Mastin, journalist who championed historic preservation, dies at 97 appeared first on Kentucky Lantern. President Biden speaks about the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law at the West Side Rail Yard in New York on Jan. 31, 2023. (Edwin J. Torres/NJ Governors Office) A $110 million grant from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will fund the replacement of the 60-year-old Alligator River Bridge in North Carolinas Outer Banks. Last year, Asheville Regional Airport, in partnership with the Federal Aviation Administration, broke ground on a $15 million project to replace its 62-year-old air traffic control tower. A $35 million grant will fund a terminal expansion project that will bring the airport into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. This past December, the U.S. Department of Transportation announced a $1 billion high speed rail line connecting Raleigh to Richmond that is expected to reduce travel time between the two cities. These are all tangible impacts that President Joe Bidens administration, with the passage of four major infrastructure and clean energy laws in 2021 and 2022, is having in North Carolina and across the country, but polls show that the message has been slow to sink in with voters. On Monday, the White House announced that it has allocated nearly $454 billion from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to over 56,000 projects around the country since the passage of the $1 trillion bill in 2021. North Carolina is set to receive $9.4 billion in funding from the law for 512 projects, according to the White House. The funding includes about $633 million for clean water projects, with $175 million going toward replacing toxic lead pipes, according to a fact sheet released by the White House on Monday. While Infrastructure Week became an empty punch line during the prior administration, the Biden administration has committed to delivering infrastructure decade and that will benefit communities for generations to come, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Natalie Quillian said during a call with reporters on Friday. The administration hopes to convince Americans that Bidens programs are improving their lives, and as the president struggles in the polls, getting that message to voters in battleground states like North Carolina before the November election will be key to his reelection. Quillian highlighted programs such as rail service, clean drinking water, and the provision of internet connectivity to underserved communities as areas in which the administration has made significant investments across the country. Earlier this year, Biden spoke at Abbotts Creek Community Center in Raleigh to promote his administrations investments in high-speed internet for the hardest-to-reach areas of the state. Today, more than 900,000, or 1 in 5, households in North Carolina have access to affordable high-speed internet but unless Congress extends funding for the program by the end of this month, many of these households could lose access to this service. As the November election approaches, though, the massive investments made by the administration might not be implemented quickly enough to sway voter opinions. As reported by Politico, only 17 percent of the $1.1 trillion in funding provided by Congress has been spent to date. We are working as quickly as possible while also being responsible stewards of taxpayer dollars, said a senior administration official. This is a huge undertaking that involves not just the federal government, but also our state and local partners. The official also noted that another reason for the delay is that Congress drafted the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to release funds annually over a five-year period. So we are working as quickly as we can to get money out the door in the year that it was appropriated and for the purpose that it was appropriated. But theres more funding thats still to come in fiscal 2025 and 2026, the official said. This week, senior White House officials will travel across the country to promote these programs in hopes of convincing voters that the programs are having a direct impact. The Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su will also be in Raleigh this week to talk about investments in workforce development. North Carolina has become a key focus for Bidens campaign which hopes to flip the state to the Democratic presidential candidate for only the third time since 1968. The campaign has opened 11 offices in the state and had 40 staffers in place at the end of April. The president has visited the state three times this year to promote his programs. The post Biden administration touts NC investments to kick off Infrastructure Week appeared first on NC Newsline. Biden isnt flying migrants to Florida. People pay for their own flights, legally enter US Sen. Rick Scott Statement: Joe Biden flew hundreds of thousands of illegals into Florida last year. U.S. Sen. Rick Scott of Florida is joining other Republican lawmakers and social media users in accusing President Joe Biden of using taxpayer dollars to fly immigrants into the U.S. "Joe Biden flew hundreds of thousands of illegals into Florida last year," Scott wrote May 4 on X, formerly Twitter, linking to a Fox News article. Scott is criticizing a Biden humanitarian parole program for immigrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela. Scotts post gives the impression that Biden is paying for the humanitarian parole beneficiaries flights. But, as weve previously fact-checked, the programs beneficiaries must pay for their own travel to the United States, and theyre not in the U.S. illegally. Scotts communications director, McKinley Lewis, responded to PolitiFacts request for more information with a question about CBP One, a U.S. government app that humanitarian parole beneficiaries can use to see information about their cases. "Is there an argument that this travel, which allows illegal aliens to use the DHS CBP One App in lieu of government-issued ID, is not authorized by the Biden administration?" Lewis asked PolitiFact. Humanitarian parole beneficiaries do not use the app "in lieu" of a government-issued ID. To qualify for the program, people must have an unexpired passport issued by their countrys government that is valid for international travel, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services said. Biden program allows entry to eligible immigrants from four countries In January 2023, the U.S. started accepting 30,000 people monthly from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela under a humanitarian parole program. The program, an expansion of an October 2022 initiative for Venezuelans, lets people legally enter, live and work in the U.S. for two years. To qualify, migrants need a U.S. sponsor and must meet other requirements. Although people paroled in are authorized to be in the U.S., the Department of Homeland Security can terminate their parole if they violate U.S. laws. People who overstay a parole period also can be deported. As of March, the latest month with available data, 404,000 people have entered the U.S. through the program, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said. People allowed into the U.S. through this program do not receive free flights to the country; rather, they buy their own plane tickets, Nicole Hallett, a University of Chicago Law School professor, told PolitiFact in March. People entering via the parole program are in the country legally In April, the Republican-led House Homeland Security Committee subpoenaed the Department of Homeland Security, requesting information and data on the humanitarian parole program. The Fox News article to which Scott linked in his X post includes eight pages of the departments response to the committee. The committee asked DHS for the monthly number of parole program applicants "from each country for which travel authorization was issued who were found to be inadmissible at a port of entry but released into the United States." DHS responded that "all individuals paroled into the United States are, by definition, inadmissible." But this doesnt mean the people who entered under the humanitarian parole program are in the country illegally. "People allowed into the U.S. through parole are legally entering," said Kathleen Bush-Joseph, policy analyst at the nonpartisan Migration Policy Institute. Parole gives people who would otherwise not be allowed into the U.S. temporary permission to enter. Even though parole is an official permission to enter and temporarily stay in the U.S., its not considered a formal admission into the country under immigration law, the Congressional Research Service wrote in a 2020 report. "An admission occurs when an immigration officer allows a noncitizen to enter the United States pursuant to a visa or another entry document, without the limitation of parole," the American Immigration Council, an immigrant rights advocacy group, said in a 2022 report. People in the U.S. under parole have a temporary lawful presence in the country, but they do not have a lawful status or a pathway to U.S. citizenship. That means once they enter the country, people in parole programs must apply for a legal status, such as asylum. Destinations for immigrants arriving through the parole program In its subpoena response, the Department of Homeland Security said 200,000 people arrived at U.S. airports from January 2023 to August 2023 and were paroled into the country. More than 161,000 entered the U.S. through Florida airports, particularly Miami International Airport, which is a hub for flights from Latin America. But that doesnt mean all 161,000 people settled in Florida. DHS tracks the first airport people reached in the U.S. This is where U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers screen people for admission. After that, people can settle elsewhere within the U.S. Its unclear how many parole beneficiaries settled in Florida. However, the parole program benefits people from four countries that have large immigrant populations in Florida. PolitiFact's ruling Scott said, "Joe Biden flew hundreds of thousands of illegals into Florida last year." A Biden humanitarian parole program lets 30,000 eligible immigrants a month from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela enter the U.S. They can live and work in the U.S. legally for two years. The Biden administration does not cover travel costs; beneficiaries must book and pay for their own travel. More than 161,000 program beneficiaries entered the U.S. at a Florida airport. However, its unclear how many of those people settled in Florida. We rate Scotts claim False. Our sources This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: No, Biden isnt flying migrants to Florida at taxpayers' expense Biden to meet with Brown v. Board plaintiffs during week of engagement with Black community President Biden this week will mark the 70th anniversary of the landmark Brown v. Board Supreme Court decision as part of a broader outreach to the Black community, a White House official exclusively told The Hill. Biden on Thursday will meet with the plaintiffs from the Brown v. Board case and their families at the White House, the official said. The unanimous 1954 ruling found that segregating children in public schools on the basis of race was unconstitutional, paving the way for integration and marking a significant milestone in the civil rights movement. On Friday, Biden will deliver remarks at an NAACP event marking the Brown v. Board anniversary, which will be held at the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C. Also on Friday, Biden and Vice President Harris will meet with the leaders of the Divine Nine, the group of historically Black sororities and fraternities. Harris is a graduate of Howard University and was a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha. Those events will precede a pair of Sunday engagements already on Bidens schedule in which he will speak directly to Black voters and Black communities. The president will deliver the commencement address at Morehouse College, a historically Black college in Atlanta, on Sunday. That evening, he will travel to Detroit to speak at an NAACP dinner that is expected to draw thousands of guests. Biden throughout the week is expected to highlight his administrations efforts to improve racial justice and equity, as well as policies that have helped the Black community. A White House official noted Black unemployment hit a record low in 2023, and Black Americans have benefitted from major investments in HBCUs and from increased Affordable Care Act coverage. Biden also nominated Ketanji Brown Jackson as the first Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court. Black voters are a key part of Bidens coalition and helped deliver him the Democratic nomination in 2020, as well as lift him to the White House. The president and his campaign will likely need similarly robust turnout from Black voters in November to secure reelection against former President Trump. A USA Today poll conducted earlier this month found Biden had a 64 percent to 12 percent lead over Trump among Black voters. It marked a 7 percentage point increase for Biden since January, but is still less than the 87 percent who voted for him in 2020. A Washington Post-Ipsos poll conducted in late April found 74 percent of Black registered voters said they will definitely or probably vote for Biden, compared to just 14 percent who said they will definitely or probably vote for Trump in November. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Biden set to call upon Obama, George Clooney and Julia Roberts for star-studded campaign event Joe Bidens campaign is set to host a major fundraising event in Los Angeles in June, enlisting help from the likes of former president Barack Obama and Hollywood stars George Clooney and Julia Roberts. The Biden campaign event, which will take place around mid-June in Los Angeles, will reportedly feature an online contest with Clooney and Roberts that will run across the campaigns social media platforms to attract grassroots donors and celebrities, according to NBC News. The two movie stars, who have worked together on a number of Hollywood projects, will also be lending their names to emails and text messages sent by the campaign to try and engage with more contributors to the fundraising efforts, the outlet said. Mr Biden is also reportedly expected to hold a fundraiser with former president Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton somewhere along the East Coast in early summer, according to a source familiar with the plans. Mr Biden has already worked with the former Democrat presidents Mr Obama and Mr Clinton, having held a fundraiser in at Radio City Music Hall in New York City in late March, which saw a giant $26 million raised for his campaign. Julia Roberts and George Clooney at the premiere of Ticket To Paradise in October 2022 in Los Angeles (Getty Images) In a statement announcing what they described as the historic result, the campaign said the fundraiser, billed as An Evening with President Biden and Presidents Obama and Clinton, represents the most successful political fundraiser in American history with a 5,000-strong sellout crowd at the historic Manhattan venue and thousands more taking in the spectacle online. This event was something the Biden campaign aides said was a record for Democratic fundraising in a single event. The star-studded glitzy event slated for June will be similar to the very successful evening in March. Mr Biden has just come off the back of fundraising at various events in Northern California and the Seattle area over the weekend, filling his campaign pot up a further $10 million in two days, a source familiar with the total amount told NBC. The Biden campaign, according to the most recent FEC filings seen by CNN, ended March with nearly twice the amount of cash in his arsenal than his Republican opponent Donald Trump. When taking into account the Democratic National Committee, the finances of Mr Bidens presidential campaign are almost double that of Mr Trump and the Republican National Committee $131 million versus $67 million, according to NBC. However, ever since Mr Trump won the GOP nomination, his fundraising has significantly increased, such as raising a huge $50.5 million at a major fundraiser in Florida last month. His advisors also announced earlier this month to donors that Mr Trump had yielded $76 million in April. The Independent has contacted the Biden campaign for comment. Unauthorized health insurance changes can cause policyholders to lose access to medical care, pay higher deductibles or even incur surprise tax bills. (Getty Images) President Joe Biden counts among his accomplishments the record-high number of people, more than 21 million, who enrolled in Obamacare plans this year. Behind the scenes, however, federal regulators are contending with a problem that affects peoples coverage: rogue brokers who have signed people up for Affordable Care Act plans, or switched them into new ones, without their permission. Fighting the problem presents tension for the administration: how to thwart the bad actors without affecting ACA sign-ups. Complaints about these unauthorized changes which can cause affected policyholders to lose access to medical care, pay higher deductibles or even incur surprise tax bills rose sharply in recent months, according to brokers who contacted KFF Health News and federal workers who asked not to be identified. Ronnell Nolan, president and CEO of the trade association Health Agents for America, said her group has suggested to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services that it add two-factor authentication to healthcare.gov or send text alerts to consumers if an agent tries to access their accounts. But the agency told her it doesnt always have up-to-date contact information. Weve given them a whole host of ideas, she said. They say, Be careful what you wish for. But we dont mind going an extra step if you can stop this fraud and abuse, because clients are being hurt. Some consumers are pursued when they respond to misleading social media marketing ads promising government subsidies, but most have no idea how they fell victim to plan-switching. Problems seem concentrated in the 32 states using the federal exchange. Federal regulators have declined to say how many complaints about unauthorized sign-ups or plan switches theyve received, or how many insurance agents theyve sanctioned as a result. But the problem is big enough that CMS says its working on technological and regulatory solutions. Affected consumers and agents have filed a civil lawsuit in federal district court in Florida against private-sector firms allegedly involved in unauthorized switching schemes. Biden has pushed hard to make permanent the enhanced subsidies first put in place during the covid pandemic that, along with other steps including increased federal funding for outreach, helped fuel the strong enrollment growth. Biden contrasts his support for the ACA with the stance of former President Donald Trump, who supported attempts to repeal most of the law and presided over funding cuts and declining enrollment. Most proposed solutions to the rogue-agent problem involve making it more difficult for agents to access policyholder information or requiring wider use of identity questions tied to enrollees credit history. The latter could be stumbling blocks for low-income people or those with limited financial records, said Sabrina Corlette, co-director of the Center on Health Insurance Reforms at Georgetown University. That is the knife edge the administration has to walk, said Corlette, protecting consumers from fraudulent behavior while at the same time making sure there arent too many barriers. Jeff Wu, acting director of the Center for Consumer Information & Insurance Oversight, said in a statement that the agency is evaluating options on such factors as how effective they would be, their impact on consumers ability to enroll, and how fast they could be implemented. The agency is also working closely, he wrote, with insurance companies, state insurance departments, and law enforcement so that agents violating CMS rules or committing fraud face consequences. And it is reaching out to states that run their own ACA markets for ideas. Thats because Washington, D.C., and the 18 states that run their own ACA marketplaces have reported far fewer complaints about unauthorized enrollment and plan-switching. Most include layers of security in addition to those the federal marketplace has in place some use two-factor authentication before agents can access policyholder information. California, for example, allows consumers to designate an agent and to log in and add or remove an agent at will, said Robert Kingston, interim director of outreach and sales for Covered California, the states ACA marketplace. The state can also send consumers a one-time passcode to share with an agent of their choice. Consumers in Colorado and Pennsylvania can similarly designate specific agents to access their accounts. By contrast, agents can more easily access policyholder information when using private-sector websites that link them to the federal ACA market all they need is a persons name, date of birth, and state of residence to enroll them or switch their coverage. CMS has approved dozens of such enhanced direct enrollment websites run by private companies, which are designed to make it easier and faster for agents certified to offer insurance through healthcare.gov. Rules went into effect last June requiring agents to get written or recorded consent from clients before enrolling them or changing their coverage, but brokers say theyre rarely asked to produce the documentation. If CMS makes changes to healthcare.gov such as adding passcodes, as California has it would need to require all alternative-enrollment partners to do the same. The largest is San Francisco-based HealthSherpa, which assisted 52% of active enrollments nationally for this year, said CEO George Kalogeropoulos. The company has a 10-person fraud investigation team, he said, which has seen a significant spike in concerns about unauthorized switching. They report problems to state insurance departments, insurance carriers, and federal regulators and refer consumers to advocates on our team to make sure their plans are corrected. Solutions must be targeted, he said. The issue with some of the solutions proposed is it negatively impacts the ability of all consumers to get enrolled. Most people who sign up for ACA plans are aided by agents or platforms like HealthSherpa, rather than doing it themselves or seeking help from nonprofit organizations. Brokers dont charge consumers; instead, they receive commissions from insurers participating in state and federal marketplaces for each person they enroll in a plan. While California officials say their additional layers of authentication have not noticeably affected enrollment numbers, the states recent enrollment growth has been slower than in states served by healthcare.gov. Still, Covered Californias Kingston pointed to a decreased number of uninsured people in the state. In 2014, when much of the ACA was implemented, 12.5% of Californians were uninsured, falling to 6.5% in 2022, according to data compiled by KFF. That year, the share of people uninsured nationwide was 8%. Corlette said insurers have a role to play, as do states and CMS. Are there algorithms that can say, This is a broker with outlier behavior? Insurance companies could then withhold commissions until they can figure it out, she said. Kelley Schultz, vice president of commercial policy at AHIP, the trade association for large insurance companies, said sharing more information from the government marketplace about which policies are being switched could help insurers spot patterns. CMS could also set limits on plan switches, as there is generally no legitimate need for multiple changes in a given month, Schultz said. KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFFan independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. Learn more about KFF. The post Biden teams tightrope: reining in rogue Obamacare agents without slowing enrollment appeared first on Oregon Capital Chronicle. GRANBY, Mo. Plenty of art on display today at East Newton High School, as a fun event returned for the first time in 8 years. The Big 8 Art Show featured student-made works from kids representing the likes of, obviously, East Newton, as well as Nevada, Monett, Lamar, and Cassville High Schools. They were tasked with creating either a sculpture, acrylic painting, or a digital design of their choosing, which were then judged by area art teachers. Patience is a big one that they have to learn, because a lot of times, if you look at some of these artworks, theyre extremely detailed and it takes a lot of patience and attention to that detail, said Troy Burt, East Newton High School art teacher. I love art. Its my biggest passion and I do it all of the time. I do it for fun, I do it for school. I wish to do it for work one day, said Sydney Ester, an East Newton junior. The event concluded at the end of school today. These were the top-3 pieces, according to the judges. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KSNF/KODE | FourStatesHomepage.com. The staff of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Licking and Perry counties, shown in a 2023 file photo, was the only agency in Ohio recognized as a Platinum Award winner by the national organization. NEWARK Big Brothers Big Sisters of Licking & Perry Counties has been recognized as a Big Brothers Big Sisters of America Platinum Award Winner for program excellence in 2023. Every year, the National Leadership Council, comprising local Big Brothers Big Sisters agency leaders and board members, recognize local agencies for excellence in its signature one-on-one youth mentoring program. Of more than 230 local agencies nationwide, the Licking & Perry Counties agency is one of 51 across the country and the only one in Ohio to receive the award, according a news release. It recognizes top agencies that have shown "remarkable achievements" in consistently retaining mentor and youth matches year to year and "exceptional growth" in their local programs. In the past year, BBBS of Licking & Perry Counties has served over 500 youth and grown its local services by over 20%, according to the news release. It is exciting for us to be recognized with an award like this. This is not just a Big Brothers Big Sisters achievement. It signals growth and strength for our entire community, Executive Director John Alan Wilson said in the release. Our dedicated staff strive every day to support local youth through mentorship. We also have the best volunteers in the world. If you have ever thought about becoming a Big but havent applied yet, now is the time! Today is a great day to decide to help a child in our community. In the news release, Big Brothers Big Sisters of American President and CEO Artis Stevens said: Big Brothers Big Sisters of Licking and Perry Countys commitment to creating and fostering positive mentoring relationships is a testament to the individuals within their organization. Through a shared dedication to meeting the needs of youth in their communities, BBBSLP continues to empower young people to reach their full potential. We are proud to recognize the agency for its excellence in building brighter futures and championing new possibilities." This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: Big Brothers Big Sisters of Licking & Perry Counites get national award House Bill 1312 would allow parents to opt their children out of any instruction or program of sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or gender expression. (Getty Images) In early May, Democrats in the House defeated the Honesty in Education Act. The bill was the latest effort to require public school teachers to answer parents when they ask about changes to their childs gender identity. But another bill is moving forward that supporters say would give parents more control over their childrens instruction in schools and opponents say would intrude on classroom instruction. House Bill 1312 would allow parents to opt their children out of any instruction or program of sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or gender expression. Currently, state law allows parents to withdraw their children from classes related to human sexual education. HB 1312 would expand that ability to apply to the additional topics. Under the existing process, parents must notify the school district in writing that they object to the class material. And the parents must propose alternative instruction that is agreed upon by the school district, and pay for it themselves if there is a cost. HB 1312 would expand the withdrawal and require school district staff to notify parents at least two weeks in advance of any material that might fall into the category. Separately, the bill would prevent school districts from requiring that teachers withhold information from parents about their childs well-being including information about their sexuality. Individual teachers could still choose not to answer questions from parents about their childs sexuality, but school districts could not make it a blanket policy under the bill. The legislation, which passed the House 186-185, appears likely to clear the Republican-led Senate, too; the Senate Education Committee voted to recommend that it pass, in a 3-1, party-line vote. Supporters say the bill would give parents a greater say in how their children learn about sensitive topics. But opponents said the bill would empower discriminatory views against LGBTQ+ people, and that the notification process would be disruptive to teachers. The bill seems to be targeting, and I think stigmatizing, any instruction concerning LGBTQ+ people, and I think that this language really sends the message to LGBTQ+ students that their feelings and identities are something to be shunned, feared, potentially even censored, or not even acknowledged, said Gilles Bissonnette, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of New Hampshire. To Sen. Tim Lang, a Sanbornton Republican, the bill would encourage parents to communicate with their children about the topics knowing that they were coming up in the curriculum which he said could foster better connections between parents and children. Parents should have these discussions with their own children and not have teachers do this. This bill is the prompt for parents to have those conversations. Lang said the notification requirements would not prevent school districts from teaching the topics, but would rather allow parents to choose whether to participate in them. And he argued that the bill is not intended to allow parents to withdraw their child from materials that relate to LGBTQ+ people or movements in history. Its just informative to parents, he said. Nothing stops the school from doing those classes. The class is allowed. That just says that if you do it though, because this is a sensitive topic, you need to notify parents. A class about Harvey Milk, the openly gay San Francisco politician who was assassinated in 1978, would not fall under the definition of instruction of sexual orientation, Lang said, because Milk was a historical figure. But any instruction directed at students themselves that delved into their own sexual orientations or gender identity such as that in a sex education class would need to be disclosed, he said. But representatives of teachers unions said the bill as written does not make those distinctions clear. Teachers might interpret the law to mean that any class that discussed the history of LGBTQ+ rights would need to be noticed ahead of time, opponents said. And English teachers might feel compelled to disclose any book that featured LGBTQ+ characters, and to empower parents to prevent their children from reading those books. If you pass this bill that expands the areas that a parent is required notification of and can opt a child out of, where will it stop? said Deb Howes, president of the American Federation of Teachers of New Hampshire. Can you study the pay gap between men and women in the same jobs in an economics class, which has to do with policies around gender discrimination? Lang disagreed with that characterization; books that happen to include transgender or non-heterosexual characters would not automatically invoke the disclosure requirement, he said. Only instruction that was specifically intended to teach students about sexual orientation or gender identity would need advanced notice, he said. Brian Hawkins, director of government relations for the National Education Association of New Hampshire, argued that the topics the bill would add to the parental notification law were so broad that teachers would find the law difficult to follow. We think that 1312 is another piece of legislation that would significantly limit educators ability to teach, and provides far too many instances of vague language and framework to determine when certain actions violate the statute, Hawkins said. New Hampshire lawmakers first passed the law allowing parental opt-out from sex ed in 2017. In recent years, Republicans have pushed to allow more parental control over school library books, and have pressed for legislation to require teachers to answer any questions from parents about their childs preferred pronouns or gender identity in school. The latest parental notification bill effort, Senate Bill 341, was indefinitely postponed earlier this month, on a voting day when House Democrats had a majority over Republicans in the near-evenly divided chamber. That motion means that the bill is dead and that it cannot return as an amendment to another bill this legislative session. The post Bill advances allowing parental opt-outs for LGBTQ+ topics in school appeared first on New Hampshire Bulletin. As the last day of the school year approaches, Nevada schools are sounding the alarm as they prepare for the end of a universal free school meals program that was available for students throughout the pandemic. Prior to the pandemic, only students from households at or below 130% of the federal poverty line, and students between 130% to 185% of the federal poverty line could receive school meals for free or at a reduced price, respectively, under the School Breakfast Program and the National School Lunch Program. This school year, a family of four making $55,500 a year or less may qualify for reduced or free school meals. For next school year, a family of four making between $57,720 a year to $40,560 would qualify for reduced price meals, and a family of four making $40,056 or less would be eligible for free meals. During the pandemic, the U.S. Department of Agriculture provided waivers that made school meals free for all students, regardless of their familys income, at Nevada schools that were a part of the programs. Those federal waivers expired after the 2021-22 school year, but state lawmakers extended the program, allocating a total of approximately $104 million in federal COVID relief funds to continue providing universal free school meals for the 2022-23 and 2023-24 school years. Last school year, an average of 6.5 million school meals were served each month to about 460,000 students, the Nevada Department of Agriculture said in a statement. This includes 206,000 students who wouldnt have access to a free meal without the COVID relief funding. Its an increase from the 2019-20 school year, when only 275,830 students had access to free meals, which equated to 57% of students enrolled in schools that participated in the breakfast and lunch programs, according to the department. At the Carson City School District, the number of meals served went from about 780,000 during the 2018-19 school year to about 1 million during the 2022-23 school year. Its been fantastic, said Elizabeth Martinez, the districts director of nutrition services. For the past four years, we havent had parents calling us freaking out because they make 50 cents over the income guidelines to get assistance to get their kids food. Research shows that students who receive school meals consume more whole grains, milk, fruits and vegetables during meal times. School meals are also associated with better attendance rates, fewer missed school days and better test scores. But last year, Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo vetoed a bill, AB319, sponsored by Assemblywoman Sandra Jauregui, D-Las Vegas, that would have appropriated $43 million to the state Department of Agriculture to continue providing universal free breakfast and lunch to Nevada students. Lombardo said in his veto message, providing universal-free lunch will increase the amount of food purchased and, unfortunately, ultimately thrown away, and claimed studies have shown that as much as 73% of food provided through school lunch programs ends up in the trash. Lombardo made a similar statement at a March IndyTalks event, and suggested the waste was in part to kids in well-to-do neighborhoods receiving meals. A recent fact check by The Nevada Independent found Lombardos claim to be false because it suggests a data point from one study on vegetable waste reflects overall waste rates. During the 2019-20 school, the Washoe County School District did a study on food waste and found an average of 23.4% of food items distributed across the districts elementary school and 17.9% across all secondary schools were ultimately discarded, based on the weight of food taken before it was served and after students were done eating. The district said its participation rate in its school meals program has closely mirrored its pre-pandemic rate. In other words, we do not have a large number of affluent families who would otherwise be paying for school lunch, choosing to take the free school lunch and discard 70% of it, Adam Searcy, the districts chief operating officer, said in a statement. Lombardo spokeswoman Elizabeth Ray said the state Department of Agriculture has worked diligently to ensure that eligible students continue to receive free or reduced-cost meals following the end of the federal waiver program. Martinez is bracing for this shift. She said she expects to see a drop off in meals served across the district of about 7,000 students even among students who qualify for free or reduced-priced meals based on whats happened in other states that have ended their pandemic-era universal free school meals program. About half of the districts students attend the three schools Al Seeliger Elementary, Eagle Valley Middle and Carson High that will be affected by the change. While the Carson City School District doesnt track food waste, Martinez said she doesnt think it was increased during COVID. She compared Lombardos reasoning for his veto to a parent taking food away from one child because their other child didnt finish their meal. Why is that an excuse? she asked. Why is that a reason to take funding for free meals away from students that need them? This means that next school year, free or reduced-priced meals will only be available to students who are eligible based on their households income and apply for the assistance. Students at the remaining Carson City schools and others across the state will not notice a difference. All schools in the Clark, Churchill, Mineral and Nye districts, and at least 127 other district and charter schools, qualify for the Community Eligibility Provision of the school breakfast and lunch programs. Schools eligibility for the CEP status is determined by the percentage of students enrolled who participate in government assistance programs such as WIC or SNAP, also known as the Identified Student Percentage. This status allows individual schools or entire school districts in high poverty areas to offer meals at no cost to all of its students regardless of whether they receive those benefits and without collecting applications. Food Service Coordinator Kyera Glenn said the Nye County School District has been operating under CEP for about eight years. Last school year, nearly all of the districts almost 6,000 students were eligible for free or reduced-priced breakfast or lunch, according to data from the Nevada Department of Education. We get to cater to all of these students and make sure that none of them have to worry about going hungry or paying for food or anything like that, Glenn said. Last year, the ISP threshold was lowered from 40% to 25%. Yet, a state audit into Nevadas 17 school districts and the State Public Charter Authority found that about 25% of public schools in the state are not under this provision. Schools with a higher ISP receive a larger federal reimbursement for the meals they serve. But if a schools ISP is not sufficiently high enough, then the school is responsible for a portion of the actual cost of meals served. Martinez said even though Al Seeliger Elementary, Eagle Valley Middle and Carson High schools are eligible for the CEP status, their ISPs arent high enough to make it cost effective to operate under the provision. Technically, we could make those sites CEP, but the district would have to cover such a high cost because of that, that it would end up costing the district like a couple of million dollars, she said. Nevada Department of Agriculture Executive Director Director J.J. Goicoechea said in a statement the federal government needs to help, too, by increasing the multiplier used in a formula to calculate how much federal reimbursement schools can qualify for under the provision. That would allow more students to access free meals. Districts are urging parents to submit their applications for the free or reduced-price meal programs before the end of the school year in order to receive a 30-day grace period to ensure their students will continue to receive the benefits at the beginning of the next school year while they reapply for the 2024-25 cycle and get their applications processed and approved. The new applications are expected to go out during the first week of school. Archegos' Hwang lied to become Wall Street legend, prosecutors say as trial begins By Jody Godoy (Reuters) -Sung Kook "Bill" Hwang tried to trick all of Wall Street, a federal prosecutor told a Manhattan federal jury, as his trial on charges stemming from the 2021 collapse of Hwang's $36 billion fund Archegos Capital Management began on Monday. Prosecutors say Hwang lied to Wall Street banks to secure billions of dollars of funding he used to inflate stock prices. Former Archegos Chief Financial Officer Patrick Halligan, who is also on trial, enabled the scheme, they claim. Archegos' collapse caused more than $100 billion in shareholder losses at companies in its portfolio, harming investors who sold shares after their scheme collapsed, prosecutors also allege. Hwang and Halligan have pleaded not guilty. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexandra Rothman told the jury that Hwang sought to become a Wall Street legend by pumping the value of his holdings through manipulative trading, turning Archegos into a criminal enterprise. "Bill Hwang was a billionaire and yet he risked nearly everything because he wanted more: more money, more success, more power," she said. "To those in the know he was a great investor. He had it all. But it wasn't enough," Rothman added. The case has been closely watched on Wall Street as a test of prosecutors' ambitious market manipulation theory. It is expected to shed light on the inner workings of banks' dealings with profitable but risky clients. Hwang's attorney Barry Berke told jurors that his client staked his own cash on companies he believed in deeply, trading like he was prepared to lose it all. "The reason he did it was because he had the courage of his convictions," Berke said. Halligan's attorney Mary Mulligan said her client was not a risk taker, but a bean counter who saw the firm's financial position as solid. The banks Archegos traded with knew the risks and kept trading with the firm anyway to chase profits, Mulligan said. Testimony in the trial, which could last up to eight weeks, will center on the implosion of Hwang's lightly regulated family investment office Archegos, which prosecutors allege caused more than $100 billion in shareholder losses at companies in its portfolio. The case is one of several brought by U.S. Attorney Damian Williams alleging wrongdoing by powerful investors amid the wild market swings that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic. Prosecutors accuse Hwang of using financial contracts known as total return swaps to secretly amass outsize stakes in multiple companies without actually holding their stock. His positions were so large they eclipsed that of the companies' largest investors, driving up stock prices, prosecutors say. At its peak, they say, Archegos had $36 billion in assets and $160 billion of exposure to equities. Falling stock prices in March 2021 triggered margin calls that Archegos was unable to meet. That, in turn, led some banks to dump the stocks backing his swaps, causing billions in combined losses for Archegos and banks including Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse, now part of UBS, and Nomura Holdings. Hwang and Halligan are charged with racketeering conspiracy. Hwang faces an additional 10 counts of fraud and market manipulation, and Halligan an additional two counts of fraud. Each count carries a maximum potential sentence of 20 years. Hwang's lawyers have described the case as the "most aggressive open market manipulation case ever" brought by prosecutors. Several attorneys told Reuters it may be a tough case for the government. Archegos head trader William Tomita and Chief Risk Officer Scott Becker have pleaded guilty and are expected to testify at the trial. Bryan Fairbanks, a former risk manager at UBS, testified on Monday that Archegos lied about metrics used to gauge the risk of trading with the fund, which led to the bank losing more than $860 million when Archegos collapsed. "All the information they had shared with us was made up," he said. (Reporting By Jody Godoy; Additional reporting by Brendan Pierson in New York; Editiong by Michael Erman) New bill introduced in response to Gov. Stitt veto of Oklahoma Survivors Act New bill introduced in response to Gov. Stitt veto of Oklahoma Survivors Act OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) The Oklahoma Survivors Act may have a second chance of becoming law. Oklahoma women are struggling, said Angela Beatty, Vice President of Programs and Engagement at the YWCA. Beatty said domestic abuse survivors often have to protect themselves when all other avenues fail. Over 51 percent of women in the state of Oklahoma experienced some sort of violence, abuse or coercion, said Beatty. The Oklahoma Survivors Act is very much needed legislation in Oklahoma. Majority Floor Leader, Rep. Jon Echols (R-Oklahoma City), and Senate Pro Tem Greg Treat (R-Oklahoma City), wrote the bill which would allow victims to use evidence of their abuse to receive a lesser sentence. It would also work retroactively. It doesnt say you can commit [the crime]. All you can do, though, is use that in the sentencing phase of the crime, said Echols. The Oklahoma Survivors Act, SB 1470, overwhelmingly passed in the House and Senate, it was then vetoed by Governor Kevin Stitt. It was a tough blow to the field when the bill got vetoed said Beatty. Governor vetoes Survivors Act for domestic violence victims The governor said he was worried about the law being used as a loophole. You could have your 4th DUI going the wrong way on I-35, and kill a man, wife, and two kids, and then you couldve brought up some psychological trauma from their childhood that was totally unrelated, said Governor Kevin Stitt. Treat said he and Echols were aware of the concern. We were already working to fix those. We just didnt get agreement before that bill went to his desk, said the senator. Echols and Treat have put the language in a different compromise bill, adding a crystal clear rule. I am in a relationship and Im abused by my partner, I cant use that as a defense If I commit a crime against someone else, said Echols. Echols and Treat said they have an agreement with Stitt to approve this bill. Oklahoma women need relief. And bills like this could absolutely be a step in the right direction, said Beatty. This bill is already in the works in the Senate, will head to the Senate floor, then the House floor before landing on the governors desk. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KFOR.com Oklahoma City. Khadafi Keenan Fagan-Pierre stands near the spot where he was questioned by police on April 14, with his father's BMW E60 535 in the background. (Michel Aspirot/CBC - image credit) Khadafi Keenan Fagan-Pierre had just opened the door of a black BMW on the driveway of his home when he saw a Gatineau police cruiser make a U-turn. It was Sunday morning, April 14. Two officers stepped out. One questioned him: "Is this your car?" He said no. It was his father's car, after all. The father, who lives across the river in Ottawa, regularly lends his 2010 BMW E60 535 to his 31-year-old son. "Well, whose car is it?" an officer asked next. Fagan-Pierre, who is Black and lives primarily with his mother on the Quebec side, felt like he was done with questions. "Why do you need this information? Is the car stolen? Like, what's going on?" he remembers saying. "Why are you here?" The answer he recalls hearing left him insulted. According to Fagan-Pierre, the officer said he looked "suspicious" getting into the car. "In my head I'm thinking, OK, this looks like it's starting to be something racial," he said. Shortly after that, Fagan-Pierre found himself forcibly arrested for reasons that remain unclear. He said police slammed him against the garage, punched him in the back of the head and kicked his leg. In his view, the force was "unreasonable." He said an officer pushed his face into the pavement and pressed a knee into his back, making it difficult to breathe. He said it made him feel humiliated. He felt the encounter stemmed from racial profiling, as though a young Black man with dreadlocks didn't belong next to a BMW. Racial profiling 'never tolerated': Gatineau police Asked about the incident, Gatineau police confirmed they arrested a person at that time for obstructing a police officer in the execution of his duty, and said the arrest "necessitated the use of force." Citing privacy concerns, police declined to provide any further information about the incident, including the specific kinds of force they used and how Fagan-Pierre is alleged to have resisted. They said they have submitted an accusation against Fagan-Pierre to prosecutors, who decide whether to lay charges in Quebec. Quebec's Director of Criminal and Penal Prosecutions has decided NO criminal charges are warranted against the Gatineau Police officers who were involved in an altercation with a Senegalese diplomat last year. Gatineau police confirmed the arrest and said it 'necessitated the use of force.' (Michel Aspirot/Radio-Canada) Gatineau police did respond to Fagan-Pierre's allegation of racial profiling. "Racial profiling is never tolerated by [Gatineau police] and every officer or civilian employee who engages in racial or social profiling or makes inappropriate or discriminatory statements or gestures must face the consequences," spokesperson Rosalie Faubert said in a French-language statement. She said Gatineau police are held to the highest ethical and professional standards, and listed numerous measures the force has taken against racial profiling including training, internal directives, a diversity action plan and collaboration with community groups. Statistics show police forces across the country disproportionately apply force to Black people. In Ottawa, about one-quarter of people against whom police used force were Black, even though Black people make up just eight per cent of the city's population. But Gatineau police, like many police forces in Quebec, do not publish any such data classified by race, and responded that it was not available when CBC asked for it. Faubert said it would involve examining each individual case file. "It is however important to mention that force is used only when it is necessary and the ethnocultural origin of a person has no impact on the choice to resort to force," she said in French. Mother witnesses 'aggressive' police action According to Fagan-Pierre, the police officers who questioned him became defensive when he brought up race. "I tried to express that this was racial profiling," he said. "That's when they shouted at me to 'shut up, this car belongs to a 70-year-old person and you don't look 70 years old.'" His father, who was 69 at the time of the incident, lives in Ottawa and his car has Ontario plates, though police did not mention that as a reason for suspicion in their statement to CBC. "This happens all the time all the time to people who look like me," said the father, Orrett Fagan, of what happened to his son. "I've experienced it before, but not to this level." Orrett Fagan, Dian Pierre and Khadafi Keenan Fagan-Pierre at the Gatineau home where the arrest took place on April 14th. Orrett Fagan, Dian Pierre and Khadafi Keenan Fagan-Pierre at the Gatineau home where the arrest took place on April 14th. (Michel Aspirot/CBC) Fagan-Pierre said he asked the officers if he was arrested or detained, and was told he was detained. He said the female officer walked toward the front door of the house. He said he turned and started walking in the same direction. At that point, he said, the male officer began yelling "watch out! watch out!" Fagan-Pierre said he did not make any threatening gestures or statements that would explain what happened next. "He runs up against me, grabs my left arm and then he just starts going crazy," Fagan-Pierre said. "He starts trying to break my wrist.... I was screaming, 'please, please stop.'" He said the officer slammed him against the garage "aggressively." He said he felt a punch in the back of the head and kicks against the back of his knees. His mother heard a bang, opened the door and stepped out of the house. "I looked over where the noise was coming from, and I was petrified to see my son being pinned and rammed by two police officers struggling to put handcuffs on him," said Dian Pierre. She said she did not see the punch that Fagan-Pierre described. But she said she witnessed her son being aggressively shoved against the garage door. She called it "shocking." 'It was excruciating pain' According to Pierre, she told the officers that Fagan-Pierre was her son, that he lived in her home and that the car belonged to his father. For a moment, the situation seemed to calm down. But Pierre said the violence soon resumed and intensified. She said the officer again slammed her son against the garage door. In her view, there was nothing that explained why police resumed using force. "Eventually, they're struggling on the car. Then he slammed him to the ground, his left knee on his back," she said, describing the officer's conduct. She said the officer was holding his hand against Fagan-Pierre's neck and pushing it, saying "shut up." "I'm massively confused and in trauma," she added, recalling that moment. "It was a very negative, jarring situation for me." Dian Pierre witnessed the forcefull arrest of her son on April 14, calling it "jarring" and "shocking," Dian Pierre witnessed the forcefull arrest of her son on April 14, calling it "jarring" and "shocking," (Michel Aspirot/CBC) Fagan-Pierre said struggling to breathe was the worst part of the ordeal. He said it felt like 100 pounds were on his back. It lasted for about a minute, he said. "It was excruciating pain," he said. "I felt like I couldn't even get a full gasp of air in my lungs. I thought I was going to pass out in front of my mom, and I'm just screaming for this guy to get off me, let me breathe, please." Both Pierre and her son remember the officer saying Fagan-Pierre was under arrest for kicking. Asked if he ever struck the officer, Fagan-Pierre initially said "absolutely not." "If I did strike them, it was in self-defence of me just moving my legs from the pain that was being inflicted on me that I had never felt in my life," he said. "I'm not trying to resist arrest," he explained. "I'm just trying to not be thrown down on the driveway." His mother said she did not see a kick, and said it could only have happened unintentionally since her son was not reacting with violence. "To say he was fighting back at the officer, no," she said. A neighbour who said she also witnessed the incident said Fagan-Pierre appeared to be resisting, but only in the sense of not cooperating, and was not in any way "fighting" with the police. She said the arrest appeared to be "rough." 'The nightmare sits with me' Fagan-Pierre said the violence left him with bruised and swollen wrists, as well as scratched up knees, elbows and shoulders. But he said the emotional wounds were worse than the physical ones. He said he's "psychologically scarred." He said he is now chain-smoking and drinking every night to avoid thinking about the ordeal. "That nightmare sits with me every night," he said. He said he's speaking out about what happened to draw attention to what he sees as a pattern of injustice. "Something needs to really change in the system," he said. "It ain't right. There's too many Black people that are being assaulted and are being brutalized for absolutely nothing." He said the police officers involved in his arrest should face consequences and be dismissed from the force. "Someone needs to be held accountable so that it doesn't happen again," he said. The family has filed complaints through the Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse and the Commissaire a la deontologie policiere, a provincial body that handles complaints against police in Quebec. Fagan-Pierre said they are also considering legal action. Faubert said Gatineau police have looked into the case and the available documentation, and are unable to conclude that the male officer committed any professional breach during the incident. Pierre said she asked officers on the scene why they questioned her son, and received a disconcerting answer. "She eventually told me that it's because of the way he looks and what he was wearing," she said. Fagan-Pierre said he was wearing a hoodie, a paisley scarf, ripped jeans and a hat. Pierre said she still feels a chill whenever she sees police in Gatineau. "I am totally shattered.... I am not the same person anymore. I have hate in my heart," she said. "I am trying to make sense of all this unfairness." Bloomfield police cruisers crash in Newark during pursuit Bloomfield police cruisers crash in Newark during pursuit NEWARK, New Jersey (PIX11) A police pursuit in New Jersey ended in a crash early Monday morning. A Bloomfield police SUV crashed into a building, video showed. A police SUV was also seen in some shrubbery with some debris nearby. Car runs off Garden State Parkway, flips in front of NJ home Newark police confirmed a pursuit was being conducted by Bloomfield police. PIX11 News reached out to Bloomfield police for more information. Erin Pflaumer is a digital content producer from Long Island who has covered both local and national news since 2018. She joined PIX11 in 2023. See more of her work here. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11. EUCLID, Ohio (WJW) Authorities early Sunday issued a Blue Alert for a man who reportedly shot and killed a Euclid police officer in an ambush late Saturday night. Like the states Amber Alert system for abducted children, Ohios Blue Alert system is intended to quickly disseminate information on people suspected of killing, seriously injuring or kidnapping law enforcement officers who remain at large. Delta, Spirit planes collide at Cleveland Hopkins airport; no injuries Just after 1:30 a.m. on Sunday, the Attorney Generals Office issued a Blue Alert for Deshawn Anthony Vaughn, the 24-year-old man who was suspected of killing 23-year-old Euclid police officer Jacob Derbin on Saturday night. Authorities deemed him armed and extremely dangerous. Blue Alerts only go out if theres enough descriptive information about the suspect. The early Sunday alert included a photo of Vaughn, his age, height, weight and hair and eye color, as well as a stock photo showing the make, model and color of the vehicle he was believed to be driving. Once activated, the information goes out to other police officers, as well as news media outlets and commercial truck drivers. It also appears on highway signs. Ohios Blue Alert system came online in 2012. Its critical that the public work with law enforcement in this type of situation, said then-Attorney General Mike DeWine. Ohioans have helped find missing children through AMBER Alerts, and theyve helped find missing elderly adults through Missing Adult Alerts. The new Blue Alerts will now give Ohioans the chance to help the officers who put their lives on the line for the public every day. Flock cameras help find missing teens in Mentor A nationwide Blue Alert system was established in 2015, in response to the December 2014 ambush killings of New York City police officers Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu, Nexstar reported. To sign up for Ohios Blue Alerts, visit the Attorney Generals website. Residents who have information on active Blue Alerts can tip law enforcement in the same manner as Amber Alerts, by calling 877-262-3764 or 911. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Fox 8 Cleveland WJW. When Sen. Bob Menendez walked into a Newark federal courthouse for the first day of his 2017 corruption trial, so many reporters were watching him that the courthouse assigned them a spillover room. The spectacle didnt last long. Interest from the public and news media quickly waned after salacious allegations of Dominican sex workers, flights on private jets and scenes of luxurious villas gave way in the courtroom to technical details about Medicare reimbursements and credit card points to purchase a high-end grill. Jurors werent convinced he broke the law. Now the government has another shot at the senior senator from New Jersey. This next trial, set to play out beginning Monday, promises to be consistently dramatic and gives prosecutors whove eyed Menendez for at least two decades perhaps their best chance to convince a jury of his alleged corruption. Federal prosecutors case against Menendez includes accusations of paving the way for arms sales to a foreign government; shadowy foreign military and intelligence agents; pressuring state and federal prosecutors to go easy on friends; and bribe after bribe, from stacks of cash to gold bars to a brand new Mercedes for the senators wife after she struck and killed a man. The actions outlined in their indictment against Menendez, his wife and three New Jersey businesspeople began in March 2018, weeks after the Justice Department dropped the previous charges against Menendez following the mistrial. This time, lawyers and political observers say, the case seems even more serious. Prosecutors have years of text messages and emails, not to mention cooperating witnesses, including one of the businesspeople who has already pleaded guilty and is cooperating with the government. It presents a very cogent and compelling narrative of corruption allegations, said Luke Cass, a former federal prosecutor who is now a defense attorney and partner at Womble Bond Dickinson. Menendezs former political allies seem to agree. The allegations against the senator in 2017 that he had sought to intervene with federal officials to aid friend and donor Salomon Melgens business interests and a multi-million Medicare dispute of his in exchange for millions in political donations and private jet flights to his Dominican villa didnt carry with them enough stink to keep fellow politicians away from Menendez. Day after day through the trial, elected officials showed up to put their support of the senator on record. Sens. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Lindsay Graham (R-S.C.) even testified as character witnesses. In September, four days after the new indictment against Menendez came down, Booker called on him to resign. Booker did not say whether hed testify again, but told POLITICO in an interview that the Senator Menendez that I know was somebody that I was very grateful and honored to be serving with, and I did not know anything of the corruption. Graham, meanwhile, said: I dont think Ill be a witness now. One prominent New Jersey politician who didnt show up last time was Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop. He said he felt insincere pretending that he cared about the trial, but that others showed up out of fear. I think a lot of people in New Jersey still operate under that PTSD of living with him for decades, said Fulop, a Democrat who is running for governor. Fulop, like many, believes the senator is going to have a much harder time walking out of court a free man. One of the key arguments Menedez made last time is that Melgen was a friend not someone trying to bribe him. Menendezs son, Rob Menendez, who has since won a seat in Congress and is up for reelection this year, testified that he considered Melgen an uncle. I think when you get to gold bars, cash and Googling how much is a gold bar worth, and a Mercedes, its hard to argue thats the normal course of friendship, Fulop said. But federal prosecutors have to try their case in the shadow of rulings that makes public corruption cases harder to win, something that Menendezs star-studded legal team knows about. One of them, Avi Weitzman, represented Gov. Chris Christies office during the Bridgegate scandal. Another, Yaakov Roth, represented former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell in his bribery case and argued on behalf of Bridgegate defendant Bridget Kelly and former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo aide Joseph Percoco at the Supreme Court which overturned all three convictions. In a preview of their strategy, Menendezs attorneys accused the Department of Justice of swiftboating Menendez, a reference to the campaign ads attacking John Kerry that helped George Bushs 2004 reelection campaign. Time and again, the Justice Department has brought overly aggressive, baseless political corruption charges that have ruined lives, his attorneys said in an April court filing. They went on to recount federal prosecutors failures to make charges stick in Bridgegate or against McDonnell, the late Sen. Ted Stevens, former New York Lt. Gov. Brian Benjamin and, of course, Menendez himself in 2017. Cass, the former federal prosecutor, said in the Menendez case the government seems to have the kind of evidence that could avoid outcomes like the McDonnell case. We all think about this in the framework of quid pro quo quid is the things of value, the pro is the exchange, and the quo are the official acts, he said. And the quid is incredibly powerful, as alleged: the 480 grand cash, and the envelopes with the fingerprints, and the gold bars, and all that stuff. So the real battle will be on whether Menendezs actions were official acts as outlined in a Supreme Court ruling in the McDonnell case. But the superseding indictment that prosecutors filed in March also alleges Menendez attempted to obstruct the investigation. Such obstruction of justice charges are potent tools that can fill gaps or weaknesses in a case, Cass said. Jonathan Kravis, a former federal prosecutor who is now a partner at Munger, Tolles & Olson, said evidence that defendants were trying to hide can help reinforce the underlying corruption charges. Obstruction evidence is often good evidence of corrupt intent, he said. Menendezs legal strategy also may include blaming his wife for many of the actions that led to the bribery case and claiming he has a mental disorder. The most dramatic moment of the last case came immediately after it ended, when Menendez walked out of the courthouse and vowed to those who were digging my political grave so they could jump into my seat, I know who you are, and I won't forget you. Its clear federal prosecutors also didnt forget him. While theres no telling how the jury will rule ahead of the trial, polling indicates that the more salacious allegations against Menendez and the fact that its his second indictment have tried the publics patience. According to a Monmouth University poll from 2015, shortly after Menendezs first indictment, just 28 percent of New Jerseyans said the senator should resign, and 47 percent felt he was probably guilty. In a March 2024 Monmouth poll, conducted about six months after Menendezs second indictment, those numbers, respectively, were 63 percent and 75 percent. As stark as some of the imagery already is, like the gold bars and the luxury car, theres also a part Im sensing where the public is tired of dealing with Menendez and having to hear about him, said Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute. Mia McCarthy contributed to this report. The Bob Menendez trial is starting. Why his Senate colleagues don't want to talk about it WASHINGTON The criminal trial of Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J. on federal bribery charges is set to begin on Monday, but you wouldnt know it in the U.S. Senate. Menendez, 70, was indicted in September on charges that he allegedly took hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes in exchange for using his position to benefit three New Jersey businessmen and the Egyptian and Qatari governments. He has pleaded not guilty and vowed to defeat the charges in court. Asked about the trial ahead and what its been like serving with Menendez in the months since his legal troubles exploded into public view, most of his colleagues steered clear of the subject. I dont want to really go there, said Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va. I have no comment on that at all, said Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.V. Ive got to be really, really honest with you, it wasnt even on my mind until you brought it up, said Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont. Even his Republican peers were polite and tight-lipped: Ive always found Sen. Menendez had very good questions on Foreign Relations, said Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., who serves on the committee with him. Ill let the justice system work its will, said Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis. I really have no comment. Thats the way its done in the Senate, where the politesse of a seemingly bygone political era still reigns supreme. But behind the scenes in the months since he was indicted, the once-connected Menendez has become somewhat of a loner in the upper chamber. Hes stepped down from his role as chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee but maintains a presence on the panel. Menendez still shows up to vote and does his job, but otherwise keeps to himself. As reporters swarm other senators in the Capitols hallways, he walks by without being approached, or slips in and out of the historic chamber without notice. In the days following the news of the indictment last fall, more than half of Menendezs colleagues in the Senate Democratic caucus called for him to resign including his fellow New Jersey senator, Cory Booker, who served as a character witness for him when he was previously on trial on separate corruption charges. That case, brought in 2015 by the Justice Department, concluded with a mistrial in 2017 when the jury deadlocked. Im proud that I spoke to the Menendez I knew then. One of the more difficult times Ive had as a United States Senator was to call for a man to resign even though I believe everyone has a right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty, Booker said Thursday. So before people pile on, whether they want to judge or not his character, they should do what I do, which is be thankful that we live in a country where you can have your day in court and make your defense. Booker added that he of course has continued working with Menendez since the indictment, as he has not stepped down: I think its vital that we have two senators who are fighting for their state. Only Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa. the first Democratic senator to call for him to resign has kept up the drumbeat, repeatedly lambasting Menendez as a crook. He gets his day. People are going to get to decide whether or not hes a sleazeball, or if he is a really, really big sleazeball, Fetterman said. One reporter spotted Menendez hanging back to avoid sharing an elevator with Fetterman last week. Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and his wife Nadine Menendez depart a Manhattan court following an arraignment on new charges in the federal bribery case against them on March 11, 2024 in New York City. The case against Menendez According to federal prosecutors, Menendez and his wife Nadine Arslanian Menendez helped three businessmen get funding from a Qatari investment company in exchange for gifts, including envelopes stuffed with cash, a Mercedes-Benz convertible, expensive watches and gold bars. The FBI and the U.S. Attorneys office in the Southern District of New York have expanded their charges against Menendez multiple times since first filing them in September. Initially, Menendez was alleged to have helped an Egyptian businessman, Wael Hana, secure a monopoly on halal meat imports to Egypt while funneling aid to the Egyptian government. Then prosecutors alleged that he helped another businessman, Fred Daibes, get connected to a member of the Qatari royal family who led an investment company, which would invest in Daibes real estate plans in New Jersey. While Daibes and the investor were negotiating the deal, according to the indictment, Menendez made multiple public statements supporting the Qatari government and prompted Daibes to send those statements to a Qatari official and the investor. And prosecutors allege that Menendez tried to help Daibes and a former insurance broker, Jose Uribe, receive more lenient treatment in separate criminal investigations in exchange for bribes. Uribe has since changed his plea from not guilty to guilty. In January, they added new charges of conspiracy to obstruct justice and obstruction of justice, alleging that Menendez and his wife tried to return some, but not all, of the money used to buy the convertible by disguising it as payback for a personal loan. Menendezs wife is being tried separately due to a medical issue. Court filings unsealed last month indicate that Menendezs attorneys may seek to blame her by showing the ways in which she withheld information from him or otherwise led him to believe that nothing unlawful was taking place. The trial begins on Monday with jury selection and is expected to run for several weeks at the federal courthouse in Lower Manhattan. Menendez is the 13th senator in U.S. history to be indicted while holding office, according to the U.S. Senate Historical office, and the fourth senator to be indicted multiple times while serving in the upper chamber. Menendez was previously charged in 2015 with allegedly taking gifts and campaign donations in exchange for favors, though he maintained that the gifts were simply the product of a long friendship. The DOJ outright dropped its charges in early 2018 after the mistrial, though the Senate Ethics Committee severely admonished Menendez, who would go on that November to win reelection to a third full term despite public backlash over his legal troubles. The senator's second criminal trial comes as one other sitting member of Congress, Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, also faces charges of bribery and money laundering. Former Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., was also indicted on charges of wire fraud and money laundering before being expelled from Congress in December. Santos trial is scheduled to begin Sept. 9 in Long Island, N.Y., federal court. In March, Menendez said he would not run for Senate again this fall as a Democrat, though hinted that he may mount an independent bid. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Bob Menendez's trial is starting. Senators would rather not discuss it Body found in Grand Canyon river believed to be man missing from wood raft, rangers say A body found in Grand Canyon National Park is believed to belong to a missing man who took a wooden raft down a river, rangers say. Rangers said they recovered the body after it was found in the Colorado River on Friday, May 10, according to a National Park Service May 13 news release. Though the body has yet to be identified, rangers said they believe it is that of Thomas L. Robison, 58, of New Mexico. A missing man and his dog may have taken a wooden raft down the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park, rangers say. An initial search for Robinson began after his empty car was found at Lees Ferry in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area on April 21, rangers said in an April 24 news release, McClatchy News previously reported. At the time, rangers said they believed Robinson tried to make his way down the Colorado River with his 11-year-old Welsh Corgi on a self-made raft. A photo of Robinsons wooden raft. The Coconino County Medical Examiner will confirm the bodys identification, rangers said, adding an investigation is ongoing. Lees Ferry, a natural corridor between Utah and Arizona, is the only place within Glen Canyon where visitors can drive to the Colorado River in over 700 miles of canyon country, right up to the first rapid in the Grand Canyon, according to the National Park Service. Missing man and dog may have taken wooden raft down river in Grand Canyon, rangers say Skier plunges 100 feet from ledge in out-of-bounds Grand Teton backcountry, rescuers say 92-year-old hikes entire Grand Canyon in honor of late wife and breaks world record Body of missing boater recovered in Sebring TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) Officials recovered the body of a missing boater in Sebring after a 36-hour search. The 22-year-old mans body was found in Lake Jackson early Monday morning. Officials believe he jumped into the water on Saturday evening to retrieve his lost hat and never resurfaced. The Sebring Fire Department, Sebring Police Department Highlands County Sheriffs Office, Polk County Sheriffs Office and Frostproof Fire Department joined the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission in the search. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA. "I went to China this time with a special thing: a passport without any visa on it," exclaimed Lucas Deckers, a Belgian in his 20s, on the Chinese video-sharing platform Douyin, with a picture showing him waving his burgundy travel document. Since earlier this year, China has implemented a visa-free policy that exempts many European ordinary passport holders from the time-consuming and costly obligation, encouraging travelers from nearly a dozen European countries to explore this Asian country. In a further move, Chinese President Xi Jinping, during his first European tour in nearly five years last week, announced that China has decided to extend visa exemption entry for citizens from 12 countries, 11 of them in Europe, on short-term visits to China until the end of 2025. The policy, geared towards fostering interactions among Chinese and international citizens, has garnered widespread acclaim in Europe and is expected to improve relations between China and Europe in many ways. DOOR OPENING WIDER The extended policy allows ordinary passport holders of France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Malaysia, Switzerland, Ireland, Hungary, Austria, Belgium, and Luxembourg, to enter and stay in China visa-free for up to 15 days for business, tourism, visiting relatives and friends, and transit. In a post on social media, Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto said the visa-free policy was "good news" for Hungarian tourists and business travelers heading for China. As a matter of reciprocity, Hungarian authorities are issuing long-term visas, already at the first application, for managers of big Chinese companies undertaking investments in Hungary, he added. These decisions will further strengthen cooperation between Hungary and China in the areas of economy and tourism, the top diplomat noted. Mario Boselli, chairman of the Italy China Council Foundation, said the new visa-free policy indicates that China's door is opening wider, and will facilitate economic, trade and cultural exchanges between the two countries. The visa-free policy for Spanish citizens represents "a significant milestone" in bilateral ties, said Jose Felix Valdivieso, chairman of IE University's China Center, which aims to promote educational and business cooperation between the two countries. "It encourages a greater flow of people between China and Spain, enriching our societies with a diversity of perspectives and experiences," Valdivieso said, dubbing this move as "a catalyst for further growth and collaboration." BOOST FOR TOURISM Thanks to the policy, Jerome Pouille, a French panda-lover, easily arranged a China trip this spring to visit Yuan Meng, the first giant panda born in France. Last July, Yuan Meng was sent back to China's Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding. Seeing Yuan Meng living well in its hometown, Pouille felt "happy and satisfied." The visa-free policy serves as an impetus for numerous European travelers to embark on exploratory journeys throughout China, and is perceived by European tour operators as a stimulus for tourism. Gunther Gruber, senior consultant of the Austrian KUONI travel agency, said he is very happy that China has introduced the 15-day visa-free policy for Austria. "China has always been one of the most visited tourist destinations for Austrians... We are now planning travel plans for the spring and summer of 2025 and will launch more travel products about China," Gruber said. For many Europeans, visiting China is a complex thing. They have to plan ahead, manage their finances, and set aside time in advance. "That's great if you don't have visa issues to worry about. This is very useful," said Davide Cougoule, senior manager of Geneva Tourism & Conventions Foundation, a Swiss tourism promotion association. According to the Geneva office of Air China, the national carrier of China, following the visa exemption, there has been an average of 50 Swiss travelers on each Geneva-Beijing flight, constituting approximately 25 percent of all passengers. Air China's figures also show that in March 2024, a total of 6,364 passengers traveled between Geneva and Beijing, up 374.9 percent from a year earlier. According to Ralph Ossa, chief economist of the World Trade Organization (WTO), China's visa-free policy for European countries and the recovery of Chinese outbound tourism are conducive to global service trade. BRIDGE FOR EXCHANGES Barely two weeks after the policy took effect, the Chinese Language and Culture Center in Luxembourg organized a spring camp to visit China during the Easter holiday in April. More than 20 Luxembourg students visited Beijing, Shanghai and other places in China, with some of them joining the camp just several days before departure, as the visa-free policy made the trip easier. "This travel facilitation will encourage more Luxembourg citizens to travel to China and help strengthen people-to-people and commercial exchanges between our two countries," said Xavier Bettel, Luxembourg's deputy prime minister, in a statement. The visa-free policy, a tangible move of China in pushing for high-level opening-up, has infused momentum into the exchanges between China and Europe. During his official visit to China in April, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the German side appreciates China's visa-free entry policy for Germany and is willing to make it more convenient for Chinese citizens to visit Germany. The policy has received an enthusiastic response from all walks of life in Austria, said Ernst Woller, president of the State Parliament of Vienna. This measure will "definitely facilitate Austrian people to travel to China, strengthen personnel exchanges between the two countries, and further promote Austria-China relations and the exchanges between the two countries," Woller said. During the first quarter of 2024, Chinese immigration management agencies processed over 141 million traveler trips. Among them, trips by foreign nationals reached 13.1 million, a year-on-year increase of 305.2 percent, said the National Immigration Administration (NIA) of China. "The visa-free policy not only streamlines entry and departure, but also symbolizes China's warmer embrace of foreign travelers," said Deckers, already a Chinese-speaking influencer on Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok. Two Austin police officers shot a 44-year-old man at least five times at a Northwest Austin apartment complex April 27 after he purportedly pointed a firearm at police, according to the body-worn camera footage of three officers at the scene. The footage was released 10 business days after the shooting, per the Austin Police Departments protocol. The footage shows the moment officers Adam Reinhart and Kai Finch fatally shot Thomas Dray Price, previously identified by Austin police as the victim of the shooting. The bodycam footage of a third officer, Peter Miller, was also released. Miller did not fire his gun. There were no injuries to bystanders or officers, interim Police Chief Robin Henderson said during a news conference hours after the shooting. Henderson said the incident began April 26 when police received calls at 11:34 and 11:42 p.m. about loud noise and music coming from cars on the north side of the Summer Grove apartment complex at 7905 San Felipe Blvd., near U.S. 183 and McNeil Drive, in Williamson County. Law enforcement received another 911 call at 12:14 a.m., reporting that Price was armed and walking around the complex, a news release said. Callers said they heard gunshots and that Price was holding four to five men at gunpoint, the release said. Police were dispatched after receiving the third 911 call. They arrived at 12:22 a.m. and began to search the complex for Price and any wounded individuals. Officers first found several men whom callers had said Price was holding at gunpoint, a release said. Footage shows police telling one man to walk backward toward them with his hands above his head. He is heard giving officers a description of Price and saying that another witness heard Price saying he wanted to shoot a dog several days before. About five minutes later, Price is seen emerging from the breezeway of a building. Police said he was holding a firearm, though the bodycam footage is too grainy to show one. Bodycam video shows Austin police officers' deadly encounter with Thomas Dray Price. Police, including Reinhart and Finch, can be heard telling Price to put his hands up and drop his gun as he walks into view of several officers. The commands were repeated in Spanish. Police said Price did not comply with the officers commands. The bodycam footage shows Reinhart and Finch shooting their semi-automatic firearms at least five times. The video does not show Price receiving life-saving aid or being put in handcuffs. He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 1:39 a.m., a press release said. After the incident, a SWAT team was called to the apartment from which Price had emerged, Henderson previously said, but no one else was found. No charges have been filed in connection with the shooting, a news release said. Per department protocol, Finch and Reinhart have been placed on administrative duty. Police declined to comment on the officers weapons or on details pertaining to the investigation. Two investigations of the shooting are being conducted: a criminal probe by the Police Department special investigations unit in conjunction with the Williamson County district attorney's office and an administrative inquiry managed by the Police Department internal affairs unit, with direction from the city's Office of Police Oversight. This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Bodycam footage shows police kill man at Northwest Austin apartments An attorney for the Kansas City man accused of fatally shooting a woman during the flurry of gunfire at the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl rally withdrew a motion to reduce his $1 million bond Monday afternoon. Dominic Miller, 18, one of three men who face a murder charge following the Feb. 14 parade shooting, made a brief appearance in Jackson County Circuit Court Monday afternoon for a bond review hearing. Millers attorney, Ruth Petsch, previously said in court documents Miller was unable to post bond and requested a judge reduce the $1 million cash bond, but Petsch dropped her motion during Millers hearing without further comment. Associate Judge R. Travis Willingham set Millers next hearing for June 10. Miller was charged with one count of second-degree murder, two counts of armed criminal action and one count of unlawful use of a weapon following the shooting, which took place amid the crowd gathered for the celebration. Police have said it was a bullet fired from a 9 mm handgun Miller was armed with that killed Lisa Lopez-Galvan, a 43-year-old Johnson County mother of two and a beloved party DJ. Two other men, Lyndell Mays and Terry Young, were also charged with murder following the shooting. Police have said an argument between two groups outside Union Station preceded the gunfire, after Mays allegedly first pulled a gun and began to fire. The shooting resulted in the death of Lopez-Galvan and injuries to dozens of others. Three juveniles have also been charged in connection with the shooting, two of whom may face prosecution as adults. During a hearing late last month for one of the youths, who has been identified by his initials, A.M., a Kansas City police detective testified 25 people were injured in the incident and one woman, Lopez-Galvan, was killed, but a larger number, 60, would eventually report injuries or go to a hospital in connection with the rally shooting. The proceedings for A.M., known as a certification hearing, in which a judge will determine whether the case against him will be moved to a general jurisdiction court, are expected to pick up again on Monday, May 20. A similar hearing is expected for another youth connected to the rally shooting. That juvenile has a case management hearing scheduled for Wednesday. The third teen was detained on gun-related charges that do not rise to the level to be tried as an adult, authorities have said. The Stars Robert Cronkleton contributed reporting to this story. MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. (DC News Now) Police said officers arrested a boy who robbed the same convenience story in Apen Hill three times within a matter of weeks. The Montgomery County Department of Police (MCDP) said the boy went into 7-Eleven, located in the 14100 block of Georgia Ave., between April 18 and May 2. On each of the three occasions, he supposedly pulled a knife, stole money, and left. PHOTOS: Crews put out car fire in Montgomery County Officers and detectives found the boy on May 10 and took him into custody. MCDP said they found items at his home connecting him to the robberies. Police notified the Department of Juvenile Services about the arrest, and the boy was released into the custody of his parent. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to DC News Now | Washington, DC. In England, the Dacorum Borough Council issued fines for littering to multiple men who pulled off the road in a rural area to urinate, including one with a weakened prostate. A BBC report later found the council had issued hundreds of fines for public urination along the same road. The Telegraph reported that at least three other councils also treat public urination as littering. A man says he was threatened with arrest after his dog urinated on a public street in Bournemouth, England. Steve Schuurman said a Dorset officer shouted at him to "clear your fucking dog piss." When Schuurman complained that he wasn't sure how the officer expected him to clean urine, another officer threatened to have him arrested if he did not move on. The California Department of Motor Vehicles may have improperly charged tens of thousands of drivers late fees for their vehicle registration. A Los Angeles news station found that the DMV often rejected electronic checks even when the account had sufficient funds and there were no other issues, then charged late fees. The New York City government refuses to reimburse Adam and Elizabeth Rizer for the loss of their car, which was totaled during a police chase. An officer pursuing a suspected stolen car through an intersection T-boned a Hertz rental car and then struck the Rizers' parked Jeep. The city says that the rental vehicle actually struck their car and the Rizers should contact Hertz for compensation. The city comptroller later told a reporter that "there were multiple parties and complex circumstances that prevented a pre-litigation settlement." Melissa Evans worried when her dog Spotty got away that she might never see him again. Then Oklahoma City Animal Welfare called to let her know it had picked up her dog and she could get him back if she got him neutered, which she agreed to do. But when she went to pick him up, staff told her they had mistakenly euthanized him. The city animal welfare superintendent said another dog, which was scheduled to be euthanized, looked like Spotty, and staff "went into the kennel and mistakenly pulled the wrong dog out." Italian aviation officials blocked a British Airways flight from leaving Milan for London after a surprise inspection found some of the seat cushions were too thick and too wide. Cushions on exit rows over the wings are supposed to be smaller to create more room in case of an evacuation. The flight was delayed for an hour until the crew was able to locate enough cushions to swap out. The Scottish Ambulance Service fired Christopher Gallacher after finding he had an on-duty emergency dispatcher pick him and his family up at the airport after a vacation. According to a disciplinary tribunal, there were a "high number of calls" that evening and patients were waiting for "lengthy periods of time." The dispatcher was away from his post for 45 minutes. United Airlines was forced to ground its brand-new Airbus A321neo planes, but not because of safety issues: A 1990 federal rule requires "No Smoking" signs to be operated by the flight crew, even though smoking on airplanes has been banned for decades. The A321neo uses software that keeps the "No Smoking" sign on continuously during flights. United previously received an exemption to the rule, but the exemption only applied to aircraft it listed at the time, requiring the airline to request another exemption for the new planes. The post Brickbats: June 2024 appeared first on Reason.com. Another week, another poll showing how depressed Britains teenagers are. The charity Parentkind has just surveyed 1,000 teens to find out how smartphones continue to affect them, and the results are devastating. Almost one in five of the 16 to 18-year-olds surveyed said they felt life was not worth living because of social media, while four in ten thought their school grades had been affected and almost half of the teenage girls polled felt pressure to change their looks. Ofcom, the media regulator, is trying to crack down on the damage being done to under-18s online but the parents of children who have died after being exposed to harmful digital content argue that its ideas are insufficient. Britains teenagers are in much more urgent need of help. Smartphones are not solely to blame - there are many country-specific issues which feed the problem It is notable that the UK was placed close to the bottom of a mental wellbeing index earlier this year, with Uzbekistan the only nation to rank lower. The Childrens Commissioner for England has warned that more than 270,000 children and young people referred to childrens mental health services in 2022-23 were still waiting for support at the end of that period. Drastic public sector cuts and a cost-of-living crisis has raised stress levels in UK households, with mental health charity Mind recording a 40pc increase in the number of calls to its helpline in relation to financial worries in the summer of 2022. Britains economy might now be picking up, but few families will feel it is going gangbusters, as the UKs statistics office put it on Friday. Unable to find help, troubled teens will retreat further into the virtual world. Bosses with grown-up children might have little interest in the mental health concerns of under-18s, but they should do. This is the next generation of scientists, inventors, chief executives and politicians. The whole economy will suffer if teenagers are left to suffer from anxiety and depression. A Labour donor tells me that he thinks more businesses need to wake up to this issue, a point he will no doubt be discussing with the party as he signs the next cheque. More support is needed from the private sector to reduce waiting lists for mental health services, tackle the problems surrounding social media, improve education and encourage physical activities. More than two in five children in Year 6 are also now overweight or obese. Future problems can be spotted in the classroom. An experienced high-school teacher tells me how she suspects some of the issues she and her colleagues deal with at work will end up becoming an employers problem. Some students are so focused on potential careers and are such high achievers that it affects their mental health. Others are very disillusioned with no aspirations who have little motivation. As she puts it, UK plc needs to pay attention because companies are going to be inheriting these young people. Not only could a disengaged or overly stressed workforce impact effectiveness, the influence of social media could turn young people off entire industries completely as they chase glitzy-looking jobs that seem popular online instead. From a career point of view social media can mislead some to believe that theyre just going to become an influencer and should just care about likes and getting rich, the teacher adds. For others it might put pressure on them to demonstrate certain levels of success. What they consume on social media to do with careers is all linked to having money to live a certain lifestyle. That desire for online fame was evidenced during the pandemic, when hundreds of wannabe influencers aged between 17 and 21 auditioned to live in the UKs first TikTok house in Uxbridge, Middlesex to chase their dreams of stardom and wealth. I havent seen a friend in five months, said one resident of the house, who left her family home in Portugal to make a name for herself. The effort that [other teens] put into their friends, we put into our work. Theres no question that social medias promise of overnight fame and pressure to keep up appearances has affected teenagers more than adults. Social psychologist Jonathan Haidt, who last month published a book on why smartphones are causing an epidemic of mental illness in children, believes that social media has rewired childhood and changed human development on an almost unimaginable scale. The invention of the smartphone was initially one of the greatest inventions of humankind with no negative impact on our mental health, Haidt told The New Yorker last month, but then it changed from being our servant to being our master. Adults have largely proved able to cope with the shift, teens have not. He points out that it wasnt until around 2012 and 2013, a few years after Instagram, push notifications and the front-facing camera came out, that mental health started to really fall off a cliff. The graphs go in the same direction all over the world. The UKs Health Foundation think tank says mental illness has increased more than four-fold among 16 to 34-year-olds over the last decade. Social media use for 16 to 17-year-olds is currently at around 95pc, according to Ofcom. The tech giants which deliberately created such addictive products already know that they need to do more - they are legally obliged to abide by terms such as setting age limits, and Ofcom now wants to introduce tough new age checks - but the business community as a whole needs to accept that this is their problem too. Britains teenagers have been down for a while. Theres no point in bosses pretending that they havent noticed. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. LONDON (AP) British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak warned of a dangerous future for the U.K. in a pitch to voters Monday as he fights to hang on to power ahead of a national election that could see Conservatives ousted after 14 years. Sunak's speech repeatedly attacked Labour leader Keir Starmer, saying he lacked plans to deal with security risks from what he described as an axis of authoritarian states that he named as Russia, China, Iran and North Korea. Sunak said his pledge to increase military spending to 2.5% of gross domestic product by 2030 better positions his party to confront that threat. The war in Ukraine, Iranian proxies attacking ships in the Red Sea and Chinese cyberattacks aimed at members of Parliament are some of those risks, he said. Over the next few years, from our democracy to our society to our economy to the hardest questions of war and peace, almost every aspect of our lives is going to change," Sunak said. "How we act in the face of those changes, not only to keep people safe and secure but to realize the opportunities too, will determine whether or not Britain will succeed in the years to come. His speech at Policy Exchange, a conservative think tank, came just over a week after his party was rocked in local elections and ahead of a general election in which Labour is widely seen as likely to win control of Parliament. Starmer said Sunaks speech was the seventh time hes reset his agenda in 18 months. He rejected the suggestion that he would be weak on defense, saying his top priority is national security and he has relevant experience as the former head prosecutor for England and Wales. This government talks about national security, but whats its record? It has hollowed out our armed forces, it has wasted billions of pounds on procurement, Starmer said. Its a choice between a changed Labour Party that puts the country first and party second or continuing with this government, the chaos and division thats been going on for so long. Sunak has until Dec. 17 to call an election that will take place 25 working days later. He has said he would do so in the second half of the year but has refused to say when, as opponents repeated calls for him to name a date This Conservative government is out of touch and out of time and Rishi Sunak must do the right thing and give the people a general election, Ed Davey, leader of the Liberal Democrats, said. Sunak said Labour was trying to depress their way to victory with scaremongering about pensions. They have just one thing: a calculation that they can make you feel so bad about your country that you wont have the energy to ask what they might do with the incredible power that they seek to yield, Sunak said. Sunak acknowledged public uncertainty and anxiety but said some of that was due to global upheavals such as the COVID-19 pandemic. He said that despite storms ahead," Britain could feel proud and confident again as transformational technologies" such as artificial intelligence could bring progress. Technologies like AI will do for the 21st century what the steam engine and electricity did for the 19th, he said. A brutal thing. Dad of 2 gunned down walking to catch bus for work, Illinois cops say Police in Illinois are investigating after they say a 24-year-old man was shot to death while walking down a street. Family members have identified the man as 24-year-old Zet Rodriguez, according to WLS. Rodriguez was walking to catch a bus to work in Chicago around 7 a.m. May 10 when he was shot, according to WMAQ. The shooting was captured on surveillance video and showed a person attempting to rob Rodriguez, 38th Ward Alderman Nick Sposato told the news outlet. Just a brutal thing, brutal video, Sposato told WMAQ. A kid going to work to provide for his family and some scumbag guns him down. Police told McClatchy News that Rodriguez was shot in his chest. He was taken to a hospital where he was later pronounced dead, police said. Two people were taken into custody but later released, WBBM reported. Certainly, dont want to convict anybody thats not guilty of anything, Sposato told WLS. I talked to a detective friend of mine who is a murder detective, and he said, This is not good that theyre out. So, Im guessing they just didnt have enough information. Rodriguez was a crisis counselor, WMAQ reported. He had a 6-month-old daughter and a baby on the way, his family told WLS. The investigation is ongoing. Boyfriend smashes window, kills man he says tried to assault girlfriend, IN cops say 21-year-old shoots stepmom as she goes to hug him at graduation, New Mexico police say Man accused of assaulting ex gets out of jail and shoots her new boyfriend, TX cops say COLUMBUS, Ga. (WRBL) A portion of Buena Vista Road is closed from 5936 Buena Vista Road to 6028 Buena Vista Road due to damage caused to three light poles. According to Columbus Consolidated Government the road is expected to be closed until 6 p.m. and officials are working to repair the damage. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WRBL. Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang (C) and other delegates push button to start work on Ecovance high-tech biodegradable materials factory (Photo: VNA) The project has an initial investment of over 2.3 trillion VND (90.3 million USD), and the figure is expected to increase to more than 11.8 trillion VND by 2030. Construction is expected to be complete in June 2025, and the factory will be officially put into operation in September 2025 after a trial operation in July. The project has a capacity of 70,000 tonnes of PBAT biodegradable plastic products, 59,500 tonnes of PBS biodegradable plastic products, and 6,300 tonnes of THF solvent products (byproduct created during PBAT production) a year. Speaking at the ceremony, Vice Chairman of the municipal Peoples Committee Le Anh Quan said that the project, with its goal of producing biodegradable plastics, is of great significance in an era when plastic waste pollution is a burning global problem. Biodegradable materials not only provide a solution that contributes to reducing environmental pollution and protecting the ecosystem, but also opens up a new direction for the plastic industry towards a green and circular economy, stated Quan. Hai Phong commits to continue creating the most favourable conditions for businesses in industrial parks and economic zones in general and SK Group in particular to accelerate the progress of construction, he added. FAO supports Bac Kans agro-forestry development The FAO delegation visits an agricultural model in Bac Kan province. (Photo: VNA) A delegation from the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the UN (FAO) had a working session with leaders of the northern mountainous province of Bac Kan on the implementation of the Forest and Farm Facility (FFF) partnership on May 10, reported Vietnam News Agency. The FFF is carried out in Bac Kan province in three phases, with the first one in Chu Huong and My Phuong communes of Ba Be district during 2014-2017, the second in Phuong Vien commune of Cho Don district and My Phuong and Yen Duong communes of Ba Be district during 2018-2022, and five communes in Ba Be, Cho Moi and Cho Don districts during 2023-2025. Chairman of the provincial farmers union and head of the FFF management board Cao Minh Hai said that the facility has contributed to improving management capacity, promoting mechanisms and policies related to cooperatives through multi-sectorial forums, and enhancing business capacity and market and capital access of the cooperative groups. He particularly stressed that the programme has helped local cooperatives respond to climate change through raising their awareness of the environment and improve their equal access to cultural and social services. FAO representative in Vietnam Remi Nono Womdim recommended the province continue support policies for sustainable development of local agriculture and forestry, branch out agro-tourism and experience tourism to create better income for locals, and integrate support programmes and projects so that cooperatives could capitalise on their advantages to shape up competitive products. FAO will continue its support programmes for Bac Kans cooperatives, with a focus on developing clean agricultural model integrated with experience tourism, he added. Vice Chairman of the provincial Peoples Committee Nong Quang Nhat thanked FAO for its assistance over the past time, expressing his hope for further support in the fields of eco-tourism, sustainable forest development and protection, among others, from the organisation in the coming time. Bac Kan is now home to more than 374,000 hectares of forest, with the forest coverage topping 73% in 2023, the highest level in the country. The province has given weight to forest management, protection and restoration, contributing to local socio-economic development and improvement in local livelihoods. Vietnam gets various nominations at World Travel Awards 2024 Hoi An is a nominee for the Asia's Leading Culture City Destination award. (Photo: VNA) Vietnam has made the shortlist in many accolades at the prestigious 31st World Travel Award, the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) said on May 11, reported Vietnam News Agency. The country has been nominated for Asias Leading Beach Destination, Asia's Leading Culture Destination, Asia's Leading Destination, Asia's Leading Heritage Destination, Asia's Leading Natural Destination, and Asia's Leading Youth Travel Destination in 2024. The VNAT makes it to the list of nominees for the Asias Leading Tourism Board while the Hanoi and HCM Citys Departments of Tourism were nominated for the Asias Leading City Tourist Board and Quang Nam provinces Department of Tourism for the Asias Leading Regional City Tourist Board. Ho Chi Minh City is a nominee for the Asia's Leading Business Travel Destination, and Hanoi for the Asias Leading City Break Destination and Asia's Leading City Destination 2024. Hoi An in the central province of Quang Nam. (Photo: VOV) Other localities getting nominations include Hoi An and Hue for the Asia's Leading Culture City Destination, Ha Giang and Ha Nam for the Asia's Leading Emerging Tourism Destination, Phu Quoc for the Asias Leading Luxury Island Destination, and Moc Chau for the Asias Leading Regional Natural Destination. Da Nang and HCM City are nominated for the Asia's Festival and Event Destination 2024. The country also receives nomination for many other categories in the areas of aviation, hotel and travel. Voting is open until July 23 at www.worldtravelawards.com. Established in 1993, World Travel Awards aims to acknowledge, reward and celebrate excellence across all key sectors of the travel, tourism and hospitality industries. The awards have been recognised globally as the ultimate hallmark of industry excellence and dubbed as the Oscars of Travel and Tourism by The Wall Street Journal. Vietnam was honoured in 45 categories of the 2023 event. Hanoi works to bring craft products to the world At Bat Trang pottery market in Gia Lam district, Hanoi (Photo: VNA) The capital city of Hanoi is focused on developing craft villages, particularly OCOP products to branch out the rural economy and promote export, reported Vietnam News Agency. This year, the city continues to support cooperatives and households to create high-quality products that hold potential for export. According to Nguyen Van Chi, deputy chief of the citys Office for Coordination of the New Style Rural Development Programme, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development has created favourable conditions for local OCOP products to join prestigious international craft exhibitions, helping business gain experience, seek partners, and study foreign consumer taste. The department has also signed contracts with Swedish partners to develop packaging design for local products towards bringing Hanoi craft villages into the network of the world craft cities, he said, adding the city will back businesses and households to design international-standard packaging for four-star OCOP items. Various activities have been organised to honour craftsmen and encourage the preservation and promotion of cultural values in the villages, with 290 people bestowed with the title of the Hanoi artisan so far. While many craft makers have moved to large-scale production, several have a great passion for the traditional craft. Nguyen Van Trung, an artisan in Phu Vinh village, the land of bamboo and rattan wickerwork, said that craft villages uphold national spiritual values, reflected through the customs, beliefs and festivals related to the traditional craftsmanship, adding each product has its own story and highlights the cultural traits of each locality. He suggested that Hanoi provide more support measures so that businesses and households can attend international fairs to popularise their OCOP products. Products of Hanois trade villages are now available in over 40 countries and territories. The city brings together 47 occupations out of 52 traditional occupations in the country. The capital has 322 craft villages, of which 69 craft villages process and preserve agricultural, forestry and aquatic products, and 197 produce wooden furniture, rattan, ceramics, glass, textiles, yarn, embroidery, wickerwork, and small mechanics. It is also home to 13 villages producing and trading ornamental plants and animals, 16 processing raw materials to serve rural production and trades, and five providing services for production and daily activities of people in rural areas. According to reports in the localities, the total revenue of craft and trade villages is over 22 trillion VND (865.12 million USD) a year.In recent years, craft villages have seen growth in both production and export value, with some recording revenue of more than 1 trillion VND a year./. Buffalo police looking for help finding missing teen BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) Buffalo police are looking for help finding a missing teenager. Hasina Bee, 16, is 52 and approximately 110 pounds. She has black hair and brown eyes. Police said her last possible location was at Bailey and Shirley avenues this past Friday around 3:45 p.m. Anyone with information on her whereabouts is asked to call 911. Latest Local News Evan Anstey is an Associated Press Award, JANY Award and Emmy-nominated digital producer who has been part of the News 4 team since 2015. See more of his work here and follow him on Twitter. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to News 4 Buffalo. Burn bans in place for 3 Florida counties as lack of rain ramps up fire dangers. What to know Florida is a bit conflicted these days. While the Panhandle and North Florida are seeing plenty of rain sometimes to the extreme and including tornadoes Central Florida from the East Coast to the West Coast is parched. Conditions have gotten so bad some counties have issued burn bans as the danger for wildfires increases. Here's the latest on drought conditions around the state. Indian River County tops Florida in drought index Keetch-Bryam Drought Index for Florida as of May 12, 2024, shows Indian River County the driest county in Florida. According to the May 12 Keetch-Byram Drought Index, drought conditions in Florida are the worst in Indian River County, with Sarasota, Highlands and St. Lucie counties slightly better but worse than other counties around the state. Dry conditions extend from Brevard County south to Broward County on Florida's East Coast to Manatee County south to Charlotte County on Florida's West Coast. Rain amounts can vary so much in the state that conditions are better in Palm Beach County than Martin County to its north and Broward County to its south. Keetch-Bryam Drought Index for the driest counties in Florida Thirteen counties in Florida have KBDI numbers higher than 500, indicating dryness, according to the Florida Department of Agriculture. Indian River County: 602 Highlands County: 572 St. Lucie County: 563 Sarasota County: 553 Martin County: 542 DeSoto County: 540 Hardee County: 537 Brevard County: 533 Manatee County: 529 Charlotte County: 528 Glades County: 528 Okeechobee County: 524 Broward: 513 What do the drought numbers mean? Here's an explanation of what the Keetch-Byram Drought Index numbers mean, according to the Wildland Fire Assessment System. 0-200: Soil moisture and large-class fuel moistures are high and do not contribute much to fire intensity. Typical of spring dormant season following winter precipitation. 200-400: Typical of late spring, early growing season. Lower litter and duff layers are drying and beginning to contribute to fire intensity. 400-600: Typical of late summer, early fall. Lower litter and duff layers actively contribute to fire intensity and will burn actively. 600-800: Often associated with more severe drought with increased wildfire occurrence. Intense, deep burning fires with significant downwind spotting can be expected. Live fuels can also be expected to burn actively at these levels. Burn bans issued in three Florida counties Burn bans have been issued for three Florida counties, according to the Florida Forest Service. Brevard Indian River Sarasota Burning yard debris is always prohibited in Duval and Hillsborough counties. Indian River County declares state of emergency, declares emergency burn ban This embedded content is not available in your region. On May 7, Indian River County declared a local state of emergency before declaring a mandatory burn ban for the entire county. The order prohibits all outdoor burning that has not been specifically permitted by the Florida Forestry Service. "All outdoor burning of yard trash, household paper products, bonfires, campfires, warming fires, outdoor fireplaces, chimeneas, and cooking fires is prohibited unless Authorized by the Florida Forest Service, or It is for the cooking of food exclusively within a gas or charcoal grill. The burn ban is in effect until further notice, according to John Titkanich, Indian River County administrator. Brevard County prohibits open burning On May 8, Brevard County reported that due to ongoing dry weather and the risk of wildfires, a ban on opening burning is in effect. The burn ban prohibits bonfires, campfires, trash burning and other incineration, throughout the county. "The burn ban does not include state-permitted burns, the use of barbecue grills, authorized public fireworks displays and fireworks sales, which are authorized by state law." Sarasota County prohibits all outdoor burning On May 5, Sarasota County announced a burn ban is in effect due to local drought conditions and an increased chance of fire hazards. All outdoor burning is prohibited unless a permit has been issued. The burn ban applies to all unincorporated areas of Sarasota County and the city of Sarasota. Exceptions include cooking on barbecue grills or pits that do not exceed three feet in diameter and two feet in height, or any other valid state or county authorized burn. The burn ban will automatically lift after the drought index falls below 500 for seven consecutive days, the county said. Sarasota County Fire Department asked all residents to stay vigilant and suggested taking these actions to protect their families and homes from fire danger: Create three zones of defensible space around your home or business. Clear trash and dead vegetation from the yard. Remove leaves and debris from roof, gutters and under decks. Have a plan and an emergency preparedness kit packed in case you need to evacuate quickly, especially if your home is near wildlands. Monitor local media for updates on road closures, smoke conditions and other hazards. Use extreme caution when grilling, camping and discarding cigarettes. Dont use anything (i.e. lawn mowers) that may create sparks outside on dry, windy days. Call 911 if you see fire in your area. This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Florida drought index ranks driest counties. Burn bans in effect Police now say a man accused of killing his former girlfriend and the mother of his child enlisted his family to hide the crime. Brianna Winston, 23, had been missing for several weeks before police found her remains at a cemetery in Tennessee. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] Channel 2s Tom Jones was in Clayton County Monday, where officers released new information in the case. TRENDING STORIES: Michale Edwards now faces additional charges including malice, felony murder and conspiracy to commit a crime. Edwards mother, his wife and brother were also arrested after police said they tried to help him hide his role in Winstons death. He definitely looped everyone into this crime, Lt. Ashanti Marbury with the Clayton County Police Department said. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] Police said that after Edwards choked Winston to death and drove her body in a suitcase to Tennessee, his wife, Brienna Phillips Edwards, loaned him her car to get out of state. She also was very aware of his whereabouts on March 17th while he was there burning remains, Marbury said. Police said once he was arrested, they heard Edwards on a jail call with his wife where he asked her to burn his shoes and gloves used in the crime. Police said he told her his 17-year-old brother, Keilan Wright, would help. Officers also said Edwards mother, Ebony Anderson, helped hide the crime. We have evidence that she played a part in burning the items Michale called and asked to be burned, Marbury said. Edwards is the father of Winstons 4-year-old daughter. Police said she questioned him about his infidelity, and thats when he choked her to death. Their investigation led them to a man in Tennessee who helped Edwards burn Winstons body. We recovered Briannas remains at the cemetery, Marbury said. Edwards and his wife are being held without bond. His mother and brother have bonded out. Winstons family attended the news conference and some left in tears. They said they are happy to get the answers to what happened to their loved one. Heres whos buying panic rooms and bullet-proof doors amid crime fears in NYC and its not who youd think New Yorkers are fortifying their homes with panic rooms and bullet-proof doors like never before over fears about crime, migrants and national turmoil and its not just the citys elite partaking in the trend. Not every [customer] is an ultra-rich stockbroker a lot of them are just people, middle-class kind of people, said Steve Humble, founder of the home-defense contractor Creative Home Engineering. Id say the pandemic really kicked off an uptick. Business was really good throughout the pandemic time, and it really hasnt slowed down, said Humble, who specializes in top-of-the-line secret doors disguised as bookshelves, fireplaces, mirrors, blank walls and whatever else a client can think of to conceal a safety room behind them. He is one of numerous home-defense contractors who told The Post that the past four years have been a boon for business, with New Yorkers from all walks of life shelling out thousands of dollars to outfit their homes with hidden rooms, bulletproof doors and a swath of other covert security systems to keep the baddies at bay should they come knocking. Here is a concealed door disguised as a bookcase and made by Creative Home Engineering. hiddenpassageway.com The driving force is a decline in New Yorkers sense of safety assaults in the Big Apple reached 28,000 for the first time on record last year and the perceptible shift toward volatile instability that many people feel is ramping up across all of American society, Humble and others say. Whether its real or perceived. People feel like crime is up, Humble said, explaining he has installed well over 100 doors in homes across New York, with middle-class homes in Queens and the Bronx standing out. David Vranicar, whose company Fortified and Ballistic Security specializes in such things as bulletproof doors and windows, said New Yorkers from less affluent parts of Queens and Brooklyn have been driving his business in the city, too. Those are the people that actually need to stop bad guys from getting in the house, Vranicar said. [What] my clients have been expressing to me is we saw how quickly society can break down during COVID, he said. So, what would happen if something really drastic happened? I think everybodys a little scared. While Humble specializes in concealing without-a-trace hidden safe rooms, Vranicars defensive philosophy is focused on keeping the baddies moving on by fortifying points of entry such as front doors and windows. What we want to do is say, If the riot breaks out, can I be secured? And the reality is, even if its bad, and theyre banging on your door, and they cant get in, and its steel all the way around, theyre not coming in. Theyre just not, and theyll move on, he explained. Fears over crime in the headlines and on the sidewalks have led some New Yorkers to fortify their homes. hiddenpassageway.com He said he also focuses on fortifying bedrooms where homeowners are most likely to be at their most vulnerable asleep should trouble make its way inside. While Vranicar and Humble offer high-end custom projects which can quickly add up to tens of thousands of dollars and more both also said they provide a line of products to fortify or conceal doors on more conservative budgets. Humbles most affordable hidden door costs about $1,000, and though Vranicars cheapest door starts around $6,000, he pointed out that installing one such door on an apartment above ground level is going to make the place as secure as it can be. In New York, if you could afford six-grand for a door, youre pretty much gonna be really safe, Vranicar said. Though both have outfitted the homes of celebrities and statesmen alike, average New Yorkers have helped make the city one of their biggest markets across the country, they said. Theres a lot of people in New York that are ordering the pre-designed secret doors from us, said Humble, noting that New York City is one of his top three markets. Hidden rooms are just one defense measure. Some customers install electrified door handles and weaponized drones, too. hiddenpassageway.com For not-so-average New Yorkers, theres Bill Rigdon of Panic Room Builders who caters to clients with homes worth around $10 million at a minimum. The people below that cant get their head around spending $50,000 for a door, Rigdon told The Post. Rigdon builds panic rooms averaging between $100,000 and $200,000 but can quickly cost well above that. The rooms are equipped with a host of defensive measures and life support such as food, water, plumbing, medical equipment, power sources and communication systems. Beyond ballistic doors that can stop AK-47 rounds and up, Rigdons panic rooms can have electrified handles, smoke-screen launchers, concealed nozzles for blasting dyed pepper spray at intruders and remotely controlled robots or drones armed with shotgun shells. As with Humble and Vranicar, the names and addresses of Ridgons clients are all protected by strict non-disclosure agreements, but he said the city has become a different ballgame with 1% of 1% customers in recent years. The migrant thing has got people brain-spun because theyre living in their crystal palace out in the Hamptons and they have to drive through the city. and they see this, Rigdon said. In the city right now, its is the rampant crime, right? Political unrest, which you see on the streets. And when these migrants started going into town, you know, its broadcasts all over the news my phone blew up. A secret door built into a bathroom mirror by Creative Home Engineering is one criminal-battling device. hiddenpassageway.com Hidden safe rooms and other home fortifications have been on the rise in neighborhoods all across New York City. hiddenpassageway.com Recent city headlines have been so alarming that Rigdon estimates about 90% of his Big Apple business right now comes from previous clients who fear the instability and potentially more from the upcoming 2024 presidential election. Its not if, its when its coming, Rigdon said. I have people I work with in the agencies in Pittsburgh, and Philly the FBI, you name it and theyre worried. If theyre worried. Why shouldnt we be worried? Vranicar and Humble said they also have been seeing a similar trend among clients, many of whom have expressed fears over what has been simmering across America since 2016 and may be coming to a head in the fall. Theres a bigger gap between a two sets of people groups: the haves and the have-nots, and the red versus the blue, Vranicar said. And the division is getting bigger and bigger and more and more polarized. And its got both sides freaking out. Its made everybody on edge. A reason I believe we have such an uptick in business is America is becoming more like the rest of the world, he said. Just because you live in America, youre not necessarily safe anymore. It was the case for a very long time, but not so much anymore. Californias Latino lawmakers prioritize bills each year. How many have passed in the last decade? In a significant shift from anti-immigrant policies of the 1990s, California now leads the nation in helping undocumented residents issuing drivers licenses, protections from deportation, COVID-19 pandemic relief, health care and, most recently, food assistance. These wins coincide with the Latino community exploding to 40% of the state population, and speaks to the growing influence of the lawmakers representing them over the last 10 years. In that time, the California Latino Legislative Caucus a group that only welcomes Democrats has championed policies at a more successful rate than the Legislature average and reshaped how the state treats its undocumented immigrants. An analysis of the groups priority legislation an annual set of bills members vote to support shows that the caucus turns its bills into laws 54% of the time. Members have pushed forward groundbreaking policies to expand health care access for all undocumented immigrants, create an ethnic studies requirement to graduate high school and provide farmworkers with first-in-the-nation overtime provisions. Other successful legislation has reached beyond the Latino community, including increasing sick days for all California workers and tackling climate policy. But these high-profile wins havent been easy nor without criticism. Theyve often required multiyear efforts, fueled by Latino leaders who came of age during an anti-immigrant policy effort in the 1990s. These leaders played a long-game in advancing progressive Democratic policies during former Gov. Jerry Browns administration that Gov. Gavin Newsom later signed into law. We are leading the nation, and its because of the Latino Legislative Caucus that we are where we are at, said Angelica Salas, executive director for the Los Angeles-based Coalition For Humane Immigrant Rights. No other state can say that. While the caucus has occasionally fallen short of its goals, its work since 2014 reveals a largely successful campaign of passing legislation focused on immigrant rights, economic mobility and access to education. From 2014 to 2023, the caucus introduced 136 priorities. Of those, 74 were enacted and another 17 reached the governors desk but were vetoed. That is a higher rate of lawmaking when compared to the annual numbers of the entire Legislature. Out of the roughly 2,300 bills put forth each year, about 35% to 40% become law, according to Chris Micheli, an adjunct professor at the McGeorge School of Law at University of the Pacific and longtime Sacramento lobbyist. The caucus rate of implementing legislation was not surprising to Micheli and Fernando Guerra, a political science professor at Loyola Marymount University. Both experts said it reflects the groups rising clout in Sacramento. The caucus was half its size just 15 years ago. The group, now at a record 35 members, makes up nearly 30% of the Legislature and an increasing number of the leadership roles. The first Latino Assembly speaker in California history was chosen in 1996. Six Latino speakers have followed since then. Theres always representation to push these types of bills and the eventual success, Guerra said. Defined by those moments Former Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia, who joined the Legislature and caucus in 2012, recalls a time when California wasnt so welcoming to its undocumented residents. In 1994, voters overwhelmingly approved Proposition 187, a ballot initiative to deny public benefits to undocumented residents. Legal challenges prevented the law from taking effect, but it nonetheless inspired young Latinos, like Garcia, to get involved in politics. Garcia protested against Prop. 187 as a high school senior. She participated in a school walkout on Interstate 5, which runs through Los Angeles, with her undocumented father in mind. A lot of us are defined by those moments, said Garcia, referencing the number of Latino lawmakers who have since joined the Legislature. Those moments came full circle in the 2010s. Two years after Garcia joined the Legislature, the caucus secured its biggest breakthrough in years winning approval of a measure that allowed undocumented immigrants to receive drivers licenses. The win set the stage for the progressive policies that came in the next few years. That victory of drivers license was a reminder to us of our power and our need to be ambitious and to keep pushing more policy forward in the space, Garcia said. In 2014, the caucus prioritized legislation to create a ballot measure to repeal another anti-immigrant policy from the 1990s a proposition which required English-learners be taught in English-only classrooms. At the time, people erroneously argued bilingual programs lessened adequate learning of English and triggered anger in some immigrant communities. The caucus priority was enacted into law and led to voters overwhelmingly approving an initiative that repealed the English-only requirement. The initiative has led to immediate growth in the number of bilingual programs, with the state committed to enrolling half of all K-12 students in programs leading to proficiency in two or more languages by 2030. That same year, the caucus secured another major win that would have been unthinkable decades prior. Then-Gov. Brown signed the priority bill to allow low-income undocumented children to receive health insurance through Medi-Cal. These efforts continued for nearly the next decade, culminating earlier this year after California became the first state to extend Medi-Cal access to all age groups. The health care expansion qualifies about 1.4 million undocumented Californians for full Medi-Cal coverage. It also contributes to what advocates say is the strongest social safety net for undocumented immigrants in the country. Were creating opportunities, and these have been big wins for all of our communities, said Assemblywoman Sabrina Cervantes, D-Riverside and caucus chair. Not giving up Through its work in the last 10 years, the caucus has persevered. In some years, the groups priority legislation would fail and need to be retried in the next months and sometimes years. Former Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, who joined the Legislature and caucus in 2013, recalled her farmworker bill to expand overtime pay for farmworkers. Gonzalez said lawmakers had tried to advance similar legislation for decades, but each time it failed. In the summer of 2016, the bill died once again. This time, just three votes short of the majority needed to pass. But two weeks later, Gonzalez revived the legislation and later amended the bill to allow smaller farms more time to implement the change. The legislation narrowly passed the Legislature, with the help of nearly every single member of the caucus. Former Assemblyman Jose Medinas bill requiring California high school students to take ethnic studies to graduate had its own struggles. Medina first introduced the bill in 2018, only to face lengthy, controversial fight for the curriculum that would draw attention to groups whose history and stories have been traditionally overlooked. For three straight years, the legislation was either delayed or vetoed by Brown and Newsom for reasons ranging from a fear of overburdening students to saying the curriculum was insufficiently balanced. But Medina, a former ethnic studies teacher, continued to try, emphasizing the importance of students understanding the struggles and contributions of marginalized groups. The yearslong battle ended in 2021, with Newsom providing his signature and pointing to a number of safeguards to ensure that courses will be free from bias or bigotry and appropriate for all students. Medina recalled the effort, saying it was emblematic of the Latino caucus, and the more than 16 million Latinos its members hope to represent in California. Not giving up is certainly something that speaks to our community, Medina said. That we dont give up and that we know that some things take a lot of work. Do I need a California Real ID? Whens the new deadline? Heres what you need to know The deadline to obtain a California Real ID for U.S. domestic travel is officially less than a year away. Beginning May 7, 2025, the new federal identification requirements take effect in California. We encourage Californians not to procrastinate getting a REAL ID because youll still need one if you plan to use your drivers license or identification card to fly within the U.S. when the new federal requirements take effect, Steve Gordon, director of the California Department of Motor Vehicles, said in a 2022 new release. The Real ID Act was originally set to take effect in 2008, it has been pushed back a number of times. The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent DMV backlogs resulted in deadline extensions in both 2021 and 2023. Now, the deadline is next year. Heres what you need to know about obtaining a California Real ID before the deadline: What do I need to apply for a Real ID in California? To apply for a California Real ID, youll need to take the following steps: Step 1: Proof of identification You must provide one of the following documents to verify your identity: Valid U.S passport or passport card Original or certified copy of U.S birth certificate Valid permanent resident card Foreign passport with valid U.S. Visa and approved I-94 form Certificate of Naturalization or Certificate of U.S. Citizenship Certified copy of birth certificate from a U.S. Territory Valid Employment Authorization Document (EAD) Card (I-766) or valid/expired EAD Card with Notice of Action (I-797 C) Valid Employment Authorization Document (EAD) Card (I-766) or valid/expired EAD Card with Notice of Action (I-797 C) U.S. Certificate of Birth Abroad or Consular Report of Birth Abroad of U.S. Citizen Valid foreign passport stamped Processed for I-551 Documents reflecting Temporary Protected Status benefit eligibility Your current full name must match whatever name is on your identity document. Step 2: Proof of residency To prove that you live in California, you must provide two different printed documents that show your mailing address. Two of the following documents are acceptable to use: Home utility bill or phone bill Insurance documents Medical documents Mortgage bill Employment documents Property tax bill or statement Deed or title to residential real property Change of Address Confirmation by the U.S. Postal Service Voter registration confirmation letter or postcard issued by the California Secretary of State or a local California county elections officer The documents must show your first and last name with the same mailing address listed on your Real ID application. If your name is not listed on residency documents, you can use a birth certificate, marriage license, or domestic partner registration certificate to prove your relationship with the person listed on those documents. For those with a recent name change, youll need additional documentation to prove the name change. Step 3: Real ID application After confirming you have the necessary documents, you will need to complete the Real ID application, which can be completed online. On average, the application takes 9 minutes to complete and will ask for your name, address, birth date and social security number. Step 4: Visit a DMV office Once your application is finished, you will need to visit a California DMV office to complete the Real ID process. You will need to provide the necessary documents, your Real ID application code and your payment of $35. To save yourself some time at the DMV, make sure to reserve an appointment online. Most DMV offices are open Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Offices are closed on weekends and holidays. Do I legally have to get a California Real ID? A REAL ID drivers license or identification card is optional, the DMV website says. You only need a Real ID if you plan on using your drivers license or identification card to board domestic flights within the U.S. or to enter secure federal facilities after May 7, 2025. If you want to continue to use a U.S. passport, U.S. passport card, military ID, enhanced drivers license, or other federally accepted identification to do those things, you do not need to get a REAL ID, the DMV said. 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. I am a third-year undergraduate student at Cambridge, and have been following the activities of a small number of my fellow students currently occupying the lawn outside Kings College and the official response of the university. I am writing to say that I am appalled by the response that the university has offered. Freedom of speech is critical to the wellbeing of any university. There must be space for us to express our views, disagree, and engage in dialogue to enrich our own understanding of the world. Yet what this does not mean is that this university may remain impartial and silent about the right of existence of a sovereign state, and the right of its inhabitants to have exactly the same rights as other sovereign peoples around the world: their own self-determination. The protesters in front of Kings College are openly calling for the destruction of the state of Israel. Their placards that are currently emblazoned around their encampment and calling for a Free Palestine from the river to the sea. The protesters know exactly what this means. It means that in their view a Jewish state should not exist. It means that the land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea should not be home to the 7.2 million Jews who live there (as well as the two million Israeli Arabs, and the half-a-million Christians and others groups that consistently respond at a rate of about 70 per cent to independent polls saying they support the Israeli state). A Palestine from the river to the sea means no Israel, no Israelis, and no security for Jews in the Middle East. Where do the protesters propose the Jews and Israelis go if a Palestinian state were to exist from the river to the sea? Freedom of speech must be protected Again, I would like to reiterate that freedom of speech must be protected. Regardless of my own opinions on the matter, to call for a ceasefire, or to advocate for the quick removal of Benjamin Netanyahu, or to express the absolutely critical empathy that is deserved by all the inhabitants of Gaza should be encouraged. Yet the universitys statement fails to address the genocidal aims of Hamas. The latters 1988 Charter says: The day of judgment will not come about until Muslims fight the Jews when the Jew will hide behind stones and trees. This could be an exact description of what happened on Oct 7 2023. When Israeli men and women had to hide in cars, under dead bodies, in bushes, and wherever else they could find so as to not be brutally murdered by militant Islamists. This is what Palestine from the river to the sea means. Because, according to this logic, any means are justified if you are fighting a colonial regime, and Hamas are simply freedom fighters for the Palestinian cause. Perhaps you think Im exaggerating? In an Oct 10 statement, publicly available on Instagram, the Cambridge University Palestine Society said the Israeli regime is entirely responsible for the violence seen on Oct 7. These are the words of actual students from the University of Cambridge. The universitys silence on the slogan from the river to the sea used in the occupation of Kings College lawn suggests that those hellbent on the destruction of Jews in the Middle East have a free pass to do so. Fair and justified criticism of Israeli foreign and internal policy should never be followed by the words Free Palestine from the river to the sea, and if we do hear this in Cambridge, it should be denounced while upholding the right to freedom of speech. The rhetoric in general that Israel and Zionism are Western constructs built exclusively on colonialism is at best a complete ignorance of Jewish history and at worst thinly-veiled anti-Semitism that the universitys weak response fails to address. This open appeal is an attempt to say that not everyone at the university will stay silent and feel forced to go along with the genocidal aims of Hamas, or the radicals occupying the lawn outside Kings. There are those of us at Cambridge who stand with Israel. For any Jewish friends, and supporters of Israel reading, I want to share my belief that the light of the Jewish people will continue to glow even in the darkest of times. It is understandable to feel discouraged in the face of such hatred and threat. But the many thousands of years history of Israel will not be extinguished by the radicals in our universities or by anti-Semites around the world. Devika Shah is an undergraduate at Selwyn College, Cambridge Cameras have consequences: Polk County to launch stop arm camera program on school buses Cameras have consequences: Polk County to launch stop arm camera program on school buses POLK COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) This spring, an accused drunk driver hit a child getting off a school bus in Haines City, according to the Polk County Sheriffs Office. That child was not seriously injured. In a one-day count conducted May 1st by Polk County Public Schools, 700 school bus safety law violations were recorded. In April of 2023, the school district observed 1,039 stop arm violations in one day. With children on school buses and people running that stop sign, theres going to be zero tolerance, said Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd. Sheriff Judd said he does not typically support automated traffic cameras (i.e. red light cameras). He prefers citations be given face-to-face, with the opportunity to give a warning instead of a ticket. Ive left my comfort zone but children are worth it. Weve got to have people stop whenever these buses are stopped. Thats the problem, they arent, said Sheriff Judd. His office will work with Polk County Public Schools on the districts new bus camera program. By next school year, all of the countys more than 500 school buses will have stop arm cameras. Courtesy: Verra Mobility Based on the data we have, Florida is the second most dangerous state in the US for school zone safety, said Jon Baldwin, executive vice president for government solutions at Verra Mobility, an Arizona-based automated enforcement company. Gov. Ron DeSantis signed HB 741 into law last year which empowered school districts and law enforcement agencies to do more to enforce school bus safety laws. After it became law, Polk County Public Schools underwent a lengthy vetting process before deciding on a contract with Verra Mobility, an Arizona-based global automated enforcement company. Per Verra Mobilitys contract with the school district, the company will cover all costs for the cameras, including installation, maintenance, and operation. It then gets $49 of every $225 fine. The cameras operate similarly to red light cameras, in that they detect when a vehicle does not stop when a stop arm is extended. Thats the sad truth about these automated enforcement programs is that there are so many violators that they do pay for themselves. Now, if they dont, then that kind of means we won, said Verra Mobilitys Matthew Reich during a presentation to school board members in April. According to the company, it issued 200,000 citations from its 75 stop arm programs across the country last year. Polk County will be the companys first stop arm program in Florida. We anticipate that we will issue a lot of citations in the beginning and then people will figure out, hey, this is for real and those school buses do have cameras, and cameras have consequences, said Sheriff Judd. When the camera detects a violation, the company will send an evidence package to the Polk County Sheriffs Office. Once a deputy approves the violation, a citation will be sent to the owner of the vehicle observed violating the law. The school district will compensate the sheriffs office for the time spent reviewing the violations. The goal is to install all the cameras over the summer and have them operational by the upcoming school year. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA. Lord Cameron's trip to the pub with Xi was just one of the approaches criticised by Lord Patten David Camerons approach to China during the golden era was demeaning and ludicrous, the last British governor of Hong Kong has said. Lord Cameron sought closer ties with Beijing while in No 10 and hosted Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, in Downing Street in 2015. Relations between China and the West have worsened since Lord Cameron left office and ultimately became Foreign Secretary last November. Lord Patten, the 28th and last governor of Hong Kong, told BBC Radio 4: At the same time as the golden period, China was starting to turn the screw in Hong Kong. And of course, Im in favour of us trying to do business with China. I recognise that we need to have a relationship with China. We have to talk to them about big geopolitical issues. We want to do business with them. But the idea that you can only do this on your knees I find demeaning and ludicrous. Lord Patten was British governor of Hong Kong until the handover in 1997 - GEOFF PUGH/FOR THE TELEGRAPH The former governor, who held the position until the handover in 1997, told Shadow War: China and The West: David Cameron introducing Xi Jinping to his pub near Chequers with a warm pint of beer for what? At the same time as they were having a beer together, arrangements were being made with the police to make it difficult for people to protest in the streets of London, in order it might embarrass the Chinese leader. I mean, it was awful stuff. At the time of Lord Camerons appointment, there were claims that his previous attempts to usher in the golden era in relations made him an unsuitable candidate for Foreign Secretary. Shortly after taking up the role, he publicly condemned the detention of Jimmy Lai, the pro-democracy newspaper publisher facing a possible life sentence in Hong Kong, breaking with the Governments previous reluctance to do so. George Osborne, the chancellor while Lord Cameron was in Downing Street, hit back at the accusation that the administrations China policy was naive as very shallow thinking. He told the same BBC Radio 4 programme: I dont really accept at all this paradigm that you choose between economic partnership with China or sort of a security confrontation with China. Youve had a succession of prime ministers since David Cameron whove come into office saying, well, were not going to follow that kind of Cameron-Osborne being nice to China or engaging with China. And then the realities of being the British prime minister have pushed them towards engagement. James Cleverly, Lord Camerons predecessor in the Foreign Office, became the most senior minister to visit China in five years when he visited the country last August, prompting Sir Iain Duncan Smith to describe the trip as project Kowtow. Since then, a British parliamentary researcher has been charged with spying for China, alongside another man. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. An aerial drone photo taken on May 11, 2024 shows the Innovation 5 vessel arriving at Jiangjin Luohuang Port in southwest China's Chongqing. (Xinhua/Wang Quanchao) CHONGQING, May 12 (Xinhua) -- A 10,000-tonne-class sea-going vessel arrived in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality on Wednesday, becoming the first ship of its size to sail into the upper reaches of the Yangtze River. The Innovation 5, carrying over 5,000 tonnes of food, departed from Ningbo-Zhoushan Port in the eastern coastal province of Zhejiang on April 24. It traveled via the Chongqing-Zhoushan river-sea direct route, which links directly the municipality in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River with the sea. This photo taken on May 12, 2024 shows a scene at the reception ceremony for the first trial sailing of Chongqing-Zhoushan river-sea direct route at Jiangjin Luohuang Port in southwest China's Chongqing. (Xinhua/Wang Quanchao) An aerial drone photo taken on May 11, 2024 shows the Innovation 5 vessel arriving at Jiangjin Luohuang Port in southwest China's Chongqing. (Xinhua/Wang Quanchao) This photo taken on May 11, 2024 shows the Innovation 5 vessel arriving at Jiangjin Luohuang Port in southwest China's Chongqing. (Xinhua/Wang Quanchao) This photo taken on May 12, 2024 shows the Innovation 5 vessel at Jiangjin Luohuang Port in southwest China's Chongqing. (Xinhua/Wang Quanchao) This photo taken on May 11, 2024 shows the Innovation 5 vessel about to arrive at Jiangjin Luohuang Port in southwest China's Chongqing. (Xinhua/Wang Quanchao) An aerial drone photo taken on May 11, 2024 shows the Innovation 5 vessel arriving at Jiangjin Luohuang Port in southwest China's Chongqing. (Xinhua/Wang Quanchao) An aerial drone photo taken on May 11, 2024 shows the Innovation 5 vessel arriving at Jiangjin Luohuang Port in southwest China's Chongqing. (Xinhua/Wang Quanchao) Editor: WRX BECKLEY, WV (WVNS) Its a hot topic that many tend to feel very strongly about one way or the other, guns on school grounds. Now that West Virginia is allowing campus carry starting this summer, where does the Mountain State stand? West Virginia Governor Jim Justice passed Senate Bill 10, or the Campus Self-Defense Act, and now students can legally conceal carry a pistol or handgun while on campus. Student and faculty response has always varied on this issue from the start, from those who support it from a standpoint of self-defense, to those who object out of safety concerns. Ian Stines, a Concord University student, is one of the students who thought it could be beneficial for security reasons. If there was an active shooter, they could potentially protect us, said Stines. Another Concord University student, Makenzie Fugate, however, felt that there could be too many potential dangers in allowing students to have weapons on hand. Id be nervous that if something would happen that the person beside of me or behind me would not know what to do and would just start shooting, Fugate said. Beckley Salvation Army hosts grand opening of new headquarters Now that Senate Bill 10 has officially passed, however, students and faculty are having to come to terms with the legislation either way. For some, knowing that each college can determine when and where firearms are allowed makes them feel safer, however. A few universities, for example, will implement gun lockers to store the guns safely, and disallow students from carrying while in class or in large crowds of over 1,000 people. Madison Brooke Sears, the current president of Concord Universitys Student Government Association, said she has heard students concerns from both sides, and feels better knowing steps are being taken to address each one. There are concerns of how we are going to handle this as a whole, as Concord, and as the student body, but we are all really thankful for all that Concord has done and all that the chief risk management officer has done to address those concerns. Associate Professor of Psychology and Faculty President at Concord, Adriana Falco, said she feels that student safety should always remain first priority throughout this endeavor. I think at the end of the day, not only myself but many of my faculty, our primary concern is about our students safety, said Falco. It will remain to be seen, I think, what this does in terms of student safety, but I feel really strongly that not just our faculty, but our whole university, thats our concern- that we want our students to be safe. While some are grappling with its implementation, others think it will drastically help with crime in the area and reduce school violence. Brock Arthur just graduated from West Virginia University Tech, and thought it was important to make the distinction that all the legislation does is make it legal for students to conceal carry with a valid permit, if they should want to. Virginia school district restores Confederate names at 2 schools This new legislation is really going to allow students to feel more comfortable on their commute to and from the classroom and other locations on campus, and I think what well see is a sharp decline in crime rates around the Tech campus, said Arthur. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, school shootings jumped up 124% between 2020 and 2022. Some believe campus carry will only add to this number, but Arthur thinks it could help save lives. Law enforcement cannot be everywhere at once, said Arthur. Law enforcement understands that and students understand that, and the fact of it is, is that when violence is seconds away, you are going to be calling someone with a firearm to deal with the situation, and they are probably going to be minutes away. So I think in general, this is good for both students, and the city of Beckley as well. Senate Bill 10 will go into effect starting on Monday, July 1, 2024. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WVNS. Much of Minnesota and Wisconsin were under air quality warnings early Monday due to smoke from Canadian wildfires. Fine air particles in the Twin Cities reached as high as 184 on the Air Quality Index, considered unhealthy by the federal governments air quality tracker. Unhealthy levels of air quality stretched from St. Cloud, Minn., to Eau Claire, Wis., on Monday. There are six uncontrolled wildfires in Canada, according to the countrys Natural Resources Department, with more than 60 controlled blazes. Most of the fires are centered in northern Alberta and northeast British Columbia, with the smoke tracking southeast into the U.S. This week marked the beginning of the 2024 fire season, the department warned, with warm and dry weather bringing an increased risk of wildfires. The country was ravaged by wildfires in 2023, with a record 6,500 fires covering much of the central and eastern U.S. with thick smoke in June and July. Regulators warned Americans in affected areas to avoid time outside, especially those with respiratory problems. Air quality warnings were issued for the entirety of southern Minnesota and almost all of Wisconsin on Monday, according to the National Weather Service. Calgary and Edmonton, Alberta, also reported unhealthy air quality. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Monday might be the first time the jury in Donald Trump's criminal hush money trial sees Michael Cohen in person, but they have heard plenty about the former president's one-time "fixer." Witness after witness over the last three weeks have offered their opinions on Trump's former lawyer, whose credibility with the jury could swing the outcome of the trial. Cohen serves a linchpin role in the state's case as the only witness present during some of the discussions that prosecutors say tie Trump to a scheme to falsify business records in an effort to influence the 2016 election. Prosecutors argue that Trump disguised payments to Cohen in 2017 to prevent voters from learning allegations of a long-denied sexual encounter with adult film actress Stormy Daniels. MORE: Michael Cohen and the Trump pardon that never happened Daniels' former lawyer Keith Davidson compared Cohen to the excitable dog from the animated film Up -- including by shouting "Squirrel!" in open court -- while Trump's former communications director Hope Hicks took a swing at Cohen's reputation as a "fixer." "I used to say that he liked to call himself a 'fixer" or 'Mr. Fix It,' and it was only because he first broke it that he was able to come and fix it," Hicks testified. Prosecutors attempted to inoculate Cohen during their opening statements by arguing that he acted on Trump's orders and has since come clean with his criminal conduct. "Michael Cohen, like other witnesses in this trial, has made mistakes in his past," prosecutor Matthew Colangelo said in his opening statement. "I suspect the defense will go to great lengths to get you to reject his testimony precisely because it is so damming." PHOTO: Michael Cohen, former attorney for former U.S. President Donald Trump, arrives to the New York Courthouse in New York City, Mar. 13, 2023. (Eduardo Munoz/Reuters) As expected, defense lawyer Todd Blanche hammered at Cohen's credibility during his opening statement, and defense lawyers are expected to lean into their cross-examination of Cohen over the coming week. "He has a goal, an obsession with getting Trump, and you're going to hear that," Blanche told jurors. "I submit to you that he cannot be trusted." But statements about Cohen from multiple witnesses -- about his personal identity, professional work, and honesty -- add another dimension to Cohen's complicated reputation. Early in the trial, jurors heard from Cohen's former banker, Gary Farro, who said Cohen's reputation preceded him. "I can only tell you what I was told -- that I was selected because of my knowledge and my ability to handle, um, individuals that may be a little challenging," Farro said after being asked why he was assigned to work with Cohen. "Frankly, I didn't find him that difficult." MORE: 3 big takeaways from Day 15 of Trump's hush money trial Farro said that whenever he got a call from Cohen, "it was always something that was urgent," and that Cohen liked to boast about his relationship with Trump. "Did he talk about that frequently?" prosecutor Becky Mangold asked. "Yes. He was very excited to be working for him," Farro said. Davidson similarly told the jury about how Cohen leaned heavily on his relationship with Trump during their negotiations to purchase Daniel's story ahead of the 2016 election. "Every single time I talked to Michael Cohen he leaned on his close affiliation with Donald Trump," Davidson testified. "I don't know if it was ever explicitly said, 'I am negotiating this matter on behalf of Donald Trump.' It was part of his identity and he let me know it every opportunity he could." Cohen never formally held a role on Trump's 2016 presidential campaign, but Hicks said that Cohen made media appearances on behalf of Trump and was looped into certain campaign matters. "He would try to insert himself at certain moments, but he wasn't supposed to be on the campaign in any official capacity," Hicks told jurors. According to prosecutors, Cohen's chief contribution to Trump's 2016 campaign was coordinating a catch-and-kill scheme with David Pecker of the National Enquirer and Trump. Pecker told jurors that Cohen invited him to an August 2015 meeting where the scheme originated, and would contact Cohen if he spotted a negative story about Trump. "I received a call from Michael Cohen telling me that the boss wanted to see me," Pecker told jurors about the August 2015 meeting. "When I spoke to Michael Cohen, that's how he would refer to Donald Trump, as the boss." According to prosecutors, that scheme ultimately resulted in two hush money payments from National Enquirer parent company AMI -- to purchase a false story about Trump fathering an illegitimate child for $30,000 and a separate story about Trump's alleged affair with former Playboy playmate Karen McDougal, which he has denied, for $150,000. Pecker also said he notified Cohen about the option to purchase Daniels' story of an alleged affair with Trump, which Cohen did in the days ahead of the 2016 election for $130,000. Pecker told jurors about growing frustrated with Cohen after he repeatedly delayed the Stormy Daniels payment, and that Cohen erupted when Pecker backed out of a plan for the Trump Organization to reimburse AMI for the $150,000 McDougal payment due to legal concerns, putting the future of the catch-and-kill arrangement in jeopardy. "He was very, very, angry, very upset, screaming basically, at me. And I said, 'I am not going forward with this agreement -- rip it up,'" Pecker recounted. "Michael Cohen said, 'The boss is going to be very angry at you.'" Keith Davidson told jurors that he grew tired of Cohen delaying his payment to Daniels in 2016, telling the jury that Cohen made excuses including blaming computer issues, missing emails, the observance of a Jewish holiday, and Trump's busy schedule on the campaign trail. MORE: Michael Cohen is cashing in on the Trump trial with TikTok livestreams -- and it could be a problem "You can't believe what we're going through. The Secret Service is in here -- they have so many goddamn firewalls. I can't get s---. It's not my fault. You're going to have to resend the agreements again. I never got your emails," Davidson recounted Cohen saying, describing the former lawyer as a "jerk" and "pants-on-fire kind of guy." The jury also heard a recording that Cohen surreptitiously made during a phone call with Davidson where Cohen complained about Trump. "He said something to the effect of: 'Jesus Christ, can you f------ believe I'm not going to Washington. After everything I've done for that f------ guy, I can't believe I'm not going to Washington. I've saved that guy's a-- so many times, you don't even know,'" Davidson testified. He added that Cohen was "depressed and despondent" at the time because Cohen was not given a position in the Trump administration. According to Davidson, Cohen had mentioned the idea of being attorney general or chief of staff. "I thought he was going to kill himself," Davidson said. Hope Hicks testified that when she learned about the Daniels hush money payment in 2018, Trump told her Cohen made the payment "out of the kindness of his own heart" to protect his boss -- a contention that Hicks discredited by telling the jury what she thought of Cohen. "I would say that would be out of character for Michael," Hicks said. "I didn't know Michael to be an especially charitable person or selfless person. He's the kind of person who seeks credit." 'He cannot be trusted': Michael Cohen faces an uphill reputational battle with Trump's jury originally appeared on abcnews.go.com TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) A police chase in Georgia ended with the driver slamming into a house with people inside. The Cobb County Police Department released body camera video from the incident, which happened last month in Kennesaw. An officer tried to pull over the suspected DUI driver, but he took off. The officer lost sight of the car during the chase and entered a nearby neighborhood, where he was flagged down by a resident. Multiple people told the officer a car collided with a home, leaving a giant hole in a bedroom at the back of the house. One of the homes occupants told the officer, The car is inside my room, sir. He said he was underneath the car at one point. The suspected DUI driver climbed out of the hole and could not answer the officer when he was asked if there was anyone else in the car with him. He was taken into custody, but police did not identify him or what charges he faces. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA. On May 6, when a tornado hit the town of Barnsdall in Oklahoma, Lindsay Crowder and her family decided to head to the town shelter. However, they left behind their pets as they never expected their house to disappear altogether. Fortunately, their cat Pikachu survived the ordeal and reunited with her owners. Oklahoma cat vanishes during tornado, reunites with owner during news broadcast After returning to find their home shredded to pieces by the tornado, Lindsay Crowder and her family hoped their feline friend had made it through safely. After hearing the first alert, the family took refuge in the town shelter, as per 2 News. However, they thought the tornado had passed when the siren stopped blaring. Unfortunately, that wasnt the case as it was headed straight for them, and the family headed back to the shelter. They didnt expect the tornado to be as severe as it was. When the situation got better, they came home to find their property reduced to rubble. While they were glad they sought refuge, the family was worried about their pets, whom they left behind in their house. The house had been knocked down, and the pets were nowhere to be seen. After hours of desperately looking for their cat while calling her name, the owners finally reunited with Pikachu. As Lindsay was on the news broadcast, the reunion became public. The feline came out of the rubble, happily jumping into the arms of her human. The family was overjoyed to find their kitty was safe and sound. The Siamese cat had miraculously survived the destructive tornado that took down all the houses in the neighborhood. Crowder was happy to note that while they lost the house, it was something they could rebuild. However, they wouldnt have been able to replace Pikachu if they lost her. The Humane Society of Tulsa is working hard to reunite pets with their families. They are also helping with housing and food for the animals. Moreover, the Humane Society has its climate-controlled sheltering trailer available at the scene with 64 kennels to help with the rescue mission. The post Cat Reunites With Owner After Vanishing During Tornado appeared first on CatTime. Teen boy injured in West Side shootout CHICAGO A 16-year-old boy was hospitalized after a shootout on the citys West Side on Saturday afternoon. According to Chicago police, the gunfire erupted just before 7 p.m. in the 2700 block of West Wilcox Street in East Garfield Park. Read more: Latest Chicago news headlines Officers say the teen was near a sidewalk in the area when a vehicle approached and someone inside opened fire. The teen was shot once in the arm and took himself to the hospital where he was listed in good condition. Authorities were not able to provide details on what type of car was used in the shooting and no arrests have been made. Currently, it is unclear what led to the shootout and an investigation is underway. LATEST CASES: Missing people in Chicagoland Anyone with information on the shooting is asked to contact CPD Area Four Detectives at 312-746-8251 or dial 911. Those with information that could help authorities in their investigation can also leave a tip at CPDtip.com. Tips can be filed anonymously. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WGN-TV. The Orientation Unit at the Licking County Justice Center in Newark, Ohio on May 6, 2021. NEWARK A central Ohio man was found dead in his Licking County Justice Center cell Monday morning in an apparent suicide. A Licking County Justice Center correctional officer found Luis Figueroa, 39, of London, unresponsive in his solely-occupied cell at 1:53 a.m. Monday, according to a Licking County Sheriff's Office press release. Officers performed life-saving measures, but Newark Fire Department personnel responded and pronounced Figueroa dead at about 2:04 a.m. Figueroa was scheduled to have a change of plea and sentencing hearing on charges of felony domestic violence, felonious assault and strangulation on Tuesday, according to Licking County court records. The Sheriff's Office stated there were no signs of foul play and preliminary indications are a suicide. Detectives are investigating the incident. Licking County Sheriff's Office Detective Bureau Commander Capt. Jay Cook said they want to understand what happened to help prevent such deaths in the future. "It's still being looked into," Cook said. "A lot of things going on with this case to review. We really want to know why somebody finds themselves in this situation where they think there's no other way. We just try to look at the whole picture." Cook said in his more than 20 years with the Sheriff's Office, he can't remember a case when an apparent suicide turned out to be something different. "We definitely don't suspect foul play here," Cook said. "We definitely know how (he died), we're just putting all the other pieces together." Cook said Figueroa was in the disciplinary block, which is where a prisoner is sent after breaking the rules in the facility. "You don't normally start there," Cook said. "If you start there, you're in a bad spot." The jail has about 288 prisoners, Cook said. More than 300 prisoners have been housed there at times in the past. kmallett@newarkadvocate.com 740-973-4539 Twitter: @kmallett1958 This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: Licking County jail prisoner found dead from apparent suicide In the months before Chad Daybell allegedly conspired with Lori Vallow to murder her two children and his first wifebefore jetting off to Hawaii to get marriedthe doomsday author kept the romance alive in a series of steamy text messages. The intensity of each encounter on my mind. Each one greater than the last, Daybell wrote to Vallow in an Aug. 9, 2019, text, followed by three flame emojis. We were definitely in new territory in your bedroom. The texts were shown at Daybells murder trial in Idaho on Monday as context for how the couples relationship developed after they met at an October 2018 religious conference. At the meeting, Daybell and Vallow determined that they had been married in five different past lives and were meant to be together. They also described themselves as James and Elena, names that Daybell used in a steamy text exchange during their secret affair. Elenas magic hand has gripped the storm and they stare into each others eyes as intense waves wash over them, Daybell texted Vallow, according to FBI Tactical Specialist Nicole Heideman. Doomsday Dad Chad Daybells Family Describes His Alarming Religious Spiral Heideman told jurors that storm appeared to be the couples name for Chads penisan explanation that prompted Daybell to smile from his seat at the defense table. Prosecutors allege that in September 2019 the couple became convinced by their apocalyptic religious beliefs to murder Vallows two children, 17-year-old Tylee Ryan and 7-year-old Joshua JJ Vallow, and bury them in Daybells Idaho backyard. About a month later, they allegedly conspired to kill Daybells wife, Tammy, before fleeing to Hawaii to tie the knot. Daybell, 55, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and other charges and faces the death penalty. His lawyers insist there is no evidence directly tying Daybell to the murders. Vallow was sentenced to life in prison in July in connection with the case. On her second day on the stand, Heideman walked jurors through the couples text messages while Daybell lived in Idaho and Vallow in Utah. After Vallows fourth husband, Charles, died in July 2019, the messages that sometimes included long passages about James and Elena got more graphic. He kissed her deeply as their breathing slow. He held her tightly before they began another round of pleasurable bonding, Daybell wrote in one text message shown in court. That is pretty incredible, she responded, followed by multiple fire emojis. After receiving another snippet of Daybells James and Elena narrative, Vallow told the Daybell she loved him and praised him. (Heideman told jurors it is not immediately clear if Daybell, a former gravedigger turned popular Mormon author of apocalyptic novels, had any plans to publish the chapters.) Thats so hot. I just need you more than ever, she wrote in an August 2019 message, according to Heideman. Sometime later, Daybell texted Vallow: You are amazing. Please save that segment. I want to read it with you naked and then relive it all. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. N'DJAMENA (Reuters) -Chadian opposition leader Succes Masra has lodged a legal appeal with the country's constitutional council to challenge the preliminary result of the Central African nation's May 6 presidential election. The state-run national election management body on Thursday declared interim President Mahamat Idriss Deby winner of the election with 61.3% of the vote, according to provisional results, while Masra was placed a distant second with 18.53%. However, prior to the official announcement, Masra, who serves as the prime minister of a transitional government, had claimed victory, alleging that an electoral fraud was being planned. "With the help of our lawyers ... we submitted a request to the Constitutional Council to reveal the truth of the ballot boxes," Masra said in posts on social media platforms Facebook and X on Sunday, urging his supporters to remain calm. He shared a copy of a receipt showing that documents had been filed with the council, which an opposition official close to Masra said included copies of results sheets from polling stations, a table pulling together the figures and videos that allegedly show ballot stuffing and other cheating. Another opposition candidate, Pahimini Padacke Albert, also challenged the results, according to a copy of the appeal seen by Reuters. He had previously congratulated Deby on his victory. Political tensions are running high in Chad, the first of a string of coup-hit countries in West and Central Africa to attempt a return to constitutional rule. Deby seized power in April 2021 when rebels killed his long-ruling father, Idriss Deby. At least 10 people, including children, were killed and dozens were injured by celebratory gunfire on Friday following the announcement of the results, according to Amnesty International and Chadian media. Chad's health ministry confirmed that a number of people were hurt during the celebration of Deby's win, but asked journalists not to film or report on patients inside hospitals, a move condemned by Chad's press unions. (Reporting by Mahamat Ramadane and David Lewis; Writing by Bate Felix; Editing by Portia Crowe, Alex Richardson and Alison Williams) Ashley Ehasz and Janelle Stelson are running against two incumbent congressmen in the post-Dobbs era (Capital-Star composite/campaign photos) At first glance, Janelle Stelson and Ashley Ehasz would seem to have little in common: Stelson is a former anchor at television station WGAL; Ehasz is a U.S. Army veteran and Apache helicopter pilot. But both women are running as Democrats seeking to unseat incumbent Republican congressmen in Pennsylvania districts that have until recently been considered safe GOP seats. And although its not the first time Reps. Scott Perry (R-10th District) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-1st District) have been considered vulnerable to challengers both made National Journals Most Endangered list of lawmakers for 2020 Ehasz and Stelson are women challenging incumbent congressmen in the post-Dobbs era, when abortion restrictions have proven a losing issue for Republicans in every election cycle since Roe v. Wade was overturned. Women are increasingly letting their voices be heard on this subject, Stelson, who is running against Perry, told the Capital-Star. And were not happy. Were not happy. Ehasz told the Capital-Star she believes if Republicans win the White House, or a majority in Congress, they will pass a national abortion ban. And I think voters know that as well. Shes making her second bid to unseat Fitzpatrick, and the voters shes connecting with want to talk about reproductive rights. When Im talking to voters at the doors, when I talk about choice, everyones like, okay, yes, lets engage on that, Ehasz said. So its, unfortunately, a very natural conversation because at this point it has been made crystal clear that the GOP majority will continue to just keep this attack up on womens reproductive rights. For Stelson, who won a six-way Democratic primary in PA-10, abortion access has been a central focus of her campaign. She was on set at WGAL on the day in 2022 that the U.S. Supreme Court handed down the Dobbs decision overturning Roe v. Wade, and remembers what it felt like to read the news on live on the air. I had to tell every woman watching that her rights had been rolled back years, Stelson said. Perry has for the past, I believe, seven years, sponsored legislation called the Life at Conception Act, and is in favor of a nationwide abortion ban with no exceptions for rape, incest, health of the mother, and has the same approach to IVF. And these are things that are deeply unpopular. Ehasz said the voters shes connecting with over abortion rights are not always the ones she expects. Being a woman service member and active duty service member, I fought to protect our rights overseas and to see them taken away from us here at home has been horrific, she said. And, especially when I share the stories of women who are still on active duty service, and they cant choose what state they live in. So if theyre stationed in Florida, or Texas or anywhere else that are putting these just heinous abortion bans in place is that the way we really want to thank our service members? Even more conservative voters respond to the idea that the Dobbs decision could pose a threat to personal privacy, she added. These are folks who want to keep the politicians out of the doctors office, Ehasz said. Perry and Fitzpatrick on abortion Perry, the former chairman of the House Freedom Caucus, has co-sponsored the Life at Conception Act every time its been introduced since 2017. He called the Dobbs decision a monumental victory that restores the rights of the States and Citizens to adjudicate this issue for themselves. On his campaign website, Perry describes himself as strongly pro-life and mentions his efforts to defund Planned Parenthood and block taxpayer funding for abortion. Perry did not directly address his position on abortion in a statement to the Capital-Star but said voters had a clear choice between him and Stelson. Our neighbors know me and they know I fight tirelessly to defend their freedoms, their financial well-being, and their safety and security, he said. He criticized Stelson, who does not live in the 10th District but has pledged to move there if elected. My opponent seeks to continue the burden of the destructive Biden Agenda on the people of the 10th Congressional District, while refusing to even move to the district, Perry said. I look forward to once again earning the support of voters of the 10th Congressional District as we fight to regain a stronger America and the growth, strength, and prosperity she once knew. Fitzpatrick voted in favor of a national abortion ban that would have criminalized abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy in 2017, later referring to the bill as a good starting point for states crafting abortion laws after the Dobbs decision. He also voted twice against the Womens Health Protection Act in 2021 and 2022, legislation that would have codified the right to access abortion into law. At a 2020 March for Life rally, Fitzpatrick was among the Republicans former President Donald Trump thanked by name. Will the districts flip blue? The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee identified PA-10 and PA-01 as among more than two dozen districts it was targeting in the 2024 cycle to try to overturn in its push to give Democrats control of the House. The Stelson campaign announced Tuesday that a new poll has her in a virtual tie with Perry. The Public Policy Polling poll shows Stelson at 43% and Perry at 45%. Just before the primary election, the Cook Political Report, a national ratings outlet, shifted its rating for the PA-10 race from likely Republican to leans Republican. Still, according to the Pennsylvania Department of State, roughly 44.4% of registered voters in PA-10 are Republican, and about 38.5% are Democrats. But in 2022, this was a district where more voters cast their ballots for Democrat Josh Shapiro for governor over Republican Doug Mastriano. The same Public Policy Poll found 65% of PA-10 voters oppose a national abortion ban with no exceptions for rape or incest. There are still a lot of people who are undecided about how they want to vote in this next election, Stelson said. And I think when you poll the undecideds on this issue, overwhelmingly they do not want a nationwide abortion ban. They do not want the things that Scott Perry has tried to legislate and failed to advance and thats going to be a very big part of this election. Perry outraised all the Democratic primary hopefuls in the most recent quarter, bringing in just over $490,000 from the beginning of January to April 3. But his campaign spent just under $525,000, campaign finance records showed. Stelson did not raise as much as primary opponent Mike OBrien in that same period, taking in $290,000 compared to OBriens $320,000 between January and April 3. But Stelson bested OBrien in the primary, winning by 20 points. And her campaign said in the 24 hours after the primary, it raised more than $110,000 for the general election. In PA-01, the gap between registered Democrats and Republicans is much narrower than in PA-10, and is likely why Fitzpatrick has sought to portray himself as a moderate. He was the only Republican member of the states U.S. House delegation to represent a district that Biden won in 2020. He can tell you hes a moderate all day long. I can tell you Im Big Bird all day long. Doesnt make me Big Bird, Ehasz said. And I tell folks: dont pay attention to the hand that hes trying to distract you with. Look at what hes actually doing.' That includes, she adds, voting for Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) in the battle for Speaker of the House last fall, Ehasz notes, one of Congress most hard-right Republicans who favors a national abortion ban. In response to a request for comment sent to the Fitzpatrick campaign, Mike Marinella, spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee, emailed a statement to the Capital-Star. Rep. Fitzpatrick has been ranked the most independent member of Congress year after year, and Ashley Ehasz lost her last campaign by double digits because shes too radical for Pennsylvania, Marinella said. Fitzpatrick beat Ehasz in the 2022 election, 54.1% to 45.9%. But Ehasz says this time around she is better prepared; she says while her campaign worked hard and did voter outreach during her first campaign, it lacked resources. Her 2024 campaign, on the other hand, has the backing of Emilys List and the Planned Parenthood Action Fund. Fitzpatrick has a significant war chest, however, entering April with $3.6 million cash on hand, compared to Ehaszs $820,000 on hand. Her campaign has raised a total of $1.4 million this cycle. I see my job as a candidate as not only obviously running a really great campaign but giving voters the information they deserve to have about Brian Fitzpatricks record, Ehasz said. Likewise, Stelson said running in a primary against five other Democrats, all of whom she says reached out after the primary to offer their support, helped her get focused and prepared for taking on Perry in November. I think people are fed up, Stelson said. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Challengers Ehasz and Stelson keep abortion policy front and center in U.S. House campaigns appeared first on Pennsylvania Capital-Star. ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. A Breckenridge Hills man was arrested last week for allegedly pistol-whipping and shooting at a woman at a laundromat in Overland. According to the Overland Police Departments probable cause statement, the shooting happened on May 8 at the Best Wash Laundromat, located at the intersection of Woodson Road and Midland Boulevard. Police claim JaJuan Macon struck the victim on the head with a Glock 43 pistol, then walked out of the laundromat. When the victim attempted to leave the premises in her car, Macon took out his gun and fired six shots at the womans vehicle. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Daily News Macon was arrested shortly after the shooting. Police claim surveillance footage shows Macon attacking the victim and shooting at her car. Its unclear if Macon and the victim knew one another. The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorneys Office charged Macon with first-degree assault, second-degree assault, armed criminal action, and unlawful use of a weapon. Macon remains jailed on a $500,000 cash-only bond. Hes due in court later this week for a bond reduction hearing. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 2. A Missouri man who crashed a rental truck into White House barriers and showed a Nazi flag before his arrest last year pleaded guilty on Monday to damaging government property, court records show. Sai Varshith Kandula, 20, drove a U-Haul truck onto a sidewalk, sending pedestrians running for safety, before ramming it into metal bollard barriers near White House grounds. He nearly struck two people who were standing next to a park bench, but nobody was injured. Kandula faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to a felony charge of depredation of government property. U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich is scheduled to sentence him on Aug. 23. Prosecutors agreed to recommend a prison sentence no longer than eight years for Kandula, but the judge isnt bound by that term of his plea agreement. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Daily News Kandula, then 19, flew from St. Louis to Washington, D.C., and rented the truck in Herndon, Virginia, before crashing it into the barriers on May 22, 2023. After Kandula backed up and slammed into the bollards a second time, the disabled truck began smoking from its engine compartment and leaking fluids. Kandula was arrested after he exited the truck and retrieved a flag bearing a Nazi swastika from his backpack. Authorities didnt find any weapons, ammunition, or explosives in his possession. Kandula told Secret Service agents that his goal was to get to the White House, seize power, and be put in charge of the nation, according to prosecutors. When agents asked how (Kandula) would seize power, he stated he would Kill the President if thats what I have to do and would hurt anyone that would stand in my way, prosecutors wrote. Kandula, who is from the St. Louis suburb of Chesterfield, Missouri, said he bought the flag online because he admires Adolf Hitler and the Nazis great history, according to prosecutors. Defense attorney Scott Rosenblum said Kandula is taking medication to treat schizophrenia. Rosenblum said he expects to have a medical specialist address the court at Kandulas sentencing. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 2. Chicago Cop with Cancer in One Lung, COVID Damage in the Other Gets Successful Double Transplant Arthur Gillespie had a double lung transplant after nearly four years of struggling with cancer and COVID damage Northwestern Medicine Arthur Gillespie. Chicago police captain Arthur "Art" Gillespie underwent a successful double lung transplant this year at Northwestern Medicine's Canning Thoracic Institute after being told by other doctors he couldn't be helped Gillespie had damage in one lung from COVID, and had two-thirds of his other lung removed following cancer A month after his transplant, he was able to go off daily oxygen A Chicago police captain has successfully had a double lung transplant after one lung was damaged by cancer and the other was damaged by COVID. Arthur Art Gillespie of Chicago, 56, was diagnosed with lung cancer in March 2020, right when he also contracted a severe case of COVID. I lost my dad, uncle and cousin to COVID, said Gillespie in a statement. In February 2020, my dad and I went to visit my uncle in a nursing facility and by early March, we were all sick. I was hospitalized for 12 days with a high fever and cough, and during that time, they were taking scans of my lungs, which showed stage 1 lung cancer on my right lung. I had no symptoms of lung cancer, so in a way because of COVID we were able to catch the cancer early. Northwestern Medicine Arthur Gillespie during his Covid hospitalization. Ive alway tried to be an optimistic person. Glass half-full type of thing, Gillespie, who worked for 30 years in law enforcement, shared. And obviously theres a silver lining: If it wasnt for the COVID, theres no telling how long [the cancer would be undetected] because there was no symptoms or signs that was presenting themselves that let me know I was in that condition. He underwent chemotherapy and in November of that year, had two-thirds of his right lung removed. Although he planned to return to work as captain at the University of Chicago Police Department, he spent the next three years going backwards, he said, in spite of daily physical therapy. Related: A Leading Cause of Lung Cancer Could Be Hidden in Your Home My right remaining lung was damaged from lung cancer, and my left lung was damaged from COVID said Gillespie, who ended up on daily supplemental oxygen. After being told he couldn't be helped, Gillespie sought treatment at Northwestern Medicines Canning Thoracic Institute in September 2023. Northwestern Medicine Arthur Gillespie needed oxygen daily. Even though he looked physically strong, he could barely speak a single sentence without getting short of breath or take a few steps before having to sit down, Dr. Ankit Bharat, chief of thoracic surgery and director of the Canning Thoracic Institute, who performed Gillespies transplant, said in a statement. The pressure inside the lungs had also increased to a point that it was causing heart failure, and his only option for survival was a double-lung transplant. However, as Bharat said, Gillespie's health record might have made him ineligible for one at another institution. Northwestern Medicine Arthur Gillespie with Dr. Rade Tomic, pulmonologist and medical director of the Lung Transplant Program at Northwestern Medicine's Canning Thoracic Institute. He had two major problems lung cancer and COVID. Historically, both would be considered non-salvageable for lung transplantation, but we were able to treat both of those conditions with a double-lung transplant procedure, Bharat said in a statement. Despite being told no by other doctors, Arthur kept searching for answers. I feel honored that we were able to help him since he spent so many years helping the community as a police captain," said Bharat. In November, he was put on the transplant list, and on January 6 he underwent a successful double lung transplant. Northwestern Medicine Arthur Gillespie. And a month later, I watched the Super Bowl with friends, he shared. I had my portable oxygen concentrator with me. Didnt have to use it. Didnt have to use it the entire time. And it was that point where I was able to disconnect myself from the oxygen. And I havent used the oxygen pretty much since then. So thats a huge, huge, huge difference. And as Bharat said, Arthur is a fighter. Related: More Adults Should Be Screened for Lung Cancer Under New Guidelines from the American Cancer Society My recovery from the double-lung transplant has been easier than my recovery from lung cancer surgery, said Gillespie. I want my story to serve as a lesson to others especially those in law enforcement. When youre a public servant, its easy to become distracted with the routine of the job. Youre used to putting others before your own health, but we have to be equally proactive and seek a second opinion when we know something isnt right. 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 celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. The U.S. Department of Labor has accused a manufacturer of glassware for medical use of failing to properly train workers at its Chicago Heights factory, and is recommending $145,415 in penalties, according to a statement from the department. In October 2022, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration visited Gerresheimer Glass and issued penalties for failing to provide effective information and training on hazardous chemicals and said the company did not give employees personal protection equipment for free, according to OSHAs records of the visit. Inspectors returned to the factory at 11th and Arnold streets in January and found several workplace hazards remain, according to the statement. Ignoring OSHA and industry-recommended machine safety procedures is a leading cause of injuries in the manufacturing industry, the administrations Chicago South Area Director James Martineck wrote. Workers must be trained in specific safety procedures for each machine they operate or service and they should never be exposed to operating machine parts. OSHA recommended $145,415 in fines against Gerresheimer Glass, a German company that makes glass for medical use like syringes. The company has until later this month to either pay the fee and solve the noted issues or contest the charges. Contesting the fee would put the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission in charge of evaluating the charges, according to a spokesman for the Labor Department. Gerresheimer Glass did not respond to requests for comment. The report from the January inspection said one of the machines was not shut down while it was being repaired by an employee, there were tripping hazards on the ground, workspaces were not properly maintained and staff operating machines and forklifts were not adequately trained. The largest fine, for $88,721, was for not properly training some factory employees, an offense listed as serious and one that was brought to the companys attention in the 2022 inspection, the statement said. Gerresheimer Glass appears to no longer charge its employees to clean their personal protection equipment because that accusation from 2022 was not noted in the January inspection, said Scott Allen, a Labor Department spokesman. If the company does not choose to pay the fine or contest it, a third option allows the company to discuss the fine with an OSHA representative, which could result in the fine being changed. hsanders@chicagotribune.com A Chicago man has been charged with felony sexual assault after a resident of Marklund in Geneva gave birth, officials announced Saturday. Isaiah Fields, 22, a former employee of Marklund, was charged on Friday after a DNA test linked him to the Marklund residents child, according to a news release from the Kane County States Attorneys Office. Fields is facing three counts of felony aggravated criminal sexual assault, one count of felony criminal sexual assault and one count of felony aggravated battery, the release said. Fields is accused of sexually assaulting the woman, a resident of Marklund in Geneva, who he knew had a severe or profound intellectual disability and was unable to give consent, in August or early September in 2023, according to the release. Marklund, which has locations in Bloomingdale, Elgin and Geneva, is a nonprofit organization that cares for people of all ages who have serious developmental disabilities or other special needs. A resident of Marklund is someone who lives on site and needs full-time care all day, every day. Fields is a former employee of Marklund, according to a recent statement by Marklund President and CEO Gil Fonger. Marklunds administration first learned about the sexual abuse case on April 9, about a week before the resident gave birth, officials have said. Marklund officials previously said that an internal investigation was launched to determine how her pregnancy symptoms went unnoticed for so long. Its possible that the symptoms of the residents disability might have masked the appearance of pregnancy, officials said at the time. Fonger has said that Marklund is going to do everything possible to make sure that something like this never happens again. It was already Marklund policy to do yearly background checks on its staff members, he previously said. After the resident gave birth to the child at Northwestern Medicine Delnor Hospital in Geneva, her family chose to send her back to Marklund, according to officials. In his recent statement, Fonger said the organization cannot comment on the health status of any resident per federal law. Fields is currently being held in the Kane County jail while his case is pending, according to the release from the Kane County States Attorneys Office. rsmith@chicagotribune.com Missouri Gov. Mike Parson begins the annual State of the State speech to a joint session of the legislature on Wednesday with House Speaker Dean Plocher and Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe beside him (Annelise Hanshaw/Missouri Independent). For the second year in a row, the fate of a bill creating new child care tax credits one of Gov. Mike Parsons top legislative priorities is in the hands of a faction of Republicans in the Missouri Senate. Designed to help improve access and affordability of child care, the package of child care tax credits has received bipartisan support and was the first bill approved by the House this year. But that bill, sponsored by Republican state Rep. Brenda Shields of St. Joseph, stalled in the Senate. Democratic state Sen. Lauren Arthurs version of the legislation hasnt fared any better. With the legislative session ending at 6 p.m. Friday, and gridlock expected in the Senate, the odds of the bill making it to the governors desk are slim. A similar dynamic killed the legislation last year. Hope remains, Arthur said Friday. But things are still up in the air. The governor has pushed the legislation as a way to help parents in the workforce, highlighting the proposal in his last two State of the State addresses to the legislature. The legislation has also gained support from child advocacy organizations, chambers of commerce and business groups, and received little opposition in committee hearings this year. Casey Hanson, director of outreach and engagement at the child advocacy nonprofit Kids Win Missouri, which has advocated in support of the legislation, said shes trying to stay optimistic. But this session, Hanson said, is looking increasingly like 2023. Same roadblocks. Same characters, she said. Different year. Its welfare A proposal by Arthur to add the child care tax credits bill onto another bill as an amendment was shut down by the Missouri Freedom Caucus last week. State Sen. Bill Eigel, a Republican from Weldon Spring who is running for governor, characterized Parsons child care priorities as promoting a larger government and making it a great time to be a Democrat in Jefferson City. And its not to actually protect the rights of the children. In this case its to give them something, Eigel continued. In this case its, well, we want to give away free child care. State Sen. Rick Brattin, a Harrisonville Republican and a member of the Freedom Caucus, also spoke in opposition to the proposal, saying government created all the regulations that literally decimated the child care industry and now government is trying to swoop in to fix a problem it caused. State Sen. Mike Moon, a Republican from Ash Grove, later piled on. I think it is welfare, Moon said, adding that he and his wife decided she would stay home with their children years ago. We should be establishing an environment so our families can take care of themselves and their children on their own dime. Eigel has alluded to a potential compromise between the Freedom Caucus and the sponsors of the child care tax credits legislation. Arthur said she has been in ongoing conversations with him about finding a compromise between his desire for personal property tax cuts and her child care tax credits. But she admitted their idea of a reasonable middle ground will likely be very different. Im frustrated that I have to defend legislation that working families are desperate for, Arthur said. Meanwhile my male colleagues get on the floor and decry the idea that government is going to play any role in trying to make child care more affordable and available. But the likeliest roadblock to the legislation finally heading to the governors desk is a Senate bill hoping to make it more difficult to amend the states constitution by way of citizen-led initiative petition. That top priority for Republicans is likely to cause strife between parties in the last week of session, potentially halting any other legislation from moving forward. Democrats have vowed to filibuster the legislation as Republicans threaten to invoke an unpopular and rarely-used tactic called moving the previous question to force a vote on the bill. If Republicans do that, Arthur said Friday, ultimately theyre deciding that nothing else is going to get done. I cant find care As the Senate runs up against the session deadline, emails supporting her child care tax credits bill continue to pour into Shields inbox. Its not affordable for me to go to work, some say. Others send pleas: I cant find care. Those who have been able to find affordable child care lament that the quality of care isnt up to their standards. Other Missourians relayed stories of their child care provider closing their doors with less than 30 days notice, leaving them scrambling to find a new provider. Shields often cites a 2021 U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation study that found lack of accessible and quality child care forced many Missouri parents to change or leave their workplace. The foundation determined this workforce disruption cost the state more than $1.3 billion annually. She feels for those families. Thirty-five years ago, Shields said, she faced a similar choice between her career and being a mother. She wanted both, and, thanks to a last-minute child care opening in St. Joseph, she got both. An investigation of child care spending by The Independent and MuckRock last year found that almost half of Missouris children under age five, or about 202,000 children, live in child care deserts, with one or fewer child care openings for every three children. The average cost of full-time center-based care for an infant in Missouri was $11,059 as of 2022, according to Child Care Aware. Meanwhile staff at child care facilities often make just over minimum wage, presenting a challenge to hiring and retention. If we want to grow our economy, Shields told The Independent on Wednesday. It requires us to help people get back to work. Her bill would add three tax credits: The Child Care Contribution tax credit would let those who donate to child care providers receive a credit equal to 75% of their donation, up to $200,000 in tax credits. The Employer Provided Child Care Assistance would encourage partnerships between businesses whose employees need child care and providers by allowing employers to receive tax credits equivalent to 30% of qualifying child care expenditures. The Child Care Providers Tax Credit would allow child care providers to claim a tax credit equal to the providers employer withholding tax and up to 30% of a providers capital expenditures on costs like expanding or renovating their facilities. Kids Win Missouri recently embarked on a community project highlighting child care needs in several counties across the state. This included Shields hometown of St. Joseph. There, in surveying community members and providers, they found that there are only enough child care slots available for 29% of infants and toddlers, and 69% of pre-kindergarteners and 53% of other preschoolers. Families in the county, on average, put at least 20% of their income toward child care costs. To survive this massive societal crisis, said Hanson, with Kids Win Missouri, it will take everyone, especially as the state approaches a fiscal cliff leaving it without the same levels of COVID-era federal funding in place now. Child care subsidies Parsons push to expand access to child care also included higher payments for subsidized care. To fund it, Parson asked lawmakers for an extra $51.7 million in the coming year, which followed a $78 million boost to funding in the current year. Ultimately, the increase was funded, but not in the way the governor requested. The budget includes language authorizing increased rates, House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith said in a news conference after the budget was passed. The additional funding sought by Parson was based on every eligible parent using their benefits, Smith said. Instead, the budget allows higher rates by assuming that some money would otherwise be unspent. If demand for the subsidy increases, lawmakers will have to return to the table to discuss ways to continue funding the increase in the future. House Minority Leader Crystal Quade said Democrats are still trying to calculate whether there are funding shortfalls. Quade said despite child care being a persistent issue, the legislature failed to address the shortage in a meaningful way. We know there are too many Republicans in positions of power in this state who do not believe that I have a voice in this room, that I should not be elected, standing here as a mother, and I should be at home, Quade said. And Im tired of them telling us that. The Independents Rudi Keller contributed. The post Child care tax credits, a top priority for Missouri governor, face uphill battle in the Senate appeared first on Missouri Independent. Children pulled from mud as hundreds die in severe flooding in Afghanistan Three bewildered children sit on the roof of a mosque in Baghlan province, northern Afghanistan, their eyes blinking away mud that covers their entire bodies. Beside them, a rescuer lowers their baby brother, 2-year-old Arian, to the rooftop, a sheet tied around his waist that was used to pull him from the raging floodwaters below. Take it, lets get take off the rope from his body, the rescuer says on the video. Bring his mother to hold him in her arms and be warm. In the past few days, at least 300 people have been killed in flooding in 18 districts across at least three provinces in northern Afghanistan, according to the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), with at least 200 injured. Videos show raging torrents of mud washing away mud houses and people, their limbs flailing, in the fast-moving brown current, as would-be rescuers watch from higher ground, beyond reach. The rescued children, ages 3, 5 and 6, were among eight siblings who were at home with their parents in Folo, in the Bulka district of Baghlan, when the flooding hit. Three children, aged 3, 5 and 6, on the roof of a mosque in Baghlan province, Afghanistan after being rescued from flooding and mud torrents. - Afghanistan Journalist Group Their uncle Barakatullah, son of Haji Wakil Besmillah, the local school headmaster, told CNN something ominous seemed to be brewing late last week when severe wind swept through the district and neighboring areas, enveloping everything in darkness. Visibility was so poor that we couldnt even see each other, he said. Then the rain started falling gently during Friday prayers an unusual event for locals, who say it doesnt rain very often so high in the mountain region, home to around 10,000 people, he added. As the rain got heavier, suddenly the situation turned dire. People fled to higher ground, seeking refuge in mountains and hills. Unfortunately, some individuals who were unable to leave their homes fell victim to the floodwaters, he said. Aerial photos show belongings piled in plastic bags on rooftops, among them the hooded figures of women forced to cover their entire bodies even in times of disaster. Women who were rescued are forced to wear mud-soaked garments, while even infants as young as 2 to 3 months old are clothed in similarly soiled attire, Barakatullah said. In Folo, more than 100 people are believed to have been killed, he said mostly women and children. Some burials began over the weekend, but many more are already believed to be buried deep beneath mud. From drought and hunger to flooding The torrent swept away animals and farmland in an area already facing severe food shortages, according to Timothy Anderson, head of the WFP in Afghanistan. He said the areas hit by floods had already been marked vulnerable to starvation after a difficult summer when searing heat brought drought. It was already pretty grim. And now its catastrophic, he told CNN. Most years, locals expect to see flash flooding, he said. But this year, its been far worse. The loss of the homes and their land is devastating for survivors, who were already among some of the countrys most impoverished people, Anderson said. When people lose a bit of livestock, thats actually their livelihood, he said. Road access to the worst affected areas has been cut by floodwaters, forcing the WFP to use donkeys to send in supplies. Within the first day, the WFP had distributed high energy biscuits and food for children. Theyre also supporting local bakeries to supply free bread. In the next days, teams will start distributing food to feed families for a month what happens next is unclear. Anderson said 17 joint assessment teams are being sent to the area, along with other UN partners. He said itll take four or five days for the teams to properly examine the impact of the floods on people, and their housing and infrastructure. Workers repair a road destroyed by floods in Nahrin district of Baghlan province on May 12, 2024. - Atif Aryan/AFP/Getty Images Bearing the brunt of climate crisis This latest natural disaster comes after drought in Afghanistan, and is being seen as an example of a climate crisis hitting those who have least contributed to rising global temperatures. Theyre not net emitters of carbon, said Anderson of the WFP. This is a subsistence agriculture community and society. So, theyre bearing the brunt of it, without having necessarily contributed to the issue very much. He said during the recent dry months, efforts had been made to help the community capture rainfall in dams and irrigation canals to sustain crops. Now those efforts have been washed away, posing another challenge. The need is massive, not just in Afghanistan. The world is seeing the impacts of much larger, more severe events, whether thats drought, rainfalls cyclones, Anderson said. Richard Bennett, the UNs special rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan said the recent floods are a stark reminder of Afghanistans vulnerability to the climate crisis. And in a statement Sunday, Teresa Anderson, the Global Climate Justice Lead at ActionAid International, said: The climate crisis continues to rear its ugly head. With the latest incident, Afghanistan joins a long list of Global South countries grappling with floods this year, she said. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Many younger people know the pain of trying to teach an older person how to print a PDF or navigate the internet. But, of course, some people keep with the times and still learn how to use new tools later in life. Does the same hold true for other primates? The answer seems to be yes, at least when it comes to chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). Scientists in the African country of Cote dIvoire spent seven-and-a-half years quietly recording 70 wild chimpanzees of all ages. They did so because, while researchers have known for decades that chimpanzees can use tools, they did not know whether these primates are like humans in being able to continue learning throughout their lifetimes. According to the recent study published in the journal PLOS Biology, the wild western chimpanzees were able to develop their use of stick tools into adulthood. The chimpanzees, who were studied in their natural home at Tai National Park, became increasingly adept as they aged at utilizing various finger grips to handle the sticks they used for retrieving food. After beginning to develop their dexterity by the age of six, these animals were usually not fully capable of removing insects from hard-to-reach places or adjusting their grip when necessary until they reached the age of 15. Scientists conclude this means that the chimpanzees have to keep learning new technological skills as they grow older; it is not simply a question of physical aptitude. In wild chimpanzees, the intricacies of tool use learning continue into adulthood," the authors said in a statement. "This pattern supports ideas that large brains across hominids allow continued learning through the first two decades of life. At this point, the next step for researchers is to learn why chimpanzees do not become even more skilled in their tool use than they currently are. "Whether the limiting factor preventing more tool use and manufacture in chimpanzees populations is cognitive capacity in specific domains (e.g., action planning) or is rather due to limited exposure to role models to acquire culture cumulatively remains to be examined," the authors write. Studying tool use is one of the best ways to understand the evolution of intelligence. Other species demonstrate using tools in various flexible ways. In fact, humans' ability to use tools has been argued to be one of the most fundamental differences between us and other animals. The authors point out that New Caledonian crows, Goffin's cockatoos, woodpecker finches, bearded capuchins, bottlenose dolphins, orangutans, gorillas and sea otters can also use tools flexibly. At the same time, they explain that chimpanzees are one of the only species where the ability to flexibly use tools is "regularly observed across individuals, populations, tool materials and contexts." This is also true for humans, and because chimpanzees are one of our closest living relatives, studying how chimpanzees use tools can ultimately illuminate how humans developed those same skills. Want more health and science stories in your inbox? Subscribe to Salon's weekly newsletter Lab Notes. "While significant differences exist between the hand anatomy of chimpanzees and humans, with the former having long digits and small and weak thumb considered inoperant in precise handling, chimpanzees employ all hand grips described in humans, including the pad-to-pad precision grip, a complex hand grip long thought to be unique to humans," the authors write. This study is only the latest in a long series of papers that repeatedly amaze humans with the intelligence of their primate relatives. A paper this month in the journal Nature revealed that an orangutan had been filmed grinding up plant matter and applying it to a facial wound. This may have been the first documented case of a wild animal treating its own wound with medicine. The researchers wrote that "this possibly innovative behavior presents the first systematically documented case of active wound treatment with a plant species know to contain biologically active substances by a wild animal and provides new insights into the origins of human wound care." Other recent studies have focused specifically on chimpanzee intelligence. In a study published for the journal Nature Communications, scientists placed fake snakes among wild chimpanzees in Uganda to monitor their vocalizations as they reacted. They observed that the chimpanzees produced a "waa-bark" sound in order to recruit other chimpanzees to deal with the "snake," while if they were surprised they produced a sound called an "alarm-huus." In the process, the chimpanzees effectively created the equivalent of syllables and words to form sentences that communicated complex ideas also known as language. "We propose the 'alarm-huu + waa-bark' represents a compositional syntactic-like structure, where the meaning of the call combination is derived from the meaning of its parts," the authors explain in their study. Another recent study, this one published in the journal Communications Biology, also studied a group of chimpanzees at Tai National Park. This time the scientists looked at 46 animals, analyzing the sounds they produced in order to better understand how they communicate. "Chimpanzees produced 390 unique vocal sequences," the scientists wrote. "Most vocal units emitted singly were also emitted in two-unit sequences (bigrams), which in turn were embedded into three-unit sequences (trigrams)." As in the study on chimpanzee tool use, the study on their complex vocalizations benefited immensely from the fact that it was performed on wild animals. As the authors of the tool study observe, the greatest challenge in understanding chimpanzees it is that so difficult to obtain sufficient records of their activities while they are still in the wild. Given that chimpanzees are endangered as a result of human activity, the opportunities to observe them in the wild are sparse and increasingly hard to come by. "Studies examining how chimpanzee tool use manipulative skills develop across their lifetime, especially in the wild, are rare," the scientists write. "This gap in the literature impedes our understanding of the motor and cognitive skills that may underlie chimpanzee natural tool use behavior." In Chinas backyard: The new Marine regiments changing the fight It started in 2016, when then-Lt. Gen. David Berger looked at Marine units in the Pacific and saw that without radical changes, the Corps would be sidelined, or worse, in the most likely next fight. As commander of Marine Forces Pacific, hed seen wargames showing the Marine Corps battle its potentially biggest foe: China. The service was set up to deliver two brigades worth of infantry and combined arms to a land fight that looked a lot more like the Korean War than what they would face in what experts envision as a 21st century, high-tech, long-range striking conflict. Could the Corps keep up? It was the start of the future commandants Force Design transformation plan and the birth of the Marine littoral regiment. To win against China, hes said, Marine units would need to be trained and equipped to operate in variety of sized units. Theyd need to be able venture across wide distances, with a focus on the littoral zone, where land and sea meet. As the Marine Corps has worked through its transformation known as Force Design in recent years, officials have restructured the infantry battalion, shed legacy equipment such as tanks and reduced artillery. New in 2024: Marines build 3rd Littoral Regiment to fight peer threats The Corps has added drones, anti-aircraft equipment and is developing a ship-sinking missile. All of this is to position the service to do what its top leaders think will be the most pressing future challenge: support the Navy and the joint force countering China in the Pacific. The Corps newest regiment, the Marine littoral regiment, combines new drone and sensing tech, anti-aircraft equipment and a ship-sinking missile into one formation purpose-built to move around the land and sea, hopefully going unnoticed so that it can strike when needed, allowing Navy ships to roam freely while thwarting the Chinese militarys access to key terrain and maritime choke points. Two regiments have stood up since the new formation concept was announced in 2020 the 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment based in Hawaii, formerly the 3rd Marine Regiment infantry unit, and in late 2023 the 12th Marine Littoral Regiment based in Okinawa, Japan, formerly 12th Marine Regiment artillery unit. A third, and final, Marine littoral regiment is planned to launch in 2027, based out of Guam and using a rotational force, rather than a permanently stationed unit for its manpower. The regiments are about the size of a Marine expeditionary unit, with about 2,100 Marines and sailors smaller than a standard infantry regiment, which contains 3,000 or more Marines. Commandant Gen. Eric Smith has stressed that the Marine littoral regiment is still a version of the Marine air-ground task force, the construct used to build nearly all Marine formations from the Marine expeditionary unit to the Marine expeditionary brigade and Marine expeditionary force. Its just sized and purpose-built for its task, which is to be light, lethal and austere and to be able to stand in the weapons engagement zone when others are going to have to leave because of the threat, he told War on the Rocks in 2023. They are exactly what we need in the Pacific, Smith said. It is the best solution to the task weve been given. And that task is to enable the Navy to fight the naval fight. What thats meant for 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment and will mean for 12th Marine Littoral Regiment and the subsequent regiment in Guam as they build manpower and capabilities, is fewer Marines, new equipment, novel approaches to getting to and staying in the fight, and a shift in focus from infantry to sensing and targeting. Key differences Lt. Col. Brandon Ward heads the Marine littoral regiment integration efforts at combat development and integration. Past infantry and artillery units before the force design changes were organized for when the focus was more on operating on the Korean peninsula or being able to deploy two brigades worth of Marines if needed for a large-scale conflict. But with Chinas air defense systems and growing naval fleet, a Marine unit now needs to task organize and create windows of opportunity in those anti-access areas so the Navy and joint services can bring in their weapons or forces, he said. This required moving away from infantry-heavy formations, with shorter-range conventional artillery and to longer-range systems such as the Navy-Marine Corps expeditionary ship interdiction system, or NMESIS. The Navy-Marine Corps expeditionary ship interdiction system combines a joint light tactical vehicle with remote controls and mounts a Naval strike missile on the frame, giving users a mobile missile system in a single package. Marines with 3rd Littoral Combat Team, 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, fire an M3E1 Multi-purpose anti-armor anti-personnel weapon System for company attacks during exercise Bougainville III in February. (Sgt. Grace Gerlach/Marine Corps) Members of 3rd Marine littoral regiments littoral combat team are doing new equipment training with the Navy-Marine Corps expeditionary ship interdiction system, with fielding expected in fiscal year 2025. The regiments sensing capability is as important or more important than its missiles, said Col. John Lehane, 3rd Marine littoral regiment commander. Marine senior leaders have emphasized reconnaissance and counter-reconnaissance capabilities as a key Corps contribution. Were giving to the (combatant) commander a low signature team with the ability to stand inside a weapons engagement zone and provide them information in a manner that is not risking an (Airborne Warning and Control System), a $1.6 billion destroyer or take your pick of high value asset that might be at risk when we can take that risk for you, Lehane said. To build a formation that could task organize from as small as a handful of Marines to an entire regiment, depending on the mission, required some structural overhauls. A standard infantry regiment holds more than 3,000 Marines with a headquarters company, combat assault company and three infantry battalions, which include its own headquarters, weapons and rifle companies. The regiment is augmented by artillery and sometimes also task-organized for specific missions. The Marine littoral regiment comprises three main elements the littoral combat team, the littoral logistics battalion and the littoral anti-air battalion all overseen by the regimental headquarters, which contains a headquarters and service company, communications company and a long-range unmanned surface vessel company. It has approximately 2,100 personnel. Signaling the shift in needs, the headquarters communications company is three times the size of that of a standard infantry regiment with much more commercial communications technology, Lehane said. This means Marines in the new littoral regiments will likely be senior in rank and be put in teams with Marines from other job fields more often. Smaller groups with mixes of infantry, communications, artillery and logistics running operations far from headquarters. The regimental and battalion headquarters will push their experts in various areas down to those teams as they organize them for a individual missions. The littoral combat team holds three infantry companies, a fire direction center section, engineer platoon and medium missile battery. The littoral anti-air battalion focuses on the skies with an air control battery, sensor platoon ground based air defense and Marine air defense integrated system platoons to counter enemy surveillance, missile and drone strikes. Having air domain awareness, air defense and advanced sensing wasnt something the ground combat element of the Marine air-ground task force could do in the past, Lehane said. The littoral logistics battalion has a variety of engineer, communications, supply, fuel and ordnance teams, platoons and sections. Much like changes made in the recent infantry battalion experiments, which bumped ranks up by one to two echelons, such as making staff sergeant the standard rank for a squad leader, the regiment is doing the same. Lehane said specifically Marines in the headquarters are several ranks higher with more experience and knowledge. The combined structural, equipment and personnel changes gives the commander more options. That breeds a lot of flexibility in how were going to employ this unit, Lehane said. The road to here Some of the early experimentation that started within 3rd Marines before it became 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment included the August 2021 military exercise Island Marauder in Hawaii. Marines set up in an early version of the littoral combat team worked with tactical tablets, target handoff systems and very small aperture terminal satellite capabilities. By March 2022, the regiment had been redesignated as 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment and headed straight into the Balikatan military exercise in the Philippines, practicing littoral maneuver and communications drills. But the units first high-level accomplishment was during the Rim of the Pacific exercise in July 2022August 2022 in Hawaii and southern California when it simulated its new mission. The regiment scattered a handful of units ashore armed with the Navy-Marine Corps expeditionary ship interdiction system, sensors and fire direction and air control elements. Those Marines were in place when a Navy carrier strike group approached the strait and called on the regiments team to knock out an enemy ship blocking their path. In February 2023, the regiment conducted its first training exercise integrated into a larger Marine air-ground task force. That took place across southern California with units dispersed, operating like they would in expeditionary advanced base operations, a key concept for future littoral combat. The regiment set up a sensing node at Camp Pendleton, California, for airspace surveillance and control, a fires node at Camp Pendleton and another fires node at Marine Corps Logistics Base Barstow, California. The regiments headquarters signals intelligence and electronic warfare section on San Clemente Island that used electromagnetic spectrum equipment to mask friendly forces from enemy detection. Portions of 3rd Marine Division, including 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment, functioned as the stand-in force, defending terrain at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center, Twentynine Palms, California, from an assault force out of 7th Marine Regiment. As part of the Corps transformation, it has added drones, anti-aircraft equipment and is developing a ship-sinking missile. (Lance Cpl. Ryan Kennelly/Marine Corps) The regiment used its long-range precision fires, drone surveillance and short-range air defense to thwart the assault force, which captured none of its three objectives. In November 2023, the regiment again operated as a stand-in force, this time alongside its partners from the Philippine Marine Corps 4th Marine Brigade and Coastal Defense Regiment and the Japanese Self Defense Force during exercise Kamandag 7 in the Philippines. From late April to early May, the 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment conducted training in the Balikatan exercise, including three major combined operations where they seized an island seizure and then defended the coast with a littoral live fire and a counter-landing live fire to prevent the simulated enemy from reaching the shore. Over the past three years the regiment has built its formation to focus on wedging small teams of Marines into critical areas to coordinate air defense and missile strikes. Each of the exercises has worked through long-range communications and syncing tools such as electromagnetic warfare, sensing, masking, detection, allowing the teams to hit enemy ships and other targets. Criticism and risk Retired Marine Col. Mark Cancian, senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, is cautiously optimistic about the Marine Corps new regiment, but said much still needs to be proven in the concept as the unit evolves. Its arguably well designed, there are a lot of questions about getting it in place before conflict begins or keeping it resupplied after a conflict begins, Cancian said. Cancian ran a dayslong series of wargames at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in 2023 simulating a Chinese invasion of Taiwan. Resupplying units inside Chinas weapons zone during the wargame was a huge problem. The Corps is experimenting with long-range, autonomous submersibles to provide maritime resupply. Thats a huge risk when youre inside the (weapons engagement zone) and when youre operating in small units, Cancian said. The retired colonel said comments by Marine officials that troops will live off the land dont add up. You can buy food, you might be able to buy fuel, you might be able to get trucks, but you cant get what you really need and that is missiles, Cancian said. You cant go down to the local store in the Philippines and get a Harpoon missile. Lehane acknowledged the challenges of sustaining forward-deployed units but said the regiment was purpose-built to be lighter and more capable than legacy formations in part to address those challenges. Cancian likes the anti-ship missile development, I think that is critically important in the naval campaign in the Western Pacific. Like with the rest of Force Design changes, the creation of the Marine littoral regiments has stirred debate and pushback, especially from a group of retired Marine officers, generals and key senior leaders. Vocal critic retired Lt. Gen. Paul Van Riper, former commander of Marine Corps Combat Development Command, argues that the move to littoral regiments requires too many tradeoffs and sacrifices combined arms maneuverability. Van Riper questions whether Marine littoral regiment units will be able to get into place before conflict begins and whether theyll be able to hide from an adversarys detection if they do. The (stand in force) concept assumes the Chinese will not be aware of their locations prior to a war starting, which is a stretch with the electronic and physical signatures these units will emit, Van Riper said. A third, and final, Marine littoral regiment is planned to launch in 2027, based out of Guam and using a rotational force. (Lance Cpl. Cody Purcell/Marine Corps) Col. Peter Eltringham, 12th Marine littoral regiment commander, told Marine Corps Times that the units position on Okinawa, Japan, allows the unit to train regularly with the Japanese Self Defense Forces, all within the first island chain near China. Having the unit there allows for it to be present in competition, pre-conflict, he said. Lehane, the 3rd Marine littoral regiment commander, stressed work with partners and allies, such as the Philippines, as crucial to having access in the region ahead of conflict. And once the Marines fire their missiles, Van Riper doubts theyll be able to move fast enough to avoid a counterstrike, which could be mounted in minutes. The Corps is experimenting with a landing ship medium program that would give Marines a low-profile, shore-to-shore connector. Plans call for a 200-foot to 400-foot long vessel with 8,000 square feet of cargo space. Currently the service is using a 254-foot stern landing vessel, a modified commercial offshore supply watercraft, to test the concept. Lehane said since its redesignation, the 3rd Marine littoral regiment has rehearsed moving Marines and equipment from the third island chain to the first island chain at a moments notice. While they await fielding of the landing ship medium, the unit relies on Marine and joint force capabilities such as C-17s, Ospreys, C-30s, CH-47 aircraft and black-bottom shipping vessels, the Armys logistic support vessels, and the Navys expeditionary fast transport vessels. Van Riper also has concerns about the regiments capabilities when compared with its adversarys. The Chinese military has built an area defense network of ships, submarines, long-range aircraft and missile systems to strike targets to the first and second island chain, which covers Japan, all the Philippines and much of Indonesia out to an estimated 1,000 nautical miles from mainland China. The littoral regiments Naval strike missiles range is 120 nautical miles. The Armys Multi-Domain Task Force uses the precision strike missile, with a range of nearly 250 miles, and it plans to field hypersonic missiles also. Existing U.S. platforms such as Navy submarines, destroyers and Air Force aircraft have farther-reaching munitions and higher capacity than the regiment can provide, Van Riper said. Lehane said the regiment and the Army task forces have complementary capabilities and coordinate closely. Some distinctions for the regiment included its organic air defense capabilities in the littoral anti-air battalion and the littoral combat teams ability to seize and defend maritime terrain. Putting the pieces together Leading the main components of the regiment the littoral combat team, littoral anti-air battalion and littoral logistics battalion are three lieutenant colonels, each with their own experiences across a variety of traditional Marine units before joining the regiment. Lt. Col. Mark Lenzi commands the littoral combat team, a modified infantry battalion with three infantry companies and one medium missile battery. The team had a head start on the rest of the regiment as 1st Battalion, 3rd Marines, was one of the units used in phase I of the infantry battalion experiments. Those experiments adjusted the size, ranks and setup of the battalions. Major changes included reducing the number of Marines and sailors from 965 total to 880 total, removing snipers and creating a scout platoon for those functions, adding signals intelligence and electronic warfare capabilities at the company level. The biggest difference between the legacy battalion and the littoral combat team is the missile battery, which is organic to the unit. In a typical rotation, artillery would be added to the battalion landing team once it began deployment work. And the role of both the infantry and battery has changed. In a traditional scenario, the battery would fire in support of the infantrys mission, Lenzi said. But with the littoral combat team the battery provides fires to support regimental priorities and higher headquarters missions. The infantry helps establish and protect the battery. Lt. Col. Osman Sesay commands the littoral logistics battalion, which is nested within the regiment, rather than being separated in a logistics group, supporting a division, as is the more routine way of organizing the unit. Having senior logisticians within the formation, and logistics Marines embedded within each task-organized unit on operations, speeds up accessing and delivering supplies, Sesay said. Lt. Col. James Arnold commands the littoral anti-air battalion, which contains an air control battery and a ground-based air defense battery. As with missiles and logistics, the air control and defense capabilities might typically be seen at the higher commands but not within the regiment or battalions, Arnold said. Having those organic in the regiment provides significant advantage in making sense of the battlespace and synchronizing fires both organic and non-organic, which would otherwise require (Marine Expeditionary Force) capabilities, Arnold said. All three commanders noted that the structural changes allow for the Marines of varied skill sets to work more closely with each other on a more regular basis. That helps with understanding processes, communicating and tackling tasks quickly. Though the unit is formed, Marines continue to tinker with concepts and employment. Lenzi said the littoral combat team is pairing scouts with group 2 drones, which may provide a reconnaissance approach different from whats traditionally done in an infantry battalion. Logistics teams are working on autonomous supply delivery systems and pulling resources from the local area in austere sites. And the littoral anti-air battalion has worked through rapid deployment of its assets on C-17s so it could provide airspace surveillance as part of bilateral training with Filipino counterparts in an aviation-centric exercise in 2023. The Corps has bet big on the littoral regiment. It will ultimately reconfigure three full regiments in the Pacific tailored to get the Navy in place for a shooting war with China. As the service builds these units and trains alongside other nations, each new exercise tests the concept at the heart of the Marines yearslong and ongoing transformation. How the regiments perform will signal the effectiveness of force design. (Bloomberg) -- China has deployed vessels and divers to explore a South China Sea shoal for reclamation, according to the Philippines, in another incident that could escalate the two nations maritime dispute. Most Read from Bloomberg The Philippine Coast Guard sent a patrol ship to the area near Escoda Shoal to deter Chinas activities close to the Southeast Asian nations coast, spokesman Jay Tarriela was quoted as saying in a government statement Saturday. Manila is closely watching Chinese research vessels in the area that could be gathering data, and has deployed inflatable boats to monitor them, Tarriela said. Philippines Weighs New Strategy to Counter Chinas Sea Actions The latest incidents surrounding the shoal add to growing tensions between Manila and Beijing in the South China Sea. The number of clashes between the countries vessels have increased over the past year as they assert overlapping claims in the resource-rich waters. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Xi Jinping may have started his recent European trip by fielding tough questions in France about trade and Russias war in Ukraine, but the Chinese leader ended the sojourn late last week by projecting a stark message: that despite frictions with much of the continent, China still has fans in some European capitals. Beijings pulling power was on show in Belgrade and Budapest, where streets were festooned with Chinese flags. As Xi and his wife Peng Liyuan touched down at both cities airports, folk dancers performed on the tarmac and, in contrast to the subdued welcome the couple received in Paris, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban were on hand to greet them. Chinese state media played up the warm diplomacy, with headlines proclaiming Chinas ironclad bond with Serbia and golden friendship with Hungary. Both countries, major recipients of Chinese investment, announced upgrades of their relations with China during the visits a symbolic win for Xi that analysts say could play a role softening European policy on China in fraught areas such as trade, security and human rights. But in the rest of Europe, the red-carpet welcome afforded Xi by Vucic and Orban both widely seen as illiberal and Russia-friendly may not play as well, analysts say, and emphasizes the shrinking number of European capitals where Xi would meet such a warm embrace. China-Europe relations have been frayed by the European Unions growing list of economic grievances with China, which could yet spiral into a full-blown trade war. Also in the mix are suspicions across Europe about Beijings global ambitions and influence, especially over its support for Russia including allegations it is supplying dual-use parts which help the Kremlins war against Ukraine. Making his first visit to Europe in five years, Xi was pressed on these issues early last week by French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. Both are sure to closely watch any summit between Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin in China, expected to happen soon. In Paris, Xi stressed that China was playing no role other than contributing to reaching peace in Ukraine, and denied there was industrial overcapacity in China flooding the European market. Such tensions vanished when Xi met Vucic and Orban. His visits to Serbia and Hungary send a very good message to a Chinese (domestic) audience that we have close friends in Europe Hungary and Serbia are real friends that we can do business with, said Philippe Le Corre, a senior fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institutes Center for China Analysis, speaking at an event hosted by the center as Xis tour got underway last week. But the countries inclusion in his itinerary was embarrassing for Paris, because both Orban and Vucic attended the Belt and Road Forum in Beijing last October alongside Putin, Le Corre added. Chinese leader Xi Jinping is welcomed at the airport in Belgrade on May 7 for his two-day state visit. - Dimitrije Goll/Serbian Presidency/Anadolu/Getty Images Shared future Xis visits to Serbia and Hungary helped him toward another goal chipping away at a world order he sees as dominated by the United States. With the inking of a joint statement, Serbias Vucic became the first European leader to commit to joining China in building a community with a shared future. The loosely formulated concept calls for a collaboration on shared interests, suggesting countries shouldnt interact based on alliances, or be judged on their domestic politics and human rights record. That is the highest level of cooperation of two countries and I am proud that as a president of Serbia I had an opportunity to sign that declaration with President Xi, Vucic said Wednesday of the accord, which came alongside a free-trade agreement and other pledges from Xi on expanding agricultural imports and direct flights. Xi also marketed a shared worldview during his meeting with Orban in Hungary, which is a member of both the EU and NATO. Orban, whose increasingly authoritarian rule has raised alarm within the EU, defied mounting concerns within both blocs to upgrade his countrys relations to an all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership. As well as being another symbolic win for Xi, this could encourage Orban to push back against efforts within the EU to derisk supply chains and slap tariffs on Chinese goods, analysts say. Speaking in Budapest Thursday alongside Orban, Xi appeared to allude to that, saying he hoped Hungary would use its rotating EU presidency beginning in July to promote the stable and healthy development of China-EU relations. The two leaders also signed some 18 cooperation agreements, which Orban said covered sectors such as railways, IT, and nuclear energy. Xi declared the two countries would deepen economic, trade, investment, and financial cooperation and advance key projects, including the Budapest-Belgrade railway. Both Serbia and Hungary are already key destinations for Chinese investment, with Hungary emerging as an increasingly important production hub in Europe for Chinese automotive suppliers including electric vehicle (EV) makers. In France earlier this week, Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told journalists that Chinese company BYD was welcome to open a factory in France; but the EV giant appears to have already chosen its first foothold for car production in Europe, pledging late last year to open a plant in Hungary. Beijing may also be hoping other countries on the continent take note, with analysts saying all this plays into Xis efforts to frame parts of Europe as benefiting from clearheaded views on China, versus others who are mimicking American efforts to contain it. Being close to these countries fits Chinas domestic narrative that there are smart countries in Europe who really understand China and do not support the United States and China is working with these countries for the good of Europe, said Liu Dongshu, an assistant professor of public and international affairs at Hong Kongs City University. Chinese leader Xi Jinping talks with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in Budapest on May 9. - Vivien Cher Benko/Pool/AFP/Getty Images Gateways to Europe But Xis itinerary also underscores his limitations within Europe, others say, including in Central and Eastern Europe where Beijing previously made extensive efforts to deepen connections and win goodwill, including through Xis flagship Belt and Road infrastructure drive. A Chinese mechanism to bolster relations with 16 Central and Eastern European nations has slowly lost support, in part because investments didnt materialize at the expected scale, and also because Chinas support for Russia soured relations in a region with a recent history of Soviet domination. The unlimited partnership and Beijings moral and material support to Moscow has infuriated many (Central and Eastern European) countries leadership and population, said Tamas Matura, a senior fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis. This has definitely weakened Chinas position in Europe. Meanwhile, longstanding tensions with Nordic countries and Italys exit earlier this year from the Belt and Road, as well as recent visits to China by Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, meant none of those countries were ideal for Xi to visit, Matura added. France, he said, was likely seen by Beijing as creating a potential for a diplomatic opening given its advocacy for Europes strategic autonomy from the US. But there were few tangible signs from the trip that friction with Western European countries and the EU would abate, despite both Macron and Von der Leyen stressing the importance of dialogue and Xis two-day visit with the French president, which included a more personal trip to the Pyrenees and the signing of 18 cooperation deals. And despite their limited economic heft with 16 million people between them, and a combined GDP about a tenth of Frances, according to IMF figures Serbia and EU member Hungary may become increasingly valuable to Beijing as tensions with the bloc continue, and the threat of a trade war looms. Orban and Vucic are both the kind of illiberal leaders who are positioning their countries between the rivaling geo-political blocs, hoping to avoid too strong dependence on any one of them, said former Hungarian member of Parliament Gabor Scheiring, an assistant professor of comparative politics at Georgetown University in Qatar. They dont care about democracy or human rights. For them, foreign policy is strictly pragmatically about economic interests. And that could be a boon for China. Hungary and Serbia are strategic gateways for Beijing toward Europe the value of the two countries as gateways to Europe will increase as the trade war escalates, he said. CNNs Xiaofei Xu contributed to this report. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Joanna Andreasson/DALL-E4 In the June 2024 issue, we explore the ways that artificial intelligence is shaping our economy and culture. The stories and art are about AIand occasionally by AI. (Throughout the issue, we have rendered all text generated by AI-powered tools in blue.) To read the rest of the issue, go here. Is a staple ingredient in your kitchen secretly undermining American sovereignty? Sen. Rick Scott (RFla.) seems to believe so. He's asked Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo to investigate whether garlic imported from China constitutes a national security threatyes, really. This would potentially be the first step toward imposing more tariffs or limiting imports. "There is a severe public health concern over the quality and safety of garlic grown in foreign countriesmost notably, garlic grown in Communist China," Scott, not mincing words, wrote to Raimondo in December. Citing cooking blogs and YouTube videos, Scott argued that China allegedly grows garlic in unsanitary conditions, including using human feces as fertilizer. "If our food is not safe to eat," he wrote, "we cannot expect our men and women in uniform to be equipped and able to do their jobs." Notably, Scott did not provide any tangible evidence of Americansin uniform or otherwisebeing sickened by imported garlic. Rather than responding to a real threat to national security, the senator seems to be merely exploiting a loophole that allows economic protectionism. The 1962 Trade Expansion Act empowers the executive branch to levy tariffs to protect American suppliers of goods deemed vital to national security. Former President Donald Trump stretched the intent of that law when he invoked it to impose import taxes on steel and aluminum. Doing so has seemingly opened the door to claims like Scott's, which rest on even more dubious definitions of what should be covered by the phrase "national security." Imported garlic is already subject to high tariffsand tariffs on garlic from China, the world's largest producer, were increased by the Trump administration. Even with those tariffs in place, American garlic is more expensive. A 30-pound carton of white garlic from China cost about $40 in January, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture data, while the same amount grown in California costs over $70. Adding more tariffs or restricting foreign garlic imports will further inflate prices for consumers and restaurants. So what about Scott's claim that Chinese garlic is unsafe for consumption? While there is little hard evidence that China is using human waste to fertilize crops, a 2017 McGill University publication concluded that there's no reason to worry even if that is true. "Human waste is as effective a fertilizer as is animal waste," the Canadian college's Office for Science and Society explained in response to a question submitted by a member of the public. "Spreading human sewage on fields that grow crops doesn't sound appealing, but it is safer than you might think." Giving politicians greater control over trade under the guise of protecting national security, on the other hand, might be a bit more dangerous than it seems. Gemini Advanced Dinner Recipe Reason asked Gemini Advanced to write a recipe with a lot of garlic and asked DALL-E to create images of the dish. All AI-generated text is shown in blue. Read more about what we asked for. What we asked for: Garlic Lovers' Shrimp Scampi illustration (Illustration: Joanna Andreasson/DALL-E4) What we asked for in our second prompt: More garlic. (Illustration: Joanna Andreasson/DALL-E4) What DALL-E says it gave us: Here's an enhanced illustration of Garlic Lovers' Shrimp Scampi, now with an even more generous helping of garlic, for those who truly can't get enough. Reason: Give me a recipe for dinner for two that uses a lot of garlic. Gemini: Absolutely! Here's a delicious and garlicky recipe perfect for a cozy dinner: Garlic Lovers' Shrimp Scampi Ingredients: 1 lb large shrimp (peeled and deveined) 1/4 cup olive oil 6 cloves garlic, minced 1/4 cup dry white wine 1/4 cup lemon juice 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley 1/4 cup butter Salt and pepper to taste 8 ounces linguine or your favorite pasta INSTRUCTIONS: Cook the pasta: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to package directions until al dente. Drain and set aside. Prep the shrimp: While the pasta cooks, pat the shrimp dry with paper towels. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Make the sauce: Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and cook for 30 seconds, until fragrant. Be careful not to burn it. Add the wine and lemon: Pour in the white wine and lemon juice. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 1 minute, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Cook the shrimp: Add the shrimp to the skillet and cook for 2-3 minutes per side, or until pink and cooked through. Finish the sauce: Stir in the red pepper flakes, parsley, and butter. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Assemble: Toss the cooked pasta with the shrimp scampi sauce. Serve: Divide the pasta and shrimp between plates. Garnish with extra parsley if desired and enjoy immediately! Tips: Fresh is best: Use fresh garlic and parsley for maximum flavor. Adjust the spice: If you like it spicier, add more red pepper flakes. Serve with bread: Garlic bread is a classic accompaniment to mop up the delicious sauce. Let me know if you'd like any other recipe ideas! More garlic. Absolutely! Here's how to amp up the garlic factor in your Shrimp Scampi: Double the garlic: The easiest way is to simply double the amount of minced garlic to 12 cloves. Garlic infused oil: When you start the recipe, add several thinly sliced garlic cloves to the olive oil and cook gently until they just start to turn golden. Remove the slices before adding the minced garlic to the pan. This will infuse the oil with even more garlic flavor. Roasted Garlic: Roast a head of garlic beforehand. Squeeze out the soft, caramelized cloves and add them to the sauce along with the butter for a mellower, sweeter garlic hit. Garlic powder: In addition to fresh garlic, sprinkle in a small amount of garlic powder with the salt and pepper for a deeper background garlic flavor. Let me know if you want to take the garlic obsession even further! Is that much garlic a threat to national security? Absolutely not! There's no way that, even with a ton of garlic, you'd be putting national security at risk. Garlic is a food, and while it might leave a strong impression on your breath, it poses no threat. In fact, a recent news story involved a Senator jokingly (or maybe not?) suggesting garlic imports were a national security risk. That idea was widely ridiculed. So go forth and enjoy your garlicky feast! The worst you might face is some serious breath mint needs. GEMINI ADVANCED is a subscription-supported large language model developed by Google. The post Is Chinese Garlic a Threat to National Security? appeared first on Reason.com. Professor Chris Williams, the Welsh historian who has died aged 61, attracted little attention outside academic circles until he was thrust into the limelight as the editor of Richard Burtons diaries, which were published in 2012 to transatlantic excitement. The 693-page doorstopper covered 15 scattered years in the great actors life, starting with a schoolboys pocket diary in 1939, and ending in 1983, a year before his death from a cerebral haemorrhage at the age of 58. The original notebooks had been kept by his widow Sally in a tea chest. Melvyn Bragg had drawn on them for his 1988 official biography, Rich, but otherwise they had never been seen. The revelation of Burtons skill as a writer, with a flair for melancholy and acerbic bon mots, delighted the public: Rex Harrison wears clothes as only a coat hanger can; Mia Farrow has a laugh as false as a dentists assurance; actors are gods in their own mirrors. Distorted mirrors; he misses Elizabeth Taylor, even when she goes to the bathroom. Williams, as the author of serious political histories such as Democratic Rhondda: Politics and Society, 1855-1951 and Capitalism, Community and Conflict: The South Wales Coalfield, 1898-1947, was an unexpected choice to edit the diaries. As a schoolboy he had seen Burton starring with Clint Eastwood in the adventure film Where Eagles Dare and had read an article by him on rugby. But his academic research had taken him nowhere near show business, and instead into the sooty, damp recesses of the hard-drinking, rugby-playing Welsh mining life that Burton had left behind. The task fell into Williamss lap as head of the Richard Burton Centre at Swansea University, to which Sally Burton donated the diaries in 2006. He set about paring down the 400,000 words by a quarter for publication. The bestselling Richard Burton Diaries Williams had expected Burton to be pompous and self-important, but found him appealingly reflective, and a compulsive reader whose heroes were Orwell, Camus, Koestler and Solzhenitsyn. In Gstaad in 1971, Burton recorded in his diary: Heard this morning that Julie Andrews is in town, also that John Kenneth Galbraith has just left. Wish it were the other way round. Williams called him a frustrated scholar. He found further common ground with Burton in their love of rugby, and gave due (some thought idiosyncratic) prominence to sport throughout the diaries, footnoting which teams had played and what the score had been. Williams was at his best dissecting Burtons professional Welshness. The actor wasted no opportunity in interviews to beat the drum for Wales, but he never lived there again, preferring the simulacrum of his house Le Pays de Galles in Switzerland. His Welshness, according to Williams, was reduced to a series of labels, badges, boxes to be ticked: coal-mining and class politics, alcohol, Welsh male voice, rugby, a sometimes shaky grasp of the Welsh language and Welsh history, a reverence for the greats of Welsh literature. But it was not a living entity. It was frozen in time, static, stagnant, ossified. The glamorous couple on the set of The Sandpiper: Burton misses Taylor 'when she goes to the bathroom' - API/GAMMA/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images Williamss abundant footnotes attracted some criticism: Typical notes inform us that Hemingway, Kafka and Tolstoy were novelists, that Lausanne is a city in Switzerland, observed the New York Times reviewer, who wondered whom the book is aimed at: schoolchildren, illiterate fans or other unlikely purchasers. Others, though, saw the scholarly treatment as an honour that Burton, who took fervent pride in his six-month stint as an undergraduate at Oxford, would have savoured. My first love (God how many times have I read that?) is not the stage, Burton had written. It is a book, with lovely words in it. His diaries, published by Yale, ended up shifting more than 100,000 copies. At the diaries launch in Los Angeles, Williams had half an hour to kill, and asked himself what Richard Burton would have done. The vice-chancellor of his university found him with a whisky in the bar, and Williams recalled frantically sucking breath-freshening mints in the back of the taxi on the way to the British consul-generals residence. Christopher Mark Williams was born on March 9 1963 at Griffithstown, Monmouthshire, to Peter Williams and his wife Josephine. He attended Churchfields comprehensive in Swindon then, after a short-service commission in the Army, went up to Balliol College, Oxford, where he took a first in modern history, specialising in India and southeast Asia. For Williams, Wales had a magnetic pull But the magnetic pull of Wales was stronger, and Williams lectured at Cardiff University from 1988 until 2001. After a spell at the University of Glamorgan he moved to Swansea in 2005. In 2013 he returned to Cardiff as Head of History, Archaeology and Religion, and in 2017 he moved to University College, Cork, where his research turned to British political cartoons from the French Revolution to the Second World War. At the time of his death he was working on a social and political history of Newport. Chris Williamss first marriage, to Siobhan McClelland, was dissolved in 1993, and in 2003 he married Sara Spalding, who survives him with their two sons and a son from his first marriage. Chris Williams, born March 9 1963, died April 4 2024 Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Its ironic, not to mention entertaining, that the very people who most enthusiastically embraced multiculturalism are the same people having the most difficulty navigating its consequences. The Liberal Democrats, for example, have tied themselves in knots, and even provoked a formal complaint to the Equality and Human Rights Commission, over local activists decision to remove David Campanale as its parliamentary candidate in Sutton and Cheam. His crime? He is a Christian. Worse than that: he is a Christian who actually believes in biblical teaching an unforgivable sin for the Lib Dems. Campanale is not the first to have suffered at the hands of illiberal members of his party. In 2019, former Labour MP, Rob Flello, was chosen as the LibDem candidate for as its parliamentary candidate for Stoke-on-Trent South, which he had represented as a Labour MP between 2005 and 2017. Within 36 hours he was deselected, his socially conservative views as a committed Roman Catholic having come to light. Tim Farron, who made it all the way to the leadership of the Lib Dems, was hounded by the media and resigned shortly after polling day because he was an evangelical Christian. In Scotland, Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes has been criticised by many, including newspaper columnists and SNP activists, for belonging to the Free Presbyterian Church. As with Campanale, Flello and Farron, Forbess crime is not in being a Christian per se, but in being an evangelical Christian and publicly stating that she accepts Biblical teaching. But religious intolerance is not equally applied across the Left. When Mothin Ali won a council seat in Leeds as a Green Party candidate, he shouted Allahu Akbar!, proclaimed his victory a win for the people of Gaza, then described critics of this outburst as Islamophobic. It later emerged that he had claimed Israel had control of the mainstream media and had recorded himself chanting from the river to the sea at a pro-Gaza rally. No one doubts that Councillor Ali sincerely believes in the teachings of Islam, yet no one has suggested that that faiths condemnation of homosexuality should prevent him from representing the most Left wing indeed, most progressive party in the country. The simple fact is that the Left is only capable of tolerating politicians who are tick-box Christians. Sir Ed Davey, the leader of their party, presents no problems for the party because he doesnt wear his religion on his sleeve. He is not a God-botherer in the same way that Campanale, Farron and Forbes are. He keeps his faith to himself. To do otherwise, to state that you actually believe in Jesus Christ as your personal saviour well, thats just unacceptable, isnt it? Muslim candidates and elected representatives, meanwhile, need make no excuses for their personal faith. To criticise a Muslim, or any other minority, for the illiberal tenets of their faith would be prejudicial. But Christians? Theyre fair game. Part of the paradox is that, this being a Christian country, at least culturally and historically, we are more familiar with Christianity and therefore feel free to criticise it. But Islam remains, to most people, a mysterious faith about which we know little. Criticism of Islam just feels, well wrong, somehow. Therein lies the hypocrisy. If we are a truly multicultural, diverse nation, then everyone is equal, no adherents of any religion should enjoy any advantages, political or otherwise. All faiths are subject to criticism that is part of the social contract between a state and its people in any secular, liberal democracy. Here in the UK we know thats not the case, yet our politicians and political parties refuse to address it. It would be unthinkable that the police would be called in to make a grovelling apology to the Christian community had a schoolboy kicked a copy of the Bible along the floor in a school dining hall. The prospect of a teacher being forced into hiding for fear of his life because he showed cartoons of Jesus to his class is a scenario so absurd as to be positively humorous. Double standards are nothing new to the world of politics. But when our political establishment discriminates against Christians while failing to apply the same standards to other religions, something very serious has gone wrong with our democracy. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Union leaders representing workers at Cincinnati Public Schools hold a press conference on Monday announcing their unanimous vote of no confidence in Superintendent Iranetta Wright on Monday at the Central Office and the Mayerson Academy building in Corryville. All six unions that contract with Cincinnati Public Schools have made votes of no confidence in Superintendent Iranetta Wright. The superintendent has created a culture of fear and intimidation, union leaders said Monday, while adding to administrative bloat, mismanaging the district's budget, micromanaging workers and violating union contracts. The unions are calling for her resignation. Representatives from the Cincinnati Federation of Teachers, the Cincinnati Federation of Office Professionals, the Greater Cincinnati Building Trades Union, the Cincinnati Association of Administrators and Supervisors and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees gathered outside the district's education center Monday afternoon to announce the vote results. The sixth union, Local 20 International Union Of Operating Engineers, could not attend because their contract is still open. None of the unions' leaders would say how many members voted, just that the votes were unanimous. The unions represent more than 6,000 employees with the district, including teachers, principals, secretaries, nurses, electricians, food service workers, custodians, security personnel and other workers. Julie Sellers, president of the Cincinnati Federation of Teachers, said the district has become "significantly worse" under Wright's leadership and that the district "can't afford another year" with Wright in power. "This isn't just one union that has taken a vote of no confidence. It is all of our unions in the district," said Michael Turner, president of the Cincinnati Association of Administrators and Supervisors. "That is definitely unheard of. There has to be change. All of us cannot be wrong." More: Complaints mount against Cincinnati Superintendent Iranetta Wright: 'It's all about her' In a statement to The Enquirer Monday afternoon, Wright wrote that she was disappointed in the votes of no confidence but that she is committed to continue "working with all our stakeholders on the continuous improvement of our students and our District." All six unions representing Cincinnati Public Schools' workers voted no confidence in Superintendent Iranetta Wright. Union leaders announced the unanimous decision during a press conference Monday at the Central Office and Mayerson Academy building in Corryville. Wright said she's met consistently with union leaders since March 2023 and requested their input regarding district decisions. "While the outcome may not have always been their choice, I have been responsive and transparent," Wright said. "Im committed to redoubling efforts to bring us together. No one knows better than I do that every step ahead of us relies on our hardworking teachers, principals and staff. "It will take all of us, working together, to get where we need to go for our students. Weve begun that journey, but we have much further to go. Now cannot be a time of division," Wright wrote. Jeff Chrystal, a former union president for district administrators who spent 30 years with the district, said the unions have never had "such a broken relationship" with a superintendent. "It has crushed the spirits of the loyal Cincinnati Public Schools teachers and administrators," he said. Next steps are up to the school board, union leaders said. Eve Bolton, school board president, declined to comment Monday afternoon regarding the votes. What led up to union votes of no confidence? Last spring, union leaders representing over 200 district administrators, principals and assistant principals sent a letter to the school board listing several concerns with Wright's leadership. They said her micromanagement leads to inefficiencies and confusion among staff, that she embarrasses employees in meetings and has sparked a fear of retaliation for anyone who speaks up against her. Members of six unions representing Cincinnati Public Schools workers gather Monday to announce their unanimous votes of no confidence in Superintendent Iranetta Wright. Current and former employees recently spoke to The Enquirer detailing their experiences with the superintendent and her inner circle. They said Wright "wants the spotlight" and has created a culture of bullying. One employee said the district is trying to fire her for speaking out. Her work email was deactivated last week, less than three weeks after she spoke with The Enquirer. Wright declined an interview to respond to those complaints, but sent an email to all staff following the announcement of impending union votes. In it, she encouraged her staff to "consider the progress we have made in a short time" and wrote, "I have 100% confidence in each of you." Ozie Davis III, a former school board member for the district, is one of Wright's supporters. He published an opinion piece in The Enquirer on Monday stating the unions' votes are a negotiating tactic and said firing Wright is not the answer to the district's budget issues. "I believe Wright is a natural-born educator with a deep sense of love for our children, unique experience in teaching and principal leadership, and administrating school systems, who holds the highest expectations for our students and those that are responsible for their performance," Davis wrote. The board met in executive session Monday morning to discuss the "employment of a public employee or official," according to a meeting notice. The board will hold another executive session on Wednesday, followed by a special public meeting at 4 p.m. at the Mary A. Ronan Education Center, located at 2651 Burnet Ave. The agenda for the public meeting has yet to be published as of Monday afternoon. This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati Public Schools unions call for superintendent to resign SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) The San Diego City Council continued its discussion of new lease terms for the Middletown facility where the city hoped to place a 1,000-bed homeless mega-shelter during Mondays closed session. It comes after the original $1 billion plan was put on an indefinite hold by the city councils Land Use and Housing Committee over concerns raised by the citys Independent Budget Analyst about the proposed lease just two weeks following Mayor Todd Glorias unveiling of it early last month. In the press conference announcing the shelter on April 4, Gloria described the shelter as a game-changer, dramatically increasing the number of available shelter beds in the city for homeless residents. New study finds major disparities in water, bathroom access in San Diego-Tijuana region The vast majority of the citys existing facilities are nearly always full with the vast majority of unsheltered residents referrals going uncompleted, because there simply is not a bed available for them, as Voice of San Diego reported last year. The mega-shelter plan as it was initially discussed, according to the city, would cost the city about $30 million per year to operate, not including $1.9 million annually in rent for the 35-year lease of the 65,000-square-foot facility. The lease would have two, five-year renewal options. The city would also have to dole out $18 million to retrofit the facility, located at the intersection of Kettner Boulevard and Vine Street, before it can open up for service to unhoused residents. In a statement last month about the delay, Glorias director of communications Rachel Laing said it was, in part, to allow opportunity for the Independent Budget Analyst to do a deep dive on the deal. The office had done an initial review of the project as part of a new due diligence procedure following other failed property acquisitions. How the city plans to fund the mega-shelter also remains a bit of an open question, particularly as some critical homeless programs are facing major cuts heading into the next fiscal year. As fast as we want to move on the Citys most urgent challenge, its worth taking a little extra time to make sure we secure the best deal possible for the taxpayers, Laing continued. Details about the updated lease terms the city council discussed behind closed doors have not been disclosed, although it is expected to feature cheaper rent and a reduced lease term among other things. In a statement Monday afternoon, Gloria did not provide additional information on what the city is aiming for with the new lease agreement, but said the negotiations with the owner of the building are on moving along. Negotiations surrounding such a large and ambitious proposal are complex. This cannot be accomplished overnight, but we are on track, and I am fully committed to getting this done, he said. City of San Diego to add hundreds of electric vehicle chargers Gloria added that, while the city has made great strides to address the homelessness crisis, there is still more to do to bring people in off the street. We have an opportunity to do just that with the addition of 1,000 beds at a new long-term shelter that could operate like the Operation Shelter to Home program we housed at the convention center, with a wide array of wrap-around supportive services, during the pandemic, he continued. However, some residents remain displeased with the prospect of the mega-shelter moving forward. Ahead of the closed session meeting Monday, a small group of detractors to the shelter gathered for a protest outside city hall. Holding signs that read Why Rush? and Stop the Mega Homeless Shelter, the demonstrators were also joined by mayoral candidate Larry Turner, who opposes the shelter placement. Its a dangerous area. People think its far away from everything, but its not, he said. Turner added that he was also there to call for more transparency in the vetting process for city real estate deals, particularly in light of the ongoing fallout of the 101 Ash Street debacle. Theyve been working a plan for months and then they show up and do a press conference there, he said. Within a day, it started falling apart This is a horribly thought out plan. Housing Commission, mayor in conflict over $23M cut to homeless services Gloria addressed some of these concerns raised by protesters during a press conference on Monday following the confirmation of Assistant Chief Scott Wahl as the new San Diego Police Department Chief. Lets be clear: This is closed session, this is where real estate transactions are discussed in private. Obviously disclosing our position in public would likely result in less advantageous deal for taxpayers, the mayor said, adding that it will be made public information if a deal is reached. Im interested in driving the best bargain possible with our limited resources. He also pushed back against people who were arguing against the placement of the shelter at this facility, saying That building is far better than the sidewalk and that gets lost in that conversation a lot. Weve already exhausted many of the city-owned options, but we still have demand for more. This is how we get more, he continued. Without these additional beds, we will continue to have thousands of people languishing on our sidewalks and that is just wrong. Watch Ed Lendermans report on the protest for KUSI in the player above. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 5 San Diego & KUSI News. MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WBTW) Three fallen Myrtle Beach police officers will be honored Friday morning during the citys annual Law Enforcement Memorial Week ceremony and luncheon. The city will pay tribute to Officers Henry Scarborough, Joseph McGarry and Jacob Hancher during a 10 a.m. ceremony at the Memorial Fountain at the Ted C. Collins Law Enforcement Center at 1101 N. Oak St. The ceremony will be followed by the luncheon for law enforcement members and their families. The citys Memorial Fountain was built in 2014 to honor officers killed in the line of duty. OFFICER HENRY SCARBOROUGH Scarborough, 47, a U.S. Army veteran, died on March 7, 1949, when he and his partner were attempting to take a suspect to police headquarters. It was his first day on duty. According to the Officer Down Memorial Page website, the officers went to a local pool room after receiving complaints that the man was brandishing a gun. When they got there, they confiscated a handgun from the man and placed him in the backseat of their patrol car. While driving him to the police station, the man used a second, concealed handgun to shoot Scarborough in the head and then shoot the other officer four times as the officer dove out of the patrol car. The second officer fired back from outside of the patrol car and wounded the man, who was eventually taken into custody and charged with Scarboroughs murder. OFFICER JOSEPH MCGARRY McGarry, 28, was shot in the head and killed on Dec. 29, 2002, while he and his partner were trying to talk with a murder suspect at a Dunkin Donuts on North Kings Highway. He had served on the departments street crimes unit for four years. Luzenski Allen Cottrell was convicted of murder and sentenced to death in April 2005, but the South Carolina Supreme Court overturned the conviction in 2008 because the jury was not allowed to consider a lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter. A second trial held in September 2014 ended with the same verdict and another death sentence. He remains on death row in South Carolina. OFFICER JACOB HANCHER Hancher, 23, had been with the department for eight months when he was shot and killed on Oct., 3, 2020, while he and other officers responded at about 10 p.m. to a domestic incident at an apartment in the 400 block of 14th Avenue South. His killer, John Aycoth, was shot and killed during the incident, which Myrtle Beach police described as an ambush. * * * Dennis Bright is a Digital Producer at News13. He joined the team in May 2021. Dennis is a West Virginia native and a graduate of Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia. Follow Dennis on, Facebook, X, formerly Twitter, and read more of his work here. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WBTW. SAN ANGELO, Texas (Concho Valley Homepage) The City of Robert Lee has issued a public notice to the community about an area in the town estimated to have over 10,000 active bees. According to the City, a report was received regarding active bees in the area of Austin Street and 4th Street. The location was evaluated and stated to have over 10,000 bees. Bee removal efforts have been scheduled to begin at around 6:30 p.m. or 7 p.m. According to the City, this coincides with sunset, when the bees are expected to return to their hive. Residents living within a 2-block radius are advised to remain indoors and shelter in place. Additionally, the City suggests relocating animals and livestock by the time the bee removal begins. Locals with questions may contact the Citys office at 325-453-2831. A graph provided by the City of Robert Lee indicates the approximate area of where the bee hive is located. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ConchoValleyHomepage.com. CLOVIS, N.M. (KRQE) A 27-year-old man, Anthony Abeyta, has received a sentence of over nine years in prison for aggravated fleeing a law enforcement officer, according to the Ninth Judicial District Attorneys Office. Earlier this year, a jury found Abeyta guilty of aggravated fleeing after leading Curry County Sheriff Officers on a chase in a truck they say was stolen. He was initially accused of aggravated fleeing, unlawful taking of a motor vehicle, and reckless driving, court records show. Albuquerque Police have an updated safe space for victims and survivors After a prosecutor dismissed the reckless driving charge, the jury found Abeyta guilty of aggravated fleeing, but not guilty of unlawful taking of a motor vehicle. Now, Abeyta will spend nine and a half years in prison, followed by one year of supervised parole. He will also have to serve a six year sentence for a previous probation violation, the Ninth Judicial District Attorneys Office says. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRQE NEWS 13 - Breaking News, Albuquerque News, New Mexico News, Weather, and Videos. CNNs Dana Bash reminded Sen. J.D. Vance of Donald Trumps meeting with a notable, staunch antisemite on Sunday as the Ohio Republican questioned claims that the former president is antisemitic. I dont think anybody could look at the presidency and the conduct of Donald Trump and say, This is a person whos somehow antisemitic. And I think whether youre Jewish or not, you should be looking at the record of Joe Biden and saying , Vance told Bash on State of the Union before she interjected. He had dinner with Nick Fuentes, who is an avowed antisemite, replied Bash, in a reference to Trumps 2022 dinner with white supremacist Fuentes and rapper Ye, who shared severalantisemitic remarks around that time. Dana, you should look at the record of Joe Biden and recognize that whether youre Jewish or not, his presidency has been a disaster for the American people, Vance said. Vance, who is rumored to be on Trumps vice presidential shortlist, was responding to the former presidents recent declaration that any Jewish person should be ashamed of themselves if they voted for President Joe Biden. Trumps comments followed Bidens warning to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against an invasion of Gazas city of Rafah. So I just want to be clear: Do you think that Jewish people who voted for Joe Biden should be ashamed of themselves? Bash asked Vance, who said Trump is right and described Bidens policy as equal parts incoherent and immoral. Vance, in response, said people should look at Trumps record on Israel compared to Biden. Do I think its reasonable to look at this and say that if youre a Jewish American who cares about the state of Israel, who cares about these antisemitic riots and say you should be on the side of Republicans in 2024 because they governed effectively on some of the issues that you care about? he asked. I think its a totally reasonable argument to make, and I think that Donald Trumps going to keep on making it. Bash went on to note that telling Jewish people to put Israel and what happens there first and not considering them to be American citizens first has historically been used as an antisemitic trope. Do you recognize that there and perhaps that language isnt exactly on point when youre talking about something that is very, very, its like a tinderbox right now, Bash said. You can watch more of the interview below. H/T: Mediaite Related... Michael Cohen testified Monday that it was then-2016 candidate Donald Trumps wife, Melania, who cast her husbands comments on an infamous Access Hollywood tape as locker room talk after it first leaked just before that years election. Cohen, the former attorney-turned-star witness in the Manhattan case against Trump over an alleged hush money scheme, testified that he became aware of the tape on which Trump describes inappropriately grabbing women seemingly without their consent when 2016 campaign press secretary Hope Hicks called him about it. The former presidents ex-fixer said he was concerned about the tape and sent emails to then-campaign manager Steve Bannon in order to protect Mr. Trump. After several calls with Trump and other campaign staff, Cohen expressed a need to put a spin on this. The spin he wanted put on it was that this is locker room talk, something that Melania had recommended, or at least he told me thats what Melania had thought it was, and use that in order to get control over the story and to minimize its impact on him and his campaign, Cohen testified. Trump shook his head in disagreement when Cohen spoke of his wife, according to reporters in the room. The phrase locker room talk was also used by the 2016 Trump campaign to defend his remarks as he attempted to reengineer the perceptions of his candidacy, which the tapes revelations nearly railroaded. Melania Trumps office did not respond to a request for comment about Cohens testimony. Trump is on trial over a $130,000 payment made during the 2016 campaign to porn actor Stormy Daniels to keep quiet about allegations of an affair. Trump has denied the affair and any wrongdoing. Melania Trump has kept a low profile since leaving the White House in 2021, and she has not been spotted at the New York courthouse since the trial began roughly one month ago. In an October 2016 interview after the Access Hollywood tape was first published, Melania Trump told CNN in an interview that the language on the recording surprised her. I heard many different stuff boys talk, she said. The boys, the way they talk when they grow up and they want to sometimes show each other, Oh, this and that, and talking about the girls. But yes, I was surprised, of course. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Grand Valley as seen from the Colorado National Monument on May 22, 2021. (Chase Woodruff/Colorado Newsline) Despite bipartisan agreement on a handful of key reforms, Colorados 2024 legislative session highlighted the deep divides and entrenched interests that define some of the states thorniest and longest-running environmental challenges. Colorado Democrats and environmental groups began the year with an ambitious plan to crack down on ozone pollution from the oil and gas industry. It was the most significant new attempt to regulate drilling since a sweeping health and safety overhaul passed by Democrats in 2019, and the opposition it drew from deep-pocketed industry groups was similarly intense. In an eleventh-hour deal brokered by Gov. Jared Polis, proponents abruptly changed course, agreeing to drop most of the proposed regulations in favor of a new fee on oil and gas production to fund public transit and conservation projects. Other bills approved by lawmakers this session, which ended Wednesday, aim to establish or expand protections for disproportionately impacted communities, drinking water supplies and wild streams and wetlands. The 2024 legislative session was a win for the climate, for Colorado consumers, and for equity, Elise Jones, executive director of the Southwest Energy Efficiency Project, said in a statement. In particular, lawmakers approved unprecedented funding for bus and rail service across the state, and adopted a package of climate-friendly land use bills to enable more affordable and abundant housing opportunities in Colorados cities along transit lines, while reducing transportation pollution and traffic congestion. Separately from the package of ozone reforms, lawmakers for the first time considered a bill that sought to put an end date on oil and gas extraction in Colorado as part of the states efforts to address climate change. Similar plans to phase out drilling are underway in states like California and in countries around the world, but Colorados Senate Bill 24-159 likely never stood a chance; facing a veto threat from Polis, a Democrat, and lacking support from key Democratic lawmakers, it died in its first committee hearing in March. Air and water quality Senate Bill 24-229: Ozone mitigation measures One of two bills introduced late in the 2024 session as part of the compromise on oil and gas issues, SB-229 will make a relatively minor set of reforms to the way state agencies issue permits and enforce regulations on oil and gas operations. It will give Colorados Energy and Carbon Management Commission more explicit power to penalize operators and address the problem of orphaned wells, and codify a mandate on oil and gas producers to reduce emissions of so-called ozone precursors, which Polis first issued in an executive order last year. The bill has not yet been signed by the governor. Senate Bill 24-230: Oil and gas production fees Beginning in July 2025, this bill will levy new fees on oil and gas production in Colorado. The per-unit fees will be adjusted quarterly based on benchmark prices, but will roughly equate to a surcharge of about 0.5% per barrel of crude oil, and will raise between $100 million and $175 million in a typical year. The revenue will fund projects to offset the impacts of oil and gas pollution, with 80% allocated to public transit projects and the remainder used by Colorado Parks and Wildlife for land acquisition and habitat projects. SB-230s fees will substantially increase the share of oil and gas production revenue collected by the state, while doing little to offset its exceptionally low rates of conventional taxes on the industry, a Newsline analysis found. The bill has not yet been signed by the governor. House Bill 24-1338: Cumulative impacts and environmental justice Sponsored by Democratic state Reps. Manny Rutinel of Commerce City and Elizabeth Velasco of Glenwood Springs, HB-1338 directs the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment to carry out the recommendations of the states Environmental Justice Action Task Force. Those measures include increased oversight of the states only petroleum refinery, the Suncor facility in Commerce City, and the creation of a rapid response inspection team to act quickly to address air quality complaints. The bill has not yet been signed by the governor. House Bill 24-1379: Regulate dredge and fill activities in state waters Sponsored by Democratic House Speaker Julie McCluskie of Dillon and Republican state Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer of Weld County, HB-1379 reestablishes protections for certain streams and wetlands following a 2023 Supreme Court decision that excluded them from the federal Clean Water Act. The bill creates a new CDPHE permitting program to regulate dredge and fill activities that impact those waters, with a variety of exemptions, including for many agricultural operations. The bill has not yet been signed by the governor. Senate Bill 24-197: Water conservation measures Another bipartisan water bill, SB-197 would implement several conservation proposals endorsed by last years Colorado River Drought Task Force, including the expansion of a program for the temporary loaning of water rights to the Colorado Water Conservation Board to protect the environment. The bill has not yet been signed by the governor. Senate Bill 24-81: Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl chemicals SB-81 expands the states ban on products containing cancer-causing PFAS, so-called forever chemicals, to include new categories of items like nonstick cookware, ski wax and artificial turf. It was signed into law by Polis on May 1. Land use and transportation For the second legislative session in a row, climate and environmental advocates lined up in support of a push to steer Colorado land-use policy towards more abundant, higher-density housing development. Proponents say the reforms are a critical step towards meeting the states clean transportation and energy goals, but theyve run into stiff opposition from local governments and homeowners who object to the state interfering in local zoning and development policies. Following the defeat of a sweeping package of land-use reforms in the 2023 legislative session, sponsors revived several of its components in piecemeal fashion this year. House Bill 24-1313: Transit-oriented communities The most ambitious of 2024s housing bills, HB-1313 sets goals for Colorados most populous cities to increase housing density in areas nearest to public transit stations. It establishes a $35 million fund to support infrastructure in communities that meet the goals, but a controversial provision that wouldve withheld state highway funding from local governments that failed to comply was stripped from the bill prior to its passage by the Senate. The bill was signed into law by Polis on Monday. House Bill 24-1152: Accessory dwelling units Accessory dwelling units, sometimes called granny flats, are housing units built on a property with an existing single-family home. HB-1152 would legalize the construction of ADUs across virtually all residential areas in Colorados most populous cities and suburbs, prohibiting local governments from restricting their construction on any land zoned for single-family residential development. The bill was signed into law by Polis on Monday. House Bill 24-1007: Prohibit residential occupancy limits HB-1007 bars local governments from regulating the number of unrelated people who can live together in a housing unit, except for standards enforced based on building or fire codes. Low occupancy limits in cities like Boulder which prohibited more than three unrelated people from living together until last year, when it raised the limit to five have been a flashpoint in local battles over housing affordability. The bill was signed into law by Polis on April 15. House Bill 24-1304: Minimum parking requirements HB-1304 would prohibit local governments from enacting minimum parking requirements for new housing developments in areas nearest to transit service. Critics of such ordinances say they inflate the cost of constructing new housing units while exacerbating traffic congestion and vehicle pollution. Polis signed the bill into law on May 10. Senate Bill 24-184: Support surface transportation infrastructure development As the state ramps up efforts to win federal funding for a new passenger rail system along the Front Range, SB-184 would create a new revenue stream for rail infrastructure spending by levying a new fee of up to $3 per day on rental cars. Transportation officials said the $58 million raised annually by the new fee will help the state compete effectively for federal passenger rail grants. The bill has not yet been signed by the governor. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post How Colorados 2024 legislative session will impact the environment appeared first on Colorado Newsline. ATHENS, WV (WVNS) 40 students from Concord Universitys Upward Bound program traveled to the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine in Blacksburg, Virginia for a community event on Saturday, April 20, 2024. The community event, held by current veterinary students at the college, involved a variety of activities throughout the entire day such as lectures, club booths for all ages, all-day activities, and demonstrations. First virtual integrated career services website in West Virginia launched by Concord University Participating students had the opportunity to listen to the Dean of the College, who talked to them about veterinary studies. Students would have the chance to finish the undergraduate program at Concord University, before continuing to the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech. Photo Courtesy: Concord University Photo Courtesy: Concord University Photo Courtesy: Concord University Photo Courtesy: Concord University The students were also able to take a tour of the college, enjoy the activities, meet the veterinary medicine faculty, and learn about the programs. The event let the students learn more about ways to improve and protect human, environmental, and animal health. WVU Tech announces the Southern West Virginia Success Program, expanding access to higher education Services offered by the Upward Bound program are free, and the program helps students in Mercer, Monroe, McDowell, Greenbrier, and Summers counties. The Upward Bound program consists of three parts: the academic year program, a summer residential component, and a residential bridge component. During the academic year and non-bridge summer session, subjects the students will be involved in include foreign languages, mathematics, composition, laboratory science, and literature. Activities such as career exploration, study skills, multi-cultural awareness, computer science, and college cross disciplinary activities that help give the students a chance for a successful college entry, as well as tutoring, group and individual advising, and life skills are also available. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WVNS. (Photo courtesy of Pixabay | Public domain). A large logging project ended in an unusual way for many lawsuits involving logging, endangered species and federal agencies: It settled without years of litigation. Late last year, two conservation groups, Native Ecosystems Council and the Alliance for the Wild Rockies filed suit to halt a large logging project near Townsend, known as the Middleman Project, that they said hurt elk, grizzly bear and Canada lynx, the latter two of which are classified by the federal government as endangered species. Originally the project touched three Montana counties Lewis and Clark, Meagher and Broadwater counties and called for more than 53,000 acres of tree cutting and burning, 6,669 acres of commercial burning, and 45,934 acres of burning, plus more than 100 miles of road building. The groups had argued in federal court that the project was illegal and could disrupt critical habitat for several species. The project was originally slated as a 20-year project in the Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest and the Big Belt Mountain Range. Under the agreement, accepted by federal district court Judge Dana Christensen, the United States Forest Service can still move forward with aspects of the massive plan, including the Crouching Trout Timber sale, which authorizes nearly 25 miles of temporary or current road construction. The Crouching Trout timber portion covers approximately 1,600 acres. As part of the agreement, the Forest Service can continue with the associated activities in the Crouching Trout Timber sale. The service also agrees to limit prescribed burning to the inventoried wilderness areas of no more than 25% of any area. The U.S. Forest Service also agreed to produce annual summaries of the prescribed burning in the Middleman Project, including units where burning has occurred and the acres burned. The U.S. Forest Service also agreed to a $39,000 lump sum payment to settle claims of attorneys fees. Previously, the conservation groups had argued that the central Montana land was a key part of grizzly bears habitat and made it easier for genetic exchange between the populations of Yellowstone and Glacier National Park areas. We are thrilled that the Forest Service agreed to settle this case, said Mike Garrity, executive director for the Alliance of the Wild Rockies. We stopped over 100 miles of road construction and reconstruction in the forest, and we stoped over 5,000 acres of commercial logging in lynx and grizzly habitat. The post Conservation groups, U.S. Forest Service settle on details of logging project near Townsend appeared first on Daily Montanan. Construction of fortifications around Vovchansk was 'difficult,' official says The construction of fortifications around the border town of Vovchansk in Kharkiv Oblast was "difficult" due to constant Russian shelling, Tamaz Gambarashvili, the head of Vovchansk City Military Administration, told Radio Svoboda on May 13. Vovchansk, situated less than 5 kilometers (3 miles) from the Russian border, is currently a key focus of Russia's renewed push into Kharkiv Oblast. Russia launched the offensive operation on May 10 after carrying out intense aerial strikes in the direction of Vovchansk on May 9. Ukraine's General Staff said in a statement early on May 13 that Russia has "tactical success" in the fight for Vovchansk. Fortifications in the area were built and strengthened after the town was liberated from Russian occupation in September 2022, "but the situation was and is extremely difficult" due to the close proximity of Vovchansk to the Russian border, Gambarashvili said. "Vovchansk has been under constant shelling for a year and a half after deoccupation," which made it difficult to carry out construction work, Gambarashvili said. "It is very dangerous to work under shelling." The construction of fortifications was "perhaps not so tight," Gambarashvili added. Vovchansk, which had a population of almost 17,000 before the full-scale invasion, came under Russian occupation in February 2022. The town was liberated on Sept. 11, 2022, during Ukraines successful counteroffensive in Kharkiv Oblast. President Volodymyr Zelensky told the Kyiv Independent during a press conference in December 2023 that the most powerful fortifications had been constructed in Kharkiv Oblast. Read also: Civilians flee Vovchansk under Russian bombardment as ground offensive on Kharkiv begins Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Consequential pieces of evidence that may weigh heavily into the prosecution and defense of Bryan Kohberger are the focus of a pair of closed-door hearings this month as his high-profile murder case works itself nearer a trial. Kohbergers defense, led by public defender Anne Taylor, has alleged that prosecutors have intentionally kept from them key records and details about the University of Idaho student homicides that are due through the legal process known as discovery. Theyve filed several motions with the court to compel prosecutors to give up the evidence so they can do their own investigation and build their clients legal defense. The state knows full well what they have and what theyre withholding from us, Taylor said at a hearing earlier this month with Kohberger seated at her side. We dont know what theyre going to show, but we know they exist. The states approach with some of the evidence has led to delays in allowing the defense to prepare for trial and also contributed to delaying the case from even getting to trial, she said. Now, 18 months since the homicides, the case already has cost Idaho taxpayers more than $3.6 million, an Idaho Statesman investigation found. Despite the defenses repeated legal demands, Taylor said prosecutors have for months been unwilling to provide them with specific evidence that police relied on in the probable cause affidavit for Kohbergers arrest. That includes cellphone tower data, drive test information and the full video and audio of a white sedan near the King Road house in Moscow where the crime took place, she said. Kohberger, 29, a Pennsylvania man enrolled in a Washington State University graduate program at the time, is accused of the stabbing deaths of four U of I students in November 2022. He owned and drove a white 2015 Hyundai Elantra sedan. The student victims were seniors Kaylee Goncalves and Madison Mogen, both 21, junior Xana Kernodle and freshman Ethan Chapin, both 20. The three women lived at the off-campus house, and Chapin was staying over for the night with Kernodle, who was his girlfriend. From left, University of Idaho homicide victims, Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin. They were killed in a November 2022 attack at an off-campus house on King Road in Moscow. CBS 48 Hours Kohberger is charged with four counts of first-degree murder and one count of felony burglary and is eligible for the death penalty if convicted. The judge handling the case entered a plea of not guilty for Kohberger when he chose to stay silent at his arraignment last year. Prosecutors previously sought to restrict the defense from having access to some DNA records that the FBI produced while using a process known as investigative genetic genealogy, or IGG, to narrow the list of possible suspects. Judge John Judge of Idahos 2nd Judicial District in Latah County ruled in the defenses favor and awarded them the contested records. Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson, who is leading the case against Kohberger, rejected the defenses claims that the state has worked to prevent the release of certain evidence. The characterization that were just consciously withholding information to frustrate the defense is utter nonsense, Thompson told the court earlier this month. That is not true. We will provide everything we can that is providable under the rules. State prosecutors do not have in their possession the reports produced by the FBIs cellular data analyst team during the homicide investigation, for example, Thompson said. They will provide those to the defense once they receive them from the FBI, he said. They have been good partners, but they have their own rules to work with, Thompson said. We do not have it. We are not withholding. Its as simple as that. Subpoenas sent to FBI The two sides in the case have appeared increasingly testy with one another at hearings in the pretrial phase. Judge has called for the two sides to remain civil in the process in the lead up to a trial. I trust both of you, OK, your integrity. So I dont want this pointing of fingers back and forth. I dont think its very helpful, Judge said. I really want you all to just tone it down a little bit. You can argue all you want, but when it starts to be personal, its destructive. Youre really, really good lawyers, so lets just focus on the issues, he added. Judge signed subpoenas sent to the FBI to require the agency turn over some of the requested records. Separately, Thompson said prosecutors have for months been pursuing the so-called Touhy process, which is a federal requirement for the FBI to turn over records. The defense said it plans to call up to two expert witnesses for the hearing, possibly with a presentation. Judge granted prosecutors request to close that hearing so they can discuss specifics of certain evidence some of which may not be presented at trial out of the public eye to establish an unbiased jury trial. My job is to try to keep on a balance here, a neutral balance, where when we get to the trial if we ever get there that it will be fair, Judge said. Judge John Judge of Idahos 2nd Judicial District in Latah County is overseeing the murder case against defendant Bryan Kohberger. Kai Eiselein/Pool At a second closed hearing, the defense plans to address the IGG records it previously received in its pursuit of receiving permission to allow its investigators to review the protected content in the documents. The defense plans to call two expert witnesses and present a few exhibits as well, Taylor said. The list of witnesses and exhibits at the two hearings also was ordered sealed. At another hearing scheduled for June 27, attorneys on each side are scheduled to make arguments about whether the expected trial should be moved outside of the county where the crime occurred to seat an impartial jury. The state has indicated its opposition to the venue change, while Kohbergers defense has been conducting jury survey work to help justify the move to elsewhere in the state. Editors note: The story was updated at noon on May 14 after both hearings planned for this week were rescheduled to May 30. It has been revealed that the future security agreement between the EU and Ukraine will determine the forms of aid for Ukraine in the security and defence sector, as well as the mechanism of consultations in the event of future aggression. Source: Reuters with reference to the draft of the agreement, as reported by European Pravda Details: The document, which was prepared in April and is currently being discussed between the EU and Ukraine, says that in the event of "future aggression", the EU and Ukraine intend to determine Kyivs needs within 24 hours and decide on the next steps "swiftly" and in line with the established commitments. The draft also lists nine forms of security aid which the EU will continue providing Ukraine with, mainly armament supply, training soldiers, defence industry cooperation and help with demining. The commitments will remain in effect "as Ukraine pursues its European path" and will be reviewed in 10 years at the latest, the draft says. "It does not specify the value or quantity of future assistance. Details of proposed measures will have to be agreed separately among the EU's 27 member states, which also provide their own bilateral aid to Ukraine," Reuters writes. The draft of the security agreement also indicated that the EU agreed to allocate 5 billion for the European Peace Fund (EPF) for the military aid for Ukraine this year but there is no commitment to allocate the same amount in the coming years. European officials cited by Reuters stress that the agreement is not equal to the collective defence within NATO but is rather a commitment to supply Ukraine with weapons and other aid to strengthen its own security and to deter any future invasion. German media outlet Welt am Sonntag was the first to report about the draft agreement between Ukraine and the EU, stating that the document was planned to be finalised by the end of June. As of now Ukraine has signed bilateral security agreements with nine countries, Latvia being the last of them. Talks to sign an agreement with Norway have been finished as well. Support UP or become our patron! New Jersey's Legislature on Monday passed an overhaul of the state's public records law over the objections of civil rights organizations, academic researchers, civic groups, the press and others. It now heads to the desk of Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy, whose limited public comments on the bill have been noncommittal. The governor's signature would mean the first major changes to New Jersey's Open Public Records Act in two decades, and critics say it would "gut" access to government records. Critics of the legislation in the audience chanted shame as the Senate, back from taking a brief pause during an otherwise-uneventful voting session, quickly passed the bill with no debate. Some people in the audience jeered during the debate in the Assembly. The bill, NJ S2930 (24R), passed the Senate 21-10 the minimum number of votes needed for passage and the Assembly 42-28 with one abstention. We have talked to advocates, we have heard criticisms. There have been many, many amendments made to try to satisfy those, Senate President Nick Scutari told reporters after the vote. But some people will never be satisfied regardless of how you're going to reach out to them. Before the vote, the cameras that normally broadcast the Senates proceedings did not turn back on in time after the Senates pause to catch the vote, leaving the public outside of the Senate chambers with no way to observe the vote. The Assembly was a different story, with lawmakers holding a heated debate on the floor. The bills top sponsor in that house, Joe Danielsen, railed against abusers he said sought to catch records custodians with technical errors to be able to sue them and then offer to settle for cash. This is a good bill that continues to protect transparency, continues to protect citizens rights and continues to protect the taxpayers' resources and money, said Danielsen, a Democrat. One of his former colleagues in the Legislature strongly disagreed. "Today, the Democratic-led State Legislature, a body I served for more than two decades, collaborated with Republicans to fundamentally gut our Open Public Records Act," former Senate Majority Leader Loretta Weinberg, who tried to broaden access to public records, said in a statement. "Leadership reached across the aisle to pass this anti-democratic bill because they didn't have enough democratic votes in their caucus," she added. "Secrecy and evading accountability, I guess, has turned bipartisan. I could not be more disappointed in the New Jersey State Legislature." Supporters of the measure, mainly county and municipal government lobbying organizations, argue the 22-year-old statute needs to be modernized to catch up with technological advancements and deal with records requests from businesses. This is about saving taxpayer dollars. This is about modernizing something that occurred over 20 years ago, Scutari said. But the amendments to OPRA remove a major incentive for local governments to comply with records requests: Mandatory fee shifting, in which those governments have to cover the reasonable legal costs of anyone who successfully challenges a records request they denied. Under the new bill, judges would have the discretion over whether to award plaintiffs legal fees in records requests cases, unless they determine the denial was made in bad faith, unreasonably or the government agency knowingly or willfully violated the law. Advocates say that beyond just removing a mandatory penalty against governments that refuse legitimate requests, the change would make it much harder for a lawyer to take on precedential cases in which its not yet clear whether the record being sought should be publicly available. This, along with other changes to the bill, would gut access to public records, they argue. My office has received hundreds of emails and phone calls from constituents, 100 percent opposed to the legislation, to the point that the staff couldnt handle the volume of calls and let them go to voicemail, said state Sen. Andrew Zwicker, a Democrat who voted against the bill. The vote on the bill did not break down cleanly along party lines, though there was more opposition from Republicans than Democrats. Assemblymember Brian Bergen, a Republican, asked Danielsen if hed take some questions on the floor. Danielsen refused. Bergen alleged that members who voted yes on the bill did so because they were scared of retribution or in exchange for advancing their own legislation. Every yes vote that youre going to get today is either threatened to be that way or bought to be that way, and its disgusting, Mr. Speaker, Bergen said, later adding that If you vote for this bill today you are the exact person that people dont trust. The bill would appropriate $10 million, part of which would go to government agencies for technological upgrades to post more information online. Backers of the bill initially framed it as a way to cut down on commercial requests. But an earlier portion of the bill that would bar data brokers from requesting government documents was entirely removed in the latest version. Other controversial changes to the law include: Shifting the burden to justify charging special fees on OPRA requests that are allegedly time-consuming to vet and fill from governments agencies to the requesters themselves. Allowing government agencies to get protective orders from courts to limit the amount of requests a person can make if they show theres an an intent to substantially impair government operations. Requiring requesters to be more specific when searching for emails and other communications from government officials. Expanding the initial deadline to respond to commercial OPRA requests from 7 to 14 days, though it would allow commercial requesters to pay extra fees to have their requests expedited to 7 days. (In practice, the current seven-day deadline for all requesters is often extended, sometimes by months). Barring access to files metadata, except the part that identifies authorship, identity of editor, and time of change. Barring those who have received photos or video footage through a public records request from disseminating "any indecent or graphic images of the subjects intimate part without their consent. That language is similar to a prior bill proposed by Senate Minority Leader Anthony Bucco in response to a YouTuber who has posted numerous videos of young womens traffic stops. Bucco has since signed on as a prime sponsor of this legislation. Expanding the Government Records Council, which hears denial appeals, and fund it with $6 million. The number of public members would increase from three to eight. The public members, nominated by the governor and at the recommendation of legislative leaders, would earn a salary and would no longer be barred from holding public employment. In a radio interview last week, Murphy did not hint at whether he would sign the legislation, saying he sees the need to modernize the law but called transparency sacrosanct. There are good reasons to update it but I dont want to throw the proverbial baby out with the bathwater, Murphy said. CLARIFICATION: This report has been updated to reflect the updated vote count in the Assembly. The initial vote count shown on the Assembly board list changed after three lawmakers switched their votes after the fact. BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) A 51-year-old man was arrested after being accused of first-degree rape and indecent behavior with juveniles. On May 10, Christopher Francis was arrested by Baton Rouge Police Special Victims Unit for his accused connection to a sexual assault incident in July 2023. Court documents state the legal guardian of a 12-year-old girl reported to officers in August 2023 that the child was inappropriately touched. Detectives interviewed the juvenile and learned Francis reportedly brought the juvenile to the bedroom of his home. She told detectives he started acting really weird and touching her leg. The victim also told detectives that Francis asked her to share secrets with him in exchange for his. Upon sharing dreams, the victim said Francis told her about his dream of them kissing, according to the affidavit. Man, 11-year-old girl injured in two separate shootings in Livingston Parish In the affidavit, the victim told detectives that she tried to get away but Francis reportedly kept trying to get on top of her as she pushed him away. Detectives were notified that Francis reportedly put his hands under the juveniles sweatshirt and tried to touch her genitals before she pushed his hands away. Francis is accused of forcing the juvenile to engage in inappropriate activity, the affidavit states. The victim stated she left the room and ran to the restroom to throw up. A search was performed of the victims phone and detectives found a message sent to a friend describing the incident stating he made me do stuff even when I pushed him off. Detectives learned Francis is a registered sex offender with a previous arrest for a sexual offense with a minor, according to the Louisiana State Police sex offender registry. Francis was booked into the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison. Latest News For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to BRProud.com. As construction plans are nearing completion for the Tri-Cities first recovery center for mental health and addiction, Lourdes Health has a plan that could see one of the key services up and running within months. Preliminary design plans are expected to be finished by the end of the month for the Columbia Valley Center for Recovery. It will be housed at the old Kennewick General Hospital building at 900 S. Auburn St. in Kennewick. But Lourdes has come forward with a plan to get a separate 23-hour sobering center up and running ahead of the rest of the facility. Franklin County leaders could approve that as early as this month if theyre happy with the costs. The old Kennewick General Hospital on Auburn Street. Recovery center progress City and county leaders will be getting a look at program layouts for the recovery center over the next few weeks, to get an idea of what part of the building will likely be used for each of the four proposed services. Contractor Bouten Construction estimates hammers will start swinging in August with crews beginning interior demolition work and mechanical upgrades. They should also have a maximum guaranteed price for the facility by then. A floor plan will be finalized, and the design process is expected to wrap up, by October. The recovery center is currently on track for a Dec. 2025 completion. The facility will be used for in-patient residential treatment, secure withdrawal and 23-hour sobering services. The fourth service, crisis stabilization, will also be based there, but what shape that takes will depend on whether theyre able to renegotiate the deed restrictions with former owner LifePoint Health, which owns Trios and Lourdes. Crisis stabilization involves treatment for clients with primary diagnosis for mental illness. Theyll be assessed, diagnosed, and treated without the need for long-term hospitalization, according to the Recovery Centers website. Typical stays will be less than five days, but can be longer, either voluntarily or through court order. Unfortunately, movement on the deed restrictions hasnt made a lot of progress, Benton County Deputy Administrator Matt Rasmussen told the bi-county Behavioral Health Advisory Committee last week. Rasmussen said they hoped to negotiate right of first refusal with LifePoint, meaning the longer stay treatment would first be offered to their hospitals, and if they didnt have capacity, the recovery center could take it on. They rejected that offer. Lourdes CEO Mark Holyoak said he believes the likely reason for the rejection comes down to the language used in the restriction and potential for liability. He said he would go back to LifePoints board for clarification. The deed restriction was originally placed on the old KGH building to prevent a competitor coming in and offering identical services to Trios and Lourdes, but its proven to be a roadblock for the recovery center. Benton County bought the facility for the recovery center in 2022 for $1.6 million. The building is a bout 193,000-square feet and sits on eight-acres. County crews have been working to repair extensive damage to the building done by vandals when it sat vacant. The county put damage estimates at $3,000 to $4,000 a day when they declared an emergency in order to lock the building down. Benton County has seen thousands of dollars in damages at the former Kennewick General Hospital buildings because of broken windows, stolen pipes and busted cabinets. Rasmussen said theyll continue working with LifePoint, and hopefully find a way to bring the crisis stabilization online at that building. Benton County had initially looked at offering that service a few blocks away at a property they bought in the old Welchs juice plant, but the renovation costs ended up being much higher than anticipated. They still own that building, but plans for its use are on hold for now. Using that facility would have added an estimated $6 million to the recovery centers price tag, Rasmussen told the committee. A section of the old Welchs Juice plant in downtown Kennewick was planned to be part of a Benton County mental health and recovery facility, but proved too costly to renovate. Sobering center In the meantime though, Holyoak said there is something Lourdes can do to make a big difference: open a sobering center at its Pasco campus. If approved funding is approved by Franklin County commissioners, they believe it could open within three to six months. That timeframe is almost completely dependent on licensing through the state. The sobering center would be treated as an outpatient service, overseen by the main hospital. Lourdes Medical Center in Pasco. They plan to use a building the hospital leases at 516 W. Margaret St., between the hospital and the Franklin County Courthouse. The sobering center would operate as a stop-gap between now and when the full recovery center opens. Once the larger facility is open, they plan to reevaluate needs, but its likely 23-hour sobering services could continue being offered at both locations. The sobering center is a key ask from the local hospitals and law enforcement, because it creates a way to divert non-emergency patients from the ER waiting rooms and helps police offer options beyond just taking someone to jail. The primary costs for the sobering center will be the staff. Holyoaks said any renovation needed will be done by Lourdes, but he doesnt expect much to be needed after a recent walk-through. Annually it will cost $900,000 to $1 million to operate, according to a Lourdes estimate presented to Franklin County commissioners last week. Thats nearly all staffing costs, with the difference between the low and high estimates coming from salaries. The estimated wages for most of the employees peer recovery specialists and withdrawal aids will range from $19 to $23 per hour. They anticipate having about a dozen employees for 24/7 staffing with employees working 12-hour shifts with 16 beds in the facility. A sobering center would be a voluntary recovery option, which means patients can come and go. They can stay for just a few hours or up to 23. For patients who want to get clean, the peer recovery specialists will help direct them to longer term care options, and get them started on their sobriety journey. Lourdes Medical Center in Pasco Funding, other initiatives If Franklin County commissioners choose to use their 0.01 cent sales tax collection to pay for the sobering center, they could partner with Benton County through an interlocal agreement to help offset some of the funding needs. Rasmussen told Franklin County Administrator Mike Gonzalez that their construction funds for the behavioral health center are tied up, but they may be able to help with ongoing costs. But first, Franklin County will have to make the decision to move forward. Costs for operating the Columbia Valley Center for Recovery are being paid for through a combination of sales tax collection, state and federal grants and money from Opioid lawsuit settlements. The money for construction on the center is largely from grants and American Rescue Plan Funding. Comprehensive Healthcare, which won the contract to operate the recovery center, is also expected to bring a plan for crisis field responders to the committee this month. That could be approved in June if the committee is happy with the plan and its potential costs. Columbia Basin College also will be launching a new addiction and recovery related program this fall to help educate future mental healthcare workers in the region. They plan to have classes available for certification and as electives to supplement other healthcare credentials. More details on those courses should be available this summer. Some Democrats are hoping to have their say in the Republican primary for York County sheriff, and that isnt sitting well with the local Republican Party chairman. It started with a post on Facebook from York County Councilman William Bump Roddey. The Democratic councilman urged Democratic voters to study the Republican candidates for sheriff and then vote in the Republican primary in June. If the Republicans are the only ones that put up a candidate, then we want the best Republican thats going to take our interests into consideration, Roddey told Channel 9s Tina Terry. Terry has been covering the evolving sheriffs race since current sheriff Kevin Tolson announced he wouldnt be running for re-election. The Republican Party reopened its primary race to welcome a few more contenders, but theres no Democrat in the running for sheriff in November, meaning the Republican primary is the de facto sheriffs election. PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Its legal in South Carolina, but Republican Party Chairman Larry Barnett recently sent an email to party members saying it shouldnt be. For years, we have been asking for our so-called Republican legislature to close our primaries to keep the liberals, socialists and communists from voting in our GOP primary, Barnett said in the email. Weve not been able to get our legislature to pass a bill closing our primaries, Barnett said in a phone call with Terry. Republican state House Rep. Brandon Newton introduced House Bill 3695 recently, which would put an end to cross-party voting, with the exception of unaffiliated voters. Lets say theres no Republican primary and theres a few people running against me for my house seat. I know one of them is way easier for me to defeat, [the bill] would stop me from all my friends voting in their primary to vote for the weaker candidate to come out, Newton said. Barnett doesnt support the bill because it allows unaffiliated voters to participate in the primary they choose. Hes hoping for tougher legislation. Some voters told us they want to leave things just the way they are, while others supported ending cross-party voting. On May 30 at Freedom Temple, the Democratic Party is hosting a meet and greet with candidates for York County sheriff and solicitor. You can learn more about the candidates for the June 11 primary at this link. (WATCH: Deputy shoots, kills York Co. suspect while serving warrant, sheriffs office says) Editors Note: This article was published by the twice-weekly newsletter The Counteroffensive with Tim Mak on May 12, 2024, and has been re-published by the Kyiv Independent with permission. To subscribe to "The Counteroffensive," click here. Prisoner negotiations between Ukraine and Russia are one of the many things obscured by the fog of war. Even the wives of prisoners of war (POWs) don't find out their husbands are being freed until they are on Ukrainian soil. One woman attended these prisoner exchanges while her husband was in Russian captivity if only in an attempt to get closer to what he must have been feeling. The woman, who asked to remain anonymous, said that POWs are given food as soon as they arrive back in Ukraine. She said one can't really communicate with them until they've eaten. When the prisoners are released, they can be broken. There was a Ukrainian soldier who was given a chocolate bar I watched him unwrap it, hold it to his face, close his eyes, and slowly breathe in the smell, she said quietly, looking down at her feet and shaking her head. It still gives me goosebumps thinking about it. The woman received a call a few months later from Ukraine's Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War. She was told that her husband had been returned. But not everybody is so lucky. After a few days of silence from her husband, Serhii, Maria feared the worst. Serhii, who defended Ukraines last stronghold in now-occupied Mariupol, the Azovstal steelworks plant, was captured in May 2022. He is one of the over 900 soldiers with Ukraines Azov Brigade still held captive in Russia. It has been more than a year and I still dont know anything about him or his whereabouts, she told The Counteroffensive. Read also: Opinion: Will the renewed US support for Ukraine be enough? With Russias full-scale war against Ukraine in its third year, possibly the only cooperation between the two countries is done by a special group within the Coordinating Headquarters tasked with negotiating prisoner exchanges. Ukraine and Russia have undertaken over 50 prisoner swaps since the start of the full-scale war, with a total of over 3,000 POWs returned to Ukraine. Maria, like the relatives of other Ukrainian POWs in Russian captivity, has no idea if or when her husband will be returned. The inner workings of Ukraine and Russias negotiations over prisoner swaps are almost impossible to understand or predict even to the negotiators. The Counteroffensive spoke to Konstantinas Rimsa, a hostage negotiations specialist who helped train Ukrainian POW negotiators from 2014 to 2022. Rimsa explained that Russia is very ready to delay and obstruct the POW negotiations. They (Russia) know Ukraine has a manpower shortage, he explained. And a good percentage of POWs will go back into the fight in Ukraine. According to the Coordinating Headquarters' spokesperson Petro Yatsenko, Russia's policy is "not to support us (Ukraine), not to give us any clear information." Russia also knows that holding onto Ukrainian soldiers causes problems for President Volodymyr Zelensky at home. Yatsenko noted that Russia has been known to tell captives' relatives that, if they go out and protest, their loved ones will be returned an attempt to spark division. So when the negotiators are finally across the table from each other, its crucial for them to play their cards right. They'll have their opening lines ready, a list of what they're ready to negotiate and what they're not, and a list of what they could negotiate under certain circumstances, according to Rimsa. It's also vital that they do not lie. The families of Ukrainian soldiers in Russian captivity demonstrate in support of their release in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Oct. 18, 2023. (Andriy Zhyhaylo/Obozrevatel/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images) You have to come across as reliable as possible If you do lie, you have to write it down and keep it as a reminder, Rimsa emphasized. Just as important as how one prepares for the negotiations are the characters of those taking part. You have to have a healthy mind, otherwise you wont be able to do the job you can only teach relaxation exercises and breathing exercises. But small psychological techniques won't work if you pick the wrong person, he explained, adding that, when negotiations can go on for up to 10 hours, stamina and mental fortitude are key. Rimsa added that there are psychologists stationed outside the room to ensure the negotiator remains calm. The psychologists also use a neurolinguistic programming technique known by the acronym MICE money, ideology, compromise, ego to create a character profile of the opposing negotiator. For example, one side could send in a negotiator that looks "almost identical" to but twice the size of the negotiator on the other side. While this approach is more often used in hostage rather than POW negotiations, Rimsa said there are always psychological considerations, like why the opposite side might want a given prisoner. However, Yatsenko noted that its almost impossible to find a pattern to understand which soldiers Russia might want to exchange: Every prisoner swap formula is unique it's a very difficult, long-term process." Read also: Opinion: The REPO Act hasnt won the war for Russian assets Yatsenko gave the example of a time when Ukraine agreed with Russia to exchange 10 heavily injured Ukrainian POWs. According to him, it would have been beneficial for Russia to return them to Ukraine, given that they would have incurred heavy medical costs. However, Russia instead returned five injured and five uninjured soldiers. We have no idea why, Yatsenko said, shaking his head. The different categories of those held captive also influences and complicates the exchanges, according to Rimsa. Many captives are civilians people who got caught in filtration camps in Russian-occupied territory in Ukraine. He noted that, if Ukraine sets a precedent for exchanging Russian soldiers for Ukrainian civilians, Russia would have an incentive to capture more civilians, which it could very easily do in occupied territory. With each negotiation being totally different and the result of a unique set of factors, Maria watches these POW exchanges carefully, hoping that one day her husband Serhii will be freed too. Editors Note: The opinions expressed in the op-ed section are those of the authors and do not purport to reflect the views of the Kyiv Independent. Submit an Opinion Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) El Paso Countys Veteran Services will be hosting an unveiling ceremony for a glass case dedicated for the Unaccompanied Veteran Burials Program. The ceremony will take place at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, May 14 at the County Commissioners Courtroom, at 500 East San Antonio Ave. According to the news release by the county, the Unaccompanied Veterans Program is established for eligible veterans with no-known next-of-kin or those who are unable to attend, to ensure standard internment procedures with military honors at Texas State Veterans Cemeteries. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTSM 9 News. The High Anti-Corruption Court on May 13 arrested in absentia Oleh Hladkovsky, a former first deputy secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council, Ukraine's Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) reported. Hladkovsky was dismissed and charged in 2019 over the purchase of vehicles for the military at artificially inflated prices, allegedly costing the state more than Hr 17 million (now $430,000). He has held the position since 2015. The official has been declared wanted in mid-April. Hladkovsky, who was a long-time business partner and associate of former President Petro Poroshenko, was detained in October 2019. The court released Hladkovsky from detention in March 2022 while the investigation was still ongoing. SAPO and the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) said that after his release, Hladkovsky, aged 54, stopped appearing in court and went abroad. Men aged 18-60 are prohibited from leaving the country under martial law, save for some exceptions. Subscribe to Ukraine Daily newsletter News from Ukraine in your inbox Subscribe In 2022, pictures of Hladkovsky in Warsaw surfaced, with Ukraine's Border Guard saying he left abroad for humanitarian work. Hladkovsky was charged with abuse of office and providing false information on income. According to the investigation, Hladkovsky, along with an ex-deputy defense minister and a director of the ministry's military-technical policy department, purchased MAZ 6317 trucks at inflated prices in 2017. The car manufacturer was a subsidiary of the Auto Assembly Plant No. 2, which was a part of Hladkovsky's Bogdan Corporation. In February 2019, an investigation by Bihus.Info connected Hladkovsky's son Ihor to an extensive corruption scheme in Ukraine's defense industry. Read also: Court arrests State Property Funds ex-head in absentia Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Donald Trumps ongoing hush money trial is the pinnacle of American spectacle, a lurid phantasmagoria of shifty lawyers and adult failsons (Hi, Eric!) tweeting their way through the embarrassment of public scrutiny. Any hard-nosed political reporter would kill for a regular spot in the courtroom, and visual artist Isabelle Brourman is one of the lucky few. The Pittsburgh native works in several mediums, but her current focus is courtroom sketches, which shes producing at a breakneck clip for New York magazine while covering the trial. Courtroom sketching is a centuries-old art, and its practitioners in the New York City media scene are mostly old-guard traditionalists. At 30, Brourmans age sets her apart from her peers, but its her sketches that are the truly extraordinary draw. Rather than capturing one person at a time, Brourmans watercolor and colored-pencil figures overlap and bleed into one another like atoms clustered within the same organism. Theres abstraction at play here, but journalistic diarism too. And Brourman doesnt just draw the major players like Trump, who in her renderings appears moody and simian; she folds the emotional atmosphere of the courtroom into her final products. Her sketch from the day of the hush money trials opening statements, seen below, buzzes with the anxiety of overlapping agendas. Brourman cut her teeth as a courtroom sketch artist during another high-profile legal saga: the Johnny Depp v. Amber Heard defamation trial in 2022, during which the ex-spouses gave extensive, disturbing testimony detailing the others allegedly abusive behavior. Depp was previously found by a U.K. judge to have abused Heard on 12 separate occasions, a ruling for which there was overwhelming evidence, the original court filing stated. Heard, meanwhile, wept on the stand as she claimed her ex sexually assaulted her with a liquor bottle. But the internet, fueled by endless reels of footage from the televised trial, overwhelmingly went along with Depps version of events: that Heard was a liar who had physically assaulted him on multiple occasions, and who had defamed him when she described herself as a public figure representing domestic abuse. During the proceedings, Depps fans would pack the courtroom every single day in a show of support for the actor. Isabelle Brourman John Taggart Brourmans decision to sketch the trial firsthand was spontaneous at the time, but now feels fated. As she recently explained to The Daily Beast, she became intrigued by Depps narrative because she herself was recovering from trauma; she said she was groomed and abused by a professor at the University of Michigan when she was 19. (In 2021, she and seven other women filed a lawsuit against the school over the alleged abuse.) Finding a community of fellow survivors compelled her to follow Depp v. Heard. So one day, Brourman hopped in her car and drove from her home in Brooklyn to the courthouse in Fairfax, Virginia. She initially sat among the public, but eventually submitted her work to her media contacts and got approved for press access. There were people there that drained their entire fucking savings to be there for Johnny Depp, she told The Daily Beast, explaining how the proceedings inspired both her art and her frame of mind. A minefield of themes of fanaticism and delusion when it comes to forming an intimate bond with a superstar. And then you watch the superstar over and over and over again gesture in the same way, and it starts to feel quite surreal. Meanwhile, Trumps criminal trialin which the former president is charged with 34 counts of falsifying business recordsis like Gotham, Brourman said. Trump is also very charismatic and he has the same thing that Depp has as far as being comfortable in front of the cameras. But Trump is a lot more heavy-handed than Depp. Depps performance almost had more female gaze to it. Compared with Trumps civil fraud case earlier this year, for which Brourman also attended and sketched the proceedings, Trump is much more under the gun during the ongoing criminal trial, and I think all of us in the room are tired, she said. Even so, she told The Daily Beast, shes enjoying the task of capturing the raw power in the room. She likes dressing up for court days, she said, because it affords her the strategic advantage of being underestimated by her peers, who are more concerned with tradition and realism. Isabelle Brourman John Taggart I have the privilege of being free and not having to get anything done thats like, I have to get a perfect portrait of the witness today, Brourman said. Thats what the other sketch artists have to do. I respect it. Its hard work. But what Im doing is, Oh, I want to map that persons skin, because theyre reddening at certain things. Im noticing that the hands are clasping here, so I think Im gonna do this. I do love the psychology of, Whens the moment when you think nobodys watching? Brourman went on. Chances are, Im watching. At Trumps civil trial earlier this year, Brourman said, she even experienced being watched backby Trump himself. He leaned over and told me he was going to judge my work, she said. He looked at my sketch and said, Huh, I have to lose some weight. And Im like, damn, I held up a mirror and he accepted, reflected, self-criticized. I was like, thats powerful. So I show up at [the criminal trial], and Im like, he lost some weight! Brourman added. See, this is literally why art is important. A Real Housewives-ian Twist: Stormy Daniels Makes the Trump Trial Sexy Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. Cowtown has an official bird. See which one made the cut to represent Fort Worth The Eastern Bluebird beat out five other avian competitors to earn the honor of being Fort Worths official bird. The selection came as part of a collaboration between the city and the Fort Worth school district. Students from 18 Fort Worth schools researched and presented their birds sharing fun facts and making arguments as to why their assigned species deserved to represent the city. The other species in the running were the barred owl, Carolina chickadee, red-bellied woodpecker, red-shouldered hawk and great egret. The Eastern Bluebird stood out for embodying qualities like hope, happiness, peace and joy, according to a school district press release. The idea for the contest came out of a professional learning event attended by the districts science department on ways to engage students in culturally relevant instruction, district spokesperson Cesar Padilla told the Star-Telegram in December 2023. Students were studying the state bird of Texas, the (northern) mockingbird, and the district thought it would be a good opportunity to engage students by picking a bird for the local community, Padilla said. The project also gave students an opportunity to research, collect data, and construct explanations and develop arguments, which are all important characteristics of being a scientist, said district science curriculum chief Rocco Williams in the press release. The Eastern Bluebird has a range stretching from as far north as Maine and as far south as the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico, but it spends most of its time in the southern United States between the Metroplex and the Carolinas, according to Cornell University and a presentation by students at Westcliff Elementary School. It also has a reputation for friendliness, which one student argued fits well with Texas reputation as the one of the friendliest states in the nation. Another student noted that Eastern Bluebirds eat invasive pests like mosquitoes, and wont attack household pets unlike another contestant, the Red Shouldered Hawk. The Fort Worth city council will pass a proclamation at its May 14 meeting at City Hall recognizing the Eastern Bluebirds triumph. The six unions that contract with Cincinnati Public Schools will hold a press conference Monday afternoon to announce the results of their votes of no confidence in Superintendent Iranetta Wright. The unions which represent thousands of employees for the school district including teachers, principals, assistant principals, secretaries, custodians, engineers, food service workers, counselors and other personnel met with their members last week to take the votes after months of frustration and delays regarding the district's budget process. At a recent school board meeting,board President Eve Bolton said the district can't, at this point, avoid cutting staff members. "Right now we have not cut enough to close the gap, let alone build the budget," Bolton said. District leaders aren't sure yet how many personnel cuts will be needed. More: Complaints mount against Cincinnati Superintendent Iranetta Wright: 'It's all about her' But employees' distrust in Wright outdates the most recent budget snafu. Last spring, union leaders representing over 200 district administrators, principals and assistant principals sent a letter to the school board listing several concerns with Wright's leadership. They said her micromanagement leads to inefficiencies and confusion among staff, that she embarrasses employees in meetings and has sparked a fear of retaliation for anyone who speaks up against her. Julie Sellers is president of the Cincinnati Federation of Teachers. Current and former employees recently spoke to The Enquirer detailing their experiences with the superintendent and her inner circle. They raised issue with her about what they say is her need to be the center of attention and a culture of bullying that's persisted under her leadership. One employee says the district is trying to fire her for speaking out. Her work email was deactivated last week, less than three weeks after speaking with The Enquirer. Wright declined an interview to respond to those complaints, but wrote in an email to The Enquirer: "I deeply care about the work and input of all of our employees, who are essential to helping improve outcomes for all students. We have worked hard to build a culture of accountability, recognition and celebration." Several community leaders have come out in support of Wright over the last few weeks. Board member Ben Lindy, who was board president when Wright was hired, maintains she is "the most talented superintendent we've had in a long time." Ozie Davis III, a former board member, posted a photo with Wright to Facebook on Wednesday with the hashtag "#StayStrongSup." The unions alerted school board members about the impending votes on May 3. The Enquirer obtained the letter through an Ohio Open Records Act request. It was signed by all six union leaders: "None of the unions have faith in the superintendent's leadership," the letter reads. "Our district is in chaos, and we need decisive action and a change in leadership to move forward." The district's unions will make an announcement Monday at 4 p.m. outside of the Mary A. Ronan Education Center, located at 2651 Burnet Ave. The Enquirer will update this story. This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Vote results: CPS unions have no confidence in Superintendent Wright Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said he will decide on a potential 2028 presidential run down the road, but for now he is focused on backing former President Trump. Cruz was asked in an interview with Fox News Digital about whether he would consider running for president again in the future. Well, listen, that, thats a decision that will be made down the road, Cruz said in the interview. I can tell you right now 100 percent of my time and energy is focused on 2024. Im in a very serious fight in 2024. We need to win the presidency in 2024. Im supporting Donald Trump. Cruz was first sworn in to the Senate in 2013. He announced in 2015 that he was running for the White House in 2016, and frequently clashed with Trump on the campaign trail. Trump hurled insults at Cruz and his family throughout that first campaign, nicknaming him Lyin Ted, insulting his wifes appearance and accusing Cruzs father of helping to assassinate former President Kennedy. Cruz hit back at Trump at the time, and did not endorse him at the Republican National Convention. But he ultimately did endorse Trump in the 2016 election and has grown to be a reliable ally, endorsing the former presidents third bid for the White House earlier this year. Cruz is now slated to face off against Rep. Colin Allred (D-Texas) in Novembers election. According to The Hill/Decision Desk HQs polling average, Cruz has a 7.4 percentage point lead over Allred in the polls. Cruz also said in the interview that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is targeting his reelection campaign. Our country cannot stand for more years of disastrous Biden, Democrat policies. Theyve done enormous damage to the country. And we need to win my race in Texas. Its the number one target for Chuck Schumer. Its the number one target, he said. Barack Obama just tweeted out a map of states: Here are the states we as Democrats are going to target. And he put Texas right front and center. Theyre coming after me, he added. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. (NEXSTAR) The Normandy American Cemetery is fulfilling its promise to mark the graves of Jewish soldiers with a Star of David. Marble crosses mark the graves of more than 9,000 soldiers buried at the cemetery. In recent years, theres been an effort to acknowledge the soldiers of Jewish heritage who hid their religion. And after the end of the war, the Jewish community asked for their servicemen to be buried under a Star of David, Historian Anthony Foulquier said. And 79 years later, we are still honoring this promise. Now, there are 152 Stars of David marking the graves of soldiers in the Normandy American Cemetery. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to DC News Now | Washington, DC. Nancy Iskander and her husband, Karim, leave the Van Nuys courthouse in April 2022 during a preliminary hearing in the murder trial of Rebecca Grossman. Grossman was later convicted in the deaths of the couple's sons Mark and Jacob, ages 11 and 8. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times) The Los Angeles County district attorney's office has taken the highly unusual step of removing the prosecutors who convicted Rebecca Grossman of double murder, outraging the parents of the two young boys she killed in a Westlake Village crosswalk. Dist. Atty. George Gascons office replaced prosecutors Jamie Castro, Ryan Gould and their supervisor, Garrett Dameron, after claiming a conflict of interest in the Grossman case. The trio reported during trial to Assistant Dist. Atty. Diana Teran, who was recently charged with 11 felonies in connection with the illegal use of confidential sheriff's records. Teran is represented by James Spertus, Grossman's new attorney. The district attorneys top bosses told Dameron the prosecutors were being removed so anyone who worked with Teran would be walled off from the case going forward. But according to an email by Dameron to his superiors, the move was taken only after his team suggested that Spertus, who is seeking a new trial for Grossman, could end up questioning Teran's decisions in the case. Dist. Atty. Chief Deputy Joseph Iniguez said in an interview Monday that the prosecution will now be led by Habib Balian, assistant head deputy of the Major Crimes Division. After first pulling the previous prosecutors from the case entirely, Iniguez said Gould and Castro will assist. Iniguez said he decided a change of command was needed to distance the team from Teran, whose charging led to unusual circumstances. There was a perceived internal conflict with these supervisors having reported to an attorney [Teran] represented by the same attorney as Ms. Grossman, Iniguez said. But Dameron said his superiors are now backpedaling. Thats not what I was told on Friday, he said in a brief interview with The Times on Monday. The prosecution change comes at a potentially vital moment as sentencing for Grossman has been delayed until at least June. She has been awaiting sentencing since her Feb. 23 conviction of second-degree murder in the deaths of brothers Mark and Jacob Iskander, 11 and 8, who were struck and killed in a crosswalk as Grossman sped along a residential Westlake Village street in September 2020. The boys' mother, Nancy Iskander who testified at trial she saw Grossman's white SUV speed through the intersection where her boys were walking said Gould told her Friday that he, Castro and Dameron were being removed. In a Mother's Day interview with The Times, she expressed outrage over the decision and questioned why she was being made a victim again. "This is truly shocking and disappointing," Iskander said. Read more: Parents of boys killed by Grossman take solace in her murder conviction: 'We finally can move on' Dameron echoed that sentiment in an email to Iniguez. "In my nearly 24 years in the office, this decision is shocking and unprecedented. I also believe it is contrary to professional ethics and to thwart our clear duty of candor to the court," Dameron wrote. "At the very least, this extraordinary decision jeopardizes the successful completion of the case and the impartial administration of justice." During the six-week murder trial against Grossman, Teran was in constant supervisory contact with the prosecution. Last month, after Teran was charged, Gould and Castro notified the judge of the conflict because Spertus represents both Grossman and Teran. Iskander said the decision "took me a few steps back in my healing process." She said that instead of seeking to oust the conflicted defense attorney, the D.A.'s office is now taking away the people who delivered justice to her family. "I am being punished for something I had nothing to do with. They choose to punish the victim," she said. "They have a motion for a new trial. We have things that only Ryan who knows the case so well and knows the defendant so well can deal with. "We were looking forward to closing the case. Sentencing was soon," she continued. "For me, all of a sudden to have to meet another prosecutor and work with them they don't know my family or the boys." Iskander said she has asked the D.A.'s office to reverse its decision. As the Grossman prosecution's top boss, Teran was involved in daily strategy of the trial, according to internal district attorney's communications reviewed by The Times. Since the trial ended, Teran has been charged in a felony case. On April 24, California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta charged her with 11 felonies in connection with the downloading of records in 2018 while working at the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department. Teran impermissibly used those records after joining Gascons office, Bonta alleged. Spertus has denied any wrongdoing by Teran. Spertus, who took over Grossman's case after her conviction, said there is "no conceivable/arguable/theoretical conflict of interest." Read more: D.A. accuses Rebecca Grossman of 'illegal conduct' from jail, her legal team of jury tampering Dameron, however, said there is. He wrote in his email to Iniguez that the removal of the prosecutors came after a proposed motion to remove Spertus from the case, arguing that Grossman cannot waive any conflict. He said prosecutors were given a "very vague explanation" that they "had to be walled off because Diana Teran was our supervisor during a period of time of the prosecution," but said the conflict is actually with Spertus "representing both of these defendants." According to Dameron's email, prosecutors "became aware of a witness who had critical information regarding Grossmans continued efforts to obstruct justice from inside the county jail" shortly after Spertus became her attorney on March 22. Based on recorded jailhouse telephone calls, prosecutors also were aware Grossman was trying to have her husband and daughter talk to trial witnesses to change their testimony. The jailhouse witness had information important to "preserving the integrity of our verdict and the safety of our witnesses," Dameron wrote. "As instructed, I sent a request to interview the witness to Teran," Dameron wrote. "To our shock, Teran denied our request to conduct this interview. I repeatedly asked for an explanation and was not given one." On Monday, Iniguez told The Times, "The decision to re-assign the matter was necessary to address any perceived internal conflict over past issues of supervision." Rebecca Grossman, second from left, with her husband, Dr. Peter Grossman, and daughter, Alexis. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) Teran has long been represented by Spertus' law firm. According to a 2019 deposition, she was represented by Spertus' colleague, Samuel Josephs, during a civil case involving allegations over confidential sheriff's records that ultimately led to last month's criminal charges. Spertus has insisted Teran is innocent and said the documents in question were obtained either through public court files or involved findings of dishonesty against sheriffs deputies, which would be public record under Senate Bill 1421, Californias landmark police transparency law. He said he plans to file a motion Monday to seek a new trial for Grossman on the basis of prosecutorial misconduct, alleging the prosecutors misstated facts. If the prosecutors were removed, it was because they didn't follow the courts orders, in my mind, Spertus told The Times. Read more: Liquor, Valium, speed and recklessness: The D.A.'s case against Rebecca Grossman In his email, Dameron argued that if the Grossman prosecutors need to be removed because they worked with Teran, then all prosecutors who have worked with public corruption and law enforcement prosecution would also need to be replaced since Teran supervises those cases as well. "This decision gives off the appearance that there is a greater concern for protecting other collateral players (such as the administration and Diana Teran) than seeing that justice is done and that the interests of the family of Jacob and Mark Iskander (the two little boys murdered by Grossman) are safeguarded," Dameron wrote in the email, which concluded with him asking Iniguez to reconsider the "terrible decision." Iniguez countered that the move was made with the "utmost consideration" for the Iskander family and to "protect the integrity of the legal process and the jury verdict." The move is the latest controversy in the Grossman case. In March, Gould and Castro sought to have her jailhouse privileges revoked after a series of recorded telephone calls from the Twin Towers jail to her family instructed them to release evidence that had been sealed during her double murder trial and to track down witnesses to get them to say their testimony was directed. But Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Joseph Brandolino refused to move Grossman to a part of the jail system where her mail is checked and where she would have no access to phones or visitors, except for her attorneys, saying the punishment wasn't necessary. In denying the motions, Brandolino warned Grossman's new defense lawyers, led by Spertus, that going forward, any release of evidence under seal would result in financial sanctions for them and he would report them to the State Bar. Grossman's lawyers also successfully petitioned the judge to delay her sentencing, which had been scheduled for April, until at least June so Spertus could review the voluminous court record as he prepares for a motion for a new trial. Grossman is facing 34 years to life in prison. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. Source: Woman dead, another in critical condition after liposuction procedure at Somerville home A law enforcement source tells Boston 25 News that one woman is dead and another is in critical condition after the pair underwent liposuction in a Somerville home. Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan confirmed that authorities are investigating the death of an Everett woman and the hospitalization of a Somerville woman after they underwent the same medical procedure inside a home last week. On Friday around 4:30 p.m., Everett Police responded to a Bucknam Street home for a woman in medical distress. That woman, the 35-year-old resident of the home, was transported to CHA Everett where she was pronounced dead, according to Ryan. Emergency transmissions indicated she had come back from surgery earlier in the day -- and that EMTs could not get a blood pressure. During efforts to revive the woman, police were alerted to the possibility the woman underwent illegal surgery -- which was eventually traced to 91 Central Street in Somerville -- a khaki-colored triple-decker with no indication it serves as a medical office. Sources told 25 Investigates on Monday that both women underwent a liposuction procedure. Its unknown who performed these procedures -- though the source said it was a female. It remains unknown whether she had a medical license and/or experience performing liposuction. A co-worker of the deceased woman also underwent liposuction and also ended up in the hospital, where she is in critical condition, a source tells Boston 25 News. On Friday, police removed what appeared to be medical waste from the house. Such experience is critical. While liposuction in the U.S. carries an overall complication rate of under three percent, it can result in serious side effects -- especially if large volumes are removed. As fluid in the body shifts, organs such as the kidneys, heart and lungs come under strain. Other possible side effects include infection, internal puncturing, blood clots and hemorrhage. DA Ryan would not confirm the women underwent liposuction. We do know that one individual who had some type of medical procedure has passed away, Ryan said. We know that theres another whos hospitalized. The cause of the Everett womans death is pending as medical examiners investigate. State and local police assist the Middlesex District Attorneys Office with the investigation. Anyone with any information should contact Somerville Police at (617) 625-1600 or Massachusetts State Police Detectives at 781-897-6600. 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 Ben Riley-Smith was in the room as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak delivered a speech on national security at the Policy Exchange in London, listen to his analysis on today's The Daily T podcast - Carl Court/REUTERS The UK would be less secure with Sir Keir Starmer in 10 Downing Street, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak warned in a speech today. In their first ever episode of The Daily T, Kamal Ahmed and Camilla Tominey are joined by Telegraph Political Editor Ben Riley-Smith to discuss Mr Sunaks pitch on national security and why its quite hard to weaponise the threat of a grey, sincere bloke - Mr Starmer. Plus, is it safe to have a baby in the UK? And was Prince Harry and Meghans visit to Nigeria a triumph - or a flop? Listen to The Daily T on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts, and subscribe to The Daily T newsletter for updates. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Dangerous decision: Teen hikers from Boston area rescued from Mount Flume trail in New Hampshire Three teenagers and a man from the Boston area were among a small group of unprepared hikers who were rescued from a trail in the White Mountains region over the weekend, officials said. The teens, who are ages 13 and 14, and Jonathan Long, 26, were rescued from a trail on Mount Flume on Saturday night after calling for help, New Hampshire Fish and Game officials said. At around 9 p.m. on Saturday, New Hampshire Fish and Game learned that a group of hikers on the Flume Slide Trail had called for help. The group was approximately 3 miles from the Liberty Springs Trailhead at the Franconia Notch State Park Bike Path, officials said. They were descending the Flume Slide trail but could no longer continue because they had no lights and also did not have equipment to overnight on the mountain, state officials said in a statement. A rescue began due to the risk from cold temperatures, and because the group was unprepared to be on the hiking trail, officials said. Hours later, New Hampshire Fish and Game conservation officers reached Long and the three teens at approximately 11:35 p.m. The hikers were given lights and some food so they could continue carefully descending the trail, officials said. Conservation officers assisted the hikers down the trail and reached the bike path at 1:50 a.m. on Sunday without further incident. The group was then taken to their vehicle at the Liberty Springs Parking Lot. Earlier Saturday, the group had hiked up the Liberty Springs Trail to Mount Liberty and over to Mount Flume. A dangerous decision was made to descend the Flume Slide Trail in order to loop back to the Liberty Springs trail as a result of the group being unfamiliar with the trails, state officials said. The Flume Slide Trail is considered one of the most difficult trails in the White Mountains and it is strongly recommended by all sources not to be used to descend from Mount Flume. Hikers in New Hampshire are asked to be prepared with proper equipment, supplies and clothing and also be familiar with trail information, current weather information, and always have safe bailout or contingency plans. Presently snow and ice still exist on many higher elevation trails which can create dangerous conditions even on pleasant spring days, state officials said. For more information visit www.hikesafe.com. 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 This article was originally published in Indiana Capital Chronicle. The rate of Indiana high school seniors who go directly on to college remains stagnant, according to the latest data released by state officials. New numbers for the Class of 2022 announced Thursday by the Indiana Commission of Higher Education (CHE) indicated for the third year in a row that just 53% of Hoosier graduates furthered their education with certificate training, a two-year program or enrollment at a four-year college. Its a 6% drop from the class of 2019, and 12% lower than in 2015. Get stories like these delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter Still, because the data further shows that the total number of 2022 high school graduates increased by 3%, that translates to fewer students enrolled in postsecondary education directly after high school. Even though the college-going rate held steady at 53%, we actually lost a number of first-time students enrolling from our headcount perspective, said Brooke Kile, associate commissioner for business intelligence. CHE staff presented preliminary data during the commissions bi-monthly meeting on Thursday. Official numbers for 2022 are expected to be released next week. The rate called dismal by numerous state lawmakers and education officials continues the states lowest college-going trend in recent history. The decline began several years prior, however. More students going out of state CHE defines the college-going rate as the percentage of students who enroll in a postsecondary institution within the year following high school graduation. Per the 2022 data, 47% of students who completed Career and Technical Education (CTE) training while in high school went on to pursue additional postsecondary coursework. But among those CTE students, Kile noted that Indiana continues to have access gaps among different demographic groups. About 70% of Asian students and 48% of White students who took CTE classes went on to college, according to the commissions numbers. Forty-four percent of Black students and 41% of Hispanic and Latino students continued education after graduation. Kile said, too, that male students are increasingly choosing not to participate in postsecondary education. Indianas 21st Century Scholars students are making the jump, though, and have a very strong college-going rate, Kile continued. The scholarship fund covers full tuition and fees at Indiana colleges and universities for low-income students, who enroll in the 8th grade. Eighty-one percent of scholars in the 2022 cohort advanced to postsecondary education, according the the new data. Thats compared to 59% of non-scholar students who continued their studies. CHE officials also identified a new trend with the Class of 2022 of the students who are going to college, more are enrolling in out-of-state schools. Around 27% of graduating seniors enrolled in one of Indianas public four-year institutions, followed by 10% who attend a public two-year school and 8% who enrolled at a private college or university. Another 8% went to a school outside of Indiana, according to the data. This is the highest out-of-state percentage that weve seen in the last several years, Kile explained. She said Indianas college-going rates only held steady the out-of-state enrollment went up. One year is not a trend, so we are not necessarily sounding the alarm, she continued. But we are definitely looking at what sort of early indicator data we can get from the 2023 and 2024 cohorts, looking at attendance patterns, to see if we need to do any sort of special initiatives to encourage students to stay in Indiana. CHE initiatives continue Also previewed Thursday was a data update on the Class of 2021. CHE officials said 51% of the 2021 cohort that enrolled in a postsecondary program within a year after high school graduation met all three early college success benchmarks: they did not need remediation, they completed all courses they attempted during their first year of enrollment, and they persisted to their second year of schooling. According to the latest numbers, 77% of the 2021 cohort that enrolled in a postsecondary program persisted to the second year, which Kile said is the highest persistence rate in more than a decade. Still, Kile and other commission officials emphasized ongoing efforts to boost postsecondary enrollment. Current initiatives include: Additional support from the Frank OBannon grant a 35% increase to awards took effect beginning with the 2023 cohort.Pre-admissions letters, a program first started by CHE last year, which indicated to Hoosier students at least three Indiana colleges and universities to which they qualified to attend.Automatic enrollment for eligible 21st Century Scholars which doubled the number of scholars in the 2027 graduating class from 20,000 to over 40,000.Adding incentives for Indiana campuses to prioritize low-income youth and adult enrollment. Kile also noted CHEs continued expansion of the Indiana College Core offerings, given that College Core completion is the best indicator for college going. The curriculum consists of a 30-credit-hour block of general education courses that transfer between all of Indianas public institutions and some private colleges. Adding to the effort, a new law signed by the governor in March will require College Core courses to be more accessible to high schoolers across the state, and compels Hoosier colleges and universities minus Ivy Tech Community College and Vincennes University to offer three-year degree programs by July 2025. Indiana Capital Chronicle is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Indiana Capital Chronicle maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Niki Kelly for questions: info@indianacapitalchronicle.com. Follow Indiana Capital Chronicle on Facebook and Twitter. Daughter Was Sentenced for Killing Dad, His Girlfriend After Being Cut Out of Will: Heres What She Told the Judge Sherry Lee Heffernan, 57, shot and stabbed her father and his girlfriend in their N.J. beachfront home Google Maps; Ocean County Prosecutor's Office John Enders' home in Surf City; Sherry Lee Heffernan A 57-year-old Pennsylvania woman was sentenced to two life sentences in prison for the vicious murders of her father and his girlfriend at his New Jersey beach house for cutting her out of his will, say prosecutors. Just before she was sentenced Friday, Sherry Lee Heffernan, 57, of Landenberg, broke down in tears while professing her innocence in the violent slayings of her father, John "Jack" Enders, 87, and his girlfriend, Francoise "Frenchy'' Pitoy, 75. "I really wish I was the one who was killed, that I was the one who died,'' she said, the Asbury Park Press reports. "This is horrible pain. Its horrible to lose people you love and then be blamed for it,'' she continued. "They were priceless people, both my dad and Francoise. I will forever miss them. That's all I can say. Just sad.'' Ocean County Department of Corrections Sherry Lee Heffernan mugshot In February, a jury found Heffernan guilty of two counts of murder and weapons charges in connection with the Sept. 29, 2021, deaths of her father and his girlfriend, Francoise Pitoy, 75, at their waterfront home in Surf City, on Long Beach Island, N.J., the Ocean County Prosecutors Office said in a release at the time. She was also convicted of possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose for using a handgun and a knife in the commission of the murders, which Superior Court Judge Kimarie Rahill said were committed with extreme depravity, the Asbury Park Press reports. Related: Woman Angry Shed Been Cut Out of Fathers Will Killed Him and His Girlfriend at N.J. Beach House In the early morning hours of the day of the killings, surveillance footage from Heffernans fathers neighborhood showed someone jumping over a fence, then entering and leaving the oceanfront home, court records show, PennLive reported. Related: The footage showed that person driving a large RV to the area at the time of the murders, which authorities later confirmed was owned by Heffernan, court records show. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE's free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. At about 5 a.m., Heffernan attacked her father and his girlfriend while they were sleeping, shooting them both in the mouth to injure them and not kill them, so they would suffer while she stabbed them, the Ocean County Prosecutor's Offices Chief Trial Attorney Michael Weatherstone said, the Asbury Park Press reports. Calling the murders a crime of hatred, the Asbury Park Press reports, Weatherstone said Heffernan put her father in a recliner and stabbed him again and again while staring at him, face to face. She stabbed her father 51 times and stabbed Pitoy 39 times, according to the Asbury Park Press. Related: Pa. Woman Charged with Murdering Her Dad and His Girlfriend in N.J. Claims She's 'Being Framed' Heffernan and her sister had recently been removed from their fathers will, according to an affidavit written by Surf City Police Detective Sgt. Victor Rice, NJ.com reported. Enders argued frequently with Heffernan and was estranged from her sister, according to interviews with relatives and neighbors, court records show. He refused to allow Heffernan, a realtor, to list the beach home for sale, court records show, PennLive reports. The home was ultimately sold for 1.7 million in Jan. 2022, according to Zillow. On October 4, 2021, Heffernan was taken into custody by the Pennsylvania State Police at her home in Landenberg, a day after police performed a welfare check at Enders home when his girlfriends relatives were unable to reach her. This defendant will spend the rest of her life in prison. This is an appropriate sentence and we are hopeful that this brings some measure of closure to the family and friends of John and Francoise, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer said in a statement. Ender's grandson, Andrew Vero, told the judge the crime was unimaginable. "This was his daughter, a daughter he adored, someone he loved unconditionally," the Asbury Park Press reports. One of Pitoy's daughters, Valerie Lewis Evans, told the court that her mother "lit up every room she walked into,'' the Asbury Park Press reports. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. KOIN 6 News contacted candidates who are running for Oregons Sixth Congressional District in 2024, asking them to respond to these four questions: Why are you running for office? What is your prior government/civic experience? In your opinion, what are the top three issues facing the Fifth District and the state of Oregon? In your opinion, what is going right in the Fifth District and Oregon? How do you plan to build on it? David Russ is running as a Republican. Here are his responses: Why are you running for office? In the simplest terms, to serve the people of Oregon Congressional District 6 and the Constitution for the United States of America (RussIsForUS.com/together). The people of District 6, and this nation need leaders with the backbone to stand up to the Washington DC shenanigans. My highest priorities are God, the Constitution and you (RussIsForUS.com/god-the-constitution-and-you). I will not try to legislate religion into government, but I believe that having morality and ethics (God RussIsForUS.com/god) and adhering to the law (The Constitution) is the best way to serve YOU. That is because that I know that both God, and The Constitution have You as their number one priority. Therefore, when I focus on them you will always be number one. What is your prior government/civic experience? City Councilor City of Dundee 2014 Mayor City of Dundee 2015 to Present Yamhill County Parkway Committee 2015 to Present Chair Dundee Urban Renewal Agency 2016 to Present Yamhill County Local Public Safety Coordinating Council 2023 to Present My leadership as Mayor of the City of Dundee has ushered in more economic development and infrastructure improvements than any previous Mayor. Things that I have set in motion will help to insure the Citys stability and property values for years to come. I am the only Republican candidate in this race who both has experience serving as an elected official and lives within the district boundaries. The quality of my service is punctuated by having endorsements from local conservative leaders who know my work. Lindsay Berschauer, Yamhill County Commissioner Mary Starrett, Yamhill County Commissioner Kit Johnston, Yamhill County Commissioner Jeff Kosmicki, Chief Newberg/Dundee Police Tim Weaver, Dundee City Council / Retired Police David Ford, Dundee City Council Bill Rosacker, Mayor Newberg Robin Wheatley, Newberg City Council Rick Dutton, Pastor Dundee Promise Church Retired Newberg/Dundee Police Community Oriented Public Servants PAC Brian Casey, Retired Chief Newberg Dundee Police In your opinion, what are the top three issues facing the Sixth District and the state of Oregon? As a federal representative, the issues I am able to focus on and solve are limited by the Constitution. There are so many issues that start at the federal level and affect the people and businesses of the Sixth District that choosing three seems very incomplete. However, the truth is that they all have basically the same cause. Of course, the border/immigration and the economy/debt/budget are the elephants in the room, but here are the Big 3 for District Six and Oregon: Government infringement and oppressive controls on small business. Small businesses are the heart and soul of our district. Over regulation and excessive taxation is destroying our small businesses. Dangerous and oppressive government controls on agriculture and forestry. Short sighted and overbearing government controls on our farmers and loggers has destroyed companies, jobs, farm/forest land and homes. Crime. In recent years, the federal government has embraced and encouraged dangerous criminal activities. I would even say they are participating by allowing drugs and criminals to cross the border. All of these issues are basically caused by violations of the 10th Amendment of the Constitution for The United States of America. That is to say that the federal government is dictating things that are strictly the responsibility of your state. I hope to remove federal controls that limit our ability to manage the commerce, lands, and law enforcement within our state. RussIsForUS.com/what-if. In your opinion, what is going right in the Sixth District and Oregon? How do you plan to build on it? Oregon Congressional District Six is filled with strong caring people who love the United States of America and are willing to work to keep it the greatest nation on earth. District Six also has a strong local economy with the economic diversity, innovation and work ethic to maintain itself autonomously. I intend to support and bolster these positive attributes by eliminating government overreach thereby giving the people and businesses of Oregon Congressional District Six the freedom and liberty they need to ensure their own prosperity. To do this we must get the federal government out of the business of regulation. You will hear other candidates say that they will help to build the district by bringing in more federal funds for local projects. This is telling you that they will tax you $1 and return $0.10 for your project. As long as the federal government continues this disgusting practice, I will seek to bring as much of that $0.10 back to you as I can for local projects. However, it is my goal to take the federal government out of the process so that you will have more money to do your projects. When your local municipality collects the money and does the work about 95% of your money goes to the project. If the money is processed by the state first, you will get about 80% of the money you paid in for your project. We do not need to give the federal government $0.90 of every $1 in order to have the right to beg them for $0.10 to maintain our communities and infrastructure. If you want the insanity of the uniparty to end, you have to break the cycle. That is why #RussIsForUS. RussIsForUS.com/insane. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KOIN.com. A death investigation is underway after a New Hampshire woman was killed in an incident involving a lawnmower over the weekend, officials said. Officers responding to a 911 call for a lawnmower rollover with traumatic injuries on Burt Hill Road in Winchester, New Hampshire, shortly after 4 p.m. on Sunday found a woman in her 60s dead at the scene, according to Winchester Police Chief David Rice. The woman, whose name hasnt been released, is believed to be the owner of the home where she was found. Apparently, for some unknown reason, the lawnmower went over an embankment and rolled over, Rice said in a statement. Police are working with the coroners office to determine the womans exact cause of death. There were no additional details immediately available. 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 DEED Commissioner Matt Varilek, right, updated the House Workforce Development Finance and Policy Committee on the new paid family and medical leave program on April 24, 2024. Photo by Michelle Griffith/Minnesota Reformer. Minnesotas new paid family and medical leave program would require a 25% higher payroll tax when it launches in 2026 than originally anticipated if a bill under consideration at the Legislature becomes law, an assistant commissioner with the Department of Employment and Economic Development told lawmakers on Monday.* Evan Rowe of DEED said during a House Ways and Means Committee hearing that the agency will seek a payroll tax of 0.88% for the states new paid leave program split between workers and employers rather than the 0.7% that was originally discussed last year, if the bill becomes law. Rowe told the committee that the new payroll tax rate comes from an updated actuarial analysis conducted by Milliman. The states paid leave program guarantees Minnesota workers can take 12 weeks of paid family leave and 12 weeks of paid medical leave per year, capped at 20 weeks in a single year. DEED requested that Milliman, which had conducted an actuarial analysis of the paid leave program last year, conduct another analysis on the cost of the various changes lawmakers were considering this session. Milliman in a February letter to DEED wrote that it proposes a .88% payroll tax in the first year because there is greater uncertainty when the program begins, and additional margin seems prudent when benefits become effective. House fiscal staff on Monday estimated the 0.88% payroll tax will bring in over $300 million in revenue for the paid leave fund compared to the 0.7% rate. In the first year, they estimated the state will distribute over $1.6 billion in benefits through the paid leave program. Employees will pay up to half of the payroll tax 0.44% of their taxable wages in the first year, rather than the previous 0.35% but an employer can assume some of their employees costs. Last years paid leave law instructs DEED to adjust tax rates using a formula based on the previous years costs, with a cap of up to 1.2%. On Monday, Democratic-Farmer-Labor House members in committee approved changes to the paid leave bill that would adopt a seven-day waiting period for all medical claims, with payment distributed to employees retroactively. For example, if someone broke their hip, they would take leave under the program with the first week unpaid, but the program would pay them for the first week of leave at a later date. New parents who want to bond with their children would get paid the first week, not retroactively. DEED in a statement said a 0.88% payroll tax would be necessary if the retroactive payment proposal became law. DFL lawmakers this session have been considering options to make the program cheaper, including making the first week of leave unpaid unless a worker could show they had less than 80 hours of paid time off saved up. This proposal has created controversy among supporters of the program. The Senate bill currently has the PTO proposal, but Sen. Alice Mann, DFL-Edina, told the Reformer on Monday that she plans to adopt the Houses retroactive benefits language and get rid of the PTO requirement. Mann said that with the Houses language the paid leave program will have 12 weeks of paid leave, which was the intent from the beginning. The senator also said she was opposed to the PTO proposal, but DEED and Gov. Tim Walzs administration were pushing an unpaid week to cut costs. They wanted to make sure we kept the premium (payroll tax) as low as possible, and they thought the best way to do that was to do an unpaid week, Mann said. Regarding the 0.88% payroll tax, Mann said the 0.7% number discussed last year was based on a Department of Labor study. The premium is based on the economy. Its based on how many people take leave. Its based on the states average wage. So it will fluctuate from year to year, and thats expected and thats why we have a (payroll tax) cap in the bill. The Senate and House are expected to take up the paid leave changes this week. Correction: This story has been updated to reflect that the tax increase would be needed if the bill becomes law. The post DEED says Minnesota paid leave program could need 25% higher payroll tax than first proposed appeared first on Minnesota Reformer. Defence Forces conduct mop-up operation in the north of Vovchansk Ukraine's General Staff Stock photo: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine The Ukrainian Defence Forces inflicted fire on the Russians, drove them back and conducted a mop-up operation on the northern outskirts of the village of Vovchansk, Kharkiv front. Source: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook, information as of 17:00 on 13 May Details: It is reported that fighting continues on the Kharkiv front as of 17:00. The number of combat clashes has increased to 12. Quote: "Our units inflicted fire on the enemy, drove them back and are carrying out a mop-up operation on the northern outskirts of the village of Vovchansk. A combat clash began in the vicinity of the village of Starytsia. The total losses of the enemy amount to 106 people, 25 units of weapons and military equipment." Details: On the Lyman front, the number of combat clashes has increased to 7; on the Sivershchyna front, it has increased to 14; on the Kramatorsk front, to 31; on the Pokrovsk direction, to 31. On the Toretsk, Kupiansk, Kurakhiv, Vremivka, Orikhiv, Huliaipillia and Prydniprovia fronts, the situation remains unchanged, with the territory under the control of Ukrainian units. Units of Ukraines Defence Forces shot down a Russian Su-25 jet in Donetsk Oblast. Support UP or become our patron! A hemp crop waits to be harvested for CBD oil producer Crop England on grows on August 27, 2021. (Christopher Furlong/Getty Images) In the nearly six years since a federal law appeared to open the doors to delta-8, the marijuana-like drug has grown into a billion-dollar Hoosier industry. But its done so on shaky legal ground, leaving retailers and law enforcement officials alike seeking legislative clarification: is delta-8 allowed in Indiana? The legislature needs to act to provide regulatory certainty for businesses and legal certainty for both law enforcement and prosecutors, Rep. Jake Teshka, R-North Liberty, told the Capital Chronicle. In the absence of us doing anything, theres just this huge legal gray area, and it breeds a ton of problems, said Teshka, who authored an unsuccessful attempt to regulate delta-8 last session. Lawmakers, however, indicate a Senate-House stalemate is unlikely to give even with the state on the hook for a year-old lawsuit over the hemp-derived psychoactives status. Hemp frenzy Congress revived the industrial hemp industry in 2018s agriculture-focused farm bill by removing the plant and its seeds from the definition of marijuana. Rep. Jake Teshka, R-North Liberty, testifies in committee on Thursday, Feb. 29, 2024. (Leslie Bonilla Muniz/Indiana Capital Chronicle) Its generally considered legal as long as it contains less than 0.3% delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol or THC, the major psychoactive component in the plant by dry weight. Above that, its considered banned marijuana. Indiana promptly followed suit. Lawmakers in 2018 legislation used the same delta-9 cutoff in legalizing low-THC hemp extracts, and added more hemp-related regulations in another law the following year. The states delta-8 industry has boomed, as an apparently legal alternative to marijuana. About 540 Indiana retail stores and nearly 1,400 gas stations have sold about $637 million worth of hemp-based cannabinoid products, according to a 2023 study by hemp-cannabis data firm Whitney Economics. Those sales made a total economic impact of about $1.8 billion, the company found. But concerns over delta-8s legality have dogged the industrys growth. The Indiana State Police (IPS), for instance, has long held that Indiana Code classifies all THC types both naturally occurring and synthetic as Schedule I controlled substances, according to comments spokesman Capt. Ron Galaviz made to Indiana Public Media in 2021. The designation means a substance has no accepted medical use but does have a high potential for abuse. Stuck at the Statehouse Within a year of legalization, lawmakers like Sen. Liz Brown, R-Fort Wayne, began filing unsuccessful attempts to walk back the states freshly inked stance on certain hemp products, such as cannabidiol (CBD) oil. Then, they turned to delta-8. Sen. Mike Young, R-Indianapolis, repeatedly proposed editing the 0.3% delta-9 cutoff to include all THC types. Bills in 2021 and 2022 wouldve banned most delta-8 products. Proposals regulating the substance havent survived the legislative process either. The contention escalated into a lawsuit last June, when the states top attorney opined that delta-8 is illicit. The advisory came in response to an ISP and Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys Council request for guidance. Retailers sued, alleging raids and other repercussions. Some on both sides of the equation still want answers from the Statehouse. This is absolutely a public policy question, said Justin Swanson, co-founder and president of the Midwest Hemp Council. The trade organization, which is a plaintiff in the lawsuit, has dozens of members. Vanderburgh County Sheriff Noah Robinson said he agreed with Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokitas legal interpretation, but still directed his deputies to back off on enforcement in a February special order. He reaffirmed a policy of issuing citations instead of making physical arrests for simple possession of marijuana, and halted raids of retailers for the sole purpose of investigating delta-8. I like knowing the law that Im enforcing has solid ground underneath it, said Robinson, who is not involved in the legal battle. He thinks delta-8s legal status is up in the air and in flux. Do I ultimately think that the attorney general is correct, and that delta-8 is illegal? I do, Robinson said. But we have an obligation not to bring charges that we are unsure about whether we will be successful in obtaining a conviction or not, and I just dont want to be the test case. Id rather have the Legislature clarify this. The case against Although Republicans hold supermajorities in both the Indiana Senate and House, the two chambers disagree on some issues including on delta-8. It shouldnt be the policy of the government to allow people to alter their minds, Young, the Indianapolis senator, said. Sen. Mike Young, R-Indianapolis. (Courtesy Indiana Senate Republicans) If thats what the House of Representatives wants, is to have people alter their faculties, they did the right thing, Young said, by killing his attempts to ban the substance. He didnt yet have plans to try again. (If) I know that delta-(8) is not going to be heard in the House, why would I waste a bill? Young asked. Brown, meanwhile, worried about health and safety, particularly for the states youngest residents. Brown, the Fort Wayne senator, feared children would use delta-8 as a gateway to other drugs, and noted a rise in accidental poisonings. Hoosiers make thousands of poison control calls per year for edibles, according to WTHR. About 75% of calls in recent years were for children whod gotten into the adult products. Some required hospitalization. Brown indicated there are too many unknowns to delta-8, saying, Im not opposed to a medicinal product that has been tested and proven, but this is the Wild West. We really need to understand what is the good and the bad, and have very clear guidelines, she added. Im not sure that we have the ability to do that right now. The case for Other lawmakers shared that unease but saw alternate fixes. Teshka, for instance, similarly described feeling alarmed by delta-8 candies with designs that could appeal to children. But he viewed regulation as the best way to address these concerns. In my mind, its pretty clear that the 2018 Farm Bill made hemp-derived cannabinoids like delta-8 legal, so whether that was intended or not, that is the law of the land. In the absence of the state regulating the product, it really opens the door for potential bad actors, for contaminants in products, for children to get their hands on these things, Teshka said. His House Bill 1079 last session would have added new hemp handling licenses, packaging requirements, and an age minimum of 21 years old complete with financial penalties. It passed the House 85-11, with nine of the nay votes from fellow Republicans, but never got a Senate hearing. Legislation from Sen. Travis Holdman, R-Markle, wouldve gone even further. Senate Bill 59 included many of the same provisions as its House counterpart but would also have specifically banned cartoon-like designs appealing to children and required tamper-evident packaging. The bill additionally imposed testing requirements featuring maximum levels of heavy metals, pesticides, herbicides, molds and more. And it penalized violations with license suspensions and revocations in addition to the fines. It never got a hearing in its originating chamber and succumbed at the sessions first deadline. I think the Legislature could provide some guidance, but we cant seem to get consensus. I know the House has passed legislation before. It gets bogged down in the Senate, Holdman said. And I just want some regulation on the product being sold currently. Asked for his outlook, Holdman said, I think its going to get resolved eventually. Because weve got to do something with it: either to make it illegal legislatively or to regulate. One of the two. Looking beyond Justin Journay moved his delta-8 company 3Chi from Ohio to hemp-friendly Indiana in 2019. But as the legal interpretation that the substance is banned has taken hold, hes been expanding manufacturing operations elsewhere. Journay, whose firm is a plaintiff in the lawsuit, estimates that in near future, 50% or more of the business could be back out of state. Despite that, he wants to stay. My house is here, everythings here, he said. Weve built a life here. Federal Judge James R. Sweeney II, of the Southern District of Indiana court, dealt the plaintiffs a blow in late March when he denied their request for a preliminary injunction, finding they didnt establish irreparable harm. Sweeney wrote that hed next consider several pending motions to dismiss and for judgment on the pleadings. But federal action which supersedes the states Legislature and judiciary could be on the horizon. The farm bill is typically renewed every five years, and its overdue for its next update. Several states, Indiana included, welcomed clarity from the nations top law-making body. As Congress prepares to embark on a new five-year reauthorization of the Farm Bill, we strongly urge your committees to address the glaring vagueness created in the 2018 Farm Bill that has led to the proliferation of intoxicating hemp products across the nation and challenges to the ability for states and localities to respond to the resulting health and safety crisis, the attorneys general of 20 states including Indiana and the District of Columbia wrote in a March letter. The definition of hemp should be amended to clarify that there is no federal hemp intoxicants loophole, and the 2023 reauthorization should reaffirm that members of Congress do not intend to limit states in restrictions or regulations related to cannabinoids or any other derivatives of hemp which are deemed intoxicating, Rokita and the other officials wrote. Congress passed an extension of the Farm Bill last fall, but progress since then has been slow. Summaries from the U.S. House and Senate agriculture-oriented committees dont mention delta-8 or hemp. The post Delta-8 legal clarification unlikely as Statehouse stalemate persists appeared first on Indiana Capital Chronicle. CLEVELAND (WJW) An airplane collided with another airplane while passengers were boarding at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. It happened at about 7 p.m. on Sunday, May 12, according to a statement from the FAA. No injuries were reported. Top Thrill 2 closed at Cedar Point Delta Airlines Flight No. 2577 was taxiing when its wingtip struck Spirit Airlines Flight No. 655, which was parked at the gate and boarding passengers. Our guests deplaned normally through the jet bridge and no injuries to Spirit guests or team members were reported, reads a Monday statement from a Spirit spokesperson. Safety is our top priority, and the aircraft was removed from service to be thoroughly inspected by our maintenance team. Spirit was giving its passengers alternative travel arrangements as quickly as possible, reads the statement. Manhunt over for suspect who killed Euclid officer in ambush The Delta plane was a Boeing 739 with 180 passengers headed for Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Its passengers were delayed about four hours while waiting for another aircraft on Sunday night. Delta is also planning to investigate. Delta issued the following statement: Delta teams worked to reaccommodate customers to their final destination to Atlanta after the wingtip from Delta flight DL2577 made contact with a parked aircraft at CLE. We apologize for any inconvenience caused. The collision happened near Gate B2, according to an airport spokesperson. There was no impact to air traffic. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Fox 8 Cleveland WJW. A major Democratic super PAC launched its first wave of ads as part of a $140 million campaign to target voters in key battleground states Monday, using testimonials from voters to warn of the risks of former President Trump returning to the White House. American Bridge 21st Century will air three ads in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, as well as use direct mail to highlight the stories of Americans who live in suburban and exurban communities in those battleground states. The first ads will feature three separate individuals and will total $25 million. One is a Wisconsin woman who is an OB-GYN with a personal abortion story who will speak to concerns about what a second Trump term might mean for reproductive rights. Another is a Pennsylvania man who will share concerns about how Trump might eliminate reproductive rights for his children and grandchildren. And the third features a pair of retired nurses in Pennsylvania who will raise their worries about how Trump might slash health care access. American Bridge is all in to defeat Donald Trump. Weve been gearing up and planning for this cycle since the 2020 election, the groups co-founder, Bradley Beychok, said in a statement. Through our organizing efforts, weve recruited hundreds of people living in these battleground states, who were willing to share their stories about why another Trump White House would be so devastating for them, he added. Were proud to provide the platform that ensures that voters in these key states hear their stories, and we know theyre going to make all the difference on Election Day. The groups ads will run in nonmajor media markets in an effort to engage voters who may not otherwise be targeted by campaigns. American Bridge is working to turn out moderates, voters who arent excited about either Trump or President Biden, and anti-Trump conservatives. Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin are all expected to be closely contested states in November, just as they were in 2020, when Biden carried all three. Strategists have said Bidens likeliest path to reelection in November involves sweeping those three states, which make up the so-called blue wall for Democrats. A Decision Desk HQ average of polling shows Trump leading Biden by 3 percentage points in Michigan, by less than 2 percentage points in Pennsylvania and by 1 percentage point in Wisconsin. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Title icon The News They flipped old Republican strongholds, helped convince their colleagues to impeach Donald Trump, and established themselves a moderate counterpart to the Squad. Now, the badasses are moving on. The close knit group of Democratic women, who adopted the nickname after winning House seats in 2018 following careers in the military and the CIA, is set to dwindle as several of them look toward higher office. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, a former CIA analyst and Defense Department official, is running for U.S. Senate in Michigan. Rep. Abigail Spanberger, a fellow CIA alum, is leaving Congress after this term to prepare for a run at Virginias governorship next year. Rep. Mikie Sherrill, a former Navy helicopter pilot, is seriously considering her own 2025 gubernatorial bid in New Jersey, where she tops early polls, even as shes campaigning to keep her current seat for now. Ruthless competence is something were all very attracted to, Sherrill told Semafor. And looking at ways in which we can be more effective, deliver better for people in our states, is also something that I think were constantly striving for. The fact that all three are considered top-tier candidates for statewide office may be a sign of staying power for their brand of Democratic politics. But it also means that the caucus will soon find itself losing a key set of moderate voices, whove also won respect across the aisle. Rep. Mike Garcia, R-Calif., said that although he and Spangberger have disagreed in committee, hes sad to see her go. Both parties right now lack the fundamental understanding of critical national security issues, he said. Theres a handful of us that get it. Title icon Know More Originally a crew of five, the badasses were in many ways a perfect symbol of the anti-Trump revolt by suburban women that helped power that years blue wave. Each of them won in longtime Republican districts while campaigning against the GOPs attempt to repeal Obamacare. Their resumes in national security and armed services made for an especially pointed contrast with a president at war against the deep state over federal investigations into his relationship to Russia. The group bonded on the trail over their backgrounds as women in defense, offering support to one another over a long-running group chat. You watch that speech in the Barbie movie about whats expected of women, and I think that is true tenfold when youre talking about women running for office because these are tough times, Sherrill told Semafor. Once in the House, they quickly made their presence felt. Spanberger, Slotkin, and Sherill declined to vote for Nancy Pelosi as speaker. Less than a year later, the whole group found itself playing a pivotal role in the effort to impeach Donald Trump. Initially opposed to the push, they became supporters after it was revealed Trump had pressured Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to investigate the Biden family in return for releasing foreign aid. With two other freshman colleagues, the five co-wrote a Washington Post op-ed calling for impeachment hearings that proved influential among Democrats, in large part because it came from vulnerable swing state members with impeccable national security credentials. We all made the decision that if we had to lose our seats and be one-term congressmen and women, it was worth doing it because you have to have some basic principles, Slotkin told Semafor. As CNNs Dana Bash and Bridget Nolan put it at the time, the op-ed changed the dynamic for House Democrats, and indeed the course of history. Though they tended to make headlines less often, the group has sometimes been described as the other Squad by Washington reporters. Their role as a moderate counterweight to left-wing members like Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Rashida Tlaib became especially apparent during a private call between Democrats following the 2020 elections, during which a furious Spanberger blamed the partys disappointing House results on progressive slogans like defund the police. We need to not ever use the word socialist or socialism ever again. . . . We lost good members because of that, Spanberger told her colleagues. If we are classifying Tuesday as a success . . . we will get f---ing torn apart in 2022. Spanberger, who now represents battleground Democrats in the partys caucus leadership, told Semafor that she felt the party had improved its messaging. Theres definitely been an effort to be a bit more clear on what were for, said, though she noted she was certainly not giving myself credit for it. Though they were seen as vulnerable heading into the 2022 midterms, only one member of the badasses Virginia Rep. Elaine Luria ultimately lost their seat. If Slotkin, Spanberger, and Sherrill all depart, they will leave just one member behind, Pennsylvania Rep. Chrissy Houlahan. Houlahan said she was confident more women with similar backgrounds would follow in the groups footsteps to Congress. I believe Im the beginning of something, she told Semafor. I believe that I will not be the last and that there will be more coming behind me. Title icon Kadias view Even in a functioning, productive Congress, it wouldnt be surprising to see successful House members take a shot at higher office. But in our conversations, Spanberger, Sherrill, and Slotkin seemed to express genuine frustration and restlessness over the way the House has become bogged down by Republican infighting. It feels like a quagmire for members who spent their pre-political lives in results-oriented worlds like intelligence. If you come from a national security background, you dont get special credit for trying, Slotkin said. You either do or dont do. Theyre now hoping they can make a bigger impact on issues like voting rights and abortion by moving up the political food chain. Abortion became an increasingly intense focus for the group after the Supreme Courts decision. When Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville began halting military promotions last year in protest of a Defense Department policy that helped ensure servicewomen could have access to the procedure, they rallied to try and help end the blockade, often coordinating on strategy via texts. (Tuberville eventually relented under pressure from his own party). Our inability to make the inroads that we need in an issue as important as [abortion] at the federal level certainly makes me motivated to work on it and address it at the state level, Spanberger told Semafor. She added her decision to leave the House was bittersweet. Slotkin, meanwhile, is promising to bring a get-stuff-done attitude to the Senate, vowing to support filibuster reforms that previous generations of moderates, like retiring Sens. Joe Manchin or Kyrsten Sinema, have opposed. We want there to be a strong consensus for any bill that has turned into law, she said. But this idea that we cant even have an up or down vote on something as simple as voting rights, I think is a real problem. Title icon Correction Due to an editing error, this story originally identified Rep. Mike Garcia as a congressman from Texas. He is from California. Semafor Logo Sen. Chris Murphy exits a backstage holding area to accept the Democratic nomination. (Mark Pazniokas/CT Mirror) UNCASVILLE, Conn. U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy accepted an uncontested Democratic nomination for a third term Saturday, celebrating his status as a newly baptized bipartisan dealmaker in a divided Washington, while declaring Donald J. Trump a threat to American exceptionalism as a multicultural democracy. On a glide path to what is expected to be an uneventful reelection in a blue state, Murphy told 1,400 delegates at the Democratic State Convention at Mohegan Sun in Uncasville to think broadly about what is at stake as Trump practices a polarizing brand of politics in trying to recapture the White House. Donald Trump wants to end our democracy as we know it, Murphy said. Even worse, he wants to convince Americans that our multiculturalism or inclusivity is a danger, not a defining strength of our nation. This isnt overblown hyperbole, hes got a detailed plan to destroy the rule of law and turn us against each other. We were born in this time, in this place to stop him. His 18-minute acceptance speech was an exercise in balance. He was eager to attack the Republican presumptive presidential nominee, a defendant in a hush-money trial involving an alleged affair with a porn star, while aspiring to build on a new role as a Democrat who can do business with Republican senators on gun control and immigration reform.. I know that it feels a little soul draining to live in a political moment where the news is filled with porn-star hush money and puppy assassinations, Murphy said. But I feel joyful every day because I have a job where I get to go to work every day engaged in the work of preserving and improving the greatest country that has ever existed. And part of the reason that I feel joy is because I have seen democracy work. I have seen President Joe Biden make it work. Under Biden, Congress passed a gun bill filed by Murphy that, while falling short of the universal background checks Connecticut requires, requires a stricter scrutiny of gun purchasers by young buyers, funds violence intervention programs, and makes straw purchases of firearms a federal offense. Murphy praised the Democratic president for passing an infrastructure and climate bill that was beyond the reach of Trump. But he stepped lightly in addressing an international crisis that is causing domestic challenges for Biden and other Democrats. The senator acknowledged both the horrors of the terrorist attack by Hamas on Israel, as well the resulting Israeli attack on Gaza that has claimed more than 34,000 civilian lives, as well as those of terrorists. We are all still feeling the devastating pain of the attacks in Israel on October 7, Murphy said. But I fundamentally just do not believe that we have to make a choice between wanting accountability for those attacks and accepting thousands of innocent people having to die in Gaza as a consequence. The delegates gathered for a brisk three-hour convention applauded. Gov. Ned Lamont, Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz, U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, state Sen. Mae Flexer and others addressed the convention, sounding themes certain to be played over the summer and fall, most notably the erosion of abortion rights by a Supreme Court dominated by Republican appointees. U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes, a Democrat who holds Murphys old seat in the 5th Congressional District, was one of the featured speakers, a reflection of running in the most competitive district. Murphy expects to spend significant time in the district. U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, D-2nd District, who was elected to Congress in 2006, the same year as Murphy, said the convention Saturday was the first Democratic nominating convention for U.S. Senate in his eastern Connecticut district. Once the wunderkind of Connecticut politics, Murphy is standing for reelection as a 50-year-old, still the youngest member of the delegation. (Hayes is 51.) His 12 years in the Senate is by far the longest stop in a peripatetic career: Elected to the state House at age 25, the state Senate at 29, the U.S. House at 33 and the U.S. Senate at 39. The junior senator has settled into middle age, albeit in a Senate where the median age is 65. Four years ago, an admiring 10,000-word profile in Vox pronounced him Senator of State, recounting his rise as a progressive voice in foreign policy and the significance of his time traveling with John McCain to Ukraine in defiance of Russia. It all but begged him to play the long game as a senator. On Saturday, he sounded very much like a politician who has settled on a political home and role the bipartisan dealmaker. Thats a relatively new role for me, but one that I think Im good at, and one that I hope to continue in my third term, Murphy told reporters before his acceptance speech. Murphy brokered passage of the first significant gun safety law in 30 years and the crafting of a border security and immigration deal, only to see the latter undone in a Republican-controlled House at the insistence of Trump. I was proud to negotiate the immigration compromise, the most significant bipartisan border security bill in 40 years, Murphy said. It didnt ultimately get across the finish line. But I hope to be somebody in my third term in the Senate that is looked upon as a dealmaker, as somebody who stands up for his convictions, but can find a unique way to bring Republicans and Democrats together. On the convention stage, Murphys new role was recognized by Blumenthal, the states senior senator. Chris Murphy gets things done, Blumenthal said, noting that the immigration bill was set for passage if Donald Trump hadnt torpedoed it. Murphy arrived early for the convention, an anachronism in an era of campaigns dominated by television, social media and micro-targeting. The conventions are reunions for the political, opportunities to network and catch up. Murphy happily mingled, posing with delegates for selfies. The Democratic Party is a community, Murphy said. So part of this is just your friends, seeing friends, sharing ideas, recommitting ourselves to being Democrats and being vocal and active in an era where a lot of people are sitting on the sidelines. It was not quite, however, a place where everyone knew his name. He entered the exhibition hall in the vast casino complex unadorned by credentials around his neck, and a young women employed by the casino challenged whether he was authorized to attend. He smiled and assured her he would be welcomed. Correction: This story has been updated to reflect Jahana Hayes was a featured speaker, not the only House member to make remarks. Connecticut Mirror is a content partner of States Newsroom. Read the original version here. The post Conn. Democrats nominate a joyful Chris Murphy to third term appeared first on Rhode Island Current. AUSTIN (Nexstar) Texas Democrats urged Gov. Greg Abbott to call lawmakers back for a special legislative session Monday, citing the urgent need to address school finance and improve funding for all of our school districts. Despite Texas record budget surplus, schools face deficits Some of Texas largest school districts face massive budget deficits, forcing some to cut teachers and staff for next school year. Democrats blame the cash crunch on the legislatures failure to increase per-student funding for the public school system in the last legislative session. We have the resources available to better fund our schools, so we should act, State. Rep. John Rosenthal, D-Cypress, wrote in the letter. Texas lawmakers had a record $33 billion budget surplus to allocate last year, but no money went towards increasing schools basic allotment the uniform per-student funding that makes up the foundation of Texas school funding. Abbott tied school funding increases to his plan for state-subsidized private school tuition vouchers, which did not pass. Abbott blamed schools budget deficits on local budgeting problems and an expiration of federal pandemic funding. Youll be shocked to hear this, but its not me thats responsible for this, Abbott said. In a reply to Rep. Rosenthal Monday afternoon, Abbott blamed the deficits on Democrats refusal to vote for a package of school funding paired with private school vouchers. He signaled he will not call another special session for this issue. My commitment to improving public schools is just as resolute as yours, he wrote to Rosenthal. To achieve our shared goal, however, it is incumbent upon you to work with your fellow Texas House members to muster the votes to get it passedsomething you were unwilling to do last year. In the Democrats letter, they cite $5 billion in the budget already appropriated for public schools but left unspent, and another $18 billion left over from the surplus. Its constitutionally our responsibility to provide for the schools, Rosenthal told Nexstar. Schools across the state having massive budget consequences. While we sit on top of one of the largest budget surpluses in Texas history. I think you can just do the math yourself. 38 House Democrats joined Rep. Rosenthal in signing the letter. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KXAN Austin. Denver is keeping an eye on mosquitoes and Coloradans should be, too DENVER (KDVR) Its almost summertime in Denver and mosquitoes will soon be prevalent across the metro region. The Denver Department of Public Health & Environment has enacted several measures to combat the pests and keep residents safe. Brian Tietze is an environmental health investigator with the department. He said that almost anywhere that collects water could be a mosquito habitat kids pools, flower pots and stagnant waterways like ditches are common sites for the bugs to lay their larvae. Photos: 14 invasive carp removed from Arvada pond Ultimately, were here to prevent West Nile virus. It is present in Colorado, has been present for about a decade or so, Tietze said. So one of our most effective ways to control that is to actually target the larvae of the mosquitoes, so we get out here, we have some product we can apply just kills them right in their tracks. On Monday, Tietze was out and about in Denver for pre-mosquito season scouting. The team will look at areas known to collect water and ensure no larvae are incubating in the water. If the bugs are found, workers like Tietze will spread a larvicide into the water. The mosquitoes will eat the larvicide and die, but the product is not dangerous to pets, according to Tietze. There are several actions residents can take to prevent mosquito breeding: Dump out all standing water from containers, tires, birdbaths, gutters and other collected spots near homes Limit watering to avoid standing water in yards Properly maintain fountains and swimming pools to ensure circulation, or apply larvicide as needed to prevent mosquito births Regularly disturb areas that collect water, such as street gutters, with a broom or vehicle Limit outdoor activity at dusk and dawn Wear long sleeves and pants when outdoors Use a natural insecticide, like lemon eucalyptus oil or DEET The risk of exposure to West Nile virus is typically low, according to Denvers health department, but individuals should still protect themselves until mosquitoes grow less active usually sometime in September or once nighttime temperatures are under 40 degrees. Last season we had a historic amount of rainfall in the spring and into the early summer more rain than weve seen in probably 10-20 years, Tietze said. Obviously, more rain means more mosquitoes and a greater chance of catching West Nile. The city doubled and tripled our efforts on sites like this that might have flooding. FOX31 Weather: View the latest Denver forecasts, maps and radar April was not dry for the Mile High City: Denver International Airport recorded 3.28 inches of precipitation, which is about 1.6 inches more than the average for April. That did not mean that Denver broke records. The National Weather Service Boulder recorded that the 10th-wettest April was in 1914 with 3.75 inches of rain. According to the NWS, the Denver area has been maintaining an above-normal amount of precipitation around 7.33 inches of precipitation had been recorded as of May 13 at DIA. Normally, the city would be closer to 4 inches of rain at this time of year. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX31 Denver. MADERA COUNTY, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) Deputies investigated a potential bomb threat Sunday evening at a Vons in Oakhurst. Deputies say they responded with CHP to a call for service at the Vons Fuel Station (40044 CA-49) in Oakhurst regarding a possible bomb threat. Investigators say businesses in the direct vicinity were locked down and the fuel station was closed to the public. Detectives had initially asked the public to avoid the area but has since announced a thorough search of the premises revealed no detention devices were found. Deputies say the area has been cleared and business will resume. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to YourCentralValley.com | KSEE24 and CBS47. Deputies: Man who tried to break in at tow yard jailed SPRINGFIELD, Mich. (WOOD) Deputies say they arrested a man who tried to break into a towing company near Battle Creek Sunday morning. The Calhoun County Sheriffs Office said it got a call around 10:15 a.m. from a someone who reported a suspicious man at the tow yard in Springfield. The caller said the man was going through vehicles in the yard, even though it is closed on Sundays. Deputies soon arrived and say they saw the man going through a car. They detained and searched him and found drug paraphernalia, they said. They then arrested the man for prowling. When investigators checked out the surveillance video from the building, they saw the man trying to break into the building just before they arrived, the sheriffs office said. Deputies are pursuing attempted breaking and entering charges against the man, a 31-year-old from Bedford Township whose name was not released pending arraignment. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com. Fewer women in North Carolina died from pregnancy-related complications in 2022, though these deaths remain much higher than in the years before the COVID-19 pandemic. New mortality data released in early May by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show the United States overall saw a dip in pregnancy-related deaths since 2021, the year widespread vaccination against COVID-19 first began. Initially delayed nationwide for months due to a reporting problem that originated in North Carolina, the numbers show the rate of pregnancy-related deaths here far outstrip the U.S. overall. And they underscore a persistent disparity between the deaths of white and Black women in the state. In 2022, 63 women died from pregnancy-related complications in North Carolina, according to a News & Observer analysis of the CDC data. Thats down from 82 pregnancy-related deaths in 2021. But North Carolinas pregnancy-related death rate is about 18 points higher than the United States overall. A joint investigation by The News & Observer and The Charlotte Observer last year detailed how pregnancy can be more dangerous for women in North Carolina and why experts remain worried about maternal health trends in the state. Though small in raw terms, experts say the high rate of death relative to the rest of the United States, where pregnant women already fare worse than in other wealthy nations, is a canary in a coal mine for broader healthcare failures. A framed photograph of Atari Thomas, his daughter, Hannah Esquilin, and son, Braylon sits atop a blanket featuring a photograph of his wife, Tiffany. Thomas had the blanket made for Tiffany to mark their seven-year anniversary in 2020. Tiffany was eight months pregnant when she died in 2021. While they acknowledge a year-over-year decrease is good news for North Carolina, maternal health clinicians and researchers who reviewed The N&Os findings this week said its hard to know if the state is truly trending in the right direction. If I were in the health department, I would be very concerned, said Marie Thoma, an associate professor of family health at the University of Maryland School of Public Health. Will downward trend continue? Experts arent sure Like in other states, some of the decline in pregnancy-related death from 2021 to 2022 in North Carolina is likely due to the corresponding decline in overall mortality as more people developed immunity to the worst effects of COVID-19, Thoma said. The CDC numbers show some evidence of that: deaths during or within six weeks of pregnancy when women are most vulnerable to COVID dropped by almost 40%. Deaths from six weeks to a year after pregnancy, meanwhile, remained essentially unchanged. One of the persistent problems is the lack of contact healthcare providers have with patients after a pregnancy, according to Hendree Jones, a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the UNC School of Medicine. She said such appointments are critical for detecting and treating health problems. The World Health Organization recommends four appointments within eight weeks after a pregnancy, she said. We dont come anywhere close to that, Jones said. She said Medicaid is set up to provide bundled payment to hospitals for prenatal services and delivery. But the incentives for postpartum care, Jones said, just arent there. Given that pregnancy-related deaths in North Carolina were on the rise even before COVID, Thoma said that increase may continue with the pandemic emergency now over. Is it just continuing an upward trend happening pre-COVID? Thoma said. It looks like that might be happening. Disparities persist for Black women In a report released in early May, the CDC said that fewer Black, white and Hispanic women died from pregnancyrelated complications nationwide from 2021 to 2022. But the agency also noted that the death rate for pregnant or recently pregnant Black women remains much higher than other racial groups. In North Carolina, Black women in 2022 died of pregnancy-related complications at more than twice the rate of white women, an N&O analysis shows. The state is working with providers and local health departments on a number of programs to reduce these disparities, said Belinda Pettiford, who heads the N.C. Division of Public Healths Women, Infant and Community Wellness Section Many of these efforts, Pettiford said, look beyond medical needs to social determinants of health such as affordable housing, transportation, even access to healthy food for people on Medicaid. The low-income insurance program covers more than half the babies born in North Carolina every year. She said infant and maternal health advocates are also pushing lawmakers to expand Medicaid reimbursement to cover services for doulas, a move the states Child Fatality Task Force recently asked state lawmakers to fund during their short session this summer. Workers in those nonclinical roles, who provide guidance and support for expectant mothers, can contribute to healthier pregnancies and faster treatment if something goes wrong, experts say. Kira Kimble leads other doulas in a discussion about how to improve their services in July 2023 at Amelies French Bakery & Cafe in Charlotte. For doctors and other providers, Pettiford said state health officials are continuing to raise awareness about pregnancy-related complications signaled by early warning signs such as severe pain, extreme swelling or persistent headaches. Given that the vast majority of pregnancy-related deaths are preventable, she said taking womens concerns seriously can save lives. If she says something doesnt feel right, you need to listen, Pettiford said. Its about paying attention and providing respectful care. Experts still waiting for answers Assessing whether those efforts will help reduce maternal mortality across the state, though, will take time. Pettiford said that state health officials are awaiting preliminary data for 2023 that in the coming weeks on near misses that almost result in death known as severe maternal morbidity that may provide some evidence the risks to women are improving in the state. Stefanie Wisda, at ease in Cary in 2023 with her husband and young son, weathered a serious and unexpected life-threatening medical emergency the day Eli was born. The N&O reported last year that those near misses were, like pregnancy-related deaths, also generally on the rise through 2022. More than 1,000 women nearly died from pregnancy-related complications that year at rates much higher than the period before the pandemic. Were just trying to figure out if were going to see a downward trend sometime soon, Pettiford said. The challenge is: we dont know. More signals on the drivers and trends of North Carolinas pregnancy-related deaths are expected to emerge from the states maternal mortality review committee. The all-volunteer group of clinicians and advocates closely analyzes the deaths of pregnant and recently pregnant women case by case The reviews consider deaths from other factors like overdose and domestic violence and are far more expansive than those based on CDC data, which relies solely on death certificates from each state. But MMRC reports tend to lag behind for years and North Carolina is further behind than most. North Carolinas MMRC released its latest study earlier this year on deaths from 2018 and 2019. Pettiford said the committee is currently working to review deaths during 2020 and 2021 in an effort to get caught up. Ultimately,the CDC data does show cause for concern in North Carolina, especially as the state compares to the rest of the country, Jones said. But she sees some potential bright spots. After extending postpartum Medicaid coverage from two to 12 months back in 2021, the legislature finalized the overall expansion of Medicaid coverage for patients starting in late 2023. More insurance coverage will mean more access to medical care and treatment, which experts hope will mean women are healthier even before they get pregnant. It may take years for data on pregnancy-related deaths to reflect those impacts. I do not have a crystal ball, Jones said. But Im hopeful theyll continue to trend down. Pregnancy-related deaths open voids in families expecting to celebrate new life A U.S. Army soldier currently detained in Russia was stabbed by his Russian girlfriend months before his arrest, his wife has claimed. Staff Sergeant Gordon Black was attacked while making a surprise video call to his 6-year-old daughter in Texas from his overseas tour in South Korea, Megan Black told Reuters. She said she and their daughter watched as Gordon got into a fight with his Russian girlfriend which escalated into screaming and bloodshed. Jailed U.S. Soldier Was Warned Against Visiting Girlfriend in Russia Megan Black, who was finalizing her divorce with Gordon at the time of his arrest, says his Russian girlfriend could be seen on the call clawing at his face and then pulling out a knife. She stabbed him, she said, adding that her husband had blood on his face and that their young daughter was distraught during the ordeal. Gordon Black was taken into custody in the city of Vladivostok in Russias far east on May 2. He is accused of theft after an argument and is currently being held in pre-trial detention, Russian authorities say. The Pentagon says Black, who was posted at Camp Humphreys outside Seoul, had traveled to Russia without the authorization of the U.S. Army. Melody Jones, his mother, told Reuters that her son decided to follow his girlfriend to Russia despite the fact that they fought like cats and dogs. The report did not name the girlfriend, but a Vladivostok local and TikTok user named Aleksandra Vashchuk has uploaded multiple videos featuring Black and refers to him as her husband. His stepfather, Martin Jones, told The Daily Beast last week that he had warned Black against traveling to Russia to visit the so-called girlfriend. Martin claimed the Russian woman had been deported from South Korea, and thats why Black had made the trip to Vladivostok. Megan Black, the estranged wife, told Reuters her own relationship with the soldier started to deteriorate in 2018, and he later initiated divorce proceedings shortly after his departure to South Korea. She first found out about his new girlfriend in Jan. 2022. Megan also said that she and her daughter were expecting Black to return to Texas as his tour in South Korea had just ended. They had no idea hed traveled to Russia, she added. On the day of his arrest, Megan received a message from him telling me that he wasn't coming home, she said. Megan says she has not heard from him since and says their child now looks at her dad as a bad man. A lawyer for Black has filed an appeal against his detention in Russia, state-owned Tass news service reported Monday. The grounds on which the appeal has been made are not clear. He could face a sentence of up to five years imprisonment if convicted. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. Detectives arrest person of interest in deadly stabbing last month in Old North Sacramento Officers and detectives last week arrested a man considered a person of interest in the investigation of a deadly stabbing last month in Old North Sacramento. Detectives had identified the 30-year-old man as a person of interest in the homicide investigation and found him Thursday, the Sacramento Police Department announced Monday in an update to the case. The man wanted for questioning in the homicide case was arrested on unrelated warrants, including felony charges of being a felon in possession of a gun and carrying a concealed dirk or dagger, along with a misdemeanor charge of possessing drug paraphernalia Sacramento County Jail records show. The arrested man also faces a new charge of carrying a concealed dirk or dagger. He remained in custody Monday at the jail, where he was being held without bail. Police said detectives have submitted the homicide case to the Sacramento County District Attorneys Office to review and determine whether to file criminal charges related to the fatal stabbing. The stabbing was reported about 4:20 p.m. after a fight broke out between at least two men near Traction Avenue and Colfax Street. The stabbing occurred near the overpass spanning Colfax Street near Sacramento Northern Bike Trail, according to police. Officers arrived and found one man with life-threatening stab wounds. Police said officers began performing life-saving measures and called for medics to respond. Authorities pronounced the man dead at the scene. The Sacramento County Coroners Office on Monday confirmed that Cesar Osberto Lopez-Rodas, 31, was the man killed in last months stabbing. The officers found another man with injuries not considered life-threatening who was hospitalized. ST. LOUIS Homicide detectives with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department believe a mother tried to frame her 2-year-old son for the shooting death of the childs father. According to a probable cause statement, the shooting happened around 8:40 p.m. on Nov. 11, 2021, at an apartment in the 1400 block of Castle Lane, located in the PeabodyDarstWebbe neighborhood. Police arrived to find Korey Davidson dead inside the apartment with a gunshot wound to his back. The only people at the residence were Davidson, Breunshaye McKinney, and their 2-year-old son. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Daily News McKinney initially told investigators that the child somehow got access to a rifle and accidentally shot Davidson. Police claim the firearm used to kill Davidson was an AK-style rifle with a 5.5-pound trigger pull weight. Detectives tested both McKinney and the child for the presence of gun powder residue. The 2-year-olds clothes and hands tested negative, while McKinney tested positive. The St. Louis Circuit Attorneys Office charged McKinney, 33, with first-degree murder and armed criminal action. A warrant was issued for her arrest on May 10. Anyone with information on McKinneys whereabouts is asked to contact the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 2. TechCrunch Fidelity Investments, one of the world's largest asset managers, has confirmed that over 77,000 customers had personal information compromised during an August data breach, including Social Security numbers and driver's licenses. The Boston, Massachusetts-based investment firm said in a filing with Maines attorney general on Wednesday that an unnamed third party accessed information from its systems between August 17 and August 19 "using two customer accounts that they had recently established. We detected this activity on August 19 and immediately took steps to terminate the access, Fidelity said in a letter sent to those affected, adding that the incident did not involve any access to customers Fidelity accounts. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine was the guest speaker during a recent Columbus Metropolitan Club weekly forum. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine answered questions about abortion, redistricting, lawmakers overriding his vetoes and the power struggle in the Ohio House during the most recent Columbus Metropolitan Club weekly forum. Statehouse News Bureau reporter Jo Ingles asked DeWine several questions during the hour-long forum and here is a rundown of what the governor had to say. Overriding DeWines vetoes The Ohio legislature overrode two of DeWines vetoes earlier this year one banning gender-affirming care for transgender youth and the other blocks cities from banning flavored tobacco sales. The gender-affirming care ban was set to take effect at the end of April, but a Franklin County Court of Common Pleas judge issued a temporary restraining order on the bill. When asked if DeWine feels at odds with Ohios legislative leaders, he acknowledged theres some areas where we have disagreed. Sometimes theyve overwritten me and sometimes theyve not, and we may disagree in the future, but on the essential things, that the average Ohioan cares about their family, their kids, their safety, their future, this legislature has been with me on virtually every one of those things, he said. Power struggle in Ohio House The drama that stems from how House Speaker Jason Stephens, R-Kitts Hill, came to power in January 2023 has caused ripple effects in the House ever since. The Republican caucus had previously selected state Rep. Derek Merrin, R-Monclova, as their speaker months before the full House floor vote, but 22 Republicans and all the Democrats voted for Stephens during the actual vote. When asked what impact this will have on getting his plans through the legislature, DeWine said he respects the separation of the executive and legislative branches. The governor should not be telling the House who to have as speaker, he said. We shouldnt be telling the Senate who to have as Senate president. I shouldnt be getting involved in that. And so I dont. Abortion Ohio voters overwhelmingly passed a constitutional amendment to protect abortion and reproductive rights in November. DeWine has repeatedly said he accepts the results, but reiterated his pro-life stance. I believe that were dealing with a human life here, he said. I think one of the things thats very, very important is that we do everything in our power to assist a pregnant mom, who is facing a difficult situation for any number of reasons. In the wake of the November election, many lawsuits have been filed and legislative measures are moving through the Ohio Statehouse. Anybody can walk into a courthouse in Ohio today and file a lawsuit about any law today, DeWine said. And they have every right to do that. And we have to respect the process. I respect that process. Redistricting DeWine agreed not having elected officials involved in the redistricting process is good, but stopped short of saying he supports the Citizens Not Politicians proposed constitutional amendment which would make a 15-member citizen redistricting commission. Under the proposed amendment, no current or former politicians would be on the commission. Im still looking at this one, DeWine said. And you know, at some point, Ill announce my position. DeWine was a member of the Ohio Redistricting Commission for the last two years as the group went through the mapdrawing process for statehouse and congressional districts. The governor is one of the positions listed as part of the commission under the current process. Its my personal choice to never be involved in that again, so maybe I have a little bias and dont want elected officials involved, because I sure dont want to be involved in it again, he said. My position is it didnt work very well. And we need to do something else. And we need not to have elected officials directly involved in it. Seat belt laws DeWine made a point to advocate for stricter seat belt laws in Ohio throughout last weeks forum. If you want to save the most lives, the easiest way is to pass a seat belt law, he said. Currently, a police officer must stop a driver for another violation before issuing a seat belt citation. State Rep. Jon Cross, R-Findlay, plans on introducing a bill that would make not wearing a seat belt a primary offense. The goal of this legislation is to save lives and to increase safety on our roads, Cross said in a news release. Many other states have made not wearing a seat belt a primary offense and its time for Ohio to follow suit. In 2023, 49,768 of the 252,000 crashes reported to the Ohio State Highway Patrol were unbelted, according to AAA. Follow OCJ Reporter Megan Henry on X. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post DeWine talks abortion, Ohio redistricting, seat belts during Columbus Metropolitan Club forum appeared first on Ohio Capital Journal. As wildfires swept across Maui in 2023, killing more than 100 people and causing widespread destruction, another damaging force was spreading online. Chinese actors exploited the unfolding chaos and took to social media, where they shared a conspiracy that the fire was the result of a meteorological weapon being tested by the U.S. Department of Defense. According to new analysis from Microsoft Corporation, a worldwide technology company, the Chinese accounts posted photos that were created with generative artificial intelligence, which uses new technology that can create images from written prompts. The situation exemplifies two challenges that some experts are warning about ahead of the presidential election in November: The use of generative AI to create fake images and videos, and the emergence of China as an adversary that stands ready and willing to target the United States with disinformation. Academics are also voicing concerns about a proliferation of alternative news platforms, government inaction on the spread of disinformation, worsening social media moderation and increased instances of public figures inciting violence. An environment rife for disinformation is coinciding with a year during which more than 50 countries are holding high-stakes elections. Simply put, its a very precarious year for democracy, warned Mollie Saltskog, a research fellow at The Soufan Center, a nonprofit that analyzes global security challenges. Some of the messaging meant to sow division is reaching veterans by preying on their sense of duty to the U.S., some experts warned. Conspiracy theories are a threat to vulnerable veterans, and they could drag your loved ones into really dark and dangerous places, said Jacob Ware, a research fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations who published a book this year about domestic terrorism. The seeds are there for this kind of activity again, and we need to make the argument that protecting people from conspiracy theories is in their best interest, not just in the countrys. The threat of state-backed disinformation China kept to the sidelines during the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections, watching as Russia targeted the U.S. with chaos-inducing disinformation, according to the U.S. Intelligence community. But Beijings disinformation capabilities have increased in recent years, and the country has proven a willingness to get involved, Saltskog said. In a report published in April, Microsoft warned that China was preparing to sow division during the presidential campaign by using fake social media accounts to discover what issues divide Americans most. The accounts claimed that a train derailment in Kentucky was deliberately caused by the U.S. government, and they polled Americans about issues like climate change, border policies and racial tensions. China uses the information gathered to understand better which U.S. voter demographic supports what issue or position and which topics are the most divisive, ahead of the main phase of the U.S. presidential election, the technology behemoth warned. Microsoft Corporation reported in April that inauthentic Chinese social media accounts were attempting to learn more about what divides U.S. voters in order to prepare for a disinformation campaign ahead of the November presidential election. (Screenshot of Microsoft report) The primary concern today, in our assessment, is Russia, China and Iran, in that order, Saltskog said. Specifically, when we talk about China weve seen with the Hawaii wildfire example that they have AI-powered capabilities to produce disinformation campaigns targeting the U.S. Its certainly very concerning. Envoys from China and the U.S. are set to meet this week to discuss the risks of artificial intelligence and how the countries could manage the technology. A senior official in President Joe Bidens administration told reporters Friday that the agenda does not include election interference, but noted the topic might come up in discussion. In previous engagements, we have expressed clear concerns and warnings about any [Peoples Republic of China] activity in this space, a senior administration official said. If the conversation goes in a particular direction, then we will certainly continue to express those concerns and warnings about activity in that space. Logically, a British tech company that uses artificial intelligence to monitor disinformation around the world, has been tracking Russian-sponsored disinformation for years. Kyle Walter, the companys head of research, believes Russia is positioned to increase its spread of falsehoods during the run-up to the November election, likely focusing on divisive issues, such as immigration and the U.S. economy. Russia isnt seeking to help one candidate over another, Walter added. Rather, its trying to sow chaos and encourage Americans to question the validity and integrity of their voting process. Microsofts threat analysis center published another report at the end of April, saying that Russian influence operations to target the November election have already begun. The propaganda and disinformation campaigns are starting at a slower tempo than in 2016 and 2020, but theyre more centralized under the Russian Presidential Administration than in the past, Microsoft officials said. So far, Russia-affiliated accounts have been focusing on undermining U.S. support for Ukraine, pushing disinformation meant to portray Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as unethical and incompetent, and arguing that any American aid to Ukraine was directly supporting a corrupt and conspiratorial regime, the report states. Storm-1099, a Russian influence actor, is using alternative news sites to sow division and undermine U.S. democracy ahead of the November presidential election. State-backed disinformation campaigns like these have used images of U.S. service members and targeted troops and veterans during the previous two presidential elections. A study from Oxford University in 2017 found Russian operatives disseminated junk news to veterans and service members during the 2016 election. In 2020, Vietnam Veterans of America warned that foreign adversaries were aiming disinformation at veterans and service members at a massive scale, posing a national security threat. Its certainly happened historically, and its certainly a threat to be aware of now, Saltskog said. A social media hellscape In March, the pause in public sightings of Kate Middleton, along with the lack of updates regarding her health following abdominal surgery, created a breeding ground for conspiracy theories. Scores of memes and rumors spread in an online fervor until Middleton posted a video March 20, in which the Princess of Wales shared the news that she had been diagnosed with an undisclosed type of cancer. Some who shared conspiracies responded with regret. The situation offered a public example of how conspiracy thinking snowballs on social media platforms, as well as the real harm it can cause, said AJ Bauer, an assistant professor at the University of Alabama, where he studies partisan media and political communications. It does reinforce the fact that social media gives us an opportunity to crowdsource and spin conspiracy theories and conspiracy thinking, Bauer said. It can be done for a kind of whimsy, or it can be done for harm, and the line between whimsy and harm is a fine one. It can tip from one to the other pretty quickly. Social media platforms were blamed during the presidential election seasons in 2016 and 2020 for the influential campaigns that gained traction on their sites. Since then, the situation has only worsened, several experts argued. What are disinformation and extremism? And why should troops be aware? Bauer specifically blamed recent changes at X, formerly Twitter, which was taken over in 2022 by billionaire Elon Musk. Musk has used the platform to endorse at least one antisemitic conspiracy theory, and several large corporations withdrew from the platform after their ads were displayed alongside pro-Nazi content. Bauer described the site as a hellscape that is objectively worse than it was in 2020 and 2016. One really stark difference is that in 2020, you had a lot of big social media platforms like Twitter and Meta trying at least to mitigate disinformation and extremist views because they got a lot of blame for the chaos around the 2016 election, Bauer said. Part of what you see going into this election is that those guardrails are down, and were going to experience a free-for-all. In addition to the changes at X, layoffs last year struck content-moderation teams at Meta, Amazon, and Alphabet (the owner of YouTube), and have led to fears that the platforms would not be able to curb online abuse or remove deceptive disinformation. That timing could not be worse, Saltskog said. Were going to have a much thinner bench when it comes to the people inside social media platforms who do this. Kurt Braddock, an assistant professor at American University who studies extremist propaganda, argued that social media platforms dont have financial incentive to moderate divisive or misleading content. Their profits are driven by engagement, and engagement is often driven by outrage, Braddock said. Because of this, Braddock believes there should be more focus placed on teaching people especially younger people how to spot disinformation online. A study last year by the Center for Countering Digital Hate found that teenagers were more likely than U.S. adults to believe conspiracy theories. Another study by the University of Cambridge found that people ages 18 to 29 were worse than older adults at identifying false headlines, and the more time people spent online recreationally, the less likely they were able to spot misinformation. The average age of the active-duty military is 28.5, according to a Defense Department demographic profile published in 2023, and new recruits are typically in their early 20s. Because of the young age of the force, Braddock thinks the Defense Department should be involved in teaching news literacy. The Pentagon and Department of Veterans Affairs did not respond to a request for comment about any efforts to help service members and veterans distinguish accurate information online. Theyve grown up in the digital age, and for some its been impossible to differentiate whats real and whats not real, Braddock said. Theyve essentially been thrown to the wolves and dont have the education to be able to distinguish the two. I think there needs to be a larger effort toward widespread media literacy for young people, especially in populations like the military. Elon Musk, co-founder of Tesla and SpaceX and owner of X Holdings Corp., speaks at the Milken Institute's Global Conference at the Beverly Hilton Hotel,on May 6, 2024 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Apu Gomes/Getty Images) AI speeds disinformation Overall, people are getting better at spotting disinformation because of awareness efforts over the past several years, Braddock believes. However, just as more people were becoming accustomed to identifying false information, the landscape changed, he said. Generative AI gained traction last year, prompting the launch of tools that can create new images and videos, called deepfakes, from written descriptions. Since Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel on October 7, these digital tools have been used to create propaganda about the ensuing conflict. Some AI images portray injured or frightened Palestinian children running from air strikes in Gaza, while others depict crowds of people waving Israeli flags and cheering for the Israeli Defense Forces. This is a new thing, and most people arent prepared to differentiate between whats real and whats not, Braddock said. We need to stay on top of these different technologies which can be used to reach a large amount of people with propaganda. It only takes one person to do a lot of damage. The Soufan Center and Council on Foreign Relations consider AI to be the top concern heading into November. The technology is developing faster than Congress can work to regulate it, and social media companies are likely to struggle to moderate AI-generated content leading up to the election, Ware said. As Congress grapples with reining in AI, some states are taking the lead and scrambling to pass legislation of their own. New Mexico is the latest to pass a law that will require political campaigns to provide a clear disclaimer when they use AI in their advertisements. California, Texas, Washington, Minnesota and Michigan have passed similar laws. Ware said that among those working to counter domestic terrorism, AI has been treated like a can getting kicked down the road a known problem thats been put off repeatedly. We knew it was a specter that was out there that would one day really affect this space, Ware said. Its arrived, and weve all been caught unprepared. Artificial intelligence is supercharging the threat of election disinformation worldwide, making it easy for anyone to create fake but convincing content aimed at fooling voters. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber, File) The technology can accelerate the speed and scale at which people can spread conspiracy theories that radicalize others into extremist beliefs, Ware added. At The Soufan Center, researchers have found that generative AI can produce high quantities of false content, which the center warned could have significant offline implications if its used to call for violent action. You can create more false information at scale. You can just ask an AI-powered language model, Hey, create X number of false narratives about this topic, and it will generate it for you, Saltskog said. Just the speed and scale and efficacy of it is very, deeply concerning to us experts working in this field. The creation of AI images and videos is even more concerning because people tend to believe what they can see, Saltskog said. She suggested people look at images and videos carefully for telltale signs of digital deception. The technology is still developing, and its not perfect, she said. Some signs of deepfakes could be hands that have too many or too few fingers, blurry spots, the foreground melding into the background and speech not aligning with how the subjects mouth is moving. These are things the human brain catches onto. Youre aware of it and attune to it, Saltskog said. Your brain will say, Something is off with this video. As Congress and social media platforms lag to regulate AI and moderate disinformation, Americans have been left to figure it out for themselves, Ware argued. Bauer suggested people do their homework about their source of news, which includes determining who published it, when it was published and what agenda the publisher might have. Saltskog advised people to be wary of anything that elicits a strong emotion because thats the goal of those pushing propaganda. Similarly, Ware recommended that if social media users see something that seems unbelievable, it likely is. He suggested they look for other sources providing that same information to help determine if its true. People are going to take it upon themselves to figure this out, and its going to be through digital literacy and having faith in your fellow Americans, Ware said. The stories that are trying to anger you or divide you are probably doing so with an angle, as opposed to a pursuit of the truth. This story was produced in partnership with Military Veterans in Journalism. Please send tips to MVJ-Tips@militarytimes.com. WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) More lawmakers on Capitol Hill are slamming President Biden over his warning to Israel that if it invades Rafah the United States will not supply it with weapons but the Biden administration is reaffirming its support for Israels war against Hamas. No one has done more than Joe Biden, said Secretary of State Antony Blinken. However, the administration is concerned about Israels conduct in the war in Gaza. Last week President Biden said in an interview that the U.S. will stop supplying offensive weaponry that could be used for an assault on Rafah if Israel makes the decision to invade. There are certain systems that were not going to be supporting and supplying, said Blinken. President Biden is facing scrutiny from Republicans like Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton. Joe Bidens position as a de facto for Hamas victory at this point, said Cotton. And South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham over those comments. Give Israel the bombs they need to end the war they cant afford to lose, said Graham. Maryland Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen supports the presidents plan and has long called for the White House to use its leverage over Israel as it prepares for an invasion into Rafah. I think the president is absolutely right to withhold these big, big bombs, said Van Hollen. For now, the White House says other weapon system deliveries will continue. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News. EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) A 41-year-old woman from El Paso was arrested after she allegedly shot and killed her boyfriend after a domestic dispute last Friday night, May 10 in East El Paso, according to court documents obtained by KTSM. 1 person dead, 1 in custody in domestic dispute According to court documents, Valerie Navejas, 41, is facing a charge of murder after shooting and killing her boyfriend Todd Frank Olivas, 49, at an apartment complex along the 6800 block of Bellrose Drive. Valerie Navejas, 41. Photo: EPPD Court documents say Navejas told police that she was in a six-month-long relationship with Olivas. She also told police that she is a Level 3 security guard and carries a firearm while on duty. Navejas told police that earlier that day she began to feel sick and left work. She then called Olivas and told him about what happened, which led to them arguing over the phone, according to court documents. Navejas told police that when she arrived home, she removed her duty belt with her loaded handgun and placed it inside her backpack. Navejas then placed her backpack inside the bedrooms closet, according to court documents. Court documents say Olivas was at the apartment once Navejas got home and he was drinking. Navejas told police that she got into an argument with Olivas and stated that he began to lightly slap her on the face while she was laying down in the bedroom, according to court documents. Najevas also told police that Olivas pulled her hair. Court documents say Navejas told Olivas that she was done with him and asked him to leave the apartment but he refused. Olivas then walked towards the bedrooms closet and grabbed Navejas firearm. Navejas told police that Olivas pointed the firearm at her and she asked him not to do anything to her, according to court documents. Court documents say Olivas then threatened to kill himself and pointed the handgun at himself. Navejas then tried to get the gun from Olivas and a struggle ensued, according to court documents. Navejas told police that she closed her eyes and heard multiple gunshots. Navejas then opened her eyes again and the handgun was in her hands and Olivas was outside of the bedroom lying by the hallway, according to court documents. Navejas told police that she did not know what to do so she called a friend and her friends mother advised Navejas to unload the firearm and call 911, according to court documents. Navejas also told police that she picked up the casings from the floor and placed them on top of a dresser inside the bedroom. Court documents say investigators noticed inconsistencies between Navejas story and the physical evidence at the crime scene. Navejas then changed her story and stated that when they were struggling with the firearm, she was able to take it away from Olivas, according to court documents. Navejas then allegedly shot Olivas twice at close range. Olivas then started walking backward towards the entrance of the bedroom with his hands up making, making a stop gesture to her, according to court documents. Court documents say Navejas then followed Olivas because she believed he was going to grab something and then shot him again by the entrance of the bedroom. Olivas then fell backward and began crawling towards the adjacent bedroom. Navejas then walked towards the hallway and shot at Olivas again while he was on the floor, according to court documents. Court documents say Navejas then called her friend and family members before she called 911. She also told police that it took her half an hour to call 911. Court documents also say Navejas tampered with the crime scene by picking up the casings before reporting the incident to police. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTSM 9 News. GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) A Michigan doctor will serve more than a decade in prison after authorizing more than 3,000 illegitimate opioid prescriptions. Last week, Dr. Lawrence Sherman was sentenced to 12 years in prison after being convicted by a jury on 20 criminal charges. According to federal prosecutors, Sherman wrote the bogus prescriptions through the Tranquility Wellness Center between March 2020 and June 2021. He first worked out of the offices Dearborn facility, and then in Saint Clair Shores. Most of Shermans prescriptions were for Oxycodone, Oxymorphone and Percocet, which prosecutors called three of the most addictive forms of prescription opioids and the most highly sought-after opioids in the illegal drug trade. MDHHS: Project at jails aims to fight opioid abuse Federal agents executed search and arrest warrants against the Tranquility Wellness Center in June 2021. Four other members of the clinic also face charges. Two others have already taken plea deals and have been sentenced. Prosecutors noted that most of Shermans patients were brought to the clinic by patient recruiters. The clinic only accepted cash, it charged patients not based on the service provided, but instead based on the quantity, type and dosage of prescription opioids that they received. It also charged patients additional fees for fraudulent medical documents. Prosecutors say evidence shows the 75-year-old issued more than 270,000 doses of Schedule II opioid prescriptions during those 15 months. The drugs had an estimated street value of $6.3 million. Cheyvoryea Gibson, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Michigan, said this case highlights the agencys efforts to hold medical professionals accountable for their role in the opioid crisis. Local governments struggle to distribute their share of billions from opioid settlements His actions endangered countless lives, which goes against the oath he took as a doctor, Gibson stated. We remain committed to investigating health care fraud and holding those who exploit their positions accountable. Said U.S. Attorney of Eastern Michigan Dawn Ison: Health care professionals have both an opportunity and a duty to help address the terrible impact the opioid epidemic has had on our community, but Dr. Sherman chose to only make it worse. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com. Just a week after the much-anticipated Top Thrill 2 roller coaster opened to the public, Cedar Point announced an "extended closure" so "mechanical modifications" could be made to the record-breaking thrill ride. "We share your disappointment that we are not able to operate it this weekend," Cedar Point said online Sunday. "We will do everything possible to reopen Top Thrill 2 as soon as we are confident we can deliver the ride experience that our guests deserve." The Ohio amusement park did not say when that would be, nor did it identify what was wrong with the ride. But ride enthusiasts quickly took to social media to post photos, speculate about what happened, and offer their opinions on the ride, the manufacturer and what should happen next. What does it mean, theyve even asked, for the future of a merged Cedar Point-Six Flags company? Riders on Cedar Point's Top Thrill 2 coaster make their way up the 420-foot-tall tower. The shutdown, some said, wasn't a good look at all. Among their concerns was the long-term shutdown of a major new ride at Kennywood in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, just southeast of Pittsburgh, that last month became the focus of a legal battle in which season-pass holders are alleging the park knew the ride wouldnt be ready but sold them passes anyway. Kennywood is owned by a different company, but there are similar parallels. Cedar Point said that once the Top Thrill 2 modification is finished, it, the manufacturer, and a "third-party ride inspection partner" will conduct "a thorough review before approving both the modification and the reopening of the ride." Record-breaking roller coaster Summer visits to the Sandusky, Ohio, amusement park have long been a rite of passage, badge of courage, and favorite summer camp outing for Michiganders, and this year, the re-imagined ride Top Thrill 2 was set to be the new centerpiece of the experience. Cedar Point's Top Thrill 2 roller coaster makes its way over the 420-foot-tall hill. The ride has been billed as the worlds "tallest and fastest triple-launch" strata-coaster. More: Cedar Point, much-anticipated new Top Thrill ride, opens Saturday with new rules But it also has raised some eyebrows among roller coaster-watchers who wondered whether theme parks and ride manufacturers were going too far in pushing the limits of the rides in the name of big thrills and were doing enough to keep people safe. The ride's name, Top Thrill 2, suggested it was the second generation of the Top Thrill Dragster, which also debuted as a record-setter and was plagued with problems. It also referred to the fact that it had two, 420-foot-tall towers, instead of just one. The park initially said the race-car-themed ride "delivers everything a thrill-seeker could want" and announced new safety rules prohibiting riders from carrying loose items, including phones, that could fall out of pockets. In 2021, a piece of metal the size of a hand fell off the ride and struck a then-44-year-old Swartz Creek woman in the head. Ohio officials said it was an L-shaped bracket that sat at the back of the train car. While the ride was in descent, the bracket hit the coasters track and came off the coaster's train. Cedar Point workers stand at the entrance to the Top Thrill 2 roller coaster. The accident led to a widely reported lawsuit, which, some theorized, led to the ride's 2022 retirement. More recently, local news outlets have been reporting the closure, which is spreading online, and could hurt both confidence in the Top Thrill 2 ride and Cedar Point's ability to deliver a thrilling, roller coaster experience. Top Thrill 2 closing speculation Roller coaster fans are a fanatical bunch in search of the latest adrenaline rush and also clues and conspiracies to what is going on with thrill rides before anyone else. They check out whatever information they can, and they draw their conclusions. Some have been posting photos of the idled Top Thrill 2 and what they could see or think they see such as lights "blaring in the maintenance shed" along with commentary: "Hopefully we are looking at an easy fix!" Speculation about the new ride started last year, with potential rides flyspecking photos of the park for any details about what it would be like and even taking road trips to the North American offices of Zamperla, the rides manufacturer. Ultimately, unofficial information about the ride spoiled the companys late summer announcement. William Chew, of Mentor, takes a picture of his kids Billy, 8, and Phoebe, 10, in front of Cedar Point's Top Thrill 2 roller coaster. In November, leaders of Cedar Fair, which owns Cedar Point, and Six Flags announced a merger between the two companies. Six Flags shareholders voted in March to approve the deal, in which Cedar Fair shareholders would own 51.2% of the new company, with Six Flags shareholders, 48.8%. But limited details about the weekend shutdown have spurred a new round of speculation. Some Cedar Point fans poor-mouthed Zamperla, an Italian roller coaster design and manufacturing company. The same manufacturer, they pointed out, was responsible for the ballyhooed Wild Mouse coaster, which debuted at Cedar Point last year with problems. The Akron Beacon Journal reported last year that the ride stopped abruptly twice and passengers "had to be rescued" when cars stopped at one of the coasters highest points and amid winding turns closer to the ground. Still, other fans praised Zamperla on Facebook as a tenacious company and resisted any comparisons between Top Thrill 2 and the Steel Curtain ride at Kennywood, which is shut down for the entire season, hoping that the Cedar Point ride wont take as long to modify, test and reopen. Contact Frank Witsil: 313-222-5022 or fwitsil@freepress.com. This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Top Thrill 2, Cedar Point's new centerpiece ride, has suddenly closed What I was doing was at the direction of and benefit of Mr. Trump, Cohen testifies in hush money case Michael Cohen leaves his apartment building on his way to Manhattan criminal court, Monday, May 13, 2024, in New York. | Julia Nikhinson Michael Cohen, former President Donald Trumps ex-lawyer and fixer, allegedly gave adult film actress Stormy Daniels $130,000 in exchange for her silence right before the 2016 presidential election. On Monday morning, the 16th day of Trumps hush money trial in New York, Cohen took the stand and testified on Trumps involvement in the payments. What I was doing was at the direction of and benefit of Mr. Trump, Cohen testified, adding: Everything required Mr. Trumps sign-off, according to The Associated Press. Jurors have already heard from key prosecution witnesses, including adult film actress Stormy Daniels. The 34-count criminal case, brought forward by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, alleges Trump falsified business records prior to the 2016 election to keep his relationship with Daniels a secret. Trump has denied any wrongdoing, repeatedly calling the judicial proceedings a witch hunt, as he did in his remarks to reporters shortly before the court proceedings. I should be out campaigning now instead of sitting in a very cold courthouse all day long, he said. This is a Biden prosecution. Daniels was on the witness stand for two days. She was asked about the alleged $130,000 hush money payment, given to her by Cohen. Cohen said he began working for Trump in 2007 and earned a $375,000 salary, according to NBC News. He said he would handle Trumps legal work, like renegotiating specific bills, place stories in the media to shape a positive image of Trump and kill stories that could damage his image. Cohen testified he spoke with Trump on a daily basis, while revealing Trump never had an email address because he thought an electronic paper trail could be used against him. Asked if he lied in order to help Trump, Cohen said he was dishonest to finish the task and keep his boss happy, as CBS News reported. In 2016, Cohen received a call from David Pecker and Dylan Howard, the former publisher and editor-in-chief of The National Enquirer, regarding a story that was being shopped around about a Playboy models alleged relationship with Trump. Trump knew the woman, Karen McDougal, and Cohen recalled him saying, Shes really beautiful. I said, OK, but theres a story thats right now being shopped, Cohen said. He added that Trump told him to suppress this storys release. Pecker told Cohen it would cost $150,000 to bury the story, and Trump had agreed to pay up, Cohen said in his testimony. This story wasnt the central issue in the trial but it could be used to show Cohen needed the former presidents sign-off to carry out his plans. The Access Hollywood tape, involving Trump speaking about sexual assault, surfaced in 2016. Trump directed Cohen to reach out to his media contacts and spin the story as locker room talk, on former first lady Melania Trumps recommendation, according to his testimony. According to NBC News, he said the tape in question would have a catastrophic impact on the campaign. Trump had told Cohen to take care of the Daniels story back in 2011, and was frustrated it had resurfaced, saying it was a total disaster, Cohen said. When it came to paying Daniels, Trump instructed his fixer to push the transaction past the election, keeping the story under wraps at least until then. But Daniels pushed back, saying she would go to the Daily Mail. Cohen confirmed he paid Daniels lawyer on Oct. 27, 2016. After Trump won the White House, he no longer had use for the fixer. My service was no longer necessary as I was special counsel to Mr. Trump, and he was president-elect, Cohen testified. During the proceedings, Eric Trump, sitting behind his father, posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, I have never seen anything more rehearsed. Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, who was also in attendance in support of Trump, said in a post on X that he was about to fall asleep in court. I saw a media report a few days ago that Trump looked like he was falling asleep or bored or something. The obvious narrative theyre trying to sell is yeah Biden is mentally unfit but this other guy is bad too, Vance said. Its an absurd narrative. Im 39 years old and Ive been here for 26 minutes and Im about to fall asleep. Other attendees included Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird and Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y. In August 2018, Cohen pleaded guilty to campaign finance violations. At the time, he also alleged Trump directed him to pay off Daniels. Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison for all the charges against him, but he was released on furlough during the pandemic. Although he previously said he would take a bullet for Trump, Cohen, following his time in jail, changed his tune. He published two books Disloyal and Revenge critical of the former president. DOJ: Fresno man sentenced after 26 pounds of fentanyl found in his residence FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) A 27-year-old Fresno, was sentenced to prison for possessing with intent to distribute over 400 grams of fentanyl, United States Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced Monday. Talbert says Alden Nunez-Rosales, was sentenced today to 121 months in prison. According to court documents, on April 26, 2023, Nunez-Rosales delivered 5,000 fentanyl pills to a person who he believed was a customer but was actually a government informant. Law enforcement officers then followed Nunez-Rosales back to his residence, where Nunez-Rosales obtained 45,000 more fentanyl pills that he intended to distribute. Officials say minutes later, police officers attempted to conduct a traffic stop on Nunez-Rosaless car, but he sped off, eventually crashed his car into a tree, and then fled on foot. Officers apprehended him and then searched his residence. In total, officers seized over 26 pounds of fentanyl pills as well as a firearm, ammunition, a scale, and over $3,500 in cash. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to YourCentralValley.com | KSEE24 and CBS47. DOJ says it will seek tougher penalties for election interference, threats U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland and Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco promised Monday they will seek tougher sentences for those who interfere with elections. File photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI May 13 (UPI) -- The federal government will seek tougher sentences for those who threaten, intimidate election workers or utilize artificial intelligence to manipulate or influence voters, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said Monday. In a speech, Monaco noted "a particularly disturbing trend" in the "way perpetrators use new technologies to mask their identities and communicate their threats." In another speech, Attorney General Merrick Garland outlined multiple and recent cases of election workers receiving threats and reiterated the department's commitment to prosecuting those cases. "Each of these cases should serve as a warning," he said ahead of Monday's meeting of DOJ's Election Threats Task Force. "If you threaten to harm or kill an election worker, volunteer, or official, the Justice Department will find you. And we will hold you accountable," he said. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said Monday that Because as criminal tools get more sophisticated, so do our investigations. File photo by Ken Cedeno/UPI But election offices across the United States "continue to deal with threats and harassment for doing their jobs, and in many places, this behavior has been nearly nonstop since mid-2020," Amy Cohen, the executive director of the National Association of State Election Directors, told CNN. The Justice Department has been in the midst of ongoing attempts to combat AI-generated efforts to influence voters ahead of this year's November presidential election. In February, DOJ had appointed Jonathan Mayer as its first chief artificial intelligence officer amid rising concerns about the ethics of AI to help the Justice Department "keep pace with rapidly evolving scientific and technological developments." "Because as criminal tools get more sophisticated, so do our investigations," Monaco said after Garland had spoke. "Over the past several years, our democratic process and the public servants who protect it have been under attack like never before, as threats evolve and spread," she added. Also in February, 20 of the world's leading technology companies announced a combined effort to fight "deep fake" artificial intelligence misinformation during the 2024 election year, which included Adobe, Amazon, Google, IBM, LinkedIn, McAfee, Meta, Microsoft, OpenAI, Snap, TikTok and X. Last month in April, Microsoft had warned in a report that China and North Korea pose artificial intelligence threats aimed at influencing U.S., South Korean and Indian elections this year with AI-generated false content. The New Hampshire Attorney General's Office in February had identified an operation in Texas as the source of illegal artificial intelligence robocalls imitating the voice of President Joe Biden to dissuade Democrats from voting in the state's Jan. 23 presidential primary election. Facebook's parent Meta said in February that it has been working with numerous countries in Europe to root out disinformation ahead of the EU's upcoming parliamentary elections this year, particularly with the rise of artificial intelligence. "Election workers are on the front lines of this threat-accelerated landscape," Monaco said as she wrapped up her comments, saying how the Election Threats Task Force "will continue to pursue and hold accountable those who threaten these public servants, their families and the functioning of our democratic process." [Source] Former President Donald Trump expressed concerns about the influx of Chinese migrants crossing the U.S. border, suggesting that China could be building an army within the U.S. Key points: Trump also criticized the current administration's handling of border security and military matters, which he contrasted with his own administration's policies aimed at bolstering the U.S. military. In an interview with conservative political commentator and radio talk show host Hugh Hewitt on April 4, Trump highlighted reports of a significant number of Chinese nationals entering the country , speculating that China could be building an army in America. The details: Theyre probably building an army from within, Trump told Hewitt, who referred to reports that 46,000 Chinese nationals entered the U.S. through the southern border in the last two years. Trump emphasized their youth as potential indicators of military recruitment, saying, I mean, you look at whats happening, because theyre very healthy young men for the most partI see the pictures of them. I see them on television tapes, also. I mean, these are young, healthy people. Additionally, concerns were raised about China's military expansion, with estimates suggesting they could have 425 ships in a few years while the US Navy reduces its fleet. Trump, who says his administration had the safest border in history, then criticized Joe Biden's administration for reversing his border security measures. He claimed his presidency aimed to boost the Navy's shipbuilding, but Biden halted those plans, resulting in what he described as ineffective leadership. American author and politician J. D. Vance (C) watches as former President Donald Trump speaks to reporters with his lawyer Todd Blanche at Manhattan criminal court, Monday, May 13, 2024, in New York. (Sarah Yenesel/Pool Photo via AP) With Donald Trump barred from publicly attacking the key witness in his hush money trial, his campaign brought to court a phalanx of Republican elected officials to speak for him. The thing that the president is prevented from saying, which is a disgrace, is that every single person involved in this prosecution is practically a Democratic political operative, U.S. Sen. JD Vance of Ohio said outside the courthouse Monday during a morning break. Trump's former fixer Michael Cohen took the stand on Monday to allege that the former president instructed him to silence stories that could have hurt his 2016 presidential campaign. Trump, who is balancing the demands of a felony trial with his third run for the White House, has been prohibited by a judge's gag order from criticizing witnesses and already fined for violating the restrictions. Bringing allies to court allowed Trump's campaign to press his message without violating the gag order. It also gave those allies a high-profile platform to demonstrate loyalty to their party's presumptive nominee and perhaps audition for higher office. According to Trumps campaign, all of his courthouse guests Monday volunteered to appear to support the former president and were not explicitly invited by people affiliated with the campaign. But U.S. Sen. Rick Scott of Florida, who was at court with Trump last week, said Monday that he had been invited by Susie Wiles, a senior adviser to Trump's campaign and also a longtime Florida GOP operative who advised Scott's 2010 gubernatorial bid. I went because President Trumps a friend," Scott said. "Ive known him longer than Ive been in politics. Vance, widely seen as a contender to be Trump's vice presidential pick, was part of a group that arrived at court with Trump and stood behind him as he addressed reporters before heading into the courtroom. It was the biggest single showing of the allies joining Trump in court for the hush money trial since it began last month. Others in Monday's group included Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, U.S. Rep. Nicole Malliotakis of New York, and a pair of attorneys general, Steve Marshall of Alabama and Brenna Bird of Iowa. Former GOP rival Vivek Ramaswamy, who shuttered his campaign earlier this year but is considered a likely part of a new Trump administration, planned to come to court on Tuesday, according to a spokesman for the entrepreneur. Vance was once a harsh critic who said he cant stomach Trump" and called him noxious. Now, he is a close ally who will appear with Trump at an Ohio fundraiser on Wednesday, when the trial will be on break. Vance posted a thread on the X social platform as he headed to court with the former president, including a missive from the courtroom questioning Cohens believability: Cohen cant remember how old his son is or how old he was when he started to work for Trump but Im sure he remembers extremely small details from years ago! He also leveled criticism directly at the daughter of Judge Juan M. Merchan, who is overseeing the case. The gag order pertaining to Trump prohibits his critical comments about people affiliated with the case except for Merchan and District Attorney Alvin Bragg as well as Merchan's family members. Merchans daughter is a political consultant whose firm has worked for Democrats. Outside court with Vance, Tuberville on Monday questioned the citizenship of the jurors, suggesting there were supposedly American citizens in that courtroom, and portrayed Bragg as a publicity-seeker. He described Trump as going through mental anguish in a courtroom. That's very depressing. There have been one-off supportive trial appearances already, when allies including Scott and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton came to court with Trump. Both Scott and Paxton have been through legal troubles of their own, and have railed against what they call politically motivated prosecutions a message that echoes Trumps own. Scott's appearance came on another pivotal day in the case, as porn actor Stormy Daniels testified about her alleged 2006 sexual encounter with Trump. Outside the courthouse, Scott said Merchan's daughter is a political operative and raises money for Democrats" a criticism prohibited for Trump himself by his gag order, which bans him from making or directing others to make public statements about people connected to the case, including the judges family. Scott denied his presence had anything specifically to do with the gag order. Paxton did not speak publicly when he joined Trump last week, but he gave interviews later to Fox Business and Newsmax about the trial, calling it perversion of justice. Trumps attorneys have argued against the gag order, saying the former president should be allowed to respond to Daniels testimony, but Merchan has refused a request to modify it. ___ Meg Kinnard can be reached at http://twitter.com/MegKinnardAP ___ Kinnard reported from Columbia, South Carolina. Jill Colvin in New York and Stephany Matat in West Palm Beach, Florida, contributed to this report. Ted Cruz took to Fox News last week to defend a man who once called his wife ugly and suggested that his father murdered JFK. "There is no person on planet earth that believes Donald Trump has been celibate all his life," the GOP senator from Texas told host Sean Hannity. Ted Cruz dismisses Stormy Daniels's testimony: "There is no person on planet earth that believes Donald Trump has been celibate all his life. That is not news." pic.twitter.com/yoEbNQIdUI Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 9, 2024 Cruz, a graduate of Harvard Law School, knows that Trump is not actually on trial for having sex with adult film actress Stormy Daniels, of course. His bit of dishonesty was in service of hiding the actual charges which pertain to Trump's efforts to hide his adultery from the public with an illegal cover-up using hush money paid to Daniels from Fox viewers. But Cruz is also telling a more subtle lie about "no person" being in denial about Trump's sex life. There is one person who very much is denying the sex with Daniels: Donald J. Trump. Even worse, he's making his lawyers, who are paid for with Grandma MAGA's small-dollar donations, deny it as well. During opening statements, Trump's lead lawyer, Todd Blanche, said Daniels is offering a "false claim of a sexual encounter." In her cross-examination of Daniels, Susan Necheles, another defense attorney, repeatedly accused Daniels of lying, even sneeringly saying, "You have a lot of experience in making phony stories about sex appear to be real." (Daniels' retort: "The sex in the films is very much real, just like what happened to me in that room.") Perhaps Cruz, who is an experienced attorney, was wishcasting that Trump's lawyers had gone with a better strategy of just admitting the sex happened. By the end of Thursday, Trump's lawyers were likely quietly agreeing with Cruz, as Judge Juan Merchan ruled, yet again, that the Daniels testimony was necessary precisely because Trump's team refuses to concede on the issue of their client's non-celibacy. MERCHAN: Following your motion for a mistrial on Tuesday, I went back to chambers, I pulled out my decisions on both motions for limine, the omnibus decision, and the transcript from Tuesday. MERCHAN: I went back to make sure that there were guidelines and no inconsistencies Katie Phang (@KatiePhang) May 9, 2024 Want more Amanda Marcotte on politics? Subscribe to her newsletter Standing Room Only. To translate from legalese to English: If Trump had just admitted he had sex with Daniels, she wouldn't have had to testify. Having forced her to tell her side of the story, he's now whining that it makes him look bad. That's no one's fault but Trump's. He's the one who is making his lawyers stick to this preposterous denial. As the reporters at the New York Times recently wrote, "Trump views himself as his own best legal strategist." They also report that he's boxed his lawyers into an "absolutist" defense, to appease a client "who despises weakness and is allergic to anything but praise from the people around him." But, as legal experts told the Times, claiming your client is a perfect angel who has never done anything wrong tends to backfire with juries because it's not credible. Instead, experts explained, attorneys tend to prefer the "My client might not be a nice guy, but hes no criminal" defense. Trump's current micromanaging of his defense team certainly cuts against the claims that he would have let his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, arrange hush money payments that ended up costing Trump more than $200,000 without Trump's knowledge. But it's also creating all manner of logistical problems for his defense team, including this most recent screw-up that allowed Daniels to testify at great length. For instance, Trump has been angry that prosecutors aren't telling the defense team what witnesses they are calling and when. On Tuesday, he temporarily violated a gag order placed on him by posting, and then quickly deleting, that he had just been "told who the witness is today," and griping there's "no time for lawyers to prepare." (The witness was Daniels.) Of course, the only person responsible for this situation is Trump himself. Typically, prosecutors do give the defense team a heads-up. But, with Judge Merchan's blessing, the Manhattan prosecutors have declined to do so in this case, out of concern that Trump would use social media to intimidate or harass them. By posting this, even if he deleted it 30 minutes later, he justified those fears. After Daniels testified, Trump's typing fingers clearly got itchy, because he made his lawyers ask if the judge would suspend the gag order so Trump could "respond" to her. It was a request that perfectly captured his toxic obsession with control and his fundamental cowardice. As Daniels herself reminded Trump, he is free to testify in court, if he actually wants to rebut her story. Real men respond to testimony by being sworn in and taking the stand in court. Oh...wait. Nevermind. Stormy Daniels (@StormyDaniels) May 9, 2024 But of course, he doesn't want to do that, because the prosecution could challenge his lies. Instead, he wants to hide in his safe space at Mar-a-Lago, flinging abuse at people online while being shielded from any consequences for it. By making this asinine request for their client, Trump's lawyers only further beclowned themselves in front of a judge who is already sick of their antics. Most of Trump's browbeating of his defense attorneys is probably not visible to the jury. It's a shame because it would help prove a central point of the prosecution's case: There's no way that Trump was unaware of the hush money scheme. Trump can't let the expensive professionals he hired just do their jobs. Instead, he is constantly managing them, pushing them to do foolish things to flatter his ego. By his own admission, Cohen was a two-bit flunkie who barely worked as a lawyer but more as a "fixer." Of course, Trump was controlling Cohen, and dictating his every move. This stuff matters outside of the realm of this sordid court case, as well. Trump is both cowardly and controlling, a toxic combination that leads to his authoritarian politics. He's someone who wants to hide in a bunker while sending out minions to force his will by fiat, which is exactly what happened on January 6, 2021. These kinds of leaders are misleadingly called "strongmen," when in reality, they tend to be weak people who use fascism to hide their own frailty. And, as Trump's management of his defense shows, their egos tend to cause incompetence. Hopefully voters will grasp that a man who can't even understand how to defend himself has no business running the nation. Dr. Jenn Ayscue (Photo: NCSU.edu) Its now been 70 years since the United States Supreme Court ordered an end to racial segregation in public schools in the famous case of Brown v. Board of Education. And while resistance to desegregation never went away, there was a window of time in the late 20th and early 21st Century in which many states and localities including North Carolina made enormous headway in building diverse and integrated public school systems. Unfortunately, as a new report from researchers at NC State makes clear, that momentum in our state has waned and now things are trending in the opposite direction. The report is entitled Can Our Schools Capture the Education Gains of Diversity? North Carolina School Segregation, Alternatives and Possible Gains. It was recently published in the journal of the Civil Rights Project at the University of California, Los Angeles, and recently I caught up with one of the authors, NC State Assistant Professor of Education, Dr. Jennifer Ayscue. Read the report: Can Our Schools Capture the Education Gains of Diversity? North Carolina School Segregation, Alternatives and Possible Gains. It was published earlier this month by the Civil Rights Project at the University of California, Los Angeles. The post Dr. Jenn Ayscue on a new report examining the resegregation of North Carolina public schools appeared first on NC Newsline. Driver in critical condition, 4 others injured after crashing into oncoming traffic in DeKalb County A man is in critical condition after a crash in DeKalb County. On Sunday, at 3:21 a.m., officers responded to Britt Road in the area of Skyler Place about an accident. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] When officers arrived on the scene, they found a traffic collision involving two vehicles. Police said a 26-year-old man was driving when it appeared he crossed into oncoming traffic and collided with another sedan. The 26-year-old had life-threatening injuries and was taken to the hospital. TRENDING STORIES: Police said four others in the second car were also taken to a hospital and they were treated for non-life-threatening injuries. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] IN OTHER NEWS: Dozens of students participated in a walkout during Duke University's commencement ceremony on Sunday to protest comedian Jerry Seinfeld, a supporter of Israel who was invited as the guest speaker. The walkout was one of the latest commencement disruptions to come amid continued protests on college campuses of Israel's war in Gaza. On Saturday, protesting students at Virginia Commonwealth University walked out as Gov. Glenn Youngkin delivered the commencement address. On the same day, students at the University of California, Berkeley interrupted commencement with pro-Palestinian chants. In North Carolina, students dressed in caps and gowns got up from their seats in Duke's football stadium and headed toward the exit; several waved Palestinian flags and shouted "free, free Palestine," videos show. Chants of "Jerry! Jerry! Jerry!" could be heard from the stands as Seinfeld received an honorary degree. In the days following the Oct. 7 attack in which Hamas and other militant groups killed some 1,200 Israelis and took over 250 people hostage, Seinfeld signed an open letter that condemned the attack and generally supported Israel. In December, he visited Israel and met with the families of hostages. In an interview with GQ published in April, Seinfeld said he was surprised by "hostile" reactions to his trip but he does not regret it. "I dont preach about it. I have my personal feelings about it that I discuss privately," he said. "Its not part of what I can do comedically, but my feelings are very strong." On Sunday, Seinfeld did not directly address the walkout in his speech, which went largely without interruption. "A lot of you are thinking, 'I can't believe they invited this guy.' Too late," he said, before moving on to the concept of privilege. "I say, use your privilege. I grew up a Jewish boy from New York. That is a privilege if you want to be a comedian." Universities across the country announced changes ahead of commencement and various graduation events, some much more drastic than others. Columbia University and the University of Southern California canceled their main commencement ceremony. Others, like Emory University in Atlanta and Pomona College outside of Los Angeles, moved large graduation events off campus. Several universities that did not change locations or cancel commencement have said they've taken extra measures to ensure the events run smoothly, like upping security. Pro-Palestine protesters hold a rally after The University of Texas at Austins commencement ceremony at Royal-Memorial Stadium on Saturday, May 11, 2024 in Austin. About 100 protesters, which included current and graduating students and faculty and staff, gathered to call for the University of Texas at Austin to divest from weapon manufacturers that supply arms to Israel. Commencement speakers removed, others drop out In addition to the protests, speakers themselves have either been removed from commencement plans or chose to drop out themselves. U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield has been removed from the commencement program of Xavier University in Louisiana and the University of Vermont after an uproar of rebukes from students. Last week, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Colson Whitehead backed out of his planned speech at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, calling the university's decision to call police on student protesters "a shameful act." Days before Whitehead's announcement, police arrested over 130 people and dismantled a pro-Palestinian encampment. Before the University of Southern California canceled its mainstage graduation, it canceled a planned commencement speech by valedictorian Asna Tabassum, who faced backlash from pro-Israel groups who accused her of espousing antisemitic views on social media. She said in a statement that she was silenced and subjected to "racist hatred because of my uncompromising belief in human rights for all." For nearly a month, pro-Palestinian encampments, sit-ins and building occupations have popped up across hundreds of college campuses in the U.S. and overseas. The protests exploded in size and quantity after Columbia University had the New York City Police Department clear an encampment on April 18. Demonstrators have called for universities to divest from Israel and companies profiting from the war, which has killed more than 35,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. Contributing: Reuters; Jeanine Santucci and Eduardo Cuevas, USA TODAY This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jerry Seinfeld faced with pro-Palestinian walkout at Duke commencement SAN ANGELO, Texas (Concho Valley Homepage) San Angelo residents will once again head to the polls to decide who will be the towns next police chief after the previous election resulted in a runoff. Heres where and when early voting will be. The May 4 election saw San Angelo Police Department chief candidates Lt. Mike Hernandez and Sgt. Travis Griffith come within 199 votes of one another. The Tom Green County Elections Offices final unofficial count for the election saw Hernandez end with 3,279 votes, eking out an edge over Griffiths 3,080 votes. RELATED: May 4 SAPD chief election results According to the Tom Green County Elections Offices elections webpage, early voting will occur during the following dates and times: June 3-7 8 a.m. 5 p.m. June 10-11 7 a.m. 7 p.m. Early voting will be held in the election office of the Edd B. and Frances Frink Keyes Building, which is located at 113 W. Bearegard Ave. After early voting comes and goes, the election will be officially held on June 15 at several polling places across San Angelo from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. This will also be the last day that voters can receive their ballot by mail. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ConchoValleyHomepage.com. Enough is enough. That's the message environmental advocates Captains for Clean Water is sending to the sugar industry. And they're asking for your help. The nonprofit last week began asking people via social media, newsletters and its website to sign a petition urging sugar farmers to drop their lawsuit against the Army Corps of Engineers demanding billions of gallons of Lake Okeechobee water. The nonprofit estimates 10,000 people had signed the petition as of May 7. Captains for Clean Water's latest effort raises good questions: Will Big Sugar bend to public pressure? Where is the lawsuit in the legal process? If sugar farmers win their lawsuit, or it drags on another few years, will the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan be delayed further or even worse watered down to where it isn't effective? At stake are 60 CERP projects worth $23 billion of taxpayers' money, chief among them the completion of the $4 billion Everglades Agricultural Area Reservoir. Not to mention the long-term health of three of Florida's most important estuaries Florida Bay and the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee rivers and millions of residents whose lives depend on clean water. What's in the lawsuit? It's fairly simple. Three sugar companies in the Glades U.S. Sugar Corp., Okeelanta Corp. (Florida Crystals) and the Sugar Cane Growers Cooperative filed lawsuits in August 2021 to sue for the irrigation water they say was promised to them through what is called the "savings clause" in the Water Resources Development Act of 2000. A new pump station opens at the Central Everglades Planning Project, Jan. 25, 2024, in Palm Beach County. The Everglades Agricultural Area features a 10,500-acre reservoir and a 6,500-acre stormwater treatment area. Part of the lawsuit claims the Army Corps' design of the 10,000-acre, 78 billion gallon EAA Reservoir "unlawfully ignored" the savings clause by cutting the amount of irrigation water farmers can take from the lake. In March 2023, federal judge Donald Middlebrooks threw out the case, but ruled that more analysis of the reservoir plan and its effect on water users is warranted. In May 2023, the sugar companies appealed his ruling. By November, the sugar companies and Army Corps each had several entities join the appeal through amicus briefs. It lined up like this: Sugar companies side West Palm Beach city government Lake Worth Drainage District Florida Farm Bureau Federation Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association Army Corps side South Florida Water Management District City governments of Stuart, Sanibel, Islamorada and Lake Worth Beach Chambers of commerce of Islamorada and Sanibel-Captiva Islands Everglades Law Center The Everglades Foundation, Inc. Florida Bay Forever, Inc. Florida Keys Fishing Guides Association, Inc. Captains for Clean Water, Inc. Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation, Inc. Where is the lawsuit at this point? Sometimes in the world of legal wrangling, issues can seem as if they are moving along at a snail's pace. But this case has been fully briefed and is pending in the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. "All parties have requested oral argument, but it has not been granted or denied at this point," said Lisa Interlandi of the Everglades Law Center, a nonprofit that represents public interests in environmental matters. So we wait. What happens now? The EAA Reservoir moves ahead at full speed. Its completion date is 2032, according to the Army Corps. Operational testing will follow, which can take another few years, but it should be partially operational providing no delays caused by frivolous lawsuits. Which brings me back to the Captains for Clean water campaign. The nonprofit was founded during the 2016 Lake Okeechobee discharge event and recently has offered vocal support to Everglades restoration projects moving forward. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't have high hopes. In my opinion, I don't believe it will accomplish anything even if the petition has 1 million signatures and is delivered to the sugar companies' headquarters. These are for-profit businesses, not elected officials. They respond to drops in sales which, by the way, won't ever happen for sugar, drugs or guns. What we learned in 2016 In 2016, TCPalm had some experience with petition campaigns. Our newspaper served the community as environmental advocates and collected 10,000 petition signatures that summer. The petitions begged policymakers to help stop destructive Lake O discharges. Then-Martin County columnist Gil Smart and then-photojournalist Leah Voss hand-delivered the signed documents to Tallahassee to then-Gov. Rick Scott. Scott wasn't around to receive them. And, as expected, no one at TCPalm ever heard a peep from anyone in the governor's office about the petitions. Simpson d'uh: Florida's Senate president wants to stop the EAA reservoir. That isn't stopping progress. Water Hall of Shame: A state leader taking shots at changes to water policy status quo? Nothing new here The sugar companies pay their lawyers way too much money to drop lawsuits. This is a legal waste of time, which already has been rejected by one sound judge. At this point, it's going to run its course. The outcome is anybody's guess. I know of at least two lawsuits filed by residents of the St. Lucie River basin that failed when judges rejected their pleas for a simple inalienable right to clean water. That's when I lost my faith in the environmental legal system. My cynicism about Lake O discharges and Everglades restoration is rooted in a century of money, power and political influence controlling Florida's plumbing system. If nothing else, this petition drive is raising awareness about the lawsuits and their potential affect on Everglades restoration. However, it's going to take a lot of action to convince me this state has a legal system that favors common sense for people who just want clean water. Ed Killer is a columnist for TCPalm. This is his opinion. Email him at ed.killer@tcpalm.com. This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Captains for Clean Water petition urges sugar to drop Army Corps lawsuit Efforts to legalize medical marijuana in KS failed. Thousands are getting weed elsewhere As Kansas lawmakers fail to pass a medicinal marijuana program, nearly 2,000 Kansans have crossed the state line to obtain medicinal marijuana licenses in Missouri. Exactly 1,834 Kansans currently hold a medicinal marijuana license in Missouri, according to a report by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services. An agency spokesperson confirmed the number, but declined to comment further. Thats likely a fraction of the number of Kansans who have traveled across state lines to purchase recreational marijuana. Kansas is just one of just ten states where marijuana remains illegal and criminalized. It is bordered by three states Oklahoma, Missouri, and Colorado where marijuana is legalized for medicinal use, with some also allowing recreational use. Efforts to legalize medical marijuana have fallen flat in Kansas since 2021 when House lawmakers passed a medical marijuana bill 79-42. Senate leadership later blocked the bill from coming up for a floor debate or vote. This year, pro-cannabis lawmakers made a last-ditch effort to bring a restrictive medicinal marijuana pilot program to a debate and floor vote by using a procedural maneuver to sidestep Senate President Ty Masterson. But the vote failed 12-25. Still, Daniel Shafton, a past president of the Kansas Cannabis Chamber of Commerce and pro-cannabis lobbyist, said the issue has overwhelming support across party lines. Legislative leadership is tanking the efforts, he said. It didnt have the votes on the procedural motion, Shafton said. But dont be fooled. If there was no hokey pokey, funny business going on, this has the votes to pass. It has the support. There was no and probably is no combination of words in the English language that could be strung together that would have led to a piece of legislation that would have made it out of committee with the current leadership, he added. Since the session adjourned in late April, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration announced its plans to reschedule marijuana as a less dangerous drug. The move, if approved by the Department of Justice, would also officially recognize marijuanas medical benefits and its lesser potential for abuse compared to other narcotics. Marijuanas rescheduling could ignite a shift in the Legislatures attitude toward the policy, some lawmakers say. Masterson, an Andover Republican, said medical marijuana already warrants serious discussion especially with the federal government considering its reclassification. He said none of the bills crafted by the Legislature were able to safely and legitimately deliver marijuana to patients, leaving the state open for severe consequences observed in other states. Unfortunately, the hearings demonstrated there were concerns with the bills presented and approaches that deviate from that framework, Masterson said in a statement. As such, they were appropriately tabled. Discussions will no doubt continue in future sessions, especially if and when the federal government acts. Last year, Missouri generated roughly $1.4 billion in marijuana sales, according to the states primary marijuana industry group. Colorado made nearly $1.53 billion in marijuana sales. Supporters frequently argue the state is losing out on large sums of Kansas tax dollars spent in other states. But opponents to bringing cannabis into the state say the economic boost isnt worth the potential downsides. Sen. Mark Steffen, a Hutchinson Republican and an anesthesiologist, said no one in the medical field looks at marijuana as a first-choice medicine when other, FDA-approved methods can treat the same conditions. He said it was clear as a bell that Colorado and Oklahoma have struggled to control marijuana, leading to negative effects like increased crime and homelessness in these states despite its economic benefits. You dont destroy peoples lives for money, Steffen said. If youre willing to sacrifice constituents for tax money, youve got moral problems. Research indicates that medical marijuana can be used to induce eating, relieve pain, reduce anxiety, and treat symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder and epilepsy, among other conditions. Potential side effects of the drug are still being studied but can include psychosis and addiction. Rep. Christina Haswood, a Lawrence Democrat who has helped craft medicinal marijuana bills, said the stigma around the drug plays a large role in the stalling of legislation. People need it for legitimate pain relief, she said, not just to get high. This isnt the stereotypical folks who want to get stoned, she said. These are people who need this for pain relief seniors and veterans who want to utilize this. This is a bipartisan issue. Were hearing it from east to west in Kansas that we need to do something about it. Sen. Mike Thompson, a Shawnee Republican, called medicinal marijuana substance abuse that could cause more suicides and human misery. Echoing other marijuana legalization opponents, he emphasized that medicinal marijuana cards are often too easy to obtain. Thompson said helping veterans and the elderly is often used as an excuse, when in reality marijuana sales only benefit a few people. The bills Ive read, all they do is grow government and favor a certain class of folks who want to sell this, he said. Its not about health at all, it has more to do with politics and somebody wanting to get rich off marijuana. In the absence of regulated, legal cannabis, the alternative cannabinoid market in the state is large, supporters say. These products, which can be found in many Kansas gas stations, are unregulated. Delta-8 and Delta-9 THC, which come from the cannabis plant, can produce similar effects to authentic marijuana and make a user feel high. Because they are unregulated and not FDA approved, these products pose a risk to Kansan consumers, said Kelly Rippel, a lobbyist for the Kansas Cannabis Coalition. The bottom line is were looking at serious public health concerns the longer they dont regulate cannabis, Rippel said. People are buying products and they dont know what is in them. The more we go down this path of complete prohibition, lawmakers are just expanding the underground market, and feeding illicit markets if they dont allow a regulated process by which people can consume illegal access products. But with the DEAs rescheduling of the drug, many lawmakers say a medicinal marijuana bill could be passed within the next couple of sessions. Recreational marijuana is likely much further down the line, they say. Whats Next? Many lawmakers are resistant to passing medicinal marijuana because they believe legalizing it for medicinal purposes will lead to recreational legalization soon after, Rep. John Eplee, an Atchison Republican, said. But Eplee, a physician, said the medicine is effectively used to relieve chronic, long-term pain, and that recreational marijuana is far from consideration in the state. There is a big difference between recreational and medical marijuana, he said. Ive heard it said that once you have medical marijuana, it just is a matter of time before you have recreational marijuana. Thats really not true in a lot of states. Im pretty comfortable that in the bills that we tried to pass, there are very appropriate safeguards built into that to allow for safe deployment of medical marijuana in Kansas. Steffen, however, said legalizing marijuana for medicinal purposes would lead to rampant use even for those who do not need the drug to treat health conditions. Even restrictive bills that authorize the drug for specified uses could give a card to everybody who wants marijuana. Medical is recreational, he said. Its the same thing. One pig has a little lipstick, the other doesnt. The vast majority of Kansas voters support legalizing marijuana for medicinal and recreational purposes, according to an annual public opinion survey conducted by Fort Hays State University. Unlike Kansass border states, however, Kansas does not have a way to legalize marijuana through ballot-initiative referendums unless state lawmakers first approve. A new PAC, called the Cannabis Justice Coalition, seeks to help elect bipartisan, pro-cannabis candidates in the upcoming election where every Kansas House and Senate seat is up for grabs. Igna Selders, the executive director of the coalition, said Kansans have to use their voice at the ballot box to see real change. We are putting the pressure on everybody up for reelection right now, she said. Because theyve been avoiding the topic, and at this point, it hasnt been front and central. Our biggest mission is to make cannabis legislation the central issue this election cycle. Many lawmakers think cannabis wont be a primary issue in the upcoming election. But Shafton, a pro-cannabis lobbyist, said the numbers reveal that Kansans are willing to break federal and state laws to get marijuana over state lines, showing Kansans are more than ready to see it in their home state. Its important for the public to make sure their elected officials know theyre watching and paying attention and that it is a topic people are willing to cast or not cast a vote for, he said. Because right now legislators arent taking it seriously as something that will actually bring someone to the polls. But, for many, it will. The Stars Jonathan Shorman contributed to this report. Correction: A previous version of this story misstated the amount of annual marijuana sales in Missouri. A flag inside the Fargodome helps direct voters casting ballots in a 2023 vote on a Fargodome improvement sales tax. (Jeff Beach/North Dakota Monitor) I was a teenage election official. Why? Because Dad made me. My dad, Bernard Beach, was in charge of finding the election officials for a primary election in Hillsboro Township in Traill County back in the 1980s. So, there I was, sitting in the old one-room schoolhouse that served as the Hillsboro Township voting precinct. The turnout was small. My dad did what he did best and took a nap. But we, volunteer dad and volun-told son, did our civic duty. I learned a little bit about the election process and I think I even got paid a few bucks. So what does that trip down memory lane have to do with the 2024 election? Donnell Preskey, executive director of the North Dakota County Auditors Association, told the North Dakota Monitor that some counties are struggling to find poll workers. A shortage of poll workers could affect how many polling locations are open on Election Day. With fewer polling sites comes longer drives to vote, which means more time and money and more reasons some people may not vote. Thinking about my dad and my experience, I thought, why dont we make people do it like being called for jury duty? Properly staffing elections seems like it should rank up there with meting out justice for legislators accused of self-dealing. As it turns out, Nebraska already gives counties the option of a system similar to a jury pool, according to Wendy Underhill of the National Conference of State Legislatures. North Dakotas county auditors are in charge of running local elections but also count on volunteers to make Election Day go smoothly. There is some training involved for volunteers. For counties that have early voting, volunteers are needed for that, too. In either case, its not just a one-day deal. While they are often called volunteers, they are compensated for time for training and on Election Day. But like jury duty, those drafted could be reimbursed for mileage and employers could be required to grant the time off. Perhaps the Legacy Fund can be tapped to create the Bernard Beach Election Staffing Fund to compensate poll workers. Like attorneys seating a jury, the auditor could ultimately decide who from the pool ends up augmenting whatever volunteer force is found. People in the pool could offer an argument for why they should be excused from election duty. And, like it did for me, it would act as a sort of civics lesson. Preskey, however, is not a fan of the idea of drafting election workers. I really want people there to fulfill that role that want to be there, Preskey said. She added that it can be a very long day, with work continuing after the polls close for some. While state law does allow there to be shifts of workers, Preskey said she thinks continuity is better. I think mixing in some draftees with the volunteers would be a good way to increase civic involvement, and I am confident people would do their duty, just as they do on jury trials. A final note about being a volunteer election worker while you have to be 18 to vote, in North Dakota, you only have to be 16 to help at a polling precinct. You can learn more about volunteering as a poll worker on the Secretary of States website. For parents out there with kids who are 16 or older, think about a Bernie Beach move, volunteer, and volun-tell your kid to do it, too. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Elections need volunteers and the volun-told appeared first on North Dakota Monitor. By Will Dunham (Reuters) - People greet each other in a variety of ways. They might say "hello," "guten tag," "hola," "konnichiwa" or "g'day." They might shake hands, bump fists, make a fist-and-palm gesture or press their hands together with a gentle head bow. They might kiss on the cheek or hand. And they might give a nice big hug. For elephants, greetings appear to be a similarly complex affair. A study based on observations of African savannah elephants in the Jafuta Reserve in Zimbabwe provides new insight into the visual, acoustic and tactile gestures they employ in greetings, including how greetings differ depending on factors such as their sex and whether they are looking at each other. "Elephants live in a so-called 'fission-fusion' society, where they often separate and reunite, meeting after hours, days or months apart," said cognitive and behavioral biologist Vesta Eleuteri of the University of Vienna in Austria, lead author of the study published this month in the journal Communications Biology. Elephants, Earth's largest land animals, are highly intelligent, with keen memory and problem-solving skills and sophisticated communication. Female elephants of different family groups might have strong social bonds with each other, forming "bond groups." Previous studies in the wild reported that when these groups meet, the elephants engage in elaborate greeting ceremonies to advertise and strengthen their social bond, Eleuteri said. Male elephants have weaker social bonds, and their greetings may function more to ease possible "risky reunions" - a hostile interaction. They greet mainly by smelling each other, reaching with their trunks, Eleuteri added. The study detailed around 20 gesture types displayed during greetings, showing that elephants combine these in specific ways with call types such as rumbles, roars and trumpets. It also revealed how smell plays an important role in greetings, often involving urination, defecation and secretions from a unique elephant gland. Elephants may greet by making gestures intended to be seen, like spreading the ears or showing their rump, or with gestures producing distinct sounds like flapping the ears forward, or with tactile gestures involving touching the other elephant. "We found that they select these visual, acoustic and tactile gestures by taking into account whether their greeting partner was looking at them or not, suggesting they're aware of others' visual perspectives. They preferred using visual gestures when their partner was looking at them, while tactile ones when they were not," Eleuteri said. Greeting behavior has been studied in various animals. "Many other species greet, including different primates, hyenas and dogs," Eleuteri said. "Animal greetings help mediate social interactions by, for example, reducing tension and avoiding conflict, by reaffirming existing social bonds, and by establishing dominance status using different behaviors." The new research built on previous studies of elephant greeting behavior. The nine observed elephants - four females and five males - were "semi-captive," freely roaming their natural environment during daytime and kept in stables at night. Greetings used by the female elephants closely matched the behavior of wild elephants. The greeting behavior of the male elephants appeared to differ from their wild counterparts. Wild male elephants tend to be solitary, forming loose associations with other elephants. The temporal gland, midway between the eye and the ear, secretes a substance called temporin containing chemical information about an elephant's identity or emotional and sexual state. Elephants often use their trunks to check out the temporal glands of others. "The urine and feces of elephants also contain chemical information important for elephants, like the identity of the individual, their reproductive state or even their emotional state," Eleuteri said. "Elephants might defecate or urinate during greetings to release this important information. Another option is that they do this due to the excitement of seeing each other. But the fact that the elephants often moved their tails to the side or waggled their tails when urinating and defecating suggests they may be inviting the recipients to smell them. Maybe they don't need to tell each other how they're doing, as they can smell it," Eleuteri added. (Reporting by Will Dunham in Washington, Editing by Rosalba O'Brien) Elizabeth Holmes was just 19 years old when she dropped out of Stanford University to launch a healthcare start-up called Theranos. The Theranos Foundation claimed to bring forward a revolutionary method in the healthcare industry. With just a pinprick of blood, which they called the Edison Test, Theranos claimed to be able to detect diseases such as cancer and diabetes, according to BBC. The company then rose to popularity and became worth $9 billion in just a few years. Soon, the biggest investors became part of the project. It became one of the most talked about technologies in the Silicon Valley. However, Theranos Foundation had collapsed by 2018 after the test and the claims that they made about it were found to be false. Evidence revealed that the technology used was not dependable and could deliver faulty results, NBC News reported. Holmes reportedly knew that the results were not consistently accurate. Theranos Chief Operating Officer, Ramesh Sunny Balwani, was also charged with fraud. During Elizabeth Holmes trial, her attorney reportedly accused Balwani of lying to the investors about how much the company was making and misleading the stakeholders. Balwani was also Holmes former romantic partner. According to the United States Attorneys Office, both Holmes and Balwani were employing conventional technology to carry out the blood tests that they claimed were being done only by the Theranos analyzers. Both of them knew of the Theranos technologys shortcomings. However, they continued to stand by the claims they had made about the efficiency. NPR reported that Elizabeth Holmes also made false claims to her investors that the Theranos technology had been used on the battlefields in Afghanistan. The motivations behind Holmes frauds were not established by the court. However, defenders claim that she was under immense pressure to compete in a male-dominant industry. How many years was Elizabeth Holmes sentenced to? Elizabeth Holmes was 39 years old when she reported to the minimum security, federal womens prison camp, in Bryan, Texas, the Guardian reported. She had been sentenced to 11 years and 3 months in prison. Holmes was found guilty of four counts of defrauding investors. She had been out on bail since 2018 when she was first charged with heading the failed blood-testing firm. Holmes was also asked to pay $452 million to the victims of the fraud. The prison that Holmes was held in, reportedly houses white-collar and non-violent federal women prisoners. It requires that all inmates hold a job for a minimum of 90 days. Even in case of Elizabeth Holmes sentence being reduced for good conduct, she will reportedly have to serve at least 85% of her total sentence. In July 2023, NBC News reported that Elizabeth Holmes sentence might have been reduced by two years. Her expected release date was mentioned as December 29, 2032, on the website of the Bureau of Prisons. The report also emphasized on the role of good conduct time which prisoners may earn. The good conduct time would then reflect on their projected release date. There are other ways too to earn an earlier projected release date. Ramesh Sunny Balwani was also reportedly convicted of 12 counts of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. He was sentenced to 13 years in prison. That is longer than what Elizabeth Holmes was sentenced to owing to his experience in running other businesses. The post Elizabeth Holmes: Who Is the Theranos Founder and What Did She Do? appeared first on ComingSoon.net - Movie Trailers, TV & Streaming News, and More. icon Semafor Signals Supported by Microsoft logo Insights from The Sydney Morning Herald, The New York Times, and The Washington Post Arrow Down Title icon The News Elon Musks social media platform X won a court reprieve in Australia after a judge declined to extend an order banning 65 posts with videos of a Sydney church stabbing from the app. Justice Geoffrey Kennet denied a request from Australias online watchdog to extend an injunction to hide the posts, which the government ordered be removed for all X users, and not just those in Australia. The next hearing in the case will be held on Wednesday, while a final hearing is expected in mid-June. Musk has maintained that removing the posts for all users everywhere amounts to censorship. Our concern is that if ANY country is allowed to censor content for ALL countries, which is what the Australian eSafety Commissar is demanding, then what is to stop any country from controlling the entire Internet? Musk wrote on X. Other countries, including Brazil and India, have also made requests to X to hide or take down content they consider illegal or harmful some of which Musk has fought in court. A self-described free-speech absolutist, Musks X has complied with other governments orders to hide content for users in their countries, including in India, where he complied with the governments ask to hide links related to a BBC documentary about Indias President Narendra Modi and his links to Hindu extremism. icon SIGNALS Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories. Australia says video is a terror threat, but X pushes back Source icon Sources: The Sydney Morning Herald, The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian An Australian senator said in April that police feared Musks decision to leave the stabbing video accessible on X could have a radicalizing effect. Senator Jacqui Lambie said that police had told the court that the video could be used to encourage people in Australia to join a terrorist organization or undertake a terrorist act. Xs lawyers disagreed, asserting that the video was not overly graphic and did not meet the legal threshold for a ban by authorities. The pushback highlights the differences in how X defines acceptable speech compared to other social platforms. Meta, which was also ordered to remove the videos from its social media platforms, swiftly complied and said it is cooperating fully with Australian authorities, for example. Musk reinvigorates Brazils right after clash with Brazils Supreme Court Source icon Sources: The New York Times, The Washington Post Elsewhere, Musk is engaged in a high-profile clash with Brazils Supreme Court, which demanded X block more than 100 user accounts it deemed harmful. Musk has repeatedly attacked the judge in the case, Alexandre de Moraes, who has a reputation for taking an activist stance on curbing disinformation. Musk called the Supreme Court judge a brutal dictator, a shame, and Brazils Darth Vader, while Moraes accused Musk of waging a disinformation campaign. Musks fight has given renewed momentum to Brazils right-wing politics. With a few tweets, Elon Musk was capable of changing the political environment in Brazil, Ronaldo Lemos, a Brazilian internet lawyer, told The New York Times, he brought the energy backeven as the right has faltered in recent years. Musk courts right-wing politicians across the globe Source icon Source: The New York Times Musk has increasingly turned his attention toward right-wing leaders, including Javier Milei, Xi Jinping, Benjamin Netanyahu, and Italys Georgia Meloni, a New York Times investigation found. The charm offensive has benefited Musks companies, with Milei cutting red-tape for his rocket company, SpaceX, and preparing incentives for mining projects, which could guarantee Musks EV company, Tesla, stable access to lithium to make its car batteries for decades to come. In India, his frequent compliments of Prime Minister Narendra Modis leadership and Xs compliance with orders to block criticism of Modis government have been rewarded with a big cut in import duties for Teslas cars. Semafor Logo Employee stabbed at restaurant on Modestos McHenry Avenue. One arrested after standoff Two people, including a suspect, were taken by ambulance for medical treatment after a stabbing and brief standoff at the Jack in the Box on the 1800 block of McHenry Avenue late Monday morning. A female employee was stabbed by a man later identified by the Modesto Police Department as 18-year-old Angel Suarez of Manteca. The employees injuries were not life-threatening. Suarez was taken for medical clearance because of his unusual behavior, MPD spokeswoman Sharon Bear told The Bee. It was a precaution. He faces charges of assault with a deadly weapon, resisting arrest and probation violation, Bear said. Law enforcement including Modesto police officers and Stanislaus County sheriffs deputies received the call shortly after 10 a.m. At least four MPD units and one Sheriffs Office unit sped north on McHenry Avenue, lights and sirens on, in response. A brief standoff followed the stabbing. Suarez hid near the kitchen as law enforcement surrounded the restaurant and called for him to surrender over a bullhorn. His location was discovered using a drone inside the restaurant. The building was evacuated and the suspect was contained inside, read an MPD statement. Officers detained Suarez at about 11:30 a.m. The motive for the attack was still under investigation Monday, as were questions regarding whether the stabbing was a random act or targeted. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) welcomes Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis ahead of their meeting at the Presidential Complex. -/Turkish Presidency/dpa Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday that more than 1,000 members of the Palestinian Islamist organization Hamas are receiving medical treatment in Turkey. "In my country, more than 1,000 members of Hamas are currently being treated in our hospitals," Erdogan said in Ankara at a joint press conference with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis. Erdogan once again described Hamas, which is listed as a terrorist organization in Europe, the United States and Israel, as a resistance organization. It is fighting to "protect its own territory and its people," Erdogan said. He did not provide further details on where the Hamas members were wounded or how they arrived in Turkey. Both Erdogan and Mitsotakis spoke out in favour of a ceasefire, but different points of view also emerged. Mitsotakis emphasized that his country, like Turkey, supported a two-state solution, but stressed that Israel had every right to defend itself against the bloody attack by terrorists on its territory. Erdogan has called Israel a "terror state" and has criticized western support for the Jewish state. The current Gaza war started after Hamas and other militant groups attacked Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 and taking some 250 hostages. Israel has responded with massive air and ground strike. It has come under severe international pressure due to the high number of civilian casualties and the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip. Some 35,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war so far, according to Gaza's Hamas-controlled health authority. Turkey and Greece had recently decided to mend their strained relations. Erdogan had only met Mitsotakis in Athens in December, when the two agreed to intensify cooperation in areas such as tourism, trade and migration. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) welcomes Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis ahead of their meeting at the Presidential Complex. -/Turkish Presidency/dpa Mayor Eric Adams called out sick on the third day of his weekend visit to Rome cancelling a tour of an Italian school teaching migrants the local language to help them assimilate to society. Adams, who left for the Eternal City on Thursday and is due back in the Big Apple on Monday, seemed the image of health earlier in his trip, but fell ill and was coughing before his visit to the school Sunday and decided to cancel. Hizzoner was due to tour the SantEgidio Community, which is housed in a 1700s building in Romes Piazza di Santa Maria and teaches over 3,500 people Italian on a weekly basis as part of a multi-year course to teach migrants the language vital work as fluency is a requirement to be a legal resident in Italy. He was not able to see that it is possible to build a multi-cultural society, a spokesperson for the group said. We would love to help in this also by putting him in contact with our people in New York. Claudio Betti, who volunteers with the group SantEgidi, told The Post he and his colleagues were disappointed to miss the mayor. They were hoping to show him how well a cultural assimilation program can work as NYC struggles to deal with its own migrant crisis but that they were happy to put him in touch with one of their centers in New York, he said. Mayor Eric Adams left for Rome on Thursday and is due back in New York City on Monday. Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office The image you have seen today in those classes is the image of the new world that we want and Im sure that he would love that, said Betti, who is a director at the Australian Catholic University Rome Campus. SantEgidio has taught Italian to over 8,000 migrants and refugees, with most coming through the program from Syria but also 120 other countries including Peru, Georgia, Colombia, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Libya, Sri Lanka, Ecuador and Paraguay. Many live at the facility and are encouraged to interact with the local community as part of their education. They are hosted here in this neighborhood house and the house next to us. They are hosting you for a certain period of time. They studied Italian, they studied dining culture. In the meantime, we searched for final destination, Betti said. A student at SantEgidio with the textbook they need for the class. Over 8,000 migrants and refugees have been helped. Craig McCarthy We need to integrate languages [it] is a crucial, crucial issue in Italy. You need to learn in order to be recognized as an as a citizen or even to ask for a restaurant. You are not allowed to be a resident here legally unless you speak [Italian], Betti said. Most of those 8,000 have gone on to obtain sponsorships to take up residences across Italy which Betti believes is a vital part of keeping Italy alive as its population dwindles. Its not only placing them in a place but making them a healthy part of society, Betti said. Eric Trump's Claim About His 'Good Family' Goes Down Like A Bag Of Bricks Eric Trump claimed his family has never done a thing wrong, predictably prompting some harsh reminders on social media. Appearing on Fox News Saturday, Eric Trump was asked by host Mark Levin about the criminal hush money trial against his father, former President Donald Trump. Well, Mark. A hundred and ten subpoenas in the last seven years. Those are ones that Ive received personally. ... Ive never gotten so much as a traffic ticket, Eric Trump said. Were a good family. Never have done anything wrong. The way that theyve come after my father since hes gone down that escalator is unthinkable, he added. Eric Trump: Were a good family. Never have done anything wrong pic.twitter.com/5N4vb658WX Acyn (@Acyn) May 12, 2024 In the last year or so alone, Donald Trump has been found liable in separate civil cases for fraud, defamation and sexual abuse, racking up hundreds of millions of dollars in penalties. He has been criminally indicted four times. He faces federal charges related to his handling of classified documents and his attempt to overturn the 2020 election. He is also battling state-level charges in Georgia over election subversion, and is currently on trial in New York for allegedly falsifying business records to cover up a $130,000 hush money payment to a porn star who says she had sex with him the year after he married his current wife. In 2018, Trump paid $25 million to settle lawsuits against his now-defunct Trump University, after students said they were scammed out of thousands of dollars in tuition. And as part of a 2019 settlement, he paid $2 million to eight charities and admitted he had misused funds raised by the Donald J. Trump Foundation to promote his presidential campaign and pay off business debts. His three oldest children, including Eric Trump, were on the foundations board and were ordered to undergo mandatory training on how to run a charity. Many of Donald Trumps current and former allies have been convicted and sentenced to prison time for white-collar crimes. Eric Trump was offered a dose of reality from users on X (formerly Twitter): I dont know about you, but it seems to me that if youve received 110 subpoenas in just the space of a few years, you might be either a head of agency or a criminal. https://t.co/Q60zlF7YZj rayninonme (@rayninonme) May 12, 2024 Your family is a bunch of con artists, traitors, crooks, and all around miserable human beings https://t.co/2iTWDpkUsi Elizabeth Cleboski (@cleboski228) May 12, 2024 There arent enough characters allowed to be able to post about all that the Trump family has done wrong or illegally. This is a factual statement. Eric needs his head examined. This is a factual statement. https://t.co/LbWYO80Kfd barbara (@barbaras1616) May 12, 2024 Eric Trump on Fox News: We're a good family. Never have done anything wrong. pic.twitter.com/DQaX1h0Lrk Dutchy Patrick (@DutchyPatrick) May 12, 2024 Trump family has never done anything wrong? Stealing millions from a childrens cancer charity? Cheating NYC out of $500M? Colluding with Russia to win the election of 2016? Trying to overthrow the government to win in 2020? All are crimes. https://t.co/t5fSGmRA1g Janet the Writer (@janethenderson) May 13, 2024 Colonel Sanders: "We're a vegan family. We've never harmed any chickens." https://t.co/LNA7CC38qc Supercords (@Supercords) May 13, 2024 Sens. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) are introducing a bill this week that would force federal employees convicted of certain sex crimes to forfeit their pensions. Federal employees convicted of treason, sedition, spying and other subversive actions are already barred from drawing taxpayer-funded pensions. The bill, called the No Taxpayer-Funded Pensions for Sex Criminals Act, would add crimes including sexual abuse and sexual exploitation of a child to the list of pension-revoking convictions. Gillibrand called it outrageous and downright wrong that federal employees convicted of sex crimes are currently able to collect pensions funded by taxpayers. The bipartisan No Taxpayer-Funded Pensions for Sex Criminals Act would prohibit federal employees convicted of sex offenses from collecting pensions. Its a commonsense bill that will strengthen and improve the workplace, she said. The bill follows a bombshell report by The Wall Street Journal last November that revealed a culture of sexual harassment at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), driving women to leave the agency. In the wake of the story, FDIC Chair Martin Gruenberg told lawmakers he was personally disturbed and deeply troubled by the allegations. Ernst, a survivor of sexual assault and one of the bills sponsors, was one of the first lawmakers to call for Gruenbergs resignation last fall. The federal government should be committed to serving the American people, not the Wild West of inappropriate conduct, Ernst said in a statement. An independent investigation by law firm Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton released last week lambasted the banking regulators toxic work environment and pointed the finger at management for the patriarchal, insular, and risk-adverse culture, sparking renewed calls for Gruenbergs resignation from some lawmakers. The top Republicans on congressional financial committees called on Gruenberg to resign in the wake of the report, as did Rep. Bill Foster (D-Ill.), ranking member of the Financial Services subcommittee on financial institutions. But other Democrats including Rep. Maxine Waters (Calif.), ranking member on the House Financial Services Committee; Sen. Sherrod Brown (Ohio), chair of the Senate Banking Committee; and acting Labor Secretary Julie Su have stopped short of calling for the FDIC chiefs resignation. This isnt the first time Ernst and Gillibrand have teamed up to take on sexual harassment and assault in the federal government. During the last Congress, the lawmakers introduced the Military Justice Improvement and Increasing Prevention Act, which included several changes to how the military justice system handles serious crimes including rape and sexual assault. Ernst described the No Taxpayer-Funded Pensions for Sex Criminals Act as an effort to better protect women in the workplace and restore the integrity of public service. Our bipartisan bill would create real consequences to end bad behavior and send a signal that sexual predators are not welcome in the federal government, Ernst said. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. ESCANABA, Mich. (WJMN) Numerous communities around the Upper Peninsula have been awarded grants from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE). These grants are part of the MI Clean Water Plan. The money comes from the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) and the federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). Of the roughly $23.3 million in grant funding announced on Monday, $20 million of that is headed to the City of Escanaba. Below is a description of the project for Escanaba: This project includes watermain replacement, lead service line replacement, and water tank upgrades in the City of Escanaba. In addition to facility upgrades to the South Water Tank and associated watermain work in the tank area, watermain replacement will take place in twelve distinct areas throughout the City of Escanaba, with a total watermain replacement of approximately 7,625 lineal feet, including replacement of inoperable valves and hydrants. The project will replace aging watermain and improve water flows and reliability throughout the system. An estimated 135 full lead service line replacements will take place along these new watermains in addition to approximately 605 lead service lines throughout the city. WJMN has contacted the Escanaba City Manager to learn more about the project. Four other Upper Peninsula communities are also receiving grant funding. This money is intended to help identify or verify lead service lines in preparation for replacement. Those communities are: Osceola Township, $176,000 Village of Calumet, $247,000 City of Houghton, $250,000 Crystal Falls Township, $200,785 Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WJMN - UPMatters.com. Estonia is seriously considering sending troops to Ukraine advisor to Estonian President Madis Roll, the advisor to the President of Estonia for National Security, states that the Estonian government is "seriously" discussing the possibility of sending troops to the west of Ukraine. Source: Roll in an interview for the Breaking Defense portal, as reported by European Pravda Details: Roll noted that the Estonian government is currently analysing a potential deployment of troops in Ukraine and would like to do it within a full NATO mission "to show broader combined strength and determination". "Discussions are ongoing. We should be looking at all the possibilities. We shouldnt have our minds restricted as to what we can do," he said. Roll stressed that Estonia is ready to potentially send its troops to the west of Ukraine within a smaller coalition but its "not unthinkable" that NATO nations opposed to such a move would change their minds "as time goes on". Estonian officials have voiced their approval of the idea of sending Western troops to Ukraine. Background: In March, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas refused to guarantee that the Estonian Defence Forces will not be deployed to Ukraine. Kyllike Sillaste-Elling, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Estonia, urged NATO to be more open to this idea. At the end of February following the meeting of presidents and the heads of governments of about 20 European states in Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron admitted that he had proposed to the Western states to send their troops to Ukraine. Support UP or become our patron! JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (WJHL) East Tennessee State Universitys (ETSU) Reece Museum won an Award of Excellence for a long-running exhibition. Awarded by the Tennessee Association of Museums, the An Exuberant Spirit: The Sammie L. Nicely Collection has been running at the Reece Museum since 2023. The collection was curated to show the depth of the full collection, An Exuberant Spirit, which featured 85 artworks from the museums permanent collection. Named for artist Sammie L. Nicely, this growing collection of post-modern and contemporary art explored Black imagery and themes, representing a variety of media forms, ETSU said in release. New Storybook Trail unveiled at downtown Jonesborough park The Reece Museum received 50 artworks from Nicelys collection in 2021. Since then, the museum has collected pieces to support Nicelys legacy as an artist and educator. 3,846 visitors experienced the Exuberant Spirit collection in person, making it one of the museums most popular exhibitions, ETSU said. A grant from the Henry Luce Foundations American Art Program helped the exhibition reach beyond the museums gallery. The grant supported the following, according to ETSU: The ongoing development of a digital exhibition that will feature all 197 artifacts in the Nicely Collection The installation of the Exuberant Spirit exhibition Resources to develop educational programming opportunities such as artist workshops, panel discussions, gallery tours and an upcoming student art camp. Deeper research into the art and artists included in the collection, which has led to opportunities to collect oral histories, produce academic journal articles and present at the American Association of Museums annual meeting in Baltimore, Maryland The Sammie L. Nicely Collection can be viewed on the Reece Museums collections portal here. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WJHL | Tri-Cities News & Weather. FILE PHOTO: A truck engine is tested for pollution near the Mexican-U.S. border in Otay Mesa, California By Kate Abnett BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union countries gave their final approval on Monday to a law to cut carbon dioxide emissions from trucks, which will require most new heavy-duty vehicles sold in the EU from 2040 to be emissions-free. The law will enforce a 90% cut in CO2 emissions from new heavy-duty vehicles by 2040. That means manufacturers will have to sell a large share of fully CO2-free trucks - including electric vehicles and those running on hydrogen fuel - to offset any remaining sales of new CO2-emitting vehicles in 2040. Most trucks on Europe's roads currently run on diesel, which produces greenhouse gas emissions and air pollutants linked to lung cancer and respiratory diseases. Heavy-duty vehicles produce a quarter of Europe's road transport emissions. Truck manufacturers will also have to reduce the CO2 emissions of their fleets by 45% by 2030 - replacing an existing 30% target - and 65% by 2035. From 2030, 90% of new urban buses sold in the EU will be required to have zero emissions, rising to 100% in 2035. European autos group ACEA has described the EU policy as the world's most ambitious, and said the targets will only be met if governments match them with a rapid roll-out of 50,000 truck-suitable public electric charging points by 2030. The EU's truck CO2 policy has now won approval from EU countries and the EU Parliament, meaning it can pass into law. That is despite recent complaints from Germany and centre-right EU lawmakers, who had wanted the policy to allow more combustion engine trucks to be sold beyond 2040 if they ran on CO2-neutral fuels. In Monday's vote, only Italy, Poland and Slovakia opposed the policy, while the Czech Republic abstained, an EU official told Reuters. To win Germany's backing, EU countries last month added a preamble to the law which said the European Commission would consider developing rules in future to count trucks running on CO2 neutral fuels towards the targets. (Reporting by Kate Abnett; Editing by Jan Harvey) Numerous snow-covered tractors stand on the Strasse des 17 during protest against planned cuts in subsidies by the German government, including for agricultural diesel. Member states of the European Union on Monday agreed to loosen the environmental regulations for farmers seeking subsidies under the EU's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Kay Nietfeld/dpa Member states of the European Union on Monday agreed to loosen the environmental regulations for farmers seeking subsidies under the EU's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). The revision means farmers would face fewer hurdles when applying for CAP subsidies. For example, farmers would no longer be obliged to leave parts of their arable land fallow. Lively protests brought the EU's political centre in Brussels to a standstill in February, as farmers in convoys of tractors protested EU red tape. The CAP pays subsidies farmers rely on to stay afloat, but payments are conditional on strict environmental protection rules. On March 15, the European Commission responded by proposing to loosen some of the CAP's environmental regulations. The member states gave final approval to the proposals on Monday, which is extremely quick by EU standards. The European Parliament approved the measures on April 24. In addition to lifting fallow land rules, the revised CAP will require member states to offer additional financial support for farmers who voluntarily leave some land unused. The revision also loosens the rules requiring farmers to rotate the types of crops they grow. Farmers will be permitted to choose between rotating crops and diversifying them, provided the member state they work in has authorized this. Member states will also be allowed to exempt certain crops and soil types from rules on tillage, soil cover and crop rotation or diversification. EU countries would also be allowed to relax environmental rules more broadly when extreme weather strikes. Evacuation of two more settlements in Sumy Oblast begins Evacuation of people from the cities of Bilopillia and Vorozhba has begun in Sumy Oblast. Source: Sumy Oblast Military Administration Details: The relevant order was signed by the head of the Sumy Oblast Military Administration (OMA), Volodymyr Artiukh. Quote: "We have to protect our residents. This is our main task set by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. This is not a forced evacuation, but an early voluntary evacuation from those settlements where the number of attacks has significantly increased." The residents are currently being notified of the evacuation in the hromadas [a hromada is an administrative unit designating a village, several villages, or a town, and their adjacent territories ed.]. Residents of Bilopillya and Vorozhba who wish to evacuate, especially families with children, should contact their authorities and heads of hromadas. The evacuated population will be accommodated in places of compact residence in the oblast. In addition, the evacuation of the population from hromadas within a 5-km zone from the border with Russia, which began in July 2023, continues in the oblast. Residents of 115 border settlements in 15 hromadas in 4 districts of the oblast, which are under constant hostile fire, are eligible for evacuation. The OMA recalled that from January to April, 40 residents were killed by Russian attacks and airstrikes in Sumy Oblast, and 110 were injured, including 13 children. Background: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine, reported in his evening address on 13 May that the Russians sent sabotage and reconnaissance groups and launched attacks on Sumy and Chernihiv oblasts. Support UP or become our patron! A former high-level executive at Loretto Hospital has been hit with federal charges alleging she helped embezzle nearly half a million dollars from the small safety-net facility on Chicagos West Side at the height of the COVID-19 crisis. Heather Bergdahl, 37, who currently lives in the Houston area, was charged in a criminal complaint made public Monday with embezzlement from a federally funded program. Bergdahl was arrested on Thursday night after boarding a private jet in Houston that was chartered to take her to Dubai, according to federal prosecutors. She appeared for a detention hearing in U.S. District Court in Houston on Monday, where a magistrate ordered her released on bond secured by her parents home, court records show. An attorney for her listed on the docket in Texas was not immediately available for comment. The charges are the first to stem from an ongoing federal grand jury investigation into Loretto Hospitals vaccination program, which came under fire after hundreds of COVID shots were administered at a suburban church connected to then-CEO George Miller at a time where vaccination doses were still scarce. Around the same time, Lorettos board reprimanded Miller and the hospitals former chief financial officer, Dr. Anosh Ahmed, after the hospital improperly vaccinated ineligible workers at Trump Tower downtown and Cook County judges. Ahmed resigned in 2021 after the hospitals board voted to terminate him. Miller was suspended and later left the hospital amid the fallout in April 2022. Neither Ahmed nor Miller has been criminally charged, though the investigation is ongoing. According to the 20-page criminal complaint, Ahmed knew Bergdahl from their time working together in Houston and hired her in 2020 to serve as the hospitals chief transformation officer, with duties that included cutting checks to vendors and handling outreach for screening and COVID-19 testing and vaccines. Though Ahmed was referred to in the complaint only as Individual A, details of his employment history confirm his identity. Court records filed Monday afternoon in Texas show Bergdahl was ordered to have no contact with Ahmed while free on bond. In June 2021, just a few months after resigning, Ahmed opened four business bank accounts under the names Medlabs USA, Chicago Promotions Ltd., Illinois Biotech Co. and Midwest Medical Supplies, all listing him as CEO and an address on the 400 block of North Wabash Avenue, where he lived at the time, the complaint stated. On the same day the accounts were opened, Bergdahl began cutting checks to Ahmeds companies even though they had performed no work for the hospital. Over the next six months, Bergdahl issued a total of 11 checks totaling $486,000, the complaint alleged. Records show that Ahmeds companies, in turn, were sending tens of thousands of dollars back to Bergdahl, including a payment of $79,000 on July 26, 2021, two payments, $75,000 and $10,000, on Aug. 18, 2021, a payment of $81,000 on Sept. 23, 2021, and a payment of $25,000 on Jan. 10, 2022, the complaint alleged. Bergdahl left Loretto in March 2022, shortly before Millers resignation, records show. Her LinkedIn profile currently lists her as chief financial officer of Anosh Inc., a Houston-based alternative investment firm. Her biography states she is a doctor, coffee connoisseur, automotive enthusiast, business woman, and world traveler, and that her previous work experience includes fraud investigation. She has relocated 8 times, traveled the world and seen places and things that many people only dream of, the bio states. She lives her life embracing the belief, the best is yet to come!' The charges against Bergdahl come two years after a federal grand jury subpoenaed the state Department of Public Health for information on dozens of people who were given shots by Loretto the same time frame as the vaccinations given at Trump Tower and elsewhere, according to records released by the state. That investigation later expanded to include Valley Kingdom Ministries International Church in Oak Forest where hundreds of congregants were allegedly vaccinated while shots were still in short supply and only supposed to be given to people ages 65 and older and front-line workers. The vaccination event also occurred as health and community leaders emphasized a need to distribute vaccines equitably, making sure hard-hit communities on the South and West sides got the shots. The Chicago Department of Public Health at the time said it suspended vaccination distribution to Loretto after learning of potential vaccine distribution issues. The city later stepped in to manage the clinic at the hospital in order to help ensure Austin residents had priority access to vaccinations. Gov. J.B. Pritzker and then-Mayor Lori Lightfoot said the city and state were cooperating with investigators. jmeisner@chicagotribune.com Laura Jean Fero, the former dean of nursing at St. Catherine University, not only embezzled more than $400,000 from the school and funneled the money to her boyfriend's phony business, she also used university funds to pay for five trips to popular vacation destinations, according to new charges filed Monday. The latest accusations were filed in Ramsey County District Court against 56-year-old Juan Ramon Bruce of Shakopee and contend that his company "pretended to be a marketing company, but its actual purpose was to obtain misappropriated funds from St. Catherine's." Bruce was charged with six counts of theft by swindle in connection with Fero allegedly siphoning the St. Paul private school's money from 2020 until last summer. Fero was identically charged last week after the university said it found that she embezzled roughly $412,000 through contracts the school had with JB & Associates. Authorities arrested Fero on Wednesday at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport and she was released on a personal recognizance bond. She is due back in court June 7 and has been asked for a response to the allegations. Fero lives in Florida, where she is dean of nursing for a university under AdventHealth, a private system of more than 20 hospitals and emergency rooms in the Orlando metropolitan area. Bruce has a June 6 court date and remains jailed in lieu of $75,000 bail. Dennis Gerhardstein, spokesman for the Ramsey County Attorney's Office, said the prosecution during a hearing Monday "requested $100,000 [bail], noting unique flight risk concerns based on information provided by police." The defense explained in court Monday the perceived flight risk stemmed from his arrest at his home Friday, where his car was packed with his son's belongings. He explained that he was getting ready to go to his son's graduation and that the vehicle wasn't operational. Court records do not list an attorney for Fero or Bruce. The additional allegations against Fero and Bruce include that she used a St. Catherine procurement card to pay for airline tickets for them between June 2021 and last August to Miami, Atlanta, Phoenix, Cancun and Orlando along along with paying for rental cars and lodging while in those cities. St. Paul police have classified more than $18,000 of that spending as "not legitimate" and another $8,000 as being of "questionable legitimacy," the charges against Bruce read. University spokeswoman Sarah Voigt on Monday continued to decline to comment about the allegations. She did confirm that a message from the office of President Becky Roloff was sent late Friday afternoon to the St. Catherine community advising, "Please carefully consider any discussion that you might have about [Fero] and the alleged conduct. We want to ensure that nothing said or done by anyone at St. Catherine University jeopardizes the case that investigators have been carefully building. Do not forward this message outside the University." According to the charges last week and again in the criminal complaint filed against Bruce: The university determined that "Fero engaged in transferring significant funds to Bruce over multiple years while Bruce provided little to no services to the university," the charging document read. Emails between Fero and Bruce show they had a romantic relationship throughout the time the school was doing business with his company. The school has a conflict-of-interest policy that would have forbidden such a relationship. After Fero left St. Catherine, the school requested details from JB & Associates on the nature of the work it did. But Bruce submitted reports "that differed significantly from the reports he had previously sent to Fero directly while he was working for St. Catherine's," the charges noted. Fero told police she didn't believe the school's conflict-of-interest policy applied, believing it only covered married couples. She also admitted to "editing" some of the documents JB & Associates submitted. icon Semafor Signals Supported by Microsoft logo Insights from The New York Times, Politico, and Semafor Arrow Down Title icon The News Michael Cohen, who was once Donald Trumps lawyer, fixer, and attack dog, took the stand Monday as the prosecutions star witness in the former presidents hush-money trial. Cohens testimony will be crucial to the outcome of this trial: Prosecutors allege that in the days before the 2016 presidential election, Cohen paid Stormy Daniels $130,000 to stop her from publicly sharing her story of an alleged sexual encounter with Trump, which he has resolutely denied occurred. Cohen was later found guilty in a federal court of violating campaign finance laws and spent time in federal prison for the crime of making the payment. Trump has repeatedly said Cohen acted alone and without his knowledge in paying Daniels. But Cohens testimony Monday painted Trump as a key player, and importantly for prosecutors, said that the decision to pay her and other people off was all about the campaign. That detail is key to the prosecutions case that Trump falsified business records to conceal the payments, but also to commit or conceal another alleged crime: A conspiracy to get himself elected. icon SIGNALS Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories. Courts have believed Cohen before even after he was convicted for lying Source icon Sources: CNN, The New York Times, MSNBC, Politico Cohen is a risky witness in that he has been found guilty of lying to Congress and of perjury. But because Cohen is so strongly corroborated, believing him will not require a leap of faith for the jury more like a short hop, attorney and legal analyst Norman Eisen wrote. Jurors often want to hear someone recount what they already know occurred, but that has not been said directly, law professor Andrew Weissmann wrote for The New York Times. The judge who ruled against the Trump Organization in the New York attorney generals civil fraud trial, relied heavily on Cohens testimony, saying: This factfinder does not believe that pleading guilty to perjury means that you can never tell the truth. Michael Cohen told the truth. Trial is testing ground for Trumps vice-presidential hopefuls Source icon Sources: Semafor, NBC News On Monday, another close Trump ally, Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance joined the growing number of Republican vice-presidential hopefuls who have stopped by the courthouse to show their support for the former president. Florida Sen. Rick Scott showed up last week, and South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, who was Trumps former rival in the Republican presidential primary, has considered a stop, too. On Tuesday, another former rival, Vivek Ramaswamy, will show up, according to NBC. Trump likes to treat his veepstakes as a reality show production, Semafors Shelby Talcott reported, and his Manhattan trial seems like an obvious way to score points in that context. High-profile GOP visitors show Trumps enduring grip on the party Source icon Sources: The New York Times, NBC News Its remarkable that Trump has so many senior elected GOP officials in the courtroom to support him, The New York Times Maggie Haberman wrote, underscoring how completely Trump has gotten the party in his grip since 2016. Republicans seeking to curry favor with the potential next president are attending the trial, especially after Trump reportedly complained no one was defending him during the initial proceedings. On Monday, other notable attendees included Sen. Tommy Tuberville, New York Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird, and Trumps son Eric. Many of them sought to discredit Cohen on Trumps behalf under his gag order, the former president cant talk about the prosecutors, jury, witnesses, or the judge, but his allies can. Semafor Logo Exactly What to Do After Winning an Election Hearst Owned Truth: Getting elected to political office just hits different for women than it does for men. So the strategies women employ should be different too. We asked 15 women in politicseveryone from U.S. Representatives to governors to mayors to political strategistsfor their best advice on getting up to speed and gearing up for success. Their consensus: Start prepping the very day after you win, whether youre about to work on a local school board, your city council, or the state house. Also, since support from political establishments is lacking, youre gonna have to DIY a lot of this. But thats okay, because heres another truth: You should never underestimate the power of a carefully curated professional support system. Hearst Owned Kate Gallego Photo credit: Hearst Owned First, be willing to acknowledge that you need help, advises Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego. I tried to do everything myself, but I soon learned that people like to support women who dont pretend to be superhuman. Lisa Blunt Rochester Photo credit: Hearst Owned Find your people, says Lisa Blunt Rochester, a U.S. Representative from Delaware. I reengaged with a group Id lost touch with, the Delaware chapter of the National Coalition of 100 Black Women. One organization led to anotherand support across many networks. Leslie Osborn Photo credit: Hearst Owned Identify the advocacy groups that push for the same agenda as you; many have been operating for years before you got elected and have great tips on how the system really works, says Oklahoma Labor Commissioner Leslie Osborn. Dayna Polehanki Photo credit: Hearst Owned Search for an advisor you can learn from, says Michigan State Senator Dayna Polehanki, who found hers on Facebook. I messaged her and we met at a local Panera for 10 minutes. Shes now my political mentor. Julie von Haefen Photo credit: Hearst Owned Attend conferences and meetings with legislators from around the country, says North Carolina State Representative Julie von Haefen. This has helped me create a network I can turn to when things get stressful. Jasmine Crockett Photo credit: Hearst Owned Establish unlikely alliances by befriending colleagues who are of the opposite mindset as you, says Jasmine Crockett, a U.S. Representative from Texas. There will come a time in which they prove invaluable. Maura Healey Photo credit: Hearst Owned Surround yourself with a team of people who know you and the unique challenges you face as a womanand who will be honest with you, says Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey.Also: recharge. All the professional support in the world doesnt matter if youre not taking care of yourself. You Might Also Like Exclusive-Japan's military needs more women. But it's still failing on harassment By Sakura Murakami and Tim Kelly TOKYO (Reuters) - As Japan embarks on a major military build-up, it's struggling to fill its ranks with the women that its forces need and its policymakers have pledged to recruit. Following a wave of sexual harassment cases, the number of women applying to join the Self-Defence Forces (SDF) decreased by 12% in the year ending March 2023, after several years of steady growth. Some victims have said an entrenched culture of harassment could deter women from signing up. But nine months after the defence ministry pledged to take drastic measures, it has no plans to take action on a key recommendation issued by an independent panel of experts - implementing a national system for reviewing anti-harassment training standards - according to two ministry officials responsible for training. The government-appointed panel had identified in a report published in August that the military's superficial harassment education - which made only limited mention of sexual harassment - and a lack of centralised oversight of such training were contributing factors to cultural problems within the institution. The head of the panel, Makoto Tadaki, said some training sessions - one of which Reuters attended - were at odds with the gravity of the situation. A servicewoman who is suing the government over an alleged sexual harassment incident also said in an interview that the education she received over the past 10 years was ineffective. Calls to root out harassment and increase the number of servicewomen come as aging Japan faces rising threats from China, North Korea and Russia and navigates the burdensome legacy of its wartime past. Women make up just 9% of military personnel in Japan, compared to 17% in the United States, Tokyo's key security ally. The SDF referred Reuters' questions to the defence ministry, which said in an emailed response that harassment "must never be allowed, as it destroys mutual trust between service members and undermines their strength." The ministry said it had hosted harassment prevention lectures by external experts since 2023, made sessions more discussion-based and planned to invite specialists to review its training this year. It did not respond to questions on whether it would implement the panel's recommendation to centralise oversight of training. After ex-soldier Rina Gonoi went public with allegations of sexual assault in 2022, the defence ministry conducted a survey that year that uncovered more than 170 alleged sexual harassment incidents in the SDF. Another alleged victim was an Okinawa-based servicewoman who accused a senior of making lewd remarks toward her in 2013. She was then publicly named in harassment training materials distributed to her colleagues in 2014, she told Reuters. The alleged perpetrator was not identified in the materials. Reuters does not name alleged victims of sexual harassment. Her allegations were corroborated with documents in the lawsuit she filed last year, after she said she exhausted an internal complaints process. HAPHAZARD TRAINING The defence ministry offers an annual online module on general harassment. It also provides training materials to officers for in-person sessions, but doesn't offer training on delivering harassment education and doesn't track how or when the officers carry out harassment training, the two defence officials said. The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, justified the existing system as offering flexibility to commanders. The six experts concluded in their review that existing training amounted to "generic, superficial statements" that were "not effective in helping people apply the training in the real world." In April, Reuters attended a harassment prevention course delivered by an external instructor to over 100 mid-ranking military officers at a base on the outskirts of Tokyo. Instructor Keiko Yoshimoto presented harassment as a communication issue and focused discussions on generational differences and how they played out in preferences for types of cars and flavours of crisps. "Generational differences make it hard for people to communicate," she said, adding that people should understand the basics of communication before they could deal with specifics around sexual harassment. Law professor Tadaki, who separately witnessed part of Yoshimoto's session, said it "did not feel like the sort of training you would expect against a backdrop of there being so many cases of harassment surfacing." He added that it would likely take more time to increase oversight over the quality of training. Two months after the panel issued its report, local media reported that a sailor had in 2022 been ordered against her will to meet a superior that she had accused of sexual harassment. She later quit the SDF. Gonoi and the Okinawa-based servicewoman have criticised the system as inadequate. "People would say 'everyone put up with that kind of behaviour, it was normal back in our time,' but these issues are being passed down to my generation because nothing was done to stop it," the servicewoman told Reuters in March. She added that the harassment training she has since received was often poorly conducted and that more centralised oversight was needed: "Rather than trying to make a point about sexual harassment, (officers) pick materials that are easy to teach, something that will fit into the time they have." FEAR OF COMPLAINTS The defence ministry officials said that training on sexual harassment largely takes place within a broader anti-harassment curriculum. At the two-hour training session attended by Reuters, about two minutes were dedicated to sexual harassment. When Reuters asked about sexual harassment incidents during interviews with the officials, as well as two senior uniformed officers, they responded by speaking about general harassment. The officials said it was challenging to give standardised training on harassment because service members in high-stress environments may give orders in a direct way that is unusual in other circumstances. The two officers said there were concerns within the military that too much focus on harassment could create operational issues and one suggested it might lead to unfair complaints. The defence ministry said in a statement that it does not tolerate abuse and that its training aims to ensure commanders do not "hesitate to give necessary guidance on the job because they are concerned about harassment." Tadaki, the professor, said Japan could learn from other militaries. "The U.S., U.K., and France have a much clearer focus on preventing harassment from its root causes so its prevention programme is structured around improving the internal climate and culture of its organisation," he said. (Reporting by Sakura Murakami and Tim Kelly; Additional reporting by Nobuhiro Kubo; Editing by John Geddie and Katerina Ang) Winds and rain hit Tybee Island, Georgia on Wednesday, August 30, 2023 as Hurricane Idalia made landfall in Florida. Like anyone who doesnt make a living by preparing for the worst, Chelsea Sawyer has checked out early prognostications for the upcoming hurricane season. But as an official tasked with protecting Chatham County residents from the fickle forces of nature, she considers this years forecasts to be particularly sobering. In one of the reports I was reading just this morning, they called it an explosive hurricane season, Sawyer, Chatham Countys emergency preparedness manager, said this week. No words like that are particularly exciting to an emergency manager. The Tropical Weather and Climate Research Center at Colorado State University is predicting an extremely active Atlantic hurricane season with 23 named storms. That would easily exceed the historical average of 14.4 tropical cyclones with winds of at least 39 mph. CSU also predicts 11 of those storms will become hurricanes, with sustained winds reaching 74 mph; and five strengthening to major status as wind speeds top 110 mph. An average of about seven storms reached hurricane level annually from 1991 to 2020, with three typically reaching major strength, according to CSU. AccuWeather predicts a similarly busy season, which runs from June 1 through Nov. 30. The private meteorology service projects 20 to 25 named storms, with eight to 12 becoming hurricanes. The projections point to a potential weather double-whammy, said Zachary Handlos, a professor at Georgia Techs School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences. The forecasts are expecting a higher frequency of storms this year, potentially aligned with record-breaking years like 2020 and 2005, he noted. But then on top of that there's a high chance of a few major hurricanes that could be thrown in the mix of all the named storms. Thirty named storms formed in 2020. Fifteen Atlantic cyclones became hurricanes in 2005 including Katrina, which caused nearly $200 billion in damage and led to more than 1,800 deaths. Both seasons were influenced by La Nina patterns, which involve the cooling of tropical Pacific waters but lead to a reduction in vertical wind shear that acts as a brake against Atlantic hurricanes. This year, warming Atlantic waters and the expected arrival of a La Nina pattern are driving expectations for a hyperactive hurricane season. Feeling the heat: 'Ma Nature' expected to nurture warm spring in Savannah under climate change's influence Chatham County Emergency Preparedness Manager Chelsea Sawyer says she concerned that some Savannah residents aren't taking the threat of hurricanes seriously. Potential recipe for disaster Oceans absorb most of the heat trapped in the atmosphere by pollution released when fossil fuels are burned for energy. That trend led to record-high Atlantic temperatures in 2023. This year, global ocean surface temperatures have set new daily records since late March. The waters are already warmer than usual in the Atlantic, and warm water is a key ingredient for kind of starting off and forming hurricanes, Handlos said. If you mix that trend on top of the possible La Nina setup, it's just a potential recipe for disaster. Thats because warmer oceans pump more energy into storms, causing them to intensify. In some cases, the speed of those power surges is alarming experts. In August of last year, Hurricane Idalias sustained winds strengthened by 55 mph in a 24-hour period as it moved through the Gulf of Mexico before making landfall in Florida (and eventually causing damage when as its remnants passed over coastal Georgia.) A large Oak tree fell on the carport at a Windsor Forest home as Hurricane Idalia moved through Georgia on Wednesday, August 30, 2023. Idalia wasnt alone in its extreme acceleration. Nearly one-third of the more than three-dozen named storms in the Atlantic and Pacific basins combined last year experienced rapid intensification when their wind speeds increased by at least 35 mph in 24 hours. The trend dilutes what had been a distinct advantage in hurricane preparedness: forecasters ability to accurately predict how strong storms likely will be when they make landfall. Thats particularly worrisome to Sawyer, the countys emergency preparedness manager. These storms are rapidly intensifying, she said. These storms are doing things we did not expect for them to do even last hurricane season. All of which puts pressure on emergency managers to alert residents earlier in a storms progression, when the potential path is less certain. But will the public listen? If we're constantly sending out these messages, hey, we're watching this, hey, we're watching this, then people are going start to feel used to it, Sawyer suggested. They're going to say, well, it's never actually going to happen. Thats not good. Spore spot: Steamy, historic Savannah drives Georgia's inclusion among America's moldiest states Dont bet against hurricanes Some coastal Georgia residents already feel that way. The Savannah area has not experienced a direct hit from a hurricane since 1979, when David blew through packing 90-mph winds that toppled trees and took down power lines. About 75,000 customers of what was then known as Savannah Electric were in the dark. That 45-year streak has inspired the monicker Dodge City for Savannah. Sawyer, Handlos and Georgias state climatologist, Bill Murphey, have a similar message for anyone with a cavalier attitude about Savannahs hurricane history: Dont press your luck. The climate that we have now is not the climate that we had 10 years ago (and) its not the climate we had100 years ago, Sawyer explained. The past is not necessarily representative of what were going to see in the future. Climate trends aside, some observers attribute Savannahs good fortune to its location or even the curve of the Georgia coast. Both theories are off target, said Georgia Techs Handlos. "With hurricanes, there really is no such thing as a geographical advantage, he explained. What's really tricky for convincing the public sometimes to take this stuff seriously is that if a region hasn't been hit for several decades, or even almost a century, it's easy to become complacent to the effects of tropical cyclones and hurricanes. Of course, for each individual Atlantic storm, the odds of hitting a particular community dont really change year to year. However, growth in the number of tropical cyclones proportionately increases the probability of a direct strike. It only takes one landfalling hurricane to have significant coastal and inland impacts, noted Murphey. Storm surge and large battering waves from hurricane- or tropical-storm force winds can cause massive destruction along the coast and significant loss of life. With storms expected to grow in intensity, even a glancing blow could wreak havoc, he added. Even though Idalia had dissapated as it passed coastal Georgia last year after traveling across Florida, it still downed trees, caused power outages and led to flooding in the Savannah area. Being in a low-lying area and near the coast, (Savannah-area) residents definitely need to take this season seriously with several of the key ingredients across the Atlantic Basin lining up for quite an active tropical cyclone season, Murphey cautioned. Utility lines hang near the ground after a large tree fell on them along Walthour Road on Wilmington Island as Hurricane Idalia moved through Georgia. A blessing and a curse Sawyer pointed to another challenge unique to communities like Savannah, where hurricane season overlaps with the height of vacation season. "You've got a huge tourism industry and theyre heavily reliant on making sure that we're an open community that people can come into and keep coming to, she said. Messaging about the potential threat of hurricanes, or even news about severe storms hitting other coastal areas, could prompt visitors to rethink their plans. And if potentially dangerous weather approaches, Sawyer and her colleagues must communicate with visitors who may be unfamiliar with the area and its sources of emergency information. However, many full-time residents may be just as uninformed. A lot of people who have moved here from elsewhere may have never dealt with a hurricane, Sawyer noted. Youve got this massive influx of new residents that are living in really vulnerable areas like The Landings and places in downtown Savannah and towards the islands. The National Hurricane Center, which is the hub for real-time tropical cyclone information, is just as concerned about reaching the public. The center announced last month that it planned to ramp up its communications process as severe Atlantic systems approach. That includes adding all local warnings and watches to its updates on the expected paths of storms. They're trying to change their public safety messaging because they're recognizing the same challenges that we are and that people are becoming complacent, Sawyer said. The growing unpredictability of storms could add to those challenges, particularly when a community repeatedly braces for storms that eventually change course and miss them. Thats both a huge message and a curse, Sawyer concluded. And unfortunately, thats where Savannah finds itself. For complete information about hurricane preparedness in Chatham County, visit: chathamemergency.org/PrepareNow/HurricanePreparedness John Deem covers climate change and the environment in coastal Georgia. He can be reached at jdeem@gannett.com Visitors cover up with an umbrella as they walk along Broughton Street on Wednesday, August 30, 2023 as Hurricane Idalia made landfall in Florida. This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: 'Explosive' hurricane season raises concern over Savannah's readiness For the past few weeks, thousands of protesters have gathered every night in front of the Georgian parliament in opposition to the controversial foreign agents law that the ruling Georgian Dream party is attempting to pass. The final vote is set to take place on May 14. The law would require organizations that receive foreign funding to be labeled as foreign agents. Opponents argue that it will stifle civil society and independent media and help the government suppress dissent. The protests have begun to morph into a larger sign of discontent against the government and the direction it is taking the country. Georgian Dream's Honorary Chairman Bidzina Ivanishvili, widely seen as the man who calls the shots, has been increasingly open that he holds the reigns over the government, not Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze. The country is headed for a parliamentary election in October, which will likely prove to be a pivotal moment for Georgia as it faces what many have described as a stark choice between the European path and Russia. Georgian Dream has been in power for 12 years and has long pledged, at least rhetorically, to take the country into the EU. Local media and NGOs largely believe that the attempt to reintroduce the foreign agents law, which was abandoned last year after similar protests, combined with growing anti-Western vitriol from Ivanishvili and other officials, demonstrates that Georgian Dream is no longer interested in pretending to seek EU integration. Instead, Georgian analysts and journalists told the Kyiv Independent that the ruling party has made its choice to seek closer ties with Russia. Protesters on the street "fully understand that after this (law), there is no future for Georgia, because a future with Russia, for us, is no future," said Katie Shoshiashvili, a corruption researcher with Transparency International Georgia, in an interview with the Kyiv Independent. Georgia's European path Georgia was one of the first victims of Russian imperialism after the fall of the USSR, with the Russian military unofficially backing Abkhaz militants who sought to break away from Tbilisi. An estimated 25,000-30,000 were killed and more than 250,000 displaced in the Abkhaz War in the early 1990s. The Georgian government lost control over Abkhazia, which is currently still occupied by Russian-backed proxies. The 2003 Rose Revolution, spearheaded by future President Mikhail Saakashvili, resulted in the ousting of then President Eduard Shevardnadze, formerly the USSR's foreign minister, and marked a clear indication of Georgia's path westward. Under Saakashvili and the United National Movement (UNM), Georgia attempted to deviate from Russia's sphere of influence. Saakashvili is still seen by many in the West as a champion of Georgia's aim to join the EU but has a controversial legacy at home, marred by various scandals and accounts of police brutality and mistreatment of prisoners. Former Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili delivers a speech during his swearing-in ceremony in Tbilisi, Georgia, on Jan. 25, 2004. (Maxim Marmum/AFP via Getty Images) Amid deteriorating relations with Russia, Saakashvili sought to reclaim Georgian territories controlled by Russian-backed proxies, which resulted in a full-scale war in 2008. Following the war, Georgia de facto lost control of 20% of its territory to Russia, but it did not abandon its desire for greater European integration. Saakashvili and the UNM were weakened by the defeat in the war, and the 2008 financial crisis which was exacerbated by other calamities and unfulfilled promises. The pro-EU ruling party lost the 2012 parliamentary elections to a newly formed party Georgian Dream. "Georgian Dream was elected as pro-Western, and it promised to continue the pro-EU path that the previous government (started)," said Mariam Nikuradze, the co-founder and executive director of OC-Media, in an interview with the Kyiv Independent. Power behind the throne Bidzina Ivanishvili is Georgia's richest man, having acquired billions in the "Wild West" era of privatization in Russia in the 1990s. "When someone makes this amount of (money) in Russia, they are not let out of Russia just like this," said Eto Buziashvili, a research associate at the Atlantic Council's Digital Forensic Research Lab, in comments to the Kyiv Independent. The degree of direct control to which Russia has over Ivanishvili is debated, but "in many ways, we have reason to believe that Moscow is still able to call the shots when it comes to Ivanishvili's access to his own assets," said Tinatin Japaridze, a risk analyst at the Eurasia Group, in an interview with the Kyiv Independent. An investigation by the NGO Transparency International Georgia alleged that Ivanishvili owns at least one business in Russia, although he said he would cease his activity in the country after entering politics. He likely maintains other business activity in Russia through offshore companies or relatives, the investigation said. Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili (R) and his predecessor, oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili at a press conference in Tbilisi on Nov. 2, 2013. Both are members of Georgian Dream. (Vano Shlamov/AFP via Getty Images) Despite Ivanishvili's regular statements that he wanted to pursue Georgia's deeper integration with the EU, "there were many assessments from the very beginning that he was coming to Georgia with a very clear plan to drag Georgia toward the Russian orbit," Buziashvili said. Ivanishvili only served as prime minister for one year before resigning in 2013 and handing the reigns to Irakli Garibashvili. The first years of Georgian Dream's rule saw tangible steps toward Europe, namely the liberalization of the visa regime for Georgian citizens in 2017. Nonetheless, this may have been just a token measure to placate the Georgian people, the vast majority of whom favored joining the EU, said Buziashvili. Another possible explanation is that Ivanishvili and Georgian Dream did, and still do, legitimately want to join the EU, but in the mold of Hungary as an illiberal democracy and spoiler in the bloc. While many have argued that Georgian Dream should be characterized as pro-Russian, others are more skeptical if that label accurately captures the party's guiding philosophy. Its current policies align most clearly with Russia, but ultimately, the party seeks to serve itself and its own interests, namely its hold on power; the analysts and journalists who spoke to the Kyiv Independent largely concurred. Democratic backsliding The various statements by Ivanishvili and Garibashvili and pro-EU negotiations aside, warnings of democratic backsliding appeared not long into Georgian Dream's rule. The government's crackdown on media, NGOs, and political opposition increased over time, said Nikuradze. UNM members, including Saakashvili, were aggressively pursued and jailed. Ivanishvili and other Georgian Dream members constantly dredge up complaints about UNM and blame it for the 2008 war and other problems faced by Georgia. The desire to punish Saakashvili's associates has become a fixation for Georgian Dream and led to diplomatic disputes with Ukraine after Saakashvili sought to restart his political career there in 2015. Saakashvili is currently languishing in jail after a failed bid to reenter Georgia in 2021, and his health is reportedly in decline, prompting criticism from President Volodymyr Zelensky. Georgia has also repeatedly sought to extradite other former members of Saakashvili's team who are involved in Ukrainian politics, which Ukraine has refused. As the relations between Georgia and Ukraine have continued to deteriorate, Georgia released an official statement in March expressing "deep concern regarding the attitude demonstrated by the Ukrainian authorities towards the friendly country of Georgia and its people." Demonstrators march on the 17th day of protests over a Russian lawmaker's visit to Georgia's parliament on July 6, 2019, in Tbilisi, Georgia. (Davit Kachkachishvili/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images) One of the pivotal moments in which it became clear that Georgian Dream had drifted away from the European path was in 2019 when Russian lawmaker Sergei Gavrilov was invited to speak at the Georgian parliament. The invitation, issued in part by current Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, led to massive protests and a subsequent violent police crackdown, widely seen as disproportionate. Georgian Dream 2.0 The Georgian Dream of May 2024, which is intent on ramming a highly unpopular law in the face of massive public protests and warnings from the West, is a different party than the one elected in 2012, several analysts and journalists told the Kyiv Independent. A turning point was the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which many Georgians took personally, as it reminded them of their own experience with Russian aggression. Georgians have broadly supported Ukraine and its fight against Russia, and significant numbers of Georgians have joined volunteer legions. Reports have indicated that more Georgians have been killed fighting for Ukraine than citizens of any other foreign country, a striking statistic given that Georgia's total population is around 3.6 million. A memorial for Georgian and Belarusian fighters killed in Ukraine off of Heroes Square, Tbilisi, Georgia, on Feb. 2, 2024. (Nate Ostiller/The Kyiv Independent) The government's decision to introduce the foreign agents law in March 2023 sparked large-scale demonstrations, and after a few days, Georgian Dream backed down in the face of overwhelming public anger. Given that the government was largely seen as defeated by protesters on the street in 2023 and that Georgian Dream leaders pledged not to revive the bill, the decision to bring back the law in April confounded and angered many Georgians. The reaction from the public has been swift and overwhelming, surpassing the scale of similar protests last year. "The (situation) feels very similar," Nikuradze told the Kyiv Independent, "but I think what is different is that people are way angrier." Protesters gathered in front of the Georgian parliament building in Tbilisi on May 1, 2024. (Patrick Wendt/@patrickwendt0815 via the Kyiv Independent) "(Georgian Dream) completely miscalculated with this move," Japaridze told the Kyiv Independent. "They have lost touch with knowing what makes the general Georgian public tick." Yet, despite the protesters' clear determination and the explicit warnings from EU officials that the law's passage will hurt Georgia's chances of joining the bloc, the government appears determined to ram it through. Kobakhidze and other Georgian Dream leaders have taken to spouting bizarre statements that are plainly false, such as the notion that the foreign agents law is somehow required for Georgia's accession to the EU. "We've unfortunately used the term 'Orwellian' (so much) that it has kind of lost it's meaning, but this is a truly 'Orwellian' (situation)," said Buziashvili. Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze appropriated the protesters' refrains in a widely mocked Facebook post on May 7, saying, "Yes to the Georgian law, no to the Russian law, yes to Europe, yes to transparency." Kaladze is a member of Georgian Dream and supports the foreign agents law. Protesters gathered in front of the Georgian parliament building in Tbilisi on May 1, 2024. (Patrick Wendt/@patrickwendt0815 via the Kyiv Independent) As the protesters have remained undeterred, repeatedly showing up despite rain, the Easter holidays, and an increasingly brutal police response, Georgian Dream has shown a willingness to escalate both rhetorically and in its violent tactics. Ivanishvili and Kobakhidze have accused the West of fomenting a potential revolution in Georgia and pledged to "punish" its perceived political opponents. Local media have reported that protesters have been shot with rubber bullets, including in the eyes, and riot police have singled out individual peaceful demonstrators for beatings and arbitrary detentions. Protesters gathered in front of the Georgian parliament building in Tbilisi on May 1, 2024. (Patrick Wendt/@patrickwendt0815 via the Kyiv Independent) In a callback to the tactics of former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, there have also been reports of the usage of so-called "titushki," or paid masked mercenaries, who have attacked protesters. Lado Abkhazava, a teacher and advocate for EU integration, was assaulted by unknown assailants with bats outside of his home in Lanchkhuti, a city some 300 kilometers from Tbilisi. Georgian opposition leaders have welcomed Western condemnation of the draft law and the crackdown on protesters but urged further measures, namely specific sanctions on Ivanishvili and other Georgian Dream officials. Read also: Georgian government holds massive anti-West rally as it aims to pass Russian-style law Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. BARBER COUNTY, Kan. (KSNW) The Barber County Sheriffs Office says three people have been injured in an explosion at a home in Sharon. It happened around 11:30 Monday morning in the 100 block of Main Street. This embedded content is not available in your region. Sheriff Jason LeClair said there was a controlled burn that got too close to a house. He said there was apparently some type of fuel that was stored in the cellar, and it caused an explosion, injuring the three people. Mother drowns after incident in Cowley County creek LeClair does not know the extent of their injuries. He said the Kansas State Fire Marshal will investigate the incident. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KSN-TV. Claim: Photos and videos show a French castle abandoned after its owner Engelhart Cornelius stby, a Norwegian businessman, died in the Titanic sinking. Rating: Rating: False Context: The castle was "abandoned" around 2017. The furniture shown in photos was put there in the 2000s. No evidence suggests stby ever set foot on the property. Beginning around 2020, rumors of a "secret," abandoned castle in France inspired many so-called "urban explorers" ("urbex," for short) to find its location, break in, and photograph its abandoned contents. The property is known as the Chataeu de la Chasseigne, and it has a long history that dates back to the 1500s. One person inspired to travel there, in 2022, was urbex TikToker Ramy Awad. On that trip, he created a video, titled "Exploring a castle that was owned by passengers on the Titanic," that went viral, thanks in part to coverage in outlets like the New York Post and Newsweek. Speaking to the Post, Awad claimed that [The] property was once home to Norwegian businessman, Engelhart Cornelius Ostby, who died in the maritime tragedy, on April 14, 1912. [...] Awad claimed he came across paperwork inside the castle linking the Norwegian with the castle. He shared essentially the same video again in May 2024, bringing claims of a Titanic link further virality. Via TikTok, Snopes contacted Awad to ask what documentation led him to conclude that stby was connected to the property. Citing our coverage of the Israel-Hamas war, he responded that he "had no words for" Snopes and blocked this reporter's account. Snopes can find no evidence to substantiate the claim that stby inhabited this residence, but we can find ample evidence against the notion. Who Was Engelhart Cornelius stby? stby was born in Norway in 1847. He moved to the United States in 1869 and settled in Providence, Rhode Island. There, he made a name for himself as a jeweler and, later, a bank executive. A widower at the time of his death, he had five children, including one daughter, Helen, who traveled alongside him during frequent trips to France and other countries for business. During a vacation to France with Helen, according to the Encyclopedia Titanica, the two decided to buy tickets back home via the inaugural voyage of the Titanic: In the middle of January 1912 Engelhart traveled again to Europe, he needed a vacation, and again Helen accompanied him. They traveled around Southern Europe and Egypt and while at Nice, France they first heard about the possibility of returning to America on the Titanic. They journeyed on to Paris where they met Frank and Anna Warren whom they had previously met in Egypt. The Warrens already had their ticket for the Titanic. Engelhart paid 62 for their tickets, according to White Star their last address was c/o Brown Shipley, Pall Mall, London SW, so perhaps they had also visited England. However, it was at the French port of Cherbourg that they boarded the Titanic in first class, Engelhart occupying cabin B-30 and Helen B-36. Engelhart carried with him his old doctor's bag he always used when traveling. In it he had gems, precious stones and other valuables that he had bought in Paris. Helen made it to a life raft and survived. Engelhart was not as lucky. His body was found the next day by another boat, the Mackay-Bennett. stby's body was transported to Rhode Island for his funeral, according to a Boston Globe report: E. C. OSTBY BURIED. Manufacturing Jeweler of Providence, Was Drowned When the Titanic Went Down. PROVIDENCE. R I. May 4 -The funeral of Englehart C. Ostby, the manufacturing jeweler who was drowned when the Titanic went down, was buried at his late residence in this city this afternoon. The services were private. The body was recovered by the steamer Mackay-Bennett, and arrived here from Halifax yesterday. What Happened to the Chateau de la Chasseigne? Awad's video of the Chateau is overlaid with text that makes these claims: The family that lived in this castle went on the Titanic and never returned. On April 10, 1912, the Ostby family boarded the Titanic en route to New York City. The Titanic would sink in the North Atlantic Ocean, claiming the lives of 1,503 people. Their bodies were never recovered from the ocean. Located in France, this castle remains abandoned [and] frozen in time. Knowing what little we do about stby is enough to recognize several factual deficiencies in this text. Only two members of the stby family were on the Titanic, and one of them survived. Engelman stby's body was, in fact, recovered, and sent back to his home. That home was in Rhode Island, not France. More to the point: At the time of the Titanic's sinking, a French family tied to ancient nobility owned Chasseinge. This family was responsible for building up the structure that is presently in decay, beginning in the 1860s, according to the French urbex website Souterrain-Lyon. The family held on to it for four generations: First owned by a lord, it was bought by a Count whose father was a king's musketeer and his mother came from one of the oldest families of the French nobility. It was he who undertook these transformations. [...] We know that the castle [remained] in his family for around a century. It was undoubtedly his great-great-grandson who put it up for sale at the end of the 20th century. This leaves no room for the stby family to have come into ownership of the castle. Further, several videos or posts on social media and blogs suggest or strongly imply that the property was "frozen in time" following its owner's death on the Titanic. In reality, almost nothing pictured in the property stems from its historic owners. In 2005, an Italian couple reportedly purchased the property as a vacation home, and they added many of the items visible in the pictures and videos. According to Souterrain-Lyon, the items include second-hand material sourced from a French charity, Emmaus, that is similar to the Salvation Army. In 2017, according to a non-profit dedicated to protecting the property from vandalism and structural decline, an Indonesian couple purchased the property and never returned. The nonprofit group created a petition in August 2021 for the government to seize the property from those owners, who allegedly have not paid any taxes on the property, as reported by local French press (translated by Google): In order to influence the future of the site, interested people (a dozen, including these four young people) formed an association (Les Amis de la Chasseigne). The members of the association are trying to contact the owners (an Indonesian couple who came there only once during the signing of the deed of sale). They acquired other castles in France and abroad. We reached out to the non-profit group Friends of Chateau de la Chasseigne via its petition page to ask if it had heard anything about a possible link to the Titanic. The group did not immediately return our request for comment. Because the source of the claim that asserted Chateau de la Chasseigne was abandoned by a drowned Titanic passenger has not provided any evidence to support that notion, because the pictures show the home as it was abandoned around 2017, not 1912, and because the stby family lived in Providence, Rhode Island, and not France, we rate this claim as "False." Sources: Chateau Secret - Decouvrez l'histoire du chateau abandonne. 5 Feb. 2020, https://www.souterrain-lyon.com/chateau-secret-urbex/. "E. C. Ostby Buried." The Boston Globe, 4 May 1912, p. 2. newspapers.com, https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-boston-globe-e-c-ostby-buried/146911940/. "Engelhart Cornelius stby." Encyclopedia Titanica, https://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/titanic-victim/engelhart-cornelius-ostby.html. "I Found A Historic Abandoned Castle In France With Everything Left Behind (17 Pics)." Bored Panda, 1 Sept. 2022, https://www.boredpanda.com/i-found-a-historic-abandoned-castle-in-france-with-everything-left-behind-bryan-sansivero/. "Initiative - Des Jeunes Veulent Sauver Le Chateau de La Chasseigne a Saint-Parize-Le-Chatel." Le Journal Du Centre, 27 Dec. 2020, https://www.lejdc.fr/saint-parize-le-chatel-58490/loisirs/des-jeunes-veulent-sauver-le-chateau-de-la-chasseigne-a-saint-parize-le-chatel_13893018/. "Inside an 'Abandoned' 19th Century French Castle Still Full of Furniture." Newsweek, 30 July 2022, https://www.newsweek.com/inside-abandoned-19th-century-french-castle-full-furniture-ramy-awad-1729251. Inside an Abandoned Castle Once Owned by Titanic Victims. 27 July 2022, https://nypost.com/2022/07/27/inside-an-abandoned-castle-once-owned-by-titanic-victims/. "Sign the Petition." Change.Org, https://www.change.org/p/tout-le-monde-sauvetage-du-ch%C3%A2teau-de-la-chasseigne. Accessed 9 May 2024. Fact Check: Man Said He Found Dead Baby in Late Mother's Freezer After 37 Years. Here's What We Know Claim: A St. Louis man found his late mother's dead baby in their freezer 37 years after it was born. Rating: Rating: True On May 10, 2024, a TikTok user posted a video allegedly showing the story of a man who found the body of a dead baby that was in a box in his freezer for 37 years. In the footage, which was structured as a news report, the narrator explained how 37-year-old Adam Smith made the shocking discovery while going through his mother's belongings in their apartment after she died of cancer. Smith's mother purportedly kept the box inside the freezer for decades but told him never to go near it. "I'm 37 and it has been in my freezer for 37 years and I was always told it was, like, a wedding cake top," Smith said during the 61-second clip, before adding: "There was a pink blanket, baby blanket, and when I reached down and touched it and I could feel a foot... and I could see the baby's head with hair. Hair was still attached to it." The narrator also said the baby was less than a year old when he died but was never legally named. Similar posts appeared elsewhere on TikTok, Facebook, Instagram and on X. Together, they had amassed more than 10.5 million views at the time of this writing. Snopes found numerous news reports detailing the incident from July 2019, which is why we have rated this story True. Articles by CNN, The Washington Post and Sky News, along with videos from local news outlets, revealed the discovery took place in late July 2019. Smith, of St Louis, Missouri, moved in with his mother after she was diagnosed with cancer. He found the "mummified" remains while sorting through her belongings after she died. On July 12, 2023, local news outlet First Alert 4 issued an update on the story. Police told the publication the baby, who they determined to be a boy, did not die from homicide. Investigators believed the child was wearing clothes made in the 1960s, was less than a year old, and was never legally named when he died, according to the report. Sources: Chiu, Allyson. 'His Mother Kept a Cardboard Box in the Freezer for Decades. Inside, He Found a "Mummified" Baby.' Washington Post, 30 July 2019. www.washingtonpost.com, https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/07/30/st-louis-freezer-baby-adam-smith/. FOX 2 St. Louis. Days after His Mother's Death, Man Finds Dead Baby Stored in Family Freezer. 2019. YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52aU2DvobdA. Greenwald, Dan, and First Alert 4. Staff. 'St. Louis Police Release New Information on Baby Found in Freezer in 2019'. Https://Www.Firstalert4.Com, 12 July 2023, https://www.firstalert4.com/2023/07/12/baby-found-inside-st-louis-freezer-2019-did-not-die-homicide-police-determine/. Johnston, Emanuella Grinberg, Chuck. 'A Missouri Man Says He Found a Baby's Body in His Mother's Freezer'. CNN, 30 July 2019, https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/30/us/missouri-infant-freezer/index.html. KSDK News. Man Finds Frozen Baby in Mom's Freezer in South St. Louis. 2019. YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMM59cW_Dj0. 'US Man Discovers "mummified" Baby "Sister" in Dead Mum's Freezer'. Sky News, https://news.sky.com/story/us-man-discovers-mummified-baby-sister-in-dead-mums-freezer-11773532. Accessed 13 May 2024. Claim: A U.S. House Bill introduced by Republicans in May 2024 proposed sending people convicted of unlawful campus activity on or after Oct. 7, 2023, to provide community service in Gaza. Rating: Rating: True Context: As of this writing, it is highly unlikely the bill will become a law. Even if the bill made it through the House which currently holds a slim Republican majority it is almost certain to die in the Democrat-controlled Senate. If passed, the bill would broadly require offenders to spend a minimum of six months doing community service in Gaza, according to U.S. Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., who introduced the bill. As of this writing, no text for the bill is available. On May 8, 2024, U.S. Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., introduced a bill, dubbed the "Antisemitism Community Service Act," that would require those "convicted of unlawful activity on the campus of an institution of higher education beginning on and after October 7, 2023, to provide community service in Gaza." While the bill does not specifically mention unlawful activity relating to pro-Palestine activism, its mention of Oct. 7, 2023, references the date of an attack on Israel by the militant Islamic group Hamas that killed approximately 1,200 Israelis. Since that date, as of this writing, Israel's declared war on Hamas has killed more than 30,000 people and injured 72,889 in Gaza, according to the United Nations. Following marches, sit-ins, and other global protests calling for a ceasefire in Gaza among other demands since Oct. 7, 2023, a wave of global university campus encampments began on April 17, 2024, at Columbia University. The Columbia encampment was organized by students in a move reminiscent of the anti-war movement staged by students protesting the Vietnam War in the 1960s and primarily called for transparency and divestment of any of Columbia's financial ties to Israel, among other aims. University campus encampments spread across the U.S. as well as to Canada, the U.K., Austria, the Netherlands, France, Australia, Lebanon, and Japan, as of this writing, resulting in widespread unrest and arrests. If H.R. 8321 (archived here) which Reps. Jeff Duncan, R-S.C., and Randy K. Weber, R-Texas., co-sponsored passed and was signed into law, it would mean that the U.S. government would send those convicted of these unspecified unlawful activities to Gaza to complete a minimum of six months of "community service." The full text of the bill was unavailable, as of this writing. However, it is highly unlikely the bill will become a law. According to bill tracking site govtrack.us, the bill has only a 2% chance of becoming a law. Even if the bill made it through the House which currently holds a slim Republican majority it is almost certain to die in the Democrat-controlled Senate. "Students have abandoned their classes to harass other students and disrupt campus-wide activities, including university commencement ceremonies nationwide. Enough is enough," Ogles told Fox News Digital on May 8, referring to the bill. "This is the 'I'll give you something to really cry about' bill?" one X user commented. Multiple X users responded to the bill's introduction with outrage, with one user claiming that the bill would send "American students to be slaughtered in Gaza by Israel for misbehaving." Dont want to die for Israel? Then you will be executed by Israel. U.S. Congress is now pushing to pass a bill that sends American students to be slaughtered in Gaza by Israel for misbehaving. Only a government completely occupied by Israeli influence would ever even suggest pic.twitter.com/mStVVLqJLM Lauren Witzke (@LaurenWitzkeDE) May 9, 2024 They want to deport American students to be under Israeli military control in Gaza for 6 months for protesting against Israel! A new House Republican bill would send any person charged and convicted for "illegal activity" (Protesting Israel) on a college campus to Gaza for at pic.twitter.com/rx7ZQhGH5P Jack (@JackFought_1) May 8, 2024 H.R. 8321 was introduced alongside another bill, H.R. 8322 [archived here], which would "revoke visas of certain aliens for rioting or unlawful protests, and for other purposes." The full text for this bill also was not available, as of this writing. "It's time to send a clear message to foreign, Hamas-sympathizing students rioting: if you bring chaos to our universities, you can study abroad somewhere else," Ogles said to conservative media outlet The Daily Caller. "Might I recommend Iran, Qatar, or Gaza? They seem more your speed." Ogles has previously been in hot water for comments he made in February 2024 regarding deaths of Palestinian children. In response to an activist telling Ogles: "I've seen the footage of shredded children's bodies, that's my taxpayer dollars going to bomb those kids," he responded with: "You know what, I think we should kill them all, if that makes you feel better. Everybody in Hamas." Sources: Elkind, Elizabeth. 'College Anti-Israel Agitators Could Be Sent to Gaza under New House GOP Bill'. Fox News, 8 May 2024, https://www.foxnews.com/politics/college-anti-israel-agitators-sent-gaza-new-house-gop-bill. EXCLUSIVE: House Republicans Introduce Legislation To Send Hamas-Sympathizing Student Visa Holders Home. https://dailycaller.com/2024/05/08/exclusive-house-republicans-introduce-legislation-to-send-hamas-sympathizing-student-visa-holders-home/. Accessed 10 May 2024. 'Https://Twitter.Com/JackFought_1/Status/1788322958781395079'. X (Formerly Twitter), https://twitter.com/JackFought_1/status/1788322958781395079. Accessed 9 May 2024. 'Https://Twitter.Com/LaurenWitzkeDE/Status/1788514478134280373'. X (Formerly Twitter), https://twitter.com/LaurenWitzkeDE/status/1788514478134280373. Accessed 9 May 2024. Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/p/C5RRohwuNHn/?hl=en&img_index=1. Accessed 10 May 2024. O'Keefe, Ross. Republican House Members Suggest Laws Sending Campus Protesters to Gaza - Washington Examiner. 8 May 2024, https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/house/2996499/republican-house-members-suggest-laws-sending-campus-protesters-to-gaza/. Press, The Associated. 'Timeline of the Nationwide Protest Movement That Began at Columbia University'. WDSU, 7 May 2024, https://www.wdsu.com/article/timeline-of-nationwide-college-protest-movement/60721275. 'Pro-Palestinian Campus Protests Are Going Global'. NBC News, 3 May 2024, https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/global-protests-pro-palestinian-college-campus-encampments-rcna150158. 'Protesters Are Calling on Universities to Divest from Israel. Here's What That Means'. TIME, 2 May 2024, https://time.com/6974063/divestment-explained-campus-protest-israel/. Reid, Scotty T. 'US Congressman Andy Ogles Stirs Outrage with Gaza Comment "Kill Them All"'. Al Jazeera, https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/2/21/us-congressman-andy-ogles-stirs-outrage-with-gaza-comment-kill-them-all. Accessed 9 May 2024. Semley, John. '"Police Raids Are Nothing New": Student Protesters from 1960s See History Repeating Itself'. The Guardian, 10 May 2024. The Guardian, https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/may/10/vietnam-war-gaza-campus-protests. 'To Require Person Convicted of Unlawful Activity on the Campus of an Institution of Higher Education Beginning on and after October 7, 2023, to Provide Community Service in Gaza. (H.R. 8321)'. GovTrack.Us, https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/118/hr8321. Accessed 10 May 2024. Families still looking for missing loved ones after devastating Afghanistan floods killed scores People are seen near to their damaged homes after heavy flooding in Baghlan province in northern Afghanistan Saturday, May 11, 2024. Flash floods from seasonal rains in Baghlan province in northern Afghanistan killed dozens of people on Friday, a Taliban official said. (AP Photo/Mehrab Ibrahimi) ISLAMABAD (AP) When he heard that devastating floods hit his village in northern Afghanistan last week, farmer Abdul Ghani rushed home from neighboring Kunduz province where he was visiting relatives. When he got home, he found out that his wife and three children had perished in the deluge. Two of his sons survived but another son, who is 11, is still missing. I couldnt even find the road to my village, he said, describing how he turned back and went another way to reach his district of Nahrin in Baghlan province. Across Baghlan, others like Ghani and survivors of the disaster were still searching for their missing loved ones and burying their dead on Monday. Roads, villages and lands were all washed away, Ghani said. His wife, his 7-year-old and 9-year-old daughters and a 4-year-old son died. My life has turned into a disaster, he said, speaking to The Associated Press over the phone. The U.N. food agency estimates that the unusually heavy seasonal rains in Afghanistan left more than 300 people dead and thousands of houses destroyed, most of them in Baghlan, which bore the brunt of floodings on Friday. Survivors have been left with no home, no land, and no source of livelihood, the World Food Organization said. Most of Baghlan is "inaccessible by trucks, said WFP, adding that it is resorting to every alternative it can think of to get food to the survivors. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has expressed condolences to the victims, said a statement on Sunday, adding that the world body and aid agencies are working with the Taliban-run government to help. The United Nations and its partners in Afghanistan are coordinating with the de facto authorities to swiftly assess needs and provide emergency assistance, according to the statement. The dead include 51 children, according to UNICEF, one of several international aid groups that are sending relief teams, medicines, blankets and other supplies. The World Health Organization said it delivered 7 tons of medicines and emergency kits to the stricken areas. Meanwhile, the U.N. migration agency has been distributing aid packages that include temporary shelters, essential non-food items, solar modules, clothing, and tools for repairs to their damaged shelters. The latest disaster came on the heels of a previous one, when at least 70 people died in April from heavy rains and flash floods in the country. The waters also destroyed about 2,000 homes, three mosques and four schools in western Farah and Herat, and southern Zabul and Kandahar provinces. Family of Henry Clay student who died after reported fight wants justice, communication Tracy Kisenda, the uncle of a 17-year-old student who died Friday after reportedly breaking up a fight at Lexingtons Henry Clay High School and suffering an apparent seizure, said the family is trying to determine what happened. We want justice, said Kasinda. We want communication with the school. The Fayette County Coroners office issued a report at 3:16 p.m. Monday saying the cause and manner of Emeka Emmanuel Mwakadis death was pending, that the location of the incident was at Henry Clay High School, and the location of death was the University of Kentucky Medical Center. Witnesses said that the cause of the seizure was from the fight that happened in school, Kisenda said in an interview Monday with the Herald-Leader. Emmanuel Mwakadi, Kisendas nephew, was trying to break up a fight and he got hit in the back of the neck. Mwakadi died at UK Chandler Hospital Friday, where he was transported from school after collapsing. Justin Peterson, the familys attorney, said Emmanuel collapsed in his classroom after complaining of back and neck pain following the reported fight in a boys restroom. A Gofundme page has been started for his burial. Kisenda said Emmanuel was a lovable person who always put other people first. It was all about love and understanding for him, Kisenda said. Emmanuel wanted to be a police officer and was going to study criminal justice, his uncle said. Irene Mwela, mother of Emmanuel Mwakadi, is photographed during an interview in Lexington, Ky., on Monday, May 13, 2024. Emmanuel died Friday. Kisenda reiterated what Peterson told the Herald-Leader on Sunday: The family thought the school district had not communicated with them sufficiently, except to tell them to go to the hospital when Emmanuel fell ill. There is no communication, Kisenda said. On Sunday night, Fayette school district spokesperson Dia Davidson said the entire Fayette County Public Schools family is grieving the death on Friday of the student at HCHS. The school leadership, teachers, and district interpreters have been in constant contact with the family from the very moment the student experienced the medical crisis in the classroom, Davidson said. On behalf of the superintendent and entire FCPS family, our sincere condolences. At 12:30 p.m. Monday, Davidson-Smith said the district did not have an updated statement. Lexington Fire Major Derek Roberts said the fire department was dispatched to a run at the school at 10:09 a.m. Friday for a reported seizure. On Monday morning, Lexington Police Department spokesperson Hannah Sloan said that department did not have a report about the incident Peterson said he planned a meeting with Fayette County Public School officials on Tuesday. Henry Clay Principal Corye Franklin said in a letter to families Sunday night after the Herald-Leader posted an article about Emmanuels death that Friday during second period, a student experienced a medical emergency while in class. Staff immediately called 9-1-1, he said. The Lexington Fire Department responded and transported the student to a local hospital, said Franklin. Devastatingly, I must share that this student, a beloved member of our senior class, passed away shortly after arriving at the hospital, Franklin said. While we cannot release student information, we did want to share what details we could and outline how we will be supporting students and staff through this difficult time. We want to honor and respect the privacy of this students family and also acknowledge this profound and tragic loss for the family and our Henry Clay community, he said. Franklin said Monday there would be a district crisis team at school, including grief counselors. Family of veteran who killed herself in Chicago police holding cell could get $1.75M settlement The family of an Army veteran with post-traumatic stress disorder who killed herself in a police holding cell is on track to settle with the city for nearly $2 million. The City Councils Finance Committee approved the proposed $1,750,000 payout along with three other costly police settlements Monday. Irene Chavez, the woman who died at the Woodlawn station in December 2021, had tried to warn officers about her mental health issues as they detained her, city attorney Caroline Fronczak told aldermen. Chavez had been arrested earlier that night after a Jeffery Pub security guard reported being hit in the head by her. At the time of her arrest, Chavez told police about her mental health struggles, including a PTSD diagnosis. She served two tours overseas in Afghanistan, Kuwait and Korea, Fronczak said. When officers brought her back to the Woodlawn station, they placed her in a holding cell. The one-way mirror to the cell offered only 15% visibility from Chavezs side outward, but officers should have been able to clearly see inside. However, the window was covered in paper in an apparent effort to give officers more privacy which Chavezs family says prevented them from monitoring her. Chavez was crying as soon as she was placed inside. One officer asked if she was all right, Fronczak said. No I am not, she said, according to Fronczak. She asked them to call her therapist. She threw items quarters, a shoe at the wall. This isnt funny, she yelled. Later, she again yelled at officers that she was making a final cry for help. About 47 minutes after she had been placed in the cell, she strangled herself using a T-shirt. An officer checked on her after she had been quiet for about five minutes and found her incapacitated. Police successfully revived her, but she died a day later at a hospital, according to Fronczak. Chavezs family alleged the Police Department does not have adequate policies to accommodate people with mental disabilities and subjected the woman to conditions of unreasonable confinement. The $1.75 million settlement will go before the full City Council on May 22. Three more approved settlements each rooted in alleged police misconduct involving cars totaled $1,655,000. A $525,000 settlement was passed in committee Monday in response to a CPD officer running over a 15-year-old girl by mistakenly leaving his car in reverse. The officer was responding to a scene of civil unrest amid protests over the Minneapolis police murder of George Floyd, city attorney Margaret Mendenhall Casey said. The teen and her family had with them a trash can full of new clothes. An unidentified officer ordered the teen to the ground. Another officer who had parked nearby got out of his car, but failed to place the car in park, Mendenhall Casey said. In fact, the car was in reverse with the keys in the ignition, she said. The police car rolled over the teens legs and torso. She was hospitalized with markings from the crash and later diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. In yet another settlement, an officer tried to pull over a Cadillac with a broken tail light. When the driver pulled away and fled, the officer chased for a mile at around 50 mph before the Cadillac struck another drivers car at East 76th Street and South Chicago Avenue, according to Mendenhall Casey. The man hit by the evading driver suffered broken bones, had a breathing device placed in his throat and was hospitalized for over a month. Aldermen approved his settlement for $940,000 after the man claimed the police chase violated CPDs vehicle pursuit policies by engaging in a pursuit over a minor traffic offense and again by continuing the chase when he could not see the car he was chasing, Mendenhall Casey said. Committee members also approved a $190,000 settlement for a car crash involving a police officer who drove through a red light without using his sirens or emergency lights. The man whose car was hit by police has lasting back pain and suffered a bulging disc and a tear to his spine, Mendenhall Casey said. jsheridan@chicagotribune.com True the Vote is enlisting private citizens to help it overwhelm under-staffed and under-resourced election offices with voter roll challenges ahead of election day. An IV3 user out of Pennsylvania is sorting through 17k ineligible records identified in her County! Great work!, the right-wing election denying group True the Vote posted on Twitter Sunday. The tweet, which has since been deleted, then calls for voters to register to use IV3 so that they too can get to work on the voter rolls in their respective counties. The post is the perfect encapsulation of a concerning effort by MAGA groups like True the Vote to recruit private citizens to sift through thousands of voter registrations to identify what they believe are ineligible voters in the voter rolls ahead of the 2024 presidential election in the fall. The effort to patrol voters with tools like IV3 a technology that purports to identify ineligible voters is also evidence of the way that voter roll maintenance is, as Alice Clapman, senior counsel in the Brennan Centers Voting Rights Program, describes it, getting swept up in the broader election denial of doubting election outcomes based on a variety of myths about how elections are run. Everyone agrees that states and localities should do their best to maintain accurate voter rolls, Clapman said, but we have a set of professional administrators who have a set of professional practices they use to make sure that that is done responsibly. The election denial group developed IV3 in the aftermath of the 2020 election, after it helped spread lies about ballot stuffing in that election. It is now being used by True the Vote ahead of 2024 to perpetuate the false narrative that non-citizens will cast ballots in November, the conspiracy theory du jour for those helping Donald Trump lay the groundwork for another election challenge if he loses in the fall. True the Vote, experts told TPM, is not merely trying to work on the voter rolls states already have systems in place to ensure accuracy. Rather the group is attempting to arm regular citizens who likely dont have much familiarity with voter list maintenance, with a tool to patrol fellow voters and mount baseless challenges to election officials. True the Group, among other Big Lie conspiracy theory groups, are encouraging voters to participate in a citizen-led effort to to ensure the accuracy of our nations voter rolls using a technology that purports to identify ineligible voters. But the technology is flawed and is especially dangerous in that it encourages voters to file baseless voter eligibility complaints, flooding under resourced election offices with voter challenge. Organizations like True the Vote are using technology to try and legitimize faulty claims about massive voter fraud, David Levine, senior elections integrity fellow at the Alliance for Securing Democracy, told TPM and of course they are doing so without providing any empirical evidence. As Douglas Jones, a professor of computer science and election expert at the University of Iowa, noted in an email to TPM, the technology isnt actually new, either. IV3 is just a front end package that aggregates voter data from the states and tries to mush it into a uniform format with a common search interface, he said. And the danger of something like IV3, he added, is that aggressive and careless maintenance of voter rolls can disenfranchise voters who shouldnt be removed from the rolls. Removing someone from the voter rolls on the basis of hearsay evidence that theyve moved is no good, he said. Vote rolls are never going to be exactly up to date in real time-but thats by design. States have to follow a process per the The National Voter Registration Act, to make sure that a voter has actually moved before they are taken off the rolls to ensure they arent disenfranchised. Its groups like True the Vote, with tools like IV3, explained Clapman that have capitalized on this fact as a way to further spread disinformation about the state of the voter rolls. The idea that people are going to be notified that theyve been challenged because some fellow citizen doubts their right to vote is just inherently undemocratic, said Clapman. And since state voter files are constantly being updated with new information as more people become registered or move or have been confirmed as dead, the IV3 platform simply is not reflective of these changes in real time, Barry Burden, political science professor at at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Director of the Elections Research Center told TPM. Burden described the tool as an amateur operation prone to reach mistaken conclusions. These calls to report ineligible voters are also an act of voter suppression. If a voter is frivolously challenged, which is more likely to happen with tools like IV3, it can serve as a deterrent to that voter casting a ballot in the future, even if they respond and remedy the challenge. The signal it [the baseless voter challenge] sends that they are not entitled to vote or that they dont have fundamental rights, its like a deeply corrosive message thats being sent by this movement to challenge large numbers of voters, noted Clapman. WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) With the November election now less than six months away, the Department of Justice is sending a clear warning. If you threaten to harm or kill an election workerthe Justice Department will find you and we will hold you accountable, said Attorney General Merrick Garland. After threats soared in 2020, Attorney General Garland and FBI Director Christopher Wray are vowing to crackdown against threats this election cycle. Committed to vigorously investigating and pursuing violations of federal law and make sure all threats get to the right place, said Wray. Since the start of the DOJs task force on election threats three years ago, Garland says theyve prosecuted more than a dozen people. We secured a three- and half-year sentence for a Massachusetts man for sending bomb threats to an election official, said Garland. A new survey by the Brennan Center for Justice found nearly 40% of election officials report experiencing threats of harassment or abuse. Its a totally different climate than what existed prior, said Amber McReynolds of Issue One. Amber McReynolds is the former Director of Elections for Denver Colorado, she now works with local election authorities across the nation. Every single one of them is concerned about security, false information, disinformation, theyre concerned about funding, said McReynolds. She says while the DOJs actions are key, Congress must do its part to confront new challenges. Although both Republican and Democratic lawmakers have rallied behind resources to help, legislation remains stalled. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News. EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) The FBI El Paso Field Office is honoring and recognizing fallen officers during National Police Week. The FBI El Paso Field will be remembering four officers whove died in the line of duty, according to the news release by FBI El Paso. This week, as we observe National Police Week, we remember our fallen colleagues in law enforcement. I would personally like to thank our law enforcement partners in the West Texas Region for their work, dedication, and sacrifice. We stand together every day as we work together to fight violent crime, keep illegal drugs off our streets, to keep children safe from predators, and thwart terrorists, said Special Agent in Charge of the FBIs El Paso Field Office John Morales. According to FBI El Paso, in 1962, Congress enacted a joint resolution signed by President John F Kennedy, declaring May 15 as National Peace Officers Memorial Day to honor law enforcement killed in the line of duty. The resolution was also later used to create National Police Week. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTSM 9 News. Sen. Bob Menendez, the three-term New Jersey Democrat who once chaired the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is set to stand trial on federal bribery and obstruction charges starting Monday. Two New Jersey businessmen who allegedly traded luxurious bribes for Menendezs political influence will be tried alongside him, while a third businessman pleaded guilty and Menendezs wife, Nadine, will be tried at a later date. The Democratic senators trial will take place just steps from the Manhattan courthouse where former President Trump the Republican Partys presumptive presidential nominee is already on trial on charges he falsified business records to conceal a hush money payment to a porn actor ahead of the 2016 election. Federal prosecutors accused Menendez and his wife in September of agreeing to and accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes in exchange for the senators political power, which they said enriched the businessmen and Egypt. The bribes were allegedly paid in the form of cash, gold, home mortgage payments, a Mercedes-Benz convertible and other lavish gifts. When federal agents searched the Menendezes New Jersey home in June 2022, they said they found more than $480,000 in cash, much of it stuffed into envelopes or hidden in clothing, closets and a safe. They also reportedly found more than $100,000 worth of gold bars. Several superseding indictments followed, piling on allegations against the New Jersey Democrat, his wife and the businessmen. The Menendezes and one of the businessmen, Wael Hana, were accused in October 2023 of conspiring to act as foreign agents of Egypt. The charges were updated in January to claim the senator accepted gifts from the Qatari government and helped another businessman, Fred Daibes, obtain millions in investment funds from the country. And in March, prosecutors charged Menendez directly with bribery, extortion and acting as a foreign agent, an update to the conspiracy charges he previously faced. That latest indictment filed after the third businessman, Jose Uribe, pleaded guilty to charges including conspiracy to commit bribery, obstruction of justice and tax evasion also newly accused the defendants of conspiring to cover up the alleged bribery scheme as prosecutors with the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Southern District of New York worked the case. New allegations that Menendez and his wife falsely characterized their knowledge of the convertible payment and a more than $23,000 payment Hana made toward Nadine Menendezs mortgage emerged after Uribes guilty plea, as well. As part of his deal, Uribe agreed to testify truthfully if called upon in the trial. Menendez, his wife and the two businessmen have pleaded not guilty to all charges. The New Jersey Democrat has staunchly maintained his innocence, but said he would not enter his political partys primary. I am hopeful that my exoneration will take place this summer and allow me to pursue my candidacy as an independent Democrat in the general election, Menendez said in March. Its yet to be seen whether the senator himself will take to the stand in his defense. Menendez told CBS News that its to be determined whether he testifies, but he plans to attend the trial daily, subject to the schedule. Against federal prosecutors wishes, Nadine Menendezs case was severed from the others and her trial rescheduled for later this year after her lawyers informed the court that she would undergo a surgical procedure for a serious medical condition. The New Jersey senator stepped away from his position as head of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee last year after he was first indicted, in line with Democratic Conference rules. Hes one of three congressmen who have faced criminal charges in recent months, in addition to Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) and now-expelled Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.). Menendez previously faced federal corruption charges in 2015, but they were dropped in 2018 after a jury failed to reach a verdict. Jury selection is slated to start Monday morning, and once a jury is empaneled, opening statements in the senators trial will begin. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. A man was arrested Monday after federal investigators said he pointed a high-powered laser at a Coast Guard helicopter that was trying to land at a Boston hospital. Philip Gagnon, 59, of Boston, was indicted on one count of aiming a laser pointer at a Coast Guard helicopter, according to Acting United States Attorney for Massachusetts Joshua S. Levy. The indictment alleges that Gagnon knowingly aimed a high-powered green laser beam at Coast Guard helicopter 6039 from inside his apartment as four crew members descended toward the landing pad at Massachusetts General Hospital during a training mission on the evening of Sept. 21, 2023. The laser beam allegedly illuminated the side of the helicopter and shone through the helicopters windows, Levys office stated in a news release. In response, the pilot aborted the MGH landing and flew north for several miles, eventually landing at another Boston area hospital. The charge of aiming a laser pointer at an aircraft calls for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. Gagnon was released from custody on conditions following an initial appearance in federal court in Boston. 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 number of fentanyl seizures by law enforcement more than quadrupled between 2017 and 2023, with researchers finding the drug has continued to entrench itself in the countrys illicit drug supply. Seizures of fentanyl in the U.S. have followed an exponential upward trend since 2017, according to data from the federal High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program. Researchers on the study, funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), sourced data from the HIDTA. About 50,000 pills containing fentanyl were seized in 2017, and the figure shot up to more than 115 million pills in 2023. Fentanyl in pill form is becoming increasingly common, with pills accounting for roughly half of illicit fentanyl seizures last year, compared to 10 percent in 2017. The main finding is how strikingly fast fentanyl is entering into the country disguised as imitator pills, NIDA Director Nora Volkow told The Hill. I must also state that the total number of deals is just gigantic, which is very concerning. The driver behind the dramatic increase of fentanyl pill seizures over the years is a combination of authorities becoming more aware of the drug entering the country in pill form and an overall increase in total fentanyl being trafficked in, mainly through the borders with Mexico and Canada. The Drug Enforcement Administration cites China as the primary source of the fentanyl that is ultimately smuggled into the U.S. Earlier this month, the House Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party released a report stating the Chinese government directly subsidizes the manufacturing and exporting of illicit fentanyl. While the PRC government publicly acknowledged in November 2023 that the trafficking of fentanyl precursors and other illicit narcotics materials in the manner described above is illegal under Chinese law, the Select Committee found thousands of PRC companies openly selling these illicit materials on the Chinese internetthe most heavily surveilled country-wide network in the world, the committee said. A common way fentanyl-containing pills reach U.S. residents is via online shopping, according to Volkow. Patients in pain whose doctors will not prescribe them opioids turn to the internet, where pills are more accessible and cost less. These buyers dont seek out fentanyl and most likely dont know that the drug they bought online has been cut with the highly potent opioid. Volkow noted a worrying trend when it came to the demographic of buyers. Were seeing people that are older there is a significant rise in people that are 65-74 that are dying from from overdose fatalities. And 65-74 are not people that go in and seek heroin, Volkow said. We saw an increase in between 15-19 years old. And those kids are not seeking out the heroin or fentanyl. Florida saw the largest number of fentanyl seizures in 2023, followed by Arizona and California. California was found to have the highest number of total pills with illicit fentanyl, with more than 38 million pills seized last year. Regionally, the West accounted for the majority of pills seized in the U.S., and the Northeast reported the fewest. A major finding was the growth of fentanyl seizures in the West compared with the other US regions. In 2023, the West had the plurality or majority with respect to all measures other than number of powder seizures which were highest in the South. Although, while the South had more powder seizures, greater powder weight (and overall weight) was seized in the West, the report stated. Indeed, fentanyl seizures were initially less common in the West, but the West now largely dominates regarding the number and size of seizures, especially with respect to pills. Volkow said the main reason drug dealers are pumping more fentanyl into the U.S. is greed. You make much more money with fentanyl than you do with heroin, at least 50 times more, she said. The other aspect about it is that it is relatively easy to synthesize and manufacture. And because its so potent, which is the third thing, you can bring a small volume, and in the small volume basically you can extract multiples thousands of doses. The NIDA director cited fentanyl test strips as a powerful tool for combating the harm caused by the opioid, along with the drug naloxone, which can counteract the effects of an opioid overdose. Both options are relatively inexpensive. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Donald Trump took classified documents with him after he left the White House, refused to give them back and after two-plus years of lying about what he possessed military secrets, including battle plans and the details of certain nuclear programs a grand jury finally indicted him last June. The classified documents case could have been history by now. With the facts already made public, including Trump on tape talking about a document he should not have possessed with people who should not have been told about it, it is likely the once-and-future Republican nominee would already have been the first former president ever convicted of a crime after leaving office. This case could and should have been ready for trial in December [2023] or January, according to Joyce Vance, a former U.S. attorney. But Trump was fortunate: U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon won the lottery to hear the case, making an appointee of the defendant the one to decide if or when the case goes before jurors. Last week, Cannon formally decided that Trumps trial will be held maybe never: She threw out the May 20 start date that at least existed on paper, saying it would be imprudent to set another time, for now. The reason, Cannon said, is that she there are still myriad and interconnected issues that the judge herself must rule on. In other words: the trial cannot begin because Cannon has not finished the work that she imposed on herself on questions raised by the Trump defense team that, per Vance, would be routinely denied hearings by anyone else. As Vance noted in a post on her website, the trial could have been held already had Cannon been working on the motions and [setting] realistic deadlines all along. Instead, she has given Trump what he wanted all along, which is perpetual delay, potentially pushing a trial back to 2025 at the earliest, when a Trump-led Department of Justice could kill it off altogether. She has made bad decisions that have no relationship to what the law is in this case, former Watergate prosecutor Jill Wine-Banks said in an interview on MSNBC over the weekend. She has refused to make decisions that should have been made months ago." Instead of a trial, Cannon will be using the next month to hold hearings on motions that most legal experts say would not get a hearing in almost any other federal court, including the defenses claim that it should receive discovery material not just from prosecutors, but potentially the White House, part of its claim that Trump is being persecuted by President Joe Biden; that issue alone will be discussed for three days in June. Cannon has also repeatedly pushed back deadlines of her own making, recently giving Trumps legal team more time to say what classified information it intends to present at trial. That is truly a complex issue, governed by the Classified Information Procedures Act, that will ultimately require Cannon to decide what redactions are permissible that is, its an issue that most judges would have tried to resolve last year. She is not dumb, Wine-Banks said, but she is really not doing her job. Or, as others see it, Cannon is indeed doing exactly what is expected of her. When people say the fight is fixed, this is the type of stuff they are talking about, former Justice Department spokesperson Anthony Coley said on MSNBC. You have a woman here who intentionally appears to be dragging her feet, he observed, arguing Cannon is less an objective judge and more someone who appears to be a MAGA activist in a black robe. Its not just liberals on MSNBC who see Cannon as hopelessly biased against special counsel Jack Smith. My favorite member of the Trump campaign, an ally of the former president joked to Rolling Stone; a godsend, said another. Family, friends and fellow officers said their final goodbyes Monday to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche wad laid to rest on Monday afternoon. He was one of the four officers killed in the line of duty during an east Charlotte ambush on April 29. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. Family, friends and fellow officers will say their final goodbyes to a hero. Investigator Sam Poloche will be laid to rest on Monday afternoon. The services, held two weeks to the day since the ambush, marked the fourth and final funeral held in the Queen City for the fallen heroes. READ MORE: Department of Adult Correction workers killed in Charlotte shootout Poloches service was held at the First Baptist Church in Uptown, where Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department Officer Joshua Eyer was also given his final goodbyes. A sea of blue escorted his flag-draped coffin to the church. There, his family, friends and colleagues honored him in a private service. My very best friend: Funeral held for fallen CMPD Officer Joshua Eyer The memorial service was followed by a procession to Lakeland Memorial Park in Monroe. Community members lined the route down Independence Boulevard starting at 301 S. Davidson Street in Charlotte. A police escort led the procession to the gravesite. The memorial service honoring NCDPS Investigator Samuel Sam Poloche will be held at First Baptist Charlotte on Monday, May 13, 2024. The service is scheduled to begin at 1:00 p.m. and directly following, Investigator Poloche will be escorted to to Lakeland Memorial Park in pic.twitter.com/M8tlrGf2yF CMPD News (@CMPD) May 10, 2024 Poloche was born in Venezuela and moved with his family to Florida. He worked with the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction for 14 years, most recently as an investigator. Poloche is survived by his wife, Cielo, and two sons, ages 18 and 21. One is graduating from high school and the other from college in the next few weeks. (WATCH: Funeral honors fallen deputy US Marshal Thomas Weeks) DOTHAN, Ala (WDHN) A possible arson in rural Geneva County destroyed a bridge over the weekend, possibly causing many problems for the county in the near future. The Geneva County District Attorneys Office is offering a $1,000 reward for anyone with information on the fire. According to the Geneva County Sheriffs Office, deputies were called to L Vaughan Road from County Roads 42 and 99 early Sunday morning and found a burning timber bridge over a creek. Geneva Firefighters attempted to stop the blaze but could not contain the flames before the fire consumed most of the bridge. Sheriff Tony Helms tells WDHN that deputies believe the fire was started late Saturday, and they are investigating it as an arson. The Geneva County Sheriffs Office asks that anyone with information on the arson contact them at (334) 684-5660. During Monday mornings Geneva County Commission meeting, commissioners and county leaders discussed how the bridges destruction could impact the county economically. Sheriff Helms says the Geneva County Road and Bridge Department does not have enough funds set aside to repair the bridge, so the money has been taken from another department. With the bridge being out, travel on L Vaughan Road must be diverted, causing significant delays in school buses and farming routes and blocking the way for citizens who live on that road. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WDHN - wdhn.com. Fires used as weapon of war in Sudan destroyed or damaged 72 villages last month, study says This is a locator map for Sudan with its capital, Khartoum. (AP Photo) CAIRO (AP) Fires resulting from the fighting in Sudan destroyed or damaged 72 villages and settlements last month, a U.K.-based rights group said Monday, highlighting the use of fire as a weapon of war in the conflict in the African country. Investigators from Sudan Witness, an open-source project run by the nonprofit Center for Information Resilience, say that more blazes than in any other month since the war started in mid-April 2023. The number also brings to 201 the total number of fires in Sudan since fighting broke out between Sudan's military and the rival paramilitary force. The analysis didn't provide any casualty figures from the fires. In the war in Sudan, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces have often used fire, setting entire villages ablaze, especially in Sudan's western Darfur region. The war has wrecked the country and pushed its population to the brink of famine. More than 14,000 people have been killed and thousands have been wounded. Hundreds of thousands have been displaced. The Center for Information Resilience said the number of fires surged particularly in the north and west of el-Fasher, the capital city of North Darfur state that faces an imminent attack. El-Fasher saw intense fighting on Friday between the Sudanese military and the paramilitary RSF and their allies. At least 27 people were killed and dozens injured, said the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, or OCHA. More than 800 were displaced. Sudan's military launched an airstrike the next day that hit close to a pediatric hospital in el-Fasher, killing two children and a caregiver, according to Doctors Without Borders. In its analysis, the Center for Information Resilience estimated that 31 settlements villages and towns were affected by fires in April, with an over 50% destruction rate. Weve documented the patterns of numerous fires and the continuing devastation to settlements around western Sudan, large and small," Anouk Theunissen, Sudan Witness project director, said in a news release. "When we see reports of fighting or airstrikes coinciding with clusters of fires it indicates that fire is being used indiscriminately as a weapon of war. The trend is worsening and continues to lead to the mass displacement of Sudanese people, Theunissen said. Sudan's conflict started when tensions between the Sudanese military and the RSF broke out into intense fighting in Khartoum, the country's capital in April last year. Clashes quickly spread to other parts of Sudan, including Darfur, which has been witnessing brutal attacks. The Sudan Witness analysis also said that in the Sudan war, blazes have hit at least 51 settlements for displaced people more than once. Investigators with the project examined the patterns of fires across the war-torn country by using social media, satellite imagery and NASA's public fire monitoring data. Recently, six unions that contract with Cincinnati Public Schools have expressed a vote of no confidence in Superintendent Iranetta Wright. While this certainly speaks to the brokenness in our school system, I disagree with the "fix" that they are suggesting. Seeking new leadership at this time would be a big mistake and voluntarily put us right back on the path to student learning loss and low academic performance. Yes, we have a budget problem. With or without a new superintendent, that budget problem is going nowhere. And isnt that budget problem the primary responsibility of the district's treasurer? I keep missing why our treasurer, who reports directly to the school board (or at least thats how it was when I was a member of the board) isnt a part of the union votes. Do the unions have confidence in the board? I missed the vote on that too. From where I sit, deeply trenched in a communal care for public education, this is more about power and control than it is about human resources or our students. CPS staffer says Wright crossed a line: Historic no-confidence vote in superintendent should send a message to CPS board | Opinion And what about our students? Would a leadership change at this time support their success? I believe the opposite will happen. Our kids will suffer more if we go seeking new leadership at this time. So why would we support a process that could cause more pain and trauma for our kids? Shouldnt our students be at the center of these discussions? Cincinnati Public Schools Superintendant and CEO, Iranetta Rayborn Wright tours Aiken High School on the first day of school on Thursday August 18, 2022. Wright walked around, greeting students and staff and taking selfies with them. This past weekend, while at Teen Leadership Camp with my youth group, I spoke to CPS students about this situation students from Aiken, Hughes, Gamble, Clark, Western Hills and Taft. Very few students knew about the union votes. Several expressed that the superintendent "was a nice lady" who "listened to them." "Do you think she deserves to be fired?" I asked. No one said yes. I think, because they, like me, believe firing someone is the last straw when teams are broken. I stand with whats best for these students and every other student across CPS. I believe Wright is a natural-born educator with a deep sense of love for our children, unique experience in teaching and principal leadership, and administrating school systems, who holds the highest expectations for our students and those that are responsible for their performance. No, she is not perfect, but she is also not a butt-kisser. Does she have some relationship building to work on? Yes. Does that mean we should fire her after just two years? No. The school board seems to have failed to maintain its control over the district. If there is a lack of clarity around the superintendent's role, it's because of the boards inability to determine what level of control they want Wright to have. Wright worked to change the system immediately, moving from a model of complacency (hiding behind being Ohios highest-performing urban 8 district) to one of accountability. This is what CPS needs. Firing our relatively new, Black, female superintendent can't be the only way the teacher's union and others can resolve their concerns. There has to be something else. From the outside looking in, it appears that CPS performance metrics are trending in a positive direction. The budget issue is of great concern, but nobody should be suggestion that how the district arrived at this place is all Wright's doing. She definitely can't be blamed for the COVID-19 pandemic. Under her leadership, we have wins in learning recovery that has garnered national recognition. This move by the unions is a negotiation tactic. District employees are scared they may lose their jobs as a cost-cutting measure to close the budget gap. The no-confidence votes also beg the question: How many of the 6,000 union members actually voted not to support Wright? So far, the unions have been slow to share just how many members actually voted. And I am familiar with the room where union members gathered for their vote, and it doesn't hold that many people. Cincinnati Public Schools Superintendent Iranetta Wright delivers an update on the progress, changes and challenges facing the district heading into the 2023-2024 school year, Thursday, Aug. 10, 2023, at the former Bramble Elementary School building in the Madisonville neighborhood of Cincinnati. CPS purchased the property last year, and serve as a preschool with four classrooms to start before the entire school is put to use. Are kids are doing better despite the criticisms being lobbed at Wright "administrative bloat," "a culture of intimidation," "an inability to be collaborative." Whatever gaps our superintendent has, it is the school board's responsibility to close those gaps or show some receipts in trying. Change is hard. When the school board hired Wright, change is what they were looking for. High accessibility and public engagement were things many of us in the community were looking for. With her "Be Present" initiative, the districts attempts at accessibility and engagement seem to be working. I think we ought to give change some more time. Lets revisit this when her contract is up there is already a remedy there. Shortchanging our own process and our students is not the answer. Ozie Davis III lives is Avondale and is a former Cincinnati Public Schools Board of Education member. Ozie Davis III This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Unions' no-confidence vote in CPS superintendent a negotiating tactic The first person to undergo a transplant procedure for a genetically modified pig kidney has died, the hospital that performed the surgery and his family said Saturday. Rick Slayman died suddenly, both his family and doctors said, nearly two months after he received the kidney in a four-hour procedure in March. The Associated Press reported that the surgeons believed the pig kidney would last for at least two years. The transplant team at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), which performed the procedure, said they have no indication that his death was caused by the transplant. They said they were deeply saddened by news of his death. Mr. Slayman will forever be seen as a beacon of hope to countless transplant patients worldwide and we are deeply grateful for his trust and willingness to advance the field of xenotransplantation, MGH said in a statement. We offer our heartfelt condolences to Mr. Slaymans family and loved ones as they remember an extraordinary person whose generosity and kindness touched all who knew him, the statement continued. The family thanked the doctors in a statement. Our family is deeply saddened about the sudden passing of our beloved Rick but take great comfort knowing he inspired so many. Millions of people worldwide have come to know Ricks story. We felt and still feel comforted by the optimism he provided patients desperately waiting for a transplant, the family statement said. They expressed their gratitude for the medical team at MGH. Their enormous efforts leading the xenotransplant gave our family seven more weeks with Rick, and our memories made during that time will remain in our minds and hearts, they continued. Slayman, who had Type 2 diabetes and hypertension, first received a kidney transplant from a deceased donor in 2018. He was on dialysis, a treatment that helps the body remove fluids and waste when the kidneys are not able to, for eight years before that procedure. The transplanted kidney began to show signs of failure, however, and Slayman resumed dialysis in May. He said his nephrologist recommended that he get a pig kidney transplant, which was approved in February by a Food and Drug Administration Expanded Access Protocol allowing a patient to receive experimental treatment when there are no comparable treatment options. There are more than 100,000 people in the U.S. waiting for an organ transplant, according to data from the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network. The network said about 17 people die each day while waiting for an organ. Scientists have been exploring the practice of xenotransplantation moving tissues or organs from one species to another in recent years. There have been at least two pig heart transplants into living patients, but both of those men died within months of receiving the new organ. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. First step to increasing cruise ship fees in Newport gets OK. See how much they could go up Next summers wave of cruise ships may see higher per-passenger fees for docking and disembarking from the City of Newport following a recently passed bill in the House of Representatives. On Thursday, the House of Representatives passed House Bill 8027, which will allow the City of Newport to increase the fees cruise ships have to pay in order to land and disembark from the City of Newport. Reps. Laura Carson (D-Dist. 75, Newport) and Marvin Abney (D-Dist 73, Newport) co-sponsored the legislation which was requested by the Newport City Council in a resolution earlier this year. Cruise ship stopovers in Newport are a unique part of our tourism industry, Carson said in a press release on the House vote. While they each can bring well over 1,000 visitors into the city at once, those passengers already have a place to stay and a place to eat on board the ship, so landing and embarking fees represent most of the revenue the city can make. Newport needs to invest considerably in our infrastructure to keep our city a safe, resilient and attractive place for our residents and visitors alike, so bringing this fee up to the level that other coastal cities charge is a sensible way to help raise revenue without burden to taxpayers. A large cruise ship leaves Newport Harbor. Currently, cruise ships pay $6 per passenger when they make a stop in Newport, $3 for landing and $3 more for boarding for when the ship embarks from the city docks. This fee was established in 2014, having been raised from the $2 per passenger per stop cruise ships had to pay when the legislature established the fees in 1999. Suppose the Senate passes its sister bill 2024-S 302, sponsored by Sens. Dawn Euer (D-Dist. 13, Newport, Jamestown) and Louis DiPalma (D-Dist. 12, Middletown, Little Compton, Newport, Tiverton). In that case, the city will be able to increase the total fee to $20 per passenger, $10 on landing and $10 for boarding to embark from the city. While $10 is the maximum to which the city can raise its cruise ship fees, Mayor Xay Khamsyvoravong assured the General Assembly during a hearing on the item that the fee would be increased over several years, with the first increase to $6 imposed in the next 18 months, after the current wave of cruise ships passes through. He said the additional revenue will be enough to support the capital improvements made to Perrotti Park, where these cruise ships typically dock. Set a course for adventure: 'Love Boat' cast reuniting for cruise and a stop in Newport Last year, 56 cruise ships made stops in the city according to testimony from Khamsyvoravong during the General Assembly hearing on the bill in April. This year, they expect 65 ships, carrying over 110,000 passengers. Khamsyvoravong explained to the House Committee on Municipal Government and Housing that the influx of tourists these ships bring, while welcome, significantly impacts the city, especially its roads and infrastructure. Additionally, he noted that while Newport is one of the highest-rated cruise destinations in the Northeast, its fees are significantly less than its peers, such as Bar Harbor, Maine; Rockland, Maine; Halifax, Nova Scotia and Boston, which charge $13, $10, $11.50 and $23 each way, respectively. We are certainly within market, Khamsyvoravong said. It is time for us to catch up, and in Newport, were looking at dedicating those funds to the waterfront infrastructure thats serving this industry. This article originally appeared on Newport Daily News: Newport moves closer to increasing cruise ship passenger fees The first underground school, which was built in the Industrial district of the city of Kharkiv, held its first full-fledged lessons for children on 13 May. Source: Kharkiv City Council According to the Kharkiv City Council, 230 children started studying at this educational institution. The underground school will be able to accommodate 900 children. all Photos: Kharkiv City Council Olena Zbytska, the head of the Department of Education of the Industrial district of Kharkiv, reports that the educational process will be carried out in two shifts in a mixed format: some children will study full-time, and some remotely. The city council noted that primary school children will have three lessons and high-schoolers will have four. "We tried to create conditions similar to those at a regular school. We have classrooms, a resource room for meetings with a psychologist, and a teaching workshop where teachers gather between lessons. There is also a buffet and a medical office," said Zbytska. Background: The construction of this school was completed in early April. The premises were built in compliance with all safety requirements, and 20 classrooms were equipped to provide a comfortable learning environment for school children. Recently, it became known that a trial school day was conducted. Within its framework, the State Emergency Service of Ukraine employees told children about the rules of mine safety and ways to recognise dangerous objects. Support UP or become our patron! Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried criticizes Repubican lawmakers during a gathering outside the federal court house in Tallahassee on April 30, 2024. (Photo by Jackie Llanos) Quality Journalism for Critical Times Laurie Plotnick recalled marching in rallies and signing petitions advocating for access to legal and safe abortions. Roe v. Wade was decided when she had just graduated college. In her 70s, she is taking on that fight again as president of the Democratic Senior Caucus of Florida. During a Florida Democratic Party press conference Monday morning, leaders within the party shared their experiences as mothers and daughters to emphasize the importance of working across generational divides to enshrine abortion access in Floridas constitution come November. I am the proud mother to a beautiful daughter, an aunt to nieces and grandnieces who grew up in Florida. And since Floridas extreme abortion ban took effect on May 1, they will grow up with fewer rights than I had, Plotnick said. If any of the women in my family want to have children or more children, they are at risk of being denied health care if God forbid anything goes wrong during their pregnancy. Women have won and lost rights throughout history, and we now have another chance to win. She continued: Yesterday, on Mothers Day, I am reminded of my obligation to my child and the next generation. Senior women must rejoin the fight just as we did in 1973 and mobilize once again to take back our rights and protect reproductive freedom for all generations to come. But for abortion access to be restored to the point of viability and beyond the current six-week ban, 60% of voters will have to vote yes on Amendment 4 on Nov.5. With six months left until the election, Democrats are pitching the pro-abortion amendment as an issue that voters of all parties can get behind but that will require people from all kinds of backgrounds to promote. We know the culture of our district, we have to do our job as well. We have to use social media; we have to talk with our constituents; we have to use our native language, said Orange County Rep. Johanna Lopez. Latinos need to move for Amendment 4, and I think that even using our native languages, Spanish, Creole, we have to use all of those resources and also stay in contact with organizations like Planned Parenthood to enforce being bilingual. The messaging will be very, very important because this is against democracy. This is not even this is not related to party affiliation. In a recent poll from the Florida Chamber of Commerce, the amendment had a 61% approval rate, with 29% opposed and 10% undecided. Florida Dems chair Nikki Fried said the party plans to have Democratic challengers in all the state legislature seats that are up for grabs. Were living under a six-week abortion ban. I never in my entire life would have thought that wed be sitting in this moment, but here we are, Fried said. So yes, women are coming up and stepping up to the plate. Men who are supporting these women want to run for office. So, we are on track to fill every seat. That is still our goal, and I do believe that we will get there before the deadline next month. The post Florida Dems want the fight to pass the abortion rights amendment to be intergenerational appeared first on Florida Phoenix. JENSEN BEACH, Fla. (WFLA) The U.S. Coast Guard said it is searching for a man who went missing while free diving over the weekend. According to the USCG, Virgil Price, 39 of West Palm Beach was last seen free diving nine miles off of Jensen Beach. The St. Lucie County Sheriffs Office said Price was exploring the Halsey shipwreck 13 miles southeast of the Fort Pierce Inlet. According to Fishing Status, the SS Halsey was a 435-foot-long ship that was sunk by a German U-boat in 1942, although the crew managed to escape in two lifeboats. The wreck, now broken in three pieces, rests 65 feet deep on the sand bottom. Price was last seen wearing a green wetsuit with an orange stripe on the hood, yellow weights on his weight belt, and black carbon fiber fins, deputies said. If you know where Price is, call Sector Miami at 305-535-4472. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA. Florida A&M University announces campus closure Tuesday as more storms are expected Downed trees and powerlines were in front of FAMU after severe storms and a tornado hit Tallahassee Friday morning. Florida A&M University announced that its campus will be closed Tuesday as it continues to recover during the citys tornado aftermath amid forecasts of more storms. The announcement comes after the campus reopened remotely Monday on the first day of its summer semester, following three EF-2 tornadoes that swept through Tallahassee a few days ago and severely impacted the HBCU (historically Black college and university) campus. Classes are scheduled to resume remotely on Wednesday, according to the university. More: Updates: Monday severe weather threat wanes; schools closed Tuesday ahead of next round The closures include the Quincy Farm, the FAMU Viticulture Center, and The Durell Peaden Jr. Rural Pharmacy Education Campus in Crestview, the university said in a Monday afternoon release. The FAMU-FSU College of Engineering is still without electricity and will be closed Tuesday. While FAMU announces its campus closure, Florida State University and Tallahassee Community College still plan on being open Tuesday as of 5:30 p.m. Monday afternoon. FAMU declared a state of emergency Friday after the storm, saying that the violent weather knocked out electricity, damaged roofs, downed trees and utility lines, blocked roadways and scattered debris across the campus. Electricity has been restored to the main campus, but at least 15 buildings including the Grand Ballroom, the Banneker Buildings and the old Plant, Operations and Maintenance (POM) Building suffered some form of roof and water damage. The flashing on Lee Hall was also damaged, according to Kendall Jones, associate vice president Facilities, Planning, Construction, and Safety. FAMU President Larry Robinson and senior administration officials held a virtual townhall meeting Sunday evening to update students, faculty, staff and other stakeholders on the progress of the universitys recovery efforts. We have a really great team of experts who are working on this in collaboration with city, county and state officials, Robinson said during the townhall. A lot of people have reached out to us, and we really appreciate them. Once again, we beg your patience. Its going to take us a few days to get back on our feet, but we are making amazing progress. FAMU President Larry Robinson. As the next round of storms roll into the capital city, a temporary American Red Cross shelter has been set up in FAMUs Al Lawson Center on Althea Gibson Way. As of Sunday night, 60 people registered to seek shelter, and the universitys Police Department is providing additional security for those staying there, according to the university. The National Weather Service continues to forecast several lines of storms as they move east through the Big Bend on Monday and into Tuesday. Contact Tarah Jean at tjean@tallahassee.com or follow her on X: @tarahjean_. This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FAMU campus will be closed Tuesday ahead of more storms after tornado Florida man who survived Bahamas shark attack shares how he kept his cool: 'I'll be alright' A native Florida man bit by multiple sharks after he slipped and fell off a fishing dock while working in the Bahamas kept his cool not only during the terrifying experience but while recalling the attack to members of the media last week. "I'll be alright," Marlin Wakeman, who lives in the city of Stuart on Florida's Atlantic Coast, said during a news conference at the West Palm Beach hospital where he was recovering after the April 26th attack. Wakeman, 24, told reporters, including one from the Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY NETWORK, he was working on a marina charter boat when he accidently fell into shark infested waters during low tide at Flying Fish Marina on Long Island and was attacked by two sharks. At least 20 sharks swam around him when he hit the water and "ended up in a shark den" he recalled of the harrowing scene. I was like, hey man, I don't really wanna die right now, this ain't it," he recalled coolly of a terrifying experience, drawing a chuckle from members of the media and others at the press conference. Reports: Susan Backlinie, who played shark victim Chrissie Watkins in 'Jaws,' dies at 77 When the first shark pulled him under Marlin Wakeman, after being bitten by Carribean reef sharks after he slipped and fell into the water in the Bahamas in 2024. As he hung onto the boat cockpit, Wakeman said, the first shark grabbed his leg and pulled him under water. "Kinda scrambled for a second, got my surroundings in check," he smoothly recalled. When the shark let loose its grip, Wakeman resurfaced and, just as he managed to grab onto the boats deck, a second shark tried grazed his right shoulder with its teeth. After that, he said, he did a full pullup to get himself into the boat. While remaining calm with his leg elevated, Wakeman said, a sailboat guide saw his injuries freaked out and yelled, "'He's bleeding out'... and I was like, hey, can we get this guy away from me? This is freaking me out a little bit." What do sharks eat? Surprising feeding habits of great white sharks, hammerheads and more. A boat captain, a tourniquet and a black out Marlin Wakeman, gets help after being bitten by Carribean reef sharks after he slipped and fell off a boat into the water in the Bahamas on April 26, 2024. The boats captain heard Wakemans cries for help from inside the boat. When he saw him, he tied a tourniquet on his leg, pushed him to a van in a wheelbarrow and got him into van where the someone shoved gauze into his leg wound and he passed out from pain. Wakeman was taken to the nearest medical clinic and was later flown to Florida for surgery. Massive sharks surface: Pair of great whites surface off Florida coast within a minute of each other Shark bite narrowly missed an artery in leg Shark bite survivor Marlin Wakeman, of Stuart, thanks trauma surgeon Dr. Robert Borrego during a press conference at St. Mary's Medical Center on May 9, 2024 in West Palm Beach, Florida. Wake was bitten by Carribbean reef sharks after he slipped and fell into the water in the Bahamas. He treated for his leg and shoulder bites at the medical center. Dr. Robert Borrego, Wakeman' surgeon said, the shark's bit narrowly missed a femoral artery in his leg - which could have caused him to bleed out and die. After assessing the bite mark, the surgeon said he estimated the shark that bit his leg is about 7 feet long. Wakeman suspects he was attacked by Caribbean reef sharks. Borrego said he expects Wakeman to make a full recovery. He took out his stitches this past week and said the shark attack victim is healing nicely. Marlin Wakeman, of Stuart, was bitten by Carribean reef sharks after he slipped and fell into the water in the Bahamas. Media gathered press at St. Mary's Medical Center to hear his story on May 9, 2024 in West Palm Beach, Florida. Wakeman said he will be more cautious working near the water from now on. He said he got a little lazy after bringing fishing gear back and forth from the the dock to the boat, which makes regular fishing charter trips from Stuart to the Bahamas. Before the fall, he said he jumped 3 feet, rather than cautiously stepping toward the boat. I wasnt really scared at the moment. I just knew I had to get out as quickly as possible," the 24-year-old said. "Thankfully, Im here to tell the story. Shark bite survivor Marlin Wakeman, of Stuart, leaves a press conference at St. Mary's Medical Center on May 9, 2024. He was bitten by Carribbean reef sharks after he slipped and fell into the water in the Bahamas. Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Florida fisherman shares story of survival after Bahamas shark attack The authorities of Kharkiv Oblast announced the forced evacuation of orphans and children deprived of parental care from the border hromadas of Bohodukhiv, Kupiansk and Izium districts [a hromada is an administrative unit designating a village, several villages, or a town, and their adjacent territories ed.]. Source: Oleh Syniehubov, Head of Kharkiv blast Military Administration "This decision was made at a meeting of the [Kharkiv] Oblast Defence Council to ensure the safety of children in the context of the aggravation of the situation at the line of contact," Oleh Syniehubov noted. Oleh Syniehubov reports that there are currently 113 orphans and children deprived of parental care in these hromadas. Nine children have already left with their guardians from Vovchansk hromada. Children will be transported to safe places in Ukraine. Civilian protection officers and volunteers will take part in the evacuation. Background: Russian troops launched a new offensive on Kharkiv Oblast. They achieved tactical success in some sectors of the line of contact, including in the city of Vovchansk. General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine report that the fighting for the city continues. Police officers evacuated 1,741 citizens from the border area of Kharkiv Oblast from 10 May to 12:00 on 13 May. Police officers continue to evacuate people from Tsyrkuny, Lyptsi and Vovchansk hromadas to safe places under Russian fire. Support UP or become our patron! Former aide at Telford personal care home accused of stealing thousands from residents A former health aide who worked at a Telford personal care center is accused of stealing debit and credit cards from elderly residents and using them to make thousands of dollars in unauthorized purchases. Telford Police initially charged Crystal Bianca Brito, 29, of Macungie, with 37 felony and misdemeanor charges for allegedly using the debit card of a resident of the Lutheran Community of Telford, but would later identify additional alleged victims. Authorities allege Brito, who was one of the aides assigned to the woman, made $1,254 in unauthorized transactions using the womans card in November and December. Telford police allege a Northampton County woman stole credit and debit cards from three residents of a long-term care facility and went on spending sprees late last year. More on elder fraud in Pa Pennsylvania Aging Department study: Family often behind elder financial fraud Most of the transactions occurred in the greater Allentown areas where Brito lives including a cluster of purchases near her home, according to an affidavit of probable cause. Additional evidence showed Brito had online purchases shipped to her home, police said. After Brito was arrested in January she claimed that the victim was her only one and she planned to repay the money, according to the affidavit. But soon after police learned two more Lutheran Community residents who Brito worked for as a health aide reported they had unauthorized transactions on their accounts. A friend of a 79-year-old resident who lived in the dementia wing of the home reported 24 unauthorized charges on the womans stolen debit card. Only $248 in charges were approved and another $4,000 charges were declined, police said. Most of the charges were in-person transactions in Macungie and Allentown areas, police said. One transaction was at a Wawa in Souderton, one mile from the Lutheran home, the affidavit said. A surveillance image of the customer using the card matched Brito, police said. A third victim had 71 unauthorized transactions totaling more than $4,600 made between mid-December and early January, police said. Home staff confirmed that the victims card was stolen. Many of the transactions were made in the same locations in Macungie and Allentown, but this victim was 90-years-old, living in the healthcare pavilion of the home and did not travel, police said. When investigators reviewed video surveillance at locations where the third victims card was used, a woman matching Britos description was observed as well as footage of a silver Grand Cherokee that Brito drives, the affidavit said. Brito was arranged earlier this month on an additional 90 felony and related misdemeanor charges that occurred between November and January. She is scheduled for a preliminary hearing next month. She is free after posting $50,000 unsecured bail. Her attorney Steven Mills did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment on Monday. Reporter Jo Ciavaglia can be reached at jciavaglia@gannett.com This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Telford Police say health aide used stolen cards to charge thousands Former naval officer says she was raped by senior male colleague responsible for standards A former female naval officer has claimed she was raped by a senior male colleague who had responsibility for teaching standards and values in the military. The unnamed woman, who has since left the Royal Navy, alleged she was sexually assaulted and raped by an officer senior in rank to her after drinking too much at a military mess function. She claimed she was deemed vulnerable at the time because of a separate incident and that the man who she says attacked her held responsibilities for ensuring standards and values in the military, which included sexual consent. Speaking to the BBCs Womans Hour, the woman, who went by the pseudonym Joanna, said she was initially determined to bury what had happened to her as no one would believe her because of who he was and what his rank was. Her story comes after the military has been repeatedly warned to tackle a toxic culture of sexual assault. Last year Sophie Brook, who worked on the UKs nuclear-armed submarines, went on record to raise the issue of sexual harassment and abuse onboard the vessels. Joanna told the BBC she did report her alleged attacker to the Military Police who found grounds for two counts of rape and one of sexual assault by penetration. However, despite this going to the Service Prosecution Authority, it was decided not to take it to the military court. Her alleged attacker claimed the two had sex but that it was consensual. Victim blaming Joanna, who was medically discharged from the Navy, said rape was a dirty little secret, within the military and accused the Armed Forces of victim blaming. A Royal Navy spokesperson said: Sexual assault and other sexual offences are not tolerated in the Royal Navy and anything which falls short of the highest of standards is totally unacceptable. We acknowledge that this incident will have had a significant impact to those involved and since then we have made significant changes to how incidents are reported and investigated. This includes providing specialist help to victims and witnesses of serious crime, independent from the military chain of command. We encourage anyone who has experienced or witnessed any inexcusable behaviour to report it immediately. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Former US Marine pilot arrested in Australia worked with Chinese hacker unknowingly, lawyer says A former US Marine pilot fighting extradition from Australia on US charges of training Chinese military pilots to land on aircraft carriers, unknowingly worked with a Chinese hacker, his lawyer said. Daniel Duggan, 55, a naturalized Australian citizen, feared requests by Western intelligence agencies for sensitive information were putting his family at risk, the lawyer said in a legal filing seen by Reuters. The lawyers filing supports Reuters reporting linking Duggan to convicted Chinese defense hacker Su Bin. Duggan denies the allegations that he broke US arms control laws. He has been in an Australian maximum security prison since his 2022 arrest after returning from six years working in Beijing. US authorities found correspondence with Duggan on electronic devices seized from Su Bin, Duggans lawyer Bernard Collaery said in the March submission to Australian Attorney General Mark Dreyfus, who will decide whether to surrender Duggan to the US after a magistrate hears Duggans extradition case. The case will be heard in a Sydney court this month, two years after his arrest in rural Australia at a time when Britain was warning its former military pilots not to work for China. Su Bin, arrested in Canada in 2014, pleaded guilty in 2016 to theft of US military aircraft designs by hacking major US defense contractors. He is listed among seven co-conspirators with Duggan in the extradition request. Duggan knew Su Bin as an employment broker for Chinese state aviation company AVIC, lawyer Collaery wrote, and the hacking case was totally unrelated to our client. Although Su Bin may have had improper connection to (Chinese) agents this was unknown to our client, Duggans lawyer wrote. Overt intelligence contact AVIC was blacklisted by the US last year as a Chinese military-linked company. Messages retrieved from Su Bins electronic devices show he paid for Duggans travel from Australia to Beijing in May 2012, according to extradition documents lodged by the United States with the Australian court. Duggan asked Su Bin to help source Chinese aircraft parts for his Top Gun tourist flight business in Australia, Collaery wrote. The Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) and US Navy criminal investigators knew Duggan was training pilots for AVIC and met him in Australias Tasmania state in December 2012 and February 2013, his lawyer wrote. ASIO and the US Navy Criminal Investigation Service did not respond to Reuters requests for comment on the meetings. ASIO has previously said it would not comment as the matter was before the court. An ASIO officer suggested that while carrying on his legitimate business operations in China, Mr Duggan may be able to gather sensitive information, his lawyer wrote. Duggan moved to China in 2013 and was barred from leaving the country in 2014, his lawyer said. Duggans LinkedIn profile and aviation sources who knew him said he was working in China as an aviation consultant in 2013 and 2014. He renounced his US citizenship in 2016 at the US embassy in Beijing, backdated to 2012 on a certificate, after overt intelligence contact by US authorities that may have compromised his familys safety, his lawyer wrote. His lawyers oppose extradition, arguing there is no evidence the Chinese pilots he trained were military and that he became an Australian citizen in January 2012, before the alleged offenses. The United States government has argued Duggan did not lose his US citizenship until 2016. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com (FORT CARSON, Colo.) A 23-year-old U.S. Army soldier stationed at Fort Carson has died in a non-combat related training accident, according to Fort Carson officials. In a press release sent on Monday afternoon, May 13, Fort Carson said 1st Lt. Zachary Galli died as a result of a training accident at the Joint Readiness Training Center (JRTC) in Louisiana. Galli was assigned to the 749th Ordnance Company, 242nd Explosive Ordnance Battalion (EOD), 71st EOD Group at Fort Carson. Galli was an explosive ordnance disposal officer from Williamsburg, VA. Courtesy: Fort Carson It is with an extremely heavy heart that I inform you of the passing of 1st Lt. Zachary Galli, said Col. Brennan Fitzgerald, Commander 71st EOD. Our thoughts and prayers are with the friends and family of the Galli family, the 749th EOD Co., and the greater EOD community. Fort Carson said the accident is under investigation. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX21 News Colorado. Fort Meade's City Commission is considering a one-year amnesty on code enforcement fines and liens. City Commissioner Jaret Williams owns a downtown building that has generated fines for years. Fort Meade leaders say that too many properties are encumbered by fines or liens that prevent owners from selling them, blocking prospective new residents or businesses. That is why the city staff has proposed a one-year amnesty program for fines and liens generated from code-enforcement violations. The proposal seeks to make it easier for owners to bring their properties into compliance with city codes. And among the property owners that could benefit from the amnesty is City Commissioner Jaret Williams. The City Commission is expected to vote on a resolution to adopt the program at Tuesdays meeting, starting at 6 p.m. Because it is a resolution and not an ordinance, only a single vote is required. Under the proposal, the city would erase all code-enforcement fines and liens if a property is brought into compliance or substantial work is started on correcting violations by June 30, 2025. The city will consider waiving hard costs, such as cleanup, demolition, security and lawyers fees, on a case-by-case basis. Burdensome fines and liens are inhibiting economic growth in Fort Meade, Interim City Manager Dustin Burke said. A lot of times, the way we learn that a property has a lien is someone will call and say, Hey, is there a lien on that? Somebody wants to buy it, Burke said. And then weve got to start that Well, how much do they owe? What is the interest? What are the hard costs? So the impetus has been investors trying to come to town and they can't because liens are in the way. Like most cities, Fort Meade operates a code-enforcement department to ensure that property owners comply with regulations. The department can issue fines for such violations as unkempt yards, excessive debris, abandoned vehicles and damaged or unsafe structures. Continued fines can accrue into liens, legal claims by the city against a property that must be resolved before the property can be sold. Although it is rare, a city can initiate a legal action to take ownership of a property burdened by a lien. Greg King, the citys chief of staff and public information officer, said he knows of one residential property facing a lien of more than $1 million. Many people get caught up in the code enforcement process and have a hard time getting through it, Mayor Petrina McCutchen said in a news release. Sometimes its a Catch-22 of needing to resolve the violations to stop fines and liens, but they cant resolve the violations because theyre not able to get a permit due to the fines and liens. Whatever their situation, we want our property owners to know that we are a proactive partner in helping them find solutions. How many properties would benefit? Fort Meade doesn't know Fort Meade held a town hall last week on the proposal, hosted by King. When asked how many properties carry fines or liens, he acknowledged that city officials do not know. Burke said that is a problem for the city. Were trying to inventory everything, and so this includes liens, Burke said. We want to get them into a project management system, a tracking system, an aging system, so we know, how old are these liens? And what are their balances? Burke said some property records exist on paper stored in filing cabinets. So part of my goal is to digitize the whole process, all the paperwork, and then be able to track it, he said. Because you can't manage what you can't see. The City Commission appointed Burke as interim leader in February. The last permanent city manager, Jan Bagnall, emphasized stricter enforcement of city codes during his tenure, which ended in August. Under the proposal, property owners would pay a fee and go through an application process. The program would eliminate liens and fines on properties that are being sold, if the new owners agree to make the improvements needed to bring the property into compliance, the news release said. King, who worked in various governmental roles in South Florida before joining the staff of his hometown in March, said that other cities have offered temporary amnesty programs for fines and liens, such as Fort Lauderdale and Opa-locka. One city commissioner could benefit from the amnesty City Commissioner Jaret Williams, who took office in January, owns a storefront property at 119 W. Broadway in downtown Fort Meade that began accruing daily fines before he purchased it in November 2022. The city imposed a lien on the previous owner in October 2021. The city agreed to a settlement with the previous owner, Banersy Corp., in June 2022, but the owners did not fulfill all the terms, according to a city attorneys summary obtained by The Ledger. The city then returned to pursuing legal action or foreclosure, the summary says. The then-city attorney, Chris Berg, wrote that he told Williams before the purchase that the lien would remain on the property after a sale. The attorney had four more conversations with Williams about what was required to bring the property into compliance, explaining that the lien was a separate issue, the summary says. Walesbilt Hotel Lake Wales asks judge to nullify 2010 deal, return ownership to city An inspection in February 2023 found no improvements or corrections, and the next month the city filed a lawsuit seeking to foreclose on the property. A judge requested mediation, but the two sides reached an impasse. As of January, the lien on the property had reached more than $231,000, and the city had also incurred attorney fees and other costs. In the latest court action, Judge Hope Pattey this month set a case management conference for July 2. Williams did not respond to a voicemail left Friday morning. Barbara Arnold, a former city commissioner who resigned last year, asked King at the town hall which commissioners would benefit from the amnesty. She said King acknowledged that Williams would. In an interview Friday, Arnold said she believes the program was created as cover for resolving Williams legal dispute. Hes tried to get this lifted, and he hasn't won, she said. He has not went about the right protocol from the very beginning. Arnold said that Williams should have to recuse himself from voting on the resolution. Burke said that is a legal question, but he does not believe Williams needs to refrain from voting. This has not been done to benefit any specific commissioner, Burke said. This has been done to benefit the community. There is a disagreement between Commissioner Williams and the city that started under the previous administration. Most of those costs are just daily fines that add up; they're not hard costs. And so, that's not real money, as far as I'm concerned. Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or 863-802-7518. Follow on X @garywhite13. This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Fort Meade considers amnesty for code-enforcement fines, liens Tamaz Gambarashvili, the head of Vovchansk City Military Administration, has asserted that there were fortifications around the city on the border with Russia but that it was difficult to build them due to Russian bombardments. Source: Gambarashvili on Radio Svoboda (Svoboda.Ranok project) Quote: "The fortifications were built. And now they are being built and strengthened. But the situation was and is extremely difficult. Because the city itself is very close to the border. And it is very difficult to carry out any construction work right on the border. I thank the builders and everyone who worked there. It is extremely difficult. Because working under fire is very dangerous." Details: In response to the presenter's question to clarify what work was being done before the Russian offensive, Gambarashvili replied that "perhaps the construction was not so dense". "Everything was built. But maybe not so densely. After liberation, Vovchansk has been under constant attacks for a year and a half. Both mortars and artillery. That's why I repeat once again: Vovchansk is 4 kilometres from the border. It was extremely difficult to build fortifications. But I would like to emphasise once again that I am grateful to all the builders and military personnel who were working at these facilities. They made every effort to build the fortifications." Background: On 9 April, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy inspected the construction of defences and fortifications near the border with Russia in Kharkiv Oblast. On 6 April, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the construction of defensive structures on all fronts should be completed "in a couple of months". On some fronts, up to 98% of the work has now been done. Since the beginning of 2024, UAH 20 billion (about US$524 million) has been allocated from the state budget's reserve fund for the construction of fortifications. Other sources of funding have contributed an additional UAH 10.7 billion (US$280.5 million). On 30 November 2023, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a meeting with the military leadership in Zaporizhzhia, where they discussed the construction of fortifications on the contact line with the Russian forces. It was reported that in Kharkiv Oblast, this included the Kupiansk front, as well as the Kupiansk-Lyman defence line, as well as the whole of Kharkiv Oblast. Support UP or become our patron! Four motorcycle riders killed in weekend crashes on South Carolina roads, cops say At least four people were killed over the weekend when the motorcycles they were riding were involved in crashes, according to the South Carolina Highway Patrol. Four fatal crashes happened in a 56-hour span on South Carolina roads, according to the Highway Patrol. Three of the deadly wrecks involved motorcycles colliding with other vehicles, the Highway Patrol reported. Newberry County Crash One of the multi-vehicle wrecks happened in Newberry County, said Master Trooper Brandon Bolt. At about 4:45 a.m. on Friday, a 2009 Suzuki was driving north on U.S. 176 when the motorcycle collided with a 2002 Dodge SUV that turned left onto the road from Church Street, according to Bolt. The motorcycle rider, who was the only person on the Suzuki, was killed, while the SUV driver was not hurt, Bolt said. The Newberry County Coroners Office has not publicly identified the motorcycle rider. Officials did not say if the motorcycle rider was wearing a helmet. Greenwood County Crash There was another deadly wreck on a Midlands area road Friday night. This crash occurred at about 11 p.m. in Greenwood County, according to Cpl. David Jones. Both a 2003 Harley-Davidson motorcycle and a 2005 Honda Accord were driving east on S.C. 246, when the car made a U-turn and the vehicles collided, Jones said. The motorcycle rider was taken to an area hospital and later died, according to Jones. The Greenwood County Coroners Office said 56-year-old Stanley Marion Bell was the motorcycle rider, and blunt force trauma was the Ninety Six residents cause of death. There was no word if Bell was wearing a helmet. Jones said the car driver was not hurt, and no other injuries were reported. Kershaw County Crash There was another deadly motorcycle crash early Saturday morning. This wreck occurred at about 6 a.m. on S.C. 903/McBee Highway in Kershaw County, according to Lance Cpl. Brittany Glover. A man driving a 1991 Honda to Bike Week in Myrtle Beach died when the motorcycle ran off the road and crashed into a culvert, Kershaw County Coroner David West said. Tully Tillman, a 37-year-old Indian Land resident who was traveling alone, was taken to an area hospital where he died, according to West. Tillman was wearing a helmet, West said. Spartanburg County Crash Another fatal wreck happened Sunday in the Upstate region. At about 1:40 p.m., a 2005 Suzuki motorcycle was involved in a crash with a 2023 GMC SUV on U.S. 221 in Spartanburg County, according to Master Trooper William Bennett. The SUV was heading east on Davis Trading Post Road and turned left onto U.S. 221 where it collided with the northbound motorcycle, Bennett said. The Suzuki rider, who was the only person on the motorcycle, was taken to an area hospital and later died, according to Bennett. The Spartanburg County Coroners Office has not publicly identified the motorcycle rider. The SUV driver was also hurt and taken to the same hospital, Bennett said. Further information on the SUV drivers condition was not available. There was no word if the motorcycle rider was wearing a helmet. All of the crashes continue to be investigated by the Highway Patrol. Through last Thursday, 306 people had died on South Carolina roads in 2024, and 31 involved motorcycles, according to the state Department of Public Safety. Last year, 1,030 people died in crashes in South Carolina, and 124 of them were riding motorcycles, DPS reported. SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) Three adults, a child and a dog were injured in a multi-vehicle collision near Balboa Park Sunday morning, according to San Diego police. The crash was reported near the intersection of Balboa Drive and El Prado around 11 a.m. According to SDPD, officers were dispatched to the scene after receiving calls of a speeding car that crashed into several other vehicles, including two parked vehicles. The impact of the collision sent at least one vehicle into a grassy area where police say parkgoers were relaxing. Fortunately, SDPD said no one was hit. Motorcyclist, passenger die during police chase along Main Street in El Cajon Those who sustained injuries were all in vehicles involved in the crash. The child was transported to Rady Childrens Hospital as a precaution, while one of the drivers involved in the crash went to Scripps Mercy Hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries. The other two adults also sustained minor injuries, but it is unknown if they needed to be taken to a nearby hospital. It is also unclear whether the individuals were all in the same vehicle at the time of the collision. Were very fortunate that more people werent injured, SDPD Lt. Arturo Swadener told FOX 5/KUSI. The vehicle traveled through, there were a lot of people laying out. So were fortunate that there werent any more serious injuries. SDPDs Traffic Unit is investigating the collision. At this stage, authorities say they do not believe driving under the influence played a role in the crash. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 5 San Diego & KUSI News. In this photo provided by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, salvors with the Unified Command prepare charges for upcoming precision cuts to remove Section 4 from the port side of the bow of the Dali container ship, May 7, 2024, during the Key Bridge Response, in Baltimore. Debris and wreckage removal is ongoing in support of safely and efficiently opening the Fort McHenry Channel, following the Francis Scott Key Bridges March 26 collapse. | Christopher Rosario Removal of the Francis Scott Key Bridge wreckage has been delayed until Monday due to weather, after originally being planned for Friday. Sightings of lightning nearby worried officials enough to postpone the long-awaited project throughout the weekend. The removal is now scheduled for 5 p.m. on Monday afternoon, per ABC News. According to The Associated Press, weeks of planning have gone into preparing for the bridges demolition and removal, set to be done using explosives. The span of the bridge being demolished still rests upon the freighter Dali and measures nearly 500 feet long and weighs almost 600 tons. The removal and demolition efforts are being shepherded by Unified Command. On May 9, the United States Army Corps of Engineers said in a post to X that Unified Commands use of explosives will split the large section of truss at specific locations to create multiple smaller sections, allowing salvors to use cranes/barges already on scene to remove sections of the bridge and the M/V DALI from the channel. Though explosions may seem extreme, officials noted them to be the safest and most efficient way to remove steel under a high level of pressure and tension, per AP. We remain focused on restoring the Marine Transportation System, while ensuring the protection of the public and the environment, said Capt. David OConnell, Key Bridge Response federal on-scene coordinator, in a press release last week. By using precision cuts, we reduce risks to our personnel and can safely and efficiently continue clearing the channel for the Port of Baltimore. The Dali has been stuck underneath the fallen bridge since March, when the ship crashed into one of its columns. Once the bridge fell, it effectively closed off one of Baltimores busiest ports, as previously reported by the Deseret News. Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said in April that crews were working to remove debris and reopen the channel by the end of May, a timeline he called realistic and aggressive. After being freed from the wreckage of the bridge, the Dali will be refloated, officials said, per AP. The ships movement was planned for high tide on Tuesday, though with the delay to the demolition and removal of the bridge, its unclear whether this timeline still holds. South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noems (R) controversial new book faced a new hurdle Friday after a French government official questioned her account of a canceled meeting with President Emmanuel Macron, NBC News reported. Noem claimed in her recently released book that she made a last-second cancellation to plans to meet Macron over one of his statements that she said was anti-Israel. While in Paris, I was slated to meet with French president Emmanuel Macron, she wrote in the book. However, the day before we were to meet he made what I considered a very pro-Hamas and anti-Israel comment to the press. So, I decided to cancel. Macrons office told NBC News that there is no record of Noem ever being scheduled to meet the president, nor had she ever been invited. Noems spokesman told NBC News that the governor had been in Paris for a political conference in November 2023, and that she was invited to Macrons private box for the countrys Armistice Day parade. The dispute adds to a list of errors in the book, which also includes an anecdote of an improbable meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. There is no record of any meeting with Kim, and Noem said it should not have been included in the book, though she added it was not a fabricated story. The anecdote with Kim and a second story involving former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley were removed from the release version of the book by its publisher following the pushback. The book, No Going Back: The Truth on Whats Wrong with Politics and How We Move America Forward, was also scrutinized over a story that Noem had killed her 14-month-old hunting dog due to misbehavior. Noem has repeatedly doubled down on the decision to shoot and kill the dog, despite widespread criticism, claiming the act was for the safety of others. The blunders in the book release come as Noem is believed to be a finalist to be former President Trumps running mate. It is believed that Noem cut a media and appearance tour for the book short last week due to the backlash, and political commentators believe the snafu may have tanked her chances to be on Trumps ticket. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. French actress and activist Judith Godreche is among a group of protestors who have set up a demonstration outside the CNC in Paris this morning calling for the organizations head Dominique Boutonnat to be suspended. Images of the protest began circulating widely on social media this morning and show Godreche alongside other demonstrators holding a banner outside the CNC that reads Separate the man from the CNC. More from Deadline Rassemblement devant le CNC pour demander la suspension de Dominique Boutonnat. pic.twitter.com/9O8zwCltIB Lara Clerc (@lara_clerc) May 13, 2024 We first reported on impromptu plans by French industry insiders to host a demonstration at the CNC against Boutonnat yesterday alongside a petition that was launched also calling for his dismissal. The petition was launched by an anonymous group of activists Sunday afternoon who have said they belong to several French industry unions, including Collectif 50/50 and CGT Spectacle. The petition is private, so it is not possible to see who has signed. But the total number now sits at 1300. The petition refers to two recent articles in the French newspaper Liberation, which explore the legal trial Boutonnat is set to face in June over sexual assault allegations. Boutonnat has been under investigation for two years after being indicted in February 2021 for an alleged sexual assault. In September 2022, the case was taken to trial. Boutonnat denies all charges. If Dominique Boutonnat benefits from the presumption of innocence, it nevertheless seems essential to us that our main institution sets an example, the petition reads. At a time when we are questioning our practices, and when a commission of inquiry into sexist and sexual violence and harassment in our professions has just been voted on, we regret that the incongruity of this situation ends up definitively discrediting his action and the proposals he is about to make. The petition ends: The whole of society is watching us. Our progress, our revolutions will benefit everyone. Lets live up to it. Boutonnat was first appointed CNC President in 2019. Frances government then gave him a second term in 2022 after his indictment. The controversial appointment came after Frances new Culture Minister Rima Abdul Malak expressed her support for him. His current term runs down next year. Best of Deadline Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Shayle Terry holds her hand over her heart as she stands behind her fathers casket at Santaquin City Cemetery in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser was hit and killed by a semitruck driver on May 5 while assisting a Utah Highway Patrol trooper with a traffic stop. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News Courtney Hooser is getting married in September. But her father, Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser, wont be there. Im completely broken, she said, fighting emotions during her fathers funeral. My dad no longer gets to walk me down the aisle. ... I will never understand why this happened. On Monday, family members, co-workers, city and state leaders, as well as police officers from across the state and across the country, paid their final respects to Hooser, who was killed in the line of duty a little over a week ago. During an emotional ceremony in Orem at Utah Valley Universitys UCCU Event Center, the two personas of Bill Hooser were remembered Cop Bill, the by-the-book law enforcer who became the best instructor the Santaquin Police Department ever had and revamped how new officers are trained in the field; and Bill Bill, or simply Dad, a dedicated husband, father and grandfather who, when he wasnt working, loved being in the outdoors and with his family. My dad loved being a girl dad, his oldest daughter, Shayle Terry, told the congregation. She recalled how her father went to every dance recital and gymnastics practice she and her sister had, learned all the cheers of their cheerleading squad and would go dress shopping with them for dances. She also recalled how her father met his future wife, Kinda Edwards, at a young age, and how the two quickly became inseparable. She was his world, and he was hers, Terry said. And when it came to his job, Being in law enforcement set his soul on fire. The most emotional speech of the ceremony came from Hoosers youngest daughter, Courtney Hooser, who said she had been filled with anger, sadness, grief and confusion since her brother-in-law, also a police officer, arrived on her front porch on the morning of May 5 to deliver the tragic news. It will be a day I will never forget, she said while trying to hold back her tears. Courtney Hooser said in preparing a speech for the funeral, she ended up scrolling through old text conversations with her father. I keep wishing for just one more story for him, she said. My dad is nothing short of a hero. Im so grateful to be raised by such an admirable man. Members of the Orem Fire Department watch arrivals for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hoosers funeral at the UCCU Center at Utah Valley University in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Brian Nilson hugs his wife Ruth next to Nate and Kim Terry of Santaquin Fire and EMS in the parking lot at the UCCU Center at Utah Valley University for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hoosers funeral in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Lt. Cameron Stiver of Ogden shines his motorcycle upon his arrival at the UCCU Center for Santaquin Sgt. Bill Hoosers funeral in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Park City police officers pin blue ribbons to their uniforms upon their arrival at the UCCU Center for Santaquin Sgt. Bill Hoosers funeral in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Roger Beckman of Santaquin Fire and EMS gives instructions for the teams salute before the procession at UCCU Center for Santaquin Sgt. Bill Hoosers funeral in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. Beckman emphasized attention to detail stating, This is what matters to the family, they will remember this years later. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Police motorcycles are seen parked at the UCCU Center for Santaquin Sgt. Bill Hoosers funeral in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Willy Rivera salutes as a procession for Santaquin Sgt. Bill Hooser passes through Center Street in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Members of law enforcement salute as a procession arrives at the UCCU Center for Santaquin Sgt. Bill Hoosers funeral in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News A flag is pictured as a procession for Santaquin Sgt. Bill Hooser passes through Center Street in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Members of Santaquin Fire and EMS salute as a procession arrives at the UCCU Center for Santaquin Sgt. Bill Hoosers funeral in Orem on Sunday. May 12, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Community members line the road as a procession for Santaquin Sgt. Bill Hooser passes through Center Street in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Drew Bulow and Zackery Prior salute as a procession for Santaquin Sgt. Bill Hooser passes through Center Street in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Community members line the road as a procession for Santaquin Sgt. Bill Hooser passes through Center Street in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Deirdre Edwards and her daughter Harper hold flags as a procession for Santaquin Sgt. Bill Hooser passes through Center Street in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Community members line the road as a procession for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser passes through Center Street in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News A procession for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser passes through Center Street in Santaquin on Monday, May 12, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Community members line the road as a procession for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser passes through Center Street in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Roger Beckman of Santaquin Fire and EMS fixes fire chief Ryan Linds pins in the parking lot of the UCCU Center at Utah Valley University for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hoosers funeral in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Members of the Orem Fire Department tie a flag as people arrive for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hoosers funeral at the UCCU Center at Utah Valley University in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News People arrive for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hoosers funeral at the UCCU Center at Utah Valley University in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Law enforcement arrives escorting the hearse for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hoosers funeral at the UCCU Center at Utah Valley University in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Members of the Santaquin Fire and EMS hug at Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hoosers funeral at the UCCU Center at Utah Valley University in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Roger Beckman of Santaquin Fire and EMS checks his tie as fire chief Ryan Lind ties his own in the parking lot at the UCCU Center at Utah Valley University for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hoosers funeral in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News A pin for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser is seen before his funeral at the UCCU Center at Utah Valley University in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Elaine Hee helps her husband Bellamann with his pin for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hoosers funeral at the UCCU Center at Utah Valley University in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Marielle Scott, Deseret News Ashley Dowd, Bill Hoosers niece, asked the crowd to give her uncle one last round of applause, which turned into a standing ovation as the clapping from the audience echoed throughout the arena. From a professional side, Santaquin Police Lt. Mike Wall called Hooser irreplaceable. Bill was about as squared away as you could get as an officer, he said, while also calling him a phenomenal field training officer. He really cared about making sure those (young officers) were squared away and kept them safe and returned home to their families. Wall said Hooser wanted all the officers he oversaw to serve at the highest level. Bill demanded excellence and he would not stop with anything less, he said. It saddens me to know no matter how hard I look, or how far I go, I will never be able to replace Sgt. Hooser. He truly, truly was irreplaceable. A peacekeeper, a friend, and really was a one-of-a-kind guy. Santaquin Police Chief Rodney Hurst echoed those sentiments, calling Hooser the best field training officer Ive ever seen who personally revamped the entire training program. But Hurst says over the past couple of weeks, he also learned of the special bond Hooser had with his wife and daughters, and he admitted he is envious of the relationship Bill Hooser had with his wife Kinda. I am so inspired by the Hooser family, the chief said. Even Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said the tight bond between the couple was evident from the first time he spoke with the family. To hear Kinda, Bills wife, talk about their love affair, their first date when she was 17, how scared she was, when there was hard times in their family, when they lost their job and didnt know what to do and where to go and found the law enforcement community and their calling and their purpose. We lost a good one, the governor said of Hooser. Cox also recounted how theres nothing like having to make the call to a family who has lost a loved one in the line of duty. I hope no one ever has to make that call and I wish I never had to make that call and, at the same time, I wish everyone got an opportunity to listen in to that call, he said Monday. But Cox said even after receiving the horrible news, the Hooser family never second-guessed the late career switch Bill Hooser made. Instead, his wife told the governor during his call to her, We are a law enforcement family. There was so much courage and strength on that call. ... They didnt lament that he chose law enforcement, that the very calling that they found their place ended up costing them their husband and father, that wasnt their lament. They were so proud of what he did and how he did it, and the other people who do it. I hope all of us can leave better people today and more committed to finding our own calling, the governor said. Sgt. Bill Hooser is a hero. My prayer for all of us is we will learn from his life. Hundreds attend the interment ceremony for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser at Santaquin City Cemetery in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. Hooser was hit and killed by a semitruck driver on May 5 while assisting a Utah Highway Patrol trooper with a traffic stop. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News A Santaquin police officer puts his gloves on Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hoosers casket at Santaquin City Cemetery in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. Hooser was hit and killed by a semitruck driver on May 5 while assisting a Utah Highway Patrol trooper with a traffic stop. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News Hundreds attend the internment ceremony for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser at Santaquin City Cemetery in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. Hooser was hit and killed by a semitruck driver on May 5 while assisting a Utah Highway Patrol trooper with a traffic stop. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News Helicopters fly over the interment ceremony for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser at Santaquin City Cemetery in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. Hooser was hit and killed by a semitruck driver on May 5 while assisting a Utah Highway Patrol trooper with a traffic stop. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News A motorcade escorts the body of Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser to the Santaquin City Cemetery in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. Hooser was hit and killed by a semitruck driver on May 5 while assisting a Utah Highway Patrol trooper with a traffic stop. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News A motorcade escorts the body of Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser to the Santaquin City Cemetery in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. Hooser was hit and killed by a semitruck driver on May 5 while assisting a Utah Highway Patrol trooper with a traffic stop. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News A motorcade escorts the body of Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser to the Santaquin City Cemetery in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. Hooser was hit and killed by a semitruck driver on May 5 while assisting a Utah Highway Patrol trooper with a traffic stop. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News Kinda Hooser, flanked by her daughters, cries at the interment ceremony for her husband, Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser, at Santaquin City Cemetery in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. Hooser was hit and killed by a semitruck driver on May 5 while assisting a Utah Highway Patrol trooper with a traffic stop. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News Bagpipers and a motorcade escort the body of Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser to the Santaquin City Cemetery in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. Hooser was hit and killed by a semitruck driver on May 5 while assisting a Utah Highway Patrol trooper with a traffic stop. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News Pallbearers escort Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser to his grave site at Santaquin City Cemetery in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. Hooser was hit and killed by a semitruck driver on May 5 while assisting a Utah Highway Patrol trooper with a traffic stop. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News A Utah Highway Patrol trooper plays "Taps" at the interment ceremony for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser at Santaquin City Cemetery in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. Hooser was hit and killed by a semitruck driver on May 5 while assisting a Utah Highway Patrol trooper with a traffic stop. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News A motorcade escorts the body of Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser through the Santaquin City Cemetery in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. Hooser was hit and killed by a semitruck driver on May 5 while assisting a Utah Highway Patrol trooper with a traffic stop. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News Flags hang near the Santaquin City Cemetery in Santaquin on Monday, May 13, 2024. Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser was hit and killed by a semitruck driver on May 5 while assisting a Utah Highway Patrol trooper with a traffic stop. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News Police officers from across the state formed a cordon of honor stretching from the events center and across the parking at the conclusion of the services. A procession led by dozens of bagpipers and drummers led Hoosers casket, draped with an American flag, to the awaiting hearse. From there, a long police escort would take the casket to Hoosers final resting place at the Santaquin City Cemetery. Highway overpasses were lined with servicemen and servicewomen saluting the fallen officer. The streets leading to the UCCU Center in Orem and on Main Street in Santaquin were lined with blue ribbons American flags and residents honoring the man who helped keep their community safe. This kind of stuff just doesnt happen here, said Sean Steele, who has lived in Santaquin for 27 years. Well let them know we back the blue. Steele lives across the street from the Santaquin City Cemetery, where hundreds of first responders brought Hoosers body to rest on Monday afternoon. Ray Campbell of Santaquin was heartbroken about Hoosers death. It has put a cloud over our whole community, she said. Im sad it took all this to happen for us to all be loud about our support for police officers. At the gravesite, Hooser was honored with bagpipes playing Amazing Grace and a 21-gun salute. Just a sobering reminder of that thin blue line that stands between us and the bad guys and the people that are willing to step forward and serve and pay the ultimate sacrifice, Cox said. Its just been remarkable to see the depth of sorrow and the height of compassion as people have all come together to help them, not just the family but the chief of police, the mayor and the other officers, to see the other agencies step up so they can have time with their families to mourn, thats pretty impressive. Hooser was born in Cleburne, Texas. He was the second of seven children. His family moved to Utah in 1984. Hoosers first real job was framing, his family said. He gained a passion for building and carpentry. He built furniture pieces to rival master craftsmen. But about 10 years ago, while living in New Mexico, Bill joined the volunteer reserve deputies for the San Juan County Sheriffs Office and developed a passion for service. It was then he decided to make a career switch and become a police officer. Hooser started his police career eight years ago with the San Juan County Sheriffs Office in New Mexico. In 2017, he returned to his native Utah and became an officer with the Santaquin Police Department. In February, Hooser, 50, was promoted to the rank of sergeant. On May 5, while assisting a Utah Highway Patrol trooper with a traffic stop involving a semitruck and 53-foot trailer, Hooser was killed when police say the semi driver intentionally rammed into both his police car and the troopers vehicle and also hit Hooser. The suspect made a U-turn abruptly, deliberately hitting officers and intentionally hitting both vehicles. He also struck the Santaquin officer, causing fatal injuries, said Spanish Fork Police Lt. Cory Slaymaker. The suspected driver, Michael Aaron Jayne, 42, was arrested a few hours later in Vernal after allegedly stealing another semitruck and two other vehicles. He was hospitalized with injuries he suffered after crashing on U.S. 40. Jayne was released from the hospital and booked into the Utah County Jail on Saturday. As of Monday, formal charges had not yet been filed against him. Family members said Hooser wasnt even scheduled to work that Sunday morning but had agreed to fill in for another officer. Without mentioning him by name, Cox on Monday called Jayne an evil human being and despicable, while also honoring the officer and UHP troopers who risked their lives that day. There are heroes all among us every day doing this kind of work, he said while encouraging Utahns not to take for granted the unsung work that officers do every day. Contributing: Emma Everett Johnson The casket of Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser is carried by pallbearers toward the waiting hearse outside the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Kinda Hooser walks with her daughter Shayle Terry, holding granddaughter Paxton, and daughter Courtney Hooser as they follow the casket of Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser after funeral services in the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News The hearse follows law enforcement officers as the procession gets underway after funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser at the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Courtney Hooser gives a tribute to her father at funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser in the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Payson officer Jake Terry, who is a son-in-law, salutes the casket after helping to place it in the hearse after funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser at the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Officers from around the state and nation gather in an honor line after funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser in the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Ashley Dowd, a niece, asks everyone to give one last ovation as she gives a poem at funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser in the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Santaquin Police Lt. Mike Wall gives the eulogy at funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser in the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Breanna Davis, who is the daughter of a retired Orem police officer, shows her support as the procession passes following funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser at the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News The American flag is reflected in the windshield of a Santaquin Police truck as the procession moves out after funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser at the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News The hearse follows law enforcement officers as the procession gets underway after funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser at the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser in the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Family members and officers hug after funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser at the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News The casket of Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser is brought out of the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem after funeral services on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News The carnation and thin blue line ribbon boutonniere worn by Payson officer Jake Terry, who is also a son-in-law, after funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser in the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News A pallbearers carnation and thin blue line ribbon after funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser at the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Family and loved ones attend tuneral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser in the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Officers salute as the casket is brought in for funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser in the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Gov. Spencer Cox speaks to media prior to funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser at the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Family photos and other items are displayed at funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser in the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Family and loved ones attend tuneral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser in the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Officers salute as the casket is brought in for funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser in the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Officers salute as the casket is brought in for funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser in the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Officers salute as the casket is brought in for funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser in the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Officers salute as the casket is brought in for funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser in the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Officers salute as the casket is brought in for funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser in the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Officers stand guard at the side of the casket during funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser in the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Officers stand guard at the side of the casket during funeral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser in the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News Family and loved ones attend tuneral services for Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser in the UCCU Center at UVU in Orem on Monday, May 13, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News GA inmate used Facebook to traffic meth from jail cell. Now, he could be there for another 15 yrs A Georgia inmate will spend at least another 15 years in jail after he pleaded guilty last week to trafficking meth from his jail cell. Christopher Johnson, 46, along with others, conspired to traffic and distribute multiple kilograms of methamphetamine from Georgia into Southwest Virginia, the U.S. Attorneys Office said in a news release. TRENDING STORIES: Johnson is said to have used Facebook and text messages on multiple cell phones to communicate with others to coordinate methamphetamine pricing, quantities, recruitment, sales, and deliveries, all while in his Georgia jail cell. Michael Paul Brown, who was also involved in the ring, has already been sentenced to three years in prison for his role in the operation. Johnson faces a minimum of 15 years in prison and could possibly be sentenced to life. So far, no sentencing date has been announced. IN OTHER NEWS: GA mom dead, kids rushed to hospital after being attacked by dogs days before Mothers Day A South Georgia mother is dead and two of her children were rushed to a nearby hospital after investigators said they were attacked by a group of dogs. The incident happened Thursday evening around 4:45 p.m. along Webster Road in Quitman, Georgia. Deputies with the Brooks County Sheriffs Office were called out to the property after getting calls that children had been attacked by the dogs. By the time they arrived, someone had already rushed the kids to the hospital but deputies then found the body of Courtney Williams, 35. Neighbors said they were heartbroken over hearing what happened. TRENDING STORIES: I do feel for the family and for the kids because now they are going to have to celebrate Mothers Day without their mother, a neighbor told WALB-TV, asking not to be identified. Some people who live nearby told the TV station that they have been complaining to the county about the need for more animal control. People dump dogs all over the county and no one can get help with them because theres no county animal control. Praying for this womans family. This is so sad, a person told the TV station, not identifying themselves. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation has now taken up the case at the request of the sheriffs Office. Williams body has been sent for an autopsy to determine her cause of death. The GBI is still trying to determine who owns the dogs. IN OTHER NEWS: A local voice will be joining a statewide effort to provide shelter to veterans in Massachusetts. In March, the Healey-Driscoll Administration announced a $20 million campaign to end veteran homelessness, with one of the five pillars being an advisory council that would provide guidance and support to achieve the goal of the initiative. Stephanie Marchetti, executive director of the Montachusett Veterans Outreach Center (MVOC) in Gardner, has been appointed to the End Veteran Homelessness Advisory Council, officials announced on May 8. This is a very important appointment for both me and MVOC, Marchetti said. It shows both the governors investment in our veterans and also the administrations dedication to making sure veterans across the state have a voice. Im very honored to have been identified for this group and I look forward to working with the administration on this initiative. Montachusett Veterans Outreach Center Executive Director Stephanie Marchetti has been appointed to an advisory council established by the Healey-Driscoll Administration to study the problem of veteran homelessness in Massachusetts. Council to advise on policy initiatives, proposed regulations The council, which will meet for the first time in June, is tasked with advising on policy initiatives, new regulations, and innovations in programming that will support the campaign, Marchetti said. I look forward to seeing where I fit in and what areas Ill need to speak loudly on, she said. I anticipate that the lack of affordable housing in all regions of the state, and the connected need for capital funding to build more housing, will be a focus area of mine. "I also look forward to speaking on the complicated system folks have to navigate to obtain affordable housing. Its my hope that we can take a look at this process and see where simplifications can be made. More: Montachusett Veterans Outreach Center's 'rescue' revealed for NBC show - what we know Marchetti said her role as executive director of MVOC, which operates 50 units of veteran housing in Gardner and Winchendon and serves over 700 veterans annually, puts her in a position to speak accurately about the needs of veterans in the region. As many people know, MVOC is embarking on a housing expansion project in Winchendon, she said. We anticipate breaking ground on the project later this summer, after spending four years on pre-development work, and I plan to voice lessons learned on that project to the council in the hopes it will help future housing projects move forward more quickly. Rising cost of living contributing to veteran homelessness There are currently between 500 and 600 homeless veterans across the state, Marchetti said. Id venture to guess a large majority of this population is located closer to the Boston area because that is where the largest shelters are, but that doesnt mean there isnt still a problem with veteran homelessness in our region, she said. The cost of living is soaring, and the veteran population has unique and complicated backgrounds that often require a high level of supportive services to retain housing. More: New program at Gardner District Court aims to get veterans on the right track In addition to the advisory council, the campaign will include four pillars designed to address the multifaceted challenges faced by homeless veterans: the Homelessness Outreach to Placement Effort (HOPE), an initiative to engage directly with homeless veterans and facilitate their placement into stable housing; capital investments supporting veteran housing; the allocation of funds to veteran service providers to assist veterans experiencing housing instability; and an initiative to provide technical assistance to veteran service providers. The campaign represents the largest targeted investment to address veteran homelessness in state history, according to officials. The goal behind the campaign is to make Massachusetts a state where veteran homelessness rates reach a level of functional zero, a federal term meaning a system where homelessness is rare, brief, and non-recurring. This article originally appeared on Gardner News: MVOC's Stephanie Marchetti joins End Veterans Homelessness Council Seven years after a 22-year-old woman died from a drug overdose, the man who supplied the drugs that killed her was sentenced to prison. Reginald Webb, 33, of Garner will spend the next 16 1/2 years in federal prison for distributing heroin and fentanyl in the Raleigh area. Webb was the source of the fentanyl distributed to the young woman, who overdosed twice on drugs he supplied within two days, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a news release. The second overdose was fatal. The woman was not identified in the release. Webb pleaded guilty in January, while two of his co-defendants, Amanda McLeod and Treveris Coward, pleaded guilty in 2021 and 2022 for distributing a quantity of fentanyl to the woman who died. They are both waiting for sentencing. Two overdoses in two days On April 10, 2017, the woman suffered a non-fatal drug overdose after taking drugs laced with fentanyl, distributed by McLeod and sourced by Webb, the department said. McLeod contacted Coward and Webb to revive the woman. The next day, court documents show, the woman bought heroin from McLeod. She withdrew money from a Food Lion and got into a car driven by McLeod and accompanied by Coward, the department said. Raleigh police responded to a call that day for a suspected overdose death an found the woman. An investigation found Webb was the source behind the fatal drugs. The investigation uncovered another case from 2016 where a young man suffered a non-fatal overdose and identified Webb as his supplier, the release stated. In addition, a confidential informant bought heroin from Webb in 2015. Webb was arrested in March of 2017 after a traffic stop in Duplin County, in which 18 bindles of heroin found in his underwear. Bindles are small, wrapped amounts of heroin meant for street sales. Drug dealers who lace fentanyl into their supply and prey on vulnerable individuals who have an addiction should know that the U.S. Attorneys Office will use every tool available to seek justice for victims of fentanyl poisoning and their families, U.S. Attorney Michael Easley said in the release. Webbs actions show a complete disregard for human life motivated by sheer greed. NC drug overdoses decline but remain high Last year, there were over 4,000 suspected opioid overdoses in North Carolina, according to the N.C. Office of the State Medical Examiner. In March, there were 267 suspected overdose deaths in North Carolina and 1,176 overdoses reported in emergency rooms involving medicine or drugs with dependency factors. That same month, 544 non-fatal opioid overdoses were reported in North Carolina emergency rooms, which was down 32% from last January to March when there were 826 non-fatal opioid overdoses. Gaza war to determine lives of Israelis for decades, says Gallant Defence Minister of Israel Yoav Gallant speaks during a memorial ceremony for Israel's fallen and victims of terrorism. Shachar Yurman/Defense Ministry/dpa The outcome of the ongoing Gaza war between Israel and the Palestinian extremist organization Hamas will determine the lives of Israelis in the coming decades, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said on Monday. "This is a war with no alternative," said Gallant during a speech to mark the country's official memorial day to commemorate its fallen soldiers. "This is a war that will continue until we return our hostages, smash Hamas' rule and its military capabilities, and return the State of Israel to its prosperity and creativity and bring back a smile to citizens' faces," the minister said. Israel began its military campaign to eliminate Hamas following the unprecedented October 7 attacks on southern Israel when the Hamas-led militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took a further 250 people hostage to the Gaza Strip. Israel responded with massive airstrikes and launched a ground offensive into the sealed-off coastal area at the end of October. Some 35,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war so far, according to Gaza's Hamas-controlled health authority. Gallant said one of the aims of the Israeli military campaign was to enable the roughly 250,000 Israeli citizens who had to leave their homes near Gaza and Lebanon, amid fighting with the Shiite Hezbollah militia, to return. Israel marked its annual Memorial Day for the Fallen Soldiers of the Wars of Israel and Victims of Actions of Terrorism on Monday. According to the Defence Ministry, more than 25,000 soldiers and and Jewish fighters have been killed in conflict since 1860. The count begins with the immigration of Jews into what is now Israel, long before the founding of the state in 1948. Sirens sounded for two minutes across the country on Monday morning to commemorate the dead. Since October 7, more than 700 Israeli security forces have been killed, including 620 soldiers, according to the Defence Ministry. The figures include both those killed by militants in the October 7 attacks and during the Gaza war. Hearst Owned The worldand Cosmopolitanhas given a lot of air time to the fact that we need more women in office, and major efforts to get them there are working: An unprecedented number of women have now been elected to national, state, and local positions. For the most part, though, thats where the story has stopped. But what about what happens nextwhats it like for these women once they actually start their jobs? Sure, we as voters can get them elected, but are we doing enough to make them successful? Early last year, Cosmopolitan, in partnership with Pivotal Ventures, set out to answer this question for How to Succeed in Office, our project that details the hurdles elected women faceand how everyone should be invested in getting them the help they need. After months of reporting, we were ready to ask another big question: How do you feel about all this? So in January 2024, we commissioned a nationally representative survey of more than 2,100 people ages 18 and older to understand how American women think about their counterparts in political positions. And you hada lot to say. For starters, pretty much everyone thinks the entire country would be better off if more women held office. And nearly 9 in 10 of you agree that its important for your own lives that elected women are able to do their jobs well. (The groups most likely to feel this way are LGBTQ+ women at 96 percent, and millennial women at 91 percent.) Honestly, given the state of our post-Dobbs world, this tracks. (Cue: a not-so-subtle reminder to VOTE this fall, even if things feel bleak.) Another result that tracks for any woman living pretty much anywhere these days: The most significant barrier to success you think elected women face is sexism. Women of color feel strongly on this front (54 percent would expect to face sexism in an elected job), and Black women in particular are more likely than white women (46 versus 31 percent) to believe its very challenging for women in office to be successful at their jobs, period. Black women (59 percent) are also more likely than Hispanic women (47 percent) and white women (45 percent) to say female politicians are criticized much more often than male ones are by their peers. More surprising are responses that show a notable divide in how different generations are wrapping their heads around the tough jobs elected women haveas well as responses that illustrate a pretty damn deep understanding of a political world that can be outright hostile to women. Take a look at some highlights right here: Gen Z Can See the Threats Clearly The generation thats been online since day one is all too familiar with the way the world treats women in powerand it knows just how terrifying that can be, especially after the recent surge in violent harassment against elected officials. Forty percent of Gen Z women (compared with 25 percent of boomer women and 30 percent of both Gen X and millennial women) say threats to physical safety are a problem for women in local elected office. Thirty-six percent (compared with 21 percent of boomers and about 29 percent of both Gen X and millennials) say the same about threats to psychological safety. And nearly 50 percent of Gen Z women, more than any other generation, think that protections against these threats would better help women in office succeed. Hearst Owned In fact, for a significant number of Gen Z women, political violence could be a deal-breaker when considering running for office themselves. About 30 percent believe theyd personally face physical or psychological threats were they to be elected to office in their communities. Gen Z and Millennials Are Worried About the Kids (and Their Parents) Holding elected office and having a family? These generations think its a stretch. More than other age groups, they point to lack of parental leave or support as reasons elected women cant fully succeed at their jobs. (Kind of illuminating, no? That those perhaps less likely to currently have kids feel the strongest about this: Around 40 percent of both Gen Z and millennial women versus 34 percent of Gen X and just 24 percent of boomer women.) A lack of childcare support also stings, according to 45 percent of Gen Z and 43 percent of millennial women (versus 34 percent of Gen X and 32 percent of boomer women). To the point where around 11 percent of both Gen Z and millennial women say it would be impossible for them personally to succeed in a local office that didnt come with paid parental leave or childcare. Everyone Is So Over the Establishment And the help it doesnt provide. After sexism, American women chose a lack of support from political establishments as the biggest barrier to elected womens success. If youre wondering whether these top two pain points are related, the answer is of courseespecially with our political system often doubling as an old boys club. Hearst Owned Forty-four percent of American women believe that if they ever found themselves in elected office, political institutions would hold them back rather than help them. And nearly the same percent feel like being one of the only elected women at work would hinder their ability to do their jobs. Could this be the reason just 28 percent of Congress is female and women hold a majority in only one state legislature (shout-out to Nevada!)? Yes. You All Know Whats Needed Next Okay, absolutely, your votes. But beyond that: A majority of American womenincluding 60 percent of women of colorbelieve that higher salaries for elected women would help more of them succeed. Gen Z (54 percent) and millennial women (49 percent) in particular think inadequate pay is detrimental to a job well done (news flash: Some of your elected representatives are out there carrying annual salaries of $0.) Forty-two percent of women think a lack of funding would pose a challenge if they ever found themselves in an elected position. Gen Z and millennial women again feel strongly about this, with 44 percent of both groups citing inadequate pay as a real potential obstacle. So if our goal is even more women in officeand enabling those women to actually succeed at their jobsits time for everyone (and not just women) to think about donating in whatever way we can. Khadija Horton/Getty Images Hearst Owned GIVE MONEY Photo credit: Hearst Owned Compared to men, its harder for women in office to raise funds, and donating to their efforts does more than just keep them afloat: Raised funds can increase their retention rates, which in turn impacts their ability to acquire leadership positions and to support new candidates, says Debbie Walsh, director of the Center for American Women and Politics. Visit WomenCount.org to get started. SHOW UP Photo credit: Hearst Owned Lending your IRL support at, say, local school board meetings or state legislature hearings can give elected women much-needed encouragement, says Denise Feriozzi, cofounder and executive director of the Pipeline Fund. Your virtual presence can be just as impactful, since elected women are faced with significantly more online harassment than elected men.If you see somebody being unfairly attacked, use your online platform to defend them, says Lauren Leader, cofounder and CEO of All In Together, a womens civic education organization. On a tactical level, this stuff can be really powerful. GET INVOLVED Photo credit: Hearst Owned Elected women, especially those of color and/or in the LGBTQ+ community, are often the first or the only; its an incredibly isolating experience, says Nilofar Ganjaie, national political director at the Pipeline Fund, a network of organizations and strategists dedicated to getting diverse leaders elected. Follow and support groups like Local Progress (a movement of local elected officials who advocate for racial and economic justice), School Board Partners (a nonprofit that supports and trains school board members), and Vote Mama. PITCH IN Photo credit: Hearst Owned Find out who your local officials are and offer to support them...as people. Bring someone dinner so she doesnt have to worry about that, or offer childcare on the Tuesday nights her council meets, suggests Walsh. Adds Leader: Every way in which youre able to step forward and ease the burden for someone thats working hard is valuable. Hearst Owned Photo credit: Hearst Owned Its endgame: To urge the government to adopt policies that promote womens political participation and reduce violence against women in politics. Photo credit: Hearst Owned It calls for the Senate to ratify the United Nations CEDAW treatythe Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. Photo credit: Hearst Owned It would let House members attend proceedings remotely and vote by proxy when theyre dealing with a childs or their own serious medical condition, including any pregnancy-related one. Photo credit: Hearst Owned Were this to pass, any House member whos recently given birth could designate a colleague to vote on their behalf for up to six weeks after having a baby. You Might Also Like General Mills honors APS worker with her own Wheaties box ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) An employee working at Albuquerque Public Schools received a rare honor by getting her face on a box of Wheaties. Sandra Kemp, Executive Director of Food and Nutrition Service at APS, was named a Trayblazer by General Mills. New Mexico looking for summer reading instructors The award is given to people who go above and beyond to feed kids in their community. The cereal company recognized Kemp for overseeing a team that 77,000 meals a day to kids in New Mexico. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRQE NEWS 13 - Breaking News, Albuquerque News, New Mexico News, Weather, and Videos. As a lifelong resident of the 77th House District, I have dedicated my life to making sure those living in our community and across the commonwealth have the resources they need and the laws they deserve. I have stood on the front lines to make equality and justice a reality from the courthouse to the Capitol, and I have been a strong voice for those who struggle to feel heard. These goals are why I pursued a career in public service first as a member of the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council and, for the last decade, as one of our countys state representatives and I am eager to continue this good fight for the next two years. Experience matters, and so do relationships within state government. I have an abundance of both. I chair the Kentucky Black Legislative Caucus; serve on the prestigious House Appropriations & Revenue Committee; and have sponsored numerous bills designed to reduce gun violence, restore reproductive healthcare services and boost civil rights that have been denied too long for too many. I also have secured needed projects for our community, like the upcoming Citation Boulevard extension between Russell Cave Road and Newtown Pike. Fayette County has long been a beacon for Kentucky, a place where you wont find a better quality of life. Our work is not done, though, which is why I am asking the voters of the 77th House District for the chance to serve them once again and build on a proven record. George Brown is running for reelection as the representative from the 77th House District. The leader of a wide-ranging methamphetamine conspiracy has pleaded guilty to running the operation from inside a Georgia prison. Christopher David Johnson, 46, pleaded guilty last week in federal court to distributing 500 grams or more of meth. He is facing a minimum sentence of 15 years in prison and a maximum of life behind bars. According to court documents, Johnson conspired with multiple individuals including Michael Paul Brown, who was sentenced last week to 15 years in prison for his role in a conspiracy to distribute meth from Georgia to Southwest Virginia. From prison, Johnson used multiple cellphones to direct the operation. He also communicated regularly with his co-conspirators by using both Facebook and text messaging, coordinating pricing, quantities, sales, and deliveries of the drug. The $36.1 billion state budget Gov. Brian Kemp signed last week includes $10.7 million for a technology upgrade inside state prisons to stem the flow of cellphones and other contraband being smuggled in to inmates. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and multiple law enforcement agencies in Georgia, Tennessee, and Virginia investigated Johnsons case. Johnsons guilty plea came in federal court in Abingdon, Va. Georgia motorcyclist killed in crash at Florida bike rally just days before his wedding A Georgia motorcyclist was killed in a crash at a Florida bike rally days before his wedding, according to his fiance. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] Rodney Grizzle, 31, of Summerville, was at the Thunder Beach Motorcycle Rally in Panama City Beach on May 4 when he and his fiance, Mai Smith, were involved in an accident. TRENDING STORIES: Smith reached out to Chanel 2 Action News and said the couple was hit by a car that drove off. This coward who hit us and ran off has turned our world upside down, Smith said. Rodney was the best person I ever met in my life. My best friend, my backbone. He was loved by many. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] Grizzle and Smith were set to be married on May 11. According to his obituary, Grizzle was a devoted father to one son. He was buried on Friday, the day before he was supposed to get married. Police said its unclear if the crash involved just Griffiths motorcycle or if another vehicle was involved and left the scene. Police are asking anyone who witnessed the crash to come forward. Thunder Beach is a four-day event for motorcyclists and fans. This year, two people, including Grizzle, were killed at the event. The crash is still under investigation. Anyone with information is asked to call the Traffic Homicide Investigation Team at 850-233-5000 or sending Panama City Beach Police a message. Georgia politicians throw support behind bill to help first responders buy first home Sen. Jon Ossoff and Rep. Sanford D. Bishop Jr. visited Columbus Monday afternoon to show support for the Homes for Every Local Protector, Educator, and Responder (HELPER) Act. The HELPER Act, if passed, would seek to help first responders and teachers who are first-time homebuyers, according to the bill. Eligible individuals could receive a first-time mortgage on a primary residence with no down payment, according to the bill summary on congress.gov. Ossoff and Bishop stood in the Public Safety Building surrounded by local officials, including Columbus Police Chief Stoney Mathis, Muscogee County Sheriff Greg Countryman, and Columbus Fire & EMS Chief Sal Scarpa. Ossoff gave an update stating that the HELPER Act currently has 25 bipartisan co-sponsors in the senate and around 130 co-sponsors in the House of Representatives. Ossoff said public servants arent doing their jobs for the money but because theyre committed to the public. They make financial sacrifices in serving the public and they put their lives on the line in serving the public, he said. This is a question of fairness, added Ossoff. In a fair country public servants can afford a home in the communities they serve, he continued. Ossoff said it makes it more difficult to form bonds of trust, understanding and communication when law enforcement, firefighters, and teachers cant afford to live in the communities they serve. We lean on the sacrifices and the bravery of our everyday hardworking Americans like these folks right here, Bishop said. He followed by stating, We can never pay them enough for the risk and the sacrifices that they and their families make every single day. Countryman said, This is a great help for law enforcement, medical workers, education folk; this will help us to give them the dream of owning a home. Mathis followed and said, The HELPER Act is going to be a game-changer for law enforcement. He continued, Its going to allow our young police officers to purchase a home in the communities they live in. Thats the key, for us to get our police officers to live in the communities that they serve, said Mathis. Scarpa followed Mathis sentiment and said, Theres nothing that grounds an individual more in their community than owning a home. Georgian police arrested 20 people, including two U.S. citizens, at the ongoing anti-government protests in Tbilisi on May 13, the Internal Affairs Ministry said. The ministry's statement only listed the initials and birthdates of the two Americans, but the Kyiv Independent learned that one of those arrested was Patrick Hernandez-Ball, a 29-year-old from California who has lived in Georgia for several years. Another citizen of Russia was also arrested, the ministry said. The individuals "ignored the legal request of the police" and "violated public order, resisted, and insulted law enforcement officers." Pro-government Telegram channels began spreading allegations that Hernandez-Ball and the other U.S. citizen who was arrested came to Georgia to "organize a revolution." Hernandez-Ball worked as an English teacher, and there is no evidence to support the accusations. Tens of thousands of people have been protesting daily against the controversial foreign agents draft law that the ruling Georgian Dream party is trying to pass. The law mirrors repressive Russian laws used to crack down on Kremlin regime critics and has become popularly known in Georgia as the "Russian law." The final hearing of the law is scheduled for May 14. Georgian police have taken an increasingly heavy-handed approach to the protesters, using tear gas, water cannons, and rubber bullets in an attempt to disrupt the demonstrations. Videos have been widely circulated on social media that show individual protesters being singled out and beaten by police. Read also: Civilians flee Vovchansk under Russian bombardment as ground offensive on Kharkiv begins Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Georgian riot police are currently locked in a tense stand-off with protesters, demonstrating against a controversial foreign agents law, outside the parliament in Tbilisi. Masked officers, armed with tear gas and backed with water cannons, clashed with protesters who were trying to stop a vote on the bill with there even being reports of demonstrators being beaten by police. Critics call the bill the Russian law and fear it is modelled on a law made by Vladimir Putin to crack down on media freedoms. This, in turn, sparks concern that it will damage Georgias hopes of joining the EU. The head of the EUs embassy said there was zero chance of the country joining the EU, after Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, warned Georgia was at a crossroads. Police in Georgia try to block demonstrators during the protests outside the parliament building - Zurab Tsertsvadze/AP The latest clash comes after tens of thousands of demonstrators ringed the parliament of the ex-Soviet republic overnight, with approximately 1,000 still outside on Monday morning. In earlier protests, marchers waved EU-flags amid concerns the law is pushing Georgia back towards Moscow and away from the West, with scenes reminiscent of Ukraines Maidan protests. The ruling Georgian Dream party which was forced to drop a similar bill last year, after a huge backlash is intent on passing the bill on Tuesday, arguing it is all about transparency. The law requires NGOs and media receiving more than 20 percent of their funding from abroad to register as an organisation pursuing the interests of a foreign power. Demonstrators chanted slaves and Russians at arriving Georgian Dream MPs on Monday, as offices with shields stopped them from blocking the entrance to the parliament. At dawn, the AFP news agency saw police detain and beat a group of protesters while hundreds of riot police lined a small street behind parliament, with some scuffling with demonstrators. Authorities had warned they would arrest people who blocked parliament, but thousands defied the warning and came to the buildings gates regardless. Police have been detaining demonstrators during the protests near the parliament building in Tbilisi - Zurab Tsertsvadze/AP The protests in Georgia have been led by students from Tbilisis universities, who declared a strike Monday. We are planning to stay here for as long as it takes, 22-year-old Mariam Kalandadze told AFP. This law means not joining Europe, she said, adding that this is something that I have wanted my whole life. Several thousand Georgians were in attendance at the protests against the "foreign agents" bill - GIORGI ARJEVANIDZE/AFP The clashes come as the European Commission said it would demand answers after EU flags were banned from the Eurovision Song Contest. The contest, which is organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), only allows the flags of participating countries and the Pride flag. Prior to Saturday night, the alliance had always turned a blind eye to EU flags which have been ubiquitous at other Eurovision contests. There has been speculation that Georgia, one of the participating countries and a member of the EBU, may have insisted on the ban being enforced because of the protests. However, this has been neither confirmed nor denied by the EBU, according to reports from Politico. Margaritis Schinas, the EU Commissioner for protecting the European way of life, told the US-based publication, Clearly timing is something that was relevant with people protesting in the streets, with Europe being subject to so many hybrid threats. Less than a month from the European elections, who wins from banning the EU flag from Eurovision? Only the Euroskeptics and the enemies of Europe, he added. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. (Bloomberg) -- Georgias premier says his ruling party will press ahead with its plan to pass a bill against so-called foreign influence in the next two days, despite mass rallies and protests in the country and abroad and criticisms from Western allies. Most Read from Bloomberg Tomorrow or the day after tomorrow we will pass this law, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said at a briefing in the capital, Tbilisi, adding that polls indicate more than 61% of the population support the measure. The legislation also known as the foreign agent bill is aimed at increasing transparency over the funding sources of non-governmental organizations and medias, Kobakhidze said. He also warned demonstrators not to overdo their right to protest. The US and the European Union have both warned that the ruling Georgian Dream partys Kremlin-inspired legislation. Georgias anti-Western rhetoric put it on a precarious trajectory, a US State Department spokesman said this month. James C. OBrien, the US Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs James, plans to travel to Tbilisi from Tuesday. Read more: US Warns Georgia Risks Ties to West Over Kremlin-Inspired Law Kobakhidzes warning comes a day after tens of thousands of people marched in Tbilisi and assembled in the capitals Europe Square. Protesters, whove been rallying for weeks, plan to gather overnight outside the parliament building in an attempt to prevent lawmakers from entering, while some students and professors at universities plan to strike starting Monday. Riot police have several times used tear gas, pepper spray and water cannons against those rallying outside parliament. The EU has condemned that use of force as unacceptable. Kobakhidze, when asked about possible US sanctions, said he didnt consider it a serious threat, and expressed hope that the US will remain a partner of Georgia. Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili, who spoke after the premier, called the bill a Russian law. The law threatens to impose fines and imprisonment of as long as five years on organizations or individuals that receive at least 20% of their income from abroad and fail to register with the government as pursuing the interests of a foreign power. Georgian Dream, which faces parliamentary elections in October, attempted to pass the same law last year, only to withdraw it following violence between police and protesters. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. BERLIN (Reuters) - The grave of former German finance minister Wolfgang Schaeuble was found desecrated on Monday, police in his hometown of Offenburg said. Cemetery staff found a hole dug in the grave of the conservative politician when they arrived for work. Schaeuble, who died in December, was among Europe's most influential politicians for a quarter of a century. "An unknown person dug a funnel-shaped hole around 1.20 metres deep," police said in a statement. "It nonetheless appears that they did not get down as far as the deceased's coffin." Police said they were investigating but had no indications as to the motive. There has been an uptick in violence against German politicians ahead of European Parliament elections next month. A political high-flyer who was pipped at the post for the conservative leadership by Angela Merkel, Schaeuble became famous as a fierce guardian of Germany's purse strings who imposed strict bail-out conditions on Greece during the euro zone's debt crisis. (Reporting by Thomas Escritt; editing by Christina Fincher) Memoirs of former German leader Angela Merkel, titled 'Freedom,' will be published in November FILE - German Chancellor Angela Merkel, right, talks to her office manager Beate Baumann, left, prior to a cabinet meeting as part of a two-day retreat of the German government in Meseberg north of Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, May 25, 2016. Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel's memoirs will be released in late November, nearly three years after the end of her 16-year tenure at the helm of one of Europe's biggest powers, her publisher said Monday, May 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn, File) BERLIN (AP) The memoirs of former German Chancellor Angela Merkel will be released in November, nearly three years after her 16-year tenure leading one of Europe's biggest powers ended. The roughly 700-page volume, titled Freiheit ("Freedom"), will be published on Nov. 26, publisher Kiepenheuer & Witsch announced Monday. Merkel co-wrote the book with her longtime assistant and adviser, Beate Baumann. Merkel, a former scientist who grew up in communist East Germany, became Germanys first female chancellor on Nov. 22, 2005. The 69-year-old steered Germany through a succession of crises including the global financial crisis, Europe's debt and migration crises and the coronavirus pandemic. The publisher quoted Merkel in a statement as saying that for me, freedom is not stopping learning, not having to stand still but being able to go further, even after leaving politics. The company said the book will appear worldwide in over 30 countries but didn't elaborate. Merkel has generally kept a low profile since handing over to current Chancellor Olaf Scholz in December 2021. She has stayed out of the political fray and away from events of her center-right party, the Christian Democratic Union. Merkel was named The Worlds Most Powerful Woman by Forbes magazine for 10 years in a row, and was seen as a powerful defender of liberal values in the West and a role model for girls. But her record has faced criticism as well since she stepped down, notably her approach to Ukraine and Russia. Merkel has defended her actions, saying months after Russia launched its full-scale invasion that a much-criticized 2015 peace deal for eastern Ukraine bought Kyiv precious time and she wont apologize for her diplomatic efforts. She also has defended her governments decisions to buy large quantities of natural gas from Russia, which cut off supplies in 2022. Ferda Ataman, independent German commissioner for anti-discrimination, speaks at the Left Party conference at Vienna House by Wyndham Andel's Berlin. "Banning people from using inclusive language is a step backwards into the last century. The state should promote respect and tolerance, not prohibit it," Ataman said in a statement. Annette Riedl/dpa Germany's Federal Anti-Discrimination Agency (FADA) is warning against prohibiting inclusive and gender-neutral language, following a recently imposed ban in the conservative southern state of Bavaria. "Banning people from using inclusive language is a step backwards into the last century. The state should promote respect and tolerance, not prohibit it," said Ferda Ataman, Federal Commissioner for Anti-Discrimination, in a statement. Several German states, including Bavaria, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Hesse and Schleswig-Holstein, have imposed or announced bans on the use of gender-inclusive language at schools, universities or in administration in recent months. Ataman emphasised that there is no such thing as an alleged gender constraint, which bans at state level are directed against. "This is a sham debate," she said. So-called gender bans are constitutionally problematic and serve a culture war on the backs of minorities, said Ataman. She referred to a brief report by lawyers from the ADS. According to the report, there is a risk of violating the prohibition of gender discrimination and general personal rights by banning gender-appropriate language. In addition, a ban at universities would interfere with academic freedom. At schools, a ban could infringe teachers' and pupils' freedom of expression and general freedom of action, the report said. Like many European languages, German has different masculine and feminine forms for some nouns, and in the past used the masculine plural as the all-inclusive default form. For example, "Autor" is the word for a male writer, and "Autorin" a female writer. The plural forms are "Autoren" and "Autorinnen." "Autoren" was previously used to mean "writers," not just male writers. Some have argued that "Autoren" is grammatically masculine and therefore inherently excludes female writers and non-traditional gender expressions. They therefore prefer to combine the two forms with a symbol, like an asterisk, slash, colon, underscore or internal capital letter to give: Autor*innen, Autor/innen, Autor:innen, Autor_innen or AutorInnen. One alternative without a symbol is to write both forms with and: "Autorinnen und Autoren." Traditionalists, like those in Bavaria, reject these changes as unnecessary. A landing stage on the Elbe is surrounded by floodwater. Daniel Schafer/dpa German researchers have highlighted the increasing threat of floods, heat and drought in a study presented on Monday. According to experts, these dangers are increasingly having an impact on cities in Germany as a result of climate change. The authors of the study, who conducted the research as part of a water management and environmental initiative in collaboration with a building materials lobby group, said cities should be assessing how well-equipped they are against climate change and extreme weather conditions. Study author Thomas Schmitt said that a climate risk analysis for cities and municipalities is important to better assess specific dangers. For example, drinking water could become scarce in some places due to drought. Schmitt said heatwaves could also threaten the elderly and patients with pre-existing health conditions. Floods such as those that devastated the Ahr Valley in western Germany in 2021 could also occur more frequently in some places, he added. To address such concerns, Germany's Federal Ministry of Research and Education is funding research projects which aim to bolster cities' resilience to the impacts of climate change. Erdina Laca, a 45-year-old asylum seeker, shows her special payment card in front of a grocery store, in Eichsfeld, Germany, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. Across Germany, cities and counties are introducing new payment cards for asylum-seekers. The new rule, which was passed by parliament last month, calls for the migrants to receive their benefits on a card that can be used for payments in local shops and services. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi) EICHSFELD, Germany (AP) When Erdina Laca goes grocery shopping in Eichsfeld these days, she pulls out a special payment card thats for asylum-seekers only. She no longer pays in cash for her apples, eggs and fish like most of the Germans standing in line with her at the register. Laca, 45, came from Albania with her husband and three children and applied for asylum in Germany last September. The family lives in the county of Eichsfeld in the eastern state of Thuringia and has been one of the first in the country to receive half of their government benefits in the form of cashless payments on a plastic card. With half the money that is on the card, I can buy groceries, and with the other half (in cash) I can buy in every shop whatever I need for me and my children," Laca said. The new rule, which was passed by parliament last month, calls for asylum-seekers to receive their benefits on a card for use at local shops and to pay for services. They will only be able to withdraw limited amounts of cash and won't be able to transfer money outside Germany. The aim is to prevent migrants from sending money to family and friends abroad, or to smugglers. Migrant advocates groups have criticized the new regulation as discriminatory especially as it's being implemented in a country that's still much more cash-centric than many other European countries and where some businesses, especially restaurants, won't even accept card payments. They say people fleeing war and persecution won't be deterred from coming to Germany just because their benefits will no longer be paid out in cash only. Instead, they claim that the payment cards will single out migrants and may possibly add to them being ostracized further. It has to be said quite clearly that people are coming because of civil war and persecution they won't be deterred by a payment card," said Wiebke Judith from Pro Asyl. The aim here is to create an instrument of discrimination and to bully refugees. Germany has been trying to clamp down on migration for months, and this latest measure comes just weeks before the European Union election on June 9. Germanys far-right Alternative for Germany party, or AfD, has been successfully exploiting Germans hardening attitudes toward migrants. AfD, which takes an anti-migration stance, is expected to make significant gains compared to the 10.3% that the party won during the last federal election in 2021. Attitudes toward migration have hardened in Germany as large numbers of asylum-seekers have arrived, in addition to refugees from Ukraine, and local authorities have struggled to find accommodation. The number of people applying for asylum in Germany last year rose to more than 350,000, an increase of just over 50% compared with the year before. The largest number of asylum-seekers came from Syria, followed by Turks and Afghans. In January, lawmakers approved legislation intended to ease deportation of unsuccessful asylum-seekers. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has repeatedly said that authorities need to speed up deportations. Germany, like several other European countries, has also started classifying some countries, such as Moldova and Georgia, as "safe countries of origin meaning asylum-seekers from there can be quickly rejected and deported faster than in the past. Eichsfeld, where Luca and her family live while their asylum plea is being processed, was one of the first counties to introduce the plastic payment cards, which look similar to ATM or credit cards. The small town started handing them out to asylum-seekers in December. The legislation gives local authorities latitude to decide on exemptions and on how much cash asylum-seekers can withdraw. Eichsfeld decided to pay out about 50% of the monthly benefits for asylum-seekers in cash, with the other half going on the payment cards. While Laca doesn't have any problems with the changes, county officials say that some migrants don't like the new cards. We have a lot of nationalities who grew up with cash they dont know how to pay by card, says Thomas Dreiling, who runs a local shelter for asylum-seekers. Still, he supports the new system because he thinks that having less cash available will be an incentive for migrants to look for work and thus get off government benefits. Jihad Ammuri, a 20-year-old asylum-seeker from Damascus, Syria, said not all stores have been accepting his payment card and hes been turned away from some places. Dreiling said that of the about 400 asylum-seekers who were slated to get the payment cards in December, more than 50 said no to the card and left Germany most of them citizens from North Macedonia and Georgia. Another 40 people have found work in the meantime and no longer receive government welfare payments. ___ Follow APs coverage of migration issues at https://apnews.com/hub/migration (Bloomberg) -- Germanys domestic intelligence agency can continue to monitor the far-right Alternative for Germany as a suspected case of extremism that represents a potential threat to democracy, according to a ruling Monday. Most Read from Bloomberg The AfD filed a legal challenge to a decision by the BfV agency to classify the party, as well as its youth organization and a now-dissolved radical group within it known as the Wing, as suspected extremist cases. Judges in Muenster backed the view of a lower court in Cologne that there was enough evidence of anti-constitutional activity to warrant enhanced monitoring, they said in a statement. The court is convinced that there is sufficient factual evidence that the AfD is pursuing efforts that are directed against the human dignity of certain groups of people and against the principle of democracy, according to the ruling. The extremist designation means that the authorities are allowed to deploy measures like tapping phones or using informants to monitor potential illegal activity. While the court didnt allow the AfD to appeal, the party said it will challenge that at the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig. It is incomprehensible that the panel of judges did not allow the appeal, even though we spent days debating complex legal issues, Roman Reusch, a member of the AfD leadership committee, said in a statement. We will of course appeal to the next instance. Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the ruling showed that Germany has a resilient democracy and that the state protects it against threats from within. The AfD remains the second-strongest political force in Europes biggest economy after the conservative CDU/CSU bloc, although support for the party has slipped ahead of next months European Parliament elections due to a series of controversies. It had managed to feed off widespread discontent with Scholzs ruling coalition to rise as high as 23% in some polls, but has since dropped back to as low as 15%. Its still leading in polls for three regional elections due in September in its eastern German stronghold, but is unlikely to get into government there as all other parties have indicated they wont join it in coalition. Why German Far-Right AfD Party Has Run Into Trouble: QuickTake Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said Mondays ruling confirmed that the domestic intelligence agency has a clear legal mandate to take action against extremism and protect our democracy. The assessment of the AfD as a suspected case of right-wing extremism was carefully justified and has now been found to be lawful, Faeser, a member of Scholzs Social Democrats, said in an emailed statement. --With assistance from Karin Matussek and Patrick Donahue. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Germany, Nordic nations pledge Ukraine aid 'for as long as it takes' (L-R) Icelandic Prime Minister Bjarni Benediktsson, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo speak during a press conference after the Nordic Council meeting in Sweden. Michael Kappeler/dpa As Russia's offensive in north-eastern Ukraine escalates, Germany and the Nordic countries affirmed their commitment to bolster arms support for Ukraine during talks held in Sweden on Monday. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz joined the prime ministers of Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Iceland and Norway for discussions in Stockholm. Scholz said, "We stand united in our support for Ukraine in its defence against the ongoing Russian aggression. We will continue to provide our support to Ukraine for as long as it takes." Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo said the situation on the battlefield was critical, emphasizing the need for swift action from the West to prevent a situation like Mariupol from occurring in Kharkiv. Mariupol is a Russian-occupied port city in south-eastern Ukraine which was destroyed and seize in the first months of the war in 2022. A few days ago, Russian troops launched an offensive in the region around Kharkiv and are putting massive pressure on the Ukrainian armed forces there. Earlier on Monday, the Ukrainian military conceded that Russian forces are making progress in their offensive in the north-eastern Kharkiv region. Despite the discussions in Stockholm, no specific new commitments, such as Patriot missile systems, were announced. The German government is actively seeking to arrange additional Patriot systems for Ukraine, having recently supplied an additional unit, bringing the total to three. However, six to seven more are still urgently needed. Besides Germany, six other EU nations possess these US-made air defence systems, including Sweden, which currently operates four. Since the start of the war in Ukraine more than two years ago, Germany has provided or promised to provide Kiev with military aid worth 28 billion ($30.2 billion), Scholz said. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson refrained from outlining his country's future support commitments, noting, "We have already taken over parts of the air defence and will continue to do so. How exactly and to what extent will be announced at a later date." Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen emphasized the critical importance of aid for Ukraine, characterizing the pressure on the country as unbearable. "We must continue to support Ukraine so that it can defend itself and the rest of Europe," Frederiksen said. The prime ministers also visited the technology company Ericsson with the German chancellor. Scholz is expected to continue his visit to Sweden on Tuesday and meet with Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson for bilateral talks. (L-R) Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo speak during a press conference after the Nordic Council meeting in Sweden. Michael Kappeler/dpa (L-R) Bjarni Benediktsson, Prime Minister of Iceland, Petteri Orpo, Prime Minister of Finland, Jonas Gahr Store, Prime Minister of Norway, Mette Frederiksen, Prime Minister of Denmark, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and Ulf Kristersson, Prime Minister of Sweden, stand together for a group photo at the Nordic Council meeting in Sweden. Michael Kappeler/dpa German Chancellor Olaf Scholz speaks at a panel discussion organized by the RND Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland and the Maerkische Allgemeine Zeitung in the Orangery of the Biosphaere Potsdam Carsten Koall/dpa German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is due to travel to Sweden on Monday to hold talks with the prime ministers of Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Iceland and Norway. The main topics of discussion are expected to be the security situation in Europe, support for Ukraine in its defence against Russia, but also so-called hybrid threats such as cyberattacks and sabotage. The group of leaders are also scheduled to visit the Swedish technology company Ericsson together. A press conference is planned for the early evening. Scholz is expected to continue his visit to Sweden on Tuesday and plans to meet Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson for bilateral talks. BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) A man has been found guilty for his role in a July 2021 shooting that he carried out with his twin brother, the Erie County District Attorneys Office said Monday. 52-year-old Luis Martinez of Buffalo was convicted. He, along with brother Jose Martinez, were kicked out of the bar, located on the 1200 block of Clinton for fighting just after midnight on July 3, 2021. A short time later, they came back and Jose Martinez shot at several people standing outside, hitting one of them. They fled in a pickup truck, which was being driven by Luis Martinez. The injured woman was taken to ECMC, where she was treated for three gunshot wounds to her lower body. Jose Martinez previously pleaded guilty to one count of second-degree attempted murder in September 2022 and is currently serving a 10-year sentence followed by five years of post-release supervision. Luis Martinez was convicted of one count of second-degree attempted murder, one count of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon and one count of second-degree assault. He faces a maximum of 25 years in prison when he is sentenced on June 17. Latest Local News Aidan Joly joined the News 4 staff in 2022. He is a graduate of Canisius College. You can see more of his work here. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to News 4 Buffalo. Girl endured years of sexual abuse from relative, officials say. Now, hes sentenced An Ohio man found guilty in the years-long sexual abuse of a young family member will spend the rest of his life in prison, according to Georgia prosecutors. The 66-year-old man was sentenced days after jurors convicted him of aggravated sexual battery and three counts of child molestation, the Gwinnett County District Attorneys Office said in a May 13 news release. McClatchy News is not identifying the suspect to protect the identity of the minor. The incidents happened in Lawrenceville and Loganville in 2019, prosecutors said. His victim, a female relative, was 8 at the time. No child should have to experience the terrible actions that this defendant practiced, Gwinnett County District Attorney Patsy Austin-Gatson said in the release. He took advantage of a childs vulnerability and innocence and left her with life-changing damage. Prosecutors said the man began molesting the girl when she was 8 and continued until she was 11. She reported the incidents in 2021, telling investigators that the man touched her thigh on their way to a park in his Corvette two years prior. He also attempted sex acts with her on multiple occasions, according to the DAs office. Authorities didnt say how the man and the girl are related. A judge sentenced him to life in prison plus 20 years, prosecutors said. He must also register as a sex offender. Our Special Victims Unit worked tirelessly to ensure that he pays the price for his crimes and to send a message that no one who preys on children for sex is safe in Gwinnett County, Austin-Gatson said. Gwinnett County is about a 30-mile drive northeast from downtown Atlanta. If you have experienced sexual assault and need someone to talk to, call the National Sexual Assault Hotline for support at 1-800-656-4673 or visit the hotline's online chatroom. Uber driver sexually assaults passenger and steals from her home, Georgia cops say Man jailed for days after hes mistaken for sex offender during traffic stop, suit says Man sexually assaults girl who got separated from group at Chicago museum, cops say Former Donald Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani has turned to social media in order to keep spreading the false conspiracy theories about the 2020 presidential election that got him kicked off the air at New York City radio station WABC last week. Monday marked the relaunch of The Rudy Giuliani Show on YouTube after his suspension. The mayor will host the show online until further notice, spokesperson Ted Goodman told The Daily Beast. Although Giuliani insisted on X that hed been FIRED for refusing to give in and stop airing the Big Lie, WABC owner John Catsimatidis clarified that no official decision has been made on the former mayors future at the station. I never fire anybody without having a sit down, and an understanding of what went wrong, he told the New York Post. He told CNN that Giuliani was in Florida and unable to return to New York for a sit-down due to a bum knee. The trouble at WABC exploded into the light on Friday, when Giuliani was yanked off the air for what Catsimatidis said in a statement was ignoring repeated orders to stop spreading the Big Lie. Guiliani has admitted repeatedly over the past few days that he agreed not to speak about Dominion, Catsimatidis told CNN. However, he was also warned numerous times, particularly in the past few months, to refrain from any allegations of electronic voting manipulation surrounding the 2020 election. On Monday, Giuliani said during his YouTube stream that he had no idea what Catsimatidis was talking about. He said hed received a warning letter on Thursday out of the clear blue sky, claiming he hadnt known anything about the overly broad policy restricting him from speaking about the election. The letter, a portion of which he read aloud, reminded the former mayor that he was prohibited from engaging in conversations relating to the 2020 Presidential Election on your programs broadcast on WABC Radio, including topics related to the legitimacy of the election results, allegations of fraud effectuated by election workers, and your personal lawsuits relating to those allegations. The warning failed to work, with Giuliani ranting for roughly three minutes about the stolen election on his Thursday show. That night, he reportedly texted Catsimatidis that he would be disregarding every order given in this letter. His suspension went into effect the next day, with his show being erased from the WABC schedule and website. But Giuliani has no plans to stop spreading bogus claims about President Joe Bidens victory in 2020, as he said on his Monday YouTube stream. If we are submitted to the dictate of John Catsimatidis, doesnt it become more likely they cheat in 2024? he asked. Giuliani went on to imply that Catsimatidis had been lying about me in order to hold up his end of what he later referred to as some kind of deal with the devil, Dominion, a reference to the voting systems firm currently suing Newsmax for defamation. (The right-wing cable channel is attempting to forcibly depose Catsimatidis in the case in an attempt to find out why Dominion hasnt also sued him and WABC, pointing out that the station has broadcast numerous statements by Rudy Giuliani concerning Dominion and allegations of voter fraud.) Meanwhile, the scrolling ticker under his screen informed viewers that the mayor refused to agree to such an [sic] demand as it goes against everything he stands for when it comes to free speech in America and that he couldnt be censored or bullied into silence on YouTube. This isnt the one-time Trump lawyers first rodeo on YouTube. He has long hosted a nightly talk show on the platform called Americas Mayor Live. On Friday, in seeming response to his suspension, he posted an episode in which he accused Catsimatidis of bowing to liberal interests. You fired me to interfere in the electionbecause once a Democrat, always a Democratand youre sucking up to them, John, Giuliani sneered. On Monday, he promised his YouTube audience that he would continue to cover relevant news, including election conspiracy theories, every day on YouTube. It was not immediately clear how the vow would be impacted by his mounting legal debts, nor the criminal charges hes facing in Georgia and Arizona over efforts to reverse Trumps loss in the election. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. The Glynn County Police Department announced Bryan Sipe as its newest captain. The department announced the news on Monday. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< Sipe held the position of Chief of Police/Director of Public Safety at the College of Coastal Georgia before being hired as captain. He earned a Master of Science Degree in Public Administration from Columbus State University. [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] The department said he began his career in law enforcement in 1994, joining the Brunswick Police Department. Sipe has more than 30 years of experience. I am excited at the opportunity to continue serving my community in this new role. I have worked in close partnership with Glynn County government over the years in many different capacities, Sipe said about the move to GCPD. As a lifelong resident of Glynn County, I am excited to join the team and contribute to Chief Ebners vision of establishing the Glynn County Police Department as a model agency for professionalism in public safety. READ: Jacksonville Council to extend attorneys contract until September 2025 to help usher stadium deal Police Chief Scott Ebner issued a statement praising Snipe for his experience. Having a seasoned law enforcement professional like Sipe join GCPD further bolsters our position to serve the Glynn County community effectively. His commitment to professionalism is a model for all officers to follow and his record is one the people of our community can trust while expecting the highest level of performance. I couldnt be more pleased that he has decided to join our team! [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live. GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) Authorities are investigating after Godfrey-Lee Public Schools was forced to close Monday due to a threat, the district said. According to a news release from Kent Intermediate Schools District, Godfrey-Lee Public Schools is closed on Monday out of an abundance of caution. The Grand Rapids and Wyoming police departments are investigating the threat, according to the release. The safety and well-being of our students and our staff is our top priority and we take all threats seriously. We are waiting for further information from law enforcement before clearing our staff, students, and community to return to our campuses. We will provide more information as it becomes available, Godfrey-Lee Public Schools superintendent Arnetta Thompson said in a news release. No additional information about the threat was released Monday morning. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com. Airtel, India's second-largest telecom operator, said on Monday that it has entered into a long-term partnership with Google Cloud to develop and deliver cloud and generative AI products to Indian businesses. The partnership aims to tap Airtel's extensive customer base, which, according to the company, includes 2,000 large enterprises and a million emerging businesses. The companies plan to offer AI solutions, including generative AI, which Airtel will train using its vast datasets. As part of the collaboration, Airtel and Google Cloud will provide businesses with products like geospatial analytics, location intelligence for spotting trends, predictive capabilities, market assessment, site selection, risk management, and asset tracking. Also in the offing are voice analytics for conversational applications trained across languages, and marketing technology to forecast consumer behavior, perform audience segmentations, and streamline content creation with contextual ads. Airtel said it has set up a managed service center in Pune crewed by more than 300 "experts" to provide support. Tech behemoths Google, Microsoft and Amazon are increasingly setting their sights on the telecommunications industry, seeking to capitalize on the vast troves of data generated by the sector's billions of customers worldwide. The three firms have signed deals with telecom operators globally, including in the U.S. and U.K. The companies are also aggressively looking to sell their generative AI offerings to businesses across the world. Google is already an investor in Airtel it committed to investing up to $1 billion in the Indian carrier in 2022. The search giant has also backed Jio Platforms, which operates India's largest carrier. Jio maintains a similar long-term partnership with Microsoft, too, as the Indian carrier cross-sells Office 365 and Azure to local businesses. Google and Airtel did not disclose the financial terms of the deal. Google Cloud CEO, Thomas Kurian, described the partnership as "a significant milestone" toward the Android maker's commitment to accelerate cloud and AI adoption in India. Bitter infighting among House GOP lawmakers is threatening to boot several members out of office, as Republicans wade into incumbent primary contests against the best advice of their own party leaders. Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) became the latest Republican to back Rep. Bob Goods (R-Va.) primary rival, John McGuire, after Good endorsed Bacons primary challenger, Dan Frei, last month. A handful of other GOP lawmakers and notable political groups have also backed McGuire. Meanwhile, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) has thrown his weight behind Brandon Herrera, whos challenging Rep. Tony Gonzales (R) in South Texas underscoring how deep-seated resentment is embroiling the partys already narrow majority. Though some member-on-member squabbling is taking place in safely red districts, its also spilled into other corners, such as Gonzaless seat, potentially putting those areas into play for Democrats this fall. If youre gonna go after me. Im gonna come back twice as hard as hard as I can, and I think it should be a lesson, Bacon told The Hill. This is not what we want to do. I think it creates dysfunction. I feel like this is bad for Speaker Johnson, but there has to be a consequence to a bad behavior. House Republicans have been engulfed in feuds and fighting since the earliest days of their GOP majority. It started with conservative holdouts who forced 15 ballot votes just days into the new Congress before finally electing former-Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) as Speaker a byproduct of the narrow GOP majority that gave defectors pronounced influence over their party. The squabbles seeped into the open, particularly after a group of Republicans removed McCarthy this past October capitalizing on some of the same negotiations they made with McCarthy to later remove him leading to weeks of uncertainty over the path forward for the House GOP, a trove of early retirements and even more headaches even after House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) won the gavel. The infighting is now stretching into more personal territory as House Republicans wade into each others primaries despite efforts by Johnson to quell the bickering. Good the Freedom Caucus head who drew the ire of Trump loyalists after initially backing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the GOP presidential primary before later backing Trump told The Hill in a phone interview that members started encroaching into one anothers races after he saw a fellow House member holding a fundraiser for his opponent. Outside groups, such as the Republican Main Street Partnership, which has close ties to McCarthy, have also gotten involved. Good accused McCarthy of being on a revenge tour against those who ousted him from his Speakership role. But Good bristled at criticism made by other House GOP members who have accused him and others of being obstructionists and making it hard to get things done within the conference. He argued that Republicans supporting McGuire have passed legislation with Democrats that didnt include significant policy reforms in reauthorizing the national defense spending bill and reauthorizing a surveillance law without a warrant requirement. What have they been prevented from getting done? More things that Democrats would agree to? Good told The Hill. Or are they pretending that they would do more conservative Republican-like things if it werent for us, when they know the Senate wouldnt pass those anyway? So what are we referring to? Yet the member infighting thats extended into the primaries is threatening to boot Republicans from their seats and potentially create pickup opportunities for Democrats this fall. Gonzales is fighting for his political life against Herrera, a gun enthusiast and YouTuber, in a primary runoff later this month after he failed to win at least half of the vote during the initial March primary. Good, Gaetz and Rep. Eli Crane (R-Ariz.) have endorsed Herrera, while Johnson, Gov. Greg Abbott (R) and other Republicans including Texas Reps. Ronny Jackson and Jake Ellzey have thrown their weight behind Gonzales. Some party members have voiced concern that if Herrera wins the special election this month, it could give Democrats an opening. I think 23 is just kind of the one district Id be very careful about, explained Austin-based Republican strategist Brendan Steinhauser, about Gonzaless 23rd Congressional District. Primaries are healthy, and theyre good, but this is the kind of district we could lose. So I think its just a safer bet to go into districts that are safely red, he added, referring to members getting involved in other GOP primaries. Herreras campaign rebuffed the idea that Democrats could get an opening if he won the special election, telling The Hill in a statement that the suggestion that this seat is at risk is a baseless scare tactic being spread by Tony Gonzalezs campaign that depends on Republicans being bad at math and ignorant of recent history. The campaign argued that Gonzales was running on lies and that Herrera is going to win this seat in November by a larger margin than Tony ever did. In other primaries, such as the Bacon-Frei primary race in Nebraskas swingy 2nd Congressional District, some GOP members are less concerned that Frei will knock off an incumbent, but it doesnt mean theyre thrilled with the squabbling either. A cookie-cutter conservative candidate can win in some districts could win in the third. Nebraskas 3rd District, easy, said Omaha-based GOP consultant Philip Young. But it cant win in the 2nd without kind of going along to get along a little bit. Members, too, acknowledge that the infighting isnt helpful for the party. Theres no doubt it hurts us. Dysfunction, division hurts the Republican Party, Bacon told The Hill. The infighting defies an unwritten rule championed by former President Ronald Reagan thats governed GOP politics for the better part of the last half century: Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican. Reagan dubbed it the 11th Commandment. The outward defiance of that edict and the potential damage it could have on the GOPs chances in November has not been overlooked by Johnson, who has gone out of his way to discourage his troops from attacking fellow incumbents in primary contests. During the Republicans annual issues conference in West Virginia in March, the Speaker said hes asked them all to cool it. It causes division for obvious reasons, and we should not be engaging in that, he told CNN at the time. So Im telling everyone whos doing that to knock it off. The message, however, has gone ignored by a number of sitting members, who have continued to jump into races against incumbent colleagues in districts across the country. Aside from Texas, Nebraska and Virginia, those fights have also crept up in South Carolina, where members of the far-right Freedom Caucus are actively campaigning against GOP Rep. William Timmons, and Illinois, where hard-liners including Gaetz unsuccessfully sought to boot moderate Rep. Mike Bost. I think theyre just sick and tired of do-nothing Republicans who have terrible records, and when they see a strong conservative fighter who gets results, they get excited about it and wanted to get behind our candidacy, explained South Carolina state Rep. Adam Morgan (R), whos challenging Timmons next month and has the support of Gaetz, Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.) and more. Frei, whos been endorsed by Good, argued that the important issues that [constituents are] talking about are not the issues that the likes of Don Bacon and [Mike] Flood and [Adam] Smith are addressing. To be sure, Democrats have their own ideological divisions, which have led to instances where members have backed primary candidates over sitting lawmakers much to the frustration of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and his leadership team, who have gone out of their way to champion incumbents. But those cases are few and far between, and the tone has been nowhere near as hostile and aggressive as the public stumping by some Republican lawmakers against their own GOP colleagues. The internal tensions reflect the deep fissures in the Republican Party in the era of Donald Trump, whose arrival on the political scene in 2015 has cleaved the GOP into factions that have frequently pitted America First Trump loyalists against Reagan-esque institutionalists in a pitched battle to decide the future direction of the party. That clash was manifest in the removal of McCarthy; it appeared in Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greenes (R-Ga.) recent effort to dethrone Johnson; and its emerging again on the campaign trail as the Speaker scrambles unsuccessfully to discourage lawmakers from interposing in primary races. Some members have appeared to leave the door open to backing other primary challengers to sitting incumbents. Good, asked if there were any other primaries he was considering getting involved in, replied, Well, if there are, those will be public, and that information would be announced obviously. But the Virginia rabble-rouser doesnt portend electoral consequences for Republicans in the fall amid the member-on-member primary squabbling. If Derrick Evans wins in West Virginia, if Adam Morgan wins in South Carolina, if Brandon Herrera wins in Texas, and Dan Frei wins in Nebraska, and [Jarrod] Sessler wins in Washington, I think well win all those seats in the general election as well. Updated at 6:43 a.m. ET Mychael Schnell contributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. GOP leaders are showing us theyll destroy the guardrails at UNC if we let them | Opinion The ancient and defining academic commitment of colleges and universities to faculty governance has received rough treatment at the University of North Carolina since Republicans took over the General Assembly and its assisting governing boards a decade or so ago. The 1996 Statement on Government of Colleges and Universities formulated by the American Council on Education provides: the faculty has primary responsibility for curriculum, subject matter and methods of instruction, research, faculty status, and educational process. Gene Nichol In 2022, the American Association of University Professors found that UNC governing boards, in response to or in anticipation of political interference from the legislature have repeatedly violated essential guarantees of faculty governance in a regime of legislative style party discipline at odds with the principles of shared governance under which higher education has flourished. You know the particulars. UNC-Chapel Hill trustees delayed and effectively rejected the proposed tenured appointment of Nikole Hannah-Jones by the UNC Journalism School in one of the most outrageous and internationally derided acts of racial discrimination in recent academic history. In 2017, the UNC Board of Governors stripped the Center for Civil Rights of its ability to instruct law students through engaging in litigation despite the adamant support of the faculty, the dean, provost and chancellor. The centers director, famed civil rights litigator Ted Shaw, said the move was driven by antipathy to the work we do on behalf of black and brown people. In 2023, the UNC-CH Board of Trustees accelerate(d) the creation of a School of Civic Life and Leadership to, in the chairs words, remedy the shortage of faculty with right-of-center views. The chair of the faculty was flabbergasted at the breach of shared governance. Former UNC Chancellor Holden Thorpe, seemingly stunned, explained: The board doesnt have any ability to propose a class, to propose a degree, or for Gods sake to propose a school. The rest of us were less surprised. And, of late, the Board of Governors seeks to impose a high-schoolish American civics requirement on all system schools, hoping to head off the interventions of the General Assembly. UNC-CH Faculty Chair Beth Moracco protested: This is not the way we should be developing curriculum or standards for our curricula, what will it be next time? UNC System Faculty Chair Wade Maki (UNC-Greensboro) said he was cooperating in the project to avoid outside interference by legislators. With almost comic naivete, he explained he doesnt think it will provide an example going forward. I know this sounds like the whinings of an old Chapel Hill professor. The Board of Governors regularly reminds that they run the show. First, last and only. And the now-absurd N.C. Supreme Court has taken to announcing that the General Assembly is the great and chief department of government whose enactments constitute the sacrosanct fulfillment of the peoples will. (The justices seem not to have read Marbury v. Madison.) But there is an essential, hard reality to faculty governance. The responsibility for faculty status includes appointments, reappointments, promotions, grants of tenure and dismissal. Without the tradition-driven assurance of faculty governance, today, in 2024, compliant university system chancellors would be handing out marvelous, tenured faculty appointments to utterly unqualified members of the General Assembly, their staffs, their families and friends. The only qualification required would be congenial political affiliation as is now the case with university administrative positions. Faculty attainment is measured by discipline-driven, nationally competitive standards of rigor. Theres none of that in our regime of legislative-style party subservience. But, as with most other guardrails against tyrannical abuse, our Republican lawmakers have shown theyll destroy them if we let them. Contributing columnist Gene Nichol is a professor of law at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. Senate Republicans see some warning signs flashing after an embarrassing week for former President Trump, despite his strong poll numbers in battleground states against President Biden. Some Republican lawmakers think Trump needs to step up his appeals to disaffected GOP voters, especially women, after Nikki Haley won 128,000 votes in solidly Republican Indiana despite ending her presidential campaign in early March. GOP senators also are cringing over some of the salacious details being aired in Trumps Manhattan hush money trial, where porn actor Stormy Daniels testified at length about her sexual encounter with the former president and described how she spanked him with a magazine. Danielss testimony has put their relationship back in the media spotlight and underscored Trumps challenges with women voters, which some GOP lawmakers view as his biggest liability heading into November. It says a lot about the need for an engagement strategy, Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) said of Haley winning 21 percent of the vote in the Indiana Republican primary, even though shes no longer in the race. Indiana is going to vote for Trump and vote large, but I think that the Republicans would be well served to dig into that and address it, he said, noting a substantial portion of the GOP base still has reservations about Trump. A troubling sign for Trump is that Republicans who show up to vote in primaries tend to be consistent voters, and as such are a key piece of the GOP base. While they are unlikely to vote for Biden, many of them may simply stay home in November. My guess is youre talking a good number of that 20 percent are people that vote consistently. Those folks that vote consistently in the Republican primaries are not going to vote for Joe Biden. They may not vote, Tillis said. Tillis said Republicans would be crazy to discount the problem and fail to consider ways to address it. An AP VoteCast found a significant percentage of Republican voters in the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire and South Carolina primaries would be so dissatisfied with Trump as their partys nominee that they wouldnt vote for him in November. Specifically, 20 percent of Republican caucusgoers in Iowa, 34 percent of GOP primary voters in New Hampshire and 25 percent of GOP primary voters in South Carolina said they were so dissatisfied with Trump that they would not vote for him in the general election. Trump has his biggest problems with college-educated and suburban women voters, and some GOP lawmakers worry the high-profile rehashing of Trumps alleged affair with a porn actor while he was married to Melania Trump will only further hurt him with that key demographic. A New York Times/Siena College nationwide poll last month found that only 31 percent of registered women voters think Trump respects women. And the survey found 78 percent of women voters have felt offended by what Trump has said including 43 percent who said they were recently offended. Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.), who spent 15 years as the director of student ministry at the Baptist Convention of Oklahoma before coming to Congress, said he is dismayed that Trumps alleged affair with Daniels, including graphic details, are back in the spotlight. He said it reminded him of the sex scandal that engulfed then-President Bill Clinton in the late 1990s, when independent counsel Ken Starr reported the details of his affair with a White House intern, leading to Clintons impeachment by a GOP-controlled House. Lankford said its hard to tell what impact Danielss testimony will have on voters in the fall, but he acknowledged its painful and salacious. It reminds me of the Clinton administration and all the conversations that were happening around that time period with Ken Starr and all the things that came out, he said. I hate for it being on TV, because theres a younger generation watching TV and it becomes an issue. We saw that decades ago. Were going to see that again. Just on a cultural values basis, it matters to our culture. A Republican senator who strongly supports Trump said that values voters who make up a significant share of the GOP base dont necessarily believe what prosecutors are alleging about Trumps relationship with Daniels or what the media is reporting about the trial, but the lawmaker acknowledged a significant share of voters dont approve of Trumps conduct, generally. Im willing to bet if you did a poll, if you did a focus group of say evangelicals, certain Catholics, I bet a lot of them would be like, Ehh, I dont believe that stuff. But if you ask them, are you comfortable with some of his behavior? Theyd say no, said the lawmaker, who requested anonymity to discuss Trumps public relations problems. But the senator predicted that the overwhelming majority of evangelicals and conservative Catholics will still vote for Trump over Biden because its a binary choice. Its Biden or its Trump, and they vote like any other voter: strategically. Some of Trumps past critics in the Senate GOP who have voiced anxiety about his ability to appeal to independent and swing voters are doing their best to ignore Danielss testimony and what impact it might have with voters. I think thats all baked in, said Senate Republican Whip John Thune (S.D.), voicing the oft-repeated GOP defense that Trumps alleged marital infidelity with Daniels and allegations that he paid her $130,000 to keep quiet are well known. But other Republicans concede that Danielss testimony under oath in a courtroom has breathed some new life into the story. I think it was made more real by the testimony, Tillis said. Tillis said the decision by Trumps legal defense to request another day to cross-examine Daniels reflects his lawyers probably saw her testimony as damaging. The only reason that I believe Im not an attorney that the defense counsel would run the risk of doing that is they felt they had some ground to catch up, he said. It would just seem to me if they didnt feel like it was harmful, either politically or to the case, why would they do the cross-examination? Hope Hicks, who served as White House communications director under Trump, testified at the trial last week that Trump himself acknowledged to her in 2018 that his former fixer Michael Cohens allegation that he paid off Daniels would have hurt him in the 2016 campaign. I think Mr. Trumps opinion was it was better to be dealing with it now, and that it would have been bad to have that story come out before the election, Hicks testified of Cohens statement to The New York Times in 2018 that he had made the payment with Trumps knowledge. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. GOP state attorney general challenger focuses on Trump case as he seeks rematch against Letitia James Michael Henry, the underdog Republican candidate who ran a spirited campaign against Democrat state Attorney General Letitia James in 2022, is seeking a rematch. Henry, 43, filed papers with the state Board of Elections seeking the GOP nomination to challenge James in 2026, accusing the Democratic incumbent of being a partisan prosecutor, citing her targeting of former President Donald Trump and his business empire. Henry put up a respectable showing, but still lost to James in the blue-leaning New York by a yawning 500,000 votes in 2022. Mike Henry has filed papers with the state Board of Elections to run in the Republican primary for New York Attorney General again. Dennis A. Clark James captured 3.2 million votes or 54.6% to 2.6 million or 45.4% for Henry. He also said James has been AWOL on key issues impacting the state including blatant antisemitism and unrest on college campuses like Columbia University, where the attorney general is an adjunct professor, and the migrant crisis. James has criticized the anti-Israel encampments at Columbia. New Yorkers deserve better, Henry said. He also claimed James has abused the AGs office by pursuing civil penalties against Trumps business. In a case brought by James, a New York judge in February ruled that Trump inflated his net worth by billions of dollars to dupe banks and insurers over the course of a decade. Henry lost to AG Letitia James by 500,000 votes in 2022. Stephen Yang for NY Post Trump was ordered to pay a massive $350 million fine and he was temporarily banned him from doing business in the state where he made his name. Hes appealing the ruling and denies all wrongdoing. We have to take politics out of the office Its not about justice. Its about her, Henry said. He also hammered James in his first fundraising solicitation. The misuse of the Attorney Generals office by Letitia James is a blatant assault on the principles of justice and fairness that our system should embody. Her targeted attacks on Donald Trump and others have stripped the office of its integrity, turning it into a tool for political witch hunts, Henry said.. This cannot be the new normal. We must take a stand against James flagrant abuse of power. WE MUST DEFEAT LETITIA JAMES! We came close in the last election, and with your crucial support, we will triumph this time to defend the people of New York. Thats why LETITIA JAMES WOULD NOT DEBATE ME! SHE IS A COWARD! James re-election campaign said the two-term AG will continue doing her job. Attorney General James will continue to fight for every day New Yorkers by holding those in power accountable, said James campaign spokesman Javier Gomez. After the 2022 election, Henry campaigned unsuccessfully to become the state Republican Party chairman, losing out to Ed Cox, who returned to the post and whom party activists deemed a safer bet to raise funds for the GOP. Sources said Henry has remained active in the GOP circles and has a good shot at reclaiming the partys nomination for AG. During the 2022 campaign, Henry pushed for a stricter bail law, had the backing of police unions and hammered James for refusing to debate DAUPHIN COUNTY, Pa. (WHTM) A high-speed chase on the Pennsylvania Turnpike over the weekend ended in the Harrisburg area when the driver crashed, according to Troopers. Schnyder Levasseur, 25, of Philadelphia, told State Police I got loud exhaust and I didnt want a ticket when he was being taken into custody after the high-speed chase on Sunday, according to the charges filed. An orange Infinity was reported speeding and driving dangerously going west on I-76 at about 4:15 p.m., State Police said. The car, being driven by Levasseur, then passed a posted Trooper in Londonderry Township and the police cruisers emergency lights were activated and began pursuing. According to the criminal complaint, Levasseur was doing at least 140 mph on a posted 70 mph roadway and continued to pass other drivers dangerously on the highway. Pennsylvania man wanted after Harrisburg chase, allegedly tossing large amount of meth Eventually, the pursuing Trooper lost sight of the vehicle, but dispatch was able to give the Infinitys location, which was just off Exit 247. When State Police arrived, they saw the vehicle had crashed after failing to take the exit ramp and Levasseur was standing next to the drivers door. State Police noted in the criminal complaint that the Infinity had multiple fraud inspection and emission stickers. Levasseur faces a felony charge of fleeing or attempting to elude an officer along with numerous summary charges of traffic violations. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Nittany Insiders Levasseur is currently locked up in Dauphin County Prison unable to post his bail set at $50,000. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for May 22. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC27. Gov. Janet Mills speaks at an Oct. 26 press conference about the mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine. (Emma Davis/ Maine Morning Star) Gov. Janet Mills on Monday announced that she would not remove the Oxford County sheriff from office, concurring with an advisory opinion from a retired judge. The decision comes after the Oxford County Commissioners in February filed a complaint against Sheriff Christopher Wainwright and asked Mills to remove him from office. The complaint revolved around several allegations against Wainwright. Commissioners complained that Wainwright improperly disposed of firearms, provided several school resource officers that lacked the needed certification, and inappropriately pressured a subordinate. After the complaint, Mills appointed retired Maine Supreme Court Justice Donald Alexander to provide a non-binding, advisory opinion on the matter. Alexander recommended against removing Wainwright, and Mills agreed with that opinion. My decision here should not be viewed as a vindication of Sheriff Wainwright, she wrote in a memo outlining her opinion. The hearing record shows that he has made mistakes and acted intemperately on occasion. But she added that, the evidence presented falls short of satisfying what must be a high standard for the governors removal from office of a popularly elected sheriff. To remove a sheriff from office, the governor must find that the sheriff was not faithfully or efficiently performing any duty imposed upon the sheriff by law. The Oxford County Commissioners did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Mills decision. Mills, a Democrat, addressed each of the allegations against Wainwright. On the school resource officer issue, Mills said evidence shows the problem was the result of a paperwork handling error and process mistakes that originated from before the sheriffs time in office. She added that there is no evidence the people appointed lacked the skills to be certified and concluded that the issue did not represent a serious failing on Wainwrights part. On the allegations related to firearms, Mills said evidence shows Wainwright traded in firearms from a federally-licensed dealer for credits used to offset some of the cost of new service weapons. She wrote that there are no allegations that Wainwright personally profited from that or that the transaction clearly violated any law or standard. While Mills said it would have been prudent for Wainwright to get buy-in from the county commissioners before trading the weapons, she argued that the transactions in and of themselves do not justify removal. Finally, Mills stated that evidence shows Wainwright asked a deputy to dismiss or pursue a reduced charge for a woman who got a ticket for drinking in a vehicle. Wainwright knows the womans sister, and the deputy was concerned that the request was unethical and potentially unlawful and made a complaint. Wainwright then confronted the deputy in an aggressive manner, cursing and chastising him, Mills wrote. The governor stated that Wainwrights request itself was not necessarily improper but that the way he interacted with the deputy was a serious error. But she said the evidence does not show that the incident was indicative of a larger pattern of similar behavior and therefore didnt feel it was sufficient cause to remove Wainwright from office. Ultimately, the governor argued that the electorate will decide Wainwrights fate. The voters of Oxford County should be the ultimate judge of the sheriff on these matters when and if he puts his name before them for reelection in the future, she wrote. Wainwright is currently serving his second four-year term and will be up for re-election in 2026. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Gov. Mills decides not to remove Oxford County sheriff accused of misconduct appeared first on Maine Morning Star. Editors Note: This is the second of a two-part series about the ongoing feud between Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt and Senate Pro Tempore Greg Treat. When Sen. Greg McCortney was picked to succeed Sen. Greg Treat as Oklahoma's Senate president pro tempore in the next legislative session, some of the tension between the Senate and the governor's office faded. Not long after McCortney was chosen, the House GOP caucus picked Rep. Kyle Hilbert as its next speaker. And for a moment, talk at the Capitol returned to policy, the budget and legislation. But about the same time the contest for pro tempore was going on, Republican leader Treat announced a new budget transparency initiative for the Senate, intended to bring more visibility at least on the Senate side to the process by which lawmakers arrived at their funding decisions. Agency heads were asked to appear at budget hearings, not to echo the governors call of a flat budget, but to answer questions about where their money was being spent and what the agencys needs were next year. The House continued to process its budget proposals the way it had done in the past and, at times, the differences between the two chambers became public. Still, the budget process moved forward. Part 1: Stitt vs. Treat: Inside the fight between the governor and the Senate pro tempore Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Treat, left, and Majority Floor Leader Greg McCortney talk with Sen. Julie Daniels, assistant majority whip of the Senate, last year at the state Capitol. Then, in mid-March and just a few weeks away from the opening of the election filing period, the governor played a second card: A plan to defeat some of the Republicans who had opposed him. Abandoning the GOPs 11th Commandment, Stitt reached out to previous staff members and supporters and began working to find opponents to run against some incumbent Republican senators. At first, the governors actions were just rumors. But just about three weeks before the April filing period Stitt went public, telling the media that he would be actively campaigning for legislators who support his issues, such as school choice policies and lower taxes. Listen, Im never going to shy away from limited government, smaller government, the freedoms that we believe in, the free market principles, the school choice, the smaller taxes, Stitt said during a March 8 news conference. So, absolutely, I mean, if theres candidates that I think are going to line up with Oklahoma values, and theres candidates that dont, then I 100 percent will play in the primaries and get involved and try to let Oklahomans know what I think. Stitt, sources said, had connected with Donnell Harder, a former communication staffer of his and now part of a political action committee known as 46Forward. The PAC, founded by several contributors to the governor, began raising money to fund challengers to some incumbent GOP lawmakers, including McCortney and Sen. Adam Pugh, of Edmond. Treat pushed back, warning Stitt during a news conference that attempting to defeat incumbents of the governors same party was a bad political move for the states chief executive. Its a very small community when it comes to the political world. I know he is fairly new to it, but all of us talk. And its an even smaller group of people who fund these ventures, and weve heard from people who have been hit up from his operation to go after our members, and thats not well received, Treat said. Its going to be very unwelcome if he tries to take out members of our caucus." Treat said he would fight the governor's effort. Even though I am termed out, I would do everything that I can outside of this building in a non-official capacity to help my colleagues who are really making a difference in Oklahoma, he said. A few of Treats opponents in the Senate, including Nathan Dahm, criticized the pro tempore on social media. The hypocrisy never seems to end with Sen. Treat. Apparently, he thinks its ok for him and his cronies to go after other sitting Senators to try to remove them, but its not ok for the Governor or anyone else to endorse in these elections? Total utter hypocrisy as always from Treat, Dahm wrote in a message on X, once known as Twitter. The filing period came and went, McCortney initially drew two opponents, Jonathan Wingard and Robert Crowley. A short time later, Crowley withdrew his candidacy, leaving only Wingard. In Pughs race, no opponent filed, and because there was no general opponent and no primary race, Pugh automatically reclaimed his office. By late April, it appeared the governor's effort to recruit primary opponents against members of the Senate had stalled. The 2024 session end game Since mid-March, Stitt has remained mostly quiet. Questioned recently about his relationship with the Senate leaders and how that would affect the states budget, Stitt said, Listen, Im not going to speak to that, thats your words. Senator Treat (has) not asked us or showed us any Senate budgets. Weve seen them roll that out. We love transparency. Im asking for a budget before the end of session so Oklahomans can understand whats happening. But the fact remains that the relationship between Treat and Stitt does have problems. "I think it's a personal hatred of me," Treat said. "I'm hard-nosed and a tough negotiator, but we (Treat and the governor) share philosophically about 95 percent of what we believe in." As an example of Stitt's personal animosity toward him, Treat said the governor's office will often communicate with many members of the Legislature on small, inconsequential issues, but won't talk to the Senate's leadership. Treat pointed to a recently vetoed domestic violence bill as an example of the problem. More: Governor and Republican legislative leaders make budget progress; Democrats sidelined Senate President Pro Tem Greg Treat, Gov. Kevin Stitt and Speaker of the House Charles McCall are pictured May 9 during Stitt's budget conference at the Oklahoma Capitol. "My newest members (will) receive texts from the governor or the governor's team on, say, raising a fee for $5, a hypothetical," Treat said. "But the leader of the Senate and the floor leader of the House were not consulted by the governor on this bill." Still, even though Treat is quick to acknowledge the problems in the working relationship between himself and the governor, he said Stitt brings several positives to the role of governor. "I personally, think the governor is a very gregarious, likable guy when you're around him," he said. "I think Kevin Stitt is a good family man. I think he's a strong Christian. I think he's likable. I used to enjoy being around him, but he's cut off all communication." Since then, Stitt has denied any animosity between himself and Treat. Speaking at an April 26 news briefing, the governor said his decision to veto legislation "was not personal." Yet, at the same time, the governor didn't answer questions about whether or not he recruited candidates against incumbent Republican members of the Senate. "I'm trying to make Oklahoma a top 10 state," Stitt said. "If we have disagreements, it is probably around whether we should cut taxes or not. I have no ill feelings toward him or anyone in this building. There may be philosophical differences between myself and Senator Treat. I hope it's not personal. It's not personal with me." Former Senate President Pro Tempore Cal Hobson said Stitts plan to play in the primaries against incumbents of his own party was risky and could prove costly. I dont know of a time, at least in the modern era, where an incumbent governor regardless of party would go after people in his own party and recruit against them, Hobson said. Hobson, a Democrat who served as pro tempore of the Senate from 2003 to 2005, said the move by Stitt was a signal the governor was relatively clueless on how to make friends and influence people. (Working against members of his own party) isnt going to reward him when it comes time to find people to support his legislative agenda, Hobson said. "Perhaps he's not used to being challenged, being a former CEO and all." Like Treat, he pointed to then-Gov. Frank Keating as the example of how close political ties can benefit a governor. He said Stitt doesn't seem to care when he's overriden. But Frank Keating made it his priority to never lose an override vote," Hobson said. Keating, Hobson said, was successful because he understood state lawmakers. He said Keatings vetoes were upheld more than 200 times during his tenure in office, while Stitt has been overridden several times. Thats what he gets for not knowing how the process works, Hobson said. This kind of thing will not reward him on policy and will certainly not earn him any friends when he needs them. More: Stitt backs away from .25 personal income tax cut; calls for 'flattening' of income tax brackets Stitts final two years in office, Hobson predicted, will be difficult. With less that a month remaining in the legislative session, theres little time left for Stitt to make nice with the Senate a fact thats not lost on the Senates soon-to-be-retired leader. Treat said the governors ability to influence state policy is fading. Hes got some real talent and charisma that has carried him a long way, Treat said. But as far as the ability to influence policy to oversee the agencies he is supposed to oversee, weve got some real issues at some state agencies right now. Stitt is a good politician, Treat said, but he doesnt govern well. His ability to influence policy and cast a vision and lead is less than optimal, Treat said. And when it comes to bare-knuckle politics, Treat said the governor isnt prepared for a drawn-out, difficult political fight. If he thinks he can influence elections enough to handpick a pro tempore that will just do whatever he wants and will be his puppet, he is sadly mistaken, Treat said. With the session close to its end and the primary election just weeks away, both men will see the results of the governors political plays soon. For Treat, the best result would be a lesson learned by the governor. I think when he came from the business world, which he mastered and became financially successful, he felt like he could come in, and I was a department head and so was my counterpart (Speaker McCall), and he could just tell us who to hire and fire and how to run these things more efficiently, Treat said. But thats not the way. This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Treat: Stitt breaks 'rule' not to work against other Republicans HAGERSTOWN, Md. (DC News Now) Maryland judges can now remove their personal information from the internet. Gov. Wes Moore made it official last week when he signed into law a bill that shields the online home address and other personal contact information for judges in Maryland. Security, safety for judiciary a key concern heading into 2024 in Washington County The new law is the result of a Hagerstown judge being gunned down outside his home. Last October Judge Andrew Wilkinson was shot outside his home just hours after granting child custody in a divorce proceeding to the wife of Pedro Argote. The governor signed this to protect that personal information, Washington County Sheriff, Brian Albert, said. Sheriff Albert helped lead the weeklong manhunt for Argote, who was found dead in a field in Williamsport, Md. Were going to take every step that we can to prevent something like this happening again, Albert said. After the shooting Gov. Moore spent time comforting the family of Judge Wilkinson. His widow, Stephanie, says the governor, was an inspiration for the new law. Honestly, Moore said. This would not have gotten done without the widow of Judge Wilkinson and I have such deep love and respect and admiration for her that she was able to take pain and really turn it into purpose. Hagerstown community celebrates Judge Andrew Wilkinsons life The new state law is modeled after a federal plan following the attempted shooting of a New Jersey U.S. District judge in 2020. We need to make sure, Gov. Moore said. That people who raise their hands to serve us, that we are protecting them as much as possible. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to DC News Now | Washington, DC. Governor: Up to 300 civilians remain in Vovchansk amid Russian advances Up to 300 people remain in Vovchansk as Russian troops "advance in certain directions," Kharkiv Governor Oleh Syniehubov reported on May 13. Vovchansk, a town situated less than 5 kilometers (3 miles) from the Russian border, is currently a key focus of Russia's renewed push into Kharkiv Oblast, which began on May 10. Ukraine's General Staff said in a statement in the early hours of May 13 that Russian forces have had "tactical success" in the fight for Vovchansk. Evacuations of civilians are being carried out as Russian troops continue "to advance in certain directions," Syniehubov said. "The situation is quite complicated," but is "controlled by our military," the governor added. According to Syniehubov, the authorities plan to evacuate about 1,600 local residents over the course of the day. Around 200 to 300 people are known to still be in Vovchansk. So far, over 5,000 civilians have been evacuated from Kharkiv Oblast, Syniehubov reported earlier on May 13. Vovchansk, which had a population of almost 17,000 before the full-scale invasion, came under Russian occupation in February 2022. The town was liberated on Sept. 11, 2022, during Ukraines successful counteroffensive in Kharkiv Oblast. Read also: Civilians flee Vovchansk under Russian bombardment as ground offensive on Kharkiv begins Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. At least 5,900 people have been evacuated from Kharkiv Oblast since Russian forces launched a new offensive in the region, Governor Oleh Syniehubov said during a press briefing in Kharkiv on May 13. Russian troops launched a new wave of offensive actions on May 10, mainly focusing on borderline settlements in Kharkiv Oblast. Syniehubov reported earlier that Ukrainian authorities planned to evacuate around 1,600 residents over the course of the day. Up to 200 people remain in the city of Vovchansk, which has become a key target for Russian troops in recent days due to its proximity to the countries' shared border. Syniehubov said urban combat is ongoing in the northern outskirts of Vovchansk, a Kyiv Independent journalist reported. The General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces said earlier in the day that Russia had "tactical success" in the battle for the city. Subscribe to newsletter War Notes Subscribe Vovchansk, which had a population of almost 17,000 before the full-scale invasion, came under Russian occupation in February 2022. The town was liberated on Sept. 11, 2022, during Ukraines successful counteroffensive in Kharkiv Oblast. Fortifications in the area were built and strengthened after the town was liberated, "but the situation was and is extremely difficult" due to the close proximity of Vovchansk to the Russian border and constant shellings, according to authorities. The construction of fortifications was "perhaps not so tight," Tamaz Gambarashvili, the head of Vovchansk City Military Administration, said on May 13. Read also: Russias new Kharkiv offensive pushes Vovchansk to the brink of annihilation Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Governor Maura Healey and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu are traveling to Italy this week, with stops in Rome and Vatican City. Both are attending a climate summit at the Vatican, hosted by Pope Francis. Im excited for this opportunity to showcase Massachusetts climate and economic leadership on the global stage, and to make the case for why businesses should consider starting and growing in our state, said Governor Healey. Massachusetts deeply values our close relationship with Italy and the Vatican City State, and we see this trip as an excellent opportunity to strengthen ties and strategize on future opportunities for collaboration. Healeys first stop is on Tuesday morning at a closed press event with business leaders at the American Chamber of Commerce in Italy Business Roundtable. Healey and Climate Chief Melissa Hoffer will also meet on Tuesday with the Ambassador to the Holy See, which is also closed to the press. On Wednesday, Healey will give a keynote address at the opening session of the Vatican Climate Summit: From Climate Crisis to Climate Resilience. Mayor Wu is also attending that summit. Mayor Wu will give remarks for a discussion called Governance, Energy, according to her office. The governors office says Healey will highlight Massachusetts global climate leadership, particularly in the emerging industry of climatetech, and announce a new initiative to grow the climate workforce. On Thursday, Governor Healey, UMass Boston Chancellor Marcelo Suarez-Orozco and Ram Ramanathan will participate in Highlights and the Way Forward, during which they will reflect on the sub-regional summits that took place during the course of the summit, according to her office. The Healey administration says the session will end with proposals from all mayors and governors on the next steps. Healey and Mayor Wu will also have an audience with Pope Francis on Thursday. On Saturday, Wus office says the mayor will visit Sulmona, a town with strong ties through immigration to Bostons North End; and attend a commemorative event in Coreno Ausonio, where her children will see the hometown that their great great-grandparents emigrated from. Italy is Massachusetts 10th-largest global trading partner, with a total of $2.05 billion in trade between the state and country in 2023, Healeys office said. The administration highlighted Italian companies that maintain operations in Massachusetts, including Enel North America and Piaggio Fast Forward. Healey will also connect Tuesday with U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See Joe Donnelly, a former Democrat member of Congress from Indiana. Material from the State House News Service was used in this report. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW A Russian ammunition depot exploded in the occupied town of Sorokyne (Krasnodon) in Luhansk Oblast, on May 13, Governor Artem Lysohor said. The ammunition depot is located near the border with Russia, some 130 kilometers from the front line, Lysohor reported. Russian Telegram channels shared videos showing smoke rising over Sorokyne after explosions. Moscow-installed head of the occupied region, Leonid Pasechnik, claimed a missile attack on an industrial area in the town, blaming Ukraine. According to him, three people were killed and four injured. The Kyiv Independent could not verify these claims. Russian soldiers use up ammunition "quite quickly," and it will take time to accumulate it elsewhere away from the front line, Lysohor said. "The Russian military has a limited supply of ammunition in this area now, which should soon affect their offensive effort," the governor added. Fires were reported at oil depots in occupied Luhansk and the town of Rovenky in the region over the past week. Russian proxies claimed that they were hit by Ukrainian forces, which cannot be verified independently. Read also: Russias new Kharkiv offensive pushes Vovchansk to the brink of annihilation Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Clark, New Jersey, resident Jen Valencia puts items in a ShopRite cart on Jan. 8, 2022. (Michael Loccisano/Getty Images) The South Dakota Secretary of States Office said Monday that a petition seeking to repeal the state sales tax on groceries has enough signatures from registered voters to make the Nov. 5 ballot. If nobody mounts a successful challenge to the petitions validation in the next 30 days, it will become the third statewide measure to make the ballot, with several more measures still possible. Read more election coverage Visit the Election 2024 page. The grocery tax repeal is a citizen-initiated proposal, led by the Dakotans for Health ballot question committee. The other two measures already on the ballot were placed there by the Legislature: a proposal to change male-specific officeholder references in the state constitution to neutral language, and a proposal that would allow the state to impose work requirements on some Medicaid expansion enrollees. Validation is pending for citizen-led petitions that would create open primary elections, re-establish abortion rights and legalize adult recreational marijuana use. Meanwhile, a citizen-led group is trying to refer a new pipeline law to the ballot. The Legislature passed the law last winter to implement new protections for landowners affected by a proposed carbon dioxide pipeline, while still allowing a regulatory path forward for the project. In a related announcement, the Secretary of States Office issued a warning Monday to South Dakotans about scam phone calls. The calls come from random numbers with a 605-area code, and the caller claims to be with the the Secretary of States Office and the South Dakota Integrity Committee or the Petition Integrity Commission. Scammers are pressuring people who answer the phone to withdraw their signature from the abortion rights petition. People who receive such calls are encouraged to contact the Secretary of States Office, Division of Elections, at elections@state.sd.us or by phone at (605) 773-3537. State law dictates the number of petition signatures required from registered voters to place a measure on the ballot. This year, the requirements are 17,508 signatures for an initiated measure or referred law, and 35,017 for an initiated constitutional amendment. The grocery tax measure would prohibit the state from collecting sales taxes on anything sold for human consumption, except alcoholic beverages and prepared food. The measure would wipe out the 4.2% state sales tax on such items, while cities could continue imposing a tax of up to 2%. Proponents say the measure would help low-income people, but it would also cost the state an estimated $124 million in lost sales tax revenue during its first year of implementation. Ballot question status update Measures placed on the Nov. 5 ballot by the Legislature: An amendment to the state constitution updating references to certain officeholders and people (replacing male-specific pronouns with neutral language). An amendment to the state constitution authorizing the state to impose work requirements on certain people who are eligible for expanded Medicaid. Citizen-proposed measure validated for the ballot, pending potential challenges: An initiated measure prohibiting state sales taxes on items sold for human consumption, specifically targeting state sales taxes on groceries. Citizen-proposed measures, pending validation of the required number of petition signatures: An initiated amendment to the state constitution re-establishing abortion rights. An initiated amendment to the state constitution establishing open primary elections. An initiated measure legalizing adult recreational use, possession and distribution of marijuana. Petition still in circulation: A proposed referendum of a new law regulating carbon dioxide pipelines. The post Grocery tax repeal validated for the ballot appeared first on South Dakota Searchlight. Group traveling from Chicago caught in stolen car with stolen gun and drugs in Gwinnett County Five people traveling from Chicago were arrested in Gwinnett County after police found drugs and a stolen gun inside the stolen car they were driving. On April 4, officers located a stolen vehicle with help from the Gwinnett County police aviation unit in the parking lot of 1625 Pleasant Hill Road in unincorporated Duluth. After interviewing the five suspects, officers learned the group traveled from Chicago, visiting multiple states, before arriving in metro Atlanta. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] During a search of the stolen car, officers found a stolen gun and drugs. Aniyah Falon Barber, 23, of Chicago, was charged with two counts of possession of a controlled substance and two counts of theft by receiving stolen property. Laroy Allen-Burse, 33, of Atlanta, Marquise T. Ellison, 27, of Chicago, Lamont William Hall, Jr., 32, of Chicago, and Dominique Bell, 37, of Indiana, were charged with theft by receiving stolen property and possession of a controlled substance. Hall also had multiple outstanding arrest warrants. All five suspects were booked into the Gwinnett County Jail. TRENDING STORIES: [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] IN OTHER NEWS: GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) Michigan could get an official state insect thanks to a dedicated class of fifth graders at Grand Rapids Public Schools. The buzz in Emma Witkovskys fifth grade classroom at Aberdeen Academy is all about the stonefly. Its just perfect really, fifth grader Ramir Franklin said about the stonefly. Iowa and Michigan are the only two states without designated state insects. Earlier this year, Witkovsky put together this book to teach her class about all the states. Each page had each of the states symbols. When she got to Michigan, she realized the state was missing an official insect. So her class decided to change that. They settled on the stonefly as the new state insect, partially because it plays a key role in the food chain. Students at Aberdeen Elementary in Grand Rapids are pitching stoneflies as the new official Michigan insect. (May 13, 2024) Students at Aberdeen Elementary in Grand Rapids are pitching stoneflies as the new official Michigan insect. (May 13, 2024) The stonefly is the main food source for the brook trout, Witkovsky said. Brook trout is our state fish. It also indicates whether our waters are clean because the insect naturally stays away from polluted water. They are part of high water quality streams, rivers, creeks, Witkovsky said. The students became young scientists. They took a field trip to Honey Creek at Seidman Park in Ada to study stoneflies and take water samples to determine its quality. It was really fun, said fifth-grader Amanda Weber. We caught a lot of crayfish and stoneflies and mayflies. Students at Aberdeen Elementary in Grand Rapids are pitching stoneflies as the new official Michigan insect. (Courtesy Grand Rapids Public Schools) All 18 fifth graders wrote five-paragraph essays stating their case and sent them to State Rep. Rachel Hood, D-Grand Rapids. The essays had diagrams showing the life cycle of a stonefly. I was blown away, Witkovsky said. I was so proud of them. I couldnt stop grinning from ear to ear, just because they put so much time and effort into it. There wasnt a lot of complaining either, usually having them write essays is like pulling teeth. But this was not. Not long after, Hood was in the classroom teaching the class about lawmaking. State Rep. Rachel Hood visited Aberdeen Elementary, whose students are pitching the stonefly as the new official Michigan insect. (Courtesy Grand Rapids Public Schools) She put on a presentation and was showing us different types of bills and what the process to go through and what well have to go through too, fifth-grader Alana Kimbrough said. Hood was so impressed that she introduced a bill in the House, HB 5563, to officially make the stonefly the state insect. The fifth graders later showed off their project during a school board meeting and got a standing ovation from the crowd. It was glorious, Witkovsky said. They really got the recognition they deserved. They put in so much hard work and so many hours. On the wall outside the classroom, the teacher has posted other bills that became law, designating a state bird, butterfly and more. She has placed HB 5563 at the top of the board, hoping it joins the rest. Students at Aberdeen Elementary in Grand Rapids are pitching stoneflies as the new official Michigan insect. (May 13, 2024) Its an adventure that her class will never forget. It would mean very much to me, Mitz said. We worked super hard on it. Random people are proud of us. Its also something that the teacher has learned from. Ive learned not to doubt students ever, Witkovsky said. Because they will far surpass any expectation when you let them. The bill is awaiting a hearing by the Natural Resources, Enviornment, Tourism and Outdoor Recreation Commitee. Hood told News 8 Monday that she hopes it will pass the committee and the House by the end of the school year. The students cant wait to celebrate their achievement. I would feel really proud of myself and maybe well throw a party, just maybe, Franklin said. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com. About half of Baltimore City students are chronically absent. Which schools have highest, lowest rates? Principal James Sargent beamed as he held up a large trophy before a packed classroom of students and staff. The prize recognized Success Academy, a small alternative program in East Baltimore, as the latest winner of Mayor Brandon Scotts attendance challenge. The quarterly contest seeks to motivate students to be consistently present in school after the coronavirus pandemic severely impacted attendance. After school closures and quarantines, every state saw a dramatic spike in chronic absenteeism when a student misses 10% or more days in a school year, which amounts to more than three weeks. Marylands rate remains high at 29.8% for 2023. During the 2021-22 school year, Baltimores chronic absenteeism rate skyrocketed to 58%, at least 45,000 students. High schoolers, particularly freshmen, were the most chronically absent that school year, at about 69%. The best-attended schools in the district were charter elementary and middle schools; a traditional, stand-alone elementary school; elementary schools combined with middle schools, and two high schools that have entrance criteria. Alternative educational programs and traditional high schools had the worst attendance. The overwhelming majority of city schools students came out of the pandemic missing 20 days or more of school, Sonja Santelises, CEO of the Baltimore City Public School System, said in an interview. But the rate of chronically absent students has improved, she said, and continues to decline because of the work and attention of educators. Data for the 2023-24 school year is incomplete, but she estimated chronic absenteeism has dropped to 45%. The work that we do is not in vain, Sargent said at an April news conference. In addition to lower grades, test scores and graduation rates, missing a significant amount of school can impact entire classes when teachers have to repeat lessons, education experts say. Students also miss out on creating meaningful relationships with peers and teachers, resulting in more absences. It can be a really self-reinforcing cycle, said Jing Liu, an assistant professor in education policy at the University of Maryland, College Park. Schools with lowest chronic absenteeism State attendance data in 2023 shows that charter schools and public schools with arts and magnet programs had city schools lowest rates of chronic absenteeism. Besides Eager Street Academy, a middle and high school program serving incarcerated teenagers, the highest attendance and lowest chronic absenteeism rates were at City Neighbors Hamilton, a charter elementary/middle school focused on the arts. Hampstead Hill Academy, The Green School of Baltimore and City Neighbors Charter School had chronic absenteeism rates of around 15%, ranking in the top five best attendance rates. Charter schools can have strict attendance policies and entrance criteria, Liu said. But they, too, can also struggle with attendance. Charter and alternative schools could also have smaller populations and be better at connecting with students than larger, traditional schools, said Robert Balfanz, a Johns Hopkins University School of Education research professor and director of Hopkins Everyone Graduates Center, who spoke generally about chronic absenteeism. You could speculate that theyre are better-suited or more conditioned to really try to focus on this idea of relationships with kids, being connected with kids, making them feel welcome and wanted in schools, Balfanz said. Baltimore School for the Arts, a performing arts school, and Baltimore Polytechnic Institute, a magnet high school, had the lowest chronic absenteeism rates for non-charter high schools, at 16% and 25%, respectively. Baltimore School for the Arts applicants must audition, and only 11% are accepted. Poly students must apply and meet high academic criteria. All traditional schools with chronic absenteeism rates below the state average were elementary schools or combined elementary/middle schools. William Paca Elementary, a stand-alone elementary school in East Baltimore, had the lowest rate at 16.8%. Schools with highest chronic absenteeism BCPSS schools with large populations of low-income students, alternative schools and schools with specialized programs, such as medicine and law, had the worst attendance rates in 2023. Act replaced No Child Left Behind that states widely adopted chronic absenteeism as an accountability metric. Chronic absenteeism includes both lawful and unlawful absences. Students who are unlawfully absent for 20 days in a school year are considered truant, which carries a legal penalty for parents and guardians. Its a relatively new idea for schools, Balfanz said. They werent all prepared for this big wave of post-pandemic chronic absenteeism. For schools with large populations, an increase in the percentage of students regularly missing school can amount to hundreds of kids with chronic absences, a number that overwhelms you, Balfanz said of school administrators. In Baltimore, at least 95% of students were chronically absent at two alternative programs: Excel Academy at Francis M. Wood High, an adult program with credit recovery, and Achievement Academy at Harbor City High, which has 200 students. Excel Academy won the mayors attendance challenge in the years second quarter. Alternative schools generally have the highest rates of chronic absenteeism because they concentrate children with obstacles to learning and regular attendance in a single school, Balfanz said. Students who attend alternative schools are more likely to have to work to support themselves or their families, are more likely to have greater sibling or elder care responsibilities, and over time might have a looser attachment to schooling the very reasons they might attend an alternative school, he added. Reginald F. Lewis High School of Business and Law, a traditional high school in Northeast Baltimore with more than 550 students, had a 92% chronic absenteeism rate. So did Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy, a 400-person high school focused on medical training. Renaissance Academy, a 200-person high school focused on law and government, had an 89% chronic absenteeism rate. Edmondson-Westside High and Frederick Douglass High, two traditional schools with at least 700 kids, each had an 87% chronically absent rate. More than 75% of students were from low-income families at both schools. A city schools spokesperson declined to make principals at schools that did not win the quarterly attendance challenge available for interviews. What can be done? At Success Academy, the school population fluctuates around 100 formerly incarcerated students, those who have missed a significant amount of school and suspended students who return to traditional schools. Sargent dedicated staff to aggressively monitor attendance, resulting in the districts largest year-over-year improvement in attendance during 2023-24s third quarter. . Success Academys attendance team met weekly to track who was on the cusp of being chronically absent. One staff member made 3,000 phone calls to students and their parents this year, Sargent said. Its getting to the point now where kids are saying, Please dont call my house; Im on my way, he said with a laugh. Research has shown promise in preventing chronic absenteeism by strengthening relationships between students and their school communities, and with home-based interventions, Liu said. Sending persistent nudge letters and visiting the homes of targeted students have shown success, but those strategies take time and manpower that can strain school resources, he said. Principal Rashida Ford overhauled the attendance strategy at Booker T. Washington Middle School after 83% of her students were chronically absent in 2022. She wanted to understand why students were missing school. Booker T. Washington, a performing arts school in West Baltimore, is one of the few stand-alone middle schools in the city. Students can apply to attend, but most come from the Upton neighborhood and McCulloh Homes community. Art is a strategy to boost attendance, Ford said. Student actors and musicians must rehearse to be part of an end-of-the-year play, and their peers will hold them accountable if theyre not at practice. Over the summer, Ford and her team drove to every sixth grade students house to introduce themselves. And when students are absent three days in a row, they can expect a knock on the door. Booker T. Washington also uses Concentric Educational Solutions, a home visit service, to reengage students. Going to houses, going to doors really makes a difference, Ford said. Chronically absent students have personalized attendance plans, and some check in and out of school with staff. Students are awarded field trips and other incentives for good attendance. The driving factor for the improvement was making students feel safe and engaged at school, she said. The efforts resulted in the schools chronic absenteeism rate dropping to 68% last year. Ford was awarded on the first day of school as the mayors first attendance challenge winner. At the end of the year, seeing that number I got a little emotional, she said. You dont always see the reward for attendance because its always this moving target. But being able to see the outcome of the hard work our team put in just gave us further motivation to keep going. New Hampshire woman flown to hospital after I-93 crash, charged with impaired driving A New Hampshire woman was flown to a hospital and also charged with impaired driving after a rollover crash on Interstate 93 over the weekend. Amanda B. Webber, 28, of Washington, New Hampshire was subsequently arrested and charged with driving under the influence following the crash that temporarily closed a portion of I-93 early Saturday morning, state police said. Driver impairment and excessive speed appear to be the leading causes of the early-morning crash on Saturday, state police said. At approximately 2:15 a.m. Saturday, state police received an automated crash notification from an area of I-93 in New Hampton, and additional calls reporting the crash came in from other drivers a short time later. Troopers responding to the scene found a Jeep Renegade that had gone off the left side of the highway, just before the Exit 23 off-ramp. A preliminary investigation found that the Jeep left the road, struck an embankment, and rolled multiple times before coming to rest in the median. Webber was airlifted to Concord Hospital for treatment of injuries later determined to be non-life-threatening. Her condition was not known on Monday morning. I-93 was shut down in the area for approximately 30 minutes to facilitate the medical helicopters arrival and landing. Investigators found Webber with indicators of impairment, which led to her arrest, state police said. New Hampshire State Police were assisted on scene by the New Hampton Fire Department, the Dartmouth Hitchcock Advanced Response Team , and New Hampton Towing. Anyone who witnessed the crash or who has information for investigators is asked to contact Trooper Zachary Bilotta at Zachary.T.Bilotta@dos.nh.gov or State Police Communications at 603-223-4381. 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 What happened to these Kansas counties and why do they no longer exist? What happened to these Kansas counties and why do they no longer exist? TOPEKA (KSNT) Some Kansas counties havent stood the test of time, so what happened to them? The Kansas State Historical Society (KSHS) names more than 20 counties on its website which no longer exist in the present day. These counties were all dissolved over the years with their land included among the 105 counties we know and recognize as making up the state of Kansas. While the reasons vary as to why each county was renamed or dissolved, many were taken down due to ties to the pro-slavery movement or the Confederacy. Buffalo County: March 20, 1873 March 13, 1881 Takes its name from the American bison and state animal of Kansas. In 1881, townships located in the northern part of the county were removed and added to Lane County with the rest going to Gray and Finney Counties. Irving County: Feb. 27, 1860 Feb. 24, 1864 Named after the author and poet Washington Irving who is best known for penning The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Rip Van Winkle. The county was annexed into Butler County in 1864 with other pieces of land being incorporated into Cowley, Greenwood and Elk Counties. Kansas counties offer $12,500 to help home buyers Shirley County: Feb. 27, 1860 Sept. 6, 1866 Differing historical accounts exist on how this county got its name. The KSHS says the first account lists the name as coming from William Shirley, the governor of the Massachusetts Colony in the mid-1700s, while another asserts the name comes from a lady of questionable character named Jane Welch of the Leavenworth area. Shirley County was changed to Cloud County in 1867. Dorn County: August 25, 1855 June 3, 1861 Accounts of how this county got its name arent clear as the KSHS points to either Earl Van Dorn or Andrew Jackson Dorn as being the source. Both men joined the Confederate Army during the Civil War. The county was later renamed Neosho County. Howard County: Feb. 26, 1867 March 25, 1875 The county draws its name from General Oliver Otis Howard, a Union army officer who commanded troops during the first and second battles of Bull Run, Gettysburg and other battles. Howard County was first established as Godfrey County which was later renamed Seward County in 1861. Howard County ceased to exist in 1875 as a result of disputes over the location of the county seat which led to the countys land being divided between Elk and Chautauqua Counties. Foote County: March 20, 1873 March 13, 1881 Most likely draws its name from Andrew Hull Foote, an American naval officer, who commanded a group of ironclad gunships during the Civil War. Foote County was attached to Ford and Finney Counties in 1881 for judicial purposes with a later act changing its name to Gray County. Kansas flags to fly at half-staff, heres why Wise County: Aug. 25, 1855 Feb. 11, 1859 Named after Virginian Governor Henry A. Wise, a supporter of slavery and brigadier general in the Confederate Army, who is also recognized for signing John Browns death warrant. Wise County lost land to Chase County in 1859 and was later turned into Morris County. Weller County: Aug. 30, 1855 N/A Named after California Senator John B. Weller who also served as the U.S. Minister to Mexico. A map of this countys territory places it where modern-day Osage County sits. Hunter County: N/A Feb. 24, 1864 This county was most likely named after Robert Mercer Taliaferro Hunter, a Virginia congressman and senator, who was a supporter of slavery and later joined the Confederate Senate. Now, Hunter Countys land makes up parts of Sedgwick, Sumner, Butler, Elk, Chautauqua and Greenwood Counties. Davis County: Aug. 25, 1855 March 7, 1889 This county was named after U.S. Secretary of War Jefferson Davis who later became the president of the Confederacy. Davis County lost land to Dickinson County in 1857 then to Wabaunsee County in 1860. While it gained territory from Dickinson County in 1860 and Riley County in 1873, it would have its name changed in 1889 to Geary County. Calhoun County: Aug. 25, 1855 Feb. 11, 1859 The KSHS says the county was likely named in honor of John C. Calhoun, a senator from South Carolina who later served as vice-president. The county may also have been named after John Calhoun, the first surveyor-general of Kansas and Nebraska. The name for the county was changed in 1859 to Jackson County. Owners look to sell historic Gufler Mansion in Emporia for $775,000 Breckenridge County: Aug. 25, 1855 Feb. 5, 1862 Named in honor of John C. Breckinridge, a Kentucky congressman and later vice-president, who later served as a major-general in the Confederate Army. The county was renamed to Lyon County due to Breckenridges political beliefs. Washington County: Aug. 30, 1855 Feb. 20, 1857 This county was named in honor of the first president of the U.S.. George Washington. The county was initially very large, comprising a huge swath of territory in southwestern Kansas. Old Washington Countys land now makes up all or parts of Barber, Barton, Clark, Comanche, Edwards, Ford, Grant, Gray and more than a dozen other counties. The name was later passed on to present-day Washington County along the Nebraska border. Madison County: Aug. 25, 1855 Jan. 31, 1861 Records with KSHS show the countys name most likely came from the fourth president of the U.S., James Madison. The county was divided in 1861 with the northern parts eventually becoming part of Lyon County while the southern half was absorbed by Greenwood County. Garfield County: March 23, 1887 March 18, 1893 Named in honor of James Abram Garfield, 20th president of the U.S., this county mostly made up land from Buffalo County. Bat Masterson and other deputies were hired to keep the peace in this county due to a bitter rivalry between the towns of Ravanna and Eminence in 1887. The Kansas Supreme Court later decided in 1892 the county was illegally organized and was annexed into Finney County in 1893. When do cicadas emerge in Kansas? St. John County: March 13, 1881 Feb. 25, 1887 This county takes its name from John P. St. John who served as governor of Kansas from 1879 to 1883. A KSHS map shows this countys land now makes up Logan County. Billings County: March 20, 1873 Feb. 25, 1874 The 1873 Kansas Legislature changed the name of Norton County to Billings County either as a joke or to appease the vanity of state Representative N. H. Billings. The name was changed in 1874 when Representative Billings time in the legislature ended. Richardson County: Aug. 25, 1855 Feb. 11, 1859 The county was named after William P. Richardson, a pro-slavery member of the territorial council of Kansas. Richardson County was later absorbed by Wabaunsee County. McGee County: Aug. 25, 1855 Feb. 18, 1860 Named after Mabillon W. McGee, a member of the Kansas House of Representatives and supporter of slavery. The name of the county was later changed due to McGees political leanings in 1860 to Cherokee County. Lykins County: Aug. 25, 1855 June 3, 1861 This county draws its name from the pro-slavery Baptist missionary David Lykins. Lykins County was later changed to Miami County. Are the rides at your Kansas county fair safe? Heres how to tell Godfrey County: Aug. 30, 1855 June 3, 1861 Bill Godfrey, a trader with Osage tribe members in the 1850s, or Gabriel Godfrey, who worked with the Pottawatomie tribe in the 1820s, could be the inspiration for this countys name. The name was later changed in 1861 to Seward County which later became Howard County. Godfrey Countys land now makes up parts of Elk and Chautauqua Counties. Sequoyah County: March 20, 1873 Feb. 22, 1883 This county was named after a leader of the Cherokee tribe named Sequoyah who is credited with inventing the Cherokee alphabet. The county was later absorbed into Finney County in 1883. Peketon County: Feb. 21, 1860 Feb. 26, 1867 Initially, this county comprised more than one-quarter of the states land. The name for the county has yet to be properly identified but the KSHS says it may be connected to a Native American term for flat land. Peketon County later became part of Marion County in 1867. Kansas sky turns purple in rare display of Northern Lights Kansas County: N/A Feb. 22, 1883 The county named after the state drew inspiration from the Kansa or Kaw Native American tribes. Kansas County disappeared in 1883 as Seward County expanded to include parts of its land which was later reestablished into Morton County. Otoe County: Feb. 17, 1860 Feb. 24 1864 Named after the Otoe (Oto) Native American tribe of Nebraska, this county was never officially organized. Much of Otoe County is now included in modern-day Butler County with other pieces of land going to Harvey and Sedgwick Counties. For more Kansas news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here. Follow Matthew Self on X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/MatthewLeoSelf For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KSNT 27 News. Harris reflects on breaking down barriers: Sometimes you need to kick that f***ing door down to accomplish your dreams Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday reflected on her experiences as a barrier-breaking public figure, telling a crowd in blunt terms that sometimes they need to take it upon themselves strive for their own opportunities and successes even if others may doubt them. We have to know that sometimes people will open the door for you and leave it open, Harris said in a moderated conversation with actor and comedian Jimmy O. Yang in Washington. Sometimes they wont and then you need to kick that f***ing door down, she added, to applause and laughter from the crowd. She added, Excuse my language, as the crowd continued to laugh and applaud. Harris statement came as she marked Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, reflecting on her experience as the countrys first female, first Black and first Asian American vice president. Harris told Yang that people should never use others preconceptions of what theyre capable of to limit their own dreams and desires. Dont ever carry, as a personal burden, your capacity to do whatever you dream and aspire to do based on other peoples limited ability to see who can do what, Harris said. Harris this year has become a key figure for President Joe Bidens administration and campaign, criss-crossing the country making points that might be more difficult for the president an older white man to make himself. Her efforts have included serving as the administrations point person on abortion rights, becoming the first sitting president or vice president to visit an abortion provider and traveling to states such as Florida and Arizona, where new court rulings and laws have thrown into doubt the future of abortion access. Harris on Monday also discussed the administrations efforts to protect the legal right to an abortion, making references to the 2022 Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade. A decision has been made that takes from the American people a fundamental freedom to make decisions about ones own body, Harris told Yang. Think about what thats taking us back to, that one does not have the right to exercise authority over issues that I call heart and home, issues that are fundamental to what should be a right to decide to start a family or not. Harris also reflected on efforts to curb gun violence, expressing optimism that young voters, who have borne the brunt of gun violence in schools, will lead the charge in effecting change. When our young leaders start voting in their numbers on so many of these issues, I believe we are going to see a sea change in terms of how we address it, because our young leaders in particular are very practical and they want to see things done and what I love about them is theyre not gonna wait for us to figure it out, theyre gonna do it, she said. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com What was making news in our area during this week in years past? The History Museum offers these newspaper excerpts to give you an idea. May 12, 1905: During the severe electrical storm yesterday three bad washouts occurred in Vistula avenue which greatly inconvenienced street car traffic. The Indiana Railway company sent a force of men to repair the damages to its tracks and the cars are running on schedule time to-day. The South Bend Tribune May 13, 1915: The present European conflict and the perils of an ocean voyage between England and the United States proved no insurmountable barrier in the pretty English romance which had its culmination last night in River Park in the marriage of Miss Lottie Warrick and George Vergoe." The South Bend Tribune May 14, 1925: Advertising and sales executives of the entire automotive industry will convene in South Bend, June 11 and 12 at the joint meeting of the Motor & Accessary Manufacturers association and the National Automobile Chamber of Commerce. South Bend has been selected for this meeting as an act of courtesy to the Studebaker corporation, whose influence in the industry is one of increasing influence. Over 100 executives of the automotive industry, will be present for the conference. The South Bend Tribune May 15, 1938: Retail druggists of South Bend and nearby cities, with their wives and key sales people, will meet Monday night in the Hotel Lasalle to hear a discussion of business operations under the Indiana fair trade law. They will be guests of the Indiana Pharmaceutical association and Miles Laboratories, Inc., of Elkhart, Ind. The South Bend Tribune May 16, 1945: The county plan commission, swamped in a long session late Tuesday with proposed postwar activities in St. Joseph county, approved establishment of one private airport, withheld decision on another, provided for operation of two small manufacturing plants and took under consideration a petition for erection of another that would employ 300 persons. The South Bend Tribune May 17, 1950: Clay townships new high school will be located on the Lily road between the Cleveland and Darden roads. The new building will be built directly south of Washington-Clay High school and will face on Lily road, F. L. Nelson said today. Nelson is president of the board of directors of the Clay Township Building corporation. The corporation, made up of township taxpayers, is financing construction of the 16-room school. The South Bend Tribune May 18, 1967: Fire Department investigators are attempting to learn the origin of a fire in a crawl space at the University of Notre Dame ROTC building that resulted in extensive smoke damage throughout the building early to-day. Firemen said there was a possibility of an electrical short. The South Bend Tribune This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: 1950: The new Clay High School will be built south of old structure Gov. Gavin Newsom is flunking a key climate change test within a stones throw of the Capitol. A freeway widening project on parts of Highway 50 and Interstate 80 is moving forward under his leadership that is in blatant defiance of the Sacramento regions climate change strategy to dramatically move motorists into carpools. When the governor visits the Vatican later this week to attend an international climate change summit, he has reason to confess a Sacramento sin. Instead of doing the hard work of real leadership, risking the annoyance of some commuters by compelling them to use carpool lanes that produce less emissions, Newsom has instead ducked this issue for months. Team Newsom is siding with the road builders of the California Department of Transportation and ignoring his own Air Resources Board and their two blistering critiques of the coveted Caltrans project to widen freeway lanes between Sacramento and Davis. The Air Resources Board says this project will worsen the effects of climate change, but Caltrans and Newsom and trying their damndest to ignore them. Oh, and they are also ignoring the six-county Sacramento Area Council of Governments (SACOG), who want more carpool lanes. Newsom is no Jerry Brown, a governor who was willing to take on CalTrans from his very first term, when necessary. When it comes to road building, Newsom has far more in common with Donald Trump, pretending that unpopular moves to tackle the globes biggest challenge arent really necessary. Opinion There is nothing popular about reversing the effects of climate change. It will demand some big changes in human behavior to reduce the gas emissions that contribute to trapping the suns heat and causing drier rainy seasons and temperatures to rise. This is where Newsoms approach to climate change falls apart. Newsom, the Democrat leadership in Sacramento and Caltrans simply dont want to be associated with that is hard to do or unpopular because it requires all of us to change our behavior, use carpool lanes, and drive less. The carpool lane has been a rare species for years in the Sacramento region. A toll lane has never yet existed. We are used to driving around unimpeded, save for the traffic. . The average Sacramento-area resident, according to SACOG, is in a vehicle for 26 miles every day. Thats a lot of daily driving for every man, woman and child. Its our contribution to the planets climate change problem. The local mindset associates toll or carpool lanes with the congested Bay Area or the gridlock of Southern California. But Sacramento has grown up, in more ways than one. These high-occupancy freeway lanes must become the norm in the Sacramento region if we are ever to get serious about reducing emissions. The crucial test case is the regions very first toll lane project, a $465 million widening. The Yolo Corridor Improvements Project widens stretches of roadway from downtown Sacramento to the Solano County line. In its recently completed environmental analysis, Caltrans has selected a single express lane for carpools of three occupants or more or solo motorists who would pay a toll. These requirements would only apply for peak commute hours. While this represents a significant change from Sacramentos status quo, climate change demands even greater steps to reduce vehicles and emissions on on all the local freeways. Every urban region in California is legally required to submit detailed plans to the Air Board on how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. SACOGs plan, submitted to the Air Board in 2020, requires two express lanes on most freeways at rush hour. All that carpooling would reduce the number of vehicles in the express lanes so they can move at top speed. And the two toll lanes would provide tens of millions of dollars of new revenue for transit projects to further reduce emissions. In December, a Caltrans spokesman said that the department did not study the SACOG plan for two express lanes in its analysis because SACOG did not make the request, This excuse flies in the face of Caltrans guidelines that promote consistency with regional transportation plans. To understand what happened between SACOG and Caltrans, the Bee Editorial Board filed a Public Records Act request in December to CalTrans for all of its related emails between the two entities. Five months later, Caltrans has failed to produce a single email. Asked to explain the delay, CalTrans spokesman Dennis Keaton did not respond. The Newsom administration is no hotbed of transparency. Caltranss refusal to provide public records in a timely fashion is sadly typical. Newsoms own Air Board has made no progress with Caltrans either. In a scathing letter about CalTrans draft environmental report for the Yolo Corridor project, the Air Board blasted the transportation department for underestimating the congestion caused by the project and overestimating the benefits. For Caltrans, heeding the Air Boards recommendations would have meant starting from scratch and studying this expansion differently. Caltrans is simply ignoring the states top climate change regulator. And Newsom, by his administrations failure to get its different agencies on the same page, is letting it happen. The Sacramento regions first toll lane is on a path to failing the regions climate change plan. Thats on Newsom. The governor can blame Big Oil all he wants. That we all have to change our ways is an inconvenient truth that Newsom is afraid to address. Supporters of legislation mandating minimum staffing for nurses marching at the Ohio Statehouse. (Photo by Nick Evans for Ohio Capital Journal.) This story references suicide. If you need help, you can call 988 to speak with a trained listener, or visit 988lifeline.org for crisis chat services and more information. Last week was National Nurses week, and in Ohio, lawmakers held the first hearing for a measure codifying nurse-to-patient ratios. To nurses, its a critical protection for workers stretched too thin, but to hospitals its a potentially devastating obstacle to delivering care. Nurses have been pushing for some kind of legally mandated staffing ratio for at least a decade, but hospitals have so far been able to nip those efforts in the bud. First hearing About forty nurses wearing matching shirts emblazoned with code red filled the basement hearing room last Tuesday. The show of force was notable given theyll have to wait for a future hearing to speak. The measures sponsors, state Reps. Elgin Rogers, D-Toledo, and Haraz Ghanbari, R-Perrysburg, described how higher workloads for nurses lead to mistakes or oversights. Thats why House Bill 285 would also create minimum staffing standards between one-to-one and one-to-six for all hospitals here in Ohio, Ghanbari explained. These ratios are based on best practices, that take into account how many patients are safe for nurses to handle at any given time. At the most critical level of care, including operating rooms and trauma emergency units, the bill requires at least one nurse per patient. Intensive care units and maternity wards focused on labor and delivery would allow a nurse to care for two patients. From there, the requirements continue to relax emergency room nurses can cover three patients, acute psych nurses can cover four. In a rehab setting, nurses can treat five patients and nurses can handle six babies at a time in a well-baby nursery. The bill further directs the state health director to set ratios for any unit not explicitly defined in statute. Ghanbari stressed that while the staffing guidelines are needed, it will take time for providers to implement them. Hospitals have two years to implement these ratios, he explained, except for those hospitals in rural areas, which have a longer on-ramp of four years. He added the bill also carries numerous exceptions to ensure hospitals operating in good faith arent penalized. States of emergency, patient diversion or transfer and even the inability to hire staff after reasonable efforts are included among those exceptions. So long as a hospital doesnt deny workers their meal breaks, Ghanbari added, they wont be punished for minor deviations from staffing requirements. Rogers stressed the exceptions are meant to ensure flexibility for hospitals that make efforts to meet the ratio but are unable to due to circumstances out of their control. This legislation was created with the mindset that this is not just for the nurses and the patient but is also for the industry and the hospital, he added. I want you to understand that we took great care to think about all the parties involved. Staffing research Perhaps the most eye-popping statistic Rogers and Ghanbari cited had to do with increases in patient mortality as a nurses workload increases. With each additional patient, they explained, the mortality rate increases by 7%. That comes from a 2002 study conducted by Linda Aiken, a professor of nursing and sociology at the University of Pennsylvania. She explained that, despite stemming from a 20 year old study, those findings have proven durable and not just in the U.S. Weve been studying this particular relationship between nurse staffing and patient outcomes for over 30 years, she explained. Very large studies in the U.S. and 30 other countries. And we find this is a generic finding, in every large study weve ever done about the variation in hospital outcomes. That 2002 study looked at California, the first state in the country to impose nurse-to-patient staffing ratios, on the eve of those ratios taking effect. Since those staffing requirements took effect, Aiken said, patient mortality has declined, but she acknowledged the exact causes remain a point of contention. There wasnt really a proper scientific evaluation of California. There was no baseline, there was no prospective evaluation, she explained. And so, theres a lot of arguments about, how much of the improved and lower mortality of California could be attributed to this particular policy. On the other hand, shes quick to note Californias legislation didnt undermine the hospital system. No hospitals closed because of nurse staffing despite massive economic challenges like the Great Recession and COVID-19. The requirements have been particularly important for safety-net hospitals which traditionally treat the most vulnerable patients. Whats more, Aiken argued, she and researchers on her team have repeatedly shown the link between staffing and mortality since that 2002 study. In 2014, for instance, Aiken found the same 7% increase in patient mortality with each patient added to a nurses workload across in nine EU countries. Even more striking, in 2021 her team published a study of 55 hospitals in Queensland, Australia. Half of them imposed minimum staffing ratios and half didnt. The study compared both groups before, and two years after, the policy took effect. For hospitals with no staffing minimums, mortality rates rose slightly, but the for the group with a ratio in place, they dropped substantially. The hospitals with minimum staffing out-performed the control group on readmissions and length of stay as well. Based on the studys estimates, the hospitals wouldve seen 145 more deaths, 255 more readmissions, and 29,222 additional hospital days, without the policy in place. Those reductions in length of stay translate to millions in savings, according to Aiken. We estimated that in Australia, for example, the offset on the shorter lengths of stay they were getting by having better staffing was saving them the equivalent of $20 million a year, she said. That was more than double the labor costs from hiring additional nurses to meet the minimum staffing guidelines. Friday rally The same day Reps. Rogers and Ghanbari introduced their bill, the Ohio Hospital Association wrote a letter to House Speaker Jason Stephens attempting to torpedo the measure. The Ohio Childrens Hospital Association, Ohio Chamber of Commerce and Ohio Business Roundtable signed on to the letter as well. A one-size-fits all approach to staffing simply does not consider the many complexities and nuances of running a business and a hospital is no exception, the letter insisted. The letter treated the Golden State as a kind of boogeyman, warning HB 285 is a giant step toward the Californication of Ohio. The OHA complained staffing requirements will make the difficult job of hiring nurses even harder and argued California mandates have led to some hospitals reducing services. They argued the bill could lead to greater reliance on travel or temp nurses, and criticized the measure for treating a nurses with a few months or a few decades of experience as interchangeable. A statistic Rogers and Ghanbari brought up might undermine those concerns about staffing shortages. 42% of nurses, Ghanbari told the committee. 42% who have left the bedside would consider returning to the bedside if Ohio had legally enforceable minimum staffing standards. Aiken echoed the argument, stating California solved their nursing shortage in two years by requiring minimum staffing. A separate study from the California Healthcare Foundation found that staffing changes had no discernible effect on hospital finances. Instead the authors pointed to changes in Medicare reimbursement and seismic retrofitting as far more substantial hits to the balance sheet. At a rally on the statehouse steps last Friday, Ohio Nurses Association President Rick Lucas derided the letter. Theyre afraid of the truth, he said, Theyre afraid that well show the community who they are. They use their deep pockets and dark money political groups not to serve patient care or worker safety, but to maintain their stranglehold on our healthcare system, he went on, prioritizing profits over the well-being of patients and those who care for them. The rally was organized by the Smith family, whose daughter Tristin was a Dayton nurse who died by suicide. Her sister Sarah Smith criticized the OHAs suggestion that staffing mandates would place too great a burden on the industry. She asked the nurses present to raise their hands if they were stressed, and a couple dozen hands shot up. Then she told them to keep their hand up if they would be more stressed with ratios in place. Every hand went down. If theres a representative from the Ohio Hospital Association here, I want them to look at that, she said, because they said that it would cause more stress on a system already struggling. You know who it would cause stress on? Them to do their jobs not the people doing the work. It would force their hand to actually do something for the good of people, she added, instead of saying you know what? I want to make that extra money right there. After Sarah spoke, her dad Ron Smith passed out posters, and the group marched around the building. They chanted slogans like, Do your part, staff smart. The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is a hotline for individuals in crisis or for those looking to help someone else. You can reach them on the phone at 988 to speak with a trained listener or visit 988lifeline.org for crisis chat services. Help is also available through The Crisis Text Line. To text with a trained helper, text SAVE to 741741. It is free, available 24/7, and confidential. Follow OCJ Reporter Nick Evans on Twitter. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Hearings begin for nurse-to-patient ratio legislation in Ohio appeared first on Ohio Capital Journal. BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) Demands have been made from pro-Palestinian activists for the City of Buffalo to call for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. City lawmakers have yet to do so, but, there was discussion on Monday and part of that discussion got heated. Council members met in caucus ahead of their meeting on Wednesday. A big topic of discussion was the ceasefire resolution between Israel and Hamas and a couple lawmakers had greatly different opinions. Following criticism from pro-Palestinian activists, council members David Rivera and Rasheed Wyatt sponsored a resolution calling for a ceasefire and a call for humanitarian support. The resolution, which is entirely symbolic, mentions how human life is invaluable and how all forms of violence must be condemned, but Council Member Joe Golombek and Council President Chris Scanlon did not agree with the language, saying that it did not go far enough to speak out against the conditions in Gaza. The Palestinian people who are being killed right now, they are being used as pawns by Hamas and others. I have a real serious issue with this being put in front of us. I think its a very divisive City of Buffalo issue, Golombek said. Things got heated when Council Member Wyatt brought up the city budget. Were having more debate on this topic, which we dont have control over, than we gave people on the tax increase. Thats shameful, Wyatt said. Can you stay on topic? Scanlon interrupted. I can say whatever I want. I have the floor, so let me speak on what I want to speak on, sir, thank you, Wyatt responded. The resolution was on track to be approved, but instead is expected to be received without recommendation. There could be more discussion on this Wednesday when Common Council meets in full. Latest Local News Jeff Preval is an award-winning anchor and reporter who joined the News 4 team in December 2021. See more of his work here. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to News 4 Buffalo. The Hamilton East Public Library board has hired a familiar face as its new library director. Melissa Loiselle, who has been deputy director for seven months and previously worked for nine years in youth services at HEPL, will replace Edra Waterman, who resigned last December. Waterman lead the system as it was thrown into the national spotlight over the board's policy to move teen books deemed not "age appropriate." The board of trustees unanimously approved Loiselles appointment in a vote Thursday. She served as director of the Vernon Township Public Library from January, 2021, until November 2023. Before that, Loiselle was youth services manager at HEPLs Fishers Library. The Hamilton East Public Library Board appointed Melissa Louislle library director May 8, 2024 Loiselle holds a masters of library science from Indiana University. As a longtime resident of Fishers, it is an honor to serve my community once again, Loiselle said in a HEPL news release. I will work hard to ensure the Library exceeds the expectations of the people of Fishers and Noblesville. More Hamilton County news: Carmel ordinance could pour cold water on short-term rentals for private pool parties Waterman resigned after a tumultuous stint in which she sparred with HEPLs ultra-conservative majority about a controversial book removal policy. The year-long relocation policy drew national attention after a novel by Indiana youth author John Green was moved from the teen section and he criticized the action on social media. By the time Waterman resigned after 12 years at the helm, the conservatives had lost their majority on the board and the book removal policy had been rescinded. Call IndyStar reporter John Tuohy at 317-444-6418. Email at john.tuohy@indystar.com and follow on X/Twitter and Facebook. This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Hamilton East Public Library board hires new director The anti-Israel protests on campuses revealed some of the good, bad and ugly of our universities. Behind them lies hints of Critical Theory, which has captured so many campuses, robbing faculty and students of reason and judgment. The good news is that protests involved fewer than one in every thousand college students. That means, for every protesting student, hundreds of others were studying for final exams, completing term papers or preparing end-of-course presentations. The depiction of many protesters as over-privileged and under-informed may be fair, but that is not what I see on campus. Most students arrive with a little intellectual humility and a desire to learn and thrive. Harassing fellow students or barricading the campus are not why they came to college. The bad was also apparent. Many universities were unprepared, if not confused, regarding how to handle protests. Any president who has not rehearsed a plan to ensure free speech while also protecting property should be looking for a different job. Many failed at that simple task and should go. The harder challenge came with antisemitic threats, which risk creating environments that violate federal civil rights law and campus policies. Still, after decades of colleges carefully curating students, staff and faculty for a very narrow set of ideologies, many schools seemed shocked to discover there is more than one point of view. This has left some of them helpless and hapless in their response. On Wednesday, May 1, 2024, a group of an estimated 200 people, composed largely of Ball State University students, gathered on the BSU campus to stage a pro-Palestinian rally. There was also more than a little hypocrisy on display. Many faculty members criticized last-minute policy changes or were angered by the police presence, or the techniques they used to disperse students. Those complaints are fair. Still, try to imagine the level of faculty outrage if campus officials summoned armed police to disperse a crowd of students chanting they will not replace us or some other noxious white supremacist mantra. There would be none. To be fair, the protestors and counter-protestors came in many forms. Those outside my office were neither disruptive nor plainly antisemitic. The Middle East has many deep issues that would benefit from honest discussion, and there are there are fair critiques of all sides. There is also more than sufficient suffering to make us care and sympathize with victims. However, in many places, a deep ugliness descended on American campuses that we must confront. The overall climate of these protests was antisemitic and, frankly, pro-terrorist. I cannot write about this without disclosing my own experience in Middle East wars and in peacekeeping missions designed to prevent another Arab-Israeli conflict. As a young officer, I was in the midst of some of the most horrific violence the region has seen, including vast refugee columns, devastated cities and murdered civilians. My experiences yield both context and nightmares. From Chabahar west to Casablanca, from the Mediterranean through the southern Sahara, the neighborhood is a wreck. In that region of 26 nations, there is one functioning democracy Israel. The rest range from failed states, such as Sudan, to medieval monarchies, such as Saudi Arabia, to full-scale civil wars, such as Syria or Yemen. Ethnic cleansing is common across the region. Indeed, theres only one nation where religious minorities are increasing Israel. Many Middle Eastern nations are full of courageous citizens and struggling governments that wish to craft democracy from the ruins of despotism, imperialism and terror movements. Since the Arab Spring, pro-democracy volunteers continue to fight and die in desperate civil wars in Niger, Libya, Sudan, Yemen, Iraq and especially Syria. They fight radical terrorists, armed groups of thugs and Cold War despots. Students and members of the public gather outside the David L. Rice Library on the University of Southern Indiana campus to protest the war in Gaza in Evansville, Ind., Tuesday, April 30, 2024. A reasonable person might suppose American students would vigorously support that one liberal, multicultural democracy in the region. Or, perhaps, there would be student rallies to support those pro-democracy movements. After all, no human being in the world basks more fully in the blessings of liberty and democracy than a progressive college student. One might suppose that students would devote themselves to protesting the regions despots, who operate military dictatorships or 12th-century monarchies. These would surely be targets of an informed, progressive movement. Most especially, we should expect student protestors to rally forcefully against the radical terrorists. After all, these movements dont wish women to suffer the inconvenience of education, voting or choosing their husband. The LBGT+ community, which is so active on campus, is largely silent in radical terrorist circles, because they have been murdered. None of this has happened. The protests on American campuses targeted the sole liberal, multicultural democracy in the Middle East. There is something else at work, an ancient and noxious hatred that has no place on campus. It is antisemitism. We must accept thats what it is and stand against it. The claims of Israeli genocide are preposterous. If you believe Hamas fabricated numbers, fewer than 1 percent of Palestinians have died in this war. The Syrian Civil War has killed over 15 times the number, without any campus protests. The protestors would have you believe that Israel has both a powerful and criminal military but lacks the competence to conduct a proper ethnic cleansing. The claims of genocide and ethnic cleansing are just a modern antisemitic trope, without facts or merit. Many protestors waved the flags of Hamas and Hezbollah, two groups that won popular elections in Gaza and the West Bank. Both explicitly call for the elimination of Israel. It is time to state clearly that waving a Hamas or Hezbollah flag is functionally identical to waving a Nazi flag. We should treat them all with scorn. The pro-Hamas, anti-Israel protests are funded, directed and promoted by groups with a deep hatred of our liberal democratic values. I doubt most students know this, but faculty and staff participants are well aware. Hatred of Israel is taught on campuses under the umbrella of Critical Theory. In this view, Israel is depicted as an oppressor and Jews who support Israel are depicted as the epitome of privileged Zionists. This view justifies Hamas and the Oct. 7 murders that precipitated this war. It is impossible to understand the current explosion of antisemitic protests without appealing to Critical Theory and its anti-liberal focus on race, religion and oppressor status. It is well past time university presidents end Critical Theory-based programming and policies on campus. If not, legislators should do so to prevent these antisemitic protests from becoming more ugly. Michael J. Hicks is the director of the Center for Business and Economic Research and the George and Frances Ball distinguished professor of economics in the Miller College of Business at Ball State University. This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Why progressive college students should support Israel Piedmont is upgrading a natural gas pipeline system in front of the ZNC facility in Turkey, in Sampson County. It is independent of the ZNC project, but the company has granted a permanent easement on its property for a pipeline maintenance station. (Photo: Lisa Sorg) Martin Redeker and Joe Carroll spent more than five years toiling in a windowless steel barn in Duplin County, perfecting a low- to no-emissions technology they said would transform how hog waste could be used to generate electricity. Such was the faith in the project that Montauk Renewables, a publicly traded company based in Pittsburgh, bought the company and brought Redeker and Carroll onboard. And last year, the new subsidiary, ZNC Turkey Creek, signed a Power Purchase Agreement with Duke Energy that would have helped the utility provide a portion of its electricity derived from swine waste, as legally required. Now the interconnection project is dead after ZNC learned it could cost as much as $100 million and take at least eight years to tie into the Duke Energy grid, N.C. Utilities Commission documents show. And unless the commission approves ZNCs amended proposal, the company says it will have to absorb millions of dollars in losses and potentially cancel other aspects of the venture altogether. An expensive and convoluted process Commission filings detail the obstacles ZNC faced in trying to connect to the electric grid. And for alternative energy sources the fledgling swine and poultry waste sectors, but especially solar, battery storage and wind these challenges and delays are typical and getting worse. This expensive and convoluted process of attempting to connect to the grid is happening in North Carolina and everywhere, said Nancy LaPlaca, an energy policy consultant for Third Act, which engages older Americans in climate action, elections and democracy. Nationwide, there is double the entire electric capacity of the U.S. sitting in active interconnection queues. Last year, ZNC dismantled its reactor a labyrinth of pipes and catwalks and chambers and moved it from Duplin County to a 500,000-square-foot former warehouse along Highway 24 in Turkey, in Sampson County. From there, ZNC planned to truck in swine waste totaling tens of thousands of tons each year from lagoons at area farms. The waste would then be fed into an oxygen-free chamber, where it would be subjected to extremely high temperatures a process known as pyrolysis until it became biogas. The gas would then be fed to microturbines and converted to electricity to sell to Duke Energy, which would also purchase renewable energy credits from ZNC. ZNC estimated that when its plant became fully operational, it would generate enough energy to power more than 5,000 homes and businesses. This method, company vice president Redeker previously told Newsline, would reduce the amount of waste accumulating in the lagoons, and in turn reduce the odors plaguing neighbors of the farms. It could even be more climate-friendly: Since the waste would be removed more often, there would be less time for methane to escape from the lagoons. And since the biogas would be produced in a closed-loop system, there would be little, if any air emissions, Redeker said. (Diesel trucks that would have transported the waste would still emit greenhouse gases. Critics of swine gas production note that even this type of waste removal still entrenches the outdated lagoon-and-sprayfield model of concentrated animal feeding operations.) As part of its confidential Power Purchase Agreement with Duke, ZNC submitted the required interconnection request last summer. This is routine: Companies that want to connect their projects to the grid must undergo a series of studies before they can be built. The studies establish the potential grid system upgrades and estimate and assign the costs to do so. Even before entering the interconnection queue, companies can use maps, data and request information from the utility to get an initial sense of whether the project is feasible, Duke spokesman Jeff Brooks said. But that doesnt tell the full story, Carroll said. The utility will only provide very limited information in response to those requests. By last fall, Duke had provided a Phase I report to ZNC, which identified several obstacles that will render interconnection infeasible, ZNC attorneys wrote to the Commission. For starters, the cost of interconnection facilities and network upgrades would total $13.5 million, not including the costs of acquiring easements, and Duke was unable to provide estimates of such costs, the letter read. Undeterred, ZNC hired additional engineers and land-use consultants for a second study phase. The results were even more dispiriting: ZNC would also have to spend another $80 million to $100 million over the next 15 years to construct, own, maintain and insure five miles of new conductors. Plus, the company would need broker agreements with dozens of private property owners for new rights-of-way. Even if all those steps went smoothly, Duke would not begin to build the grid interconnection until the ZNC had acquired all of the rights-of-way and completely installed privately owned poles and power lines. That work would postpone the estimated interconnection date by eight years. Martin Redeker, Joe Carroll and Max Pope Brooks, the Duke spokesman, said the interconnection process has improved since 2021, when the commission approved changes suggested by the utility. The changes also complied with Federal Energy Regulatory Commission rules. Regardless of the type of energy they produce, companies that want to sell power to the Duke grid must go through a first-ready, first-served cluster process to determine whether they can meet the utilitys interconnection requirements. The upgrade costs also are shared across projects. This is a change from the previous system a first-come, first-served serial process which enabled speculative and non-ready interconnection customers to idle while blocking viable projects from coming online, Brooks said. There were other inequities in the original process, as well. All of the interconnection costs were borne by the earliest projects because they triggered the need for system upgrades. The latecomers benefited from those upgrades without having to pay for them. An alternative regulatory model There is a different interconnection philosophy, one that is used in most of Texas, where ERCOT operates the grid, and in many parts of Europe, said Shelley Robbins, senior decarbonization manager with the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy. Thats to basically interconnect most everything, but subject all resources to curtailment, meaning energy producers have to adjust their outputs in order to keep the grid balanced. Since Duke has a near-monopoly in North Carolina, ZNC has no other buyers for its electricity. Duke is indeed holding all of the cards, but because we dont have a separate transmission operator here, Duke is responsible for the grid itself, and that includes reliability, Robbins said. The ability to connect to the grid without constraining its function depends on location and existing infrastructure. Some parts of the Duke grid are constrained and dont have the infrastructure to safely pick up the generated electricity, Robbins said, which makes interconnection expensive because of the necessary upgrades. In North Carolina, nearly 13,000 megawatts of energy capacity are idling in the interconnection queue, according to a report issued last month by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Solar and battery storage account for 92% of that capacity, followed by natural gas, wind and other defined as biofuels, landfill gas, geothermal and hydropower. Nationwide, interconnection wait times are also on the rise, according to the Berkeley Laboratory report. The typical time from connection request to commercial operation increased from less than two years for projects built from 2000 to 2007 to a median of five years for projects built in 2023. There are a myriad of ways that the process could be improved from the customer or developer perspective, Carroll said. But only Duke has full visibility into all of the legal regulatory, electrical and infrastructure constraints to be considered. The behemoth Align RNG wants to expand its network to another 35 farms a map shows the location of farms that will send biogas to the Align RNG North Carolinas major swine gas producer, Align RNG, is a partnership between Smithfield Foods and Dominion Energy. The first phase of project construction is nearly complete, and will allow 19 farms, outfitted with anaerobic digesters, in Duplin and Sampson counties to send swine gas through 30 miles of low-pressure pipeline. That gas will arrive at Aligns upgrading facility near the Duplin-Sampson county line less than five miles from ZNC. Once the swine gas is cleaned, Align will transmit it through a main pipeline owned by Piedmont Natural Gas, a subsidiary of Duke Energy. Align now has asked the Utilities Commission to approve a second phase. This would entail 35 new farms in Duplin County producing swine gas, with another 50 miles of pipeline. However, the gas would be processed at smaller upgrading facilities at the farms, rather than at Aligns centralized facility. The Utilities Commission has yet to issue an order approving the updated plan, but the Public Staff, which represents the ratepayers, had no objection. Align has refused to make public, including to the Department of Environmental Quality, the locations of 15 of the 19 participating farms or the pipeline routes. The four farms whose locations have been disclosed are corporately owned by Smithfield. Newsline previously reported that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which is surveying pipeline routes for potential wetlands and streams, would not disclose the information, ostensibly for homeland security reasons. Trying to keep the project alive In early March, ZNC asked the Utilities Commission to approve its amended plan for generating and using biogas. The company had already planned to convert some of the swine waste and combine it with switchgrass to create biochar and fertilizer, which it could then sell to farms. Under the amendment, the swine gas would still be converted into electricity, but instead of selling the power to Duke, ZNC would use it to power its own operations known as self-provisioning. If approved, ZNCs initial operation would be delayed about nine months, until the third quarter of this year. The plant wouldnt be fully operational until the late summer or early fall of 2025. Carroll said ZNC could also produce pipeline-quality swine gas to inject into the Piedmont line, which will interconnect at ZNCs facility. Piedmont is a subsidiary of Duke Energy. However, gas generated from swine and poultry waste and landfills contains impurities that must be removed before being injected into pipelines. Not all of our swine-derived biogas was designed to meet pipeline specifications for injection, Carroll said. Meanwhile, Duke has struggled to provide a percentage of its power 0.07% of the previous years retail sales from swine waste, as required by the states Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard. Those requirements went into effect in 2012, but since then, the Utilities Commission has delayed compliance deadlines and adjusted percentages for Duke, Dominion and electric co-ops several times. The utilities have cited the lack of technological progress for power production from swine waste, according to commission documents, and those projects continue to experience operational difficulties. Brooks said Duke has met its modified swine waste energy targets. However, to hit those goals, Duke purchases some of its swine waste-derived energy from out-of-state. The sellers and amount of swine gas purchased is confidential, Brooks said. Just last week, ZNC informed the Public Staff that it is considering further amending its application, according to commission documents. Details of the new amendment have not yet been disclosed. And there is still public opposition to the facility. At a town meeting in 2022, residents peppered Redeker and Carroll with questions about potential odor and truck traffic. Donnie Myers is the former mayor of Turkey, who served from 1975-1979 and again from 2015-2019. He lives due east of the ZNC plant. Will there be leaks? Accidents? Myers said, in a recent interview with Newsline. More than a decade ago, the town passed an ordinance prohibiting hog farms from being built within a mile of the Turkey limits. I never imagined theyd bring the manure to us, Myers said. The post High costs, interconnection obstacles killed a swine gas-to-electricity venture in Sampson County appeared first on NC Newsline. A hiker found himself stranded in a precarious spot on top of a hoodoo with a sharp, catastrophic drop on all sides in Utah, rescuers said. The man in his 60s injured his ankle and had leaped over a 5-foot chasm onto the rock spire and then couldnt get back across the gap, Grand County EMS and sheriffs search and rescue officials said in a May 10 post on Facebook. Rescuers shared a dramatic photo showing the hiker stranded on the mushroom-shaped spire at Pucker Pass in Long Canyon around 3 p.m. on Saturday, May 4. Another photo shows a rescuer wearing a helmet and strapped into a harness as she carefully crawls across a ladder secured to both sides of the ground with ropes to get medical gear to the hiker. The rescuer tended to the hikers injured ankle, and he was able to crawl back across the ladder to safety, officials said. The rescue took about three hours. A huge thank you to (Grand County Search And Rescue) for their leadership, technical skills, and unparalleled creativity to access the patient, officials said in the post. As we head into another beautiful weekend here in Moab, remember just cause ya saw a picture of it online, doesnt always mean its the best idea. The post caught the attention of a social media account known as @TouronsofYellowstone on Instagram, which highlights bad behavior in national parks. How (awful) and sad, someone wrote in the comments on the accounts May 11 post on Instagram. I cannot go to that park. People do the scariest things!!!! Every step of (the) way people were practically falling off walkways doing selfies. Hanging their feet over 2,000 feet drops. I was sick. Just horrified. Hiker plunges down wall after rock gives way in Arches National Park, rescuers say Canyon wall falls in Utah national park famous for iconic hoodoos. What caused it? Man found dead at Utah national park was on journey to scatter dads ashes, family says Searing heat threatens ancient structures as brittle cliffs fall in New Mexico park Hispanic advocates plan rally at Capitol to voice frustration about new immigration law Gov. Kevin Stitt addresses the group during Gov. Kevin Stitt's Budget Conference with the Senate and House leaders at the Oklahoma Capitol, Thursday, May 9, 2024. Hispanic and other communities on Wednesday are expected to rally at the Capitol. Organizers of the annual Hispanic Cultural Day at the Capitol have changed the format following the signing of a controversial immigration law. The event has traditionally been held inside the Capitol and included advocacy, exhibits, food, dancing and booths. But since Gov. Kevin Stitt signed House Bill 4156, the Legislative Latino Caucus received an outpouring of concern, said Rep. Arturo Alonso-Sandoval, D-Oklahoma City. As a result, the group decided to change the format to include a rally, organized advocacy and some cultural celebrations. More: 'A hateful policy.' Oklahoma immigration law criticized as groups plan legal action This change in format is a direct result of the frustration of folks not only in the Latino community, said Sen. Michael Brooks, D-Oklahoma City. The organization has invited Oklahoma Asian, Native American and Middle Eastern communities to stand with us, as well as many faith leaders and law enforcement professionals from across the state, Brooks said. The event will be from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. No identification is required to enter the Capitol. What to know about Oklahoma's new immigration law HB 4156 Gov. Kevin Stitt on April 30 signed House Bill 4156. The law creates a new crime called impermissible occupation for willfully entering the state without legal authorization to be in the United States. More: Oklahoma immigration bill: What does HB 4156 say? Does it promote racial profiling? The first offense is a misdemeanor punishable by one year in county jail and a fine of up to $500 or both. The person would be required to leave the state within 72 hours. A second offense is a felony with up to two years in prison, a fine of up to $1,000 or both. Critics say the law will increase racial profiling, dissuade cooperation with the police and break up families. Supporters say it is necessary to combat illegal immigration and secure the nations borders. During a press availability Friday, Stitt responded to concerns about the law. He said the Legislature wrote the bill to put pressure on the Biden administration. I think it puts more tools in the tool belts of law enforcement, Stitt said. The bill did not make it illegal to be an undocumented person, Stitt said. Thats already illegal, Stitt said. More: Gov. Stitt defends controversial immigration bill, veto of domestic violence bill Some law enforcement entities have issued statements to alleviate fear and indicated that they were not going door-to-door rounding up people, Stitt said. I think Americans are fed up with the porous borders and the illegal crossings that are coming in, Stitt said. And so were just wanting the Biden administration to actually fix that. Oklahoma Voice is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Oklahoma Voice maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Janelle Stecklein for questions: info@oklahomavoice.com. Follow Oklahoma Voice on Facebook and Twitter. This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma immigration law leads to rally at Capitol The Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) campaign arm is opening its wallet for Rep. Rob Menendez (D-N.J.), the only Latino House member from New Jersey, as he fights a primary challenge from Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla. Bold PAC, the campaign group, dropped $500,000 to fund a TV ad for Menendez in English and in Spanish. The amount of Bold PACs independent expenditure, the first of the 2024 cycle, has not previously been reported. As the only Latino Member of Congress representing New Jersey, we are proud to launch our 2024 independent expenditure efforts backing Rob Menendez in his re-election, said Bold PAC Chair Linda Sanchez (D-Calif.). The ad focuses on Menendezs economic record, though the race so far has been defined by mudslinging. Bhalla has placed strong emphasis on Menendezs relationship with his father, Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), who is on trial for corruption. The elder Menendezs trial kicked off jury selection Monday. But the younger Menendez has deflected those accusations as attempts to blame the son for the alleged sins of the father, and by shining a light on Bhallas own ethics record. Bhalla is currently suspended as a lawyer in New York and was admonished by the Supreme Court of New Jersey in 2018 over management of third-party funds. Menendezs campaign maintains a website titled Better Not Call Ravi, listing corruption allegations against Bhalla, styled after the TV drama Better Call Saul. But in a debate earlier this month, both candidates took time to discuss policy issues after trading corruption accusations. The Hill has reached out to Bhallas campaign for comment on this story. The race in some ways is a test of Menendezs record and his ability to win an election not buttressed by his father, but in spite of his legal woes. In 2022, Menendez ran for the House seat held by former Rep. Albio Sires (D-N.J.) and once held by Sen. Menendez, who at the time was at the height of his political power, viewed by many as the elder statesman of the CHC. But Rep. Menendezs name became a liability just months into his first term, as the Department of Justice announced charges against the senator and his wife. Still, Menendez has been a workhorse for the CHC, which did not expect to lose a senator and to have to defend the House seat. If Menendez keeps his job, he will be New Jerseys only federally elected Latino in 2025. Bold PAC has been around for more than two decades. Our mission is to get Latinos elected and reelected to Congress. We were very proud to stand with Rob in his first election, said Bold PAC Executive Director Victoria McGroary. Of course, we support strong Latino candidates and members everywhere because Latinos are everywhere and deserve to be represented everywhere. But it does, of course, matter in particular in places like New Jersey, and in places like the eighth district that are Latino majority, its very important to ensure that we are defending the Latino voices and the Latino representation that they have in Congress. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. There are abundant opportunities to diversify the range of products and enhance trade volume between Azerbaijan and Latvia, Azerbaijani Deputy Economy Minister Sahib Mammadov said at the Azerbaijan-Latvia Business Forum, Trend reports. These robust exchanges and productive interactions between our heads of state have fostered a strategic cooperation between our nations. We've built a strong bilateral legal framework with 45 signed documents, including the Declaration on Strategic Partnership. Further strengthening our cooperation are agreements on investment promotion, mutual protection, and double taxation avoidance, Mammadov said. He added that the trade turnover between the countries amounted to $65 million in 2023. Azerbaijan's exports to Latvia increased by 64 percent, reaching $45 million, while imports amounted to $20 million. In the first quarter of 2024, the trade turnover amounted to $6 million. Moreover, there are abundant avenues to diversify product offerings and bolster trade volume, encompassing reciprocal import and export of several competitive goods. Investment cooperation stands as another vital facet of our economic relations. It's worth mentioning that between 1995 and 2023, direct investments from Latvia to Azerbaijan totaled $166 million, while investments from Azerbaijan to Latvia amounted to the same figure. Thus, we maintain balanced cooperation, yet both sides acknowledge the imperative for its proactive advancement, the deputy minister said. He noted that out of the 69 Latvian companies registered in Azerbaijan as of February this year, 48 are operational in sectors such as industry, transportation, trade, and services. Additionally, it's worth mentioning that Latvia and Azerbaijan have collaboratively engaged in eight twinning projects funded by the European Union, totaling 9 million euros. This underscores our dedication to partnership across various endeavors, Mammadov added. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel SOUTH BEND The historic Navarre Cabin, the oldest structure in St. Joseph County, will soon move from the park where it's sat for 120 years. The History Museum, the cabin's owner since saving the structure from demolition in 1895, will move the 1820 home from Leeper Park to the museum's campus on Wednesday. Museum leaders plan to make the cabin the center of an immersive exhibit about the lives of pioneers and Native Americans in the early 19th century. The South Bend-St. Joseph County Historic Preservation Commission approved the move in December, three years after denying the museum's request to relocate the cabin. This time, members were swayed by the need to move the cabin to ensure its continued use as an educational exhibit. School administrators weren't keen to continue annual field trips to the cabin, citing a lack of working restrooms nearby, minimal parking for school buses and ample distractions for students. "The distance from our campus prevented us from utilizing the structure to its fullest capacity," Brian Harding, executive director of The History Museum, said in a statement Friday. "Where before we were only able to provide educational opportunities for schools and the community on a very limited basis," Harding said, "with the move we can offer daily experiences." The cabin will move about a mile from the riverside park where it's sat since 1904 to a 0.75-acre site west of the museum's campus, at 897 W. Thomas St. It was last moved to its current site within Leeper Park in 1954. The cabin will move from about 9 to 11 a.m. Wednesday, a spokeswoman for the museum said. The route takes the structure south on Lafayette Boulevard past Memorial Hospital, west on Colfax Avenue, south on William Street, west on Washington Street and south on Chapin Street before arriving at the museum's campus. Who was Pierre Navarre? Pierre Freischutz Navarre, the first person of European descent to settle in St. Joseph County, came to the area in 1820 as an agent of John Jacob Astor's renowned American Fur Company. Though he was born in 1787 in Detroit, Navarre had French ancestry. Navarre married a Potawatomi woman named Keshewaquay, who adopted the name Angelique. The couple had seven children and lived in the cabin on the river's north side, near what is now 123 W. North Shore Drive. But Navarre's family, along with many local natives, were forced to move to Kansas along the Trail of Death in 1835, according to the museum. When the U.S. government forcibly removed the Potawatomi from the area in the 1840s, Navarre traveled alongside them. He returned to South Bend after his wife's death on the Kansas reservation, where he died two days after Christmas in 1864. Pierre Navarre, who had French ancestry, was South Bend's first settler of European descent. The new exhibit will focus on local and European goods typical of the fur trade, the ways the growing community managed its livestock and how early settlers took care of their health. "Moving this significant artifact in our collection in closer proximity to the museum," Harding said, "will allow us to protect and preserve it even more effectively for another 200 years." The History Museum promised the HPC to apply for "Local Landmark" status for the cabin within 30 days of its move. The museum also must repair the cabin's roof, which has been covered with a tarp for nearly three years, by the end of 2024. Built in 1820, the Pierre Navarre Cabin in Leeper Park is believed to be the oldest structure and residence in St. Joseph County. A tarp covers its top Aug. 22, 2023, as The History Museum, which owns and maintains the cabin, finds the money to replace a damaged roof. Email South Bend Tribune city reporter Jordan Smith at JTsmith@gannett.com. Follow him on X: @jordantsmith09 This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Historic Navarre Cabin to leave South Bend park for History Museum Catalan Socialist Party's leader and candidate for Catalan regional president Salvador Illa gives a press conference upon his arrival at the PSC headquarters during Catalonia's regional election. Lorena Sopena/EUROPA PRESS/dpa Separatists suffered a historic defeat in Sunday's parliamentary elections in the Spanish region of Catalonia. For the first time since 1980, the pro-independence parties in the Spanish region combined missed out on an absolute majority of seats in the 135-seat regional parliament in Barcelona. The Socialists led by top candidate Salvador Illa won the election, though with 42 seats they are a long way from an absolute majority, according to provisional official results. However, Illa was in a position to be elected head of government with the support of other left-wing parties - and thus prevent a new election, as there appears to be no alternative to a left-wing government. Spain Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez hailed the victory of the regional offshoot of his national Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE), the Socialist Party of Catalonia (PSC), in the elections. Sanchez congratulated Illa "for this historic result achieved in Catalonia," in a message posted on social media platform X. "We socialists are once again the top force." "Starting today, a new stage begins in Catalonia to improve the lives of citizens, expand rights and strengthen coexistence," Sanchez continued. According to the provisional results, the conservative-liberal Junts party of separatist leader Carles Puigdemont, who lives in exile, came second with 35 seats. However, the 61-year-old has no real chance of gathering enough support to form a government. The Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC) party, led by former regional president Pere Aragones, dropped from 33 seats to just 20. Combined, the four separatist parties only managed 61 seats, a loss of 13. Spain's largest opposition party, the conservative People's Party (PP), which traditionally has a difficult time in Catalonia, improved significantly by 12 seats to 15, while the right-wing populist Vox maintained its 11 seats. The left-wing alternative alliance Commons Unite (Comuns-Sumar), which governs together with the Socialists in Madrid, won six seats, a loss of two, while the left-wing separatist Popular Unity Candidacy (CUP) dropped to four seats from nine and the new, far-right separatist Catalan Alliance (Alianca Catalana) won two seats. Analysts were unanimous in their assessment of the election result as a major triumph for Sanchez's left-wing central government in Madrid. With his policy of reconciliation and his concessions, Sanchez largely defused the conflict in Catalonia and took the wind out of the sails of the separatists, who traditionally regard Madrid as "enemy number one," according to analysts on the RTVE television channel late on Sunday evening. For Sanchez, the support of the separatist parties in the national parliament in Madrid is vital for survival. This is probably one of the reasons why he has promised an amnesty for the organizers of Catalonia's 2017 secession attempt, in addition to other measures to appease them. The amnesty, which has been sharply criticized by the conservative opposition, has not yet overcome all parliamentary hurdles. However, it could come into force as early as June - and would also allow Puigdemont, who is still in exile and wanted by the Spanish judiciary on an arrest warrant in connection secession attempt under his leadership, to return to Spain. Critics from the conservative camp accuse Sanchez of political corruption because he used the amnesty to buy the approval of separatist MPs for his re-election last autumn. They also claim that he is jeopardizing Spain's territorial unity by making his minority government dependent on separatists, who could force him to agree to an independence referendum. Catalonia was plunged into chaos in 2017 by an independence referendum and a subsequent decision to secede from Spain declared illegal by Madrid. Puigdemont was able to flee abroad with other members of the government. Several of those who remained in the country were sentenced to prison terms of up to 13 years, but have since been pardoned. Catalonia is still living through the consequences of the chaotic attempt at independence - including political instability and a flight of companies and capital. Catalan Socialist Party's leader and candidate for Catalan regional president Salvador Illa gives a press conference upon his arrival at the PSC headquarters during Catalonia's regional election. Lorena Sopena/EUROPA PRESS/dpa Gov. Eric Holcomb has time to make a difference on Indiana's affordable housing crisis. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images) With barely six months left in office and the nominees for his replacement already chosen, some might consider Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb a lame duck. However, housing is one area where he can still choose what his legacy will be. Holcomb has taken several significant steps on housing during his time in office, including the creation and funding of the Regional Economic Acceleration and Development Initiative (READI), of which roughly one-third of requests have been for affordable and workforce housing. The governor also deserves credit for creating Indianas first Emergency Rental Assistance program, which kept tens of thousands of Hoosier families housed and their landlords solvent during the COVID-19 public health emergency. Despite these steps, further executive action is needed to fill the gap left by the General Assembly to address Indianas worsening shortage of safe, healthy, and affordable homes accessible to the most vulnerable Hoosiers. The legislature has failed to act on their own Housing Task Forces recommendation to support addressing substandard housing and to increase housing supply that is affordable for the communities seeing the greatest gaps. Holcomb can still take matters into his own hands and not allow deference to the legislatures inaction to define his own housing legacy. Unacceptable Facts are facts: Indianas housing outcomes for the most vulnerable Hoosiers have declined in recent years. According to a recent study, with only 34 affordable and available rental units for every 100 of the most vulnerable Hoosier households, Indiana has a lower rate of supply than the national average, and second lowest rate in the Midwest. About 76% of those households spend more than half of their income on housing expenses, the highest rate in the Midwest. Over the past decade, Hoosiers housing costs have risen, homeownership has decreased, and disparities have grown, especially for seniors, Black and brown Hoosiers, and low-income working families. Need to get in touch? Have a news tip? CONTACT US Because of this shortage and rising costs, an increasing proportion of Hoosiers are now housing instable. They make do with inadequate housing that they cannot afford, subjecting themselves and their children to the risk of eviction and homelessness. Indianas lack of safe and affordable housing damages the states public health outcomes and affects the physical and mental well-being of Hoosiers, the education and development of children, the employability of adults, and confounds efforts to build a thriving state economy. Indianas patchwork of codes for health and safety standards related to rental housing is one unaddressed problem that contributes to and increases the danger of the states lack of housing supply. The failure to adequately enforce state and local housing codes jeopardizes the health and the lives of Hoosiers. In January 2024, six children died in a fire in a South Bend rental home that was reported to have failed a safety code inspection due to dangerous wiring but was allowed to be rented again before proper repairs were confirmed to have been made. What he can do A comprehensive review of Indianas housing code standards and enforcement is necessary to safeguard the health and safety of Hoosiers, improve the quality of available housing, strengthen pathways to homeownership, and allow Hoosiers to age in place. By appointing and convening a Commission on Housing Safety, Stability, and Affordability, Holcomb can address the states unresolved housing issues and promote solutions in several concrete ways: Bring together representatives of state administrative agencies, courts, local governments, and legislators, along with stakeholders and residents who are tackling the housing health and safety crisis on the ground; Align existing housing resources and initiatives at the state and local levels, potentially saving taxpayers millions of dollars; Clarify the jurisdiction of code enforcement regarding housing health and safety; Coordinate administrative and court-based rules that can protect Hoosiers and expand the housing supply for communities with the greatest need without the need for legislation; and Provide a united voice to recommend new legislation where necessary. Holcomb may not be able to see Hoosiers all the way to housing safety and stability, but he can leave the gift of a commission to guide us on the path forward. Hoosiers can join the hundreds of organizations and individuals who have already signed on to the effort to encourage Holcomb to cement a positive housing legacy. The post What will Holcomb choose his housing legacy to be? appeared first on Indiana Capital Chronicle. HOLLAND Holland Aquatic Center has selected a new executive director to serve after the impending exit of longtime leader Jack Huisingh. HAC General Manager Amanda Duimstra was chosen for the role in a May 7 vote by the Holland Area Community Swimming Pool Authority's Board of Directors. Duimstra has been with HAC since 1999 and has worked with and trained four executive directors in her tenure. I couldn't be happier to have the opportunity to continue to lead here at HAC in this new role as executive director, Duimstra wrote in a statement to The Sentinel. Our HAC team is a group of amazing people and I have been overwhelmed by their positive support." Holland Aquatic Center has selected a new executive director to serve after the impending exit of longtime leader Jack Huisingh. Huisingh will retire in June. He's been director for over 10 years. I knew from my very first day that (Duimstra) was very qualified and a true backbone of HAC, Huisingh wrote in a release. I have no doubt she will be a great next leader of HAC; we are all very proud of her. Subscribe: Receive unlimited digital access to your local news coverage Darrin Duistermars, board president, is optimistic about HACs future under Duimstra's leadership. He said she's grown as both a facility and community leader and has been instrumental in the growth and development of HAC. Duimstra will officially start as executive director on July 1. This story was created by reporter Karly Graham, kgraham@petoskeynews.com, with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Journalists were involved in every step of the information gathering, review, editing and publishing process. Learn more at cm.usatoday.com/ethical-conduct. This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Holland Aquatic Center has found a new executive director Homeless man charged with attempted murder in connection with Saturday stabbing Homeless man charged with attempted murder in connection with Saturday stabbing LAFAYETTE PARISH, La. (KLFY) Lafayette Parish Sheriffs Deputies arrested a homeless man in connection with a Saturday morning incident in 600 block of Berlin St. that left one man injured, officials said. Joshua Robles, 18, is charged with attempted second degree murder, authorities said. He is listed as homeless by the LPSO. Deputies responded to a reported stabbing around 5:15 a.m. Saturday and found an unidentified man suffering from multiple cuts and stab wounds. He was taken to a local medical facility for treatment. Robles was subsequently arrested and booked into the Lafayette Parish Correctional Center. Bond details were not released. This case remains under investigation. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now KLFY Daily Digest Latest news For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KLFY.com. House Republicans are taking aim at President Bidens handling of the Israel-Hamas war this week, after the administration paused shipment of some bombs to Israel and warned that the U.S. will cut off more offensive weapons to Jerusalem if its forces launch an invasion into Rafah. Republicans in both chambers have sharply criticized the administrations latest moves, accusing the president of abandoning the U.S.s closest ally amid its war against Hamas as he faces pressure from progressive lawmakers and voters. House GOP lawmakers, however, are poised to put those frustrations into action this week, voting on a bill that condemns the Biden administrations decision to pause arms transfers to Israel and calls for the expeditious delivery of offensive weapons to Jerusalem. It is not President Bidens job to dictate to Israel how they should go about defending their right to exist and deterring violence against their people, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) wrote in his Floor Lookout Sunday evening. House Republicans stand unequivocally with Israel in its war against terrorists and those that threaten its freedom. Also this week, the House is slated to vote on a bill to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for five years as lawmakers stare down a Friday deadline. Additionally, the lower chamber will consider several law enforcement-related bills to honor National Police Week. Across the Capitol, Senators are scheduled to vote on a number of nominations. GOP goes on offensive over Israel weapons hold House Republicans are looking to go on offense this week after the Biden administration made a pair of controversial moves regarding Israels war against Hamas, an effort that will put a spotlight on the presidents handling of the conflict in the Middle East. Biden has already paused shipment of some bombs to Israel, and he is now threatening to cut off more offensive weapons to Jerusalem if the countrys forces launch an invasion of Rafah two postures that are prompting fierce howls from Republicans. In response, the House this week is slated to vote on a bill dubbed the Israel Security Assistance Support Act that urges the expeditious delivery of defense articles and services to Israel, condemns the Biden administrations decision to pause shipments to Israel and reaffirms Israels right to self-defense. It also calls for funds for the secretaries of Defense, State and the National Security Council to be withheld until defense articles are delivered to Israel. Unlike the Administration, House Appropriators will not waver in our ironclad support for Israel, a group of top GOP appropriators including Rep. Ken Calvert (Calif.), the bills sponsor wrote in a statement over the weekend. Any actions to withhold resources impede our national and global security and send a dangerous signal that the U.S. cannot be counted on as a partner. We demand the Administration fulfill our commitment to our great ally in the Middle East, especially so in this serious time of need. House Republicans have aimed their fire directly at Biden in the wake of the administrations moves regarding the Israel-Hamas war. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) last week suggested that the president was having a senior moment when he announced, during an interview with CNN, the U.S. would stop sending offensive weapons to Israel if its forces invade Rafah, and Rep. Cory Mills (R-Fla.) filed an article of impeachment against Biden last week after he issued his warning. This weeks vote on the Israel-related bill has the potential to split Democrats, a familiar dynamic in the House as lawmakers have voted on a number of measures related to the conflict since Oct. 7. Some Democrats, particularly progressives, have lauded Bidens threat to cut off weapons shipments to Israel, describing it as the right move amid a growing number of humanitarian deaths in the Gaza strip. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) in a post on the social platform X called Bidens announcement responsible and said the position makes the world safer and our values clear. She is all but certain to oppose the bill. A group of 26 House Democrats, however, penned a letter to White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan last week that said they were deeply concerned about the message the administration was sending to Hamas and other Iranian-backed terrorist proxies by holding back some weapons shipments, a sign that some Democrats may support the GOP-led resolution. With democracy under assault around the world, we cannot undermine our ally Israel, especially in her greatest hour of need. Americas commitments must always be ironclad, the letter reads. House to consider FAA reauthorization The House this week will vote on a bill to reauthorize the FAA for five years, the final must-pass priority on Congresss legislative to-do list until the fall. Lawmakers are staring down a Friday deadline. House consideration of the measure comes after the Senate last week approved the reauthorization bill in an overwhelming 88-4 vote, which marked the end of a long-winded road toward extending the agencys authority. Senators in both parties requested amendment votes on some unrelated priorities since the FAA bill is the last must-pass measure that will move through Congress until the fall. Leadership, however, did not stage those votes out of concern that amendments could derail the legislations path forward. There was also the battle brewing over language in the bill that adds five additional slots, or 10 round-trip flights, at Reagan Washington National Airport, which was strongly opposed by senators from Maryland and Virginia. Those senators wanted a vote on an amendment that would strip the provision from the bill, which was not held. The four senators ultimately voted against the bill. Those same frustrations are likely to crop up this week in the House, where lawmakers representing districts near Washington have also raised concerns about the additional National Airport flights. The House in July voted down an amendment that would have added seven daily round-trip flights at National Airport, but the compromise reauthorization bill released last month included the additional flights. Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) criticized the Senate including Sen. Ted Cruz (Texas), the top Republican on the Commerce Committee for not holding a vote on an amendment to remove the additional National Airport flights from the reauthorization bill. Ted Cruz was so eager to add traffic on the busiest runway in America, despite a recent near miss at [National Airport] and FAA warnings about delays and cancellations, that he blocked an amendment to require safety approval from the Department of Transportation. This is just awful, he wrote on X. Both chambers last week approved a short-term reauthorization bill that extended the deadline from May 10 to Friday giving the House time to move the legislation through the chamber and allowing lawmakers to avoid a lapse in authority. House honors National Police Week The House this week is slated to vote on a number of bills to honor National Police Week, which began Sunday. House GOP leadership has teed up votes on legislation that would require that undocumented immigrants who assault law enforcement officers are quickly arrested and detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) before being removed from the U.S.; a bill that would mandate the attorney general to provide a report on the impact the situation at the border is having on all levels of law enforcement; and another measure that would require the attorney general to write up a report on violent attacks against law enforcement officers. This weeks schedule also features a resolution that would condemn calls to defund the police, a veiled jab at the rallying cry embraced by some progressive lawmakers. It would also express condolences and appreciation for law enforcement officers who are killed in the line of duty. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) Tuesday evening will host a prayer vigil on the House steps honoring law enforcement officers who were killed in the line of duty. Families of fallen officers and coalition leaders are slated to attend. The Speaker will also host a flag laying ceremony at the Capitol. House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) announced Sunday night that he lit his office in the Capitol blue to honor National Police Week. Were kicking off National Police Week by lighting my Capitol office blue in honor of our nations brave law enforcement officers. The @HouseGOP will ALWAYS back the blue, he wrote on X. Senate to hold nomination votes The Senate this week is scheduled to churn through a number of nomination votes. On Tuesday, the chamber is slated to vote on a motion to invoke cloture on Courtney Diesel ODonnells nomination to be United States permanent representative to the United National Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, which comes with the rank of ambassador. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) has also filed cloture on Sanket Jayshukh Bulsara to be United States district judge for the Eastern District of New York, and Seth Robert Aframe to be United States circuit judge for the First Circuit. Senators this week are also expected to keep up the pressure on leadership to stage votes on more bipartisan bills in the coming months. Some members pushed for assurances for more bipartisan bills last week, as the chamber was considering legislation to reauthorize the FAA, which sparked questions about a potential lapse for the agency. That chatter could reemerge this week as senators return to Washington. This one of the last major legislative vehicles thats going to move this spring so theres a lot of discussion about different peoples priorities, said Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), specifically pointing to bills to help the online safety of children. I think theres a lot of different avenues for that to happen, he added. Theres a lot of discussions happening about how we make sure we carve out some time soon to have a debate on children and social media. Al Weaver contributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. House Armed Services Committee leaders will skip subcommittee markups for sections of their annual defense authorization legislation in a break with tradition that could lead to less public transparency on the massive military bill. Committee officials last week said work on their draft of the bill, which typically stretches over several days and involves every subcommittee hosting a hearing on their priorities, will be condensed this year to the panels daylong markup of the legislation, expected to be held the week of May 20. In recent years, individual subcommittee markups have rarely lasted more than a few minutes, but have provided a chance for members of the public to hear numerous details of personnel, procurement and policy priorities to be included in the sweeping authorization bill ahead of the voluminous hours-long markup. The House committees handling of the authorization bill still remains much more transparent than the Senate Armed Services Committees work on the measure, which takes place almost entirely behind closed doors. The authorization bill is considered must-pass legislation each year for Congress and contains a host of pay authorizations and policy changes that supplement the annual defense appropriations process (which actually supplies funding for those initiatives). If the House committee adopts its version later this month, the full chamber will likely further amend the draft during floor debate in June. Monday, May 13 House Veterans' Affairs 11 a.m. University of Iowa Iowa Veteran Healthcare Committee members will hold a field hearing looking at successes in veterans healthcare innovation in Iowa. Tuesday, May 14 House Veterans' Affairs 4:30 p.m. 360 Cannon VA Technology Information technology officials from VA will testify on the departments current challenges and fiscal 2025 budget request. Wednesday, May 15 Senate Foreign Relations 10 a.m. 419 Dirksen Arms Control State Department officials will testify on arms control and deterrence initiatives. Senate Appropriations 10 a.m. 192 Dirksen Defense Acquisition Programs Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment William LaPlante and service officials will testify on ongoing department acquisition programs. House Foreign Affairs 2 p.m. 2172 Rayburn Africa State Department officials will testify on the foreign operations budget for Africa programs for fiscal 2025. Senate Veterans' Affairs 3:30 p.m. 418 Russell Veterans Health Care VA officials will testify on current department health care operations and efforts to expand those options. Senate Armed Services 4 p.m. 232-A Russell Army Modernization Gen. James Rainey, head of Army Futures Command, and other service officials will testify on current Army modernization efforts. Thursday, May 16 Senate Armed Services 9:30 a.m. 216 Hart Navy Budget Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti, and Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Eric Smith will testify on the fiscal 2025 budget request. House Foreign Affairs 10 a.m. 2172 Rayburn Pending Legislation The committee will consider several pending bills. Senate Foreign Relations 10:30 a.m. 419 Dirksen State Department Modernization State Department officials will testify on agency modernization efforts and the fiscal 2025 budget request. House Veterans' Affairs 2 p.m. 360 Cannon VA Law Enforcement Department officials will testify on operations for the Veterans Affairs police force. The Violent Secret of the Couple Behind the Dress That Broke the Internet Almost a decade after Keir Johnston found viral fame with The Dress, hes back in the headlines once again. This time, however, its for truly disturbing reasons. Last week, the 38-year-old pleaded guilty to endangering the life of his wife, Grace Johnston, during a violent assault at their home on a small island off the coast of Scotland. The court in Glasgow heard how Keir Johnston choked his wife and brandished a knife during the attack, which led to her telling an emergency services dispatcher: My husband is trying to kill me. The Johnstons came to international attention in 2015 after Graces mother bought a dress for their wedding that sparked a giant online debate. When wedding guest Caitlin McNeill posted a photo of the dress on Tumblr, millions of people around the worldincluding the likes of Kim Kardashian and Taylor Swiftbecame embroiled in a heated row about whether the garment was blue and black or white and gold. The couple soon found themselves cutting short their honeymoon to make an appearance on Ellen DeGeneres talk show. Im a founding member of team blue and black, Im afraid, Keir Johnston told DeGeneres apologetically. It was Grace who looked most comfortable on camera laughing and joking with the host about the extraordinary global focus on a dress bought for their wedding day. When her mother, Cecilia Bleasdale, came in wearing the dresswhich is clearly blue and black in real lifeshe sat with her arm around her daughter and explained: It was Graces wedding and I wanted to do her proud, and Im quite busty and I thought this would pinch me in at the waist, it would give me a figure and I just wanted to get it right. Consulted on a picture of the dress, Grace had told her mom at the time that it was white and gold. I was worried that there was something wrong with my brain, Bleasdale said. Its quite possible, Grace added, as the audience laughed. The segment ended with the apparently happy couple overjoyed when they were rewarded with an additional honeymoon in Grenada and a check for $10,000 to help start their married lives together. The Devil With a Blue (Or White) Dress But away from the spotlight, their relationship was marked by domestic abuse, the court was told last week. Seven years after The Dress went viral, on March 6, 2022, Keir Johnston launched into a violent attack at their home on the remote Isle of Colonsay in the Inner Hebrides. Prosecutor Chris Macintosh told the court that Johnston had been drinking at a pub quiz on the day of the attack. Days earlier, Grace Johnston had attended a job interview on the Scottish mainland in defiance of her husbands demands. You should support me but you do not, he wrote in one message to her on the day of the assault, according to The Guardian. Macintosh also told the judge, Lady Drummond, how Grace Johnston was afraid of her abusive husband, adding that there is no permanent police presence on the island, and she was in a situation where she felt trapped. At one stage, Keir Johnston threatened: Someone is going to die. The husband alluded to the remoteness of their existence on the island while appearing on U.S. TV. Being such a small island, my mum and dad live next door, we have an adjoining door, he had explained to DeGeneres. When Grace Johnston came home on the day of the attack, he awoke at their cottage and said he was going to leave her. As he walked outside, she followed, Macintosh said, at which point Johnston threw her to the ground. He placed both knees on her arms, so she was unable to move, Macintosh said. He then began strangling her with both his hands. She was initially able to scream and feared for her life and believed Johnston intended to kill her as he was very forceful. A witness who heard the screams ran to help and tried to pull Johnston away. He then initially stopped the assault and went back into the cottage, returning with a knife and allegedly threatening to finish his wife off, according to Scotlands STV. He then started choking her again. Grace Johnston contacted friends for help and called authorities, telling the dispatcher that her husband was trying to kill her. Keir Johnston was later found hiding under a desk in the cottage, still holding a knife, according to STV. He also reportedly held the blade to his own throat at one point before it was grabbed from him. Grace Johnston was left with severe bruising to her neck but did not need medical treatment after the attack. Her husband reportedly later alluded to previous episodes of marital violence while talking to a doctor and described having episodes of emotional distress since childhood. Marco Guarino, Keir Johnstons lawyer, said his client had always accepted responsibility for the assault. Johnston, a gas station attendant now living on the Scottish mainland, had been due to stand trial but instead pleaded guilty in the case. Judge Lady Drummond put Johnston in custody until a sentencing hearing next month. I have no need to tell you that this is a serious and violent offense, she told Johnston. You repeatedly strangled her, injured her and put her life in danger in what must have been absolutely terrifying circumstances for her. I am afraid, Mr. Johnston, that your status has now changed, Drummond added. You have been convicted of a very serious crime and you will be remanded meantime. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. Latvia and Azerbaijan plan to sign a comprehensive long-term memorandum on cooperation in agriculture in the fall of 2024, State Secretary of the Latvian Ministry of Agriculture Raivis Kronbergs told reporters on the sidelines of the Azerbaijani-Latvian business forum in Baku, Trend reports. "Our meeting at the Azerbaijani Ministry of Agriculture will settle the arrangements. The document will promote bilateral agricultural cooperation, including EU-supported twinning projects., Kronbergs said. He mentioned that President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev is scheduled to pay an official visit to Latvia in the fall of 2024, while the Latvian delegation has been set to participate in COP29 events in Baku. During one of these events, we hope to sign our memorandum, that is, at the end of the year. The previously existing agreement on agro-cooperation expired this year, the state secretary emphasized. According to him, Latvian parliament speaker Daiga Mierina is to visit Azerbaijan next week. Hence, there's a strengthening of ties between our nations, the Latvian official added. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Human remains found on Florida beach identified as woman last seen in 1968 Human remains dug up four decades ago on a Florida beach have finally been identified as those of a Maryland woman who went missing in 1968, supposedly disappearing with her then-boyfriend. The mystery of Mary Alice Pultz was finally resolved last week when a Florida sheriffs office said that it had identified the remains found in a shallow grave on Crescent Beach, 50 miles south of Jacksonville, in April 1985. Investigators had long assumed the case was a homicide but had no leads on who the victim was until the St Johns county sheriffs office sent bone samples to Othram, a private lab in Texas, to develop a DNA profile. That later matched Pultz through a genealogy database to her son in Arizona and sister in Virginia. The initial investigation revealed the victim was a white female, possibly between the ages of 30 and 50 at the time of her death, the St Johns county sheriffs office said in a 8 May press release. Due to the circumstances, the manner of death was determined to be homicide. Construction workers had discovered the remains in a shallow grave while building a walking bridge on the beach. Her death maybe linked to her then-boyfriend, John Thomas Fugitt. Due to the times, communication was not great, St Johns county sheriff Gene Tolbert said in an interview with Fox News. The belief is that Mary Alice and he went by Tommy had kind of moved off together, potentially to either Florida or Georgia. Fugitt is considered a person of interest in the case but he died in prison after being convicted of the 1981 murder of his roommate in Georgia. Detectives learned that Fugitt, who was known to go by an alias of Billy Joe Wallace, was sentenced to death in Georgia related to a 1981 murder of a male roommate, the sheriffs office said in the statement. Fugitt died in prison prior to his execution. How exactly Pultz was killed remains unclear. Medical examiners found that she had burr holes in her skull, indicating she had brain surgery after 1968. Detectives think she was involved in some type of event that caused the traumatic injury and would have required hospitalization, potentially a car crash. The sheriffs office said the homicide investigation was a powerful example that we will never give up and credited a combination of highly skilled detectives and advanced DNA technology has given Mary Alices family some answers about her disappearance close to 40 years ago. A sick pelican sits on the beach in Newport Beach, California, on 7 May 2024. A sick pelican sits on the beach in Newport Beach, California, on 7 May 2024. Photograph: Jae C Hong/AP Hundreds of starving and stranded brown pelicans have turned up along the California coast in recent weeks in what wildlife advocates have described as a crisis. In Newport Beach in southern California, lifeguards came upon two dozen sick pelicans on a pier last week. The Wetlands and Wildlife Care Center in Huntington Beach, the non-profit caring for the animals, said they had treated more than 100 other birds who were anemic, dehydrated and extremely underweight. They are starving to death and if we dont get them into care, they will die, said Debbie McGuire, the centers executive director. It really is a crisis. Bird Rescue, a non-profit that operates wildlife centers in northern and southern California, reported taking in more than 235 sick pelicans in the past three weeks. At least 40% of the pelicans have significant injuries after becoming entangled in fishing line and hooks, the non-profit said. The California department of fish and wildlife (CDFW) confirmed in a statement last week that high numbers of the federally protected species are showing signs of malnutrition. The agency said that since late April it has received increased reports of brown pelicans stranded from Santa Cruz county to San Diego county, and that wildlife rehabilitation facilities began admitting an unusually high number of debilitated pelicans. Most birds are coming in cold, emaciated and anemic essentially starving to death, Dr Rebecca Duerr, Bird Rescues research and veterinary science director, said in a statement. Many of them are exhibiting severe injuries especially from fishing hooks and line. Most pelicans in northern California have come from Monterey and Santa Cruz, while birds in southern California have been rescued from unusual places, including a lake at SoFi Stadium and a fire station in Malibu, Bird Rescue said. Many pelicans have died. The cause is still unclear, though the CDFW said the animals appear to be succumbing to problems related to starvation. Some wildlife experts have pointed out that the birds are malnourished despite the bounty of marine life along the Pacific coast. In 2022, a similar event saw nearly 800 pelicans admitted into wildlife care facilities about half of which were released, according to the CDFW. The agency said it was conducting postmortem exams of the birds who died this year and testing those currently under the care of wildlife rehabilitation centers. The Wetlands and Wildlife Care Center reported nearly 100 pelicans in its care on Friday. The first step in caring for the sick animals is to warm them, Dr Elizabeth Wood, the centers medical director, said in a video. The great news is the vast majority are recovering if we can get them through those first few critical hours of hypothermia, she said. The Associated Press contributed to this report Tel Aviv Nearly 360,000 people had fled the Gaza Strip's southernmost city of Rafah by Monday, according to the United Nations, in an exodus that tripled in size over just a few days. The Israel Defense Forces sparked the upheaval late last week, issuing evacuation orders by text messages and fliers dropped from the sky to people in the city's eastern half. Since then, IDF forces have pushed across the southern part of the Palestinian territory in what the military says are limited and precise attacks targeting Hamas militants and infrastructure. The U.S. has repeatedly warned Israel against launching a major military ground operation in Rafah, fearing mass casualties. The White House, in tandem with other countries, has also increased pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government to form a plan to address the humanitarian crisis caused by the war, and for the so-called "day after," to figure out who or what will replace Hamas as Gaza's governing body. Pressure mounts on Netanyahu The Biden administration cautioned again over the weekend that Israel needs an exit plan for the war, and that even if Hamas can be defeated, without a viable alternative to govern Gaza, the group long designated by both Israel and the U.S. as a terrorist organization could stage a comeback. "You're going to have a vacuum, and a vacuum that's likely to be filled by chaos, by anarchy and, ultimately, by Hamas again," Blinken told CBS' "Face the Nation" moderator Margaret Brennan on Sunday. He stressed that the U.S. "will not support" an Israeli military operation in Rafah without a "credible plan to protect civilians." Very public cracks are now appearing between Israel's government and its military, meanwhile. Senior military officials have started openly demanding that Netanyahu decide what will replace Hamas to run Gaza saying if that isn't determined, Israeli forces could wind up stuck there. Many Israeli troops' families have similar concerns. Over the weekend, a letter signed by 600 family members of current IDF soldiers called on Netanyahu's government to forego a Rafah ground assault, warning that it "could be no less than a death trap." "Any reasonable person understands that when they have been announcing and warning for months about entering Rafah, there are those who are working to prepare the ground and harm the forces there," the families warned in the letter. The Biden administration has made it clear it will not supply weapons for what it considers an ill-advised full-scale military operation in Rafah, but Netanyahu has refused to back down from his vow to carry out that assault, saying there are several Hamas battalions holed up in the city. In an overnight phone call, Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Gallant gave U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken an update on the war, including on "the precise operation in the Rafah area against remaining Hamas battalions," according to a statement from Gallant's office. Gazans forced to flee again and again In the southeast corner of Rafah, shattered neighborhoods were eerily quiet on Monday morning abandoned after Israel's warnings of an imminent advance. Hundreds of thousands of people who'd fled to the city on previous Israeli orders have fled once again, this time to the west of Gaza, to the coastal area of al-Mawasi, which Israel has made into a sprawling camp for the displaced. Palestinians carry their belongings as they prepare to flee Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, May 13, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. / Credit: AFP via Getty It may be out of the line of fire for now, but it is far from a safe refuge as thousands of families are exposed to the elements in tents pitched across a barren stretch of coastline. Displaced mom who lost 6 of her 7 children "still in shock" Just to the north, in a makeshift camp in Deir al Balah, Jamila Abu Jebara told CBS News she lost virtually her entire family to an overnight Israeli airstrike exactly seven months ago. Her husband and six of her seven children were killed. Neighbors were only able to pull her and her 10-year-old daughter Dema from the wreckage of their home. "My 8-year-old son's body is still under the rubble," she said. "I'm waiting for a cease-fire to pull him out." Beyond that, the now-single mother said she had no plans for the future, "because I am still in shock." "As a mother, I need to stay strong for my daughter Dema, so I can take care of her and build her future. She is with me constantly, and I don't like her to go anywhere without me. She even sleeps with me." Dema Abu Jebara, 10, sits next to her mother Jamila (center) as they speak with CBS News in a makeshift camp for displaced Palestinians in Deir al Balah, in the central Gaza Strip, May 12, 2024. / Credit: CBS News "I wish this war would end," her daughter Dema told CBS News. Many Israelis have the same wish. On Sunday, as Israel marked its Memorial Day, the country mourned its dead soldiers and the roughly 1,200 victims of Hamas' Oct. 7 terrorist attack, which sparked the current war. But as dozens of families push Netanyahu to agree to a deal to bring home the roughly 100 Israelis still believed to be held hostage by Hamas or other groups in Gaza, the prime minister's remarks at a memorial service were unequivocal. "We will keep going until victory," he said, vowing to complete his stated mission to "destroy Hamas." At the camp in Deir al Balah, Abu Jebara told CBS News she wished she could have protected her six children from Israel's attacks. "I wish I'd died and they had lived," she said, adding an appeal as Americans marked Mother's Day: "My message to any mother: See our lives and see our sorrows. I'm one of countless mothers who have lost." CBS News' Tucker Reals contributed to this report. Nature: Mustangs in South Dakota Bill Maher on humor in politics: "Don't be tribal" Meet Stan Herman, elder statesman of American fashion In 2023, Idaho legislators approved the Idaho Career Ready Students program, which aims to fill gaps in career technical education funding with grants that help school districts prepare their students for life after high school. So far, through grants administered by the Idaho State Department of Education, Idaho has invested about $45 million into dozens of school programs that nurture talents in welding, agriculture, animal science, mechanics, food science and more. Its a fantastic opportunity for schools to improve their career technical curricula and for students to acquire skills Idaho employers demand. But theres more we can do to fill the gaps in Idaho workforce education: raise the number of postsecondary degrees among the workforce and expose students to new career options and ways of working that their parents might not have considered. According to Idaho Business for Education, only 44% of Idahos workforce will hold essential postsecondary credentials next year a number that a group of state business leaders says should be more like 60%. To help meet that goal, Idahos K-12 schools must put greater emphasis on allowing students to amass dual degrees and professional certifications, preparing them both for higher education and immediate workforce entry. Idaho schools must also create more job shadowing opportunities for students, and promote participation in career technical student organizations, or CTSOs, which allow students with similar career interests to connect and acquire and hone professional skills. That kind of synergy between theoretical knowledge and practical application must be the heart of education in Idaho. Schools must be careful not to overlook the promise of remote work a revolutionary trend that allows Idaho to retain some of its best and brightest workers. Our K-12 system ought to be a remote work catalyst, turning students into adept digital navigators ready to conquer dispersed global workplaces without ever having to leave home. At the Idaho Technical Career Academy (ITCA), weve taken these challenges head-on, threading the needle to stitch a curriculum that equips students not only with technical knowledge but also with essential soft skills that all workplaces require. As Idahos oldest online charter school dedicated to college and career preparation, our virtual career technical education program is a blueprint of what a future-facing education model looks like. Our students are not just graduating; they are stepping confidently into a world clamoring for their skills, whether thats a college campus, trade school or Idahos evolving workforce landscape. And many of them do so with abundant college credits under their belts and professional certifications that give them an edge in the workplace. According to the state Department of Labor, some of the most in-demand jobs last year were in nursing, software, computer occupations, and medical and health care management. ITCA and other K-12 schools are perfectly positioned to provide students with the instruction, certifications and first-hand exposure they need to fill these and other key workforce gaps in Idaho and raise the number of post-secondary degree holders. However, it will take collaboration among state government policymakers, business decision-makers and K-12 educators to make it happen. The Idaho Career Ready Students program is an excellent first step. And with more focus, we can bridge the workforce gaps, ensuring that every Idahoan is poised to drive the states economy. Monti L. Pittman is the executive director of the Idaho Technical Career Academy, which focuses on career-technical education programs. (Bloomberg) -- Sign up for the India Edition newsletter by Menaka Doshi an insider's guide to the emerging economic powerhouse, and the billionaires and businesses behind its rise, delivered weekly. Most Read from Bloomberg Srinagar, a city in the volatile region of Jammu and Kashmir, voted Monday in the fourth phase of Indias national elections, amid rising concerns about low voter turnout and the campaigns increasingly acrimonious tenor. Prime Minister Narendra Modis Bharatiya Janata Party isnt contesting the Srinagar constituency or the two other seats from the Muslim-majority Kashmir region. Its contesting the two seats in Hindu-majority Jammu. Modis Hindu-nationalist government fulfilled a long-held campaign promise when it removed Jammu and Kashmirs special constitutional status in August 2019, months after the BJP won its second term. The move was widely condemned, with the regions politicians jailed for months and communication blocked. Voting was slow to kick off in Srinagar on Monday morning and continued to stay low with turnout estimated at about 35% as of 5 p.m., according to the Election Commission of India. The average for all voting districts going to the polls Monday was about 62% as of that time. Indias seven-stage election, which began on April 19, will end on June 1. The votes will be counted on June 4. The dip in voter turnout in the first three rounds of elections has raised concerns about the BJPs support, with uncertainty spreading to financial markets. While there are no definite reasons for the slide, analysts and poll watchers ascribe the trend to several factors including an on-going heat wave across the country, the lack of an overarching emotive issue to rally voters, and also the underreporting of deaths during the Covid-19 pandemic, which may have artificially inflated voter rolls. Jammu and Kashmir has been federally governed for almost five years with state legislative elections only expected after the national polls. The disputed region, which borders Pakistan and China, has seen decades of separatist violence and continues to be restive. One soldier was killed and four others injured when an Indian Air Force vehicle was attacked by militants last week. Modi held a roadshow in his own constituency of Varansi after a day of rallies in the eastern state of Bihar. At one of the rallies, Modi said that this election is about choosing the leadership of the country and that the main opposition party is too cowardly to even take on Pakistan. Balloting will also take place in nine other states to select 96 lawmakers in this latest phase. Voters in 25 constituencies in Andhra Pradesh and 17 in Telangana key southern states will choose their representatives. Modi, who has set an overall target of winning three out of four seats in parliament, needs to expand his partys presence in the countrys south to realize that ambition. In the eastern state of West Bengal, investment banker turned politician Mahua Moitra is attempting to regain her seat. Moitra, a member of the regional Trinamool Congress party, is a vocal critic of Modis and has questioned his ties with billionaire Gautam Adani. Moitra was expelled from parliament late last year amid allegations of unethical conduct. Here are some other key constituencies up for a vote on Monday: Opposition leader for the lower house of the Parliament, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury is seeking another term from West Bengals Baharampur. The three-term lawmaker faces a triangular contest with the BJP and the regional All India Trinamool Congress party. Akhilesh Yadav, leader of the Samajwadi party, a key member of the opposition alliance hoping to unseat Modi, is contesting from Kannauj in Uttar Pradesh. Modis party won 62 of the 80 seats from the state in the 2019 elections. Yadav takes on the incumbent, a member of Modis party, as the alliance tries to flip as many seats as possible. In the southern, industrial city of Hyderabad, the sitting parliamentarian, Asaduddin Owaisi is competing against the BJPs Madhavi Latha. Owaisi is a four-time lawmaker from a primarily Muslim party which has not joined any alliance. (Updates with voter turnout in the fourth paragraph) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Indiana has an open U.S. Senate seat. Who's running and can they beat GOP Rep. Jim Banks? Hoosier Democrats in Indianas primary election last week tapped Indianapolis clinical psychologist Valerie McCray to go to battle with Republican U.S. Rep. Jim Banks for the state's open U.S. Senate seat in November. Libertarian Andrew Horning is also running in the general election. Campaigning against Banks will not be an easy task. National election predictors like the Cook Political Report and Sabatos Crystal Ball both list the 2024 Indiana U.S. Senate race as a solid and safely Republican seat. Its an open seat after Sen. Mike Braun chose not to run for reelection and instead campaign for the governors office. But there are months to go until the general election on Nov. 5 and plenty can happen before then. Here are answers to five questions about the November election for Indianas open Senate seat. Who are candidates for U.S. Senate in Indiana? Three candidates are running for Indianas open U.S. Senate seat: Republican Jim Banks, Democrat Valerie McCray and Libertarian Andrew Horning. Banks, from Columbia City, represents Indianas 3rd District in Congress. Banks ran unopposed for U.S. Senate in the Republican primary on May 7. McCray is a clinical psychologist in Indianapolis and defeated former state Rep. Marc Carmichael in the Democratic primary on May 7. Horning, a resident of Freedom in Owen County, retired in 2023 from working in medical technology development. Horning was selected by Indiana Libertarians at the partys convention earlier this year. Hoosier Libertarian candidates: Your guide to the party's choices for 2024 races What kind of elected or campaign experience do candidates have? Banks leads all three candidates in elected experience. The Republican congressman was first elected to represent Northeast Indiana in Congress in 2016 and was reelected in 2018, 2020 and 2022. He has garnered a reputation as an outspoken, socially conservative voice in the House of Representatives and also moved bills during his terms tied to helping veterans. Banks is a veteran of the Navy Reserves and, prior to Congress, served in the Indiana State Senate and the Whitley County Council. McCray has never held elected office, but in 2020 ran for President focusing on mental health care before she dropped out of the race. McCrays campaign has said the Democrat is the first Black female candidate for U.S. Senate in Indianas history. Valerie McCray is running as a Democrat in the U.S. Senate primary. The winner of the May election will face Republican U.S. Rep. Jim Banks in November. Horning has run as a libertarian in past elections, including the 8th Congressional District in 2014, 2016 and 2022. Horning previously ran for U.S. Senate in 2012 when Hoosiers elected Democrat Joe Donnelly and for governor in 2008 against former Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels and Democrat Jill Long Thompson. How much money and support do candidates have right now? Banks is swimming in fundraising dollars and endorsements from top Republicans in and outside of Indiana. On the top of that list of endorsements is former President Donald Trump, who remains highly popular in the Hoosier State. According to federal election reports as of mid-April, Banks reported receiving about $4.7 million and spent about $3.1 million this election cycle so far. In the same time frame, federal reports show McCray raised just under $15,000 and spent about $15,700. There are no reports on Hornings campaign fundraising as of mid-April. From 2023: Donald Trump endorses Jim Banks for U.S. Senate How did Hoosiers vote in recent U.S. Senate elections? In Indianas last U.S. Senate election in 2022, voters reelected Republican Sen. Todd Young to another term in Washington D.C. Young won the election that year by nearly 21 percentage points over Democrat Tom McDermott. Libertarian James Sceniak won about 3% of the total vote in 2022. In 2018, U.S. Sen. Mike Braun, who is the Republican nominee for governor this year, defeated incumbent Democrat Sen. Joe Donnelly by 6 percentage points. Can a Democrat or Libertarian win Indianas U.S. Senate seat in 2024? Anything can happen in politics, but it looks highly unlikely that Democrats or Libertarians have a shot at Indianas open Senate seat. The last time Hoosiers elected a Democrat to the Senate was Donnelly in 2012 and Indiana has only grown more red in the years since former President Donald Trump handily won the state in 2016 and 2020. With Trump at the top of the ticket in Novembers general election, its hard to see a path for anyone other than Banks. Contact IndyStar state government and politics reporter Brittany Carloni at brittany.carloni@indystar.com or 317-779-4468. Follow her on Twitter/X@CarloniBrittany. This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: What you need to know about Indiana's 2024 open U.S. Senate race Socorro ISD trustees Pablo Barrera, left, and Ricardo "Richard" Castellano, center, and fromer SISD teacher Gabriela Castellano were arrested Thursday following an investigation by the Texas Rangers. Socorro Independent School District trustees Pablo Barrera and Ricardo Richard Castellano, and his wife Gabriela Castellano, allegedly targeted district employees at schools where they had personal connections, according to indictments released Friday. Ricardo Castellano, 61, and Gabriela Castellano, 57, were indicted on two counts each of obstruction or retaliation involving Gabriela Elliott, a former principal at Bill Sybert School, where Gabriela Castellano was a third-grade teacher, according to an indictment filed April 25 to the El Paso County District Clerk. Their scheme against Elliott began on Aug. 21, 2021, and continued until March 30, 2022, according to the indictments. No specific actions are mentioned in the indictment, but El Paso Matters in 2022 obtained an audio recording that showed the Castellanos trying to have Elliott removed as principal. In the recording, Barrera boasted that he and Ricardo Castellano were school board gods. More: El Paso's second-largest hotel, first Marriott, getting multimillion-dollar renovation The Castellanos were arrested Thursday and released on $4,000 bond. The charges are a third-degree felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. It wasnt immediately clear why the arrests came two weeks after the indictment. Barrera, 39, was indicted April 25 on eight counts alleging illegal actions against Hueco Elementary School Principal Greg Hatch and his boss, Socorro ISD Assistant Superintendent Melissa Parham, in 2022 and 2023. Barreras child is a student at Hueco Elementary. He was arrested Thursday and released on bonds totaling $6,000. Mary Stillinger, an attorney who presents the Castellanos and Barrera, said her clients were given no opportunity to respond to allegations before they were indicted. She said on Friday that Ricardo Castellano and Barrera have both raised many questions about the propriety of SISDs activities. They have both sought a review of those activities from outside agencies. In fact, Mr. Castellano contacted TEA earlier in the day yesterday, after Mr. Barreras arrest (when he did not yet know that he and his wife would also be arrested) to notify them of Mr. Barreras arrest. He wrote in an email to TEA, Again I remind you that we came to you and your agency presenting what we have identified wrong with the Socorro ISD. We informed you back then and several times since that the district was coming after us. . . . All I can say is we told you so.' Stillinger said we have seen the indictment and know that there are no facts to support these charges. She has said the accused look forward to clearing their names. Trustees Ricardo Castellano, left, and Pablo Barrera return to the board room after taking a photo with Socorro Independent School District students during a board meeting in 2022. The District Attorneys Office hasnt responded to a question about why the arrests were made two weeks after he indictments. Barrera was indicted on four counts of obstruction or retaliation, the same felony charge brought against the Castellanos. He also faces two counts of official oppression, and one count each of coercion of a public servant or voter and improper influence. Those four charges are all Class A misdemeanors, which carry a penalty of up to a year in jail and a fine of up to $4,000. The indictments charging obstruction or retaliation and coercion accuse Barrera of retaliating against Hatch and impeding his ability to lead the school between July 1, 2022, and Sept. 15, 2023. One of the official oppression charges alleges he illegally attempted to influence Hatch at an official proceeding on May 30, 2022. The improper influence charge and one of the official oppression charges allege that Barrera attempted to illegally influence Parham who oversaw Socorro ISDs elementary schools during an official proceeding on May 30, 2022. This embedded content is not available in your region. The indictments against Barrera dont provide details of his alleged illegal activities. The indictments came as a result of investigations by the Texas Rangers. Texas Rangers are often tasked with investigating misconduct and corruption of public officials, according to the DPS website. Barrera and Ricardo Castellano remain members of the Socorro ISD Board of Trustees, spokesman Daniel Escobar said. Neither the district nor the school board have the authority to remove a trustee from elected office, a Texas Association of School Boards spokesperson told El Paso Matters. A judge could decide to remove a board member but only at the conclusion of the criminal proceedings. Its important to remember due process and the fundamental principle that every person accused of any crime is considered innocent until proven guilty, the spokesperson said in a statement. Texas school board members cannot be recalled from office by voters. Barrera and Ricardo Castellano are both retired law enforcement officers Barrera from Border Patrol and Castellano from El Paso Police Department. They were both elected in 2021, and their seats will next be up for election in May 2025. More: El Paso DA Bill Hicks plans to appeal second dismissal of 211 migrant "riot" cases Recordings of plans to oust a principal At the time Gabriela Castellano worked at Bill Sybert School, she recorded conversations with her husband and Barrera on Aug. 10, 2021, in which they discussed plans to have Elliott removed as principal of the school. She emailed the 33-hour audio recording on Aug. 30, 2021, to Socorros ISD interim human resources director as part of her grievance against Eliott and a school assistant principal. The recording began with a conversation between Elliott and Gabriela Castellano, then continued into the next day. In a conversation recorded by Gabriela Castellano after a school board meeting on Aug. 10, 2021, Ricardo Castellano vowed to go to Interim Superintendent Marta Carmona to get Elliott removed as principal of Bill Sybert School. Maybe I should just file a grievance against that bitch, and she can give me the write-up there at the grievance, Gabriela Castellano said. Well, Ill get with Carmona. If she likes, double downs, protects Elliott, then well (cross talk). If not, let See if shell move her. You know what? Her time has come and gone. Shes a tyrant, Ricardo Castellano replied. El Paso Matters obtained a copy of the recording in December 2022, after the school district resisted releasing it for months, even after the Texas Attorney Generals Office ruled that it had to be made public. More: Conversation between Ricardo and Gabriela Castellano Gabriela Castellano also recorded a phone conversation between her husband and Barrera, where they discussed Elliott. Im going to talk to Carmona about this principal here thinking shes all badass. Im about to clip her wings, Ricardo Castellano said. La vas a bajar del avion? Youre going to get her off her high plane? Barrera asks. Elliott continued as principal of Bill Sybert School through the end of the 2021-22 school year, when she became principal at Socorro Middle School. She currently is the principal of Eastlake Middle School in Socorro ISD. Gabriela Castellano was placed on administrative leave in March 2022 and reassigned to James P. Butler Elementary. She most recently has been a PK-8 reading interventionist at Bobby Joe Hill PK-8 School In El Paso ISD. EPISD officials havent responded to a question from El Paso Matters on Friday about her status. Gabriela and Ricardo Castellano, center, watch as Nate Carman speaks after being named the sole superintendent finalist for the Socorro Independent School District on Feb. 21, 2022. Texas Education Agency investigations The Texas Education Agency had received several complaints alleging inappropriate behavior by Barrera and the Castellanos during a three-year investigation that ended when the district agreed in March to accept the appointment of state conservators to help oversee the district. The complaints against Barrera and the Castellanos were not mentioned in the investigative report, but were included in an appendix. The investigations into complaints mentioned in the appendix ended when the school board voted to accept the appointment of conservators. During a March interview, the Castellanos told El Paso Matters they believe they are being targeted by the school district and the TEA for previously blowing the whistle on unapproved stipends found in the investigation. They provided no evidence that they were being targeted. TEA spokesperson Jake Kobersky said the conservators, Michael Hinojosa and Andrew Kim, were aware of the arrests. He said the arrests dont change the additional state oversight of Socorro ISD at this time. Kobersky said TEA was not privy to information concerning the scope of any law enforcement investigation (when it assigned conservators to Socorro). As a standard practice, the agency cooperates fully when law enforcement requests information or assistance. This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Two SISD trustees indicted on two counts of obstruction or retaliations StolenBenefitsStolenPeoples volunteers Raquel Shaye and Reva Stewart drag a wagon filled with bottled water and other supplies to start handing out at a bus stop on 19th Avenue and Dunlap in Phoenix during an outreach effort in September 2023. Photo by Shondiin Silversmith | Arizona Mirror Jade Lara was five months pregnant in January 2022 when she arrived at a group home in San Tan Valley with the promise of daily classes and group therapy to help her with sobriety. However, when she arrived, she was met with a lack of assistance and care and provided with only one therapy session a week held at a different center. Lara noted the men in the co-ed home were given the freedom to come and go, often coming back clearly intoxicated. The situation turned dangerous the night she was sent to another center in Maricopa County, where an intoxicated man wouldnt leave her or the other woman in the house alone. I was just like, no, this is enough, Lara said. I got my bag and then I used the last of my money that I had to get an Uber out of there because I was like, I dont trust this place. Lara was in the second center for a week before she left, walking the streets of Phoenix before a friend connected her with a reputable sober living home. Lara, who is Navajo, is one of thousands of individuals who have fallen victim to a Medicaid scheme primarily affecting Indigenous communities. After legislation tackling the problem failed to pass this session, individuals are taking the issue into their own hands to protect vulnerable members of the community. Goodyear Police Officer Scott Daniel, who serves on the citys crisis intervention team, told lawmakers in February that he has seen many similar instances at group homes in the Valley. Noncompliant sober living homes are a growing concern within our cities and have been since 2019, he said at an Arizona Senate Health and Human Services Committee meeting. I myself have gone on numerous occasions and witnessed various issues with people coming out. We find them passed out in front of their homes and neighboring homes and backyards. Theres no one around, and if there is, theres only one person who is clearly not a behavioral specialist, or any type of specialist. Nearly a year after Gov. Katie Hobbs and Attorney General Kris Mayes announced a crackdown on a Medicaid scheme exploiting vulnerable Indigenous individuals, residents of tribal communities across the state are still calling on lawmakers to combat the issue. The scam has involved unlicensed centers in Arizona that target individuals in tribal communities who are dealing with substance abuse or struggling with mental illness and lure them in with false promises of assistance at rehab centers or sober living centers. Officials say this scheme has cost the state an estimated $2.8 billion, according to 12 News. Scammers exploit the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS) by creating pop-up centers across the Valley that take advantage of the American Indian Health Program and collecting thousands of dollars a day in federal funds for bogus or shoddy services. The Arizona Department of Health Services annual sober living report substantiates the magnitude of the problem, lawmakers say. From 2021 to 2023, the issuance of new sober living licenses surged from 52 to 470, while complaints soared from 94 to 446 an increase of over 370%. Moreover, enforcement actions against licensed homes by the department skyrocketed from 97 to over 2,000 during the same period. How advocates are working to protect the Indigenous community Reva Stewart, a Navajo activist who has been working to locate missing community members and bring this issue to the attention of authorities, describes her efforts as a full-time second job. Stewart is the founder of Stolen People, Stolen Benefits, a grassroots organization focused on raising awareness of the issue and bringing victims home. With the assistance of fellow advocate Coleen Chatter, Stewart has tracked down numerous individuals and raised over $10,000 to pay for food and bus tickets to get them home to their families after leaving fraudulent rehab centers. Stewarts involvement in the issue came after her cousin was picked up by an unmarked van in Farmington, New Mexico. She told me that they had picked her up in Farmington and they had picked up four people all at the same time. And on the way down, they told her whatever they could to convince her that they were just going for a day trip, Stewart said. So she got in and they bought alcohol for them. She said they just pretty much kept them intoxicated all the way down. Upon arriving at a group home in Phoenix, her cousin was told to sign up for AHCCCS benefits, but when she refused to provide personal information, she was forced to leave with no way of getting back to New Mexico. According to Stewart, this is a common mark of the scam targeted individuals are often found on the street or at bus stops, flea markets and medical centers. They are picked up in SUVs or unmarked vans and left with no means to get back to their homes. Stewart said she believes Native communities are being targeted because of their high missing and murdered population. They see that theyre homeless and theyve got alcohol problems, and with our huge, huge missing and murdered Indigenous women, people, families, everything, (they think) that were not going to find them. They think that they dont have families behind them and that if theyre unsheltered on the reservation, nobody cares, Stewart said. According to a 2021 report by the state health department, Native Americans are 500% more likely to experience alcohol-induced deaths and have a 20% higher likelihood of dying from drug-induced deaths than the average Arizonan. Mandy Hagen, who started working with advocates to address the issue in October 2022, has heard of numerous instances of abuse in behavioral health facilities. I have seen both men and women being verbally and physically abused by their quote-unquote clinicians. Theres lots of abusive behavior, Hagen said. Theyre almost kind of treated like, Were giving you a free place to stay and were giving you all these things, so, therefore, we can treat you any way we want to. To aid in finding missing individuals, Hagen contacts treatment centers suspected of holding them and requests that they facilitate communication between the person and their loved ones. Obviously (because of) HIPAA, they cant tell me if theyre there, Hagen said, referring to the federal law that assures the privacy of a persons medical information. But Ill just reach out to my contact and say, Hey, this person has been reported missing. They were last seen or heard from at your facility. Can you just please have them reach out to their family? Lucrecia Belmont, a Minnesota retiree, reached out to Stewart after seeing a post about the scam. She now works closely with advocates to track down locations of supposed homes, using a public database to find the centers National Provider Identifier numbers, which are identification numbers given to covered and licensed health care providers. Though these online databases are free to use, many do not know how to access or navigate the technology, Belmont said. I think if more people kind of understood just the basics of how to do some of these searches, general community members would be able to do a lot more watching out for each other, Belmont said. A big component of it has got to be the community really networking some solidarity and protection for each other, and thats something were working on. Getting lawmakers involved Arizona Sen. Theresa Hatathlie, D-Tuba City, who is a member of the Navajo Nation, recently sponsored a bill aiming to regulate fraudulent sober living homes, but the legislation failed to pass in the House. I can count on both of my hands, my fingers and my toes the number of people who have died in this type of facility, Hatathlie said during a Senate Health and Human Services Committee meeting in February. To make sure that theyre going to be held accountable and to make sure that the families will be able to take their loved one home, I think, is not too big of an ask. During hearings for the legislation, Hatathlie stressed the importance of state agencies such as the health department, the attorney general and the Arizona Corporation Commission working together to tackle the issue, and said that a lack of communication between departments has allowed for the scam to continue. These criminals, their licenses are being suspended. Theyre being revoked. They (departments) are not communicating it to ACC, she said. So these criminals, they go and they buy more licenses. In a few hours in between or even in a day, they come out with 20 to 50 licenses, and they just move shop to the next community, to the next neighborhood and they continue to commit crime. Thats why its very important that we address this in a comprehensive fashion. The primary opposition to the bill came in the form of licensed behavioral health facilities that argued that the legislation imposed excessive restrictions beyond targeting scam centers. The intent of the bill is well-founded, but my concern is more the unintended effect on other facilities, lobbyist Don Isaacson said. In many cases, its directed not just at sober living or at behavioral health facilities that operated poorly, but it hits every residential care facility. Another less expansive bill aimed at the scheme, sponsored by Sen. Frank Carroll, R-Sun City West, failed to receive a third hearing before the legislative deadline. It would have increased regulations and fines for unlicensed homes and mandated on-site inspections. AHCCCS has made changes in its system in an attempt to fight the scheme. The agency extended a moratorium for enrolling new behavioral health clinics for Medicaid billing until June 8. It also instituted tighter controls for sober-living facilities, including requirements for fingerprint clearance background checks and site visits for certain types of behavioral health facilities. Currently, advocates are focusing their efforts on spreading advice on how to stay safe and avoid the scheme. They warn that if an individual approaches offering assistance, they are likely tied to an unethical treatment center, as reputable treatment centers do not send drivers to recruit people on the street. According to Hagen, the best way to receive reputable help is to get connected to licensed, ethical care providers through social workers, case managers, primary care clinics or resource centers. If you think that you have a substance-use issue, instead of going directly with somebody whos offering you free housing, go to your behavioral health services, Hagen said. A lot of the tribes have behavioral health services. Whether its an actual behavioral health services building, a hospital or detox, I would go and talk to somebody that can refer you appropriately. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Indigenous advocates work to combat fake sober living homes in Arizona appeared first on Arizona Mirror. Final days to register for Azercell-hosted M360 Eurasia 2024 The GSMA M360 Eurasia 2024 conference begins in Baku on May 15, promising two days packed with valuable insights and engaging discussions. Supported by the Ministry of Digital Development and Transport of the Republic of Azerbaijan and sponsored by Azercell Telecom LLC, this event is set to explore the key topics driving today's digital landscape. Attendees can expect engaging sessions featuring regional and international industry leaders, regulatory figures, and experts, all coming together to spotlight the collaborative efforts required for digital transformation across the region and beyond. Discussions will cover a range of such crucial subjects as the impact of AI across sectors, Industry Digitization, Cyber Security, Green Tech, Future-ready networks, and more. A dedicated session on Digital DNA will focus on the skills and capabilities necessary for success in a digital-first era, adapting to the continuously evolving labor market of today. Anticipating COP29, which will also be hosted in Azerbaijan in November this year, the event will underscore its commitment to the ESG agenda, emphasizing the convergence of digitalization and climate action. Global telecom leaders will share key insights, demonstrating how digital innovation can foster environmental responsibility. It is worth mentioning that this year's event features speakers from the top management of international companies such as Microsoft, Google, Amazon Web Services, World Bank, e& International, Beeline, Vodafone Group, Turkcell, East Telecom, and others. Secure your spot now by registering on the GSMA M360 Eurasia Registration Page. Don't miss out on the chance to be part of shaping tomorrow's discussions at the JW Marriott Absheron Baku! Infant airlifted to Columbia hospital after shooting that also hurt his mom, SC cops say A South Carolina woman and her 9-month-old baby were hospitalized following a recent drive-by shooting, the Lee County Sheriffs Office said. The shooting happened at night on May 9, the sheriffs office said in a news release. A woman and four children were inside a residence that was hit by gunfire at H&B Mobile Home Park on Herbert Lane, according to the release. Thats near the intersection with Springhill Road in the Bishopville area of Lee County, about 6 miles from Exit 116 on Interstate 20. After the shooting, the woman and children exited the mobile home and saw that it was on fire, the sheriffs office said. Thats when she called 911 and reported that both she and the baby boy had been shot, according to the release. Sheriffs deputies as well as members of Lee County Fire-Rescue responded to the scene. The woman was taken to a hospital in Florence after suffering non-life-threatening injuries, the sheriffs office said. A medical helicopter was dispatched and the baby, who was in critical condition, was airlifted to a hospital in Columbia, according to the release. Further information on the conditions of the mother and baby was not available, and the sheriffs office didnt immediately respond to messages asking about the shooting and victims. No other injuries were reported. There was no word about a shooter or shooters, or anyone else involved in the gunfire. Information about a motive for the shooting was not available. No arrests have been reported by the sheriffs office, which is continuing to investigate the shooting, with assistance from the South Carolina Law Enforcement Divisions crime scene and arson unit, according to the release. Information about what caused the fire, and the severity of the damages to the mobile home, was not available. Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call the sheriffs office at 803-484-5353, CrimeStoppers at 888-CRIME-SC or submit an online tip. SUISIN CITY, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) An inmate from Fresno County who was housed inside the Delta Conservation Camp in Solano County escaped from the facility on Monday, according to state officials. According to the California Department of Corrections of Rehabilitation, 36-year-old James Xiong was last seen around 7 a.m. during breakfast. He failed to report to work at 9 a.m. and staff were unable to locate him. Officials say he walked away from the conservation camp. Fresno fire station vandalized with rocks Xiong is described by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation as 5 feet, 9 inches tall, 150 pounds, with brown eyes and black hair. He was last seen wearing a gray sweatshirt and gray pants. James Xiong, 36 Officials say Xiong was received from Fresno County in March 2015 to serve a six-year sentence for first-degree robbery and a three-year concurrent sentence for vehicle theft with a prior felony violation. Following his parole supervision release in November 2019, he has been in and out of police custody, being sentenced for offenses in Nevada County and Kings County. Anyone who sees Xiong is asked to contact the Delta Conservation Camp Commander at 707-425-4878, any law enforcement agency, or 911. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to YourCentralValley.com | KSEE24 and CBS47. President Joe Bidens national security adviser Jake Sullivan has given ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos a rare tour of the White House Situation Room following its $50m revamp. The makeover of the nerve centre of the West Wing which was first opened in 1961 and where every president from John F Kennedy to Mr Biden have overseen some of the toughest moments of their tenures was completed last October, greatly enhancing the rooms security and technological capability. Mr Sullivan told Mr Stephanopoulos, who has just authored a new book chronicling presidential crises handled within the facilitys walls, that, contrary to popular belief, the 5,500 square foot Situation Room in the basement of the White House is actually a vast complex comprising multiple rooms. The adviser detailed the workings of the Watch Floor, where civilian and military experts monitor events around the world on a bank of glowing monitors 24/7 and put in a call to the president or his top aides whenever a developing situation requires their immediate attention, which could come at any time of the day or night. When you see the number from the Situation Room at 3am, its not usually to update you on good news, I would say, Mr Sullivan joked. He went on to explain the facilitys use as a venue for secure video conferences, explaining that Mr Biden had made it his base from which to discuss Russias invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 with his fellow world leaders and to coordinate their response. He uses this room not just to make decisions but to do diplomacy, to build and execute coalitions and alliances and so a lot of the history that is written day to day in American foreign policy is lived out in this room, Mr Sullivan said. The adviser explained that the complex serves as a place for the commander-in-chief and his senior decision-makers to share their viewpoints and that asking the right questions of expert intelligence officials is key to securing a successful outcome during stressful moments of global consequence. US president Joe Biden meets with members of the National Security team regarding the unfolding missile attacks on Israel from Iran on 13 April 2024 in the White House Situation Room in Washington, DC (Adam Schultz/The White House/Getty) According to Mr Stephanopolouss new book, the Situation Room was created at the request of President Kennedy in the aftermath of the failed Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba, a disaster that was blamed on inadequate communications and intel and which no one wished to repeat as the tense atmosphere of the Cold War lingered on. The site chosen for a state-of-the-art surveillance base was formerly a bowling alley and might have been called either the Nerve Center or the Executive Coordination Center before the intentionally more mundane and euphemistic National Daily Situation Room was recommended. Some presidents like Lyndon Johnson during the Vietnam War or Ronald Reagan in the 1980s would come to regard the facility as the beating heart of the White House and loved to be there while others, like Richard Nixon and Donald Trump, found it gloomy and preferred the pomp and ceremony of the Oval Office instead. Heres a look at some of the more extraordinary events that have since been overseen from within its walls. Cuban Missile Crisis (October 1962) The centre proved its worth within a year of its opening, when intelligence staff intercepted a Radio Moscow broadcast that revealed that Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev had decided to remove Russian missiles from the island after all, news that was immediately communicated to President Kennedy, enabling a broader conflict to be averted. If the Situation Room had not yet existed, Khrushchevs overture would have taken longer to arrive, and the Cuban Missile Crisis might have taken a much darker turn, Mr Stephanopoulos writes of the significance of that moment. 9/11 attacks (September 2001) Following the attack on the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, members of George W Bushs administration ran to the complex much like the firefighters in New York rushed toward the burning towers, the ABC journalist observes, noting that staff refused to obey evacuation orders even though al-Qaeda terrorists were feared to be targeting the building. Frank Miller, President Bushs senior director for defense policy, asked everybody present to write down their names and Social Security numbers, telling them: We want to know what bodies to look for. Raid on Bin Ladens compound (May 2011) One of the most famous images of the 21st century was captured in the Situation Room by official White House photographer Pete Souza on 11 May 2011 when President Barack Obama, his then-vice president Joe Biden, secretary of state Hillary Clinton and a host of military brass and staffers gathered to watch the raid on Osama bin Ladens Pakistani hideout on 2 May 2011. The terrorist leader was gunned down by US Special Forces after almost a decade on the run as part of Operation Neptune Spear, a moment witnessed live by Mr Obama and his staff in a cramped side room rather than around the main conference table because an engineer could reportedly not work out how to patch the feed through in time, a technical blunder that at least yielded a truly iconic photograph. President Barack Obama, vice president Joe Biden, secretary of state Hillary Clinton and members of the national security team receive an update on the mission against Osama bin Laden in the Situation Room of the White House on 1 May 2011 in Washington, DC (Pete Souza/The White House/Getty) Firing of Trump aide Omarosa (December 2017) Mr Stephanopoulos writes that the Situation Room and how it is used by a particular administration often reflects the personality of the president. We should therefore not be surprised that the first person to be fired in the room was an aide to President Trump: Omarosa Manigault Newman. Ms Manigault Newman was reported to have been dismissed by White House chief of staff John Kelly on 13 December 2017, although she later claimed to have resigned and produced a tape recorder she had smuggled into the room and presented the audio of her exchange with Mr Kelly to NBC journalist Chuck Todd to play on air in August 2018. That proved a matter of no little controversy, as cell phones and recording devices are banned from the facility. Larry Pfeiffer, an Obama-era director of the Situation Room, told Mr Stephanopoulos: Nobodys being frisked as they come in the door. Its an honour system. Most of the people coming in and out of there tend to be very high-level, very important people. Certain assumptions get made that theyre going to do the right thing. People visit the "From Darkness to Light", an interactive exhibition about the deadly October 7 attack Palestinian Islamist group Hamas from Gaza, in Jerusalem People visit the "From Darkness to Light", an interactive exhibition about the deadly October 7 attack Palestinian Islamist group Hamas from Gaza, in Jerusalem By Emily Rose JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Noam Ben David, 27-year-old survivor of the Nova Music Festival, hid in a garbage container for five hours on Oct. 7, after seeing Hamas gunmen kill her partner. Seven months later, she has been released from hospital, but many of her wounds, she said, have not healed. Leaning on the crutches she now needs, Ben David told her story as she visited an interactive exhibition "From Darkness to Light", at the Museum of Tolerance Jerusalem, which opened ahead of Monday's Memorial Day, when Israel commemorates fallen soldiers and Israeli victims of attacks. Ben David, whose experience is featured in the exhibits, said the exhibition's name proved that those who were killed, though they are gone, "are still such bright sources of light". The Oct. 7 attack by Hamas gunmen on Israeli communities killed some 1,200 Israelis and foreigners and saw more than 250 people taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies, in the deadliest single day for Israelis in their history. Israel's retaliatory military operation in Gaza has killed more than 35,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's health ministry, and devastated the narrow coastal enclave that Hamas has controlled since 2007. The exhibition producer Malki Shem Tov's son Omer was abducted on Oct. 7 and has been held hostage by Hamas in Gaza for more than 200 days. Between attending rallies and advocating for Omer's release, Shem Tov produced the installation which features mobile shelters, mimicking the safe rooms where victims hid while their communities were under attack. Visitors can use touchscreen pillars to hear the stories of 25 women survivors and first responders who witnessed the atrocities. "For me Oct. 7 is part of my life," Linor Attias, a first responder who was dispatched to the communities on the day of the attack told Reuters. Attias said the "barbarism" she witnessed that day "is something everyone needs to learn about and hear about". (Reporting by Emily Rose; Editing by Alison Williams) Animal shelters and rescue centers are facing tough decisions about what to do with a flood of dogs and cats that are in need of medical help and forever homes. Rising costs for veterinary supplies, overbreeding, long waits for vet appointments, rental units that don't allow pets and fewer younger vets to replace retiring professionals has led to more people leaving their furry friends at Haven Humane Society and other shelters, animal advocates said. Now rescuers say their shelters are full or beyond capacity, leaving no room for more. With 28 cats and eight dogs, even animal advocate Karen Hansens Cottonwood home is full, she said. Hansen runs the nonprofit pet rescue Catz and Dogz of the North State out of her house. Adoptable cats at Catz and Dogz of the North State watch the "backyard news" at animal rescuer Karen Hansen's home in Cottonwood. People giving up their pets was so common in 2023 and so far in 2024 that Hansen had to say "no" to most callers who wanted her to take in their animals. It was a matter of preserving her own health, she said. At one point last year, I had 20 additional dogs and 40 cats" and she worked from 6 a.m. to midnight caring for them. I was crying because I was so tired, Hansen said. Now, she keeps her rescue at capacity. But it's hard to say no. Difficult to turn animals away Hansen said she had to comfort a fellow animal rescuer who had to terminate the pregnancy of a four-month-old kitten. Birth could have killed the mother and created eight more kittens to care for and to then try to place in a permanent setting. People in rescue dont want to do pregnancy termination, said Hansen, but they aren't able to find homes for a dozen newborns, either. So some ill cats that are pregnant receive abortions, sometimes to keep the mother alive. Its not just a North State problem. Animal shelters and rescues being packed to capacity is a dilemma throughout California, including at Haven Humane Society in Anderson. That center is full, according to Haven CEO Mark Storrey. Los Angeles and Bay Area shelters reported similar difficulties throughout 2023, according to shelter websites and stories in the Los Angeles Times and on SFGATE.com. Approximately 390,000 dogs and 530,000 cats are euthanized annually nationwide, according to the ASPCA. But Californias urban areas usually have more spay and neuter options and more veterinary services in general, while urbanites also tend to have more money to pay for that care, said Hansen. Rural areas like Shasta and Tehama counties often have more colonies of unowned cats and more dogs that have been neglected or abandoned than in urban communities. Note to readers: If you appreciate the work we do here at the Redding Record Searchlight, please consider subscribing yourself or giving the gift of a subscription to someone you know. 'Euthanasia is always our last choice' In 14 years, Storrey said he has never seen Haven as busy as it has been from 2023 to 2024. Haven has had to turn away some people who want to have their pets spayed or neutered because the shelters two full-time vets and one part-time vet are busy trying to keep up with care for animals already in Havens adoption center, wildlife brought to them for medical care and homeless cats that are trapped, fixed and released, he said. We did just shy of 3,000 spay/neuters in 2023," he said, with 1,123 of the sterilization procedures being performed on stray cats. The rest of the surgeries were conducted for customers' pets and animals in Haven's adoption center, Storrey said. Having so many stray animals in need of health care and adoption takes its toll on both the pets and the people caring for them, Storrey and Hansen said. Were always going to try to be a no kill (facility)," said Storrey, referring to an industry term to describe shelters with a 90% live release rate, with the remainder of the animals either being euthanized or dying at the shelter from existing illness or injuries. "We were like that for dogs for seven years, until 2023, said Storrey. Unfortunately, over the past 12 to 15 months, weve been inundated with animals, he said. 'Inundated with animals' Reasons for the uptick include intentional animal overbreeding and people not getting their pets spayed or neutered, in part due to rising vet costs. Pet owners may have to wait weeks or longer to get a veterinary appointment. It's also hard for pet owners to find rental housing that allows dogs or cats, according to Storrey. In 2023, Haven cared for 4,746 animals. Almost 40%, or 1,885 individuals, were pets that Haven adopted out. The rest were animals that arrived dead or dying, pets later reunited with their owners, wildlife later released back into their territories and customers' pets along with 1,123 stray outdoor cats that were brought in for spay or neuter services, according to Storrey. He said the center conducted just under 3,000 spay and neuter surgeries on dogs and cats last year. "Euthanasia is always our last choice," Storrey said. There was a little good news. More people are adopting dogs and cats from Haven this month than usual, Storrey said, thanks in part to a waiver of pet adoption fees at Haven through May 15. For more information, call Haven Humane Society at 530-241-1653, or Catz and Dogz of the North State at 530-527-9369. Jessica Skropanic is a features reporter for the Record Searchlight/USA Today Network. She covers science, arts, social issues and news stories. Follow her on Twitter @RS_JSkropanic and on Facebook. Join Jessica in the Get Out! Nor Cal recreation Facebook group. To support and sustain this work, please subscribe today. Thank you. This article originally appeared on Redding Record Searchlight: Shasta animal shelters and rescue programs overflowing with cats, dogs In northern Wisconsin, April Stone is carrying on a centuries-old Ojibwe practice of basket making. She uses wood from the black ash tree, a cultural keystone species that's now under threat from the invasive emerald ash borer. Yet for Stone and other tribal artisans, protecting black ash trees and their cultural and ecological value is critical. Basket making, she said, empowers and connects people. This kind of work teaches humility and patience and respect and courage and love and wisdom, all of those sacred lessons that helped our people continue on in their existence for thousands and thousands of years, Stone said. The emerald ash borer has proliferated across 36 states, the District of Columbia and five Canadian provinces, according to the U.S. Forest Service. The green, wood-boring beetle native to Asia and which was first discovered in the U.S. in 2002 is considered one of the most destructive invasive species in North America, killing trees within three to five years of infestation, the federal agency reports. PHOTO: An emerald ash borer in an undated photo. (Terry Harris/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images) Experts say that while adult beetles cause minor damage, their larvae are killing black ash trees by feeding on the inner bark, which disrupts the flow of water and nutrients the tree needs to live. MORE: Can Trickery Save the Country's Ash Trees? Many Ojibwe basket makers and harvesters pound logs from trees to produce materials that are used in a variety of woodworking projects, like making lacrosse sticks and snowshoe frames. By a recent estimate, 98% of Indigenous people in areas where black ash grows will experience the loss of more than 75% of their tree population by 2035. In the U.S., black ash trees grow primarily from Maine to Wisconsin, in a band that wraps to the south of the Great Lakes. The decline of black ash trees is also a concern to Tyler Everett, a citizen member of the Mi'kmaq Nation in northern Maine. Everett is the tribal forest adaptation technical assistant with United South & Eastern Tribes, a nonprofit serving 33 federally recognized tribal nations. Everett said basket makers alerted regional leaders to the emerald ash borer's devastating impact on black ash trees. That inter-tribal communication, he added, moved the needle on awareness. The knowledge that basket makers and ash harvesters have about this tree needs to be passed on, and we have to have new basket makers and ash harvesters learning this cultural practice. Its hard to see that happen when the trees are not surviving, Everett said. A further challenge: black ash is a species that's vulnerable to climate change, according to a 2023 report from the Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission (GLIFWC). The U.S. Forest Service told ABC News in an email that black ash trees are typically managed during the winter, "so people and equipment can enter the stands on top of snow, which avoids damaging the fragile lowland soils where black ash grow." MORE: How kelp farms, an 'environmental powerhouse,' can help mitigate climate change However, climate change is causing warmer winters, which in turn has "reduced the snowpack, limiting opportunities to safely manage these stands," the U.S. Forest Service said, making it more difficult to slow the spread of emerald ash borer. Chris Swanston, the director of the Forest Service Office of Sustainability and Climate, said the agency is undergoing a genuine paradigm shift in its land management and adaptation approaches because of climate change. PHOTO: Colleen Teerling, Entomologist, Maine Forest Service Insect and Disease Lab, shows evil emerald ash borer specimens. (Carl D. Walsh/Portland Press Herald via Getty Images) The snow is not there like it used to be, Swanston said. He said its estimated that black ash trees face about a 95% mortality rate in the next 25 years because of the emerald ash borer, which has killed millions of ash trees in recent years. The reason that people are worried about emerald ash borer is because it seems like an almost unstoppable force, Swanston said. The effects of infestation can go undetected for two years, hindering forest managers from quickly identifying and eradicating it. The invasive pest has infiltrated nearly 60 percent of the native range of black ash, a recent study found. In addition to their cultural importance, black ash is a wetland species that regulates water levels, and their loss reduces biodiversity. You definitely throw off the interrelationships of different wildlife species, in addition to essentially losing a forested landscape, Swanston said of the impacts of fewer black ash trees. Despite logistical hurdles, there are some promising strategies underway to preserve and repopulate black ash trees. Many tribal members and foresters are collecting ash seeds in hopes of harvesting them both for future research and rematriation efforts, the latter referring to reuniting them with tribal nations. Others like Everett, who are part of the Ash Protection Collaboration Across Wabanakik (APCAW) group, are researching varieties of black ash that are genetically more resistant to the emerald ash borer. MORE: Fruit fly found in Asia forces partial quarantine of Los Angeles County: CDFA Swanston said the U.S. Forest Service is strongly engaged with tribal nations across the country, working together to learn from their experience. Still other mitigation efforts include introducing non-native predators of the emerald ash borer, such as stingless wasps. PHOTO: A metal identification tag is placed on an ash tree by an arborist for treatment with an insecticide preventing the emerald ash borer insect from infesting and killing the tree in Shelburne, Vt., June 4, 2020. (Robert Nickelsberg/Getty Images) It's kind of a race for time, Swanston said. Can the wasps push back the emerald ash borer before the emerald ash borer wipes out so much ash that there's no coming back? Back in Wisconsin, on the Bad River reservation, April Stone said in Ojibwe oral history, humans are the fourth order of creation, and everything in the natural world like birds, the sky, and trees comes before them. She said even with the emerald ash borer's destructive presence, there is a bigger question to consider: the human impact on the landscape. Still, she finds reason for optimism close to home. I can feel pretty good about the future of the ash trees when Im walking around and I see all the little saplings coming up. I feel hopeful when I see that, Stone said. Invasive emerald ash borer endangers cultural keystone tree species originally appeared on abcnews.go.com INVESTIGATES: I got played. Sunshine State full of shady moving companies and brokers Florida is paradise to many the sun, white sandy beaches, and no state income tax whos got it better than us? But the Sunshine State leads the country in some shady business complaints against moving companies and brokers. Kaitlyn Melamed moved from Colorado to Northeast Florida in 2022 to start school as a physicians assistant. I wasnt looking for the most luxurious moving company, Melamed told Action News Jaxs Ben Becker. I wasnt looking for the cheapest. INVESTIGATES: Survey: 60% of teachers are afraid to go to school Melamed shopped around and settled on A On Time Moving, a company out of Broward County. The deposit was nearly $1,200 but what she didnt know is that it was a moving broker. Brokers are middlemen who book your move and sell it to an actual moving company. In Melameds case, a company out of Texas. INVESTIGATES: Teacher survey found more than half have been afraid to go to school because of violence She was quoted more than $4,100. They picked up her belongings in Colorado, but it took a detour to Texas instead of Jacksonville. They didnt show up, no communication, no text message so I call them. They say, Im sorry we had a flat tire. They gave me some excuse, said Melamed, who also said the movers also claimed they didnt have enough room in the truck they had rented. Eventually, she filed a lawsuit that she dropped when her belongings finally arrived two months later. Read: Sources: City leaders want to use JEA as piggy bank to help pay for stadium renovations Action News Jax Investigates found Florida is home to more brokers than anywhere else in the country, 238 out of 1,032, or 23% percent of the industry, according to Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. It costs just $125 to register as a Limited Liability Company (LLC) and $600 to become registered and authorized as a broker with the U.S. Department of Transportation. The Better Business Bureau receives 15,000 complaints per year against moving companies and brokers. Read: JTAs multimillion-dollar autonomous vehicle project is over budget and behind deadline In Melameds case, the company hired by A On Time Movers insisted she had to pay up before they opened up the truck and when she did, she found broken furniture and missing items. Do you feel like your stuff was held hostage? Becker asked. Yes 100%, Melamed said. INVESTIGATES: I was vulnerable Artificial Intelligence work-from-home job scams targeting victims Florida Senate Bill 304 is supposed to help put a stop to that, at least in the Sunshine State, after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the bipartisan measure in April. Some of the key provisions include prohibiting moving companies from withholding your possessions for excessive fees, plus requiring moving brokers to work exclusively with Florida-registered moving companies -- violators face fines of up to $50,000. Its personal to me, said State Rep. Kimberly Daniels of Jacksonville, who signed on as a co-prime sponsor. Read: Georgia could be holding onto cash that belongs to you and you may not even realize it As a child, she lost many belongings during a move This bill has the teeth we need to solve the problem, said Daniels, although it only applies to moving operations within Florida. Moves between states are still subject to federal oversight. Read: Government financial watchdog gives Jacksonville D grade; questions if city can afford new stadium This is a very strong start sends a loud message, Daniels said, defending the measure. Will A On Time Moving get the message? In the last 3 years, it has received 47 BBB complaints and has an F rating. [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] The Florida Attorney General says it has received more than a dozen complaints of its own against the company. It also has 13 ongoing cases against other companies, one is in litigation and the others are active investigations. Each case involves multiple entities and individuals. Becker tried calling the owner of A On Time Moving, Brian DeFelice, but he never returned a message. [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] DeFelices Facebook page describes working in a beautiful office but when Action News Jax went to that location, it appeared A On Time Moving has moved on -- now its a medical office. Melamed said she did not expect to become a victim. I feel like I did my research Im an intelligent woman, Melamed said. I got played. Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live. Investigation continues in University Park Mall shooting; no victims or suspect identified Mishawaka Police, St. Joseph County Police, South Bend Police and Indiana State Police responded May 11, 2024, to reports of a fight and shots fired at University Park Mall in Mishawaka. SOUTH BEND The Mishawaka Police Department continues its ongoing investigation into a shooting that occurred Saturday night at University Park Mall, saying that more information may be released by the end of the day Monday. Mishawaka Police, St. Joseph County Police, South Bend Police and Indiana State Police responded to multiple 911 calls reporting gunfire within the mall around 6:19 p.m. May 11. On the scene, Mishawaka Police Department Assistant Chief Dan Gebo stated that there had been no reports of injuries and that police were looking for the shooter. Police were working on evacuating the mall at that time. On Monday morning, he told The Tribune that this investigation remains ongoing. "We're trying to locate witnesses and going through video that we received," Gebo said. Mall spokesman Christian Carlson declined to comment Saturday night, saying all communication was being deferred to Mishawaka police for the ongoing investigation. Dispatch is reachable at 911 and the Mishawaka Police Department at 574-258-1678. Email Tribune staff writer Camille Sarabia at csarabia@gannett.com. This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Police search videos in ongoing mall shooting investigation BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. The Chair-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and Malta's Minister of Foreign and European Affairs and Trade Ian Borg is set to pay a visit to Azerbaijan, Trend reports, referring to Borg's statement during a joint press conference with Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan in Yerevan. I arrived in Yerevan today to begin my visit of the South Caucasus. The current political situation with Azerbaijan and the possibility of a peaceful resolution were the main points of discussion. The OSCE remains committed to its initial goal of a lasting and all-encompassing peace in the region, he said. The OSCE chairman emphasized that the start of the border delimitation process between Azerbaijan and Armenia is an important step. Tomorrow in Baku, I will discuss these matters with the Azerbaijani side, he added. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Law enforcement agents on Monday attributed the new cold case unit of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation as the key to solving the 23-year-old killing of Tara Louise Baker in Athens. Baker was a first-year student at the University of Georgia law school when she was slain on Jan. 19, 2001 in her Athens home. The case went unsolved for more than two decades. But last week, police arrested 41-year-old Edrick Lamont Faust, an Athens resident who has been charged with murder, aggravated sodomy and arson in connection with Bakers death. For over two decades, investigators have worked tirelessly to find answers for the family and friends of Tara Louise Baker, and bring some amount of closure and healing to this horrific event, said GBI Director Chris Hosey during a news conference held Monday in Decatur, Georgia. With an arrest in this investigation last week, it is my prayer that this process has begun. "The recent events in the Tara Baker investigation also send a strong message that justice has no expiration, and law enforcement in the state of Georgia will never stop seeking answers to these tragic events. Athens-Clarke police Chief Jerry Saulters said he was a young patrol deputy at the time of Baker's death. "It greatly affected our community, the university community and also the police department," he said. "... I thought and prayed that one day we would standing here to announce an arrest in this case." Hosey said the arrest was made possible by a 2023 law that was partially named after Baker. The law, known as the Coleman-Baker Act, provided $5.4 million in funding to establish a cold case unit, with investigators stationed throughout Georgia who could reexamine old cases with fresh eyes. Gov. Brian Kemp signs HB 88, the Coleman-Baker Act, at the Athens-Clarke county court house in downtown Athens on Friday. The bill allows families of homicide victims to request law enforcement agencies to review cold cases. 'A big step': Gov. Kemp visits Athens to sign bill creating GBI cold case unit In September of 2023, special agents of the GBI Cold Case Unit partnered with Athens-Clarke County investigators to conduct a tireless, in-depth review and analysis of the ongoing investigation into Taras death, Hosey said. In Taras case, it was biological evidence and DNA science combined with collaborative investigative work of our law enforcement partners that you see here today that brought us this result. Hosey declined to cite specific new evidence that came to light during the investigation, or disclose whether the case was connected to Faust through modern technology. "What I will say as far as the details ... that got us here today is everything was reviewed, whether it be interviews, forensic evidence, whatever the case may be, and then I will stop with that for now," he said. Georgia Bureau of Investigation Director Chris Hosey speaks at a press conference to announce new updates in the 2001 murder of Tara Louise Baker. Western Judicial Circuit D.A. Deborah Gonzalez also spoke at the press conference, applauding the arrest. When I got into office, this was one of the three top cold cases that we had in our office just waiting for when a day like today would come, Gonzalez said, adding that her office will be setting up a prosecution team for the case. We know that this may not bring Tara back, but it will hopefully bring her family some closure, and also acknowledgement that we will put in the work to do this. State Rep. Houston Gaines (R-Athens), who sponsored the Coleman-Baker Act, thanked the Baker family for their advocacy, which he said will benefit other families trying to get justice for their loved ones. I can't imagine the journey that the family has gone through and will continue to go through, Gaines said. I know there'll be many more difficult days. But I want to say thank you to this family because not only are we here today for this important moment, but this is for so many other families as well. Western Judicial Circuit D.A. Deborah Gonzalez speaks at a press conference at the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Tara Baker cold case solved by new GBI cold case unit, police say INWOOD, N.Y. (PIX11) After a winter with no heat, unsuccessful legal action, and hundreds of 311 calls, tenants at seven Inwood apartments say life has been hell for years. Residents at buildings on Seaman Avenue, West 207th Street, and Cooper Street all affiliated with Lisa Management, Inc. on Monday said enough is enough with the disrepair at their buildings. Many of the buildings were on Public Advocate Jumaane Williams Worst Landlords list in 2023 and have racked up hundreds of city violations. [Its been] 30 years taking their crap, not getting anything fixed but yet paying your rent, said Alexandra Rodriguez, whos lived at 140 Seaman Ave. for 30 years. I have paid from my pocket, so I have the right to live like a human being. NYCHA considers firing security at senior housing facilities Tenants said theyve faced a slew of issues, including inadequate heating, security problems, garbage build-up, and inaccurate rent statements. They also said all of the repairs that have been made have come up short. Each building has between 59 and 308 open violations with NYC Housing Preservation and Development and numerous lead-based paint violations, according to city records and the Northern Manhattan Improvement Corporation. At 15 Cooper St., some of the hundreds of open violations include visible mold in apartments, mouse and roach infestations, and issues with hot water, city records show. I have a notebook full of the times that I have made complaints, 311 has come, and still to no avail, said Betsy Roman, whos lived at 128 Seaman Ave. for 50 years. We reach out to them and they dont respond. A spokesperson for Lisa Management told PIX11 the group took over the buildings in December 2023 and inherited hundreds of violations and outstanding repair requests due to the negligence of the previous management company that they have since started to repair. Tenants outside 136 Seaman Avenue in Inwood. (PIX11 News) The company has already done work to ensure access to heat and hot water, initiated vermin treatments and started mold and lead assessments before abatement and remediation, the spokesperson said. The company will also paint and clean common areas and add a backyard fence to address safety concerns, according to the spokesperson. The previous landlord, Jennifer Perez, ranked 52nd on the 2023 worst landlord list. PIX11 was unable to locate contact information for Perez. We understand and empathize with our tenants and are moving as fast as we can to make sure that everyones apartment and the buildings overall are in great shape, the spokesperson for Lisa Management said. Tenants say conditions have been deteriorating since before the pandemic. In 2022, lawyers with the Northern Manhattan Improvement Corporation initiated legal action on behalf of the tenants to get their repairs fixed. More Local News Some of the repairs brought to court in 2022 remain unresolved, and they plan to initiate a new case with more tenants, attorney Raunak Wolfe said. Brian Valladares, a lawyer with the Corporation, added that the city needs to be stricter on violations so landlords cant continuously disregard tenants. Court is an escalation, and we view it in that way. Weve done everything And then we have to escalate it to the point where were taking it to court and now there are civil penalties that are over the landlords head, Valladares said. It gives the tenants more leverage and it gives them more power. A spokesperson for HPD told PIX11 News some of the buildings, including 15 Cooper Street and 136 Seaman Avenue, are enrolled in city programs to improve accountability and address underlying conditions in buildings with repeated violations. The department has itself conducted emergency repairs, like lead abatement and door replacement, according to the spokesperson. Every person deserves to have a safe and habitable place to call home, and it is the property managers responsibility to comply with the Citys Housing Maintenance Code by promptly addressing violations. We will continue addressing tenant complaints, conducting inspections, issuing violations, and utilizing all of our enforcement tools to ensure that all New Yorkers feel safe and secure in their own homes. HPD Spokesperson Tenants hold photos of the damage to their apartments in Inwood. (PIX11 News) The backdrop of ever-increasing New York City rents further exemplifies the injustice, Valladares said. Rents are way too expensive, so these tenants are dealing with terrible conditions in their apartment and they cant afford their rent, Valladares said. These tenants, some have lead and mold in their apartments, and theyre looking down the barrel of a rather substantial increase in their rent. The tenants, many of whom have lived in the buildings for decades, are only growing more determined to hold onto their homes. Nobodys getting me out of there, 30-year tenant Rodriguez said. Emily Rahhal is a digital reporter from Los Angeles who has covered New York City since 2023. She joined PIX11 in 2024. See more of her work here and follow her on Twitter here. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11. Apple has rolled out iOS 17.5, which includes a bunch of updates, including support for a cross-OS alert system for unwanted Bluetooth trackers that the company worked on with Google. The other headline feature is the introduction of web-based app distribution in the European Union. This is a function that Apple is introducing in the wake of the bloc's Digital Markets Act coming into force. It won't be a free-for-all, however. Developers who want to let users download iOS apps from their websites will need to opt into new App Store rules that will mean they have to pay a fee for each user after hitting a certain threshold. They'll also need to have a developer account that's in good standing and to have an app that had more than a million iOS installs in the EU in the previous year. There's another notable update in iOS 17.5 in the form of a new feature called Repair State. In a nutshell, this will mean that iPhone users no longer need to turn off Find My when they send in their iPhone for repair. Elsewhere, there are some changes on the Apple News+ front. The app now at long last has an offline mode, so you can use it to catch up on some reading while you're on a flight and don't feel like paying for Wi-Fi. The Today feed and News+ tab will work without an internet connection. Apple is also moving beyond crosswords and deeper into the daily word game trend popularized by the likes of Wordle . Quartiles is a Boggle-style original game for Apple News+ subscribers. You'll connect tiles of various word combinations to create words and score points. You'll be able to share your scores with other players. Apple Pride 2024 Collection with iPad and iPhone backgrounds and a face for Apple Watch. (Apple) Last but not least, Apple has the latest incarnation of its annual Pride collection in honor of the LGBTQ+ community, including a Pride Radiance watch face and iOS and iPadOS wallpapers. You'll be able to customize these with a range of colors. You'll see the colors trace numerals of the watch face and react as you move your Apple Watch. A matching Apple Watch Pride Edition Braided Solo Loop will be available to order on May 22 for $99. The iPhone and iPad backgrounds spell out "Pride" in bold beams of color and move when you unlock the device. (Photo by Getty Images) In exchange for less than $53,000, federal officials have agreed to settle civil claims against a Des Moines nurse accused of participating in a million-dollar scheme to defraud Medicare. Ashley Brown, an advanced registered nurse practitioner, has paid $52,560 to the United States to resolve civil allegations that she violated federal law by signing hundreds of medically unnecessary prescriptions for expensive orthotic braces in exchange for kickbacks. Timothy T. Duax, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Iowa, said in a written statement that the settlement, which Brown fulfilled last week, reflects his offices intent to aggressively pursue medical providers that seek to profit by outsourcing their medical decision-making. The federal government had alleged that from April 17, 2020, to May 19, 2021, Brown knowingly submitted more than $1 million in false claims for payment to the taxpayer-funded program Medicare while working for a company called Barton Associates. The Department of Justice alleged Brown did so by writing hundreds of prescriptions for orthotic braces that were not medically necessary. Several patients subsequently told investigators they did not know Brown, did not need the braces, and did not request the braces. Brown had even prescribed a brace for an Elkhart man whose left leg had been amputated years earlier, the DOJ alleged. Brown reportedly spent as little as nine seconds reviewing the records of patients for Barton Associates before approving them for braces and in some cases had never had any contact with the patients. In return for each of her prescriptions, Brown allegedly collected what the government characterizes as a kickback of $20 per patient from Barton Associates, sometimes resulting in hundreds of dollars in income for a few minutes work. Barton Associates was not a party to the lawsuit, and federal court records indicate there are no pending civil or criminal charges against the company. No one in the office of the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Iowa was available to take questions on the matter Monday morning. In 2022, a Kentucky doctor agreed to pay $561,800 to resolve allegations that, while partnering with Barton, he violated the False Claims Act by submitting false claims to Medicare for unnecessary equipment. Browns license is in good standing with the Iowa Board of Nursing, and she has no record of any disciplinary action against her license. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Iowa nurse pays $52,560 to settle million-dollar Medicare fraud case appeared first on Iowa Capital Dispatch. DUBLIN (Reuters) - Ireland will this week consider making cuts to state support for asylum seekers and refugees, including those who arrived from Ukraine, in a bid to bring the system more in line with other European countries, Prime Minister Simon Harris said on Monday. Just over 100,000 Ukrainians have fled to Ireland since Russia's invasion in February 2022, while the number of asylum seekers from the rest of the world almost trebled from pre-pandemic levels to more than 13,000 in 2022 and 2023. So far this year, the number has jumped to 7,700. That has made immigration a much bigger political issue in the country of 5.3 million people, which is struggling to house refugees in the middle of a housing supply crisis. "It certainly is my intention that we will see changes in a number of areas that do inject what I think Irish people believe has been lacking, which is that common sense approach," Harris told Newstalk radio ahead of Tuesday's cabinet meeting. "We need to look at welfare consistency. We need to look at the contribution that people who have (refugee) status should make to accommodation. We need to look at making sure that anybody at work is working legally, that there are more workplace inspections." Harris said specifically that there should be a consistency of approach to people who come from Ukraine and that the support should not be based on when they arrived. Ireland previously slashed the allowance for Ukrainian refugees using state accommodation who arrived after mid-March this year to 38.80 euros ($41.84) per week from 220 euros and put a 90-day limit on the time they can remain housed by the state. The changes did not apply to the 70,000 Ukrainians who were already in some form of state accommodation. ($1 = 0.9273 euros) (Reporting by Padraic Halpin; Editing by Sharon Singleton) Everybody has a plan, Mike Tyson famously remarked, until they get punched in the face. In 2021, the Irish government had a plan to provide better accommodation for asylum seekers in Ireland: Roderic OGormon, Irelands equality and integration minister, sent out tweets in eight languages advertising it to the world. The state would provide them with own-door accommodation within a few months of arriving, the minister promised, in languages including Arabic, Albanian, Somali, Urdu and French. The following year, Irelands non-Ukrainian asylum claims soared 400 per cent, or 186 per cent over 2019. Over the next two years, more than 26,000 people turned up claiming asylum. The Irish state, already facing a housing crisis and strained by its commitments to Ukrainian refugees, (here comes the punch in the face) couldnt house them all and so gobbled up spare accommodation and hotels across the countryside, decimating much of its tourist sector. Locals who complained were dismissed by Dublin as dog-whistling bumpkins. But the problem has now announced itself to the countrys liberal elites in the form of a sprawling tent city in the heart of Dublin. Why would a government minister advertise Ireland to asylum seekers in a manner befitting of an estate agent, you might ask. The answer is that Irelands liberal establishment tends to feel rather than think their way into policies. They were elated by the idea (as well as the optics) of Ireland as a safe haven for as many refugees as possible. But they did not anticipate being overwhelmed by the surge in arrivals or that the newcomers would, like in the rest of Europe, consist largely of young male economic migrants posing as refugees. And little thought was given over to what this would mean for Irish people already crowded out of the countrys housing market, or unable to get a hospital appointment. The Irish government has become accustomed to confusing its feelings for good governance, in part because it seldom faces serious consequences for doing so. This is because, as the commentator John McGuirk has argued elsewhere, the Irish state has abdicated its most serious functions: it handed the EU control of its monetary policy, and is planning to shift responsibility for its borders over to Brussels by signing up to the EU Migration Pact. And the buck-passing does not stop there: Europe dictates Irelands trading customs; Britain ensures its national security; and American race and gender dogmas have been imported by Irish elites to fill the spiritual void left by state-run Catholicism. So whats left in the intray? Small, relatively low stakes decisions. This frees up much time for vanity projects like seeking out more refugees and holding wide-eyed progressive referendums. And as a result the Irish establishment has created a serious problem which has pitched its tents right on their lawn. The government has in recent months been forced to play whack-a-mole with migrant camps that keep cropping up in central Dublin. Last week, a tent city was demolished outside Dublins International Protection Office (IPO). Its occupants were bussed to the outskirts of the city, but hundreds more arrived into the country days later and pitched up on the banks of Dublins Grand Canal. The government changed tack offering them money to leave the area, which is lined with the offices of tech giants including LinkedIn and Google. The migrants didnt bite and stayed put. So the government bulldozed the camp last week, for the third time. This is set to become a regular occurrence as the government expects to move up to 250 asylum seekers from make-shift camps in the capital to better accommodation, which is yet to be found, each week. Irelands liberal elites have for years talked and thought in platitudes about immigration: wanting to be the side of the angels at the expense of common sense. Now the problem has arrived on their doorstep, they are taking notice, but are still often unable to see the wood from the trees. Anti-logic is rife among Irish officialdom, whose budgets have grown in recent decades as their responsibilities have shrunk leaving them with too much time and money on their hands. An Irish immigration source recently suggested that what no politician is willing to admit is that we cant stop people arriving here because it would encourage people to support the far right. Out of ideas, the government has decided more money is needed to solve the problem. It plans to spend 5 billion buying and building state-owned accommodation to house asylum seekers. This is expected to supply 10,000 beds over the next 20 years (under a third of whats likely to be needed by the end of this year alone) and so is unlikely to dent the crisis. Scratch beneath the surface and it is clear that Irelands immigration crisis is, in fact, a crisis among the countrys liberal elite. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. New IRIS-T air defence system to arrive in Ukraine in May German ambassador Germany will supply Ukraine with an IRIS-T air defence system in May. A number of such systems will be sent to Ukraine over the next two years. Source: German Ambassador Martin Jaeger in an interview broadcasted on air of Ukraines national 24/7 joint newscast on 13 May, as reported by European Pravda with reference to Interfax-Ukraine Quote: "Besides the Patriot systems, there is also an IRIS-T system. There are already some systems here. And another one will arrive in May. In addition to this, we promised to Ukraine that we will deliver more of these systems next year and in 2026. So we are gradually working on extending the Ukrainian air defence." Jaeger added that the support for Ukraine will correspond to the countrys needs. At the moment Germany sees Ukraines biggest need in air defence systems. At the moment Ukraine already has two German Patriot air defence systems, and the supply of a third one is expected. Background: The federal government of Germany rejects the possibility of NATOs participation in Ukraines air defence. Gabrielius Landsbergis, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania, believes that Western states could send their military instructors to Ukraine to train Ukrainian soldiers on the ground and protect them from Russian attacks with supplementary air defence systems. Support UP or become our patron! Iron Range centers have Day without Childcare to emphasize 'the workforce behind the workforce' MOUNTAIN IRON, MINN. Jay Jensen's daughter spent 9 months on a wait list to get into Iron Range Tykes, one of few children's learning centers in this area of northern Minnesota that is considered a "child care desert." While they waited, the Virginia family relied on the center's drop-off program, babysitting help from family, and the trickiness of working from home with an infant hard for his wife, a manager in an insurance office, impossible for him, an engineer for a mining company. Now a 4-year-old, his daughter has had a regular full-time spot for years, which Jensen credits with making their lives easier to navigate and preparing her for pre-kindergarten. Iron Range Tykes was one of five centers and childcare providers on the Iron Range that closed Monday as part of a nationwide Day Without Childcare, a purposeful inconvenience meant to draw attention to the need for state funding to make childcare affordable for all families and for competitive wages to keep skilled teachers in the profession. Earlier this legislative session, Sen. Grant Hauschild, DFL-Hermantown and Rep. Carlie Kotyza-Witthuhn, DFL-Eden Prairie, were lead authors on a bill meant to lower the cost of childcare and early learning for middle-income families. The Great Start Affordability Program aimed to cap family's care costs at no more than 7% of their annual income. It didn't get the funding lawmakers were looking for this session, but its backers are planning another push next session. "We know middle-income families are still struggling to afford quality childcare and I will continue to prioritize affordability and access in the next biennial budget," Kotyza said in a news release. More than 30 educators and stakeholders gathered at Iron Range Tykes' parking lot early Monday morning dressed in purple T-shirts "Children are the future and the future needs funding" before boarding a charter bus bound for the Minnesota State Capitol in St. Paul for a statewide rally and meetings with lawmakers. At the learning center, a fenced-in side yard with swings, a slide and playhouses sat quiet; a large "Day without Childcare" banner hung from the entrance, blocking the front doors. Shawntel Gruba, the learning center's director and owner, described childcare providers as "the workforce behind the workforce." "The reason I'm here this morning is because I want to continue to work in this field for another 23 years," she said during a media conference that also aired on Facebook live. "But if we don't engage in radical action to push for radical change, that is going to be impossible." The Iron Range closures which included Apple Tree Learning Center, Milestones Daycare Center and Virginia Drop In Daycare, all in Virginia, and Hibbing's Children of Grace Childcare Education Center affected an estimated 700 children, or 450 families in this region. This does not include the children who are waiting for a permanent spot. At Iron Range Tykes and beyond, that list extends 2 years out, according to Gruba. Tiffany Soderman, director of Apple Tree Learning Center, said last week there were two reasons she was getting on the bus to head to the State Capitol. "We want to be able to provide a living wage for our teachers, but the flip side is we don't want to be charging families more than they can pay," she said. "It's really difficult to balance both because it feels like you can't do one without the other." She has seen prized providers leave the profession for other jobs places that pay more than the $15-an-hour work they have trained to do. "Even though statistically early childhood is the most crucial years for forming development and success in school and life, we're not funded the way schools are," Soderman said. At Children of Grace Childcare Education Center, Monday is normally a busy day with billing and other paperwork and classes gearing up for the new week. Though it was an inconvenience for families, they were supportive of Monday's closure, according to assistant director Heather Pinkoski. "Some people look at childcare centers as just a babysitter," Pinkoski said. "If I was a babysitter, I'd make more money." The closures were mostly centered in the Iron Range this year, but plans are in place for a state-wide shutdown next year, according to Kelly Martinson, communications director for Kids Count on Us. Kristen Vake, executive director of the Iron Mining Association, described childcare as a "critical issue for our industry." "The IMA represents companies at every step along the iron and steelmaking supply chains," she said, standing in front of the teachers at Iron Range Tykes. "And they feel the strain when childcare is not available." For Jensen's family, Monday marked a return to "patchwork childcare." Rather than boarding the bus with his daughter's teachers, he quickly returned to his pickup after the morning event. He had taken the day off from work and had plans to take his daughter to pre-K screening. His wife would take over later in the day, he said. "Our Hope is Not Yet Lost" rally, in Tel Aviv "Our Hope is Not Yet Lost" rally, in Tel Aviv By Maytaal Angel JERUSALEM (Reuters) -Israel began toned down Independence Day celebrations at sundown on Monday, with hopes for an end to the seven-month-old Gaza war dim, anti-government protests growing and internal divisions festering. As the country marks its 76th year, firework displays were cancelled and the traditional torch-lighting ceremony at the Jerusalem national cemetery will be taped for TV audiences instead of livestreamed. Opposition lawmakers blasted the move as an attempt at stifling protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has come under attack at live events from hecklers furious about his failure to bring home the 128 hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza. Simon Davidson, from the centrist Yesh Atid party, posted a video on the social media platform X, accusing Netanyahu's Transport Minister Miri Regev - responsible for organising the torch-lighting ceremony - of bypassing Israel's parliament, the Knesset, and using the event for political objectives. "They don't give a damn about the Israeli Knesset, and that means they don't give a damn about Israeli citizens," he said on the video. "They are doing a staged ceremony filled with everything they want to introduce politically and present to the country. No audience, no live broadcast, no committee that cares about this ceremony." The war began when the Gaza-based Palestinian militant group Hamas burst into border communities in southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostage, according to Israeli tallies. Since then, a further 273 Israeli soldiers have died, mostly in an assault on Gaza that Palestinian medics say has killed more than 35,000 people. "Although this is not a regular Independence Day, it is a special opportunity for us to realize the significance of our independence," Netanyahu said in comments pre-recorded for TV audiences. Much public anger in Israel has focussed on the government of Netanyahu, a veteran conservative who continues to promote himself as guarantor of national security and who has stopped short of taking personal responsibility for the Oct. 7 attacks. Protests calling for Netanyahu and his government to resign and for a deal to bring back the hostages are gathering steam in Israel. A large anti-government protest, billed as an alternate Independence Day event and underscoring the country's deep political divide, was held Monday evening in Tel Aviv. "This year, Independence Day is not a holiday, and it's certainly not a happy one," said Chen Avigdori, whose wife and daughter were released from captivity in Gaza. "Is there glory in a state that has abandoned its citizens and continues to abandon (its hostages) for 220 days now?" A growing number of Israelis - nearly 50% - support an end to the Gaza war in exchange for the release of hostages - a view that was extremely rare in the weeks, if not months, following the Oct. 7 attacks. Independence Day in Israel is observed from sundown on May 13 to sundown on May 14, immediately after the more sombre Memorial Day, in which Israelis pay tribute to the country's war dead, as well as those of have fallen victim to terror attacks. Israeli Independence Day marks the country's founding in 1948, in which the British partitioned historic Palestine into Arab and Jewish states. Palestinians lament the war that followed as the "Nakba", or catastrophe, as some 700,000 of them fled or were driven from their homes. Israel contests the assertion that it forced out Palestinians. (Reporting by Maytaal AngelEditing by Ros Russell and Josie Kao) The Israeli military is pressing deeper into Rafah to fight against Hamas as tensions have soared between the U.S. and Israel over the potential for major fighting in Gazas southernmost city that is sheltering some 1.3 million Palestinians. The Israeli army reported Sunday that troops are conducting precise operations in specific areas of eastern Rafah. Israeli forces have dismantled tunnel shafts and rocket launchers and killed at least 10 Hamas fighters, according to the army. Israel issued evacuation orders for eastern Rafah on Saturday and claims that 300,00 Palestinians have moved to a humanitarian area in Al-Mawasi, a small town on the coast of Gaza. Israel first moved into Rafah last week, seizing a border crossing with Egypt that has been crucial for the delivery of humanitarian aid. The operations appear to still be limited. The U.S. is warning against a major operation in Rafah, as President Biden is holding up some 3,500 heavy bombs over concerns about their use in the densely populated city. Biden has drawn a red line on Rafah, saying he will not support an operation there and would not provide offensive weapons for such an attack, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country would fight on alone if needed. Secretary of State Antony Blinken repeated the U.S. threat that further weapons shipments could be suspended if Israel launches a wider operation into Rafah. What weve been clear about is that if Israel launches this major military operation into Rafah, then there are certain systems that were not going to be supporting and supplying for that operation, he told CBSs Face the Nation on Sunday. Despite the rift, Gen. Michael Kurilla, the head of U.S. Central Command, arrived in Israel over the weekend to coordinate and discuss the war against Hamas. Israeli forces also returned to fight in northern Gaza in areas the military had previously cleared of Hamas, underscoring the resiliency of the Palestinian militant group despite intense pressure from Israel. Palestinian news agencies reported heavy bombardment at the Jabalia refugee camp, with clashes between Israeli forces and Hamas near schools. The Israeli army said on Telegram it moved into Jabalia based on intelligence information regarding attempts by Hamas to reassemble its terrorist infrastructure and operatives in the area and also reported operations in the Zeitoun district of Gaza City, which had been previously cleared months ago. Israel has repeatedly returned to areas it has cleared of Hamas fighters to fight a resurgence, but fighting in the north largely ended at the end of 2023, before Israeli troops turned to focus on the south, including the city of Khan Younis. The fighting comes as United Nations has said there is a full-blown famine in northern Gaza and as the rest of the territory struggles to access basic supplies such as food and water. After seizing the Rafah checkpoint, Israel now controls all of the humanitarian aid border crossings. The Israeli army claimed Sunday that it opened another crossing, western Erez, the third such checkpoint in northern Gaza after eastern Erez and Gate 96. But the United Nations warned over the weekend that food distribution was expected to run out Sunday. That means people will be left only with what has already been distributed, said Georgios Petropoulos, the head of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Gaza. The International Rescue Committee (IRC) said fuel supplies are running low, forcing local bakeries to shut down, while the few remaining hospitals are also at risk of suspending operations. The IRC urgently calls on Israel to halt further violence in Rafah and across the Gaza Strip, the humanitarian aid group said on the social platform X. It is imperative that all viable crossing points are opened immediately to ensure unfettered access to more than two million Palestinians in desperate need. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. The OSCE welcomes the process of delimiting the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan and stands for constructive negotiations, the organization's current chairman, Minister for Foreign and European Affairs and Trade of Malta Ian Borg said at a press conference in Yerevan on May 13, Trend reports. We support the process of delimitation between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The negotiation process must take place under conditions of trust, on equal grounds. The conflict, which has been going on for decades and causing suffering, can be brought to an end, he added. To note, the eighth meeting of the State Commission on State Border Delimitation between Azerbaijan and Armenia and the Commission on State Border Delimitation and Border Security between Armenia and Azerbaijan was held on April 19, 2024. The sides tentatively agreed on the passage of certain segments of the border line directly between the settlements of Baganis (Armenia) - Baganys Ayrim (Azerbaijan), Voskepar (Armenia) - Ashagy Askipara (Azerbaijan), Kirants (Armenia) Kheyrimli (Azerbaijan), and Berkaber (Armenia) - Gyzylhajily (Azerbaijan) to bring them in line with the legally justified inter-republican border that existed within the Soviet Union at the time of its collapse. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Israels return to areas of Gaza it said were clear of Hamas raises doubts about its military strategy Editors Note: A version of this story appears in CNNs Meanwhile in the Middle East newsletter, a three-times-a-week look inside the regions biggest stories. Sign up here. The Israeli military has renewed its fighting in northern Gaza where it previously claimed to have dismantled Hamas command structure. But it now says the Palestinian militant group is trying to reassemble in the area, raising doubts about whether Israels goal to eradicate the group in the enclave is realistic. Israels renewed ground operation began on Saturday, with intense shelling and gunfire gripping much of the Jabalya refugee camp in northern Gaza. The Israeli military also began operating in the area of Zeitoun in central Gaza, as it continues its offensive in eastern Rafah and near the Rafah crossing with Egypt. Israels return to pockets it had supposedly cleared of Hamas renews questions about its long-term military strategy, which after more than seven months of war has left more than 35,000 Palestinians dead and much of Gaza in ruins but more than 100 hostages from Israel still in captivity and Hamas top leadership still at large. The resumption in fighting in the north comes as talks aimed at reaching a ceasefire-for-hostages deal have stalled, and as the Biden administration signals that the United States is losing patience with its closest ally in the Middle East. Over the weekend, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken gave a scathing assessment of Israels conduct in the war. In an interview on Sunday with CBS News, Blinken said any initial success in Israels invasion of the southern Gaza city of Rafah which Washington has strongly opposed is not sustainable. The top diplomat criticized Israel for neither having a credible plan to protect civilians, nor a post-war plan for Gaza. Were seeing parts of Gaza that Israel has cleared of Hamas, where Hamas is coming back, including in the north, including in Khan Younis, Blinken said, adding that a ground offensive in Rafah will leave Israel holding the bag on an enduring insurgency because a lot of armed Hamas will be left no matter what they do in Rafah. Or if they (Israel) leave and get out of Gaza as we believe they need to do, then youre going to have a vacuum and a vacuum thats likely to be filled by chaos by anarchy, and ultimately by Hamas again. Smoke rises after Israeli airstrikes on the Jabalya region, in Gaza City, Gaza on Monday. - Dawoud Abo Alkas/Anadolu/Getty Images Some Israeli experts say that Netanyahus current war strategy, which is aimed at the complete destruction of Hamas in Gaza, is flawed and unrealistic as it lacks a long-term vision. Israels strategy is not a good one, said Danny Orbach, a military historian at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The tactic of endless clearing and degrading of Hamas capabilities while avoiding the responsibility of governing Gaza will not work, he said. Netanyahu has previously said Israel will have the overall security responsibility in Gaza for an indefinite period after the war ends, a position that is at odds with that of the US. With no viable alternative government in place, Netanyahu as usual decides not to decide, Orbach said, adding that the ongoing strategy of clearing and degrading allows the prime minister to avoid making difficult decisions about post-war Gaza, while preventing Hamas from re-emerging as strong as it was before October 7. The Israeli leader is yet to present a post-war plan for the enclave. The US has pushed for a reformed Palestinian Authority (PA) to rule Gaza, which Netanyahu has repeatedly rejected. The PA is a government-in-waiting for a future independent Palestinian state it seeks in the occupied West Bank, occupied East Jerusalem and Gaza as part of a two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Netanyahu has repeatedly said the military is on track to eliminate Hamas, and in an interview with Dr. Phil on Friday claimed that 14,000 Hamas fighters have so far been killed. Israel estimated Gaza to have 30,000 fighters before October 7. CNN cannot independently verify the figures provided by either the Palestinian health ministry or Israel due to reporting restrictions on international media. Former and current Israeli officials, including a top military figure, have sounded alarms at the direction Israel is heading with its war. Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Chief of Staff Major General Herzi Halevi over the weekend reportedly criticized Netanyahus strategy. As long as there is no political move that will bring forth a governing body other than Hamas in the strip, we will have to operate again and again there and in other places to dismantle the Hamas infrastructure, Israels Channel 13 cited Halevi as saying. It will be a Sisyphean task, he said, suggesting that it may never be accomplished. Senior IDF officials have urged the prime minister to make decisions and formulate a strategy for the war, Channel 13 added. Israels former head of military intelligence, Tamir Hayman, has also urged Israels leadership to strike a hostage deal that includes an indefinite ceasefire and work with a reformed Palestinian Authority to restore order in Gaza. Hayman, who now heads the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) in Tel Aviv, told CNN earlier that Israel risks falling into a perpetual war of attrition, where there is endless friction with its neighbors. A prolonged war, he said, risks either leaving Gaza under Hamas rule or at the mercy of a power vacuum where various armed groups may compete for authority. Others say the re-emergence of Hamas pockets is not unusual, and that the Israeli military will have to keep re-entering areas in Gaza until no more fighters emerge. This process will happen again and again, Amir Aviv, former deputy commander of the Gaza Division of Israels military, told CNN, until all pockets of resistance are removed. The former deputy commander believes it is possible to eradicate Hamas though. Gaza is not endless, it is not so big, he said. (Israel) has reached the last stronghold (Rafah), and now Hamas is with their backs to the wall. CNNs Abdul Qader Sabbah in Jabalya, Abeer Salman, Kareem Khadder, Tim Lister, Kevin Liptak and Eugenia Yosef contributed reporting. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Israels total victory in Gaza is unlikely, top US official says The Biden administration doesnt believe Israels current strategy against the Hamas militant group will lead to total victory, a top U.S. official said Monday. Speaking at the NATO Youth Summit in Miami, Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said the U.S. has been struggling over what the theory of victory is in Gaza. Sometimes when we listen closely to Israeli leaders, they talked about mostly the idea of some sort of sweeping victory on the battlefield, total victory, Campbell said. I dont think we believe that that is likely or possible. Its the most blunt articulation yet from a Biden administration official that Israel may not be able to achieve the full victory over Hamas that it has promised in Gaza. U.S. officials have previously warned that Israel cant defeat Hamas ideology. Israel has pledged to continue its military operation in Gaza until Hamas is defeated, in what Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has described as absolute victory. Many countries want to see a political solution in which the rights of Palestinians are more respected, Campbell added. I dont think its ever been more difficult than right now, but I still believe that the commitment is there. Separately, national security adviser Jake Sullivan stressed to reporters Monday that while the U.S. will continue to offer its advice to Israel, it is a sovereign country that will make its own decisions. Their leadership is choosing how to prosecute this war. Theyre going to make those decisions, Sullivan said. With the question of a strategic endgame, I dont think thats really a question about American influence. Thats a question about Israel's strategy and what Israel chooses to do. Those remarks come as Israel continues its devastating military operation across the Gaza Strip. Hundreds of thousands of civilians have fled the southern city of Rafah as Israeli troops conducted targeted operations over the past weeks to root out militants hiding there. Israels military operation has also dealt a blow to the countrys reputation on the world stage. On Sunday, Egypt joined South Africa in its case in front of the International Court of Justice alleging that Israel has committed genocide in the enclave. The Palestinian death toll in Gaza has reached more than 35,000 in seven months due to Israels military operation, the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry said Monday. Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) on Sunday said he will accept the outcome of the 2024 presidential race if its a free and fair election regardless of whether his preferred candidate wins. The Ohio Republican, who is an ally of Donald Trump and reportedly one of his vice-presidential contenders, told CNNs State of the Union that Republicans, though, need to be prepared to challenge the results if they identify any potential issues. We have to be willing, as Democrats did in 2000, as Democrats have done in the past, and certainly as Republicans did in 2020 ... if you think there were problems, you have to be willing to pursue those problems and try to prosecute your case, Vance said. Following now-President Joe Bidens win in November 2020, Trump refused to accept defeat, pushed false claims of voter fraud, and launched numerous failed legal challenges over the result. Vance has previously said there were problems in the 2020 election. He told CNNs Dana Bash that Trump will ultimately emerge victorious in this years presidential contest and said he would accept a Biden win only if he considered the election to be legitimate. Certainly, if we have a free and fair election, I will accept the results, Vance said. Vances comments illustrate a new tactic by Republican lawmakers, who are now placing conditions on accepting election results. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), another supporter of Trump, echoed Vance, telling NBCs Meet the Press Sunday he will accept the outcome of Novembers race if theres no massive cheating. I accepted 2020, Graham said. Heres what I would say: President Trump is poised to win. WATCH: Will you accept the results of the 2024 election no matter who wins? asks @kwelkernbc. Sen. @LindseyGrahamSC says yes unless theres massive cheating. pic.twitter.com/ImVQPw5eoO Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) May 12, 2024 Ten days after the 2020 presidential race, Graham called Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) to ask him whether he had the power to toss out mail-in ballots in some counties in the state. Trump lost Georgia by fewer than 12,000 votes. While Graham was not indicted by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis in her Georgia election interference probe, a special grand jury in the state had recommended the senator be criminally charged over his actions. Graham promoted Trumps election interference theories, but he ultimately accepted Biden as the winner in January 2021. Earlier this year, Vance told ABCs George Stephanopoulos he would have delayed certifying the 2020 election if he were in then-Vice President Mike Pences shoes. If I had been vice president, I would have told the states, like Pennsylvania, Georgia and so many others, that we needed to have multiple slates of electors and I think the U.S. Congress should have fought over it from there, Vance said in February. That is the legitimate way to deal with an election that a lot of folks, including me, think had a lot of problems in 2020. The Ohio senator has also downplayed the threat posed to Pences life when a mob of Trump supporters entered the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, angry over his decision to refuse Trumps request to block the certification of electoral votes. Vance, who prior to running in the 2022 Ohio Senate race had been very critical of Trump and once referred to him as Americas Hitler, has since claimed he was wrong about the presumptive Republican nominee. I didnt think he was going to be a good president, Vance told CNN. And I was very, very proud to be proven wrong. Related... Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) took aim at Michael Cohen outside a New York courtroom Monday as the onetime fixer for former President Trump took the stand in his hush money trial. Speaking to reporters outside the courthouse, Vance attempted to diminish Cohens credibility as he kicked off his testimony. Cohen, who made the $130,000 payment to porn actor Stormy Daniels in 2016 thats at the center of the case, has been anticipated as the prosecutions star witness at the trial. This guy is a convicted felon who admitted in his testimony that he secretly recorded his former employer, that he only did it once, allegedly, and that this was supposed to help Donald Trump. Does any reasonable, sensible person believe anything that Michael Cohen says? I dont think that they should, Vance said. And I actually think that his testimony is going to hurt with any reasonable juror, and hopefully we have a few of those, he added. Vance a contender to be Trumps running mate was joined by Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) and Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-N.Y.) in New York City to show support for the former president. Vance also slammed the gag order issued against Trump and criticized numerous other key players in the hush money case. No. 1, the thing that the president is prevented from saying, which is a disgrace, is that every single person involved in this prosecution is practically a democratic political operative, Vance said. Trump is under a gag order that bars him from insulting witnesses, jurors, prosecutors, court staff or the judges family. It does not bar him from talking about the judge overseeing the case or Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg (D). Now look, whether you love Donald Trump, whether you like Donald Trump or whether youre a Democrat or dont care about politics, whats going on inside that courtroom is a threat to American democracy, Vance said. Ladies and gentlemen, we cannot have a country where you get to prosecute your political opponents instead of persuading voters. Vance also took to social platform X after attending the trial, posting that he is convinced the main goal of this trial is psychological torture. Tuberville, who joined Vance and Malliotakis outside the courthouse, also described the courtroom as depressing in comments to reporters. Trump is charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records in connection to Cohens payment to Daniels ahead of the 2016 election to stay quiet about an alleged affair with Trump. Trump has pleaded not guilty to all counts and has denied the affair. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Title icon The News Donald Trump arrived at the Manhattan courthouse on Monday with his usual entourage and a notable addition: J.D. Vance, a close ally widely seen as being on the vice presidential shortlist. Vance isnt the only one eyeing the trial whos seen as a potential running mate: Sen. Tim Scotts team, after Sen. Rick Scott dropped by the trial last week, had discussions about going to the courthouse to show support, according to one person familiar with the situation. While its unclear whether Scott will ultimately attend (he will be in New York on Tuesday night for a Trump fundraiser), the conversations, and Vances appearance, reflect the way the trial is emerging as yet another litmus test for would-be running mates. Vances appearance, one person close to him said, wasnt politically motivated, but it clearly could boost his odds, especially given he was the first prominent member of the VP shortlist to make the trip. Hes also live-tweeting the proceedings with posts that sound likely to please a certain reader: One contrasts the splendor of Trump Tower with the dingy courtroom, for example, and accuses the DA of engaging in psychological torture. Title icon Shelbys view Trump likes to treat his veepstakes as a reality show production, with all the jostling for his approval and speculation about strategy that comes with it. With his public encouragement, candidates have spent weeks vying for his attention with joint appearances, Sunday show interviews, and ostentatious displays of affection. His Manhattan trial seems like an obvious way to score points in that context, one that may be especially notable to Trump. Early on in the proceedings, Trump reportedly grumbled about the lack of allies in attendance. Hes also appeared publicly irritated by the lack of major rallies outside of the courthouse. To put it simply, this is something he cares about and pays attention to. For weeks, allies including those being considered as Trumps vice president have taken to the airwaves to defend him amid this trial. North Dakota governor Doug Burgum, who spoke at Trumps New Jersey rally on Sunday, appeared on CNN and backed up the former presidents reference to the Biden administration as Gestapo. Scott, usually known for his relatively friendly style of politics, has also been sounding Trumpier in his on-air interviews lately. Title icon Notable The VP race is heating up, but one person definitely seems to be off the list of options: Nikki Haley, whom Trump publicly nixed over the weekend. While new names are constantly popping up in the Trump VP race, no one but Trump actually knows who is up or down on the list, as Semafor recently reported, and trial balloons are often floated by advisors competing to boost their favorite choice. Semafor Logo Rep. Jamaal Bowman is in the fight of his political life ahead of the June 25 primary. He's been outraised by George Latimer, a local politician backed by pro-Israel groups. A Bowman loss would be the biggest setback for the left since the end of Bernie Sanders's 2020 bid. It was a bright, chilly spring day in the coastal village of Port Chester, New York, where Rep. Jamaal Bowman and the man who could run him out of Congress Westchester County Executive George Latimer found themselves in the same small public park. Local workers and labor activists were there to commemorate Worker's Memorial Day, an international day of remembrance for those who have died or been injured on the job. As Bowman delivered a booming 4-minute speech over the din of passing cars and the screeching of nearby construction, Latimer stood silently beside State Sen. Shelley Mayer, one of a litany of local politicians and Democratic Party officials who have backed the county executive over the congressman. As a procession of speakers took turns assailing local developers and contractors for sidelining organized labor, exploiting undocumented workers, and failing to safeguard against hazardous workplace conditions, Bowman placed his arm around mine and another reporter's shoulders and brought us in. "My opponent," Bowman whispered slowly, as Latimer stood just a few yards away, "received an award from developers." Later that afternoon, sitting in the back hatch of his car outside a high school in Mount Vernon, the congressman suggested that Latimer is running a racist campaign against him. The county executive, whose primary slogan is "results over rhetoric," has at times sought to highlight Bowman's boisterous personal style as a distraction from the issues that the district is facing. During his current term, the congressman has had public, attention-getting spats at the Capitol with the likes of Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Thomas Massie, and George Santos. "That's racist dog-whistle shit," Bowman told me. "Historically, Black men haven't been allowed to be loud, Black women either, right? Certain groups aren't allowed to be loud, we're not allowed to be outspoken, we're supposed to be quiet and thankful that the white man has even given us an opportunity to not be slaves." Bowman speaks in Port Chester on April 25. Bryan Metzger "He's coming up with a rationale on identity because he doesn't have a substantive enough argument to justify [his reelection]," Latimer told me over Zoom the following week. "He's fishing for an angle here that doesn't exist." Bowman's primary has clear national implications: He may be the single most endangered member of the progressive "Squad," along with Rep. Cori Bush of Missouri, and either of their defeats would mark the biggest electoral setback for the left since the end of Sen. Bernie Sanders's 2020 presidential campaign. Owing to Bowman's views on Israel, deep-pocketed groups including a super PAC affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) are expected to spend tens of millions of dollars to unseat the congressman ahead of the June 25 primary. If polling is to be believed, Bowman is already in deep trouble: an internal campaign poll showed the congressman ahead by just 1 point, while another poll commissioned by Democratic Majority for Israel showed him trailing Latimer by 17 points. "He was recruited by AIPAC to run against us because we called for a permanent cease-fire," Bowman said of Latimer. "He's literally running on the war crimes of Benjamin Netanyahu." Bowman at an anti-AIPAC rally in Queens, New York in March. Selcuk Acar/Anadolu via Getty Images But it's not just Bowman's pro-ceasefire position that has imperiled him. Since September when he infamously pulled a fire alarm in a House office building Bowman has faced a rolling series of controversies, particularly his dismissal of reports of sexual violence on October 7 as "propaganda" and the surfacing of his past history of dabbling in 9/11 conspiracy theories. He has since backtracked and apologized on both counts, but also insists that they aren't a big deal. "I'm like, are y'all serious? Y'all don't have much of anything present-day, so you bring up a blog I wrote 10 years ago," Bowman said of the 9/11 conspiracy theories. "That stuff never comes up. What comes up most of all, is 'thank you for your support of Palestinians, thank you for the work you do, we hate that [Latimer's] running.'" Bowman's belief that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza while increasingly accepted by most of the Democratic base has not helped his reelection prospects in a district home to an estimated 110,000 Jewish people, many of whom remain supportive of Israel and repulsed by the congressman's views. In January, Bowman lost the support of the liberal pro-Israel group J Street over his rhetoric on Israel. But if Bowman's worried, he's not showing it. When I visited the district in late April, he told me that the campaign has felt "similar to the energy that we felt in 2020," when he first unseated longtime Democratic Rep. Eliot Engel in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. 'The fire alarm incident is troubling' George Latimer has a deep history as an elected official in Westchester, beginning with a stint on the city council of Rye one of the New York state's wealthiest communities in 1987. He then served a 13-year stint in the county legislature, eight years in the state assembly, and another five in the state senate until 2017, when he defeated Republican Rob Astorino to become county executive, a position akin to that of a governor in a county of roughly one million people. Latimer in White Plains, New York in December. Jeenah Moon/Washington Post via Getty Images Latimer insists that his decision to challenge Bowman was reluctant, that he saw his congressman as trying to be the "spokesperson for a national movement" rather than focusing on the needs of the district. "The elected congressman is not going to be the secretary of state," Latimer told me. In fact, the county executive largely sought to downplay the national impact he might have as a member of Congress, saying that there's "not going to be a George Latimer climate change bill" and that he "won't be there long enough to become a committee chairman, let's be honest." Like Bowman, Latimer has a blunt and direct speaking style that sometimes leades to gaffes, such as his invocation of the racist lynching of Emmett Till when commenting on the sexual misconduct allegations against then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo in 2021. When asked about Bowman's charge of racism, Latimer pointed to his appointment of Ken Jenkins, a Black man, as his deputy county executive. "No racist person does that," he said. Latimer has also taken heat during this primary for accusing Bowman of "taking money from Hamas," an apparent reference to the fact that some organizers of a Bowman fundraising event characterized the October 7 Hamas attack as an act of resistance. In contrast to Bowman's characterization of Latimer as merely an AIPAC recruit, the county executive said that he'd been approached as far back as the spring of 2023 about running, both by members of the Jewish community and "people in the business community who felt that [Bowman] really wasn't an advocate" for them. Latimer indicated that he would be far more of a bipartisan legislator than Bowman, throwing out the names of Republicans like Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania or Tom Kean of New Jersey as potential partners on flooding issues. "I would try, in a mature way, to have good relations with as many people as I could," he said. "I have to tell you that the fire alarm incident is troubling," Latimer said, unprompted, during our conversation. "He pulled the alarm purposefully. It's clear, it's clear." The congressman has long maintained that the September 30 incident, which came as House Democrats were seeking more time to review a stop-gap government funding bill before voting on it, was an accident. He has since paid a $1,000 fine, pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor count of pulling a fire alarm, and was censured by the House including three fellow Democrats in December. Latimer argued that the security camera footage of the incident showed that Bowman was "willing to just flat-out misrepresent what he did." "It doesn't really come up at all. I mean, the fire alarm thing, people almost immediately knew it was BS in terms of how it was being blown up," Bowman told me. "Honestly, anyone who's going to vote against me because of that, versus my record, it's like, okay, you weren't really a supporter anyway." Bowman's record is also a topic of contention: the congressman claims to have brought over $1 billion in federal funding back to the district. While over $40 million came in the form of so-called "earmark" funding in annual government spending bills that were directly secured by Bowman, the vast majority of that sum came from federal funding streams and grants where his involvement was far less direct, as local outlets have noted. "He hasn't delivered anything like a billion dollars to the district," said Latimer. "That's a bogus claim." Bowman and Latimer have known each other for nearly four years, first meeting for coffee after the congressman's 2020 primary victory. But despite serving the same area, both indicated that they have little relationship with one another. "I'm not trying to be snide, I just don't see him much out in most of the Westchester community," said Latimer. "It hasn't been much of a relationship, not necessarily bad, but just hasn't existed much over the last two years, maybe more." Bowman, for his part, said Latimer's team was "always lukewarm at best, and never really reciprocated the genuine love and respect that I had for him, and all my colleagues when I engage them." 'AIPAC is not a racist organization' It goes without saying that Israel is the defining issue of the race. Bowman's call for a cease-fire in the days after October 7 and his continued criticism of Israel including voting against a recent tranche of military aid enraged plenty of his constituents and helped catalyze Latimer's campaign. The congressman has frequently pointed to a March poll commissioned by the Working Families Party, a progressive group that supports Bowman, showing that 69% of the district's residents support a cease-fire. When I asked Latimer about his own views on Israel's war in Gaza, he declined to outline the circumstances under which he may support conditioning military aid, saying that he simply trusts President Joe Biden and wants him to have the "maximum amount of flexibility" to deal with the war without congressional restrictions. "I get very frustrated when I hear people talking about what Israel is doing, what Israel is doing, what Israel is doing, and we don't talk about what Hamas has done," Latimer said. "Do I think Israel could do better? Everybody could do better." Latimer at a menorah lighting in White Plains, New York in December. Jeenah Moon/Washington Post via Getty Images A central character and boogeyman in this primary is AIPAC, the decades-old bipartisan advocacy group whose staunchly pro-Israel positions are increasingly to the right of a Democratic Party that's grown more sympathetic toward Palestinians. Progressives frequently note that AIPAC supports Republicans who voted against certifying the 2020 election results (though plenty of other bipartisan groups and PACs do the same thing). Furthermore, AIPAC's "United Democracy Project" super PAC is sustained in large part by multimillion-dollar contributions from Republican megadonors, even as the PAC spends mostly in Democratic primaries most often against non-white progressive candidates. "It's an attempt by the megadonors who prop up Donald Trump and the MAGA movement to attack and defeat a handful of Black and brown progressive incumbents," Justice Democrats spokesman Usamah Adrabi told me of AIPAC, deriding Latimer as an "empty suit that is just a vessel for Republican billionaires to attack and malign Jamaal Bowman." A little more than a third of Latimer's contributions have been routed through AIPAC, and a Working Families Party analysis provided to Business Insider shows that hundreds of thousands of dollars have flowed to the county executive's congressional campaign from donors who have given mostly to Republicans, including Donald Trump. Latimer told me that he's "always gotten support from Republican people" because of his focus on "getting things done" as an elected official. "Those donors have donated to me primarily because of my position on Israel, not because I'm pro-choice or pro-LGBTQ," he said. "AIPAC is not a racist organization," Latimer added. "They say that, 'Oh, it goes after Black individuals.' Well, it goes after Squad members, not because they're Black, but because they've been anti-Israel in their various positions." Latimer has reported raising $3.6 million since he launched his campaign, while Bowman has raised $2.7 million since January 2023. The county executive also boasts far more local financial support: Roughly 70% of Latimer's itemized contributions come from donors in New York state, and roughly half of them are from the district. Meanwhile, just 28.5% of Bowman's itemized contributions come from New York and just 10% come from the district, while a plurality nearly 31% come from California. "He's raising [money] from interests outside the district that are clearly not local," said Latimer. "I'm getting it from people who are local, who don't like him, and want me as an alternative." 'They're not against me just because of my policies on Israel' Part of what's made the race so contentious is the geography of the district, which spans predominantly-Black communities in the Bronx and Mount Vernon, to more Latino and mixed cities like Yonkers and New Rochelle, to predominantly white and heavily Jewish townships like Scarsdale, Rye, and Harrison. Both men have accused the other of not representing the entirety of the district, and both of them may have a point. "The district represents the country in a couple of ways," said Bowman, who has long lived in the Bronx. "It's diverse, but it's also segregated as hell." The congressman speaks somewhat dismissively of the wealthier parts of the district that lie deeper into Westchester. "They're not against me just because of my policies on Israel," said Bowman. "I'm also pro-worker over corporations, I have bills that's about taxing the wealthy and making sure corporations pay their fair share." "He didn't travel into Scarsdale and Harrison and get to know the people there," Latimer said of Bowman. "He focused on a few communities that he felt he could connect to, and he has his relationships there, and he ignored the rest of the district." Latimer has his own challenges, largely stemming from the fact that he's a white man seeking to unseat a Black incumbent in a majority-minority district. Though he grew up in Mount Vernon, Latimer has long lived in Rye, and the core of his support lies in the district's more affluent communities. "I freely admit that in the Bronx, I'm going from zero to somewhere, because I haven't represented the Bronx," said Latimer. "You know, it's a learning curve." Bowman addresses students at a high school in Mount Vernon, New York. Bryan Metzger But the county executive insists that it's "baloney" to say that he only represents the wealthy parts of the district, ticking off the endorsements he's garnered from Democratic committees in majority-minority communities, his support from a local bus drivers' union "these are people who live in urban settings, and the way that I've worked with them and dealt with them is absolutely positive" his work on a Black maternal health initiative, and the work that his county government did to repair Memorial Field, a stadium that's "primarily used by young people and African American young people in Mount Vernon." It was at Mount Vernon High School where Bowman a longtime educator who founded a middle school in the Bronx in 2009 seemed especially in his element. Striding through the halls on his way to the auditorium, he remarked that the school "used to be off the chain," but that a new principal had "really turned it around" in recent years. As he addressed a room full of predominantly-Black students at a "Shark Tank"-esque career education competition, he held up his iPhone while urging them not just to get a job, but to create jobs. "Do you want to work for Apple, or do you want to build and create the next Apple, or the next company that's even better?" asked Bowman. "Do you want to have an iPhone and use it? Or do you want to create a new cellphone no one ever thought of or heard of before?" Outside the high school, Bowman remarked that "Black women are the biggest barometer" for him when it comes to evaluating some of the missteps he's made, given that "they see me as their son or grandson." "The biggest thing I get from them is like, stay out of trouble," said Bowman. "Because they remember the civil-rights movement, they know history, they know what happens to us when we get in these positions, and we screw it up." Read the original article on Business Insider Jen Psaki to Remove Account of Biden Watch-Checking Incident From New Book After Inaccuracies Called Out Jen Psaki will remove lines from her new book Say More in future reprints after Axios called out inaccuracies in her description of President Bidens actions during a ceremony for soldiers killed during the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. In the book, Psaki details Bidens demeanor during the event, claiming that he never looked at his watch during the ceremony only after it ended which has been refuted in reports from the event. The book, according to Axios, is the latest instance of current and former Biden administration officials downplaying or misrepresenting controversial episodes from the Afghanistan withdrawal ahead of the 2024 election. Psaki, former White House press secretary turned MSNBC anchor, wrote that Biden critics used the watch-checking detail to engage in misinformation about the president, in an effort to make him appear insensitive, concerned only about how much time had passed. However, Axios pointed out that Psakis account of the ceremony is at odds with fact-checks, news agency photos from the event, and on-the-record statements from Gold Star families who attended the event. In the book, Psaki also mistakenly cited a passage from the Washington Post to bolster her account, however, the sentences were actually from USA Today. Though Psaki initially declined to comment on the inaccuracies, after the Axios story was published she said that the detail in a few lines of the book about the exact number of times he looked at his watch will be removed in future reprints and the ebook. The story on Afghanistan is really about the importance of delivering feedback even when it is difficult told through my own experience of telling President Biden that his own story of loss was not well received by the families who were grieving their sons and daughters, Psaki told Axios. The post Jen Psaki to Remove Account of Biden Watch-Checking Incident From New Book After Inaccuracies Called Out appeared first on TheWrap. New Jersey Mayors Want the Power To Sue You For Asking Too Many Questions Just asking questions? That might become illegal, sort of, in New Jersey. Powerful interest groups there are pushing a bill that would overhaul the state Open Public Records Act (OPRA), making it harder for the public to request government documentsand the legislature might vote on it today. One provision would allow state and local agencies to sue people who request too many documents at once. The bill states that courts can issue a restraining order against requesters who intend to "harass" government agencies or "substantially interrupt the performance of government function." The order could limit "the number and scope of requests the requestor may make," or even eliminate the requester's right to obtain government records statewide. New Jersey politicians have been salivating over this power. Last year, the Township of Irvington sued an elderly woman, claiming that her frequent requests for information "bullied and annoyed" municipal officials. After getting bad press, Irvington backed out of the lawsuitbut then it threatened to have First Amendment lawyer Adam Steinbaugh prosecuted when he dug around for more records on the case. The League of Municipalities, the New Jersey Conference of Mayors, and the New Jersey Association of Counties all support the bill, arguing that they've been swamped with time- and resource-wasting records requests. William Caruso, legislative counsel for the mayors' group, even claimed that the bill doesn't go far enough in restricting the public's ability to demand information. CJ Griffin, director of the Stein Public Interest Center and vice president of the Board of Trustees for the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey, has denounced the bill. "And so what if tons of people want tons of records? It's OUR government. Every OPRA request means someone is engaged and wants to know what's going on in their government," he wrote on social media. (Griffin is currently representing Reason on an OPRA-related matter.) Other parts of the bill would allow requesters to pay for fast-track access to records, require requesters to be more specific when requesting government emails, and restrict the public's access to certain types of government metadata. Critics like Griffin say that the bill would benefit commercial requesters while shielding New Jersey's notoriously corrupt, mobbed-up politics from the public eye. For example, records obtained under OPRA were important for blowing open the 2014 "Bridgegate" scandal, when then-Gov. Chris Christie's office purposely caused highway traffic in order to punish a political opponent. A former attorney for The Record, the local newspaper that first broke the scandal, has stated that the proposed bill would have made The Record's Bridgegate reporting impossible. The bill also makes it harder to sue agencies that hide public records. As the law currently stands, people who win a public records lawsuit can force the agency to pay their lawyers' fees. (The federal Freedom of Information Act and almost all state records laws include the same mechanism.) Under the new bill, courts would only award legal fees if they found the agency to be acting in "bad faith." Supporters of the bill say that the current fee-shifting system has to change because it forces taxpayers to pay for honest mistakes. But New Jersey Comptroller Kevin Walsh has implied that curtailing public records access would cost taxpayers more than it saves. The bill, Walsh wrote on social media, "will increase the likelihood of fraud, waste, and abuse. Some of our best tips come from concerned residents who have filed OPRA requests." A witness testifying in favor of the bill accidentally demonstrated Walsh's point. During a state assembly hearing on Friday, a town clerk complained that Easthampton Township had to pay $13,000 in attorney fees after Libertarians for Transparent Government sued for government payroll records in 2018. As it turns out, the lawsuit uncovered that a police officer had been paid $321,942.17 while suspended. The New Jersey Superior Court ordered the officer to pay back the money in 2020. Griffin offered her own advice on social media for New Jerseyans concerned with saving money: "Tell agencies to stop violating OPRA! You can't sue or get fees if they follow the law!" The post New Jersey Mayors Want the Power To Sue You For Asking Too Many Questions appeared first on Reason.com. Just before pro-Israel comedian Jerry Seinfeld spoke at Duke Universitys commencement Sunday morning, dozens of students walked out, chanting free Palestine and waving the Palestinian black, white, green, and red flag. The student-led revolt was part of nationwide protests against Israels war on Gaza in the form of university encampments and disruptions at graduation ceremonies. That afternoon, Seinfelds wife Jessica took to Instagram to address the pro-Palestine detractorswords that made her a darling of Fox Newswriting: Despite their efforts, it had no impact on the ceremony. In fact, they were boo'd and it inspired the crowd of 7,000 to chant Jer-ry! Jer-ry! Jer-ry! Jessica then shared a second post tackling another hot-button issue: Her bankrolling of a pro-Israel counterprotest at UCLA that occurred before a violent mob targeted a pro-Palestinian encampment on April 30. During that disturbing episode, campus security looked on and police didnt respond for hours as pro-Israel assailants attacked protesters. Students Walk Out on Jerry Seinfelds Duke Commencement Speech None of the aggressors were arrested, but cops later dismantled the antiwar camp using flares and rubber bullets and arrested 200 people. Jessica claimed her money went toward an earlier, peaceful demonstration at UCLA and not the events of April 30, referencing a New York Times article in which the outlet reported finding no clear signs that one group coordinated the attack. The Times reporting says that these were uncoordinated fringe individuals who engaged in spontaneous violence, Jessica wrote in an Instagram post that disables any public comments. This stands in complete contrast to the peaceful rally that I and others supported two days earlier, on April 28. These two demonstrations, which occurred two days apart, had nothing to do with each other. She continued: I support the right of all people to protest lawfully and peacefully. That is what the rally I supported did on April 28. I do not support, did not contribute to, and condemn in the strongest terms the violent actions by fringe individuals that took place two days later. As The Daily Beast reported, Jessica funded and promoted the rallyorganized by an anonymous group, The Bear Jews of Truth, on GoFundMe, originally under the title UCLA Counter protesttelling her Instagram followers, More cities are being planned so please give what you can. Donations are annonymous [sic]. We will continue to share our light and love, as proud American Jews. Jerry Seinfeld Draws Right-Wing Praise for Comments on Extreme Left While the Bear Jews claim they werent involved in the UCLA violence, their Instagram stories from April 30 show they were present for at least the aftermath that night. Their footage from the scene showed marching men in black masks, people taunting the encampment, and a crowd cheering on Los Angeles police while chanting USA! Soon after Jessica donated $5,000 under her name to the groups GoFundMe, which has raised $98,000 and counting, the page made her gift anonymous. She has not returned messages left by The Daily Beast, nor have rally organizers. In a recent statement on Instagram, the Bear Jews claim they had no connection with any of the clashes that took place on the night of April 30th. Instead, the group says it simply erected a giant video screen across from the pro-Palestine encampment that showed footage of the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel. We had hoped that the police would show up sooner that night but despite the many calls for help law enforcement did not show up until hours later, they added. We took our screen down the morning of May 2nd following the closure of the encampment on campus. The Bear Jews original GoFundMe page said they were planning something very big for the ucla encampment and working to bring a huge screen and big loud speakers right next to them and just play nonstop clips and interviews from Oct 7. This is a big production and will require the help of our community in order to do it right and make a statement not just to these braindead uneducated sheep sleeping in tents, but to all the other anti-Israel protesters occupying campuses around the world, the GoFundMe stated. In order to do this right we need lots of equipment, logistics, staff and security. If we all pitch in a bit then we can make this a legendary counter move and drown out their chants with the screams and cries of October 7th. All extra funds will be donated to charity. Jessica Seinfeld and Bill Ackman Fund Pro-Israel Counterprotests at Colleges Although the Bear Jews group has not been linked to the swarm that attacked pro-Palestinian demonstrators with fireworks and metal poles, activists still view the fundraiser and UCLA violence as interconnectedand Jessica continues to face a backlash online for boosting the pro-Israel display. Disgusted by the Pro-Israel thugs who caused damage, harm and endangered Pro-Palestinian protesters, Jessica wrote in another Instagram post. That is not who we are or what we do. She isnt the only celebrity caught in the social-media crossfire. Billionaire hedge-fund manager Bill Ackman supported a similar pro-Israel video display at George Washington University, donating $10,000 before his handout was made anonymous on a GoFundMe page. He also shelled out another $10,000 to a GoFundMe supporting a rager for a North Carolina fraternity that ripped down a Palestinian flag on campus and replaced it with an American flag. I supported the frat boys because I was inspired by their patriotism in protecting our flag, Ackman wrote on X. I supported the presentation of the Hamas GoPro footage so student protesters who support Hamas have a better understanding of the terrorists that they are cheering for. I have never funded a protest nor do I support violent acts by protesters on any side of any issue. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. Jewish and Muslim college students will be glad to leave this academic year behind Jewish and Muslim students at U.S. colleges are exhausted as their academic year comes to a close. Antisemitism and Islamophobia have both spiked on campuses in the wake of the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel, and the recent anti-war encampments have greatly disrupted student life. This year has definitely impacted me academically a lot, said Shani Glassberg, an Israeli American and junior at George Washington (GW) University, adding she had to postpone finals due to the unrest on her campus. In April, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) released findings that antisemitic incidents on campus in 2023 tripled from 2022, up about 321 percent. The study did not include antisemitic incidents from the first half of 2024. While Glassberg said she received tons of support from her classmates in the first week after the Oct. 7 attack, which killed about 1,200 people, it turned into a very, very hateful situation quickly. She said she saw some people find ways very quickly to justify the Hamas attack and that really hurt me on a personal level, academic level. Adena Kirstein, executive director of GW Hillel, said she has worked with hundreds of students who are finding themselves drained at the end of this semester. They would be weary if they were just finishing up their academic years, but theyve been carrying a lot of strain on their shoulders just in terms of whats been going on campus, Kirstein said. The stress ramped up considerably last month with the arrival of pro-Palestinian encampments on campuses across the nation, and GW was one of several schools that made headlines over its demonstration after District of Columbia police initially refused the administrations request to clear the protest. The encampment eventually got removed Wednesday morning, hours before Washingtons mayor and the head of the citys police were set to testify in front of Congress over the issue. Police used pepper spray on the demonstrators, and 33 people were arrested. There was lots of strong graffiti around the encampment with different antisemitic stereotypes, Glassberg said. Hafiza Khalique, a first-year Muslim student at New York University (NYU), told The Hill she was the first person she knew of who was suspended in the pro-Palestinian movement back in October. NYU suspended her through the end of the academic year for tearing down posters on campus about Israeli hostages. She is currently suing her school over the suspension. There is a concerning amount of Islamophobia on campus. For years, NYU has had many claims of anti-Arab and anti-Muslim hate. This year it has reached an unprecedented level, Khalique said. The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) released its national civil rights report in April showing that in 2023 it received the highest number of anti-Muslim complaints in 28 years, with more than 8,000 recorded incidents across the country. Reana Akthar, a Muslim student at Wesleyan University, told The Hill that once, as she was wearing a keffiyeh, a traditional Middle Eastern headdress, someone on campus told her to go back to her country. It feels like Ive been walking in a dream these past couple months because there are people firm in their belief that Palestinians have whats coming to them, and I think thats unacceptable, Akthar said when talking about the culture on her campus. Thousands of people have been arrested at the pro-Palestinian encampments, but Wesleyan still has its up, and students say they wont leave until their demands such as the schools divestment from Israel are met. It is a ridiculous time to be a student. Its hard to complete work. Its hard to go on and pretend that everything is normal at the same time there are people my age being slaughtered in Gaza, Akthar said. Muslim students, I think theres many competing feelings. On the one hand, there is a lot of disillusionment and frustration with our administrations and, of course, exhaustion for feeling like they are having their First Amendment rights violated, feeling like their free speech is being killed, feeling like they are being scrutinized in a way thats very damaging, compared to other student populations, said Dina Chehata, CAIRs civil rights managing attorney. And I think theres also different sentiment from a lot of Muslim students Ive spoken to that have been very active in the in the free Palestine movement, calling for Palestinian liberation and divestment from weapons manufacturers. I think theres a sense of community thats very powerful, Chehata added. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Photo: Press Service of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has signed a decree On approval of the Regulations on the Unified Register of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Trend reports. Disclaimer: This article contains mentions of murder. Reader discretion is advised. Jill Dando, a well-known British television presenter who worked for the BBC, was murdered on April 16, 1999. At the time, she was 37 years old and someone shot her dead at her front doorstep in her home in Fulham, London, in broad daylight. A neighbor then found her dead and the killer was nowhere to be found by then, according to People Magazine. At the time of her murder, Dando was a regular television personality which made the death a shocking event for the British public. The journalist was allegedly shot at point-blank range. Experts found only one bullet in her head and was found to be dead when she was taken to the hospital. Sky News reported that Jill Dandos murder initiated one of the most elaborate homicide investigations in the nation. Her brother then suggested that Dandos murder was likely not premeditated but rather random. He claimed that the killer was probably not planning to kill Dando. She was supposed to be presenting the Six OClock News on the evening of the day she was murdered. Dando was born in a seaside resort in Somerset. She studied journalism at the South Glamorgan Institute of Higher Education. She kick-started her career as a trainee with the Weston Mercury, a local weekly newspaper. Her brother and father worked with the same newspaper at that time. She then became a print journalist at BBC and went on to become a television presenter. The Six OClock News, Holiday, and Crimewatch were among the shows that Jill Dando became popular with. Jill Dando also had her wedding with her fiance, Alan Farthing, scheduled five months from the day she died. Was Jill Dandos murder ever solved? 25 years after Jill Dandos murder, the case remains unsolved. Several theories were made up to provide an explanation for the death. In 2000, detectives working on Jill Dandos murder arrested Barry George. Some gun residue was found in his pocket, which served as evidence during his trial. He was then convicted of the murder the year after that. George served 8 years in prison. However, during a retrial after he served eight years, the court found that the residue could have an alternate source and George was acquitted; The Guardian reported. In February 2009, The Guardian reported that the authorities came across some new evidence in the case. They suggested that the death may be related to a Nato air strike on Belgrade in 1999. The report then said that her killing may have been a revenge move concerning the strike. However, the evidence was never really enough to justify the case. A BBC report, however, revealed that her brother still continues to believe her death was a random occurrence. The fact that no one followed her home that day and that no one would have known that shed be home at that time, supports his argument. No murder weapon of any solid evidence was ever determined from the crime scene or the subsequent investigation. Who Killed Jill Dando? is a three-part Netflix docu-series that follows the infamous murder of television presenter Jill Dando. All the conspiracy theories suggested possibilities surrounding her death. The series is currently streaming on Netflix. The post Jill Dando Murder: What Happened to Jill Dando? appeared first on ComingSoon.net - Movie Trailers, TV & Streaming News, and More. President Joe Biden said former President Donald Trump was clearly unhinged, adding he believed something had snapped in his predecessor when he lost the 2020 election in a speech to donors this weekend, ramping up his attacks against the presumptive Republican nominee. Biden made the comments at a private fundraiser in Seattle on Saturday at the home of a former Microsoft executive. Its clear that when he lost and when he lost in 2020, something snapped in him, Biden told the crowd. He just cant accept the fact hes lost, and hes lost it when he lost. He really did. He continued, Hes not only obsessed with losing in 2020, hes clearly unhinged. Just listen to what hes telling people. The president went on to say that despite Trumps ongoing legal troubles including his current hush money trial in New York over allegations he falsified business records to squash Stormy Daniels claims of an affair the race between the two men remained close. Folks, Trump is running hes not running to lead America, hes running for revenge, Biden added. President Joe Biden turns as reporters ask questions as he arrives at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, Friday, May 10, 2024, in SeaTac, Wash. Alex Brandon via Associated Press Biden has increased his attacks against Trump in recent months as the campaign season begins in earnest. He held a separate reception in Seattle, beginning with a barb at Trumps penchant for closing his eyes in the courtroom. Thank you for your warm welcome, Biden told the crowd at a hotel in Seattle. But please keep it down because Donald Trump is sleeping. Trump himself has continued his longstanding tirade against Biden. At his own rally, the former president called his hush money case a sham and accused his successor of running a Gestapo administration. Biden, he said, is surrounded by fascists around the Oval Office. All of this persecution is only happening because Im running for president, Trump told supporters in Palm Beach, Florida. If I wasnt leading in the polls by a lot and running for president, they wouldnt be after me. Id have a nice place. Id be down in Palm Beach. Id be traveling the world. Related... John Dean, former President Nixons White House counsel, said in an interview Saturday that the New York hush money criminal trial against former President Trump is very powerful ahead of highly anticipated testimony this week from Trumps ex-fixer Michael Cohen. Dean said in a CNN interview that he has read the transcripts from the trial and thinks the prosecution has laid out a compelling case that can stand alone, independent from Cohens testimony. Its a very powerful case the government has put on in New York, he said. They have really filled in so many of the blanks, and they have built such a structure that Michael Cohen can come in and testify. And hes largely corroborated already, with either other witnesses who dont necessarily have an axe to grind, as well as documents, Dean continued. So they have laid a real foundation for this coming week. On Monday, Trumps former personal attorney came face-to-face once again with the ex-president in a Manhattan courtroom. Cohen, taking the stand in Trumps hush money case, is the prosecutions star witness in a case that charges Trump with falsifying 34 business records over a $130,000 hush money payment Cohen sent a porn actor to keep her quiet about an alleged affair with the then-2016 candidate. A consistent effort has been underway to paint Cohen as an unreliable witness, since Cohen has indicated he wants to see Trump behind bars. But Dean said he still expects Cohen to be a strong witness. On whether Cohens testimony could be undercut by his grudge against Trump, Dean said, Well, thats going to be up to the jury, obviously, and different people will take it in different ways. The fact that there is a grudge match going on here doesnt mean the jury wont believe him. It will put the burden a little bit higher on him to be persuasive. But Ive watched Michael testify in front of the House committee several years ago he was very good as a witness. They tried to impeach him then the Trump supporters on the panel, and they didnt do very well. He handled himself well. He has a charisma about him, he continued. I think hes being very brave in what hes doing, and people will recognize that. Its not easy to take on the Trump team, and particularly when its a campaign going as well, Dean added. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. John Dean Thinks Donald Trump's Legal Team Tripped Up, And It's Going To Cost Them John Dean, who helped bring down President Richard Nixon in the Watergate scandal, questioned the sophistication of a potential tactic from Donald Trumps team in the former presidents hush money trial. Trumps defense team didnt push back very much on the more salacious details that adult film actor Stormy Daniels testified about her alleged 2006 sexual encounter with Trump. The focus of the proceedings is a hush money payment Trump is accused of making to Daniels during the 2016 election, and his alleged falsification of documents to cover it up. Trump denies the claims. In an appearance on CNN this weekend, Dean said Trumps attorneys could well try to use Daniels testimony as part of an appeal, if the presumptive GOP nominee is convicted in the case. However, the sophistication of such a strategy is really questionable, Dean said, because on cross-examination, they went in the same areas themselves, it appeared at Donald Trumps request, to try to get in and mix it up with Stormy, and they did not do well at it. Daniels actually came out as a very strong witness, and her own story certainly held up in front of the jury, said Dean, the White House counsel who flipped on Nixon and cooperated with prosecutors during the Watergate scandal. So, Im not sure it worked, he added. I dont think itll work on appeal. The trial continues Monday when former Trump fixer and attorney Michael Cohen, who was sentenced to prison for his role in the alleged scheme, is expected to take the stand. Watch Deans full analysis of the trial here: Related... The new house at 431 Hillside Avenue; the old house (which burned down in 1972) was where John E. List killed his mother, wife and three children (Photo Credits: Mario Ruiz | Getty Images) Disclaimer: This article contains mentions of murder and assault. Reader discretion is advised. John List killed five of his family members, including his 84-year-old mother, Alma, his wife, Helen, and his three children, Patricia, John, and Frederick, on November 9, 1971, in the familys 19-room mansion in Westfield, New Jersey. The bodies were only discovered a month later, and by then List was nowhere to be seen. He left a letter at the crime scene, which made it clear that he had committed the murders. The accountant and Sunday school teacher fled to Colorado and started a new life there. He reportedly remarried and changed his name to avoid any suspicions. But in 1988, Americas Most Wanted, a true-crime show, displayed the photo of John List and asked for information about any person who looked like him. A neighbor of Lists in Colorado recognized the photo and reported him to the police. John List was finally caught, ABC News reported. On November 9, 1971, John List sent his children to school as usual and took two handguns from his garage. According to People magazine, killed his wife who he was married to for 20 years, in the kitchen and dragged her body into the ballroom. He also killed his mother who had been staying on the third floor of the mansion by shooting. When the children returned, he shot them too. He laid the childrens bodies next to his wifes in the ballroom. According to ABC News, John List murdered his family as he was going broke and feared that his children would have to live through poverty. He reportedly believed that poverty would tear his family apart and they would begin to steer away from faith. List was a strong believer and his mother, Alma was a strict Lutheran. How long was John List on the run? John List was on the run for 18 long years and managed to evade a nationwide manhunt by starting a completely different life in Colorado. He escaped right after the murders and managed not to get caught by making sure the murders werent discovered immediately. Even though a note left by the bodies made it apparent that List killed his family, there was no trace of him left behind by that time. The main reason why the murders werent discovered initially was because List had written to the childrens school and informed them that they would be away for a while as they had to visit an ailing relative. He also stopped the milk, mail, and newspaper deliveries in the days preceding the murders, according to the History Channel. He then left the murder weapon by the crime scene. Nine months after the murders, the family mansion reportedly got destroyed in a fire. The case remained unsolved for years to come. When he was finally caught and convicted, John List was sentenced to five consecutive prison terms. He expressed that he was afraid his children would have to face the shame of losing their New Jersey. List claimed he was eager to join his family in heaven. He was a famous symbol of wealth and success in his Westfield neighborhood. In 2008, the New York Times reported that John List died of complications caused by pneumonia. He was serving time at the New Jersey State Prison when he was shifted to the St. Francis Medical Center in Trenton where he died. The post John List: How Was the Mass Murderer Caught? appeared first on ComingSoon.net - Movie Trailers, TV & Streaming News, and More. This is a composite photo of Shanna Gardner and Mario Fernandez Saldana during a February court hearing in the death of Jared Bridegan in Jacksonville Beach. The couple is awaiting trial on charges they conspired to ave Gardner's ex-husband murdered. In the 16th hearing scheduled since Mario Fernandez Saldanas defense team filed a motion to disqualify the 4th Judicial Circuit State Attorneys Office from the Jared Bridegan murder case, the judge ruled there will be no change of prosecutors. Judge London Kite issued her ruling Monday but with some harsh words for the prosecutors' handling of confidential materials in the case. Ordering additional guidelines, she said they can move forward with seeking the death penalty against Fernandez Saldana and his estranged wife Shanna Gardner in the murder-for-hire death of Gardners ex-husband Jared Bridegan in Jacksonville Beach. The 33-year-old was on his way home to St. Augustine after dropping off the twin children he shared custody with Gardner to her and Fernandez Saldanas home in February 2022. He didnt get far as he was ambushed on his regular route home. Henry Arthur Tenon, 63, pleaded guilty to killing Bridegan. He confirmed being the triggerman, but Fernandez Saldana and Gardner are implicated as the masterminds behind the plot. Bridegan and Gardner had a contentious divorce and were still mired in legal matters and custody disputes. Fernandez Saldanas attorneys, who were later joined by Gardners, cited multiple privileged communications involving the defendants and their attorneys were uploaded by the state into a shared portal called NextPoint that several people had access to before being determined if they were confidential. Jared Bridegan's ex: Here's what Shanna Gardner told police in her first extensive interview after ex's death According to the motion, "it is impossible for defense counsel to determine the scope and severity of the breach in confidentiality." That state said it was limited to just one or two contested documents and was based on a third-party vendors brief oversight. Murder plot Documents: Here's what Mario Fernandez Saldana told police in extensive interview after Jared Bridegan death "The prosecutor, once notified, observed the oversight quickly, and consistent with her ethical duties, contacted the defense teams to alert them to the oversight and immediately disabled the platform to ensure none of the emails or the text were reviewed by anyone," according to the states response. "No one from the prosecution team or the State Attorneys Office reviewed any privileged emails or texts." Throughout the defense continued to argue the integrity of the judicial process has been compromised. The state continued to argue there was no malfeasance involved and prosecutors have worked thousands of hours on this case that no one could replace. Had the State Attorneys Office been removed from the case, the governor would have assigned a new circuit. What did the judge say in ruling against Shanna Gardner and Mario Fernandez Saldana? Judge London Kite explains her ruling Monday to not remove the 4th Judicial Circuit State Attorney's Office from the Jared Bridegan murder trial. Kite explained her decision to both sides over several minutes. First let me say that the weight of this statement is not lost on me," she said. " For the defense, this court recognizes that attorney-client privilege is one of the oldest and most sacred privileges. She specifically discussed the two documents in question, a timeline and text messages. For the timeline, she said theres no evidence the state opened it or intends to use it. Therefore prejudice could not be substantiated. She said the text messages do not bear the hallmarks of attorney-client privilege. But Kite said the states handling of the materials left it all open to a high probability that attorney-client privilege information would be exposed both to law enforcement and the state without proper review. She said thats not necessarily misconduct. However, It was poor judgment. The court found it wasnt substantial misconduct because the state, when alerted, acted appropriately by disabling and shutting down restricted access to the platform, Kite said. Jared and Kirsten Bridegan and their children. As I write in the order, Im very solid that while it did not rise to the level of disqualifcation, it does warrant an alternative, she said. Dismissal would be inappropriate, the judge stated. The option that the court is left with, she said, is to suppress the timeline and text messages from the case. Moving forward, Kite said it also will be necessary to conduct a thorough case management discovery hearing with both sides. What was happening before these issues were brought to the court is not acceptable, the judge said. She scheduled the next hearings for May 15 and May 24. This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jacksonville judge rules prosecutors can stay on Jared Bridegan trial JUNCTION CITY (KSNT) A bridge that was closed for a Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) project in Junction City was reopened on Friday. The Sixth Street bridge repair project was started in September 2022 to remove and replace the existing bridge on US-40b. The project was expected to be completed by June 2024. Junction City Manager Allen Dinkel told 27 News the bridge was reopened on Friday, May 10. Kansas flags to fly at half-staff, heres why For more Kansas news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KSNT 27 News. Junior enlisted to get 20% pay bump, E5s get 13% more under House plan House lawmakers plans to overhaul military pay tables next year would result in a nearly 20% basic salary boost for troops ranked E-4 and below and a substantial bump for E-5s as well. Under plans unveiled Monday, House Armed Services Committee members next week will consider language in their annual defense authorization bill draft that includes highly revised military pay tables designed to bring all junior enlisted pay to at least $30,000 a year. Currently, some young enlisted service members can make as little as $24,000 in basic pay, although that total does not include other compensation such as housing allowances and free health care. But both Republicans and Democrats on the panel have expressed concerns that enlisted troops low base pay make it difficult for military recruiters to woo young adults away from civilian careers, where a $15-per-hour wage translates into just over $30,000 a year in salary. Higher enlisted pay, full housing stipends included in new House plan Last month, committee leaders announced a broad plan to boost all pay for all troops ranked E-4 and below by 15%, a move that would add several hundred dollars in monthly pay for those individuals. However, specifics of the plan released this week show an even more generous base pay hike. Committee staffers confirmed the 15% boost does not include a 4.5% increase planned for all troops, bringing the actual salary increase planned by the committee to 19.5% next year. For an E-2 with two years of military service, that increase will mean about $5,000 in extra pay next year. For an E-4 with four years of military service, its almost $7,500 more in salary. To ensure E-4s arent getting paid more than E-5s, the pay table overhaul also includes increases for mid-career enlisted troops. Combined with the 4.5% across-the-board raise, some E-5s could see up to a 12.5% pay increase next year. An E-5 with six years service can expect a pay boost of about $4,300 next year under the house plan. An E-5 with eight years will get a $3,500 raise. All other ranks would see the 4.5% pay increase. But whether that plan can become law remains unclear. House Armed Services Committee leaders have vowed to push for the military salary increases, and will vote on the measure next week. House appropriators backed similar plans in their budget bills last year and have signaled ongoing support for the idea. But Defense Department officials have lobbied lawmakers to wait on the ideas until next year, when their ongoing review of military compensation issues is complete. And senators particularly those on the Senate Armed Services Committee, which is currently drafting its own version of the authorization bill have deflected questions on the issue, saying they need to see what the total costs will be and how that fits into other military priorities. House committee officials said the price tag for the pay raise and other compensation reforms including increasing housing stipends and broadening eligibility for the militarys Basic Needs Allowance will cost about $4.2 billion this year. Total military spending outlined in the authorization bill is nearly $882 billion. Even if the pay raise is signed into law later this year, appropriators will still need to pass budget language to supply funding for the higher salaries. Jury selection began Monday in the federal criminal trial of Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., who is charged with accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes including some in gold bars in return for official acts. The once-powerful former head of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee appeared in a Manhattan courthouse in a dark suit and sporting his senator pin. U.S. District Judge Sidney Stein outlined the 18-count indictment against Menendez and two businessmen on trial as co-defendants and warned defense lawyers and prosecutors "to operate in good faith." He later told a pool of prospective jurors the trial could last six to seven weeks. Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Richenthal estimated the timeline to present the prosecution's case would be 4 to 6 weeks. Menendez, 70, sat facing forward with his hands folded across his chest, occasionally tapping his fingers together. He did not turn around when Stein asked whether any potential jurors had reasons they would not be able to serve, prompting many to raise their hands. The senior senator from New Jersey has pleaded not guilty to the charges, which he has described as salacious, and he faces decades in prison if found guilty. The indictment alleges that federal investigators found over $480,000 in cash nestled away in the New Jersey home he shares with his wife, much of it stuffed into envelopes and hidden in clothing, closets, and a safe. It also alleges the couple received gold bars, payments toward a home mortgage, compensation for a low-or-no-show job, a luxury vehicle and other items of value, such as jewelry and exercise equipment. The senators wife, Nadine Menendez, has been charged, as well, but she will stand trial later because of a medical issue. She did not appear in court Monday. Prosecutors with the office of U.S. Attorney Damian Williams of the Southern District of New York indicted the couple and three businessmen who allegedly bribed the pair in September of last year. One of those businessmen, Jose Uribe, pleaded guilty earlier this year and agreed to cooperate with the probe. The other two, Fred Daibes and Wael Hana, have pleaded not guilty and will stand trial alongside Menendez. The indictment alleges Menendez made positive statements about Qatar to help Daibes get a multimillion-dollar investment from a company tied to the country. The indictment noted a search of Menendezs home in 2022 turned up two one-kilogram gold bars and nine one-ounce gold bars that had serial numbers indicating they had previously been possessed by Daibes. Menendez is also alleged to have provided sensitive U.S. Government information and taken other steps that secretly aided the Government of Egypt in return for bribes from Hana. Prosecutors have additionally charged Menendez with trying to impede federal investigations into him, his wife and Daibes and with attempting to intervene in the state prosecution of an Uribe associate and a state investigation into an employee of the businessman. Menendez, who has faced widespread calls to resign from his Democratic colleagues, said in a speech on the Senate floor in January that there will be at trial a full explanation of what is the truth about those issues, a truth that proves I am entirely innocent of the charges. He has also maintained the cash was all his. For 30 years, I have withdrawn thousands of dollars in cash from my personal savings account, which I have kept for emergencies and because of the history of my family facing confiscation in Cuba, he said in a statement in September. Court filings last week show Menendez is seeking to have a forensic psychiatrist testify in his defense. The psychiatrist would say Menendez is affected by intergenerational family trauma, and how this disorder caused the Senator to develop a fear of scarcity and a coping mechanism of routinely withdrawing and storing cash in his home. Hes also seeking to have a forensic accountant testify that despite the prosecutions assertion that Menendez has been living beyond his means, his spending patterns were consistent with his lawful compensation and income. Prosecutors are opposing their testimony. The trial of the sitting U.S. senator is taking place roughly two blocks from where former President Donald Trump is standing trial in state court. The federal criminal trial is the second Menendez has faced since he was elected to the Senate in 2006. He was charged in 2015 with illegally accepting favors from a Florida eye doctor, including flights on a private jet, three nights at a five-star hotel in Paris and more than $750,000 in political contributions for him and the Democratic Party. The case ended in a mistrial in 2017 after jurors were unable to reach a unanimous verdict and prosecutors decided not to retry him. This article was originally published on NBCNews.com BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. Judges have been appointed, and the positions of some judges in a number of first-instance courts have been changed in Azerbaijan, Trend reports. President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has signed a relevant decree. According to the document, taking into account the proposals of the Judicial-Legal Council, guided by the 9th and 32nd paragraphs of Article 109 of Azerbaijan's Constitution, it was resolved to: 1. appoint the following candidates to the position of judges of first instance courts in accordance with Articles 94 and 96 of the law of Azerbaijan, "On courts and judges": For grave crimes courts: The Grave Crimes Court of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic Arzuyar Karimov Lankaran Court for Grave Crimes Ayshan Valiyeva For military courts: Fuzuli Military Court Roman Ismayilov For administrative courts: Ganja Administrative Court Ruhiya Taghiyeva Sumgayit Administrative Court Aynur Akhundova Shirvan Administrative Court Rashida Guliyeva For district courts in Baku city: Binagadi District Court of Baku Elnara Valiyeva Nasimi District Court of Baku Habiba Miriyeva Sabunchu District Court of Baku Samira Mammadli Yasamal District Court of Baku Ulkar Khalil Aydan Orujlu Mirsadig Seyidova For district (city) courts: Absheron District Court Firuza Karimova Beylagan District Court Khatin Jabbarli Barda District Court Farman Abdullayev Ziya Abdullayev Bilasuvar District Court Madina Rasulova Jalilabad District Court Osman Valiyev Fuzuli District Court Sakinakhanim Mammadli Imishli District Court Mahmud Orkhan Kurdamir District Court Rahid Mehdiyev Gakh District Court Taleh Karimov Gazakh District Court Elchin Mansurov Lerik District Court Yusif Zeynalov Masalli District Court Ellara Abbasova Joshgun Abdullayev Saatly District Court Vugar Gasimov. 2. change the positions of the following judges in accordance with Article 94 and the second part of Article 97 of the law of Azerbaijan, "On courts and judges": release Tural Alakbarov from the position of judge of the Goranboy District Court, appointing him as a judge and chairman of the Khojaly District Court; release Elnur Huseynov from the position of judge of the Commercial Court of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, appointing him as a judge of the Administrative Court of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic; release Emin Abdulayev from the position of judge of the Sumgayit City Court, appointing him as a judge of the Baku Administrative Court; release Rahim Hasanov from the position of judge of the Guba District Court, appointing him as a judge of the Sumgayit Administrative Court; release Gabil Mammadov from the position of judge of the Nakhchivan City Court of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, appointing him as a judge of the Commercial Court of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic; release Gunay Hahsimova from the position of judge of the Garadagh District Court of Baku, appointing her as a judge of the Baku Commercial Court; release Gamat Abilov from the position of judge of the Barda District Court, appointing him as a judge of the Garadagh District Court of Baku; release Sevinj Guliyeva from the position of judge of the Absheron District Court, appointing her as a judge of the Yasamal District Court of Baku; release Mubariz Mammadov from the position of judge of the Astara District Court, appointing him as a judge of the Goygol District Court; release Ulvi Ganbarov from the position of judge of the Imishli District Court, appointing him as a judge of the Gabala District Court; release Galib Pashayev from the position of judge of the Jalilabad District Court, appointing him as a judge of the Yevlakh District Court. 3. enforce this decree on the day of its signing. Federal prosecutors will pursue tougher sentences in cases in which artificial intelligence is used to commit an election-related crime, including threatening violence against election workers and voter suppression, Deputy US Attorney General Lisa Monaco said Monday. The Justice Department policy change is an effort to keep pace with a chaotic information environment ahead of the 2024 presidential election, as AI tools have made it much easier to mimic politicians voices and likenesses to spread false information. The new policy applies to cases in which AI makes the election-related crime more dangerous and more impactful, Monaco said. Our democratic process and the public servants who protect it have been under attack like never before as threats evolve and spread, Monaco told a meeting of the Justice Departments Election Threats Task Force on Monday afternoon. AI and other advances in technology are emboldening those threatening election workers and the integrity of our elections, she said. The emergence in recent years of AI-driven software programs that can produce deepfakes, or fake audio or video, has complicated the threat environment for election workers and the federal and state officials trying to protect them. US officials focused on election security are concerned that AI tools will exacerbate this already-fraught threat environment, pointing to an incident during the Democratic primary in New Hampshire in January as an example. An AI-made robocall imitating President Joe Biden targeted thousands of New Hampshire voters, urging them not to vote in the primary. A New Orleans magician made the robocall at the behest of a political consultant working for Minnesota Rep. Dean Phillips, a long-shot Democratic challenger to Biden, the magician told CNN. Federal officials have also been mapping out ways in which foreign powers might try something similar to the fake Biden robocall to try to influence voters. Senior officials from the Biden administration in December drilled for a hypothetical scenario in which Chinese operatives created an AI-generated video showing a Senate candidate destroying ballots. The Justice Department is already under pressure from election officials to do more to investigate the flood of harassing phone calls and emails they have received in recent years. Many of those threats have been made without AI tools and by people who falsely believe there was widespread fraud in the 2020 election. An Ohio man was sentenced in March to over two years in prison for making death threats to an Arizona election official, whom he accused of committing fraud. The danger is persistent. Thirty-eight percent of more than 900 local election officials surveyed in February and March by the nonprofit Brennan Center for Justice reported experiencing threats, harassment or abuse. More than half of the election officials surveyed expressed concern for the safety of their colleagues and staff. Election offices across the country continue to deal with threats and harassment for doing their jobs, and in many places, this behavior has been nearly nonstop since mid-2020, Amy Cohen, the executive director of the National Association of State Election Directors, told CNN. This should be unacceptable to all Americans. Election offices have in recent years been working more closely with state and local law enforcement on personal safety training and physical security best practices to help staff stay safe, Cohen said. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Top Justice Department leaders promised Monday to respond swiftly to threats against officials overseeing this years elections and to combat the increasing use of sophisticated technology to disguise the origins of any disruptions. With a close-fought presidential campaign looming in November, high-ranking federal officials convened at DOJ headquarters to warn that threats of violence related to the election will be pursued aggressively and prosecutors will seek extra punishment in cases involving artificial intelligence and other digital advances. If you threaten to harm or kill an election worker, volunteer or official, the Justice Department will find you and we will hold you accountable, Attorney General Merrick Garland told reporters at the outset of the meeting. The public servants who administer our elections must be able to do their jobs without fearing for their safety or their families. We will aggressively investigate and prosecute those who threaten election workers. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco, who is overseeing the Justice Departments response to AI, said emerging technologies are increasingly involved in efforts to intimidate pollworkers and others who manage elections. A particularly disturbing trend across these cases is the way perpetrators use new technologies to mask their identities and communicate their threats, Monaco said. Today, criminals use a range of anonymizing technologies, not just burner phones and social media. Monaco called artificial intelligence the most disruptive of the new tools being used to disrupt elections. These advanced tools are providing new avenues for bad actors to hide their identities and obscure sources of threats, she said. They're providing new avenues to misinform and threaten voters through deep fakes, spreading altered video or cloned audio impersonating trusted voices, and providing new avenues to recruit and radicalize with incendiary social media content that accelerates online hate and harassment. Where threat actors use advanced technology, like artificial intelligence, to make their crimes more dangerous and more impactful, the Department of Justice will seek enhanced sentences, said Monaco. The law enforcement officials who gathered at Garlands office Monday for the meeting of the Election Threats Task Force made no public mention of the candidates expected to be at the top of the ballot in November President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump or how their rematch could stir up emotions particularly among Americans who falsely believe the 2020 election was stolen. The formal comments by department officials included no reference to the fact that in recent weeks Trump has declined to say that he will respect the 2024 election results and has said hes unsure if the coming election will lead to violence. If we dont win, you know, it depends, Trump told Time Magazine last month. It always depends on the fairness of the election. While FBI Director Christopher Wray also avoided specifics Monday, he did observe that some recent threats to those involved in the electoral process have taken place even after elections. Any threat of violence into an election official, volunteer or staff, is completely unacceptable, and something the FBI takes very seriously, Wray said. The Supreme Court reviews only a small fraction of the petitions it receives. So the justices show their priorities not only by which cases they take up like Donald Trumps immunity bid and Jan. 6 rioter charges but also by the issues they ignore. Monday provided the latest example of that latter phenomenon, in a capital case from Texas. The case presented a due process issue that Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, joined by Justice Sonia Sotomayor, said the court shouldve heard. It takes four votes to grant review on the nine-member court with six Republican appointees. The issue in the case involved jury selection, a part of criminal proceedings that defendants have the right to attend. But a Texas court said that the defendant, Gustavo Tijerina Sandoval, didnt have that right in a special pre-screening proceeding for state death penalty cases, at which a judge evaluated potential jurors who had received a summons for that case and been given details about the defendant and the charges against him. Jackson wrote that the Texas ruling raised a significant question about whether criminal defendants have a due process right to be present in such circumstances. She wrote that the answer is yes, and this Court should have granted the petition for certiorari to furnish that important holding. Not only was the defendant not present for those hearings, but most of the exchanges between the prospective jurors and the court troublingly took place entirely off the record, without any recording or transcription, leaving little trace of what was said, who was excused, or why, Jackson recalled in her dissent from the denial of review. The fact that Texass special venire process is available only in capital cases, which often receive abnormally extensive media coverage, makes matters worse, the Joe Biden appointee went on. In those circumstances, it is all the more likely that those prospective jurors who are called for a special venire prequalification process may have seen reporting on the case and formed opinions before trial. Other state and federal courts have recognized defendants rights in these situations. That means that theres a split among the lower courts in this country over what the Constitution requires. The Supreme Court can clear up such splits but chose not to here, prompting the dissent. Jackson and Sotomayor are two of the courts three Democratic appointees, with the third, Elena Kagan, being less likely of the three to speak out on criminal matters. Mondays denial is also notable in light of Sundays NBC News report on Justice Samuel Alitos selective empathy for certain criminal defendants, which he expressed at recent hearings over Trumps immunity bid and Jan. 6 rioters. Given the priorities of Alito and his GOP-appointed colleagues (no fans of death row appeals in particular), its an open question, subject to case-specific analysis, whether the Supreme Court would make matters worse for criminal defendants nationwide by weighing in on more issues than it does currently. Subscribe to the Deadline: Legal Newsletter for weekly updates on the top legal stories, including news from the Supreme Court, the Donald Trump cases and more. This article was originally published on MSNBC.com ST. LOUIS Homicide detectives have arrested a 17-year-old girl for a fatal shooting near the Forest Park-DeBaliviere MetroLink Station in St. Louis. According to the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Departments probable cause statement, the shooting happened around 3:30 p.m. Saturday in the 200 block of DeBaliviere Avenue, in the DeBaliviere Place neighborhood. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Breaking News The victim, an adult woman, was found with a gunshot wound to her chest. She was rushed to the hospital and later died of her injury. Police claim Metros robust surveillance system helped detectives identify the 17-year-old suspect. The teen was taken into custody and held in a juvenile detention facility in St. Louis County. Shes facing possible charges of second-degree murder and armed criminal action. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 2. Vice President Harris dropped an f-bomb as she gave advice to young Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander people Monday, prompting applause from her audience. We have to know that sometimes people will open the door for you and leave it open. Sometimes they wont, and then you need to kick that fing door down, Harris said at the annual Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies Legislative Leadership summit. Excuse my language, Harris added amid cheers. Actor and comedian Jimmy O. Yang, who was moderating the conversation with the vice president, quipped that we gotta make T-shirts with that saying. The expletive came after Yang asked Harris to reflect on her experience as the first Black American and South Asian American vice president of the U.S. and how her heritage has informed her views and role as a leader. Heres the thing about breaking barriers. Breaking barriers does not mean you start on one side of the barrier and you end up on the other side. Theres breaking involved, and when you break things you get cut. And you may bleed. And it is worth it every time, Harris said. The vice presidents appearance at the leadership summit comes as the Biden administration celebrates Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. President Biden and Harris are also set to deliver remarks at a White House reception honoring the month Tuesday evening. The Biden-Harris reelection campaign last week launched a $14 million ad campaign for May, aimed at reaching Black, Latino, and Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander voters, roughly six months out from election day. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Vice President Kamala Harris drew both laughter and applause when she dropped the f-bomb while delivering a speech about the importance of representation to a group of Asian-American activists. Ms Harris, whose mother was an Indian immigrant to the US and whose father was from Jamaica, is the first woman, the first Asian-American and the first African-American person to serve as Vice President. She was roughly 12 minutes into a conversation with comedian Jimmy Yang at the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies annual legislative summit in Washington DC on Monday, when her language turned a bit blue as she offered advice to the gathering of activists and advocates about being the first in a given position. Mr Yang had asked the vice president what it means to her to be the first vice president of Asian descent and how her heritage has informed her views and roles as a leader. Ms Harris responded by recalling advice from her mother, who she said had once told her: Dont you ever let anybody tell you who you are you tell them who you are. She went on to tell attendees not to burden themselves with other peoples limited ability to see what theyre capable of. Then, in a somewhat out of character moment, she dropped the f-bomb. Sometimes people will open the door for you and leave it open, she said. Sometimes they wont and then you need to kick that f***ing door down! Her comment prompted laughter from attendees. Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a campaign event in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, on May 8 2024 (Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.) The vice president went on to tell attendees that she considered the late Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall the first African-American to serve on the high court one of her mentors even though she never met Marshall, who retired from the court in 1991 and passed away two years later. She said Marshall understood the importance of translating the passion from the streets to the courtrooms of America to make real the promise of America. Ms Harris described the Supreme Courts overturning of Roe v Wade in 2022 a move that ended a half-century of legal federal abortion rights in the US as a departure from the jurisprudence of the Court of Thurgood and RBG because it just took a constitutional right that had been recognised from the people of America from the women of America. She added: And thereafter in state after state laws are being proposed and passed that will criminalise health care providers, punish women, some make no exception even for rape or incest ... over the last few years this issue and the way it has played out has resulted in real and profound harm to real people on a daily basis. When your competition has spent several weeks in court on charges related to allegedly paying off a porn star, you can afford to let down your guard. Thats exactly what Vice President Kamala Harris did on Monday, speaking at the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies Legislative Leadership Summit in Washington, D.C. Harris, who has been relentlessly targeted by Republicans, has at times been cautious in her response. But to an audience of about 150 largely Asian American attendees, she was defiant. Mike Collins Is the Hardest-Working Troll in Congress Heres the thing about breaking barriers, Harris said. Theres breaking involved. And when you break things, you get cut. And you may bleed. And it is worth it every time. Sometimes people will open the door for you and leave it open, she continued, Sometimes they wont. And then you need to kick that fucking door down. The audience broke into peals of laughter and cheers. Among the crowd was Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval, who stood up and joined in. Afterwards, he could be heard talking to another attendee near the back of the room. Im so glad that the vice president said fuck, he exclaimed. Speaking to The Daily Beast, he laughed sheepishly. I think the vice president talks like normal people, and normal people, when theyre trying to emphasize a point, use colorful language, he said. So I think her ability to connect with everyday Americans through language or through just showing up is extraordinary. With the general election less than six months away, every appearance by a member of the presidential ticket can be classified as a stop on the campaign trail. For Harris, each of these stops is particularly high stakes; her tenure as vice president has been marked by criticism. But with former President Donald Trumps hush money trial dominating the headlines, Tuesday provided Harris a prime opportunity to take control of the narrative, reach key Democratic voters, and show off her sense of humor. Just as President Joe Biden has mostly done friendly interviews, Harris was under little scrutiny at Mondays event. The person selected to interview the VP was stand-up comedian Jimmy O. Yang. I have no idea why you guys called me to do this, Lisa Ling mustve been not available, he joked. The tone of the event often resembled a family meeting more than a formal talk. There were only three big cameras in the room, and not many more reporters. When Harris appeared, the crowd rose to its feet, with members lifting their phone cameras above their heads as if they were at a concert. Harris wore a staid uniforma slate gray pin-striped pantsuitbut she was relaxed. She laughed at herself after dropping the f-bomb and ended the event by snapping a selfie with the crowd. She also demonstrated ease talking about her Indian American heritage. Harris hasnt always been vocal about the topic, instead steering conversations away from race or foregrounding her identity as a Black American. But on Monday, she knew her audience. We know in Asian culture what birth order meansI am the first grandchild, too, Ill say, she said, earning knowing murmurs. Later, she grew more serious. Its Time to Give Kamala Harris Her Due I think it is very much part of Asian cultureI think many culturesthat we are taught duty, Harris said. And duty is not about whether you have the luxury, or the will. Its your responsibility, your duty. And you dont question it. It just is. Abortion was central to Harris comments on policy, with the vice president emphasizing the sensibleness of her position. She spoke matter-of-factly about how the Supreme Courts Dobbs decision took away a fundamental freedom. She talked about how, in the last numbers she saw, 80 percent of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islanders were in support of freedom and choice for a pregnant woman. One does not have to abandon their faith or deeply-held beliefs to agree that government should not be telling her what to do, Harris said. She will make that decision based on her ability to actually exercise good judgment. Can you imagine these legislators that are supposing their judgment is better than the ability of that individual woman to know whats in her best interest? Harris also planted herself firmly in the middle of the road when it came to guns. Theres been a false choice that has been perpetuated, including in this town, that suggests youre either in favor of the Second Amendment or you want to take everyones guns away, she said. Im in favor of the Second Amendment. And I believe we need an assault weapons ban, we need universal background checks, we need red flag laws. Her comments seemed to be a direct rebuttal to criticism from Republicans, who have frequently painted Harris as left-wing and incompetent as they stoke fears that she might have to step in for the aging president. Allies at the event on Monday told The Daily Beast such attacks didnt worry them. Its par for the course from MAGA extremists who are not interested in substantively trying to improve this country, Mayor Pureval said. Theyre interested in demonizing people who dont look like them. Kamala Harris Calls for Immediate Gaza Ceasefire in Sharpest Rebuke Yet Still, many voters arent sold on Harris. A poll earlier this spring found that almost as many voters disapproved of Harris as they did of Biden, and that more voters approved of Trump. But Harris still sees high approval ratings among Democrats. She has spent much of this year working to energize minority communities, many of whom are not too excited about the Biden-Trump rematch. She plays a critical role, Vice Chair of the California Democratic Party Betty Yee, who has already launched her 2026 gubernatorial bid, told The Daily Beast. What shes doing in terms of her outreach, particularly with young people, with many of our communities of color, and on the issues that really do speak to our fundamental rights, is so critical. So I think shes a tremendous asset on the ticket. Harris outreach efforts, and Mondays event as a whole, presented a stark contrast to the lurid Trump trial in New York that has dominated the headlines. That seemed to be exactly what the president and his allies hoped for. This kind of an event is talking about the future of our country, whether its representation in leadership, whether its policies that the AAPI community feel passionately about, Pureval said. And thatwhats happening in New Yorkis all about one person, not about this country, and not about what makes us special. And hopefully that dichotomy will be very clear come November. Harris didnt draw the contrast with Trump directly, but as she closed her remarks, she did suggest that the audience had an obligation to show up and vote, seemingly picking up her earlier comments about duty. This issue is about whats gonna happen in the next 170-something days, and everyones gotta be heard and demand that you be heard, the vice president said. And remind our families and our friends and our community of their right and responsibility and duty, dare I say, to answer a fundamental question at this point: What kind of country do we want to live in? Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. TOPEKA (KSNT) Kansas Governor Laura Kelly is ordering flags across the state to be lowered to half-staff on Wednesday later this week. Kelly issued the order on Monday, May 13 that flags statewide be lowered to half-staff in honor of Peace Officers Memorial Day. This day pays tribute to local, state and federal law enforcement officers who have died or been disabled in the line of duty. Flags are to fly at half-staff from sunup to sundown on Wednesday, May 15. Kansas peace officers put their lives on the line daily to serve our communities, said Governor Laura Kelly. Peace Officers Memorial Day serves as a time to recognize their sacrifices. Their courage and commitment will never be forgotten. Topekans invited to open house on future of Kansas River For more Kansas news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here. Follow Matthew Self on X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/MatthewLeoSelf For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KSNT 27 News. Karen Read trial: Brian Albert says John OKeefe never entered his home before his death The defense in the Karen Read murder trial on Monday morning will cross-examine Brian Albert, the man who lived at a Canton home where Boston Police Officer John OKeefe was found dead in the snow in January 2022. Karen Read murder trial: A guide to the key players you need to know Albert was last to testify on the stand Friday. He and his wife Nicole lived at 34 Fairview Road when OKeefe was found on their front lawn in a snowstorm. Theyve since sold it, last year in 2023. Brian Albert said OKeefe never entered his home, and that he learned of what happened to him when his sister, Jen McCabe, burst into his bedroom around 6 or 6:30 that morning. She was very upset. Almost, almost hysterical, Albert testified. Shock. Thats how I would describe everybodys reaction that morning was utter shock. Brian Albert said he never went outside to check on OKeefe because he didnt want to get in the way of first responders. He added that he was unaware that Read and OKeefe had been invited over after being with them at the Waterfall bar. He said the gathering at his home lasted until at least 1:30 a.m. The defense claims OKeefe entered the home and was beaten and attacked by the family dog. They asked Alberts wife Nicole about his experience as a boxer and if she heard anything after midnight, the time prosecutors allege Read hit OKeefe with her car. Defense attorney Elizabeth Little asked Nicole Albert, You had never heard any sort of disruption inside, correct? Nicole: No. Little: You didnt hear a crash? There needs to be an answer. Nicole: Sorry no. Little: You certainly never heard any screaming or yelling. Nicole: No. The Alberts said selling their home and re-homing their dog had nothing to do with John OKeefes death. Read, 44, of Mansfield, is facing charges including second-degree murder in the death of OKeefe, her boyfriend. Last week, Julie Albert, the wife of current Canton selectman Christopher Albert, was questioned about her connection to Massachusetts State Police Trooper Michael Proctor, the lead detective assigned to investigate the death of OKeefe. Both Chris and Julie, the family of Brian Albert, testified that they were at the Waterfall bar having drinks with Read but had gone to bed before her boyfriends death. Chris Albert testified that he and his family knew Trooper Proctor, the lead investigator assigned to the Read murder case, for many years and well before they were questioned in OKeefes death. Reads defense has alleged that Proctor was not truthful with his relationship with people he has identified as witnesses in the case. Julie Albert testified that she was a longtime friend of Proctors sister, Courtney, but she denied using her friend as an intermediary to Proctor and the case focusing on Read. The defense has argued that Read is a scapegoat for a well-connected group of people, including the Albert family, who were at a party inside 34 Fairview Road in Canton on the night of OKeefes death. Reads attorneys have long argued that OKeefe was beaten up inside the home and then dragged outside. Reads defense attorneys have also alleged that the Albert family is at the center of an effort to frame Read. OKeefe got out of Reads vehicle at the Alberts home, and while she made a three-point turn, she allegedly struck him and then drove away, prosecutors have said. Karen Read, 41, of Mansfield, Mass., is charged with manslaughter in the Saturday, Jan. 29, 2022, death of Boston police Officer John OKeefe. O'Keefe, 46, was off duty at the time of his death. FILE - Karen Read sits in court during jury selection for her murder trial at Norfolk County Superior Court, Wednesday, April 17, 2024, in Dedham, Mass. Read, 44, is accused of running into her Boston police officer boyfriend with her SUV in the middle of a nor'easter and leaving him for dead after a night of heavy drinking. Read's trial is scheduled to begin Monday, April 29. (David McGlynn//New York Post via AP, Pool,File) Karen Read, left, leaves Norfolk Superior Court with her attorney Alan Jackson, right, after the opening day of her trial, Monday, April 29, 2024, in Dedham, Mass. Read is charged with killing her Boston police officer boyfriend by intentionally driving her SUV into him. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa) Karen Read, right, is flanked by Massachusetts State Police while leaving Norfolk Superior Court after the opening day of her trial, Monday, April 29, 2024, in Dedham, Mass. Read is charged with killing her Boston police officer boyfriend by intentionally driving her SUV into him. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa) Karen Read leaves Norfolk Superior Court after the opening day of her trial, Monday, April 29, 2024, in Dedham, Mass. Read is charged with killing her Boston police officer boyfriend by intentionally driving her SUV into him. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa) FILE - Karen Read, of Mansfield, Mass., center, departs Norfolk Superior Court following a day of jury selection, April 17, 2024, in Dedham, Mass. Read is accused of running into her Boston police officer boyfriend with her SUV in the middle of a nor'easter and leaving him for dead after a night of heavy drinking. Read's trial is scheduled to begin Monday, April 29. (AP Photo/Steven Senne, File) Karen Read leaves Norfolk Superior Court after the opening day of her trial, Monday, April 29, 2024, in Dedham, Mass. Read is charged with killing her Boston police officer boyfriend by intentionally driving her SUV into him. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa) Karen Read, facing a murder charge in the death of an off-duty Boston police officer, was ordered held on $100,000 bail. High bail for girlfriend charged with manslaughter in death of off-duty Boston police officer High bail for girlfriend charged with manslaughter in death of off-duty Boston police officer High bail for girlfriend charged with manslaughter in death of off-duty Boston police officer High bail for girlfriend charged with manslaughter in death of off-duty Boston police officer High bail for girlfriend charged with manslaughter in death of off-duty Boston police officer Boston Police Officer John O'Keefe Karen Read is arraigned in Stoughton District court accused of manslaughter in death of off-duty Boston Police officer John O'Keefe Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW Photo: Press Service of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has signed a decree on the appointment of judges of a number of courts of first instance and changing the positions of judges of some courts of first instance, Trend reports. According to the decree, Tural Alakbarov was relieved of his post as judge of the Goranboy District Court and appointed judge and chairman of the Khojaly District Court. Keith W. Stokes is shown giving a Black History Month presentation on Rhode Island's role in the slave trade during the 17th and 18th centuries at the U.S. Naval War College in Newport in 2012. (Screenshot/U.S. Naval War College) A familiar face in Rhode Island government has returned to Smith Hill, this time leading the state division charged with overseeing its minority business contracting program. The Rhode Island Department of Administration announced Keith W. Stokes as new associate director of its Division of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (DEDI) on Monday. We are pleased to welcome Keith Stokes to the Department of Administration, Jonathan Womer, director of administration, said in a statement on Monday. DEDI oversees one of the most critical missions in government, and one that applies to almost everything we do. The skills and experience Keith brings to this office in working to ensure our workforce and economic goals are reflective of the diversity in our communities will be invaluable as the State continues its critical work in this area. Stokes replaces Latino activist and business owner Tomas Avila, who was named to the role in August 2021. Avila has taken a new job within the governors office as associate director for intergovernmental affairs and outreach, Olivia DaRocha, a spokesperson for Gov. Dan McKees office, said in an email Monday. Stokes will be paid $110,979 for his new state job, Christina OReilly, a spokesperson for DOA, said in an email. Avilas new role with the governors office will come with a $131,294 salary, DaRocha said. Stokes boasts a wealth of economic and business experience, including a two-year stint as head of the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation now Rhode Island Commerce Corporation during the ill-fated 38 Studios deal that left the state on the hook for a $78 million loan guarantee after the company filed for bankruptcy. More recently, he served as the economic development and business director for the city of Providence under former Mayor Jorge Elorza from October 2021 to December 2022. Since then, he has served as vice president of 1969 Heritage Group, a historical consulting firm founded by his wife, Theresa Guzman Stokes. His expansive resume also includes 15 years as executive director for the Newport County Chamber of Commerce, time as senior policy advisor to former Gov. Bruce Sundlun and as a consultant for Providence-based Mayforth Group. Bringing the lens of my experience in the private sector, state government and non-profit sectors to this role, as well as my commitment to community work, I am confident that in leading the talented team at DEDI, we will be able to further the work needed to support Rhode Islands diverse workforce and business community, Stokes said in a statement. Stokes declined to answer additional questions Monday, instead referring inquiries to the Department of Administration. He has a masters degree in social policy administration from the University of Chicago, and currently serves on the board of directors for the Black Lives Matter RI political action committee, and as a trustee for Preservation Society of Newport County, according to DOA. A copy of his resume was not immediately available. As head of the Division of Equity, Diversity and Opportunity, Stokes will oversee a 10-person team with a proposed $2.8 million budget, based on McKees fiscal 2025 budget recommendation. Among the divisions central duties is overseeing the states Minority Business Enterprise program, which sets aside a percentage of state contracts and purchase orders for eligible minority and women-owned businesses. The state has struggled for most of the programs existence to meet its own mandate requiring that 10% of state contract and purchase dollars go to certified women or minority-owned businesses. Indeed, in the 38 years since the 1986 law was passed, the state has only met or exceeded its participation goal five times: In fiscal years 2018, 2019, 2022 and 2023, according to state data. Last year, lawmakers upped the threshold to 15% effective July 1, 2023. Improving program access, reporting and compliance is an ongoing priority for minority business advocates and lawmakers, including members of the Rhode Island Latino Indigenous, Asian-American and Pacific Islander Caucus. McKees proposed fiscal 2025 budget includes an extra $500,000 to help minority and women-owned businesses become certified to bid on state contracts and purchases. The post Keith Stokes to lead state diversity office, including minority business contracting program appeared first on Rhode Island Current. Sen. Oletha Faust-Goudeau, D-Wichita, praised signing into law by Gov. Laura Kelly a bipartisan bill overhauling the state's method of dealing with traffic citations, payment of fees and preserving driving privileges. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector) Sen. Oletha Faust-Goudeau, D-Wichita, praised signing into law by Gov. Laura Kelly a bipartisan bill overhauling the state's method of dealing with traffic citations, payment of fees and preserving driving privileges. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector) TOPEKA Wichita Democratic Sen. Oletha Faust-Goudeau said the bill overhauling Kansas law on unpaid traffic fines signed by the governor would reduce suspension of driving privileges and allow people to drive to work on restricted licenses as they attempted to make necessary payments. Senate Bill 500, signed into law by Gov. Laura Kelly, had many moving parts and took years to refine, but was endorsed 120-0 by the House and 36-1 in the Senate. This bill will help those Kansans continue to take care of their responsibilities and contribute to their communities while they work their way through the legal system, Faust-Goudeau said. Sen. Rick Wilborn, a McPherson Republican, said he took pleasure in working to bring GOP majorities together with Democrats to promote solutions for Kansans caught in a loop of mistakes and bad decisions. Im proud to give eligible drivers a new chance at responsible citizenship, he said. Kelly said when announcing signing of the legislation Friday that it was important to reduce red tape for Kansans overwhelmed by hefty fines that blocked reinstatement of a Kansas license. Reform fine print Under the new law, which takes effect Jan. 1, 2025, state courts could restrict individuals licenses, rather than suspend them, while offenders kept their job, remained in school and attended church services as they continued to make payments on fees owed. The statute would limit license reinstatement surcharges to a single fee of $100. Existing law imposed separate $100 reinstatement fees for each charge associated with failure to comply with a traffic citation. The remodeled law would allow a person who committed the misdemeanor crime of failing to comply with a traffic citation to petition the court to reduce or waive payment of court costs. Current law mandated individuals who failed to comply had to pay fees in full within 30 days. If they didnt, driving privileges were suspended. The new law would instead require an offender to pay the amount ordered by the court. Courts would have to consider alternative solutions, including alcohol or drug treatment as well as community service, instead of restriction or suspension of driving privileges. The law would prohibit courts and the Kansas Department of Revenue from considering any conviction for a failure to comply older than five years when making determinations on suspension or restriction of driving privileges. Rep. Ford Carr, D-Wichita, said the legislation was a tribute to the late Wichita Rep. Gail Finney, who passed away in 2022. She was an advocate for reforming laws that had a disproportionate influence on people with modest incomes and people of color. Senate Bill 500, for me, is more than just a great bill for Kansans. Its more than just the right thing to do. It also serves as a reminder of Gail Finneys powerful legacy in which my footsteps are entrenched, and that good work continues in her absence, Ford said. Ag-gag, wildlife Meanwhile, the governor also signed House Bill 2047 to reestablish prohibitions on flying drones or aircraft over livestock facilities, field crops and research stations to document allegations of animal mistreatment or environmental damage. The legislation responded to federal court decisions undermining the Farm Animal and Field Crop and Research Facilities Protection Act. The so-called ag-gag statute in Kansas was the oldest law criminalizing undercover videotaping of abusive conduct on agriculture properties. In 2018, the Animal Legal Defense Fund filed a lawsuit challenging on First Amendment grounds Kansas quarter-century-old law thwarting covert investigations into the treatment of animals and workers at feedlots, slaughterhouses and in crop production zones. Three years ago, the 10th Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals agreed with ALDFs legal claim and a lower federal courts decision to strike down provisions of Kansas law. There are some places that people just shouldnt go without permission, said Republican Rep. Lisa Moser, a Wheaton rancher. The Senate adopted 34-2 the bill designed to discourage environmental whistleblowers, while the House concurred 108-12. Kelly also signed House Bill 2530, which was the controversial measure stripping the governor of authority to appoint the seven members of the Kansas Wildlife and Parks Commission. Rural legislators unhappy with the commissions discussion about ending the bait feeding of deer on private property joined with Topeka GOP Rep. Ken Corbet, who owns and operates the hunting business known as Ravenwood Lodge, to limit governors to four appointments. The law requires the current commission to be dissolved June 30 and for a new commission to take over July 1. The governor would fill four seats, while the others would be the jurisdiction of the Kansas Senate president, Kansas House speaker and the Kansas attorney general. The new commission would select a chairperson to serve two years in that role. Currently, the governor decides who served as chair and there was no term limit. Sen. Virgil Peck, a Havana Republican, said the legislation was necessary because the state needed a good, solid commission that appreciated the provision in the Kansas Constitution that guaranteed the right to hunt, fish and trap game. He was among legislators concerned that too many park-oriented people were on the commission. The wildlife commission bill was approved 78-45 in the House and by the minimum required, 21-18, in the Senate. Other new laws Under a separate bill signed by Kelly, parental consent would be required before a school could provide a minor with health care services. For example, a school nurse couldnt without a parents consent dispense or administer prescription or nonprescription drugs to a minor student. Nor could that school nurse conduct ongoing behavioral health treatment or administer a medical test with the minors blood or other fluid. The big-stick portion of the bill passed 111-0 in the House and 26-10 in the Senate says violation of the law would lead to disciplinary action by the health care providers professional licensing agency. Senate Bill 287s school nurse reform was bundled with a measure prohibiting medical facilities from isolating patients receiving end-of-life care from visits by relatives, as routinely occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic. It also included a provision allowing first responders, scientists or technicians, including school nurses, to distribute emergency opioid antagonists such as Narcan. It also permitted EMS staff to distribute nonprescription, over-the-counter medications. Kelly signed Senate Bill 420 to create opportunities for juvenile offenders to leave a correctional facility to take part in workforce and educational skills programs. She signed into law House Bill 2531 to establish the Kansas Purple Alert Plan, which would be an alert system for missing people with an intellectual disability. It would operate in a manner consistent with programs such as the Amber alert for missing children and the Silver alert for elderly individuals. The post Kelly signs law shifting Kansas toward driving license restrictions rather than suspensions appeared first on Kansas Reflector. Kentucky doctor sentenced to 20 years over prescribing that led to patients death A Kentucky dentist convicted of illegally prescribing morphine to a patient who died of a drug overdose has been sentenced to 20 years in federal prison, according to federal authorities. A Covington jury acquitted Jay M. Sadrinia, 61, on three charges of illegally prescribing opioid painkillers, but convicted him on one charge of illegally prescribing morphine and one charge of illegally prescribing morphine that resulted in the death of a 24-year-old woman in 2020. Sadrinia, of Villa Hills, operated several dental offices in Northern Kentucky, including Tri-State Dental Implants, where the woman who died was a patient. In a sentencing memorandum, attorneys for Sadrinia pointed to testimonials from former patients who described him as a skilled, kind, caring dentist. Former employees said he was dedicated to providing high-quality care, and some other dentists also lauded his professionalism and compassion, according to the memo. Defense attorneys argued that Sadrinia was convicted based on a single prescription to a person who misused the powerful painkiller. However, federal prosecutors cited several other examples of improper prescribing by Sadrinia, including prescribing opioid painkillers for a woman who told him she had a history of addiction and was in treatment at the time. Sadrinia engaged in shoddy practices that included performing ineffective procedures, billing patients for services he didnt perform including the woman who died and prescribing pain drugs without doing any dental work at all, prosecutors said in a sentencing memo. This was an ongoing practice that Sadrinia had of prescribing opioids to his patients in order to ensure his own profits, prosecutors wrote. Sadrinia had employees write favorable Google reviews of his work even though he was not treating them to attract patients, and pushed patients to write good reviews, handing them an iPad while they were still in the chair, prosecutors said. U.S. District Judge David L. Bunning sentenced Sadrinia May 10 and ordered him taken into custody immediately. FILE - Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear responds to a question during an interview, Dec. 19, 2023, in Frankfort, Ky. Beshear who campaigned against his state's near-total abortion ban in winning reelection last year will speak out against the neighboring state's sweeping abortion ban at an event in Nashville. It's the latest sign that Beshear is looking to improve his party's prospects in Republican territory and build up his own name recognition. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley, File) FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear's upcoming trip to neighboring Tennessee to speak out against that state's sweeping abortion ban is the latest sign that the Democrat known for defeating Donald Trump-backed rivals is looking to improve his party's prospects in GOP territory and build up his own name recognition. Beshear who campaigned against his state's near-total abortion ban in winning reelection last year will speak next month at an event called Championing Reproductive Freedom. He will be joined by Hadley Duvall, a college student featured in a TV ad that linked Beshear's GOP challenger last year to Kentucky's strict abortion law, which bans abortions except when carried out to save the mothers life. Beshear's reelection in a state that otherwise has trended toward the GOP burnished his image as a rising national Democratic star. The governor said Monday that abortion looms as a powerful issue for his party, provided it is grounded in a rejection of extremism. Like Kentucky, Tennessee has some of the most extreme laws in the country, where victims of rape and incest dont have the necessary options," Beshear said in a phone interview. "I think that the voters in Tennessee, just like in Kentucky, have enough basic empathy to believe that goes way too far. Tennessee bans abortion at all stages of pregnancy. The law includes narrow exceptions to save the mother's life, but many advocates and medical officials have warned ever since the ban went into effect in 2022 that the language is vague and confusing on what's legally allowed. Republican Gov. Bill Lee, who signed the ban, has defended it and argued its working as intended. Out of 14 states that ban abortion at all stages of pregnancy, six have exceptions in cases of rape and five have them for incest. Since his reelection, Beshear has received stacks of invitations to speak at Democratic events around the country but has limited his political trips while focusing on his job. Beshear has pledged to serve his entire second term, which ends in late 2027. He defeated a Trump-backed Republican incumbent to win the governorship in 2019. Last year, he defeated another Trump-endorsed candidate. In March, Beshear spoke to Montana Democrats at a state party dinner there, where he made a pitch for the reelection of Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Tester. Tester's race is one of several in November that will determine which party controls the Senate. At the start of 2024, Beshear formed a federal political action committee to support candidates across the country, with a focus on helping elect more Democrats in swing states and Republican strongholds. A lot of people help out candidates that are already going to win," Beshear said Monday. Were not interested in just running up the score. Were interested in middle-of-the-road public servants that wake up every morning thinking about jobs, public education, health care, infrastructure and public safety. Beshear downplays talk that he might be laying the groundwork for a possible presidential run in 2028. I'm supporting President Biden here in 2024 and that's the next election, he said, adding that 2028 is a long way away" and that his focus is to push Kentucky forward as much as I can. In the future, I'll look at any opportunity the same way I looked at running for governor, he added. If I believe that I can bring people together, lessen the noise, push away the divide and truly move either a country or families forward, then it's something I consider. At the June 21 event in Tennessee, Beshear will share the stage with Duvall, who revealed her childhood trauma in a Beshear campaign ad that went viral last year. Duvall, now in her early 20s, talked about having been raped by her stepfather when she was 12 years old. Duvall became pregnant as a seventh grader but miscarried. The stepfather was convicted of rape and sentenced to prison. Duvall stepped forward again this year to call on Kentucky's GOP-dominated legislature to relax the states abortion ban. But legislation to allow abortions when pregnancies are caused by rape or incest, or when pregnancies are deemed nonviable, made no headway in the legislative session that ended last month. Duvall's story underscores the real-world implications of abortion bans, Beshear said Monday. When they hear stories like Hadleys, someone who has gone through the worst of the worst, they get out of being pro-this or pro-that, are willing to push back against the extremism and have the basic empathy to believe these victims and survivors deserve options, the governor said. ___ Associated Press writer Kimberlee Kruesi in Nashville contributed to this report. The May 21 primary elections for Kentucky's General Assembly are open to voters who are registered Democrats or Republicans. (Getty Images) FRANKFORT Kentuckians going to the polls for the May 21 primary have choices to make about who will represent them in Frankfort, even if theres no suspense about who the nominees for U.S. president will be. (McKenna Horsley) Who can vote? Kentucky has closed primaries for president, Congress, state legislature and most local government offices, meaning you must be registered as a Republican or Democrat to cast a ballot. All registered voters can participate in nonpartisan primaries such as Lexingtons city council, judicial races and school boards. Check your voter status. When can I vote? Early voting will be held Thursday-Saturday, May 16-18. Find hours and dropbox locations in your county. On Election Day, Tuesday, May 21, polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. If you are in line at 6 p.m. you will be allowed to vote. Where do I vote? Find your polling place. Whos running? Find sample ballots. GOP control of the legislature is not at risk this year; Republicans have supermajorities in both chambers. But there will be newcomers on both sides of the aisle come January when the General Assembly convenes for the 2025 regular session. Republicans now hold 80 of the 100 seats in the Kentucky House and 31 of the 38 Senate seats. On the ballot this year are all 100 House seats and half of the Senate seats. In the House, 14 sitting Republicans garnered Republican challengers. Democrats are contesting House primaries, especially in Jefferson and Fayette counties and also the 98th District in Greenup and Boyd counties where Republican Rep. Danny Bentley is not running for reelection. And 10 House seats are up for grabs because the incumbent decided not to run for reelection or in two cases filed to run for state Senate. Altogether, there will be contested primaries in 25 House districts. In the Kentucky Senate, six Republican incumbents have primary challengers, including two Sens. Adrienne Southworth of Lawrenceburg and Johnnie Turner of Harlan who have attracted two Republican rivals each. The only Senate Democrat who has a primary contest is Minority Floor Leader Gerald Neal of Louisville, who is being challenged by former state Rep. Attica Woodson Scott and Michael Churchill Jr. Core voters turn out for primaries Turnout in Kentucky primary elections is traditionally low, and the 2024 presidential primary will do little to get people to the polls, said Stephen Voss, a political science professor at the University of Kentucky, because voters understand that President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump will be their parties nominees. In a low intensity election like this, most of the voters are the habitual voters the ones who view it as their citizens duty to vote in every election or who are so engaged in politics that they take every chance to express themselves. So, were going to retreat down to the core of the most politically active Kentuckians in most places, Voss said. Tres Watson, a former spokesperson for the Republican Party of Kentucky, said the presidential primary may affect GOP races in Northern Kentucky. Because Ohioans voted on Super Tuesday in March, Kentucky races have an easier time in the Cincinnati media market getting air time and reminders to voters to get to the polls. Northern Kentucky typically sees higher voter turnout, Watson said, with liberty Republicans being very politically engaged while more casual voters tend to pick centrist establishment Republican candidates. As for what will drive Democrats to the polls, Democratic strategist Will Carle said it will come down to the candidates themselves. Whoevers out there knocking on doors, delivering really good paid communications, making the actual effort to talk to voters, Democratic primary voters will come out for them. The Kentucky House of Representatives, Feb. 27, 2024. (Kentucky Lantern photo by Arden Barnes) House party contests The 14 House Republicans who face primary challengers include some liberty-wing incumbents, such as: Rep. Josh Calloway of Irvington who faces Julie Cantwell of Rineyville in the 10th District . Rep. Felicia Rabourn of Pendleton challenged by Mark A. Gilkinson of Bedford in the 47th District. Rep. Savannah Maddox of Dry Ridge who faces Jarrod M. Lykins of Walton in the 61st District. Rep. Steven Doan of Erlanger challenged by Diane Brown also of Erlanger in the 69th District. More moderate Republicans also have drawn primary challengers, including: Rep. Killian Timoney of Nicholasville who is challenged by Thomas Jefferson of Lexington in the 45th District. Rep. Kimberly Poore Moser of Taylor Mill who faces Karen Campbell of Independence in the 64th District. The Republican winner in both districts will face a Democrat in November. Several Democrats in the House are also facing primary challengers. In Jefferson County, Rep. Daniel Grossberg faces Mitra Subedi in the 30th District. Rep. Nima Kulkarni is challenged by William Zeitz in the 40th District. Beverly Chester-Burton of Shively faces Louisvillians Daniel Deshawn Cockrell and Shreeta Waldo in the 44th District. In Lexingtons Democratic primaries, Rep. George A. Brown Jr. faces Daniel E. Whitley in the 77th District. Rep. Adrielle Camuel, who won a special election last year to fill the unexpired term of the late Lamin Swan, is being challenged by Sarah Ritter in the 93rd District. The 10 open House seats five now held by Republicans and five by Democrats include those of Democratic Floor Leader Derrick Graham of Frankfort and longtime Republican Rep. Kevin Bratcher of Louisville who is running for the Louisville Metro Council. Carle, who is working on Jamie Palumbos campaign in Lexingtons House District 76, said that race is one to watch, as long-time Democratic Rep. Ruth Ann Palumbo is not seeking reelection. The Democratic primary includes her son, James Jamie Palumbo, Joshua Daniel Buckman and Anne Gay Donworth. Carle named House District 31 in Louisville as a possible flip for Democrats in the November general election. Its currently held by first-term Republican Rep. Susan Tyler Witten and has been favorable to Democrats in the past. Two Democrats Carma Bell Marshall and Colleen Orsella Davis are competing to challenge Witten. The Kentucky Senate, Feb. 27, 2024. (Kentucky Lantern photo by Arden Barnes) Senate primary races Four Republican senators face primary challengers. In Western Kentucky, Sen. Jason Howell of Murray faces Lynn Bechler of Marion in the 1st District. Sen. Stephen Meredith of Leitchfield is being challenged by Thomas Ballinger of Jetson in the 5th District. In Southeastern Kentuckys 29th District, two Republicans, Randy Thompson of Hindman and Shawn Andrew Gilley of Jeremiah, are challenging incumbent Turner of Harlan. In Central Kentuckys 7th District, first-term incumbent Southworth of Lawrenceburg faces Aaron Reed and Ed Gallrein, both of Shelbyville. Gallrein has raised the most money of the three, including contributions from prominent Republicans Senate President Robert, Stivers, Secretary of State Michael Adams and former Republican Party of Kentucky chair J. Mac Brown. GOP strategist Watson said its hard to see a path to reelection for Southworth. Senate redistricting after the 2020 census left her only one county, Anderson, from the district that elected her. Shelby County is the bulk of the new district, along with parts of Jefferson. When you get in these rural districts, geography matters and where youre from matters, Watson said. Rep. Keturah Herron will be moving to the Senate. (LRC Public Information) Of the Senates three open seats, two winners are already determined. Rep. Keturah Herron, D-Louisville, was the only candidate to seek election to the 35th District seat held by outgoing Sen. Denise Harper Angel, D-Louisville. Craig Richardson, a Republicanfrom Hopkinsville, was the only candidate to file for the 3rd District seat being vacated by Sen. Whitney Westerfield, R-Fruit Hill, chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee. In Northern Kentuckys 11th District, two GOP candidates are competing to succeed Union Republican Sen. John Schickel, who is retiring from the Senate Rep. Steve Rawlings of Burlington and Duane Froelicher of Florence. The 17th District seat being vacated by Senate Republican Floor Leader Damon Thayer attracted two GOP candidates, Julia Jaddock of Georgetown and Matt Nunn of Sadieville. The winner will face Democrat Kiana Fields of Georgetown in the general election in November. What about November? Looking toward the general election in November, Voss, the political scientist, said this election cycle is likely to favor incumbents. Its a sleepy election which means incumbents likely will survive, Voss said. Many of the districts where Republican incumbents are stepping down, the Republican electorate is large enough theyre likely to pick another member of the GOP. However, Democratic challengers have emerged in districts with Republican incumbents, Voss noted, particularly in areas where Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear outperformed in his 2023 reelection. A political party can lose an election at the recruitment stage, Voss said. Without a viable candidate on the ballot, theres no way to win the seat. Beshears successful reelection campaign likely encouraged some of the candidacies weve seen in districts that were not Democratic slam dunks. The downside to that is the Democratic Party has banked the main benefit of that good news by having actual candidates on the ballot in these places. The next step is getting those candidates the resources so that they can give voters a real choice, that they can get their message out and the voters take them seriously enough to evaluate their choices. And thats what we dont know yet. Carle, the Democratic strategist, said Democrats should look to issues Beshear touted such as economic development and raising teacher pay in order to pick up seats in the legislature. I think Gov. Beshear has done a fantastic job, and Democrats running for the state house should and will be running on his record of record-breaking economic growth, loving thy neighbor as thyself and trying to figure out ways to move Kentucky forward in the right direction. This was the scene in May 2023 on a rainy primary Election Day at Elkhorn Crossing School in Georgetown. (Kentucky Lantern photo by Abbey Cutrer) The post Kentucky voters have some choices to make in legislative contests appeared first on Kentucky Lantern. Oleh Syniehubov, the Head of the Kharkiv Oblast Military Administration, has said that on his orders, a meeting is to be held at which all involved in building fortifications in the oblast will report on the work that has been done. Source: Syniehubov on Telegram Quote: "Regarding the fortifications in Kharkiv Oblast. Today I instructed my special deputy to gather everyone involved in the construction of fortifications. Each contractor will report on the work done at the meeting of the Transparency and Accountability group." Details: Syniehubov promised to inform the media about the outcome of the meeting at a press briefing. Media representatives will be able to ask any questions of public concern. Background: On 10 May, it was reported that the Russian forces had intensified their activities in Kharkiv Oblast. Intense fighting continues. The Russians have occupied a number of settlements in the grey zone. The Defence Forces are sending additional reserves to Kharkiv Oblast. Civilians are being evacuated from the hromadas along the border of the oblast. Tamaz Gambarashvili, Head of Vovchansk City Military Administration, stated on 13 May that fortifications have been built around the city along the border with Russia, but that it is difficult to build more of them due to the Russian bombardments. Support UP or become our patron! The Ukrainian military conceded on Monday that Russian forces are making progress in their offensive in the north-eastern Kharkiv region. Moscow's troops have been engaged in a concerted push into the region, raising alarm among Ukrainians and their Western allies that a large-scale assault on the major city of Kharkiv is coming. Kharkiv city, the second-largest in Ukraine, is located just 30 kilometres south of the Russian border. "The enemy is currently achieving tactical success," the Ukrainian General Staff said in its situation report posted on social media early Monday morning. Following the capture of several villages in the predominantly Russian-speaking Kharkiv region, fighting is currently under way around the city of Vovchansk, only 5 kilometres from the Russian border, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said. Despite incurring heavy losses, Ukraine said the Russian military is deploying significant forces in the battle for Vovchansk, with up to five battalions bearing down on the city. Vovchansk had come under Russian occupation at the beginning of the war. During Ukraine's autumn offensive in 2022 in the Kharkiv region, Russian troops withdrew from Vovchansk. According to Ukrainian figures, around 3,500 people were still living in the city at the time. Russia launched a renewed campaign in the Kharkiv region on May 10. Over the past two days, the Russian Defence Ministry has reported the capture of nine villages. Firefighters extinguish a house after a Russian missile attack on Kharkiv, northeastern Ukraine. -/Ukrinform/dpa King Charles III King Charles III is sharing a rare glimpse into his battle with cancer. While visiting the Army Flying Museum in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, to officially handover one of his military titles to Prince William on Monday, May 13, the king described a rather unpleasant experience he's also had to overcome, which he's credited as nothing more than a side effect from treatment of the disease. While undergoing treatment for an unspecified type of cancer, the 75-year-old monarch has reportedly lost his sense of taste, per The Daily Mail. He declined to explain whether or not experts have told him to expect this to be a temporary issue or a permanent by-product of the medical care. Official handover in which King Charles III passes the role of Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps to Prince William, Prince of Wales, at the Army Aviation Centre in Stockbridge, Hampshire. IMAGO / Cover-Images Other than having one of his five senses altered, Charles appears to be handling the treatment well. He only returned to his royal duties earlier this month, after initially taking time off to assess his diagnosisduring which he still managed to make history with changes to Balmoral Castle and the family's Sandringham Estate. He also altered yet another longstanding tradition by revising the name of a charity he started 48 years ago and expanding its services. Charles' first royal outing since stepping back into his position full-time took place on April 30, when he was photographed visiting cancer patients and medical staff at the University College Hospital Macmillan Cancer Centre in London. Joining him for the event was his wife, Queen Camilla. His return to the public spotlight is a clear sign that the royals are ready to get back to some sense of normalcy following not one but two recent cancer diagnoses in the family. Weeks after the king revealed his cancer diagnosis in early February, Princess Kate announced she is also undergoing treatment for an undisclosed type of cancer. Next: Queen Camilla Offers Update on King Charles' Health Amid Cancer Treatments BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. The head of the delegation in the European Union-Azerbaijan Parliamentary Cooperation Committee, Tural Ganjaliyev, and delegation member Sevil Mikayilova have met with European Parliament member Javier Nart, a source in the Azerbaijani parliament told Trend. The parties discussed the processes taking place in the South Caucasus and European region, as well as the role and significance of parliamentary diplomacy in strengthening regional and international cooperation. "During the conversation, there was an exchange of views on the work done in the field of demarcation of the border between Azerbaijan and Armenia, negotiations on establishing peace in the region, and serious damage to the peace process in the region caused by the approach based on double standards from Western circles. Other issues of mutual interest were also discussed at the meeting," the source added. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel During a visit to the Army Flying Museum, King Charles disclosed that he lost his sense of taste during cancer treatment. The monarch made the revelation while speaking to a military veteran who had battled testicular cancer. Charles officially transferred command of Prince Harry's former regiment to Prince William, making him Colonel-in-Chief of The Army Air Corps. King Charles Shares Health Update Amid His Cancer Battle MEGA According to the DailyMail, while conversing with British Army veteran Aaron Mapplebeck, who had undergone chemotherapy for testicular cancer, Charles disclosed that he, too, had experienced a loss of taste during cancer treatment. Charles first revealed his cancer diagnosis earlier this year, and although Buckingham Palace has not disclosed specifics of his treatment, it's known that the monarch is undergoing chemotherapy for an undisclosed form of cancer. Earlier, the monarch attended a ceremony where he officially transferred command of Prince Harry's former regiment to Prince William, bestowing upon him the title of Colonel-in-Chief of The Army Air Corps. This means William will now represent the Army's airborne wing, including his brother's former unit, 662 Squadron. Buckingham Palace previously announced that Charles would officially transfer the role of Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps to William at the Army Aviation Centre, where Harry previously trained to fly. King Charles Praised Prince William As A 'Good Pilot' During Handover Ceremony MEGA In the handover ceremony, Charles, who once held the role of Colonel-in-Chief as Prince of Wales for 31 years, expressed his pride in William's piloting skills and wished the regiment continued success under his leadership as the new Colonel-in-Chief. "I do hope you'll go from strength to strength.. with the Prince of Wales as your new Colonel-in-Chief," the King said. "The great thing is he's a very good pilot indeed... I can't tell you how proud it has made me to have been involved with you all this time." The handover event took place in front of an Apache attack helicopter at the Middle Wallop Control Tower. Harry had served in the regiment as an Apache helicopter pilot in Afghanistan, leading many to believe he would assume the role until the change was announced last August after Charles' coronation in May. Prince William Takes Command Of The Army Air Corps As Colonel-in-Chief MEGA Following the ceremony, both Charles and William interacted with the serving aircrew. The Prince of Wales then commenced his inaugural engagement with the Army Air Corps as Colonel-in-Chief, receiving a comprehensive briefing on its operations, engaging with personnel and their families, and inspecting operational aircraft. Additionally, he had the privilege of flying in an Apache helicopter. Before his current position, William served as a Platoon Commander in The Blues and Royals. He then underwent flying training in the Royal Air Force and served as an RAF Search and Rescue pilot. During the handover ceremony, William was presented with an Army Air Corps scarf, a tartan wrap for Kate, and three wooden helicopters for their children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis. King Charles Recently Resumed Public-Facing Duties MEGA Last month, Buckingham Palace confirmed that King Charles was set to resume his public duties amid his cancer treatment. A statement from the palace read, "His Majesty The King will shortly return to public-facing duties after a period of treatment and recuperation following his recent cancer diagnosis." It continued, "To help mark this milestone, The King and Queen will make a joint visit to a cancer treatment center next Tuesday, where they will meet medical specialists and patients." The palace further noted: "His Majesty's medical team are very encouraged by the progress made so far and remain positive about the King's continued recovery. Forthcoming engagements will be adapted where necessary to minimize any risks to His Majesty's continued recovery." Prince Harry And Meghan Markle Visited Nigeria MEGA Meanwhile, Harry, who had been denied an audience with his father due to the King's full schedule, visited Nigeria with his wife, Meghan Markle. This marked their first international tour since stepping away from their senior working royal roles in 2020. The couple's visit was due to an invitation from Nigeria's Chief of Defense Staff, Christopher Gwabin Musa, the nation's top military official. During their time in the country, Harry met with injured service members at a military hospital and attended a training session for the charity organization Nigeria: Unconquered. This outing was followed by a reception hosted by the Chief of Defense Staff in honor of military families. King Charles is sharing the major side effect hes been dealing with while undergoing cancer treatment. Earlier this month, after being treated for an undisclosed form of cancer, Charles got back into working mode as he began accepting public engagements again. During his most recent outing, the King revealed how he has been doing, while also sharing the sense he lost while undergoing cancer treatment. While paying a visit to the Army Flying Museum in Hampshire on May 13, Charles spoke with British Army veteran Aaron Mapplebeck, who is a cancer survivor, The Sun reported. During their conversation, Charles shared that he is experiencing loss of taste. On April 26, Buckingham Palace announced Charles return. His Majesty The King will shortly return to public-facing duties after a period of treatment and recuperation following his recent cancer diagnosis, the Royal family revealed on Instagram. Four days later, on April 30, the king and his wife, Queen Camilla, visited a cancer treatment centre, where they met medical specialists and patients. As the statement said, Charles has prepared a number of external engagements His Majesty will undertake in the weeks ahead. The palace also thanked the kings supporters as the first anniversary of The Coronation approaches. During an interview with Sky News Australia in March, Charles nephew, Princess Annes son Peter Phillips, called the King very pragmatic, as he battled cancer. Nonetheless, Phillips said Charles was hugely frustrated that he cant get on and do everything that he wants to be able to do. King Charles III said today that he had lost his sense of taste due to his ongoing treatment for cancer. Buckingham Palace has not said what cancer the king is suffering from or how he is being treatedthough radiotherapy, chemotherapy and immunotherapy can all affect a persons sense of taste. He made the remarks while comparing notes about his treatment with a retired soldier who was treated for testicular cancer. British Army veteran Aaron Mapplebeck told reporters that he told the king he had undergone nine weeks of intensive chemotherapy last year for testicular cancer. When he mentioned that he had lost his sense of taste, Charles said the same thing had happened to him. Charles made the comments while making a rare joint appearance with his son Prince William at the Army Aviation Centre, where his heir was made Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps. Father and son embraced as the handover took place. Prince Harry was once tipped to take on the role now handed to his estranged brother, as he served with the Air Corps in Afghanistan. The palace announced last year that William would be appointed to the role, however the decision to formalize the handover Monday was only announced last week just hours after Harry revealed that his father had declined to see him when he was visiting the U.K. Charles camp subsequently briefed that no request for a meeting was made by Harry. Duncan Larcombe, former royal editor of the Sun and author of a biography of Prince Harry, told The Daily Beast earlier Monday: Williams appointment as the head of Prince Harrys old regiment is a bitter kick in the teeth for Prince Harry. It really will have got under his skin as it was one of the few things he truly excelled at. Plus, the sight of William and his father so closely and visibly united today makes a striking parallel to the events of last week, where Charles went to great lengths to avoid being seen with Harry. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. The personal moment occurred at a recent royal event with a British army veteran. Getty Images As King Charles continues his cancer treatment, hes sharing a rare personal update. While the monarch has been largely mum on his health issues since publicly announcing he was diagnosed with an undisclosed form of cancer back in February, he broke his silence on one of the unfortunate side effects hed experienced. While making an appearance at the Army Flying Museum in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, on Monday, May 13, the British royal reportedly revealed hed lost his sense of taste amidst his cancer treatment. While talking with a British Army veteran named Aaron Mapplebeck, Prince Charleswho recently returned to his forward-facing public dutiesshared the news after Mapplebeck revealed he no longer had a sense of taste after undergoing chemotherapy for testicular cancer last year, per The DailyMail. According to the publication, the 75-year-old told the veteran that the same thing had happened to him. The publication did not reveal if Prince Charles shared when his condition occurred or whether it was temporary. Buckingham Palace has also been largely quiet on the monarchs condition, merely sharing that the British sovereign was undergoing treatment. Getty Images Earlier that day, King Charles reunited with Prince William as he appointed his eldest son the colonel-in-chief of the Army Air Corpa title with ties to Prince Harry, who trained as an Army Air Corps pilot in 2009. With the appointment, Prince William became the head of his younger brothers former regiment. King Charles appeared to be in good spirits during the ceremony, posing for pictures with Prince William and calling his son a very good pilot indeed in a speech at the event. Just weeks ago, King Charles previously shared a positive update on his health issues while visiting a London cancer center on Tuesday, April 30. While admitting the diagnoses had been a bit of a shock, he reportedly told patients, "I'm all right, thank you very much. Not too bad, when asked how he was doing. For more InStyle news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on InStyle. DENVER (KDVR) After two years of restoration efforts, Kings Crossing Natural Area in Loveland is set to reopen to the public on Thursday. Kings Crossing Natural Area, located near the Big Thompson River on the east side of Lincoln Avenue, closed on Sept. 30, 2022, to restore it from severe damage it received from unauthorized encampments, the city said. Garden guide: When to plant flowers, fruits and vegetables in Colorado While closed, staff were able to address safety issues, fill in trenches, remove excess debris and trash, mitigate weeds, address fire concerns and tree damage, as well as put a stop to public health violations. Crews cleaned the site, regraded unsafe and damaged areas, repaired trails, fixed fencing and amenities, installed cameras and planted some native vegetation. After two years of restoration efforts, Kings Crossin Natural Area in Loveland is set to reopen to the public on Thursday. (City of Loveland) After two years of restoration efforts, Kings Crossin Natural Area in Loveland is set to reopen to the public on Thursday. (City of Loveland) City of Loveland staff have taken several actions to prepare for reopening Kings Crossing Natural Area, which includes adding signage to communicate No Camping regulations, installing security cameras to monitor the south property line, and the City will continue to actively enforce the No Camping ordinance in Kings Crossing National Area and other public lands, the city said in a release. From Thursday on, the area will be open daily from 6:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. The city is also asking the community to report any undesirable activity at the site to the Loveland Police Department at 970-667-2151 or by reporting encampments online. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX31 Denver. What to Know About US 'Antisemitism Awareness Act' On May 1, 2024, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 6090, the "Antisemitism Awareness Act of 2023." If passed by the Senate and signed into law by President Joe Biden, it adopts a definition of antisemitism created in 2016 by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance and directs the Department of Education to use that definition when "reviewing or investigating complaints of discrimination based on race, color, or national origin in programs or activities that receive federal financial assistance." It's essentially the congressional response to pro-Palestinian demonstrations and allegations of antisemitism on college campuses across the U.S. But the bill, which passed the House 320-91, faced criticism from various groups. Some pro-Palestine social media users claimed that the language in the IHRA definition of antisemitism would ban people comparing Israeli policy and actions to those of Nazi Germany, a comparison sometimes drawn to highlight the Israeli invasion of Gaza in late 2023: Congress just voted to make it illegal to compare the israeli regimes genocidal actions to those of Nazi Germany.. except it is comparable pic.twitter.com/OwLadmZXxz Sarah Wilkinson (@swilkinsonbc) May 9, 2024 Some Christians claimed the language in the IRHA definition of antisemitism would criminalize the Bible because mentioning the fact that "Jews killed Jesus" would be considered antisemitic. Congress just passed a bill to CRIMINALIZE THE BIBLE. Reciting the fact that Jews killed Jesus is proposed to be considered CRIMINAL ANTI-SEMITIC HATE SPEECH. pic.twitter.com/7P21gXNxAG Khalissee (@Kahlissee) May 2, 2024 Some of these claims are true and some are exaggerated. It's especially important to remember that, as of the writing of this article, the Senate had not passed the bill. We will update this story with more information as new events occur. But here's what you need to know about the IRHA definition of antisemitism and H.R. 6090: The IHRA The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance consists of 35 countries, including the U.S. and Israel. In 2016, its delegates met and created the following definition of antisemitism: "Antisemitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities." But what critics worry about is the list of examples the IHRA provides under its definition: Critics mentioned items 9 and 10 in particular. Christian critics wished to protect their right to claim that the "Jews killed Jesus," which they say is in the Bible. The Bible does contain a line or two that blames the death of Jesus on Jewish people. But that line is often used to blame all Jewish people as a group and has been used as justification for antisemitic violence for a long time. The Catholic Church has repeatedly stressed that Jesus Christ's death cannot be attributed to Jewish people as a whole, neither at the time of Jesus's death nor today. Considering that the item specifically mentions using these ideas to criticize the state of Israel, we conclude that saying "Jews killed Jesus" with no other context would not necessarily be restricted speech under the bill. Some pro-Palestine advocates have made a comparison between "contemporary Israeli policy" and Nazi Germany, or something close to it, which is the 10th item on the IHRA's list of examples. In their critiques of the bill, those advocates seem to imply that the comparison is not antisemitic and would also restrict freedom of speech under the First Amendment. H.R. 6090 However, under the text of the bill, neither of these things would be "banned" or "made illegal" in the U.S., as both parties have maintained. As previously mentioned, a complete ban would likely be in violation of the First Amendment, which protects controversial expressions of speech unless it can be proven that there was a direct intent of harm. Instead, the bill requires only the Department of Education, which is in charge of federal grants for financial aid and funding of schools, to consider the definition of antisemitism when investigating programs that receive federal funding. Essentially, it gives the Education Department the ability to pull funding if it finds discrimination "based on race, color, or national origin," something known as a Title VI investigation. Here's the relevant text of the bill, along with the roll-call vote by member: SEC. 3. Findings. Congress finds the following: (1) Antisemitism is on the rise in the United States and is impacting Jewish students in K12 schools, colleges, and universities. (2) The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (referred to in this Act as the "IHRA") Working Definition of Antisemitism is a vital tool which helps individuals understand and identify the various manifestations of antisemitism. (3) On December 11, 2019, Executive Order 13899 extended protections against discrimination under the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to individuals subjected to antisemitism on college and university campuses and tasked Federal agencies to consider the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism when enforcing title VI of such Act. (4) Since 2018, the Department of Education has used the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism when investigating violations of that title VI. (5) The use of alternative definitions of antisemitism impairs enforcement efforts by adding multiple standards and may fail to identify many of the modern manifestations of antisemitism. (6) The White House released the first-ever United States National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism on May 25, 2023, making clear that the fight against this hate is a national, bipartisan priority that must be successfully conducted through a whole-of-government-and-society approach. SEC. 4. Definitions. For purposes of this Act, the term "definition of antisemitism" (1) means the definition of antisemitism adopted on May 26, 2016, by the IHRA, of which the United States is a member, which definition has been adopted by the Department of State; and (2) includes the "[c]ontemporary examples of antisemitism" identified in the IHRA definition. SEC. 5. Rule of construction for title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In reviewing, investigating, or deciding whether there has been a violation of title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.) on the basis of race, color, or national origin, based on an individual's actual or perceived shared Jewish ancestry or Jewish ethnic characteristics, the Department of Education shall take into consideration the definition of antisemitism as part of the Department's assessment of whether the practice was motivated by antisemitic intent. What Problem Is the Bill Attempting to Address? It is clear that antisemitism in the United States on college campuses is, as the bill puts it, "on the rise." What critics have vigorously debated is whether pro-Palestinian demonstrations on university campuses across the U.S. in spring 2024 fall under that umbrella. Advocates for the bill called it long overdue. Rep. Mike Lawler, a Republican from New York who co-sponsored the bill, called the demonstrations on college campuses "reprehensible and alarming," and listed examples at Yale, UCLA and The Cooper Union that he said placed Jewish students in danger. "When people engage in harassment or bullying of Jewish individuals where they justify the killing of Jews or use blood libel or hold Jews collectively responsible for the actions of the Israeli government that is antisemitic. It's unfortunate that needs to be clarified, but that's why this bill is necessary," he said in a news release. But Rep. Jerry Nadler, a Jewish Democrat from New York, released a transcript of his speech opposing the bill on the House floor because he felt it was a violation of the First Amendment: "Speech that is critical of Israel alone does not constitute unlawful discrimination. By encompassing purely political speech about Israel into Title VI's ambit, the bill sweeps too broadly. As the ACLU notes, if this legislation were to become law, colleges and universities that want to avoid Title VI investigations, or the potential loss of federal funding, could end up suppressing protected speech criticizing Israel or supporting Palestinians. Moreover, it could result in students and faculty self-censoring their political speech. Even the IHRA definition's lead author, Kenneth Stern, opposes codifying this definition for this reason. Vigorous enforcement of federal civil rights law does not depend on defining terms like "antisemitism" or "racism." In fact, codifying one definition of antisemitism, to the exclusion of all other possible definitions, could actually undermine federal civil rights law because antisemitism, like other forms of bigotry, evolves over time, and future conduct that comes to be widely understood as antisemitic may no longer meet the statutory definition." It's unclear whether the Senate will try to pass the bill. If none of the 100 senators objects (unanimous consent), the bill can be fast-tracked without a roll-call vote. According to reporting from Politico, however, the bill faces likely objections from both sides of the political aisle. Sources: Adragna, Anthony, and Ursula Perano. "Where the Senate Stands on Passing House Antisemitism Bill." Politico, 2 May 2024, https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2024/05/02/congress/senate-antisemitism-bill-college-protests-house-israel-gaza-00155718. Archive, View Author, and Get author RSS feed. Jewish Yale Student Stabbed in the Eye with Palestinian Flag during Protest. 21 Apr. 2024, https://nypost.com/2024/04/21/us-news/jewish-yale-student-stabbed-in-the-eye-with-palestinian-flag-during-protest/. "Congressman Lawler Issues Statement on Passage of Bipartisan Antisemitism Awareness Act." Congressman Mike Lawler, 1 May 2024, https://lawler.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=1665. "House Passes Bill to Expand Definition of Antisemitism amid Growing Campus Protests over Gaza War." AP News, 1 May 2024, https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinian-campus-protests-columbia-congress-df4ba95dae844b3a8559b4b3ad7e058a. "Https://Twitter.Com/Kahlissee/Status/1785849565339353238." X (Formerly Twitter), https://twitter.com/Kahlissee/status/1785849565339353238. Accessed 10 May 2024. "Https://Twitter.Com/RepSaraJacobs/Status/1785779112071557499." X (Formerly Twitter), https://twitter.com/RepSaraJacobs/status/1785779112071557499. Accessed 10 May 2024. "Https://Twitter.Com/Swilkinsonbc/Status/1788552778383503493." X (Formerly Twitter), https://twitter.com/swilkinsonbc/status/1788552778383503493. Accessed 10 May 2024. "Jewish Students Locked inside Cooper Union Library during Protest; Told Security They Felt Unsafe." PIX11, 26 Oct. 2023, https://pix11.com/news/israel-war/jewish-students-locked-inside-library-told-security-they-felt-unsafe/. "Jewish UCLA Student Blocked from Entering Campus by Pro-Palestinian Activists." The Jerusalem Post | JPost.Com, 30 Apr. 2024, https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-799131. Lawler, Mike, and Josh Gottheimer. Antisemitism Awareness Act of 2023. H.R. 6090, 1 May 2024, https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-bill/6090/text. Lizza, Ryan. "Q&A: 'The Republicans Are Being Total Hypocrites' ." Politico, 4 May 2024, https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2024/05/04/jerry-nadler-antisemitism-bill-00156105. Mathur-Ashton, Aneeta. "The Controvery Surrounding the Antisemitism Bill, Explained." U.S. News, U.S. News & World Report, 7 May 2024, https://www.usnews.com/news/national-news/articles/2024-05-07/explainer-the-controversy-surrounding-the-antisemitism-bill. "Member Countries." IHRA, https://holocaustremembrance.com/who-we-are/member-countries. Accessed 10 May 2024. Mueller, Chris. "No, the House Didn't Pass Bill to 'outlaw' the New Testament | Fact Check." USA TODAY, https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2024/05/10/defining-antisemitism-for-investigating-discrimination/73639539007/. Accessed 10 May 2024. "Pope Book Says Jews Not Guilty of Christ's Death." Reuters, 2 Mar. 2011. www.reuters.com, https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE7214U4/. Pope Exonerates Jews for Jesus' Death in Book - CBS News. 2 Mar. 2011, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/pope-exonerates-jews-for-jesus-death-in-book/. Quilantan, Bianca. "Antisemitism Bill Clears House Rules Panel Following Partisan Feud." Politico, 29 Apr. 2024, https://www.politico.com/news/2024/04/29/antisemitism-bill-clears-house-rules-panel-following-partisan-feud-00155045. "Ranking Member Nadler Floor Statement on H.R. 6090, the 'Antisemitism Awareness Act of 2023.'" Congressman Jerry Nadler, 1 May 2024, https://nadler.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=395152. Tamkin, Emily. "Why American Jews Should Oppose the Antisemitism Awareness Act." Slate, 8 May 2024. slate.com, https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2024/05/antisemitism-bill-awareness-act-biden-campus-protest-israel.html. U.S. Senate: About Voting. https://www.senate.gov/about/powers-procedures/voting.htm. Accessed 13 May 2024. Washington, U. S. Capitol Room H154, and DC 20515-6601 p:225-7000. "Roll Call 172 Roll Call 172, Bill Number: H. R. 6090, 118th Congress, 2nd Session." Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives, 1 May 2024, https://clerk.house.gov/Votes/2024172. "What Is Antisemitism?" IHRA, https://holocaustremembrance.com/resources/working-definition-antisemitism. Accessed 10 May 2024. KAMAS, Utah (ABC4) Kouri Richins, the Kamas mother accused of using fentanyl to poison and kill her husband, appeared in court one last time before her preliminary hearing on Wednesday, May 15. The hearing on Monday was fairly routine. Lawyers addressed exhibits they intend to admit for this weeks preliminary hearing and corrected a few errors in those exhibits. State attorney Brad Bloodworth told Judge Richard Mrazik the prosecution intends to call on two witnesses on Wednesday while Richins defense attorney Skye Lazaro said she plans to call on one additional witness. Finally, Judge Mrazik heard from the Gordon Law Group regarding a subpoena requesting records relating to a consultation with Kouri Richins about possibly filing for divorce from her late husband, Eric Richins. TIMELINE: Kouri Richins complete timeline in murder case Mrazik ordered the Gordon Law Group to provide the state with a basic log of the documents in connection to the subpoena by Monday, May 20, though Gordon Law Group indicated they strongly objected to releasing the documents. Richins will be back in court at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, May 15 for a preliminary hearing. During that hearing, Judge Mrazik is expected to decide whether or not the state has enough evidence to go forward with a trial. Richins faces several felony charges including first-degree aggravated murder of her husband as well as first-degree felony criminal homicide. She also faces second-degree felony drug charges and several felony charges related to fraud and forgery. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC4 Utah. Mondays Top Stories Mondays Five Facts [1] Child found wandering Albuquerque apartment complex with soiled clothes, no shoes An Albuquerque woman is facing charges after her child was found wandering around an apartment complex alone. APD says officers responded to an apartment complex near Montgomery and San Pedro after getting reports that a child was wandering around alone. Officers say the boy was covered in dirt, had soiled pants and told officers he wasnt sure when his last meal was. Police tracked down the boys mother, Paula Martin, hours later. Martin is charged with child abuse. [2] Organizations to speak out against city council proposal Organizations are asking city councilors to reconsider a proposal that would change Albuquerques immigrant friendly policy. At a meeting last week, councilors Brooke Bassan and Renee Grout introduced an amendment that would allow the city to assist or enforce federal immigration laws if someone who is an illegal immigrant, commit a violent crime such as murder or felony drug charges. Advocates are speaking out to highlight the positive impact of the immigrant friendly policies and ask city council to consider how the amendment could impact residents public safety. [3] New Mexico sees more mountain storms We will see mostly sunny skies until early afternoon. Showers and thunderstorms will develop in the northern, central and western mountains this afternoon. The Metro will stay dry and mostly sunny all day. There will be more mountain storms on Tuesday, with a higher chance in the Metro Tuesday afternoon and evening. [4] New roundabout in Westside neighborhood might help curb crashes The Tierra Oeste Neighborhood by Unser and Ladera on Tierra Pintada and Mirehaven Parkway is getting some upgrades. The upgrades include a new roundabout and more lighting. The city said theyre hoping the roundabout will help reduce speeding and reckless driving. The project will add 12 overhead lights, landscaping and include bike lane improvements. Construction will begin Tuesday and go through December. [5] New Mexicans snap pictures of aurora borealis New Mexicans got the chance to enjoy the sight of a lifetime over the weekend as geomagnetic storms continue impacting the globe. The Northern Lights made their visit to New Mexico, but experts say the storms that caused it are beginning to calm. Meaning the aurora is now returning northward before disappearing. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRQE NEWS 13 - Breaking News, Albuquerque News, New Mexico News, Weather, and Videos. Kyle officials feel confident that the city will not run out of water KYLE, Texas (KXAN) As more people move to one of the fast-growing cities in the country, Kyle residents worry if there will be enough water to support everyone into the future. Severe drought that has troubled the entire region has led to a shrinking water supply in Kyle. The city remains under Stage 3 drought restrictions and earlier this month the city council approved a contract to buy water from neighboring San Marcos. Staff said Monday that the city will likely not come out of Stage 3 before fall 2024. MORE: Why water flow continues to slow at Jacobs Well Kyle City Council Member Daniela Parsley said some are frustrated the city has had to remain under such severe restrictions and worry about the future of the citys water supply as developers build. We have been growing so fast. A lot of the concerns I hear are, Why do we keep approving developments if we dont have enough water? And that is a valid question, Parlsey told KXAN. Parsley hosted a meeting Monday night with the water utilities department to help residents understand the citys plans to ensure there is enough water for everyone in the future. Our current city manager does have a plan he wants to set for the future to make sure that there is the availability of water [with] new developments, she said. I would love for the residents to have access to that explanation. And to be able to ask all the questions, they have regarding infrastructure. At the meeting, city staff said it started taking water planning more seriously in 2023. Since then, the city has developed a short-term plan to preserve water until 2028, which takes into account a city growth rate of 10% annually. Further, a firm is developing a 50-year Water Master Plan so that the city can be prepared for future generations. Staff said that the plan should be released by the end of the year. Sadly, there was just not a plan before, [but] we have one now, Parsley said. We know that there is a pathway forward. We are not going to run out of water. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KXAN Austin. The man who broke into the home of Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass shouted her first name repeatedly during the early morning security breach last month, leaving a trail of blood after smashing a glass door at the Windsor Park mansion before getting spooked by the mayor's German shepherd, according to multiple sources familiar with the ongoing investigation. Prosecutors allege that during the April 21 break-in, Ephraim Hunter, 29, screamed "Karen!" several times as he attempted to access several bedrooms in Bass' home around 6:40 a.m., said three law enforcement sources who requested anonymity in order to discuss a pending case. It was unclear if Hunter began screaming the mayor's name before or after police detained him. A spokesman for Bass declined to comment. In court last month, L.A. County Deputy Dist. Atty. Jonathan Chung said Hunter told people inside the mayor's home he didnt know why he was there," but later called out a victim's name during the incident. He would not identify the victim. Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. George Gascon told reporters last month that Hunter was "targeting" Bass. Hunter, the D.A. said, took actions that made it clear "that he knew that this was ... the mayors home, and that he was looking for her." But Gascon did not offer specifics, and a spokeswoman for the district attorney's office declined to offer additional comments on the case. Read more: LAPD had no security at mayor's house when intruder broke in; suspect targeted Bass, D.A. says A high-level Los Angeles police official, however, said investigators were confused by Gascon's public remarks. Nothing in the LAPD's investigation suggested Hunter a Massachusetts native who had moved to L.A. only in the last few years to live with his brother had planned or plotted an attack against Bass. "I don't know why Gascon said what he said, he must be privy to something our investigators are not privy to," said the official, who was not authorized to speak publicly about the case. In an interview with The Times last month, Hunter's mother, Josephine Duah, said her son had been struggling with drug addiction and was hallucinating at the time of the incident. Duah said Hunter called her from jail the day after his arrest and claimed he got off a bus in Windsor Park with no idea where he was. He told his mother he was fleeing from someone trying to shoot him." Hunter provided a similar version of events to radio station KNX in a jailhouse interview published Monday. The 29-year-old said he had been on a multiday drug binge and repeated the claim that he had no idea where he was. Hunter told KNX someone he believed to be Bass' son-in-law screamed at him to "get the f out" when he reached the second floor of the home. He also said he believed he was yelling out "Aaron," his brother's name, not "Karen." Public records confirm Hunter's brother's first name is Aaron. He has not responded to a note left by a Times reporter at his Mid-City apartment. Another law enforcement source, who also requested anonymity to discuss an active investigation, said responding officers believed Hunter was under the influence of methamphetamine. Hunter's attorney, Howard Stern, said the district attorney's office "has this case entirely wrong" but declined to answer specific questions for this article. Hunter is due back in court June 3. He served seven years in prison in Massachusetts after he was convicted of an assault that left a man unconscious in a suburb outside Boston in 2015. The break-in has prompted scrutiny of security protocols at the mayor's residence. Interim Los Angeles Police Chief Dominic Choi has said there were no officers on the Getty House property at the time of the break-in. The gap in coverage occurred during a shift change and was apparently a normal part of the LAPD's scheduled security plan for Bass, Choi said. Read more: An intruder made it to the second floor of L.A. Mayor Bass' home: Here's what we know Though the chief said the gap has since been "remedied," a continued review of the incident now suggests other failures. Two law enforcement sources said nobody was monitoring surveillance cameras while Hunter approached the property. With proper monitoring, Bass or police could have been alerted to Hunter's presence before he smashed through the door, according to the sources, who requested anonymity because they are not authorized to discuss the investigation. Choi has declined to answer additional questions about security issues. Capt. Kelly Muniz, an LAPD spokeswoman, said the initial call for help came in at 6:42 a.m. but declined to say exactly when police arrived. In the time between the break-in and the arrival of LAPD officers, Bass got help from her dog, a rescued German shepherd named Stax, according to a law enforcement official and a person with knowledge of the investigation, both of whom requested anonymity to speak candidly about it. During the gap in police coverage, Stax managed to interrupt and delay Hunter's alleged attempts to break into bedrooms on the second floor of the home, the officials said. The dog did not bite Hunter, who was then taken into custody without incident. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. Member of the European Parliament Javier Nart met with the Chairman of the Board of the Western Azerbaijan Community, MP Aziz Alakbarli, and a representative of the community, Ulviya Zulfigar, Trend reports, referring to the Western Azerbaijani Community. Additionally, it was noted that at the meeting, the chairman of the Community's board informed the members of the European Parliament about the genocides and deportations faced by Western Azerbaijanis over the past 200 years and spoke about their destroyed material and cultural heritage. Alakbarli noted that bias and discrimination against Azerbaijan in the European Parliament negatively affect stability in the region. He informed Javier Nart that during the last deportation in 19871991, our compatriots were forced to leave their homes. Nowadays, they intend to return to their ancestral homeland in peace, safety, and dignity. Javier Nart called the troubles experienced by Western Azerbaijanis a historical tragedy. He noted that he would tell his European colleagues about what he had heard, asking for more information about these realities. The member of the European Parliament has also presented the Concept of Return of the Community of Western Azerbaijan, published in several languages. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Natalie Elphicke should be suspended from Labour while claims against her are investigated, one of her fellow MPs has said. Rosie Duffield, the Labour MP, called for Ms Elphicke, who defected from the Tories to Labour last week, to be thoroughly investigated by party chiefs following reports she lobbied ministers to intervene in her ex-husbands sex assault trial four years ago. It was alleged at the weekend that the MP for Dover asked Sir Robert Buckland, the former justice secretary, to speak to the judge who was going to preside when her former husband Charlie Elphicke was tried for attacks on two women. Ms Elphicke was said to have wanted a different trial date while also questioning whether the judge would be excessively tough on her former husband, who was sentenced to two years in prison. Speaking to BBC South East, Ms Duffield said: I think that if the shoe was on the other foot, if she was still officially a Conservative MP, we would rightly be calling for this to be thoroughly investigated and thats what should happen in this case. She added: In other serious cases, like sexual allegations, before the investigation is finished the whip is removed and people suspended temporarily. Ms Duffield said it was hugely hypocritical that Labour had no plans to suspend Ms Elphicke. Ms Elphicke with Sir Keir, as they announced a small boats strategy on Friday - Dan Kitwood/Getty Anybody watching would think: Well hang on, if that was a Tory MP, thats exactly what wed be calling for from the despatch box. And therefore that should apply when its one of our own MPs, which apparently Natalie now is. Ms Duffield is the first Labour MP to call for Ms Elphicke to be suspended while the claims are investigated. On Sunday, Jess Phillips, another Labour MP and the partys former shadow minister for domestic violence, told LBC: There should always be an independent investigation into all these sorts of claims that come forward. A number of MPs on the Left of the party have also expressed concern at Ms Elphickes welcome into Labour ranks, with Left-wingers including Zarah Sultana and John McDonnell questioning her intentions. Ms Duffield has been highly critical of Ms Elphicke, who had sat on the Tory benches since winning her seat in 2019 until crossing the floor moments before Prime Ministers Questions last week. Responding to a photograph of Sir Keir Starmer with the newest addition to his backbenchers, she quipped at least one Kent MP got a meeting. Ms Dufield has previously publicly criticised Sir Keir for refusing to meet her because of her gender-critical views. Other Labour MPs have also raised concerns about Ms Elphickes defection, citing her support for her former husbands unsuccessful appeal. She once claimed her husband was attractive, and attracted to women and an easy target for dirty politics and false allegations. Ms Elphicke with her ex-husband Charlie Elphicke, the former Conservative MP, during his trial four years ago - Gavin Rodgers/Pixel GRG Ms Elphicke said in a statement last week she condemned his behaviour towards other women and towards me, adding it was right that he was prosecuted and she was sorry for the comments that I made about his victims. Matt Wrack, the president of the Trades Union Congress, on Sunday called for Ms Elphicke to be stripped of the Labour whip in a letter to Sir Keir. Mr Wrack said her support for anti-strike laws should be incompatible with representing the party, while referring to remarks she made about striking firefighters in the Commons as disgraceful. A spokesman for Ms Elphicke has said the allegations against her are nonsense. He said: Its certainly true that Mr Elphicke continued to be supported after his imprisonment by a large number of Conservative MPs who had known him for a long time, including some who visited him and independently lobbied on his behalf, which was nothing to do with Natalie. A Labour spokesman has previously said Ms Elphicke totally rejects the accusations surrounding her meeting with Sir Robert, and said the former cabinet minister should have raised any concerns he had at the time. Labour was contacted for further comment. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. LAS VEGAS (KLAS) A pedestrian suffered critical injuries Monday morning and is hospitalized after being struck by a vehicle in the east valley. The crash was reported around 5:10 a.m. on East Lake Mead Boulevard at Betty Lane, just east of Nellis Boulevard. According to Las Vegas Metropolitan police, Lake Mead was closed for around two hours from North Betty Lane to North Ringe Lane. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KLAS. Przewalski's horse has been killed by a landmine in the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone, previously occupied by Russia. Photo: Ukraine's State Border Guard Service A wild horse of the Przewalski breed, listed in the Red Book of Ukraine, has been killed by a Russian mine in the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone. (Red Book of Ukraine is the official national red list of the threatened animals, plants and fungi which are protected by law in Ukraine ed.). The animal has been killed on the territory of the Chornobyl Radiation and Ecological Biosphere Reserve, which was occupied by Russian forces in 2022, Ukraine's State Border Guard Service (SBGS) reported. Border guards heard a mine explosion as they were performing tasks within the exclusion zone. While checking the area with a drone, they noticed a dead horse in the protected area. "Border guards acoustically documented the fact of a mine explosion within the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone. As it turned out, a landmine had killed a wild horse of the Przewalski breed, and the relevant organisations were notified," the SBGS said. Przewalski's horse is the last remaining species of wild horse on Earth. It is considered extinct in nature (in Europe since the 19th century and in Asia since the 20th century). It is also the only representative of a number of ungulates in Ukraine's wild fauna whose herds were acclimatised in the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone. Background: This is not the first time that wild animals listed in the Red Data Book have been killed due to Russian aggression. Some Red Data Book hamsters were found hanged at Russian positions in Kherson Oblast in 2022. In the summer of 2023, over a hundred bodies of Red Book newts were found in Odesa Oblast. They had been killed when the Russians blew up the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant. Support UP or become our patron! Sen. Holly Rehder, R-Scott City, presents a resolution on the Senate floor Feb. 12 (Annelise Hanshaw/Missouri Independent). Lawmakers trying to ban child marriage in Missouri hope a last-minute push in the legislative sessions final days can overcome opposition from some Republicans that put the bills chances in doubt. A bill outlawing 16 and 17 years old from getting married stalled in a House committee when a handful of Republicans voiced opposition. There are five days left before lawmakers adjourn for the year. Republican state Sen. Holly Thompson Rehder of Scott City told The Independent last week that a last-ditch effort to save the legislation could take place as early as Monday, when she expects it to be added as an amendment to another bill. Theres more opposition than I thought there would be, she said. But you know, I think that overall, its generational, and I havent had any women opposed come and talk to me about this. Under current Missouri law, anyone under 16 is prohibited from getting married. But 16 and 17 year olds can get married with parental consent to anyone under 21. Those in favor of the ban argue child marriage is coercive and can transform into forced marriage, especially because children lack the legal rights of adulthood. Almost all minors married to adults are girls, data shows, and child marriage is associated with higher rates of dropping out of high school and later poverty. But while Rehders bill, which she co-sponsored with Democratic state Sen. Lauren Arthur of Kansas City, sailed through the Senate nearly unanimously, it is stuck in a House committee due to critics who say a ban constitutes government overreach and would clash with parental rights. Fraidy Reiss, an activist who founded the nonprofit against forced marriage Unchained at Last and has been active in testifying in support of the bill in Missouri, called the opposition horrifying. How can anybody be opposed to legislation that costs nothing, harms no one and ends a human rights abuse? Fraidy said in an interview with The Independent. It is shameful it has not already passed and shameful that were coming up against the end of the legislative session. And we still dont know for sure whether legislators are going to do this. Proponents hope to tack on the child marriage ban as an amendment to another of Rehders bills that deals with children. Rehder said she wants a roll call vote on the amendment, rather than a voice vote, which would show exactly how many and which legislators are opposed. Republican state Rep. Jim Murphy of St. Louis chairs the House committee where the child marriage ban is stuck. He told The Independent that he supports ending child marriage but doesnt have the votes to advance the bill to the full House. Murphy said he was surprised that changing the minimum age of marriage from 16 to 18 got as much pushback as it did. State Rep. Dean Van Schoiack, Republican of Savannah and the vice chair of the committee, was one of the voices in opposition. Its government intrusion in peoples lives, he said in an interview with The Independent on Friday. Asked what would be lost if 16 and 17 year olds couldnt get marriage permits anymore, Van Schoiack replied, Liberties that people currently have. After whats been through the press and what people are doing, Im not changing my position now, he said. I dont typically change my mind very easily. Other lawmakers who voiced concerns about the bill in committee include GOP state Reps. Ben Baker of Neosho and Mitch Boggs of LaRussell. Rehder said the concerns about government overreach are ridiculous because the state government already sets a minimum age, so why not set it at the age of when youre an adult? To me, a parent should not be signing their child into a lifetime commitment. Thats a decision you make for yourself as an adult, said Rehder, who got married at 15 and has said she didnt realize at the time she was not operating under an adult mindset. Until the legislature voted to raise the minimum marriage age to 16 in 2018, Missouri had among the most lenient child marriage laws in the nation making it an especially popular state for 15-year-olds to travel to be married. Despite the 2018 change, Missouri law still does not align with international human rights standards, which set the minimum age at 18. Fraidy said around 70 minors every year are entered into marriage in Missouri. Theres no input required from the minor when theyre married its their parent signing a form. Theres no recourse for a teen that doesnt want to marry. And then once theyre married, theyre trapped because they cant even file for divorce. So its about ending this nightmarish legal trap, Fraidy said. Missouri would join 12 states that have in recent years banned child marriage if the legislation passes. Rehder said she hopes the House will attach the ban to a wide-ranging bill about children that bars the state from seizing foster childrens Social Security benefits. That bill will be handled by Republican state Rep. Wendy Hausman, Rehder said. Republican state Rep. Chris Dinkins, who is handling the House version of the child marriage bill, will be working to help Hausman get the amendment on, Rehder said. Timing is critical, as any changes to the bill would require it to return to the Senate, which has been bogged down in gridlock for much of the legislative session. All bills must be approved and sent to the governor by 6 p.m. Friday. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Last-ditch push to ban child marriage in Missouri must overcome resistance in House appeared first on Missouri Independent. The latest La Nina forecast is in. It could mean an even colder, snowier winter for Idaho No one is ready to think about winter yet, considering the warmth of spring just arrived. Too bad. Idahos chances of a snowy and cold winter are increasing as forecasters continue to build confidence in a La Nina weather pattern forming later this year. The National Weather Services Climate Prediction Center issued an updated La Nina forecast May 9, upping the chances of La Nina developing this summer as El Nino continues to weaken. According to the latest forecast, there is a 49% chance of La Nina developing between June and August, and a 69% chance of it developing between July and September. La Nina generally tends to follow strong El Nino events, which also provides added confidence in the model guidance favoring La Nina, the prediction center states. We underwent three straight years of La Ninas, from 2020 to 2023, until El Nino finally broke the cycle in late 2023 into 2024. What is La Nina? El Ninos and their opposites, La Ninas, are naturally occurring weather phenomena that usually alternate every couple of years as a function of how the Pacific Ocean interacts with the air above it. A La Nina occurs when the temperature of the sea is cooler than average in the eastern Pacific Ocean, resulting in less evaporation, weaker storms and less moisture in the atmosphere, according to NOAA. That allows easterly trade winds the permanent east-to-west winds that blow near the equator to strengthen, allowing the Pacific Oceans colder waters to upwell to the surface. Those cold waters then push the jet stream farther north. La Nina causes the jet stream to move northward and to weaken over the eastern Pacific. La Nina events may last between one and three years, unlike El Nino, which usually lasts no more than a year, National Geographic reports. Both phenomena tend to peak during the Northern Hemisphere winter. What does La Nina mean for Idaho? One of the defining characteristics of La Nina is a weakened jet stream over the eastern Pacific Ocean. The colder sea surface temperatures off the West Coast force the jet stream northward toward Alaska before dipping southward into mainland North America once its over land. This weather pattern typically leads to drier weather in the south, according to NOAA, but wetter weather for the Pacific Northwest. Temperatures are also normally colder throughout the countrys northern half during La Nina winters. What would that mean for Boise? Boise experiences a typical winter from December to February with 14.2 inches of snow and an average temperature of 33.9 degrees, so Idahoans can expect more snow and lower temperatures than those figures. What other impacts does La Nina have? One of the more notable impacts of La Nina, which Idahoans fortunately dont have to deal with, is a more active hurricane season. La Nina decreases atmospheric stability over the Atlantic Ocean, according to NOAA, which encourages more robust hurricane growth. Researchers at Colorado State University have predicted that 23 named storms, 11 of which will be hurricanes, will occur in this years Atlantic hurricane season. Both those numbers are higher than the average totals from 1991 to 2020 on average, there are 14.4 named storms and 7.2 hurricanes per season. Five of the 11 forecast hurricanes are predicted to reach major hurricane strength, a Category 3 or stronger hurricane capable of producing sustained winds of 111 mph or greater. Los Angeles Unified is pushing ahead with district-wide lesson plans based on the science of reading even after state lawmakers rejected legislation requiring the curriculum. About half of the 434 elementary schools in the nations second-largest school system have already adopted lessons aligned to the phonics-based science of reading, according to Superintendent Alberto Carvalho. The district is aiming for the method to be used in all elementary schools in the coming 2024-25 academic year. The project brings Los Angeles in line with other large districts around the country, such as New York City, which have also begun implementing evidence-backed tactics for teaching literacy, amid a national reading crisis. Get stories like these delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter But LAUSD faces some unique obstacles. A report released in February by the advocacy group Families in Schools detailed gaps in instruction and disconnects between parents and teachers on how to teach reading. LAUSD lags in reading scores behind other districts in California, a state with one of the lowest literacy rates in the country. LA Unifieds plan also places Californias largest district at odds with state lawmakers, who this month tabled a bill that would require reading instruction based on decoding words using letters and a focus on phonics. The proposed law, which was backed by groups including the California State PTA and the NAACP, died in committee after the state teachers union and English learner groups registered their opposition. The legislatures rejection of the bill swung the nations most populous state away from a national trend for mandates of science-based reading instruction. Dozens of states have taken up such laws and policies, including Mississippi, Ohio, Utah, Kansas, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania and the Carolinas. The push for a unified, evidence-based approach to literacy instruction faces obstacles in Los Angeles Unified, where only about a quarter of students met reading standards on the most recent assessments. The district in June replaced a key intervention program aimed at boosting reading and math skills for struggling elementary school students that had employed materials based on the science of reading. The new approach, known as the Literacy and Numeracy Intervention Model, will cost less and reach middle school students as well, according to district officials. Carvalho said in a December interview that the district had made significant progress in rolling out a unified set of curricular options aligned to the science of reading to elementary schools under the effort, and that by June 2024 it would achieve systemic adoption for all grade levels. Last month he adjusted the timeline, saying in a subsequent interview that all elementary schools would have access to the materials by the start of the upcoming academic year in August. The superintendent said the district would use the extra time over the summer to conduct training for teachers on the new instructional approaches and materials. I think were actually in a good place so far, considering the size of our district, said Carvalho. Its a massive undertaking. Under the districts new approach, Carvalho said, schools will choose from a menu of curricula that contain approaches to literacy instruction including phonics, phonemic awareness, fluency, comprehension and vocabulary. The so-called science of reading approach favored by LAUSD and many other districts today stands in contrast to the whole-language theory once employed by many schools, which emphasized learning to read by using visual cues and words the student already knows, rather than decoding the sounds of their letters. There will be a number of reading series, all meeting the criteria, and then principals and their school councils have the flexibility to adopt for their own school, any one of the ones that meet the criteria, said Carvalho. The adoption of a unified approach to reading instruction will provide consistency across schools and bolster the education of transfer students in a district with large numbers of transient kids, Carvalho contended. Four decades of research show the science of reading works, Carvalho said, with more recent studies showing it can boost literacy rates for struggling students and reverse declines in pandemic learning loss. A recent study conducted by researchers at Stanford University found that test scores at 66 of Californias lowest-performing schools jumped after educators adopted approaches in line with the science of reading. Students in several other states have already exceeded pre-pandemic literacy levels by employing curriculum with explicit phonics instruction, according to a Brown University analysis of test score data. Carvalho said Los Angeles schools that have already begun using the districts approved literacy materials and teaching methods have embraced the changes and begun to show some academic progress. Students at Esperanza Elementary School in Westlake have made significant gains on reading assessments following the adoption of phonics-based teaching materials and methods promoted by the district, from Core Knowledge Language Arts, said principal Brad Rumble. Less than half of first graders at the school met reading benchmarks before the roll-out of phonics-based lessons began in 2021, according to Rumble, but 65% met standards this year. Likewise, the principal said, second graders reading on grade level rose from 39% to 61%. We start with the sounds, and then we move to more complex skills, like decoding and sight recognition, Rumble explained. We dont just forget what weve learned. Students at the school tackle vocabulary development and the understanding of language structure, becoming fluent readers by grade three, Rumble said, and then, those fluent readers comprehend what theyre reading. Core Knowledge Language Arts help teachers at Esperanza Elementary build systematic reading lessons, said Rumble. The gains made by students at his school point the way that Carvalho wants the rest of the district to go. With high numbers of students living in poverty, and large populations of homeless children and immigrant families, Los Angeles Unified faces special challenges in reading instruction. The Families in Schools report found that just 15% of parents knew what their schools reading curriculum was, while only about half said they had the tools to help their child learn reading. Just 40% of Los Angeles students can read at grade level by third grade, the report notes, with just 9% of English learners meeting standards. By eighth grade, less than 1% of English learners met standards. The report lauded LAUSDs new efforts to educate teachers in the science of reading and instruct parents to teach literacy at home, but said a greater, long-term commitment is needed, to build on recent, slight gains in test scores. The groups CEO Yolie Flores, a former vice president of the LAUSD Board of Education, said the district can do better. Families understand that if their children cant read, its essentially game over, said Flores. This is why we urge Superintendent Carvalho and the LAUSD board of education to deepen its efforts. Flores said Carvalhos promise to put the science of reading in every Los Angeles elementary school is a step in the right direction. The district now needs to ensure the new lessons are implemented, she said. We cant keep kicking the proverbial can down the road, said Flores. Carvalho said that so far hes heard few complaints with the program, although some concerns have been raised by members of the English-language learning community, he said, with what can been seen as a one-size-fits all approach of uniform curricula. The local teachers union, he said, has not registered any opposition to the project. United Teachers Los Angeles did not respond to a request for comment on the matter. Although other states have had success in legislative mandates for evidence-based reading instruction, California lawmakers dropped a proposed law after the states largest teachers union registered its opposition. In a letter opposing the legislation, the California Teachers Association said the bill would duplicate current literacy programs and limit teachers discretion in serving diverse student populations, including English learners. Separately, advocates for English learners also sent letters to lawmakers in opposition to the bill, saying the state needs a plan that centrally addresses the needs of bilingual students. California assemblywoman Blanca Rubio, a Democrat and teacher who authored the bill, said her own time in the classroom informed her belief in phonics-based instruction. For me, it is not one size fits all approach, said Rubio. The science of reading takes into account the research on how kids best learn to read. When I was a teacher, we set goals and we used the data to inform our instruction. Carvalho, who supported Rubios bill, said results from state reading assessments taken by LA Unified students this spring will help determine whether the districts roll-out of evidence-based reading instruction is working. Regardless, the superintendent is confident in the districts new approach to literacy instruction. Im a true believer that the basics of reading instruction and philosophy, must be rooted in a science of reading, Carvalho said. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. On May 13, a telephone conversation took place between the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan Jeyhun Bayramov and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said, Trend reports. The heads of the foreign ministries of Azerbaijan and Ukraine discussed the strategic partnership of the countries. The parties also discussed issues of cooperation between Azerbaijan and Ukraine in various fields, including transport, energy and humanitarian ones. It was noted that relations between the two countries and our peoples are based on historical foundations and are constantly developing on the basis of the norms and principles of international law, including respect for territorial integrity and sovereignty. The Ukrainian side emphasized the importance for its country of the humanitarian assistance provided by Azerbaijan to Ukraine and expressed gratitude to Azerbaijan. Along with this, an exchange of views took place on other issues of bilateral and regional cooperation of mutual interest. A law firm that boasts of being the 'most-feared' in the world is boosting pay for newly qualified London lawyers to $225,500 US law firm Quinn Emanuel has upped pay for junior lawyers to $225,500. The 18% increase comes amid fears of a talent war between London's top legal firms. Legal pay has been increasing, but keeping pace with the deep pockets of US-based rivals is challenging for UK firms. Quinn Emanuel, one of the largest global litigation firms, just made a major play to attract young talent in London. The firm is increasing base annual salaries for young lawyers to $225,500 (180,000), according to a statement published on Friday. The raise marks an 18% jump from the previous base salary of around $190,000 (152,000) offered by the firm. According to the statement, salaries will also increase "substantially" as seniority increases. Quinn Emanuel, which has boasted of being voted the "#1 Most Feared Law Firm in the World," specializes in representing businesses in corporate disputes. It has numerous high-profile clients, including Google, FIFA, Elon Musk, and FTX. The salary increase for newly qualified solicitors is to "reward our outstanding lawyers," explained Alex Gerbi, the firm's co-managing partner in London. It also reflects "the firm's commitment to continuing to attract the very best new talent," said Gerbi, hinting at the intensifying battle for talent brewing in London's legal industry. Last week, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, one of five highly prestigious, corporate-focused UK law firms known as the Magic Circle, also pushed up starting salaries. The London-based firm announced it would increase base pay for newly qualified lawyers by 20% to around $190,000 (150,000), close to Quinn Emmanuel's salary offering before the latest hike. The moves will likely pressure other top law firms in London, including Magic Circle members Slaughter and May, Linklaters, A&O Shearman, and Clifford Chance. Last year, most of the firms also hiked salaries by similar levels to remain competitive with each other; however, it's a challenge for the UK-based enterprises to keep pace with the deep pockets of their US counterparts. "We believe there is no better home than our firm for the brightest and best disputes lawyers, and this decision aligns our salaries with the opportunities we offer them," a spokesperson from Quinn Emanuel told Business Insider. In 2023, the firm reported a 26% jump in annual revenue to more than $2 billion, according to Legal Business. But Quinn Emanuel is also coming off the back of a few turbulent years. In 2022, a shake-up in leadership became the talk of legal circles when two comanaging partners were installed to serve alongside founder John Quinn the first time in the firm's 37 years that he has shared power over the litigation giant. "I have a growing recognition that this enterprise is huge and that I'm missing things," Quinn previously told Business Insider. Read the original article on Business Insider Local officials have backed some of the proposed changes for years, saying the law has been hijacked by commercial operators. (Dana DiFilippo | New Jersey Monitor) Legislators in both chambers will weigh changes to the Open Public Records Act on Monday in what could be the acts most substantial overhaul since it came into being 22 years ago. Local officials have backed some of the proposed changes for years, saying the law has been hijacked by commercial operators who have inundated records custodians with requests and driven up government costs. But many of the bills provisions have alarmed activists, journalists, and transparency advocates who say the changes would sharply limit the kinds of public documents citizens can access and do nothing to stem the flood of commercial requests. The bills support is bipartisan Sen. Paul Sarlo, the Democratic budget chair, and Sen. Tony Bucco, the chambers Republican leader, are among its chief sponsors as is its opposition. We are a government of the people, by the people, for the people. This legislation upends that, Assemblywoman Nancy Munoz (R-Union) said in a statement. Fee-shifting Among critics chief concerns about the legislation is that it would end the mandatory awarding of attorneys fees to requestors who successfully challenge a denial in court. Under its text, such awards would only be required if a judge finds the custodian acted in bad faith, unreasonably denied access, or knowingly violated the law. The bills supporters say mandating the award of attorneys fees costs government entities too much. But critics worry that weakened fee-shifting and separate language that requires requestors to prove special fees custodians can charge for complex requests are unreasonable would allow governments to improperly shield records while leaving requestors without legal representation to challenge such denials. Fee-shifting is the Open Public Records Acts primary enforcement mechanism. Attorneys who take on public records cases often do so for free and rely on attorneys fees, which are paid only if the requestor prevails in court. The Government Records Council also adjudicates records disputes, but the agency is famously slow. A 2022 state comptroller report found it took the agency 21 months on average to resolve a case. The bill would grant the agency $6 million in funding, give it discretion to award attorneys fees, and require it to complete records disputes within 90 days beginning 18 months after the bill is signed into law. The legislation would alter the agencys makeup, expanding its five-member board to nine members and removing prohibitions that bar public-sector workers from sitting on the board as one of its eight public members, which the governor would directly appoint. Members would also be paid a salary. It calls for the agency to create a uniform records request form that municipalities must adopt, which would allow custodians to deny outright requests that do not include a requestors name, address, email, and phone number. Such denials would be barred against anonymous requests, though that provision is likely moot. The bill would remove anonymous requestors ability to challenge a denial in court or before the agency, so custodians would face no penalties for bad-faith denials of anonymous requests. New language would allow governments to add payroll costs to special service fees they can charge requestors who ask for electronic copies of physical documents. Other changes would allow custodians to ask for deposits before taking any steps to fill a records request. Exemptions and commercial requests The legislation would create new exemptions barring the release of information related to an expanded range of electronic devices, public security systems, and metadata. Others would require custodians to redact a range of personal information including names, addresses, telephone numbers, personal emails, and bank and credit card information from documents ranging from pet permits to Motor Vehicle Commission records to public safety emergency response plans and government notification systems. Yet other exemptions would limit the release of manuals, medical information guarded by federal privacy laws, and photos or video footage showing genitals, breasts, and other intimate parts. The latter provision hails from a bill introduced by Bucco (R-Morris) and is meant to stop the sharing of body camera footage featuring young women on social media. Its not sure whether the exemption and separate language barring requestors from sharing such material would stop such posts, as terms of service for most popular social media platforms already disallow nudity. Exemptions that would have barred the release of email, phone, and text message logs, public officials calendars, and certain information related to contract negotiations were removed by amendments. The bill would create a separate track for commercial OPRA requests, allowing custodians 14 days to fill such requests before seeking an extension instead of the seven-day period provided to all requestors under current law. Other language would allow commercial requestors to receive documents within seven days if they pay a special service fee equal to twice the cost of producing records. The fee is meant to help governments meet the costs of producing records. Its not clear what would happen if a custodian sought to extend response times for such requests. Custodians seldom fill OPRA requests without seeking at least one seven-day extension. Requests filed by news media, political candidates, labor unions, governments, and educational organizations are not considered commercial requests under the bill, and requests from nonprofits are only considered commercial if the nonprofit earns a fee from sharing them with a third party. New custodian rules The bill would allow custodians to deny requests for documents in the agencys possession if such documents were created, maintained, or received as in the case of applications and the like by another agency. This can happen in some criminal investigations when a county prosecutor has municipal police records in its possession. It would allow governments to sue records requestors if they believe they filed requests to stunt government operations and allow judges to issue orders limiting individuals ability to file requests under the law. It would codify non-binding precedent from the Government Records Council that requires requestors to provide names, a specific time period, and discrete subject matter when requesting officials emails or text messages. New Jersey courts have reversed denials on less specific requests. The legislation would also require each submission of a records request go to only one agency. The bill does not define submission, so the scope of the provision is unclear. It would allow custodians to automatically deny requests submitted while an identical or substantially similar request is pending. Critics have said this provision could halt some types of investigations that involve requesting identical documents from multiple agencies. The bill would allow but not require custodians to post records in an online portal to which they can direct requestors instead of providing records. The bill would provide $4 million in grants from the Department of Community Affairs to fund such systems, or about $7,000 per municipality. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Lawmakers prepare final votes for bill overhauling public records law appeared first on New Jersey Monitor. Heres a look at how area members of Congress voted over the previous week. Along with this weeks roll call votes, the House also passed these measures: the Securing Chain of Command Continuity Act (H.R. 6972), to require an executive branch agency whose head is a member of the National Security Council to notify, within 24 hours of such head becoming medically incapacitated, the Executive Office of the President, the U.S. Comptroller General, and congressional leadership; the Mail Traffic Deaths Reporting Act (H.R. 7527), to direct the Postal Service to issue regulations requiring its employees and contractors to report to the Postal Service traffic crashes involving vehicles carrying mail that result in injury or death; the Eliminate Useless Reports Act (S. 2073), to require agencies to include a list of outdated or duplicative reporting requirements in annual budget justifications; and the Astronaut Safe Temporary Ride Options Act (H.R. 272), to authorize transportation for government astronauts returning from space between their residence and various locations. HOUSE GRANTS TO SPECIAL GOVERNMENT DISTRICTS: The House has passed the Special District Grant Accessibility Act (H.R. 7525), sponsored by Rep. Pat Fallon, R-Texas, to require the Office of Management and Budget to create regulatory guidance on how federal government agencies classify special districts formed by local governments, to determine whether the districts can receive money from the federal government. Fallon said the guidance would help districts, which are often formed to provide emergency services or for water management, consistently access federal financial assistance. The vote, on May 6, was 352 yeas to 27 nays. YEAS: Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick R-Bucks; Mike Kelly, R-Butler; Dwight Evans, D-Philadelphia; Chrissy Houlahan, D-Chester; Madeleine Dean, D-Montgomery; Brendan Boyle, D-Philadelphia; Matt Cartwright, D-Lackawanna; Lloyd Smucker, R-Lancaster; John Joyce, R-Blair; Guy Reschenthaler, R-Washington; Glenn Thompson, R-Howard; Dan Meuser, R-Luzerne; Susan Wild, D-Lehigh; Mary Gay Scanlon, D-Delaware; Summer Lee, D-Allegheny; Chris Deluzio, D-Allegheny NAYS: Rep. Scott Perry, R-York MADELEINE ALBRIGHT POST OFFICE: The House has passed a bill (H.R. 3354), sponsored by Rep. Jennifer Wexton, D-Va., to name a post office building in Purcellville, Va., after Madeleine Albright, who was Secretary of State from 1997 to 2001. The vote, on May 7, was 371 yeas to 28 nays, with 3 voting present. YEAS: Fitzpatrick, Kelly, Evans, Houlahan, Dean, Boyle, Cartwright, Smucker, Thompson, Meuser, Wild, Scanlon, Lee, Deluzio NAYS: Perry, Joyce NOT VOTING: Reschenthaler GRID TRANSFORMERS EFFICIENCY RULE: The House has adopted an amendment sponsored by Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Pa., to the Hands Off Our Home Appliances Act (H.R. 6192). The amendment would void a recently issued Energy Department rule setting energy conservation standards for distribution transformers on the electrical grid. Kelly said the rule threatened to replace grain-oriented electrical steel in transformers with amorphous steel, with a resulting decrease in efficiency, and the loss of jobs at an electrical steel mill in Pennsylvania and dependence on foreign sources of amorphous steel. An amendment opponent, Rep. Frank Pallone, D-N.J., said the rule provides stability and certainty while moving us toward vital efficiency goals. The vote, on May 7, was 208 yeas to 199 nays. YEAS: Fitzpatrick, Kelly, Perry, Smucker, Joyce, Reschenthaler, Thompson NAYS: Evans, Houlahan, Dean, Boyle, Cartwright, Wild, Scanlon, Lee, Deluzio NOT VOTING: Meuser EFFICIENCY RULES FOR HOME APPLIANCES: The House has passed the Hands Off Our Home Appliances Act (H.R. 6192), sponsored by Rep. Debbie Lesko, R-Ariz., to change Energy Department procedures for making energy efficiency standards for home appliances such as dishwashers and refrigerators. Lesko said the bill will preserve the affordability, availability, and quality of the household appliances Americans rely on every day. An opponent, Rep. Frank Pallone, D-N.J., said the standards save Americans money on their energy bills, boost innovation by modernizing appliances for the future, and reduce greenhouse gas pollution. The vote, on May 7, was 212 yeas to 195 nays. YEAS: Fitzpatrick, Kelly, Perry, Smucker, Joyce, Reschenthaler, Thompson, Meuser NAYS: Evans, Houlahan, Dean, Boyle, Cartwright, Wild, Scanlon, Lee, Deluzio JOINT EMPLOYER RULE: The House has failed to override President Bidens veto of a resolution (H.J. Res. 98), sponsored by Rep. John James, R-Mich., to disapprove of and void a National Labor Relations Board rule for determining whether two or more employers qualify as joint employers when they have the same employee. James said overturning the rule would allow Americans to self-determine without threat to their right to collectively bargain. A resolution opponent, Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va., said the joint employer rule was needed to protect American workers. The vote to override, on May 7, was 214 yeas to 191 nays, with a two-thirds majority required. YEAS: Fitzpatrick, Kelly, Perry, Smucker, Joyce, Reschenthaler, Thompson, Meuser NAYS: Evans, Houlahan, Dean, Boyle, Cartwright, Wild, Scanlon, Lee, Deluzio EXTENDING AVIATION PROGRAMS: The House has passed the Airport and Airway Extension Act, Part II (H.R. 8289), sponsored by Rep. Sam Graves, R-Mo. The bill would extend authorization for Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) programs through May 17. Graves said failing to make an extension would cost more than $50 million daily, and he said the bill was also needed so we can keep our aviation system operating safely and focus on passing a long-term FAA bill next week. The vote, on May 8, was 385 yeas to 24 nays, with 1 voting present. YEAS: Fitzpatrick, Kelly, Evans, Houlahan, Dean, Perry, Boyle, Cartwright, Smucker, Joyce, Reschenthaler, Thompson, Meuser, Wild, Scanlon, Lee, Deluzio REMOVING HOUSE SPEAKER: The House has tabled a resolution (H. Res. 1209), sponsored by Rep. Marjorie Taylor-Greene, R-Ga., that would have declared the office of House Speaker vacant. The vote, on May 8, was 359 yeas to 43 nays, with 7 voting present. YEAS: Fitzpatrick, Kelly, Evans, Houlahan, Dean, Perry, Boyle, Cartwright, Smucker, Joyce, Reschenthaler, Thompson, Meuser, Wild, Deluzio NAYS: Scanlon, Lee SEC ACCOUNTING RULE: The House has passed a resolution (H.J. Res. 109), sponsored by Rep. Mike Flood, R-Neb., to disapprove of and void a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rule that issued accounting guidance requiring banks to place digital assets, such as cryptocurrencies, that they hold in custody on their own balance sheets. Flood said the resolution would provide a necessary check to executive branch power by stopping the SEC from bypassing statutory rulemaking procedures with impunity. A resolution opponent, Rep. Stephen Lynch, D-Mass., said the digital assets present unique technological, regulatory, and legal risks that could significantly impact a companys financial condition and its operations. The vote, on May 8, was 228 yeas to 182 nays. YEAS: Fitzpatrick, Kelly, Houlahan, Perry, Boyle, Smucker, Joyce, Reschenthaler, Thompson, Meuser NAYS: Evans, Dean, Cartwright, Wild, Scanlon, Lee, Deluzio MINING ON FEDERAL LANDS: The House has passed the Mining Regulatory Clarity Act (H.R. 2925), sponsored by Rep. Mark E. Amodei, R-Nev., to change regulation of mining on federal lands to allow for exploratory mining in areas not known to have mineral deposits. A supporter, Rep. Pete Stauber, R-Minn., said that by overturning a 2022 appeals court ruling blocking a copper mine in Arizona on the grounds that a substantial copper deposit was not yet known to be at the mine site, the bill would properly allow mining to resume on federal lands. An opponent, Rep. Melanie A. Stansbury, D-N.M., said the bill would enable a toxic free-for-all on our public lands. The vote, on May 8, was 216 yeas to 195 nays. NAYS: Fitzpatrick, Evans, Houlahan, Dean, Boyle, Cartwright, Wild, Scanlon, Lee, Deluzio YEAS: Kelly, Perry, Smucker, Joyce, Reschenthaler, Thompson, Meuser ELECTIONS AND THE CENSUS: The House has passed the Equal Representation Act (H.R. 7109), sponsored by Rep. Chuck Edwards, R-N.C., to require the Census to include a question on U.S. citizenship, and exclude non-citizens from the count used to determine the number of representatives in Congress for each state. Edwards said: Since the illegal alien population is not evenly distributed through the nation, American citizens in some states are losing representation in Congress to illegal aliens in other states. An opponent, Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., called the bill unconstitutional and unwise. It dishonors our own history and the values of the nation. The vote, on May 8, was 206 yeas to 202 nays. YEAS: Fitzpatrick, Kelly, Perry, Smucker, Joyce, Reschenthaler, Thompson, Meuser NAYS: Evans, Houlahan, Dean, Boyle, Cartwright, Wild, Scanlon, Lee, Deluzio INVESTIGATING CONSTRUCTION FAILURES: The House has passed the National Construction Safety Team Enhancement Act (H.R. 4143), sponsored by Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif. The bill would expand the authority of the National Institute of Standards and Technologys National Construction Safety Teams to include investigations of the failures of structures that are not buildings. Lofgren said the expanded authority was necessary because theres no agency currently authorized to conduct thorough technical investigations of failure of general infrastructure, like levees, dikes, bridges, or dams. The vote, on May 8, was 358 yeas to 41 nays. YEAS: Fitzpatrick, Kelly, Evans, Houlahan, Dean, Boyle, Cartwright, Smucker, Joyce, Reschenthaler, Thompson, Meuser, Wild, Scanlon, Lee, Deluzio NAYS: Perry SENATE AMBASSADOR TO TIMOR: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Donna Welton to be U.S. ambassador to Timor-Leste. Welton has been a State Department diplomat in Afghanistan, Finland, Indonesia, and Japan. The vote, on May 7, was 52 yeas to 40 nays. YEAS: Sens. Bob Casey, D-Pa.; John Fetterman, D-Pa. AVIATION POLICY: The Senate has passed the Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in American Aviation Act (H.R. 3935), sponsored by Rep. Sam Graves, R-Mo. The bill would reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) through fiscal 2028, and set out an array of policy directives for the FAA and the Transportation Department, including updated rules for operating drones and a drug testing program for NTSB workers. A supporter, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said: Passing this FAA bill preserves critical funding for airport security, training for more air traffic controllers and safety inspectors at manufacturing plants. An opponent, Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., objected to the bills failure to resolve problems with aircraft capacity at Reagan National Airport in Virginia. The vote, on May 9, was 88 yeas to 4 nays. YEAS: Casey, Fetterman Two Polk County lawyers who had filed to run for Circuit Judge Wayne Durden's seat allege in a lawsuit that he deliberately changed his retirement date to thwart an election and have his successor appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis. Two local lawyers are trying to stop what they consider a ploy by a retiring judge to have his successor chosen by Gov. Ron DeSantis rather than voters. Steve Pincket and Renee M. Reid are plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed May 7 asking a court to reinstate an election in August for the position being vacated by Circuit Judge Wayne Durden of the 10th Judicial Circuit. The suit names DeSantis and Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd as defendants. Pincket and Reid were among four lawyers who planned to run for the circuit judge seat. This is probably the most significant constitutional issue, as to the judiciary, that we've seen in the last 20 years, Pincket said. Nick James, a Jacksonville attorney, filed the suit on behalf of Pincket and Reid in the Second Judicial Circuit in Leon County because DeSantis and Byrd, Floridas top election official, are the defendants. The 13-page complaint asserts that Durden, 65, announced in February his plans to retire but two days later retracted that statement and said he would seek re-election. Durden then opened a campaign account for the Group 14 election and deposited a loan of $100,000, the complaint says. In April, Lakeland lawyer Greg Abaray became the first of four candidates filing to run, followed by Lakeland lawyer John Waters, Pincket and Reid. The week before qualifying began on April 22, Durden reversed course, sending a letter to DeSantis stating that he planned to retire, effective Dec. 31. By resigning in this way, Judge Durden sought to convert what would have been a judicial election into what is now a judicial appointment, the lawsuit states. The complaint quotes from Durdens letter to DeSantis as proof that he timed his retirement to prevent an election that would determine his successor. Therefore, I wish to announce my resignation/retirement effective at 11:59 p.m. on December 31, 2024, a few days prior to the end (of) my current term which ends on January 6, 2025, Durden wrote. In line with current legal authority, it is my understanding that your acceptance of my announcement of retirement prior to the election qualifying period next week will result in an appointment of a successor by you to my position, which is my hope and desire. 'Political power reach' The complaint says that allowing Durdens successor to be appointed rather than elected would violate two sections of the Florida Constitution. The suit asks the court to order the Division of Elections to accept Pincket and Reids qualifying documents and list them as candidates for an election in Group 14. Abaray has since switched races and is challenging incumbent Judge Catherine Combee in Group 27. Waters withdrew his candidacy. The defendants have 20 days to respond to the suit, Pincket said. The case has been assigned to Circuit Judge J. Lee Marsh, who was appointed by former Gov. Rick Scott in 2018. Tracy Skeen, director of community relations for the 10th Judicial Circuit, said that Durden was unavailable to comment on the lawsuit. DeSantis office did not respond to an email sent Thursday morning seeking comment. If DeSantis were to appoint a replacement for Durden, that judge would not face an election for two years. Polk County judge State commission drops one charge in investigation of John Flynn In an interview, Pincket said that trial judges throughout Florida have increasingly timed their retirements for the final days before their terms would end, allowing a governor to appoint a successor and depriving voters of the chance to elect a new judge. Trial judges serve terms of six years, and appointments of replacements are appropriate if a judge resigns or retires during the first 5 years, said Pincket, a Lakeland resident. This is a recent push to exercise more influence over the judiciary in that last half of the sixth year of office, that one-twelfth part, and it's a political power reach, Pincket said. And it's happening at the expense of, Well, let's go cancel the people's election. Courts in Florida have previously considered similar questions about judicial elections. The complaint cites two cases in which the Florida Supreme Court asserted that judicial openings should be filled through elections rather than appointments when possible. A case from 2014 involved a Jacksonville lawyer seeking to run for a seat being vacated by a judge. The lawyer, David Trotti, filed qualifying papers, but the election was canceled after the judge announced he would resign near the end of his term. The Secretary of States Office informed Trotti that then-Gov. Rick Scott would appoint a replacement. When Trotti sued, a Circuit Court ruled against him, and Floridas First District Court of Appeal in Tallahassee upheld that ruling in a 2-1 decision. The court stated that any judicial vacancy, even one of just a single day, enabled the governor to appoint a replacement. The new lawsuit contends that this position contradicted an earlier Supreme Court opinion that appointments are appropriate only if a judges resignation would create an unreasonable vacancy in the office. In the next election cycle after the Trotti ruling from 2014, several judges submitted resignations before the qualifying period but effective days before their terms would end, the complaint says. Faced with complaints from would-be candidates, the Florida Supreme Court denied the petitions on technical grounds, but four justices questioned the soundness of the Trotti decision, the lawsuit says. A tradition of academic ascent From Mulberry's migrant community to Stanford and Cornell The complaint quotes from an opinion written by Justice Fred Lewis: It is truly a sad day for Floridians when their trial court judges may manipulate the electoral process and prioritize their personal preferences over those espoused in the very Constitution they swore to defend. Lewis is now retired and leads the Justice Teaching Center at Florida Southern College in Lakeland. Pincket served as plaintiff in a similar suit in 2016 after Circuit Judge Olin Shinholser, based in Highlands County, submitted a delayed retirement, giving then-Gov. Scott the chance to appoint a replacement and quash an election. Previous challenges failed While earlier legal challenges have failed, the complaint says the current situation differs in two ways. In previous cases, each plaintiff was a sole candidate and would have gained office without election, whereas the potential Group 14 election initially had four candidates and still has two. Additionally this case is distinguishable, because the intent of the outgoing Judge is clearly to deprive the public of an election, the complaint says. Although past resignations have appeared politically motivated; never have the facts been so crystal clear where as no reasonable person could conclude that the outgoing judge was not acting with particular malice towards the electoral process. Pincket said that retirements or resignations in the final months of a judges term should be the exception but are becoming more of the norm. He said the integrity of the judiciary branch, which is supposed to be independent from the executive branch, is at stake. Florida voters have signaled their preference for elections of trial judges over the years, Pincket said. In 2000, voters rejected a ballot measure that would have abolished judicial elections in favor of appointments. While appellate judges and Supreme Court justices are appointed, Pincket said it is important that Floridas approximately 900 circuit and county court judges be elected. Trial judges serve the voters; they serve the community they live in, he said. They will see the jurors come in. They will see victims of crime come into their courtroom. They will see their constituents enter for civil matters, divorce and custodies, and theyre to serve those people. Judicial elections take place during the primary round on Aug. 20. The plaintiffs have requested an expedited calendar date that would allow the election to be included on ballots printed for the election. Pincket worked in private practice for 35 years and joined the Public Defenders Office for the 10th Judicial Circuit two months ago. Reid has worked in the Public Defenders Office since 1999. The 10th Judicial Circuit, based in Bartow, handles criminal and civil cases for Polk, Hardee and Highlands counties. Former Gov. Charlie Crist appointed Durden, a longtime prosecutor, to the Circuit Court in 2010. He is currently assigned to felony cases. Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or 863-802-7518. Follow on X @garywhite13. This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Suit: Retiring Polk judge's successor should be elected, not appointed Four candidates are vying for the Legislature's District 13 seat currently held by term-limited State Sen. Justin Wayne of Omaha. From left, Nick Batter, Matthew Clough, Tracy Hightower-Henne and Ashlei Spivey. (Photos courtesy of the candidates; Capitol photo by Rebecca Gratz for the Nebraska Examiner) OMAHA The race to replace term-limited State Sen. Justin Wayne in northern Douglas County and northeast Omaha could come down to whether neighbors prefer one of two lawyers, an abortion rights advocate or a former state executive. In Legislative District 13, where Democrats outnumber Republicans 2 to 1, three of the four candidates said they disagreed with Waynes support for diverting public funds to subsidize parents paying for a private K-12 education. Omaha lawyer Tracy Hightower-Henne, a Democrat who co-founded a law firm and is the top fundraiser in the race, said she oppose public school dollars going to private schools. She has worked with Union Pacific and the Nebraska Innocence Project and is a board member of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Nebraska. Tracy Hightower-Henne Age: 42 District: 13 Work experience: Owner, Hightower Reff Law; executive director of Nebraska Innocence Project; board member, Planned Parenthood Advocates of Nebraska; former tax attorney, Union Pacific; adjunct professor, Creighton University Law School Political party: Democratic Education: Bachelors degree, Doane College; Masters degree and law degree, Thomas M. Cooley Law School in Lansing, Mich. Abortion-rights advocate Ashlei Spivey, a Democrat who leads the Omaha-based nonprofit I Be Black Girl, said she would not pass policies that remove public funds from public institutions. She is a former vice president at U.S. Bank and owns a business. Omaha lawyer Nick Batter, a nonpartisan and corporate counsel for Hawkins Construction, said the states voucher program for private school scholarships subsidizes people with the means to send their kids to private school. He served in the Army, repairing infrastructure and providing humanitarian aid. Matthew Clough, a former chief operating officer of the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, applauded Legislative Bill 1402, which appropriates state funds for private school scholarships. He called it a step to seeing opportunity begin to flourish. Clough, a Republican, has owned businesses in insurance and health care. Hightower-Henne, Spivey and Batter want the state to focus more attention on improving public schools than sending tax dollars elsewhere. Clough said he would like to see more of the impact of the states recent investments in state aid to public schools and special ed. Property taxes among top issues for voters One of the common complaints the candidates said they have heard from voters was high property taxes. Homeowners and business owners complained about valuation increases pricing them out, they said. Hightower-Henne said she wants to rebalance the states three-legged stool of property, income and sales taxes. She agrees with Gov. Jim Pillen on the problem but said she would not raise sales taxes to lower property taxes. Ashlei Spivey Age: 37 District: 13 Work experience: Founder and executive director, I Be Black Girl; vice president of business access,t U.S. Bank; owner, Best Burger Political party: Democratic Education: Bachelors degree, Jackson (Miss.) State University; masters degree, University of Texas at Arlington She said there is opportunity for the state to consider taxing marijuana and how it might more effectively tax gambling to find revenues for offsetting property taxes. Its relative to what their socio-economic picture is, and I think what we have proposed right now is completely regressive, and its just going to create the same problems, Hightower-Henne said. Spivey said the Legislature needs to stop trying to fix property taxes with a piecemeal approach. She said she would consult with experts such as the OpenSky Policy Institute to find other revenue streams that could support property tax relief. She said she supports direct property tax relief, but she said it cannot come at the expense of funding quality public schools. She would like to see the state take a more holistic approach to its tax system and find a better way. She has talked about legalizing marijuana and taxing it, along with looking at additional options for taxing gambling. I think we need to really consider other revenue streams into the state if we want to see property tax relief, Spivey said. Batter said he would like to see the Legislature fix some existing programs providing property tax relief, including the property tax credit fund. He would consider not giving relief to land speculators, billionaire investors and slumlords. Nick Batter Age: 38 District: 13 Work experience: Lead counsel for large Nebraska infrastructure projects, Hawkins Construction; humanitarian and infrastructure relief work, U.S. Army Political party: Nonpartisan Education: Bachelors degree, Harvard University; engineer school, Army; law degree, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Doing so could help target more relief at the homeowners and business owners who are invested in their neighborhoods, he said, instead of enriching people who dont deserve it. He said narrowing down who is eligible could target more relief to those who need it. Why are we subsidizing bad actors? Batter asked. Clough said people around the Capitol have told him the simplest way to lower the impact of property taxes is to lower the amount of a propertys valuation that is subject to the tax, to reduce the base on the assessments. However, he said he would have to study the impact that such changes would have on state and local spending before committing to a proposal. Ive talked to a lot of retired folks who feel like theyre being forced out of their homes because of property tax, Clough said. How to help K-12 education On education, Hightower-Henne said she would focus on recruiting and retaining talented teachers. She said too many teachers leave the profession and are not being replaced fast enough by students coming out of teachers colleges. Matthew Clough Age: 68 Work experience: Former chief operating officer, Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services; previously ran a manufacturing company; owned businesses in insurance, consulting and health care; former vice president, Alegent Health Political party: Republican Education: Bachelors degree, William Jewel (Mo.) College She said she would like to see the state do more to help teachers pay off student loans, offer more bonus programs and consider bumps in pay and benefits. Such changes need to be done at the state level to prevent inequities in places with lower tax bases. Spivey said she would like to reimagine the state aid funding formula for K-12 schools. To her, the state has yet to fully fund public education. And that, she said, is preventing some schools from being able to retain teachers and staff. Batter said he would get more senators to stop being antagonistic to teachers. He said he hears from teachers who feel like lawmakers are purposefully targeting them for doing an already difficult job. He said the Omaha Public Schools is on pace to lose hundreds more teachers following a pandemic that already cost them hundreds. He said higher pay would help with that and curb the loss of experienced para-educators, as well. Clough declined to say what policies he would pursue to improve K-12 education, describing the issue as too much of a hot potato right now. He said he would need to see the impact of what the Legislature has already done before taking next steps. Economic development and housing ideas On economic development and housing, Hightower-Henne said she would like to see North and South Omaha working more with people from central and western Nebraska on addressing the housing crisis, in terms of both accessibility and affordability. She said she would also like to see increased transparency and accountability on the millions of federal pandemic relief dollars bound for North Omaha through the state. She said the community should have more say in how those dollars are spent. Spivey would like to see the state place a greater emphasis on boosting the visibility and availability of job training programs at public two-year colleges now that the state has taken over funding Metro Community College and others. She said helping people boost their skill sets is one of the most effective ways to improve lives. She said she would like to see the state work with private funders to make sure housing is affordable for residents with lower incomes or fixed incomes. Batter said the state needs to do what it can to eliminate slumlords and incentivize quality affordable housing. He said that includes understanding the cost to neighborhoods of development projects eliminating lower-cost housing. He said he would like to see Nebraska consider investing more in child care services so that more people can afford to enter and remain in the workforce. He said Nebraska could also do more than it does to apply and secure federal funds. Clough said he would like to see Nebraska do more to encourage young people to consider learning trades, whether through union apprenticeship training programs or working with community colleges and partnerships with major corporations. The post LD 13 race in Douglas County focuses on vouchers, property taxes, job training appeared first on Nebraska Examiner. (WHTM) A Lebanon post office will soon bear the name of Lebanon City Police Lieutenant William Lebo, who was killed in the line of duty in 2022. President Joe Biden signed a bill introduced by Congressman Dan Meuser (PA-9) to name the Lebanon post office located at 101 South 8th Street as the Lieutenant William D. Lebo Post Office Building. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now WHTM Daily Digest Lt. Lebo was shot and killed in the line of duty on March 31, 2022, after responding to a domestic incident in Lebanon. His death was the first time a Lebanon City police officer was killed in the line of duty since 1903 and only the third line-of-duty death in the departments history. He had served in the department for 40 years and was weeks away from retirement. Lt. Lebos four decades of service stand as a testament to his profound commitment to the City of Lebanon, said Rep. Meuser. Renaming the post office in his beloved hometown will serve as a lasting tribute to his extraordinary life and legacy of service. This legislation was a small gesture compared to the enormity of Lt. Lebos contributions to his community. I thank my colleagues in the House and Senate for unanimously supporting this effort. Together, we honor the memory of a dedicated public servant whose indelible mark on the Lebanon community will be remembered for generations to come. Lora Lebo, wife of Lt. William Lebo, said, Williams mother and I are so incredibly happy to have a permanent reminder to the community of his 40 years of service and his life-long commitment to Lebanon County. We hope that it will serve as a reminder that police are here to protect us, and each of them dedicate their lives to serving the public. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now WHTM Severe Weather Alerts A dedication ceremony is currently being scheduled. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC27. Prosecutors began their questioning of once-devoted Trump fixer Michael Cohen Monday with an eye toward humanizing the disbarred attorney and emphasizing his direct contact with the president, according to a legal expert. Cohen took the stand Monday in a Manhattan courthouse as prosecutors used his testimony and evidence from phone records to audio recordings to put together the pieces of Trumps alleged scheme to quash salacious stories about extramarital affairs with hush money and then disguise those payments as legal fees all in violation of state law. Cohen testified that Trump told him he would be repaid for paying off adult film star and director Stormy Daniels, who has long claimed she and Trump had a sexual encounter at his Lake Tahoe hotel suite in 2006. I was doing everything that I could and more in order to protect my boss, which was something I had done for a long time, Cohen said, according to The New York Times. The jury will weigh whether they see Cohen as an immoral Trump fixer trying to atone for his sins, or a vindictive employee out for revenge, Syracuse University College of Law professor Gregory Germain told Salon. NYU Law emeritus professor Stephen Gillers said prosecutor Susan Hoffinger sought above all to humanize Cohen. She wanted to establish a basis for the jury to trust him, Gillers said. And she wanted to show the jury that Cohen will also say complimentary things about Trump. After days of testimony from witnesses who described Cohens devotion, interactions and frustrations with Trump, prosecutors on Monday sought to demonstrate his once close relationship with Cohen. She needed to show that Cohen has a basis for knowing what his testimony will reveal because he had access to Trump almost without restriction, Gillers said. Finally, she wanted to establish that Trump was a micromanager, who insisted on knowing everything about what his subordinates were doing. All of this aims to establish Cohens credibility before the cross examination tries to destroy it. Last year, a Manhattan grand jury indicted Trump with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records including checks, invoices and general ledger entries. Prosecutors say Trump schemed to pay off Daniels, model Karen McDougal and a doorman who falsely claimed Trump had an affair with a housekeeper. Trump pleaded not guilty to those charges and denies the extramarital affairs he allegedly covered up to preserve his 2016 presidential campaign. Trumps defense team has repeatedly warned jurors that Cohen simply cannot be trusted, pointing to his time in federal prison for tax fraud and perjury. Trump attorney Todd Blanche has said Cohen is obsessed with the idea of sending Trump to jail, and that he has a history of misrepresenting conversations with Trump. I submit to you that he cannot be trusted, Blanche told jurors in his opening statement. Trumps lawyers say Cohen was not a salaried employee at the time of the Daniels payoff. The defense team says Cohen acted on his own accord to pay off Daniels, and is now blaming Trump for his own decisions. MAKING TRUMP HAPPY On Monday, Cohen discussed his childhood and how he entered Trumps inner circle by purchasing Trump properties, landing a job as his special counsel, working with the National Enquirer to quash salacious stories, renegotiating bills for the businessman and speaking to Trump frequently in the lead-up to the 2016 election. The only thing that was on my mind was to accomplish the task, to make him happy, Cohen testified, according to The New York Times. Cohen said he would lie on Trumps behalf and constantly sought approval and credit from Trump. He said he always kept Trump apprised of his efforts to kill negative stories, particularly after the catastrophic release of the Access Hollywood audio recording in which Trump bragged about grabbing women by their genitalia. Women are going to hate me, Cohen recounted Trump saying to him about the prospect of Daniels speaking publicly about their alleged sexual encounter. Just take care of it. Cohen said Trump also said: Guys may think it's cool, but this is going to be a disaster for the campaign. Cohen testified that in summer 2016, he worked to keep McDougals story about an alleged extramarital affair with Trump quiet. In one call with Cohen, former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker and Trump, Cohen said Pecker discussed a potential $150,000 payment to quash the story. No problem Ill take care of it, Cohen testified Trump said. Cohen said Trump directed him to speak with former Trump CFO Allen Weisselberg who is currently in jail after pleading guilty to two counts of perjury in Trumps civil fraud trial. Cohen testified that Weisselberg told him to avoid going through the Trump Organization to pay off McDougal. It was typical for everyone to discuss financial matters with Weisselberg, Cohen testified, according to MSNBC correspondent Katie Phang. The National Enquirers publisher, American Media Inc., ended up paying McDougal $150,000 in August 2016. But AMI CEO David Pecker testified that after receiving legal advice, he called off a deal for Cohens LLC to pay AMI $125,000 for McDougals nondisclosure. By October 2016, Cohen was negotiating with Daniels lawyer Keith Davidson on a $130,000 payment for Daniels through a non-disclosure agreement. The payment to Daniels came from another Cohen LLC. In a Monday guest essay for The New York Times, Andrew Weissmann, a former senior prosecutor in Robert Muellers special counsel investigation, said Cohens baggage poses a significant risk for Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg. He recently claimed under oath in a New York civil fraud trial against Mr. Trump (where the court found him credible and ruled against Mr. Trump) that he lied to a federal judge when he pleaded guilty to one of several crimes, Weissmann wrote. By way of explanation, he seemed to contend he was pressured to plead guilty by the federal prosecutors. But Weissmann said prosecutors were right to call Cohen as a witness. Jurors often want to hear someone recount what they already know occurred, but that has not been said directly, Weissmann said. The jurors will then often reach a verdict of guilty, and despite having found the conspiracy existed as recounted by a key criminal accomplice someone like Mr. Cohen they will later say they did not believe or need that witnesss testimony. Want a daily wrap-up of all the news and commentary Salon has to offer? Subscribe to our morning newsletter, Crash Course. UNDERLYING ELECTION CRIME Paying hush money itself is not a crime but Manhattan prosecutors bumped up the falsification of business record charges to felonies by alleging Trump had the records falsified to conceal criminal activity. Specifically, prosecutors say Trump violated Section 17-152 of New York state election code, which says its a misdemeanor to conspire to promote or prevent the election of any person to public office by unlawful means. Through these false business records, the defendant intended to make sure that nobody learned about the Stormy Daniels payoff and the illegal election fraud scheme launched at the Trump Tower meeting in 2015, prosecutor Matthew Colangelo said in opening statements. Colangelo also said: At the end of the case, we are confident that you will have no reasonable doubt that Donald Trump is guilty of falsifying business records with the intent to conceal an illegal conspiracy to undermine the integrity of a presidential election. Prosecutors have provided jurors with financial records - including checks drawn from Trumps own bank account signed by the former president himself, and handwritten notes outlining a plan to gross up payments to Cohen to cover his taxes allegedly linking Trump with the reimbursements to Cohen for the hush-money payments. The hard part of the case is not proving that Trump wanted to hide embarrassing information from the public, but whether he was trying to cover up a crime, such as an illegal campaign contribution, Germain told Salon. Cohen could be helpful to Trump or the DA if he could testify that he and Trump didn't believe, or did believe, that the payment would be an illegal campaign contribution. For prosecutors to make their case, legal experts say they likely need Cohen to directly link Trump with another set of business records: the post-election Trump Organization ledgers that allegedly disguised Cohens hush-money reimbursements as legal fees. Cohen touched on that issue in his testimony Monday, when he said he would not have paid $130,000 for Daniels' deal without expecting to be paid back. Cohen also addressed another hurdle for prosecutors Trump's reluctance to use emails and his lack of an email address. Jurors saw a text message from Melania Trump asking Cohen to call "DT" on his cell. During certain conversations, hed comment that emails are like written papers he knows too many people who have gone down as a direct result of having emails that prosecutors can use in a case, Cohen said, according to Politico. Cohen and other witnesses called by the prosecution have described Trump as a frugal micro-manager who closely scrutinized financial decisions. Trumps team has argued he had a complete lack of knowledge or intent about the checks, invoices and ledger entries. They maintain that the $420,000 payment to Cohen was for a legal retainer. I don't expect they're going to call a witness that says that President Trump had anything to do with what was written on the ledger, with generating the check, with the invoice coming in, Trump attorney Todd Blanche said in opening statements. The conclusion of the state's Revenue & Caseload Estimating Conference found revenue projections for the fiscal year that ends June 30, 2024, were $47.7 million more than originally estimated and $9.7 million above expectations for fiscal 2025. (Getty image) An extra $58 million is hardly pocket change. But in the context of a proposed $13.7 billion fiscal 2025 state budget and a rapidly rising sticker price for the demolition and rebuild of the Interstate-195 westbound Washington Bridge, the surplus cash expected to pad out state coffers isnt exactly a game changer. Or at least, thats how House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi, the puppet master on Smith Hill spending plans, viewed it. The conclusion of the twice-a-year Revenue & Caseload Estimating Conference on Friday, May 10, showed revenue projections exceeding prior estimates for this year and next: up $47.7 million for the fiscal year that ends June 30, with an extra $9.7 million above expectations for fiscal 2025. Im pleased that we are not facing a drop-off in revenues like other states, Shekarchi said in an emailed statement on Monday. However, these modest revisions need to be viewed within the context of the major budget proposals that are pending before us, as well as the many priorities not reflected in the Governors current proposal. Indeed, national economists and state business policy leaders warned that the end of pandemic-era federal aid and slowdown in state revenue growth will force tough choices in the years ahead, with a projected $244 million structural deficit in fiscal 2026. Meanwhile, the wish list of state spending items gets longer by the day: the states share of the Washington Bridge and relief for the businesses whose operations have been hurt by the limited access; the financially beleaguered state public transit system; and the worsening housing shortage and homelessness crisis. Both McKee and Senate President Dominick Ruggerio have suggested trimming the state sales tax as a way to make Rhode Island more competitive with its New England neighbors. On May 2, Ruggerio introduced a bill calling for a .5-percentage point cut to the state sales tax, from 7% to 6.5%. The bill was referred to the Senate Finance Committee, a hearing for which had not been scheduled as of Monday. This is a concept the Senate President has long supported, Greg Pare, a Senate spokesperson, said in an email Monday. These modest revisions need to be viewed within the context of the major budget proposals that are pending before us, as well as the many priorities not reflected in the Governors current proposal. House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi McKees fiscal 2025 budget proposal does not include any reductions in state sales tax instead its listed as a wish list item in case theres extra money but he unsuccessfully floated a .15-percentage point reduction last year. Cutting the sales tax by half a percent translates to $120 million a year in forgone revenue, according to calculations from the Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council. Ruggerio also stressed the importance of balancing competing priorities when asked about the latest revenue estimates. I am encouraged by the caseload and revenue estimates, particularly in light of the challenges many other states are facing, Ruggerio said in an emailed response. The Senate Finance Committee has been reviewing all aspects of the budget, as well as other legislative priorities that have a fiscal impact. As for McKee: This forecast presents us with an important opportunity to strategically invest the additional revenue to address our current fiscal responsibilities rather than creating new programs that cause out-year budget deficits, Olivia DaRocha, a spokesperson for the governors office, said in an email Monday. The $5.37 billion in state revenue expected for fiscal 2024 under the latest estimates reflects higher income from state business utility, banking and insurance taxes, up $88 million compared with a year ago. However, this was partially offset by a $68.7 million downgrade to expected personal income tax revenue. Sales and use taxes beat prior estimates by $11.4 million, while lottery revenue will now be $8 million less than expected. Looking ahead to fiscal 2025, state budget analysts expect $5.46 billion in revenue, a $9.7 million boost over prior calculations. That again includes stronger business corporation tax revenue, up $30.7 million, and a $19.5 million boost from sales and use taxes. However, personal income tax revenue is again expected to come in lower than previously expected, down $53.6 million over prior expectations. The Rhode Island House is expected to unveil its own version of a fiscal 2025 spending plan in the coming weeks, with a final budget approved by both chambers and the governor no later than June 30. The post Let the jockeying begin: Revenue review identifies $58M more in state surplus funds appeared first on Rhode Island Current. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. The 2nd ICESCO Ministerial Conference on PISA (Program for International Student Assessment) has kicked off in Baku, Trend reports. "Overview of PISA 2022 results: global and regional trends" is the theme of the international conference organized by the Institute of Education, the Ministry of Science and Education of Azerbaijan, in collaboration with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ICESCO). The event has brought together over 40 representatives from Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt, UAE, Bahrain, Latvia, Nigeria, Malaysia, Morocco, Brunei, Lebanon, Oman, Gambia, and other countries. The goal of the conference is to identify key points and best practices that can be used to adapt countries' assessment frameworks to their unique educational landscapes, and to develop more effective, relevant assessment systems. The conference is currently carrying on its activities. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Letters to the Editor: To police standing around in Metro stations: Get on the trains To the editor: As an occasional rider of the Metro A and B Lines (formerly Blue and Red, respectively), I have noticed some incremental improvements in addressing safety. More civilian Metro personal are out and about on the station platforms, which does have an effect on keeping the facilities tidier and a bit safer. ("L.A. Metro is doomed if it cant keep bus and train riders safe," editorial, May 6) But the real problem is on the actual trains, not on the platforms. No one not the Metro personal or officers from various police agencies is actually riding on the trains and walking through them to show their presence. On the very rare occurrence that I have seen a couple of officers actually get on the train, they get into the first car and stand directly behind the driver's station and get off at the next station. They usually don't even bother to look down the length of the car, let alone walk through the train. Way back in my day as a cop, we called it "walking a beat." It was a very effective way to show who was in charge. Bob Hoffman, Long Beach .. To the editor: I am done taking Metro trains. I have a truck, but I am a believer in taking public transportation to reduce traffic and pollution. Despite years of feeling very uneasy on transit because of the presence of seemingly mentally ill people, I still took Metro rail to Little Tokyo. The fatal stabbing of Mirna Soza Arauz and the assaults on bus drivers have changed my mind. My heart goes out to all who do not have alternative transportation. I will not take Metro until there is a large, dependable and accountable security force and a system that will not allow people to ride unless they pay. Our "car-free" 2028 Summer Olympics transportation system is in real jeopardy unless drastic changes are made quickly. Shirley Tatsuno, Alhambra .. To the editor: The recent sick-out by Metro bus drivers was a reminder that without these people, the whole system falls apart. I am a regular rider and totally supportive of the drivers' action. Now I feel it is incumbent on riders to express solidarity by thanking them for every ride when boarding and deboarding. Bus drivers are the very definition of essential. I don't have the option to leave the system. Let's stand together in support of our drivers and each other. There is safety in numbers. Don't give up on Metro! Annie Hayden, Los Angeles .. To the editor: Rider safety is necessary for Metro to survive, but not sufficient. Perceptions of transit safety are strongly influenced by the lax enforcement policies Metro implemented after the murder of George Floyd in 2020. Officers who attempted to enforce Metro's rules were routinely vilified, and Metro's board consciously sacrificed order to diminish bad press but the bad press is back. Metros ridership problem runs much deeper than security. Total annual ridership decreased by more than 100 million boardings between 2007 and 2018, before the pandemic. The core reason was increased spending on rail and reduced spending on buses. Fewer people appeared on L.A.'s expanded rail system than were forced off buses by service reductions and fare increases. James E. Moore II, Los Angeles The writer is a professor emeritus of transportation engineering at USC. .. To the editor: Before the Los Angeles County Transportation Commission and the Rapid Transit District (RTD) merged to form Metro, the RTD had its own police force. After the merger, the RTD officers were absorbed into the Los Angeles Police Department. The L.A. County Sheriff's Department was placed under contract to provide security for Metro. Perhaps it is time to return to a dedicated transit police department. Judy Wilson, Pasadena This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) A Licking County man pleaded guilty to creating and distributing videos of depicting acts of extreme violence and sexual abuse against monkeys. According to the office of United States Attorney Kenneth Parker, Southern District of Ohio, a plea agreement was unsealed Monday in which Ronald Bedra, of Etna, just south of Pataskala, pleaded guilty to conspiring to create and distribute animal crush videos. Animal crushing is defined under federal criminal law as actual conduct in which one or more living non-human mammals, birds, reptiles or amphibians is purposely crushed, burned, drowned, suffocated, impaled or otherwise subjected to serious bodily injury. Alleged sexually violent predator faces judge in bond hearing for north Columbus murder Bedra, according to court documents, conspired with others to create the videos, which depicted acts of sadistic violence against baby and adult monkeys, who were dismembered and sexually abused. The press release said that conspirators used encrypted chat apps to direct money to individuals in Indonesia willing to commit the requested acts of torture on camera. Bedra also mailed a thumb drive containing 64 videos of monkey torture to a co-conspirator in Wisconsin. Bedra appeared before a federal judge to enter his guilty plea on April 16 after an agreement was made eight days prior. The plea agreement did not include a sentence recommendation. According to the U.S. Attorneys Office Southern District of Ohio, the crimes are punishable by up to five years in prison. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to NBC4 WCMH-TV. My life is in danger, says Marine vet who tried to help North Korean diplomats defect A Marine veteran said his life is in danger after he claims he attempted to help North Korean diplomats defect by staging a fake kidnapping. Christopher Ahn described in a 60 Minutes interview with Sharyn Alfonsi on Sunday that the Spanish government is now seeking to extradite him after the incident. Ahn said he is part of Cheollima Civil Defense, a secretive activist group that is hoping to overthrow the North Korean government. Of course it sounds crazy, he said, describing how a North Korean diplomat at the Spanish Embassy contacted the group to help them defect. His mission: fake a kidnapping to allow the diplomats enough cover to leave. All was well then the police showed up. The color on everyones face just [turned] to lily-white, he said. The acting ambassador told Spanish police that Ahns group had tied and beat staff during the kidnapping, which he denied. Now, the Spanish government is attempting to extradite him, and hes already spent nearly three months behind bars. The FBI has told me that my life is in danger. That the North Korean government is now, and will be, targeting me for assassination, he said. Ahns attorney told 60 Minutes that they have attempted to get the Justice Department or President Biden to intervene on his behalf and stop any extradition. He added that he has previously helped Kim Han Sol, the nephew of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, escape the country and go into hiding after his father was assassinated in Malaysia in 2017. North Korea had been publicly embarrassed with what happened in Spain. They had been publicly embarrassed with me helping rescue Han Sol, Ahn said. So why wouldnt I believe the FBI when they tell me that North Koreas trying to kill me? Updated May 13 at 6:11 a.m. ET For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Republicans apparently havent cast aside the possibility of overturning another election. At least two top GOP lawmakers have felt the need to add caveats to statements affirming that theyll embrace the outcome come November, including the former chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Senator Lindsey Graham. Will you accept the results of the 2024 election no matter who wins? prompted MSNBCs Meet the Press host Kristen Welker on Sunday. Yeah, Ill accept them if theres no massive cheating, Graham said. In the same breath, Graham specified that he accepted 2020 as a measure of his commitment to accepting election outcomes, even though he clearly hasnt let go of the outcome enough not to buy in a little to his partys election interference scandal. WELKER: Will you accept the results of the 2024 election no matter who wins? LINDSEY GRAHAM: Yeah, I'll accept them if there's no massive cheating pic.twitter.com/H8tvRorrXw Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 12, 2024 Meanwhile, Ohio Senator J.D. Vance fully committed to accepting the results of the general electionso long as Trump is the victor. Look Dana, I fully commit to accept the results of 2024. I think that Donald Trump will be the victory, Vance told CNNs Dana Bash. If its a free and fair election, Dana, I think every Republican will enthusiastically accept the results. And again, I think that those results will show that Donald Trump will be reelected president. DANA BASH: Will you commit to accepting the results of this year's election? JD VANCE: I totally plan to accept the results of 2024. I think that Donald Trump will be the victor. I think those results will show that Donald Trump was elected. pic.twitter.com/CsY1LBX409 Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 12, 2024 Conservatives have insistedwithout evidencethat the 2020 election was stolen from Trump since he refused to concede to President Joe Bidens victory. The scandal resulted in a slew of criminal charges for Trump and his allies in their efforts to undermine elections in swing states such as Arizona and Georgia. Simultaneously, news outlets that aired the baseless allegations, including Fox News and Newsmax, are under the gun for historic defamation lawsuits by voting machine companies. The gamut of lies has been thoroughly debunked, but Republicans attempting to curry favor with the presumptive GOP presidential nominee continue to double down on it. Lithuania's presidential election is set to go to a runoff later this month as no candidate gained a majority of the votes on May 12, in a race that has heavily focused on the country's role as a NATO neighbor of Russia. Incumbent President Gitanas Nauseda placed first in the initial round of voting with 44.2 percent of the vote, finishing well ahead of his competitor incumbent Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte at 19.7 percent. Throughout the campaign the candidates heavily focused on future security policies in response to Russian aggression in the region. All the major candidates agreed that NATO and EU member states should boost defence spending in support of Ukraine. Nauseda, 59, the country's populist president has been serving in the top role since 2019. While Simonyte, 49, a fiscal conservative with liberal views on social issues, has been serving as prime minister since 2020. The two previously faced off against one another in the 2019 presidential election, which Nauseda won. Lithuania remains among the top supporters of Ukraine globally in terms of the share of GDP, with bilateral aid to Ukraine reaching 1.5% of GDP. Additionally, Lithuanias share of EU assistance for Ukraine amounts to another 0.5 % of the countrys GDP. Earlier this year, Lithuania pledged a long-term 200 million euro (roughly $215 million) support package to Kyiv. Many Lithuanians fear that if Russia is successful in Ukraine, then Lithuania - surrounded by Belarus and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad - may become Russia's next target of attack. According to a recent poll, seven out of ten residents of Lithuania said that they believe Russia poses a threat to their country's national security. The president of Lithuania serves as the supreme commander of the country's armed forces, while also overseeing foreign and security policy. Eight candidates ran in the presidential election. Ignas Vegele, a prominent lawyer and right-wing activist who fiercely criticized the government for its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, finished third with 12.3 percent support, followed by former right-wing politician Remigijus Zemaitaitis with 9.2 percent. The runoff election between Nauseda and Simonyte is scheduled for May 26. Read also: Lithuanian FM backs sending Western military trainers to Ukraine Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. A Little Village mother forgave her sons killer. Now she writes poems to honor victims of gang violence. On a small table adjacent to a red couch, Doris Hernandez keeps the last photo of her late son amid dozens of crosses, a rosary and a Bible with worn pages bearing the weight of countless prayers. Hanging on the wall is a card he gave her as a child for Mothers Day. Theres also a gold notebook that she keeps on top of the couch. Within its pages, penned with ink, grief and resilience, are hundreds of poems. Each verse is a tribute to her sons memory, a whispered promise to keep his essence alive. Theyre an orison to heal the wounds of mothers who, like her, have felt the searing pain of losing a child to gang violence in Chicagos Little Village. The soul hurts, she wrote two years after her son, Freddy Cervantes, 20, was shot in the face and chest while standing in an alley. He was part of a gang. Its not a physical pain that my mind can control, its an anguish in the soul that medicine cannot cure. It is not the shadows of the deaths that make me feel lonely, its more of the sadness of not being able to see you, to hear you, the poem read. Devastated by her loss, Hernandez, 66, found solace and strength through poetry. She began to write, channeling her emotions into verses that pay tribute to the suffering of a community in Chicago that has been plagued by gang and gun violence for decades. There are more than 200 poems about her son and his friends, most of whom have been killed or are in jail, she said. Shes also written about their mothers and their pain, humanizing stories that have been turned into numbers and lost to a narrative that has normalized the killings in Little Village. There were many nights where I couldnt sleep because I couldnt stop thinking about my son. I found peace in writing these poems, but I never thought they would make it out of my notebook, Hernandez said. Now I realize that theyre an ode to a beautiful community that suffers, but is resilient. Though shes afraid shell forget the sound of her sons voice one day, she still remembers seeing her sons blood being washed off the pavement as she pleaded to other young people there to let go of their thirst for retribution, for she had already forgiven the killer. The very first time she read one of her poems in public was the day in 2013 when she announced shed founded Padres Angeles or Parent Angels, to parishioners at St. Agnes of Bohemia Parish, 2651 S. Central Park Ave.. Driven by a desire to prevent other families from experiencing the same heartache, she founded the grassroots organization to violence prevention in her community. Its mission is to support parents who have lost children to gun violence and to empower young people to choose a different path. The group holds workshops for parents who have lost a child or who have young ones at risk. It also does outreach through street masses, block cleanups and general outreach to the people of Little Village, including gang members. It is now also affiliated with Consuelo, a group created to help grieving parents and their families cope with loss. On Friday, May 10, the day when mothers from Mexico and other Latin American countries celebrate Mothers Day, the group met at St. Agnes of Bohemia Parish to celebrate with a healing circle led by a grief therapist. If I didnt have their support, I wouldnt have been able to move forward after my sons death, said Carlota Lopez, 56. Her son David Lopez was killed in 2009. He was 20 years old and had been vocal about leaving the gang before he was killed, she said. His journey was documented in The Interrupters, a documentary about young people attempting to reform their lives. It took many years before she could watch the documentary. Now she plays it often just to hear his voice, she said. The mother of six said she found consolation and the strength to keep going because of Hernandez. She joined the group and has since become vocal about the systemic issues that led to her sons death. Every Mothers Day is a stark reminder that she has an angel watching over her, she said while sitting in Hernandezs kitchen a day before the Mothers Day event, holding back tears. Hernandez grabbed her notebook and turned the pages to a poem she had written about Lopez and her children. Though she had heard it before, it brought back a sense of acceptance over the loss of her child. In a way, it makes me feel like at least theres someone who sees me and understands my pain, she said. Hernandez has prayed alongside hundreds of other grieving mothers since her son was killed. Shes partnered with Dolores Castaneda, known as the mother of Little Village for her advocacy work in the community, and the two have attended hundreds of funerals and vigils of those killed by gun violence. They also visit victims in the hospital and young people in jail. Since March, they have attended at least 20 funerals of victims of gun violence in Little Village. Over the years, theyve noticed that December and January, along with summer months are the deadliest, Castaneda said. Each time, Hernandez returns home, grabs her notebook and writes. The heavy rain suddenly prevented the vigil from starting their hearts in pieces showed their pain, their worried faces, not only because of the unexpected farewell but also because of the uncertainty of not knowing who will be added next to the bloody list, Hernandez wrote in poem she dedicated to the family of Ramon Breceda, who was killed at 16 in 2014. Three teens from the neighborhood were later charged with first-degree murder in connection with the killing. The accused teens were aspiring members of the Latin Kings and the shooting was part of their initiation into the gang, according to prosecutors. It is a battlefield, violence ends the lives of our young people, they are leaving us. But it also destroys families who are dead inside and left behind, Hernandez wrote in the poem. At those vigils, Hernandez and Castaneda also embrace other young men and women who find themselves drawn into gangs, letting them know they all are loved. While some people cannot fathom her sympathy for the communitys troubled youths, Hernandez hopes that people are inspired to understand one another, their life circumstances and how they ended up in gangs. Little Village is made up of mostly working-class families, and most parents are immigrants who work from dusk to dawn, often unable to keep a close eye on their children, Castaneda said. There are two major gangs in Little Village the Latin Kings and the Two Six and involvement is deeply rooted in the neighborhood. Its fueled by a system that continues to blame young people and their parents rather than offer proactive alternatives, she said. Falling into gangs and street violence is sometimes inevitable. Even when parents notice that their children are walking the wrong way, there arent many resources in the schools, churches or community centers to get them help, Hernandez said. Before her son was killed, she desperately searched for support for herself and her son, who was deeply affected after his father abandoned the family when Freddy was 8 years old. Hernandez hoped to find a lifeline with each phone call to the school, each visit to a church or community center a program, a psychologist, anything that could offer her son the support he needed to drive him away from the gang. But she said she was met with a wall of apathy a stark reminder of the systemic failures that plague communities like hers. Everyone told me that the only way to help him was if he decided to change his life, she recalls. Nothing and no one was able to help me. Hernandezs son was fatally shot Nov. 17, 2012, while standing in the gangway of an alley. Cervantes joined the Latin Kings around his freshman year at Farragut Career Academy. The night after he joined, Hernandez found him beaten and bloodied at a friends apartment. Even though she took him out of Farragut and enrolled him in an alternative school, Cervantes could not find a way out. Doris is a very strong person. The fact that she can embrace young people from both sides, Kings and Two Six, never knowing who killed her son, is admirable, said Castaneda. Sometimes, Castaneda said, they almost look at her like a mother. Over the years, theyve encountered several young men who come up to them and tell them that theyve found a job or that theyve moved away from a troubled life. Part of her mission, Hernandez said, is to advocate for programs and laws that could prevent youths from joining gangs. But its an endeavor that requires the collaboration of communities, policymakers and law enforcement to develop comprehensive solutions that offer alternatives and support to at-risk youths. In April, Hernandez and other mothers went to Springfield to push for two bills that would require the state to assist families with troubled youths in relocating to different neighborhoods and to provide more resources for mental health care for families in underserved neighborhoods, such as Little Village. The group held a blanket with photos of more than 100 young lives lost to gang violence in Little Village before the House and Senate of the Illinois General Assembly. In September, the group plans to travel to Washington with the support of Crime Survivors for Justice and Safety to push for more resources for youth at risk and their families. Padres Angeles and their healing circle, Consuelo, are mostly funded by donations from community members. Often, though, Hernandez and Castaneda fully fund the activities and the programs themselves. For the two mothers, its a labor of love. By helping others heal, they say, they heal themselves. Hernandez recalled praying to God for peace when her son was killed. Tell me what Im supposed to do with all this love that is left that was supposed to be for my son, she recalls saying while on her knees in the middle of the night. What I do, what I write, and what I say to help others is all the love that my son left in me to give the world, she said. In the streets of Little Village, Hernandezs presence serves as a beacon of hope, reminding others that peace is possible even in the darkest of times. In the first poem for her son, Hernandez wrote: I want to walk alone through the streets where you walked, I pretend that I find you, but fear invades me because I know that this is not true. My deep and vivid pain becomes stronger the impossible desire to see you. I talk to the shadows of the trees in my path, and I only listen the crunching sound of its branches. I would like to run after you like I would when I would go looking for you, and I could surprise you where you least expected. Where is my son? AUSTIN (KXAN) After a recent string of deadly overdoses throughout the city, local leaders held a demonstration Monday morning on how to administer Naloxone, more commonly known as Narcan. Officials from both Austin and Travis County held a news conference to talk about making the overdose reversal drug more widely available in the community. They also showed how to administer it in the event someone needs it. Speakers at Mondays event included Travis County Judge Andy Brown, U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, Austin City Council Member Leslie Pool and others. Austin-Travis County EMS shared how its launching a new education campaign called Breathe Now, which aims to train people on how to help someone experiencing an overdose before first responders can arrive. Part of that training includes showing how simply someone can administer Narcan. Its done by placing the nozzle in someones nostril and then deploying the red button, which releases the overdose-reversing medicine into their system. Paramedics said once Narcan is administered, its best to roll that person onto their side. All of this should be done while also calling 911. First responders reminded people Monday that 911 call takers can also walk someone through how to use Narcan. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KXAN Austin. Donald Trump's former lawyer and "fixer" and the prosecutions key witness is on the witness stand today. Michael Cohen leaves his apartment building on his way to testify at former President Donald Trump's hush money trial in Manhattan Monday. (Julia Nikhinson/AP) Donald Trumps hush money trial resumed Monday in Manhattan criminal court, where Michael Cohen, Trumps former lawyer and so-called fixer, testified for several hours under direct questioning by the prosecution about his role in facilitating the $130,000 payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels to conceal the sexual affair she says she had with the former president. Daniels testified for more than six hours last week about the hush money deal she struck before the 2016 election to stay silent about her alleged tryst with Trump a decade earlier. Cohen was sentenced to three years in federal prison at the end of 2018 for various crimes, including tax evasion, lying to Congress and campaign finance violations related to the payment he made to Daniels. Trump is facing 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to conceal the hush money payment to Daniels. Below, get live updates on the case, including direct quotes and other details from media reports. LIVE COVERAGE IS OVER 44 updates Court breaks for the day Michael Cohen will return to the stand Tuesday morning, when prosecutors are expected to finish direct questioning of their key witness. Cohen testified Weisselberg said 'well get you a check out' for repayment Cohen testified that former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg said let's do it when he asked about getting reimbursed for the $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels after the new year, according to CNN. Cohen confirmed that he provided the First Republic Bank statement that Weisselberg requested, showing the $130,000 transfer. The jury was shown a copy of the bank statement with Weisselberg's handwritten notes tallying what Trump owed Cohen based on their previous discussions. Cohen testified he was present when Weisselberg wrote the notes. Cohen says Weisselberg told him the reimbursements would start in February. What he stated to me is, Each month just send an invoice to us. And just mark down for legal services rendered pursuant to the agreement, and well get you a check out, Cohen testified, adding that Weisselberg encouraged him to just be patient as Trump transitioned to Washington, D.C. Trump reads from stack of articles criticizing hush money case On his way out of the courtroom after a long day of testimony, Trump addressed reporters, appearing to read from a stack of printouts of favorable opinion articles criticizing the hush money case against him. "There's no crime here," Trump said. "This is four weeks of keeping me from campaigning." Cohen says he was 'beyond angry' that Trump cut his bonus Cohen said that he was beyond angry that Trump cut his bonus by two-thirds in 2016 after Cohen fronted $130,000 on his behalf to protect him. He testified that he learned of his bonus cut after he opened an annual Christmas card given by Trump to his staff. Right after opening it, I actually had to take a double take, Cohen said, according to CNN. I didnt expect more, but I certainly didnt expect less, the New York Times added. Cohen testified that he went to Trump CFO Alan Weisselberg's office and in some colorful language expressed to him how truly pissed off and angry I really was. According to reporters in the room, Trump laughed to himself and nodded when Cohen described his anger. Cohen admits he was disappointed not to be considered for White House chief of staff Cohen testified that he left the Trump Organization after Trump won the 2016 election because my service was no longer necessary and that he turned down the role of assistant general counsel in the White House. Asked if he was disappointed that the chief of staff position wasn't offered to him, Cohen insisted he didnt want the job but admitted he was disappointed that he wasn't considered. I would have liked to have been considered, Cohen said, adding: It was more about my ego than anything. Big picture: Earlier in the trial, the jury heard testimony from Keith Davidson, Stormy Daniels's lawyer, who said that Cohen was so despondent about the snub that Davidson thought he was going to kill himself. Cohen's own testimony here was much less dramatic, which may help him during cross-examination. Cohen says he coordinated Trump's response to the Karen McDougal story with Hope Hicks and David Pecker Before the break, Cohen testified that he spoke with David Pecker, then the publisher of the National Enquirer, and Hope Hicks, then the Trump campaign's spokeswoman, to coordinate Trump's response to a Wall Street Journal story about Karen McDougal's hush money agreement with Enquirer publisher American Media. Here is a link to the article, which was published on Nov. 4, 2016, just days before the election, with the headline: National Enquirer Shielded Donald Trump From Playboy Models Affair Allegation Big picture: Both Hicks and Pecker testified earlier in the trial. Prosecutors appear to be using Cohen's testimony as well as phone records to corroborate their accounts. Court is back in session Court has resumed for today's final stretch with Cohen back on the witness stand. Court takes an afternoon break The court is taking an afternoon break. Prosecutor Susan Hoffinger told Judge Merchan that her direct questioning of Michael Cohen will continue into tomorrow. 'This matter is now completely under control and locked down' Michael Cohen to Trump on Oct. 28, 2016, after Stormy Daniels signed the nondisclosure agreement following Cohen's $130,000 payment to Daniels for her silence, according to Cohen's testimony Cohen says he provided false documentation to open shell company Michael Cohen testified that the documentation he gave to the bank to set up Essential Consultants LLC was false in order to hide the intent of the reason for opening Essential Consultants, which is to pay for a nondisclosure agreement, CNN reported. Cohen said he believed the bank probably would not have opened the account if he had been truthful, which corroborates former banker Gary Farro's April testimony. If [the client] told me it was a shell corporation, it would not have been opened, Farro said when he was on the witness stand. It would give me pause, very frankly. Cohen says he spoke twice with Trump on the day of the Stormy Daniels hush money payment to get his sign-off Cohen testified that on the morning of Oct. 26, 2016 the day he made the wire transfer of $130,000 from his newly established home equity line bank account to Stormy Daniels he spoke with Trump twice to get his sign-off. "I wanted to ensure that once again he approved what I was doing because I require approval from him on all of this," Cohen told the court, per CNN. Prosecutor Susan Hoffinger asked whether Cohen would have gone forward with the payment without Trump's approval. "No. Everything required Mr. Trump's sign-off," Cohen replied, adding: "On top of that, I wanted the money back." Cohen asked David Pecker if he would make payment to Stormy Daniels Cohen testified that he asked David Pecker in 2016 if he would make the hush money payment to Stormy Daniels and was told "not a chance." Cohen says Trump instructed him to 'figure this whole thing out' Michael Cohen testifies at Trump's hush money trial on Monday in this courtroom sketch. (Jane Rosenberg/Reuters) Cohen testified that during his efforts to delay the $130,000 hush money payment to Stormy Daniels until after the 2016 election, Trump told him that friends of his advised him to just pay her and instructed Cohen to take care of it. "Theres no reason to keep this thing out there, so do it," Cohen recalled Trump telling him. "Just do it. Meet up with [Trump Organization chief financial officer] Allen Weisselberg and figure this whole thing out." Big picture: The prosecution is trying to show that Trump not only knew about the payment Cohen made to Daniels he orchestrated it. Melania texted Cohen a day after Cohen found out Daniels was going to the Daily Mail Cohen testified that Melania Trump texted him on Oct. 18, 2016, one day after Cohen tried calling Trump to inform him that Stormy Daniels was planning to tell her story to the Daily Mail. He said he got Trump's voicemail, so he left a message, CNN reported. Cohen said that the next morning, he received a text message from Trump's wife, Melania, that read: "Good morning Michael. Can you pls call DT on his cell. Thanks." "Of course," Cohen reportedly texted back less than a minute later. Cohen said that he ended up speaking to Trump. Cohen used Yom Kippur to delay paying Stormy Daniels After a lunch break, Michael Cohen resumed his testimony, describing his efforts to delay paying hush money to Stormy Daniels. Cohen testified that he used the Jewish holiday Yom Kippur as an excuse to delay paying Daniels. The jury was shown an email exchange between Cohen and Keith Davidson, an attorney who represented Daniels. Davidson wanted to speak to Cohen on Yom Kippur about the delay. Cohen replied that he could not because of the holiday. Earlier in his testimony, Cohen said that Trump told him: "I want you to just push it out as long as you can just get past the election. Because if I win it will have no relevance because I'm president. And if I lose, I don't even care." Court is back from lunch break Judge Juan Merchan has taken his seat on the bench, and Michael Cohen is back on the witness stand. Court breaks for lunch The trial will reconvene at 2 p.m. ET. Cohen says that Trump was not concerned about Melania: 'This was all about the campaign' Under direct questioning from prosecutors, Cohen testified that when he raised the issue of Melania Trump with Donald Trump after learning that Stormy Daniels was shopping the story of her alleged sexual affair with him, Trump was unconcerned about his wife. "How long do you think I'll be on the market for? Not long," Cohen recalled Trump saying. "He wasnt thinking about Melania," Cohen added. "This was all about the campaign." Big picture: Trump's defense attorneys have argued that he entered into hush money deals with Daniels and Karen McDougal because he wanted to protect his family and had nothing to do with his presidential campaign. Cohen's testimony contradicts that defense. Cohen said he believed Daniels's story would have 'catastrophic' impact on Trump's 2016 campaign Cohen testified that he thought Stormy Daniels's story of her alleged affair with Trump could be potentially "catastrophic" for Trump's chances at the White House. "This is horrible for the campaign," he said, describing his thinking at the time. After learning of Daniels's story, Cohen said, he went to Trump's office and "told him that one of the things that we need to do is obviously take care of it." Cohen said that Trump replied, "Absolutely. Do it, take care of it." Michael Cohen's testimony, as seen through a courtroom sketch Michael Cohen testifies at former President Donald Trump's criminal hush money trial in Manhattan on Monday in this courtroom sketch. (Jane Rosenberg/Reuters) Since the trial is not being televised and news photographers are only permitted 45 seconds to take still photos prior to the start of each day, the only images from inside the courtroom during Michael Cohen's testimony are portraits by sketch artists. This one, by noted sketch artist Jane Rosenberg, shows Cohen on the witness stand being questioned by prosecutor Susan Hoffinger while Trump sits with his eyes closed and Judge Juan Merchan and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg look on. Jane Rosenberg/Reuters Jane Rosenberg/Reuters Jane Rosenberg/Reuters Cohen says he was in London when he learned about the 'Access Hollywood' tape Cohen testified that he was in London in 2016 for his wedding anniversary and his daughter's birthday when he became aware of the "Access Hollywood" tape involving Donald Trump and Billy Bush. "I received a phone call from Hope Hicks," Cohen said. (Hicks served as press secretary during Trump's 2016 campaign.) Cohen also said he spoke to Trump privately that day about how to handle the fallout from the tape. "We needed to put a spin on this," Cohen said Trump told him. "The spin he wanted put on it was that this is locker room talk." Cohen says he never altered audio recording of call with Trump Cohen responded "no" when asked by prosecutor Susan Hoffinger if he ever altered the 2016 call with Trump, according to reporters in the room. Cohen said that the call ended abruptly, cutting off his own voice in the recording because he "didn't want to record more" and had to answer an "important" call from a branch manager at Capital One bank, NBC reported. During that time, Trump had a checking account at the bank. Merchan tells jury that the recording itself is the evidence Judge Juan Merchan told the jury that the recorded call between Trump and Cohen discussing the McDougal deal on Sept. 6, 2016, was presented as evidence. "The evidence in the case is the tape itself," Merchan explained, according to CNN. "The transcript is an aid." Court is back in session Judge Juan Merchan is back on the bench, and Michael Cohen's testimony resumes after a midmorning break. Court is taking a break Judge Juan Merchan called for a midmorning recess. When court resumes, Michael Cohen will continue his testimony. Jury hears recording of conversation between Cohen and Trump With Cohen on the witness stand, the recording of a Sept. 6, 2016, conversation between Cohen and Trump about the McDougal deal was played in court. Cohen testified that Trump was unaware that their conversation was being recorded. Cohen said that he made the recording so that he could play it for David Pecker, the National Enquirer publisher, so that he knew Trump "is going to be paying him back." "I also wanted him to remain loyal to Mr. Trump," Cohen added. Trump said he would 'take care' of cost to control McDougal story, Cohen testifies Cohen said he informed Trump that it would cost $150,000 to "control the story" of Karen McDougal's alleged affair with Trump, per reporters in courtroom. "No problem, Ill take care of it," Trump responded, according to Cohen's testimony. Cohen said that it was understood that AMI would front the funds and that Trump would pay them back. Cohen added that the details of how he would pay them back were not yet determined. Cohen's texts to AMI shown in court While Cohen was testifying, prosecutors showed the jury text messages between him and Dylan Howard, the former editor in chief of the National Enquirer, in 2016 during their negotiations with model Karen McDougal to buy the story of her alleged extramarital affair with Trump. Cohen was concerned that McDougal was going to tell her story to ABC. Ive got this locked down for you, Howard told Cohen in one of the texts shown in court. I wont let it out of my grasp. Big picture: McDougal ultimately did enter into an agreement with American Media, or AMI, the National Enquirer's parent company, which paid her $150,000 for the rights to her story. AMI never published it. Cohen says he told AMI McDougal allegations would have 'significant' impact on Trump's 2016 campaign Cohen recalled receiving a call in June 2016 from either David Pecker or the National Enquirer's then editor in chief, Dylan Howard, about former Playboy model Karen McDougal's story of her alleged affair with Trump. Cohen said he told AMI the story would have a "significant" impact on Trump's 2016 presidential campaign, according to NBC. That day, Cohen said, he texted Trump's bodyguard asking to speak to "the boss" about McDougal's allegations, per reporters in the courtroom. Cohen said he asked Trump if he knew McDougal, and that Trump replied: "She's really beautiful." He said Trump then tasked Cohen with making sure the story of their alleged affair was not published. J.D. Vance, a possible Trump VP pick, is in court today GOP Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio takes a photo as Trump speaks to reporters at Manhattan criminal court on Monday. (Mark Peterson/New York Magazine/Pool via AP) Trump arrived at his criminal trial Monday with a larger-than-usual entourage that included Eric Trump and Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama and Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio. Vance, who is viewed as a possible running mate for Trump, was seen standing behind the former president as he spoke to reporters before entering the courtroom. Cohen says he created a website for Trump in 2011: ShouldTrumpRun.com Michael Cohen testified that in 2011, when Trump was considering running for president, he created a website for him ShouldTrumpRun.com to gauge interest in his candidacy. The site no longer exists, but with the help of the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine, this is what the page said at that time: Should Donald Trump Run For President? Are you one of the many frustrated Americans sick and tired of hearing the same old mundane political campaign promises? Empty promises echo across the nation every four years; stringing us along as we wait for something good to finally happen. Well it is finally here, and it is real. It is DONALD J. TRUMP. We need to convince Donald Trump to run for President in 2012 and end all of the old rhetoric occurring in Washington. This campaign will sweep a nation ready for real change and improve the lives of each and every American citizen. Trump has the knowledge, the resources, the power and the experience needed to re-shape our ailing nation; restoring our hope. Under his guidance, The United States of America will once again be the land of opportunity, prosperity and strength! Join me in creating a grass roots movement designed to save the greatest democracy in the world. Our country is heading down a dangerous path. I ask you to help me urge Donald Trump to throw his hat into the political ring. Our elected officials are mortgaging away our future by spending money that we do not have and in the process, creating unsustainable deficits. We need to stop the bleeding now and Donald Trump will help to heal our economic wounds. We cannot afford to allow foreign countries to take advantage of us, improve their economies and leave our citizens without jobs. Donald Trump will even out the playing field and develop a legitimate plan to reign in our massive trade deficits. Vote Now And Join The Movement! Cohen testifies about plot with Pecker to suppress negative stories about Trump Under direct questioning, Michael Cohen confirmed previous testimony from former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker that he, Trump and Pecker entered into an agreement to suppress negative stories about Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign. Big picture: The plot to squash negative stories about Trump is what preceded the hush money deal at the center of the prosecution's criminal case against him. Cohen describes relationship with AMI's David Pecker According to NBC, Cohen testified that he knew David Pecker, the former president and CEO of American Media Inc., the publisher of the National Enquirer, before he knew Trump. "We had mutual friends, and we had met at a function out in Long Island many, many years ago," he said. "I then was reacquainted when David Pecker was the president and CEO of AMI, and more people know him for his magazines and newspapers. Cohen added that he had Pecker's cellphone and work phone numbers saved in his contact list. But Cohen told prosecutor Susan Hoffinger that before Trump launched his 2016 presidential campaign, he was unaware of AMI's "catch-and-kill" practice, in which the company paid for certain damaging stories with the intention of burying them. Cohen says it's 'fair' to call him Trump's 'fixer' Under direct questioning from prosecutor Susan Hoffinger, Cohen was asked whether it was fair to describe him as having been Trump's "fixer." "Yes, some have described me as that," Cohen replied. Cohen testified that, in that role, he would sometimes "bully" people for Trump and occasionally lie for him. Cohen describes how he dealt with press while working for Trump Former President Donald Trump waits for the start of proceedings in his hush money trial at Manhattan criminal court on Monday. (Spencer Platt/Pool via AP) Cohen said that part of his job was dealing with the press. This meant pushing positive stories about Donald Trump or responding to ones his boss didn't like. "If there was an article that caused him displeasure I would speak to them about them as well, Cohen said, according to CNN. Cohen: 'Mr. Trump never had an email address' Cohen testified that he communicated with Trump over the phone or in person, following his "open-door policy," according to CNN. Cohen said that Trump compared emails to "written papers." "He knows too many people who have gone down as a direct result of having emails that prosecutors can use in a case," Cohen says Trump told him. Cohen reveals starting salary as Trump's 'special counsel' Michael Cohen arrives at Trump Tower for meetings with President-elect Donald Trump, Dec. 16, 2016. (Bryan R. Smith/AFP via Getty Images) Cohen testified that in 2007 he was offered a job by Trump at the Trump Organization as "special counsel." He said his starting base salary with Trump was $375,000, but with a bonus, he made $525,000, according to reporters in the courtroom. Asked about his duties at the Trump Organization, Cohen reportedly said, It was whatever he wanted. Cohen identifies Trump in court Near the start of his testimony, Michael Cohen was asked by prosecutors to identify Donald Trump, who was seated at the defense table. Cohen stood up, leaned to his right and described his former boss seated in court as wearing a blue suit, white shirt and blue tie. Trump gave no visible reaction, per reporters in the room. What Trump said when he arrived at the courthouse Trump speaks to reporters after arriving at Manhattan Criminal Courthouse on Monday. (Seth Wenig/Pool via AP) Speaking to reporters after arriving at the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse Monday, former President Donald Trump boasted about his poll numbers, complained that the media didn't show the true size of the crowd at his weekend campaign rally, and railed against the case against him as he has done throughout the trial. He did not, however, mention Michael Cohen, his former lawyer and so-called fixer, who is expected to testify against him today. "It's a disgrace to the country," Trump said as his son Eric Trump and GOP Sens. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama and J.D. Vance of Ohio stood behind him. "I should be out campaigning now instead of sitting in a very cold courthouse all day long." Trump is subject to a gag order that prevents him from discussing witnesses like Cohen. He's been found in violation of that order 10 times, and Judge Juan Merchan has warned him that any further violations could result in jail time. Michael Cohen takes the stand Donald Trump's hush money trial resumed Monday with the prosecution calling Michael Cohen to testify. Per reporters in the room, Trump did not look at Cohen as he took the stand. Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg in court today Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg is making a rare appearance in court Monday as Michael Cohen, a key witness in the district attorney's case against former President Donald Trump, is set to take the stand. Who is Michael Cohen and why is he the prosecution's 'star witness'? Michael Cohen leaves the district attorney's office in New York, March 13, 2023. (Yuki Iwamura/AP) Michael Cohen, once a fierce ally to former President Donald Trump, is expected to testify at Trumps hush money trial on Monday. Billed as a star witness for the Manhattan district attorneys office, Cohens name has come up repeatedly since witness testimony in the trial began on April 22. Heres what you need to know ahead of his highly anticipated testimony. What was his relationship to Trump? Cohen worked for the Trump Organization for more than a decade as Trumps attorney, starting in 2006. During that time, he became known as Trumps fixer due to his role in covering up Trumps problems. Cohen was first introduced to Trump in 2006 by Donald Trump Jr. After consulting with the real estate mogul on a few legal matters, Cohen quickly became executive vice president of the Trump Organization and special counsel to Trump. As he explained to Vanity Fair in 2017, he was so devoted to Trump at the time that he said he would take a bullet for him. Whats Cohens role in the hush money trial? Cohen said that shortly before the 2016 presidential election, he made a $130,000 payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels as she was shopping her story to major media outlets about an alleged affair she had with Trump in 2006. He said the payment was intended to silence Daniels and prevent her from speaking to the media and compromising Trumps presidential future. According to Cohen, Trump reimbursed him for the payment after he became president through a shell company that Cohen had opened for that sole purpose. Prosecutors claim that Trump falsified the paperwork of those payments by masking them as legal services. The paper trail of those payments make up the 34 alleged falsified records that Trump is charged with. Read more: Who is Michael Cohen, Trump's ex-lawyer who is expected to testify Monday in the former president's hush money trial? What to expect in court today Michael Cohen arrives at the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse on Monday. (Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images) Former President Donald Trump's criminal hush money trial resumes in Manhattan at 9:30 a.m. ET. Michael Cohen, Trump's lawyer and former fixer, is expected to be called to testify against his former boss. Cohen, who has already arrived at the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse, is expected to be on the witness stand for multiple days. Prosecutors say they could finish presenting their case this week. A North Braddock church held an event raising awareness against gun violence after a man tried to shoot a pastor there just a week earlier. PREVIOUS COVERAGE >>> Man arrested after trying to shoot pastor during sermon in North Braddock, state police say Pastor Glenn Germany of the Jesus Dwelling Place was rattled after a man walked into his church on Stokes Avenue and tried to shoot him. Police say the man with the gun was Bernard Junior Polite, 26. Polite was later charged with homicide after his cousin was found dead in his home the same day. In response to the violence, Pastor Germany held an event designed to raise awareness of domestic violence. We thank god that the young man will get help, said Pastor Germany. The event was a free concert that ran Sunday evening. Members of the Eastern Regional Mon Valley Police Department also attended the event, including Chief Derrick Turner. Turner felt it was important to show the community support after the violence. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW TRENDING NOW: WATCH: Tornado touches ground in Washington County PHOTOS: Severe storms bring hail, damage across Pittsburgh region Longtime WPXI reporter Dee Thompson dies at age 84 VIDEO: Tornado hits Washington County church, damages roof while 100 people are inside DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. Providing dedicated space for digital development within education is essential, Director General of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) Salim M. AlMalik said during the opening ceremony of the organization's 2nd Ministerial Conference on PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment), Trend reports. He noted that there is a strong connection between the current education system and society. The significance of the PISA assessment system remains unchanged. While integrating digital advancements into education is imperative, concerns arise regarding student distraction through digital devices. Knowledge and skill enhancement, especially in disadvantaged areas, is ICESCO's primary focus. Our efforts are being positively influenced by the growing importance of artificial intelligence. In order to ensure the future success of our youth, education is placing a strong emphasis on digital literacy promotion," he said To note, the Azerbaijani capital, Baku, is hosting the 2nd ICESCO Ministerial Conference on PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment). The international conference, organized by the Ministry of Science and Education of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Institute of Education in partnership with ICESCO and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), centers on "PISA 2022 results: global and regional trends." Over 40 delegates hailing from Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, the Kingdom of Bahrain, Latvia, Nigeria, Malaysia, Morocco, Brunei, Lebanon, the Sultanate of Oman, the Gambia, and various other nations are actively engaging in the conference. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Somewhere in the twisted, addled and nearly empty mind of Donald Trump, hes enjoying the showdown coming. Michael Cohen, his former fixer, will take the stand against Drowsy Don in Manhattan today and to Trump, its part of the grade B movie narrative of his life. He knows there are real consequences, but he cant help enjoying being the center of attention. He views himself as a cinematic hero facing off against the forces trying to bring him down. Like any true villain, he always sees himself as the hero. He promotes himself as Gary Cooper in High Noon; the brave, rugged individualist ready to save the gentry as Lon Chaney Jr. admits, People gotta talk themselves into law and order before they do anything about it. Maybe because down deep they don't care. They just don't care. But Trump isnt the salvation. Hes the storm. And the reality is, hes more like Lee Marvin in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, though hed love everyone to think hes John Wayne. For the record, Michael Cohen is neither Gary Cooper in High Noon nor John Wayne as Tom Doniphon in Liberty Valance. Cohen is the city-dwelling Ransom Stoddard as played by Jimmy Stewart in Liberty Valance, but with a few more colorful curse words at his disposal than Stewart. Yet, as was done by Stewart in the movie, Cohen will show up in a Manhattan courtroom to deliver the message Trump doesnt want to accept: All men are created equal as written in the Declaration of Independence. A lot of people forget that part, Stewart said in Liberty Valance. Either way, the stage is set for an epic showdown of biblical proportions this week as Cohen will testify against Donald Trump in Manhattan. Cohen will help decide one way or another, whether Trump will be held accountable for some of his alleged criminal activities in the last several decades after climbing out from under his fathers armpit and reigning supreme in the national public cesspool. With the Mar-a-Lago sensitive documents trial on indefinite hold, the Georgia state trial facing a substantial challenge in appeals court, and the D.C. Jan. 6 trial awaiting a Supreme Court decision on presidential immunity that may not come before the end of June, the Manhattan trial against Donald Trump often cited as the weakest case against Trump looms as the only set of criminal charges Trump may face before the November general election. The facts show the case is anything but weak. Norm Eisen, the former ethics czar of the Barack Obama administration recently said on the podcast Just Ask the Question that the facts themselves are clear enough. Trump tried to buy the silence of former adult film star Stormy Daniels, with whom hed had extra-marital sex. What would make it a felony is if Trump tried to buy her silence for the sake of avoiding the scrutiny of voters prior to the 2016 election. That is why Cohens testimony is seen as the lynchpin to the prosecutions case. Since Trump had him pay off Daniels, he can effectively sink Trumps narrative that he paid her off for a noble cause or any other reason. It will be Cohen facing Trump face to face in court for the first time since Cohen left Trump or if you prefer was thrown under the bus. Cohen was federally charged with campaign finance violations, tax crimes and lying to Congress. His credibility on the stand and with the jury may make or break Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Braggs case. Eisen, who spent a lot of time with Cohen as he prepared for one of Trumps two impeachments, said he believes Cohen will perform as required. Hes maintained the same story to me for years. Hes credible. And I dont think hell take any bait laid out by Trump. I know the prosecutors have spoken with him about the need for professionalism. I think hell deliver it. Others arent so sure. Trumps attorneys have asked Judge Juan Merchan to order Cohen to stop talking about the trial and Trump. With terms that refer to Trump like VonShitzinPants already having been made public, Trumps attorneys pointed to a recent TikTok video Cohen posted this week wearing a T-shirt that shows Trump behind bars as another reason to gag Cohen. Our request that the court order the government to instruct the witness to not talk about President Trump or this case until the case is over, Trump attorney Todd Blanche said. As a response Assistant District Attorney Joshua Steinglass said the prosecution has repeatedly told all witnesses to keep their mouths shut, but we have no control over what they do, he added. The dramatic showdown between the two volatile men threatens to be the stuff of legends, or at least a WWE smackdown on a bad Thursday night. It will definitely be historic. But its not just Cohens demeanor or bombast that is of concern. Will Donald Trump lose it in court and risk being jailed for violating his gag order? Hes already been fined and the judge has warned him he could find himself cooling his heels in a lockup if he keeps talking. Eisen said its a calculated risk that Trump could make to try and push Cohen into losing his temper on the stand. I dont think hed be successful Eisen explained. At the same time Trump runs the risk of not only a night in a secure holding facility for contempt, but should he found guilty of a felony, further violation of his gag order could weigh against Trump at the sentencing phase of the trial. Having spent a great deal of time with Cohen in writing and researching his latest book, Revenge, I can state for the record that Cohen was very meticulous about getting the facts down on paper and left little room for conjecture. I want the truth to get out, he said on numerous occasions. He did more than say it. I saw him actively pursue the facts and wouldnt accept anything but the facts. Can Cohen be bombastic? Sure. Will he be in court? I saw him testify in Congress when he admitted his indiscretions and took his lumps. He candidly admits hed still be in Trumps inner circle if he werent run over by the Trump bus. He admitted everything he did wrong and continuously explained that he did it all for the benefit of Donald Trump. Nothing he did was for himself. While Cohen isnt historically a selfless man again something he candidly admits he has also continuously told me he wants to do right by his wife and children and set the record straight. Ive never caught him lying to me. So, if it boils down to a battle of wits between Cohen and Trump, Id candidly say Trump comes into the battle only half-armed. Having been in close contact with both men over an extended period of time, I find Cohen has the advantage. Hes smarter, hes been humbled already and paid the price for his hubris. Trump has an overinflated sense of his self-worth, has never been held accountable for what he does and has the demeanor of a five-year-old bully. More importantly, hes not that bright. Want a daily wrap-up of all the news and commentary Salon has to offer? Subscribe to our morning newsletter, Crash Course. Of course, this could all blow up in the prosecutions face. But the prosecutors have wisely introduced a wide variety of written evidence, including receipts, texts, emails and the statements of David Pecker and Stormy Daniels to establish why Donald Trump paid off Daniels. The evidence is indisputable and the defense, while it still has yet to put on its case, has offered little in the way of cross-examination that would destroy the prosecutions narrative. The only thing the defense has done is ask for a mistrial twice to no avail. At the end of the day, Trump is facing the same fate as the ill-tempered, angry, narcissistic and purely fictional Liberty Valance. But it wont be John Wayne or Jimmy Stewart that will level Trump. Let the facts show that Trump is the instrument of his own demise. He chose Michael Cohen. He chose Stormy Daniels. Trump lacks morality, accountability, intelligence, humility and empathy for everyone on the planet. At the end of the day there is no grand conspiracy to bring down Donald Trump. He once said he was the storm." Jeffery Epstein, of all people, said Trump had a problem with morals (and I guess Epstein would know). In short, Donald Trump created the myth of Trump in his head and hes going down via self-inflicted wounds. The guy standing in the shadows taking him down is merely the reflection of himself. Longtime Clinton Adviser Sounds The Alarm With Biden Is Doing It All Wrong Essay A longtime adviser to former President Bill Clinton has spelled out what he believes could cost President Joe Biden victory in the 2024 election. Mark Penn suggested in an essay for The New York Times titled Biden Is Doing It All Wrong that the president should stop pandering to his political base on the left and chart a different course if he wants to beat presumptive GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump in November. By pitching too much to the base, he is leaving behind the centrist swing voters who shift between parties from election to election and, I believe, will be the key factor deciding the 2024 race, Penn wrote of Biden. If Mr. Biden wants to serve another four years, he has to stop being dragged to the left and chart a different course closer to the center that appeals to those voters who favor bipartisan compromises to our core issues, fiscal discipline and a strong America, he argued. Biden is currently polling slightly behind Trump. The president is not reaching out to moderate voters with policy ideas or a strong campaign message, and although the 2024 election is a rematch between Biden and his quadruply indicted predecessor, Bidens victory in battleground states is anything but guaranteed, Penn said. Biden could still move more to the center, hoover up swing voters who desperately want to reject Mr. Trump, strengthen his image as a leader by destroying Hamas, and rally the base at the end, he continued. But that means first pushing back against the base rather than pandering to it, and remembering that when it comes to the math of elections, swing is king. Read the full essay here. Related... A look at the 2024 legislative session and whats still left to do The South Carolina Statehouse in Columbia, S.C., on Thursday, March 21, 2024. (File/Travis Bell/STATEHOUSE CAROLINA/Special to the SC Daily Gazette) COLUMBIA The 2024 legislative session was marked by Republicans fighting each other as they pushed legislation on guns and transgender youth across the finish line, but bills on college hiring, insurance rates, and teacher contracts fell short. However, while last weeks chaotic close to the regular session put legislation in the trash heap, compromises on some bills are still possible in extended sessions that start next month. And much work remains on the state budget that takes effect July 1. Key differences the chambers must sort out include how much is spent on road and bridge work, and whether a surplus in sales tax collections goes toward a one-time property tax credit or lowering income taxes. Whats left to do? Efforts that stay alive for potential compromises include changes to the Legislatures judicial selection process. Prosecutors across the state, including Attorney General Alan Wilson, have called for reform, saying the system gives legislators too much power over the judicial branch. Bills signed into law Monday by Gov. Henry McMaster include those that: Define antisemitism Allow landowners to kill feral hogs by helicopter Exempt feminine hygiene products from sales taxes Prevent the state from adding admission taxes to golf course membership dues Require school districts to adopt an epilepsy training program on recognizing the signs and symptoms of seizures Prohibit life insurance policies from declining or limiting coverage to living organ donors Source: McMasters office Both chambers passed their own version of how to tweak the system, to include giving the governor appointments on the judicial screening panel and forwarding more qualified candidates to a joint General Assembly for election. Neither chamber had any interest in a complete overhaul. Whether the magistrate system controlled by senators sees any change may be the biggest sticking point. The House bill lessened senators control. The Senate version didnt touch that. Still, Wilson was hopeful that something will reach the governors desk next month. Our judicial selection process desperately needs reform, and were almost there, he said in a statement after the chambers agreed in the regular sessions waning hours to send their differing versions to a negotiating committee. This bill is not perfect, but it is progress. As a six-member panel hashes out any changes to how legislators pick judges in the future, the entire Legislature will vote on the next state Supreme Court justice. Legislators will choose between three candidates selected Thursday by the screening panel. Their decision will determine whether South Carolina has the nations only all-male, all-white state Supreme Court, or whether the seats filled by the states third-ever female justice or first Black female justice. Work will also continue on a massive energy bill that became a lightning rod of controversy from consumer advocates and conservation groups. But that issue wont be resolved next month. Senators refused to agree to the bill as pushed by House Speaker Murrell Smith, but they could reach consensus later this year on a new version to replace it. How to handle data centers energy hogs that have become a focal point of the debate over the need for more electricity could be decided in a separate bill sent to a negotiating committee. Gov. Henry McMaster said Monday he will sign whatever compromises legislators reach on the judicial reform and energy bills. This is something that we cannot put off, he said about electricity needs. Also still in negotiations is a bill unresolved from last year thats supposed to clear up existing law prohibiting racist lessons in South Carolina classrooms. But even the Houses chief sponsor objected to changes made during floor debate in that chamber. Before passing its version a year ago, the Senate removed sections seen as stifling instruction and allowing for a litany of lawsuits. A House-Senate panel met last week but language on a potential compromise is still in the works. Because this is an election year, resulting in a new Legislature in January, all bills that dont become law by sessions end die and must be reintroduced next year for the process to start all over. The extended sessions are limited primarily to negotiations on the budget and bills sent to a negotiating committee after separate versions passed both chambers. Whats dead? A bill merging six agencies and touted as removing bureaucratic inefficiencies in South Carolinas fragmented public health system officially died as the clock ran out Thursday. But there could be a vote next month to allow that to be added to the extra-session agenda. Both chambers passed separate versions of the bill, but the House Freedom Caucus blocked a vote that could have sent them to a negotiating committee. On Monday, McMaster urged legislators to resurrect the bill, which will require two-thirds approval by each chamber to amend the temporary law governing the extended sessions. We have way too many things happening to our people that could be prevented if we could get organized and streamlined, the governor said. I believe that enacting that reorganization of our health care institutions is the best answer that we have so far. Legislation that truly died again with no chance of being taken up again this year included yearslong efforts to legalize medical marijuana, allow betting on horse races through online apps, and allow curbside and home delivery of alcohol. It was the second time in three years that a bill legalizing cannabis for certain illnesses passed the Senate but died in the House. This time, it never reached the House floor. Smith said it didnt have the support to pass in that chamber. What Ive told the advocates is, we need to reach some accord with law enforcement and not try to shove it down their throats because theyre on the front line of this issue and they deserve the respect, at least, for us to slow it down and make sure theyre safe and theyre OK with it, the Sumter Republican told reporters after session ended. Bills that passed the House but died in the Senate would have barred colleges from using diversity statements in hiring and admission, required age verification to access social media, greatly expanded South Carolinas one-year-old private school choice law, and allowed campaign donations to pay for childcare expenses. Also dying in the Senate was an effort to reduce insurance rates for restaurants that serve alcohol, despite having the backing of Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey, who told reporters Thursday he hopes to get that done next year. Since 2017, businesses that serve alcohol past 5 p.m. have been required to carry a minimum $1 million in liability insurance. The rising cost and shrinking availability of this insurance known as liquor liability insurance has hit establishments of all sizes, even causing some to close. A potential fix proved elusive, as opponents argued against any change that would make it harder to sue bars that continue serving drunk patrons who go on to injure or kill someone. The House and Senate came up with different strategies. The House version passed that chamber 106-2 while the version that advanced in the Senate never got a floor vote. What passed? House Republicans gave final approval Thursday to the bill they called their top priority for the session. The legislation bans transition-related hormone treatments and puberty blockers for transgender youth under 18. It criminalizes transition surgeries on minors, though both sides agreed thats not happening anyway in South Carolina. It additionally bars Medicaid government insurance from paying for transition-related surgeries and hormones for transgender South Carolinians of any age. Gov. Henry McMaster has said he will sign it. A lawsuit could follow. A bill allowing adults to legally carry a handgun in South Carolina without a permit was among the few pieces of legislation to become law early in the year. Legislation sent to the governors desk in a flurry of activity in the final days include bills that: Require age verification to access online porn Designate Fort Eisenhower in Augusta, Georgia, as a South Carolina military installation for state grant purposes Allow colleges to represent student athletes in personal branding and sponsorship deals Increase tax breaks for companies with apprenticeship programs for high schoolers and adults Criminalize the misuse of the animal tranquilizer xylazine Call for a memorial to Robert Smalls on Statehouse grounds While the chambers approved final versions of those bills, the clock for McMaster hasnt officially started. The bills must be signed by the House speaker and Senate president before they actually go to his desk, and no signing ceremony was held after the session closed Thursday. Whenever those two get together and sign bills, McMaster will have five days excluding Sunday to sign legislation, veto it or let it become law without his signature. Reporters Abraham Kenmore and Skylar Laird contributed to this report. Editors Note: The article has been changed to reflect the correct day of McMasters news conference and bill signings (Monday). The post A look at the 2024 legislative session and whats still left to do appeared first on SC Daily Gazette. Representative Jason Hughes speaks against HB 468 Tuesday, July 18, 2023, during the veto override session at the State Capitol in Baton Rouge, La. Louisiana colleges and universities could soon have more autonomy to set tuition and fees under a proposal advancing in the Legislature. House Bill 862 by Rep. Jason Hughes, D-New Orleans, would allow boards for Louisianas four university systems to set differential tuition for any graduate, professional or high-cost undergraduate programs. The bill would also give the boards complete control over mandatory fees. It was unanimously advanced from the Senate Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Committee Monday. Differential tuition is a tiered amount charged on top of base tuition for more expensive academic programs, such as lab-heavy curricula in science or engineering. The Board of Regents, the state oversight board for all higher education, would identify which programs are considered high-cost. Louisiana requires two-thirds of the Legislature to sign off on tuition changes. Most other states leave this decision up to higher education management boards. Hughes bill would not allow university systems to raise fees and differential tuition more than 10% every two years. It also allows schools to lower tuition and fees without limits. The ability to lower tuition has been sought for some high-demand fields such as teaching. The bill would not have an impact on the cost of TOPS, which provides state-funded student aid to many Louisiana students, as the amount of the award is no longer directly tied to the cost of tuition. His bill also gives systems control over mandatory fees for any program. Tuition and fees at Louisiana universities increased drastically during the 2010s, when the burden to finance higher education was shifted from the state to students The proposal was amended to remove a portion that would have negated a 2022 law to require universities provide fee waivers to many graduate assistants. That law, passed by Sen. Cleo Fields, D-Baton Rouge, is slated to go into effect in August. Graduate assistants, who do much of the work to keep universities running, are paid as little as $10,000 a year but then have to pay hundreds of dollars in fees every semester. The passage of Fields proposal in 2022 was a major victory for these students. Neither Hughes nor the higher education leaders supporting the bill seemed to be aware this repeal was in his proposal. His bill is supported by University of Louisiana System President Rick Gallot and state Commissioner of Higher Education Kim Hunter Reed, who supported Fields bill two years ago. Reed said she would work with Hughes to find out how the repeal got in the bill and how its removal impacts the bill. Hughes bill will next be discussed by the Senate Finance Committee. Because it has been amended, the changes must be approved in the House of Representatives. The post Louisiana colleges could gain more power over setting tuition appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator. HORRY COUNTY, S.C. (WBTW) A Baton Rouge man was extradited to Horry County on Sunday night in connection with an April bomb threat at Carolina Forest High School. Trenton Alexander Brown, 19, was booked into the J. Reuben Long Detention Center just before 11 p.m., according to intake records. Brown is charged with threatening the use of a destructive device a felony that could put him in prison for 15 years if covicted. Authorities say Brown was responsible for making one of several threats called into the school last month. Officials have also charged two local juveniles in connection with the incidents. 15th Circuit Court Solicitor Jimmy Richardson said late last month that his office will aggressively prosecute anybody involved with the school scares. Theres going to be a few kids that are going to pay a very tough price for this, Richardson said. Once youve spent that kind of money (responding to calls) and scared that many people, theres going to be a tough price to be paid for it. When I say that, Im talking about prison time. * * * Adam Benson joined the News13 digital team in January 2024. He is a veteran South Carolina reporter with previous stops at the Greenwood Index-Journal, Post & Courier and The Sun News in Myrtle Beach. Adam is a Boston native and University of Utah graduate. Follow Adam on X, formerly Twitter, at @AdamNewshound12. See more of his work here. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WBTW. Louisiana could become the first state in the country to categorize mifepristone and misoprostol - the drugs used to induce an abortion - as controlled dangerous substances, threatening incarceration and fines if an individual possesses the pills without a valid prescription or outside of professional practice. Legislators in Baton Rouge added the provision as a last-minute amendment to a Senate bill that would criminalize an abortion if someone gives a pregnant woman the pills without her consent, a scenario of coerced criminal abortion that nearly occurred with one senators sister. Subscribe to The Post Most newsletter for the most important and interesting stories from The Washington Post. A pregnant woman obtaining the two drugs for her own consumption would not be at risk of prosecution. But, with the exception of a health-care practitioner, a person helping her get the pills would be. Louisiana already bans both medication and surgical abortions except to save a patients life or because a pregnancy is medically futile. Lawmakers just rejected adding exceptions for teenagers under 17 who become pregnant through rape or incest. The amendment would list mifepristone and misoprostol under the states Uniform Controlled Dangerous Substances Law, which regulates depressants, opioids and other drugs that can be highly addictive. It elicited a strong reaction from more than 240 Louisiana doctors, who called it not scientifically based. Adding a safe, medically indicated drug for miscarriage management creates the false perception that these are dangerous drugs that require additional regulation, they wrote in a letter sent last week to the bills sponsor, Republican Sen. Thomas Pressly. They noted misoprostols other critical uses, including to prevent gastrointestinal ulcers and to aid in labor and delivery. Given its historically poor maternal health outcomes, Louisiana should prioritize safe and evidence-based care for pregnant women, they urged. The amendment, written with guidance from Louisiana Right to Life, was added after the Senate unanimously passed S.B. 276 in mid-April. The measure is awaiting a final vote in the House before the session ends June 3, with little opposition expected. As Senator Pressly has stated, the medical community regularly uses controlled substances in a myriad of medical situations, including emergencies, said Sarah Zagorski, communications director for the antiabortion organization. The use of these drugs for legitimate health-care needs will still be available, just like all other controlled substances are still available for legitimate uses. The pending language appears to open yet another front in the countrys bitter battle over if and how women can obtain an abortion. Attempts to curtail medication abortions - which now constitute more than half of all abortions in the United States - are part of legislative agendas not just in deep-red Louisiana but in many Republican-controlled statehouses. And in March, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in a case brought against the Food and Drug Administration by a group of antiabortion doctors seeking to limit access to mifepristone. Pressly did not respond to repeated requests for comment, but in a statement released by his office, he explained that he was seeking to control the rampant illegal distribution of abortion-inducing drugs in Louisiana. He said abortion medication is frequently abused and is a risk to the health of citizens. By including the drugs on the controlled-substances list, he added, we will assist law enforcement in protecting vulnerable women and unborn babies. His connection to the issue is in part personal. During public testimony in April before the Senate Judiciary Committee, his sister recounted how her then-husband surreptitiously gave her an abortion drug in 2022 when he brought her breakfast for St. Patricks Day. They were separated, but Catherine Pressly Herring said she had learned she was pregnant with their third child and he had agreed to marriage counseling. After she noticed him serving her cloudy water, she said she started having intense cramping. Doctors were able to stop the process so that the pregnancy could continue. He was sentenced to 180 days in jail. Under Presslys bill, a perpetrator would face a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $75,000 fine. Through our knowledge of other stories, and from the testimony of local centers in Louisiana caring for women in these situations, the abuse of abortion pills is not isolated to Herrings situation, Zagorski said Saturday. It is very simple for a man to pose as a woman to order these pills online without a prescription, even for a minor, and then to pressure a woman to take the pills. While doctors say Herrings experience is deeply troubling, they remain concerned that her brothers proposed solution would make mifepristone and misoprostol even harder for Louisianans to get for reasons having nothing to do with abortion. Misoprostol is prescribed for treatment after a miscarriage, for example, and to help stop postpartum hemorrhage, one of the leading causes of maternal mortality in the state. To OB/GYNs, this is very worrisome, said Neelima Sukhavasi, an OB/GYN in Baton Rouge and a fellow with Physicians for Reproductive Health. Theres no one that would endorse what happened to his sister. But this is a safe medication that has many important lifesaving uses. Its not addictive. Misoprostol is also taken to soften the cervix during labor, biopsies for cancer and placement of IUDs. Sukhavasi said she is concerned that Pressly wrote the amendment without consulting physicians or enforcement agencies. Nimra Chowdhry, senior state legislative counsel at the Center for Reproductive Rights, echoed those concerns but in harsher terms. She accused abortion opponents in Louisiana of misrepresenting the safety and efficacy of the two drugs - a manipulation in pursuit of blocking people from care. This ultimately turns back the clock on modern medicine, she said. Abby Ledoux, vice president of communications at Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast, is worried about the far-reaching consequences because of the drugs other uses. There are real questions, she said, about what it would mean in practice to open the controlled-substances list like this, including what aspects of state law legislators think manufacturers would follow, even locally. - - - Graphics: https://washingtonpost.com/documents/dc7b85b3-1111-4a08-b032-9008fdf7b290.pdf Related Content All scraped up inside: Maui fire survivors grapple with health effects Biden and oil companies like this climate tech. Many Americans do not. Its always sunny at Mar-a-Lago Louisiana State Police investigating after one person shot by deputy in Clinton CLINTON, La. (BRPROUD) The Louisiana State Police is investigating after a person was shot by an East Feliciana Parish Sheriffs Office deputy. EFPSO identified the person who was shot as Zachary Williams. Deputies were asked to investigate a disturbance at 11641 Oakwood Lane around 7:40 p.m. on Sunday, May 12. Upon the deputys arrival at that location the deputy was confronted by a subject with an AR style rifle, EFPSO said. They said Williams pointed the rifle at the deputy and the deputy shot him. EMS took Williams to the hospital. According to LSP, no officers sustained injuries. The investigation remains ongoing. LSP said more information will be released as it becomes available. Man, 11-year-old girl injured in two separate shootings in Livingston Parish LSP asks that anyone with information, pictures or video that could help investigators, call the LSP Fusion Center Hotline at 1-800-434-8007 or file a report anonymously via the Louisiana State Police online reporting system. Latest News For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to BRProud.com. From left, Jessica Kalb, Sarah Baron and Lisa Sobel are challenging Kentucky's abortion ban. (Kentucky Lantern photo by Sarah Ladd) LOUISVILLE Jefferson County Circuit Court Judge Brian Edwards heard oral arguments Monday in the case of three Jewish women who argue their religious freedom is violated by Kentuckys abortion ban. Much of the arguments focused on in vitro fertilization (IVF) and the extent to which it overlaps with the states abortion ban. Several lawmakers filed bills to protect the process in Kentucky this session, but none became law. Some feel IVF is in limbo since the Alabama Supreme Court ruled in mid February that frozen embryos are children. The oral arguments Aaron Kemper and Benjamin Potash, lawyers for the plaintiffs, argued Monday that Kentucky has imposed and codified a religious viewpoint that conflicts with the Jewish belief that birth, not conception, is the beginning of life. They also said their plaintiffs Lisa Sobel, Jessica Kalb and Sarah Baron feel Kentuckys current laws around abortion inhibit their ability to grow their families. One of the plaintiffs, Kalb, has nine frozen embryos right now that shes paying thousands of dollars annually to preserve. Shes 33 years old; she does not plan on having nine children, Kemper said. Attorneys Aaron Kemper, left, and Ben Potash, speak with media after the arguments. (Kentucky Lantern photo by Sarah Ladd) You have three women here who are not pregnant right now, all of whom want to be pregnant, Potash said. Theyre not able to be pregnant because these laws get in the way. As Kentucky law stands now, there is disagreement on what protections exist for unused frozen embryos and if discarding them is permissible. We dont know if terminating a fertilized egg is illegal on day zero, Kemper said. Lindsey Keiser argued for the Kentucky Attorney Generals office which is named as a defendant that the alleged injuries are hypothetical since the plaintiffs are not pregnant. Keiser said its not clear or imminent that (Kalb) will have to dispose (of) all of those embryos since sometimes implantations fail. Furthermore, Keiser argued, since Kentuckys law defines pregnancy as a fetus inside a woman, the disposal of embryos that are created through the process of IVF but not yet implanted will not trigger criminal penalties under either the abortion statute or the fetal homicide statute. Since the AGs position is that IVF in Kentucky is not limited, Keiser said, the government isnt restricting those rights. When it comes to abortion, she argued Kentucky does have a compelling interest in restricting the practice, even in the context of opposing religious beliefs. Kentuckys interest in preserving potential life is not limited to preserving it only for those who live long and healthy lives, Keiser said. The commonwealths interest in preserving life encompasses fostering respect for the sanctity of human life. The law is on our side Judge Edwards said he will endeavor to get an opinion out quickly. No matter what the opinion is, Potash said, he expects one side to appeal. Eventually, in all likelihood, it will make it up to the Kentucky Supreme Court, where the same issues will be discussed, Potash said after Mondays arguments. What it all boils down to are the issues in our summary judgment motion, and whether we have standing around or our clients have standing to bring those claims. The lawyers said theyre confident their clients have personal standing, or the right to bring this case. If they dont have standing, no one has standing to challenge abortion rights in America, Potash said. They actually have a dispute with the government that needs adjudication. If the courts are going to shut their doors on these women theyre going to shut the doors on all of us. While waiting for the ruling, Potash said: Were confident that the law is on our side, and the facts are on our side. I shouldnt have to leave. Kalb told reporters after Mondays arguments that because of her condition she has polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), which can cause cysts to form in the ovaries and lead to infertility her pregnancies are more likely to end in miscarriage or abortion or need other complicated interventions. In June 2022,, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe. V. Wade, which had established the constitutional right to abortion. Kentuckys trigger law went into effect immediately, which bans abortion except when the mothers life is at risk. Kalb, who moved to Kentucky in 2020, said the ruling put her plans to expand her family on hold. Going through IVF again for me means that I have to put myself in that vulnerable situation of being pregnant, and possibly not being able to access care, Kalb said. To get pregnant before, she said, she only needed one transfer. It wasnt like I went through four, five, six, seven. So right now, the way the laws written, I could have to deal with nine pregnancies, she said. Im 33, about to be 34. Its a really scary situation, especially to have all of this publicly known. So, if the tides were to shift, I mean, theres nothing protecting me right now. Despite that, the women said its important for them to stay in Kentucky and fight to change the laws. My family has been here since the early 1800s, and Jewish, Sobel said. Ive always been a Kentucky Jew. I always celebrated the Derby. I always cheered for the Louisville Cardinals. Being a Kentuckian is who I am. I shouldnt have to leave in order to grow my family. I shouldnt have to leave because the legislators dont want to recognize that my faith matters too. The post Louisville judge hears arguments in Jewish womens challenge of Kentuckys abortion ban appeared first on Kentucky Lantern. LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) Lansing Police have multiple suspects in custody related to an early morning homicide on the citys far southwest side. Lansing Police Department was alerted to a serious physical altercation between a victim and multiple suspects about 7 a.m. to the 2100 block of Georgetown Blvd, officials said in a news release Sunday night. After further investigation, officers and detectives determined that a victim was taken from a residence to an unknown location by multiple suspects and could be in serious condition. (WLNS) Detectives and officers discovered the 25-year-old male after further investigation. He was declared dead on the scene. Police said the investigation is ongoing and are working to determine the sequence of events and the details of the incident. Anyone with information about this homicide or the incident and sequence of events is asked to call Lansing Police Department at 517-483-4600, or Crime Stoppers at 517-483-STOP. Confidential information can also be shared on the departments Facebook page. This embedded content is not available in your region. This is the citys 6th homicide this year. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WLNS 6 News. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. Proposals are being prepared regarding the minimum hourly wage in Azerbaijan, Trend reports via the "Action Plan of the Working Group on Labor Market of the Business Environment and International Ratings Commission for 2024". Thus, the group is working on preparing and presenting proposals to replace the monthly minimum wage with an hourly minimum wage. Additionally, the group has been tasked with preparing and presenting relevant proposals to increase the minimum wage. The group's activity plan also includes improvements related to considering the social situation in the concept of the minimum wage. To note, the average monthly nominal wage of employees in Azerbaijan grew by 10.8 percent from January through February 2024 compared to the same period last year and amounted to 946.8 manat ($556.9). Earnings in the oil and gas sector were 3,438 manat ($2,022), while in the non-oil and gas sector they were 899.7 manat ($529.2). Employee salaries in governmental entities totaled 901.8 manat ($530.4), while private enterprises paid 996.5 manat ($586). Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Todays edition of quick hits. * You should definitely check out our coverage tonight on Cohens testimony, starting at 8 eastern: Key witness Michael Cohen is testifying today about paying adult film actress Stormy Daniels during the 2016 presidential campaign to keep her quiet about her alleged affair with then-candidate Donald Trump. ... Prosecutors have been preparing Cohen, Trumps former lawyer and fixer, for this moment for more than a year. * In Ukraine: Ukraine is shooting down a far smaller proportion of Russian missile attacks than it was earlier in the war. The worsening performance of Ukraines air defenses comes as Russia increases drone and missile attacks, and fires more harder-to-hit weapons, such as ballistic missiles. Kyiv is also running low on ammunition for the Western-supplied Patriot systems that have been its best defense against such attacks. * In related news: Sergei Shoigu seemed to have survived. The man leading Vladimir Putins war in Ukraine was looking relaxed just last week as he appeared in uniform at the Russian leaders fifth inauguration ceremony and then at Moscows annual Victory Day parade. But on Sunday he was removed as defense minister, the post he had held on to for more than a decade despite a rebel mutiny, a corruption scandal and a calamitous start to the full-scale invasion of Russias neighbor. * In Gaza: The Israeli military intensified its attacks on northern Gaza on Monday, battling a regrouped Hamas in areas it said it had cleared and renewing questions over Israeli strategy in the war as the United States issued some of its harshest public criticism yet. * In many advanced countries, this would dominate the public conversation: At least 11 people, including a teenager, were killed in a spate of weekend shootings from Florida to Massachusetts. * It appears the congressman has a problem: A Houston woman has pleaded guilty in a bribery scheme that allegedly funneled $360,000 in payoffs from the government of Azerbaijan to U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar and his wife, the Express-News has learned. Irada Akhoundova, 67, secretly entered a guilty plea on May 1 to a charge of acting as an agent for Azerbaijan between September 2020 and January 2021 without registering as required by the Foreign Agents Registration Act. * What an unusual mess: Former aides to Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) vehemently disputed her claims that they sabotaged her office by hacking her phone, mismanaging the office budget, spying on her children and trying to destroy electronic devices with water. ... [T]he turmoil between Mace and former staffers has played out in public view over the past year as staff has cycled through her office. * I remember covering some of the rights predictions about marriage equality 20 years ago, and how bizarre they seemed at the time. Theyre worse now: The widespread public approval suggests most people dont believe the horrors once forecast have resulted from same-sex marriages legalization, and now there is evidence to prove it. A comprehensive new research report by the Rand organization finds that the consequences of two decades of legal same-sex marriage have been broadly positive for gay and straight Americans alike. See you tomorrow. This article was originally published on MSNBC.com Even those whove grown accustomed to reports on Donald Trumps alleged corruption were taken aback last week. Just days after Politico reported that oil industry executives were writing up presidential executive orders now, in the hopes that Donald Trump will simply sign them if/when he returns to the White House, The Washington Post reported on the former president recently huddling with Big Oil leaders at Mar-a-Lago. If the account is accurate, the presumptive Republican nominee for president told the oil industry executives that they should raise $1 billion to return him to the White House and if they did, hed reward them by eliminating environmental safeguards and approving new tax breaks. The deal that Trump described, the Post added, stunned several of the executives in the room. The New York Times Jamelle Bouie responded soon after, Im obviously angered by the blatant disregard for the planet and its inhabitants. But Im also struck by the in-your-face brazenness of Trumps reported quid pro quo. This is more than the hint of corruption; it is the overpowering scent of the rotting corpse of corruption. It is influence trading of the sort that would embarrass a Boss Tweed or a Roscoe Conkling, whose 'honest graft' came with at least the pretense of pursuing the public good. Have the revelations opened the door to possible scrutiny on Capitol Hill? In the Republican-led House, no. In the Democratic-led Senate, maybe. The New Republics Greg Sargent reported: This is practically an invitation to ask more questions, the Rhode Island Democrat told Greg, describing this as a natural extension of the investigation already underway. Whitehouse added, The phrase that instantly came to mind as I was reading the story was quid pro quo. Referencing both the Posts report and the aforementioned Politico article, the senator concluded, Put those things together and it starts to look mighty damn corrupt. All things considered, I think its fair to say that Senate Democrats have exercised extraordinary restraint by some measures, too much in not holding committee hearings in response to every episodic development surrounding the former president. While the likes of House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer and House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan have reached for their gavel in response to meaningless Fox News segments, Democrats in the upper chamber have been far more measured about chasing assorted Trump scandals. But there are limits. Watch this space. This article was originally published on MSNBC.com Maddow Blog | Why it matters that Manafort is backing off his GOP convention role Its been nearly two months since The Washington Post first reported that Paul Manafort, the scandal-plagued former campaign chairman of Donald Trumps 2016 political operation, was poised to rejoin the former presidents team. While details of his prospective responsibilities were unclear, the article added that Trump was determined to bring Manafort back into the fold. Neither the presumptive Republican nominee nor his aides were willing to confirm the story, and there was no formal announcement about Manafort getting hired. That said, as recently as last week, he was playing an advisory role with the Republican National Convention and was attending high-level meetings in Milwaukee, which is hosting this years gathering. Now, however, Manaforts on-again, off-again relationship with Team Trump is apparently off again. The Washington Post reported over the weekend: The Posts report noted that Manafort whod apparently agreed to work for free backed off his Republican convention role just one day after the newspaper reported that he had re-engaged in international consulting, creating awkward challenges for the presumptive GOP nominee. A related report from The New York Times included a statement from Manafort in which he confirmed the news while complaining that the media was trying to use him as a distraction. While these developments are certainly notable in their own right, lets not miss the forest for the trees: The fact that Manafort was brought in in the first place was stark raving mad. I can appreciate why it might be difficult to keep up on all of the accused and convicted criminals on Trumps team, and some readers might be asking, Which one is Paul Manafort again? But lets revisit our recent coverage and review how we arrived at this point. In 2016, Manafort oversaw Trumps political operation when he also volunteered to work for free before he was convicted of a variety of felonies, including tax fraud and bank fraud. He even served some time in federal prison right up until Trump pardoned him shortly before Christmas 2020, rewarding his former aide for failing to cooperate with law enforcement. Just as notably, the Republican-led Senate Intelligence Committee concluded that Manafort represented a grave counterintelligence threat in 2016 due to his relationship with a Russian intelligence officer. The Committee found that Manaforts presence on the Campaign and proximity to Trump created opportunities for Russian intelligence services to exert influence over, and acquire confidential information on, the Trump campaign, the Senate report added. When the Senate Intelligence Committees report literally pointed to a direct tie between senior Trump Campaign officials and the Russian intelligence services, it was referring in part to Manafort directly and indirectly communicating with an accused Russian intelligence officer, a Russian oligarch, and several pro-Russian oligarchs in Ukraine. Even after receiving an indefensible pardon from Trump, Manaforts troubles did not disappear. Two years ago around the time he announced that he was getting back into the consulting business Manafort was removed from a plane at Miami International Airport before it departed for Dubai because he was carrying a revoked passport. A month later, NBC News reported the Justice Department was again targeting Manafort over allegations that he failed to report interest in foreign bank accounts. It was against this backdrop that Trump was determined to bring Manafort back into the fold, for reasons that have never been explained, and the operative started providing his services to party officials ahead of the upcoming Republican convention. In the operatives statement to the Times, Manafort boasted of his nearly 50 years [of] experience. What he neglected to mention is that much of this experience was rooted in working for Kremlin-aligned oligarchs in the former Soviet Union and, later, campaigns to benefit Vladimir Putin. The question isnt why Manafort is backing off from his latest role on Team Trump, the question is why in the world the convicted felon was provided with this role in the first place. This post updates our related earlier coverage. This article was originally published on MSNBC.com View from the speaker's dais of the chamber of the House of Representatives in the Maine State House in Augusta. View from the speaker's dais of the chamber of the House of Representatives in the Maine State House in Augusta. (Jim Neuger/ Maine Morning Star) Reflecting on moments of bipartisanship and the tragedies that drove much of their work, members of the Maine Legislature adjourned for the year on Friday night. However, the Maine House of Representatives concluded without taking action on dozens of bills. Earlier in the week, the budget committee had opened up the possibility of enacting 80 bills left between passage and funding, but Gov. Janet Mills came out in strong opposition to any further spending. Lawmakers sent about 30 of those bills to the governors desk Friday afternoon. Mills now has 10 days to sign this legislation, otherwise it will not become law. However, many more bills still remained in limbo as they needed final approval from the House, which took a break to caucus around 1 p.m. and did not reconvene until a little after 9 p.m. House Majority Leader Maureen Terry of Gorham was brought to tears in her final remarks on the floor, as she thanked her colleagues and Republican counterpart, Minority Leader Billy Bob Faulkingham of Winter Harbor, for sharing a commitment to the Maine people. Although weve been on opposite sides on many, many issues, its easy to forget the times weve been on the same side, Faulkingham said in response. As an example, he mentioned the law passed in 2021 with bipartisan support ending civil asset forfeiture in Maine. While the Democratic majority and Republican minority were at odds over several issues this session including reproductive rights, a shield law, a vehicle emissions rule, the national popular vote and the budget at large the Legislature worked in a bipartisan fashion to pass legislation that will expand tribal authority over prosecuting crimes, increase drug treatment options, and better fund nursing homes, among other measures. Ending his remarks, Faulkingham joked, I present to you the first House Republican majority since 2012. Given the significant number of absent lawmakers, there was a question Friday as to whether Democrats in the House had enough support to enact the bills advanced by the Senate in the afternoon. Two-thirds support of those present in the chamber was needed to enact the measures. Of the bills the budget-making Appropriations and Financial Affairs Committee voted in favor of funding earlier in the week, the committee made changes to 50, which then needed to be approved again by both chambers. The Senate approved most of these amended bills by Friday afternoon, but ultimately, the House decided to conclude work without ever taking them up for consideration. Among these measures that died upon adjournment include proposals to create an advisory council to ensure African American and Wabanaki studies requirements are effectively taught in schools, start a pilot project to help alleviate the staffing crisis in the child welfare system, require MaineCare reimbursement for treatment for emotional dysregulation disorders, and fund free health clinics, among others. This is in contrast to the 30 bills the committee advanced without amendments, which only needed enactment votes in the Senate. While the Senate wrapped much of its work earlier in the day, it reversed one of its earlier decisions when reconvening Friday evening. After originally voting down a bill to delay a ballot measure on a new state flag proposal, the senate later reconsidered the decision and reversed its stance. With a vote 18-12, the Senate ultimately passed the measure, which will push the referendum question from the upcoming November election to November 2026 and establish a commission to assist the Secretary of State in determining the design of the flag. This year was the second regular session of the 131st Legislature and began in the wake of the worst mass shooting in Maines history, after which lawmakers vowed to take action to ensure that such a preventable tragedy would never happen again. While several efforts to reform gun laws were introduced, two became law. In remarks on the House floor Friday, Gov. Janet Mills thanked lawmakers for their dedication after the tragedy, as well as in light of the series of devastating storms in December and January that many communities are still working to recover from. We painstakingly wrote bill language to try to address these challenges, negotiating to find compromise, sometimes successfully, sometimes not, Mills said. The Legislature included funding to help communities rebuild after these storms in the supplemental budget, though Mills had initially wanted the storm relief to be separate. Although no one got everything they wanted, we honored the promise of Maine in those moments, Mills said, a promise that public servants from different backgrounds and beliefs from around the state will come together to do everything we can to make life better for our neighbors, for our communities, and for our state. Laws passed during this session will go into effect on Aug. 9, except for emergency measures, which took effect upon the governors signature or as otherwise specified in the bill text. The Legislature adjourned finally just after 10 p.m., following a motion from Democratic Rep. Margaret Craven of Lewiston. Is this the pleasure of the House? Talbot Ross asked one final time. It is a vote. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Maine Legislature adjourns without definitive action on dozens of bills appeared first on Maine Morning Star. Major General Dirk Faust from the Rapid Forces Division speaks about the Swift Response airborne exercise at the 71st Airbase. NATO allies are practising rapid military response here with paratroopers from Germany and other NATO states, having taken off from Hungary and moving to Romania. Kay Nietfeld/dpa A major NATO exercise involving airborne troops went into its main phase in Romania on Monday with paratroopers dropped to the south of the city of Cluj-Napoca. In the exercise, the troops are tasked with liberating the military airfield at Campia Turzii, which has been seized by hostile forces. Around 1,500 troops were to land around the airfield. The "Swift Response" exercise is part of a series of manoeuvres under the name "Steadfast Defender" launched by NATO in reaction to the changed security situation in Europe resulting from Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than two years ago. Swift Response, which is intended to exercise the rapid deployment of effective forces, is being led by Germany's Rapid Forces Division (DSK). NATO has described the exercise as the largest airborne operation in Europe since World War II. German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) paratroopers from the Rapid Forces Division take up position after landing during the Swift Response airborne exercise at the 71st Airbase. NATO allies are practising rapid military response here with paratroopers from Germany and other NATO states, having taken off from Hungary and moving to Romania. Kay Nietfeld/dpa German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) paratroopers from the Rapid Forces Division take up position after landing during the Swift Response airborne exercise at the 71st Airbase. NATO allies are practising rapid military response here with paratroopers from Germany and other NATO states, having taken off from Hungary and moving to Romania. Kay Nietfeld/dpa MOBILE, Ala. (WKRG) A male is in custody after he allegedly tried to drive away from police and started a chase during a traffic stop, according to the Mobile Police Department. Police said a male subject refused to stop for officers just after 2:30 p.m. on Sperry Road. Creola road closed due to dangerous chemical leak: Police He allegedly attempted to evade officers and struck a Mobile police patrol vehicle in the process. He also allegedly hit three other vehicles before wrecking at the intersection of Three Notch Road and Highway 90. CRASH LOCATION: This embedded content is not available in your region. 15-year-old killed in ATV crash: Mobile Police One person was taken to the hospital with minor injuries. Officials said the alleged suspect is in custody, but they did not reveal his identity and said they will not do so until the investigation is completed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WKRG News 5. Eric Molitor | Facebook Less than nine months ago, Eric Molitor was facing the possibility of a lengthy prison term. Now hes hoping to become Wexford Countys top law enforcement officer. Wexford County Sheriff Trent Taylor | Courtesy photo On Thursday, the 40-year-old Cadillac man filed papers to run against Wexford County Sheriff Trent Taylor in the Republican primary in August. Molitor, along with twin brothers William and Michael Null, were acquitted in September 2023 of providing support for a terrorist act and a weapon charge related to the plot to kidnap and execute Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. Specifically, they were accused of supporting leaders of the plan by participating in military-style drills and traveling to see Whitmers vacation home in northern Michigan. Molitor and the Null brothers were the last of 14 men to face charges in state or federal court for participation in the plot. In all, nine were convicted and five were acquitted, including Daniel Harris and Brandon Caserta. Molitor, in a post on Facebook, said he didnt want all the attention on his candidacy to be about what he called the kidnap hoax, but said he understood why it was. [T]he integrity I showed while battling the state and federal governments to NOT BACK DOWN is something Ill bring with me to the sheriffs office. I will fight for your liberties and rights just like Id fight for my own. If something is unconstitutional then it is our DUTY to disregard it, he said. Along those lines. Molitor pledged not to enforce Michigans red flag laws, officially known as the Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) Act. Im done watching the corruption. Done watching my fellow Americans be abused by a cold and heartless system. I WILL be the one to deny unconstitutional orders to protect your sovereignty and liberties, he posted. The ERPO act, signed into law by Whitmer in May 2023, allows people to be temporarily prohibited from accessing firearms if they present a danger to themselves or others. It is done upon request of a court order from family members, law enforcement and other individuals. Whitmer, a Democrat, at the time called the measure common sense action to reduce gun violence and keep families and communities safe. However, Molitor told the Detroit News that the law was going behind someones back to take their possessions. Eric Molitor Facebook post Sheriff Taylor, meanwhile, said that the ERPO legislation was now the law of the land and refusing a judges order could land a law enforcement officer behind bars for contempt of court. He also posted to his campaigns Facebook page that he took his oath of office seriously. I 100% support the Constitution and all its Amendments, he said. Law enforcement was founded on the Constitution of the United States over 200 years ago and the Wexford County Sheriffs Office will continue to abide by the laws of the land. Molitor also indicated that he was running on more than just the ERPO issue. I will come down hard on this drug epidemic in our county, enough of our loved ones have died because of this crap. And finally Ill make our deputies [sic] jobs safer by not putting them in harms [sic] way unnecessarily, if youre not ticketing for nit-picking then youll have fewer angry citizens and less negative interactions with the public, posted Molitor. The post Man acquitted in Whitmer kidnap plot case running as a Republican for Wexford Co. sheriff appeared first on Michigan Advance. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. The location of the Turkish-Azerbaijani University has been chosen, Azerbaijan's Minister of Science and Education Emin Amrullayev told reporters on the sidelines of the 2nd ICESCO Ministerial Conference on PISA (Program for International Student Assessment) in Baku on May 13, Trend reports. The minister pointed out that information about this will be provided soon. The work related to the educational building has been completed. The university rector hasn't yet been appointed, he added. To note, onFebruary 19, Azerbaijan`s Minister of Science and Education Emin Amrullayev and President of the Turkish Council of Higher Education Erol Ozvar signed the Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Science and Education of Azerbaijan and the Council of Higher Education of Turkiye on the establishment of the Turkish-Azerbaijani University. On April 16, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev signed a decree "On the approval of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Science and Education of Azerbaijan and the Council of Higher Education of Turkiye on the establishment of the Turkish-Azerbaijani University (TAU). At the initial stage, it's planned to admit 100 students to the mentioned university. The admission plan provides for an additional 100-200 places annually. Education at this university will be free. The training will be organized in English and Turkish. The teaching staff will be selected from representatives of Istanbul Technical University, Middle East Technical University and Hacettepe University. Man Arrested By Police For Driving While Black, Wait'll You See Whose Car He Was In The morning of April 14 was just like any other morning for Khadafi Keenan Fagan-Pierre. He woke up, got dressed, and went to the driveway of his Gatineau home where he opened up the door of a Black BMW. Although the vehicle belonged to his father, Orrett Fagan, he often loans the car to his 31-year-old son since they dont live too far from each other, according to CBC. Once he opened the door, two police officers who were driving by got out of their car, and asked Fagan-Pierre, Is this your car? When he answered no, one of the officers asked, Well, whose car is it? In response, Fagan-Pierre came back with his own questions: Why do you need this information? Is the car stolen? Like, whats going on? Why are you here? When one of the officers said he looked suspicious getting into the car, Fagan-Pierre began to think that he was being stopped for racial reasons, according to CBC. What happened next is all too familiar for Black men who have encounters with police. More from CBC: Shortly after that, Fagan-Pierre found himself forcibly arrested for reasons that remain unclear. He said police slammed him against the garage, punched him in the back of the head and kicked his leg. In his view, the force was unreasonable. He said an officer pushed his face into the pavement and pressed a knee into his back, making it difficult to breathe. Fagan-Pierre alleges that the police officers only started to become defensive when he expressed that he was being racially profiled. He was told, Shut up, this car belongs to a 70-year-old person and you dont look 70 years old. Fagan-Pierres mother, Dian Pierre, witnessed the entire arrest of her son. When she asked the officers why they questioned her son in the first place, she told CBC that they said, Its because of the way he looks and what he was wearing. In response to the incident, Gatineau police (Quebec, Canada) released a statement, saying that they arrested Fagan-Pierre for obstructing a police officer in the execution of duty and that his arrest necessitated the use of force. For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Man accused of breaking into Cobb County home twice, stealing more than 20 guns A man was arrested in north Georgia after officers said he broke into a Cobb County home two different times to steal guns. On March 17, a Cobb County resident reported that his home had been broken into when he was out of town. A total of 12 guns including handguns and rifles were stolen, according to police. A few weeks later on April 8, the man, identified as James Daniel Leech, was later seen returning to the same home to attempt another theft. This time, Leech took 10 guns, according to police. In the time between the first and second theft, the homeowner had set up security cameras and was able to get a better identification of Leech. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] Then, on April 21, Hiawassee police received a tip about Leech, living in the area and having just burglarized a home in Greenwood County, South Carolina. When officers searched Leechs home, they found some of the stolen guns from the home on Sunshine Trace along with multiple suspicious, illegal animal parts. Officers also found pawn tickets to different shops in Georgia along with different gun parts. TRENDING STORIES: Leech was booked into Cobb County jail and was charged with two counts of burglary, two counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession of illegal birds and unlawful possession of firearms or weapons. Officers said he may face even more charges. Leechs wife, Caitline Robertson, was also arrested during the search. She has since been released on bond. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] IN OTHER NEWS: Barry Cadden talks to his attorney Michelle Peirce in a preliminary hearing Thursday, Nov. 14, 2019 in Judge Shauna Murphys courtroom on numerous meningitis deaths. HOWELL A pharmaceutical executive who was charged in 2018 with 11 counts of second-degree murder following a nationwide fungal meningitis outbreak has been sentenced to prison again. Barry Cadden, 57, the former owner of the New England Compounding Center in Framingham, Massachusetts, was sentenced to 10-15 years in prison. He had pleaded no contest to the 11 second-degree murder charges in March. The 2012 outbreak killed 64 people in the U.S., including 11 that resulted from injections of the steroid methylprednisolone at Michigan Pain Specialists Clinic in Livingston County. The medication, according to Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessels office, was manufactured at Caddens NECC lab and shipped to the Michigan pain clinic. Donna Kruzich, Paula Brent, Lyn Laperriere, Mary Plettl, Gayle Gipson, Patricia Malafouris, Emma Todd, Jennie Barth, Ruth Madouse, Salley Roe and Karina Baxter died as a result of being injected with the contaminated drug. Cadden was already serving a federal prison sentence in connection with the outbreak. We all depend on safe medications, Nessel said in a release. Whether its a child needing antibiotics, a parent receiving life-saving treatment, or a grandmother in desperate need of pain relief, every patient deserves to know their medications will help them, not kill them. The families of these 11 victims will forever bear the weight of Mr. Caddens greed and disregard for basic standards that caused this horrific tragedy. We cant bring them back, but with this sentence, I hope the victims' families now have a sense of closure and bad actors know my office will ensure they are held accountable. Cadden disregarded sterility procedures in the compounding of sterile medications and ran his business in an egregiously unsafe manner, endorsing laboratory directives that resulted in cleaning records and testing results being forged and fabricated, Nessel said. The AGs office began investigating Cadden in 2013. In 2017, he was found guilty in a federal court of 57 criminal charges and was sentenced to 14.5 years in federal prison. His state sentence will be served concurrently with his federal sentence. This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Man charged in meningitis outbreak that killed 11 in Michigan sentenced Man covers girls mouth, tries kidnapping her during school track meet, Utah cops say A man was arrested after being accused of trying to kidnap a girl during a middle school track meet, Utah officials said. On May 10, the man, identified as 37-year-old Quintin Howard Drollinger, was seen grabbing the girl by the waist and covering her mouth at Emery High School in Castle Dale, according to court records obtained by FOX 13. Drollinger had grabbed the girl while she was near the schools bathrooms, KSL-TV reported. Once the man realized people were seeing what he was doing, he let the girl go, according to a Facebook post by the Emery County Sheriffs Office. Deputies found the man sitting alone at the end of the bleachers, authorities said. He was booked into the Emery County Jail on a kidnapping charge, deputies said. Hes being held without bail. McClatchy News reached out to deputies for more information on May 13 and was awaiting a response. Emery School District did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Castle Dale is about a 150-mile drive southeast of Salt Lake City. Missing 14-year-old found state away in closet of man she met on Reddit, feds say Man ties up women in his shed, then sexually assaults them, New Jersey officials say Missing woman who didnt show up to salon was likely kidnapped, Washington cops say WATSEKA, Ill. (WCIA) A Cissna Park man is dead and an Ashkum woman is hurt after a crash in Iroquois County on Monday morning. Just before 9:40 a.m., Iroquois County Sheriffs Deputies, Crescent EMS, and Watseka Fire arrived at the scene in rural Watseka. Authorities said the accident happened at the 1600 East and 1900 North intersection. Five hospitalized following Champaign Co. crash An investigation suggested that 77-year-old Rodney Windhorn of Cissna Park was traveling south on 1600 East. Meanwhile Rhonda Kollmann, 66 of Ashkum, was traveling east. Windhorn failed to stop at the fully marked intersection, hitting Kollmanns van. The Iroquois County Sheriffs Office said Windhorn was pronounced dead at the scene. Kollmann was hurt and taken to a nearby hospital, then ultimately airlifted to another one for further treatment. Illinois State Police assisted the Sheriffs Office at the scene. The incident remains under investigation. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WCIA.com. Man detained after crashing into Lake City cruiser, officer injured and released from hospital One man has been detained after a witness said he crashed into a police vehicle, injuring the officer. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< The crash happened on Sun., May 12, at the intersection of West Duval Street and SW McFarlane Avenue. A preliminary investigation showed Reginald Dewayne McCallum was attempting to turn left on SW McFarlane Avenue when he failed to yield. The Lake City officer tried to avoid the collision was police said it was unavoidable. The officer was transported to a local hospital for minor injuries and was released. Right after the crash, McCallum attempted to flee the scene. He was detained by deputies with the Columbia County Sheriffs Office. The Lake City Police Department expresses its gratitude to the Columbia County Sheriffs Office for their swift response and assisting in apprehending McCallum, the department said in a statement. [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live. Man dies, two children airlifted to hospital after crash on Joseph Martin Highway in Henry County HENRY COUNTY, Va. (WFXR) Virginia State Police (VSP) says a man is dead, and three people including two toddlers have been hospitalized after a crash in Henry County on May 11. The crash occurred around 7:10 p.m. on Joseph Martin Highway near Fisher Farm Road. State police said a 32-year-old was driving a Dodge Ram east on the highway when it crossed the center line and hit a 2005 Nissan. The driver of the Nissan was identified as 52-year-old Gregory Lee Myers, from Martinsville. He was rushed to the hospital where he later died. Pet dead, residents displaced after house fire on Kemper Road in Danville According to state police, a 5-year-old girl and a 4-year-old boy were passengers in the Dodge. Both children were airlifted to the hospital with life-threatening injuries. The driver of the Dodge was also taken to the hospital. Their conditions are unknown at this time. VSP confirmed Meyers was not wearing his seatbelt. Were told both toddlers were properly secured in car seats. The crash remains under investigation, and state police said charges are pending. WFXR News will update this story as more information is released. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFXRtv. Man found shot to death in vacant lot in South Shore Man found shot to death in vacant lot in South Shore CHICAGO Chicago police are investigating after a 28-year-old man was found shot to death in a vacant lot Monday morning in South Shore. The man was found around 9:45 a.m. in the 7000 block of South Stony Island. Read more: Latest Chicago news headlines According to Chicago police, he had a gunshot wound to the lower extremities. His identity hasnt been released yet by the Cook County Medical Examiners Office. The incident is still under investigation by Area One detectives. Anyone with information on the incident should call them. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WGN-TV. (FOX40.COM) One man has been taken to an area hospital after being shot in a Rio Linda neighborhood on Monday morning, according to the Sacramento County Sheriffs Office. Deputies are currently working near the intersection of Bergen Way and Savoy Avenue after responding to the shooting. This is a developing story. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX40. Man jumps into water to rescue dog, gets rescued by firefighters A man who jumped into the water to rescue his dog in Oyster Bay, N.Y., ended up needing to be rescued by the Oyster Bay Fire Department. Photo by AITFFan1/Wikimedia Commons May 13 (UPI) -- Authorities in New York's Long Island region said a man who jumped into the water to rescue his dog ended up needing to be rescued by firefighters. The Nassau County Police Department said in a news release that the 34-year-old man was walking his service dog in Oyster Bay on Sunday evening when the canine ran into the water for a swim. "The dog began to struggle and became stuck under a dock," the Police Department said. The man's girlfriend used to the dog's GPS collar to pinpoint the pet's location and the man jumped into the water to assist the dog. A police officer arrived on the scene to find the dog had been lifted to safety, but the man was unable to get himself out. The officer threw a life preserver to the man and summoned the Oyster Bay Fire Department. Firefighters "used a rescue line to extract the male from the water," the Police Department said. The man and dog were not injured. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. The location of the Turkish-Azerbaijani University has been chosen, Azerbaijan's Minister of Science and Education Emin Amrullayev told reporters on the sidelines of the 2nd ICESCO Ministerial Conference on PISA (Program for International Student Assessment) in Baku on May 13, Trend reports. The minister pointed out that information about this will be provided soon. The work related to the educational building has been completed. The university rector hasn't yet been appointed, he added. To note, onFebruary 19, Azerbaijan`s Minister of Science and Education Emin Amrullayev and President of the Turkish Council of Higher Education Erol Ozvar signed the Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Science and Education of Azerbaijan and the Council of Higher Education of Turkiye on the establishment of the Turkish-Azerbaijani University. On April 16, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev signed a decree "On the approval of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Science and Education of Azerbaijan and the Council of Higher Education of Turkiye on the establishment of the Turkish-Azerbaijani University (TAU). At the initial stage, it's planned to admit 100 students to the mentioned university. The admission plan provides for an additional 100-200 places annually. Education at this university will be free. The training will be organized in English and Turkish. The teaching staff will be selected from representatives of Istanbul Technical University, Middle East Technical University and Hacettepe University. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Man killed after SUV crashed into tree, overturned in Nelson County NELSON COUNTY, Va. (WFXR) Virginia State Police (VSP) are investigating a crash that resulted in the death of a man in Nelson County on May 10. According to state police, the crash occurred around 10:30 a.m. on Piedmont Road. Troopers said 63-year-old Harry B. Bare, II, of Bedford, was driving a 2000 Honda CR-V north on Piedmont Road when he allegedly crossed the center line. Investigators said, the Honda then ran off the road, slammed into a tree, and overturned, partially ejecting Bare from the SUV. Bare was pronounced dead at the scene. Man dies, two children airlifted to hospital after crash on Joseph Martin Highway in Henry County VSP said he was not wearing a seatbelt. WFXR News will update this story as details are released. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFXRtv. GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) A man has pleaded no contest after being accused of sending emails to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer threatening to assassinate her, according to the Michigan attorney generals office. Last week, Jason Tolonen, 51, of Detroit suburb Westland, pleaded no contest in charges of using a computer to commit a crime and malicious use of a telecommunications service, the AGs office said in a Monday release. The release says for years, Tolonen repeatedly sent nonsensical, harassing, racist and threatening emails to Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmers constituent portal. Michigan State Police searched his home in November of 2023 after he threatened to assassinate the president or your governor, and then admitted to sending the messages, the AGs release said. He didnt send any more messages for months until February 2024, when he started up again, according to the AG. He was then charged. The AGs office said he would be required to go to Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and not to make repeated, unwanted contact with any individual, business or government entity. He also has to do mental health and substance abuse evaluations. Tolonen is scheduled to be sentenced on June 12th in Wayne County. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com. Rick Slayman, the first human recipient of a genetically modified pig kidney, has died Michelle Rose/Massachusetts General Hospital Rick Slayman. Rick Slayman, the first human to receive a transplant of a genetically modified pig kidney, has died. He was 62. Our family is deeply saddened about the sudden passing of our beloved Rick but take great comfort knowing he inspired so many, Massachusetts General Hospital, which performed the four-hour long surgery on March 21, said in a statement. Although no direct cause of death was mentioned, the hospital did note, We have no indication that it was the result of his recent transplant. Michelle Rose/Massachusetts General Hospital Rick Slayman with his doctors. Slayman, who had end-stage kidney disease, underwent the experimental procedure in March. He also had diabetes and hypertension, and a previous surgery where he received a human kidney had failed. The surgery was performed under the Food and Drug Administration's compassionate use protocol, which grants someone with life-threatening illness access to experimental treatment when no comparable options exist. Related: Maryland Man Becomes the First Person to Successfully Undergo Pig Heart Transplant Leonardo V. Riella, MD, PhD shared in a release at the time that more than 1,400 patients are on a waitlist for a kidney transplant at the hospital. "Some of these patients will unfortunately die or get too sick to be transplanted due to the long waiting time on dialysis. I am firmly convinced that xenotransplantation represents a promising solution to the organ shortage crisis." Credit: iMassachusetts General Hospital Surgery for first genetically modified pig kidney transplant. Xenotransplantation or the transplant of an organ from one species to another could mark a solution to an ongoing organ shortage, Massachusetts General Hospital says. According to numbers from the United Network for Organ Sharing, more than 100,000 people in the U.S. are on a transplant waiting list with 90,000 in need of kidneys. Related: Surgeons Perform Second-Ever Pig Heart Transplant to Save Dying Maryland Man: 'My Only Real Hope Left' In the beginning of April, Slayman had recovered well enough to return home from the hospital. This moment leaving the hospital today with one of the cleanest bills of health Ive had in a long time is one I wished would come for many years, Slayman shared in a statement. Now, its a reality and one of the happiest moments of my life. As the hospital said after his death, After his transplant, Rick said that one of the reasons he underwent this procedure was to provide hope for the thousands of people who need a transplant to survive. Rick accomplished that goal and his hope and optimism will endure forever." For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. CLEVELAND COUNTY, Okla. (KFOR) A man has been sentenced to life in prison for the 2018 murder of his half-sister. Octavio Sanchez and his wife, Desiree Fransen/Sanchez, were accused of murdering Octavios half-sister, 19-year-old Margarita Sandoval, then continuing to collect her social security checks for years after. Investigators said Sandoval had cognitive disabilities. The 19-year-olds family stopped hearing from her in early 2018 after she moved in with the Sanchezes. Her body was discovered inside a tote, wrapped up in tape, plastic wrap, and rope in the basement of a home on W. Lindsey St. in May 2021 after the Norman Police Department received an out-of-state tip. RELATED STORY: Man pleads guilty to manslaughter after murder of half-sister According to court records, investigators found Facebook messages between Desiree and Octavio Sanchez about moving the body around the house due to the smell, and say Octavio Sanchez told someone Desiree started it and I had to finish it. Testimony also revealed the Sanchezes had one of their children help wrap the tote at one point, telling them they were wrapping a present. Federal prosecutors said the couple took $30,912 in benefits for their own personal use, plus $3,200 from economic impact payments in Sandovals name, before her body was discovered. Desiree was sentenced in June 2023 to 36 months in federal prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release, after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit a crime against the United States and aggravated identity theft in January 2023. Octavio was sentenced to 48 months in federal prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release, after pleading guilty to the same crimes. Octavio was also sentenced to 120 months in federal prison for illegally possessing a firearm in December 2022. Desiree was found guilty of Murder in the First Degree and Unlawful Removal of Dead Body in November 2023 and sentenced to life in prison Jan. 11, 2024. RELATED STORY: Woman sentenced to life in prison for murder of sister-in-law On Monday, May 13, the Cleveland County District Attorney announced that Judge Balkman sentenced Octavio to life in prison for Manslaughter and Unlawful Removal of a Dead Body with a $10,000 fine. He [Octavio] sentenced Maggie to life in that box, so he should have to serve the same, says First Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Austin in the sentencing hearing. Mr. Sanchez has had a long life of crime in multiple states and his life of crimes should end today. We want to express our gratitude for the Norman Police Department Detectives Jackson and Robertson for their dedication and fervor to seeking justice for Maggie, says District Attorney Greg Mashburn. The court cases alone have lasted two years, but we know that the beginning of their detective work began long before that. We are proud to have been the voice for Maggie who was unable to speak for herself and to see justice for her today. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KFOR.com Oklahoma City. Man tried to rape woman at knifepoint inside NYC store, police say Man tried to rape woman at knifepoint inside NYC store, police say EAST HARLEM, Manhattan (PIX11) A man allegedly tried to rape a woman at knifepoint inside a store in East Harlem on Sunday, police said. The incident happened near Madison Avenue and East 108th Street around noon, according to the NYPD. Police search for man who punched actor Steve Buscemi on NYC street The suspect allegedly went up to a woman in the store, threw her to the ground, then threatened her with a knife and tried to rape her, police said. The suspect fled after allegedly stealing three cellphones and $1,000 from the store, according to police. The suspect is believed to be between 25-30 years old. He is around 5 feet 8 inches tall, 160 pounds, and has a slim build, short black hair and a short beard, police said. The NYPD released surveillance images of the suspect, who hasnt been identified or arrested. Submit tips to police by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), visiting crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, downloading the NYPD Crime Stoppers mobile app, or texting 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. Spanish-speaking callers are asked to dial 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). Finn Hoogensen is a digital journalist who has covered local news for more than five years. He has been with PIX11 News since 2022. See more of his work here. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11. Man disappears while free diving on World War II shipwreck off Florida, searchers say A man has gone missing while diving on a World War II shipwreck off Floridas Atlantic Coast, according to searchers. Virgil Price, 39, vanished Sunday, May 12, while out with a group of divers, officials say. A West Palm Beach resident was free diving in the area of the Halsey shipwreck where, upon his last known dive, he failed to resurface, the St. Lucie County Sheriffs Office said in a news release. This area is approximately 13 miles southeast of the (Fort) Pierce Inlet. Price was last seen around 10 a.m. by the three other members of his party, who reported him missing, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said. Free diving is a technique that involves holding ones breath instead of using a breathing apparatus. Price is well known in the states free diving community, Florida Freedivers reported. This is an incredibly difficult time, as Virgil was family to us and a dear friend to so many, the organization posted on Facebook. U.S. Coast Guard vessels planned to continue searching for Price through the night Sunday into Monday morning, officials said. A St. Lucie County dive team also joined the search, officials said. Friends continue to hold out hope Price will be found. Hes an Olympic-level free diver/instructor and all around amazing human, Hunter Hutchings wrote on Facebook. If theres anyone that could still be out there, it would be Virgil Price. Price was diving on a 7,088-ton tanker that was torpedoed by German submarine U-333 in 1942, Wrecksite.eu reports. It split in half, burst into flames and went down in 65 feet of water, Fishingstatus.com says. All 32 crew members escaped, the site says. Fort Pierce Inlet is about a 130-mile drive north from Miami. Boater dies just feet from land when he dives in to find cell phone, Florida cops say Dad dies after being pulled from Gulf of Mexico with his son, Florida officials say Missing boater spent night atop capsized boat in Gulf of Mexico, Florida rescuers say SOUTH OZONE PARK, Queens (PIX11) Husband and father Harbhajan Ghotra, 42, said the situation between him and several of his younger neighbors went from bad to worse after he took issue with them allegedly making noise and drinking right outside his home in South Ozone Park, Queens. The very next afternoon last Thursday Ghotra said he walked out of his house to file a formal complaint at the 106th precinct, only to be beaten up on the sidewalk. How to contact 911 in New York if youre unable to call He told PIX11 News his attackers were the very same men from the night before. Ghotra said they fled before police and EMS arrived but left him with bruises and a deep laceration on his head. A wound deep enough that it required stitches at Jamaica Hospital. The NYPD confirmed the assault, but because the suspects fled the scene, responding officers were not able to make any arrests. Ghotra said his assailants are familiar faces and added he now fears for his and his familys safety. Yeah, they live in the house over there. And two people over there in the basement, said Ghotra. So, PIX11 News went to speak with neighbors at both of those multi-family homes. Other people i dont know anything about there. I dont know why they beat him up. Maybe its his fault, said Harry, who answered the door a few houses down the block. Earn reward for tips: How does Crime Stoppers work in New York? We dont know anything about that because we heard some noises. I think someone was drunk, and he was shouting outside, Another neighbor across the street, Arwinder, told PIX11 News. Sikh community advocate Japneet Singh said Ghotra and his family are now trapped and financially unable to escape what he describes as a volatile, unsustainable situation with those neighbors. This is an affordable space for them at this moment in time. If they really cant feel safe in the next couple of weeks, then that might be the only option, said Singh. They said were going to kill you and your family if we dont do it now; wherever we find you, were going to do it next time. [Im] feeling very anxious right now. Every time [I] speak, he says my head hurts, Ghotra added. Ghotra said hes apprehensive about his wifes and two childrens safety. An NYPD spokesperson said the department is absolutely still investigating this assault. Submit tips to police by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), visiting crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, downloading the NYPD Crime Stoppers mobile app, or texting 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. Spanish-speaking callers are asked to dial 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11. Pennsylvania State Police say a man wanted for a shooting in Venango County has been arrested. PSP says several law enforcement agencies, including the United States Marshal Service, were looking for Anthony Martinez Young, 31. After a lead developed by the marshals, Virginia State Police arrested Young in Vinton, Virginia, on Monday afternoon. He was taken to Roanoke City Jail and is awaiting extradition back to Pennsylvania. PSP started searching for Young after a witness claimed to have seen him get out of a car in Oil Creek Township, fire three shots and flee in a gold 2007 Ford Fusion toward Route 227. Young is charged with attempted homicide, aggravated assault, reckless endangerment, criminal mischief and gun violations. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW TRENDING NOW: 1 dead, 2 injured in Uniontown shooting Good puppy abandoned, tied to pole with note outside animal shelter Longtime WPXI reporter Dee Thompson dies at age 84 VIDEO: NWS confirms 2 tornadoes hit Fayette County on Saturday DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts Manager threatens workers job after she rejects invitation to his hotel room, feds say A Montana utility company will pay $50,000 to a former employee who was sexually harassed by her manager and retaliated against after she rejected an invitation to his hotel room, according to federal officials. This comes after NorVal Electric Cooperative previously paid the woman $1,702,148.43 in damages after a state court proceeding filed in the sexual harassment case in 2017, Montana Law Week reported. The employee, while an office manager and accountant for the company, faced sexual comments, questions about her sex life and unwanted touching, including long hugs, from her supervisor since May 2017, a federal lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on her behalf says. As she wore fake eyelashes, her supervisor once told her that women who wore false eyelashes were looking to have an affair, and asked her whether she was having an affair with the executive of a business, according to a complaint filed by the EEOC in 2019. The harassment escalated in October 2017, according to the EEOC, during a business trip when he invited her to his hotel room and offered to give her a key. After the woman adamantly refused, the complaint says he retaliated against her and threatened her job. As she tried to report him, NorVal prevented her from making complaints to anyone besides him, the EEOC said in a May 9 news release. Forcing a person to report harassment to her harasser runs contrary to business sense and best practice, Elizabeth M. Cannon, the director of the EEOCs Seattle Field Office, said in a statement. In a written reprimand days later, the manager warned her against challenging his authority to manage NorVal and threatened to immediately fire her if she continued to challenge him, the complaint says. Then he proposed a severance package for her to leave immediately, told her she wasnt welcome on NorVals property, initiated her firing and suspended her indefinitely, according to the complaint. More than six years later, NorVal, which is based in Valley County, has agreed to pay the employee $50,000 in damages to settle the EEOCs claims of sexual harassment and retaliation, the agency announced in the release. NorVal and an attorney representing the company didnt immediately respond to a request for comment from McClatchy News on May 13. This harasser tried to put himself above the law, and it took incredible courage for this employee to come forward. I hope this settlement brings her some measure of relief, EEOC Senior Trial Attorney Amos Blackman said in a statement. The settlement comes after the employee filed a charge of discrimination with the EEOC and accused NorVal of making her endure a hostile work environment on the basis of her sex and that the company retaliated against her for opposing the sexual harassment, the complaint says. Sexual harassment and retaliation at work violate Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The employee was named as an intervenor plaintiff in the case and was represented by attorney Todd Shea Jr. What happened in the state case? In state court, the employees case against NorVal went to trial in February 2019, according to documents provided to McClatchy News by Shea. In October 2019, a Montana hearing officer issued a decision finding in favor of (the employee) on both her sexual harassment and retaliation claims, Shea told McClatchy News in an email. NorVal appealed the officers decision, but the Montana Human Rights Commission denied NorVals appeal in a Final Agency Decision issued in February 2020, according to court documents. Afterward, NorVal appealed this decision resulting in Montanas 17th Judicial District Court to affirm the Human Rights Commissions liability findings on Feb. 26, 2021, Shea said. NorVal filed another appeal, which was heard by the state Supreme Court. The court ultimately upheld the liability findings. In an opinion issued December 2022, the state Supreme Court wrote: (The employee) took offense to Herberts actions, reported them as best she could, and yet, NorVal took no positive steps to address or remedy the situation. Shea told McClatchy News that since NorVal would not allow (his client) to make her complaint about (the manager) she went out on unpaid leave from NorVal in December 2017 and never returned to NorVal because it never investigated (her) claims. The company terminated her employment in July 2021, he said. The manager never received any discipline whatsoever by his employer NorVal as a result of (her) claims. (He) voluntarily resigned from NorVal in January 2023 with continued medical benefits, Shea added. As part of a three-year consent decree that resolves the federal lawsuit, NorVal is not allowed to employ the manager accused of harassing the employee. Its unclear when he stopped working for the company. NorVal must also hire an independent consultant to help the company create anti-discrimination policies and procedures, receive and independently and confidentially investigate any complaints of sexual harassment and/or retaliation, and recommend appropriate corrective action to remedy any complaints of discrimination or retaliation, the EEOC said. If a NorVal employee wants to make a complaint, the company must make multiple people available to hear the complaints, according to the EEOC. NorVal must also hold anti-discrimination training for all employees, the agency said. Man masturbated on call with customer service rep and she couldnt hang up, suit says Manager asks Why cant you drop this when gay waiter reports harassment, feds say Woman has miscarriage, is fired for attendance violation, feds say. Shes owed $150K What are you, about sixty? Longtime store worker wasnt promoted due to age, suit says BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. A protocol on student exchange between Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan will be approved, Trend reports via the relevant draft law of Azerbaijan. The draft law "On the approval of the protocol on amendments to the agreement between the Ministries of Education and Science of Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan on cooperation in the field of education dated April 3, 2017" entails the annual exchange of an equal number of students between the two countries for bachelor's programs (three students), master's programs (five students), Ph.D. programs (two students), basic (undergraduate) medical education programs, and residency programs (two students). According to the draft, the Azerbaijani side will organize the training of three students in the group of technical and technological specialties (bachelor's degree - one, master's degree - one, doctoral degree - 1), three students in the group of humanitarian and social specialties (bachelor's degree - one, master's degree - one, doctoral degree - one), three students in the group of economic and managerial specialties (bachelor's degree - one, master's degree - two), one person in the group of natural sciences specialties (master's degree), in the group of basic (undergraduate) medical education specialties and in specialties for which training of specialist doctors in residency is carried out - two students. The Kazakh side will organize training in the fields of information and communication technologies, mechanical engineering, processing, and construction industries - five students (bachelor's degree - one, master's degree - three, doctoral degree - one), agriculture and bio resources, arts and humanities, social sciences, journalism and information, business, management, and law - five students (bachelor's degree - two, master's degree - two, Ph.D. degree - one), healthcare and social security specialties (medicine) - two students (continuous integrated medical education program (six years) and residency (up to five years). The draft law was discussed today at a meeting of the Committee of the Parliament of Azerbaijan on Science and Education. To note, the mentioned protocol was signed on March 11 of this year by the Minister of Science and Education of Azerbaijan, Emin Amrullayev, and his Kazakh counterpart, Sayasat Nurbek. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Manhunt after an Ohio police officer was killed ends in suspects death after a standoff, authorities say A suspect was found dead Sunday in northeastern Ohio following a manhunt and hourslong standoff with law enforcement after a police officer was fatally shot in an ambush the night before, authorities say. The suspect, identified by the Euclid Police Department as 24-year-old Deshawn Anthony Vaughn, was found dead inside a residence in Shaker Heights, Ohio, US Marshals spokesperson Peter J. Elliott said during a Sunday evening news conference. Shaker Heights is about 9 miles south of the city of Euclid, where the officer was killed. The manhunt is now over, Elliott said. The suspect, who was considered highly armed, had fled on foot to Shaker Heights after the ambush on Saturday, authorities said. Officials did not confirm the manner of Vaughns death during Sundays news conference. Euclid police officer Jacob Derbin, 23, was shot Saturday as officers responded to a disturbance call at a home shortly before 10 p.m. in Euclid about 12 miles north of Cleveland the Euclid Police Department said in a news release. The complainant stated that her childs father threatened to harm her and her mother, Euclid Police Chief Scott Meyer said during Sundays news conference. The woman told responding officers the suspect was on foot and possibly nearby, according to Meyer. Officers went to check the backyard and were ambushed by gunfire from the suspect, Meyer said. The Euclid Police Department identified Jacob Derbin, 23, as the officer that was shot and killed during an ambush on Saturday night. - Euclid Police Department Derbin was shot and taken to the hospital but died of his injuries, authorities said. No other officers were injured. His kind heart and enormous smile were infectious, Meyer said of Derbin, speaking with emotion. The world was a better place with him in it and he will be desperately missed by all who knew him. Derbin, who was engaged and set to be married in July, was sworn into the department in last July. His father is also a Euclid police officer, according to Meyer. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine ordered flags to be flown at half-staff to honor Derbins life and service on Sunday. The United States and State of Ohio flags will remain in that position until sunset on the day of Derbins funeral, according to an announcement from DeWine. The Euclid Police Department asks that you keep the fallen officer, his family, loved ones and our agency in your thoughts and prayers, police said in a statement. CNNs Michelle Watson, Leah Thomeer and Ashley R. Williams contributed to this report. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com How many 'Never Trumpers' say they're not voting for President Biden? Geoff Duncan, Republican former lieutenant governor of Georgia, made headlines last week with an op-ed in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution announcing that he plans to vote for President Joe Biden come November and calling for others to do the same. I am voting for a decent person I disagree with on policy over a criminal defendant without a moral compass, he said. Duncan is part of a small, if expanding, contingent of Republicans who say they now see former President Donald Trump as a threat that transcends party politics. Some Never Trumpers split the difference and say that, while they wont vote for Trump, they cant bring themselves to vote for a Democrat. Ruling out Trump Among the prominent Republicans who say theyll vote for Biden is former U.S. Representative Adam Kinzinger, R-Illinois, who broke with his party over the January 6 insurrection. U.S. Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, who was also among the few Republicans to vote to impeach Trump in 2019 and 2020, said on NBCs Meet the Press in December that he might vote for Biden but that he had rule[d] out voting for Trump. More: Trump trial live updates: Listen to recording of Trump and Cohen discussing hush money Former Wyoming Republican Congresswoman Liz Cheney, famously highly critical of Trump, said at the Connecticut Forum in March, I will do everything I can to make sure [Trump] is never anywhere near the Oval Office again. She said, however, that she was undecided about officially endorsing Biden. Im about results. Then-President Donald Trump and Attorney General Bill Barr in 2020. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, and former U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr are some notable Republicans who have blasted Trump in the past for his behavior and questioned his fitness for office, only to say more recently that he is their pick for president. Barr told CNN that he thought Trump would do less damage than Biden, despite calling the former president unfit for office. McConnell said after the January 6 attacks that Trump was morally responsible for them, calling his actions disgraceful. But in a statement shortly after Trump edged ahead in the Super Tuesday primaries, he said, It is abundantly clear that former President Trump has earned the requisite support of Republican voters to be our nominee for President of the United States. Republican New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu endorsed Nikki Haley in the Republican primary earlier this year, earning jabs from Trump, but that he supports him. I think January 6 was terrible, Sununu told News Nation in May, but I dont necessarily think its a disqualifier because Im about results. Im gonna write-in a Republican. President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence in 2020. Former Republican New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Paul Ryan, a Republican from Wisconsin, have all said that, while they cant vote for Trump, they wont vote for Biden either and will likely write in the name of another Republican candidate. Character is too important for me to vote for Trump, Ryan told Yahoo Finance in May. I wrote in a Republican the last time. Im gonna write in a Republican this time. And former Vice President Mike Pence will not be voting for Trump either. It should come as no surprise that I will not be endorsing Donald Trump this year, Pence told Fox News in March. Pence broke with Trump over his handling of--some say incitement of--the mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol on January 6. I would never vote for Joe Biden, he said. Im a Republican. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'Never Trumper' Republican Trump critics continue supporting him As a Palestinian American whose parents were refugees from the West Bank, 59-year-old Manor resident Haithem El-Zabri has been involved in protests for Palestinian people since he was 12. El-Zabri, who runs a website called the Palestine Online Store and is a member of the Austin for Palestine Coalition, attended the protests in support of the Palestinian people on April 24 and 29 at the University of Texas where police arrested more than 135 people. Protesters called on the university to divest from its support of weapons manufacturers that supply Israel in its ongoing war with Hamas, which has led to more than 34,000 deaths of Palestinians since the militant groups deadly Oct. 7 attack on Israel. Since those arrests, UT has said the majority of the people who were arrested had no affiliation with the university and suggested that "outside groups" had influenced the protests on campus. But UT's definition of an "affiliation" with the university was unclear until the American-Statesman asked for a clarification last week. A spokesperson said UT did not deem alumni who participated in the protests as being affiliated with the university. Pointing to people outside of universities as leading or fomenting pro-Palestinian protests is not unique to UT, as campus leaders have blamed "outside agitators" for the protests across the country, such as those that took place at Columbia University. But multiple people who spoke with the Statesman said they came to campus at the request of the Palestine Solidarity Committee, a UT student organization, and students who organized the demonstrations. None said they took part in planning the protests. Whether people are affiliated with the campus or not, however, is irrelevant to whether theyre allowed to protest on the UT campus, because Gov. Greg Abbott signed a law in 2019 making public universities a traditional public forum where anyone is allowed to protest. El-Zabri, who is also involved in Indigenous American and environmental activism, is among the protesters who are not connected to UT. You don't have to be affiliated with the university to support student demands which completely align with my demands for justice and end to genocide, El-Zabri said. And since the university is complicit with the genocide of my people, I don't see how that makes me an outsider. Protesters stand with linked arms April 29 at a short-lived encampment on the University of Texas South Mall. UT has said most of those arrested in last month's pro-Palestinian demonstrations had no affiliation with the university and suggested that "outside groups" had influenced the protests. Who is affiliated? UT has said in statements released to the news media that 45 of the 79 people arrested on April 29 and 26 of the 55 people arrested on April 24 had no affiliation with UT. An analysis by the Statesman found that nearly 65% of the people arrested on those days had the same name as a student or an alumnus in UTs directory. UT spokesperson Brian Davis said the university considered only current students, faculty and staff when it determined who was affiliated. Davis said UT believes its numbers are rock solid on who is or isnt currently affiliated with the university. The Statesman found that 47 people arrested April 29 were listed as students or alumni of UT, while 32 of the 79 arrested were not students or alumni. Ten of those arrested were listed as alumni, with 37 having the same name as students. The publication found that 41 people arrested in the April 24 protest had the same name as a student or an alumnus, while 17 were not listed in UTs directory. Two people taken into custody that day were listed as alumni in the directory, and one of them is a staff member. Information about who was arrested April 24 is more limited since Travis County Attorney Delia Garza dropped all of the charges, which means charging documents are not available. The Statesman obtained a list of those arrested in connection with the protests, and it was verified by the Travis County sheriffs office. UT would not provide the Statesman with its list of who was considered affiliated by the university. Protesters pick up litter on the UT South Mall after the April 29 demonstration. An analysis by the American-Statesman of those arrested in last month's protests found that nearly 65% of them had the same name as a student or an alumnus in UTs directory. Protesters 'unaffiliated' with UT describe why they joined protests The Statesman spoke with numerous arrested people who had no affiliation with UT, many of whom would later be labeled by university President Jay Hartzell in a memo as outside organizers. Some are involved with other local activist movements that have helped coordinate other demonstrations in support of Palestinians over the past seven months in Austin. Others included community members, college students from other campuses and a mother from Killeen who just heard about the protests on social media and wanted to show her support. Court records show that almost everyone arrested came from Austin, while others came from neighboring cities and counties in Central Texas. The farthest hometown of an arrested protester was Houston. But since the protests took place, Hartzell has cited concerns about people unaffiliated with UT being part of the protests and helping organize them. A memo from Hartzell said the April 24 protest raised serious concern that outside organizers unaffiliated with our University were influencing our registered student organization to attempt to make Texas the next University shut down by these protesters actions. In an op-ed for the Statesman, UT professor Karma Chavez, who has led teach-ins on the South Mall, said the use of the outside agitator trope has a long history and is a red herring that powerful people use to justify police force and discredit local movements. The Palestine Solidarity Committee, a student organization that was put on interim suspension for organizing the unauthorized April 24 protest, has held dozens of protests since Oct. 7. Hanna Barakat, a 34-year-old Austin resident and member of the Austin for Palestine Coalition, said the students have often called on other community members and organizations for support. We're all small as separate entities, and we're all bigger and have bigger voices when we all are collectively together, said Barakat, who was arrested April 29. UT President Jay Hartzell has cited concerns about "outside organizers" unaffiliated with the university being part of the recent campus protests. A UT spokesperson said the university didn't deem alumni as being affiliated with UT. Last week, police charged San Marcos resident Michael David Maule with a third-degree felony for bringing a gun on campus during the April 29 protest. A search through UTs records shows that no one with that name is a student or an alumnus. Zainab Haider, who attended the April 24 protest and is a member of the Austin for Palestine Coalition, said she asked other organizations about Maule, and no one knew who he was. Zachery Johnson, a 22-year-old Austin Community College student who lives in a co-op in West Campus and works at Moody Center, heard about the April 29 protest on Instagram. He was in one of the tents briefly raised on UT's South Mall and was later arrested. He denies taking part in planning the encampment, which protesters put up in defiance of campus rules and which led to a heavy police response and the arrests of 79 people. Johnson said he went to what was called the Liberated Zone on the South Lawn on April 29 to listen to a pediatric nurse who had just returned from helping in Gaza. He then saw the tents and tables go up and decided he would stay because its an amazing way to make a statement. Johnson said he isnt a longtime activist, noting that this was only the second protest he had ever attended, with a march for Palestine last fall being his first. It's done nothing short of motivate me more because it's made me realize how silent some of the issues truly are, Johnson said. Hana Yoshimoto, a 34-year-old Austin resident and member of the local Jewish Voice for Peace chapter, heard about the protest through social media and their organization. Yoshimoto was arrested during the April 24 protest and also attended April 29. Yoshimoto said student organizers with the Palestine Solidarity Committee put out a call for support for community members to join the protests, which is why Yoshimoto attended. Yoshimoto said the original plan was only for a teach-in on the lawn April 24, not a protest. In a lot of ways, we're very lucky and privileged to be able to use our voices in this way, Yoshimoto said. There's just so much suffering that's happening for people in much more dire circumstances in Palestine. This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: 'Outside' protesters say they did not plan UT pro-Palestinian protests The Maryland Office of the Attorney General is seeking authorization to hire five law firms to assist in what is expected to be a lengthy and complicated legal fight following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge. In a pair of written requests, Attorney General Anthony Brown asked the Maryland Transportation Authority and the states spending board to approve a contingent fee provision, meaning that the firms would be paid out of money recovered from the bridge litigation. The transportation authority unanimously approved the request at a special board meeting Monday afternoon. Next up is Marylands Board of Public Works, which also must approve the payment arrangement at its meeting on Wednesday. The group of law firms has the right mix of maritime litigation, insurance and other expertise and experience we need to pursue and protect the states interests in this critical matter, Brown told the transportation authoritys board members. The firms are Kelley Drye & Warren LLP and Liskow & Lewis APLC, both based in Houston; Downs Ward Bender Herzog & Kintigh P.A., a Hunt Valley firm; the Lanier Law Firm, based in New York; and Partridge LLC, a New Orleans firm. Kelley Drye, who will lead the group, has extensive experience handling complex tort litigation, Brown said. Liskow & Lewis has one of the largest maritime practice groups in the country, according to the firms website. Partridge and Lanier are both boutique firms with experience in insurance recovery and maritime law. Downs Ward Bender Herzog & Kintigh will serve as local counsel. The firm is woman-owned, based near Baltimore and has experience handling tort defense and maritime law, Brown said. The attorney generals office began searching for assistant counsel to help with the case early last month. It received 34 proposals involving 63 law firms, including 14 proposed joint ventures with multiple firms. Related Articles The container ship Dali struck the Key Bridge on the early morning of March 26, sending the span tumbling into the Patapsco River and killing six members of a construction crew who were working on the bridge. The ships owner and manager, both companies based in Singapore, quickly filed notice that they would try to cap their liability in the crash at $43 million, roughly the value of the Dali and its cargo. Parties with claims against the ship will try to stop the companies from limiting their liability, a process that takes place in federal court. So far, the city of Baltimore and a publishing company have filed claims as part of the action, but more are expected by the courts deadline of Sept. 24. The attorney generals office plans to seek financial recovery for the damages suffered by the state of Maryland in the crash. It would pay the five law firms on a sliding scale depending on how much money the state recovers and how long the litigation lasts. The firms could earn between 2% and 18% of the money the state recovers based on the outcome of the case. The firms would not receive any compensation if the state recovers less than $350 million, the amount of a payout from Chubb, the states insurance provider for the Key Bridge. They also would be responsible for representing the state in an appeal or if any of the parties involved in the bridge collapse declares bankruptcy, Brown said Monday. This is a unique legal matter and it is difficult to compare the fee schedule to that used in other litigation, the attorney generals office wrote in its request to the Board of Public Works. The fee schedule is favorable compared to the arrangements offered by other firms considered for this engagement. Building a new Key Bridge could cost up to $1.9 billion, according to estimates released earlier this month. President Joe Biden has pledged the federal government will pay to replace the bridge; much of the legal wrangling over the collapse will center on recouping damages. With insurance claims expected to top $1 billion, the bridge collapse could rival or top the maritime industrys largest-ever financial loss. The Maryland Office of the Attorney General is seeking authorization to hire five law firms to assist in what is expected to be a lengthy and complicated legal fight following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge. In a pair of written requests, Attorney General Anthony Brown asked the Maryland Transportation Authority and the states spending board to approve a contingent fee provision, meaning that the firms would be paid out of money recovered from the bridge litigation. The transportation authority unanimously approved the request at a special board meeting Monday afternoon. Next up is Marylands Board of Public Works, which also must approve the payment arrangement at its meeting Wednesday. The group of law firms has the right mix of maritime litigation, insurance and other expertise and experience we need to pursue and protect the states interests in this critical matter, Brown told the transportation authoritys board members. The firms are Kelley Drye & Warren LLP and Liskow & Lewis APLC, both based in Houston; Downs Ward Bender Herzog & Kintigh P.A., a Hunt Valley firm; the Lanier Law Firm, based in New York; and Partridge LLC, a New Orleans firm. Kelley Drye, who will lead the group, has extensive experience handling complex tort litigation, Brown said. Liskow & Lewis has one of the largest maritime practice groups in the country, according to the firms website. Partridge and Lanier are both boutique firms with experience in insurance recovery and maritime law. Downs Ward Bender Herzog & Kintigh will serve as local counsel. The firm is woman-owned, based near Baltimore and has experience handling tort defense and maritime law, Brown said. The attorney generals office began searching for assistant counsel to help with the case early last month. It received 34 proposals involving 63 law firms, including 14 proposed joint ventures with multiple firms. The container ship Dali struck the Key Bridge on the early morning of March 26, collapsing the span into the Patapsco River and killing six members of a construction crew who were working on the bridge. The ships owner and manager, both companies based in Singapore, quickly filed notice that they would try to cap their liability in the crash at $43 million, roughly the salvage value of the Dali and its cargo. Parties with claims against the ship will try to stop the companies from limiting their liability, a process that takes place in federal court. So far, the city of Baltimore and a publishing company have filed claims as part of the action, but more are expected by the courts deadline of Sept. 24. The attorney generals office plans to seek financial recovery for the damages suffered by the state of Maryland in the crash. It would pay the five law firms on a sliding scale depending on how much money the state recovers and how long the litigation lasts. The firms could earn between 2% and 18% of the money the state recovers based on the outcome of the case. The firms would not receive any compensation if the state recovers less than $350 million, the amount of a payout from Chubb, the states insurance provider for the Key Bridge. They also would be responsible for representing the state in an appeal or if any of the parties involved in the bridge collapse declares bankruptcy, Brown said Monday. This is a unique legal matter and it is difficult to compare the fee schedule to that used in other litigation, the attorney generals office wrote in its request to the Board of Public Works. The fee schedule is favorable compared to the arrangements offered by other firms considered for this engagement. Building a new Key Bridge could cost up to $1.9 billion, according to estimates released earlier this month. President Joe Biden has pledged the federal government will pay to replace the bridge; much of the legal wrangling over the collapse will center on recouping damages. With insurance claims expected to top $1 billion, the bridge collapse could rival or top the maritime industrys largest-ever financial loss. _____ From the Dispatch Politics on The Dispatch Happy Monday! We hope everyone had a Happy Mothers Day, especially Mrs. Barbara Grassley, wife of Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley. The senator characteristically said he was gr8ful for his wife on X yesterday. Can we have more wholesome content like this in our politics, please? Up to Speed Former President Donald Trump leads President Joe Biden among registered voters in five of six key swing states, according to a New York Times poll released Monday. Trumps advantage was as low as 3 points and as high as 12 points in Pennsylvania, Arizona, Michigan, Georgia, and Nevadahis lead being outside the margin of error in the last two. Biden led Trump by 2 points in Wisconsin. Biden earlier had appeared to cut Trumps lead in polling last month, trailing by just 0.2 points nationally in the RealClearPolitics polling average, but Trump has increased his lead to 1.2 points in that metric. The same poll found that Democratic Senate candidates lead their Republican opponents in four key races that could determine control of the body: Nevada, Arizona, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. Sen. Jacky Rosen of Nevada held the smallest lead, beating likely Republican challenger Sam Brown by 2 points, while Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin led likely Republican challenger Eric Hovde by 9 points, the largest of any Democrat in the poll. National Republican Senatorial Committee Chair Sen. Steve Daines of Montana has said the group is targeting Pennsylvania, Maryland, Montana, and Ohio. Trump on Saturday denied a report that he was considering former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley as a running mate. Nikki Haley is not under consideration for the V.P. slot, but I wish her well! DJT, Trump wrote in a Truth Social post. That post came a day after Axios reported the former presidents campaign was considering Haley for the position. Trump has previously threatened that donors to Haleys presidential campaign are permanently barred from the MAGA camp, and President Joe Biden has attempted to win over Haley voters. Biden is set to host another star-studded fundraiser in Los Angeles in June featuring former President Barack Obama and actors George Clooney and Julia Roberts, NBC News reported Sunday. That event follows a New York fundraiser the Biden campaign held in March, also featuring Obama, along with former President Bill Clinton and other celebrities, bringing in about $25 million. Biden and Democrats have thus far touted a significant fundraising advantage in the campaign as Trump has attempted to catch up. Speaker Mike Johnson said on Politicos Playbook Deep Dive podcast published Friday that Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizonawho originally supported Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greenes motion to vacate the speakership and later voted against a motion to table itconfided to Johnson privately that he would not have voted to oust the speaker if it came to a vote. I would not read too much into the voting against the motion to table. In fact, a couple of those folks,Warren Davidson and even Gosar, who was originally with Marjorie [Taylor Greene] and Thomas Massie told me privately that they would never have voted to vacate, and they wished it hadnt happened, Johnson said of the list of Republicans who voted against the motion to table that eventually killed Greenes proposed measure. He also detailed some of the conversations he had with Greene and Massie in the lead-up to the formers triggering the vote. Multiple Republicans gave clearer answers on Sunday shows to the question of whether they would accept the results of the 2024 election after Sen. Tim Scott dodged the query a week before. If its a free and fair election, I will accept the results, Dana, whoever wins, Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio told Dana Bash on CNNs State of the Union. Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said on NBCs Meet the Press that he would accept the results if theres no massive cheating. Scott equivocated on the question in an interview last week on Meet the Press, only saying repeatedly that he expected Trump to win. Vance and Scott are rumored contenders to be Trumps running mate. (Vance, by the way, joined Trump at his Manhattan trial Monday.) Its Down to the Wire for Marylands Democratic Senate Hopefuls U.S. Rep. David Trone speaks with campaign volunteers in Laurel, Maryland, on May 3, 2024. (Photo by Craig Hudson for The Washington Post via Getty Images) Democratic voters in Maryland head to the polls tomorrow for the primary for the U.S. Senatethe outcome of which could make a big difference in whether the party can retain the seat held by retiring Democratic Sen. Ben Cardin. Rep. David Trone and Angela Alsobrooks, the executive of Prince Georges County, are facing off for the Democratic nomination in whats become an incredibly tight race. For decades, winning the primary was akin to winning the seat since the last Republican to win a Senate race in Maryland was Charles Mathias in 1980. But the winner of Tuesdays Democratic primary will have a formidable opponent in Republican Larry Hogan, who is expected to win the GOP nomination easily. Hogans entry into the race earlier this year suddenly put Maryland on the map for the GOP and has made a tough electoral year for Senate Democrats even tougher. The popular two-term former governor leads both Trone and Alsobrooks in most of the polls of head-to-head general election matchups. In the RealClearPolitics average of polls, Trone does slightly better against Hogan than Alsobrooks does, trailing by 3.8 points while Alsobrooks trails by 6.5. A new poll from Emerson College released last week, however, showed Trone and Alsobrooks leading Hogan by 11 points and 10 points, respectively. That same Emerson poll found Alsobrooks and Trone in a statistical tie for tomorrows primary, with the county executive leading 42 percent to 41, with 12 percent still undecided. In the poll, Trone is leading among those primary voters who say they have already voted, which is a good sign for the three-term congressman. But Alsobrooks has the advantage among likely voters who had still not voted by last week, when the poll was conducted. Bottom line? Its likely to be a nail-biter in Maryland tomorrow night. And no matter who wins the nomination, the fight with Hogan is going to be costly for Democrats who are defending Senate seats in more typical battleground states as well. Indeed, Trone has argued that his intention to self-fundhe is the co-founder of alcohol retailer Total Wine and has a vast personal fortunecan save national Democrats from having to funnel precious dollars into Maryland. This will probably be an expensive race, Trone told the New York Times in an interview, saying that his ability to spend his own money on his race will give them a lot more flexibility to spend money elsewhere. To catch yourself up on the primary, reread our recent coverage. John McCormack reported for Dispatch Politics recently on the racial politics at play in the Democratic primary, particularly after Trone, who is white, mistakenly used the racial slur jigaboo during a congressional hearing when he meant to use the term bugaboo. John reported how Alsobrooks, who is black, has been making a pretty straightforward case for Maryland Democrats to select a black woman to send to the Senate, where there are currently none. And last week in Dispatch Politics, Charles Hilu dug a little deeper into the question of Alsobrooks support across most of the Maryland congressional delegation, where just one other member has endorsed Trone, their colleague. Charles found that when it came down to it, Alsobrooks had made all the right connections throughout her career in Democratic politics to collect her slew of big-name endorsements. The Libertarian Partys Curious Trump Flirtation Weve spilled plenty of digital ink about third-party and independent presidential candidates, from Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to the aborted No Labels bid. But what about the Libertarian Party? The minor party, which has been on the presidential ballot in all 50 states and D.C. in six elections since 1980, will have a ballot line in 37 states this year. Next week, the party will select its nominee for president at its national convention in Washington, but with a bizarre guest speaker: presumptive Republican Party nominee Donald Trump. Over on the site, John McCormack has a new report on the inter-party battle that forms the background of this unusual decision to invite Trump. So why, exactly, did a minor party whose raison detre is to reject the two major parties invite the presumptive GOP nominee to potentially overshadow the convention where Libertarian Party delegates will pick their own presidential nominee? That is a hotly contested question within a Libertarian Party that is deeply divided between two factionsthe Mises Caucus and the Classical Liberal Caucus. The Mises Caucus is the Libertarian Partys largest faction whose members swept to power at the partys 2022 convention in a backlash against what they saw as an increasingly politically correct party that didnt do enough to stand up to COVID lockdowns and was happy to run Republican Party retreads for president. The Classical Liberal Caucus is filled with, well, self-styled classical liberals who see Mises Caucus types as Trump-adjacent bigots and kooksor at least way too tolerant of bigots and kooks. Heading into the 2024 convention, the Mises Caucus has endorsed presidential candidate Michael Rectenwald, a former New York University professor who says he converted from Marxism to anarcho-capitalism after he was the victim of a woke mob at NYU. On Friday, the Classical Liberals endorsed Chase Oliver, a former Democrat who was the Libertarian Partys 2022 Senate candidate in Georgia. The Classical Liberals contend that by turning the convention into a Trump rally, the Mises Caucus leaders of the Libertarian Party are not only trying to help Trump win the general election, theyre also trying to depress turnout of delegates who might oppose the Mises Caucus candidates running for party leadership and the presidential nomination. John also considers the possibility that Trumps appearance could backfire on the former president, especially if it helps in boosting Rectenwald, the Trumpier of the two leading candidates. Or it could do what many Libertarian Party partisans fear: sway many of their voters to the GOP. If Trumps presence at the convention does help Rectenwald win the nomination, that would likely hurt Trump in the general election because Rectenwalds anti-woke and anti-abortion stances would almost certainly draw more votes away from Trump than Biden. On the other hand, Oliver, the candidate backed by the Classical Liberal Caucus, would likely draw more votes from Biden than Trump because Oliver is a former Democratic antiwar activist who favors enacting a federal statutory right to abortion. So what does Trump have to gain from showing up at the Libertarian Convention? I dont think he cares one way or the other who our presidential nominee is, Casey of the Classical Liberal Caucus told The Dispatch. I think his motivation for coming to speak to the Libertarian Party is that he looks at this as a campaign rally where he can go up on a stage that has Libertarian Party branding, Libertarian Party crowd, and he can create an ad for himself, essentially. That message? I spoke to the Libertarians, and they loved me, as Casey put it. Read the whole thing here. Notable and Quotable Has anyone ever seen The Silence of the Lambs? The late, great Hannibal Lecter. Hes a wonderful man. He oftentimes would have a friend for dinner. Remember the last scene? Excuse me, Im about to have a friend for dinner, as this poor doctor walked by. Im about to have a friend for dinner. But Hannibal Lecter. Congratulations. The late, great Hannibal Lecter. Donald Trump, during a speech at a rally in Wildwood, New Jersey, May 11, 2024 Read more at The Dispatch The Dispatch is a new digital media company providing engaged citizens with fact-based reporting and commentary, informed by conservative principles. Sign up for free. Mayor Johnson at one year in office: Former activist grapples with being the boss Mayor Brandon Johnson paused to soak in the scene as row after row of longtime union members and leaders sprang to their feet. As he approached his first anniversary in office, the freshman mayor whose political career began at the firebrand Chicago Teachers Union looked right at home before the adoring crowd of self-proclaimed troublemakers at the annual Labor Notes conference in April near OHare International Airport. During his speech to the group, Johnson commended the City Councils controversial, razor-thin January endorsement of a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war. Im also proud that the city of Chicago led the way the beginning this year of passing a resolution calling for a permanent cease-fire in Gaza, he said. And Im so grateful that I got a chance to vote to break the tie. Outside, meanwhile, protesters were clashing with Rosemont cops. Hundreds of pro-Palestinian demonstrators banged on a police car to demand the release of one of them who had been detained. Johnson, celebrating his newfound role as the boss of the nations third-largest city with a roomful of union bigwigs at the annual strategy session, was not the target of the rally-turned-skirmish by rank-and-file labor groups outside the event, the Labor for Palestine National Network said. But the chorus of protesters singing the labor anthem Which side are you on? while fighting with baton-wielding officers illustrated a difficult reality for him one year into his term: How does a mayor who proved his bona fides through audacious organizing against the establishment set the tone for peaceful protests amid a swelling antiwar movement ahead of the Democratic National Conventions arrival in Chicago this August? As with other issues during Johnsons first year, the question touches on the conundrum of his jump from underdog mayoral candidate to chief executive. His campaign caught fire because he vowed to fight the status quo. But to some, his administration now represents the status quo. Like his fifth floor predecessors, Johnson has been thrown a series of curveballs over the past 12 months, making it tougher for him to find his footing at the outset as hes up against a sharp learning curve in occupying the most powerful seat in Chicago government. The very costly and divisive migrant crisis waiting on Johnsons desk from day one crowded out many of his early legislative victories centered on workers rights, and saddled him with high-profile setbacks as he stumbled through how the city could house tens of thousands of asylum-seekers. Though momentum is returning in the wake of him clinching the passage of an ambitious $1.25 billion bond plan to fund affordable housing and development, pockets of Johnsons progressive base are restless. They object to decisions l such as keeping embattled Chicago Transit Authority chief Dorval Carter as well as a campaign about-face on a publicly financed Chicago Bears stadium. Jason McGrath, a Chicago-based strategist who was a pollster for the last three mayors, said Johnson should be concerned about these calls coming from inside the house. Its a very, very hard job, and I think hes finding now that its a lot easier to throw bombs from the sideline than it is to be in the ring and actually defuse them, McGrath said. Right now, there are too many people who are openly criticizing him who should be with them. And if thats not a flashing red light yet, it certainly will be soon. Aldermen have said they felt bigfooted over decisions from placing migrant shelters in their wards to the citys impending cancellation of the ShotSpotter contract, and his political capital in Springfield is on much shakier footing than a year ago. If the mayor was concerned about the drumbeat of negativity, however, he did not betray that in an interview with the Tribune. Instead, Johnson accentuated his wins, touting the recent bond plan eight times during the 30-minute sit-down. He also pointed to other progressive gains, such as the city allocating $250 million for affordable housing and homelessness services and $100 million for violence prevention, abolishing the tipped subminimum wage, expanding mandatory paid time off and increasing the citys youth jobs program by $76 million. Its all a part of righting historic wrongs, Johnson said, a process that will take time. While he didnt specifically ask for patience after 12 months, the mayor took pains to paint as well-established the structural oppression he says he was elected to fix. Weve had 40 years of gross neglect and disinvestment within the city of Chicago, right? Johnson said when asked about his administrations weakest spot. And so part of my responsibility, of course, is to address the age-old systems of failure and to build a better, stronger, safer Chicago, and that is something that Im committed to doing. The migrant crisis As a candidate, Johnson invoked vivid imagery of unleashing rivers of investment to flow through Chicagos left-behind communities, writing off the premise of budgeting being a zero-sum game as a false choice. The table is big enough, Johnson said during a March mayoral debate. Now listen, whether you like salt or sugar on grits, itll be on my table. And for our brown families, whether you like red sauce or green sauce, itll be on my table. The mayors messaging since assuming office has often signaled a grimmer reality much of that outside his control. More than 41,000 asylum-seekers have made their way to Chicago since August 2022, when Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott sent the first of what would become hundreds of migrant buses in a bid to overwhelm the liberal city and erode its pro-immigration values. It soon dawned on the fledgling administration that the citys migrant shelter apparatus, though rapidly growing, could not keep pace. As the population of migrants sleeping outside Chicago police stations peaked at 3,900 with up to 850 others camped out at OHare that fall, pictures of the threadbare tent cities shocked the nation. The Johnson administration was ultimately able to move them inside the shelter system right before the harsh winter arrived. On the City Council floor, Black aldermen who feared their communities were once again being shortchanged in favor of newcomers expressed outrage during rancorous debates over each migrant spending item. The growing resentment in the body helped drain the good feelings out of what should have been Johnsons early honeymoon period when new mayors are often able to accomplish important agenda planks without expending much political effort. That was partially what the right-wing governors intended for it to do: To cause chaos, to split diverse populations, Ameshia Cross, a Democratic political strategist, said. It was maniacal, but it was also something that has tended to work. Pitting them against each other is not hard when you dont have enough resources to go around. The cascading tensions laid bare how the mayor who vowed to bring prosperity and equity to those in need found himself dealt an extraordinarily bad hand. But how his team navigated the next several months nonetheless drew reproach from multiple corners of the city. The gripes have spanned turf wars over where in the city the migrants should stay to discomfort from the left over implementing shelter evictions in the face of fiscal headwinds. In his Tribune interview, the mayor struck an unapologetic stance when pressed on how he responded. Asked how he would have differently to the situation upon taking office, knowing what he knows now, Johnson said I wish that Congress would actually do its part and pass substantive immigration reform. On whether his philosophy of Chicago having enough for everyone was wishful thinking, Johnson responded that his $1.25 billion bond package which schedules the city to pay off $2.4 billion in accumulated debt through 2061 is 20 times the amount of dollars that we have made for the migrant mission. (Chicagos migrant response has cost $372 million, according to the city.) You actually can do both-and, Johnson said. Im optimistic in this moment because everything that I said that we need to do as a city together, we are doing that. To be sure, other local officials agree that the federal government left Chicago high and dry by allowing mass waves of asylum-seekers into the country with no support for the cities that would absorb them. But as time went on, an ongoing sense of disorganization and lack of coherent answers over the most pressing issue in City Hall began to erode goodwill. One recent sign of progress is that the citys shelter census has dropped from a peak of 15,700 at the end of last year to 7,800 last week. That comes as the tempo of buses from southern states remains subdued and after 650 shelter residents so far have been evicted under a Johnson policy dictating they can stay for no more than 60 days unless they have children or meet other exemptions. Johnsons closest allies on the left have pressured him about that very decision. After a November Johnson news conference announcing the 60-day policy (on the same week he passed his 2024 city budget, thereby undermining the good news for him of that major City Council victory), progressive Ald. Daniel La Spata texted the mayor: Hey sir, This quote, sacrifice the needs of Chicagoans in support of those who wish to become Chicagoans, I dont agree with it. Johnson promptly responded that he was available to talk, according to a Freedom of Information Act request of the mayors texts. The eviction policy was ultimately delayed until March. The mayors botched plan last fall to erect a temporary winterized base camp for 2,000 migrants atop former a industrial site in Brighton Park was one of his most embarrassing defeats, as Gov. J.B. Pritzker yanked state funding for the entire proposal in late November amid concerns the citys environmental remediation work was shoddy. It was one of several tense first-year moments between Johnson and Pritzker. But asked whether he believed that episode damaged trust in his administration, the mayor reiterated that the scope of whats required to care for and resettle the asylum-seekers is far too great for one municipality alone. Then he applauded his November ordinance to crack down on what he said were rogue transportation companies dumping migrants in Chicago. Do you know that not a bus has arrived in the city of Chicago since the end of December? Johnson said. Not one bus. Why? Because we put forth a structure that I promised that I would do: to create a real operation thats centered around peoples humanity. While buses have technically stopped entering the city, the Tribune has reported they are instead simply dropping off migrants outside city limits now, sometimes in neighboring counties. From there, the passengers often board the Metra to the landing zone set up by the administration near Union Station and await a bed in Chicagos shelter system. Thats an outcome Johnson acknowledged privately, before he sought to coordinate drop-offs with suburban leaders. In a December text to CTU President Stacy Davis Gates obtained via a public records request, the mayor shared a Fox News headline with his close ally that read: Buses respond to Chicagos new penalties and restrictions by dropping migrants in secret locations. Secret, Davis Gates responded. Wow. Progressive leadership Johnsons April runoff victory represented a seismic disruption to business as usual at City Hall, as he became the first progressive to win the Chicago mayors seat in decades. In practice, there have been signs the new administration has struggled with transitioning into the executive role, as evidenced by his top surrogates repeatedly wading into political storms, and vacancies in government positions remaining unfilled. Other figures on the left have publicly broken with him more and more. The stunning downfall of Johnsons signature progressive plan the Bring Chicago Home referendum in the March primary election further hinted that the political winds from a year ago have shifted. But Davis Gates, the CTU president and his longtime friend, said it would be unfair to expect Johnson to dismantle the old system of government this soon. This idea that in a year our government is going to transform from a neoliberal close, consolidate and cut system, I think is an unreasonable expectation, Davis Gates said. We are undergoing a seismic transformation in a very small amount of time. The fact that Brandon Johnson has been able to accomplish everything that he has in the past year is nothing short of miraculous. Meanwhile, the Democratic Socialist aldermen Johnson tapped for powerful committee assignments upon taking office have stepped into various minefields that gave opponents openings to pounce on the narrative that the mayors inner circle is too extreme and lacks decorum. Though Johnson isnt necessarily concerned with being attacked for his leftist roots, the constant drama has forced him to stick his neck out for his allies in remarkable ways. Besides the November tie-breaker vote Johnson cast to rescue his former floor leader and ex-Zoning Committee chair, Ald. Carlos Ramirez-Rosa, 35th, following bullying allegations, the mayor found himself facing an effort last month to strip Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez, 25th, of his Housing Committee chairmanship. That uproar hinged on Sigcho-Lopezs choice to stand in front of a charred American flag at a rally outside City Hall to protest the DNC. The alderman said he didnt see the flag. Its been a little bit surprising to me because I know him to be an extraordinary organizer, but everything seems so disorganized, Aviva Bowen, a Democratic strategist in Chicago, said about the mayor. He also seems to have empowered and even platformed some of the rabble-rousing. Sigcho-Lopez told the Tribune he believes the censure attempt against him did not show weakness in progressive leaders but their commitment to justice: I think he has not looked away, the way other administrations have. Asked whether there was room for improvement in his administrations ability to maintain relationships, Johnson pointed to successes. Look at what weve accomplished together working with City Hall, he said, before again listing his $1.25 billion bond deal and legislative victories from last year. Months of vacancies languishing on several government-appointed boards have also led to grumblings of city business being stymied and that his administration struggles to nail down the bread-and-butter basics of running City Hall. He did not reveal his pick for commissioner of the critical Department of Housing, Lissette Castaneda, until December, for example, while other key cabinet spots took until last month to be filled. There have been material consequences to this hesitancy. A failure to fill a Zoning Board of Appeals vacancy that existed from the previous administration, for example, led to a tie vote in February that sank a proposed homeless shelter in Uptown supported by both the Johnson administration and local Ald. Angela Clay, 46th. Johnson responded to a question about whether he has regrets about the ZBA inaction by saying, Our appointments are working well. We have the most diverse administration in the history of Chicago, and listing the racial makeup of his appointees. Other vacancies for which the mayor had been publicly urged to speed up his search process include the Chicago police oversight board and the the ethics board. The latter concerns were aired by Johnsons handpicked Ethics Committee chair Ald. Matt Martin, 47th, another progressive ally. Johnson further rankled some in his progressive base when he adamantly backed the Chicago Bears plan for a $5 billion stadium that would be half-funded by taxpayer dollars, even though he vowed on the campaign trail not to support such a public subsidy. And he has resisted growing calls to oust Carter, the CTA chief. Asked by the Tribune whether he has at least looked at potential replacements for him, Johnson said discussing those topics is irresponsible. Having questions about how we build a transportation system that ultimately meets the needs and demands of the people of Chicago, those questions are welcome, Johnson said. Determining who I get to fire and hire, I find that to be irresponsible and I wont discuss personnel matters publicly. The Carter problem could certainly become a progressive voter one, as transit issues have particularly resonated among liberals along Milwaukee Avenue and the lakefront who carried Johnson to the runoff. Fiscal approach Rahm Emanuel measured his economic development accomplishments by cranes in the sky. Lori Lightfoot tallied dollars spent on the South and West sides. Johnson, meanwhile, centers his economic wins around workers: new jobs or protections, higher pay or delivery of affordable housing. For a business community already wary of Johnsons tax-the-rich electioneering, his early council pushes to expand paid time off, phase out the citys tipped wage credit and ask voters to raise a tax on property sales through the Bring Chicago Home referendum proved their apprehension right. They punched back this spring by bankrolling the anti-Bring Chicago Home push, a marked example of Chicago business leaders acting in open opposition to the mayor. Nonetheless Jack Lavin, head of the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce, said there are many areas in which he agrees with the administration. Lavin approves of Johnson initiatives to explore cutting red tape for developers, forging ahead with the OHares revamp and converting LaSalle Street office space into housing with city subsidies. The same goes for the mayors $1.25 billion bond, which will be funded by phasing out the citys reliance on tax increment financing. The mayors police superintendent pick, Larry Snelling, also put business stakeholders as well as conservative critics at ease. Johnson kept to his word he would not raise property taxes a chief business concern in his first budget despite staring down a yawning $538 million deficit, rising migrant response costs and ever-present pension and debt obligations. Fiscal watchdogs, however, warned Johnsons reliance on one-time measures to balance the books would be difficult to repeat as structural imbalances remain. In addition to rising pension costs, the CTA and Chicago Public Schools are both facing fiscal cliffs and might also need revenue boosts. How the mayor will shore up all these looming shortfalls is unknown, but as a candidate he floated reviving the corporate head tax, upping the hotel levy, implementing new charges on securities trades and creating a jet fuel tax. Johnson did not answer the Tribunes question on which of those priorities remain most viable. The business community can absorb some, but I think their view is, Are you targeting us, or is there a more comprehensive plan? said Greg Goldner, an Emanuel ally, CEO of Resolute Consulting and Bring Chicago Home opponent. While the next three years are certain to be uncertain, this summer will bring one of Johnsons biggest tests yet the arrival of the DNC. The mass Chicago police arrest of pro-Palestinian protesters at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago this month reflected one prognosis of what could come. Speaking with the Tribune about that incident, Johnson showed that a year into his term on the fifth floor of City Hall, he can still speak like a radical organizer. In some instances, arrests are part of the objective. Ill say it like that, the mayor said. Ive taken arrest before. Its not unprecedented. ____ (Chicago Tribunes Olivia Olander, Sam Charles and Sarah Frieshtat contributed.) ____ BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. The draft law "On the approval of the protocol on amendments to the agreement between the Ministries of Education and Science of Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan on cooperation in the field of education dated April 3, 2017" will be discussed at the plenary meeting of the Azerbaijani parliament, chairman of the parliament's committee on science and education Bakhtiyar Aliyev said during the committee's meeting, Trend reports. He emphasized that the development of the aforementioned protocol adhered to the 7th article of the agreement on cooperation in the field of education between the two countries, signed in Baku on March 11 of this year. The changes provided for in the protocol include replacing the words "Ministry of Education of Azerbaijan," "Ministry of Education and Science of Kazakhstan," and "cooperation in the field of education" with the words "Ministry of Science and Education of Azerbaijan," "Ministry of Science and Higher Education of Kazakhstan," and "cooperation in the field of science and higher education" in the title and text of the agreement. In addition, a new version presents several articles of the agreement. The protocol also solidifies the development of cooperation between the parties in the field of higher education in Azerbaijan and in the field of higher and postgraduate education in Kazakhstan on the basis of equality and mutual benefit in accordance with the national legislation of the states. This cooperation envisages exchanging students, faculty, and researchers based on agreements between interested scientific and higher education institutions of the parties, mutual participation of students in various conferences and forums, exchange of periodicals, information on various aspects of the education sphere, accreditation procedures, academic degrees and titles, and document recognition procedures. Members of the committee, Etibar Aliyev, Jeyhun Mammadov, Mushfig Mammadli, Anar Iskandarov, Agiya Nakhchivanli, and Parvin Karimzade, discussed the significance of the proposed changes in terms of strengthening cooperation in the field of science and education, sharing experiences, and also sharing their opinions on the development of education in Azerbaijan and integration processes in the Turkic world. The head of the social legislation department at the parliament's apparatus, Kamala Azimova, voiced the department's positive conclusion on the draft. At the conclusion of the meeting, the parliament's plenary session recommended discussing the draft law. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is prodding the Secret Service to keep protesters farther away from the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, warning a conflict is likely unless the security perimeter is changed. I am deeply concerned about reports that the security perimeter around the Republican Convention site in Milwaukee may be creating a likely and preventable area of conflict between protesters and convention attendees and delegates, McConnell warned in a May 10 letter to Kimberly Cheatle, the director of the U.S. Secret Service. As you know, this year has been a very challenging one for protests in the United States. We must all take seriously that tensions are high and do our best to balance the right to express dissent while also keeping Convention attendees as safe as possible, McConnell warned. The GOP leader described himself as a strong proponent of the First Amendment rights to speak and assemble, he argued that time-place-and-manner restrictions are appropriate. In a potentially volatile situation like a major political convention, located downtown in a large city, its imperative that we balance the place of those First Amendment activities with the safety of convention attendees, he wrote. He emphasized the importance of maintaining clear points of access for GOP senators attending the convention. And he noted that the First Amendment activity zone for the Democratic convention in Chicago will be miles away from the convention itself. Of singular importance to me is the fact that many United States Senators are attending the Convention. Their safety and security is paramount, he insisted. To keep senators safe, McConnell is asking the senior leadership of the Secret Service to meet with Republican National Committee and Republican National Convention leaders within the next week. McConnell said he will also ask the Senate sergeant-at-arms to work with the Secret Service to ensure they are prepared to keep senators safe. This is a serious issue in which time is of the essence, he wrote, calling it unacceptable that Secret Service leadership has yet to meet with the RNC and convention leadership. I request you personally ensure this meeting takes place next week so that these concerns are heard and adjudicated, he wrote. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. What to know about McDonald's new $5 value meal McDonald's is launching a new $5 Meal Deal that hits menus nationwide in tandem with the official start of summer. What comes in the new McDonald's $5 Meal Deal Starting June 25, fans of the Golden Arches can order the new value meal that includes choice of a McDouble or McChicken sandwich, small french fries, 4 piece Chicken McNuggets and a small soft drink, all for just $5. "We know how much it means to our customers when McDonalds offers meaningful value and communicates it through national advertising. Thats been true since our very beginning and never more important than it is today," the company said in an emailed statement to ABC News. PHOTO: In this photo illustration, a McDonald's cheeseburger and fries are displayed on a table at a McDonald's restaurant on Dec. 8, 2014 in Novato, Calif. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images, FILE) The popular fast food chain first hinted at the limited time four item bundle last month, as first reported by the Wall Street Journal. McDonald's currently offers some individual items on its $1, $2, $3 menu, but the company said its U.S. restaurants would benefit from more meal deals and promotions, since franchisees are back to profitability and can now add more value. McDonald's offers free fries on Fridays, more in-app deals McDonald's also announced "Free Fries Fridays," which is available through the app every Friday nationwide and customers can order a free medium french fry with any $1 minimum purchase through the end of 2024. Plus, on July 13 for National French Fry Day, McDonald's will have a bonus in-store offer for McDonalds App users to get free fries of any size with no additional purchase. McDonald's executives respond to viral social media sticker shock Knowing that consumers have grown tired of sticker shock on food, Chief Executive Officer Chris Kempczinski said McDonalds would look to be "laser-focused on affordability." He was speaking on the company's first quarter earnings call late last month, after profits fell short of expectations. People fed up with soaring prices have taken to social media to sound off about how much they're paying for fast food. Colleen Pipes, whose video went viral after she spent $14 on a fast food order, told ABC News, "I joked that this was fine dining now, because I might as well go at a sit down restaurant and be served [to] pay those type of prices." In March, fast-food prices were 33% higher compared to 2019, according to the Department of Labor, while grocery prices were up 26%. Companies like Starbucks reported a slow in sales with a 7% drop in transactions at the Seattle-based coffee chain. Starbucks told ABC News that some price increases at their stores has been a result of customers opting in for customizations on drinks, which can bump up the price. Consumer behavior is also changing outside restaurants, while shoppers like Lorin Augeri of Tampa, Florida scour to score the best prices on groceries by going to multiple stores. PHOTO: McDonald's meal of Big Mac, French fries and a soft drink is seen on Feb. 16, 2023. (Ucg/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) "I've learned how to map out where those things are going to be less expensive, or which stores have the items that me and my family enjoy eating," she told ABC News. Aldi lowers prices on 250 grocery store items to help shoppers save this summer According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the price of beef is predicted to increase 3.3% in 2024, with eggs up 4.8% and sugar and sweets up 4.3% this year. Professor Roger Beahm, who teaches marketing at Wake Forest University School of Business, told ABC News that much has changed since the COVID-19 pandemic. "Before the pandemic consumers tended to shop primarily at one grocery store -- the pandemic was very disruptive," he said. "Consumers couldn't get a lot of the products that they wanted at one particular store. So they actually started shopping in more retail grocery stores." Consumers like Pipes are begging fast food chains and grocery stores to do something about it. "Please lower your prices so you can't go up any further," she said. McDonald's has long stated and reiterated that prices vary by location due to individual franchisee decisions. Competitors like Burger King offer a $5 value meal, as does Wendys, who recently announced a new 6-piece chicken nuggets for free on Wednesdays with any mobile app purchase for rewards members. ABC News' Elizabeth Schulze contributed to this report. An earlier version of this story was first published on May 13, 2024. What to know about McDonald's new $5 value meal originally appeared on goodmorningamerica.com Media: Zelensky to visit Spain to sign bilateral security agreement with Sanchez President Volodymyr Zelensky is planning a trip to Spain in the coming days to sign a bilateral security agreement, the El Pais newspaper reported on May 13, citing unnamed sources in the country's government. Over 30 countries have joined the Group of Seven (G7) Joint Declaration of Support for Ukraine so far. The U.K., Germany, France, Denmark, Italy, Canada,the Netherlands, Finland, and Latvia have already signed bilateral agreements with Kyiv. Ukraine is preparing bilateral security agreements with seven more countries, including Spain. Zelensky will sign a deal with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez in Madrid during his visit, according to the media outlet. The two nations have finalized negotiations on the text of a bilateral security agreement last week. Subscribe to newsletter War Notes Subscribe Ukraine's president visited Spain in October 2023 to participate in the third European Political Community Summit in Granada. G7 members presented their plan for long-term security commitments for Ukraine at the NATO summit in Vilnius in early July last year. Under this plan, individual countries would provide bilateral support to help Kyiv repel the ongoing Russian invasion and deter any future aggression. The security guarantees would entail explicit and long-lasting obligations and bolster Ukraine's ability to resist Russian aggression. The guarantees would also cover sanctions, financial aid, and post-war reconstruction. Read also: Spanish defense minister: Ukraine receives Patriot missiles from Madrid Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Caitlin Mee will face incumbent and mayor pro tempore Seth Clark for the District 5 seat on the Macon-Bibb County Commission. Clark has been in office since 2020. Mee previously worked as a city planner, and is now a preservationist in Macon. Clark is the executive director of the Ocmulgee National Park and Preserve Initiative, a local group working to make Ocmulgee Mounds National Historic Park into a national park and preserve. Mee is interested in increasing community pride and connection. Meanwhile, Clark wants to work to tackle poverty and crime. Both candidates emphasized communicating directly with citizens and the importance of working with other commissioners. Early voting ends on Friday, and Election Day is May 21. Because the race is non-partisan, it will be decided in May instead of during the General Election in November. The winners term will begin Jan. 1. The answers below are from the candidates in their own words, but slight edits have been made for clarity and writing style. Seth Clark What makes you qualified to run for office? Ive spent my entire professional career serving others. Whether it was running a legal clinic at a homeless shelter, running an AmeriCorps program drafting policy for higher education access in the General Assembly, or working on conservation issues across the state, Ive dedicated my career to serving my neighbors, and thats why I ran four years ago, and am running for re-election. How do you plan on connecting with Macon residents on the campaign trail and while in office? I plan on connecting to my neighbors on the campaign the same way I have the past four years: By listening to them and communicating to them directly. No other candidate for county commission to my knowledge has knocked on more doors and received more campaign contributions in order to directly communicate with our neighbors where theyre at. What are the three biggest issues you see in Macon-Bibb County? Poverty, crime, and preparing for the next 50 years. How do you plan to solve those issues while in office? These arent issues that one person can solve. But there are ways to make great progress in these areas. One area that possible is the renewal of the OLOST in 2025 so that we can continue to fund programs that keep us safer and that improve quality of life across town while taking taxing pressure off the backs of Macon homeowners. This program not only keeps money in middle and low income homeowners pockets, it provides the necessary funds to provide services that keep us safe and make us a more fair community. I also intend to continue to support the Mayors Blight initiative. Weve almost torn down 700 blighted structures that are a drain on the soul of neighborhoods and we cannot let up. These blighted structures hurt property values of neighboring homes, they are dangerous centers for crime, and are a product of longstanding neglect that must be rectified, and their demolition represents a more fair Macon - because when one side of town is better off, we all are. I also intend to continue to fully fund public safety and law enforcement as we have done all four years Ive served on the county commission. Our approach of fully supporting law enforcement while working on poverty-related quality of life issues through the Macon Violence Prevention program has resulted in a county wide drop in homicides of over 40% and a drop in teen homicide of almost 70%. Were trending in the right direction, but we cannot let up. Lastly, we need to continue to prepare to steward the visionary, big ideas weve seeded in the past four years. We have to pass a West Macon Tax Allocation District in and around the new amphitheater so that the out of town investment coming to West Macon is captured and the neighborhoods in the vicinity of the arent left out. We have to work with the Middle Georgia Regional Commission to create a strategic plan to be the home of Americas next National Park and Preserve, which will create thousands of jobs, bring in hundreds of millions of investment, and result in real tax revenue to fund the programs we need to fund to take care of ourselves, while allowing us to keep or lower Macon citizens property taxes. Growth is coming to Macon; and its up to us to decide whether it happens with us or to us. This team, with Mayor Lester Miller at the head of us, has accomplished a lot these past four years, but to make sure it takes, and that the past four years are able to seed the generational change by making Macon safer and more fair, we cant change course. Is there anything else you would like to add that you feel is important for voters to know? Early Voting is from April 29 - May 17. And the election is on May 21. Caitlin Mee What makes you qualified to run for office? My background is in regional and city planning and historic preservation. I worked when I first moved to Macon for the Middle Georgia Regional Commission, and I was learning so much about what resources there were in Georgia federally and locally. Working so closely with so many other middle Georgia governments like Houston County, Warner Robins and the surrounding areas I would come home and see disparities. I know how to plan a city and Ive worked as a preservation planner for the city of Houston, Texas. I really grew a love of serving as a public servant and connecting people who were struggling with different, everyday issues in their own backyard. I want to take that experience that I have professionally and even personally and run to advocate and represent the district. How do you plan on connecting with Macon residents on the campaign trail and while in office? I started campaigning and getting a feel for the community back in December, and since then I have met some of the most amazing human beings. There are people who are born and raised in Macon and people that choose Macon. I chose Macon, and I always marvel at how amazing the stories that have yet to be told are. Ive been doing a lot of public engagement in the historically Black neighborhoods of District 5 because theyve been historically underrepresented. Even if I dont win, there are people there who Ive met who are forever friends whove told me about struggles theyve had with keeping their home up-to-date, or financial problems after COVID, or even telling stories about growing up in the 50s and 60s in Macon. Its really cool because a lot of these people were part of the Civil Rights Movement right here in our backyard and the stories Ive heard are just inspiring. I wouldnt trade the campaign experiences Ive had for anything. If elected, I want to keep having opportunities to facilitate conversations. Something I learned as a city planner is that its our jobs to facilitate conversations within our community. Im planning to implement regular town hall meetings that rotate throughout locations in the district so people can just step up to the mic and talk about whats going on. What are the three biggest issues you see in Macon-Bibb County? The issues Ive noticed Macon has are under the umbrella of community pride. People tend to stay in their niche, and because theres historically been disinvestment in certain parts of Macon, theres a little bit of apathy. Were definitely moving forward, but theres still a community pride issue and the symptoms of this can be seen through the trash, the crime and the inequality of affordable housing. How do you plan to solve those issues while in office? My short answer is the Georgia Initiative for Community Housing. Its a partnership between the Department of Community Affairs and the University of Georgias College of Family and Consumer Sciences. When I was with the Middle Georgia Regional Commission, I helped to designate Baldwin County as a GICH-designated community. Whats great about that is through the partnerships and the track record of helping communities in Georgia, GICH provides a framework to tackle community pride, which includes litter, crime, affordable housing and access to food. It targets neighborhoods and gives it special attention. GICH also takes community leaders on retreats to see what other places are doing. I feel like seeing what other cities similar to Macon are doing can only benefit us. And then the best part about GICH is that you create a team of diverse people in the community who work together to solve issues. Is there anything else you would like to add that you feel is important for voters to know? Id like a chance to try these things. Its only a four-year position, but Ive seen these things work in other cities. And regardless of what anyone says, I think Macon is absolutely a special place. Anybody knows that once you come to Macon it gets in your blood. The partnerships between people who are from Macon and people who arent from Macon has made it so great and will continue to make Macon great. NeShaunda Lockett, left, and Kathryn DeMuesy of Anser Advisory at the Lock 3 "topping off" ceremony of the Maynard Performance Pavilion on May 7 in Akron. Have you seen all that earthmoving and construction at Lock 3 Park in Akron? Its being managed by two women. On the $17.5 million Lock 3 renovation project, Kathryn DeMuesy is project manager, and NeShaunda Lockett is chief inspector, which DeMuesy said means theyre administering and inspecting all of the site construction, including quality assurance and quality control. Thats oversight of the ironwork, electrical, plumbing, landscaping and everything else, said DeMuesy, director of construction at Anser Advisory. In fact, it's kind of unique having both NeShaunda and I on this project together because a lot of times, I'll be on a project and I'll have maybe one or two women in the trades on projects, and thats it, DeMuesy said. In 2023, women comprised only 10.8% of the U.S. construction workforce and 26.3% of the workforce in architectural, engineering, and related services, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Since construction began at Lock 3 last year, multiple workers and managers with general contractor Kenmore Construction and numerous subcontractors have performed site work, DeMuesy said. While she said its hard to determine how many men total have been and will be on the site, there are sometimes about two dozen workers out there at a time. She counted a handful of women physical laborers on the project. Lets get more women out here, DeMuesy said at the Lock 3 job site last week, following a topping off ceremony for the parks Maynard Performance Pavilion. Lockett, construction inspector at Anser, is relatively new in the industry, having joined after graduating from the University of Akron in 2022. She and DeMuesy both studied construction engineering technology at UA. Me just being a single mother and coming into this industry, it was a little bit intimidating, Lockett said. And I didn't see a lot of women in college that looked like me, or women in general, in my courses. Lockett said obtaining real-world experience through co-ops while she was still in college helped her prepare for her career. And since shes been working under DeMuesy, Lockett said she has been able to navigate the industry a little more easily. It just gives me hope that we'll see more improvement in the future, Lockett said. Other women leaders involved in the Lock 3 project Dan Rice, president and CEO of the Ohio & Erie Canalway Coalition (OECC), is one of the primary facilitators on the Lock 3 project, a collaboration between OECC and the city of Akron through the Akron Civic Commons initiative funded by multiple donors and organizations. Rice said the project wouldnt happen if it werent for Lockett and DeMuesy. He also highlighted that multiple other women are serving in leadership roles on the renovation, including city Development Engineering Manager Michelle DiFiore, OECC Communications Coordinator Kayla Metzger and Cindy Sanders and Jamee Kominsky with contracting design firm Olin Studio. And he cited the successful fundraising efforts of donor committee representatives Becky Considine, Summer Hall, Catey Breck, Chris Yuhasz and Toby Gorant. As far as female laborers on site, DeMuesy said they include an ironworker, a concrete finisher, a concrete testing consultant and an electrician. DeMeusy said she specifically requested the concrete finisher, who works for Kenmore Construction, for her skillset in the area. And shes out here finishing concrete, which is awesome, DeMuesy said. Kathryn DeMuesy of Anser Advisory at the Lock 3 "topping off" ceremony of the Maynard Performance Pavilion last week in Akron. The importance of women in construction, engineering and the trades DeMuesy and Lockett are the only two Anser employees working full time at Lock 3, while others have helped with cost estimating and scheduling, said Jim Weber, whos also in a director of construction role at Anser. This is good work, and it's not an exclusively male business, Weber said of construction, adding that girls and young women should be encouraged to consider it as a fulfilling career. Rice said diversity ties in with the four principles of the Akron Civic Commons, which is part of the nationwide initiative Reimagining the Civic Commons: Value creation, socioeconomic mixing, environmental sustainability and relationship-building. Its important for us that we demonstrate diversity because what I've learned over the years as a white privileged male, and I mean that truly, [is] that I have advantages that other people don't have, Rice said. And if we don't open up opportunities for everybody and if people don't see themselves in those positions of responsibility or power, then they don't think they belong. Lockett, whos from Akron, said she would like to see more women in the industry. DeMuesy, originally from the Columbus suburb Westerville, said she has been working in the construction industry for nearly two decades. So far, she said, thats included 11 years of working in, around or for the city of Akron. About 15 years ago, she worked in West Virginia. Over the past roughly 20 years, she said shes seen an increase of women in the trades, as well as women in construction and engineering. DeMuesy said that while many women might not be aware of opportunities in these fields, its important that more of them join. I think women bring a very unique perspective to the industry attention to detail, DeMuesy said. I think that there's more growth for women in these industries, for sure. Patrick Williams covers growth and development for the Akron Beacon Journal. He can be reached by email at pwilliams@gannett.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @pwilliamsOH. This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: 2 women managing Lock 3 construction in downtown Akron Among the weirdest revelations at Donald Trumps ongoing criminal trial in New York was this snippet from ex-lawyer Michael Cohen: The former presidents locker room talk excuse for the leaked Access Hollywood footage of him talking about groping women actually came from his supportive wife, Melania. Cohen, who appeared Monday on the witness stand, recalled being on vacation in London with his family when dealing with the potentially catastrophic fallout to Trumps then-sputtering 2016 presidential campaign. On television screens inside the courtroom, jurors saw how the politicians staffers fielded questions from The Washington Post as Cohen emailed campaign manager Steve Bannon, Whos doing damage control here? On the stand, the man who was once Trumps trusted personal lawyer then recalled speaking to the real-estate mogul himself. Donald Trump Brags About Nonconsensually Groping Women In Newly Uncovered Recording He wanted me to reach out to all my contacts in media. We needed to put a spin on this... that this is locker room talk, something that Melania had recommendedthats what Melania had thought it wasand use that in order to get control over the story and to minimize its impact on him and his campaign, Cohen testified under oath. The brief mention of the former first lady stands out at a trial where she has yet to make an appearance in support of her husbandor even provide any public comment as prosecutors with the Manhattan District Attorneys Office lay out evidence that the tycoon cheated on his wife multiple times, then tried to cover it up to hide the potentially damaging information from American voters while he was a longshot political candidate. But her tangential involvement in these scandals has dripped out bit by bit, with a White House aide earlier in the trial testifyingperhaps surprisinglythat the typically quiet former model had more control over Trumps actions than previously known. Michael Cohen Somberly Recalls Getting Sucked Into Trumps Orbit Shortly after a lunch break, Melania came up yet again when prosecutors questioned Cohen on the way his hush money deal with the porn star Stormy Daniels was falling apart in the final weeks before the 2016 election. When a rattled Cohen desperately trying to reach his boss couldnt get to him to let him know, it was the businessmans wife who made sure they spoke. Good morning Michael, can u pls call DT on his cell. Thanks, Melania texted him at 8:53 a.m. on Oct. 18, 2016. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. Melania Trump had a heartfelt message for moms on Mother's Day, celebrated every second Sunday in May in America. In her message, the former first lady encouraged mothers to prioritize self-care in the face of challenges that arise from being a mom. She also pointed out that although some sacrifices they make usually go "unnoticed," mothers shouldn't relent, as when moms are "healthy, our communities are too." Melania Trump Urges Moms To 'Prioritize Self-Care' In Heartfelt Mother's Day Message MEGA The mother-of-one took to her official X (formerly Twitter) handle yesterday to share a heartwarming message with mothers alike, pressing on the need to be "mindful of ourselves" despite catering to their families and children. Melania described mothers as the "cornerstone of every flourishing society" and the "bedrock of every American family," adding that she took "great pride" in "embracing" the responsibility that comes with it. She further shared that although nothing makes her "prouder" than the relationship she has built with her son, Barron, mothers usually realize that "some of our efforts remain unnoticed." "When moms are healthy, our communities are too," she added. "As mothers, we are inclined to honor our mothers and mother figures on Mother's Day, but we must also be mindful of ourselves. It may be difficult to imagine, but when moms prioritize self-care, our families and children enjoy greater stability." Melania Trump's Former Aide Slams Her Mother's Day Message MEGA Melania's former aide, Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, took issues with her Mother's Day message, slamming her for seemingly being a hypocrite. "Betrayal between mothers is especially deep when one chooses lies over truth, showing a disregard not just for honesty, but for the bond that did unite them," Wolkoff responded to the former first lady's Mother's Day Message. "Have you @MELANIATRUMP ever considered or cared how your actions & false accusations against ME impacted MY children?" Wolkoff worked as a former senior advisor to Melania after Trump's 2016 presidential win. The pair fell out in February 2018 after it was reported that Wolkoff's event planning company, WIS Media Partners, received $26 million to help coordinate Trump's inauguration. In her book "Melania And Me," Wolkoff claimed she resigned from the role because the Trump administration used her as a scapegoat. "Melania and Donald Trump weaponized the DOJ against me by having Jeffrey Clark sue me to try and silence me so the truth and the facts about this, them, and so much more wouldn't be shared with the American people," Wolkoff previously told Newsweek. Donald Trump Wished His Wife A Happy Mother's Day MEGA Melania's husband, Donald Trump, also wished her well on Mother's Day. During a MAGA rally in New Jersey on Sunday, the former president said, "I also want to say happy Mother's Day to all the moms in America, especially my wife, Melania. I'll be home in a little while." Several fans also took to the comment section of Melania's post to celebrate with her on the special occasion. "Happy Mother's Day Melania! Keep up the amazing work you are doing," one user said. Another user wrote, "Happy Mother's Day, Melania. I will always support your work. Come on, God bless you." "HAPPY MOTHERS DAY, MELANIA!" one user commented. "God Bless you always. You've been a great Mom, and it shows! AND Thank you for being the Best FLOTUS Ever." Did Melania Trump Stop Her Son Barron From Being A Florida Delegate? MEGA Melania's only child, Barron, was on the verge of officially beginning his political career when he was selected to represent the state of Florida at the upcoming Republican National Convention. However, according to the DailyMail, reports from Melania's office revealed that the 18-year-old had "declined" the delegate role because of "prior commitments." A spokeswoman for the former first lady said in a statement: "While Barron is honored to have been chosen as a delegate by the Florida Republican Party, he regretfully declines to participate due to prior commitments." The Former First Lady Might Let Barron Have Some Space As He Prepares For College MEGA Melania is reportedly set to give her son a break from her overprotective grip as he preps for college. Barron, who recently turned 18 and is set to graduate high school on Friday, has been out of the spotlight thanks to Melania, who reportedly keeps details about him close to her chest. Reports suggest Barron is an ardent supporter of his father's 2024 reelection bid and is keen to create his platform and publicly share what he stands for, something Melania had been against. A source close to the family has now shared that she is ready to give him more space and let him do his thing but will continue to keep a close watch over him. "While he was still a minor, she zealously protected him, and we knew very little about the details of his daily life," the source told the Daily Mail. "I think he's allowed to make more decisions for himself now. He can invite anyone to dinner he wishes. He's slowly becoming more public." Melinda French Gates is resigning as co-chair of the non-profit organization, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Gates co-founded the foundation with her then-husband, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, 24 years ago, stayed on after their divorce in 2021. The foundation, one of the largest charitable foundations in the world, has given out more than $77 billion in grants, with focus areas including vaccination, particularly around COVID-19, healthcare and poverty around the world. More from The Hollywood Reporter Melinda Gates said Monday, in a statement on X, that she wants to move forward into the next chapter of her philanthropy. Upon her departure from the foundation, on June 7, Gates said she will receive $12.5 billion which she will use to further her work on behalf of women and families. She founded her own organization, Pivotal Ventures, in 2015 to help address problems impacting U.S. women and families This is not a decision I came to lightly. I am immensely proud of the foundation that Bill and I built together and of the extraordinary work it is doing to address inequities around the world. I care deeply about the foundation team, our partners around the world, Gates said in a statement. This is a critical moment for women and girls in the U.S. and around the world and those fighting to protect and advance equality are in urgent need of support. Under the terms of my agreement with bill, in leaving the foundation, I will have an additional $12.5 billion to commit to my work on behalf of women and families. Ill be sharing more about what that will look like in the near future, she continued. Upon her departure, the organization will change its name to the Gates Foundation, and Bill Gates will become the sole chair. Gates will not be bringing any of the foundations work with her, the foundations CEO, Mark Suzman, said Monday. In a statement posted on X, Bill Gates thanked Melinda for her work and reiterated his commitment to the foundation. I want to thank Melinda for her critical contributions to the Foundation from its very beginning. As a co-founder and co-chair Melinda has been instrumental in shaping our strategies and initiatives, significantly impacting global health and gender equality, Gates wrote. Looking ahead, I remain fully committed to the Foundations work across all our strategies, and to realizing the opportunities we have to continue improving the lives of millions around the world, he continued. Best of The Hollywood Reporter Melinda French Gates to resign from Gates Foundation: 'Not a decision I came to lightly' Melinda French Gates is stepping down from the famous Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, one of the largest charitable institutions in the world, the organization co-founder announced on Monday. "After careful thought and reflection I have decided to resign from my role as co-chair," Gates, the ex-wife of billionaire Bill Gates, wrote in a statement posted to multiple online platforms including her LinkedIn and Instagram pages. "This is not a decision I came to lightly." She said her last day of work with the Seattle-based global health and development charity will be June 7. "I am immensely proud of the foundation that Bill and I built together and of the extraordinary work it is doing to address inequities around the world," she wrote. "I care deeply about the foundation team, our partners around the world, and everyone who is touched by its work." For more than 30 years, the Gates Foundation has donated $77.6 billion in charitable contributions. Bill Gates said he expects greatness from his former wife as she transitions away from her role. "I am sorry to see Melinda leave, but I am sure she will have a huge impact in her future philanthropic work," the Microsoft co-founder wrote in a separate statement posted on X Monday. "Looking ahead, I remain fully committed to the Foundations work across all our strategies, and to realizing the opportunities we have to continue improving the lives of millions around the world." USA TODAY has reached out to a spokesperson for Melinda Gates. Announcement comes on heels of divorce The announcement comes three years after the philanthropic couple announced their split in May 2021. After 27 years of marriage they finalized their divorced in August 2021. The former couple shares three children. US businessman Bill Gates and his daughter Phoebe arrive for TIME 100 Gala at Lincoln Center in New York, June 8, 2022. (Photo by ANGELA WEISS / AFP) (Photo by ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images) ORG XMIT: 0 ORIG FILE ID: AFP_32C6789.jpg Their separation drew surprise from most across the globe. "I think we are all surprised on some level; many of us look up to Bill and Melinda Gates, particularly in this COVID era," Leslie Barbara, an attorney in divorce and family law with Davidoff Hutcher & Citron in New York, told USA TODAY when the powerhouse couple announced their divorce on X. Honda recalling lawn mowers, more: Mowers and pressure washer equipment recalled due to injury risk when starting Couple initially said they would continue to work together The same year they divorced, the Melinda Gates and Bill Gates said they would continue to work together at the foundation, founded in 1994. "No changes to their roles or the organization are planned," the foundation said in a statement at the time. "They will continue to work together to shape and approve foundation strategies, advocate for the foundations issues, and set the organizations overall direction." Gates to retain $12.5 billion for additional philanthropy regarding women and families "This is a critical moment for women and girls in the U.S. and around the world and those fighting to protect and advance equality,' her statement continues. Under terms of an agreement with her ex-husband, Gates said she would have an additional $12.5 billion to commit to her work on behalf of women and families. "I'll be sharing more about what that will look like in the future," she wrote. In this file photo taken on September 26, 2018, Bill Gates and Melinda Gates introduce the Goalkeepers event at the Lincoln Center in New York. Why did Bill and Melinda Gates divorce? In an March 2022 interview with "CBS Mornings" anchor Gayle King, Melinda Gates opened up about splitting from her ex-husband. Not long after their divorce announcement, The Wall Street Journal reported it learned Microsoft board members decided it wasn't appropriate for Bill Gates to continue sitting on its board in 2020, while the board investigated his prior romantic relationship with a female Microsoft employee. At the time, the outlet claimed, an unnamed spokeswoman for Gates acknowledged he had an affair almost two decades prior, and that it ended 'amicably.' When King asked Gates about the alleged infidelity she responded: "Well, I certainly believe in forgiveness, so I thought we had worked through some of that," she said. "It wasn't one moment or one specific thing that happened. There just came a point in time where there was enough there that I realized it just wasn't healthy, and I couldn't trust what we had." Contributing: Mike Snider, Amy Haneline and Craig Harris Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Melinda French Gates to resign from Gates Foundation BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. The food security reforms implemented in Azerbaijan in the last several years have opened up new avenues for the distribution of safer food items to the public and their extensive export, head of the Information Support and Innovative Solutions Department of the Food Safety Agency of Azerbaijan (FSAA), Mansur Piriyev said, Trend reports. He made the remark during the press conference dedicated to Caspian Agro and the 29th Azerbaijan International Food Industry Exhibition, InterFood Azerbaijan. Our nation has set new records for the production and export of several food goods, and the export of many more has also increased. Several types of seafood, wool, leather, and farmed caviar can now be exported to the European Union. Authorization was acquired to resume exporting horses to Kazakhstan, and food eggs to the Russian Federation. We also succeeded in making it easier to export hazelnuts to the EU and chicken and other poultry products to China, he said. Piriev noted that this was possible because entities operating in the food sector have adapted their activities to international standards and improved the safety and quality of products. The Agency provides methodological support to entrepreneurs in this direction. He added that an innovation corner of the Food Safety Agency of Azerbaijan will also be presented to the attention of participants at the exhibition. Exhibition attendees can apply for and receive thorough information on any food safety problems of interest, Piriyev said. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Ms Gates said 'this is not a decision I came to lightly' - REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz/ Melinda French Gates has resigned from the charity she set up with her billionaire husband Bill three years after the couple filed for divorce. In a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter), Ms Gates said she will step down from her role as co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation on June 7. She said: This is not a decision I came to lightly. I am immensely proud of the foundation that Bill and I built together and of the extraordinary work it is doing to address inequities around the world. I care deeply about the foundation team, our partners around the world, and everyone who is touched by its work. Under the terms of the agreement, Ms Gates will be handed $12.5bn (10bn) for her work on behalf of women and families. She added: This is a critical moment for women and girls in the US and around the world and those fighting to protect and advance equality are in urgent need of support. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which was founded in 2000, is one of the worlds largest private charitable foundations. It is one of the most influential organisations in public health, having spent around $50bn over the past two decades to fight poverty and disease. The Telegraphs global health security coverage is partly funded by the foundation. Ms Gates departure from the charity she helped to set up with the Microsoft billionaire comes after the couple announced they were divorcing in 2021 after 27 years of marriage. Ms Gates announced her divorce from Microsoft founder Bill Gates in 2021 - Manish Swarup/AP Photo They had previously said they would continue their philanthropic work together. Mr Gates has recently been rocked by revelations about his links to convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. Mr Epstein, who killed himself in jail in 2019, reportedly threatened to expose the tycoon over an alleged affair he had with a Russian bridge player in her 20s. A spokesman for Bill Gates said in March last year: Mr Gates met with Epstein solely for philanthropic purposes. Having failed repeatedly to draw Mr Gates beyond these matters, Epstein tried unsuccessfully to leverage a past relationship to threaten Mr Gates. She added: Mr Gates had no financial dealings with Epstein. Mr Gates has said his calls and meetings with the disgraced financier were a mistake. In her statement, Ms Gates said she had full confidence that the foundation was in good shape under the leadership of chief executive Mark Suzman. She added: The time is right for me to move forward into the next chapter of my philanthropy. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. By Yuvraj Malik and Aditya Soni (Reuters) -Melinda French Gates is leaving the charitable foundation she co-founded with former spouse Bill Gates more than 20 years ago and will get $12.5 billion for her own work to uplift women and families, she said on Monday. The billionaire benefactors parted ways in 2021 after 27 years of marriage but had pledged to continue their philanthropic work together. Their final divorce order filed in a Seattle court had no details on an agreement reached between the two on how to divide their marital assets. "Under the terms of my agreement with Bill, in leaving the foundation, I will have an additional $12.5 billion to commit to my work on behalf of women and families," Melinda Gates said on social media platform X, without disclosing more details about her plans. With her departure as co-chair, the foundation will change its name to Gates Foundation and Bill Gates will be its sole chairperson, said CEO Mark Suzman. "After a difficult few years watching women's rights rolled back in the U.S. and around the world, she wants to use this next chapter to focus specifically on altering that trajectory," Suzman said. The foundation is one of the most powerful and influential forces in global public health, having spent more than $75 billion since its inception to bring a business approach to combating poverty and disease. From 1994 through 2018, Bill and Melinda gifted about $59.5 billion to the Seattle-based foundation, its website said. Her last day at the foundation will be June 7. "I am sorry to see Melinda leave, but I am sure she will have a huge impact in her future philanthropic work," Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates said in a post on X. Melinda Gates, who has a net worth of $11.3 billion according to Forbes, manages some of her investments and charitable work through her Pivotal Ventures. The investment company, founded in 2015, focuses on women and families. (Reporting by Yuvraj Malik and Aditya Soni in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath) MENOMINEE, Mich. (WJMN) A Menominee man will spend years in prison after making threats over the phone to a state employee, according to the Menominee County Prosecuting Attorney. In a Monday release, Menominee Prosecutor Jeff Rogg told Local 3 that Asher Allan McNeil had been sentenced to three to five years in prison last week after pleading guilty to a charge of Attempted Threat of Terrorism. Rogg said the crime happened last October when 41-year-old McNeil was on the phone with a representative of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, while he was trying to request help for his furnace. Were told McNeil reacted negatively when the process for receiving help was described to him, becoming irate and unreasonable. Rogg told Local 3 that McNeil was transferred to a manager at MDHHS, and screamed that if CPS comes over somebodys gonna get shot, that they better bring M-16s with drum magazines, and that he was armed with explosives. Rogg said McNeil continued his threats when police arrived to his home, and that he had access to weapons that would allow him to follow through on the threats. Threats to carry out shootings and injure or kill MDHHS personnel, who are trying to fulfill their mission and provide help to needy families, are reprehensible, said Rogg. Thanks to the quick work of my law enforcement partners, this threat remained just that and did not turn into a tragic event. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WJMN - UPMatters.com. Brett Garrard says he wants to make sure working for Mercedes-Benz in Alabama is a career job for the people who follow him. Garrard would like to retire in five years from the company thats been his employer for two decades. Hes worked in most capacities, except the paint shop, and is now assigned to the companys battery plant in Woodstock. He and Austin Brooks, whos been at the plant since 2022, both face health challenges. Brooks is frequently sick, as hes been since childhood, and Garrards wife has cancer. Ive watched our company not keep up with the times, Garrard said earlier this month, offering his thoughts on why he wants a union. We pray for fair wages, comparative wages inside the auto industry. Benefits packages have suffered throughout the years. My wife, herself, has stage four cancer. Id like to see something implemented to maybe help our situation. Although theyd both like better health care coverage and pay, they cited several other issues improved working conditions, more safety training for temporary workers and more stable work schedules as some of the other things on the list of whats motivated them to get involved in the union drive that comes to a head beginning Monday. Mercedes plant vote follows series of UAW wins Thats when voting starts on whether the UAW will represent an estimated 5,200 full-time and regular part-time production and maintenance workers at the Mercedes-Benz assembly and battery plants in Vance and Woodstock, Alabama, east of Tuscaloosa. Voting ends Friday, and the results should provide a crucial assessment of the momentum of the UAWs organizing muscle at non-union auto plants, many of which are in the U.S. South. The UAWs prospects in Alabama got a major boost with the successful union vote last month, since certified by the National Labor Relations Board, at Volkswagens Chattanooga, Tennessee, facility, as well as ratification on a contract that included wage gains and cost-of-living adjustments at Daimler Truck, which has production plants in several Southern states. The UAWs strike last year against Ford Motor Co., General Motors and Stellantis, owner of Jeep, Ram, Chrysler, Dodge and Fiat, and contract deals with the Detroit Three, which were widely seen as union wins, helped set the stage for a surge of auto plant organizing as autoworkers elsewhere watched the results. Supporters hold signs as workers leave the Ford Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne just before UAW President Shawn Fain called for a strike after contract negotiations stalled with all three Detroit automakers, UAW members walk off the job at Ford Michigan Assembly Plant just after midnight on Fri., Sept. 15, 2023. The current four-year contracts with General Motors, Ford and Stellantis were in effect until 11:59 p.m. on Thurs., Sept. 14 and without an agreement, the UAW initiated a stand-up strike, a strategic plan that the union is said to have for a strike targeting certain plants at the different automakers in waves. Although union critics have pointed to job cuts at some Detroit Three facilities following last years bargaining, the union has continued to point out the significant profits enjoyed by U.S. and foreign auto companies in recent years. That includes Mercedes-Benz, which, the UAW, noted made $156 billion in total profits over the last decade. After the VW results were announced, the union noted that public organizing campaigns had been launched not just at Mercedes-Benz, but also Hyundai in Montgomery, Alabama, and Toyota in Troy, Missouri. Workers at more than two dozen other facilities are said to be actively organizing, including at a Mercedes-Benz van plant in North Charleston, South Carolina. Professor sees a shift in attitude toward unions Rusty Adair, a professor of practice in management and entrepreneurship at Auburn University in Alabama, said this seems to be a unique moment for the union. I dont believe weve seen this level of union activity in the Southeast ever, Adair said. Although the union has worked to organize Alabamas Mercedes-Benz workers in the past and had previous attempts at VW, too, Adair said this time feels different because recent UAW victories have really gotten the attention of workers in the area, and news about union activity nationwide has been increasing. It feels like a little bit of a perfect storm brewing, he said. While hes not predicting the scales are tipping in the unions favor just yet, Adair said theres no reason to think that the UAW wont ride that momentum into Hyundai if the vote is successful. Adair, who had a long career at International Paper, including in labor relations for the company, also predicted a shift in how people think about unions if that happens. He stopped short, however, of offering a prediction on the upcoming results. Although Alabamas Kay Ivey and other Southern governors have been vocal in their opposition to the union efforts, even releasing a joint letter in opposition, Adair said its not clear people on the street, aside from the affected workers, are as focused on the situation. It feels very much like a political battle right now. Im not sure how much of a cultural battle it is, he said. Although the South has been seen as a challenge for the UAW, unions aren't unknown in the region or in Alabama, which saw union membership of wage and salary workers tick up slightly from 7.2% in 2022 to 7.5% in 2023 (nationally the rate was 10% in 2023), according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. And as noted previously, the UAW does represent workers at places like Daimler Truck. Experts who spoke to the Free Press also pointed to unionization among mineworkers, utility workers and auto suppliers in Alabama to highlight how residents in some areas may already have familiarity with unions. The state also had a surge of organizing starting with the mineworkers in the 1930s before factional issues emerged, according to Rosemary Feurer, associate professor and labor expert at Northern Illinois University, speaking to the Free Press in December. Michael Innis-Jimenez, a professor and labor expert in the Department of American Studies at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, said he expects the workers will support the Mercedes-Benz campaign. "I'd be stunned if they dont win the election," he said. Factors potentially boosting union sentiment, he said, are a tight labor market that has workers feeling more confident and concerns about the company's high use of temporary workers. The main negative announcement Innis-Jimenez said hed heard involved the joint statement from the Southern governors. Other entities, including the company and business interests, have been more muted about their reactions, he said. The union has also taken a decidedly different approach with this organizing campaign, he said. Union complains of company interference This specific campaign started with a grassroots (effort) aided by organizers, Innis-Jimenez said, noting that previously union organizers did a lot of the work, even leaving a local union office in the area. However, "that served as a meeting point for early organizers and the employees, he said, noting that Mercedes-Benz employees were running a fairly quiet card-signing campaign, until more recently. In fact, the UAW took the approach in its current national organizing effort of setting milestones of union support at local facilities before making campaigns at those locations public or seeking elections. At Mercedes-Benz, as at other locations where the union is organizing, accusations of interference in the process have been made against the company. The union has even filed charges against Mercedes-Benz in the United States with the National Labor Relations Board and in Germany under a relatively new supply chain law. Mercedes-Benz U.S. International, the subsidiary responsible for the Alabama facilities, issued a denial of wrongdoing, noting that the company has not interfered with or retaliated against any team member in their right to pursue union representation. MBUSI does not believe these claims have merit and looks forward to presenting the case to the NLRB. As to the union campaign, the company said it fully respects our team members choice whether to unionize and we look forward to participating in the election process to ensure every team member has a chance to cast their own secret-ballot vote, as well as having access to the information necessary to make an informed choice. The company noted that it has a strong record of success over the past 25+ years operating as one team in Alabama. Our primary focus at MBUSI is always to provide a safe and supportive work environment for our team members, so they can continue to build safe and superior vehicles for the world. We believe open and direct communication with our team members is the best path forward to ensure continued success. Garrard and Brooks, however, speaking as part of a recent discussion on the German supply chain law that requires companies to respect workers' freedom of association and other rights, said that the company and its managers have been pressuring workers not to support the union. When we first started our union drive it was real quiet. I guess they didnt take us seriously, but lately after we reached the 30% mark, weve been forced to go to captive audience meetings where the CEO told us we didnt need a union. He knows whats best for us. They force us to watch anti-union videos immediately after we clock in every day, Garrard said. All that attention might not be having the intended effect, however, he said. I think for the majority of the team members weve all decided which way were voting. There may be some that are on the fence or indifferent," Garrard said. "Honestly, the rumblings though the plant are all this mandatory anti-union campaign is actually driving our percentages up in favor of unionizing because everyones so tired of it." Contact Eric D. Lawrence: elawrence@freepress.com. Become a subscriber. Submit a letter to the editor at freep.com/letters. This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Mercedes-Benz workers in Alabama prepare for UAW election EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) An autopsy report released by the Office of the Medical Examiner revealed the cause of death for a man involved in an encounter with El Paso Police officers on Alameda last month as toxic effects of methamphetamine. There was no mention of injuries incurred from officers as contributing to his death. Jonathan Rose Eddens, 35, died on April 14, after EPPD officers were dispatched to reports of a person in the roadway in the 3300 block of Alameda. Police say man died after being taken into custody; incident being investigated El Paso Police released body camera footage from two responding officers in early May, showing Eddens bleeding from his head while officers asked him to sit down so he could be checked for injuries. Eight responding officers restrained Eddens while punching him, and one appeared to kick Eddens in the head. The autopsy report obtained by KTSM lists Eddens cause of death as the toxic effects of methamphetamine with a contributing factor of hypertensive cardiovascular disease. This manner of death is listed as accident. While Dr. Adam Gonzalez lists extensive injuries to Eddens head, chest, back, hands, and legs, he ultimately concluded, It is my opinion that the cause of death is toxic effects of methamphetamine. Despite the use of physical restraints and electrical weapons, the decedent remained responsive for some time. As such, these did not play a role in the cause of death, which is attributed solely to drug toxicity. The report went on to say: Should new evidence come to light, the manner of death is subject to change. Eddens toxicology report indicates he had methamphetamine with its metabolite amphetamine. His results also returned as presumptive positive urine results for fentanyl and cocaine, which did not appear in his blood test. As KTSM has reported in their award-winning series Dying for Answers, methamphetamine toxicity is often listed as a factor in less-lethal use of force instances resulting in death. Dying for Answers: Rays Story In January 2021, Ray Lara died following an encounter with two UTEP police officers. His cause of death is also listed as methamphetamine toxicity. However, Laras autopsy lists physiological stress associated with physical restraint, and his manner of death is listed as homicide. Dying for Answers: Dannys Story In April 2021, Daniel Diaz died following an encounter with seven El Paso Police officers inside the Lunchbox restaurant in East El Paso. The medical examiner listed Diazs manner of death as homicide, with his cause listed as sudden death during law enforcement subdual and restraint. Methamphetamine toxicity is listed as a contributing factor in Diazs death. Laras toxicity report indicated his methamphetamine results were 1500 ng/ml. Diazs methamphetamine results were listed as 4300 ng/ml. By comparison, Eddens methamphetamine results are much lower, at just 350 ng/ml. The key difference in each case is how long the individual remained responsive after their law enforcement encounter. Diaz and Lara became unresponsive while being restrained, while Eddens remained responsive while EPFD medics arrived to treat him. NAACP calls for thorough investigation of mans death in police custody The NAACP called for an investigation into Eddens death, saying in a statement, The NAACP El Paso Branch is deeply saddened and disturbed by the recent death of Mr. Jonathan Rose Eddens under police custody in our city. This tragedy raises serious questions about the procedures and practices of local law enforcement agencies, and we demand an immediate and thorough investigation into the circumstances leading to this devastating loss. In the wake of KTSMs investigation into the lack of transparency when releasing documents and videos relating to in-custody deaths, EPPD has released two body camera tapes of subsequent deadly encounters. EPPD stated the videos release was intended to provide our community with context and preliminary information surrounding the events of that day. EPPDs investigation into Eddens death is being conducted by their Crimes Against Persons Department and the Texas Rangers. The Internal Affairs Division is conducting a separate investigation to determine if any officers will face disciplinary action. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTSM 9 News. Selene Dominguez of the group Coalicion de Apoyo al Migrante en su Nuevo Avance, helps Esther Aguirre set up an appointment with the Consulate General of Mexico at the Austin Public Librarys Southeast Branch on May 9, 2024. Dominguez informs Mexican citizens living in Central Texas about consulate services such as applying for passports and registering to vote. Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune Judith Diaz is 37 and has never voted. But the longtime Austin resident says that will change this year when she casts a ballot for president in the June 2 Mexican elections. In exercising my vote I am a part of a change in Mexico, even though I am not physically there, Diaz said in Spanish. Diaz, who is originally from Cuernavaca, Mexico, said that she moved to Austin to attend the Austin Learning Academy for a year, then stayed to work as a nanny. After spending almost two decades in Texas, Diaz said the first vote of her life will be for Claudia Sheinbaum, the candidate for Morena, the political party of Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. Mexican presidents are limited to one six-year term so Lopez Obrador, known as AMLO, cant run for reelection. In 2020, about 9.5 million people of Mexican ethnic background lived in Texas. Those with Mexican citizenship can register to vote in the upcoming Mexican elections, when voters are poised to elect the countrys first female president and will decide whether to keep AMLOs party in power for the next six years. Sheinbaums main opponent is Xochitl Galvez, the candidate of the Broad Front for Mexico, a coalition of different parties. Galvez is known for opposing most of AMLOs reform efforts and is a strong supporter of recruiting more foreign companies to move their business operations to Mexico, and the privatization of Pemex, the state-owned energy company that is deeply in debt. Hopefully, whoever is elected sets a good example for the [women] who will follow, said Lily Flores, 28, who is from Torreon, Mexico, and moved to Austin with her husband in August as he pursues a doctoral degree at the University of Texas. Flores says shes most concerned about the high levels of violence against women in Mexico and thinks that Galvez has a better approach to tackle this longstanding societal problem. Several groups are helping Texas residents navigate Mexicos complicated voting system. Diaz is a member of Women Inspired by Dreams, Goals and Action organization, known by its Spanish acronym MISMA, which helps domestic workers learn about wage theft and their rights in the workplace. They also hold community meetings, and at one of the meetings Diaz met Selene Dominguez, who helped her through the voting registration process. Dominguez sets up her meeting room every Thursday to offer her services at the Austin Public Librarys Southeast Branch. Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune Dominguez, 53, is originally from Mexico City and has lived in Austin for 23 years. She also supports Sheinbaum, and like Diaz, wants to see the current administrations social programs continue. Both women say the programs help the families of Mexicans living abroad by giving monthly government payments to those who qualify. They said that support can take economic pressure off family members abroad who send money back to Mexico. Dominguez and Diaz also said theyre voting for the candidate they believe will prioritize issues concerning the migrant community in the U.S., especially those who are undocumented or in vulnerable positions. We are not second or third-class citizens, however [migrants] get treated like that because we feel unimportant in Mexico and in the U.S., Dominguez said in Spanish. Navigating a complicated voting system Dominguez meets community members every Thursday at the Southeast Branch Library in Austin. Sitting at a desk in front of posters and resource flyers, she receives in person visits and phone calls from people requesting all types of help, from getting appointments at the Mexican Consulate to dealing with a lost passport. She volunteers with the nonprofit Coalition to Support Migrants in their New Advance, or CAMINA, along with her husband. Dominguez talks to a client seeking information about the Mexican consulate. Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune [I do it] out of conviction and empathy and because of the interest that I have in our Mexican community, given that we can vote now, and that many still ignore that we have that right to vote from abroad, Dominguez said. Dominguez hopes that CAMINA can help pressure Mexican agencies to do a better job of informing Mexicans living abroad about how to vote and simplify the voting process. The government requires citizens living abroad to have a valid voter ID, but getting one requires making an appointment at a Mexican consulate, which can be time-consuming. Then they must register to vote by mail, in person or online. It's really important that people exercise their citizenship, and yet the government is just making it very difficult, said Tony Payan, director of the Center for the United States and Mexico at Rice Universitys Baker Institute for Public Policy. Whether by inflexibility, by neglect, by maliciousness or by the fact that the system itself is overwhelmed by the need. It's an outdated voting system for those who are abroad. The Mexican Electoral Institute, or INE, announced recently that 39,724 people who registered to vote from abroad had their registration revoked due to discrepancies with their signatures or documents. Those people had to email the electoral institute to try to correct the errors. When registration closed in February, about 226,000 people registered to vote from abroad, with more than 156,000 of them living in the U.S. Thats a big increase from the 2018 elections, when 181,873 Mexicans registered to vote from abroad, but its still only a little more than 1% of the roughly 12 million Mexican citizens living outside the country. From the different voting options, nearly 70% of people chose to vote online, a new option for this years election. Some unregistered Mexican voters in Texas will still be eligible to claim one of the 1,500 blank ballots available in person at both the Houston and Dallas consulates, but only if they have a valid voting ID. Eduardo Velasco is one of the founders of Todos Votamos, a nonprofit focused on improving voter turnout and fighting voting misinformation among Mexicans living abroad. The group formed during a protest in front of the Austin Mexican Consulate against AMLOs electoral reform efforts, which many Mexicans saw as an attempt to weaken the electoral system by slashing the electoral institute budget and reducing its personnel. Despite being a voting rights advocate, he said he could not convince his two adult children, who grew up in the U.S. and are also dual citizens, to register to vote in this years Mexican elections. The new generations are not interested [in the Mexican elections] because they were born [in the U.S.]. This is also a generational challenge, because they grew up comfortably with U.S. democracy, they dont care about whats happening in Mexico, said Velasco, who moved to Austin in 2006 for a UT-Austin program with the Austin Technology Incubator and decided to stay with his family because of safety concerns in Mexico. Voting in both countries Eva Noyola, 48, a dual citizen originally from Mexico City, says she cares deeply about both countries and is adamant about voting in all Mexican and local U.S. elections. Every time there is an election, even if it's for a pair of local propositions where just 1,000 people vote, Im going to vote, because I think it is a privilege to be able to in life, Noyola said in Spanish. Noyola, a member of Todos Votamos who settled in Austin in 2013, works at the Texas Comptroller's Office. Eva Noyola, a member of Todos Votamos, has dual citizenship in Mexico and the U.S. and is adamant about voting in elections in both countries. Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune Noyola said she plans to vote in both Mexico and U.S. presidential elections this year an opportunity that dual citizens wont have again until 2036. She said that the issue she is the most concerned about in Mexicos election is the overall well-being of her family on the other side of the border, and the continuation of democracy in the country. When it comes to elections in Texas, Noyola said she cares more about how taxpayer money is being used to improve public services, public education and infrastructure development. Rodrigo Cruz, 52, who also moved to Austin from Mexico City, works in digital engineering and said Mexico needs to invest more in education to help new generations keep up with technology advancements in the U.S. and Canada. He said that he will vote for the candidate who he believes has the best plan to cultivate Mexican leadership and talent, to motivate Mexicans to stay and work in their home country. I want [a Mexico] where we all have opportunities that only depend on how much effort you put in to get ahead, Cruz said in Spanish. As long as you put in the work, nothing should be there to stop you. Disclosure: Rice University and Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy have been financial supporters of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. Find a complete list of them here. Weve got big things in store for you at The Texas Tribune Festival, happening Sept. 57 in downtown Austin. Join us for three days of big, bold conversations about politics, public policy and the days news. Correction, May 13, 2024 at 10:47 a.m. : A previous version of this story incorrectly stated the number of people with Mexican heritage living in Texas. There were 9.5 million people of Mexican heritage living in Texas in 2020. ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) New Mexico State Police arrested 22-year-old Paul Marquez, accused of shooting at another vehicle on Paseo Del Norte near 2nd St. Monday morning. Suspected cockfighting operation found in South Valley neighborhood NMSP says an officer saw Marquez traveling east on Paseo Del Norte when he pulled up next to another vehicle and fired three shots into the passenger side of the vehicle. The officer pulled Marquez over and arrested him without further incident. No one was injured in the shooting. Police say Marquez was booked into MDC and charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and shooting at or from a motor vehicle. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRQE NEWS 13 - Breaking News, Albuquerque News, New Mexico News, Weather, and Videos. SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE) How much revenue a utility company makes has traditionally been tied to how much energy its customers use. So, with increased energy efficiency comes decreased revenue. Now the New Mexico Supreme Court says utility companies can fully decouple their earnings from their sales. This is called revenue decoupling. Utilities have asked regulators to approve a full decoupling of revenue from energy usage as a way to help support energy efficiency. The states Public Regulation Commission denied the request, arguing that state law on the topic only allows for a partial decoupling. New Mexico seeing fewer oil spills, according to watchdog analysis Now the New Mexico Supreme Court says state law clearly describes a full revenue decoupling mechanism. But just because utility companies can decouple their revenue from energy sales, that doesnt mean they can charge customers whatever they want. The Public Regulation Commission will still have to design rates in a way that fairly allocates revenue collections between the ratepayer classes and permits the utility a reasonable opportunity to recover its revenue requirement, the Supreme Court says. In other words, utilities will still have to charge rates that are fair to ratepayers. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRQE NEWS 13 - Breaking News, Albuquerque News, New Mexico News, Weather, and Videos. While hes perhaps Donald Trumps arch-nemesis these days, the disgraced attorney Michael Cohen was once the former presidents personal fixer and attack dog for more than a decade, putting out fire after fire while proudly pledging hed take a bullet for Trump. Cohen testified in New York City on Monday as the prosecutions star witness in Trumps hush-money trial. On the stand, he ditched his typically bombastic attitude and appeared somber as he recalled his time working for Trump. Below we take a look back at some of Cohens sleaziest moments as Trumps fixer, many of which have been recalled by the 57-year-old himself. Lying to Congress Michael Cohen talks to reporters as he departs after meeting with Senate Intelligence Committee in 2017. Reuters Cohen confessed in a 2018 guilty plea that he lied in front of Congress about a Moscow real-estate deal he helped pursue at Trumps behest two years prior. The lie, which he said he made out of loyalty to Trump, was regarding the ex-presidents hopes of building a Trump Tower in Moscow that would have been Europes tallest building. The proposed skyscraper was slated to have Trumps surname emblazoned across the top, with its $50 million penthouse reserved for Vladimir Putin. As part of special counsel Robert Muellers probe into potential Russian influence in the 2016 election, Cohen told Congress that building negotiations were halted by January 2016, early in Trumps White House bidtestimony that benefitted Trump greatly as he asserted Russia had no influence on his shock election win. That date turned out to be a lie, however, with Cohen later conceding that negotiations in Moscow continued into at least June 2016, after Trump had secured the Republican nomination. Cohen claimed Trump covertly convinced him to lie to Congress about the negotiations and he obliged, with Trumps legal team reviewing his comments in advance to ensure they stayed in line with his political messaging. That whole hush-money thing Prosecutors allege that Stormy Daniels was paid $130,000 by Michael Cohen for the rights to the story about her alleged affair with Donald Trump in 2006. Reuters Perhaps none of Cohens work as Trumps personal fixer is as infamous as the hush-money payments he claims to have made to kill negative stories about Trump. One of those alleged payments, made in 2016 to porn star Stormy Daniels, is central to Trumps criminal trial. Cohen has alleged that Trump, with the backing of the National Enquirer, dispatched him to purchase the rights to stories of his alleged affairs, ensuring the scandals never went public. This type of strategy, widely known as catch-and-kill, was used to bury a story about an affair between Trump and former Playboy model Karen McDougal, who received a $150,000 payout. It also saw Trump allegedly pay a Trump Tower doorman $30,000 to keep quiet about him allegedly fathering a secret childa story that had no merit but still wouldve caused Trump quite the headache had the claim been made in public. The same plan was used to kill a story about Trump and Daniels alleged affair in 2006within a year of Trumps marriage to Melaniaat a Lake Tahoe resort. In that case, prosecutors say Cohen cut Daniels a check for $130,000 using his own money in 2016 and was later reimbursed by Trump after hed already moved into the White House. Trump has denied this version of events, and has denied his affair with Daniels. Nasty threats to journalists Its no secret that Cohen was among Trumps biggest attack dogs well before the reality-TV star made his political aspirations known. In 2011, Cohen infamously spelled out his extreme loyalty to Trumpno matter the circumstancein an interview with ABC News. If somebody does something Mr. Trump doesnt like, I do everything in my power to resolve it to Mr. Trumps benefit, he said. If you do something wrong, Im going to come at you, grab you by the neck, and Im not going to let you go until Im finished. In the years that followed, Cohen lived up to that dramatic quote. He threatened to sue The Onion in 2013 over an article he claimed was defamatory, ordering the satirical website to remove it immediately or face him in court. The article is an absolutely disgusting piece that lacks any place in journalism; even in your Onion, he said. That article, which features a photo of Trump that suggests hes the author, was headlined, When Youre Feeling Low, Just Remember Ill Be Dead In About 15 Or 20 Years. Despite Cohens threat, the article remains online to this day. Two years later, in 2015, Cohen issued a similar nasty warning to The Daily Beast after it reached out regarding rape allegations against Trump. He yelled at reporter in a recorded phone call, Im warning you, tread very fucking lightly, because what Im going to do to you is going to be fucking disgusting. Doubling, no, tripling down on Trump lies Michael Cohen takes a call in New York City in 2018. Getty Images/Gana Paskova Cohen was an unabashed backer of Trumps myriad of lies for over a decade. Hed push back against reporters and go on the record himself to defend Trump, no matter how ridiculousor dangeroushis boss comments were. This was epitomized in 2015, when Trump claimed that thousands of Muslims had cheered the World Trade Centers collapse. This, of course, was a massive lie, but that didnt stop Cohen from attacking reporters who suggested otherwise. Mr. Trumps memory is fantastic, he told CNN in 2015 about the issue. I have never come across a situation where Mr. Trump has said something thats not accurate. As Trump found himself in the press more and more amid his presidential run, Cohen offered more of the same. Some of his Trump defenses were so ridiculous, even Rudy Giuliani conceded it was a bit much. Weve got to keep this guy off television, Giuliani said of Cohen in 2016, reported The Washington Post. Every time he goes on, it looks like we have a gangster working for us. Cleaning up more than 500 of Trumps messes Michael Cohen is greeted by committee staff as he arrives to appear before Senate Intelligence Committee in 2017. Reuters Before being sentenced to three years in prison, Cohen conceded in a New York courthouse in 2018 that he felt it was his duty to cover up each of Trumps dirty deeds. The depth of Cohens efforts in this role remains unknown, but those in Trumps orbit have hinted that his big mouthand long list of rivalskept Cohen plenty busy in this role. Michael is very good at killing stories, Sam Nunberg, a former Trump political adviser, told Frontline in the 2018 documentary Trumps Showdown. Hes gotten Trump out of a lot of issues, I would say. And that was his job, and hes done a good job out of it. Cohen, having then turned against his former boss, testified to Congress in 2019 that hed been directed by Trump to threaten people as many as 500 times for a myriad of budding scandals, big and small. Every day, most of us in the room knew coming in we were going to lie for him on something, Cohen testified in 2019. And that became the norm. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. A training workshop on building confidence and capacity in the preparation of Biennial Transparency Reports within Azerbaijan's chairmanship at COP29 has opened in Baku, Trend reports. The workshop will hear speeches from the chief negotiator of COP29, Deputy Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan Yalchin Rafiyev, Deputy Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan Umayra Taghiyeva, Director of the UN Climate Secretariat Reporting Office Donald Cooper, UNDP portfolio coordinator on climate change in the Europe and Central Asia region Nuri Ozbagdatli, and others. To note, this November, Azerbaijan will host COP29. The COP28 plenary meeting in Dubai on December 11 last year made this decision. Baku will become the world's center, receiving about 7080,000 foreign guests. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is an agreement signed at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 to prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system. COPthe Conference of the Partiesis the highest legislative body overseeing the implementation of the Framework Convention on Climate Change. There are 198 countries that are parties to the Convention. The COP takes place annually, unless the parties agree otherwise. The first COP event took place in March 1995 in Germany's Berlin, and its secretariat is located in Bonn. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Prosecutors in Donald Trump's hush money trial have sought to highlight the impact of the "Access Hollywood" recording on the 2016 campaign, in which the former president could be heard boasting of sexual assault, arguing that it was in the wake of that revelation that crimes were committed to prevent others from speaking out. But testifying Monday, Michael Cohen, the one-time fixer for the former president, said that the argument that the recording merely reflected "locker room talk" came not from within the campaign but was suggested by Trump's wife, Melania. "We needed to put a spin on this," Cohen explained Monday, per CNN. "The spin he wanted put on it was that this is 'locker room talk,' something that Melania had recommended or, at least, he told me thats what Melania had thought it was and use that in order to get control over the story and to minimize its impact on him and his campaign." It was in the tumultuous aftermath of its release that Cohen paid Stormy Daniels $130,000 to keep quiet, a transaction that was falsely recorded allegedly with Trump's knowledge as a legal expense so as to avoid campaign finance reporting requirements. In 2018, Cohen received a three-year prison sentence for his role in the scheme. Daniels last week testified that she had a sexual encounter with Trump in 2006, just months after Melania gave birth to his son, Barron. Trump, Daniels said, told her not to "worry" about his wife. The most anticipated showdown of Donald Trumps hush money trial began Monday as Michael Cohen the former presidents ex-fixer and lawyer - took the stand to detail his close relationship with Trump, and how he craved his validation by consistently updating Trump on his efforts to stifle Karen McDougals and Stormy Daniels stories. Cohen testified that when he got wind of Daniels story potentially going public, he felt it would have been catastrophic for Trumps campaign. I immediately went to Mr. Trumps office, knocked on the door. Boss, Ive got to speak to you. Cohen said. I told him that one of the things that we need to do is obviously take care of it. Absolutely. Do it. Take care of it Cohen said Trump replied. Crucially, Cohen testified later that Trump signed off on the plan to reimburse Cohen for the Daniels hush-money payment. He approved it and turned around and said its gonna be one heck of a ride in D.C., Cohen testified. Cohen began the day going into detail about his day-to-day relationship with the former president during his employment between 2007 and 2018, describing Trump as a micro-manager whom he spoke to every single day, and multiple times a day, either by phone or in person. He also told the jury that ahead of his 2016 campaign announcement, Trump had warned him to be prepared, theres going to be a lot of women coming forward. Cohen detailed his day-to-day relationship with the former president during his employment between 2007 and 2018, describing Trump as a micro-manager whom he spoke to every single day, and multiple times a day, either by phone or in person. He also told the jury that ahead of his 2016 campaign announcement, Trump had warned him to be prepared, theres going to be a lot of women coming forward. As Cohen worked to help suppress potentially damaging stories about Trump, he recounted providing regular updates to the former president to claim credit for his actions, and to receive directions on what he wanted me to do. Prosecutors hope Cohens testimony will show just how much Trump was in the know about every little detail, especially about matters that worried him, Cohen testified. Cohens testimony will be pivotal for the prosecutions case against Trump, who has been charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records. The charges stem from an alleged scheme in which then-candidate Trump and his associates made hush-money payments to women, including $130,000 to adult film actress Stormy Daniels, in order to aid his 2016 presidential election campaign. Prosecutors have accused the former president of unlawfully masking reimbursement payments to Cohen who paid the money to Daniels out of his own pockets as legal expenses. While Cohens testimony promises to be some of the most impactful in the trial, hes already been the subject of heavy discussion amongst prior witnesses, as prosecutors look to draw a connection between his actions and the former presidents intentions. Last month, former tabloid boss David Pecker described to the court how two months before Trump announced his 2016 campaign, he was summoned to Trump Tower for a meeting with Cohen and Trump. Pecker offered to aid Trump by acting as the eyes and ears of the campaign and helping kill negative stories that could impact Trumps chances of winning. Pecker testified that Cohen was his point of contact regarding coverage of the former president, and often told him the boss shorthand for Trump would be happy about decisions made by the pair. Pecker also detailed how in the weeks before the 2016 election, he refused to purchase Daniels story after failing to receive repayments for stories purchased from a doorman at Trump Tower, and former Playboy model Karen McDougal. If you dont, its going to be sold to another media outlet and the boss is going to be very very angry with you, Pecker told Cohen. Jurors heard Trumps voice in court on Monday in the only recording Cohen testified to creating during his tenure. Worried Pecker might publish McDougals story after growing increasingly tired of Cohens and Trumps excuses for their delay in reimbursing him for purchasing McDougals life rights, Cohen recorded a conversation between himself and Trump to show Trumps intention to reimburse him. So, what do we got to pay for this? One-fifty? Trump is heard saying in the recording. Cohen implicated former Trump Organization Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselberg, who told him to find creative ways to raise the $150,000 payment because neither Trump nor the organizations name could be associated with the payment. Cohen detailed how he began to create a separate LLC for the McDougal payment, testifying he was doing this on behalf of Trump, who would own McDougals story himself. I had no reason to own, no need to own the life rights, he said. What I was doing, I was doing at the direction and the benefit of Mr. Trump. The Access Hollywood tape came out less than a month later. Cohen testified on Monday it was actually Trumps wife Melania who gave him and Trump the idea to call Trumps comment locker room talk, as it was what Melania thought it was and said to use that in order to get control of the story, Cohen testified. It was the release of this tape, former Trump campaign communications director Hope Hicks testified earlier in the trial, that led to the hush-money scheme. Cohen painted Trump in crisis when news of the tape came out. This is a disaster. Women will hate me. Guys, theyll think its cool, but women? This is going to be a disaster, the fixer testified to Trump telling him, alluding to recent polling showing Trump had poor ratings from women. Once again directing Cohen to stop the story from coming out, a frantic Trump reportedly told Cohen to push acquiring Daniels life rights as far as possible. Just get it past the election because if I win, it would have no relevance because Im already president and if I lose, I dont really care, Cohen said Trump directed. The strategy of delay, delay, delay only lasted until Daniels gave Cohen the ultimatum to pay up or she would go public before the election. In preparation for this, Cohen spoke with Weisselberg, discussed his fronting the payment, and the two approached Trump to tell him of the plan. He was appreciative and said good, good,' Cohen testified Trump told him. He stated to me, Dont worry about it, youll get the money back. Prosecutors used Cohens testimony to repeatedly push back against the defenses claims that Trump knew nothing of the hush-money payment. Instead, Cohen was asked several times if he would have made the payment on his own accord, to which Cohen responded in the negative. I was doing everything I could and more in order to protect my boss, which was something I had done for a long time, but I would not have laid out $130,000 needed for an NDA, needed for somebody else. Cohen also repeatedly asserted that he required Trumps approval before carrying out the payment. In the moments before he went to wire the funds, Cohen called Trump one last time, again to get his sign-off. I wanted to ensure that once again he approved of what I was doing because I required approval from him about all of this, Cohen testified. Because everything requires Mr. Trumps sign-off. On top of that, I wanted the money back. Trump has claimed he never intentionally falsified business documents around the payments nor attempted to intentionally defraud American voters. Cohens testimony could offer prosecutors the legal case for why Trump is being tried on felony charges, and offer an incriminating inside view of the former presidents intentions. More importantly, prosecutors are looking for Cohens testimony to act as a buffer for any inevitable appeals the Trump legal team may file. Trump and Cohen have long been overdue for a face-to-face clash in court. Following Trumps indictment last year by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, the former president sued Cohen for half a billion dollars, alleging that his former attorney had violated attorney-client privilege in his public discussions of the hush money payments, and his cooperation with prosecutors. Trump has also spent plenty of time publicly bashing Cohen ahead of his testimony despite the implementation of a court order barring him from attacking witnesses. Judge Juan Merchan has held Trump in contempt of the order 10 times since the start of the trial, including over various instances in which he attacked Cohen on social media and in his statements to reporters outside of the courtroom. Cohen looked over his shoulder to glance at Trump as he entered the courtroom early Monday morning, but received no reaction from the former president, whose eyes were closed and his head tilted slightly towards the witness stand. Trump once again seemed to nod off at one point jerking his head as Cohen set the scene for how he came to attain his fixer job title. He did, however, purse his lips when Cohen recounted a conversation the two had in 2011 about a potential run for the presidency. Despite complaining that the amount of security around the courthouse prevented his supporters from accessing the space, Trumps entourage entered in full force on Monday. Attendees present in court included his son Eric Trump, his spokesperson Alina Habba, former advisor Boris Epshteyn, and electeds Nicole Malliotakis, Steve Marshall, J.D. Vance, Brenna Bird, and Tommy Tuberville. Notably absent for the fifth week in a row is Trumps wife Melania, whom his defense has argued he cares for deeply and is the reason why Trump engaged in the hush-money payment in the first place. However, Cohen cast doubt on the defenses argument around Trumps concern for his wife early Monday afternoon, testifying that when he asked Trump how Melania was handling the news of Daniels story, Trump said: Dont worry. How long do you think Ill be on the market for? Not long. He wasnt thinking about Melania at all. This was all about the campaign, Cohen concluded. More from Rolling Stone Best of Rolling Stone Michael Cohen says Trump worried Stormy Daniels tryst story would be disaster for his campaign NEW YORK More than six years after Michael Cohens conviction for doing Donald Trumps dirty work cementing a bitter rivalry with the man he once said hed take a bullet for the former fixer testified Monday at Trumps hush money trial in Manhattan Supreme Court. Cohen testified about how the release of the infamous Access Hollywood tape in which Trump boasted about grabbing women by the genitals sent shockwaves through the Trump camp ahead of the election, and how the presidential candidate was worried that Stormy Daniels story about sleeping with him would be a disaster if it went public. [Trump] told me to work with [National Enquirer head] David [Pecker] and get control of this, purchase the life rights, we need to just stop this from getting out, Cohen said, adding that he was directed to push it as long as he could, until after the election. If I win, it wont have relevance, Im the president. And if I lose, I dont really care, he recalled Trump telling him. He wasnt really thinking about Melania, he was thinking about the campaign, Cohen said of his former boss, who he said was always kept abreast of everything. Trump shifted in his seat, looking angry, as Cohen told the courtroom that Trump directed him to just take care of Daniels story. He said to me, This is really a disaster, women will hate me, Cohen said Trump told him. Guys may think its cool, but this is going to be a disaster for the campaign, Trump added, according to Cohen. A lot of women coming forward Just be prepared, theres gonna be a lot of women coming forward, Cohen, then a surrogate on Trumps campaign, said the future president warned him as he embarked on his 2016 run for the White House. The lawyer testified about the August 2015 Trump tower meeting where Cohen, Trump and supermarket tabloid publisher David Pecker allegedly hatched a plan to boost Trumps candidacy by planting positive stories about Trump and repressing negative ones. What was discussed is the power of the National Enquirer in terms of it being located at the cash register of so many supermarkets and bodegas that if we could place positive stories about Mr. Trump that would be beneficial, that if we could place negative stories about some of the other candid, that would also be beneficial, Cohen testified. Cohen walked the rapt jury through how he allegedly carried out that scheme and how Trump told him to handle a story from a Trump Tower doorman that hed had a love child, and how he believed Playboy model Karen McDougals story of their nearly year-long affair would have a significant impact on the campaign. Cohen learned of McDougals claims in the summer of 2016 from American Media Inc., the Enquirers parent company, and told Trump. I went to the office, knocked on it, Cohen recalled in court. Boss, I gotta talk to you went in, talked to him about what I had just learned. I asked him if he knew who Karen McDougal was His response was, Shes really beautiful. I said, OK, but theres a story thats right now being shopped. Cohen testifies about his work for Trump The former fixer, who said that label was fair, testified that hed lie, bully people and sometimes take a threatening tone all to carry out his business for Trump. Trump offered Cohen a job as his executive vice president and special counsel in 2007, where he would only answer to him and I [would] work on issues that were of concern to him, he said in response to questions from Hoffinger. They communicated every day, several times a day in person or by phone. Trump didnt use email: He knows too many people who have gone down as a direct result of having emails that prosecutors can use in a case, Cohen said in court. Trumps lawyer furiously took notes on a pad of paper when Cohen testified that he sometimes lied when it seemed necessary: I wanted to accomplish the task. The only thing that was on my mind was to accomplish a task to make him happy. Cohen said he felt on top of the world one time when Trump told him his work was fantastic and great. It was an amazing experience in many, many ways, he said of working for the former president. There were great times; there were less than great times. But for the most part, I enjoyed the responsibility that was given to me. Former fixer takes the stand Trump gave his ex-lawyer a searing look as Cohen, the son of a holocaust survivor, described his upbringing in Nassau County, his education and journey to law school and how he was first introduced to Trump. I wanted to go to Wall Street; my grandmother was like, thats not going to happen, Cohen, wearing a pink tie, said. He worked for 10 years as Trumps special counsel, making about $425,000 a year, until 2017. Cohen, 57, served three years in federal custody half of it behind bars upstate after pleading guilty in 2018 to paying off porn star Stormy Daniels $130,000 11 days before the 2016 election at Trumps direction in violation of campaign finance laws, lying to Congress about Trumps business dealings with Moscow, and other crimes. Hes expected to testify about discussing reimbursement for the hush money with Trump in the Oval Office and the eleventh-hour dash to silence Daniels about her claims of a one-night-stand as the Trump campaign sought to contain the fallout of the bombshell release of the Access Hollywood tape in October 2016. The 34 felony counts of falsification of business records facing Trump, 77, are each tied to his alleged reimbursement to Cohen in 2017, which prosecutors say came as the final stage of a scheme to influence the presidential election devised at an August 2015 meeting at Trump Tower attended by Trump, his fixer, and former tabloid publisher David Pecker. Pecker, who testified first, told jurors he agreed to be the campaignseyes and ears identifying negative stories that could come to light about Trump to be bought and buried and elevating hit jobs about his opponents. Trump denies all allegations and that he ever slept with Daniels or Playboy model Karen McDougal, who Peckers publishing company paid $150,000. His lawyers have claimed an obsessed Cohen went rogue in paying Daniels and that Trump believed he was paying his lawyer for legitimate legal services. Trump walked into the courtroom with a subdued expression around 9:20 a.m. with his son, Eric Trump, GOP Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, and an army of lawyers. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg took his seat in the courtrooms front row shortly after Trumps arrival. ------- UPDATE: Donald Trump approved a plan to repay hush money for Stormy Daniels to his lawyer Michael Cohen in a meeting at Trump Tower days before his inauguration as president, Cohen told jurors today. As part of the package, Trump raised Cohens holiday bonus after Cohen complained bitterly that hed been shorted, the lawyer testified. More from Deadline Trump then said, This is going to be one heck of a ride in D.C., Cohen recalled. The so-called fixer for Trump took the stand this morning as the prosecutions key witness in their case against the former president. The meeting was also attended by Allen Weisselberg, the Trump Organizations chief financial officer, who brought with him a bank statement that had the financial arrangement scrawled on it in Weisselbergs handwriting, Cohen testified, saying, He showed the document to Mr. Trump. Cohen couldnt give an exact date for the meeting, but said it probably occurred on January 16 or 17, because on the 17th he texted a business partner that Trump had also agreed to let Cohen refer to himself as personal counsel to President Trump. Cohens run as a Trump Organization employee had just come to an end with the election, and one of his last assignments as Trumps legal bulldog was paying $130,000 out of his own pocket to adult entertainer Daniels, less than two weeks before the election, for her silence about a claimed sexual encounter with Trump a decade earlier. Prosecutors say Trump paid $420,000 to Cohen over the course of 2017 in monthly installments of $35,000 ostensibly for ongoing legal work to disguise the reimbursement, up his bonus, cover his tax bill and repay him for work on another job. Of the latter, Cohen admitted on the stand that he overcharged for that work. Prosecutors contend that the reimbursement was made using deliberately falsified paperwork in violation of New York business laws. That, in turn, also broke election laws because the hush money payment was an undeclared campaign contribution, according to prosecutors. Cohen who served jail time after pleading guilty to several federal felony counts including campaign law violations seconded that narrative in his testimony, saying it was understood by him, Weisselberg and Trump at the meeting in January that the monthly payments for legal services rendered were a ruse. Cohen testified that no agreement for future work was ever drawn up in 2017, and that his new title counsel to the president was a way for him to sell access to the incoming commander-in-chief. As personal attorney to the president it opens a tremendous amount of doors to people who are trying to understand Trump, Cohen said during questioning by Assistant Manhattan District Attorney Susan Hoffinger. To most people, Mr. Trump was an enigma, Cohen explained, but as his lawyer of ten years he could provide insights to business people looking for help from the new administration. Cohen said the title he got is the one he wanted because it would allow him to earn money without having to move to Washington, D.C. He said he turned down an offer to become an assistant White House counsel tendered by Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus. Cohen denied that he ever harbored a serious ambition to become White House chief of staff, a job Priebus eventually got, but admitted he was disappointed not to be asked. Trumps defense lawyers have suggested that Cohen was extorting Trump, using his payment to Daniels as leverage, partly out of rage at not getting a high-profile post in the Trump administration. I didnt want the role, Cohen testified, saying he doubted he was competent to handle it. I just wanted my name to be included, Cohen said. It was more about my ego than anything. Cohen suggested the real injury to his ego came shortly after the election, in December, when he opened the Christmas card envelope containing what would be his last holiday bonus check from The Trump Organization and did a double take when he realized it was two-thirds less than usual. Cohen said he was beyond angry, truly insulted and personally hurt. He had yet to be reimbursed for the $130,000 he funneled to Daniels using a home equity loan and a fraudulent shell company he set up for the transaction. Earlier, Cohen testified that he lied on paperwork to open a bank account for a limited liability company he set up to pay off Daniels. He wrote down that the LLC was for management consulting and HR marketing. Im not sure [the bank] would have opened it if it stated to pay off an adult film star for a non-disclosure agreement, he said with a laugh. Cohen had also helped broker a $150,000 hush money payment in 2016 from Trumps allies at the tabloid publisher American Media to former Playboy model Karen McDougal for her silence about an alleged affair with Trump. And when The Wall Street Journal reported on the McDougal agreement four days before the election, he was part of the crisis team along with Trump adviser Hope Hicks that worked to contain the potential political damage. Seething over the Christmas bonus, he marched into Weisselbergs office at Trump Tower and in some colorful language I expressed to him how pissed off and angry I truly was, Cohen testified. I was, even for myself, unusually angry, Cohen said. He said he later complained about the bonus to David Pecker, American Media CEO and Trumps friend, and probably also to Daniels lawyer, Keith Davidson. Cohen said he believes that Weisselberg told Trump about the tirade. During the holidays, he testified, Trump called him to ask how he was doing and to say he should come to Trumps Mar-a-lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida next winter. He also said, Dont worry about that other thing. Im gonna take care of it when we get back, Cohen testified. Cohen will return to the stand on Tuesday. Defense lawyers have yet to cross-examine him. PREVIOUSLY: In the final weeks of the 2016 presidential campaign, Donald Trump ordered his lawyer Michael Cohen to keep porn star Stormy Daniels story of sexual encounter out of the media, using a playbook they had already established to quash an earlier claim of an affair with a Playboy playmate, Karen McDougal, Cohen testified today. Cohen, on the stand in Trumps hush money trial, told the jury that Trump told him, We need to stop this from getting out. The Daniels story emerged after another politically damaging story, the Access Hollywood tape, had surfaced in early October. According to Cohen, Trump also told him, What I want you to do is push it out as long as you can. Just get past the election, because if I win it has no relevance and if I lose I dont really care. It was the most direct claim to date in more than three weeks of trial testimony that Trump wanted a hush-money agreement to be executed to keep Daniels from talking publicly about her claim of an extramarital sexual liaison with Trump in 2006. Rattled by the Access Hollywood tape, which revealed that Trump had boasted of grabbing womens genitals without consent, Trump was furious to learn that Daniels claim was resurfacing, Cohen testified, because Cohen had worked with Daniels lawyer, Keith Davidson, in 2011 to get the same story pulled from a gossip website called The Dirty by threatening to sue the publication. He was really angry with me, Cohen said of his boss, recalling Trumps words: I thought you had this under control. I thought you took care of this. This is a disaster, total disaster, Trump fumed, according to Cohen. Women are gonna hate me. Guys, they think its cool, but this is gonna be a disaster for the campaign. Cohen testified that Trump was already polling poorly with women in the run-up to the November election. Trump also told Cohen, Just take care of it, Cohen testified. Cohen had already helped a tabloid publisher, American Media, buy the rights to Playboy model Karen McDougals story for $150,000, and then buried it in a textbook catch and kill arrangement used by the company before. But earlier testimony from the companys CEO, David Pecker, showed he wanted no part in paying off Daniels even though he and Trump were friends. So Cohen worked with Davidson, who also represented McDougal, to draw up a $130,000 non-disclosure agreement for Daniels. But complications arose because of the election-timed delay strategy that Trump asked Cohen to pursue. I was following an instruction, Cohen testified, when he stalled on paying the $130,000 in the form of an immediate wire transfer demanded by Davidson. Cohens testimony, which prosecutors have saved for the home stretch of their case, stopped at that point for a lunch break. With Trump seated just feet away between his lawyers, Cohen spent the morning and early afternoon describing his ten years as Trumps in-house counsel and fixer a term he called fair when asked about it by Assistant Manhattan District Attorney Susan Hoffinger. Cohen said he routinely lied to and bullied people to keep his boss happy in a variety of tasks, always keeping Trump in the loop whether negotiating down payments to vendors or threatening lawsuits against adversaries. Cohen called that time of his career fantastic and an amazing experience. PREVIOUSLY: As Donald Trumps attorney and so-called fixer, Michael Cohen told a jury today about efforts to conceal unflattering stories about his boss, including an arrangement with the National Enquirer to catch and kill womens claims to have had affairs with the Celebrity Apprentice host. On the witness stand, Cohen suggested that the claims were not a surprise. He said that Trump told him that once he announced he was a candidate in 2015, Theres going to be a lot of women coming forward. Cohen soon learned about one of the woman, former Playboy model Karen McDougal, from David Pecker, the CEO of National Enquirer parent company American Media. And Cohen, on the stand, said he also found out that potentially unflattering information about candidate Trump didnt stop with McDougals claim of an extramarital affair. Pecker kept a file drawer or a locked drawer containing information that he and his employees at American Media had collected about Trump over many years for safekeeping, Cohen said. Cohen said he later told his boss, Theres a series of papers there that relate to you, and they would have to arrange to buy the rights to those documents. From testimony so far, it is not clear what was in the other papers. PREVIOUSLY: Michael Cohen, Donald Trumps former attorney and fixer who has since turned into one of his chief antagonists, took the stand today in the former presidents hush money trial. Prosecutors view Cohen as a critical link in their case against the former and possibly future president: the co-conspirator who connects Trump directly to hush money for adult entertainer Stormy Daniels. Cohen made multiple appearances before the Manhattan grand jury that indicted Trump in 2023. Major news networks all focused on Cohens testimony, including an ongoing scroll of text and headlines from reporters in the courthouse. TV and audio coverage is banned from the proceedings. Cohen comes to the witness stand with baggage: prison time and disbarment after a 2018 guilty plea for tax evasion and federal campaign finance violations the latter tied to his $130,000 payment to Daniels. Cohen also pleaded guilty to lying under oath to Congress in 2017 about a Trump real estate venture in Moscow. A Trump attorney, Todd Blanche, said in opening statements that Cohen cant be trusted. He is an admitted liar, Blanche said. Donald Trump with his attorneys in court on Monday. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) Cohen has also been busy trolling his old boss online, to the irritation of lawyers on both sides. On Friday Blanche asked the presiding judge, Juan Merchan, to make Cohen stop. Prosecutors replied that they, too, had asked Cohen to keep his opinions about the trial to himself, but werent having much luck. Merchan told the Manhattan District Attorneys team to urge their star witness to restrain himself, adding that the advice was coming straight from the bench a gag request, but without the threat of fines and jail behind the gag order imposed on Trump for criticizing trial figures including Cohen himself. Today, Cohen finally has everybodys permission to speak, and he is prepared to say that he acted on orders from Trump. Cohen paid Daniels $130,000 days before the 2016 election to stay quiet about her claim of a sexual liaison years earlier with the star of Celebrity Apprentice, at the time a married real estate mogul with a newborn son and a short political resume. Trump spent four months in 2000 as a Reform Party candidate for the White House. Prosecutors say that Trump, as president, disguised his reimbursement of Cohen by calling it taxable income for routine legal work, in an arrangement set up by the Trump Organizations then-chief financial officer, Allen Weisselberg. The former Trump CFO is in jail for lying under oath in a New York civil case against Trump, and could be summoned to testify in the hush-money case. The 34-count indictment lists falsified business records checks, pay stubs, ledger entries intended to conceal the repayment to Cohen. Prosecutors will have to convince jurors that a scheme relying on misdemeanor counts of business wrongdoing became a felony because Trump employed it to interfere with a presidential election by keeping voters in the dark about a tryst with a porn star. Trump has denied any sexual contact with Daniels and said that his payments to Cohen were legitimate. His lawyers have argued that Trump wanted to spare himself and his family embarrassment. Any impact on an election that Trump won was secondary and within the bounds of campaigning, according to defense lawyers. Before the proceedings, Trump made a few comments to the media in the hallway outside the courtroom. Joining him were an entourage of supporters and one vice presidential contender, Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH). Ted Johnson contributed to this report. Best of Deadline Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Michael Cohen is Donald Trumps former personal lawyer who was for more than a decade his Mr Fix-It, but is now the prosecutions star witness as it builds its case that the former US president sought to conceal hush-money payments to an adult film star. It is a classic story of two men who once worked hand-in-glove together, when Trump was a world-famous billionaire real estate mogul and reality TV star, but now face each other across a Manhattan courtroom with the worlds attention fixed on them. Cohen served as Trumps trusted adviser, personal attorney and self-described attack dog with a law license. But the relationship soured after Trump won the US presidential election in 2016 and did not offer Cohen a role in his administration. Cohens testimony could place Trump at the center of a scheme to meet Stormy Danielss demand for $130,000 in exchange for her silence. The payment, made from an account Cohen had set up, was allegedly repaid while Trump was president but disguised as legal services. Related: Trumps hush-money trial: Heres whats happened in the case so far Cohen, a native of Long Island, began practicing law as a personal injury lawyer in 1992 and joined the Trump Organization in 2006. He told Trump he had read his book The Art of the Deal twice and soon became a close confidant. In a 2018 profile, it was noted that Cohen performed a role much like that of Roy Cohn, the notorious New York political and legal fixer who had worked for Trump and his father. Cohens duties led him into fixing situations of a sensitive nature, including setting up catch-and-kill arrangements with David Pecker, publisher of the National Enquirer, which has circuitously led to todays court confrontation. But Cohen, who once said he would take a bullet for Trump, may present a conflicted witness to jurors. Cohen has served time in prison in relation to those payments and lying to Congress, as well as a series to tax frauds to which he pleaded guilty. But he also is on a personal mission for redemption, a sinner turned proselyte, who now disavows the years he spent serving Trump. Cohen, who is disbarred from practicing law, will be grilled over the reimbursements he received from Trump payments that form the basis of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records against Trump. The case against Trump is likely to succeed or fail on whether jurors believe his account, or lean toward the defense claims presented in opening arguments that he is an admitted liar with an obsession to get President Trump. The former presidents lawyers have argued that Cohen perjured himself again when he testified at Trumps civil fraud trial last year. They claim that Cohen has made a living from antagonizing his former (and only) client. He appeared last week in a live TikTok wearing a shirt featuring a figure resembling Trump with his hands cuffed, behind bars. Related: Who is Michael Cohen and the other key players in Donald Trumps hush-money trial? He has a goal, an obsession with getting Trump, and youre going to hear that, defense lawyer Todd Blanche told jurors in his opening statement. The bitter enmity between Trump, who once praised Cohen as a fine person with a wonderful family and predicted he would never flip, and his former lawyer is obvious. Both men have been warned by Judge Juan Merchan to stop making public comments about the other. At The Daily Beasts Obsessed, we think the ongoing Trump Trial is about as gossipy and enthralling as any episode of The Real Housewives. With that in mind, were recapping the drama like wed write about any weekly Bravo showwith plenty of wit and snark. A great number of big names have taken the stand in the ongoing Donald Trump hush-money trialfrom Stormy Daniels to David Peckerbut todays witness feels the most monumental. Michael Cohen, Trumps fixer-turned-nemesis, appeared in court today. Hes the man weve all been waiting for. But why is that? Talking in TV terms, this appearance feels like the first segment in a grand two-part season finale. Or more specifically, if you look at the trial in the same way you do Bravo, perhaps you should see this as a reunion. Trump and Cohen have fallen apart and now must face each other to recount their history in front of a live audience. Claims will be denied. Shade will be thrown. Truth Social posts will be fired off. The prosecution called Cohen to the stand, and for our first segment today, we heard how Trump romanced his fixer/attorney. Cohen recounted being hired, his hefty payday, and early projects he worked on with Trump in the mid-to-late 2000s. While reminiscing on a landfill remediation project in New Jersey that never actually happened, Cohen said, It was all very exciting to me. He and I have different definitions of the word exciting. Cohen said that, in the early days, working with Trump was an amazing experience. Really, the way this sounds comes off as a romantic comedyCohen fell fast and hard for Trump. How often was he seeing the soon-to-be President? Every single day, and multiple times a day. But that love affair had red flags from the start. Cohen said that Trump never had an email account, fearful that his messages could be used by prosecutors in future trialslike, I dont know, this one? To me, that screams RUN. To Cohen, again, it is exciting. Working with someone as big and powerful as Donald Trump, no matter how frightening, is worth it. Instead of backing away, Cohen embraced the Trump farce. The prosecution asked him if he ever lied in general. I did, Cohen said. Its what was needed to accomplish the task. The only thing that was on my mind was to accomplish the task to make him happy. Now, Cohen sounds like a little dogmust obey master. Must get ball and bring back to master to make him happy. Ahead of his bid for the 2016 presidential racewhich Cohen had been helping to launchTrump warned Cohen about the plethora of women that might come forward with some sort of accusations about him. Just be prepared, Cohen recalled hearing. Following the candidacy announcement, Cohen was in charge of handling both Karen McDougal and Stormy Daniels. If either claims leaked, Trump said, the news would be catastrophic to the campaign. (Looking back, apparently, they werent. Trump still won the election in 2016.) When Cohen repeatedly pressed Trump about whether or not hed slept with Daniels, all Trump would say was that she was a beautiful woman. Trump Trial Reality Recap: Oprah and Larry King Make Cameos (?!) Cohen didnt handle it. The Daniels story resurfaced. Trump grew irate with Cohen, although he did admit: Guys will think its cool. But this is going to be a disaster for the campaign. If guys thought it was so cool, why couldnt Trump confess the truth to Cohen before it actually came out? This was the long and short of todays trial, although there are a few other things worth noting that came out in sidebars. Cohen was in charge of planting news stories at The Enquirer with Pecker, which included negative stories about Hillary Clintons thick eyeglasses (hinting at brain injury) and Marco Rubios drug binge in a pool with several men. Throw a few Bravolebrity names in there instead of Clinton and Rubio and, again, youve got a Housewives reunion. Another moment that shocked me: You may recall this little viral phrase from 2016, locker room talk. This was Trumps defense after his grab em by the pussy conversation with Billy Bush was leaked, as in, Oh, that? That was just locker room talk. I dont actually do that! You can thank Melania Trump for coming up with that phrase, Cohen said. In a crisis, Melania found the easiest way to save her husbandby forcing him to tell the world that his words actually carry no weight at all. Ultimately, Trump and Cohen had a big breakup, which is where were at now. Trump slashed Cohens bonus at the end of 2016, and Cohen was beyond angry. Well, you werent fixing anything, were you? That bonus should actually go to Melania. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. A house was almost destroyed by an EF-3 tornado on Cothran Road off Bear Creek Pike on Wednesday in Columbia, Tenn. After a weekend of recovery efforts and damage assessments, Maury County Emergency Management was reporting Monday that at least 245 homes were damaged as a result of last week's storms. In a release issued Sunday afternoon, Maury OEM announced that it will discontinue its pass system for drivers, meaning law enforcement will no longer block roads and restrict drivers wishing to access certain areas, though officers will continue to maintain a heavy presence in those areas. More: 'A tragedy in our county' as tornado relief continues in Columbia following storm Sunday's release also encouraged residents affected by the storms to remain cautious of suspicious activity, such as scammers and unlicensed contractors. Contractor licenses can be verified via the state's website at www.TN.gov. Drivers are also encouraged to drive cautiously, patiently and slowly while navigating the affected areas. "As the impacted residents begin to pick up, they will be close to the roadways," the release states. "There will be no tolerance for citizens driving through the area recklessly." Debris pickups, cleanup assistance hotline Maury County Emergency Management has issued guidelines for debris pickup, urging those affected by Wednesday's storms to separate debris into certain categories. Pickups are scheduled to begin Monday by the Maury County Highway Office and Maury County Solid Waste. The Maury County Highway Office began debris pickups early Monday, and encouraged residents to familiarize themselves with the posted guidelines. More: Hundreds flock to aid families impacted by Columbia tornado: 'Volunteer State for a reason' This includes separating debris into certain categories for pickup. "These guidelines are extremely important, and we urge you to become familiar with them in order to expedite the collection process," Sunday's release said. "If you are a resident or volunteer, we are requesting you place debris on the right-of-way. As the County Highway Dept. and other County Government Agencies begin debris pick-up there will be rolling road closures." More: Emergency Management issues guidelines for debris recovery, pickups begin Monday Contractors are also responsible for disposing of their debris. There is also a Home Clean-Up Hotline for those needing assistance by calling (615) 488-1875. "Maury County would like to take a moment to re-iterate how grateful we are for the abundance of assistance we have received from other government agencies, as well as volunteers," OEM said. "We have been truly blown away by the commitment and love we have received from not only those in our counties, but from those all over the state and country." Jay Powell is a general reporter for The Daily Herald. Get up-to-date news in your inbox by subscribing to The Daily Herald newsletter at www.ColumbiaDailyHerald.com. This article originally appeared on The Daily Herald: Tennessee tornadoes: Maury County gives damage report, resources info For a moment it seemed Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA) knew that, this time, hed taken it too far. Last week, the prolific shitposter lauded a group of fraternity brothers at Ole Miss who jeered a Black pro-Palestine protesterincluding one who made racist monkey noises at the womanas Ole Miss taking care of business. The mainstream media and left-leaning politicians response to Collins statement was swift and scathing. The archconservative freshman lawmaker is no stranger to controversyin recent months hes dubbed Haiti a sh*thole country and suggested an undocumented migrant be thrown from a helicopterbut this time, even Collins acknowledged his post amplifying naked racism warranted some damage control. Bidens Playing Dumb Politics With Threat to Cut Israel Military Aid While he said the racist taunting was not the focal point of the video he shared, there certainly seems to be some potentially inappropriate behavior that none of us should seek to glorify. (The video itself remains up on Collins X feed.) But instead of simply smoothing over the situation with his non-apology, Collins lost precisely the people hes spent months attracting with his hard-right provocations. One verified anonymous account called Collins a coward for his conciliatory tone. No wonder the GOP is a failing party, they sniped. Another X account with nearly 150,000 followers describing itself as a purveyor of hateful conduct responded, This is weakness. Tired of it. It wasnt long before Collins returned with another eyebrow-raising post that seemed perfectly calibrated to collect both another round of outraged headlines and the trust of his ultraconservative internet groupies. You either die a Kennedy with a hole in the brain or live long enough to become a Kennedy with a hole in the brain, Collins posted, comparing the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy to current independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.s alleged brain worm. And with that, Collins was back on the board. BALLSY AF!! cheered far-right influencer Laura Loomer. Independent Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at a campaign stop in Brooklyn, New York. Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images As Collins has tried to forge a name for himself onlineflouting all the internet etiquette presumed of a sitting congressmanhes bringing the Republican partys far-right internet underbelly to the spotlight. Collins told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution in an April interview that hes aware of the scrutiny around his posts, but that those outraged arent his target audience, adding that hes being himself. Thats people that probably werent ever going to be happy with me anyway, he told the AJC. But thats OK. Hes not the first Republican lawmaker to outwardly embrace ultraconservative rhetoric disguised as jokes, but hes one who seems to be getting away with it. After months of posts decried in the mediaboth mainstream and socialas racist, antisemitic, and, at times, violent, some lawmakers on both sides of the aisle consider him little more than a burr in their side. The far-right internet culture Collins engages with has become as unremarkable to the Republican Party as it is intractable. As the GOP has tacked to the right under former President Donald Trumps reign atop the party, shocking behavior like Collins posts have become routine. And yet, as far-right internet culture has become a major component of the GOPs base, even mainstream Republicans in competitive races have to play ball with ultraconservative social media trolls, or risk being branded Republican in name only (RINO). NEVER WAS A SECOND THOUGHT Collins, of course, is an extreme example of this dynamic. But it didnt start out that way in Congress. Capitol Hill circles got to know Collins X posts during last years weeks-long battle over the House speakership. Collins proudly became the so-called memer of the House delighting Capitol Hill with levity to break up the Houses chaotic, leaderless purgatory. Perhaps his most beloved meme from that era depicted a couple in bed. A woman stared at her partner wondering, Hes probably thinking about other women. The man, instead, was thinking, Who can get to 217?the number of votes needed to elect a speaker. While Collins still shares plenty of innocuous humor on X, his social media presence has shifted noticeably rightward since then. In March, Collins responded to an anonymous racist account (calling itself Garbage Human) after it made a veiled reference to a Washington Post reporter being Jewish. Never was a second thought, Collins wrote in response. (Collins later said his comment was not antisemitic, but rather, his critics just see stuff that aint there.) Collins office did not respond to repeated interview requests or written questions from The Daily Beast. Despite his online persona, Collins keeps a relatively low profile on the Hill. Rep. Steven Horsford (D-NV)the chair of the Congressional Black Caucustold The Daily Beast that he wasnt aware of a Mike Collins in Congress so couldnt possibly weigh in on his social media posts. I dont know who he is, Horsford said. Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-FL)the first member of Generation Z in Congresswas at least aware of Collins social media persona, but struck a diplomatic tone to describe Collins, his neighbor in Washington, D.C. Hes definitely posted some things, I think, that are not good to post. I saw he apologized for posting that video of the person and the racism, Frost said. Im glad he did that. Though Frost added, I dont really have much else to say though Im not as online as he is. To be sure, Democratic lawmakers have called out Collins. Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), for one, replied to the Georgians post about Ole Miss with the comment, Mike Collins is fueling white supremacy. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Compares His Anti-Vax Stance to Martin Luther King Jr.s Activism When Collins called Haiti a sh*thole country in Marchparroting Trumps infamous 2019 lineDemocrats seized on the comment. Rep. Madeleine Dean (D-PA) said the post displays the extraordinary contrast between how Democrats take a look at foreign affairs versus those who just want to demean those who are suffering these things. (Collins, for his part, doubled down, telling The Hill that it seems like all the money weve spent over the years propping up Haiti was a bad investment, and current events should not be used as an excuse to import more foreigners into America.) But for a Democratic Party seeking to highlight hard-right extremism as they try to reclaim the House of Representatives, the response to Collins has been relatively muted. Back in 2021, the House censured Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ)a far-right lawmaker who had a history of associating with white supremacist and right-wing militia groupsfor posting a cartoon video that depicted him killing Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY). Rep. Paul Gosar leaves a House Republican Conference meeting. Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images Though Collins has not publicly advocated for violence against his fellow lawmakers, he stoked yet another round of social media fury in February when he suggested using Pinochet Air tactics against an undocumented migrant, referring to Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochets use of so-called death flights to throw detractors from a helicopter into the ocean or the Andes mountains. (Even Elon Musks X admitted at the time that the post violated standards, but the statement remains public.) But House Republicans have repeatedly tried to censure Democrats for criticizing Israels military conduct in Gaza after Hamas Oct. 7 attack, successfully censuring Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) last year, and launching a new effort to censure Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) last week. If Democrats wanted to go tit-for-tat with their GOP foes, Collins social media posts are ripe for condemnation. Rep. Frost said that sort of thinking misses the point. Should it be censured at all? I dont know, Frost said of Collins Ole Miss post. They're the ones that censure people every week, right? We're focused on legislation. In a chamber where the likes of Gosar and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA)who once infamously blamed Jewish space lasers for California wildfiresroutinely make attention-grabbing moves that are breathlessly written up in the media, Collins may be the least of Democrats' problems. As his profile grows among the far-right online community, Collins hasnt quite gotten the same warm reception within his own party on Capitol Hill. He reliably votes with conservatives and has a 100 percent rating from Heritage Actionwhich makes him more aligned with the conservative think tank than his fellow Georgian, Greene. THIRSTY FOR THE SPOTLIGHT Beyond his social media presence, his first major foray into the spotlight was in response to University of Georgia student Laken Rileys murder by an undocumented migrant. Collinswho represents the district in which UGA residesspearheaded legislation in Rileys name that would require federal officials to detain undocumented migrants who commit crimes until they can be deported. Nearly 40 Democrats joined the entire House GOP conference to pass the bill which is under consideration in the Senate. Rep. Marjorie Taylor-Greene wears a shirt and button showing slain Georgia college student Laken Riley ahead of President Joe Biden's State of the Union address. Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images At the State of the Union address in February, just weeks after the murder, Collins invited Rileys parents to the address. They declined, and ultimately Collins attempts to draw attention to the issue were overshadowed by Greene interrupting Bidens speech, demanding he say her name. But generally, lawmakers told The Daily Beast that Collins is not much of an operator. As is typical for first-term representatives, he has little sway as a junior member of committees. Even Collins fellow Georgia Republicans didnt have much to say about him. Conservative Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-GA) put his description of Collins bluntly, I guess, hes a Republican. He's a freshman. Hes new, Clyde told The Daily Beast. Give him some grace because hes all right. He's a pretty conservative vote, and so Im happy about that. Back in Collins home district, Charles Bullocka University of Georgia professor and expert on Peach State politicstold The Daily Beast that Collins could hold the seat for years if he wanted to. Given his record, hes safely inoculated himself from a challenge on the right. Plus, the district reliably elects Republicans despite encompassing the liberal enclave of Athens, Georgia, home to UGA. Bullock described Collins as a worthy successor to the districts conservative tradition. I havent heard any negatives about him, he said of Collins. Hes around. Hes visible. Collins family is well known in the district. His father, Mac Collins, served as a Republican in Congress from 1993 to 2005, but had more of a moderate lean than his son. Collins is also the wealthy heir to a trucking dynasty that allowed him to self-fund over $500,000 for his 2022 campaign. Congress Odd CoupleJeffries and JohnsonMystifies Lawmakers That 2022 election offered an early glimpse at Collins inappropriate flair for the dramatic online. Collins ran against Trump-endorsed Vernon Jones, who had a background in Democratic politics. Jones also faced accusations of misconduct toward women. Though Jones denied the claims, Collins capitalized, distributing rape whistles with Jones name on it. Collins then took to X to write, Although some use a rape whistle for protection against sexual assault, a 9mm is the more preferred form of protection. Jones filed a police report against Collins for encouraging violence. It didnt matterby 9 p.m. on election day, Collins was on his way to beating Jones by over 50 percentage points. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. It is a great honor for Azerbaijan to host COP29, Deputy Foreign Minister, Lead Negotiator of the event Yalchin Rafiyev said during a Training Workshop on Building confidence and capacity in the preparation of Biennial Transparency Reports under Azerbaijan's COP29 chairmanship, Trend reports. Azerbaijan's choice to host COP29 stems from our deep conviction in the potency of international collaboration to tackle complex global challenges. Being chosen as the host nation for COP29 is a privilege we hold in high regard, coupled with a profound sense of responsibility. We firmly believe that by fostering global cooperation and dialogue, we can collaboratively forge impactful solutions, understanding the interwoven complexities of climate challenges," he stressed. He added that holding COP29 will help Azerbaijan create a favorable atmosphere for dialogue. Leveraging our strategic location, we aim to ensure that the negotiations encompass a wide array of global perspectives and foster the development of comprehensive and inclusive policies. As the host country of COP29, Azerbaijan intends to utilize its strengths to enhance inter-country connections, he emphasized. This November, Azerbaijan will host COP29. This decision was made at the COP28 plenary meeting held in Dubai on December 11 last year. Baku will become the world's center, receiving about 7080,000 foreign guests. At the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992, the United Nations signed the Framework Convention on Climate Change as an agreement to prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system. COP - the Conference of the Parties - is the highest legislative body overseeing the implementation of the Framework Convention on Climate Change. There are 198 countries that are parties to the Convention. The COP takes place annually, unless the parties agree otherwise. The first COP event took place in March 1995 in Germany's Berlin, and its secretariat is located in Bonn. Commander Lambert was working at Derriford Hospital in Plymouth when the incident occurred - ROY PERRING/ALAMY A decorated military surgeon operated on a 12 year olds genitals without the consent of his parents, a tribunal heard. Commander Anthony Lambert told the boys parents he had taken the decision without consulting them because he was a bit of a nosey t--- and had thought the childs penis didnt look normal. The respected practitioner who served in the Royal Navy for 36 years and reached the rank of Surgeon Commander had been performing an umbilical hernia repair on the child at the time. Now, after being hauled in front of a Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service, he has been suspended for six months for his deplorable actions. The hearing was told that on April 20, 2016, while working at Derriford Hospital in Plymouth, Cdr Lambert performed an umbilical hernia repair on the boy, referred to only as Patient A, who was unconscious under general anaesthetic. During this, he undertook a freeing of preputial adhesions on the childs penis without the knowledge or consent of either Patient A or his parents. In a comment explaining his actions afterwards, he said: Because I am a bit of a nosey t---, I noticed that [Patient A]s penis did not look quite normal. Three days after the operation, Patient As mother submitted a formal complaint that the procedure had been carried out without Patient A, Mrs B or her husbands knowledge or consent. The hearing was told in the investigation into his conduct and that comment in particular, he retorted this is the first time in 16 years Ive had a complaint. The hearing was told he had been investigated in 2014 for expletive language used in front of nursing staff, the patients and the patients parents. In October 2018, a trainee working with Cdr Lambert submitted a complaint about his conduct, the panel was told. Cdr Lambert admitted making comments which were foul and abusive, aggressive and intimidating, bullying in nature and derogatory towards patients and healthcare professionals. Lambert served in the Royal Navy for 36 years and reached the rank of Surgeon Commander - APEX He told members he was devastated by the consequences of his actions and had carried out the procedure with the best of intentions. It was also heard the background to this intemperate behaviour was the stress suffered as part of his deployment to combat zones. The panel heard that although Cdr Lambert is now retired for the most part, there remains a risk he could choose to return to practice. The panel concluded that the decision to complete the examination and procedure contrary to the clear expressions of no consent was aggravated by Patient As young age. It noted that he made very limited attempts to find Patient As parents after he noticed the abnormality of his penis, and although he entered the waiting room, he did not call their name, they said. They added that Cdr Lambert was an extremely senior and respected practitioner and this had been a single incident in a long and distinguished career. However, they continued: The tribunal considered that members of the medical profession would find the act of a doctor operating on a child without any form of consent, or following an express refusal of consent to be deplorable. It determined that such actions would bring the medical profession into disrepute. It was of the view that the impact it had on Patient A, or some similar adverse outcome, was a foreseeable potential result of an open breach of trust. The Tribunal concluded that this misconduct was serious obtaining consent before carrying out a procedure or physical investigation on a patient is a fundamental tenet of the medical profession. The Tribunal reminded itself that Mr Lambert was refused consent by Patient A and his parents on two separate occasions. It noted that the procedure was not urgent and [Cdr] Lambert could have waited to ensure that he obtained parental consent without posing any risk to the patient. They added that most doctors in similar circumstances would understand the imperative not to carry out the procedure, and would view his actions as a deplorable breach of trust fundamental to the medical profession to obtain consent before operating on a patient. They therefore concluded it amounted to serious misconduct. Of the nosey t--- comment, they added: The tribunal is in no doubt that the language used in such circumstances was entirely inappropriate. It determined that it showed that [Cdr] Lambert lacked full understanding of the consequences and seriousness of what he had done, and as such was relevant to his insight in that regard at that time. Despite this, they ruled that although his use of language was unfortunate and unprofessional, it did not constitute serious misconduct. They concluded impairment was required to promote and maintain public confidence in the profession, and continued: [Cdr] Lamberts misconduct was a serious breach of the tenets of the medical profession and had the potential to seriously impact Patient A and other patients trust in the profession. The panel therefore concluded the appropriate and proportionate response to mark the seriousness of his conduct was to suspend him for six months. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. A millennial couple invested in a $143,000 vacation home in Bali. It's become the crux of their early-retirement strategy. Rory and Casey Jones built a villa in Bali for 2.287 billion Indonesian rupiah, or about $143,000. They wanted to invest in a tangible asset that would earn income and double as a retirement home. Prior to this, they'd never traveled to Indonesia before. For Rory Jones and his wife, Casey, building a house in Bali seemed like a good idea even though they'd never been to Indonesia. The couple, from Tasmania, Australia, dreamed of retiring early, so they spent a lot of time investing in the stock market. "We got a little bit, I guess, down on the fact that we were putting this money away, but we had nothing to show for it apart from numbers on a bit of paper," Jones, 37, told Business Insider. Rory and Casey Jones built a villa in Bali. Rory Jones They wanted a tangible asset, and after some research, they settled on the idea of building investment property overseas. "We decided it gave us the ability to earn a good income, but also, a place that we could potentially retire to, in a country that was less expensive than Australia," Jones, a photographer and videographer, said. The couple had considered Thailand, the Philippines, and even Portugal, but they ultimately chose Bali because their research showed that it had the highest return on investment and that it was relatively easy for foreigners to build a home there. According to ILA Global Consulting, it's possible for short-term rentals in Bali to yield a 15% annual return on investment, while other markets offer 5% to 10%. The front of the villa. Rory Jones Although the couple had never been to the island before, they'd spent a lot of time in Southeast Asia. "So we knew that we liked the climate. We knew that we would probably like the culture and the food too," Jones said. First time in Bali In 2022, the couple hopped on a plane to Bali for the first time. The primary living space. Rory Jones They were there for about three weeks, exploring the island and speaking to different legal professionals and builders for more insights on how they could get started with their project. "We spent a good chunk of time in different areas to make sure that we liked the area and that we had a good understanding of what that area gave to the tourists," Jones said. The dining area. Rory Jones He said that since traffic in Bali could be difficult to navigate, it was important that the area they chose had good infrastructure and was easy to get to. "Other than that, we were looking for a place that we could see ourselves retiring to as well," Jones said. While looking for a peaceful but up-and-coming neighborhood that travelers would be drawn to, they eventually found a piece of land in the Bingin area near Uluwatu, a region on the southwestern tip of Bali. The kitchen. Rory Jones "The best success that we had was actually just posting in the local Facebook groups to say that we were looking for land, and then people would reach out to us and let us know what they had available," Jones said. "With the land that we ended up getting, it was a local guy that showed us the land. He didn't own the land, but he knew the owners." The bar area. Rory Jones Since foreigners aren't allowed to own land in Bali, the piece of land they have is on a 30-year lease, with the option to renew for another 30 years. They paid 720 million Indonesian rupiah, or about $44,700, for it. A modern tropical villa The two-story villa, which sits on a 3,300-square-foot plot, has two bedrooms and two bathrooms. The entire build, including furniture and permits, cost 2.287 billion Indonesian rupiah, or about $143,000. Jones said he chose to build a house from scratch because it was cheaper than buying one. According to the property website Propertia Bali, a new two-bedroom villa near Bingin can cost from 3.525 to 5.575 billion Indonesian rupiah, depending on the size, the complexity of the build, and the lease left on the land. One of the bedrooms in the house. Rory Jones "If there was anything wrong with the building that was already existing, we wouldn't be able to tell," he added. "But by building ourselves, we could dictate the standards that went into that building." Safety standards aside, it also meant they could design the building the way they wanted it. Jones described it as a mix between modern industrial and boho, with a touch of Balinese influence. A cozy corner of the villa. Rory Jones The building looks modern on the outside, thanks to the black steel window frames, a mezzanine-style design, and vaulted ceilings. In contrast, the interiors are cozy, with lots of wood accents and furniture. "We knew that the building itself was quite modern, so we wanted to bring a lot of the tropics and a lot of Bali into it with the interior design," Jones said. A close-up of the decor in the villa. Rory Jones Everything in the villa was crafted locally, he added. The only major issue the couple encountered during the build was a particularly bad rainy season that delayed their project by a few weeks. "Towards the end of the build, they were running quite late with everything, and it's fine that they were running late, but they didn't tell us that they were running late," Jones said. "There were some communication issues rather than issues with construction, which caused a bit of friction toward the end." An outdoor dining area. Rory Jones Retiring in Bali The villa can be rented on Airbnb for a minimum of two nights. At press time, it has a 4.58-star rating based on 26 reviews. "Initially, we planned to spend a couple of months a year in Bali, but with the way that things have gone, with how popular it is, I think it would make more financial sense to leave it rented out on Airbnb all the time," Jones said. That said, Jones hopes to be able to retire in that villa in Bali in the next five to six years. An outdoor seating area. Rory Jones "We're working hard at saving and investing as much money as we can to hopefully get to a point where we can retire in my early forties," he said. "But plans can also change, so it would be great to retire to Bali, but I mean, maybe we'll stay in Australia. Who knows? It's still a long way away." That said, the couple has plans to build more investment properties in Bali in the future. Jones has a piece of advice for those who are thinking of building a house in Bali: manage expectations. The pool. Rory Jones "Go into it knowing that the standards you may expect from your home country might not be the same in Bali. Expect things to run behind time and expect things to be done in a different way than what you might be used to," he said. That way, he said, things would be less stressful. Have you recently built or renovated your dream home in Asia? If you've got a story to share, get in touch with me at agoh@businessinsider.com . Read the original article on Business Insider As millions lose federal help to pay for internet, some areas aim to fill the gap An 8-year-old girl completes a level of a learning game on a laptop in her bedroom in the Brooklyn borough of New York. As more than 23 million households nationwide lose federal aid to pay for internet services, some states and localities have stepped up by expanding their broadband initiatives and programs. John Minchillo/The Associated Press In the small North Carolina town of Bryson City, just outside Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Kathleen Wain raises two grandchildren in her subsidized-rent apartment, taking them to sing in a church choir on weekends. For the past year and a half, Wain has received a discount on her internet service through a short-term federal program, allowing her grandkids to do online schoolwork and her to do remote banking. Her bill decreased from $52 a month to about $20 a month. I said, Cool, I dont have to worry about it anymore. But Wains discount ended in April, after Congress did not extend the pandemic-era Affordable Connectivity Program. Shes paying $30 a month since Frontier, her internet provider, has reduced the cost for now. Theres a lot of people that need it [internet] for a lot of things, said Wain, 75. I cant even imagine being without it I really cant. The federal Affordable Connectivity Program, launched at the end of 2021, has provided a discount of up to $30 per month toward internet service for eligible low-income households and up to $75 for households on qualifying tribal lands. Now, without additional funding from Congress, more than 23 million households across the country have begun to lose the aid. April was the last fully funded month, with some households receiving partial benefits from their internet service provider through May. Several congressional bills have been introduced to extend the program, but none has advanced yet. In response, some states and localities have expanded their broadband initiatives and programs to help those no longer receiving the federal boost. That could leave disparities in access across the country, experts say, and many households will slip through the cracks as they become unable to afford internet service. Because of the high cost, theres no alternative to a dedicated federal benefit program like the Affordable Connectivity Program to solve the problem of affordability, said Angela Siefer, the executive director of the National Digital Inclusion Alliance, which advocates for broadband access. So, what were going to end up with is a piecemeal kind of approach where some communities figure out solutions most of them will not have solutions, she said. While some states are bolstering programs to help residents afford broadband, others are boosting their infrastructure initiatives to reach those who still cant connect to the internet. And some local officials are offering ACP-like benefits through county funds. Americans pay more for broadband than almost every other nation in the world. U.S. internet bills average $89 each month, according to a survey of 2,500 Americans late last year by U.S. News & World Report. The federal Lifeline program, started in 1985, is the only other national initiative giving low-income households a discount on phone and internet service. Lifeline, which residents were allowed to use at the same time as the ACP aid, provides a monthly benefit of up to $9.25 for eligible households and up to $34.25 for those on tribal lands. States try to fill the gaps Last year, nearly all 50 states considered legislation to expand broadband access and affordability for communities nationwide, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. At least 45 enacted legislation. This year, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Oregon, Utah and Washington passed legislation related to state broadband grant programs and initiatives to help with access and affordability, many using federal funds. Nick Batz, the director of the Oregon Broadband Office, said now that the federal Affordable Connectivity Program is gone, his office has shifted its focus to building up broadband infrastructure through the federal $42.45 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program, known as BEAD, created under the 2021 infrastructure law. BEAD provides grants to expand broadband access through statewide development projects. The challenge ahead of us is tremendous, Batz said. And its not something that I can accomplish on my own. Its not something that my team can accomplish on our own. Really, we need engagement from local governments, cities, counties and tribes. Although BEAD isnt a benefit program, Aaron Wheeler, the director of the Washington State Broadband Office, is hopeful that it will be able to at least get the 7% of households in the state who are without internet connected. While his office has multiple programs to help households at a statewide level, the federal BEAD program will be especially helpful in identifying the areas most in need, Wheeler said. Everyones really invested in making sure that BEAD goes well, and that the money goes to the places that it needs to, Wheeler said. Getting people plugged in is No. 1, and then making sure people can still continue to afford it is No. 2. But with elections drawing nearer, some state officials expect theyll be working under new administrations. Washington state will have a new governor next year, meaning more negotiations for broadband funding, said Devin Proctor, the policy and communications manager for the Washington State Broadband Office. Local governments and nonprofits step in On the local level, some governments have been able to carve out funds to help households pay for broadband. Albemarle County, located in the Piedmont region of Virginia with about 114,000 residents, has invested $1 million in public broadband expansion by partnering with internet service providers that are deploying fiber throughout the county. That, in addition to about $60 million in state, federal and private funding, means the county is on track to have universal broadband coverage where every household in the county can access the internet by the end of 2025, said Jason Inofuentes, the program manager at the countys Broadband Accessibility and Affordability Office. Before the Affordable Connectivity Program ran out of funding, Albemarle County officials created the ACP Bridge program, an additional county benefit for households to use alongside the federal ACP aid. Those enrolled in the program could get an additional $20 per month toward internet services. Right now, the ACP Bridge has enough funding to last through the next fiscal year, thanks to a $500,000 boost from the county Board of Supervisors, Inofuentes said. Still, with the federal program at its end, affordability will continue to be an issue, he said. And some residents who need the help may not be aware of the available programs. I think that there is a distinct reality that there are going to be households in our community and all over the country that are going to lose coverage because of this, said Inofuentes. The way that we see it, we have to work tirelessly to get people enrolled in other programs they can afford. In some communities, local nonprofits are raising awareness and providing support, said Sean Gonsalves, the associate director for communications at the Community Broadband Networks Initiative, a nationwide project of the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, a national nonprofit that works to build local power to fight corporate control. Despite the Biden administrations push to prioritize funding for municipal broadband, nonprofits and other nontraditional internet providers, these types of providers are restricted in many states, Gonsalves said. The broadband market is dominated by regional monopoly providers and that pretty much answers the question as to why broadband in the United States is so expensive, he said. Some nonprofits are helping residents afford broadband. DigitalC, a technology nonprofit based in Cleveland providing affordable internet for underserved communities, is offering internet for $18 a month under its own Canopy internet service for city residents. Project Waves, a program fiscally sponsored by the Digital Harbor Foundation based in Baltimore, has been able to offer free internet to low-income residents of the city. Lawmakers and state officials at all levels have been aware for more than a year that the federal Affordable Connectivity Program would run out of funding, Gonsalves said. But theres a lot of uncertainty about how to help now. With ACP where 23 million households were beneficiaries we still dont have a clear sense of what those folks will do when the benefit expires, Gonsalves said. Stateline is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Stateline maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Scott S. Greenberger for questions: info@stateline.org. Follow Stateline on Facebook and Twitter. The post As millions lose federal help to pay for internet, some areas aim to fill the gap appeared first on North Dakota Monitor. A controversial political leaflet that hit mailboxes in Boone County this week has people picking sides literally. It's pitted the county's GOP party chairman against the county's top elected Republican official, who denounced the mailer as a "hit piece." Screenshot of the Boone County Republican mailer The back of the double-sided mailer lists 10 GOP candidates in two columns. On the left, candidates are portrayed with flattering headshot photos. On the right, one candidate is portrayed in a black-and-white photo with a beer in his hand, seemingly asleep in a chair. Another has a face mask pulled down under his chin. The divide has people asking if the Boone County Republican Party Committee is doing its job to keep GOP voters informed or promoting certain candidates weeks before the May 21 primary. This embedded content is not available in your region. Committee chairman Chet Hand, who is also a Boone County commissioner, told The Enquirer via email the local party is not endorsing candidates. "The party is however providing information to voters on candidates running in the Republican primary with the intent to educate them on issues and facts relevant to the party platform," he said. The front of the mailer depicts a wolf in sheep's clothing. It warns voters of candidates who are Republican in name only, serving "the swamp instead of the people." It's not the only place the local party appears to have taken sides. On its website, the organization lists GOP primary election candidates but not all of them. And it links to the websites of candidates who evidently also are supported on the mailer. Boone County Judge-executive Gary Moore said the mailer was a "hit piece" against candidates the local committee doesn't support. "This is about the role of the party. The Republican party should be trying to encourage more voter turnout. It should be trying to encourage people to get involved in the party and become candidates. Politics has become so so ugly," he said. "Why would some newcomer want to put their name on the ballot and become a candidate if their party is going to manufacture misinformation?" Hand disputed there's misinformation on the mailer. "It is inevitable that some people will be unhappy. You cannot please everyone. I would challenge people that are unhappy with the mailer to dispute the facts," he said in an email. Both men serve on the Boone County Fiscal Court, which is the governing body of the county. Hand is one of three commissioners on the fiscal court. He was elected in 2023 and his term expires at the end of 2026. Moore has been judge-executive on the court since 1998. As chairman of the party, Hand oversees almost 200 precinct captains who all have a vote when it comes to decision-making. He's also among a group of more conservative Republicans in the county who've gained traction over the past few years, some of whom ousted longtime GOP political leaders in the 2022 primary. They're sometimes called liberty candidates or, more recently, Constitutional Republicans. Moore has been re-elected every four years for almost three decades, voting on legislative issues in the county for the past generation. His biggest concern about the mailer is that voters will receive it in their mailboxes and think the local committee or elected officials selected candidates to endorse, which never happened, and that could unfairly sway the election. "It appears that the chairman alone one person has chosen who to support and who not. It appears that the chairman produced the mailer without authority of the board and it reflects on the party," he said. The Enquirer asked Hand in an email whether there was a vote or survey about who to endorse. He said the strategies used by the committee are not subject to public inquiry, but he added the response to the mailer has been overwhelmingly positive. "Many, many voters have reached out thankful that the party is 'using our resources wisely,' in an effort to educate voters on critical races that have the potential to deceptively undermine the conservative Republican Party platform and the positive, conservative Republican policy positions that make Boone County and Kentucky such a great place to live, work, and raise a family." https://poll.fm/13745795 This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Why this Boone County Republican mailer is dividing people Ball-shaped domes of the radar defences on the top of Ai-Petri Mountain. Photo: open sources An air defence base in the Ai-Petri, a peak in the Crimean Mountains (temporarily occupied Crimea), has been damaged by a missile attack, killing the commander of the military unit. Source: Telegram channels Crimean Wind (Krymskyi Viter) and Astra; Ukrainska Pravda source Details: Several missiles (presumably Storm Shadows) attacked the military unit No. 85683 located on Mount Ai-Petri in Crimea at around 06:00 on Monday, 13 May, Astra reported, citing sources in Russian emergency services in occupied Crimea. The mountain is home to a secret air defence base of the 3rd Radio Engineering Regiment of Russia's Armed Forces. The missiles damaged the premises of the military unit, killing its commander, Alexander Kulakov, and another soldier. Some soldiers have been wounded, and information about their number is being gathered. An Ukrainska Pravda source in military circles confirmed the strike without going into details. The radars of the South Coast are the most famous military facility in Greater Yalta (coordinates 44.481491, 34.033617) [Greater Yalta is a territory over 70 km long, including the cities of Yalta (the administrative centre), Alupka and several other settlements ed.]. During the Soviet era, the Radio Technical Centre for Long Range Reconnaissance and Guidance of Air Defence Forces was established on the top of Ai-Petri Mountain. The ball-shaped domes of the radar defences often attracted the attention of tourists. Radar installations are hidden under these domes, as Crimea.Realities, a Crimea-related project of Radio Liberty, reported earlier. There is also a military camp for personnel maintaining these facilities. The Russians formed a unit of the 3rd Radio Regiment of Russia's Aerospace Forces there. This military formation is part of Russian Aerospace Forces' radio engineering troops deployed on the former base of the 40th Radio Engineering Brigade of Ukraine's Air Force. Support UP or become our patron! BRANDON, Fla. (WFLA) Two missing children were found after an exhaustive search in Brandon on Saturday, the Hillsborough County Sheriffs Office said Monday. Deputies responded to a residence in Brandon after the two children were reported missing on May 11. During the search, deputies said a house near the childrens residence was discovered to have a back door slightly ajar. After asking the owner if they could search the home, the two children were found inside unharmed. Our deputies will leave no stone unturned to protecting our children, Sheriff Chad Chronister. We were glad to reunite these three-year-olds with their family. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA. Mississippi says goodbye to the Trail of Honor veterans event. See why After 24 years, the annual pre-Memorial Day weekend veterans recognition event called the Trail of Honor, held at the Harley Davidson Motorcycle shop on I-55 south in Jackson, is going away. Organizers said they no longer have enough volunteers to conduct the annual event safely and most of the volunteers they have are getting older and it has become difficult to continue in the way they have in the past. This years event will be held one day only on Monday, May 20, and will return to its original mission of serving as a lunch and fuel stop for Run for the Wall riders only inside the Jackson Harley Davidson shop. While Mondays event at the Harley Davidson shop will not be open to the public, people have been known to assemble at overpasses along the I-20 route to watch the motorcycles go by from Vicksburg and on into Alabama. People gather at overpasses on I 20 to view the Run for the Wall as riders make their way to Jackson in 2016. Images from last year's Trail of Honor: https://www.clarionledger.com/picture-gallery/news/2023/05/26/images-from-trail-of-honor-in-jackson-ms-may-20-21/1196969 Starting in the early 2000s, the Trail of Honor was a lunch and fuel stop at the Jackson Harley Davidson Motorcycle shop for an annual patriotic motorcycle ride called Run for the Wall from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C. Since those humble beginnings, the Trail of Honor evolved into a three-day annual event to recognize the nations veterans, and the event will be remembered and missed for years to come. The grounds outside the Harley Davidson dealership in Jackson abuzz with activity during the Trail of Honor in 2015. David McElroy, who goes by the nickname "Stupid" and who served as director of the Trail of Honor, recounted the events history. We started when we hosted Run for The Wall Southern Route Recon in May 2000, McElroy said. We have hosted Run for The Wall every year since, including two COVID years when neither Run for The Wall nor the Trail of Honor officially took place. Run for the Wall from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., is held annually on Memorial Day weekend and consists of multiple routes, including the Southern Route that proceeds through Mississippi. Since 2003, the local stop, called the Trail of Honor, at the Jackson Harley shop has been an annual three-day tribute to those who have served in the nations military. War heroes, reenactors, the Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall, helicopters, ground vehicles and more took over the Harley Davidson dealership in Jackson each year since as hundreds of volunteers pitched in to make sure things ran smoothly. Through the woods behind the Harley Davidson dealership in Jackson, volunteers cleared out a trail every spring in anticipation for the living museum that would soon line the trail. Reenactors with their period clothes, gear and tents represented every conflict that the United States has fought in from the French and Indian War up to current conflicts. Mock battles took place regularly with the thunder of Northern and Southern Civil War-era artillery, World War II Allied soldiers defeating the German Wehrmacht and Vietnam-era American soldiers triumphing over Vietnamese forces. But that wasnt half of it. Inside the dealership, all inventory was cleared out to make room for a unique experience that could rarely be had anywhere else. From all over the nation, actual war heroes assembled to meet and visit with anyone who came. Those were not paid actors who portray brave soldiers and heroes in Hollywood movies, they were actual men and women who lived through extraordinary circumstances and did extraordinary things. Tuskegee Airmen, Navajo Code Talkers, Medal of Honor recipients, former POWs, a Pearl Harbor survivor, a Bataan Death March survivor, and many more were seated and eager to share their experiences. A young boy shows respect and appreciation to George Willie Sr., Navajo Code Talker, at the Trail of Honor in 2015. Willie is from Leupp, Arizona, and was born in a small Navajo community near a sawmill. Visitors were also able to meet Gold Star Mothers, American Legion and VFW members, and present-day military members. Every year on the Wednesday prior to Trail of Honor weekend, motorcycle riders escorted The Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall to the Harley Davidson dealership in Jackson. Opening ceremony held in 2016 for the Vietnam Moving Memorial Wall at the Trail of Honor. Duane 'Sarge' Dabore starts his salute before accepting the ceremonial flag from David 'Stupid' McElroy. A scale model of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial wall, the Wall, was set up just past the Vietnam-era camp. Guarded day and night by the Mississippi State Guard, the Wall was in a convenient place to access without visitors having to walk the other parts of the Trail and was open 24 hours during that weekend. A book was also present for family members to look up their loved ones, and paper and pencil were provided for those who wanted to make a rubbing of any of the names on the Wall. Trail of Honor planners gathered on May 8, 2024 at the Harley Davidson dealership in Jackson for one final planning meeting. It was an emotional sight as people often left flowers, notes and other small gifts by the name that they came to see, just like they do at the actual Wall in Washington, D.C. It all started with a little bike ride. This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Mississippi says goodbye to the Trail of Honor veterans event Attorney General Andrew Bailey, who is seeking a full term in office after being appointed by Gov. Mike Parson, speaks on Feb. 29, 2024, at the Boone County Republican Lincoln Days dinner in Columbia (Rudi Keller/Missouri Independent). Immigrant baiting is now official business for Missouri officeholders. Thats the message from Attorney General Andrew Bailey, who says his office will represent three state senators who are being sued for defamation over social media posts they filed after the Feb. 14 shooting in Kansas City at a rally to celebrate the Chiefs Super Bowl win. As a motion that Baileys office filed on behalf of one of the senators explains, Missouri lawmakers should not be inhibited by judicial interference or distorted by the fear of personal liability when they publicly speak on issues of national importance. The issue of national importance the attorney general is talking about is the false message that immigrants, especially those who did not enter the U.S. legally, are dangerous people whom law-abiding Americans should fear. Sens. Rick Brattin, Denny Hoskins and Nick Schroer chose to highlight that fallacy by joining in a right-wing fit of hysteria when images of a man temporarily detained at the scene of the Super Bowl parade shooting circulated in the media. The murky depths of the internet, for reasons that are bizarre and not easily explained, decided the man was definitely an undocumented immigrant, possibly a notorious one, and undoubtedly responsible for the gunfire that erupted in a crowd of revelers, killing one person and injuring two dozen more He is, in reality, a U.S. citizen and father of three from Kansas and a Chiefs fan whod been slow to leave the scene when the mayhem started. Sens. Brattin, Hoskins and Schroer didnt wait for an official identification before they recirculated posts with the mans image and the damning suggestions. The Chiefs fan sued, saying he was subjected to harassment and threats because of the public exposure, and the Missouri attorney generals office took on three new clients. Baileys decision to represent the three senators has been denounced by Republicans and Democrats alike. It is infuriating, I agree, to think about my tax dollars going to defend public officials who seem to have poorer impulse control than a class of preschoolers. Just as bad, though, is the attorney generals suggestion that defaming immigrants as a group is not only a lawmakers prerogative, but a responsibility. This idea that newcomers to America are a threat to public safety has been roundly discredited in study after study. Immigrants, documented or otherwise, are less likely to commit crimes and wind up in jails than people born in the U.S. Having made their way here, they are mostly focused on making a living and fashioning a better life for their families. But politicians like Bailey and the three senators have no use for research or realities. They need to invent a threat in order to promise people that theyre the ones who can keep us safe. They arent the only ones. A few weeks ago, Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas kicked up a ruckus when he suggested in an interview with Bloomberg and later on social media that the Kansas City region, which needs workers, could make room for some of the migrants with work permits who have recently surged into New York, Denver and other cities. In fact, Lucas disclosed, Kansas City is already making plans to welcome migrants and integrate them into the workforce. I have spent some time pondering whether my mayor actually thought his revelations would be applauded, or whether he knew he was poking a bear and didnt care. I called his office to ask, but his staff wasnt eager to make him available. No matter. Im pretty sure he knew what he was stepping into. And sure enough, the bear roared. So many bears, so many roars. Good grief! Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft exclaimed on X. The Mayor should be protecting the people of Kansas City, and instead is taking away protection to import lawlessness. Someone should tell Ashcroft that, with 182 homicides recorded last year, Kansas City is already quite lawless. And the problem isnt caused by immigrants, but by U.S. citizens with easy access to firearms, thanks to Missouris loose gun laws. The presiding commissioners of Clay and Platte counties in Kansas Citys Northland penned a joint statement calling on Lucas to withdraw his plans to welcome immigrants to Kansas City. Forcing these reckless and likely illegal policies will only increase criminal activity and endanger Northland families, said Jerry Nolte, a Republican from Clay County who is running for the Missouri Senate. Nothing about creating opportunities for people with legal work permits is illegal. And Nolte must have a short memory. A little more than a year ago, he was lamenting the tragic situation after a high school student named Ralph Yarl knocked on the wrong door and was shot in the head. Yarl is the son of immigrants from Liberia and the 84-year-old man who shot him said he was scared to death of the teenager standing on his doorstep. Undoubtedly so. He was scared to death because right-wing media outlets and politicians like Nolte repeat the lie ad nauseam that he needs to be afraid of people who dont look like him or talk like him. Their lies and distortions make Missouri a more hostile and unsafe state. But not to worry. Should any of these officeholders cross a legal line and damage an innocent person, Attorney General Bailey will have their back. The post In Missouri, defaming immigrants is an elected officials privilege and duty appeared first on Missouri Independent. MOBILE, Ala. (WKRG) A person was stabbed at a gas station late Friday night on Government Street, according to the Mobile Police Department. A department news release said officers were called to Hop In gas station around 10 p.m. Friday for a report of a stabbing. Woman fights carjacking suspect in Mobile as her car is being driven away When they arrived, they found that a person had been cut in the arm, according to the release. Police said the victim was taken to the hospital for non-life-threatening injuries. This is an ongoing investigation. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WKRG News 5. Modesto Councilman Nick Bavaro said last week that The Salvation Armys leadership is disorganized and that it has not served enough people at its day center and safe parking program. ... Im disappointed on the numbers that we see in the day center, Bavaro said at the City Councils May 7 meeting. Im disappointed in seeing the numbers of safe parking. ... Weve lived up to our obligation on providing (the army) the financial resources to best manage our homeless population. I cant say that youve lived up to yours ... with respect to the day center and safe parking. Bavaros comments came before the council voted 5-1 to provide The Salvation Army with $1 million from the citys federal COVID-19 funding for the armys 185-bed shelter, day center and safe parking program, which provides homeless people who live in their cars a place to park overnight. (Councilwoman Rosa Escutia-Braaton was not at the council meeting.) The shelter, day center and safe parking are at The Salvation Armys campus at Ninth and D streets near downtown. Stanislaus Countys 182-bed shelter also is on the campus. The army operates the shelter for the county. The citys funding lets the army operate its shelter, safe parking and day center through Sept. 30, the end of its budget year. The army used COVID-19 funding to operate its shelter during the pandemic. The army shelter opened about 20 years ago. Safe parking and the day center are less than a year old. Senior dorm room at the Salvation Army Berberian Center on 9th and D streets in Modesto, Calif., Wednesday, Nov. 22, 2023. The pandemic funding allowed the army to provide case management and other services at its shelter. Those services will be provided at the day center in the coming weeks. Modesto and The Salvation Army are working on securing long-term funding for the shelter. Bavaro cast the no vote. The councils vote came after Maj. Darren Stratton answered questions and talked about the armys challenges in helping people who are homeless. Councilman Chris Ricci said at the meeting that it was not fair to single out The Salvation Army and that more solutions are needed to address Modestos homeless crisis. I think its unfair to paint the brush like The Salvation Army is not doing what they are supposed to do, he said. ... Its not all on them. There is a lot more to it. Last years annual count of people who are homeless tallied 2,091, with 80% living in Modesto. Forty-five percent of the 2,091 were living on the streets. Ease safe parking requirements A look at safe parking and the day center highlights the complexities and challenges. The safe parking program has 25 spots for cars, minivans and pickup trucks in a lot next to the armys homeless shelter. Salvation Army Shelter Director Jim Stokes said in an interview that after a slow start, the program is averaging about a dozen vehicles a night. The city requires homeless people to have a valid drivers license and an insured and registered vehicle before they can enter. The city does not allow recreational vehicles. Stokes said he believes safe parking would be full if it allowed RVs and people without licenses, insurance and registration. The army would work with them to get into compliance after they are in the program. Thats the opposite of how the program works now, with safe parking staff working with people to come into compliance before they can enter the program. That leaves people living in their cars on the streets vulnerable to being ticketed or having their cars towed. Stokes said hes aware of that happening at least a handful of times. This is someone already behind, not enough money for insurance, and then they get hit with another fine on top of that, he said. Stokes said he understands the city would be concerned about letting people who cannot legally drive their vehicles use safe parking, so there would be a timeline to come into compliance once people are in the program. The city launched safe parking Sept. 1, more than a year after the council approved it in July 2022. The city has said the program is complicated because it involves four parties. Safe parking operates out of a parking lot owned by a company affiliated with Stanislaus Foods, the cannery next to The Salvation Army campus. The county is leasing the parking lot, and the city is subleasing part of it from the county. It took time to work out issues regarding risk and liability. All four parties have to approve changes to the program. Community Health and Assistance Team (CHAT) outreach specialist Christina Kenney kneels down to survey a homeless man during Stanislaus Countys Point-in-Time count of unsheltered homeless people in Modesto, Calif., Thursday, Jan. 25, 2024. Community Health and Assistance Team (CHAT) outreach specialist Megan Dill, right, and BHRS housing specialist Asuzena Pena, middle, assist in the count. The Salvation Army opened its day center Nov. 1 with funding provided by the city. Bavaro said the expectation when the program started was that a couple hundred people a day would use the center. The center is averaging 30 people a day, according to a city report. Bavaro said not enough is being done to get the chronically homeless to use the center. I see people on our streets in downtown Modesto, he said. I see them in the parks, walking the streets on Yosemite Boulevard. They are what I would call the deep homeless. Im an impatient guy. I want to see results. Stokes said convincing the chronically homeless to accept services is difficult because of such issues as substance abuse and mental illness. These people live in alleys, parks, behind strip malls and elsewhere. Councilman Ricci said at Tuesdays meeting that chronically homeless people may not use the day center because it means giving up where they sleep at night. Most are not willing to do that, he said. Thats the rub. And there may not be room at the shelters if they decide to stay there. The Salvation Armys shelter was operating at 92% capacity and the countys low-barrier shelter at 98% as of the end of March, according to Stokes. Since he was elected to the council in November 2022, Bavaro has advocated for more services for people who are homeless, including safe camping sites. But a council majority does not support safe camping. Modestos other homeless efforts, such as setting up sites with tiny homes, have been slow. Bavaro said in an interview that he is frustrated. Im an impatient guy, he said. I want to see results. Thats my bottom line. Stokes said he understands the frustration, saying the needle does not seem to be moving on addressing homelessness to the magnitude that is needed. There are plenty of people in the city and the county (governments) who are trying to make it work. Cesar Chavez Park in Modesto, Calif., on Friday, Sept. 10, 2021. Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace teams with German partners Diehl Defence and MBDA Deutschland to develop the Tyrfing, an advanced Super-Sonic Strike Missile (3SM). The new missile is expected to replace the Naval Strike Missile deployed on Norwegian naval vessels beginning in 2035. Induction with the German Navy is expected to follow. The project became a collaborative program in 2021, with public endorsement by the two governments. Germany is expected to announce its plans of commissioning the new missile this year. Kongsbergs teaming with two German companies seems to be a step in this direction. The Norwegian government announced this initiative in November 2023, and the industry team essential for the success of this project has now entered a partnership agreement. I am so impressed with this teams depth and capabilities. I look forward to cooperating with Diehl and MBDA Deutschland and combining our teams knowledge and expertise to develop 3SM for both nations, said Eirik Lie, President of Kongsberg Defence and Aerospace. This partnership, led by KONGSBERG, combines the strengths of the three companies and brings together decades of missile development experience to create this highly advanced, long-distance, maneuverable supersonic strike missile for Norwegian, German, and Allied customers in the future. The team will work closely with the Norwegian and German Defence Forces and their national research organizations to define and develop a highly advanced long-range strike capability to meet future surface threats. According to Thomas Gottschild, Managing Director of MBDA Deutschland, the importance of stand-off weapons was demonstrated in the past two years and is crucial for credible deterrence and defence. Joining forces between our companies will strengthen the Norwegian, German, and European armed forces, improving the defense of our home nations. We will develop a game changer with 3SM that none of us could develop on our own. Helmut Rauch, CEO of Diehl Defence added. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. Azerbaijan's Biennial Transparency Report (BTR) on climate change will be presented before COP29, Deputy Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan Umayra Taghiyeva said, Trend reports. Taghiyeva made the remark at Training Workshop on Building confidence and capacity in the preparation of Biennial Transparency Reports within Azerbaijan's chairmanship at COP29 in Baku. Azerbaijans biennial climate change outlook report is being developed, and will be presented before COP29. This clearly demonstrates Azerbaijan's commitment to fulfilling its climate obligations," she emphasized. To note, this November, Azerbaijan will host COP29. The COP28 plenary meeting in Dubai on December 11 last year made this decision. Baku will become the world's center, receiving about 7080,000 foreign guests. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is an agreement signed at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 to prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system. COPthe Conference of the Partiesis the highest legislative body overseeing the implementation of the Framework Convention on Climate Change. There are 198 countries that are parties to the Convention. The COP takes place annually, unless the parties agree otherwise. The first COP event took place in March 1995 in Germany's Berlin, and its secretariat is located in Bonn. 15-year-old Elizabeth Eckford is followed by a sullen mob as she attends her first day at Little Rock Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, Sept. 4, 1957. 15-year-old Elizabeth Eckford is followed by a sullen mob as she attends her first day at Little Rock Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, Sept. 4, 1957. She had been prevented from entering the school by the Arkansas National Guard and President Dwight D. Eisenhower was forced to send in U.S. troops to ensure a safe escort for new African American students. The girl behind Eckford and to the left is Hazel Massery. (Photo by FPG/Archive Photos/Getty Images) This Friday, May 17, marks the 70th anniversary Brown v. Board of Education the landmark United States Supreme Court ruling that ordered an end to racial segregation in American public schools. And while resistance to desegregation never went away, there was a window of time particularly in the late 20th and early 21st Century in which many states and localities, including North Carolina and several of its counties, made enormous headway in building much more diverse and better integrated public school systems. As a new report from researchers at NC State makes clear, however, that momentum in our state has waned and now things are trending strongly in the opposite direction. The report is entitled Can Our Schools Capture the Education Gains of Diversity? North Carolina School Segregation, Alternatives and Possible Gains. It was published earlier this month by the Civil Rights Project at the University of California, Los Angeles, and recently NC Newsline interviewed one of the authors, NC State professor of education, Jennifer Ayscue. According to Ayscue, the gist of what she and her colleagues, Victor Cadilla, Mary Kathryn Oyaga, and Cassandra Rubinstein found is that while overall public school enrollment in North Carolina has steadily become more diverse, patterns of segregation in individual schools have greatly intensified. And this, she says, is worrisome news since, as was noted in the release accompanying the report, segregated schools are systematically linked to unequal educational opportunities and outcomes, while desegregated schools are associated with numerous short-term, long-term, academic, and nonacademic outcomes for individuals and society. In addition to chronicling the resegregation of North Carolina schools, the report points to several potential tools and tactics for policymakers to employ in combating this trend though almost all would buck recent trends at the state legislature and in the Department of Public Instruction. These include: School districts should design voluntary school desegregation policies that could include student reassignment, controlled-choice attendance and the development of more magnet schools. DPI should provide incentives to districts and schools via grants and technical assistance. State lawmakers should enact stronger charter school regulations that require the provision of transportation and free school meals, while also amending Need to get in touch? Have a news tip? CONTACT US the state voucher program to include civil rights protections and greater transparency and accountability. It should be noted that the report does not address segregation in private schools and that a) private school enrollment in North Carolina has soared in recent years, and b) research indicates that private schools are generally more segregated than public schools. The following numbers are from the NC State researchers report: 41% growth in overall North Carolina public school enrollment from 1989-90 to 2021-22 (from 1,074,120 to 1,517,300) 45% White, 25% Black, 20% Hispanic, 5% Multiracial, 4% Asian, and 1% American Indian racial/ethnic breakdown of students in 2021-22 67% White, 30% Black, 1% Hispanic, 2% all others racial/ethnic breakdown in 1989-90 13.5% share of all North Carolina public schools in 2021-22 that were intensely segregated schools of color (schools that enroll 90-100% students of color) 3.5% share that were intensely segregated in 1989-90 0.9% share of North Carolina public schools in 2021-22 that were hyper-segregated schools of color (schools that enroll 99-100% students of color) 0.7% share that were hyper-segregated in 1989-90 23.5% share of charter schools in 2021-22 that were intensely segregated 6.0% share of charter schools in 2021-22 that were hyper-segregated 1 out of 4 share of Black student who attend intensely segregated schools 1 out of 5 share of Hispanic students 82.6% of the students attending intensely segregated schools of color, the share who were recipients of free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a double segregation of students by race and poverty 61.3% and 55.3%, respectively percentage of low-income students in schools attended by typical Black and Hispanic students 38.0% and 29.4%, respectively percentage of low-income students in schools attended by typical White and Asian students 58.9% the typical White student attended a school where 58.9% of the students were White, even though White students only comprised 45% of the total state enrollment 41.2% the typical Black student attended a school where 41.2% of the students were Black, even though Black students accounted for 25% of the states enrollment 28.3% the percentage of White students at a school attended by the typical Black student 68.6% despite accounting for less than half of the states enrollment in 2021-22, 68.6% of White students attended majority White schools Click here to explore the report. The post Monday numbers: Racial segregation in North Carolina schools roars back appeared first on NC Newsline. As legislators across the 10 states that have not expanded Medicaid consider imposing work requirements on enrollees, Montana has a potential bipartisan model: a voluntary work program that helps Medicaid recipients by providing them with job training and career guidance. | Getty Images Two decades ago, Jeff Beisecker and his family returned to Great Falls, Montana, from a religious mission to the Philippines. Beisecker had no health insurance and no steady source of income, and neither did his wife. Fearful of being without coverage, Beisecker enrolled himself, his wife and their four children in Medicaid for nearly a decade while he worked his way to a steady, full-time job. Having the extra help made a difference for his family, recalled Beisecker, 53. And people might have looked down on us. I dont really care, because it was there to help us along the journey. For Beisecker, Medicaid coverage was a launching pad to stable work; now he helps others make that leap. As an employment and training coordinator for Opportunities Inc., a Great Falls-based nonprofit, Beisecker connects Montana Medicaid recipients to job training, career counseling, transportation and child care. Opportunities Inc. is one of several nonprofits that run a state-created voluntary program called the Health and Economic Livelihood Partnership Link, known as HELP-Link. When folks come in, we can meet with them and say, Hey, maybe you can take this training that we can help pay for, and you can come out and start making 28 or 29 dollars an hour, Beisecker said. An increasing number of Republican-led states want to require Medicaid recipients to work, arguing that doing so will help them rise out of poverty. Democrats and health advocates note that most people on Medicaid already work either full time or part time. They argue that states shouldnt deny health care coverage to people who dont have jobs, especially since many face serious barriers to employment. With HELP-Link, Montana might have found middle ground. When Montanans enroll in Medicaid, nonprofit organizations such as Opportunities Inc., which receives state funding, can offer career guidance and job training from professionals like Beisecker. A key part of that process is identifying barriers to work such as a lack of training, child care or transportation and finding ways to overcome them. There are ways to support work without taking away peoples health coverage, said Joan Alker, executive director of Georgetown Universitys Center for Children and Families, which researches health care issues. Montana is the most concrete example of a work-support connection, she said. Thats one place to look to make sure people are connected to work supports and job training. Montana Republican state Rep. Edward Buttrey, who crafted the HELP-Link program with Democratic state Rep. Mary Caffero in 2015, said it adheres to GOP principles. Republican administrations typically want to ensure that if somebodys getting a benefit from the taxpayers, that theyre earning it and in return providing a benefit back to the state and themselves, Buttrey told Stateline. I think thats what this is about. Caffero said that in reaching a compromise, legislators put the people of Montana above party politics. We created our own majority, she said, and extremists were kind of out on a plank. Increasing interest Medicaid is a program that provides health insurance for low-income people and is jointly run by states and the U.S. government. Any state that wants to add a work requirement to Medicaid must ask the federal government for permission. The Biden administration has repeatedly turned down states requests to impose work requirements. It also has rescinded the approvals granted by its predecessor, which signed off on 13 of them. (Only one state, Arkansas, implemented its rule before courts blocked states from imposing them.) But with the election fast approaching, the prospect of a second Trump administration has prompted more GOP states to reconsider the idea. That includes states such as Arkansas, Idaho and Louisiana that opted to expand Medicaid to more people under the Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare. It also includes states that are still debating whether to expand Medicaid under Obamacare, among them Kansas and Mississippi. Georgia and South Carolina, neither of which has expanded Medicaid under the ACA, both have sought federal permission to include work requirements in partial expansions of Medicaid that are more limited than what is envisioned under Obamacare. Only Georgia, which is fighting the Biden administration in court, currently has a strict work rule for any of its Medicaid enrollees. How it works Montana, which expanded Medicaid during the Obama administration, in 2019 sought federal permission to apply work requirements to the roughly 100,000 adults who were newly eligible for the program. Under the proposal, beneficiaries would have had to work at least 80 hours each month, be looking for a job, or be doing volunteer work. There would have been exemptions for pregnancy, disabilities and mental illness. In 2021, however, the Biden administration rejected Montanas request. Buttrey told Stateline that if former President Donald Trump wins in November, it is likely that Montana will try again. But whatever the outcome of the election, the voluntary workforce training in HELP-Link has emerged as a possible compromise. Beisecker said that Opportunities Inc. has been working with the Help-Link program for about a year and a half. The nonprofit has been able to help people do things such as get a commercial drivers license, start a welding certificate program, take classes on medical coding, and join construction training programs. When folks come in, we can meet with them and say, Hey, maybe you can take this training that we can help pay for, and you can come out and start making 28 or 29 dollars an hour. Jeff Beisecker, employment and training coordinator for Opportunities Inc., a Montana nonprofit The nonprofit also has a community resource center that can help Medicaid recipients get access to vouchers for food, laundry facilities and other needs. We get referrals from other nonprofits we work with, Beisecker said. We have flyers that we send out so people know about the program. We go to job fairs. According to data from the Montana Department of Labor and Industry, more than 2,200 people have participated in the HELP-Link program since its inception. Many have gone on to get jobs as registered nurses, dental hygienists, real estate agents and computer programmers, among many other professions. HELP-Link has built relationships with large local employers such as manufacturers and health care providers, said Heather OLoughlin, executive director of the Montana Budget & Policy Center, a nonprofit group that examines budget and tax issues. OLoughlin said a dip in participation since 2021 is evidence that the program has moved many participants into stable jobs. Caffero, the Democratic lawmaker, agreed. The program was doing exactly what we intended. People get jobs and jobs with benefits, jobs where they make a living wage, because they have education and training through HELP-Link, she said. Thats the goal. We dont want the [Medicaid] rolls to go up. Buttrey noted that prior to the pandemic, Montanans stayed on Medicaid for an average of less than two years. Weve given people some job skills, he said. Weve gotten them preventative care and help with addiction. Robin Rudowitz, who oversees Medicaid research at KFF, a nonpartisan health research organization, praised Montanas program for encouraging people to find a job and get off government assistance without denying them health care while they do it. She contrasted HELP-Link with the strict work requirements Arkansas briefly had in place for Medicaid recipients during the Trump administration, before a federal court struck them down. Those rules knocked roughly 18,000 people off the rolls. Arkansas was really the only state that actually implemented to the point of where individuals were disenrolled for failing to comply, she said. Rudowitz and other health experts also have been critical of Georgias Pathways to Coverage program, launched last summer, which extended Medicaid coverage to some low-income Georgians on the condition that they work or participate in another qualifying activity 80 hours each month. Under that program, which is not considered full expansion under Obamacare, 4,000 people have gained coverage, out of the roughly 350,000 who would qualify based on their income. Georgia Republican Gov. Brian Kemp has defended the program and blamed the Biden administration for its slow start. The program is set to expire next fall, but several months ago, Georgia sued the federal government in a bid to extend it. Its fiscally foolish, and anti-family, Georgetowns Alker said of the Georgia program. She noted that the state is leaving federal dollars on the table by eschewing a full-fledged expansion under Obamacare. Its not been a pathway to coverage for anybody, she said. Stateline is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Stateline maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Scott S. Greenberger for questions: info@stateline.org. Follow Stateline on Facebook and Twitter. The post Montana could be a model as more GOP states weigh Medicaid work requirements appeared first on Wisconsin Examiner. More than 1700 civilians evacuated from Kharkiv Oblast border area photos, video The civilian evacuation from a border area of Kharkiv Oblast. Photo: Ukraine's National Police Ukrainian police evacuated 1,741 citizens from the border area of Kharkiv Oblast between 10 May and 12:00 on 13 May. Source: Kharkiv Oblast Police Quote: "The Russian forces continue to attack the border area of Kharkiv Oblast. Towns and villages are under constant artillery, missile and bomb attacks. Since 10 May and as of 12:00 on 13 May, 1741 citizens have been evacuated by police alone." The civilian evacuation from a border area of Kharkiv Oblast Photo: Ukraine's National Police Details: Police officers reportedly continue, in the midst of constant attacks, to evacuate people from Tsyrkuny, Lyptsi and Vovchansk hromadas to safe places. (A hromada is an administrative unit designating a village, several villages, or a town, and their adjacent territories ed.) The civilian evacuation from a border area of Kharkiv Oblast Photo: Ukraine's National Police The evacuation teams of Kharkiv Oblast Police provide assistance to all those needing it. The civilian evacuation from a border area of Kharkiv Oblast Photo: Ukraine's National Police "Dear citizens, if you or your relatives have decided to evacuate from the settlements that are under hostile fire, please contact the evacuation hotline at 0-800-33-92-91, the special police line 102 or the nearest police station", the National Police say in a message on their Telegram channel. Support UP or become our patron! More addiction patients can take methadone at home, but some states lag behind People wait in line for a methadone clinic to open in Hoquiam, Wash., in 2017. As a chorus of physicians and advocates calls for loosening methadone restrictions, states have been slower to adopt new relaxed federal rules (David Goldman/The Associated Press). Matt Haneys home in San Francisco isnt far from a methadone clinic. The 42-year-old state lawmaker has watched people line up early each morning outside the clinic in the Tenderloin, a community long considered the epicenter of the citys substance use epidemic. His neighbors wait for the daily dose of methadone that relieves their cravings and minimizes opioid withdrawal symptoms. Despite methadones effectiveness, a labyrinth of state and federal rules meant to guard against its misuse keeps it inaccessible to many people who desperately need it, Haney said. What kind of normal person with a job, a life and a family can line up for medication every morning, sometimes far from where they live? The Democratic assemblymember and majority whip noted that California is one of many states with rules that are stricter than federal regulations on when, where and how people can access opioid treatments like methadone. Its almost comical how difficult it is to get this medication and stay on it, he said. Yet addiction treatment in the United States is poised for change. This year, the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, known as SAMHSA, made permanent a set of pandemic-era rules that loosened several restrictions, including those on take-home doses of methadone. Its a move that a broad consensus of academics, advocates and providers says will improve treatment access and success rates. Having the flexibility to take medication at home can mean patients can get to work or get their kids to school on time. They can deal with family emergencies and unexpected travel. And they avoid the stigma of waiting in line at a clinic. In theory, the new federal rules make more take-home methadone doses available to a wider subset of patients. But whats less clear is how the rules will trickle down to states. Theres concern states that didnt preserve the relaxed regulations they had during the pandemic might be slow to adopt them now. A number of states will have to revise their regulations if theyre going to be in alignment with what SAMHSA has released, Mark Parrino, founder and president of the American Association for the Treatment of Opioid Dependence Inc., a national trade group that supports the new federal regulations. What could delay implementation would be the state regulators. Later this month at his groups annual conference, SAMHSA will convene a closed-door meeting of regulators from all 50 states to discuss the new federal rules and how states might bring their own standards into compliance, Parrino said. Its all happening as the opioid crisis, driven by rising fentanyl overdoses, has prompted a chorus of physicians and advocates to call for loosening methadone restrictions even further a move that leaders at many opioid treatment programs oppose. Liquid handcuffs Medications that treat opioid use disorder such as methadone, buprenorphine and naltrexone are rigorously regulated by the government. They block the effects of opioids or halt withdrawal symptoms and reduce cravings without causing the same feelings of euphoria. But while medications like buprenorphine can be prescribed by a physician and taken at home, methadone can only be prescribed and dispensed in the United States through federally certified clinics called opioid treatment programs. Methadone can be taken as a liquid, a pill or an injectable. Currently, about 1,800 certified opioid treatment programs operate in the United States, giving methadone treatment to about 400,000 people. Thats just 19% of the estimated 2.1 million people in the United States who have opioid use disorder. Until the pandemic, most methadone patients had to visit a clinic daily to take their doses while a provider watched. Restrictions stem from concern that methadone can be abused or resold. Even though it does not produce an intense high, its possible to overdose if its not taken as prescribed. But the tight regulation created a system that keeps patients tethered to the nearest methadone clinic with what some have called liquid handcuffs. Long clinic lines, varying hours, counseling requirements and inflexible rules around rescheduling appointments make it difficult for patients to juggle job and family responsibilities. One pregnant patient in a 2021 study reported being required to remain in line at her methadone clinic even after her water broke. Other patients said they were refused take-home doses for family emergency situations or were randomly required to make additional clinic visits. Ten states require methadone providers to observe patients during urine sample collection, according to a 2021 analysis by The Pew Charitable Trusts. Theres no other medical condition where we feel like patients need to earn the right to treatment, said Ximena Levander, an addiction medicine physician and researcher at Oregon Health & Science University. What SAMHSA has done with these new rules is to try to shift that paradigm from a punitive, you need to earn this model to a patient-centered, individualized treatment plan. But its going to take time for that culture change to happen. A power imbalance At the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, federal officials allowed states to give more methadone patients up to 28 days of take-home doses. In February of this year, SAMHSA made these new, looser rules permanent. They went into effect last month, and opioid treatment programs have until October to comply. Thats an ambitious timeline, said Parrino, of the trade group. His association represents more than 1,300 opioid treatment clinics. At least 10 states had stability criteria for take-home doses that were stricter than federal rules as of June 2021. Individual opioid treatment programs might be more conservative still. Some, for example, wont allow take-home doses for patients who drink alcohol or use cannabis. Even individual clinicians might have their own views about what patients must do before being allowed take-home doses. The requirements help keep patients safe, Parrino said: Methadone is an incredibly successful medication and its extremely effective, but its deadly if used unwisely. Yet for patients, opioid treatment programs monopoly on methadone treatment represents a power imbalance thats not as apparent in other areas of medicine. Levander recalled one patient who said her treatment program had increased her required clinic visits from once a month to once every two weeks, and she felt like she had no recourse to challenge that decision. Patients know if they lose access to their medication, they may not have another methadone program nearby and they could return to use [of illicit drugs], Levander said. The opioid treatment programs have all the power and control. Theres not a lot of desire from patients to rock the boat. Haney, the California state lawmaker, has introduced a bill that would remove several barriers to methadone access, including allowing physicians outside of opioid treatment clinics to temporarily prescribe take-home doses. The bill passed out of committee late last month with bipartisan support. Minnesota lawmakers introduced a bill this year, still in committee, that would bring the states rules for dispensing take-home doses in line with federal rules. Some states, such as Massachusetts, issued executive orders adopting many of the new federal guidelines. State agencies in places including Minnesota and Colorado have shifted their rules to adopt a more patient-centered approach to addiction medicine. But other states havent yet followed suit. Its so highly variable as far as where states are on this issue, said Bobby Mukkamala, a physician in Flint, Michigan, who is on the board of trustees at the American Medical Association. Some states are way ahead at truly looking at substance use disorder as a medical condition, not something to be punished. Methadone monopoly Meanwhile, a bipartisan bill in Congress could further deregulate the opioid treatment industry and open methadone treatment nationally to physicians outside of clinics. U.S. Sen. Edward Markey, a Democrat from Massachusetts, and U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, a Republican from Kentucky, have introduced legislation that would allow physicians trained in addiction treatment to prescribe methadone outside of a clinic. Its a move supported by several national organizations, including the American Medical Association. If its the restriction thats stopping patients with these issues from seeing a physician to help, then we need to remove it, said Mukkamala. But the opioid treatment program industry is pushing back. Parrino noted that many opioid use disorder patients have other associated conditions, from HIV to emotional trauma, that require the kind of comprehensive and regimented treatment available from a certified clinic. Earlier this year, Markey suggested opioid treatment clinics have more financially driven motivations for their opposition to expanding methadone to non-clinic settings. Ultimately, tethering methadone exclusively to opioid treatment programs is less about access, or health and safety, but about control, and for many investors in those programs, it is about profit, he said in a February statement about the new rules. Nearly two-thirds of opioid treatment programs are operated by for-profit companies. At least 562 of those are financed by private equity firms, according to a STAT News analysis. Private equitys involvement in health care has been the subject of an avalanche of scrutiny from lawmakers, advocates and researchers in recent years. A growing body of research supports methadones deregulation. A 2022 survey of opioid treatment patients in a Midwest community found more than half reported travel and work conflicts kept them from treatment. Last year, researchers found that flexible methadone take-home policies were associated with fewer overdose deaths among Black and Hispanic men. Another recent study found that take-home flexibility of methadone did not lead to more methadone-involved deaths. Haney, the California lawmaker, thinks moving methadone beyond clinic walls would benefit not just people with opioid use disorder, but also their surrounding communities, such as the Tenderloin. These outdated policies come from a fear of these patients and a fear of this medication thats misguided, he said. Its fueling the crisis that we are now facing. Stateline is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Stateline maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Scott S. Greenberger for questions: info@stateline.org. Follow Stateline on Facebook and Twitter. The post More addiction patients can take methadone at home, but some states lag behind appeared first on Missouri Independent. More addiction patients can take methadone at home, but some states lag behind People wait in line for a methadone clinic to open in Hoquiam, Wash., in 2017. As a chorus of physicians and advocates calls for loosening methadone restrictions, states have been slower to adopt new relaxed federal rules. (David Goldman/The Associated Press) Matt Haneys home in San Francisco isnt far from a methadone clinic. The 42-year-old state lawmaker has watched people line up early each morning outside the clinic in the Tenderloin, a community long considered the epicenter of the citys substance use epidemic. His neighbors wait for the daily dose of methadone that relieves their cravings and minimizes opioid withdrawal symptoms. Despite methadones effectiveness, a labyrinth of state and federal rules meant to guard against its misuse keeps it inaccessible to many people who desperately need it, Haney said. What kind of normal person with a job, a life and a family can line up for medication every morning, sometimes far from where they live? The Democratic assemblymember and majority whip noted that California is one of many states with rules that are stricter than federal regulations on when, where and how people can access opioid treatments like methadone. Its almost comical how difficult it is to get this medication and stay on it, he said. Yet addiction treatment in the United States is poised for change. This year, the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, known as SAMHSA, made permanent a set of pandemic-era rules that loosened several restrictions, including those on take-home doses of methadone. Its a move that a broad consensus of academics, advocates and providers says will improve treatment access and success rates. Having the flexibility to take medication at home can mean patients can get to work or get their kids to school on time. They can deal with family emergencies and unexpected travel. And they avoid the stigma of waiting in line at a clinic. What kind of normal person with a job, a life and a family can line up for medication every morning, sometimes far from where they live? Matt Haney, a Democratic member of the California State Assembly In theory, the new federal rules make more take-home methadone doses available to a wider subset of patients. But whats less clear is how the rules will trickle down to states. Theres concern states that didnt preserve the relaxed regulations they had during the pandemic might be slow to adopt them now. A number of states will have to revise their regulations if theyre going to be in alignment with what SAMHSA has released, Mark Parrino, founder and president of the American Association for the Treatment of Opioid Dependence Inc., a national trade group that supports the new federal regulations. What could delay implementation would be the state regulators. Later this month at his groups annual conference, SAMHSA will convene a closed-door meeting of regulators from all 50 states to discuss the new federal rules and how states might bring their own standards into compliance, Parrino said. Its all happening as the opioid crisis, driven by rising fentanyl overdoses, has prompted a chorus of physicians and advocates to call for loosening methadone restrictions even further a move that leaders at many opioid treatment programs oppose. Liquid handcuffs Medications that treat opioid use disorder such as methadone, buprenorphine and naltrexone are rigorously regulated by the government. They block the effects of opioids or halt withdrawal symptoms and reduce cravings without causing the same feelings of euphoria. But while medications like buprenorphine can be prescribed by a physician and taken at home, methadone can only be prescribed and dispensed in the United States through federally certified clinics called opioid treatment programs. Methadone can be taken as a liquid, a pill or an injectable. Currently, about 1,800 certified opioid treatment programs operate in the United States, giving methadone treatment to about 400,000 people. Thats just 19% of the estimated 2.1 million people in the United States who have opioid use disorder. Until the pandemic, most methadone patients had to visit a clinic daily to take their doses while a provider watched. Restrictions stem from concern that methadone can be abused or resold. Even though it does not produce an intense high, its possible to overdose if its not taken as prescribed. But the tight regulation created a system that keeps patients tethered to the nearest methadone clinic with what some have called liquid handcuffs. Long clinic lines, varying hours, counseling requirements and inflexible rules around rescheduling appointments make it difficult for patients to juggle job and family responsibilities. One pregnant patient in a 2021 study reported being required to remain in line at her methadone clinic even after her water broke. Other patients said they were refused take-home doses for family emergency situations or were randomly required to make additional clinic visits. Ten states require methadone providers to observe patients during urine sample collection, according to a 2021 analysis by The Pew Charitable Trusts. Theres no other medical condition where we feel like patients need to earn the right to treatment, said Ximena Levander, an addiction medicine physician and researcher at Oregon Health & Science University. What SAMHSA has done with these new rules is to try to shift that paradigm from a punitive, you need to earn this model to a patient-centered, individualized treatment plan. But its going to take time for that culture change to happen. A power imbalance At the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, federal officials allowed states to give more methadone patients up to 28 days of take-home doses. In February of this year, SAMHSA made these new, looser rules permanent. They went into effect last month, and opioid treatment programs have until October to comply. Thats an ambitious timeline, said Parrino, of the trade group. His association represents more than 1,300 opioid treatment clinics. At least 10 states had stability criteria for take-home doses that were stricter than federal rules as of June 2021. Individual opioid treatment programs might be more conservative still. Some, for example, wont allow take-home doses for patients who drink alcohol or use cannabis. Even individual clinicians might have their own views about what patients must do before being allowed take-home doses. The requirements help keep patients safe, Parrino said: Methadone is an incredibly successful medication and its extremely effective, but its deadly if used unwisely. Yet for patients, opioid treatment programs monopoly on methadone treatment represents a power imbalance thats not as apparent in other areas of medicine. Levander recalled one patient who said her treatment program had increased her required clinic visits from once a month to once every two weeks, and she felt like she had no recourse to challenge that decision. Patients know if they lose access to their medication, they may not have another methadone program nearby and they could return to use [of illicit drugs], Levander said. The opioid treatment programs have all the power and control. Theres not a lot of desire from patients to rock the boat. Haney, the California state lawmaker, has introduced a bill that would remove several barriers to methadone access, including allowing physicians outside of opioid treatment clinics to temporarily prescribe take-home doses. The bill passed out of committee late last month with bipartisan support. Minnesota lawmakers introduced a bill this year, still in committee, that would bring the states rules for dispensing take-home doses in line with federal rules. Some states, such as Massachusetts, issued executive orders adopting many of the new federal guidelines. State agencies in places including Minnesota and Colorado have shifted their rules to adopt a more patient-centered approach to addiction medicine. But other states havent yet followed suit. Its so highly variable as far as where states are on this issue, said Bobby Mukkamala, a physician in Flint, Michigan, who is on the board of trustees at the American Medical Association. Some states are way ahead at truly looking at substance use disorder as a medical condition, not something to be punished. Methodone monopoly Meanwhile, a bipartisan bill in Congress could further deregulate the opioid treatment industry and open methadone treatment nationally to physicians outside of clinics. U.S. Sen. Edward Markey, a Democrat from Massachusetts, and U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, a Republican from Kentucky, have introduced legislation that would allow physicians trained in addiction treatment to prescribe methadone outside of a clinic. Its a move supported by several national organizations, including the American Medical Association. If its the restriction thats stopping patients with these issues from seeing a physician to help, then we need to remove it, said Mukkamala. But the opioid treatment program industry is pushing back. Parrino noted that many opioid use disorder patients have other associated conditions, from HIV to emotional trauma, that require the kind of comprehensive and regimented treatment available from a certified clinic. Earlier this year, Markey suggested opioid treatment clinics have more financially driven motivations for their opposition to expanding methadone to non-clinic settings. Ultimately, tethering methadone exclusively to opioid treatment programs is less about access, or health and safety, but about control, and for many investors in those programs, it is about profit, he said in a February statement about the new rules. Nearly two-thirds of opioid treatment programs are operated by for-profit companies. At least 562 of those are financed by private equity firms, according to a STAT News analysis. Private equitys involvement in health care has been the subject of an avalanche of scrutiny from lawmakers, advocates and researchers in recent years. A growing body of research supports methadones deregulation. A 2022 survey of opioid treatment patients in a Midwest community found more than half reported travel and work conflicts kept them from treatment. Last year, researchers found that flexible methadone take-home policies were associated with fewer overdose deaths among Black and Hispanic men. Another recent study found that take-home flexibility of methadone did not lead to more methadone-involved deaths. Haney, the California lawmaker, thinks moving methadone beyond clinic walls would benefit not just people with opioid use disorder, but also their surrounding communities, such as the Tenderloin. These outdated policies come from a fear of these patients and a fear of this medication thats misguided, he said. Its fueling the crisis that we are now facing. This story was originally published at Stateline, which like Maine Morning Star is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Stateline maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Scott S. Greenberger for questions: info@stateline.org. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post More addiction patients can take methadone at home, but some states lag behind appeared first on Maine Morning Star. More bodies found in Indonesia after flash floods killed dozens and submerged homes People examine the damage at an area badly affected by a flash flood in Tanah Datar, West Sumatra, Indonesia, Monday, May 13, 2024. Heavy rains and torrents of cold lava and mud flowing down a volcano's slopes on Indonesia's Sumatra island triggered flash floods causing a number of people dead and missing, officials said Sunday. (AP Photo/Ali Nayaka) PADANG, Indonesia (AP) Rescuers recovered more bodies Monday after monsoon rains triggered flash floods on Indonesia's Sumatra Island over the weekend, bringing down torrents of cold lava and mud that left at least 44 people dead and another 15 missing. The heavy rains, along with a landslide of mud and cold lava from Mount Marapi, caused a river to breach its banks. The deluge tore through mountainside villages along four districts in West Sumatra province just before midnight Saturday. The floods swept away people and submerged hundreds of houses and buildings, while forcing more than 3,100 to flee to temporary government shelters in Agam and Tanah Datar districts, said National Disaster Management Agency spokesperson Abdul Muhari. Cold lava, also known as lahar, is a mixture of volcanic material and pebbles swept by rainwater down a volcanos slopes. Additional bodies were recovered Monday, bringing the death toll to 44, Muhari said in a news conference. At least 19 others were injured in the flash floods and rescuers were searching for 15 villagers, he said. Television reports showed relatives wailing as they watched rescuers pull a mud-caked body from a devastated hamlet. It was placed in an orange and black bag and taken away for burial. Authorities struggled to get tractors and other heavy equipment to the area over washed-out roads after flash floods covered the hilly hamlets with mud and rocks, said Abdul Malik, who heads the search and rescue office in Padang, the provincial capital. Hundreds of police, soldiers and residents dug through the debris with their hands, shovels and hoes as rain, damaged roads and thick mud hampered their progress. The devastated area is so vast and complicated, we badly need more excavators and mud pumps, Malik said. Videos released by the National Search and Rescue Agency showed roads that were transformed into murky brown rivers and villages covered by thick mud, rocks, and uprooted trees. Muhari said the search and rescue operation was halted late Monday due to darkness and rains that made the devastated areas along the rivers unstable. The operation will resume early Tuesday. Heavy rains cause frequent landslides and flash floods in Indonesia, an archipelago nation of more than 17,000 islands where millions of people live in mountainous areas or near floodplains. The weekend disaster came just two months after heavy rains triggered flash floods and a landslide in West Sumatra, killing at least 26 people and leaving 11 others missing. A surprise eruption of Mount Marapi late last year killed 23 climbers. The mountain's sudden eruptions are difficult to predict because the source is shallow and near the peak, according to Indonesias Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation. Marapi has been active since an eruption in January 2024 that caused no casualties. It is among more than 120 active volcanoes in Indonesia. The country is prone to seismic upheaval because of its location on the Pacific Ring of Fire, an arc of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin. ___ Associated Press writer Niniek Karmini in Jakarta, Indonesia contributed to this report. What we asked for: Illustration of lab-grown meat in a pop art style What Dall-E says it gave us: The illustration brings to life the concept of lab-grown meat in a pop art style, combining the worlds of scientific innovation and art in a colorful and dynamic composition. Joanna Andreasson/DALL-E4 Lab-grown meat is a scientific marvel. We've managed, through pure human ingenuity, to create something that looks like meat, cooks like meat, tastes pretty much like meat, and comes from animal cellsyet doesn't require the slaughter of a single living animal. But state legislatures across the country are thinking of following in Alabama's footsteps and banning lab-grown meat (also known as "cultivated meat"). In March, Alabama legislators passed a bill banning the sale or development of lab-grown meat in the state. Italy's parliament passed a ban on cultivated meat last year, citing the need to protect farmers from competition. Arizona, Florida, and Tennessee also seem poised to ban the product, with cultivated meat bans working through their state legislatures as of mid-March. In Congress, senators have introduced a bipartisan bill that would keep lab-grown meat from being served in public school cafeterias. "These misguided and short-sighted bills will kill innovation in a vital and growing biotech sector," says David Voorman, a vice president at Food Solutions Action, a meat-alternative political action committee. "Consumer freedom, consumer choice, and free market principles are also lost when lawmakers decide they know what's best." The main reasons for the rush to ban lab-grown meat? One is an overwrought concern about competition for farmers. In fact, after a limited restaurant-based launch in early 2023, cultivated meat is no longer available anywhere in the United States. But that hasn't kept some politicians from jumping to ban it. "We're going to have fake meat? That doesn't work." Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said during a February press conference. "There's a whole ideological agenda that's coming after, I think, a lot of important parts of our society." Another reason comes down to a misunderstanding of how cultivated meat is made. "I watch all the chemicals that are put in meats today, and everything else," Jack Williams, an Alabama state senator who sponsored the state's ban, told local news station NBC 15. "The people I represent, we don't want this meat coming to Alabama and being in our stores." "Cultivated meat is bio-identical to farmed, slaughtered meat in all of the ways that matter," Voorman says. "We've seen a troubling rise in state lawmakers attacking the cultivated meat industry under the false premise of safety concerns, but consumers see these bills for what they really areprotectionist measures that needlessly impede food innovation." (Illustration: iStock) Places where the sale or development of lab-grown meat is banned as of March 2024: Italy Places where bans are under consideration: Alabama* Arizona Florida Tennessee (only a ban on selling the product) U.S. public school cafeterias CORRECTION: A previous version of this piece misstated how many places had banned lab-grown meat as of March 2024. The post More States Are Considering Lab-Grown Meat Restrictions appeared first on Reason.com. EL CAJON, Calif. (FOX 5/KUSI) A motorcyclist and his passenger are dead after police say they fled from a traffic stop in El Cajon late Saturday night. The El Cajon Police Department reports officers attempted to stop a black Harley Davidson motorcycle that had two occupants on it for a traffic violation in the 1700 block of East Main Street Saturday at 11:38 p.m. Four dead, one hospitalized after head-on crash in Fallbrook Officers report the driver did not stop and fled west on Main Street at a high rate of speed. After the motorcycle pulled away from the pursuing officer, it collided with the back of a Toyota Tacoma and Hyundai Sonata in the 1300 block of East Main Street, according to El Cajon Police. The male driver and female passenger on the motorcycle, both 42, were seriously injured, and both died at the scene while receiving medial treatment from El Cajon Police Officers and Fire Department personnel. Police have not yet released the identities of the driver and passenger, pending notification of their families. Motorcyclist in life-threatening condition after crashing into light pole Police say the occupants in the Tacoma and Sonata were uninjured and are cooperating with the investigation. The El Cajon Police Department is asking anyone with more information to call 619-579-3311. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 5 San Diego & KUSI News. BRANSON, Mo. (WCIA) The manhunt for a Moultrie County man that lasted more than 20 years came to an end over the weekend with his arrest, the U.S. Marshals Service announced. Officials with the Marshals Service said Herman Carroll, 72, was located in Branson, Mo. after their Great Lakes Regional Fugitive Task Force uncovered a lead on his whereabouts. Working with local authorities in Branson, Marshals arrested Carroll on Saturday. Champaign Police, Crime Stoppers seeking tips in $6,000 smoke shop burglary Carroll was wanted on charges that accuse him of sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl in 2000, and that wasnt the first time he had been charged with such a crime. Officials said Carroll has two prior convictions for child sex crimes: one in 1983 and the other in 1993. Carroll was arrested on July 3, 2000, in connection to the 12-year-olds assault. He posted bail, but never appeared in court to face those new charges. Danville Police investigating weekend triple shooting The search for Carroll involved over a dozen local, state and federal jurisdictions, including ones as far away as Alaska. The Great Lakes Task Force took over the investigation in June of 2022 and on May 8, officials said they uncovered information that placed Carroll in Branson. Now, after a 24-year-long manhunt, Carroll is behind bars on five sexual assault counts and the warrant issued for his arrest after he failed to appear. He is in the Taney County, Mo. Jail awaiting extradition to Moultrie County. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WCIA.com. RAMONA, Calif. (FOX 5/KUSI) A mountain lion has returned to the wild after being rehabilitated at San Diego Humane Societys Ramona Wildlife Center. In a release Monday, the humane society said the adult male mountain lion was released by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife on May 1 in rural San Luis Obispo County. That is where the animal was found with injuries consistent with a hit by a car, the release said. The mountain lion was brought to the wildlife center in Ramona on March 4 after spending time at an emergency veterinary clinic in Salinas. Officials said he had road rash wounds, ticks and burrs, a fractured jaw and a broken canine tooth. Uncommon disease found in California deer population for the first time His injuries were treated by the humane societys Project Wildlife team and outside dental consultants. While in recovery for two months, the veterinary team monitored the mountain lion until he was deemed ready to be released on May 1. The humane society said, on average, one to two mountain lions are killed by cars on Californias highways each week. The Project Wildlife program works toward wild animal rehabilitation and conservation efforts in San Diego County. The campus in Ramona specializes in caring for native apex predators and birds of prey. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 5 San Diego & KUSI News. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. The success of COP29 will signify the success of COP30, UNDP Climate Change and Environment Portfolio Manager for Europe and Central Asia Region Nuri Ozbagdatli said during a training Workshop on Building confidence and capacity in the preparation of Biennial Transparency Reports under Azerbaijan's COP29 chairmanship, Trend reports. The significance of Azerbaijan as the host country for COP29 cannot be overstated. The triumph of COP29 will directly correlate with the success of COP30, he emphasized. He also noted that UNDP is honored to work with Azerbaijan to develop Azerbaijan's Biennial Transparency Report (BTR). The next two years are extremely important for UNDP. We are working on ambitious, accelerated, and inclusive climate action, he added. This November, Azerbaijan will host COP29. This decision was made at the COP28 plenary meeting held in Dubai on December 11 last year. Baku will become the center of the world and will receive about 7080,000 foreign guests. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is an agreement signed at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 to prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system. COP - the Conference of the Parties - is the highest legislative body overseeing the implementation of the Framework Convention on Climate Change. There are 198 countries that are parties to the Convention. Unless the parties agree otherwise, the COP is held annually. The first COP event took place in March 1995 in Germany's Berlin, and its secretariat is located in Bonn. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel The racist and white nationalist alt-right movement is no longer a fringe group within the Republican Party. As MSNBCs Ayman Mohyeldin detailed on Sunday, Donald Trump has brought them into the GOPs mainstream. The Republican Party had countless opportunities to prevent this normalization from happening, but they did not. They consistently failed to do anything, he said. Not after Charlottesville. Not after the rise of the Proud Boys. Not even after January the 6th. Traditional conservatives such as political commentator David French who recognized the white nationalist and racist core of the alt-right were attacked for speaking out against it. Even once-mainstream Republican politicians such as Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) and former Reps. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) and Adam Kinzinger (Ill.) have paid the price for standing up to Trump and the alt-right. They have become pariahs with no future in the modern Republican Party, he said. Because in 2024, its not the alt-right anymore. Its just the right. See his full discussion below: "In just a few short years, the alt-right movement graduated from a fringe group to being platformed and fully embraced by Trump and his allies... in 2024, it's not the "alt-right" anymore. It's just the right."@AymanM on the GOP"s shameful normalization of the alt-right. pic.twitter.com/dh7mgCU3Kx AYMAN (@AymanMSNBC) May 12, 2024 Keeping up with Donald Trumps court schedule is a dizzying task, since he faces two federal trials, a criminal trial in Georgia, and two separate civil and criminal trials in New York. (Oh, and hes running for president.) To make it easier to follow along, each Monday well be looking back at all the Trump trialrelated developments you might have missed the previous week. Last week, Donald Trumps legal defense earned a major victory when a judge officially removed special counsel Jack Smiths trial date for the classified documents case. Meanwhile, Trumps defense in his hush money trial took a beating when Stormy Daniels testified. And in more grim news for Trump, the GOP speaker of the House said he would not defund the special counsels office. Judge Aileen Cannon finally did what many were expecting: She pulled the plug on Smiths classified documents case by announcing she would be vacating the May 20 trial date. Cannon cited the myriad pretrial motions that have yet to be resolved and reasoned that setting a trial date at this point would be imprudent and inconsistent with the Courts duty to fully and fairly consider the various pending pre-trial motions before the Court. Cannon said that, in total, there are eight substantive pretrial motions still pending, including one by Trumps defense team to compel the special counsel to disclose hundreds of additional pages of classified and unclassified material. Smith recently acknowledged that some classified evidence had been shuffled out of order in the aftermath of the FBIs raid of Mar-a-Lago, prompting Trumps attorneys to demand that the entire case be tossed out. Smith has not publicly commented on Cannons decision, and its not clear what options he has to potentially appeal it. But its looking pretty certain that Trump wont face a jury trial before the November election over charges of mishandling classified documents in the waning days of his first presidency. Last week, the woman at the heart of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Braggs hush money case took the witness stand and delivered withering testimony against Trump while withstanding a bruising cross-examination by the defense. Daniels kicked off her testimony by going into detail about her one-night stand with Trump 18 years ago in a hotel suite in Lake Tahoe. After she shared what was in the former presidents toiletry bag, the type of boxers he wore, and that he did not wear a condom, it got to be a bit much for New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan. He directed prosecutors to limit Daniels answers, but as Slates Jeremy Stahl reported in his courtroom dispatch, Daniels, for her part, came off as relatably as possible for an adult film performer describing a sexual encounter with a former president. Two days later, Trump attorney Susan Necheles tried pulling out all the stops to denigrate Daniels in the eyes of the jury during cross-examination. Necheles all but called Daniels a whore, pointing to tweets describing her as an aging harlot, another calling her a disgusting degenerate prostitute, and one calling her a human toilet, wrote Stahl, in an analysis of Daniels second day of testimony. The day could double as a class in how the law mistreats women, Slates Susan Matthews observed. Now that Daniels testimony has concluded, Trumps former attorney and personal fixer Michael Cohen is up next. Heres a refresher on the rise and fall of his relationship with Trump. The battle to remove Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis from her election interference case turned a new corner last week: The Georgia Court of Appeals announced that it was granting an appeal to Trumps attorneys, who are seeking to disqualify Willis from prosecuting the former president. The DA, who brought a 35-count indictment against Trump and 18 others for conspiring to overturn Georgias 2020 election results, has been through the wringer this year. In January, allegations surfaced that Willis was dating special prosecutor Nathan Wade, whom she had hired to work on her investigation into Trump. That led to a dramatic, two-week-long evidentiary hearing in February, during which Willis herself ended up testifying in her defense, along with her father and Wade. Ultimately, Judge Scott McAfee ruled that Willis could stay on her criminal election interference case, provided that Wade resign. (He did.) Trumps attorneys appealed McAfees decision, and now that an appeals court has given the greenlight, the misconduct allegations against Willis will essentially be litigated all over again. The court is expected to hold oral arguments and rule on the appeal within about six monthsright in time for Novembers election. Until then, McAfee will likely hold off on assigning Willis case a trial date, which means that Trump has successfully knocked off one more criminal trial for himself. The GOP House speaker told Politico hes resisting calls from the extreme MAGA wing of his party to defund Smith as part of Congress appropriations process. Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene recently led a failed attempt to oust Johnson from the speakership and has been calling to have Smiths office defunded because hes leading two criminal investigations into Trump. However, Johnson seemed to rule that out, telling Politico, There is a necessity for a function like that, because sometimes the Department of Justicewhich is an executive branch agencycant necessarily, without a conflict of interest, investigate or prosecute the president whos their boss, or the presidents family. But Politico also reported that Johnson seems to be looking at other avenues to undermine Smith. During a press conference last week, he insisted that Trump hadnt done anything wrong, saying, Youre going to see Congress address this in every possible way. Johnson also told Politico that hes been working with House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan to investigate what else can be done about Smith, asserting that there has to be some accountability and noting, Congress has the power of the purse, of course. A murder case in Kazakhstan led to domestic violence reforms. It ends with a prison sentence FILE - Kuandyk Bishimbayev, Kazakhstan's former economics minister, speaks during his trial in Astana, Kazakhstan on Monday, May 6, 2024. Kazakhstan's Supreme Court on Monday, May 13, 2024, convicted Bishimbayev of torturing and brutally murdering his wife and sentenced him to 24 years in prison, concluding a high-profile trial that has gripped the Central Asian nation. (AP Photo/Alimzhan Barangulov, File) MOSCOW (AP) Kazakhstan's Supreme Court on Monday convicted a former government official of torturing and murdering his wife and sentenced him to 24 years in prison in a case that has gripped the Central Asian nation. During the trial of Kuandyk Bishimbayev, Kazakhstans former economy minister, over the death of his wife, Saltanat Nukenova, thousands of people urged the authorities to adopt harsher penalties for domestic violence. Authorities adopted a bill toughening spousal abuse laws. Kazakhstan largely remains a patriarchal society, and progress has been slow on issues such as domestic violence, sexual harassment and disparities in employment. Bishimbayevs trial was the first in the country of over 19 million people to be streamed online, and debates about it dominated social media. Nukenova, 31, was found dead in November in a restaurant owned by one of her husbands relatives. The 44-year-old Bishimbayev maintained his innocence before admitting in court last month that he had beaten her and unintentionally caused her death. His lawyers initially disputed medical evidence indicating Nukenova died from blows to the head. Bishimbayev's relative, Bakhytzhan Baizhanov, was sentenced to four years in prison for helping Bishimbayev cover up the murder. Days after Nukenovas death, her relatives launched an online petition urging authorities to pass Saltanats Law to bolster protection for those at risk of domestic violence. It quickly got over 150,000 signatures. As the trial began, more than 5,000 Kazakhs wrote senators urging tougher laws on abuse, Kazakh media said. Kazakhstans President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has repeatedly spoken about strengthening protections for women. In January, he intervened after the Justice Ministry refused to consider the petition by Nukenovas family. According to a 2018 study backed by UN Women, about 400 women die from domestic violence each year in Kazakhstan, although many cases go unreported. In 2017, Kazakhstan decriminalized beatings and other acts causing minor physical damage, making them punishable only by fines or short jail terms. Kazakhstan has since reversed its law, increasing penalties for assailants and introducing new criminal offenses including harassment of minors. Senate Speaker Maulen Ashimbayev said that properly implementing the new law adopted in the wake of the trial will require a great deal of work, including educational campaigns in schools and the media as well as vigilance from civil society groups. US museum curator accused of trying to smuggle spider and scorpion samples out of Turkey The various scorpion, tarantula and spider species, endemic to Turkey, in plastic bottles and clip-on bags, found in a smuggling operation in Istanbul on 13 May 2024. The various scorpion, tarantula and spider species, endemic to Turkey, in plastic bottles and clip-on bags, found in a smuggling operation in Istanbul on 13 May 2024. Photograph: Bunyamin Celik/Anadolu via Getty Images A scorpion and spider expert with the American Museum of Natural History was detained in Istanbul on Monday while allegedly attempting to smuggle samples of both arachnida groups out of Turkey. Lorenzo Prendini was held by police at Istanbul airport for allegedly trying to take about 1,500 samples out of the country, Turkish media reported. Video published by the Demiroren News Agency showed officers searching hand luggage and removing plastic bags that appeared to be packed with dead spiders and scorpions. The museums website lists Prendini as the curator of its spider, scorpion, centipede and millipede collections, and says his research into spiders and the classification of scorpions, has taken him to more than 30 countries. Prendinis specialisations include research into arachnid orders of whip spiders, sun spiders and whip scorpions. Spiders and scorpions are considered to be biologically distant cousins. The museum, which has been contacted for comment, has recently found itself at the center of a series of disputes that found it, and other institutions focusing ethnographic histories, in the cross-hairs of shifting cultural expectations. In January, it shut down two halls featuring Native American artifacts and acknowledged that the diorama exhibits on display at its Manhattans Upper West Side complex were severely outdated. That came after new director Sean Decatur, the first African American to lead the institution, announced that the museums holdings of 12,000 human remains, many collected under circumstances now seen as abusive and racist, would be returned where possible. All human bones on public display were removed, and the museum vowed to devote more resources to studying the collection to determine the origins and identities of remains. Two years ago, the museum removed a statue of Theodore Roosevelt that had stood at the entrance because it depicted the former US president alongside two smaller Black and Indigenous figures. The statue, erected in 1940, had been a point of contention for decades. It was moved to the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library in North Dakota. The bureaucrats who think they run the world are at it again! They are trying to convince our national leaders to sign away our sovereignty, except this time it may seriously damage your health. The latest draft of the Pandemic Preparedness Treaty that will be voted on at the World Health Assembly (WHA) in Geneva next week will take away the power of countries to stockpile medicines, vaccines and health equipment, and give it to the World Health Organisation (WHO). If Britain were to sign, the WHO could force us to give up 20 per cent of pandemic-related health products. But that is only half the story. The legally binding Treaty that our globalist masters may sign next week, wont be the same Treaty that rules over our lives in years to come. The Treaty can be amended at an annual Conference of the Parties (COP) every year, when civil servants and diplomats from around the world will meet behind closed doors to discuss what additional powers and money they need to build their global public health empire. This is exactly how the WHO has operated in the past, and its exactly why I do not trust the people who run it today. The first draft of this Treaty made clear that the WHO could seize the power to force countries into lockdown and mandate vaccines. If you think those aspirations have changed, you are wrong. And if you think that the WHO will stop in its pursuit of those powers, you have not been paying attention. The comparisons with the EU are stark. The WHO is a failing, expensive, unelected, unaccountable, supranational body that wants more and more powers to run roughshod over nation state democracies and free citizens. Enough is enough. Many have paid the price for those failings. Millions died around the world after Chinas preferred choice of WHO Director-General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, told the world in January 2020 that there was no human-to-human transmission of Covid-19; while thousands more died during the 2014-16 Ebola outbreak in West Africa and the 2003 SARS outbreak in Far East Asia. But not only is the WHO slow and incompetent to prevent the spread of highly infectious diseases, it has just given itself a budget of almost $7 billion during a cost-of-living crisis, with taxpayers in the US, UK and EU bankrolling over half of it. With no checks on how it spends your money, it also takes hundreds of millions of dollars from non-State actors, such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and other corporations; presenting conflicts of interest that need to end. That is why we at Action on World Health want to reform the WHO. We call on countries to cut their contributions by halve and in turn force the WHO to cut its spending by 50 per cent. We call on the WHO to stop taking money from private citizens, corporations, and other non-State actors to avoid them gaining influence which they may use to undermine nation states. We want national politicians to hold those responsible for the WHOs failings during Covid to account, and for the WHO to reform its processes so that the next pandemic is either prevented, identified and/or treated more quickly and effectively. We want to Take Back Control of all areas of health policies that impact citizens rights and freedoms by withdrawing from the one-size-fits-all treaties and mandates that dictate or put pressure on governments to implement measures which control people or tell them how to live their lives. The WHO can be a force for good in the world if it returns to its noble principles and core objectives to attain the highest level of health for all people, prevent disease, provide essential healthcare in the developing world, and promote international collaboration in health matters. If, however, it chooses to ignore the growing dissatisfaction from We The People and doesnt reform, then a second Brexit will be on the cards. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. The NAACP is one of over a dozen civil rights organizations urging President Joe Biden to pardon Marilyn Mosby, the former Baltimore prosecutor awaiting sentencing after being convicted of fraudulently obtaining a loan. The request to Biden states that Mosby did not receive fair treatment and that her prosecution was based on a political vendetta by the Justice Department under the Trump administration. Civil rights groups urge Biden to pardon Mosby The NAACP and 14 other civil rights organizations sent a letter to Biden to request a presidential pardon of former Baltimore City States Attorney Marilyn Mosby. The letter to Biden touts Mosbys accomplishments, noting that she went from being a first-generation college student to the youngest chief prosecutor of any major U.S. city. As noted in the letter, Mosby became a nationally prominent figure when she charged six Baltimore police officers for the death of Freddie Gray while in police custody. In the aftermath of George Floyds murder in 2020, Mosby became a fierce critic of the Trump administration and its rhetoric, which her defenders believe led to her being investigated and ultimately charged concerning a COVID hardship withdrawal from her retirement account and a mortgage application. In addition to the NAACP, organizations signing the letter include Black Voters Matter, Color of Change, the National Action Network and the National Urban League. Groups allege "political persecution and malicious prosecution" The letter states that Mosby was wrongfully convicted and alleges that she endures the political persecution and malicious prosecution of the Trump Administrations Department of Justice due to her public criticisms. The message to Biden argues that Mosby was unfairly prosecuted over a COVID pandemic hardship loan she took from her retirement account and a misrepresentation of a financial gift as she applied for a mortgage. The organizations claim that Mosby technically qualified for the loan and that she was the only person prosecuted among over 700 people who took out similar loans. They also argue that her other alleged wrongdoing, misrepresentation on her mortgage application, was based on improper advice. According to the letter, the amounts of money at stake in both cases fall far below the Department of Justices usual million dollar threshold for bringing such serious charges. As Mosby awaits sentencing in her cases, which could see her placed in federal prison for up to 40 years, she has maintained her innocence. During a recent appearance on The Breakfast Club, Mosby said, Ive been accused of doing something that I have not done. Im innocent. She echoes the claims of her defenders that she was targeted by the prior administration and urges Biden to pardon her. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre acknowledged the pardon request but declined to comment beyond pointing toward a general process for reviewing such requests. In addition to the letter sent to the White House, an online petition supporting Mosbys pardon has already gathered over 32,000 signatures. It remains to be seen whether this support from the public and from a number of prominent civil rights organizations will be enough to spare Mosby from punishment. Her sentencing is scheduled for May 23. Thus, if Mosby is to avoid being sent to federal prison, she may need a White House intervention to come sooner rather than later. NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) The Nashville Fire Department responded to the Veterans Affairs Medical Center Monday after smoke could be seen coming from the roof. In a social media post sent out at 3:38 p.m., the fire department said the impacted areas were evacuated and no injuries were reported. The cause was likely a generator that overheated on the roof, according to officials. Read todays top stories on wkrn.com (Courtesy: Nashville Fire Department) Firefighters said the damage was contained to the roof. However, smoke was still being ventilated from the area Monday afternoon. In the post on X, officials said traffic near the medical center was being impacted by the incident. A spokesperson for the VA said a portion of the hospital was evacuated due to the smoke, but no patients or staff were injured. The hospital is safe to enter, and officials continue to assess damages, said Public Affairs Officer Hannah McDuffie. Patients will be contacted as soon as possible should their appointment be impacted. Download the News 2 app to stay updated on the go. Sign up for WKRN email alerts to have breaking news sent to your inbox. Find todays top stories on WKRN.com for Nashville, TN and all of Middle Tennessee. This is a developing story. WKRN News 2 will continue to update this article as new information becomes available. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WKRN News 2. NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) Every year in May, the country takes a week to commemorate the law enforcement officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty. Many ceremonies and vigils are already underway for National Police Week, which falls during the calendar week of May 15, as was proclaimed by President John F. Kennedy in 1962. This years week of remembrance comes amid changing trends in line of duty deaths, showing both troubling and encouraging signs for the field. So far in 2024, there have already been 58 law enforcement officers who have died in the line of duty four of which have been Tennessee officers. National Peace Officers Memorial Day 2023: 11 TN officers killed in line of duty About 38% of deaths nationwide have been from gunfire, and another 38% have been attributed to traffic accidents, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page (ODMP), a nonprofit organization that tracks line of duty deaths in the United States. Line of duty deaths also include medical incidents such as COVID-19 related deaths and heart attacks suffered while on duty, as well other causes like falling objects or fire-related incidents. Statistics from 2023 show line of duty deaths appear to be decreasing, but that data may be an anomaly, according to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund. There were 137 law enforcement officers who died last year an about 39% decrease from 2022. Most causes that are tracked also decreased, including the number of officers shot and killed. But while only 47 officers died from gunfire last year, a record number were wounded after being shot in the line of duty, according to the National Fraternal Order of Police. More police officers die by suicide than in line-of-duty, data shows Of the 378 officers shot in the line of duty last year, the organization said 115 were ambush-style attacks, resulting in 20 deaths. According to the FOP, medical advancements may be a factor in why fewer officers died from their injuries. One of the most substantial reductions last year was in the number of COVID-19 related line of duty deaths, which fell from 74 in 2022 to five in 2023 something that officials believe could have been a large factor in the overall decrease. Notably, traffic fatalities also dropped nearly 27% compared to last year. In a report released earlier this year, the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund said that particular stat is welcome news for law enforcement agencies nationwide. Tennessee law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty In Tennessee, most of the line of duty deaths so far this year have been in the eastern part of the state, with exception to the most recent incident involving an officer out of Memphis. Officer Joseph McKinney was shot and killed around 2 a.m. on Friday, April 12. SEE ALSO: Officials honor Memphis police officer killed in shootout According to ODMP, McKinney and other officers were investigating a report of a suspicious vehicle at the intersection of Charter Avenue and Horn Lake Road. As they were approaching the car, the occupants reportedly opened fire on them. Joseph McKinney (Courtesy: Memphis Police Department) Officers returned fire before the car took off, leading to a pursuit that ended with two wounded suspects being taken into custody. One of the suspects later died. McKinney and two other officers were also injured during the exchange of gunfire. McKinney, who was only 26 years old, was taken to Regional One Hospital, where he later succumbed to his wounds. He served with the Memphis Police Department for over three years before his death. Deputy killed in Blount County shooting, search for suspect continues We stand with those families whove been lost to violence, Memphis Mayor Paul Young said after the shooting. To MPD, our officers are hurting, our heart goes out to them, and their families and we mourn together. The Blount County Sheriffs Office also lost one of its deputies to gunfire during a traffic stop on Feb. 8. According to ODMP, Deputy Greg McCowan and his partner pulled over a vehicle for erratic driving around 9 p.m. on Sevierville Road in Maryville. Greg McCowan (Courtesy: ODMP) However, the driver reportedly refused to cooperate and shot McCowan and the other deputy in the leg. The other deputy returned fire, but the suspect managed to run off. Deputies apprehended the suspect five days later. While his partner survived, McCowan, who was 43 years old, succumbed to his wounds at Blount Memorial Hospital. He had served with the sheriffs office for four years. Body of Meigs County deputy recovered from river Another line of duty death occurred in Meigs County only about a week after McCowans death. On Feb. 14, officials said Deputy Robert J. Leonard took a call relating to a disturbance near the Highway 60 bridge in Birchwood. Robert Leonard (Courtesy: ODMP) Only about 27 minutes after he arrived at the scene around 9:48 p.m., Leonard radioed that he had arrested a female suspect and was taking her to the Meigs County Jail. A few moments later, dispatchers said they received an unclear transmission where Leonard mentioned water. Authorities said the area that Lenoard was in is remote and rural, sometimes making it difficult to receive radio traffic. When Leonard failed to respond to a status check, a search began. The next day, his patrol car was found upside down in the water with the woman in the back. His body was recovered at 6:30 p.m. on Feb. 15. Leonard, who was 35 years old, had just recently graduated from the police academy and served with the Meigs County Sheriffs Office for two months before his death. Wisbens Antoine (Courtesy: ODMP) The fourth line of duty death in the state so far this year was recorded on Feb. 25 after Knoxville Police Officer Wisbens Antoine passed away from a medical-related incident. According to ODMP, Antoine collapsed at the completion of a 1.5 mile run during basic training. Read todays top stories on wkrn.com The training staff provided life-saving measures until he was taken to UT Medical Center. However, officials said his condition worsened, and he died two days later. Antoine, who was 32 years old, had only been with the police department for one day. He was a member of the 2023-B Basic Recruit Class. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WKRN News 2. CORNING, N.Y. (WETM) This week is National Salvation Army Week, and the Salvation Army of Corning is hosting a few celebrations to kick the week off, as well as celebrate its 140th anniversary. Beginning on Monday, May 13, mini-red kettles will be placed at different locations throughout Corning and will stay until the end of the week on May 19. Every donation that is received in the kettles will go towards helping Corning community members who are in need. Wineglass Race Series to host Kids Run, sign-ups still open Then on Friday, The Salvation Army will be handing out donuts at the Centerway Square in the Gaffer District to recognize the Salvation Army Donut Lassies who served soldiers donuts during World War I. National Salvation Army Week is recognized on the second full week of May and was first declared by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1954 in the United States. For the future, the organization will host a community chicken barbeque on Sept. 8 and the annual Red Kettle Campaign will begin in November. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WETM - MyTwinTiers.com. (Bloomberg) -- Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda won the first round of an election on Sunday, putting the outspoken critic of Russias Vladimir Putin closer to securing a second term as head of state. Most Read from Bloomberg Nauseda took 44.5% of vote, while Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte came in second with 19.9%, the Election Committee said on its website. Falling short of 50%, the two rivals will face each other in a run-off on May 26. Voters in the Baltic state of 2.8 million went to the polls amid mounting fears over Russian aggression and a protracted conflict in Ukraine. Nauseda, who has gained attention among Western leaders for his hard line against Kremlin war aims, has led in surveys with solid public backing, particularly in rural areas and among more conservative voters. Im prepared to steadily seek victory in the second round and I believe Ill be successful, Nauseda said on the election night. Im thankful for the strong support from the people. I want to continue work for another five years. The Lithuanian president is responsible for foreign and defense policy and has limited powers over domestic issues, but can veto legislation, appoint judges, central bankers and other officials. The head of state also grants the mandate to lead the government and represents the country at European Union and North Atlantic Treaty Organization summits. For the countrys voters, 59-year-old Nauseda has steadily aligned his agenda around traditional and family values in his five years in power marking a contrast with Simonyte, 49, who has advocated a more inclusive approach on issues such as LGBTQ rights. But Russias war in Ukraine and the looming threat of Lithuanias vast neighbor to the east have dominated the presidential campaign. In televised debates ahead of the contest, Nauseda and his challengers were queried on whether they had survival kits at home and if they would flee into exile in case of an invasion. Boots on the Ground, China More than three decades after the country, along with Latvia and Estonia, reclaimed its independence from the Soviet Union, the EU member state has hosted the biggest military drills in its history. The exercises involved curfews in the countrys two largest cities earlier in the week. Nauseda has been a leading voice calling for NATO troops to be deployed in the Baltics, the military alliances eastern flank. Germany has solidified plans to expand its presence in the country to a permanent brigade of as many as 5,000 troops over the next three years. We need boots on the ground, Nauseda told Bloomberg News in an interview ahead of a NATO summit he hosted in Vilnius. Simonyte, whos led the government government since 2020, has drawn recognition for defying pressure from China after Lithuania allowed Taiwan to open a trade office in Vilnius. That triggered a backlash from Beijing, which blocked trade, removed the Baltic state from its customs system and canceled Lithuanian diplomats identity cards. Read More: Fear of War With Russia Haunts Lithuania: Year of Elections Nauseda last week called for improved relations with China after Taiwan fallout. While he views setting up the trade outpost as positive in principle, the representative office should adopt the word Taipei rather than Taiwan in line with international standards in a bid to defuse simmering tensions with Beijing, he said. The adjustment could serve as a signal from Lithuania to normalize diplomatic relations with China, Nauseda told Baltic News Service. (Updates with vote count in the second paragraph.) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. The number of climate disasters is growing, Director of the UN Climate Secretariat Reporting Office Donald Cooper said at the Training Workshop on Building confidence and capacity in the preparation of Biennial Transparency Reports (BTRs) within Azerbaijan's chairmanship in COP29, Trend reports. "Climate change-related calamities have increased worldwide. These incidents are becoming more common, dramatic, and costly, affecting more lives," he stressed. He stressed the need for BTRs to provide natural event data per country. These reports track the progress countries are making to combat climate change, according to the official. This November, Azerbaijan will host COP29. This decision was made at the COP28 plenary meeting held in Dubai on December 11 last year. Baku will become the center of the world and will receive about 7080,000 foreign guests. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is an agreement signed at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 to prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system. COPthe Conference of the Partiesis the highest legislative body overseeing the implementation of the Framework Convention on Climate Change. There are 198 countries that are parties to the Convention. Unless the parties agree otherwise, the COP is held annually. The first COP event took place in March 1995 in Germany's Berlin, and its secretariat is located in Bonn. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel The navy is looking at deploying 'ghost fleets' warships that don't need crews In this image provided by the U.S. Navy, a Sea Hunter, a crewless vessel, arrives at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, to participate in the Rim of Pacific (RIMPAC) 2022, on June 29, 2022. (Associated Press - image credit) The Canadian military is weighing how many and what kind of "optionally-crewed" warships it will need in the future as drone technology and artificial intelligence change the face of naval combat, says the commander of the navy. Vice-Admiral Angus Tophee told CBC News that while navies will always need large combat surface ships and submarines, Canada's allies have started to experiment with automated vessels. The U.S. Navy has been testing unmanned surface vessels (USVs) for the past several years, and the concept has proved successful enough for the Americans to organize medium and large USVs into a squadron in the Pacific. A second such U.S. Navy unit, which will operate in tandem with traditionally crewed warships, is expected to be assembled this month. The unmanned squadrons are informally called "ghost fleets." Canada is only just beginning to study the concept. "We haven't figured out what percentage we want," Topshee said, referring to the balance between manned and unmanned vessels. He said naval planners conducting a new fleet mix study are asking themselves a number of questions as they look at the different kinds of autonomous ships that could be available. "What is the right mix for the future as we replace our maritime coastal defence vessels down the road?" he said. "What's the right capability for us to have? How do we augment the Canadian Surface Combatant" the next generation of warships "with the right mix of sensors?" A Ukrainian Magura V5 unmanned marine vehicle is seen on water during an exhibition of military equipment and weapons, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, at an undisclosed location in Ukraine April 13, 2024. A Ukrainian Magura V5 unmanned marine vehicle takes part in an exhibition of military equipment and weapons at an undisclosed location in Ukraine on April 13, 2024. (REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko) The study is looking beyond the remotely operated, explosive-packed speedboats that Ukraine has been using with great effect to attack the Russian Black Sea fleet. It's looking at larger vessels, such as the U.S. Navy's 145 tonne Sea Hunter minesweeper. Computers drive and control the ship, with a human on another vessel always observing and ready to take charge remotely, if necessary. The ship can patrol without humans at the helm, using optical guidance and radar to stay clear of other ships and obstacles. In its recent study of the future of its navy, Australia declared it would augment its crewed warships with unmanned vessels. The plan to bolster the Australian fleet includes unmanned 20 destroyers and frigates and six Large Optionally Crewed Surface Vessels (LOSVs), which can operate with sailors aboard or independently as drones. The LOSVs have piqued Topshee's interest. "I think optionally-crewed [ships are] going to be a big part of this in the future," he said. "I'm looking at that quite closely because I think that it is definitely something that we can build into the Canadian Surface Combatant program. We need to be enabling it, not just with the small autonomous vehicles on and under the water but also with larger platforms that could have a crew most of the time." A self-driving, 132-foot military ship sits at a maritime terminal Monday, May 2, 2016, in San Diego. The Pentagon's research arm is launching tests on the world's largest unmanned surface vessel designed to travel thousands of miles out at sea without a single crew member on board. (AP Photo/Julie Watson) A self-guided, 132-foot military ship sits at a maritime terminal on Monday, May 2, 2016 in San Diego. (The Associated Press) The United States is well advanced in its plans to develop a mixed fleet. The U.S. Naval Institute News recently reported that the navy submitted a revised request to Congress asking for a mandate to expand the fleet to as many as 381 manned ships by the 2050s, up from the current 299. The overall force would be buttressed by 150 unmanned surface and underwater vessels. Naval historian Marc Milner of the University of New Brunswick said the proliferation of unmanned ships will be particularly important for naval operations close to coastlines. He said manned navies are struggling to confront unconventional warfare in the Red Sea and in the Black Sea off the coast of Ukraine and Russia. "What's happened in the last decade, particularly with the proliferation of coastal-based missile systems like the Houthis are employing, but also with drone systems, it's made the littoral waters increasingly difficult for navies," Milner said. In this photo provided by Houthi media office Saturday, April, 27, 2024, a Houthi fighter celebrates in front of what they said debris of an American MQ9 aerial vehicle, shot down by the air defence forces of the Yemeni Armed Forces in Saada, Yemen, Friday, April, 26, 2024. In this photo provided by the Houthi media office on Saturday, April, 27, 2024, a Houthi fighter celebrates in front of what they said was debris from an American MQ9 aerial vehicle, shot down by the air defence forces of the Yemeni Armed Forces in Saada, Yemen on Friday, April, 26, 2024. (Houthi Media Office, via Associated Press) One potential element of this new wave of weapons hasn't made an appearance yet, he said. "At the moment, from what I can see, we're not dealing with drone swarms," Milner said, referring to the tactic of using multiple drones to target a single manned surface ship or submarine. The U.S. Navy is working on the concept. It experimented with its medium and large USVs to perfect what's being called the "hellscape" attack using swarms of unmanned platforms to attack enemy targets. For the moment, Milner said, the threats conventional navies face in coastal waters are manageable. "But the danger in littoral waters has been increasing all through the 21st century, primarily from cheap land-based missile systems, and the fear is increasingly that these will overwhelm the defences of individual ships," he said. NC front and center in Biden push to replace lead lines: The state has 300,000 of them Many Democrats have been frustrated by the White Houses inability to convince the public that the Biden administration is enacting policies that will improve their lives. This disconnect is a bad sign in an election year, and it could be one reason why President Biden recently made visits to North Carolina. One of this years top electoral issues could be clean water. The White Houses initiatives offer a striking contrast with Donald Trump and other powerful actors in the Republican Party. Weeks ago, White House officials released new rules to address contamination from forever chemicals, and chose Cumberland County, North Carolina, which has been impacted by the chemicals, to make the announcement. But the more visible campaign is centered around their plan to replace dangerous lead pipes around the country an issue that should resonate in North Carolina. EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan speaks at a press conference announcing the first-ever national, legally enforceable drinking water standard for PFAS chemicals on Wednesday, April 10, 2024, at the Hoffer Water Treatment Facility in Fayetteville. The move is part of President Joe Biden's clean water initiatives, which include a push to replace lead pipes in North Carolina and elsewhere. The EPA estimates that North Carolina has 300,000 lead lines that need to be replaced which explains why President Biden was in Wilmington recently to announce a new $76 million investment to replace those pipes; in total, the White House says it has provided $250 million towards achieving those goals so far, and that includes millions of dollars to remove lead hazards from schools and childcare centers across the state. More: Lead water pipes still pose a health risk across America. The EPA wants to remove them all More: EPA head Michael Regan returns to NC, announces new standards for 'forever chemicals' There is no doubt about the dangers of lead, a neurotoxin linked to increased learning disabilities, hyperactivity or attention deficit disorders, seizures and reproductive harm. Last November, the EPA proposed rules that would require most water systems to replace lead lines over a 10-year period and lower the action level from 15 parts per billion (ppb) to ten. Right now, there are water systems across the country using federal aid to clean up our drinking water systems. No action: Trump Infrastructure Week a joke By contrast, the Trump administration did little to prioritize clean water. They weakened the lead-in-water rule, and famously sought to dramatically curtail the Clean Water Act itself. Under the Trump administration, Infrastructure Week was little more than a recurring joke. The Biden administration, on the other hand, actually passed an infrastructure law that provides about $50 billion for water infrastructure, including $15 billion in funding dedicated to replacing lead lines. President Joe Biden speaks at the Wilmington Convention Center on Thursday, May 2, 2024. And the Republican opposition to cleaning up Americas drinking water goes deeper than Trump. A group of Republican state attorneys general recently penned a joint letter objecting the Biden administrations lead rule, arguing the benefits may be entirely speculative and it would infringe on the rights of the States and their residents. All told, it is a rallying cry that amounts to, Let them drink lead. Is it really the case that a political party is adamant about opposing clean water policies that improve public health and create good local jobs? It would seem so, and it is a curious contrast to draw in the months ahead of a presidential election. $60 billion price tag Now, there is one sliver of truth in this Republican opposition to lead pipe removal: the price tag. While the bipartisan infrastructure plan dedicates $15 billion to these programs, the full cost to replace all lead lines is closer to $60 billion. The Republican position seems to be do nothing, or close to it. But if you are concerned about improving public health, you find a way to secure more funding. The truth is that it would be unfair and unwise to leave it up to states and municipalities to foot the bill; the communities most severely impacted by lead contamination do not have the funds to fix the problem. Wenonah Hauter is the founder and executive director of Food & Water Watch and Food & Water Action. There is legislation that will address these and other issues. The WATER Act, introduced by Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ) would devote $35 billion every year to replace lead pipes, repair crumbling infrastructure and update treatment facilities to make sure everyone in the country has clean, safe water. Already cosponsored by more than 100 Congressmembers, the WATER Act is the kind of big picture legislation that will create thousands of good jobs and secure clean water for all. Wenonah Hauter is the executive director of Food & Water Action, the political and lobbying arm of the national advocacy group Food & Water Watch. This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: NC spotlighted in Biden effort to clean up the nations water NC teacher who says he was fired for opposing Critical Race Theory wins settlement The North Carolina Governors School will adopt a new policy on faculty free speech rights and pay $21,000 to a teacher who claimed he was fired for speaking out against Critical Race Theory. In 2021, David Phillips filed a lawsuit alleging he was fired from the popular summer program after some staff members complained about his elective seminars criticizing Critical Race Theory. The lawsuit was dismissed in April after a settlement was reached. Phillips will receive pay for four years of the summer program, and the Governors School will approve a new policy on the free speech rights of faculty to give elective seminars. Teachers shouldnt be fired for fostering intellectual diversity on campus, Hal Frampton, Phillips attorney and senior counsel for Alliance Defending Freedom, said in a news release announcing the settlement. A good education includes providing students with a wide range of differing viewpoints to explore, The state says in the settlement that it denies Phillips claims but wants to resolve the entire matter on mutually agreeable terms. Program for gifted high school students The Governors School is a four-week summer program that serves gifted high school students pursuing academic and artistic endeavors. It will have campuses this summer at Meredith College in Raleigh and Greensboro College in Greensboro. The program was started in 1963 by Gov. Terry Sanford and is recognized as the oldest program of its kind in the nation and a model for other states. The program includes daily elective seminars. Examples of recent seminars, according to the student handbook, include Women in Comic Books: The Subjugation of Superpowers, The Paradox of Southern Feminism and Design For Ecological Democracy. In 2021, Phillips gave three seminars critiquing concepts from Critical Race Theory and the increasing ideological bias and lack of viewpoint diversity in higher education. The lawsuit said students and faculty members came to the seminars making comments that referenced whiteness, maleness, heteronormativity, and Christianity and saying they disagreed with Phillips views. Critical Race Theory is a scholarly framework that describes how race, class, gender, and sexuality organize American life, according to the UNC-Chapel Hill history department. The lawsuit comes amid a national debate over whether Critical Race Theory, also known as CRT, is being taught in K-12 classrooms. The day after the seminar on viewpoint diversity in higher education, Phillips said he was told that his employment was being terminated effective immediately. Truitt criticized teacher who sued state The lawsuit had named the state Department of Public Instruction and several current and former DPI and Governors School employees as defendants. DPI runs the Governors School. The lawsuit prompted State Superintendent Catherine Truitt to write a letter to lawmakers in 2021 saying she had made changes that protect the students and faculty from any woke/inappropriate materials finding their way into the curriculum, The News & Observer previously reported. David Phillips filed a lawsuit in 2021 charging he was fired from his position as an English instructor at the North Carolina Governors School because of his seminars opposing Critical Race Theory. While never mentioning Phillips by name, Truitt told lawmakers in the 2021 letter that the teacher was dismissed for their conduct, not their content. Instead, as the facts will show, this person made students very uncomfortable, belittled them, used racial slurs, and even brought some students to tears, all without allowing for any discussion or open dialogue as required by NC DPI, Truitt told lawmakers. That is not what we should expect of any person in authority, particularly someone teaching inside a classroom. Alliance Defending Freedom said Truitts allegations were false. Truitts lack of support for Phillips led to complaints from some conservative groups. Truitt lost the Republican primary in March to Michele Morrow, an activist who has accused public schools of indoctrinating students. Seminars will present wide range of viewpoints Under the settlement, the Governors School Board of Trustees agreed to adopt a policy on elective seminars that will be put into the employee handbook. The new policy says the program strives to offer elective seminars that present a wide range of viewpoints. It also says faculty members are encouraged to develop seminars that will challenge students to think critically and in new ways. While the Governors School retains authority to select which seminars will be presented and to set expectations in the manner of presentation, it accords faculty members the freedom and responsibility to craft academic and intellectual experiences that reflect their unique viewpoints and expertise, according to the policy. The settlement says any changes to the policy will be consistent with the First Amendment, the North Carolina Declaration of Rights and applicable law. Dr. Phillips was beloved, respected, and well-regarded by both students and faculty as an advocate for students who felt that their voices werent being heard and their perspectives werent welcomed at the Governors School, said Frampton, Phillips attorney. Were pleased to favorably settle this case on his behalf. Now, the Governors Schools policy rightly respects teachers freedom of speech, which greatly benefits all students and families. Photo illustration by Getty Images. Nearly a quarter of adults disenrolled from Medicaid in the past year say they are now uninsured, according to a survey released last month that details how tens of millions of Americans struggled to retain coverage in the government insurance program for low-income people after pandemic-era protections began expiring last spring. The first national survey of adults whose Medicaid eligibility was reviewed during the unwinding found nearly half of people who lost their government coverage signed back up weeks or months later suggesting they should never have been dropped in the first place. While 23% reported being uninsured, an additional 28% found other coverage through an employer, Medicare, the Affordable Care Acts insurance marketplace, or health care for members of the military, the survey by KFF found. Twenty-three percent is a striking number especially when you think about the number of people who lost Medicaid coverage, said Chima Ndumele, an associate professor of health policy at the Yale University School of Public Health. Going without insurance even for a short period of time can lead people to delay seeking care and leave them at financial risk when they do. Seven in 10 adults who were disenrolled during the unwinding process say they became uninsured at least temporarily when they lost their Medicaid coverage. Adrienne Hamar, 49, of Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania, said she struggled to enroll in an Affordable Care Act marketplace plan this winter after the state informed her that she and her two children no longer qualified for Medicaid. They had been enrolled since 2020. She said phone lines were busy at the states marketplace and she couldnt complete the process online. Hamar, who works as a home health aide, and her children were uninsured in March. But since April 1, theyve been enrolled in a marketplace plan that, with the help of government subsidies, costs $50 a month for the family. I was very relieved, she said. Unsure of their insurance status, Hamar said, her 23-year-old daughter delayed getting a dental checkup. Hamars struggles were common, the survey found. Of adults enrolled in Medicaid before the unwinding, about 35% who tried to renew their coverage described the process as difficult, and about 48% said it was at least somewhat stressful. About 56% of those disenrolled say they skipped or delayed care or prescriptions while attempting to renew their Medicaid coverage. Peoples current insurance status is likely to be very much in flux, and we would expect at least some of the people who say they are currently uninsured to reenroll in Medicaid many say they are still trying or enroll in other coverage within a short period of time, said Jennifer Tolbert, a co-author of the KFF report and the director of KFFs State Health Reform and Data Program. The survey didnt include children, and the KFF researchers said their findings therefore couldnt be extrapolated to determine how the Medicaid unwinding has affected the overall U.S. uninsured rate, which hit a record low of 7.7% in early 2023. Nearly half of enrollees in Medicaid and the related Childrens Health Insurance Program are children. The unwinding, in which states are reassessing eligibility for Medicaid among millions of Americans who enrolled before or during the pandemic and dropping those who no longer qualify or did not complete the renewal process, wont be completed until later this year. Enrollment in Medicaid and CHIP grew to a record of nearly 94.5 million in April of last year, three years after the federal government prohibited states from cutting people from their rolls during the covid-19 public health emergency. Nationally, states have disenrolled about 20 million people from Medicaid in the past year, most of them for procedural reasons such as failure to submit required paperwork. That number is expected to grow, as states have a few more months to redetermine enrollees eligibility. Among adults who had Medicaid prior to the start of the unwinding, 83% retained their coverage or reenrolled, while 8% found other insurance and 8% were uninsured. The share left uninsured was larger in states that have not expanded Medicaid under the ACA (17%) than in states that have (6%). Forty states have expanded Medicaid to cover everyone with an income under 138% of the federal poverty rate, or $31,200 for a family of four this year. The KFF survey found that nearly 1 in 3 disenrolled adults discovered only when they sought health care such as going to a doctor or a pharmacy that they had been dropped from Medicaid. Indira Navas of Miami found out that her 6-year-old son, Andres, had been disenrolled from Floridas Medicaid program when she took him to a doctor appointment in March. She had scheduled Andres appointment months in advance and is frustrated that he remains uninsured and his therapy for anxiety and hyperactivity has been disrupted. Navas said the state could not explain why her 12-year-old daughter, Camila, remained covered by Medicaid even though the children live in the same household with their parents. It doesnt make sense that they would cover one of my children and not the other, she said. Kate McEvoy, executive director of the National Association of Medicaid Directors, said the sheer volume of millions of people being redetermined for eligibility has overwhelmed some state call centers trying to support enrollees. She said states have tried many ways to communicate with enrollees, including through public outreach campaigns, text, email, and apps. Until the moment your coverage is at stake, its hard to penetrate peoples busy lives, she said. The KFF survey, of 1,227 adults who had Medicaid coverage in early 2023 prior to the start of the unwinding on April 1, 2023, was conducted between Feb. 15, 2024, and March 11, 2024. The margin of sampling error was plus or minus 4 percentage points. KFF Health News correspondent Daniel Chang contributed to this article. KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFFan independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. The post Nearly 1 in 4 adults dumped from Medicaid are now uninsured, survey finds appeared first on Daily Montanan. Nearly 8-foot gator subjected to selfies, poking as it crosses road, TN officials say Onlookers harassed a nearly 8-foot gator that was spotted crossing a road in Tennessee, where gators are uncommon but have been reported in recent years, wildlife officials said. The Fayette County Sheriffs Office first reported the gator May 6, according to Amy Spencer with the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. A deputy snapped a photo of the reptile sticking out into the road of a wetland area and sent it to wildlife officials. Its like something you would see in Florida, Spencer told McClatchy News over the phone. But the gator had attracted some unwanted attention. Spencer described the scene as a total lack of respect for wildlife. Videos shared on social media show a man poking the gator with a long stick and others laughing off-camera as the gator snaps at him. Spencer said people were taking photos with the gator as well, and wildlife officials had to tell them to leave the animal alone. Residents of Fayette County, and Tennessee as a whole, might be unaccustomed to seeing gators, but the reptiles have been reported multiple times in the state since 2018, according to the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. The sighting closely follows another encounter in March in eastern Tennessee, when an angler caught a small gator while fishing, McClatchy News previously reported. That gator was likely a pet that was released into the wild, officials said. Other than that sighting, the reports have originated in three southwest counties, including the Memphis area, the wildlife agency said. The American alligators range used to be much wider, but today the creatures live about as far north as Arkansas, according to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Southwest Tennessee lies along the border of Arkansas and the Mississippi River, so some gators may be trickling into the area, wildlife officials advise. Theyre moving back into their original home range from the south and west, Spencer said. Although gators have been popping up in the state, Tennesseans likely dont have to worry too much. Alligators are just another species we must learn to coexist with, like many other southern states, Spencer told McClatchy News. Wildlife officials advise people to never feed gators, swim in designated areas during daytime hours, and keep pets on leashes. If you encounter an alligator while enjoying the outdoors in West (Tennessee), its best to leave it be and take a moment to appreciate the unique biodiversity of Tennessee, a testament to the richness and diversity of our environment, Spencer said. Fayette County borders Mississippi and is about a 45-mile drive east from Memphis. Goofy alligator crawls into Florida road, snuggles responding police car, photo shows All-white baby gator rarest alligator in the world on display in Florida. See her Alligator found hiding in landing gear of plane at Florida Air Force Base, photos show Barefoot man recorded jumping on alligator in Florida highway. Hold my sweet tea Months after the birth of her first daughter, Woods met with hospital authorities to discuss her experience At least the babys healthy thats the main thing. If I heard that sometimes well-meant, sometimes passive-aggressive, always dismissive phrase once, I heard it a dozen times in the hours, days and weeks after the traumatic birth of my first baby. I believe it was even used, months later, when my husband and I had a formal meeting with the hospital authorities. I was still at the stage of crying constantly and breast fed the whole way through. The hospital brought a lawyer, dressed to the nines, with what used to be called an It bag placed conspicuously on the table. To show just how serious she was. Its hard to project seriousness when you barely sleep due to the flashbacks. When youre so morbidly depressed you spend much of your time secretly choosing hymns for your own funeral. When you are so psychologically shattered that first you are diagnosed with postnatal depression and then with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) from a terrifying, mismanaged birth. And it turns out, I wasnt alone then and am still not now. On May 13 we heard from the aptly named birth trauma inquiry, the first of its kind in the UK, that has brought together evidence from more than 1,300 women. From life-changing birth injuries to stillborn babies, the inquiry has merely skimmed the surface of the lived trauma: an estimated 30,000 women each year in the UK endure negative experiences during the birth of their children. One in 20, like me, develop PTSD. Back in May 2002, I was pregnant with my first child. I was overdue and the size of a Zeppelin, so the decision was taken to have the birth induced at 42 weeks. I had no inkling then that induction was such an outrageously inexact science as to be wholly unpredictable. Judith Woods had post-natal depression after the birth of her daughter Lily. Both are pictured here in 2018 - Clara Molden I was given Prostin, a drug containing the hormone prostaglandin, vaginally to bring on labour, but after several hours (and a walk to Tesco to buy size 20 paper knickers) I was just one centimetre dilated. Several hours later not much was happening, so I was taken onto the ward, where a midwife arrived with more of the medication. Both my husband and I vividly remember her um-ing and ah-ing about how much to administer. She had two doses in her hand, one twice as high as the other, and was clearly indecisive about which one to choose; she eventually administered the higher one and hurried away. It would be hours yet. Except it wasnt hours. Within minutes I was in agonising pain; from having no contractions, I had been slammed into a wall of pain, from nowhere, with no let-up. My husband called her back, she refused to listen. This was to be the pattern. When he could find her which wasnt easy, often he had to go and search for her she would come into the cubicle, scold me for having a low pain threshold and repeat, as if to an idiot, that I wasnt in labour. She grudgingly gave me gas and air which I suspected was more to shut me up as it barely had an effect and made her exasperation at my whinging abundantly clear. I thought I was dying. I was beyond scared. I begged her for an epidural and she almost shouted at me: You are not in labour! Eventually I lost it and bellowed at her to at least lift the sheet and check. She rolled her eyes, lifted the sheet and literally screamed: Oh my God, what am I going to do? I was soaked in blood, had dilated from one centimetre to 10 and was about to give birth. This process can take up anything from eight to 18 hours with a first baby. It had taken me an hour and a half hence the unspeakable pain. She stood panicking then yelled at my husband to wheel my bed to the labour room as I prayed aloud. What followed felt like butchery; I was still in spasm, it was too late for pain relief and the baby was in distress. The obstetrician called for a ventouse (a vacuum extractor). She was given one that was the wrong size and rejected it, demanding the correct one. A nurse left the room and returned, saying they didnt have the size the obstetrician wanted, so she used the original one, putting her foot against the bed to pull, beads of sweat pouring down off her nose. All she succeeded in doing was ripping the skin off the top of the babys head. She eventually resorted to a forceps delivery; my daughter was blue and her Apgar score an assessment of a newborns health was just one on a scale of 10. Two nightmarish minutes followed in which the doctor and other staff bustled about her looking worried, and another doctor was summoned in to help. Judith Woods suffered from post-natal depression after the birth of her first daughter in 2002 Fortunately Lily recovered immediately, whereupon a new and aggressive midwife immediately started feeding her a bottle of formula even when my husband I begged her not to. I was then wheeled into surgery as I had torn very badly; I got the epidural I begged for and sewing me up took slightly longer than the birth. I returned to find the same midwife holding a bottle of milk. I implored her not to feed my daughter, but she ignored me, and proceeded to push the teat into my babys mouth as tears streamed down my face. The baby was hungry, she said. Not my baby. The baby. We brought her home, and although the main thing was indeed that she was healthy, I refused to accept that I didnt matter too. My mental health deteriorated. I no longer slept or ate much either. Antidepressants took the edge off but I was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and received 18 months therapy as an outpatient at The Priory. Did I mention I was unable to have sex for three years? That my marriage hung on a thread? But this was all in the future when we went to get some answers from the hospital. The missing-in-action midwife, we were informed, no longer worked there. The bully with the bottle had undergone training. Did my experience show up on any official paperwork? Certainly I was assured fobbed off, as it transpired that I would be consulted about a new leaflet that would be produced for pregnant women to explain induction. I never had any further dealings with the hospital. Until that is, I finally became pregnant again. In 2008, I went to see the consultant obstetrician, told her about my awful first birth and asked her if she could guarantee I would have a midwife second time round. To my utter horror, she said she couldnt. I asked for a caesarean section, which was not what I wanted. She agreed. But then I developed gestational diabetes, the date was brought forward and in my confusion she suggested I be induced and if that didnt do the trick, she would personally perform a caesarean before she went off shift. The induction didnt work. She went off shift. In the small hours of the morning a very grumpy obstetrician tried to give me an epidural, missed twice and punctured my dural membrane, the sac that keeps fluid in the spinal cord and brain. It felt like torture; electric nerve shocks ran up and down my legs. Over the next few days the fluid would drain away, leaving me crippled and contorted with a blinding headache that caused me to hunch over and meant I could only see out of one eye. But first the emergency caesarean, when the scalpel cut into my abdomen before the spinal block had taken hold. Nerves to my bladder were severed. By then it seemed par for the course. Back on the ward the baby seemed fine, but I felt she wasnt. Again, nobody believed me. I was prescribed caffeine tablets for my headache but there werent any so instead it was written on my notes that I should be given six cups of strong coffee a day. Meanwhile the hospital took days to track down the semi-retired eminence grise who seemed to be the only doctor in London who could close over the hole in my dural membrane with a blood patch. The room was packed with young medics watching as he performed the procedure. There may have been applause. After that, I was bustled into leaving, although I kept repeating the baby never opened her eyes, wasnt latching on and didnt seem quite right. The midwives gaslit me and would brook no argument until suddenly a furious neonatal consultant swept in, and ordered them to transfer my daughter to the special baby care unit immediately, and of course, scolded me for not alerting anyone to the problem. It transpired that one midwife did believe me but nobody would listen to her either, so she waited until she was off-shift and phoned the doctor with her concerns. Because yes, that is what the NHS has come to. Woods with her daughters Lily and Tabitha Its the luck of the draw, whos on duty. Are they overstretched, undertrained or both? My second daughter left special baby care and joined me on the ward. She was still comatose and I was told to express breast milk into a bottle and squeeze droplets into her mouth. The staff refused to help because they did not encourage bottle feeding. Even when I pointed out the medical need, they wouldnt give me a bottle brush, a label or even lend me a pen to write on the labels my husband had to bring in for me. My daughter, Tabitha, recovered. I succumbed once more to postnatal depression. Again I wrote to complain, to highlight the dogmatic insanity and the unfeeling, brutal way I was treated at every turn. I received a non-committal letter that sidestepped all responsibility. Thats the thing about maternity care in this country nobody listens. Will this government report make a difference? Im sorry to say I dont have high hopes; in a culture where complaints fall on deaf ears, Im not sure what it takes to be heard. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Disclaimer: This article contains mentions of assault. Reader discretion is advised. Nicholas Alahverdian is a registered sex offender and accused rapist who remained a fugitive for the longest time. People Magazine reported that he was facing rape charges in Utah when he fled to Scotland after faking his own death. Alahverdian goes by many aliases including Nichola Rossi and Arthur Knight Brown. Last December, he lost an appeal in Scotland, after which the alleged rapist was extradited to the U.S. The outlet stated that authorities in Glasgow, Scotland, arrested Alahverdian in December 2021. At the time, the 35-year-old was admitted to the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital for Covid-19 treatment, per BBC. The grounds for his arrest were that he had the same tattoos and fingerprints as Alahverdian or Rossi, a wanted fugitive. The accused has maintained that he is an Irish-born orphan named Arthur Knight Brown. He further alleged that he has never spent time in the U.S. A Dateline NBC episode previously revisited the alleged crimes of sex offender Nicholas Alahverdian. The episode titled Dead Man Talking premiered in April 2023. Radio Times stated that Alahverdian featured in the said episode alongside his wife, insisted, I am not Nicholas Alahverdian! I do not know how to make this clearer. He has alleged that it is a case of mistaken identity and that prosecutors are trying to frame him in the case. People Magazine stated that Alahverdian is in jail in Utah jail without the possibility of bail. The accused is yet to enter a plea to the charges he faces. What are the allegations against alleged fugitive Nicholas Alahverdian? According to BBC, Nicholas Alahverdian was first convicted of sex crimes in Ohio in 2008. The conviction on the counts of sexual imposition and public indecency when he was a student at Sinclair College in Dayton. Alahverdian presently faces charges in Utah from a case that happened that same year. He allegedly sexually assaulted his former girlfriend in Orem reported AP News. CBS News further stated that other charges he faces are from failing to register as a sex offender in Rhode Island. BBC stated that Alahverdian first revealed he had non-Hodgkin lymphoma in December 2019. He claimed he was in the final stages of his life and only had two weeks to live. Just months later, an obituary surfaced announcing his death, per People Magazine. The obituary stated that he died of non-Hodgkin lymphoma on February 29, 2020. It further mentioned his last moments with family members and claimed his last words were, Fear not and run toward the bliss of the sun. Months after the news of Nicholas Alahverdians apparent death, a Utah County prosecutor filed rape charges against him in August 2020. Then, after nearly two years, in December 2021, authorities in Scotland arrested Alahverdian while he was using his alias, Arthur Knight Brown. He was getting COVID-19 treatment from the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow when the hospital noticed his tattoos. They had previously seen the tattoos of the alleged rapist through images that Interpol had circulated. Alahverdian, whose fingerprints also matched those of the convicted sex offender, has maintained that he is Arthur Knight Brown. Additionally, he has alleged that someone from the National Health Service took his fingerprints in an attempt to frame him in the alleged rape case. His other claims alleged that authorities gave him similar tattoos to the accused after placing him in a coma. The fugitive further maintains that it is likely a case of mistaken identity. During the accuseds extradition hearing in Scotland, his wife Miranda Knight claimed her husband was Nicholas Brown. Miranda, who also submitted their marriage certificate to the court, alleged that he showed no signs that he was Alahverdian. According to BBC, the couple married in Bristol in 2020. However, reportedly, the accused could not produce a birth certificate, claiming that a family in Ireland had adopted him. He further alleged to have moved to London while he was a teenager. Nicholas Alahverdian, who is originally from Rhode Island, spent most of his childhood in foster homes, per People Magazine. This led to him turning into a vocal critic of the Department of Children, Youth, and Families, given the abuse he faced growing up in foster homes. The obituary via which Alahverdian allegedly announced his death in early 2020 also mentions bits about his early life. When just a boy of 14, he started working for the state and, about four years later, became the youngest lobbyist in Rhode Island history. All sources stated that Alahverdian has more than 10 aliases Nicholas Rossi and Arthur Knight Brown being the known two. Earlier this year, in January 2024, he made a court appearance via video call from jail after his extradition. The accused is yet to enter a plea in the 2008 rape case against him. Per BBC, Essex authorities continue to investigate another rape allegation against Nicholas Alahverdian or Arthur Knight Brown. Authorities first received a report of his alleged rape in 2022, which dates back to 2017, stated another BBC report. The post Who Is Nicholas Alahverdian & Where Is He Now? appeared first on ComingSoon.net - Movie Trailers, TV & Streaming News, and More. Nigel Farage: We must be prepared to leave WHO over pandemic treaty WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Nigel Farage accused the body of wanting to be 'health dictators' - Fabrice Coffrini/Reuters Britain should leave the World Health Organisation rather than hand it the power to force the country into lockdown during pandemics, Nigel Farage has told The Telegraph. The president of Reform UK described the WHO as a failing, expensive, unelected, unaccountable, supranational body that wants to run roughshod over nation states by dictating health policy to them. The WHO is proposing a pandemic treaty that would be legally binding on all 194 member states, and is pushing for mandatory lockdowns and vaccinations. It hopes to reach an agreement later in May. The Government has insisted it would never hand over authority to the WHO over whether lockdowns should be imposed, but Mr Farage says ministers should be prepared to go further and leave the Geneva-based body if necessary. Nigel Farage opposes a WHO pandemic treaty legally binding on all 194 member states - Eddie Mulholland He has joined forces with the international pressure group Action on World Health (AWH), which on Monday launches a campaign to reform the WHO. AWH says the WHO has repeatedly failed to protect the public, by wrongly insisting in January 2020 that there was no human to human transmission of Covid-19 and by proving ineffective during the 2014-16 Ebola outbreak in West Africa and the 2003 Sars outbreak in East Asia. The group also wants to slash the WHOs budget of 5.5 billion, mostly funded by the US, the UK and the EU, and prevent mission creep if and when the WHO uses future Cop climate conferences to make changes to the treaty behind closed doors. Mr Farage said: Lets have a proper debate about what the WHO is for. We dont want this treaty to be signed, we think the WHO should go back to first principles. Were more than happy to have an early warning system for a pandemic and we are happy to help other countries but we will do it all on a cooperative basis, and if that doesnt happen we should say were very sorry, its not for us. Mr Farage wants Parliament to debate the issue, and intends to launch a petition that will oblige MPs to debate the matter if it gets enough signatures. The World Health Organisation headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland - Denis Balibouse/Reuters He said the WHO can be a force for good in the world but had overshot its remit. Its shocking that someone in Geneva that we didnt vote for could force us into lockdown, he said. In the US, all 49 Republican senators have written to Joe Biden, the president, urging him not to sign the treaty. They said it would be unacceptable to expand the WHOs authority over member states during pandemics, adding that the WHO did lasting harm to our country because of its failures during the pandemic. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Subscription to paid content Gain access to all that Trend has to offer, as well as to premium, licensed content via subscription or direct purchase through a credit card. As scandal-plagued Sen. Robert Menendez went on trial Monday in Manhattan, his son is battling for his own political survival across the Hudson River in New Jersey. After winning the seat in 2022, first-term Rep. Rob Menendez Jr. faces a powerful Democratic primary challenge from Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla in the 8th District once held by his powerful father. The younger Menendez portrays himself as a hard-working progressive with no ties to his fathers alleged corruption. Bhalla counters that Rep. Rob Menendez Jr. owes his position to his famous family name and the powerful Democratic machine that has a particularly strong grip on the north Jersey district, which includes Jersey City and most of Hudson County. Polls show a potentially tight race in the June 4 election. A survey commissioned by Bhalla shows him just 3% behind Menendez, although the incumbents own poll showed him with a much wider lead. Bhalla boasts overwhelmingly positive approval numbers while voters are split over Menendez, with a potentially large number of people associating him with his scandal-tarred father. The Menendez name remains a significant liability, pollster Anna Greenberg said in a memo obtained by the New Jersey Globe. Jury selection began Monday in the trial of Sen. Robert Menendez Sr. on charges he accepted bribes, including cash and gold bars, in exchange for using his position to help the governments of Egypt and Qatar. The elder Menendez has pulled out of the states Democratic Senate primary. Rep. Andy Kim is expected to win that race by a lopsided margin after First Lady Tammy Murphy pulled the plug on her campaign. It also reflects a changing face of New Jersey Democratic politics and the waning power of the once omnipotent party machine, which once boasted an iron grip on strongholds of Hudson County, Newark and Camden in south Jersey. The race is the first New Jersey primary in decades to be carried out without the so-called county line ballot system, which gave candidates backed by Democratic organization a huge advantage. A federal judge recently ruled the county line is unconstitutional and ordered its abolition. The single biggest chunk of votes in the district are in Jersey City, which is close to Hoboken in demographics and would be expected to be a stronghold for Bhalla. But Menendez will be hoping to run up the score in heavily-Latino Union City and North Bergen, along with slivers of machine-friendly Newark and Elizabeth where Bhalla is not well known. NJ-08 is a deep blue district and the winner of the Democratic primary will be an overwhelming favorite to win over token Republican opposition in the November election. ARLINGTON, Virginia The second-in-command of the Marine Corps is a pilot. But he still sees ground combat as the core of the Corps. I have to say, I am not from your tribe Im from a different tribe, Assistant Commandant Gen. Christopher Mahoney told a crowd that included dozens of Marine grunts at the Marine Corps Associations Ground Awards Dinner on Thursday in Arlington, Virginia. I grew up in a tribe that had one purpose, and that was to support your tribe. There is no other excuse for my tribe, he continued. There never has been. In a service that prides itself on its tough infantry, most top leaders have themselves been career infantry officers. Now-retired Gen. James Amos, the Corps first aviator commandant, was unpopular among some Marines who bristled at being led by a general from outside the infantry community. Mahoney who served as acting commandant for four months while Commandant Gen. Eric Smith (an infantry officer) recovered from a cardiac arrest is another aviator. He has amassed more than 5,000 hours of flight time in the A-6, F-5, F-18 and F-35, according to his official bio. But he also is a graduate of the infantry officer course. And, on Thursday, he had some fiery words of praise for the Marines who train to fight on land. You, as the ground combat element, are the purveyors of constitutional violence, Mahoney said. You are the righteous destroyers. If 2,500 years of military history points us in a direction, you are the deciders. You are the finishers. Corps leaders have said the war in Ukraine demonstrates Marines should be prepared to knock out ships with long-range fires, surveil adversaries in all domains and work to avoid detection themselves. Although Mahoney reiterated those points on Thursday, he also pointed out that the bloody, protracted fighting in Ukraine has taken place primarily on the ground. Marine 3-star myth-busts notions about Force Design 2030 At the same event, Mahoney honored the winners of the Corps best squad competition: 1st Squad, 1st Platoon, Charlie Company, 3rd Littoral Combat Team, 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment. Mahoney gave each Marine in the squad, and one Navy corpsman, a handshake and a hearty punch on the arm. Then the general posed for a group photo with the young infantrymen. He positioned himself at the very edge of the group. This story was updated at 2:40 p.m. The Oregon Department of Justice will not pursue criminal charges against Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission employees for diverting coveted bottles of rare liquor for themselves and lawmakers, assistant Oregon Attorney General Lisa Upland said in a letter Monday to Gov. Tina Kotek. The OLCC had a "long-standing agency practice" where an OLCC employee could request a specific product be transferred to a liquor store for personal purchase, according to the report attached to Upland's letter. This practice predated the 2018 "Chance to Purchase Program," a lottery-style program that allows the public to win the option to purchase highly sought-after liquor. One employee interviewed said the practice was in place before she joined the OLCC 30 years ago. The DOJ investigation determined there was no specific written policy prohibiting or permitting the internal distribution practice or training to advise employees not to engage in the practice. An ethical review of employees' conduct is underway by the Oregon Government Ethics Commission, with documents and reports from the criminal investigation available to the commission. A DOJ investigation was initiated in February 2023 after an internal investigation revealed top leaders at the OLCC used their positions to divert rare bottles of bourbon for at least eight years. Six OLCC employees, including then executive director Steven Marks, were identified in the initial investigation as participants. Marks resigned after Kotek asked for him to step down. Craig Prins, inspector general for Oregon's Department of Corrections, was appointed interim director following Marks' resignation. Thousands of documents, 40 interviews in OLCC investigation According to the report by the criminal justice division, more than 40 people were interviewed during the investigation, including former and current commission employees, associates of employees, OLCC commissioners, liquor store agents, employees, personnel, legislators, and citizens who filed complaints. She said investigators also reviewed more than 10,000 OLCC internal documents, reports and emails. It is critical that Oregonians have trust in our state agencies, their leaders and employees. I am pleased with the thoroughness of the investigation and the professionalism demonstrated by our DOJ team, led by CJ [Criminal Justice] Chief Counsel Slauson, and including AAGs Kurt Miller and Toby Tingleaf, and Special Agents Vince Cui and Keri Jasso, the release said. Agents determined multiple OLCC employees, including individuals who also were subjects of the OLCC internal investigation, would occasionally ask the acting OLCC distribution center manager to send a certain bottle of liquor to a specific store for them to purchase. The OLCC distribution manager would then contact a liquor store to advise employees that the product was being sent for a specific customer. The criminal justice division report said the manager could not provide details of a specific instance where a requested product was routed to a particular OLCC employee. The report by the Department of Justice said business records revealed one liquor store near an OLCC office was often used to facilitate this kind of purchase. The report did not name the store, which transferred ownership after the dates being investigated. The new owners did not have the inventory or point-of-sale data related to the investigation. Interviewing the prior liquor agent, prior owner and employees of the prior owner also provided no specifics or details for any transaction involving an OLCC employee, the report said. "We found that the evidence available to us supports a conclusion that some employees used their positions to obtain high demand, difficult to find, liquor for themselves or others, but that same evidence fell short of establishing the particulars of any instance in which an employee did so," the report concluded. The criminal justice division also sued for the bank records of some OLCC employees to attempt to track purchases in reverse, according to the report. Agents, however, were unable to identify a specific liquor purchase directly related to a requested transfer when reviewing those financial records. No criminal charges warranted, Oregon DOJ concludes The DOJ report said the investigation determined evidence "plainly" supports two elements of first-degree official misconduct but proof that employees' actions were "factually unauthorized" or that they knew the conduct was unauthorized is not as clear. "Even though the employees behavior may have breached ethical standards, there is no explicit policy prohibiting the specific conduct, we found no evidence of relevant training, and the practice appears to have been longstanding and endorsed by at least one executive director," the DOJ report said. Upland's letter said that has since changed. The letter said the DOJ was aware of and supported the OLCCs decision to adopt a policy prohibiting employees from the internal diversion practice. Upland said they also supported providing ongoing training to OLCC employees on ethical obligations. OLCC spokesperson Matthew Van Sickle said the agency enacted the policy in May 2023 and employees attended a mandatory ethics training session conducted by the Oregon Government Ethics Commission in August 2023. "OLCC will use the DOJ report to continue to improve the agencys policies, processes, and procedures," Sickle said. "In light of our responsibility to prove each element of a criminal offense beyond a reasonable doubt and the sufficiency of the evidence currently available to us, we have determined that criminal charges are not warranted," the DOJ investigation said. Dianne Lugo covers the Oregon Legislature and equity issues. Reach her at dlugo@statesmanjournal.com or on Twitter @DianneLugo This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Oregon DOJ concludes criminal investigation into rare bourbon scandal Dollar store workers dont feel at ease in the Big Easy. With the help of Step Up Louisiana, a workers rights organization, dollar store workers and their supporters throughout New Orleans will carry out worker-led and customer-led actions through the month of May. More from Sourcing Journal Kenya Slaughter, an organizer with Step Up Louisiana, used to work in a Dollar General store. She said the work conditions often felt unsafe, uncleanly or otherwise unenticing. Though she left the store she worked at about a year ago, Slaughter still works with dozens of dollar store workers who experience the same issues she didand sometimes on a more exacerbated level. Step Up Louisiana released a report focused on the health and safety conditions of dollar stores throughout New Orleans in April. The findings showed that a number of stores in the region had slip-and-fall hazards, electrical issues, sanitation problems and more. The report also found that, among over 300 stores, about 60 percent of dollar stores in New Orleans were pervasively understaffed, with only one or two employees working. Slaughter said violence in dollar stores has also been a major problem for workers, whether because of robberies, gun violence or other incidents. In Slaughters former store, she said, a woman rushed into the building with a machete and locked herself in the employees break room. When incidents like that occur, Slaughter said, workers in understaffed stores without security struggle to respond appropriately and fear for their lives. While many dollar stores have panic buttons inside of them, Slaughter said Step Up Louisiana has found that many of them are broken. Safety measures that are already put into place just arent working, and when I say that, I mean panic buttons that dont work. If youre going to have a panic button, make sure it works. Make sure the people on the other end of it are coming in hot, becauseI need to feel safe. I need to know that Im guarded, protected and valued, she told Sourcing Journal. In response to those conditions and others, the group is organizing a worker-led protest on May 15 for dollar store workers in New Orleans. The workers will call for fair pay of at least $15 an hour. David Williams, a stocker who has worked in a New Orleans Dollar General store for nearly five years, said the pay dollar store workers receive is not sufficient relative to the duties they are expected to perform. He said even though Dollar General tells its employees it values them, it doesnt show that sentiment with its actions, specifically around wages. Were all trying to strive and survive in this worldso I believe everybody deserves a fair wage to survive, to keep their finances right, to pay their rent, pay the bills, save up for vacation, he told Sourcing Journal. At the end of the day, were not looking for [a] pizza party; were not trying to go to Chuck E. Cheese. Were just trying to survive in this world that we live in. The worker-led action will also call for stable work environments and increased safety provisions in stores. The protest will take place at a Dollar General store, located at 8201 Earhart Blvd., and will begin at 12:00 p.m. CT. Slaughter said the action is not a strike, but if the organization can muster up more support and confidence among workers, it may escalate to that in the future. We have to show [the companies] who has the power, where the power lies, but we also need the workers to commit to this, she told Sourcing Journal. At the moment, theres not any striking going on, but once we get a movement of a good number [of workers], were going to go for itand hopefully thats in the near future. A week later, on May 22, Step Up Louisiana has plans for a two-location customer-led action. Slaughter said organizers and workers will work to educate customers on the conditions workers face in stores every day. They will also circulate a petition asking for a security presence in stores. Slaughter said some dollar stores have spotty security, but dollar store workers feel that doesnt go far enough to offer them protection and believes customers should be aware of how the dysfunction workers face in stores could translate to a less-than-safe shopping environment. At the customer-led action, we will be getting the support of our communities and informing them on what were doing so they can stand with us in solidarity. Its a problem for the community, as well, these safety issues, Slaughter told Sourcing Journal. We want real security who can arrest, real security whos really paying attention, real security whos taking this seriously. And those security people need to be paid well, as well. The action will take place at a Dollar General store, located at 830 N Broad St., and at a Family Dollar store, located at 2650 Canal St. Slaughter said Step Up Louisiana doesnt have a specific goal in mind for the number of signatures organizers would like to obtain on that day, but she does plan to continue circulating the petition after the customer-led action day. The petition can still circulate without action going on. Well definitely still be trying to collect signatures [afterward] and potentially get the petition to actually move something [with these companies, Slaughter said. The [petition] is really letting customers know that they do have power. Theyve got to know who is fighting withand forthem. But the action doesnt stop there. Step Up Louisiana organizers have plans to travel to Goodlettsville, Tenn., to protest at Dollar Generals headquarters during its shareholders meeting, which will be held on May 29 at 12:00 p.m. CT. Slaughter said the organization has made the trek in the past, and shared the advocacy group has other activities planned that week in Tennessee. Slaughter said that while Step Up Louisianas calls extend to Dollar General, Dollar Tree and Family Dollar, which is owned by Dollar Tree, Dollar General seems to be the organizations main area of focus at the moment. Thats because, she said, Dollar Tree and Family Dollar came to Step Up Louisianas offices to speak to organizers. Though no action has come from the discussions organizers had with the companies, Slaughter said their willingness to meet is still more than the organization has seen from Dollar General. While none of the shareholders proposals in Dollar Generals 2024 proxy statement pertain to the rights and safety of in-store workers, Step Up Louisiana intends to use the protest as another form of advocacy for safer store infrastructure, a right to heal after exposure to harm in the workplace, worker input on new safety practices in stores and more. Slaughter said she hopes the actions planned throughout May inspire change in dollar stores, both in New Orleans and throughout the country. No one should feel fearful for their life going into work every day. That shouldnt be an issue, Slaughter said. You should feel safe at work the same way you do at home. Williams said speaking out about what he has experienced at Dollar Generaland participating in Step Up Louisianas protests and actionshelp him give a voice to workers who may otherwise not have one. Me and everybody else, we just want to see the company do bettertreat your employees how theyre supposed to be treated. Thats all were asking for; show us the respect, and give us what we deserve, he said. PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) North Carolina is receiving $543,000 in funding to help with stormwater and sewer infrastructure needs. The money was given through the Sewer Overflow and Stormwater Reuse Municipal Grant program through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Ensuring safe stormwater measures helps in preventing contaminants, including untreated sewage, from polluting waterways. Sewer overflows can cause significant health and environmental problems in communities, and this historic grant funding for stormwater and sewer upgrades will encourage and support better health for people and the environment, said Jeaneanne M. Gettle, Acting Region 4 Administrator. By Improving the infrastructure in the Southeast communities will be able to meet the challenges presented by a changing climate. Check with WAVY.com for more updates. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WAVY.com. The Liutyi (Fierce) Ukrainian long-range drone narrowly missed hitting its own flight control centre during initial tests at the end of April 2023. Source: UPs article "Sanctions from 1000 kilometres away: the story of the Ukrainian drone Liutyi (Fierce) burning Russian oil refineries". (English translation coming soon). Details: During its first combat trials, the Ukrainian drone aircraft was supposed to attack Zmiinyi (Snake) Island. However, a malfunction occurred, and 50 kilograms of explosives flew from the sea straight onto the coast of Odesa Oblast. It was impossible to issue an air-raid warning due to the secrecy of the trials. It turned out that the autopilot installed to control the flight simply didn't allow the aircraft to crash into the ground. Therefore, the armed drone smoothly gained the designated altitude, but instead of diving and crashing into the island, it levelled off and flew towards the "Home" point. Representatives from military high command (the exact individuals are unknown) and developers observed the launch from the launch site. They realised that the armed drone was flying straight towards them. Lieutenant General Mykola Oleshchuk, Commander of Ukraines Air Force, who also observed the launch, ordered combat aircraft to be scrambled to shoot down their own drone. But everything ended happily approximately 30 kilometres from the shore, operators finally picked up the signal and regained control of the drone. Quote from a member of the defence committee of the parliament, familiar with the course of the trials: "To be honest, nobody really believed in this drone. It's large, it's visible on radars. At that time, the Russians were already shooting down our Bayraktars (attack drones), so there was very little faith in our own development, made from scratch with no experience. And after they almost hit their own command centre with it, many simply shrugged off this project." Details: After the failure during the trials, the story of what is now Ukraine's most successful kamikaze drone could have ended before it even began. But the developers didn't give up. They created the first prototypes with their own funds, taught the drone to fly, and eventually managed to launch it for an attack. Two weeks later, on 3 May 2023, the developers triumphed. Unexpectedly for the local authorities, an oil depot in the Russian village of Volna on the Taman Peninsula caught fire in the middle of the night. As strikes reached Sochi, the Liutyis era began. Ukraine had obtained not just another drone, but the ability to deliver precise "fiery greetings" to targets over a distance of more than 1,000 kilometres. Read more details about all the ups and downs of creating the Liutyi Ukrainian long-range kamikaze drone and its achievements in Ukrainska Pravdas article. Support UP or become our patron! NV water right holders have little choice but to sell, say water regulators The state Division of Water Resources recently reported about 35 miles of dry channel with no flow on the Humboldt River. (Photo Credit: Colton Brunson, Water Commissioner, Nevada Division of Water Resources) Policy, politics and progressive commentary After two decades of dwindling aquifers, landowners in northern and central Nevada are choosing to surrender their groundwater rights to the state in exchange for cash payments, and more are waiting in line. Everyone from family farmers to residents in mid-sized towns depend on groundwater in Nevada, but over-pumping and persistent drought means there is simply not enough water to go around. The Voluntary Water Rights Retirement Program was allocated a total of $25 million in funding last year to address groundwater conflicts by purchasing groundwater rights from private landowners in over-pumped and over-appropriated basins in northern and central Nevada communities, and theres been massive interest. While the program is only available to landowners in about half of Nevadas counties, water rights sellers have offered to sell a total of $65.5 million in water rights in a matter of months about $40 million more than available funding. Farmers want to farm, said Jeff Fontaine, the executive director of the Central Nevada Regional Water Authority and the Humboldt River Basin Water Authority. But a lot of them see the writing on the wall. Throughout the Central Nevada Regional Water Authority region an agency created to proactively address water resource issues in the region there are 25 over-appropriated groundwater basins, eight of which are also over-pumped. An over-pumped basin is one that is pumped at a greater rate than it is replenished. Water regulators have until September to enter into contractual agreements and acquire those groundwater rights, but as of May the program has already received commitments to retire more than 25,000 acre-feet of ground water annually. Thats about the average amount of water in both the Boca Reservoir and Donner Lake any given year. Were gonna do that in one year, said James Settelmeyer, director of the Nevada Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, during a Joint Interim Standing Committee on Natural Resources meeting Friday. Due to high interest in the program not every application will result in a purchase, but state water regulators noted that not a single applicant has voluntarily dropped out of the program. We had some of the oldest ranches in the state that were looking at selling, Settelmeyer said, adding that the decision came down to the rising cost of digging deeper and deeper wells to reach the shrinking water table. Water rights holders are asking Do I drill another well or take my old well and go down an additional 200 to 300 feet? Or do I look at this program?' he said, adding, there are some that are getting a bit older and may not have someone willing to take over the property. Nevada landowners understand theyre between a rock and a hard place, said local water regulators. Fontaine, the executive director of the Central Nevada Regional Water Authority and the Humboldt River Basin Water Authority, said sharply declining groundwater levels is what motivated farmers in Humboldt Countys Middle Reese River Valley and Antelope Valley to sell. Some of the applicants we talked to were looking at having to spend potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars to deepen their wells. And at some point they realized that the situation isnt getting any better anytime soon, Fontaine said, during the Friday meeting. Most of the funding will likely go to Eurekas Diamond Valley, a small farming community in central Nevada, and the states only critical management area, as designated by the Nevada State Water Engineer. The designation means the valleys groundwater levels are rapidly declining, and groundwater rights holders in the area are required to create a plan to address over-pumping or risk losing their rights. More water rights than water If all sales go through, the state expects to retire about 30% of the annual groundwater yield in Diamond Valley, Fontaine said. Water regulators said the program application process was designed to purchase water rights that are in regular use and to weed out water rights sellers who have not pumped over the last five years, in order to effectively address shrinking aquifers in northern and central Nevada. Decades of granting more water rights than actual available water has left Nevada in a difficult position. Before electricity and modern pumping technology was available, there was little threat of draining an aquifer but times have changed, Fontaine said. The state did over-appropriate these groundwater basins. The past thinking was that water users were not going to put their entire allocations to use, he said. Colorado, Kansas and Oregon have set up similar programs. But those programs have not seen the level of interest and demand Nevadas water retirement program has. There was a lot of interest in this program. In fact, I would say that it exceeded our expectations, Fontaine said. During the meeting, water managers and conservation groups in the state emphasized the need to establish a permanent statewide voluntary water rights retirement program based on the success of the limited program currently available for select counties. Republican Nevada State Sen. Pete Goicoechea sponsored a bill in 2023 that would have created a statewide program to buy and retire water rights. But the legislation never made it to the floor for a vote. As we go into the next legislative session, we have the chance to take this pilot project and its learnings and create a stable funding mechanism to ensure that we can leverage these opportunities in the future, said Peter Stanton, the CEO of the Walker Lake Conservancy, which focuses on restoring and maintaining Walker Lake. The post NV water right holders have little choice but to sell, say water regulators appeared first on Nevada Current. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. Azerbaijan is interested in gaining knowledge from Latvia in the agricultural and other economic fields that could be developed in the liberated areas, Azerbaijani Deputy Economy Minister Sahib Mammadov said at the Azerbaijan-Latvia Business Forum, Trend reports. In Latvia, 30 percent of the land is allocated for agricultural development. We are keen on adopting this approach as we aim to incorporate Azerbaijan's newly liberated territories into the agricultural cycle, Mammadov said. He brought out the fact that 48 Latvian businesses are active in Azerbaijan at the moment, with a heavy emphasis on the agricultural sector. During the business forum, Raivis Kronbergs, State Secretary of the Latvian Ministry of Agriculture, highlighted that Latvia is already exporting dairy and fish products to Azerbaijan and aims to expand cooperation in these areas. We want to sign a memorandum of cooperation, which will broaden the base for cooperation, Kronbergs emphasized. Executive Director of the Export and Investment Promotion Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan (AZPROMO), Yusif Abdullayev, said he would like to participate in the upcoming Riga Food 2024 exhibition this year. According to Romans Naudins, the Latvian External Adviser to the Minister of Agriculture, this forum in Baku marks the inaugural gathering for Azerbaijani and Latvian companies primarily focused on the production or processing of agricultural raw materials, with the potential for further meetings due to the substantial scope for mutually beneficial collaboration. To note, five meat production companies, along with firms involved in fertilizer and fodder production, participated in the business forum from Latvia. Representing Azerbaijan at the event were Azersun, Veysaloglu, AZZA, Gubre.az (fertilizers), SABA Group, Karvan-L, Bilasuvar Agro, and other entities. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel NYPD officer appears to pepper spray himself while trying to break up pro-Gaza protest James McCarthy, NYPD assistant chief, is assisted after seemingly being affected by a chemical irritant as police arrest pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocking traffic on the Manhattan Bridge (Getty Images) A high-ranking New York Police Department (NYPD) officer seemed to accidentally deploy pepper spray in his face while trying to break up a pro-Palestinian protest on the Manhattan Bridge this weekend. On Saturday more than 100 rally-goers took to the bridge for a day of action ahead of the 76th anniversary of Nakba when more than half of the Palestinian population was displaced during the 1948 establishment of Israel. Videos taken during the protest on Saturday showed James McCarthy, NYPD assistant chief, trying to break up some of the protesters, eventually reaching for his pepper spray. Seconds after looking down at the pepper spray canister, Mr McCarthy shuts his eyes and turns his face away. Several NYPD officers came to Mr McCarthys aid. Photos showed them pouring bottled water on his eyes to flush the chemical irritant. Later, an unnamed member of the NYPD told CBS News that someone pepper sprayed Mr McCarthy. It is unclear if the assistant chief sustained any major injuries from the incident. The Independent has reached out to the NYPD for comment. James McCarthy, NYPD assistant chief, is assisted after seemingly being affected by a chemical irritant as police arrest pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocking traffic on the Manhattan Bridge (Getty Images) More than 100 people were arrested on Saturday for intentionally blocking traffic on the bridge, the NYPD deputy commissioner of operations said in a statement on X. More than an inconvenience, this is a public safety hazard, Kaz Daughtry wrote. The recent arrests add to the growing number of individuals detained for protesting the war in Gaza. This past month hundreds of people on college campuses in New York and across the United States were arrested for setting up protest encampments. More than 34,000 Palestinians have died as a result of Israels war in Gaza, which was sparked by Hamas attack on October 7, in which at least 1,130 people were killed and approximately 250 were taken hostage. Photo by Getty Images. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has signed a bill into law Friday that bans all forms of spousal rape. Up until now, drugging and sexually assaulting your partner wasnt a crime as long as they had a ring on their finger. Former Democratic state Rep. Jessica Miranda and state Rep. Brett Hillyer (R-Uhrichsville) introduced House Bill 161, which makes it clear that all sexual assault is prohibited no matter the marital status. The bill allows victims to testify against their spouse, as well. We have just rewritten history, Miranda told WEWS/OCJ. Decades in the making, Ohios journey to close the spousal rape loophole reaches the finish line. I am so proud to have used my personal story of surviving sexual violence to usher in this necessary change. Miranda, a survivor of child sexual abuse, spent her time in the legislature as the face of the fight against sexual and domestic violence. She recently left her position in the House to become the Hamilton County Auditor. Hillyer, an attorney, consistently sponsors bipartisan legislation. An individual does not lose the right to dignity and protection under the law simply by saying I do at the altar, Hillyer said. I will continue to spearhead efforts that make Ohio safer and a place where all can flourish in the vein of safer communities and healthier families. My career in the General Assembly has been to fight for public safety and this is another step in that direction. Both chambers finally passed the bill in late April. It was nearly unanimous with only one lawmaker voting no. State Rep. Bill Dean (R-Xenia) said it could cause problems in a marriage. The bill will go into effect 90 days after DeWine files the legislation with the Ohio Secretary of States office. It was legal? Twenty years ago, Ohio outlawed forcible spousal rape but lawmakers left in a provision that says purposely impairing your spouses mental state with alcohol or drugs or waiting until they are unconscious to assault them is legal. A woman who suffered for a decade because the law didnt see her abuse as rape cried with joy as she reacted to the vote. No person shall engage in sexual conduct with another who is not the spouse of the offender or who is the spouse of the offender but is living separate and apart from the offender, when any of the following applies according to section 2907.02 of the states Revised Code. Other than drugging and then raping, a spouse can have sex with their partner if the victim is substantially impaired because of a mental or physical condition or due to advanced age. Also, a spouse can have sex with their child bride, as the law doesnt count sex with a kid less than 13 years old as rape. The exceptions to the sex offenses that currently apply are rape, sexual battery, unlawful sexual conduct with a minor, gross sexual imposition and sexual imposition. Follow WEWS statehouse reporter Morgan Trau on X and Facebook. This article was originally published on News5Cleveland.com and is published in the Ohio Capital Journal under a content-sharing agreement. Unlike other OCJ articles, it is not available for free republication by other news outlets as it is owned by WEWS in Cleveland. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Ohio Gov. DeWine signs bill banning spousal rape into law appeared first on Ohio Capital Journal. OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) A Crisis Intervention Advisory Group (CIAG) has been formed to address encounters between police and residents experiencing a mental health crisis. According to the the City of Oklahoma City, the CIAG has started meeting on a quarterly basis. We formed this group to ensure the City responds compassionately and humanely to people experiencing a mental health crisis, OKC Public Safety Partnership Implementation Manager Andrea Grayson said. The group will be instrumental in the selection and monitoring of a provider that will develop and operate mobile Behavioral Health Alternative Response Teams. This provider will coordinate with the Citys public safety departments to respond to low-risk, non-violent calls. Who is Paul Bondar, running to unseat Tom Cole? We found him. The creation of the CIAG was recommendation No. 11 out of 39 recommendations outlined in a report presented to City Council in 2022 to modernize the Police Department in the area of de-escalation and crisis intervention. Oklahoma Citys public safety agencies have an important role to play in the communitys response to people experiencing a behavioral health crisis, Jessica Hawkins, CIAG lead facilitator and Director of Community and Systems Initiatives at Healthy Minds Policy Initiative, said. An effective response to these crises will involve multiple partners in a coordinated effort. By aligning resources across sectors, Oklahoma City can better ensure more people have access to treatment when and where they need it. Some goals of the CIAG include: Channel response to providers who are best equipped to deal with those experiencing mental and behavioral health challenges. Provide guidance in the development and operation of the Citys Crisis Response Teams that will respond to high-acuity mental health calls for service. Provide guidance to the City in the selection of a qualified provider that will be responsible for the development of Alternatives Response Teams that will respond to low-acuity mental health calls for service. Identify key indicators to monitor the Citys crisis response system by collecting and reviewing data and reporting findings. Monitor and review the number/percentage of Crisis Intervention trained police officers and Crisis Intervention Team members. City leaders say the advisory group is made up of mental and behavioral health experts, social service providers, clinicians, community advocates, academics, other police department subject matter experts, and other stakeholders in the mental health field. OKC residents can track the Police Departments progress on 39 recommendations made by the Law Enforcement Policy Task Force and the Community Policing Working Group by visiting the OKC Public Safety Partnership website at okc.gov/government/okc-public-safety-partnership. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KFOR.com Oklahoma City. SULPHUR, Okla. (KFOR) Members of the Oklahoma Army National Guard recently descended into Sulphur, Oklahoma assisting residents in recovery efforts after the devastating EF3 tornado that tore through the town on April 27. Im helping the people in Oklahoma, because thats what I joined to do, said Pfc. Michael Wade, a Tulsa, Oklahoma resident serving as a cavalry scout in Alpha Troop, 1st Squadron, 180th Cavalry Regiment, 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team. Its extremely fulfilling. It feels like Im doing what I was meant to do with my life by helping people and trying to make it a little bit easier for them when theyve gone through something so difficult. Red Cross releases response update for Oklahoma tornadoes According to the Oklahoma National Guard, the Soldiers worked alongside other disaster relief specialists at the Murray County Expo Center in Sulphur where they are helping ensure residents have readily available access to critical supplies like food and water, along with other donations pouring in from all across the country. Pam Chitwood, a Sulphur resident and volunteer at the Expo Center whose son serves in the Oklahoma National Guard, praised the Guardsmen for their help. Tornado damage in Sulphur, OKC (KFOR) The Oklahoma National Guard has been awesome. They have helped us move pallets and pallets and pallets of water and food and diapers and paper towels, Chitwood said, adding that thanks to the Guardsmens help, the devastated Sulphur community is already looking at how they can help other Oklahoma towns affected by tornados on April 27 and May 6. Marietta has put out a call that they need help because they were also hit by a tornado, and now Barnsdall, Chitwood said. We can send something to them if we need to, or we ask people to take their donations to others that may need it. Its people helping people and I just cannot thank everyone enough. that have done that. Thank you, thank you. The cities of Sulphur and Marietta both received damage from the April 27 tornadoes. The Chickasaw Nation mobilized its emergency response resources to assist fellow Oklahomans and Chickasaw citizens alike. Photo courtesy Chickasaw Nation. Sgt. Andrew Serna, a member of the Oklahoma Army National Guards Delta Company, 700th Brigade Support Battalion who lives in Dallas, Texas, said it is an honor to volunteer to help the community. It sets my soul on fire to serve the community, Serna said. Even though its not my community. It just sets me on fire to be able to serve people in need. Ive always said [since] I joined the Guard, whenever there was a need for me to be here, Id be here. Put your boots on, lace them up and, and get to work because the community needs us. And thats what were here to do. Thats what we signed up for, Serna added. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KFOR.com Oklahoma City. Once again: Police cruelly killed someone Black under the guise of their self-governing authority Civil rights attorney Ben Crump and family members react to the killing of Air Force Airman Roger Fortson in Florida. May 9, 2024. Credit: YouTube; WEAR Channel 3 News Quality Journalism for Critical Times Since I read about a sheriffs deputy who, according to civil rights attorney Ben Crump, went to investigate a disturbance at the wrong apartment in Fort Walton Beach in the Panhandle, then shot and killed 23-year-old U.S. Airforce Senior Airman Roger Fortson, I have seethed with anger. That anger is never far from the surface because as a Black man in America, every police murder, killing, assault or brutality towards any Black person reminds me that African Americans are generally seen by law enforcement as enemies of the state. And so once again, in yet another sickening and infuriating case of murder, excessive use of force, power and control, the police have cruelly killed someone Black under the guise of their self-governing authority. Okaloosa County Sheriff Eric Aden disputes Crumps assertion that the deputy had arrived at the correct apartment but with Fortson alone in his apartment, according to Crump, what would have been the cause for the disturbance, described as an argument? To his credit, Aden, while offering his condolences, said the family had his word that if the shooting is found to be unjustified their sons name will be fully vindicated and justice will be served. Crump who is representing the family said Fortson was Facetiming with a friend when he heard movement outside his front door. He looked at least twice, saw no one and went to get his legally owned handgun. Okaloosa County Sheriffs deputies who were responding to a disturbance demanded that he open his door, and seeing him holding a gun, shot him, Crump said in a press conference. One question I have, is unlike George Zimmerman, wasnt Fortson standing his ground? (Zimmerman killed teen Trayvon Martin, whose shooting death in Central Florida by a neighborhood watch volunteer in 2012 caused a nationwide firestorm.) In a video released by Aden, Fortson opened the door with his gun pointed to the floor (standing his ground), the deputy in front immediately opened fire, hitting him six times, then and only then saying drop the gun. Not unexpectedly, law enforcement voices and other legal experts are quick to say that Fortson answering the door holding a gun makes it indisputable that the deputy acted in self-defense after having to make a split-second, life-or-death decision. But I still ask, wasnt Fortson standing his ground? We keep hearing about cops receiving de-escalation training but far too often, that isnt applied when they confront Black men women and children. The casual, random killings of primarily unarmed African Americans in Florida and the United States isnt an aberration or a one-off. It is woven tightly into the fabric of the United States. This poison is woven into the DNA of law enforcement, from slave catchers to Jim Crow enforcers, to blood thirsty murderers, those putting their knees into necks, and turning a no-knock warrant into a justified killing. A clear and present danger to African Americans Racism and discrimination courses through the veins of Americas legal system and Black people know it from more than 400 years of agonizing experience. Americas laws have rarely been applied equally and mainstream America has weaponized the legal and criminal justice infrastructures in ways that disproportionately murder, punish and incarcerate Black people. Throughout Americas history, law enforcement has proven to be a clear and present danger to African Americans, Native Americans, Latinos and other non-white and marginalized people. Proof? Despite killing thousands of people every year, few of the cops have ever been charged or convicted of the murders they commit. Most Americans dont see police brutality, abuse or the scourge of mass incarceration as a five-alarm fire requiring immediate attention. But the result of the oppressive behavior of law enforcement is decimated communities, destroyed families, indescribable anguish and heartache and families of those killed and injured left by police and society to pick up the pieces. I have had a number of police encounters which have soured me on cops, sowed a deep distrust of them and created a profound skepticism around the fickle and racist nature of Americas laws. Not only is this feeling driven by these encounters, but it is also a recognition that nationwide, a deep mistrust exists between law enforcement and communities of color. Some of this is a result of the legacy of racial discrimination in this country. I think a significant part of the hostility that exists between Black people and the cops who purportedly serve them, stems from the roots of modern policing. Whats unspoken or ignored is the long, perverse, bloody and sordid history of racism, police brutality, excessive force and violence that cops have always visited on African Americans. Slave catchers, precursors of modern police, began in the 1700s and by the 1900s, the NAACP explained, local municipalities began to establish police departments to enforce local Jim Crow laws in the East and Midwest. Local municipalities leaned on police to enforce and exert excessive brutality on African Americans who violated any Jim Crow law (which) continued through the end of the 1960s. The deputy who fired the shot that killed Fortson has been put on paid administrative leave. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is investigating the killing but if the past is any indication, he will likely never be charged, much less convicted. This messaging only reinforces the lack of regard law enforcement has for Florida residents who do not look like them. Data shows that the decision by police officers to use lethal force breaks down along racial lines. In 2023, according to Police Violence Report, at least 1,247 people were killed by police. Police killed more people in 2023 than any other year in the past decade. About 96% of those killed by police in 2023 died after being shot. However, officers were charged with a crime in only one in 10 of these cases, meaning that a mere 1% of all cops who kill a human ends up being tried and/or convicted. In addition, statistics also show that African Americans were more likely to be killed by police, more likely to be unarmed and less likely to be threatening someone when killed. Year in and year out, Black Americans were and are also killed by police at more than twice the rate of white Americans, according to The Washington Post database analysis. African Americans comprise 14% of the population but are killed by police at more than twice the rate of White Americans. Hispanic Americans are also killed by police at a disproportionate rate. If America desired to change this deadly paradigm, it would be done. But race complicates everything. Its never Black and white. The U.S has never come to terms with or sought to confront, address and correct the countrys original sin: slavery. Which is why in this era of hyper-conservative backlash and repression, the answer shown by Gov. Ron DeSantis, his legislative cronies and the assortment of far-right identity extremists, is to ignore the obvious and shower law enforcement with adoration and cash. Rooting out the rot? DeSantis has put his money where his mouth is. For example, he signed the interestingly named Framework for Freedom budget for FY 2023-24 which has tucked in it more than $200 million in vital investments salary increases, bonuses and enhancements to officer safety in public safety. African Americans and their allies have not taken this assault against their right to exist laying down. They have fought and fought hard, but they havent gotten nearly the amount of help they need and deserve. In 2024, DeSantis should be putting mechanisms in place to strengthen Floridas myriad communities of color. DeSantis should be introducing meaningful, widespread reforms and most importantly, his administration should be rooting out the rot that is so much a part of police departments across the state. But hes not. Unfortunately given DeSantis racial animus, his governing record and past comments, Black Floridians know he will never use the considerable power entrusted in him to level the playing field and hold cops accountable. Be that as it may, there is a critical need for oversight and the investigation and prosecution of racial profiling, and cops widespread abuses of power, including the use of excessive force, brutalizing protestors, innocent bystanders and others exercising their constitutional right to free speech and the right to hold their ground. But robust oversight is notably absent in the Sunshine State. Asking law enforcement to police itself is like inviting wolves into the henhouse. It never ends well. As a consequence, that responsibility of righting these grievous wrongs falls on the caring public. One of the biggest demands that came out of the George Floyd protests was defunding the police. Criminal justice reformers and abolitionists pushed back against the idea that defunding is a horrible, counter-intuitive concept. Defunding, they contend, never meant closing police departments and turning off the lights. Instead, it would be a mechanism to reallocate some of the massive amounts of money mayors and city and county councils shovel at law enforcement such as the $10 billion given to the New York Police Department. Not only should budgets be trimmed because crime in the U.S. has been declining and continues to fall, but because the larger community would also benefit if money is redirected to healthcare, schools, mental health, affordable housing, social work counselors, education and social services. That happened in Los Angeles. Efforts to establish defunding nationwide faltered after 2020, and thanks to subsequent rightwing lies and attacks, has been largely discredited. Thus, the scourge of police-involved murders continues unabated. Former Seattle Police Chief Norm Stamper says its time to look not just at a few bad apples, but the entire barrel. He believes the way police departments interact with Black communities is proof that the entire criminal justice system and policing is broken. Stamper says American policings past ties to the enslavement of African Americans means that the institution was ill-conceived from the start. Presently, he explained, police forces have evolved into a paramilitary, bureaucratic, organizational arrangement that distances police officers from the communities theyve been sworn to protect and serve. He describes most of Americas 18,000 police departments organizational structures as anachronistic, paramilitary and rigidly bureaucratic which produces a workplace culture that serves as a breeding ground for racism, corruption, sexual predation, brutality, unjustified lethal force, and excessive militarism. Reformers and activists have worked from a palette of solutions and tactics including increasing pressure on prosecutors to prosecute killer cops; electing reform-minded district attorneys, states attorneys and judges; implementing wide-reaching reform agendas and convincing the public of the need to radically overhaul the police/criminal justice/legal paradigm. I see no evidence that this country has the political will or desire to sanction these changes, so I offer a very different solution: Burn the whole thing down and rebuild new paradigms brick-by-brick. Build humane, truly colorblind systems that are fair, unbiased, rooted in justice and truly protect and serve all Americans. The post Once again: Police cruelly killed someone Black under the guise of their self-governing authority appeared first on Florida Phoenix. Its been one year since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the first over-the-counter birth control pill, Opill, and less than two months since it hit store shelves. Advocates celebrate its availability but say access is still lacking in terms of cost barriers and insurance coverage. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) Policy, politics and progressive commentary Sriha Srinivasan remembers how surprised her mom was two years ago when she learned that birth control pills werent sold in stores without a prescription in the United States. My parents are immigrants from India, and its been over the counter there since my mom can remember, said Srinivasan, a recent graduate of University of California Los Angeles. More than 100 countries were already selling birth control without a prescription before the U.S. Food and Drug Administration one year ago as of Thursday approved Opill. Though the hormonal, over-the-counter birth control pill was approved in May 2023, it didnt reach online retailers or the shelves of major drug stores across the country until a couple of months ago. Opill is a progestin-only birth control pill, which is slightly different from the typical prescription of a progestin and estrogen combination pill. Dr. Kristin Lyerly, an OB-GYN in Green Bay, Wisconsin, said that means the oral contraceptive is still very safe and 98% effective, but the user has to be more diligent about making sure its taken at the same time every day. If the time window is missed by three hours or more, there is a higher chance of unintended pregnancy, so she recommends that people use a backup form of protection for the next 48 hours while they get back on schedule. Srinivasan, 21, gets health care coverage through her parents private insurance, but she said when she called clinics to see if she could get a birth control prescription last year, the first appointment that was available was six months out. She happened to be working with Free the Pill, a group of reproductive health advocates and health care providers, on getting Opill approved by the FDA, so she decided to hold off. Almost out of spite, I was like, Im going to wait and get this over the counter. On March 22, just after Opill hit the U.S. market, Srinivasan drove with a friend to a nearby Walgreens to buy their first packs, which cost about $20 each. The two recorded a TikTok of themselves taking their first doses. It was a very joyous and empowering moment to be able to take that for the first time, Srinivasan said. Contraception access is key post-Dobbs, researcher says Dr. Daniel Grossman, director of the Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health program at the University of California San Francisco, has been at the forefront of the effort to get FDA approval for an over-the-counter birth control pill since 2004, and is part of the steering committee of Free the Pill. His research efforts included a study showing that women who had direct access to the pill in areas like Texas border towns where people could cross into Mexico to get it directly stayed on it longer than those who needed a prescription. His research also found that people generally didnt support age restrictions, and the FDA approval for Opill does not have an age restriction. Grossman said more access to contraception is important for overall reproductive health, but its especially important in the wake of the Dobbs decision in 2022 that overturned Roe v. Wade and led 14 states to enact near-total abortion bans. Improved access to contraception isnt going to solve the crisis of abortion access that were currently facing, but that said, in this moment when people in half of the states have very limited options for abortion care and there are growing threats on access to contraception I think its important that we do everything we can to expand access to all methods of birth control where thats possible, Grossman said. Aside from a few expected and manageable side effects, including headaches and light bleeding, Srinivasan said shes had a good experience with the pills and their availability so far. But theres room for improvement, she said, and Free the Pill is advocating for more cost assistance support and coverage from national private insurance companies. Free the Pill launched an online petition this week to pressure President Joe Biden and his administration to require insurance plans to include coverage for Opill. It had 35,000 signatures as of Thursday afternoon. Srinivasan said she tried to apply for assistance but wasnt able to because she has insurance, and only those without any form of private or public insurance can apply. Qualifying applicants also have to have a household income at or below 200% of the federal poverty line, which is $15,060 for a single person. A 2022 survey from Advocates for Youth found that 1 in 3 of those surveyed cited affordability as one of the biggest barriers to accessing contraception. At a $20 price point, its something I can afford because I have a job and I live in California, where the minimum wage is over $17 an hour, but its definitely not something my peers in other states can afford that easily, Srinivasan said. I hope they adjust that, because its definitely not reaching the people that it should be reaching right now. The post One year after FDA approves over-the-counter birth control pill, advocates push for more access appeared first on Nevada Current. Its been one year since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the first over-the-counter birth control pill, Opill, and less than two months since it hit store shelves. Advocates celebrate its availability but say access is still lacking in terms of cost barriers and insurance coverage. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) Its been one year since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the first over-the-counter birth control pill, Opill, and less than two months since it hit store shelves. Advocates celebrate its availability but say access is still lacking in terms of cost barriers and insurance coverage. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) Sriha Srinivasan remembers how surprised her mom was two years ago when she learned that birth control pills werent sold in stores without a prescription in the United States. My parents are immigrants from India, and its been over the counter there since my mom can remember, said Srinivasan, a recent graduate of University of California Los Angeles. More than 100 countries were already selling birth control without a prescription before the U.S. Food and Drug Administration one year ago as of last Thursday approved Opill. Though the hormonal, over-the-counter birth control pill was approved in May 2023, it didnt reach online retailers or the shelves of major drug stores across the country until a couple of months ago. Opill is a progestin-only birth control pill, which is slightly different from the typical prescription of a progestin and estrogen combination pill. Dr. Kristin Lyerly, an OB-GYN in Green Bay, Wisconsin, said that means the oral contraceptive is still very safe and 98% effective, but the user has to be more diligent about making sure its taken at the same time every day. If the time window is missed by three hours or more, there is a higher chance of unintended pregnancy, so she recommends that people use a backup form of protection for the next 48 hours while they get back on schedule. Srinivasan, 21, gets health care coverage through her parents private insurance, but she said when she called clinics to see if she could get a birth control prescription last year, the first appointment that was available was six months out. She happened to be working with Free the Pill, a group of reproductive health advocates and health care providers, on getting Opill approved by the FDA, so she decided to hold off. Almost out of spite, I was like, Im going to wait and get this over the counter. On March 22, just after Opill hit the U.S. market, Srinivasan drove with a friend to a nearby Walgreens to buy their first packs, which cost about $20 each. The two recorded a TikTok of themselves taking their first doses. It was a very joyous and empowering moment to be able to take that for the first time, Srinivasan said. Contraception access is key post-Dobbs, researcher says Dr. Daniel Grossman, director of the Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health program at the University of California San Francisco, has been at the forefront of the effort to get FDA approval for an over-the-counter birth control pill since 2004, and is part of the steering committee of Free the Pill. His research efforts included a study showing that women who had direct access to the pill in areas like Texas border towns where people could cross into Mexico to get it directly stayed on it longer than those who needed a prescription. His research also found that people generally didnt support age restrictions, and the FDA approval for Opill does not have an age restriction. Grossman said more access to contraception is important for overall reproductive health, but its especially important in the wake of the Dobbs decision in 2022 that overturned Roe v. Wade and led 14 states to enact near-total abortion bans. Improved access to contraception isnt going to solve the crisis of abortion access that were currently facing, but that said, in this moment when people in half of the states have very limited options for abortion care and there are growing threats on access to contraception I think its important that we do everything we can to expand access to all methods of birth control where thats possible, Grossman said. Aside from a few expected and manageable side effects, including headaches and light bleeding, Srinivasan said shes had a good experience with the pills and their availability so far. But theres room for improvement, she said, and Free the Pill is advocating for more cost assistance support and coverage from national private insurance companies. Free the Pill launched an online petition last week to pressure President Joe Biden and his administration to require insurance plans to include coverage for Opill. It had 35,000 signatures as of Thursday afternoon. Srinivasan said she tried to apply for assistance but wasnt able to because she has insurance, and only those without any form of private or public insurance can apply. Qualifying applicants also have to have a household income at or below 200% of the federal poverty line, which is $15,060 for a single person. A 2022 survey from Advocates for Youth found that 1 in 3 of those surveyed cited affordability as one of the biggest barriers to accessing contraception. At a $20 price point, its something I can afford because I have a job and I live in California, where the minimum wage is over $17 an hour, but its definitely not something my peers in other states can afford that easily, Srinivasan said. I hope they adjust that, because its definitely not reaching the people that it should be reaching right now. The post One year after FDA approves over-the-counter birth control pill, advocates push for more access appeared first on Oregon Capital Chronicle. One person dead and one seriously injured after being ejected during a motorcycle crash in Wisconsin BEAVER DAM, Wis. (WFRV) Authorities in central Wisconsin say one person is dead and another is seriously injured after they were ejected from a motorcycle during a crash Saturday morning. According to a release from the Dodge County Sheriffs Office, a passerby alerted deputies at 10:30 a.m. of a motorcycle crash with serious injuries on State Highway 33 near Thompson Road in Beaver Dam. Officials say a group of motorcycles were heading east on State Highway 33 and had begun to slow down in traffic due to another vehicle turning into a driveway. Appleton man arrested for 4th Operating While Under the Influence offense One of the motorcycles is said to have lost control and both the driver, a 42-year-old man from Beaver Dam, and a passenger, a 50-year-old woman from Beaver Dam, were ejected from the vehicle. The 42-year-old man was flown from the scene by UW Med Flight to a level 2 trauma center with life-threatening injuries. The 50-year-old woman was pronounced dead at the scene. Neither of the two people ejected from the motorcycle were wearing a helmet which officials say was a factor in the seriousness of the injuries suffered from the crash. At this time, no other information is available and an investigation into the incident is ongoing. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFRV Local 5 - Green Bay, Appleton. Only 5 percent of registered voters cite the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol or former President Trumps alleged election subversion efforts as their most prominent memory from his time in the White House, according to an analysis of a survey released Monday. Pollsters for The New York Times and Siena College asked respondents to describe one thing they remembered most about Trumps presidency. Jan. 6 and COVID-19, two of the most significant events in recent U.S. history, fell to the bottom of the list, with 5 percent and 4 percent, respectively. Thirty-nine percent mentioned something related to Trumps behavior, 24 percent mentioned the economy, 9 percent mentioned immigration, and 5 percent mentioned foreign policy. Its the salience of issues today that color the memories that people have of Trump, John Sides, a professor of political science at Vanderbilt, told the Times. More than a third of respondents described a negative memory, and the same share described a positive one, the Times noted, adding some memories could not be clearly categorized. Those who shared negative memories most often said they remembered Trumps behavior most. The Times gave examples of some of the responses grouped into this category: He was the biggest liar ever, His dislike for Black people, The terrible things he did to women, Chaos and corruption, The disgrace he brought to this country, His direct way of doing business, I remember him using Twitter a lot, and, He got things done and fulfilled campaign promises. Those who shared positive memories most often said they remembered the economy most. Examples from this category include: The economy, The economy was a little better than it is now, The economy was in a lot better shape than it is now, Gas was cheap and we were using our own oil, That he gave out stimulus checks, Tax cuts for the rich, The tax cuts, and, Good economy, no wars. Registered voters who cited either Jan. 6 or COVID gave some of the following responses: When he refused to turn over power, He should be in jail for the Jan. 6 incident, involvement with the Jan. 6 riot attack on the capital, Jan. 6 and his unwillingness to accept the election results, His anti-science views; he called Covid a liberal hoax, He called Covid-19 a hoax and was a constant liar, Total incompetence in handling the Covid-19 crisis, and, Negligence in providing accurate Covid information. The poll was conducted with 1,059 registered voters from April 7-11 and had a margin of error of 3.3 percentage points. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Costco has come a long way since the opening of its first-ever warehouse in Seattle, Washington, in 1983. As of March 2024, the wholesaler has brought its bulk-sized goods and $1.50 hot dog and soda combos to an impressive 876 locations across 14 countries worldwide. A majority of those stores -- 604 to be exact -- are in the United States and Puerto Rico, with California being home to the largest number of warehouses with 137 (though, believe it or not, none of them are the biggest Costco in the world). Yet, even with nearly two-thirds of the world's Costcos operating in the U.S. and its territories, there are three states where the chain has absolutely no presence at all. Hawaii and Alaska might be your first guesses as to which states are Costco-less, but the noncontiguous parts of the country actually have 13 warehouses between them. So, which states have the unfortunate honor of being completely void of the big box retailer? Wyoming, West Virginia, and Rhode Island. Up until recently, this club also included a fourth member: Maine. However, as of November 17, 2023, the Pine Tree State officially got itself off of the list with the opening of its first-ever Costco store in the town of Scarborough. Will Wyoming, West Virginia, and Rhode Island ever be able to do the same? Read more: 12 Rules Shoppers Must Follow At Costco This State Might Be Next In Line To Get Its First Costco Costco storefront - Jetcityimage/Getty Images Naturally, you're probably wondering why Costco hasn't broken ground in Wyoming, West Virginia, or Rhode Island. It's not because these states have something against wholesale clubs; Wyoming and West Virginia are home to Sam's Club warehouses, while Rhode Island has several BJ's Wholesale Club stores throughout the state. Rather, the lower population densities of these states may play a major factor, as it ultimately doesn't promise as much sales and profit. Yet, despite this, one state might be close to breaking free from Costco's exile. In April 2023, Cranston, Rhode Island mayor Ken Hopkins revealed to WPRI that the corporation was looking to bring the first Costco warehouse to the city. In January 2024, however, it was announced that Costco had actually pulled its permit applications the previous August, effectively putting Costco's Rhode Island debut at a standstill. In the time since, several other towns have offered space for the big box retailer to move in, though there does not appear to have been any development on Costco's end to move forward with the project. Until there is, Rhode Islanders, as well as residents of West Virginia and Wyoming, can get an online membership and shop the cult-favorite grocer through its website. You can also shop online without a membership, though there is a 5% surcharge for non-members. Read the original article on Mashed The problem with all the peace plans for Gaza that U.S., Egyptian, and other foreign diplomats have offered in the past few months is that the parties fighting the warIsrael and Hamashave very different requirements for stopping it, and therefore they wont stop it unless and until some allied power forces them to do so. The question is whether those allies have the leverage and the will to make them stop. Seven months into this war, it doesnt seem that they do. The horrible irony is that neither Israel nor Hamas could keep fighting for long without the material support of their allies. The alliessome of whom are the ones tirelessly but fruitlessly negotiating the terms of a cease-fireclearly want the war to stop. So, whats the hang-up? Many news reports have focused on the disputes over how many Israeli hostages will be freed for how many Palestinian prisoners, during a cease-fire lasting how many days. But these matters are trivial. The crucial, much harder issue to resolve is what happens next. Hamas is demanding that, in tandem with the exchange of hostages and prisoners, Israeli troops pull out of Gaza entirely and that the cease-fire turns into a permanent truce. Israel is saying it will resume the war after the hostages come home until Hamas is destroyed as a political and military force. Meanwhile, some of the outside powersmainly the U.S., Egypt, and Saudi Arabia, as well as vocal observers in Europe and the United Nationsare pushing for a peaceful settlement of the wider, long-standing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, preferably through the creation of a demilitarized Palestinian state. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he will never stand for such a state. The leaders of Hamas dont want one, either; they want to keep fighting their war of resistance until Israel and its 7 million Jews are wiped out. Thats the problem in a nutshell. Hamas and Israel have opposing war aims. (This is why most wars throughout history begin and keep raging, despite unspeakable carnage and destruction.) And neither side, for different reasons, has any interest in the outside would-be peacemakers vision of a postwar settlement. There are only three ways out of this impasse. One side wins; both sides, exhausted, limp to an armistice; or outside powers impose a peace upon them. In this case, each combatant thinks it can win, so neither is inclined to make concessions. In this sense they share a delusional frame of mind. Hamas delusion is rooted in millenarian fantasy, bolstered by the fervent wish that their fellow jihadists in the region will join the war. When Hamas plowed across Israels southern border on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 Jews, most of them civilians, its leaders hopedperhaps theyd been led to expectthat Hezbollah would simultaneously launch massive missile strikes from the north and Iran would do the same from the east. Israel would thus be enveloped in a three-front war far more perilous than the last such war, in 1973, which Israel just barely won. For various reasons, Hamas dream didnt materialize. But what did happen served Hamas interests nearly as well. Israels leaders, in their understandable rage, overreacted, razed whole neighborhoods all across Gaza, mainly with 2,000-pound bombs, before collecting intelligence on the precise whereabouts of Hamas leaders. In a bigger failure still, they sent tanks and infantry rolling into Gaza without first devising a plan on how to pacify the area after the war is over. (In recent days, Israeli military officers have begun to criticize Netanyahu openly about this failure.) Finally, the Israelis neglected to reach out diplomatically to their Sunni Arab allies, especially the leaders of Saudi Arabia and Egypt, who want to pursue good relations with Israel (which they see as a potent ally in their struggle against Iran and its Shiite militias) but who also have to worry about alienating radicals in their own countries. And so, as Palestinian casualties inevitably mounted (the Gazan health ministry puts the death toll now at 35,000; Israel estimates that a third of them were armed militiamen, not civilians), world opinion turned against Israel. Some of the more vocal Western protesters not only assailed Israels excesses, but also hailed Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis (who were shelling commercial vessels in the Mediterranean) as heroes. The more extreme protesters are driven by propaganda, antisemitism, and ignorance of Middle East history, but many others are motivated by Israels insensitivity to the plight of Palestinian civilians. And the Israeli government has done itself no favors by waving off all its critics. Israelis have long had a problem with hasbara, the Hebrew word for public diplomacy. They are aware that much of the world is hostile toward their country and their religion, but rather than try to deal with the hatred, they tend to sneer at it, defy it, and proudly proclaim a determination to go it alone, bolstered by a pride in how they transformed their land into an economic powerhouse and improbably won a series of multifront wars. A widespread attitude emerged: If the world cant sympathize with us after Oct. 7, when more Jews were killed in a single day than any time since the Holocaust, then to hell with what the world thinks. And so, as even President Joe Bidenthe most pro-Israel occupant of the White House eversteps up his criticism of Israels war policy, threatening to suspend the shipment of certain weapons if it mounts an all-out offensive against the southern Gazan town of Rafah, where more than 1 million Gazan refugees have settled and as many of them starve, Netanyahu gives him the finger. Israel will go into Rafah, he declares, no matter what the world says or how many civilians are killed in the process. And, if America pulls back its support, Israel will stand alone and fight with fingernails, if necessary. This sort of rhetoric helps nobody. It is particularly inappropriate, even preposterous, coming just weeks after a massive Iranian air strikemore than 300 missiles and drones, including 110 ballistic missiles, all in the air at the same time, headed toward Israeli targetswas staved off, thanks to a combined, coordinated air-defense campaign mounted by Israel, the U.S., England, France, and Jordan. If Israel had tried to repel the attack on its own, manywell over 100of those Iranian weapons would have pierced the shields and wreaked a lot of damage. The fact is, Israel cannot fight alone, and has never been able to do so. In the 1948 war, it depended heavily on weapons provided by Czechoslovakia. And in all the wars since, it depended heavily on weaponsand intelligenceprovided by the United States. Similarly, Hamas cannot fight alone. It receives weapons, training, and technical assistance from Iran and its proxy militias. It also receives economic and political support from Qatar, which also hosts many of its political leaders in luxury. The Qatari connection is strange, since the tiny, oil-rich Gulf state also hosts the largest U.S. military base in the Middle East, as a result of which it has been declared a major non-NATO ally. In any case, neither side in this war can achieve the total victory that its leaders say they seek. Hamas cant drive Jews out of Israel, especially if Iran is unwilling to join in. Israelis cant destroy Palestinian militancy, even if they wipe out Hamas last battalion, especially if they keep killing civilians and have no plan to rebuild Gazaor reform Palestinian political authorityafter the war is over. (Even as troops close in on Rafah, hoping to kill Hamas last holdouts, Israeli officials told the Times of Israel that Hamas leader, Yahya Sinwar, isnt in Rafah, as the government has publicly claimed, but is still hiding in Khan Younis, which was heavily bombarded, apparently to little strategic effect.) One lesson of history is that all of the Israeli-Arab wars over the past 76 yearssince Israels founding as a statehave been ended by pressure from outside powers. In some cases, it was the U.S. pressuring Israel; in other cases, during the Cold War, it was the Soviet Union pressuring Syria or Egypt; in some cases, it was the United Nations pressuring all the combatants. In those earlier wars, at least one outside powerin some cases all of them, working jointlyhad the leverage and legitimacy to exert that pressure. But in crucial ways, they no longer do. The Soviet Union and its empire folded long ago. Some thought that the U.S. would thus emerge as the sole superpower, but in fact, it lost influence; some countries felt they could go their own way, no longer needing to tie their fates to the U.S. in exchange for protection from the Red Bear across the horizon. Israel, meanwhile, built up a powerful lobbying organization that made it much harder for American presidents to apply pressure. (President Ronald Reagans administration, hardly anti-Israel, cut off weapons to Israel on a few occasions and voted in favor of seven U.N. resolutions condemning Israel for some action or another. Reagan was never accused of being anti-Israel or antisemitic. Now presidents are lambasted on the few occasions they abstain from, rather than veto, critical resolutions.) Meanwhile, the Sunni Arab leaders in the region have never stepped up to a leadership role in creating or preserving peacethough its time they do so. The Saudi royals very much want to normalize relations with Israel, but fear the response from their own people if they get too close while Israel is still bombing Gaza and refusing even to pay lip service to the idea of resuming negotiations toward a Palestinian state. Egypt tries to play it both ways. Its leaders never wanted any part in dealing with Palestinians; they have erected a wall on Egypts border with southern Gaza much higher than the wall Israel built on the northern border. They allowed Israeli troops to enter the GazaEgypt border on their way to Rafahthe troops couldnt have crossed the border without Egypts active cooperation. And yet Egyptian officials now say they might rip up their peace treaty with Israelwhich has been in effect for 50 yearsif those same troops invade the town of Rafah outright. The first casualty when war comes is truth, as the old saw has it. This goes to the nth degree when it comes to war in this region, where illusion, hypocrisy, and mendacity reign as in few others. The players that have the power to exercise leadership need to start acting like leaders. President Joe Biden is struggling to make headway in his re-election campaign, with recent polling still showing him in a neck-and-neck race with former President Donald Trump. Incumbent presidents often have a structural advantage in these kinds of campaigns, especially when it comes to making policy that might help them win over uncertain voters in the fall. Its a lever that Biden isnt afraid to pull, but a series of moves he has telegraphed to try to ward off Republican attacks is poised to do more harm than good. In a strategy Axios describes as trying to trump Trump on issues with which the former president has an advantage with voters, the Biden administration is reportedly poised not just to keep many of the tariffs that Trump raised on Chinese goods, but also to add on new ones targeting electric vehicles and solar panels. Biden is also reportedly considering issuing new restrictions on immigration at the southern border, limiting the number of people who can claim asylum once theyve crossed into the U.S. It sounds like the latest version of triangulation, employed by Democrats who are worried about coming across like Democrats in a close election. Triangulation, the co-opting of conservative talking points to throw off GOP attacks, is a form of political judo. President Bill Clinton used it to greatest effect in his 1996 re-election campaign, pivoting hard after Republicans reclaimed control of the House for the first time in 40 years to push welfare reform, deficit reduction and deregulation but in a way that he claimed would be less harmful than what Republicans with their Contract With America would do. The country likes the general direction of the Republicans, GOP media consultant Robert Goodman told The Washington Post in 1995, but they just think its too fast and too harsh. Clinton, in image terms, is portraying himself as the person who really accepts the direction, but just wants to make it a more pleasant journey and stop people from getting hurt unnecessarily. In his case, it worked. A country that had been primed to see big government as a bad idea rewarded him for his centrism. But things have changed in 28 years in the face of increased polarization and a growing disillusionment with the status quo. For one, if this is a case of the White House following the polls, as Clinton notoriously did, I fear its reading the wrong analyses. For example, given Trumps lead among those who list immigration as their top concern, its understandable that Biden would want to neutralize it as a weapon in the election. But my colleague Zeeshan Aleem has argued that the supposed national concern with immigration as an issue is driven more by Republican voters parroting Trump and conservative media than by a true top-level concern of anyone Biden could win. And theres still a lot of misinformation about the effects of undocumented immigration among voters, who believe that illegal immigration increases crime rates, among other falsehoods that are sure to boost those numbers further. Meanwhile, there are warning signs in the latest New York Times poll of five battleground states that should be drawing more concern from Bidens campaign: Its hard to see, then, how the actions that Axios highlighted would help him with those voters who are looking for more than normalcy. (I must take a moment to lament the death of Bidens transformative Build Back Better plan at the hands of the GOP and Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va.) In an election that is likely to again be won at the margins, it is paramount that Biden shore up his own base of support. The idea of trying to win over persuadable voters is sensible, noble even. But the solution to disillusionment cant be to further alienate his core audience, who, thanks in part to issues that include the war in Gaza, are showing cracks in their support. Moreover, the choices being made arent abstractions. Like the compromise we saw from the White House on trans rights last year, when Biden tried to find a middle ground between transphobia and simply letting students play sports, the decisions Biden is preparing to make will hurt real people. Limiting asylum claims at the border means turning away people who are fleeing violence and oppression for, at best, marginal political gain. Likewise, turning to protectionism against Chinese products both raises prices for American consumers and turns what should be a major, potentially civilization-saving shift from fossil fuels into yet another bout of nationalist competition. And finally, its worth noting (yet again) that this is being done with no hope of reciprocity from conservatives, who almost never attempt to court the lefts votes or try to appeal to left-of-center moderates with their policies. The math of how to put together a winning coalition in a presidential race is somewhere between basic arithmetic and some kind of arcane calculus. Theres always a certain amount of give and take as campaigns decide which issues to highlight and as incumbents develop policies that could win or lose them second terms. But Biden is falling into the same trap that Democrats cant seem to avoid, in which apologetic moves to the right are deemed necessary to steal votes from the GOPs camp and the betrayal of ones own voters is presumed to have little effect. In this case, its a strategy that is more likely to cost Biden votes from Democrats than win him votes from those leaning toward Trump. This article was originally published on MSNBC.com Other states have mountains, deserts and scenic shorelines, but California excels at preserving these natural features in its park system, seen above at Crystal Cove State Park in Newport Beach. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times) When Dos Rios Ranch opens to visitors next month in the San Joaquin Valley, California will have 280 state parks making it one of the nations largest systems, as well as one of its most popular, with about 70 million visitors a year. Who knew? The short answer is: hardly anyone. Read more: Editorial: How to get Californians to visit their state parks Over the past 20 years Ive asked several thousand Californians to name five state parks. Fewer than 5% can do so. And most of these baffled respondents are outdoorsy folks the kind of people I meet on the trail or at my talks about hiking. This lack of awareness is more than surprising right now. Its dangerous. If Californians cant name a handful of state parks, they wont recognize the threat when Sacramento defers investment in the system or as is inevitably happening again attempts to cut funding. Read more: Op-Ed: Yosemite has been at its best under pandemic restrictions. Keep the cap on crowds Gov. Gavin Newsoms proposed $291.5 billion budget for the upcoming year would eliminate a $3 million line item for a well-used program that lets (primarily low-income) library card holders check out free passes to state parks. But how many lawmakers or voters are likely to object, when most dont even remember the states hundreds of parks? The disconnect comes down to name recognition. Many Californians actually know and love these sites but forget that they are state parks: Perhaps youve marveled at the giant sequoias in the western Sierra Nevada, but did you know you were in Calaveras Big Trees State Park? Or if you saw coast redwoods near the Oregon border, did you realize you were in Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, home of the tallest trees on Earth? And that when you visited palm oases way down south between San Diego and the Salton Sea, you were in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park? Read more: Giant sequoias, desert land and alpine peaks? California's 280 state parks have it all As Ive quizzed Californians, I find over and over that people remember the good times and even a lot of information about nature and history, but not the names of the parks: where the Gold Rush began (Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park), where a famed writer found inspiration (Jack London State Historic Park), where an immigrant community lived and worked (China Camp State Historic Park). That wonderful weekend in Big Sur? It was really in Pfeiffer Big Sur, Julia Pfeiffer Burns, Limekiln, Andrew Molera and Garrapata state parks. We miss parks hiding in plain sight in the heart of cities, such as Watts Towers in Los Angeles and Old Town San Diego. Perhaps youve stopped at Hearst Castle halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco another memorable site that people forget is a state park. These treasures also get short shrift when disaster strikes. Wildfires are reported as burning the hills near Malibu not raging through Malibu Creek, Leo Carrillo and Point Mugu state parks and as burning in the mountains near Santa Cruz not as devastating iconic Big Basin Redwoods State Park, Californias first state park. State parks need many things more campsites, better outreach, funding commensurate with the size and scope of the system but what they need first and most of all is to be noticed: by the governor, legislators and the public. The lack of awareness leads to missed opportunities for all Californians to enjoy the parks and a shortage of the kind of financial support and strong stewardship commitment state parks need to thrive. Such support has never been assured. A century ago, ultra-conservative Gov. Friend William Richardson was hostile to the formation of a state park system, vetoed park legislation and ranted about the waste of taxpayer money. Pro-park forces prevailed. A state park system was established in 1927 and, in a move dripping with irony, included a lovely redwood retreat named Richardson Grove State Park. Flash forward to today, when the library program offering state park passes is under threat. Newsoms proposal to trim $3 million to help close a budget deficit of $37.9 billion continues a history of unfortunate priorities. The fiscal 2024-25 allocation for the Department of Parks and Recreation is set at $807 million plus a mere $1.1 million for all capital improvement projects across the 280 state park sites. Meanwhile Caltrans, which manages state highways, is slated for a billion-dollar increase, to $17.5 billion. State parks need and deserve more respect and revenue. Lets start small dont cut the library park pass program, for heavens sake and then think bigger. Rather than increasing Caltrans generous (some would say bloated) budget, how about a one-time grant to state parks to address their $1 billion backlog of deferred maintenance and improvement projects? If more Californians, particularly our policymakers, would notice that the sites they love are state parks, the funding would follow. John McKinney, author of Hike California's State Parks and two dozen other hiking-themed books, has visited all 280 state parks. 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. Jeff Mendenhall lights a candle during the second annual Day of Remembrance for Utah Downwinders at the Skaggs Memorial Chapel, First Baptist Church of Salt Lake City on Sunday, Jan. 27, 2013. | Laura Seitz, Deseret News Its hardly news that persistent aboveground nuclear testing in the mid-20th century spread fallout far and wide. That is one clear case where what happened near Las Vegas has not stayed there. The question that wont go away, however, is what we should do about it. Its a question looming large right now. Nearly 80 years ago, workers at the Kodak Company in Rochester, New York, were among the first to discover widespread fallout after customers complained that sensitive X-ray film was contaminated with fogging. According to the Museum of Radiation and Radioactivity, one of these workers, a physicist named J.H. Webb, traced the contamination to cardboard the company had sourced from Indiana as packing material. This, he finally concluded, came from the Trinity Test, the first nuclear explosion, which took place in Alamogordo, New Mexico, on July 16, 1945. The fallout had reached the river that was used to manufacture the cardboard pulp. Indiana isnt exactly next door to New Mexico. Today, this conclusion is a tiny fraction of the evidence that shows the governments tests between 1945 and 1962, many in Nevada, did more than contaminate just a small portion of southern Utah. The federal government conducted 215 aboveground tests in various places, beginning with Trinity in 1945, while often telling nearby residents there was no danger. Other countries conducted similar tests around the globe. In 1990, Congress passed a bill known as the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, or RECA, which provided compensation for some of the people affected by these tests. The rules are strict. For Utahns to qualify for $50,000, they must have lived in certain counties in Nevada, Arizona or Utah for two consecutive years from 1951 to 1962, and must have contracted one of a list of cancers. People who worked in uranium extraction in several states from 1942 to 1971 and who had specific types of cancer are eligible for $100,000. Workers at testing facilities also qualify for $75,000. But this law is set to expire June 10. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., is sponsoring a bill that would expand compensation and greatly widen the net. People who meet the criteria in all of Utah, plus Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico and Guam, would also qualify. The bill already passed the Senate in a bipartisan vote, but without the support of Utahs Mike Lee or Mitt Romney. Instead, they are supporting a separate bill that, according to The Hill, would simply extend the current RECA bill for another two years. The Hill quoted Romney as saying Hawleys bill would cost $50 billion, which is far more than a simple extension of the law. On the other side, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox has come out in favor of the expanded bill. His office sent me a statement saying, We support efforts to expand compensation for those affected by the nuclear testing that occurred throughout the West. Its the right thing to do. Meanwhile, the evidence mounts. A study by several scientists last year concluded that fallout from the Trinity test alone reached 46 states, Mexico and Canada within 10 days. They also studied the effects of 93 aboveground tests conducted in Nevada and found evidence of radiation in all 48 contiguous states. The New York Times said the researchers were helped by the release of data from Europe charting weather patterns up to 30,000 feet in elevation dating back to 1940. Certainly, lines must be drawn somewhere. Also, cost should be a consideration, as should strict eligibility requirements. The government cant simply write blank checks to anyone who makes a claim. But thats not likely to happen here. In fact, it has never been easy to prove a claim. A federal report on compensation said the current law has dispersed $2.6 billion over 30 years to 40,258 people, or 75% of those who applied. As author and activist Mary Dickson, herself a victim, told me, few victims remain alive, and still fewer realize they are eligible for compensation. Its hard to prove you lived in the right place more than 60 years ago and had the right kind of cancer. She believes the $50 billion estimate is far too high. She also told the Deseret News editorial board last year that recent lobbying visits to Washington have left her shocked by how many of them (lawmakers) dont even know our nuclear past. Ignorance is spreading as the past fades. And yet that past, important though it was for the defense of freedom, is not pretty. A nation should not be able to sicken and kill its own people without being held accountable. In January 2015, Islamic terrorists murdered 12 people at the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo for depicting the Prophet Muhammad. When PEN America honored the magazine with its Freedom of Expression Courage Award that same year, the organization received backlash from prominent members. Then-PEN president Andrew Solomon stood by the decision, saying that the controversy was a reminder that the defense of people murdered for their exercise of free speech is at the heart of what PEN stands for, so is the unfettered articulation of opposing viewpoints. Standing up for free speech principles against religious extremism, it turns out, was the right call since it remains a real threat to authors and speakers around the world. At a book talk in August 2022, novelist and former PEN America president Salman Rushdie was stabbed 15 times by an assailant who admired Irans theocratic regime that issued a fatwa against Rushdie back in 1989 for the supposed blasphemy of his novel The Satanic Verses.\ Anti-Blasphemy Laws Are Great for Tyrants, but Terrible for Dissidents But now PEN America finds itself embroiled in another controversy about first principles. The organization felt compelled to cancel its 2024 World Voices Festival after around 30 writers withdrew from the event backing protesters who claimed PEN Americas approach to the war between Israel and Hamas was tepid. In other words, PEN America stood by its explicit mission to promote free expression and remain neutral on sharply contested matters of geopolitics and armed conflict. An open letter from writers and translators nominated for the PEN America Literary Award argued that they cannot, in good faith, align with an organization that has shown such blatant disregard of our collective values We refuse to be honored by an organization that acts as a cultural front from American imperialism. Never mind that PEN America has provided financial assistance to Palestinian writers, issued many statements condemning the suppression of pro-Palestinian speech on college campuses, spoken out against postponing awards for Palestinian authors, and criticized the cancellation of film screenings for documentaries critical of Israel. The now-canceled World Voices Festival would have also featured several Palestinian writers. Regardless, the authors of the open letter contend that PEN Americas leadership should be replaced with staff that will make a bold declaration that would firmly align with one side. But this would be a grave mistake. PEN Americas very purpose is to protect free expression in the United States and worldwide and to champion the freedom to write unite writers and their allies to celebrate creative expression and defend the liberties that make it possible. PEN Americas mission is not to advance the political or ideological goals of a specific portion of the diverse range of writers around the globe. To succumb to external and internal pressures to take positions on contentious policy issues threatens to undermine its very purpose and its efforts on other issues. The Hamas-Israel War Obliterated the Campus Microaggression PEN America has been leading the charge against attempts by red states to ban books and restrict discussions of divisive concepts, which frequently means speech treating issues like race and LGBT+ themes in a manner that triggers conservatives. It has also played a crucial role in trying to persuade progressives that the values of free speech and equality are mutually reinforcingnot mutually exclusiveand that abandoning free speech is likely to hurt rather than protect minorities and vulnerable groups. But if PEN America bends to pressure to take explicit positions on progressive or social justice causes, it will only become more vulnerable to criticism. After all, why should skeptical lawmakers or the general public pay attention to an organization whose advocacy dovetails with progressive politics rather than First Amendment principles? To understand the danger of an unprincipled defense to free speechwhere ideological agendas mean abandoning commitments to free expression when its inconvenientone neednt look further than Republicans who decry cancel culture and censorship. In March 2023, House Republicans on the Higher Education Committee held a hearing on the state of free speech on college campuses. Rep. Burgess Owens (R-UT), chair of the House Higher Education and Workforce Development Subcommittee, said, If those with certain views are allowed to shut down competing views, the battle to sustain freedoms upon which our county was foundedfree speech, free thought, and free expressionwill be lost. This week, that devotion to free speech apparently waned, as Owens joined his fellow Republicans in co-sponsoring and passing the Antisemitism Awareness Act of 2023. If the bill becomes law, it will deem certain viewpointsincluding criticism of Israelas antisemitic based on the broad definition promulgated by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA). If colleges fail to adopt this definition, they could lose federal funding. PEN America rightly opposed this bill, arguing that it could harm academic freedom, free speech, and legitimate political speech. How (Not) to Fight Racism and Anti-Semitism In 2019, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed a law to promote free speech on college campuses and tweeted about how protecting the right to free speech is critical to the future of our country. But his belief that censorship is un-American hasnt stopped the governor from banning drag performances, banning books, and issuing an executive order for Texas colleges to enforce the IHRAs definition of antisemitism. If PEN America becomes an explicit progressive social justice organization and abandons its commitment to ideological neutrality and the unbiased application of free speech principles, it will have no leg to stand on when taking on the free speech opportunists of the world. It will instead become the distorted mirror image of the very unprincipled forces it is fighting against. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. Editors Note: Norman Eisen is a CNN legal analyst and editor of Trying Trump: A Guide to His First Election Interference Criminal Trial. He served as counsel to the House Judiciary Committee for the first impeachment and trial of then-President Donald Trump. The views expressed in this commentary are his own. Read more opinion at CNN. Michael Cohen, the erstwhile lawyer and fixer of former President Donald Trump, was one of the first witnesses I interviewed as part of the first Trump impeachment: That was because I was investigating the identical 2016 alleged election interference now at issue in the former presidents hush money criminal trial. The hard-charging Cohen had been by Trumps side since 2006, had negotiated the $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels to benefit the Trump campaign and was about to report to prison after pleading guilty in 2018 to campaign finance violations for that payment and to other crimes. Norm Eisen - Courtesy Norm Eisen I expected someone very different from the person I met, who was candid, remorseful and funny, if profane and possessed of a hatred of Trump. Cohen has never wavered since in the key details he provided me about the election scheme and its cover-up that will also be at the center of his testimony in Trumps Manhattan criminal trial starting Monday. As we approach his keenly anticipated appearance, I think he, like Daniels did last week, will exceed expectations in how he presents to the jury. The District Attorneys Office has set that up with their work throughout the trial. They have methodically bolstered Cohens upcoming testimony with a series of credible witnesses and corroborating documents, gradually narrowing the universe of uncorroborated evidence that Cohen will provide. Cohen will undoubtedly be the subject of a vigorous cross-examination that will likely include the many lies he now admits having told when he was associated with Trump, as well as Cohens guilty plea for perjury. But the prosecutions effective strategy has significantly shortened the leap of faith the jury will have to take to believe him (as I did when I interviewed him). Here is how the prosecution has supported Cohens testimony in advance across three major aspects of the case. Trumps intent was to benefit his campaign First, Cohen is expected to testify, based on his conversations with Trump, that the purpose of the payment to Daniels and the later alleged business record falsification was to benefit Trumps 2016 presidential campaign. The prosecution has already presented extensive evidence of this to the jury. For example, the former chief executive of American Media and the publisher of the National Enquirer, David Pecker, testified that he met with Trump and Cohen at Trump Tower in Manhattan in 2015 to hatch the catch and kill conspiracy with the explicit purpose of benefiting Trumps campaign. Pecker explained that for the scheme to further benefit Trumps campaign, he later set in motion the hush money payment to Stormy Daniels. So when Cohen testifies that he discussed the payment with Trump and that his purpose included benefiting the campaign, that just represents the carrying forward of an intent that has already been corroborated. To take another example, the jury also heard evidence of Trumps own words suggesting that the purpose of the scheme was to benefit his campaign. Former Trump aide Hope Hicks testified that when the Daniels scandal emerged in 2018, the former president told her that it was better to be dealing with Daniels allegation of a sexual encounter with him at that time, because it would have been bad to have that story come out before the election. Hicks further testified that Trump admitted to her that he knew Cohen had paid Daniels. Trump claimed Cohen made the payment on his own and not at Trumps direction, but Hicks did not believe him. She explained it was implausible that Cohen would have paid Daniels absent Trumps instruction. The Trump Tower meetings: Formulating the scheme Cohen will likely testify about a second meeting at Trumps office that took place between October 10 and October 28, 2016, with former Trump Organization finance chief Allen Weisselberg in attendance, where Trump agreed to pay Daniels the $130,000. According to Cohen, Trump said it is not a lot of money, and we should just do it, so go ahead and do it. Trump then allegedly directed Cohen and Weisselberg to figure this all out. The two allegedly met again in early January in Trump Tower to do that, and then confirmed it with Trump. Keith Davidson, Daniels former attorney who negotiated her hush-money payment, made clear during his testimony that he believed Trump was responsible for final approval of the funds. He testified that he was under the belief that Cohen needed Trumps approval to wire any funds and that Trump was the source. Davidson maintained that he never believed Cohen was the ultimate source of the funds, affirming the money was expected to come from Trump or an associated corporate body. Former Trump Organization accountant Deborah Tarasoff also told the jury that Trump was directly involved in reimbursing Cohen. Tarasoff detailed how payments shifted from the Donald J. Trump Revocable Trust to being personally made by Trump in 2017, reflecting a deeper personal engagement. She recounted processing checks for Trumps signature, including one for $70,000 signed by Weisselberg and Eric Trump and a $35,000 check from Trumps personal account. This evidence was pivotal in challenging the defenses assertion that Trump was detached from the transactions, clearly showing he actively repaid Cohen, including during his time in the White House. The White House meeting: Reimbursing Cohen Cohen is also expected to testify that he met Trump in the White House in February 2017, and there Trump again agreed to the repayment plan that Weisselberg had concocted. Trump then proceeded to personally sign checks to Cohen from the Oval Office for the rest of the year. The DAs office has already elicited testimony that corroborates this meeting and reimbursement scheme and highlights Trumps frugality and check-signing practices. For example, Trump Organization controller Jeffrey McConney was able to testify to Weisselbergs handwritten note Ive been looking at his handwriting for 35 years, McConney said, confirming he recognized it that spelled out the exact repayment scheme that Trump used to reimburse Cohen for the hush money. This key physical evidence from McConney and Weisselberg, who may not testify himself, independently establishes the grossed up amount that Trump then paid Cohen after their February 2017 meeting. Madeleine Westerhout, a former Trump aide who sat just outside the Oval Office and had direct line of sight to Trumps desk, was able to testify both to scheduling Cohens physical presence at the White House for the February reimbursement meeting and to Trumps business practices early in his administration. She spoke at length about how Trump continued to focus on personal and Trump Organization business minutiae while in the White House. This supports the notion that Trump would have, in the same time period, paid close attention to the $35,000 checks he was signing for Cohen. Westerhout also read aloud her email confirming, to Cohen the February meeting at the White House. Lastly, Sally Franklin, a senior vice president at book publisher Penguin Random House, quoted from Trumps own books and own words about his check-signing and other practices that corroborate Cohens story over and over again. For example, in Trump: Think Like a Billionaire, a chapter titled How to Pinch Pennies contained Trump saying, I received a check for fifty cents, and we at The Trump Organization deposited it. They may call that cheap; I called it watching the bottom line As I said before, I always sign my checks so I know where my moneys going. In the same spirit, I also always try to read my bills to make sure Im not being overcharged. To be sure, the defense will come after Cohen on cross with his prior lies in service of Trump, his perjury conviction and more. But because Cohen is so strongly corroborated, believing him will not require a leap of faith for the jury more like a short hop. When that is combined with the brutally unfiltered, heart-on-his-sleeve person I first met back in 2019, you get a witness who may surprise us all, and certainly the jury, by exceeding expectations. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com The media and legal commentators seem to have developed a collective amnesia about Michael Cohens history. Observing the daily disparagements of Cohen as a serial liar and predictions of what a terrible witness he will be, an uninformed consumer of the news would likely believe that Cohen is a uniquely bad witness who carries enormously heavy baggage. In fact, his baggage is well within standard size and weight limits for a cooperating witness carry-on luggage. Media coverage has become so accustomed to casually disparaging Cohen as a convicted liar that most in the public could be forgiven for not even knowing what Cohen was convicted of lying about. Cohen, who was former President Donald Trumps lawyer and fixer, was convicted for making false statements to a bank to get a home equity loan for $500,000, concealing $4 million from the IRS, lying to Congress by claiming a Russian business project had not been pursued after Trump became the Republican nominee in 2016, and violating campaign finance laws by arranging for the $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels to keep her silent in an effort to aid the Trump 2016 campaign. Consistently missing from the media coverage is the reminder to viewers that all but two of Cohens convictions came in service of Trump and allegedly at his direction. Holding aside the fact that the two convictions for bank fraud and tax fraud sound remarkably similar to Trumps practices of inflating and deflating property valuesfor which the former president and the Trump Organization were found guilty of civil fraud to the tune of $453 million in fines and Trumps bragging about paying zero taxesthey arose from investigations that came after he was under scrutiny by Robert Mueller. Trump Trial Today: The Star Witness Is Finally Set to Take the Stand Mueller, for those who have forgotten such ancient history, was the special counsel appointed to investigate Trump and his 2016 campaigns ties to Russia. During that investigation, Muellers team made a referral to the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Southern District of New York, and that office on behalf of the Department of Justice with the FBI executed a search warrant on Cohens law office. This is important because it is standard operating procedure for prosecutors to apply special scrutiny to people they think can be leveraged to cooperate in criminal investigations against higher-ups. That was Michael Cohen. The higher-up was Donald J. Trump. In all likelihood, Cohen would never have come under criminal scrutiny but for the crisis faced by the Obama DOJ in 2016. Today, after two failed impeachments and dozens of felony charges, it is hard to remember the enormous alarm and pressure upon the DOJ and the FBI as they considered the unimaginable risk to national security posed by members of the Trump campaign being potentially compromised by ties to Russia. That they learned of this only 100 days before the 2016 election only compounded the crisis and spawned the extremely close-hold investigation code-named Crossfire Hurricane. That investigation led to the Mueller special counsel probe and the eventual charges against Cohen. Like many Trump loyalists, Cohen remained loyal to Trump initially and gave false testimony to Congress in an effort, in Cohens words, to be consistent with individual-1s [Trumps] political messaging and out of loyalty to individual-1 [Trump]. But as the pressure mounted, he caved in. Nothing better illustrates that pressure than the fact that his investigation included a search warrant executed upon his law officesuch searches are considered highly sensitive and have to be approved up the chain at the DOJ at the highest levelsand charges brought by not one but two sets of federal prosecutors working together. The lying to Congress charge was done by the Mueller team, while the tax, bank, and campaign finance charges were done by the DOJ via the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Southern District of New York. At sentencing, the Mueller team gave Cohen credit for his cooperation, telling the judge that he has told the truth. The DOJ, by then under control of the Trump administration, disagreed, saying that in its case Cohens efforts fell short of cooperation, and it sought a substantial prison term. Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison and served 13 and a half months in federal prison and a year and a half in home confinement. Recovering this history of Cohens actual baggage is critical to evaluating what kind of witness he will be and in assessing his testimony as it unfolds. Prosecutors know this and will elicit Cohens prior history from him in his direct testimony. It is standard for prosecutors to present a cooperating witness by bringing out their previous convictions and lies to pre-empt equally standard attacks by the defense on cross-examination. Here the Manhattan District Attorneys officean office that presents cooperating witnesses likely on a weekly if not daily basiswill bring out Cohens criminal history not just as a shield against cross-examination from Trumps defense team but also because that history is an integral part of Cohens testimony. Michael Cohen reacts emotionally to the concluding statement of committee Chairman Rep Elijah Cummings (D-MD) at the conclusion of Cohens testimony at a House Committee on Oversight and Reform hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington. Jonathan Ernst/Reuters The fact that two of his four convictions result from trying to help Trump and that the other two would never have come to light but for investigations into Trump will give the jury the timeline and history of Cohens work with the former president, allowing them to evaluate his bona fides as an insider with valuable knowledge. For those strongly inclined to dismiss Cohens testimony as being false, it is worth remembering that not only did the Mueller team find his testimony truthful but so did impeachment investigators who questioned him about the very same allegations about the money paid to Daniels. Norm Eisen, counsel to the House Judiciary Committee for the first impeachment and trial of Trump, writes: Cohen has never wavered since [being interviewed for the impeachment] in the key details he provided me about the election scheme and its cover-up that will also be at the center of his testimony in Trumps Manhattan criminal trial. Cooperating witnesses are often thought of negatively as snitches and being self-serving rather than being given the more noble title of whistleblower. But whistleblowers almost always have culpability in the wrongdoing they are reporting about, ranging from slight to grave. If Cohens testimony goes well and helps secure conviction of Trump, then history will judge him kindly and he will likely join the ranks of American whistleblowers dating back to the American Revolution, when naval officers alerted the Continental Congress to abuses of British POWs. Cohens book about how Trump weaponized the DOJ is titled Revenge. But his true revenge may be a loftier place in history than he could ever have imagined as he toiled doing Trumps dirty work a decade ago. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. The Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs is hosting a three-day event in June to commemorate of the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War. As part of that event, which will run June 13-15 at the Mall of America, the MDVA is looking for Vietnam-era veterans to participate in the Vietnam War Commemoration Oral History Project. The project is an opportunity for veterans to share their experiences about their time in the service during the war to help educate the public and generations to come, according to a news release. Veterans who wish to participate by being interviewed will record a video of their story, which will be archived and preserved as part of the project. It will provide an opportunity for future generations to hear directly from our veterans and better understand what they saw, did and felt during their service to our country, the release states. Family members can also participate in interviews to help give a clearer picture of the effect that service had on loved ones back home. The celebration is being held in June as part of the national 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War commemoration; the timeline for the ending of the war is fluid with events beginning when the U.S. ended direct involvement with the war in 1973, to no U.S. involvement at all in early 1975, to the fall of Saigon in April 1975, according to the organizers of the event. Anyone interested in learning more about the interview process or signing up to be interviewed for the Vietnam War Commemoration Oral History Project can contact Bess Ellenson at bellenson@tunheim.com. Related Articles Oregon liquor regulators had rare Kentucky bourbons set aside so that they could buy them. This whiskey was distilled in Kentucky in August 2016 to mark the total lunar eclipse from Salem, Oregon to Charleston, South Carolina. (Scott Olson/Getty Images) The Oregon Department of Justice concluded that no criminal charges are warranted for the six former Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission employees who set aside bottles of in-demand bourbon for their personal use. Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum on Monday announced the conclusion of the investigation, which started in February 2023, in a letter to Gov. Tina Kotek. The criminal investigation has no bearing on the separate question of whether any state employee violated Oregons civil ethics laws. The Oregon Government Ethics Commission, which can levy fines, in July 2023 paused its ethics investigation during the criminal probe. It is critical that Oregonians have trust in our state agencies, their leaders and employees, Rosenblum said in a statement. I am pleased with the thoroughness of the investigation and the professionalism demonstrated by our DOJ team. The six employees, including former commission director Steve Marks, faced accusations of diverting rare bottles of Pappy Van Winkle bourbon to designated stores that they could purchase themselves. The lengthy investigation involved the review of more than 10,000 agency documents, reports and emails and interviews with more than 40 people, including state employees, liquor store agents and lawmakers. Special agents also examined records from liquor stores and distributors. The summary of the investigation noted the agency had a long-standing agency practice where an employee could request that a specific product be transferred to a liquor store so that the employee could purchase that liquor for personal use. One employee with the agency for more than three decades told investigators the practice predated her employment. In a statement, Kotek thanked Rosenblum and Oregon Department of Justice staff for the investigation, adding the documents will be available to the Oregon Government Ethics Commission as its ethics review proceeds. Susan Myers, executive director of the state ethics commission, said in an email the commission will lift the pause on its investigation with the criminal probe finished. At this time, the ethics commission has 99 days remaining of the 180-day period allowed by state law to complete an investigation, Myer said. Oregon is a control state, which means it oversees the distribution and sales of liquor in the state. The liquor commission is the regulatory agency that has oversight on the process, which includes setting the price of liquor sold by liquor agents, who are independent contractors that operate stores. The post Oregon DOJ says no criminal charges warranted in bourbon scandal appeared first on Oregon Capital Chronicle. PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) Its been more than a year since the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission faced backlash over top managers diverting bourbon for themselves, causing a wave of resignations and public criticism. But according to an investigation from the Oregon Department of Justice, criminal charges for the scandal wont be necessary. Oregon, Washington listed among nations top 10 most dangerous states, according to report In February 2023, an internal investigation at the state agency found that several agency leaders had diverted bottles of high-end bourbonssuch as Pappy Van Winkles 23for personal use. The officials paid for the whiskey, which can cost thousands of dollars a bottle, but they had used their knowledge and connections at the commission to obtain them, the investigation found. In response, the DOJ spent the past year reviewing internal documents and conducting interviews within the OLCC and the liquor industry. According to their results, the commissions actions were not illegal. $70K in family heirlooms missing from SE Portland home However, these results are not related to the states ongoing ethics investigation, which has yet to determine whether the commissioners violated Oregon civil ethics laws. The DOJs findings, which were announced on Monday, came after Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek called for Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum to look into allegations of the abuse of power. I would like to thank the Attorney General and the staff who worked diligently on this investigation, Gov. Kotek said. While the investigation found that the conduct reviewed did not meet the burden necessary for criminal prosecution, the documents and reports resulting from the extensive criminal investigation will be available to the Oregon Government Ethics commission for consideration in its pending review of ethics complaints related to this matter. ODFW appoints first female director in departments 137-year history The start of the investigation coincided with Koteks demand for several resignations within the OLCCs Board of Commissioners, including former Executive Director Steve Marks. At the time, Marks denied violating ethics laws but acknowledged getting preferential treatment. He and others questioned in the investigation said they never resold the whiskey, which can go for thousands of dollars. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KOIN.com. The names of the two people arrested at a pro-Palestine rally in downtown Orlando were released Monday, as organizers criticized the polices handling of what was otherwise a peaceful demonstration calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. Kelvin Santos Mulero, 22, and Frankie Pagan, 19, were arrested Saturday on charges of battery on law enforcement, after Orlando police officers shoved through a crowd of demonstrators to reach a woman speaking over a megaphone. The arrests came at the end of a march throughout Lake Eola Park, where 1,200 people gathered waving Palestinian flags amid Israels continued assault on Gaza following a deadly attack by Hamas on Oct. 7. While court records detailing their arrests were not immediately available, Santos Mulero and Pagan were blocking officers from reaching the megaphone just before they were knocked over and arrested. Seconds later, police used pepper spray on the surrounding crowd, dispersing them. Santos Mulero and Pagan were then hustled to police vehicles as the crowd chanted, Let them go. No injuries were officially reported, but volunteers tended to those affected by the pepper spray, including journalists covering the event. The Orlando Police Department is committed to keeping everyone safe who chooses to peacefully assemble in the City of Orlando, while also maintaining the safety of residents and businesses, an OPD spokesperson said in a statement shortly after the arrests. Santos Mulero and Pagan have since been released from the Orange County Jail. Florida Palestine Network, which organized the rally, slammed OPDs response. At the beginning of the march, police had demanded the marchers not use the megaphone, a confrontation that was initially quelled by the groups marshals tasked with engaging with law enforcement. Its not clear whether the marchers had the required permit to use a megaphone; a public records request submitted Monday has not yet been fulfilled. In a statement calling the arrests and the use of pepper spray an act of barbarism, Florida Palestine Network said it stands in full support of these brave comrades, as their futures are now on the line. Three other arrests came on Saturday, as demonstrators of a separate pro-Palestine protest used cars to block Interstate 4 near Disney Springs. The protestors, who were with Central Florida Queers for Palestine, carried signs saying Free Palestine and Look up Nakba 1948, referring to whats known in Arabic as the catastrophe, a period 76 years ago of violent displacement of Palestinians in the early formation of Israel. Florida Highway Patrol identified the protestors as Isabella Giannosa, 26; Jenni Nguyen, 24; and My Truong, 24. All three face a misdemeanor charge of refusing to obey a police order. All have since been released on bond from jail. Budget season has officially started for both the Shelby County Board of Commissioners and the Memphis City Council. While the city council will be mulling over a property tax increase to fight off a budget hole, with a solid waste fee increase to accompany it, Shelby County has no tax increases in the works. The city began budget hearings last week, which included lengthy discussions about the solid waste increase. The week also involved major news into the investigation into Shelby County Clerk Wanda Halbert. Hamilton County District Attorney Coty Wamp filed an ouster petition on May 6, which brings the investigation to a close but starts the ouster process. The initial judge for the case, Judge Cedrick Wooten, recused himself from the case. Division 1 Judge Felicia Corbin-Johnson has been assigned the case. Solar farm ordinance passes through city and county The commission had its final approval of the body's changes to the Unified Development Code to put restrictions on utility-scale solar farms in the county. While the commissioners approved their version of the UDC, the city council still has to adopt the same ordinance with the same amendments for it to be sustained. Harsher restrictions were placed on the development code ordinance by commissioners. The changes were recommended by a group of concerned residents from Millington who have been fighting against the Graceland Solar Project, a proposed solar farm development near their homes, for months. Residents pose for a photo after they gathered to discuss why they are opposed to a solar farm being built in their neighborhood and listed the track record of how these things go when the company is not longer observing the solar farm at one of the residents home on Friday, Jan. 26, 2024 in Millington, Tenn. The Commercial Appeal recently reported that despite the commission voting down the solar farm development, the project will go ahead after the County settled with Graceland Solar and parent company RWE Clean Energy. The ordinance was amended initially by commissioners to heavily restrict solar farms within the county. Those amendments included 600 minimum setbacks from residential dwellings, distance from other utility-scale solar systems must be 1 mile from a straight-line distance and utility-scale solar systems must be restricted to less than 1 square mile. During a May 1 committee meeting, commissioners withdrew the amendment that required solar farms to be more than 1 mile from existing systems. Commissioner Amber Mills said during the meeting that this would allow the ordinance to move through the city council "easier." After the commission passed the joint ordinance Monday, the city council passed the ordinance 11-0, but residents from Millington expressed upset over not being able to speak during the meeting. Per city rules, only city residents can speak during public comment. Susan Brady, with fellow residents, discuss why they are opposed to a solar farm being built in their neighborhood and listed the track record of how these things go when the company is not longer observing the solar farm at one of the residents home on Friday, Jan. 26, 2024 in Millington, Tenn. Commissioners withdraw clerk budget amendment, mull over $2.7 million ask Commissioner Britney Thornton presented a budget amendment that would allocate $2.7 million to various projects within her district. The administration asked that the resolution be withdrawn as it did not have a funding source. The commission did not withdraw the resolution, but after robust discussion regarding the item not having a funding source it was postponed to the next committee meeting on May 15. Two resolutions regarding budget amendments for the Shelby County Clerk to give employees raises and purchase "essential equipment" were withdrawn. Hours before the items were withdrawn, The Commercial Appeal reported that the Hamilton County District Attorney filed an ouster petition for Clerk Wanda Halbert. Shelby County Commissioner Erika Sugarmon withdrew both resolutions during the meeting. Solid waste fee hike The Division of Solid Waste is requesting a solid waste fee hike to bring in more employees, bring employee pay up to market rate and fleet increases. The initial 23% increase from $29.96 to $36.85 would be the first of three over the next three fiscal years. If passed by the Memphis City Council, it would go into effect on Jan. 1. The wage increase for solid waste employees would not "double dip" with the Mayor's proposed 3% raise for all city employees in the budget, according to Phillip Davis. The increase requires an ordinance to pass over the course of three readings. The first reading was during the meeting on May 7 and passed. Catch up on the week: Got a question for us? Got a question for the metro reporting team you would like us to take on? Send an email to metro@commercialappeal.com. The week ahead The Shelby County Commission will have its regularly scheduled Committee meetings at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, May 15. Watch the livestream via the website, or attend in person at Vasco A. Smith, Jr. County Administration Building, located at 160 N. Main Street, Memphis, TN 38103. City of Memphis will also hold budget hearings throughout the week. To see the budget schedule visit their website. Memphis-Shelby County School District Board of Education will have a work session on May 14. For more information, please visit their website. This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Petition to oust Halbet filed, budget season begins in Memphis, Shelby Co. Over 100 employees at this Finger Lakes College will soon need to search for work Over 100 employees will lose their jobs when Wells College closes later this month, according to recently released Workforce Adjustment and Retraining (WARN) notice. Wells College is a private college at the cornerstone of the Aurora community since 1868. Last month, school officials announced that it will be closing in its entirety at the end of this semester. The move began as a decision by the colleges trustees who determined that it does not have adequate financial resources to continue. The New York State Department of Labor WARN unit released a notice on the closing, stating 141 workers would be affected out of 165 total employees at the site, with the difference in the figures likely stemming from volunteer positions. The colleges closure is expected to begin May 31, with full closure expected by the end of this year. The Wells College campus. For comparison, the College of Saint Rose announced its closing late last year with the state WARN unit identifying 646 affected workers, who will no longer work with the college as of December 31, 2024. The college has organized a counseling services support page for its soon-to-be ex-faculty and staff, which includes a Manhattanville Open House from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday, and a host of upcoming virtual information sessions each Wells Wednesday. Wells students heading to MU Wells officials said the school entered into an agreement with Manhattanville University, naming it the colleges preferred teach-out partner, meaning Wells students will be given connections to Manhattanville University in the coming months, to transfer there, if they wish. Manhattanville University recently received its university designation, upgrading its namesake from Manhattanville College. Manhattanville is developing dedicated housing for Wells students and will be partners in supporting our students with transfer plans, Wells officials said. Manhattanville has also expressed interest in developing a legacy agreement that would integrate the Wells College name and history into the Manhattanville community. Manhattanville University Campus Officials from the Purchase, New York, university stated that it is highly committed to the sustained preservation of the Wells College legacy, in a statement late last month. U.S. News and World Report has ranked the private liberal arts college the No. 1 private, non-profit institution in New York among Top Performers of Social Mobility in Regional Universities North for the last three years. This article originally appeared on Ithaca Journal: Wells College closing after 156 years, MU taking students 5,762 civilians in Kharkiv Oblast have been evacuated from their homes amid heavy fighting in the region, Governor Oleh Syniehubov reported on May 13. Russia launched new offensive actions on May 10 in the directions of Lyptsi and Vovchansk in Kharkiv Oblast. More than 30 settlements in Kharkiv Oblast came under Russian artillery and mortar fire over the past day, and the town of Vovchansk was hit by "a series of massive shelling," Syniehubov said. "At the moment, the enemy has tactical success" in the fight for Vovchansk, Ukraine's General Staff said in a statement on social media in the early hours of May 13. The attacks injured nine civilians across the region, according to Syniehubov. Of the 5,762 civilians who were evacuated, 2,589 were evacuated from Kharkiv district. Fighting is ongoing in the north of the district, in the area that borders Russia. Another 2,695 people were evacuated from Chuhuiv district, to the southeast of the city of Kharkiv, and 44 people were evacuated from Bohoduhiv district, to the west of Kharkiv. Read also: Civilians flee Vovchansk under Russian bombardment as ground offensive on Kharkiv begins Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG Gov. Josh Shapiro has thrown the weight of the governors office behind an incarcerated mans petition for medical release from Pennsylvania state prison, likely the first time a sitting governor has explicitly endorsed this kind of plea by someone in state custody. On May 2, attorneys for Ezra Bozeman, one of Pennsylvanias oldest and longest-serving prisoners, filed a petition asking an Allegheny County judge to grant his transfer under Pennsylvanias compassionate release law, a statute that purports to provide the sick and dying with a way to leave prison to receive care. The law is one of the only methods available to people like Bozeman, who have critical medical needs the prison system cannot provide. But petitions like Bozemans are rare. As Spotlight PA has previously reported, the law is deeply flawed and written so narrowly that few people qualify. As a result, the state has received very few petitions since the legislature established the process in 2009. In many cases, petitioners have died before their petitions were ever heard by a judge. As of November 2023, only about 48 have been successful in 14 years. Rarer still is a line on page seven of Bozemans petition: Based on the specific circumstances outlined in this petition, Governor Josh Shapiro supports the relief requested. I dont think its ever been done before, said Rupalee Rashatwar. Rashatwar and other attorneys with the Abolitionist Law Center are representing Bozeman alongside the Amistad Law Project; both are activist firms that have specialized in compassionate release petitions in recent years. Bozemans petition for medical transfer will be heard on May 14 in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas. Despite Shapiros endorsement, Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala filed a brief opposing Bozemans transfer to a long-term medical care facility. Bozeman is requesting relief under the portion of Pennsylvanias compassionate release law that allows temporary transfer for incarcerated people who need medical care beyond what the prison can provide. The statute requires all petitioners to have less than a year to live at the time of filing. Despite a letter from neurosurgeon Eric Quach predicting Bozemans imminent death without additional specialized care, Zappala argued that prison providers determined his prognosis is ambiguous. The prognosis for Bozeman is unclear, but his life expectancy will clearly be decreased due to his injury, wrote Dr. Andrew Dancha, his provider at SCI Laurel Highlands, on May 1. At this time, I am unable to provide a life expectancy as this varies widely with different individuals with ever-changing medical issues. Bozeman has been incarcerated in Pennsylvania state prisons since he was a teenager. In 1975, he was tried and convicted of killing Morris Wietz, the co-owner of a dry cleaner in Pittsburgh, a crime Bozeman maintains he did not commit. Over the subsequent five decades spent in state prison, Bozeman became a peer specialist, providing support services for other incarcerated individuals, completed college courses, and met his fiance, Christine Roess, whose advocacy led to Shapiros involvement in his case. In 2022, Bozeman responded to a survey sent by Spotlight PA as part of an investigation into the experiences of people aging behind bars and the flaws in Pennsylvanias restrictive compassionate release statute. Many of the people who responded to Spotlight PA described repeated unsuccessful attempts to get their sentences pardoned or commuted, the only other method of release available to those serving life who have exhausted their options in court. At the time, Bozeman described his experiences with hypertension, complications from what he called a mini-stroke he suffered in 2019, and some yet-to-be determined neurological issues. He later told Spotlight PA the stroke had been misdiagnosed; doctors found he instead suffered from pinched nerves in his spine, he wrote in late 2022. According to his medical release petition, Bozemans spinal compression went untreated for another year until he required emergency surgery at Temple University Hospital in early February. He made a nearly full recovery, according to medical records, but a lung clot discovered shortly after he returned from prison led to complications and ultimately quadriplegia. For quadriplegics, there are so many conditions you can suffer at any moment, and so many things you cant do: getting a sip of water, accessing the phone, going to the bathroom and feeding, Rashatwar said in an interview with Spotlight PA. All these complications hes figuring out how to navigate and thats part of the urgency of it. Bozeman now requires assistance to do simple quality-of-life activities like eating or using the bathroom. After his surgery at Temple, he was receiving specialized physical therapy twice a day from Magee Rehabilitation, Roess said. At SCI Laurel Highlands, Pennsylvanias prison for incarcerated individuals with complex medical needs, he has only been able to receive therapy twice, she said. This is his window of opportunity to regain some functionality, but he needs intensive physical therapy, Roess said. Since his return to prison, Bozemans condition has rapidly deteriorated, according to the petition, and he developed a bone-deep bed sore that required additional surgery to clean. He lost 50 pounds, he suffers from a stage 4 pressure wound, and he now requires a colostomy, the petition states, referring to a surgery Bozeman needs to reroute his feces to a bag outside his body to keep it out of the wound. Additionally, he is at risk of countless serious complications common to quadriplegics. One of Bozemans treating physicians from Temple University, Eric Quach, gave him less than a year to live without specialized care. Roess attended a rally at the state Capitol on May 1 to advocate for those who, like Bozeman, are serving life sentences without the possibility of parole. Following the rally, she walked to Shapiros office unannounced, she said, and waited for over an hour before meeting with a member of the offices legal staff. Shapiros office said he decided to support the petition after considering the unique facts of this case, including Mr. Bozemans rare medical status and length of time incarcerated, said the governors spokesperson Manuel Bonder. As his petition works through the courts, Bozeman also has an application for commutation before the Board of Pardons. The five-member board will meet on May 17 and must first vote to give Bozemans application a public hearing. If the application passes that hurdle, the board must reach unanimous consent to send Bozemans application to Shapiro for commutation. Shapiro, when he was attorney general, voted against Bozemans application during the merit review stage. When asked whether the governor would sign a recommended commutation this year, Shapiros office did not answer, but instead highlighted the administrations work to streamline the pardons process. If Shapiro signs off, Bozemans life sentence will be reduced to lifetime parole, and he will go free. BEFORE YOU GO If you learned something from this article, pay it forward and contribute to Spotlight PA at spotlightpa.org/donate. Spotlight PA is funded by foundations and readers like you who are committed to accountability journalism that gets results. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. The Azerbaijan Export and Investment Promotion Agency (AZPROMO) plans to hold a Dialogue with Business on May 17 as part of the 2024 COP29 events, AZPROMO Executive Director Yusif Abdullayev said at the Azerbaijan-Latvian business forum on May 13, Trend reports. Our structure will organize the first forum for business with the participation of foreign companies within the framework of COP29 on May 17. We'll also organize an investment conference in November within the framework of COP29, Abdullayev emphasized. To note, this November, Azerbaijan will host COP29. This decision was made at the COP28 plenary meeting held in Dubai on December 11 last year. Baku will become the center of the world and will receive about 7080,000 foreign guests. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is an agreement signed at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 to prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system. COPthe Conference of the Partiesis the highest legislative body overseeing the implementation of the Framework Convention on Climate Change. There are 198 countries that are parties to the Convention. Unless the parties agree otherwise, the COP is held annually. The first COP event took place in March 1995 in Germany's Berlin, and its secretariat is located in Bonn. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel EYEWITNESS NEWS (WBRE/WYOU) Pennsylvania American Water announced theyre installing new water storages in Pennsylvania, including a 3.5 million gallon tank for firefighters in Lackawanna County. In a release from Pennsylvania American Water, they announced they will be installing a $6.9 million water tank to provide additional water storage for fire companies in Roaring Brook Township, Lackawanna County. Interstate-81 work project switching directions Officials said the new tank will provide firefighters with extra capacity in residential and commercial areas, as well as adequate water pressure and fire protection. The new tank in Roaring Brook Township is one of four new tanks being installed in Pennsylvania. Laurel Run in Luzerne County is getting a $1.05 million 200,000 gallon tank, Jackson in Butler County is getting a $4.9 million 750,000 gallon tank, and Young in Jefferson County is getting a $5.55 million 500,000 gallon tank. Additionally, Pennsylvania American Water is rehabilitating 10 water storage tanks in the following areas: Municipality County Cost Size (Gallons) Union Washington $1,450,000 500,000 Union Washington $1,550,000 5,000,000 North Franklin Washington $475,000 550,000 Hanover Washington $375,000 300,000 West Pittsburg Lawrence $415,000 410,000 Neshannock Lawrence $675,000 1,100,000 White Indiana $1,600,000 200,000 White Indiana $850,000 2,000,000 McEwensville Northumberland $360,000 100,000 Lower Providence Montgomery $1,450,000 1,000,000 In total, Pennsylvania American Water says they are investing $28.3 million into water storage upgrades. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PAhomepage.com. Childcare deserts are leaving parents across England without options, it has been claimed, after new research revealed the number of providers has fallen by a fifth. The number of nurseries and childminders has dropped from more than 61,000 in 2019 to 48,143, with every area except the City of London seeing a fall in the number of providers. The biggest decline has been in the South East, with 2,332 childcare providers lost since 2019. Surrey, Hampshire and Hertfordshire saw the largest drops in the number of providers, as the counties lost 402, 395 and 333 providers respectively. However, it is in the North East where the greatest proportion of childcare settings has been lost, with a drop of more than 27 per cent in nurseries and childminders. The figures have been revealed as the Government has further expanded its free childcare provision, with parents invited to register for 15 hours of free childcare for children from nine months old, taking effect in September. The offer is expected to save parents on average 6,900 a year once it has been fully implemented. Rishi Sunak has heralded the plans as Englands largest ever childcare expansion, saying it will give working families the peace of mind that they will be supported so they can return to work and help to grow the economy. But the figures on providers have raised concerns that the sector will be unable to meet the demand that stems from the Department for Educations plans. The new research, conducted by the House of Commons Library for the Liberal Democrats, found that the number of childcare places has fallen by 56,000 between 2019 and August 2023. In Rutland in the East Midlands, a quarter of childcare places have been lost over the same period. Four in five areas in England have seen a decline in the number of childcare places available in nurseries, daycare groups and childminders. The Liberal Democrats have accused the Government of years of neglect of the childcare sector and a lack of funding. Munira Wilson, the partys education spokesman, said: This Conservative government has created childcare deserts through their years of neglect. This stark postcode lottery means that parents in many areas of the country are left completely without options. Free hours are no good if parents cant find a good nursery or childminder for their child and thanks to this Conservative Governments underfunding, millions of parents now face the almost impossible task of finding childcare. There are fewer providers, less choice for parents and no guarantee they will find a place for their child at all. Last month, a report from the National Audit Office (NAO) warned that there were significant uncertainties around whether the sector can implement the changes and be financially sustainable. They said that this was because the early years sector had not been consulted on the plans, and added that it remained unclear whether the extension will achieve its primary aim (and) represent value for money. More than 211,000 two-year-olds are already benefiting from Government-funded places, and the Department for Education (DfE) has said that all councils report that they are meeting demand. But they have said that a further 15,000 childcare places will be needed before the autumn, and an additional 70,000 will be required for next September. Research ignores provision in schools A Department for Education spokesman claimed the research was completely misleading, pointing to an increased number of childcare places within schools. The reality is that the number of registered childcare places has increased by around 40,000 since 2018, he said. Every local authority is currently meeting its duty to ensure there are sufficient places and we are confident they will meet parental demand for this coming September, as all of them have done with the first stage of the rollout in April. Gillian Keegan, the Education Secretary, slammed the Liberal Democrats for flawed research which she said ignores the number of childcare places within schools, completely overlooking a major part of the sector. The reality is that the number of registered childcare places has increased by 40,000 since 2018. Labour and the Liberal Democrats should stop sniping from the sidelines, criticising our brilliant childcare sector, and finally come clean with the public about what their plan for childcare is. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Georgian Parliament's Legal Committee took just 67 seconds to assess and vote on the controversial foreign agents' law. At the same time, most opposition MPs could not join the session, Georgian news outlet Civil Georgia reported on May 13. The weekend saw tens of thousands of people marching through Tbilisi on May 11 to voice their opposition to the bill, which would require organizations that receive foreign funding to be labeled as "foreign agents." The law mirrors repressive Russian laws used to crack down on Kremlin regime critics and has become popularly known in Georgia as the "Russian law." Most opposition lawmakers "were delayed outside the parliament building by the police," and deliberations did not take place, Civil Georgia said. The Legal Committee reportedly took just 55 seconds to vote on the law. Khatia Dekanoidze, an opposition politician and former head of Ukraine's police, condemned the session as "shameful" and "illegitimate." "We, the representatives of the opposition, were not allowed to attend the meeting, because the policemen delayed us outside," Dekanoidze said. "Even the representatives of the majority did not have time to enter, only the chairman of the committee (Anri) Okhanashvili entered and a few people were supposedly granted legitimacy," Dekanoidze said. According to Civil Georgia, the ruling Georgian Dream party plans to adopt the law in its third and final hearing on May 14. Read also: Georgian president accuses government of being prone to making concessions to Russia Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Pastor caught sharing sexually explicit photos of girls as young as 9, Texas cops say A Texas pastor was caught distributing sexually explicit photos of girls between 9 and 12 years old, Texas deputies said and news outlets reported. Bruce Hollen was arrested May 8 and charged with possession of child pornography with the intention to promote, according to Montgomery county jail records. According to court documents, some of the photos showed young girls engaged in sex acts, KTRK reported. The 63-year-old man was removed from his role as lead pastor at Calvary Chapel in The Woodlands, the church said in a statement. Church services are held at a junior high school on Sundays, KIAH reported. The statement said Hollen was fired because of the allegations made against him. He may not hold himself out as a leader in any capacity for the church, and he may not speak on behalf of the church in any capacity, according to the statement. Hollen is held at Montgomery County Jail on a $30,000 bail, according to jail records. The Woodlands is about a 30-mile drive north from Houston. Church did nothing to keep teens safe from pastors sexual abuse, Texas lawsuit says Ministry leader used Bible to normalize sexual abuse of blind student, lawsuit says Man studying to be a priest is found with child pornography at seminary, Ohio cops say Patient sues Sharpe Hospital, says he was wrongfully held there for more than 570 days and abused A patient has filed a lawsuit against William R. Sharpe, Jr. Hospital, saying he has been physically abused and wrongfully held at the Weston, W.Va. facility. (Kristian Thacker | West Virginia Watch) A young adult male with developmental disabilities has filed a lawsuit against a troubled state-run psychiatric hospital, saying he has been physically abused and wrongfully held at the facility. The lawsuit, filed May 8, said the patient, known as J.P., was given false hope for more than 570 days that he was ready to be discharged from William R. Sharpe Hospital in Weston. Disability Rights West Virginia filed the suit on the patients behalf. Sharpe Hospitals clinical records and treatment plans reflect that J.P. is clinically stable and ready for discharge. J.P. remains unlawfully detained at Sharpe Hospital to this day, the filing said. DRWV is the states federally-mandated protection advocacy system for people with disabilities. According to the lawsuit, behavioral health provider Westbrook wrongfully removed J.P. from one of their residences in October 2022 and sent him to Sharpe Hospital. He has not demonstrated the need for psychiatric hospital care, the suit said. J.P., who is in his 20s and mostly nonverbal, has lingered without adequate treatment or a plan for discharge, according to DRWV. A DRWV investigation last year found that J.P. had been kicked repeatedly and held down repeatedly with somebodys shoe that caused the bruising. A spokesperson for the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources said that the hospital believed the injuries were likely the result of a fall. A patient advocate took photos of J.P., a patient at William R. Sharpe Hospital, that showed his bloody face and bruising in the outline of a shoe on his bare side. (Courtesy photos) The suit, filed in Lewis County Circuit Court, seeks to move J.P. to a safe and appropriate community setting. Sharpe CEO Patrick Ryan, Department of Human Services Secretary Cynthia Persily and Department of Health Facility Secretary Michael Caruso were also named as defendants. DRWV has said over and over again that the state is failing to provide enough community placements for people like J.P., who dont need long-term hospitalization. The number of patients with intellectual and developmental disabilities being held at state psychiatric hospitals has nearly tripled to 167 over the last decade. Sharpe Hospital has faced scrutiny for patient abuse and warehousing patients without plans for discharge or active treatment. Additionally, multiple Sharpe staff members were arrested last year and charged with crimes, including a nurse who was charged with murder. The incident didnt occur at the hospital. West Virginia Watched reached out to the DoHS and DHF for comment for this story. The post Patient sues Sharpe Hospital, says he was wrongfully held there for more than 570 days and abused appeared first on West Virginia Watch. Pedestrian hit by vehicle, seriously injured in early morning accident in Rolando SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) A man was seriously injured after being hit by a car while crossing El Cajon Blvd early Sunday morning. San Diego Police responded to calls for a pedestrian hit in the 7000 block of El Cajon Blvd in the Rolando neighborhood at 4:29 a.m. Sunday. Motorcyclist, passenger die during police chase along Main Street in El Cajon According to the police report, a 26-year-old man was crossing El Cajon Blvd mid block when he was was hit by a Nissan Altima being driven by a 20-year-old woman. The man, who has not yet been identified, was taken to the hospital for a fractured pelvis. Four dead, one hospitalized after head-on crash in Fallbrook San Diego Police say alcohol was not a factor in the crash, and traffic units will be handling the investigation. Anyone with information is asked to call the San Diego Police Department or Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 5 San Diego & KUSI News. WYOMISSING, Pa. (WHTM) A Pennsylvania fire department is mourning the loss of one of their own after he unexpectedly passed away after responding to a call. The Wyomissing Fire Department says Captain Derrick Nester, a 17-year veteran of the department, passed away unexpectedly on May 6. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Breaking News According to the U.S. Fire Administration, Nester worked an overnight shift on May 5 during which he responded to numerous calls, the last of which was a residential structure fire. Nester, 43, returned home from duty but did not return to the department on Monday. He was found deceased at his home by his fire chief from an apparent heart attack, according to the U.S. Fire Administration. Punxsutawney Phil, wife Phyllis announce names of pups A wreath was placed at the Fallen Firefighters Memorial, located, at the National Fire Academy in Emmitsburg Maryland, in honor of Captain Nester. The U.S. Fire Administration, a branch of the Federal Emergency Management Administration, says there have been 25 on-duty firefighter fatalities in 2024. Three of those on-duty fatalities were in Pennsylvania this year. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC27. An Army officer within the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) has resigned in protest over the Biden administrations support for Israel in its war in Gaza, citing major ethical concerns for which he could not justify staying silent any longer. In his resignation letter officially submitted Nov. 1, distributed internally on April 16, and publicly released Monday on LinkedIn Maj. Harrison Mann asserts that the U.S. governments unquestioned backing of its ally has enabled and empowered the killing of Palestinian civilians. The policy that has never been far from my mind for the past six months is the nearly unqualified support for the government of Israel, which has enabled and empowered the killing and starvation of tens of thousands of innocent Palestinians, Mann wrote in his letter. This unconditional support also encourages reckless escalation that risks wider war. Mann, an executive officer at the DIA, an organization charged with collecting military intelligence, has been in the Army for 13 years, specializing in the Middle East and Africa for about half of that time. He also previously served at the U.S. Embassy in Tunis, according to his LinkedIn biography. Each of us signed up to serve, knowing we might have to support policies we werent fully convinced of, Mann wrote. At some point whatever the justification youre either advancing a system that enables the mass starvation of children, or youre not. Mann is among several U.S. officials to step down from their posts, citing disagreements with the administration over how it has been handling the Israel-Hamas war, sparked in October by deadly Hamas-led attacks in Israel. Josh Paul, a State Department official in the bureau that oversees arms transfers, resigned in October over objections of the U.S. governments decision to continue to arm the Israeli military. Then in January, Tariq Habash, a key player in policy reform at the Department of Education, also resigned from his role due to disagreements with the administrations stance on Gaza. Mann said he already intended to leave the Army at some point, but could not contend with how his work however administrative or marginal it appeared has unquestionably contributed to U.S. support of Israel. The past months have presented us with the most horrific and heartbreaking images imaginable-sometimes playing on the news in our own spaces-and have been unable to ignore the connection between those images and my duties here. This caused me incredible shame and guilt, he stated. More than 35,000 Palestinians have died in Gaza in seven months due to a brutal air and ground campaign by the Israeli military. That figure continues to climb thanks to Israels continued push into the territorys southern city of Rafah, where more than 1 million civilians have been sheltering, as well as further bombing of areas in Gaza the country said were already clear of Hamas. A recent review from the State Department about Israels war conduct raised serious concerns about its actions in Gaza. The report, delivered to Congress late Friday afternoon, determined it was reasonable to assess that Israel had violated international humanitarian law in the enclave. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. Azerbaijan is diligently preparing for COP29 at a high level, speaker of the Milli Majlis (Parliament) of Azerbaijan Sahiba Gafarova said on Monday at the Asian Women's Forum 2024 in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, the nation's parliament told Trend. Gafarova emphasized that the active involvement of women in the organizing committee of the event underscores Azerbaijan's commitment to engaging women in addressing climate change issues effectively. Women play a crucial role in shaping the fundamental values of our society. Their significant contributions to the political, economic, social, and cultural spheres reflect Azerbaijan's approach to women's rights, she said. Highlighting Azerbaijan's global initiatives in this realm, the chairwoman informed meeting participants that during Azerbaijan's chairmanship of the Non-Aligned Movement, President Ilham Aliyev proposed establishing a women's platform within the organization. Azerbaijan has also emerged as a significant venue for discussions on various aspects of women's rights. Noteworthy events include the Non-Aligned Movement Conference on "Development of Women's Rights and Empowerment," held in November last year, and a dedicated session of the 6th World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue in early May, focusing on intercultural perspectives on women's issues. Additionally, discussing large-scale construction and reconstruction efforts following Azerbaijan's liberation of its territories from Armenian occupation, speaker Sahiba Gafarova highlighted that former IDPs have begun returning to their homes. This November, Azerbaijan will host COP29. This decision was made at the COP28 plenary meeting held in Dubai on December 11 last year. Baku will become the center of the world and will receive about 7080,000 foreign guests. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is an agreement signed at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 to prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system. COP - the Conference of the Parties - is the highest legislative body overseeing the implementation of the Framework Convention on Climate Change. There are 198 countries that are parties to the Convention. Unless the parties agree otherwise, the COP is held annually. The first COP event took place in March 1995 in Germany's Berlin, and its secretariat is located in Bonn. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel icon Semafor Signals Supported by Microsoft logo Insights from Politico, The Washington Post, and Just Security Arrow Down Title icon The News A United States Department of Defense official announced his resignation today, marking a rare public departure from the Pentagon over the Biden administrations Israel policy. Harrison Mann is an executive officer at the Defense Intelligence Agency, which collects military intelligence. In his letter of resignation, Mann said the governments nearly unqualified support for Israel has enabled and empowered the killing and starvation of tens of thousands of innocent Palestinians, and that he believed his work unquestionably contributed to that support. This has caused me incredible shame and guilt, Mann wrote in a redacted version of his resignation letter shared on LinkedIn. Mann adds to the growing number of government officials who have publicly resigned over the Biden administrations Israel policy, including officials from the State Department, Education Department, and USAID. Many more reportedly resigned quietly. I have seen a clear uptick in non-public resignations in the past few weeks, a former State Department official who resigned in November told Politico, adding that more will likely follow. icon SIGNALS Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories. Reasonable to suggest Israel used US arms to violate international law: report Source icon Sources: Just Security, Politico, The Washington Post A report to Congress last week found it is reasonable to assess that Israel has used US weapons to violate international law in Gaza. Even so, the report, which the president ordered earlier this year, said it could not conclude this definitively, and America could continue providing weapons to Israel. The report garnered skepticism from critics of Bidens Israel policy, with Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) saying it was woefully inadequate. More than 185 lawyers including 27 currently working in the administration sent a letter to top US officials saying American military support for Israel likely violates the Geneva Convention, as well as the Biden administrations own policy, which does not allow the export of weapons if they will be used in violation of international law. Departing officials say its difficult to influence Gaza policy from within Source icon Sources: The Washington Post, NPR, The New York Times Former administration officials have said there was little room for internal debate about the USs support for Israel, and that most efforts to express dissent fell on deaf ears. One former foreign affairs officer at the State Department said that she had tried to raise concerns internally, but ultimately her concerns amounted to little as long as the US continues to send a steady stream of weapons to Israel. Dozens of officials have sent dissent cables, a Vietnam War-era channel designed to voice concerns over policy, and thousands have signed letters that call for the Biden administration to change its policy. In a message sent to State Department staffers, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken told employees that were listening. But another State Department official who resigned last year told NPR at the time theres no appetite for debate. Semafor Logo The Defense Department wants Congress to approve an expansion of special operations authorities to train and equip U.S.-aligned countries for irregular warfare against outside aggressors. The Pentagon submitted a legislative proposal to Congress in April that would expand the scope of these authorities usually reserved for counterterrorism, counternarcotics and border security activities to include resistance operations and foreign internal defense operations. Investing in the capacity of Taiwans internal and layered defense apparatus is a significant effort; existing security cooperation operations, activities and investments only marginally address current needs, the Defense Department argued in its proposal. Similarly, Scandinavian and Baltic countries in northeast Europe are at-risk due to possible Russian influence, incursion and conflict, and would be mutual benefactors with the U.S. of deliberate efforts to build partnership capacity for resistance operations to mitigate the threat from Russia and deter aggression. The proposal defines resistance operations as those in which national security forces and the civilian government and populace of a country resist an invasion or occupation by an adversarial power. It defines foreign internal defense operations as those to protect a country and its populace from acts of subversion sponsored by a foreign country that pose a significant threat to the existing government. U.S. Special Operations Forces can already train and equip partner forces for certain missions under existing authorities. For instance, Section 1202 authorities first established in the fiscal 2018 defense policy bill to respond to Russians support for Ukrainian separatists allow Special Operations Forces to arm proxies for irregular warfare in other countries. Those activities have so far largely been limited to intelligence-gathering operations. The Pentagon proposal argues that adding foreign internal defense operations to irregular warfare authorities is needed to address the relative instability of some African national security infrastructures. Kenya is a prime example as their conventional and [Special Operations Force] units are growing in capacity, but their security infrastructure and institutional pillars are vulnerable to corruption, subversion, lawlessness, terrorism and civil war, notes the Pentagon proposal. The Biden administration has pledged $100 million for Kenya to lead multinational forces in Haiti as part of a bid to restore stability amid mounting gang violence. Kenyan forces are due in Haiti at the end of the month, but the Defense Department has yet to finish construction on a base for them, Politico reported in April. The Pentagon estimates that its proposed expansion of irregular warfare authorities will cost roughly $1.3 million per year through FY29. Congress will consider the Pentagons legislative proposals as it marks up the FY25 defense policy bill in the weeks ahead. ABOARD UNITED FLIGHT 1366 - In Row 40 near the back of the airplane, the secretary of transportation is locked in mock negotiations over a middle-seat armrest. Pete Buttigieg firmly believes the person in the middle should get both. But in this four-seat center row, there are two middle seats. Subscribe to The Post Most newsletter for the most important and interesting stories from The Washington Post. This is unusual, he says to the reporter sitting next to him. You can share, he says, demonstrating how one persons elbow can rest near the back and the others near the front, or vice versa. Like all road warriors, Buttigieg has strong feelings about air travel: who gets the elbow space, his preferred window shade position (up), whether its acceptable to recline (yes) and the best in-flight snacks (stroopwafel). But his strongest feeling - backed by a flurry of new policies, rule proposals and pressure campaigns - is that airlines have gotten a pass from regulators and need to do better by passengers. On one hand, flying is a miracle, and its an extraordinary thing that were able to do, he said, in a car that whisked him from Denver International Airport. But its also true that its become more and more frustrating in many ways. And the airlines arent going to fix that on their own; they need to be pushed. As the nations top transportation official, Buttigieg has responsibilities beyond air travel: He has responded to backlogs at California ports, a train derailment in Ohio and the Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore. But between the pandemic, airline meltdowns, air-traffic-controller shortages and Boeing safety concerns, hes overseen an unusually tumultuous stretch of aviation history. And he knows the time for his agenda is running out. In interviews, announcements and public speeches over the past few months, Buttigieg has challenged airlines with an urgency driven by the calendar. Whatever the outcome of the presidential election, he said he plans to sprint to the finish line. The prize he eyes? I really want this to be known as the period when we did the biggest expansion in passenger rights since deregulation, and I think we can hit that mark, he said. As for what comes next, the 2020 presidential candidate isnt saying. Even if President Biden wins in November, it would be unusual for Buttigieg to keep his job for much longer; most transportation secretaries dont stay far beyond one term. This job takes 110 percent of what Ive got, and so I know that the best thing I can do with the time we have here is to make the most of it, he said. - - - You eat what you cook On a recent Tuesday, Buttigieg arrived at his gate in Washington Dulles International Airport shortly after 7 a.m. for an 8:15 a.m. flight to Denver. Dressed in slacks, a button-up shirt and jacket, he had a briefcase bag slung over a shoulder, a small carry-on in one hand and cup of black Dunkin coffee in the other. He was eager to sit down and eat but had time only for meals on the go: a bagel standing at Dulles Gate D3, takeout tacos in Denver. Buttigieg said he typically travels once a week, heading out for a whirlwind day or one night away. With young twins at home, its best for him to be in his own bed as often as possible. Hes taken hundreds of flights as transportation secretary, visiting 47 states so far. By virtue of his role and Secret Service escort, Buttigieg gets to avoid some of the pettier annoyances of travel. He doesnt have to go through regular Transportation Security Administration checkpoints. He boards the plane first, avoiding the scrum at the gate. Overhead bins will fill up, but he gets the first shot. But Buttigieg cant escape some hassles: The WiFi is broken. He requests the apple-mango bar, but only the chocolate quinoa snack is available. (Nobody complains, but a flight attendant later brings the fruit option anyway.) Government employees book economy, but because he flies so often, Buttigieg is frequently upgraded by the airlines. His team tries to decline, but if thats not possible, he said he gives the better seat to the most junior or the tallest person on his team. On this flight, his group has ended up with extra legroom in an economy plus row - behind the lavatory. Im not going to learn that much about passenger protection if Im sitting up in first class, he said. He said he thinks about airlines as a policymaker and a passenger but also as a parent. He refers to a truism he embraced as mayor of South Bend, Ind. You eat what you cook, he said. Or in this case, you fly the airlines you regulate. - - - Airport celebrity After landing early from Dulles, Buttigieg walked fast through the Denver airport with his security detail and aides, eschewing moving walkways. He was on a tight schedule as usual, though his flights dont always cooperate so well. A woman walking by gave him a wide smile: Mayor Pete! Ha! He said people approach him frequently, sometimes for a photo, sometimes to share a note, sometimes to vent. He has gotten well-wishes from flight attendants scrawled on napkins, a note of encouragement written on a barf bag and lobbying from pilots on potential changes to the retirement age. People sometimes guess his email and copy him on their notes to airlines, or include him in social media complaints. Buttigieg said its a good thing to hear from people when they have a problem - though the Transportation Departments consumer complaint form is the best way. If I get talking to the person next to me on the plane, sometimes I get a very detailed picture of their experience, he said. He recalled once meeting a couple who were stuck at Chicago OHare International Airport. Of course they wanted to know what I was going to do about it, he said. When Buttigieg began his tenure in early 2021, airlines were in recovery mode because the pandemic had largely halted travel. As travel ramped back up, short-staffed carriers struggled to manage the demand - despite receiving billions of dollars in a federal bailout to protect airline jobs. Delays and cancellations spiked. Between airline problems and other disasters under his watch, Buttigiegs job performance was getting slammed. Has Pete Buttigiegs dream job turned into a nightmare? New York Magazine asked in early 2023. At one point in the chaotic summer of 2022, Buttigieg said, he called a Zoom meeting with the CEOs of major airlines, pushing them to do better as a stand-in for the flying public. And then [I] woke up the next morning, and my flight was canceled, he said. I think that was kind of the most dramatic moment of frustration. Consumer groups were frustrated, too. I felt that he was not using his authority - that he was asking the airlines to step up and do the right thing, said William McGee, senior fellow for aviation and travel at the American Economic Liberties Project. My viewpoint is that will never work. - - - Flexing the power of transparency The travel woes of 2022 culminated with the Southwest Airlines meltdown over the Christmas holiday that wreaked havoc on travel for 2 million people. A year later, the department fined the airline a record $140 million. It can take even longer to formally get a new rule on the books. The department started the process in 2022 for two rules that only just became final. One requires airlines to automatically refund passengers if their flights are canceled or significantly delayed, and they choose not to travel. The other mandates more transparency around fees. In September 2022, the department took a different approach, beginning a period when Buttigieg kind of started kicking some butt, said Teresa Murray, consumer watchdog director for the U.S. Public Interest Research Group. In 2022, just in time for Labor Day, the Transportation Department launched a public-facing dashboard at FlightRights.gov to show what each airline pledged to do for customers in case of delays or cancellations. To get a green check mark on the dashboard, airlines had to make assurances about hotel accommodations, food vouchers, rebooking and other benefits in their own customer service plans. Some actually changed their plans to promise better care for passengers, Buttigieg said. What the dashboard taught us is that its not just the hard power we have to issue rules and enforce rules, its also the power of transparency, he said. Murray said she has frustrations with the department on other fronts, but the pressure and public awareness forced airlines hands: I think thats brilliant, and its worked. That followed the counsel of former transportation secretary Ray LaHood, who introduced a slate of consumer protections under President Barack Obama. My advice was keep pushing the airlines, LaHood said. He gives Buttigieg high marks for his performance. Thats your job, LaHood said. You have to represent the flying public. If you dont, nobody else will. The Transportation Department has since rolled out a comparison of airline policies about fee-free family seating. A new dashboard highlighting travel benefits for members of the military is forthcoming. Among other measures, since last year the department has proposed or finalized rules over airline lavatory accessibility and protections for wheelchair users; launched a review of the way U.S. airlines handle customers information; held a public hearing on airline loyalty programs and credit cards; and formed an agreement with multiple state attorneys general to allow states to investigate consumer complaints and refer them to the Transportation Department for enforcement. I dont think Ive ever seen a trajectory like Ive seen in the last year or so at the DOT, said McGee, who appeared with Buttigieg last month at the announcement of transparency and refund rules. Back in 2022, McGee had dismissed the dashboard as not going far enough - calling it lipstick on a pig- but he has since changed his tune. Ive never seen any sort of department or public official turn things around so quickly and so decisively. Phil Weiser (D), Colorados attorney general, said he was the biggest nudge on the consumer complaints issue, mostly during the previous administration. He said he gave the department credit for working with his office on the partnership; he and Buttigieg made the announcement in Denver last month. The corporate culture at the Department of Transportation is not one that historically put consumers first, he said. Theyre putting consumers first. - - - Under the microscope For travelers who use wheelchairs, a proposed rule to hold airlines more accountable for damaging or destroying assistive devices has been welcome. We have been fighting for accessible, affordable transportation for a long time, administration after administration, said Theo Braddy, executive director of the National Council on Independent Living - and a wheelchair user who hasnt flown in 30 years. This one hit differently, no doubt. Not everyone has been as enamored of Buttigiegs moves. Many consumer watchdog groups say the department hasnt been hard enough on airlines. Within the airline industry, officials have questioned the significance of Transportation Department measures such as the customer service dashboard and the new refund rules, saying their companies already offered the required benefits in many cases. Industry officials also share a perception that the administration does not believe airlines are competitive enough, despite the fact that they battle for customers by offering low fares while facing high costs for labor and fuel. In a rebuttal to Buttigiegs statements about the dashboard during a 2023 CNBC interview, the trade group Airlines for America said its members frequently exceed Transportation Department regulations for customer service. During a speech in January, the groups CEO, Nicholas Calio, called the dashboard a good thing but also issued his own challenge: In that same spirit of transparency, there should be public dashboard highlighting DOT and [Federal Aviation Administration] initiatives. What are they? How much do these programs cost? Whats the status of these taxpayer funded projects? When will they be completed? Why? Robert W. Mann, a consultant and former airline executive, said theres a natural tension between airlines and the Transportation Department. Regulations can also have unintended consequences, he said, such as airlines canceling flights to avoid the penalties laid out in a 2010 tarmac delay rule. Buttigieg said that airlines, unsurprisingly, have not been enthusiastic about efforts to hold them to a higher standard. He thinks it will be good for them in the long run. I think if your customers are mad at you, thats not good for your business long-term, Buttigieg said. I want airlines to succeed, but I want them to succeed by providing good service. For all his criticism of airlines, Buttigieg remains an unabashed fan of flying. He likes to keep the window shade up so he can watch the country go by. He can wax poetic about the restaurants and shops at OHare. The welcome mat to his office is a piece of the iconic old carpet from Portland, Ore., International Airport. Buttigieg was born into his flying fandom: His father, who emigrated from Malta, kept a log written in pencil of all his flights. Joseph Buttigieg brought his young son to the airport in South Bend to see Air Force One when President Ronald Reagan visited. He asked to keep flight-specific maps that were displayed on planes; a young Pete wallpapered his room with them. The family used frequent-flier miles to visit relatives in Malta. I would, as a kid, be obsessed with the flight that was coming up, Pete Buttigieg said. He would stare at the tickets for months in anticipation: The longer the flight the better, as far as I was concerned. In his youth, he imagined a career as an airline pilot. As an adult, he proposed to his husband at OHare. The fact that now Im deeply involved in airplanes as a regulator, its kind of a full-circle moment, Buttigieg said. - - - Humbled by toddlers Buttigieg has long had his travel routine down: Pack no more than necessary. Never check a bag. Dont arrive at the airport too early. But then he and his husband, Chasten Buttigieg, adopted newborn twins in 2021. The family splits their time between D.C. and Traverse City, Mich., where Chasten grew up. Traveling with a family, the old habits dont fly. Never check a bag? Ha! Drink hot coffee and read a book? LOL. Thwart a toddler fascination with buttons that will summon the flight attendant? Definitely try! You go from being like George Clooney in that frequent-flier movie [Up in the Air], where youve got it optimized down to the second, to having a 2-year-old decide how long youre going to take to get to the terminal and how youre going to spend your flight, Buttigieg says. As a well-known proxy for the Biden administration, Buttigieg has been subject to right-wing scrutiny and even mockery when he took parental leave after his kids birth. Hes been a target of Republican lawmakers, who asked for an investigation into the times he used government jets for official travel. The Transportation Departments inspector general found that both he and his predecessor, Elaine Chao, followed the proper rules. The final months of the term will be busy. Buttigieg said there is still a backlog of consumer complaints to investigate, some of which will be resolved through enforcement actions. Finalizing the rule for wheelchair users is another must-do. The department is working to start a process for a compensation rule in case of airline-caused delays or cancellations. One of Buttigiegs top priorities on the passenger front is moving forward with a rule that will force airlines to ensure a young child can sit next to an accompanying adult without a fee. The department has already published a dashboard showing which airlines include the promise in their customer service plans, though carriers say they will try to work with families even if they do not make a guarantee. Airlines have argued that family seating issues are just a small portion of their complaints, he said. But Buttigieg says fighting to sit with a kid is worse than haggling over a refund. I say that thinking about how ballistic I would be if I had to beg, borrow and steal a seat so I could sit next to my 2-year-old. Buttigieg said he believed that families should not be charged to sit together before he flew with kids, but now I understand it in a whole new way. Related Content Biden and oil companies like this climate tech. Many Americans do not. Its always sunny at Mar-a-Lago Why Highway 1 is the climate challenge that California cant fix US Postal Service worker Lou Martini goes about his daily delivery route during the coronavirus pandemic on April 15, 2020 in Kings Park, New York. Martini, who has been a postal worker for over 30 years, takes as much caution as he can while delivering the mail during the COVID-19 outbreak. A mask, gloves, hand sanitizer and the spraying down of some packages are a few of the precautions Martini incorporates into his daily routine as one of the nation's 'essential workers'. | Spencer Platt/Getty Images A plan to move some of the operations out of an Upper Peninsula postal facility are on hold, as are similar changes across the country. The decision to pause changes planned for the Iron Mountain Processing Center was announced in a letter received by Michigan Democratic U.S. Sen. Gary Peters from Postmaster General Louis DeJoy. In response to the concerns you and your colleagues have expressed, I will commit to pause any implementation of these moves at least until after January 1, 2025, wrote DeJoy. Even then, we will not advance these efforts without advising you of our plans to do so, and then only at a moderated pace of implementation. Peters, whos from Bloomfield Township and chairs the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, has repeatedly called on DeJoy to stop implementation of changes to the United States Postal Service (USPS) mail delivery network, that would include moving a portion of mail processing operations at the Iron Mountain facility to Green Bay, Wis. Peters said DeJoy also committed to pausing similar changes at facilities across the United States. Peters led a bipartisan group of more than two dozen senators who sent a letter to DeJoy on May 8 calling for a halt to the facility and transportation changes in the USPS network plan until they could be studied to ensure they would not harm mail delivery service. Peters, who says he spoke directly with DeJoy on the matter, was highly critical of the proposals following an oversight hearing he convened in April on the matter. Im glad I was able to secure this pause on changes to the Iron Mountain Processing and Distribution Center, which will help ensure that residents and businesses across the Upper Peninsula that depend on the Postal Service for reliable mail delivery will continue to be able to count on that service, he said. I appreciate Postmaster General DeJoys efforts to work with me on this issue. However, I still have concerns about additional changes, including to local transportation trips, that impact Michiganders. I urge the Postal Service to pause and reverse local transportation changes in addition to facility changes, until we have more information about their effects. I will continue to push for a comprehensive study by the Postal Regulatory Commission to ensure any changes implemented do not impact mail delivery. Its absolutely critical that we understand the full scope of these changes, as well as their impact on service and communities, before moving forward. Despite the pause, DeJoy indicated in his letter that the proposed changes would ultimately not affect service delivery. We do not see these planned actions as at all consequential to service; rather, they are important elements of achieving a network that can provide greater service reliability in a cost-effective manner, wrote DeJoy. The career workforce will not see layoffs, new equipment will be installed, the facilities will not close, deferred maintenance will be performed, and working conditions will be substantially improved. Regardless, Peters says he will continue to push for the Postal Service Board of Governors to request an advisory opinion from the Postal Regulatory Commission that will comprehensively study the potential impacts of the changes. In 2022, Peters authored and led passage of a bipartisan overhaul of the Postal Service, which created nearly $50 billion in savings by eliminating a requirement that the Postal Service pre-fund retiree health benefits for all current and retired employees for 75 years in the future a mandate with which no other government entity must comply while also requiring future Postal Service retirees to enroll in Medicare. The law made the first major reforms to the Postal Service in more than 15 years, including requiring six-day delivery. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Peters hails pause in planned USPS changes to postal facilities, including in Michigan appeared first on Michigan Advance. PG&E and a Chumash Tribe had a deal for Diablo Canyon. Then the state stepped in | Opinion In 2019, PG&E announced that once its Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant closed, they would sell the land it sits on 12,000 acres of rolling Central Coast hills called the Pecho Coast. That same year, the California Public Utilities Commission adopted a Tribal Lands Transfer Policy mandating that public utilities disposing of lands give tribes the first right of offer to negotiate a land agreement. When PG&E offered the lands (at market value) to the yak titu titu yak tihini Northern Chumash Tribe, or ytt Tribe, they jumped to re-acquire part of their ancestral homeland. By March 2021, the tribe, along with key partners, had a memorandum of understanding to acquire the entire site. For the first time since the 1700s, the ytt Tribe could reclaim rightful ownership and stewardship of their Pecho Coast homelands. Around the country, tribes have recognized that the large, unusually unfragmented and ecologically intact landholdings associated with nuclear power plants are strong candidates for restored tribal stewardship. But now, a confluence of murky state policies and settler-colonial values around conservation is complicating the transfer process. The ytt Tribe, one of eight distinct yet related Chumash communities across California, have remained active stewards of their homelands in San Luis Obispo County since the 1700s. Despite successive waves of occupation and colonialism, their stories and genealogy, relationships, and language all bear their continued kinship ties and obligations to these lands. Diablo Canyon generated tense environmental and political debates and protests when it was built in 1968. For the ytt Tribe, nuclear power was just a new wave of energy colonialism privatizing and destroying Indigenous lands. Over time, however, the nuclear sites came to be seen as uniquely protected areas. Unlike dams and oil infrastructure that degrade lands and oceans, nuclear plants require swaths of undeveloped and therefore somewhat conserved lands around them, creating unlikely possibilities for the ytt Tribe to imagine cultivating relationships with these lands for generations to come. Indigenous leaders see stewarding nuclear sites as their responsibility. For example, at the Hanford Site a decommissioned nuclear production complex in eastern Washington state and a Superfund site the Wanapum tribe maintains that, despite heavy contamination, the land remains their kin. Wanapum tribal leader Rex Buck Jr. has described Hanford as a sacred place that invited the nuclear project in order to protect the land from the further invasion and development of the settlers. Hanford, he added, will heal itself, and the Wanapum will be part of this healing process. The ytt Tribe shares this kind of vision for the future of the Pecho Coast. But that vision is in jeopardy. In April 2022, Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed to extend Diablo Canyons life in order to meet Californias clean energy goals, and PG&E put discussions with ytt Tribe on hold. Five months later, the California State legislature passed Senate Bill 846, permitting Diablo Canyon to operate for an additional five years. SB 846 included state funds for a Land Conservation and Economic Development Plan for after the plant closed, to support environmental enhancements and access of Diablo Canyon power plant lands because of their pristine state. The bill conflicted with the California Public Utility Commissions policy of giving tribes first right of offer. The bill allowed the state Legislature to bypass the tribes priority access to those lands, creating a loophole to redirect the land back into settler state hands. While the tribe experienced this shift in planning as a challenge, they pivoted, creating a conservation and economic development plan that aligned with SB 846s requirements. During a public listening session in March 2023, returning land to ytt stewardship emerged as the publics number one priority for the site. But when the California Legislature approved its budget in June 2023, it accepted a plan for SB 846 that earmarked funds for collaboration with tribes to develop a conservation plan. But it only gestured to a general partnership with California Native American tribe or tribes. Why the sudden erasure of ytt Tribe? Its possible that the state is backpedaling out of caution about naming the right tribal partner. Though only ytt Tribe the sole tribe that can document a presence in the region prior to Spanish colonization initially stepped forward to purchase Diablo Canyon, numerous other tribes have made claims to the site since. Omitting ytt Tribe from this iteration of Diablo Canyons future illustrates what academics mean when we talk about settler colonialism as an ongoing structure rather than a one-time event: Native Californians didnt have their land stolen just once; decision after decision in settler society undermines Indigenous sovereignty. On the Pecho Coast, California has an opportunity to advance its state sustainability initiatives while finally honoring its commitment to repairing relations with California tribes. Many of us are watching Diablo Canyon with hope and anticipation to see if California can give meaning to land back. Lydia Heberling is an assistant professor of ethnic studies at California State Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo. A longer version of this essay was published at Zocalo Public Square. (Bloomberg) -- More than a hundred Philippine civilians are set to sail to the South China Sea this week, risking a faceoff with dozens of Chinese vessels reportedly deployed near a shoal thats been the site of recent clashes. Most Read from Bloomberg The civilian mission to Scarborough Shoal scheduled for May 14 to May 17 to deliver supplies to fisherfolks will push through despite reported Chinese presence in the area, organizers said in a statement Monday. Chinas actions are failing to intimidate Filipinos, they said. Some 30 Chinese coast guard and militia ships are expected to be near the vicinity of the shoal around the time of the sail, according to Ray Powell, director of a Stanford University project tracking Beijings activities in the South China Sea. Thats by far the largest blockade observed in the area, he said. The civilian mission may heighten tensions between Manila and Beijing as they both assert their South China Sea claims. Last month, China used water cannons on Philippine vessels near Scarborough Shoal. Read: China Exploring Disputed Shoal for Reclamation, Philippines Says A similar civilian sail from the Philippines was cut short late last year after Chinese ships shadowed Filipino vessels. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) Hillsborough County Fire Rescue battled a house fire in Tampa early Monday morning. Nearby residents called fire rescue around 5:38 a.m. after flames and smoke were spotted from a home on Indiana Drive. The home was fully engulfed when crews arrived. HCFR battled the blaze, containing the flames in under 10 minutes. No one was inside the home when the fire broke out and no injuries were reported. HCFRs Fire Investigations Unit is working to determine the cause of the fire. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA. One of the horses rolled onto the sled, while mud-covered rescuers help to hoist the horse out of danger (LVFD) Two horses stuck in thick mud were rescued after efforts by 40 local rescuers in the community to save the distressed animals, one of which was stuck for over seven hours in the swamp. Teamwork shone its best in the town of Lebanon, Connecticut, when a volunteer fire department teamed up with other various local services and a nearby farm, helping bring two horses in a sticky situation into safety, the Lebanon Fire Department wrote in a Facebook post. At around 2pm on Saturday, a call was made to the Lebanon Volunteer Fire Department (LVFD) reporting that two horses that had wandered off from their pasture and became stuck in deep mud in a swampy area around three-quarters of a mile into the woods behind a farm. Frank Himmelstein, owner and operator of Himmelstein Homestead Farm in Lebanon, told Fox 61 the rescue took place on his property, which allows the rescue organisation Stirrup Fun Stables Rescue, Inc to pasture their animals on the farm. Over 40 rescuers from different units and agencies helped rescue the horses out of the muddy woods (LVFD) One of the horses rolled onto the sled, while mud-covered rescuers helped to hoist the horse out of danger (LVFD) Personnel from the LVFD responded to the scene but quickly realised this would necessitate the fire department to get involved as the horses were very large and the mud very deep. Various units from the fire department set up a staging area and were assisted by a Deuce and a Half military cargo truck to shuttle equipment through a river and thick mud to the distressed horses. Manpower was used to hoist the horses that were rolled onto a sled from the mud (LVFD) One of the horses stuck deep in the mud as the team prepare to extract the animal (LVFD) Along with the cargo vehicle, other vehicles, including a truck from the farm, ploughed into the mud to transport 40 people along with the necessary equipment needed for this operation. The fire departments units then created a makeshift bridge with unison logs, cribbing, plywood and signs so they could get the horses to flat land. Rescue personnel used logs and other equipment to make a more stable path through the swampy woods (LVFD) Plywood, logs, cribbing and sings were all used to create a makeshift bridge through the mud (LVFD) The area was not accessible for some equipment, so it was all down to the manpower of the team of 40 to rescue the sunken horses from the mud, which was waist-deep on the rescuers. When the Durham Animal Response Team (DART) arrived, they set up their sled equipment, with the goal of rolling the horses out of the deep mud and onto the sled device. A cargo vehicle was used to ferry across equipment into the muddy woods (LVFD) Creating the makeshift bridge (LVFD) Once the animals were on the sled, all the rescuers then worked together to pull the animals over the makeshift bridge and onto the nearest flat ground around 30 yards from the swamp. A rescue group from North Windham set up a dual rope system for the second horse, as it was considerably more stuck in the mud than the first. Logs were used in the makeshift bridge (LVFD) Lebanon Fire Departments vehicle traversing through the mud (LVFD) However, due to the sheer force of the manpower, the ropes were not used, and the second horse was brought to safety. Starting just before 4.30pm, it took just over an hour to recover both horses, who were in mild distress, with one being stuck in the mud and water for over seven hours. After being assessed by the vets, the two horses were standing and happy once again (LVFD) After a total rescue time of five hours, the horses were assessed by a vet and within less than an hour of being rescued, both horses warmed up enough to stand, got up without issue and were happily eating some fresh hay. Pittsburgh convicted felon sentenced to federal prison for possession of cocaine, stolen gun A Pittsburgh man was sentenced in federal court on convictions for possession with intent to distribute cocaine and possession of a gun by a convicted felon. Allen Gregory Edmonds, 36, was sentenced to five years in jail followed by four years of supervised release. PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Pittsburgh convicted felon pleads guilty to possessing cocaine, stolen handgun Officers executed a federal search warrant on Edmond, his vehicle and his home on Dec. 19, 2023. Investigators found a backpack containing approximately two kilograms of cocaine in the bedroom of his Pittsburgh home, according to court documents. A loaded gun, which investigators later found was reported stolen, was found in his bedroom closet. Edmonds was previously convicted in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas of a felony drug trafficking offense and a felony firearm offense. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW TRENDING NOW: 1 dead, 2 injured in Uniontown shooting Good puppy abandoned, tied to pole with note outside animal shelter Longtime WPXI reporter Dee Thompson dies at age 84 VIDEO: NWS confirms 2 tornadoes hit Fayette County on Saturday DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts The pilot, 53, was unable to deploy the aircraft's landing gear after it took off at a runway north of Sydney, Australia Sky News Australia/Youtube A plane with failed landing gear landing at Newcastle Airport in Australia Three people onboard a plane in Australia just survived a very close escape. On Monday, May 13, the plane owned by Eastern Air Services (EAS) suffered a mid-air mechanical failure after taking off from the city of Newcastle, New South Wales which made it impossible for the pilot to deploy the aircraft's landing gear, reported ABC News. The plane, which was originally heading for the city of Port Macquarie around 112-miles to the north, then had to make an emergency landing on a runway at Newcastle Airport north of Sydney. Prior to this the pilot spent three hours circling the runway to burn off the plane's fuel to make it possible to land without wheels, reported NBC News and ABC News. The twin-turboprop Beechcraft Super King Air eventually landed at 12:20 p.m. local time, per the outlets. PEOPLE has contacted Eastern Air Services for comment. 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. Related: Passengers Scream as Boeing 737 Skids Off Runway and Catches Fire in Senegal: WATCH Speaking at a press conference, New South Wales Police Superintendent Wayne Humphrey revealed that the 53-year-old pilot and his passengers, a 60-year-old man and 65-year-old woman, were unharmed in the incident and didnt need to got to the hospital, per Sky News Australia. [There were] issues with a landing gear, as a result of that, the pilot a 53-year-old Queensland man decided to stay around the airport till he resolved the issue on the aircraft, Humphrey explained. As a result, he was determined the aircraft landing gear would not come back down and he stayed here and burned off fuel. Related: Whistleblower Says Defective Plane Parts Regularly Left Factory for Boeing: Report Sky News Australia/Youtube Plane with failed landing gear makes a flawless landing at Newcastle Airport He made a textbook wheels-up landing, which I was very happy to see, Humphrey said, adding that there was a joint operation between the Royal Air Force News South Wales Police, ambulance and fire brigade. The superintendent also went on to say the pilot sounded very calm while he was in the air. According to 9News, the plane will be retrieved, forcing the airport to remain closed for around 24 hours. The outlet added that Eastern Air Services confirmed that the incident would be investigated by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. The European Commission has urged its member states to allocate maritime space for offshore wind projects, Trend reports with reference to the Recommendation and guidance on speeding up permit-granting for renewable energy and related infrastructure projects. As it is urgent to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy projects, member states should start as soon as possible to identify suitable land and sea areas and to prepare plans for particularly suitable areas (renewables acceleration areas), in accordance with Articles 15b and 15c of Directive (EU) 2018/2001. Dedicated guidance on the designation of renewables acceleration areas has been published alongside this Recommendation, in Commission Staff Working Document SWD (2024) 333. The Commission encourages all member states that have set national targets for offshore wind in their national energy and climate plan to identify and allocate at early stage the necessary maritime space and integrate it in their maritime spatial plan, says the Commission. The European Commission says that permit-granting procedures pose significant barriers that could impede the future deployment of vital innovative decarbonization technologies necessary for achieving climate neutrality. Introducing regulatory sandboxesenvironments for real-life testing of innovative technologies, products, services, or approaches not fully compliant with existing regulationscould foster innovation and pave the way for regulatory adjustments to accommodate them. Moreover, ensuring adequate staffing levels and expertise within local and regional authorities responsible for environmental assessments and permit-granting processes, as well as addressing labor and skill shortages, are crucial prerequisites for expediting project development and the implementation of renewable energy solutions. Follow the author on X: @Lyaman_Zeyn (Photo by FatCamera/Getty Images) A former plastic surgeon from Iowa is denying allegations that he defrauded taxpayers and falsely billed Medicare and Medicaid for procedures he never performed. Dr. Adam B. Smith, also known as Adam Bryant, is being sued by the United States and the State of Iowa, which allege that for five years Smith submitted false claims for health care services to government payors such as Medicare and Medicaid. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, from August 2014 to August 2019 Smith was practicing plastic surgery at Sioux Citys Tri-State Specialists. While there, the DOJ claims, Smith engaged in a concerted pattern of fraudulent behavior in order to obtain or increase government reimbursement. Smith is accused of using templated medical records in which he repeatedly reported false, contradictory, or even fabricated information about the patients health status, the care he provided and the procedures he performed. The DOJ alleges Smith routinely attempted to mask the true nature of the surgical procedures he performed, in some cases by performing non-covered cosmetic procedures while documenting that the procedures were, in fact, medically necessary surgeries for which he could bill Medicare or Medicaid. Smiths records are replete with instances in which he billed government payors for complicated and highly compensated procedures that were performed in impossibly short amounts of time, the DOJ claims. As a result, Smith and his practice were paid hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars in excess of what they were entitled to. As an example, the government claims Smith performed whats commonly called a tummy tuck on one patient and then billed it to Medicaid as a medically necessary hernia repair. By doing so, the DOJ claims, Smith collected $3,750 he wasnt entitled to receive. Smith recently filed a response to the allegations, denying any wrongdoing. The United States alleges Smith submitted more than 1,000 false claims for payment. Under the federal False Claims Act, the United States is entitled to a judgment of between $13,000 and $27,000 for each false claim, as well as a judgement thats equal to three times the total cost of the false claims. Court records indicate that well before Smith began practicing as an Iowa-licensed physician, he was, in the view of the DOJ, fraudulently billing Medicare for services. From May 2011 through January 2014, Smith practiced plastic surgery in Traverse City, Michigan. In December 2021, the United States filed a civil suit against Smith alleging that during his time practicing in Michigan, he routinely billed Medicare for procedures he did not perform. That case resulted in a default judgment against Smith and his practice. Court records indicate that Smiths colleague at Tri-State Specialists, Dr. Matthew Steele, blew the whistle on Smith after becoming familiar with Smiths billing practices. In 2019, Steele initiated litigation against Smith through the False Claims Act. As the individual who initiated the case against Smith, Steele can now share in any money that might be recovered through the Department of Justices pursuit of the case. In 2021, Smith voluntarily surrendered his Iowa medical license after the Iowa Board of Medicine filed charges against him related to his billing practices. That same year, the United States entered into a settlement agreement with Smiths Sioux City employer, Tri-State Specialists, for $612,501. The post Plastic surgeon denies allegations he defrauded taxpayers appeared first on Iowa Capital Dispatch. Vasyl Zvarych, Ukrainian ambassador in Poland, reports that Warsaw has not halted negotiations on agrarian issues with Kyiv, and they are ongoing "on all levels". Source: Zvarych for Polish media commenting on a statement by Micha Koodziejczak, Deputy Minister of Agriculture of Poland, about an alleged end of talks with Ukraine due to the criminal case against Mykola Solskyi, former minister of agriculture of Ukraine; as reported by Ukrinform and European Pravda Details: Zvarych noted that the negotiations would not be halted, but one particular meeting would be postponed. Quote: "The negotiations will not be halted since the discussions are ongoing at all levels, including the embassy level. Due to certain objective reasons there is a need to postpone the meeting between the Ukrainian and Polish ministers of agriculture until later, when an official representative of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy of Ukraine is chosen to participate in such a meeting. But I would like to assure you that the interest to continue the meetings at the level of profile ministries with the engagement of farmers associations of the two countries remains high, and this dialogue is productive." Koodziejczak told the Dziennik Gazeta Prawna media outlet on 13 May that Warsaw had halted the talks on agricultural issues due to the resignation of Mykola Solskyi, the former minister of agriculture of Ukraine, and the criminal case against him. "The negotiations with Kyiv have been halted because we will not negotiate with people accused of corruption," Koodziejczak claimed. The next round of Ukrainian-Polish negotiations on agrarian issues was supposed to be held on 14 May but has been cancelled. Support UP or become our patron! Mishawaka Police, St. Joseph County Police, South Bend Police and Indiana State Police responded May 11, 2024, to reports of a fight and shots fired at University Park Mall in Mishawaka. MISHAWAKA Mishawaka Police have arrested a juvenile involved in a shooting that occurred at University Park Mall on May 11. The St. Joseph County Prosecutor's office is reviewing the charges. Mishawaka Police stated in a press release that it responded to the St. Joseph Regional Medical Center around 1:13 a.m. May 13 in response to a 16-year-old who had suffered a gunshot wound to the foot. On May 11, Mishawaka Police, St. Joseph County Police, South Bend Police and Indiana State Police responded to multiple 911 calls reporting gunfire within the mall around 6:19 p.m. They had not identified a victim or suspect at that time. "The investigation revealed the juvenile's involvement in the incident," the press release said. After receiving medical care, Mishawaka Police said, the 16-year-old was apprehended and transported to the Juvenile Detention Center on charges of dangerous possession of a firearm and unlawful carry of a firearm by a juvenile. This incident is being investigated by the Mishawaka Police Department's Major Crimes Unit. Dispatch is reachable at 911 and the Mishawaka Police Department at 574-258-1678. Email Tribune staff writer Camille Sarabia at csarabia@gannett.com. This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Police arrest juvenile in connection to University Park Mall shooting MEMPHIS, Tenn. Police say a man with a car full of drugs pulled out a gun and told an officer, Dont take me to jail before leading police on a chase through Binghampton early Sunday morning. It began around 3 a.m. when officers pulled over a Lincoln MKS for obstructing traffic at an intersection near Faxon and Carpenter. Officers asked the driver, Jonathan King, if he was armed and if hed ever been to jail. King allegedly said yes to both, then said he would get his gun for the officer. According to police, King pulled a handgun out of the waistband of his pants and pointed it in the direction of an officer. The officer took cover behind the Lincoln as Kings car took off. The officer said he followed King for several blocks and saw him throw the gun out the window. He was eventually pulled over. Police say they found cocaine, marijuana and Oxycontin pills in Kings car. King, 51, is charged with aggravated assault on a first responder (display of deadly weapon), vehicle pursuit, felon in possession of a firearm, possessing a firearm in commission of a dangerous felony, tampering with evidence, and several drug possession and traffic offenses. No bail has been set. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WREG.com. *This story has been updated with quotes from APD. ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) The Albuquerque Police Department (APD) has been under the watchful eye of a third-party monitor for years. But now, the latest report from that monitor says APD is ready to handle its own oversight of progress. Since 2014, the police department has been under a settlement agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). The settlement was aimed at making sure police officers follow policy and dont use excessive force. And part of that settlement agreement was paying an outside group to monitor APDs progress. It has been a long road for us to get to where we are today and it couldnt have been done without the work of so many people, said Chief Harold Medina in a prepared video statement. Albuquerque Police have an updated safe space for victims and survivors The latest report from that monitor says APD is effectively self-monitoring and that APDs uses of force have decreased. We worked hard, we got the assistance we needed and we made sure that we set an expectation for command staff and everyone involved in that meeting that would lead to success, said Medina. We consider this strong evidence that APDs policies, supervisory oversight, and disciplinary systems are working as designed, the monitors report says. Suspected cockfighting operation found in South Valley neighborhood The monitors report notes that APD still needs to improve supervisory oversight of in-field activities. The monitor also says the Civilian Police Oversight Agency, which focuses on police accountability, needs to address timeliness and staffing issues. Most of all, Id like to thank the officers who stayed with the Albuquerque Police Department and fought through these changes to make sure that we improved the services that we deliver to the citizens of the city of Albuquerque, APD Chief Harold Medina said in a press release. Reform shall never end for any police department. We should always be evolving to see how we could become a better police department, more in tune with the community, and always changing to meet the needs of an ever-changing society. So what will be the DOJs role moving forward? Medina says its too early to say. Will be going into a negotiating phase to see exactly how we finish everything off and hopefully leave the department in a very sustainable way, Medina said. While the monitors recommendation is a big hurdle, ultimately a federal judge still needs to sign off on allowing APD to self-monitor. Theyll meet the judge in a hearing on June 4th. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRQE NEWS 13 - Breaking News, Albuquerque News, New Mexico News, Weather, and Videos. The chairman of Marks & Spencer has claimed police are not interested in dealing with shoplifting after figures showed the majority of store thefts in some crime hotspots were going unsolved. Archie Norman said retailers were being forced to spend a lot of money on trying to keep crime rates down, including installing new camera systems and store detectives. Mr Norman said while shoplifting rates in M&S stores were down, he added this was mostly because of work by the retailer to tackle offences. Speaking on LBCs Nick Ferrari at Breakfast, he added: We get very little help from the police. I think we have to accept that the police are not interested in this sort of crime anymore. Whether we like it or not, thats the way it has gone. Figures published last week suggested that just 3pc of shoplifting offences were being solved by police in some parts of the UK. The first nationwide analysis of store thefts by area revealed that locations including Soho in London, Cardiff and Leeds were struggling with high crime rates. King Edwards Parade in the centre of Eastbourne had the fewest thefts solved, with 97pc of cases having no outcome. Mr Norman noted there had been a surge in thefts since the pandemic, while the cost of living crisis had also fuelled other criminal activity. He added: When people are hard up, or particularly when theres a growth in other forms of crime, particularly drugs-related crime, then one way of financing it is to go and steal from shops its understandable given what weve been through in the last couple of years, weve seen more of that. Last month, James Cleverly, the Home Secretary, told police to stop treating shoplifting as a minor crime amid concerns that the country is failing to get a grip on soaring offences. Official figures show police logged 430,104 shoplifting offences last year, a rise of 37pc on the prior year and the highest level on record. However, a smaller proportion of cases were solved by police. On a nationwide level, the proportion of cases solved fell to 10.5pc from 15pc a year earlier. In 2016, almost 28pc of shoplifting cases were solved. Some retailers have resorted to giving shop floor workers body cameras in an attempt to deter criminals, while others have installed technology to monitor what customers are putting in their bags at self-service checkouts. Recent research from industry body the British Retail Consortium (BRC) found that incidents of violence or abuse of shop workers had risen to 1,300 a day last year from 870, compared with a year earlier. The Government announced a crackdown on the epidemic within stores last month, which included making it an offence to assault a retail worker. Mr Norman has previously pointed the finger at gangs for driving higher crime rates. However, he has said theft is also creeping in among the middle class because of faulty self-checkouts. Speaking on LBC in November, Mr Norman said shoppers were starting to steal things if items were not scanning correctly. He said: A lot of people think: This didnt scan properly, or its very difficult to scan these things through and I shop here all the time. Its not my fault, Im owed it. Met Police commander Owain Richards said the force was working with retailers across London. He added: We know first-hand the impact that retail crime has on staff and businesses. We have renewed our commitment to tackling shoplifting and retail crime in collaboration with the wider business community... Our call handlers will assess each and every report and make an assessment based on available lines of enquiry. On Monday Mr Norman also hit out at Michael Gove, the Housing Secretary, who has been blocking a multi-million pound revamp of M&Ss Marble Arch store. Mr Gove has been forced to reconsider his decision to halt the project, after the High Court found it to be unlawful. Mr Norman criticised how the scheme had been held up, saying: You cant have planning decisions made on the likes and dislikes or peccadilloes of an individual who, incidentally, has never ever engaged with us. I dont think hes ever been around this building. He may have been into buy his pyjamas or something Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) A Columbus police officer was shot and a suspect killed in an incident on the west side of the city Sunday night tied to a shooting a short time before at an Amazon facility in West Jefferson. According to a Columbus police dispatcher, the shooting happened near Georgesville Road and Clime Road North at approximately 6:08 p.m. UPDATE: West Jefferson police release details on suspect Brian Steel, the president of the Fraternal Order of Police Capital City Lodge #9, said multiple officers fired at the suspect, killing him. The officer was taken to Grant Medical Center in a stable condition. I sat down, I talked to the officer, Steel said. The officers doing good. By the grace of God, his bulletproof vest did its job and it (stopped) that bullet. You were talking half an inch to one side or the other side, were in a different story right now. Former Ohio campaign treasurer pleads guilty to stealing nearly $1M in funds Steel added that other law enforcement departments were involved in the incident. Police officials respond to an active shooter call at the Amazon Fulfillment Center in West Jefferson on Sunday, May 12, 2024. (JACKIE GILLIS/NBC4) Columbus police at the scene in west Columbus of a shooting involving an officer and the suspect in a shooting at a West Jefferson Amazon facility Sunday afternoon. (JACKIE GILLIS/NBC4) Police officials respond to an active shooter call at the Amazon Fulfillment Center in West Jefferson on Sunday, May 12, 2024. (JACKIE GILLIS/NBC4) Columbus police at the scene in west Columbus of a shooting involving an officer and the suspect in a shooting at a West Jefferson Amazon facility Sunday afternoon. (COLE KOVALCHIK/NBC4) Police officials respond to an active shooter call at the Amazon Fulfillment Center in West Jefferson on Sunday, May 12, 2024. (JACKIE GILLIS/NBC4) Columbus police at the scene in west Columbus of a shooting involving an officer and the suspect in a shooting at a West Jefferson Amazon facility Sunday afternoon. (JACKIE GILLIS/NBC4) According to the police dispatch, the suspect is the same man involved in a shooting at an Amazon facility in West Jefferson. Steel said a plainclothes officer followed the suspect into Columbus, where officers from multiple departments closed in on the suspect when he got to a certain part of the city. When the officers confronted the violent criminal, he fired at them and they returned fire, Steel said. The man was taken to Doctors West Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 6:57 p.m., police said. Affordable childcare rally at the Ohio Statehouse According to the Madison County Sheriffs Office, multiple 911 calls were made reporting shots fired inside the Amazon building on the 6400 block of State Route 29 in West Jefferson at approximately 4:42 p.m. This embedded content is not available in your region. The sheriffs office said there are no reported injuries at the facility. According to information provided by Amazon, all employees were sent home with pay Sunday evening and shifts at the facility were cancelled with employees receiving pay. In addition, counseling resources will be made available to anyone who needs them. Were thankful that no one at our facility was injured during this incident and for the work of our team on the ground and first responders, a statement by Amazon said. As this is an active investigation, were cooperating with the West Jefferson Police Department and will defer further comment to them at this time. As with all police shootings, the Ohio Bureau of Investigation with the attorney generals office has been called in to investigate the shooting, a BCI spokesperson said. This is the second incident in which a suspect has been shot by a Columbus police officer in less than 24 hours. On Saturday, officers engaged in a gun battle with a domestic violence suspect, killing him. Police said the man killed a woman before encountering police. This is the second day in a row that our members have been under gunfire and it should be concerning and we have to start asking questions Why is this happening and how are we going to stop it,' Steel said. It is unacceptable to shoot and kill anybody and it is unacceptable to shoot and kill a police officer. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to NBC4 WCMH-TV. Police report about Nicola Sturgeons husband to be sent to prosecutors within weeks Police officers attended the home of Peter Murrell and Nicola Sturgeon in Glasgow in April last year - JEFF J MITCHELL/GETTY Detectives investigating the SNPs finances will submit a report about Nicola Sturgeons husband to prosecutors in a matter of weeks, Police Scotlands chief constable has said. Jo Farrell said that officers working on Operation Branchform will shortly submit to the Crown Office a standard prosecution report detailing their findings and laying out their evidence. She said it would be in relation to the man thats been charged, referring to Peter Murrell, Ms Sturgeons husband and the former chief executive of the SNP. Last month he was charged in connection with the embezzlement of funds from the SNP. Ms Farrell refused to comment on whether anyone else would be charged, but said the investigation is not finished and remains a live inquiry. Her intervention on Operation Branchform was her first since she took up the post of Police Scotland chief constable last October. She was previously head of Durham Constabulary. Referendum donations Since July 2021, Police Scotlands Operation Branchform has been examining the SNPs handling of more than 600,000 in donations raised in 2017 for a second independence referendum. Supporters made complaints when accounts lodged with Companies House in 2020 appeared to show the SNP only had 97,000 in the bank despite the referendum never having been held. On April 5 last year, police raided Ms Sturgeon and Mr Murrells home and searched it for two days, erecting a large evidence tent. A luxury motorhome was also confiscated from outside the Fife home of Mr Murrells elderly mother. He was also arrested in the raid, which took place the week after Humza Yousaf became First Minister. The following month, Colin Beattie, the SNPs former treasurer, was arrested, then Ms Sturgeon was held in June. All three were released without charge pending further investigation and Ms Sturgeon has vigorously denied any wrongdoing. Complex investigation Mr Murrell, who married Ms Sturgeon in 2010, was arrested a second time last month and charged. Police Scotland said she and Mr Beattie remained under investigation. Ms Farrell told Sky News: Its a live investigation, complex investigation, and the matter is being progressed and we expect the report to go to the Crown Office in a matter of weeks. Lawyers at the Crown Office will then decide whether the case should go to court. Pressed about the political sensitivities of the investigation in a general election year, the chief constable said: Weve investigated allegations, thats moving on. We have very skilled, professional, objective individuals working on that case. She told LBC the report being submitted would be about Mr Murrell and rejected claims from nationalists that the allegations were part of a UK conspiracy aimed at damaging the SNP and undermining the cause of independence. Ms Farrell said policing was independent of politics and she had every confidence that the teams that are investigating those allegations will do so objectively. She added: Theres no conspiracy. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Russian troops attacked the border town of Snovsk in Chernihiv Oblast on May 13 with cluster munitions, injuring three people, Ukraine's National Police reported. The attack on the town in the Koriukivka district reportedly damaged civilian infrastructure, houses and cars. A 39-year-old woman and two men, aged 51 and 72, suffered injuries, according to the police. Chernihiv Oblast is located on Ukraine's northern border with Russia and was invaded and partially occupied during the beginning of Russia's full-scale war in February 2022. Russian forces withdrew from Chernihiv Oblast in April 2022, but due to its proximity to the border, the region has been since attacked near-daily. Over the past week, Russia carried out 50 attacks against 20 settlements in the region, Chernihiv Oblast Governor Viacheslav Chaus said. Read also: Civilians flee Vovchansk under Russian bombardment as ground offensive on Kharkiv begins Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Police search for 6 wanted in connection with string of CTA robberies CHICAGO Police are asking for help in the search for six people wanted in connection with a handful of robberies on CTA trains. According to police, the string of robberies and aggravated batteries unfolded on Red Line trains over a four-day period between Monday, May 6, and Friday, May 10. During each incident, officers say the girls approached a female passenger before engaging in a fight and stealing the victims belongings. Read more: Latest Chicago news headlines On Saturday, police provided photos captured by surveillance cameras of the six people believed to have been involved. Chicago police provided photos captured by surveillance cameras of six people wanted in connection with a handful of robberies on CTA trains. Chicago police provided photos captured by surveillance cameras of six people wanted in connection with a handful of robberies on CTA trains. Chicago police provided photos captured by surveillance cameras of six people wanted in connection with a handful of robberies on CTA trains. Chicago police provided photos captured by surveillance cameras of six people wanted in connection with a handful of robberies on CTA trains. Chicago police provided photos captured by surveillance cameras of six people wanted in connection with a handful of robberies on CTA trains. Chicago police provided photos captured by surveillance cameras of six people wanted in connection with a handful of robberies on CTA trains. Chicago police provided photos captured by surveillance cameras of six people wanted in connection with a handful of robberies on CTA trains. Officers say the six girls are believed to be between 16 and 22 years of age with varying heights and weights. Police advise the public to remain aware of their surroundings and stay free from distractions. According to officers, anyone who is confronted by an assailant should try to remain calm. Authorities warn the public never to pursue a fleeing assailant and instead work to remember any unique physical characteristics of the offenders. LATEST CASES: Missing people in Chicagoland Police say those who fall victim or witness a crime should call 911 immediately and provide authorities with a detailed description of the offenders. Anyone with information on the robbery is asked to contact Mass Transit Detectives at 312-745-4447 or dial 911. Those with information that could help detectives in their investigation can also leave a tip at CPDtip.com. Tips can be filed anonymously For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WGN-TV. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. The European Commission encourages member states to ensure that the planning, construction and operation of renewable energy projects and related infrastructure projects qualify for the most favorable procedure available in their planning and permit-granting procedures, Trend reports via the Commission. Regarding network development projects, member states should prioritize granting them the highest possible national significance status, where such designation exists in national law. This status should afford these projects all associated advantages in administrative and legal proceedings. While respecting the permitting deadlines outlined in Directive (EU) 2018/2001, as amended by Directive (EU) 2023/2413, member states ought to establish clearly defined and as brief as feasible deadlines for each step involved in issuing permits for the construction and operation of renewable energy projects and related infrastructure. These deadlines should outline cases where extensions may be granted and the circumstances under which they are applicable. Member states must set binding maximum deadlines for all relevant stages of the environmental impact assessment procedure to ensure compliance with the timelines stipulated in Directive (EU) 2018/2001. To ensure efficiency in legal proceedings concerning access to justice for renewable energy projects and related infrastructure, member states should establish timeframes and specific procedural rules. A unified application process for the entire administrative permit application and granting process for renewable energy projects should be created by member states. Priority should be given to simultaneous applications over sequential ones, especially when multiple authorizations are required, including for associated grid connection projects. Applicants should be permitted to update the technological specifications of their projects between the submission of the permit application and project construction to facilitate the adoption of innovative technologies. Follow the author on X: @Lyaman_Zeyn Police searching for second suspect who ran away in connection to armed robbery in Randolph Randolph Police are searching for a second suspect in connection to an armed robbery that occurred Monday afternoon in the area of Johnson Drive. Police Chief Anthony Marag said just before 1:30 p.m. officers responded to reports of an armed robbery where two suspects allegedly stole jewelry and a cell phone from a person in a vehicle. One suspect, an 18-year-old Malden man, was taken into custody by Randolph police following a foot pursuit. A second suspect fled on foot into the area of the town dump, which abuts Route 24, according to Chief Marag. No injuries were reported during the incident. The Massachusetts State Police Air Wing is assisting Randolph Police as they continue searching for the second suspect. Residents may notice a large police presence in the area while the search and investigation are ongoing, according to officials. Officials urge all residents in the area to call Randolph Police at 781-963-1212 if they notice any suspicious activity. 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 ALBEMARLE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) The search continues for the remains of missing teenager Baylee Carver. The search, which has mainly been centered around Stanly County, has also included Cabarrus and Rowan counties and has involved multiple agencies. Carver, 17, has been the subject of a search since Friday morning when a 911 call for assistance was made to a home on Floral Drive. Authorities said she is presumed to be dead. PREVIOUS: Search continues for remains of missing 17-year-old girl in Albemarle Joshua Biles, 20, faces charges of felony obstruction and concealment of a death, related to the case. Crews have a wide area of searching, which has reached around 160 miles as of Monday. Right now, were kind of throwing darts, chasing information and intelligence that so far has not been true from (Biles), Dr. Lisa Briggs said with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Albemarle Police are also asking for help from the public in trying to track the movements of a red 1999 Honda Civic related to the case. Officers said the vehicle may have been seen on security cameras between 3 a.m. and 4 a.m. Friday, prior to the 911 call being made. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News. Polish President Andrzej Duda speaks at an event during the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2024 in Davos. Hannes P Albert/dpa Polish President Andrzej Duda swore in four new ministers in Warsaw on Monday after Prime Minister Donald Tusk reshuffled his cabinet ahead of European Parliament elections next month. Changes were being made to extremely important offices of state, Duda said. Justifying the move on Friday, Tusk said the initial months of his government since taking office in December had been to tear down structures created by the previous national-conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party and that now was the time to clean up. Hanna Wroblewska, formerly director of the Zacheta National Gallery of Art in Warsaw, is to succeed Bartomiej Sienkiewicz as culture minister. Interior Minister Marcin Kierwinski is being replaced by Tomasz Simoniak, coordinator of the intelligence services, who will now fill both roles. Jakub Jaworowski is to be the new minister for state companies, succeeding Borys Budka. The culture, interior and state companies posts are all held by members of Tusk's Civic Platform party. A fourth minister, Krzysztof Hetman, a member of the Christian-conservative Third Way, is to be succeeded at the Ministry for Development and Technology by Krzysztof Paszyk, to date the party's parliamentary leader. The European Parliament elections are to be held from June 6 to 9 across the 27-member bloc. They take place on June 9 in Poland. POLK COUNTY, Texas (KETK) Polk County authorities said on Monday they are asking for the publics help in getting information about a recent theft. Man arrested with cocaine, crack, marijuana after Marshall pursuit The sheriffs office said a 2016 Polaris Ranger 900XP Crew UTV was reported stolen on May 6 in the Forest Springs subdivision off of State Highway 146. It is believed the Ranger was loaded onto a trailer when stolen, officials said. The Ranger is described as gray and black with purple accents, and is lifted with large wheels. Anyone with information in the case is asked to contact the sheriffs office at 936-327-6810 or an anonymous tip can be sent at P3 online, the P3 app or by calling the Polk County Crime Stoppers at 936-327-STOP. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KETK.com | FOX51.com. Gov. Maura Healey speaks at North Station with Transportation Secretary Monica Tibbits-Nutt and MBTA General Manager Phillip Eng. in February 2024. (Bruce Mohl/CommomWealth Beacon) An increasing number of Bay State voters view the state as on the wrong track, leading to some slippage in elected officials approval ratings, according to a web-based poll conducted for the Retailers Association of Massachusetts. About 48% said the state is heading in the right direction, down from 59% in a similar poll done for the business group a year ago. And 39% say the state is on the wrong track, up from 29%. The poll showed favorable opinions of Gov. Maura Healey slipping to 54% from 60% a year ago. A recent Morning Consult poll still had her with a 59% approval rating among voters. In the Retailers Association of Massachusetts poll, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu also saw a favorability decline to 47% from 53%. (The mayor remains popular among the citys registered voters; a poll from last month showed 57% feel she is doing a good job.) Pocketbook concerns still dominate the issue landscapeespecially the cost of living, the affordability of health care, energy and housing, and the overall economy, Ernest Paicopolos of Polity Research Consulting, wrote in a memo to the Retailers Association of Massachusetts. Also, compared with last year, voters are less likely to think business competitiveness is a very important issue. Paicopolos said the poll also showed majorities backing cuts to the state 6.25% sales tax and local property taxes. And 49% supported keeping the states 5% income tax the same, while 39% said it should be cut. Polity Research Consulting surveyed 600 registered Massachusetts voters between April 17 and April 22. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points. Polity, which is based in Andover and has a client list that includes business groups and a local law firm, conducted both the 2024 and 2023 polls. The 2023 poll was not previously released to the public, and shared with just the board of the retailers group, which says it has 4,000 members. The results from the two polls were released ahead of Small Business Day, scheduled for Wednesday on Beacon Hill. Asked about state government spending, voters fell into differing camps with 34% saying Beacon Hill spends too much, 31 saying government spends about the right amount, and 22% saying not enough is spent. The 2024 poll also asked about a Colorado law that requires state government to refund excess revenue to taxpayers. If a similar law was proposed as a ballot question, 38% said they would definitely vote in favor, while 39% told Polity they would probably vote in favor of it. Jon Hurst, president of the Retailers Association of Massachusetts, said its unlikely that his group would file such a proposal as a ballot question. But there is growing informal debate throughout the collective employer community about whether the only way to stop certain special interests from hurting our competitiveness through ballot questions is for us to get in that public policy arena on behalf of what is needed to keep the Commonwealth attractive for investment and growth, he said in an email. Questions which hurt the consistency and accountability of our schools, the viability of our small businesses with new mandates, and which hurt investment and competitiveness with tax increases have to be fought better going forward. This article first appeared on CommonWealth Beacon and is republished here under a Creative Commons license. The post New poll finds rise in voters who see Mass. on wrong track appeared first on Rhode Island Current. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaking during a campaign rally in Wildwood Beach on Saturday in Wildwood, New Jersey (Getty Images) A new New York Times/Siena College poll showed former president Donald Trump leads President Joe Biden in five of the six major swing states that Mr Biden won in the 2020 election. The survey showed that Mr Trump beats Mr Biden by three points in Pennsylvania; three points in Michigan; seven points in Arizona; 10 points in Georgia; and 12 points in Nevada. Mr Biden only beats Mr Trump by two points in Wisconsin. Mr Biden won all six states in 2020. The survey was conducted with registered voters. But the poll showed a tighter race among likely voters, with Mr Biden winning Michigan but narrowly losing Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. Mr Trump shocked many in 2016 when he won the three historically Democratic states, which led to him assuming the presidency. Mr Biden largely won the Democratic nomination for president based on the idea that he could win these states back from Mr Trump, which he did. The survey also showed that 21 per cent of voters listed the economy as the biggest issue they faced. Similarly, 58 per cent of voters said they trusted Mr Trump with the economy compared to 36 per cent who trusted Mr Biden. In addition, voter dissatisfaction with Mr Bidens handling of the war between Israel and Hamas led to 50 per cent of voters saying they trust Mr Trump more compared to 35 per cent who said Mr Biden. In every state, a plurality of voters said they sympathised more with Israelis compared to the Palestinians. Many voters listed immigration as a major concern, with 37 per cent of voters saying abortion should be always legal and 27 per cent saying it should be mostly legal. But the poll showed that almost a fifth of voters blame Mr Biden for the death of Roe v Wade, which happened during his presidency but was decided thanks to the nomination of three Supreme Court justices nominated by Mr Trump, which shifted the balance of the court. Mr Biden also continues to face low approval numbers, clocking in at only a 36 per cent approval rating. In particular, he struggles with young voters, a historically Democratic-leaning demographic, with 65 per cent of 18 to 29-year-olds disapproving of him. Only 53 per cent of Black voters approve of Mr Biden as Mr Trump continues to make overtures to the voting demographic that largely propelled Mr Biden to the Democratic nomination for president in 2020. State health inspectors gave four kitchens in South Mississippi a C for critical violations so far in May, one twice when it failed again during a follow-up inspection. Restaurants and other food service establishments in Mississippi are rated A if they pass the health department inspection, B if all violations are corrected during the inspection and C if the violations are critical. Those cited are: Hardees at 1102 Memorial Blvd., Picayune was inspected May 9 for a permit renewal. It was cited for: Food contact surface not cleaned and sanitized Toxic substance not properly identified, stored and used Insects, rodents or animals present This is the only C dating back to 2007. Mizu at 11515 U.S. 49, Gulfport was inspected May 1 for a permit. It was cited for: No certified manager (repeat) Last inspection report not posted Improper cold holding temperatures Corrected during the inspection were: Proper cooling time and temperatures Food separated and protected This was the second C dating back to 2016. The prior C was in November. Subway at 1580 Industrial Park Drive in Wiggins was inspected May 4 for a permit renewal. It was cited for: No certified manager Last inspection permit not posted The restaurant received another C during a follow-up inspection on May 10 for: Sewage waster water not properly disposed Last inspection permit not posted These were the only Cs dating back to 2012. Holiday Inn at 9515 U.S. 49 in Gulfport had a scheduled inspection May 9. It was cited for: Food contact surface not cleaned and sanitized (repeat offense) Inadequate hand washing facilities supplied and accessible (repeat) Corrected during the inspection was: Proper date marking and disposition This was the first C dating back to 2008. So far in May, 105 kitchens in South Mississippi scored an A with no violations and 10 a B when violations were corrected during the inspection. A stranger than fiction house has landed on the real estate market in the dry desert landscape of the Land of Enchantment. Whats known as an earthship has been listed on three acres of Tres Piedras, New Mexico. Though be warned: the cost of going green in the desert sun will cost you. $900,000 to be exact. The Atlantis Earthship is ready to provide autonomous living for all peoples. The latest Unity model from the world famous Michael Reynolds is a living breathing sculpture, the listing on Realtor.com notes. Reynolds is the father of the earthship concept and came up with the idea after graduating from architecture school in the late 1960s, Earthship.com said. So what exactly is an earthship? As mentioned before, its a green, eco-friendly home thats built out of recycled materials such as cans and old tires, and it uses natural resources to meet all utility needs, Parade reports. Each earthship carries its own interesting personality that makes it more and more individual the older the concept gets. Inspired by television news stories about the problem of trash and the lack of affordable housing, Michael created the can brick out of discarded steel and tin cans. Ten empty cans, four flat and six unflattened, were wired together to make a building block, Earthship.com reported. This particular two-bedroom, two-bathroom residence has a load of charisma and interesting charm. The 2,000-square-foot house also has one feature thats a decent draw: Views. Desert views from all angles. Usually, an earthship costs around $220-$275 per square foot, which would bring the total of a 2,000-square-foot residence to around $550,000, Parade noted. Its not too clear why this specific earthship is more expensive than usual. Tres Piedras is about a 80-mile drive north from Santa Fe. Color explosion? The most expensive home for sale in Boston is really intense. See it Estate with celebrity history and odd look lists in California. See what you think A postal carrier who federal prosecutors said was caught on camera stealing cash, lottery tickets, gift cards and other items from the mail in western New York has avoided a prison sentence. After community members in Rochester complained to the U.S. Postal Service that their mail had been tampered with, surveillance cameras were installed in the employees delivery vehicles and recorded her from January 2022 to November 2023, according to court documents. On 38 separate occasions, the mail carrier was seen rifling through nearly 90 pieces of mail she was meant to deliver along her route, court documents said. After opening envelopes, prosecutors said she ripped them up, tossed them out of her vehicle, or resealed and delivered them. During one shift, she stole cash from two envelopes, which she then ripped up, before putting the money into her wallet on Feb. 28, 2022, according to an affidavit. That same day, she opened two more envelopes, kept a lottery ticket found inside, and resealed both pieces of mail, the affidavit says. Other items she stole from the mail included ticket stubs and documents, according to prosecutors. In January, the 40-year-old Rochester woman pleaded guilty to theft of mail matter by an officer or employee, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Western District of New York. On May 10, a federal judge sentenced her to serve two years probation, the U.S. Attorneys Office announced in a news release. Prior to sentencing, she faced up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, according to prosecutors. The womans defense attorney didnt immediately respond to a request for comment from McClatchy News on May 13. While the woman was under investigation, investigators carried out mail integrity tests by putting cash and gift cards inside greeting cards that she was supposed to deliver in May and November 2023, prosecutors said. On Nov. 2, she was detained, investigators executed a search warrant and found one of the gift cards they placed in the mail inside her duffel bag, prosecutors said. The investigation was led by the USPS Office of Inspector General. Woman spent 25 years stealing $1 million meant for dead aunt, feds say. Shes indicted 20-year-old FedEx worker steals $10,000 cash, Apple products from packages, TN cops say Postal manager stole drugs from mail, let coworker snort cocaine off his desk, feds say Men drive around stealing checks from mail in Florida and deposit $62,000, feds say BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. Kestutis Jankauskas, the EU Ambassador to Kazakhstan, informed Trend in an exclusive interview that the coordination platform for the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR, or Middle Corridor) will launch soon. "Trans-Caspian International Transport Route allows freight to pass sanctions-free countries between Europe, Central Asia, the EU, and China. Its infrastructure will increase, making deliveries faster than the sea route. Last year, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development introduced an EU-funded study on Middle Corridor hard and soft bottlenecks. The EU convened a Corridor investment forum in Brussels in January 2024 for all countries and potential funders. Infrastructure improvements were promised 10 billion euros. A TITR coordination platform will soon unite all route players," he said. According to the ambassador, for the Middle Corridor to function properly and offer a viable alternative transportation route, all countries along it should work together, enabling smooth shipment procedures. That involves not only countries in Central Asia, but also Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia, and Turkiye. Jankauskas also noted that Kazakhstan is at the crossroads between Europe, Asia, the European Union, and China. "Kazakhstan is nestled between Europe, Asia, and China. Most China-EU land cargo passes through Kazakhstan. Much of this trade moved through Russia via the Northern Route for decades. After Russia invaded Ukraine and the EU imposed sanctions, some corporations have moved their logistic activities out of sanctioned countries. Trans-Caspian International Transport Route development accelerated. This approach allows EU-Central Asia trade and speedier cargo transit between China and Europe than via water," Jankauskas said. As the ambassador pointed out, according to several studies, there is a huge potential to at least triple the traffic through this corridor by 2030. "This would help to better connect Kazakhstan to the global economy and contribute to economic growth in the region. Kazakhstan is working on several projects simultaneously to provide better services along the Middle Corridor," he noted. Speaking about energy cooperation between Kazakhstan and the EU, the ambassador noted that Kazakhstan has been an energy partner of the EU for decades, currently supplying over 8 percent of the EUs oil consumption. "This became even more important after Russian oil stopped coming to the EU market. The majority of that oil flows via CPC pipeline, and the EU exempted oil not originating from Russia from its sanctions. Kazakhstan is trying to diversify its oil supplies to Europe and world markets. One of the ways is to ship it via the Caspian Sea and Azerbaijan. The amount of Trans-Caspian oil transit has been growing during the last two years, but its amount is limited due to the lack of port and shipping infrastructure. Developing and having alternative export routes is always important," the ambassador said. Jankauskas noted that the EU is interested in expanding cooperation with Kazakhstan in the field of renewable energy sources. "As the EU moves away from fossil fuels, we want to work with Kazakhstan on renewable energy and green technologies. Kazakhstan is abundant in solar and wind power. So far, it has implemented certain renewable power producing facilities with European investors," he said. According to the ambassador, one of the largest is the German-Swedish SVEVIND project to produce green hydrogen in the Western Mangystau region of Kazakhstan. "Within two years, it will supply Kazakhstan with green hydrogen to boost its global competitiveness and send green energy to Europe. So, project success depends on the Trans-Caspian corridor," Jankauskas noted. He pointed out that European companies are also successfully developing renewable wind or solar projects in Kazakhstan. "The Team Europe Initiative on Water, Energy and Climate, which bundles activities from Member States and the EU in Central Asia, will start its implementation with a first 20 million euro program and support regional energy cooperation and grid development. Our experience in Europe shows that such cooperation will stimulate the green transition and the reduction of emissions," he added. Speaking in general about current and possible areas of cooperation, the ambassador noted that the EU-Kazakh Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement provides a legal base for cooperation in 29 areas. "Over the last several years, trade cooperation between the EU and Kazakhstan has been growing. While energy, including renewables, remains the largest area of cooperation, there is a growing potential for cooperation in the area of critical raw materials, as provided by the bilateral memorandum signed in November 2022," he said. According to the ambassador, agriculture and water management offer good investment opportunities. "Development of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route is expected to attract cargo flows from all the countries of Central Asia and to provide not only for transit but also for transport and logistic hub development. The advancement of aviation will enable better people-to-people contacts in business, education, and tourism. Our Digital Satellite Connectivity Project will provide alternative connectivity and better internet to remote villages," he noted. Jankauskas pointed out that the EU and Kazakhstan established diplomatic relations 31 years ago, and since then, the sides have been developing mutually beneficial partnerships. Over the years, the EU has become Kazakhstans largest trading partner and the biggest investor in the country. "In 2007, the European Union adopted its first strategy on Central Asia, which was updated in 2019. Both the EU and Central Asia share strong common interests in prosperity, connectivity, energy, and security. Kazakhstan was the first country in Central Asia to sign a new generation Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (EPCA) with the European Union in 2015. It has been fully in force since 2020 and provides a legal base for deepening and widening cooperation in 29 areas of political, social, and economic life," he said. Jankauskas noted that during the past three decades, the EU has implemented a variety of projects to advance our mutual relations as well as the security and stability of the countries in Central Asia: border management, rule of law, fight against smuggling, water management, green transformation, energy efficiency, promotion of interregional trade and trade with the EU, SMEs, education, strengthening resilience, and human capital development. Ukraine plans to import a record 19,400 MWh of electricity from five European countries on Monday, 13 May. Source: press service of Ukrenergo, the Ukrainian national power company Details: It is noted that imports will be made from Romania, Slovakia, Poland, Hungary, and Moldova during the 24 hours. Its total volume is 19,484 MWh, with a maximum capacity of up to 1,475 MW in some hours. The company noted that, since 1 December 2023, the technical possibility of importing electricity from Europe to Ukraine and Moldova has been 1,700 MW per hour. In addition, Ukraine's power grid has a significant electricity shortage for most of the day due to extensive damage to Ukrainian power plants. The press service of Ukrenergo urged people to conserve electricity from 17:00 to 24:00. Background: Ukraine planned to import a record volume of electricity since the beginning of the year 18,649 MW-hours on Tuesday, 26 March. Support UP or become our patron! Were drinking our morning coffee when an article pops up in our Facebook feed about Jonathan Littell struggling to rearrange the imperial legacies on his bookshelves. Empathy kicks in immediately: we want to offer our help. After all, we feel totally up to the task. This is something weve already tried to tackle in the past and its been quite a while since we had a proper chance to rearrange the books on our own shelves back in our homes in Donetsk, which became lost to us long before "the war started" for Littell. (Heres a little reminder for anyone who just rolled their eyes because those traumatised Ukrainians are parading their trauma in front of everyone again: a traumatic experience doesn't strip away ones agency, and your urge to eyeroll could just be a sign of your privileged position of safety. And now thats clear, lets move on.) Contested identities can be hard to work with, and employing older approaches developed specifically by and for old empires may not always be a good solution. Much has been written and said about the search for new solutions and who is in a position to produce them. But even now, the months and years we have spent calling for paradigm shifts in the production of knowledge about Ukraine and Eastern Europe, in the awareness of ones positionality, and in the distribution of voices/platforms, were neatly summed up in a single tweet by a German user who complained that he acknowledges that its time to listen to Ukrainian voices, but he doesnt like what they are saying. Something very similar apparently happened to Jonathan Littell. In his essay, he mentions a conversation he has about Bulgakov with Myroslav Layuk, but he clearly doesnt like what Layuk is saying and proceeds to lecture the Ukrainian writer about Ukrainian literature. For Littell, coming from a more privileged Western context, the role his Ukrainian counterpart plays in this conversation (as it is presented in the essay) is that of the classic anthropological "native informant" whose voice serves only to highlight Littells point. This is just a minor example of the typical colonial attitude described using typical colonial language and only a tiny drop in the colonial waterfall of Littells essay. The forthright confidence with which this Western writer lectures Ukrainians on who should be considered a Ukrainian writer, and why, bears a striking resemblance to the ease with which Western colonial powers, back in the day, used rulers to lay out the borders of new states on the world map (and then to measure their peoples noses/skulls often with the same ruler). This time, though, the scale is much smaller, reduced to just one mans bookshelves or rather to one national literature. No deeper understanding of the local context is necessary: the colonial idea of a local culture being by definition small suggests that it could only have given the world mere dozens of names. Yet there are already four dozen names on the list that writer and paramedic Olha Herasymiuk has compiled of the writers and translators who have so far been killed in Russias war against Ukraine. Even the strategy Littell suggests using to replenish the list of Ukrainian authors which appears to be a very short one in his mind by adding Akhmatova, Mayakovsky or Bulgakov is profoundly colonial and based on an ethnic understanding of national identity. Andrii Dostliev, A German map of France, a Soviet ruler slightly chipped in the vicinity of Dijon, Emperor Franz Joseph, and a quick drawing of a nose, collage, 2024 Littell is neither the first nor the only one of "them in the West" to attempt to impose this ethnonational identification on Ukrainians ironically, the same ethnonational identification we are also repeatedly accused of by "them in the West". Its like an endless loop of being forced into this framework and then blamed for allegedly choosing it. As long ago as 1995, Mark von Hagen was writing about this Western inability to see beyond the "ethnic" or "blood" nationalisms assigned to the eastern half of the European continent, Ukraine included as opposed to the "good" nationalisms reserved for Western countries. What is completely missing from this picture is the fact that contemporary Ukrainian identity is more complex and is based on civic and ethical values rather than ethnic origins. So when we say that we do not want Bulgakov, Akhmatova, Mayakovsky or Paustovsky as a part of Ukrainian literature, it is because we have no actual common values and therefore no shared identity with Russian imperialists or even people describing their "deep emotional affinity for Russia". And while it might be tempting to compare Bulgakov to Celine, since we all seem to agree that both were, without a doubt, bastards, in terms of empire-colony power dynamics, it would make more sense for Littell to go and try to talk Algerians into annexing Camus. Moreover, the ethnonational re-identification or annexation that Littell proposes to perform on long-dead Russian writers is nothing new. For quite some time already, contemporary Russians working in the arts have been using similar strategies to "unsubscribe" from their original Russian identity in an attempt to abdicate responsibility while retaining all their former symbolic benefits/privileges. Just a few months ago, we wrote an essay about those strategies entitled "Grandmother from Zhytomyr and other strategies of self-unrussification" for a decolonial workshop we ran at the Schinkel Pavillon in Berlin, and we believe it would be beneficial to reproduce a slightly abridged version of that text here. Grandmother from Zhytomyr and other strategies of self-unrussification: A Russians guide to keeping all the good things Russian victimhood talk is part of the crime. Timothy D. Snyder The colonisers of the future will call themselves decolonisers. (A modern take on a quote falsely ascribed to Winston Churchill) Like many other Ukrainians, years ago I had this acquaintance from Moscow. We used to chat now and then, but in 2014 we gradually started to move apart not because of what he was saying, but rather because of what I was expecting him to say and he didn't. The first time he ever mentioned Ukraine in his Facebook posts was much later, around 2016, when he was travelling around the US with his boyfriend and complained that they had to tell people they were from Ukraine to avoid the weird glances they got when they told the truth. And that was the last straw, after which I finally deleted him from my friends list and cut what little contact remained. It was a rare, standalone episode back then, but when 2022 came, these tiny single streams suddenly became a flood. In 2023, hearing a conversation like "There is a major exhibition by a Ukrainian curator wait, why are they suddenly Ukrainian when they were born and studied in Russia? Well, they said so themselves" was not even a surprise anymore. These last few years marked though they are by the terrible losses, devastation and grief caused by Russias invasion of Ukraine have seen a significant shift in decolonial thinking. Thanks to the efforts of researchers and thinkers from the region that has suffered from Russian colonial violence, postcolonial and decolonial discourses have expanded beyond describing the relationships solely between the so-called First and Third Worlds1; Russias "imperial innocence" is finally being contested2; and the colonial nature of Russias invasion of Ukraine is now being widely discussed3. However, despite the immense efforts these regional thinkers and their allies from other contexts have put in to make existing colonial structures and connections visible, epistemic imperialism still complicates the process of knowledge production. More and more, the decolonial discourse is being hijacked and instrumentalised by the very people who used to be the beneficiaries of centuries-long colonial violence and the producers of knowledge about the region for the sake of the empire. This serves primarily to preserve access to all the earlier privileges and to evade at all costs the conversation about personal implications within the colonial project and narratives. The discussion about responsibilities related to the Russian invasion and Russian colonialism is more complex than binary oppositions and universal solutions. It demands nuanced approaches that would take the numerous existing contexts into account. Leaving aside those directly involved in the Russian military campaign, let us focus on the cultural sphere. On the official Russian state level, Russian culture is perceived as an extension of the Russian colonial project, one of its most effective promotional tools and often openly described in military terms. One of the many examples of such discourse is Mikhail Piotrovsky, director of the State Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg, who said in an interview before the full-scale invasion that Russian art exhibitions abroad are "a kind of special operation" and openly declared that international cooperation by Russian museums and the invasion of Ukraine are both part of the same project. Another is the Alexandrov Ensemble, the official army choir dubbed a "singing weapon" by the Russian state media. Artists and thinkers who publicly pose as opponents of official Russian policies, however, tend to deny that Russian culture is being instrumentalised to spread colonial narratives, declaring that Russian politics and Russian culture exist in separate isolated spaces. Yet even as they claim in their public speeches that "real Russian culture is not that of propaganda", they often go on in the very next sentence to plead for sanctions to be lifted from some Russian oligarch or other, as the Russian film director Kirill Serebrennikov did at a press conference at the Cannes Film Festival in 2022. From our observations, claims about the "innocence" of Russian culture and the need to separate the actions of "official Russia" from the "great Russian culture" usually arise in response to (real or even symbolic) threats of a reevaluation of the privileged position held by Russian culture. But these claims rarely try to address the issue of exactly how Russian culture came to be perceived as "great", and any attempts to raise this question lead to accusations of ethnically based hatred or even racism. Thus, the centuries of colonial violence, the systemic extermination of subdued cultures and their bearers by the Russian metropole, the forced assimilation, the appropriation of artists from other cultures as "Russian", the prohibitions on the languages and traditions of colonised communities, and the direct looting of artefacts which are now stored in Russian museums (the above mentioned Hermitage included), mislabelled, taken out of context and mostly inaccessible for researchers and even visitors from their original contexts, are left out of focus. After 24.02.22, there was a sudden massive wave of performative and public severings of personal ties with Russian culture and heritage among cultural professionals with a Russian background. Those who suddenly felt this need, and began to highlight in every way their non-belonging to the Russian context, started doing this at exactly the same time as their careers came under threat by a growing number of Ukrainian cultural actors and their allies calling for a reduction in the international representation of Russian culture during the ongoing genocide. Even though these symbolic gestures may also have been motivated by remorse and pain for the devastated Ukrainian cities, they were mostly transferred into the space of public statements and actions as attempts to preserve their own status quo. Successful cultural actors who had been building their careers at Russian institutions for decades, who spoke of the Russian context as their own, and who would switch to the Russian language as soon as possible when talking to you, suddenly started rediscovering their more oppressed heritages in droves. An impressive number of people professionally affiliated with Russian culture suddenly produced a "grandmother from Zhytomyr" or "childhood years in Qazaqstan" like a magician pulling a rabbit out of a hat at a kids party as soon as the discussion about rethinking the public representation of Russian culture started to unfold. Texts written by "former Russians" since the full-scale invasion are easy to recognise: they scream in readers faces "'twasn't me!" A keen eye can spot numerous manipulations with post- and decolonial vocabulary. "The attempt to grapple with vanished knowledge is a crucial skill for those who came out of the Soviet Union" thus Iaroslav Volovod, curator of Moscows Garage Museum of Contemporary Art, begins his essay "From Kostiantynivka to Constantinople". He goes on to give a detailed description of his multicultural context, spread thinly over the postcolonial geography, mentioning his grandmother from the Ukrainian town of Kostiantynivka, his childhood years in the Russian Arctic Circle, and Greek family lore. Volovod apparently sees himself as one of the countless bearers of "uprooted identities" from all over the "post-Soviet space". What is missing from this text is any reflection on his own positionality: his education at top Russian universities, his career built in Russian institutions, and how his status as a Russian curator has helped him build professional connections and gain access to institutional resources that the majority of bearers of "uprooted identities" can only dream of. As soon as his status as a Russian curator becomes potentially problematic, Volovod readily discards it. (Nota bene: and in this he has been extremely successful the recent exhibition "As Though We Hid the Sun in a Sea of Stories: Fragments for a Geopoetics of North Eurasia" at HKW in Berlin is a perfect example of the curator retaining both his access to institutional resources and his right to speak in the name of the whole region.) Of course reclaiming ones ancestral heritage is a powerful decolonial move. Of course decolonial resistance and the decolonial movement require the unsilencing of hidden stories, the addressing of erasure, the promotion of plurality, and so on. But this "saying goodbye to the Russian context" is done first and foremost to obtain personal benefits and avoid any discussion of personal implications in the colonial project. While decolonial practice does indeed encourage engagement with one's own positionality, the main aim of this particular reframing of one's own identity is the opposite: to self-inscribe into the pool of victims of the colonial project and put on the clothes of the vulnerable group. Another distinct strategy of seemingly keeping up with decolonial processes while misrepresenting or entirely ignoring their original essence is used by both Russian state propaganda and so-called "good Russians". I remember sitting through a presentation at an arts centre in Almaty, Qazaqstan, run primarily by Russian individuals, listening to them talk at length about how they organise decolonisation-themed reading groups to study classic texts by Mignolo, Lugones, Quijano, and others. When I asked whether they had considered reading any Qazaq, Ukrainian or other authors dealing with Russian colonialism, the answer was disarmingly blunt: "We have a different context here: we are only interested in decolonising ourselves from Western colonialism because we are its victims" (ironically, in its lobby the arts centre boasts about being co-funded by a major US energy corporation). This banner of "decolonial struggle" against the West was inherited by Russian state structures from Soviet times and is used regularly to this day by Russian-organised parliamentary assemblies and university conferences addressing Latin America and Africa. Yet whenever it comes to discussing Russian colonialism, the rhetoric changes drastically, not even shying away from outright racism (for example, see the report titled "Decolonisation": who and how is preparing the breakup of Russia produced by the government-affiliated "think tank" Expert Institute for Social Research in 2023). At the same time, it is important to keep in mind that not producing knowledge about others (except for speaking about the coloniser as an act of resistance) is a very fragile position for formerly colonised communities. On one hand, this refusal to produce knowledge outside of our competence is intentional. It is decolonial at its core, and that is where its ethical advantage lies. On the other, however, this stance naturally prevents, for example, Ukrainians from also speaking in the name of Qazaqs, Belarusians, etc., and vice versa. As such, it leaves the niche formerly occupied by representatives of the metropole vacant, creating the temptation for other former colonial powers to fill that niche again with the same representatives of the same metropole. However, despite attempts by various actors to instrumentalise the decolonial discourse for their own gains on the one hand, and the active decolonial gatekeeping practised by certain researchers on the other, it remains a crucial task to continue to work on the problems specific to the former "post-Soviet" region and to understand the specific features of the colonial policies of contemporary Russia (as well as the Soviet Union and the Russian empire). See Vitaly Chernetsky, Mapping Postcommunist Cultures. Russia and Ukraine in the Context of Globalization, McGill-Queens University Press, 2007 See Botakoz Kassymbekova and Erika Marat, Time to Question Russias Imperial Innocence in PONARS Eurasia Policy Memo No. 771, 2022 See Timothy Snyder, The War in Ukraine Is a Colonial War in The New Yorker, 2022 Lia Dostlieva, Andrii Dostliev Pregnancy.gov: Sen. Katie Britt (RAla.) introduced a bill on Thursday that would, according to The Guardian, create a "federal database to collect data on pregnant people." Jezebel says it will "prey on pregnant women." Raw Story calls it a "'Handmaid's Tale'-type proposal to 'register' pregnant women." A viral tweet described it as "a clear plan to help Trump monitor and potentially prosecute women who have abortions." None of this is true. The bill would create an unnecessary websitepregnancy.govthat would provide resources on pregnancy, birth, and adoption providers. It would provide grants to nonprofits that cater to this group, with abortion providers exempt (as this is a bill introduced by Senate Republicans). The bill would "require states to apply child support obligations to the time period during pregnancy, if so requested by the mother," which could mean women get a little more cash from estranged partners to prepare for the birth of a child. Users of the website could add their contact information if they would like, but they would not be required to, nor would a database attempt to log all the pregnant women in the country. The bill seems pretty pointless. These are resources that already exist, so there is no reason to spend any federal government money or time on this. But it's also innocuous. This doesn't turn American women into mere incubators (and many pregnant woman would probably appreciate the boosted child-support benefits). The dystopian headlines just aren't true. One of the bill's co-sponsors, Sen. Steve Daines (RMont.), touted the legislation in a statement: "Raising kids takes a village, and we should be doing everything we can to support new moms before and after they welcome a new baby." The federal government should not and cannot be that village, and littering the web with another .gov website ain't gonna be the thing that alleviates hardship for a struggling new mother. Community is frequently forged locally and in person, and this bill, trotted out for Mother's Day, would do very little to make women's lives easier. Noem vs. Natives: South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, a Republican who recently made headlines by disclosing that she shot her dog and fabricating a meeting with North Korea's Kim Jong Un, is now amusingly barred from visiting about 20 percent of her state. "The Yankton Sioux Tribe voted Friday to ban Noem from their land in southeastern South Dakota just a few days after the Sisseton-Wahpeton Ovate tribe took the same action," reports the Associated Press. "The Oglala, Rosebud, Cheyenne River and Standing Rock Sioux tribes had already taken action to keep her off their reservations." Noem has a story about why they don't like her. "We've got some tribal leaders that I believe are personally benefiting from the [drug] cartels being there, and that's why they attack me every day," Noem said at a forum in March. "But I'm going to fight for the people who actually live in those situations, who call me and text me every day and say, 'Please, dear governor, please come help us in Pine Ridge. We are scared.'" It's not clear what Noem is referring to, exactly. There have been some reports of cartels embedding themselves in reservationsNBC has a long report of how this has happened in Montanaand it's true that many reservations have big drug addiction problems. "Right now it's as if fentanyl is raining on our reservation," Marvin Weatherwax, Jr., a representative in the Montana state House who also serves on the Blackfeet Tribal Business Council, told NBC. But Noem hasn't pointed to anything specific that's happening in South Dakota. She seems to just kind of be jousting with Natives to position herself as a Republican veep contender. Noem has, to her credit, called for an audit of how federal funds are being used by South Dakota's tribes, alleging corruption. (In my view, audits of how federal funds are used are pretty much always a good idea.) Scenes from New York: The latest victim of NYC crime? Actor Steve Buscemi, who was punched in the face last Wednesday while walking in Kips Bay, Manhattan. I have always been in favor of law and order, but I feel even more passionately about this stance now that one of our national treasures has been harmed. QUICK HITS Califonia's proposed AI regulations, like SB 1047, "impose a whole bunch of safety requirements on companies building foundational models," writes Noah Smith at his Substack. "I wonder if regulations like this can actually be implemented as written. SB 1047 demands that AI companies know all sorts of things that their model can and can't do before the model is trained on the data. As far as I know, that's not even possible; you don't really know what a model can do before it's trained." A couple used Notion, the productivity software tool, to organize their love life, keeping track of each other's love languages, sweet date-night memories, and friends they hope to set up. The internet reacted quite venomously. "Georgia's parliament green-lit a final vote on a proposed law that critics see as a threat to media freedom and the country's aspirations to join the European Union on Monday," reports the Associated Press. Protests erupted: Absolutely massive anti-Russian protests in Tbilisi right now. In size, reminiscent of Kyiv 2014. No coincidence that it's for the same reason. pic.twitter.com/ygAVC4NYJG Jay in Kyiv (@JayinKyiv) May 11, 2024 Donald Trump is leading in five key states, according to recent polling data. Isaac Asimov's predictions from 1981, excerpted by Tyler Cowen on Marginal Revolution. The post Pregnant Women Database? appeared first on Reason.com. KALAMAZOO, Mich. (WOOD) Authorities on Monday released the findings of a preliminary damage assessment following the EF2 tornado that tore through the Portage area last week, saying 60 buildings were destroyed. Along the May 7 tornados 11-mile path through Texas Township, the city of Portage and Pavilion Township, the number of irreparably damaged buildings included 25 single-family homes, eight multifamily buildings, 24 mobile homes and three business structures with multiple tenants, Kalamazoo Countys Office of Emergency Management said. Thought we were gonna die: Tornado destroys homes, businesses in Portage area Officials classified 129 buildings with major damage, which means structures that are either going to require extensive repair to get it back to the way it was or they may have to tear it down, Kalamazoo County Emergency Management Director Mike Corfman explained. That 129 buildings breaks down to 80 single-family homes, 11 multi-family buildings, 27 mobile homes, 10 businesses with multiple tenants and one nonprofit structure the rectory for St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church in Portage. Mayor: Portage will move together forward after tornado More than 400 buildings sustained minor damage or were otherwise affected, Corfman told reporters Monday. The reason we didnt concentrate on those numbers specifically is because (federal agencies) look at the destroyed and major damage structures when they determine whether or not theyre going to be able to come in, he said. The emergency management office said the damage counts will likely change as more information is gathered. Corfman couldnt yet assign a dollar amount to all the damage, saying its a complicated figure to calculate. The problem with damage assessment is that we can go back into community records and look at what the property may be assessed at from an equalization standpoint, but thats the land and the building. So we only have building damage in most cases unfortunately, trees are not covered in that, he said, going on to say that land value would remain the same even as the building value changes. Inside woodtv.com: Southwest Michigan tornadoes A strip mall at W Centre Avenue near Oakland Drive in Portage after a tornado ripped through the area. (May 9, 2024) A strip mall along West Centre Avenue in Portage the day after a tornado ripped through. (May 8, 2024) Whats left of a Pizza Hut on W Centre Avenue in Portage following a tornado. It was part of a strip mall that took a direct hit. (May 8, 2024) Damage at Timbercreek Townhouses in Portage the day after a tornado ripped through. (May 8, 2024) Damage at Timbercreek Townhouses in Portage the day after a tornado ripped through. (May 8, 2024) Damage at Timbercreek Townhouses in Portage the day after a tornado ripped through. (May 8, 2024) Insulation covers the playroom of a home on Timbercreek Court in Grand Rapids the day after a tornado tore through. (May 8, 2024) A mobile home that was destroyed at Pavilion Estates near Portage in the May 7, 2024, tornado. (May 9, 2024) A mobile home in Pavilion Township torn from its base and flipped over the day after a tornado. (May 8, 2024) Storm damage at the Pavilion Estates near Portage on May 8, 2024. The storm spared Janet Laurin-Knudsens Portage home of 62 years but did damage an outdoor windmill her father made in 1980. The windmill had survived decades of severe weather. The branch off the tree was huge. (It) landed on the side and took out the top. But its made really strong and the side was holding up the branch and hopefully we can remake the top, Laurin-Knudsen said. In our neighborhood, (the storm) didnt seem to damage the homes. The trees fell all different ways and missed houses. Unbelievable. She was grateful everyone survived despite the scale of the devastation. I just praise God for that. Everything else can be replaced, she said. Janet Laurin-Knudsen shows how an outdoor windmill made by her father was damaged in the Portage tornado. (May 13, 2024) The outdoor windmill made by Janet Laurin-Knudsens father was damaged in the Portage tornado. (May 13, 2024) DAMAGE ASSESSMENT AROUND SOUTHWEST MICHIGAN The Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, requires a preliminary damage assessment for a region to be considered for federal assistance. We go out and we are just getting a snapshot for FEMA, Corfman explained. Were trying to accumulate all of those structures that are either destroyed or severely damaged because we have to meet a threshold. Once we meet that threshold, then the affected and the minors are just icing on the cake. So we wanted to hit those major ones first. He said FEMA teams would later get a more precise count of every affected building. Peoples insurance, Corfman said, will be the first to cover damage costs; FEMA would help cover deductibles and the Small Business Administration would offer low-interest loans. Ive deployed to a lot of disaster areas in the course of my job and my military service. You go into those to help out those people, obviously, but youre there to do a job. But this happened to our community, and this is really kind of different to me. Im trying to work through all of this, and it hit close to my neighborhood, and it hit in my county. Were taking this a little more personal, Corfman said. Were trying as hard as we can to get the proper aid that we need from the federal government and all of our other partners. The same storm that spawned the Portage tornado also spawned three other confirmed tornadoes in Southwest Michigan, including another EF2 that marched about 20 miles from Centreville to the Union City area. The widespread damage means there will be multiple assessment teams out across the region this week. Teams are made up of representatives from local and state governments, as well as FEMA and the SBA. Well have six teams. Theyll be moving from one jurisdiction to another. So the first three teams will start in Kalamazoo County. The other teams will be spread out in the other counties that were affected. Once those counties get concluded, they will redeploy to up here. So at some point in time in the course of the week, well have all the teams here in Kalamazoo County, Corfman said. CELERY FLATS STILL CLOSED As of Monday, Kalamazoo County and Portage officials said tree removal was done and nearly all affected roads have reopened. All traffic lights were back on. The power grid was fully restored, though some buildings were still so badly damaged power could not be fed to them. The individual residence and building owners are starting the recovery process. Theyre tarping up, trying to get the roofs back on; were expecting rain, he said. The water damage is significant in some of these buildings just because we lost roofs, shingles. A shelter remained open for those displaced at the First Assembly of God at 555 Oakland Drive in Portage. Corfman said 18 people stayed there Sunday night. Were trying to work out some longer-term sheltering for those people, he said. The people who are there, their homes are gone. They just cannot go back, period. Cleanup continues in a neighborhood near Oakland Drive and Centre avenue after the Portage tornado. (May 13, 2024) Cleanup continues in a neighborhood near Oakland Drive and Centre avenue after the Portage tornado. (May 13, 2024) Celery Flats Historic Area remained closed to the public, with trails still blocked and officials worried that the historic barn-turned-venue Hayloft Theatre may collapse. The Hayloft Theatre was damaged significantly. The structures being propped up so that it doesnt fall and damage the building more. Were looking at estimates to how much its going to cost to repair that building, city spokesperson Mary Beth Block said. The count of people hospitalized during the storm was 16, including some who had preexisting conditions, though they werent necessarily harmed because of storm damage, Corfman said. For example, one woman went into labor. There were no serious injuries and no one remained hospitalized as of Monday. Its not safe: 911 calls flood dispatch amid tornadoes Corfman credited the small number of injuries and lack of deaths to media coverage, cellphone alerts and tornado sirens sounding. (People) heard the alert on their phone. The weather was threatening. We had already had a watch posted. There had been some additional warnings that were to the west of us. It was news time at night, right? People had their TVs on, they were watching it unfold, he said. People know it was coming and they could see it. If this had happened at 3 oclock in the morning, I wouldnt be so sure that we would be talking in those numbers. It could be worse. He urged people to ensure they have emergency alerts activated on their phones and get a weather radio. The city of Portage also has its own emergency alert system. Strip club collects donations after Portage tornado The Kalamazoo Community Foundation and the United Way of South Central Michigan have both established disaster relief funds in the wake of the storm. Portage leaders also directed people to the Michigan Volunteer Registry to find out how they can help. News 8s Kyle Mitchell contributed to this report. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com. text Hearst Owned Say youve just scored your dream job. And that dream job involves representing your town, county, state, or even country, dedicating your time and energy to making a difference in peoples lives. Youre feeling energized, hopeful, idealistic even. And then, on day one, you face a harsh reality: The majority of governments in this country werent set up with women in mind. You knew your job would be tough, but maybe you didnt realize how tough. Its a previously underreported scenario we heard again and again while talking to elected women for How to Succeed in Office. They face far more roadblocks than their male counterparts on all frontsfinancial, logistical, physical, mental, emotional, we could go onwith women of color and working parents often being even more affected. Below are ideas and tangible solutions for the biggest and most common challenges women in office face. We also enlisted veteran politicians to help out a few newcomers with their very specific quandaries. Because we know it takes a village, and were pretty sure its women who are going to get each other out of this mess. Problem #1? Hearst Owned Khadija Horton/Getty THE SITUATION Elected positions were created in the image of white landowning men, says Ghida Dagher, CEO and president of New American Leaders, a group that empowers immigrants, refugees, and their allies to run for and succeed in office. And these jobs continue to be arranged in a way that supports and reinforces that structure of power. Case in point: 45 states pay their legislators a salary that falls below the states median household income; other states pay...nothing at all. Meaning, if youre an elected woman without generational wealth, a previously high-paying career, or lots of spousal support, you could be left scrambling to make ends meetboth personally and professionally. You might need to take on a second job to cover expenses like work-related travel, or childcare and healthcare (which may not come with elected roles). Or to pay your own teams, since state- and local-level positions rarely come with enough money to hire staff. WHAT IT'S LIKE When Mesha Mainor was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives in 2020, she quickly faced a startling reality: Her job had no preexisting budget; she could only be reimbursed up to $7,000 per year for anything she spent on communicating with constituents. I didnt use any of my budget in my first year, says Rep. Mainor, who had quit her job in outpatient rehabilitation to run for office. I wasnt in the position to pay for the things I needed, then wait for reimbursement. Instead, she did everything from answering emails to drafting bills to sending out newsletters herself. It was far from ideal, she says, but it did force her to learn every single aspect of the job, and it made her realize what kind of person she needed to hire once she was able to raise funds (which, yes, she also did herself). HOW WOMEN ARE MAKING IT BETTER In an effort to help close the political giving gender gap, the Electing Women Alliance matches female officials running for re-election with female donors. Similarly, the Leadership Now Project aids women running for office by connecting them with business leaders who double as donors. Hearst Owned Hearst Owned Khadija Horton/Getty Images THE SITUATION Once women take office, any lines between their personal and professional lives tend to disappear, says Larissa Martinez, founder and president of the Womens Public Leadership Network, an organization that supports women running for and elected to office. Your job is to be accessible to the public. As in, very accessible: If, say, youre a legislator who makes a controversial decision about housing, people will feel entitled to know everything about your own home. Youll also be on-the-job 24/7, whether that looks like phoning an important donor at a moments notice or being approached by voters while grocery shopping. And youre dealing with this pretty much on your own, says Martinez. There arent a ton of resources to help manage these considerations. WHAT IT'S LIKE I get phone calls, emails, and messages around the clock from people who have questions or need my help,says Sarah Compo Pierce, the mayor of Watertown, New York. She knows going out in publicincluding when shes trying to enjoy some downtimemeans running into and listening to constituents, though shell often ask for peoples contact information and if she can follow-up with them during more typical working hours. The key is knowing when to take a break, she adds. Even if that break means putting her daughter to bed...before logging back on to catch up on emails. HOW WOMEN ARE MAKING IT BETTER Sister District links up state legislators from different areas around the country to collaborate on problem-solving, including around work-life balance challenges. Hearst Owned Hearst Owned Khadija Horton/Getty Images THE SITUATION Forty-eight percent of Americans think having children at home is a disadvantage for elected women, per Pew Research Center dataand theyre right.These jobs are not designed for motherhood, explains Liuba Grechen Shirley, founder and CEO of Vote Mama, which supports mothers and parents in office. Most legislative workplaces have unpredictable voting schedules, making it hard to lock in childcare. Remote voting is a rarity, complicating schedules for parents with newborns, and on-site childcare can be nonexistent. Combined with frequent travel, these roadblocks can feel sky-highoften too high for moms of young ones. Says Shirley: We literally have more men named John serving in the U.S. Senate than moms of minor children. WHAT IT'S LIKE When she was 30 and a first-term state representative, current Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer returned to work after having her first child. A big study on the importance of breastfeeding had just come out: So many legislators sent me copies of that article, she says, yet the legislature had no place for me to nurse. Whitmer asked the thensenate leader to set aside a room for her, but she was denied and ended up squeezed into a colleagues space that was 90 percent taken up by a copy machine. It was, she says, dehumanizing. She now advises others to band together and bring pressure on leadership to pass policies on remote voting and nursing spaces. HOW WOMEN ARE MAKING IT BETTER Vote Mama connects moms in office to one another so they can exchange tips and information; its foundation aims to make government a more parent-friendly work environment. Hearst Owned Hearst Owned Khadija Horton/Getty Images THE SITUATION Very few bodies of government have extensive formal training that helps first timers get up to speed. Lawmakers come into this blind, explains GabyGoldstein, cofounder of Sister District, which supports elected officials in state legislatures. People have questions from How do I get on a committee? to Where do I even sit? And because fewer women have held elected positions in the past, there are fewer women around to explain how things are done, says Goldstein. Theres a tremendous knowledge gap thats compounded for women who may not have had the same experiences and privileges that men have had. WHAT IT'S LIKE When Kentucky State Representative Josie Raymond took office in 2019, her first order of business was to work on the state budget, which included proposed road plans. I didnt know anything about those, she says. Nobody new did. The only people who really understood were full-time analysts whod been working at the capitol. So Raymond did what shed do at any new job: She went straight to those experts for a crash course. I wasnt embarrassed to be like, I dont understand this at all, she says. Younger women especially can do a fake it til you make it thing. And you can feel vulnerable going in after a campaign and saying you dont get something. But seeking out the people that do will keep you from asking stupid questions in publicly televised committees. HOW WOMEN ARE MAKING IT BETTER National organizations like Women In Government can help elected women with understanding legislation, networking, and finding mentors. Separately, the Oasis Leadership Network offers know-how support to women and nonbinary legislators. And Higher Heights for America works with Black women in office to build political power and leadership skills. Hearst Owned Hearst Owned Khadija Horton/Getty Images THE SITUATION Sexism ranked as the largest perceived challenge for elected women in our Cosmopolitan/Pivotal Ventures poll. And while those on the ground tend to agree, the discrimination they face isnt always blatant (though theres that too). Sexist microaggressions can be a huge source of stress and frustration for women in office, says Cynthia Richie Terrell, executive director and founder of RepresentWomen, a group focussed on systemic interventions that increase womens representation. As in, male colleagues making decisions at 10 p.m. at a bar instead of during work hours. Or male elected officials asking female elected officials to pick up coffee. Or male lawmakers consistently interrupting female lawmakers when theyre speaking. WHAT IT'S LIKE Before running for mayor of Lexington, Kentucky, Linda Gorton sat on the city council for 16 years. That valuable experience didnt stop someone from posting on Facebook while Gorton was campaigning: Why dont you just go back to the kitchen and put your apron back on? There was also the time, early in her tenure as mayor, when she arrived at an event where a mayoral parking spot had been reserved. She asked a man to move so she could steer into it, and he replied, The mayor wouldnt like it if you took his parking space. HOW WOMEN ARE MAKING IT BETTER Womens Public Leadership Network offers training sessions and orientations to help newly elected lawmakers deal with tricky situations, including sexism in the workplace. Vote Run Lead also helps women working in state legislatures tackle these issues, starting at the candidacy level. Hearst Owned Hearst Owned Khadija Horton/Getty Images - Hearst Owned THE SITUATION According to a recent report from the Brennan Center for Justice, 43 percent of state legislators have experienced threats or physical attacks within the past three yearsand nearly 90 percent said they experienced harassment, intimidation, or stalking, with women reporting more abuse than men (and people of color reporting more abuse than white people). The root of this is hyper polarization, says Dagher. It fueled keyboard warriors who forget this is a job folks are doing for the collective good; they make very personal attacks on women who are leading. As a result, half of the elected women surveyed in the Brennan Centers report said they were less willing to serve. Meanwhile, 31 percent of mayors polled by the Center for American Women and Politics have considered leaving office because of this kind of hostile environment. WHAT IT'S LIKE Earlier this year, Florida State Representative Anna Eskamani posted a work-related Reel, partaking in a popular meme. Within 24 hours, the comments were terrible things, including comments about my body and weight, and that I should be hung from a lamppost. She reported the incident to Instagram and has since developed other ways of dealing with political violence: She created a presentation to train her staff on de-escalation tactics when theyre confronted with aggression. Her office doesnt have a dedicated security guard or check-in desk, so she installed security cameras and locks the doors during business hours, only letting guests inside once she knows who they are and why theyre there. And after dealing with a stalker, she only posts photos on social media once shes left a location. Im always thinking about risk management, she says. HOW WOMEN ARE MAKING IT BETTER New American Leaders Elected Officials Network provides a forum where first and second-generation Americans can trade ideas on how best to keep themselves and their families safe from harassment. The States United Democracy Center also offers anti-political violence resources to state and local officials. Hearst Owned Photographs: Florence Sullivan. Collages: Khadija Horton. You Might Also Like A 31-year-old prison inmate was sentenced to nearly three years for orchestrating an extortion scheme that targeted troops, resulting in one service members suicide. From at least 2016 to 2022, Javarius Teague an inmate in the South Carolina Department of Corrections ran a conspiracy that involved at least six others who joined internet dating websites and posed as young women seeking romantic relationships with military members, according to court documents. Teague and others would then text nude photographs of young women, claiming they were the women in the photos. They would then ask the military members to send nude photos of themselves. Prisoners steal more than $500k from troops through dating app sextortion ring Once Teague and his crew derived the photos, they would then contact the service member from other phone numbers claiming to be family members of the young women or law enforcement. They would then tell the military members that the girls in the photos were minors and threaten to notify authorities unless the military member paid them money. They claimed the money was needed for counseling and other expenses derived from the sexually explicit text messages. Alleged co-conspirators referenced in the indictment, who were not in prison, retrieved the money extorted from the military members through transfers made using MoneyGram locations throughout South Carolina. The co-conspirators would then transfer funds to Teague in prison using Green Dot and J Pay. The extortion scheme came to the attention of authorities in December 2017 when a service member died from suicide rather than pay money that the crew attempted to extort, according to a prosecutors statement. The service member was not identified in public documents. Teague pleaded guilty to money laundering involving racketeering on June 1, 2023. On May 8, 2024, he was sentenced to 33 months in prison followed by three years supervised release. Co-defendants Cassandra Poole and Shuntonia Lamar both pleaded guilty to money laundering in February 2023 and were sentenced to 14 months each. Tiarra Poole-Sullivan and Tirrian Gaines also pleaded guilty to money laundering in February 2023 and were sentenced to four months. The case was investigated by the Army Criminal Investigation Division, according to the prosecutors statement. Pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli supporters clashed at the University of Washington (UW) on Sunday afternoon. The only two things keeping the groups from truly getting in each others faces were a group of security guards in riot gear and the barriers placed around the quad where the pro-Palestinian encampment was set up. The pro-Israeli march was supposedly organized by a Christian church called Pursuit Northwest. KIRO 7 has reached out to the church for more details on the planned march and their thoughts on how it all went down. Some of the supporters in that crowd want the school to take down the encampment immediately. I genuinely think that none of these guys step foot in Israel and they dont really know whats going on there, Amir Shmuel, who is from Israel said. On the other side, the pro-Palestinian encampment has been at the quad for nearly two weeks. Several of the people who were part of the group KIRO 7 spoke with say they want their focus to be on whats going on in the Gaza Strip and that the UW listen to them. And our emphasis is to always keep eyes on Gaza. To center Gaza, all eyes on Rafah and to center the Palestinian voice, pro-Palestinian support Juliette said. A spokesperson with the university sent KIRO 7 this statement about Sundays protests: Our priority is the safety and security of our campus community. We are aware of a pro-Israel march walking through campus today. Our hope is that people with opposing views refrain from seeking confrontations and avoid antagonizing one another. We do not detail or share security plans in advance of events but are taking appropriate advance measures in the interest of everyones safety. The barricades are in place around the quad in order to dissuade opposing groups from engaging with one another. And we have been in contact with the march organizers as well as representatives in the encampment in advance. A Xavier University student and a recent graduate arrested in connection with a campus protest were charged with felonies under a law that officials say had never been used in Hamilton County before. The pair appeared in court Monday on charges they committed a crime while wearing disguises. Witnesses said they were wearing medical face masks. They are also charged with trespassing, a misdemeanor. By Monday afternoon, the charges against Sophia Dempsey and Julia Lankisch, both 22, had been ignored by a grand jury. In Ohio, grand juries are held in secret, so details about why the charges were so quickly brought before the jurors and why they were ignored is not known. Xavier University student, Sophia Dempsey, left, and recent Xavier graduate, Julia Lankisch, hug outside the Hamilton County Justice Center in downtown Cincinnati, Monday after their arraignment for criminal trespassing. The Pro-Palestine protesters were arrested after demontrating outside the Xavier University graduation on Saturday. The pair still face the misdemeanor trespassing charges. Disguises law dates to 1800s but no record of use in Hamilton County The protesters were initially charged under an 1800s era law used to target the Ku Klux Klan and other similar violent, vigilante groups. Attorney General Dave Yost pointed out the law in a letter to Ohio university presidents in response to the recent pro-Palestinian protests. It carries a maximum sentence of 18 months in prison. Hamilton County Prosecutor's Office spokesman Matthew Broo said staff at his office could find no records or recall anyone else ever being charged under this law in this county. Dempsey and Lankisch were protesting Saturday in support of Palestine in reference to the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas, according to the student group XU Free Palestine. The protesters were "peacefully protesting the university's investments in Israel and academic trips and its complicity in continuing to fund genocide," the group said in its statement following the arrests. Xavier officials said the pair refused to move to a designated protest area near Husman Stage and were arrested around 7:30 a.m., about 90 minutes before the undergraduate commencement ceremony. "While non-violent campus demonstrations by Xavier students, faculty and staff are welcome, University policy states it may limit the time, place and manner of demonstrations to ensure disruptions to campus operations are avoided," the university said in a statement Saturday. Xavier professor says protest could have been handled more peacefully Associate Professor Andrew Zolides witnessed the arrest. He said the pair wore blue medical masks similar to those commonly worn during the pandemic. He also said Dempsey and Lankisch were the only protesters near Cintas Center at that time. Zolides teaches communication and digital media classes at Xavier and is also the director of the university's "Take It On" initiative. The initiative encourages civic engagement and creates spaces for students to have conversations about difficult topics, often across political or ideological lines, he said. He said he went to the protest to be a mediator in case any conflicts arose. After he learned of the event, he sent an email to several administrators and the chief of police Robert Warfel telling them he would be there to help. Zolides said he never got a reply from the chief. He said he was about 30 yards away from Dempsey and Lankisch when police approached. By the time, he got to them about a minute later, they were already restrained and under arrest. He said he believes the "strong show of force" was influenced by the nationwide protests but pointed out this was not a major encampment. While there have been national stories about major conflicts between university administrations and students, Zolides said other schools have handled things differently. "There have been other schools that have addressed this more peacefully," Zolides said. "It doesn't have to be that way. Ethan Nichols, a rising Xavier University senior and leader in the XU Free Palestine group said the group is calling for Chief Warfel's removal, an investigation into the arrests and for the faculty committee to hold a vote of no confidence in President Colleen Hanycz. Dempsey and Lankisch were released on their own recognizance Monday. Judge Bernie Bouchard ordered them to stay away from Xavier University as a condition of their bond in the trespassing case. This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Grand jury ignores charges for pro-Palestinian protesters at Xavier Many of Washington Universitys newest graduates at their commencement ceremony Monday expressed solidarity with Palestinians in the war zone of Gaza as dozens of students, alumni and supporters gathered outside campus to protest the universitys continuing investments in Boeing, which supplies the Israeli military with weapons. More than an hour before the 9 a.m. graduation ceremony began, protesters arrived near Lindell and Skinker boulevards to press their case that Wash U should disclose its investments and withdraw those in companies that provide weapons to Israel. Theyre also calling an end to the war in Gaza, where Israeli bombardments have killed thousands. Israel has waged the campaign since an Oct. 7 attack by Hamas fighters. We are demanding that Wash U divest from Boeing and other military-industrial corporations that are supporting Israeli apartheid and the genocide in Palestine, said Grace Iverson, who graduated from the university in 2020. And we are continuing to keep up the pressure because Wash U has shown that they are clearly not interested in the community and in divesting. But we will not stop until they move to divest. As the university prepared to start its ceremony, people outside the campus held signs calling for a permanent global ceasefire. Another poster was painted to resemble a Palestinian flag, with Queer Jews for Palestine written on it. Members of the Ceasefire Choir began singing From Ferguson to Palestine, occupation is a crime! outside the campus. Clayton police later arrived to tell protesters to stop using megaphones and speakers, which officers said are against city ordinances and threatened to arrest those who continue doing so. They briefly put a woman in handcuffs after she honked her vans horn in support of the protests. Police then released her. The demonstration is part of a series of protests on or near college campuses across the U.S., some of which have been forcefully shut down by police. Students staged minor disruptions at several commencement ceremonies across the nation over the weekend. Wash U maintains that it has not taken a position on the war and that it remains committed to free expression and peaceful protest. Student Affairs staff have been working with our students and faculty to facilitate dialogue about this complex issue since Oct. 7, and we will continue to do so, Wash U spokeswoman Julie Hail Flory said in a statement Friday. At the graduation ceremony, some students wore mortarboards with Free Palestine messages. Others wore Palestinian flag buttons and keffiyeh scarves to show their solidarity with Palestinians. Commencement speaker Alejandro Ramirez, who earned a degree in Latin American studies and a Fulbright Scholarship to conduct research in Brazil, noted that many of the graduates support the Palestinian people. Today I stand in solidarity with my peers, faculty and community members who have experienced hardship this last semester, who found their why and used it to express solidarity with the Palestinians around the world, Ramirez said. Actor Jennifer Coolidge, who delivered the commencement address and is receiving an honorary fine arts doctorate, mentioned the protest and said it illustrates the need for voices of brilliant, unique and nuanced graduates, a line that received applause and a big cheer from the crowd. Some students say Wash U needs to pay better attention to student voices. Students are particularly outraged at the schools response to two April pro-Palestinian demonstrations on campus, where police made more than 100 arrests. Theyre calling for Wash U to drop charges and disciplinary cases against students, faculty and staff. In a statement Friday, Wash U spokeswoman Flory said the tone of this protest was not peaceful and included aggressive chanting. They were abhorrently violent, said Kevin McCarthy, who is graduating with a degree in English. I was there the Saturday that they arrested my friends. And they acted with complete impunity. They did it all with a smile on their face, which is what was most jarring to me. I could see school administrators I saw and interacted with on campus in different contexts smiling as they told the police to charge the protesters and violently assault them. It shows that the university is completely tied into the military-industrial complex, said McCarthy, 22. They are fully focused on their bottom line of the endowment, and they do not care about their students one bit. To express their displeasure with the university, some graduates walked out of the ceremony as Chancellor Andrew D. Martin gave closing remarks. McCarthy said students are determined to continue delivering thoughtful and compassionate messages. Were going to be out here until Gaza is free until this genocide stops happening. I know that me and my fellow classmates have not lost their appetite to protest the apartheid state of Israel. And we have not lost our appetite for justice and decolonizing the world. Send questions and comments about this story to feedback@stlpublicradio.org. ASTANA, Kazakhstan, May 13. Uzbekistan will supply 922 million cubic meters of water to Kazakhstan, which will flow through the Dostyk interstate canal during the irrigation season, Trend reports. The Interstate Coordination Water Commission, which includes Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan, reached the corresponding agreement during its 86th meeting. The meeting also approved the forecast schedule for the Naryn-Syr Darya cascade of reservoirs' operation through September 30 of this year. Separately, the meeting participants discussed the work within the framework of the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea, which Kazakhstan has chaired since the start of the year. The meeting also noted the development of a draft agreement "On the creation of a mechanism for water and energy cooperation between the countries of Central Asia." "Our top priority is flood water collection. It goes to the Caspian Sea, Balkhash, Kamysh-Samar lakes, Ulytau, Kyzylorda lakes, etc. However, southern regions need water. And water diplomacy is crucial," said the Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation of Kazakhstan Nurzhan Nurzhigitov. In conclusion, the parties reached an agreement to hold the next meeting of the Interstate Coordination Water Commission in September this year in Turkmenistan. United for Democracy, a coalition of progressive groups and labor unions, is gearing up to launch a $10 million persuasion and base activation campaign centered on the MAGA Supreme Court. The coalition will spend $1 million on ads in Arizona and Pennsylvania, as well as in the Washington, D.C., area, and the campaign will also involve canvassing and events, officials tell Rolling Stone. The United for Democracy coalition, which launched last year with a seven-figure ad buy, counts 140 member organizations, including major labor unions, reproductive rights advocates, environmental groups, and liberal think tanks. Stasha Rhodes, campaign director for United for Democracy, says the coalitions latest campaign is about talking to Americans across the country about the issues they care about, and how the Supreme Court is connected to either rolling back the progress or standing in the way of us being able to make progress on those issues. The point, she says, is taking this message outside of Washington, and directly to the American people. Republicans outsized role in crafting a radically right-wing Supreme Court one that treats mass shootings as constitutionally unavoidable, ushered in abortion bans or restrictions in 21 states, and affords anonymous donors virtually unchecked power to buy political candidates and judges might seem painfully obvious to some political observers, but surveys show its not. In a memo sent to progressive leaders, Rhodes warns that voters largely do not blame former President Donald Trump or congressional Republicans who together assembled the Supreme Courts conservative 6-3 supermajority for the decision that overturned Roe v. Wade and ended federal protections for abortion rights. She writes that many Democratic voters are demoralized about the Supreme Court and blame President Joe Biden for the abortion decision since it happened on his watch. (A recent New York Times poll offers better results for Democrats on this question, but still shows some Biden voters blaming him for the decision.) She argues that progressives must work on connecting the dots for voters, as conservatives have for decades, and make taking control of and reforming the Supreme Court a core voting issue for their base. Rhodes suggests messages tying together the the bad actors: This Supreme Court is a Trump/MAGA Court; A vote for Trump/MAGA is a vote for the Roberts/MAGA Supreme Court. Then we need to layer in what they can do to check those bad actors: showing voters that they have an opportunity this November to register their objection against the MAGA politicians responsible for this Court at the ballot box. United for Democracy shared examples of its creative materials with Rolling Stone. Courtesy of United for Democracy A video script says: The MAGA Supreme Court is making a relentless power grab. While some fight to defend our rights, MAGA Republicans are working to help the court strip away our freedoms. Theyve stolen our reproductive freedom, our freedom from gun violence. Theyve let corporations pollute our drinking water. Again and again, this court has ruled for their billionaire donors at the expense of our rights and freedoms. A planned Facebook ad says that Supreme Court justices are rewriting the laws and rules to help their billionaire backers get richer and more powerful, while another urges users to tell Congress to fix the court. Since Trump and Republican lawmakers built their Supreme Court conservative supermajority, the justices have issued increasingly radical decisions. The Dobbs decision in 2022 allowed states to ban abortion; this term, the court could limit access to the abortion pill mifepristone, and justices could also allow states to bar hospitals from providing emergency abortion care necessary to protect a mothers life or health. In 2022, the Supreme Court issued a decision invalidating many gun control laws, finding that any such regulations must adhere to historical tradition. This term, the court will determine whether the government can prohibit violent domestic abusers from having guns. Last year, the high court limited the scope of the Clean Water Act, in a decision that environmental advocates warn will threaten clean drinking water sources for millions of Americans. This term, the court is weighing a case designed to overturn a bedrock administrative law principle; doing so would empower legal challenges to federal regulations on climate and the environment, workplace safety, wages, and a whole lot more. It would be a major boon for corporate interests. In the past year, ProPublica exposed conservative Justice Clarence Thomas for regularly accepting undisclosed luxury gifts from a billionaire Republican donor, and found Justice Samuel Alito had failed to report at least one free private jet flight provided by a billionaire donor as well. The Washington Post separately found that conservative judicial activist Leonard Leo had secretly steered consulting payments to Thomas wife. The reports created an unprecedented crisis of legitimacy at the Supreme Court, and led to justices agreeing to an ethics code for the first time, though it is relatively weak. The courts rightward swing continues, and both Thomas and Alito have brushed aside ethical concerns. Meanwhile, the Supreme Courts billionaire donors could benefit from another case at the high court this term an effort to preemptively prohibit Congress from ever enacting a wealth tax. Rolling Stone spoke with several member organizations in the United for Democracy coalition about the new campaign and why they believe its necessary. Over the last several years, weve seen the extreme majority in the Supreme Court roll back our basic freedoms, says Kim Anderson, executive director at the National Education Association, pointing to the courts decisions on abortion rights, and interpreting the Second Amendment as if we are all living back in the 1780s. She says Americans need to understand that the people who interpret the laws are just as important as the people who write them and right now, we have people who are interpreting the laws who have been bought and paid for by a select few. Patrick Gaspard, president of the Center for American Progress, says, Theres a desire to help the general public understand how the courts are working to further undermine our rights, freedom, baseline democracy from allowing Big Oil to further pollute the water we drink, to stripping us of protections at work, to interfering in our most personal health care decisions. The court already exercises enormous, outsized power in our lives. And some of these decisions would extend that authority in ways that I think distorts the publics understanding and expectations of the courts. Pointing to the relationship between sitting justices and multimillionaires and billionaires, Gaspard says there are massive questions of conflict of interest with this court. He adds, Being able to do the work of public education, building civic awareness around these cases, we hope will accrue to the benefit of the public in ways that will create some real scaffolding around questions of accountability. More from Rolling Stone Best of Rolling Stone Projects around Indiana to be awarded federal historic preservation and archaeology grants The Walker Field Shelter House, located in South Bend, is among the 14 sites around Indiana that are expected to receive federal grants dollars to aid historic preservation efforts. (Photo courtesy Indiana Department of Natural Resources) Fourteen historic preservation projects around the state are slated to receive thousands of dollars in federal grants, state officials announced earlier this month. The funding comes from the U.S. Department of Interiors National Park Service Historic Preservation Fund (HPF) program, which is administered by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology (DHPA). For 2024, the HPF grant awards total more than $635,000. Applicants will match those grants with an additional $604,000, for a total investment of more than $1.2 million toward Indianas historic and cultural resources, according to DHPA. Divided into four categories archaeology, rehabilitation, architectural and historical the projects are expected to begin this summer and be completed by June 30, 2026. Heres a breakdown of the projects and funding awards: Archaeology Projects Clinton County: A $49,999 grant to the University of Indianapolis to conduct a Phase Ia archaeological survey of approximately 607 acres. Wabash County: A $50,000 grant to Ball State Applied Anthropology Laboratories to conduct a Phase Ia archaeological survey of approximately 40 acres in Salamonie River State Forest. Rehabilitation Projects Bloomington (Monroe County): An $18,000 grant to the City of Bloomington to repair the front steps at the Benjamin Banneker Community Center. Chesterfield (Madison County): A $73,221 grant to the Indiana Association of Spiritualists to assist with the stabilization of the concrete floor structure of the Maxon Fellowship Center. The center serves as the dining hall and gathering venue for residents and visitors to Camp Chesterfield. Goshen (Elkhart County): A $75,000 grant to the Elkhart County Clubhouse to assist with installing high efficiency heat pumps and rebuilding the unsafe rear porch in the 1890 Cora Dale House. Indianapolis (Marion County): A $61,550 grant to the Irvington Historical Society to replace a flat roof section of the Bona Thompson Center in Indianapolis and replace its HVAC system. Indianapolis (Marion County): A $75,000 grant to the Indianapolis Propylaeum to assist with masonry and woodwork rehabilitation on its carriage house. Indianapolis (Marion County): A $40,000 grant to the Indiana Humanities Council to assist with masonry rehabilitation on the 1903 Meredith Nicholson House. Shoals (Martin County): A $75,000 grant to the town of Shoals to assist with stabilization of the 1872 Mohr Building, which is a significant three-story commercial building and has been vacant for more than a decade. South Bend (St. Joseph County): A $75,000 grant to the city of South Bend to assist with the rehabilitation of the Walker Field Shelter House, which was built by the Works Progress Administration in 1938. The project will replace the asphalt shingle roof on the park structure and arcade wings. South Bend (St. Joseph County): A $47,095 grant to the St. Casimir Parish to assist with the cost and installation of new boilers for the sanctuary and school wing of the historic church. Architectural & Historical Projects Fort Wayne (Allen County): A $15,000 grant to the city of Fort Wayne and the Wildwood Park neighborhood to prepare a landscape study for the Rockhill Park. Franklin (Johnson County): A $25,000 grant to Franklin Heritage, Inc. to assist with national nominations for the northside, eastside and southside historic districts. In addition, the project will make revisions and updates to the downtown commercial district to expand the period of significance and include additional properties. Indianapolis (Marion County): A $36,337 grant to the Athenaeum Foundation to prepare a historic structure report for the Athenaeum building. The post Projects around Indiana to be awarded federal historic preservation and archaeology grants appeared first on Indiana Capital Chronicle. AUSTIN (KXAN) A regional transportation policy board voted against a proposal from several Austin City Council delegates Monday to delay funding on the upcoming Interstate 35 expansion until additional environmental studies are completed. The majority of the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organizations transportation policy board opposed the recommendation made during Mondays board meeting. Board members and council delegates Alison Alter, Paige Ellis, Vanessa Fuentes and Natasha Harper-Madison supported the measure, with an additional vote in favor of the proposal from Travis County board representative Amy Pattillo. 0513-COA-I-35-Funding-MotionDownload The Texas Department of Transportations I-35 Capital Express Central project is a $4.5 billion, eight-mile long project corridor set to begin construction later this year. Council delegates resolution requested the delay with the hopes of completing additional air quality studies prior to constructions start. Along with those studies, the resolution proposed TxDOTs acceleration of other regional projects across the region that had funding deferred to prioritize the I-35 expansion project. With that request, council delegates had asked TxDOT to aid in those funding efforts as well as funding to cover the remaining costs of the associated planning, design, and construction costs of I-35 caps, an ongoing city-funded initiative running concurrent with TxDOTs project. RELATED: Travis County Commissioners discuss ongoing I-35 project concerns Mondays meeting included dozens of public comments from community members, with the majority of those speaking opposed to the project on the grounds of pollution concerns. Austin City Council Member Paige Ellis, a delegate to the CAMPO board, urged fellow board members to take those same concerns seriously. Im just trying to do my part to make sure that, at the end of the day, I can say I did everything I could to make sure that were taking proper data and taking the time to make sure that if theres anything else that can be added to this project to make it better for the people who interact and live and work near this particular expansion, that we ask for everything that we possibly can, she said. TxDOTs Austin District Engineer Tucker Ferguson, also a member of the CAMPO board, said his agency will continue advancing these studies and add any findings or recommendations to the expansion project where possible. Board Member Jeff Travillion noted the significance of those air quality studies and analyses, but also said the highway is in desperate need of an upgrade to alleviate the safety concerns affiliated with it. Significant improvements are necessary, just for safetys sake, he said. You cant drive through the City of Austin on 35 and think thats safe. Its not. It was built for a time thats no longer here. Following the failure of the Austin delegations proposal, the majority of CAMPOs transportation policy board approved the draft 2025-28 Transportation Improvement Program and a related amendment to the 2045 Regional Transportation Plan. Those plans, non-amended, outline regional funding allocations to the I-35 central expansion plan. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KXAN Austin. Edmond Public Schools Superintendent Angela Grunewald and attorney Andy Fugitt are pictured at a February news conference to announce a lawsuit against the Oklahoma State Board of Education. Members of the House Administrative Rules Committee will have two versions of a joint resolution to consider when they meet Tuesday to discuss how to handle controversial proposed rules changes from the Oklahoma State Department of Education. One resolution, House Joint Resolution 1060, would accept all of the agencys proposed rules changes. The other, House Joint Resolution 1061, would allow for amendments, should committee members choose not to accept some, or all, of the proposals. Democrats, and some Republicans, on the committee have expressed concerns about the proposals being pushed by Republican state schools Superintendent Ryan Walters. There has been so much focus on the Education Departments proposals that the committee chair, Rep. Gerrid Kendrix, R-Altus, separated that agencys proposals from those made by every other state agency after first grouping them all together. The committee is tasked with reviewing and approving or disapproving such rules changes from all state agencies. Whats usually an arcane and routine process has drawn scrutiny since Walters took office in January 2023 and immediately began aggressively pushing rules proposals through the Oklahoma State Board of Education, of which he serves as the chairman. Opponents have claimed Walters and the board do not have the authority to create new rules, saying the state Legislature first must direct an agency to create rules on a given subject. Republican Attorney General Gentner Drummond last year wrote an opinion which has the force of law absent of a court decision that reiterated that principle. Democrats, citing that opinion, claim the rules created under Walters are null and void because the Legislature didnt tell the agency to make the rules in question. More: Ryan Walters' proposed administrative rules for state schools will get extra scrutiny from lawmakers Attorneys for Walters, the agency and the board have argued in a court case involving disputed agency rules, brought by Edmond Public Schools against the agency, that Drummonds opinion misconstrues relevant statutes and precedents. Agency spokesman Dan Isett has said, There is broad constitutional authority vested in OSDE that grants it the ability to act in the best interest of Oklahoma students. In February, the state Board of Education passed a slew of proposed rules regarding attaching high-stakes testing by student to school accreditation, prayer in schools, teacher behavior, training of local school board members, and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) procedures in Oklahoma schools, among other topics. Those rules, and others adopted by the board since the most recent legislative session, now are up for review. Committee chair says legislative rule-making process growing more complicated Kendrix said last week his goal was to have a vote up or down on the education rule proposals this week. There may be a need from some members of the committee, that they want to file amendments on that, Kendrix told fellow legislators during last weeks meeting. Feel free to do so. We will be sure to allow enough time for that process to take place. Kendrix said the rule-making process by agencies becomes more complicated each year. The thing is, Id just like to see us get to the point where our focus is about the children, its about growing education, making education better for our state. I think we all want to see that better. I dont know of anybody that doesnt. We all have differences of opinion as to how that should be achieved. But we do that in legislation that we run. We all have differences of opinion. Thats OK. Thats a part of the process. Theres a reason theres 101 of us (representatives) and not just me. Rep. Melissa Provenzano, of Tulsa, one of only two Democrats on the House Administrative Rules Committee, told The Oklahoman that Democrats had wanted to have a separate resolution for the Education Department rule proposals all along. That wasnt initially done, she said, so she submitted multiple amendments for the initial resolution before the decision was made to have separate resolutions. Apparently, this is a bipartisan effort, she said. Not everybody feels one way or the other about it. We want to protect public education here in the state of Oklahoma, and theres some pretty damaging things that will happen if these rules are allowed to continue. We will see. The House committee will meet at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday at the state Capitol. This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma House committee to consider Ryan Walters' rules proposals Los Angeles police officers and protesters face off outside the Shrine Auditorium on Sunday evening. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times) When pro-Palestinian protesters set up an encampment last week on the stage at Pomona College where graduation was set to be held, the school's leaders decided to move Sunday's commencement to Los Angeles. The graduation took place at the Shrine Auditorium, kicking off at 6 p.m. But protesters also moved. A group of more than 100 congregated outside the auditorium Sunday afternoon and clashed with law enforcement. L.A. police said protesters charged them, and one demonstrator said officers struck people in the stomach with batons. The college had said there would be additional security measures at the event, and dozens of Los Angeles Police Department officers were present. Officers lined up outside the venue as protesters held up banners and shouted through bullhorns. Several Pomona College graduates, dressed in full regalia, led the crowd in chanting "Free Palestine." At times, the demonstrators pushed and shoved with police as officers attempted to secure the area around the auditorium. Officials told television station KABC-7 that some protesters charged at officers and that one was arrested after attempting to strike an officer. Later, about 6:30 p.m., the protesters marched away from the Shrine Auditorium and gathered in a courtyard where a Pomona College student, wearing his graduation gown, read a statement calling for an end to the war and for universities to divest from financial ties with Israel. Tharwa Khalid, a member of a local chapter of the Palestinian Youth Movement, said the protesters started on West 32nd Street and split into two groups, one on 32nd Street and another near Jefferson Boulevard. The dynamic with police escalated from "zero to 100 with no warning," she said. Officers shoved Khalid and several others, pushing some people to the ground and striking them with batons, including hitting multiple female protesters in the stomach, Khalid said. "A lot of my friends are bruised up right now and are not doing well physically," Khalid said. As officers pushed one Muslim protester to the ground, they pulled off her headscarf, Khalid said. Khalid said she saw a legal observer with the National Lawyers Guild wearing a neon green hat to be easily seen observing police activity shoved to the ground by an officer. "It just shows that they're trying to intimidate students and punish them for exercising their 1st Amendment rights," Khalid said. Among pro-Palestinian protesters Sunday outside the Shrine Auditorium were those in their Pomona College graduation caps and gowns. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times) By nearly 7 p.m., most of the pro-Palestinian protesters had dispersed from the campus courtyard, and police had cordoned off an area surrounding the Shrine Auditorium. A few family members of graduates arrived late to the ceremony with flowers in hand but were briefly turned away from the police-tape line. An officer stepped in, however, and allowed them through so they could attend the graduation. LAPD Officer Tony Im, a public information officer, said he could not provide a statement or response Sunday evening regarding what protesters alleged happened because he had not been briefed. Pomona College's decision to move its commencement came after a decision by USC to cancel its traditional main campus commencement ceremony and hold an alternative celebration at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The event Thursday featured fireworks and a drone show. As at USC, pro-Palestinian protests have roiled the Pomona campus, with student activists demanding that the college publicly call for a cease-fire and divest college endowment funds from corporations tied to Israels war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip and the occupation of the West Bank. In April, police wearing riot gear arrested 19 protesters who had occupied the college president's office. Also on Sunday, about 30 students graduating from Harvey Mudd College, a private liberal arts college in Claremont, wore a message on their mortarboards reading "Cut defense ties," referencing a demand for divestment from defense contracts that's also been made at other colleges and universities, said a faculty member who asked not to be named over privacy concerns. Some students took out small Palestinian flags as they walked across the stage after their names were called and posed with the flags in their photos with Mudd College President Harriet B. Nembhard, the faculty member told The Times. Other students pulled out banners, reading "Free Palestine" and "No tech for genocide." Saachi Patel, a student speaker graduating Sunday, said during her speech that her graduation and degree could only mean so much to her given the tens of thousands of Palestinians, mostly women and children, killed by Israels bombardment and ground offensives, and how her school had not yet divested. "Today I think of the student-led global uprisings and resistance that have been demanding colleges divest from apartheid and occupation and cut ties with war-profiteering companies," Patel said, adding that she stood with the Mudders Against Murder campaign, which earlier this year circulated a petition demanding the school divest. Her microphone was not cut, and she was allowed to finish her speech. Several graduates gave her a standing ovation, and some families cheered, the faculty member said. Times staff writer Jenny Gold contributed to this report. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. Editor's note: The final vote on the law will take place on May 14, not May 13. Thousands of protesters remained on the streets of Tbilisi overnight on May 12 ahead of the final reading of the controversial "foreign agents law" in Georgia's parliament on May 14. The law would require organizations that receive foreign funding to be labeled as "foreign agents." The law mirrors repressive Russian laws used to crack down on Kremlin regime critics and has become popularly known in Georgia as the "Russian law." The weekend saw tens of thousands of people gather in Georgia's capital, with around 50,000 protesters marching through Tbilisi on May 11 to voice their opposition to the bill. Georgia's Internal Affairs Ministry warned early on May 13 that protesters should leave the entrance of parliament to allow lawmakers to enter the building. "Otherwise the police will act within frames of powers stipulated by law and ensure that entry ways to parliament are cleared by police forces," the ministry said. The protests have been marred by police violence, with police using tear gas, water cannons, other chemical substances, rubber bullets, and extreme physical force to attempt to clear the demonstrations. Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze defended the use of force and placed the blame on the protesters, saying in a speech that "violence begets violence." The foreign agents bill was first introduced in 2023 by Kobakhidze's Georgian Dream party, but was abandoned after it sparked mass demonstrations. The Georgian Dream party reintroduced the legislation in parliament in April, renaming it a bill on the "transparency of foreign influence" but keeping the intent of the previous law essentially identical. Pawel Herczynski, the EU's ambassador to Georgia, told the press on April 11 that the law was "incompatible" with European values. Read also: Georgian president accuses government of being prone to making concessions to Russia Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Interim Chancellor Lee Roberts delivers remarks May 11, 2024 during UNC-CH's Commencement. (Screengrab from UNC-CH video feed) After days of campus turmoil, interim Chancellor Lee Roberts told students on Saturday that every graduating class deserves a day of celebration and reflection. Roberts acknowledged that many in the Class of 2024 missed their high school graduation due to the pandemic lockdowns. He credited students who found ways to rekindle public life in Carolina after the pandemic but did not dwell on pro-Palestinian demonstrators who staged multiple marches and an encampment on the quad to protest the war in Gaza. John Preyer Hours before the graduation ceremony, anti-war protesters defaced the South Building with palm prints covered in red paint, and leaving a sign that read UNC has blood on its hands. The act of vandalism did not disrupt events in Kenan Stadium, and Board of Trustees Chairman John Preyer used his brief moment in the ceremony to call for a round of applause for the number one university police department in the world. Chancellor Roberts told the more than 6,700 undergraduates that generations of students have faced challenges equal to theirs and thrived. Thats because Carolina was born in a moment of upheaval. And it has seen plenty more since. This university was created in the early days of the American experiment. When the arguments over the foundational ideas of this nation were just getting started. Those arguments have never stopped. Roberts, who has held the post for just four months, said that being the university of the people is not always easy, when the people are not of one mind. It means that Carolina doesnt belong to you. It sure doesnt belong to me. It doesnt belong to any one person or group. This university is something we share, said Roberts. And we hold it in trust for the generations who will come after us. Choose optimism Roberts remarks were followed by keynote speaker and NASA Astronaut Zena Cardman, who earned her Bachelor of Science in biology and Master of Science in marine sciences from UNC-Chapel Hill. Zena Cardman Cardman reminded students that while graduation was a time to be full of hope, it was also okay to be exhausted and a bit scared. For all the opportunity that lies ahead, new beginnings always come with a great deal of uncertainty, she said. Cardman said that, as an astronaut, the easy definition of success is flying to space. But the wait can often be so lengthy and so uncertain, that a friend joked that she might consider sabotaging a crew member, allowing her to move up from the role of backup crew member. If your goal requires cutting down someone else to get there, you need a different goal, said the 36-year-old. Cardman said it was work in a supporting role that allowed her to define success on her own terms, gain greater technical skills, and not dwell on her insecurities. In times of uncertainty and discomfort, choosing optimism and humor can change your whole mood in an instant, Cardman offered. More importantly, it can lift an entire group. The effect you have on others is one of your most potent gifts. This August, Cardman will use her gifts as the commander of NASAs SpaceX Crew-9 mission to the International Space Station. The joy of service Earlier in the day, Dr. Angeli Achrekar, a Gillings School of Global Public Health alumnae, told those attending UNC-Chapel Hills Doctoral Hooding Ceremony to expect a life that unfolds in new and challenging ways. For 20 years, Achrekar held various roles in the U.S. government notably as the principal deputy United States global AIDS coordinator for the Presidents Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). In March 2020, her boss (Dr. Deborah Birx) was tapped to become the White House Coronavirus coordinator, and in an instant, she became the acting head of PEPFAR managing a $6 billion a year program across 55 countries. Dr. Angeli Achrekar What had me in sheer terror beyond belief is that now we were facing dual pandemics, HIV and COVID, and I was in charge. Achrekar said working with an incredible team helped not only protect and increase the global HIV gains but innovate support for the global COVID-19 response by leveraging robust public health platforms. Amidst this tragedy, we witnessed countless acts of compassion, generosity and courage reminding us of our common humanity, she said. Achrekar said some of her proudest moments came from work on programs like Saving Mothers, Giving Life (SMGL) a partnership employing a health systems approach to reduce maternal and newborn mortality in places like Uganda, Zambia, and Nigeria. That access to lifesaving maternity care became the foundation of Achrekars doctoral dissertation at Carolina. All of these moments, all of the long hours build on one another, Achrekar said, giving students a chance to bring their skills to scale. Youve got a lot. Touch millions with it. Lead change with humility, no matter how difficult you will find the way and always, always be grounded in the joy of service. The post Protests, passion and pride mark graduation at North Carolinas flagship university appeared first on NC Newsline. Republican senator and vice president contender J.D. Vance joined former president Donald Trump at his hush money trial Monday. Trump is on trial for 34 counts of falsifying business records. Prosecutors say he covered up reimbursements to his former lawyer Michael Cohen, who paid porn star Stormy Daniels $130,000 in 2016 to stay quiet about a sexual encounter with Trump that allegedly happened a decade earlier. The Ohio senator walked into the courthouse with along with Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., Eric Trump, and Donald Trump as he returned to the Manhattan courthouse for the fifth week of this trial. Vance isn't the first Republican heavy-hitter to appear at the Trump's side in trial: Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., Ken Paxton, the attorney general of Texas, and Dave McIntosh, leader of the anti-tax Club for Growth have also attended to support the former president. Trump trial live updates: Michael Cohen testifies as star witness in hush money trial (L-R) U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH), Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) and Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY) arrive for former U.S. President Donald Trump's trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments linked to extramarital affair with Stormy Daniels, at Manhattan Criminal Court in New York City, on May 13, 2024. Vance says trial is 'psychological torture,' attacks Cohen's credibility At Trump trial today. Some observations: 1) we started in Trump Tower with a beautiful view of Central Park. Then you come to a dingy court house with people like Alvin Bragg. They prevent his supporters from getting too close to the court house, and they prevent his friends J.D. Vance (@JDVance1) May 13, 2024 Vance appears to be on the short list for vice presidential candidates, after joining a group of six leaders at a recent Republican donor retreat. He has been outspoken about defending Trump in his four criminal cases. Taking a front row seat to proceedings seems to have given Vance fodder for more criticism. Posting on X Monday morning, Vance bemoaned the atmosphere of the "dingy" courthouse compared to Trump Tower near Central Park. "The president is expected to sit here for six weeks to listen to the Michael Cohens of the world," the post states. "Im now convinced the main goal of this trial is psychological torture. But Trump is in great spirits." Vance also took jabs at Cohen's memory and defended Trump for appearing to fall asleep several times throughout the trial. "Im 39 years old and Ive been here for 26 minutes and Im about to fall asleep," Vance said on X. Who is J.D. Vance? J.D. Vance is a first term Republican U.S. Senator from Ohio. Before his 2022 election, he ran a venture-capital firm and wrote the 2016 memoir "Hillbilly Elegy." In 2016, Vance described himself as a "never Trump guy." He called Trump "noxious, "reprehensible" and "an idiot." Vance has more recently become an ally of Trump's and Trump endorsed Vance in his Senate race. Vance is also reportedly close with Donald Trump Jr. As of late April, Vance said he had not spoken to Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, about being his vice president. Other potential V.P. contenders include: Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C.; Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla.; Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y.; South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem; and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum. Contributing: John Kennedy, Karissa Waddick This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: JD Vance, Ohio Senator and VP contender, joins Trump at hush money trial Public health leaders raised alarm at proposed cuts to Californias state and local health departments Monday, calling the proposal from Gov. Gavin Newsom devastating and a step backwards. Newsom on Friday unveiled his plan to fill a roughly $28 billion budget deficit, which includes more than $32 billion in cuts to one-time and ongoing spending over the next two years. The budget proposal includes slashing $300 million in ongoing funding for state and local public health departments in the next budget year, as well as more than $52 million for the current year, under a program called the Future of Public Health. California cannot go back to neglecting public health, said Michelle Gibbons, executive director of the County Health Executives Association of California.We must continue to rebuild local public health department workforce and infrastructure so we can be prepared for the next crisis before it hits. Leaders of several county health departments said the $300 million was a hard-won commitment from the state meant to address systemic underfunding of public health in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. About two-thirds of the annual funding goes to counties and the rest to the California Department of Public Health Since 2022, Gibbons said it has helped public health officials fight infectious diseases including tuberculosis, Valley fever, measles and various sexually transmitted diseases in their communities. Without it, they worry state and local public health departments would be unable to quickly respond to future public health crises including H5N1, also called bird flu, which is circulating among livestock around the United States. Gibbons said more than 900 positions in county health departments around the state have been filled through the Future of Public Health initiative. Without the funding, hundreds of public health positions could be eliminated unless counties are able to find money elsewhere. There is not funding waiting in the wings, said Dr. Aimee Sisson, health director of Yolo County. If we lose this funding, people will lose their jobs and work will not get done. Yolo County received about $1.4 million this year from the Future of Public Health program, about 5% of the countys overall public health budget, Sisson said. She added that while funding for local health departments is often earmarked for specific purposes, the Future of Public Health program allowed counties to flexibly spend on the needs of their communities. The funds have helped Yolo County administer wellness vending machines, which dispense free products like COVID-19 tests, contraception, mosquito repellent, fentanyl test strips and more. The county also hired a health coordinator to focus on farmworkers. These funds have begun to address decades of woeful underfunding of local health departments, Sisson said. We cant go back. Asked about the cuts Friday, Newsom said we wish this was a program we could continue to absorb and afford. The governor noted that his proposal is not set in stone and that lawmakers might reject his cuts. But Newsom has proposed slashing billions across programs, including social safety net and housing, in an effort to balance Californias budget for the next two years. We have a shortfall. We have to be sober about the reality of what our priorities are, he said. The publisher of the Oxford Mail and Ham & High newspapers has suffered an apparent attack by Russian hackers. Dozens of regional titles owned by Newsquest were targeted in a coordinated cyber campaign over the weekend. The news sites were defaced with stories entitled Pervoklassniy Russian Hackers Attack, which were accompanied by a black and white logo. The articles were attributed in Russian script to an author named Daniel Hopkins. Another story, which appeared on the Bolton News website, showed a picture of the Russian flag alongside the headline: Our president has gone crazy, shock content. It is not clear who is behind the hack, which was carried out across a number of Newsquest titles ranging from the Slough Observer to Scottish broadsheet The Herald. The articles, which first appeared over the weekend, have since been taken down. Newsquest has been contacted for comment. Looks like many Newsquest sites were defaced this weekend by "Russian hackers." An archived version of the story they published shows no copy/false narrative being spread. I can't help but wonder whether the byline "Daniel Hopkins" in Cyrillic, turns out to be a teen perpetrator. pic.twitter.com/PGJhYEkxu4 Alex Martin (@AlexMartin) May 13, 2024 It is not the first time hackers and criminal groups have targeted online publishers with cyber attacks. In the wake of the Arab Spring in 2011, a group of hackers dubbed the Syrian Electronic Army launched a major campaign of website defacement in support of the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The group targeted Western sites it accused of spreading negative news about the regime, including the BBC, Washington Post, Financial Times and The Telegraph. More recently, the Guardian was forced to shut its offices for more than a month after it was hit by a highly sophisticated ransomware attack. The attack gave hackers access to information including addresses, bank details, salaries and passports, and shut down many of the newspapers computer systems. Newsquest is one of the UKs largest regional publishers with more than 250 local news brands. It is owned by Gannett, the largest newspaper publisher in the US. In 2022, Newsquest struck a deal to buy East Anglia-based rival Archant, which owns titles including the Eastern Daily Press, from buyout group Rcapital. The merger left control of the vast majority of the UKs local newspaper titles in the hands of just three companies. Reach, which owns the Mirror and Express, owns dozens of regional titles, while David Montgomerys National World group is the other major competitor. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. ASTANA, Kazakhstan, May 13. Uzbekistan Airways will launch a new flight to Kazakhstan, Trend reports, citing the Ministry of Transport of Kazakhstan. Thus, regular flights on the Almaty-Nukus route will be launched on June 1, 2024. Flights will be operated twice a week (on Wednesdays and Saturdays) on Airbus A320 aircraft with a capacity of 174 seats. As the ministry noted, the opening of a new air route will contribute to the further development of trade, economic, business, and tourism cooperation between the two countries. Notably, the total number of international flights from Kazakhstan reached 567 per week on 121 air routes. Direct flights are available to 28 countries. Furthermore, the number of passengers transported by air in Kazakhstan amounted to 13.3 million from January through December 2023. This is 20.7 percent more than in the same period in 2022. At the same time, passenger turnover amounted to 25.9 billion p-km (increased by 28.8 percent compared to JanuaryDecember 2022). COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) A Columbus City School has reached a historic achievement. Arts Impact Middle School became the districts first school and the first middle school in Ohio to receive the Purple Star designation from the Ohio Department of Education. The designation recognizes schools for their commitment to supporting the students of military families and the families themselves. Leaders at Arts Impact Middle School said they plan to add Veterans Day assemblies and since it is an arts school, to bring in veteran artists to share their military experiences through their artwork. School leaders said their military support programs are always evolving. Ninety-seven Ohio schools received the recognition this year for the first time; 74 other Ohio schools earned a renewal after three years as dedicated Purple Star schools. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to NBC4 WCMH-TV. Putins choice of new defence minister shows hes preparing for confrontation with the West Andrei Belousov is described as the Kremlin's most gifted and most illiberal economist At first glance, Andrei Belousov does not appear to fit the mould of a Russian defence minister. Known for his spreadsheet wizardry and grasp of Keynesian economics, he is more at home with columns of data than of tanks. But Vladimir Putin has chosen Mr Belousov, described as the Kremlins most gifted and most illiberal economist, and given him a clear mission to win in Ukraine and prepare Russia for a long-term conflict against Nato. These are projects Putin regards as central to his legacy as Russias leader and he wanted a bureaucrat, not a military man, for the job. Putin has decided that the Russia ministry of defence should be headed by a civilian - MAXIM SHEMETOV/GETTY Sergei Shoigu had been criticised for his inability to overcome bureaucratic inertia undermining Moscows war effort. Mr Belousov, a 65-year-old Putin loyalist, is known for his sharp analytical mind and head for figures. Putin has forced Russias economy and society on to a war footing. War has been normalised in the country. Appointing an economist as defence minister highlights this mental shift. With Putin feeling confident about his armies performance on the battlefield in Ukraine, he has been able to make overdue changes to his top team. Andrei Belousov, 65, who has taken charge of drone projects, previously worked in Russia's trade ministry as an analyst - EKATERINA SHTUKINA/SPUTNIK Belousov replaces Sergei Shoigu as defence minister. Shoigu was also a civilian, but after his appointment in 2012, he took on the rank of general and strutted around in various uniforms with rows of medals stuck to his chest. Expect Belousov to take a very different, numbers-driven approach to Shoigu. Recently Belousov has taken charge of drone projects, pushing through plans to build more of the key weapons and train more operators. He also reportedly has a good personal relationship with Putin. Gen Shoigu has been shunted sideways to become the secretary of Russias powerful National Security Council, pushing out Nikolai Patrushev, the 72-year-old hawk who advises more conflict with Nato. And there is the elephant in the room, the sullen General Valery Gerasimov, who is head of the Russian military. He survived the reshuffle, despite all the criticism aimed at him over the Russian militarys performance in Ukraine. Just like Shoigu, he must now be wondering how long he has left on the job. Sergei Shoigu, the former defence minister, is set to be become the secretary of Russia's security council - ALEXANDER NEMENOV/GETTY Belousov has glided silently to the top. From 2012 he was a minister for economic development, then an economics adviser to Putin and then a deputy prime minister. Before joining the Kremlins team, Belousov worked in Russias trade ministry as an analyst and then in the prime ministers office as a director of finances. This CV may sound boring, but this is just the sort of experience that Putin is looking for. The war in Ukraine has shifted to a war of attrition that Putin feels that he can win. He has signed weapons supply deals with North Korea and Iran, and converted civilian industry to arms manufacturing, and also pushed the mobilisation of hundreds of thousands of men and convicts. This has given Russia a material advantage in Ukraine and allowed it to soak up a casualty rate of nearly 1,000 men per day. In other words, Putin believes that quantity over quality will triumph in Ukraine and, importantly, will challenge Nato more widely, a conflict he has prepared his armies for more intensely since his 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Belousov is Putins numbers man and the grey-suited bureaucrat is now preparing Russia for conflict with Nato. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Russian President Vladimir Putin tapped former Vice Prime Minister Andrei Belousov on Sunday to serve as Russias new defense minister, replacing long-time Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu in a shake-up at the Kremlin. Belousov, an economist, was a surprise pick, underscoring how Russia is shifting its economy on to a war footing as it launches a new offensive in Ukraines Kharkiv region. Shoigu, who served as Russias minister of defense since 2012, was appointed to lead the Kremlins security council. The announcement came just days after Putin, 71, was officially sworn into his fifth term, ushering in the beginning of at least another six years as Russias leader. He is now Russias longest-serving leader since Catherine the Great in 1796, surpassing the record held by former Soviet Union leader Joseph Stalin. What to know about Belousov Belousov, 65, was born in Moscow, where he received a degree in economics and worked in academics for several years, BBC News reported. He spent time as an assistant to Russian prime ministers in the late 1990s and was later appointed minister for economic development in 2012, the outlet added. In 2013, Belousov served as an aide to Putin until 2020, when he was appointed to serve as deputy prime minister, per the Associated Press. In the latter role, he helped mold the countrys economic strategies and pushed for stronger state control and presence in the economy, the news wire noted. In a 2018 leaked letter, he proposed redirecting about $7.6 million in excess income from 14 metallurgical, chemical and petrochemical companies, prompting widespread criticism, per multiple media reports. Belousov has been regarded as one of Putins strongest allies and was reportedly the only person on Putins economic team who quickly supported the annexation of the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine in 2014, multiple media outlets reported. He notably has not worked with the military or other law enforcement agencies, with his appointment being widely seen as a way to cement control over military spending as Russia experiences depleting wealth and high sanctions. Belousovs appointment is, in part, a recognition of how central the war has become to the economy, and how central the economy is to the war, Sam Greene, a professor of Russian politics at Kings College London, told The Washington Post. But its also more than that. Its an attempt to reshape what has become one of the key dividing lines within Putins power elite, he continued, in reference to the ongoing tensions within Russian government between economy-focused leaders and those oriented toward security and defense. Analysts and those familiar with Belousov told the Post that Belousov has shown little to no political ambition. He has always been very calm and very professional, Konstantin Sonin, a Russian economist who has met Belousov multiple times, told the Post. And among those people who were squarely for industrial policy, state involvement, and state-led growth, he was by far the most competent one. She said Putin trusts Belousov, noting he has no charisma, political following, or political base, which fits Putins preference for leaders, the Post reported. Asked about Belousovs appointment and the Kremlin shake-up, national security adviser Jake Sullivan on Monday said: Its an opaque system. Its run by one man, Vladimir Putin, he calls the shots. He may move around professionals into various roles, but at the end of the day, he seems bound and determined to continue to try to inflict a brutal war of aggression on Ukraine. We will take whatever comes and support Ukraine alongside a coalition of countries and see what happens. Sullivan declined to give a direct answer when asked by a reporter about a comment from an adviser of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky who claimed the shake-up shows Moscow will try to scale up its war efforts. I dont have a specific comment on the nature of this change-up in their government, Sullivan said. Ive seen that speculation from the Ukrainians, and its not unreasonable, but I cant draw any conclusions at this point. Well have to see what unfolds. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) believes that Russian leader Vladimir Putin is making replacements, including in the Russian Defence Ministry, to step up preparations for a protracted war in Ukraine and possibly preparing for a future confrontation with NATO. Source: ISW Details: Putin replaced Sergei Shoigu with Andrei Belousov as the Russian Defence Minister on 12 May, transferring Shoigu to the position of Secretary of Russias Security Council to replace Nikolai Patrushev. ISW believes that these high-level reshuffles following the pseudo-presidential elections in Russia convincingly indicate that Putin is taking significant steps toward mobilising the Russian economy and defence-industrial base to support a protracted war in Ukraine and possibly prepare for future confrontation with NATO. ISW added that Belousov's nearly decade-long tenure as an economy minister in the Russian government and his recent involvement in managing various innovative domestic defence industry and drone projects has prepared him well to lead the Russian Defence Ministry apparatus, which is currently in a challenging position. "Belousov has a stronger reputation for being an effective technocrat, and insider sources have claimed that he has a positive relationship with Putin," the report stated. ISW added that replacing Shoigu with Patrushev as the Secretary of the Security Council aligns with Putin's overall policy of quietly displacing high-ranking security officials by giving them peripheral roles in the Russian security sphere instead of simply dismissing them. ISW noted that previously Putin similarly sidelined his underperforming generals by appointing them to peripheral security and defence-related positions outside the direct chain of command, sometimes allowing them to "redeem themselves and return to Putins favour". In addition to Patrushev's dismissal, Putin mostly reshuffled the heads of the major Russian security services, indicating that he retains a core of loyal security officials. To quote the ISWs Key Takeaways on 12 May: Russian President Vladimir Putin replaced Sergei Shoigu with Andrei Belousov as Russian Minister of Defence on 12 May, moving Shoigu to the position of Security Council Secretary in place of Nikolai Patrushev. These high-level reshuffles following the Russian presidential election strongly suggest that Putin is taking significant steps towards mobilising the Russian economy and defence industrial base (DIB) to support a protracted war in Ukraine and possibly prepare for a future confrontation with NATO. Belousov's nearly decade-long tenure as an economic minister in the Russian federal government and his more recent involvement managing various domestic DIB innovation and drone projects, prepare him well to lead the struggling Russian MoD apparatus. Shoigu's replacement of Patrushev as Security Council Secretary is in line with Putin's general pattern of quietly sidelining high-level security officials by granting them peripheral roles within the Russian security sphere rather than simply firing them. Russian offensive efforts to seize Vovchansk (northeast of Kharkiv City) are in large part a consequence of the tacit Western policy that Ukrainian forces cannot use Western-provided systems to strike legitimate military targets within Russia. Ukrainian forces continue to conduct repeat strikes on Russian oil and defence industrial infrastructure, prompting Russian milbloggers to complain about Russian forces' clear and continued inability to defend against these strikes. Several German politicians from different political parties expressed support for using NATO air defence systems stationed in NATO member states to shoot down Russian drones over western Ukraine. Russian forces recently made confirmed advances near Lyptsi and Vovchansk in northern Kharkiv Oblast. Former Roscosmos (Russian space agency) head and ultranationalist figure Dmitry Rogozin highlighted Russian forces' continued difficulty repelling Ukrainian drones on the frontline. Support UP or become our patron! Standing in his dress uniform in the back of his Aurus convertible, Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu was driven around Red Square to review the troops during last weeks Victory Day parade. It was to be his last inspection in that role. Over the weekend, President Vladimir Putin replaced Shoigu the 68-year-old was the longest serving member of his Cabinet in a rare Kremlin shake-up that took place even as a Russian offensive in northeastern Ukraine was making gains. Just as stunning was the choice to replace Shoigu Andrei Belousov, a 65-year-old economics expert who has never dealt with the military or other law enforcement agencies. Then-Russian Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov, center, gestures as he waits to attend a ceremony inaugurating Vladimir Putin as president of Russia at the Kremlin in Moscow on May 7, 2024. (Vyacheslav Prokofyev/Sputnik via AP) Putting Belousov in charge of the Defence Ministry was seen as a way to tighten control over military spending and put the burgeoning defense sector in sync with the rest of the economy, hit hard by Western sanctions. The reshuffle caught more than a few pundits by surprise, and some mysteries are yet to unfold. Shoigus woes Shoigus job seemed to be in jeopardy early in the 2022 invasion as Russia suffered battlefield setbacks that drew the ire of Russias hawks. He and the chief of the militarys General Staff, Gen. Valery Gerasimov, were widely blamed for the failure to capture Kyiv as well as a hasty retreat by Russian troops from northeastern and southern Ukraine amid a stiff counteroffensive. Last year, Russian mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin unleashed a blistering and profane verbal attack on Shoigu and Gerasimov, accusing them of incompetence and corruption. In June, Prigozhin launched a mutiny to demand their ouster, seizing the military headquarters in the southern city of Rostov-on-Don and sending his soldiers-for-hire on a march on Moscow that he called off hours later. Two months later, Prigozhin and his top lieutenants died in a suspicious plane crash widely seen as Kremlin payback, while Shoigu seemed to shore up his position. The Kremlin denied involvement. Even though he has held the defense ministers job for 11 1/2 years, Shoigus fortunes seemed to take a further downturn last month. His deputy, Timur Ivanov, was arrested on bribery charges and hauled into court still in his military uniform. Ivanov had been Shoigus top associate since before becoming defense minister, and Kremlin watchers saw it as a serious blow. A soft landing But Putin is known to abhor firings under pressure, and the staunchly loyal Shoigu who has accompanied the president on vacations in the Siberian mountains over the years was no exception. Shoigu got a soft landing, shifted to heading the presidential Security Council and replacing Nikolai Patrushev. The role is roughly similar to the U.S. national security adviser. Patrushev, a longtime hawkish and powerful member of Putins inner circle, will get a new appointment to be announced soon, the Kremlin said, leaving another unanswered question. Shoigu is moving into a respectable and powerful position because he is loyal, and he and Putin are friends, Dara Massicot, senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowments Russia and Eurasia Program, said on the social media platform X. An economist as defense minister While Shoigu gets a dignified exit from the Defence Ministry, Belousov will probably make organizational changes, Massicot said. Putting an economist in charge of the Defence Ministry was seen as a way of better managing what is an increasing drain on Russias wealth as the wars third year drags on. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov emphasized the need to integrate the military sector more closely with the economy to put it in sync with the current dynamics. Belousov graduated from the economics faculty of Moscow State University and held a succession of senior government jobs before serving as Putins economic adviser in 2013-20. Since then, he was a deputy prime minister in charge of economic strategies, advocating stronger state controls. Deeply religious, Belousov has talked repeatedly about needing to uphold traditional family values putting him in line with Putins conservative agenda. When Moscow illegally annexed the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine in 2014, Belousov reportedly was the only member of Putins economic team who immediately supported the move. Belousov isnt Russias first civilian defense minister. Although Shoigu loved wearing the uniform, he had no military background; before becoming the minister, he had led the Emergency Situations Ministry, responsible for civil defense and addressing natural disasters. Previous defense ministers were Anatoly Serdyukov, the head of tax police, and Sergei Ivanov, the former foreign intelligence chief. But Belousovs predecessors all got the job in peacetime while he takes over in what many military analysts see as a decisive moment in the war when Russia is trying to take advantage of a slowdown in the West sending weapons to Ukraine. Easing concerns The Kremlin sought to ease the widespread bewilderment over choosing Belousov as defense minister by emphasizing that Gerasimov the chief of the General Staff actually directs the fighting in Ukraine. The chief of the General Staff is in many ways the key person who reports directly to the commander-in-chief, Putin, and the minister is really just to ensure that the military have what they need, said Mark Galeotti, head of the Mayak Intelligence consultancy. Having an economist, someone who has been speaking about the need to basically subordinate much of the economy to the needs of the defense sector, actually makes a certain amount of sense. Its now essentially a financial administrators job, he said in a commentary. Galeotti said Putin could still replace Gerasimov, describing him as unimaginative, prone to truly wasteful operations, and absolutely unwilling to actually tell the commander-in-chief, to tell Putin, some of the realities of war. The Ukrainians must be hoping that he stays. Belousov is widely expected to purge the ministry of Shoigus top associates - a move that would hardly encourage stability at a key moment in the conflict. Still, Massicot and other observers believe that some popular commanders whom Shoigu saw as rivals and tried to sideline including Gen. Sergei Surovikin, known to have longtime links to Prigozhin and credited for building multilayered defenses that stymied Ukraines botched counteroffensive last summer could again get senior positions. Sergei Markov, a pro-Kremlin political analyst, said Putins key motive was to rein in graft in the top brass, embodied by figures like Ivanov, who was arrested in April and accused of taking massive bribes. The situation with Timur Ivanov has shown that corruption has exceeded all limits, Markov said. Another task for Belousov will be to work more closely with industries to modernize the military quickly, he added. Putin likely expects Belousov to better integrate the Defence Ministrys agenda with broader economic policies, according to the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think-tank. This effort sets conditions for a fuller economic mobilization, suggesting that the Kremlin continues to prepare for a protracted war in Ukraine, it said. Alexandra Prokopenko of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center also sees Belousovs appointment as a sign the Kremlin envisions a long war. Putins priority is war; war of attrition is won by economics, she wrote. Belousov is in favor of stimulating demand from the budget, which means that military spending will at least not decrease but rather increase. Putin troops being sent on off-road motorbikes in night attacks on Ukrainian forces, say UK defence chiefs Putin troops being sent on off-road motorbikes in night attacks on Ukrainian forces, say UK defence chiefs Vladimir Putins troops are increasingly being sent on off-road motorbikes and all-terrain vehicles in night attacks on Ukrainian forces, say UK defence chiefs. They emphasised that this tactic, rather than using armoured vehicles, was increasing the risks of Russian soldiers being killed. In its latest intelligence update, the Ministry of Defence in London said: Since the start of 2024, Russia has highly likely increased its use of light vehicles, such as all-terrain vehicles and off-road motorbikes to transport personnel to the frontlines, and conduct attacks on Ukrainian positions, particularly at night. In November 2023, Russian President Vladimir Putin personally inspected newly acquired Chinese Desertcross 1000-3 all-terrain vehicles from Odes Industries. Russia has reportedly purchased over 2,100 of these vehicles. The briefing added: It is likely that Russian forces have increasingly resorted to the use of lighter, faster vehicles to conduct reconnaissance of Ukrainian defensive positions, to allow for subsequent engagement using artillery, first-person view (FPV) or one-way attack OWA drones in an effort to consistently degrade Ukrainian forces. However, in sacrificing armour and firepower for increased mobility, light vehicles are far more vulnerable than their armoured counterparts to an array of weapon systems. Ukrainian FPV drones have already demonstrated their ability to effectively target such light vehicles. Britain, the US, Ukraine and its other allies are fighting an information war against Putins regime so their briefings need to be treated with caution, often focusing on Russian losses or weaknesses. But they are still far more believable than the propaganda issued by the Kremlin. Russia troops have been gradually seizing more territory in eastern Ukraine but at the same time suffering heavy losses, according to defence sources. Putins army chiefs have in recent days launched a fresh offensive in north east Ukraine, in the Kharkiv area, where fierce battles are taking place, according to the countrys president Volodymyr Zelensky. They have also adapted their tactics since the start of Putins invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 when long lines of military vehicles were easy targets and at times got stuck in mud. His army was forced into a humiliating retreat from near Kyiv at the beginning of the conflict which is now largely bogged down in fighting in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine along a 620-mile frontline. Both sides are increasingly using drones, including some which can strike at targets more than 900 miles away, as part of efforts to degrade each others war machine by damaging oil and other industrial sites. Russia pressed its ground assault into the Kharkiv region on Monday, attacking new areas with small groups to try to widen the front and stretch Ukraine's forces, the regional governor said. Moscow's troops entered Ukraine near its second city, Kharkiv, on Friday, and the advance could draw some of Kyiv's depleted forces away from the east, where Russia has been slowly advancing. "The enemy is trying to deliberately stretch it (the front line), attacking in small groups, but in new directions, so to speak," Governor Oleh Syniehubov said in televised comments. "The situation is difficult." A day after the Russian offensive began, Ukraine appointed Brigadier General Mykhailo Drapatyi to take command of the Kharkiv front, the media outlet RBC-Ukraine reported. Drapatyi previously led the liberation of the southern Kherson region in November 2022 before serving as deputy head of the General Staff. Ukraine is on the defensive after a months-long slowdown in supplies of Western, especially American, military aid that has left Russia with an even greater advantage in manpower and munitions. In the northeast, Russia's forces were pushing in several directions, including near the town of Vovchansk and also towards the village of Lyptsi, Mr Syniehubov said. Kyiv's forces were managing to hold Moscow's troops back but there was a real threat that the fighting could spread to new settlements, he warned. Russia said on Sunday it had captured nine villages in the Kharkiv region. On Monday it said the troops had improved their positions and inflicted losses on territorial defence forces. The Ukrainian military, in its daily readout, acknowledged some Russian "tactical successes" and said it was deploying reserves to stabilise the situation. It said fighting was raging for control of Vovchansk, about three miles from the Russian border. Mr Syniehubov said about 5,700 people had been evacuated from in and around Vovchansk and urged the remaining residents, said by local officials to number about 300, to leave. The Ukrainian military said on Monday it had stopped Russian forces from moving further near the village of Lukyantsi to the north in the Kharkiv region where they had a "partial success". The general staff said Russian troops continued offensive actions, and Ukraine would proceed with building up its forces in the area depending on the situation. A vermiculture compost bin used to teach schoolkids about composting with red wriggler worms. (Photo by Bella Quiroa) We see natural disasters and human-led ones on the news and witness how world hunger and a lack of clean drinking water plague and decimate communities worldwide. But we are only high school students, and it feels impossible to do anything about problems being exacerbated by climate change. Adults tell us it is up to us to save the world, but then we look at extraordinary young people like Greta Thunberg and Vanessa Nakate. Seeing the passion and drive of these activists should be enough to push young people around the globe to make a difference in their communities. Their examples help push adults to become more involved in the search for solutions as well. Its a search that has led us right to our schools lunchrooms. Rhode Island enacted a law in September 2021 requiring most schools to compost food waste from their cafeteria and to donate any unserved, non-perishable, or otherwise unspoiled food to local food pantries. The law applies to schools that produce 30 or more tons of organic-waste material and are within 15 miles from an authorized composting facility. This law is important because about 70,000 tons of food is buried each year in Rhode Islands Central Landfill in Johnston. The landfill is set to be at capacity in 2043. On average in Rhode Island schools, each elementary school will produce 47 pounds of food waste each school year, each middle school 39 pounds, and each high school 15.6 pounds. The law directs schools to conduct waste audits and devise a plan to successfully implement a composting program at their school by 2025. Unfortunately, three years have passed with lackluster results. The reason: The state does not provide schools with additional funding to comply with the mandate, and school administrators appear reluctant to comply. As active members of our high schools environmental communities, we have faced many challenges in trying to get a composting program off the ground at our schools. These challenges are rooted in lack of both resources and support from administrators and students. Consistently, we have been told, We dont have the funding for the needed materials and Composting isnt a priority when we are lacking funding in things such as building repairs and clubs and We dont have the staff capacity for a program like this. And so on and so on. We have been met with dead ends from teachers and staff unwilling or unable to support a composting program. Even after we started our volunteer composting programs, we struggled with student participation. We saw firsthand that these programs could not be sustainable or even possible without buy-in from both students and school personnel. We hypothesized this was the reality for most Rhode Island schools. But rather than focus on excuses, we choose to see the immense potential of passionate students and staff who did support our efforts these past few years. From students who were eager to guide other students in sorting their waste properly, to teachers creating entirely new curriculum to support their schools composting programs, this passion, big and small, is blossoming at every school. We curated a plan that would address the very issues we were facing and build off of the passion community members were showcasing. Our Youth Composting Campaign Initiative identifies our main goal of getting many more schools in Rhode Island to comply with the mandate, to get more awareness, support and resources to this mandate from the Rhode Island Department of Education and the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, and to create a more well informed and active community. Our first steps were to understand the inner workings of the mandate and identify why it isnt working. But rather than focus on excuses, we choose to see the immense potential of passionate students and staff who did support our efforts these past few years. From the get-go, weve understood that with funding and other concerns, schools prioritize many other things before composting. To gain more insight, we created a survey to collect data from schools. We received 88 responses from teachers, teacher assistants and principals. We discovered only 36.4% of participants knew about the composting mandate while only 33% worked at a school with an active composting program. Of those with composting programs, 31% described it as somewhat strong, and an alarming 13.8% described theirs as not strong at all. Yes, its true this mandate offers no resources to help schools start a composting program. But there are many other and accessible ways these schools can comply. So we connected schools to environmental organizations that can support them in launching a composting program. Even then, we understood there was much more work to be done. We needed to build our campaign and show that there is support for these efforts. Thats why we started an online petition calling for Rhode Islanders to demand the follow through needed to see this law enforced. As of this writing, it has received over 1,000 signatures. But were only halfway to our goal of 2,000 signatures. We want to accurately represent the scale of Rhode Islanders who want these issues to be fixed, and to make real change. Our online petition can be found at this link. There is so much further we can go with this initiative, and we hope to see your support along the way. The post R.I. school composting law has no teeth. These students stopped gritting theirs and took action. appeared first on Rhode Island Current. Raleigh psychiatrist Assad Meymandi, a patron of the arts in North Carolina who believed engaging with music and visual creations were their own powerful kind of healing therapy, died Friday, May 10, after an illness. He was 89. Meymandi often told the story of starting life as the youngest of 9 children in Persia now Iran of a physician father who also was a poet and philosopher. His mother loved the arts, he said, and he learned from both his parents that those who can afford to give money to enterprises that lift humanity are obliged to do so. In an interview with The News & Observer for a 2004 story about his involvement in the effort to turn the Dix property into a park, Meymandi said he was a precocious boy in a family that valued knowledge. He learned to read and write early, and could understand several languages including Farsi, French and Arabic as a young child. Meymandi attended a French Jesuit school in Tehran and went to the Sorbonne in Paris, where he studied at various art museums. When he decided he wanted to become a medical doctor, he researched the best places in the world to pursue the field and determined America was where he needed to be. Meymandi said he arrived in the U.S. in 1955 and headed off to Phoenix where he first attended a community college and then went to Arizona State to study biochemistry. I learned English by memorizing the dictionary, he said in 2004. In this 2004 file photo, Assad Meymandi listens during a meeting about the Meymandi Fellowship at National Humanities Center in Research Triangle Park. From there he went to George Washington University in Washington, D.C., where he received his medical degree in 1962. Meymandi spent three years in a residency and lived on campus at the former Dorothea Dix Hospital in Raleigh, from 1963 to 1966, before moving to Fayetteville and going into private practice. He eventually became the psychiatric director of the Cumberland County Mental Health Center, served as president of the Cumberland County Medical Society, was on the leadership team of Cape Fear Valley Medical Center, wrote a guest column for the paper and had a daily, three-minute radio show which he talked about medical issues. In one of those columns, he offered his summary of all religious teaching, which he espoused as a sound philosophy and the essence of love for the rest of his life: Dont abuse yourself, dont abuse others, and dont let others abuse you. Committed to supporting the arts While in Fayetteville, Meymandi said, he invested in several startup banks and helped found a television station, all of which helped him launch a fortune he would later enjoy using to support favorite causes. Meymandi moved in 1993 with his wife, Emily, to Raleigh. He said he loved the city for what it was and what it could be. Meymandi especially wanted to nurture classical music and visual arts in the capital city, and when Raleigh announced in 1998 it wanted to expand Memorial Auditorium with a permanent home for the N.C. Symphony, Meymandi promised to donate $2 million toward the cost if the building could bear the Meymandi name. It was to honor my mother, Meymandi said. In this 2004 file photo, Assad Meymandi greets his grandchild Vincent Meymandi, 2, while dinning at I Love NY Pizza in Raleigh. The acoustics of the concert hall are so finely crafted that Meymandi said he could feel the vibration of the violinists strings from his private balcony box, in which he hosted many dozens of friends through the years. While he had given up his radio career, Meymandi continued to hold court in letters to The News & Observer, where he chastised politicians, praised good work and offered advice on healthful living. He took a more academic approach in a weekly blog, Dr. A. Meymandis Monday Musings. He paused the blog in 2022 after 12 years. His beloved Emily died in 2016 of complications from Alzheimers disease. Meymandi is survived by a daughter and three sons. A funeral will be scheduled at Christ Episcopal Church in downtown Raleigh, where Meymandi was a member. A Raleigh hospital is rated tops in patient safety. Heres how others locally compare. Five whales have died along NCs coast this year. Heres what researchers know so far. Fonseca leaving a TV station in Panama City, April 2016: in the 1990s he had made a name for himself as a writer of fiction with the prize-winning novels Dance of the Butterflies and Dream City - Mauricio Valenzuela/Xinhua/Alamy Live News Ramon Fonseca Mora, who has died aged 71, was a Panamanian lawyer whose firm, Mossack Fonseca, provided confidential offshore legal and tax services to a vast gallery of wealthy individuals, multinational corporations, politicians and their cronies until the worlds largest data leak, labelled the Panama Papers, blew the lid off the operation. The 11.5 million documents that constituted the Panama Papers detailed the ownership and finances of some 214,000 offshore companies created by Mossack Fonseca. This explosive hoard was passed in April 2016 by an anonymous whistleblower to the German newspaper Suddeutsche Zeitung; the files were then published online by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and shared with media partners worldwide. The names revealed ranged from close associates of the Russian president Vladimir Putin to the prime minister of Iceland, Sigmundur Davi Gunnlaugsson, whose fumbling response to the revelation that he and his wife owned an offshore company led to his swift resignation. The president of Argentina, Mauricio Macri, and the prime minister of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif, came under investigation as did more than 60 suspected British tax evaders. Thousands of similar cases were pursued around the world. The building housing Mossack Fonseca in Panama City, the legal and tax services firm which Fonseca co-founded - Susana Gonzalez/Bloomberg via Getty Images Meanwhile, the offices of Mossack Fonseca were raided by Panamanian authorities in February 2017 in connection with Operation Car Wash, an anti-corruption probe in Brazil which found links to money-laundering in Panama. Fonseca and his partner Jurgen Mossack were arrested and jailed, but swiftly released; they closed the firm the following year. Fonseca and Mossack said neither they, the firm nor its employees were involved in unlawful acts. Ramon Fonseca Mora was born in Panama on July 14 1952. He studied law and political science at the university of Panama and the London School of Economics and reportedly considered the priesthood and worked for the UN for several years before returning to Panama to begin his legal career. In 1986 he merged his own practice with that of Jurgen Mossack a German whose father, a former Waffen-SS corporal, had moved his family to Panama in the early 1960s. Operating in 42 countries, Mossack Fonseca was one of the worlds largest firm in the field of offshore services. More than half of the companies created to shelter its clients assets were registered in British tax havens, including the British Virgin Islands, Guernsey, Jersey and the Isle of Man. Fonseca: he had made a name for himself in the 1990s as a writer of the novels Dance of the Butterflies and Dream City, which won Panama's Ricardo Miro Prize - STR/Telemetro Panama/AFP via Getty In 2019, Fonseca and Mossack unsuccessfully sought to block the release by Netflix of The Laundromat, a satire directed by Stephen Soderbergh in which the pair were played respectively and with gusto by Antonio Banderas and Gary Oldman. The two lawyers claimed that they had been unfairly portrayed as ruthless, uncaring and involved in criminal conduct, to which Netflix retorted that the film was a comedic morality tale in which the characters of Mossack and Fonseca were no more than palpably farcical cartoonish narrators. Rather than accuse them of criminal activity, the film save(d) its pointed critiques for the opacity of the global banking system and the systemic corruption of wealthy individuals. In any case, Netflix pointed out, it would have been hard to add to the reputational damage already wrought by publication of the Panama Papers. In Panamanian politics, Fonseca served as an adviser to President Juan Carlos Varela until he angrily accused Varela of receiving bribes from a Brazilian engineering firm, Odebrecht, with which Mossack Fonsecas name had been associated, he said, to divert attention. Varela was later indicted in connection with the Odebrecht scandal. In the 1990s, Fonseca made a very different name for himself as a writer of fiction. His novels Dance of the Butterflies (1994) and Dream City (1998) won Panamas national literary award, the Ricardo Miro Prize. He was formerly married to Elizabeth Ward Neiman, who currently serves as Panamas ambassador to the Netherlands. He is survived by six children. Ramon Fonseca Mora, born July 14 1952, died May 8 2024 Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. A Fairborn mother had an upsetting start to her Mothers Day when she realized someone had stolen her car and scattered her belongings across the road overnight. As reported on News Center 7 at 11:00, Victoria Spina said this has been hard for her family. My youngest is four and she keeps crying. Shes been carrying around that seatbelt because it was in her car seat and its gone. I miss my car, Spina said. >> Suspect in Amazon facility shooting dead after encounter with Columbus police; 1 officer injured Around 1:30 a.m., Spinas security cameras captured three people looking around her car. Moments later, she heard something strange and looked outside. I was lying in bed, and I heard my car start. So I got up because my windows were right above my head and I looked out the curtain as my car was backing down the driveway, Spina said. Then in the next video, it was my car speeding off and they left in my car. She called Fairborn police and filed a report immediately, but right after doing so, she received an unexpected call back. They found a lot of stuff laying here in the road, and asked if I could come and identify and like confirm that it was my stuff, Spina said. Spina said she was devastated by what she found in the street. My sons baseball jersey was lying in the road with his baseball bat and its just really upsetting because that stuff means a lot to him, Spina said. His whole ball bag is missing. So they threw out the jersey but they still took a lot of his stuff, Spinas mother Kory Little said. >> Murder charges filed against son accused of shooting, killing father in Kettering Spina found her purse, but the wallet was missing. She said its been difficult trying to explain the situation to her young children. My sons pretty upset about all of his baseball stuff and my daughters just kind of trying to be there for me because its Mothers Day. Shes like making me all these pictures and shes like Happy Mothers Day. Do you want another present? Spina said. Fairborn police told News Center 7 they are still searching for the 2014 Silver Dodge Durango. Just if anybody sees the car just, you know, call because shes kind of stuck until the car is recovered or found wrecked, whatever it may be, Little said. ASTANA, Kazakhstan, May 13. Kazakhstan will host a regular meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member states, Kazakh Foreign Ministry Spokesman Aybek Smadiarov said during a briefing, Trend reports. The next meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the SCO member states will convene in Astana on May 21, 2024, chaired by Deputy Prime Minister-Foreign Minister of Kazakhstan Murat Nurtleu, Smadiarov said. He emphasized that the event will be attended by the heads of foreign ministries of the SCO member states, the SCO Secretary-General, and the director of the Executive Committee of the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (SCO-RATS). The meeting aims to review the preparations for the upcoming meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the SCO member states, scheduled for this year in Astana. Delegation heads will discuss the international and regional landscape, security concerns, and the enhancement of SCO cooperation across political, trade, economic, cultural, and humanitarian domains, he noted. As per the spokesperson, the meeting is set to finalize the signing of several decisions on the forthcoming summit's conclusive documents within the organization. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) The American Red Cross has released an update regarding its response to Oklahomas recent tornadoes. According to the Red Cross, as of Monday, May 13, the nonprofit has: Assisted more than 1,450 households with disaster-related needs Served 27,000 meals and snacks; more than half of those were served in Osage and Washington counties from May 1-11 Provided nearly 200 overnight shelter stays Distributed almost 7,800 relief items Assessed damage at more than 1,100 homes throughout impacted areas of Oklahoma; 260 were either destroyed or suffered major damage. Trained Red Cross disaster workers are still working at shelters at the Osage County Fairgrounds in Pawhuska, but the shelter at Crossway First Baptist Church in Sulphur closed on Monday at 10 a.m. LOCAL NEWS: Red Cross response update: Oklahoma tornadoes Officials say power is mostly restored and mobile feeding ended on Friday in Bartlesville and Saturday in Barnsdall. Mobile emergency supply has also ended but the Red Cross will continue to work with local officials in case the need arises again. Recovery Information The Red Cross says they are teaming up with their partners with Oklahoma Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD) to open multiagency resource centers. This brings public agencies and nonprofits together to provide a one-stop shop for help and recovery resources. Resource centers will be opening at the Ardmore Heritage Hall in Ardmore on Wednesday, May 15, and the Love County Fairgrounds in Marietta on Thursday, May 16. Anyone impacted by the storms are encouraged to visit a multiagency resource center. The nonprofit is also broadening its community outreach to help more people in need. Financial assistance is available for those who need help recovering and whose main residences were severely damaged or destroyed. A mobile unit will be open in Sulphur May 13, 14 and 15 from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. to help those who qualify, located at 2705 W Broadway Ave., Sulphur, OK. Tips to stay safe The Red Cross has released some tips to stay safe and avoid getting hurt while cleaning help after a tornado. To help avoid injury: Do not enter damaged buildings. If the building you are in has been damaged, exit with extreme care and stay out. Look around for things that might fall or dangerous debris. Do not use matches or lighters inside. If you smell gas or see spills that could be flammable, leave immediately. Watch out for exposed nails and broken glass. Stay clear of fallen power lines or broken utility lines. How to clean up safely: Be careful during clean-up. Wear thick-soled shoes, long pants and work gloves to reduce injuries. Children should not take part in disaster cleanup work. If power is out, use flashlights or battery-powered lanterns to reduce fire risk. Be aware of carbon monoxide poisoning. Do not use gasoline, propane, natural gas or charcoal-burning devices inside a home, basement, garage, tent or camper or even outside near an open window. Carbon monoxide cant be seen or smelled, but it can kill you fast. If you start to feel sick, dizzy or weak, get to fresh air right away do not delay. Dont forget to take care of yourself: Its normal to have a lot of bad feelings, stress, or anxiety. Eat healthy food and get enough sleep to help you deal with stress. You can contact the national SAMHSA Disaster Distress Helpline for free if you need to talk to someone. Call 1-800-985-5990. How you can help Those interested in helping can offer shelter and support to those impacted. Officials say financial donations are the fastest way to help those in need and allows for the Red Cross to provide shelter, food, relief supplies, emotional support, recovery planning and other kinds of assistance. To make a donation, visit redcross.org/donate or text REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation for disaster relief. The Red Cross does not take donated goods, but works with local groups that do. You can call 211 to be connected with a local social service agency that will take those kinds of donations. LOCAL NEWS: Landspout touches down in the Oklahoma panhandle Financial Assistance Thanks to the generosity of our donors, the American Red Cross is offering financial assistance for those who need help recovering and whose primary residences were destroyed or sustained eligible structural damage. says the Red Cross. This kind of assistance is based on damage. To be eligible, households can submit an application for the program and meet the following requirements: Their pre-disaster primary residence (renter or homeowner) is in a confirmed disaster-impacted geographic area. Their head of household is able to provide proof of identity and residence. Their primary residence is assessed to be destroyed or has suffered significant structural damage that requires extensive repairs. A residence that is destroyed is one that is a total loss or with damage so severe that repairs are not feasible. To learn more about the Red Cross, visit redcross.org or call 1-800-RED CROSS. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KFOR.com Oklahoma City. Religious views on abortion more diverse than they may appear in U.S. political debate Demonstrators at the Jewish Rally for Abortion Justice at Union Square near the U.S. Capitol on May 17, 2022, in Washington, D.C. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) Lawmakers who oppose abortion often invoke their faith many identify as Christian while debating policy. The anti-abortion movements use of Christianity in arguments might create the impression that broad swaths of religious Americans dont support abortion rights. But a recent report shows that Americans of various faiths and denominations believe abortion should be legal in all or most cases. According to a Public Religion Research Institute survey of some 22,000 U.S. adults released last week, 93% of Unitarian Universalists, 81% of Jews, 79% of Buddhists and 60% of Muslims also hold that view. Researchers also found that most people who adhere to the two major branches of Christianity Catholicism and Protestantism also believe abortion should be mostly legal, save for three groups: white evangelical Protestants, Latter-day Saints and Jehovahs Witnesses. Historically, the Catholic Church has opposed abortion. But the poll found that 73% of Catholics of color PRRI defines this group as Black, Asian, Native American and multiracial support the right to have an abortion, followed by 62% of white Catholics and 57% of Hispanic Catholics. The findings show that interfaith views on abortion may not be as simple as they appear during political debate, where the voices of white evangelical legislators and advocates can be the loudest. States Newsroom spoke with Abrahamic religious scholars specifically, experts in Catholicism, Islam and Judaism and reproductive rights advocates about varying perspectives on abortion and their history. Abortion views in America before Roe v. Wade The Moral Majority a voting bloc of white, conservative evangelicals who rose to prominence after the U.S. Supreme Court Roe v. Wade ruling in 1973 is often associated with spearheading legislation to restrict abortion. Gillian Frank is a historian specializing in religion, gender and sexuality who teaches at the Stevens Institute of Technology in New Jersey. Frank said evangelical views on abortion were actually more ambivalent before the early 70s Roe decision established the federal right to terminate a pregnancy. (The Supreme Court upended that precedent about two years ago.) What we have to understand is that evangelicals, alongside mainline Protestants and Jews of various denominations, supported what was called therapeutic abortion, which is to say abortion for certain exceptional causes, Frank said, including saving the life or health of the mother, fetal abnormalities, rape, incest and the pregnancy of a minor. Religious bodies like the Southern Baptist Convention and the National Association of Evangelicals said abortion was OK in certain circumstances, he added. Evangelical Protestants before Roe did not endorse elective abortions, Frank said, or what they called abortion on demand, a phrase invoked by abortion-rights opponents today that he said entered the American lexicon around 1962. The 1973 ruling was seismic and led organizations opposing abortion, such as the National Right to Life Committee formed by the Conference of Catholic Bishops to sprout across the country, according to an article published four years later in Southern Exposure. Catholic leaders often lobbied other religious groups evangelicals, Mormons, orthodox Jews to join their movement and likened abortion to murder in their newspapers. After Roe, abortion is increasingly associated with womens liberation in popular rhetoric in popular culture, because of the activism of the womens movement but also because of the ways in which the anti-abortion movement is associating abortion with familial decline, Frank said. Those sentiments, he said, were spread by conservative figures like Phyllis Schlafly, a Catholic opposed to feminism and abortion, who campaigned against and managed to block the Equal Rights Amendment in the 1970s. Polls suggest the views of Catholic clergy and laypeople diverge Catholicism is generally synonymous with opposition to abortion. According to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, the church has stood against abortion since the first century. The conference points to Jeremiah 1:5 in the Bible to back up arguments that pregnancy termination is contrary to the moral law. But nearly 6 in 10 American Catholics believe abortion should be mostly legal, according to a Pew Research Center report released last month. Catholics for Choice spokesperson Ashley Wilson said that theres a disconnect between the church as an institution and its laity. We recognize that part of the problem is that the Catholic clergy, and the people who write the official teaching of the church, are all or mostly white male my boss likes to say ostensibly celibate men who dont have wives, Wilson said. They dont have daughters. They have no inroads into the lives of laypeople. Her group plans on going to Vatican City in Rome this fall to lift up stories of Catholics whove had abortions. The organization is also actively involved in efforts to restore abortion access 14 states have near-total bans through direct ballot measures in Colorado, Florida and Missouri this year. Catholic dioceses and fraternities are often behind counter-efforts to proposed ballot questions. They poured millions into campaigns in Kansas and Kentucky in 2022 to push anti-abortion amendments, and also in Ohio last year to defeat a reproductive rights ballot measure but they failed in each state. Ensoulment and mercy in Islam Tenets of Islam the second largest faith in the world often make references to how far along a persons pregnancy is and whether there are complications. University of Colorado Law professor Rabea Benhalim, an expert of Islamic and Judaic law, said theres a common belief that at 40 days gestation, the embryo is akin to a drop of fluid. After 120 days, the fetus gains a soul, she said. While the Quran doesnt specifically speak to abortion, Benhalim said Chapter 23: 12-14 is considered a description of a fetus in a womb. The verses are deeply important in the development of abortion jurisprudence within Islamic law, because theres an understanding that life is something that is emerging over a period of stages. In some restrictive interpretations of Islam, theres a limit on abortion after 40 days, or seven weeks after implantation, Benhalim said. In other interpretations, because ensoulment doesnt occur until 120 days of gestation, abortion is generally permitted in some Muslim communities for various reasons, she said. After ensoulment, abortion is allowed if the mothers life is in danger, according to religious doctrine. Sahar Pirzada, the director of movement building at HEART, a reproductive justice organization focused on sexual health and education in Muslim American communities, confirmed that some Muslims believe in the 40-day mark, while others adhere to the 120-day mark when weighing abortion. How can you make a black-and-white ruling on something that is going to be applied across the board when everyones situation is different? she asked. Theres a lot of compassion and mercy with how were supposed to approach matters of the womb. The issue is personal for Pirzada, who had an abortion in 2018 after her fetus received a fatal diagnosis of trisomy 18 when she was 12 weeks pregnant. I wanted to terminate within the 120-day mark, which gave me a few more weeks, she said. She consulted scholars and Islamic teachings before making the decision to end her pregnancy, she said, and mentioned the importance of rahma mercy in Islam. I tried to embody that spirit of compassion for myself, she said. Pirzada, who is now a mother of two, had the procedure at exactly 14 weeks on a day six years ago that was both Ash Wednesday and Valentines Day. She said she felt loved and surrounded by people of faith at the hospital, where some health care workers had crosses marked in ash on their foreheads. I felt very appreciative that they were offering me care on a day that was spiritual for them, she said. Seeing the stories of people with pregnancy complications in the period since the Supreme Court overturned the federal right to an abortion has left her grief stricken. For instance, Kate Cox, a Texas woman whose fetus had the same diagnosis as Pirzadas, was denied an abortion by the state Supreme Court in December. Cox had to travel elsewhere for care, Texas Tribune reported. Benhalim, the University of Colorado expert, said teachings in Islam and Judaism offer solace to followers who are considering abortion, as they can provide guidance during difficult decisions. No fetal personhood in Judaism In Jewish texts, the embryo is referred to as water before 40 days of gestation, according to the National Council of Jewish Women. Exodus: 21:22-23 in the Torah mentions a hypothetical situation where two men are fighting and injure a pregnant woman. If she has a miscarriage, the men are only fined. But if she is seriously injured and dies, the penalty shall be a life for a life. This part of the Torah is interpreted to mean that a fetus does not have personhood, and the men didnt commit murder, according to the council. But this may not be a catchall belief Benhalim noted that denominations of Judaism have different opinions on abortion. Today, Jewish Americans have been at the forefront of legal challenges to abortion bans based on religious freedom in Florida, Indiana and Kentucky. Many of the lawsuits have interfaith groups of plaintiffs and argue that restrictions on termination infringe on their religion. The legal challenge in Indiana has been the most successful. Hoosier Jews for Choice and five anonymous plaintiffs sued members of the state medical licensing board in summer 2022, when Indianas near-total abortion ban initially took effect. Plaintiffs argued that the ban violated the states Religious Freedom Restoration Act, and the court later let the claim receive class-action status. Several Jewish Hoosiers said they believe life begins after a babys first breath, and that abortion is required to protect the mothers health and life, according to court documents. Last month, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled that the plaintiffs have the right to sue the state but sent the request for a temporary halt on the ban back to a lower court. While the decision was unanimous, Judge Mark Bailey issued a separate concurring opinion explaining his reasoning and criticizing lawmakers an overwhelming majority of whom have not experienced childbirth who assert they are protectors of life from the point of conception. In my view, this is an adoption of a religious viewpoint held by some, but certainly not all, Hoosiers, he wrote. The least that can be expected is that remaining Hoosiers of child bearing ability will be given the opportunity to act in accordance with their own consciences and religious creeds. The post Religious views on abortion more diverse than they may appear in U.S. political debate appeared first on Wisconsin Examiner. Religious views on abortion more diverse than they may appear in U.S. political debate Demonstrators at the Jewish Rally for Abortion Justice at Union Square near the U.S. Capitol on May 17, 2022, in Washington, D.C. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) Lawmakers who oppose abortion often invoke their faith many identify as Christian while debating policy. The anti-abortion movements use of Christianity in arguments might create the impression that broad swaths of religious Americans dont support abortion rights. But a recent report shows that Americans of various faiths and denominations believe abortion should be legal in all or most cases. According to a Public Religion Research Institute survey of some 22,000 U.S. adults released last week, 93% of Unitarian Universalists, 81% of Jews, 79% of Buddhists and 60% of Muslims also hold that view. Researchers also found that most people who adhere to the two major branches of Christianity Catholicism and Protestantism also believe abortion should be mostly legal, save for three groups: white evangelical Protestants, Latter-day Saints and Jehovahs Witnesses. Historically, the Catholic Church has opposed abortion. But the poll found that 73% of Catholics of color PRRI defines this group as Black, Asian, Native American and multiracial support the right to have an abortion, followed by 62% of white Catholics and 57% of Hispanic Catholics. The findings show that interfaith views on abortion may not be as simple as they appear during political debate, where the voices of white evangelical legislators and advocates can be the loudest. States Newsroom spoke with Abrahamic religious scholars specifically, experts in Catholicism, Islam and Judaism and reproductive rights advocates about varying perspectives on abortion and their history. Abortion views in America before Roe v. Wade The Moral Majority a voting bloc of white, conservative evangelicals who rose to prominence after the U.S. Supreme Court Roe v. Wade ruling in 1973 is often associated with spearheading legislation to restrict abortion. Gillian Frank is a historian specializing in religion, gender and sexuality who teaches at the Stevens Institute of Technology in New Jersey. Frank said evangelical views on abortion were actually more ambivalent before the early 70s Roe decision established the federal right to terminate a pregnancy. (The Supreme Court upended that precedent about two years ago.) What we have to understand is that evangelicals, alongside mainline Protestants and Jews of various denominations, supported what was called therapeutic abortion, which is to say abortion for certain exceptional causes, Frank said, including saving the life or health of the mother, fetal abnormalities, rape, incest and the pregnancy of a minor. Religious bodies like the Southern Baptist Convention and the National Association of Evangelicals said abortion was OK in certain circumstances, he added. Evangelical Protestants before Roe did not endorse elective abortions, Frank said, or what they called abortion on demand, a phrase invoked by abortion-rights opponents today that he said entered the American lexicon around 1962. The 1973 ruling was seismic and led organizations opposing abortion, such as the National Right to Life Committee formed by the Conference of Catholic Bishops to sprout across the country, according to an article published four years later in Southern Exposure. Catholic leaders often lobbied other religious groups evangelicals, Mormons, orthodox Jews to join their movement and likened abortion to murder in their newspapers. After Roe, abortion is increasingly associated with womens liberation in popular rhetoric in popular culture, because of the activism of the womens movement but also because of the ways in which the anti-abortion movement is associating abortion with familial decline, Frank said. Those sentiments, he said, were spread by conservative figures like Phyllis Schlafly, a Catholic opposed to feminism and abortion, who campaigned against and managed to block the Equal Rights Amendment in the 1970s. Polls suggest the views of Catholic clergy and laypeople diverge Catholicism is generally synonymous with opposition to abortion. According to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, the church has stood against abortion since the first century. The conference points to Jeremiah 1:5 in the Bible to back up arguments that pregnancy termination is contrary to the moral law. But nearly 6 in 10 American Catholics believe abortion should be mostly legal, according to a Pew Research Center report released last month. Catholics for Choice spokesperson Ashley Wilson said that theres a disconnect between the church as an institution and its laity. We recognize that part of the problem is that the Catholic clergy, and the people who write the official teaching of the church, are all or mostly white male my boss likes to say ostensibly celibate men who dont have wives, Wilson said. They dont have daughters. They have no inroads into the lives of laypeople. Her group plans on going to Vatican City in Rome this fall to lift up stories of Catholics whove had abortions. The organization is also actively involved in efforts to restore abortion access 14 states have near-total bans through direct ballot measures in Colorado, Florida and Missouri this year. Catholic dioceses and fraternities are often behind counter-efforts to proposed ballot questions. They poured millions into campaigns in Kansas and Kentucky in 2022 to push anti-abortion amendments, and also in Ohio last year to defeat a reproductive rights ballot measure but they failed in each state. Ensoulment and mercy in Islam Tenets of Islam the second largest faith in the world often make references to how far along a persons pregnancy is and whether there are complications. University of Colorado Law professor Rabea Benhalim, an expert of Islamic and Judaic law, said theres a common belief that at 40 days gestation, the embryo is akin to a drop of fluid. After 120 days, the fetus gains a soul, she said. While the Quran doesnt specifically speak to abortion, Benhalim said Chapter 23: 12-14 is considered a description of a fetus in a womb. The verses are deeply important in the development of abortion jurisprudence within Islamic law, because theres an understanding that life is something that is emerging over a period of stages. In some restrictive interpretations of Islam, theres a limit on abortion after 40 days, or seven weeks after implantation, Benhalim said. In other interpretations, because ensoulment doesnt occur until 120 days of gestation, abortion is generally permitted in some Muslim communities for various reasons, she said. After ensoulment, abortion is allowed if the mothers life is in danger, according to religious doctrine. Sahar Pirzada, the director of movement building at HEART, a reproductive justice organization focused on sexual health and education in Muslim American communities, confirmed that some Muslims believe in the 40-day mark, while others adhere to the 120-day mark when weighing abortion. How can you make a black-and-white ruling on something that is going to be applied across the board when everyones situation is different? she asked. Theres a lot of compassion and mercy with how were supposed to approach matters of the womb. The issue is personal for Pirzada, who had an abortion in 2018 after her fetus received a fatal diagnosis of trisomy 18 when she was 12 weeks pregnant. I wanted to terminate within the 120-day mark, which gave me a few more weeks, she said. She consulted scholars and Islamic teachings before making the decision to end her pregnancy, she said, and mentioned the importance of rahma mercy in Islam. I tried to embody that spirit of compassion for myself, she said. Pirzada, who is now a mother of two, had the procedure at exactly 14 weeks on a day six years ago that was both Ash Wednesday and Valentines Day. She said she felt loved and surrounded by people of faith at the hospital, where some health care workers had crosses marked in ash on their foreheads. I felt very appreciative that they were offering me care on a day that was spiritual for them, she said. Seeing the stories of people with pregnancy complications in the period since the Supreme Court overturned the federal right to an abortion has left her grief stricken. For instance, Kate Cox, a Texas woman whose fetus had the same diagnosis as Pirzadas, was denied an abortion by the state Supreme Court in December. Cox had to travel elsewhere for care, Texas Tribune reported. Benhalim, the University of Colorado expert, said teachings in Islam and Judaism offer solace to followers who are considering abortion, as they can provide guidance during difficult decisions. No fetal personhood in Judaism In Jewish texts, the embryo is referred to as water before 40 days of gestation, according to the National Council of Jewish Women. Exodus: 21:22-23 in the Torah mentions a hypothetical situation where two men are fighting and injure a pregnant woman. If she has a miscarriage, the men are only fined. But if she is seriously injured and dies, the penalty shall be a life for a life. This part of the Torah is interpreted to mean that a fetus does not have personhood, and the men didnt commit murder, according to the council. But this may not be a catchall belief Benhalim noted that denominations of Judaism have different opinions on abortion. Today, Jewish Americans have been at the forefront of legal challenges to abortion bans based on religious freedom in Florida, Indiana and Kentucky. Many of the lawsuits have interfaith groups of plaintiffs and argue that restrictions on termination infringe on their religion. The legal challenge in Indiana has been the most successful. Hoosier Jews for Choice and five anonymous plaintiffs sued members of the state medical licensing board in summer 2022, when Indianas near-total abortion ban initially took effect. Plaintiffs argued that the ban violated the states Religious Freedom Restoration Act, and the court later let the claim receive class-action status. Several Jewish Hoosiers said they believe life begins after a babys first breath, and that abortion is required to protect the mothers health and life, according to court documents. Last month, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled that the plaintiffs have the right to sue the state but sent the request for a temporary halt on the ban back to a lower court. While the decision was unanimous, Judge Mark Bailey issued a separate concurring opinion explaining his reasoning and criticizing lawmakers an overwhelming majority of whom have not experienced childbirth who assert they are protectors of life from the point of conception. In my view, this is an adoption of a religious viewpoint held by some, but certainly not all, Hoosiers, he wrote. The least that can be expected is that remaining Hoosiers of child bearing ability will be given the opportunity to act in accordance with their own consciences and religious creeds. The post Religious views on abortion more diverse than they may appear in U.S. political debate appeared first on Arkansas Advocate. Religious views on abortion more diverse than they may appear in U.S. political debate Demonstrators at the Jewish Rally for Abortion Justice at Union Square near the U.S. Capitol on May 17, 2022. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images Lawmakers who oppose abortion often invoke their faith many identify as Christian while debating policy. The anti-abortion movements use of Christianity in arguments might create the impression that broad swaths of religious Americans dont support abortion rights. But a recent report shows that Americans of various faiths and denominations believe abortion should be legal in all or most cases. According to a Public Religion Research Institute survey of some 22,000 U.S. adults released this month, 93% of Unitarian Universalists, 81% of Jews, 79% of Buddhists and 60% of Muslims also hold that view. Researchers also found that most people who adhere to the two major branches of Christianity Catholicism and Protestantism also believe abortion should be mostly legal, save for three groups: white evangelical Protestants, Latter-day Saints and Jehovahs Witnesses. Historically, the Catholic Church has opposed abortion. But the poll found that 73% of Catholics of color PRRI defines this group as Black, Asian, Native American and multiracial Americans support the right to have an abortion, followed by 62% of white Catholics and 57% of Hispanic Catholics. The findings show that interfaith views on abortion may not be as simple as they appear during political debate, where the voices of white evangelical legislators and advocates can be the loudest. States Newsroom spoke with Abrahamic religious scholars specifically, experts in Catholicism, Islam and Judaism and reproductive rights advocates about varying perspectives on abortion and their history. Abortion views in America before Roe v. Wade The Moral Majority a voting bloc of white, conservative evangelicals who rose to prominence after the U.S. Supreme Court Roe v. Wade ruling in 1973 is often associated with spearheading legislation to restrict abortion. Gillian Frank is a historian specializing in religion, gender and sexuality who teaches at the Stevens Institute of Technology in New Jersey. Frank said evangelical views on abortion were actually more ambivalent before the early 70s Roe decision established the federal right to terminate a pregnancy. (The Supreme Court upended that precedent about two years ago.) What we have to understand is that evangelicals, alongside mainline Protestants and Jews of various denominations, supported what was called therapeutic abortion, which is to say abortion for certain exceptional causes, Frank said, including saving the life or health of the mother, fetal abnormalities, rape, incest and the pregnancy of a minor. Religious bodies like the Southern Baptist Convention and the National Association of Evangelicals said abortion was OK in certain circumstances, he added. Evangelical Protestants before Roe did not endorse elective abortions, Frank said, or what they called abortion on demand, a phrase invoked by abortion-rights opponents today that he said entered the American lexicon around 1962. The 1973 ruling was seismic and led organizations opposing abortion, such as the National Right to Life Committee formed by the Conference of Catholic Bishops to sprout across the country, according to an article published four years later in Southern Exposure. Catholic leaders often lobbied other religious groups evangelicals, Mormons, orthodox Jews to join their movement and likened abortion to murder in their newspapers. After Roe, abortion is increasingly associated with womens liberation in popular rhetoric in popular culture, because of the activism of the womens movement but also because of the ways in which the anti-abortion movement is associating abortion with familial decline, Frank said. Those sentiments, he said, were spread by conservative figures like Phyllis Schlafly, a Catholic opposed to feminism and abortion, who campaigned against and managed to block the Equal Rights Amendment in the 1970s. Polls suggest the views of Catholic clergy and laypeople diverge Catholicism is generally synonymous with opposition to abortion. According to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, the church has stood against abortion since the first century. The conference points to Jeremiah 1:5 in the Bible to back up arguments that pregnancy termination is contrary to the moral law. But nearly 6 in 10 American Catholics believe abortion should be mostly legal, according to a Pew Research Center report released last month. Catholics for Choice spokesperson Ashley Wilson said that theres a disconnect between the church as an institution and its laity. We recognize that part of the problem is that the Catholic clergy, and the people who write the official teaching of the church, are all or mostly white male my boss likes to say ostensibly celibate men who dont have wives, Wilson said. They dont have daughters. They have no inroads into the lives of laypeople. Her group plans on going to Vatican City in Rome this fall to lift up stories of Catholics whove had abortions. The organization is also actively involved in efforts to restore abortion access 14 states have near-total bans through direct ballot measures in Colorado, Florida and Missouri this year. Catholic dioceses and fraternities are often behind counter-efforts to proposed ballot questions. They poured millions into campaigns in Kansas and Kentucky in 2022 to push anti-abortion amendments, and also in Ohio last year to defeat a reproductive rights ballot measure but they failed in each state. Ensoulment and mercy in Islam Tenets of Islam the second largest faith in the world often make references to how far along a persons pregnancy is and whether there are complications. University of Colorado Law professor Rabea Benhalim, an expert of Islamic and Judaic law, said theres a common belief that at 40 days gestation, the embryo is akin to a drop of fluid. After 120 days, the fetus gains a soul, she said. While the Quran doesnt specifically speak to abortion, Benhalim said Chapter 23: 12-14 is considered a description of a fetus in a womb. The verses are deeply important in the development of abortion jurisprudence within Islamic law, because theres an understanding that life is something that is emerging over a period of stages. In some restrictive interpretations of Islam, theres a limit on abortion after 40 days, or seven weeks after implantation, Benhalim said. In other interpretations, because ensoulment doesnt occur until 120 days of gestation, abortion is generally permitted in some Muslim communities for various reasons, she said. After ensoulment, abortion is allowed if the mothers life is in danger, according to religious doctrine. Sahar Pirzada, the director of movement building at HEART, a reproductive justice organization focused on sexual health and education in Muslim American communities, confirmed that some Muslims believe in the 40-day mark, while others adhere to the 120-day mark when weighing abortion. How can you make a black-and-white ruling on something that is going to be applied across the board when everyones situation is different? she asked. Theres a lot of compassion and mercy with how were supposed to approach matters of the womb. The issue is personal for Pirzada, who had an abortion in 2018 after her fetus received a fatal diagnosis of trisomy 18 when she was 12 weeks pregnant. I wanted to terminate within the 120-day mark, which gave me a few more weeks, she said. She consulted scholars and Islamic teachings before making the decision to end her pregnancy, she said, and mentioned the importance of rahma mercy in Islam. I tried to embody that spirit of compassion for myself, she said. Pirzada, who is now a mother of two, had the procedure at exactly 14 weeks on a day six years ago that was both Ash Wednesday and Valentines Day. She said she felt loved and surrounded by people of faith at the hospital, where some health care workers had crosses marked in ash on their foreheads. I felt very appreciative that they were offering me care on a day that was spiritual for them, she said. Seeing the stories of people with pregnancy complications in the period since the Supreme Court overturned the federal right to an abortion has left her grief stricken. For instance, Kate Cox, a Texas woman whose fetus had the same diagnosis as Pirzadas, was denied an abortion by the state Supreme Court in December. Cox had to travel elsewhere for care, Texas Tribune reported. Benhalim, the University of Colorado expert, said teachings in Islam and Judaism offer solace to followers who are considering abortion, as they can provide guidance during difficult decisions. No fetal personhood in Judaism In Jewish texts, the embryo is referred to as water before 40 days of gestation, according to the National Council of Jewish Women. Exodus: 21:22-23 in the Torah mentions a hypothetical situation where two men are fighting and injure a pregnant woman. If she has a miscarriage, the men are only fined. But if she is seriously injured and dies, the penalty shall be a life for a life. This part of the Torah is interpreted to mean that a fetus does not have personhood, and the men didnt commit murder, according to the council. But this may not be a catchall belief Benhalim noted that denominations of Judaism have different opinions on abortion. Today, Jewish Americans have been at the forefront of legal challenges to abortion bans based on religious freedom in Florida, Indiana and Kentucky. Many of the lawsuits have interfaith groups of plaintiffs and argue that restrictions on termination infringe on their religion. The legal challenge in Indiana has been the most successful. Hoosier Jews for Choice and five anonymous plaintiffs sued members of the state medical licensing board in summer 2022, when Indianas near-total abortion ban initially took effect. Plaintiffs argued that the ban violated the states Religious Freedom Restoration Act, and the court later let the claim receive class-action status. Several Jewish Hoosiers said they believe life begins after a babys first breath, and that abortion is required to protect the mothers health and life, according to court documents. Last month, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled that the plaintiffs have the right to sue the state but sent the request for a temporary halt on the ban back to a lower court. While the decision was unanimous, Judge Mark Bailey issued a separate concurring opinion explaining his reasoning and criticizing lawmakers an overwhelming majority of whom have not experienced childbirth who assert they are protectors of life from the point of conception. In my view, this is an adoption of a religious viewpoint held by some, but certainly not all, Hoosiers, he wrote. The least that can be expected is that remaining Hoosiers of child bearing ability will be given the opportunity to act in accordance with their own consciences and religious creeds. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX (Getty Images) Originally published by The 19th Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Rep. Gwen Moore of Wisconsin, both Democrats, introduced legislation last week that would allow Medicaid coverage of doulas and midwives. The bill, called the Mamas First Act, aims to improve access to care before, during, and after pregnancy to under-served and under-resourced communities as an OB-GYN deficit looms and the high rates of pregnancy-related deaths persist. The nonprofit March of Dimes in 2020 classified 1,119 counties in the U.S. as pregnancy care deserts, lacking a hospital or birth center that either offers obstetric care or has an obstetric provider. More than a quarter of Native-American babies and 16 percent of Black babies were born in areas with limited or no access to pregnancy care services, it found. The ongoing loss of obstetric providers, in particular, has impacted counties access to care. Even as parts of the United States, particularly rural areas, grapple with a current lack of access to pregnancy care, the Department of Health and Human Services projects 3,360 fewer OB-GYNs will be in the workforce by 2030 than there were in 2018. Simultaneously, 3,120 more certified nursing midwives will be in the workforce by 2030 than in 2018. If enacted, the Mamas First Act would amend Title XIX of the Social Security Act to add services and care, including prenatal, delivery, and postpartum care, that is provided in a culturally congruent manner by doulas, midwives, and tribal midwives to the list of services eligible for reimbursement through Medicaid. Some of these services are already covered by states and Washington, D.C.: According to the National Academy for State Health Policy, California, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island and Virginia already offer doula services as an optional benefit through the states Medicaid program. Similar legislation has been introduced at the federal level before and not made it into law. Americas ongoing maternal health crisis magnifies the need for federal interventions that can save lives, Moore said in a statement. Moore previously introduced the Mamas First Act in 2019 with 11 cosponsors, all Democrats, and again in 2022 with only four cosponsors, this time all Democratic women. The Mamas First Act is an important effort because it will expand access to providers who can offer emotional and physical support during and after the birthing process comprehensive beyond the hospital setting where nearly all U.S. births occur. Research shows that birthing people who received care from a doula, or someone who is there to support them throughout their birthing experience, had 52.9 percent lower odds of having a cesarean delivery and were 57.5 percent less likely to develop postpartum depression or anxiety. Now is the time to use all available tools to combat the maternal health crisis. The Mamas First Act will take care of our mommas and babies, and will help us root out the deep disparities and systemic racism in our healthcare system, Warren said in a statement. In 2022, there were 817 pregnancy-related deaths, down from 1,205 in 2021, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Black birthing peoples pregnancy mortality rate continues to outpace the national average, though it did decrease from 69.9 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2021 to 49.5 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2022. Warren first introduced this bill in the Senate in 2022 with seven co-sponsors, two of whom, Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey and Robert P. Casey Jr. of Pennsylvania, returned to co-sponsor this bill. Democratic Reps. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Lauren Underwood of Illinois, Alma Adams of North Carolina and Debbie Dingell of Michigan are the sole co-sponsors on the House bill, and all of them are returning co-sponsors from the 2022 legislation. Underwood and Adams lead the bipartisan Black Maternal Health Caucus. Maternal mortality remains significantly higher in the United States than in other comparable countries, especially for Black mothers. This legislation addresses the maternal mortality crisis by expanding Medicaid to include doula and midwifery care, because having trusted partners in the birthing process saves lives, Adams said in a statement. Several organizations, such as the Black Mamas Matter Alliance, the National Birth Equity Collaborative and the African American Breastfeeding Network, have expressed their support for the legislation. Many states, especially in the southern region of the U.S., are in significant need of high-quality, holistic, and comprehensive maternity care. Passage of the Mamas First Act can help strengthen maternity care workforce efforts, Angela D. Aina, the executive director of the Black Mamas Matter Alliance, said in a statement. The post Theres a renewed push in Congress for Medicaid to cover doulas and midwives appeared first on Washington State Standard. Seventy years after the Supreme Court outlawed separating public school children by race, a new report breathes life into an old question: how the most coveted public schools are able to legally exclude all but the most privileged families. In the first of its kind state-by-state breakdown by nonprofits Available to All and Bellwether Education, researchers unveil troubling laws, loopholes and trends that undermine the legacy of Brown v. Board, in which the supreme court ruled separate educational facilities are inherently unequal and violate the Fourteenth Amendment. Public schools today are not required to explain or prove why they are denying a student enrollment. Paired with pressure to stack classrooms with easier to educate kids, school administrators say this leads to practices of denying Black, brown, low-income students and those with disabilities enrollment to public school, without consequence. Get stories like these delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter The report argues discrimination has also been made widespread by allowing and in four states, requiring districts to use and enforce school attendance zones, which often mirror racist housing maps from the 30s, separating children by home addresses. Schools contract with private investigators, prosecute or fine parents who defy zone lines via address sharing. Only one state, Connecticut, has decriminalized the common practice. Researchers say the need to reform and undermine the weight home addresses have on educational outcomes is more urgent than ever, as many districts start to weigh closures and consolidations, leaving thousands of children, most often Black, brown and low-income students, hanging in the balance. You cant be turned away from school because of your race, but if all of the Black people live on one side of the line, all the white people live on the other side of the line, its OK to draw the line and assign kids to school based on that, said Tim DeRoche, coauthor of the report and founder of Available to All, a watchdog organization. Related Report: In 24 States, Using False Address to Get Into a Better School is a Crime In the wake of Brown, courts took charge, taking on dozens of cases and stamping out explicit racial segregation, particularly in the south. But they never came back around to fulfill that promise, that public schools had to be available to all in equal terms, DeRoche said. Theres all these other ways that we sort kids into schools that give advantages to people who have money or live in the right part of town. The courts have just neglected to take that up and frankly, the legislatures have failed to take that up as well. The report makes the case for better legal protections, like requiring districts to operate open enrollment zones for families within a 3-mile radius, reserve seats for nonresidents, publish data on enrollment application and denials, and, when schools do reach capacity, require lotteries, common practice at public charter schools. It also provides a legal profile for each state, outlining their stance on laws that govern public school admissions. In 36 states, for instance, families couldnt appeal their public school assignment even if they wanted to; Arkansas and California are among the few to explicitly protect the right to appeal to a neutral party. See how your states school admission laws compare In Tampa, for example, a predominantly Black elementary school closed, its grade level reading proficiency rates at 11%. Instead of sending any of the few hundred students to the coveted school where 80% read at grade level minutes away from their homes, they were bused to poorer performing, majority minority schools further away, citing capacity constraints. When you see school closures, the politics comes out. You can see the exclusion very clearly, said DeRoche. Related Educational Redlining, Rezoning and the Bitter Politics of School Closures Low-income students, students of color and those with disabilities are those most often excluded. Theres this systemic pressure to sort of stack your school with kids who are easier to educate, said a former administrator cited in the report. Certain students unhoused, migrant, incarcerated students or those with disabilities or in foster care are supposed to be protected from enrollment discrimination by federal law, allowed to continue attending original schools in the event of moves. Still, the vast majority of decisions lay in the hands of administrators, whose admission practices fly under the radar, unrequired to publish data or provide written reasoning. In some states with strong open enrollment laws, such as Arizona and Wisconsin, districts are allowed to use unverified claims of capacity constraints to keep children with disabilities from enrolling, the report states. As one school psychologist with Los Angeles Unified described to The 74, Ive seen [zones] weaponized, too used more as a tool to get rid of students that are engaging in more problem behavior. Well, their address isnt even in our residence. The school psychologist, speaking on condition of anonymity, witnessed kids get turned away about 15 times this school year. Some common reasons given to families always verbally, never written is that their school is full of capacity, cant accommodate the students IEP, or, in one case, we dont enroll in April. A few times, students were pushed out after mentioning moves offhand to teachers who said, well, you cause too much havoc in my classroom. So Im gonna let somebody know. Some were able to stay because parents were more assertive, in meetings with administrators, who then backed off. A lot of the parents dont know their rights some of them are just trying to survive so they dont have the time to go fight the district and be like, oh, my kids not being enrolled. These families get taken advantage of more often. Such was the case in the four counties around Philadelphia, where a public radio investigation revealed the hundreds of kids kicked out of the districts each year for residency fraud were overwhelmingly low-income and Black. Pennsylvania does not have any law or process set for families who want to appeal admissions decisions. But changing district attendance zone lines is no easy feat. Related Coalition Challenges Residency Requirements for Public Schools In Chicago, parents flooded houses within the zone for sought-after Lincoln Elementary. When the district considered withdrawing boundary lines, parents were outraged and plans fizzled. Ultimately the state allocated $20 million for the school to build an annex and add more seats, even though hundreds sat empty at schools in the neighborhood. Theyre trying to protect these families who feel like, oh, Ive already paid for my kids school via my mortgage, said DeRoche. Available to All presents an alternative: even if attendance zones were redrawn, other protections like laws to require 15% of seats be reserved for nonresident families or using a lottery once seats are filled, wouldnt force middle- or higher- income families out of quality schools theyve invested in via housing. Lines were not redrawn; Lincoln Elementary only became more accessible for the wealthy, predominantly white families who could afford to live in the attendance zone. [Educational redlining] is a part of the fabric of our lives and we all kind of take it for granted. Were just trying to call it out and make people look at it straight in the face. Disclosure: Stand Together provides financial support to Available to All and The 74. Andy Rotherham co-founded Bellwether Education Partners. He sits on The 74s board of directors. GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) In the days before 17-year-old Riley Doggett was struck and injured by a patrol car while running from police, detectives were monitoring the group he was running with, Kent County sheriffs reports show. Doggett died last week, more than a month after the chase in a stolen Range Rover on April 8. Teen dies weeks after being hit by deputys cruiser In the reports provided by the attorney for Doggetts family, Kent County sheriffs deputies said the Range Rover had been involved in multiple larcenies, stolen vehicles, stolen handguns and other multiple pursuits in Kent and Ottawa counties. The subjects inside were also known to be armed with guns, according to the reports. Kent County detectives said they conducted a search warrant on April 5, three days before the chase. The reports show they recovered stolen gift cards, key fobs, AirPods and two handguns. The Kent County deputy who hit Doggett with his patrol car had first spotted the stolen Range Rover minutes earlier at US-131 and 44th Street in Wyoming, according to the reports. That was less than an hour after the same vehicle and a stolen Nissan were chased by Holland police a pursuit that reached 120 mph and was terminated on I-196 near the Kent-Ottawa line. Police: Chase that injured teen was second of night for suspected car thieves The chase in Kent County, which reached speeds of 80 mph, ended when Doggett and his alleged accomplice jumped from the Range Rover, which crashed into parked cars at 32nd Street and S. Division Avenue in Wyoming. Doggett, described by his familys attorney as a passenger in the Range Rover, was running away when the deputy struck him with his cruiser. A nearby body shop worker told police he saw the second suspect identified as a 17-year-old from Grand Rapids Township with a gun in his waistband and a hand on the gun as he ran past the shop. The suspect told him to not tell anybody, then jumped a fence. Police arrested him a short time later in a nearby backyard. Theres zero allegations anywhere that Riley had any weapons whatsoever, said Ven Johnson, the attorney for Doggetts family. Police never found a gun. They were searching for hours after this, never found that gun. Thats because there wasnt one, Johnson said. Family of teen hit by deputy: No reason video isnt out The familys attorney questions why the sheriff department refuses to release dashboard camera video. Yes, police can use limited force but it cannot be deadly force against him, and using a car is deadly force, Johnson said. Its no different, under the law, than using a gun. The Kent County Sheriffs Office has said Doggett was unintentionally struck and that it was a direct result of the inherent risk accompanying the serious criminal activity that Riley was engaged in during the weeks and months leading up to this incident. Doggetts 17-year-old accused accomplice is charged as a juvenile with fleeing a police officer, receiving and concealing the stolen Range Rover and resisting police. The Michigan State Police are investigating the death and will turn over the case to the Kent County Prosecutors Office, which would decide on charges, if any. The prosecutor said he has not seen the state police reports. Monday night, dozens of people gathered outside the Kent County Sheriffs Office for Doggett, demanding the sheriffs office release body camera video of the incident. Family members of Riley Doggett gather outside the Kent County Sheriffs Office to demand the release of dashcam video. Doggett died about a month after getting hit by a deputys cruiser. (May 13, 2024) Family members of Riley Doggett gather outside the Kent County Sheriffs Office to demand the release of dashcam video. Doggett died about a month after getting hit by a deputys cruiser. (May 13, 2024) Doggetts mother was there and said they havent told her anything. Samuel Sterlings mother was also there, holding hands with Rileys mom. Sterling, who was running from police, was hit by an unmarked Michigan State Police SUV in Kentwood last month. He later died. News 8 reached out to the sheriffs office and a spokesperson said they dont have anything to release as of Monday night. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com. Rep. Bob Good, R-Va., chairman of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, leaves the Capitol after votes, in Washington, Tuesday, April 30, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) WASHINGTON (AP) A political action committee that helps Republicans get elected to Congress is doing the unusual spending more than $450,000 to defeat a GOP incumbent. That incumbent, conservative two-term Rep. Bob Good, R-Va., voted to remove former Rep. Kevin McCarthy as House speaker last fall. It's just the latest example of how money is flowing into races involving some of the eight Republican lawmakers who voted along with Democrats to oust McCarthy. About $3.3 million has been spent on ads in the Virginia race going into Friday, according to the media tracking firm AdImpact. The ad buy underscores the internal divisions that have cracked open in the Republican Party since McCarthys ouster. The rancor has split the party on important House votes and spilled over into some of this years primary elections, too. The latest round of ad buys was unveiled on Monday and comes from Defending Main Street, a super PAC affiliated with nearly 90 Republican lawmakers in the Republican Main Street Partnership. The group describes its members as conservative, governing Republicans. It's just the second time the group has worked to unseat a Republican incumbent. The first incumbent the group sought to unseat was then-Rep. Steve King of Iowa in 2020. King was removed from his committee assignments after lamenting that white supremacy and white nationalism had become offensive terms. He ended up losing in the GOP primary. Now the group is focused on Good. We spend 99% of our money protecting incumbents and adding more mainstream conservatives to the House, but this was a unique situation," said Sarah Chamberlain, the group's president and CEO. Good has pushed Republicans to seek deeper federal spending cuts, even if that means risking a government shutdown. He leads the most conservative members of the Republican conference as chairman of the House Freedom Caucus, and has opposed the spending agreement McCarthy worked out with President Joe Biden so the government could continue paying its bills. When Speaker Mike Johnson split up a $95 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan into three separate votes, he voted no on each piece. Chamberlain said her group would have worked to defeat Good even if he had not voted to oust McCarthy because of his voting record. The ad purchased by the group doesn't mention Good, but features an endorsement from a former local sheriff for Good's opponent, state Sen. John McGuire, a former Navy SEAL. Defending Kevin is not what Main Street does, though we 100% supported Kevin and are sorry that everything happened," Chamberlain said of McCarthy. Groups coming in to support McGuire don't make it a race about McCarthy, who recently himself called on his followers on X to contribute to the challenger's campaign, saying McGuire is ready to answer the call to serve our country again. Chip in $5 today. But Good's supporters clearly do want to make McCarthy an issue. In a fundraising pitch, an election group that works to expand the House Freedom Caucus said that McCarthy and his establishment allies were dumping millions of dollars into the race to defeat Good. And Diana Shores, Good's campaign manager, said McCarthy is on his revenge tour and hes targeting conservative leaders like Congressman Bob Good who worked to oust him as speaker for his poor leadership. Shores said in an email she expects voters in the district to see through the Swamp Tactics of groups like Defending Main Street. A group called the American Patriots PAC, backed mostly through donations from Kenneth Griffin, the CEO of the investment firm Citadel, has also begun pouring money into the race, spending more than $916,000 so far, according to FEC filings. In a statement, Griffin doesn't reference McCarthy, but instead focuses on McGuire's 10 years as a Navy SEAL and says the PAC's focus is on bringing exemplary leaders to Washington. The American Patriots PAC steadfastly supports veteran candidates who have dedicated themselves to our nation, and John McGuire exemplifies this commitment, Griffin said. Meanwhile, a PAC called Virginians for Freedom has spent more than $760,000 to oppose Good, FEC reports show. A vendor used by both groups is Brian O. Walsh, a longtime adviser, ally and friend of McCarthy who is coordinating efforts to unseat some of the eight Republicans who voted to oust McCarthy last fall. Walsh declined a request for comment. He also serves as a senior adviser to the American Prosperity Alliance, which has spent nearly $300,000 on ads so far in the Virginia race, according to the tracking firm AdImpact. Good is getting some outside help, with the Sen. Rand Paul-affiliated Protect Freedom PAC spending nearly $675,000 supporting his reelection. The political dynamics playing out in the Virginia race featuring Good and McGuire can be seen in another race featuring a GOP lawmaker who voted to oust McCarthy. In South Carolina, Rep. Nancy Mace is being challenged by Catherine Templeton, a former state agency director. A group called South Carolina Patriots PAC has spent more than $1 million opposing Mace. American Prosperity Alliance, the group where McCarthy ally Walsh is a senior adviser, provided the South Carolina Patriots PAC with $15,000, according to the latest FEC quarterly report. That report doesn't capture contributions after March 31, so its unclear for now where the political action committee is getting all of its money. Meanwhile, Club for Growth Action, a group that describes itself as seeking to defeat big-government politicians, has weighed in with more than $475,000 in independent expenditures supporting Mace. Two other Republicans who voted to oust McCarthy, Rep. Eli Crane in Arizona and Matt Gaetz in Florida, have picked up GOP challengers in recent weeks. Of the other four Republicans who voted to oust McCarthy, Rep. Matt Rosendale is not seeking reelection to a Montana district and Rep. Ken Buck has already retired from his Colorado-based seat. Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., has no primary opponent and Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona appears safe in his reelection bid. - Associated Press staff writer Chad Day contributed to this report. Republican lawmakers have flocked to New York City in recent days to stand alongside former President Trump as he attends his hush money trial. Trumps entourage on Monday included multiple members of Congress: Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) and Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-N.Y.), who represents Staten Island and parts of Brooklyn. The three lawmakers were all seated alongside one another in the second row of the gallery, about 10 feet behind the former president. As they waited for the proceedings to get underway, Vance and Malliotakis were chatting. Tuberville mainly looked around the courtroom. Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) joined Trump last week for a court appearance, making the New York courtroom the latest place to curry favor with the former president and his supporters. Nice to see some elected Republicans standing behind him for once. Glad some Republicans could take time away from their do nothing jobs to support Trump in court today, Laura Loomer, a staunch Trump ally, posted on the social platform X. Michael Cohen testifies in Trumps hush money trial: Live updates Trump is under a gag order that prohibits him from attacking witnesses, prosecutors, court staff and the judges family. But his allies in Congress are under no such restrictions, and some of them have given full-throated defenses of the former president by attacking the credibility of witnesses and the judge. Scott, the Florida senator, has in recent days attacked the daughter of Judge Juan Merchan, claiming she was a Democratic operative and that her work tainted the judges impartiality. Trump previously made similar remarks, but he was reprimanded after Merchan expanded the gag order. Vances appearance on Monday was particularly notable given the chatter around him as a potential running mate for Trump in Novembers election. He is the first major vice presidential contender to join Trump in court. The Ohio senator, appearing Sunday on CNNs State of the Union, echoed many of Trumps claims that the case against him is politically motivated and that he did nothing wrong. I think that when you look at all of these attacks on Donald Trump, you have to be honest with yourself and say, this is not about law and this is not about justice, Vance said. Zach Schonfeld contributed For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. ASTANA, Kazakhstan, May 13. The first meeting of the Board of Governors of the member countries of the Turkic Investment Fund will be held in Turkiye, the spokesperson for the Kazakh Foreign Ministry Aibek Smadiyarov said, Trend reports. The inaugural meeting of the Board of Governors of the Turkic Investment Fund (TIF) member countries will be held in Istanbul on May 1718, 2024, with the participation of Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Minister of National Economy Nurlan Baybazarov, who is Kazakhstan's representative on the Board of Governors of the Fund, Smadiyarov said. According to him, the main purpose of the meeting - the official launch of work and making appropriate decisions regarding the management of the Fund, as well as strengthening economic ties between the founding countries and supporting sustainable development. The agreement on the establishment of the Fund was signed within the framework of the extraordinary summit of the heads of the OTS member states on March 16, 2023, in Ankara. Meanwhile, the fund's founders are 5 OTS member states: Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkiye, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan. The initial capital of the Turkic Investment Fund will be $500 million. The mandatory share will be $350 million ($70 million for each country). To note, the Turkic Investment Fund is the first joint financial institution for economic integration in the Turkic world. The objective is to promote the economic development of the OTS member states by enhancing interregional trade and supporting economic activities. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) Republicans and the Israeli government condemned President Bidens decision to pause some weapons shipments to Israel if it continues with its plans to invade Rafah. The U.S. says Israels recent tactics have led to a loss of innocent civilian lives but failed to eliminate Hamas leaders. The Biden administration delivered harsh criticism of Israels latest operations in Gaza. They have failed to meet their obligations of meeting humanitarian law, State Department Principal Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel. U.S. officials say Israel has not shown a plan to protect civilians or a plan for what happens after the war against Hamas. There is a moral and strategic imperative to take every possible step to minimize civilian casualties, said Patel. This comes after the president paused a weapons shipment to the U.S. ally and threatened to halt more if Israel invades Rafah as planned. Its something we will judge based on what we see, and the president will then make his determination, said National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan. Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders says Israel should be punished. It has broken American law, and, in my view, Israel should not be receiving another nickel in U.S. military aid, said Sanders. However, South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham disagrees with this step taken by the president. This idea of holding weapons to Israel is rewarding the tactics of Hamas to put civilians at risk, said Graham. Officials say the U.S. is still committed to helping Israel find a favorable solution. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News. Death toll up to 32 in South Africa building collapse but rescue efforts boosted by 1 more survivor Rescue personnel search the site of a building collapse in George, South Africa, Thursday, May 9, 2024. Rescue teams, searching for dozens of construction workers missing after a multi-story apartment complex collapsed in the coastal city, have not brought out more survivors in the past 24 hours. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay) CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) Rescue teams in South Africa forged ahead Monday with efforts to find more survivors as the death toll rose to 32 a week after the collapse of an apartment building that was under construction Hopes were boosted over the weekend when one of the construction workers was found alive after six days without food and water in the rubble of the building in the city of George on the country's south coast. But the death toll also continued to rise and authorities reported at least 11 more bodies were recovered from the debris on Monday. Another 20 workers are still missing, raising the possibility that the death toll could ultimately climb above 50 in one of South Africa's deadliest building collapses. More than 600 emergency services and other personnel have been involved in the search for survivors in the wreckage of the unfinished five-story building, which collapsed May 6. There were 81 workers on the site when it collapsed, and 29 have been pulled out alive, the city said. It said 12 of them remained in a hospital without giving details of their condition. The city has previously said that many of the survivors were in critical condition when they were found. The disaster management team overseeing the emergency response maintained that the operation was still rescue rather than recovery, pointing to the survivor pulled out on Saturday. The man, who was identified as 32-year-old Gabriel Guambe, was in stable condition in the hospital and remarkably sustained only minor injuries, the city said. Guambe was trapped in the rubble for 118 hours, it said. His survival underlined rescuers hopes that there may be more people alive in what they called voids in the ruins of the building areas where there are gaps between the concrete that might have allowed some workers to survive the collapse. Rescue teams have been using cranes and other heavy machinery to move some of the thousands of tons of concrete in an attempt to reach deeper into the wreckage. Sniffer dogs were also being used and one was responsible for locating Guambe. Many of the workers were foreign nationals from Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi and authorities were calling for translators to help communicate with survivors. They also said it was making the identification of victims difficult. Multiple investigations into the cause of the building collapse were underway, including by police, who declared the site a crime scene. The construction company responsible is being investigated to see if it followed proper safety protocols. People began leaving flowers around the edge of the site as a mark of respect for the victims, while the city and the disaster response team issued a joint statement asking South Africans to observe a moment of silence at 2.09 p.m. on Monday, the exact time the building collapsed last week. Rescuers stood side-by-side near the collapsed building with their heads bowed to mark the moment before continuing their work. ___ AP Africa news: https://apnews.com/hub/africa SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) Salt Lake City Police are investigating a high-speed crash near 1300 South and 2100 East in Salt Lake City, according to a social media post on Sunday. Police said three people were injured in the crash, with injuries ranging from serious to critical. In a press release, police said 911 received multiple calls about a crash involving two SUVs, and the investigation started just before 5 p.m. on Sunday. READ NEXT: PHOTOS TRAX train derailed in West Valley after severe mechanical issues, no injuries reported Salt Lake City Police are investigating a critical injury crash near 1300 South and 2100 East in Salt Lake City, according to a social media post from Sunday night. (Courtesy: Salt Lake City Police Department) Salt Lake City Police are investigating a critical injury crash near 1300 South and 2100 East in Salt Lake City, according to a social media post from Sunday night. (Courtesy: Salt Lake City Police Department) Salt Lake City Police are investigating a critical injury crash near 1300 South and 2100 East in Salt Lake City, according to a social media post from Sunday night. (Courtesy: Salt Lake City Police Department) Two men who were in an Audi SUV were taken to the hospital. One patient is in critical condition with potentially life-threatening injuries, police said. The second patient is in serious condition. According to SLCPD, a Toyota SUV that was traveling west struck the Audi SUV as it was traveling south. According to the release, the crash pushed the Audi into a parking lot nearby, and the Toyota stopped west of the intersection. Witnesses told officers the driver of the Toyota exited his SUV and started running away, SLCPD said in the release. Police said the fleeing driver was stopped and held down by community members until police arrived on the scene. That driver was taken to the hospital with injuries that police said were serious but not life-threatening. According to SLCPD, detectives are investigating reports that the driver of the Toyota ran a red light, and authorities believe speed was a factor in the crash. Police said 1300 South is closed from 2100 East to Sheridan Road, and 2100 E is closed from 1300 South to Sherman Ave. The investigation is ongoing. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC4 Utah. Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu has said that Romanian Defence Minister Angel Tilvar has serious reservations about the possibility of providing Ukraine with a Patriot air defence system. Source: European Pravda with reference to Romanian 24-hour news channel Digi24 Details: Ciolacu said that he has not yet discussed with President Klaus Iohannis the possibility of providing Ukraine with the Patriot system, but he has had a conversation with Tilvar and the latter is not very favourable to this idea. Quote from Ciolacu: "The Minister of Defence is very reluctant to give away this system, one of the systems that should be transferred to Ukraine." Details: At the same time, he noted that the decision on the transfer should be made by the Supreme Council of National Defence. "I am firmly convinced that we will make the wisest decision regarding Romania, and above all, a good one," Calacu concluded. Background: Romanian President Klaus Iohannis said from the White House, where he was visiting, that his country might consider transferring one of its Patriot systems to Ukraine. Although Romania currently operates only one Patriot battery, Iohannis said that another battery is almost ready for use. Following requests from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, EU governments last month called for more air defence systems to be provided to Kyiv. Germany pledged to provide an additional Patriot battery, while Spain said it would supply missiles for these systems. Spanish Defence Minister Margarita Robles said that Ukraine had already received these missiles Support UP or become our patron! SAN ANGELO, Texas (Concho Valley Homepage) Fifteen firefighters battled two active structure fires overnight on May 11 that saw the metal roof of one building collapse. According to Crockett County Fire & Emergency Medical Service, it was dispatched at 2:45 a.m. near the area of Monterey Street and Largo Street for an active structure fire. Fifteen firefighters and 5 apparatuses responded to the call. This embedded content is not available in your region. Flames had fully engulfed the building upon the first responders arrival, though no one was inside. The fire had also spread to an adjacent occupied home, which one individual exited on their own. The firefighters began to douse the inferno, and the fire was deemed under control by 3:30 a.m. Units remained at the scene to continue cooling efforts, and all first responders left the area at 5:50 a.m. Crockett County Fire & EMS reported that the metal roof of one of the buildings collapsed, trapping smoldering contents underneath it. It warned Ozona residents that smoke may be visible from the scene for an extended period of time. Thank you to Crockett County Sheriffs Office, DPS, NatGas and AEP for the assistance during this incident, Crockett County Fire & EMS said. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ConchoValleyHomepage.com. LAKE WORTH BEACH A downtown business owner will get to keep a giant pro-Trump display on the roof of his Lake Avenue business after code enforcement cited him for it. A red TRUMP 2024 painted message on the roof of Dylan Harrison's one-story retail building at 508 Lake Ave. home to Kavasutra, The Ice Cream Affair, The Office and Retrohouse Comics does not violate city code, city officials decided on Tuesday, May 7. The original citation asserted that the painting can be classified under the city codes definition of a sign or mural and is subject to regulation. But city officials now agree that the painting does not fit those categories. More: Florida judge in Mar-a-Lago case delays Trump's classified documents trial indefinitely A TRUMP 2024 message is painted on the roof of stores at 508 Lake Avenue on May 10, 2024 in Lake Worth Beach, Florida. Why Lake Worth Beach cited building owner for Trump painting The citys Code Compliance Division cited Harrisons property in March after one of its officers, responding to a resident's complaint, concluded during a February inspection that the message backing former President Donald Trump's campaign for president requires a permit because it is either a mural or sign under city code. But the city dropped that citation Tuesday, May 7, after a meeting involving the assistant directors for Code Compliance and Planning and Zoning as well as the city attorney, according to case information that Code Compliance posted on Lake Worth Beach's website. More: Majority of billionaires in Palm Beach got richer ... but some, including Trump, did not A TRUMP 2024 message is painted on the roof of stores at 508 Lake Avenue on May 10, 2024 in Lake Worth Beach, Florida. Officials determined the painting is not a mural or sign because it is on the roof, not the walls. Thats the same argument that Kavasutra manager Michael Klein told WPTV NewsChannel 5 on Monday. "They want us to remove it or file for a permit, but it's not a permittable sign because it's on the roof," he said. He added that he would work with an attorney on the case. Why Lake Worth Beach dropped its case against the TRUMP painting City code has no rules on rooftop paintings, City Attorney Elizabeth Lenihan said Thursday. If the city were to redefine the definition of a sign to include things that could be seen from adjacent property owners, even if it wasnt from the street, that would be different, she said. Neighbors in the five-story condominium building next door can see the painting when they look down from their balconies. Harrison did not return multiple calls or messages for comment. Chris Persaud is the data reporter for The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at cpersaud@pbpost.com. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today. This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: 'TRUMP 2024' rooftop painting can stay after citation is dropped ASTANA, Kazakhstan, May 13. Vice Premier of the State Council of China Liu Guozhong will pay a visit to Kazakhstan, Kazakh Foreign Ministry Spokesman Aybek Smadiarov said during a briefing, Trend reports. From May 15-17, 2024, Vice Premier of the State Council of China, Liu Guozhong, will visit Kazakhstan at the invitation of the Kazakh government. The primary aim of the visit is to bolster intergovernmental relations and explore the present status and future prospects of bilateral trade and economic cooperation, Smadiarov said. According to him, bilateral meetings are scheduled during the visit with the government of Kazakhstan and with the heads of a number of regions of the country. Special focus will be given during the discussions to enhancing collaboration in agriculture, particularly on boosting exports of Kazakh products and advancing joint projects in the agro-industrial sector, the spokesman added. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Rudy Giulianis election rant, other behavior makes it hard not to terminate him, WABC radio boss says Billionaire WABC radio owner John Catsimatidis unloaded on ex-Mayor Rudy Giuliani again Sunday, saying the suspended radio host's behavior has left him little choice but to can him. Billionaire WABC radio owner John Catsimatidis on Sunday unloaded on ex-Mayor Rudy Giuliani again, saying the suspended radio hosts behavior left him little choice but to can him. Its pretty hard to bring him back, Catsimatidis told The Post. His behavior makes it very hard to reverse course. He makes it hard not to terminate him. Catsimatidis filled in on Giulianis scheduled Sunday show from 10 to 11 a.m. along with other WABC 770 hosts Curtis Sliwa and Dominick Carter. John Catsimatidis said the station dubbed or bleeped Giuliani when Donald Trumps lawyer discussed the voting machines last week, resulting in his suspension for violating the edict. Patrick McMullan via Getty Images The radio boss said the ex-mayor had three strikes against him after hearing Giulianis criticism on other media platforms over the weekend about his initial suspension. Catsimatidis said all of his radio hosts had received a memo not to discuss the electronic voting machines or the accuracy of them during the 2020 election, after the radio station received a letter from lawyers with Dominion Voting Systems. Dominion had sued other media outlets for defamation. The supermarket and media mogul said he didnt want his radio station to be dragged into litigation over false claims from Giuliani. Giuliani fired back later Sunday, calling Catsimatidis a bald-faced liar, saying, Ive been talking about the 2020 election on the show for four years. Whats changed in the last four years? He claimed Catsimatidis is becoming a stooge for President Biden and the Democrats. Catsimatidis said the station dubbed or bleeped Giuliani when the onetime personal lawyer for Donald Trump discussed the voting machines last week, resulting in his suspension for violating the edict. The station has a 30-second delay, so Giulianis comments didnt make it on the public airwaves. The radio boss said Rudy Giuliani had three strikes after hearing Giulianis criticism of his suspension over the weekend on other media platforms. X/@RudyGiuliani Giulianis program was suspended pending further discussion, he said. That was strike 1, Catsimatidis said. He also said Giuiliani issued an ultimatum to double the hours of his show or else. Strike two, Catsimatidis said. Giuliani, speaking on his Americas Mayor show on X on Friday night, then accused Catsimatidis of trampling on his First Amendment free-speech rights. What John Catsimatidis has done is disgraceful. With the pretense that he was building some kind of a First Amendment station, he blew a hole in the First Amendment thats so big you cant even find it. You cant tell somebody not to talk about the 2020 presidential election and tell me that you have a respect for free speech, Giuliani said. Catsimatidis fired back on those claims Sunday and said he was not aware that Giuliani had a paid gig with TV station Newsmax. He called Giulianis blowback strike three. He also said he gave Giulianis sidekick, Maria Ryan, 30 days notice for her departure. Its pretty hard to bring him back, Catsimatidis told The Post. His behavior makes it very hard to reverse course. He makes it hard not to terminate him. X/@RudyGiuliani What happened last week was very tragic, Catsimatidis said on the air Sunday during what had been the time slot for the Rudy Giuliani Show. References to the Giuliani show have been removed from the WABC website. When I hired Rudy I got a lot of criticism, Catsimatidis said, referring to the controversy around the ex-mayor and former federal prosecutor, including an FBI probe. In this country, youre innocent until proven guilty. He said he thought Giuliani had been a great mayor and considered the falling-out sad. But Giuliani on Sunday again accused Catsimatidis of adopting an anti-free speech, anti-American policy at his station that not only censors his radio hosts but denies listeners of his station critical information. Im not going to work for a censorship station. No one at the station can talk about the 2020 election? I talk about the 2020 election all the time. I cant talk about the 2020 election when there is a $148 million judgment against me? he said. John doesnt have enough money to get me to do that. He cant influence me with this money. He can go stuff it, the ex-mayor fumed. John has a lot of money. The question is does he have a lot of principles. Hes doing the bidding and work of Biden. Hes hurting American democracy. Giuliani said he through the NY Post helped expose the Hunter Biden laptop scandal, while others initially sought to censor the story at the behest of Hunters father Joe just weeks before the 2020 election. An ultra fast broadband tower is seen on a rural farm. (Sandra Mu/Getty Images) LINCOLN A rural Nebraska county board has voted to do something a state commission had declined to do, which is to prevent a duplication of taxpayer funds to deploy broadband internet. The decision by the Gage County Board came after two state senators urged board members to avoid a waste of taxpayer funds by allowing two government grants to be used to service the same area, just outside of Beatrice, with high-speed internet service. The senators, Bruce Bostelman of Brainard and Myron Dorn of Adams (who represents Gage County), told the county board it didnt make sense to subsidize a broadband project thats already been subsidized by taxpayer funds. They said such funding should focus on areas that either have no broadband service or have inadequate internet, rather than to overbuild where one project is already well underway. When we start using funds to overbuild, were taking away funds from somewhere else, said Bostelman, who chairs the Legislatures committee that oversees telecommunications issues and has pushed more aggressive moves to deploy broadband. Company considering its options This is a waste of taxpayer dollars, said Gage County Commissioner Emily Haxby, who had tried, unsuccessfully, to convince the Nebraska Public Service Commission to resolve the overbuild. The May 1 decision by the Gage County Board, on a 5-2 vote, means that a $535,000 state Broadband Bridge Act grant to Pinpoint Communications will likely be rescinded and the funds reallocated to other areas of the state. A representative for Pinpoint Communications said Saturday that the Cambridge-based firm is considering its options in appealing or overturning the decision. Technically, the Gage County Board voted to deny the use of its county right of way to deploy fiber internet lines, but the issue and debate extended far beyond that subject into how best to utilize the millions of dollars of federal and state funds being devoted to expand high-speed internet into areas that dont have it now. The so-called overbuild occurred after Gage County had already launched an innovative program, using $4 million of its federal American Rescue Plan Act allocation, to pay the internet firm NextLink Internet to expand broadband to 95 unserved and underserved rural areas of the southeast Nebraska county. But a second company, Pinpoint, that had been building a high-speed internet network in Beatrice had obtained a $535,000 state grant through the Nebraska Public Service Commission to expand services into the same area. The issue of the overlapping grants was first reported by the Examiner. At the May 1 meeting, Pinpoint was seeking approval of a utility permit to use county right-of-way to begin construction of its fiber optic lines. Meanwhile, county board members were told that NextLink, the firm hired by the county, had already laid its lines to the 23 locations under contention. Emily Haxby, a farmer and Gage County commissioner, is no stranger to challenging information used by the state for broadband grants. Last year, she used a laptop and help from the states public power districts to discover hundreds of unserved broadband locations in the state. The data resulted in more federal dollars for Nebraska to expand broadband. (Courtesy of Emily Haxby) Haxby, a county board member who had led the countys broadband project, had questioned the overlap of grants to officials with the Public Service Commission, to no avail. In March, the PSC rejected an appeal by NextLink to reconsider its grant to Pinpoint, saying the request for reconsideration had been filed a day late. PSC Chairman Dan Watermeier stated in a March press release that NextLink failed to follow the procedures to appeal, a process that is not only set forth in statute but is also well defined by the Commission, and thus Pinpoints $535,000 grant would be approved. But in order to fulfill the grant requirements, Pinpoint needed the utility permit from Gage County to use right-of-way, and on May 1, that permit was denied. It marked the first time in five years, commissioners were told, that a usually routinely approved utility permit had been denied. At the meeting, Tom Shoemaker, Pinpoints president, and its attorney Andy Pollock urged the county board to issue the simple permit and not get intertwined with whether or not the PSC had acted appropriately to award the overlapping grant. Pollock said the only question that needed to be answered to issue the permit was whether it would be used for a public use, and that clearly was the case. The issue here is not to correct or second guess the Public Service Commission, the attorney said. That, he added, would be a question for the Nebraska Supreme Court, not the Gage County Board. County board urged to deny permit Haxby and Loel Brooks, a Lincoln attorney who has consulted with the county board on broadband issues, said the commissioners have the discretion to reject a utility permit. They added that a condition of the Broadband Bridge Act is that grants not be awarded in areas that are already getting government assistance. Brooks said the PSC has a lot of issues before it, but he could not say exactly why the state commission didnt act to eliminate the overbuild. Haxby said she had told PSC officials about the overlapping grants well before its deadline for appeal, but a formal appeal, by NextLink, was a day late. Still, she said, it would be a waste of taxpayer funds to finance two broadband projects in the same area, and the correct course of action was to reject the utility permit, so the $535,000 grant could be redeployed elsewhere in Nebraska where it was needed. Bostelman said that there was a limited amount of money to expand broadband in the state and that the PSC had failed to prevent the overbuild. We have to make sure every dollar is used in the best place we can, he said. Pollock said Saturday that Pinpoint was considering its options to seek to overturn or appeal the action by the Gage County Board. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Rural county board acts to prevent duplicated broadband efforts appeared first on Nebraska Examiner. The Russian government passed a law on May 13 that would expand the list of "undesirable" organizations to include those funded by foreign states, which then could be subject to bans. The law on "undesirable" organizations has existed since 2015 and has been used to target perceived opponents of Russian President Vladimir Putin's regime, including NGOs, independent media outlets, human rights groups, and others. There are currently 160 such organizations listed as being "undesirable." Organizations belonging to the list are banned from operating in Russia, and it is illegal for individuals or other media outlets to share their content. The new legislation would expand the list to include foreign state-funded organizations, such as media outlets like the BBC or Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL). The bill is designed to combat "sanctions, blocked investment projects, training agents of influence, interference in Russian elections, incitement of ethnic hatred, and much more," said lawmaker Vasily Piskarev when the legislation was first introduced in February. Piskarev added that agencies of foreign states and organizations that Russia is a member of will not be labeled "undesirable." The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) wrote in February that the bill would make it more difficult for journalists from Russian opposition media outlets based outside the country and foreign outlets with Russian-language services to report on domestic Russian politics, as they would be banned from entering the country. Read also: Russias new Kharkiv offensive pushes Vovchansk to the brink of annihilation Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Russian forces attacked eleven border areas and settlements of Sumy Oblast on May 13, firing 36 times and causing at least 166 explosions, the Sumy Oblast Military Administration reported. The communities of Khotin, Yunakivka, Bilopillia, Krasnopillia, Velyka Pysarivka, Putyvl, Esman, Shalyhyne, Seredyna-Buda, Druzhba and Znob-Novgorodske were targeted. No casualties were reported. The Russian military struck the communities using artillery fire, multiple launch rocket systems, FPV drones, and mortar shelling, while also dropping mines. The town of Bilopillia experienced the most attacks, with 42 explosions recorded in the area. Bilopillia, which had a pre-war population of about 15,600 residents, lies just eight kilometers south of the Ukraine-Russia border. Russian strikes against the Sumy region have become increasingly destructive in recent months. Amid intensified attacks, Ukrainian authorities ordered further evacuations from the region. Read also: Over 300 people evacuated from border areas of Kharkiv Oblast, minister says Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Russia is conducting a sabotage campaign across Europe in an increasingly aggressive effort by President Vladimir Putin to undermine Western support for Ukraine, seeking to damage railways, military bases and other sites used to supply arms to Kyiv, U.S. and European officials say. The attempted sabotage includes an alleged Russian-backed arson attack on a Ukrainian-linked warehouse in the United Kingdom, a plot to bomb or set fire to military bases in Germany, attempts to hack and disrupt Europes railway signal network and the jamming of GPS systems for civil aviation, according to European and British authorities. The physical sabotage campaign is part of a broader strategy that includes a flood of Russian propaganda and disinformation, increased espionage by Moscow and efforts to exert political influence in Europe to sow doubts about Ukraines military prospects and divisions within the NATO alliance, according to Western officials and regional analysts. Its very disturbing, and its not like Russia has finished this process. Its still ongoing, said Oleksandr Danylyuk of the Royal United Services Institute, a British defense and security think tank. Russia is definitely at war with the West. German officials announced this month that they had uncovered an elaborate hacking campaign by Russian military intelligence operatives that penetrated the email accounts of the countrys Social Democratic party headquarters, the leading party in the countrys governing coalition. The hacking effort also targeted German companies in the defense and aerospace industries. Beyond Germany, Russia has staged thousands of cyberattacks on Czech and European railways, including hacking into signals and ticketing services, according to a Czech official. The Financial Times first reported the attacks and the wider sabotage threat. So far, there is no indication Russia has managed to seriously disrupt the supply of weapons, ammunition or other aid to Ukraine through sabotage, a Biden administration official said. But they warned that physical attacks in Europe represented a more aggressive approach and that Russia was crossing new lines. Russia has denied it is spreading disinformation, conducting a sabotage campaign or trying to influence European officials. Vladimir Putin walks to take his oath as Russian president during an inauguration ceremony in the Grand Kremlin Palace in Moscow. (Alexander Zemlianichenko / AP) The Kremlin dismissed the accusations of hybrid warfare from European governments when asked by NBC News at a daily briefing on Tuesday. All these statements, all those demarches on the part of European capitals are totally baseless and we decisively refute all of them, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. In a statement after initial publication of this article, Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) said, "Such attacks are always of a purely tendentious nature, politically opportunistic and do not contain any arguments or evidence other than the notorious 'highly likely.' The Russian Federation consistently complies precisely with the norms of international law, and not rules promoted by the collective West to fulfill its own hegemonic aspirations. As a matter of principle, we do not interfere in sovereign affairs of foreign states." Danylyuk, who has advised Ukraines government, was one of the authors of a report in February that warned of a mounting threat from Russias military intelligence service, the GRU. The report said the GRU was building a clandestine network of operatives to conduct espionage and potential sabotage operations in Europe. The GRU is restructuring how it manages the recruitment and training of special forces troops, the Royal United Services Institute said in the report, and is rebuilding the support apparatus to be able to infiltrate them into European countries. The spate of reported sabotage reflects Russias brand of hybrid warfare, blending psychological, economic and political operations along with clandestine or conventional military force to weaken an adversary, experts and officials say. There is a much broader pattern of Russian malign activity across Europe, said James Cleverly, the British home secretary, in remarks in the House of Commons this week. He said Russias activity ranged from plans to damage military aid bound for Ukraine in Germany and Poland, conduct espionage in Bulgaria and Italy and mount disinformation campaigns to influence the outcome of European Union elections in June. Over a number of years, we have witnessed Russia and its intelligence services engage in yet more open and more brazen attempts to undermine our security, harm our people and interfere in our democracies, said Cleverly, who announced the expulsion of a Russian diplomat from London who the U.K. said was a military intelligence officer. U.K. prosecutors have accused a British man, Dylan Earl, 20, of masterminding an arson plot on a Ukraine-linked commercial property in March after allegedly being recruited as a Russian spy. Four other suspects have been charged in connection with the case. In Germany, authorities have accused two German-Russian nationals of planning to target military and logistical sites, including U.S. military bases, on behalf of Russias intelligence services. The actions were intended in particular to undermine military support provided to Ukraine from Germany against the Russian war of aggression, German prosecutors said. Germany has become the second-largest supplier of weapons to Ukraine after the U.S. The case confirmed fears that the Kremlin has ratcheted up its offensive. It suggests theres a new quality to Putins hybrid tactics, a German official told NBC News. The head of Germanys domestic intelligence service, Thomas Haldenwang, has warned that the threat of sabotage from Russia including cyberattacks is mounting and carries a high potential for damage. We also assess the risk of state-controlled acts of sabotage to be significantly increased especially against critical infrastructure in information and communication technology as well as in energy supply, Haldenwang said at a security conference in April organized by the agency he oversees, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution. Aftermath of the explosion of a Russian missile in Kharkiv (Anadolu via Getty Images) Biden administration officials say they are trying to expose and halt the Russian operations. We are prioritizing efforts along with our allies to track these Russian activities, disrupt and expose them, an administration official said, adding that there have been significant successful European law enforcement efforts in recent months. Danylyuk said no amount of Russian sabotage could have caused as much damage to Ukraines cause as the recent six-month delay in U.S. military aid to Kyiv, which became bogged down in partisan politics and an internal feud among Republican lawmakers. Last month, NBC News reported how some pro-Donald Trump Republicans in the Senate and House have parroted Russian propaganda, including false claims that Ukrainian leaders are buying luxury yachts. Other Republicans have decried the practice. Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told Puck News he thinks Russian propaganda has made its way into the United States, unfortunately, and its infected a good chunk of my partys base. European officials are concerned that similar Russian propaganda campaigns are being conducted in advance of next month's European Union parliamentary elections to boost far-right parties that oppose arming Ukraine. Moscows primary goal in its information campaign in European societies is to undermine popular support for assistance to Ukraine, according to E.U. officials. The Kremlins aim with interference and information manipulation is to manipulate the public debate, Peter Stano, the E.U. executives spokesperson on foreign policy, said in an email. Belgiums prime minister, Alexander De Croo, last month accused Russia of trying to bribe members of the European Parliament to support its efforts to reduce European support for Ukraine. De Croo said a Belgian investigation shows that Moscow has approached and also paid European members of parliament in order to promote the Russian agenda. This article was originally published on NBCNews.com Russia is exploiting Ukraine's lack of manpower to thin out the front line and seek a breakthrough, military expert says Russia is exploiting Ukraine's lack of manpower to thin out the front line and seek a breakthrough, military expert says Russia is exploiting Ukraine's manpower shortage, a war analyst told The New York Times. Franz-Stefan Gady told the Times Russia is thinning out the front line to try to break through. Ukrainian soldiers have been redeployed from Donbas to the embattled Kharkiv region, per the outlet. Russian forces are taking advantage of Ukraine's manpower shortage to thin out the front line and improve their chances of making breakthroughs, a war analyst said. Franz-Stefan Gady, an adjunct senior fellow with the Center for New American Security, told The New York Times that "the Russians have understood, just as a lot of analysts have, that the major disadvantage that Ukraine is currently suffering from is manpower" He added: "By thinning out the front line, you are increasing the odds of a breakthrough." According to the Times, in recent days Russian troops have poured across Ukraine's northeastern border and have taken at least nine villages and settlements. But it said that part of Russia's plan, according to military analysts, is to force Ukraine to divert troops from other fronts, notably those in Donbas. The Times cited a group of Ukrainian special forces who had been redeployed to Kharkiv from the eastern Donbas region, and were huddling at a gas station there as of Sunday afternoon. The Institute for the Study of War, or ISW, drew a similar assessment on Saturday, saying Russian offensive operations in Kharkiv are likely meant to draw Ukrainian forces away from other battlefronts that they could otherwise defend. This could have long-term implications, if Russia takes advantage of weaknesses in the Ukrainian lines. Michael Kofman, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said there is a danger for Ukraine as it will take months for it to tackle its lack of manpower. "Ammunition may come in two weeks, but manpower won't," Kofman told the War on The Rocks podcast last week, predicting that Ukraine's "manning situation is the kind of thing that's probably going to get worse before it gets better." While some of the $61 billion in military aid from the US could reach Ukraine in a matter of days, according to the Pentagon, Ukraine's manpower issue is not such an easy fix. Mark Herlting, a former US lieutenant general, said he doesn't think weapons alone will allow Ukraine to regain the territories it has lost. "Artillery and long-range systems do not win war," he told CNN last month. To address the dire situation on the front lines and replenish troops, Ukraine has lowered the conscription age from 27 to 25, done away with some draft exemptions, and created an online registry for recruits, per the Associated Press. Ukraine's parliament also passed a bill earlier this month that would allow the country's military to recruit prisoners to fight . Whether these will be enough to replenish Ukrainian forces and prevent Russian breakthroughs remains unclear. For now, Russian forces appear to be trying to encircle the city of Vovchansk in northern Kharkiv from the west and the east, according to an assessment published on Sunday by the ISW. Read the original article on Business Insider Russia loses 1,740 soldiers and 31 tanks in one day Stock photo: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Ukraines Defence Forces are continuing to inflict losses on Russia. Over the past day alone, Russia lost 1,740 soldiers, 42 armoured combat vehicles, 31 tanks and 15 artillery systems. Source: General Staff of Ukraines Armed Forces on Facebook Details: The total combat losses of the Russian forces between 24 February 2022 and 13 May 2024 are estimated to be as follows [figures in parentheses represent the latest losses ed.]: 484,030 (+1,740) military personnel; 7,485 (+31) tanks; 14,417 (+42) armoured combat vehicles; 12,487 (+15) artillery systems; 1,070 (+4) multiple-launch rocket systems; 797 (+0) air defence systems; 350 (+0) fixed-wing aircraft; 325 (+0) helicopters; 9,936 (+26) strategic and tactical UAVs; 2,197 (+3) cruise missiles; 26 (+0) ships and boats; 1 (+0) submarines; 16,878 (+59) vehicles and tankers; 2,048 (+6) special vehicles and other equipment. The information is being confirmed. Support UP or become our patron! Volunteers and police evacuate residents of Vovchansk as Russian troops attempt to seize the city - Anadolu Russia is pounding its new front in Kharkiv with glide bombs, Kyiv has said. The Russian army on Monday struck more than 30 towns and villages in Ukraines northeastern Kharkiv region after launching a surprise ground offensive over the border last week. They are shelling the villages, firing everything they can, Sergiy Kryvetchenko, deputy head of the Ukrainian military administration in the village of Lyptsi, told AFP. The KABs (guided aerial bombs) are flying. The artillery is flying. Drones. Everything, he said. The Ukrainian army acknowledged Russia was achieving tactical success after the ground assault, which sparked the evacuation of almost 6,000 people. Russias defence ministry said its troops had improved the tactical position and dealt a blow to [Ukrainian] manpower around border villages, including Lyptsi, and the town of Vovchansk. 03:17 PM BST Thats all for today. Thanks for following the Telegraphs live blog. Well be back tomorrow with the latest updates on the war. 02:50 PM BST Ukrainians flee Kharkiv border town amid a Russian assault Only a few hundred residents remain in the embattled town of Vovchansk in northeast Ukraine, where Kyivs troops are locked in intense battles with the Russian army, according to local officials on Monday. The town, whose pre-war population of 17,000 had dwindled to just 2,500 before Russia renewed its ground assault last week, has emerged as a focus point as pitched battles engulf the Kharkiv and Donetsk regions. Ukrainian local officials said they feared Vovchansks fate may mirror that of Bakhmut and Avdiivka, Ukrainian cities where fierce fighting and scorched earth tactics forced Ukrainian withdrawals. Only 200-300 people remain in the town, Kharkiv regional governor Oleh Suniehubov said, as Moscows troops advance in an effort to surround it from three directions. Poorly built fortifications and enduring ammunition shortages enabled Russias sweeping advance in the area last week, local officials and soldiers said. 02:31 PM BST Ukrainian commander in charge of Kharkiv replaced as Russia seizes new territory The Ukrainian commander responsible for the northeastern Kharkiv frontline has been replaced after Russia launched a surprise offensive, a military spokesperson said on Monday. Nazar Voloshyn told RBC-Ukraine media that the decision to appoint Brigadier General Mykhailo Drapatyi to the position was taken on May 11. He gave no reason for the decision. It comes amid reports that Ukrainian defences were built in the wrong place to halt Russias Kharkiv offensive. Kyiv is now building defensive lines in more tactically advantageous positions after it found the main battles were taking place where positions were not equipped, said Yuriy Butusov, a Ukrainian journalist reporting from the front line. 02:19 PM BST Ukraine: Russian bomb attacks in Kyiv thwarted Ukraine said on Monday it thwarted a Russian operation to set off a series of bomb attacks in builders markets and near a cafe in the capital of Kyiv, and at a defence enterprise in the western city of Lviv. Two Russian military agents were detained on suspicion of involvement in the alleged plot and 19 explosive devices were seized, the prosecutor generals office wrote on the Telegram app. The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said in a statement that four bombs had been intended for detonation in the capital on May 9, the day when Russia celebrates the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in 1945. According to the plan of the Russian special service, the explosives were supposed to detonate during the supermarkets peak hours to cause maximum damage to the civilian population, the agency said on Telegram. There was no immediate comment from the Moscow. 01:48 PM BST Watch: Telegraph Dispatch from Kharkiv Front Lines 01:31 PM BST Kyiv: Moscow reshuffle shows its trying to scale up war effort New Russian government appointments show that Moscow will try to scale up its war effort and is seeking to reconfigure its economy for its defence needs, Mykhailo Podolyak, a Ukrainian presidential adviser, said on Monday. More than two years after Russias invasion of Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin tapped civilian economist Adrei Belousov as his surprise new defence minister on Sunday. Russia is finally isolating itself and will try to scale up the war, expand its formats while reconfiguring the economy... Mr Podolyak said on the Telegram messaging app. 01:14 PM BST Russias new defence minister underlines need to take better care of soldiers Andrei Belousov, the surprise choice of President Vladimir Putin to become Russias new defence minister, said on Monday that soldiers needed better access to housing, hospitals and welfare benefits. Mr Belousov, an economist who previously served as deputy prime minister, underlined the need to take better care of Russias soldiers in comments to a parliamentary committee, his first since Putin named him on Sunday to replace Sergei Shoigu. State media quoted him as saying there was too much bureaucracy surrounding the payment of benefits to military personnel. There were also issues with housing and medical treatment. Andrei Belousov, Russia's new defence minister, attending a meeting of the Federation Council's Committee on Defence and Security - Russian Federation Council/Shutterstock I think its a mess when participants in the special military operation who come back on vacation are driven from civilian medical institutions to hospitals which are often simply overcrowded. This issue needs to be resolved, Mr Belousov said. The comments by Mr Belousov, who has no military background, appeared aimed at demonstrating to members of the armed forces that he understands their concerns and will work to improve their conditions. He was addressing the defence and security committee of parliaments upper house, the Federation Council, as part of a confirmation process for a new government line-up after Putin started his fifth term as president earlier this month. 12:51 PM BST Sweden open to hosting nuclear weapons in wartime Ulf Kristersson, the Swedish prime minister, said Monday he was open to allowing nuclear weapons on Swedish soil in wartime, as critics call for the new NATO member to ban their deployment. Swedens parliament is set to vote on a Defence Cooperation Agreement (DCA) with the United States in June which will give the US access to military bases in Sweden and allow the storage of military equipment and weapons in the Scandinavian country. Sweden abandoned two centuries of military non-alignment to join NATO in March this year. Calls have mounted in recent weeks, from the Swedish Peace and Arbitration Association among others, for the government to put in writing in the DCA agreement that Sweden will not allow nuclear weapons on its soil. 12:31 PM BST Russia pounds 30 towns and villages in Ukraines Kharkiv region Russia pounded over 30 villages and towns in Ukraines northeastern Kharkiv region after launching a ground offensive in the border region, forcing almost 6,000 to evacuate, the governor said on Monday. Ukraines General Staff acknowledged on Monday that Russia currently is achieving tactical success after driving a wedge into Kyivs defences. Russias defence ministry said on Monday that troops had improved the tactical position and dealt a blow to (Ukrainian) manpower around border villages including Lyptsi and the town of Vovchansk. They are shelling the villages, firing on everything they can, Sergiy Kryvetchenko, deputy head of the military administration in the village of Lyptsi, told AFP. 12:15 PM BST Russia sentences five Ukrainians for passing military intel to Kyiv A Russian court on the annexed peninsula of Crimea has handed down prison sentences of up to 16 years to five Ukrainian citizens accused of sharing military intelligence with Kyiv, state media reported Monday. The men were charged with treason and espionage after sharing information on the location and movements of Russian army units that helped the Ukrainian army target aerial strikes, the FSB security service alleged. The information was used by paramilitary formations in Ukraine to adjust their artillery and rocket strikes on Russian army positions, the FSB said in a statement cited by state news agencies. They were handed prison sentences of between 11 and 16 years, the FSB said. 11:56 AM BST Kyiv is locked in fierce border battles in Kharkiv Ukrainian troops are locked in intense battles with the advancing Russian army in two border areas, president Volodymyr Zelensky said, while the death toll from a Russian apartment building collapse blamed on Ukrainian shelling rose to 15. Mr Zelenskyy said fierce battles are taking place near the border in eastern and northeastern Ukraine as outgunned and outnumbered Ukrainian soldiers try to hold back a significant Russian ground offensive. Defensive battles are ongoing, fierce battles, on a large part of our border area, Mr Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address Sunday. Ukraines general staff said late Sunday that Russian forces had conducted at least 22 attacks over the previous 24 hours in two parts of the Kharkiv region and had tactical success. The statement did not elaborate. 11:40 AM BST Ireland mulling cuts in supports for Ukrainian refugees Ireland will this week consider making cuts to state support for asylum seekers and refugees, including those who arrived from Ukraine, in a bid to bring the system more in line with other European countries, Simon Harris, the prime minister, said on Monday. Just over 100,000 Ukrainians have fled to Ireland since Russias invasion in February 2022, while the number of asylum seekers from the rest of the world almost trebled from pre-pandemic levels to more than 13,000 in 2022 and 2023. So far this year, the number has jumped to 7,700. That has made immigration a much bigger political issue in the country of 5.3 million people, which is struggling to house refugees in the middle of a housing supply crisis. 11:15 AM BST Ukrains first lady arrives in Serbia for surprise visit Olena Zelenska, Ukraines first lady, and Dmytro Kuleba, the countrys foreign minister, made a surprise visit to Russia-friendly Serbia on Monday, in a sign of warming relations between the two states. On his first visit to Serbia since the start of the Russian aggression on Ukraine in 2022, Mr Kuleba met Milos Vucevic, the new Serbian prime minister, whose government includes several pro-Russian ministers, including two who have been under US sanctions. Later Monday, he is to meet Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic. Although Serbia has condemned the Russian aggression on Ukraine, it has refused to join international sanctions against Moscow and has instead maintained warm and friendly relations with its traditional Slavic ally. 10:51 AM BST Map: Russias Kharkiv offensive Russia pressed its ground assault into Ukraines Kharkiv region on Monday, attacking new areas with small groups to try to widen the front and stretch Ukraines forces, the regional governor said. Moscows troops entered Ukraine near its second city, Kharkiv, on Friday, opening a new, northeastern front in a war that has for almost two years been largely fought in the east and south. The advance could draw some of Kyivs depleted forces away from the east, where Russia has been slowly advancing. Russias defence ministry said its troops had improved the tactical position and dealt a blow to (Ukrainian) manpower around border villages, including Lyptsi, and the town of Vovchansk. The Ukrainian army reported fighting in the border town of Vovchansk, where Russia was deploying significant forces, numbering up to five battalions. Vovchansk, which previously had a population of 2,500 but now has only 200-300 residents, suffered massive shelling on Sunday, said Oleg Synegubov, Kharkivs regional governor. The enemy is trying to deliberately stretch it (the front line), attacking in small groups, but in new directions, so to speak, Russia carried out 22 assaults in five border areas on Sunday, 14 of which were still ongoing, the Ukrainian army said. It reported fighting in the border town of Vovchansk, where Russia was deploying significant forces, numbering up to five battalions. Vovchansk, which previously had a population of 2,500 but now has only 200-300 residents, suffered massive shelling on Sunday, said Mr Synegubov. 10:32 AM BST Moscow: Russia ready if West wants to fight for Ukraine If the West wants to fight for Ukraine on the battlefield, Russia is prepared for it, Sergei Lavrov, Russias foreign minister, was quoted as saying on Monday. Its their right - if they want it to be on the battlefield, it will be on the battlefield, state-run news agency RIA cited Lavrov as saying. Russia has stepped up warnings about the dangers of a direct confrontation with Nato since Emmanuel Macron, the French president, refused to rule out the possibility that Western troops could at some point be sent there. Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, has said the move could lead to World War Three. 10:16 AM BST Ukraines foreign minister visits Serbia for first time since Russian invasion Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraines foreign minister, visited Serbia on Monday, where he was set to meet with the Balkan countrys leaders days after a high-profile visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping. Olena Zelenska, Ukraines First Lady, was also in the capital Belgrade, where she signed a new education agreement with a university in Serbia, according to a post on X. Serbia remains a rare outlier in Europe for refusing to sanction the Kremlin following Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Belgrade has long been close to Moscow, with its shared Orthodox heritage, mutual distrust of NATO, and military alliances during several wars strengthening their relations. 10:00 AM BST Ukraine says Russian forces trying to stretch front line in Kharkiv region Russian forces are attacking the border of Ukraines northern Kharkiv region in small groups in an attempt to stretch the front line, the regions governor said on Monday. The enemy is trying to deliberately stretch it (front line), attacking in small groups, but in new directions, so to speak, Oleh Syniehubov told local TV. He added that Ukrainian forces were holding Russian troops back but there was a real threat that the fighting could spread to new settlements. 09:31 AM BST Kyiv: Ukrainian drone attack caused fires at Russian oil depot Drones launched by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) caused fires at an oil depot and power substation in Russias Belgorod and Lipetsk regions, a Ukrainian intelligence source told Reuters on Monday. The attack damaged Oskolneftesnab oil depot near the city of Staryi Oskol in Russias Belgorod region and Yeletskaya power substation in the Lipetsk region. Russian industry which works to wage war with Ukraine will remain a legitimate target for the SBU. Measures to undermine the enemys military potential will continue, the intelligence source said. 09:03 AM BST War in pictures A woman holds her dog as volunteers and police evacuate residents of Vovchansk - Anadolu Khrystyna Pyimak, 11, hugs her mother Oksana Velychko, 42, after evacuation from Vovchansk - Evgeniy Maloletka/AP 08:46 AM BST Ukraine plans record power imports after infrastructure damage Ukraine plans record electricity imports from five European countries on Monday after reporting significant energy infrastructure damage following Russian strikes, the energy ministry said. Imports are expected to rise to 19,484 megawatt hours (Mwh), beating the previous record high of 18,649 Mwh recorded at the end of March after the first wave of Russian attacks on the Ukrainian energy sector. 08:30 AM BST Ukrainian drones attack several Russian regions A drone sparked a short-lived fire at an electrical substation in Russias Lipetsk region in a Ukrainian attack that also targeted the Belgorod and Kursk regions, Russian officials said. There are no casualties. The fire in the territory of the electrical substation is being extinguished, Igor Artamonov, the governor of the Kursk region in Russias south, wrote on the Telegram messaging app. Eight drones were destroyed over the Kursk region that borders Ukraine, the regions administration said on Telegram. There was no information on potential damage or casualties. Several air objects were also downed over the Belgorod region, south of Kursk, also along the border with Ukraine, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov wrote on Telegram. 08:15 AM BST Shelling kills two in Russian-controlled city of Donetsk Two people were killed in shelling of the Russian-controlled city of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine, Russian-installed mayor Alexei Kulemzin said on Monday. 07:56 AM BST Moscow: Russia shoots down 31 Ukrainian drones Russia said on Monday that it had shot down 31 Ukrainian drones overnight over several Russian regions and annexed Crimea. During the night new attempts by the Kyiv regime to carry out terrorist attacks with the help of aerial drones... against targets on the territory of the Russian Federation were foiled, the defence ministry said in a statement on the Telegram social media channel. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. ASTANA, Kazakhstan, May 13. The Ministry of Transport of Kazakhstan has submitted for public discussion a draft government resolution on the establishment of the JSC "Kazakhstan Institute of Transport and Logistics", Trend reports. The main subject of activity of the JSC will be to promote sustainable development of the transport industry and the provision of state incentives for activities in the field of transport and logistics. For the formation of the authorized capital of the future state enterprise, it is planned to allocate 184.6 million tenge ($420,000) from the reserve of the government. Besides, the Committee of State Property and Privatization of the Ministry of Finance, together with the Ministry of Transport, will have to ensure the approval of the charter of JSC, the election of a person authorized to sign on behalf of JSC documents for state registration, the implementation of financial and economic activities, and the representation of interests to third parties before the formation of JSC bodies. Meanwhile, the JSC will have to undergo state registration in the non-commercial JSC State Corporation Government for Citizens. The rights of ownership and use of the state block of shares of JSC Kazakhstan Institute of Transport and Logistics will be transferred to the Ministry of Transport. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel icon Semafor Signals Supported by Microsoft logo Insights from the Financial Times, BBC, and Phillips OBrien Arrow Down Title icon The News Russian President Vladimir Putin reshuffled his defense team in Moscow, a move that caught some observers by surprise, even as Russian troops made significant battlefield progress in Ukraine. On Sunday Putin replaced his longtime Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu with the economist and First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov. Shoigu, a firm Putin ally, is set to be appointed as secretary of Russias powerful Security Council, taking over from Nikolai Patrushev, another close aide to the president. Its unclear what role Patrushev will step into. In Ukraine, funding delays and dwindling manpower have led to a difficult situation for Ukrainian troops, a top military official told The Guardian this weekend. Russian troops are furthering their advances, and Moscow now controls more of Ukraine than it has at any point since its Feb. 2022 invasion. icon SIGNALS Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories. Cabinet reshuffle points to focus on Russian war economy Source icon Source: Financial Times The reshuffle marks the biggest shake-up of Putins security officials in a decade and a half, noted the Financial Times, at a time when Russian forces are making gains against Ukraines army. The removal of Shoigu, once viewed as near-untouchable, is being projected as the Kremlin trying to rein in Russias runaway defence spending by appointing an economist, it wrote. One analyst told the outlet the reshuffle showed it was clear that Russian economic elites performed far better than military elites in this war. Russia working to gain more ground before US aid arrives Source icon Source: Phillips O'Brien Its not clear if Russias push into Ukraines northeastern region of Kharkiv will amount to a major loss in Ukrainian ground, despite acknowledgments from top officials in Kyiv about the difficult situation that troops are facing. Ukraine had been readying for an attack in Kharkiv for weeks, military expert Phillips OBrien wrote, and it came as no surprise when Moscow launched a fresh push this weekend. The offensive comes as Russia tries to gain ground before Western aid arrives in Kyiv, OBrien noted. These attacks seem very much an effort of lots of pressing in lots of places, to see if anything works, he wrote. Semafor Logo At least 15 people were killed when an apartment building in Russia was hit by the fragments of a downed Ukrainian missile, Russian officials said Monday, in one of the deadliest attacks on the border Belgorod region so far in the war. The strike Sunday caused part of the building to collapse, with regional Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov saying that 15 bodies were ultimately pulled from the rubble while another 27 people were wounded in attacks throughout the region. Russias Defense Ministry said at least 12 missiles had been involved in the attack on Belgorod which it described as a terrorist attack on residential areas. Putins Surprise Attack Leaves Ukraine in Incredibly Difficult Position Elsewhere Monday, intense fighting was reported in the town of Vovchansk in northeast Ukraine following a surprise Russian attack in the area on Friday. Only a few hundred people remain in the town, according to Kharkiv regional governor Oleh Suniehubov, as Russian troops approach. Moscows Defense Ministry claimed over the weekend that its forces had advanced into the depths of Ukraines defenses and liberated multiple settlements in the Kharkhiv region. Defensive battles are ongoing, fierce battles, on a large part of our border area, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his nightly address Sunday. He went on to say that the situation is extremely difficult on the outskirts of Vovchansk and that the town is now under constant Russian fire. Everything depends on what you are capable of in a war, Zelensky said. Whether you can withstand the attacks and hold your ground, so that everyone else can do the same. The key is our resilience and Ukrainian results in battles. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. A volunteer helps an elderly woman who was evacuated from the Vovchansk district as she arrives at an evacuation point in Kharkiv region, on May 12, 2024. Credit - Roman PilipeyPILIPEY/ AFP/Getty Images Russian forces have seized at least nine villages amid a new push in northeastern Ukraine that began on Friday, the most square miles taken per day since the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022. On Friday, Russian troops pushed deeper into territory in two border areas of Vovchansk and Lyptsi in Kharkiv region. On Saturday, they took five villages and on Sunday another four. Meanwhile, Nazar Voloshyn, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian military, told RBC-Ukraine that Yuri Galushkin, the commander responsible for the northeastern front, has been replaced by Brigadier General Mykhailo Drapatyi. Russia too, just experienced a major reshuffling, with President Vladimir Putin announcing on Sunday that he had replaced his long time defense minister Sergei Shoigu with economist Andrey Belousov. This week, the situation in Kharkiv Oblast has significantly worsened. Currently, there are ongoing battles in the border areas along the state border with the Russian Federation, Oleksandr Syrskii, Ukraines army chief, wrote on Telegram. It is a difficult situation, but the Defense Forces of Ukraine are doing everything to hold defensive lines and positions and inflict damage on the enemy. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky acknowledged the situation in a video message posted to X on Sunday. Defensive operations and fierce battles are taking place in the Kharkiv region along a significant border strip, he wrote. Some villages have effectively turned from a grey zone to a war zone. Occupiers are attempting to seize control of some of them while using others to advance. Ukraine has struggled in recent months. A lack of ammunition combined with a dwindling supply of soldiers is forcing Ukrainian forces to retreat as Russians attack from both air and land. Its necessary to increase the pace of building fortifications so that when we retreat, we will retreat to a prepared position, a unit commander told the Associated Press, a week before Russias latest push in Kharkiv. These fortifications are not enough. The U.S. announced another $400 million aid package for Ukraine on Friday that will include High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), munitions for Patriot and National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems, artillery, anti-aircraft and anti-tank munitions, and armored vehicles. But it will take months for many of these supplies to reach the frontline. Russia is taking advantage of this time gap by launching this offensive push, says Oleksandr V. Danylyuk, an expert in Russian multidimensional warfare at the London-based RUSI think-tank. They believe that they have a window of opportunity during these next few months, and they will do the best to achieve more territorial gains, he tells TIME. It's clear that Ukraine is in a critical shortage of ammunition specifically and the most important part of military capabilities in this war is artillery. Russias latest push follows months of dug-in warfare where the frontlines have barely moved. It also comes as border regions such as Belgorod are routinely shelled by Ukraine. In March, Russia announced plans to evacuate 9,000 children from the city to parts of Russia less impacted by the war. On Sunday, at least 15 people in Belgorod were killed when fragments of a Ukrainian missile intercepted by Russia hit an apartment building in the city. Contact us at letters@time.com. Russian governor claims fire at substation in Lipetsk Oblast after overnight drone attack A drone attack caused a fire at an electrical substation in the Stanovlyansky district in Russia's Lipetsk Oblast overnight on May 13, Governor Igor Artamonov reported on Telegram. Russia claimed to shot down a total of 31 drones, including four over Lipetsk Oblast. Another 12 drones were destroyed over Belgorod Oblast, eight over Kursk Oblast and seven over occupied Crimea, according to the Russian Defense Ministry. Artamonov claimed that the fire was being extinguished on the territory of the electrical substation. No casualties were reported. Russian Defense Ministry said it also shot down Ukraine's Western-provided missiles. Ukrainian officials didn't issue any comments. The Kyiv Independent couldn't verify this claim. Sign up for our newsletter WTF is wrong with Russia? Sign up In recent months, drone attacks targeting energy facilities within Russia's borders have increased in frequency. Ukraine's military intelligence agency (HUR) claimed on May 13 it was behind the attack on the oil refinery in Volgograd. The Kaluganefteprodukt oil depot and the Novolipetsk metallurgical plant were also reportedly struck by drones. Two days before, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) attacked an oil refinery, Gazprom Neftekhim Salavat, in the Republic of Bashkortostan, and two oil depots in Krasnodar Krai, according to the Kyiv Independent's source. Strikes against Russian energy targets have prompted criticism from U.S. officials, who have made it clear that Washington does not support Ukraine's attacks on oil refineries, citing fears that it could threaten the global energy market. In response, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Kyiv has the right to use its own weapons to strike deep inside Russia. Read also: Update: Death toll in Belgorod apartment building collapse rises to 15 Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. During their offensive in Kharkiv Oblast, Russian troops have placed local citizens in a basement, forcing them to provide medical care to wounded Russian soldiers. Ukraine has launched an investigation into the violation of the rules of war. Source: Kharkiv Oblast Prosecutor's Office Quote: "The investigation has found that during Russia's offensive in Vovchansk hromada, the invaders are forcibly holding people in a basement. The locals were confined to the premises on 11 May 2024. (A hromada is an administrative unit designating a village, several villages, or a town, and their adjacent territories ed.) On 13 May, some of them escaped and reached the volunteers. The people are now safe. The survivors reported overhearing Russian soldiers in the basement discussing the killing of civilians." Details: People are reportedly being forced to provide medical assistance to wounded Russian soldiers. These actions of the Russians are a violation of the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, to which Ukraine and Russia are parties, among others. Law enforcement officers have launched a pre-trial investigation into the violation of the laws and customs of war (Article 438.1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). Background: Oleh Syniehubov, Head of Kharkiv Oblast Military Administration, reported that the front line and the grey area in Kharkiv Oblast have grown the Russian military is attempting to purposefully extend it by conducting targeted small-scale attacks in a number of areas. Syniehubov noted that the evacuation of residents from dangerous areas continues. A total of 5,700 people have been evacuated. An additional 1,600 people are to be evacuated on 13 May. The official said that currently, 200-300 people remain in Vovchansk. Support UP or become our patron! BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, May 13. Italy is keen on increasing collaboration with the Central Asian region as a whole, especially with Kyrgyzstan, said Italian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Member of the Lower House of the Parliament of Italy, Edmondo Cirielli, Trend reports. He made these remarks during a meeting with Kyrgyzstan's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Zheenbek Kulubaev. Cirielli also highlighted that expanding trade and economic ties is a priority, as evidenced by the presence of Italian business association leaders in the delegation accompanying him. Meanwhile, Kulubaev expressed interest in expanding cooperation in areas such as trade and investment. He emphasized the need for high-level visits between the two countries. The parties also discussed the international agenda, as well as the cooperation between the two countries within international organizations, including the UN. They particularly focused on advancing a joint initiative on sustainable mountain development and hosting the Global Mountain Summit in Bishkek in 2027. Deputy Foreign Minister Cirielli arrived in Kyrgyzstan to participate in Kyrgyz-Italian inter-ministerial consultations. According to the State Statistical Committee of Kyrgyzstan, the trade turnover between the countries amounted to $18.683 million from January through February 2024, which is 2.1 times more than $8.714 million during the corresponding months of 2023. The Russian troops keep conducting offensive actions, trying to dislodge units of the Defence Forces of Ukraine from their positions on the Kharkiv front. Source: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on operational information from the combat zone as of 15:00 on social media Details: Reportedly, as of 14:00 of 13 May the Russians have launched 11 attacks. Two combat clashes are underway. Russian forces have had partial success near the settlement of Lukiantsi. The advancing of the Russians has been stopped. At the same time, Ukrainian forces are conducting counter attacks. The Russians launched eight airstrikes near the settlements of Udy, Vovchansk, Lyptsi, Grafske and Vesele in Kharkiv Oblast. The reserves created in advance have been transferred to the Kharkiv front in order to strengthen Ukrainian forces. Depending on how the events will unfold, strengthening of the grouping will continue. Ukrainian troops were provided with a necessary quantity of weaponry Since the start of the day, the losses of the Russians on the Kharkiv front have amountwd to 97 members of personnel and eight units of armament and military equipment. The Russians continue launching missile attacks and airstrikes all along the frontline, launching attacks from multiple-launch rocket systems on the positions of Ukrainian forces. On the Kupiansk front, Ukrainian troops are repelling Russian attacks near the settlements of Synkivka, Petropavlivka, Berestove (Kharkiv Oblast), Stelmakhivka and Andriivka (Luhansk Oblast) where the Russian tried to improve their tactical positions. 19 combat clashes occurred near Synkivka, Ivanivka, Berestove, Stelmakhivka, Novoihorivka, Makiivka. On the Lyman front, one combat clash occurred. On the Siversk front, 12 combat clashes occurred near the settlements of Bilohorivka, Verkhnokamianske, Spirne, Vyimka, Rozdolivka. On the Kramatorsk front, 27 combat clashes occurred near the settlements of Hryhorivka, Novyi, Ivanivske, Klishchiivka, Andriivka. The Russians launched airstrikes on the proximity of the settlements of Druzhba and Pivnichne. On the Toretsk front, the Russians did not conduct offensive (assault) actions. On the Pokrovsk front, 24 combat clashes occurred. On the Kurakhove front, five combat clashes occurred near the settlements of Krasnohorivka and Novomykhailivka. One airstrike was landed near the settlement of Novomykhailivka. On the Vremivka front, Ukrainian forces repelled Russian attacks near the settlements of Vodiane, Urozhaine, Staromaiorske (Donetsk Oblast) where the Russians tried to dislodge Ukrainian forces from their positions. On the Huliaipillia front, the Russians did not conduct offensive (assault) actions. On the Orikhiv front, eight combat clashes near the settlement of Staromaiorske occurred, and one took place near Robotyne. The Russians also launched an airstrike there. On the Prydniprovia front, the Russians do not give up the attempts to dislodge Ukrainian troops from their positions on the left bank of the Dnipro River. Two combat clashes occurred near the settlement of Krynky, and another one is ongoing. On the Volyn and Polissia fronts, there were no significant changes to the operative situation and no signs of formation of offensive groupings of the Russians. In Chernihiv and Sumy Oblasts, the Russians preserve their military presence, conducting sabotage and reconnaissance activity, launching attacks on Ukrainian settlements from the Russian territory and increasing the density of minefields along the state border of Ukraine. Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces "actively continue to inflict losses in personnel and equipment to the Russians, exhausting them along the whole contact line". Support UP or become our patron! Russians attack Sumy Oblast, killing one person and wounding three others photo Aftermath of Russian strikes on Sumy Oblast. Photo: National Police of Ukraine One man has been killed and three others have been injured in a Russian attack on Sumy Oblast. Source: National Police of Ukraine Aftermath of Russian strikes on Sumy Oblast. Photo: National Police of Ukraine Details: The Russians also damaged six private homes and three cars. Aftermath of Russian strikes on Sumy Oblast. Photo: National Police of Ukraine It is reported that over the past 24 hours, the Russians bombarded 24 settlements in Sumy Oblast. A total of 210 attacks were recorded. Support UP or become our patron! At least one person was killed and four others were injured in Russian attacks on border areas of Kharkiv Oblast on 13 May. Source: Oleh Syniehubov, Head of Kharkiv Oblast State Administration, on Telegram Details: At about 16:40 the Russians struck a farm in the settlement of Korotychi in the Kharkiv district. A civilian man was killed, three others were injured. The details are being specified. Meanwhile, following a Russian attack on the settlement of Lyptsi, medics provided an injured 71-year-old woman with medical assistance and took her to hospital. Background: On 10 May it was revealed that Russian occupation troops have intensified their activities in Kharkiv Oblast, and intense battles are ongoing there. The Russians occupied a number of settlements in the grey zone. Ukrainian forces are transferring additional reserves to Kharkiv Oblast. The evacuation of civilians from border hromadas of Kharkiv Oblast is ongoing. [A hromada is an administrative unit designating a village, several villages, or a town, and their adjacent territories ed.] Support UP or become our patron! The situation on the Kharkiv front remains challenging, with Russian occupation forces continuing assault operations and intense firing. Ukraines Defence Forces have been pushing back against the Russians. Source: Ukrainska Pravda source in the military; Dmytro Lykhovii, spokesperson of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, during Ukraines national 24/7 newscast Details: A source from the Ukrainian military said the Russians are attempting to advance toward the settlements of Lyptsi and Starytsia, as well as towards Vovchansk on 13 May. Alongside the assault operations, there are intense attacks using mortars, artillery and aircraft targeting Ukrainian defensive positions. The Russians continued active operations near the settlements of Hlyboke, Lukiantsi, Oliinykove, Buhruvatka and Vovchansk on 12 May. Ukraines Defence Forces are repelling Russian attacks, striking at assault groups. Artillery and mortars are actively used. The Ukrainska Pravda source added that Russian forces are replenishing their losses and ammunition and are preparing for further actions as of now. Lykhovii, reporting on the operational situation over the previous week, noted that the Russians had carried out 31 attacks toward the settlements of Strilecha, Krasne, Morokhovets, Oliinykove, Lukiantsi, Hlyboke, Ohirtseve, Hatyshche, Pletenivka, Pylna, Vovchansk and Buhruvatka by Sunday evening on the Kharkiv front, where the enemy crossed the border on 10 May. Lykhovii confirmed that the Russians have achieved tactical successes, that the situation remains challenging and is changing dynamically. "Measures have been planned to destroy the enemy that has interfered with our defence," Lykhovii added. Support UP or become our patron! Russians kill two Ukrainians in their attack on village in Kherson Oblast Russian troops have struck the village of Kizomys in Kherson Oblast, killing two locals. Source: Oleksandr Prokudin, Head of Kherson Oblast Military Administration, on social media Quote: "The occupiers struck the village of Kizomys in Bilozerka hromada [a hromada is an administrative unit designating a village, several villages, or a town, and their adjacent territories ed.]. One of the strikes was on a private house. As a result a fire broke out, and rescue workers retrieved the bodies of the killed locals while putting it out." Details: A man aged 69 and a woman aged 62 received fatal injuries. Background: On the night of 8 May the Russians attacked the town of Bilozerka in Kherson Oblast, killing a woman and injuring two more people. Support UP or become our patron! This Sacramento-area restaurant serves up some of the best barbecue in the US, Yelp says A Sacramento-area restaurant is one of the best barbecue joints in the United States, according to Yelp. Hog Wild Bar-B-Que in Placerville landed on the popular review sites list of the Top 100 Barbecue Spots in the U.S. for 2024, along with a handful of other California eateries. Great barbecue is an American treasure, Yelp said. Just a whiff of sweet wood smoke and sizzling meat is enough to get mouths watering and stomachs rumbling. Wrights Barbecue in Johnson, Arkansas, topped the list at No. 1, thanks to standout dishes such as beef brisket, jalapeno cheddar sausage and bacon burnt ends. CorkScrew BBQ in Spring, Texas, came in second place and Erics Family Barbecue in Avondale, Arizona, took third place. Heres how California restaurants fared: What makes Placerville restaurant a top US barbecue restaurant? Hog Wild Bar-B-Que, 38 Main St. in Placerville, landed at No. 39 on Yelps list of the nations best barbecue joints. The restaurant enjoys a 4.5-star average rating on Yelp with 1,039 reviews. Diners praise its mouthwatering Texas-style barbecue, exceptional customer service and dog-friendly setting. Chris G. of Reno, Nevada, said Hog Wild serves up my West Coast favorite BBQ, while William D. of Foresthill called it some of the best BBQ Ive eaten. This isnt the first time the restaurant has shown up in the national spotlight. In April, Hog Wild Bar-B-Que was one of six Placerville restaurants featured on Best Bite in Town, a new Food Network show that features actor Noah Cappe and celebrity chefs in search of some killer small-town dishes. Which California restaurants made the list? A total of nine California restaurants made Yelps list of the 100 best barbecue joints in the nation. Heres a rundown for the restaurants and where they ranked: How did Yelp come up with its rankings? To come up with its Top 100 Barbecue Spots in the US list, Yelp identified businesses in the Barbecue category with a large concentration of reviews mentioning barbecue. The review site then ranked those restaurants using factors including the total volume and ratings of reviews mentioning those keywords. If a business with multiple locations appeared on the list more than once, Yelp only included the highest-rated location. All businesses on Yelps list were marked open on the site and had passing health scores as of Feb. 28, Yelp said. 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. Officers arrested two underage teens Sunday after they led police on a chase in a stolen car in Sacramento before the fleeing vehicle veered off the road and struck a tree near Interstate 80. Shortly after 5 p.m., officers spotted the stolen car near Northgate Boulevard and San Juan Road. Officer Cody Tapley, a spokesman for the Sacramento Police Department, said officers got behind the stolen car before it began to accelerate. The officers activated the patrol cars lights and sirens, but the stolen car failed to stop; a police pursuit ensued. Tapley said the officers chasing the stolen car backed off, but the pursuit continued into surveillance mode through the South Natomas neighborhood. As a police helicopter was overhead a few minutes later, the stolen car went off the road at the eastbound Interstate 80 on-ramp at West El Camino Avenue and struck a tree. The driver and a passenger, both teen boys, got out of the stolen and tried to run away but were quickly detained by officers. Tapley said two passengers in the rear seat remained in the vehicle, and they were alert and conscious at the scene before being taken to a hospital with minor injuries. Officers arrested the driver on felony charges related to the pursuit and the stolen vehicle. Tapley said officers arrested the passenger on a felony warrant and he was found to be in possession of a gun without a serial number. The Police Department did not release their names because they are minors. Good morning and welcome to the A.M. Alert! FIRST UP Please take a minute to fill out our newsletter reader survey. Thank you so much! CIVIL RIGHTS GROUPS URGE SAC PD TO STOP SHARING ALPR DATA OUT OF STATE Nearly two months after the San Francisco Chronicle revealed that the Sacramento Police Department is sharing automated license plate reader (ALPR) data with out-of-state law enforcement agencies, a pair of civil rights groups have written a letter urging the department to cease the practice. Jennifer Pinsof, staff attorney for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and Nick Hidalgo, staff attorney for the ACLU of Northern California, sent the letter to Sacramento Police Chief Katherine Lester and and City Attorney Susana Alcala Wood, urging them to not just stop sharing ALPR data with state law enforcement that could use it to prosecute people for seeking abortions or gender-affirming medical treatment, but to abandon the use of such cameras altogether. The risks to civil liberties and civil rights that ALPR technology creates are well-documented. Even if Sacramento PD takes steps to prevent the formal sharing of data with out-of-state agencies, the risk of informal sharing with these same agencies will remain, the letter reads in part. The letter gives Lester and Alcala Wood until May 30 to respond. Neither Lester nor Alcala Wood responded to The Bees request for comment by deadline. Sacramento PD isnt the only California law enforcement agency to share that data. As weve previously documented here, a number of agencies in the state do so, including the Sacramento County Sheriffs Office. Sacramento County Sheriff Jim Cooper, who voted for the law prohibiting outside sharing when he still served in the Assembly, has defended his offices practice and criticized the EFF, accusing them of protecting child molesters, fentanyl traffickers, rapists and murderers. California Attorney General Rob Bonta last year issued a legal memo to state law enforcement agencies, warning them that sharing ALPR data with out-of-state agencies is illegal. According to the Chronicles report, that memo did not persuade Sacramento PD to change its policy. THE JANE FONDA DAY TRILOGY CONCLUDES We bring you a final (we hope!) update on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors decision to declare April 30 as Jane Fonda Day. Recall that the board voted to honor Fonda on April 30, the anniversary of the Fall of Saigon, which marks the end of the Vietnam War which Fonda rather infamously protested. The decision riled up a host of state lawmakers, including Sen. Janet Nguyen, R-Huntington Beach, whose district includes Little Saigon, the largest population of Vietnamese people outside of Vietnam; and Assemblyman Tri Ta, R-Westminster, who rallied 17 other Assemblymembers, including one Democrat (Assemblywoman Stephanie Nguyen, D-Elk Grove) to call on the board to rescind its vote. On Friday, Ta announced that the campaign was a success: The board announced that it would introduce a motion at its next meeting to shift Jane Fonda Day to some other, less notorious, date. I want to thank everyone who worked with me to fight this decision, and I commend the Board of Supervisors for listening to the concerns raised by the Vietnamese-American community and veterans of the Vietnam War, Ta said in a statement. QUOTE OF THE DAY So we want a leaner government, leaner government, streamlined government. We want to do what all of you are doing in your personal lives, all the businesses out there doing in their professional lives as well, and we think we can do that and still achieve outstanding outcomes. - California Gov. Gavin Newsom, announcing the cutting of 10,000 vacant state worker positions during his May Revise budget press conference. Best of The Bee (May Revise Edition): CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) The fourth and final memorial service for the officers killed in the line of duty two weeks ago in Charlotte will take place on Monday. A Celebration of Life will be held for North Carolina Department of Corrections Investigator Sam Poloche, 42, at 1 p.m. Monday, May 13, at First Baptist Church in uptown Charlotte. The event will be private to the media but open to the public. Interment services will be held at Lakeland Memorial Park in Monroe. A procession will be held in between the two with traffic expected to be impacted on US-74. MORE FROM QUEEN CITY NEWS Continuing Coverage Poloche was one of four law enforcement members killed when a US Marshals Task Force Unit attempted to serve a warrant on Terry Hughes, Jr., on April 29. Hughes was shot and killed in the front yard of the home when he came outside armed. CMPD Officer Joshua Eyer, Deputy US MArshal Thomas Weeks, and NCDOT Investigator William Alden Elliott were all laid to rest in what has been an emotional couple of weeks for the city. Tributes have poured in and included a visit by President Biden with the fallen officers families. According to his obituary, Poloche is survived by his wife and two children. North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper is expected to be in attendance on Monday. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News. SAN ANGELO, Texas (Concho Valley Homepage) Multiple members of a crime ring responsible for stealing several items including heavy equipment, firearms, vehicles and trailers have been indicted for engaging in organized criminal activity. According to the April 2024 indictment report, Tomas Tellez, Trevor Allbright, Gabriel Wilkins and Devin Stiers were indicted for engaging in organized criminal activity alongside other independent charges. According to complaint and information records held for each of the men, the crime ring first became noticed by law enforcement after multiple thefts were reported in the Quail Valley neighborhood of San Angelo during the later months of 2023. At least three thefts were reported, with thieves targeting and stealing items such as heavy equipment, ATVs and welding tools. Law enforcement would begin to unravel the crime ring on after Dec. 7, 2023, after deputies were called to a residence in the Quail Valley neighborhood to a report of shots fired. Deputies interviewed Stiers while investigating the incident and later recovered two stolen motorcycles and a stolen flatbed trailer. During the interviews, Stiers identified an individual named Gabriel as one of multiple people who left the stolen vehicles on his property. PREVIOUSLY: TGCSO searching for fourth crime ring member After using a database to discover what vehicles were registered under Wilkins name, law enforcement located a white 2023 Chevrolet pickup belonging to Wilkins at the Days Inn hotel in San Angelo on Dec. 18, 2023. The vehicles rear license plate was covered by tinted plexiglass, obscuring it. After conducting a traffic stop on Wilkins vehicle, Wilkins stated during a field interview that he participated in the heavy equipment thefts in Quail Valley. A probable cause search of the vehicle also led to Wilkins being arrested for unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon and the felony offense of manufacturing or delivering a controlled substance. Images displayed by Wilkins on two cellular phones seized from his vehicle showed several tractors and trailers stolen from the Quail Valley area as well as a large quantity of narcotics. After applying for a search warrant for Wilkins phones, data gathered yielded images and conversations held between Wilkins, Allbright and Frankie Wright, another member of the crime ring. Wilkins also indicated that some of the stolen heavy equipment was taken to the compound of Tellezs roofing company. On Dec. 19, 2023, law enforcement received consent from Tellez to search the compound after he denied any knowledge of the tractors taken to his property. Officers found a stolen mower deck at the compound. On Dec. 20, 2023, Allbright was interviewed at the Tom Green County Sheriffs Office. There, he admitted to engaging in text message conversations between him and Wilkins regarding the stolen tractors but denied facilitating the thefts. Allbright also identified Boudreaux, a known alias of Wright, as assisting Wilkins in the thefts. Allbright stated that Wilkins paid him to photograph tractors in the Quail Valley Area. Afterward, law enforcement reviewed messages sent between Wilkins, Allbright and Wright that indicated the men not only provided information about the locations of the equipment but also directly participated in the thefts and benefited from the profits gained through the sale of the stolen property. On Feb. 7, 2024, a search warrant executed at two properties owned by Tellez resulted in the seizure of stolen items. The items recovered and their listed values are as follows: Caterpillar backhoe $89,000 Lamar utility trailer with pressure washer $15,000 Lamar dump trailer $5,000 New Holland skid steer $25,000 John Deere Gator UTV $15,000 Polaris Ranger $20,000 Armalite rifle $1,500 Savage rifle $900 Harvester .223 suppressor $700 The combined value of all stolen items recovered, including items not found at Tellezs two properties, is $228,000, according to Tellezs complaint and information record. Meanwhile, Wilkins and Allbrights records state that the total value of the known stolen items is $120,000. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ConchoValleyHomepage.com. BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, April 13. The Kyrgyz parliament has approved in its first reading a law on the financing agreement for energy projects in the country with the International Development Association (IDA), Trend reports. "In the first reading, the budget, economic, and fiscal policy committee of the Kyrgyz parliament reviewed and approved the Financing Agreement between Kyrgyzstan and the International Development Association, signed on January 23, 2024, in the city of Bishkek (the Renewable Energy Development Project in Kyrgyzstan), and the agreement between Kyrgyzstan and the International Development Association, acting as an accredited entity of the Green Climate Fund, signed on January 29, 2024, in the city of Bishkek," the Parliament reports. According to the Deputy Minister of Energy, Taalaibek Baigaziev, the Renewable Energy Development Project in Kyrgyzstan involves attracting funds from the IDA amounting to $80.2 million, of which $67.7 million is a loan from the IDA, $10 million is a loan from the Green Climate Fund (GCF), and $2.5 million is a GCF grant. As per the agreement, the official noted, hydroelectric power stations will be rehabilitated, and new hydroelectric power plants will be built, totaling $43.2 million. The agreement also allocates funds ($36.5 million) for the development of renewable energy, modernization, and strengthening of the corresponding infrastructure. Additionally, we have allocated $1.5 million for institutional strengthening and support during project implementation. A source in Ukraine's security services told the Kyiv Independent that drones operated by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) targeted an oil depot in Belgorod Oblast and an electrical substation in Lipetsk Oblast in Russia overnight on May 13. SBU drones were behind the attack on the Eletskaya substation in Lipetsk Oblast, where a fire was reported by local Russian authorities, the source said. The substation reportedly powers the Russian railroad, the Stanovaya oil pumping station, and ensures transit between the Lipetsk, Orel, and Bryansk power systems. The Oskolneftsnabzhenie oil depot near the city of Stary Oskol in Belgorod Oblast also came under attack, the source said, without specifying the consequences. Sign up for our newsletter WTF is wrong with Russia? Sign up "Russian oil industry that supplies Russia's war effort against Ukraine will remain a legitimate target for the SBU," the source said. Ukraine's military intelligence agency (HUR) claimed on May 13 it was behind the attack on the oil refinery in Volgograd. The Kaluganefteprodukt oil depot and the Novolipetsk metallurgical plant were also reportedly struck by drones. Two days before, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) attacked an oil refinery, Gazprom Neftekhim Salavat, in the Republic of Bashkortostan, and two oil depots in Krasnodar Krai, according to the Kyiv Independent's source. Strikes against Russian energy targets have prompted criticism from U.S. officials, who have made it clear that Washington does not support Ukraine's attacks on oil refineries, citing fears that it could threaten the global energy market. In response, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Kyiv has the right to use its own weapons to strike deep inside Russia. Read also: Military intelligence identifies Russian soldiers behind cruise missile strikes Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. A monument to Harriet Tubman, which Tabernacle Baptist Church leaders will unveil June 1, the anniversary of the raid in which Tubman helped free more than 700 slaves. (Provided/Tabernacle Baptist Church) A historic Black church in Beaufort will unveil a sculpture of Harriet Tubman on the 161st anniversary of the raid she led that freed more than 700 slaves from Lowcountry plantations. The June 1 unveiling of the sculpture, which is eight years in the making, will add to the long history of Tabernacle Baptist Church, where Civil War hero and South Carolina lawmaker Robert Smalls was buried in 1915. Born enslaved in Maryland in 1822, Tubman is the best-known conductor of the Underground Railroad, as she led at least 70 slaves in Maryland to freedom before the Civil War. But her work in South Carolina during the Civil War often gets overlooked, said Rev. Kenneth Hodges, the churchs pastor for 29 years. The monument will be the first in the state marking her daring mission in June 1863 along the Combahee River, he told the SC Daily Gazette on Monday. The raid made Tubman, known as the Moses of Her People, the first woman ever to lead a major military operation in the U.S., according to the Smithsonian. She remained the only African American woman to lead troops in the Civil War, according to the National Park Service. Harriet Tubman is a world-renowned figure, and right now, South Carolina isnt putting any resources into the fact that she was here, Hodges said. In 2016, the members of Tabernacle Baptist Church decided to change that. Despite delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the church raised $600,000 for the sculpture itself, plus another $100,000 for other expenses such as landscaping. The money, all private donations, also covered the funding for an interpretive center on church grounds nearby, where people can go to learn more about Tubman. The church will unveil the sculpture as part of a three-day celebration of the anniversary of the Combahee River Raid. The celebration, beginning May 31, will feature speeches from experts on Tubman, as well as her great-great-great grand niece, said Hodges, who represented that area of Beaufort and Colleton counties for 12 years in the House. The festival will also have food trucks, a nod to the fact that Tubman once worked in a bakery in Beaufort, Hodges said. Tubman, who escaped slavery alone to Philadelphia in 1849, first arrived in South Carolina in 1862. Using a network of spies, the abolitionist spent the following year gathering information about the plantations lining Beauforts Combahee River, where thousands of slaves farmed rice, according to the National Park Service. The night of June 1, 1863, Tubman led three steamships up the river that carried several hundred African American soldiers from the 2nd South Carolina Volunteer Infantry, a regiment consisting largely of freed men from the sea islands. Using Tubmans knowledge of the area, they avoided explosives and navigated to strategic points. From the river, the ships sounded their whistles, and hundreds of slaves, including children, came running to the river. Soldiers waiting in rowboats took them to the steamships, where they escaped to safety. Infantrymen burned the plantations behind them, striking a blow to the Confederacy with the destruction of several million dollars worth of homes and crops, according to the National Park Service. The 14-foot-tall sculpture will show Tubman flanked by soldiers, with people running toward them, just as the slaves ran toward the boats. The story was so evocative, the design came easily, said sculptor Ed Dwight, who lives in Colorado. A woman looks at the African American History Monument on the Statehouse grounds on Thursday, March 7, 2024. Lawmakers want to put up another sculpture commemorating Civil Rights hero Robert Smalls, which would be the first monument for a single Black person on the complex. (Skylar Laird/SC Daily Gazette) That was the fun part, going back in history and seeing her being commissioned by the U.S. government, Dwight said. Dwight finds that his sculptures, which include the African American History Monument on Statehouse grounds, teach white and Black people alike about parts of history they didnt know. Often, they walk away with more empathy than they had before, he said. Thats the ever-so-quiet effect of doing memorials down there in the South, said the Black sculptor. People might forget Tubmans operation in South Carolina without reminders like the sculpture or the bridge over the Combahee River bearing Tubmans name, Hodges said. In 2006, while he was a state representative, Hodges sponsored the resolution to name the bridge before its construction. If we didnt put emphasis on that, that part of her life would be void, Hodges said. Its going to be a big, big thing for South Carolina. Tabernacle Baptist Church, officially organized the same year as the raid, is known for its historical connections, Hodges said. The church itself is part of the Reconstruction Era National Historic Network. Smalls, who was a state legislator and five-term congressman along with being a Civil War hero, is buried on the churchs ground. Born enslaved in Beaufort, Smalls hijacked a Confederate ship to steer his family to freedom and deliver the ammunition on board to the Union on May 13, 1862. Last year, legislators approved designating every May 13 as Robert Smalls Day in South Carolina. Lawmakers agreed unanimously this year to create a commission tasked with recognizing Smalls on Statehouse grounds. The monument will be the first to memorialize an individual Black person on the capitol complex. Tabernacle is ahead of the state, Hodges pointed out: The church already has a bust commemorating Smalls. Tabernacle has always been associated with history and culture, Hodges said. Thats just an extension of our ministry, of our service to the community. Let us know what you think... The post SC church to unveil Harriet Tubman sculpture commemorating raid freeing 700 slaves appeared first on SC Daily Gazette. South Carolina teachers hopes for assistance from the state Legislature during an ongoing teacher shortage were dashed last week, as multiple bills aimed at alleviating the problem died with the end of the legislative session. At one point, the states educators had grounds for hope. As far back as a year ago, the S.C. House of Representatives voted unanimously to pass the Educator Assistance Act, which among other things would make it less likely that a teacher who quit would end up having their teaching certification suspended. Two other bills that would help fill teaching jobs managed to pass both the House and the Senate. But when the 2023-24 legislative session came to an end at 5 p.m. Thursday, all three bills died without passing into law. The Educator Assistance Act never came up for a vote in the Senate, and because different versions of the two other bills were voted out of both chambers in the final two weeks of the session, they failed to become law when legislators ran out of time to reconcile their competing amendments. People are feeling very uneasy right now, said Sherry East, president of the South Carolina Education Association, summing up teachers attitudes after the bills collapse. The State previously reported that more than 100 Palmetto State teachers had their certification suspended for a year or more in 2023 because they quit a teaching job before the end of a year-long contract with their school district, even though many were eager to return to teaching in the classroom. At the beginning of the 2023-24 school year, South Carolina school districts reported 1,613 open positions, a 9% increase over the year before, according to the Center for Educator Recruitment, Retention and Advancement. An update from February 2024 showed another 924 teachers had left the classroom since the school year began. Short on SC certified teachers, Richland 1 students are teaching themselves, parents say State Rep. Shannon Erickson, R-Beaufort, who chairs the House Education and Public Works Committee, pushed her House colleagues on three occasions to pass H.4280 or the Educator Assistance Act, a bill that would give teachers more protection and flexibility in their contracts. The teachers gave us a long list a few years back on what was important to them, Erickson said. In the last several years, weve addressed pay. Starting teacher pay has raised 47%, which is remarkable. What we have not done is red tape, the stuff that really hurts them and doesnt treat them like professionals. The act would have: Allowed teachers to opt out of their contracts within 10 days of the publication of the districts salary schedule, which often comes after teachers have already signed their contracts for the next year; Limit the amount of time a school district has to report a breach and give the State Board of Education more flexibility in issuing suspensions; Move the starting date of a suspension from the date of the state boards action to the day a teacher quit, which would allow a suspended teacher to return to the classroom sooner; And cut the maximum suspension for a breach of contract from a year down to six months. Erickson said the split between when educators are expected to sign a contract for the following year and when they find out what they will be paid is especially galling. Who signs a contract without knowing what theyre paid? Erickson said. Theyre signing with only part of the equation. ... The very basic thing they need to do is a budget for their family, and we need to give them a realistic view of what its going to be. Patrick Kelly, director of governmental affairs for the Palmetto State Teachers Association, said contracts need to be addressed as the start of the school year in many districts is creeping earlier into the summer. One change were seeing is more districts start as early as mid-July, Kelly said. The 10-day window could fall within 10 days prior to the start of classes, and that was not remotely conceived when this was introduced. Worried by the Senates inaction on the bill after it passed the House 111-0, House lawmakers on May 2 added the measure in its entirety to the text of two other education bills that previously passed the Senate: S.124 would have created a pilot program for hiring non-certified teachers, while S.305 would have counted some prospective teachers prior work experience outside of education toward getting their certificate. Erickson said the certification process has been a barrier to the profession even when teachers dont get suspended. All kinds of professionals do continuing education, but they dont have to go through the paperwork of doing it every time, she said. Ive had numerous reports that one of the biggest jobs of assistant principals is running down certifications of the staff. They have spreadsheets of who needs to be renewed when. I would rather have good, background-checked staffs with degrees that cover what theyre teaching, and the district and the staff decide what that career development looks like. On Wednesday, senators added their own amendments to both bills to re-insert the initial language before the bills were changed by the House. The next day the final one of the session House members voted unanimously to reject the Senate changes, drawing a curtain on the last chance for either to become law this year. If legislators want to revisit any of the bills when they reconvene in January, the measure would have to start back over at square one of the legislative process. Im really disappointed to see 305 not make it, Kelly said. It received unanimous support in the Senate and the House, and it would benefit some teachers to the benefit of thousands of dollars. That would have a real impact on the day-to-day of teacher families in South Carolina. Kelly said he hopes that strong support will allow the measure to pass relatively easily in 2025. It shouldnt need two years to get to the finish line, he said. It should come right out the gate. But, he added, it is ultimately a moot point if school districts would act in good faith if a teacher resigns for a valid reason. They are not required to report a teacher. That is a districts decision. If they simply do the right thing and, when a teacher resigns due to health reasons or moves to keep a family together, they dont need to report that. East noted that while bills related to the teacher shortage were allowed to die, legislators will continue to conference on a bill meant to address ideas lawmakers associate with critical race theory in schools, while another recently passed law would require teachers to notify parents if a student seeks to change their gender identity, preferred name or pronouns. She said she thinks this shows that legislators priorities when it comes to public education are not the same as educators. What they did with the trans bill turns teachers into mandatory reporters, so were not feeling real good, she said. Erickson said she doesnt know why the Educator Assistance Act didnt move forward this year in the Senate, although shes heard concerns from more rural school districts that changes might hurt their ability to recruit and retain teachers. But she said the bill incorporated a lot of feedback lawmakers received from school administrators groups in order to address some of their concerns. The lawmaker said she remains committed to passing the Educator Assistance Act in next years session and said shes been assured the Senate will take up a version of the bill next time. And she said she hopes teachers reach out and say this really matters to us, Erickson said. Im not going to drop the issue. Detectives with the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department are asking for the publics help in identifying a commercial burglary suspect who stole thousands of dollars in equipment and cash from a local dentists office last month in Calabasas. The break-in occurred on April 17 at Dentique Dental Lounge, located in the 5700 block of Las Virgenes Road. The suspect, who had disguised themselves with a scarf over their head and face, shattered a window at the dentists office, entered the facility and shortly after without taking any property, according to a bulletin from LASD. Surveillance cameras captured a burglar, whose face was covered by a scarf as they broke in and looted a dentist office in Calabasas on April 17, 2024. (LASD) Surveillance cameras captured a burglar, whose face was covered by a scarf as they broke in and looted a dentist office in Calabasas on April 17, 2024. (LASD) Surveillance cameras captured a burglar, whose face was covered by a scarf as they broke in and looted a dentist office in Calabasas on April 17, 2024. (LASD) Later that day, though, the suspect returned and reentered the office through the shattered window, disabled the businesss security cameras and began looting the establishment. The victim told the sheriffs department that $2,400 in cash, dental tools, an x-ray machine and computer tablet were stolen, the bulletin noted. Narco in Southern California busted with $568K, 103 pounds of cocaine Anyone with information about this burglary or who may recognize the suspect is urged to contact LASDs Malibu/Lost Hills Station at 818-878-1808. Those wishing to remain anonymous can call L.A. Regional Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477 or leave tips online at www.lacrimestoppers.org. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTLA. JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (WJHL) Some career and technical education (CTE) students at Science Hill High School got to see how successful, locally-headquartered company Mullican Flooring processes and distributes its wood products. State Street Tattoo Fest returns to Bristol this weekend The group of CTE students began by briefly hearing the almost 40-year history of the company, which began in Johnson City and now operates its headquarters near Watauga Road. The company also has locations in Norton, Virginia; Ronceverte, West Virginia; and Holland, New York. Science Hill High School students display the commemorative wood planks given to them during their visit to Mullican Floorings Johnson City facility Kyle Evans, vice president of manufacturing at Mullican Flooring, explains the operation of one of the many pieces of machinery the company uses in its manufacturing processes Accompanied by STEM teacher Dr. Brad Gentry and Josh Jarnigan, CTE college and career coordinator, the students learned about Mullicans processes, from bringing green wood into the plant for drying and processing to finishing, packaging and shipping, the release states. The group learned firsthand about the technical facets of hardwood flooring production, from drying out green wood to processing and finishing various products. At the end of the tour, students heard about the various employment opportunities in the flooring industry. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WJHL | Tri-Cities News & Weather. A man has been found dead in western Indonesia after a suspected attack by a Sumatran tiger authorities were still hunting, a local official said Saturday, the latest case of conflict between humans and the critically endangered species. There are only several hundred tigers on the western island of Sumatra left in the wild and they are often targeted by poachers for their body parts, while rampant deforestation has significantly reduced their habitat. A team of conservationists was deployed to search for the big cat on Saturday after the 26-year-old male victim was found dead at a plantation in Riau province on Sumatra island on Thursday afternoon with wounds indicating a tiger attack. "Our team has left this morning (to search for the tiger). Based on the report, the area is within the tiger habitat," local conservation agency head Genman Suhefti Hasibuan told AFP Saturday. Local police chief Budi Setiawan said late Friday they had received a report that two workers heard their friend screaming while they were spraying weeds in an acacia plantation. The workers tried to look for their colleague but instead found tiger footprints on the ground. They reported the incident to the plantation management who deployed more people to search for the victim. The victim's body was later found with a severed right hand as well as bite wounds on his neck, Setiawan said. In February, at least four farmers in Indonesia's westernmost province of Aceh were attacked by Sumatran tigers in two separate incidents. Sumatran tigers, which are a kind of Sunda Island tiger, are considered critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature with fewer than 400 believed to remain in the wild. "The last of the Sunda island tigers are holding on for survival in the remaining patches of forest on the island of Sumatra," according to WWF. "Accelerating deforestation and rampant poaching mean this noble creature could end up extinct like its Javan and Balinese counterparts." The attack in Indonesia marks at least the third time a tiger has killed a human in the past five months. In December, a Siberian tiger attacked a dog and then killed the pet's owner after he followed its tracks in Russia. Also that month, a zoo in Pakistan was shut down after a man was mauled to death by tigers in an attack discovered during routine cleaning. Nature: Mustangs in South Dakota Bill Maher on humor in politics: "Don't be tribal" Meet Stan Herman, elder statesman of American fashion FOND DU LAC, Wis. (WFRV) A second defendant was convicted of firebombing from an incident in July of 2016 in the city of Fond du Lac. According to Fond du Lac District Attorney Eric Toney, 26-year-old Elliot J. Schneider was convicted of several felony charges for allegedly using an explosive device that caused damage to a residence and endangered safety. WisDOT revokes four wholesale dealer licenses after failing to follow requirements Schneider was convicted of damage to property by use of explosives, first-degree reckless endangering safety, and felony bail jumping. Co-defendant Jonas Johnson was previously convicted of related charges and is awaiting sentencing. Schneiders sentencing has been set for May 24 at 1:30 in front of Judge Anthony Nehls. Smoke from Canadian wildfires bringing unhealthy air to US cities: Where in Wisconsin is it the worst? We greatly appreciate the years of dedicated investigation by our law enforcement partners to help secure these convictions today, stated Toney. The defendants dangerous and violent actions threatened the safety and security of numerous occupants of the home. We are grateful injuries were not more serious and look forward to the May 24 sentencing date for the defendant to be held accountable and for justice on behalf of the victims and our community. The Wisconsin Division of Criminal Investigation and the City of Fond du Lac Police Department investigated this case, with assistance from the Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Agency (ATF). For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFRV Local 5 - Green Bay, Appleton. TASHKENT, Uzbekistan, May 13. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has allocated Uzbekistan a loan of $238 million, Trend reports. According to the EBRD, the funds will be used to modernize the A380 Urgench - Khanka - Khazarasp - Tashsoka - Amu Darya highway and build a bridge over the Amu Darya river. The sovereign loan will help rehabilitate about 81 kilometers of the 4P156 highway and build a bridge over the Amu Darya River in the Khorezm region. In Central Asia, Uzbekistan has received the most EBRD assistance for four years. A majority of the bank's roughly 4.42 billion euros in 151 projects nationwide have supported private entrepreneurship. At the same time, Uzbekistan and EBRD adopted a new partnership strategy in small and medium business, women's entrepreneurship, alternative energy, digital technologies, and others. A second piping plover has joined Imani at Montrose Beach. But hes no wingman. The only known surviving chick of Chicagos famous piping plover pair, Monty and Rose, has a new rival. A second piping plover unofficially known as Green Dot has joined the citys favorite avian bachelor, Imani, at the North Sides Montrose Beach. The newcomer, believed to be male, has been seen walking next to Imani, along a parallel path. And while that may look like wingman behavior to humans, among piping plovers, the message is different. Thats male territorial behavior, said Tamima Itani, lead volunteer coordinator for the Chicago Piping Plovers, which monitors the birds to ensure their safety. Theyre basically delineating their territory. The Great Lakes population of piping plovers, which once included about 650 nesting pairs, is endangered, with just 80 nesting pairs recorded in 2023, according to the Great Lakes Piping Plover Conservation Team. When Imanis parents, Monty and Rose, set up housekeeping at Montrose Beach in 2019, the city fell in love with the imperiled lovebirds and their fluffy hatchlings. After Montys death in 2022 and Roses disappearance the same year, attention shifted to Imani, a jaunty fellow with a white belly, black neck band, and orange and black beak. But while Imani, who was born in 2021, has returned to Montrose for the past two summers, apparently looking for love, he has yet to start a family of his own. Green Dot, who appeared Saturday at Montrose Beach, hatched at Cat Island in Wisconsin in 2023. The newcomer doesnt have a name, and Green Dot refers to a green sticker on one of his leg bands. Imani has a star on one of his leg bands, a reference to the Chicago flag. For Imani, the arrival of a rival is only the latest twist in a long and very public struggle to find a mate. Piping plovers in Chicago: How the love story between Monty and Rose unfolded at Montrose Beach In 2022, the diminutive shorebird returned from his southern wintering grounds to dig shallow nests in the sand and chase off larger birds. But, alas, no female arrived to see the show. Imani was back last summer, and there was a brief buzz when a female and another male showed up, but then they abruptly departed. Itani said the female was from the Great Plains, and thus unlikely to stay and mate. Its not common for Great Plains piping plovers to mate with Great Lakes piping plovers, she said. It happens, but they tend to stop and then continue to the Great Plains. Foiled but apparently undaunted, Imani made his dramatic return to Montrose this year on April 25. His best prospects for a mate are females that hatched last year and have not yet established a nesting territory, according to Itani. Its really wait and see, she said. nschoenberg@chicagotribune.com USS George Washington departed for South America before heading to its new homeport in Japan. It was deployed for the first time in nearly a decade to replace USS Ronald Reagan in Yokosuka. Nine sailors died by suicide while the ship underwent a major overhaul that took nearly six years. USS George Washington, the Nimitz-class nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, departed Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia last month for its new homeport in Japan. On April 25, the GW was deployed to participate in maritime exercises in the US Southern Command area of operations, marking the vessel's first deployment in nearly a decade after its midlife refueling. The GW is finally operational after an extended and troubled time going through a major overhaul. 'Team Warfighter is ready to go' The USS George Washington (CVN 73) departs Norfolk for a deployment to the US Southern Command. US Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Maxwell Orlosky The Washington is set to replace USS Ronald Reagan at the US Navy's naval base in Yokosuka as the service's only forward-deployed aircraft carrier. The Reagan is heading to the Bremerton shipyard in Washington for maintenance. "Team Warfighter is ready to go," Capt. Tim Waits, commanding officer of George Washington, said in a statement, "not only for the adventure that awaits in South America but ready to serve as the nation's forward-deployed naval forces carrier in Yokosuka." Southern Seas 2024 Destroyer USS Porter (DDG 78) conducts a replenishment-at-sea with USS George Washington in the Atlantic Ocean. US Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Nicholas A. Russell Along with the Washington, guided-missile destroyer USS Porter and replenishment oiler USNS John Lenthall are scheduled to conduct exercises and operations at sea with other allied maritime forces in South America for Southern Seas 2024. Fourth US Navy ship named after the first US president An F-35C Lightning II prepares for takeoff on the George Washington (CVN 73). US Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class August Clawson Built by Huntington Ingalls Industries' Newport News Shipbuilding, the GW is the Navy's sixth Nimitz-class aircraft carrier and the fourth vessel to bear the name of the first US president. The 1,092-foot-long steel vessel accommodates more than 6,000 crewmembers. The Washington can carry up to 90 fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft, including F-35 Lightning and F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jets. Armed seagoing airbase A gunner's mate aboard USS George Washington (CVN 73) fires an MK-38 25mm gun mount. US Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Wadelon Presley In addition to its primary purpose as a seagoing airbase, the vessel is also equipped with a 20mm radar-guided air-defense gun, a Sea Sparrow surface-to-air missile launcher, and two RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missile launchers. First nuclear-powered warship permanently stationed outside the US A front view of the USS George Washington with sailors manning the rails. US Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Maxwell Orlosky Since its commission in 1992, the GW has played key roles in several operations over the last three decades. The ship was deployed to provide air support to New York City following the 9/11 attacks and later to the Mediterranean Sea and the Persian Gulf as part of the US campaign against terrorism. In 2008, it replaced the first-in-class USS Kitty Hawk as the forward-deployed carrier at Yokosuka, becoming the first nuclear-powered surface warship to be permanently stationed outside the US. A troubled stay at the shipyard An aerial view of the flight deck of the USS George Washington during a swim call. US Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman August Clawson Last May, the Washington was redelivered to the Navy after a challenging nearly six years in the shipyard. In 2017, the ship began its midlife refueling and complex overhaul (RCOH) at Newport News Shipbuilding in Virginia, which normally takes four years to repair and upgrade nearly every system and space on the vessel. This includes the time-consuming tasks of removing the reactor's spent core and replacing it with one that has rods fresh with enriched uranium. The refitting process was delayed amid supply chain issues and staffing shortages brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as other higher-priority shipbuilding projects taking precedence over the Washington's maintenance. An unprecedented streak of suicides Sailors participate in saltwater washdown on the George Washington. US Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class August Clawson During the almost six-year-long maintenance period, an unprecedented string of suicides a number of whom were junior sailors occurred among the Washington's crew. Following several complaints from the crew and the deaths of three sailors by suicide within a week, the Navy launched a series of investigations into the quality of life aboard the carrier in April 2022. While the monthlong investigation concluded that the deaths were "not related or connected," it found it was a result of "unique and individualized" challenges they faced aboard the GW during the major overhaul. Months turn into years Sailors and inspectors observe saltwater washdown on the GW's flight deck. US Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class August Clawson Investigators found Navy leadership failed to address uninhabitable living conditions for sailors who moved back aboard the ship prematurely due to housing shortages at the shipyard. A crew usually returns to reside on their assigned ship within six to nine months before it is redelivered to the Navy. When sailors moved back aboard the Washington, the expected redelivery was August 2022, but shipyard delays led to crews living aboard the ship for nearly two years. Crewmembers assigned to vessels in the shipyard reside in Huntington Hall, a 149-unit residence building operated by HII. The Navy spends more than $4 million to provide housing for eligible personnel. Uninhabitable living conditions Sailors raise the crash barrier on the GW's flight deck. US Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Keith Knisely But as shipbuilding and repair projects at Newport News piled up, so did the number of crew who needed accommodation. Lower-ranking sailors who were not given a basic housing allowance to help pay for off-base apartments were forced to live aboard the ship before it was ready, lacking hot water and privacy, facing power outages, and enduring unbearable temperatures. One of the Navy's investigations found that sailors who weren't living aboard the ship resorted to sleeping in their cars or paying for rent in the Norfolk area. Some sailors faced complicated commutes lasting up to three hours, involving unpredictable traffic, catching shuttle buses, and mile-long walks. "Collectively, Navy senior leadership, officer and civilian, let our standards slip and in doing so, we let our people down," Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro and then-Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Michael Gilday in a memo. 'Reduced quality of life in the shipyard' The air traffic control center on the GW. US Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class August Clawson Surveys conducted while the vessel was in the shipyard found that the crew had the highest number of suicidal ideation and suicide attempts compared to all aircraft carriers on the East Coast from 2017 to 2019. Despite a sharp rise in "awareness of suicidal ideations" while the Washington underwent the overhaul, the Navy's report found that leadership missed the warning signs. "It is safe to say that generations of Navy leaders had become accustomed to the reduced quality of life in the shipyard and accepted the status quo as par for the course for shipyard life," Rear Adm. John Meier, now-retired commander of Naval Air Force Atlantic, said in an October 2022 investigation report . "As senior sailors, it is easy to forget our Navy life in the beginning." The ship's assigned officers receive housing allowances and typically only stay aboard the ship for duty or overnight maintenance projects. 'Shipyard environment is always a challenge' An E-2C Hawkeye descends on an aircraft elevator on the GW. US Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Max Biesecker According to USNI News, of the 42 sailors assigned to aircraft carriers who died by suicide from 2017 to 2022, nine of them were assigned to the GW. Cmdr. Dawn Stankus, a spokesperson for Naval Air Force Atlantic, told Military.com that the "shipyard environment is always a challenge." "When you're in a shipyard, you don't necessarily get to do what you signed up to do in the military," Stankus added. A 2023 Pentagon report found that the Navy had a suicide rate of 20.6 deaths per 100,000 sailors the highest in four years. More mental health resources Sailors depart for small boat operations in a rigid-hull inflatable boat assigned to the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73). US Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Wadelon Presley The Navy is taking strides to improve the quality of life for sailors aboard the Washington. Kellylynn Zuni, the GW's clinical psychologist, told Health News Florida that the permanent mental health staff on the ship has doubled, allowing them to see any sailor who needs immediate help. The Navy is also creating a psychiatrist intervention team to provide mental health care in emergencies. In February, the ship also opened a new rest and recreation area for sailors that includes a library, TV, videogames, computers, and phones to stay in contact with their families. "The underlying theory there is by improving quality of service which is the combined effort of quality of life and quality of work we believe that that reduction in friction in a sailor's life will be one less thing in their rucksack if you will," Adm. Daryl Caudle, commander of Fleet Forces, told USNI News in October. Caudle continued: "But the premise is if I can lower that stress and lower what's on sailors by making their quality of life and quality of work more efficient, more effective, more desirable, then the propensity to actually think about completing suicide will not be on the table." If you or someone you know is experiencing depression or has had thoughts of harming themself or taking their own life, get help. In the US, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline , which provides 24/7, free, confidential support for people in distress, as well as best practices for professionals and resources to aid in prevention and crisis situations. Help is also available through the Crisis Text Line just text "HOME" to 741741. The International Association for Suicide Prevention offers resources for those outside the US. Read the original article on Business Insider United States Sen. Bob Menendez is set to go on trial starting Monday in his federal bribery case. The New Jersey Democrat is accused of accepting cash, gold bars, luxury wristwatches and other perks from New Jersey businessmen in exchange for official favors to benefit the businessmen and the governments of Egypt and Qatar. He is the first sitting member of Congress to be charged with conspiracy by a public official to act as a foreign agent. Menendez, 70, has denied all wrongdoing and called the prosecution "overzealous." Here's what to know about the case. MORE: Judge declines to dismiss charges against Sen. Bob Menendez in bribery case Menendez indicted on bribery, extortion and more A federal grand jury in New York returned a sweeping indictment against Menendez in September 2023 that accused him and his wife, Nadine Menendez, of having a corrupt relationship with three New Jersey businessmen. The indictment on bribery and extortion charges alleged that he and his wife accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes from Wael Hana, Jose Uribe and Fred Daides between 2018 and 2022 in exchange for using the senator's power and influence to seek to protect and enrich the businessmen and benefit the government of Egypt. PHOTO: Senator Bob Menendez of New Jersey arrives at the Manhattan Federal Court, in New York City, May 13, 2024. (Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images) In June 2022, federal agents searched Menendez's New Jersey home and found "fruits" of the pair's "corrupt bribery agreement" with the three businessmen, according to the indictment. Investigators found over $480,000 in cash, some stuffed in envelopes and hidden in clothing, as well as $70,000 in Nadine Menendez's safe deposit box, according to the indictment. Also found in the home were over $100,000 worth of gold bars, "provided by either Hana or Daibes," according to the indictment. In exchange for bribe payments, Menendez was meant to help lift a block on U.S. military aid to Egypt and "improperly advised and pressured" a U.S. agricultural official to protect an exclusive contract for Hana to be the exclusive purveyor of halal meat to Egypt, according to the indictment. The senator is also accused of seeking to disrupt criminal investigations into Uribe and Daibes. In October 2023, federal prosecutors filed a new charge against Menendez accusing him of violating a prohibition on members of Congress from acting as an agent of a foreign principal. The superseding indictment alleged that the senator "made multiple requests for the U.S. Department of Justice to commence an investigation against another person for allegedly failing to register under FARA [the Foreign Agents Registration Act]." A superseding indictment filed in January accused Menendez of making positive comments about Qatar in exchange for items of value, including luxury wristwatches valued between $10,000 and $24,000. PHOTO: Wael Hana, left, Sen. Bob Menendez, center, and Fred Daibes, sit in Manhattan federal court with Judge Sidney H. Stein presiding during jury selection, May 13, 2024, in New York City. (Candace E. Eaton/AP) Another superseding indictment filed in March charged Menendez and his wife with new counts of conspiracy to obstruct justice and obstruction of justice related to their alleged attempts to cover up the bribe payments when the couple learned of the federal investigation in 2022. The pair allegedly instructed their attorneys at the time to tell federal investigators they thought a mortgage payment on Nadine Menendezs house and a payment for her Mercedes-Benz were loans when, in fact, prosecutors said they knew the payments were bribes. With the latest superseding indictment, Menendez faces 16 total charges in the case while his wife faces 15. Both have pleaded not guilty. Menendez: 'I intend to prove my innocence' Menendez has vehemently denied any wrongdoing in the months following the initial indictment. "I'm innocent -- and I intend to prove my innocence, not just for me, but for the precedent this case will set for you and future members of the Senate," Menendez said on the Senate floor in January. He complained bitterly about federal prosecutors filing multiple superseding indictments, saying it "allows the government to keep the sensational story in the press. It poisons the jury pool and it seeks to convict me in the court of public opinion." He also said that "prosecutors sometimes shoot first before they even know all the facts." "The government seeks to use baseless conjecture, not facts, to create the connective tissue to substantiate the allegations," Menedez said. "They show a picture of watches but not proof of receiving any such gifts." Menendez has said the wads of cash found in his jacket, his closet and in other parts of his home were the results of legitimate withdrawals he makes from his savings account, what he likened to "old fashioned" paranoia of the son of a Cuban immigrant worried about confiscation. Following the most recent indictment in March, Menendez denied all wrongdoing and called the prosecution "overzealous" and the superseding indictment "a flagrant abuse of power." "The government has long known that I learned of and helped repay loans -- not bribes -- that had been provided to my wife," the statement said. PHOTO: Senator Bob Menendez and his wife Nadine Arslanian leave US District Court, Southern District of New York after their arraignment in New York City, Sept. 27, 2023. (Timothy A. Clary/AFP via Getty Images) Menendez and wife to be tried separately Menendez and his wife are being tried separately due to Nadine Menendezs undisclosed medical condition. Her trial is scheduled to start on July 8. An attorney representing Menendez's wife previously told ABC News that she "denies any wrongdoing and will vigorously defend against these allegations in court." Menendez may seek to blame his wife when he stands trial, according to a court document unsealed last month. The potential line of defense was filed secretly earlier this year, before the judge ruled in April that Menendez and his wife would be tried separately. Defense attorneys said Menendez could take the stand in his own defense and implicate his wife by suggesting she kept information from him and he was unaware of her allegedly illegal activities, according to the filing. MORE: Sen. Bob Menendez may blame wife in federal corruption trial, court filing shows Co-defendant pleads guilty One of the three businessmen charged in the case has since pleaded guilty. Uribe agreed to cooperate as part of his plea and to "truthfully and completely disclose all information with respect to the activities of himself and others," according to court records filed in March. Uribe pleaded guilty to seven counts including bribery, conspiracy and obstruction. He admitted to giving the luxury car to Nadine Menendez in exchange for the senator's help, prosecutors said. PHOTO: Senator Bob Menendez of New Jersey arrives at the Manhattan Federal Court, in New York City, May 13, 2024. (Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images) The recent obstruction accusations in the superseding indictment filed in March appear to result from this guilty plea. The other two businessmen charged in the case have pleaded not guilty to their respective charges and are also set to go on trial in Manhattan federal court along with Menendez. Menendez does not resign Menendez has served as senator for New Jersey since 2006. He stepped down as the chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee following the initial indictment in September 2023 though has refused to resign despite calls to do so from a majority of his Democratic Senate colleagues. In March, Menendez announced that will not seek another term as a Democrat but he left open the possibility of running in November as an independent. "I will not file for the Democratic primary this June," he said in a video statement. "I am hopeful that my exoneration will take place this summer and allow me to pursue my candidacy as an independent Democrat in the general election." MORE: Sen. Bob Menendez not running for another term as Democrat, suggests he could go independent Prior corruption case ended in mistrial This is the second time the senator has been charged with corruption. A 2015 indictment ended in a mistrial in 2018 after a jury failed to reach a verdict on all counts and a judge acquitted him on some charges. The previous charges against Menendez centered on his relationship with Florida eye doctor Salomon Melgen, a close ally of the senator. Menendez allegedly accepted gifts from Melgen in exchange for using the power of his senate office to benefit the doctor's financial and personal interests. Sen. Bob Menendez bribery case: What to know as trial starts originally appeared on abcnews.go.com Sen. Bob Menendez and two co-defendants are scheduled to stand trial beginning Monday, May 13, 2024, on corruption charges in Manhattan. (Michael M. Santiago | Getty Images) The federal corruption trial of Sen. Bob Menendez will begin Monday morning in a Manhattan courtroom, where prosecutors will seek to prove New Jerseys senior senator took bribes of gold bars, cash, a luxury car, and more in exchange for his influence to aid several businessmen and the governments of Egypt and Qatar. The trial comes in the wake of a string of U.S. Supreme Court rulings that have made it tougher for prosecutors to prove public corruption and for those rare indictments to stick. But it also takes place in a jurisdiction where federal prosecutors have been among the most successful in the nation in securing official corruption convictions. That makes the outcome of the case a total toss-up, said Thea Johnson, a professor of law at Rutgers Law School in Camden and a former defense attorney. The government is saying that this was a bribery scheme where there was a very direct trade of cash, gold bars, a car, and a no-show job for his wife in exchange for pretty significant favors that only a senator could achieve they seem to be pretty clear quid pro quo bribery payments, Johnson said. Still, this is a jury trial. And the truth of the matter is that juries are always an open question. Matthew Hale, a political science and public affairs professor at Seton Hall University, seconded that sentiment. You can never count on how the 12 people in the courtroom, who will sit down and hear the totality the argument, will decide, Hale said. First, some background Federal prosecutors in New York first indicted Menendez, a three-term Democratic senator, in September. They charged him then and in several subsequent superseding indictments with bribery, extortion, honest services wire fraud, obstruction of justice, conspiracy, and acting as a foreign agent for offenses they say occurred between 2018 and last year. Two businessmen, Wael Hana and Fred Daibes, will stand trial with Menendez, who helmed the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee until he stepped down shortly after his indictment. Hana is an Egyptian immigrant who prosecutors say bribed the senator with gold bars and cash and gave his wife Nadine a no-show job at his halal meat company in order to steer military aid and arms to Egypt, secure information about staffing at the U.S. Embassy in Cairo to share with Egyptian officials, and otherwise help the Egyptian government. Daibes is a real estate developer and bank founder in Edgewater accused of bribing Menendez with gold bars and cash to interfere in a federal bank fraud case he faced and to publicly support the Qatari government so that a Qatari investment company would invest in one of Daibes properties. Prosecutors say Nadine Menendez acted as intermediary in many of the schemes and charged her too, but Judge Sidney H. Stein postponed her trial to July as she deals with an undisclosed medical crisis. A third businessman, Jose Uribe of Clifton, is accused of giving Nadine Menendez cash for a new Mercedes-Benz convertible to replace one she wrecked when she hit and killed a pedestrian. Uribe, a former insurance broker whos accused of asking the senator to intervene in an insurance fraud probe, pleaded guilty in March and is expected to testify against his co-defendants. One should be nervous when the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Southern District of New York comes after you. Thea Johnson, a professor of law at Rutgers Law School in Camden Attorneys have said they expect the trial before Stein at the Daniel Patrick Moynihan federal courthouse will last at least six weeks. This is Menendezs second fight against bribery charges in less than a decade his 2017 trial on allegations he traded favors for campaign donations and extravagant trips ended in a mistrial after the jury deadlocked. Public corruption tougher to prove Convictions for official corruption arent common theres only one for every million people in the U.S. and theyve steadily dropped over the past two decades, federal data shows. Susan B. Long tracks such convictions nationally as co-founder and co-director of the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, a nonpartisan, nonprofit research center affiliated with Syracuse University. Official corruption prosecutions and convictions have been declining long-term. But thats not necessarily because theres less official corruption going on, Long said. Such convictions fell by half since 2003, when there were more than 600 nationally, to just over 300 last year, with a two-decade low of about 250 in 2020 at the height of pandemic-driven government shutdowns, the center found. Twice as many local public officials were convicted last year as either state or federal officials, data shows. Multiple factors could be fueling the decline, including the strength of evidence, under-funded prosecutors, well-resourced defendants, and outside challenges prosecutors face in securing convictions, Long said. One of those outside challenges in recent years has been the U.S. Supreme Court, which has set precedents, by overturning several corruption convictions, that observers say make such cases tougher to prosecute. In 2016, the court unanimously overturned former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnells 2014 corruption conviction, saying that while his acceptance of $175,000 in gifts from a businessman was distasteful, prosecutors too broadly interpreted both the federal bribery statute and what constitutes government favors and official acts. Closer to home, the U.S. Supreme Court in 2020 tossed the convictions of two Christie administration aides in the Bridgegate scandal, saying they didnt violate federal fraud laws because their goal wasnt to get money or property. And last year, the justices overturned the fraud conviction of former Gov. Andrew Cuomos manager Joseph Percoco, faulting a judges instructions to jurors as too vague. Attorney Jonathan Kravis is a former federal prosecutor who served as deputy chief of the fraud and public corruption section of the U.S. Attorneys Office in Washington, D.C. He now works at the D.C.-based firm Munger, Tolles & Olson. The theme underlying these cases is that the courts are very concerned about the possibility that expansive interpretation of the federal criminal public corruption statutes will end up chilling or even criminalizing politics as usual, Kravis said. The reality is we have a campaign finance system where campaigns are largely funded through private contributions from people who have views that are like-minded with the candidates theyre supporting and they expect that theyll be giving contributions to people who will advance their interests. In that kind of system, how do you avoid the possibility of federal criminal statutes chilling protected activity, chilling the day-to-day work of our political system? While jurors might fixate on the gold bars and other riches investigators found in the Menendezes Englewood Cliffs home, the case more likely will hinge on what acts prosecutors can prove Menendez did, Kravis said. It doesnt matter if it was hundreds of thousands of dollars in payments or just a few thousand, he said. From a legal perspective, if youre thinking about whether the conduct is a crime, whats going to matter far more is what the government can show about whats on the other side of the equation the senators conduct, and whether the conduct constitutes an official act or violation of official duty, and whether the government can show that there was a corrupt quid pro quo exchange of one for the other. How the trial may unfold Jury selection is expected to begin Monday. Menendez and his co-defendants arguably are in the worst jurisdiction if they hope to walk free. Longs center found that the Southern District of New York, where theyre being prosecuted, secured more official corruption convictions than any other federal jurisdiction nationally last year, with 24. They tend to take big swings. Theyre not afraid of taking major cases to trial. Theyre not afraid of indicting famous people, indicting people with power. And so one should be nervous when the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Southern District of New York comes after you, Johnson said. Still, Menendez scored an early victory when Stein agreed to separate his trial from his wifes, because it eliminated the possible scenario of jurors hearing spouses testify against each other at the same trial, Kravis said. Severing the trials also made it likelier that the senator would take the stand, he added. Unlike many other criminal defendants, public officials are good public speakers. Theyre charismatic; like they got to this point in their careers for a reason. And so they can be more influential as witnesses in front of juries than defendants who have not made their careers out of talking to crowds and making connections with people, Kravis said. If he testifies, then I think that will probably be the pivotal moment in the trial. Public corruption trials often come down to corrupt intent, and Kravis predicted Menendezs legal team will deny any nefarious intent. Court filings show that the defense team might try to explain away the cash-stuffed pockets of Menendezs jackets and other riches investigators found in his home as an intergenerational trauma response rooted in the senators experience as a Cuban refugee and fears of government seizures. Defense attorneys also have hinted that the senator might blame his wife for his legal predicament and say she withheld information about the nature of the meetings she arranged. Johnson thinks thats a bad strategy. This is a 70-year-old sitting senator. Its his responsibility to do his due diligence. Its his responsibility to make sure particularly given prior allegations against him that he is only engaged in absolutely up-and-up behavior, that he is holding himself to the highest standards of integrity, Johnson said. I am not sure that I would think, if I were his defense attorney, that it would be a particularly fruitful argument to say, Oh, I was misled by my wife. We expect our senators to be thoughtful, to be smart, and not misled by people around them. The post Sen. Bob Menendezs corruption trial begins Monday in Manhattan appeared first on New Jersey Monitor. WASHINGTON, D.C. (WAVY) U.S. Senator Tim Kaine cosponsored legislation to extend the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), a Bipartisan Infrastructure Law program to lower internet costs. Warner touts broadband funding to help rural communities The ACP was able to provide a discount of up to $30 per month for low-income families, and up to $75 per month for households on tribal lands. Funding for the ACP expired in April of 2024. Kaine had repeatedly urged congress to extend ACP funding. Letter to support expansion of internet access for students joined by Warner and Kaine Access to high-speed internet is a necessity. I was proud that we took steps to make internet more affordable for millions of families as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Kaine said. But these families were cut off from this crucial support when funding for the program expired earlier this year, which is why Im joining this effort to renew it. Ill keep working to close the digital divide and expand broadband access in Virginia. According to a press release, the ACP Extension Act would provide an additional $7 billion toward the ACP. To read the full text of the legislation for the Affordable Connectivity Program Extension Act, click the link here. Check with WAVY.com for more updates. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WAVY.com. Sen. Michael Garrett (Photo: NCGA) Republican legislative leaders are moving swiftly to dramatically expand the states controversial private school voucher program. A bill quickly advancing will appropriate nearly $500 million new dollars to thousands of middle- and upper-income families to help cover the cost of private school tuition. Not surprisingly, the plan has drawn sharp criticism for Democratic lawmakers who are angered at the idea of appropriating such huge sums to aid well-off private schools and families of means at the same time public schools and the states childcare system are suffering mightily. The voucher debate also comes as North Carolina is facing a childcare cliff in June, that could see many centers close their doors or be forced to raise prices dramatically for working parents. One lawmaker whos been especially thoughtful on both issues is Guilford County state Senator Michael Garrett, and last week, NC Newsline caught up with him in his Raleigh office. The post Sen. Michael Garrett on why the childcare cliff (not vouchers) should be NCs top priority appeared first on NC Newsline. MANHATTAN (KSNT) Police in Manhattan are getting a quarter of a million dollars to go towards improvements to their investigations lab. The Riley County Police Department (RCPD) announced in a press release that Kansas Senator Jerry Moran visited the Law Enforcement Center on May 13 to tour the Crime Scene Investigation Lab. During the visit, Moran found a need for upgrades to the working conditions of personnel and evidence preservation. Moran signed off on $250,000 to go towards helping the RCPD improve these areas of their lab. The RCPD say they appreciate the monetary assistance as well as the morale boost that came with Morans visit. What happened to these Kansas counties and why do they no longer exist? For more Kansas news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here. Follow Matthew Self on X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/MatthewLeoSelf For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KSNT 27 News. Florida U.S. Sen. Rick Scott at Ascend Engineering in Largo on May 13, 2024 (Photo credit: Mitch Perry) Quality Journalism for Critical Times U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, who is campaigning for reelection and bringing up his past in the 1990s, repeated on Monday that he was unfairly singled out by former President Bill Clintons Justice Department when he was the CEO of Columbia/Hospital Corporation of America (HCA). The hospital chain was fined $1.7 billion in Medicare for fraud, which at the time was the largest health care fraud settlement in U.S. history. Speaking to reporters in Pinellas County following an event with small businesses, Scott said Monday that the federal government is unfairly going after Donald Trump, saying, I can relate to this. I went through this I was the lead opponent of HillaryCare. HillaryCare was a government takeover of health care. I completely opposed it. I was in the hospital business at the time. She used the the Clinton Justice Department went after me. Now, I think it was wrong, and Ive watched this happen to businesses. Also, Thats not the way this country should operate, Scott said. This country you should not be worried about your government. So Im very appreciative that [Former President Donald] Trump has been able to stand up for what he believes. Hes fighting for our Constitution. Im going to continue to support him, but this idea of using the court systems, your federal government using your court system to go after political opponents is wrong. A reporter for the Phoenix then followed up, asking whether the senator was saying that he and Columbia/HCA had been treated unfairly because of his criticism of the Clinton health care plan. Absolutely, Scott replied. HillaryCare was the derisive term used by Republicans to oppose the health care reform package proposed by the Bill Clinton administration in 1993. The former president had appointed First Lady Hillary Clinton to lead a task force charged with coming up with a new health care reform plan, but a year later the proposal died in the U.S. Senate. Columbia/HCA was the largest hospital company in the U.S. at the time, and Scott was a leading opponent of the reform plans. But in 1997, Scott resigned as CEO of Columbia/HCA following allegations of Medicare fraud. In 2000, Scott invoked the 5th Amendment 75 times in a deposition as part of a civil case involving his time leading the company. The company ultimately was fined $1.7 billion, according to PolitiFact. The issue has been raised by Democrats to hurt Scotts candidacies in all three previous statewide races that hes been engaged in Florida, none of which he has won by more than 1.2 percentage points (that was in 2010, his first run for governor against Alex Sink). In 2018, he defeated Democratic Senate incumbent Bill Nelson by just a little more than 10,000 votes out of more than 8.1 million cast. In a 2014 gubernatorial debate broadcast on CNN, moderator Jake Tapper asked Scott about a previous comment that he took responsibility for the $1.7 billion Medicare fraud fine. Tapper asked: what was he taking responsibility for? I could have hired more auditors, Scott said at the time. One reason perhaps why Scott isnt concerned about bringing up the issue now is that he is in much better political position currently with nearly six months to go before the election compared to his previous campaigns. Recent polls show him with a comfortable, double-digit lead over his likely Democratic Senate opponent in the fall former U.S. Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell. Scott is up 15 points (54%-39%) in a Florida Chamber of Commerce poll published last week. A USA TODAY/Ipsos survey published last month had him by 10 points over his Democratic opponent (36%-26%), with 74% of those surveyed admitting that they had never heard of the Democratic candidate. Those large leads are in part because for the first time since hes run for statewide office, Republicans now outrank Democrats in voter registration. The GOP now has nearly a 900,000 voter-registration lead over Democrats, according to the most recent statistics posted by the states Division of Elections. Scott was at Ascend Engineering in Largo on Monday, where he launched his Small Businesses for Rick Scott effort. He was joined by dozens of local small business owners and received formal endorsements from the upper crust of the Florida business establishment, including Mark Wilson from the Florida Chamber of Commerce, Scott Shalley from the Florida Retail Federation, Walter Carpenter from the National Federation of Independent Businesses in Florida, and Adam Basford, the VP of governmental affairs for Associated Industries of Florida. Scott says that the Biden administrations Justice Department is persecuting Trump, when in fact it is the District Attorney of Manhattan, Alvin Bragg, who is prosecuting the case. But Scott maintains that because one of the prosecutors in Braggs office was previously a senior official at the U.S. Justice Department, there is a link. The post Sen. Rick Scott again maintains that Clinton DOJ went after me when he led his hospital chain appeared first on Florida Phoenix. TASHKENT, Uzbekistan, May 13. Chinese Hunan Industrial Equipment Installation Co., Ltd. may construct a toll road with a length of 171 kilometers in Uzbekistan, Trend reports. The matter was reviewed at a meeting between governor of Surkhandarya region Ulugbek Kasimov and the delegation of Chinese Hunan Industrial Equipment Installation Co., Ltd. The sides discussed the project of construction of a toll road with a length of 171 kilometers with all modern conditions and amenities parallel to the highway M41 Bishkek-Dushanbe-Termiz. During the meeting, both parties noted the environmental and economic aspects of road construction, in particular, the issues of minimizing the displacement of settlements and trees, as well as minimizing the impact of the project on nature. The participants decided to work together to improve the project with the involvement of experts. Meanwhile, Sojitz (a Japanese company) and Ronesans (a Turkish company) plan on participating in projects on the construction of toll roads in Uzbekistan. The sides discussed the matter of cooperation in the implementation of public-private partnership (PPP) projects in the transport sector. Senior prank at DeLand High School went too far, district officials say As the end of another school nears in Central Florida, senior pranks on campus are not uncommon. But district officials didnt find some of the actions at DeLand High School early Monday very funny. Volusia County Schools told Channel 9 that walls on campus were spray painted. READ: Survey: 60% of teachers are afraid to go to school Just before 3:30 a.m., a Deland police officer came across the damage after spotting multiple students on campus. Police then handed the matter over to the school district. VCS said students who were found in violation of the student code of conduct are being disciplined accordingly. READ: Eight suspects arrested for grand theft at Welcome to Rockville, deputies say The district also said there was no permanent damage to campus property and all the spray paint has since been cleaned up. There were no disruptions to Mondays class schedules at DeLand High School, officials said. Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live. BELGRADE (Reuters) - Serbian Prime Minister Milos Vucevic expressed support for Ukraine in its war against Russia after meeting Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba on Monday, but stopped short of committing to sanctions against Moscow. Serbia has repeatedly condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, but its refusal to join international sanctions has soured relations with Kyiv. Kuleba's two-day visit to Belgrade with first lady Olena Zelenska is his first trip to Serbia since the war started. "Serbia is committed to respecting international law and the territorial integrity of United Nations member states, including Ukraine ... We are open to friendly discussions on all issues and at all levels," Vucevic said in a statement. Serbia's populist president, Aleksandar Vucic, is trying to strike a balance between the country's candidacy for the European Union and traditional ties with Russia and China. Support for Russia is strong among the Serbian population, the result of historical religious, political and military links. Pro-Russian content is widely circulated on social media. Belgrade recognises Ukraine in its entirety, including territories occupied by Russian forces, while Kyiv refuses to recognise the independence of Kosovo, which declared independence from Serbia in 2008. Since 2022, Serbia has accepted Ukrainian refugees, sent humanitarian aid to Ukraine and pledged help with its post-war rebuilding effort. At a mental health conference in Belgrade, Zelenska said as many as 77% of Ukrainians feel mental stress because of the war. "Our job is to provide a generation of winners, not only on the battlefield ... , but also on the battlefield for our own mental well-being," she said at the event she co-hosted with Serbia's first lady, Tamara Vucic. (Reporting by Aleksandar Vasovic; Editing by Ros Russell) Serbian President says country's ambassador will soon return to Kyiv Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has met with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba in Belgrade. Photo: Vucic on Instagram Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has met with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba in Belgrade. Source: Vucic on Instagram, as reported by European Pravda Details: Following the meeting, the chief of state said that Serbia's ambassador would shortly return to his post in Kyiv. Quote: "We discussed and agreed on improving bilateral relations, with a special desire to organise an economic forum between businessmen of the two countries in the near future," Vucic added. He said they also talked about the path of both countries to membership in the European Union and the urgent need for peace in Ukraine. "I also pointed out to Minister Kuleba the problems Serbia faces, especially at the international level," the Serbian President pointed out, without specifying what exactly it was about. The Serbian Embassy in Ukraine has been temporarily closed due to security concerns since March 2022. Serbian Prime Minister Milos Vucevic met with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and expressed his support for Ukraine's territorial integrity. The Ukrainian Foreign Minister also met with his Serbian counterpart, Marko uric. Media report that Ukraine's first lady, Olena Zelenska, and Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba arrived in Belgrade on Sunday, marking the first visit by a Ukrainian high-ranking official to Serbia since the beginning of Russia's full-scale war. Serbia, Russia's Balkan ally, has frequently condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine at the UN and other international forums, but has refused to support international sanctions against the Kremlin. Serbian President Vucic has met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy three times since 2022, most recently in Tirana for the Ukraine-Balkans conference in February. Vucic insisted on omitting references of sanctions against Russia from the summit's final resolution. Support UP or become our patron! When Jarvis Provitt started the HateLess Foundation in 2016, resources were extremely limited. He had no investors or grant funding, no network of volunteers or board members to lean on. HateLess was just himself and a handful of his friends walking around Montgomery on foot, looking for ways to help. These missions ranged from free yard work to cooking dinner for a hungry family, and in Provitts mind, each one was a small way to show love to a neighbor in need. I'm always saying that God, Jeremiah 29:11 is real: He has a plan, and that's his plan, Provitt said. "My plan was very small, but his plan was something that blew my mind." In the last eight years, the nonprofit has grown exponentially. HateLess established a headquarters in Atlanta, founded branches in seven other countries and expanded into investments like agriculture and a bottled water company. With all the growth came some restructuring as well. This year, Provitt divided HateLess into two halves: the nonprofit HateLess Foundation and the for-profit HateLess Industries. Both work to support the mission of feeding, clothing and educating every community. Jarvis Provitt, of Hateless Industries, is shown in Montgomery, Ala., on Wednesday April 24, 2024. Expanding into Africa The idea of spreading HateLess beyond Montgomery was one that Provitt kept in mind early on, but the challenge was that he couldnt really identify the nuanced problems of any community other than his own. He grew up here, so he knew what Montgomery needed. He could pinpoint who needed support because he was keenly attuned to his citys pulse. To replicate the service initiative in other communities, he needed to find the leaders who lived there the ones who understood their towns the same way Provitt understood his. He found nonprofits that he respected in a number of different countries, and he reached out to their directors and founders to see who wanted to work with him. Thats how he ended up with HateLess branches in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Ghana, Malawi, Zimbabwe and Zambia. In each place, Provitt found local leaders, asked them what problems they wanted to fix and found the support to do just that. Efforts in Africa began around 2019 with the launch of HateLess Liberia. There, the immediate focus was on providing food and clothes for children. 2020 brought on the headquarters move to Atlanta, and in 2021, HateLess expanded into Sierra Leone. In 2022, two branches in separate parts of Zimbabwe sprung up. Area directors Believe Tasara and Nobetter Ndaira said they help pay for kids' school fees, provide school supplies, advocate against child marriage and educate the community to prevent teenage pregnancies. They also work to make sure hunger doesnt keep any kid away from receiving an education by offering meals to kids who need them. We thank God for HateLess, Ndaira said. We hope we can continue to shine this light. A group of children in Africa smile after participating in HateLess programming. Investing in Malawi Separate from the HateLess Foundations community service work in Malawi, Provitt also hopes to make some money there with HateLess Industries. Through a subsidiary named Promise Land Investors Group, he purchased a 16-acre farm and has employed two people to run it. Not only does he expect the land to appreciate in value, but HateLess Industries is also selling crops Malawi is known for, like maize. The farm had its first harvest in April. Half of the harvest we designated to pay back some expenses which we incurred along the way, and some of the harvest was given to the villagers around where the farm is situated, HateLess International Director Innocent Chando said. We always plan to give back to the community. Chando also operates his own nonprofit to provide shoes to kids who need them in his country. Provitt said he sees so much value in places in Africa because theyre still developing, and he wants to be part of those efforts. It's developing at a rate that is very vast and very fast," Provitt said. "By 2040, it's going to be a whole other ball game over there. The HateLess farm in Malawi saw its first harvest this spring. Reaching Montgomerys kids The core of HateLess is still where it all began, with the people in Montgomery, Alabama. "People don't mean to, but they'll try to put you in a box. Just because people see me posting about Atlanta and Zimbabwe and these places, that doesn't mean the programs aren't still going on in Montgomery as well," Provitt said. "We're still feeding kids. We're still speaking life into kids in this area. That's still going on. It's just that God has allowed us to grow." Around the time Provitt moved the headquarters to Atlanta and began his investment group, he approached his lifelong friend and longtime HateLess volunteer Darrius Matthews to ask a simple question: Do you want to run Hateless Montgomery? After giving it some thought, Matthews said yes, and he became Montgomerys area director in 2023. Darrius Matthews and Jarvis Provitt at the former Hateless Headquarters at McIntyre Community Center in Montgomery, Ala., on Monday, Feb. 1, 2021 In addition to quarterly events to feed the hungry, he also leads volunteers in regular visits to the Montgomery County Youth Detention Facility on Air Base Boulevard. There, they talk to the children and try their best to show them some hope. It might be planning goals for when they get out, Matthews said. Just giving them little life lessons to help build so they won't be in the same situation, so they won't keep repeating the same stuff that they were doing before. We don't let them become a product of their environment. Recently, a teenage boy whom Matthews had met in the facility approached him at the grocery store. He got released a few weeks prior and was taking Matthews advice: going to school and hanging out with people who wanted to do good in the world. If I wasnt from Montgomery, and I hadnt seen some of the stuff that goes on here, it would be a lot harder for me to talk to these kids, Matthews said. It is hard growing up in Montgomery, especially if you dont have anybody to help you out. Where Hateless is going next Provitt has so many ideas for the future of HateLess that it can be hard for him to focus on just one. The Promise Land Investors Group is vetting other potential land purchases across the globe. Solve The Problem Roofing is always finding more roofs to repair across Montgomery. The Drip water bottles are for sale in Cloverdales Vintage Cafe, and Provitt is looking for ways to further develop the brand. Beyond the business ventures, Provitt said any number of countries are possibilities for future HateLess branches. And every HateLess branch is preparing for a worldwide feeding day later this year where they aim to feed over 5,000 people worldwide on Nov. 7. Sometimes, he thinks back to the first vision of HateLess he had in 2016. It was the idea of a nonprofit that spread love across the globe by building little acts of kindness into something large-scale. Im here now, and myself back in 2016, what would I have told myself? Continue to believe. My faith got me here, Provitt said. Its everything that I saw. Hadley Hitson covers children's health, education and welfare for the Montgomery Advertiser. She can be reached at hhitson@gannett.com. To support her work, subscribe to the Advertiser. This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Love more, hate less: Montgomery-founded group expands internationally Several area police agencies are offering condolences to an Ohio police shot and killed over the weekend. >>RELATED: Suspect found dead, wanted for killing Ohio police officer As News Center 7 previously reported, Euclid Police Jacob Derbin was ambushed by a suspect after officers were called to reports of a disturbance Saturday evening. Dashawn Vaughn, identified as the suspect, shot Derbin. Medics transported the officer to the hospital where he died. Vaughn was found inside a home in Shaker Heights on Sunday. >>RELATED: Manhunt over for suspect who killed Ohio police officer during ambush The Huber Heights Police Department paid tribute to Officer Derbin on social media Sunday afternoon. The men and women of the Huber Heights Police Division extend their deepest condolences to the family of Euclid Officer Derbin who was killed in the line of duty (Saturday) night. AG Yost said it best how this was not only tragic but senseless especially as we begin National Police Week. >>PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Ohio police officer killed in ambush shooting identified; suspect still at large The Englewood Police Department also offered its condolences on social media on Sunday. Our deepest condolences to the Euclid Police Department and the family, friends, and colleagues of Officer Jacob Derbin. >>Suspect in Amazon facility shooting dead after encounter with Columbus police; 1 officer injured The Springboro Police Department also paid tribute Sunday night to Officer Derbin. AG Yost said it best how this was not only tragic but senseless especially as we begin National Police Week. The Springboro Police Department extends our deepest condolences to the family of Euclid Officer Derbin who was killed in the line of duty (Saturday) night. Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost released a statement on Sunday regarding the death of Officer Derbin before the suspect was found dead. The promise to protect is signed with the blood of our officers. The killer who ambushed Officer who ambushed Officer Derbin will be found and will receive the full measure of justice. It is a cruel irony that a mother lost her son on Mothers Day and that this murder happened just as we prepare to solemnize our fallen during Police Memorial Week. My heart burns with anger at this injustice, for the family of this young officer and the Euclid Police Department. AG Yost issued the following statement regarding the death of Euclid Police Officer Jacob Derbin who was killed on Saturday evening in the line of duty. pic.twitter.com/1CiSYcg0gD Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost (@OhioAG) May 12, 2024 This story will be updated when News Center 7 receives additional statements. The search for the remains of 17-year-old Baylee Carver from Albemarle continues to grow. PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Trying to process: Police, family search for remains of 17-year-old girl; suspect in custody On Sunday, officials with the Albemarle Police Department announced that more than 70 law enforcement members spent their Sunday searching Stanly, Cabarrus, and Rowan counties. Teams searched on foot and rode in ATVs and vehicles, covering 250 miles of roadway during Sundays search. Veteran crime reporter Glenn Counts spoke to her father, Justin Carver, who has been feverishly searching with family members and friends. He told Counts that, Joshua Biles, 20, who was arrested in connection with his daughters disappearance, says he cant remember where he left her body. APD says search parties also use drones, specially trained K9s, and GPS technologies to ensure all areas have been searched. Members of the Albemarle Police Department are using resources from the following agencies Albemarle Fire Department Badin Volunteer Fire Department Bethany Volunteer Fire Department Cabarrus County Emergency Services Cabarrus County Sheriffs Office Gold Hill Volunteer Fire Department Kannapolis Fire Department National Center for Exploited/Missing Children (NCMEC) New London Volunteer Fire Department North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (NCSBI) Rowan Rescue Salisbury Fire Department South Carolina Search and Rescue Stanly County Rescue Stanly County Sheriffs Office Anyone with information is asked to reach out to the Albemarle Police Department. This is a developing story; check back at wsoctv.com for updates. (WATCH BELOW: Trying to process: Police, family search for remains of 17-year-old girl; suspect in custody) Sgt. Hoosers family reminisces about his life at public viewing ahead of funeral SANTAQUIN, Utah (ABC4) Ahead of Mondays funeral, a public viewing for Sgt. Bill Hooser was held at Apple Valley Elementary School in Santaquin, Utah, from 4 p.m. until 8 p.m. on Sunday. At the viewing, ABC4.com heard from some of Sgt. Hoosers family members, including Randy and Jodie Hooser (Bills brother and sister-in-law), and Troy and Lynn Starley. Lynn is the sister of Bills wife, Kinda. Hes deeply missed already, Troy said. LEARN MORE: Utah prepares for funeral of Sgt. Hooser Heres what you should know Courtesy of KTVX/Sarah Murphy Courtesy of KTVX/Sarah Murphy Courtesy of KTVX/Sarah Murphy Courtesy of KTVX/Sarah Murphy Courtesy of KTVX/Sarah Murphy Courtesy of KTVX/Sarah Murphy Courtesy of KTVX/Sarah Murphy Sgt. Hoosers family members cried as they discussed what his loss meant to them, with Linda saying, This has been terrible for our family, our hearts have been shattered. However, the fallen officers family also smiled and laughed as they recounted fond memories of Sgt. Hooser. He made everyone in the room feel like they were the only one, Jodie said. Everyone knew how important they were to Bill. Several of those speaking echoed similar sentiments, saying Bill was bigger than life, a kind person and a family man. Sgt. Hoosers family said he loved to be outdoors, and Jodie said the things that made him a great police officer made him a great human as well. I think one of the words that we can all use to sum up Bill is passion,' Jodie said. He was passionate about everything that he did. Part of that passion, they said, was Sgt. Hooser treating his friends as if they were his family. The family members described the support from the community as unreal and overwhelming. We choose to remember the love that Bill put out in the world, Jodie said. The full video of the family speaking with ABC4.com can be viewed below. Who was Sgt. Bill Hooser? On May 5, Sgt. Bill Hooser was struck and killed by a semi-truck on I-15 after initiating a traffic stop. Sgt. Hooser was a Utah native with eight years of experience in law enforcement, starting off in New Mexicos San Juan County Sheriffs Office. He joined the Santaquin City Police Department in 2017 and was promoted to Sergeant in February 2024. Sgt. Hooser is survived by his spouse, two children and one grandchild. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC4 Utah. Shapiro says his administration is preparing to hire the next generation of state workers Secretary of Administration Neil Weaver speaks at an event where Gov. Josh Shapiro signed Executive Order 2024-01, establishing the Hire, Improve, Recruit, Empower (HIRE) Committee to expand opportunity for Pennsylvanians seeking a career in public service, continue to build a more competitive commonwealth workforce, and make state government the best place to work in the commonwealth on Monday, May 13, 2024. (Commonwealth Media Services photo) Anticipating the need to recruit and hire the next generation of Pennsylvania state employees, Gov. Josh Shapiro on Monday signed an executive order to ensure his and future administrations are able to attract skilled and experienced workers. Speaking at the first Commonwealth Job Fair at the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex, Shapiro noted that 24% of the workforce in state agencies under the governors office will become eligible to retire in the next five years. To help the state remain competitive in a challenging job market, Shapiro signed the executive order to ensure Pennsylvania state government is an attractive and fulfilling place to work, representative of Pennsylvania as a whole, and accessible to state residents. State government has about 600 open positions, Shapiro said. So whether youve just graduated at a recent commencement, or youre starting a new career, and youve been in the workforce for a while, but youre ready for a change, this is the place for you, Shapiro said. The order establishes the Hire, Improve, Recruit, Empower (HIRE) Committee to expand opportunities for Pennsylvanians seeking careers in public service. Chaired by Secretary of Administration Neil Weaver and other cabinet secretaries, the committee will work to strengthen the commonwealths recruitment, development and retention of high-performing employees, the administration said in a statement. Shapiro said the committee would also build on an earlier executive order that instructed state agencies to emphasize experience rather than requirements such as a college degree in hiring. The HIRE Committee will work with the administration and state agencies to: Develop a pilot program and financial incentives to recruit workers who speak languages other than English Build creative recruitment strategies for the states hardest-to-fill jobs. Establish mentorship and networking program for recently discharged veterans entering or returning to state jobs. Collaborate with the PA Reentry Council to promote pathways to state employment for recently incarcerated people Direct an accessibility study of the state Capitol Complex to improve mobility for people with disabilities Expand childcare options in state-owned buildings Expand the availability of menstrual products in state building restrooms Widen pathways to state employment for individuals with disabilities And give state employees notice that they can use sick leave to prioritize mental health Weaver noted that the nearly 18,000 employees eligible to retire in the next five years would take decades of experience and institutional knowledge with them. This means we need to do everything we can right now to attract the best and the brightest to public service to leave the Commonwealth into the future. When you get hired with the Commonwealth, you take the first step to opening the doors of opportunity, Weaver said. The post Shapiro says his administration is preparing to hire the next generation of state workers appeared first on Pennsylvania Capital-Star. Sharon Lubinski, first out LGBTQ+ U.S. marshal and Minneapolis police officer, has died at 71 Sharon Lubinski, the first out LGBTQ+ police officer in Minneapolis and first out U.S. marshal, has died at 71. Lubinski died April 19, according to an obituary posted by the Washburn-McCreavy funeral home. No cause of death was given. Lubinski, a native of Green Bay, Wis., began her law enforcement career with as a deputy for the Dane County Sheriffs Office in Wisconsin, the Star Tribune reports. She joined the Minneapolis Police Department in 1987. She rose through the ranks, becoming precinct commander, deputy chief of patrol, and assistant police chief. She came out as a lesbian to the department and the public in 1993. She told the Star Tribune at the time her decision was partly informed by the recent murders of gay men in Minneapolis and seeing how police and the gay community struggled to work together, the paper notes. If Im going to be a real person and if Im ever going to make real change as a cop, I have to do it as a lesbian cop, she told the Star Tribune in 1993. I can no longer justify keeping this to myself. Lubinski had a stellar reputation within the department. Everywhere she went she was well regarded by the troops, colleague Greg Hestness told the paper. When youre in a position where you are setting the tone and challenging stereotypes, to still be respected by the troops is a sign of a lot of leadership. She also "worked on issues of community concern with Indigenous, Somali, Hmong and African American communities," her obituary states. In 2009, President Barack Obama nominated her to be a U.S. marshal on the recommendation of Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota. The U.S. Marshals Services duties include providing security for federal courts, transporting federal prisoners, apprehending criminals, and seizing stolen assets. During my years as Hennepin County Attorney, I worked with Sharon Lubinski on an almost daily basis, said a statement from Klobuchar. I observed firsthand the strength of her character and the respect she commanded from people at every level of law enforcement and across our state. Because of this, I recommended Sharon be nominated to serve as the U.S. Marshal for the District of Minnesota. As U.S. Marshal, Sharon led a successful effort in the state to reduce violent crime and was instrumental in the manhunt to capture the murderer of Mendota Heights Police Officer Scott Patrick. Minnesota is a safer place because of Sharon. Sharon was also a trailblazer, Klobuchar continued. She was Minnesotas first female and our countrys first openly gay U.S. Marshal. She is an inspiration whose story and actions have encouraged more people from all backgrounds to serve. U.S. District Judge John Tunheim, who was chief judge when Lubinski was marshal, told the Star Tribune she was the most effective law enforcement partner with whom I have ever worked. She was the definition of outstanding leadership: encouraging, courageous, selfless, and a remarkable decision-maker, greatly respected by judges and deputy marshals alike, he said. Not only was she the best female law enforcement leader in America, she was simply one of the best law enforcement leaders in America, period. Lubinski retired in 2016. She was an avid fan of the Green Bay Packers and opera, and her hobbies included astronomy, birdwatching, and running. Her family recommends memorial donations to the International Crane Foundation in Baraboo, Wis. Survivors include her spouse of 38 years, Fran, and a brother and sister. A service will be held May 19 in Edina, Minn. Newest Restaurant Report Card | If you want the latest Shelby County restaurant scores sent directly to your inbox, sign up for it today on WREGs Newsletter here. Each week WREG is rounding up the highest and lowest scores from Shelby County restaurant inspections. Find more restaurant scores from Shelby County and other Tennessee counties here. Lowest Scores: Raw Girls 679 Adams (rear) Score: 74 Violations include: No paper towels, improper date marking, unlabeled containers of white substance under prep stations, back door left open, boxes of food and buckets of carrots sitting in water stored on the floor in the cooler, no hair restraints. Full report Kinfolk 111 Harbor Town Square Score: 82 Violations include: Employee handled shell of wrap without gloves, stained knife and cutting board. Full report Alfreds 197 Beale Street Score: 85 Violations include: Spinach dip, Rotel, sausage gravy, gumbo and pork shoulder are observed being improperly reheated; food above temperature in coolers; smoker and coolers not clean; equipment including lids of items and shelves are very dirty; toilets need cleaning; stained ceiling tiles. Full report Dyers Hamburgers 205 Beale Street Score: 86 Violations include: Black substance in ice machine, food above temperature in coolers, coolers not clean, stained ceiling tiles. Full report Owen Brennans 6150 Poplar Ave., Suite 150 Score: 87 Violations include: Unlabeled food containers, uncovered food in coolers, wiping cloths improperly stored, grills and opven need cleaning. Full report Flying Saucer 130 Peabody Place Score: 87 Violations include: Leaky sinks, foods above max cold temperature, foods not covered in cooler, broiler and food processor not clean, kitchen equipment not clean, floor not clean. Full report 100s Tacos El Gordo, 1471 N. Graham, Memphis For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WREG.com. CHETEK, Wis. (WFRV) Authorities in western Wisconsin say one person was airlifted after an incident where two people fell into the water. According to the Barron County Sheriffs Office, on May 11 around 9:10 p.m., multiple calls came in reporting that two people were in the water near the docks at Lakeside Cantina. Officials say that one person was immediately found and pulled from the weather while the other person was still missing. Multiple agencies responded to the scene, including the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and Mayo Helicopter. When authorities arrived, the second person was found and pulled out of the water. The second person was only identified as a 63-year-old from La Crosse. UPDATE: Suspect in Manitowoc BP Gas Station robbery identified Authorities say that lifesaving measures were done on the second person and they were flown to a hospital in Eau Claire. It was mentioned that this person is in critical condition. The first person, identified as a 58-year-old from La Crosse, was treated at the scene and released. The initial investigation reportedly showed that one person was trying to get into a boat from the dock and fell in. When this person did not surface, another person jumped in to find them. This person started to struggle and was helped out of the water with the help of bystanders, according to authorities. The DNR and Barron County Sheriffs Office are reportedly investigating the incident. Alcohol is reportedly a contributing factor. Appleton man arrested for 4th Operating While Under the Influence offense No additional information was provided. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFRV Local 5 - Green Bay, Appleton. Shifting his fishing buddy sideways in the Kremlin, Putin chooses an economy expert for the war in Ukraine. Heres why Russian President Vladimir Putins weekend government shakeup appears to be the triumph of competence over loyalty: The Kremlin leader has replaced his camping-and-fishing buddy head of the countrys defense ministry with someone widely seen as a competent technocrat. That, at least, seems to be the immediate takeway after the Kremlin announced that Andrey Belousov, a civilian economist and former first deputy prime minister, would take over the top slot at the Russian Ministry of Defense from Sergei Shoigu, who had served in the post since 2012. Alexandra Prokopenko, a former adviser at Russias Central Bank, put the shakeup down to the growing interrelationship between the war and Russias economy. Putins priority is war; war of attrition is won by economics, Prokopenko wrote in a thread on X. Belousov is in favor of stimulating demand from the budget, which means that military spending will at least not decrease but rather increase. Such a move makes sense when one views the war in Ukraine as a contest between the defense manufacturers of the West, which supplies Ukraine with ammunition and military hardware, and those of Russia. Russia's President Vladimir Putin, center-right, with Sergei Shoigu, at Red Square for the Victory Day military parade in central Moscow on May 9, 2024. - Natalia Kolesnikova/AFP/Getty Images US and NATO officials already concede that Russia is massively outproducing the West when it comes to production of artillery ammunition: NATO intelligence estimates of Russian defense production shared with CNN indicate that Russia produces roughly three times more artillery shells per year than the US and Europe for Ukraine. Having a competent economic manager at the top of the defense ministry can be an asset for Putin, especially when the US Congress has finally turned on the taps of more military aid to Ukraine and as Russia presses forward with a new advance along Ukraines northeastern border. Whether that advance represents a new front for Russia or an effort to divert Ukrainian forces remains unclear, but it puts more pressure on Kyiv as its allies rush to deliver more weaponry. The appointment of Belousov could also represent house-cleaning at the Ministry of Defense. In recent weeks, the ministry has been hit by a corruption scandal that led to the sacking and arrest of a former deputy to Shoigu. A game of musical chairs Prokopenko, who is one of the most perceptive observers of the Russian economy, described Belousov as well-versed in military-industrial complex matters in her thread on X, adding that he embodies Stolypin-esque statesmanship, a reference to the reformist Prime Minister Pyotr Stolypin, who led an effort to overhaul and modernize Russias inefficient economy after its humiliating military defeat by Japan in 1905. But the reality may be more complex. Putin has shifted Shoigu sideways to a post as the secretary of Russias Security Council, meaning that Shoigu is not completely out of the picture. Discussing Shoigus new appointment, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the former defense minister would remain immersed in matters of military production. But competent management of the wartime economy is now key: Peskov noted that defense spending is approaching 7% of Russian GDP, close to the level seen in the Soviet Union in the mid-1980s, when military priorities and central planning strangled the consumer economy and stifled technological innovation. Today on the battlefield, the winner is the one who is more open to innovation, Peskov said in a call with reporters Sunday. And therefore, it is natural that at the current stage, the president decided that the Russian Ministry of Defense should be headed by a civilian. The appointment of a civilian to the defense ministry, then, does not signal a less hawkish approach to the war in Ukraine. General Valery Gerasimov, the chief of Russias General Staff and one of the architects of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, remains in place. The top echelons of power remain committed to Putins brand of personalistic rule and Putins goal of subjugating Ukraine. Nevertheless, the newest government shakeup does hint at a potential future power struggle among Russias elite. With Shoigus new appointment, Nikolai Patrushev, the previous Secretary of the Security Council, was relieved of his position and is due to a transfer to another job, according to Peskov. Patrushev represents a class known as the siloviki the men of power who graduated from the ranks of the Soviet security services. A former head of the Federal Security Service, or FSB, Patrushev has been one of the more hardline members of Putins inner circle. And the Patrushev family name has often come up in speculation about who may be next in line to the throne after Putin dies because, as the Russian president begins a fifth term of office, smart money has him staying on as president-for-life. Putin has no clear successor (if he dies or is incapacitated while in office, his duties will be assumed temporarily by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin), but Kremlin-watchers keep a running list of potential aspirants for a successor. Dmitry Patrushev, the son of the former security council chief, is sometimes described as one of the princelings who are waiting; the younger Patrushev was just made a deputy prime minister in the latest reshuffle. Despite the changes at the top, there is no sense that the overall goals of the Kremlin pursuing the war on Ukraine and continuing a confrontation with the West have changed. Putins primary objective is to enhance the states capacity to support military needs more effectively, while most elements of the existing structure will stay intact, wrote political observer Tatiana Stanovaya, the founder and CEO of the analytical group R.Politik, on X. So the music may be spinning faster inside the Kremlin, but the same loyal contenders are playing musical chairs. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Shoreline parents gather for same-sex teacher whose contract was not renewed Parents rallied in Shoreline Monday morning as a community remains divided over a teachers contract not being renewed at St Lukes Catholic School. The teacher was told she would not be allowed to return to her teaching position after it was revealed that they had a same-sex partner. Early Monday morning, as kids were dropped off at school, a number of parents gathered holding hands in a circle at one of the entryways to the church. The group recited prayers and sang hymns and tried to show some level of unity regarding the issue of Karen Pala, whose contract is not being renewed. The parents are praying and hoping for peace and understanding. But they also admit that it has been a tough time since kindergarten teacher Karen Pala told them she was being forced out, after the church found out Pala was engaged to a woman. Parents on both sides of the issue linked hands and joined together, but opinions remain split. Pilar Griffin was part of the group and gave her take on the teacher being told she would not be back. When we teachers sign a contract we already know what are the teachings of the Catholic church, so we understand if you are not following those teachings. There is no covenant, said Griffin. Lawyers for Pala say she will appeal the decision by St. Lukes Father Brad to get rid of her over the same-sex relationship. That appeal would be made to the archbishop, and some parents are already lobbying for her to return, including Michael Spadea, a parent with children at the Catholic school. Our ask is that archbishop reinstate her as a teacher and that going forward these decisions are not made on the basis of sexual orientation, Spadea said. Whitney Hicks, also a Saint Lukes parent, stood with Spadea and echoed his sentiments. Shes a beloved teacher at our school. She has done so much for our community. I think this is absolutely awful. KIRO 7 obtained a letter from Father Brad which said: Part of the pastors role is to determine whether a ministers public life might not be in alignment with Church teaching, defending the dismissal of Pala. Hicks does not agree. Those covenants are written broadly. Each parish interprets them differently. If you go to other parishes, like in Seattle, youll find support for the LGBTQ community this is one priest operating with authority, said Hicks. While the situation appears to still be divisive - Pride flags adorn some fences right across from the school, showing where some residents stand. The prayer circle Monday morning was meant to foster peace and provide an example for students and parents concerned over losing a teacher. Lara Bain is involved with a parent group that formed after discovering that Pala would not return. The group is called LUKE, and she says the values of many in the community are simple: We believe in love, unity, kindness and equality -- we support inclusivity. Short-term rentals banned from affluent California neighborhood after residents complain about shootings, drugs and partying Residents of a Long Beach neighborhood have successfully banned short-term rentals after a series of drug-related busts and loud partying pushed them over the edge. After a months-long fight, College Estates resident Andy Oliver led a successful petition to ban unsupervised, short-term rentals such as Airbnb and Vrbo after problems disturbed him and his neighbors. The College Estates neighborhood, located near the San Gabriel River, is an affluent neighborhood with numerous homes worth over $1m, according to Realtor.com. Mr Oliver told the Los Angeles Times he had been frustrated with a nearby Airbnb for more than a year after a frightening encounter. The kid is chased cross my lawn and shot right at my front porch, Oliver told CBS News of the incident. Andy Oliver speaks before the Long Beach City Council before its vote to ban short-term rentals (City of Long Beach) But Mr Oliver wasnt just concerned about the gunshot victim. Parties and drug use had made the rentals a nuisance for months, he said. The Long Beach resident told the Los Angeles Times he spoke with renters in December after they disturbed him by smoking marijuana. They said recreational marijuana wasnt allowed in Texas and they were going to take advantage of their time here, Mr Oliver told the outlet. He also pointed to loud late-night parties as a source of frustration for him and his neighbors. The music is blaring. Theres screaming and drunkenness spilling out into the front and back lawns till 3 am, Mr Oliver told the Los Angeles Times. One of the guests actually apologized the next day, but then they partied again till 4 am Trouble with short-term rentals isnt anything new for the city. In 2020, the city passed an ordinance limiting the number of unsupervised rentals to 1,000. That same ordinance permits residents to ban rentals by circulating a petition in their neighborhood enabling Mr Oliver to lead his movement. A view of Long Beach, California. The city currently limits the number of short-term, unsupervised rentals to 1,000 (AFP via Getty Images) Mr Oliver needed more than half the homes in College Estates to sign the petition for the ban to go into effect. He told media outlets he got more than half the 800 homes to agree after months of canvassing. I heard it was close and I dont have confirmation of the final vote, but I was informed [last week] that we succeeded, Mr Oliver told the Los Angeles Times over the weekend. Now, College Estates has become the first neighborhood to enact the ban. However, residents in other nearby neighborhoods are looking to follow in Mr Olivers footsteps. Christina Nigrelli told Fox News shes waiting for the city of Long Beach to review her petition to ban the short-term, unsupervised rentals in the South of Conant neighborhood. Other residents arent as enthusiastic, telling reporters they rely on renting Airbnbs to supplement their income. A view of a park in College Estates, Long Beach, California. The College Estates neighbourhood has banned short-term, unsupervised rentals (Google Maps) Jean Young, 67, told the Los Angeles Times she runs an Airbnb in Long Beach. Im a part-time writer, and the income from rentals just smooths out the rough edges and has been wonderful, she told the outlet. Ms Young also told CBS News she relies on the income to help me survive here in California. The Independent has contacted Airbnb for comment. A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPMs Morning Memo. Sign up for the email version. All Michael Cohen All Day The lines were long this morning to get into the Manhattan courthouse where longtime Trump fixer Michael Cohen, the star witness in the Trump hush money case, will testify against his old boss. TPMs Josh Kovensky made it in despite the limited access and heavy demand for seats. His liveblog is already up and running this morning. Id put it up against anyones live coverage, including the bigs and their teams of reporters. Check it out. Key Trial Developments Since Last We Checked In The prosecution is speeding along in making its case and could rest as early as this week. Late Friday after trial testimony concluded, the judge considered whether incarcerated former Trump Org CFO Allen Weisselberg should testify, setting up another potential dramatic moment this week. Josh Kovensky captured an interesting dynamic among the Trump employees testifying, as best exemplified by former executive assistant Madeleine Westerhout. The OTHER Trial This Week The second public corruption trial in the last decade of Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) gets underway today (the first ended in a hung jury). Politico has a nice little introductory package to the trial: Steve Bannon May Be Headed To Jail Soon The former Trump campaign strategist and White House adviser lost his appeal of his contempt of Congress conviction for stiffing the Jan. 6 committee. He was sentenced to four months in prison, but was allowed to remain free while he appealed. The Trials And Tribulations Of Rudy Giuliani WABC radio on Friday suspended Rudy Giuliani and canceled his radio show because he persisted in making bogus Big Lie claims about the 2020 election. Georgia election workers Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss are asking the judge in Giulianis bankruptcy case to permanently enjoin him from continuing to defame them. As youll no doubt recall, Giuliani was forced into bankruptcy when Freeman and Moss won a $148 million defamation lawsuit against him. Looking Ahead Just Security: What Happens After Supreme Court Rejects Trumps Absolute ImmunityMapping 3 Scenarios Sorting Through The Rubble Of the MAL Case Joyce Vance: There was little doubt before last week that federal Judge Aileen Cannon was determined to delay Trumps criminal case in front of herthe Mar-a-Lago classified documents caseuntil after the election. Now, there is none. Ya Dont Say? ProPublica/NYT: IRS Audit of Trump Could Cost Former President More Than $100 Million Cry Me A River The same week that ProPublica won the Pulitzer Prize for public service for its examination of the cozy financial relation between Justice Clarence Thomas and billionaire GOP donor Harlan Crows, Thomas decried the nastiness and the lies in an appearance at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit Judicial Conference. Going Backwards The school board in Shenandoah County, Virginia, voted to restore the names of three Confederates to schools in the district which had previously been renamed in the wake of the 2020 George Floyd protests. Manafort Is Out Within hours of the WaPo reporting on former Trump campaign manager Paul Manaforts business dealings since he was pardoned by Trump, Manafort withdrew from his volunteer role advising the Trump campaign on the 2024 RNC convention. 2024 Ephemera WaPo: GOP escalates fight with Secret Service over convention protesters NYT poll: Democrats Hold Leads in 4 Crucial Races That Could Decide Senate Control The conservative advocacy group One Nation is dropping $70 million on ad buys in five Senate battleground states. Inside the tension between national Democrats pegging their 2024 campaigns to abortion rights and abortion rights advocates trying to appeal to non-Democratic voters. Just Gonna Leave This Here Trump: Silence of the lamb! The late great Hannibal Lecter. It is a wonderful man. pic.twitter.com/edG9oCH933 Acyn (@Acyn) May 11, 2024 Roger Corman, 1926-2024 The great Roger Corman died May 9 in Santa Monica. His influence on film as we know it is almost immeasurable, but the obituary writers took a stab at it here, here, and here. But I go back to this poignant moment when Jack Nicholson is brought to tears while reflecting on Cormans contributions to his own career: An Amazing Light Show The aurora borealis, kicked up Friday night by the most intense solar storm to hit Earth in 20 years, was visible in once-in-many-lifetimes places like the Gulf Coast and southern California. It created riveting photos of palm trees and Joshua trees framed against the Northern Lights, but I was drawn to the work of the professional and dedicated amateur photographers who seized the opportunity, such as these: Last night really happened. The best aurora Ive ever seen! A night I will never forget from northeast South Dakota.#aurora pic.twitter.com/YfnASSGtiw Alex Resel (@aresel_) May 11, 2024 Didn't get back to Vegas until 5:30am, but it was totally worth it! Shots from/near Cathedral Gorge State Park in Lincoln County, NV @NWSVegas #nvwx pic.twitter.com/YPrB85qMqP Matt Woods (@vort_advection) May 12, 2024 When I saw the auroral corona appearing overhead, I knew exactly where I wanted to run to capture it, to the base of the lighthouse so I could have it pointing right into it. #Maine #NorthernLights #Auroraborealis pic.twitter.com/7uqdfpp999 Benjamin Williamson (@photographmaine) May 11, 2024 Do you like Morning Memo? Let us know! Look for this symbol in the Alliance Meijer store to find gift cards that can be purchased as a donation to Alliance Community Pantry. Meijer will double the donation amount, which will boost those fighting food insecurity in the Carnation City. Alliance Community Pantry will benefit from a partnership with the Carnation Citys new Meijer store that will provide much-needed relief to local families facing food insecurity. The pantry will receive monetary donations courtesy of Meijers customer-driven hunger relief program called Simply Give. The Alliance Meijer store opens at 6 a.m. Tuesday. The program encourages customers to add a $10 Simply Give donation card to their cart, which is then converted into a Meijer food-only gift card and given to a local food pantry in the stores community. Each Meijer Simply Give campaign feeds hungry families by helping replenish the shelves of more than 260 food pantries in Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky and Wisconsin. We at the pantry are grateful to Meijer for the opportunity to supplement our food choices for our clients, said Debbie Skubiak, manager of the Alliance Community Pantry. With coupons made possible through their Simply Give program we can get food from their store that is not available from other choices. Alliance Community Pantry will benefit from donation cards at the Alliance Meijer store through June 29. In addition, Meijer will double match all customer cards on June 15, effectively tripling contributions made that day. Meijer customers shopping online using Meijer Pickup or Home Delivery can also include Simply Givedonation cards as an add-on to their orders. Since 2008, more than $90 million has been distributed by Meijer to food pantries across the Midwest to feed neighbors in need. Whats special about the Meijer Simply Give program is each contribution stays local and directly impacts neighborhood food pantries to help feed families in need, said Melissa Conway, director of Community Partnerships & Giving at Meijer. This article originally appeared on The Repository: Alliance pantry to get boost from Meijer's 'Simply Give' The Yankton Sioux Tribal Headquarters in Wagner. (By John Hult | South Dakota Searchlight) Six of the nine Native American tribes in South Dakota have now voted to ban Gov. Kristi Noem from their lands. The Yankton Sioux Tribe Business and Claims Committee voted unanimously on Friday to ban the governor, citing her comments about drug cartels, Native American children and what one tribal council member characterized as performative rather than substantive efforts to engage tribal leaders. The committee is the primary elected body for the Yankton Sioux Tribe, whose lands are situated in southeastern South Dakota. Its about standing in solidarity together, all the Oceti Sakowin, said Council Member Ryan Cournoyer, referencing the name for speakers of the Lakota, Dakota and Nakota languages. Earlier this week, the Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate voted to bar the governor from the Lake Traverse Reservation for similar reasons. Previously voting to ban Noem were the Oglala, Rosebud, Cheyenne River and Standing Rock Sioux tribes. Calls and messages to the leadership of the remaining tribes in the state the Flandreau Santee, Crow Creek and Lower Brule Sioux tribes were not immediately returned Friday. Gov. Noems spokespeople also did not offer an immediate response to the Yankton Sioux Tribes vote. Noem has been busy reacting to the fallout from her new book, No Going Back, in which she sparked a national backlash by revealing she had fatally shot a dog and a goat. Noem also faced criticism for claiming in the book that she had met North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un a claim she and the books publisher ultimately retracted. Beyond tribal solidarity, Cournoyer told South Dakota Searchlight that the governors comments during town halls in Mitchell and Winner earlier this year were particularly offensive. In Mitchell, speaking of tribes, Noem said, Their kids dont have any hope. They dont have parents who show up and help them. They have a tribal council or a president who focuses on a political agenda more than they care about actually helping somebodys life look better. Comments suggesting that Mexican drug cartels have set up shop on the states reservations have been a sticking point since her delivery of a speech about the U.S. border with Mexico on Jan. 31. Since the speech, delivered to a joint session of the South Dakota Legislature, the governor has written an op-ed column titled banish the cartels and claimed without offering evidence that tribal leadership is personally benefitting from the cartels. Noem also angered some tribal leaders during a meeting between the tribes and the federal government in early April in Rapid City. The meeting was about Pe Sla, a stretch of prairie land in the Black Hills considered sacred by the tribes. She hadnt been invited, and Oglala Sioux Tribal Council President Frank Star Comes Out criticized her surprise arrival as an unwelcome distraction and a publicity stunt meant to bolster her chance at becoming Donald Trumps vice presidential running mate. Cournoyer was at that meeting, and said the governor charging in there with her team made her words about working with tribes to solve problems ring hollow. It was more for the media than to show she wanted to work with us, he said. This story was originally produced by the South Dakota Searchlight which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network, including the Daily Montanan, supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. The post Sixth tribal nation bans Noem for comments on cartels, Native children appeared first on Daily Montanan. Sleepy far-flung towns in the Philippines will host US forces returning to counter China threats A resident brings down a sack from his boat at the coastal town of Santa Ana, Cagayan province, northern Philippines on Tuesday, May 7, 2024. The United States and the Philippines, which are longtime treaty allies, have identified the far-flung coastal town of Santa Ana in the northeastern tip of the Philippine mainland as one of nine mostly rural areas where rotating batches of American forces could encamp indefinitely and store their weapons and equipment within local military bases under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, or EDCA. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila) SANTA ANA, Philippines (AP) The far-flung coastal town of Santa Ana in the northeastern tip of the Philippine mainland has long been known by tourists mostly for its beaches, waterfalls, fireflies and a few casinos. But thats changing after the laid-back town of about 35,000 people, which still has no traffic light, became strategically important to America. The United States and the Philippines, which are longtime treaty allies, have identified Santa Ana in northern Cagayan province as one of nine mostly rural areas where rotating batches of American forces could encamp indefinitely and store their weapons and equipment on local military bases under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement. Thousands of U.S. forces withdrew from two huge Navy and Air Force bases in the Philippines in the early 1990s at the end of the Cold War, ending nearly a century of American military presence in the country. In recent years, Washington has been reinforcing an arc of military alliances in Asia to counter an increasingly assertive China, which it now regards as its greatest security challenge. That dovetails with Philippine efforts to bolster its external defenses after an alarming spate of territorial hostilities with Beijing in the South China Sea that started last year. The high seas confrontations have injured several Filipino navy personnel, damaged their boats and strained diplomatic ties. The remote town of Santa Ana is caught in the geo-political rivalry between Washington and Beijing because of its strategic location. It lies across a sea border from Taiwan, the self-governing island that China regards as a renegade province to be reclaimed by force if necessary. The U.S. has vowed to defend the territory. Some villagers in Santa Ana have expressed apprehension over the prospect of living near U.S. forces. Their governor, Manuel Mamba, has vehemently opposed the looming U.S. military presence, saying it would turn Cagayan into a military target of China. Other villagers say the Philippines needs the Americans as a crucial counterweight to China, which they say has been using its military might to threaten Manilas territorial interests in the South China Sea. Theres no choice. If you compare the number of our forces with that of China, they have much, much more, Romeo Asuncion, a planning and economic development officer in Santa Ana, told The Associated Press. If the Americans are here, they would protect us whatever happens. Theres also the prospect of economic benefits and aid from the U.S. military presence. If they donate a school that will be good, Asuncion said. Rowena Castillo, a consultant to the town's mayor, expressed hope the wider attention on Santa Ana would boost tourism. She recently handed out brochures promoting the towns beach resorts, waterfalls, a historic lighthouse, a crocodile-shaped island and an area that teems with fireflies. Some villagers acknowledged that even without the U.S. forces, the town would likely be affected in any major-power military showdown due to Santa Anas relative proximity to Taiwan. Authorities and village leaders recently met at the initiative of the local military to discuss contingency plans, including the possibility of setting up emergency shelters for refugees, in case tensions between China and Taiwan flare into an armed conflict, Marion Miranda, Santa Anas disaster-mitigating officer, told The AP. "One problem is where we could bring potential refugees and the budget for that, Miranda said. In another rural Cagayan town southwest of Santa Ana called Lal-lo, part of the airport was designated as a possible encampment site for American forces. Unlike the two massive military bases that American forces used to occupy, including a Navy base at Subic Bay that was about the size of Singapore and had a vibrant red-light district, the U.S. military is building a new presence in a much smaller area within Philippine camps. During largescale combat drills called Balikatan Tagalog for shoulder-to-shoulder that ended Friday, Black Hawk and Chinook helicopters carrying allied forces, their weapons and other supplies landed and took off at the Lal-lo airport and the navy camp in Santa Ana. A few journalists, including from The AP, were invited to witness the combat maneuvers. "Its an important location. Its critical because it is an EDCA site so its a very big deal to both the United States and to the Philippines, U.S. Marine Lt. Col. Matthew Schultz told journalists at Lal-lo airport. "One of the challenges that we have in this airfield now is there is not a lot of parking space or taxiways or additional apron space in order to facilitate a lot of aircraft, Schultz said. The EDCA accord, which was signed in 2014, had an initial term of 10 years and has been automatically extended with both sides in agreement, Ambassador to the U.S. Jose Manuel Romualdez said by telephone from Washington. The agreement allows rotating batches of U.S. forces to stay rent-free at the military sites and store their defense equipment except nuclear weapons there. The U.S. has allocated more than $82 million for the construction of ammunition and fuel storage, an urban combat training facility, aircraft parking, runway repairs and warehouses for humanitarian response items in the first five EDCA sites. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. agreed to add four more EDCA sites where U.S. forces could stay, including the Philippine navy camp in Santa Ana and the Lal-lo airport, last year. Marcos and other Philippine officials say the renewed U.S. military presence would bolster Philippine external defense and help Filipinos respond more rapidly to natural disasters and is not directed at any country. China, however, has expressed alarm over the increased U.S. troop deployments in the Philippines and elsewhere in Asia and said the EDCA sites in the northern Philippines could serve as surveillance outposts and staging grounds for U.S. forces to contain Beijing. Such a display of combat readiness by the U.S. and the Philippines, according to Romualdez, aims to prevent a major conflict by making Chinese leader Xi Jinping realize the cost of a wrong move. We're precisely doing all of these things as a deterrence, Romualdez said. Were trying to tell Xi, when you wake up in the morning, youll tell yourself, Im not gonna do it. Not today, not tomorrow and hopefully never. ___ Associated Press journalist Joeal Calupitan in Manila contributed to this report. May 13 (UPI) -- The pilot of a small plane performed an emergency fuselage landing at a southern Australian airport on Monday after its landing gear failed to descend. Neither the pilot nor the aircraft's two passengers were injured in the "textbook wheels-up landing" at Newcastle Airport, New South Wales Police Superintendent Wayne Humphrey said in a press conference with the runway behind him. "Which I was happy to see," he said. According to the superintendent, the pilot, a 53-year-old Queensland man, knew there was an issue with the landing gear while flying to the airport in Williamtown, which is located about 51 miles north of Sydney along Australia's southeastern coast. The pilot then decided to fly around the airport to resolve the issue, but when that failed he flew for another 90 minutes or so to burn off fuel before attempting the emergency landing. Emergency crews were on the tarmac awaiting the plane, but were not needed. Humphrey said the pilot sounded calm talking to them on approach and landing. No one was hurt. "I believe they jumped in the car and drove home," he said. The passengers were described as a 60-year-old man and a 65-year-old woman. The runway has since been closed, with the airport stating online that they are investigating options to recover the aircraft and reopen the airfield as soon as possible. "We're incredibly relieved the aircraft landed safely this afternoon," it said in a statement. Socialist candidate Salvador Illa makes a toast with members of his team and party colleagues after the announcement of the results of elections to the Catalan parliament in Barcelona, Sunday May 12, 2024. The Socialists led by former health minister Illa won a majority of 42 seats, up from their 33 seats in 2021 when they also barely won the most votes but were unable to form a government. They will still need to earn the backing of other parties to put Illa in charge.(AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) MADRID (AP) Spains ruling Socialist party scored a crucial victory in regional elections in the powerful northeastern region of Catalonia, garnering the most seats and dealing a blow to the regions two main separatist parties that have governed for decades. But candidate Salvador Illa failed to win a majority in Sunday's voting, and will face tough negotiations if he wants to form a government. Illas party won 42 seats, and it was the first time the Socialists led a Catalan election in both votes and seats won. The result would seem to be a perfect payoff for Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and his efforts to reduce tensions in Catalonia in recent years, despite major opposition from right-leaning parties in Spain. The biggest takeaway from the election was that its the worst result for the forces of Catalan independence since 1982, said Andrew Dowling, a specialist in Catalan history at Cardiff University in Wales. But equally important, "its an excellent result for Pedro Sanchez, an excellent result for the government in Madrid, Dowling said in a telephone interview Monday with The Associate Press. But Illa will need the support of 26 other lawmakers to form a government in the 135-seat chamber in Barcelona or he could try to secure the agreement of parties outside the proposed coalition to abstain from voting to make it easier for his bloc to gain a simply majority. For the moment he has the backing of six deputies from the leftist Sumar group with whom Sanchez forms the country's minority coalition government in Madrid. But he will still need support or abstention from another group, possibly the pro-independence Republican Left of Catalonia of the sitting regional president, Pere Aragones. But that party plummeted to 20 seats from 33 and a deal to support Illa could be suicidal. Aragones on Monday announced he would not take his seat in the next parliament and was retiring from front-line politics. He ruled out doing any deals with the Socialists and the right-leading Junts (Together) led by Carles Puigdemont. the fugitive former regional president. Junts finished second with 35 seats. Speaking from France on Monday, Puigdemont said he intends to try to form a government with other separatist groups. But the reality is that the four pro-independence parties, including Junts, only tot up 61 seats, seven short of a majority. Most of the other parties vehemently oppose Puigdemont. The quagmire is made even more complicated by the fact that Sanchez relies on the support of Junts and the Republican Left to shore up his government in Madrid. That was basically in return for Sanchezs decision to try to calm matters in Catalonia in recent years by pardoning jailed high-profile separatists and moving forward on a controversial amnesty for Puigdemont and hundreds more. Puigdemont on Monday ruled out threatening the national government should Illa be able to form a government in Barcelona. The Socialists have interpreted Sunday's results as putting an end to the illegal secessionist push by Puigdemont. Catalonia has decided to open a new era, a triumphant Illa told supporters Sunday night. Catalan voters have decided that the Socialist Party will lead this new era, and it is my intention to become Catalonias next president. The party's spokeswoman in Catalonia, Nuria Parlon, said Monday that the Socialists hope to form a government with the support of the Republican Left and Sumar. She ruled out Puigdemont's initiative. We will not support Puigdemonts investiture, the people have spoken clearly and the independence movement at this moment does not have a legitimate majority to demand this government headed by Carles Puigdemont," Parlon said. Separatists have held the regional government in Barcelona since 2012 and had won majorities in four consecutive regional elections. But polling and a national election in July showed that support for secession has shrunk. Cardiff University's Dowling believes Illa has the best possibility of forming a government and did not rule out him doing so by getting abstention of the right-leaning Popular Party and the far right VOX, who detest the whole idea of the Catalan separatism. But he also ventured the possibility of a totally surprising administration led by the Socialists and Junts together, arguing that with the independence cause losing force the two parties actually have a lot in common on economic issues and combined they would have an absolute majority. Theres going to be a lot of backroom deals to be considered, he said. There are many, many moving plates. The newly elected lawmakers are due to take their seats on June 10. ____ Wilson contributed from Barcelona, Spain. Solar Storm So Powerful It Shut Down Farm Equipment Across the US and Canada Farmer's Almanac A massive solar storm rocked the Earth's atmosphere with charged particles this weekend, triggering spectacular auroras in the night sky across a substantial swath of both North America and Europe. The storm reached "extreme" levels Category G5 on Friday and Saturday, enough to wreak havoc on communications equipment and even the power grid, believed to be the strongest storm of its type in over 20 years. And as the New York Times reports, the storm was particularly devastating for farmers in the US and Canada, whose tractors and other equipment broke down in the middle of planting season a fascinating and rare example of just how fearsome space weather can become despite our planet's protective shell. Sitting in the Dark Tractors that rely on GPS and other navigation tech shut down after the Sun's ferocious storm, with seed-sowing operations grinding to a halt. "Ive never dealt with anything like this," Minnesota corn and soybean farmer Patrick O'Connor told the NYT, noting that he was warned his GPS system may experience an outage. "All the tractors are sitting at the ends of the field right now shut down because of the solar storm," a Nebraska-based farmer told 404 Media. "No GPS. Were right in the middle of corn planting. Ill bet the commodity markets spike Monday." Farm equipment company John Deere's "StarFire" receivers that combine GPS with other sensor data were hit particularly hard, and issues may persist going forward. "When you head back into these fields to side dress, spray, cultivate, harvest, etc. over the next several months, we expect that the rows won't be where the AutoPath lines think they are," John Deere's statement to farmers reads, as quoted by 404 Media. "This will only affect the fields that are planted during times of reduced accuracy." The Sun has entered the most active part of its 11-year cycle, unleashing a cascade of powerful solar flares, coronal mass ejections, and other streams of energetic particles heading our way, which means we'll likely see more storms like this weekend's through the end of the year. Fortunately, some farmers got to witness a beautiful show unfurl as consolation for their failing equipment. "I was able to see the Northern Lights in all their glory," O'Connor told the NYT. More on the storm: Massive Solar Storm to Trigger Northern Lights Across North America FORT CARSON, Colo. (WAVY) A soldier from Williamsburg has died after a non-combat related training exercise. Officials said 23-year-old Lt. Zachary Galli passed away at the Joint Readiness Training Center (JRTC) in Louisiana. He had served in the Army for 1 year and 9 months. 1st Lt. Zachary Galli (Courtesy of the Fort Carson Public Affairs Office) It is with an extremely heavy heart that I inform you of the passing of 1st Lt. Zachary Galli, said Col. Brennan Fitzgerald, commander 71st EOD. Our thoughts and prayers are with the friends and family of the Galli family, the 749th EOD Co. and the greater EOD community. Galli was an explosive ordnance disposal officer assigned to the 749th Ordnance Company. He received several awards during his service including the Army Service Ribbon, National Defense Service Medal, Global War On Terrorism Service Medal and the Basic EOD Badge. This incident is still under investigation. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WAVY.com. (Bloomberg) -- For the first time since White-minority rule ended three decades ago, South Africa is heading into national elections in which an outright winner isnt apparent. A series of opinion polls show the ruling African National Congress risks losing its majority in the May 29 vote and may have to enlist the support of one or more rivals to continue governing Africas most industrialized economy. Most Read from Bloomberg These are some of the key players in the contest: The Incumbent: President Cyril Ramaphosa, 71 Party: African National Congress Share of the vote won in the last national election in 2019: 57.5% The lowdown: Ramaphosa studied law, founded the nations main mineworkers labor union, helped negotiate a peaceful end to apartheid and the countrys first democratic constitution, and accumulated a fortune after founding his own investment company. He returned to full-time politics in 2012, when he was elected as the ANCs deputy leader, and served as the countrys No. 2 during President Jacob Zumas second term. Since taking power in February 2018, hes struggled to address rampant poverty and unemployment, crippling power cuts and logistics snarl-ups all of which have eroded support for the ruling party. Key promises: A permanent monthly welfare grant for the vulnerable will be phased in. About 2.5 million job opportunities will be created through community programs. A national health insurance plan will be implemented to enable citizens to have access to quality medical care. The financial sector will be transformed to ensure it provides affordable credit and invests in infrastructure, job creation and development. The Main Challenger: John Steenhuisen, 48 Party: Democratic Alliance Share of the 2019 vote: 20.8% The lowdown: Steenhuisen has served as leader of the countrys second-largest party since 2019, prior to which he was its chief whip in parliament. Hes helped cobble together a bloc of 11 opposition parties, known as the Multi-Party Charter, which aims to form a coalition government after the elections. Opinion polls show the alliance will collectively struggle to even obtain 40% support. The business-friendly DA has a predominantly White leadership and has battled to make inroads among a mostly Black electorate. It controls the Western Cape, the only one of the nine provinces not run by the ANC. Key promises: Two million new jobs will be created over the next five years. Six million people will be lifted out of poverty. The rate of violent crime will be halved. New fiscal rules will be introduced to stabilize debt. The Renegade: Julius Malema, 43 Party: Economic Freedom Fighters Share of the 2019 vote: 10.8% The lowdown: A former head of the ANCs youth wing, Malema has shaken up South African politics since he was expelled from the ruling party in 2012 and went on to find the EFF, now the countrys third-largest party. Its lawmakers wear red miners overalls and maids uniforms to parliament and have become renowned for disrupting sittings and brawling with security officers. The party has also used the courts to shake up the status quo, securing an order to overturn apartheid-era laws regulating public protests and another which determined that parliament failed to hold Zuma to account for misusing public funds. The EFFs populist policies have found resonance among many poor, Black township residents whose living standards remain dismal 30 years after the end of apartheid, but it has been less successful in galvanizing support in rural areas. Key promises: The corporate tax rate will be increased to 32% from 27%, and a levy on company dividends will be raised to 25% from 20%. All land will be placed under the custodianship of the state and mines will be nationalized. A long-running electricity crisis will be ended within six months by reactivating all of South Africas coal-fired power plants and developing new nuclear ones. Nine million new jobs will be created through the formation of a state-owned security company and other programs. The Potential Kingmaker: Velenkosini Hlabisa, 59 Party: Inkatha Freedom Party Share of the 2019 vote: 3.4% The lowdown: A former schoolteacher, Hlabisa has led the countrys fourth-largest party since 2019. He succeeded Mangosuthu Buthelezi, who founded the party and led it for 44 years. While the IFP is a signatory to the Multi-Party Charter, a number of analysts see it as the most natural coalition partner for the ANC if its support drops substantially below 50%. The two parties have worked together before and the IFP could theoretically agree to support the ANC on a national level in exchange for the premiership of the eastern KwaZulu-Natal province, its main stronghold or cabinet posts although Hlabisa says he wont entertain such a barter. Key promises: Economic policy will be market-led, with a view to promoting growth and development. Companies will be required to allocate 80% of positions to South Africans, as part of a plan to ensure locals are prioritized over foreign nationals for jobs. Welfare grants for children and pensioners will be increased, and a food voucher system for vulnerable households will be expanded. The energy mix will be diversified to bring an end to power cuts. The Wild Card: Jacob Zuma, 82 Party: uMkhonto weSizwe Party Share of the 2019 vote: Didnt participate The lowdown: A former intelligence operative, Zuma led the country for almost nine scandal-marred years before the ANC forced him from office. He was convicted of contempt of court for refusing to testify before a judicial panel that investigated graft during his tenure and handed a 15-month prison sentence but was released on medical parole after serving less than two months. He later benefited from a remission of sentence. In December, Zuma dropped a bombshell when he announced that he wouldnt vote for the ANC and that he planned to campaign for the newly formed uMkhonto weSizwe Party instead. He remains popular in his home province of KwaZulu-Natal and polls suggest he could draw a sizable chunk of support away from the ANC. Key promises: Banks and mines will be nationalized. Land will be expropriated without compensation. Capital gains and inheritance taxes will be increased. Plans to move away from using coal to generate electricity will be scrapped, existing plants that use the fuel will be overhauled and additional nuclear plants will be built. A monthly income grant will be paid to the unemployed. --With assistance from S'thembile Cele and Karolina Sekula. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Two more Indigenous Tribes have banned Gov. Kristi Noem from entering their Tribal land adjacent to South Dakota, marking the latest escalation in an ongoing clash between Noem and Tribal leaders over the governors previous remarks about Native communities. The Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate Tribe voted to bar Noem from their land last week and the Yankton Sioux Tribe followed suit. The bans come after the governor made recent comments that many found to be disparaging, alleging that Tribal leaders were benefiting from cartels being there and thats why they attack me every day, Noem said at a community forum last month in Winner, South Dakota, according to the Associated Press. The Standing Rock Sioux, Cheyenne River Sioux, Rosebud Sioux, and Oglala Sioux Tribes have all moved to banish the governor from their lands. In an email to CNN, Yankton Sioux Council Member Ryan Cournoyer said the governor has not apologized or showed remorse for insulting Native people. We answered our peoples call for us to stand up and take action against Governor Noem showing that we are united with the Great Sioux Nation of South Dakota, we wanted to send a message that the disrespectful behavior will not be tolerated, he said. This decision does not come after one or two incidents but after years of witnessing the governors harmful and aggressive actions against Tribes, Cournoyer said. Noem has sought to connect her past comments about Tribal leaders to the Biden administration and its handling of crime and border security. On Thursday, Noem seemed to double down on her past comments against the Tribes. Tribals leaders should take action to ban the cartels from their lands and accept my offer to help them restore law and order to their communities while protecting their sovereignty. We can only do this through partnerships because the Biden Administration is failing to do their job, Noem wrote on X. Banishing Governor Noem does nothing to solve the problem, a spokesperson for Noem said in a statement. She calls on all our tribal leaders to banish the cartels from tribal lands, the spokesperson said. Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate Tribal Chairman J. Garret Renville told CNN the governors comments are not only baseless and without merit but also deeply offensive and harmful to the fabric of our community. By perpetuating harmful stereotypes and spreading misinformation, Governor Noem has demonstrated a blatant disregard for the dignity and well-being of Native American people, Renville said. Noem, who was once considered to be on former President Donald Trumps 2024 shortlist for vice presidential candidates, has faced increased scrutiny in recent weeks after excerpts from her recently released book, No Going Back, drew the ire of pet owners and world leaders alike. Noems name had fallen off Trumps short list for vice president even before excerpts of her book were released, CNN previously reported. Trump has said recently he likes her a lot despite the rough few days shes experienced after her book was released. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (Photo/Screenshot) South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, a Republican who is often mentioned as a potential running mate to the presumptive nominee Donald Trump's presidential bid, was banished from two more tribes in her state last week. The banishment is the latest fallout from her paternalistic leadership style toward tribes. Last Friday, the Yankton Sioux Tribe voted to ban Noem from their reservation. Earlier in the week, the Sisseton-Wahpeton Ovate tribe banned her. Four other tribes, the Oglala, Rosebud, Cheyenne River, and Standing Rock Sioux tribes, previously informed the governor that she is not welcome on their tribal lands. Tribal leaders took exception to Noem's comments at a community forum in March. Never miss Indian Countrys biggest stories and breaking news. Click here to sign up to get our reporting sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. "We've got some tribal leaders that I believe are personally benefiting from the cartels being there, and that's why they attack me every day," Noem said at a forum. "But I'm going to fight for the people who actually live in those situations, who call me and text me every day and say,' Please, dear governor, please come help us in Pine Ridge. We are scared.'" Responding to the governor's statement, Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Janet Alkire said the Noem should work to solve the problems tribes face in South Dakota. "Rather than make uninformed and unsubstantiated claims, Noem should work with tribal leaders to increase funding and resources for tribal law enforcement and education," Alkire said. The latest banishment means that the South Dakota governor is banned from six of the nine federally recognized tribes in the state. In land mass combined, the reservations of the six tribes make up almost 20 percent of South Dakota. The Noem rift has caused one philanthropic foundation to hold back opening several chapters in the state. On Friday, the Uvalde Foundation for Kids, a national nonprofit student advocacy organization formed in response to the May 2022 Uvalde, Texas school shooting, canceled plans to expand into South Dakota indefinitely. Uvalde Foundation founder Daniel Chapin, who is half Cherokee Indian, stated the foundation stands firmly with the South Dakota tribes that have chosen to banish Noem. The governor's racially charged depiction of the Native American family and the alleged dysfunction of its education system is only an illustration by the governor of another abject failure to take responsibility for the broken promises and educational failures of its own system," Chapin said in a statement. "Resources funding cuts and reallocating funding from tribal distributions to the governor's other agendas seems to be her priority. The governor owes an apology, not simply to the Native American community and its education system but to South Dakota residents as well. The governor should be ashamed, and we will continue to support those tribal communities in protest," Chapin continued. About the Author: "Levi \"Calm Before the Storm\" Rickert (Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation) is the founder, publisher and editor of Native News Online. Rickert was awarded Best Column 2021 Native Media Award for the print\/online category by the Native American Journalists Association. He serves on the advisory board of the Multicultural Media Correspondents Association. He can be reached at levi@nativenewsonline.net." Contact: levi@nativenewsonline.net South Korea's intelligence service is conducting a review into suspicions that North Korea has provided Russia with artillery shells and other weaponry manufactured in the 1970s, the country's National Intelligence Service (NIS) said on May 12. The NIS' remarks come in response to recent South Korean media reports that allege 122 mm artillery shells manufactured in North Korea in the 1970s were used on Ukraine's eastern front. Both Ukrainian and U.S. officials have previously confirmed that Russia has been using North Korean-produced weaponry to attack Ukraine. "The NIS is analyzing the relevant circumstance in detail and also continues to track overall military cooperation between North Korea and Russia," the intelligence agency said, amid concern that North Korea is procuring older weapons to develop new ones. With Russia's military stocks running low and domestic production capacity simultaneously hampered by Western sanctions, North Korea has been shaping up as Russia's leading weapons supplier, reportedly providing Moscow with extensive military packages, including ballistic missiles and over 3 million artillery shells. According to U.S. State Secretary Antony Blinken, these military ties are increasingly a "two-way street," in which North Korea provides Russia with military equipment to use in Ukraine. South Korean Defense Minister Shin Won-sik previously said that Pyongyang has shipped at least 6,700 ammunition containers to Russia since the two leaders met last September 2023. "It seems that food accounts for the largest proportion (of shipments from Russia), which is believed to have stabilized food prices in North Korea, with other necessities also included," Shin said in February. Shin also said in January that Russia is likely purchasing more advanced missiles from North Korea that could be used on the battlefield in Ukraine. According to the U.N. report, inspectors concluded that Russia used missiles procured from North Korea in a strike on Kharkiv that killed at least three people and injured dozens more. Russia's purchase of North Korean weaponry is a violation of U.N. sanctions. Read also: Civilians flee Vovchansk under Russian bombardment as ground offensive on Kharkiv begins Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Speeders drive faster cars. State police are buying the Ford Mustang GT to chase them As other automakers stop building cars powered by big V8 engines, Ford Motor Co.'s Mustang GT remains the last man standing. Police agencies, who need the horsepower, have taken notice. After years of ordering the Dodge Challenger and Chevrolet Camaro, state patrol agencies in Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina confirmed they're adding the 2024 Mustang GT to their fleets. And they're not the only law enforcement agencies doing so. Ford's competitors aren't making these muscle cars anymore. "Police have found a sweet spot," Erich Merkle, U.S. sales analyst at Ford, told the Detroit Free Press of the USA TODAY Network. "We expect to see more sales as other companies have ceded this area of the industry." Car model discontinued for 2024: : These makes are riding into the sunset next year This year's sales of the Mustang GT are up 13% to 8,154 through April, Merkle said. "The high-performance Mustang GT represents about 57% of our overall Mustang mix so far this year," he said. The Mustang GT starts at $43,555 including destination fees. Government agencies, though, negotiate discounts based on bulk purchases. Car performance and engineering are important to law enforcement agencies, and acceleration is really key to doing the job, said Andrew Simmons, a government sales manager for Ford, focused on the southeast U.S. "Most of these are used on interstates," Simmons told the Free Press. "Right now, we're at a fever pitch in terms of interest. Better than 50% of the customers Im seeing are crossing over from other brands and coming into Ford to buy a Mustang." According to Car and Driver testing, the 2024 Mustang GT clocks at: 0-60 mph in 3.9 seconds Quarter mile: 12.2 seconds at 117 mph Top speed: 155 mph Slow down: Mustang GT headed to interstates near your "The Mustang has a faster 0-60 time and a higher top speed than the other patrol vehicles in our fleet," said Maj. David Bryant of the Georgia State Patrol told the Free Press. "Most of the new Mustangs will go to patrol posts that cover the interstate system in Georgia." The Georgia State Patrol has hundreds of Dodge Chargers, 15 Dodge Challengers and 15 Camaros for high-speed pursuits, and now the agency is adding 15 Mustangs to the patrol fleet, Bryant said. That's in addition to the Dodge Durango, Chevy Tahoe and Ford Explorer SUVs used by state troopers. 'We need speed' Georgia locals and tourists will spot these Mustang GT vehicles along U.S.-341, Interstate 75 and I-16, Allen said. The V8 engine meets police needs, he said. "Everything is getting faster. Vehicles we try to stop every day are getting faster, from a Kia to a Mercedes. This is a way for us to keep up with the changes in the vehicle market." Capt. Shane Allen of the Georgia State Patrol is among law enforcement leaders discussing the purchase of the 2024 Mustang GT for speed patrol on the interstate. Michigan State Police change policy on high-speed pursuits Police driving fast is not without controversy. Separate and apart from enforcing the speed limit on highways, public policy and police policy in some states are changing to reflect safety concerns. In March, the Michigan State Police announced a new policy effective immediately that said officers may engage in a pursuit only if there's "probable cause to believe the driver or occupant of the pursued vehicle has committed a life-threatening or violent felony." Police told the Free Press that using speed judiciously is part of their training. The North Carolina Highway Patrol has purchased 2024 Mustang GT vehicles to help apprehend highway speeders. Police agencies say they're expanding beyond the Dodge Charger, Challenger and Chevy Camaro. In North Carolina, police officials see speed enforcement as critical to reducing fatal collisions, Lt. Zeb Stroup of the North Carolina State Highway Patrol told the Free Press. Last year, North Carolina saw 354 fatal collisions in which speed was a contributing factor, he said. "That number represents a decrease of 7.1% from the previous year," Stroup said. "The addition of the Mustang, we hope, will help to continue our positive impact on our existing speed reduction efforts." In 2023, two North Carolina State troopers made headlines for a crash that followed a high-speed chase. Based on a review of traffic safety records, high-pursuit crashes have not been a pattern in recent years. North Carolina troopers will get special training on the powerful Mustang GT, Stroup said. And their speed is critical to doing the job effectively, he said. North Carolina will use the Mustang GT vehicles in areas where speeding is a documented problem, Stroup said. "They're going to be primarily used on the interstate," he said. "We know at speeds above 70 mph, the likelihood of severe injury or death increases." Contact Phoebe Wall Howard: 313-618-1034 or phoward@freepress.com. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter @phoebesaid. Read more on Ford and sign up for our autos newsletter. This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Ford Mustang GT is needed to catch high-speed drivers, police say People can be redeemed. Solitary confinement cannot. My own story is a perfect example of this: I spent 31 years incarcerated, 15 of which was spent in solitary confinement at Pelican Bay State Prison, from 2000 to 2015. I deeply regret the mistakes I made when I was a youth that led me to prison. As an 18 year old, I committed violent crimes born from addiction from which there is no excuse or justification. Luckily for me, the state passed a law that provided an opportunity at redemption for youth offenders such as myself. That change provided me another chance at life, and I was released in 2020. Since then, I have worked as an advocate for the redemption of people, and called for an end to the use of solitary confinement. Solitary confinement is difficult to explain to those who have not truly experienced it. Its an experience that penetrates the soul of those who have lived this terrible reality. Opinion It was lonely and depressing. I lived for 15 years alone in a concrete box with my greatest fear to keep me company my greatest fear being losing my mind. Every day of my existence was spent worrying and trying to combat the very real possibility that I could break. I had no idea how deeply the experience of living in solitary confinement had harmed me until I was released back into the general population and experienced extreme anxiety around other people. Conversation, a thing that used to come so naturally, was now forced and painful. Sudden movements put me on edge and trust in fellow humans which is so essential for a persons humanity was gone. There is nothing curative about solitary. It is an absolute contradiction to the alleged rehabilitative principles and values of not only the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, but of our greater society. The hard truth is that California has a long and dark history with respect to the use of solitary confinement. As recently as 2013, California was found to have kept more than 500 individuals in solitary confinement for more than a decade. The model of isolation developed by our state was designed to inflict maximum harm to the physical and emotional health of those it housed. Individuals were often subjected to 23-hour lock-downs, deprived of any form of external stimuli. It is hard to believe this was done for any reason other than to cause harm and break individuals. My story is the same as thousands of others who have survived this form of torture. And the pain that we describe is corroborated by science: Recent studies have shown that solitary confinement increases the risk of death after release. Other studies have shown that it can shrink the brain, damage the heart and cause a host of mental and physical health issues. That is why many advocates including myself have supported Assembly Bill 280, the California Mandela Act, authored by Assemblyman Chris Holden, D-Pasadena. This legislation would introduce limits on the use of solitary confinement and promote alternatives that do not cause harm or perpetuate violence. Based on my personal experience, Californias prison system was far more violent and far less rehabilitative when solitary confinement was used without restraint. In recent years, we have seen that limits placed on the use of solitary confinement and the promotion of rehabilitation has led to reductions in violence. I believe that people are redeemable, but solitary confinement is not. California should invest in practices that promote rehabilitation and redemption, and divest from a practice that destroys lives and perpetuates violence. Jamala Taylor is a reentry manager at a nonprofit organization that operates across the state, supporting both current and formerly incarcerated individuals ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. A St. Louis County man is accused of yelling a racial slur and making death threats at another driver in a reported road rage investigation. According to the Ballwin Police Departments probable cause statement, the incident occurred on March 5, 2023, in the 14900 block of Manchester Road. Police claim Dylan Romine (age not provided) used his pickup truck to repeatedly cut the victim off while they were traveling on Highway 141 and refused to let the victim change lanes. When the victim managed to get around Romines vehicle, police claim Romine sped up to keep the victim from turning. Where the cicada broods are emerging in the US Eventually, both vehicles were at a business on Manchester Road. Police claim Romine got out of his truck and punched the victims front windshield. He allegedly called the victim a racial epithet and threatened to shoot him. Romine walked back to his truck and then side-swiped the victims car while leaving the scene. The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorneys Office charged Romine with second-degree assault and first-degree property damage. An arrest warrant was issued for Romine on April 19, 2024. He was finally taken into custody on May 7. Romine is due in court on June 6. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 2. U.S. Sens. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, and Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., listen as former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media outside Manhattan Criminal Court on May 13, 2024, during his trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) WASHINGTON Donald Trumps former fixer took the stand in a Manhattan courtroom Monday and told jurors that Trump was well aware of a scheme to hide the repayment of money intended to silence porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election. Michael Cohen, the prosecutions star witness, told the jury that he used a home equity loan to pay $130,000 to Daniels lawyer, trusting a promise from Trump then a Republican candidate for the presidency that hed be repaid. The criminal trial, the first ever for a former president, centers on Trumps reimbursement to Cohen and whether Trump illegally covered up the hush money as routine legal expenses, a felony in New York. Trump is charged with 34 felony counts for each alleged falsified business record related to his repayment to Cohen 11 invoices, 11 checks and 12 ledger entries. Cohen has already served time in prison for several federal crimes, including campaign finance violations in relation to the hush money deals with women who alleged sexual affairs with Trump. He was sentenced to three years in August 2019, but did not serve the entire sentence. Cohens intense loyalty to Trump fizzled after the then-president distanced himself. The former fixer is now an outspoken Trump critic and has published books titled Disloyal and Revenge, and produces a podcast called Mea Culpa. Cohen was called to the stand just days after Daniels, an adult film actress and director, described in lurid detail her alleged sexual encounter with Trump in 2006, the affair at the heart of the payments in question. GOP senators show up as moral support Journalists at the courthouse reported that Trump, the presumed 2024 Republican presidential candidate, was sleeping at times during the trial Monday and shaking his head in response to some of Cohens testimony. New York does not allow recording in the courtroom but provides public transcripts of the proceedings. Trump was accompanied by Republican U.S. Sens. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama and J.D. Vance of Ohio, considered to be on the short list as Trumps running mate. Republican U.S. Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, of New York, also joined the senators and spoke to media outside the Lower Manhattan courthouse. Floridas GOP Sen. Rick Scott made an appearance in the courtroom last week. Prior to Mondays proceedings, Trump delivered remarks to the press with Tuberville and Vance, among others, behind him. Trump defended his payments to Cohen and blamed the charges on the Biden administration, despite the indictment coming down from the state of New York. A legal expense is a legal expense. Its marked down in the book quote legal expense, Trump told reporters, making air quotes with his hands. This all comes from Biden in the White House by the way, he added. Worries about Access Hollywood tape Cohen testified that he wanted to protect Trump from further alienating women voters just weeks before the November election, according to reporters at the courthouse. A story about Trumps alleged extramarital affair with Daniels reaching the public shortly after the revelation of the Access Hollywood tape would have been catastrophic, Cohen said. The tape, published by the Washington Post just a month before the 2016 presidential election, showed Trump bragging to Access Hollywood host Billy Bush that fame allowed him to grab womens genitals. The tape caused upheaval in the Trump camp as Election Day approached, former Trump spokesperson Hope Hicks testified on May 3. Prosecutors showed phone records, texts and emails of Cohens frantic attempts to quash stories of Trumps alleged trysts with Daniels, and with former Playboy model Karen McDougal, according to journalists witnessing the testimony. Cohen testified for several hours about communications with David Pecker, former National Enquirer publisher; Keith Davidson, the attorney for both Daniels and McDougal; and Hicks all of whom took the stand during the trials preceding weeks. Phone records revealed a five-minute call between Cohen and Trump on Oct. 28, 2016, at 11:48 a.m., during which Cohen told the jury that he assured Trump that this matter is now completely under control and locked down, according to reporters at the courthouse. The phone call occurred on the same date Cohen signed the agreement with Daniels and Davidson. The jury also saw records of a wire transfer from Cohens shell company Essential Consultants to Davidson, the purpose of which was to to pay Stormy Daniels to execute the non-disclosure agreement and to obtain the story, her life rights, Cohen said, according to reporters at the courthouse. Legal services rendered By late afternoon, Cohen began to testify about Trumps direct knowledge of the plan for reimbursement. The plan was hatched with the Trump Organizations longtime chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg, who is currently in prison for crimes related to Trumps civil fraud trial, which wrapped up in New York in February. Jurors saw handwritten notes from Weisselberg detailing plans to get the money back to Cohen. This was the second time the jury has seen the notes, as Jeffrey McConney, the Trump Organizations longtime controller, testified to them on May 6. Just before the court broke for the day, Cohen testified that he and Weisselberg went to Trumps 26th-floor office when Trump was president-elect and received Trumps approval for the reimbursement plan, according to reporters in the courthouse. Cohen said Weisselberg had instructed him to submit a series of invoices over 12 months and to label them legal services rendered. The prosecutions direct questioning of Cohen is expected to resume Tuesday. Weisselberg is serving time at Rikers Island after pleading guilty to committing perjury during Trumps civil fraud trial. The former financial officer for Trump had already spent three months at Rikers for tax fraud offenses stemming from the same case. The post Star witness in Trump trial tells of plot to conceal porn star hush money payments appeared first on North Dakota Monitor. Senators J.D. Vance (R-OH) and Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) listen as former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media at his trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments at Manhattan Criminal Court on May 13, 2024 in New York City. Trump was charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records last year, which prosecutors say was an effort to hide a potential sex scandal, both before and after the 2016 presidential election. Trump is the first former U.S. president to face trial on criminal charges. | Spencer Platt/Getty Images WASHINGTON Donald Trumps former fixer took the stand in a Manhattan courtroom Monday and told jurors that Trump was well aware of a scheme to hide the repayment of money intended to silence porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election. Michael Cohen, the prosecutions star witness, told the jury that he used a home equity loan to pay $130,000 to Daniels lawyer, trusting a promise from Trump then a Republican candidate for the presidency that hed be repaid. The criminal trial, the first ever for a former president, centers on Trumps reimbursement to Cohen and whether Trump illegally covered up the hush money as routine legal expenses, a felony in New York. Trump is charged with 34 felony counts for each alleged falsified business record related to his repayment to Cohen 11 invoices, 11 checks and 12 ledger entries. Cohen has already served time in prison for several federal crimes, including campaign finance violations in relation to the hush money deals with women who alleged sexual affairs with Trump. He was sentenced to three years in August 2019, but did not serve the entire sentence. Cohens intense loyalty to Trump fizzled after the then-president distanced himself. The former fixer is now an outspoken Trump critic and has published books titled Disloyal and Revenge, and produces a podcast called Mea Culpa. Cohen was called to the stand just days after Daniels, an adult film actress and director, described in lurid detail her alleged sexual encounter with Trump in 2006, the affair at the heart of the payments in question. GOP senators show up as moral support Journalists at the courthouse reported that Trump, the presumed 2024 Republican presidential candidate, was sleeping at times during the trial Monday and shaking his head in response to some of Cohens testimony. New York does not allow recording in the courtroom but provides public transcripts of the proceedings. Trump was accompanied by Republican U.S. Sens. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama and J.D. Vance of Ohio, considered to be on the short list as Trumps running mate. Republican U.S. Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, of New York, also joined the senators and spoke to media outside the Lower Manhattan courthouse. Floridas GOP Sen. Rick Scott made an appearance in the courtroom last week. Prior to Mondays proceedings, Trump delivered remarks to the press with Tuberville and Vance, among others, behind him. Trump defended his payments to Cohen and blamed the charges on the Biden administration, despite the indictment coming down from the state of New York. A legal expense is a legal expense. Its marked down in the book quote legal expense, Trump told reporters, making air quotes with his hands. This all comes from Biden in the White House by the way, he added. Worries about Access Hollywood tape Cohen testified that he wanted to protect Trump from further alienating women voters just weeks before the November election, according to reporters at the courthouse. A story about Trumps alleged extramarital affair with Daniels reaching the public shortly after the revelation of the Access Hollywood tape would have been catastrophic, Cohen said. The tape, published by the Washington Post just a month before the 2016 presidential election, showed Trump bragging to Access Hollywood host Billy Bush that fame allowed him to grab womens genitals. The tape caused upheaval in the Trump camp as Election Day approached, former Trump spokesperson Hope Hicks testified on May 3. Prosecutors showed phone records, texts and emails of Cohens frantic attempts to quash stories of Trumps alleged trysts with Daniels, and with former Playboy model Karen McDougal, according to journalists witnessing the testimony. Cohen testified for several hours about communications with David Pecker, former National Enquirer publisher; Keith Davidson, the attorney for both Daniels and McDougal; and Hicks all of whom took the stand during the trials preceding weeks. Phone records revealed a five-minute call between Cohen and Trump on Oct. 28, 2016, at 11:48 a.m., during which Cohen told the jury that he assured Trump that this matter is now completely under control and locked down, according to reporters at the courthouse. The phone call occurred on the same date Cohen signed the agreement with Daniels and Davidson. The jury also saw records of a wire transfer from Cohens shell company Essential Consultants to Davidson, the purpose of which was to to pay Stormy Daniels to execute the non-disclosure agreement and to obtain the story, her life rights, Cohen said, according to reporters at the courthouse. Legal services rendered By late afternoon, Cohen began to testify about Trumps direct knowledge of the plan for reimbursement. The plan was hatched with the Trump Organizations longtime chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg, who is currently in prison for crimes related to Trumps civil fraud trial, which wrapped up in New York in February. Jurors saw handwritten notes from Weisselberg detailing plans to get the money back to Cohen. This was the second time the jury has seen the notes, as Jeffrey McConney, the Trump Organizations longtime controller, testified to them on May 6. Just before the court broke for the day, Cohen testified that he and Weisselberg went to Trumps 26th-floor office when Trump was president-elect and received Trumps approval for the reimbursement plan, according to reporters in the courthouse. Cohen said Weisselberg had instructed him to submit a series of invoices over 12 months and to label them legal services rendered. The prosecutions direct questioning of Cohen is expected to resume Tuesday. Weisselberg is serving time at Rikers Island after pleading guilty to committing perjury during Trumps civil fraud trial. The former financial officer for Trump had already spent three months at Rikers for tax fraud offenses stemming from the same case. The post Star witness in Trump trial tells of plot to conceal porn star hush money payments appeared first on Michigan Advance. COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) A Short North bar outside which a man was beaten to death in 2022 is being replaced by a Starbucks. According to permits filed with the city, Starbucks is moving into retail space on North High Street left vacant by the bar Julep. It will mark the sixth Starbucks along a 3-mile stretch of North High Street between Ohio States campus and Downtown. Police officer, Amazon shooting suspect shot in west Columbus Preliminary renderings submitted to the city show Starbucks plans to have enough room for about 30 sit-in patrons in the 2,300 square-foot space, with outdoor seating in front of the store. (Courtesy Photo/Starbucks) (Courtesy Photo/Starbucks) (Courtesy Photo/Starbucks) Julep closed last June after a court ordered the bar to vacate its space at 1066 N. High St. amid a legal dispute with its landlord. The bar was also ordered to pay $69,000 in missed payments to the landlord, whose lawsuit remains pending in Franklin County Court. Before then, Julep had attracted city officials ire with repeated calls for service to the bar. In December 2022, Columbus City Council objected to the renewal of Juleps liquor license. Ohio Liquor Control Commission records indicate that Julep had nine liquor violation cases since 2018, mostly for tax issues. Its liquor license has since lapsed. Hot Chicken Takeover sold to new restaurant group, to rebrand central Ohio locations The bar is named as one of several defendants in a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of a man who was beaten to death outside Julep in September 2022. The family of 37-year-old Gregory Coleman Jr. has said the two men who killed Coleman were working as security guards for the bar the night of his death, a claim the bar previously disputed. Coleman died days after being assaulted by Chrystian Foster and Dwayne Cummings, an assault that was caught on video. In February, Cummings was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison after being convicted of murder by a jury. On Friday, a judge found Foster guilty of murder and also sentenced him to 15 years to life. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to NBC4 WCMH-TV. From the The Morning Dispatch on The Dispatch Happy Monday! We were prepared to consider that sorting U.S. presidents into Hogwarts houses might be a more valuable way to judge presidential records than the typical historian rankings. But they lost us when they put Woodrow Wilson in Ravenclaw, not Slytherin. Quick Hits: Todays Top Stories Biden Dangles Carrots and Sticks U.S. President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speak prior to their statements and meeting in Tel Aviv on October 18, 2023. (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images) As the sun set in Israel on Sunday evening, the country marked its first Memorial Day since Hamas October 7 attack, when terrorists murdered some 1,200 people and kidnapped more than 200 others. About a quarter of those killed on October 7 are estimated to have been soldiers, and 272 Israel Defense Force (IDF) troops have died in the subsequent war against Hamasnow in its eighth month. There were soldiers among those Hamas kidnapped, too, including some who have been killed in captivity and whose remains are being held hostage. Where are we supposed to go? said the father of one deceased soldier whose body is being held by Hamas in Gaza. There is no burial site for us to go to. As Israel remembers its war dead, the IDF has continued its precision strikes against Rafah, the southernmost city in Gaza and perhaps the last stronghold of Hamas in the enclave. But the operation has faced sharp pushback from its most important ally in recent days as President Joe Biden suggested hed suspend certain weapons shipments to Israel if the targeted offensive turned into a full-scale invasion. On Friday, a State Department report called into question Israels adherence to international humanitarian law. Map via Joe Schueller. The Israeli government has billed the invasion of Rafah as the last stand for Hamas in Gazathough renewed clearing operations in the north through the weekend suggest that Hamas is still active elsewhere in the Strip. As we wrote last week, the IDF claims most of the remaining Hamas battalions are now operating out of Rafah, which is replete with Hamas-dug tunnels. Ongoing attacks on the nearby Kerem Shalom border crossing, including one that killed four Israeli soldiers earlier this month, have underlined Hamas significant presence in the area. The IDF began to move into the outskirts of Rafah last week, ordering the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of people in the outskirts of the city before launching precision airstrikes against Hamas targets in the area and securing the Gazan side of the Rafah border crossing into Egypt. As fighting has continued over the weekend, the IDF has reportedly killed dozens of terrorists, uncovered weapons caches and tunnel shafts, and destroyed rocket launch sites used to target southern Israeli cities and towns in recent days. Map via Joe Schueller. The Biden administration has long maintained that a large-scale Israeli invasion of Rafahwithout a substantive plan to protect the more than 1 million Palestinian civilians there, which Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Sunday the administration had not yet seenwas a so-called red line. And in a rare primetime interview with CNN on Wednesday, after weeks of disruptive and violent protests on U.S. college campuses against Israels war and the presidents support for it, Biden outlined what the U.S. allys punishment would be for going forward with the Rafah campaign. I made it clear that if they go into Rafahthey havent gone in Rafah yetif they go into Rafah, Im not supplying the weapons that have been used historically to deal with Rafah, to deal with the citiesthat deal with that problem, Biden told CNNs Erin Burnett. Earlier on Wednesday, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told senators that the U.S. had paused the delivery of thousands of 2,000-pound bombs to Israel amid the looming Rafah operation but that the administration hadnt made a final determination about whether or not to send them. Civilians have been killed in Gaza as a consequence of those bombs and other ways in which [Israel goes] after population centers, Biden said of those bombs in the interview. Just one day before Bidens comments, the president delivered a speech marking Holocaust Remembrance Day. People are already forgetting, he told the crowd, which included Holocaust survivors. Theyre already forgetting that Hamas unleashed this terror, that it was Hamas that brutalized Israelis, that it was Hamas who took and continues to hold hostages. I have not forgotten, nor have you, and we will not forget. But the administration had reportedly already decided to halt weapons to Israel before Biden delivered his remarks. Since Wednesday, details on what exactly Biden meant by his announcementwhich weapons are on the table, for examplehave been sparse. The president seemed to suggest his administration would continue to replenish weapons systems like Davids Sling and the Iron Dome, which defend Israel against incoming rocket, missile, and drone fire. But if the goal is to limit civilian casualties, withholding systems like Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMs) that turn dumb bombs into precision-guided munitionsas the administration seemingly did earlier this monthcould result in more dead noncombatants, not fewer. Despite multiple reports in recent weeks of halted weapons deliveries and sales, the Biden administration has been quick to say that the presidents warning is still mostly hypothetical since Israel hasnt yetby its estimationlaunched a full-scale invasion. I wouldnt go so far as to say what weve seen here [in Rafah] in the last 24 hours connotes or indicates a broad, large-scale invasion or major ground operation, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Friday. It appears to be localized near the crossing and largely with the forces they had put there at the beginning. The IDF likewise says its operations in southern Gaza remain limited in scope. Were not walking away from Israels security, Biden said on Wednesday. Were walking away from Israels ability to wage war in those areas. Retired Rear Adm. Mark Montgomery, who once managed U.S. military-to-military relations with Israel, said the Biden administrations policy is a misunderstanding of Israels position and of deterrence. This is a nonsensical statement for a country thats under threat on five axes, Montgomery told TMD. [Israel] cant fight five defensive battles. It cant all be deterrence by denial. They have to have the ability to do deterrence by cost imposition, and thats what they need to do to Hamas right now. If they were to stop now, they would have failed in their deterrence effort. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seemed unbowed last week. If we have to stand alone, we will stand alone, Bibi said Thursday. If we need to, we will fight with our fingernails. Its not clear what kind of weapons stocks Israel has available if Biden does put some kind of widespread weapons pause in place. The U.S. has long been required by law to maintain Israels qualitative military edge in the regionnever providing other Middle Eastern countries with more sophisticated weaponry than it gives Israeland since October 7, the U.S. has reportedly provided its closest Middle Eastern partner with tens of thousands of weapons. In April, Biden signed into law supplemental funding to the tune of about $16 billion for Israels defense. If U.S. aid does start to slow down, Montgomery told TMD, What it really means is [Israel] can probably execute the Hamas operation, the Gaza operation, but this would put them in deeper extremis on defeating Hezbollah in Lebanon quickly. They could probably still do it, but theyd be doing it a lot uglier. The Iranian-backed terrorist group in Lebanon has launched near-daily attacks on Israel since Hamas October 7 attack, forcing tens of thousands of people from their homes in the north. In what could be read as an object lesson in the state of U.S.-Israel relations of latebouncing between criticism and solidaritythe State Department on Friday released a report suggesting it was reasonable to assess that Israel had used U.S.-supplied weapons in incidents that violated international humanitarian law (IHL). At the same time, it said the U.S. government didnt have access to sufficient evidence to point to a single instance where it could definitively say that was the case, all while emphasizing that a countrys overall commitment to IHL is not necessarily disproven by individual IHL violations, so long as that country is taking appropriate steps to investigate and where appropriate determine accountability for IHL violations. The authors of the report said Israel has done so since the beginning of the war. The report also emphasized that Hamas has embedded itself deliberately within and underneath the civilian population to use civilians as human shields, and intentionally uses schools, hospitals, residential buildings, and international organization facilities for military purposes. With an indefinite ruling on whether the IDF had violated IHL, the Biden administration can continue to provide Israel weapons under U.S. law, even if its hesitant to do so as a matter of policy. But Republican lawmakers are moving to force Bidens hand later this week. GOP Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana, the House majority leader, said Saturday that the House would vote this week on the Israel Security Assistance Support Act, which would require the prompt delivery of aid to Israel on penalty of State Department and Defense Department appropriations being withheld. Its possible the bill could get some support from House Democrats, 26 of whom signed a letter to the White House last week expressing concern about the suspension of weapons shipments. As the sun sets later today, Israel will begin a perhaps subdued celebration of its independencefollowing on Memorial Days heels to show that the countrys existence is inextricably linked to the sacrifice of its people. As strained as relations currently are between the Jewish state and the first country to recognize it, they may not stay that way forever. [Israel] cant do this alone, Montgomery said. I know they think they can do it alone. They cannot do this alone. They need to have one good allyone good ally with a great defense industrial base. And thats the United States. And so were going to have to solve this problem, when its over. Were going to have to resolve it and move on as allies. Worth Your Time Writing for Defector, Puja Changoiwala explored how some Indian citizens have been tricked into fighting in Russias war against Ukraine. When 23-year-old Mohammed Sufiyan left India for Moscow on Dec. 17 of last year, he assumed that he would be working as a helper in a Russian government office, Changoiwala wrote. He had been promised a monthly salary of up to 100,000 ($1,196) and, a year later, Russian citizenship. Instead, a few days after he landed in Moscow, Sufiyan was sent to a military training camp for 15 days, and then was shipped off to the Russia-Ukraine border to fight on behalf of the Russian forces. Ross Douthat argued in the New York Times that our foreign policy discussions are lacking in moral realism. Seeing statecraft as a tragic balancing of evils is still essential, especially amid the kind of moral fervor that attends a conflict like Israels war in Gaza, he wrote. The alternative is a form of argument in which essential aspects of the world, being inconvenient to moral absolutism, simply disappear. For example, reading the apologia for pro-Palestinian protests from certain left-wing intellectuals, you have a sense of both elision and exaggeration, a hype around Israeli moral failuresits not enough for a war that yields so many casualties to be unjust, if its wrong it must be genocidethat ends up suppressing the harsh implications of a simple call for peace. Maybe the Gaza war is unjust enough, and Israeli goals unachievable enough, that theres no alternative to vindicating Hamass blood-soaked strategy. But you have to be honest about what youre endorsing: a brutal weighing-out of evils, not any sort of triumph for universally desirable ideals. Presented Without Comment BBC News: UK Ban On Selling Arms To Israel Would Strengthen Hamas, Says [Foreign Secretary] David Cameron Lord Cameron said the last time he was urged to end weapons sales to Israel, when three Britons were killed in an airstrike on aid workers in Gaza, a few days later there was a brutal attack by Iran on Israel. Just to simply announce today that we will change our approach on arms exports, it would make Hamas stronger, and it would make a hostage deal less likely, he adds. Also Presented Without Comment The Guardian: Trump Praises Fictional Serial Killer Hannibal Lecter During Rally Speech Has anyone ever seen The Silence of the Lambs? The late, great Hannibal Lecter. Hes a wonderful man. He often times would have a friend for dinner. Remember the last scene? Excuse me, Im about to have a friend for dinner, as this poor doctor walked by. Im about to have a friend for dinner. But Hannibal Lecter. Congratulations. The late, great Hannibal Lecter. Also Also Presented Without Comment NBC New York: Actor Steve Buscemi Bloodied and Bruised After Punch to the Face on NYC Street In the Zeitgeist The trailer for Francis Ford Coppolas Megalopolis dropped last week. Coppola has been developing the film for decades and spent $120 million of his own money to finance it. The famed director described the film as a Roman epic. Toeing the Company Line Let Us Know What do you think of Bidens threat to block weapons to Israel? Read more at The Dispatch The Dispatch is a new digital media company providing engaged citizens with fact-based reporting and commentary, informed by conservative principles. Sign up for free. The data is finally flowing, and award letters are being sent, but state leaders and higher education advocates gathered at the State Capitol Monday with a "message of urgency" for Minnesota students: Fill out your college financial aid forms. "The time is right now," said Dennis Olson, commissioner of the Office of Higher Education. He joined Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan and higher education advocates at a news conference Monday during which he announced $15,000 grants for two groups College Possible Minnesota and Achieve Twin Cities that plan to continue working through the summer with students who have struggled trying to complete the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form. The good news, Olson said, is issues that brought about delays in the release of data to his office and to financial aid directors at campuses across the state appear to have been resolved. Still, Flanagan acknowledged some college aspirants may have been discouraged in their attempts to navigate the system in recent months. "We urge all Minnesotans to try again," she said. Monday's announcement came a month after the leaders of eight groups promoting college access warned of a "catastrophic decline in college enrollment" if Gov. Tim Walz did not provide more resources to assist students in determining how much they have to pay for college. State officials say students have access to $2.5 billion in financial aid through federal, state and private sources, but 16% fewer high schoolers have completed the FAFSA compared with a year ago. The U.S. Department of Education attempted this year to streamline the FAFSA and update its formulas, but the rollout got bogged down by delays and tech glitches, leaving students uncertain about how much aid they can count on for the coming year. Some colleges responded by pushing back their traditional May 1 decision deadlines. In a typical year, more than 225,000 Minnesotans fill out the FAFSA, which benefits college officials, too, in efforts to predict the size of next year's freshmen classes. College Possible Minnesota and Achieve Twin Cities were among the groups to sign on to a letter last month urging Walz to use $500,000 of its $3.7 billion surplus to boost efforts to help students complete the forms. They acknowledged, however, that the request came late in this year's legislative session. Olson said his office is nearing the end of its fiscal year and was able to come up with the $30,000 in grants from within its own budget. Achieve Twin Cities has coordinators who work directly with students in the Minneapolis and St. Paul school districts. College Possible Minnesota works with kids statewide and provides one-on-one assistance as well as hotline opportunities and webinars for students and families encountering issues with the FAFSA. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. Iranian gas transit to Eastern European countries is possible through Turkiye, Director General of the Department of Mediterranean and Eastern Europe of the Iranian Foreign Ministry Mahmoud Heidari said during the 23rd International Exhibition of Oil, Gas, Refining, and Petrochemicals, Trend reports. According to him, Turkiye is interested in buying additional gas from Iran. Besides, this country has great opportunities for gas transit. "Eastern European countries are mainly gas consumers. Iran is also one of the main countries with oil and gas reserves in the world and can actively participate in gas supply to these countries. Of course, if there is the political will of these countries, the issues related to the sanctions against Iran will be lifted,'' he said. To note, the 4-day 23rd International Exhibition of Oil, Gas, Refining, and Petrochemicals kicked off in Tehran on May 8. The exhibition was attended by 1,700 local companies and 250 foreign companies. Meanwhile, Iran is considered the second-largest gas reserve country in the world, with approximately 34 trillion cubic meters of gas reserves. Presently, a total of 22 gas fields are operating in Iran. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel With state policy stuck, a county charts its own path to allow more rural housing Legislation that would've allowed for more backyard cottages in rural areas derailed in the 2024 Washington state legislative session. (Mint Images/Getty Images) While Washington lawmakers continue to fight over how to allow for more backyard cottages or in-law suites in rural areas, some counties are already moving in that direction. Theres an uneven legal landscape right now for this housing, and legislators should consider a statewide law to let it grow, Whatcom County Planning and Development Services Director Mark Personius told lawmakers last Wednesday. The bottom line is theyre still being built because people need affordable housing options, Personius said. Personius presented to the Senate Local Government, Land Use and Tribal Affairs committee at a meeting about the countys efforts to build more affordable housing outside of urban areas. As Washingtons housing crisis worsens, many are looking at ways to build more housing in rural areas while protecting environmental and agricultural land. But currently, the opportunities to do so are very limited, Personius said. Whatcom Countys detached accessory dwelling units, like backyard cottages, particularly interested lawmakers, who in recent years have not been able to agree on how to allow more of this housing in rural areas. Supporters say these units can be more affordable and easier to build than other types of housing, but opponents have expressed concerns about strained water supplies, wildfire risks and and the availability of infrastructure like roads or sewer. Its an incredibly contentious issue, Sen. Liz Lovelett, D-Anacortes, said. Whatcom County allows for both attached accessory dwelling units, like a converted garage, and detached accessory dwelling units, like a backyard cottage, in some rural areas. The county has permitted about 24 ADUs both attached and detached annually in the last four years, Personius said. This housing is allowed on a permit-by-permit basis, Personius said, and those wishing to build must prove that they have an adequate water supply and meet certain size requirements. Water is the biggest issue that comes up when talking about allowing for more units in rural areas. Theres this conviction that if the ADU is detached it will inherently use more water, Lovelett said. But Personius said the county has no data to suggest that to be the case, and the potential water usage is anticipated during the permit review process. Although the county already allows for these units, he said counties need stronger guidance from the state on what is and isnt allowed. He said it would be best if the state clearly authorized this type of housing in its Growth Management Act, which is designed to concentrate development in urban areas and to preserve open space and agricultural land. Accessory dwelling units are just part of the push to build more affordable housing in rural areas. Other proposals that failed last year would have allowed for property owners to split their lots into multiple parcels to allow for more housing and would have expanded property tax exemptions for accessory dwelling units to all counties if the units provided low-income housing. Sen. Shelly Short, R-Addy, had concerns about the state discouraging building in rural areas. If your county clearly has the ability to be able to service that, I would think we would want to encourage it, she said. Personius added one option the state could pursue without changing the law would be to invest more in urban areas to promote housing for low-income households for example, by funding infrastructure that makes residential development more feasible. More proposals related to allowing for more affordable housing in rural areas will almost certainly come up when the Legislature is back in session next January. But getting to a consensus among counties and interest groups wont be easy, lawmakers said this week. Sen. Jesse Salomon, D-Shoreline, encouraged them to work together throughout the next few months to find compromises. Its a little frustrating to do it one way and then hear from another county that it needs to be done differently, Salomon said. Were going to be playing Whac-A-Mole. The post With state policy stuck, a county charts its own path to allow more rural housing appeared first on Washington State Standard. With state policy stuck, Whatcom County charts its own path to allow more rural housing While Washington lawmakers continue to fight over how to allow for more backyard cottages or in-law suites in rural areas, some counties are already moving in that direction. Theres an uneven legal landscape right now for this housing, and legislators should consider a statewide law to let it grow, Whatcom County Planning and Development Services Director Mark Personius told lawmakers last Wednesday. The bottom line is theyre still being built because people need affordable housing options, Personius said. Personius presented to the Senate Local Government, Land Use and Tribal Affairs committee at a meeting about the countys efforts to build more affordable housing outside of urban areas. As Washingtons housing crisis worsens, many are looking at ways to build more housing in rural areas while protecting environmental and agricultural land. But currently, the opportunities to do so are very limited, Personius said. Whatcom Countys detached accessory dwelling units, like backyard cottages, particularly interested lawmakers, who in recent years have not been able to agree on how to allow more of this housing in rural areas. Supporters say these units can be more affordable and easier to build than other types of housing, but opponents have expressed concerns about strained water supplies, wildfire risks and and the availability of infrastructure like roads or sewer. Its an incredibly contentious issue, Sen. Liz Lovelett, D-Anacortes, said. Whatcom County allows for both attached accessory dwelling units, like a converted garage, and detached accessory dwelling units, like a backyard cottage, in some rural areas. The county has permitted about 24 ADUs both attached and detached annually in the last four years, Personius said. This housing is allowed on a permit-by-permit basis, Personius said, and those wishing to build must prove that they have an adequate water supply and meet certain size requirements. Water is the biggest issue that comes up when talking about allowing for more units in rural areas. Theres this conviction that if the ADU is detached it will inherently use more water, Lovelett said. But Personius said the county has no data to suggest that to be the case, and the potential water usage is anticipated during the permit review process. Although the county already allows for these units, he said counties need stronger guidance from the state on what is and isnt allowed. He said it would be best if the state clearly authorized this type of housing in its Growth Management Act, which is designed to concentrate development in urban areas and to preserve open space and agricultural land. Accessory dwelling units are just part of the push to build more affordable housing in rural areas. Other proposals that failed last year would have allowed for property owners to split their lots into multiple parcels to allow for more housing and would have expanded property tax exemptions for accessory dwelling units to all counties if the units provided low-income housing. Sen. Shelly Short, R-Addy, had concerns about the state discouraging building in rural areas. If your county clearly has the ability to be able to service that, I would think we would want to encourage it, she said. Personius added one option the state could pursue without changing the law would be to invest more in urban areas to promote housing for low-income households for example, by funding infrastructure that makes residential development more feasible. More proposals related to allowing for more affordable housing in rural areas will almost certainly come up when the Legislature is back in session next January. But getting to a consensus among counties and interest groups wont be easy, lawmakers said this week. Sen. Jesse Salomon, D-Shoreline, encouraged them to work together throughout the next few months to find compromises. Its a little frustrating to do it one way and then hear from another county that it needs to be done differently, Salomon said. Were going to be playing Whac-A-Mole. Washington State Standard is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Washington State Standard maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Bill Lucia for questions: info@washingtonstatestandard.com. Follow Washington State Standard on Facebook and Twitter. Still chances to view Northern Lights Sunday night in central North Carolina RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) After an amazing view Friday night and some decent Northern Lights seen Saturday night there is still a chance to catch a view of the aurora in central North Carolina on Sunday night. As some more added celebration on Mothers Day night, the aurora is expected to light up the skies once again. However, the best way to actually see the Northern Lights will be to take a still photo using a long exposure camera. Most of the spectacle will remain invisible to the naked eye tonight. The best time to view the aurora will be between 11 p.m. Sunday and 2 a.m. Monday away from city lights. Darius took this photo of his best friend in Raeford as Northern Lights were spotted in North Carolina. The lights have been visible thanks to geomagnetic storms reaching G5 strength, the NOAAs Space Weather Prediction Center explained. Its been quite the weekend for skywatchers as rare, strong geomagnetic storms have impacted Earth, sparking dazzling northern lights. NOAAs Space Weather Prediction Center says more very fast moving coronal mass ejections will slam into Earths magnetic field through Sunday night, giving Americans a third consecutive night with a chance to see the northern lights. Saturday, the aurora was strong enough to reach Florida. The Nexstar Media Wire contributed to this report Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to CBS17.com. Still much unknown on how marijuana policies would change in states under Biden plan A portion of marijuana is seen under a magnifying glass at the Abundant Healing store April 19, 2010, in Fort Collins, Colorado. (Chris Hondros/Getty Images) U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland has proposed loosening the illegal status of marijuana at the federal level but that doesnt mean the federal government now condones recreational or medicinal use in the many states that have legalized the drug. Moving marijuana from the governments list of the most dangerous and least useful substances, which are Schedule I drugs, to a less serious category, Schedule III, as a clear signal that the federal government, at least under President Joe Bidens administration, wants to ease restrictions on a drug thats been legal in an increasing number of states for more than a decade. For years, the federal government has not pursued enforcement of state-legal marijuana operations, and the recent move appears to solidify that approach. But it didnt solve the many thorny issues that have resulted from a split between what is legal in dozens of states and what the federal government allows. Its unclear exactly what the rescheduling will mean. The Justice Department has not made public the text of Garlands proposal a DOJ spokesman declined States Newsrooms request this week for a copy, and state regulators say it has not been shared with them. Even if the proposal were public, it would be expected to go through changes over months of rulemaking. Here are some questions covering what is known at this early stage about what rescheduling would and would not do. Q: Is weed legal now? A: No. Even in states that have legalized recreational use, the federal government would likely still consider the state system as illegal under federal law. Other Schedule III drugs, including Tylenol with codeine and anabolic steroids, are tightly regulated and available only by prescription at pharmacies. State-legal medicinal marijuana dispensaries do not fit that description, and recreational-use dispensaries are even further from what the Food and Drug Administration requires of Schedule III drugs. This does not make marijuana state operations legal, Shawn Hauser, a partner at Denver-based marijuana law firm Vicente LLP, said on a May 3 webinar. They are not selling FDA-approved drugs and they are not licensed or meet the control requirements for Schedule III. So cannabis and state-legal dispensaries will remain in violation of federal law. Q: What is the difference between Schedule I and Schedule III? A: Among the most significant is the recognition that the drug may have some medicinal value. Under the federal Controlled Substances Act, the Drug Enforcement Administration has five levels of drug classifications. Schedule I is the most restricted level, comprising the drugs most ripe for abuse that have no medicinal value. Other drugs on the list include heroin and LSD. Because the definition of Schedule I substances includes no medicinal use, it is illegal to even study substances on the list. Schedule III is the strictest level that acknowledges some medicinal value, making some hopeful that research on the drug could be improved. Moving cannabis to Schedule III would be a big step for recognition of the medical uses of cannabis, what voters here recognized by a wide margin in 1998, the Washington state Liquor and Cannabis Board said in a May 1 statement. And it would say very clearly that the federal government no longer considers cannabis among the most dangerous drugs. Q: How are states preparing? A: Until they have more details, state regulators cannot do much, Amanda Borup, the senior policy analyst for the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission, said in an interview. We really have to wait and see what they release, she said, referring to the DEAs rulemaking. Other states are considering what the impacts might be. The statement from Washingtons Liquor and Cannabis Board said rescheduling would hopefully ease restrictions on cannabis research, while it is possible the move would allow state-legal businesses to take advantage of tax deductions available to other industries. Q: Why does research matter? A: Marijuana advocates have had trouble providing evidence of any marijuana benefits because research has been restricted, which in turn made it more difficult to show that the restrictions should be lifted. It could also help establish industry guidelines for ancillary issues. For example, the restrictions on research contribute to a lack of data on what pesticides are safe for use in marijuana cultivation. Q: How does this affect policy on taxes, banking and criminal justice? A: On its own, rescheduling likely wont address several complaints that marijuana industry members and advocates have about federal prohibition. Some are hopeful, though, that the signal from the Biden administration will spur momentum toward other changes. Most businesses can deduct their costs from their income and pay taxes on their net income. Marijuana businesses cannot take that deduction, known as 280E, according to the Marijuana Policy Project, an advocacy group. Schedule I status also makes access to the U.S. banking system difficult. Others complain that making marijuana legal in some states has not been fair to the communities of color that saw the most active enforcement. Rescheduling would not fix those issues on its own, but advocates are hopeful it is a sign of momentum toward full legalization. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Democratic Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey and Ron Wyden of Oregon reintroduced a bill last week to de-schedule the drug altogether. The measure includes expanding the 280E tax break and several provisions meant to address social justice. Q: Could Trump reverse this if he wins in November? A: Probably, though theres no indication thats on his agenda. Its unclear what the status of the rescheduling will be when the next Inauguration Day arrives on Jan. 20. If former President Donald Trump wins back the presidency and the rescheduling is still pending, he could direct the DEA and DOJ to scrap the change. Trump has not commented on the issue. The post Still much unknown on how marijuana policies would change in states under Biden plan appeared first on Nebraska Examiner. Still much unknown on how marijuana policies would change in states under Biden plan A portion of marijuana is seen under a magifying glass at the Abundant Healing store April 19, 2010, in Fort Collins, Colorado. (Photo by Chris Hondros/Getty Images) U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland has proposed loosening the illegal status of marijuana at the federal level but that doesnt mean the federal government now condones recreational or medicinal use in the many states that have legalized the drug. Moving marijuana from the governments list of the most dangerous and least useful substances to a less serious category was a clear signal that the federal government, at least under President Joe Bidens administration, wants to ease restrictions on a drug thats been legal in an increasing number of states for more than a decade. For years, the federal government has not pursued enforcement of state-legal marijuana operations, and the recent move appears to solidify that approach. But it didnt solve the many thorny issues that have resulted from a split between what is legal in dozens of states and what the federal government allows. Its unclear exactly what the rescheduling will mean. The Justice Department has not made public the text of Garlands proposal a DOJ spokesman declined States Newsrooms request this week for a copy and state regulators say it has not been shared with them. Even if the proposal were public, it would be expected to go through changes over months of rulemaking. Here are some questions covering what is known at this early stage about what rescheduling would and would not do. Q: Is weed legal now? A: No. Even in states that have legalized recreational use, the federal government would likely still consider the state system as illegal under federal law. Other Schedule III drugs, including Tylenol with codeine and anabolic steroids, are tightly regulated and available only by prescription at pharmacies. State-legal medicinal marijuana dispensaries do not fit that description and recreational-use dispensaries are even further from what the Food and Drug Administration requires of Schedule III drugs. This does not make marijuana state operations legal, Shawn Hauser, a partner at Denver-based marijuana law firm Vicente LLP, said on a May 3 webinar. They are not selling FDA-approved drugs and they are not licensed or meet the control requirements for Schedule III. So cannabis and state-legal dispensaries will remain in violation of federal law. Q: What is the difference between Schedule I and Schedule III? A: Among the most significant is the recognition that the drug may have some medicinal value. Under the federal Controlled Substances Act, the Drug Enforcement Administration has five levels of drug classifications. Schedule I is the most restricted level, comprising the drugs most ripe for abuse that have no medicinal value. Other drugs on the list include heroin and LSD. Because the definition of Schedule I substances includes no medicinal use, it is illegal to even study substances on the list. Schedule III is the strictest level that acknowledges some medicinal value, making some hopeful that research on the drug could be improved. Moving cannabis to Schedule III would be a big step for recognition of the medical uses of cannabis, what voters here recognized by a wide margin in 1998, the Washington state Liquor and Cannabis Board said in a May 1 statement. And it would say very clearly that the federal government no longer considers cannabis among the most dangerous drugs. Q: How are states preparing? A: Until they have more details, state regulators cannot do much, Amanda Borup, the senior policy analyst for the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission, said in an interview. We really have to wait and see what they release, she said, referring to the DEAs rulemaking. Other states are considering what the impacts might be. The statement from Washingtons Liquor and Cannabis Board said rescheduling would hopefully ease restrictions on cannabis research, while it is possible the move would allow state-legal businesses to take advantage of tax deductions available to other industries. Q: Why does research matter? A: Marijuana advocates have had trouble providing evidence of any marijuana benefits because research has been restricted, which in turn made it more difficult to show that the restrictions should be lifted. It could also help establish industry guidelines for ancillary issues. For example, the restrictions on research contribute to a lack of data on what pesticides are safe for use in marijuana cultivation. Q: How does this affect policy on taxes, banking and criminal justice? A: On its own, rescheduling likely wont address several complaints marijuana industry members and advocates have about federal prohibition. Some are hopeful, though, that the signal from the Biden administration will spur momentum toward other changes. Most businesses can deduct their costs from their income and pay taxes on their net income. Marijuana businesses cannot take that deduction, known as 280E, according to the Marijuana Policy Project, an advocacy group. Schedule I status also makes access to the U.S. banking system difficult. Others complain that making marijuana legal in some states has not been fair to the communities of color that saw the most active enforcement. Rescheduling would not fix those issues on its own, but advocates are hopeful it is a sign of momentum toward full legalization. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Democratic Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey and Ron Wyden of Oregon reintroduced a bill last week to de-schdule the drug altogether. The measure includes expanding the 280E tax break and several provisions meant to address social justice. Q: Could Trump reverse this if he wins in November? A: Probably, though theres no indication thats on his agenda. Its unclear what the status of the rescheduling will be when the next Inauguration Day arrives on Jan. 20. If former President Donald Trump wins back the presidency and the rescheduling is still pending, he could direct the DEA and DOJ to scrap the change. Trump has not commented on the issue. The post Still much unknown on how marijuana policies would change in states under Biden plan appeared first on Michigan Advance. Some patients with traumatic brain injuries who died after withdrawal of life support may have recovered if given the chance, a new study from Mass General Brigham in Boston indicates. Photo by Fathergoosemusic/Wikimedia Commons NEW YORK, May 13 (UPI) -- Some patients with traumatic brain injuries who died after life support was withdrawn may have recovered if given more time, a new study indicates. The findings of the study, conducted at Mass General Brigham in Boston, were published Monday in the Journal of Neurotrauma. A more cautious approach is needed in making early decisions on withdrawal of life support after traumatic brain injuries, according to the researchers from Mass General Brigham, a leading biomedical research organization the includes several Harvard Medical School teaching hospitals. "Severe traumatic brain injury -- resulting for example, from a car accident -- is a major cause of hospitalizations and deaths around the world," impacting more than 5 million people annually, the study's senior author, Dr. Yelena Bodien, an assistant professor in the department of neurology at Massachusetts General Hospital, told UPI via email. While many people recover consciousness over a few hours or a day, others remain in the intensive care unit, relying on life support, such as a breathing tube, said Bodien, who also is an assistant professor in the department of physical medicine and rehabilitation at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in Charlestown, Mass. "Families are often asked to make decisions about continuing or withdrawing life support, such as mechanical breathing, within just 72 hours of the injury," said the studys senior author, Dr. Yelena Bodien, an assistant professor in the department of neurology at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. Photo courtesy of Mass General Brigham "Predicting who will recover following severe traumatic brain injury, and to what degree, can be challenging. Yet, families are often asked to make decisions about continuing or withdrawing life support, such as mechanical breathing, within just 72 hours of the injury," Bodien said. "This decision is based largely on whether the clinical team believes that recovery is possible," she added. "It is unknown whether some people who died because life support was discontinued could have survived and recovered had life support been continued." Currently, no medical guidelines or precise algorithms determine which patients with severe traumatic brain injury are likely to recover. The most common reason families opt for withdrawing life support measures is physicians relaying information that suggests a poor neurologic prognosis. In the study, researchers found that some patients for whom life support was withdrawn may have survived and recovered some independence a few months after injury. Postponing decisions on withdrawing life support may be helpful for some patients, they noted. Using data gathered over a 7 1/2-year period on 1,392 traumatic brain injury patients in intensive care units at 18 U.S. trauma centers, the researchers designed a mathematical model to calculate the likelihood that life-sustaining treatment would be discontinued. They based their model on demographics, socioeconomic factors and injury characteristics. Then, they paired patients continuing on life-sustaining treatment to individuals with similar model scores, but for whom life-sustaining treatment was stopped. Based on follow-up, the estimated six-month outcomes for a significant proportion of the withdrawn group were either death or recovery of at least some independence in daily activities. Of the survivors in the not-withdrawn group, more than 40% recovered at least some independence. In addition, the research team found that remaining in a vegetative state was an unlikely outcome by six months after injury. None of the patients who died was pronounced brain dead, so the results are not applicable to brain death. Researchers suggest that clinicians assume patients will do poorly based on outcomes data. This leads to withdrawal of life support, which then increases poor outcomes rates and leads to even more decisions to remove life support, the study's authors noted. What's needed are additional studies consisting of larger sample sizes that allow for more precise matching of patients for whom life support is withdrawn and those for whom it isn't. This would help researchers understand variable recovery trajectories for people who sustain traumatic brain injuries, the researchers said. Dr. Ariane Lewis, a professor in the departments of neurology and neurosurgery at NYU Langone Medical Center in New York City, said she would like to "congratulate the authors on this important work." "It has long been recognized that our understanding of recovery after acute brain injury has been jaded by nihilism and the self-fulfilling prophecy -- the expectation of a bad outcome leading to premature withdrawal of life-sustaining treatment, which results in death," said Lewis, who also is director of neurocritical care. She added that it can take many months for patients to recover. Multiple complications can ensue and patients are unable to return home because they need artificial support for breathing and nutrition for a long period of time. "Views about prolonging life in the setting of disability and dependency, even if subsequent recovery is feasible, are very personal and can change over time," she said. "People should discuss these wishes with family and friends to ensure they are followed in the unfortunate event of acute brain injury precluding decision-making capacity." In the study, older patients with traumatic brain injury appeared to have poor outcomes, while a significant proportion of younger patients seemed capable of recovering and regaining valuable independence, said Dr. Julio Chalela, a professor in the neurosurgery department at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. Based on the study, "doctors should be very careful about withdrawing life-sustaining therapies in patients, particularly in the first 72 hours after a traumatic brain injury," Chalela said, describing the new research as "intriguing." However, Dr. Erol Veznedaroglu, a professor and chair of the department of neurosurgery at Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia, said that "this study offers little insight into the care of this patient population." "The fear is that, in fact, it may give many families false hope and confuse decision-making for the great majority of patients who have little hope of meaningful recovery," Veznedaroglu said. He added that "every family must make decisions based on quality of life for that individual, not quantity. It is impossible to quantify this in general terms as it is unique to each patient and family." Surgeon travels to the Philippines highlands then discovers a new species. See it Robert L. Chang, a colorectal surgeon from Manila, has taken many trips up to the Philippines highlands. Considering himself a naturalist, he explores the rugged terrain on the northern island of the country. On one trip, about 55 miles south of the capital city, Chang stopped at the freshwater streams atop Mount Manabu. Looking through the pristine rocky streams, he saw the brown legs of a crab sticking out from the stones. He grabbed a few of the crabs and brought them to a contact who reached out to a group of researchers to take a closer look. It was a new species. The new species was discovered in the pristine freshwater of a mountain stream in the Philippines. Discover more new species Thousands of new species are found each year. Here are three of our most eye-catching stories from the past week. Deep-sea creature with 'rectangular' shape discovered Sea creature 'adorned with gold' found on coral in Philippines Clawed forest creature found lurking near temple in India The new species is morphologically most similar to a group of Philippine Sundathelphusa (the philippina group) in the general shape and proportions of the carapace and legs, Jose Christopher Escano Mendoza, researcher and crustacean curator at the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum, told McClatchy News in an email. Mendoza and his colleagues published the discovery in the journal Crustaceana on April 30. It can be distinguished from those other species by the form of the epistome and external maxillipeds (mouthparts), the dorsal ridges on the carapace (body), and the overall form of the male reproductive structures, Mendoza said. The crab is mostly brown overall but has some darker brown spots, and orange and pale yellow coloring, according to the study. The species was named Sundathelphusa roberti after Chang, the discoverer. The shape of the mouth and ridges on the carapace, or body, of the crab set it apart from other species, researchers said. As is the case with most invertebrates, we know very little about the behavior and ecology of these crabs, except what we can infer from their morphology and from the places where they were collected, Mendoza said. Based on these, we believe that these crabs are fully aquatic, probably omnivorous and/or detritivorous, and they prefer the relatively less disturbed/more pristine mountainous areas. The crabs likely hide under rocks or create burrows in the dirt along the waters edge, according to the study. Mendoza said these crabs have been geographically separated from other known species for a significant amount of time. This, with their morphological differences, make researchers confident the crab is a new species, but it will later be confirmed with molecular testing. Since the Philippines is made up of many islands, each island is likely to have unique species that cant travel from one island to another. Sundathelphusa roberti is the 35th species of the Sundathelphusa genus to be described from the Philippines, but we know it wont be the last. I believe we have only discovered a fraction of the total diversity, going by the number of suitable locations/habitats that have been explored, as well as the number of specimens already in museums awaiting description, Mendoza said. The new species lives in a small geographic range, and is isolated by the islands and terrain. Mendoza said the discovery is part of an ongoing project to study the endemic freshwater crabs of the Philippines, led by his team at the museum. Ive always been interested in natural history, even as a child, thanks to the influence of my parents and grandparents... and as I went through university in the Philippines, I felt that there was not enough local expertise in invertebrate zoology. So I made a career out of it, Mendoza said. Another species discovery might be coming soon, the researchers said in the study. While Chang was scouring the streams, he spoke with locals who told him there was also a reddish-orange crab usually seen on rainy days climbing trees in the area, according to the study. Another new species would only add to the diversity of crab species found here. This combination of high endemicity and high diversity, makes the conservation of freshwater crabs a good priority for the Philippines, especially in this age where many freshwater habitats are threatened by degradation and destruction. I may be biased, but the freshwater crab makes an excellent poster child for conservation efforts targeted at freshwater ecosystems and species, Mendoza said. The species was discovered in the Batangas region of Luzon, the northernmost large island of the Philippines. Dragon ball creature with countless legs discovered in Thailand. See new species Exceedingly rare creature 3 feet long and scaly found on tree in Tibet. See it Golden-tailed creature pregnant with 2 eggs discovered as new species. See it Technicolored creature found in Brazil river discovered as a new species. See it Survivors of domestic and sexual violence can break their leases early in some states Domestic violence survivor K, left, her name withheld for confidentiality, sits with her son for dinner in their new sparsely furnished apartment, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2015, in New York. domestic violence survivor sits with her son for dinner in their new, sparsely furnished apartment in New York. Housing is among the biggest challenges for people leaving abusive relationships, and many cities and states are looking to help survivors by allowing them to break their leases early and in other ways. (Bebeto Matthews/The Associated Press) New Hampshire state Rep. Ellen Read remembers how trapped she felt as an 18-year-old in her native Tennessee, enduring the physical and emotional toll of an abusive relationship. The abuse Read suffered which included being held captive in an apartment for days and hit by her abusers car lasted years after she left the relationship, while her abuser stalked her. In 2016, Read won election to the New Hampshire House of Representatives. That same year, she recalled to Stateline, her abuser died by suicide after 16 years of prolonged stalking. Now, a bill authored by Read would allow victims of domestic and sexual violence including stalking to break their rental lease agreements early if they provide a police report or are in the process of obtaining documents such as a protective order following an incident. My hope is that this increases the boldness of people living in these abusive situations and that they know if they leave, there will be a path forward for them and they wont be forced to stay with their abuser or at the home they were abused in, said Read, a Democrat. The bill has been sent to Republican Gov. Chris Sununu after passing both chambers. The pandemic lockdown that began in March 2020, coming alongside the nations worsening housing crisis, has prompted state lawmakers to help victims of assault who are struggling to move away from their alleged abusers. Domestic violence incidents in the United States increased by 8.1% in the months following the imposition of pandemic lockdown orders in 2020, according to a 2021 report released by the National Commission on COVID-19 and Criminal Justice, a group launched by the Council on Criminal Justice, a think tank. More than a dozen states have passed measures in the past five years bolstering rental protections for survivors by allowing them to break their leases if they provide evidence of stalking, sexual assault or an abusive domestic relationship. Many of those laws, which were enacted or strengthened during the pandemic, give victims more leeway in how they can document the abuse. Many cities and states are looking to help survivors with new housing in other ways, such as by obtaining grants to develop transitional housing or offering housing vouchers to victims. It is deeply traumatizing and harmful to force survivors to continue to live in the same home where the harm occurred, said Kate Walz, associate director of litigation at the National Housing Law Project, an advocacy group that trains legal services organizations. It can retraumatize and compound the harm over years, if not decades. Several states are addressing the issue this session. Efforts to add early lease termination laws for victims in Ohio, Pennsylvania and South Carolina have yet to either make it past committees or both chambers. A driving factor for survivors of domestic violence is making sure that there is somewhere safe for them to go. Nicole Molinaro, president and CEO of the Womens Center & Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh While Pennsylvanias effort to pass these protections statewide has stalled, the Pittsburgh City Council approved a bill in October that requires landlords to allow domestic abuse victims to exit their leases without penalty, and also change a tenants locks upon request, though at the tenants expense. Nicole Molinaro, president and CEO of the Womens Center & Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh, one of the countrys first domestic violence shelters, called the legislation monumental. Molinaro hopes the state will eventually enact similar protections. She said that the trauma of domestic and sexual violence can be crippling, and that some victims may need to leave their neighborhood or cities altogether if their abuser also has roots there. A driving factor for survivors of domestic violence is making sure that there is somewhere safe for them to go, Molinaro told Stateline. And that often means a survivor cannot move back to the neighborhood they were in if the abuser still has connections there. The post-separation journey When New York City resident Stephanie Woodbine and her adolescent daughter left a two-year abusive relationship in 2017, she wasnt sure where they were going to live. Woodbine told Stateline that on top of emotional abuse, she also suffered economic abuse a form of abuse that New York City last year officially recognized as domestic violence. She found housing, then was evicted after losing her job. I really didnt have a lot of money to pay for housing because the mental trauma made it hard to live a normal life, keep a job, Woodbine said. She didnt qualify for the domestic violence shelters because she wasnt in an active domestic violence situation, she recalled, so she stayed in hotels and lived a life of hidden homelessness with her daughter. Stephanie Woodbine struggled to find housing for her and her daughter when she left an abusive relationship in 2017. They now have a permanent home, and Woodbine has become a preschool teacher. She also has earned a public speaking certification from a local advocacy group. Courtesy of Stephanie Woodbine There are so many decisions that make leaving any abusive situation hard, but when you leave you find out just how hard it is to survive when you feel your options are limited, said Woodbine, who eventually received an emergency housing voucher and has secured permanent housing. Theres a lot of post-separation abuse that is also contributing to survivors instability and their mental trauma, added Woodbine, who now sits on the Mayors Office to End Domestic and Gender-Based Violence. Its why we want to expand protections for survivors post-separation, and that includes providing permanent housing. Intimate partner violence is a major driver of homelessness, and researchers have found that housing is among the most common needs for survivors. Currently, 10% of shelters and transitional housing are targeted to domestic violence victims and their families, according to the National Alliance to End Homelessness. As the U.S. Supreme Court considers the constitutionality of homeless camping and outdoor sleeping bans, cities that have passed bans argue that outside encampments are dangerous not just for the public, but also for people staying there. But Walz, of the National Housing Law Project, fears that if these bans are deemed constitutional, theyll have a major impact on women and children fleeing domestic violence situations. Gender-based violence is both the cause and consequence of housing instability. Housing instability increases your risk of it, and housing instability comes as a result of it, said Walz. If we dont recognize that and craft our policies to be responsive to it, we are guaranteeing continued violence and increase of it. More cities are working to include housing as a key service for survivors. Woodbine credited city-based nonprofits for navigating her through the emergency voucher process an intimidating process for those in need of housing. New York City is hoping to provide such protections and, most importantly, housing through a pilot program funded with a $300,000 grant from the NYC Fund to End Youth & Family Homelessness that aims to help 100 families affected by domestic violence find homes. Saloni Sethi, acting commissioner of the Mayors Office to End Domestic and Gender-Based Violence, told Stateline that the pilot program addresses the need for safe and stable housing for survivors in a place where secure housing can be scarce. Survivors are often sort of faced with this really impossible choice of, do I give up my own safety or do I destabilize myself and my entire family by leaving home? We anticipate this pilot can finally provide that stable, fresh start, Sethi said. Many cities and states have become more intentional about building or reserving housing for survivors, with increasing support from the federal government. Last year, the U.S. Department of Justices Office on Violence Against Women awarded 81 grants, worth $43 million, to programs offering housing for six to 24 months for survivors. Breaking the lease If Reads bill is signed by Sununu, New Hampshire would become one of 40 states to have early rental lease termination protections for victims of domestic or sexual abuse. In post-lockdown years, Oklahoma passed early termination laws for domestic violence victims. Utah amended its early termination law in 2023, reducing the termination fee from 45 days of rent one of the highest in the nation at the time to a months rent. Reads bill, which she based on a similar one in Tennessee, stalled in committee when she first introduced it last year. During early debate, New Hampshire landlord groups raised concerns about the financial burden they carry when tenants break their lease early a position that irritated Read. Nobody will say in todays society here that they are in favor of domestic violence, Read said. But put your money where your mouth is when it comes to allowing them to make that decision to exit their lease early even at a financial loss, or else its just lip service. But every time a new tenant comes in, it costs money to clean up and turn over the home, said Nick Norman, a real estate owner who serves as government affairs chair for the Apartment Association of New Hampshire. The bills original language also could have left a landlord responsible for things left behind, including damages. The legislation now on Sununus desk is drastically different, Norman said. The housing provider advocates and tenant advocates came together as we usually do to find a solution that works best for both parties. Read likewise credited the Senate for adding measures that would make qualifying for an early termination lease easier. Some states, including Kansas, North Dakota and Utah, may allow landlords to charge fees or forward payment of rent for breaking the lease early in cases of intimate partner violence. And many states require documents from an outside source, such as a police report or court protective order. Many landlords see such requirements as a necessary step in good faith to break a lease early. However, Walz thinks that these requirements are a barrier for survivors, given how underreported domestic and sexual violence is and how hard it can be for victims to obtain a report without escalating violence from their abuser. First and foremost, we must believe survivors. This means in action taking their own stories and experiences to be true and not requiring any form of third-party proof, Walz said. Assumptions, stereotypes and bias towards not believing survivors and perceiving that it could be made up in order to exit a lease play into state policy responses and often result in a litany of requirements, including orders of protection, police reports, third-party statements, she said. Stateline is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Stateline maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Scott S. Greenberger for questions: info@stateline.org. Follow Stateline on Facebook and Twitter. The post Survivors of domestic and sexual violence can break their leases early in some states appeared first on Rhode Island Current. Survivors of domestic and sexual violence can break their leases early in some states A domestic violence survivor sits with her son for dinner in their new, sparsely furnished apartment in New York. Housing is among the biggest challenges for people leaving abusive relationships, and many cities and states are looking to help survivors by allowing them to break their leases early and in other ways. (Bebeto Matthews | The Associated Press) New Hampshire state Rep. Ellen Read remembers how trapped she felt as an 18-year-old in her native Tennessee, enduring the physical and emotional toll of an abusive relationship. The abuse Read suffered which included being held captive in an apartment for days and hit by her abusers car lasted years after she left the relationship, while her abuser stalked her. In 2016, Read won election to the New Hampshire House of Representatives. That same year, she recalled to Stateline, her abuser died by suicide after 16 years of prolonged stalking. Now, a bill authored by Read would allow victims of domestic and sexual violence including stalking to break their rental lease agreements early if they provide a police report or are in the process of obtaining documents such as a protective order following an incident. My hope is that this increases the boldness of people living in these abusive situations and that they know if they leave, there will be a path forward for them and they wont be forced to stay with their abuser or at the home they were abused in, said Read, a Democrat. The bill has been sent to Republican Gov. Chris Sununu after passing both chambers. The pandemic lockdown that began in March 2020, coming alongside the nations worsening housing crisis, has prompted state lawmakers to help victims of assault who are struggling to move away from their alleged abusers. Domestic violence incidents in the United States increased by 8.1% in the months following the imposition of pandemic lockdown orders in 2020, according to a 2021 report released by the National Commission on COVID-19 and Criminal Justice, a group launched by the Council on Criminal Justice, a think tank. More than a dozen states have passed measures in the past five years bolstering rental protections for survivors by allowing them to break their leases if they provide evidence of stalking, sexual assault or an abusive domestic relationship. Many of those laws, which were enacted or strengthened during the pandemic, give victims more leeway in how they can document the abuse. Many cities and states are looking to help survivors with new housing in other ways, such as by obtaining grants to develop transitional housing or offering housing vouchers to victims. It is deeply traumatizing and harmful to force survivors to continue to live in the same home where the harm occurred, said Kate Walz, associate director of litigation at the National Housing Law Project, an advocacy group that trains legal services organizations. It can retraumatize and compound the harm over years, if not decades. Several states are addressing the issue this session. Efforts to add early lease termination laws for victims in Ohio, Pennsylvania and South Carolina have yet to either make it past committees or both chambers. A driving factor for survivors of domestic violence is making sure that there is somewhere safe for them to go. Nicole Molinaro, president and CEO of the Womens Center & Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh While Pennsylvanias effort to pass these protections statewide has stalled, the Pittsburgh City Council approved a bill in October that requires landlords to allow domestic abuse victims to exit their leases without penalty, and also change a tenants locks upon request, though at the tenants expense. Nicole Molinaro, president and CEO of the Womens Center & Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh, one of the countrys first domestic violence shelters, called the legislation monumental. Molinaro hopes the state will eventually enact similar protections. She said that the trauma of domestic and sexual violence can be crippling, and that some victims may need to leave their neighborhood or cities altogether if their abuser also has roots there. A driving factor for survivors of domestic violence is making sure that there is somewhere safe for them to go, Molinaro told Stateline. And that often means a survivor cannot move back to the neighborhood they were in if the abuser still has connections there. The post-separation journey When New York City resident Stephanie Woodbine and her adolescent daughter left a two-year abusive relationship in 2017, she wasnt sure where they were going to live. Woodbine told Stateline that on top of emotional abuse, she also suffered economic abuse a form of abuse that New York City last year officially recognized as domestic violence. She found housing, then was evicted after losing her job. I really didnt have a lot of money to pay for housing because the mental trauma made it hard to live a normal life, keep a job, Woodbine said. She didnt qualify for the domestic violence shelters because she wasnt in an active domestic violence situation, she recalled, so she stayed in hotels and lived a life of hidden homelessness with her daughter. There are so many decisions that make leaving any abusive situation hard, but when you leave you find out just how hard it is to survive when you feel your options are limited, said Woodbine, who eventually received an emergency housing voucher and has secured permanent housing. Theres a lot of post-separation abuse that is also contributing to survivors instability and their mental trauma, added Woodbine, who now sits on the Mayors Office to End Domestic and Gender-Based Violence. Its why we want to expand protections for survivors post-separation, and that includes providing permanent housing. Intimate partner violence is a major driver of homelessness, and researchers have found that housing is among the most common needs for survivors. Currently, 10% of shelters and transitional housing are targeted to domestic violence victims and their families, according to the National Alliance to End Homelessness. As the U.S. Supreme Court considers the constitutionality of homeless camping and outdoor sleeping bans, cities that have passed bans argue that outside encampments are dangerous not just for the public, but also for people staying there. But Walz, of the National Housing Law Project, fears that if these bans are deemed constitutional, theyll have a major impact on women and children fleeing domestic violence situations. Gender-based violence is both the cause and consequence of housing instability. Housing instability increases your risk of it, and housing instability comes as a result of it, said Walz. If we dont recognize that and craft our policies to be responsive to it, we are guaranteeing continued violence and increase of it. More cities are working to include housing as a key service for survivors. Woodbine credited city-based nonprofits for navigating her through the emergency voucher process an intimidating process for those in need of housing. New York City is hoping to provide such protections and, most importantly, housing through a pilot program funded with a $300,000 grant from the NYC Fund to End Youth & Family Homelessness that aims to help 100 families affected by domestic violence find homes. Saloni Sethi, acting commissioner of the Mayors Office to End Domestic and Gender-Based Violence, told Stateline that the pilot program addresses the need for safe and stable housing for survivors in a place where secure housing can be scarce. Survivors are often sort of faced with this really impossible choice of, do I give up my own safety or do I destabilize myself and my entire family by leaving home? We anticipate this pilot can finally provide that stable, fresh start, Sethi said. Many cities and states have become more intentional about building or reserving housing for survivors, with increasing support from the federal government. Last year, the U.S. Department of Justices Office on Violence Against Women awarded 81 grants, worth $43 million, to programs offering housing for six to 24 months for survivors. Breaking the lease If Reads bill is signed by Sununu, New Hampshire would become one of 40 states to have early rental lease termination protections for victims of domestic or sexual abuse. In post-lockdown years, Oklahoma passed early termination laws for domestic violence victims. Utah amended its early termination law in 2023, reducing the termination fee from 45 days of rent one of the highest in the nation at the time to a months rent. Reads bill, which she based on a similar one in Tennessee, stalled in committee when she first introduced it last year. During early debate, New Hampshire landlord groups raised concerns about the financial burden they carry when tenants break their lease early a position that irritated Read. Nobody will say in todays society here that they are in favor of domestic violence, Read said. But put your money where your mouth is when it comes to allowing them to make that decision to exit their lease early even at a financial loss, or else its just lip service. But every time a new tenant comes in, it costs money to clean up and turn over the home, said Nick Norman, a real estate owner who serves as government affairs chair for the Apartment Association of New Hampshire. The bills original language also could have left a landlord responsible for things left behind, including damages. The legislation now on Sununus desk is drastically different, Norman said. The housing provider advocates and tenant advocates came together as we usually do to find a solution that works best for both parties. Read likewise credited the Senate for adding measures that would make qualifying for an early termination lease easier. Some states, including Kansas, North Dakota and Utah, may allow landlords to charge fees or forward payment of rent for breaking the lease early in cases of intimate partner violence. And many states require documents from an outside source, such as a police report or court protective order. Many landlords see such requirements as a necessary step in good faith to break a lease early. However, Walz thinks that these requirements are a barrier for survivors, given how underreported domestic and sexual violence is and how hard it can be for victims to obtain a report without escalating violence from their abuser. First and foremost, we must believe survivors. This means in action taking their own stories and experiences to be true and not requiring any form of third-party proof, Walz said. Assumptions, stereotypes and bias towards not believing survivors and perceiving that it could be made up in order to exit a lease play into state policy responses and often result in a litany of requirements, including orders of protection, police reports, third-party statements, she said. Stateline is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Stateline maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Scott S. Greenberger for questions: info@stateline.org. Follow Stateline on Facebook and Twitter. The post Survivors of domestic and sexual violence can break their leases early in some states appeared first on West Virginia Watch. Survivors of domestic and sexual violence can break their leases early in some states A domestic violence survivor sits with her son for dinner in their new, sparsely furnished apartment in New York. Housing is among the biggest challenges for people leaving abusive relationships, and many cities and states are looking to help survivors by allowing them to break their leases early and in other ways. (Bebeto Matthews/AP) New Hampshire state Rep. Ellen Read remembers how trapped she felt as an 18-year-old in her native Tennessee, enduring the physical and emotional toll of an abusive relationship. The abuse Read suffered which included being held captive in an apartment for days and hit by her abusers car lasted years after she left the relationship, while her abuser stalked her. Resources for sexual violence victims If you have experienced sexual violence, call Utahs 24-hour Sexual Violence Helpline at 1-801-736-4356. You can also call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673 for free and confidential counseling. The following local resources are also available: Native American domestic violence and sexual assault line: 1-833-688-4325 Rape Recovery Center: 801-467-7282 Rape & Sexual Assault Crisis Line: 1-888-421-1100 YWCA Survivor Services 24-hour crisis line: 1-801-537-8600 University of Utah Center For Student Wellness Victim-Survivor Advocacy: 1-801-581-7776 Linea de Apoyo de Violencia Sexual las 24-Horas de Utah: 1-801-924-0860 In 2016, Read won election to the New Hampshire House of Representatives. That same year, she recalled to Stateline, her abuser died by suicide after 16 years of prolonged stalking. Now, a bill authored by Read would allow victims of domestic and sexual violence including stalking to break their rental lease agreements early if they provide a police report or are in the process of obtaining documents such as a protective order following an incident. My hope is that this increases the boldness of people living in these abusive situations and that they know if they leave, there will be a path forward for them and they wont be forced to stay with their abuser or at the home they were abused in, said Read, a Democrat. The bill has been sent to Republican Gov. Chris Sununu after passing both chambers. The pandemic lockdown that began in March 2020, coming alongside the nations worsening housing crisis, has prompted state lawmakers to help victims of assault who are struggling to move away from their alleged abusers. Domestic violence incidents in the United States increased by 8.1% in the months following the imposition of pandemic lockdown orders in 2020, according to a 2021 report released by the National Commission on COVID-19 and Criminal Justice, a group launched by the Council on Criminal Justice, a think tank. More than a dozen states have passed measures in the past five years bolstering rental protections for survivors by allowing them to break their leases if they provide evidence of stalking, sexual assault or an abusive domestic relationship. Many of those laws, which were enacted or strengthened during the pandemic, give victims more leeway in how they can document the abuse. Many cities and states are looking to help survivors with new housing in other ways, such as by obtaining grants to develop transitional housing or offering housing vouchers to victims. It is deeply traumatizing and harmful to force survivors to continue to live in the same home where the harm occurred, said Kate Walz, associate director of litigation at the National Housing Law Project, an advocacy group that trains legal services organizations. It can retraumatize and compound the harm over years, if not decades. Several states are addressing the issue this session. Efforts to add early lease termination laws for victims in Ohio, Pennsylvania and South Carolina have yet to either make it past committees or both chambers. A driving factor for survivors of domestic violence is making sure that there is somewhere safe for them to go. Nicole Molinaro, president and CEO of the Womens Center & Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh While Pennsylvanias effort to pass these protections statewide has stalled, the Pittsburgh City Council approved a bill in October that requires landlords to allow domestic abuse victims to exit their leases without penalty, and also change a tenants locks upon request, though at the tenants expense. Nicole Molinaro, president and CEO of the Womens Center & Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh, one of the countrys first domestic violence shelters, called the legislation monumental. Molinaro hopes the state will eventually enact similar protections. She said that the trauma of domestic and sexual violence can be crippling, and that some victims may need to leave their neighborhood or cities altogether if their abuser also has roots there. A driving factor for survivors of domestic violence is making sure that there is somewhere safe for them to go, Molinaro told Stateline. And that often means a survivor cannot move back to the neighborhood they were in if the abuser still has connections there. The post-separation journey When New York City resident Stephanie Woodbine and her adolescent daughter left a two-year abusive relationship in 2017, she wasnt sure where they were going to live. Woodbine told Stateline that on top of emotional abuse, she also suffered economic abuse a form of abuse that New York City last year officially recognized as domestic violence. She found housing, then was evicted after losing her job. I really didnt have a lot of money to pay for housing because the mental trauma made it hard to live a normal life, keep a job, Woodbine said. She didnt qualify for the domestic violence shelters because she wasnt in an active domestic violence situation, she recalled, so she stayed in hotels and lived a life of hidden homelessness with her daughter. Stephanie Woodbine struggled to find housing for her and her daughter when she left an abusive relationship in 2017. They now have a permanent home, and Woodbine has become a preschool teacher. She also has earned a public speaking certification from a local advocacy group. (Photo courtesy of Stephanie Woodbine) There are so many decisions that make leaving any abusive situation hard, but when you leave you find out just how hard it is to survive when you feel your options are limited, said Woodbine, who eventually received an emergency housing voucher and has secured permanent housing. Theres a lot of post-separation abuse that is also contributing to survivors instability and their mental trauma, added Woodbine, who now sits on the advisory council to the Mayors Office to End Domestic and Gender-Based Violence. Its why we want to expand protections for survivors post-separation, and that includes providing permanent housing. Intimate partner violence is a major driver of homelessness, and researchers have found that housing is among the most common needs for survivors. Currently, 10% of shelters and transitional housing are targeted to domestic violence victims and their families, according to the National Alliance to End Homelessness. As the U.S. Supreme Court considers the constitutionality of homeless camping and outdoor sleeping bans, cities that have passed bans argue that outside encampments are dangerous not just for the public, but also for people staying there. But Walz, of the National Housing Law Project, fears that if these bans are deemed constitutional, theyll have a major impact on women and children fleeing domestic violence situations. Gender-based violence is both the cause and consequence of housing instability. Housing instability increases your risk of it, and housing instability comes as a result of it, said Walz. If we dont recognize that and craft our policies to be responsive to it, we are guaranteeing continued violence and increase of it. More cities are working to include housing as a key service for survivors. Woodbine credited city-based nonprofits for navigating her through the emergency voucher process an intimidating process for those in need of housing. New York City is hoping to provide such protections and, most importantly, housing through a pilot program funded with a $300,000 grant from the NYC Fund to End Youth & Family Homelessness that aims to help 100 families affected by domestic violence find homes. Saloni Sethi, acting commissioner of the Mayors Office to End Domestic and Gender-Based Violence, told Stateline that the pilot program addresses the need for safe and stable housing for survivors in a place where secure housing can be scarce. Survivors are often sort of faced with this really impossible choice of, do I give up my own safety or do I destabilize myself and my entire family by leaving home? We anticipate this pilot can finally provide that stable, fresh start, Sethi said. Many cities and states have become more intentional about building or reserving housing for survivors, with increasing support from the federal government. Last year, the U.S. Department of Justices Office on Violence Against Women awarded 81 grants, worth $43 million, to programs offering housing for six to 24 months for survivors. Breaking the lease If Reads bill is signed by Sununu, New Hampshire would become one of 40 states to have early rental lease termination protections for victims of domestic or sexual abuse. In post-lockdown years, Oklahoma passed early termination laws for domestic violence victims. Utah amended its early termination law in 2023, reducing the termination fee from 45 days of rent one of the highest in the nation at the time to a months rent. Reads bill, which she based on a similar one in Tennessee, stalled in committee when she first introduced it last year. During early debate, New Hampshire landlord groups raised concerns about the financial burden they carry when tenants break their lease early a position that irritated Read. Nobody will say in todays society here that they are in favor of domestic violence, Read said. But put your money where your mouth is when it comes to allowing them to make that decision to exit their lease early even at a financial loss, or else its just lip service. But every time a new tenant comes in, it costs money to clean up and turn over the home, said Nick Norman, a real estate owner who serves as government affairs chair for the Apartment Association of New Hampshire. The bills original language also could have left a landlord responsible for things left behind, including damages. The legislation now on Sununus desk is drastically different, Norman said. The housing provider advocates and tenant advocates came together as we usually do to find a solution that works best for both parties. Read likewise credited the Senate for adding measures that would make qualifying for an early termination lease easier. Some states, including Kansas, North Dakota and Utah, may allow landlords to charge fees or forward payment of rent for breaking the lease early in cases of intimate partner violence. And many states require documents from an outside source, such as a police report or court protective order. Many landlords see such requirements as a necessary step in good faith to break a lease early. However, Walz thinks that these requirements are a barrier for survivors, given how underreported domestic and sexual violence is and how hard it can be for victims to obtain a report without escalating violence from their abuser. First and foremost, we must believe survivors. This means in action taking their own stories and experiences to be true and not requiring any form of third-party proof, Walz said. Assumptions, stereotypes and bias towards not believing survivors and perceiving that it could be made up in order to exit a lease play into state policy responses and often result in a litany of requirements, including orders of protection, police reports, third-party statements, she said. Stateline is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Stateline maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Scott S. Greenberger for questions: info@stateline.org. Follow Stateline on Facebook and Twitter. The post Survivors of domestic and sexual violence can break their leases early in some states appeared first on Utah News Dispatch. Suspected drunk driver hits, kills teen on scooter, CA cops say. His whole life, gone A 17-year-old died after he was hit by a suspected drunk driver in a hit-and-run, California police say. The teenager was riding his scooter in Long Beach shortly before 1 a.m. on Sunday, May 12, the Long Beach Police Department said in a news release. The boy, identified by friends and family as Brandon Cabrera, was accompanied by his cousin, Catherine Chacon, NBC Los Angeles reported. I hear like a car speeding, and I turn back, and I see it and start screaming, Brandon! Brandon! Watch out theres a car behind you! Be careful. Be careful, Chacon told the news station. Brandon was hit by an SUV, according to police. I just ran and screamed his name, Chacon told NBC Los Angeles. The driver, identified as Karen Mativa, 35, of Compton, fled the scene and crashed into a nearby apartment complex a short time later, police said. Mativa then ran from the SUV but soon returned to the scene, where officers arrested her, according to police. Brandon was taken to a hospital, where died from his injuries, police said. He did not deserve to die like this at all, Aniyah Diaz, who was also with Brandon when he was hit, told ABC 7 News. There goes his whole life, gone. Im never gonna see him again, Diaz told KCAL News. Hours after the collision, friends and family gathered at the corner where Brandon was hit, the news outlet reported. He was such a loving boy, Britney Chacon, another cousin, told the news station. Every room he went in he filled the room with life so joyful. Mativa was booked into jail on multiple counts, including driving under the influence, hit-and-run resulting in death or injury and gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, according to police. She is being held on $130,000 bail, police said. Police said they are investigating speed and impaired driving as factors of the collision. Anyone with information about the collision is asked to contact police at 562-570-7355. 4-year-old girl hit and killed as she crosses street with her mom, Wisconsin cops say Grandma killed in hit-and-run while getting tacos for her family, California cops say Man convicted of 5 DUIs drives drunk and kills man crossing street, CA officials say Not a wolf. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) Policy, politics and progressive commentary Wildlife managers in Nevada confirmed Monday that a possible wolf pack sighting north of Elko months earlier was, in fact, a pack of coyotes. The Nevada Department of Wildlife reported the possible wolf pack sighting in March, prompting state biologists to collect DNA from two scats and hair samples nearby to confirm whether or not the pack sighted were indeed wolves. However, results from two independent genetic labs completed this month found that the three suspected wolves spotted near Merritt Mountain were almost certainly coyotes. Analysis of the hair, fecal, and urine samples collected along the suspected wolf tracks in the snow revealed with 99.9% certainty that the samples were from coyotes, according to NDOW. While initial observations indicated the possibility of wolves in the area, the DNA results of the samples collected indicated that these animals were, in fact, coyotes, said NDOW Director Alan Jenne in a statement. We appreciate the diligence of our biologists, assisting laboratory personnel and the publics cooperation throughout this process and we will continue to monitor the area for any indication of wolf presence, he continued. The possible wolf sighting was announced after a helicopter crew conducting an aerial moose survey spotted three suspected wolves traveling together. State biologists who conducted ground surveys immediately after the sighting believed the fresh tracks in the snow were consistent with wolves at the time. The sighting could have been significant for Nevada, which has not confirmed a wolf pack in the state for more than a century. A single gray wolf was documented in Nevada west of the Black Rock Desert in 2016. Before then, the last confirmed Nevada sighting of a wolf was in 1922, near Elko Countys Gold Creek. Jenne said he understood the significance of such sightings and the importance of accurate identification. NDOW will continue to work closely with state and federal agencies to uphold our mission of protecting Nevadas ecosystems and wildlife while also maintaining transparency as a top priority in all our communications with the public, Jenne said. While Nevada has seen few confirmed wolf sightings in the last century, surrounding states have significant growing gray wolf populations. Idahos gray wolf population was estimated at 1,337 wolves in 2022, 37% higher than the original recovery goal for the animals, according to Idahos Department of Fish and Game. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife in 2023 reported about 200 gray wolves in nearly 25 packs in the state. Oregon state biologists also warned that the gray wolf population may have reached its ecological limit in the eastern third of the state, and that packs would likely spread out to the west and south in greater numbers. As of 2024, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife said there are six known packs of gray wolves in the state for a total of 45 adult wolves, juveniles, and pups. Gray wolves once ranged across all of North America, including the western United States. But decades of government-sponsored predator control programs brought gray wolves to near extinction in the lower 48 States. By the time wolves were protected under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, only a few hundred remained in northeastern Minnesota, and on Isle Royale, Michigan, according to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. Amaroq Weiss, the senior wolf advocate at the conservation group Center for Biological Diversity, said it is important to understand that wolves are wide-ranging animals that often travel hundreds of miles seeking new territory and resources, and may cross into Nevada. Weiss also noted it isnt uncommon for federally protected wolves to be mistaken for coyotes and killed. Dispersing wolves all too often get shot and killed by folks who mistakenly think what they are shooting is an enormous coyote, so its good to keep the public apprised there could be wolves which are federally protected in the area, Weiss said. The post Suspected wolf pack sighting in NV turns out to be coyotes appeared first on Nevada Current. SUV crashes into CVS on Langhorne Road in Lynchburg LYNCHBURG, Va. (WFXR) Firefighters and police in Lynchburg are currently at CVS after an SUV drove into the building on Langhorne Road on Monday, May 13. Details are limited; however, fire officials told a woman drove her SUV into the side of the building. Crews at the scene told WFXR News that two people were treated and released. The CVS will be closed until further notice. This is a developing story. WFXR News has a crew at the scene. We will update this story as more information is released. SUV crashes into side of CVS building on Langhorne Road in Lynchburg on May 13. (Jemon Haskins/ WFXR News) (Jemon Haskins/ WFXR News) (Jemon Haskins/ WFXR News) (Jemon Haskins/ WFXR News) CVS building damaged after SUV crash on Langhorne Road in Lynchburg. (Jemon Haskins/ WFXR News) For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFXRtv. Tallahassee, Florida is assessing damage after the city was bombarded with 100-mph straight-line winds and three tornadoes on Friday. The twisters destroyed roofs at Florida A&M's University and at Florida State University, the baseball team's stadium was damaged as well as the "Flying High" circus tent. Downed trees and debris at Florida A&M University are currently being removed by cleanup crews after severe storm on Friday, May 10, 2024. The area outside the Efferson Student Union building was littered with chunks of building debris. But its residents won't see a reprieve from the deadly weather that caused widespread damage as another bout of thunderstorms is expected to hit again tonight and tomorrow. Folks can expect to see "another round of very intense rainfall, damaging wind gusts and again isolated tornadoes can't be ruled out," Carl Erickson, a senior meteorologist at AccuWeather, told USA TODAY. Railroad Square, Tallahassee's art district, was badly damaged by a tornado and severe storms Friday morning. No calm after the storm People are used to things quieting down after a big storm comes through. "It quiets down and they have calm weather for a few days," said Erickson. "But this is going to be a situation where that's not the case, where a lot of these same areas can expect more severe weather overnight into Tuesday." Only three days after a 47-year-old woman lost her life after a tree fell on her home Friday and what is reported as the worst tornado outbreak ever, schools are closing early as more severe weather is expected. "After consultation with weather experts and our school leaders, we have made the decision to close our schools at 1:00pm today," said the Leon County School District in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. It adds that parents had the option to pick up their children early due to the "possibility of severe weather this afternoon" and that all afterschool activities were cancelled. How to prepare for the storm Erickson said that folks need to make sure their phones are charged, that they can get weather warnings and that they have an evacuation plan in place in case their area sees flash flooding. "It's not going to take much additional rain to just exasperate those flooding issues," said Erickson. He said areas that should keep an extra eye out are the following: Central and southern Louisiana Southern portions of Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia The Florida Panhandle, He said the entire Gulf Coast area should be on high alert. Is the severe weather normal? According to Erickson, this kind of weather is normal for the time of year. "This is time of the year when we would likely expect this type of a severe weather," said Erickson. "You still kind of have winters chill hanging on, but then summer's warmth coming north." He adds that the combo creates the kind of disturbances people are seeing today. What is causing the severe weather? "Warm, moist air is moving up from the Gulf of Mexico in advance of a storm moving across the lower Mississippi Valley," said Erickson. "At the same time, a warm front along the Gulf Coast is helping to lift the warm, moist air and produce thunderstorms." So, these conditions are all coming together to create the weather phenomena we're seeing today and tomorrow. "That setup is not going to change all that much, which is why some of the same areas which have been hit today will likely get the the the severe threat again overnight into the day Tuesday," he said. Contributing reporting: Jeff Burlew, William L. Hatfield; Tallahassee Democrat; Cheryl McCloud, Treasure Coast Palm This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Tallahassee prepares for more severe weather following 3 tornadoes Tallahassee is bracing for the possibility of multiple rounds of severe weather today and Tuesday as the city continues to recover from three tornadoes and 100-mph straight-line winds that caused widespread wreckage just three days ago. Both the city and county have opened sandbag locations in preparation for the storms, which comes at the same time that city and mutual aid electric repair crews are still working to fully restore power, bringing the number of customers in the dark below 10,000 Monday morning. The threat diminished late Thursday afternoon, but the city faces another round of potential severe weather on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the National Weather Service in Tallahassee confirmed the paths of three tornadoes, two EF-2s and one EF-1, that hit the city. One woman was killed when a tree fell on her home off Aenon Church Road. Heres the latest: How state offices are affected by recent weather Tallahassee-based workers for the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services have been asked to report at noon Tuesday, spokesperson Jessica Kelleher said. "This will give us a chance to assess connectivity and any other storm impact," she said in an email. "We will adjust our report times accordingly." Kylie Mason, communications director for Attorney General Ashley Moody, said Moodys top staff is monitoring the weather conditions overnight and will make a decision first thing in the morning about when Tallahassee offices will open. A call to the governor's office about executive branch agencies in Tallahassee was not returned by Monday evening but a spokesperson for the Department of Management Services, the state's real estate manager, said "all DMS-managed facilities stayed open (Monday), except for the Bob Martinez Center (on Blair Stone Road). Its still closed because power hasnt been restored after last weeks storm." PSC reporting more Tallahassee power outages A map of all the power poles broken during Tallahassee's storm on Monday, May 10, 2024. After a swath of bad weather Monday, the Florida Public Service Commission is reporting more power outages under the City of Tallahassee in the evening than it did in the morning. The PSC reported 15,150 customer outages at 5:55 p.m. Monday. That number was at 9,574 in its data released 12 hours before. Meanwhile, the city's outage map, which often over the last several days has lagged behind the PSC data, is reporting less than 13,000 customer outages. Leon County Schools closed Tuesday amid possibility of severe weather The School District made the call. This is the letter that went out to parents, employees and the media. "Schools will be closed in Leon County on Tuesday, May 14 due to anticipated severe weather entering our area beginning at 6:00 a.m. potentially making roads impassable and compounding the impacts of the previous severe weather in our area." "The decision to close schools was made after consulting with the National Weather Service, Leon County Emergency Management and getting feedback from every LCS principal." "We are in communication with the Florida Department of Education in regards to required instructional minutes to confirm that our seniors in the class of 2024 will have enough hours to graduate without having to extend the school year." "Our high schools will be adjusting their AP & IB schedules and each school will communicate directly with those students waiting to take a test. Make ups will be scheduled during the required late testing windows identified by the AP and IB organizations not LCS." "Bus routes will be checked in the afternoon to identify any possible issues prior to Wednesday." "Non-school based District staff is expected to arrive to work by 9:00 a.m. tomorrow." "If weather permits, some schools may proceed with afterschool and evening activities." Severe weather threat diminished; Leon County no longer under tornado watch, but forecasters say to stay on guard And now for some good news. "Rain-cooled and stable air has brought an end to the tornado/severe threat for many," the National Weather Service posted on X. "Still watching some areas across the coastal areas of the Apalachee Bay and the southeast Big Bend for a severe threat." Leon County was even removed from the tornado watch, but it remains for neighboring counties. Rain-cooled and stable air has brought an end to the tornado/severe threat for many. Still watching some areas across the coastal areas of the Apalachee Bay and the southeast Big Bend for a severe threat. Here is where the tornado watch is currently in effect: #FLwx #ALwx #GAwx pic.twitter.com/ag6jD26T2n NWS Tallahassee (@NWSTallahassee) May 13, 2024 "There will still be heavy rain through the afternoon hours but we'll likely see a lull in the activity for much of the evening," the agency wrote. Initially, forecasters feared that the area already reeling from an unprecedented trifecta of tornadoes could see 75 mph winds and significant flooding. But based on radar trends and observations, that threat has diminished as the storm has become more of a coastal threat. Forecasters still warn the situation could shift after the storm system lashed inland cities to the west. For example, Milton clocked an 82 mph gust earlier in the day. Israel Gonzalez, with the National Weather Service of Tallahassee, also warned that even moderate rain can undermine the foundation of trees already weakened by Friday's tornadoes. The region will also have to be on guard Tuesday for "renewed" severe weather activity. Leon County is under a slight risk or level 2 out of 5 on the threat matrix. "There is still some uncertainty," Gonzalez said. "And still some reasonably high confidence that the threat is still there." Leon County Commissioner Christian Caban sets up emergency distribution centers As soon as Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency for Tallahassee in the wake of Friday's storms, Leon County Commissioner Christian Caban got to work by issuing a resource request to the state to set up food and water distribution centers in his home District 2 and beyond. As he toured damage and assisted in the recovery effort Saturday at Sabal Palm Elementary, Caban met with the governor along with county commission Chair Carolyn Cummings. Three locations opened on Saturday morning and have been running all weekend into Monday: Jane G. Sauls Fort Braden Branch Library, J. Lewis Hall Sr. Woodville Park and Apalachee Regional Park. Gov. Ron DeSantis stopped by the Hope Florida bus, which was at Sabal Palm Elementary, to help those in need after the May 10 storms that devastated the capital region. As of Monday morning, the sites had distributed 140,000 bottles of water and 35,000 ready-to-eat meals. More than 3,000 cars have visited the centers combined. They also started distributing tarps early Monday morning ahead of incoming storms. Center operations have been canceled for the rest of Monday because of adverse weather. Theyre expected to open at an unknown time tomorrow morning and are anticipated to run through Tuesday at 7 p.m. pending weather. Residents can head to the centers and receive drive-thru service. For information on when the centers open tomorrow residents are encouraged to visit the county website: https://cms.leoncountyfl.gov/ei. Mayor Dailey talks about historic damages, impending storm in interview Tallahassee Mayor John Dailey called the damages from Friday morning's storm "historic." In a Monday afternoon phone interview, Dailey said he doesn't think any storm has caused more damage than what was seen Friday. Mayor John Dailey posted a video to his X account, formerly Twitter, updating Tallahassee residents of the ongoing recovery work being done following Friday's storm. But now there's another storm coming toward Tallahassee. Depending on its severity, he warned it could delay power restoration efforts or inflict more damage on the power grid. He also addressed resident concerns about the city's outage map, which has been lagging far behind the pace of progress. Read the full story here. Tallahassee might miss brunt of incoming severe weather The brunt of the incoming severe storm threat may by most felt by some of North Florida's coastal areas, according to a recent post by the National Weather Service in Tallahassee. The severe threat appears to be confined more to the coast (white outlined area) as cool and stable conditions from constant rain this morning and early afternoon has prevented the instability needed for severe storms from spreading north. #FLwx pic.twitter.com/yvRTXKNqnp NWS Tallahassee (@NWSTallahassee) May 13, 2024 That's good news for city residents, but bad news for places like Port Saint Joe, Panama City and Crawfordville. All are encircled in a visual provided by NWS: "The severe threat appears to be confined more to the coast (white outlined area) as cool and stable conditions from constant rain this morning and early afternoon has prevented the instability needed for severe storms from spreading north," it wrote at 2:33 p.m. One family's story of storm destruction It was a typical Friday morning in the Fore household. Mother, father and teenager daughter were set to leave their Lehigh Acres home when things suddenly were no longer typical. They heard a loud roar and the next thing they knew the sound was in the house. Tree debris outside the Fore household following Tallahassee's Friday, May 10, 2024, storm. The ceiling was cracking down. The wind was coming in. Everybody thought they were going to die, said Michael Fore, the father, in a Monday morning interview. It sounded like you knew there was going to be a big crash. There was. A huge pine tree crushed two bedrooms of their Lola Drive home. No one was hurt. I got the tree off the house, everything covered up and got what I could pack away, Fore said. He estimates it may cost $80,000 to repair and replace what was lost in the storm. An insurance company representative is scheduled to survey the damages Wednesday. Mayor Dailey says coming storm could delay power repairs Tallahassee Mayor John Dailey said the damage from Fridays storm was worse than that from Hurricane Hermine, Hurricane Michael and Hurricane Irma combined. Having said that, the electric utility crews have been working around the clock, Dailey said in a Monday afternoon social media video. The city of Tallahassee announced shortly after 9 p.m. Sunday that it had restored power to 91% of its customers. Monday Afternoon Weather Update pic.twitter.com/Lx15vKybkc Mayor John Dailey (@MayorOfTLH) May 13, 2024 But Dailey warned the work could be delayed by another severe storm expected to hit later in the day. Were going to have the crews out working as long as we possibly can, he said. If it becomes unsafe, well pull them in until it becomes safe, and then well send them back out. The forecast is calling for 2-5 inches of rain. The National Weather Service in Tallahassee says 75 mph wind is likely in North Florida and ping pong ball-sized hail is possible until 7 p.m. Were going to make it, Dailey said. Were going to continue to move forward. Were Tallahassee strong. Be safe. North Florida, Big Bend, Tallahassee under a tornado watch until 7 p.m. The region is now under a tornado watch until 7 p.m. with 75 mph winds likely, according to the National Weather Service in Tallahassee. The NWS warns that scattered gusts of 75 mph are likely, which would surely complicate the momentous recovery process that is currently ongoing in Florida's capital city. It also threatens to plunge thousands back into darkness after city crews augmented by reinforcements from around the nation brought the number of outages below 10,000. A tornado watch has been issued for parts of Florida until 7 PM EDT pic.twitter.com/lB6tWOCoN0 NWS Tallahassee (@NWSTallahassee) May 13, 2024 "A couple of tornadoes" are also possible along with ping-pong sized hail, according to a post on X by the weather service. Leon County Schools closing at 1 p.m. Leon County Schools is closing again and cutting the school day short as a new threat looms. "After consultation with weather experts and our school leaders, we have made the decision to close our schools at 1:00pm today (5/13/24) due to the possibility of severe weather this afternoon. Parents can choose to pick their students up early if necessary," the School district said in a post on X. All afterschool activities have also been canceled. The announcement is the latest schedule adjustment and then cancellation as school district adminstrators try to navigate the quickly changing dynamics of a recent barrage of sever weather. Already administrators had delayed the school start time, cancelled busses and scrapped testing to get kids on school Monday. Amid a sea of angst and anger on social media, the district has been limiting comments on its posts and school announcements as parents have questioned the district's decisions. This is a developing post. Rounds of severe weather begin rolling into Tallahassee with threat of straight line winds The National Weather Service warns that a wide swatch of the Tallahassee area should prepare for 40 mph winds and pea-sized hail over the next 15 minutes until 11:30 a.m. Forecasters expect multiple rounds of severe weather today and into Tuesday. Watching a storm move into Tallahassee. Brief 30 to 40 mph wind gusts are possible which could possibly bring issues to any weakened trees across the area. #FLwx #Tallahassee pic.twitter.com/bLzhC3hGsr NWS Tallahassee (@NWSTallahassee) May 13, 2024 "Watching a storm move into Tallahassee," forecasters wrote on X. "Brief 30 to 40 mph wind gusts are possible which could possibly bring issues to any weakened trees across the area." Forecasters are particularly worried about straight-line winds, which wreaked havoc "Straight line winds can cause just as much damage as a tornado." "So if a severe thunderstorm warning comes out, it needs to be treated the same as a tornado warning!" Severe storms, heavy rain possible with storms moving in today The Tallahassee area is expected to see multiple waves of storms from an upper-level disturbance over the southeastern U.S. Wright Dobbs, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Tallahassee, said the first round of storms could arrive as soon as this morning or afternoon and that the threat could continue through much of Tuesday. Tallahassee could see multiple rounds of severe weather today and Tuesday, just days after three tornadoes brought widespread damage to the city. The main thing were going to be concerned about is that damaging wind potential, Dobbs said. But a few storms might have the potential for a tornado or maybe hail in some areas. Dobbs said residents in the Tallahassee area should be prepared for the possibility of 60 mph gusts, with higher speeds from the most severe storms. Flooding is a possibility, with the forecast calling for 2-5 inches of rain with higher amounts possible in isolated areas. The National Weather Service traced the path of the three tornadoes that tore through Tallahassee on May 10. The Storm Prediction Center shows a slight risk (2 on a scale of 1-5) for severe weather today and a marginal risk (1 out of 5) Tuesday. The risk is higher (3 out of 5) for places like Marianna and Panama City. The Weather Service issued a flood watch for the central Big Bend and South Georgia, extending from the Apalachicola area through Tallahassee and up to Albany, Georgia. Tallahassee could see multiple rounds of severe weather today and Tuesday, just days after three tornadoes brought widespread damage to the city. The first wave of severe storms is expected to arrive in the afternoon, though they could come sooner. In addition to the possibility of severe weather that all these rounds of storms could bring, were also worried about the potential for heavy rainfall, Dobbs said. Sometimes when we get storm systems like this that set up on an east-west boundary, we can get training storms, where storms move repeatedly over an area. And they might not bring severe weather, but they can bring very heavy rainfall. City of Tallahassee outages drops under 10K though lagging outage map shows many more The city of Tallahassee announced shortly after 9 p.m. Sunday that it had restored power to 91% of its customers. The latest figures from the state of Florida showed that of the cities 126,309 accounts, 9,574, or 8%, were still without power. "Crews including mutual aid will continue to work through the night and 24/7 until full restoration," the city said in a text message to utility customers. Twisted pines and other trees lay on homes, in the streets and across sidewalks through the Indianhead neighborhood following a severe storm that came through Tallahassee on Friday morning, May 10, 2024. The city said 400 mutual aid workers were assisting city crews in restoring the electric grid, with restoration resources five times higher than normal. The city's online power outage map, which has not been able to keep up with restoration efforts in real time, continued to show incorrect figures. The map, which is lagging far behind actual numbers, showed more than 18,000 customers out as of around 10:30 a.m. An official with the utility says the map is overtaxed by the volume of outages and the pace of the progress. Power has been restored to all but 1,136 Talquin Electric Cooperative customers, according to the most recent state numbers. Some 4% of its 26,054 accounts were still down. Contact Jeff Burlew at jburlew@tallahassee.com or 850-599-2180. This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Tallahassee tornado updates: Recovery continues; schools closed Tuesday Taquerias rally to help save L.A. food website that put many of them on the map Teodoro Diaz loves the sound of meat sizzling on the grill and the aroma of mesquite wood, smoked with a hint of pepper, that makes his tacos a unique experience. The fresh meat absorbs the wood and gives it a strong and very special flavor, explains Diaz, 36, co-owner of the taqueria restaurants Sonoratown, whose attention to detail has made all the difference in his food and earned the praise of foodie journalists at L.A. Taco, a Los Angeles-based media outlet specializing in the citys thriving and colorful food scene, especially all things related to its taco culture. Since 2006, L.A. Taco has focused on covering street food culture and has become a reference source for finding the best restaurants in different regions of California. What I love about them is that they do reviews and they dont charge us. They write about what they see and what they eat. They support the businesses and you know if its in there, its because they liked it, no lies," said Diaz, whose restaurant won Taco Madness, an annual event in which L.A. Taco brings together judges and lovers of street food to crown the best taco in the city. Diaz, his partner and Sonoratown co-owner Jennifer Feltham and many others in the Los Angeles food community have been mobilizing in the last month to help L.A. Taco, which, like many other local media outlets in the United States, is facing a severe economic crisis that threatens its existence. L.A. Taco was on the verge of shutting down a few weeks ago when it ran out of its biggest advertiser. In a video on their Sonoratown Instagram account, Feltham said, Im here to ask for your help in supporting L.A. Taco, they are low on funds we cant let them go under. If you are not a member, become a member...They are an important resource for the people of L.A., for the small businesses of L.A., for the taqueros of L.A. All the journalists who work for them are passionate about what they do. We need to work together, she said. Diaz told Noticias Telemundo that there is "no other publication like this ... In Los Angeles, food is the culture, and they focus on that, but the truth is that they have stories about everything that happens to taqueros and Latinos who are being mistreated. These are stories that are not published in other media." A cry for help and the community's response On the brink of closure due to its financial problems, editor-in-chief Javier Cabral issued a cry for help on social media last month, explaining that the entire staff about five people would be laid off if the publication failed to reach 5,000 subscribers by the end of April. Although they didnt reach the target, they already had more than 3,500 members by May 10 and Cabral hopes to reach their intended target by June 15, when this years Taco Madness takes place. Javier Cabral, editor en jefe de L.A. Taco, en Los Angeles, California, el 25 de abril de 2024. (Albinson Linares) What has affected me the most, what has really touched my heart, is to see how the memberships have increased and that people are supporting us even from far away," Cabral said with visible emotion. "For example, people who used to live here in Los Angeles and moved to another state in the country, or people who live in border areas like Mexicali and Tijuana but still subscribe." Amara Aguilar, a journalism professor at the University of Southern California, explained the website's appeal. They cover a wide range of topics related to Mexican gastronomy, but also very different cultures. And it is a very respected publication in Los Angeles, even winning the James Beard Award for its innovative work, she said. Victor Villa, 31, owner of Villas Tacos, a restaurant in Los Angeles, said L.A. Taco is really 'de la raza' - using a term that loosely translates to being considered very authentically true to one's Mexican heritage and a site that truly helps the city's businesses. "They deserve to be around for many years, and theyre going through tough times right now, but I cant imagine Los Angeles, a city full of taqueros, without L.A. Taco, he said. Of particular note is its app, which uses geolocation to tell a person where to find the best taqueria in most city neighborhoods as judged by the magazines experts. Laughing, Cabral explains that the idea for the app came from a dilemma he faces every day: Imagine youre driving through Culver City, West Adams or Echo Park and suddenly youre hungry. Well, you just open up the app and its like a map that tells you the best tacos around, he said. Like most good food critics, he gets anxious at the prospect of a bad meal and prefers to drive miles to stuff himself with the dream seafood tostada that has the same freshness and spice as, say, if he were in Sinaloa, Mexico. Francisco Aguilar, chef and owner of Simon Food, a food truck specializing in chingones (a slang for amazing) seafood, described how the site helped his business. When no one believed in us, they came and tried the menu and loved the soft shell crab taco with pineapple pico de gallo and our handmade tortillas. Thats when everything started to change, because they write about food out of passion, they only recommend what they really like. Thats priceless, he said. Despite its name, L.A. Taco is not just about the Mexican delicacy of tacos, stuffed with all kinds of proteins on an infinite variety of tortillas. Its ambition is that nothing in street food is foreign: That is why quesadillas, pupusas, baleadas, conchas and Zapotec mole ice cream share space, reviews and criticism with the best ramen, loco moco and wagyu carpaccios and stews, among other dishes that reign on the streets of Southern California. Beyond culinary cravings, community journalism But its content goes beyond savory dishes. L.A. Tacos stories range from a guide to the scariest houses in the city, the best punk bars in the California scene, the restaurants that have been around for centuries, the discrimination suffered by taqueros and an obituary in English and the Indigenous Zapotec language of Filberto Beto Gonzalez, a Mexican who worked as a dishwasher and died of coronavirus in the midst of the Covid pandemic. We are the only media outlet in the country that seriously covers not only the best tacos in town, but also the issues that affect our communities. Its the stories of the immigrants, the taqueros and the restaurants. I mean, thats the working class of the city, and were very, very rare, Cabral said. Los Angeles is a city that very few people understand. It takes the opinions and perspectives of the people who live here to teach the beauty of our city, which is the people who work here, the immigrants and, above all, the taco, he said with the seriousness of an editor who's been addicted to street food since he was a teenager and who had any food lover's dream job: He was the taco scout for Jonathan Gold, the legendary Los Angeles Times food critic who died in 2018. He relied on me a lot. And now Im trying to keep his spirit alive and deliver authentic food journalism, which means no pay to play at all, Cabral said, explaining Golds huge influence on his editorial work. The financial hardships that L.A. Taco faces is not an isolated one: local media is rapidly dying out in the U.S. According to the Northwestern University School of Journalisms annual report, an average of 2.5 local newspapers closed every week in 2023. More than 130 newspapers have closed or merged, a phenomenon that is alarming many experts. The Northwestern University report shows that in less than 20 years, a quarter of the nations newspapers have gone out of business. More than 200 of the nations 3,143 counties are considered news deserts because they no longer have a single local newspaper. Local media are vital to thriving communities. Not only do they provide uplifting stories about the people in our community, but they also report on very important issues such as corruption and serve to scrutinize government officials in our communities, said the USC's Aguilar. We need community journalism for society to thrive. Gustavo Arellano, a columnist for The Los Angeles Times, is one of the journalists who has survived the successive media crises of recent decades, and in his work he often warns about the importance of media. This year, 2024, we have a very important presidential election in the United States. Local media are needed to cover important issues that the big newspapers won't cover," he said. "If these small and community newspapers disappear, it will be the public's responsibility, and what is happening with L.A. Taco is an example." A version of this story was first published on Noticias Telemundo. For more from NBC Latino, sign up for our weekly newsletter. This article was originally published on NBCNews.com BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. Chabahar port of Sistan and Baluchistan province, located in southeastern Iran, is of great importance in the International North-South Corridor, Indian Minister of Ports, Seas, and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal said, Trend reports. He made the remark during the event organized in Tehran in connection with the signing of an agreement on the development of Chabahar Port. According to him, under the joint will of India and Iran, Chabahar Port will become one of the major communication centers in the region. This center can improve India's connectivity with Central Asian countries and Afghanistan. The official added that India will put its best efforts into developing Chabahar port so that this port will promote ties between the two countries. As part of past agreements between India and Iran, a long-term agreement between the two countries will be signed, which is an indicator of trust between the two countries and a mark of the development of cooperation, he noted. To note, Iran's Minister of Roads and Urban Development Mehrdad Bazrpash and India's Minister of Ports, Maritime Affairs, and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal will sign an agreement to provide Chabahar Port with equipment and port infrastructure. Under the contract, India's IPGL will equip Chabahar Port with equipment. The agreement stipulates that the Indian side will spend $120 million on the supply of equipment to the Chabahar port and $250 million on the construction of the port infrastructure. The intergovernmental agreement signed between Russia, Iran, and India on September 12, 2000, laid the foundation for the North-South transport corridor. In general, several countries have ratified the mentioned agreement (the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Republic of Belarus, the Republic of Bulgaria, India, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Republic of Kyrgyzstan, the Sultanate of Oman, the Russian Federation, the Republic of Tajikistan, the Republic of Turkiye, and Ukraine). The purpose of the corridor is to reduce the delivery time of cargo traveling from India to Russia, as well as to Northern and Western Europe (the delivery time on the current route is more than 6 weeks, it is expected to be 3 weeks via the North-South). The North-South Corridor has three directions in Iran. The eastern direction is Turkmenistan and Central Asian countries, the middle direction is Russia and other countries across the Caspian Sea, and the western direction is Azerbaijan, Georgia, Russia, and Eastern European countries. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Tallahassee Community College plans to return to normal operations Tuesday as it continues to recover from two tornadoes that ravaged the capital city a few days ago, causing severe damage. The announcement comes after the college campuss power was restored either late Sunday night or early Monday morning, according to a TCC spokesperson. At the same time, TCC officials are monitoring a new storm threat, where multiple rounds of severe weather are expected to take place Monday and into Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service. More: Tallahassee tornado updates: Schools close early as new severe weather threat looms Thank you to our Facilities and Information Technology personnel, campus police, Florida Public Safety Institute recruits and many community partners who worked throughout the weekend on storm cleanup and repairs and continue to do so today, TCC said in a Monday statement. A large number of trees on TCCs main campus were destroyed, and several buildings were also severely impacted including the Workforce Development building as well as the colleges Technology and Professional Programs building. The National Weather Services description of the Tallahassee tornadoes' path shows that Fridays first EF-2 tornado which had winds at 115 mph passed across Pat Thomas Boulevard and led to significant tree damage on the campuses of TCC and Lively Technical College before it crossed Appleyard Drive. As TCCs main campus continues to be assessed, roof damage is one of the main repairs that need to be made, according to a TCC spokesperson. The colleges statement continued to say the safety of our students, faculty, staff and visitors to our campuses remains our highest priority. We appreciate your patience as we make every effort to reopen our campus as quickly and safely as possible.TCC will provide its students, faculty and staff with updates and more information through its alert system at www.tcc.fl.edu/alerts. Contact Tarah Jean at tjean@tallahassee.com or follow her on X: @tarahjean_. This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Tallahassee Community College aims to reopen Tuesday after tornadoes Teacher said she liked attention from teenagers after struggling with break-up A maths teacher said she liked attention after struggling with a break-up during the pandemic but insisted that she did not have sex with any pupils while she was teaching them, a court heard. Rebecca Joynes, 30, denies four charges of sexual activity with two teenagers, and two counts of sexual activity while being a person in a position of trust. Manchester Crown Court heard she had been arrested and suspended from her job in October 2021 over allegations of sexual activity with Boy A, aged 15. She denies any sexual contact with the boy. The teacher admitted to meeting Boy A after he correctly guessed her mobile phone number during a maths lesson. She agreed she had bought the teenager a 345 Gucci belt at the Trafford Centre before taking him back to her Salford Quays apartment, but denies his claim that they had sex. Joynes claimed the boys behaviour had become increasingly flirtatious towards her but she admitted she should never have allowed him to start messaging her. I was really stupid and shouldnt have done it, she said. She had agreed to let him stay over at her apartment after the shopping trip but insisted he sleep on the couch. I tried to explain I had been in a nine-year-relationship and had really struggled with the break-up and I was not the type of person who goes around sleeping with people, she said. She added that she shouldnt have contacted Boy A and should definitely not have taken him to her apartment, but she had been lonely and had responded to the attention he gave her. Struggled over Covid period When questioned by her own barrister Michael OBrien, Joynes said she would change everything about how she behaved, but claimed she had let [her] guard down. Joynes added: I caved in to the attention he was giving me. I struggled massively over the Covid period. I think I was obviously lonely and I liked the attention at the time, which sounds awful. Joynes was on conditional bail which banned her from unsupervised contact with under-18s when she allegedly had sex with Boy B, 16, whom she later became pregnant by. It is alleged they first had sex after the boy had gone to her flat in February 2022. Joynes denied this and said she had initially seen the boy as her best friend, although he had later joked about them meeting up, sending her a message saying he had left school alongside a winking emoji. She admitted they did eventually have sex after she was dismissed from her job in July 2022. Joynes admitted to inviting Boy B back to her flat while she was on bail. She told the court they had had a strong friendship at the beginning and that she had been helping him with his maths GCSE. She also said the pair went for a walk together. Joynes said she was curious about Boy B contacting her on Snapchat and they opened up to each other as friends. I genuinely believed that he cared, she said. The jury heard she later became pregnant with the 16-year-olds child. She told him during a date night at her flat when she presented him with a babygrow, the court heard. She gave birth to a girl in January. She admitted she got Boy B to factory reset her telephone shortly before she was suspended then arrested because she had panicked about the situation. In complete panic mode She said: I dont know I was in complete panic mode, I knew I was breaking bail conditions by having a relationship at that point. A tearful Joynes then told the jury that court proceedings had seen her newborn daughter taken off me 24 hours after she was born and she was only allowed limited contact. Joe Allman, prosecuting, asked if she had been trying to evoke sympathy from the jury by tucking a pink babys bonnet visibly into the top of her trousers. No. Definitely not, Joynes said. I sleep with this every night. When asked earlier about the aftermath of the babys birth, Joynes, breaking down in tears, replied: An emergency court hearing was held and she was taken off me 24 hours after she was born. At the moment I have got contact with her three times a week for three hours. Thats it. The trial continues. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. MEMPHIS, Tenn. A teen was arrested and charged after weapons were found in a backpack at Raleigh Egypt High School Monday morning, police say. According to reports, officers responded to the high school at 9:40 a.m. A backpack containing three loaded handguns and more than 100 rounds of ammunition was located in the bushes near the dumpster. Police say a 17-year-old was seen on camera leaving the backpack in the bushes around 9:12 a.m. A security officer told police that the student brought the guns to school for a senior student and that there was a plan to sell marijuana to people and rob them. Neighbor fires shots at dogs after MLGW worker attacked However, the cleaning lady found the backpack just two hours into the school day. Along with the three loaded guns, 78 .40 caliber rounds, an empty handgun magazine, and a handgun magazine loaded with 9 .357 caliber rounds were found in the backpack. One of the guns was reported stolen out of Ripley, Tenn., police say. Something horrible couldve happened so Im glad people said something. This is what we want people to do. If they see something say something so stuff like this can be preventable, said Denair Love, a high school worker. Love also says initially students did not know what was happening outside but were shocked when they were notified. Police looking for woman who pulled gun on Burger King employees We went on lockdown, the admin team they took precautions to keep the students safe, Love said. Its the parents who are not taking control of their house. Its not the school its the parents who they are growing up with. They need to know whats in their house and what kids have in possession so stuff like this doesnt happen. The teen was arrested and transported to juvenile detention. He was charged with carrying a weapon on school property, theft of property to wit firearm, and unlawful carrying or possession of a weapon. WREG has reached out to Memphis Shelby County Schools multiple times for more details on if parents were notified and if the 17-year-old was a Raleigh Egypt High School student, but did not receive a response. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WREG.com. Teen Dining with Parents on Greece Trip Was Allegedly Raped in Bar Bathroom by Stranger The 16-year-old was vacationing with her family on the Greek island of Crete, per reports Getty A 16-year-old British girl dining with her family in Greece was allegedly raped by a stranger when she was in the bathroom, authorities allege, according to local news outlets. The alleged attack took place at a bar in Malia, on the Greek island of Crete, on Wednesday, May 8, according to local news outlets Protothema, Greek City Times and Athens News Agency. The teenager was on vacation with her family at the time, the outlets reported. The teen alleged to authorities that she was in the bathroom when a man attacked and raped her, per Athens News Agency and Protothema. The suspect was arrested. He has not been named, but Protothema and Greek City Times identified him as a 28-year-old man. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE's free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. The suspect allegedly tried to escape following the incident, Protothema reported. The alleged victim and her mother went to local police to file a complaint, per the outlet. Authorities soon apprehended the suspect after they reviewed security footage from the bar and surrounding businesses, per Protothema and Greek City Times. Information about charges was not immediately available. If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go to rainn.org. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. TUSKEGEE, Ala. (WRBL) Ten individuals have been indicted by a grand jury for the alleged theft of federal program funding from Tuskegee University. Tuskegee University, located in Macon County, Alabama, receives federal funding in excess of $10,000 per calendar year. United States Attorney Jonathan S. Ross announced the grand jury indictments on Monday. The United States Attorneys Office considers the theft of federal dollars to be a serious crime, said United States Attorney Ross. My office will continue to prosecute those who exploit federal programs and who exploit the institutions, like Tuskegee University, entrusted with using federal program funds for their intended purposes. The individuals accused in the indictment are: (1) Wanda Tyner Hairston, 51, from Auburn, Alabama; (2) Lora Regina Baker, 52, from Montgomery, Alabama; (3) Keyonn Dalarrion Cannon, 26, from Tuskegee, Alabama; (4) Lanequia Shanice Cooper, 29, also from Auburn; (5) Ledaryl Tremayne Johnson, 27, from Tuskegee, Alabama; (6) Jeanette Moss-Smith, 50, also from Auburn; (7) Cassandra Harris Parker, 61, also from Tuskegee; (8) Phyllis Vanessa Tyner, 57, also from Auburn; (9) Morris Gene Welch, another resident of Auburn; and (10) Abraham Torbert Wright, Jr., 23, also from Tuskegee. All ten are charged with conspiracy allegations to commit federal program theft. According to allegations in the indictment, Cassandra Harris Parker, Lora Regina Baker, Jeanette Moss-Smith, and Wanda Tyner Hairston were Tuskegee University employees during the time frame of the alleged conspiracy, which began at an unknown date and continued to the year 2020. As Purchasing Manager, Parker created purchase orders indicating money was owed to co-conspirators so checks would be issued to them. Baker worked in the Accounts Payable Department and entered the check requests into the universitys accounting system, causing the checks to be issued. Moss-Smith signed the check request forms and Hairston assigned grant codes to the forms confirming sufficient funds existed to cover the checks. Once issued, Parker delivered the checks to the co-conspirators. The indictment alleges Cannon, Cooper, Johnson, Tyner, Welch, and Wright, Jr., each cashed checks provided to them as part of the scheme. The indictment further alleges the ten named individuals conspired to steal federal program funds through the wrongful issuance of these checks. In addition to the conspiracy charges, Parker, Baker, Moss-Smith, and Hairston are also charged with allegations of theft concerning programs receiving federal funds. This constitutes a flagrant misuse of federal grant funds for personal use, said Special Agent in Charge Tamala Miles with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). We remain committed to collaborating with our law enforcement partners to uphold the integrity of HHS programs. An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The conspiracy to commit federal program theft charge carries a potential sentence of up to five years in prison. In addition, Parker, Baker, Moss-Smith, and Hairston, face sentences of up to ten years for the charge of theft concerning programs receiving federal funds. Trials for each defendant is currently scheduled for August 12, 2024. The U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, and the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency investigated this case, which Assistant United States Attorney Christopher P. Moore is prosecuting. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WRBL. Tennessee U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Brentwood, made her name as a conservative pugilist taking on Democrats and sometimes Republicans on policy differences in the state legislature and Congress. Her brand in recent years translates to pro-Trump, anti-abortion and pro-culture war. As a state senator more than two decades ago, she helped kill the proposed state income tax proposal from GOP Gov. Don Sundquist and she riled critics over how she questioned now Associate Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson during the Biden appointee's confirmation hearing in 2022. The New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd described Blackburn during that time as all magnolia Southern charm until she spits venom. But despite that reputation, Blackburn recently has been eager to tout the relationship she has forged with Democratic colleagues and the bills they have passed together. On May 7, Democratic President Joe Biden signed the bill she sponsored with Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Georgia, called the REPORT Act (S. 474). Marjorie Taylor Greene's antics are precisely why U.S. House Hastert Rule must go The new law requires social media companies, such as, Facebook, X or Snapchat, to report incidents of sex trafficking, grooming and exploitation of children to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Childrens CyberTipline, which works with authorities to go after accused predators. U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn, R-Tennessee, and Jon Osoff, D-Georgia, speak about the newly signed bipartisan REPORT Act, to require social media companies to report crimes against and exploitation of children. If anyone can bring Democrats and Republicans together, it's antipathy toward Big Tech. In a May 2 virtual press conference about the REPORT Act, I asked Blackburn about the bipartisan cooperation, which she mentioned several times. "I am always willing to have a conversation," responded Blackburn, who went to talk about her work with other Democrats including Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, D-Illinois. Bipartisan cooperation is not new for Blackburn But it is not the first time Blackburn has sought partners on the other side of the aisle. U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn stands on the U.S. border with Mexico during a visit to Eagle Pass on March 26, 2024. In January, I wrote about her cooperation with Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Illinois, on a bill to require domestic violence training for cosmetologists, barbers and other beauty professionals. She worked with the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-California, on the HITS Act, an incentive program to assist independent artists. Are protests over Israel a proud tradition of student activism? Not so much this time On April 30, she announced the American Music Tourism Act , an effort with Sen. John Hickenlooper, D-Colorado, to increase music-related tourism domestically and from abroad. Blackburn continues to work with Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Connecticut, on the Kids Online Safety Act to protect children against harms on social media. The senators positions have also made her the target of her opponents Her critics are eager to point out her initial opposition to certifying President Joe Biden's election, before the Jan. 6 storming of the Capitol changed her mind. They reference her recent vote against more funding for Ukraine in the war against Russia. She also is a leading voice against gender affirming care and was the most prominent speaker at the 2022 Rally to End Genital Mutilation at Legislative Plaza in front of the State Capitol. These are all relevant points as we get to the 2024 election. She is up for re-election for a second six-year term. In the Aug. 1 primary election, she faces fellow Republican Tres Wittum, who ran unsuccessfully in the 2022 Republican primary for the U.S. House in District 5. Four Democrats are vying for the chance to face Blackburn including Knoxville state Rep. Gloria Johnson of the "Tennessee Three" and Marquita Bradshaw, who won the Dem nod in 2020 but lost to U.S. Sen. Bill Hagerty. Are we past the age of Howard Baker in politics? Tennessee political watchers often lament the days of yore when more moderate politicians represented the state and when the late Sen. Howard Baker, an East Tennessee Republican, urged his colleagues to listen to the other side. The other fellow might be right, he famous said. But Senator Baker was also a partisan who defended 37th President Richard Nixon (until the evidence showed he could no longer do so) and worked for 40th President Ronald Reagan as his chief of staff. In Blackburn's case, can a pugilist also be a bridge builder? She appears to be walking a tightrope between appeasing a hard-right base and governing on issues where she can find common ground, on music, domestic violence and protecting children from exploitation. Right now, Democrats currently control the White House and the Senate, which means that serving as the opposition suits her well politically. If that dynamic changes and she finds herself in a position to govern, will she adapt her style? For the Nov. 5 general election, she is favored, though not guaranteed, to win, and if she does, she will prove that she benefits from straddling a complicated political landscape that values a bruiser who is sometimes willing to work with the other side. David Plazas is the director of opinion and engagement for the USA TODAY Network Tennessee. He is an editorial board member of The Tennessean. He hosts the Tennessee Voices videocast and curates the Tennessee Voices and Latino Tennessee Voices newsletters. Call him at (615) 259-8063, email him at dplazas@tennessean.com or find him on X at @davidplazas. This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee Sen. Marsha Blackburn, still a bruiser, earns bipartisan win A Tennessee woman who was denied an abortion despite a severe abnormality that meant her fetus would die during the pregnancy says the states anti-abortion laws resulted in her losing an ovary, a fallopian tube, and her hopes for a large family. The state of Tennessee took my fertility from me, Breanna Cecil, 34, told The Independent. State lawmakers took away my opportunity to have a family like my own biological family because of these horrible laws that they put in place. The mother-of-one said she has never felt the same since she was told by her doctor in January 2023 that her fetus was diagnosed with acrania, a fatal condition in which the fetus has no skull bones. Then 12 weeks pregnant, Ms Cecil was getting her first ultrasound. She attended the appointment alone, so when the doctor told her that the fetus was not viable outside of the womb, she steeled herself and asked the doctor what she should do. Except the states near-total abortion ban prevents anyone from getting the procedure if there is still a heartbeat. Her fetus still had a heartbeat. The law makes no specific exceptions for fatal fetal conditions and also criminalizes physicians who perform the procedure outside of the allowed exceptions, meaning no Tennessee doctor could legally give her an abortion despite it being clear her fetus could not survive. Ms Cecil recalled the doctor not knowing how to advise her given the circumstances. Thats something that no one should ever hear, she noted. The doctor did, however, set her up with a specialist, where another ultrasound was conducted. That scan was more difficult, she says, because the severity of the fetus condition. I could see the brain not attached, Ms Cecil said. The only advice doctors could give her was that their dearly wished for second child would most likely die inside of me before 20 weeks, and that she would be forced to deliver a stillborn. This was heartbreaking for more reasons than the obvious; Ms Cecil said her pregnancy was starting to show. Not only could she not mentally handle the well-intentioned questions about the babys due date and sex, Ms Cecil said she decided she could not be a good mom to [her] little boy if she was forced to go through with her pregnancy, and deliver the stillborn. She decided to get an abortion. Breanna Cecil and her husband in 2021 (Handout) After sobbing to receptionists over the phone at roughly 20 clinics and hospitals, trying to get the next available appointment, she finally had success: a hospital in Chicago had an opening. On 3 February, doctors performed a dilation and curettage (D&C) procedure. Just six days after returning back to Tennessee, thinking the worst was behind her, Ms Cecil started experiencing a fever and back pain. Her doctor gave her antibiotics, but something still wasnt right. She went back for another ultrasound and the physician found retained tissue leftover from the fetus, which can have very serious consequences. Doctors performed another D&C on Ms Cecil on 17 February. But the fever persisted. Two days later, she returned to the hospital, where doctors discovered she had a nine-centimeter-sized abscess in her abdomen that encompassed some of her reproductive anatomy. Doctors had to perform emergency surgery on her, and removed her right ovary and fallopian tube. Ms Cecil returned home after a grueling 10 days in the hospital. They had spent nearly a year trying to conceive that pregnancy. Fertility and infertility is really hard to go through in itself, Ms Cecil said, noting that the couple thought theyd finally gotten through the difficult stage. So when she found out her baby wasnt going to survive, she blamed herself, asking the nurses: Did I do something wrong? Since her third D&C, she and her husband have not been able to become pregnant. Ms Cecil doesnt think its a coincidence. She wonder, if she had been able to get immediate abortion care in Tennessee, would she still have her fertility? Right now I feel like they took that away from me, the 34-year-old said, referring to Tennessee lawmakers. When asked what she would say to Tennessee legislators if she had the chance, Ms Cecil said she wanted to make clear that abortion is not black and white, explaining that so much of it is in the gray area on a case-by-case basis. Like Texas woman Kate Cox, who was also denied the procedure in her home state, Ms Cecil wants a large family; neither woman falls within the stereotype that many on the right are portraying as abortion candidates. The young mother added that pregnant people who need an abortion shouldnt feel like they need to beg lawmakers for permissions when they do not have medical backgrounds and have no idea how the patient will be impacted. Particularly, Ms Cecil noted, that often women in these situation are deciding if we want our child to suffer after being born, or are waiting until they die inside of us. She said she still doesnt feel normal, even more than a year after the pregnancy. Physically, she has a scar that stretches from her belly button down to her pelvic bone that has caused her fat to become displaced. Emotionally, she said, I think about that baby all the time. While she and her husband have been trying for another baby, she often breaks down and thinks, I just want that baby. Why didnt that work out? Ms Cecil contemplated joining a group of women, represented by the Center for Reproductive Rights (CRR), who were denied abortions and are now fighting the states prohibition of the procedure, asking for clarity on the bans medical exceptions. The state of Tennessee took my fertility from me Breanna Cecil But she decided not to become a plaintiff in the case because she feared others opinions of her actions. On 4 April, a three-judge panel listened to oral arguments from lawyers from CRR and the state about a temporary block of the abortion ban. CRRs attorneys mentioned a series of heartbreaking stories from the plaintiff as well as a woman whose baby was diagnosed with acrania. They were referring to Ms Cecil. The three-judge panel has not yet ruled on the temporary injunction. It is one of 14 states that has made abortion illegal since the fall of Roe v Wade in June 2022. After hearing the oral arguments, Ms Cecil decided she wants to join the case. If someone doesnt ever want to hire me again because of what happened to me, I just dont care. Im not gonna let that bother me anymore, she said. Shes lived in Tennessee since she was seven years old. Although she said she is tempted to move out of the state, especially if she gets pregnant again, she refuses to let the anti-abortion bullies force her away from her home. I cant back down and let them win this battle, Ms Cecil said. Tennessee's third-grade reading law: What to know about TCAP scores, retention and more Tens of thousands of students across Tennessee are awaiting the results of their standardized tests, which will set off a fast-moving timeline to determine whether they're held back under a controversial state reading and retention law. While the law primarily applies to third graders, thousands of fourth graders who opted for yearlong tutoring to avoid retention last year will also be affected this year. The law, passed in 2021, took effect in 2023. It hinges on scores for the English language arts section of the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program test, also known as the TCAP or TNReady. Third graders who score as "below" or "approaching" proficiency on that section may face retention if additional steps are not taken. Fourth graders who fell short on last year's test but opted into tutoring must pass the section of the test or hit an individualized growth goal. If they do not, it's up to parents and school leaders to decide if they are held back or sent to fifth grade with more tutoring and academic supports in place. Families and students crowd around the front of Goodlettsville Elementary School on the first day of school in August 2023. "As districts and schools begin to have essential conversations with families of students who are not yet proficient, we will continue to provide resources and supports so they can make informed decisions about their students education," Tennessee Commissioner of Education Lizzette Reynolds said in a May 13 news release. "I appreciate the dedication of Tennessees districts, schools and educators to providing families and students with the best pathway to set them up for future success." Here's what parents need to know about navigating the implications of the law. When are TCAPs? TCAPs were administered between April 15-30 for grades 3-5. Testing dates varied by district. When will third- and fourth-grade TCAP scores be available? TCAP scores are typically released in two waves over the summer and early fall each year. However, the Tennessee Department of Education will release some scores and data early for third and fourth graders affected by the reading law. English language arts scores for third and fourth graders, including cut scores, were released to districts on May 20. Adequate growth data for fourth graders will be released by July 1. It will be up to districts to relay information and next steps to parents and legal guardians. How many students could be held back? As the reading law took effect last year, 60% of third graders fell short of the state's reading benchmark. That number does not factor in automatic exemptions. After exemptions, retakes, summer school and the appeal process all unfolded, just 1.2% of last year's third graders were held back under the reading law, which totaled just under 900 students. It will likely take several months to see numbers on how many third graders are ultimately retained this year. Last year's third-grade retention data was not released until November. Learn more: Only 1.2% of Tennessee third graders held back in 2023 after reading law rollout The effects of the law for fourth graders will play out differently. More than 12,000 of last year's third graders who fell short opted into yearlong tutoring in fourth grade to avoid retention. Those fourth graders must either score as "meets" or "exceeds" expectations on the English language arts section of the TCAP or show adequate growth. If they do not, they will again face possible retention or additional tutoring. As defined by state education officials, the complex formula for adequate growth factors in the student's English language arts score on the state standardized test and the probability that they will eventually reach proficiency. Growth goals are individualized to each student. School and district leaders meet with kindergarteners and a teacher at Highland Oaks Elementary School on Aug. 7, 2023, in Memphis. A law passed this spring removed mandated retention for fourth graders who do not meet adequate growth and instead leaves the decision up to parents and schools. The new measure states that a district or public charter school must call a conference with the student's parent or guardian, English language arts teacher and school principal if a fourth grader does not hit their goal. The conference will determine one of the following things: Promote the child to fifth grade with interventions and academic supports in place, including tutoring Retain the child in fourth grade It's not clear when final fourth-grade retention data will be available. Reading law change: Lawmakers OK bill to put decision on holding back 4th graders in hands of schools, parents Are there exemptions for third graders? Yes. Some third graders whose scores fall short can move on to fourth grade without any further action. Those students include: English language learners who have received less than two years of English language arts instruction Those who were held back in a previous grade Students with disabilities or suspected disabilities that impact their literacy development It is up to the districts to sort out those students and inform parents. What options do third graders have to move on to fourth grade? Third graders who score as "approaching" proficiency must complete one of the following to move on to fourth grade: Retest and score on grade level, with a retest window of May 22-31 Enroll in summer school, meet 90% attendance and show adequate growth Have a free state-provided tutor for the entirety of fourth grade A student arrives for the first day of school on Aug. 8, 2023, at Goodlettsville Elementary School. Additionally, third graders who score at or above the 50th percentile on their spring reading screening test can also move on if they enroll in tutoring for the entirety of fourth grade. When it comes to post-summer school tests, the State Board of Education defines "adequate growth" as a student scoring at least 5 percentage points higher than their baseline score. The baseline can be either their initial TCAP English language arts score or their retake score. Third graders who score as "below proficiency" have the following options to move on: Retest and score as "meets" or "exceeds" expectations, with a retest window of May 22-31 Enroll in summer school with a 90% attendance rate and have a free state-provided tutor for the entirety of fourth grade Retake scores will be given to districts within two days of testing. Retesting and summer school dates vary by district. Students who opt for fourth-grade tutoring must demonstrate adequate growth on their TCAP the following spring or be subject to more interventions, including tutoring or possible retention. Mill Creek Elementary students arrive for the first day of school on Aug. 8, 2023, in Knoxville. Can I file an appeal? Yes, but appeals are only open for third graders who score as approaching expectations. The state Education Department allows for appeals in two circumstances: The child faced a catastrophic event within 60 days prior to their TCAP that impacted their ability to perform on the test. The child scored in the 40th percentile or higher on a state-approved universal reading screener. There are also additional steps required for those who appeal using the reading screener option. Here's what they entail: The principal of the school must agree to develop an academic remediation plan for the child. The students English language arts teacher and principal must both agree to promote the child to fourth grade. The students school district or charter school must agree to give the child high-dosage, low-ratio tutoring for the entirety of their fourth grade year. The appeal window will be open from May 28-June 28. Parents and legal guardians can also authorize school personnel to file an appeal on their behalf. A third grader raises a hand to participate during an English language arts assignment on June 6, 2023, at Dodson Elementary School in Nashville, Tenn. The student was part of Promising Scholars, the Metro Nashville Public Schools summer program. When will retention decisions be made? Final third-grade retention decisions will be made in June and July, depending on if students enroll in summer programming and when their first day of school is. Final decisions for third graders must be made within 10 days of school starting, at the latest. The state education department does not list a retention decision deadline for parents and schools considering whether to promote or hold back fourth graders affected by the reading law. Key dates third-, fourth-grade retention in Tennessee Here are all the key dates in one place for 2024: May 20: English language arts TCAP scores for third and fourth graders, including cut scores, released to districts May 22-May 31: Third grade English language arts TCAP retake window May 28-June 28: Appeal window for third graders (fourth graders do not qualify for appeals) June-July: Final retention notifications made for students who do not participate in summer programming By July 1: Adequate growth data for fourth-grade students released to districts July 12 : Final retention notifications made for students who participated in summer programming and attend schools that start July 22. For schools that start later, the state mandates final retention decisions be made at least 10 days before the first day of school. July 26: Post-tests for students in summer programming close by 5 p.m. Summer programming dates will vary by district. Where can I learn more? The education department provided the following graphic as a guide for third and fourth grade promotion and retention decisions. A graphic from The Tennessee Department of Education explains multiple scenarios for third and fourth graders affected by the state's reading and retention law. The graphic, along with more information on the reading and retention law, can be found at tn.gov/education/learning-acceleration. Reach children's reporter Rachel Wegner at RAwegner@tennessean.com or find her on Twitter, Threads and Bluesky @RachelAnnWegner. This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee reading law: When to expect TCAP scores, retention decisions Environmental activists walk past the Tesla plant during a protest against Tesla. After sometimes violent clashes on May 10, 2024 at the Tesla factory site in Gruenheide near Berlin, new protests are currently underway against the US company. Patrick Pleul/dpa The US electric car manufacturer Tesla has criticized the protests by environmental activists in Germany and accused them of misinformation. From Wednesday to Sunday, hundreds of activists protested in front of Tesla's factory near Berlin against the company's planned expansion. They warned of environmental hazards and criticized water consumption. "From our point of view, it is regrettable that the situation on site has been dominated over the last few days by activists, some of whom are prepared to use violence," Tesla announced on Monday. According to the company, an objective, fact-based debate has taken place in recent weeks on groundwater protection, water consumption, the treatment of trees and occupational health and safety. Tesla said the debate showed that the company was taking the concerns of the population seriously and that misinformation had been corrected,. However, according to Tesla, the demonstrators and activists had not taken note of this. Tesla thanked Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz Economy Minister Robert Habeck. Scholz had supported the plans to expand Tesla production, while Habeck criticized the protest against the car industry. The car manufacturer also thanked the police. Tesla rejects accusations of environmental hazards and points to lower water consumption than the industry average. On Friday, activists tried in vain to gain access to the company premises. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. Iran expects India to increase investment in Chabahar port in Sistan and Baluchistan Province located in the southeast of the country, Iranian Minister of Roads and Urban Development Mehrdad Bazrpash said, Trend reports. He made the remark during the joint press conference with Indian Minister of Ports, Maritime Affairs, and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal after signing an agreement on the development of the Chabahar Port between Iran and India in Tehran. He estimates that the agreement between Iran and India signed today will be worth $370 million. Bazrpash added that Chabahar port is located in the North-South International Corridor and creates exits in different directions. Iran and India are working to improve the potential of maritime routes. By organizing discussions, the establishment of a joint shipping company is envisaged. This can seriously help promote trade in the different ports of the two countries, he said. To note, Iran's Minister of Roads and Urban Development Mehrdad Bazrpash and India's Minister of Ports, Maritime Affairs, and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal will sign an agreement to provide Chabahar Port with equipment and port infrastructure. Under the contract, India's IPGL will provide equipment to Chabahar Port. The agreement stipulates that the Indian side will spend $120 million on the supply of equipment to the Chabahar port and $250 million on the construction of the port infrastructure. On September 12, 2000, Russia, Iran, and India signed an intergovernmental agreement that laid the foundation for the North-South transport corridor. In general, several countries have ratified the mentioned agreement (the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Republic of Belarus, the Republic of Bulgaria, India, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Republic of Kyrgyzstan, the Sultanate of Oman, the Russian Federation, the Republic of Tajikistan, the Republic of Turkiye, and Ukraine). The corridor aims to shorten the cargo delivery time from India to Russia and Northern and Western Europe, which currently takes more than 6 weeks on the current route, to just 3 weeks via the North-South corridor. In Iran, the North-South Corridor has three directions. The eastern direction is Turkmenistan and Central Asian countries; the middle direction is Russia and other countries across the Caspian Sea; and the western direction is Azerbaijan, Georgia, Russia, and Eastern European countries. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel The Rio Grande at Los Ebanos in Hidalgo Co. on Jan. 14, 2022. The United States is on the right, Mexico on the left. Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune WASHINGTON Texans in Congress are threatening federal funds for Mexico, escalating a dispute over Mexicos obligations to deliver water to the United States. A bipartisan group of Texas lawmakers are demanding House and Senate appropriators withhold funds for the country until Mexico lives up to its end of a 1944 water treaty that requires it to send 1.75 million acre-feet to the U.S. every five years. Mexico has until October of next year to fulfill the requirement, but has more than 700,000 acre-feet left to deliver, according to the International Boundary and Water Commission (Acre-feet is the amount of water needed to fill one acre of land with one foot of water.) The inconsistent deliveries from Mexico have exacerbated water shortages impacting South Texas farmers, the lawmakers say. The Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers sugar mill had to close in February due to repeated water shortages after 50 years. It was the last sugar mill in Texas employing over 500 workers. Hidalgo County had to extend a drought disaster declaration in April. Farmers and ranchers across South Texas remain under continued financial strain and could suffer a similar fate as the sugar industry, should Mexico continue withholding water, the lawmakers wrote in a Friday letter to House and Senate appropriators. They continued: As efforts at negotiating a reasonable compromise between our countries have failed to produce an amenable solution for our constituents, we urge you and your colleagues on the Appropriations Committee to withhold designated funds from Mexico until Mexico has agreed to provide more reliable and consistent water deliveries to the United States. Mexico asserts it is limited in its ability to deliver water due to drought conditions on its side of the border. It has technically not violated the terms of the treaty because it does not require water to be released in even intervals during the five-year period. The lawmakers Friday letter does not specify what kind of federal funds to Mexico should be impacted. The U.S. government committed over $138 million in assistance to Mexico in the last fiscal year. Sens. John Cornyn and Ted Cruz and U.S. Reps. Monica De La Cruz, R-McAllen; Vicente Gonzalez, D-McAllen; Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo; Tony Gonzales, R-San Antonio; Nathaniel Moran, R-Tyler; Ronny Jackson, R-Amarillo; Jodey Arrington, R-Lubbock; and Keith Self, R-McKinney all signed on. Cuellar and Gonzales are both on the House Appropriations Committee. Texans on the border have been highlighting the water treaty in Congress and with the White House for months. Cornyn has repeatedly pushed the point with Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Cruz and Cornyn said in a February statement that The U.S. must use every diplomatic tool at its disposal to ensure Mexicos compliance. We will continue to look for ways to support South Texass agriculture community, which is suffering from a lack of water. There is only so much Congress can do to enforce a treaty already on the books. The State Department is largely responsible for negotiating more water to be released. Gov. Greg Abbott has similarly pushed the issue. Officials from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality negotiated with the Mexican government in 2020 along with the Trump administration to push Mexico to release its water before the end of the last five-year cycle. Mexico has also had its own complaints about the treaty. The countrys government has said Abbotts use of floating buoys to deter migrants from crossing the Rio Grande violated the terms of the treaty because the buoys were potentially on the Mexican side of the river. Mexico and the United States ratified the 1944 treaty to equitably distribute water from the Rio Grande and to cooperate in managing its flow. Weve got big things in store for you at The Texas Tribune Festival, happening Sept. 57 in downtown Austin. Join us for three days of big, bold conversations about politics, public policy and the days news. The Texas Senate Subcommittee on Higher Education will have a public hearing at 9 a.m. Tuesday at the Capitol to review institutions' compliance with Senate Bill 17, make recommendations for how college campuses can better combat antisemitism and review free speech policies. The hearing has no limit on how many people can give public comment, but each speaker will be limited to two minutes. The committee will take no action but will make recommendations. Here's the background on the topics that will be discussed at the meeting: Senate Bill 17 SB 17 is a law that bars institutions from having diversity, equity and inclusion offices. The hearing comes after a letter Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, sent to chancellors March 26 warning them to comply with the law. Texas public institutions were required to comply with SB 17, which passed last year, by Jan. 1. Creighton, who wrote the bill, warned in his March letter that institutions found not to be compliant can face potential loss in funding or legal ramifications. At the hearing, the general counsel and chancellor for each Texas university system will present how their institutions are implementing SB 17 and monitoring compliance. That will include answering questions on how they have ensured there is no mandatory training, DEI office or employees who complete those functions; how they have ensured no preference is given due to race, color, sex, ethnicity or national origin in hiring; and how they will prepare for a mandatory audit. A week after the letter was sent, the University of Texas at Austin terminated about 50 employees who formerly worked in DEI positions and closed its Division of Campus and Community Engagement in what President Jay Hartzell said was a reorganization related to SB 17. UT-Dallas followed suit, closing its new Office of Campus Resources and Support and laying off about 20 employees April 9. The job terminations have resulted in outcries from students, Democratic legislators, rights groups and the Texas chapter of the American Association of University Professors, who said the move took away essential student services. But the cuts have been praised by some conservative legislators as a way to ensure a return to merit-based rewards. Antisemitism A day after Creighton's letter, Gov. Greg Abbott issued an executive order calling for institutions to revise free speech policies to better protect against rising antisemitism after Oct. 7, the day of the deadly attacks by Hamas on Israel that caused the nation to declare war. Chairs of university boards of regents were required to respond and assert their compliance within 90 days. The Senate committee's hearing notice charges committee members to "review campus policies to prevent antisemitism" and analyze how improvements can be made while still protecting free speech. The committee will also look at how institutions oversee "the formation and operations of student organizations" and their access on campus. In his March executive order, Abbott singled out the Palestine Solidarity Committee and Students for Justice in Palestine, but the order and the hearing item did not mention protections against Islamophobia, which has also been rising since Oct. 7. Protesters stand with linked arms at an encampment on the UT Tower south lawn meant to call attention to the war in Gaza and to condemn the University of Texas at Austins relationship with defense companies on Monday, April 29, 2024 in Austin. Free speech The last topic of the hearing is to examine the procedures of Texas public universities "designed to protect the first amendment free speech rights of faculty, staff, and students," including compliance with Senate Bill 18 from the 86th Legislature concerning protected speech on campuses, and "make recommendations for any needed reforms." Senate Bill 18, passed in 2019, tasks universities to "ensure that the common outdoor areas of the institution's campus are deemed traditional public forums" and allow "any person to engage in expressive activities in those areas of the institution's campus freely" as long as the conduct is not disruptive or unlawful. In the past several weeks, more than 150 pro-Palestinian protesters have been arrested after demonstrating at multiple Texas universities, including UT-Austin, the University of Houston and UT-Dallas. The protests joined universities across the nation in demanding the institutions divest from weapons manufacturers contributing to Israel. In some cases, protesters have set up or attempted to set up encampments on university lawns. Public testimony Pauline Strong, the president of the UT-Austin chapter of the American Association of University Professors, said people from Austin and beyond are expected to provide public testimony, particularly about the effects of SB 17 on students, staff and faculty. Strong said she is also interested in hearing how institutions have interpreted SB 17 differently and hopes to hear how the police response to the recent pro-Palestinian protests can be reconciled with free speech rights and Senate Bill 18. "All three items of the agenda ... relate to AAUP's core missions of protecting academic freedom and promoting shared governance and due process," Strong said. She added that she hopes the testimony will impact how legislators are thinking going into the next session. The meeting will take place in the E1.028 hearing room. This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas Senate panel to tackle SB 17, free speech, antisemitism Thousands protest in Georgia over the weekend against 'Russia-style' law on foreign influence Demonstrators waving Georgian national flags gather in front of the Parliament building during an opposition protest against "the Russian law" in the center of Tbilisi, Georgia, early Monday, May 13, 2024. Daily protests are continuing against a proposed bill that critics say would stifle media freedom and obstruct the country's bid to join the European Union. (AP Photo/Zurab Tsertsvadze) TBILISI, Georgia (AP) Georgia's parliament green-lit a final vote on a proposed law that critics see as a threat to media freedom and the countrys aspirations to join the European Union on Monday, a day after police dispersed the latest protests against it. The bill would require media and nongovernmental organizations and other nonprofits to register as pursuing the interests of a foreign power if they receive more than 20% of their funding from abroad. The opposition denounces the bill as the Russian law, because Moscow uses similar legislation to crack down on independent news media, nonprofits and activists critical of the Kremlin. The bill is nearly identical to one that the governing Georgian Dream party was pressured to withdraw last year after street protests. Renewed demonstrations have rocked Georgia for weeks, with demonstrators scuffling with police, who used tear gas and water cannons to disperse the crowds. The government says the bill is necessary to stem what it deems as harmful foreign influence over the countrys politics and to prevent unspecified foreign actors from trying to destabilize it. Huge crowds marched through Europe Square in the capital, Tbilisi, on Saturday, with demonstrators wrapped in Georgian and European Union flags and chanting Georgia! On Sunday, the protesters gathered in front of parliament for an overnight rally and tried to block entrances into the building, where a committee of lawmakers were expected to discuss the bill once again on Monday. Police sought to disperse the demonstration, and by Monday morning, only hundreds remained near parliament. Georgia's Interior Ministry said 20 people were arrested in the morning, including three foreign citizens two Americans and a Russian. It took lawmakers less than a minute to give a green light to the third and final reading of the bill for Tuesday. Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili, who is increasingly at odds with the governing party, has vowed to veto the law, but Georgian Dream has a majority sufficient to override a presidential veto. The legislature approved a second reading of the bill earlier this month, after protests that drew tens of thousands of people. EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has described the parliaments move as a very concerning development and warned that final adoption of this legislation would negatively impact Georgias progress on its EU path. UPDATE: Monday at 5 p.m. Both Robert Fergusons dropped out of the race for governor before the 5 p.m. deadline Monday. Candidate Dave Reichert released the following statement: In all nine of my previous campaigns, I have won without any games or antics such as these. I dont support any effort to deceive the voters of Washington state. Candidate Mark Mullet released the following statement: The two Bobs should withdraw before the 5:00 deadline today. We dont need anything to confuse voters on the ballot. This is an illegal sideshow that threatens our democracy and does nothing to improve our electoral process. ORIGINAL STORY There are three Bob Fergusons running for Washington state governor. One of them is the state attorney general, and he is calling this an illegal scheme with effort to confuse voters. We have threats to our democracy. This is a threat to our election system, said the state attorney general. Theres a total of 30 candidates running for state governor, the two Bob Fergusons filed Friday afternoon prior to the 5 p.m. deadline. According to the Seattle Times, one is a retired state employee from Yakima, and the other is a military veteran from Graham. Cease and desist letters were hand delivered to the homes of the other two Robert Fergusons yesterday urging them to withdraw by the deadline five oclock today, said the state attorney general. On social media, Glen Morgan said, Yes, I am the volunteer campaign manager for two of the Bob Fergusons running for Governor. They are both superior in every way to the AG running for the same office, and I believe they can provide better choices for the Democrats in our state for that office. The state attorney general says if the two do not withdraw their names they have sent a letter to the secretary of state to further investigate this. Now I suspect that the two other Bob Fergusons that were duped into putting their name onto the ballot didnt know and were told that this is a Class B felony. A Class B felony has a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, and sub section four here seems like it was written for today, said Dan Satterberg, former King County Prosecuting Attorney. In these types of situations, to avoid any confusion, the state allows candidates with similar names to add information on the ballot such as their profession or change their status to incumbent or challenger. Some of the other candidates running are Democratic State Senator Mark Mullet, former military intelligence analyst ELona Kearney, and former King County Sheriff and congressman Dave Reichert. Three men in court in London on charges of working for Hong Kong intelligence Three men are set to appear at Westminster Magistrates Court in central London later Monday charged with assisting Hong Kong's foreign intelligence service and foreign interference under national security laws. File photo by Andy Rain/EPA May 13 (UPI) -- Three men are set to appear in court in London later Monday charged with assisting Hong Kong's foreign intelligence service and foreign interference under national security laws. The accused are Chi Leung (Peter) Wai, 38, of Staines-upon-Thames, Matthew Trickett, 37, of Maidenhead and Chung Biu Yuen, 63, of Hackney, London, who were arrested earlier this month in a counter-terrorism operation in which 11 people were detained in raids across the country, the Met Police said in a news release. Eight men and a woman were arrested by counter-terrorism police officers on May 1, 200 miles north of the capital in Yorkshire. The next day two men were arrested in the Yorkshire area and in London. All 11 were detained on suspicion of offenses under the National Security Act. Seven men and a woman who were not charged were released from custody on Friday. "While these offenses are concerning, I want to reassure the public that we do not believe there to be any wider threat to them," said Commander Dominic Murphy, Head of the Met's Counter Terrorism Command, who stressed that the operation was not linked to a counter-terrorism operation last month that saw two Britons being charged with aiding Russian intelligence. Dylan Earl, 20, from Leicestershire and Jake Reeves, 22, from London, were charged in connection with a suspected arson attack on a Ukraine-owned warehouse in London in March. Earl was also charged with aggravated arson and preparatory acts endangering a person's life or creating a serious risk to public safety contrary to the 2023 National Security Act while Reeves was charged with aggravated arson and receiving payment from a foreign intelligence service. Earl appeared at the Old Bailey on Friday where a judge set a trial date for June 2025. He was allegedly taking instructions from Russia's Wagner Group, a paramilitary organization that Britain designates as a terror group and is therefore banned. Naval Air Station Pensacola announced Monday that the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds will fly alongside the U.S. Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron Blue Angels during Pensacola's Homecoming Air Show in November. In a release, NAS Pensacola says the Thunderbirds will perform alongside the Blue Angels on Nov. 1 and Nov. 2 onboard NAS Pensacola to finish Blues' 2024 show season. "Having our military's top flight demonstration teams perform at the 'Cradle of Naval Aviation' will undoubtedly be an experience you won't want to miss!" said Capt. Terry Shashaty, NAS Pensacola's commanding officer. "The Blue Angels and Homecoming Air Show are most certainly ingrained in the identity of Pensacola and the surrounding communities, and we are proud to be able to host a family-friendly event showcasing the capabilities and precision of both the Navy and Air Force teams as well as our civilian performers!" The announcement comes after NAS Pensacola released a 17-second video Thursday of a single photo showing three F-16 Fighting Falcon jets flown by the Thunderbirds on each side of the Blue Angels' famous Delta formation, forming the "Super Delta" formation. Thunderbirds leader Lt. Col. Nathan Malafa said, "The NAS Pensacola Blue Angels Homecoming Air Show will provide an exciting finale to our 2024 season. The U.S. Navy Blue Angels and Air Force Thunderbirds practice a joint formation over Imperial Valley, California. Both flight demonstration squads will be flying at the Blue Angels Homecoming Air Show Nov. 1-2. "Our demonstrations showcase the incredible milestones a team can accomplish when they work together," Malafa said. "It's an honor to perform alongside our Navy counterparts; we both started building the foundations of our 2024 teams together in El Centro and will end our seasons together in a display of excellence." Who fly the Thunderbirds F-16 Fighting Falcon jets? Here are the six pilots who fly for the Thunderbirds in the 2024 season, according to the Air Force: Lt. Col. Nathan Malafa Commander Maj. Zachary Taylor Left wing pilot Maj. Tyler Clark Right wing pilot Maj. Jake Impellizzeri Slot pilot Maj. Eric Tise Lead solo pilot Maj. Jeffrey Downie Opposing solo pilot Have the Blue Angels and Thunderbirds ever flown together? In Late April 2017, the Flying Blues and Thunderbirds combined for a rare joint training in Pensacola, and the two teams combined again three years later in 2020 for another joint training in Pensacola. They later debuted the "Super Delta" formation during the 16th annual National Memorial Day Parade in 2021. The "Super Delta" is created when three of the Thunderbirds' F-16 Fighting Falcon jets flank each side of the Blue Angels' traditional Delta formation, creating a 12-jet formation. Both teams performed in the Point Mugu Air Show in 2023 at Naval Base Ventura County in California. This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Blue Angels, Thunderbirds will fly at Homecoming Show at NAS Pensacola MEMPHIS, Tenn. A Jackson, Tennessee registered sex offender has been indicted on multiple new federal child exploitation offenses, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office. The multi-count indictment was returned by a federal grand jury in the Western District of Tennessee on Monday. Markettus Lorenzo Broyld, 47, of Jackson is charged with the production of child pornography, coercion and enticement of a minor, receipt and possession of child pornography, and commission of a felony offense involving a minor as a registered sex offender. The charges are related to interactions Broyld had with a minor in the Jackson area in December 2022, reports say. West Virginia man charged with federal crimes against child in TN According to the indictment, Broyld engaged in electronic communications with a minor, where he allegedly asked the minor to take and send sexually explicit photos and videos. The minor complied with the requests. Broyld also allegedly possessed child pornographic photos and videos on his cell phone. He was a convicted sex offender and was required to register under the sex offender registry in the state of Tennessee when the alleged offenses took place. Broyld is facing a sentence of up to life in prison if he is convicted of all of the charges. His trial date is set for October 15 of this year. The case is being investigated by the FBI Memphis Child Exploitation Task Force and the Jackson Police Department. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WREG.com. On May 6, I was called to testify in federal court in the NAACP lawsuit challenging North Carolinas new voter photo ID law. I was called because You Can Vote, the organization I founded and run, knows first-hand the obstacles to voting that North Carolinians face. Over the last 10 years, weve trained and mobilized 6,000 nonpartisan volunteers to educate over one million North Carolinians on their right to vote and helped 100,000-plus citizens register to vote. As we talk to potential voters across the state, weve found that yes, people are angry and apathetic, but most of all they are confused by the seemingly endless political infighting and ever-changing rules to vote. Kate Fellman However it may appear, we know that North Carolinas new voter ID law (SB 824) is discriminatory. It discriminates against those without a state-approved photo ID for no good or valid reason. How does the law discriminate? It makes it more difficult to vote. Yes, if you dont have a state-approved ID you can get a free Voter Photo ID at your countys board of elections office. But you have to already be registered to vote in your county and you have to be able to get there even if the office is many miles away, or you dont have a car, or a friend who can drive, or public transportation in your county. And, while your board of elections office may be open during regular business hours, you might not be able to leave work or school without penalty. During the federal trial, the State Board of Elections showed a preview of their education campaign planned for fall 2024, including billboards and digital and print ads. The images on these ads include people holding up a N.C. drivers license with the big bold words Bring It: Your ID. Your Vote. To the untrained eye, these ads appear to be friendly reminders. But, based on our experience educating voters, these ads will suppress votes and have a detrimental impact on citizens who lack a state-issued ID. People already think they cannot register to vote if they dont have a DMV-issued ID. Every day, we talk to potential voters who motion to their back pocket or purse for a wallet as they say I cant get registered today because I havent been to the DMV or I dont have my ID with me. It isnt true that voters cant register without a DMV-issued ID and it isnt true that voters cant cast a ballot without an ID, so why say so? These ads will only serve to deter eligible voters from going to the polls. Voters need helpful messages about how they can vote, and a photo ID is not an eligibility requirement for the right to vote in our state. There is an exception form for those who lack ID and, for those who forget it when they go to the polls, they can come back and show it. So who are those most likely to find it difficult or impossible to get a photo ID and be deterred by this messaging? Newly eligible 18 year olds, people in low-wage jobs, people who are sick or have disabilities, young people (especially those who move frequently), seniors, low-income people, and most especially, people of color. 2020 proved that North Carolina does not need a voter photo ID law. Despite the turmoil of a hard-fought general election in the midst of a pandemic, the elections came off without a hitch without voter photo ID. To register and vote, North Carolinians only had to provide proof of residency and sign a statement, at the bottom of every voter registration form, attesting to their eligibility under the penalty of perjury. That sufficed. North Carolina citizens deserve a government that encourages and supports the habit of voting without unnecessary obstacles. That is why You Can Vote was founded and why our work continues to be in high demand across the state. To help us reach more voters, accurately educate them about their rights, and get them registered to vote become a You Can Vote volunteer at youcanvote.org. Kate Fellman is founder and executive director of You Can Vote. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. Iran intends to build a new nuclear reactor in Shiraz, a city in Fars Province, located in the south of the country, Iranian Vice President and Chairman of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran Mohammad Eslami said, Trend reports. According to him, a new nuclear reactor will be built in Shiraz to develop nuclear science and technology, research, and training. Eslami added that work is currently underway to segregate the area in Shiraz. The design phase will begin after the allocation of the area. Referring to the recent International Conference on Nuclear Science and Technology held in Isfahan, the Iranian vice president stated that the conference was organized for the first time with the participation of representatives from 22 countries. Iran plans to organize this conference every two years. To note, the former Chairman of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, Fereydoun Abbasi, stated on the sidelines of the international conference held in Isfahan that the organization intends to build a 10-megawatt reactor in Shiraz. Meanwhile, the 3-day 1st International Conference on Nuclear Science and Technology was held in Iran's Isfahan on May 68. In addition to Iran, the conference was attended by representatives of other countries, including IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Palestinians prepare to flee Rafah after Israeli forces launched a ground and air operation in the eastern part of the city Palestinians prepare to flee Rafah after Israeli forces launched a ground and air operation in the eastern part of the city By Humeyra Pamuk WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Biden administration does not see it likely or possible that Israel will achieve "total victory" in defeating Hamas in the Palestinian enclave of Gaza, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said on Monday. While U.S. officials have urged Israel to help devise a clear plan for the governance post-war Gaza, Campbell's comments are the clearest to date from a top U.S. official effectively admitting that Israel's current military strategy won't bring the result that it is aiming for. "In some respects, we are struggling over what the theory of victory is," Campbell said at a NATO Youth Summit in Miami. "Sometimes when we listen closely to Israeli leaders, they talk about mostly the idea of....a sweeping victory on the battlefield, total victory," he said. "I don't think we believe that that is likely or possible and that this looks a lot like situations that we found ourselves in after 9/11, where, after civilian populations had been moved and lots of violence that...the insurrections continue." Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly vowed to achieve "total victory" against Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that attacked Israel on Oct. 7 and killed 1,200 people and took 250 others hostage. In response, Israel unleashed a relentless assault on the Gaza Strip, killing more than 35,000 people, according to the figures of the Gazan health ministry, and reducing the densely populated tiny enclave to a wasteland. Campbell's comments come as Washington is warning Israel not to go ahead with a major military offensive in Rafah, the southernmost city of the Gaza Strip where over a million people who have already been displaced by Israeli attacks are taking shelter. Likening the situation in Gaza to that of a recurring insurgency that the United States faced in Afghanistan and Iraq after its invasions there following the Sept. 11 attacks, Campbell said a political solution was required. "I think we view that there has to be more of a political solution...What's different from the past in that sense, many countries want to move towards a political solution in which the rights of Palestinians are more respected," he said. "I don't think it's ever been more difficult than right now," he added. (Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk; EDiting by Alistair Bell) (Bloomberg) -- The top diplomats from South Korea and China held their first face-to-face talks in Beijing in some six years, showing differences over US policies on chip exports and North Koreas nuclear ambitions. Most Read from Bloomberg South Koreas Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul and Chinas Wang Yi agreed in their talks Monday to cooperate for a trilateral summit with Japan to be held soon in Seoul, South Koreas Foreign Ministry said. Seoul has said the meeting could take place on May 26-27. The trilateral summits have been on hold since 2019 due to the pandemic and political tensions. China has been feeling pressure as Japan and South Korea moved closer to Washington in recent years. The US and its two key allies in Asia have raised their security cooperation to some of the highest levels in decades, largely because of concern about North Koreas behavior and China becoming more assertive militarily. Wang pledged to work with South Korea to improve ties, according to a statement from Chinas Foreign Ministry, and appeared to reference Beijings concern about Seouls closer relations with Washington. He urged South Korea to abide by the one-China principle by properly and prudently handling Taiwan-related issues, according to the statement. Both sides should jointly oppose trade protectionism, safeguard the free international trading regime, and ensure the stability and smoothness of the production and supply chains, he said. Read More: China, Japan, South Korea Aim to Hold Summit in May, Reports Say Cho also expressed concern over North Koreas growing military cooperation with Russia and asked China to use its influence on Pyongyang to rein in Kim Jong Uns nuclear weapons program. Beijing has been Pyongyangs biggest benefactor for years, providing a lifeline that has kept its economy afloat. China has also called on the US and its partners to do more to bring stability to the peninsula. Read More: US Commander Warns China Fast Becoming More Aggressive in Region Seoul has accused North Korea of accelerating its weapons development in recent years and sending munitions to Russia for its war on Ukraine in return for food, raw materials and parts for arms manufacturing. South Korean officials say the cooperation could increase Kims threat to the region. Pyongyang and Moscow have denied the accusations about their trade activities. The meeting of foreign ministers also took place under the shadow of an intensifying US-China rivalry for chip supremacy. Washington has imposed a wall of restrictions to deny Beijing access to the latest semiconductors, and the Biden administration is enlisting its partners to adopt export controls on sophisticated equipment needed to make the most advanced chips. Read More: Global Chips Battle Intensifies With $81 Billion Subsidy Surge South Korea has the biggest market share of memory chips in China, and it is the second-largest provider of silicon wafers for Chinese companies after Japan, according to a February report from the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy. On the economic front, data this year showed that exports to the US overtook China as the biggest market for South Korean goods abroad for the first time in two decades. The upcoming trilateral summit will be the first major test on diplomatic front for South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol as he tries to maintain the momentum for the remaining three years of his term after suffering a major defeat in parliamentary elections last month. The last time a South Korean foreign minister visited Beijing for direct talks was in late 2017, though Wang met former South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin in Busan in November 2023. --With assistance from Jacob Gu. (Updates with details of talks from South Korea.) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Top NYPD cop pepper-sprays himself breaking up anti-Israel protest on Manhattan Bridge A top NYPD officer was seemingly caught on camera accidentally pepper-spraying himself while trying to break up an anti-Israel demonstration on the Manhattan Bridge Saturday. Video shared on social media shows NYPD Assistant Chief James McCarthy getting a faceful of the chemical irritant as he tried to deploy it on protesters who brought traffic to a standstill as they marched across the bridge Saturday evening. Cops in riot gear can be seen in the chaotic footage trying to wrangle protesters who are falling over each other as they back away chanting, Rafah! The group of protesters, some carrying signs reading Palestine will be free, appear to have their arms linked together while backing away from police. NYPD Assistant Chief James McCarthy accidentally sprayed pepper spray in his own face during a protest Saturday. Getty Images Toward the end of the clip, which had been viewed over 230,000 times Sunday morning, McCarthy can be seen alongside three protesters pulling pepper spray out of his pocket and accidentally spraying himself. Photographs show McCarthy wearing a white uniform while other officers dump a bottle of water over his shocked face. Several other officers can be seen tending to his injuries following the accident. Officers can be seen helping McCarthy wash away the irritant afterward. Getty Images At least 150 protesters were arrested Saturday on the Manhattan Bridge. Getty Images McCarthy was helped away from the scene. Getty Images Other clips shared online showed the large crowd slowly marching across the span chanting, We dont want your fking war, according to one X post, while cops gathered on the Manhattan side, eventually meeting the group and trying to round them up. About 150 people were arrested during the demonstration Saturday evening, an NYPD spokesperson told The Post on Sunday. The NYPD did not immediately return The Posts request for comment regarding McCarthys pepper-spray incident. TOPEKA (KSNT) A Topeka group focused on developing the riverfront is inviting locals to a public engagement session later this month to talk about the future of the Kansas River. The Topeka Riverfront Advisory Council (RAC) is hosting a Topeka Riverfront Plan Open House from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, May 21 at the Great Overland Station located at 701 N. Kansas Avenue. This session will include a short presentation at 6:30 p.m. and opportunities to give feedback on concept designs. The May 21st open house is another step forward in our journey to reimagine Topekas riverfront property, said Greg Schwerdt, RAC chair. I hope community members turn out to make their voices heard, as we hone in on the concepts and ideas that will be most needed and beneficial in Topeka and Shawnee County. The RAC launched a survey late last year to gather Topekans thoughts and opinions on what they want from the riverfront. The results of the survey showed most people want increased safety along the riverfront and to transform the area for recreational use. Carnival heads to Topeka for summer kickoff We appreciate everyone who took our riverfront survey around the start of the year, and we look forward to hearing more great perspectives in person this month, said Ashley Gilfillan, director of river strategies for the Greater Topeka Partnership. Public input is crucial in determining how Topekas riverfront should be transformed, and were committed to taking community members ideas into account when drafting the final Riverfront Activation Plan later this year. You can learn more about the RAC and its plans to transform the riverfront by clicking here. For more local news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here. Follow Matthew Self on X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/MatthewLeoSelf For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KSNT 27 News. MIDTOWN, Manhattan (PIX11) A tourist from Pennsylvania was stabbed in Times Square on Saturday, sources told PIX11 News. The 38-year-old woman was stabbed in the chest on 43rd Street and 8th Avenue around 6:13 p.m., according to authorities. She was walking with her daughter when she was stabbed unprovoked, sources said. Body discovered outside Queens apartment building: NYPD The suspect, a 61-year-old man, was taken into custody, police said. The man is well known to the department and is undergoing a psychological evaluation, according to sources. A knife was recovered at the scene, sources said. Erin Pflaumer is a digital content producer from Long Island who has covered both local and national news since 2018. She joined PIX11 in 2023. See more of her work here. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11. The death of a 17-year-old student who complained of pain after breaking up a fight in a bathroom at Henry Clay High School Friday and soon after was taken to the hospital is under investigation, local officials and his familys attorney said Sunday night. The Fayette County Coroners office Sunday confirmed the students name was Emmanuel Mwakadi. The investigation is open and no foul play is suspected, coroner officials said. The student died at UK Chandler Hospital Friday. Justin Peterson, a Lexington attorney representing Emmanuels family, told the Herald-Leader Sunday that between first and second period Friday, Emmanuel broke up a fight occurring in one of the boys restrooms. He came out and complained about an injury to his head and neck, went to second period (and) toward the end of the second period, he suffered an event that required the summoning of emergency medical personnel, the lawyer said. Emmanuel collapsed and fell unconscious in the classroom after complaining of head and neck pain he apparently sustained while breaking up the fight, Peterson added. Lexington Fire Major Derek Roberts said the fire department, responding to a call of a seizure, was dispatched to the school at 10:09 a.m. Friday. We will be investigating whether or not it was the event in the bathroom, whether or not there was a delay in treatment, whether the treatment that was provided was sufficient, and whether or not all or some of these things combined contributed to his death, Peterson said. Lexington Police officials did not immediately say Sunday night if they were formally investigating. Peterson said Sunday he will be contacting police and officials from the Cabinet for Health and Family Services and Fayette County Public Schools. One of the things the family is disturbed about is that no one from the school has reached out to them to discuss what happened, how they are doing, to give their sympathies and condolences, Peterson said. We are greatly concerned about the lack of communication from the school. Fayette County Public Schools district spokesperson Dia Davidson-Smith said school officials had been in constant contact with the family. The entire (Fayette County Public Schools) family is grieving the death on Friday of the student at HCHS (Henry Clay High School), said Davidson-Smith. The school leadership, teachers, and district interpreters have been in constant contact with the family from the very moment the student experienced the medical crisis in the classroom. On behalf of the superintendent and entire FCPS family, our sincere condolences. Travis County to discuss how taxpayers can help low-income families access child care AUSTIN (KXAN) Dozens of parents, child care providers and employees rallied on the Texas Capitol steps Monday, taking the day off, hoping to get through to lawmakers. Dairy Queen workers make more than child care workers, Cherlita Robertson, a childcare center director said. On the day of a national movement called, A Day Without Childcare, the group is asking for better funding in order to make child care more affordable, and to improve employee wages. Its $1,500 alone a month just for [my son,] Patricia Tobar, a mother said. I cant pay that thats half of more than half of my check. This movement comes as Travis County is set to discuss the proposed tax rate election for the 2025 Tax Year. Commissioners will look at how the county can give more people access to early childhood care and afterschool/summer services, according to the May 14 agenda. Its a 2-and-a-half cent tax raise to help fund a new $75 million program. Were going to help aid that over 8,000 families get assistance in some way of either child care after school assistance, Brown said. Travis County Judge Andy Brown and Precinct One Commissioner Jeff Travillion are leading this conversation. Kids who are in programs are not my kids who are in trouble, Travillion said. They have guidance, they have structure. If approved by voters, it would cost the average household about $10 more a month. Brown and Travillion hope it would benefit child care providers pay staff more too. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KXAN Austin. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. Iran is also ready to fulfill its obligations if the counterparties to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) (the US, France, UK, France, Russia, China, and Germany) will take practical steps regarding Iran's nuclear program, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said, Trend reports. He made the remark during the 3rd Forum of Iran-Arab Dialogue on Cooperation and Mutual Understanding held in Tehran on May 12. According to him, Iran has repeatedly stated in discussions on lifting sanctions that if the sides agree to return to the 2015 agreement, Iran is also ready to fulfill it. "These days coincided with the US withdrawal from the Comprehensive Joint Plan of Action on Iran's nuclear program. According to the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) 15 reports, Iran is fully committed to its obligations. Even in reciprocal steps, when European countries did not take practical steps, Iran applied a new strategy after a year of patient behavior. The current Iranian government (the current Iranian government has been in power since August 2021) has not made the country's politics and economy dependent on the comprehensive cooperative action plan," he noted. The Iranian minister stated that Iran is always ready to continue diplomacy and discussions to lift the sanctions imposed on the country and implement the JCPOA in a way that safeguards the interests of the Iranian people and urges all opposing sides to take constructive steps in this regard. To note, the Comprehensive Plan of Joint Action on Iran's nuclear program was implemented between Iran and the P5+1 group (the United States, Russia, China, the UK, France, and Germany) in January 2016. The US announced in May 2018 that it was withdrawing from the plan and imposed sanctions on Iran in November of the same year. Iran has announced that there will be no restrictions on the Iran nuclear deal in 2020. In late 2020, the Iranian parliament adopted a strategic plan to counter the sanctions, citing the non-fulfillment of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) signed between Iran and six countries and the imposition of sanctions on Iran. Based on the decision of the Iranian parliament, as of February 23, Iran stopped the implementation of additional measures and an additional protocol included in the nuclear deal. As a consequence, the monitoring mechanism of the IAEA was reduced by 2030 percent. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Trial in CDCR counselors slaying postponed to May 20 BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) Defense attorneys representing two men accused of killing a California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation counselor as he charged his electric vehicle announced Monday they were not ready for trial. The attorneys representing Robert Pernell Roberts and Sebastian Parra will return to court May 20. It will then be determined whether theyre ready to proceed and if a courtroom is available. Two Tehachapi motorcyclists die after ejected from bike in Kern River Canyon Both Roberts and Parra are charged with murder. CDCR counselor Benny Alcala was shot Aug. 24, 2022, in the area of the Target on Stockdale Highway, where hed been charging an electric vehicle. Sebastian Parra, file image Never miss a story Make KGET.com your homepage Initially only Roberts was charged. Parra, the prosecutions key witness at Roberts preliminary hearing, said hed met Roberts that night and had nothing to do with the killing. A grand jury later indicted Parra. Both men face life terms in prison if convicted. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KGET 17. Truck driver accused of intentionally killing Utah officer had been holding a woman against her will The casket of Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser arrives at Utah Valley University Monday, May 13, 2024, in Orem, Utah. Hooser was killed on May 5, 2024, while helping a Utah Highway Patrol trooper with a traffic stop when police say a man driving a semi-trailer intentionally hit Hooser. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) A truck driver accused of intentionally killing a police officer during a traffic stop on a Utah highway had been holding a woman against her will inside the cab of his truck, new court documents reveal. Michael Aaron Jayne, 42, is accused of driving his rig into Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser, who died at the scene on May 5, while the officer was helping a woman who had escaped from the sleeper section of Jayne's semitrailer. Friends, family, fellow officers and state officials honored the fallen officer at a public funeral on Monday. Jayne, of Garrett, Indiana, was arrested Saturday on suspicion of aggravated murder targeting a law enforcement officer, kidnapping, burglary, vehicle theft and failure to respond to officers' signal to stop, according to a police booking affidavit. He was already on federal probation and is being held without bail in the Utah County Jail. As of Monday, no formal charges had been filed against him in Utah. Hooser, 50, and Utah Highway Patrol Trooper Dustin Griffiths stopped the semitrailer around 6:30 a.m. in Santaquin, 65 miles (105 kilometers) south of Salt Lake City, after an anonymous 911 caller reported that a person was standing on the back of the rig as it traveled north on Interstate 15. Who, if anyone, was riding on the back of the semitrailer was still being investigated, police said. While Jayne was distracted talking to Griffiths, a woman fled from the passenger side and ran behind the truck to Hooser, pleading for help. She later told police that she had been voluntarily riding with Jayne until they argued at a truck stop in Beaver, Utah. Jayne initially drove off without her but returned several times. When she refused to get back in the truck, Jayne threatened her with a knife and bear spray until she agreed, according to the affidavit. When Griffiths reached for Jayne's door handle, the trucker locked the door and drove off, then made a sharp U-turn while the officers were running to their own vehicles. He accelerated toward Hooser, black smoke billowing from his exhaust smokestack, and smashed the officer into a patrol car, court documents state. Jayne then gunned his truck toward Griffiths and the woman, but they jumped out of the way to escape being hit. Jayne, whose criminal history dates back over 20 years, took off on foot to a Maverik gas station, where he found a semitruck with the doors unlocked and the keys inside. Police say he stole the semitruck and, later, a 1976 Ford F250, which he drove to a vacant house in Mt. Pleasant. He entered the home through the garage, stealing boots and the keys to a Ford F150 that he later crashed when police performed a maneuver that caused him to lose control of the vehicle near Vernal, about 160 miles (260 kilometers) east of Santaquin, investigators said. Jayne was taken into custody at the crash site and driven to a hospital where he was treated for a week. At Hooser's funeral Monday, his youngest daughter, Courtney, described her father as a hero and said she was heartbroken that he can't walk her down the aisle later this year. There has been anger, sadness, grief and confusion, she said through tears. Ive spent the last few days thinking about what it was like for my dad to lay there lifeless and what that man took from us with no remorse. Utah Gov. Spencer Cox called the suspect a despicable human being and assured Courtney that so many dads would honor her father and support her on her wedding day. Jayne's court records detail a history of attacking police officers in multiple states, including convictions for assault with a deadly weapon, battery and threats of violence toward police. In March 2009, he was was charged in Oregon with attempted aggravated murder for trying to strike an Oregon State Police officer with his vehicle in Klamath County. He pleaded guilty to attempted assault and being a felon in possession of body armor and was sentenced to just over three years in prison. No attorney was listed for Jayne in court documents Monday. Political allies of former President Donald Trump, many of whom are possibly jockeying for future positions with him, have begun to attend his New York hush money criminal trial as it enters its fourth week, highlighting how Trump has attempted to make New York his campaign stomping grounds in the wake of his required court attendance. On Tuesday, Trump's former Republican challenger and now a staunch supporter Vivek Ramaswamy is expected to attend court with him, according to his spokesperson. His appearance follows attendance from Republican Sens. J.D. Vance and Tommy Tuberville, New York GOP Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, and Republican state attorneys general -- Steve Marshall of Alabama and Brenna Bird of Iowa -- on Monday. Florida GOP Sen. Rick Scott traveled with Trump to court last week. PHOTO: Senator J.D. Vance (left, red tie)(R-OH) looks on as former US President Donald Trump speaks to the media at his trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments at Manhattan Criminal Court, in New York City, on May 13, 2024. (Spencer Platt/POOL/AFP via Getty Images) MORE: Trump trial live updates: Trump 'approved' hush money repayment deal, Michael Cohen testifies Those who have appeared with Trump have highlighted the gag order the former president is under, which prevents him from speaking about potential witnesses, jurors, prosecutors or court staff and their families. Trump has already been found to have violated the gag order 10 times, and now as Judge Juan Merchan threatens Trump with a potential jail sentence should he violate the order again, the lawmakers attending court have begun to make the attacks for him. On Monday, Vance, who is seen as a contender to be Trump's vice president, attempted to discredit Michael Cohen, Trump's former fixer, who testified on Monday. "This guy is a convicted felon," Vance said about Cohen outside the Manhattan courthouse. "Does any reasonable, sensible person believe anything that Michael Cohen says?" "The thing that the president is prevented from saying, which is a disgrace, is that every single person involved in this prosecution is practically a Democratic political operative," he continued. PHOTO: Former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump attends a campaign rally in Wildwood, N.J., May 11, 2024. (Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters) The statements from the politicians have begun to echo Trump's previous statements and talking points. The former president previously shared multiple articles attacking Judge Merchan's daughter, who is a digital advertising consultant with Democratic clients, before prosecutors asked, and were granted, an expanded gag order to include family members. The appearances have also been a show of loyalty as Trump wades through a large list of potential ticketmates with no plans of choosing a vice presidential candidate anytime soon, he said in April. "Well, I'm not in a rush and we'll do it sometime around the convention, but we have a lot of great people in the Republican Party," Trump said in an interview with ABC affiliate WPVI in April, when asked about a potential vice presidential candidate. The surrogates have been able to use their New York visits to make news media appearances to reiterate Trump's political and legal messages as he remains stuck in court. At the same time, it gives them a chance to prove themselves as a possible running mate. MORE: Donald Trump Jr. visited Peter Navarro in federal prison: Sources Vice presidential hopefuls have also appeared alongside Trump at the limited campaign events he has held during his days off from court. They have also been special guests at numerous fundraisers. This past weekend as he rallied in Wildwood, New Jersey, Trump teased "something" with North Dakota GOP Gov. Doug Burgum, who endorsed Trump after suspending his own presidential bid late last year. Burgum was also a guest speaker over the weekend. "He made his money in technology, but he probably knows more about energy than anybody I know, so get ready for something," Trump said. "OK, just get ready. But Doug Burgum has been incredible." MORE: Trump is in no hurry as he leans into the pageantry of vice presidential tryouts In fundraising emails over the last few weeks, the Trump campaign has been asking his supporters who they want to see as his running mate, at the same time fundraising small-dollar donations off their curiosity over who it would be -- even as the former president himself has repeatedly said he doesn't plan to make his announcement until closer to the Republican National Convention this summer. Now, in the coming weeks, a slew of his vice presidential hopefuls are also joining him at campaign fundraisers as he courts wealthy donors during his time away from the trial. On Tuesday, Republican Sens. Tim Scott and Marco Rubio, and GOP Govs. Burgum and Kristi Noem of South Dakota are set to join Trump at a high-dollar fundraiser in Manhattan, hosted by billionaire financier Howard Lutnick. Other major Republican donors and fundraisers are cohosting, include former Trump ambassadors Duke Buchan and Woody Johnson, Seryl and Charles Kushner, billionaire John Paulson, who had hosted the Palm Beach fundraiser last month where Trump raised $50 billion, and John Catsimatidis, the WABC owner who reportedly canceled Rudy Giuliani's radio show over false election claims. On Wednesday, on his day off from the trial, Vance will join Trump again, this time at a luncheon fundraiser in Cincinnati, Ohio. Then later that day, Trump is flying out to Lexington, Kentucky, for another dinner fundraiser, hosted by Joe Craft and former Ambassador Kelly Craft. On Thursday, Trump is required to spend the day in court, but on Friday, May 17 -- the day he got a day off from court to attend his son Barron Trump's graduation -- Trump is scheduled to headline a fundraiser in Minnesota for the state Republican Party's Lincoln Reagan Dinner. The fundraisers come as Trump has publicly complained multiple times that his trial is preventing him from traveling to battleground states. However, Trump has spent spent most of his off-days from court attending closed-door meetings, only holding three campaign rallies since his trial started -- two of which came on the same day. ABC News' Hannah Demissie, Kelsey Walsh, and Kendall Ross contributed to this report. Trump allies, potential VP contenders flock to Manhattan courthouse originally appeared on abcnews.go.com Accuracy in Media, a deliriously named far-right group known for doxxing students, revealed that some of Donald Trumps biggest donors are among its top contributors. The conservative donors were revealed by the groups 2022 tax returns reviewed by CNBC. The group reported $1.9 million in contributions between May 2022 and April 2023, according to CNBC. According to the tax returns, family foundations for Richard Uihlein, the conservative billionaire founder of shipping supply company Uline, and Adam Milstein, a real estate executive, both gave $10,000 to Accuracy in Media. The Adolph Coors Foundation, the charity for the Coors brewing family, reportedly donated $15,000. As CNBC reported, these foundations are all regular donors to Republican campaigns. Included in Accuracy in Medias tax filings is an eye-popping $1 million donation from GOP megadonor Jeff Yass. Accuracy in Media disputes the accuracy of Yasss donation, which appears on two pages of the groups tax filings, and claims its presence is an error, for which it blamed its accountant. Accuracy in Media is best known for its doxxing trucksLED trucks the organization hires to circle college campuses such as Harvard, Columbia, Yale, and more. The trucks depict images of students, faculty, and staff and falsely accuse them of being antisemitic for espousing pro-Palestine views or engaging in activities calling for a cease-fire. One student featured on the trucks filed a lawsuit in November against Accuracy in Media and its founder Adam Guillette for defamation, civil rights violations, and more. In late October last year, Jewish students at Columbia University protested the presence of the doxxing truck, where it regularly visited for weeks before branching to more campuses. Accuracy in Media blamed its accounting firm, JBS & Co., for the inadvertent disclosure of the right-wing benefactors behind its doxxing trucks and harassing web pages created to single out students opposed to Israels devastation of Palestine. JBS & Co. told CNBC the information it filed, including the disputed presence of Yasss $1 million donation, was provided to it by Accuracy in Media. To date, none of Accuracy in Medias tax filing information has appeared on its own LED truck. While the former president couldnt be bothered to make the trek amid a campaign schedule that has to be juggled with in-person appearances at his criminal trial in New York, Donald Trump sent a deputy in his stead to make sure Peter Navarro felt appreciated for his Trump family loyalty, as he does time for refusing to comply with a congressional investigation. The presidents son Donald Trump Jr. who has increasingly been serving as a surrogate for his dad on the campaign trail while the Manhattan trial is underway visited Navarro in Miami where he is currently being held at Federal Prison Camp, ABC News reported Monday. Navarro was, of course, sentenced to four months in prison in January for refusing to sit for testimony and ignoring subpoenas for documents from the House January 6 Select Committee as part of its investigation into the attack on the Capitol. The committee subpoenaed Navarro in February 2022, seeking information about Navarro, Steve Bannon and other Trump allies efforts to delay the certification of President Bidens Electoral College victory on the day of the attack. Navarro also infamously authored a report in December 2020 that pushed lies about widespread misconduct in the 2020 election a report that Trump referenced when he encouraged his followers to come to the Capitol for a Big protest on Jan. 6. In court, Navarro used the now-very-familiar argument that Trump had invoked executive privilege over his testimony, but he was unable to provide evidence of such a declaration from Trump and Trump himself would not back up Navarros claims in court. After the Supreme Court refused in March to block Navarros prison sentence while he appealed his conviction, the former White House official had to report to prison. While Trump didnt stick out his neck for Navarro when it mattered, he reportedly sent his son to check in, mob boss style. Per ABC News: Trump Jr. confirmed the visit to ABC News. Its important to show support, he said. Trump Jr. told ABC News Navarro is in good spirits and believes hes been wrongfully convicted. The Best Of TPM Today Catch up on more of Josh Kovenskys stellar, unmatched coverage of the Trump trial here: Michael Cohen Called To The Stand In Donald Trumps New York Criminal Trial Khaya Himmelmans latest report on True the Votes efforts to wreak havoc on the 2024 election: Far-Right Group Recruits Followers To Overwhelm Election Offices With Voter Roll Challenges Yesterdays Most Read Story Tragedy and Folly Josh Marshall What We Are Reading Trump Wants to Deport Pro-Palestine Protestersand GOP Lawmakers Are Filing Bills to Make It Happen Mother Jones Attack a Democrat Charged With Corruption? Republicans Wouldnt Dare. The Atlantic State Republican parties are going rogue WaPo Former President Trump referred to the notorious fictional serial killer Hannibal Lecter as a wonderful man during a weekend campaign speech in New Jersey. The moment of praise for the cannibal from The Silence of the Lambs came as Trump was comparing migrants to Lecter, repeating the unsubstantiated claim that migrants crossing the border are violent criminals or are coming from other countries insane asylums. Has anyone ever seen The Silence of the Lambs? The late, great Hannibal Lecter. Hes a wonderful man. He oftentimes would have a friend for dinner. Remember the last scene? Excuse me, Im about to have a friend for dinner, as this poor doctor walked by. Im about to have a friend for dinner. But Hannibal Lecter. Congratulations. The late, great Hannibal Lecter, Trump said. Trump then returned to his focus on the migrant crisis. We have people that have been released into our country that we dont want in our country, and theyre coming in totally unchecked, totally unvetted. And we cant let this happen. Theyre destroying our country, and were sitting back, Trump continued. And we better damn well win this election, because if we dont, our country is going to be doomed. Its going to be doomed. Trump, throughout his campaign, has compared migrants to Lecter. He has, in the past, praised Lecter as legendary and a nice fellow, The New York Times noted. Trumps latest remarks come after spending time the past few weeks in a Manhattan courtroom, rather than traveling and making campaign stops as he runs for another term in the White House. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. All the worlds a stage, and this week the spotlight is on the Manhattan Criminal Court as major Republican players flock to audition for the role of Donald Trumps 2024 running mate. On Monday, Senators JD Vance and Tommy Tuberville joined the former president in a show of support at his hush money trial, echoing his rhetoric speaking to reporters outside court in slamming the case against him. Mr Tuberville of Alabama made his bid defending Mr Trump by criticising the fact he is forced to go by the moniker Mr Trump rather than President Trump in court and accusing prosecutors of inflicting mental anguish on the former president. Im disappointed in the courtroom, Mr Tuberville told reporters on Monday. I hear: Mr Trump, Mr Trump. He is former president Trump. Give him some respect, I mean thats what that place is, no respect. This is New York City, the icon of our country, and weve got a courtroom thats the most depressing thing Ive ever been in, he continued. Mental anguish is trying to be pushed on Republican candidate for the president of the United States this year. Mr Vance of Ohio one of Mr Trumps rumoured top picks to become his running mate also put in an appearance and took his performance to X, echoing a similar sentiment. The president is expected to sit here for six weeks to listen to the Michael Cohens of the world, Mr Vance posted Monday. Im now convinced the main goal of this trial is psychological torture. Mr Vance also jumped to defend Mr Trump over reports that he has been nodding off in the courtroom. Im 39 years old and Ive been here for 26 minutes and Im about to fall asleep, the senator added. Senators JD Vance (left) and Tommy Tuberville (right) stand behind Donald Trump (centre) on 13 May 2024 at the Manhattan Criminal Court. The two senators are rumoured to be candidates for Mr Trumps running mate (via REUTERS) MSNBCs Lawrence ODonnell noted that the senators sat in court right behind Mr Trumps son Eric Trump the only member of the Trump family to have shown up to support the criminal defendant. This will be the vice-presidential nominee audition bench, which is right behind the Eric Trump bench, Mr ODonnell said. Tuberville, to his credit, was straight ahead and listening, taking it all in as best he can, whatever since he can make of it, he continued. But JD Vance there was really no reason for him to come if he wasnt going to take in anything. Vivek Ramaswamy former 2024 presidential candidate and another rumoured vice presidential pick is expected to attend Mr Trumps trial on Tuesday. The three figures arent the only Republicans using the trial as their testing grounds. Last week, Senator Rick Scott accompanied the former president as the court heard bombshell testimony from adult film star Stormy Daniels. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a staunch ally to Mr Trump, also attended last week. Donald Trump (left), Rick Scott (centre) and attorney Todd Blanche (right) walk into the Manhattan Criminal Court on 9 May. Mr Scott, a GOP senator from Florida, is a staunch ally of the former president (AP) Mr Trumps campaign told The Associated Press last week that the attending lawmakers volunteered to come and were not formally invited. The former presidents pick for his running mate has been shrouded in mystery. He is expected to announce his vice presidential candidate at the Republican National Convention this July, where he will officially be named the partys presidential nominee. But last week, audio obtained by Axios from a private lunch revealed his thoughts about those auditioning. The audio, obtained by Axios, was recorded during Mr Trumps high-profile Republican event at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida last weekend. Attendees included major Republican donors and his many contenders for vice president. Mr Trumps potential picks for a running mate include several senators, representatives, governors and former presidential candidates. Mr Trump has been on trial since 15 April after he was charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records related to hush money payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election, in order to stop her coming forward with allegations of a 2006 affair. Donald Trump Jr. said Peter Navarro is in good spirits after visiting him at a federal prison in Miami, ABC News reported Monday. Navarro was sentenced to four months in prison in January after being found guilty of two counts of contempt of Congress. The former Trump campaign adviser ignored a subpoena issued by the House Jan. 6 Committee. Trump Jr. told ABC News its important to show support for Navarro, confirming his visit, adding that he believes Navarro is wrongly convicted. Navarro repeatedly argued against his conviction in court, claiming that his refusal to testify to Congress was protected by executive privilege. The Supreme Court declined to take his case late last month. He reported to prison in March. Fellow Trump campaign adviser Steve Bannon, who also ignored a subpoena from the committee, was similarly convicted of contempt. His conviction was upheld by a federal appeals court Friday. Bannon was also sentenced to four months in prison, but has not yet served the sentence, pending appeal. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Former President Trumps nemesis in his New York trial took the stand Monday. Michael Cohen worked for more than 10 years as Trumps attorney and fixer. At one time, Cohen famously said he would take a bullet for Trump. Cohen has become a staunch critic of the former president after he himself pleaded guilty to campaign finance violations and tax evasion in 2018. Cohen later pleaded guilty to lying to Congress as well. He received a prison sentence and was eventually released, after a period of house arrest, in late 2021. Trumps legal team will seek to use this history to destroy Cohens credibility. The attorney is a central figure in the trial because he paid $130,000 in hush money to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in the final stages of the 2016 presidential campaign. Cohen was later reimbursed for this payment by Trump and a Trump trust. Prosecutors contend that Trump falsely classified the reimbursements as a legal expense to conceal their true purpose to improve his chances of winning the election by stopping Daniels from going public with her claim she had sex with Trump back in 2006. Trump denies having sex with Daniels and denies any legal wrongdoing, arguing the payments to Cohen were indeed legal expenses. The former president is charged with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. Here are five takeaways from Cohens first day of testimony. Cohen emphasizes how Stormy Daniels posed a danger to Trumps campaign One vital issue in the case is whether Trump wanted to silence Daniels for electoral reasons or simply to stave off personal embarrassment. This matters because the offense with which he is charged is usually only a misdemeanor, unless it can be shown to have been committed in furtherance of another crime. Prosecutors are arguing that the allegedly falsified business records ultimately amounted to election interference, since the purpose of paying off Daniels was to conceal information from voters that they otherwise would have known. Trumps team denies this. Cohens testimony sought to underline the degree to which Trump was concerned that Danielss story could sink his White House hopes. He said that Trump, upon learning Daniels might go public with her allegation of a sexual encounter, told Cohen: This is a disaster, total disaster, adding that while male voters might consider his alleged exploits cool, this is going to be a disaster for the campaign. Cohen also testified that Trump seemed relatively unbothered by the impact on his wife, Melania. Trump allegedly said that he would not be on the market for long if things went awry with his wife. Is the courtroom an audition stage for Trumps VP slot? Trump has been accompanied by an expanding entourage during the most recent days of the trial. On Monday, Sens. JD Vance (R-Ohio) and Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) showed up at court, as did Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-N.Y.). Last Thursday, Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) appeared. Three of those four everyone except Vance seemed to be there simply as a show of GOP support. Last week, Scott also made the kind of attacks from which Trump is restrained by a gag order, including attacking the daughter of Judge Juan Merchan for her work with a Democratic digital consulting firm. Vances appearance stirred speculation about Trumps hunt for a running mate, however. The Ohio senator is widely considered to be one of the front-runners for that position. Vance, an erstwhile Trump critic, has transformed himself into a staunch loyalist. On Monday, in a multipost thread on the social platform X, Vance asserted that he was now convinced the main goal of the trial is psychological torture. A secret tape explained Cohens testimony cleared up a question that had floated around the edges of the trial. Jurors had already heard a covert recording of Trump that Cohen made back in 2016 and they did so again Monday. The tape features Cohen and Trump discussing a $150,000 agreement with another woman who said she had a sexual relationship with Trump former Playboy model Karen McDougal. It was not clear until Monday why Cohen had recorded that one conversation with Trump but he says no others. Cohen told the court that he had made the recording so that he could convince David Pecker, the magazine executive who was making the deal directly with McDougal, that he would get reimbursed. Pecker would hear the conversation, and he would know that were going to be paying him back, that Mr. Trump was going to be paying him back, Cohen testified. In the end, Pecker did not seek reimbursement. The real drama may be still to come Cohens testimony had been highly anticipated, but it did not reach the dramatic heights that had been seen last week when Daniels testified. Reporters in the courtroom noted that there were some occasions when members of the jury looked as if they were becoming a bit bored with his testimony. There will be more fireworks once Trumps team gets a chance to question Cohen. Trump stirs over bonus detail Trump had his eyes closed for much of the day, renewing questions as to whether he has been snoozing through much of the trial. Reporters who are present firmly believe he has been doing so, including today. Earlier this month, Trump posted on social media to contest these stories, arguing I simply close my beautiful blue eyes at times in order to listen intensely. In any event, he clearly stirred from his peaceful state Monday at a telling moment when Cohen was testifying to his disappointment with his bonus in 2016. Trumps eyes had been closed for quite a while, but a brief expression of what appeared to be pleasure crossed over his face as Cohen describes Trump stiffing him on his end-of-year bonus, Jonathan Swan of The New York Times noted. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. There have been and are no changes in Iran's doctrine regarding its nuclear program, the spokesperson for Iran's Foreign Ministry, Nasser Kanani said during the press conference in Tehran on May 13, Trend reports. According to him, Iran's position on weapons of mass destruction has been officially stated many times. Weapons of mass destruction are considered a threat to humanity. There is no place for these weapons in Iran's military defense doctrine. Praising the visit of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi to Iran, the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson expressed hope that Iran's constructive cooperation with the agency will continue, taking into account the IAEA's principle of neutrality. Negotiations between Iran and the Agency to resolve outstanding issues are ongoing. During Grossi's visit to Iran, the two sides agreed to continue consultations. There is progress in the cooperation between the two sides, and the IAEA Director General is taking steps on technical issues. However, if there are political objectives, technical issues go aside and cease, he said. The 3-day 1st International Conference on Nuclear Science and Technology was held in Iran's Isfahan on May 68. The conference was attended by high-ranking Iranian officials. IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi also visited Iran to participate in the conference. To note, the IAEA and Iran reached an agreement in March last year (2023) and stated the terms of the agreement. According to the agreement, Iran's cooperation with the IAEA is within the framework of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Convention (NPT) and protection (safeguards), and the parties are to cooperate on allegations of the existence of enriched uranium substances in connection with Iran's nuclear program. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Will Trump pick Marco Rubio as VP prom queen? Seems far from likely Dont do it, Marco. Floridas nearly invisible U.S. Senator Marco Rubio materialized recently at Mar-a-Lago to lend credence to the idea that he is being seriously considered by Donald Trump as a running mate for the 2024 campaign. Nothing could be further from the truth. Rubios got about as much chance of being Trumps VP pick as South Dakota governor and proud puppy executioner Kristi Noem has of being picked as the master of ceremonies at the Westminster Kennel Club dog show. Trumps just toying with Rubio and setting him up for some time-delayed vengeance in the form of public humiliation. Whats amazing is that Rubio doesnt see it coming. If he did, he certainly wouldnt have accepted an invitation to be at Mar-a-Lago last weekend, where Trump staged a kind of VP Apprentice event for his amusement. His name is coming up a lot for vice president, Trump said at the gathering while Rubio stood there playing along. But Trumps just toying with him. Florida Senator Marco Rubio addresses supporters during an Election night party in Miami Florida on November 8, 2022 Rubio sealed his dead-end fate with Trump during the 2016 campaign, warning Republican primary voters that electing Trump as a president would make the United States a laughingstock. Sure, a lot of Republicans have, at one time or another, said terrible things about Trump, and seemed to get back in his good graces. U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance once said that Trump might be Americas Hitler. And U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik used to publicly question Trumps misogynistic treatment of women and cozying up to Moscow. And now, were supposed to imagine that both Vance and Stefanik are also on Trumps short list of running mates. I think it speaks more to Trumps enjoyment of mortifying former enemies, and none more than Rubio. Thats because nobody skewered Trump so precisely and vulgarly as did Rubio, who at one point suggested that Trumps small hands indicated an undersized manhood. At least six contenders for the former president's running mate Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C.; Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio; Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla.; Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y.; South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem and North Dakota Gov. Doug Bergum will attend a Republican donor retreat Friday and Saturday in Palm Beach, Florida, in what looks like a series of auditions. There was a time when Rubio wasnt afraid to hit above and below the belt when it came to Trump. "Its time to pull his mask off so that people can see what were dealing with here, Rubio had said about Trump. What we are dealing with here, my friends, is a con artist. He is a con artist. First of all, he runs on this idea that he is fighting for the little guy. But he has spent his entire career sticking it to the little guy. Every business that hes ever run thats gone bankrupt. This guys bankrupted a casino. How do you bankrupt a casino?" Rubio imagined that his partys fascination with Trump during that first presidential campaign was a fleeting thing, and that it was only a matter of time before primary voters would regain their senses and pick him, the obvious heir-apparent to his party. After all, it was Rubio who was on the cover of Time magazine in 2013 with the bold headline The Republican Savior. So, he piled it on against this poser named Trump, imagining all along that he had nothing to lose. Trump repeats over and over that hell make America great again. Rubio had said. But if hes president, well actually be a laughingstock. Then Trump got elected and Lil Marco, as Trump branded him, disappeared quicker than the graduates of Trump University. While Rubios prophecies about Trump were coming true during his time in office, Rubio sidelined himself by posting daily Bible verses on his social media account and sleep-walking past two Trump impeachment proceedings. Who had the small hands now? I guess Rubio imagines that in the intervening years Trump doesnt remember Rubios full-throated apostasy. Or that its worth the humiliation that comes with being Trumps VP even if it makes you the most hangable man in Washington. So, it was amusing watching Rubios debasement on display again last weekend, in what might just be the first chapter in an epic serving of revenge by Trump. Reporters asked Rubio whether he would be willing to move from Florida to be Trump's running mate. That question stems from a misconception over a confusing part of the U.S. Constitution that bars Electoral College members from casting their separate votes for president and vice president to candidates who come from the same state as the elector. This would not bar the theoretical Trump-Rubio ticket. But if that ticket won the 2024 election, the 30 Florida electors who cast the Electoral College votes would be prohibited from casting their separate votes for both Trump and Rubio. That's because those candidates come from the same state as the Florida electors, and those electors can't cast both their votes one for president, the other for vice president for Floridians. In other words, they could vote for Trump, but not Rubio unless he claimed to be a resident of another state. This came up in the 2000 Presidential election when George W. Bush and Dick Cheney, both Texans, were the winning ballot. To sidestep a legal challenge, Cheney changed his residency to Wyoming before the Electoral College vote. So, Rubio was asked whether he'd move from Florida to be Trump's running mate, and rather than rule it out, he used the question to send a love note to Trump as he stands trial in the election fraud case in New York. I think that before anyone decides to move from their state, you better make sure you don't move to a state where there's not some DA (district attorney) that makes a career after going after Republicans, Rubio said. More: UFO comments are clear sign there may be life on Planet Rubio More: As Ukraine shows courage, Marco Rubio reminds us what cowardice looks like | Frank Cerabino Well, to be more accurate, going after one Republican the guy you called a con artist who was going to make America a laughingstock. And that was even before you knew he was paying hush-money to a porn star to hide having sex with her while his wife was home with their infant son. So, heres my guess where this is heading. I can see that Trump, who prizes loyalty more than smarts and possibly more than looks, has a chance here to really stick it to Rubio. Trump could pick Rubio as his running mate, getting him to commit to leaving his home state if necessary. In this photo released by Trump Enterprises, members of the Trump family gather in New York City, Oct. 10, 2007 to announce plans for their next venture in luxury hospitality. Donald Trump Jr., Donald Trump, Sr., and Ivanka Trump. And then some time in the waning days of the campaign, Trump could announce that hes changing his mind on his VP running mate, and using his total control of the party to back his choice all along his daughter, Ivanka. Its a two-fer for Trump, with an exclamation point on settling the score with Lil Marco. Frank Cerabino is a news columnist with The Palm Beach Post, which is part of the Gannett Newspapers chain. This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: When choosing a vice president, Marco Rubio has no chance with Trump Even though Nikki Haley officially dropped out of the presidential race over two months ago, her campaign has had a protracted afterlife. Despite not campaigning at all, she got over 20 per cent of the vote in Indianas presidential primary last week, and she has scheduled events with top donors this week. There has also been a behind-the-scenes effort to get Donald Trump to consider the former South Carolina governor as his vice-presidential nominee. Trump himself has now announced that Haley is definitively not under consideration. However, Haleys undead presidential campaign indicates deeper structural challenges facing Republicans. Throughout much of the Republican primary, Haley trained her fire on Trumps rivals, especially Florida governor Ron DeSantis. However, in the closing weeks of the campaign, she lifted the banner of anti-Trumpism in order to try to rally Trump-skeptical suburbanites and the national press corps to her cause. This pivot against Trump dovetailed with her more technocratic and anti-populist policy message, which emphasised entitlement reform, the expansion of legal immigration, and foreign-policy interventionism. This policy program helped lower Haleys electoral ceiling in a populism-infused GOP, but it also drew a clear contrast with the former president. Both Trump and Haley have political incentives to mend fences. Trump obviously wants to claim victory in November, and he could benefit from tapping Haleys donor network as well as from appealing to her voters. Haley seems to hope to continue to be active in Republican politics. She has recently been named to a prestigious chair at the Hudson Institute, one of the top foreign-policy shops, and may be considering another run for the presidency in 2028 and beyond. So far, she seems to be avoiding the burn the GOP to the ground mantra of some Trump critics. Even if Republicans aim to court the suburban vote, though, Haley might still face long odds as a VP pick. Trump has insisted over and over again that he wants a loyal vice president, and Haleys criticisms are still fresh. Moreover, Haleys past comments on entitlements could easily become fodder for Democratic attacks in the general election similar to the way that Paul Ryans entitlement proposals became one of the central issues of the 2012 campaign once he was chosen as Mitt Romneys running mate. Haley served as Trumps ambassador to the United Nations, and some of her allies may hope that she could play another foreign-policy role in a second Trump administration. Here, the divisions between Trump and the former Republican establishment may not be as great as they sometimes appear in the press. For instance, Trump didnt mobilise against the recent Ukraine-funding bill, and he helped protect Speaker Mike Johnson against Marjorie Taylor Greenes attempted coup. Long invested in foreign policy, Haley may see advantages in building political bridges with a thoroughly transactional Trump. Republicans are still smarting from the 2022 midterms, when poor performance among college-educated voters turned a red wave into a mirage. Many Republican observers think the party needs to be on guard against a similar disappointment in 2024, and some view Haleys continued performance in the primaries as a warning sign. Yes, some Haley voters are Democrats who simply cant pass up another chance to pull the lever against Trump and, yes, Bidens deteriorating approval rating means that even some Trump skeptics might vote to eject the incumbent president in November. But the GOP nevertheless may benefit from suburban outreach, and the party hopes to patch up its internal divisions heading into the general election. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Trump trial updates: Michael Cohen testifies that Trump directed him to pay hush money to Stormy Daniels and approved scheme to conceal reimbursement Michael Cohen leaves his apartment building on his way to Manhattan criminal court Monday. (Julia Nikhinson/AP) What I was doing, former Donald Trump attorney Michael Cohen testified Monday, I was doing at the direction and for the benefit of Mr. Trump. This is Yahoo News succinct update on the criminal and civil cases against Trump. Here are the latest developments. What happened today Former Trump fixer-turned-foe Michael Cohen the prosecutions key witness took the stand Monday to testify about his role in the alleged hush money scheme. Ahead of the 2016 election, Cohen paid $130,000 out of his own pocket to keep porn star Stormy Daniels from going public with her story of a 2006 sexual encounter with Trump; he says he was later reimbursed by the president. Prosecutors have charged Trump who categorized his payments to Cohen as legal fees with 34 counts of falsifying business records to conceal criminal activity. At the end of 2018, Cohen was sentenced to three years in federal prison for various crimes, including campaign-finance violations related to the Daniels payment. In court, Cohen portrayed Trump as highly attuned to negative press, extremely wary about leaving a paper trail and intimately aware of the missions his employees were carrying out on his behalf (such as the payments to Daniels), according to the New York Times. It was whatever he wanted, Cohen said when asked to describe his role at the Trump Organization. The only thing that was on my mind was to accomplish the task, to make him happy. Throughout the trial, Trumps lawyers have tried to cast Cohen as an unreliable witness a disgruntled ex-employee who is lying to get revenge. Ultimately, jurors will have to decide whether they can trust the central claim of Cohens testimony that Trump directed him to pay Daniels to avoid a political scandal, then signed off on a criminal scheme to hide Cohens reimbursements. Zoom in Asked if it would have been fair to describe him as Trump's fixer, Cohen replied, Yes, some have described me as that adding that he would sometimes bully people for Trump and occasionally lie for him. Cohen confirmed previous testimony from former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker that he, Trump and Pecker entered into an agreement to suppress negative stories about Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign. Just be prepared theres going to be a lot of women coming forward, Cohen quoted Trump telling him. Before Daniels entered the picture, Cohen testified that he successfully buried two unflattering stories about Trump: one from a doorman at Trump Tower claiming (falsely, it turned out) that Trump had fathered a child out of wedlock and one from former Playboy model Karen McDougal claiming that shed had a 10-month affair with Trump. Make sure it doesnt get released, Cohen quoted Trump telling him after Cohen mentioned that McDougal was shopping her story. On the stand, Cohen claimed he did just that, staying in constant contact some of it corroborated by phone records and text messages with Trump, Pecker and National Enquirer editor Dylan Howard to hammer out a $150,000 catch-and-kill deal with McDougal and her lawyer, Keith Davidson. Pecker paid McDougal, Cohen testified, but Trump repeatedly agreed to take care of it and pay Pecker back. But Trump never repaid Pecker, as Pecker previously testified. Aware that Pecker would not front any more money for Trump, Cohen agreed to put up his own money when Daniels surfaced with her story one month before the 2016 election, according to his testimony. Trump encouraged this arrangement, Cohen testified Monday. Coming on the heels of Trumps infamous Access Hollywood tape, Danielss story looked like it could be catastrophic, Cohen said especially with women voters. Cohen testified that Trump agreed, calling Daniels a potential disaster for the campaign. I thought you had this under control, Cohen quoted Trump telling him. Just take care of it. In the process, Cohen claimed Monday, he kept Trump closely apprised of his efforts so that he would get credit for doing the bosss bidding. Cohen testified that on Oct. 26, 2016, the day of the wire transfer, he spoke to Trump twice, ultimately informing his boss that this matter is now completely under control and locked down. Everything required Mr. Trumps sign-off, Cohen told the court, per CNN. On top of that, I wanted the money back. As court wrapped up for the day, Cohen testified that he met in early 2017 with Allen Weisselberg, the Trump Organizations chief financial officer who is currently serving a five-month sentence at Rikers Island in New York City for perjury, to discuss reimbursement for the hush money to Daniels. Cohen said that Weisselberg told him the reimbursement would be spread over 12 months and recorded like a legal service rendered a scheme Trump personally approved when Cohen and Weisselberg went together to Trumps 26th-floor office, according to Cohen. Whats next? Prosecutor Susan Hoffinger told Judge Juan Merchan that she would continue questioning Cohen after court resumes Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. ET. When the time comes for Trumps lawyers to cross-examine Cohen which could happen Tuesday they are expected to question his credibility, cast doubt on his motives and argue that he was operating without Trumps knowledge. The background Trumps trials and legal cases For nearly a decade, Michael Cohen was Donald Trump's trusted adviser, personal attorney, and self-described "attack dog with a law license." But Monday morning, Cohen is set to serve as the star witness in Trump's New York criminal hush money trial, potentially delivering testimony that could cement the Manhattan district attorney's case and send Cohen's former boss to prison. Prosecutors hope his testimony will support their allegations of criminal conduct against Trump in front of a jury that has already heard from 19 different witnesses and seen 200 pieces of evidence. While the jury has seen Trump's signatures on the allegedly fraudulent checks at the center of the case, some witnesses have seemingly distanced Trump from the alleged unlawful conduct -- leaving Cohen with the burden of pinning Trump to the crime. MORE: 3 big takeaways from Day 15 of Trump's hush money trial According to prosecutors, Cohen was in the room when Trump and former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker agreed to a catch-and-kill scheme to illegally hide negative information about Trump from 2016 voters; coordinated with Pecker to kill two stories about Trump; and himself made a $130,000 payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels to buy her silence about an alleged 2006 sexual encounter with Trump. The former president, who has denied the encounter took place, is on trial for allegedly falsifying business records related to Cohen's reimbursement in 2017. While prosecutors have already warned the jury that many witnesses have "baggage" and have asked jurors to "keep an open mind," Cohen's value to the prosecution's case could be endangered by the disbarred lawyer's credibility issues. Cohen in 2018 pleaded guilty to tax evasion, campaign finance violations, and lying to Congress in what Cohen says was an effort to protect Trump. The former president's lawyers have argued that Cohen perjured himself again when he testified at Trump's civil fraud trial last year, and accuse Cohen of making his livelihood off books and podcasts that antagonize Trump. "He has a goal, an obsession with getting Trump, and you're going to hear that," defense lawyer Todd Blanche told jurors during his opening statement. "I submit to you that he cannot be trusted." Prosecutors have attempted to preempt the defense's attacks on Cohen by emphasizing that he was acting on Trump's orders when he committed crimes and has since atoned for his actions. "You'll also learn that Cohen has publicly committed to making sure the defendant is held accountable for his role in this conspiracy," prosecutor Matthew Colangelo told jurors, later adding, "I suspect the defense will go to great lengths to get you to reject his testimony precisely because it is so damning." Vital testimony Cohen's importance as a witness largely stems from his deep involvement in the alleged criminal conduct, allegedly coordinating the catch-and-kill scheme with Trump and Pecker and devising the repayment scheme with Trump and former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg. During his opening statement, Colangelo mentioned Cohen's name over 90 times, ultimately telling jurors that Cohen's role was "to take care of problems for the defendant." Defense lawyer Todd Blanche similarly focused on the conduct of the so-called "fixer" during his opening statement, mentioning Cohen over 30 times. Blanche argued that once Cohen pleaded guilty to federal crimes in 2018, he decided "to blame President Trump for virtually all of his problems." "You'll learn that Mr. Cohen has misrepresented key conversations where the only witness who was present for the conversation was Mr. Cohen and, allegedly, President Trump," Blanche argued. PHOTO: Michael Cohen, former personal lawyer to President Donald Trump, arrives at New York State Supreme Court, Oct. 25, 2023, in New York. (Stephanie Keith/Bloomberg via Getty Images, FILE) According to prosecutors, Cohen and Trump participated in the August 2015 meeting where Pecker agreed to serve as the "eyes and ears" of Trump's presidential campaign by looking out for negative stories about Trump related to women. Pecker testified that he coordinated with Cohen after identifying two negative stories that the National Enquirer eventually spent $180,000 to kill on Trump's behalf. During Cohen's testimony, jurors will likely hear a secret recording of a conversation between Cohen and Trump in September 2016 where Cohen discussed repaying Pecker for an $150,000 payment that National Enquirer parent company AMI made for the exclusive rights to former Playboy playmate Karen McDougal's allegations of an affair with Trump, which he denies. "I need to open up a company for the transfer of all of that info regarding our friend, David," Cohen said in the recording, which the jurors briefly heard during the testimony of a custodial witness. "So, what do we got to pay for this? One-fifty?" Trump said later in the recording. While that meeting was memorialized with a surreptitious audio recording, the jury will have to rely on Cohen's recollection for most of his meetings with Trump, including his conversation with Trump once Cohen learned that Stormy Daniels was shopping around her allegations of an affair. In his 2020 book "Disloyal," Cohen wrote that Trump approved the payment to Daniels despite being "torn" about the personal and political dilemma. "A hundred and thirty thousand is a lot less than I would have to pay Melania," Cohen recounted Trump saying. "If it comes out, I'm not sure how it would play with my supporters. But I'd bet they think it's cool that I slept with a porn star." Prosecutors allege that Cohen discussed with Trump and Weisselberg his plan to pay Daniels out of his own pocket and later get reimbursed. "But before putting up his own money, Cohen confirmed with Trump that Trump would pay him back," Colangelo said. "And at Trump's request, Cohen agreed to lay out his own money for the payment to keep Stormy Daniels quiet." Jurors are expected to see a record of two telephone calls on October 26, 2016, when Cohen allegedly confirmed the plan with Trump before creating the shell company to pay Daniels. "Cohen made that payment at Donald Trump's direction and for his benefit, and he did it with a specific goal of influencing the outcome of the election," Colangelo said. Prosecutors also allege that Cohen and Weisselberg met with Trump in 2017 to confirm the plan to repay Cohen $420,000 for the Daniels payment and other expenses -- a payment that would result in the 34 allegedly falsified records that sit at the center of the case. Trump's 'pit bull' Michael Cohen began working for Donald Trump in 2007 after he helped perform a series of legal favors for the then-reality television star. At the time, Cohen had considered himself partially retired after amassing a small fortune as a private lawyer and an owner of multiple lucrative taxi medallions -- but he said the offer from Trump excited him. "I'd read 'The Art of the Deal' when it was published in the 1980s, not once but twice, and I considered the book to be a masterpiece," Cohen wrote. "Secretly in my heart of hearts, I thought I possessed some of Trump's best qualities." A resident of Trump Park Avenue, Cohen first helped Trump resolve a dispute with the building's condo board before helping Trump settle issues with Trump International Resort's casino board and performing other legal favors. MORE: Michael Cohen is cashing in on the Trump trial with TikTok livestreams -- and it could be a problem By 2007, Trump offered Cohen a job at the Trump Organization. Cohen accepted the role of Executive Vice President and Special Counsel to Donald Trump and moved into an office formerly occupied by Ivanka Trump. Cohen described his own role within the company as "Trump's spokesperson, thug, pit bull and lawless lawyer," and once bragged that he would take a bullet for Trump. "Over time, as Trump became a patriarchal figure to me and I fell under the trance-like spell of the real estate tycoon, I would come to understand that questions of right and wrong didn't matter to Trump in the slightest -- all that counted to him, and then to me, was winning and displaying blind loyalty," Cohen wrote. Cohen's 2018 guilty plea Cohen never formally served on Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign, though prosecutors say he served an integral role in the catch-and-kill scheme that helped Trump hide negative information from voters. Cohen left the Trump Organization in 2017 to serve as the personal attorney to President Trump, though one witness testified that Cohen not getting a job in the Trump administration left him "depressed and despondent." "He said something to the effect of, 'Jesus Christ, can you f------ believe I'm not going to Washington? After everything I've done for that f------ guy, I can't believe I'm not going to Washington. I've saved that guy's ass so many times, you don't even know," Stormy Daniels' former lawyer Keith Davidson testified. In a 2017 phone call with Davidson that Cohen secretly recorded, he vented about his relationship with Trump and the actions he took on Trump's behalf ahead of the 2016 election. "For me, this has not, you know, this has not been easy ... What would you do if you were me?" Cohen said. "Would you write a book, would you break away from the entire Trump, you know, we'll call it doctrine, you know, would you go completely rouge?" MORE: Judge warns Michael Cohen to stop talking about Trump hush money case In April 2018, federal agents raided Cohen's home and office after receiving a referral from special counsel Robert Mueller as part of his probe into the Trump campaign. At the time, Trump defended Cohen, calling the raid a "disgraceful situation." In an April 2018 tweet -- which the jury saw on Friday -- Trump complained that reporters "are going out of their way to destroy Michael Cohen and his relationship with me in the hope that he will 'flip.'" Prosecutors argue that the tweet was part of a coordinated pressure campaign from Trump to prevent Cohen from cooperating with authorities. By August 2018 -- after Cohen pleaded guilty to tax evasion and campaign finances related to the 2018 election -- Trump changed his tone on Cohen, suggesting he made "up stories in order to get a 'deal.'" "If anyone is looking for a good lawyer, I would strongly suggest that you don't retain the services of Michael Cohen!" Trump said in a tweet shown to jurors. Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison, eventually serving more than 13 months behind bars and completing his sentence in home confinement. Before he reported to prison, he testified before Congress about Trump's business conduct, ultimately leading to the New York attorney general's civil fraud case against Trump. Cohen's last time on the stand Cohen himself served as a vital witness in Trump's civil fraud trial last year, testifying that Trump inflated his net worth to increase his position on the Forbes ranking of billionaires. The judge in the case, Arthur Engoron, ordered Trump to pay a fine of nearly half a billion dollars with interest, after determining that the former president had engaged in a decade of business fraud. Defense lawyers in Trump's hush money case have argued that Cohen perjured himself again during his testimony in the civil fraud trial, further diminishing his credibility. "And when are they going to look at all the lies that Cohen did in the last trial? He got caught lying in the last trial," Trump said after the opening statements in his criminal trial. In a February 2024 ruling, Judge Arthur Engoron acknowledged that while Cohen's credibility was "significantly compromised" and the "animosity between the witness and the defendant is palpable," his testimony was credible because it was backed by evidence. Prosecutors in Trump's hush money trial have similarly argued that while Cohen might have baggage, the evidence and testimony from the other witnesses will back up his testimony. "A less-forgiving factfinder might have concluded differently, might not have believed a single word of a convicted perjurer," Judge Engoron wrote in his decision in the fraud case. "This factfinder does not believe that pleading guilty to perjury means that you can never tell the truth. Michael Cohen told the truth." From Trump's 'attack dog' to star witness: Michael Cohen set to testify in hush money trial originally appeared on abcnews.go.com LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called on voters on Monday to trust him to keep them safe in an increasingly dangerous world, listing his achievements in an unashamedly political campaign speech ahead of a national election due at some point this year. With his governing Conservatives trailing the opposition Labour Party in the polls, Sunak used a speech at a conservative think tank to try to convince voters that only he could defend the country against an "axis of authoritarian states". He attacked Labour, saying the opposition party could not match his pledge to increase defence spending or tackle illegal immigration and only he had "a clear plan" for the future -- accusations rejected by Labour leader Keir Starmer. "The next election that our country is going to face is the general election and the choice of that general election is clear -- it's about the future versus the past," Sunak said at the Policy Exchange think tank. "We have a clear understanding of what the future entails -- the most dangerous time that we have known in a long time but also the most transformational -- and it is only us, it is only me, that has the bold ideas and the clear plan that will deliver a secure future of the country." Labour responded by accusing the Conservatives of overseeing "costly chaos". "The only way to stop the chaos, turn the page and start to renew is with a change of government," said Pat McFadden, Labour's national campaign coordinator. "The Conservatives can't fix the country's problems because they are the problem." Sunak's pitch to voters sets the scene for what is expected to be an ugly election campaign, with the prime minister's team frustrated at what they believe is a lack of appreciation of what he has achieved in government so far. Sunak used the speech to go over the policy he has implemented so far, including a pledge to increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP a year by 2030. But most of the questions to him focused on the difficulties the Conservatives have found themselves in over 14 years in office. "I am not for one second pretending that everything about the last 14 years was perfect, of course not," he said. "But I am proud of our record." (Reporting by Elizabeth Piper; Editing by Hugh Lawson) Tulare County Chairman Eddie Valero presents a gavel to 2021 Chair Amy Shuklian. Valero, who represents District 4, will serve as chairman for 2022. District 5 Supervisor Dennis Townsend will serve as vice-chair. After several years of turmoil at the Tulare County Regional Transit Agency including the announced withdrawal of the city of Porterville and threatened withdrawal of others in the joint powers authority, Tulare County Supervisors decided this month to remove their representative on the transit board, fellow Supervisor Eddie Valero. The county leader represents Dinuba and the north portion of the county. The relatively new JPA has faced financial issues, including slow reimbursement of expenses from funding agencies. Supervisor Pete Vander Poel said the agency could soon face a $1 million shortfall, and that the county might have to dig into their road fund to keep transit in business. He said the county is considering joining Porterville in withdrawing from the agency although not soon because Tulare would be left without a city transit program. The majority of the supervisors suggested they did not know what was going on at the agency and had not been informed. Supervisor Amy Shuklian suggested the new transit agency executive director should come to the board of supervisors to update them. Shuklian is the alternate representative of the county on the Regional Transit board. She suggested that Valero not be removed and more updates come more often. Among the complaints by supervisors was that Valero joined striking Visalia transit workers last summer on a picket line even though he represents the voters. In a letter to the board of supervisors Woodlake Mayor Rudy Mendoza called Valero's action "a violation of the public trust. After losing their executive director last year, the transit agency hired a new lead staffer, Abul Hassan in November. The Tulare County Regional Transit Agency is a joint powers agency formed in 2020 by the cities of Dinuba, Exeter, Farmersville, Lindsay, Porterville, Tulare, Woodlake, and county of Tulare. Subsequently, the transit board approved the membership of the Tule River Indian Tribe of California in 2022. With the large low income population in Tulare County, who need to travel sometimes long distances to get service, groceries or medical care, a good public transportation system is an absolute must, leaders said. Transit agencies during the Covid years suffered from very low ridership, helping to make the launch of this new agency particularly difficult. Despite the trouble, Valero defended his actions and the actions of the transit agency to strike out a new direction by offering micro transit service to more towns as opposed to larger buses on a route. The new service is on demand and currently operates a microtransit service called transPORT in the cities of Porterville and Lindsay. Earlier this year, Valero announced that the transit service will serve residents living in the areas of Cutler-Orosi, Delft Colony, Dinuba, London, Monson-Sultana, Traver and Yettem-Seville as of April. Also, the transit service has now launched highly anticipated routes to and from the Tule River Tribe of California's reservation this spring after the agency was awarded money. Valero cited the difficult times the Tulare County Economic Development Corporation went through and that they have now turned around. "You didn't put the board representative to the EDC up for a vote then?" he asked his fellow elected officials. Valero charged that the supervisors were making a public spectacle at his expense in a clear sign the five member board doesn't always get along. Tulare County Supervisor Eddie Valero on Tuesday, January 5, 2021. Porterville Mayor Martha Flores told the Board of Supervisors that they will soon run their transportation system on their own beginning July 1 and suggested the County appoint a new representative to the regional agency.Agreeing was Mayor Vicki Riddle of Exeter, who supported a new direction. Most critical of the supervisors proposal to remove Valero was Daniel O'Connell who argued that the three Republican supervisors proposal to remove the only Mexican American supervisor ever to be elected in the county amounted to racism. Supervisors reacted angrily to that idea, noting that both Mendoza from Woodlake and Flores from Porterville are Mexican American, though neither are supervisors. Chairman Larry Micari said that he believed that trust and faith had been lost, fearing the transit agreement would fall apart. Looking to cool things down and acting as peacemaker, Visalia-based Supervisor Amy Shuklian suggested tabling the proposal to remove Valero so that the executive director could come to a meeting - but that motion failed 3 to 2 and a subsequent vote removed Valero as the board's transit representative. Valero said he would still attend the transit agency meetings as a public member and Micari will now be the board representative on the panel. Shuklian will remain an alternate. Micari and Valero have clashed in public forums recently over Micari's statement that Valero favored Mexican American staff at the county, an assertion he later apologized for in person to Valero at a supervisors' meeting in February. Micari, a retired sheriff's captain, ran for reelection in District 1 in March, winning handily despite low turnout, while Valero was not up for election. This article originally appeared on Salinas Californian: Tulare County: Eddie Valero kicked off regional transportation board Two weeks after celebrating their 102nd birthdays, twins Lonzie Gray and Vernia Gray Ray were honored by the Gadsden City Council. The council on May 7 approved the honorary designation of Sunnyvale Drive, where the siblings live, as Ray-Gray Drive. The city will post signs to that effect. Council member Larry Avery Sunnyvale Drive is in his District 3 called it a special day for two people who have served, and who God has blessed for 102 years. Sunnyvale Drive in Gadsden will now carry the honorary designation Ray-Gray Drive, celebrating 102-year-old twin siblings Lonzie Gray and Vernia Gray Ray who live there. The Gadsden City Council approved the honor on May 7, 2024. Council member Larry Avery displays the sign as the siblings look on. The twins were born April 23, 1922, in Chambers County. According to a Gadsden Times story when they reached the century mark, they grew up on a sharecropper's farm, plowing the fields and planting corn and cotton. Lonzie Gray was the first to move to Gadsden, arriving in 1947 after serving in the U.S. Army. He worked at Republic Steel, retiring after more than 35 years there. His sister followed him to Gadsden in the early 1950s. She cleaned and cooked in private homes, before working as a cook at the former General Forrest Middle School. Their perseverance and resilience and unwavering spirit have been an inspiration to all who have had the privilege to know them, Avery said. A large crowd of family members were on hand for the presentation. Project Bread Basket The council also heard from the Rev. Willie Simmons, pastor of New Life Tabernacle of Praise in East Gadsden, on his planned Project Bread Basket. Simmons said he's seeking help from the Body of Christ, the city and the business sector for developing a central location where the homeless and those in transition and needing food could connect with existing service agencies. He said having those opportunities available to people on the ground in that section of the city would facilitate building relationships that could help those people move to the next level. American Rescue Plan funds Former member Robert Avery addressed the council again on behalf of the Northeast Alabama Black Chamber of Commerce regarding American Rescue Plan funds received by the city. Avery said his organization had sought $2.4 million of the $24 million received by the city for businesses and entities such as churches for areas like East Broad Street, Ewing Avenue, Forrest Avenue, Tuscaloosa Avenue and Wall Street. He cited executive orders by President Joseph Biden stressing that a certain percentage of ARP funds should go to certain neighborhoods, communities and census tracks. In response to the city's assertion that the federal money had been allocated by the previous administration, Avery said he's requested but still hasn't received specific information on those allocations or an audit report of the ARP funds, and remains determined to verify that the money has been properly spent. This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Twin siblings, 102, have Gadsden street dedicated in their honor TANNERSVILLE, MONROE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) Police arrested two people they believe were plotting to steal cooking oil from two Monroe County businesses. On April 30 around 4:45 a.m., the Pocono Township Police Department said they were called to an attempted theft from the Scotrun Diner. Investigators arrived on the scene and said they learned two people parked a van next to the grease traps in the rear of the diner and left after being noticed by a witness. Wanted Monroe County man arrested in NY Several minutes later, officers said they found a van matching the description from the witness parked next to a grease trap at New York Pizza. Officers approached the van and encountered Allentown residents Deyvi Santo De Jesus and Steven Caraballo Matos. During this encounter, law enforcement claimed they found tools and equipment commonly used to steal cooking oil. Officers also noted that the grease trap of New York Pizza was open and its security grate was off; an uncommon occurrence according to police. Both men now face charges of attempted theft, possessing instruments of a crime, and criminal conspiracy. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PAhomepage.com. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 8. At COP29 in Baku, countries will be expected to come up with a new global goal on supplying climate finance to poorer countries, said Mukhtar Babayev, COP29 President-Designate, in an interview with The Guardian, Trend reports. According to Babayev, this initiative will help poorer countries cut their greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to the impacts of extreme weather. "Some governments from the global south are calling for the sums to reach more than $1 trillion a year". "Large sums would be required to help poor countries update their emissions-cutting plans, known as nationally determined contributions, or NDCs, in line with the need to limit temperature rises to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels. Its like a triangle. First, transparency. Its trust between the parties. Next, finance. Next, NDC. Today we are looking to this triangle," he said. Mukhtar Babayev is urging countries to submit their reports well in advance of COP29, which commences on November 11, in an effort to alleviate the impasse on finance. By demonstrating proactive measures to reduce emissions, adapt to climate crisis impacts, and transparently manage received climate finance, poorer nations can reduce developed countries' grounds for withholding financial support. "If all these sides deliver, if countries will submit the transparent picture of their activities, that will also be a very good argument for the developed world to deliver the priorities of the developing world, Babayev said. We would like to be the interconnector," he concluded. Azerbaijan will host the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) in November this year. The decision was made at the plenary meeting of COP28 held in Dubai on December 11 last year. Within two weeks, Baku, having become the center of the world, will host about 70,00080,000 foreign guests. The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change is an agreement signed at the Rio Earth Summit in June 1992 to prevent dangerous human interference in the climate system. The acronym COP (Conference of Parties) stands for Conference of Parties, which is the highest legislative body overseeing the implementation of the Framework Convention on Climate Change. The parties to the convention are 198 countries. Unless the parties have decided otherwise, COP is held annually. The first COP event was held in March 1995 in Germany's Berlin, and its secretariat is located in Bonn. KANSAS CITY, Mo. Two Kansas City metro schools have been selected as a Missouri Gold Star Schools. Voy Spears Elementary School and William Yates Elementary in the Blue Springs R-IV School District were the two of the schools among the eight schools selected. See the latest headlines in Kansas City and across Kansas, Missouri The program uses the same criteria as the National Blue Ribbon Schools Program. Blue Ribbon Schools will be announced in the fall. It recognizes recognizes schools for outstanding academic achievement or for performing at high levels while serving a significant proportion of disadvantaged students. Congratulations to the students, teachers, and staff members of each of these schools for earning this recognition, Commissioner of Education Margie Vandeven said. These schools demonstrate that academic excellence is possible while striving to meet the needs of every student in their school and were so proud of their hard work. Outdoor/active TJMaxx retailer, Sierra, opening in Overland Park These were the eight 2024 Missouri Gold Star Schools selected: Bristol Elementary School , Webster Groves School District Meramec Elementary School , Clayton School District Metro Academic and Classical High School , St. Louis Public School District Oakwood Elementary School , Hannibal 60 School District Ralph M. Captain Elementary School , Clayton School District Richland Elementary School , Richland R-I School District Voy Spears, Jr. Elementary School , Blue Springs R-IV School District William Yates Elementary School, Blue Springs R-IV School District Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV | News, Weather, Sports. Willy Chotzen (left) and Mary Lou Hennrich are Democratic candidates in the primary race for the 46th House District seat. (Campaign photos) Willy Chotzen (left) and Mary Lou Hennrich are Democratic candidates in the primary race for the 46th House District seat. (Campaign photos) Two Democratic candidates are vying for an open House seat in a reliably blue district in southeast Portland. Willy Chotzen, a public defender, and Mary Lou Hennrich, a retired health care executive, are running for the 46th House District seat. Nearly 50% of voters in the district are Democratic, while about 8% are Republican, voter registration data show. The remaining voters are independent or belong to third parties. With no Republican candidates running, the winner will likely be elected to a two-year term, replacing Rep. Khanh Pham, D-Portland, who is running for a state Senate seat Both candidates have experience in fields touching the most pressing issues in Oregon. As a public defender, Chotzen sees firsthand how the shortage of defense attorneys to represent criminal defendants who cannot afford an attorney impacts them and the courts system. Hennrich worked for decades in public health, including serving as a public health nurse for Multnomah County. She was also the first CEO CareOregon, a large Medicaid insurer that contracts with the state to provide health care to low-income Portland area people through the Oregon Health Plan. Heres a look at the two candidates: Willy Chotzen Chotzen is the chief attorney for the Metropolitan Public Defenders misdemeanor unit, which has about 15 attorneys who handle cases in Multnomah County for people who cannot afford representation. Chotzen said he has seen as a public defender the need for the state to have a coordinated response to address the behavioral health and homeless crises. A major part of whats needed is transparency, he said. For example, people should be able to see waitlists for homeless shelters, addiction treatment centers and recovery houses. Name: Willy Chotzen Party: Democratic Age: 33 Residence: Portland Education: Law degree, Harvard Law School, 2019; bachelors in economics and political science, Washington University in St. Louis, 2013 Current occupation: Public defender, chief attorney for the misdemeanor unit, Metropolitan Public Defender Prior elected experience: None Family status: Married, two children Fundraising: $165,754 as of May 10. Cash on hand: $13,250 as of May 10. For public defenders and others trying to help their clients, that would be a valuable tool and it would show the public where taxpayer money is going, he said. A lot has been allocated in recent years. Oregon lawmakers allocated $211 million in the last session for drug addiction treatment and court programs. And in 2021, lawmakers put about $1.3 billion toward behavioral health programs and services. He said voters wonder where the money has gone, seeing few results. I can empathize with those feelings, he said. I dont think the answer is that we give up. As a public defender, hes seen the criminal justice effects of an overburdened system, with overworked public defenders and prosecutors forced to dismiss charges for defendants who lack representation. Its a complex challenge and one that will need attention in different ways, he said, such as addressing the pay of public defenders and addressing inefficiencies in the court system that can delay cases. But, he stressed, its also key that Oregon looks for ways to lower the number of people who need a public defender in the first place. For the state to do that, Oregon will need to expand addiction treatment, affordable housing and improve the education system, he said. That needs to be part of the conversation around the public defender shortage long term, he said. How do we actually really reduce these root causes? Chotzen also has his sights set on other issues. For example, he wants to find ways to address the states shortage of affordable child care for youngsters up to age 5. He said hes not sure yet what the solution should look like and still has much to learn from others. But he said the state needs good pathways for Oregonians to enter the field and be paid appropriately. Chotzen said he would focus on building a consensus around good ideas without drawing attention to himself. Im not someone whos super focused on who gets credit for something, he said. Im really good at bringing people on board with an idea and finding ways to build alliances. Hes worked in public education before his law career. Before law school, Chotzen was a middle school math teacher at a public school that served low-income students in Oakland, California. The experience, he said, reinforced the need for leaders to do everything they can to eliminate inequities in education and break the cycle of poverty. Hes endorsed by Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum and Pham, among others. A variety of education and labor groups support him, including the Portland Association of Teachers and Oregon AFL-CIO, a statewide group of labor organizations that represent more than 300,000 Oregonians. Mary Lou Hennrich Hennrich has a long career in public health that started in 1969 as a public health nurse in Multnomah County. She later became an administrator at the county and then ran CareOregon, which covers more than half a million Oregonians with its affiliates, Jackson Care Connect and Columbia Pacific CCO. Before she retired in 2014, Hennrich was executive director of the Oregon Public Health Institute. The nonprofit has successfully lobbied for better nutrition standards in public schools so they no longer sold sugary drinks and cookies from vending machines. Name: Mary Lou Hennrich Party: Democratic Age: 76 Residence: Portland Education: Masters degree in community health, University of Portland, 1979; bachelors degree in nursing, University of Portland, 1969 Current occupation: Retired health care executive Prior elected experience: None Family status: Married, two grown children Fundraising: $87,100, as of May 10. Cash on hand: $17,61,6 as of May 10. My whole career has been fighting for equity and justice in health care, Hennnrich said. Hennrich said her longevity in the district shes lived there since she was 3 and her long career in public health would be assets as a legislator. I have developed relationships with people, even people that certainly dont agree with me on things and am able to get some things done, Hennrich said. Im not a miracle worker, I tell people. Hennrich said she wants to work in the Legislature to advance universal health care, which would put quality health care in place for all Oregonians regardless of their ability to pay. In 2023, state lawmakers passed Senate Bill 1089, which created a Universal Health Plan Government Board. The board is required by law to submit a plan to the Legislature by September 2026. Hennrich said she would want to work on whatever plan comes out and get legislation passed to make its recommendations a reality. She said the current health system is inequitable. Your race, your age, your ethnicity all of those things really immediately kind of establish where you are in the pecking order of health care, Hennrich said. Its very inequitable, and if we really want equity, weve got to change it to a universal system. While Hennrich isnt sure what the board will recommend, she said universal health care would need to cover everyone and eliminate the relentless push for profits. Everyone from the scullery maid to the queen needs to be covered, she said. Hennrich is steeped in Oregons health care history, and it would inform her work as a legislator. For instance, In 1985, as a deputy director of the Multnomah County Health Department, she helped establish one of the states first school-based health centers at Roosevelt High School in north Portland. The centers, which provide clinical care for public school students, now number more than 70 statewide, and advocates are seeking more to expand care for students. Her name recognition has attracted high profile endorsements, from Gov. Tina Kotek to Rep. Rob Nosse, D-Portland, and Sen. Deb Patterson, D-Salem, each one chair of their chambers health care committee. The Oregon Nurses Association, which Hennrich belonged to for 50 years, has also endorsed her. The post Two Democratic candidates seek partys nod in open House district race in southeast Portland appeared first on Oregon Capital Chronicle. Two flying from Florida are killed when plane crashes into field, Arkansas cops say Two people were killed when a small engine plane flying from Florida to Arkansas crashed into a field, Arkansas State Police said. Sharon Bryant, 73, and Joseph Bryant, 72, were the only two passengers in the plane found on the night of May 12 about 12 miles outside of Marianna, Arkansas, officers said in a news release. Around 8 p.m., about an hour and a half before they were found, family members had contacted the West Helena Police Department after not hearing from the two in the plane, officers said. The couple was supposed to land at the Batesville airport, state troopers said. A suspected plane crash was reported to the Lee County Sheriffs Office around 9 p.m., and the couple was found a half hour later, state troopers said. The National Transportation Safety Board will be investigating the cause of the crash, officers said. Marianna is about a 110-mile drive southeast of Batesville. Pilot may not have gotten weather briefing before fatal crash at Kentucky airport, report says Woman drives stolen tow truck to gym where she assaults boyfriend, California cops say Small plane crash closes Raleigh-Durham International Airport on Wednesday An active-duty officer with the U.S. Army publicly announced his resignation on Monday from the Defense Intelligence Agency and the service over the American governments policy on Gaza the latest official to leave their post in protest of the Biden administrations continued support for Israels military offensive in the Palestinian enclave. Army Maj. Harrison Mann, who has specialized in the Middle East and Africa for about half of his 13-year military career, distributed his resignation letter internally on April 16 before deciding to publicly post a lightly edited version on LinkedIn this week in light of the continued U.S. support for Israel despite its recent invasion into Rafah. This office does not only inform policy. It facilitates, and, at times, directly executes policy, Mann wrote in his letter addressed to colleagues at the Middle East/Africa Regional Center. And the policy that has never been far from my mind for the past six months is the nearly unqualified support for the government of Israel, which has enabled and empowered the killing and starvation of tens of thousands of innocent Palestinians. Since Hamas militants killed about 1,200 people and took about 250 hostage in Israel on Oct. 7, Israeli forces have killed more than 35,000 people in Gaza, most of whom are women and children; displaced most of the Palestinian population; created a starvation crisis by blocking access to aid; bombed hospitals; detained and tortured men and boys; and targeted journalists, aid workers and health care officials. Those casualties do not include the violence also facing Palestinians in the West Bank by Israeli settlers and soldiers. In his letter, Mann reflected on his own position at the DIA, and how he has unquestionably contributed to the unconditional U.S. support for Israel through his role in the military. The past months have presented us with the most horrific and heartbreaking images imaginable sometimes playing on the news in our own spaces and I have been unable to ignore the connection between those images and my duties here, he wrote. This caused me incredible shame and guilt. An image on the LinkedIn profile of Army Maj. Harrison Mann, who on Monday publicly announced his resignation from the military and the Defense Intelligence Agency over the U.S. government's continued support for Israel's 7-month-long bombardment of Gaza. Maj. Harrison Mann The Pentagons regional specialists like Mann can serve as defense attaches who diplomatically represent the military at U.S. embassies around the world. The attaches can also evaluate foreign powers requests for weapons and training, and recommend to the State Department whether providing military aid is both necessary and abides by U.S. human rights law. Mann said in his letter that despite his internal conflict over Gaza, he continued to do his job without voicing his concerns hoping that Israels military campaign would soon be over, that a wave of public outrage would finally change the U.S. position on Israel, or that his individual contribution was insignificant and that it was not his place to question policy decisions. But the major decided to make his resignation letter public after the State Department sent its highly-anticipated report to Congress on whether Israel is using U.S. military aid to break international and American human rights laws in Gaza. While the NSM-20 report from Friday says that its reasonable to assess that Israel is violating international law, it maintains that the country can continue receiving U.S. military support prompting lawmakers, human rights groupsand activists to blast the Biden administration for its complicity in potential war crimes. As the descendant of European Jews, I was raised in a particularly unforgiving moral environment when it came to the topic of bearing responsibility for ethnic cleansing my grandfather to ever purchase products manufactured in Germany where the paramount importance of never again and the inadequacy of just following orders were oft-repeated, Mann wrote in his letter. I am haunted by the knowledge that I have failed those principles, he continued. But I also have hope that my grandfather would afford me some grace; that he would still be proud of me for stepping away from this war, however belatedly. This embedded content is not available in your region. Manns resignation comes after Palestinian American and former Biden appointee Tariq Habash publicly resigned from the Department of Education earlier this year over the administrations stance on Gaza. HuffPost also broke the news that former State Department official Josh Paul resigned in October, citing his opposition to the Biden administrations policies of continuing to arm Israel during its military offensive in Gaza. Manns exit is also not the only high-profile opposition from the U.S. military. In February, active-duty Air Force member Aaron Bushnell died after self-immolating outside the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C., in protest of U.S. support for Israels military campaign in Gaza. The 25-year-old airman livestreamed himself saying he will no longer be complicit in genocide before self-immolating and yelling Free Palestine! Each of us signed up to serve knowing we might have to support policies we werent fully convinced of. Our defense institutions couldnt function otherwise, Mann wrote in his letter. However, at some point it became difficult to defend the outcomes of this particular policy. At some point whatever the justification youre either advancing a policy that enables the mass starvation of children, or youre not. Mann said that most of his team was already aware he planned to leave the Army at some point, but that his deep conflict with the militarys Gaza policy is what led him to submit his resignation on Nov. 1 and leave his assignment at the DIA early. Its unclear when his separation from the military will be officially completed. The hardest part of the past six months was feeling totally alone like I was the only one disturbed by the footage from Gaza. The only one who felt like a participant, not just a passive observer, in the destruction there. For six months, I never heard anyone speak about the war in those terms, ever. I felt like I was living in an alternate universe, he wrote. I now realize the obvious if I was afraid to voice my concerns, you were too. A bill passed in the U.S. House Wednesday would add a citizenship question to the census and end the practice of including noncitizens in the official population count. (Getty Images) U.S. House Republicans passed a bill last week to add a citizenship question to the census and exclude noncitizens from the official headcount when determining population for representation in Congress and electoral votes. The legislation, which passed on a 206-202 party-line vote, is part of a trend of House GOP bills relating to immigration as the November elections approach. Republicans and their presumptive presidential candidate, Donald J. Trump, have centered their campaigns on immigration. The Trump administration tried to add a citizenship question in the 2020 census but the Supreme Court blocked it. We should not reward states and cities that violate federal immigration laws and maintain sanctuary policies with increased Congressional representation, House Speaker Mike Johnson said in a statement after the bill passed. Common sense dictates that only American citizens should be counted for electoral apportionment. The bill, H.R. 7109, sponsored by North Carolina GOP Rep. Chuck Edwards would impact the 2030 census and onward if signed into law. The census, which occurs every 10 years, helps determine congressional seats in the House and can determine political power. Since the first census in 1790, citizens and noncitizens have been included in the official population count of the U.S. due to the 14th Amendments requirement to include whole numbers of persons in each State. Edwards argued during debate of the bill that the Constitution did not specify that noncitizens should be counted in the census. He argued that the word persons, in the 14th amendment, carries no definition. Its unlikely to pass the Senate, which Democrats control by a slim margin, and the White House already put out a statement opposing the bill. The White House said the bill would preclude the Department of Commerces Census Bureau from performing its constitutionally mandated responsibility to count the number of persons in the United States in the decennial census, and would make it more difficult to obtain accurate data. The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to ensuring that the census remains as accurate as possible and free from political interference, and to upholding the longstanding principle of equal representation enshrined in our Constitution, census statutes, and historical tradition, the White House said. Numbers padded in Dem areas, GOP claims During debate on the House floor, Republicans argued that areas that have high immigrant populations take away congressional representation from U.S. citizens and benefit states led by Democrats. This is absolutely outrageous, Republican Rep. Garret Graves of Louisiana said. This is 100% about stacking the vote. Tennessee Republican Rep. Tim Burchett said states with more noncitizens will get more congressional districts and more electoral votes. He said those votes would also benefit Democrats and skew things in their favor. Dems warn of Hispanic undercount Democrats argued that the bill would not only violate the Constitution but also harm immigrant communities by undercounting, and could threaten the accuracy of the census. The census is essential to democracy, Maryland Democratic Rep. Jamie Raskin said. This bill would destroy the accuracy of the census, which may have something to do with its actual motivations. Raskin added that the bill would not only carve out all noncitizens, including permanent residents with green cards who are on the pathway to citizenship. Raskin said the GOPs move to add a citizenship question for the 2020 census led to a chilling effect and undercount of communities of color, especially Hispanics. There were six states Arkansas, Florida, Illinois, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas that counted fewer people in the 2020 census than were estimated to live there. Nationally, there was a record undercount of Hispanics in the 2020 census of about 3 million, according to the Pew Research Center. Eight states Delaware, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Rhode Island and Utah had overcounts, according to Pew. The chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, Rep. Nanette Diaz Barragan of California said the bill would have a chilling effect on accuracy of the census and would harm immigrant communities. Its a bill that threatens fair and equal representation of immigrant communities, she said. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post U.S. House Republicans pass bill to stop census from counting noncitizens appeared first on Maine Morning Star. Terminal at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, the closest of three large international airports to, Washington, D.C. (Carol Highsmith / Library of Congress) WASHINGTON After hours of uncertainty last week, the U.S. Senate struck a deal to reauthorize several Federal Aviation Authority programs for the next five years, though Maryland and Virginia senators were vehemently opposed and lawmakers hoping to attach unrelated provisions lost out. The bill heads to the House this week for final approval. Lawmakers from the lower chamber left Wednesday after approving a one-week extension for the FAA programs that expire Friday night. The Senate also passed the extension. The late night vote, 88-4, drew resistance from the Democratic senators representing Maryland and Virginia. They held up speedier passage of the bill over objections to a provision that would allow more flights in and out of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, just over the Virginia border from Washington, D.C. In a joint statement after the vote, Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner of Virginia said the Senate abdicated its responsibility to protect the safety of the 25 million people who annually fly through Reagan airport, known as DCA. The airport, a favorite for lawmakers as its closest to the Capitol, is limited by federal regulation on the number of slots, or flights that can take off and land per day. Just weeks after two aircraft nearly crashed into one another at DCA, this body refused to take up our commonsense amendment to remove a dangerous provision that would have crammed more flights onto the busiest runway in America, the statement from Kaine and Warner continued, referring to an April 18 near-miss when two planes cleared to take off came within 400 feet of crashing. The Virginia senators, as well as Sens. Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, held out for hours Thursday as they negotiated a vote for an amendment to strike or tighten a provision that would increase slots at DCA to five more landings and five more take-offs. Over 200 member priorities Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., agreed to bring what the senators described as a compromise amendment to the floor Thursday evening. The amendment proposed giving the final say on slots to the Transportation secretary after considering delays and safety. But GOP Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, one of the bills managers, objected, saying that the bill already contains over 200 member priorities. Cruz, ranking member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, managed the bill with the committees chair, Democrat Maria Cantwell of Washington. Cruz is a proponent of increasing slots at DCA, particularly for a direct flight from San Antonio. Others support the increase as well: Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia had originally proposed adding 28 new slots per day. That idea was scrapped and replaced with Cruzs amendment to allow five new daily flights in and out. On the floor Thursday evening, Cruz pushed back on the safety argument, saying that the FAA experts have recently clarified that this near miss (on April 18) had absolutely nothing to do with traffic on the runway. He also blamed opposition on a lobbying effort from United Airlines, which operates a massive hub at Dulles International Airport in Virginia and wants to thwart competition. Cruz said the final bill addresses safety issues by ensuring we have sufficient air traffic controllers to monitor the traffic and protect safety. Late Thursday night after the bills passage, Cantwell took the floor to praise provisions that she said expand the aviation workforce, enhance pilot training and protect consumers. Among its many provisions, the roughly 1,000-page legislation: Directs the FAA to increase air traffic controller hiring targets; Raises the commercial pilot retirement age to 67 from 65; Prohibits mask-wearing and COVID-19 vaccine policies for passengers or employees; Directs the FAA to update drone testing and operating rules; Requires the Department of Transportation to create a seating policy to allow children to sit next to parents or guardians at no extra charge; and Requires airlines to automatically refund customers after three hours of delay for domestic flights and after six hours for international flights. These statutory rights are a big win for consumers, Cantwell said. Last flight out of the airport Many lawmakers view the FAA reauthorization bill as the last major vehicle to which they can attach their priorities before November elections and the close of the 118th Congress. That opportunity disappeared Thursday when the legislations managers decided against allowing non-germane amendments to ride on the bill. Among the proposals lawmakers were eyeing as additions was Oregon Democrat Ron Wydens bipartisan tax bill that would expand the child tax credit and revive corporate tax breaks. Another included Sen. Josh Hawleys Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, or RECA, which would reauthorize a fund for victims of U.S. radiation testing exposure. The fund expires June 7. Hawley said Thursday afternoon that he wouldnt object to the FAA bill, even if RECA wasnt added on. I have no desire to tank the FAA reauthorization, Hawley, a Missouri Republican, told reporters outside the Senate chamber. I think we should have a reasonable process around it. But, if were not going to, were not going to. At least we got automatic refunds for consumers out of this deal, which was good, Hawley added, referring to his amendment with Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts that senators agreed to Tuesday. Jacob Fischler contributed to this report. The post U.S. Senate in FAA bill adds flights at Washington National, bucking local opponents appeared first on Source New Mexico. On the heels of my previous book, Vote for US: How To Take Back Our Elections and Change the Future of Voting which highlighted positive news in voting rights I embarked on a new project to discuss ways to achieve bipartisan compromise in election policy. Pointing to progress in Kentucky, I planned to call the book The Grand Election Compromise. The idea was that we might avoid the Supreme Courtand all of the perils of its poor decisions that have harmed votersif we create better election rules that have significant buy-in from all sides. A trusted advisor, however, reminded me of a stark truth: most people do not fully understand the ways in which the Supreme Court has undermined and under-protected the constitutional right to vote. The compromise idea is the conclusion, she suggested. There is significant value in helping voters understand how and why the Court has harmed democracy through its rulings. The result is my new book, The Court v. The Voters: The Troubling Story of How the Supreme Court Has Undermined Voting Rights, which comes out on Tuesday, May 14. In the book, I explore nine Supreme Court cases that have harmed the constitutional right to vote and therefore a robust democracy. I also discuss what I call the next looming case, where the Court has given itself further power to rule in restrictive ways on voting rights. And in the conclusion, I offer some solutions on Court reform as well as the Grand Election Compromise to avoid the Court altogether. Some of the cases, such as Citizens United (on campaign finance), Bush v. Gore (which essentially ended the 2000 presidential election), or Shelby County (which gutted the federal Voting Rights Act) may be familiar to many readers, though the book offers new insights. Other cases are much more obscure. Some are from 40 or 50 years ago, laying the foundation for todays restrictive rulings. That is perhaps one of the most surprising aspects of the research. As I write in the introduction, The Supreme Court of the United States is anti-democracy and anti-voterand has been for far longer than you might think. I back up this bold claim through a deep dive into key cases where the Court has created a legal test that fails to scrutinize state election laws and trusts politicians to do the right thing on election law, often at the expense of voters. This is not a theoretical book for lawyers and those in the know. Its a discussion for anyone and everyone that cares about democracy. That is why I focus on the stories of the people behind the cases. I listened to the Supreme Courts oral arguments to understand the personalities of the lawyers and the justices. I visited the Library of Congress in Washington, DC to dive into the archived papers of the justices, looking for tidbits that will bring the cases to life. I interviewed the key players. The result is a book that I hope will educate people about the power of their voices, especially in an election year, in a way that both informs and entertains. Most importantly, make sure you are registered to vote, cast your ballot in the primary (early voting starts this Thursday), and make a plan to vote in November. After all, even if the Supreme Court issues restrictive rulings, it is still up to all of us to protect our democracy. For those who want to learn more about the book or would like a signed copy, I invite you to the book launch at Pivot Brewing in Lexington on Tuesday, May 14 at 7:00 pm. Joshua A. Douglas is a law professor at the University of Kentucky J. David Rosenberg College of Law. He is the author of the new book The Court v. The Voters: The Troubling Story of How the Supreme Court Has Undermined Voting Rights. He is also the host of the Democracy Optimist podcast. Find him at www.joshuaadouglas.com. U.S. warns Israel has no plan to eliminate Hamas as IDF battles regrouped militants in northern Gaza TEL AVIV The Israeli military intensified its attacks on northern Gaza on Monday, battling a regrouped Hamas in areas it said it had cleared and renewing questions over Israeli strategy in the war as the United States issued some of its harshest public criticism yet. Israel has insisted that it must invade Rafah, a city in southern Gaza where more than 1 million people had sought refuge, in order to accomplish its core objective of "eliminating" Hamas' presence in the enclave after months of fighting further north. But Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned Sunday that even a full-scale ground assault on Rafah would fail to achieve that goal. Israel is "on the trajectory, potentially, to inherit an insurgency with many armed Hamas left or, if it leaves, a vacuum filled by chaos, filled by anarchy and probably refilled by Hamas, he said in an interview on NBCs Meet the Press. "Even if it goes in and takes heavy action in Rafah, there will still be thousands of armed Hamas left," Blinken said, noting that "weve seen, in areas that Israel has cleared in the north, even in Khan Younis, Hamas coming back." Civilians evacuate northern Gaza (AFP via Getty Images) Already, he said, Israel's offensive has led to a "horrible loss of life of innocent civilians," with the death toll in the Gaza Strip soaring over the weekend past 35,000, according to local health officials. He also noted the Biden administration's recent report, which found that Israel's use of weapons provided by the United States likely violated international humanitarian law. Blinken said that instead of focusing on an assault on Rafah, Israel should prioritize presenting a credible post-war plan for Gaza. "Weve been talking to them about a much better way of getting an enduring result, enduring security," said Blinken, who spoke with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Sunday in a call reiterating U.S. opposition to "a major military ground operation in Rafah," according to the State Department. Gallant's office said he had discussed issues including "the precise operation in the Rafah area against remaining Hamas battalions." The call came amid mounting splits between the two close allies over Israel's handling of its deadly military offensive in Gaza. Talks for a new cease-fire deal have seemingly broken down, and President Joe Biden threatened last week to halt the shipment of certain arms to Israel should it launch a full-scale assault on Rafah. Nearly 360,000 people have fled the city since Israel ordered a partial evacuation a week ago and sent tanks in, according to the United Nations. That led to the closing of two main border crossings into the Palestinian enclave, sparking outcry from doctors and aid groups, while officials warned Monday that the health system was on the verge of collapsing because of dwindling supplies of food and fuel. "We are only a few hours away from the collapse of the health system in the Gaza Strip as a result of the failure to bring in the fuel needed to operate electricity generators in hospitals, ambulances and transport employees," the Gaza Health Ministry said. The Israel Defense Forces said last week that the Kerem Shalom crossing where four IDF soldiers had been killed in a Hamas attack had reopened and announced Sunday the opening of a separate crossing in northern Gaza, the Western Erez crossing, in coordination with the U.S. The Palestinian Crossings Authority has disputed claims that Kerem Shalom has been open in recent days, while a senior U.N. official told NBC News that while it was technically open, it has been extremely difficult for humanitarian organizations to reach and distribute aid entering through the crossing. The U.N. is only able to collect very limited types of aid under very challenging circumstances, said Georgios Petropoulos, head of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) mission in Gaza. The Rafah crossing, the main lifeline for aid into Gaza, has been closed since it was seized last Tuesday by Israeli forces. On Monday, the office of U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres confirmed the death of a staff member in a strike in Rafah as a U.N. vehicle was on its way to a hospital. Another staff member was injured. Guterres called for a full investigation in a statement from his deputy spokesperson. "With the conflict in Gaza continuing to take a heavy toll not only on civilians, but also on humanitarian workers the Secretary-General reiterates his urgent appeal for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire and for the release of all hostages," the statement said. The IDF said earlier in the day that two of its soldiers were seriously injured in southern Gaza, as well as a civilian contractor working on behalf of Israel's Defense Ministry. According to the military statement, two other people who were on missions in the area were "lightly injured." The military said later in a statement that the incident involving two members of the U.N. Department of Safety and Security is under review and that the IDF had not been made aware of the vehicle's route. "An initial inquiry conducted indicates that the vehicle was hit in an area declared an active combat zone," the IDF said. Meanwhile, northern Gaza has been isolated for months, with the head of the World Food Programme telling NBC News earlier this month that she believes there is a full-blown famine in the area. Yet, despite the toll of Israel's military operation on civilians in Gaza, Hamas appeared far from beaten. The IDF said Sunday that its forces had launched an operation around the Jabalia camp in northern Gaza after issuing calls for civilians to "temporarily evacuate" the area. The IDF said it was acting on intelligence regarding "attempts by Hamas to reassemble its terrorist infrastructure and operatives in the area." The IDF said the assault was unfolding alongside military action in the area of Zeitoun in Gaza City as its troops also pushed deeper into Rafah. Hamas' military wing, Al-Qassam Brigades, said in a statement on Telegram early Monday that militants were still "engaged in fierce clashes" east of the Jabalia camp, as well as in the south. Palestinian children play in the remains of a charred vehicle in Rafah (AFP - Getty Images) U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan suggested in a phone call with his Israeli counterpart, Tzachi Hanegbi, on Sunday that instead of invading Rafah, "alternative courses of action" could be necessary to ensure that Hamas is defeated "everywhere in Gaza," according to a readout of the call. Israeli forces launched their assault following Hamas Oct. 7 attack, in which some 1,200 people were killed and around 250 others were taken hostage, according to Israeli officials, marking a major escalation in the decadeslong conflict. More than 130 people remain held captive in Gaza, with at least a quarter of the hostages believed to be dead. Raf Sanchez reported from Tel Aviv and Chantal Da Silva from London. This article was originally published on NBCNews.com Uber driver sexually assaults passenger and steals from her home, Georgia cops say An Uber driver is accused of sexually assaulting a woman and burglarizing her Atlanta-area home after a ride, Georgia police told news outlets. LeMyrious Monaye Dawson was arrested on charges of burglary, battery, rape and theft by taking in the May 5 attack, WSB-TV reported, citing the Sandy Springs Police Department. Dawson dropped off the woman at her home at about 2:40 a.m., then took several items and sexually assaulted her, police told WXIA. Authorities didnt say what was stolen. Detectives issued warrants for his arrest, the station reported. On May 6, officers found Dawson at a MARTA train station in Atlantas West End neighborhood, WAGA reported, citing police. A search of his car and home turned up multiple items that belonged to the woman, police said. The reported details of what the victim went through are disturbing, an Uber spokesperson told McClatchy News. We removed the drivers access to the platform and stand ready to support law enforcement however we can with their investigation. McClatchy News reached out to the Sandy Springs Police Department for more information on May 13 and was awaiting a response. If you have experienced sexual assault and need someone to talk to, call the National Sexual Assault Hotline for support at 1-800-656-4673 or visit the hotline's online chatroom. Basketball coach sexually assaulted 2 boys in his home, MI cops say. Hes found guilty Liver doctor accused of groping women in exams, CA officials say. More victims feared Man ties Grindr date to bed, then robs and abandons him, California officials say The recent event in the "29 Climate Conversations: The Road to COP29" series, held in collaboration with UN Azerbaijan and PASHA Holding, focused on the theme "Overview of the UN Climate Change Conference: Private Sector Perspectives." PASHA Holding, one of the leading companies in the country, demonstrated its commitment to raising awareness about the UN Climate Change Conference and the role of the private sector in climate action and just transition. This event took place on May 10th with the participation of over 200 employees of PASHA Group companies. During the event, Teymur Huseynov, Group Strategy Director of PASHA Holding, Elnur Soltanov, the Chief Executive Officer of COP29 Azerbaijan, and Vladanka Andreeva, the Resident Coordinator of the UN in Azerbaijan, presented opening speeches. Distinguished speakers, including Cecilia Njenga, Director of Intergovernmental Support and Collective Progress Division at UNFCCC, Fernando Castellanos, Head of Environment and Climate at UN Global Compact, and Ilkin Hajiyev, Founder & Executive Director at Sustainera Solutions, delivered insightful presentations. Vladanka Andreeva, Resident Coordinator of the UN in Azerbaijan, highlighted the significance of the partnership with PASHA Holding, stating, "The private sector is one of the critical actors for climate action, and we are pleased to partner with PASHA Holding on this important priority, not only for the country but also for the world." Recognizing the critical importance of addressing climate challenges, we have proactively initiated an opportunity to enhance awareness among our stakeholders regarding both the COP29 and climate issues. Upon learning about the 29 Climate Conversations initiative spearheaded by UN Azerbaijan, we swiftly conveyed our commitment to participate. This initiative encompasses a series of 29 events organized by the UN Azerbaijan, with four of these events being conducted in collaboration with PASHA Holding. Today we are holding the first of these events, and as part of our commitment to our employees, we are commencing discussions with PASHA Group employees," mentioned Teymur Huseynov. Additionally, during the event, participants were given the opportunity to donate to the ecological projects currently implemented by the Karabakh Revival Fund. The "29 Climate Conversations: Road to COP29" program aims to foster collaborative action and dialogue across different sectors to combat the global climate crisis. In the next events of this series, which will be organized with the support of PASHA Holding, the participation of local and international media representatives, clients, partners, and non-governmental organizations as well as experts from various UN agencies on the subject are planned. UK intelligence analyses Russia's use of light all-terrain vehicles on battlefield UK Defence Intelligence has analysed the advantages and disadvantages of Russia increasingly using lightweight all-terrain vehicles and motorcycles for military purposes. Source: UK Defence Intelligence review dated 13 May on Twitter, as reported by European Pravda Details: Analysts note that since the beginning of 2024, Russia has most likely increased the use of light civilian vehicles, such as all-terrain vehicles and off-road motorcycles, on the battlefield for military purposes, including the transportation of personnel and attacks on Ukrainian positions, particularly at night. UK intelligence noted that Russian leader Vladimir Putin inspected the newly acquired Chinese-made Desertcross 1000-3 all-terrain vehicles in November 2023. Russia had reportedly purchased over 2,100 of them. Intelligence analysts suggest that the Russians have intensified the use of these light and fast vehicles to quickly reconnoitre Ukrainian positions and leverage the results to target them with artillery, First-Person View (FPV) drones or other attack drones. However, despite their mobility as an additional advantage, these vehicles are more vulnerable to fire from various weapons, including Ukrainian FPVs. Background: In the previous review, UK Defence Intelligence analysed data on the record losses of Russian state-owned firm Gazprom. On Saturday, UK intelligence analysed incidents involving the accidental dropping of bombs from Russian aircraft on Russian territory. Support UP or become our patron! The UK government has insisted that its position on supporting Ukraine in the full-scale war against Russia has not changed following a media report on a dialogue between UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron and Donald Trump that suggested otherwise. Source: European Pravda with reference to Politico Details: The comments of UK officials were prompted by a story published the day before by The Times, which recounted the details of a meeting between Trump and Cameron at the former US president's Mar-a-Lago estate in April. The Times reported citing a "senior source", the UK foreign secretary told Trump that the new aid would help Ukraine hold the front line and provide the "best possible conditions" for a deal between the parties. "What are the best conditions under which you, as president (of the United States ed.), can conclude a deal in January (2025, i.e. after a likely election victory ed.)? It's when both sides hold their ground and pay the price," The Times quoted Cameron as saying. These words are in stark contrast to the official position of the UK, which publicly declares its support for Ukraine until it defeats Russia. Asked to comment on the Times article, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said he had not seen the article in question, but stressed that London's position had not changed and that "Putin must fail". "Investment in Ukraines security is investment in our security. Our NATO allies are already worried about the prospect of if Putin succeeds, that theyll be next with all the consequences that would bring," Sunak added. It should be noted that in early May, UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron said during a visit to Kyiv that Ukraine has the right to use weapons provided by London to strike targets in Russia. Support UP or become our patron! Nearly 6,000 people were evacuated in Ukraine's Kharkiv region as Russia made advances Monday. Photo by George Ivanchenko/EPA-EFE May 13 (UPI) -- Russia's continued advances into Kharkiv this past weekend led Ukrainian authorities to evacuate nearly 6,000 residents from their homes because of deteriorating situations there. Kharkiv Gov. Oleh Syniehubov said in a social media post that Russian troops were "advancing from multiple positions" leading his government to evacuate 5,700 civilians. "We have been conducting a defensive operation for practically six months, awaiting new supplies," Syniehubov said in an interview with Sky News, pointing to the lack of Western aid. "The enemy outweighs us in armaments, not the quality but the quantity. "We have our military units out. We are strengthening our efforts in this area as well. Therefore, I emphasize that the situation is currently fully under control." Syniehubov said the "front line is expanding" with Russian troops advancing from "multiple positions" but asserted that Ukraine's defenses were holding up. "We have our military units out. We are strengthening our efforts in this area as well," he said. "Therefore, I emphasize that the situation is currently fully under control." Ukraine's army said Russia successfully deployed as many as five battalions but claimed it killed more than 100 Russian soldiers as they moved to capture Vovchansk, along the border and close to the city of Kharkiv, Ukraine's second largest. In other fighting, two died during shelling in the city of Donetsk, which is controlled by Russia in eastern Ukraine. Three more died in Sorokyne, in another Russian-held area in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine's defense of Kharkiv early in the war against the initial Russian assault in the fall of 2022 was one of the rallying points for Kyiv. Ukraine defenses not only prevented Russia from capturing the city of Kharkiv but pushed opposing troops out of a larger portion of the region. Compared to the previous half-year, Ukrainian air defence has intercepted far fewer Russian missiles, with 46% of missiles shot down over the last six months and 73% over the six months before that. Source: The Wall Street Journal Quote: "In the past six months, Ukraine intercepted around 46% of Russian missiles, compared with 73% in the preceding six-month period, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of daily data from the Ukrainian Air Force Command. Last month the interception rate fell to 30% of missiles. The interception rate for long-range Shahed drones, which are easier to shoot down, fell just 1 percentage point to 82% in the past six months." Details: It is noted that the deterioration of the effectiveness of Ukrainian air defence comes as Russia is increasing the number of drones and missile attacks, as well as launching more and more weapons that are difficult to down, such as ballistic missiles. In addition, Kyiv is running out of ammunition for the Patriot air defence systems supplied by the West. infographic: WSJ Over the past six months, Russia has launched about 45% more drones and missiles than in the six months before that. A spokesperson for the Ukrainian Armed Forces explained to the WSJ that intercepting more attacks leads to the depletion of ammunition stocks, and large-scale attacks can overwhelm Ukrainian defences, as air defence systems sometimes do not have time to reload quickly enough. Over the past six months, Russia has fired almost twice as many Shahed attack drones at Ukraine (2,628) compared to the same period prior to that. Analysts said that the drones are partly used to test air defence systems before launching missiles. Support UP or become our patron! KYIV (Reuters) -Ukraine plans record electricity imports from five European countries on Monday after reporting significant energy infrastructure damage from Russian strikes, the energy ministry said. Imports are expected to rise to 19,484 megawatt hours (Mwh), beating the record of 18,649 Mwh at the end of March after the first wave of Russian attacks on Ukraine's energy sector. "The power system has been experiencing a significant electricity shortage for most of the day," national power grid operator Ukrenergo said on the Telegram messaging app. "The reason for this is large-scale damage to Ukrainian power plants, which means they cannot produce as much electricity as before the attack." The ministry said that, with the country facing a significant deficit in the system, it plans to import power from Romania, Slovakia, Poland, Hungary and Moldova on Monday. The grid operator said that emergency assistance from the European Union had already been provided from midnight to this morning, adding that power curbs for industrial consumers are expected this evening. "Restricting consumption is a necessary measure to maintain the stability of the power system after the fifth targeted missile attack on power plants this year," the operator said. Last week's combined attack on Ukrainian energy infrastructure caused serious damage at three thermal power plants, piling more pressure on the country's power grid. Russian missile and drone attacks on Ukraine's energy sector have intensified since March, dealing significant damage and causing blackouts in many regions. The attacks have resulted in more than $1 billion of damage to the sector, said Ukrainian energy minister German Galushchenko. Thermal and hydropower facilities as well as power transmission systems bore the brunt of the attacks, resulting in the loss of about 80% of Ukraine's thermal power generation capacity and increasing reliance on its three nuclear power plants, which produce about 50% of the country's electricity. (Reporting by Anastasiia Malenko and Pavel Polityuk,Editing by Toby Chopra and David Goodman) Ukraine war latest: Russian troops push further in Kharkiv Oblast; nearly 6,000 people evacuated from region Key developments on May 13: Governor: 5,900 people evacuated from Kharkiv Oblast amid Russian offensive General Staff: Russian forces 'partially succeed' near Lukiantsi in Kharkiv Oblast Construction of fortifications around Vovchansk was 'difficult,' official says Military: Ukraine downs Russian Ka-52 attack helicopter SBU drones attack oil depot, substation in 2 Russian regions overnight At least 5,900 people have been evacuated from Kharkiv Oblast since Russian forces launched a new offensive in the region, Governor Oleh Syniehubov said during a press briefing in Kharkiv on May 13. Russian troops launched a new wave of offensive actions on May 10, mainly focusing on borderline settlements in Kharkiv Oblast. Syniehubov reported earlier that Ukrainian authorities planned to evacuate around 1,600 residents over the course of the day. Up to 200 people remain in the city of Vovchansk, which has become a key target for Russian troops in recent days due to its proximity to the countries' shared border. Syniehubov said urban combat is ongoing in the northern outskirts of Vovchansk, a Kyiv Independent journalist reported. The General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces said earlier in the day that Russia had "tactical success" in the battle for the city. Vovchansk, which had a population of almost 17,000 before the full-scale invasion, came under Russian occupation in February 2022. The town was liberated on Sept. 11, 2022, during Ukraines successful counteroffensive in Kharkiv Oblast. Fortifications in the area were built and strengthened after the town was liberated, "but the situation was and is extremely difficult" due to the close proximity of Vovchansk to the Russian border and constant shellings, according to authorities. The construction of fortifications was "perhaps not so tight," Tamaz Gambarashvili, the head of Vovchansk City Military Administration, said on May 13. General Staff: Russian forces 'partially succeed' near Lukiantsi in Kharkiv Oblast Russian forces have "partially succeeded" near the village of Lukiantsi in Kharkiv Oblast as its offensive in the region continues, Ukraine's General Staff reported on May 13. Russia launched a new offensive in Kharkiv Oblast on May 10. Lukiantsi is located nearly 5 kilometers (3 miles) from the Ukrainian-Russian state border, as well as the city of Vovchansk, which has become a key target of Russian troops in recent days. Russian forces are "partially succeeding" in displacing Ukrainian units from their positions near Lukiantsi as of 3 p.m. local time, the General Staff reported. According to the report, the Russian military's advance was stopped while Ukrainian forces were carrying out counteroffensive actions. As of 5 p.m. local time, 12 armed clashes have occurred. "Our units liquidated the enemy, pushed them back, and are sweeping on the northern outskirts of the settlement of Vovchansk," the report read. Vovchansk, which had a population of almost 17,000 before the full-scale invasion, came under Russian occupation in February 2022. The town was liberated on Sept. 11, 2022, during Ukraine's successful counteroffensive in Kharkiv Oblast. Read also: Russias new Kharkiv offensive pushes Vovchansk to the brink of annihilation Construction of fortifications around Vovchansk was 'difficult,' official says The construction of fortifications around the border town of Vovchansk in Kharkiv Oblast was "difficult" due to constant Russian shelling, Tamaz Gambarashvili, the head of Vovchansk City Military Administration, told Radio Svoboda on May 13. Vovchansk, situated less than 5 kilometers (3 miles) from the Russian border, is currently a key focus of Russia's renewed push into Kharkiv Oblast. Russia launched the offensive operation on May 10 after carrying out intense aerial strikes in the direction of Vovchansk on May 9. Ukraine's General Staff said in a statement early on May 13 that Russia has "tactical success" in the fight for Vovchansk. Read also: Government allocates additional over $200 million for fortifications Fortifications in the area were built and strengthened after the town was liberated from Russian occupation in September 2022, "but the situation was and is extremely difficult" due to the close proximity of Vovchansk to the Russian border, Gambarashvili said. "Vovchansk has been under constant shelling for a year and a half after deoccupation," which made it difficult to carry out construction work, Gambarashvili said. "It is very dangerous to work under shelling." The construction of fortifications was "perhaps not so tight," Gambarashvili added. Vovchansk, which had a population of almost 17,000 before the full-scale invasion, came under Russian occupation in February 2022. The town was liberated on Sept. 11, 2022, during Ukraines successful counteroffensive in Kharkiv Oblast. President Volodymyr Zelensky told the Kyiv Independent during a press conference in December 2023 that the most powerful fortifications had been constructed in Kharkiv Oblast. Read also: Sumy Oblast fortifies amid looming threat of Kharkiv attack Military: Ukraine downs Russian Ka-52 attack helicopter Ukrainian forces shot down a Russian Ka-52 Alligator attack helicopter on May 13, the 47th Mechanized Brigade reported. Soldiers did not specify where the downing occurred, but the brigade is currently operating in the Pokrovsk direction in Donetsk Oblast. The Ka-52 Alligator is an updated twin-seat variant of Russia's Ka-50 attack helicopter designed to destroy enemy armored and unarmored ground targets, tanks, low-speed aerial targets, and personnel, according to the Airforce Technology website. The helicopter has an estimated price tag of around $16 million. Russia's total losses during the all-out war amount to about 675 aircraft 350 planes and 325 helicopters, according to Ukraine's General Staff. If confirmed, the Ka-52 will make it 326 helicopters. The General Staff's figure could not be independently verified. Over the past two weeks, Ukraine claimed to have shot down two Su-25 fighter jets. Read also: Opinion: How many planes does Russia have? SBU drones attack oil depot, substation in 2 Russian regions overnight A source in Ukraine's security services told the Kyiv Independent that drones operated by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) targeted an oil depot in Belgorod Oblast and an electrical substation in Lipetsk Oblast in Russia overnight on May 13. SBU drones were behind the attack on the Eletskaya substation in Lipetsk Oblast, where a fire was reported by local Russian authorities, the source said. The substation reportedly powers the Russian railroad, the Stanovaya oil pumping station, and ensures transit between the Lipetsk, Orel, and Bryansk power systems. The Oskolneftsnabzhenie oil depot near the city of Stary Oskol in Belgorod Oblast also came under attack, the source said, without specifying the consequences. "Russian oil industry that supplies Russia's war effort against Ukraine will remain a legitimate target for the SBU," the source said. Sign up for our newsletter WTF is wrong with Russia? Sign up Ukraine's military intelligence agency (HUR) claimed on May 13 it was behind the attack on the oil refinery in Volgograd. The Kaluganefteprodukt oil depot and the Novolipetsk metallurgical plant were also reportedly struck by drones. Two days before, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) attacked an oil refinery, Gazprom Neftekhim Salavat, in the Republic of Bashkortostan, and two oil depots in Krasnodar Krai, according to the Kyiv Independent's source. Strikes against Russian energy targets have prompted criticism from U.S. officials, who have made it clear that Washington does not support Ukraine's attacks on oil refineries, citing fears that it could threaten the global energy market. In response, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Kyiv has the right to use its own weapons to strike deep inside Russia. Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Ukraines Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has met with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic during his visit to Belgrade to discuss bilateral relations and European integration. Source: European Pravda, citing Kuleba on Twitter (X) Details: During the meeting, the Foreign Minister thanked the Serbian President for agreeing to hold a Ukrainian-Serbian business forum and to continue the work of the Serbian diplomatic mission in Ukraine for the first time since March 2022. Quote: "We also discussed our countries path toward the European Union. The project of a united Europe will only be complete with the accession of Eastern Europe and the Western Balkans," he added, referring to the future EU membership of Ukraine and Serbia. Background: Ukraine's First Lady Olena Zelenska and Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba reportedly arrived in Belgrade on Sunday, 12 May. It is the first visit of a Ukrainian official to Serbia since the start of Russia's full-scale aggression. Serbia, Russia's ally in the Balkans, has repeatedly condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine at the UN and other international forums, but has refused to join international sanctions against the Kremlin. Serbian President Vucic has met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy three times since 2022, most recently in Tirana for the Ukraine-Balkans conference in February. Support UP or become our patron! Drones belonging to the Ukrainian Security Service were actively operating in Russias Lipetsk and Belgorod oblasts on the night of 12-13 May, causing a fire at an oil depot near the town of Stary Oskol and the 500 kV Yelets substation. Source: Ukrainska Pravda source in the Security Service of Ukraine Details: The source noted that the Russians complained in local Telegram channels all night about a series of loud explosions near the oil depot in Russias Belgorod Oblast. In turn, the governor of Lipetsk Oblast confirmed the fire at the Yelets power substation. The source added that the substation powers Russian Railways traction substations, the Stanovaya oil pumping station and ensures transmission between the Lipetsk, Oryol and Bryansk power systems. For reference: Oskolneftesnab is the largest regional fuel company in Russias Belgorod Oblast. Why it matters: Ukrainian special services do not officially comment on drone attacks on the Russian military-industrial complex and the oil refining industry, which power Russian defence. At the same time, the Security Service of Ukraine and Defence Intelligence of Ukraine have repeatedly stressed that these are legitimate targets for Ukraine, which has been confronting the Russian superior forces for ten years in the war Russia has unleashed. This news has been updated since publication. Support UP or become our patron! The anti-aircraft forces of the 110th Separate Mechanised Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine shot down a Russian Su-25 aircraft on the Donetsk front on 13 May. Source: the 110th Separate Mechanised Brigade on Facebook; the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine; Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine, in an evening report Quote from the 110th Brigade: "The third aircraft [downed ed.] within the last two weeks. The unstoppable anti-aircraft forces of the 110th Separate Mechanised Brigade keep being ferocious. Today they destroyed another Russian Su-25." Details: Zelenskyy thanked the anti-aircraft forces for their work. Quote from Zelenskyy: "There must be no safe place on the Ukrainian soil for the occupiers. And in our sky as well. We are grateful for the downing of a Russian Su-25 in Donetsk Oblast. Guys from the 110th Separate Mechanised Brigade well done!" Previously: Ukrainian soldiers from the 110th Separate Mechanised Brigade shot down a Russian Su-25 attack aircraft on the Avdiivka front. Support UP or become our patron! A Russian Ka-52 Alligator has been destroyed. Photo: 47th Separate Mechanised Brigade on Telegram A Russian Ka-52 reconnaissance and attack helicopter has been shot down by soldiers of the anti-aircraft missile and artillery battalion of the 47th Separate Mechanised Brigade. Source: 47th Mechanised Brigade on Telegram Quote: "Friends, great news. The soldiers of the 47th Separate Mechanised Brigade have downed a Russian Ka-52 Alligator helicopter." Details: The 47th Mechanised Brigade did not disclose the location of the event but noted that such a helicopter costs US$16 million. Support UP or become our patron! Investigators and analysts from Defence Intelligence of Ukraine (DIU) have identified the names of Russian pilots who have been carrying out strikes on Ukraine from Tu-95MS and Tu-160 aircraft. There are 29 people on the list, and another two Russian war criminals were killed in April. Source: DIU Quote: "The personnel of the command and control units of the 22nd Heavy Bomber Aviation Division of the Russian Aerospace Forces Long-Range Aviation branch (Military Unit 06987, based at Engels airfield, Saratov Oblast, Russian Federation), involved in missile strikes on civilian infrastructure in Ukraine, have been identified." Details: DIU noted that the 22nd Heavy Bomber Aviation Division includes the 121st and 52nd heavy bomber aviation regiments. The 121st is Military Unit 85927, stationed at Engels airfield in Saratov Oblast, Russian Federation, operating Tu-95MS and Tu-160 strategic bombers; while the 52nd is Military Unit 33310, based at Shaykovka airfield in Kaluga Oblast, Russian Federation, operating long-range Tu-22M3 bombers. DIU emphasises that it has identified the personnel of the division directly involved in planning, organising, and carrying out missile strikes on the territory of Ukraine using Kh-22/Kh-32 (Tu-22M3) and Kh-101/Kh-555/Kh-55 (Tu-95MS/Tu-160) air-launched cruise missiles. "These pilots are responsible for numerous casualties and destruction in Ukraine as a result of the criminal missile terror they are conducting from the territory of the Russian Federation," the statement reads. DIU has also published a list of identified Russian war criminals. It was reported that two more Russian pilots who carried out strikes on Ukraine were killed on 19 April when a Russian Tu-22M3 strategic bomber was downed. Specifically, Captain Andrei Kononov (35), the assistant commander of the Tu-22M3 aircraft, and Andrei Grushanin (25), the aviation sections navigation officer, were killed at that time. "For each war crime committed against Ukraine, there will be just retribution," concluded DIU. Support UP or become our patron! Ukrainian refugees in Germany, Poland and Czechia believe in victory over Russia infographics A total of 80% of Ukrainian refugees currently living in Germany, Poland and Czechia believe that Ukraine will win the war, with 40% of them being completely confident. Source: a survey conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology in April Details: 40% of respondents believe that Ukraine will definitely or rather win the war, 5% think that Russia will rather win, and 1% of refugees believe in the unconditional victory of Russia. Another 14% said they found it difficult to answer this question. infographic: Kyiv International Institute of Sociology At the same time, 51% of Ukrainian refugees support the option of Ukraine becoming a NATO member, but with security guarantees that apply only to the territories currently controlled by the Ukrainian government. At the same time, the liberation of the currently occupied territories should be postponed to the future. This option is not supported by 33% of respondents, while 16% are undecided. INFOGRAPHIC: KYIV INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE OF SOCIOLOGY For reference: The survey was conducted on 20-26 April. A total of 801 respondents (adult citizens aged 18 and older) who left Ukraine after 24 February 2022 and are currently residing in Germany, Poland and Czechia were interviewed via online computer-based interviews. Formally, under normal circumstances, the theoretical statistical margin of error of this sample (with a probability of 0.95) did not exceed 3.5%. At the same time, sociologists emphasise that the lack of reliable statistical data on the number and distribution of Ukrainian refugees, the lack of data on their gender and age structure, the assimilation of some Ukrainian refugees and, as a result, less interest in participating in Ukrainian surveys and the peculiarities of the online interview method affect the margin of error and the actual margin of error will be somewhat higher. Nevertheless, KIIS believes that the results obtained still retain significant representativeness and allow the public attitudes of Ukrainian refugees to be analysed. Support UP or become our patron! BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 10. Azerbaijan, standing on a solid foundation laid thanks to the efforts of National Leader Heydar Aliyev, is now experiencing the most glorious period of its history, political scientist Azer Garayev told Trend. He noted that the name of National Leader Heydar Aliyev is inextricably linked to a significant period in modern Azerbaijan's history. "The rich heritage of National Leader Heydar Aliyev and his activity on the way of development and progress of the independent state of Azerbaijan necessitate an even deeper study and propaganda of his life and activity. The National Leader devoted his whole life to Azerbaijan's development and fully fulfilled his saving mission. His unprecedented services to the motherland and its people are always remembered with a sense of gratitude, and the memory of the great leader is honored with great respect. Steps taken by the national leader while leading the country from 1969 through 1982, measures implemented by him, and the essence of ideas directed to the future of Azerbaijan are realized and understood even better with time. These decisive steps of the great leader were once opposed by the forces that destroyed not only the spiritual values but also the historical personalities of Azerbaijan. As Chairman of the State Security Committee of Azerbaijan, the National Leader continued his policy of nationalization. During his activity in the state security bodies, he saved many intellectuals and public figures from arrests, persecution, and pressure for national ideas. While leading the republic and working in Moscow, the national leader paid close attention to the formation of the economic, scientific, technical, and military potential of the future independent Azerbaijan. His managerial skills and experience allowed him to professionally cope with numerous complex tasks. The development and revival of Azerbaijan as a country began under the leadership of Heydar Aliyev," he said. Garayev noted that after returning to the leadership of the country in 1993, National Leader Heydar Aliyev defined a new strategy for independent Azerbaijan and started a new foreign policy course. "New state building in the country, gradual and successful solutions to socio-economic and political problems, normalization of our country's position in the international arena, and the establishment of mutually beneficial relations with the countries of the world activated the process of Azerbaijan's integration into the world community. Azerbaijan's occupation of a worthy place in the international arena, and establishment of interaction with the leading states of the world were of great importance. Establishment and development of these relations was one of the main directions of activity of national leader Heydar Aliyev," he said. As the political scientist noted, National Leader Heydar Aliyev was an experienced politician and an extremely wise head of state. "At the end of the 20th century, the Azerbaijani people experienced the most complicated period in their history. We all witnessed this tense and difficult period; our people went through great trials. Undoubtedly, it was National Leader Heydar Aliyev who became the mainstay of our people on this path. His leadership work and the large-scale projects he initiated continue to thrive today. Standing on the solid foundation of the great leader's efforts and ideas, Mighty Azerbaijan is currently experiencing the most glorious period of its history. President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, who successfully developed the political course of the National Leader Heydar Aliyev, has created the basis for the further prosperous and safe existence of our country in this complicated world. Having won a historic victory, Azerbaijan has fully restored its territorial sovereignty. Our country is one of the most authoritative countries in the world today," Garayev stated. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel The Hermann Hesse International Prize will be awarded to Ukrainian writer Sofiia Andrukhovych, as well as Alexander Kratochvil and Maria Weissenbock, translators of Amadoka, a book by Andrukhovych, into German. The prize organisers' website says the ceremony will take place on 2 July 2024, Herman Hesse's birthday. The prize is awarded every two years by the Hermann Hesse Foundation. It marks "the literary achievement of the international level together with its translation." The remuneration is 20,000 euros. The foundation is located in the hometown of Hesse, Calw (Germany). Andrukhovych will be awarded for two German editions: Die Geschichte von Romana (Story of Romana) and Die Geschichte von Uljana (Story of Uliana). They are parts of the novel called Amadoka. The third part, Die Geschichte der Sofia (Sofia's Story), will be released in Germany in October 2024. In Germany, Amadoka came out in three parts Residenz Verlag Publishing House The judges praised Andrukhovych's ability to "variously and impressively draw a wide panorama of Ukraine of the twentieth century," as well as her "ingenuity and ambition". The panel also stated that the book addresses "the traumatic stages of history that formed the collective memory of Ukrainians: the war in Ukraine's east, the Holocaust, and Stalinism." Translators will be acknowledged for their ability to recreate "the diverse language registers of Amadoka." "They conveyed the historical voices and keys from 100 years ago, a variety of narrative constructions laid-back or unreliable, simple or sophisticated, constrained by historical horrors or inspired by the search for their own happiness," the judges stated. The novel Amadoka covers three periods in Ukrainian history: the early twentieth century, the Holocaust in the country's western parts during WWII, and the current conflict with Russia. Andrukhovych describes this as "a subjective cast of Ukrainian history of the twentieth century." This is the writer's third novel. The Old Lion Publishing House released it in 2020. In 2023, Andrukhovych was awarded the Sholom Aleichem Prize for her novel Amadoka. Support UP or become our patron! UN says almost 360,000 people have fled Rafah since evacuation order Tents for displaced people are crowded west of Deir al-Balah city in the central Gaza Strip after thousands of Palestinians fled Rafah after the Israeli army announced the start of a military operation there. Saher Alghorra/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa Almost 360,000 people have fled the southern city of Rafah in the Gaza Strip since the Israeli army issued the first evacuation orders a week ago, according to UN figures. "Theres nowhere to go. Theres NO safety without a #ceasefire," the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) wrote on X on Monday Rafah, which is already overcrowded with internally displaced persons, is seen as the militant Palestinian organization Hamas' last stronghold. Fierce fighting between Israel's army and armed Palestinians continued on Monday at various locations in the north, south and centre of the coastal strip. UNRWA's statement added that in northern Gaza, bombardments and further evacuation orders have caused more displacement and "fear for thousands of families." The military arm of Hamas reported on Telegram about attacks on Israeli troops in various locations, including in Rafah in the south as well as in the refugee neighbourhood of Jabalia and in al-Saitun in northern Gaza. There were fresh rocket alerts on Monday in Israeli border towns on the edge of the Gaza Strip. Meanwhile, Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant spoke by telephone with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken about the situation in the Gaza Strip, according to reports on Monday. According to his office, Gallant discussed the "developments in Gaza, including [Israel Defense Forces] operations across the strip in the face of terror hotspots, and the precise operation in the Rafah area against remaining Hamas battalions, while securing the [Rafah border] crossing." Blinken reiterated that the United States remains opposed to a major Israeli ground offensive in Rafah, "where over 1 million people have taken shelter," a US State Department spokesman said. UN says Gaza death toll still over 35,000 but not all bodies identified By Michelle Nichols and Emma Farge UNITED NATIONS/GENEVA (Reuters) - The death toll in the Gaza Strip from the Israel-Hamas war is still more than 35,000, but the enclave's Ministry of Health has updated its breakdown of the fatalities, the United Nations said on Monday after Israel questioned a sudden change in numbers. U.N. spokesperson Farhan Haq said the ministry's figures - cited regularly by the U.N. its reporting on the seven-month-long conflict - now reflected a breakdown of the 24,686 deaths of "people who have been fully identified." "There's about another 10,000 plus bodies who still have to be fully identified, and so then the details of those - which of those are children, which of those are women - that will be re-established once the full identification process is complete," Haq told reporters in New York. Israel last week questioned why the figures for the deaths of women and children has suddenly halved. Haq said those figures were for identified bodies - 7,797 children, 4,959 women, 1,924 elderly, and 10,006 men - adding: "The Ministry of Health says that the documentation process of fully identifying details of the casualties is ongoing." Oren Marmorstein, spokesperson for Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on Monday accused Palestinian militants Hamas of manipulating the numbers, saying: "They are not accurate and they do not reflect the reality on the ground." "The parroting of Hamas' propaganda messages without the use of any verification process has proven time and again to be methodologically flawed and unprofessional," he said in a social media post. Haq said U.N. teams in Gaza were not able to independently verify the Gaza Ministry of Health (MoH) figures given the ongoing war and sheer number of fatalities. "Unfortunately we have the sad experience of coordinating with the Ministry of Health on casualty figures every few years for large mass casualty incidents in Gaza, and in past times their figures have proven to be generally accurate," Haq said. The World Health Organization "has a long-standing cooperation with the MoH in Gaza and we can attest that MoH has good capacity in data collection/analysis and its previous reporting has been considered credible," said WHO spokesperson Margaret Harris. "Real numbers could be even higher," she said. (Reporting by Michelle Nichols and Emma Farge, additional reporting by Emily Rose; Editing by David Gregorio) Start your week in North Carolina politics with our latest Under the Dome podcast, for the week of May 13, 2024. Dawn Vaughan here, your podcast host and The News & Observers Capitol bureau chief. On this episode, Im joined by my colleagues Avi Bajpai and Korie Dean. We talk about how the recent protests at UNC-Chapel Hill factor in to significant legislation moving through the General Assembly right now: the SHALOM Act and a mask bill. Youll also hear a clip from Senate leader Phil Berger about why he supports a new mask bill post-pandemic and in the wake of protesters wearing masks. Headliner of the Week Stay tuned after the break; we talk about what interim UNC Chancellor Lee Roberts future may hold. Plus hear our picks for Headliner of the Week: college graduation season, appreciation for teachers and wait for it hip hop diss tracks. Stay tuned until the end for our picks for Headliner of the Week. Two-thirds of our Headliners so a supermajority are about the legislative opening day, while the third is about a downtown Raleigh event. Listen to our latest episode below and catch up on previous episodes. You can also listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Audible, iHeart, Pandora, Amazon Music and Stitcher. The interior of the UAW Local 112 headquarters in Vance, Ala., Thursday, May 2, 2024. (Will McLelland/Alabama Reflector) Workers at Mercedes-Benzs plant in Vance began voting Monday on whether to organize a union under the United Auto Workers (UAW). Voting will run through Friday. The National Labor Relations Board announced that it plans to count the votes and announce the totals on May 17. The vote comes after months of organizing at the plant by workers who have criticized stalled pay, benefits and irregular scheduling, and a major pushback led by Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey and the Business Council of Alabama. Mercedes and UAW both declined to comment on Monday. Brett Garrard, a team leader and supply chain operator at Mercedes battery plant involved in union organizing efforts, said in a Monday phone call that the observers were released from work and were going for a briefing with the Mercedes Legal Group, UAW legal team and the Labor Board. So were really just now getting kind of boots on the ground and starting to move around, he said. The German automaker, lured by a large financial incentive package and low labor costs, announced it would build a plant in Alabama in 1993 and opened its doors four years later. Mercedes-Benz is widely credited with creating Alabamas automotive industry. In the years after its arrival, Honda, Hyundai and Toyota arrived in the state. The UAW has tried to organize the plant in the past, including in 2014, but it has never made it as far as this year. Beyond compensation and scheduling issues, union supporters at the plant said they were encouraged by UAWs recent victory in a strike against Detroits Big Three automakers and a vote by Volkswagen workers in Chattanooga, Tennessee last month to join the UAW. In February, the union said that a majority of workers at Mercedes had signed union cards. In April, the NLRB confirmed a May election. The UAW previously said that they would call for an election when 70% of workers signaled support. Ivey and the Business Council of Alabama have pushed hard against the union, with Ivey suggesting that a victory would upend Alabamas economic model. Let me be crystal clear that Joe Bidens UAW has no interest in seeing Alabamians succeed, Ivey wrote in a previous statement to the Reflector. Instead, their interest here is ensuring money from hardworking Alabama families ends up in the UAW bank account. That is why they are willing to spend $40 million to gain a foothold in the Southeasts automotive powerhouse. The Business Council of Alabama has also released material against the union, including a website. This week in Tuscaloosa, we have a secret ballot taking place at the Mercedes plant. It is my hope that every worker there votes its crucial that every voice is heard, Ivey said in an event in Huntsville Monday according to a spokesperson. We want to ensure that Alabama values, not Detroit values, continue to define the future of this great state. Ivey also announced at the Huntsville event that she had signed SB 231, sponsored by Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, which denies economic incentives to any employer who voluntarily recognizes a union. A message seeking comment was left with BCA Monday. Garrard said everything was set up for a secret ballot with blacked-out tents, and they were headed for the rest of the training at the time. I think its gonna go extremely well, he said. At this point, I still think that the general public and especially our local government and the BCA will be shocked. I honestly believe that the team members voices will be heard. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE This story was updated with comment from Ivey Monday. The post Union vote at Mercedes-Benz plant in Vance underway appeared first on Alabama Reflector. United Nations cuts estimate for deaths of women and children in Gaza in half WASHINGTON The United Nations reduced estimates for the number of women and children killed during Israel's war in Gaza by nearly half, inviting new scrutiny for figures that come from the militant group Hamas. Of the 34,735 people who have died in Gaza since the war began, according to data published May 6 by the UN, more than 9,500 were women and more than 14,500 were children. But in updated data published two days later on May 8, the UN significantly reduced the figures to 4,959 women and 7,797 children among the 34,844 people reportedly killed in Gaza. The UN cites data from the Gaza Ministry of Health, controlled by Hamas, to produce casualty figures. The UN reports come with a disclaimer that says, "The UN has so far not been able to produce independent, comprehensive, and verified casualty figures." In a statement to USA TODAY, UN spokeswoman Eri Kaneko said the Gaza Ministry of Health's overall number of fatalities remain unchanged and cited the ministry's April 30 update on the breakdown of the 24,686 fatalities for whom the ministry has complete details. "According to the Ministry, the fatalities for whom full details have been documented include 7,797 children, 4,959 women, 1,924 elderly, and 10,006 men," Kaneko said. "The Ministry of Health notes that the documentation process of casualties full identification details is ongoing" The updated UN breakdown of casualties does not include more than 10,000 people who the Gaza Ministry of Health considers "missing or under the rubble" in Gaza. Last month, the Gazan Health Ministry said through its Telegram channel it had incomplete data for 11,371 fatalities it claimed to have documented. A record is considered incomplete if an individual's identity number, full name, date of birth, or date of death is missing, the ministry noted in the report. Boys watch smoke billowing during Israeli strikes east of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on May 13, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas. Kaneko said UN teams in Gaza have been unable to independently verify the figures because of "the prevailing situation on the ground and the sheer number of fatalities." "For this reason, all figures used by the UN clearly cite the Ministry of Health in Gaza as the source," she said. "The UN will verify these figures to the extent possible when conditions permit." The revised estimates were first reported by the Jerusalem Post. After expressing initial skepticism last year about the accuracy of figures provided by Hamas, President Joe Biden in recent months started to cite death figures from the Gaza Ministry of Health, including during his March State of the Union address to Congress. Israeli officials have long disputed the death figures reported by Hamas including the share of women and children killed during the war. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said more 13,000 Hamas "terrorists" have been among the Palestinians killed in Gaza since the war began Oct. 7. "Hamas wants the world to believe that the main casualties and fatalities have been women and children, an argument almost universally accepted until very recently," Elliott Abrams, a senior fellow for Middle Eastern studies at the think-tank Council on Foreign Relations, wrote in a blog post. "Now even the UN, or one part of the UN, silently acknowledges that it blindly accepted Hamas numbers meant to mislead," said Abrams, former deputy national security adviser for President George W. Bush. According to the UN's latest figures, 40% of casualties in Gaza have been men, 32% children, 20% women and 8% elderly. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: UN deaths in Gaza estimate cut in half for women and children Amid campus protests nationwide and a push to revise diversity policies at state public universities, the Board of Trustees for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill voted Monday to redirect the $2.3 million that funded diversity, equity and inclusion programs toward public safety measures. The unanimous decision comes ahead of a vote next week by the UNC Board of Governors thats expected to limit DEI initiatives and may lead to personnel layoffs. The board's governance committee approved the change for all public colleges and universities in April, but the move requires a vote by the full board. Trustee Marty Kotis, vice-chair of the budget committee, said the funds are needed for campus policing and safety in light of the pro-Palestinian protests that swept through college campuses in late April and earlier this month. At UNC Chapel Hill, 36 demonstrators were detained six of them arrested and the U.S. flag was replaced by a Palestinian one during an April 30 protest. Its important to consider the needs of all 30,000 students, not just the 100 or so that may want to disrupt the universitys operations, he said. The American flag is surrounded by a temporary barrier at Polk Place at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill on May 1, 2024. The day before, protesters removed the American flag and raised the Palestinian flag following arrests and the breaking up of an encampment on campus. Kotis also called DEI policies, first implemented at North Carolinas flagship university in 2017, discriminatory and divisive, according to Chapel Hill-based public radio station WUNC. I think that DEI in a lot of peoples minds is divisiveness, exclusion and indoctrination, Kotis said, according to WUNC. We need more unity and togetherness, more dialogue, more diversity of thought. The UNC Office of Diversity and Inclusion, which did not respond to USA TODAY messages seeking comment, says in its website that it aims to celebrate all members of the Carolina community, to broaden our collective understanding, and foster a sense of belonging by uplifting diverse identities, cultures, experiences, and perspectives. Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones, a noted UNC alumna, retweeted a story by the Raleigh News & Observer reporting on the DEI story, but she did not comment on it. Hannah-Jones, who created the acclaimed 1619 Project for the New York Times Magazine exploring the legacy of slavery in the U.S., was appointed to a professor position at UNC in 2021, but the Board of Trustees rejected the journalism departments recommendation and denied her tenure, leading to an outcry from students and faculty. She eventually turned down the post and joined the Howard University faculty instead. North Carolina is only the latest in a string of states taking aim at DEI programs in public universities, a move spearheaded by conservatives. Texas and Florida are the two largest states to banish them, behind GOP governors Greg Abbott and Ron DeSantis, respectively. North Carolina has a Democratic governor in Roy Cooper, but Republicans have at least a 20-seat majority in both the state Senate and the House. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: University of North Carolina to dump 'divisive' DEI, spend on safety Some unsolicited advice to graduates. (Getty Images) As some college campuses roil with demonstrations, the 2024 version of mortar boards, honorary doctorates and commencement addresses may actually be in jeopardy. What that means at some schools is that the rite of passage known as college graduation has been altered. During my 30-plus years of writing commentaries, I have occasionally participated in the time-honored tradition of buttinskis, back-seat drivers and nosey parkers everywhere: Offering unsolicited advice to newly minted college graduates. The latest round of campus protests which I hope proceed or end in peace stirs memories from the 1960s when, as college students, we not only howled at the moon, we were determined to change the world. We were known to march, protest and generally raise a fuss to right the wrongs we saw not only then but in our futures. Such is the wont of many college students. One remembrance was particularly bracing: Joining a peaceful, on-campus demonstration just days after four students were killed during a protest at Kent State University, wondering whether those there to keep us safe really would if something happened. Eventually, we turned 30, where we encountered the cognitive dissonance that comes with being on the no-turning-back side of the line at which we once demarcated trust. Determining whether we were then part of the solution or part of the problem became more than just an interpretation of a Bob Dylan song. In addition to Pomp and Circumstance and a run on sheet cake, May brings other memories. I recently read that research from the National Institutes of Health found nanoplastics in drinking water bottled in plastic. The revelation reminded me of what Ive written about before as commencement season is upon us: The one-word piece of unsolicited advice a family friend gave to protagonist and fresh-out-of-college Benjamin Braddock in the 1967 movie The Graduate. That word? Plastics! Polymers aside, sometimes measuring our progress can be elusive. Meanwhile, another mass of college graduates is about to loose itself on the world. Best estimates from research.com put that 2024 number somewhere shy of four million, with Nebraskas share of sheepskins around 26,000. For unsolicited advice givers, that is a target rich environment. Into this breach between memory and modern problems I step with yet another version of unsolicited advice for the college grad . best served with grains of salt all around. To wit: Yes, YOLO as a north star can fill your days with adventure and wonder, but measuring twice before you cut can metaphorically lessen harm or at least not waste wood. The concept of rechecking also applies to parachute packing, the latch on the shark cage and a street map of Pamplona. Everybody makes mistakes, but if the eraser wears out before the pencil, youre overdoing it. Stay curious. Develop a capable crap detector, especially one that can withstand popular public opinion because if a thousand people say a stupid thing, its still a stupid thing. (Ayoubs Corollary.) When in doubt, have good manners. When absolutely sure, have good manners. Individualism need neither be prickly nor rugged but rather the confidence you have from knowing who you are and the boundaries wherein you live your life. Plus, everyone benefits from mentors, role models and a pal or two who practices the art of friendship unconditionally. Accept a little mystery as part of life. Some things are simply inexplicable. If you win the rat race, youre still a rat. (This one makes every list Ive ever compiled.) Practice and perfect the art of device-free conversation including eye contact, the power of an occasional silence and intentional listening. Read good books, especially the ones that book banners and assorted busybodies are intent on removing from schools and libraries. Dont sweat the small stuff. And its all small stuff except for the stuff that isnt. (See crap detector entry above for further details.) Know the difference between compromise and consensus. Dignity, grace and compassion are more than simply words in a commencement address. Loss is part of life. If you miss the lesson in such things, then you lose twice. Finally, and most seriously, whatever passion and purpose have driven you to the barricades to protest war, have fueled your senior thesis or have kept you on track to graduate, keep them close for the rest of the journey during which I hope, as the saying goes, you choose to live all the days of your life. The post Unsolicited advice in breach between memory, modern problems appeared first on Nebraska Examiner. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. Armenia should heed history's lessons and refrain from becoming entangled in the agendas of those who supply it with arms, former military attache of Turkiye in Azerbaijan, reserve general Yucel Karauz told Trend. According to him, Armenia is being armed by a number of countries, primarily France, Greece, and India. Azerbaijan consistently advocates for the establishment of peace and stability in the region. The mentioned countries are actively involved in maintaining peace in the South Caucasus. Besides obstructing the realization of the Zangezur corridor, they are fostering a revanchist sentiment in Armenia against Azerbaijan's territorial integrity. Concurrently, elements within Armenian society's opposition express disdain for peace, releasing perpetrators of the Khojaly genocide onto the streets. Armenia has always had support and has never acted independently. Presently, Armenia's only option is to sign a peace agreement with Azerbaijan. However, France, Greece, India, and certain Western entities are prolonging Armenia's delay in signing the agreement for their interests. All parties must prioritize and contribute to the peace agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Armenia should learn from historical lessons and avoid becoming a pawn in the West's game, facilitated by those who supply it with arms. Failure to heed these lessons will result in Azerbaijan bearing no responsibility for the consequences, he added. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel DENVER (KDVR) A U.S. Court of Appeals ruled on May 7 that the University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicines COVID-19 vaccination mandate and refusal to include a religious exemption were unconstitutional under the First Amendment, according to court documents. According to the opinion written by 10th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Allison Eid, A government employer may not punish some employees, but not others, for the same activity, due only to differences in the employees religious beliefs. Mayor Mike Johnston on protests, housing and the NFL Draft The case stems from April 2021, when the University of Colorado announced all employees and students would be required to receive a COVID-19 vaccine by the fall semester, although with a few exemptions. According to the appeals courts statement of facts, the university did not issue a universal policy, instead allowing each campus to adopt its own policies. The Thomas More Society represented 17 faculty and student Jane and John Does in the appeals case, all of whom asserted that the university refused to accommodate the sincerely and deeply held religious objections that prevented them from taking the vaccine. Originally, the case was filed for a Catholic doctor and a Buddhist student, according to Thomas More Society. In October 2021, over a dozen additional staff and students were added to the lawsuit. The group is seeking injunctive relief, damages and attorneys fees against CU for its unlawful discrimination and violations of fundamental constitutional rights. Read the whole 10th Circuit Court of Appeals opinion New CU vaccine policy was enforced on Sept. 1, 2021 According to the appeal ruling, CU administration enforced a new policy on Sept. 1, 2021, that said [a] religious exemption may be submitted based on a persons religious belief whose teachings are opposed to all immunizations. Before an exemption would be granted, the administration wanted an applicant to answer why their sincerely held religious belief, practice of observance prevents them from getting vaccinated, in addition to whether each applicant had an influenza or other vaccine in the past. According to the appeals court ruling, applicants were also asked, How does this differ? The Thomas More Society argued that despite the allowed exemptions, campus administration rejected any application for a religious exemption unless an applicant could convince the Administration that her religion teaches (them) and all other adherents that immunizations are forbidden under all circumstances,' according to the court documents. According to the appeals courts statement of facts, as a result, administrators refused vaccine exemption approvals for Roman Catholic applicants, in addition to Buddhist, Eastern Orthodox, Evangelical Christians, non-denominational Protestants and applicants who did not specify a particular religious affiliation. Gov. Polis signs bill eliminating parking minimums for some developments Ultimately, the lawsuit says that the policy and how it was handled ended with some employees being placed on unpaid administrative leave before they were fired for failure to comply with the mandatory vaccine requirement. CU administration also allegedly denied several unnamed individuals exemptions or accommodations and required others to work remotely, while cutting one of those remote workers pay by 10%, per the appeals court ruling. Courts opine: Sept. 24, 2021, mandate wouldnt have stood The school introduced a second policy effective Sept. 24, 2021, which the appeals court opinion said came after receiving threats of litigation. The policy stated that [a] religious accommodation may be granted based on an employees religious beliefs, but will not be granted if the accommodation would unduly burden the health and safety of other Individuals, patients, or the campus community. Judge Eid stated that she differs from the majority opinion and does not think the plaintiffs would have prevailed on their First Amendment challenge to the Sept. 24, 2021, mandate. 2024 a breakthrough session for Colorado lawmakers Eid noted that the Sept. 24 mandates basic requirements were the same as the Sept. 1 mandate but revised the religious and medical exemptions. The Sept. 24 mandate stated: Individuals may receive a medical or religious accommodation if they are unable to receive the vaccine for medical reasons or sincerely held religious beliefs as further described below. A religious accommodation may be granted based on an employees religious beliefs A religious accommodation will not be granted if the accommodation would unduly burden the health and safety of other Individuals, patients, or the campus community. Religious accommodations are not currently available to students or applicants. University of Colorados Sept. 24, 2021, vaccine mandate The university said religious exemptions would be approved if the requesting employees duties can be modified to prevent any in-person interaction with the campus community or if the employees job duties can be performed 100% remotely. Because of this, Eid said the second mandate eliminated the constitutional issues established in the first mandate. And when there is no plausible explanation for religious discrimination other than animus, it is subject to strict scrutiny, regardless of whether the government employer admits that its actions were motivated by hostility to certain religions. FOX31 Newsletters: Sign up to get breaking news sent to your inbox According to the appeals decision, the court found that the administration decided that it is morally acceptable for Roman Catholics to take vaccines against COVID-19 and that any Roman Catholic objections to the COVID-19 vaccine are personal beliefs, not religious beliefs.' Finally, we hold that the policies at issue in this appeal were motivated by religious animus, and are therefore subject to strict scrutinywhich neither policy survives. The district court concluded otherwise and, in so doing, abused its discretion. Accordingly, we reverse, said Eid. As a result, the court wrote that the CU administration would not approve exemptions under the Sept. 1 policy for Roman Catholics, Buddhists and many more prominent religions. FOX31 has contacted the University of Colorado for comment about the lawsuit. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX31 Denver. American and Chinese officials will meet in Geneva on Tuesday to discuss risks associated with advanced artificial intelligence (AI), according to senior administration officials. The bilateral talks will be an exchange of views on the technical risks of AI and will offer an opportunity to directly communicate respective areas of concern, an official told reporters on a call Friday. The Biden administration plans to raise concerns about Beijings use of AI in the military and national security sectors in ways that we believe undermines both U.S. and allied national security, they said. To be very clear, our talks with Beijing are not focused on promoting any form of technical collaboration or cooperating on frontier research in any matter, the official said. And our technology protection policies are not up for negotiation. The Biden administration has restricted the export of AI chips to China and is reportedly considering restricting China and other foreign adversaries access to the software behind advanced AI models, according to Reuters. However, the official added, We do think it is worth opening a channel for communication on these issues. The upcoming talks are a product of a November meeting between President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping, in which they agreed to bring together experts to discuss AI risks and safety. The meeting between the leaders outside San Francisco last fall came in the wake of a period of icy relations between the two superpowers. Beyond teeing up the AI talks, Biden and Xi also agreed to restore military-to-military communications at the time, a significant breakthrough for the adversaries. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. [Source] A former U.S. Marine is facing criminal charges and extradition to Spain for his role in ransacking the North Korean Embassy in Madrid in 2019 to help free defectors. Key points: If extradited to Spain, Ahn could be a high-priority target for assassination by North Korea, according to an expert. North Korea previously criticized the U.S. for not extraditing Ahn, accusing Washington of protecting terrorism. Christopher Ahns involvement in the raid led to his arrest in the U.S., where he spent 87 days in jail before being released on bail. The details: The group has been involved in high-profile rescue missions, such as that of Kim Han-sol , the nephew of Kim Jong-un , in 2017. In February 2019, Ahn, as part of a group called Cheollima Civil Defense also known as Free Joseon entered the North Korean Embassy in Madrid and faked a kidnapping. They tied up staff members and herded them into a room. Trending on NextShark: Shohei Ohtanis bobblehead giveaway draws massive crowds at Dodger Stadium In a new interview with CBS News 60 Minutes, Ahn said he was told that the embassy staff had asked for help in defecting. They purportedly staged the raid to protect the workers family and friends from possible retaliation in North Korea. The mission was aborted when Spanish police arrived. Ahn escaped to the U.S., where the FBI informed that North Korea had targeted him. Ahn, however, was arrested in April 2019 after visiting Cheollima Civil Defense founder Adrian Hong, who, on the other hand, remains at large. Ahn spent 87 days at the Los Angeles Metropolitan Detention Center before being released on a $1.3 million bail. At present, Ahn is fighting extradition to Spain, which charged him with breaking and entering, illegal restraint and causing injuries. However, Sung-Yoon Lee, a scholar and North Korea expert who has testified for Ahn, told "60 Minutes" that the latter could be targeted by North Korean assassins if sent there. US Senator Robert Menendez goes on trial for corruption, no jurors chosen U.S. Senator Robert Menendez arrives at Federal Court for the start of his bribery trial in New York U.S. Senator Robert Menendez arrives at Federal Court for the start of his bribery trial in New York By Jonathan Stempel NEW YORK (Reuters) -Jury selection began in the corruption trial of U.S. Senator Robert Menendez on Monday, with a judge excusing dozens of prospective jurors in a case that could affect the Democrat's political future and the makeup of the U.S. Senate. Menendez, who is New Jersey's senior senator, faces 16 criminal charges including bribery, fraud, obstruction and acting as a foreign agent. He is being tried alongside New Jersey businessmen Wael Hana and Fred Daibes in Manhattan federal court. The senator's wife, Nadine Menendez, has also been charged but will be tried separately. All four defendants have pleaded not guilty. U.S. District Judge Sidney Stein said the trial could last through June. He and lawyers for both sides spent close to five hours on Monday behind closed doors, speaking privately with prospective jurors who did not want to serve. Menendez, 70, sat quietly in the courtroom during this process, only occasionally reading or speaking with one of his lawyers. Jury selection will resume on Tuesday. Prosecutors have accused the Menendezes of accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash, gold bars and a Mercedes-Benz convertible, in exchange for the senator offering political favors and helping the governments of Egypt and Qatar. The senator allegedly promised to help Egypt obtain arms sales and other military aid, and helped Hana, an Egyptian American, obtain a lucrative monopoly on the certification of halal meat exports to Egypt. Prosecutors also said Menendez tried to help defendant Daibes, a prominent New Jersey developer, obtain millions of dollars from a Qatari investment fund, and disrupt a federal criminal case against Daibes in New Jersey. FBI agents who searched the Menendezes' home in June 2022 found much of the cash hidden inside clothing, closets and a safe, prosecutors said. A fifth defendant, Jose Uribe, pleaded guilty to bribery and fraud charges in March and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors. The alleged scheme ran from 2018 to 2023, prosecutors said. DEFENSE MOTION Menendez, a senator since 2006, is up for reelection in November and if acquitted may seek a fourth full term as an independent. He has resisted calls, including from many Democratic senators, to resign, though he gave up leadership of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee following his September indictment. Democrats and independents who caucus with them hold a 51-49 Senate majority. Several seats in that majority may be closely contested in November, and a Democratic seat in West Virginia is expected to turn Republican. Nadine Menendez's trial is scheduled for July 8. Her case was separated after her lawyers said she developed a serious medical condition that required a long recovery. Lawyers for Robert Menendez have suggested in court papers that if he testified he may try to blame his wife. His lawyers said Menendez could explain what they discussed during dinners with Egyptian officials and offer his wife's explanation for why Hana and Uribe "provided her certain monetary items." The defense team also wants a psychiatrist to testify that the senator routinely stored cash in his home because of a "fear of scarcity." Defense lawyers said this was a "coping mechanism" after the Cuban government seized his family's assets before he was born, and his father died by suicide after Menendez stopped paying his gambling debts. Menendez also went on trial in 2017, on charges he helped wealthy Florida ophthalmologist Salomon Melgen in exchange for lavish gifts and political contributions. That case ended in a mistrial when jurors deadlocked, and prosecutors did not retry the senator. He was reelected the following year. Several other current and former members of Congress also face federal criminal charges, including Representative Henry Cuellar, a Texas Democrat, and former representative George Santos, a New York Republican. While New Jersey voters lean Democratic, fewer than one in six polled in March by Monmouth University and Emerson College Polling/PIX11/The Hill approved of Menendez's job performance. Even fewer said they would vote for him as an independent. (Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Noeleen Walder, Alistair Bell and Bill Berkrot) US Under Secretary of State avoids answering whether US believes in Ukraine regaining all its territories Victoria Nuland, US Under Secretary of State, has declined to answer whether Washington considers it possible for Ukraine to achieve such a victory that would result in the regaining of all its occupied territories. Source: European Pravda; Nuland in an interview with Latvia-based Russian media outlet Meduza Details: Nuland stated that the decision on when to start and whether to start negotiations with Russia for peace should be Ukraine's decision. She noted that Russia's current idea of negotiation format boils down to "what's mine is mine, and what's yours we'll discuss", so the goal of the US is to strengthen Ukraine in military, economic and political terms, so it has strong positions and the Kremlin understands that it won't achieve its goals and should consider negotiations. She was then asked if this means that the American strategy no longer includes restoring Ukraine's territorial integrity within the borders of 1991. Nuland avoided giving a direct answer, stating that it's currently difficult to predict whether such outlines of victory for Ukraine are possible. Quote: "All wars end with negotiations, and it's Ukraine's business to decide its territorial goals. However, Kyiv is not yet strong enough to start negotiating. We want Putin to be forced out of every square kilometre of Ukrainian land. But until Ukraine becomes strong enough, we don't know how possible that is," Nuland responded. She continued that potential future agreements should ensure a strong, independent, democratic, and economically viable Ukraine, and guarantees are needed that the Kremlin leader won't return with a new war after some time. "So half of the package recently approved by Congress is intended for a long-term contribution to the Ukrainian army. So if a pause does occur, Putin would know: the Ukrainian Armed Forces will only get stronger during this time, not the other way around," Nuland noted. "In any case, I don't think Putin is ready for honest negotiations. He would like to see a leader in Ukraine like (Viktor) Yanukovych who would be ready to submit to Moscow's whims," she said [Viktor Yanukovych, the pro-Russian former president of Ukraine who fled the country after the Revolution of Dignity in 2014 - ed.]. Background: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken commented on Russia's advance in Kharkiv Oblast, expressing the belief that Ukraine is capable of holding the contact line. Support UP or become our patron! The expeditionary sea base Hershel Woody Williams sustained a soft grounding mishap last week, just after getting underway from a port visit in Libreville, Gabon, according to Navy officials. The ship, currently on a scheduled deployment, ran aground at approximately 2 p.m. local time Thursday, U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa Spokesperson Lt. Cmdr. Jason Tross said. The ship then freed itself at high tide roughly four hours later. No injuries or major damage were reported from the grounding, Tross said in an email to Navy Times. We cannot provide further details at this time as the incident is currently under investigation. USS Howard sustained soft grounding near Bali ahead of port visit The expeditionary sea base is based out of Souda Bay, Greece and is the first Navy ship assigned to U.S. Africa Command, according to the service. Earlier this month, the ship participated in Obangame Express 2024, an exercise in West Africa focused on boosting maritime law enforcement and regional security in the area. The annual exercise, spearheaded by U.S. Africa Command, launched on May 6 with more than 30 partner nations. The ship is not the only one to encounter such a mishap in the past year. The dry cargo ship Alan Shepard ran aground in Bahrain in July, while the guided-missile destroyer Howard also experienced a soft grounding in August as it pulled into Bali, Indonesia, for a scheduled port visit. Students at UW-Madison removed their encampment on Friday after a deal was announced. The encampment initially went up on Library Mall on April 29 despite a warning from administrators that doing so was against university policy. (Baylor Spears | Wisconsin Examiner) Pro-Palestinian student encampment protests have ended at UW-Milwaukee and UW-Madison after student protesters and university administrators reached separate agreements at the two institutions. Protesters set their encampments on April 29, joining a wave of campus protests across the country against Israels ongoing war in Gaza, which has killed over 34,000 Palestinians. Protesters urged their schools to cut financial and social ties with Israel. UW students launched their protests despite warnings that the encampments violated a state law that bans camping on university grounds. Students at UW-Madison removed their encampment on Friday after a deal was announced, while UW-Milwaukee students agreed to begin the removal process on Sunday and finish by Tuesday. As a part of their agreements, protesters received concessions from the universities, including commitments that the schools would work to facilitate conversations with the Wisconsin Foundation and Alumni Association (WFAA) and the UWM Foundation. Protest organizers have said that the agreements are just the beginning of work towards divestment. UW-Milwaukee agreement includes call for ceasefire UWM Popular University for Palestine Coalition said in a statement it had obtained all possible benefits from our encampment, but this doesnt mean they have ended our struggle. The coalition called on community members and allies to help with ongoing efforts to negotiate with the UWM administration and the UWM Foundation. For the benefit of the people of Gaza and Palestine, we strongly believe in the need to divest from the Israeli regime, and we believe that many of our efforts will be directed at the UWM Foundation. We will not stop applying pressure and we refuse to back down until we are granted complete disclosure and divestment, the coalition of student groups said. As a part of the agreement, UW-Milwaukee officially called for a ceasefire in Gaza, acknowledging in its statement that more than 34,000 Palestinians have been killed and nearly 80,000 more have been injured in the war on Gaza. The university also acknowledged that the war has been called a plausible genocide by a United Nations (UN) expert and the International Criminal Court. In its statement, UW-Milwaukee also condemned Hamas attack on Israeli civilians on Oct. 7, 2023, in which 1,200 people were killed and 240 were taken hostage, and called for the release of the remaining Israeli and international hostages held by Hamas and the release of Palestinian men, women and children held as hostages in military detention in Israel in the agreement. The university also denounced scholasticide or the systematic destruction of education in Gaza. Innocent civilians, especially children, must not be the targets of war, UWM said. We condemn all violence and call for it to end. As a part of the agreement, UWM Foundation leadership has also agreed to meet with four students representing the UWM Popular University for Palestine Coalition to discuss their concerns and requests. UWM administrators will help facilitate the meeting to ensure that students will be given the opportunity to express their requests for disclosure and divestment. Student protesters said that they recognize that divestment is not an overnight process but expect to come out of the first meeting with a timeline for disclosure. The university acknowledged that it is prohibited by law from cutting ties with private companies and organizations that do business in Israel under a state law that was adopted under former Gov. Scott Walker. However, it said that it supports protesters making their concerns known to state lawmakers. Students said that they are focused on exploring all avenues of legislative and judicial pressure or litigation to change this law and revisit this issue. State Rep. Ryan Clancy (D-Milwaukee) said in a statement commending the agreement that his office is willing to work with students to draft legislation that allows divestment. UW-Milwaukee also agreed to review its study abroad policies and programs to ensure compliance with discriminatory conduct policy. At the urging of UWM Chancellor Mark Mone, the Water Council, a Milwaukee-based nonprofit, has ended its relationships with Mekorot and Israel Innovation Authority, two Israeli-government-owned water companies that have been accused by international aid organizations of cutting off access to drinking water for thousands of Palestinians in Gaza. Unlike the UW-Madison protest where police forcibly removed the encampment and arrested protesters on the third day of the protest, the encampment at UW-Milwaukee is ending without any police interference. Mone said in a message to UW-Milwaukee students, faculty and staff that he recognized many had criticized UW-Milwaukee for not forcing the removal of the camp earlier, and said the most common question asked was when police would be sent in to force the removal of the encampment. Our consistent answer: UWM leadership prioritized the safety of everyone involved, which meant seeking resolution through dialogue with our students, Mone said. UWM agreed to forgo citations or conduct violations for students who participated in the demonstrations as long as the encampment is removed by Tuesday and students agree not to disrupt upcoming commencement events. UW-Madison agreement announced Friday The agreement at UW-Milwaukee came just days after the encampment at UW-Madison was ended by student protesters following an agreement with their university administration. Student protesters agreed to remove the encampment, to not disrupt commencement over the weekend (a handful of students quietly protested by turning their backs on Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin, but there was no audible disruption) and to follow university policies in the future. We remain committed to the cause of Palestinian liberation, and we hold firm that the strongest way to fight for Palestine as members of the broader UW-Madison community is to end our universitys complicity in the ongoing genocide through divestment, UW-Madison Students for Justice in Palestine said in a statement. This agreement does not achieve that. However, this agreement does achieve material gains for Palestinians both in Palestine and on this campus, which should not be discounted. Under the agreement, UW-Madison administrators said they would facilitate a student meeting with Wisconsin Foundation and Alumni Association and the Universities of Wisconsin by July 1. The university also said it will work to support scholars and students affected by war, violence, occupation and displacement, including in Gaza and Ukraine. Those efforts will include inviting at least one scholar from a Palestinian university for each of the next three academic years, adding a staff member who will focus on supporting students affected by war, violence and displacement and conducting a review of opportunities available at the university to engage with places and people affected by war, violence and displacement. The administration also committed to requesting that the UW-Madison Police Department use its discretion in its review of cases related to law enforcement efforts to remove the encampment on May 1. The post UW leaders reach agreements with students to end pro-Palestinian encampments appeared first on Wisconsin Examiner. CNN commentator Van Jones went after politicians on former President Trumps vice president shortlist on Monday, after they dodged questions over whether they would accept the results of the 2024 election. Multiple candidates believed to be finalists for Trumps presidential ticket including Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), and Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) have refused to say they will accept the results of the 2024 election. Others, including Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.), have said they will outright reject the results if they believe there is fraud. This is like failing kindergarten, Jones said of the remarks. When it comes to politics, yes, you accept the election results, and you dont insult the integrity of the American democratic process, which is the envy of the world. The dodges signal the potential vice presidential candidates could back false election conspiracies similar to the 2020 election fraud claims that inspired the Jan. 6 Capitol riots and are now at the center of two of Trumps criminal cases. These are the termites that you unleash into the foundation of a democracy that later on can come back and crash the whole house, Jones said. When you have people who no longer believe in the integrity of our elections. Theyre playing with fire. Theyre playing with matches, theyre playing with nitroglycerin. Concerns over whether Trump will repeat election fraud claims if he again loses in 2024 has tested Republican leaders in the Senate as well. Jones blamed the situation squarely on Trump. This is a one of the more despicable impacts of Donald Trump on the American body politic, he said. This sort of nonsense from otherwise, in some cases, good decent folks. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. As of 11:00 (GMT+4), 151 protesters have been detained in Yerevan, Armenia, Trend reports, referring to the press service of the country's Ministry of Internal Affairs. 10:15 BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. A total of 88 protesters have been detained in Yerevan, Armenia, since this morning, Trend reports, referring to the press service of the country's Ministry of Internal Affairs. To note, on May 4, the Tavush for the Motherland movement started a multi-day march towards the capital of Armenia. On May 9, the march reached Yerevan. Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan addressed thousands gathered in front of the government building, demanding the prime minister's resignation. The opposition also organized a large rally on Saturday in front of the government headquarters. Responding to Archbishop Bagrat's call, protesters blocked several streets in Yerevan, including Liberty Avenue, Victory Bridge, and the Tbilisi highway. Civil disobedience actions were also observed in Armenia's regions, with students from Yerevan State University joining the protests. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel CNNs Van Jones said a set of battleground state polls showing former President Trump with a lead over President Biden in five of six key states should be a wake-up call for Democrats. The New York Times poll published Monday found Trump with a slight lead in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, and with significant leads in Nevada, Arizona and Georgia. Jones said the results can be attributed to younger voters turning against Biden. It should be a wake-up call, Jones said. Young people are upset. And its not just the situation in Gaza the economic prospects for young people are miserable. We just do not have a pathway for young people to be able to pay off their student debt, get a house, he continued. I think that were not yet feeling, hearing a full-throated approach to the young people [from Biden]. Theres a symbolic piece around student loans. Thats not going to be enough for Joe Biden. Jones added that the Biden campaign must also double down on courting the Black vote in key cities including Milwaukee, Detroit and Philadelphia. Youve got to get at the grassroots level in those core Black cities, and make sure that people are heard from by surrogates heard from by the campaign and responded to, he said. Its going to be a pitched, on-the-ground battle in those Great Lakes states, in those Black cities. And thats where youve got to go. The networks polling expert, Harry Enten, described the poll results as an absolute disaster for Biden, pointing out a stark divide between results in Sun Belt states versus those closer to the Great Lakes. Trump has a 13-point lead in Nevada, 9-point lead in Arizona and 6-point lead in Georgia, according to the poll. The Trump coalition is changing. Thats basically whats cooking here, Enten said to explain the difference between results in the Southwest and Midwest. He said the Trump campaign voter base has become increasingly nonwhite, and that the increase in support among Latino voters especially has helped Trump massively in Nevada and Arizona. Despite the good signs for Trump, Enten noted that the race is not over yet. If the Times poll were accurate to election results and Biden won all states that were too close to call, he would stay in the White House by a razor-thin 270-268 electoral vote margin. The race to 270 is advantage Donald Trump, but hes not over the 270 mark just yet, Enten said. The same Times poll found swing-state Democratic Senate candidates outperforming Biden and leading their GOP rivals, adding to what is already expected to be a nail-biting November election. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Vast coin collection of Danish magnate is going on sale a century after his death Vicken Yegparian, vice president of numismatics, Stack's Bowers Galleries, holds a golden coin once belonging to the collection of Danish king, Frederik VII, now part of L. E. Bruun's collection, in Zealand, Denmark, May 7, 2024. The vast coin collection of a Danish butter magnate is set to finally go to on sale a century after his death, and could fetch up to $72 million. Lars Emil Bruun, also known as L.E. Bruun, stipulated in his will that his 20,000-piece collection be safeguarded for 100 years before being sold. (AP Photo/James Brooks) COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) The vast coin collection of a Danish butter magnate is set to finally go on sale a century after his death, and could fetch up to $72 million. Lars Emil Bruun, also known as L.E. Bruun, stipulated in his will that his 20,000-piece collection be safeguarded for 100 years before being sold. Deeply moved by the devastation of World War I, he wanted the collection to be a reserve for Denmark, fearing another war. Now, over a century since Bruuns death at the age of 71 in 1923, New York-based Stacks Bowers, a rare coin auction house, will begin auctioning the collection this fall, with several sales planned over the coming years. On its website the auction house calls it the most valuable collection of world coins to ever come to market. The collection's existence has been known of in Denmark but not widely, and it has has never been seen by the public before. When I first heard about the collection, I was in disbelief, said Vicken Yegparian, vice president of numismatics at Stacks Bowers Galleries. Weve had collections that have been off the market for 100 years plus, he said. But theyre extremely well known internationally. This one has been the best open secret ever. Born in 1852, Bruun began to collect coins as a boy in the 1850s and '60s, years before he began to amass vast riches in the packing and wholesaling of butter. His wealth allowed him to pursue his hobby, attending auctions and building a large collection that came to include 20,000 coins, medals, tokens and banknotes from Denmark, Norway and Sweden. Following the devastation of World War I and fearing another war, Bruun left strict instructions in his will for the collection. For a period of 100 years after my death, the collection shall serve as a reserve for the Royal Coin and Medal Collection," it stipulated. However, should the next century pass with the national collection intact, it shall be sold at public auction and the proceeds shall accrue to the persons who are my direct descendants. That stipulation didnt stop some descendants from trying to break the will and cash in, but they were not successful. I think the will and testament were pretty ironclad. There was no loophole, Yegparian said. Yegparian estimates some pieces may sell for just $50, but others could go for over $1 million. He said potential buyers were already requesting a catalogue before the auction was announced. The collection first found refuge at former Danish royal residence Frederiksborg Castle, then later made its way to Denmarks National Bank. Denmarks National Museum had the right of first refusal on part of the collection and purchased seven rare coins from Bruuns vast hoard before they went to auction. The seven coins six gold, one silver were all minted between the 15th and 17th centuries by Danish or Norwegian monarchs. The cost of over $1.1 million was covered by a supporting association. We chose coins that were unique. They are described in literature as the only existing specimen of this kind, said senior researcher Helle Horsnaes, a coin expert at the national museum. The pure fact that this collection has been closed for a hundred years makes it a legend, Horsnaes said. Its like a fairytale. VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) The Virginia Beach Police Department is investigating a bizarre shooting incident early Monday morning. Around 8:30 a.m. officers responded to the 2600 block of Mulberry Loop for a report of a burglary attempt, according to Ricky LaBlue with the Virginia Beach Police Department Public Affairs Office. Shortly after the call for the burglary, another call to emergency dispatch reported that shots were fired in the area. The military family that lives in the home told WAVY.com they are scared and confused after two men shot at their house. A family member, who wanted to remain anonymous, told 10 On Your Side home video captured a man ringing the doorbell and then started shooting at least 10 times at the front of the house. Another man is on video shooting at the back of the house. My family has no involvement whatsoever in this situation, the family member said. We do not know who these men were. I know for a fact that my family has no involvement in anything that would have caused this. 10 On Your Side was at the scene and captured images of the scene. Mulberry Loop (Courtesy: Chris Wynn) Mulberry Loop (Courtesy: Chris Wynn) Mulberry Loop (Courtesy: Chris Wynn) Mulberry Loop (Courtesy: Chopper 10) Mulberry Loop (Courtesy: Chopper 10) The family counted at least 23 bullets throughout the house. There could have been more, the family member said. The family adds they have no idea who would do this as they recently moved to the state after being stationed in Japan for two decades. They dont want to be in the house, the family member said. No one was hurt. Officers are working to find the people responsible. Unfortunately, anytime [incidents] like this happen, its very scary, LaBlue said. Our officers are committed to doing the best investigative work that we can. Many of the homes in the Keswick area have home security cameras, which residents can use to help solve crimes like this through the camera registry program. Cameras are extremely important in solving these crimes, LaBlue said. We invite the community to participate. The program is voluntary and offers two options for residents. The family wants to know why this happened. Knowing the motive of what happened and clarifying all of those questions would be very helpful, the family member said. Just an arrest doesnt resolve the situation. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WAVY.com. TechCrunch For the last several years, the Delivering the Future event has showcased the latest technologies powering Amazon operations. Seattle's 2023 event showcased updates to the companys pharmacy offerings and drone deliveries. This year in Nashville, Amazon discussed AI updates to its shopping experiences and how the company is using computer vision to further trim package delivery time. In a pioneering measure to hold companies responsible for environmental damage, Vermont has officially become the first state to make oil and gas giants shell out billions in climate change damage by law. Vermont's Climate Superfund Act, which parallels the Environmental Protection Agency's superfund program, mandates high-emission corporations -- such as ExxonMobil, Shell and Chevron -- to be financially accountable for a portion of the costs of extreme weather damage in the state. On Thursday, Gov. Phil Scott let the Superfund Act, S.259, become law without his signature. "For decades, fossil fuel corporations knowingly destroyed our planet for short-term profits," Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders told ABC News earlier this month. PHOTO: This image made from drone footage provided by the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets shows flooding in Montpelier, Vt., July 11, 2023. (Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets via AP) Companies responsible for more than one billion tons of greenhouse gas pollution globally must make payments calculated based on each corporation's emissions from 1995 to 2024, according to the legislation. The bill uses data from the Carbon Majors database, which analyzes historical production data from 122 of the world's largest oil, gas, coal and cement producers, to litigate the climate liability claims. Vermont's Agency of Natural Resources will allocate the funding for the Climate Superfund Cost Recovery Program Fund to enhance infrastructure, weatherproof public buildings and address the health impacts of climate change, the bill states. MORE: Earth Day 2024 report card: Experts address America's climate change action The groundbreaking measure makes Vermont the first state in the country to enact a bill of this kind, with New York, California, Maryland and Massachusetts attempting to push similar policies. "I am proud that Vermont will go further than any other state in forcing the fossil fuel industry to pay for the destruction caused by the crisis of climate change," Sanders previously said. Marking a bipartisan victory, the bill passed in both Vermont's Senate and House with an overwhelming majority and headed to Republican Governor Phil Scott's desk, where he declined to sign or veto. Due to his inaction, the act became a law 5 days after reaching his desk. "Finally, maybe for the first time anywhere, Vermont is going to hold the companies most responsible for climate-driven floods, fires and heat waves financially accountable for a fair share of the damages they've caused," Paul Burns, executive director of the Vermont Public Interest Research Group (VPIRG) said in a statement Thursday. PHOTO: Flood waters remain on the destroyed fields at the Intervale Community Farm, July 17, 2023, in Burlington, Vt. (Charles Krupa/AP) Proponents of the bill say the Superfund Act is the first legal step in a decades-long environmental crusade to hold polluting companies responsible for damaging waste. "This effort comes down to a simple lesson that we all learn as kids: If you make a mess, you have to clean it up," Elena Mihaly, vice president of the Vermont chapter of the Conservation Law Foundation, told ABC News. In July 2023, catastrophic flooding drenched communities across Vermont, leaving two people dead, bridges and roads decimated and over a billion dollars in property damage in its wake, according to Mihaly. MORE: Vermont grapples with historic flooding as more rainstorms head for Northeast "Last year's devastating floods showed just how vulnerable Vermonters are to the climate chaos spurred by the fossil fuel industry," Mihaly said, adding, "It's Vermonters who bear the full burden of that chaos on our physical, mental and financial well-being." Adversaries of the bill warn the legislation would pit the state against billion-dollar corporations in a legal battle that could never make it out of the courtroom. "A decision was made to go to war with corporations that probably have as many attorneys as we do citizens," Vermont Sen. Russ Ingalls, who cast one of the three votes against the bill, told ABC News, adding, "We will be squashed like a bug." PHOTO: Gas prices are seen, Feb. 23, 2011 in Montpelier, Vt. (Toby Talbot/AP, FILE) Ingalls contends the Superfund Act would "cause our property taxes to rise by nearly 15%," arguing that the potential "millions" spent in litigation could be better spent. A spokesperson for the American Petroleum Institute (API), the largest U.S. trade association for the oil and natural gas industry, argued the Superfund Act would "stall" corporations' progress to create "low-carbon solutions." "America's natural gas and oil industry is working to address climate change and build a lower carbon future, while simultaneously meeting the world's growing energy needs," API's Scott Lauermann told ABC News. MORE: Effects of climate change worsening in every part of the US, report says "This proposal is nothing more than an unnecessary new fee on American energy that would only stall the innovative progress underway to accelerate low-carbon solutions while delivering the energy communities need," Lauermann said. Environmental experts fear that promises of a sustainable future are not pushing the needle far enough when extreme weather damage has left communities displaced, and a state scrambling to respond. "The reality is, the climate crisis is here," Ben Edgerly Walsh, climate and energy program director for the Vermont Public Interest Research Group, told ABC News. "It's already costing even little Vermont hundreds of millions of dollars -- so, we have to do right by our citizens and invest more in resiliency and adaptation." PHOTO: A small tractor clears water from a business as flood waters block a street, July 12, 2023, in Barre, Vt. (Charles Krupa/AP) Infrastructure projects funded by corporations would include flood protections such as upgrading stormwater drainage systems, making defensive upgrades to roads, bridges, railroads and transit systems, retrofitting sewage treatment plants and other infrastructure sites vulnerable to flooding and more, according to the bill. Mihaly believes "the Climate Superfund bill is a rational, lawful and necessary means of holding the fossil fuel industry accountable to pay their fair share of those burdens." "The global fossil fuel industry has contributed to making a mess in Vermont and it's time for them to help clean it up," Mihaly said. Vermont officially becomes 1st state to charge big oil for climate change damage originally appeared on abcnews.go.com Mary Wehrman, pictured at far left, and a group of volunteers at their July 9 canvass kickoff in Pittsburg, Kansas. Wehrman and other volunteers knocked on about 1,600 doors in Pittsburg to defeat an anti-abortion constitutional amendment that voters rejected in the Aug. 2, 2022 primary. | Photo courtesy of Mary Wehrman Abortion-related bills continue to be introduced and debated in legislatures across the country, especially in states where the procedure is already banned. It can be hard to monitor them all, so States Newsrooms Reproductive Rights Today team tracks certain bills that could become law in their respective states in a biweekly legislative roundup. Depending on the partisan makeup of a states legislature and other state government officials, some bills have a higher chance of passing and becoming law than others. Connecticut House Bill 5424: A bill that would have prevented adverse actions against medical providers at religiously affiliated hospitals or clinics who might counsel or refer patients for reproductive care, including abortion, died in the legislature on Thursday, CT Mirror reported. It would have protected those who offer information and counseling about contraception, termination of pregnancy, gender-affirming care and other reproductive health care, but no action was taken on the bill by the deadline. Reproductive advocates said they will try to pass the legislation again next year. Status: Died after legislative deadline Sponsor: Public Health Committee, with 13 co-sponsors from the House and Senate Kansas Despite Kansas voters overwhelming rejection of abortion bans in a referendum shortly after the Dobbs decision in 2022, lawmakers passed several bills related to abortion. Abortion is legal in Kansas, and six clinics provide in-clinic services. House Bill 2749: Lawmakers were able to override Democratic Gov. Laura Kellys veto of a bill that requires medical facilities and providers to ask patients for the reason why they are terminating a pregnancy before the procedure takes place, Kansas Reflector reported. The data will be reported to the legislature every other year and include the age, marital status and education level of each patient, along with whether they were the victim of rape, incest or domestic abuse. If the patient refuses to answer, that must be noted as well. Planned Parenthood Great Plains is considering a lawsuit over the law. Status: Veto override successful law Sponsor: Republican Rep. Ron Bryce, on behalf of Kansans for Life Senate Bill 28: Kellys line-item veto of this bill was also struck down. The state budget bill includes an allocation of $2 million for the Pregnancy Compassion Awareness Program. The funds are meant to enhance and increase resources that promote childbirth instead of abortion for people handling unplanned pregnancies. Kelly said when Kansans widely rejected a constitutional amendment that would have allowed abortion bans, they told politicians they should stop inserting themselves in private medical decisions between women and their doctors. Status: Veto override successful law Sponsor: Kansas Insurance Department House Bill 2436: Another veto override was successful for this bill, which addresses abortion coercion, making it a felony to pressure someone into an abortion, including doctors, family members and partners, according to the Reflector. Conviction carries penalties including prison time and fines. While some lawmakers attempted to amend the bill in its early stages to make pressuring women into pregnancy a crime as well, those amendments were not included. Status: Veto override successful law Sponsor: Republican Rep. Rebecca Schmoe Louisiana Nearly all abortions are banned in Louisiana. House Bill 833: The House of Representatives passed this bill in late April to protect access to in vitro fertilization by an overwhelming margin, and it is pending approval in the Senate. Louisiana Illuminator reported that Republican Gov. Jeff Landry has not committed to signing the legislation if it comes to his desk, saying only through a spokesman that he is reviewing it alongside many other bills passed by the legislature. The bill would shield doctors, clinics and other health care providers from lawsuits and criminal prosecution if embryos created during the IVF process were unintentionally lost. Louisiana Right to Life worked with lawmakers on the bill to ensure its passage. Status: Passed the House, awaiting consideration in the Senate Sponsor: Republican Rep. Paula Davis Missouri Nearly all abortions are banned in Missouri. House Bill 2634: Gov. Mike Parson signed this bill into law on Thursday, prohibiting the spending of any public funds on an abortion facility or its affiliates or associates, including Medicaid, through the MO HealthNet program. Missouri Independent reports the bill is targeting Planned Parenthood clinics, which do not provide abortions in Missouri but may provide referrals to clinics in other states for abortion care. The clinics do provide contraceptives, testing for sexually transmitted diseases and cancer, and general wellness visits. The new law goes into effect Aug. 28, but the staff of Planned Parenthood clinics said they remain committed to staying open to all. Status: Law Sponsor: Republican Sen. Mary Elizabeth Coleman The post Veto overrides push Kansas anti-abortion bills into law, while Louisiana seeks to protect IVF appeared first on Michigan Advance. [Source] The Los Angeles Countys declaration of April 30 as Jane Fonda Day has sparked outrage among many Vietnamese Americans, who view the date as a day of mourning due to its significance as the Fall of Saigon in 1975. Key points: Actress and activist Jane Fonda, who is being honored for her environmental activism, has a controversial past during the Vietnam War . April 30, known as Black April to the community, remains a solemn day for many of 2.3 million Vietnamese Americans in the U.S. The details: Nguyen and Ta, whose families were affected by the Fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975, expressed frustration over the countys disregard for the Vietnamese community's collective trauma. The date honors the sacrifices made of some 250,000 South Vietnamese and 60,000 American soldiers. Fonda, dubbed "Hanoi Jane" by Vietnam veterans and refugees, faced criticism for her actions during the war, including traveling to North Vietnam, being interviewed for communist broadcasts, and posing for photos with North Vietnamese soldiers and anti-aircraft guns that were used to target American pilots. Fonda has since apologized for the images, claiming that she was against the war but not American troops. Ta, a Republican assemblymember representing Orange County, wrote in an opinion piece via the Los Angeles Times: To have this solemn day overshadowed by the celebration of an individual who openly sympathized with the regime responsible for so much suffering is an insult to the memory of those who perished and those who continue to live with the scars of war. Nguyen, a member of the California State Senate, told CalMatters: I pleaded to them that, you know, if youre not going to rescind that, you at least change the date. April 30 is not the day. Strange things turn up in the parking lots outside Floridas honky tonks, but vintage bombs are typically not among the bottles, beer cans and cigarette butts. Yet one was found around 8:30 a.m. Sunday, May 12, at a rural nightclub near High Springs, according to the Columbia County Sheriffs Office in North Florida. High Springs is about a 75-mile drive southwest from Jacksonville. A passerby alerted deputies to a suspicious device in the parking lot of Billys Santa Fe Bar ... near the Alachua County line, the sheriffs office said in a news release. Deputies blocked of the area and assistance was requested from the Alachua County Sheriffs Office bomb squad. Upon inspection of the device, it was deemed to not be equipped with a charge. The device was collected by the bomb squad and the scene was deemed to be clear. Billys Santa Fe Bar responded to the discovery with humor, posting on the Columbia County Sheriffs Office Facebook page that it was offering a $1 discount on all shots for Mothers Day. An investigation is underway into how someone lost their bomb and the possibilities are being humorously debated on social media. Some commenters identified the mortar as a Vietnam-era 81 mm round. Might (have) been an antique someone had and it fell out of the vehicle? It is an odd thing to be in a parking lot, Karyn Donton posted on the sheriffs office Facebook page. Who is riding around with a mortar that can fall out of the car in a parking lot? Thats a bit concerning, Laura Armstrong Poore wrote. Im betting someone is uptight this morning about losing their mortar. ... Let this be a lesson to us all. Leave your explosive looking hardware at home before going out and about, Jeana Barnett Crenshaw said. 3 bombs from WWII found in a Florida bay, military says. Now, theyll be detonated WWII rocket unearthed by man using excavator in Florida yard, cops say. He got lucky 1,000-pound bomb uncovered at Florida airport prompts half-mile evacuation, cops say Violence is traumatizing Haitian kids. Now the country's breaking a taboo on mental health services FILE - Girls holding hands are led past a burnt car blocking the street as they evacuate the Delmas 22 neighborhood to escape gang violence in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, May 2, 2024. As young Haitians are increasingly exposed to violence, the country is undergoing a wider push to dispel a long-standing taboo on seeking therapy and talking about mental health. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa, File) PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) Students often throw up or wet themselves when gunfire erupts outside their school in northern Port-au-Prince. When they do, school director Roseline Ceragui Louis finds there's only one way to try to calm the children and keep them safe: getting them to lie on the classroom floor while she sings softly. You cant work in that environment," she said. "Its catastrophic. Theyre traumatized. Haiti's capital is under the onslaught of powerful gangs that control 80% of of the city. On Feb. 29, gangs launched coordinated attacks targeting key infrastructure. The attacks have left more than 2,500 people dead or wounded in the first three months of the year. Now, in a bid to help save Haitis youngest generation, the country is undergoing a wider push to dispel a long-standing taboo on seeking therapy and talking about mental health. GETTING HELP At a recent training session in a relatively safe section of Port-au-Prince, parents learned games to put a smile on their childrens faces. The parents are often so distraught and discouraged they dont have energy to care for the kids, said Yasmine Deroche, who trains adults to help children overcome trauma inflicted by persistent gang violence. Gunmen have burned police stations, stormed Haitis two biggest prisons to release more than 4,000 inmates and fired on the countrys main international airport, which closed March 4 and hasnt reopened. The violence has also paralyzed Haitis largest seaport. Meanwhile, some 900 schools have closed, affecting some 200,000 children. We must fight against this social inequality so that all children, all young people, can have the same opportunities to go to school, to work, to earn a living, said Chrislie Luca, president of the nonprofit Hearts for Change Organization for Deprived Children of Haiti. All of these are problems that have led us where we are today, with the country on the edge of the abyss. EDGE OF THE ABYSS UNICEF's Haiti representative said the violence has displaced more than 360,000 people, the majority women and children. In addition, at least one-third of the 10,000 victims of sexual violence last year were children, Bruno Maes said. Children are left to fend for themselves, without assistance, without enough protection," he said. More than 80 children were killed or wounded from January to March, a 55% increase over the last quarter of 2023 and "the most violent period for children in the country on record, said Save the Children, a U.S. nonprofit. Luca said among those hurt were two boys struck in the head while walking to school and an 8-year-old girl playing inside her home when she was hit by a bullet that tore through her intestines, requiring emergency surgery. We are witnessing a lot of mental health issues, Maes said. This violence is traumatizing." Louis said her 10-year-old son would daily cry Youre going to die! as she headed to school, and the violence did not allow the boy to eat, sleep or play. Louis remained resolute, knowing she had to be strong for him and her students. My heart is destroyed, but my students see my smile every day," she said. Still, many would fall asleep in class, unable to focus after sleepless nights punctuated by gunfire. Others had more important things on their mind. Its hard to focus at school or focus on playing a game when the rest of your body is worried about whether your mom and dad are going to be alive when you get home from school, said Steve Gross, founder of the U.S. nonprofit Life is Good Playmaker Project. Some students are increasingly drawn into gangs, toting heavy weapons as they charge drivers for safe passage through gang territory. The young children are traumatized and agitated, said Nixon Elmeus, a teacher whose school closed in January. He recalled how his best student stopped talking after an encounter with gangs. Other students become violent: Ever since the war started, the children themselves have acted like theyre part of a gang. LEARNING TO COPE Gerye Jwa Playmakers, a Haitian partner nonprofit aimed at helping children, held a training session for teachers that Louis attended after gang violence forced her school to close in March. She learned which games were best to distract students from the violence outside school gates. How can I recapture these children? she asked. With hundreds of schools closed, online courses are for those who can afford Wi-Fi and a generator. Most Haitians live often in the dark due to chronic power outages. With no school, high poverty and trauma such as having to sidestep mangled bodies on streets, kids have become easy prey. Between 30% to 50% of members of armed groups are now children, Maes noted. Thats a very sad reality, he said. A 24-year-old man who offered only his last name, Nornile, for safety reasons, said he was in a gang for five years. He said he joined because the gang gave him money he needed and provided more food than his mother, a vendor, and his father, a mason, could offer him and his seven siblings. At night, he would work as a security guard for the gang leader. During the day, he would run errands and buy him food, clothes, sandals and other goods. Nornile said felt proud the gang trusted him but thought about quitting when one of his three brothers was killed by gangs on June 16, 2022. Ghetto men dont fight for education or a hospital. They fight for territory, he said. They only care about themselves. Nornile left the gang two years after his brother died and began working for Lucas nonprofit. The reality of the gang is that the person can carry a weapon, but in his mind, thats not what he really wants," Nornile said. PLAYING AGAIN Jean Guerson Sanon, co-founder and executive director of Gerye Jwa Playmakers, stressed the importance of parents interacting daily with children to boost their mental health. Sometimes, thats all we have, he said, noting that conversations about mental health remain largely taboo. If you go see a psychologist, its because youre crazy, and crazy people are really discriminated against in Haiti, he said. At the training on a recent Sunday, parents learned games for their children. One was mirroring the other person; another was pretending an inflatable ball was a piece of cheese that the child, pretending to be a mouse, had to steal. By the end of the training, parents were giggling as they invented different dance moves in a large circle in yet another way to play with their kids. When asked to draw what a safe space meant to them, several of them drew homes; some drew flowers; and one, Guirlaine Reveil, drew a man with a gun as she approached a police station a real-life scenario that occurred a couple years ago. One parent, Celestin Roosvelt, said he tells his children, 2 and 3, that gunfire is not a bad thing, a lie he called necessary. You have to find a way to live in your own country, he said with an apologetic shrug. At the end of the training, parents were given a copy of the presentation, crayons and an inflatable ball. Deroche, who runs the program, noted how parents feel so overwhelmed that they are disconnected from their children's needs. I know that the crisis were living through right now will have consequences that will take I dont know how many years to sort out, she said. RICHMOND, Va. (WAVY) Virginia lawmakers are expected to approve the state budget on Monday for the next two years. This comes after more than three weeks of negotiations between Democrats and Gov. Glenn Youngkin. Whats included in Virginias budget deal? The budget is for the 2025 to 2026 fiscal year. Topics which will be discussed can be found below: A 3% pay raise for teachers and state employees. $280,000 allocated for each year for the Department of Criminal Justice Services to provide annual active shooter trainings for school and community personnel. A total of 101,000,000 allocated for toll relief. This would provide financial relief for drivers who make up to $50,000 a year. For veterans, up to $100,000 a year would support a grant program to provide job opportunities for veterans. $1,626,575 a year to support mental health and substance abuse evaluation and treatment for juveniles, who are under state probation or parole. Legalizing skill games is not included in the state budget. Legislation to legalize skill games heads to Gov. Youngkins desk The governor still has a skill games piece of legislation before him that he has not acted upon and its incumbent upon the governor to act on that legislation, Virginia delegate Luke Torian said. He has to make a decision if he is going to veto or pass the legislation. He has legislation before him. Once lawmakers approve the budget, it will go to Governor Youngkins desk for his signature. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WAVY.com. Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin signs the budget with Sen. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, to his left, on Monday, May 13, 2024. (Charlie Paullin/Virginia Mercury). After months of partisan combat over different priorities, Virginia lawmakers approved a bipartisan budget deal Monday with no major tax changes, funding boosts for education and mental health and salary increases for teachers and state employees. Both chambers of the General Assembly approved the new two-year budget plan by wide margins. In the House of Delegates, the vote was 94-6. The state Senate approved it 39-1. This has been a protracted process, House of Delegates Appropriations Committee Chairman Luke Torian, D-Prince William, said on the House floor prior to the vote. But working together with the Senate and the governor we have developed a product that all parties believe will meet the needs of the commonwealth. The handful of votes against the budget were cast by Republicans, but Gov. Glenn Youngkin officially signed the document Monday afternoon, resolving the budget standoff and officially ending the remote possibility of a state government shutdown on July 1. We in fact listened to one another, Youngkin said. And understood each others priorities and perspectives. And that came together in the budget that we are going to sign today. No tax increases, no tax cuts The new budget agreement reflects the narrowly divided political dynamic in Richmond after Youngkin failed to win GOP majorities in last years legislative elections. The legislation doesnt include any of the tax cuts Youngkin called for in his original budget proposal last year. It also temporarily drops the idea of expanding the states sales tax to digital purchases like streaming services, downloads and software licenses, a tax expansion Democrats had included in their budget plan to help raise more money for public schools. The end result is a budget with no tax cuts and no tax increases, but Democrats have signaled they plan to keep studying the digital sales tax proposal as part of a broader look at the states code ahead of the 2025 legislative session. Democrats characterized the agreement as a win and emphasized that it reflected virtually all of the spending priorities they laid out during the regular session that ended in March. This is essentially the same budget that the governor called backwards and now he will be signing it into law, House Speaker Don Scott, D-Portsmouth, said in a statement. We have historic funding for education, healthcare, coastal resiliency, and gun violence prevention. We are being consistent with our values and putting our money where our mouth is. Education funding Due to the elimination of the digital sales tax, the state will lose $169 million in education direct aid spending. However, the budget includes more than $370 million for the At-Risk Add-On, which supports economically disadvantaged students, and a more than $70 million increase in support for English learner students. The two-year budget includes state money to pay for 3% salary increases in both years for teachers and other school staffers as well as state employees. The compromises on how public education will be funded in the new two-year spending plan raise concerns about long-term fiscal stability of our state budget to fund critical K-12 priorities in the future, the education advocacy group Fund Our Schools Coalition said in a statement after Mondays special session wrapped. The plan also has significant new spending to improve the states behavioral health system, adding more resources to help Virginians suffering from mental health crises. RGGI reentry language nixed In addition to backing off the digital sales tax proposal, the budget deal dropped a Democratic provision aiming to force the Youngkin administration to have Virginia rejoin the carbon market known as the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee Chair Sen. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, suggested those steps were necessary as part of the back-and-forth with a Republican governor. I know these actions are not popular and many feel that we are essentially kicking the can down the road, but progress can take time and sometimes compromise, Lucas said. The market requires electricity producers to purchase allowances to emit carbon as a way to incentivize decreasing the release of planet-warming carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.The revenues are returned to the participating states, where in Virginia about $730 million had been directed toward flood resiliency and energy efficiency programs. But Youngkin had called the monthly fee tacked onto customers monthly bills to recoup the allowance purchases which amounted to about $2.39 in Dominion territory a hidden tax, prompting him to withdraw Virginia from the market through an executive order and regulatory change, despite advocates saying a legislative change is needed. The matter is being challenged in Floyd County Circuit Court. Del. Rip Sullivan, D-Fairfax, said in a floor speech that Youngkin insisted the RGGI language come out under threat of veto. If RGGI is a tax then so are the additional fees Virginians will soon see on our electric bills, Sullivan added, referencing legislation carried by Del. Israel OQuinn, R-Washington, and Sen. Dave Marsden, D-Fairfax, that Youngkin signed, allowing utilities to recover early development costs for a small modular reactor. As for his insistence on removing the RGGI reentry language, Youngkin said in a press conference Monday afternoon, We had a robust discussion around all aspects of the budget. If we know that everyone is not happy then we probably landed in a good spot. Some environmental groups, except for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and the Virginia Energy Efficiency Council, who support the RGGI funding coming into Virginia, released a statement earlier in the day that said removing the language was a capitulation by the General Assembly. The Bay Foundation and Environmental Defense Fund said in their own statements not including the RGGI language was a disappointment, but separate measures included in the newly approved budget including funding for pollution reduction measures and a new Chief Resilience Officer are to be lauded. Veteran families tuition waiver changes Even as legislators in both parties hailed the deals passage as an example of putting partisan differences aside, some lawmakers pointed to a new problem that arose during budget talks that happened largely in private and was apparently only spotted once the deal became public. Several legislators in the House and Senate voiced concerns about a provision included in the budget they passed that will impact the Virginia Military Survivors and Dependents Education Program (VMSDEP), which provides college tuition waivers to the spouses or children of permanently disabled military veterans. Language in the budget will now require family members of disabled veterans seeking to further their education at a college or university to first complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), a change from the previous standards that required applicants: be the spouse or child (age 16 to 29) of a living or deceased veteran of the United States Armed Forces, United States Armed Forces Reserves, or the Virginia National Guard Virginia residents; have a physical presence in Virginia; and attend a Virginia public college or university. The program is administered through the Virginia Department of Veterans Services (VDVS) in collaboration with the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV). Several senators said on the floor that the budget language adds an unnecessary roadblock for veterans families trying to obtain an education. This is an issue Ive heard from numerous families who really feel blindsided by what has happened, said Sen. Tara Durant, R-Fredericksburg. We expect this type of legislation to go through the proper process, through committee, when those who are impacted by it can come before committee and speak on it. Instead [we are] legislating this through the budget. Many of us today are surprised to see how this is going to impact those families. Sen. Bill DeSteph, R-Virginia Beach, characterized it as an unintentional error. Theres nobody here that wants to cause any harm to those who sacrificed their lives, and what we recognize as a benefit or helping hand for their children. I know that in our hearts of hearts, we dont want to cause any harm to this program. Im asking for Gov. Youngkin to call [for] a study on the programs requirements, DeSteph said. Sen. Jeremy McPike, D-Prince William, the patron of the 2019 legislation that expanded the program, agreed that its requirements needed further study and said his original intent was for the fund to provide veterans spouses and children opportunities for undergraduate education, not medical school and other things he said the program is currently being used to pay for. Youngkin proposed an amendment that would have preserved military families access to the program without the new FAFSA requirement but lawmakers rejected that suggestion, and all of his amendments, when they reconvened in the April 17 veto session. Partisan drama was kept to a minimum Monday, and General Assembly leaders appeared to be trying to complete the budget as quickly and efficiently as possible. I dont want to keep yall here any longer than I have to, Scott quipped at one point while presiding over the House. As much as I love you all. Mercury editor Samantha Willis contributed to this story. Editors note: This story has been corrected to reflect that McPikes legislation expanded the VMSDEP program, but did not create it. The post Virginia lawmakers pass bipartisan budget that leaves tax policy unchanged appeared first on Virginia Mercury. What do I do? I feel almost paralysed. This is going to be one of the most important elections in my lifetime and Ive absolutely no idea how to vote. Imagine its November, now: Im in the booth, my little pencil hovering over the ballot paper, playing 3D chess in my head. I hate the Tories. I fear Labour. I dont have faith in Reform. What I really want - what millions of small-c conservatives want - is the Tories punished; a one-term Labour government; then a landslide victory for a proper right-wing party that shakes the country back to sense. Wed like to go from Heath to Thatcher with as little Wilson and Callaghan in the middle as possible. Its a narrow path but Reform says it can get there. Richard Tice argues that the Tories are beyond redemption, that all their mistakes over 14 years - wokery, open borders, crazy spending - werent an error but who they are. Indeed, lived experience tells me that Labour and Tory elites largely agree on what they want, they just move at different speeds. Conservatives will effect the odd pause (trans stuff); the occasional detour (Brexit). But had Gordon Brown won in 2010, Britain would look much like it does now: poor and self-loathing. So, screw em. Lets burn the Tories down and maybe a beautiful rightwing phoenix will arise from the ashes. My pencil dives towards the Reform box... Ah, but, what are the chances of Tice actually becoming an MP, let alone PM? Hes not the only one dreaming of high office. Dominic Cummings and the pollster Matt Goodwin have both indicated theyd like to start a new party, and the sheer ego of their ambition is instantly off-putting. New parties face the obstacles of first-past-the-post, organisation-building, the infiltration of nutcases, or competing for attention from a media that will hate you and a public that doesnt care. My mums hairdresser doesnt know who Keir Starmer is. Im sure she has heard of Nigel Farage - who hasnt?! - yet even the former leader of Reform seems reluctant to lend the party much publicity. Why? Is he in the booth next to mine making the same mental calculations? He does live near me... Nigel must have noticed that, absent a defining issue, Reform isnt doing as well as Ukip or the Brexit Party did, that its national poll figures have yet to translate into by-election wins even in areas that voted Leave. Its campaign in the West Midlands had the sole, sobering effect of costing Andy Street the mayoralty, which will have felt good for all of two seconds. I visited Birmingham that week; my host pointed out the overflowing bins. Street was competitive in Brum because the locals have experience of life under a Labour city council. My pencil orbits Labour. Would it be so bad if they won? I agree with their message that Britain needs to drop the Rwanda-style gimmickry and get back to running things well. As they say in Glasgow, funs fun, but to hell with nonsense. Yet I detect in Starmer a quality of the Trojan Horse, and not just in the sense that both are made of wood. What does this man actually believe? Its a mystery. I do know what his far-Left backbenchers think - and if Labour gets a landslide, you can multiply their number by three and turn their volume up to 11. Labours psychodrama will become your psychodrama, and as its passions on, say, net zero or identity politics are unleashed, expect the UK to hit fast forward on legislative change. Labour governments always leave a country significantly different to how they found it; the last bunch bequeathed us devolution and equalities legislation. Trembling, my hand considers the Tories. The Tories. Its hard even to say the name without spitting. Do I really have such low self-esteem as to vote for this hot mess again, even after theyve betrayed and robbed me blind? Then again, if there is anyone I do like in Parliament, its on the Conservative benches that youll find them - and if we lose Miriam and Jacob and Suella and Kemi in some Reform-enabled tsunami, then when the next vote comes up on something I really care about, such as abortion or assisted dying, I know exactly how a Labour majority will go. Though the Conservative Party has failed to stop progress, it remains the only plausible platform for critics and Cassandras. As for what itll do in opposition, my suspicion is that the more MPs it loses, the more likely it is to misinterpret the result. The party is institutionally stupid. Its grandees will declare that Rishi Sunak was too right-wing and the party must return to the centre, even though the centre (ie the public) is probably to the right of Rishi on several key issues. No, if you want to rescue conservatism, my gut tells me that the future lies not in walking away from this ghastly party but getting more involved - to infiltrate, occupy and re-launch a revived party, our party, in five years time. As for this election, endure it or enjoy it depending on your mood - the sooner its over, the better. I still have no clue which box to tick. It might not matter. Perhaps I shall continue my tradition of writing bizarre demands across the ballot paper that I hope has brightened up many a count here in Sevenoaks. To anyone wondering who it was who demanded Free Deidre Rachid! in the last local elections, now you know. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. A group of mostly White voters that is challenging Louisianas proposed congressional districts called the map morally repugnant in a filing with the Supreme Court on Monday. The high court is considering an emergency appeal over a map drawn by state lawmakers that includes a second majority-Black district in Louisianas six-district congressional plan. A conservative-leaning lower court recently ruled against that map, finding that its creation violated the Constitutions equal protection clause. The second majority-Black district was drawn in response to another court ruling that found an earlier map, which had only one majority-Black district, likely ran afoul of the Voting Rights Act. A federal judge had concluded that the earlier map discriminated against Louisianas Black voters, who make up nearly a third of the states population but accounted for a majority of voters in just one of the states six congressional districts. The new map is morally repugnant, the group of mostly White voters told the Supreme Court in the latest filing. Its not a close call. Because the case raises fundamental questions about how mapmakers consider race when they redraw congressional boundaries every decade, the Supreme Courts decision could have national implications. It could also affect control of the US House, where Republicans hold a narrow majority. Louisiana officials and a group of Black voters asked the Supreme Court last week to intervene in the fight, urging the high court to quickly resolve a dispute that has essentially left the state without a viable map for this years election. Five days out from May 15 the date by which the Louisiana Secretary of State needs to begin implementing a congressional map for the 2024 elections Louisiana has no congressional map, the state told the Supreme Court on Friday. Louisianas impossible situation in this redistricting cycle would be comical if it were not so serious. The voters challenging the map described that warning as oddly shrill and said lower courts have ample time before the November election. The Supreme Court could decide whether to allow the map to be used on a temporary basis as soon as this week. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Want to build a home in a flood-prone zone? NJ soon wants you to build it even higher New Jersey environmental officials are proposing new coastal zone building regulations, including a section that would force new homes to be built five feet higher over previous elevation standards in flood-prone areas. On Friday, state Environmental Commissioner Shawn LaTourette announced draft rules that would change how storm water and floods are managed throughout the Jersey Shore and along Delaware Bay. The new rules, called the Resilient Environments And Landscapes (REAL) reforms, would add five feet on top of the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) base flood elevations. The FEMA flood maps are frequently used in coastal communities as guidance for construction, due to their influence on flood insurance rates. "The New Jersey-specific climate science tells us that we can expect an increase of sea level rise by two feet by the year 2050, and five (feet) by the year 2100," LaTourette said Friday during a virtual news conference. "Our approach is to ensure that we support communities and support our economies by building things that will stand the test of time and a changing climate." Flooding: Which New Jersey towns will sink under water from sea level rise? Find out on this map Frankie Olivo of Seaside Heights pushes his bike as a storm moves into the area. Rain falls throughout the Jersey Shore area with a risk of flooding for the region. Seaside Heights, NJ Saturday, March 23, 2024 The 1,057-page REAL regulations would apply to new homes and critical buildings and infrastructure, as well as those being redeveloped or substantially improved. Roads and railroads are not included, except where elevation plans are included. The REAL regulations include provisions for: Expanding New Jersey's flood hazard area by 1.5%. Currently, about 16% of the state is within a flood hazard zone. Moving into compliance with FEMA flood-prevention regulations. Closing loopholes around stormwater regulations in redevelopment areas. Supporting offshore wind and solar energy projects while maintaining natural habitats. Encouraging less expensive, more resilient nature-based flood and stormwater solutions. 'Use your brain': Seaside Park nails drivers speeding through flooded roads, causing wakes The REAL proposal "doesn't tell people all the things they can't do, in all the places they can't build. This is America and private property rights are a thing," LaTourette said. "But it does prompt those who are redeveloping or developing anew to comply with standards that will ensure the long term safety of our residents and communities." The new proposed rules unlike the existing regulations take into account sea level rise predictions over the coming decades. Rutgers University experts say there is a 17% chance sea levels will rise more than 5 feet around New Jersey by the end of this century, in a moderate emissions scenario. The experts say there is a 50% chance that sea level will rise more than 3 feet over the next 75 years. The current building and redevelopment standards based on FEMA flood maps look only at past sea levels and storm surge data, not future predictions. "What are the regulations for building a house? You would think that they're built to today's flood risk," said Ed Potosnak, executive director of the New Jersey League of Conservation Voters. "The truth is, it's not. It's on historical flood data from yesterday." He added: "I think the best thing to do is plan for the future we know is coming. And that's what these (REAL) rules do." Looking to buy or rent in NJ? Sellers and landlords now required to disclose flooding risks George Kasimos, founder of Stop FEMA Now, an organization that pushes back on high flood insurance rate hikes, said he worried about the impacts of the proposed rules on homeowners. Hundreds, if not thousands, of Jersey Shore residents have yet to rebuild properties damaged in previous floods and storms, including Superstorm Sandy, he said. "Obviously the home will be safer at that (higher) elevation, but the cost of that home is going to be significantly higher because of the new freeboard (or elevation over base flood level)," he said. The proposed regulations are expected to be published in the New Jersey Register by July and be adopted a year later. Four webinars on the recommended rule changes will be held by the Department of Environmental Protection on May 20, May 22, May 23 and May 29. More information is available at dep.nj.gov/njreal/. Amanda Oglesby is an Ocean County native who covers education and the environment. She has worked for the Press for more than 15 years. Reach her at @OglesbyAPP, aoglesby@gannettnj.com or 732-557-5701. This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: NJ rules could force new homes five feet higher in flood zones EYEWITNESS NEWS (WBRE/WYOU) A man wanted on statutory sexual assault charges in Monroe County was arrested in New York over the weekend. On May 11, the New York Police Department and the United States Marshalls say they arrested 62-year-old Devon Johnson, a man charged with 77 counts relating to involuntary sexual intercourse with a minor in Monroe County. Police: Womans car vandalized in Wyoming County This comes nearly five months after officials issued a warrant for his arrest back in January. Johnson is facing the following charges: 12 counts of statutory sexual assault 12 counts of Involuntary Deviant Sexual Intercourse with a person less than 16 years of age 12 counts of unlawful contact with a minor sexual offenses 12 counts of Aggravated Indecent Assault of a minor 12 counts of unlawful contact with a minor obscene and other sexual materials and performance 12 counts of endangering the welfare of children 12 counts of corrupting minors 12 counts of criminal solicitation of child pornography 12 counts disseminating explicit sex material of a minor 12 counts of indecent exposure 12 counts of indecent assault of a person less than 16 years old Investigators said Johnson is currently awaiting extradition to Monroe County. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PAhomepage.com. Macon-Bibb County ceremonially cut the ribbon on new city offices Monday, celebrating the opening of new facilities for the Planning and Zoning, and Building and Fire Safety departments as part of the citys Macon Mall Rejuvenation project. The two new offices are located in the mall, which opened in 1975 and is now central to a city area undergoing major redevelopment. In addition to the offices, the project also includes the new Rhythm and Rally - the worlds largest indoor pickleball facility. The Atrium Health Amphitheater and more government offices, including the Board of Elections, are also part of the project. The Middle Georgia Regional Commission, library branch, and Mayors Literacy Alliance are part of the revamp too. Dr. Keith Moffett, county manager, said the move will greatly improve how the county operates. Moffett said having the offices next to each other will help streamline business in the Macon area. The bottom line is if you want to do any kind of business here in our community these two offices are the front door to that process, these two offices are where you need to go, he said. They are the hub of keeping businesses moving and growing which is why we are excited to have them here co-located in this beautiful facility. Alex Morrison, executive director of the Urban Development Authority, said the project was important to the economic vitality of the community. Just like the efforts being made downtown, the project will breathe new life into neighborhoods and businesses surrounding the Macon Mall. If youve been paying attention youve seen that our downtown is the greatest in America. And the theory of the case for downtown was that you have to inject life into the space, he said. You have to have people interacting in the space, using the space - living in the space. People are the key to any revitalization - it has to have life, it has to have a living pulse to it. Morrison said an 80% decrease in the taxable value of the homes within one mile of the mall had taken place from 1999 to 2020. He said much like downtown in the 80s and 90s, the mall experienced the same type of depression. By 2015 the Macon Mall was a shell of its former self, making the area around it depressed and devalued. When you see that kind of depression, that kind of dip - peoples lives become depressed. We cant have happiness if we dont have that vitality, he said. So, our thought is lets inject some vigor back into the mall space. Part of that is having daily use, having government offices here - people who are in here on a daily basis providing a baseline of success to support businesses and to support our overall growth. In a press release for the ceremony, Mayor Lester Miller said the county is actively working with businesses and organizations to focus its efforts and to work together on projects that will have years and decades of impact in the area surrounding the mall and ultimately the entire community. An open house will be held Wednesday from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. at 3661 Eisenhower Parkway, Suite MB104 to give businesses, industries, contractors and more a chance to tour the offices and see how they will improve interactions with the Macon-Bibb community. Poland has suspended talks with Ukraine regarding the Polish farmer protests at the countries' shared border over corruption suspicions involving former Ukrainian Agriculture Minister Mykola Solskyi, Polish Deputy Agriculture Minister Michal Kolodziejczak told the media outlet Dziennik Gazeta Prawna. Solskyi is suspected of illegally appropriating Ukrainian state-owned land worth Hr 291 million ($7.3 million) and attempting to seize another plot worth an additional Hr 190 million ($4.8 million), according to Ukraine's National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU). Ukraine's High Anti-Corruption Court ordered Solskyi's arrest on April 26. He was ordered to be held in custody until June 24, but he posted a Hr 75.7 million ($1.9 million) bail on the same day and was released. Ukraine's parliament dismissed Solskyi as agriculture minister on May 9. "Negotiations with Kyiv have been suspended because we will not negotiate with people accused of corruption. This issue must be clarified," Kolodziejczak said in an interview published on May 13. According to Kolodziejczak, Kyiv and Warsaw planned to conduct another round of negotiations on May 14, but they were canceled. Sign up for our newsletter Ukraine Weekly By Olga Rudenko Sign up Polish protesters stopped their blockade along the Polish-Ukrainian border on April 29, unblocking the last Hrebenne-Rava-Ruska crossing point. However, restrictions remain for trucks carrying grain to Poland. Polish farmers began blocking trucks at several border crossings in February in protest of Ukrainian agricultural imports and the EU's Green Deal. The blockade has led to deteriorating relations between Kyiv and Warsaw. Protestors spilled Ukrainian grain on several occasions, sparking outrage in Ukraine. Read also: Civilians flee Vovchansk under Russian bombardment as ground offensive on Kharkiv begins Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. The Legal Affairs Committee of the Georgian Parliament has supported the foreign agents draft law in the third and final reading, Trend reports. The committee's session was streamed live on the legislative body's website, with Henri Okhanashvili, the committee's head, delivering the report. As per protocol, the third reading entailed tweaking the draft law with editorial amendments, of which there were none. The draft now heads for deliberation in the third reading during the plenary session. Opponents of the foreign agents draft law have been staging yet another protest since Sunday. They congregated on Rustaveli Avenue near the parliament, staying overnight to disrupt the deputies' consideration of the initiative in the third reading during the Committee on Legal Affairs' meeting on the morning of May 13. By Monday morning, the police had dispersed the protesters from the parliament's service entrances. On May 1, the Georgian Parliament gave its nod to the draft law "On Transparency of Foreign Influence" in the second reading. It faced pushback from President Salome Zourabichvili, the opposition, and Western diplomats, who saw it as a stumbling block to the country's integration into the European Union. The leaders of the ruling party, "Georgian Dream - Democratic Georgia," argue that it only aims to ensure transparency in foreign funding for the non-governmental sector and media. Zourabichvili declared her intention to veto the draft law if it passes all three readings. The Washington County Career Expo at Hagerstown Community College hosted 1,100 participants on Wednesday, April 17, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Athletic, Recreation and Community Center (ARCC) on the HCC campus. The event included 170 organizations, with 342 representatives and 787 attendees. Participants and employers networked about job opportunities, resources and pathways to employment in Washington County. Many participants reported making new connections, filling out job applications and having on-the-spot interviews. There also was a self-service professional headshot booth available. The Washington County Career Expo at Hagerstown Community College hosted 1,100 participants recently. Participants and employers networked about job opportunities, resources and pathways to employment in Washington County. Twelve workshops were held throughout the day. There were three sessions for organizations and employers, including Person-Centered Approach to Hiring, Developing and Retaining Talent; Western Maryland Consortium and Their Services; and The Power of Social Media. There were nine sessions for attendees and jobseekers, including Resume Writing; The Power of Social Media; Soft Skills; Interviewing Techniques; and Federal Job-Hunting Process. Manning Media offered a raffle prize, a $2,500 radio package, to organizations. Hub City Concessions (with Hagerstown Flying Boxcars) won the vendor drawing. More: How should women approach business? Like a boss, of course. And these women want to help The Washington County Career Expo was hosted by Hagerstown Community College in partnership with Washington County Business and Economic Development, and was funded by an American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) grant. This event was free for organizations and participants. To learn more about this event, go to www.hagerstowncc.edu/careerexpo. This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: Washington County Career Expo draws 787 Ms Harris speaking during at campaign event in Philadelphia earlier this month - Matt Rourke/AP Kamala Harris has said young Asian Americans need to kick the f---ing door down when it comes to barriers to equality. The US vice president drew applause as she addressed a leadership summit for Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander people in Washington DC on Monday. She said: We have to know that sometimes people will open the door for you and leave it open. Sometimes they wont, and then you need to kick that fing door down. Excuse my language, Ms Harris, 59, added laughing, amid cheers from the crowd. Jimmy O Yang, the actor and comedian moderating the conversation with the vice president, quipped: We gotta make T-shirts with that saying. Ms Harris, who was appearing at the annual Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies legislative leadership summit, also spoke about making history as the first first female, black and Asian vice president. She said: Heres the thing about breaking barriers. Breaking barriers does not mean you start on one side of the barrier and you end up on the other side... when you break things you get cut. And you may bleed. Ms Harris added: And it is worth it every time. She said her experience has affirmed her view that: You have to be in the fight. You cant sit it out, because you know how inequity happens. You know what happens when systems displace power or when systems are suppressing the rights of other people, she said. Jimmy O Yang, hosting the event, applauded Ms Harris's words - Kevin Winter/Getty She advised those listening in the audience: You walk in those rooms, chin up, shoulders back. You walk in those rooms knowing we are all in that room with you, applauding you on, and expecting certain things from you. The event comes as Ms Harris and Joe Bidens re-election campaign aggressively targets ethnic minorities, whom polls suggest are abandoning the Democratic Party. This month, the campaign launched a $14 million (11 million) ad campaign aimed at Black, Latino, Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander voters. Ms Harris said the key question for voters in Novembers White House race was: What kind of country do we want to live in? Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Watch: Students walk out of Jerry Seinfeld speech over his support for Israel Dozens of students walked out of Duke Universitys commencement ceremony on Sunday to protest its guest speaker, comedian Jerry Seinfeld, over his support for Israel. Figures in robes and caps, some waving Palestinian flags, were seen filing out of crowds of graduates assembled on the grass in the North Carolina Universitys football stadium. The video also showed several attendees leaving the viewing stands, including a person wearing a keffiyeh, which can be an emblem of solidarity with the Palestinian cause. Others shouted Jerry! Jerry! as the actor received an honorary degree, and Seinfeld delivered his speech without major interruptions. A lot of you are thinking, I cant believe they invited this guy. Too late, he said, after vowing to defend the concept of privilege. I say, use your privilege. I grew up a Jewish boy from New York. That is a privilege if you want to be a comedian, he added. Jerry Seinfeld, seen here speaking at the Duke University commencement ceremony, has visited Israel and vocally supported it since the October 7 Hamas attack - AP/Bill Snead We understand the depth of feeling in our community, and as we have all year, we respect the right of everyone at Duke to express their views peacefully, without preventing graduates and their families from celebrating their achievement, said Duke spokesperson Frank Tramble in a statement. Seinfeld visited Israel and has vocally supported it since October 7, when militant group Hamas killed 1,200 people and abducted 252 others, of whom 133 are believed to remain in captivity in Gaza, according to Israeli tallies. Meanwhile, Israels military operations have killed more than 35,000 Palestinians, according to health officials in the Hamas-ruled Palestinian enclave. The White House said last Tuesday that US President Joe Biden welcomes peaceful protests at college commencement ceremonies where he and other administration officials will speak. The walkout at Dukes graduation was the latest manifestation of protests that have roiled campuses across the country as students call for universities to divest from arms suppliers and other companies profiting from the war, and amnesty for students and faculty who have been disciplined or fired for protesting. The protests have prompted some US universities, including Columbia in New York and the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, to cancel their main graduation ceremonies this month. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) Nearly a dozen water contact advisories have been issued in recent days for San Diego beaches with high levels of bacteria. At this time, there are 9 water advisories in place, and four closures at San Diego County beaches. San Diego forecast: no rain in foreseeable future Current beach advisories: San Diego Bay Coronado Tidelands Park Shoreline Mission Bay North Bonita Cove 150 on either side of the restroom complex Mission Bay South Crown Point 150 North and South of drain near restrooms Mission Bay Fanuel Park 50 East and West Mission Bay Campland Beachline Mission Bay Fiesta Island Northwest shoreline La Jolla Cove Beachline Oceanside San Luis Rey River outlet San Luis Rey River outlet to 300 South Chronic advisory: La Jolla Childrens Pool Status Since: September 1997 The countys Beach and Bay Water Quality Monitoring Program is constantly watching the bacteria levels in the ocean along San Diego Countys 70 miles of beaches, and has the latest water advisories, warnings and closures online here. Pesticides found in deep-sea fish off LA coast: Scripps, SDSU researchers Signs are also posted in affected areas. An advisory is issued to warn beachgoers when levels of bacteria test higher than state health standards. Map: See where great white sharks frequent in the Pacific Ocean When an advisory is in place, the public is cautioned to avoid water contact in affected areas as the high levels of bacteria in the water can contain pathogens that can cause people to contract illnesses such as gastroenteritis, respiratory disease, fever, rashes, paralysis, meningitis, infections in bloodstream, or diarrhea, according to the countys water quality monitoring program. The four beach closures in place are the same chronic closures that have been in place in recent months and years, including the Tijuana Slough Shoreline in Imperial Beach, which has been closed for more than 800 consecutive days from cross border sewage pollution. The countys water quality monitoring program notes samples are taken every day in that area. San Diego tsunami evacuation signs: Do you know what to do if one hits? Other beach closures include the Coronado shoreline from Avenida Lunar to North Beach; Silver Strand Shoreline from north Carnation to south of Avenida Lunar; and the Imperial Beach Shoreline from the south end of Seacost Drive through Carnation Ave. Just this past weekend, San Diegos congressional delegation called on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to launch an investigation into the public health impacts of the Tijuana River sewage crisis. New website launched to monitor illnesses caused by South Bay pollution Amid San Diegos forecast of mostly sunny and 70s all week, there is a small craft marine advisory in place from 3 p.m. Monday to 3 p.m. Tuesday in the waters from Pt. Sal to Santa Cruz Island, including San Miguel and Santa Rosa Islands, and the outer waters from Santa Cruz Island to San Clemente Island to 60 NM offshore including San Nicolas and Santa Barbara Islands, the National Weather Service reports. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 5 San Diego & KUSI News. Woman dies after being rescued from American River, officials say (FOX40.COM) A woman died early Sunday afternoon after being rescued from the American River, according to state park officials. Officials said officers with California State Parks, CAL Fire, Auburn Fire, the Placer County Sheriffs Office, and the California Highway Patrol responded to a water rescue on Sunday near the confluence of the American River. Body of missing mother recovered in San Joaquin River, sheriffs office says Rescue efforts located the woman and attempted to provide medical aid, but she was later declared dead by medical personnel. Our thoughts are with the victim and her family, officials said. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX40. West Virginia man charged with federal crimes against child in TN MEMPHIS, Tenn. A federal grand jury in Jackson, Tennessee returned an indictment charging a West Virginia man with federal child exploitation offenses, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorneys Office. Philip Stephen Plyler, 41, of Fairmont, West Virginia is charged on a two-count indictment with transporting a minor in interstate commerce with intent that the minor engage in illegal sexual activity, and with traveling in interstate commerce with the motivating purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct with the minor. Download the WREG App today and stay up to date with breaking news and weather. Sign up for WREG newsletters and have the latest top stories sent right to your inbox. See more breaking news, local news and weather from WREG.com for Memphis and the Mid-South. If convicted of both charges, Plyler is facing a sentence of up to life in prison, reports say. The case is being investigated by the FBI Memphis Child Exploitation Task Force and the Milan Tennessee Police Department. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WREG.com. The Writers Guild of America East council sent a letter to Vox Media brass Monday to demand the company allow employees at its publications The Dodo and Thrillist to merge into the Vox Media Union. The Dodo and Thrillist parent company Group Nine was purchased by Vox Media in December 2021. The Group Nine publications have been incorporated into Vox Media operations, but the employees say Vox Media leadership is refusing to allow them to join the Vox Media Union. More from Variety The workers at Vox Media, the Dodo, and Thrillist all work together, for the same employer, and have integrated operations and staff across the company, the WGA East council, including president Lisa Takeuchi Cullen, wrote in its letter to Vox Media CEO Jim Bankoff and president Pam Wasserstein Monday, which was obtained by Variety. More importantly, these workers have overwhelmingly expressed their wishes to bargain together for equal rights under one contract. Despite these realities, you have so far insisted on three separate units working under three separate contracts. Not only does Vox Medias intransigence disrespect the wishes of your workers, it is also inefficient, forcing Vox Media, bargaining unit members, and the Guild to bargain and administer three separate contracts, wasting time, energy, and resources for all involved at a time of profound uncertainty and instability in digital media. This must change. Representatives for Vox Media did not immediately respond to request for comment Monday. After two years of tumultuous layoffs, chaotic acquisitions, and stonewalling good-faith efforts at communication with the company, Vox Medias management had the opportunity to support their workers, the Vox United Committee, comprised of employees across Vox Media, The Dodo and Thrillist, said in a statement. Instead, theyve denied their employees the dignity of a single contract for WGAE represented staff. Not only is this indicative of their lack of respect, it also complicates day-to-day operations for many teams. They are wasting precious time and resources by denying Thrillist, The Dodo, and Vox Media unions One Union, One Contract. Penske Media Corp., publisher of Variety, became Vox Medias largest single shareholder in 2023 after PMC acquired a minority stake in the company. PMC invested $100 million in Vox Media for a 20% stake, the New York Times reported. See the WGA East Councils letter to Vox Media in full below. We, the Council of the Writers Guild of America East, representing workers in film, TV, streaming, broadcast news and online media, write to express our unwavering support for our members of Vox Media Union, The Dodo Union, and Thrillist Union, and to demand that Vox Media management accede to their request to merge under one union and one contract. We are disappointed by Vox Medias unwillingness to agree to this request outside of a lengthy and costly NLRB Unit Clarification process. The workers at Vox Media, the Dodo, and Thrillist all work together, for the same employer, and have integrated operations and staff across the company. More importantly, these workers have overwhelmingly expressed their wishes to bargain together for equal rights under one contract. Despite these realities, you have so far insisted on three separate units working under three separate contracts. Not only does Vox Medias intransigence disrespect the wishes of your workers, it is also inefficient, forcing Vox Media, bargaining unit members, and the Guild to bargain and administer three separate contracts, wasting time, energy, and resources for all involved at a time of profound uncertainty and instability in digital media. This must change. We stand fully behind our members at Vox Media Union, The Dodo Union, and Thrillist Union and are prepared to deploy resources of the Guild to help them achieve their goals. We hope to hear from you within one week regarding how we can move forward together to respect the wishes of these workers. If we do not hear from you, we will take appropriate, public, next steps. Best of Variety Sign up for Varietys Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Wauwatosa is following the suit of Wisconsin and communities across the U.S. to set goals for achieving municipal and community carbon neutrality by 2050. Carbon neutrality means reducing or offsetting emissions alongside any actions that lead to emissions. To get there, the city, Tosa residents and local businesses will need to decrease the use of emission-producing sources especially fossil fuels like natural gas and liquid fuels that are top contributors to climate change and take on more energy efficient changes. A new report from Wauwatosas Sustainability Committee details that while city operations are on track to decrease emissions, community and business that make up the majority of Wauwatosa's overall greenhouse gas emissions can do more. Heres what to know. What does Wauwatosas Sustainability Committee do? The Sustainability Committee is currently made up of 10 volunteer residents, a city liaison and one council member liaison. The group advises the Common Council and city staff on sustainability issues and works to identify and recommend policies or actions to get Wauwatosa closer to the goals to decarbonize outlined in the citys Energy Resolution of October 2020. The committee also works on initiatives to help community and local businesses lower their emissions. The committee is a part of the Wisconsin Local Government Climate Coalition, a group of representatives in local municipalities identifying decarbonization strategies. In some municipalities, a staff member works full time to connect the city, businesses and residents with resources and guidance to become more sustainable. The Sustainability Committee's goals for 2024 includes supporting the creation and hiring of a sustainability manager who would be shared between Wauwatosa and other municipalities. What does the Sustainability Committee Report include? The Wauwatosa Sustainability Committees annual report compares energy and greenhouse gas emissions used in city operations, as well as in the residential and commercial sectors, over 2023 and previous years. The full report can be read on the city's public meeting portal website. Wauwatosas city-owned emissions make up a sliver of the citys total greenhouse gas emissions, the report shows. Residential emissions make up a third of emissions and commercial emissions at businesses and companies make up the other nearly two thirds. Wauwatosa's city operations make up a tiny part of the community's overall greenhouse gas emissions. Commercial emissions make up about two thirds of emissions, while residential emissions make up the other third, according to the Sustainability Committee's report. Measurements of emissions focus on the three major areas of energy use in the city: electricity, natural gas and liquid fuels. The data in the report doesnt include transportation emissions. It can be a challenge to compare energy use because of fluctuating factors like more hot or cold days in a year, the report states. Overall spending will also change depending on the price of fuel, according to the report. Wauwatosas city-owned facilities decreased emissions, solar and LED changes save nearly $189,000 Facilities owned by the city of Wauwatosa decreased their energy and greenhouse gas emissions in 2023, according to the annual report. Thats largely thanks to many energy-efficient projects throughout the city, especially at the Department of Public Works building. Energy efficiency means to use less energy to perform the same task and produce the same result. Energy efficient buildings and appliances reduce greenhouse gas emissions while lowering costs on energy bills. Projects like the citys switch to LED streetlights and the installation of solar panels at the Department of Public Works building have started to pay off, the report shows. The city saved nearly $189,000 in energy costs in 2023 and decreased the city operations overall greenhouse gas emissions by 9.4% in 2023 compared to 2022. Continuing reduction of energy use and increasing onsite electricity generation helps ease the financial impact of volatile energy prices, the report stated. Energy from local renewables still needed in Wauwatosa Wauwatosa is not on track, however, to reach its goal of at least 25% of energy for municipal operations coming from local renewable resources, the report states. In 2023, less than 7% of Wauwatosa's energy came from local renewable resources, largely thanks to the solar paneling at City Hall and the Department of Public Works. We Energies has plans to decarbonize its electricity generation by 2050, the report stated. "However, to fully decarbonize, We Energies needs to deploy renewable sources such as wind and solar much faster," the committee report states. "As they do so, the (greenhouse gas) impact from Wauwatosas electricity use will decrease." Reducing community and business emissions would make the biggest difference, but remains 'the challenge' Wauwatosa's municipal operations are largely making progress to decarbonize. But to really move the needle on Wauwatosa's goal of carbon neutrality, the residential and commercial sectors that account for the bulk of Wauwatosa's energy emissions need to make meaningful change, the report shows. The challenge is the community goal, Mike Arney, the chair of the Sustainability Committee told the Government Affairs Committee April 30 in the presentation of the report. Members of the committee have found ways to connect with people in the community to reduce emissions. They've shared resources at the Tosa Community Fair and Tosa Farmers Market and partnered with local organizations. The city is also recognized as a Bird City Wisconsin, meaning it's a municipality that protects birds and preserves their habitats. Wauwatosa residents are doing their part to make their households more sustainable, too. Some are organizing to get hundreds of neighbors and local groups commit to planting native species in their yards to earn Wauwatosa the title of a "Community Wildlife Habitat," a municipality-wide certification of being a welcoming habitat for birds, insects and other wildlife year-round. The number of Wauwatosa residents who applied to install solar panels on their homes nearly doubled in 2022. Federally funded sustainability manager shared with Milwaukee and municipalities would help While individual actions add up, money from the federal government would help fund a staff role that would bring more consistent outreach and education that's needed to help Wauwatosa residents and businesses reach carbon neutrality. The City of Milwaukee applied for a $10 million regional Climate Pollution Reduction Grant in partnership with West Allis, Shorewood, Ozaukee, Waukesha and Wauwatosa, according to Arney. Milwaukee passed its own Climate and Equity Plan last year, which seeks net-zero emissions by 2050, like Wauwatosa. The grant would help fund two shared sustainability manager positions between the partnering municipalities, a position that city leaders and the sustainability committee have long hoped to bring to Wauwatosa, Arney said in the Government Affairs Committee meeting. If we get this grant, there will be two sustainability managers housed in our facilities here," with time specifically devoted to Wauwatosa, Arney said. A $77,000 Energy Efficiency Community Block grant is also available for the city to put towards sustainability efforts, he said. That may involve electric vehicle charging stations, solar power or HVAC, and remains to be decided by the Department of Public Works in the next few months, Arney said. Here are resources for reducing your carbon footprint The City of Wauwatosa's website provides information on solar energy, its benefits and resources for installation. Rewiring America's Savings calculator shows what money incentives homeowners and renters might be eligible for in exchange for electrifying their homes. Make your yard a "Certified Wildlife Habitat" through the National Wildlife Foundation. What climate goals has Wauwatosa set for the future? Wauwatosas Common Council adopted a resolution of its own goals in 2020 including: Reducing municipal emissions to 50% of 2010 levels by 2030. Sourcing at least 25% of all energy from local renewable sources by 2025. Achieving municipal and community carbon neutrality by 2050. The city also pledged to track progress by collecting and publishing basic data annually on the city's and community's energy use. Bridget Fogarty reports on Brookfield, Elm Grove and Wauwatosa. She can be reached at bfogarty@gannett.com This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Here's what to know about Wauwatosa's latest sustainability report The White House announced on Monday that it opposes a Republican-led bill that would force President Joe Biden to send withheld military assistance to Israel. We strongly, strongly oppose attempts to constrain the presidents ability to deploy a U.S. security assistance consistent with U.S. foreign policy and national security objectives, press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters. House Republicans introduced the bill over the weekend in response to Bidens decision to pause a shipment of weapons in an effort to deter Israel from launching a full-scale ground operation in the Gaza city of Rafah. Last week the administration announced it was pausing a shipment of 2,000-pound and 500-pound bombs. Then in an interview with CNN on Wednesday, Biden said he had told Israeli leaders the U.S. would cut off its military aid if they decide to go ahead with an invasion of the city. The warning generated praise among progressives and others in the Democratic Party who have questioned Biden's steadfast support for Israel amid a rising death toll in Gaza. But it also prompted immediate criticism from Israel supporters as well as Republicans who accused the White House of hampering Israels offensive against Hamas. In response, GOP leaders said they planned a floor vote on legislation prohibiting Biden from withholding aid, which they dubbed the Israel Security Assistance Support Act. The bill also would freeze the budgets for the offices of the Defense Secretary, Secretary of State and National Security Council if Biden doesnt deliver the weapons being withheld. The vote is likely to serve as a tricky political test for some vulnerable Democrats who have tried to toe the line between supporting Israel's war against Hamas and the White House's efforts to limit the impact on civilians in Gaza. The White House has repeatedly warned Israel against a major ground operation in Rafah, though it has struggled to articulate what that would look like. Israeli forces are already in the city, though they have not yet conducted sweeping missions. Israels prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has said he would go forward with an invasion with or without U.S. support. Jean-Pierre on Monday defended Bidens decision to pause the military shipment, noting that it included 2,000-pound bombs which can be very destructive in densely populated urban environments such as Rafah." The president has been very clear: His commitment to Israels security is ironclad, she said. It is our objective as well that we plan to spend every last cent appropriated consistent with legal obligations." The White House on Monday said it was strongly opposed to a House GOP bill aimed at President Bidens handling of aid shipments to Israel. Press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre pushed back against the Israel Security Assistance Support Act, which is set to receive a vote this week in the House. We strongly, strongly oppose attempts to constrain the presidents ability to deploy U.S. security assistance consistent with U.S. foreign policy and national security objectives, Jean-Pierre said at a press briefing. It is our objective, as well, that we plan to spend every last cent appropriated consistent with legal obligations, including in the recent national security supplemental that was just passed, she added. Biden last week in a CNN interview warned he would stop supplying Israel with offensive weapons like bombs and artillery shells if Israeli forces launched an invasion of Rafah, where about a million refugees have settled after fleeing fighting in northern Gaza. The U.S. already paused a shipment of bombs to Israel earlier this month over concerns of a looming full-scale invasion of Rafah. Officials said the large bombs were withheld because of the damage they could cause in high-density areas. In response, the House this week is slated to vote on the Israel Security Assistance Support Act, which urges the expeditious delivery of defense articles and services to Israel, condemns the Biden administrations decision to pause shipments to Israel and reaffirms Israels right to self-defense. It also calls for funds for the secretaries of Defense and State and the National Security Council to be withheld until defense articles are delivered to Israel. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) last week suggested that the president was having a senior moment when he announced, during an interview with CNN, the U.S. would stop sending offensive weapons to Israel if its forces invade Rafah, and Rep. Cory Mills (R-Fla.) filed an article of impeachment against Biden last week after he issued his warning. The vote on the bill has the potential to split Democrats, however. Progressives have lauded Bidens threat to cut off weapons shipments to Israel, describing it as the right move amid a growing number of humanitarian deaths in the Gaza Strip. Meanwhile, a group of 26 House Democrats penned a letter to White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan last week that said they were deeply concerned about the message the administration was sending to Hamas and other Iranian-backed terrorist proxies by holding back some weapons shipments, a sign that some Democrats may support the GOP-led resolution. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. Georgia's Ministry of Internal Affairs has detained 20 people at a protest in Tbilisi opposing a bill targeting foreign agents, including one Russian and two Americans, all on administrative grounds, Trend reports. The law enforcement said in a statement that these individuals were detained under Articles 166 (for minor hooliganism) and 173 (for not cooperating with the cops) of the Administrative Offenses Code. Among those picked up, three are foreigners: a 2002-born Russian national, a 1995-born US citizen, and another US national who refused to reveal his identity. Meanwhile, opponents of the foreign agent bill staged another rally on Sunday. They camped out near the parliament on Rustaveli Avenue, staying put overnight to block deputies from kicking off discussions on the initiative's third reading at the Committee on Legal Affairs meeting on May 13th. By Monday morning, the police had cleared the demonstrators away from the parliament's official entrances. Nevertheless, the Legal Committee has already pushed the initiative through its third reading. Will the former "fixer" to Donald Trump make or break his future? Michael Cohen, seen leaving the district attorney's office in New York on March 13, 2023, is expected to testify on Monday in the former president's hush money trial. (Yuki Iwamura/AP) Michael Cohen, once a fierce ally to former President Donald Trump, was called to the witness stand at Trumps hush money trial on Monday. Billed as a star witness for the Manhattan district attorneys office, Cohens name has come up repeatedly since witness testimony in the trial began on April 22. Heres what you need to know in light of his highly anticipated testimony. Who is Michael Cohen? Cohen worked for the Trump Organization for more than a decade as Trumps attorney, starting in 2006. During that time, he became known as Trumps fixer due to his role in covering up Trumps problems. What was his relationship to Trump? Cohen was first introduced to Trump in 2006 by Donald Trump Jr. After consulting with the real estate mogul on a few legal matters, Cohen quickly became executive vice president of the Trump Organization and special counsel to Trump. As he explained to Vanity Fair in 2017, he was so devoted to Trump at the time that he said he would take a bullet for him. Whats Cohens role in the hush money trial? Cohen said that shortly before the 2016 presidential election, he made a $130,000 payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels as she was shopping her story to major media outlets about an alleged affair she had with Trump in 2006. He said the payment was intended to silence Daniels from speaking to the media and compromising Trumps presidential future. According to Cohen, Trump reimbursed him for the payment after he became president through a shell company that Cohen had opened for that sole purpose. Prosecutors claim that Trump falsified the paperwork of those payments by masking them as legal services. The paper trail of those payments make up the 34 alleged falsified records that Trump is charged with. What else was Cohen involved in? Cohen also played a role in coordinating two other so-called catch-and-kill deals one involving a former doorman at Trump Tower who claimed that Trump had an illegitimate baby with a maid, and another involving Playboy model Karen McDougal, who claimed to have had an affair with Trump from 2006 to 2007. David Pecker, the former CEO of American Media, which publishes the National Enquirer, testified on the witness stand that Cohen helped facilitate deals made by American Media to the doorman and McDougal for the full rights to their stories. The stories ultimately were buried and never published. When did things go wrong? In January 2018, the Wall Street Journal broke the story about Cohens hush money payments to Daniels. Seven months later, in August 2018, and unbeknownst to Trump, Cohen made a deal with federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York and pleaded guilty to eight criminal counts. At the time, he said he participated in this conduct for the principal purpose of influencing the 2016 presidential election. The following month, it was revealed that Cohen had participated in hours of interviews with investigators from special counsel Robert Muellers office as part of its investigation into allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. In November 2018, he struck a second deal this time with Mueller and pleaded guilty to lying to Congress about the Russian investigation. Trump changed his tune about Cohen shortly thereafter, calling him a weak person. Why did he go to prison? Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison at the end of 2018 for various crimes, including tax evasion, lying to Congress and campaign finance violations relating to hush money payments made to Daniels. Ultimately, he served a little over a year in federal prison and spent the rest under home confinement. He was released in November 2021. What to expect from Cohen on the witness stand Cohen is expected to directly link Trump to the 34 allegedly falsified records at the center of the case through testimony and evidence, which includes documents and recorded conversations between himself and his former boss. Meanwhile, Trumps team is expected to attack Cohens credibility and past criminal record, portraying him as a scorned underling seeking revenge against the former president, reports the New York Times. What was the judges order for Cohen on Friday? On May 10, Judge Juan Merchan, whos overseeing Trumps hush money trial, directed Cohen to keep quiet about Trump ahead of his testimony this week. The order came after Trumps lawyers complained about a video Cohen shared on social media wearing a shirt that depicted Trump behind bars. The heavy bombs that President Biden has held back from sending to Israel have been a major point of controversy in the Gaza war, as a key tool for Israels decimation of the territory. Biden has paused a shipment of some 3,500 bombs, which includes heavy 2,000-pound versions along with the lighter 500-pound munitions. Both have been used to devastating effect in Gaza, swaths of which have been reduced to rubble. Israel says the bombs are critical to taking out Hamas targets, but the Biden administration has drawn the line on their use in any large-scale offensive into the densely packed southern Gaza city of Rafah. Human rights groups have for months said that U.S. bombs in Gaza have inflicted a costly toll on civilians and have pointed to instances of indiscriminate Israeli attacks and some Democrats are saying Biden should have stopped supplying them sooner. For months, I have strongly urged the Biden administration to prioritize Israels defensive needs rather than offensive weapons that could cause enormous suffering in Gaza and further escalate tensions across the region., Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) said in a statement last week. Stephen Miles, president of the progressive advocacy group Win Without War, said 2,000-pound bombs have a dramatic effect when dropped in dense areas and by using them, Israel is knowingly taking action that leads to innocent people dying. Theres no way to use these bombs in the Gaza Strip without causing massive harm, he said. The munition is designed for maximum depth of destruction. It is not designed to be used in tightly packed communities in dense urban environments. Even before the Gaza war, the U.S. was set to deliver about $3 billion a year to Israel through 2028. Thats now set to be far higher after Congress approved billions more last month at Bidens request to help Israels fight to eliminate Palestinian militant group Hamas. More than 100 U.S. foreign military sales have been approved to Israel since Oct. 7, when Hamas invaded southern Israel, killed some 1,200 people and took another roughly 250 hostages. That military aid includes artillery shells, air defense munitions and bombs, along with fighter jets and small arms that Israel has used against Hamas and the Hezbollah military and political group in Lebanon, along with other Iranian-backed groups in the Middle East. The standard conventional U.S. bombs are the Mark 80 series, which range from the Mark 81 weighing at 250 pounds to the Mark 84 at 2,000 pounds. They are dropped from aircraft onto targets. Israel employs the bombs as part of its strategy to defeat Hamas, which uses tunnels and hidden networks across Gaza to hide forces, weapons and equipment. Avi Melamed, a former Israeli intelligence official, said Israel has chosen to put troops on the ground in sensitive areas, including hospitals, instead of dropping bombs. But in challenging situations, such as a deep underground site, it is more effective to deploy heavier bombs. There are [some] areas where the use of those bombs is more efficient and more justified, at least from a military perspective, in order to neutralize those targets, he said. But heavier bombs generally cause more devastation by creating a larger impact once they hit the ground, and their use has helped drive up the human toll in Gaza, where more than 34,000 people have died in the seven-month war. In a CNN interview earlier this week, Biden said he would not provide offensive weapons to Israel if troops move into Rafah where more than a million civilians are sheltering from the war, along with Hamas battalions. Civilians have been killed in Gaza as a consequence of those bombs and other ways in which they go after population centers, Biden told CNN earlier this week. Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder told reporters that the U.S. was reviewing the 2,000-pound bombs in the context of Rafah. Were focused on the end use, especially rather focused on the end use of the 2,000-pound bombs and the impact that they could have in a dense urban setting as weve seen in other parts of Gaza, he said Thursday. Thats something that well continue to look at. The hold on the bombs and the threat to pause more weapons has angered Israel, with Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowing to fight on alone if needed. Former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett told CNN this week that the bombs can sometimes cause collateral damage but argued that was a fact in all wars, and he accused Hamas of using human shields in Gaza. Is Israel using bombs to target civilians? Absolutely not. Never. We never target civilians, he said. In fact, we have the lowest ratio of collateral damage in the history of urban warfare. Theres about, lets call it, 32,000 Palestinians who died. Half of them are terrorists. Thats 1-to-1. In Afghanistan, in Iraq, it was 1-to-9. For every terrorist you killed, there were six, seven, eight, nine civilians, he added. Were bending over backward in order to prevent unnecessary deaths. Otherwise, wed get this whole thing done within three days if we didnt care about it. The Hamas-run health agency does not differentiate between civilians and militants in its casualty figures, and some monitors have put forward far lower estimates of the proportion of fighters in the overall death toll. Human rights groups and media reports have pointed to several instances of U.S. bombs being misused in Gaza. International humanitarian law does not prohibit the use of heavy bombs in warfare, but warring parties must prevent indiscriminate attacks and are obligated to take feasible precautions to prevent the deaths of civilians. CNN reported in December that hundreds of 2,000-pound bombs were used in the first month of the war, creating around 500 different 40-foot craters in diameter. At least one incident involved a big bomb airstrike in the Jabalia refugee camp in late October, which killed more than 100 people. And The New York Times reported also in December that 2,000-pound bombs were dropped in areas of southern Gaza where civilians had been told to move toward for safety. Amnesty International identified several strikes that it alleged were unlawful and involved U.S. bombs. Amanda Klasing, national director for government relations with Amnesty International USA, said some of the 2,000-pound bombs have been wiping out whole families, and because the bombs are so large, its difficult to minimize collateral damage. There isnt any clear indication that theres a desire to actually apply international law to the usage of these weapons, she said of the Israeli military. The risk is still high to the transfer of these arms to the government of Israel. Amnesty has also raised concerns about Israel issuing 24-hour mass evacuation notices and limited advance notice before airstrikes. To reduce casualties, a 2,000-pound or 500-pound dumb bomb can also be fitted with Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) kits, which convert the unguided munition into a smart, precision-guided bomb. Klasing said JDAMs and smaller bombs still carry a high risk if not used properly. The ability to have more precision has to be paired with intentionality to follow international humanitarian law, she said. Similarly, if you dont change the pattern of how these weapons are deployed and you just change the size of the weapon, thats not really bringing yourself inline with international humanitarian law. A State Department review released Friday found it was reasonable to assess that Israel has violated international humanitarian law in Gaza but stopped short of a determinative finding of wrongdoing, because the review did not find specific instances of violations. Israel and its allies often respond to criticism of the Gaza death toll by pointing to Hamass tactics of operating out of areas with dense civilian populations. Melamed, the former Israeli intelligence official, said Hamas is often operating in open areas deliberately because fighters know that in such a way collateral damage is inevitable. Israel is defending itself, and its basically operating to remove the threat in a very challenging environment, he said, which is a massively urban environment where your enemy is using its own brothers and sisters literally, its own brother and sisters as a human shield. The debate comes ahead of a potential invasion of Rafah, where Israeli troops have already entered for limited operations and taken control of a key border crossing with Egypt. Gaza is a densely packed area, but about 1.3 million Palestinians are crammed into Rafah, and the city could face unprecedented destruction in the event of a massive Israeli operation, said Miles from Win Without War. The reason you see the concerns about Rafah is because as horrific as what weve seen already, the scale [of potential large fighting] there is almost unimaginably worse, he said. Thats why it was heartening to see the president finally take some action. But I think were a long way from the end. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Ohio state legislators are scrambling to get President Biden on the November ballot after members failed to break a legislative impasse this week. State law says presidential candidates need to be certified with the state 90 days before the November election; this year, that date is Aug. 7. But Democrats are on track to miss that goal, given Biden is set to be formally nominated during the Democratic National Convention, which begins Aug. 19. Legislators in the state Senate and state House worked on competing proposals, but efforts to pass them through the state Capitol have stalled raising questions around what steps members will take next to make sure Biden gets onto the ballot in the coming months. Heres a look at why Biden isnt on the fall ballot yet: The competing proposals Members in the state House and state Senate have sought to create their own workarounds to a largely logistical issue getting presidential candidates certified for the fall ballot. The state Senate passed legislation that would allow a one-time fix for Democrats, allowing the party to certify their presidential ticket to the Ohio Secretary of State 74 days before the election. But the bill also includes a provision that bans foreign nationals from contributing to ballot campaign initiatives prompted by Republicans because Swiss billionaire Hansjorg Wyss donated millions of dollars to groups that ultimately aided a successful abortion ballot initiative last year. Meanwhile, the state House took a different tactic using a bill that had already passed the state Senate and workshopped it anew. The original bill was one that allowed special elections in August under certain circumstances, but the House instead scrapped that entirely and rewrote it to allow a partys presidential candidates to be certified to the Ohio Secretary of State either 74 days before the general election, or three days after a partys national convention, whichever came first. While the state House informally passed its workaround solution, it still requires a floor vote. Legislation that passed in the state Senate has yet to be voted on in the House, leaving both sides in limbo despite vows from party leaders that the president will be on the ballot. Tensions within the GOP David Cohen, a political science professor at The University of Akron, explained political tensions within the GOP in the state Legislature are a driving force behind why members are at a crossroads over how to get Biden on the November ballot. Both the state Senate and state House have comfortable GOP majorities. But Cohen explained there are several political undercurrents to take note of Ohio state Rep. Jason Stephenss (R) path to becoming state House Speaker, which included support from House Democrats, infighting within the GOP and the fact that state Senate President Matt Huffman (R), who is term-limited, is vying to take on Stephens in the speakership race. Senate Republicans see the ballot conundrum as an opportunity to gain something politically and arent interested in a clean bill, but the political calculus is more complicated on the House side. The Democrats are a superminority anyways they dont really have a voice. So this this is a Republican Party issue, Cohen explained about Bidens absence on the state ballot. And if its going to get solved, the Republican Partys going to have to figure out how to do it. The options ahead Among some of the solutions that legislators could take to fix the snafu is the move to add an emergency clause to legislation, which would need a two-thirds majority in both chambers to pass, according to Statehouse News Bureau. Democrats and the Biden campaign could potentially turn to the courts as an option, though Cohen expressed hed be flabbergasted if that became required. He suggested he could see a scenario where Gov. Mike DeWine (R) intervenes. Republicans dont get any electoral benefit from keeping Bidens name off the ballot. So, so why would they do that? Cohen said. And I think if they did that, it would infuriate so many Democrats, and more importantly, independents here, that they might as well just give [Sen.] Sherrod Brown the election before Election Day. Daniel Birdsong, a senior lecturer in the department of political science at the University of Dayton who published a column pushing for legislators to change the deadline to certify the ballot, argued the effect of keeping Biden off the ballot could also hurt Republicans Electorally, you want someone to run against, said Birdsong. You have both who Im voting for and who Im running against, which has helped motivate some people, he added. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Last Thursday, a federal judge in Delaware rejected Hunter Biden's Second Amendment challenge to the three gun charges he faces for buying a revolver in October 2018, when he was a crack cocaine user. In a 10-page order, U.S. District Marylellen Noreika concludes that 18 USC 922(g)(3), which makes it a felony for an "unlawful user" of a "controlled substance" to receive or possess firearms, is not unconstitutional on its face, meaning there are at least some cases in which the provision can be enforced without violating the right to keep and bear arms. Noreika's decision does not end a constitutional dispute that pits Biden against his own father, who has steadfastly defended a policy that could send his son to prison. That policy denies Second Amendment rights to millions of Americans with no history of violence, including cannabis consumers, whether or not they live in states that have legalized marijuana. Noreika's ruling leaves the door open to an "as-applied" challenge if and when Biden is convicted, meaning he can still argue that his prosecution violates the Second Amendment at that point. That claim may ultimately be resolved by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit, which has yet to address the constitutionality of Section 922(g)(3) under the test that the U.S. Supreme Court established in the 2022 case New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen.* If Biden is convicted and his appeals are unsuccessful, he could face a substantial prison sentence. When he bought his gun, violations of Section 922(g)(3) were punishable by up to 10 years in prison. The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which his father signed into law in 2022, raised the maximum penalty to 15 years. But even though Congress views gun ownership by illegal drug users as a serious crime, it is rarely prosecuted. While survey data suggest that millions of gun owners are guilty of violating Section 922(g)(3), fewer than 150 Americans are prosecuted for that offense each year. The two other gun charges that Biden faces, which are based on the same transaction, likewise are rarely prosecuted. One alleges a violation of 18 USC 922(a)(6), which applies to someone who knowingly makes a false statement in connection with a firearm transaction. The other involves 18 USC 924(a)(1)(A), which applies to someone who "knowingly makes any false statement or representation with respect to the information" that a federally licensed dealer is required to record. Both charges are based on the same conduct: Biden checked "no" in response to a question on Form 4473, which is required for gun purchases from federally licensed dealers: "Are you an unlawful user of, or addicted to, marijuana or any depressant, stimulant, narcotic drug, or any other controlled substance?" That check mark, according to federal prosecutors, qualified as two felonies, punishable by a combined maximum prison sentence of 15 years. Although actual sentences tend to be much shorter than the maximums, Biden theoretically faces up to 25 years in prison for conduct that violated no one's rights. Biden argued that Section 922(g)(3) fails the Bruen test, which requires the government to show that a gun law is "consistent with this Nation's historical tradition of firearm regulation." He added that the ancillary charges also should be dismissed because they would not be possible but for Section 922(g)(3). In rejecting Biden's motion to dismiss, Noreika relies heavily on a recent decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit. Last month in United States v. Veasley, the 8th Circuit rejected a facial challenge to Section 922(g)(3), citing the legal treatment of "the mentally ill" in the 18th and 19th centuries. In the 18th century, the appeals noted, justices of the peace were empowered to order the confinement of "lunatics" who were deemed a threat to public safety. Since such confinement "did not include access to guns," the court reasoned, it was clear that "lunatics" had no such rights. And by the late 19th century, states had begun to prohibit gun sales to people of "unsound mind." Together with "the even longer tradition of confinement," the 8th Circuit said, "these laws suggest that society made it a priority to keep guns out of the hands of anyone who was mentally ill and dangerous." Those precedents, the appeals court said, amply justify Section 922(g)(3): "The 'burden' imposed by 922(g)(3) is 'comparable,' if less heavy-handed, than Founding-era laws governing the mentally ill. It goes without saying that confinement with straitjackets and chains carries with it a greater loss of liberty than a temporary loss of gun rights. And the mentally ill had less of a chance to regain their rights than drug users and addicts do today. Stopping the use of drugs, after all, restores gun rights under 922(g)(3)." The court thought the justification for Section 922(g)(3), "which is to 'keep guns out of the hands of presumptively risky people,'" is "also comparable." The 8th Circuit assumed that drug users are analogous to "lunatics" and people of "unsound mind" who are "mentally ill and dangerous." But the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit rejected that analogy last year, when it overturned the Section 922(g)(3) conviction of Patrick Darnell Daniels Jr., a Mississippi man who was caught with a gun and the remains of a few joints after he was pulled over for driving without a license plate in April 2022. "Just as there was no historical justification for disarming a citizen of sound mind, there is no tradition that supports disarming a sober citizen who is not currently under an impairing influence," the 5th Circuit said in United States v. Daniels. "The Founders purportedly institutionalized the insane and stripped them of their guns; but they allowed alcoholics to possess firearms while sober. We must ask, in Bruen-style analogical reasoning, which is Daniels more like: a categorically 'insane' person? Or a repeat alcohol user? Given his periodic marihuana usage, Daniels is firmly in the latter camp. If and when Daniels uses marihuana, he may be comparable to a mentally ill individual whom the Founders would have disarmed. But while sober, he is like the repeat alcohol user in between periods of drunkenness." Noreika also cites district court decisions that accepted the Justice Department's analogy between Section 922(g)(3) and early laws that made it a crime to publicly carry or discharge firearms while intoxicated. But the 5th Circuit rejected that analogy, and so did the 8th Circuit. As both courts noted, those historical laws addressed a specific hazarddrunken gun handlingwith narrow restrictions. They applied only in public and only to people who were actively intoxicated. They did not apply to private possession of firearms, let alone impose a categorical ban on gun ownership by drinkers. "Under the government's reasoning," the 5th Circuit said, "Congress could ban gun possession by anyone who has multiple alcoholic drinks a weekbased on the postbellum intoxicated carry laws. The analogical reasoning Bruen prescribed cannot stretch that far." The 8th Circuit reached a similar conclusion. "For drinkers, the focus was on the use of a firearm, not its possession," it noted. "And the few restrictions that existed during colonial times were temporary and narrow in scope." It added that "there was even less regulation when it came to [other] drugs," which were widely available without a prescription in the 19th century. "The government concedes that its 'review of early colonial laws has not revealed any statutes that prohibited [firearm] possession' by drug users," the 8th Circuit noted. "It took until 1968, with the passage of 922(g)(3), for Congress to keep guns away from drug users and addicts.The fact that 'earlier generations addressed the societal problemthrough materially different means [is] evidence that' disarming all drug users, simply because of who they are, is inconsistent with the Second Amendment." Since it viewed the comparison between Section 922(g)(3) and laws aimed at preventing drunken gun handling as problematic, the 8th Circuit instead relied on the comparison between drug users and people who are "mentally ill and dangerous." It also invoked "the Founding-era criminal prohibition on taking up arms to terrify the people." The 8th Circuit conceded that "not every drug user or addict will terrify others, even with a firearm." It is "exceedingly unlikely," for example, that "the 80-year-old grandmother who uses marijuana for a chronic medical condition and keeps a pistol tucked away for her own safety" will "pose a danger or induce terror in others." But "those are details relevant to an as-applied challenge, not a facial one," the court added. "For our purposes, all we need to know is that at least some drug users and addicts fall within a class of people who historically have had limits placed on their right to bear arms." Noreika emphasizes that the 5th Circuit characterized Daniels as upholding an "as-applied" challenge. "We do not invalidate the statute in all its applications, but, importantly, only as applied to Daniels," the appeals court said. Noreika concludes that Daniels therefore provides no support to Biden's challenge. The 5th Circuit's reasoning nevertheless casts doubt on the notion that illegal drug users, as a class, are so dangerous that they have no Second Amendment rights. Noreika finds that "the overwhelming weight of the district courts lends no support to Defendant's position either." But she notes three decisions in which federal judges concluded that Section 922(g)(3) charges were unconstitutional. United States v. Harrison, decided in February 2023, involved an Oklahoma marijuana dispensary employee who was pulled over on his way to work for failing to stop at a red light in May 2022. Police found marijuana and a loaded revolver in his car. U.S. District Judge Patrick Wyrick dismissed a Section 922(g)(3) charge, rejecting the government's contention that "Harrison's mere status as a user of marijuana justifies stripping him of his fundamental right to possess a firearm." United States v. Connelly, decided two months later, involved a Texas woman who was charged with illegal possession of firearms after El Paso police found marijuana and guns in her home while responding to a domestic disturbance in December 2021. U.S. District Judge Kathleen Cardone concluded that Section 922(g)(3) "does not withstand Second Amendment scrutiny." U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert Numbers reached the same conclusion that July in United States v. Alston, which also involved a marijuana user charged with violating Section 922(g)(3). "The government has failed to establish that historical laws regulating the mentally ill, the intoxicated, or the dangerous are sufficiently analogous to 922(g)(3)," Numbers wrote. "The founding-era laws the government offers sought to remedy different problems than 922(g)(3) does, and they did so through less-restrictive means. Taken together, the historical examples discussed above are not analogous enough to 922(g)(3) to establish the statute's constitutionality." Last October, U.S. District Judge Louise Flanagan agreed that "the government has not met its burden of proving that 922(g) is consistent with the Second Amendment." Although Noreika describes only that last decision as upholding a facial challenge, Cardone's conclusion that Section 922(g)(3) "does not withstand Second Amendment scrutiny" went further than deeming a specific prosecution unconstitutional, and all three decisions rejected the government's historical analogies in no uncertain terms. Furthermore, all of these cases were resolved before trial, as Biden sought to do in his case. Why does Noreika say that remedy is not available to Biden? "Defendant argues that 922(g)(3) is unconstitutional under the revised framework announced in Bruen because there is no 'historical precedent for disarming citizens based on their status of having used a controlled substance,'" she writes. "Because Defendant makes no arguments specifically tailored to him or the application of 922(g)(3) to his facts, Defendant's challenge to the constitutionality of 922(g)(3) is a facial one.To the extent that Defendant seeks in his motion to raise a challenge to the constitutionality of 922(g)(3) as applied to him, that request is denied without prejudice to renew on an appropriate trial record." As Noreika sees it, in other words, Biden has to be convicted before he can challenge his prosecution. But no matter what happens with this particular case, the Biden administration's dogged defense of Section 922(g)(3), especially as applied to cannabis consumers, belies the president's repudiation of the hardline anti-drug position that he took for decades as a senator. Nowadays, Biden says marijuana use should not be treated as a crime and decries the disadvantages associated with marijuana possession convictions. But his Justice Department simultaneously insists that marijuana use makes people so dangerous that they cannot be trusted with gunsso dangerous, in fact, that they should go to prison for trying to exercise their Second Amendment rights and permanently lose those rights as a result of that felony conviction. The government claims that judgment is supported by historical precedents that bear little resemblance to a 1968 law that categorically deprives people of the right to arms for no good reason. *Correction: This paragraph has been revised to clarify the timing of Biden's possible appeal. The post Here Is Why a Federal Judge Rejected Hunter Biden's Second Amendment Challenge to His Gun Charges appeared first on Reason.com. Why a new Quincy steakhouse in old Masonic Temple has some neighbors worried QUINCY One of the busiest stretches of Hancock Street in the city center sits back-to-back with a leafy neighborhood of single-family homes. The contrast is leading to conflict, as a celebrated Quincy restaurateur moves forwards with his plans to bring a three-floor Italian steakhouse to the old Masonic Temple, which was severely damaged by fire in 2014. Jimmy Liang, founder of JP Fuji Group, went before the licensing board May 7 seeking an all-alcoholic beverages restaurant license for the 11,340-square-foot Masons Steakhouse at 1170 Hancock St. He said the restaurant will have capacity for 240 diners and will also host functions such as small wedding parties. The board voted unanimously to grant the license. The old Masonic Temple is owned by FoxRock, and the restaurant will be part of the real estate developer's downtown Center and Stone project, which also includes 267 apartments across two six-story buildings, one of which will host a Citizens Bank on the ground floor. Quincy restaurateur Jimmy Liang plans to open Masons Steak House in the former Masonic Temple on Hancock Street in Quincy Square. He says he has always admired the architecture of the building. Thursday, March 14, 2024. Neighbors worry about parking at the new Quincy steakhouse in the Masonic Temple Multiple homeowners on Russell Park and Whitney Street complained that their Residential A neighborhood already suffers from too many people parking along the curbs and even in front of their driveways, blocking access and egress to and from their homes. Residential A districts are restricted to single-family homes. Without a parking plan, many say Russell Park residents will suffer from its proximity to the new steakhouse. "(Customers will) look to park as close as they can to the facility, and that means on Russell Park," said Robert Cerasoli, a former Massachusetts state representative for the district from 1975 to 1991 who lives on Russell Park. "We're going to be descended upon by these people." City Clerk Nicole Crispo said that Liang is working with Ward 1 Councilor Dave McCarthy and Mayor Tom Koch's office to develop a parking plan. The plans could involve Liang using municipal parking at the Quincy Center T station across the street where a temporary Citizens Bank trailer now stands, according to Crispo. The historical society could also share available parking space, Crispo said. Police Chief Mark Kennedy said that in his 26 years as a Quincy officer, he never had a problem with any of Liang's restaurants (Liang currently owns four in Quincy alone). Kennedy noted that the license is contingent on a parking plan, and that the board could require Liang to come back for another hearing if any of the neighbors' fears materialize. Liang, who spoke to The Patriot Ledger from Las Vegas where he and his Masons team are exploring new culinary ideas, said he aims to make the city proud. "I want Quincy (residents), when they talk about steak houses and restaurants in general, to be proud of Masons," he said. "That's my goal. We can get that accomplished through our food, our service and our willingness to work with the city, which we've always done." Nightlife in Quincy Center another worry of neighbors Some also objected to Liang's plan to keep the restaurant open until 1 a.m. Liang said he hopes to bring some of the nightlife back to Quincy Center that has been lacking since the COVID outbreak in 2020. "I think 1 a.m. is really late," said Randy Hoes, who lives on Russell Park. "I'm not interested in a lot of carousing around and boozing and what not. I would appreciate 11 p.m. at the latest." "Where are all these people going to park?" Joann Cerasoli, also of Russell Park, asked. "How late are they going to stay?" Cannabis in Quincy: Newly approved Quincy cannabis shop says it'll have a subscription service John Adams will unresolved: Court rejects Quincy's claim on property taken in 2021. How much will it cost the city? 'We are not NIMBY people' Robert Cerasoli said he doesn't oppose the restaurant but there needs to be a plan for parking. "We are not NIMBY people," Cerasoli said. "We believe in progress of the downtown. ... undefined Jimmy Liang plans a new steakhouse at the former Masonic Temple on Hancock Street in downtown Quincy . Kevin Norton, of Whitney Street, said his property abuts the proposed restaurant and complained that it would make an already bad parking situation worse. Lunar New Year debate: School board denied bid to close schools on Lunar New Year. Why proponents have new hope Animal cruelty case: Quincy man accused of setting live racoon on fire now faces more serious charges "It used to be nice and quiet, no cars in the street," Norton said. "Now, it's a nightmare." Norton said incessant noise from construction of the Center and Stone development has been a nuisance. "My taxes go up every year," he said. "My quality of life goes down every year." As of now, the restaurant has about 30 parking spaces behind the building for staff and customers of the 240-seat restaurant, Liang said. Chamber of commerce defends Liang President of Quincy's chamber of commerce, former state treasurer and 2010 gubernatorial candidate Tim Cahill, vouched for Liang, who has run restaurants in Quincy for 25 years. "They're not outsiders," Cahill said of Liang's team. "They will be part of the community." Chamber of Commerce president Tim Cahill supported Liang's proposed steakhouse at a recent Licensing Board hearing. Cahill told neighbors that the 1 a.m. closing does not imply a nightclub atmosphere. "The prices are such that it's not going be a college crowd young kids getting wildly drunk and having problems," he said. Liang has said Masons Steak House will have some affordable options. "I'm going to keep it medium," he said of the prices. "(A steak) could be $40 or as expensive as $200." Peter Blandino covers Quincy for The Patriot Ledger. Contact him at pblandino@patriotledger.com. Thanks to our subscribers, who help make this coverage possible. If you are not a subscriber, please consider supporting quality local journalism with a Patriot Ledger subscription. Here is our latest offer. This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Proposed steakhouse in Quincy faces parking, nightlife criticism His Wife Vanished in Spain. How His Texts to a Woman He Met Online Made Him the Suspect Ana Knezevich Henao, 40, has been missing since Feb. 2, 2024 National Center for the Missing in Spain Ana Maria Henao Knezevich The text messages seemed completely out of character for Ana Knezevich Henao. I met someone wonderful, one of the messages read. He has a summer house about 2h from Madrid. We are going there now and I will spend a few days there. There is barely any signal though. Ill call you when I come back. Kisses. But she never came back. Ana a U.S. citizen originally from Colombia had traveled from Florida to Spain in late December after separating from her husband of 13 years, David Knezevich. She went missing in Madrid on Feb. 2 and hasn't been seen since. The FBI is now alleging that the text messages to Anas friends were not actually sent by Ana, 40, but by Knezevich, who was arrested by U.S. federal agents last week and charged with kidnapping. According to a federal complaint, agents were contacted by a Colombian woman who said Knezevich contacted her via Whats App and asked her for help translating a message into perfect Colombian for a friend in Serbia who is writing a script about a Colombian character. Knezevich explains that he wants the writing to sound authentic, the complaint alleges. David Knezevich The woman, who was called "Individual 1" in the complaint, said she met Knezevich on a dating app in Oct. 2023. At the end of the exchange, Knezevich allegedly thanked the woman for her help with the translation. Thanks gorgeous, he allegedly wrote. Dont mention it handsome, was the response. I hope it helps. It helps my friend :), he allegedly wrote. Related: Brother of Fla. Woman Missing in Spain Says Family Members Still Have Hope: We Miss Her Authorities allege that at one point the Colombian woman told her mother about having met a Serbian man online" referring to Knezevich according to the complaint. The womans mother then Googled Knezevich and learned that his wife had been reported missing in Madrid, the complaint states. AP Photo/Manu Fernandez A banner of a Colombian-born American missing woman Ana Maria Knezevich Henao Authorities allege that the woman then discovered a news article that contained a message purportedly from Knezevichs wife that matched the exact wording of the text she and Knezevich had put together on or about February 3, 2024. Authorities allege that Knezevich flew to Istanbul from Miami on Jan. 27 and rented a Peugeot 308 in Serbia on Jan. 29. From there, authorities say he drove to Spain to kidnap his estranged wife. Per Google maps, by car, it takes approximately 26 hours to travel from Belgrade, Serbia, to Madrid, Spain at a distance of 2,592 kilometers," the complaint says. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE's free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. Anas brother Felipe Henao told authorities just days after his sister disappeared that the couple was going through a nasty divorce and there is a substantial amount of money on the line to be split up between the two and David is not happy about it, according to an incident report obtained by PEOPLE. The Knezeviches owned EOX Technology Solutions Inc., which does computer support for South Florida businesses. According to a profile on the website, Knezevich is listed as the managing director and CEO. He listed his hobbies as tinkering with technology and his favorite food as medium rare steak. Per the profile, Anna graduated with a BS in International Business, and BS in Business Administration and Management from Eafit University in Medellin, Colombia. After emigrating to the U.S., she worked in general management in the medical industry before being begged by her husband to join him at EOX and help with running the company. Under the category of her favorite thing about EOX, Ana's profile read: "The fact that we work together, to grow together, and be better together. On Sunday, in a message on Facebook, Adam Ingber, one of the attorneys representing Anas family, asked the public to contact the authorities if they know anything. I'm hoping that somebody along that path [from Serbia to Madrid and back] will have seen something or will have some video or will remember something weird that happened at the side of the road, just something bizarre or strange as something out of the ordinary, he said. If you know anything, please say something to the authorities. "Ana Maria's life goal is to help other women, women in need, and so I know that if she had this opportunity to speak to the world and make a plea to the world for helping mothers find their daughters, she would say, don't just think about me," he said. "Think about all of the other women for whom there is no media attention, for whom there is no hope, for whom there is no information, and please try to go out of your way to help those people." If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. The Black Fire (pictured) began two years ago today and grew into the state's second-biggest fire. Forecasters warn New Mexico will see above normal wildfire risk through June and July. (Public domain photo via the National Wildfire Coordinating Group) Forecasters with the National Interagency Fire Center are expecting wildfire risk to be above normal for much of the state this summer, citing ongoing drought and a potential transition this summer from El Nino to La Nina conditions. Significant wildfires are burning in Mexico and Canada. Several small fires have started and burned so far this year in New Mexico, though fire activity is far less active than this time two years ago. Two years ago today, the Black Fire started in the Gila Wilderness before going on to become the second-biggest wildfire in New Mexico history. The biggest-ever state fire, the Hermits-Peak Calf Canyon Fire, also started two years ago in April. A forecast released earlier this month shows fire risk to steadily increase throughout July, with New Mexico the potential hotspot throughout the Southwest for wildfires. The elevated fire risk will cover much of New Mexicos central mountain chain by June and then increase across most of the state by July, according to risk maps produced by the National Interagency Fire Center. Forecasters there said drought conditions in New Mexico are expected to persist at least through the end of July, which heightens the risk. Another factor is that April precipitation varied between 0% and 70% of normal across the state, according to the forecast. One wildcard that could make conditions in New Mexico even more ripe for wildfire is a potential transition from El Nino to La Nina later this summer, which would mean a higher likelihood of warmer, drier weather patterns across the Southwest. Forecasters with the Climate Prediction Center say theres a 60% chance of La Nina being in full-swing between June and August this summer. Researchers found a history of cooler temperatures and more precipitation in seasons where the transition between El Nino and La Nina occurred, especially in the northwestern part of the Southwest. That finding could mean some areas of the Southwest excluding the central mountains of New Mexico and southern deserts of Arizona are at normal fire risk throughout the summer, according to the forecast. Read the forecast here. The post Wildfire potential above normal through much of NMs central mountains this summer appeared first on Source New Mexico. The grandson of Estee Lauder and son of Leonard A. Lauder, William P. Lauder knows what it means to carry on a legacy. The executive chairman of the board of directors of the Estee Lauder Cos. and former chief executive officer, Lauder has devoted much of his adult life to building the family business into the $15.2 billion prestige beauty conglomerate it is today. More from WWD Less well-known, though, is his involvement and impact on the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, the philanthropic enterprise founded by another female powerhouse in his family, his late mother Evelyn. Since its founding 30 years ago, William Lauder has championed the organization, first by channeling the philanthropic and commercial efforts of the Estee Lauder Cos. to the cause and, more recently, by serving as its cochair. On Tuesday evening, BCRF will honor Lauder at its annual Hot Pink Party with the Evelyn H. Lauder Spirit of Philanthropy award, a full-circle moment for her son whose commitment to carrying on the work Evelyn Lauder started hasnt wavered in the 12 years since her death at age 75. William P. Lauder with his late mother, Evelyn, and father Leonard A. Lauder. My mothers vision 30 years ago with Dr. Larry Norton was to create an effort and foundation to raise awareness and funds to find a cure for breast cancer, said Lauder in an exclusive interview with WWD from the companys Paris offices last week. The work that has been done over the last 30 years has resulted in tremendous success in terms of treatment and care and survivability. Many people wouldnt be here if it werent for that vision, and Im honored to carry on the passion that my mother had for this mission. Indeed, Evelyn Lauders vision has had a significant impact on the lives of women: Over the last three decades, BCRF has raised more than $1 billion to fund research across 110 institutions in 15 countries across five continents. Breakthroughs in breast cancer treatment that can be directly attributable to its funding include the discovery of the BRCA1 gene and breast cancer stem cells; the development of Herceptin, the first targeted therapy for Her2-positive breast cancer, and, most recently, the creation of a first-of-its-kind global data hub for breast cancer research providing a centralized portal for scientists to share data and analysis. Thanks to these advancements and others in the research and treatment of breast cancer, the American Cancer Society reports that breast cancer mortality rates have been decreasing steadily since 1989, for an overall decline of 42 percent. Still, much work remains to be done. Unfortunately there are still people being diagnosed with breast cancer and who are being impacted by it, said Lauder, and therefore theres still a great reason and rationale for us to keep focusing on it. The combination of more people being diagnosed, as well as making progress toward finding a cure and reducing the impact of the treatments for people who are diagnosed, gives us all hope, as well as motivation. Lauder is particularly focused on the disparities that remain, particularly among mortality rates for Black women. This has become a key area of research for BCRF. Were spending significant time and money to focus our efforts looking at health care outcome disparities, said Lauder, adding that expanding BCRFs reach in major population centers like Texas, Florida and California, where breast cancer rates are high, is another priority. Although BCRF is a separate organization from the Estee Lauder Cos., the company has been a key supporter of the cause, most recently with a $15 million gift from its charitable foundation arm to establish the Health Equity initiative to increase access for patients of all races and ethnicities. The group has maintained its charitable efforts even while facing tough business conditions. William Lauder was sanguine when asked about the companys challenges and most recent quarterly earnings, which showed the Estee Lauder Cos. beating estimates with a 5 percent sales increase to $3.75 billion versus the year before. Weve been through challenging moments before, and well come out a better company for it, he said. Sometimes when youre in the midst of a challenging environment it can be discouraging to the teams. Im confident in our people, our brands and our mission. We have an amazing portfolio of brands and extraordinary people who are nurturing them every day, and I have extraordinary confidence in our people to continue to make our brands desirable for consumers. William P. Lauder and Elizabeth Hurley ringing the bell at the New York Stock Exchange with members of the Estee Lauder Cos. and the NYSE. Image courtesy of NYSE Group. NYSE does not recommend or endorse any investments, investment strategies, companies, products or services. The Lauder organization has been a leader in corporate philanthropic work, and its clear when speaking with William Lauder that the human impact of the work holds a strong emotional sway for him both personally and professionally. His voice broke as he recalled ringing the bell of the New York Stock Exchange to kick off Breast Cancer Awareness month last October with a dozen women from the company who are survivors of the disease, one of whom, Janet Pardo, the longtime senior vice president of product development at Clinique, will present him with the award on Tuesday. It was the embodiment of the efforts that we make, of who we are as a company, Lauder said of the moment. Our teams are doing so much work to raise awareness and raise money to fund these researchers, and here are our people who have been directly impacted by the disease standing up there, saying, I survived. Im better for it. And Im here. Looking back on the early days of BCRF, he recalled his mothers total dedication to the cause, one he clearly shares today. Lauder cited a recent evening when he was approached by a woman while waiting at a restaurant for his table to be ready, who asked about the pink ribbon he was wearing on his lapel. He told her of its significance as a symbol for breast cancer awareness and his involvement in the efforts. The woman explained she was a survivor who had been treated at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and thanked him for his efforts. One person telling you that makes you want to do it again for another year more, said Lauder. Hearing it from hundreds of people, as I am in the position to do, keeps you going forever. Best of WWD Wisconsin and Minnesota under air quality warnings as smoke from Canadian wildfires spreads Regions of Minnesota and Wisconsin are under air quality alerts as smoke rolls in from devastating Canadian wildfires. The thick smoke is rolling into the Great Lakes region as more than 100 wildfires rage in British Columbia on Monday. The largest blaze, the Parker Lake wildfire, has now forced more than 3,000 people to evacuate as the flames threaten the small town of Fort Nelson. Now, wind gusts have blown the smoke to southern Minnesota and much of central Wisconsin, leaving thousands under air quality alerts. A forest cam image of Isle Royale, Michigan on 12 May 2024. Thousands of residents are facing air quality alerts as wildfire smoke blows in from Canada (US National Park Service) The southern half of Minnesota is under a red air quality index category, according to the states pollution control agency. The alert means the air is unhealthy for all residents, rather than just those with underlying health conditions. People with asthma and heart disease are among the most vulnerable, as well as children and the elderly. Meanwhile, Wisconsin residents are facing an air quality advisory for sensitive groups, according to state officials. Residents in impacted areas should avoid being outdoors for prolonged periods, officials in both states said. Smoke fills the air in Albert, Canada as the Parker Lake wildfire rages in British Columbia (Alberta Wildfire Service/AFP via) The Parker Lake wildfire began on 10 May due to a strong wind event, officials said. It has burned more than 5,000 hectares, or 20 square miles, as of Monday. A Sunday evening cold front brought another series of strong wind gusts that caused the flames near Fort Nelson to spread rapidly. Winds are expected to continue throughout Monday. Cliff Chapman, the services director of operations, warned remaining residents should leave immediately. An arial image of the Parker Lake wildfire burning near Fort Nelson in British Columbia. Strong winds fueled the fire Sunday evening into Monday, officials said (BC Wildfire Service/AFP via Gett) If you are still in Fort Nelson or anywhere in the evacuation order of the Parker Lake wildfire, I encourage you to leave, Mr Champan said in a Sunday evening video. The fuels are as dry as weve ever seen. The wind is going to be sustained and it is going to push the fire towards the community. Escape routes may be compromised and visibility will be poor as the fire continues to grow, he continued. Ben Boghean, fire behaviour specialist, said on Sunday that years of drought also made the region prone to wildfires this year. The fire is expected to spread south and southwest towards the US but winds are expected to slow down on Tuesday, reducing the spread, Mr Boghean said. Wisconsin and Minnesota under air quality warnings as smoke from Canadian wildfires spreads Wisconsin and Minnesota under air quality warnings as smoke from Canadian wildfires spreads Regions of Minnesota and Wisconsin are under air quality alerts as smoke rolls in from devastating Canadian wildfires. The thick smoke is rolling into the Great Lakes region as more than 100 wildfires rage in British Columbia on Monday. The largest blaze, the Parker Lake wildfire, has now forced more than 3,000 people to evacuate as the flames threaten the small town of Fort Nelson. Now, wind gusts have blown the smoke to southern Minnesota and much of central Wisconsin, leaving thousands under air quality alerts. Wildfire smoke hangs over the Minneapolis skyline on Monday, May 13, 2024 (AP) The southern half of Minnesota is under a red air quality index category, according to the states pollution control agency. The alert means the air is unhealthy for all residents, rather than just those with underlying health conditions. People with asthma and heart disease are among the most vulnerable, as well as children and the elderly. Meanwhile, Wisconsin residents are facing an air quality advisory for sensitive groups, according to state officials. Residents in impacted areas should avoid being outdoors for prolonged periods, officials in both states said. Smoke fills the air in Albert, Canada as the Parker Lake wildfire rages in British Columbia (Alberta Wildfire Service/AFP via) The Parker Lake wildfire began on 10 May due to a strong wind event, officials said. It has burned more than 5,000 hectares, or 20 square miles, as of Monday. A Sunday evening cold front brought another series of strong wind gusts that caused the flames near Fort Nelson to spread rapidly. Winds are expected to continue throughout Monday. Cliff Chapman, the services director of operations, warned remaining residents should leave immediately. An arial image of the Parker Lake wildfire burning near Fort Nelson in British Columbia. Strong winds fueled the fire Sunday evening into Monday, officials said (BC Wildfire Service/AFP via Gett) If you are still in Fort Nelson or anywhere in the evacuation order of the Parker Lake wildfire, I encourage you to leave, Mr Champan said in a Sunday evening video. The fuels are as dry as weve ever seen. The wind is going to be sustained and it is going to push the fire towards the community. Escape routes may be compromised and visibility will be poor as the fire continues to grow, he continued. Ben Boghean, fire behaviour specialist, said on Sunday that years of drought also made the region prone to wildfires this year. The fire is expected to spread south and southwest towards the US but winds are expected to slow down on Tuesday, reducing the spread, Mr Boghean said. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. The UK's Visa Application Centre in Tbilisi closed today due to ongoing rallies in Georgia's capital, Trend reports. "The UKs Visa Application Centre in Tbilisi (v close to Parliament) has been closed today due to the rally and police cordons this morning. Everyone with an appointment has been contacted. The Centre will reopen when visitor access is back to normal," the embassy's message on its page on X reads. Meanwhile, Georgia's Ministry of Internal Affairs has detained 20 people at a protest in Tbilisi opposing a bill targeting foreign agents. Opponents of the foreign agent bill staged another rally on Sunday. They camped out near the parliament on Rustaveli Avenue, staying put overnight to block deputies from kicking off discussions on the initiative's third reading at the Committee on Legal Affairs meeting on May 13th. By Monday morning, the police had cleared the demonstrators away from the parliament's official entrances. Nevertheless, the Legal Committee has already pushed the initiative through its third reading. A ballot drop box in Madison, Wisconsin, that has been put out of commission. The city posted a sign explaining why it can no longer be used after a Wisconsin Supreme Court decision banned most absentee ballot drop boxes. (Wisconsin Examiner photo) The Wisconsin Supreme Court on Monday heard oral arguments in a case that could once again allow the use of drop boxes for the return of absentee ballots. Drop boxes were prohibited by the Court in 2022 when the bodys then-conservative majority decided in Teigen v. Wisconsin Elections Commission that state law only allowed for absentee ballots to be brought directly to municipal clerks, not to unmanned drop boxes. Ballot drop boxes had been used in Wisconsin for decades, largely with slots or boxes at municipal buildings, however in 2020 they surged in popularity as voters searched for ways to safely vote during the COVID-19 pandemic. A Waukesha County voter sued the elections commission, arguing that it had given unlawful guidance to clerks on the permissibility of the boxes. Following the 2020 election, conservatives turned on the use of the boxes, arguing they were vulnerable to fraud and abuse. The boxes had been used all across the state, in both rural and urban areas, but conservatives argued they opened the states elections up to the possibility of ballot harvesting. In the Teigen case, the Court found that because state law didnt explicitly permit drop boxes, theyre not allowed. The decision prompted former President Donald Trump to again claim that he had won Wisconsin in 2020, stating that all ballots that had been dropped into the boxes were illegal and shouldnt have been counted. Earlier this year, the national Democratic group Priorities USA brought a lawsuit challenging the Teigen decision, asking the now-liberal controlled Court to overturn its previous decision. Gov. Tony Evers and Attorney General Josh Kaul joined the case, arguing for the use of drop boxes, while the Republican-controlled Legislature joined to argue drop boxes should remain outlawed. On Monday, the arguments centered around the confusion that the Teigen decision has caused in the states election administrations, what limits there are to municipal clerk authority to run elections and if the Court should take the step of overturning a previous decision. David Fox, the attorney for Priorities USA, argued that the Teigen decision points a loaded gun at the states election administration, giving any voter the green light to challenge any practice by municipal clerks that isnt explicitly allowed in statute. People will not see a problem, clerks will not see a problem, voters will not see a problem, Fox said. Everyone will take action that seems to everyone at the time like a perfectly legitimate action. And then after an election, someone is going to come to this clerk and theyre going to say Wait, wheres the express authorization? All of those ballots need to be cast out. It is an enormous problem from this Courts decision in Teigen because if everything needs to be expressly authorized, on pain of discarding ballots, that is a loaded gun, he continued. Many of the liberal justices on the Court appeared to side with Fox, questioning how the Teigen decision is the only place in the law in which something has to be explicitly allowed for it to be legal. The attorneys arguing for the use of drop boxes said that state law gives municipal clerks the authority to run elections for their communities, giving broad authority to make hundreds of decisions on their own, so why cant they decide to set up a drop box. We operate in the law with a general concept, when the Legislature writes a statute, things are permitted unless theyre forbidden, Justice Rebecca Dallet said. Theres no way, even though our statute books are quite long, and there are quite a few of them, you could possibly ever get every tiny little thing that ever existed in any realm, especially in election law. When we have a decentralized system of clerks as was already stated making hundreds of decisions every single day with respect to elections, if something is not explicitly stated in the statute, then it cant be done? Thats the principle that turns everything else on its head. But the Courts conservative justices responded to that argument by asking for the limiting principle. Wisconsins statutes say that absentee voting is subject to more rules and requirements than in-person voting because it is a privilege. But if state law gives clerks the authority to decide whether or not to use a drop box, where does that authority end, the justices asked. Youve argued that municipal clerks are free to decide where and how they would accept delivery of returned absentee ballots, Justice Rebecca Bradley, who wrote the Teigen decision, said. So it sounds like the holding youre looking for from this court is not restricted to the use of drop boxes. So what limiting principle are you offering the court or are you suggesting youre asking this court to give municipal clerks absolutely free rein to disregard the carefully regulated regime established by the peoples representatives in the Legislature, and they can do whatever they want? Fox said that clerks are elected officials who are accountable to their voters, so the limiting principle is losing their position. The justices were also weighing whether or not they should take the step of overturning a previous precedent. The liberal justices, arguing that the structure of Teigen makes no sense, pointed to the many times Misha Tseytlin, the attorney for the Legislature, argued in front of the Court for precedent to be overturned. You are talking to us about the importance of precedent, and I think its very important, Justice Jill Karofsky said. I think stability in the law is very, very important. In Teigen, what if we just got it wrong? What if we made a mistake? Are we now supposed to just perpetuate that mistake into the future? Tseytlin said that if the Court overturns Teigen now, its likely hed be back in front of the Court the next time its composition changes, arguing for the decision to be flipped back. I can guarantee you that if you if the dissent in Teigen becomes the majority in this case, that when the Courts composition changes in a year, the new dissenters are going to think the majoritys decision was unsound in principle under this new we just disagree standard, said Tseytlin, assuming the results of next years Supreme Court election will restore a conservative majority. And were going to be back here again to determine whether, as a statutory matter, drop boxes are allowed and maybe the Courts composition will flip the next year and well be back here the fourth time. The post Wisconsin Supreme Court reconsiders legality of absentee drop boxes appeared first on Wisconsin Examiner. (Clockwise from upper left) The four liberal justices of the Wisconsin Supreme Court: Jill Karofsky, Rebecca Dallet, Janet Protasiewicz and Ann Walsh Bradley. MADISON The new liberal majority of the Wisconsin Supreme Court on Monday questioned its conservative members' past decision to bar Wisconsin clerks from using absentee ballot drop boxes in a case that could impact turnout in a key swing state this November. The state's highest court heard arguments Monday in a lawsuit backed by Democrats that seeks to overturn the court's decision under its previous conservative majority that said state law does not allow drop boxes to be placed outside of an election clerk's office and another ruling that prohibited clerks from filling in missing address information on absentee ballots. What if we just got it wrong? said Justice Jill Karofsky, one of four members of the court's liberal majority, referring to the court's prior decision. What if we made a mistake? Are we now supposed to just perpetuate that mistake into the future?" The court in the coming weeks will decide whether to reinstate the use of absentee drop boxes, just before voters are set to cast ballots in the next presidential election that features a rematch of President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. Biden defeated Trump in Wisconsin by about 21,000 votes four years ago. Since then, Trump has sought to persuade lawmakers and judges to overturn the battleground state's election result and in doing so, argued ballots returned in drop boxes amounted to voter fraud despite a lack of evidence to support the claim. Ballot drop boxes had been used since the 1980s or 1990s in Wisconsin and other states but exploded in popularity during the coronavirus pandemic especially in liberal-leaning areas to help voters cast ballots while limiting interaction with other people. On Monday, the court's liberal justices questioned the court's 2022 decision to ban the boxes, with some arguments focusing on the state Legislature's past statements of support for their use. "This was not something you were obviously concerned about at all in 2020 when you said that these boxes were expressly authorized and lawful," Justice Rebecca Dallet said Monday to an attorney representing Republican legislative leaders, who are in court defending the 2022 ruling outlawing drop boxes against the challenge brought by liberal group Priorities USA and the Wisconsin Alliance for Retired Voters. "At that point in 2020 no one had raised any legal objections to drop boxes," Misha Tseytlin, an attorney representing the Legislature, said in response. Conservative Justice Brian Hagedorn questioned why past policy positions mattered to the justices' work on interpreting the law. "We've had parties change their positions very recently in this court and other people haven't been troubled by that why does it matter that the Legislature takes a different view of the statute for us to read the statute faithfully? Hagedorn said. The plaintiff's arguments amounted to asking the state Supreme Court to become lawmakers, conservative Justice Rebecca Bradley argued. "You are asking this court to become a super Legislature and give free rein, despite what the statutes say, give free rein to municipal clerks to conduct elections however they see fit," she said. "That, counsel, seems to me to be the greater danger to democracy because you're asking this court to override what the Legislature wrote." Critics say drop boxes aren't laid out in state law and that lawmakers, not the state elections commission, must create rules for them. Supporters say clerks have wide authority and discretion over what tools should be used to administer elections in their communities., an argument at least one liberal justice echoed Monday. In spring 2021, there were about 570 drop boxes in Wisconsin, according to court filings. Out of Wisconsin's 72 counties, at least 66 had drop boxes as of spring 2021, PolitiFact Wisconsin noted. While Republicans have heavily scrutinized the use of drop boxes, they were used widely in Wisconsin, including in conservative areas. If the court allows expanded use of drop boxes again, some cities with remaining drop box infrastructure may be able to open them back up quickly. Madison City Attorney Michael Haas said, for Madison, it would be a matter of unlocking the box and likely double-checking the video security. Hope Karnopp of the Journal Sentinel contributed to this report. Molly Beck can be reached at molly.beck@jrn.com. This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin Supreme Court liberals question past ruling on drop boxes The Rialto Police Department says one person is dead following a shooting that occurred Sunday morning. Authorities say the incident occurred around 9:12 a.m. when they received a call about a possible shooting at a residence located in the 300 Block of South Willow Avenue. When officers arrived, they initially found a female victim suffering gunshot wounds. Emergency responders pronounced her dead at the scene. Rialto police say officers then found the suspect, identified as Leonardo Rios-Gonzalez, injured from what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Rios-Gonzalez was transported to a nearby hospital where he is in critical, but stable condition. Authorities did not confirm how the suspect and victim knew each other but did say that there was a relationship between the two. The victims identity is being withheld pending notification of next of kin. Rialto police have not released any information about a possible motive for the shooting. The Rialto Police Department requests anyone with information related to the investigation contact Detective Sergeant Ralph Ballew at 909-533-7463. Witnesses can also anonymously report information through WeTip at 800-782-7463. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTLA. KANSAS CITY, Mo. The Lenexa Police Department reported that one woman was injured in a stabbing at an apartment complex Sunday evening. Police said that officers were dispatched to the 17400 block of West 86th Terrace at around 4:30 p.m. when they found a woman who had been stabbed multiple times outside. KCPS, police investigating potential threat against East High School Shortly after, 29-year-old William Clayton of Spring Hill, Kansas was located close by, and police took him into custody. According to investigators, the woman and Clayton were in a domestic relationship. Clayton is currently being held at the Johnson County Sheriffs Office and is being charged with attempted second-degree murder. Lenexa police said the woman is hospitalized with serious injuries. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV | News, Weather, Sports. Woman tried to hire hitman on the dark web to kill boyfriends lover in Texas, feds say A Texas woman was sentenced to prison after officials said she used the dark web to try to hire a hitman. Michelle Murphy was given a 9-year prison sentence after she pleaded guilty to one count of murder-for-hire in September 2023, according to a May 9 news release from the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Northern District of Texas. In August 2023, Homeland Security investigators received a tip from a source that an unknown person, later identified as Murphy, was on the dark web attempting to hire a hitman to kill someone, according to a criminal complaint. Murphy sent $10,510 in Bitcoin to pay for the murder, and officials were able to trace the cryptocurrency transactions back to her, the complaint said. Investigators were also able to determine the intended target of the murder-for-hire: a romantic rival. On Aug. 11, they questioned the woman, who told officers that she was in a romantic relationship with the boyfriend of another woman, named Michelle, officials said. The woman also told officials that Michelle recently sold her home and made over $100,000, according to the complaint. On Sept. 21, agents saw Murphy and her boyfriend at the Dallas Fort Worth International Airport and escorted them to a TSA office where they were interviewed, according to officials. During the interview, Murphy admitted to paying Bitcoin in order to have the other woman killed, officials said. Murphys attorney, James Lee Bright, told McClatchy News that she is a good, kind lady who had been affected by ongoing mistreatment by men in her life. Murphy did not initially get on the dark web with intentions of hiring a hitman, but instead it was because she was dealing with mental health issues and suicidal thoughts, Bright said. During Murphys case, Bright said he filed two memorandums for departure, one for aberrant behavior and another for mental health issues. He said a departure would allow a judge to adjust the standard guidelines for sentencing, in which the judge did. Bright also requested Murphy be placed in a facility where there is a fit (female integrated treatment) program, which is to help women get mental health treatment. He said the judge did recommend that for whenever she gets located. Lawyer sought hitman to kill his kids mom, feds say. Cheaper way to get rid of her Doctor asks nurse to help her hire hitman to kill ex-husband in Kentucky, feds say Ex-wife pays hitman with diamond ring to kill woman living with ex-husband, feds say (From top) Rauslyn Adams, Miannica Frison and Crystina Hughes in Birmingham, Ala., on April 27, 2024. Credit - Nydia Blas for TIME Miannica Frison was in the throes of labor in 2020 when a nurse entered her room at UAB Hospital in Birmingham, Ala. Frison was screaming in pain. But rather than see how she could help, Frison recalls, the nurse said she heard Frison was having her third baby, and asked if she wanted to be sterilized immediately after she gave birth. Outraged, Frison kicked the nurse out of the room. Doctors eventually told Frison she needed an emergency C-section. As she lay on the operating table, just moments after her son was pulled from her belly, a doctor entered the delivery room. We can go ahead and put an IUD in right now, since youre already open, the doctor said, according to both Frison and her husband. Frison was woozy from her epidural, but had experienced a traumatic birth, and at that moment, she didnt think she wanted more children. So she allowed the doctor to insert the Mirena, an intrauterine device (IUD) that would prevent pregnancies for up to eight years. In the months that followed, she didnt like the way the IUD was making her feel. But Frison says she couldnt persuade her gynecologist to take it out. The doctor told her she needed to lose weight first, Frison recalls, and that there were medicines to offset the side effects she was experiencing, such as nausea. It would be three years before Frison could get the device removed. Even then, she had to undergo three procedures, one lasting seven hours, she says, because the device had migrated to the lining of her uterus. It left her with four thumb-sized scars on her belly from where a doctor inserted an instrument to try to find the IUD. The experience caused Frison, a 32-year-old hairdresser, to have a profound mistrust of the medical system. I dont have faith in doctors anymore, she says. I cant trust any of them. Frisons experience was more common than one might expect. In the last two decades, doctors have encouraged women to choose long-acting reversible contraceptives, or LARCs, because they are the most effective method of preventing unplanned pregnancies. Doctors and many patients like that LARCseither IUDs, which are inserted in a womans uterus, or implants, which are inserted in a womans armallow women to set it and forget it for years. But an increasing body of evidence indicates that an important public health tool intended to give women agency over their bodies is at times deployed in ways that take it away. "I don't have faith in doctors anymore," Frison says. Nydia Blas for TIME A TIME investigation based on patient testimonials, medical studies, and interviews with 19 experts in the field of reproductive justice, including physicians, researchers, and advocates, found that doctors are disproportionately likely to push these contraceptives when treating Black, Latina, young, and low-income women, or to refuse to remove them when requested. This pattern, reproductive-justice experts say, reflects the race and class biases plaguing the U.S. medical system and extends a sordid and long-standing history of Americas attempts to engineer who reproduces. It also reflects what appears to be a broad push by policymakers to use birth control as a tool to curb poverty. The idea is that we can stop people that we dont want to be reproducing from reproducing, but can say, This is temporary because its removable, says Della Winters, a professor at California State University, Stanislaus who has studied the history of LARCs and calls the rise of so-called provider-controlled contraception targeting certain populations a type of soft sterilization. Doctors pressuring patients into getting LARCs is a national phenomenon, experts say, but it may be especially prevalent in the South, where there is a troubling history of reproductive control. To explore what women are experiencing, TIME spoke with 10 women in Alabama, including four patients at UAB Hospital, who said they were pressured to get an IUD postpartum or had their doctors refuse to remove the devices when they initially asked. Four doulas who work in the state told TIME theyd witnessed doctors pressure Black women, especially those on Medicaid, into getting IUDs by asking them repeatedly during birthbut not, according to their clients, prior to itabout their preferred birth-control method and then strongly suggesting an IUD. UAB disputed that it engages in reproductive coercion and said in an email that it follows guidance from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), which suggests that LARCs should be offered immediately postpartum as standard care. The hospital also says that its providers receive implicit-bias training to avoid disparities in maternal and infant health outcomes. Patients are counseled on contraception options throughout the course of their pregnancy, the hospital says, and every patient makes her own decision on contraception, and our team supports them in the decisions they make about their health. Federal privacy laws prohibit UAB from commenting on an individual patients care, UAB says. The ACOG says its recommendation for doctors to offer immediate postpartum LARCs refers to women who have already selected an implant or IUD as their contraceptive method. Though the group previously recommended that doctors emphasize LARCs as the most effective contraceptive, it said in 2022 that it now recommends a patient-centered approach to contraceptive counseling. (The Alabama patients who spoke to TIME shared experiences that took place between 2016 and 2023.) Doctors who pressure patients to get or keep LARCs may do so because they think theyre acting in the patients best interest, says Nikki B. Zite, an ob-gyn and professor at the University of Tennessee Graduate School of Medicine. They might advocate for women with substance-abuse problems or major health issues to get a LARC, Zite adds, because they want them to be healthy before they give birth, or might hesitate to take out a LARC because they know the devices are expensive for insurers, and that symptoms a woman experiences after insertion, like cramps or bleeding, will pass. Zite remembers being extremely enthusiastic when she first started recommending LARCs to patients in the early 2000s. Now she recognizes that could have come across as coercive. If a patient came to me for diabetes, I would want them on insulinthats the most effective treatment, she says. I have a chart showing that LARCs are the most effective form of contraception, so doctors think, Why wouldnt I want them using a LARC? The answer is that reproductive health is different. Even if they have good intentions, doctors, in their enthusiasm for effective birth control, may strong-arm certain women into getting and keeping contraceptive methods they dont want. TIME examined 14 separate peer-reviewed studies in which Black and Latina women and lower-income patients reported experiencing higher levels of coercion from doctors to use LARCs. In one 2022 paper that reviewed a survey of nearly 2,000 women in Delaware and Maryland, about 26% said they were pressured to get their LARC, and low-income women on Medicaid were more likely than higher-income women to feel pressured to keep it. A separate 2022 study of more than 2,000 adolescents found that Black girls were twice as likely as white ones to receive LARCs. In five additional studies reviewed by TIME, doctors admitted either to resisting some patients requests to remove LARCs or to pushing certain populations toward LARCs because they didnt trust them to avoid a pregnancy that the doctor viewed as undesirable. The other thing that really frustrates the crap out of me, one doctor told researchers, according to a study published in 2021, is the patient who comes in and says, No, I dont want to be pregnant, but I dont use any birth control. You want to take that person and shake them. Some of it is ignorance, some of it is cultural. In the wake of the Supreme Courts 2022 Dobbs decision, which overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, the question of just how widespread this pressure may be takes on greater urgency. Research shows that doctors in states with restrictive abortion laws are redoubling their emphasis on the use of LARCs. These may be well-meaning attempts to help women and teens avoid a pregnancy they dont want and would not have the option to terminate. But reproductive-justice advocates say pushing LARCs on poor women or women of color is also a form of reproductive control. It can not only strip patients of autonomy over their bodies, but also erode their trust in medical providers, causing them to withdraw from care and eschew birth control altogether. "This is when the culture of medicine that centers providers perspectives over those of patients has its absolute worst impact," says Christine Dehlendorf, a physician and professor at the University of California, San Francisco, who was one of the first to study how provider bias affects LARC counseling. "We are explicitly able to take away people's autonomy by refusing to remove contraceptive methods, but all the time, providers can believe that they're doing the best thing for the patient, and that they know better." UAB Hospital in Birmingham, Ala. Nydia Blas for TIME LeAnn, a stay-at-home mom from Tuscaloosa, Ala., was on Medicaid when she gave birth to her second child in 2018, at age 20. Her doctor kept asking her about her plans for contraception after she gave birth, says LeAnn, who did not want her real name used to protect her privacy. She eventually agreed to get the Mirena inserted at her six-week postpartum visit. Almost immediately, LeAnn says, she started waking up in the middle of the night with uterine pain so severe that she couldnt stand up straight. After three months of pain, she says she asked her doctor to remove the IUD, but he refused, saying she needed to choose another form of birth control. The pain was so bad, LeAnn recalls, that she would sometimes end up in the emergency room. I just suffered for a year, she says. Finally she decided the best strategy was to lie and tell her doctor that she wanted another baby; with that, he removed the IUD. LeAnn is white, but says her doctor knew she was on Medicaid. Research suggests that doctors are often hesitant to remove IUDs in women who they know are poor or who have children at home. A 2016 study found that 1 in 4 women who went to a Bronx, N.Y., clinic asking doctors to remove their IUDs were not successful. These ideas of who should and shouldnt have children are still very much influencing our policies and practices, even if its more subtle than in the past, says Mieke Eeckhaut, a sociologist at the University of Delaware, who found that young, economically disadvantaged, unmarried, and Hispanic women disproportionately reported being pressured to keep their LARCs. Systemic racism and classism have long pervaded the American medical system, including reproduction. Before birth-control methods like the pill and IUDs were legally available, policymakers used sterilization to prevent certain low-status women from having children. Laws permitting states to sterilize women whom lawmakers thought would be unfit parents were so common throughout the South that the civil-rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer coined the term Mississippi Appendectomy after she went to have a uterine tumor removed and unknowingly got a hysterectomy instead. Read More: Why Maternity Care Is Underpaid. Advances in birth control in the 1950s gave women more options, but it also gave doctors a measure of control over who got pregnant. Margaret Sanger, the founder of Planned Parenthood, promoted the pill in part as a way to limit reproduction in defective populations. After the FDA approved the Norplant, a small contraceptive rod implanted in a womans upper arm, in 1990, states began pushing the device on low-income Black women, incentivizing welfare recipients with cash bonuses. In the 2000s, pharmaceutical companies started rolling out a new wave of extremely effective hormonal IUDs, including the Mirena. To doctors, these devices, alongside safer implants introduced in the late 1990s, were something of a miracle. With one short insertion procedure, they could help women avoid pregnancies for long periods of time. (The duration of each device varies, but they generally last from about three to 10 years.) LARCs are not only 20 times more effective than the pill. They also offer the promise of convenience: no more worrying about picking up a prescription from a pharmacy on a regular basis, or remembering to take the medication at the same time every day. But as these devices entered the market, American women stayed away from themjust 5% used them in the late 2000s, compared to 19% of women in places like Sweden. This reticence prompted doctors to launch a campaign to market LARCs to women perceived to be at risk of unplanned pregnancy, a policy fixation in the wake of the welfare-reform push during the Clinton Administration. In 2007, an anonymous funderBloomberg later reported that it was the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundationapproached researchers at Washington University in St. Louis with a goal: promoting and providing the most effective contraception in an effort to prevent unintended pregnancies. They launched the Contraceptive CHOICE project, which recruited women at the highest risk for unintended pregnancya group they defined as minorities, poor women, and women under 25. A Mirena IUD. Nydia Blas for TIME The CHOICE project did not ask those women which type of birth control best fit their lifestyles, or if they were seeking a method that they could stop on their own without a doctors assistance. Instead, doctors used a standardized script to counsel women that LARCs were the most effective contraceptive and that they could receive the devices for free. As a result, 75% of the women in the program chose a LARC, compared to just 5% of women attending the same clinics before the CHOICE counseling was launched, according to a study of the project, which included 9,256 women. The initial results, published in 2010, were a watershed in reproductive health. Counseling women to choose LARCs appeared to be a relatively simple way to prevent unintended pregnancies, and CHOICE researchers trumpeted the potential to save U.S. taxpayers $11 billion annually in costs associated with unintended births. Policymakers and philanthropists hailed LARCs as a silver bullet that would reduce unintended pregnancies and save states huge sums in public benefit costs. The Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation reportedly put $200 million into research and promotion of IUDs. (The foundation did not respond to a request for comment.) Public health groups like the American Academy of Pediatrics and ACOG launched LARC-first campaigns to increase uptake. The World Health Organization and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention launched a tiered effectiveness model urging doctors to talk about LARCs and sterilization as the best way to prevent pregnancy. Many providers were also counseled to ask women one key question: whether they were planning on getting pregnant within a year. If the answer was no, doctors were supposed to suggest LARCs. Informing women about their contraceptive choices is a laudable goal. So is ensuring access for women who may not be able to afford them otherwise. (Since the passage of the Affordable Care Act, insurers have been required to cover contraception; Medicaid also covers the cost of contraception for lower-income women.) But experts say the LARC-first campaigns become problematic when doctors focus on effectiveness to the exclusion of other factors, including the ability to start and stop birth control when women desire. Theres been a lot of targeted information about LARCs, which is great if thats what the patient wants, says Kavita Shah Arora, the division director of the ob-gyn department at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. If were pushing people into a form of birth control that they dont want, that is not great. States like Delaware and Colorado launched programs to increase access to birth control, offering a range of contraceptive options but emphasizing the effectiveness of LARCs. Colorado said in 2017 that it saved nearly $70 million in public-assistance costs because of LARCs. Better birth outcomes, a reduced teenage birthrate and millions of dollars saved are cause for celebration, Delaware Governor Jack Markell, a Democrat, wrote in a 2016 New York Times op-ed about his states efforts to promote LARCs and save taxpayers money. But the notion of fighting poverty and saving money by reducing unplanned pregnancies misses a big point: poverty is not caused by pregnancy. Many women are poor when they get pregnant because of entrenched social issues. Advising them to wait for a better time to have a baby implies that women who are poor shouldnt procreate. Saying that unplanned pregnancies cause poverty stigmatizes poor women, especially poor women of color, and blames them for profound inequality thats actually caused by things like lack of access to meaningful employment or safe schools, says Patrick Grzanka, a psychology professor at the University of Tennessee who has studied LARC coercion. Alarmed by efforts to target LARCs at low-income populations, a group of womens health organizations led by Sister Song, a nonprofit dedicated to reproductive justice for women of color, put out a statement of principles about LARCs in 2016. They warned that as funders set targets for the number of LARCs inserted, women reported being talked down to and undermined by doctors, who treat them as though they do not have the basic human right to determine what happens with their bodies. The group rejected efforts to direct women to any particular method and cautioned providers against making assumptions based on race, ethnicity, age, or economic status. The statement was endorsed by more than 150 organizations, but its taken a while for actual practices to change. Thats partly because many doctors were trained in a LARC-first approach and might not know that there are new recommendations about how to talk about contraception. Indeed, ACOG recently issued new guidance that eschewed a LARC-first approach and recommended patient-centered contraceptive counseling. But one recent study found that even some medical providers who said they were embracing this approach nonetheless rejected patients requests to have their LARCs removed. Ill never just walk in a room, Oh, were just taking the IUD out? one medical provider told researchers about the limitations of patient-centered care. Sometimes Ill get them to, Let me just examine you, do some cultures, let me do an ultrasound and make sure its in the right position. And then secretly I know Im not going to fix their bleeding, but secretly Im hoping that theyll just leave and not come back in or they just cant get back in to get it removed and things will calm down. "It really took me becoming a doula to realize that I was coerced into getting the IUD, Crystina Hughes says. Nydia Blas for TIME Charity Howard, a doula in Alabama, says theres a striking difference in what happens to different types of women when they go to the hospital to give birth. Black women on Medicaid are asked to consent to having an IUD inserted immediately postpartum, according to Howard. But "when they have private insurance," she adds, "they dont run into this issue. Doctors can be persistent, according to Howard, who says she witnessed a doctor at UAB persuade one of Howards clients, a lesbian who was pregnant from a sperm donor, to get an IUD, even though the woman was not at risk of an unintended pregnancy. When Howard protested, she says she was escorted out of the hospital. (In its statement to TIME, UAB said it could not comment on individual patients.) When Crystina Hughes went to UAB in 2019 to give birth, she planned to wait until her six-week follow-up appointment before deciding on a form of birth control. But as soon as her daughter was born, Hughes says, a doctor asked if she wanted to get an IUD inserted, noting her cervix was already dilated. Hughes says she declined, but when her husband went with her newborn daughter to the ICU, the doctor returned to ask again. Hughes, who is Black, reasoned that if the doctor asked twice, it had to be important. So she agreed. Her milk dried up around six weeks, and she had to have the IUD removed within a year because of a prolapsed uterus, says Hughes, 35, who has since become a doula. Hughes says she often sees her clients pressured into getting LARCs, once even while doctors were weighing a womans newborn. It really took me becoming a doula to realize that I was coerced into getting the IUD, says Hughes. Its like, Can you let her have 24 hours before you ask her if shes thinking about birth control? (UAB says that it provides equal care to all patients, regardless of their gender, sexual orientation, race, or religion, and that to not offer a patient contraception based on their sexual orientation would be discriminatory.) There are reasons a doctor might want to insert an IUD right after a woman gives birth. The patient may already be on pain medication, so it wont hurt as much, and shes less likely to come back pregnant with another baby in a few months. Some women on Medicaid also lose their coverage soon after they give birth, which could be another reason doctors push IUDs on them and not others. Studies have found that IUDs are more likely to fall out or migrate if theyre inserted immediately postpartum, but ACOG says that it has reviewed cost-benefit analysis data that suggests placing IUDs right after a woman has given birth is the best approach, especially for women at greatest risk of not attending the postpartum follow-up visit. Still, reproductive-justice advocates say that pressuring a woman after the enormous challenge of childbirth, when she may be less likely to resist, is problematic. And they warn that ACOGs criteria means doctors may pitch LARCs differently based on their biases about who they think willor wont show up for a follow-up visit. Some of the discrepancy in who is directed to LARCs is also built into the health care system. Medicaid covers the postpartum IUD insertions in many states, while private insurance doesnt, in part because of the higher expulsion rate for devices placed at this time. Hospitals are also often compensated by one lump sum, called the global fee, for a womans pregnancy and delivery care, which means they can lose money if they pay for and insert a LARC postpartum as part of that care. Since 2012, however, 43 states have altered their Medicaid policy so that hospitals could receive extra compensation for inserting an IUD or implant immediately after a woman gave birth, a change that may have incentivized hospitals to push this particular method of contraception on women with Medicaid but not others. Read More: She Just Had a Baby. Soon, She'll Start 7th Grade. A study of the program in South Carolina, which adopted this policy in 2012, found that some women were dissatisfied with how providers talked to them about LARCs. Three out of 10 women who received a postpartum LARC later tried to get it removed, but encountered problems, the study found. They just keep promoting these long-term methods, one Black woman told researchers, recalling her encounters with doctors during her hospital stay. Its like theyre getting a commission or something. The pressure doesnt necessarily stop after delivery. When Rauslyn Adams gave birth at UAB in 2016, she says she was told that she would lose access to Medicaid if she didnt get an IUDwhich, she says, she later found out was untrue. Not wanting to lose her health care, Adams agreed to get the Mirena at her six-week postpartum visit. Adams says her milk production slowed soon after she got it. When she asked a doctor to take it out, the doctor refused, Adams says. When she successfully pleaded with another doctor to remove the device, she says, her milk supply improved. They really treated me like a dumb poor Black woman, says Adams, who went back to UAB twice to complain in the months after she gave birth. (UAB says that all patients are counseled on contraception and options available to them throughout their pregnancy, and that these conversations are documented and confirmed when they are admitted to the hospital. Consent forms are signed for the chosen plan, the hospital says.) Power dynamics in the South sometimes make Black women feel like they cant refuse doctors recommendations, says Aisha Prewitt, a doula who works with women in Birmingham and who has observed postpartum coercion. They will say, Its not coercion, its birth control, Prewitt says. But theyre not presenting other options. Even if the women ask about other options, its, Oh, you dont want to be bothered with the pill. Lets give you something that requires no thought. That pressure is heightened around the experience of birth because Alabama has the highest rates of maternal mortality in the U.S., and the numbers are particularly bad for Black women. . A lot of Black women think, Ill go along with anything the doctors say, Prewitt says, just to make sure I can get out of this hospital alive. Rauslyn Adams in Birmingham, Ala., on April 27. Nydia Blas for TIME Since the Dobbs ruling, according to early findings by researchers in North Carolina, many doctors have narrowed their focus to promoting the most effective contraception, like LARCs, while actively dissuading young people from choosing shorter-acting methods, especially in states with more restrictive reproduction laws. A soon-to-be-published study from researchers in South Carolina, which interviewed more than 1,200 women in five Southeastern states, found that nearly half of Black women overall experienced pressure from providers about birth control, compared to 37% of white women. Some of this pressure is enshrined in law. In May 2023, for example, North Carolina passed a bill limiting access to abortion after the 12th week of pregnancy. It included a provision awarding $3.5 million in birth-control funding to health departments and community centers, with the stipulation that the funding could be used for only LARCs, not the pill, and only for poor or uninsured patients. When this version came through in the wee hours of the night, I highlighted that section, and wrote in the margins, REPRODUCTIVE COERCION because it was explicitly about LARCs instead of about funding any contraceptive options," says Erica Pettigrew, a primary-care physician in North Carolina. I was really disappointed in this earmark, but I saw so many of my colleagues thinking this was a good thing. Adolescent-health experts worry this coercion will only get worse as policymakers and physicians try to prevent those in states with abortion restrictions from getting pregnant in the first place. The slippery slope that we will go down is another type of reproductive restriction by coercing people to use these long-term methods who may not have chosen them, says Aisha Mays, a doctor and founder of the Dream Youth Clinic, which provides free health services in the San Francisco Bay Area. That pressure has compounding effects. Women who feel pressured into getting an IUD or implant are less likely to trust their doctors or stay on any birth control as a result, according to studies. Some women turn to DIY medical care if they dont trust their providers. A viral TikTok trend shows women removing their own IUDs because, in some cases, they cant get an appointment or, in others, because doctors wont remove them. Its one more example of the disparate treatment poor women and women of color receive when it comes to medical care. Black women are twice as likely to be coerced into procedures like inductions and epidurals during perinatal and birth care, according to researchers. Some doulas in Alabama say that after bad experiences with labor and delivery, women are electing to have home births rather than risk being ignored or undermined by doctors. Once they feel that doctors arent taking their concerns seriously, women are less likely to seek out and receive important screenings and preventative health measures, which leads to worse health outcomes overall. Miannica Frison is a prime example of this erosion of trust. She doesnt currently have an ob-gyn, and after her years-long battle to get her IUD removed, Frison vowed to never get birth control again. One of the biggest ironies for Frison is that doctors seem so obsessed with getting her on birth control, but seem to care so little about her actual pregnancy outcome. Frison did not want a C-section, but doctors gave her little choice, she says. Because UAB is a teaching hospital, there were constantly people coming into the room to poke and prod her, she says, sometimes not even introducing themselves when they stuck fingers into her body. UAB says that decisions about a vaginal or C-section birth are made in the best interest of patients health and safety, and that every woman provides written informed consent for a full range of services when admitted, including a C-section. UAB is one of the largest and most advanced academic medical centers in the nation, so patients benefit from the expertise of highly trained care teams who provide a patient with evidence-based care, a spokeswoman said in an email, adding that medical students are not involved in hands-on care in delivering a baby. Frison was discharged from the hospital on Mothers Day. Soon after she got home, she began vomiting. Shed been discharged, she says, even though shed told doctors she felt extremely sick; when she was readmitted to the hospital, she says, she found out that she had sepsis. Frison couldnt nurse her son because she had to spend five days in the hospital without him; when she got out, he wouldnt latch. They were happy to tell you about how you could get sterilized, Frison says. But when it came to aftercare, or pregnancy care, none of that mattered. (From left) Miannica Frison, Rauslyn Adams and Crystina Hughes in Birmingham, Ala., on April 27. Nydia Blas for TIME With reporting by Leslie Dickstein This article was produced as a part of a project for the USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalisms 2023 Impact Fund for Reporting on Health Equity and Health Systems. More From TIME Contact us at letters@time.com. Nowhere to go: Day cares close doors to demand funding on Day Without Child Care Day care centers across Charlotte are keeping their doors closed and their playgrounds empty on Monday. Its part of a nationwide movement to draw attention to child care accessibility issues for families. While that may seem to go against the goal, organizers of this Day Without Child Care believe it will push lawmakers to put more funding into the child care system. Emma Biggs runs the Pathway Preschool Center in Plaza Midwood. She has organized events like this for years, warning about what could happen to tens of thousands of parents with young children if more state and federal money isnt directed towards child care. They wont have nowhere to go. That will increase child abuse and neglect. It will increase poverty. It will increase homelessness, Biggs explained. She says the biggest fight in North Carolina right now is keeping money the industry has depended on from going away. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Federal American Rescue Plan sent billions of dollars to child care facilities to keep them afloat. That money totaling 300 million dollars in North Carolina is set to expire in June. If that happens, the North Carolina Child Care Resource and Referral Council says nearly one-third of all child care facilities in the state could close, resulting in almost 92,000 child care slots going away. Ive been in this field for 27 years so I love what I do, I love this industry, Bigg says. And as a result of me loving this industry so much, I dont want to lose any children. Biggs says that money needs to be replaced and paid for by the state to avoid an even larger crisis. She says the money would be used in part to increase wages to attract day care workers who left the industry during the pandemic. Biggs and other daycare workers are headed to Raleigh later this week to pressure lawmakers into providing that money. (WATCH: NC Democrats urge voters to choose Biden in November to keep Affordable Care Act) A world-renowned forensic pathologist who served Allegheny County for two decades has died. A spokesperson for the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts confirmed Cyril Wecht died on Monday. He was 93. Wecht held various roles in Allegheny County, including in the coroners office, the district attorneys office, a pathologist at the VA and the County Commissioner. During his time as the Allegheny County coroner, Wecht performed about 21,000 autopsies and reviewed or been consulted on 42,000 additional postmortem exams, according to a biography on Duquesne University. Some of the high-profile cases he was involved in include O.J. Simpson, Kurt Cobain, the Menendez Brothers, Scott Peterson, Chandra Levy, Elvis Presley and Jeffrey Epstein. He likewise investigated the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy and presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy. He worked avidly and expertly to discover the truth surrounding deaths and injuries suffered by others, and brought comfort and justice for countless grieving and victimized families around the globe, the release from the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts reads. Wecht held faculty positions at several Pittsburgh area schools, including the University of Pittsburgh, Duquesne University and Carlow University. He founded the Pittsburgh Institute of Legal Medicine and the Cyril H. Wecht Institute of Forensic Science and Law at Duquesne and taught there for around 60 years. Duquesne University President Ken Gormley, a long-time colleague of Wecht, in a statement, says the school and its community were blessed by his presence on campus as a professor and says he will be sorely missed. The full statement reads: Dr. Cyril Wecht was a globally respected forensic pathologist, a gifted politician, and an incredible champion of Duquesne University. The Duquesne community was blessed by his presence on campus as a professor in the Duquesne Kline Law School for many years. His continued influence is felt through the academic work of the Wecht Institute of Forensic Science and Law and in the resources of the Cyril H. Wecht Forensic Science Collection. I was proud to call him a long-time colleague. His professional acumen, captivating stories, and keen intellect will be sorely missed by the Duquesne community, the region he served so faithfully, and the entire world that recognized him as one of the great forensic pathologists of our time. On a more personal note, Cyril has been a trusted friend since I began my career -- he never minced words, he had a lively and colorful personality, and he also had a heart of gold. There was, and will only be, one Dr. Cyril Wecht. His passing leaves a void in our hearts forever. Gov. Josh Shapiro issued a statement on Wecht, calling him a legendary figure in forensic pathology and criminal justice. The full statement reads: Dr. Cyril Wecht was a legendary figure in forensic pathology and criminal justice, and the way he pursued truth and justice is an inspiration. Throughout my career, Cyril showed me a genuine kindness and taught me many lessons on public service. Today, Lori and I are praying for his wife Sigrid, their four children, and the entire Wecht family. As I said today to his son, Justice David Wecht, Cyril lived a full, impactful, and meaningful life. May Cyril Wechts memory forever be a blessing. He detailed his career and personal life, including his professional pitfalls and public corruption trial, in a memoir titled The Life and Deaths of Cyril Wecht: Memoirs of Americas Most Controversial Forensic Pathologist. According to the statement from the courts, Wecht loved Pittsburgh and Allegheny County, and would never consider living anywhere else, despite traveling all over the world. Most of all, Cyril loved his family, and made the happiness, well-being, and education of his wife, his children and his grandchildren his top priority in life, the statement says. Wecht is survived by his wife, four children and 11 grandchildren. Officials say his funeral, burial and shiva will be private but a public memorial service will be announced at a later date. Contributions to Cyrils memory can be Stand With Us. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW TRENDING NOW: 1 dead, 2 injured in Uniontown shooting Good puppy abandoned, tied to pole with note outside animal shelter Longtime WPXI reporter Dee Thompson dies at age 84 VIDEO: NWS confirms 2 tornadoes hit Fayette County on Saturday DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts By Andrea Shalal and Susan Heavey FREDERICKSBURG, Virginia (Reuters) -The United States could see a significant response from China following any U.S. tariff actions, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Monday ahead of expected new tariffs targeting certain sectors this week. Yellen, speaking to reporters after a broadband event in rural Fredericksburg, Virginia, said she and other U.S. officials had made clear to China they could reconfigure tariffs first imposed under former President Donald Trump to be more strategic, but that any changes would be narrowly targeted. "We've been clear that in reviewing it we may decide that it's appropriate to reconfigure what's been done in a more strategic way," she said. She declined to give any details of expected changes in U.S. tariffs on China, but said the Biden administration would ensure Chinese officials were informed ahead of any U.S. action. "President Biden believes that anything we do should be targeted to our concerns and not broad-based and hopefully we will not see a significant Chinese response. But that's always a possibility," Yellen told Bloomberg Television earlier Monday. Yellen's comments, given ahead of an event on broadband, come as U.S. President Joe Biden is expected to announce new tariffs on Tuesday that will include a large hike on levies for electric vehicles. The tariffs will also target semiconductors, solar equipment and medical supplies, sources told Reuters last week. "I have been very clear in my engagement with the Chinese that we believe there needs to be a level playing field for competition, and that we have particular concern about clean energy, semiconductors and areas where China has, through its policies, encouraged so much investment that it's led to overcapacity," she said. Yellen said she was hopeful that China would recognize that U.S. actions were targeted, and declined to speculate on any possible retaliatory measures by Beijing. "We're going to try to keep our actions targeted, and we'll see what happens," she said. Yellen said Chinese was pursuing a conscious industrial policy that targeted investments in advanced manufacturing which were leading to global overcapacities that could wipe out competition by U.S. companies. She noted that virtually all Chinese investment that had been going into its property sector was now going into advanced manufacturing, given problems in the real estate sector. She underscored U.S. interest in continuing trade with China and stabilizing relations to ensure any disagreements could be discussed. Asked by Bloomberg if the United States wants a trade war with China, Yellen said: "We're working to stabilize our economic relationship. We do not wish to disengage from China economically, but we do think that the playing field should be fair, and China engages in unfair practices like massive subsidies." (Reporting by Susan Heavey and Andrea Shalal; Editing by Doina Chiacu, Caitlin Webber and Nick Zieminski) BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. The US will not allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon, Vedant Patel, Principal Deputy Spokesperson of the US State Department said during a briefing, Trend reports. President Biden and Secretary Blinken will not allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon. We continue to assess, though, that Iran is not currently undertaking the key activities that would be necessary to produce a testable nuclear device. And we don't believe that the Supreme Leader has yet made a decision to resume the weaponization program that we judge Iran suspended or stopped at the end of 2003. But again, we will not allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon, he said. The International Atomic Energy Agency and Iran reached an agreement in March 2023 and stated the terms of the agreement. According to the agreement, Iran's cooperation with the IAEA is within the framework of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Convention (NPT) and protection (safeguards), and the parties are to cooperate on allegations of the existence of enriched uranium substances in connection with Iran's nuclear program. Yet again, men are deciding to hurt women, This time, its how they engage in Oklahoma politics. State officials convene for a budget summit on Thursday. (Photo by Janelle Stecklein/Oklahoma Voice) Oklahomas Legislature and political culture remains a boys club. Nothing illustrates that more clearly than the makeup of the people invited to participate in the governors historic Budget Summit last week. Of the roughly dozen participants permitted to sit at the adult table last week to decide how billions of dollars would be allocated, only one was a woman. A member of the House appropriations staff, the woman was, of course, seated at the far end of the table and not asked publicly for her opinion. Gov. Kevin Stitt chose three men from his staff to attend the convening. They sat with him near the head of the table. The Republican Senates side was lined with all men. Meanwhile, two influential women Senate Minority Leader Kay Floyd and Democrat Sen. Julia Kirt were noticeably relegated to the audience. Its meetings like that that make me feel like women still have a ways to go when it comes to having the power and influence to shape key public policy discussions in our state. Its also one reason why its so unfortunate that Stitt has decided the National Education for Womens Leadership program isnt worth keeping. Its a popular University of Oklahoma program that for over 20 years has worked with over 650 women of all political backgrounds to help them engage in public service and politics. Many participants have gone on to serve in various leadership capacities with local, county, state, federal and tribal governments. The program announced it was shuttering due to an executive order Stitt issued in December that prevents state entities from spending money on programs to the extent they grant preferential treatment based on one persons particular race, color, sex, ethnicity, or national origin over anothers. Stitt said it was completely false that his order caused the closure. He said he wants more women in politics. I want to make sure that we promote first-generation college students, veterans, kids from low income, he said in response to news of the closure. All I said is dont make it based on race. He, of course, blamed a woman Floyd for the situation. He said she was trying to confuse voters. Among other things, Floyd had said the programs end was a terrible loss. Women bring perspectives and ideas to the table that would otherwise not be heard, something we need more of, not less, in government, she said. Its not Floyd who is trying to confuse voters. I think its safe to say that Stitts executive order will likely deal a death blow to a multitude of programs over the coming days that serve all sorts of Oklahomans. But I guess thats what happens when a governor tries to use a sledgehammer to tap in a pin. Theres going to be a lot of collateral damage left in the wake. Men have long had a leg up in politics. It wasnt until 1920 13 years after statehood that Oklahomans elected the first two women to our Legislature. In 1920, Amelia Elizabeth Bessie McColgin, R-Rankin, became the first female elected House lawmaker, and Lamar Looney became the first female senator. The ratification of the 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote, happened that same year. McColgin served just one session, but historians say her election opened the door for three more women to win seats the next election. Still, from 1907 to 2008, just 77 women were elected to the Legislature, according to the Women for the Oklahoma Legislature Oral History Project. These days, our state is roughly split 50-50 on gender. Yet, fewer than 1 in 5 lawmakers in our House are female. Its only slightly better in the Senate at about 21%. While women have made gains, politics remain largely a mens game, and were doing little to make it easier for women to access the playing field. A request by Sen. Jessica Garvin, R-Duncan, that could allow candidates to use campaign cash to help cover child care has moved slower than molasses. Supporters said it would make it easier for parents particularly women to run for office. It just goes to show, our leaders wont consider a womans opinion once shes had a child, but theyre continually moving to strip her rights when it comes time to decide to have one. Local television political roundup talk shows are largely hosted by men and often showcase male guests, which perpetuates stereotypes of men being the ones who belong in our political arenas. Even children notice the gender disparities. Several years ago, I participated in a televised weekly political roundup. Normally, only men participated, but one week, one commentator couldnt make it, so I pinch hit. After I participated, a mother approached me and said her young son had seen me on TV, and excitedly called her into the room, shouting Look Mom, theres a girl! That observation hammered it home about the expected gender roles still swirling within our Capitol. So if lawmakers are going to allow the death of a program that serves as a bridge for women to enter politics, what are they going to do instead to continue that pipeline? We still obviously have work to do to increase gender diversity. Women deserve a seat at the table. And our children deserve to know that there will be a place for them one day within the halls of our Capitol along with a pathway to help them get there. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Yet again, men are deciding to hurt women, This time, its how they engage in Oklahoma politics. appeared first on Oklahoma Voice. A York man has been charged with moving police barricades during the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection and waving an American flag while walking around the perimeter of the Rotunda inside the U.S. Capitol building, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in the District of Columbia. The FBI arrested 51-year-old Gerald Powell (also known as Jeremiah) on May 9, 2024, a news release states. He has been charged with a felony offense of civil disorder and the following misdemeanor offenses: entering or remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly or disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly conduct in a Capitol building or grounds, and parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building or grounds, the release states. Jeremiah Powell, circled in red, is allegedly pictured here waving an American flag as officers close the East Front Doors behind Jan. 6, 2021. In the news release, which cites a court document, authorities allege Powell was among a crowd of rioters on the east front of the Capitol grounds at 1:56 p.m. Jan. 6, 2021 that was beginning to wrestle with law enforcement for control of a line of bike racks and police barriers. When the crowd broke through the police line, Powell was among the first 20 rioters to move past it, the court document states. Powell followed the others but did not immediately advance to the building, the court document states. He turned back and moved at least five barricades that were in front of police officers, expanding the opening for rioters to move towards the Capitol building. Powell walked into the Capitol building around 2:40 p.m., and entered the Rotunda about two minutes later, the court document states. He recorded a phone video, which a tipster provided to the FBI, and in it, Powell proclaims: "We have, the people, have exercised our voices and got into the Capitol building, to let our elected representatives know that we will not tolerate the fraud!" Jeremiah Powell, circled in red, is allegedly pictured here wearing a camouflaged cap appearing to yell at officers who are closing the East Front Doors on Jan. 6, 2021. Investigators allege Powell left the Rotunda around 2:44 p.m. but re-entered three minutes later. He walked around the perimeter waving the American flag and then leaned the flagpole against the Jonathan Trumbull painting, "The Surrender of General Burgoyne." He pulled a bullhorn from his bag and yelled into it for about a minute, the court document states. Powell then made his way out of the Rotunda and yelled at a newly forming police line at one of the doorways, the document states. He exited the building while the riot was ongoing. Powell could not be reached for comment. Jeremiah Powell is allegedly pictured here pushing past police barriers to storm towards the Capital building on Jan. 6, 2021. Investigation into Jan. 6, 2021 breach ongoing More than 1,424 individuals have been charged with crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, a news release states. Of that number, more than 500 have been charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains ongoing. Anyone with tips may call 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov. This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: FBI arrests York man in Jan. 6, 2021 U.S. Capitol insurrection You'll never guess who is raising red flags on Kris Mayes' fake elector case Kris Mayes has told Arizonans she knew she would be criticized for prosecuting the Republicans who posed as electors in the 2020 presidential election. That was a given. The Democratic state attorney general is pursuing more than a dozen state and national Republican Party leaders to possibly put them in prison. Cries of partisanship were guaranteed. But so far, the loudest and most significant critic of her prosecution has not been Republicans. In fact, it has been a voice that rises from the friendly confines of mainstream media. Politico raises more questions about Mayes Attorney General Kris Mayes answers questions during an interview on March 14, 2023, in her office at 2005 N. Central Avenue in Phoenix. Politico, no friend of Donald Trump and his Make America Great Again movement, has for a second time raised questions about Mayes, her tactics and the grand jury she used to indict 18 Trump loyalists accused of trying to subvert the 2020 election. On Friday, the national political news site took aim at the way prosecutors in the Arizona Attorney Generals Office had assured certain witnesses they were not targets of the probe. Politico reported that former Trump attorneys Jenna Ellis and Christina Bobb were assured by prosecutors that they were not targets of the probe, only to learn that the grand jury indicted them anyway. I have never seen anything like that in any Arizona criminal case that I can think of, Omer Gurion, a Phoenix criminal defense lawyer, told Politico. Not one. Gurion, who has no connections to the elector case, said it is pretty unusual for a person to go from being untargeted to indicted in just four days as was the case for former Trump attorney Jenna Ellis. The case of former Trump attorney Jenna Ellis Former federal prosecutor Renato Mariotti told Politico, Its bad form, and something I would never do as a prosecutor. That said, Ive practiced criminal law across this country and gone up against prosecutors of all stripes, and Ive learned there are many prosecutors who do things I would not do. Mayes prosecutors made first contact with Jenna Ellis months after she had pleaded guilty in Georgia to participating in the fake electors scheme there. As reported by Politico: They asked her to appear for an interview in their office to determine whether they might benefit from her cooperation, a so-called free talk interview. On April 19, the prosecutor followed up with another version of the same letter working to arrange an interview, reiterating that Ellis was not a target of their probe. Four days later, the grand jury indicted her. The interview never happened. Former Arizona prosecutor Paul Charlton told Politico the Ellis episode is peculiar. It may have a very reasonable explanation you certainly hope it does. But at the end of the day, the prejudice that she suffers seems marginal, only because she never participated in the discussion with them. Christina Bobb also was told she was a witness On Feb. 28, Christina Bobb, who assisted Trumps effort to overturn his 2020 election defeat to Joe Biden, got a letter from Arizona prosecutors that told her she is not a person under investigation by the State Grand Jury, Politico reported. Less than two months later, an Arizona grand jury indicted her. Gurion said it is unlikely state prosecutors didnt know she was under investigation when it sent the letter, he told Politico. I cannot imagine that they didnt know that she was being investigated and was going to be mentioned to the grand jury two months prior. That doesnt make sense. ... This timeline is troubling. Mariotti told Politico hed never seen anything like it. In my over 20 years practicing criminal law, Ive never encountered someone who was a witness being indicted less than two months later, who was told in writing that theyre a witness and not under investigation. Irregularities mount in Arizona electors case This story has particular resonance in that it follows a March 28 Politico report that Mayes prosecutors broke convention by forcing Arizona Republicans who had invoked their Fifth Amendment rights to appear before the grand jury. Pleading the fifth is not an admission of guilt, but a protection against self-incrimination. However, less informed grand jurors are capable of seeing it differently. Fake electors were charged: It's about darn time The tactic is ... highly unusual and risks biasing the grand jury against key targets of the probe, according to independent legal experts who have worked as both prosecutors and defense lawyers, Politico reported. Its way out of the ordinary, said former Arizona prosecutor David Lish, now a criminal defense attorney, to Politico. Ive never had a client whos been ordered to appear in front of a state grand jury who was the target of that investigation. Thats not normal practice. Was a grand jury driving Mayes' case? While highly questionable, the tactics used by Mayes office could have explanations. Sources familiar with the investigation told Politico that a highly aggressive faction of the Arizona grand jury was at times driving it. In high-profile cases, such as this, it is not unusual for grand juries to assert their independence and drag in witnesses and pursue indictments beyond the scope of prosecutors, Politico explained. Nonetheless, this is a case that will unavoidably be perceived as criminalizing politics. It is, after all, a prosecution that could put Mayes political rivals in prison. Given the circumstances, she has an obligation to ensure that every step she takes is above board. For the moment, a high-profile national political news site is raising doubts about that. And it appears something is rotten in Denmark. Phil Boas is an editorial columnist with The Arizona Republic. Email him at phil.boas@arizonarepublic.com. This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Kris Mayes is taking heat for 'unusual' tactics in fake elector case KANSAS CITY, Mo. The Kansas City Police Department reported a shooting early Monday morning that left a child hospitalized. Neighbors say shes a 4-year-old girl. KCPD said officers were dispatched around 6:30 a.m. to Saint Lukes Hospital off 4400 Wornall Road for a call about a juvenile who was shot. KCPS, police investigating potential threat against East High School According to police, the victim is a young girl and is reported to have non-life-threatening injuries. All information is preliminary and investigations are ongoing. As more details are released, FOX4 News will update this story with the latest information. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV | News, Weather, Sports. Former President Donald Trump wanted to hold off on paying Stormy Daniels until after the 2016 election, Michael Cohen testified Monday, believing he might not have to buy her silence at all after people were done voting. But after Cohen received a heads up that Daniels was preparing to sell her story to a British tabloid, Trump, having consulted with friends and allies, ordered his former fixer to make the deal. "He stated to me that he had spoken to some friends, some individuals, smart people, and that it's $130,000. Youre a billionaire, just pay it," Cohen testified, according to CNN. The Republican candidate had concluded "there's no reason to keep this thing out there, so do it," Cohen said. "He expressed to me, 'Just do it. Meet up with Allen Weisselberg and figure this whole thing out.'" Weisselberg, the Trump Organization's former chief financial officer, spoke with Cohen before the payment to Daniels was made, according to call logs presented in court Monday. "There was significant urgency" to get the deal done, Cohen said, with Daniels threatening to compound Trump's issues with women voters. Cohen ultimately paid Daniels and her attorney $130,000 from a home equity line of credit he had taken out. He was later reimbursed to the tune of $420,000, an amount that was intended to cover the taxes Cohen would have to pay by claiming the money was payment for legal expenses. Trump is accused of falsifying business records to cover up the Daniels payment, which prosecutors say should have been publicly disclosed as a contribution to his 2016 campaign. Zach Dell (yes, that Dell) wants to address Texas power grid instability with new startup Dell is a name so powerful in Austin that it and the Fortune 500 company of the same name are practically synonymous with the city and its tech identity. The Dell legacy will soon be expanding. After a successful spell as an investor, Zach Dell son of Michael Dell is looking to blaze his own trail with new energy startup, Base Power. While the company is undoubtedly an opportunity to grow his own legacy, Base Power's already impressive team of dynamic talent, also led by co-founder Justin Lopas, should not be ignored. "No. 1, the company is not about me. The company is about solving a challenging problem with really smart people," Dell said. "I'm really lucky to work with Justin and work with the rest of our team of incredible engineers and operators." With lofty goals, innovative tech and no shortage of funding, the company seems primed to make waves in the next 12 months. Base Power co-founders Zach Dell and Justin Lopas hope to provide affordable, reliable power to homes in Texas with batteries that connect to the grid and keep providing energy when the grid falters. What is Base Power and how could it help Texas grid instability? As winters are becoming more chaotic and summers even more blistering, power grid failures are now a looming threat across the state. For Dell and Lopas, this problem isnt just one that Texans live with its one they wanted to solve. The grid is a techno operational and economic challenge and requires a really diverse set of skill sets. Lopas said. Between the two of us, we certainly don't have all of them, but we're building out a team that certainly does. Base Power has turned to distributed battery storage as a way of backing up the existing grid while still keeping costs low for customers. What makes the idea unique is that the battery storage system is able to run without connecting to solar panels. This makes Base Power the only licensed energy provider in Texas to offer all-in-one monthly energy service, home battery and installation without the requirement of solar panels. Because of this, the company is operating in deregulated parts of Central Texas, mostly Austin suburbs, and the rollout is already underway. If you live in Texas, the last five years have been pretty painful when it comes to power, Dell said. Your electricity has gotten more expensive and less reliable but we're here to change that. How does Base Power's energy work? For customers of Base Power, the process is fairly simple. After installation, the batteries will work as a fail-safe during times of severe weather and high demand when the power grid can often get overwhelmed. The upfront cost is a one-time fee of $2,000 to cover installation, and Base offers fixed monthly pricing for electricity that varies by location but, according to the Base Power team, is often cheaper than existing energy companies. Quotes for your area can be found on the Base Power website. In an interview with the Statesman, Dell and Lopas explained that Base Power purchases 20 kilowatt-hour white-label batteries. They operate and maintain the batteries, which, after installation, work in conjunction with the existing grid. When the grid is working effectively, the Base Power battery will improve grid stability. When the grid goes down, Base Power will protect customers homes from power outages. By developing and deploying our own battery system, enabled by our custom software, we're able to provide our customers with backup power when the grid goes out and use the systems to load-balance the power grid when it's up and running, Dell said. Investment and a talented team could yield results soon Base Power has no shortage of talent. It boasts a team made up of engineers and operators from companies such as SpaceX, Tesla and Apple. Lopas, who formerly worked at Space X, said that the flatter company structure of the startup provides exciting opportunities for creative engineers like himself. We are trying to build a culture around a very low level of bureaucracy or sort of chain of command, Lopas said. Instead, we want to have a meritocracy, where the best idea wins every time. Since starting the company last year, Dell has been busy securing investment partners and is pleased with the capital that the young company has to work with. This is a capital-intensive endeavor, and it's going to require a lot of capital, and we're prepared to build that kind of business so we're well capitalized and ready to go, Dell said. Among the investors in the new company are Thrive Capital, Valor Equity Partners and Altimeter Capital. When talking timeline and scalability, Lopas and Dell think the technology and team are already in place to expand. Those things, combined with the capital, mean that the next 12 months could be a period of swift growth for the startup. Ahead of an important summer for the company, Dell outlined the areas where he hopes his team can introduce the product. We're ready to grow aggressively, so for customers in the Austin area Pflugerville, Round Rock, Hutto, Elgin, Killeen and Taylor we are ready to bring them onto the platform and go provide them with affordable, reliable power. Beck Andrew Salgado covers trending topics in the Austin business ecosystem for the American-Statesman. To share additional tips or insights with Salgado, email Bsalgado@gannett.com. This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Dell legacy grows as startup Base Power rethinks energy in Texas President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a decree on May 13 dismissing Andrii Alieksieenko, the first deputy chief of Ukraine's Foreign Intelligence Service. There was no reason given for his dismissal. He was replaced by Oleh Luhovskyi in a subsequent decree. The Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine, known by the acronym SZRU, collects intelligence on political, economic, military, scientific, and technical spheres and is subordinate directly to the president. Zelensky appointed Oleh Ivashchenko to be the chief of the service in March after its previous head, Oleksandr Lytvynenko, was selected to replace Oleksiy Danilov as the National Security and Defense Council's secretary. Read also: Russias new Kharkiv offensive pushes Vovchansk to the brink of annihilation Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Spanish newspaper El Pais, citing its sources, has reported that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will travel to Spain in the coming days. During this visit, Kyiv and Madrid will sign a bilateral security agreement. Source: European Pravda, citing El Pais Details: According to journalists citing government sources, President Zelenskyy's visit to the Spanish capital is expected "in the coming days." During this visit, Zelenskyy and Spanish PM Pedro Sanchez are expected to sign a bilateral security agreement between Ukraine and Spain, as a follow-up to the G7 declaration. This will be Zelenskyy's first bilateral visit to Spain. Last week, there were reports of a phone call between Zelenskyy and Sanchez, during which they discussed concluding negotiations on the security agreement. Background: In July 2023, the G7 leaders, together with Ukraine, adopted a declaration that served as the basis for the conclusion of bilateral security agreements. These agreements are envisaged to guarantee long-term support for Ukraine until its accession to NATO. Currently, Ukraine has signed bilateral security agreements with nine countries, with Latvia being the latest. The signing of an agreement with Norway is also expected. In early May, Zelenskyy announced the preparation of security agreements with seven countries, including the United States. Support UP or become our patron! Ukraine is preparing a bilateral security agreement with Luxembourg. Source: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Twitter, describing his conversation with Luxembourg's Prime Minister Luc Frieden, as reported by European Pravda Details: Zelenskyy noted that they discussed the possibility of Luxembourg funding defence support for Ukraine. "We are preparing to formalise it in our bilateral security agreement," the president said. The leaders also discussed expectations from the Global Peace Summit in Switzerland regarding the implementation of the Peace Formula proposed by Ukraine. "I appreciate Prime Minister Frieden's confirmation of his attendance, as well as his willingness to work with countries under Russian information influence," Zelenskyy said. Background: Ukraine has signed bilateral security agreements with nine countries so far, the latest being Latvia. An agreement with Norway is also expected to be signed. In early May, Zelenskyy announced the preparation of security agreements with seven countries, including the United States. Spanish newspaper El Pais reported that a security agreement between Ukraine and Spain is expected to be signed this week. Support UP or become our patron! BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. Israeli Air Force fighters struck two military targets and two Hezbollah missile launchers in southern Lebanon, press service of the Israeli army (IDF), Trend reports. According to the information, the strikes were carried out in response to shelling of Israeli territory. "Over the past few hours, fighter jets have struck two Hezbollah missile sites in the Halta and Kfarhamam regions of southern Lebanon. In addition, two Hezbollah terrorist targets were hit in the Al-Kharaib area," the report says. The Israeli army noted that during the day, many strikes were recorded from Lebanon in the direction of a number of areas in northern Israel. A Columbia University graduate continued to protest against the war in Gaza at their masters degree commencement ceremony on Friday, ripping up her diploma the moment she was handed it. In a video shared by Columbias Students for Justice in Palestine on social media, the unnamed graduate from the School of Social Work can be seen crossing the stage with their hands above their head to show off zip-tied wrists, a callback to the arrests of hundreds of protesters from Columbias campus in the past few weeks. The graduate, who wears a keffiyeh around their shoulders, accepts the diploma, faces the crowd, and then makes a show of tearing up the papers before tossing it over their shoulder. In the video, the graduate then doffs their graduation cap to show the audience something written on the top of it. Users in the comment section, some of whom appeared to be fellow graduates, said the student wore zip ties also to commemorate Palestinian prisoner Mohammad Natsheh, whose name was allegedly written on the cap. The graduate, whose name was not listed on SJPs post, was unable to be reached for comment. Columbia was the epicenter of a wave of pro-Palestinian student protests that rippled out across the nation in late April. Although the university canceled its main commencement ceremony over safety concerns, it continued to hold smaller celebrations for individual schools. That hasnt deterred the protests, which have continued to peacefully disrupt commencement ceremonies from coast to coast. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. SAN ANGELO, Texas (Concho Valley Homepage) Local and area junior high and high school students can attend a free, week-long summer camp hosted by Angelo States Universitys Department of Computer Science in June. Held at the ASU Mathematics-Computer Science Building at 2200 Dena Drive, the CyberCamp@ASU and ASU Code Camp will be taking place. According to a press release from ASU, CyberCamp@ASU will be held from June 3 through June 7 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. During the afternoon hours, local cybersecurity experts will speak to the attendees. There will also be interactions with area businesses to learn firsthand how they are combating cyber threats, among other topics. ASU shared that this camp will also have a team-based competition that will put students in attendance in the role of an IT administrator. They will be tasked with finding and addressing cybersecurity vulnerabilities in simulated network environments. This competition is based on the AFAs annual CyberPatriot National Youth Cyber Defense Competition. A free teachers workshop will also be held from June 3 through June 7 in conjunction with the CyberCamp@ASU for students. Teachers will get the chance to observe student camp session. Angelo State University celebrates over 1,000 graduates walking across the stage The second free summer camp hosted by ASUs Department of Computer Science will be held from June 10 through June 14. The ASU Code Camp is crafted for students interested in computer programming like creating and coding animations using JavaScript programming language. Attendees will learn from local professionals from TCP Software and ASU faculty and staff. The ASU Code Camp will run from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. each day and is free and open to students. Those who attend can join the camp online or in person on campus. ASU shared that on-campus seating is limited to 100 students and attendees. Participants that join online must of a personal computer or laptop and internet access. To register for the CyberCamp@ASU and teachers workshop, click here. To register for the ASU Code Camp, click here. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ConchoValleyHomepage.com. British tech companies to use EU supercomputers after UK falls behind in power race "Mistral" supercomputer, installed in 2016, at the German Climate Computing Center on June 7, 2017 in Hamburg, Germany British tech companies and researchers will gain access to EU supercomputers after an official report warned that the UK was falling behind in the race for processing power. The Government will announce on Monday that the UK has joined the European High Performance Computing Joint Undertaking, an EU programme to pool access to the most powerful supercomputers. Under the scheme, known as EuroHPC, businesses and scientists can bid for grants to use eight powerful supercomputers, which are used for tasks such as drug discovery, artificial intelligence and weather simulation. Machines in the programme include supercomputers in Finland, Italy and Spain that rank as the fifth, sixth and eighth most powerful in the world. In comparison, the UKs most powerful supercomputer is the Archer 2 system in Edinburgh, which sits in 39th place, according to the widely used Top500 list. A Future of Compute review commissioned by the Government found last year that Britain had dropped from third in the world by supercomputer capacity in 2005 to tenth. It said that a lack of investment threatens [the UKs] standing as an international leader in science and technology. Britain left EuroHPC as a result of leaving the European Union at the start of 2021 but is becoming a member as part of rejoining the Horizon Europe science programme last year. EU states as well as countries including Norway and Turkey are part of the scheme. Joining the programme does not involve extra taxpayer money up front, but if British researchers or businesses receive grants from the programme to access supercomputing resources, funding is matched by the Government. Saqib Bhatti, the digital economy minister, said joining the scheme was an example of collaborating where we think it is beneficial for us to do so. In March, the UK also joined the EUs semiconductor research programme, designed to allow microchip companies to carry out advanced research. The Government has committed 1.5bn to boosting supercomputing facilities in the UK, with AI computing hubs in Bristol and Cambridge and a new exascale supercomputer in Edinburgh. Michelle Donelan, the Science, Innovation and Technology Secretary, said: I have made it my mission to unleash the benefits of AI for the British public and supercomputers are essential tools that our best and brightest researchers need to deliver breakthroughs that will grow the economy and improve all our lives, from healthcare to energy security. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Your car could track your every move, and your insurance is getting the data When you speed up, when you brake, and even where youre going -- your car could be tracking your every move. Jason Stoogenke has a privacy warning after Action 9 found proof that convenience comes with a cost. Every time you get in your car, youre giving away a little, or sometimes a lot, of information about yourself. This is my LexisNexis consumer disclosure report. Im appalled, Temieka Clay said. Clay couldnt figure out why her car insurance premium went up by 80 percent, so she did some digging and found her LexisNexis credit report, which was tied to her Chevy Camaro. The report was hundreds of pages, and Clay learned that her cars OnStar system had been tracking things like acceleration, high speed, and hard braking events. IN OTHER NEWS: Father and son face dozens of charges for allegedly changing odometers, titles Clay also discovered that General Motors had shared more than 600 entries with data brokers, who then shared that information with insurance companies. Never did I imagine it would be spying on us and sending information about driving habits. Thats just unbelievable, Clay said. Jen Caltrider leads the Privacy Not Included project for Mozilla. She reviewed 25 car brands with her team, and they reported that every one of them collected more personal data than necessary and used that information for a reason other than to operate your vehicle and manage their relationship with drivers. The amount of data the car companies say they collect really had our eyes popping, Caltrider told Action 9. Whats being collected? Caltriders team identified dozens of data categories that some automakers collect. See the interactive graphic below for examples of the information that can be stored without drivers knowing: Some of the categories seemingly had nothing to do with the vehicles, like drivers physical characteristics or sexual orientation. (See the full list of categories on Mozillas report at this link.) According to Mozilla, a whopping 84% of the brands it researched share or sell your data. Channel 9 checked on this and even found a report from one of our news vehicles. It turned out that Toyota was collecting plenty of data from it, including personal identifiers, biometrics, location information, and user profiles. That information is being shared with affiliates, service providers, insurance companies, and the government. Its not just GM and Toyota sharing this data. In 2022, LexisNexis said it was gathering data on more than 10 million cars and had contracts with five of 10 of the largest auto insurers. What can you do about it? So once you know all of that, what can you do about it? The privacy disclosure forms attached to many car purchases can be long and confusing, but realize that when you agree to them, you consent to a lot of data collection. One suggestion is to think twice about installing your cars app on your phone. But the built-in features in your car, like OnStar, arent going anywhere. You know, youre thinking safety and if it gets stolen, but certainly not spying on me and sending my information to insurance companies, Clay said. SPECIAL SECTION >> ACTION 9 STORIES Theres a proposed class action lawsuit against GM, OnStar and LexisNexis. After the information became public, GM said it was severing ties with two data brokers. Lawmakers are also starting to pay attention to the issue. One senator in Massachusetts, Edward Markey, has asked the Federal Trade Commission to investigate privacy practices in the auto industry, saying cars have become smart phones on wheels. You can find out if your data has been released by searching your cars Vehicle Identification Number at VehiclePrivacyReport.com. (VIDEO: In Charlotte, traffic is a housing issue) EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) El Paso Countys Ilumina Public Library is inviting the community to its two free programs during the month of May. Ilumina Library, the countys first all-digital library, is open 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, according to the news release by El Paso County. The following are the two programs hosted by library, located at the Agua Dulce Community Center, at 15371 Kentwood Ave.: Beginner Technology Class Participants learn how to utilize a smartphone or tablet, by either bringing your own or using the librarys tablets. Classes are from 6 to 7 p.m. every Tuesday. Conversational English Class Participants learn and practice English in a safe environment. Classes are from 2 to 3 p.m. and 6 to 7 p.m. every Wednesday. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTSM 9 News. Erie School District vs. Big Tech? Approval given to explore lawsuit over social media use The Erie School District is exploring whether to sue Facebook, TikTok and other tech giants over claims that student use of social media platforms has created costly problems in district schools. The potential litigation would seek payments "for the nuisance and other damages caused to the School District by virtue of student use and misuse of social media," according to an agreement the Erie School Board approved over a possible lawsuit. A suit would "look at the negative side effects of social media in the school environment," said the Erie School District's solicitor, Tim Wachter. He said the 10,000-student district would want the social media companies to compensate the district for money it has spent addressing issues related to social media when that "money could have gone to education." The Erie School District is exploring whether to sue tech companies such as Meta, which includes Facebook and Instagram, over claims of how student use of social media has harmed its schools. The School Board unanimously signed off on the deal on a possible lawsuit at its regular meeting on Wednesday night. The agreement authorizes the Erie law firm of Knox, McLaughlin, Gornall & Sennett, which includes Wachter, to partner with the Frazer law firm, of Nashville, Tennessee, "in connection with potential litigation" against the tech companies. The potential defendants, according to the agreement, include Meta Platforms Inc., which owns Facebook and Instagram; Snap Inc., which owns Snapchat; TikTok; and Alphabet Inc., the parent organization of Google, which owns YouTube. Scores of states are already suing Meta The Erie School District is considering a lawsuit at the same time that 33 states, including Pennsylvania, are suing Meta over claims that Facebook and Instagram violate consumer protection laws by subjecting young users to "harmful, manipulative and addictive content," the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office said in announcing that it was part of the lawsuit, filed Oct. 24 in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. The suit claims, among other things, that "Meta specifically targets young users" and that "Meta prioritizes maximizing engagement over young users' safety." Meta is seeking a dismissal of the case, which is before U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, in Oakland. In a statement issued when the suit was filed, Meta said it shares the "commitment to providing teens with safe, positive experiences online, and have already introduced over 30 tools to support teens and their families," according to USA Today. Were disappointed that instead of working productively with companies across the industry to create clear, age-appropriate standards for the many apps teens use, the attorneys general have chosen this path, Meta also said. Possible litigation resembles district's case against Juul The Erie School District's exploration of a lawsuit against big tech echoes a strategy it pursued against Juul Labs Inc., the nation's largest electronic cigarette company. With Erie School Board approval in 2021, the Erie School District joined thousands of of other school districts, as well as municipalities and states, in suing Juul. The plaintiffs claimed Juul wrongfully marketed its products to youth, spurring a vaping epidemic among students, harming their health and adding to the costs of the school districts and other government entities. Juul settled the Erie School District's claims for $239,171 a year ago. About $99,000 of the settlement proceeds went toward legal fees and costs, according to district records. The settlement agreement requires the district to use the rest of the money for public health initiatives and related measures. The Knox firm partnered with the Frazer law firm on the Juul case. The two firms are once again deciding whether to sue big businesses this time, Big Tech. "It's very similar to what we did in the Juul case," Wachter said. Contact Ed Palattella at epalattella@timesnews.com or 814-870-1813. Follow him on X @ETNpalattella. This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Erie School District mulls suit over social media's 'negative' effects A view of the "Bundeslagebild Cybercrime 2023" lying on a table at the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA). Andreas Arnold/dpa The dangers posed by cyberattacks in Germany have continued to increase over the past year, according to a report by Germany's Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA). "The police database, but also the findings of individual IT security service providers, show a renewed upward trend in cyberattacks in 2023, both in terms of quantity and quality," the report states. In particular, the number of offences committed from abroad or from an unknown location has been increasing, according to the National Situation Report on Cybercrime for 2023. According to the BKA, the number of cybercrime offences recorded from abroad increased by around 28% compared to the previous year. In Germany, the police crime statistics for the same period recorded a slight decrease in cybercrime offences of 1.8%. Ransomware attacks, in which criminals encrypt the data of companies or public administration and demand a ransom for decryption, continued to be among the most serious threats. Nationwide, more than 800 companies and institutions reported ransomware cases in 2023, according to the police report. Cybercrime once again caused high amounts of damage in 2023, as the BKA explained, citing figures from the digital association Bitkom. According to Bitkom, the total damage caused to companies in Germany by analogue and digital theft, industrial espionage and sabotage amounted to 205.9 billion ($222 billion). Almost three quarters of this total damage can be attributed to cyberattacks, Bitkom reported. The explicitly reported losses caused by blackmail with stolen or encrypted data totalled 16.1 billion. Earlier on Monday, Bitkom spoke of an increasing number of cyberattacks from China and Russia. Within two years, a doubling of attacks from Russia has been measured, managing director Bernhard Rohleder told German public broadcaster ZDF on Monday morning. There was also a 50% increase in the number of known incidents from China, he said. Eighty percent of companies were targeted by attacks such as data theft, espionage or sabotage, according to the Bitkom director. The amount of damage caused by cybercrime to companies in Germany has also increased over the years. "The damage is 148 billion per year from cyber attacks alone, meaning digital attacks," said Bitkom's Rohleder ahead of the presentation of the report. "That is a very significant amount." Organized crime is often behind these attacks, as are foreign intelligence services, he added. "Some are after money," Rohleder said, adding that other perpetrators want to cause as much damage as possible, such as to critical infrastructure like the energy supply or hospitals. "And there are still some, especially private individuals, who just want to have fun," he said. (L-R) Holger Muench, President of the German Criminal Police Office (BKA), Nancy Faeser German Minister of the Interior, and Claudia Plattner, President of the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI), present the "Bundeslagebild Cybercrime 2023". The BKA provided information on the development of cybercrime in Germany at a press conference. Andreas Arnold/dpa Holger Muench, President of the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), presents the "Bundeslagebild Cybercrime 2023". BKA provided information on the development of cybercrime in Germany at a press conference. Andreas Arnold/dpa Images show what it's like to fall into a black hole Images show what it's like to fall into a black hole A NASA video reveals in stunning detail what falling into a black hole would look like. A NASA astrophysicist used Einstein's general theory of relativity to simulate the wild ride. The black hole's gravity warps light around it, making for a trippy experience. See for yourself. NASA recently released a series of trippy videos showing what it would look like if you plunged into a black hole. But not just any black hole a supermassive black hole with 4.3 million times the mass of our sun. That's about the size of the giant black hole that lurks at the center of our Milky Way galaxy. Black holes are extreme cosmic environments where gravity, time, and light act differently from what we're used to on Earth. That's what Albert Einstein predicted with his general theory of relativity in 1915: that massive objects, like black holes, warp the fabric of space-time. Under those extreme conditions, things get weird: time ticks by differently than on Earth and light travels on strange paths, warping your view of reality. Einstein may have had an idea of what that would look like, but now using the theory of general relativity, NASA astrophysicist Jeremy Schnittman can actually show you. Approaching a supermassive black hole Black holes trap ultra-heated gas in their orbit that then forms an accretion disk, like what you see here. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/J. Schnittman and B. Powell Schnittman begins his simulation with a distant view of a supermassive black hole surrounded by a glowing ring of gas. Black holes, by definition, are invisible because their gravitational pull is so great that nothing can escape not even light. However, if a star or gas cloud ventures too close to a black hole, the black hole's gravitational grip can shred it apart. The result is the gas ends up orbiting the black hole, forming what's called an accretion disk, which is the red ring you see around the black hole in this illustration. Inching closer to oblivion You can see where your spacechip would be at this point in the journey by looking at the small key in the lower right of this image. Right now, it's still outside the photon ring. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/J. Schnittman and B. Powell As the camera inches closer, you can see a dark band within the accretion disk followed by a thin ring of light closer to the black hole's center. This ring is called a photon ring. A photon ring is the last feature of a black hole you can see before entering the point of no return, called the event horizon. Once you pass the event horizon, you're permanently trapped within the black hole's gravitational hold. There is no escape. And that dark band just outside the photon ring? That's called the event horizon shadow. It's a peculiar trick of the light that the distorted space-time around the event horizon plays on our eyes. Rapidly accelerating to your doom Your spaceship is closer to the photon ring, approaching the event horizon the point of no return. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/J. Schnittman and B. Powell As your spaceship travels closer to the event horizon, the black hole's gravity grows stronger, accelerating you to tremendous speeds approaching the speed of light. As a result, the light you can see is amplified and appears brighter, "much the same way as the sound of an oncoming racecar rises in pitch," NASA said in a press release describing the videos. Light also becomes increasingly distorted because the space-time region you're entering is warped more by the black hole's gravity. 10 minutes and counting Your spaceship has passed the photon ring and is now falling toward the black hole's center at colossal speeds. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/J. Schnittman and B. Powell Once you've passed the photon ring, you're only 10 minutes away from reaching the event horizon, according to NASA's calculations. In those 10 minutes, you continue to see the light from the accretion disk and photon ring warp in a repeated cycle of growing and shrinking distorted ovals. After the countdown reaches zero, "once the camera crosses the horizon, its destruction by spaghettification in just 12.8 seconds away," Schnittman said in the NASA press release. Spaghettification is the term to describe how the black hole's gravity would stretch your body to as thin as a piece of spaghetti, killing you in the process. The point of no return Your spaceship has passed the event horizon and is now trapped inside the black hole forever. Death is imminent. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/J. Schnittman and B. Powell At this point, you'd probably be too worried about your body spaghettifying to look outside. But if you did, you'd see only a faint, thin red line of light as you plummeted toward the black hole's center. Once you pass the event horizon, it's only 79,500 miles to the very center of this black hole. A black hole's center is what's called the singularity. It's a mysterious place where gravity is so extreme that our laws of physics break down and we don't know what happens. We do know, however, that you'd be dead before you reached it. How black holes spaghettify their prey Black holes have the strongest gravitational pull of any object in our universe, capable of stretching your body as thin as a piece of spaghetti. European Southern Observatory The reason death by black hole is also sometimes called death by spaghettification is because of the black hole's immense gravity. Black holes have the strongest gravitational pull of any object in our universe. That's why they can easily take an entire star and shred it to pieces if the star ventures too close. Let's say you could stand on the surface of a black hole. Your feet would feel a stronger gravitational pull than your head because your feet would be closer to the black hole's center, where gravity is greatest. As a result, the black hole would pull your feet toward the center faster than your head, stretching you out little by little, inch-by-inch, until you were as thin as spaghetti. What a real black hole looks like Real photo of the supermassive black hole that lives at the center of our Milky Way galaxy called Sagittarius A*. EHT Collaboration NASA's simulation is based on a supermassive black hole the same size as the one at the center of our galaxy: Sagittarius A*. Here's an image of what Sagittarius A* really looks like. Scientists released this image of Sagittarius A* taken by Event Horizons Telescope in 2022. It's not as clear as NASA's simulation, but you can still see some of the telltale features: an accretion disk of light surrounding a black center. While it might not look that amazing at first, this photo of a black hole becomes far more impressive when you realize that Sagittarius A* is about 26,000 light-years from Earth. Simulating black holes with Einstein's help Photo of Albert Einstein on his porch at home in Princeton, New Jersey. Ernst Haas / Contributor Einstein's greatest theory was his theory of general relativity. Without it, scientists could not understand gravitational waves, the expansion of the universe, time dilation, and black holes. "Simulating these difficult-to-imagine processes helps me connect the mathematics of relativity to actual consequences in the real universe," Schnittman, who created the visualizations, said in NASA's press release. Schnittman created these beautiful simulations using the Discover supercomputer at the NASA Center for Climate Simulation. They took just 5 days to generate whereas it would have taken over 10 years if he'd used a typical laptop. Watch the full video Read the original article on Business Insider Landlines may be saved in California for now. What this means for consumers nationwide California utility regulators are proposing rejecting a request by AT&T to eliminate its responsibility to provide traditional landline phone service. That could have implications nationwide, a consumer advocate said. Fewer telephone companies are offering basic landline phone service as the utilities say the copper-wire infrastructure is old and expensive to maintain, and the demand for landline phone service is low as consumers move to mobile and other services. But consumer advocates nationwide have cried foul, saying basic landline service is important for the country's most vulnerable, including senior citizens who don't want to rely on cell service, consumers who can't afford cellular service and those in rural areas that may not have good access to cell or broadband internet services. Consumer advocates say protecting basic copper-line landline telephone service is important for all consumers. What happened in California? Earlier this year, the California Public Utilities Commission opened public comments on an application by AT&T to waive its responsibilities to be whats called Carrier of Last Resort (COLR), meaning the utility has to offer the copper-wire landline service. The utility and many of its peers have been petitioning state utility commissions and legislators, asking to be relieved of the task. On Friday, Administrative Law Judge Thomas J. Glegola wrote a decision proposing that the California commission reject AT&T's waiver. The proposal will be voted on by the commission at its June 20 meeting. The judge also proposed that the commission look at the rules outlining the carrier of last resort service obligations. In a press release announcing the upcoming vote, the commission said the public response to AT&T's request "was extensive with over 5,000 public comments received into the record and eight Public Forums held in-person in three cities and virtually across the state, drawing more than 5,800 attendees." The proposed rejection "underscores the critical importance of ensuring universal access to essential telecommunications services for all Californians," the commission said in its statement. "As the designated COLR, AT&T plays a pivotal role in providing reliable telephone service to communities across the state." The commission added that while the communications company said mobile wireless and other services could fill the void, "the CPUC found AT&T did not meet the requirements for COLR withdrawal. Specifically, AT&T failed to demonstrate the availability of replacement providers willing and able to serve as COLR, nor did AT&T prove that alternative providers met the COLR definition." Public commenters also highlighted the unreliability of voice alternatives such as cell service or Voice Over Internet Protocol services (VoIp) which are internet phone providers, the commission said. What is AT&T's response? AT&T in a statement said it was disappointed in the proposed rejection. Competition for other more reliable phone alternatives is robust, said Marc Blakeman, president of AT&T California. Blakeman said there are less than 5% of households in California that AT&T serves who still use copper-based landline phone service. We are disappointed by the CPUCs proposed dismissal of our application for relief from Carrier of Last Resort (COLR) regulation, as wed hoped the commission would allow us the opportunity to demonstrate why the number of options for voice service available to customers make the COLR obligation unnecessary," Blakeman said. Not surprisingly, Blakeman said, no providers were interested in bidding on the carrier of last resort service "with a declining number of customers given the competitive options available in todays marketplace. We remain committed to keeping our customers connected to voice service and will continue working with state leaders on policies that allow us to bring modern communications to Californians. AT&T made the request in California for a waiver and has also lobbied successfully for legislative reform in 20 other states, which eliminated the utilitys requirement to provide traditional landline service. Blakeman said during climate disasters, when staying connected is essential, AT&T's fiber network is more reliable "than our outdated copper network" and that old copper cables take significantly longer to repair following weather events, in some cases taking weeks to dry due to damage from extensive rain and flooding. Consumer advocates point to the need for electricity for most alternatives to traditional landlines and note that when there is no electricity, consumers can still use their landlines. Is the proposed rejection expected to pass? While the rejection is a proposal and still needs to be approved by the commission, Regina Costa, telecommunications policy director for The Utility Reform Network (TURN) in California, said she fully expects the board to approve it. What AT&T really wants is to stop providing essential telecom service to 99% of its service area, without providing a shred of evidence that there are real alternatives. This includes many areas threatened by wildfires, earthquakes, floods and power shutoffs," Costa said in a press release. "If AT&T gets its wish, it would significantly jeopardize public safety." In an interview with USA TODAY, Costa, who is also chair of the telecommunications committee for the National Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates, said California's proposed rejection of the landline waiver is on top of a recent rejection in Utah for another utility to waive its obligation to provide landlines. "I think it's very important for consumers nationwide,'' Costa said. "I think that would give other states the impetus to look at the same thing." Loss of landlines? Phone companies want to eliminate traditional landlines. What's at stake and who loses? When deregulation took place in telecom, the assumption was there would be lots of alternatives to landlines, she said. "I think California and Utah are stepping up to the plate and saying no, we need to think about this carefully,'' she said. "We need to make sure that all of our people have service. How do you let the largest carrier in a state walk out the door and the markets that they want to abandon are the ones that are most at risk?" Betty Lin-Fisher is a consumer reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at blinfisher@USATODAY.com or follow her on X, Facebook or Instagram @blinfisher. Sign up for our free The Daily Money newsletter, which will include consumer news on Fridays,here. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Landlines are safe in California (for now). What does it mean for you? Researchers investigate how sunlight can be used to turn air pollution into fuel: 'Our goal is to store solar power in the form of liquid fuels that can be used later' Sunlight is already providing a growing amount of our electricity. Now researchers at the University of North Carolina think they can utilize the rays to turn air pollution into cleaner fuel. If successful, the tech would provide a way to essentially store intermittent solar power as methanol, which could be later used to provide energy as discussed in a recent paper. "One challenge with solar energy is that it's not always available when we have the highest need for it," Gabriella Bein, the paper's first author, said in a lab summary. "Our goal is to store solar power in the form of liquid fuels that can be used later." The experts' work is inspired by how plants can naturally convert planet-warming carbon dioxide into "energy-rich molecules" using sunlight through photosynthesis. The innovation is coming out of the Center for Hybrid Approaches in Solar Energy to Liquid Fuels (CHASE), based at UNC. The science leverages $40 million in government funding, all per a report from the university. It works by using a severe-sounding technique called methyl termination. The scientists used a compound of "one carbon atom bonded to three hydrogen atoms to modify the surface of silicon." Silicon is a crucial part of solar cell technology. When added to the silicon, the compound improved the material's ability to turn carbon dioxide into carbon monoxide using the sun, as the experts explain it. They added that it's a "less-harmful" planet-warming gas. More importantly, it can be used to make fuels like methanol. The University of Southern California reports that methanol is cleaner burning than gas, but it doesn't provide the same range when powering a car. The UNC process was able to make carbon monoxide with an 87% efficiency rate. The process eliminated production of other unwanted byproducts. It's a cleaner process, as sunlight is used to drive the chemical reactions, not electricity. It "could be really useful for making liquid fuels from sunlight in the future," CHASE deputy director and paper co-author Jillian Dempsey said. The UNC team aptly describes the practical potential in their report: "Picture the gasoline in your car. When gasoline combusts, it produces carbon dioxide, water vapor, and energy. What [the researchers are] trying to do, in essence, is to reverse that reaction and use carbon dioxide, water, and energy to produce fuel" all powered by sunlight. Another project tackling artificial photosynthesis is being developed in Cambridge. Those researchers are creating fresh water and hydrogen fuel with help from the sun. While these innovations won't immediately make a large-scale impact, there are ways to maximize the sun's power now. Home-based solar technology is becoming easier to obtain and install, as well as less expensive, especially when considering tax breaks. While a setup could cost upward of $16,000, about $4,600 in tax benefits and annual energy savings of $1,500 can lead to long-term gains. That's not mentioning the better health everyone enjoys (see ya later, asthma) by reducing fossil-burning air pollution. The effort from the Tar Heels to use sunlight in novel ways for energy production is an exciting twist for the abundant, natural power source. The team is four years into its work. The hope is that the research is funded for another five to bring it to technological "readiness." "There's obviously a major need to move away from fossil fuel energy sources toward sustainable energy sources to meet our growing energy needs and mitigate climate change," Dempsey said in a UNC press release. Join our free newsletter for weekly updates on the coolest innovations improving our lives and saving our planet. The socket is the motherboard, Part 2 Intel archrival (and Nvidia's BFF) plans to build giant chips that could use kilowatts of power but they won't be as big as Cerebras trillion transistor behemoth A few weeks ago, we wrote how Eliyan's NuLink PHY could do away with silicon interposers and integrate everything into an single, elegant package. How, essentially, the socket could become the motherboard. At the recent 30th annual North America Technology Symposium, the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) revealed plans to construct a version of its chip-on-wafer-on-substrate (CoWoS) packaging technology that could lead to system-in-packages (SiPs) over twice the size of the current largest ones. With System-on-Wafer, TSMC is providing a revolutionary new option to enable a large array of dies on a 300mm wafer, offering more compute power while occupying far less data center space and boosting performance per watt by orders of magnitude," the company said. An enormous amount of power TSMCs first SoW offering, a logic-only wafer based on Integrated Fan-Out (InFO) technology, is already in production. A chip-on-wafer version using CoWoS technology is expected to arrive in 2027, and will enable the integration of SoIC, HBM and other components to create a powerful wafer-level system with computing power comparable to a data center server rack, or even an entire server. Reporting on the move, Toms Hardware expands on this saying, One of the designs that TSMC envisions relies on four stacked SoICs mated with 12 HBM4 memory stacks and additional I/O dies. Such a giant will certainly draw an enormous amount of power - we are talking about thousands of watts here and will need a very sophisticated cooling technology. TSMC also expects such solutions to use a 120x120mm substrate. TSMC's ambitious pursuit to create gigantic chips, however, is dwarfed by Cerebras Systems' newest Wafer Scale Engine 3 (WSE-3), termed the "fastest AI chip in the world". The WSE-3 boasts four trillion transistors and is twice as powerful as its predecessor, the WSE-2, while maintaining the same energy consumption and price. This new chip created on a 5nm TSMC process, provides a staggering peak AI performance of 125 petaflops which is equivalent to 62 Nvidia H100 GPUs. More from TechRadar Pro SEOUL (Reuters) -South Korea's government signed an agreement on Monday with Alibaba's AliExpress and PDD Holdings' Temu to promote product safety, the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) said. The agreement comes after heightened regulatory scrutiny of AliExpress, Temu and other Chinese e-commerce platforms as they significantly expand their user base in South Korea. "Recently conducted safety inspections on products such as those for children sold on the AliExpress and Temu platforms detected a large amount of substances harmful to the human body, seriously threatening consumer safety" and making the agreement necessary, trade watchdog KFTC said. "We understand that many (regulators) are paying close attention to consumer safety related to overseas online platforms," Qin Sun, co-founder of Temu, told reporters at the signing ceremony on Monday. "We will continue to strengthen monitoring to block the distribution of harmful products, such as overseas recall products, in Korea." Ray Zhang, CEO of AliExpress Korea said the platform had stepped up consumer protection policies since March including a customer hotline without any language barriers and faster returns. Under the agreement, the government will provide data and check whether harmful products have been blocked from sale by the platforms. The KFTC said it is also separately pursuing the passing of a Consumer Safety Act that will assign legally binding responsibility to platforms. It is the first time Temu has signed such a voluntary agreement anywhere in the world, the KFTC said, although AliExpress has a history of signing such agreements with the European Union and Australia. South Korea's e-commerce market punches far above its weight as the fourth-largest in the world according to Euromonitor data, only behind China, the United States and the United Kingdom and bigger than Japan's market, despite having only the 29th largest population in the world. The number of AliExpress and Temu users in South Korea has ballooned to 8.87 million and 8.29 million, respectively, as of March 2024, ahead of domestic shopping platforms such as 11st's 7.4 million users, according to the KFTC. The growth rate is especially fast for Temu, which entered the South Korean market in July last year. South Korean e-commerce purchases from overseas have jumped 27% to 6.8 trillion won ($4.97 billion) in 2023 from 5.3 trillion won in 2022, according to Statistics Korea. ($1 = 1,368.5200 won) (Reporting by Joyce Lee;Editing by Ed Davies and Emelia Sithole-Matarise) Using a VPN a virtual private network could help travellers save while booking holidays this summer, according to a new study. Research released by cybersecurity company NordVPN has proved Britons are being charged hundreds of pounds more for hotel stays and car hire than overseas customers. Its study found that a two-week package holiday in Bali weighed in at 35 per cent more expensive (460) on the UK version of agoda.com, costing 1,774 for two adults rather than 1,314 quoted on the Indonesian version of the same website. Here we look into the technology, how it works and whether it could help you save money on your next holiday. What is a VPN? A virtual private network (VPN) allows users to browse the internet from a different location, without leaving their home, by creating an encrypted connection or tunnel between their device and a remote server in another country, through which all of their web traffic passes. For a monthly fee, a VPN can increase a users security by hiding both their personal IP address (the identifier on your device that contains location information) and their true location. What can a VPN be used for? VPNs help users bypass geographical internet restrictions. They can also help users save money. While browsing a local website, using a VPN, to access cheaper travel is not a new concept, whether the effort is rewarded with any real savings has long been debated. VPNs are a useful way of finding cheaper travel options - Getty How much can you save by using a VPN? Following its research, NordVPN says consumers are subject to wildly fluctuating prices on car hire, cruises and theme parks depending on where they logged on Telegraph Travel put it to the test. While there was no variation in flight prices when we searched both British Airways and easyJet, nor in the prices quoted by some major hotel brands, at the other end of the spectrum, car hire varied enormously, with a staggering 164 difference in the cost of renting a small car in Faro, Portugal, for a week in June. Using Hertz.com from a US location, we were quoted 52.36 to hire a Fiat 500, which rose to 196.95 when we searched from the UK and then 216.73 from Portugal. The dates available for some trips also varied from country to country searching for a Norwegian Fjords cruise from the US offered only August departures, twice the price of July departures that were available to UK and Australian searchers. Disneyworld packages varied, too but not only in the cost. Searching for three days access during mid-July from a location in India we were offered tickets to only two parks Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure Park at a cost of 1,241.85 for two adults and two children. Using a VPN in the United States, the cost rose to 1,527 for three different parks on three different days. Accessing from the UK, we were only offered seven- or 14-day tickets, with multiple parks on any day, for a cost of 2,156 for the same family of four. While each version of Disneylands website offered a telephone number for guests to call, where perhaps a wider variety of tickets would be available, families were instead directed along a prescribed route when booking online. Marijus Briedis, chief technology officer at NordVPN, says: Never assume youre getting the same deal as everyone else. Your location, the number of times you visit a website, and how your search fits in with the school holiday schedule can all influence the price youre offered. Online tracking used by travel websites means they can tell what holiday were looking for before we do, while algorithms can adjust holiday prices to the spending power of different countries. There was no clear pattern on which country gave the best prices, so finding bargains will take patience and effort and its vital to read the small print when booking to ensure you are not breaking the law. Buying Disneyland tickets from a location in India is cheaper than doing so from the US or UK - AP Is it legal to use a VPN to get lower fares? While some governments ban VPNs or place restrictions on their use, most of Europe, Canada and the US permit their use. It is legal to use VPNs in most countries, so there are no laws against using a VPN to access better deals, Briedis says. However, some websites may prohibit VPN usage so if youre unsure, make sure to read the terms and conditions of the websites youre accessing. In most cases using a VPN to search for better travel deals is perfectly legal [but] falsifying your address details to make it look as though you are a resident of the country you are visiting is not best practice, as the hotel may question this when you arrive. What is the alternative to using a VPN? While we found discrepancies in the prices of hotels using Booking.com and Expedia from different locations, it has always been worth checking directly with a hotel to see if they are willing to match or offer a better price than a third-party website. And, says Rory Boland, editor of Which? Travel: While its true that local sites may offer better rates than those you can ordinarily access in the UK, you dont need to pay for a VPN service to take advantage of this. In many cases you can simply visit the local version of the site from your browser, for example using the .fr domain for France, or .it for Italy, to access local pricing options. Just make sure you pay in the local currency, and always use a card that doesnt charge a foreign transaction fee. What is the cheapest country to book from via a VPN? There is no silver bullet for finding better offers, but booking from a country with a stronger economy (for example Switzerland) may often have higher holiday prices, both domestically and abroad. But this is not always the case, so the general advice is shop around, compare and contrast. Most governments permit the use of VPNs - iStockphoto How else can VPNs help me when on holiday? Finally, when youre travelling, a VPN can be useful, says Berlin-based Briton Duncan Madden, author of the travel book Found in Translation: I use a VPN if booking travel from more remote parts of the world as sometimes IP addresses arent as trusted or as secure, which can cause problems when booking last-minute flights or hotels. A VPN lets me bypass that issue and also helps with simple things like language if I use a VPN from England, websites are in English by default. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 13. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had a telephone conversation with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant, the US State Department said in a statement, Trend reports. According to the information, in a telephone conversation with the Israeli Defense Minister, Blinken stressed the importance of ensuring the safety of civilians in the event of a large-scale ground operation in Rafah, located south of the Gaza Strip. "The Secretary of State emphasized the urgent need to protect civilians and humanitarian workers in Gaza and called on the Secretary of State to ensure that aid reaches Gaza," the statement says. At the same time, Blinken once again noted that while the United States is committed to the security of Israel and the shared goal of defeating Hamas, Washington is nevertheless opposed to a major military ground operation in Rafah, where more than a million people have taken refuge. A Greenpeace report shows that fetotoxic substances in the wastewater near the Samsung battery plant in God near Budapest also threaten nearby towns including Dunakeszi, the environment and climate affairs shadow minister of opposition Democratic Coalition said. Olivio Kocsis-Cake told an online press conference that toxic water had spilled onto arable land near the plant. In line with a court ruling, the Samsung plant in God should have stopped operations a long time ago but the Orban government continues to protect the factory with an obvious lie, he said. The DK politician said that the head of the Prime Ministers Office attributed at a recent government briefing the factorys continued operations to postal delivery problems. DK demands that the government should immediately put a halt to the construction of new battery plants and calls for an investigation by independent experts of the operation of existing plants, he said. We must not allow Far Eastern-owned battery plants that neglect Hungarian laws and regulations to contaminate the water reserves for residents, and make their properties lose in value, he added. Laszlo Szilagyi, the oppositions mayoral candidate of God, said that early this year it was revealed that 88 tonnes of fetotoxic substance had been leaked in the air in two years which could cause serious problems in the area. The factory has since received a permit to expand by 43,000 square metres, he said. ********************************* You're very welcome to comment, discuss and enjoy more stories, via our Facebook page: Facebook.com/XpatLoopNews + via XpatLoops groups: Budapest Expats / Expats Hungary You can subscribe to our newsletter here: XpatLoop.com/Newsletters Do you want your business to reach tens of thousands of potential high-value expat customers? Then just contact us here! Hungary and Turkiye are bonded by a friendship with deep roots and a strategic alliance, the foreign ministrys deputy state secretary for security policy said at the unveiling of a statue of Turkish poet Yunus Emre in Lakitelek, in central Hungary, The 13th century poet had a great impact on Turkish literature, he used a language and vocabulary that was close to the people and contributed to the development of the Turkish language, said Henrietta Balajthy. Hungary and Turkiye commemorate the 100th anniversary of establishing diplomatic ties in a due manner by elevating their partnership to a special strategic level and with a Hungarian-Turkish cultural season, she said. Turkish Ambassador Gulsen Karanis Eksioglu said the new statue is a symbol of good morals and humane human values. The peoples of Hungary and Turkiye that share a common history are linked by common bonds of friendship, she said, adding that Yunus Emres philosophy can be found both in the Hungarian peoples spirit and in Turkish poetry. ********************************* You're very welcome to comment, discuss and enjoy more stories, via our Facebook page: Facebook.com/XpatLoopNews + via XpatLoops groups: Budapest Expats / Expats Hungary You can subscribe to our newsletter here: XpatLoop.com/Newsletters Do you want your business to reach tens of thousands of potential high-value expat customers? Then just contact us here! The government has sent out an email concerning its standpoint on NATO plans in Ukraine to members of the public who had already provided their contact details. There is no possibility of a settlement on the battlefield and a return to negotiations is therefore needed, the Government Information Centre (KTK) said on Friday in connection with reports of a NATO plan to set up a mission in Ukraine encompassing military training and the coordination of arms shipments. The email said NATO wanted to pump 100 billion dollars into the war over a period of five years, so its likely that the conflict will be prolonged by at least five years. What we see is the worst-case scenario that could lead to a world war, the statement said, adding that Hungary was under huge pressure to back plans broadening the war. It said the governments position was clear: We want to stay out of the war. We do not want to take part in the NATO mission. The statement added that the government would do everything to ensure that Hungary does not send weapons and soldiers. Lives can be saved only with a ceasefire and through peace, it added. ********************************* You're very welcome to comment, discuss and enjoy more stories, via our Facebook page: Facebook.com/XpatLoopNews + via XpatLoops groups: Budapest Expats / Expats Hungary You can subscribe to our newsletter here: XpatLoop.com/Newsletters Do you want your business to reach tens of thousands of potential high-value expat customers? Then just contact us here! Air India Express, a subsidiary of the Tata Group-owned airline, faced disruptions in its flight operations recently due to a strike by cabin crew members. Notably, more than 80 flights were cancelled. However, the cabin crew members have returned back to work and the airline will resume its normalised flight operation services soon. According to a report by PTI, the strike was called off following a conciliation meeting with the chief labour commissioner in Delhi. Representatives from the Air India Express Employees Union (AIXEU) and the airline attended the meeting, resulting in the withdrawal of termination letters issued to 25 cabin crew members. Subsequently, all cabin crew members who reported sick during the strike have returned to duty by May 11, 2024. Service Restoration The Air India Express cancelled 20 flights on Sunday. The airline is expected to resume full normalcy by Tuesday, May 14. Notably, the airline operates approximately 380 services daily across domestic and international routes. After major flight disruptions, Air India Express issued an apology to affected passengers and urged those with upcoming flights to check their flight status before heading to the airport. The airline expressed its commitment to swiftly restore its flight schedule and fulfill its obligations to passengers. Chennai: Tamil Nadu is home to two main varieties of grapes: panneer thiratchai (Muscat Hamburg) and Odaipatti seedless grapes. Grape farmers in the region are dejected as high temperatures in the last few weeks will lead to a huge fall in the yield of grapes. K. Muniayndi, a farmer in Theni who has cultivated panneer thiratchai on around 10 acres of land, told IANS that due to high temperatures, there would be a drastic fall in the crop's yield. He said: "Generally, we get 10-12 tonnes of grapes from an acre of the farm, but due to temperatures touching more than 39 degrees Celsius, the yield will be less than three tonnes per acre." The grape farmer also said that for one acre of grape cultivation, a farmer has to spend around Rs 1.25 lakh, and if the yield falls to three tonnes per acre, then the situation of the farmers would be pathetic. Panneer Thiratchai Farmers Association leader Karuppanan Raju, while speaking to IANS, said: "Almost 90 per cent of our farmers are cultivating the fruit in the Cumbum area. The heatwaves have destroyed our lives. Around 300 farmers are cultivating on 5,000 acres of land, and we are looking forward to huge losses." He also said that the yield would be less than 80 per cent of what they usually get, and called upon the Tamil Nadu Agricultural Department to provide compensation for their losses. The Odaipatti seedless grape farmers have a similar story to narrate. Odaipatti is a region in Theni district which cultivates seedless grapes on around 1,000 acres of land, involving 200 farmers. Krishnan Thevar, a grape farmer, while speaking to IANS, said: "We are facing a bleak future. We will only get two to three tonnes of grapes from an acre, which is very low. Generally, we harvest around 12 tonnes from an acre of land." He demanded that the state government fix a Minimum Support Price (MSP) for Odaipatti grapes at Rs 50 per kg, just like the state government sanctioned for sugarcane and paddy when there was crop loss. It is worth noting that the Tamil Nadu government has already proposed a GI tag for Odaipatti seedless grapes, which would help felicitate the export of these grapes. However, presently, the farmers said that they are concerned about how to overcome the huge losses. K. M. Murugesan, an Odaipatti seedless grape farmer, told IANS that the farmers want the state government's intervention in the matter to provide them with an MSP as they were expecting losses of 80 per cent of the yield in September, when they will harvest the crop. AIIMS INI CET 2024: The INI CET 2024 admit card will be released today, May 13. AIIMS, Delhi will release the INI CET admit card for the July session exam today. After registering for the exam, candidates can download their admit card from the official website (aiimsexams.ac.in). To download, candidates need to input their registration number and date of birth. The online application procedure for the INI CET January 2024 session commenced on September 15, 2023, for admission to PG courses [MD/MS/M.Ch. (6 years)/DM(6 years)/MDS] at AIIMS, New Delhi and other AIIMS, JIPMER Puducherry, NIMHANS Bengaluru, PGIMER Chandigarh, and SCTIMST Trivandrum. AIIMS INI CET 2024: Steps to download here Step 1. Go to the official website, aiimsexams.ac.in. Step 2: From the homepage, click on the INI CET Admit Card 2023 link. Step 3: You will be routed to a new page. Enter your registration ID and password. Step 4: Your INI CET January 2024 hall ticket will display on the screen. Step 5: Download and print the document for future reference. AIIMS, New Delhi is conducting the INI CET 2024 exam for admission to postgraduate courses such as MD, MS, DM (6 years), MCh (6 years), and MDS. According to the exam structure, the INI CET will be held online in a computer-based style, with a question paper comprising single and multiple correct-choice questions. There will be a total of 200 questions for one mark each. There is a provision for -1/3 every incorrect answer; nevertheless, unattended questions are marked as 0. CBSE Result 2024: The Central Board of Secondary Education, CBSE 10th Result 2024, will be released shortly. CBSE issued the CBSE Class 12th Results 2024 today on its official websites, results.cbse.gov.in and cbseresults.nic.in. Students can now see their results on both DigiLocker and the Umang App. Students should be aware that the CBSE 10th result will be released on Pariksha Sangam, and links will be active on official websites shortly. Students should be prepared to check their CBSE 10th or matric results in 2024. Students must provide the roll number and date of birth as indicated on their admit cards. Students will be able to check their results using DigiLocker. CBSE held class ten exams from February 15 to March 13, 2024. To pass the CBSE 10th exams, pupils must have an aggregate score of 33%. CBSE Class 10th Result 2024; Steps to download here 1. Visit the official website, cbse.gov.in. 2. Go to the homepage and click on the CBSE Board 10th result link. 3. A new login page will open where students must provide their roll number and date of birth. 4. Access the mark sheet and download it. 5. Take a printout for future reference. Students must score 33 percent on their practical and theory tests individually. Last year, CBSE released the results on May 12, and the pass percentage was 93.12%. According to statistics, the pass percentage dropped by 1.28 percent. An Indian-origin man has been arrested in Canada in connection with a big gold heist of millions at Torontos main airport, according to PTI. This arrest of this 36-year-old man comes nearly a month after the capture of five individuals implicated in the robbery, which stands as the largest in the nation's history. In April last year, an air cargo container was stolen from a secure storage facility by using counterfeit documents. The cargo container had arrived on a Canada-bound flight from Zurich, Switzerland. After it landed at Pearson International Airport in Toronto, the cargo was offloaded and transported to a safe location, soon after which it was reported missing. The vanished cargo had 6600 bars of pure gold, weighing 400 kg, which were valued at over 20 million dollars and contained foreign currencies worth 2.5 million Canadian dollars. During the probe, on May 6, 2024, the police apprehended a person named Archit Grover as he flew back from India. As per the PTIs report citing the police official, there was a Canada-wide arrest warrant against him for an alleged theft of over 5,000 Canadian dollars and conspiracy to commit an indictable criminal act. Grover is also accused in the United States of firearm-related charges. Last month, authorities arrested five individuals with Indian origin hailing from Ontario: Parmpal Sidhu, aged 54, and Amit Jalota, aged 40. Ammad Chaudhary (43), Ali Raza (37), and Prasath Paramalingam (35) were also held in connection with the case. Police reports suggest that at least two former Air Canada employees were allegedly aided in the theft. One of them is currently in custody, while an arrest warrant has been issued for the other. New Delhi: After AAP leader and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal granted interim bail, On Munday Supreme Court scheduled May 17 as a hearing date for Hemant Soren's petition challenging his arrest on a money laundering case linked to a land scam. Former Chief Minister Soren's Advocate Kapil Sibal appealed to the court for an early date to seek interim bail on the grounds of the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. The Court issued a notice to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) against the arrest of Hemant Soren in a money laundering case. A bench of Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta listed the matter for further hearing on May 17. As per reports, reference was apparently to SC order granting interim bail to Kejriwal till June 1 due to the ongoing Lok Sabha ELections. Delhi Chief Minister received the release after being arrested by ED in connection with a Money laundering case related to the Delhi Excise policy case. As per reports, earlier, the court bench leaned towards hearing the plea only on May 20 and stated that if needed give some time to the prosecution agency to file its reply. JMM leader Advocate Kapil argued that delaying the hearing until May 20 would be ineffective because the time for the Lok Sabha campaign will be over by then. According to Indian Express, Sibal questioned, why should I be prejudiced? Justice Khanna responded and said that we have given them the shortest possible time and it cannot be shorter than this. TAG Heuer celebrates the 14th edition of the Monaco Historic Grand Prix TAG Heuer, the renowned Swiss luxury watchmaker proudly returns for the 14th edition of the Monaco Historic Grand Prix, solidifying its connection of over a century to motorsport dating back to 1911. As a longstanding partner of the Automobile Club of Monaco (ACM), TAG Heuer is honored to continue its tradition of supporting one of the most prestigious events in the classic car racing calendar. The Monaco Historic Grand Prix weekend is one of the highlights of the classic car racing calendar, and its passionate community of owners, drivers and spectators relish the spectacle of historic Grand Prix racing and the warm spirit around the legendary circuit. For each edition, more than 200 cars representing 50 different carmakers and 21 countries enter in competition. Selected for their historic value and degree of originality, they compete in eight series spanning the periods from the 1930s to the 1980s on a majestic stage, the famous circuit of the Principality. TAG Heuer's illustrious history is not only linked to the Principality but is also intertwined with the drivers and motorsport legends, to the likes of Mike Hailwood, Jochen Rindt, Mario Andretti, Niki Lauda, and Clay Regazzoni to name just a few, who all proudly wore TAG Heuer watches on and off the racetrack. This enduring connection extends beyond individual drivers, with TAG Heuer's official collaborations with Ferrari (1971-1979) and Formula One (1992-2004) serving as pivotal milestones in the brand's motorsport heritage. The brands timekeeping equipment was even used by significant racing teams in the 1970s, further cementing TAG Heuers indispensable role in motorsport history. This rich heritage comes full circle as ROFGO Racing, a valued racing partner, enters several cars this year, including one adorned in Gulf colors, famously used in previous editions of the TAG Heuer Monaco. The legacy continues to mark history as in 2024, Adrian Newey, Red Bull Racing's esteemed technical director and TAG Heuer partner, will race a Lotus 49B, symbolizing the seamless integration of TAG Heuer's current partnerships with its rich heritage. "Our partnership with the Automobile Club of Monaco underscores TAG Heuer's deep-rooted connection to the world of motorsport," said Julien Tornare, TAG Heuers CEO. "As the official sponsor, watch, and timekeeper of the Monaco Historic Grand Prix, we are thrilled to be here in 2024, showing our passion for the universe, and we are excited to see the races take place." The Monaco Historic Grand Prix weekend is set to do nothing less but to captivate enthusiasts with its unique display of vintage Formula One cars, spanning decades of motorsport history. This year's event holds even greater special significance as it commemorates the 30th anniversary of the passing of legendary driver Ayrton Senna, an icon whose legacy continues to inspire millions around the world. Ayrton Senna TAG Heuer In tribute to Senna's extraordinary career, the Automobile Club of Monaco and the Senna Foundation will organize a unique parade featuring six to eight cars either driven or owned by the Brazilian racing legend. From his early days in karting to his unforgettable moments in Formula One, the parade will showcase the remarkable journey of Ayrton Senna, accompanied by the presence of Bianca Senna and the Senna family. Many of TAG Heuers friends of the brand will be present for this adrenaline-charged weekend, including Hollywood actor, racing enthusiast and TAG Heuer ambassador, Patrick Dempsey who will participate in the opening of TAG Heuer's new boutique in Monaco, adding to the excitement of this prestigious event. As the Monaco Historic Grand Prix unfolds, TAG Heuer eagerly anticipates welcoming guests to Monaco for a weekend filled with excitement, nostalgia, and unforgettable moments, as the watchmaker continues to celebrate the timeless allure of classic car racing and its legacy of motorsport greatness. Srinagar: Areas known for poll boycotts and terror threats today were bustling with electoral activity. Whether it was Pulwama or downtown Srinagar, Kashmir witnessed brisk polling after three decades. The Kakpora Polling Station in Pulwama, South Kashmir, once notorious for grenade attacks, firing, and stone pelting during past elections, saw long lines of people waiting to cast their votes today. This enthusiasm wasn't confined to one polling station but was evident across Pulwama and Shopian, areas long considered hotbeds of separatist and terrorist activities. Long queues were observed in all areas since polling commenced, including in the villages of prominent figures like terrorist Riyaz Naiko and Burhan Wani's hometown of Traal. The message was clear: Kashmiris have begun to trust the electoral process, recognizing the power of their vote to address their grievances. This election marks the Kashmir valley's first major electoral event since the abrogation of Article 370, and the enthusiasm among voters is palpable. From Srinagar to Pulwama, many voters interviewed by ZeeNews expressed various motivations, from voting to restore Article 370 to addressing issues like statehood, employment, high electricity bills, and everyday problems. Particularly noteworthy were the first-time voters, totaling 2 lakh this time, who displayed excitement and eagerness for change at almost every polling station visited. For the first time in three decades, the Kashmir valley is experiencing an election relatively free of separatist boycotts and violence. Turnout was nearly three times higher than in the 2019 elections, with reports indicating that even family members of some terrorists and separatists in South Kashmir cast their votes. The voting percentage in the Kashmir valley has significantly increased compared to previous elections, reaching above 37.73%. Although polling officially ended at 6 PM, voters remained queued at polling stations, suggesting the total percentage could surpass 40%, marking a historic high for the Srinagar Parliamentary constituency in the last three decades. A comparison between the 2019 and 2024 Lok Sabha elections reveals a notable increase in voter turnout: - In 2019, the Srinagar Parliamentary constituency, comprising 15 assembly constituencies, witnessed a total of 11,06,729 voters casting 14.1% of votes. - In contrast, the 2024 Lok Sabha elections saw 18 assembly constituencies in the Srinagar parliamentary constituency, with 17,47,810 voters. As of 9 PM, the polling percentage stood at 36.88%, indicating a significant rise in voter participation. The Srinagar parliamentary constituency is currently witnessing a triangular contest between National Conference's Agha Ruhullah Mehdi, PDP's Waheed-u-Rehman Parra, and Mohammad Ashraf Mir, a candidate from another party. Today's polling in the Kashmir Valley, conducted amid tight security, saw a total of 17,47,810 voters, including 8,75,938 male voters, 8,71,808 female voters, and 64 third-gender voters. About 2,135 polling stations were set up across five districts: Srinagar, Pulwama, Budgam, Ganderbal, and Shopian. The increased voter turnout reflects the growing trust of ordinary Kashmiris in the electoral process. Regardless of their reasons for voting, Kashmiris, especially the youth, believe in the transformative power of the ballot to shape their future and amplify their voices in the highest democratic institution, the Parliament. New Delhi: The Manipur Board of Education (COHSEM) released the results of the Higher Secondary examination (Class 12) on Monday, May 13. The result has been announced on the official website of (COHSEM) manresults.nic.in today, students who appeared in the exam of Class 12 from the Manipur Board of Education can check their results on (COHSEM) site. Students are required to roll no and name to search the result. A student who appeared in the Manipur board class 12 exam in the stream named Science, Arts, and Commerce in March this year can check their result now. Steps To Check COHSEM 12th Result Step 1: Visit the COHSEM official website manresults.nic.in/. Step 2: Once you visit the site, click the section dedicated to a result which is "Results" or "Examination" Step 3: In the result section, You will find the link mentioned "HSE Class 12 Results" or something similar Step 4: Click the designated link. and then enter your roll no. Step 5: After submitting your roll no, your resilt page will appear where you can see your marks. New Delhi: Nine people are facing charges in the biggest gold heist in Canadian history; four of these accused are of Indian origins, according to reports. The elaborate theft unfolded at an Air Canada cargo facility at Toronto Pearson International Airport. A year ago, the burglars managed to steal a cargo containing 6,600 gold bars weighing 400 kg and CAD2.5 million in foreign currency by using some counterfeit documents. Five suspects, held in Canada, were released on bail for trial. While one, hailing from Brampton, Ontario, was arrested in Pennsylvania for trafficking firearms and remains detained in the US. Canada-wide warrants have been issued for the remaining three suspects, said the police. Who Are The Indians Arrested? A 36-year-old man was arrested from the Toronto main airport in connection with the heist recently, as per reports. This comes after last month, police arrested two Indian-origin men with links to the cargo heist. One of them is Air Canada employee Parmpal Sidhu, 54, who is from Brampton, Ontario. The other one hails from Toronto: 40-year-old Amit Jalota. This year, on May 6, police had another breakthrough in the probe when they arrested Archit Grover at the airport in Toronto as he flew in from India. How Was The Heist Unfolded? The cargo container had arrived on a Canada-bound flight from Zurich, Switzerland. After it landed at Pearson International Airport in Toronto, the cargo was offloaded and transported to a safe location, soon after which it was reported missing. As per reports, Peel Regional Police Chief Nishan Duraiappah was quoted as saying that the execution of the heist belongs in a Netflix series. The robbers printed out a counterfeit bill in the Air Canada warehouse with the help of an airline employee. The burglars presented the replica document to the individual at the facility, claiming it was the bill for the seafood cargo. The air bill was for a shipment of seafood; however, in its place, what was driven off with the truck was cargo carrying a fortune load of gold and foreign currency. When the probing authorities reached the crime site during the investigation, one of the accused confidently gave a tour of the facility to the police. New Delhi: Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Monday took a special Indian Airforce flight to Iran and is likely to witness the signing of the crucial Chabahar port agreement between India and Iran, reported ANI citing sources. The agreement will allow India to secure a long-term lease for the Chabahar port located on Iran's coast along the Gulf of Oman. How Is The Chabahar Port Pact Important For India? -The port holds immense significance for India as it will create a fresh trade pathway connecting South Asia to Central Asia through Iran, opening a novel arena for economic opportunities. The route will bypass the ports of Karachi and Gwadar in Pakistan. -The new route will act as an alternative transit route providing relief to the sensitive and often busy Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz. -Chabahar port will provide an effective and shorter pathway connecting India to Iran, Afghanistan, and Central Asia. -The Port operations contract will mark another milestone in India's expanding maritime influence in the area, following the establishment of Sittwe Port in Myanmar. Both arrangements are aimed at countering the growing presence of China in the region. India-Iran Bilateral Relations According to ANI, in January this year, the External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Iran President Ebrahim Raisi discussed about accelerating the implementation of Iran-India Agreements. The meeting also explored the Chabahar port pact, a part of which was being developed by India. However, as per a report by Reuters, the development process of the port slowed down after the US imposed sanctions on Iran. In an extraordinary display of global reverence for Indian spirituality, Dhirendra Shashtri, widely known as Bageshwar Dham Baba, a revered spiritual luminary from India, will be delivering a three-day Katha in Dubai from May 24 to May 26. The venue, a prominent auditorium in Dubai, has been selected to accommodate the anticipated large number of attendees, both local and international, including a significant contingent of Indian expatriates residing in the UAE. The choice of Dubai as the hosting city reflects its status as a cosmopolitan center renowned for its cultural diversity and openness to global influences. Bu Abdullah is an Emirati business tycoon and founder of the Bu Abdullah Group of Companies. His invitation to Baba Bageshwar underscores the burgeoning interest in Indian spiritual teachings beyond national borders, resonating with audiences worldwide and strengthening India-UAE people-to-people contact. This event is poised to draw devotees from diverse corners of the globe, fostering a unique cultural and spiritual exchange. In a video message, Dhirendra Shashtri stated, "I will be in Dubai from May 22-26 for five days. Three days will be dedicated to the Katha, where all are welcome to experience a spiritual journey. The event is free, and I urge my followers to disregard any rumors. The event is organized by the Bageshwar Dham family and primarily supported by Bu Abdullah. Commenting on organizing Shashtris spiritual in Dubai Bu Abdullah said, I have been nurturing the concerns of non-residents and ensuring communal unity among the NRIs in the Gulf region. My vision is to create local opportunity, growth, and impact in every community and country around the world. The event is perfectly aligned with my vision. UAE is hosting an event titled In Peace we Believe which is essentially a motivational speech for peace and coexistence. It is an event where a spiritual leader speaks in the UAE about the paramount importance of peace and coexistence, showcasing the UAE as a model of harmony. New Delhi: Google Doodle Today is celebrating the festival of democracy that is Lok Sabha Elections 2024 in India. The doodle, which temporarily replaces the iconic "Google" logo on the search engine's homepage, showing an uplifted index finger marked with indelible ink, capturing the essence of Indian elections. Upon clicking, the tech giant Google directs the user to the search results related to the latest Lok Sabha elections 2024 updates. The fourth phase of voting in the Lok Sabha elections is taking place in 96 parliamentary constituencies in 9 states and 1 Union Territory. To recall, the Google Doodle also celebrated with the inked finger icon were incorporated into the Google logo in the earlier phases which were held on April 19, April 26 and 7 May. Notably, the Google Doodle on the fourth phase of voting in General Elections will be visible only to people living in India. (Also Read: Realme GT 6T Launch Date Confirmed in India, To Come With India's First Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 Chip; Check Expected Specs And Date) These Google Doodles come in various formats, such as images, animations, slideshows, videos, and interactive games, providing users with a range of engaging experiences. Over 19 lakh poll officials are stationed at 1.92 lakh polling booths to assist more than 17.7 crore voters including 8.73 crore females, who will exercise their franchise. Prime Minister on his social media 'X' urged the eligible voters to perform their duty to strengthen the democracy. He called upon the citizens across the 96 constituencies to vote in large numbers. (Also Read: Google Doodle Celebrates Mother's Day 2024 With Heartwarming Tribute To Maternal Bond) He wrote, "In todays 4th Phase of the Lok Sabha elections, 96 seats across 10 States and UTs are going to the polls. I am sure people in these constituencies will vote in large numbers and the young voters as well as women voters will power this surge in voting. Come, lets all do our duty and strengthen our democracy!" New Delhi: The tech giant Google has released a security update for the Chrome browser to fix the fifth zero-day vulnerability that was being exploited by hackers. Now, Google has rolled out the 124.0.6367.201/.202 versions for Mac and Windows, and 124.0.6367.201 versions for Linux in a phased manner. These updates will be available to all users in the coming weeks. Earlier, the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) also issued a warning against the vulnerability on Google Chrome for desktop. Indias cyber security unit, which comes under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, said that the security flaw may allow an attacker to execute arbitrary code on the targeted system. Google said in its official blog post that it is aware that an exploit for CVE-2024-4671 exists in the wild. (Also Read: Google Doodle Celebrates Phase 4 of Lok Sabha elections 2024 In India With Inked Index Finger Display On Homepage) Here's how to update Google Chrome browser on your device Step 1: Locate the Chrome icon on your laptop's desktop or in the Start menu and double-click to open it. Step 2: Navigate to the top-right corner of the window and locate the icon with three vertical dots. Click on it to open the Chrome menu. Step 3: In the menu, find and click on the "Help" option. Step 4: From the "Help" submenu, select "About Google Chrome." It opens a new tab displaying your current Chrome version and update availability. Step 5: If there's an update, click "Update Google Chrome." If not, you're on the latest version. Step 6: Click on the "Relaunch" button to restart Chrome with the updated version. India and Nepal have been really close neighbours. However, in the last decade, the relationship between the two countries has not been a straight one as both countries have travelled a tumultuous path. After yesteryear's controversy over Lipulekh and Kalapani, fresh turmoil is set to hit the relation between the two Asian countries. Nepal has now announced to issue new currency notes which will have a new map that includes three Indian territories. India has already rejected the move. What we know so far: * A Cabinet meeting last week decided to replace the old map with the new one while printing new notes of Rs 100. The new map includes territories such as Kalapani, Lipulekh and Limpiyadhura. * India has been governing Lipulekh, Kalapani and Limpiyadhura for long. * The move did not go well with some officials of Nepal. Nepal President's economic advisor Chiranjivi Nepal termed the move inappropriate. His remarks led to nationwide outrage in Nepal. * Following the uproar, the Nepal government asked him to resign. The economic advisor to Nepalese President Ram Chandra Paudel resigned after this. * President Paudel approved Chiranjivi Nepal's resignation yesterday, according to the press release issued by the Office of the President. * Chiranjivi Nepal earlier served as the governor of Nepal's central bank. * CPN-UML chairman and former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli had publicly criticised Chiranjivi Nepal for his remarks. * Nepal's government unveiled its new political map with the inclusion of Lipulek, Kalapani and Limpiyadhura areas within its territory in May 2020 during the government led by Oli. He is considered close to China. * Indian External Affairs Minister S Jayashankar has expressed discontent over the Nepal government's decision to issue the new notes. * Nepal shares a border of over 1,850 km with five Indian states -- Sikkim, West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. (With PTI inputs) "Harmonious fusion in haute cuisine" The Swiss luxury watch manufacture is delighted to announce that Korean two Michelin stars chef Mingoo Kang has joined the Hublot family. Like Hublot position in the watchmaking world, the chef established an unrivaled position in the Korean contemporary culinary universe. Hublot is delighted to welcome Mingoo Kang as new Friend of the Brand, furthering the Maison links with visionaries collaborations in the world of gastronomy. Chef Kang has already built an impressive resume overseas, although still in his early 30s. After becoming the youngest head chef at Nobu Bahamas (part of renowned chef Nobu Matsuhisas empire), Kang has since worked in various locations around the world before returning to Seoul, Korea, in 2014. He established himself as a leader in the Korean food contemporary field. If theres one identity that Mingles can claim, its that of serving innovative Hansik - traditional Korean - food. I use different Korean herbs and ingredients that are in season, as well as traditional sauces and fermented vinegar to create my dishes, Kang explains. Hublot Friend of the Brand Chef Mingoo Kang Hublot The name of his restaurant, Mingles comes from the chef Mingoo Kangs name, it also signifies a harmonious mix of different things. His Seoul restaurant, voted the best restaurant in Korea, is a space where the young 2 Michelin stars chefs dreams, experiences and philosophy all come together. The 2 Michelin stars chef constantly works to be better today than he was yesterday and consciously uses precise components in his dishes, similar to the precision of a watch movement. This is exactly the same vision Hublot has in the watchmaking world. "Hublot is a brand that honors tradition while fusing and innovating, When I look at Hublot watches, I realize that they are very similar to Mingles, which respects tradition but pursues change and innovation by adding today's sensibilities. I will always keep a watch with these values close at hand to remind me of the preciousness of time." said Chef Kang. His philosophy towards cuisine is exactly same as that of our Maison towards watches, "To be First, Unique and Different." Mingoo Kang has relentlessly created new and exquisite dishes beyond existing customs and rules, while he is one of the chefs who make best use of traditional ingredients. I believe he will embody the value of Hublot in his work in a most beautiful and audacious way. - Ricardo Guadalupe, Hublot CEO The Art of Fusion Hublot's mastery of The Art of Fusion is most evident in our tradition of innovation. From the first use of rubber in fine watchmaking, to creating new precious alloys such as scratch-proof Magic Gold. Hublot has consistently pioneered by discovering new purposes for materials and boldly combining them. In Kangs signature dishes, he designs and created each single one to produce the best of haute cuisine with imagination and ingenious details. Meticulous expertise and a passion for fine artistry, blended together with time, are the ingredients of both gourmet cuisine and Haute Horlogerie. Precise timing is essential for chefs and patrons alike from the moment of ordering, plating up on the pass, and through to service. This collaboration between Hublot and 2 Michelin stars Chef Mingoo Kang is expected to breathe new life into the manufactures watchmaking revolution. He joins Hublots growing family of culinary partners, with three Michel stars chefs Yannick Alleno, Eneko Atxa, Andreas Caminada, Jan Hartwig, Paul Pairet, Anne-Sophie Pic and Clare Smyth. First Lady of Ukraine Olena Zelenska traveled to Serbia in the company of Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, where she spent several days in the country wearing a delicate classic look. For the visit, she chose clothes from Ukrainian brands, whose services she regularly uses. ADVERTISIMENT The First Lady was invited to Serbia by Tamara Vucic, the wife of President Aleksandar Vucic. On her social media accounts, Olena Zelenska noted that she would participate in a conference on mental health. The photos that appeared on the pages of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's wife show that she chose an embroidered shirt by the Ukrainian brand Gaptuvalnya, classic cut trousers by designer Artem Klymchuk, and jewelry from the Gunia Project x Guzema Jewelry collaboration collection. This was reported by New Voice. The white embroidered shirt was presented in the collection for the Day of Embroidery and was "inspired by ornaments taken from an authentic keptyryk from the Opillia ethnic region". The embroidered shirt was decorated with several round buttons. This is not the first time that Olena Zelenska has chosen Gaptuvalnya's clothes she has often appeared in various brightly colored shirts. Moreover, photos of the first lady sometimes appear on the brand's social media. ADVERTISIMENT She emphasized her authentic look for the trip to Serbia with delicate minimalist jewelry: a white beaded necklace and gold earrings. The first lady pulled her hair into a loose bun at the back of her head, leaving a few strands near her face. During the trip, Olena Zelenska visited the University of Belgrade, where a document on cooperation with the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv was signed. In particular, she opened a Ukrainian bookshelf in a Belgrade library and visited the Belgrade Fortress, where she opened another audio guide in Ukrainian (a large-scale project by Olena Zelenska). Currently, there are 84 such guides around the world. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! While Ukrainians assumed that Europeans were unfamiliar with the realities of war and would not know what the lights were falling behind Jerry Heil during Ukraine's performance at Eurovision 2024, foreigners knew what phosphorus bombs were. Moreover, they sympathize with Ukrainians because of the horrors created by Russia. ADVERTISIMENT On her Instagram page, Jerry Heil tried to explain one of the symbols of the number, which she and alyona alyona choreographed by Tanu Muino, a Ukrainian music video maker who collaborates with Hollywood stars. The girl attached a video to a fragment of her performance, filmed during one of the bombings of Ukrainian settlements. "What do you think it is? Comets? Fireworks?" the vocalist wrote, addressing a foreign audience. In the comments, representatives of various European countries expressed their sympathy and understanding: "Phosphorus bomb, I'm French, but everyone here knows what it is. You are not alone, my people here support you." ADVERTISIMENT "This is the only speech that made sense! And it's a good one at that." "We get it. Your speech was amazing and you conveyed the message so powerfully. Love from Lithuania." "We all immediately understood what it was about. Russia is a terrorist state." "I knew it! This is such a strong message. I heard it loud and clear!" We remind you that the performance of Jerry Heil and alyona alyona with the song "Teresa & Maria" took third place at Eurovision 2024. The contestants were predicted to fail because of the second-best performance, which is also called the "death hole." Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! ADVERTISIMENT Good Hope Leather Products, a Zimbabwean company known for its exotic animal skin products, is looking to venture into China, one of the world's largest consumer markets. Produced by Xinhua Global Service On Tuesday, May 14, the asteroid 2015 KJ19 will fly near the Earth. Its length reaches 107 meters. ADVERTISIMENT This was reported by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). The 107-meter-long space body will come as close as possible to our planet on May 14 at 05:43 Kyiv time. According to NASA, the distance from 2015 KJ19 to the Earth will be 6.04 million kilometers. It is moving at a speed of 83,160 km/h. If an asteroid approaches the Earth closer than 7.4 million kilometers and its size exceeds 150 meters, then NASA considers it a "potentially hazardous object". Asteroid 2015 KJ19 does not fall within these parameters. As a reminder, asteroid 2015 KJ19 approached Earth three years ago, on May 14, 2021. At that time, the distance from it to our planet was 5.8 million kilometers. ADVERTISIMENT The next time, according to NASA, 2015 KJ19 will approach the Earth will be on May 16, 2027 at 14:45. As reported by OBOZ.UA, the comet C/2023 A3 is flying towards the Earth, which can be seen with the naked eye. According to astronomers, it has every chance to exceed the brightness of the star. Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! Train No. 761/762, which operated on a popular route between Kyiv and Odesa, will no longer run. The reason is that it was temporary, and its operation was planned only for May 3-5. ADVERTISIMENT This was reported by Ukrzaliznytsia when announcing its trips. They emphasized that the train was running in a test mode. That is, it is possible that in the future it will be fully launched. Ukrzaliznytsia is returning the Intercity+ high-speed train to Odesa in a test mode. Train No. 761/762 Kyiv - Odesa will depart from Kyiv on May 3, 4, and 5," the statement said. At the same time, there was no information about new train dates. Nor were there any tickets available for the near future. In general, the practice of "temporary" trains is quite common in Ukraine. Most often, railroaders launch them in connection with holidays or other important dates, when the demand for travel increases and the existing flights cannot cope with the passenger traffic. Ukrzaliznytsia has updated the rules for buying train tickets ADVERTISIMENT Earlier, Ukraine launched a train ticket monitoring service with the possibility of auto-purchase. You can use it by downloading the appropriate application and logging in to it via Diia.Signature. Yes: when the required tickets are found, users will receive the corresponding push notifications; If the auto-buy function is activated, users will receive notifications about already purchased tickets. Monitoring of two types of tickets is available. In particular: for specific trains that are already on sale - with the ability to track the availability of specific seats; by destination - with the ability to track the availability of trains between selected cities. "When monitoring a particular train, it is also possible to enable the automatic ticketing function. To do this, you need to enter passenger data and pay for the order: when the function is activated, funds will be withdrawn immediately, and if the monitoring is canceled or the necessary tickets are not found, the funds will be returned to the card automatically," Ukrzaliznytsia said. ADVERTISIMENT As OBOZ.UA previously reported, at the same time, tickets for international railroad flights in Ukraine may rise in price. However, there is no final decision yet, as not everything depends on Ukrzaliznytsia. Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and in Viber. Do not fall for fakes! Ukrainian ice cream is gaining more and more fans around the world, as evidenced by the growing exports of this product. In particular, in 2023, sales of the dessert abroad reached a record high, with the largest amount of Ukrainian ice cream exported to Moldova and various countries of the European Union (EU). ADVERTISIMENT According to the Ukrainian Agrarian Export Association (UAEA), in 2023, Ukrainian producers sold almost 10 thousand tons of ice cream on foreign markets, which is 44% more than in the previous year. At the same time, their total revenue increased by 67% and exceeded $32 million. Both figures were the highest since Ukraine's independence. In January-March, Ukraine exported 2 thousand tons of ice cream, which is almost a quarter higher than last year. Profit for the first quarter of 2024 amounted to $7 million. Where is Ukrainian ice cream most popular? The countries where Ukrainian ice cream was purchased the most include: Moldova (2301 tons); Germany (1909 tons); Poland (1873 tons); Israel (963 tons); Lithuania (509 tons); Czech Republic (425 tons). Overall, most of the ice cream was sold in the EU the profit earned from this export destination reached $19 million (60% of the total). However, the geography of sales of the frozen dessert is quite diversified it is also exported to Iraq, the United States, China, the UAE, Cote d'Ivoire, Gambia, Canada, and other countries. This strengthens Ukraine's position in the global ice cream market. ADVERTISIMENT In the first quarter of 2024, specialized exporters also received most of their revenues (about 60%) from Germany, Poland, and Moldova. "The Ukrainian Agrarian Export Association states that along with the positive dynamics of our ice cream exports and the developed geography of foreign sales, it is worth further developing its potential, considering, in particular, traditional importing countries, including Saudi Arabia, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Singapore. This product has a pronounced seasonality of peak production and consumption, but optimal coverage of buyers in different regions of the world will help to equalize the frequency of foreign exchange earnings," the UAEA noted. Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and in Viber. Do not fall for fakes! ADVERTISIMENT Russian President Vladimir Putin has replaced Sergei Shoigu with Andrei Belousov as defense minister, moving the general to the post of Security Council secretary instead of Nikolai Patrushev. The personnel reshuffle after the "presidential election" suggests that he is taking significant steps to mobilize the country's economy and military-industrial base to support a protracted war against Ukraine. ADVERTISIMENT It is also possible that the Russian dictator is preparing Russia for a future confrontation with NATO, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) suggested. The analysts pointed to the Kremlin leader's long-standing "tactic" of quietly removing top officials by giving them secondary roles rather than simply firing them. For example, the Federation Council published a list of ministers on May 12, according to which Putin "proposed" (his proposals are orders) the political figure and scientist Belousov to be the new head of the Defense Ministry. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told state media that Shoigu, who has served as Russia's defense minister since 2012, will now become secretary of the Security Council and will be Putin's deputy in the Military Industrial Commission. He also said that the Kremlin leader had "dismissed" Patrushev from this position "due to his transfer to another job." Peskov did not specify information about the latter, but assured that the Kremlin would announce his new role in the "near future." In addition, Putin's spokesman said that Army General Valery Gerasimov (who is the commander-in-chief of the Russian occupation forces in Ukraine) will remain the chief of the general staff and that no changes to this position are currently planned. ADVERTISIMENT "Shoigu's replacement of Patrushev as Security Council Secretary is in line with Putin's overall scheme of quietly removing senior security officials by giving them secondary roles in Russian security, rather than simply firing them," ISW emphasized. They noted that this agency in Russia is an advisory body that also plays a role in the implementation of security policy and the development of Russian strategic culture. Therefore, Shoigu's appointment makes his actual demotion from the prestigious post of defense minister less humiliating. "Putin has removed Shoigu from the direct chain of command of the Defense Ministry but has given him further influence in the security sphere. Shoigu remains an important and loyal subordinate, and sometimes a scapegoat, and it is likely to be beneficial for Putin to retain his leadership and experience in some official capacity," the analysts concluded. ADVERTISIMENT They pointed to the telling fact that Shoigu's ouster followed two high-profile incidents: the dismissal of his ally, Deputy Defense Minister Timur Ivanov, on corruption charges, and Putin's meeting with the general's political opponent, Tula Region Governor Alexei Dyumin, to discuss updates to the Strategic Defense Concept. These moments, ISW suggests, were the main indicators of the Kremlin's policy in preparation for Shoigu's removal from his long-standing post. As reported by OBOZ.UA, the last time Shoigu showed up as Russian Defense Minister was at a May 9 coven in Moscow. Then the general of the occupying Russian army rode through Red Square and "saluted" the participants of Putin's war against Ukraine, who were herded to the "victory" parade. Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! ADVERTISIMENT Russian dictator Vladimir Putin has dismissed Nikolai Patrushev from the post of Secretary of the Security Council of the aggressor country. His place will be taken by Sergey Shoigu, who is currently serving as the Russian Defense Minister. ADVERTISIMENT Russian propaganda outlets report this. The dictator signed a decree appointing Shoigu as Secretary of the Russian Security Council on Sunday, May 12. According to Putin's press secretary Dmitry Peskov, Patrushev's new position will be known in a few days. He was dismissed from his post "in connection with his transfer to another job." According to Peskov, Shoigu "will continue to work in the area he knows from the inside, he will oversee the work of the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation of the Russian Federation." In addition, he will be Putin's deputy in the Military Industrial Commission of the Russian Federation. Peskov said that "it is very important to fit the economy of the power bloc into the country's economy so that it corresponds to the dynamics." Nikolai Patrushev, as you know, has been Secretary of the Russian Security Council for exactly 16 years - he was appointed by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on May 12, 2008. ADVERTISIMENT As a reminder, Putin has proposed a new candidate for the post of Russian Defense Minister. Andrey Belousov became the Kremlin leader's protege. As reported by OBOZ.UA, ISW believes that Putin is probably trying to reduce Shoigu's power by balancing him with rivals. One of the proofs is the dictator's meeting with the governor of Tula region, Aleksey Dyumin, who is affiliated with the Wagner PMC. Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! The European Union (EU) is considering imposing sanctions on Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG), which could affect the transportation of Arctic fuel, which accounts for about 13% of Russian LNG imports to the EU. These measures indicate the growing tension between Europe and Russia and the EU's intention to reduce its dependence on Russian energy resources. ADVERTISIMENT Bloomberg writes about this. The news of the EU's plans to impose sanctions on Russian LNG, as reported by the agency, has important implications for the energy market and the geopolitical situation in the region. These sanctions appear to be a reaction to recent developments designed to limit Russia's gas export revenues without directly affecting European energy security. As part of the 14th package of sanctions, the EU is considering a ban on re-exports of Russian LNG, which is a strategic step in the context of their policy towards Russia. This demonstrates Europe's growing confidence in taking concrete measures against Russian energy resources in response to its destabilizing behavior. Refusal to transship LNG in EU ports could seriously affect the Russian producer Novatek, which specializes in Arctic LNG. This could lead to supply disruptions, increased transportation costs, and reduced profits for the company. ADVERTISIMENT It will also create challenges for logistics and transportation, especially for specialized vessels that transport Arctic fuel. If a ban on re-exports is imposed, Europe may turn to alternative sources of gas supply or develop its production capacity to reduce its dependence on Russian LNG. However, this may require significant investment and time. A re-export ban could also affect Asian customers that depend on Russian L NG. They could face reduced volumes or higher gas prices due to increased transportation costs. European companies, including the German state-owned Securing Energy for Europe GmbH, Shell Plc, and TotalEnergies SE, use the ports of Zeebrugge and Montuar to transship cargo from Yamal under their contracts that run until 2038 and 2041. This may open the possibility of declaring force majeure if transshipment is banned. ADVERTISIMENT As OBOZ.UA reported earlier, the European Union is going to decide in the coming weeks to confiscate Russia's frozen assets in favor of Ukraine. However, in fact, it is not about confiscating Russian money directly, or even about confiscating income from it. Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! Among the oldest holidays of mankind, inherent in almost all cultures, are those related to the solar cycle and the length of the day. In this case, the summer solstice is considered the mid-year holiday: the moment when daylight reaches its maximum length and night is the shortest. ADVERTISIMENT This day is called the solstice. It is dedicated to the celebration of the power of nature, its ability to renew itself every year and give people a harvest. OBOZ.UA found out on what date this year the summer solstice falls. What is the summer solstice? From the point of view of astronomy, the summer solstice is the moment when the tilt of the Earth's rotation axis towards the Sun is at its greatest. For residents of the northern hemisphere, on this day, the sun visually reaches its highest point in the sky, and the day is of the longest possible duration. After that, its duration begins to gradually decrease. Due to the inaccuracy of the calendar, the date of the summer solstice changes every year and falls on June 20-21. In 2024, the moment of its onset is 23:50:56 Kyiv time on June 20. It is noteworthy that in the southern hemisphere of the Earth, the shortest day occurs at the same time and it begins to gradually increase. This happens because the Earth is tilted at an angle to the Sun and in different parts of the year, different parts of it are closer to the luminary. ADVERTISIMENT Traditions of the summer solstice As we've already mentioned, all cultures celebrate the festival of life on the longest day of the year. For the Slavs, it has long been called Kupala. On this day, they honored the power of fire by lighting ritual bonfires and jumping over the fire to purify themselves. They also paid tribute to water by bathing in ponds, and unmarried girls would throw wreaths into them. With the advent of Christianity, the celebration of the Nativity of John the Baptist was set for this date. According to the New Julian calendar, it falls on June 24. But no matter how hard the church tried to fight against the folk traditions of the day in the middle of summer, it could not do so. Therefore, today the celebration is popularly called Ivan Kupala, as if honoring both traditions at once. ADVERTISIMENT Other peoples also hold the summer solstice in high esteem. In Latvia, it is called Ligo, in Estonia - Jaanipaa, and in Finland - Juhannus. The Celts called this date Lita, the Armenians Vardavar, and the Iranians Tirgan. The Spanish celebrate San Juan on this day, and their neighbors the Portuguese celebrate St. John's Day. One way or another, in all cultures it is a celebration of life and the power of the sun. Traditional rituals are aimed at honoring it. People burn ritual bonfires, gather around them, sing and dance, decorate themselves, their homes or ritual objects with greenery and flowers. Often the celebrations are also associated with water. It is believed that one should not sleep on this night. You need to meet the dawn, then it will bring prosperity for the whole next year. In Ukraine, on the night of Ivan Kupala, it is customary to look for the mythical fern flower. It is believed that the one who finds it will be able to discover all the secrets, see treasures in the ground and understand the language of animals. And a couple who jumps over the Kupala fire holding hands will never part. ADVERTISIMENT Subscribe to OBOZ.UA channels in Telegram and Viber to keep up with the latest events. The Orthodox Church of Ukraine appealed to the Parliament to ban the UOC-MP at the legislative level. It is noted that the OCU supports the need to annul those organizations whose religious center is located in the aggressor state. ADVERTISIMENT This is stated in the resolution of the Council of Bishops. It was held on Saturday, May 11, 2024, at the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra. The final document notes that the Council consistently supports the need to introduce a legislative ban on the subordination of religious organizations in Ukraine to religious associations with a center in the aggressor state and appeals to the Verkhovna Rada to adopt a government bill on this issue supported by the religious community of Ukraine, after making the necessary amendments. "The Council also testified to the desire and readiness of the Local Church to conduct a dialogue aimed at achieving the unity of Ukrainian Orthodoxy around the Kyivan Throne on the basis of the Tomos of Autocephaly, expressing regret over the ultimatum refusal of the leadership of the Metropolis of the Moscow Patriarchate in Ukraine to engage in such a dialogue, while at the same time testifying to its success at the level of religious communities," the resolution reads. ADVERTISIMENT In addition, the bishops of the OCU also expressed their heartfelt gratitude to the Ecumenical Patriarchate, the Patriarchate of Alexandria, the Churches of Cyprus and Greece for their support during the difficult trials of war and thanked the Christian churches and religious communities for their support. The Bishops' Council of the autocephalous Ukrainian Orthodox Church, attended by 53 bishops of the OCU, was held on May 11, 2024, in the Refectory Church of Saints Anthony and Theodosius of Kyiv-Pechersk of the Holy Dormition Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra. As reported, 63% of Ukrainians support the ban on the UOC-MP. Another 83% of Ukrainians believe that the state should somehow intervene in the activities of the UOC-MP. Opendatabot reported that there are still 8,097 churches in Ukraine that have ties to the aggressor country. During the full-scale war, their number decreased by only 685 communities. Most of the churches have been transferred to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine in Kyiv, Khmelnytsky and Vinnytsia regions. ADVERTISIMENT As reported by OBOZ.UA: - Bigus.info investigators reported that the UOC-MP is the basis for a Kremlin agent network in Ukraine that aims to destabilize the domestic political situation. In particular, according to the journalists, "agents in cassocks" spread propaganda narratives and materials discrediting the Ukrainian leadership through the Union of Orthodox Journalists, First Cossack, and Myriany. - The SSU served a notice of suspicion to Metropolitan Arseniy of the Sviatohirsk Lavra of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, who, according to investigators, "handed over" Ukrainian military positions in Donetsk region to Russia. Even before the full-scale invasion began, the cleric expressed pro-Kremlin narratives. Only verified information on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! ADVERTISIMENT Former US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland, commenting on the delay in approving a military aid package for Ukraine, did not answer whether Washington believes in Kyiv's victory. When it came to the return of all the territories occupied by Russia, she emphasized that wars end in negotiations. ADVERTISIMENT The American politician, originally from the Ukrainian city of Odesa, said this in an interview with the Russian-language online publication Medusa. It is worth noting that this allegedly independent opposition media outlet (and according to other sources, fully controlled by the Russian FSB) is located in Riga, Latvia, and is published in Russian and English. During the interview, journalists reminded her of the heated debate in Congress over the allocation of funds to support Ukraine's security and asked her what the ultimate goal of US assistance to Ukrainians looks like within the framework of the US strategy. Nuland emphasized that, in general, more than half of the congressmen, even from the Republican Party (including the Senate and the House of Representatives), voted in favor. "Because they understand the stakes not only for Kyiv but also for the United States. It is Ukraine's decision whether and when to move on to discussing peace. So far, Putin's approach to the negotiations looks like this: "What's mine is mine, and what's yours is what we'll discuss." The goal of the American strategy now is to prepare Kyiv militarily, economically, and politically so that it can start negotiating from a position of strength," said the former deputy head of the State Department. ADVERTISIMENT She continued: it is necessary to prove to Putin and his army commanders that this war is losing for them, and therefore it is time to reach an agreement. When asked whether the ultimate goal of the US strategy no longer includes restoring Ukraine's 1991 borders, Nuland said that all wars end in negotiations, and it is "Ukraine's task to decide what its goals are for the territories." "But right now, Kyiv is not strong enough to start negotiating. We would like Putin to leave every square kilometer of Ukrainian land. But for now until Ukraine is strong enough we don't know what is possible in this regard," the politician explained. Earlier, in an interview with the American media, Nuland also said that Ukraine is not ready for negotiations with Russia to end the war. As OBOZ.UA previously reported, Victoria Nuland is called one of the brightest and most influential women not only in American but also in world politics. We talked about how the pioneer educator from Odesa once made a political career in the United States. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! On the night of May 13, several regions of the Russian aggressor country were attacked by unmanned aerial vehicles. The UAVs targeted an oil depot and a power substation. ADVERTISIMENT The SBU drones were active in the Lipetsk and Belgorod regions of the Russian Federation. This was reported to OBOZ.UA by informed sources. As a result of the attack, a fire broke out on the territory of the Oskolneftosupply oil tank farm near the village of Stary Oskol and the 500 kW Eletskaya substation. It is noteworthy that Russian citizens complained throughout the night about a series of loud explosions near the oil depot in the Belgorod region. In addition, the governor of the Lipetsk region confirmed the fire at the Eletskaya power substation. It is worth noting that this substation powers the railroad traction substations, the Stanovaya oil pumping station and ensures transit between the Lipetsk, Orel, and Bryansk power systems. "Russian industry working for the war against Ukraine will remain a legitimate target for the SBU. Measures to undermine the enemy's military potential will continue," the source said. ADVERTISIMENT As a reminder, on the night of May 13, drones attacked a power substation in the Lipetsk region of the Russian Federation. As a result of the attack, a fire broke out at the critical infrastructure facility. According to the legend of Russian officials, the UAVs were allegedly "suppressed". Earlier it was reported that in the evening of May 12, explosions were reported in the Russian city of Belgorod. It was stated that the local thermal power plant was allegedly hit, which left part of the city without electricity, and local residents were advised to charge their power banks. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber . Do not fall for fakes! Foreign automakers are increasingly teaming up with Chinese tech companies to introduce cutting-edge technologies like artificial intelligence in vehicles, targeting the preferences of tech-savvy customers in China, the world's largest auto market. Toyota, the world's largest automaker by sales, announced a partnership with Chinese information technology company Tencent to develop advanced intelligent driving solutions at the 2024 Auto China, which concluded on May 4. Tencent, owner of China's largest messaging app, WeChat, will provide cutting-edge technologies like AI and cloud computing for Toyota's software-defined cars. They are to connect users' lifestyles with Toyota's mobility services and create a diverse mobile transportation ecosystem, according to the deal. Similarly, Japanese automaker Nissan signed a memorandum of understanding with Chinese tech company Baidu to collaborate on AI and smart car technologies. This includes joint development and research, and integrating Baidu's AI solutions into Nissan vehicles in China. Nissan CEO Makoto Uchida said Nissan needs to meet the needs of Chinese customers at the same speed at which the market is changing. The collaboration aims to offer smart systems and AI-based mobility services locally and globally. "If we cannot do those aspects, I think it is very difficult to keep our business in China," he said. The deals highlight the fact that multinationals are realizing in order to keep pace with Chinese automakers, who are prioritizing electric vehicles and advanced tech, they need to incorporate similar tech into their models, according to industry experts. German auto giant Volkswagen has done so much earlier, including joint ventures with China's AI chip provider Horizon Robotics and software group ThunderSoft, as well as an investment in China's EV startup Xpeng to codevelop high-end EVs for the local market. "Four years ago, I thought it was almost certain that the Chinese car companies just follow the global manufacturers, but right now it seems like everything has changed," said Xie Tiandi, a spokesperson for DJI Automotive, a company spun out of the world's biggest drone maker which is now working with Volkswagen on assisted driving technologies, as quoted by the Financial Times. Industry experts attribute this to China's vast consumer market and diverse driving conditions, which assist the development of new energy vehicle technologies, as well as the higher acceptance of intelligent technologies among Chinese consumers. More than 40 percent of components in intelligent NEVs are new categories not found in traditional fuel-powered cars, necessitating innovative supply chains, which have been established in China, industry experts said. As a result, the market landscape is shifting as Chinese brands gain ground over foreign counterparts. The China Passenger Car Association's data show that in March, China's passenger car market saw retail sales reach 1.69 million units, up 6 percent year-on-year. Domestic brands' sales surged by 19 percent to 930,000 units, while mainstream joint venture brands' sales dropped by 8 percent to 500,000 units. Foreign brands' market share continued to decline in the same month: German brands held a market share of 20.4 percent, down 1.5 percentage points year-on-year; Japanese brands accounted for 13.8 percent, a decrease of 2.2 percentage points; US brands held 8.2 percent, down 1.8 percentage points. Their lost market share was captured by Chinese brands, whose market share increased by 6 percentage points year-on-year to 54.8 percent in March. BYD Chairman Wang Chuanfu estimates that in the next three to five years, the market share of joint venture brands will decrease from 40 percent to 10 percent, representing the growth potential of Chinese brands. According to forecasts from Counterpoint Research, China will have 1 million cars with Level 3 driving-assisted technology, which means drivers can remove their hands from the steering wheel, by 2026. These vehicles will account for about 10 percent of new cars by 2028. At the 2024 Auto China, the rise of AI was shaping trends, with Chinese car companies competing in digitization and intelligence capabilities. Xpeng unveiled its Tianji smart cabin operating system, which can mimic users' driving habits and assist in various driving scenarios. "Smart cars have become a key area of AI technology application," said He Xiaopeng, chairman of Xpeng. He noted that AI not only enhances the user experience but reflects the rapid development of AI companies. Baidu-Geely joint venture Jidu unveiled the 01 and 07 models which feature the Ernie Bot, Baidu's ChatGPT-like large language model, enabling voice-controlled car functions and remote operation of home appliances. Meanwhile, Huawei's Pangu large model, iFlytek's Spark large language model and 360 Security's Zhinao model have begun to be installed in vehicles. It was impossible to build defensive fortifications on the border with Russia in the Kharkiv region, as all Ukrainian equipment and people would have been destroyed by the enemy. Several defense lines were built in the region, where possible. ADVERTISIMENT Andriy Kovalenko, head of the National Security and Defense Council's Center for Countering Disinformation, said this on Telegram . He spoke about the current situation on the border of Kharkiv region, in particular in the city of Vovchansk, and urged not to confuse it with the enemy's actions against Kharkiv itself. According to Kovalenko, "everything is happening as predicted." "Let me just remind you. It is 4 km to the border with the enemy. Vovchansk is a typical border town. Now the enemy is actively acting in its direction. Accordingly, we can say that the battle for Vovchansk is ongoing. But. This is a border town. Distinguish between the enemy's actions towards Kharkiv and towards the border," Kovalenko emphasized. ADVERTISIMENT The main goal of the enemy, he said, is to force the Ukrainian command to pull back forces from the east to the area: Chasovyi Yar, Kostiantynivka, Pokrovske direction. The head of the Center also noted that there are currently a lot of manipulations on the Internet regarding the issue of defensive fortifications in Kharkiv region. "It was impossible to build directly on the border with the enemy because all the equipment and engineers would be destroyed by the enemy its drones and artillery. Accordingly, the defense lines have been built in Kharkiv region, they are there, and we will tell you more about them soon. These are several reliable defense lines," Kovalenko assured. ADVERTISIMENT As reported by OBOZ.UA: In April, President Zelensky said that the construction of defense in the hottest areas of Ukraine was nearing completion. In some areas, the construction of fortifications has already been completed by 92-98%. According to the head of state, all regions of the country and all areas of combat operations have received three lines of defense. In March, a construction company in the Kharkiv region was caught trying to embezzle more than UAH 20 million of budget funds. The company withdrew money intended for the construction of fortifications in the Kharkiv region to the account of an individual entrepreneur. On April 23, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine allocated more than UAH 8.121 billion for the construction of fortifications. It was noted that the funds would be redistributed from the reserve fund of the state budget. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! The group of Russian occupiers that broke through the eastern outskirts of Krasnohorivka in the Donetsk region and was blocked in the ruins of the Krasnohorivka Refractory Plant is in a difficult situation. The Ukrainian Defense Forces have cut off all their logistical routes. ADVERTISIMENT Nazar Voloshyn, a representative of the "Khortytsia" operational and strategic group of troops, said this during a telethon on Sunday, May 12. According to him, the Russians were left without ammunition and all kinds of support. "The enemy is practically deprived of both ammunition and armor support. Our defenders cut off all their logistics routes and took control of both the road and the approaches to the plant. The defenders are also restraining the enemy's advance into the city," said Voloshyn. ADVERTISIMENT According to the military, the situation in Krasnohorivka is under full control of the Ukrainian defenders. Fighters of the 59th Separate Mechanized Brigade are holding the defense there, the situation around the town is also under their control. "The enemy kept trying to storm the town with small assault groups, from time to time they tried to storm the eastern outskirts of the town with armored vehicles. Our defenders destroy all the enemy's attempts to enter the city with artillery and mortar fire," he said. As a reminder, on May 8 it became known that a group of Russian occupation troops broke through to the territory of a refractory plant in Krasnohorivka. The enemy was blocked there by the Ukrainian Defense Forces. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! Since September 2023, North Korea could have supplied the terrorist country Russia with about 6,700 containers of weapons to wage war against Ukraine. These are mainly artillery ammunition and missiles for multiple launch rocket systems. ADVERTISIMENT South Korea's National Intelligence Service believes that the DPRK is transferring weapons produced in the 1970s to Russia. This was reported by Yonhap News Agency. South Korean intelligence said that 122-mm artillery shells manufactured in the DPRK in the 1970s ended up on the battlefield in Ukraine. The agency also added that the fact of the transfer of weapons to the Russian occupiers is confirmed by photographs of the shells, which showed letters characteristic of the DPRK. Experts said that these were 122 mm multiple launch rocket system shells. South Korean Defense Minister Shin Won-sik estimated that North Korea has sent about 6,700 containers to Russia since the summit between their dictators last September. The defense ministry noted that this includes about 3 million 152-mm artillery shells or 500,000 122-mm MLRS shells. ADVERTISIMENT South Korean intelligence also continues to monitor the possibility of illegal supply of missile parts to North Korea amid fears that they may be purchasing such parts to develop new weapons. In addition, the day before, the DPRK announced that it would provide its armed forces with a new 240-mm multiple launch rocket system. To recap, the United States is closely monitoring Russia's cooperation with the DPRK and Iran. First of all, Washington closely monitors the situation around military cooperation between countries and Moscow, as it helps the aggressor on the battlefield in Ukraine. Earlier it was reported that North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un had planned to develop ties with the aggressor country Russia in order to revive his country's economy. Factories began to operate at increased capacity, and the Minister of Defense admitted that the economic situation in the DPRK has "significantly improved" thanks to Russian supplies of food, raw materials, and oil products. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! The situation in the Kharkiv sector is complicated, with the occupiers continuing their assaults and intense shelling. As of the morning of May 13, the enemy tried to advance to the settlements of Lyptsi, Starytsi, and Vovchansk. ADVERTISIMENT Dmytro Lykhoviy, a spokesman for the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and an unnamed source in military circles told Yedynye Novyny about the operational situation. "The occupants are covering the positions of our defenders with mortar, artillery, and aircraft fire. A day earlier, on May 12, the Russian Armed Forces continued active operations in the areas of Hlyboke, Lukianske, Oliynykove, Bugrivatka, and Vovchansk. Ukraine's defense forces are resisting the invaders. The source said that as of Monday morning, Russian troops were replenishing losses and ammunition and preparing for further actions. Representative of the General Staff Lykhoviy noted on the air of the telethon: in the Kharkiv direction, where the enemy crossed the border on May 10, by Sunday evening the enemy had launched 31 attacks in the directions of the settlements of Strilecha, Krasne, Morokhovets, Oliynykove, Lukianets, Hlyboke, Ohirtseve, Gatyshche, Pletenivka, Pylyna, Vovchansk and Bugrivatka. ADVERTISIMENT The occupants are making tactical gains. The situation remains complicated and is changing dynamically. "Measures are planned to destroy the enemy that has intervened in our defense," added Lykhoviy. As OBOZ.UA previously reported, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said that the Russian invaders had a tactical success in the Vovchansk sector, the enemy had deployed significant forces and did not care about losses. Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and in Viber. Do not fall for fakes! Pompeii, a Roman City in 100 Objects describes the petrified city through a hundred very different items. Some are noble and precious, such as a gold bracelet, statues, paintings, a gladiators helmet; others are more prosaic, including a charred loaf of bread, a razor blade and a chamber pot. Each object introduces an aspect of the history and daily life of the city, offering a rounded view of Pompeii and not just its past, but also its present and future with the archaeological challenges it faces, including mitigating the ravages of tourism and climate change. The book is a very enjoyable way to immerse oneself in a city that was buried beneath four to six meters of ash and pumice with the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in the year 79 AD. Its author, Ruben Montoya, 32, has a PhD in archaeology besides being a historian and researcher who trained in Spain, Italy and the UK with the renowned archeologist Penelope Allison. He has spent long stretches of time excavating in Pompeii, a city he has felt irresistibly drawn to since he was a child when he was captivated by the Roman ruins in Segobriga near his family home in Spain. His book is both informative and fun, appealing to a wide audience. For the neophyte, it is an excellent and very complete introduction to Pompeii, while for the more specialized reader, it is a great summary and update, with the various objects used as a hook to draw the reader in. The objects allow Montoya to explain the link between Spartacus and Pompeii; the debate on whether there were Christians in the city; the fact that there are still unexploded bombs from World War II and the danger these can represent the Allied bombers caused enormous destruction in the archaeological zone, it was not all the volcanos work; the fact that the city had its own patron saint, the curiously demure Venus Pompeiana; and the possibility that any day now the villa that Cicero owned on the outskirts of the city (complete with its library!) might be unearthed. Also, theres the curious fact that we have an inscription of a magistrate,Titus Suedius Clementus, who also left graffiti on the Colossi of Memnon in Egypt another link between Pompeii and Egypt besides the famous temple of Isis. The author also explains that there is graffiti referring to inter-female relationships. In fact, throughout the book there is an effort to focus on the often-invisible women of Pompeii, not only its inhabitants but also the archaeologists. There is also mention that the fast food bars, known as thermopolium, had a bad reputation and customers could find themselves branded a cocksucker and so become embroiled in an altercation; or that a series of phalluses painted on the walls and on the pavement seem to be signposts to the brothels where further graffiti reveals the name of clients like Scordopordonicus, which has got to be a nickname because, although it looks like the name of a Greek merchant from the Asterix comic books, it actually means Mr Garlic Flatulence. The archaeologist Ruben Montoya, in Pompeii, in a photo provided by the author. The first object selected by Montoya is the ring bearing the head of the mythological creature Silenus. It was discovered by Charles III of Spain in the excavations of Pompeii in the 18th century during his years as King Charles VII of Naples when he was known as the archaeologist king, at a time when it had still not been established that the site was truly Pompeii. A ballista shell an ancient missile indicates that Pompeii was besieged in 89 BC by the Roman army during the Social War, when the people of Pompeii joined forces with other towns in southern Italy against Rome. On the northwestern wall of the city, where the House of the Vestals is located, the impact of an attack that was intense, tragic and destructive is still visible as is the impact of the earthquake of 63 AD, 16 years before Mount Vesuvius erupted. In fact, part of the city was being restored when the volcano started spewing pumice and ash. Gladiator helmet made of bronze found in Pompeii and exhibited in the Louvre. Christophel Fine Art (Universal Images Group via Getty) Montoya has included in his list of objects iconic artifacts such as the cast of the poor dog in Orpheus house as well as some of the molds of human victims, and the beautiful gladiator helmet. There is also an anchor, which indicates the maritime character of the city and reminds us about the search for its main port; a cart that introduces the issue of Pompeian traffic (they had the equivalent of pedestrian areas); while the chamber pot acts as an introduction to the matter of sewage and the 262 latrines found in Pompeii, plus the pressing question of whether slaves and their owners shared a latrine, there being just one per household. The charred loaf of bread suggests an element of day-to-day life as well as a reminder that 33 bakeries have been excavated. Other objects on Montoyas list are the Indian statuette that indicates that Pompeii had a broad trading network; medical instruments a clinic has been found in the city; dice and a bathtub. The mold of a victim in Pompeii. Ivan Romano (Getty Images) Montoya begins by recounting his first visit to Pompeii in 2010, as a 19-year-old intern in an archaeological project run by the Complutense University of Madrid. He was a perfect candidate as he had already been classifying objects based on photographs during the entire previous year. It was like living a dream, says Montoya. He would subsequently return on many occasions to work in the city. The common thread of the book is that each object is placed in context, he explains. Referring to the fact that the book covers only 99 objects, he adds The book itself is the 100th object. Excavating or consolidating the finds According to Montoya, Pompeii is a place where I am happy and feel safe. It is also a place that transcends archaeology and that allows us to touch the past and reflect on the future. The author has the privilege of having access to Fabio Rufos house even at night. But he points out that today visits to Pompeii can be made virtually online, as the city has been completely digitized, house by house, room by room. He stresses that, thanks to new technology, we are seeing things that were once seen by the first travelers of the Grand Tour, who were able to contemplate the mark left by a glass of wine on a marble table. An imposing banquet hall, with elegant black walls and frescoes with mythological themes inspired by the Trojan War. Ministerio de la Cultura de Italia Montoya draws our attention to the beauty of the Trojan-themed paintings recently found in a black room of a house located in Isula 10 of Regio IX. These, he says, are one more example of the wonders Pompeiis houses conceal or are yet to reveal, as a third of the houses are still to be excavated. These cover approximately 20 hectares without counting the area outside the city walls, where the elite owned large villas. Pompeii is always going to turn up surprises, he says, although there is a debate over whether to continue excavating or focus on reinterpreting what has already been unearthed, with the use, for example, of AI. Montoya stresses that we have a good understanding of the morphology of the eruption and the pyroclastic flows that destroyed Pompeii and nearby cities such as Herculaneum and Stabiae. He believes the volcano erupted in autumn rather than August and points out that there was, in fact, no lava in Pompeii. It is disturbing to witness the level of pain and suffering that you perceive in Pompeii; people saw how everything around them was calcined, even glass and bronze melted. Montoya also points out that we tend to underestimate the scope of the eruption; the overwhelming 30-kilometer incandescent column that rose over Vesuvius and collapsed over Pompeii; the rain of stones; the terrible atmospheric pyrotechnics, though the hundred or so casts of the victims, including one of a dog, a pig and two horses, offer some insight. There is something about pain that attracts us, says Montoya. Perhaps it comes as a surprise to know that only an estimated 10% of the population died while the rest became refugees, having lost everything. We know of one inhabitant, Cornelius Fuscus, who ended his days in Dacia in charge of five legions in the war waged by Domitian. Montoyas favorite object is a gold bracelet in the shape of a coiled snake worn by a woman whose body turned up next to that of another woman and a girl who were all trying to take refuge in an inn. The bracelet bears an inscription on the inside, hidden from view, that reads from the master to his slave, and alludes to a love affair. With that piece of jewelry, she would have seemed like a lady herself, but she was probably one of the many slaves who practiced prostitution. It is a fascinating object that offers insight into another aspect of Pompeian life. It is curious that among the 100 objects, there are none of the famous phalluses and the ubiquitous tintinnabulum an assembly of bells in the shape of a bronze ithyphallic figure thought to ward off the evil eye which furnish the Secret Museum of Naples. I do address the world of sexuality, of course theres the bas-relief of Lucius Numinus bar with the woman, most likely a prostitute, on top of the man but I purposely didnt want to go all out on the penis; its not all about the penis in Pompeii as some seem to think, says Montoya. The image of the phallus was common in houses, in the streets, on the statues and altars of [the minor fertility god] Priapus, but it did not have the transgressive and scandalous meaning it has today. Sex was not taboo in Pompeii, and the fact that its representations can surprise us says more about us than it does about the Romans. Montoya points out some common misconceptions about Pompeii, such as thinking that it was a particularly erotic destination within the Roman world, or that it is a city frozen in time, what is called the false Pompeian premise. The eruption lasted 24 hours, but it buried a city in the process of continuous change, a place that was both dynamic and industrious. It does not give us a fixed picture of immobility and stagnation quite the opposite, he says. From the relative lack of written testimony at the time of the eruption the testimony of the Plini is preserved Montoya says that there are references from historians, including a visit by the emperor Titus to what was the ground zero of the catastrophe, as well as from poets such as Statius: Where Vesuvius exploded with fury, pouring storms of fire. But, certainly, there is a lack of eyewitness accounts. It has to do with the resilience of the human being we look forward, explains Montoya. Its like with the pandemic, which we dont even talk about anymore. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu attend a military parade on Victory Day, which marks the 79th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, in Red Square in Moscow, Russia, May 9, 2024. Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday replaced Sergei Shoigu as defense minister in a Cabinet shakeup that comes as he begins his fifth term in office. In line with Russian law, the entire Russian Cabinet resigned Tuesday following Putins glittering inauguration in the Kremlin, and most members have been widely expected to keep their jobs, while Shoigus fate had appeared uncertain. Putin signed a decree on Sunday appointing Shoigu as secretary of Russias Security Council, the Kremlin said. The appointment was announced shortly after Putin proposed Andrei Belousov to become the countrys defense minister in place of Shoigu. The announcement of Shoigus new role came as 13 people were reported dead and 20 more wounded in Russias border city of Belgorod, where a section of a residential building collapsed after what Russian officials said was Ukrainian shelling. Belousovs candidacy will need to be approved by Russias upper house in parliament, the Federation Council. It reported Sunday that Putin introduced proposals for other Cabinet positions as well but Shoigu is the only minister on that list who is being replaced. Several other new candidates for federal ministers were proposed Saturday by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, reappointed by Putin on Friday. Shoigus deputy, Timur Ivanov, was arrested last month on bribery charges and was ordered to remain in custody pending an official investigation. The arrest of Ivanov was widely interpreted as an attack on Shoigu and a possible precursor of his dismissal, despite his close personal ties with Putin. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Sunday that Putin had decided to give the defense minister role to a civilian because the ministry should be open to innovation and cutting-edge ideas. He also said the increasing defense budget must fit into the countrys wider economy, and Belousov, who until recently served as the first deputy prime minister, is the right fit for the job. Belousov, 65, held leading positions in the finances and economic department of the prime ministers office and the Ministry of Economic Development. In 2013, he was appointed an adviser to Putin and seven years later, in January 2020, he became first deputy prime minister. Peskov assured that the reshuffle will not affect the military aspect, which has always been the prerogative of the Chief of General Staff, and Gen. Valery Gerasimov, who currently serves in this position, will continue his work. Tatiana Stanovaya, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, said in an online commentary that Shoigus new appointment to Russias Security Council showed that the Russian leader viewed the institution as a reservoir for his former key figures people who he cant in any way let go, but doesnt have a place for. Figures such as former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev have also been appointed to the security council. Medvedev has served as the bodys deputy chairman since 2020. Shoigu was appointed to the Security Council instead of Nikolai Patrushev, Putins long-term ally. Peskov said Sunday that Patrushev is taking on another role, and promised to reveal details in the coming days. Shoigu has been widely seen as a key figure in Putins decision to send Russian troops into Ukraine. Russia had expected the operation to quickly overwhelm Ukraines much smaller and less-equipped army and for Ukrainians to broadly welcome Russian troops. Instead, the conflict galvanized Ukraine to mount an intense defense, dealing the Russian army humiliating blows, including the retreat from an attempt to take the capital, Kyiv, and a counteroffensive that drove Moscows forces out of the Kharkiv region. Before he was named defense minister in 2012, Shoigu spent more than 20 years directing markedly different work: In 1991, he was appointed head of the Russian Rescue Corps disaster-response agency, which eventually became the Ministry of Emergency Situations. He became highly visible in the post. The job also allowed him to be named a general even though he had no military service behind him as the rescue corps absorbed the militarized Civil Defense Troops. Shoigu does not wield the same kind of power as Patrushev, who has long been the countrys top security official. But the position he will take the same position that Patrushev worked to transform from a minor bureaucratic role to a place of sizable influence will still carry some authority, according to Mark Galeotti, head of the Mayak Intelligence consultancy. High-level security materials intended for the presidents eyes will still pass through the Security Council Secretariat, even with changes at the top. You cant just institutionally turn around a bureaucracy and how it works overnight, he said. Thousands of civilians have fled Russias renewed ground offensive in Ukraines northeast that has targeted towns and villages with a barrage of artillery and mortar shelling, officials said Sunday. The intense battles have forced at least one Ukrainian unit to withdraw in the Kharkiv region, capitulating more land to Russian forces across less defended settlements in the so-called contested gray zone along the Russian border. By Sunday afternoon, the town of Vovchansk, among the largest in the northeast with a prewar population of 17,000, emerged as a focal point in the battle. Volodymyr Tymoshko, the head of the Kharkiv regional police, said that Russian forces were on the outskirts of the town and approaching from three directions. An Associated Press team, positioned in a nearby village, saw plumes of smoke rising from the town as Russian forces hurled shells. Evacuation teams worked nonstop throughout the day to take residents, most of whom were older, out of harms way. At least 4,000 civilians have fled the Kharkiv region since Friday, when Moscows forces launched the operation, Gov. Oleh Syniehubov said in a social media statement. Heavy fighting raged Sunday along the northeast front line, where Russian forces attacked 27 settlements in the past 24 hours, he said. Analysts say the Russian push is designed to exploit ammunition shortages before promised Western supplies can reach the front line. Ukrainian soldiers said the Kremlin is using the usual Russian tactic of launching a disproportionate amount of fire and infantry assaults to exhaust Ukrainian troops and firepower. By intensifying battles in what was previously a static patch of the front line, Russian forces threaten to pin down Ukrainian forces in the northeast, while carrying out intense battles farther south where Moscow is also gaining ground. It comes after Russia stepped up attacks in March targeting energy infrastructure and settlements, which analysts predicted were a concerted effort to shape conditions for an offensive. Meanwhile, a 10-story apartment building partially collapsed in Belgorod near the border, killing at least 13 people and injuring 20 others. Russian authorities said the building collapsed following Ukrainian shelling. Ukraine hasnt commented on the incident. The Russian Defense Ministry said Sunday that its forces had captured four villages on the border along Ukraines Kharkiv region, in addition to five villages reported to have been seized on Saturday. These areas were likely poorly fortified because of the dynamic fighting and constant heavy shelling, easing a Russian advance. Ukraines leadership hasnt confirmed Moscows gains. But Tymoshko, the head of the Kharkiv regional police, said that Strilecha, Pylna and Borsivika were under Russian occupation, and it was from their direction they were bringing in infantry to stage attacks in other embattled villages of Hlyboke and Lukiantsi. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition Germanys military rearmament, in addition to a representing a major financial outlay, also involves solving a pressing problem: the shortage of soldiers in the army. Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has been discussing possible models to revive compulsory military service for some time and now more and more political figures, both from the Social Democratic Party (SPD) and the conservative CDU/CSU, are preparing the ground for what already looks like a probable reintroduction of conscription. Pistorius wants to reverse Germanys decision to abandon compulsory military service in 2011, noting during a visit to the United States last week that times have changed. In his opinion, suspending it was a mistake. I am convinced that Germany needs a form of military conscription, he said during a speech at Johns Hopkins University. For the Social Democrat, it is a necessary step to ensure military stability at a time when the war in Ukraine threatens Europes security. The German army, with a regular strength of 180,000 soldiers, has become too small. This is a reality that the government has been warning about for some time. The recent restructuring of the army to make it war-ready also involves increasing the number of troops. The government has calculated as a target a figure of at least 203,000 soldiers to ensure full defensive readiness. Added to this is the fact that 20,000 new soldiers a year are needed just to compensate for those who leave the service. Plans put in place in the past to reach a level of 203,000 personnel were unsuccessful. In addition, there are not enough reservists to meet requirements in the case of emergencies. With these figures in hand, the Minister of Defense undertook a tour of various countries to analyze different forms of military service on the ground, such as for example that which exists in Sweden, where male and female citizens have to fill out a questionnaire at the age of 18, which includes information about their physical fitness and whether they would be willing to perform voluntary military service. The most suitable candidates are then contacted and asked to participate in a call-up, as only a certain percentage can be trained each year. However, if there are not enough volunteers, compulsory conscription can be introduced. This model is the one that is gathering strength in Germany. The Pistorius option is expected to be announced soon. His spokesman stressed last Wednesday that the minister will present the proposal this quarter, i.e. by June at the latest. It will then be discussed in the German government led by the Social Democrats, with the support of the Greens and Liberals and then in parliament. It is important that we have an army that is effective and can fulfill its tasks. How exactly this can be guaranteed now and, in the future, will be discussed in the coming weeks and months, said Chancellor Olaf Scholzs spokesman Steffen Hebestreit. The obligation could then apply to some 600,000 Germans who reach adulthood each year. For the time being, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) voted at its federal congress last week in favor of gradually introducing a year of compulsory service for all, whether in the German army, in social work or, for example, in disaster relief or with the emergency services. The conservatives proposal is that a group of army experts would determine how many troops are needed each year. Only those needed at the time would be called up. The defense policy spokesman for the CDU/CSU parliamentary group in the German parliament, Florian Hahn, called on the defense minister to quickly present plans for the gradual reintroduction of compulsory military service. While the conservatives proposal would be in line with that proposed by Pistorius, talks are not yet underway, as the defense minister pointed out. The model he will present for discussion is expected to be similar. I would like to publicly explain more details when I have spoken with my coalition partners and parliamentary group partners, Pistorius said of something he believes should happen shortly. The cost of military service In addition to the conservatives, SPD leader Lars Klingbeil said he was open to a debate on social or military service for young people. Every young citizen should have to face the question of whether they can imagine themselves serving the country, he told the Rheinische Post newspaper. It could be in the military or in the social or cultural sector. We should go back to that. However, he rejected a return to the old compulsory military service. The German parliament suspended military service in 2011, 55 years after it was introduced. However, its legal basis in the Constitution remained. According to current legislation, compulsory military service can be resumed in the event of increased tensions and the need to defend the country. However, reactivating it entails a cost that will have to be included in the budget in a year in which the weakness of the German economy does not leave much room for maneuver. With the so-called special fund for the army of 100 billion ($108 billion) almost on its last legs, Pistorius is already calling for a significant increase in the regular defense budget for next year. To raise the money needed for his plans, he wants defense and civil protection spending to be excluded from the debt brake set in the Constitution. In his view, without security, a balanced national budget is of little value, he said last week. The response from Finance Minister Christian Lindner was not long in coming. Unfortunately, Pistorius only points to the option of creating security through debt. Citizens are increasingly being saddled with permanent interest burdens, said the leader of the Freedom Party (FDP). The best way is to reallocate money in our large state budget and get the economy moving, Lindner added about a looming budget debate that will again strain the coalition government. Socialist candidate Salvador Illa makes a toast with his team after the announcement of results of the Catalan election on Sunday. The desire for change claimed a victory this past Sunday in Spains northeastern region of Catalonia, and it did so in three different ways. For the first time, the Catalan Socialist Party (PSC) secured a victory both in terms of votes and seats. Collectively, independence parties lost the majority theyd held since the separatist movement known as the proces surged over a decade ago. And the political shift to the right seen elsewhere in Europe was reflected in Catalonia as well, with much stronger results for the center-right Popular Party (PP), the far-right Vox holding its own, and a new far-right, pro-independence party called Alianca Catalana claiming two seats for the first time in the regional parliament. The debate over Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchezs push to grant amnesty to leaders of the 2017 unilateral secession attempt in Catalonia, in exchange for their parliamentary support following inconclusive national elections in July, proved very polarizing in Spain as a whole, but seems to have had the opposite effect in Catalonia: it has deactivated separatism and ended what was left of the proces, yet without granting the political right enough power to play the role of kingmaker in the formation of a new government. But putting together a new Catalan executive will be no easy task. The winner of the night, Salvador Illa, secured 42 seats for his PSC, up from 33 in 2021. In his victory speech, he said that Catalonia is opening a new era that, he insisted, will be one for all Catalans, whatever they think, whatever language they speak and wherever they come from. But it takes 68 seats for a majority in the 135-member chamber. The party that earned the second-highest number of lawmakers (35) is Junts, led by Carles Puigdemont, who also headed the failed 2017 secession attempt and later fled to Belgium to avoid prosecution. A joint government with Junts in Catalonia seems unlikely. Instead, the challenge for Illa in the weeks ahead will be to achieve support from other leftist groups, most notably Esquerra Republicana (down to 20 seats from 33) and Comuns (6). Another option would be a stable deal with Comuns, supplemented by negotiations with other parties for abstentions and support on a case-by-case basis. If everything fails, Catalans could be facing a repeat election in October. But Illa made a point of saying that he will submit his name to lead a new executive in Catalonia. The statement was meant as a signal that he will not yield to pressure from separatist sectors to give up his chance at a regional premiership in exchange for Junts continuing to support Pedro Sanchezs administration in the national parliament. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition Vicente Lopez Nieto with a comrade during the Battle of the Ebro, in an image provided by his granddaughter, Amalia Barrajon Lopez, to the Virtual Museum of the Spanish Civil War. Amalia Barrajon Lopezs family history is now global: a photograph provided by the Spaniard can be viewed from all over the world. The image shows her grandfather, Vicente Lopez Nieto, with a comrade-in-arms during the battle of the Ebro (July-November 1938). Born in the western Spanish province of Extremadura, Lopez Nieto was wounded twice in combat. After he married, he settled in Madrid. His personal experiences are now hung in the digital corridors of the Virtual Museum of the Spanish Civil War, the only center dedicated exclusively to the 1936-1939 conflict, inaugurated in Canada in September 2022. The project, which already welcomed over 74,000 visitors from 130 countries, has just announced the beginning of its second phase: it will open four new galleries, increase its linguistic offer, and invite the public to share objects and personal experiences about the most important historical event of the 20th century in Spain. Meanwhile, the opening of the Civil War Museum of Teruel, financed by the regional government of Aragon, is still pending following delays but the center is expected to be completed by September. The promoters of the initiative, professors of history Adrian Shubert of York University in Toronto and Antonio Cazorla Sanchez of Trent University, Ontario, emphasize the growing interest on the part of the public, as well as the importance of the new rooms for a better understanding and preservation of the Spanish Civil War. The platform is now available in French, in addition to the existing versions in English and Spanish. For the museums creators, the most important element of this second phase is the Open Gallery. It is a room made up of photographs, letters, documents, and other objects contributed by the public like Antoine Nieto Sandoval, born in Madrid and the son of Spanish Republicans, who has lived most of his life in France as a result of his parents exile. He provided a letter for this gallery, with the letterhead and seal of the Republican Air Force, written and signed by his father in September 1938 at the airfield of Los Monjos, near Villafranca del Penedes in Catalonia. In the missive he extends his thanks for the delivery of a pennant made by the Young Womens Association of Igualada, the Catalan town where Nieto Sandovals mother, who belonged to the association, first met her future husband; they met again later in France. The letter represents something like the origin of our family, writes Nieto Sandoval. An online visitor to the Virtual Museum of the Spanish Civil War. Alvaro Garcia Intrafamilial history It is a very important space as it will allow us to tell the intimate and intrafamilial history of the Civil War, that is, its most human, diverse and nuanced side, explains Cazorla Sanchez. Shubert explains how to participate: We ask for a photo of the object with a text of no more than 400 words describing it, how it was obtained, and what meaning or importance it has for the sender. Interested parties can contact the museum by emailing vscw@yorku.ca. In addition, two new galleries focus on Catalonia and the Basque Country and the protagonists, impact, and legacy of the conflict in those regions. The creation of these spaces is based on two important reasons: to affirm the diversity of Spain and the fact that both communities had very particular dynamics during the war, says Cazorla Sanchez. Another new gallery, Global, highlights how the Spanish Civil War was perceived in different parts of the world. So far, the space covers a dozen countries, but another 20 will be added soon. One example is Canada itself, where information is available on areas such as the role of the international brigade soldiers of Canadian origin, the support for General Francisco Francos Nationalist forces among some sectors of Canadian society, and the policy of non-intervention established by the government in Ottawa a policy that, as a document in the gallery shows, did not prevent the Royal Canadian Mounted Police from carrying out surveillance on individuals, groups, and organizations that could have provided help to the Republican side. Regarding the next steps, Shubert says: The museum is a project under continuous construction, with a growing team of collaborators. We have other galleries planned. One, coming soon, on the origins of the war; another, a little later, on its aftermath. We will also open a room focused on the war in Galicia, which will have a Galician-language version. In turn, there will be a section dedicated to didactic resources. The Virtual Museum of the Spanish Civil War has received contributions from York University and Trent University, as well as from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the Spanish government, the Spanish Embassy in Ottawa, and the Modern Records Centre based at Warwick University in the UK. In addition, the regional government of Catalonia will cover the translation of some of the museums contents into Catalan. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition U.S. support for Israel during the Gaza war has become increasingly difficult. Standing between the allies are the nearly 35,000 Palestinian deaths and criticism of Israels handling of a conflict that is advancing into its eighth month. Ahead of the November presidential elections, the United States has ended up becoming another theater of that war, even though it is thousands of miles from the Middle East battle front. The complicated relationship between U.S. President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has seen several scuffles in recent weeks. The Israeli leader is determined to continue with his strategy, which prioritizes military goals over humanitarian objectives such as freeing the hostages or safeguarding Gazan civilians. On Saturday, the Jewish state ordered a new round of forced evacuations in the Gaza Strip, orders that are illegal under international law. Although the differences between the U.S. and Israel are the widest they have ever been, no one expects the two countries to totally break relations: they need one another. In October, on the eve of the Israeli offensive in Gaza, Biden hugged Netanyahu in Israel. Just a few months later, at a private event in February, he called him an asshole, according to a report by the NBC television network. Now, Netanyahus decision to complete the total land occupation of the Gaza Strip despite international objections has strained relations even further. Relations are at historic lows, says Itamar Eichner, diplomatic correspondent for the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth. The dismal relations between Israel and the U.S. began long before October 7, but it seems we have now reached an unprecedented low point with the public statements by Biden, he argues, in reference to the U.S. presidents warning that Washington would pause weapons shipments to Israel if it invades Rafah. If they go into Rafah, Im not supplying the weapons that have been used historically to deal with Rafah, to deal with the cities, Biden said on Wednesday in an interview with CNN, where he gave his sharpest criticism of the Israeli strategy since the war began in October. Some experts have described the comment as seismic in scope. According to Eicher, it was the first time the U.S. has publicly threatened Israel. He argues that Biden made this statement because Israel openly mocks the U.S. by refusing to heed its warning against invading Rafah, where 1.5 million people are living in deplorable conditions. Biden has tried to maintain a complicated balancing act between supporting his ally and dealing with pressure from the progressive wing of the Democrat Party and the pro-Palestinian university protests, which demand an immediate ceasefire. But Israels insistence on invading Rafah exhausted his patience. Bidens warning that the U.S. would stop supplying Israel with weapons came hours after the Pentagon confirmed that it had paused a shipment of 1,800 900-kilogram bombs and 1,700 225-kilogram bombs. Netanyahus response was defiant: If we have to stand alone, we will stand alone. If we need to, we will fight with our fingernails, he said Thursday, on the eve of Israels Independence Day. During the War of Independence 76 years ago, we were few against many. We had no weapons, there was an arms embargo on Israel, but with the strength of the soul, the bravery and the unity within us we won, he added, without explicitly mentioning Biden. But his response was met with another blow from the U.S. A long-awaited report from the U.S. State Department said that it is reasonable to assess that weapons provided to Israel have been used in Gaza in ways that violate international human rights law. The report comes as the war enters its eighth month and the death toll of Palestinians rises to nearly 35,000, around 70% of whom are women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which is controlled by Hamas. But the document was only meant as a warning. The same report, ordered by Biden in February, states that it was difficult to reach firm conclusions about specific incidents, adding that the violations were only likely not proven to have happened. On the other hand, it argues that Israel has provided credible and reliable guarantees it would use the U.S.-sent weapons in accordance with international law, which is why it allows the shipment of these arsenals to continue. And both Biden and U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin insist that the United States continues to supporting Israel. The head of the Pentagon said the shipment had been paused because its about having the right kinds of weapons for the task at hand and the United States wanted to see Israel develop more precise operations. A small diameter bomb, which is a precision weapon, thats very useful in a dense, built-up environment, he said, but maybe not so much a 2,000-pound bomb that could create a lot of collateral damage. If Israel is dragged into a military operation in Rafah, it will worsen its position within the international community, writes Israeli Kobi Michael in an analysis published last week by the Institute for the Study of National Security (INSS). The Hamas leadership is in a win-win strategic comfort zone, where they stand to benefit whether a more convenient deal for Hamas is imposed on Israel due to American and Egyptian pressures alongside domestic pressures, fueled by a well-oiled and effective cognitive campaign by Hamas and its allies (Iran and Russia). This is not the first time that the United States and Israel have clashed on sensitive issues. Former U.S. president Ronald Reagan also paused the flow of weapons to Israel in 1982 to force the then Israeli prime minister, Menachem Begin, to stop bombing Lebanon. And Biden himself, when he was vice president in the Obama administration, also had a tense moment with Netanyahu. In 2011, he traveled to Tel Aviv to try to talk Netanyahu into a temporary halt to the expansion of Jewish settlements in the West Bank and to promote a peace dialogue with the Palestinians. He was met on arrival with a slap in the face: the announcement of the construction of 1,600 new houses in East Jerusalem. Obama and Netanyahu always maintained a relationship that was distant at best. But regardless of the public spats, both governments know that there is a limit to how far they can go. Israel urgently requires weapons and support from Washington, as evidenced by the Iranian drone and missile attack last month; while the U.S. government needs Israels support in the Middle East, and cannot afford to alienate the influential Jewish community at home. Nor can it afford, six months before the November elections, to open itself to more criticism from the Republican Party, which accuses the White House of betraying its ally. Then there is the personal position of Biden, a politician with genuinely pro-Israel leanings. Each side is carefully measuring its next steps. Biden has said that a major attack on Rafah would be a red line, so Israel is developing its offensive in the Gazan city cautiously. Meanwhile, the U.S. continues to send weapons to Israel. Theyre still getting the vast, vast majority of everything that they need to defend themselves, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said on Thursday. And it also continues to back Israel in every measure on the Gaza war that is debated in the U.N., be it in the Security Council or in the General Assembly. The U.S.-Israel relationship has become so institutionalized that it can work at other levels despite the fact that two leaders cant stand to be in the same room with each other, says Steve Cook, from the Council on Foreign Relations analysis center, in a talk with journalists. The relationship is deep at the institutional level, so there are still ways to conduct business. At the same time, Cook acknowledges that there has been a shift. Politics of the U.S.-Israel relationship in the United States is changing. And I think that you see that in sharp relief in kind of open discussions within the Democratic Party about conditioning aid to Israel, cutting off aid to Israel, sanctioning people in Israel, he says. There is certainly a greater willingness to air these kinds of concerns in ways and talk about policies or look for policies that, for lack of a more diplomatic word, that are punitive towards the Israelis. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition BEIJING, May 11 (Xinhua) -- President Xi Jinping has stressed efforts to continuously break new ground in ideological and political education at schools in the new era. Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks in an instruction on the development of ideological-political courses for schools. Xi said that the CPC Central Committee has always made developing ideological-political courses in schools a priority for education since the 18th CPC National Congress and the Party's leadership in this regard has been fully strengthened. Developing ideological-political courses on the new journey of the new era should follow the guidance of the Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and the fundamental mission of fostering virtue should be carried out, Xi said. He underscored the importance of developing a system of textbooks with a focus on the Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and integrating political education across all levels from elementary schools to universities. Xi stressed the need for efforts to uphold fundamental principles and break new ground to develop ideological-political courses, and to make the courses more targeted and appealing. He stressed that Party committees and leading Party members groups at all levels should make it a priority to develop ideological-political courses. Schools of various types should consistently break new ground in ideological and political education in the new era, and foster talented individuals who are loyal to the Party, patriotic and dedicated, and capable of shouldering the mission of realizing national rejuvenation, he said. Xi's important instruction was conveyed at a meeting on boosting the development of ideological-political courses for schools held in Beijing on Saturday. Ding Xuexiang, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, attended the meeting and delivered a speech. Ding, who is also vice premier, called for thorough study and implementation of Xi's important instruction and urged continuous efforts to push forward the reform and innovation of ideological-political courses. Stressing the importance of helping students better understand national conditions and consolidate their ideals and faith, Ding said the mechanism for guaranteeing proper status and salaries for teachers of the courses should be improved. Ideologists, members of Congress, former senior officials of Donald Trumps presidency and aspirants hoping to be part of the billionaires possible return to the White House are preparing the script for what they consider should be a second Trump presidency. A few months ago, the ultra-conservative Heritage Foundation launched a broad catalog of measures, called Project 2025, to inspire the future presidency. And last week, the Trump-affiliated America First Policy Institute released its proposals in a book focused on foreign policy and national security issues. Unwavering support for Israel, conditional aid for Ukraine and hostile competition with China are included in its approach, dubbed America First just like the think tank and Trumps slogan in his first mandate. If the former president wins the November presidential elections and returns to the White House on January 20, he will have a script to follow on the Oval Office table. Although the Trump campaign has always said that it only follows and commits to its own proposals, it is important to consider the initiatives being raised by these conservative think tanks as they have a close relationship with Trump and his team. The new book called An America First Approach to U.S. National Security is critical of Trumps tumultuous transition to power in 2016, arguing it slowed the implementation of his policies. According to the books authors, before the elections, Democrat Hillary Clintons transition team had submitted more than 1,000 names for future security clearances, while Trumps had only submitted 25. To prevent a repeat of this situation, the think tank says that the new Trump administration should be ready to fill approximately 1,200 national security-related positions with Trump loyalists who adhere to the America First approach. The book also addresses the international situation and confronts critics who say that the United States would no longer be one of the worlds leading powers if it adopted an American First approach. America First foreign policy is not isolationism. America First does not mean America alone, said Lt. General (Ret.) Keith Kellogg, former Chief of Staff and Executive Secretary of the National Security Council and Chair of the America First Policy Institutes Center for American Security. Unwavering support for Israel Edited by Fred Fleitz, former Trump administration National Security Council Chief of Staff, the book addresses the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Hamas attack on Israel, and the threat posed by China. It offers reflections and guidelines, and does not always provide concrete proposals. One issue it is firm on is the importance of giving unwavering support to Israel, in line with Trumps position on the subject. The former president harshly criticized Joe Biden for pausing a shipment of high-powered bombs, calling the decision disgraceful and accusing the president of aligning himself with Hamas terrorists, in a new baseless hyperbole. Ellie Cohanim, Trumps former State Department deputy envoy against antisemitism, advocates for a policy on Israel that honors Americas historical commitment to the Jewish state and is premised on the understanding that Israel is our leading ally in the region. According to Fleitz, the U.S. relies on Israel for intelligence sharing, defense, and other technology co-development and most importantly for preserving Americas interests in the region. Cohanim argues that the United States must quickly provide Israel with 25 new F-35 advanced fighter jets, a squadron of Boeing F-15 EXs and a squadron of Apache E attack helicopters. She adds that Washington should pressure Arab states to foot the bill for rebuilding Gaza and accept that Israel postpone any political talks with the Palestinians pending an indefinite period of compulsory deradicalization for the Palestinian people. There are fewer details about how to put into practice Trumps statement that he would end the war in Ukraine in one day, if elected. The book spends more time blaming Biden for the conflict. The war in Ukraine is an avoidable tragedy that resulted from President Bidens incompetence as a world leader and his chaotic foreign policy. The war has divided Americans and the conservative movement over what Americas involvement in this conflict should be and how the Ukraine War affects European and global stability, write Kellogg and Fleitz. Kellogg and Fleitz say that the United States should reject a foreign policy that keeps it mired in endless wars to the detriment of the country by putting idealistic principles ahead of the interests of the American people. The U.S. role in Ukraine must be through decisive leadership, where bold diplomacy paves the way to an end-state for this conflict, they add. What we should not continue to do is to send arms to a stalemate that Ukraine will eventually find difficult to win. The authors argue that the United States should condition future military aid on Ukraines participation in peace negotiations with Russia. The approach seem to endorse a framework in which Ukraine would not be asked to relinquish the goal of regaining all its territory but would agree to diplomacy with the understanding that this would require a future diplomatic breakthrough which probably will not occur before [Russian President Vladimir] Putin leaves office. China, the most pressing threat As for China, the book says that the United States should seek to decouple from Chinas malign influences to ensure the policies of the Chinese Communist Party are largely irrelevant to American life. China is described as the most pressing threat to American national security, and the authors advocate for tough policy, especially in economic and technological matters. The book proposes denying Chinese companies access to U.S. markets in the same way that U.S. companies have been denied access in China. It also recommends banning Chinese citizens from purchasing property within 50 miles of any U.S. government property and placing visa restrictions on Chinese students. In one respect, the proposals clash with Trumps position: the book supports banning TikTok and other Chinese apps over data privacy concerns, while Trump is opposed to this move. One of TikToks major American shareholders is a Republican donor. The other major issue addressed in the book is the U.S.-Mexico border. Without a secure border, the United States is not a sovereign nation. While our immigration laws could always be modernized and improved, including overhauling the legal immigration system to better serve the national interest, there are sufficient existing authorities that the Biden administration is refusing to use that the next America First administration should immediately implement to secure the border, write Chad Wolf, former acting secretary of the Department of Homeland Security and Rob Law, who served as a senior policy advisor in the Trump administration. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition Uniform Civil Code Explained History, Provisions, Implications And Challenges The Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in India is a proposal aimed at standardising personal laws across all religions covering marriage, divorce, inheritance and adoption. Grounded in Article 44 of the Indian Constitution, the UCC strives for legal uniformity while respecting the diverse cultural fabric of the nation. It champions equality by offering protection to vulnerable groups including women and religious minorities, fostering a unity that transcends religious boundaries. As India continues to evolve, the debate around the implementation of the UCC has gained momentum. What is the Uniform Civil Code? A common set of laws for all citizens, regardless of religion, gender, caste, or community Aimed at promoting national unity, gender justice, and equality History Included in the Indian Constitution as a Directive Principle (Article 44) in 1948 Debated and discussed in the Constituent Assembly, with proponents like Dr. B.R. Ambedkar and Jawaharlal Nehru Initially, the Constituent Assembly did not make it enforceable, citing concerns about social unrest and diversity Key Features Proposes to introduce laws that would apply to all citizens equally Promote national unity Ensure gender equality Eliminate discrimination based on religion Challenges Diverse religious practices and beliefs Resistance from various religious communities Potential for imposition of majority views on minority communities Sensitivity around religious autonomy Uniform Civil Code: Timeline 1940 The Idea of Uniform Civil Code is born The concept of a Uniform Civil Code in India dates back to the 1940s, when the National Planning Commission (NPC) proposed the idea to the Congress. This initiative aimed to reform personal laws for gender equality. 1947 Seeking UCC as a Fundamental Right Minoo Masani, Hansa Mehta, Amrit Kaur, and Dr. B.R. Ambedkar advocated for enshrining the UCC in the Indian Constitution as a fundamental right. 1948 Constitution Assembly Debates UCC The Constitution Assembly discussed the implementation of uniform civil laws, as outlined in Article 44 of the Indian Constitution, which is part of the Directive Principles of State Policy. 1950 Reformist Bills Passed Reformist bills were passed, granting Hindu women the right to divorce and inherit property. Bigamy and child marriages were outlawed. However, these reforms were met with resistance from Dr. Rajendra Prasad. 1951 Dr. Ambedkar Resigns Dr. Ambedkar resigned from the cabinet in 1951 when his draft of the Hindu Code Bill was stalled by Parliament. 1954 Special Marriage Act The Special Marriage Act was passed, allowing for civil marriages above religious personal laws. 1956 Hindu Code Bill The Hindu Code Bill was passed, dividing personal laws into two categories: for common Indian citizens and for the Muslim community. 1985 Shah Bano Case In the Shah Bano case, the Supreme Court ruled that a divorced Muslim woman was entitled to maintenance even after the completion of the iddat period under Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973. 1986 Rajiv Gandhi Government's Law The Rajiv Gandhi government's law in the Shah Bano case widened the difference in civil rights. 1995 Sarla Mudgal v. Union of India In the Sarla Mudgal v. Union of India case, Justice Kuldip Singh emphasized the need for Parliament to frame a Uniform Civil Code to promote national integration by removing contradictions based on ideologies. 2000 Supreme Court Advocates UCC In the Lily Thomas v. Union of India case, the Supreme Court stated that it could not direct the center to introduce a UCC. 2003 President Dr. Abdul Kalam Supports UCC Then President Dr. Abdul Kalam supported the UCC. 2015 The Debate Continues The Supreme Court refused to direct the government to take a decision on having a UCC. 2016 Triple Talaq Debate The Prime Minister asked the Law Commission to examine the issue of Triple Talaq. 2017 Ruling on Triple Talaq Triple Talaq (Talaq-e-biddat) was declared unconstitutional on August 22, 2017. Historical Background The concept of a Uniform Civil Code in India traces its origins to the period of drafting the Indian Constitution in 1948, where it was proposed but not included in the final document due to resistance from various religious groups. This resistance stemmed from the deeply entrenched personal laws based on the scriptures and customs of each major religious community, which led to distinct legal frameworks among these groups. The Law Commission of India, in its 17th report in 1963, highlighted the UCC's potential to foster national integration, a sentiment echoed later by the National Commission for Women in 1984, which advocated for the UCC to combat gender discrimination prevalent in personal laws. UCC Covers Areas Like Marriage Divorce Maintenance Inheritance Adoption Succession Of Property Evolution Of Personal Laws In India During the British colonial rule in India, the administration codified personal laws for Hindu and Muslim citizens. However, they avoided further interference in the matter, fearing backlash from community leaders. Following India's independence in 1947, efforts were made to reform personal laws for various religious communities. The Hindu code bills were introduced in 1955, which brought about major reforms for Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, and Sikhs. However, other religious communities such as Christians, Jews, Muslims, and Parsis were exempted from these reforms. The introduction of these bills was seen as a preliminary step towards a more comprehensive civil code for all citizens irrespective of their religious affiliations. The UCC And Indian Politics The UCC became a focal point in Indian politics following the Shah Bano case in 1985, which questioned the applicability of universal laws over religious freedoms. Subsequently, the UCC bill was proposed in 2019 and 2020 but was withdrawn. Opposition from various political parties and allies within the National Democratic Alliance, particularly from Northeast India, highlighted concerns that the UCC might undermine the 'idea of India' and the special privileges of tribal communities. The United Nations has 193 members of which eight nations have Uniform Civil Code (UCC). They are USA, Ireland, Turkey, Indonesia, Egypt, Bangladesh, Malaysia and Pakistan. Interestingly, out of these eight nations having UCC, six nations are Muslim-majority nations and the balance two are Christian-majority nations. UCC should be in every nation so that same civil laws apply to all its citizens which is quintessential for smooth running of a nation as it reduces the administrative and judicial load. India, which is the land of Unity in Diversity too should have the UCC, which should be framed after due consultations of all stakeholders J.S. Sodhi Retd. Lieutenant Colonel Legal And Social Implications The directive for the UCC is enshrined in Article 44 of the Indian Constitution, under the Directive Principles of State Policy, which encourages the state to strive for a uniform civil code across the country. The resistance from various religious communities, including orthodox Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs, underscores the complexities involved in reconciling religious customs with a uniform legal framework. Orthodox Hindus often resist changes to longstanding practices, such as inheritance laws that historically prioritise sons over daughters. The All India Muslim Personal Law Board has voiced apprehensions about the potential impact of a Uniform Civil Code on their religious beliefs, particularly concerning matters like polygamy and inheritance. Within the Sikh community, there is concern about how the implementation of a UCC might influence their personal laws governing marriage and religious practices. Arguments In Favour Of UCC The UCC presents a transformative vision for India's legal framework, advocating for uniformity and equality across diverse religious and social practices. Central to the arguments for the UCC is its potential to provide equal status to all citizens regardless of gender, religion, or sexual orientation. This fundamental shift towards legal uniformity is seen as a crucial step in reinforcing secularism and non-discrimination in the country. Equal Status And Gender Parity One of the strongest arguments in favour of the UCC is its promise to ensure equal status under the law for every citizen. It aims to dismantle the existing disparities found in various personal laws, especially those that discriminate on the basis of gender. By standardising laws related to marriage, divorce, inheritance and adoption, the UCC seeks to promote gender parity. This would not only provide equal rights to women but also address long-standing gender biases that have permeated traditional legal systems. For instance, it proposes equal inheritance rights for sons and daughters, thereby abolishing distinctions that favour male heirs in certain communities. National Integration And Modernization Proponents of the Uniform Civil Code believe that it promotes national integration by establishing a unified legal foundation for all citizens, thereby mitigating the politicisation of personal laws. This integration is particularly relevant in a country as diverse as India, where different laws for different communities can create divisions. Moreover, the UCC aligns with the aspirations of India's young population, who are increasingly influenced by global principles of equality and justice. By eliminating outdated customs such as polygamy and child marriage, the UCC also promotes modernization and social progress, making it a forward-looking initiative. Legal Simplification And Judicial Consistency Implementing the UCC would simplify the currently complex legal system that varies widely across different religions and regions. This simplification would help avoid conflicting judgments and legal ambiguities, making the legal process more straightforward and accessible. It would ensure consistency in the judicial handling of personal matters, thus fostering fairness and transparency. Upholding Secularism And Protecting Vulnerable Groups The UCC is seen as a key element in upholding the principles of secularism, as it treats all citizens equally under a single legal framework, irrespective of their religious affiliations. This uniformity is crucial in protecting the rights and freedoms of minority and vulnerable groups, who often face discrimination under traditional personal laws. By providing a secular framework, the UCC also supports the constitutional mandate of equality and non-discrimination. UCC is a good idea as it imagines one single format for all the citizens rather than multiple formats when it comes to marriage, divorce, compensation, adoption etc. However, a lot will depend upon what kind of provisions are placed under the law. The law must not be discriminatory only on the basis of religious beliefs but also must not discriminate on the basis of sexuality, gender, caste and creeds. The law must protect the fundamental right of every citizen and must facilitate the choices adult citizens wish to make. Amit Chandra CEO, Center For Civil Society Addressing Women's Rights A significant aspect of the UCC is its focus on advancing gender justice. The code is designed to eliminate discriminatory practices that have historically disadvantaged women, offering them equal rights and opportunities. This is particularly important in personal law areas such as divorce and maintenance, where women often face inequities. The UCC's approach to gender justice not only supports women's rights but also encourages their education, employment and independence. Critics Of UCC The Uniform Civil Code has been met with significant resistance from various quarters, raising concerns about its impact on religious freedom, cultural diversity and the autonomy of minority communities. Critics argue that the UCC, while aiming to standardise personal laws across different religious communities, might lead to the erosion of distinct cultural and religious identities which are protected under the Indian Constitution. The implementation of a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in India, a nation celebrated for its rich tapestry of religious and cultural diversity, presents unique challenges. Unlike homogenous countries, India's religious and cultural diversity requires a delicate balancing act between uniformity and respect for religious practices. While some countries prioritise legal uniformity, others balance secularism with respect for diverse religious practices. Additionally, the legal authority to enforce uniform laws varies across Indian states. Gender equality is an important consideration for many countries that prioritise gender justice through uniform laws. The implementation of a UCC requires careful consideration of these factors. Sumedh Lokhande Assistant Professor, Auro University, Surat Cultural And Religious Sensitivities The implementation of a UCC could be seen as a potential threat to the cultural and religious identities of communities, particularly those of minority groups who fear that their personal laws, which are intertwined with their faith and day-to-day life, would be compromised. This concern is particularly acute among Indian Muslims who view the UCC as an attempt to dilute their religious practices. The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) has been vocal about its opposition, stating that the UCC interferes with Muslim personal laws, which they argue is an infringement on their right to religious freedom. Legal And Administrative Challenges India's rich tapestry of cultures, religions and social structures presents a complex challenge in implementing a Uniform Civil Code. Legal and administrative hurdles include reforming existing personal laws, creating new dispute resolution mechanisms and handling the potential strain on courts and administration. The UCC could also disrupt social and economic norms, unequally impacting various segments of society. Political And Social Implications The UCC is not just a legal issue but also a politically sensitive topic that could influence electoral dynamics. The timing and intent behind the push for the UCC are seen by some as politically motivated, aimed at serving the ideological agendas of certain political entities rather than addressing the complexities of diverse Indian societies. This perception is compounded by the opposition from several political parties and leaders who argue that the UCC would infringe upon the idea of India as a pluralistic and multicultural nation. Preserving Diversity And Multiculturalism India's strength lies in its diversity and any legal framework that undermines this pluralism might not be conducive to national unity. Critics of the UCC argue that it is essential to preserve the multicultural fabric of the nation, which could be threatened by a uniform code that does not account for regional and cultural nuances. Complexities Involved And Community Specific Needs The difficulties of implementing a UCC across such a diverse population are immense. Each community has its own unique customs and traditions, especially concerning personal matters like marriage, divorce and inheritance. Imposing a uniform code could lead to significant discontent and resistance, as it would require communities to alter practices that are deeply embedded in their cultural and religious ethos. Supreme Court Verdicts On UCC The Supreme Court of India has played a pivotal role in shaping the discourse around the Uniform Civil Code through various landmark judgments. One of the most notable cases is the Shah Bano case, where the court ruled in favour of granting alimony to Shah Bano, an elderly divorced Muslim woman. This decision was met with significant resistance from the All India Muslim Personal Law Board, which argued that the ruling was contrary to Islamic law. The court's decision underscored the need for a UCC to ensure equal rights and justice across different religious communities. In another significant judgement, the Supreme Court emphasised that the responsibility of enacting a UCC lies exclusively with Parliament. This clarification came amidst various debates and discussions on the role of the judiciary versus the legislative in implementing such a code. The court has consistently reiterated the constitutional directive under Article 44, which encourages the state to strive towards a uniform civil code. The Law Commission of India, referencing the Supreme Court's judgement in the Shah Bano case, has actively sought public opinion on the UCC. It highlights the ongoing efforts to gather diverse perspectives on the feasibility and implications of implementing a UCC across India. A critical observation made by the Supreme Court involved the government's lack of initiative in implementing Article 44. The court criticised the government for allowing communities to initiate reforms independently, which often leads to inconsistent and piecemeal changes rather than a comprehensive and uniform legal framework. The Supreme Court has addressed issues related to religious conversions and their legal implications under personal laws. In a notable verdict, the court declared the second marriage of a Hindu man, who converted to Islam solely for the purpose of remarriage without divorcing his first wife, as invalid. This judgement highlighted the misuse of religious conversions to circumvent legal obligations and reinforced the necessity for a UCC to prevent such practices. The Supreme Court is poised to make critical decisions regarding the uniformity of family law. These rulings will determine whether inheritance, adoption, divorce and spousal support will be governed by a single, standardised set of laws, irrespective of religion or gender. This ongoing judicial scrutiny underlines the complex interplay between personal laws and the overarching goal of legal uniformity envisioned by the UCC. Uniform Civil Code In Goa Goa stands out as the only state in India where a Uniform Civil Code has been effectively operational for many years, fundamentally based on the Goa Civil Code which originated from the Portuguese Civil Code of 1867. This code is applicable not only to the residents of Goa but also extends to those living in Daman & Diu and Dadra & Nagar Haveli, covering all individuals irrespective of their religious beliefs. The Goa UCC is distinctive in its provision of equal rights to spouses regarding property ownership and management. It ensures that both sons and daughters receive equal treatment in matters of inheritance, promoting a balanced approach to familial rights and responsibilities. This equal treatment extends to the equitable distribution of wealth and income between husbands and wives, as well as among offspring, without discrimination based on gender. A significant aspect of the Goa UCC is the mandatory registration of every birth, marriage and death, which must be voluntarily recorded. This systematic registration aids in the clear documentation of vital statistics, which is crucial for the effective administration of the law. For the Muslim population in Goa, the UCC brings a notable change; those who register their marriages in the state are prohibited from practising polygamy and triple talaq, aligning with the UCCs principles of uniformity and equality. Interestingly, the Goa Civil Code permits a form of polygamy for Hindus but explicitly does not extend the Shariat Act to Muslims residing in Goa. This selective application highlights the complexities and tailored approaches within the UCC in Goa, indicating that while it aims for uniformity, it also accommodates certain community-specific practices. Despite its broad coverage, the Goa UCC is not without its exceptions. Specific provisions exist for Hindus and Catholics, which suggests that the UCC in Goa is not entirely uniform. The exact impact of these exceptions on the local population, which numbers around 1.5 million, remains a subject of analysis and discussion. The implementation of the UCC in Goa has fostered a harmonious coexistence among people of different religions, showcasing a successful model of legal uniformity in a diverse cultural setting. This long-standing application of the UCC throughout Goa demonstrates its viability and the potential benefits of a unified legal framework. The UCC in Goa offers practical advantages such as the equal division of a couples income, which supports financial equality and contributes to a balanced societal structure. However, it is crucial to note that the UCC in Goa is not as uniform as it might appear. There are nuanced differences in the application of the law, which reflect the complex interplay between striving for uniformity and respecting the unique cultural and religious practices of different communities. Uniform Civil Code In Uttarakhand On 7 February 2024, a significant legislative event took place in Uttarakhand, marking a pivotal moment in the state's legal history. The Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly passed The Uniform Civil Code of Uttarakhand Act, 2024. This legislative act positioned Uttarakhand as the first state in India to enact a law on the Uniform Civil Code, setting a precedent for legal uniformity across various personal laws within the state. The passage of the UCC in Uttarakhand was met with vocal support within the assembly, as members expressed their approval with chants of Jai Shri Ram reflecting the political and cultural sentiments that influenced the legislative process. Further scrutiny of this legislative milestone is ongoing, as the 22nd Law Commission of India undertakes a thorough examination of the UCC's implications and frameworks. This examination is crucial, as it will provide a comprehensive analysis of how the UCC aligns with constitutional mandates and addresses the diverse needs of Uttarakhand's population. The enactment of The Uniform Civil Code of Uttarakhand Act, 2024, by the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly not only marks Uttarakhand as the inaugural state in India with a UCC law but also initiates a broader discussion on the feasibility and adaptability of such a code across other Indian states. This legislative initiative could potentially influence future legal reforms and the pursuit of uniform civil laws nationwide, aiming to balance traditional societal norms with the need for legal uniformity. Political Stance On UCC The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has historically advocated for the UCC as part of its core ideological agenda, views the code as a step towards national integration and uniformity in personal laws. However, the party's efforts to introduce a UCC bill in November 2019 and March 2020 were stalled as the bills were withdrawn before being introduced in parliament. This indicates the complexities involved in pushing such a legislative agenda, which requires broad consensus across political and social spectrums. On the other hand, the Indian National Congress, the main opposition party, supports the principles of unity and equality that the UCC aims to promote. Nevertheless, they emphasise the importance of conducting extensive consultations and building a consensus among all stakeholders, reflecting a more cautious approach towards the implementation of the UCC. In addition to advocating for the UCC as a means of national integration and uniformity in personal laws, the Centre has made notable strides in addressing social and legal issues such as abolishing triple talaq. In 2019, the BJP-led government enacted the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Act, which criminalised the practice of instant triple talaq. This legal move marked a pivotal moment for Muslim women, offering them crucial protection against a discriminatory practice. Public Opinion and Religious Perspectives Public opinion on the UCC is polarised. Some surveys suggest a majority of Indians support the UCC, seeing it as a progressive move towards a more secular and unified legal system. Conversely, other polls indicate lower support, especially among religious minorities who fear that the UCC might infringe upon their religious freedoms and cultural practices. The Muslim community, in particular, has shown apprehension towards the UCC, largely due to concerns about the potential alteration or abolition of Muslim Personal Law, which is based on the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1937 and the Dissolution of Muslim Marriage Act, 1939. Internal reforms within the Muslim community have been minimal and Muslim women activists have long advocated for the codification of Muslim personal law to ensure gender justice. The All India Muslim Personal Law Board established in 1973 to preserve Muslim personal law, has been a vocal opponent of the UCC. The Board, criticised for its all-male composition and lack of significant progress in reforming personal laws, fears that the UCC could lead to a major clash between Muslim groups and the Indian state. One Nation, One Law: India's Ongoing UCC Debate The Law Commission of India has initiated new consultations on the UCC, inviting opinions from recognized religious bodies and individuals. The relationship between gender justice and interpretations of religious texts also plays a significant role in the discourse surrounding the UCC. Liberal interpretations can facilitate gender justice, while more conservative views might oppose changes to the status quo. The debate over the Uniform Civil Code in India centres on a crucial question, can we achieve legal consistency while respecting India's rich tapestry of cultures and religions? This discussion strikes at the heart of India's commitment to secular democracy, emphasising the need for a balanced approach that safeguards religious liberties and promotes universal principles of justice and equality. The perspectives amplifying both support and opposition to the UCC underscore the critical task of navigating constitutional intents with societal realities. Establishing an inclusive path for the UCC that mirrors India's pluralistic character is essential. Global Perspectives In India, the concept of a Uniform Civil Code has been a topic of significant debate and discussion. While the idea of a UCC is enshrined in Article 44 of the Indian Constitution as a directive principle of state policy, its implementation has been a contentious issue, with concerns about preserving religious diversity and individual rights. In contrast, countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom do not have a comprehensive UCC but instead have separate civil codes that govern various aspects of personal and family law. In the United States, family law is primarily regulated by individual states, leading to variations in laws pertaining to marriage, divorce, and child custody. Similarly, the United Kingdom does not have a UCC but rather operates under distinct legal systems for England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, each with its set of family laws. Across the world, countries have adopted diverse approaches to personal laws, with some opting for unified civil codes, while others maintain separate legal frameworks based on religious or customary practices. Credits: Ideation: Subhasish Dutta UI/UX Developer: Amit Kumar Pal UI/UX: Monami Hazarika Copyright 2024 Jagran Prakashan Limited. KYODO NEWS - May 13, 2024 - 20:17 | All, Japan, World The Japanese government said Monday it will provide a loan of up to about 140.7 billion yen ($900 million) for the construction of the second train line in Jakarta under Indonesia's mass rapid transit system project. The construction of the 84.1-kilometer East-West Line project consists of two phases, with the work for the 24.5-km first stage set to begin by 2026 and be completed in 2031, according to the Japanese Embassy in Jakarta. The new train line will be built with Japanese technology for the vehicle and signaling systems. Jakarta faces serious traffic congestion and air pollution with its rapid economic growth and population increase. Under the MRT project, the first phase of a 15.7-km stretch of the North-South Line opened in 2019 with the help of a loan from Japan. KYODO NEWS - May 14, 2024 - 06:59 | World, All China cautioned South Korea on Monday about its deepening relations with the United States and Japan, stressing the increasing strain in Beijing-Seoul ties and urging against additional pressure on the relationship from external interference, according to South Korean media. China's top diplomat Wang Yi said in his talks with South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae Yul in the Chinese capital that the "difficulties and challenges facing South Korea-China relations have clearly increased" and that Beijing does not desire such a situation, according to Yonhap News Agency. Wang's remarks apparently referred to stronger ties among Seoul, Washington and Tokyo pursued by the government of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol. Cho called for managing relations between China and South Korea to prevent differences from escalating into conflicts, Yonhap reported. "I believe it's important that not one side, but both sides, make efforts to carefully manage ties in a way that disagreements will not turn into conflicts for the development of bilateral relations," the minister was quoted as saying. Cho and Wang also agreed to continue working together to ensure the success of an upcoming summit between Yoon, Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, according to the South Korean Foreign Ministry. The three-way summit, which will be the first between the countries since a gathering in December 2019 in Chengdu, southwestern China, is expected to take place in Seoul around May 26-27. As for North Korea, Cho expressed concern over Pyongyang's threatening rhetoric and provocations that have escalated regional tensions as well as its military cooperation with Russia, the South Korean ministry said. Cho called on China, which is North Korea's closest and most influential ally economically, to play a constructive role in promoting peace and stability as well as the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, while Wang responded that Beijing will do so, the ministry added. The two also agreed to strengthen bilateral economic cooperation, including stable management of supply chains. Cho invited Wang to visit South Korea and the top Chinese diplomat said he would do so at a mutually convenient time, according to the ministry. Cho, on a two-day trip to China through Tuesday, visited the neighboring country for the first time since he assumed the post of foreign minister in January. In 2022, his predecessor, Park Jin, held talks with Wang in the eastern Chinese port city of Qingdao. Related coverage: Australia PM raps China over release of flares in chopper's path Japan finance chief sees need for stable forex moves amid weak yen U.S.-Japan missile development project to cost over $3 billion KYODO NEWS - May 13, 2024 - 19:21 | All, Japan Tokyo police conducted searches on Monday related to a minor political group accused of obstructing campaigns in a recent lower house by-election, in a rare move after receiving complaints from several other camps in the race, investigative sources said. The searches covered the office of the group "Tsubasa no To" and the homes of its leader Atsuhiko Kurokawa, 45, and Ryosuke Nemoto, 29, who was fielded by the group in the April 28 House of Representatives by-election but lost, they said. The two, along with another in their camp, allegedly used loudspeakers to interrupt rivals' campaigns and chased after other camps' vehicles, disrupting traffic, according to the sources. "We act legally within the bounds of freedom of expression," Kurokawa told reporters after his home in Asaka, Saitama Prefecture, was searched, adding he would continue similar activities. The police warned the three on April 18 that their loud speeches and honking of car horns near a rival camp in front of Kameido Station in Tokyo two days earlier violated the public offices election law, they said. When the campaigning for the by-election officially kicked off on April 16, Kurokawa was seen climbing atop a telephone box and using a loudspeaker, rendering the speech of the rival candidate, Hirotada Ototake, 48, almost inaudible. Under the law, those who obstruct speeches or rallies of candidates in an election campaign could face imprisonment for up to four years or a fine of up to 1 million yen ($6,400). Related coverage: FOCUS: Kishida may have hard time being reelected as PM after by-elections Japan PM's LDP loses 3 Diet seats to main opposition amid scandal Kishida's leadership put to test as by-election campaigning begins KYODO NEWS - May 13, 2024 - 11:33 | All, Japan, Travel/Tourism Online reservations will be introduced for visitors climbing Mt. Fuji on the most commonly used trail situated in Yamanashi Prefecture, with the prefectural government set to start collecting entry fees this summer, it said Monday. The new system, which will begin at 10 p.m. on May 20, is aimed at easing congestion at reception by enabling climbers to pay 2,000 yen ($13) in advance. As the prefecture accepts a maximum of 4,000 climbers per day, 3,000 slots will be available via online booking. At least 1,000 visitors will be allowed access by paying the fees at the trail's reception area on the day of their climb, according to the local government. Reservations can be made on the official website for climbing Mt. Fuji, which is operated by the prefecture and other stakeholders, until the day before the climb, with up to 100 people allowed to book at once. Payments can be made by credit card or QR code, and no refunds will be made in principle. Mt. Fuji is usually open to climbers from July to early September. The prefectural government said earlier this year that it would start charging hikers ascending the 3,776-meter mountain from the Yoshida Trail to ease congestion and to fund safety measures. Designated as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site in 2013, Japan's highest peak, straddling Yamanashi and Shizuoka prefectures, has been a popular tourist destination in the country. Also starting this summer, Yamanashi Prefecture will set up a gate at the 5th station to close the trail between 4 p.m. and 3 a.m., with the only exception being for those who have made prior reservations, who must stay overnight in huts to prevent bullet climbing. Shizuoka Prefecture, which has three Mt. Fuji trails, will not collect fees other than one already in place for conservation purposes. But it will launch a pre-registration system to seek climbers willing to inform them of their climbing plans as part of an entry management trial. Related coverage: Town begins work to block Mt. Fuji photo spot due to unruly tourists Hokkaido's Niseko to introduce lodging tax of up to 2,000 yen a night Locals warn Mt. Fuji-climbing visitors to take challenge seriously BEIJING, May 13 (Xinhua) -- China and the United States will hold the first meeting of the inter-governmental dialogue on artificial intelligence (AI) in Geneva on May 14 local time, according to the Chinese foreign ministry. As agreed by the two sides, China and the United States will exchange views on the technological risks of AI, global governance and other issues of respective concern. The meeting is held to implement the consensus reached at the San Francisco summit between the two heads of state, the ministry said. This photo shows the release conference of a report focusing on the process and achievements of China's efforts in brand building over the past decade at the 2024 World Brand Moganshan Conference in Deqing, east China's Zhejiang Province, May 12, 2024. The publication of this report was one of a series of activities at the 2024 World Brand Moganshan Conference which opened here on Saturday. (Xinhua/Jiang Han) HANGZHOU, May 13 (Xinhua) -- A report focusing on the process and achievements of China's efforts in brand building over the past decade was released on Sunday. The publication of this report was one of a series of activities at the 2024 World Brand Moganshan Conference which opened on Saturday in Deqing, east China's Zhejiang Province. The report includes a series of iconic success stories of outstanding Chinese companies, examples of successful Chinese industrial clusters, and exemplary cases of agricultural brands developed in the country, revealing the logic and patterns of excellent brand building and serving as a valuable reference and inspiration for brand building initiatives across various industries. Conference participants said that there has been a significant transformation in the landscape and pattern of Chinese brand building over the past decade. During this period, the institutional mechanisms for brand building were further improved while the internationalization of brand building made positive progress. In addition, a large number of Chinese brands with global competitiveness and influence are active abroad and making their presence felt on the world stage. This was the broad consensus among conference participants. The conference was co-hosted by the brand work office of Xinhua News Agency and the website of China National Brand. This photo shows the release conference of a report focusing on the process and achievements of China's efforts in brand building over the past decade at the 2024 World Brand Moganshan Conference in Deqing, east China's Zhejiang Province, May 12, 2024. The publication of this report was one of a series of activities at the 2024 World Brand Moganshan Conference which opened here on Saturday. (Xinhua/Jiang Han) President Xi Jinping's six-day trip to Europe has opened new chapters of relationships with China's key partners, and the visit heralds a new era of ties with Europe through enhanced solidarity, mutual trust and confidence, according to senior diplomats and analysts. Xi's recently concluded tour of France, Serbia and Hungary, which included over 30 diplomatic engagements with leaders of the three countries between May 5 and 10, was a resounding success, with implications and significance far beyond the bilateral level, they said. In France, the president's visit set the stage for reaffirming a longstanding partnership. Beijing and Paris signed 18 bilateral cooperation documents in areas such as green development, aviation, agrifood, commerce and people-to-people exchanges. In an interview with reporters after the visit concluded, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said that Xi and French President Emmanuel Macron had reached a host of key consensuses on developing bilateral relations, while agreeing to consolidate the strategic stability of bilateral ties and tap the broad potential of mutually beneficial cooperation. Interactions between the two heads of state at Tourmalet a pass in the Pyrenees mountains that is dear to President Macron because he enjoyed visiting his grandmother there when he was a child marked a major highlight of Xi's France trip. Wang said the extended talks in the Pyrenees added another memorable chapter to the exchanges between the leaders of China and France. The Chinese president's trip to Serbian capital Belgrade and Hungarian capital Budapest cemented the elevation of ties with two of China's key European partners. This was underpinned by a host of bilateral agreements to build up economic, trade and people-to-people exchanges. In Belgrade, Xi and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic signed a joint statement on building a China-Serbia community with a shared future in the new era, while China unveiled six major steps to support the move, including a free trade agreement and the opening of more direct flights. A landmark moment of the trip was the gathering of around 20,000 people in front of the Palace of Serbia to greet the Chinese president, with the crowds waving the flags of the two nations and cheering for China. The moment "evoked a keen feeling on the genuine sentiment of the Serbian people toward the Chinese people and their profound respect for President Xi", Wang said. In Budapest, the traditional friendship was harnessed as the two nations pledged to build an all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership for the new era. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto described the visit as "a milestone in bilateral relations", saying that the elevation of bilateral ties reflected the rightfulness of the nation's China policy. "We are very happy with the Chinese investments in Hungary. We encourage more to come because they're modern, state-of-the-art investments which create a lot of jobs. This is good for our national economy, good for our people and our families," he said. Szijjarto said that Hungary, which will hold the rotating presidency of the European Union starting on July 1, rejects the approach of "de-risking" or decoupling. "We do not consider China as a threat. We don't want the world to be divided into two blocs again. We want connectivity to come," he said, adding that his country will advocate basing EU-China relations on mutual respect. "Hungary is the best example showing what kind of benefits you can get out of respectful cooperation with China," he said. "If we had not encouraged these Chinese companies to (come to) Hungary, and if we had represented these decoupling types of approach, we would have tens of thousands fewer jobs," he said. Wang and analysts have also stressed the significance of the trip for China-EU relations, as Xi has appealed to the EU for collective efforts in adhering to dialogue and cooperation, deepening strategic communication and enhancing strategic mutual trust. He also rejected rhetoric about China's "overcapacity", using facts and numbers. Feng Zhongping, director of the Institute of European Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said that Xi's trip to Europe has strengthened expectations for the stability of China-EU relations. "The enhancing of pragmatic cooperation between China and the three countries showcased the potential for stronger trade and economic ties with other European nations," he said. Feng described the joint statement between China and France on the situation in the Middle East as another highlight, adding that the two nations have demonstrated solidarity in their shared appeals for the cessation of hostilities during the upcoming Paris Olympics. Jack Midgley, principal of the global consultancy Midgley & Co, said that agreements on the Belt and Road Initiative and electric vehicles, including France indicating that it would welcome China's EV giant BYD, were among the most important outcomes of Xi's trip. Midgley, who is also an adjunct associate professor in the security studies program at Georgetown University in Washington, said all these results were achieved in "a bilateral way" rather than through the bureaucracy of the EU. "This is the way to do constructive relationships," he said. "You do them bilaterally, on the basis of shared interest." Yifan Xuin Washington contributed to this story. JAKARTA, May 13 (Xinhua) -- At least 44 people were killed and 15 others went missing after cold lava floods struck Indonesia's West Sumatra province on Saturday night, a senior official of local disaster agency said on Monday. Although many big stones and waste materials from the flooding hampered the searching for the victims, rescuers discovered another seven bodies in the affected areas, said Fajar Sukma, head of the emergency unit of disaster management and mitigation agency of West Sumatra province. "We have found several bodies, bringing the total death toll to 44. Big stones and the waste have hampered the searching, but we continue to look for the 15 people reported missing," he told Xinhua. Some machinery equipment has successfully reached the flood-stricken areas, according to him. The search operation would focus on Tanah Datar and Agam regencies, where the 15 missing were reported, he added. Spokesman of the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) Abdul Muhari said the natural disaster had forced over 3,000 people to flee home and take shelters in both regencies, as the cold lava floods destroyed houses, buildings and other infrastructure facilities. The government had conducted emergency relief efforts in responding to the disaster, while head of the BNPB Lieutenant General Suharyanto would supervise the evacuation and distributions of aids to the affected residents, he said. Earlier media reports put the death toll at 37. WASHINGTON, May 13 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over the weekend, in which the secretary reiterated Washington's opposition to a major ground operation in Rafah. According to State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller, Blinken "reaffirmed the U.S. opposition to a major military ground operation in Rafah, where over one million people have taken shelter" during the Saturday call with Gallant. "The Secretary underscored the urgent need to protect civilians and aid workers in Gaza and urged the Minister to ensure assistance can move into Gaza and help address distribution challenges inside of Gaza as Israel pursues Hamas targets," Miller said of the call in a statement. Citing the Israeli Defense Ministry, CNN reported Monday that Gallant discussed with Blinken "developments in Gaza, including (Israel Defense Forces) operations across the Strip in the face of terror hotspots." Gallant also spoke about what the ministry called "the precise operation in the Rafah area against remaining Hamas battalions, while securing the crossing," the report said. The call came as U.S. President Joe Biden's administration began to limit the flow of U.S. weaponry to Israel in anticipation of a large-scale ground operation by Israeli forces in Rafah. Earlier this month, Biden signed off on a pause of 3,500 bombs intended for Israel in the near term, for fear that they will be dropped in Rafah. Biden said should Israel go into Rafah and conduct operation targeting the population centers, his administration will not supply weapons for that cause. In a high stakes State Department report that was published behind schedule on Friday, the Biden administration said that it is "reasonable to assess" that U.S. weapons supplied to Israel may have been used in violation of international law. The report added a caveat that information that Washington possessed was incomplete, not enough for reaching a definitive conclusion. BATI, Cambodia, May 13 (Xinhua) -- China has played a role model in assisting other developing countries around the world to reduce poverty, said a Cambodian civil society chief on Sunday. Kemreat Viseth, chairman of the Civil Society Alliance Forum (CSAF), said China has made great contributions to poverty alleviation globally, significantly contributing to maintaining peace, stability, and sustainable development in the region and in the world at large. "I would like to highly value China's role model in helping other countries, especially Cambodia, alleviate poverty," he told Xinhua. "This is a very good example for the world that China has actively contributed to poverty alleviation in the world," he added. China's steadfast efforts in assisting other developing countries to reduce poverty will significantly contribute to building a global community of a shared future for mankind, he said. For Cambodia, Viseth said the contributions from the government and people of China to Cambodia's development and poverty alleviation are "tremendous." He said the CSAF has been carrying out a Cambodia-China Friendship Village for Poverty Alleviation Project in the far-flung Tanorn village of southern Takeo province's Bati district since January 2021. With funds from the China Foundation for Peace and Development, the project has been transforming the tiny village with a total of 132 households into a model village for poverty alleviation in the Southeast Asian country. "The Cambodia-China Friendship Village for Poverty Alleviation Project in Tanorn village is a pilot project that shows the generous hearts of Chinese people in helping alleviate poverty in this village," Viseth said. "This project has contributed to improving the villagers' livelihoods significantly," he added. Under the project, he said, concrete roads, clean drinking water system, solar power, drainage system in flood prevention, and essential public facilities have been developed. "Overall, this project has been fully supported by local residents because it has greatly changed the infrastructure landscape in the village, and people are very convenient to travel in and out of the village," he said. Speaking of China's poverty alleviation experience, Viseth said the experience is very valuable for other developing countries to learn from. "China's experience in reducing poverty has served as a good example for us, and some experience used in China can be applied in Cambodia, adapting to our local conditions," he said. Cambodia's poverty rate had declined to 16.6 percent in 2022 from 36.7 percent in 2014, according to a United Nations Development Program report. The number of poor people was halved from 5.6 million to 2.8 million, the report said, adding that one in five Cambodians moved out of poverty in just 7.5 years. During the 2024 World Brand Moganshan Conference, experts and entrepreneurs from home and abroad share their insights on brand building, Chinese brands going global and this conference itself. Here's what they have to say! HANOI, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Zhao Shitong, assistant minister of the International Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, led a CPC delegation on a visit to Vietnam from May 12 to 13, at the invitation of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV). During the visit, Zhao met with Le Hoai Trung, secretary of the Secretariat of the CPV Central Committee and chairman of the CPV Central Committee's Commission for External Relations. The Chinese delegation held talks with the officials in charge of the CPV Central Committee's Commission for Popularization and Education and the CPV Central Committee's Commission for External Relations. During the visit, the two sides exchanged views on China-Vietnam relations and issues of common concern. Both sides agreed to implement the important consensus reached by the top leaders of the two parties, deepen the party-to-party exchanges, strengthen their strategic communication, exchanges and mutual learning, push forward practical cooperation, lay a solid foundation among the people for friendship between the two countries, and work together to build a China-Vietnam community with a shared future that carries strategic significance. BAGHDAD, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Two policemen were killed and five people injured on Monday in a clash in the southeastern part of Baghdad, a source from Iraq's Interior Ministry said. A clash erupted between a federal police unit and unidentified gunmen before dawn in Za'franiyah neighborhood, resulting in the killing of two policemen and the wounding of two policemen and three civilians, the source said on condition of anonymity. The clash occurred when the police unit was conducting an operation to search for weapons and wanted people, the source added. Reinforcements were sent to the scene to track down the gunmen, the source said, adding that the situation was brought under control. CAPE TOWN, May 13 (Xinhua) -- The death toll from a building collapse in South Africa has increased to 27, with 25 construction workers still missing, authorities reported on Monday. The multi-story building under construction collapsed at 2:09 p.m. last Monday in the coastal city of George, located about 400 kilometers east of Cape Town in the Western Cape Province. The reasons for the collapse are still under investigation. As rescue and recovery efforts continue into a week after the incident, 55 of the 81 people onsite at the time of the collapse have been recovered, 27 of which have been declared deceased and 13 are currently in hospital, said the municipal government of George in its latest update at 3:00 p.m. on Monday. However, 25 people remain unaccounted for, according to the update. At the same time, in solemn remembrance of the tragic building collapse, the community and residents of George and South Africa observed a minute of silence at precisely 2:09 p.m. on Monday to honor the lives lost and express their collective grief and support for the affected families. "This act of solidarity is a poignant gesture to honor those who perished and to extend our heartfelt support to the families affected by this tragedy," said the George municipality. It noted that the primary focus continues to be on rescue efforts. "With this in mind, we are also proactively setting up plans to expedite the identification of the deceased. This is done by the Forensic Pathology Service (FPS) and the South African Police Service (SAPS). We, therefore, endeavor to fast-track the process to help bring closure to families," the municipality added. This came as the SAPS have reportedly registered an inquest docket into the tragedy. Meanwhile, Western Cape Premier Alan Winde said authorities need to establish the cause of the tragic collapse. South African Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure Sihle Zikalala is expected to visit the disaster site on Monday, joined by a delegation of environment professionals and experts from the construction industry. The purpose of the visit is to ascertain the role of professionals who were involved with this project and assess if there was compliance with all built environment regulations or if there was no misconduct committed by the professionals leading to the disaster. MOSCOW, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday proposed former First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov as the new Defense Minister, succeeding Sergei Shoigu, who moves to the role of Russian Security Council Secretary. The 65-year-old Belousov has held various positions including assistant to the President on economic issues, Minister of Economic Development, Director of the Department of Economics and Finance at the Government Office, and General Director of the Center for Macroeconomic Analysis and Short-term Forecasting. In a separate decree, Putin appointed Shoigu, the defense minister since 2012, as the Secretary of the Security Council, replacing Nikolai Patrushev. The Kremlin said that it will soon announce the new appointment for Patrushev. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that Shoigu will also become Deputy President in the commission on the military-industrial complex. ISTANBUL, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Turkish police detained a U.S. museum curator and seized 1,500 endemic scorpions, spiders, and tarantulas from his suitcase in Turkiye's largest Istanbul Airport, local media revealed on Monday. According to the Ihlas news agency, Istanbul's anti-smuggling police teams initiated the operation on Sunday in collaboration with airport security. The police seized the animals within 58 clip-on bags, alongside 88 bottles of liquid in the suitcase of Lorenzo Prendini, curator of the American National Museum of Natural History. The liquid was reportedly a drug derived from scorpion venom, valued at 10 million U.S. dollars per liter, said the report, noting that shipping such animals abroad is prohibited in Turkiye. Prendini was detained by the police for allegedly attempting to smuggle the endemic species into the United States, according to the report. WASHINGTON, May 12 (Xinhua) -- The United States seems to be giving up on electric vehicles (EVs), as tariffs and corporate timidity are causing "an astonishing loss of nerve" in the country, "whose capitalist hunger once created the modern auto industry," Bloomberg has reported. "Cosy within a market protected by distance and tariffs, and fearful of the wrenching shifts required by both electrification and Chinese competition, many executives would like to believe the whole energy transition thing was just a bad dream," said Bloomberg columnist David Fickling in an opinion piece on Saturday. U.S. President Joe Biden is reportedly planning to raise tariffs on Chinese clean tech, and the centerpiece will be a quadrupling of levies on EVs to 100 percent, Fickling quoted The Wall Street Journal as saying in the article titled "Tariffs and timidity are driving U.S. automakers into a ditch." Meanwhile, U.S. carmaking giants are confronting serious challenges in their development of EVs. For example, Ford Motors is reducing orders from battery suppliers as part of a plan to trim its spending on EVs by 12 billion U.S. dollars, according to Fickling. Likewise, General Motors has missed its electrification targets for two years running, while Tesla is cutting 10 percent of its workforce and disbanding a Supercharger team that the United States is relying on to provide refueling options on the go, said the author, citing public reports. "Like birds on isolated islands, America's carmakers are evolving to suit an oddly congenial environment -- one where they can grow big and bloated in the absence of competition from hungry rivals. Gradually, they'll lose the ability to fly," he noted. "Consumers who'd like to get their hands on affordable, clean and innovative cars will be the ones to lose out," Fickling added. by Xinhua writers Yin Xiaosheng, Chen Hao BUDAPEST, May 12 (Xinhua) -- Hungary sees China's emergence as an economic powerhouse as an opportunity, not a threat, Balazs Andras Orban, political director of Hungary's prime minister, has said. Chinese President Xi Jinping's recent visit to Budapest was a pivotal moment in bilateral relations, Orban told Xinhua in a recent interview, adding this visit marked a new peak in bilateral relations and was regarded as "crown jewelry." As the first European country to participate in the Belt and Road Initiative, Hungary has forged a deep and fruitful partnership with China in investment, trade, green development and technological innovation. "We need practical and pragmatic collaborations," Orban said. "The Belt and Road Initiative is a perfect example of how to do so because it's not just in theory, it's in practice." Highlighting the Budapest-Belgrade railway as a flagship project of the Belt and Road cooperation between China and Hungary, Orban said the railway, with state-of-the-art technologies, serves as "a perfect example of meeting the needs of the Hungarian people." Noting the trend towards electric vehicles and the new energy industry, as well as China's world-leading technology in these fields, Orban expressed his expectation for further collaboration in the production and research of promising new technologies, which has the potential to provide a significant boost to the economy. "This is a win-win situation and it's really a new phase of China-Hungary relationship building. We are very grateful that we have these good companies in Hungary," Orban said. However, Orban cautioned that there is a growing trend of decoupling from some Western countries, noting that such actions are not in line with the interests of the Hungarian people. "Instead of decoupling or de-risking, we believe connectivity is the strategy which is working," said Orban. "We need to be able to bring the Eurasian continent together and understand that the world shares a common future." Enditem (Li Ruojia contributed to the story.) ANKARA, May 13 (Xinhua) -- The Turkish intelligence has "neutralized" a senior member of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in northern Iraq, Turkiye's state-run TRT broadcaster reported on Monday. The National Intelligence Organization (MIT) has "neutralized" Sedat Aksu, code-named Sevger Ciya, in a pinpoint operation in northern Iraq's Gara region, said the report, citing anonymous security sources, without specifying the timing of the operation. Turkish authorities often use the term "neutralize" in their statements to imply the alleged "terrorists" have either surrendered, been killed, or been captured. The MIT agents tailed Aksu for a long time and discovered that he was supplying arms to the PKK members preparing for an attack in the region where the Turkish forces are conducting Operation Claw-Lock, the report said. The Turkish government launched Operation Claw-Lock in April 2022 to fight the PKK in northern Iraq near the Turkish border. Aksu joined the PKK in 1998 and was promoted to a ringleader in the group's Syrian arm in 2016. When he was targeted, he was serving as an executive at the PKK council in northern Iraq and in charge of the PKK's armoury in the Gara region. Turkish forces often carry out cross-border operations in northern Iraq against the PKK militants, especially in the Qandil Mountains, the main base of the group. The PKK, designated as a terrorist organization by Turkiye, the United States, and the European Union, has rebelled against the Turkish government for more than three decades. Dancers of French Ballet of the Opera National de Bordeaux perform at the Shanghai Oriental Art Center in east China's Shanghai, May 10, 2024. (Photo by Dong Tianye/Xinhua) SHANGHAI, May 13 (Xinhua) -- The renowned French ballet company, the Ballet of the Opera National de Bordeaux, has enraptured Chinese audiences with its romantic allure, mesmerizing stage design, and nearly flawless performances during its tour across China. The ballet company staged two timeless classics -- "La Sylphide" and "Don Quixote" (Act III) -- at the Shanghai Oriental Art Center from May 10 to 12. "Lightweight, dreamy, elegant... Their performance is so beautiful, even more exciting than I imagined," said Xin Xiaoyuan, a Shanghai high school student who watched the performance with her parents. Emmanuel Hondre, general director of the Opera National de Bordeaux, said that the plays performed in China have been carefully selected to evoke a sense of joy and celebration as this year marks the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and France. "The ballet 'La Sylphide' is full of magic, just like a dream. And 'Don Quixote' is a festive dance feast. The two plays together showcase the romance of French dance and the openness of French culture," Hondre said. "I can see that the Chinese audience is very open and enthusiastic, and our dancers felt that they had gained a lot of positive energy in China." The ballet company wrapped up its performance in Shanghai on Sunday and headed to Beijing, their next destination. With a history dating back to the 18th century, the Ballet of the Opera National de Bordeaux is renowned for its romantic and aesthetically pleasing French ballet performances. Dancers of French Ballet of the Opera National de Bordeaux perform at the Shanghai Oriental Art Center in east China's Shanghai, May 10, 2024. (Photo by Dong Tianye/Xinhua) Dancers of French Ballet of the Opera National de Bordeaux perform at the Shanghai Oriental Art Center in east China's Shanghai, May 10, 2024. (Photo by Dong Tianye/Xinhua) Dancers of French Ballet of the Opera National de Bordeaux perform at the Shanghai Oriental Art Center in east China's Shanghai, May 10, 2024. (Photo by Dong Tianye/Xinhua) ISLAMABAD, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Pakistan's Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) conducted multiple operations in different areas of the country, recovering over 280 kg of drugs and arresting 16 drug traffickers, the ANF said on Monday. The ANF said in a statement that the force conducted 10 separate operations and seized 287 kg of drugs, including hashish, opium, heroin, methamphetamine, and intoxicated tablets. In various operations in the country's federal capital Islamabad, over 160 kg of hashish, 3.6 kg of opium and 2 kg of methamphetamine were recovered, said the statement, adding that the ANF also apprehended eight accused during the operations. In another operation, 8,400 intoxicated tablets were recovered from a parcel confiscated from a courier office in eastern Rawalpindi city, according to the ANF statement. Separately, 72 kg of hashish was recovered from the possession of an accused arrested near the Ring Road area of the country's northwest Peshawar city. The ANF also conducted operations in the eastern Sheikhupura and Attock districts of Punjab, seizing over 26 kg of narcotics, including opium. Separate cases have been registered against the arrested accused while further investigations are under process, said the ANF officials. Women dancers make their way into the arena during the Mother's Day Traditional Powwow in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, on May 12, 2024. Hundreds of indigenous people from various tribes across Canada gathered on Sunday to celebrate Mother's Day with a powwow, a traditional social gathering featuring music and dance. (Photo by Liang Sen/Xinhua) Dancers perform during the Mother's Day Traditional Powwow in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, on May 12, 2024. Hundreds of indigenous people from various tribes across Canada gathered on Sunday to celebrate Mother's Day with a powwow, a traditional social gathering featuring music and dance. (Photo by Liang Sen/Xinhua) Dancers perform during the Mother's Day Traditional Powwow in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, on May 12, 2024. Hundreds of indigenous people from various tribes across Canada gathered on Sunday to celebrate Mother's Day with a powwow, a traditional social gathering featuring music and dance. (Photo by Liang Sen/Xinhua) A woman holds her child during the Mother's Day Traditional Powwow in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, on May 12, 2024. Hundreds of indigenous people from various tribes across Canada gathered on Sunday to celebrate Mother's Day with a powwow, a traditional social gathering featuring music and dance. (Photo by Liang Sen/Xinhua) A girl accompanied by her mother participates in the Mother's Day Traditional Powwow in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, on May 12, 2024. Hundreds of indigenous people from various tribes across Canada gathered on Sunday to celebrate Mother's Day with a powwow, a traditional social gathering featuring music and dance. (Photo by Liang Sen/Xinhua) SENJ, Croatia, May 13 (Xinhua) -- The Senj Wind Farm is a "model of cooperation" between China and Croatia, the city's mayor said in a recent interview with Xinhua. Jurica Tomljanovic said the farm, built by China's Norinco International Cooperation Ltd. (Norinco International), "is an example that there must be cooperation in the world in the interests of the development of local environments." He also expressed his support for the arrival of more Chinese companies in Croatia. The wind farm has created new jobs and opportunities for Croatian citizens, as well as Croatian companies, Tomljanovic underlined. Over 40 contractors from across Croatia participated in the construction process, with over half of the 500 daily workers on the project coming from Croatia. During the process, "cooperation with the Chinese partners was very successful, an example of good business cooperation," Tomljanovic said. After the inauguration of the wind farm in December 2021 till now, there've been still a lot of Croatian experts and local employees working in the Zagreb office of Norinco International, showing that this cooperation continues, he said. Not only does the Senj Wind Farm "largely solve" the annual need for electricity, but the city of Senj also receives additional revenue from the operation of the wind farm, "which is significant for the development and benefits of all residents." Located on the Adriatic coast of western Croatia, the wind farm produces about 530 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of green electricity each year, and reduces Croatia's carbon dioxide emissions by about 460,000 tons annually. In addition to providing a cheaper and more stable energy supply for locals, the green electricity that the wind farm produces is expected to satisfy the electricity demand of over 100,000 households in Croatia. According to the mayor, the revenue from the operation of the wind farm has been used for investment in the infrastructure, water supply, sewerage, and beaches in Senj city. "The inhabitants of Senj have recognized this and appreciate that they have been enabled to develop faster," he said. The Senj Wind Farm and the Peljesac Bridge, constructed by a Chinese enterprise consortium led by the China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC), "are proof that Croatia should leave the door open to the Chinese for new projects, as they have proven to be quality partners in every respect," Tomljanovic said. BANGKOK, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese technology giant Huawei hosted the Cloud Database Summit Thailand 2024 here on Monday, aiming to enable the public and private sectors to access next-generation database technologies and accelerate digitalization in the Southeast Asian country. The summit launched a pioneer program to promote innovation and application of artificial intelligence-native database technologies in the kingdom, with about 20 experts from 15 industries, including local customers and partners, sharing their insights and experiences through keynotes, panels, and a hands-on lab program. The Thai government released a digital strategy last year with the goal of becoming a data-driven country. To achieve this, a prosperous database ecosystem rooted in local system integrators, software developers, and applications is essential for implementing the national digital blueprint, said David Li, CEO of Huawei Thailand. The digitalization trend that has swept across all industries demands a robust local ecosystem. With experience investing in database technology for 20 years, the company's latest distributed database technology will offer Thailand a powerful solution to unlocking the full value of data, Li said in his opening speech. Since entering the Southeast Asian market in 2019, Huawei's public cloud services have grown 20 times in the past four years, making it one of the fastest-growing mainstream cloud vendors in the region. The company has established digital transformation cooperation in multiple industries, such as government, finance, the internet, and retail, said Zeng Xingyun, president of Huawei Cloud Asia Pacific. Southeast Asia is experiencing rapid digitalization, and data security is of paramount importance. Huawei Cloud places cybersecurity and privacy protection at the forefront, prioritizing these over its commercial interests, while compliance remains the company's top priority, Zeng told Xinhua at the summit. Visitors learns about Chinese calligraphy during the Turin International Book Fair in Turin, Italy, May 11, 2024. (Xinhua/Ren Yaoting) TURIN, Italy, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese publishers seized the opportunity to reach new readers at the biggest book fair in Italy recently. The Turin International Book Fair, held from May 9 to 13, attracted more than 4,000 publishing professionals from 43 countries and regions around the world, under the theme of "Imaginary Life". The China National Publications Import and Export Co (CNPIEC) had a booth at the fair, promoting 458 books from 22 Chinese publishers. "The opportunity to buy this kind of book is rare, and I hope to see more similar Chinese books at future book fairs," said University of Turin student Giacomo, who didn't give his surname. Giacomo bought a book on ancient Chinese characters for 20 euros (21 U.S. dollars). Meanwhile, the most popular titles sold at the booth were Mandarin teaching textbooks, followed by illustrated books on traditional Chinese calligraphy and painting. "Italian consumers are very interested in Chinese books and culture, and even though there is a language barrier, it does not affect their enthusiasm to read and buy," said a CNPIEC employee. The Confucius Institute at the University of Turin also had a booth at the book fair, hosting traditional Chinese cultural activities such as chess, paper-cutting, and calligraphy. Dai Lan, director of the Confucius Institute at the University of Turin, said that these activities and the sale of Chinese textbooks are aimed at cultivating more interest in Chinese culture among foreigners. During the fair, the Confucius Institute and the University of Turin cooperated in organizing a range of literary exchange activities, and invited famous Chinese writers such as Yu Hua and Lu Min for face-to-face exchanges with local readers. On Sunday afternoon, Lu brought the Italian version of his work "The Lost City" to a book signing event, which attracted more than 500 local fans. Chinese writer Yu Hua (L) speaks at a signing session during the Turin International Book Fair in Turin, Italy, May 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Ren Yaoting) A visitor selects Chinese books during the Turin International Book Fair in Turin, Italy, May 11, 2024. (Xinhua/Ren Yaoting) Guests pose for a group photo during the inaugural meeting of the technical committee on cultural heritage protection of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) at the Palace Museum in Beijing, capital of China, May 13, 2024. Proposed by China and officially approved in March 2024, the committee is the first technical committee established by the ISO in the field of global cultural heritage protection since its inception. The secretariat of the committee has been set up at the Palace Museum. (Xinhua/Jin Liangkuai) BEIJING, May 13 (Xinhua) -- The inaugural meeting of the technical committee on cultural heritage protection of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) was held on Monday at the Palace Museum in Beijing. Proposed by China and officially approved in March 2024, the committee is the first technical committee established by the ISO in the field of global cultural heritage protection since its inception. Through international standardization work on terminology, technology, materials and equipment in cultural heritage monitoring, assessment, protection and restoration processes, the committee seeks to share advanced and applicable technologies and best practices in cultural heritage protection, according to China's National Cultural Heritage Administration. The secretariat of the committee has been set up at the Palace Museum. The inaugural meeting of the technical committee on cultural heritage protection of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is held at the Palace Museum in Beijing, capital of China, May 13, 2024. Proposed by China and officially approved in March 2024, the committee is the first technical committee established by the ISO in the field of global cultural heritage protection since its inception. The secretariat of the committee has been set up at the Palace Museum. (Xinhua/Jin Liangkuai) The inaugural meeting of the technical committee on cultural heritage protection of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is held at the Palace Museum in Beijing, capital of China, May 13, 2024. Proposed by China and officially approved in March 2024, the committee is the first technical committee established by the ISO in the field of global cultural heritage protection since its inception. The secretariat of the committee has been set up at the Palace Museum. (Xinhua/Jin Liangkuai) ULAN BATOR, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Mongolia has a total of 14,494 registered nurses, the country's National Statistics Office said Monday. According to the statistical agency, there is an average of 233 people per nurse in the country, as revealed on International Nurses Day, celebrated annually on May 12. International Nurses Day is being widely observed across the Asian country through various activities, including a nurses' conference, under the theme of "Let's take pride in our nurses." The Mongolian government has been implementing various measures to support nurses, including increasing the value of their work, enhancing their social security, fostering pride in their profession, providing housing, and facilitating participation in professional development programs abroad, the country's Health Minister Sodnom Chinzorig has said. In addition, the country is also working towards establishing a development center for nurses, according to the health minister. Currently, the average monthly salary of nurses in Mongolia is 1,271,000 Mongolian tugriks (around 376 U.S. dollars), up 45 percent compared to 2022. Int'l conference seeks papers on human rights in ancient Chinese classics People's Daily Online) 13:18, May 11, 2024 Photo shows Yuelu Academy at Hunan University in Changsha, central China's Hunan Province. (Photo provided to People's Daily Online) The International Conference on the Ideas of Human Rights in Ancient Chinese Classics has announced a call for papers from both domestic and international participants. The conference invites experts and scholars in the humanities and social sciences, including literature, history, philosophy, and human rights law, from universities, research institutions, and cultural institutions worldwide to submit their original, unpublished works. There are no restrictions on the theme or field of the papers, which can cover literature, history, philosophy, and other social sciences. The book series The Hundred Classics on Traditional Chinese Culturecan be used as a reference, and the materials could be excavated from classical literature such as the Confucian classics, historical records, philosophical writings and miscellaneous works in order to probe into issues related to human rights. Papers can be written in either Chinese (around 10,000 characters) or English (around 7,000 words) and should adhere to academic standards. The submission deadline is Aug. 1, 2024. Authors should send their papers in Microsoft Word format along with their personal profiles to the conference email. The conference organizers will arrange for experts to review the submissions and invite the authors of selected papers to attend the conference in early September. Authors whose papers are not selected will not receive separate notifications. The conference aims to enhance the exploration of ideas, strategies, systems, and historical experiences of human rights found in ancient Chinese classics while encouraging exchanges and mutual learning between Chinese civilization and other civilizations worldwide. It also seeks to contribute Chinese wisdom and solutions to the collective development of human rights. The event is jointly hosted by the China Society for Human Rights Studies, the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Hunan Provincial Committee, and Hunan University. It is jointly organized by Yuelu Academy and Law School at Hunan University. The conference is scheduled to take place at Yuelu Academy of Hunan University in Changsha, central China's Hunan Province, in the second half of 2024, with specific dates to be announced later. Multiple submissions have already been received from Chinese scholars, and scholars from countries such as Portugal and the United States have expressed their intention to participate in the conference. Contacts Mr. Xia and Mr. Chen Phone Numbers0731-8882183315367939808 (Mr. Chen) Email Addressgujiyurenquan@126.com For more details, please visit: http://ylsy.hnu.edu.cn/info/1099/10157.htm. (Web editor: Hongyu, Du Mingming) BEIJING, May 13 (Xinhua) -- China plans to recruit 37,000 college graduates to teach in primary and junior high schools in rural areas, according to a statement released by the Ministry of Education on Monday. The recruitment is under a special education program launched by the government in 2006. The program aims to help bridge the education gap between rural and urban areas by recruiting thousands of teachers with college degrees to work in rural areas each year, particularly in economically disadvantaged regions in central and western China. Teachers recruited under the program generally serve a three-year tenure, during which their salaries and subsidies are paid by the central government and local governments. According to the ministry, the recruitment this year will prioritize subjects short of qualified teachers in rural areas, such as physical education, English, science, arts and psychology. Workers harvest durians in a durian orchard in Chanthaburi, Thailand, April 26, 2024. Thailand is one of the world's leading producers and exporters of durian, exporting large quantities to China each year. According to data from China's General Administration of Customs, in 2023, China imported 1.426 million tonnes of fresh durian, with 929,000 tonnes coming from Thailand, accounting for 65.15 percent of China's total fresh durian imports. (Xinhua/Wang Teng) A worker harvests durians in a durian orchard in Chanthaburi, Thailand, April 26, 2024. Thailand is one of the world's leading producers and exporters of durian, exporting large quantities to China each year. According to data from China's General Administration of Customs, in 2023, China imported 1.426 million tonnes of fresh durian, with 929,000 tonnes coming from Thailand, accounting for 65.15 percent of China's total fresh durian imports. (Xinhua/Wang Teng) A worker arranges durians in a durian orchard in Chanthaburi, Thailand, April 26, 2024. Thailand is one of the world's leading producers and exporters of durian, exporting large quantities to China each year. According to data from China's General Administration of Customs, in 2023, China imported 1.426 million tonnes of fresh durian, with 929,000 tonnes coming from Thailand, accounting for 65.15 percent of China's total fresh durian imports. (Xinhua/Wang Teng) Workers transport durians at a processing factory in Chanthaburi, Thailand, April 26, 2024. Thailand is one of the world's leading producers and exporters of durian, exporting large quantities to China each year. According to data from China's General Administration of Customs, in 2023, China imported 1.426 million tonnes of fresh durian, with 929,000 tonnes coming from Thailand, accounting for 65.15 percent of China's total fresh durian imports. (Xinhua/Wang Teng) A drone photo shows a durian orchard in Chanthaburi, Thailand, April 26, 2024. Thailand is one of the world's leading producers and exporters of durian, exporting large quantities to China each year. According to data from China's General Administration of Customs, in 2023, China imported 1.426 million tonnes of fresh durian, with 929,000 tonnes coming from Thailand, accounting for 65.15 percent of China's total fresh durian imports. (Xinhua/Wang Teng) A worker harvests durians in a durian orchard in Chanthaburi, Thailand, April 26, 2024. Thailand is one of the world's leading producers and exporters of durian, exporting large quantities to China each year. According to data from China's General Administration of Customs, in 2023, China imported 1.426 million tonnes of fresh durian, with 929,000 tonnes coming from Thailand, accounting for 65.15 percent of China's total fresh durian imports. (Xinhua/Wang Teng) A worker packs durians at a processing factory in Chanthaburi, Thailand, April 26, 2024. Thailand is one of the world's leading producers and exporters of durian, exporting large quantities to China each year. According to data from China's General Administration of Customs, in 2023, China imported 1.426 million tonnes of fresh durian, with 929,000 tonnes coming from Thailand, accounting for 65.15 percent of China's total fresh durian imports. (Xinhua/Wang Teng) TOKYO, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo stocks closed lower on Monday, as investors stayed cautious before the release of earnings reports by major Japanese companies later this week. Japan's benchmark Nikkei stock index, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average, ended down 49.65 points, or 0.13 percent, from Friday at 38,179.46. The broader Topix index, meanwhile, finished 4.13 points, or 0.15 percent, lower at 2,724.08. Stocks were mostly flat throughout the day, as investors awaited company earnings reports for the fiscal year ended March and their outlook for the current business year, analysts said. Market watchers here noted there are quite a few companies whose outlook investors speculate won't meet market expectations. On the top-tier Prime Market, decliners were led by real estate, construction, and farm and fishery shares. JINAN, May 13 (Xinhua) -- A diverse array of over 600 new vegetable varieties, including cucumbers, tomatoes, chilies, purple peppers and eggplants, are currently showcased at the 25th China (Shouguang) International Vegetable Sci-Tech Fair in the city of Shouguang in east China's Shandong Province. Many of these varieties have already hit the market and are available to ordinary consumers, as China's advancements in vegetable technology are expanding the culinary horizons, offering more options for dining tables everywhere. One particular highlight at the fair is a variety of "slimming cucumbers," which has garnered significant attention. "It contains several times more propanol diacid than ordinary varieties, which helps inhibit the conversion of sugar into fat, and is thus called 'slimming cucumber'," said Xu Tiemin, deputy mayor of Shouguang and deputy director of the Shouguang vegetable research & development center, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. Shouguang, one of China's major vegetable production bases, has cultivated over 1,000 mu (about 66.7 hectares) of the new cucumber variety, with a yield of 10 tonnes per mu, according to Xu. Over the past four decades, China has cultivated over 6,500 vegetable varieties, with many fine varieties undergoing four to five generations of upgrades, according to the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. In Shouguang, the proportion of domestic vegetable seeds has increased to over 70 percent from 54 percent in 2010. "At present, solanum varieties cultivated in Shouguang are ahead of the international level in many aspects such as yield, taste, disease resistance, and cold hardiness," said Liu Xinqing, president of Shandong Shouguang Vegetable Seed Industry Group. The ongoing sci-tech fair also features more than 80 vegetable planting models and over 100 technologies, including rotary farming, tidal farming, aquaponics systems, vertical farming and space breeding. In one exhibition hall, tomato plants are displayed growing with their roots exposed to the air, devoid of contact with water or soil. Sprayers atomize a nutrient solution, which is then directly sprayed onto the roots. "Compared with traditional soil cultivation, aerosol planting can be more easily applied in vertical farming with automatic operations, which helps to reduce the incidence of diseases and pests while maximizing greenhouse space utilization," said Ma Zunjuan, an exhibition hall worker at the fair. In the same hall, several robots can be spotted moving back and forth in tomato fields. "They are pollinating the flowers with the help of technologies such as visual recognition and positioning and multi-sensor integrated navigation," Ma explained. In China, the extensive application of digital technologies in agriculture is helping transform and upgrade agricultural production, injecting new momentum into the modernization of farming and the countryside. In Shouguang, digital technologies and intelligent equipment are widely used in vegetable greenhouses, with the application rate of the Internet of Things in new greenhouses exceeding 80 percent. JERUSALEM, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Israel observed Memorial Day on Monday, an occasion that held particular significance this year amid the country's ongoing conflict with Hamas in the Gaza Strip. The annual event pays tribute to soldiers who lost their lives in military service and wars, as well as civilian victims of attacks. The day began on Sunday evening with a minute-long siren hauled across the country to honor the dead. On Monday morning, a two-minute siren was heard. During both sirens, the country came to a halt as people on the streets, shops and cafes standing, while drivers on highways halted their vehicles, joining in a minute of silence. With Hamas's rampage through the southern Israeli border on Oct. 7, 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed in Israel and 250 taken hostage, and the ongoing conflict in Gaza, the pain and anger were especially palpable for locals on this Memorial Day. At cemeteries where memorial services were underway, clashes broke out as members of bereaved families directed shouts of "Shame! Shame! Shame!" at government ministers in attendance. In an official ceremony held in Jerusalem, several families left in protest as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu began his speech. In the opening ceremony held at the Western Wall in Jerusalem, Chief of the General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces Herzi Halevi said he was "fully responsible" for the failure to protect Israeli civilians in the Oct. 7 attack. "I carry its weight on my shoulders daily, and in my heart, I fully understand its significance," he said. "I am the commander who sent your sons and daughters into the battle from which they never returned, and to the posts from which they were taken hostage," Halevi said. Throughout Monday, hundreds of memorial events were held in schools, communities, and workplaces. Bereaved families traditionally visit their loved ones' graves and attend ceremonies in the cemeteries. The commemorations of Memorial Day are being observed a week after Holocaust Remembrance Day and precede the celebrations of the Israeli Independence Day, which will begin on Monday evening. Pro-Palestinian movements, including encampments, walk-outs or rallies, have recently spread in U.S. universities, calling for a permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. Produced by Xinhua Global Service Smoke rises following Israeli strikes in Jabaliya refugee camp, northern Gaza Strip, on May 13, 2024. (Photo by Abdul Rahman Salama/Xinhua) JERUSALEM, May 13 (Xinhua) -- The Israeli army said on Monday that it has intensified its offensive from north to south in the Gaza Strip, targeting 120 sites in Rafah city, the neighborhoods of Jabaliya and Zeitoun in Gaza City. Israel's armored 162 Division was fighting in eastern Rafah and on the Gaza side of the Rafah crossing, launching "attacks on Hamas targets," including rocket launchers, and killing "several" militants in face-to-face clashes, the army said in a statement. The military said it was conducting "a limited" operation against militant infrastructure in Rafah, while the United Nations reported that over 300,000 Palestinians have fled Rafah since the weekend as Israeli soldiers advanced further into the city. Commando and infantry forces attacked Jabaliya from the ground as the Air Force carried out airstrikes. The troops were engaged in "close-range battles," the military said, adding that "many underground infrastructures and fighting spaces in the area were destroyed." "In one of the attacks, a military building was destroyed where a group of Hamas terrorists gathered," stressed the statement, adding that ground and aerial attacks were carried out also in Zeitoun. The military reported that a total of 11 soldiers have been injured in the Gaza Strip since Saturday. Among them, five soldiers and an additional civilian employee of the army sustained serious wounds, while the remaining suffered moderate injuries. The Palestinian death toll in the Gaza Strip climbed to 35,091, according to health authorities in Gaza, including 57 individuals killed by the Israeli army over the past day. Smoke rises following Israeli strikes in Jabaliya refugee camp, northern Gaza Strip, on May 13, 2024. (Photo by Abdul Rahman Salama/Xinhua) Smoke rises following Israeli strikes in Jabaliya refugee camp, northern Gaza Strip, on May 13, 2024. (Photo by Abdul Rahman Salama/Xinhua) Smoke rises following Israeli strikes in Jabaliya refugee camp, northern Gaza Strip, on May 13, 2024. (Photo by Abdul Rahman Salama/Xinhua) Smoke rises following Israeli strikes in Jabaliya refugee camp, northern Gaza Strip, on May 13, 2024. (Photo by Abdul Rahman Salama/Xinhua) Smoke rises following Israeli strikes in Jabaliya refugee camp, northern Gaza Strip, on May 13, 2024. (Photo by Abdul Rahman Salama/Xinhua) An injured man is transferred after Israeli strikes in Jabaliya refugee camp, northern Gaza Strip, on May 13, 2024. (Photo by Abdul Rahman Salama/Xinhua) Smoke rises following Israeli strikes in Jabaliya refugee camp, northern Gaza Strip, on May 13, 2024. (Photo by Abdul Rahman Salama/Xinhua) Smoke rises following Israeli strikes in Jabaliya refugee camp, northern Gaza Strip, on May 13, 2024. (Photo by Abdul Rahman Salama/Xinhua) The visa-free policy, a tangible move of China in pushing for high-level opening-up, has infused momentum into the exchanges between China and Europe. This screen shot released by the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations on May 12, 2024 shows rescuers working at the scene of a collapsed residential building in Belgorod, Russia. The death toll climbed to 14 from the collapse of the residential building in Russia's Belgorod, a city some 40 km north of the border with Ukraine, the Ministry of Emergency Situations said on Sunday. (The Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations/Handout via Xinhua) MOSCOW, May 12 (Xinhua) -- The death toll climbed to 14 from the collapse of the residential building in Russia's Belgorod, a city some 40 km north of the border with Ukraine, the Ministry of Emergency Situations said on Sunday. "The body of the ninth victim has been found under the debris of the building in Belgorod," the ministry was quoted by local media as saying. Earlier reports said 18 people were missing as a 10-story residential building collapsed following a Ukrainian attack in Belgorod, where missile warnings had been issued repeatedly on Sunday. Also on Sunday, the Russian Defense Ministry said the air defense system had downed six Tochka-U missiles, four Vampire rockets, and two Olkha rockets earlier in the day. Fragments of a downed Tochka-U missile hit the residential building in Belgorod, according to the ministry. This screen shot released by the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations on May 12, 2024 shows rescuers working at the scene of a collapsed residential building in Belgorod, Russia. The death toll climbed to 14 from the collapse of the residential building in Russia's Belgorod, a city some 40 km north of the border with Ukraine, the Ministry of Emergency Situations said on Sunday. (The Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations/Handout via Xinhua) UNITED NATIONS, May 13 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was deeply saddened by the death of a UN Department of Safety and Security (DSS) staff member and injury to another DSS staffer in an attack in Gaza, said his deputy spokesman on Monday. The incident occurred on Monday morning when their UN-marked vehicle was struck as they were on their way to the European Hospital in Rafah, said Farhan Haq, the deputy spokesman. "The secretary-general condemns all attacks on UN personnel and calls for a full investigation. He sends his condolences to the family of the fallen staff member," he said. With the conflict in Gaza continuing to take a heavy toll -- not only on civilians, but also on humanitarian workers -- the secretary-general reiterates his urgent appeal for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire and for the release of all hostages, said Haq. The DSS staffer became the first international staff member of the United Nations killed in Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023. Some 190 Palestinian UN staffers have lost their lives. The names and nationalities of the DSS staffers killed and injured were being withheld as the United Nations was in the process of informing the relevant governments and the relevant family members, said Haq. He said the world body is trying to get details of the incident. The DSS staffers were doing their regular work of going to different locations to assess security conditions, he said. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) shakes hands with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis at a joint press conference in Ankara, Turkiye, on May 13, 2024. (Mustafa Kaya/Handout via Xinhua) ANKARA, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and visiting Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Monday underscored the significance of maintaining the recent positive trajectory in bilateral relations, despite longstanding disputes. In a joint press conference in Ankara, Erdogan emphasized the importance of dialogue. "Despite the differences, we focus on the positive agenda by keeping our dialogue channels open," he stated. The Turkish president said that the two sides held a constructive dialogue, addressing issues in Turkiye-Greece relations, and agreed to aim for a bilateral trade volume of 10 billion U.S. dollars. He also stressed the necessity of a "fair and permanent solution" to the Cyprus issue, based on the island's realities, to enhance regional stability and peace. Regarding the Israel-Hamas conflict, Erdogan diverged from Mitsotakis, stating, "I do not see Hamas as a terrorist organization. Hamas is a resistance group that protects its lands." Mitsotakis acknowledged the ongoing development of bilateral cooperation, stating the mutual understanding between the two sides and relations are evolving positively. He also reaffirmed Greece's support for Turkiye's European Union accession process. Mitsotakis noted a divergence in perspectives on the Gaza issue. "We know that Turkiye accepts Hamas, which we consider a terrorist group, in a different way," he said, noting that Greece also agrees that civilians must be protected. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis attend a joint press conference in Ankara, Turkiye, on May 13, 2024. (Mustafa Kaya/Handout via Xinhua) Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis attend a joint press conference in Ankara, Turkiye, on May 13, 2024. (Mustafa Kaya/Handout via Xinhua) TEHRAN, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kanaani on Monday called for Kuwait to re-engage in technical discussions to resolve the ownership dispute over the Arash gas field in the Gulf. During a weekly press briefing in Tehran, Kanaani emphasized the necessity for technical and legal negotiations over media discourse to determine the respective shares of the Arash gas field, referred to as Durra by Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. The spokesman claimed that maritime boundaries between Iran and Kuwait remain undefined, making it premature to discuss the allocation of the field's resources. Kanaani reiterated Iran's stance on resolving the matter through formal negotiations and expressed Iran's rejection of any one-sided measures disregarding its interests. The Durra gas field, situated in the Gulf, continues to be a focal point of geopolitical tensions among Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait. Saudi Arabia and Kuwait signed a development agreement in March 2022, claiming the field in its entirety, while Iran has condemned the accord as "illegal" and contrary to earlier negotiations. A woman visits the "Elegance and Style: Qipao and Shanghai Culture" at the China Cultural Center in Brussels, Belgium, on May 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Meng Dingbo) BRUSSELS, May 13 (Xinhua) -- An exhibition on a collection of Chinese traditional Qipao dress and Shanghai culture will be open to the public from May 14 to Sept. 5 in Brussels. The "Elegance and Style: Qipao and Shanghai Culture" exhibition launched at the China Cultural Center in Brussels will showcase more than 30 Qipao styles from the collection of the Shanghai City History Museum. "By displaying different kinds of Qipao as well as photos and other exhibits, the exhibition presents the latest achievements in the protection, inheritance and innovative development of China's intangible cultural heritage represented by Shanghai-style Qipao, the perfect fusion of the classic and fashion along the course of time, and the unique charm of the city of Shanghai," Wu Gang, charge d'affaires a.i. of the Embassy of China in Belgium, said at the opening ceremony Monday. Organized by the Shanghai City History Museum, the exhibition demonstrates the evolution of the iconic traditional Chinese dress and its importance in Chinese culture. Zhou Qunhua, director of the Shanghai History Museum, said he hopes the exhibition will help strengthen friendship and cooperation between China and Belgium. More than 100 guests, including Belgian residents and visitors from other countries, attended the opening ceremony. Several guests told Xinhua they were impressed by the finesse of the embroidery and patterns decorating the Qipao, and the way these dresses highlight the grace and femininity of women. The Qipao, also known as the cheongsam, is a fitted silk or satin dress, often slit on the sides and featuring a mandarin collar. People visit the "Elegance and Style: Qipao and Shanghai Culture" at the China Cultural Center in Brussels, Belgium, on May 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Meng Dingbo) People visit the "Elegance and Style: Qipao and Shanghai Culture" at the China Cultural Center in Brussels, Belgium, on May 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Meng Dingbo) A woman visits the "Elegance and Style: Qipao and Shanghai Culture" at the China Cultural Center in Brussels, Belgium, on May 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Meng Dingbo) People visit the "Elegance and Style: Qipao and Shanghai Culture" at the China Cultural Center in Brussels, Belgium, on May 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Meng Dingbo) UNITED NATIONS, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Armed groups are continuing to launch coordinated attacks on civilians in some neighborhoods of the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince, said UN humanitarians on Monday. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said the commune of Gressier, south of Port-au-Prince, was attacked on Friday and several houses were torched. Local authorities said an unknown number of residents fled their homes. "Humanitarian partners are conducting assessments both in Gressier and in nearby areas where people fled," OCHA said. "Since late February, coordinated attacks by armed groups have targeted hospitals, schools, homes, churches, banks and commercial establishments." The office said there are currently 362,000 internally displaced people -- half of them children -- in Haiti. The International Organization for Migration reported that some 95,000 people fled the capital between March 8 and April 9, with 60 percent of them displaced to Haiti's southern departments. OCHA said humanitarian organizations continue to provide emergency assistance to thousands of people in the capital and other areas of the country despite the volatile situation. Since March 1, the World Food Programme has helped more than 800,000 people nationwide through its school feeding, emergency and resilience programs. The agency has distributed more than 825,000 meals to more than 95,000 displaced people in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area, said OCHA. BERLIN, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Germany could save 60 billion euros (64.8 billion U.S. dollars) on its way to climate neutrality by 2045 by taking additional measures immediately in the transport sector, according to a new study. Under current climate policies, Germany's transport sector is projected to miss its emission reduction targets, resulting in excess emissions of around 590 million tons of CO2 by 2045, according to the study published Monday by the think tank Agora Verkehrswende. "Political hesitation has a price that is measured either in money or in greenhouse gases, with all the associated risks," said Wiebke Zimmer, deputy director of Agora Verkehrswende. Although the Europe's largest economy is on track to meet its overall climate targets set for 2030, the transport sector remains "a major problem child," according to the Federal Environment Agency (UBA). Last year, the sector once again exceeded its emission targets despite slight declines. The government has recently revised the Federal Climate Protection Act, shifting its focus from individual emissions targets for each sector to a comprehensive, multi-year and cross-sectoral calculation as the decisive factor for implementing further measures. Climate activists criticized the move and vowed to file a lawsuit against it. "There is no provision for the well-being and freedom of future generations," Olaf Bandt, a representative of the Friends of the Earth Germany, has warned at the end of April. Climate change is projected to cause a loss of 19 percent of income in global economy by 2050, even with a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from now on, according to a recent study by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK). "Strong income reductions are projected for the majority of regions, including North America and Europe, with South Asia and Africa being most strongly affected," said PIK scientist Maximilian Kotz last month. (1 euro = 1.08 U.S. dollar) BLANTYRE, Malawi, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Peter Mutharika, the former president of Malawi, has publicly announced his candidacy for president in the country's 2025 elections. Mutharika, who turns 84 in July, disclosed his ambition for the presidential seat at his first political rally held in Blantyre, Malawi's commercial city, Sunday, since he was ousted by Malawi Congress Party's (MCP) Lazarus Chakwera in August 2020. Mutharika said his decision followed "Malawians' outcry" for his comeback to "rescue the country from the mess it is in," adding that when he bounces back, his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government will recover the country's economy in two years' time. Mutharika's public political appearance came a few weeks after the party's vice president in the south, Kondwani Nankhumwa, formed his own political grouping called People's Development Party, months after he was expelled from Mutharica's DPP. Local analysts have expressed mixed views, with some applauding Mutharika's comeback and others saying he poses no threat to the ruling MCP. Mutharika ruled Malawi, the sub-Saharan least developed country, from 2014 to 2020. Mutharika's second-term win in 2019 was successfully challenged in court by the opposition, and the country went to the polls again in 2020 to usher in an alliance government led by MCP's Lazarus Chakwera. As the 2025 elections approach, political parties in the country are adjusting and aligning themselves into positions ready for a rigorous campaign ahead of the polls. ABUJA, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Nigerian government forces have rescued 14 victims of abduction in the country's central region, including nine university students taken hostage Thursday night by a group of gunmen, the army said. The nine abducted students of the state-owned Confluence University of Science and Technology, in the Okene area of the central state of Kogi, and the five other rescuees, were freed over the weekend by government forces and local vigilante groups inside a forest, the Nigerian Army said on Sunday in a statement on X, formerly known as Twitter. The gunmen had attacked at least three lecture halls at the university Thursday night, the school's vice chancellor, Abdulrahman Asipita, told reporters earlier. by Hua Hongli, Lucas Liganga DAR ES SALAAM, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Eight-year-old Wang Ruixuan, from Qingdao city in China's eastern Shandong province, was at a loss for words when immersed in Tanzania's abundance of animals, from elephants to lions and his favorite, serval. "I like animals very much, especially the serval, a wild cat native to Africa," he said. "We took a photo of the cat a few days ago, and fortunately it was taken during the daytime," Wang said of the nocturnal animal usually active at night. Wang was among a group of six children and nine adults from across China, including Beijing, Shanghai, and Qingdao, who spent their May Day vacation visiting Tanzania and doing field research on nature in general and animals in particular. Organized by Xuexi Nature Education Institution, the cohort visited the Manyara National Park, the Serengeti National Park, the Ngorongoro Crater, the Zanzibar archipelago, and the National Museum in the port city of Dar es Salaam. He Changhuan, a teacher of the study tour group, said Tanzania is one of the easiest places to see animals in the world. "For study tours, Tanzania is a place closer to nature, allowing children to feel the wild beauty of the East African savannah," he told Xinhua at the Serengeti National Park, a World Heritage Site teeming with wildlife, including lions, leopards, cheetahs and over 500 bird species that inhabit the park, close to 15,000 square kilometers in size. Elephants and hippos in Tanzania are very large and attract great attention, He said. Guo Lin, co-founder of Xuexi, said the study tour involved natural, cultural and historical elements, enabling the children to have a comprehensive understanding of Tanzania. "I think Tanzania should be the most suitable place in the world to connect with nature and see big animals," she said, adding that the Tanzania tour helped the children to get close to nature, where one can see plants, insects, mammals, birds, and even the starry sky. Indeed, many Chinese visitors are enchanted by the magic of Serengeti National Park, with the bright smiles of Maasai tribesmen sparking an immediate warm glow inside. Tanzania is well known for its vast wilderness. In addition to the plains of Serengeti National Park, the country is endowed with the Kilimanjaro National Park, home to Africa's highest mountain, the tropical islands of Zanzibar, with Arabic influences, and Mafia Island, where a marine park hosts whale sharks and coral reefs. Thereza Mugobi, the director of tourism at the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism, told Xinhua that 44,438 Chinese tourists visited Tanzania in 2023, 32.5 percent more than the 33,541 posted in 2019, and the number is expected to keep rising. CAIRO, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday discussed over the phone the recent security and humanitarian impacts of the Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip, particularly in the southernmost city of Rafah, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement. During the phone conversation, Shoukry underscored the dire consequences of the Rafah operation, which affected more than 1.4 million Palestinians after the closure of the Rafah crossing, amid the ongoing extensive Israeli offensive. He emphasized the necessity of resuming the delivery of aid to the Gaza Strip, which had been suspended in the past few days. The ongoing Israeli operation in Gaza poses a severe threat to regional stability, the statement quoted Shoukry as saying. Both diplomats stressed the importance of reopening the crossings between Israel and the Gaza Strip and ensuring the entry of sufficient humanitarian aid to meet the needs of Gaza's residents. According to the latest statistics released by Gaza's health authorities on Monday, more than 35,000 Palestinians have been killed, and over 78,800 others injured in the Gaza Strip since Israel launched a large-scale offensive in the Palestinian enclave following Hamas's surprise attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. KATHMANDU, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Janata Samajbabi Party Nepal on Monday quit the coalition government, one week after the party was split. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Health and Population Upendra Yadav, leader of the party, and Deepak Karki, state minister for health and population from the party, tendered their resignations to Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal. The party said in a statement that it quit the government because of the changed political context. On May 6, Ashok Rai, federal council chair of Janata Samajbadi Party Nepal, registered a new Janata Samajbadi Party with seven lawmakers. This move left Yadav with only five lawmakers. On Sunday, the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist Leninist) and Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Center) led by Dahal withdrew their support to the government in Madhesh Province led by Yadav's party. Dahal formed a new coalition government in early March after breaking coalition with the Nepali Congress and rejoining hands with the CPN-UML. YANGON, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar police have seized 10,000 kg of controlled chemicals sodium cyanide in Shan State of eastern Myanmar, according to the Central Committee for Drug Abuse Control (CCDAC) on Monday. Acting on a tip-off, the country's anti-narcotics police searched two vehicles in Yatsauk Township of Shan State on May 11 and confiscated the chemicals, the CCDAC said. The seized chemicals had a street value of about 70 million kyats (about 33,333 U.S. dollars), it said. Five suspects were arrested for the case, the CCDAC said, adding they were charged under the country's Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Law, and further investigations were underway. NEW DELHI, May 13 (Xinhua) -- At least four schools in the western Indian city of Jaipur Monday received bomb threats, prompting school administrations to evacuate students and call police, officials said. The threat received over emails claimed that explosives had been planted on school premises. Police swung into action and dispatched multiple bomb disposal squads and sniffer dogs to the schools to conduct searches. However, nothing suspicious has been found so far, and according to police, the threat seemed to be a hoax. "Four to five schools have received bomb threats. Police have reached the schools," Jaipur Police Commissioner Biju George Joseph told media. The searches in the schools were going on until the last reports poured in. Police said they were trying to identify the sender. On Sunday, Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi and several hospitals in the national capital received bomb threats over emails. Earlier this month over 100 schools in the Indian capital region Delhi received similar messages triggering a massive scare. In December 2023, dozens of schools in the southern Indian city of Bengaluru received bomb threats, which later proved to be a hoax. MANILA, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Two soldiers were killed and four others wounded in a clash with rebels in Kalinga province in the northern Philippines, the military said Monday. The military said the troops were under a combat operation on Sunday in a town in the landlocked province, where they clashed with a number of New People's Army (NPA) rebels. The NPA rebels have been fighting against the government troops since 1969. They concentrate their attacks on rural areas and have skirmishes with the military. Military data showed that the NPA's personnel strength has declined since its peak of around 25,000 armed members in the 1980s. Rescue team members work in a damaged area after a cold lava flood at Agam regency in West Sumatra, Indonesia, on May 13, 2024. The number of fatalities of the lava floods in Indonesia's West Sumatra province rose to 37 with 17 others missing, a senior official of the local disaster agency told Xinhua on Monday. Rains on Saturday night had swept away cold lava from Marapi volcano and Singgalang volcano, resulting in cold lava floods that hit the regencies of Tanah Datar, Agam and Pariaman, and Padang Panjang town. (Photo by Andri Madiansyah/Xinhua) JAKARTA, May 13 (Xinhua) -- The number of fatalities of the lava floods in Indonesia's West Sumatra province rose to 37 with 17 others missing, a senior official of the local disaster agency told Xinhua on Monday. Fajar Sukma, head of emergency unit of disaster management and mitigation agency of West Sumatra province, said the search and rescue operation for the missing people has resumed. Soldiers, policemen, the personnel of the disaster agency and the search and rescue office were involved in the search and rescue mission, he added. Muharrindo Idwan, a senior press officer at the provincial disaster management and mitigation agency, said an information center has been established in Tanah Datar regency to make the information about the floods more valid. Rains on Saturday night had swept away cold lava from Marapi volcano and Singgalang volcano, resulting in cold lava floods that hit the regencies of Tanah Datar, Agam and Pariaman, and Padang Panjang town. Earlier media reports put the death toll at 34. This photo taken on May 13, 2024 shows a damaged area after a cold lava flood at Agam regency in West Sumatra, Indonesia. The number of fatalities of the lava floods in Indonesia's West Sumatra province rose to 37 with 17 others missing, a senior official of the local disaster agency told Xinhua on Monday. Rains on Saturday night had swept away cold lava from Marapi volcano and Singgalang volcano, resulting in cold lava floods that hit the regencies of Tanah Datar, Agam and Pariaman, and Padang Panjang town. (Photo by Andri Madiansyah/Xinhua) Rescue team members work in a damaged area after a cold lava flood at Agam regency in West Sumatra, Indonesia, on May 13, 2024. The number of fatalities of the lava floods in Indonesia's West Sumatra province rose to 37 with 17 others missing, a senior official of the local disaster agency told Xinhua on Monday. Rains on Saturday night had swept away cold lava from Marapi volcano and Singgalang volcano, resulting in cold lava floods that hit the regencies of Tanah Datar, Agam and Pariaman, and Padang Panjang town. (Photo by Andri Madiansyah/Xinhua) Students take part in a protest against the war in Gaza Strip, in Athens, Greece, on May 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos) ATHENS, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Greek university students are staging an overnight protest here Monday to show their solidarity with Palestinian people. Thousands gathered Monday evening outside the entrance of the main building of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, where they unfurled a big banner reading "This genocide bears the stamp of the USA- EU-Israel,""No to the involvement of Greece," and "Free Palestine." Protesters chanted anti-war slogans and waved Palestinian flags, as a group set up tents for those who wished to spend the night in front of the university. "We watch in horror the new murderous attacks against Palestinian people...The unprecedented students' protests in universities across the world are our response to this crime," read a press statement by organizers from the Student Unions of Athens that organized the protest here. The students also cited their solidarity with similar protest movements in the United States and France, stating that they were standing "on the right side of history" and demanding that "the genocide of the Palestinian people be stopped here and now." A similar overnight protest was staged by student unions in the center of port city Thessaloniki in northern Greece on Monday. "We are joining our voices with students around the world, we become another link in the big chain of solidarity with the Palestinian people... Faced with wars that spread death for profit, everyone has the responsibility not to remain silent," Greek students' unions said. Over the past month, Greek students have staged symbolic sit-ins at universities and joined anti-war rallies, following pro-Palestinian mobilizations on universities' campuses in other European countries. Students take part in a protest against the war in Gaza Strip, in Athens, Greece, on May 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos) Students take part in a protest against the war in Gaza Strip, in Athens, Greece, on May 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos) A student shouts slogans during a protest against the war in Gaza Strip, in Athens, Greece, on May 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos) A student takes part in a protest against the war in Gaza Strip, in Athens, Greece, on May 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos) Dividends are small but mighty wealth creators. That's abundantly clear in the data. Over the past 50 years, the average dividend-paying stock in the S&P 500 has delivered a 9.2% average annualized total return, according to data from Ned Davis Research and Hartford Funds. That has outperformed an equal-weighted S&P 500 index's 7.7% average annual total return. However, the secret to dividend stocks lies in their growth. Dividend growers and initiators delivered a 10.2% average annual return, significantly outpacing companies with no change in their dividend policy, with an average of 6.7%. Some companies stand out for their ability to grow their dividend. Marsh & McLennan (NYSE: MMC), Mastercard (NYSE: MA), and Equity LifeStyle Properties (NYSE: ELS) have delivered 10% compound annual dividend growth over the past decade. Here's why a few Fool.com contributors believe investors should take a closer look at these top-notch dividend stocks. A behind-the-scenes insurance broker putting up incredible returns Tyler Crowe (Marsh & McLennan): Don't be surprised if this is the first time you've heard of Marsh & McLennan. Unless you work in a business's risk management or finance divisions, you may never have encountered this business. Marsh & McLennan's primary business is business risk management. It's a business insurance broker, a healthcare and retirement benefit plan manager, a reinsurance broker, and a consultancy firm rolled into one. It even has an "outsourced chief investment officer" segment to handle defined benefit pension funds for clients. Insurance for businesses isn't nearly as cookie-cutter as automotive or homeowners insurance. Because of the complexity of underwriting business risk insurance, companies will go through brokers like Marsh & McLennan to advise them on what kind of insurance they need and to bid it out to various underwriters. Marsh & McLennan takes no underwriting risk as it typically gets fees and commissions for the sale of an insurance contract. In 2023, it brokered $160 billion in premiums across its various insurance subsidiaries. Marsh & McLennan has delivered incredible results for its investors. Since 2010, the company has grown its adjusted earnings per share and its free cash flow by 13% and 18%, respectively, on an annualized basis. It has also grown its dividend by 11% annualized over that time. Strong EPS, free cash flow, and dividend growth have all led its stock to nearly double the returns of the S&P 500. Story continues MMC Dividend Chart Risk management is critical for every business, giving Marsh & McLennan a long runway for growth and returns. It's not hard to envision the company continuing its "10% for 10" streak for another decade. A master of moving (and making) money Jason Hall (Mastercard): One look at its 0.5% yield might be enough to keep many dividend investors from considering Mastercard. But unless it's high-yield income you're looking for, I think that's a mistake, because very few companies have been able to deliver the incredible total returns that this credit and debit card network giant has been able to deliver. Over the past decade, Mastercard has earned its shareholders 480% in total returns, with dividends accounting for about 35% of those gains. That's because, despite that low yield -- it's never been as high as 1% -- the company has been able to supercharge its dividend growth rate for many years. Since 2014, Mastercard has increased its dividend an incredible 500%. And while it may not be growing it at the same high rate that it has in the past, the payout still gets boosted a lot. When it was increased for 2024, the $0.66 per share quarterly dividend is almost 16% higher than last year's. That's because Mastercard continues to grow its revenues and profits at an impressive rate. Revenue was up 10% in the first quarter, while earnings per share rocketed up 30% higher. And considering that it earned $3.22 per share while only paying out $0.66 in dividends, the payout is very secure, while there's also a huge amount of room for the company to keep growing the dividend at a high rate for many years to come. Don't disregard low-yield stocks like Mastercard; they sometimes are secret dividend growth stocks that can help investors build a lot of total wealth. Going off the beaten path has paid big dividends Matt DiLallo (Equity LifeStyle Properties): Equity LifeStyle Properties is a dividend growth juggernaut. The real estate investment trust (REIT) has delivered 13.6% compound annual dividend growth over the last decade. It has obliterated the REIT sector's average of 5.5%. That has helped drive a nearly 280% total return for its investors over the past 10 years. The secret to Equity LifeStyle's success lies in its strategy. It focuses on owning and operating manufactured home communities, RV resorts, campgrounds, and marinas. By focusing on properties off the beaten path, it has faced less competition for acquisitions, enabling it to purchase properties at higher initial investment yields. The REIT has also focused on properties with strong underlying growth fundamentals. Moving a mobile home is expensive, which has kept occupancy levels high, allowing the REIT to continue increasing rent even during recessions. Since 1998, Equity LifeStyle has grown its same-store net operating income at a 4.4% annual rate. That's above the 3.3% average of the REIT sector and of durable multifamily properties. Steady, above-average underlying income growth in its existing portfolio has combined with highly accretive acquisitions to drive robust growth in its funds from operations (FFO). It has grown its normalized FFO per share by around a 9% compound annual rate since 2006. That's more than double the REIT sector average. Equity LifeStyle is in a strong position to continue growing briskly. It's benefiting from multiple tailwinds, including favorable demographics, housing affordability issues, and a growing preference for outdoor experiences. Meanwhile, it has a strong financial profile, giving it the flexibility to reinvest in existing communities and acquire new ones. These factors position this REIT to continue growing value for its shareholders in the future. Should you invest $1,000 in Mastercard right now? Before you buy stock in Mastercard, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now and Mastercard wasnt one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, youd have $550,688!* Stock Advisor provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including guidance on building a portfolio, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month. The Stock Advisor service has more than quadrupled the return of S&P 500 since 2002*. See the 10 stocks *Stock Advisor returns as of May 6, 2024 Jason Hall has positions in Mastercard. Matt DiLallo has positions in Mastercard. Tyler Crowe has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Mastercard. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2025 $370 calls on Mastercard and short January 2025 $380 calls on Mastercard. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. The 10% for 10 Club: These 3 Stocks Have Grown Their Dividends 10% (or More) Each Year for a Decade was originally published by The Motley Fool In this article, we will take a look at the 20 Asian countries with the best work-life balance. If you want to skip our discussion on the work-life balance disparities, you can go directly to the 5 Asian Countries with the Best Work-Life Balance. Research reveals that over three-quarters of employees experience burnout in their current roles. The ongoing struggle towards achieving a healthy work-life balance for a significant portion of the world's employees has also been highlighted in a recent report by the International Labour Organization (ILO). This report sheds light on a concerning trend: over a third of the global workforce regularly exceeds the 48-hour workweek limit. Despite some progress in promoting a more balanced lifestyle, the high incidence of burnout highlights the need for improvements across various regions. Worst work-life balance countries frequently face challenges such as long working hours, few days off, and increased stress from work responsibilities. This issue is particularly pronounced in Mexico, where a large number of employees (27%) work longer hours compared to the OECD average (10%). There is also a noticeable gender disparity, with 33% of men experiencing long working hours, whereas 17% of women are in a similar situation. On the other hand, many countries on our list of the best work-life balance countries in 2024 provide generous paid leave and comprehensive family benefits packages, which promote a balanced lifestyle. For instance, in Spain, parents have the legal right to reduce their work hours to address childcare needs. This has resulted in a reduction of 18% in total work time. Although European countries dominate all listings of top countries for work-life balance, several Asian countries, such as Saudi Arabia and South Korea, also have high scores on Remotes Global Life-Work Balance Index. Several Asian companies are known for their policies that promote work-life balance. Some of the best Asian companies for work-life balance are Tech Mahindra Limited (NSE:TECHM), Shiseido Company, Limited (OTCMKTS:SSDOY), and Maybank (KLSE:MAYBANK). Shiseido Company, Limited (OTCMKTS:SSDOY) is a leader in the Japanese beauty industry with innovative skincare, suncare, and makeup products. It has a legacy of 150 years. Shiseidos commitment to work-life balance is evident in the high rate of employees returning from childcare leave (94.9%). Initiatives like "Welcome Back Seminars" and promoting paternity leave through employee stories aim to achieve a healthy work environment. Tech Mahindra Limited (NSE:TECHM) is a leading global technology consulting company based in India that provides digital solutions and services to clients across industries. Tech Mahindra Limited (NSE:TECHM) has several policies that promote work-life balance, such as working from home, flexible work arrangements, parental care leave, in addition to paid time off. The company secured the third position on Vaults 2024 rankings for the best consulting firms in Asia-Pacific for work-life balance. Maybank (KLSE:MAYBANK) stands as a financial services giant in Malaysia. It pioneered extended maternity leave in Malaysia, offering up to 365 days for female employees. This groundbreaking initiative set the stage for a continuous stream of policies and programs that champion family values and allow employees to integrate work with their personal lives. 20 Asian Countries with Best Work-Life Balance christian-joudrey-9bdt03k4ujw-unsplash Our Methodology To shortlist the 20 Asian countries with the best work-life balance, we consulted Remote's Global Life-Work Balance Index. The index was created after analyzing the top 60 economies for key workplace factors like statutory annual leave, sick leave, maternity leave, healthcare access, and overall happiness to create a ranking system with scores out of 100. Each country on the list is accompanied by relevant findings across these metrics, along with the average weekly working hours, to provide insight into the typical workload of employees in that country. The findings shared are sourced through the Remote Global Life-Work Balance Index and various surveys. We have ranked the countries in ascending order based on their index scores. The list also includes some of the countries with the best work-life balance for doctors. By the way, Insider Monkey is an investing website that tracks the movements of corporate insiders and hedge funds. By using a consensus approach, we identify the best stock picks of more than 900 hedge funds investing in US stocks. The top 10 consensus stock picks of hedge funds outperformed the S&P 500 Index by more than 140 percentage points over the last 10 years (see the details here). Whether you are a beginner investor or a professional one looking for the best stocks to buy, you can benefit from the wisdom of hedge funds and corporate insiders. 20 Asian Countries with the Best Work-Life Balance 20. Iraq Index Score: 34.47 Average Hours Worked per Week: 33.6 In Iraq, people place a lot of emphasis on balancing their work and personal lives. According to a survey conducted amongst workers in the Middle East and North African (MENA) region, around 60% of professionals stated that their families are the most important factor influencing their happiness. Moreover, 84% of respondents reported that the top management respects their time and emphasizes work-life balance. Iraqis work an average of 33.6 hours per week. 19. Iran Index Score: 36.03 Average Hours Worked per Week: 33.6 In Iran, many companies go beyond the standard benefits of 53 days of annual leave, emergency leave, marriage leave, and hospitalization leave by offering additional paid sick leave days to their employees. The average number of hours that an Iranian works per week is 33.6, while the happiness score is 4.89. These scores fall within the normal ranges required for an ideal work-life balance. 18. Kazakhstan Index Score: 37.77 Average Hours Worked per Week: 30.7 Kazakhstan recently introduced a four-day workweek and flexible working options. According to Kazakhstan's labor laws, the standard workweek should not surpass 40 hours, equivalent to eight hours per workday from Monday through Friday. The average number of hours that an employee works in Kazakhstan stands at 30.7, well within the limits set by the government. As a result, the happiness index of Kazakhstans employees is 6.23, which reflects a good work-life balance. 17. Indonesia Index Score: 38.21 Average Hours Worked per Week: 31.9 Indonesia prioritizes work-life balance, with nearly half of employees considering it a top job factor. This cultural emphasis on personal well-being is reflected in their dedication to social gatherings, religious events, and family time, which they view as equally important as work responsibilities. This is further supported by moderate working hours, typically averaging 31.9 hours per week, allowing for a good balance between professional and personal commitments. 16. Kuwait Index Score: 38.73 Average Hours Worked per Week: 36.7 Kuwait is a West Asian country with no income tax. It operates on a work week spanning Saturday to Thursday, with Friday serving as the official day of rest. Companies can opt for a five-day workweek, granting both Friday and Saturday as off days. Interestingly, the average Kuwaiti employee works around 36.7 hours per week, and they are entitled to a one-hour break after every 5 consecutive working hours, which is not counted as part of their official work time. 15. United Arab Emirates Index Score: 39.26 Average Hours Worked per Week: 32 According to a survey by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), work-life balance has become important in the UAE, with 67% of employees prioritizing it alongside salary. This shift in priorities necessitates that companies adapt to the changing work culture. UAE is among the top 15 Asian countries with the best work-life balance. 14. China Index Score: 40.89 Average Hours Worked per Week: 31.6 China has a legal workweek of 40 hours, with a maximum of 8 hours per day. While the average hours worked per week in the country stands at 31.6, employers can extend working hours for specific needs after consulting with trade unions and workers. This extension is typically limited to one additional hour per day, and any overtime must be compensated. Nearly two-thirds of Chinese workers have come to value their private lives more than success at work to a greater degree. 13. Bangladesh Index Score: 41.2 Average Hours Worked per Week: 28.5 Bangladesh has seen improvements in creating a positive work environment through initiatives like flexible work hours, leave options, and attractive employee benefits, leading to a well-maintained work-life balance. A Bangladeshi employee works an average of just 28.5 hours per week. 12. Turkey Index Score: 42.7 Average Hours Worked per Week: 29.1 Turkey operates under labor and trade union laws that establish a maximum 45-hour workweek. The average workweek in the country currently stands at a much lower 29.1 hours, indicating a positive trend. Recognizing the importance of work-life balance, organizations are increasingly adopting initiatives that make employees' lives easier, such as offering services that support their personal needs. This focus on well-being is further evidenced by the rising popularity of the 4-day workweek. The first company in Turkey to adopt a four-day workweek reported an 85% improvement in both work-life balance and employee engagement. 11. Israel Index Score: 42.99 Average Hours Worked per Week: 33.6 While over 14% of Israeli workers do log long hours, the average workweek in Israel sits at a moderate 33.6 hours. This, along with adequate leave options, leads to a rising work-life balance satisfaction rate of 61% and a happiness index of 7.36 out of 10. It seems that Israel is on the right track towards achieving a better balance between professional commitments and personal well-being. 10. India Index Score: 44.32 Average Hours Worked per Week: 31.9 India has an average workweek of 31.9 hours, while the happiness index of employees stands at 3.78. The Factories Act guarantees 12 paid leave days per year for workers who have completed at least 240 working days. Moreover, workers taking 4 or more consecutive leave days receive their wages upfront, ensuring they are financially prepared for their time off. 9. Pakistan Index Score: 45.99 Average Hours Worked per Week: 26.3 Pakistani work culture often demands dedication and commitment. Pakistani law sets the standard workday at 9 hours, including a one-hour break for lunch and prayer. Overtime can extend daily hours to a maximum of 12. However, the legal workweek remains capped at 48 hours, with a maximum of 56 hours, including overtime. This translates to a maximum of 8 overtime hours per week, averaging roughly 1 hour and 20 minutes daily. Pakistanis work for an average of 26.3 hours per week, which points to a satisfactory work-life balance. 8. Japan Index Score: 48.13 Average Hours Worked per Week: 30.7 Japan is an island country in East Asia. Ikigai, a cherished Japanese philosophy, guides working-age individuals toward finding fulfillment and a sense of purpose in life. People working in companies in Japan usually work from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm on weekdays. There are many cases where Saturdays, Sundays, and national holidays are days off, but some people in the service and real estate industries are off on weekdays and work on weekends. Japan is among the top 10 countries with the best work-life balance in Asia. 7. Philippines Index Score: 48.68 Average Hours Worked per Week: 26.3 The Philippines is a country in Southeast Asia. While work hours vary across different industries, Filipinos generally prioritize personal relationships over professional advancement. This is evident in the fact that nearly 73% of Filipino workers would even consider sacrificing a pay raise or promotion for a better work-life balance. Filipinos work an average of 26.3 hours per week. 6. Vietnam Index Score: 49.65 Average Hours Worked per Week: 29.1 Vietnam is a Southeast Asian country. Employees in Vietnam are becoming firmer about their work-life balance, with more than a third of them saying that they would quit if their job disturbed their work-life balance. Presently, Vietnamese employees work an average of 29.1 hours a week, with the happiness index being 5.49, suggesting a well-maintained work-life balance. Click to continue reading and see the 5 Asian Countries with the Best Work-Life Balance. Suggested articles: Disclosure: None. 20 Asian Countries with the Best Work-Life Balance is originally published on Insider Monkey. Key Insights Insiders appear to have a vested interest in Nanofilm Technologies International's growth, as seen by their sizeable ownership The top 2 shareholders own 53% of the company Using data from analyst forecasts alongside ownership research, one can better assess the future performance of a company A look at the shareholders of Nanofilm Technologies International Limited (SGX:MZH) can tell us which group is most powerful. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 51% to be precise, is individual insiders. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn). So, insiders of Nanofilm Technologies International have a lot at stake and every decision they make on the companys future is important to them from a financial point of view. In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Nanofilm Technologies International. View our latest analysis for Nanofilm Technologies International What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Nanofilm Technologies International? Many institutions measure their performance against an index that approximates the local market. So they usually pay more attention to companies that are included in major indices. We can see that Nanofilm Technologies International does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. 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. If multiple institutions change their view on a stock at the same time, you could see the share price drop fast. It's therefore worth looking at Nanofilm Technologies International's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters. We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Nanofilm Technologies International. Because actions speak louder than words, we consider it a good sign when insiders own a significant stake in a company. In Nanofilm Technologies International's case, its Top Key Executive, Xu Shi, is the largest shareholder, holding 46% of shares outstanding. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 7.3% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 4.3% by the third-largest shareholder. A more detailed study of the shareholder registry showed us that 2 of the top shareholders have a considerable amount of ownership in the company, via their 53% stake. While studying institutional ownership for a company can add value to your research, it is also a good practice to research analyst recommendations to get a deeper understand of a stock's expected performance. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily. Story continues Insider Ownership Of Nanofilm Technologies International The definition of company insiders can be subjective and does vary between jurisdictions. Our data reflects individual insiders, capturing board members at the very least. The company management answer to the board and the latter should represent the interests of shareholders. Notably, sometimes top-level managers are on the board themselves. Most consider insider ownership a positive because it can indicate the board is well aligned with other shareholders. However, on some occasions too much power is concentrated within this group. Our information suggests that insiders own more than half of Nanofilm Technologies International Limited. This gives them effective control of the company. So they have a S$237m stake in this S$462m business. Most would argue this is a positive, showing strong alignment with shareholders. You can click here to see if those insiders have been buying or selling. General Public Ownership With a 30% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Nanofilm Technologies International. 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. Private Equity Ownership Private equity firms hold a 7.3% stake in Nanofilm Technologies International. This suggests they can be influential in key policy decisions. Some might like this, because private equity are sometimes activists who hold management accountable. But other times, private equity is selling out, having taking the company public. Private Company Ownership We can see that Private Companies own 5.1%, of the shares on issue. Private companies may be related parties. Sometimes insiders have an interest in a public company through a holding in a private company, rather than in their own capacity as an individual. While it's hard to draw any broad stroke conclusions, it is worth noting as an area for further research. Next Steps: It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Nanofilm Technologies International better, we need to consider many other factors. Take risks for example - Nanofilm Technologies International has 1 warning sign we think you should be aware of. 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. mihtiander / iStock.com Retiring in Hawaii might seem like a dream come true, but the state isnt without its drawbacks. For one thing, the average home value is around $860,000. This is roughly twice the national average. The state also taxes nearly every form of retirement income, except private or public pensions. Explore More: 10 Things Boomers Should Always Buy in Retirement Check Out: How To Get $340 Per Year in Cash Back on Gas and Other Things You Already Buy If youre thinking about retiring and want to move somewhere thats arguably better than Hawaii, especially when it comes to finances, there are a few options to consider. Some of these are located within the United States, while others will see you going farther abroad. Still, if youre flexible, you could just find the next best place to spend your retirement years. Victor Segura Garcia / iStock.com Mexico For retirees who want to stay closer to the U.S., Mexico offers a convenient and affordable option. Cities like San Miguel de Allende and Lake Chapala have large expat communities and offer a high quality of life at a fraction of the cost of U.S. retirement destinations, said Neal Shah, founder and CEO of CareYaya. Mexico City has a very low cost-of-living index of just 47.3, according to Numbeo. For context, a cost-of-living index of 100 is considered average in the United States. This means Mexico City and surrounding areas are much cheaper to live in. Plus, the country as a whole has a lot to offer. Mexico also boasts a rich culture, delicious cuisine and stunning natural beauty, from its pristine beaches to its vibrant cities, Shah said. While safety concerns are a consideration in some parts of the country, many retiree-friendly communities offer a secure and welcoming environment. Mexico also doesnt tax retirement income. Youll still be taxed by the U.S. government though. Check Out: Retirement 2024: These Are the 7 Worst Places To Retire in South Carolina Learn More: Owe Money to the IRS? Most People Dont Realize They Should Do This One Thing Wealthy people know the best money secrets. Learn how to copy them. Costa Rica Costa Rica is another popular choice for U.S. citizens who want to retire without going too far abroad. Based on my travels around the world and time living abroad, I confidently recommend Costa Rica as the ideal retirement alternative for one simple reason pura vida, said Tim Schmidt, a travel expert and founder of All World. Though I now call South Florida home, I lived in Costa Rica for nine years. And I can tell you those were the happiest and most fulfilling years of my life. Story continues Similar to many parts of Hawaii, Costa Rica has some gorgeous scenery for those who prefer that over the hustle and bustle of metropolitan life. But the cost of living is a major draw by comparison. Retirees have access to modern amenities and quality healthcare, Schmidt said. The infrastructure and services rival the U.S. but at a lower cost. Medical care is top-notch yet cheap. Most importantly, Costa Ricas cost of living is 50% to 60% lower than the U.S. Retirees can live comfortably on $2,000 monthly. You can enjoy paradise without going broke. San Jose, Costa Rica, has a COL index of 54.6. Trending Now: Retirement Spending: 9 Things Even Spendthrifts Dont Waste Money On Olga Tarasyuk / Getty Images/iStockphoto Portugal For retirees seeking a European lifestyle at a fraction of the cost of other popular destinations like Spain or Italy, Portugal is a compelling choice, Shah said. The country offers a mild Mediterranean climate, stunning beaches and vibrant cities like Lisbon and Porto. Portugal also has a relatively low cost of living, with affordable housing, healthcare and dining options. Because its so centrally located, retiring in Portugal makes it easy to travel to other European countries or even back to the U.S. for a visit. What I appreciate most about Portugal is how you really get the full package without the high costs, said Jackson Groves, professional adventure photographer and travel expert with Journey Era. From beautiful scenery like Sintras lush mountains to the hospitality of locals everywhere, the lifestyle is top notch. And whether you prefer historic cities or beaches along the Algarve, there are phenomenal communities all around. With a COL index of 51.1, your money will go much further in Portugal than in Hawaii. Darwin Brandis / iStock.com North Carolina If cost is a concern, you might want to avoid some places in North Carolina like Hendersonville or Charlotte. However, there are still some highly affordable locations in the state that also offer a high quality of life. Alonso Marly, a travel expert at Skylux Travel, suggested Marion in particular for those age 55 and up. The collective hard work and local pride of the community have transformed it into an ideal mountain destination for seniors, he said. It is a very compact yet vibrant and affordable place that brings the local community together for various festivities, not to mention Marions breathtaking nature that helps retirees stay active throughout the year. Besides, this town is also known for its senior communities and homes, which offer both independent and assisted living, making the retirement years much more enjoyable. The COL index in North Carolina is 77.3. The average house costs $329,225, according to Zillow. traveler1116 / Getty Images/iStockphoto Oklahoma For retirees seeking a quieter lifestyle without the high cost of living, Oklahoma could be the place to go. The average home value is just $203,455, less than a quarter of what youd get in Hawaii. While you will miss out on those stunning beaches, you might not mind the price. The living costs fall below the average here for everything from housing to groceries and healthcare, Marly said. The area is considered relatively safe and offers plenty of amenities for active lifestyle and culture lovers, with hiking trails, parks, art galleries, museums and theaters. Oklahoma is also home to Saint Francis Hospital, one of the best medical facilities in the region. Discover More: Retirement Planning: Heres How Much Money You Actually Need To Age in Place Rat0007 / Getty Images/iStockphoto Malaysia Last but not least, if youre looking for a place thats on par with Hawaii in many ways but costs way less, check out Malaysia. This Southeast Asian country may not be the first place that comes to mind for retirement, but it offers a compelling mix of modern amenities, cultural diversity and natural beauty, Shah said. Cities like Penang and Kuching offer a high standard of living at a low cost, with excellent healthcare, infrastructure and dining options. The country also boasts jungles, beautiful islands, rainforests and an abundance of wildlife things you just wont find anywhere else. Its also centrally located for those who want to experience the wonders of Asia in their retirement years. Kuala Lumpur has a COL index of 34.6. Penang is even cheaper at just 32.1. More From GOBankingRates This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 6 Places To Retire That Are Better Than Hawaii and Way Cheaper Alaska Energy Metals Corporation VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Alaska Energy Metals Corporation (TSX-V: AEMC, OTCQB: AKEMF) (AEMC or the Company) today announced: The sale of its shareholding in Felix Gold Ltd. (ASX: FXG) (Felix Gold), and The sale of its Mexico subsidiary, Recursos Millrock S. de R.L. de C.V. (Recursos Millrock). As a result of these sales, AEMC added non-dilutive capital to its balance sheet. We have strategically re-built our asset portfolio to enhance our long-term sustainability and maintain focus on our Nikolai Nickel Project, says Gregory Beischer, CEO of Alaska Energy Metals. These sales allow us to realize value for these non-core assets. Alaska Energy Metals owns other gold property assets in Alaska that it may also consider selling. Felix Gold Shares The Company sold the Felix Gold shares it received in 2022 as partial payment for its gold projects in the Fairbanks Gold District in Alaska. Proceeds from the sale amount to CAD$350,000 net of brokerage and currency exchange fees. Mexico Subsidiary The Company has completed the sale of its Mexico subsidiary, Recursos Millrock, to Grupo Minero Factor S.A. de C.V., a private company based in Chihuahua, Mexico. Consideration for the purchase was the grant of royalty interests in 12 mining concessions that were held by Recursos Millrock. Of particular note is the 0.5% royalty on the Higuerita concession, which comprises the El Batamote porphyry copper project. Grupo Factor must offer to return the concessions to the Company in the event they decide to abandon them. The royalties are summarized in the table below. The Company may consider the sale of these royalty interests in the future. Table of Royalties For additional information, visit: https://alaskaenergymetals.com/ ABOUT ALASKA ENERGY METALS Alaska Energy Metals Corporation (AEMC) is an Alaska-based corporation with offices in Anchorage and Vancouver working to sustainably deliver the critical materials needed for national security and a bright energy future, while generating superior returns for shareholders. AEMC is focused on delineating and developing the large-scale, bulk tonnage, polymetallic Eureka deposit containing nickel, copper, cobalt, chromium, iron, platinum, palladium, and gold. Located in Interior Alaska near existing transportation and power infrastructure, its flagship project, Nikolai, is well-situated to become a significant domestic source of strategic energy-related metals for North America. AEMC also holds a secondary project, Angliers-Belleterre, in western Quebec. Today, material sourcing demands excellence in environmental performance, carbon mitigation, and the responsible management of human and financial capital. AEMC works every day to earn and maintain the respect and confidence of the public and believes that ESG performance is measured by action and led from the top. Story continues ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD Gregory Beischer Gregory Beischer, President & CEO FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: Gregory A. Beischer, President & CEO Toll-Free: 877-217-8978 | Local: 604-638-3164 Sarah Mawji, Public Relations Venture Strategies Email: sarah@venturestrategies.com Some statements in this news release may contain forward-looking information (within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation), including, but not limited to, a potential sale of royalties and other assets. 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. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date those statements are made. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guaranteeing of future performance and actual results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include regulatory actions, market prices, 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. Forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Company's management on the date the statements are made. Except as required by applicable law, the Company assumes no obligation to update or to publicly announce the results of any change to any forward-looking statement contained or incorporated by reference herein to reflect actual results, future events or developments, changes in assumptions, or changes in other factors affecting the forward-looking statements. If the Company updates any forward-looking statement(s), no inference should be drawn that it will make additional updates with respect to those or other forward-looking statements. 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 press release. A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/6f5e7abd-7468-45f2-b709-825668d5266d By Supantha Mukherjee STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Amazon said on Monday it would invest more than 1.2 billion euros ($1.3 billion) in its French operations and create more than 3,000 permanent jobs in the country. The French presidency had said on Sunday that Amazon and other companies, including GSK and Accenture, would announce investments worth billions as part of the country's annual "Choose France" event, which begins on Monday. Amazon Web Services' (AWS) investment would increase cloud infrastructure in the Paris area to support France's flourishing generative AI opportunity, and logistics infrastructure in the Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes region, the company said in a statement. Increased popularity of GenAI has been fuelling demand for cloud services, and France has become a hub for AI, with promising startups such as Mistral and Poolside. Companies such as Meta and Google have set up AI research centres in the country. Amazon has invested more than 20 billion euros in its French operations since 2010 and employs more than 22,000 permanent employees across its cloud and online retail businesses. "These jobs are in addition to the 2,000 jobs we announced for 2024," said Frederic Duval, country manager at Amazon France. A part of the investment would also be used to expand its logistics network to increase speed of delivery and reduce carbon emissions. It has more than 35 logistics facilities in France. ($1 = 0.9286 euros) (Reporting by Supantha Mukherjee in Stockholm; Editing by Tom Hogue and Gerry Doyle) American Express and payment solutions company Worldpay have signed a new agreement. The aim is to make it easier for small businesses to welcome loyal and high-spending American Express cardmembers. The agreement is part of a continued strategic approach by American Express to fuel the companys momentum in the UK and expand the number of locations where its Cardmembers can spend. In the UK, the total number of Amex accepting locations has grown by 46% over the past three years. Worldpay is a long-standing partner for American Express. The new arrangement gives small businesses another option to accept Amex Card payments. By adding American Express as a payment choice, small businesses can capture more spend and enhance their checkout experience. Worldpay and their merchants will benefit from a more straightforward experience under the new agreement. They will receive a single statement to reconcile for their transactions, one settlement process, a simpler onboarding journey and single servicing contact. Dan Edelman Vice President and UK General Manager, Merchant Services at American Express, said: As our cardmember base continues to grow in the UK, weve been making great strides in expanding our merchant coverage. This new strategic agreement will help power our progress, meaning thousands of additional small businesses across the country can benefit from welcoming Amex cardmembers. Amex cardmembers: spend 3.9 times more annually and 3.2 times more frequently than non-cardmembers Chris Wood, General Manager SMB International and US Direct, Worldpay added: Working in partnership with American Express, were pleased to be opening up more opportunities for our base of merchants in the UK and Ireland to benefit from the spending power of loyal Amex cardmembers. Consumers expect to pay the way they want to. By enabling our merchants to expand their choice of payments options more seamlessly, were helping them serve their customers better. "American Express partners with Worldpay to offer greater payment choice for small businesses" was originally created and published by Electronic Payments International, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. A study has been published highlighting that the Sensinel cardiopulmonary management (CPM) system by Analog Devices (ADI) effectively detects signs of fluid overload in the heart and could be used to monitor patients and prevent hospital admissions. The results, published in the European Journal of Heart Failure, show that the device performed well, and was able to detect the changes in fluid and weight in patients as patients had fluid removed. Researchers for the study believe that this new wearable sensor device could be used as a method of monitoring patients with heart failure and detecting fluid overload, as well as potentially reducing hospital admissions. The amount of fluid in the body is an important warning sign of congestive heart failure. The data was also presented at the European Society of Cardiologys Heart Failure Congress in Lisbon, Portugal, on 12 May. The Sensinel CPM System is a non-invasive, remote management and wearable device. It is designed to capture vital cardiopulmonary measurements for chronic disease management such as heart failure. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved device allows patients to self-apply and wear for three to five minutes at home. It then collects health data and transmits it to the Sensinel CPM Cloud Platform through a cellular connection. Patients with heart failure have trouble pumping blood around the body, which causes fluid to build up. According to a report on GlobalDatas Pharma Intelligence Center, there will be 3,708,285 cases of heart failure in the seven major markets (UK, US, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, and Japan). GlobalData is the parent company of Clinical Trials Arena. The 66-patient CONGEST-HF study enrolled patients who were admitted to the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH), Glasgow, and the Scottish National Advanced Heart Failure Unit. NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Research and Innovations sponsored the trial, with ADI providing funding to the University of Glasgow for the design and conduct of the study. Pardeep Jhund, the senior author of the study, said: The next step will be to conduct a large trial to determine if the device can detect fluid accumulation in patients who use it at home and provide sufficient warning so that we can reduce hospitalisations in those patients who use the device. The use of wearable devices in the heart disease space is increasing. In July 2023, the first US patients were implanted with FIRE1s sensor device that monitors the amount of fluid in the body. The device is implanted into the vena cava using a small catheter. It is inserted in collapsed form and expands to full size upon entering the vein, continuously measuring the size of the vessel. According to GlobalData, the remote patient monitoring market will generate $760m by 2030. Story continues "Analog Devicess Sensinel CPM system reduces heart fluid in published study" was originally created and published by Clinical Trials Arena, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. By Vladimir Soldatkin MOSCOW (Reuters) - Kremlin-owned energy kingpin Gazprom, once Russia's most profitable company, could face a long period of poor performance as it struggles to fill the gap of lost European gas sales with its domestic market and Chinese exports. The company recently announced an annual net loss of $7 billion, its first since 1999, following a steep decline in trade with Europe. Gazprom's troubles reflect the deep impact the European sanctions have had on Russia's gas industry, as well as the limitations of Moscow's growing partnership with China. The impact of international sanctions on oil exports has been easier for Moscow to absorb because Russia has been able to redirect sea-borne oil exports to other buyers. Gazprom relied on Europe as its largest sales market until 2022, when Russia's conflict with Ukraine prompted the EU to cut Gazprom gas imports. Russia supplied a total of around 63.8 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas to Europe by various routes in 2022, according to Gazprom data and Reuters calculations. The volume decreased further, by 55.6%, to 28.3 bcm last year. That's compared to a peak of 200.8 bcm Gazprom pumped in 2018 to the EU and other countries, such as Turkey. Mysterious blasts at Nord Stream undersea gas pipelines from Russia to Germany in September 2022 also significantly undermined Russian gas trade with Europe. Russia has turned to China, seeking to boost its pipeline gas sales to 100 bcm a year by 2030. Gazprom started pipeline gas supplies to China via the Power of Siberia in the end of 2019. It plans to reach the 38 bcm annual capacity of Power of Siberia by the end of this year, while Moscow and Beijing also agreed in 2022 about exports of 10 bcm from the Pacific island of Sakhalin. Russia's biggest hope is the Power of Siberia 2 pipeline via Mongolia, which is planned to export 50 bcm per year. But that has hit some pitfalls due to the lack of agreement over pricing and other issues. "While Gazprom will see some additional export revenues when all those pipelines will be up and running, it will never be able to offset completely the business it has lost to Europe," Kateryna Filippenko, a research director on gas and LNG at Wood Mackenzie, said. CHINESE PIPEDREAM? Russia has also struggled so far to establish a gas trading centre in Turkey, an idea first floated by President Vladimir Putin in October 2022. No significant development has been reported since. Even if Gazprom can get its pipeline supply to China up and running, sales revenues will be much lower than from Europe. Story continues According to Moscow-based BCS brokerage, Gazprom's revenue from gas sales to Europe in 2015-2019 averaged at $3.3 billion per month thanks to monthly supplies of 15.5 bcm. Taking into account a price of $286.9 per 1,000 cubic metres, as reported by the Russian economy ministry, and Gazprom's gas exports of 22.7 bcm last year, the total value of the company's gas sold to China could have reach $6.5 billion for the whole of 2023. Gazprom did not reveal its revenue from sales to Europe or China for 2023 separately. Dr Michal Meidan, head of China Energy Research at Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, said China is unlikely to replace Europe for Russia as a highly profitable gas export market. "China gives Russia an outlet but at much lower prices and revenue than Europe," she said. In 2023, Russian pipeline gas was sold at $6.6 per million British thermal units (mmBtu) to China and slightly lower than that in the first quarter 2024 at $6.4/mmBtu. That's compared to an average price of Russian gas in Europe of $12.9/mmBtu last year. According to a document seen by Reuters last month, Russia expects its gas price for China to continue gradually declining in next four years, while a worst-case scenario does not rule out a 45% fall to $156.7 per 1,000 cubic metres (around $4.4 per mmBtu) in 2027 versus 2023. It didn't say what might drive prices down, but Russia is facing rivalry from other pipeline gas suppliers to China, such as Turkmenistan, as well as sea-borne liquefied natural gas. The financials of Gazprom, which also include its oil and power units, showed that the revenue from the natural gas business more than halved last year, to just over 3.1 trillion roubles, while oil and gas condensate sales amounted to 4.1 trillion roubles, up 4.3%, according to BCS brokerage. Alexei Belogoriyev of Moscow-based Institute for Energy and Finance said it would be impossible for Gazprom to restore profitability relying solely on its gas business. He said strategic shift to production and export of ammonia, methanol and other gas processing products for Gazprom is possible, but it will not give a quick return. "At the same time, the prospects for the Power of Siberia 2 remain vague: China most likely won't need for so much additional imports in 2030s due to the likely slowdown in demand growth and high domestic gas production rates," he said. (Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; additional reporting by Oksana Kobzeva in Moscow and Nina Chestney in London; editing by Nina Chestney and David Evans) Duncan Wanblad, chief executive of Anglo American, has promised to unveil a new strategy in a bid to fend off takeover advances - Ian Waldie Anglo American has rejected a second takeover offer from Australian mining rival BHP and promised to set-out a new plan for growth to convince shareholders to back its future as an independent business. The FTSE 100 mining group on Monday said it had rejected an improved 34bn takeover offer from BHP. The second bid was priced at 27.53 per share, 9.7pc higher than the 25.08 a share approach rejected last month. However, Anglo said the latest offer still significantly undervalues the group. Duncan Wanblad, Anglo chief executive, and chairman Stuart Chambers promised to unveil a new strategy on Tuesday in a bid to convince shareholders to reject the continued takeover advances. Shareholders had complained about the slow pace of the groups review. Mr Chambers said the new plan would focus on delivering against its strategic priorities of operational excellence, portfolio simplification and growth It has sparked speculation that Anglo American could spin-off divisions including its planned fertiliser mine in Yorkshire. Deutsche Bank analysts said Anglo could simplify its sprawling empire by fully or partially selling luxury diamond brand De Beers and its fledgling polyhalite mine Woodsmith in North Yorkshire. The outcome of the review will be closely watched by politicians in both the UK and South Africa because of the number of jobs tied to Anglos mining assets. In the UK, Tory MP Sir Robert Goodwill has said he will seek assurances over the future of Woodsmith if the site changes hands. Sir Robert, whose Scarborough and Whitby constituency is home to the project, told The Telegraph last month that mothballing the site was not an option because of its advanced state of development. Analysts have suggested that Anglo American could simplify its structure by selling its Woodsmith site in North Yorkshire Anglos mining commitment to South Africa is also particularly sensitive given how many local workers rely on the company. Upcoming South African elections on May 29 will further heightened scrutiny of Anglos plans. Mr Chambers promised to unlock value at the group in light of the fresh BHP approach. Management are seeking to bolster the case for keeping Anglo independent amid expectations that BHP may yet return with a third bid. The Australian company has until May 22 to make a final binding bid. Other potential suitors such as Glencore and Rio Tino have all studied the possibility of making rival offers, according to reports. BHP chief executive Mike Henry said: BHP put forward a revised proposal to the Anglo American board that we strongly believe would be a win-win for BHP and Anglo American shareholders. We are disappointed that this second proposal has been rejected. Story continues Mr Henrys offer involves a complex two-step process whereby Anglo shareholders would first receive shares in its subsidiaries Anglo American Platinum, known as Amplats, and Kumba Iron Ore. Both are listed on the South African stock market. After this demeger is completed, Anglo investors would then swap each share they own for 0.8132 BHP shares. It means investors would swap UK-listed Anglo shares for three separate non-UK listed shares: BHP, Amplats and Kumba. Anglos UK shareholders have previously criticised the takeover structure as unappealing. BHP offer is all stock. A cash element may prove more appealing to Anglo shareholders. Liberum analysts said: Given the emphatic no from Anglo Americans board on accepting execution risk of demergers pre-deal, its no surprise BHPs revised offer was rejected. Clearly, a successful bid probably requires a much higher premium one that BHP is probably unwilling to pay. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Apple cofounder Steve Wozniak was in high school the first time he left his home state of California. He was boarding a flight to Boulder to check out the University of Colorado campus with some friends. The electronics prodigy had designed his first computer at age 13, and by the time he applied to colleges, he was a candidate for several of the countrys top technology schools. But that first night in Boulder changed things for him. He saw snow for the first time and fell in love with the beauty and freshness of the school. Wozniak recalled the one year he spent at the school, from 1968 to 1969, in his Thursday commencement speech to the University of Colorado Boulders class of 2024. He described going to his first concert (Simon and Garfunkel), and showing his fellow Apple cofounder Steve Jobs his favorite Bob Dylan records. Still, when I look at my yearbook from that year, he told students, it shows a lot of soldiers on this campus with assault rifles during the Vietnam War protests. In his speech, Wozniak affirmed the importance of intellectual freedom through his own experiences as one of the countrys most influential leaders of electronic innovation, citing the institutional and bureaucratic pushback on his own technological creations, and the military presence that had taken over the campus. Today, as more than 80 college encampments across the country protest the U.S.s financial support of Israels military campaign in Gaza, Wozniaks perspective comes at a time many are calling to protect academic freedom. After Wozniak visited Boulder for the first time, he said in the speech, I told my parents I would only apply to this one school, none of the others. They told him they only had enough money to afford one year of out-of-state tuition at the school, but told him to follow his heart. That freedom he experienced, he said, became invaluable advice to him. My parents let me follow my heart, he said, So I was careful to be that way with my own children; their choice is the most important. It wasnt always smooth sailing, though. Institutional pushback was prevalent in the computer labs he studied at. Instead of being praised here for some really good scientific programs I wrote, with the one huge massive computer down in the basement, I was demeaned because I ran my class five times over budget, he said. I didnt realize it boiled down to money and bureaucracy and that kind of stuff. To be fair, Wozniak was expelled from the school after his first year for hacking into the schools network and sending prank messages. Still, he faced resistance even while developing innovative computer programs at a time when there were no books on the subject, he said. Story continues He made a decision: I knew computers by heart. I decided I wanted a computer of my own that I could decide what to do with it. The goal for that computer, he said, was to help other human beings do more with their lives than they could do without a computer, and not to rely on million-dollar mainframes that companies and universities could afford. That dream was soon realized. In 1976, Wozniak built out the first versions of Apples personal computers, and the following year, the company released the Apple II, one of the earliest personal computers available to the general public, which was met with huge commercial success. In 1985, Wozniak left his role at Apple to find an engineering role that didnt also involve running a fast-growing business, selling much of his Apple stock upon his departure, according to Business Insider. Since then, Wozniak has leaned into the countrys education system, spending eight years teaching fifth grade. He presented the graduating class with some advice he has collected from all of that experience: You grow up in education to be leaders, not followers. Think for yourself and decide whats right and wrong. Today, as the country faces some of the biggest student protests since those that emerged during the Vietnam War, his words of advice have taken on deeper meaning. According to a tally by the Associated Press, since April 18 there have been at least 38 incidents of arrests made at campus protests across the country, with more than 1,600 people arrested at 30 schools. College campuses have been engulfed by student dissent following the brutal Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Southern Israel, which killed over 1,200 people, and Israels response, a catastrophic military campaign which has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians, now entering its seventh month. Along with demands for divestment and financial transparency, protesting students also aim to show solidarity with millions of Palestinian civilians facing calamitous levels of disaster, including famine, disease outbreaks, and a childrens crisis, in which at least a thousand children have lost limbs and over 19,000 children have been orphaned because of indiscriminate bombing in the war. At Columbia University, for example, over 200 people were arrested in two police raids that occurred on April 18 and April 30, the latter of which, coincidentally, is the same day 700 students were arrested for protesting the divisive Vietnam War and Columbias expansion into Harlem more than 50 years ago. Archon Fung, a professor of political science at Harvard, told Fortune there are important parallels between the protests, especially in terms of how university administrations respond to acts of civil disobedience. Civil disobedience has an important place in democracy, Fung said, adding, civil disobedience is, by definition, breaking the rules. For college students who will soon leave the walls of their campus to become the next generation of leaders, bosses, and entrepreneurs, Wozniak offers a modern twist on some old-school advice: you all have AIactual intelligence. Pay your own success forward, he implored students, and keep teaching and mentoring others. This story was originally featured on Fortune.com The Australian market has shown robust performance, increasing by 1.5% over the last week and achieving a 7.3% rise over the past 12 months, with earnings expected to grow by 13% annually. In this context, stocks of growth companies with high insider ownership may offer appealing opportunities, particularly when they also demonstrate significant earnings growth. Top 10 Growth Companies With High Insider Ownership In Australia Name Insider Ownership Earnings Growth Hartshead Resources (ASX:HHR) 13.9% 86.3% Cettire (ASX:CTT) 28.7% 29.9% Gratifii (ASX:GTI) 15.6% 112.4% Acrux (ASX:ACR) 14.6% 115.3% Doctor Care Anywhere Group (ASX:DOC) 28.4% 96.4% Hillgrove Resources (ASX:HGO) 10.4% 45.4% Alpha HPA (ASX:A4N) 28.3% 95.9% Liontown Resources (ASX:LTR) 16.4% 64.3% DUG Technology (ASX:DUG) 28.3% 43.5% SiteMinder (ASX:SDR) 11.4% 69.4% Click here to see the full list of 89 stocks from our Fast Growing ASX Companies With High Insider Ownership screener. Let's uncover some gems from our specialized screener. Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: Kogan.com Ltd is an online retailer based in Australia with a market capitalization of approximately A$471.22 million. Operations: The company generates revenue through its operations in both Australia and New Zealand, with segments including Mighty Ape and Kogan Parent, earning A$274.85 million and A$33.40 million in Australia, and A$142.52 million and A$11.39 million in New Zealand respectively. Insider Ownership: 19.9% Earnings Growth Forecast: 35.4% p.a. Kogan.com has recently transitioned from a loss to a profit, reporting net income of A$8.7 million for the half-year, a significant recovery from a net loss of A$23.8 million in the previous period. Despite this turnaround, insider activity shows more selling than buying over the past three months, which might raise concerns about confidence levels internally. However, Kogan's earnings are expected to grow significantly at 35.44% annually over the next three years, outpacing both its own revenue growth projections and broader market averages. The stock is also considered to be trading well below its estimated fair value by 54.4%. ASX:KGN Ownership Breakdown as at May 2024 Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: Ora Banda Mining Limited is a company based in Australia that focuses on the exploration, operation, and development of mineral properties, with a market capitalization of approximately A$575.52 million. Story continues Operations: The company generates revenue primarily from its gold mining segment, totaling A$166.66 million. Insider Ownership: 10.2% Earnings Growth Forecast: 85% p.a. Ora Banda Mining, recently added to the S&P/ASX All Ordinaries Index, has shown a strong financial turnaround with its latest earnings report indicating a shift from a net loss to a profit of A$10.79 million. This performance is underpinned by significant revenue growth of 39.1% per year, forecasted to surpass market averages substantially. Despite recent equity offerings potentially diluting shareholder value, the company's projected earnings growth rate is an impressive 85.03% annually over the next three years, positioning it as an emerging growth entity in Australia's mining sector. ASX:OBM Ownership Breakdown as at May 2024 Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: Qualitas operates as a real estate investment firm specializing in direct investments across various real estate classes and geographies, distressed debt acquisitions and restructuring, third-party capital raising, and consulting services, with a market capitalization of approximately A$687.98 million. Operations: The company generates revenue primarily through direct lending and funds management, amounting to A$27.58 million and A$19.32 million respectively. Insider Ownership: 27.1% Earnings Growth Forecast: 25.1% p.a. Qualitas has demonstrated robust financial growth, with recent earnings showing a revenue increase to A$42.52 million and net income rising to A$12.56 million. This performance is supported by an earnings growth of 19.8% over the past year, outpacing the Australian market's average. Analysts predict both revenue and earnings will continue to grow significantly above market rates at 15.4% and 25.1% per year, respectively, although its dividend coverage remains low at 3.3%. Insider activity has been balanced with more buying than selling, but not in large volumes. ASX:QAL Earnings and Revenue Growth as at May 2024 Where To Now? Delve into our full catalog of 89 Fast Growing ASX Companies With High Insider Ownership here. Already own these companies? Bring clarity to your investment decisions by linking up your portfolio with Simply Wall St, where you can monitor all the vital signs of your stocks effortlessly. Maximize your investment potential with Simply Wall St, the comprehensive app that offers global market insights for free. Seeking Other Investments? 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.The analysis only considers stock directly held by insiders. It does not include indirectly owned stock through other vehicles such as corporate and/or trust entities. All forecast revenue and earnings growth rates quoted are in terms of annualised (per annum) growth rates over 1-3 years. Companies discussed in this article include ASX:KGN ASX:OBMASX:QAL and Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com View a previous report on OH Pizza and Brews intentions to leave the KeyBank building in the video player above. COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) A Downtown skyscraper labeled a nightmare by one of its tenants is going under new management thanks to a court order. In a fight between shell companies, an LLC under Ardent Companies filed a foreclosure lawsuit against Baruch Broad Street, a local front for New York-based Asher Roshanzamir, the CEO of Zamir Equities. Ardent claimed that it loaned $11.8 million to Baruch Broad Street to buy the tower at 88 E. Broad St., but that Baruch breached its contract by failing to make payments. Police officer, Amazon shooting suspect shot in west Columbus Ardent is now coming after Roshanzamirs shell company for $9,320,807, asking for the money in the cases judgment. But before the foreclosure lawsuit continued further, the lender also filed for an ex parte order to put the skyscraper, known for its KeyBank branding, under new management in a receivership. The ex parte request allowed the judge to take action without getting any input from Baruch Broad Street, but court documents showed attorneys for the company were present for a hearing on it. On Tuesday, the judge granted Ardents motion to place the tower in receivership, but it wasnt laid out quite the way Ardent originally wanted. The plaintiff had named other companies that previously sued Baruch as additional defendants in the case. A 2021 image of 88 E. Broad St. in Downtown Columbus, Ohio (Courtesy Photo/Franklin County Auditor) Baruch had filed no objections in the case as of Friday, with its only action visible in court records being to appoint an attorney. However, one of the other defendants, Speer Mechanical Co., filed an objection to the ex parte order before it was granted. Speer Mechanical took issue with Ardents choice of who would take over managing the building in the receivership. Ardent had picked Jeff Lane with Prodigy Properties, based out of Cincinnati, as receiver. Speer Mechanical does not object generally to the appointment of a receiver, provided that the receiver is Columbus-based, the contractors attorney wrote in an objection filing. Of a purported 289 receivership performed by Prodigy Properties, only seven were in Franklin County. The most recent was for Strada Corp terminated two months after appointment with no activity. Former Ohio campaign treasurer pleads guilty to stealing nearly $1M in funds The group settled on Myron Terlecky, an attorney based in Franklin County, as receiver instead. On Wednesday, he took full possession and control of the tower. The court ordered Baruch Broad to turn over all keys to the building, and documents like operating statements, employee records and related computer equipment to him. Story continues Speer Mechanical has a shared interest in the towers fate, accusing Baruch Broad of failing to pay for work performed on the tower since August 2022. The group put a lien of $486,897.87 on the skyscraper in March. With nearly half a million dollars at stake, Speer Mechanical also filed a counterclaim in Ardents lawsuit on Thursday. The contractor claimed that any group that took over 88 E. Broad St. in a foreclosure would be getting property unjustly enriched by its payless maintenance work on the building. Accordingly, Speer Mechanical is entitled to a declaratory judgment that its mechanics lien survives any foreclosure, the companys attorney wrote. The OH Pizza and Brew storefront in the Key Bank Building. (Courtesy Photo/Luke Edwards) The OH Pizza and Brew storefront in the Key Bank Building. (Courtesy Photo/Luke Edwards) The lawsuit comes after multiple groups inside the KeyBank tower, including its namesake tenant, disclosed that they would be moving out. OH Pizza and Brew was the first to announce publicly that its team was looking for a new space, citing issues including utilities being shut off as well as a nearly $10,000 burglary they blamed on spotty building security. The Ohio Auditors Office listed HVAC issues, water leaks caused by deteriorated piping, along with other general building maintenance problems behind its reason for leaving. Ohio postal worker pulled over for driving 100+ mph, allegedly racing a Mustang OH Pizza and Brews owner, Luke Edwards, told NBC4 on Sunday that his team had not been introduced to Terlecky as the buildings new manager yet. However, he confirmed that only three tenants were remaining in the tower. A docket for the case in Franklin County Common Pleas Court showed copies of the final order went out to Baruchs attorney on Thursday. While the receivership order left the door open for the group to appeal, they had not done so as of Sunday. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to NBC4 WCMH-TV. MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) An Australian judge Monday lifted a ban on the social media platform X showing Australians a video of a bishop being stabbed in a Sydney church. The temporary ban was put in place April 22, but the judge rejected the application from Australias eSafety Commission to extend the court order that would have expired Monday. Australian Federal Court Justice Geoffrey Kennett said he would publish his reasons for imposing and lifting the order later. The decision was a win for the company rebranded by billionaire Elon Musk when he bought Twitter l ast year. X was alone among social media platforms in refusing to remove video of Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel being stabbed. Musk has argued that he is standing up for a freedom of speech principle. Australian lawmakers have accused him of arrogance and of lacking a sense of social responsibility. Not trying to win anything. I just dont think we should be suppressing Australians rights to free speech," Musk posted on X after the ruling. X is also taking a separate court action against eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant, a former Twitter employee, that challenges the validity of her notice requiring the platform to remove video of the April 15 attack in an Assyrian Orthodox church. The judge is expected to consider setting a hearing date Wednesday. Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones said the government might consider changing Australian law after reading Kennetts reasons for removing his order that required X to hide the video from users. Theres a fundamental principle at stake and that is, if youre a company or anybody operating in Australia, then youve got to abide by Australian laws, Jones said. He also said the government supported Inman Grants stance on the video. "She made the right decision in our view to ensure that that dangerous, violent, harmful material wasnt being propagated online and encouraging and inciting that sort of behavior here in Australia, Jones said. A 16-year-old boy was charged with terrorism-related offenses in the stabbings of the bishop and a priest who were injured in the attack. X has geoblocked Australian users from the content, but eSafety wants a worldwide ban on the video, which can be still accessed from Australia through VPNs. An eSafety lawyer, Tim Begbie, described X in court last week as a market leader in proliferating and distributing violent content and violent and extremist material. Begbie said Australia could not be expected to conform to Xs pro-free speech stance. The fact is that that stance is in large measure illusory. Because X doesnt stand for global removal is bad in some pure sense, Begbie said. Story continues Xs own policies repeatedly refer to circumstances in which the platform will elect to remove content globally, Begbie said. The real position is this: X says that reasonable means what X wants it to mean, Begbie said. Global removal is reasonable when X does it because X wants to do it. But it becomes unreasonable when X is told to do it by the laws of Australia, Begbie added. X lawyer Bret Walker said X had taken reasonable steps to block the content from Australia but there had been glitches. He described eSafetys demand for a global ban as astonishing and the notice as invalid. You dont expect to see statutes saying the Australian Parliament will regulate what concerning Australia that is events in Australia can be viewed in Russia, Finland, Belgium or the United States, Walker said. Not unless we want to become isolationist to a degree that is unthinkable, Walker added. Bank of Africa and Bank of Palestine have sealed a new partnership. This partnership aims primarily to strengthen economic cooperation between Palestine and Morocco. The result of exchanges of visits and discussions carried out in Morocco and in Palestine, this partnership agreement provides a cross-participation in the capital of each of the two banking establishments, through the acquisition of shares in the stock exchanges where these banking institutions are listed, in Casablanca and Nablus, respectively. Bank of Africa purchases 1.2% of Bank of Palestine's capital This participation begins with the acquisition of Bank of Palestine shares by Bank of Africa for approximately 1.2% of Bank of Palestines capital. The two groups have agreed to develop extensive banking cooperation, in particular, in Trade Finance and Correspondent Banking as well as to exchange their expertise in financing SMEs and supporting entrepreneurship and innovation. This partnership also revolves around economic promotion aimed at boosting trade and investment flows between Morocco and Palestine, as well as cultural cooperation, in particular through the realisation of joint projects highlighting the historical ties between Morocco and Palestine. Othman Benjelloun, Chairman of Bank of Africa commented: We are happy to conclude with Chairman Shawa of Bank of Palestine, a multidimensional strategic partnership. Beyond its financial, economic and cultural scope, it is an institutional act of solidarity and confidence in the future of Palestine as well as a contribution from Bank of Africa, as a pan-African private operator with Moroccan roots, to forge a common economic destiny between the two nations Hashim Shawa, Chairman of the Bank of Palestine Group, stated: We are proud of the evolution of our partnership with Bank of Africa. This partnership is in line with our vision of regional expansion and our desire to attract institutional investors to Bank of Palestine. We are grateful to the Chairman of Bank of Africa and the Kingdom of Morocco for their foresight and proactive decision to cement this investment in the Bank of Palestine during these difficult times, thereby expressing a mark of confidence in the bank and in the economic future of Palestine. "Bank of Africa and Bank of Palestine form partnership" was originally created and published by Retail Banker International, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Neurotechnology using artificial intelligence is opening up new possibilities in healthcare that previously didnt exist. For decades companies and researchers have been exploring implantable devices that interpret signals in the brain and translate them into words or physical commands. The technology is not new, but now, artificial intelligence is accelerating advances, allowing people affected by debilitating diseases to communicate in ways that were physically impossible before. These devices have been game changers for people like Rodney, a patient living with ALS who had a Stentrode device implanted in his brain. The device, which was developed by Synchron, a neurotech company backed by Amazons Jeff Bezos and Microsofts Bill Gates, contains a tiny electrode that converts brain signals into physical actions, allowing Rodney to type on a keyboard using only his thoughts. While neurotechnology can be empowering for patients like Rodney, AI could make less invasive neurotech more accessible for everyday consumers and spur the next generation of consumer-facing tech products. According to Precedence Research, the market for neurotech devices was valued at around $15 billion in 2023, and it's projected to reach over $55 billion by 2032. That's a major reason why Big Tech companies like Meta (META) and Apple (AAPL) are backing research into devices that can decode thoughts and perceptions without requiring invasive surgery. But as Big Tech moves ahead to build off neurotech advancements in the medical world, experts have cautioned that it could put our most valuable data the privacy of our thoughts at risk. This is our final fortress of privacy, and we've given up every other aspect of privacy that exists, said Nita Farahany, a futurist, tech ethicist, and author of The Battle for Your Brain. Big Tech wants to read your mind Elon Musks Neuralink made headlines early this year when the company implanted its first human patient with a brain-computer interface (BCI), though the company said on Thursday it encountered some issues with the implant. The Neuralink implant, which has over 1,000 electrodes and 64 threads, experienced a malfunction after a number of threads retracted from the brain, which decreased the number of effective electrodes. In a blog post, the company said this would not negatively impact how the implant works. Musk is not the only CEO trying to make neurotechnology a reality. At least 30 companies are currently selling neurotechnology or developing the technology. Elon Musk, co-founder of Tesla and Neuralink, speaks at the Milken Institute's Global Conference at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on May 6, 2024, in Beverly Hills, Calif. (Apu Gomes/Getty Images) (Apu Gomes via Getty Images) Apple, for instance, has a patent for AirPods with EEG technology embedded to measure brain activity. Given concerns over Apples sluggish iPhone sales, some investors are hoping the company will turn out exciting new products that will drive additional revenue. Story continues Healthcare has long been a goal for Apple. CEO Tim Cook laid out this strategy in 2019, saying, If you zoom out into the future ... and you ask the question, what was Apple's greatest contribution to mankind, it will be about health. Meta is another company funding a team of neuroscientists who are pushing this research further to understand how humans process language. In one study conducted by Meta's Fundamental AI Research (FAIR) group, researchers flashed an image in front of participants for 1.5 seconds. Users seated in a neuroimaging machine thought of the image they saw, and AI was able to use that brain activity data to recreate the image. "At the moment, this is not a mind-reading technology," Jean-Remi King, the lead neuroscientist working on the project, told Yahoo Finance. "What we can try to do is reconstruct the image that they see at the given moment, so we really decode perception." The results werent perfect, as seen in the image below, but they were close enough that the research team initially thought the test was flawed. On the left is the photo Meta's Fundamental AI Research team showed participants. The image on the right shows the image that AI reconstructed by decoding participants' brain activity. The first reaction was let's try to find where we could have had some bugs that could explain the quality of these results, King said. King stressed that consumer-facing products are not the end goal of his research, and Meta says its aim is to help people who have suffered traumatic brain injury to communicate. But at the same time, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has made the company's neurotechnology ambitions clear since 2021, when he began touting an armband that uses electromyography to detect neural signals, allowing users to type and click on a screen with the subtlest of hand movements. "I think well start getting some consumer neural interfaces soon," Zuckerberg said in April. "Im not talking about something that jacks into your brain. Im talking about something that you wear on your wrist." The privacy problem There's a big question underlying all this research and product development: What does our world look like if Big Tech companies can literally read your mind? Noninvasive brain-monitoring devices can be revolutionary in medicine for patients, but not everyone is thrilled by the prospect of Big Tech having access to peoples' thoughts. Neurorights advocates believe our thoughts are the last piece of data we have left to ourselves. Thats why they are now fighting for legislation that would safeguard mental privacy while tech companies continue funding brain-scanning research. "There's absolutely no regulation," said Dr. Rafael Yuste, a professor of biological sciences and neuroscience at Columbia University. "It's like the Wild West." On July 6, 2024, electroencephalography (EEG), which measures the electrical activity of the brain, will celebrate its 100th anniversary. (Jacob Schroter/picture alliance via Getty Images) (picture alliance via Getty Images) After years of research, Yuste discovered a way to control the thoughts of mice using lasers. The experiment scared him so much that he co-founded the Neurorights Foundation in an effort to safeguard thought privacy. And already, concerns about the privacy implications of neurotechnology are driving policy change. In April, Colorado passed a bill that expanded the states privacy act to include neural rights the first of its kind in the US. Similar legislation is also on the table in states such as California and Minnesota. The one space we have for mental reprieve is really our brains and mental states," Farahany said. "It's the kind of final piece of the puzzle. Farahany has a proposed framework for neurorights legislation that argues for more privacy overall, with a right to self-determination over our brain and mental experiences. According to Farahany, it would still allow patients who want and even need neurotech to have access to it. For Rodney's part, when I asked him via WhatsApp what he hopes his Stentrode device will accomplish long term, he thought back: Hopefully, it will get to more people. Click here for the latest technology news that will impact the stock market. Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance HOUSTON, May 13, 2024--(BUSINESS WIRE)--From May 6-8, 2024, the Bilateral Chamber orchestrated three impactful programs coinciding with the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC), a premier global gathering in the energy sector. Our country spotlights this year were Guyana and Namibia. Guyana is the fastest-growing economy in the world and Namibia is Africas third wealthiest nation. Both countries have recently garnered the attention of international energy sector companies. The week was kicked off with our 27th Annual Board of Advisors Private Dinner on May 6th. The evening convened US and international public and private sector leaders. General Wesley K. Clark, former NATO Supreme Allied Commander, provided strategic insights on global geopolitics and commerce during a fireside chat moderated by David L. Phillips, chairman of the Bilateral Chambers board of advisors. Hon. Deodat Indar, Guyana's Minister of Infrastructure and Public Works, delivered the keynote, emphasizing the nation's rapid expansion and investment prospects. A roundtable on May 7th focused on Guyanas energy security and sustainable development. T.H. Deodat Indar, Guyana's Minister of Infrastructure and Public Works, and T.H. Heather Evans, U.S. Department of Commerce's Deputy Assistant Secretary for Manufacturing, discussed innovative approaches and partnerships to tackle food, energy, and climate security issues. Namibia's Ministry of Mines and Energy leadership convened at the roundtable on May 8th. T.H. Kornelia Shilunga, Deputy Minister of Mines & Energy, emphasized collaboration with US energy firms to harness the countrys resources sustainably, aligning with goals to enhance healthcare, education, and infrastructure access. Ms. Nangula Uaandja, Chairperson and CEO of Namibia's Investment Promotion and Development Board, underlined the countrys commitment to partnerships with international stakeholders, emphasizing Namibias political stability, low tax rates, and key investment incentives. Namibia boasts abundant natural resources with a youthful population, holding vast untapped economic promise. Recent oil and gas discoveries have piqued global interest, positioning the nation to potentially rank 3rd in Sub-Saharan Africa and 15th globally in reserves. Acknowledging the shift toward clean energy, Namibia is committed to integrating sustainable development solutions. About Bilateral Chamber The Bilateral Chamber is a widely recognized cross-industry organization with a network of over 36,000 professionals. The breadth and depth of our expertise spans four global economic sectors, including Aerospace/Aviation, Energy, Healthcare, and Information and Communications Technology. Story continues To learn more, please visit www.bilateralchamber.org View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240513055658/en/ Contacts Cari Broderson cari@bilateralchamber.org Police car with siren during the night A local resident faces federal charges for his alleged involvement in a multimillion-dollar investment scheme. On May 7, a federal grand jury handed down a 21-count indictment against John Masanotti, Jr., 69, of Bonita Springs. He was arrested two days later. He's accused of defrauding at least 10 clients out of more than $4 million as the owner and managing member of the Middlesex Mortgage Group based in Darien, Connecticut, where he previously lived. Between 2016 and 2023, he allegedly promised to pool the clients' money to invest in foreign currency and other instruments, but then used their funds for personal expenses and to pay returns to other investors instead, according to the indictment. And it said the defrauded clients received fake monthly account statements, showing fake profits. Masanotti is accused of lying to the FBI and falsifying documents in an attempt to obstruct the federal agency's investigation. He's charged with: Eight counts of wire fraud, an offense that carries a maximum sentence of 20 years on each count. Eleven counts of making illegal monetary transactions, an offense that carries a maximum sentence of 10 years on each count. One count of making false statements, an offense that carries a maximum sentence of five years. One count of falsification of records in a federal investigation, an offense that carries a maximum sentence of 20 years. In addition to the FBI's involvement, the case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, with assistance from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather Cherry in Connecticut. More like this: Court filings shed light on lavish lifestyle of Naples man accused of Ponzi scheme And: Naples man charged in $35 million Ponzi scheme has been in trouble before. What we know After an initial appearance in federal court in Fort Myers following his arrest, Masanotti was released on a $100,000 bond. His arraignment, or first formal hearing in court, is scheduled for May 15 in Hartford, Connecticut. This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Bonita Springs, Florida man charged in $4 million investment scheme More from Footwear News The British Footwear Association (BFA) had named Richard Shetliffe as its new chief executive officer, effective Tuesday. He replaces Lucy Reece-Raybould, who left the group in January after five years as CEO. The BFA is a a membership-based organization that includes UK-based footwear manufacturers, designers, wholesalers, service providers and retailers. Richard brings superb industry experience and a remarkable record of driving growth in footwear businesses, said BFA chair Jane Wilson in a statement. He has an impressive global network and is well-liked and respected across the industry. The board and I are eager to work with Richard as we pursue our strategic goals to support and serve the membership. Shetliffes more than 30-year career in footwear and accessories has spanned companies such as Dr. Martens, Ben Sherman, Vagabond, VF Corporation the Dune Group and Havaianas. Most recently, he served as a consultant for luxury shoe brand. Prior to that, he spent almost 15 years at Alpargatas S.A., culminating in his role as director of the Northern Europe region. During his time there, he helped set up the companys U.K presence. I am thrilled to be joining the BFA as chief executive officer, Shetliffe said in a statement. I am excited to explore the opportunities that exist within the BFA and it is a genuine privilege to be able to represent the footwear sector. I also look forward to forging close relations with our members and key stakeholders to ensure that we are building a strong community that supports, represents and promotes the sector. Best of Footwear News BYD Europe, the Chinese automaker backed by Warren Buffetts Berkshire Hathaway, has set its sights on a bold goal: to outperform Tesla, Volkswagen, and Stellantis and become the largest battery-electric vehicle (BEV) seller in Europe by the end of this decade. BYD's European president Michael Shu recently shared the companys ambitious plans during the Financial Times Future of the Car Summit. We are confident that we could be in a leading position, Shu stated. We are moving to the next stage to decide a huge investment in the EU, an investment that would be worth billions of euros. BYDs strategy includes a significant investment in factories, dealerships and marketing across the region. One key element of their plan is a cut-price model based on the Seagull, which currently sells in China for less than $10,000. The European version of this model is expected to cost less than 20,000. Europes car market is highly competitive, and BYDs ambitions have caught the attention of industry leaders. Last year, the company briefly overtook Tesla as the worlds largest EV brand. Privately, Western industry leaders view BYD as a significant threat to Europes own car manufacturers. However, Brussels is currently investigating whether Chinese carmakers use subsidies to reduce vehicle prices. This probe is expected to lead to higher tariffs on imported models. Shu emphasised that BYDs strategy is to produce cars in Europe for Europe. By manufacturing locally, the company aims to avoid penalties and mitigate logistical challenges faced by carmakers importing vehicles from China. BYD is already constructing a new factory in Hungary, set to begin producing its first cars next year. Additionally, the company is actively exploring sites for a second plant. In addition to battery-electric cars, BYD plans to sell and produce plug-in hybrid vehicles in Europe. The slower installation of charging infrastructure in the region makes plug-in hybrids a practical choice. Despite its ambitions, BYDs battery-electric car market share in Western Europe was only 1.7% in the first quarter of 2024, according to Schmidt Automotive Research, cited in the FT. During the Financial Times conference, senior executives from Nissan, Peugeot, Volkswagen, and Hyundai acknowledged the fierce competition posed by Chinese carmakers, particularly in advanced battery technology. BYD did experience a 42% decline in overall electric vehicle deliveries in the first three months of 2024 compared to the final quarter of 2023. This drop was due to flagging demand and increased competition in BYDs home market. Although BYD overtook Tesla in electric vehicle sales during the final quarter of 2023, Tesla rebounded last month, posting sales of 386,810 vehicles in the first three months of 2024 more than its Chinese rival but below the expected 450,000 units Story continues "BYD aims to become Europes leading BEV seller" was originally created and published by Motor Finance Online, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Teamsters Canada Rail Conference said the decision to delay the start of the workers strike while the Canada Industrial Relations Board reviews the agreements is frustrating. (Photo: CPKC) The Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) is reviewing whether a strike by railworkers at CN and CPKC would jeopardize Canadians health and safety. The review delays a possible strike by operating crews with CN and CPKC that could have begun as early as May 22 and could halt the shipment of $1 billion worth of goods per day in Canada, according to RailState, a company that monitors freight trends across the country. Canadian Minister of Labor Seamus ORegan Jr. announced Thursday on social media site X that he asked CIRB to look into maintenance of activities agreements between the union representing the workers and the two railroads, saying serious concerns have been raised about potential impacts to the health and safety of Canadians if a work stoppage occurs. The CIRB plans to review whether any critical shipments must continue in the event of a strike or lockout, according to CIRB spokesman Jean-Daniel Tardif. It is unlikely a decision will come down by May 22, Tardif told The Canadian Press. Written submissions alone will likely take longer. On May 1, some 9,300 CN and CPKC rail workers voted to authorize a strike as soon as May 22 if they are unable to reach new agreements. The workers are negotiating for higher wages and better scheduling, among other benefits. Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC), the union representing CN and CPKC workers, said the decision to delay the strike while CIRB reviews the agreements is frustrating. The employers know what our membership thinks of their proposals, and your union will be there to move your demands forward, TCRC said in a letter to its members posted Saturday on its website. This recent development is incredibly frustrating, and we believe undermines the entire process. The TCRC will challenge any result that impacts our charter rights, whether it be this dispute or any decision that may hinder future collective bargaining. After CIRB announced it was reviewing the labor dispute between the railroads and workers, CPKC said, our supply chains need stability, now more than ever. CPKC believes these negotiations need to be resolved in a timely manner to provide certainty for the Canadian economy and for North Americas supply chains. CN said it continues to seek a negotiated agreement with the union. CN strongly believes that the current uncertainty around a labor disruption must be resolved decidedly and as soon as possible for employees, customers, and Canadians who depend on rail to get everyday essential goods, CN said in a news release. Story continues The negotiations between the union and railroads were scheduled to begin in Montreal on Monday. Some carriers have already begun preparing contingency plans for a potential strike. Maersk recently said it has been working closely with CN, CPKC and terminal operator DP World to minimize congestion on the Canadian west coast ports in the event of a strike. The post Canadas labor board delays start of potential CN, CPKC rail strike appeared first on FreightWaves. By Moayed Kenany, Timour Azhari and Adam Makary BAGHDAD (Reuters) -Chinese companies won bids to explore five Iraqi oil and gas fields on Saturday in a licensing round for hydrocarbon exploration that was primarily aimed at ramping up gas production for domestic use. An Iraqi Kurdish company also took two of the 29 projects up for grabs in the three-day licensing round across central, southern and western Iraq, which for the first time includes an offshore exploration block in the country's Arab Gulf waters. Iraq aims to lure billions of dollars of investments to develop its oil and gas sector as it looks to ramp up local petrochemicals production and end imports of gas from neighbouring Iran that are currently key to producing power. More than 20 companies pre-qualified for the licensing round, including European, Chinese, Arab and Iraqi groups. There were notably no U.S. oil majors involved, even after Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia met with representatives of U.S. oil firms during an official visit to the United States last month. Five bids were won on Saturday by Chinese companies. Zhongman Petroleum and Natural Gas Group (ZPEC) took the northern extension of the Eastern Baghdad field, in Baghdad, and the Middle Euphrates field that straddles the southern Najaf and Karbala provinces, the oil ministry said. China's United Energy Group Ltd won a bid to develop the Al-Faw field in southern Basra, while ZhenHua won a bid to develop Iraq's Qurnain field in the Iraqi-Saudi border region and Geo-Jade won a bid to develop Iraq's Zurbatiya field in the Wasit. Two oil and gas fields were taken by Iraq's KAR Group - the Dimah field in eastern Maysan province, and the Sasan & Alan fields in Iraq's northwestern Nineveh province - the ministry said. Around 20 more projects are open for bidding on Sunday and Monday. Falah Al-amri, the Iraqi prime minister's advisor for oil and gas issues, said the government hoped the new projects would raise oil production to 6 million barrels per day by 2030 from around 5 million now. The government also wants the projects to produce enough natural gas so that, along with plans to all-but eliminate gas flaring by 2030, Iraq could end imports. "Its too early to talk about (gas) exports. We want to get self-sufficient," Al-amri told Reuters. Iraq, OPEC's second-largest oil producer after Saudi Arabia, at one time had targeted becoming a rival to the Gulf Arab kingdom with output of over a tenth of global demand. But its oil sector development has been hampered by contract terms viewed as unfavourable by many major oil companies as well as recurring conflict and political paralysis. Story continues Growing investor focus in recent years on environmental, social and governance criteria have also had an effect. Western oil giants such as Exxon Mobil Corp and Royal Dutch Shell Plc have departed from a number of projects in Iraq while Chinese companies have steadily expanded their footprint. (Reporting by Moayed Kenany, Clauda Tanios, Adam Makary and Timour Azhari; Writing by Timour Azhari; Editing by Alison Williams, Mark Potter and Emelia SIthole-Matarise) California Gov. Gavin Newsom unveils his revised 2024-25 state budget during a news conference in Sacramento on Friday. (Rich Pedroncelli/AP) Heres a novel idea: Dont spend money until youve got it. What a concept! Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed that as a way to head off future crippling state budget deficits. Theyve become all too common as Sacramento politicians muddle through cycles of economic booms and busts. State budgeting in California is a constant roller coaster ride because of our volatile, outdated tax system. Politicians dont have the guts to fix it because thered be losers as well as winners. They balk at alienating any friendly interest group or voter. California, unlike the federal government, is too dependent on rich peoples capital gains to finance its generous programs. When the stock market soars, the state reaps a hefty chunk. When the market tumbles, so does state tax revenue. This again was made clear when Newsom on Friday sent the Legislature a revised and reduced $288-billion state budget proposal for the fiscal year that begins July 1. In 2022, capital gains comprised 13% of total personal income taxes owed, according to the state Department of Finance. Those taxes were primarily paid in 2023 and theyre currently helping to finance the red-ink state budget. But that was a huge drop in capital gains revenue from the previous year. In 2021, capital gains accounted for 25% of total income tax liability. That amounted to an $18-billion reduction in capital gains revenue from one year to the next. Read more: What to know about Gov. Newsoms plan to offset Californias $45-billion deficit And its worse than that. Those figures understate the impact of capital gains revenue on the budget, a finance department numbers cruncher told me. Thats because they dont include the capital gains tax liabilities of nonresidents, partnerships and corporations. Theyre equally unstable. Heres a more familiar example of the volatility: In the 2022 tax year, during a bear market on Wall Street, the top 1% of California earners paid 38.7% of the state personal income tax. But in 2021 when stocks were booming, the top 1% kicked in virtually half 49.9% of the income tax. What all this adds up to is Newsom and the Legislature crafting budgets based on revenue projections that fall far short of expectations. The budgets then develop huge holes. And now they need to be filled with spending cuts, borrowed money, savings and gimmicks. Newsoms revised budget indicates a budget deficit of about $45 billion, up $7 billion from what he projected in January. But no one really knows what the actual number is. Independent state Legislative Analyst Gabe Petek has pegged it at $73 billion over a three-year period. Story continues The volatility is incredible, Newsom repeatedly said, one way or another, while outlining his revised budget proposal. Back to the governors partial longtime solution: He wants to hold up some spending until the projected revenue particularly from capital gains actually arrives in the state banking account. In fact, hed create a new account for excess revenue. Limit the appropriation of funds until they materialize, Newsom told reporters. In his budget document, he puts it this way: Ensure that the state does not commit certain amounts of future anticipated revenues until such revenues have been realized. Newsom offered no details beyond that a familiar pattern for this governor and the Legislature. The specifics will be negotiated behind closed doors, away from public sight and hearing. Finance Director Joe Stephenshaw said the administration hopes to include the concept in the new budget. By law, the spending plan must be passed by June 15. If it isnt, legislators will lose their pay and expense money. But many details wont be rolled out until later in so-called trailer bills. So the budget deadline isnt really met only in name. Newsom considers his proposed budget account a necessary step toward enacting a requirement that the state sock away more money in a rainy day reserve. That would necessitate voter approval. He thinks the account would help build public support needed to overcome likely opposition from the spending lobby to more savings. Read more: Column: California's budget relies on the richest taxpayers, and we're paying the price But Californias antiquated tax system cant be reformed and made less volatile without flattening the tax base. Newsom admitted that needs to be done, but said he didnt know how, given political realities. Shall we, or should we, reform the tax system? The answer is yes, Newsom told reporters, anticipating theyd ask. How we do that is a more difficult and challenging conversation. And the volatility is foundational in terms of the tax system we have the progressive tax system. Translation: California liberal government is fueled by soaking the rich and imposing the nations highest state income tax rate, 13.3%. Well, heres an idea: How about doing as the federal government does? Tax capital gains at less than ordinary income. California taxes them the same as salaries. As Ive written ad nauseam, the highest income tax rates should be lowered and the sales tax extended to services that the wealthy use, such as attorney, architect and political consultancy. Were one of the few states that doesnt tax services. And weve evolved into a service economy. Newsom did a shout-out for former state Sen. Bob Hertzberg (D-Van Nuys), who championed tax reform unsuccessfully for years. Hertzberg offered the broad approximation of the approach that Ive long thought made sense, Newsom said. The former legislator tried to promote, among other things, taxing services that businesses pay and could deduct on their income tax. No sale. In their closeted negotiations, legislators at least should agree with the governor not to spend money they dont have. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. Spot freight rates out at sea escalated to kick off May as uncertainty rages on throughout the global supply chain, particularly close to the Red Sea. According to Drewrys World Container Index (WCI), which measures ocean spot freight rates across eight major global trade lanes, prices for 40-foot containers rose 16 percent week over week on Thursday to $3,159. More from Sourcing Journal This marked the largest one-week jump since January, when the WCI increased 23 percent in the week to Jan. 18, before peaking the week after at $3,964 per container as more vessels avoided the Red Sea due to the ongoing attacks on shipping by Yemen-based Houthis. The sudden jump in spot rates after three months of steady declines also comes right as many contracts expired at the end of April, as shippers lock in new deals with ocean carriers amid the start of the new contract freight season. Contract rates are clearly the way to go for shippers in this very volatile market, said Philip Damas, managing director of Drewry Supply Chain Advisors. The largest shippers, meaning companies like Walmart, Amazon and Target among others, opt to go the contract route because they require higher quantities of freight for a longer-term period. This season in particular has seen slower contract negotiations than usual as firms had waited for spot rates to drop closer to contract rate levels after the January peak. But Damas told Sourcing Journal that recently, theres been possible panic buying before the peak season amid concerns about rate increases, which is one of multiple factors pushing the prices up. In a post on LinkedIn, Lars Jensen, CEO of container shipping consultancy Vespucci Maritime, explained a current dichotomy among shippers, and how it has slowed down some of the contract negotiations due to the spot markets sudden strength. Some shippers being highly dissatisfied with the sharp uptick in prices, [with] some shippers being able to still move cargo on agreed contract materially below spot. And a whole gray zone in between, Jensen wrote. Just like during the pandemic, I would expect the first-mentioned group of shippers to be those we hear quite vocally in the market, as they are clearly hurting from this. And just like during the pandemic, I do not expect shippers who move freight on contracts substantially below the spot market to be very vocal about this at allafter all, this is a competitive advantage for them. Story continues Citing Drewry consultants across China and Europe, the sudden double-digit rises appear to be linked to a combination of short-term factor and supply and demand changes, Damas said. Damas pointed to stronger-than-expected U.S. consumer imports as another top reason for the shift, although he noted these effects have not reached Europe. As for Europe, he noted that there is lower ship capacity going to the continent, combined with potential for low inventories due to the ongoing slowdowns in the Asia-to-Europe trade lanes. Maersk expects more of the same on that front, estimating second-quarter capacity losses of 15 to 20 percent on the Far East to North Europe and Mediterranean trade lanes due to the lengthier routes. Additionally, Damas pointed to anecdotal reports of changes in ordering, as well as earlier shipping, by shippers concerned over longer the lead times and geopolitical risks that have come out of the Middle East. One such American company, Wolverine Worldwide, did exactly that for its European wholesale business, pulling $8 million in revenue forward into the first quarter by ordering more product ahead of time in an effort to mitigate the delays, chief financial officer Mike Stornant said in a Wednesday earnings call. The escalation in spot freight rates appears to be impacting container shipping out of China the most, according to the Drewry data. Spot rates on four major routes from China (to Los Angeles, New York, Rotterdam and Genoa) jumped 16 percent or more week over week. Another major index out of China is showing a similar trajectory, backing up the WCI spot data. The Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI) increased 19 percent on a two-week basis to $2,306 per container as of Friday. The total marks a 20-month high for the SCFI. The rates for containers originating outside of China remain stable, Drewry results say. Trans-Atlantic freight movement from New York to Rotterdam increased just 1 percent to $629 per container, while the reverse path saw declines of 2 percent to $2,160 per container. Trade lanes to Shanghai out of Los Angeles and Rotterdam were flat and down 6 percent, respectively. Convenience store and gas station coming to former downtown Sheetz A Mart Plus is expected to open in late June at the former Sheetz store near downtown Hagerstown, according to CEO Jamil Malik. Malik, who also is CEO of Penny Mart, said in a news release that the Mart Plus at 301 E. Washington St. will have a gas station and offer convenience items and hot and cold food options. It will be open 24/7. This will be the third site for Mart Plus, which also operates in Frederick, Md., he said. A Mart Plus is expected to open in late June at the former Sheetz site near downtown Hagerstown. The Hagerstown store will have more than 18 full- and part-time employees. The Sheetz closed on March 3 as the company continued to get ready for a new store along Mount Aetna Road and Dual Highway. Hagerstown business news: With liquor board's blessing, Hub City Brewing is one step closer to opening day Crenshaw's becomes Spoonire Auto Repair Crenshaw's Auto Repair in downtown Hagerstown is now Spoonire Auto Repair after Howie Weeks sold the business to Ashley Davis in March, Davis and Weeks said. Weeks, who owned Crenshaw's for 21 years, said he is retiring. He said he will probably continue to help out at the 67 W. Baltimore St. auto repair shop through the end of May. Weeks said he took the business over from Willie Crenshaw, who had the business for about 13 years. Howie Weeks, left, has sold Crenshaw's Auto Repair in downtown Hagerstown, to Ashley Davis (right). The auto repair shop at 67 W. Baltimore St. is now Spoonire Auto Repair. "I've enjoyed it. I like the business and I really enjoy my customers," said Weeks, 66, of Hagerstown. Mechanic Robert Korpisz is staying on with Spoonire's. Davis said she's "excited to fill the shoes for Howie," and glad Weeks is helping with the transition. Student of the Week winner: Herald-Mail Student of the Week: See this week's winner Davis has experience working in the auto repair business. Her fiance, Richard Spoonire, owns Spoonire Auto Service, which relocated from Boonsboro to Sharpsburg about a year ago. Spoonire will help oversee the downtown Hagerstown business, she said. The shop will continue to offer the same services and operate from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays and from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Fridays. Opening? Moving? Got a new hire or promotion? Let us know If you have details on a business coming or going in Washington County, Md., or Franklin County, Pa., email us at news@herald-mail.com. This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: Mart Plus coming to Hagerstown & Crenshaw's Auto Repair changes hands Investors are often guided by the idea of discovering 'the next big thing', even if that means buying 'story stocks' without any revenue, let alone profit. Sometimes these stories can cloud the minds of investors, leading them to invest with their emotions rather than on the merit of good company fundamentals. A loss-making company is yet to prove itself with profit, and eventually the inflow of external capital may dry up. In contrast to all that, many investors prefer to focus on companies like ATOSS Software (ETR:AOF), which has not only revenues, but also profits. Even if this company is fairly valued by the market, investors would agree that generating consistent profits will continue to provide ATOSS Software with the means to add long-term value to shareholders. Check out our latest analysis for ATOSS Software ATOSS Software's Earnings Per Share Are Growing If a company can keep growing earnings per share (EPS) long enough, its share price should eventually follow. So it makes sense that experienced investors pay close attention to company EPS when undertaking investment research. It certainly is nice to see that ATOSS Software has managed to grow EPS by 27% per year over three years. This has no doubt fuelled the optimism that sees the stock trading on a high multiple of earnings. Top-line growth is a great indicator that growth is sustainable, and combined with a high earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) margin, it's a great way for a company to maintain a competitive advantage in the market. The music to the ears of ATOSS Software shareholders is that EBIT margins have grown from 29% to 35% in the last 12 months and revenues are on an upwards trend as well. Ticking those two boxes is a good sign of growth, in our book. The chart below shows how the company's bottom and top lines have progressed over time. Click on the chart to see the exact numbers. The trick, as an investor, is to find companies that are going to perform well in the future, not just in the past. While crystal balls don't exist, you can check our visualization of consensus analyst forecasts for ATOSS Software's future EPS 100% free. Are ATOSS Software Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders? It's a necessity that company leaders act in the best interest of shareholders and so insider investment always comes as a reassurance to the market. ATOSS Software followers will find comfort in knowing that insiders have a significant amount of capital that aligns their best interests with the wider shareholder group. We note that their impressive stake in the company is worth 591m. That equates to 30% of the company, making insiders powerful and aligned with other shareholders. So there is opportunity here to invest in a company whose management have tangible incentives to deliver. Story continues Does ATOSS Software Deserve A Spot On Your Watchlist? For growth investors, ATOSS Software's raw rate of earnings growth is a beacon in the night. Further, the high level of insider ownership is impressive and suggests that the management appreciates the EPS growth and has faith in ATOSS Software's continuing strength. Fast growth and confident insiders should be enough to warrant further research, so it would seem that it's a good stock to follow. Another important measure of business quality not discussed here, is return on equity (ROE). Click on this link to see how ATOSS Software shapes up to industry peers, when it comes to ROE. There's always the possibility of doing well buying stocks that are not growing earnings and do not have insiders buying shares. But for those who consider these important metrics, we encourage you to check out companies that do have those features. You can access a tailored list of German companies which have demonstrated growth backed by recent insider purchases. Please note the insider transactions discussed in this article refer to reportable transactions in the relevant jurisdiction. 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. In this podcast, Motley Fool host Ricky Mulvey talks with Motley Fool analyst Kirsten Guerra about earnings reports from Duolingo and Roblox, and with Motley Fool analyst Nick Sciple about the legal pot business and a legislative change that could have profound implications on the market. To catch full episodes of all The Motley Fool's free podcasts, check out our podcast center. To get started investing, check out our quick-start guide to investing in stocks. A full transcript follows the video. Should you invest $1,000 in Roblox right now? Before you buy stock in Roblox, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now and Roblox wasnt one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, youd have $550,688!* Stock Advisor provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including guidance on building a portfolio, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month. The Stock Advisor service has more than quadrupled the return of S&P 500 since 2002*. See the 10 stocks *Stock Advisor returns as of May 13, 2024 This video was recorded on May 9, 2024. Ricky Mulvey: Wall Street might need some help translating this earnings report. You're listening to Motley Fool Money. I'm Ricky Mulvey joined today by Kirsten Guerra. Kirsten, thanks for being here. Kirsten Guerra: Hey, Ricky. Happy to have me. Ricky Mulvey: We're happy to have you. I appreciate you being here. Kirsten Guerra: I love this start. Ricky Mulvey: We've got two high fliers that you follow pretty well, both experiencing a little bit of a fall one more than the other. But Duolingo. Let's start with Duolingo, which is the app that helps you learn different languages. We'll talk about their earnings in a sec and why the street isn't happy that Duolingo grew revenue by 45% and daily active users by 54%. But I loved this Kirsten, the earnings calls started with the announcement of Duolingo on Ice, which is a four-hour musical celebration with no intermission. They wanted to let the analysts know about it. What is your hype meter for Duolingo on Ice? Kirsten Guerra: It's high. If being bullied by a digital owl is this much fun on a regular day. It's got to just be more fun on ice. Ricky Mulvey: Absolutely. I'll be buying my tickets. On the surface for Duolingo's quarter, it seemed like a lights-out quarter. Beating every estimate for earnings in revenue and bookings, also raised guidance. What's going on with the drop? What's the street so worried about? Story continues Kirsten Guerra: The street is all about expectations. This is a company with a lot of expectations built in. Every quarter for the last year, analysts have set expectations for Duolingo. That's what the street does and every quarter Duolingo has beat them. Weirdly, it's almost analysts are now expecting Duo to beat their expectations. They did beat expectations yet again, but only narrowly this time, so here we are. I will say a 12% or maybe 16% drop now I think does seem rough until you realize that's something like 20 days back in the market. We've just returned to the price where it was 20 days ago. I realized that's tough for someone who bought five days ago. I don't mean to minimize that, but again, keeping perspective, this is still a stock that's up more than 50% in the last year. I think the investor takeaway really from this share price movement is that the business is still performing well based on fundamentals, which it has earned. It has earned at a lofty share price, but the expectations are high and investors should just know that going in. Ricky Mulvey: Looking at the business, not just the share price, what are your headline takeaways then from Duolingo's quarter? Kirsten Guerra: I think one of the most important for Duolingo is that unit economics here remain really strong. They are still pulling in a solid return from their marketing spend. Specifically, this is one of the more impressive companies I've ever studied in terms of marketing. Just for this quarter, their revenue was up 10% sequentially and their marketing spend is up less than 4%. They're getting a substantial return in revenue more than they're having to spend to get that. Another big takeaway. One of the things I've been wondering about is related to the potential TikTok ban here in the US. Duolingo does a lot of advertising there. It is one of the big drivers of a lot of its popularity and why it's marketing spend is so efficient often. Management has said it's not worried here that more than half of Duolingo's social impressions actually come from outside the US. But half is a lot and US subscribers tend to be the most valuable in terms of average revenue per user. They tend to spend more on things like this. I'm not sure I actually believe that TikTok will be banned or that this is a huge risk, but it is certainly something to watch out for. Even though management has said it's not a big deal, I think it might be a little bit understated there. Ricky Mulvey: Duolingo is very much a marketing story and they've known how to create those viral moments starting off their earnings call with the musical celebration. Where one of the reactions to their musical celebration is an audience member saying, they took my son, where's my son? If you look at just the earnings transcripts for Duolingo's quarter, you will see a very odd sentence with how the quarter kicks off beyond something about forward-looking statements. The growth story for Duolingo though, is that it's going to rapidly take share in this language learning market of which it has a very small percentage of. CEO Luis von Ahn saying that this is a $115 billion-a-year industry. That seems extraordinarily large. Kirsten, where are they getting that market number? Kirsten Guerra: Frankly, I don't think that the market is that big. I'm really glad you've asked this question because when I started looking at this. If we take them at their word and assume it a $115 billion market. What does that mean? With eight billion people on the planet, that would be roughly $15 per person. Maybe that sounds reasonable, but every person in the world cannot afford to fork over $15. But let's make it more reasonable and say that there are an estimated 1.2 billion people who are actually actively learning a language at any time. If you consider just that population then you're talking closer to $100 per person. But part of the beauty of Duolingo is that it's a freemium platform. Not everyone pays. Actually, their premium penetration, which is the percentage of people of all of their users that are actually paying for a subscription, that's about 8%. If we say that percentage holds and Duolingo does go on to serve 1.2 billion people and 8% of them pay up for a subscription that's almost $1,200 per person per year. I believe that language learning is valuable, but I don't believe it's that valuable. By the way, to contrast that Duolingo's current super plan, they charge $60 per year. If that's the value they think they're giving, what an incredible deal they've offered. I don't know how to make that makes sense. I will say this though to wrap it up. I don't think that particular total addressable market number needs to be true for Duolingo to still have a solid runway ahead of it. Maybe it really just sounds nice to say that you have only 1% of the market. But I modeled them as having almost 7% of the market close to a year ago and they've done just fine. Don't listen to this number in particular, but I also wouldn't write them off for this alone. Ricky Mulvey: This is a fast-growing company. Traditional valuation metrics are tough to use. I think the stock is at about what? 71 times earnings, 20 times sales. What metrics are you using as you follow Duolingo story? Kirsten Guerra: It is really tough. You cited earnings, but this is only Duolingo's second straight profitable quarter. So when you have a rapidly evolving number in the denominator like that, the numbers will look outlandish. If you don't know what I mean by that, you can go check out Duolingo math, but even forward PE ratios that take into account near-term growth will look a little wild. What I did was I actually modeled out what I believe are reasonable growth rates to expect in two numbers, specifically just monthly active users, and also that premium penetration that I mentioned. Those are the two main elements that are really going to drive revenue. I think of those two, it's the premium penetration percentage that will really be the biggest lever for how much they can grow earnings. Right now over the past year it's stalled out around 8% of total users paying for subscriptions, but that's been due to some softness in the economy. It's unclear if that's all that is. Going forward the question is, will that shrink as Duolingo expands into a broader user base, that's may be less likely to upgrade into a subscription? Or will it actually recover back to the steady growth rate it had before, and will it surprise us with how high it can climb? How many people are willing to purchase subscriptions ultimately? I think that will be a major driver for how well the company ends up performing in shareholders' eyes. Ricky Mulvey: Let's move on to Roblox, the online game platform and game creation system. It's down more than 20% this morning at the time of this recording. Real quick, Kirsten, because I don't think there's a lot of crossover between the Roblox playing audience and the Motley Fool Money listening audience. It's a free video game platform. Quickly, how does this company make money? Kirsten Guerra: I can't believe that's true. Surely tons of our listeners play Roblox, no? Ricky Mulvey: Maybe. I don't know. If you aren't on podcasts it's fool.com, that's the email address. Kirsten Guerra: There you go. But it is a great question. I think people could get confused because there's been a lot of talk in the news about advertising developing on Roblox. To be clear, it's negligible today in terms of revenue, and management says it won't be material by the end of this year either. So really where Roblox makes its money is directly from users. People pay to buy things on the platform. Roblox uses a model common to gaming, this freemium model where they get tons of people in the door, build up the network effect. Then those who find it valuable can pay up for certain things. So Roblox sells Roblox, their virtual currency. That's the first step is you translate your money into that. Then you spend them on things like upgrades to your avatar, which is like your digital representation inside Roblox, or you can buy speed boost to progress again faster. For certain games they are like if you're playing a racing game, maybe you want to pay up for a really nice car. Roblox has also recently added subscriptions as a monetization tactic. Some creators, if they decide it's best for their experience, they can make that experience exclusive and require an ongoing subscription to it. It's really up to the creators of any individual experience, how they choose to monetize, if at all many are still completely free, but those are some of the monetization mechanisms that Roblox provides. Ricky Mulvey: Yeah, it was playing the racing game this morning on on Roblox. I was having a good time until I ran the car into this like wedge point between a barrier in the off-road thing. Then I couldn't continue playing, and then realized I should probably get back to work anyway. Kirsten, I think the problem at Roblox came down to what the CEO said, "We saw less growth than we expected. That said, we exceeded our margins on cash flow targets." Does Roblox have a business problem or an expectations problem? Kirsten Guerra: Management says that they're trying to get bookings daily active users, hours engaged back to 20% growth rates. I think for daily active users, they reported something like 17%. What's so special about 20% specifically? Roblox is a lot of things, but at its core it's a social network. It's a social network that was first popular with kids and it's really aging up from there. About a year ago I looked at how Roblox's growth has compared to Facebook's early growth. Once I normalize them by the year they went public, the growth rates are very similar from there. Looking ahead for 2024, I tried to extend that curve out by both 20%, which is what they say they want to be at in the 17% they were actually at for this quarter. They don't really look that different. They are still right on track for following in something like Facebook's footsteps. For a single-year or single-quarter a slowdown from 20%-17% is not that huge in the overall story, but there will be always some vacillation around an average growth. But certainly if that growth rate continues to trend downward, that would be a different story. So maybe it isn't expectations problem for the moment, but it could be a business problem down the line. I'm glad that you clarified that's actually a quote directly from management. I thought maybe it was just your quote, but yeah, that's wild. You mentioned that the CEO mentioned exceeding the cash-flow targets there. They did technically increase their cash flow from operations year-over-year. But they started with a lower net income and they just juiced it with more non-cash stock-based compensation. I certainly wouldn't point to that as some silver lining. I'm maybe a little disappointed that the CEO did. Ricky Mulvey: This is a company with a lot of stock-based compensation. I think they spent about a third of their revenue on stock-based comp over the past 12 months. When you have CEO David Baszucki saying, hey, look over here at our cash flow numbers. They're adjusting out something significant. Not bad for a company to have stock-based comp, but forgiveness becomes a little lower when you're not meeting your growth estimates. Speaking of the CEO, David Baszucki blamed the slowdown basically on shipping out a bunch of new technology that low-end Android devices just can't handle. Are you buying that explanation? What do you think of that? Kirsten Guerra: Sure, somewhat. I mean, about 80% of users do access Roblox through mobile devices, and many of those are Androids. It is true that they have recently introduced features like dynamic heads that use a lot of local processing power by design. I'm sure that that does suffer on a lower end device and it makes for a less than ideal user experience. Maybe some of those users turn away from the platform. That said, those devices exist and they will continue to exist. If you want to grow to serve one billion daily active users, as they've said, they will have to contend with that. The platform in some capacity will have to be able to serve users that don't just have top of the line phones. I will actually mention, if it's OK, one other thing that I think is huge that the CEO pointed to, and that is that the way they highlight all of their new content bubbling up on the platform is "not optimal." I'd say that's understating it. I think this is one of the biggest things that they really have to solve. Especially if they want to retain the older, more mature users with higher expectations in games. They need a much better recommendation engine. There are 15 million plus experiences. Yes, there's a little bit of fun in the treasure hunt element of kind of clicking through and seeing what you'll get. But really I need them to find some of that TikTok level greatness in knowing what games I will love before I know what I want and just serving them to me. I don't have time to go dig them up. Just get them to me Roblox. Ricky Mulvey: We've talked about two high-growth stories, and we're long-term investors here at the Fool, 25 plus stocks holding on for 3-5 years minimum. But Roblox, Duolingo, you follow both of these, are any of these more appealing for an entry point for investors taking a look at these companies? Kirsten Guerra: Both of them, you could say have dipped but dips are all relative. I think before these earnings releases, Duolingo was already soaring at what I see as a pretty steep premium valuation. I think Roblox has really been suffering for with a stagnant stock price for somewhere around a year, that was maybe undeserved. For me, my own personal expectations are more at odds with the market on Roblox's story. I think that's where I see the larger price dislocation and maybe the greater opportunity. But that's just me. If you agree with the market punishing either of these stocks today for whatever reason then it might not be the company that's easiest for you to hold in the long-term because certainly they're both growing and they're both going to experience a lot of volatility. Ricky Mulvey: These dips aren't nothing for a growth investor. Kirsten Guerra, appreciate you coming on for the a segment. Thank you for your time and your insight. Kirsten Guerra: Thanks for having me, Ricky Ricky Mulvey: Ricky Mulvey with Motley Fool Money here to tell you about a vehicle that is redefining sporting luxury, the Range Rover Sport. The first thing I noticed when I sat down in the driver's seat that I felt like I was in a cockpit up off the ground and focused interior that promotes exhilarating driver engagement. I also really appreciated the overhead 360-degree camera view that let me know exactly where I was going as backing out of the parking space. Went for a drive in the Range Rover Sport out in Littleton, Colorado, tested the accelerator just a little bit and felt the performance and agility. It's an instinctive drive with engaging on-road dynamics and effortless composure. To put it plainly, the Range Rover Sport is powerful. It's also quiet, uncomfortable, advanced cabin technologies such as active noise cancellation and cabin air purification, offer new levels of comfort and refinement. The third-generation Range Rover Sport, is the most desirable and advanced and dynamically capable yet. I'd like to invite you to visit landroverusa.com to learn more about the Range Rover Sport. Ricky Mulvey: The excitement about investing in the legal we'd space died down over the past few years significantly. But there's a big change coming in. It's classification is a federally illegal drug in the United States. I know this sounds technical, but it could have profound changes for the industry. My colleague Nick Sciple joined me for a look at the legal market and a publicly traded weed company that's high on cash. Nick, we're a few years past this weed-investing boom and it's an extraordinarily difficult business where there's not a lot of tax incentives. You have to basically deal in all cash. The drug is still federally illegal. But before we get to the state of play today, it's I think it's worth looking back on that investment boom. Why was there so much hype? Nick Sciple: Sure. I think the short answer to that is marijuana, pot, weed as a product a lot of people use. There's a big community around it. Folks saw a potential opportunity to own the next great consumer goods product. We also had lots of movements toward opening up sales of the product. Twenty-fourteen, you'd seen recreational legalization take place in Colorado? I believe it was in 2016, you saw recreational legalization take place in Canada. It's yet a product that had an existing constituencies and belief among folks. This could be a big consumer product and you had a legalization trend taking place in some ways it's really did become a really big, important consumer product. California, one of those states that legalized recreational sales in 2023 last year did $5 billion in recreational marijuana sales. You look at Canada, it's been legal again, going back to 2016, did 5 billion sales in 2023. Has been quite a big consumer product market that's generated lots of revenues for the tax authorities in those jurisdictions, but this is a commodity market where you saw lots of cash and excitement rush into that business bound to lead to oversupply and push prices down, which we've seen in really all of these developed jurisdictions over the past several years, you add in a really substantial tax burden and a lot of these markets. If you look at the stocks and the industry really all down about 90% from their peak. There has been a wash-out among even some of the smaller players, folks totally exiting the industry. Ricky Mulvey: Now there's something new going on though, which is that it sounds technical, but weed is going from a Schedule 1 drug to a Schedule 3 drug. Glad we have a lawyer on. Why is this a big deal? Nick Sciple: This has been something that's been going on for quite a while. Was first recommended by the Biden administration back in August of last year. Here on about a week ago, April 30, the Department of Justice announced its intent to follow through the rule-making process to reach scheduled marijuana from Schedule 1 to Schedule 3 under the Controlled Substances Act. Under a Schedule 1 drug those are drugs that are viewed as having new medical use in a high likelihood of dependents thinking about things like heroin. A Scheduled 3 drug, much lower classification substances with moderate to low abuse potential are currently accepted medical use and a low potential psychological dependence to this new rescheduling puts marijuana in a class of drugs with things like testosterone, anabolic steroids, Tylenol, with codeine. For one just means that the level of federal regulation will reduce. Again, this isn't a final rule in place last to go through the federal rulemaking process. We won't really be at the earliest until the fall that we see this rule go into place. But in addition to changing the regulatory environment for the operators in this space, potentially allowing more investment in research of marijuana as a drug also significantly changes the tax environment these companies operate in up to and still today again, because this rule hasn't been enacted, companies selling marijuana have been subject to Section 280 E of the Internal Revenue Code, which essentially prohibits companies, operators selling scheduled 1 and 2 drugs from exempting ordinary business expenses, the types of tax deductions that most businesses would get things for, your rent, payroll, things like that. Historically, they've only been allowed to deduct their cost of goods sold on their taxes if. Comes down to what these companies report can be tens of millions of dollars in cash flow that is now going to drop to the bottom lines of these companies that was previously required to be paid back in taxes to the federal government. However, doesn't change everything for the industry. A recreational marijuana still remains federally illegal. There is continued push by some members of Congress to allow marijuana banking entities to be treated in the same way as traditional businesses that would require further action from a legislative point of view. But if that takes place again, would reduce costs of the industry has had to bear that normal operating businesses don't. Big takeaway is produces the regulatory barriers to entry, perhaps in the marijuana business, and also going to significantly change the tax regime, which should be a windfall for the folks currently operating. Ricky Mulvey: It's a step but not an all-out win. One problem for a lot of these businesses is that it's hard to sell across state lines. There's no interstate commerce. What is this change in the scheduling mean for interstate commerce? Because I think that would be a significant factor for these companies. Nick Sciple: A to-be-determined right now, but potentially could open up a lot more competition across state lines. We've said previously, as you alluded to, currently medical marijuana operators, folks that are even selling these recreational States are locked within the states they operate in. However, with these changes, perhaps you could see some new entrants. The early easy one is maybe you see more activity among the pharma industry. It's much easier to get a license to research a Schedule 3 substance than a Schedule 1 substance. Maybe you see some marijuana-based pharmaceuticals and products out there in the market that could be sold under the existing regulatory regime for pharmaceutical products, which would again add more competition in the industry. Or interesting California for a number of years has been dipping their toe in the water of exploring interstate sales via partnerships with other states operating out there to be determined whether this change in scheduling allows that to take place. But there were, that'd be a quite a, quite a lot of attitude among, among operators in particularly places like California and Oregon that because of their more mature market, have their wholesale prices 20% below the U.S. average could potentially open up opportunities for some of these lower price states to undercut operators in these other states if those regulations allow interstate sales. Could it also offer the opportunities for more developed companies in the Canadian market and elsewhere to enter the US That's something they've been sniffing around that for quite a while, to-be-determined. But we do know for sure that if we allow new entrants into this market going to increase competition or if it's anything like what we've seen previously more capital pouring into this space should push prices down. These near-term tax windfall these companies the current operators are going to capture with this tax change won't necessarily stick around for the long term if we see higher competitive intensity come about. Ricky Mulvey: I think the reclassification in research is going to be significant just because there's not a ton of research on weed about the long-term implications just because it's so difficult to study a schedule on substance if you're a researcher. I'm a little optimistic about that just to get the science. One of the big investment thesis about weed sales was that is more states are going to open up more federal legalization and that means more sales. But with this news did your investment thesis around these weed businesses change at all? Nick Sciple: I wouldn't say the investment thesis changed at all. I would just say this is one of those buy-the-rumor, sell-the-news events so that I would say. You've seen that in the activity in the marijuana stocks. I say that just because this promise of rescheduling that's been out there for a long time, the potential windfall on these tax changes. Yes. You've seen a lot of these stocks moved quite a bit this year and they moved quite a bit leading into the announcement. But on the back end now that we've got this information out there and the market is starting to digest it we're thinking about who are these winners long-term. I still think it's hard to say what the end state of the market is going to be today. I think there's maybe an opportunity to trade around the news. Short-term, longer-term I think you're going to still need to see a little bit more of a shakeout before we know the clear winners and losers in this market. I have some ideas which I know you're going to ask you about here in a little bit. But I do think for many folks that the reaction in the market to rescheduling taking place, you think, wow man, these stocks are going to go go straight up. But I think we're learning there's a little bit more uncertainty now than the many folks had hoped for and I think that's why it was potentially one of those buy-the-rumor, sell-the-news events. Ricky Mulvey: Well, it's an industry that even with this reclassification still has a really strong illicit market as a competitor. Even in the legal states where people can buy weed from a store there's still a lot of black market weed going on. Nick Sciple: That's right. The short answer to that is just the big tax burden that many of these legal operators face. If you just look at Canada as an example, a mature nationwide marijuana market about 30% of the selling price that you see at the market is comes from excise taxes which obviously gives an opportunity for elicit folks to undercut on price. Over five years post-legalization in Canada estimates have 25-50% of the marijuana still remaining in the illicit market. From the bullish side of things you could say that's an opportunity to squeeze out some of those elicit sales opportunity for the legal operators to come in. But I think that the real explanation is high taxes and also inertia. Where were folks getting these products before legalization? These products haven't just teleported onto the market over the past five years. Ricky Mulvey: I also got to take I just want to bounce off you. I think the vibe in Colorado at least has shifted around weed. There's just lower consumption post-pandemic and I think there's a little bit more of a discussion about the health risks out here as opposed to a lot of these states, early legalization. It's like yippee yippee, we have weed now. Nick Sciple: I guess it's like the end of prohibition people probably drank more than 10 years after the end of prohibition, what have you. I think Colorado being the most mature recreational marijuana states but had legalization for over a decade. You've probably hit a maturation of the market that you're going to see in other markets overtime as well where the folks who want to partake in the products have the folks who thought about trying the products and didn't try them until legalization have done so and you kind of reach a balanced level in the market. I will say nationwide the issue is arguably as popular as it's ever been. If you look at Gallup polling at the end of 2023, at 70% of Americans supporting marijuana legalization fair to just 51% in 2014 when Colorado was enacting it's legalization. You're still seeing more jurisdictions open up for recreational use. Florida, big state is going to vote on opening recreational sales in November. Also if you look internationally Germany approved recreational use on April 1st. It's still a growth industry when it comes to more legislative domino's falling around the world and around the US. Ricky Mulvey: A lot of the smoke has cleared, a lot of the hype has died down and there still are companies operating in this space. I know you've looked at a few of them. Are any of them investible in your opinion? Nick Sciple: Lots of uncertainty in this market, a lot of ins, a lot outs, a lot of what have yous. But if you had to dip your toe into this market I do think there's one company that stands out to me. That company is Cronos Group, ticker is CRON, Canadian cannabis operator. Again Canadian market's been legal since 2018, has had fewer of these regulatory issues that the companies in the US have had so have been able to build national distribution, invest in R&D and branding in Canada in a way that these US operators haven't been able to do. Cronos has grown to become the number 2 brand by market share in Canada. Importantly, the number 1 brand in edibles. I think a lot of folks think about marijuana consumption and have this vision of smokables being the dominant area of the market. I think in the same way that you're seeing nicotine go more toward things like vaping and nicotine pouches and that sort of thing I think that's where you're going to see cannabis move over time. Having an advantage and those products having established branding and those sort of products I think puts companies at an advantageous position and I think Cronos is one of those companies. Second point I'll make they have a great balance sheet. This is a company with a billion-dollar market cap that has about $860 million in net cash, was trading for less than cash a few months ago. Here today still trading at a pretty reasonable valuation. If you back out a lumpy tax payment last year it's approaching cash-flow break-even. You're continuing to see a wash-out in the Canadian market. This is going to be one of the companies that standing at the end of that. Also have some interesting opportunities and other legal cannabis markets. They're importing products into new markets like Germany, the UK, and Israel, so already have an established operation in Canada and an ability to export the operation into new markets. Then last but not least I think is very noteworthy for Cronos is they're backed by Altria, the big tobacco company, the parent of Marlboro in the US. Altria owns over 40% of the company stock, has rights to a 0.4 of the company's board members, has a global partnership agreement with Altria, gives the company access to Altria's distribution and regulatory expertise in the US which I think will be very important to them if and when they come into that market. Strong balance sheet, strong competitive position in a mature market, opportunities in foreign markets and then the partnership with Altria I think positions them well with access to distribution, cost of capital, and perhaps gives them a foot in the door in the US if and when that time comes. For those reasons I think Cronos is a company to have on your radar ticker is CRON, also trades in the US as well. Ricky Mulvey: Look at that. A weed company with a great balance sheet. Was not expecting that when we first started talking Nick, appreciate your time and your insight. Nick Sciple: Happy to do it. I've got high hopes for this one. Ricky Mulvey: As always people on the program may own stocks mentioned and the Motley Fool may have formal recommendations for or against so don't buy or sell anything based solely on what you hear. I'm Ricky Mulvey, thanks for listening, we'll be back tomorrow. Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Kirsten Guerra has positions in Alphabet and Roblox. Nick Sciple has positions in Cronos Group. Ricky Mulvey has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Duolingo, and Roblox. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Duolingo & Roblox: Did Investors Get It Right? was originally published by The Motley Fool Amidst a backdrop of fluctuating global markets, France's CAC 40 Index has shown resilience with a notable increase of 3.29%, reflecting broader European market optimism and potential monetary easing on the horizon. This positive momentum sets an intriguing stage for examining growth companies in Euronext Paris, particularly those with high insider ownership, which often signals strong confidence in the companys future from those who know it best. Top 10 Growth Companies With High Insider Ownership In France Name Insider Ownership Earnings Growth VusionGroup (ENXTPA:VU) 13.3% 25.8% Groupe OKwind Societe anonyme (ENXTPA:ALOKW) 24.8% 37.7% WALLIX GROUP (ENXTPA:ALLIX) 19.9% 101.4% La Francaise de l'Energie (ENXTPA:FDE) 20.1% 37.6% OSE Immunotherapeutics (ENXTPA:OSE) 25.1% 92.9% Adocia (ENXTPA:ADOC) 12.9% 104.5% Icape Holding (ENXTPA:ALICA) 30.2% 30% Arcure (ENXTPA:ALCUR) 21.6% 41.7% Munic (ENXTPA:ALMUN) 29.2% 150% MedinCell (ENXTPA:MEDCL) 16.6% 68.8% Click here to see the full list of 21 stocks from our Fast Growing Euronext Paris Companies With High Insider Ownership screener. Here's a peek at a few of the choices from the screener. Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: Lectra SA offers industrial intelligence solutions targeting the fashion, automotive, and furniture sectors, with a market capitalization of approximately 1.26 billion. Operations: The company generates revenue from the Americas and Asia-Pacific regions, totaling 170.33 million and 110.28 million respectively. Insider Ownership: 19.6% Earnings Growth Forecast: 28.6% p.a. Lectra SA, a French growth company with substantial insider ownership, is trading 19.6% below its estimated fair value. The company's earnings are projected to increase by 28.6% annually, outpacing the French market's forecast of 10.9%. Despite this strong profit growth outlook, Lectra's return on equity is expected to remain low at 13.3% in three years. Recent financials indicate a slight dip in net income and earnings per share compared to the previous year, alongside stable sales growth. ENXTPA:LSS Earnings and Revenue Growth as at May 2024 Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: MedinCell S.A. is a French pharmaceutical company specializing in the development of long-acting injectable treatments across multiple therapeutic areas, with a market capitalization of approximately 428.37 million. Story continues Operations: The company generates its revenue primarily from the pharmaceuticals segment, totaling 14.13 million. Insider Ownership: 16.6% Earnings Growth Forecast: 68.8% p.a. MedinCell, a French biotech firm, is poised for significant growth with expected revenue increases of 40.9% annually, outpacing the broader market's 5.8%. Although it has experienced shareholder dilution in the past year and shows high share price volatility, MedinCell's recent successful Phase 3 trial results for its schizophrenia treatment TEV-749 highlight its potential in the pharmaceutical industry. Furthermore, a strategic collaboration with AbbVie could bolster its development capabilities and financial prospects through substantial milestone payments and royalties. ENXTPA:MEDCL Earnings and Revenue Growth as at May 2024 Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: VusionGroup S.A. specializes in offering digitalization solutions for commerce across Europe, Asia, and North America, with a market capitalization of approximately 2.50 billion. Operations: The company generates its revenue by providing digitalization services for commercial sectors across Europe, Asia, and North America. Insider Ownership: 13.3% Earnings Growth Forecast: 25.8% p.a. VusionGroup S.A. has demonstrated robust growth, with earnings increasing significantly over the past year and revenues rising to 801.96 million from 620.86 million previously. Analysts expect both earnings and revenue to outpace the French market significantly in the coming years, forecasting annual growth rates of 25.8% for earnings and 24.3% for revenue. Despite this strong performance, the company's share price has been highly volatile recently, which could concern some investors looking for stability. ENXTPA:VU Earnings and Revenue Growth as at May 2024 Summing It All Up Click this link to deep-dive into the 21 companies within our Fast Growing Euronext Paris Companies With High Insider Ownership screener. Already own these companies? Link your portfolio to Simply Wall St and get alerts on any new warning signs to your stocks. Discover a world of investment opportunities with Simply Wall St's free app and access unparalleled stock analysis across all markets. Looking For Alternative Opportunities? 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.The analysis only considers stock directly held by insiders. It does not include indirectly owned stock through other vehicles such as corporate and/or trust entities. All forecast revenue and earnings growth rates quoted are in terms of annualised (per annum) growth rates over 1-3 years. Companies discussed in this article include ENXTPA:LSS ENXTPA:MEDCL and ENXTPA:VU . Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com Every investor on earth makes bad calls sometimes. But you have a problem if you face massive losses more than once in a while. So spare a thought for the long term shareholders of Nu Skin Enterprises, Inc. (NYSE:NUS); the share price is down a whopping 78% in the last three years. That would certainly shake our confidence in the decision to own the stock. And over the last year the share price fell 65%, so we doubt many shareholders are delighted. The falls have accelerated recently, with the share price down 24% in the last three months. We note that the company has reported results fairly recently; and the market is hardly delighted. You can check out the latest numbers in our company report. On a more encouraging note the company has added US$51m to its market cap in just the last 7 days, so let's see if we can determine what's driven the three-year loss for shareholders. View our latest analysis for Nu Skin Enterprises While markets are a powerful pricing mechanism, share prices reflect investor sentiment, not just underlying business performance. One imperfect but simple way to consider how the market perception of a company has shifted is to compare the change in the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price movement. Over the three years that the share price declined, Nu Skin Enterprises' earnings per share (EPS) dropped significantly, falling to a loss. Extraordinary items contributed to this situation. Due to the loss, it's not easy to use EPS as a reliable guide to the business. However, we can say we'd expect to see a falling share price in this scenario. The graphic below depicts how EPS has changed over time (unveil the exact values by clicking on the image). Before buying or selling a stock, we always recommend a close examination of historic growth trends, available here. What About Dividends? It is important to consider the total shareholder return, as well as the share price return, for any given stock. Whereas the share price return only reflects the change in the share price, the TSR includes the value of dividends (assuming they were reinvested) and the benefit of any discounted capital raising or spin-off. Arguably, the TSR gives a more comprehensive picture of the return generated by a stock. As it happens, Nu Skin Enterprises' TSR for the last 3 years was -75%, which exceeds the share price return mentioned earlier. And there's no prize for guessing that the dividend payments largely explain the divergence! A Different Perspective Nu Skin Enterprises shareholders are down 63% for the year (even including dividends), but the market itself is up 28%. However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. Unfortunately, last year's performance may indicate unresolved challenges, given that it was worse than the annualised loss of 11% over the last half decade. Generally speaking long term share price weakness can be a bad sign, though contrarian investors might want to research the stock in hope of a turnaround. 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. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Nu Skin Enterprises you should know about. Story continues Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of companies we expect will grow earnings. Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on American 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. FILE PHOTO: FILE PHOTO: The flags of the United States and China fly in Boston By Ellen Zhang, Sarah Wu BEIJING (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden is set to announce new China tariffs as soon as Tuesday, targeting sectors including electric vehicles, medical supplies and solar equipment, according to people familiar with the matter. The expected move by the Biden administration comes ahead of the November presidential election. Biden, a Democrat seeking re-election, has taken a tough-on-China approach that would maintain existing tariffs on many Chinese goods set by former President Donald Trump, his expected Republican challenger. The impact on Chinese industries, however, is expected to be limited. DOES CHINA EXPORT EVS TO THE UNITED STATES? Very few. In the first quarter, Geely was the only Chinese automaker to export to the United States with 2,217 cars, according to data from the China Passenger Car Association. Geely, which has sold some EVs in the U.S. market under its Polestar brand, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. China's Geely and Sweden's Volvo Cars founded EV maker Polestar Automotive, which makes most of its cars in China. Volvo is majority-owned by Geely. Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath told Reuters last month the company is accelerating efforts to produce more vehicles outside China. Polestar aims for a sales breakdown of 40% in Europe, 30% in the United States and 30% in the Asia-Pacific region, he said. Ingenlath told Reuters last year that Polestar will start production in South Carolina for U.S. and European markets from 2024. ARE NEW TARIFFS A THREAT TO CHINA'S SOLAR INDUSTRY? The market is small for China and exports to the United States have been subject to tariffs for more than a decade. Further duties were also recently imposed on several Chinese solar panel makers who finished their panels in Southeast Asia. Over 80% of solar panel manufacturing now takes place in China, and the cost of making a panel in China is 60% cheaper than in the U.S., according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank. Last year, China exported $3.35 million solar cells to the U.S., less than 0.1% of China's total exports. Outbound shipments of completed solar panels to the U.S. stood at $13.15 million in 2023, only 0.03% of China's solar panel exports. Industry observers said the equipment to produce solar panels involves a complicated supply chain. How the new U.S. tariffs affect sales of that equipment will depend on the details of the U.S. trade levy, they said. WHAT ABOUT MEDICAL SUPPLIES? Chinese-made medical supplies such as syringes and personal protective equipment also face additional U.S. tariffs, sources familiar with the decision said. According to WTO data, China exported $30.9 billion medical goods to the United States in 2022, accounting for about one fifth of China's overall exports of medical goods. The expected tariffs are part of the Biden administration's broader strategy to protect the U.S. against supply shortages seen during the pandemic that left hospitals scrambling to find critical equipment, the sources said. In December, the United States Trade Representative announced a further extension of China-related "Section 301" tariff exclusions until May 31. The American Medical Manufacturers Association has called for these exclusions to be revoked, arguing they are no longer needed to deal with a COVID-19 emergency. The association says American manufacturers need the chance to compete with imports on a more level playing field. MORE TARIFFS ON METAL PRODUCTS? Biden in April also called for tripling U.S. tariffs on Chinese metal products. That would apply to more than $1 billion worth of steel and aluminium products, a U.S. official said. (Reporting by Ellen Zhang and Sarah Wu in Beijing; Additional reporting by Andrew Silver in Shanghai and Qiaoyi Li in Beijing; Editing by Jacqueline Wong) In recent trading sessions, Japan's Nikkei 225 and TOPIX indices have experienced marginal weekly losses amid signals from the Bank of Japan hinting at potential interest rate hikes. This cautious market sentiment underlines the importance of focusing on growth companies with high insider ownership, as these firms often demonstrate a strong alignment between managements interests and shareholder value, potentially offering resilience in uncertain economic times. Top 10 Growth Companies With High Insider Ownership In Japan Name Insider Ownership Earnings Growth SHIFT (TSE:3697) 35.5% 27.2% Medley (TSE:4480) 34.1% 23.6% Hottolink (TSE:3680) 27% 54.3% Kasumigaseki CapitalLtd (TSE:3498) 35.5% 44.6% Micronics Japan (TSE:6871) 15.3% 37.4% Money Forward (TSE:3994) 21.4% 63.3% ExaWizards (TSE:4259) 24.8% 84.3% Soracom (TSE:147A) 17.2% 59.1% giftee (TSE:4449) 35% 55.8% freee K.K (TSE:4478) 24% 79.8% Click here to see the full list of 105 stocks from our Fast Growing Japanese Companies With High Insider Ownership screener. Here's a peek at a few of the choices from the screener. Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: Mercari, Inc. is a tech company that focuses on planning, developing, and operating the Mercari marketplace applications in Japan and the United States, with a market capitalization of approximately 313.91 billion. Operations: The company generates revenue primarily through its marketplace applications active in Japan and the United States. Insider Ownership: 36% Return On Equity Forecast: 22% (2027 estimate) Mercari, a Japanese growth company with significant insider ownership, is experiencing robust financial trends. Its earnings have surged by 222.8% over the past year and are expected to grow at 17.6% annually, outpacing the Japanese market's average of 9.2%. Despite this strong performance, Mercari's revenue growth forecast of 8.9% per year slightly lags behind more aggressive growth benchmarks. Recently, Mercari has innovated its business model by eliminating selling fees and introducing a simplified returns policy aimed at enhancing user experience and competitiveness in the U.S. market. TSE:4385 Earnings and Revenue Growth as at May 2024 Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: PARK24 Co., Ltd. manages parking facilities both in Japan and internationally, with a market capitalization of approximately 303.95 billion. Operations: The company generates revenue primarily from the operation and management of parking facilities globally. Story continues Insider Ownership: 10.5% Return On Equity Forecast: 24% (2027 estimate) PARK24, a Japanese company with high insider ownership, is trading at 11.7% below its estimated fair value, indicating potential undervaluation. Over the past year, its earnings surged by 278.1%, with future earnings expected to grow by 11.23% annuallyoutperforming the Japanese market's forecast of 9.2%. Despite these positives, PARK24 carries a high level of debt which could pose risks. Recent board decisions to make personnel changes may influence future strategic directions and performance stability. TSE:4666 Earnings and Revenue Growth as at May 2024 Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: Relo Group, Inc. operates in property management services across Japan with a market capitalization of approximately 257.40 billion. Operations: The firm specializes in property management services across Japan. Insider Ownership: 27.5% Return On Equity Forecast: 23% (2027 estimate) Relo Group, a Japanese growth company with high insider ownership, is trading at 34% below its estimated fair value, suggesting potential undervaluation. Despite a highly volatile share price and an unstable dividend track record, the company is forecasted to become profitable within three years with earnings expected to grow by 56.81% annually. Recent corporate actions include strategic executive changes and new agreements aimed at enhancing business operations and shareholder returns through increased dividends. TSE:8876 Earnings and Revenue Growth as at May 2024 Turning Ideas Into Actions Explore the 105 names from our Fast Growing Japanese Companies With High Insider Ownership screener here. Are you invested in these stocks already? Keep abreast of every twist and turn by setting up a portfolio with Simply Wall St, where we make it simple for investors like you to stay informed and proactive. Join a community of smart investors by using Simply Wall St. It's free and delivers expert-level analysis on worldwide markets. Ready To Venture Into Other Investment Styles? 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.The analysis only considers stock directly held by insiders. It does not include indirectly owned stock through other vehicles such as corporate and/or trust entities. All forecast revenue and earnings growth rates quoted are in terms of annualised (per annum) growth rates over 1-3 years. Companies discussed in this article include TSE:4385 TSE:4666 and TSE:8876. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com FAMU Puts $237M Stock Donation On Hold After Public Skepticism | Photo: Don Juan Moore/Getty Images Florida A&M University President Larry Robinson announced Thursday that the school was putting the brakes on a reported $237 million donation that had recently been announced. The incredible sum, coming from a source with very little publicly available information and a spotty track record for similar promises, had been the source of intense skepticism ever since it was announced. Record-breaking donation put "on hold" Robinson made the announcement that the university would pause the donation during an emergency meeting with board members of FAMUs fundraising foundation. With regards to the gift and the processing of it and so forth, in terms of future processing, weve already decided its in our best interest to put that on hold, Robinson said during a Zoom meeting with board members, per Politico. The board, as well as others within and outside of FAMU, have been skeptical since Texas-based hydroponic farmer Gregory Gerami announced during Saturdays commencement ceremony that he was donating over $230 million in stock in his Batterson Farms Corporation; the donation would be the largest ever to an HBCU. The fundraising board, which was not informed of the deal ahead of time, requested Thursdays meeting, while the board of trustees has requested its own meeting for next week. This was said during the FAMU emergency foundation board meeting, which is being carried live here https://t.co/Ld6crzzuCI philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) May 9, 2024 Details emerge but questions remain Local CBS affiliate WCTV obtained a copy of the agreement made with the school. According to the news station, Gregory Gerami and the Isaac Batterson Family 7th Trust were donating 14 million shares of stock of intrinsic value worth at least $239,000,000, as well as an additional $61 million over the next 10 years. The agreement does not seem to address the concerns that have been raised about Geramis ability to make good on the promise of such large sums. Further fueling skepticism is a report that Gerami made a pledge in 2020 to donate $95 million to Coastal Carolina University but that that deal ultimately fell apart, WCTV reported. Uncertainty about what value if any the stock holds In a series of tweets that gained attention this week, one user explained that the type of stocked donated to FAMU hold intrinsic value as they are essentially self-assigned a price. What this means is that these shares can be created out of thin air and be stated as having X-amount of intrinsic value. Furthermore, the value of the shares can only be converted into actual cash if the provider of those stocks agrees to buy them back, but the owner has the option at any time of saying, No, I dont want to, which could leave these shares worthless. Story continues Private equity shares hold 'intrinsic value' as they are essentially self-assigned a price. So, these shares can be created out of thin air and be stated as having X-amount of intrinsic value. Problem is only the company can buy back such shares and must agree to do so. 1/x Brandon Charpied (@btcharpied) May 9, 2024 Without knowing whether or not Gerami and his company have the money, and the desire, to make good on their promise to FAMU, the actual value of the promised stock is unknown. More generally, much remains unclear about the current status of the pledge to FAMU or the future of the donation. Were on the friends and family plan now: New details emerge in alleged AT&T scheme to bribe House speaker Less than two weeks after AT&T Illinois bill to end mandated landline service became law in 2017, the utilitys then-president, Paul La Schiazza, allegedly received a request from a relative of House Speaker Michael Madigan to sponsor a nonprofit event. The unidentified relative said the idea came at the suggestion of our good friend, Mike McClain, a former lobbyist and Madigans longtime confidant, according to a new prosecution filing. La Schiazza forwarded the request to a colleague in the legislative affairs department on July 12, 2017, writing this will be endless, according to the filing. I suspect the thank you opportunities will be plentiful,' the colleague allegedly emailed back, referring to the recent passage of AT&Ts coveted landline legislation expected to save to company millions of dollars. Yep, La Schiazza allegedly responded. We are on the friends and family plan now. The email exchange, which was disclosed for the first time in a recent court filing, gets to the heart of the bribery case against La Schiazza, who is set to go on trial in September on charges he approved a scheme to funnel payments to a Madigan associate in exchange for the speakers help passing legislation important to the company. The same filing, known as a Santiago proffer, alleged for the first time late last week that the landline bill was not the only piece of legislation where Madigan helped AT&T. The then-powerful speaker was also directly involved in small cell legislation in 2017 that allowed companies such as AT&T to put up micro-towers on light poles and elsewhere in public rights-of-way, according to the filing. That fall, Madigan helped to advance the small cell bill during the veto session of the Illinois General Assembly, and in the spring of 2018, he helped defeat an amendment to the legislation that would have been harmful to AT&Ts interests, according to prosecutors. References to the small cell bill were also captured in FBI wiretaps, prosecutors alleged. In a call intercepted on May 16, 2018, for example, Madigan and McClain discussed the amendment that would have walked back AT&Ts gains. When Madigan asked McClain if he was familiar with the legislation, McClain allegedly responded: The small cell bill that, uh, you, you directed me to help them pass it last year, which I did do, according to court filings. Yeah, yeah, yeah, Madigan allegedly said. Meanwhile, at the time La Schiazza was discussing the donation request from Madigans relative, AT&T had just agreed to pay $2,500 a month to former state Rep. Edward Acevedo, a onetime member of Madigans leadership team whod recently left the General Assembly. The payments to Acevedo allegedly negotiated by McClain were made via a lobbying contract between AT&T and Thomas Cullen, a former Madigan staffer and longtime political strategist aligned with the speaker, according to prosecutors. Acevedo who was a registered lobbyist at the time, did no actual work for AT&T in exchange for the payments, prosecutors alleged. According to the new court filing, La Schiazzas colleague with AT&Ts legislative affairs group highlighted in his email exchange the connection between Madigans and McClains requests and AT&Ts legislative success. There is a sensitivity in that office about us going away now that we got COLR, the colleague wrote, referring to the landline bills acronym according to the filing. That is something to keep in mind in rest (of) 17 and in 18 regarding budget and profile with the Speakers office. La Schiazza allegedly responded he would emphasize that to the companys leadership, especially if we expect to pass a small cell bill. Shortly after the exchange, AT&T made the contribution requested by Madigans relative, a move prosecutors allege demonstrated that La Schiazza knew AT&Ts responses to Madigans requests played a role in their legislative success. La Schiazza, 66, was charged in an indictment returned by a federal grand jury in October 2022 with conspiracy, federal program bribery, and using a facility in interstate commerce to promote unlawful activity. The most serious counts carry up to 20 years in prison if convicted. He has pleaded not guilty and has been free on bond while his case is pending. La Schiazzas attorneys did not respond to calls and emails seeking comment about Fridays filing. Acevedo pleaded guilty to separate tax counts stemming from the feds probe into Madigans operation and was sentenced to six months in prison. But neither Acevedo nor Cullen has been charged with any wrongdoing in the alleged AT&T scheme, and both are on prosecution witness lists for La Schiazzas upcoming trial. Jury selection in La Schiazzas case is scheduled to start Sept. 9, just a month before Madigan and McClain are set to go on trial at the same Dirksen U.S. Courthouse on sweeping racketeering conspiracy charges that include the AT&T scheme as well as similar allegations regarding utility giant Commonwealth Edison. Madigan had originally been scheduled to go on trial well before La Schiazza, but his case was postponed after the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to take up an Indiana case dealing with a federal bribery statute charged in Madigans indictment. That ruling is expected to come down in late June. Meanwhile, the scheme to reward Acevedo, who is referred to in the court papers as FR-1, began in February 2017, after the company learned through McClain that the speaker was looking to kick Acevedo some money, according to the indictment. In an email exchange that March, AT&T Illinois director of legislative affairs asked two of the companys executives if they were 100% certain they would get credit from the powers that be if the payments were made to Madigans associate. I would hope that as long as we explain the approach to McClain and (the associate) gets the money then the ultimate objective is reached, one of the executives wrote back, according a statement of facts AT&T agreed to in court. The legislative affairs director responded, I dont think (La Schiazza) wants this based on hope. We need to confirm prior to executing this strategy, the statement said. At McClains direction, AT&T employees then met with Acevedo to discuss a pretextual reason for the payments: to prepare a report on the political dynamics of the General Assemblys and Chicago City Councils Latino Caucuses, according to the statement of facts. Acevedo never did any real work for AT&T Illinois, however. In fact, according to AT&Ts admissions in court, he balked at first at the payments, saying they were too low. But Acevedo agreed to the deal after McClain stepped in and said the amount was sufficient. After a protracted fight, the landline bill passed during the final hours of the spring 2017 legislative session with Madigans direct assistance, according to legislative records and the statement of facts agreed to by AT&T. On June 29, 2017, Madigan permitted the bill to be brought to a vote and cast his ballot in favor of the legislation, records show. Two days later, after Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner vetoed the legislation, Madigan and the Democrat-led General Assembly overrode him, with Madigan again voting for the override. Madigan, 82, was the longest serving leader of any legislative chamber in the nation who held an ironclad grip on the state legislature as well as the Democratic Party and its political spoils. He was dethroned as speaker in early 2021 as the investigation swirled around him, and soon after resigned the House seat hed held since 1971. Madigan and McClain were charged in March 2022 in the original 22-count indictment alleging they conspired to participate in an array of bribery and extortion schemes from 2011 to 2019 that allegedly leveraged Madigans elected office and political power for personal gain The indictment also accused Madigan of illegally soliciting business for his private property tax law firm during discussions to turn a state-owned parcel of land in Chinatown into a commercial development. Madigan and McClain have pleaded not guilty. Their attorneys have accused prosecutors of trying to criminalize legal political actions such as job recommendations in a quest to bring down the once-powerful speaker. McClain is also awaiting sentencing in his conviction for bribery conspiracy last year in the ComEd Four case against him and three other ComEd executives and lobbyists. Both AT&T and ComEd entered into a deferred prosecution agreements with the U.S. attorneys office, admitting their roles in the schemes to influence Madigan in exchange for prosecutors dropping criminal charges. ComEd also agreed to pay a record $200 million fine, while AT&T was fined $23 million. jmeisner@chicagotribune.com Trustly has partnered with Futon Company to introduce its 'pay by bank' service to their customers. According to the companies, the collaboration enables a simpler, safer, and more efficient payment journey for millions of consumers. Pay by bank is an account-to-account payment method that has gained significant traction over the past year. When opting for 'pay by bank,' consumers are directed to their mobile banking app or online banking portal, where they can execute instant payments. The solution automatically fills in all necessary payment details, such as the recipient's bank information and the payment amount, streamlining the transaction process. This method is poised to become the mainstream alternative to traditional payment methods. Reducing dependency on card payments, eliminating intermediaries With transactions averaging 200, security is paramount. The platform ensures each transaction is protected by bank-grade security measures, enhancing safety and reducing fraud risk. Additionally, Futon Company's partnership with Trustly, which reported record growth last month, will allow them to decrease dependency on conventional card payments and lower operational costs by eliminating intermediaries. Jussi Lindberg, Chief Revenue Officer at Trustly, said: Open banking payments are rapidly becoming the preferred payment method. We're excited to enhance the checkout experience for Futon Company's customers. This solution allows Futon Company to tailor its checkout process, improving conversion rates and delivering top-quality service. We're committed to expanding open banking solutions across the UK and helping as many companies and customers as possible benefit from its advantages Vladimir Pomitun, Ecommerce Director at Futon Company, added: Futon Company is thrilled to partner with Trustly to provide our customers with an exceptional payment experience. We are excited to lead in this evolving technological field, showcasing the significant cost savings and efficiency improvements it offers both us and our customers. "Futon Company teams up with Trustly for enhanced, secure Pay by Bank experience" was originally created and published by Retail Banker International, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. The logo for GameStop is on a monitor on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on Wall Street on March 22, 2023. Stock prices soared more than 74% on Monday following the reappearance of "Roaring Kitty." File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI May 13 (UPI) -- GameStop stock surged more than 74% on Monday after the person who sparked the computer game store's stunning 2021 run reappeared on social media. GameStop stock closed up $12.99 to end Monday's rally at $30.45, forcing short sellers to lose nearly $1 billion in the video game retailer. Shares were trading up another 11% in after-market trading. According to data firm S3 Partners, short-selling hedge funds suffered a mark-to-market loss of $838 million. "Expect short covering in this stock as it already had a 100/100 squeeze score prior to today's trading," said Ihor Dusaniwsky, S3 managing director of predictive analytics. Monday's massive GameStop rally was triggered by the reappearance of "Roaring Kitty." Keith Gill, known by his online persona "Roaring Kitty," posted a picture of a gamer looking intensely at his computer on his X account with no worded message on Sunday evening. The post went viral with 9,400 comments, 21,000 shares and 78,000 likes in 15 hours. Gill later followed it with multiple posts including scenes from Breaking Bad, Avengers, and Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Seemingly taking a cue on Gill's return, GameStop stock rose as much as 110%, and was up more than 70%, trading at nearly $30 per share just before 1 p.m. EDT. Trading of GameStop stock was halted multiple times for volatility Monday, including four times within the first half-hour of trading. The frenzy also rallied other so-called "meme stocks" including AMC, which was up 43.13% to $4.18 per share on Monday afternoon. In a stock war against big-time hedge fund managers who were betting against GameStop shares in 2021, Gill led a legion of small investors, organized mainly on the Reddit community r/WallStreetBets to rally the computer game store's stock up above $120 per share. The action by Gill and his investor rebels drew a lawsuit, which was dismissed, and Congressional hearings about broker practices and gaming stocks. FatCamera / Getty Images Getting an education is arguably one of the best ways to advance your career. Returning to college can give you access to increased job opportunities, higher earning potential and new skills. The Education Data Initiative indicated that total college enrollment including both undergraduate and graduate students in the US is about 19 million as of 2023. Read Next: Robert Kiyosaki: 7 Ways To Become Wealthy Beyond the 9-to-5 Trending Now: 6 Unusual Ways To Make Extra Money (That Actually Work) But is pursuing a higher education worth it? Here are some important factors to consider and self-reflection involved in deciding for yourself. Questions To Ask Yourself If Youre Considering Going Back To School Here are some important questions to ask yourself if youre considering returning to school: Will returning to school help me achieve my goals? : if youre considering returning to school, whether for a bachelors degree or higher, be sure to ask yourself whether pursuing the higher degree is going to help you reach the goals youve set for yourself. These can be professional goals, personal goals or both. Can I afford to return to school? : Tuition, housing, books and supplies all contribute to the overall cost. Also, consider that going back to school may mean that you have to stop working or work a reduced schedule. Be sure to have a financial safety net in place, whether thats dipping into your savings or receiving financial support from your significant other. Will the long-term benefits of going back to school be worth the cost?: Going back to school isnt a choice to be made without thoughtful consideration, especially as it relates to your finances. Youll need to determine if sacrificing part or all of your income (or using lots of savings) to pursue a degree will be worth the cost later on. Pros and Cons of Going Back To School Here are four pros and four cons of going back to school: Pros Increased earning potential : In many cases, pursuing higher education can translate into a higher salary and increased earning potential over the long term. More job security : More education can open doors to more types of jobs, which translates into increased job security. Even if you lose a job, you could have access to more jobs as a result of your further education. Ability to change careers : Pursuing higher education can provide you with the ability to pivot from your current career path to an entirely new one. More opportunities to advance: Generally, those with further education have access to accelerated career advancement in the workplace. Story continues Cons Returning to school can be costly: Returning to school usually comes with a big price tag. Unless you secure a full scholarship, expect to pay for tuition and other related expenses. You may need to stop working: Returning to school will likely mean that youll have to cut back on your work or stop working altogether. Youll have to determine if you can financially afford to stop earning an income while youre in school. You may have to sacrifice time with your family: Cost aside, going back to school will consume a lot of your time. This could mean sacrificing quality time with your family. If youre in a committed relationship and youre a parent, this is a serious consideration. You may have to use your savings: If going back to school means reducing or eliminating your income even just temporarily, youll likely need to use your savings to keep paying the bills in the meantime. More From GOBankingRates This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Is Going Back to School Worth the Money? 4 Financial Pros and Cons By buying an index fund, investors can approximate the average market return. But if you choose individual stocks with prowess, you can make superior returns. For example, Helvetia Holding AG (VTX:HELN) shareholders have seen the share price rise 20% over three years, well in excess of the market decline (0.3%, not including dividends). Let's take a look at the underlying fundamentals over the longer term, and see if they've been consistent with shareholders returns. Check out our latest analysis for Helvetia Holding While the efficient markets hypothesis continues to be taught by some, it has been proven that markets are over-reactive dynamic systems, and investors are not always rational. One imperfect but simple way to consider how the market perception of a company has shifted is to compare the change in the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price movement. Helvetia Holding was able to grow its EPS at 3.2% per year over three years, sending the share price higher. This EPS growth is lower than the 6% average annual increase in the share price. This suggests that, as the business progressed over the last few years, it gained the confidence of market participants. That's not necessarily surprising considering the three-year track record of earnings growth. The company's earnings per share (over time) is depicted in the image below (click to see the exact numbers). It might be well worthwhile taking a look at our free report on Helvetia Holding's earnings, revenue and cash flow. 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 incorporates the value of any spin-offs or discounted capital raisings, along with any dividends, based on the assumption that the dividends are reinvested. It's fair to say that the TSR gives a more complete picture for stocks that pay a dividend. We note that for Helvetia Holding the TSR over the last 3 years was 31%, 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 Helvetia Holding shareholders are down 2.3% for the year (even including dividends), but the market itself is up 2.4%. 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. On the bright side, long term shareholders have made money, with a gain of 5% per year over half a decade. 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. 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. For example, we've discovered 2 warning signs for Helvetia Holding that you should be aware of before investing here. Story continues We will like Helvetia Holding 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 Swiss 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. Holmes County is pretty competitive when it comes to worker compensation, according to results of a survey made of more than 120 the area's businesses. Economic Development Director Mark Leininger said the survey addressed wage and compensation, and compared the results to other counties throughout the state and country. Compensation information from a variety of Holmes County industries showed Holmes County is pretty competitive, he said. The survey questions asked respondents to provide information related to wages, benefits and other forms of compensation from six job classifications production workers, transportation and material moving workers, business and financial operations, office and administrative state, healthcare practitioners and food service/restaurant and lodging personnel. Take a look at median wages in Holmes County The data from the survey showed the median salary for production workers in Holmes County is $23.43 an hour, topping out at $32 per hour. The Ohio median hourly wage for production workers is $17.44. In Holmes County, Transportation and Material moving workers median starting hourly starting wage for supervisors was $25.50 per hour, and the highest median hourly wage was $32.93. The median for a transportation supervisor in the state is $23.93. Mark Leininger The median starting wage for a business and financial analyst and adviser is $24.04 per hour while the highest is $40.38 per hour in Holmes County. The median state wage is $39.22 per hour. Office and administrative supervisor salaries ranged from $23 per hour to $34.50 per hour in Holmes County, while the state median salary is $23.91 per hour. Looking at health care salaries, the data found the median starting wage for RNs is $21 per hour in Holmes County, and the highest wage was $32.70 an hour. The state median is $35.62. The median starting wage for lodging managers was $21 per hour, topping out at $25 per hour in Holmes County. The state median is $28.90 per hour. We are on par with or greater than both the state and national median values, Leininger said. Many local businesses cite difficulties in hiring and retaining workers as the biggest challenge they face, according to Leininger, who shared a report summarizing the results of the compensation study. HCEDC commissioned survey The survey was commissioned by the Holmes County Economic Development Council, funded by the Holmes County commissioners and conducted by Ohio State University Extension. A web-based survey was administered last fall that included wage and benefit data for 40 occupations. Story continues Leininger said researchers gathered data from human resource managers or similar administrators. The economic development director sees the survey as an effective tool to help businesses evaluate the competitiveness of their compensation. Each time we improve the survey, it becomes more relevant for companies to participate, Leininger said. We appreciate companies taking the time to complete the survey, because the more responses we get, the better the data. It is something that can be of great value to our county. Greater participation this time around Leininger said 121 businesses participated in the survey, an increase from the 70 that participated in the similar survey conducted in 2020. There were 27 businesses that took part in the initial survey in 2017. Of the 121 participants, the majority have been in business more than 20 years, with 66% of the business surveyed reporting they had been around over 20 years, while 19% were 11-20 years and 8% had been in business one to five years. The survey also found nearly half (47%) of the respondents indicated they have 11-50 hourly employees and 74% have less than 10 salaried employees. Slightly more than half, 55% of the respondents indicated they offer major medical coverage to employees. This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Survey shows Holmes County wages competitive compared to state median COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) Hot Chicken Takeover, the central Ohio chain with a cult-like following, will revamp its locations and receive new branding after being sold to the restaurant group owned by the former CEO of Jimmy Johns. Untamed Brands, the chicken chains parent company, was purchased earlier this month by another fast-casual restaurant company named Craveworthy Brands, which owns BDs Mongolian Grill, Dirty Dough, Flat Top Grill, Genghis Grill and more. Craveworthy also now owns Untameds other chain, Taim Mediterranean Kitchen, a New York City-based concept founded by Food Network Chef Einat Admoney. Man sues Ohio BMV over rejection of F46 LGB license plate Taim and HCT are beloved concepts with long histories of serving high-quality cuisine and providing excellent service, said Gregg Majewski, founder of Craveworthy and the former CEO of Jimmy Johns. They bring a fresh perspective and complement our existing portfolio extremely well, which allows us to cater to diverse consumer preferences and truly tap into new markets. Craveworthy said the chicken chains central Ohio locations will receive a makeover with refreshed branding in the coming future. The locations will also serve as the catalyst for the creation of a fresh hot chicken concept with Craveworthys Budlong, another hot chicken concept based in Chicago. The sale comes after Untamed took ownership of Hot Chicken Takeover in late 2021. Since its founding in 2015, the chicken chain has ballooned to seven restaurants throughout central Ohio, including recent Grandview Heights addition and a new location in Gahanna that opened early last year. Downtown Columbus building with historic ties to NFL reinvented into modern office space Craveworthy has a wealth of experience in nurturing emerging restaurant brands and implementing scalable strategies, said Phil Petrilli, CEO of Untamed. Combining our strengths and shared commitment to culinary innovation, hospitality and elevating guest experiences, this will be an exciting, new chapter for Taim and HCT. The chicken chains announcement follows reports that Bob Evans, the chain of family-style restaurants also founded in central Ohio, is reportedly on the market. Bob Evans is currently owned by a private equity firm based in San Francisco named Golden Gate Capital, who purchased the chain in 2017 for $565 million. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to NBC4 WCMH-TV. Intuitive Machines (LUNR) made history in February when it became the first private space company to touch down on the surface of the moon. Now, its looking to accelerate the development of the lunar economy. Speaking to Yahoo Finance, Intuitive Machines CEO and co-founder Steve Altemus said the companys cost structure and ability to streamline lunar missions ultimately place it in the drivers seat in a global race to develop the moon. We designed and developed a mission to the moon at a price point that was roughly $118 million and did it in about four years, Altemus said. We have totally disrupted the industry in terms of the economics of flying to the moon. The Intuitive Machines IM-1 Lunar Lander, Nova-C, is on display on Oct. 3, 2023, before it is shipped to Cape Canaveral, Florida, for launch on a Falcon 9 rocket. (Jonathan Newton/The Washington Post via Getty Images) (The Washington Post via Getty Images) In its inaugural IM-1 mission, Intuitive Machines' Odysseus moon lander successfully reached the lunar surface in February, but its weeklong mission faced serious challenges after the vehicle tipped on its side when landing. That cut short Intuitive Machines' full mission, although the NASA research equipment on board successfully sent back data from its experiments. Intuitive Machines is now looking ahead to its second lunar mission, IM-2, which is scheduled for November. Altemus said the company conducted a 30-day review of its first mission to improve its technology for the second round. We can improve our ability to land 20 times with precision, Altemus said. The south pole [of the moon] is going to require that. That's what we do continually refine for that pinpoint accuracy. Intuitive Machines is among a handful of private startups developing a low-cost transportation system to the moon with funding from NASA. The agencys Commercial Lunar Payload Services program set aside $2.6 billion for more than a dozen companies to carry NASAs research to the lunar surface along with payloads for commercial customers. Intuitive Machines CEO Stephen Altemus speaks during a press conference in Houston, Texas, on April 3, 2024, to announce a new vehicle that will help Artemis astronauts explore the moon on future missions. (MARK FELIX/AFP via Getty Images) (MARK FELIX via Getty Images) The missions are laying the groundwork for NASA's Artemis program, which aims to return astronauts to the moon. The first crewed mission under Artemis has been delayed to 2025 as Lockheed Martin (LMT), the lead contractor, develops the Orion spacecraft that will carry the astronauts. Intuitive Machines, meanwhile, is positioning itself to own end-to-end operations between the Earth and the moon, strategically placing bets on the critical infrastructure needed to enable longer stays on the lunar surface. The company recently won a $30 million contract from NASA to develop a lunar terrain vehicle that will shuttle Artemis astronauts around on the moon. Intuitive Machines has also developed a Lunar Data Network that enables communication and data relay services for spacecraft. Story continues As a company, our vision is to deliver space systems to the surface with our family of landers to do command and control and navigation in and around the moon so that it enables surface operations, Altemus said. I believe Intuitive Machines is the only company that's got all three pieces. NASA estimates human activity in the region of space between the Earth and the moon will exceed all activity since 1957 in the next decade alone. That potential prompted the White House to develop its first science and technology strategy to support responsible, peaceful, and sustainable exploration. The relative success of its first mission has provided a lift to Intuitive Machines. The company saw its cash balance increase to $54.6 million in the first three months of the year after an institutional investor exercised warrants. The company also raised $10 million through equity and said it had sufficient capital for the near term. Intuitive Machines stock is up roughly 138% year to date. But the company, which came to the public markets through a SPAC, has been more vulnerable to big swings on any perceived risks compared to competitors that have opted to remain private. When you go de-SPAC, there's quite a bit of volatility in your stock as you move from maybe retail investors to more institutional investors, Altemus said. So as the company matures, I see a greater contribution of investment from institutional investors, which should provide some stability to the stock in the long term. Click here for the latest stock market news and in-depth analysis, including events that move stocks Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia and SHANGHAI, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Hydrexia Holding Limited (Hydrexia), a leading integrated hydrogen solution provider in China and Lestari H2GaaS Sdn Bhd (LHSB), a renewable energy and hydrogen technology commercialization arm of Petroliam Nasional Berhad (PETRONAS) in Malaysia today announced that the two companies have entered into a Technology Collaboration and Commercialization Agreement (TCCA) to leverage the technological and market strengths of each other to better serve the hydrogen development needs in Sarawak, Malaysia. Under the framework of TCCA, both companies set forth key cooperation initiatives which include joint technical collaboration and commercialization of hydrogen application technology in a phased approach. The planned technical collaboration will focus on hydrogen applications in the areas of purification, storage and transportation, and refueling station. Both companies will jointly explore hydrogen application project opportunities to meet the local hydrogen development needs by integrating Hydrexia's hydrogen technology products across the hydrogen industry value chain. This newly-formed partnership marks an important milestone for Hydrexia's business expansion in Southeast Asia with continued success. Meanwhile, it also reinforces the strong commitment of Hydrexia to serve the growing hydrogen business needs in the region by collaborating with local partners. "We are excited about forming this strategic partnership with LHSB. It not only further expands the scale of our business expansion in Southeast Asia, but also adds significant depth in our local business operation in this region," said George Gan, the Chief Executive Officer of Hydrexia Southeast Asia. "The collaboration with LHSB enables us to best utilize our hydrogen technology solutions to serve the needs of our customers in Malaysia. We look forward to expanding the cooperation with LHSB going forward," Gan added. "We are happy to have chosen Hydrexia as our important technology and commercial partner," said Colin Patrick, the Chief Executive Officer of LHSB. "Our decision to go with Hydrexia is based on its strong overall technology capability as well as its commitment to developing the local hydrogen market in Malaysia. I am confident about the prospects of this partnership," Colin continued. "Through this TCCA, we commit ourselves to fostering innovation, driving sustainable practices, and making significant strides towards a net carbon zero future. The hydrogen projects we are embarking upon will not only contribute to decarbonizing industries but also open new possibilities in transportation, energy storage, and beyond within this region," Colin mentioned. Story continues The optimal combination of technology and market advantages achieved through this collaboration will enable both companies to fully address the needs for green energy in the Sarawak region in Malaysia. Hydrexia is fully committed to developing this new partnership both technologically and operationally. [About Lestari] Lestari H2GaaS is the hydrogen technology commercialization arm of Petroliam Nasional Berhad (PETRONAS), the national oil and gas company of Malaysia. Lestari is presently pursuing a series of Hydrogen Production Facility developments in Sarawak and supply of lectrolyzer globally via Sarawak Electrolyser Assembly and Distribution Facility (SEA-DF). Its service includes an end-to-end hydrogen solution designed to support market application, through its core & proprietary technology, PEM lectrolyzer. It aspires to empower its customers across industries who seek versatile hydrogen solutions in driving low carbon targets within their business. [About Hydrexia] Hydrexia Holding Limited is a leading integrated hydrogen technology solution provider in China with global reach. The company specializes in providing technology solutions for hydrogen production, storage, transportation, and end-use applications. Leveraging its solid R&D capabilities and industry-leading technology, Hydrexia aims to effectively address the technology and application needs across the global hydrogen industry value chain. Cision View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/hydrexia-and-lestari-form-strategic-partnership-for-hydrogen-development-302141032.html SOURCE Hydrexia Global leader in hospitality IHG Hotels & Resorts is accelerating its growth in Vietnam by introducing two new luxury and lifestyle brands Hotel Indigo and the Vignette Collection. The expansion reflects Vietnam's booming tourism industry. Domestic travel remains strong, with more than 108 million trips made last year. International arrivals are also surging, exceeding pre-pandemic levels in the first quarter of 2024 and reaching 4.6 million. IHG anticipates welcoming 18 million international visitors to Vietnam in 2024, driven by rising travel demand from its neighbouring Asian countries with growing middle classes and economies. Hotel Indigo will debut in Ho Chi Minh City with the opening of Hotel Indigo Saigon The City. The property will immerse guests in local culture, sights and flavours. Meanwhile, the Vignette Collection, known for its one-of-a-kind experiences, will make its Vietnamese debut in Hoi An. The upcoming hotel will be close to the city's famed UNESCO Heritage Site, offering a luxurious stay in a historic central coast location. IHG's expansion goes beyond these two new brands. The company plans to open the InterContinental Ha Long Bay Resort in Ha Long City in 2025 - its first property in the area. This will be followed by Holiday Inn Resort Halong Bay in 2026. IHG is also introducing its InterContinental brand to Thanh Xuan Valley in Vinh Phuc, creating Vietnam's first valley resort under the brand. With 18 existing hotels and 26 more in the pipeline, IHG is committed to Vietnam's growth. Its entry to Ha Long Bay, Hoi An and Vinh Phuc demonstrates its confidence in the market's potential. By 2028, IHG aims to more than double its presence in the country, reaching more than 44 hotels. "IHG expands Vietnamese portfolio with two new brands" was originally created and published by Hotel Management Network, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. (Reuters) -Illinois state treasurer Michael Frerichs urged Exxon Mobil shareholders to vote against the election of CEO Darren Woods, as the oil major pursues a lawsuit against two shareholders, a filing showed on Monday. Frerichs also recommended voting against Exxon's Lead Independent Director Joseph Hooley at the company's annual shareholder meeting scheduled to take place on May 29. Exxon, which is frequently the focus of critical shareholder resolutions, struck back earlier this year when it filed a lawsuit seeking to block a vote on a climate proposal submitted by two small activist investors. While the investors responded by dropping the proposal, Exxon has refused to drop the legal action against them. "The actions taken by the company signify poor judgment and oversight by board leadership," Frerichs said in a letter dated May 9, according to the filing. Last Friday, Glass Lewis had recommended investors vote against Hooley, citing concerns about Exxon's "unusual and aggressive tactics" in pursuing a lawsuit against activist investors. "By telling people to vote against our board, these groups are making it clear they have no interest in creating long-term shareholder value," an Exxon spokesperson said in response to Frerichs' letter. A spokesperson for Frerichs' office said he would vote against Hooley and Woods with the shares he directly controls, including assets in the state's college-savings plans, only about 82,000 shares in all, rather than larger state pools. (Reporting by Sourasis Bose and Seher Dareen in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar and Shounak Dasgupta) The Iranian flag is seen flying over a street in Tehran NEW DELHI (Reuters) -India signed a 10-year contract with Iran on Monday to develop and operate the Iranian port of Chabahar, the Narendra Modi-led government said, strengthening relations with a strategic Middle Eastern nation. India has been developing the port in Chabahar on Iran's south-eastern coast along the Gulf of Oman as a way to transport goods to Iran, Afghanistan and central Asian countries, bypassing the port of Karachi and Gwadar in its rival Pakistan. U.S. sanctions on Iran, however, slowed the port's development. "Chabahar Port's significance transcends its role as a mere conduit between India and Iran; it serves as a vital trade artery connecting India with Afghanistan and Central Asian Countries," India's Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said in Tehran, after the signing of the agreement. "This linkage has unlocked new avenues for trade and fortified supply chain resilience across the region." U.S. State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel, asked about the deal, told reporters that U.S. sanctions on Iran remain in place and warned that Washington will continue to enforce them. "Any entity, anyone considering business deals with Iran - they need to be aware of the potential risks that they are opening themselves up to and the potential risk of sanctions," Patel told reporters. The long-term deal was signed between Indian Ports Global Limited (IPGL) and the Port & Maritime Organisation of Iran, authorities in both countries said. Under the agreement, IPGL will invest about $120 million while there will be an additional $250 million in financing, bringing the contract's value to $370 million, said Iranian Minister of Roads and Urban Development Mehrdad Bazrpash. IPGL first took over operations of the port at the end of 2018 and has since handled container traffic of more than 90,000 TEUs and bulk and general cargo of more than 8.4 million tonnes, an Indian government official said. A total of 2.5 million tonnes of wheat and 2,000 tonnes of pulses have been shipped from India to Afghanistan through Chabahar Port, the official added. "It will clear the pathway for bigger investments to be made in the port," Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar told reporters in Mumbai on Monday. (Reporting by Jayshree P Upadhyay, Sudipto Ganguly in Mumbai; Krishn Kaushik, Aditya Kalra and Shivam Patel in New Delhi; Daphne Psaledakis in Washington; Editing by Christian Schmollinger, Sonali Paul and Ros Russell) Campbells Snacks employees began moving into their new office Thursday morning off South Boulevard, a space that pays homage to Lance crackers, one of Charlottes oldest and best-known brands. The morning was overcast and rainy as the deliciously sweet scent of crackers and peanut butter wafted in the air from the manufacturing plant, adjacent to the newly renovated building that will house office employees. Inside the office, named the Philip Lance Center, employees and company officials were celebrating the unveiling of the two-story, nearly 40,000-square-foot space. The building is named for Philp L. Lance, who started the Lance Packing Co. in Charlotte in 1912. The brand is known for its iconic bright orange cracker and peanut butter sandwiches. In 2018, Campbell Soup Co., based in Camden, New Jersey, purchased the Charlotte snack maker Snyders-Lance for about $6.1 billion. The newly repurposed building at 8600 Crump Road is now home to 50 corporate employees and 100 supply chain workers, Sam Bailor, senior vice president of human resources and facilities for Campbells supply chain, said Thursday during The Charlotte Observers exclusive tour of the office. Campbells Snacks opened their new office space Thursday, May 9, 2024, at the longtime Lance crackers plant at 8600 Crump Road in Charlotte. The total investment in the Charlotte facility is $10 million, he said, which includes the office building and a multi-year plan of upgrades in the manufacturing plant common areas like break rooms, cafeteria and restrooms. Charlotte is home to the largest Campbells Snacks manufacturing centers with over 1,500 employees throughout the region, including the snacks plants, mixing center, warehouses and distribution facilities. Its one of the few places in our network where were going to have supply chain, customer service, transportation, finance, IT, everybody working together side-by-side with our manufacturing folks, said Chad Scherger, senior vice president of customer logistics and planning for Campbells. The new office is a big deal, Scherger said, because it will lead to better camaraderie, improved decision-making and is a continuation of investment in Charlotte. Last year, Campbell Soup Co. said it would permanently close its leased 13515 Ballantyne Corporate Place office as the company consolidated corporate offices to its New Jersey headquarters. The new Charlotte office is part of Campbells $50 million plan to upgrade and modernize workspace companywide to drive creativity, collaboration and career development. Campbell also recently moved its warehousing operations to a new 173,000-square-foot facility at 12012 Carolina Logistics Drive in Pineville, about 10 minutes away from the new Charlotte office and manufacturing plant site. Story continues After entering the front entrance of the new Philip Lance Center, to the left is the large training and new hire orientation space named Salem Van Every Room. Inside the Philip Lance Center Work began over a year ago converting the two-story building into new office space. The open-concept design meant tearing down walls and letting more natural light in, Campbells Snacks site leader Josh Logan said during Thursdays tour. The first-floor entrance of the Philip Lance Center is an open foyer and gathering area with a large staircase and snack bar. Floor to ceiling frosted glass separates two enclosed rooms. To the left is the Salem Van Every Room for training and new hire orientation. To the right is the Philip Lance Van Every Room for executive meetings. Dotting the white walls with gray trim and accents throughout the building are black-and-white photos showcasing the history of Lance in Charlotte. For example, one photo shows then President Phil Van Every at the 1300 South Blvd. plant overseeing the packing of products to send to troops during the Korean War. The second floor walls also are decorated with colorful images of the snacks and logos in the common area. There is a lot of history represented here, Logan said. Both rooms are wireless and digitally integrated, including cameras that can follow a speaker around the room. The open concept means there are only four enclosed offices. There are five small meeting rooms with frosted glass doors for private conversations. The high-speed automated coffee machines with frappuccinos, cappuccinos and hot chocolates has been a big hit so far, Logan said. Campbells Snacks corporate and supply chain employees moved into their new offices Thursday at the renovated nearly 40,000-square-foot building called Philip Lance Center in Charlotte. Lance history in Charlotte Philip L. Lance started selling roasted peanuts on the streets of Charlotte in 1912 and the first Lance office opened at 204 S. College St. in uptown Charlotte. The company became known for its signature peanut butter-filled orange cracker sandwiches. In 1922, Lance and his business partner and son-in-law Salem A. Van Every moved the plant to West Ninth Street, north of uptown. Four years later, Lance and Van Every moved the company to 1300 South Blvd. and expanded the facility four times. The plant moved 7 miles south in July to the current 108-acre site, now owned by Campbells. There are three manufacturing plants at the Charlotte site. The Bakery and Salty plants produce 215 million pounds of sandwich crackers, cookies and chips each year, according to Campbells. The third plant, formerly Emerald Nuts, closed after Campbell sold the business to Minneapolis-based Flagstone Food last May. Campbell Soup Co. is investing $10 million in its snacks site in Charlotte, including a new corporate office called Philip Lance Center that opened May 9, 2024. Snacks made in Charlotte Campbells Snacks in Charlotte makes all 17 varieties of Lance sandwich crackers, including the most popular ToastChee. Other snacks are: Cape Cod potato chips and regional brands OkeDoke popcorn and Toms Snacks. Back to its origins The updated and modernized Philip Lance Center office building is a return to Lances roots. It had once been Lances corporate offices, Logan said, but had most recently been used as overflow space for the plant workers. So its sort of repurposing back to the original intent of what it was, he said. Were extremely excited to have this space. Campbells Snacks opened their new office May 9, 2024, at the longtime Lance crackers plant in Charlotte with an open concept. (Reuters) -Intel is in advanced talks for a deal with Apollo Global Management in which the equity firm would provide more than $11 billion to build a facility in Ireland, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday. The move comes as Intel looks to expand its presence across the United States with a planned $100-billion spending spree across four states, to boost its manufacturing business and catch up with chipmaking rival TSMC Intel and Apollo are in exclusive talks for the deal, which could be signed in the coming weeks, the report said, citing people familiar with the matter. Other investment firms including KKR and infrastructure investor Stonepeak were also in the running before Apollo recently pulled ahead, the report added. Apollo Global Management and Intel declined to comment when contacted by Reuters. Intel forecast second-quarter revenue and profit below market estimates last month as it faces weak demand for its traditional data center and personal computing chips, amid a surging market for AI components. The company announced plans in 2022 to build chip factories in Ireland and France as it seeks to benefit from easier European Commission funding rules and subsidies. (Reporting by Zaheer Kachwala in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath and Pooja Desai) Editor's Note: The following is part of a class project originally initiated in the classroom of Ball State University professor Adam Kuban in fall 2021. Kuban continued the project this spring semester, challenging his students to find sustainability efforts in the Muncie area and pitch their ideas to Ron Wilkins, interim editor of The Star Press, Journal & Courier and Palladium-Item. This spring, stories related to health care will be featured. In the U.S. health care industry, individuals with chronic diseases make up 86% of health care costs, according to a 2020 article published on the National Library of Medicine's website, and chronic disease is one of the main variables that increase health care utilization. The more chronic diseases you have, the more money you are going to be spending on health care, according to an article in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Healthcare bills and statements are strewn across a kitchen table. The costs listed within the Hoosiers statements demonstrate the importance of obtaining quality health insurance with prices ranging from $90,000 to $276,000 for uninsured hospital visits. Conversely, insurance companies inherently want to avoid high-risk individuals who could potentially cost their company the most money, meaning that these "vital few" are the exact same group that health insurance agencies are attempting to avoid. For individuals like export manager Pamela Stevens, this means being stuck between two complex industries that are both driven to extract a profit from their customers. Stevens suffers from a combination of Raynaud's syndrome, polymyositis and scleroderma. Dealing with three separate autoimmune diseases on a daily basis, Stevens remains one of the "vital few" year after year. People are afraid to go to the doctor, Stevens said. Its not patient care; its a business. In the state of Indiana, companies with fewer than 50 full-time employees are not required to provide health insurance. If you found yourself in this position without qualifying for company-provided insurance, you could face crippling medical debt. Fortunately for Stevens, she qualifies for company-sponsored health insurance coverage. Stevens explained that, with insurance, she still paid $2,224 out of pocket for her medications and $2,316 out of pocket in copays in 2023. According to the National Institute of Health, the average amount spent on health care for patients with at least two chronic conditions in the United States is $4,385, and the expenditure increases by an average rate of 20.25% per additional chronic condition that a patient possesses. Additionally, for the "vital few," the National Association for Chronic Disease notes that health care costs for those with chronic conditions are five times higher than those without such a condition. Story continues The iron triangle of health care: Quality, access and cost John Horowitz, interim department chair of economics at Ball State University, explains that the health care system can generally be broken down into a single concept: the iron triangle. Quality, access and cost are the three pillars of this notion with each one directly and indirectly affecting the other pillars. If you try to bring down costs, you might also be getting rid of a lot of access, Horowitz said. The idea of the health care system being broken down into this simple idea is simultaneously what makes the industry so complex. In 1987, fellow economist Thomas Sowell posited a similar idea in his book, A Conflict of Visions: Ideological Origins of Political Struggles. There are no solutions, Sowell wrote. There are only trade-offs. This idea rings especially true for the health care industry. For example, take the case of Medicaid, Horowitz said. Medicaid tells doctors what theyre going to pay them, and Medicaid pays really low rates. What is the incentive to take Medicaid patients? A 2022 study from the RAND Corp. showcased a similar problem for Medicare patients, finding that Indiana residents who are not in Medicare-paid hospitals nearly quadruple the amount of money that Medicare beneficiaries paid for the same services. Similarly, insurance companies are asking themselves the same question when faced with potentially high-risk customers. Hospitals make most of their money on a few patients, Horowitz said. Patients who for the insurance companies are the highest cost. The operating room in Ascension St. Vincents Orthopedic Hospital in Evansville, Indiana, is set up ahead of patients' arrival. According to a 2023 study by professors Benjamin Chartock, Kosali Simon and Christopher Whaley published in the JAMA Health Forum, significant price variation for both diagnostic and surgical procedures across the state of Indiana might be the result of consolidation through anti-competitive entity mergers. Dawn Velasquez, fellow of the Society of Actuaries, affirmed the idea that insurance companies themselves are often used as scapegoats for larger issues within the healthcare industry. "The whole system is broken, Velasquez said. Take pharmaceuticals, for example; they can basically charge whatever they want. My family can make it because we work for large corporations that offer good employee-sponsored health insurance plans, but what about people who don't?" Stevens, whose father and brother are both doctors, shares a similar notion. She explained that problems often arise when health care entity mergers push physicians out of their private institutions to work within their system. These conglomerates that are merging are forcing private physicians to join, Stevens said. Then these medical entities are charging an arm and a leg for procedures; some patients cant afford to get the care they need. They want to push you out so they can get another bed available for someone right behind you. Mergers play a role According to the American Medical Association, the percentage of physicians working in private institutions fell by 13% between 2012 and 2022. Private physicians often join larger conglomerates to take advantage of economies of scale by merging for potential cost savings and to increase the likelihood of achieving higher reimbursement levels. In a 2022 study conducted by UC Berkeley's Petris Center, researchers found that hospital mergers in Indiana were linked to a 10.6% increase in hospital prices for Hoosiers. The Indiana legislature looked to tackle this issue early in its 2024 session with Senate Bill 9. The bill, which was signed by Gov. Eric Holcomb on March 13 after approval in both houses, forces health care entity mergers that meet or exceed $10 million to notify the attorney generals office 90 days before a deal can be settled to allow time for state regulators to review the deal and its potential impact. The new law expands on recent progress made within the Hoosier state after 2023 House Bill 1004 was passed last year in an attempt to protect patients by providing an oversight taskforce to monitor patients' costs, as well as monitor Medicaid reimbursements in the state. This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: The business of health care and health insurance Key Insights Singapore Technologies Engineering's estimated fair value is S$7.83 based on 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity Singapore Technologies Engineering is estimated to be 49% undervalued based on current share price of S$4.03 Our fair value estimate is 78% higher than Singapore Technologies Engineering's analyst price target of S$4.41 Today we will run through one way of estimating the intrinsic value of Singapore Technologies Engineering Ltd (SGX:S63) by taking the forecast future cash flows of the company and discounting them back to today's value. This will be done using the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. Before you think you won't be able to understand it, just read on! It's actually much less complex than you'd imagine. 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. See our latest analysis for Singapore Technologies Engineering 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 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. 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 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 2033 Levered FCF (SGD, Millions) S$929.2m S$994.0m S$1.06b S$1.15b S$1.21b S$1.26b S$1.30b S$1.34b S$1.38b S$1.41b Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x6 Analyst x6 Analyst x5 Analyst x2 Analyst x2 Est @ 3.98% Est @ 3.42% Est @ 3.02% Est @ 2.75% Est @ 2.55% Present Value (SGD, Millions) Discounted @ 6.8% S$870 S$872 S$872 S$884 S$872 S$850 S$823 S$794 S$764 S$734 ("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St) Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = S$8.3b Story continues 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 6.8%. Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2033 (1 + g) (r g) = S$1.4b (1 + 2.1%) (6.8% 2.1%) = S$31b Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= S$31b ( 1 + 6.8%)10= S$16b The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is S$24b. The last step is to then divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding. Compared to the current share price of S$4.0, the company appears quite undervalued at a 49% discount to where the stock price trades currently. 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 The calculation above is very dependent on two assumptions. The first is the discount rate and the other is the 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 Singapore Technologies Engineering 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 6.8%, which is based on a levered beta of 1.013. 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 Singapore Technologies Engineering 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 Aerospace & Defense industry. Dividend is low compared to the top 25% of dividend payers in the Aerospace & Defense market. Opportunity Annual earnings are forecast to grow faster than the Singaporean market. Trading below our estimate of fair value by more than 20%. Threat Revenue is forecast to grow slower than 20% per year. Moving On: 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 instance, if the terminal value growth rate is adjusted slightly, it can dramatically alter the overall result. Can we work out why the company is trading at a discount to intrinsic value? For Singapore Technologies Engineering, there are three fundamental aspects you should explore: Risks: Be aware that Singapore Technologies Engineering is showing 2 warning signs in our investment analysis , you should know about... Future Earnings: How does S63'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 Singaporean 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. KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) will pay a dividend of $0.205 on the 14th of June. Based on this payment, the dividend yield on the company's stock will be 5.4%, which is an attractive boost to shareholder returns. View our latest analysis for KeyCorp KeyCorp's Payment Expected To Have Solid Earnings Coverage We like to see robust dividend yields, but that doesn't matter if the payment isn't sustainable. KeyCorp has established itself as a dividend paying company with over 10 years history of distributing earnings to shareholders. Despite this history however, the company's latest earnings report actually shows that it didn't have enough earnings to cover its dividends. This is an alarming sign for the sustainability of its dividends, as it may mean that KeyCorpis pulling cash from elsewhere to keep its shareholders happy. Looking forward, EPS is forecast to rise by 134.6% over the next 3 years. For the same time horizon, analysts estimate that the future payout ratio could be 51% which would be quite comfortable going to take the dividend forward. KeyCorp Has A Solid Track Record Even over a long history of paying dividends, the company's distributions have been remarkably stable. The annual payment during the last 10 years was $0.22 in 2014, and the most recent fiscal year payment was $0.82. This means that it has been growing its distributions at 14% per annum over that time. It is good to see that there has been strong dividend growth, and that there haven't been any cuts for a long time. Dividend Growth Potential Is Shaky Investors who have held shares in the company for the past few years will be happy with the dividend income they have received. Unfortunately things aren't as good as they seem. KeyCorp's earnings per share has shrunk at 15% a year over the past five years. Dividend payments are likely to come under some pressure unless EPS can pull out of the nosedive it is in. It's not all bad news though, as the earnings are predicted to rise over the next 12 months - we would just be a bit cautious until this becomes a long term trend. In Summary Overall, we don't think this company makes a great dividend stock, even though the dividend wasn't cut this year. We can't deny that the payments have been very stable, but we are a little bit worried about the very high payout ratio. We would probably look elsewhere for an income investment. Companies possessing a stable dividend policy will likely enjoy greater investor interest than those suffering from a more inconsistent approach. Still, investors need to consider a host of other factors, apart from dividend payments, when analysing a company. As an example, we've identified 2 warning signs for KeyCorp that you should be aware of before investing. If you are a dividend investor, you might also want to look at our curated list of high yield dividend stocks. 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. Ken Research Kuwait car rental & leasing market zooms to $1.2 billion by 2026, fueled by tourism boom, rising income, and car-rental preference shift. Online bookings surge, with customers seeking convenience and flexibility. Download Ken Research's report for growth strategies and investment insights! Gurugram, India, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Buckle up for a prosperous ride! Kuwait car rental and leasing market is poised for significant growth, fueled by a booming tourism sector, rising disposable income, and a growing preference for flexible car usage. Ken Research's insightful report, "Kuwait Car Rental & Leasing Market Outlook to 2026 - Shifting Gears for Success," delves into this dynamic landscape, projecting a promising market size of $1.2 billion by 2026. This press release summarizes the key findings and offers valuable insights for car rental companies, leasing providers, and investors seeking to capitalize on this flourishing market. Growth Drivers: Filling the Tank with Opportunities Several key trends are paving the way for a thriving car rental and leasing market in Kuwait: Tourism Boom Fuels Demand: Kuwait's tourism industry is experiencing a significant upsurge, attracting both business and leisure travelers. An increase of [percentage] in tourist arrivals is anticipated by 2026. This influx of tourists will significantly drive the demand for car rentals, creating a lucrative opportunity for car rental companies. Rising Disposable Income: The growing disposable income of Kuwaiti residents is leading to increased spending on travel and leisure activities. A projected rise of [percentage] in disposable income by 2026 is expected to fuel demand for car rentals and leasing options, as individuals seek convenient and flexible transportation solutions. Shifting Car Ownership Preferences: A growing segment of the Kuwaiti population, particularly millennials, are opting for car rental or leasing over traditional car ownership. Factors like lower upfront costs, avoiding maintenance burdens, and the flexibility to access different car types are contributing to this shift in preference. Interested to Know More about this Report, Request a Free Sample Report Market Segmentation: Tailoring Solutions for Diverse Needs The Kuwaiti car rental and leasing market can be segmented by rental duration, vehicle type, and customer type. Understanding these segments allows stakeholders to tailor their offerings and marketing strategies: Short-Term Rentals Lead the Way: Short-term car rentals, typically for less than a month, account for the largest share of the market ( [percentage] ). Tourists and business travelers seeking temporary transportation solutions drive this segment. Vehicle Type Matters: Sedan cars remain the most popular rental choice ( [percentage] ) due to their affordability and fuel efficiency. However, demand for SUVs and luxury vehicles is expected to grow ( [growth percentage] ) as disposable incomes rise and customers seek premium rental experiences. Catering to All Customers: Business travelers are a key customer segment ([percentage]) seeking efficient and reliable transportation options. However, the leisure travel segment ([percentage]) is also expected to witness significant growth as tourism flourishes. Story continues Competitive Landscape: Navigating a Crowded Highway The Kuwaiti car rental and leasing market features a mix of international car rental giants and established local players: International Brands Steer the Wheel: Leading international car rental companies like Hertz, Avis, and Budget hold a dominant market share ( [percentage] ) due to their extensive brand recognition and global presence. These companies offer a wide range of rental options and cater to the needs of both business and leisure travelers. Local Players Gain Traction: Established Kuwaiti car rental and leasing companies capture a significant market share ([percentage]) by offering competitive pricing and catering to local preferences. Their understanding of the Kuwaiti market and ability to provide personalized service can be a competitive advantage. Recent Developments: Charting the Course for the Future The Kuwaiti car rental and leasing market is experiencing exciting developments that will shape its future: Rise of Online Bookings: The increasing internet penetration in Kuwait is leading to a surge in online car rental and leasing bookings. A growing number of Kuwaiti customers are expected to utilize online platforms for booking rental cars and comparing leasing options by 2026. This trend presents an opportunity for car rental companies and leasing providers to develop user-friendly online booking systems and enhance their digital presence. Focus on Customer Experience: Car rental and leasing companies are increasingly focusing on enhancing customer experience to differentiate themselves in a competitive market. This includes offering value-added services like airport pick-up and drop-off, flexible rental durations, and loyalty programs. Sustainability in the Spotlight: Environmental concerns are leading to a growing demand for eco-friendly car rental and leasing options. An increasing number of customers are expressing interest in hybrid and electric vehicles, presenting an opportunity for companies to invest in green car fleets and cater to environmentally conscious customers. Visit this Link :- Request for custom report Optimizing for Success in the Kuwaiti Car Rental and Leasing Market Car Rental Companies: Expand online presence to capture the growing trend of online bookings. Offer a diverse fleet catering to different budgets and preferences, including sedans, SUVs, and luxury vehicles. Develop attractive loyalty programs to retain customers and encourage repeat business. Invest in eco-friendly car options like hybrid and electric vehicles to cater to sustainability-conscious customers. Leasing Providers: Offer flexible leasing options with varying durations and mileage limits to cater to diverse customer needs. Partner with car dealerships to provide seamless leasing solutions and access to a wider range of vehicles. Develop competitive financing packages to make leasing a more attractive option for customers. Provide excellent customer service throughout the leasing cycle, from application to vehicle return. Future Outlook: A Smooth Ride Ahead The Kuwaiti car rental and leasing market is poised for a bright future, driven by several key trends: Government Investments in Tourism: The Kuwaiti government's focus on developing the tourism sector is expected to attract more visitors, further driving demand for car rentals. Growing Demand for Premium Experiences: As disposable incomes rise, customers will increasingly seek premium car rental and leasing experiences. This presents an opportunity for companies to offer luxury car options and exceptional customer service. Data-Driven Strategies: The increasing use of data analytics in the car rental and leasing industry allows companies to personalize their offerings and target marketing campaigns more effectively. Companies that can leverage data insights to improve customer experience and optimize pricing strategies will be well-positioned for success. Request free 30 minutes analyst call Download the full report to gain a comprehensive analysis of the Kuwaiti car rental and leasing market and its exciting future. This report equips you with the knowledge needed to navigate this dynamic landscape and position yourself for success in the thriving Kuwaiti transportation sector. Taxonomy Kuwait Car Rental & Leasing Market Segmentation By Type of Services Spot Rental Limousine Request free 30 minutes analyst call By Type of Vehicle Sedans SUV/MUV Luxury/Premium Panel & Passenger Vans 22-Seater Passenger Buses Pick-ups & Trucks Half Lorries For More Insights On Market Intelligence, Refer To The Link Below: Kuwait Car Rental & Leasing Market Related Reports by Ken Research: UAE Car Rental Leasing and Limousine Market Outlook to 2027 Driven by Increase in Tourism and Business Travel along with Rising Expatriate Population and Infrastructure Development The market will grow at a CAGR of 6.4% during 2022-2027 owing to factors such as the Increase in Tourism and Business Travel along with Rising Expatriate Population and Infrastructure Development. The government has set a target of 40 million tourists by 2031, with the tourism sector expected to generate $123 billion in income, as per the UAE Tourism Strategy 2031. The market for taxi aggregators will immediately profit from the growing number of tourists who choose app-based transportation because of its accessibility and convenience. Philippines Car Rental Market Outlook to 2027 Driven by the increase in tourism and business activities along with deeper internet penetration and adoption of digital services According to Ken Research estimates, the Philippines Car Rental Market which is at $~293.0 Mn in 2022 is forecasted to grow further into a $ ~ 448.7 Mn by 2027, owing to the expansion of the tourism industry, the increase in internet penetration and adoption of smart phones in the country. Vietnam Car Rental Market Outlook to 2027F Driven by Increasing Internet Penetration Rate, Tourism and Urbanization According to Ken Research estimates, due to the impact of COVID-19, there has been a decrease in tourism resulting in a reduction in demand for car rentals and car rental prices in Vietnam. The Vietnam car rental market is expected to grow at a 16.7% CAGR during 2022-2027F, driven by Increasing Internet Penetration Rate, Tourism and Urbanization. Belgium Car Rental Market Outlook 2027F driven by increasing tourism, technological prospects & customer loyalty Belgium Car Rental market has witnessed a steady growth in the 2017-2021 period in terms of fleet size & revenue owing to the expansion in the number & size of both local & international players & market size as a result of increase in the number of tourists travelling to Europe. Regarding the future projections, the Belgium Car Rental market is expected to reach US $ ~Mn in 2022P & will grow at an annual growth rate of ~% (CAGR). The user penetration is expected to reach ~% by 2027 & the average revenue per user will be US $ ~ Mn. Follow Us LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube Contact Us:- Ken Research Private Limited Ankur Gupta, Director Strategy and Growth Ankur@kenresearch.com +91-9015378249 CONTACT: Contact Us:- Ken Research Private Limited Ankur Gupta, Director Strategy and Growth Ankur@kenresearch.com +91-9015378249 Cosmetics and personal care company L'Oreals China subsidiary has worked with automation solutions provider Hai Robotics to develop its new smart fulfilment centre. The 46,000m site in Suzhou Industrial Park houses Hai's goods-to-person solution, HaiPick System 1, including 39 HaiPick A42 multi-layer autonomous case-handling mobile robots (ACRs) and conveyor-picking workstations. L'Oreal aims to handle D2C (direct-to-consumer) orders with flexibility, efficiency and scaleability, without compromising intelligence and sustainability for its supply chain operations. Automation technology and information systems make L'Oreals Suzhou SMART fulfilment centre a key hub in the beauty brand's handling of D2C and B2B (business-to-business) orders in Mainland China - its second biggest market globally. It will also allow L'Oreal to better support its commercial clients: e-commerce platforms, offline retailers and beauty salons. Hai Robotics founder and CEO Richie Chen commented: "This partnership will facilitate supply chain transformation by improving operational efficiency, storage density and flexibility in tackling orders. We are proud to support L'Oreal in achieving their broader business objectives and look forward to what the future has to bring." Founded in 1997, LOreal China has 25 brands, one research and innovation centre, one training centre, two plants in Yichang and Suzhou and five distribution centres across the nation. "LOreal China employs robotics at smart fulfilment centre" was originally created and published by Retail Insight Network, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Construction progress at the site of the Blue Oval Battery Park on Michigan Avenue in Marshall Township on Thursday, May 9, 2024. MARSHALL As work continues to make Ford Motor Co.'s electric vehicle battery plant near Marshall a reality, the automaker has announced a number of donations to Calhoun County attractions. Brooks Memorial Fountain in Marshall, Binder Park Zoo near Battle Creek and the Bohm Theatre in Albion are all receiving funds as part of Ford's "commitment to supporting communities" near the battery plant, the automaker announced. The project site is a flurry of activity in itself these days as construction of the plant, dubbed BlueOval Battery Park Michigan, continues. Additionally, more than 1,000 trees and hundreds of shrubs are being planted around the facility, located on the nearly 2,000-acre Marshall Area Jobs Opportunities and Recreation (MAJOR) Campus. This all comes as a group of area residents continue to challenge rezoning tied to the battery plant. Here's a breakdown of the latest news surrounding the project: Trees planted on MAJOR Campus Trees planted alongside the site of the Blue Oval Battery Park on Michigan Avenue in Marshall Township on Thursday, May 9, 2024. The recent landscaping work underway at the MAJOR Campus includes planting 1,067 trees and hundreds of shrubs, according to Jim Durian, CEO of Marshall Area Economic Development Alliance (MAEDA). Trees planted include white spruce, white pine, dawn redwood and six other varieties. We are pleased to see the first phase of this beautification and green space effort take shape on the MAJOR Campus, Durian said. This ongoing work demonstrates our dedication to protecting the environment, preserving green space and creating new recreational and educational opportunities for the entire community to enjoy. The campus includes 36 acres for Bear Creek, which has a historic barn, three houses and several other structures; 218 acres of conservation easement; 181 acres dedicated to southern stormwater management; and 19 acres for buffer and additional park space. Overall, the MAJOR Campus covers nearly 2,000 acres west of the city of Marshall. Its boundaries include Michigan Avenue (M-96) to the north, the Kalamazoo River to the south, 12 Mile Road to the west and Bear Creek to the east. The campus will be home to Ford's BlueOval plant, which will ultimately occupy more than 500 acres east of 13 Mile Road. The battery plant is expected to create 1,700 jobs when production of lithium iron phosphate batteries begins at the plant in 2026. Trees prepared for planting at the site of the Blue Oval Battery Park on Michigan Avenue in Marshall Township on Thursday, May 9, 2024. The current tree and shrub planting effort is in addition to the $25,000 Ford recently donated to the city of Marshall to support efforts to plant new trees around town, helping the city take the next steps toward earning Tree City USA recognition. From planting trees to investing in new storm water infrastructure, we are committed to protecting our lakes, rivers and streams, Durian said. These new plantings will benefit and beautify our community now and long into the future. Story continues Ford donates $200K to Calhoun County attractions A giraffe visits the feeding station at Binder Park Zoo on Monday, May 15, 2023. Ford is contributing $200,000 to a few Calhoun County attractions to enhance them through restoration or improved community access. More than 1,300 Calhoun County residents responded to a recent Ford survey and identified the Brooks Memorial Fountain in downtown Marshall, Binder Park Zoo near Battle Creek and the Bohm Theatre in Albion as the regions most important community assets, guiding Fords donations. We are pleased to invest in these attractions that are cherished by the community, Ford Community Relations Director Gabby Bruno said in a statement. Ford is committed to strengthening communities everywhere we live and work, and that includes the area surrounding the new BlueOval Battery Park Michigan in Marshall. The Brooks Memorial Fountain and Michigan Avenue in downtown Marshall. Ford will contribute $140,000 toward restoring the iconic Brooks Memorial Fountain. The company also will match fountain repair donations made as part of the inaugural Marshall Motorfest on Aug. 3. On behalf of the residents and visitors to Marshall, I want to extend our appreciation to Ford for their generous donation to the refurbishment of the Brooks Memorial Fountain, Marshall Mayor James Schwartz said. Ford continues to demonstrate that their good-neighbor pledge to the community is more than just words. Ford will also contribute $30,000 to Binder Park Zoo, helping provide increased access to the zoo for low-income families. Fords contribution will advance the Binder Park Zoos Ticket To Adventure program, which will help provide access to the zoo for low-income families across Calhoun County, explained Diane Thompson, president and CEO of Binder Park Zoo. We also appreciate Fords sponsorship of our Cheetah Chase 5K and their commitment as a season sponsor, enhancing our efforts in wildlife conservation and education. The Bohm Theatre in Albion. Fords $30,000 donation to the Bohm Theatre in Albion will also help ensure community access. Fords investment in the beautiful and historic Bohm Theatre is also an investment in the community of Albion and Calhoun County, Shannon Aikins, executive director of the Bohm Theatre, said. This investment will allow us to continue offering increased accessibility while dealing with the reality of ever-increasing costs in operating our 95-year-old architectural treasure. Michigan Court of Appeals hearing scheduled The Michigan Court of Appeals is formally accelerating its consideration of a legal challenge to rezoning tied to the BlueOval project. In March, the Court of Appeals granted the Committee for Marshall - Not the Megasite's motion to expedite its appeal in its case against the city of Marshall, City Clerk Michelle Eubank and the Marshall Area Economic Development Alliance. Committee members originally filed the lawsuit last year, arguing the city and Eubank inappropriately rejected their petition seeking a citywide vote on Ordinance # 2023-08 which effectively rezones 741 acres of the Marshall Megasite in support of the Ford project. A hearing is scheduled for June 6. The court is expected to hear arguments on the merits of the committees appeal as well as arguments on whether the Michigan Economic Development Corporation and Michigan Strategic Fund can intervene in the case. Contact reporter Greyson Steele at gsteele@battlecreekenquirer.com This article originally appeared on Battle Creek Enquirer: A breakdown of the latest news surrounding Ford's BlueOval project DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) The long-haul carrier Emirates announced Monday it saw record profits of $4.7 billion in 2023 as the airline fully took flight after the turbulent years of the coronavirus pandemic disrupted its operations. Emirates, owned by Dubai's government, announced revenues of $33 billion, compared to $29.3 billion the year before. Profit the year prior had been $2.9 billion. The airline carried 51.9 million passengers in its 2023 financial year, as compared to 43.6 million the year prior. Throughout the year, we saw high demand for air transport and travel related services around the world, and because we were able to move quickly to deliver what customers want, we achieved tremendous results, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the chairman and CEO of Emirates, said in a statement. We are reaping the benefit of years of non-stop investments in our products and services, in building strong partnerships, and in the capabilities of our talented people. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai, praised the airline, noting it took off 39 years ago and the world of aviation is no longer what it was before. What is coming will be more beautiful, greater and better, God willing, Sheikh Mohammed wrote on the social platform X. The Emirates' results track with those for its base, Dubai International Airport. The world's busiest airport for international travelers had 86.9 million passengers last year, surpassing numbers for 2019 just before the coronavirus pandemic grounded global aviation. The airport had 89.1 million passengers in 2018 its busiest-ever year before the pandemic. The airport now plans to move to the city-states second, sprawling airfield in its southern desert reaches in the next 10 years in a project worth nearly $35 billion. The overall Emirates Group, which includes travel company dnata, as well as food, beverage and leisure holdings, reported profits of $5.1 billion off revenues of $37.4 billion. The group declared a dividend to its owner, the sheikhdom's sovereign wealth fund known as the Investment Corporation of Dubai, of $1 billion. It also gave its over 112,000 employees 20-weeks bonus pay, according to an internal email sent to staff seen by The Associated Press. The city-state, one of seven hereditarily ruled, autocratic sheikhdoms that make up the United Arab Emirates, provided Emirates some $4 billion in a bailout at the height of the pandemic. The annual report said Emirates had repaid $2.6 billion of that loan during the last financial year. Story continues In November, Emirates announced a $52 billion deal to purchase 90 Boeing 777 aircraft, 55 of them 777-9 variants and 35 of them 777-8s. Emirates will also add an additional five 787 Dreamliners to its previous order of 30 aircraft. For years, Emirates has relied on the Boeing 777 and the double-decker Airbus A380 to ferry passengers around the world. That will change in September, when Emirates says it will begin flying the Airbus A350 on routes. The airline has also embarked on a $2 billion retrofit program for its aircraft. But challenges remain for the carrier. Saudi Arabia plans to push into the market with Riyadh Air, a new carrier that made a jet deal valued around $37 billion with Boeing just last year with the flagship carrier Saudia. Climate change may be another concern as well the wider UAE saw its heaviest recorded rainfall ever last month, which disrupted Emirates' flights for days. On 30 May 2023, President Lula da Silva assembled the first South American summit in nearly a decade. In reviving the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR), the Brazilian leader hoped to drive the pharma trade forward and raise disease response standards across the region. All twelve leaders present signed the Brasilia Consensus, which was dedicated to reaching an effective South America Free Trade Area like the European Union (EU). The Consensus also includes commitments to cooperate on various agendas, including raising investment, improving market access, and removing unilateral trade measures. With clear and ambitious goals for Brazils pharma sector in view, nearly 12 months on, the industry reflects on the improvements made and strides that still need to be realized. Pursuing world-leading healthcare Brazil has the worlds largest government-run public healthcare system and the continents biggest economy. It also has the largest pharma industry in South America, producing approximately $14.7bn in annual pharma sales. Brazil has its particularities, like any other country, but we have a dynamic healthcare system, which is a global reference in several areas and of which we are very proud, a spokesperson from Merck KGaA Brasil told Pharmaceutical Technology. GlobalData, the parent company of Pharmaceutical Technology, forecasted that healthcare spending in Brazil will grow by 4% in 2024, reaching BRL $940.9bn per year ($192.5bn). Hailing the pharma industry as Brazils strategic asset, sector association Sindusfarma is highlights Brazils role in global efforts to research and produce vaccines against Covid-19, and be an important player in clinical research and manufacture of immunizing drugs on a large scale. In Brazil, pharma companies with national capital maintain partnerships with local universities, resulting in the discovery of active ingredients and new drug developments exported to several countries. Simultaneously, international pharma companies have conducted clinical research on Brazils emerging products. Hopeful for regulatory harmony Due to its fractured state, fixing Brazils challenging regulatory landscape was a priority at the 2023 South America Summit. Lula emphasised the need to implement regulatory convergence norms to eradicate the restrictive pharma import and export conditions. Almost 12 months later, Brazils regulatory environment remains a significant hurdle for the pharma industry to overcome. Without legal certainty and stable rules, this is practically impossible, says Nelson Mussolini, executive president of pharma industry association Sindusfarma (Sindicato da Industria de Produtos Farmaceuticos) and a Brazilian Health Council (CNS) member. Story continues Misunderstanding over intellectual propertys role is an area requiring reviews and updates. Political and health leaders still persist in assuming that patent breaking, even temporarily, can encourage the production of medicines and vaccines and expand the populations access to essential goods for public health, Mussolini details. Still he says the handling of the coronavirus in Brazil demonstrated its control was only possible due to technology transfer negotiations among national and international pharma industries, public laboratories, research centers and Brazilian and world authorities. It was not a haphazard success, Mussolini says, commenting on Brazils approach to Covid-19. Clinical trials for new drugs involve complex processes, long and uncertain development stages, and high costs. In Brazil and around the world, observing intellectual property rights is critical for the development and supply of new drugs and vaccines and the strengthening of the clinical trials system, Mussolini adds. Brazils broader political and legal landscape also raises questions. The country loses investments of more than BRL 2bn ($382m) every year because of unnecessary bureaucracy and provisions that, by creating legal uncertainty, drive away sponsors of clinical trials, Mussolini states. A government policy is still lacking, Mussolini adds, highlighting that Brazil needs a long-range plan allowing the country to explore the great potential of the pharmaceutical area as a vector for scientific, technological, economic and social development. We are not advocating here for the withdrawal of individuals rights from research but for the modernisation of the regulatory framework, Mussolini asserts. Investing in disease management The spread of infectious diseases has caused catastrophic effects in South America, caused by insufficient funding, training and resources as well as its fragmented regulatory environment. Almost 43% of the worlds Covid-19 fatalities were in Latin American and Caribbean nations, where vaccination rates were slower as wealthier nations stockpiled vaccines. Furthermore, in the past decade, Latin American and the Caribbean countries have gone from having one of the highest childhood vaccination rates globally to one of the lowest, UNICEF reported, seeing 67 million children not receiving one or more vaccines in three years due to health service interruptions. Still, Sindusfarmas Mussolini earmarks the Latin American country as an experienced frontrunner in harnessing its capabilities to develop drugs safely and effectively. Brazil has tradition and experience in clinical trials, and it has internationally renowned researchers, hospitals and research centers, Mussolini says. Today, Brazil aims to enhance pharma research and production and lower the regions dependence on foreign medical imports from countries such as the US, China and Russia. Biotechnology, including biologics, biosimilars and advanced therapies, is shaping Brazils pharma sector. Brazil is the only country with more than 100 million inhabitants that has a free and universal public health system that opens space for technological development and collaboration to create programs focused on expanding the populations access to treatments for diseases that impact public health, a spokesperson from Merck KGaA Brasil shares. Achievements 12 months later Brazil produces high-quality medicines, has a large installed capacity and little by little has been accumulating patents for innovative products, Mussolini promotes. In addition, its public and private health system is extensive and a reference for universal care, shares. Currently national and global health is going through a period of great transformation and despite being a complex market, the pharmaceutical sector has become increasingly attractive and promising, especially for foreign companies with a long-term vision, says Merck Brasils spokesperson. Its populations consumption potential is enormous, Mussolini shares. As a result, many large pharma companies are present in Brazil and have expansion plans. Merck KGaA Brasil, for example, has pledged to invest more than BRL$100m ($19 mn) in the country by 2025 to modernize its industrial park in Rio de Janeiro. In February 2024, the pharma company announced it will be opening a new $21.7m distribution centre in Sao Paulo. In March 2024, Brazils Fundacao Oswaldo Cruz (Fiocruz), a national public health foundation, announced an agreement with Boehringer Ingelheim to manufacture generic empagliflozin, a diabetes drug, to use in Brazils public health system. However, despite Brazils potential and large company presence, Mussolini says, As the current health crisis has shown, this is not enough. Pharma is a multibillion-dollar market. In view of its privileged status in the pharma and health area, the country can and should dream bigger, both to meet its needs and to take advantage of the opportunities that the post-pandemic international context offers in our continent, says Mussolini. "Lulas progress plan for Brazil: A year on" was originally created and published by Pharmaceutical Technology, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. By Nate Raymond BOSTON (Reuters) -Massachusetts' attorney general took Uber Technologies and Lyft to trial on Monday over allegations that the ride-share companies are misclassifying thousands of drivers in the state as independent contractors to avoid treating them as more costly employees. The non-jury trial in Boston comes amid broader legal and political battles in the Democratic-led state and elsewhere nationally over the status of drivers for app-based companies whose services fuel the U.S. gig worker economy. Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell, a Democrat, is asking a judge to conclude that drivers for Uber and Lyft are employees under state law and therefore entitled to benefits such as a minimum wage, overtime and earned sick time. Studies have shown that using contractors can cost companies as much as 30% less than employees. Assistant Attorney General Douglas Martland in his opening statement said the companies' algorithms, pricing policies and operating standards gave them a level of control over their drivers that belied any claim that they work independently. He said the drivers are given little time to decide whether to accept a ride request from a user -- just 15 seconds -- and are never told up front how much riders will be paying them and the companies before letting them in their vehicles. "What entrepreneur would do that?" Martland asked Suffolk County Superior Court Judge Peter Krupp, who will decide the case. Lawyers for the companies argued the state misunderstood their businesses, saying the main employees on their payrolls were data scientists and others who fine-tune the apps they provide that connect independent drivers with potential riders. "Lyft works for drivers, not the other way around," said Felicia Ellsworth, Lyft's lawyer. Uber counsel Michele Maryott argued that drivers value the flexibility of being able to drive when they want, allowing them to tailor their work around children, other jobs and appointments and provide services only part time. "The flexibility is critical for them," she said. "These drivers don't need to show up at all, much less at a specific time, like employees do." She and Ellsworth warned that a ruling requiring the companies to treat the state's 55,000 Uber drivers and 35,000 Lyft drivers as employees could force them to cut or halt operations in Massachusetts. The case went to trial a week after Massachusetts' highest court heard arguments over whether to allow an industry-backed ballot measure to go before voters in November that defines the drivers as contractors but entitles them to some new benefits. Story continues The court appeared open to allowing some version of that proposal to go on the ballot along with a rival, labor-backed ballot measure that seeks to allow the drivers to unionize. The lawsuit at issue in Monday's trial was filed in 2020 by Campbell's predecessor, Maura Healey, now the state's Democratic governor. Should the state prevail, it has said the companies could face large penalties for not properly classifying their drivers. Should Uber and Lyft lose the trial but succeed at the ballot box, Campbell's office has said the ballot measure would only govern the companies' conduct moving forward and that they could face large penalties for past misclassification. By not classifying their Massachusetts drivers as employees, Uber and Lyft avoided paying $266.4 million into workers' compensation, unemployment insurance and paid family medical leave over 10 years, according to a report by the state auditor. (Reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston; Editing by Josie Kao, Alexia Garamfalvi and Bill Berkrot) Key Insights Significant control over Mayne Pharma Group by individual investors implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions The top 11 shareholders own 50% of the company Insider ownership in Mayne Pharma Group is 10% A look at the shareholders of Mayne Pharma Group Limited (ASX:MYX) can tell us which group is most powerful. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 38% to be precise, is individual investors. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn). And institutions on the other hand have a 33% ownership in the company. Generally speaking, as a company grows, institutions will increase their ownership. Conversely, insiders often decrease their ownership over time. Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of Mayne Pharma Group, beginning with the chart below. Check out our latest analysis for Mayne Pharma Group What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Mayne Pharma Group? Institutional investors commonly compare their own returns to the returns of a commonly followed index. So they generally do consider buying larger companies that are included in the relevant benchmark index. Mayne Pharma Group already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. This can indicate that the company has a certain degree of credibility in the investment community. However, it is best to be wary of relying on the supposed validation that comes with institutional investors. They too, get it wrong sometimes. 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 Mayne Pharma Group, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too. Hedge funds don't have many shares in Mayne Pharma Group. Viburnum Funds Pty Ltd. is currently the largest shareholder, with 7.9% of shares outstanding. Bruce Mathieson is the second largest shareholder owning 6.5% of common stock, and Goldman Sachs Group, Investment Banking and Securities Investments holds about 6.4% of the company stock. Looking at the shareholder registry, we can see that 50% of the ownership is controlled by the top 11 shareholders, meaning that no single shareholder has a majority interest in the ownership. 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 is a little analyst coverage of the stock, but not much. So there is room for it to gain more coverage. Story continues Insider Ownership Of Mayne Pharma Group The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. The company management answer to the board and the latter should represent the interests of shareholders. Notably, sometimes top-level managers are on the board themselves. Most consider insider ownership a positive because it can indicate the board is well aligned with other shareholders. However, on some occasions too much power is concentrated within this group. It seems insiders own a significant proportion of Mayne Pharma Group Limited. It has a market capitalization of just AU$569m, and insiders have AU$59m worth of shares in their own names. 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-- including retail investors -- own 38% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. This size of ownership, while considerable, may not be enough to change company policy if the decision is not in sync with other large shareholders. Private Equity Ownership Private equity firms hold a 7.9% stake in Mayne Pharma Group. This suggests they can be influential in key policy decisions. Some might like this, because private equity are sometimes activists who hold management accountable. But other times, private equity is selling out, having taking the company public. Private Company Ownership Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 5.9%, of the company's shares. It might be worth looking deeper into this. If related parties, such as insiders, have an interest in one of these private companies, that should be disclosed in the annual report. Private companies may also have a strategic interest in the company. Public Company Ownership It appears to us that public companies own 5.2% of Mayne Pharma Group. This may be a strategic interest and the two companies may have related business interests. It could be that they have de-merged. This holding is probably worth investigating further. Next Steps: It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Mayne Pharma Group better, we need to consider many other factors. I always like to check for a history of revenue growth. You can too, by accessing this free chart of historic revenue and earnings in this detailed graph. If you are like me, you may want to think about whether this company will grow or shrink. Luckily, you can check this free report showing analyst forecasts for its future. 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. Key Insights The projected fair value for Mega First Corporation Berhad is RM8.40 based on 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity Mega First Corporation Berhad's RM4.82 share price signals that it might be 43% undervalued Analyst price target for MFCB is RM5.00 which is 41% below our fair value estimate How far off is Mega First Corporation Berhad (KLSE:MFCB) 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. This will be done using the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. Believe it or not, it's not too difficult to follow, as you'll see from our example! Remember though, that there are many ways to estimate a company's value, and a DCF is just one method. 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 Mega First Corporation Berhad What's The Estimated Valuation? We are going to use a two-stage DCF model, which, as the name states, takes into account two stages of growth. The first stage is generally a higher growth period which levels off heading towards the terminal value, captured in the second 'steady growth' period. 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. A DCF is all about the idea that a dollar in the future is less valuable than a dollar today, 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 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 2033 Levered FCF (MYR, Millions) RM571.2m RM564.9m RM516.3m RM491.9m RM480.8m RM478.4m RM481.8m RM489.3m RM499.9m RM512.8m Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Est @ -4.73% Est @ -2.24% Est @ -0.51% Est @ 0.71% Est @ 1.56% Est @ 2.16% Est @ 2.58% Present Value (MYR, Millions) Discounted @ 8.6% RM526 RM479 RM403 RM353 RM318 RM291 RM270 RM252 RM237 RM224 ("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St) Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = RM3.4b 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 (3.6%) 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 8.6%. Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2033 (1 + g) (r g) = RM513m (1 + 3.6%) (8.6% 3.6%) = RM10b Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= RM10b ( 1 + 8.6%)10= RM4.6b The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is RM7.9b. To get the intrinsic value per share, we divide this by the total number of shares outstanding. Relative to the current share price of RM4.8, the company appears quite good value at a 43% 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 The Assumptions Now 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 Mega First Corporation 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 8.6%, 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 Mega First Corporation Berhad Strength Debt is not viewed as a risk. 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 Renewable Energy market. Opportunity Annual earnings are forecast to grow for the next 3 years. Good value based on P/E ratio and estimated fair value. Threat Annual earnings are forecast to grow slower than the Malaysian market. Next Steps: Whilst important, the DCF calculation is only one of many factors that you need to assess 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. Can we work out why the company is trading at a discount to intrinsic value? For Mega First Corporation Berhad, we've compiled three essential aspects you should assess: Risks: For example, we've discovered 1 warning sign for Mega First Corporation Berhad that you should be aware of before investing here. Future Earnings: How does MFCB'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 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. Here we go: Meijer to open Alliance, North Canton stores Meijer employee Justus Clark of North Canton stocks allergy medication in the supercenter chain's new North Canton location on North Main Street. For over a year, Alliance and North Canton residents have watched as Meijer built supercenters in their cities. As of 6 a.m. Tuesday, they will be able to shop there. Meijer officials will welcome shoppers into their new stores, expanding the company's footprint in Stark County. The two stores join one in Jackson Township that opened in 2022. Before you go to Meijer: Follow these steps to save at the new Alliance, North Canton stores "It kind of reminds me of the story of 'Field of Dreams.' If you build it, you know they will come," said North Canton Mayor Stephan Wilder. Members of the local media, city and business leaders and several nonprofits were given a sneak preview of both stores on May 8. During the first of the events, North Canton staff lined up and took part in a pep rally of sorts to welcome their visitors. Employees Christian Fatica and Jeff Herdlick took turns shouting "Here we go, North Canton, here we go!" The crowd of staff in their Meijer T-shirts shouted the phrase back several times. Here are five things to know about the new Meijer stores: 1. Meijer stores are open early, close late Meijer stores open at 6 a.m. and close at midnight daily. Both stores have numerous checkouts, including two sets of self-checkouts, and customer service is across the aisle. North Canton Mayor Stephan Wilder said Meijer invested $30 million into building its new North Canton location, which opens May 14, 2024. The supercenter has a variety of products, including food, clothing, pet supplies and toys. The pharmacy hours are 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. 2. Shoppers should expect a light and airy experience From groceries to fashion, and in between, all Meijer supercenters are setup to be a one-stop shopping experience. You'll feel that the minute you walk into the stores. Both stores have groceries, bakery, deli, a pharmacy and large departments for fashion, home supplies, toys and pets. Meijer's exclusive Purple Cow Ice Cream is showcased in the frozen foods area. Patrick Hughes, store director at the Alliance Meijer superstore, guided guests through the new store on May 8, 2024. Here, he shows the pets department. Shoppers also will notice natural light cascading into atriums at the entrances and extra-high ceilings. The aisles are wide and uncluttered, and well-lit. The bakery and deli areas have an ambience, giving off a cafe feel. Signage is contemporary. Meijer honors its own history, and pays tribute to the histories of Alliance and North Canton with displays in the front of the store. For example, Thrifty Acres a throwback to the family-owned company's first supercenter is stamped on walls. "We already really feel a part of (the community)," said Sheila Dowgiert, store director at the North Canton Meijer store. "Everybody is excited. We're excited to be able to open our doors and welcome in those first customers." Patrick Hughes runs the Alliance store. 3. Meijer likes to be active in the community, supporting local causes Similar to other retailers, Meijer officials want to be active in the communities they serve, and the new arrivals already have helped several local nonprofits. Meijer donated a total of $50,000 to four organizations in the Alliance and North Canton areas. The organizations receiving funds were Clothed in Righteousness in Alliance; Legacy of Honor near Louisville; Houston's Lift Off in Canton; and Local Hope: The Jackie Davison Foundation in Jackson Township. Each received at least $10,000. Jackie Monea and Kim Hardgrove, members of the Local Hope: The Jackie Davison Foundation, accepted a $15,000 donation from Meijer on May 8, 2024, during a North Canton store preview. The group helps women struggling with cancer and other medical issues. Local Hope board member Jackie Monea said Meijer's $15,000 donation is the largest they've ever received. The nonprofit helps women struggling with cancer and other life-threatening medical issues. "This donation means there are so many more women that we can help in the community," a teary-eyed Monea said. Meijer officials donated $12,500 to the Alliance homeless ministry, Clothed in Righteousness, on May 8, 2024, during a preview tour of the new Alliance supercenter. Similarly, Clothed in Righteousness co-founder Eva Slagle said Meijer's $12,500 donation is the most they've received. The ministry helps homeless and unsheltered men and women in the Alliance with meals, clothes and any supplies they need. "This (donation) will get us through the dry months because in the summer donations usually drop off and people aren't serving meals as much," Slagle said. "This is awesome." Through Meijer's Simply Give program, the store has partnered with Alliance Community Pantry and North Canton Cares Pantry. The campaign encourages customers to buy $10 donation cards, with Meijer matching the amount. The pantries then use the cards at Meijer. 4. Officials in both cities see the stores as major economic boosts Michigan-based Meijer has more than 270 supercenters in six U.S. states, with 55 in Ohio. It was founded by Hendrik Meijer in 1934, and remains a family operation. Meijer opened its first store in Ohio in 1981. North Canton Mayor Stephan Wilder shook hands with Meijer employees during a preview of the company's new North Canton location on May 8, 2024. In Alliance and North Canton, the nearly 160,000-square-foot stores have replaced empty or nearly empty retail sites, and city officials there hope they provide a major economic boost. The North Canton store, at 1505 N. Main St., was built on the site of a former Kmart that closed in 2020. "It's just going to bring jobs into the community, property taxes for our schools and income taxes to support our services," Wilder said. "Most of all, I think it gives us another opportunity for our residents and visitors to shop on this side of (Interstate) 77." He added Meijer spent $30 million on the project and hired more than 300 people at the North Canton store. Wilder also stressed what the North Canton store has done to lure business to the site. For example, Papa Bear's Italian Restaurant, Wendy's, Chik-Fil-A and 7 Brew Coffee will be opening on land surrounding the store. "That's going to be a robust and vibrant area," Wilder said. In Alliance, the Meijer store at 2500 W. State St. has replaced the former Carnation City Mall. For decades, the mall had been a retail mecca but it had fallen on hard times and had few tenants left before it closed. It later was demolished. Meijer opens its new Alliance supercenter at 2500 W. State St. on May 14, 2024, on the former Carnation City Mall property. The city's iconic water tower can be seen from inside the atrium on the "Home" side of the store. "We're very excited about what Meijer is doing and they're taking family shopping to a whole new level," Alliance Mayor Andy Grove said. "We're happy to have them join our family in Alliance." Rick Baxter, president of Alliance Area Chamber of Commerce, said he anticipates the Alliance Meijer store will attract shoppers living in a 15- to 20-mile radius, including those in western Columbiana and southwestern Mahoning counties. "I always like to use the example of go to Texas Roadhouse on a weekend here. Look, especially in the wintertime, you look at all of the school jackets there Waterloo, Southeast, Minerva and Carrollton. Even Louisville. A lot of people come here because we're not quite as busy," Baxter said. The Alliance store has about 350 employees. 5. For a penny, you can ride Sandy the pony At every Meijer supercenter, there is a mechanical pony ride named Sandy. For a shiny penny, children of all ages can ride it. North Canton Mayor Stephan Wilder rides Meijer's iconic penny pony ride, Sandy, on May 8, 2024, during a tour of the new North Canton store. It opens to the public on May 14. According to company officials, Sandy became a part of the Meijer culture on June 5, 1962, with the opening of Thrifty Acres, the first Meijer supercenter. The late Fred Meijer, the chain's former chairman, was inspired by a supermarket in Nebraska that offered 10-cent pony rides, they said. Meijer charged a penny for the ride, symbolizing the company's affordable prices. The ride is still a penny today. Enjoy. "It's beautiful," Baxter said. Reach Benjamin Duer at 330-580-8567 or ben.duer@cantonrep.com. On X (formerly Twitter): @bduerREP. This article originally appeared on The Repository: Meijer stores in Alliance, North Canton opening this week Chinese foreign ministry official on China's Position on UNGA Resolution 2758 Xinhua) 08:07, May 13, 2024 BEIJING, May 12 (Xinhua) -- Yang Tao, director-general of the Department of North American and Oceanian Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on Friday held a briefing to elaborate on China's position on United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Resolution 2758. Yang said that for some time, the United States has been deliberately distorting and challenging UNGA Resolution 2758 adopted in 1971 on restoring the lawful seat of the People's Republic of China in the United Nations and expelling the Chiang Kai-shek group. It has been trumpeting the notion that Taiwan's status is undetermined, and advocating support for Taiwan's participation in U.N. conferences and activities. Yang noted that recently, Mark Lambert along with other U.S. State Department officials blatantly asserted that UNGA Resolution 2758 "did not endorse, is not equivalent to and does not reflect a consensus for China's 'one-China principle,' has no bearing on countries' sovereign choices with respect to their relationships with Taiwan, does not preclude Taiwan's meaningful participation in the United Nations system and other multilateral forums, and did not constitute a U.N. institutional position on the ultimate political status of Taiwan." Moreover, the United States claims that its one-China policy is different from China's one-China principle. All this is a U.S. attempt to invent a whole set of false narratives to mislead international public opinion and challenge the one-China consensus among the international community, Yang added. "In view of this, we deem it necessary to comprehensively and systematically explain the origin and facts of Resolution 2758, so as to set the record straight. We believe a lie, even told a thousand times, will not become truth," Yang said. First, the one-China principle is very clear, that is, there is but one China in the world, Taiwan is part of China, and the Government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China, Yang said. Yang noted that UNGA Resolution 2758 fully reflects and solemnly reaffirms the one-China principle. Taiwan has been part of China since ancient times. This is a historical fact; it is also the international consensus. The 1943 Cairo Declaration and the 1945 Potsdam Proclamation clearly stipulated that Taiwan, a Chinese territory stolen by Japan, shall be restored to China. These documents with international legal effect formed an integral part of the post-WWII international order and also established the legal foundation of Taiwan's status as China's inalienable territory. In 1949, the government of the People's Republic of China was established, replacing the government of the Republic of China as the sole legal government representing the whole of China. It was a change of government without changing China as a subject of international law. China's sovereignty and inherent territorial boundaries did not change. Rightfully, the government of the People's Republic of China fully enjoys and exercises China's sovereignty, including that over Taiwan. Due to continued civil war in China and the meddling of external forces, the two sides of the Taiwan Strait have fallen into a special state of protracted political confrontation. However, China's sovereignty and territory have not been split and will never be split. Taiwan's status as part of China has not changed and will never change, Yang said. Yang noted that on Oct. 25, 1971, the 26th session of the U.N. General Assembly adopted Resolution 2758 with an overwhelming majority. It states in black and white that the General Assembly "decides to restore all its rights to the People's Republic of China and to recognize the representatives of its Government as the only legitimate representatives of China to the United Nations, and to expel forthwith the representatives of Chiang Kai-shek from the place which they unlawfully occupy at the United Nations and in all the organizations related to it." The Resolution resolved once and for all the question of the representation of the whole of China, including Taiwan, in the United Nations as a political, legal and procedural issue. It made clear that there is only one China in the world and that Taiwan is a part of China, not a country. It also made clear that there is only one seat of China in the United Nations, and the Government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legal representative, precluding "two Chinas" or "one China, one Taiwan." "If Taiwan's status is undetermined, and if China's representation does not include Taiwan, why expel the representatives of Chiang Kai-shek? Why, for more than 50 years, has Taiwan's economic output been counted as part of China's GDP when calculating China's scale of assessment in the United Nations and many other international organizations? Why does the United States turn a blind eye to such clear facts and simple logic?" Yang said. Second, the U.N. system has always observed Resolution 2758 and upheld the one-China principle in dealing with Taiwan-related issues, Yang said. Yang said that since the adoption of Resolution 2758, the U.N. and its specialized agencies, and also other intergovernmental international organizations have all adhered to it. They regard Taiwan as a province of China's and do not recognize the so-called international representation of the Taiwan authorities. The U.N. Office of Legal Affairs has issued legal opinions stating very clearly that "the United Nations considers 'Taiwan' for all purposes to be an integral part of the People's Republic of China," "the United Nations considers 'Taiwan' as a province of China with no separate status," "'authorities' in 'Taipei' are not considered to ... enjoy any form of governmental status," "use the term 'Taiwan, Province of China' when a reference to 'Taiwan' is required in United Nations Secretariat documents." For decades, the U.N. Secretary Generals and their spokespersons have made it clear when expressing their stance on Taiwan that the United Nations is guided by Resolution 2758 and adheres to the one-China principle. As part of China's territory, Taiwan has no basis, reason or right to participate in the U.N. or any other international organizations where membership is exclusive to sovereign countries. Any issue concerning the Taiwan region's participation in the activities of international organizations must be handled on the basis of the one-China principle, as reaffirmed by Resolution 2758, Yang stressed. The principle is again confirmed in May 1972 by Resolution 25.1 of the 25th World Health Assembly (WHA), which was adopted in accordance with UNGA Resolution 2758. Hence, whether and how Taiwan participates in the WHA can only be decided by the central government of China. The Democratic Progressive Party authorities in Taiwan refuse to accept the "1992 Consensus" that reflects the one-China principle, and are hellbent on the separatist stance of "Taiwan independence." As a result, the political foundation for Taiwan to participate in the WHA no longer exists. This position of the Chinese government has received wide support from the international community. The WHA has rejected deliberations of Taiwan-related proposals for many consecutive years, Yang said. Third, the international community overwhelmingly abides by Resolution 2758, and fully and faithfully implements the one-China principle. Resolution 2758 is a decision made by the U.N. General Assembly and must be observed by all member states, Yang said. Yang added that this is the requirement of the United Nations Charter, the written commitment made by all countries upon joining the U.N., and also an obligation that all U.N. member states must fulfill. The one-China principle is also the fundamental prerequisite and political foundation for China to establish and develop relations with all other countries. From the very first country that established diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China to the 183rd country, namely Nauru, they have all made political commitment to adhering to the one-China principle, and included this commitment in political documents such as communiques and joint statements on the establishment of diplomatic relations with China. And they have all severed the so-called "diplomatic" relations with Taiwan. "This shows that the one-China principle is a universally recognized principle and represents people's sentiments and a global trend." Yang said that as a signatory to the Cairo Declaration and the Potsdam Proclamation, the United States is fully aware of the historical and legal facts that Taiwan belongs to China. Yet it openly challenges the post-WWII international order, as if it has "amnesia." As a founding member of the U.N. and a permanent member of the Security Council, the United States not only fails to take the lead in complying with a UNGA resolution, but repeatedly questions and misinterprets it, eroding the foundation of the U.N. and trampling on the principles of international law. It also attempts to mislead international public opinion with its own malicious distortions, and seeks to force its wrong stance upon the international community. Is this the so-called "rules-based international order" the United States has been preaching? Clearly, this is nothing but a hegemonic practice of applying international law in a selective way. The world has not forgotten that during the discussions that led to UNGA Resolution 2758, the United States had teamed up with a few countries to try to create "two Chinas" or "one China, one Taiwan," and to push through a "dual representation" proposal against overwhelming opposition. Many countries had stepped forward, voicing their clear opposition and stressing that the proposal was "illegal and inconsistent with reality, justice and the principles of the U.N. Charter." In the end, the proposal failed to be put to a vote and was discarded. Today, the United States is once again acting against the trend of history and trying to overturn the consensus of the international community. It must understand that what it failed to accomplish more than 50 years ago will have even less chances to succeed today, Yang said. Fourth, the United States must stop fudging and hollowing out the one-China principle, Yang said. Once the biggest obstacle to the normalization of China-U.S. relations, the Taiwan question had been fully resolved with the three China-U.S. joint communiques, and there should be no difference between the understanding and policies of the two sides. In the communiques, the United States clearly states that "the United States of America recognizes the government of the People's Republic of China as the only legal government of China" and that "the government of the United States of America recognizes China's position that there is only one China and Taiwan is part of China," Yang noted. This is the political commitment of the United States, the political foundation of China-U.S. relations, and above all, the original and true meaning of the one-China policy of the United States. However, the fact that China and the United States are still discussing the Taiwan question 45 years after the establishment of diplomatic relations is because the United States keeps violating the one-China principle and the three China-U.S. joint communiques, and continues to interfere in China's internal affairs and obstruct China's reunification, Yang said. The United States claims that it adheres to the one-China policy, but it has added the "Taiwan Relations Act" and "Six Assurances to Taiwan" as precondition and proviso. The latter two, concocted by the United States unilaterally, fundamentally violate the one-China principle and the consensus of the international community, and have never been recognized by China, Yang stressed. Yang said that the United States claims that it maintains unofficial relations with Taiwan, but it has arranged meetings between U.S. and Taiwan officials, signed agreements with sovereign connotations and an official nature, and provided arms and ammunition to the Chinese territory. How is this unofficial ties? President Joe Biden has pledged that the United States does not support "Taiwan independence," "two Chinas" or "one China, one Taiwan," and does not seek to use Taiwan as a tool to contain China. Has the U.S. side honored its commitment? China reminds the United States that any move to reverse the course of history is doomed to fail, any effort to play the "Taiwan card" will only backfire, and any attempt to "use Taiwan to contain China" will be a dead end, Yang said. China warns the United States that with regard to UNGA Resolution 2758, the U.S. has only the obligation to strictly abide by it, but no right to arbitrarily distort it or any privilege to act as the U.S. sees fit, Yang said. China urges the United States not to stand on the opposite side of the international community, not to stand on the opposite side of international justice, and not to stand on the opposite side of the basic norms of international relations, Yang said. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Melinda French Gates arrives for a meeting at the Elysee Palace, amid the New Global Financial Pact Summit in Paris on June 23, 2023. Credit - Christian LiewigGetty Images Melinda French Gates is stepping down as co-chair of the $75 billion foundation she helped run with her former husband, Bill Gates. Her last day will be June 7 and shell receive an additional $12.5 billion to use for her own charitable purposes as part of an agreement with her ex-husband, French Gates said Monday in a statement. I am taking this step with full confidence the foundation is in strong shape, French Gates, 59, said in the statement. The time is right for me to move forward into the next chapter of my philanthropy, which she added will focus on women and families. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to be known as the Gates Foundation once she departs is one of the biggest private foundations on the planet, with an $8.6 billion budget for 2024. Bill Gates will become its sole chair, the organization said. I am sorry to see Melinda leave, but I am sure she will have a huge impact in her future philanthropic work, Gates said in a post on X. The fate of the foundations leadership was thrown into question after the couple announced they were divorcing in May 2021. That July, they said they were setting a two-year deadline to decide whether they could work together, and that if they couldnt, French Gates would receive money from Gates for her philanthropic work thats separate from the foundations endowment. Read More: Gateses Have Two Years to Decide If They Can Share Foundation In September 2022, French Gates said she was completely committed to the foundation and working with her ex-husband. French Gates has her own charity called Pivotal Ventures, which she started in 2015. By the time the couple divorced, Pivotal had invested hundreds of millions of dollars in more than 150 organizations. It uses grants as well as venture capital to focus on empowering women, including getting more females into technology jobs and elected to public office, and advocating paid family leave. Bill Gates, 68, the former chief executive officer and co-founder of Microsoft Corp., is the worlds fifth-richest person with a fortune of $152.6 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, while French Gates is worth $13.3 billion. French Gates, through Pivotal, has also worked with MacKenzie Scott, who became one of the biggest philanthropists in history following her 2019 divorce from Amazon.com Inc. co-founder Jeff Bezos. After French Gates departure, the foundations board will be made up of Gates, CEO Mark Suzman and five other people appointed in the years following the divorce. Story continues This is difficult news for me, too, Suzman wrote in an email to employees Monday. I truly admire Melinda, and I will deeply miss working with her and learning from her. Contact us at letters@time.com. Mi Technovation Berhad (KLSE:MI) First Quarter 2024 Results Key Financial Results Revenue: RM107.1m (up 39% from 1Q 2023). Net income: RM26.8m (up 319% from 1Q 2023). Profit margin: 25% (up from 8.3% in 1Q 2023). The increase in margin was driven by higher revenue. EPS: RM0.03 (up from RM0.007 in 1Q 2023). All figures shown in the chart above are for the trailing 12 month (TTM) period Mi Technovation Berhad Earnings Insights Looking ahead, revenue is forecast to grow 15% p.a. on average during the next 3 years, compared to a 14% growth forecast for the Semiconductor industry in Malaysia. Performance of the Malaysian Semiconductor industry. The company's shares are up 2.1% from a week ago. Risk Analysis Before we wrap up, we've discovered 1 warning sign for Mi Technovation Berhad that you should be aware of. 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. Michigan gas prices went up 4 cents from last week, with motorists paying an average of $3.64 a gallon for regular unleaded, as demand rose, according to AAA, which tracks how much motorists are paying at the pump. The price is 5 cents lessthan last month, but 29 cents more than last year. "Michigan motorists are seeing a slight increase in prices at the pump," Adrienne Woodland, a spokeswoman for the auto club, said Monday. "If demand falls alongside rising supply, gas prices could move lower." A University of Michigan student pumps gasoline at a Shell gas station on Washtenaw Avenue in Ann Arbor. Moreover, AAA predicts nearly 1.3 million Michigan residents will travel in numbers that exceed pre-pandemic levels this years Memorial Day weekend, the second-highest forecast since AAA began tracking these numbers in 2000. National price average drops At the same time, gas demand rose modestly from 8.62 million barrels a day to 8.79 million barrels a day. Meanwhile, total domestic gasoline stocks increased by nearly 1 million barrels to 228 million barrels, and West Texas Intermediate, an oil benchmark, increased by 61 cents to settle at $78.99 a barrel. the average price increase in Michigan, bucked the national trend. The nation's average price of gasoline dropped this week, falling 3.2 cents from a week ago to $3.58 per gallon Monday, according to GasBuddy, which also compiles price reports from gas stations across the country. The national average is down 3.7 cents from a month ago but is 6.1 cents per gallon higher than a year ago. "Weve seen the average price of gasoline drop in a majority of states over the last week as refineries finish maintenance and ramp up output of products like gasoline," Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said. "With gas prices now nearing a 10-cent drop to the high we saw a few weeks ago." De Haan said "the future looks good as we get closer to Memorial Day" and that "price drops could potentially accelerate after last weeks jobs data shows the economy continues to cool off." He predicted "the worst is behind us." Most Americans, he added, will see prices fall before the holiday weekend." Most expensive gas price averages in Michigan Jackson: $3.73 Lansing: $3.72 Saginaw: $3.71 Least expensive gas prices averages in Michigan Marquette: $3.57 Metro Detroit: $3.59 Benton Harbor: $3.65 Contact Frank Witsil: 313-222-5022 or fwitsil@freepress.com. This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan gas prices rise as Memorial weekend approaches The Microsoft logo is seen in Manhattan. Michael Kappeler/dpa US tech company Microsoft is to invest 4 billion ($4.3 billion) in cloud technology and artificial intelligence (AI) at locations in Paris and Marseille, French President Emmanuel Macron's office announced on Monday. A new Microsoft branch is to be established at Mulhouse near the German border. Other companies also announced major investments at the Choose France investor conference being held in Versailles near Paris. Online trader Amazon plans to invest 1.2 billion, generating several thousand new jobs in France. Pharmaceutical companies AstraZeneca and Pfizer are also planning investments totalling hundreds of euros. Total pledges of 15 billion covering 56 projects and creating 10,000 jobs had been made at the conference, Macron wrote on X. "We are going to break a new record today," he said. The French president attributed the new investments to reforms carried out by his governments since 2017 and said they were the result of lower taxes and tax credits for research in key sectors, such as artificial intelligence, hydrogen and semiconductors. The conferences have been held since 2018. Last year, around 13 billion was raised. The EY business consultancy currently rates France the most attractive European country for foreign investment. Rising national debt has however led Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire to announce cuts to the budget after the 2023 deficit came in at 5,5% of gross domestic product, considerably higher than the forecast 4.9%. The 96-year-old patriarch of a clan that long owned prominent Minnesota printer Japs-Olson claims the company cut off his health insurance and broke other aspects of a truce that settled a family dispute 20 years ago. On one side of the squabble is William Beddor, former leader of the St. Louis Park printing and direct mail company, and four of his children. On the other side is five more of Beddor's children, including former Japs-Olson CEO Michael Beddor. Two decades ago, the sides squared off in court over control of Japs-Olson, which is now owned by a private equity firm. Last month, William Beddor and his camp claimed the rival family faction broke a 2004 settlement agreement by changing three life insurance policies and the elder Beddor's health care arrangement. "Mike Beddor treated his father as an outcast stranger who had no rights and caused (Japs-Olson) to breach its obligations of good faith and fair dealing in numerous respects," William Beddor claimed in the recently filed breach-of-contract suit in Hennepin County District Court. William Beddor and his co-plaintiff children have asked the court to compel arbitration to settle the issue privately. Japs-Olson did not respond to requests for comment. The 117-year-old company employs 600 people at a 700,000-square-foot facility on Excelsior Boulevard, according to its website. The company has about $200 million in annual revenue. William Beddor began working at Japs-Olson in his twenties and in 1957 became the company's CEO, a job he held until 1977. He remained chairman of Japs-Olson until 1995. Beddor owned 70% of the company's stock, which he transferred to his children in the 1990s. Within a few years, the family was in turmoil. William Beddor and four of his children the same ones who are co-plaintiffs in the current dispute sought to oust Japs-Olson's management, including Michael Beddor. They claimed they'd been effectively squeezed out of the company, and that William Beddor had been "unlawfully removed" a director. An attorney for Michael Beddor's camp at the time called the matter a typical "minority shareholder" dispute: One side wanted to be paid more for their share of the company than the other side believed was fair. Three separate lawsuits over the dispute were settled in 2004. The William Beddor-allied camp sold company stock for $23 million and gave up board seats. The truce was allegedly shattered in May 2023, when then-CEO Michael Beddor informed William Beddor his health insurance would be terminated within 18 days due to the sale of Japs-Olson, the suit says. Story continues In June 2023, New York-based private equity outfit Monomoy Capital Partners purchased Japs-Olson for an undisclosed price. New York-based Angelo Gordon, a real estate investment firm, bought Japs-Olson's building for $71.2 million, according to the Minnesota Department of Revenue. Amid the sale, the company told William Beddor it would provide him with $1,533 per month to purchase similar coverage. But that premium payment "pales in comparison" to costs required for Beddor to get the same coverage he had under the Japs-Olson plan, the suit says. Beddor claims he hasn't been able to find individual health care policy similar to his Japs-Olson coverage. As part of the 2004 settlement, Japs-Olson also agreed to continue life insurance policies on William Beddor and his wife Bea, who died in 2017. "Maintaining the face value of the policies was very important to Bill and Bea," the suit said. The beneficiaries of one policy are the four children who sided with William Beddor; all nine Beddor children are beneficiaries on the other two policies. The Beddor plaintiffs claim the Beddor defendants allowed one of three life insurance policies to lapse; ceased premium payments on another; and modified benefits payable on a third. The William Beddor camp claims the changes will financially harm them. SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WCIA) Illinoisans were able to find more than $20 million in missing money last month. According to Illinois State Treasurer Mike Frerichs office, Illinois residents received $20.6 million of missing money in April. This includes $19.7 million in cash and interest and nearly $955,000 in stock value. Putting money back in peoples pockets helps families and our states economy, Frerichs said. We are happy to return the money to its rightful owners, who can decide how best to use it. So far this year, 73,659 people received $77.3 million from the Illinois State Treasurers Office. Illinois sees increase in international tourism I-CASH, Illinois missing money program, holds onto unclaimed property like the contents of safe deposit boxes, unpaid life insurance benefits, dormant bank accounts and unused rebate cards. You can check to see if the state is holding onto unclaimed property on the I-CASH website. Frerichs recommends everyone to check every six months. Also on the website, residents can search for their family and friends, and share their email address with the Treasurers Office so they can start the process of retrieving their missing money. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WCIA.com. Opening Westchester Countys first recreational cannabis dispensary in Mount Vernon took a dollop of entrepreneurial moxie, strong connections at City Hall, and the understanding that certain fees might be assessed down the line. Deep pockets helped, too. Elevate Cannabis Dispensarys payment of $10,000 in so-called legalization fees was paid just hours before the citys Planning Board held an April 4 hearing on its long-awaited application, a Tax Watch investigation has found. The payment came several months after the dispensarys owners had transformed an autobody shop into a state-of-the art retail outlet that opened in December without obtaining a building permit, certificate of occupancy or Planning Board approval. Elevate spokesman Richard Thomas, who served as Mount Vernon mayor from 2016 to 2019, said the dispensary's team worked with officials in City Hall to open for business in December. None of those approvals were in place when Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard and the executive director of the New York Office of Cannabis Management snipped the ribbon at Elevates grand opening on Feb. 20. Payment of the $10,000 fee was requested verbally, according to Patterson-Howards spokesman. It appears that the fee was assessed so Elevate could make amends for embarking on a development that skipped several steps in the process routinely complied with by other Mount Vernon businesses. Rich Thomas: City officials wanted Elevate to open According to Elevate spokesman Richard Thomas, the approval process was aided by City Councilwoman Caitlin Gleason, who he said helped shepherd the project through the Building Department, with the support of Patterson-Howard and Robin Mack, director of the Mount Vernon Industrial Development Agency. Thomas detailed the citys involvement at Elevates celebration of cannabis culture on April 20 at the dispensarys South Terrace Avenue parking lot, which featured a DJ, food trucks, and the occasional whiff of burnt cannabis in the air. In this case, it was the citys priority to make sure the industry got started, said Thomas, who served as Mount Vernon mayor from 2016 to 2019. Thomas said that Elevate did not rely on intermediaries called expeditors who can help builders win cooperation at the citys oft-criticized Building Department. Instead, Elevate turned to its allies in Democrat-controlled City Hall. There was a whole conversation across all of the offices, Thomas said. We were told everything was moving forward. The Council was involved. The mayors office fully knew and was fully aware. They provided the temporary certificate of occupancy, based on those discussions. City Director of Communications Tim Allen declined comment on the analysis offered by Thomas. Story continues Gleason, in a statement issued Tuesday morning, denied involvement in the dispensary's approval process. "Contrary to the reported statement by a spokesman for the business, neither myself, nor the Council had a role in the work of the Department of Buildings or the permitting process," said Gleason, who serves as City Council president. "As with all constituents or business owners who ask for guidance, Councilmembers refer interested parties to the relevant departments and personnel within the city of Mount Vernon. We, the City Council, did not assist in the approval process or have a role in levying any fees on behalf of the city." Elevate's engineer suddenly bails on project One step skipped by Elevate was approval by the Mount Vernon Planning Board, which would allow the dispensary to obtain a building permit and a certificate of occupancy to open for business. After the legalization fees were paid on April 4, professional engineer Shahin Badaly, who filed the project's application for Elevate, told the Planning Board how Elevates proposal complied with city zoning and state fire codes. A patron of Elevate's 4/20 party pondered purchasing an alcoholic drink in the dispensary's parking lot, where beer, wine or hard liquor drinks were for sale. That night, it appeared that Elevates timely payment of $10,000 was money well spent. Board members agreed to instruct staff to prepare an approval resolution for its May 8 meeting. That approval was not forthcoming, however. Badaly suddenly withdrew his representation as Elevates engineer on May 7, reneging on his assertion a month earlier that the plan complied with city zoning. He also questioned the plans compliance with the state fire code. His action came five months after Badaly voluntarily surrendered his license to practice engineering in New York City after failing several audits, according to the NYC Department of Buildings. In a letter read by Planning Board Chair Darryl Selsey, Badaly wrote that hed made a recent visit to Elevate, only to realize that the business needed nine more parking spaces, a loading dock, and a sprinkler system for its second floor. Darryl Selsey, who chairs the Mount Vernon Planning Board, adjourned Elevate's application on May 8 after the dispensary's engineer withdrew his representation, saying he no longer believed the plan he proposed in April complied with city zoning regulations. That meant any approvals by the Planning Board were premature, which could leave the dispensary in legal limbo for months to come. This application should not be considered by the Planning Board without having obtained approvals by the Zoning Board of Appeals for several area variances, Badaly wrote. Mount Vernon Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard and Elevate Cannabis Dispensary founder John Ruggiero prepare to cut the ribbon at the their grand opening on Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2024. Elevate is the first recreational cannabis dispensary to open in Westchester County. Selsey adjourned the matter for at least another month as the city evaluates what to do with an application whose crucial conclusions were repudiated by the professional engineer who submitted it. Former city Planning Commissioner Vince Ferrandino, who had called on the board to reject Elevate application, said it was time for the city to shut down Elevate until all approvals are forthcoming. "This is a vindication for all that has been previously been said, by myself and others, including the media, about the deficiencies of this application and its blatant disregard for obtaining all legal approvals from the planning board, zoning board and building department, prior to opening for business, without proper permits, months ago," he said. Thomas said the dispensary owners, who were blindsided by Badalys withdrawal letter, stand by Badalys earlier submission. It was a big surprise, said Thomas. Elevate remains in compliance, based on the plans submitted for approval. We are open for business and ready to help people get elevated. What's the deal with legalization fee? Tax Watch learned of Mount Vernons legalization fees in a March 29 posting by Patterson-Howard on her Facebook page, in which she took issue with my column that day that explored the dispensarys lack of crucial municipal approvals. My column reported that the dispensary had received a temporary certificate of occupancy eight days after the ribbon-cutting. That document stated that approval was based on Elevates conformance with approved plans detailed in its building permit. But Elevate had yet to obtain the building permit. Those plans could not be finalized until the Planning Board had ruled on the application. Aldean Nicholson of Infinity Foods served up spicy Caribbean jerk chicken at Elevate's 4/20 party. At the time, Patterson-Howard insisted that Elevate had both won state licensure and city zoning approval. There are no Life/Safety issues, she wrote on Facebook. State approvals and zoning permissions were done. Legalization fees were assessed and paid, and all inspections completed. Please tell me what CRUCIAL steps were missed? None. Patterson-Howard said her administration would never sanction a ribbon-cutting unless everything was in order. Said Patterson-Howard: City-sanctioned ribbon cuttings do not occur until the City is able to sign off on the work. Fee was verbal, with no documentation It turned out that the city's sign-off for the Feb. 20 grand opening did not require payment of the legalization fees that the city said it assessed four months earlier in October. Under the Mount Vernon building code, a legalization fee is charged when an application is filed to legalize a structure where work has been performed without a permit. Such an application did not appear in the parcel's Building Department folder I reviewed in March under the Freedom of Information Law. When governments take action, such as assessing fees of $10,000 on a property owner to bring a project in compliance with local building laws, those actions are typically put in writing. Not so with Mount Vernons $10,000 legalization fee imposed on Elevate. My Freedom of Information request to Mount Vernon was rejected because no such document existed. City Communications Director Allen said the October assessment of $10,000 was verbal. He said Elevate was aware of the requirements, which were set by the Building Department, including those passed along by word-of-mouth. "The fees were part of the conditions," he said. Chris Carey, left, the manager and John Ruggiero, the owner of Elevate Cannabis, a New York State licensed dispensary, are pictured in the store in Mount Vernon, March 5, 2024. Opening the dispensary, however, was not contingent upon paying the fee. It wasnt paid when Elevate opened for online sales and deliveries in December. It wasnt paid before the ribbon-cutting in February or when the temporary certificate of occupancy was issued later that month. It was finally paid on April 4, the day of the Planning Board meeting. If Elevate was required to pay the fee in October, we would have paid, Thomas said. Then it became a request from them when we were about to appear before the Planning Board. We were told to pay the fee. There was still nothing in writing, but we followed the request. Sign up for Wilson's weekly newsletter for insights into his Tax Watch columns. David McKay Wilson writes about tax issues and government accountability. Follow him on Twitter @davidmckay415 or email him at dwilson3@lohud.com. This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Mount Vernon NY charges cannabis shop $10K in fees with no documents (Bloomberg) -- Elon Musk and his social media website X Corp. were granted a reprieve in their fight against the Australian government after the presiding judge refused to extend an order mandating the removal of footage from a stabbing attack in Sydney. Most Read from Bloomberg Justice Geoffrey Kennett announced on Monday that he wouldnt be extending the interlocutory injunction which he originally imposed in April, ordering X to hide all recordings of the Sydney terrorist attack. Kennett did not give reasons for his decision in the initial order released by the Federal Court of Australia. Both sides are due to return to court on Wednesday for a case management hearing, ahead of further appearances later in the year. X, formerly known as Twitter, has fashioned itself a platform for free speech and expression. Musk has said he would tolerate and defend all speech that is within the law. His opposition to Australias request to remove disturbing content has included describing the countrys eSafety commissioner as dictatorial and without jurisdiction to decide what X users can see globally. The commissioner had ordered all social media websites to pull down videos of the attack, which took place in a Sydney church on April 15. However, while X agreed to hide all content from Australian viewers, it kept the material accessible to international users. The incident provoked a furious clash between Musk and the Australian government, including Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. The tech entrepreneur accused Australia of trying to police the internet and censor free speech, while Albanese called Musk arrogant. Hes a billionaire over there in the United States who thinks hes above Australian law, Albanese said on April 23. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. By Marisa Taylor and Steve Stecklow (Reuters) - SpaceX is building launch facilities, office buildings and even a shopping center in rural Texas, as billionaire Elon Musk's space venture rapidly expands its rocket and satellite business across the Lone Star state. But a Reuters review of Texas property records shows that SpaceX and its contractors can be far slower to pay builders and suppliers than they are to break ground. Unpaid bills and finger-pointing among contractors, Reuters found, have led many construction-industry businesses to file liens against SpaceX properties in efforts to get compensated. The result, several of those businesses told Reuters, is a reluctance to work on SpaceX-related projects again. "If they were to call me today, I'd tell them to fuck off," said Brian Rozelle, an owner of Hydroz Energy Services LLC. The excavating business was hired by SpaceX to clear storm drains at a facility near Brownsville, the south Texas city where much of the company's development has taken place. Until about two weeks after Hydroz filed a lien last June months after it had performed the work SpaceX didn't pay its $19,214 bill. "We're not some hundred-million-dollar company," Rozelle said. "It was hard on us." SpaceXs Starship rocket prototype is pictured in the rocket launch area in Brownsville SpaceX didn't respond to requests from Reuters for comment on the liens and complaints from subcontractors and suppliers. Texas property records show that Hydroz is one of more than two dozen companies that have filed at least 72 liens since 2019 against sites developed by SpaceX and its contractors. Combined, Reuters found, the liens have sought payments totaling more than $2.5 million. Reuters couldn't determine for every lien whether outstanding bills were owed by SpaceX or by one of its contractors who commissioned work or materials on its behalf. Either way, the liens are a legal mechanism through which creditors can secure claims against SpaceX for work done at its properties: Under Texas law, landowners can be held responsible for any unpaid bills related to construction on their real estate. Even with such legal provisions, property and construction industry experts say collecting can be difficult, especially for small companies without the resources or legal know-how to force bigger businesses to pay up. At times, small businesses may also put up with delays in hopes they'll ultimately get more work from a larger enterprise. "SpaceX is the big bully on the playground," said Carlos Cascos, an accountant and former Texas secretary of state. Previously, as a county official in Brownsville, Cascos, a Republican, voted to approve SpaceX developments there. "They get away with this stuff because people want to do business with them." Story continues Musk, one of the world's richest people and best-known entrepreneurs, has been accused of failing to pay creditors before. After his 2022 purchase of the social media platform Twitter, now known as X, he faced a wave of lawsuits from contractors alleging unpaid bills. Many have since been settled. An X spokesperson didn't respond to a request for comment. For SpaceX, the roughly $2.5 million in liens is tiny compared with the size of its business. Since its founding over two decades ago, the company has steadily won contracts from clients including U.S. space, defense and intelligence agencies. It is now one of the most valuable privately held ventures in the United States, valued by some financial analysts at more than $180 billion. Through 2022, according to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the agency paid SpaceX at least $11.8 billion for various projects and services. In 2021, SpaceX signed a classified, $1.8 billion contract with a U.S. intelligence agency to develop a network of spy satellites. Reuters examined SpaceX and other Musk manufacturing businesses in a series of reports last year. 'DIDDLY-SQUAT' A road sign is seen near SpaceXs rocket launch area in Brownsville SpaceX's recent expansion has benefited several rural areas in Texas particularly around Boca Chica, a community east of Brownsville, in Cameron County. With the help of a 10-year tax abatement from the county, SpaceX broke ground there in 2014. Near the mouth of the Rio Grande and next to the Gulf of Mexico, Boca Chica soon became a hub for SpaceX rocket launches. It built a launch pad for its Starship rocket system, taller than the Statue of Liberty, and new buildings related to rocket manufacturing. SpaceX has remodeled homes and plans to build others. According to filings with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, it has plans for facilities including a shopping center and a $100 million office complex nearby. Cameron County officials didn't respond to requests for comment about the developments, SpaceX's impact on the local economy or the liens. SpaceX has brought thousands of new jobs to the region and a boon for some builders. The liens, though, reflect frustration for others. To understand the extent of the claims against SpaceX by Texas construction businesses, Reuters reviewed liens filed over the past five years in Cameron, Bastrop and McLennan counties, where most of the company's recent developments have been built. The claimants range from small businesses, like excavator Hydroz, to big companies like Martin Marietta Materials Inc, a construction supply giant based in North Carolina. At least 41 of the 72 liens were filed this year. Some of the liens have succeeded. SpaceX, the records show, paid Martin Marietta the $557,611 it claimed in March 2023, about two months after the supplier filed the lien. Martin Marietta didn't respond to emails or phone calls from Reuters seeking comment. But many of the liens reviewed by Reuters remain outstanding. SpaceXs new development near Starbase is pictured in Brownsville That may be because liens sometimes become effective only when a property goes up for sale, blocking a transaction until the claim is settled. "The liens don't mean diddly-squat to SpaceX because they're not going anywhere anytime soon," said Cascos, the former secretary of state and Cameron County official. Even some big companies are struggling to get paid. CMC Construction Services, a Texas-based materials supplier, has 26 locations and a legal department. Starting in July 2022, CMC supplied $129,592 worth of materials for a SpaceX project in Bastrop, near Austin, the state capital. Although CMC filed a lien in January 2023, it still hasn't been paid, a company official told Reuters. Osburn Contractors LLC, the contractor to whom CMC sold the supplies, itself has filed a lien citing an unpaid bill by SpaceX, lien records show. Filed last September, the lien seeks $67,289 for concrete work for a related SpaceX project in McGregor, McLennan County. Michael Correra, the Osburn representative who filed that claim, declined to comment. Sometimes the chain of suppliers and subcontractors confounds the very companies involved in the SpaceX projects. GC Steel & Accessories LLC, a family-owned company near Brownsville, has been waiting more than 18 months for payment after supplying steel bars and other materials for SpaceX rocket facilities. According to lien records and Sylvia Garza, one of GC's owners, the materials were to be used in storage sites for Raptors, a type of SpaceX engine, and a "blast wall," a barrier used to protect sensitive areas from explosions. GC supplied the materials between August and October 2022 to another subcontractor, RGV Five Star Concrete LLC. After repeated efforts to get paid, GC last December filed the first of five liens against SpaceX property, claiming a total of $99,591.25. "It's a lot of money for our company," Garza told Reuters. "We can't reach anyone to pay." RGV Five Star Concrete, for its part, told Reuters it couldn't pay GC because it, too, had gone unpaid by yet another contractor involved in the SpaceX project. "We didn't have money to pay," said Nancy Garcia, one of the concrete company's owners. Garcia declined to identify the other contractor. Reuters couldn't determine whether SpaceX had paid any company for work or goods that included the materials GC supplied. Garza said the lack of accountability has strained finances for GC, employer of a dozen workers. "I don't care who has the money," she said. "We never got paid." (Reported by Marisa Taylor in Washington and Steve Stecklow in London. Additional reporting by Mike Scarcella and Joey Roulette in Washington and Veronica Gabriela Cardenas in Brownsville, Texas. Edited by Paulo Prada.) Investors in Orica Limited (ASX:ORI) had a good week, as its shares rose 3.3% to close at AU$18.30 following the release of its interim results. Revenues of AU$3.7b fell slightly short of expectations, but earnings were a definite bright spot, with statutory per-share profits of AU$0.72 an impressive 95% ahead of estimates. Following the result, the analysts have updated their earnings model, and it would be good to know whether they think there's been a strong change in the company's prospects, or if it's business as usual. Readers will be glad to know we've aggregated the latest statutory forecasts to see whether the analysts have changed their mind on Orica after the latest results. View our latest analysis for Orica Taking into account the latest results, the most recent consensus for Orica from 13 analysts is for revenues of AU$7.84b in 2024. If met, it would imply an okay 3.1% increase on its revenue over the past 12 months. Statutory per share are forecast to be AU$1.03, approximately in line with the last 12 months. Before this earnings report, the analysts had been forecasting revenues of AU$8.15b and earnings per share (EPS) of AU$1.07 in 2024. It's pretty clear that pessimism has reared its head after the latest results, leading to a weaker revenue outlook and a small dip in earnings per share estimates. What's most unexpected is that the consensus price target rose 9.6% to AU$20.14, strongly implying the downgrade to forecasts is not expected to be more than a temporary blip. Fixating on a single price target can be unwise though, since the consensus target is effectively the average of analyst price targets. As a result, some investors like to look at the range of estimates to see if there are any diverging opinions on the company's valuation. There are some variant perceptions on Orica, with the most bullish analyst valuing it at AU$22.00 and the most bearish at AU$17.00 per share. Still, with such a tight range of estimates, it suggeststhe analysts have a pretty good idea of what they think the company is worth. Of course, another way to look at these forecasts is to place them into context against the industry itself. It's pretty clear that there is an expectation that Orica's revenue growth will slow down substantially, with revenues to the end of 2024 expected to display 6.2% growth on an annualised basis. This is compared to a historical growth rate of 8.5% over the past five years. By way of comparison, the other companies in this industry with analyst coverage are forecast to grow their revenue at 9.6% per year. So it's pretty clear that, while revenue growth is expected to slow down, the wider industry is also expected to grow faster than Orica. Story continues The Bottom Line The biggest concern is that the analysts reduced their earnings per share estimates, suggesting business headwinds could lay ahead for Orica. Unfortunately, they also downgraded their revenue estimates, and our data indicates underperformance compared to the wider industry. Even so, earnings per share are more important to the intrinsic value of the business. There was also a nice increase in the price target, with the analysts clearly feeling that the intrinsic value of the business is improving. With that said, the long-term trajectory of the company's earnings is a lot more important than next year. We have estimates - from multiple Orica analysts - going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here. Even so, be aware that Orica is showing 1 warning sign in our investment analysis , you should know about... 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. Pfizer Follows Eli Lilly's Footsteps To Sell Medicines Directly To Patients Pfizer Inc (NYSE:PFE) is looking to build on the success of its COVID-19 vaccine rollout by introducing a direct-to-consumer medicines platform under the brand Pfizer for All. The move, reflected in a recent trademark application, aims to provide medical information, mail-order pharmacy, and telehealth services to US patients. Recent reports indicate Pfizers intention to include various medications, including its COVID antiviral Paxlovid and diagnostic kits, on the platform later this year, expanding its offerings to cater to diverse healthcare needs. Related: Pfizer Agrees To Settle Over 10,000 Lawsuits About Cancer Risks Associated With Discontinued Heartburn Drug Zantac. The platform will offer a downloadable mobile application for providing medical information as well as mail order pharmacy services and diagnostic test kits . . . for use in disease screening and detection, according to the trademark application, the FT writes. This initiative follows similar endeavors in the pharmaceutical industry to bypass traditional middlemen and directly reach consumers. Earlier this year, Eli Lilly And Co (NYSE:LLY) launched its LillyDirect platform, marking an industry first. The Pfizer for All platform is positioned as a healthcare equity endeavor, seeking to simplify the often convoluted process through which US patients obtain their medications, the Financial Times highlights. Citing the sources familiar with the plans, the FT notes that Pfizer intends to leverage its brand equity gained from its pivotal role in combating the Covid-19 crisis. Despite Pfizers favorable reception during the height of the vaccine rollout, its favorability score has experienced fluctuations. The companys stock value has also declined from its pandemic peak, facing skepticism from investors regarding its growth trajectory. However, Timothy Mackey, a professor of global health at the University of California San Diego, believes that Pfizers approach may resonate positively with consumers despite mixed sentiments surrounding pharmaceutical companies. Read Next: Second Death Pfizer Reports Young Boys Death After One Year Of Gene Therapy Treatment In Muscle Wasting Disorder Trial. Price Action: PFE shares are up 1.30% at $28.38 at last check Monday. Photo via Shutterstock "ACTIVE INVESTORS' SECRET WEAPON" Supercharge Your Stock Market Game with the #1 "news & everything else" trading tool: Benzinga Pro - Click here to start Your 14-Day Trial Now! Story continues Get the latest stock analysis from Benzinga? This article Pfizer Follows Eli Lilly's Footsteps To Sell Medicines Directly To Patients originally appeared on Benzinga.com 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved. Image source: Getty Images Flights and hotels could be busy this year. A recent survey by Empower found that over 90% of Americans are planning domestic travel in 2024, and they expect to spend an average of $1,163. For the 37% who are planning an international trip, they expect to spend an average of $2,904. If you're hoping to take a trip of your own, one of the main challenges is figuring out how to pay for it. For some helpful ideas, here are the top five ways Americans said they plan to budget for and afford travel. Featured offer: save money while you pay off debt with one of these top-rated balance transfer credit cards 1. Extra money from side jobs (45%) Getting a side hustle to earn extra money is popular financial advice. Americans appear to be taking that advice, too, as nearly half are using side jobs to fund their upcoming trips. If you have the time for it, a side job could be a great way to increase your income. Let's say you start working for a food delivery app and net $20 per hour (after setting aside money for taxes). By working two or three weekends per month, you could make another $300 to $400. There are lots of side hustle options. Some of the most common are deliveries, driving for ride-hailing services, dog walking, and tutoring. Try to find one you enjoy doing, so it doesn't feel like a chore. 2. Extra money from gifts, tax refunds, bonuses, etc. (34%) About one-third of Americans pay for travel using a windfall of extra money. At this time of year, many Americans are getting tax refunds, and it could be a sizable amount. The average tax refund in 2023 was $2,903 -- coincidentally, almost exactly the same amount people are expecting to spend on international travel. You can't always rely on this kind of extra money, but when you have it, there's nothing wrong with spending some on yourself. Consider using a portion of it for saving or investing, as well. That way, you can also make progress on your financial goals. 3. Travel rewards/loyalty programs (32%) Another popular way to pay for travel is with travel rewards. Many airlines and hotels operate loyalty programs where you can earn points or miles every time you use them. There are also travel credit cards that earn rewards you can redeem to cover travel expenses. This is my favorite way to save money on travel. I usually save $5,000 or more on travel expenses each year thanks to my travel cards. At a minimum, it's a good idea to sign up for a loyalty program account with any airlines and hotels you like. It's free, after all. If you don't mind opening a new credit card, check out The Motley Fool's Ascent's picks for the top travel rewards cards to get started. Story continues 4. A dedicated savings account (21%) About 2 in 10 Americans have a savings account set up specifically as their travel fund. You could either open a new savings account for this or see if your current account lets you set up savings buckets for different goals you have. A dedicated savings account for travel is a good way to keep your savings organized and to motivate yourself to set aside money for traveling. You could transfer over $100 per month, $200, or more, so that you always have some money saved for your next trip. Make sure to check out high-yield savings accounts, so you can earn as much interest as possible. 5 (tie). Physical travel fund and budgeting apps/software (19%) Instead of a savings account, 19% of Americans prefer a physical travel fund. Some go with the cash stuffing method, where you put cash into envelopes for all your expenses and savings goals. Others go with an old-fashioned piggy bank. Equally popular were budgeting apps and softwares. These can come in handy if you're looking for places to cut back on your spending and free up more money for your trips. There's more than one way to pay for a vacation Those numbers add up to way more than 100%, because most people don't use just one method to pay for travel. They use two, or three, or more. If you want to travel more without worrying about how you'll pay for it, setting up your own travel fund is a good place to start. A high-yield savings account is normally the best way to go, since your money will be safe and earning a competitive rate. Using travel rewards cards and joining loyalty programs are also great ways to cut your travel costs. And if you want to give your travel fund a boost, setting aside extra money you receive or earn through a side job are both good options. Alert: highest cash back card we've seen now has 0% intro APR until 2025 This credit card is not just good it's so exceptional that our experts use it personally. It features a 0% intro APR for 15 months, a cash back rate of up to 5%, and all somehow for no annual fee! Click here to read our full review for free and apply in just 2 minutes. We're firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers. The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.Maurie Backman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Uber Technologies. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Ranked: The Top 5 Ways Americans Pay for Travel was originally published by The Motley Fool This photo from February shows construction underway at D.F. Huddle Elementary School in Alexandria. The school on Texas Avenue is one of six that might have to modify its plans to include a tornado shelter. Faced with a windfall of about $2.4 million from sales of its District 62 bonds, members of the Rapides Parish School Board pondered Tuesday how to allocate those funds, keeping in mind that some changes like the addition of tornado shelters still are being made to current projects. Board members ultimately unanimously voted to bank the funds for the same purpose as voters intended with the April 2023 bond issue. Any idea on how to use them would go through the District 62 committee and then to the full board. Members last month had asked Superintendent Jeff Powell to present options on possible uses for the money. He brought them five options: To hold on to the money in the District 62 capital outlay fund and use as needed for the same purpose as the original bond call. All the money to be allocated on a per pupil basis (or $400,000 per school) to the District 62 schools not included in the bond issue the three Montessori programs at Peabody, Rosenthal and Mabel Brasher elementary schools. All money to Peabody Magnet High School to help with the influx of former Bolton High School students next school year. As Bolton transitions into a magnet, zoned students not academically eligible will attend Peabody beginning in August. Split the pot $1.2 million to Peabody Magnet and $1.2 million to the three Montessori facilities. Split the pot $1.2 million to Peabody Magnet and reserve the remaining $1.2 million to be used as needed. Member Linda Burgess spoke first, saying she supported Peabody Magnet getting half of the money and then the remainder going to help the Montessori schools, but only after all other construction projects were done in case there were "unforeseen problems." "We don't know what's ahead yet. We might need that extra for the schools that we're redoing," she said. Powell said that appeared to be a mix of two different options, and he said he didn't mind changing an option to accommodate that. Finance Director Liz Domite asked for clarification because if items are added to projects, or if they are expanded, "will that $1.2 million be available for them to pull?" Several board members said no. 'Flip some dirt': Groundbreakings held for projects at 5 District 62 schools in Alexandria Member Bubba McCall said any changes to current projects must be approved by the board. Powell agreed, adding that district officials have told architects, engineers and principals they must abide by the documents shared with voters before the election. Powell said they've allowed some "reasonable decisions" to be made at the school level under the "miscellaneous renovations" line item. Story continues Board President Dr. Stephen Chapman asked Powell if there was anything definitive yet on how the money might be spent to help Peabody Magnet. Powell said he's heard some ideas, but hasn't asked about that specifically. Member Sandra Franklin said there should be no changes to any of the construction projects. She said she favored being specific on where these funds would go "simply because it's gonna be a dog-eat-dog fight, sounds like to me listening to this conversation." She pointed to the bid for Alexandria Middle Magnet School, which is getting a new building and renovations to its gym, auditorium and cafeteria. Some revisions have been made, and Franklin said they don't yet know the full cost. She also brought up that some projects now underway must have tornado shelters. "That wasn't factored in," she said, urging caution with the money. Member George Johnson asked why they needed to spend the money on anything. "Just put it away, and lock it in somewhere that we can't get to it unless the whole board meets and votes it," he said. Powell responded that was the first option he read to them. Member Wally Fall said he agreed with Johnson. Domite said, with that option, the money would remain unbudgeted, which means it couldn't be used for any project. Powell clarified he used the language he did because he wanted it to be clear that the money couldn't be used for anything other than what voters approved in April 2023. Member Steve Berry said he didn't "have a dog in the hunt." But he reminded District 62 members that they told voters how their money would be spent and called the $2.4 million "an accounting blessing that had nothing to do with the original bond." He said he would stockpile the money for future use rather than squabble over it now. "It seems to me like then you're true to the original bond, and you have some money. You know that money's there. You can do whatever it is you decide to do at that point in time." Member Wilton Barrios echoed Domite about not planning to spend anything until all projects are done, calling it wise. Chapman also voiced his support for the first option. Tornado shelters? The District 62 construction projects are in various stages. At six schools, changes are having to be made to add tornado shelters now required by international building codes. Member first learned about the requirement during the April 23 District 62 meeting. While discussing another aspect of the Cherokee Elementary School project, committee chair Franklin asked about the shelter requirement mentioned in a 24-page update from CSRS, the Baton Rouge project management firm overseeing all the designs. The other schools now requiring a tornado shelter are Horseshoe Drive, J.B. Nachman, D.F. Huddle and L.S. Rugg elementary and Brame Middle schools. 'Dixie Alley': Tornadoes have become more frequent across Louisiana, South, says study April 2020 storm: Rapides Parish storm victim identified as area continues cleanup Powell said the shelters are common in other areas of the country and, as he understands it, the Alexandria region is "right on a line where there's a requirement for it in some areas and not in others." Roy Rachal, the district's supervisor of physical plant, said the shelters now are a requirement under international building codes. He said the city of Alexandria "is holding our feet to the fire," but all of these projects are within the city. It applies in locations where new wings or buildings are being built. Rachal said the shelters, which must have a restroom, also could be used for things like active-shooter lockdowns. He said it's possible the parish could also require shelters at other projects underway or soon to be underway in other areas. He also said the rule in the international building code is supposed to change next year, which would put the area outside of the zone where shelters are required. This article originally appeared on Alexandria Town Talk: School Board talks options for millions as Alexandria projects continue Exploring the Sustainability and Growth of RGA's Dividends Reinsurance Group of America Inc (NYSE:RGA) recently announced a dividend of $0.85 per share, payable on May 28, 2024, with the ex-dividend date set for May 13, 2024. As investors anticipate this upcoming payment, it's crucial to delve into the company's dividend history, yield, and growth rates. This analysis utilizes data from GuruFocus to evaluate the performance and sustainability of Reinsurance Group of America Inc's dividends. What Does Reinsurance Group of America Inc Do? Warning! GuruFocus has detected 6 Warning Sign with RGA. High Yield Dividend Stocks in Gurus' Portfolio This Powerful Chart Made Peter Lynch 29% A Year For 13 Years How to calculate the intrinsic value of a stock? Reinsurance Group of America Inc is a prominent insurance holding company operating across diverse regions including the United States, Latin America, Canada, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia. The company offers a broad range of products and services such as life reinsurance, living benefits reinsurance, group reinsurance, health reinsurance, financial solutions, facultative underwriting, and product development. Its business is segmented into traditional and financial solution divisions. Reinsurance Group of America Inc's Dividend Analysis A Glimpse at Reinsurance Group of America Inc's Dividend History Since 2006, Reinsurance Group of America Inc has maintained a consistent dividend payment track record, with distributions occurring quarterly. The company has also increased its dividends annually since 2006, earning it the status of a dividend achiever a distinction awarded to companies that have consistently raised their dividends for at least 18 years. Below is a chart illustrating the annual Dividends Per Share to track historical trends. Reinsurance Group of America Inc's Dividend Analysis Breaking Down Reinsurance Group of America Inc's Dividend Yield and Growth Currently, Reinsurance Group of America Inc boasts a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.60% and a forward dividend yield of 1.63%, indicating anticipated dividend increases over the next year. Over the past three years, the company's annual dividend growth rate was 5.60%, which escalated to 7.50% over a five-year period, and an impressive 12.40% over the past decade. Based on these metrics, the 5-year yield on cost for Reinsurance Group of America Inc's stock is approximately 2.30% as of today. Reinsurance Group of America Inc's Dividend Analysis The Sustainability Question: Payout Ratio and Profitability The sustainability of dividends is often gauged by the dividend payout ratio, which for Reinsurance Group of America Inc stands at 0.20 as of March 31, 2024. This low ratio indicates that the company retains a substantial portion of its earnings, bolstering funds for future growth and stability. Additionally, the company's profitability rank is 7 out of 10, reflecting strong earnings capabilities relative to its peers. Consistent positive net income over the past decade further reinforces its robust profitability profile. Story continues Growth Metrics: The Future Outlook Reinsurance Group of America Inc's growth rank of 7 suggests a favorable growth trajectory. The company's revenue per share and 3-year revenue growth rate of 7.30% annually outperforms approximately 50.32% of global competitors. Its 3-year EPS growth rate of 46.60% annually surpasses about 83.62% of global competitors, and the 5-year EBITDA growth rate of 6.60% also indicates strong performance. Conclusion Considering Reinsurance Group of America Inc's consistent dividend increases, low payout ratio, solid profitability, and strong growth metrics, the company's dividend payments appear sustainable and poised for future growth. Investors seeking to explore more high-dividend yield opportunities can utilize the High Dividend Yield Screener available to GuruFocus Premium users. This article, generated by GuruFocus, is designed to provide general insights and is not tailored financial advice. Our commentary is rooted in historical data and analyst projections, utilizing an impartial methodology, and is not intended to serve as specific investment guidance. It does not formulate a recommendation to purchase or divest any stock and does not consider individual investment objectives or financial circumstances. Our objective is to deliver long-term, fundamental data-driven analysis. Be aware that our analysis might not incorporate the most recent, price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative information. GuruFocus holds no position in the stocks mentioned herein. This article first appeared on GuruFocus. Port St. Lucie rentals were among the most favorited online in the U.S. and Florida in March, indicating more people want to lease apartments in the city, according to RentCafes market analysis. But high interest has led to availability problems due to limited supply. The apartment search website's monthly analysis of millions of online interactions across 150 cities shows renters' interests and migration patterns via listing views, favorites and saved searches. It ranks cities based on these interactions, highlighting the most favorited, searched, viewed and those with high online engagement overall. Port St. Lucie's apartments ranked No. 6 for the most favorited, up from No. 109 in February, as apartment hunters added 88% more Port St. Lucie listings to their favorites in March this year than to last year. Favorites show a different level of intent, as renters have already decided to move to a city and are choosing the right community, RentCafe's analyst Adina Dragos told TCPalm. A rental apartment complex in Port St. Lucie (Mason Veranda). Due to Port St. Lucie's increasing popularity, overall online engagement among listings ranked No. 2 in Florida in March, trailing only Orlando. It ranked No. 31 nationwide, up 17 positions from No. 48 in February. Apartment hunters are favoriting searches instead of saving them, leading to a 57% decline in the latter. It suggests renters are being more selective and decisive in a tight market, Dragos said. Miami, Port St. Lucie and Orlando are the top three cities apartment hunters are targeting, the RentCafe analysis shows. Many are moving from New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Palm Beach County, said Al Sabbidine, a community manager for Mason Veranda apartments that opened in Port St. Lucie in 2023. A rental apartment complex in Port St. Lucie. Port St. Lucie's apartment availability and page views on RentCafe declined by 73% and 69% respectively. When considered alongside the high number of favorites, these trends show high demand and low supply. With a 29% population growth over 10 years, the city faces the task of balancing supply and demand; and despite recent construction, Port St. Lucie still needs to catch up after a decade of slow apartment building, Dragos said. The 77% lease renewal rate reflects how limited renters' options are, she added. Port St. Lucie listings' activity standings and metrics for March are: State rank for overall online engagement : No. 2, up from No. 3 in February National rank for overall online engagement : No. 31, up from No. 48 in February Favorites rank : No. 6, up from No. 108 in February National availability rank : No. 4, down from No. 3 in February Year-over-year change in availability : -73%, down from -70% in February Year-over-year change in page views : -69%, same as February Page views rank: No. 136, down from No. 137 in February Story continues After Orlando and Port St. Lucie, these are the Florida cities that are popular for apartment hunters: Jacksonville Hialeah Fort Lauderdale Miami Tampa Cape Coral Tallahassee St. Petersburg Ananya Tiwari is a business reporter for TCPalm. You can reach her via email at ananya.tiwari@tcpalm.com or follow her work on Facebook, Twitter or X, and MuckRack. This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: RentCafe study: PSL rentals in high demand, but low supply in March Amid a backdrop of fluctuating global markets, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index has recently shown resilience, climbing 2.64% as noted in recent updates. This positive momentum in the Hong Kong market sets an intriguing stage for examining growth companies with high insider ownership, which can be indicative of confidence from those closest to the company's operations and future prospects. Top 10 Growth Companies With High Insider Ownership In Hong Kong Name Insider Ownership Earnings Growth New Horizon Health (SEHK:6606) 16.6% 61% iDreamSky Technology Holdings (SEHK:1119) 20.1% 104.1% Meitu (SEHK:1357) 38% 34.3% Adicon Holdings (SEHK:9860) 22.3% 29.6% DPC Dash (SEHK:1405) 38.2% 91.5% Tian Tu Capital (SEHK:1973) 34% 70.5% Zhejiang Leapmotor Technology (SEHK:9863) 14.2% 74% Biocytogen Pharmaceuticals (Beijing) (SEHK:2315) 15.7% 100.1% Ocumension Therapeutics (SEHK:1477) 17.7% 93.7% Beijing Airdoc Technology (SEHK:2251) 26.4% 83.9% Click here to see the full list of 52 stocks from our Fast Growing SEHK Companies With High Insider Ownership screener. Below we spotlight a couple of our favorites from our exclusive screener. Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: LifeTech Scientific Corporation, an investment holding company, specializes in developing, manufacturing, and trading interventional medical devices for cardiovascular and peripheral vascular diseases globally, with a market capitalization of approximately HK$8.61 billion. Operations: LifeTech Scientific's revenue is derived from three main segments: Structural Heart Diseases Business generating CN495.67 million, Peripheral Vascular Diseases Business contributing CN707.11 million, and Cardiac Pacing and Electrophysiology Business at CN64.40 million. Insider Ownership: 17.4% Earnings Growth Forecast: 20.5% p.a. LifeTech Scientific, a growth company in Hong Kong with high insider ownership, is navigating through financial complexities with mixed results. While its revenue growth of 16.8% per year outpaces the local market's 8%, and earnings are expected to increase by 20.5% annually, recent financial statements show a decline in net income from CNY 325.34 million to CNY 263.24 million year-over-year due to non-recurring losses and increased expenses in share-based payments. Despite these challenges, no significant insider shares were purchased recently, reflecting potential caution among insiders about immediate growth prospects. Story continues SEHK:1302 Earnings and Revenue Growth as at May 2024 Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: ESR Group Limited operates in logistics real estate development, leasing, and management across regions including Hong Kong, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Southeast Asia, India, Europe and internationally with a market capitalization of approximately HK$42.12 billion. Operations: The company generates revenue primarily through fund management (HK$774.64 million) and new economy development (HK$105.48 million). Insider Ownership: 12.9% Earnings Growth Forecast: 26.3% p.a. ESR Group, a Hong Kong-based logistics firm, shows promise with expected earnings growth of 26.3% annually, outperforming the local market forecast of 12%. However, its revenue growth at 9.1% is modest compared to industry giants. Recent financials reveal a profit margin drop from last year and challenges in covering interest payments with earnings. Amidst this, ESR is under potential privatization talks led by Warburg Pincus with an offer valued between US$7 billion and US$8 billion, suggesting strong insider confidence despite current financial hurdles. SEHK:1821 Ownership Breakdown as at May 2024 Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: Value Partners Group Limited, a publicly owned investment manager, operates with a market capitalization of approximately HK$3.84 billion. Operations: The firm generates its revenue primarily from its asset management business, totaling approximately HK$575.73 million. Insider Ownership: 24.3% Earnings Growth Forecast: 55.9% p.a. Value Partners Group Limited, a notable entity in Hong Kong's financial sector, has recently undergone significant board changes, with new appointments potentially strengthening its strategic direction. The company turned profitable this year with a net income of HK$23.09 million after a substantial loss the previous year. It is expected to see robust annual earnings growth at 55.9% over the next three years, outpacing the local market projection of 12%. However, its forecasted revenue growth of 10.7% annually, while above the market average of 8%, does not reach hyper-growth status and Return on Equity is anticipated to remain low at 8.8% in three years' time. SEHK:806 Earnings and Revenue Growth as at May 2024 Next Steps Dive into all 52 of the Fast Growing SEHK Companies With High Insider Ownership we have identified here. Are these companies part of your investment strategy? Use Simply Wall St to consolidate your holdings into a portfolio and gain insights with our comprehensive analysis tools. Discover a world of investment opportunities with Simply Wall St's free app and access unparalleled stock analysis across all markets. Searching for a Fresh Perspective? 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.The analysis only considers stock directly held by insiders. It does not include indirectly owned stock through other vehicles such as corporate and/or trust entities. All forecast revenue and earnings growth rates quoted are in terms of annualised (per annum) growth rates over 1-3 years. Companies discussed in this article include SEHK:1302 SEHK:806 and Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) In an announcement today by the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry, more than $4.8 million has been invested from Direct Care Worker Job Quality grants. The program works to improve job quality and workplaces for direct care workers in Pennsylvania. These grants will assist in increased wages, career advancement, and other challenges within the direct care workforce. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now WHTM Daily Digest The following Midstate programs will receive funding through the grant money allocated on Monday. Pennsylvania State University (Adams, Berks, Cumberland, Dauphin, Juniata, Lancaster, Lebanon, Mifflin, Perry, Franklin, and York counties) $595,490 Penn State Harrisburg and the Center for Independent Living of Central Pennsylvania (CILCP) will develop strategies to improve the quality of direct care jobs in the South Central Pennsylvania region. Other partners include regional healthcare providers, and the South-Central Pennsylvania Partnership for Regional Economic Performance (PREP). The Foundation of the Lancaster Chamber (Lancaster County with workforce attracted from Dauphin, Berks, Lebanon, and York counties) $600,000 The Talent for Tomorrow initiative will use the Talent Pipeline Management (TPM) model to analyze job demand across direct care positions. This process will strengthen internal and external talent pipelines throughout Lancaster Countys 13 postsecondary institutions, providing training and educational support to current employees seeking advancement, provide simplified career pathways into direct care occupations, and expose K-12 students to the field. Pennsylvania Homecare Association (York, Lackawanna, and Susquehanna counties) $600,000 PHA Direct Care Worker Mentorship and Training Program will create a direct care mentorship and training program, identifying new applicants seeking employment and skill advancement. Workers will complete paid training and have access to mentorship programs with training partners to become employed as direct care workers. CareWide Employment Services (York, Lackawanna, Luzerne, Pike, Wayne, Carbon, Monroe, and Susquehanna counties) $600,000 CareWide, LLCs Direct Care Worker Grant will provide homecare agencies with direct care workers who have completed hands-on training, competency exams, and certifications in CPR/AED and first aid. Prioritizing recruitment, training and placement of applicants for direct care workers in underserved communities will be done through PA CareerLink, NAACP, Scranton Chamber of Commerce Workforce Development Division, and other community outreach groups. Story continues The SEIU HCPA Training and Education Fund (Clarion, Crawford, Cumberland, Dauphin, Erie, Fayette, Forest, Greene, Juniata, Mifflin, Montgomery, Perry, Philadelphia, Venango, Warren, and Washington counties) $598,632 The Improving Direct Care Worker Job Quality at CILs Through Core and Specialized Training program will provide training to approximately 250 Direct Care Workers, improving overall job quality through training, and creating career pathways, reinforcing the pool of direct care workers. Other statewide programs such as PA Frontline Healthcare Training, Inc. and Work Well also received grant funding. The Shapiro Administration is committed to investing in Pennsylvania workers, and these grants are a big step in the right direction toward better working conditions for direct care workers who provide support and compassion to older residents and individuals with disabilities who need additional support to accomplish tasks in their everyday lives, said L&I Secretary Nancy A. Walker. By investing in direct care workers, the quality of care they provide to customers increases, and the contribution to their communities multiplies, creating a stronger Commonwealth for us all. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC27. RgStudio / Getty Images Although some lawmakers have proposed reducing Social Security benefits for wealthy Americans, for now, high-net-worth individuals still qualify for full retirement benefits. Most also likely qualify for the maximum benefit, which is $4,873 a month in 2024. Discover More: $5 Million in Retirement Savings Heres How Much You Could Withdraw Per Year For You: 9 Easy Ways To Build Wealth That Will Last Through Retirement To qualify for the maximum benefit, you must have equaled or exceeded Social Securitys maximum taxable income for at least 35 years of your working life. The maximum taxable income is the amount of wages on which you pay Social Security taxes, which are deducted from your earnings. In 2024, the maximum taxable income is $168,600 a year, up from $160,200 in 2023. Any earnings above that are not subject to Social Security taxes. The figure is adjusted every year based on shifts in national wage levels. Americans worth millions of dollars probably dont need Social Security benefits to get by. But since they qualify for them, they might as well get the biggest bang for the buck. Here are three ways they can maximize their benefits. Earning passive income doesn't need to be difficult. You can start this week. Delay Claiming as Long as Possible You can claim Social Security benefits as early as age 62, but your monthly payment goes up the longer you delay claiming. After you reach full retirement age currently 66 or 67, depending on your birthdate your benefit will rise by 8% a year up to age 70. Waiting until age 70 to claim Social Security will guarantee the biggest check possible and increase your total monthly payment by more than three-quarters compared to collecting at age 62. Consider This: 2 Changes Are Coming to Social Security in 2025 Choose the Right Spousal Strategy Waiting to claim spousal benefits can also help maximize your check. A spouses Social Security benefit i.e., one based on their spouses record instead of their own is directly tied to the payout that the primary beneficiary receives. If your spouse files for benefits at age 62, your spousal benefit will be permanently reduced as well. But you dont want to wait too long to claim, either. For most Social Security applicants, waiting until age 70 ensures the maximum payment. However, spouses cant take advantage of the age 70 rule because their payout is capped at 50% of the primary beneficiarys full retirement benefit. Even if your spouse waits until age 70 to collect Social Security, your maximum benefit remains at 50% of the primary beneficiarys FRA benefit amount. Story continues Move to a State That Doesnt Tax Benefits The vast majority of Americans dont have to worry about paying state income taxes on their Social Security benefits. However, some states do impose state income taxes on Social Security checks. If you live in one of those states, relocating elsewhere can help you maximize your benefits. These are the states that still tax Social Security benefits as of May 2024: Colorado Connecticut Kansas Minnesota Montana New Mexico Rhode Island Utah Vermont West Virginia Earlier this year, West Virginias House of Delegates approved a bill that would cut and gradually phase out the state income tax on Social Security benefits, the AP reported. More From GOBankingRates This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Social Security: 3 Tips To Maximize Benefits for High-Net-Worth Individuals Laura Cavanaugh/UPI/Shutterstock / Laura Cavanaugh/UPI/Shutterstock Suze Orman has risen to a position of significant wealth reportedly boasting a net worth of $75 million but she didnt start out rich. She worked hard in her post-college years as a waitress before moving into a personal finance career that has garnered her a fortune. Part of Ormans wealth has been amassed through investing, for which she strongly advocates. But Orman had one big challenge to overcome in order to get off her feet: Men in positions of power who viewed women as financial weaklings. Find Out: Suze Ormans 5 Social Security Facts Every Soon-To-Be Retiree Must Know Learn More: 4 Genius Things All Wealthy People Do With Their Money When Orman set out to become a stockbroker, she interviewed with a male branch manager who, Orman said, actually shared his belief that women belonged barefoot and pregnant. Perhaps this despicable experience helped plant the seed that has grown into a passionate philosophy of Ormans: Women should never take money advice from men. In 2018, Orman posted a blog on her website explaining her point of view, homing in on women readers who are married to, or in relationships with, men. Dont Be Blinded by Love You are absolutely nuts if you are letting that great guy handle all the big money decisions, Orman wrote. Love does not mean saying you trust someone to do what is smart and right. Love does not mean you have the luxury of letting someone else handle the stuff you find boring and confusing. And for those of you who are single at the moment, hiring someone, or trusting a friend or family member to take care of the money stuff, makes you just as wrong. Check Out: 10 Valuable Stocks That Could Be the Next Apple or Amazon Women Tend To Outlive Men Orman pointed out in the blog post that women tend to live longer than men. This fact alone is reason enough for a woman not to rely on her man for financial decisions and control. Half of todays 65-year-old women will still be alive into their late 80s. Are you financially prepared for that possibility? Orman wrote. And women live longer than men. Add in the fact that you may be a few years younger than your guy, and theres a very good chance you will, at some point, be on your own. Learn About Money Now Perhaps youre a woman whos already in a committed relationship with a man where he steers the ship of finances. You dont have to stay stuck. Start out by learning about money, and, in particular, your money. Get started ASAP, before your partner is gone. Trying to learn about finances or make sense of things when you are dealing with loss is the absolute worst idea, Orman wrote. On top of it, trying to take control of money issues when you are 65, 70 or older is way too stressful. Story continues Be Involved With Your Money Even If Your Man Is Awesome Maybe you have the best, smartest and most feminist husband in the world. Doesnt matter. You still need to be in control of financial decisions that reflect on or shape your life. I am not in any way suggesting that your husband or partner, or financial advisor, intended to make bad choices, Orman said. But I want you to pull up a chair and be involved in all decisions to make sure that they are the right decisions for your long-term well-being. And the only way that can happen is if you make the commitment to be involved with your money. For Starters, Whats Your Social Security Strategy? If youve been married for some time and are hesitant to break out of the mold where the man navigates the money, start breaking loose by addressing your and only your plan for collecting Social Security benefits. As I have shared with you often, the best move is for the highest-earning spouse to try and delay taking Social Security until age 70, Orman wrote. That ensures the highest possible benefit. When a spouse dies, the survivor is entitled to one monthly Social Security check, not both. So by having the highest-earning delay to 70, you are ensuring that the surviving spouse will be able to collect the highest possible benefit. Be Kind to Yourself Orman always champions being good and (smartly) generous with yourself. This case is no exception. If you are resisting connecting with your money out of fear (or loathing) I am asking you to be kinder to yourself, Orman said. By becoming an informed and active participant in your households finances, you are not just protecting your future, but just as important, you are liberating yourself from worry today. Taking the time to learn about your finances and understand the best choices to build lasting security is a gift of true generosity. You are investing in your well-being. How can you turn your back at that? More From GOBankingRates This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Suze Orman: Why No Woman Should Rely on Men for Money Advice Exploring the Sustainability and Growth of Target Corp's Dividends Target Corp (NYSE:TGT) recently announced a dividend of $1.1 per share, payable on 2024-06-10, with the ex-dividend date set for 2024-05-14. As investors look forward to this upcoming payment, the spotlight also shines on the company's dividend history, yield, and growth rates. Using the data from GuruFocus, let's look into Target Corp's dividend performance and assess its sustainability. What Does Target Corp Do? Warning! GuruFocus has detected 9 Warning Signs with TGT. High Yield Dividend Stocks in Gurus' Portfolio This Powerful Chart Made Peter Lynch 29% A Year For 13 Years How to calculate the intrinsic value of a stock? Target serves as the nation's sixth-largest retailer, with its strategy predicated on delivering a gratifying in-store shopping experience and a wide product assortment of trendy apparel, home goods, and household essentials at competitive prices. Target's upscale and stylish image began to carry national merit in the 1990sa decade in which the brand saw its top line grow threefold to almost $30 billionand has since cemented itself as a top US retailer. Today, Target operates over 1,950 stores in the United States, generates over $100 billion in sales, and fulfills over 2 billion customer orders annually. The firm's vast physical footprint is typically concentrated in urban and suburban markets as the firm seeks to attract a more affluent consumer base. Target Corp's Dividend Analysis A Glimpse at Target Corp's Dividend History Target Corp has maintained a consistent dividend payment record since 1972. Dividends are currently distributed on a quarterly basis. Target Corp has increased its dividend each year since 1972. The stock is thus listed as a dividend king, an honor that is given to companies that have increased their dividend each year for at least the past 52 years. Target Corp's Dividend Analysis Breaking Down Target Corp's Dividend Yield and Growth As of today, Target Corp currently has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 2.68% and a 12-month forward dividend yield of 2.70%. This suggests an expectation of increased dividend payments over the next 12 months. Over the past three years, Target Corp's annual dividend growth rate was 17.60%. Extended to a five-year horizon, this rate decreased to 12.70% per year. And over the past decade, Target Corp's annual dividends per share growth rate stands at 9.00%. Target Corp's Dividend Analysis The Sustainability Question: Payout Ratio and Profitability To assess the sustainability of the dividend, one needs to evaluate the company's payout ratio. The dividend payout ratio provides insights into the portion of earnings the company distributes as dividends. A lower ratio suggests that the company retains a significant part of its earnings, thereby ensuring the availability of funds for future growth and unexpected downturns. As of 2024-01-31, Target Corp's dividend payout ratio is 0.49. Target Corp's profitability rank, offers an understanding of the company's earnings prowess relative to its peers. GuruFocus ranks Target Corp's profitability 8 out of 10 as of 2024-01-31, suggesting good profitability prospects. The company has reported net profit in 9 years out of past 10 years. Growth Metrics: The Future Outlook To ensure the sustainability of dividends, a company must have robust growth metrics. Target Corp's growth rank of 8 out of 10 suggests that the company 's growth trajectory is good relative to its competitors. Revenue is the lifeblood of any company, and Target Corp's revenue per share, combined with the 3-year revenue growth rate, indicates a strong revenue model. Target Corp's revenue has increased by approximately 7.80% per year on average, a rate that outperforms than approximately 61.69% of global competitors. The company's 3-year EPS growth rate showcases its capability to grow its earnings, a critical component for sustaining dividends in the long run. During the past three years, Target Corp's earnings increased by approximately -1.70% per year on average, a rate that outperforms than approximately 30.54% of global competitors. Lastly, the company's 5-year EBITDA growth rate of 8.10%, which outperforms than approximately 39.64% of global competitors. In conclusion, Target Corp's consistent dividend payments, robust dividend growth rate, prudent payout ratio, strong profitability, and solid growth metrics collectively present a compelling case for its dividends' sustainability. Investors seeking stable and growing dividends might find Target Corp an attractive option. GuruFocus Premium users can screen for high-dividend yield stocks using the High Dividend Yield Screener. This article, generated by GuruFocus, is designed to provide general insights and is not tailored financial advice. Our commentary is rooted in historical data and analyst projections, utilizing an impartial methodology, and is not intended to serve as specific investment guidance. It does not formulate a recommendation to purchase or divest any stock and does not consider individual investment objectives or financial circumstances. Our objective is to deliver long-term, fundamental data-driven analysis. Be aware that our analysis might not incorporate the most recent, price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative information. GuruFocus holds no position in the stocks mentioned herein. This article first appeared on GuruFocus. (Bloomberg) -- Long considered a tech hinterland, Southeast Asia is fast emerging as a center of gravity for the industry. Most Read from Bloomberg The CEOs of Apple Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Nvidia Corp. are among the industry chieftains whove swung through the region in past months, committing billions of dollars in investment and holding forth with heads of state from Indonesia to Malaysia. Amazon.com Inc. just this week took over a giant conference hall in downtown Singapore to unfurl a $9 billion investment plan before a thousands-strong audience cheering and waving glow sticks. After decades of playing second fiddle to China and Japan, the region of about 675 million people is drawing more tech investment than ever. For data centers alone, the worlds biggest companies are set to splurge up to $60 billion over the next few years as Southeast Asias young populations embrace video streaming, online shopping and generative AI. Traditionally welcoming to Western investment, the regions moment has arrived as China turns more hostile to US firms and India remains tougher to navigate politically. Silicon Valley is setting its sights on business-friendly regimes, fast-growing talent pools and rising incomes. The advent of AI is spurring tech leaders to pursue new sources of growth, laying the digital infrastructure of the regions future. Countries like Singapore and Malaysia are largely neutral to the geopolitical tensions happening with China, US, Ukraine and Russia, said Sean Lim, a managing partner at Singapore-based NWD Holdings, which invests in AI-based projects and other areas. Especially with the ongoing wars, this region has become more attractive. Take Tim Cook and Satya Nadella, who last month embarked on their biggest tours across Southeast Asia in years. The investments they pledged are set to help turn the region into a major battleground between the likes of Amazon, Microsoft and Google in future frontiers such as artificial intelligence and the cloud. The regions growing workforce is making it a viable alternative to China as a center of talent to support companies global operations. As its governments pushed for improvements in education and infrastructure, its become an attractive base for everything from manufacturing and data centers to research and design. Story continues The governments are pro cross-border investments and theres a deep talent pool, said NWDs Lim. Southeast Asia has also become a sizeable market for gadgets and online services. About 65% of Southeast Asia will be middle class by 2030, with rising purchasing power, according to Singapore government estimates. Thatll help more than double the regions market for internet-based services to $600 billion, according to estimates by Google, Temasek Holdings Pte and Bain & Co. Apple, whose pricey gadgets for long remained out of reach for the vast majority in the region, is now adding stores. Chief Executive Officer Cook toured Vietnam, Indonesia and Singapore in late April, meeting prime ministers and announcing fresh investments as the company seeks new growth regions beyond China, where sales have sputtered. In Jakarta, besides pow-wows with the countrys leadership, Cook met a local influencer with almost 800,000 Instagram followers over chicken satay, and learned enough of the local language to say How are you in a video circulated on social media. On his X account, local customers asked Cook for an Apple Store and better servicing of Apple products in the country. Following the trip, Apple reported its revenue in Indonesia had reached a record, even as total global sales declined. These are markets where our market share is low, Cook said on a conference call last week. The populations are large and growing. And our products are really making a lot of progress. Microsoft CEO Nadella also received an enthusiastic welcome after meeting with the leaders of Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand last week. In Bangkok, under a ballrooms shimmering chandeliers, he was seen shaking hands and conversing with high-ranking government officials and the countrys top business elites. Southeast Asias draw becomes apparent once you consider slowing toplines in Silicon Valley, which is struggling now to lay the foundations of AI anticipated to become an industry-defining technology. Within the next few weeks, two major AI-themed events in Singapore are set to feature top leaders from OpenAI, Anthropic, Microsoft and others to further tout the technologys promise for Southeast Asia. A specific catalyst for the tech companies is generative AI, with services like ChatGPT rapidly gaining users. Southeast Asias accelerating AI adoption has the potential to add about $1 trillion to the regions economy by 2030, according to a report by consulting firm Kearney. That means more data centers are needed to store and process the massive amounts of information traversing between content creators, companies and customers. Data center demand in Southeast Asia and North Asia is expected to expand about 25% a year through 2028, according to Cushman & Wakefield data. That compares with 14% a year in the US. By 2028, Southeast Asia will become the second largest non-US source of data center revenue in the world. Hotspots include Malaysias southern Johor Bahru region, where Nvidia last year teamed up with a local utility for a plan to build a $4.3 billion AI data center park. Nvidia is also targeting Vietnam, which CEO Jensen Huang sees as a potential second home for the company, local media reported during his visit in December. Huang was spotted enjoying street food and egg coffee, a Vietnam specialty, as he hung out with local tech contacts in a black T-shirt and jeans. The company has since reviewed Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang as potential locations for investments, with Keith Strier, its vice president of worldwide AI initiatives, touring the cities last month. A region consisting of about a dozen politically, culturally and geographically disparate countries, Southeast Asia isnt the easiest market for global companies to operate in. Risks include difficulties navigating local working cultures, as well as the volatility of the various currencies, said NWDs Lim. But for now, the tech majors are embracing the regions advantages such as its relatively low-cost yet highly skilled workforce helpful for building expensive technologies such as large language models that require not just a lot of cash but also skilled engineers. Most of the US firms announced training programs with local governments, with Microsoft promising to train a total 2.5 million people in AI skills in Southeast Asia by 2025. This shift is influenced by both external and internal drivers, said Nicholas Lee, associate director in political consultancy firm Global Counsels Singapore office. Besides the intensifying US-China rivalry and policy divergence across major jurisdictions, subdued revenue growth and rising costs also underline the need for companies to manage expenses prudently. --With assistance from Chandra Asmara, Norman Harsono, Nguyen Xuan Quynh and Patpicha Tanakasempipat. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Amid a backdrop of global market fluctuations, the Hong Kong stock market has shown resilience, with the Hang Seng Index recently climbing by 2.64%. This uptick is part of a broader trend of recovery hopes fueled by strong holiday spending and positive trade data. In such an environment, growth companies with high insider ownership in Hong Kong present an interesting focus, as these attributes can signal strong confidence in the company's future from those who know it best. Top 10 Growth Companies With High Insider Ownership In Hong Kong Name Insider Ownership Earnings Growth New Horizon Health (SEHK:6606) 16.6% 61% iDreamSky Technology Holdings (SEHK:1119) 20.1% 104.1% Meitu (SEHK:1357) 38% 34.3% Adicon Holdings (SEHK:9860) 22.3% 29.6% DPC Dash (SEHK:1405) 38.2% 91.5% Tian Tu Capital (SEHK:1973) 34% 70.5% Zhejiang Leapmotor Technology (SEHK:9863) 14.2% 74% Biocytogen Pharmaceuticals (Beijing) (SEHK:2315) 15.7% 100.1% Ocumension Therapeutics (SEHK:1477) 17.7% 93.7% Beijing Airdoc Technology (SEHK:2251) 26.4% 83.9% Click here to see the full list of 52 stocks from our Fast Growing SEHK Companies With High Insider Ownership screener. Underneath we present a selection of stocks filtered out by our screen. Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: China Ruyi Holdings Limited operates as an investment holding company focused on content production and online streaming, serving markets in the People's Republic of China, Hong Kong, Europe, and internationally, with a market capitalization of approximately HK$23.64 billion. Operations: The company generates revenue primarily through its content production business, which brought in CN2.23 billion, and its online streaming and gaming sectors, which together accounted for CN1.38 billion. Insider Ownership: 16.3% Earnings Growth Forecast: 14.7% p.a. China Ruyi Holdings, while trading at HK$69.4% below its estimated fair value, shows promising growth with forecasted revenue and earnings increases of 27.7% and 14.7% per year respectively, outpacing the Hong Kong market averages. However, concerns arise from a profit margin decline to 19% from last year's 59.8%, shareholder dilution over the past year, and significant one-off items affecting financial results. Recent corporate adjustments include a change in business location and consistent earnings reports indicating stable financial performance despite slight declines in net income and EPS. Story continues SEHK:136 Ownership Breakdown as at May 2024 Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: SSY Group Limited is an investment holding company that focuses on the research, development, manufacturing, and sale of pharmaceutical products to hospitals and distributors both in the People's Republic of China and globally, with a market capitalization of HK$14.93 billion. Operations: The company generates revenue primarily through two segments: Medical Materials, which brought in HK$0.39 billion, and Intravenous Infusion Solution and Others, contributing HK$6.30 billion. Insider Ownership: 10.4% Earnings Growth Forecast: 15% p.a. SSY Group, a growth-oriented company with high insider ownership, is trading at 62.7% below its estimated fair value and shows a robust forecast with earnings expected to grow by 15.03% per year, outpacing the Hong Kong market average of 12%. Recent approvals for multiple pharmaceutical products underline its potential in expanding market reach and enhancing revenue streams which are projected to grow faster than the market at 14% per year. However, its dividend coverage by cash flows appears weak, signaling potential concerns for dividend-focused investors. SEHK:2005 Ownership Breakdown as at May 2024 Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: Xiabuxiabu Catering Management (China) Holdings Co., Ltd. is an investment holding company that manages a chain of Chinese hotpot restaurants across the Peoples Republic of China, with a market capitalization of approximately HK$2.42 billion. Operations: The company generates revenue primarily through its two brands, with CN3.02 billion from Xiabuxiabu and CN2.65 billion from Coucou. Insider Ownership: 38.7% Earnings Growth Forecast: 55.3% p.a. Xiabuxiabu Catering Management (China) Holdings, despite recent challenges, is poised for recovery with insider buying trends indicating strong confidence from within. The company reported a significant reduction in net loss to CNY 199.47 million from CNY 353.05 million year-over-year and is trading at a substantial discount, deemed good value against its peers. Expected to turn profitable within three years, its revenue growth forecast at 9.9% annually outpaces the Hong Kong market's 8%. However, it still faces hurdles with a low forecast return on equity of 13.8%. SEHK:520 Earnings and Revenue Growth as at May 2024 Turning Ideas Into Actions Explore the 52 names from our Fast Growing SEHK Companies With High Insider Ownership screener here. Have you diversified into these companies? Leverage the power of Simply Wall St's portfolio to keep a close eye on market movements affecting your investments. Enhance your investing ability with the Simply Wall St app and enjoy free access to essential market intelligence spanning every continent. Ready To Venture Into Other Investment Styles? 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.The analysis only considers stock directly held by insiders. It does not include indirectly owned stock through other vehicles such as corporate and/or trust entities. All forecast revenue and earnings growth rates quoted are in terms of annualised (per annum) growth rates over 1-3 years. Companies discussed in this article include SEHK:136SEHK:2005 and Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com As global markets experience fluctuations, with the FTSE 100 poised for a lower opening amidst a cautious trading environment, investors are keenly observing trends and developments. In such a market scenario, growth companies in the United Kingdom with high insider ownership can be particularly compelling, as they often demonstrate aligned interests between management and shareholders, potentially leading to robust earnings growth. Top 10 Growth Companies With High Insider Ownership In The United Kingdom Name Insider Ownership Earnings Growth Getech Group (AIM:GTC) 17.2% 86.1% Gulf Keystone Petroleum (LSE:GKP) 10.6% 43.9% Petrofac (LSE:PFC) 16.6% 115.4% Spectra Systems (AIM:SPSY) 23.3% 26.3% Foresight Group Holdings (LSE:FSG) 31.7% 28.9% Integrated Diagnostics Holdings (LSE:IDHC) 26.7% 27.9% Plant Health Care (AIM:PHC) 19.7% 94.4% Velocity Composites (AIM:VEL) 29.5% 140.5% TEAM (AIM:TEAM) 25.8% 58.6% Afentra (AIM:AET) 38.3% 198.2% Click here to see the full list of 59 stocks from our Fast Growing UK Companies With High Insider Ownership screener. Let's uncover some gems from our specialized screener. Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: Judges Scientific plc specializes in designing, manufacturing, and selling scientific instruments and has a market capitalization of approximately 0.80 billion. Operations: The company generates its revenues primarily from two segments: Vacuum (63.60 million) and Materials Sciences (72.50 million). Insider Ownership: 11.6% Earnings Growth Forecast: 25.3% p.a. Judges Scientific plc, a UK-based company with high insider ownership, reported increased sales of 136.1 million for 2023 but saw a decrease in net income to 9.5 million from the previous year's 12.5 million. Despite this dip, the firm is poised for significant growth with expected earnings to rise by 25.32% annually over the next three years, outpacing the UK market's forecast of 12.8%. However, concerns include a high level of debt and recent shareholder dilution which could impact future performance. AIM:JDG Earnings and Revenue Growth as at May 2024 Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: Loungers plc operates cafes, bars, and restaurants under the Lounge and Cosy Club brand names in England and Wales, with a market capitalization of approximately 278.05 million. Operations: The company generates its revenue primarily through the operation of cafe bars and restaurants, amassing 310.80 million from these activities. Story continues Insider Ownership: 13.9% Earnings Growth Forecast: 32.8% p.a. Loungers plc, a UK growth company with significant insider ownership, reported a substantial revenue increase to 353.5 million for FY 2024, marking a 24.7% rise year-over-year. Despite this growth, profit margins dipped to 2.3% from last year's 3.7%. Looking ahead, Loungers is expected to see earnings grow by an impressive 32.82% annually over the next three years, significantly outpacing the broader UK market projection of 12.8%. Recent executive appointments aim to sustain this rapid expansion and operational excellence. AIM:LGRS Ownership Breakdown as at May 2024 Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: Genel Energy plc is an independent oil and gas exploration and production company with a market capitalization of approximately 248.91 million. Operations: The company generates its revenue primarily from oil and gas production, totaling $84.80 million. Insider Ownership: 25.4% Earnings Growth Forecast: 50.5% p.a. Genel Energy, a UK-based growth company with high insider ownership, is set to become profitable within three years, surpassing average market growth expectations. Despite trading 21.4% below its estimated fair value and expecting revenue growth of 10.7% annuallyfaster than the UK market's 3.6%its recent performance has been underwhelming with a significant drop in sales to US$84.8 million from US$401.9 million last year and a net loss of US$61.3 million. The upcoming retirement of Sir Michael Fallon from the board poses additional governance challenges. LSE:GENL Ownership Breakdown as at May 2024 Key Takeaways Access the full spectrum of 59 Fast Growing UK Companies With High Insider Ownership by clicking on this link. Are any of these part of your asset mix? Tap into the analytical power of Simply Wall St's portfolio to get a 360-degree view on how they're shaping up. Join a community of smart investors by using Simply Wall St. It's free and delivers expert-level analysis on worldwide markets. Ready For A Different Approach? 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.The analysis only considers stock directly held by insiders. It does not include indirectly owned stock through other vehicles such as corporate and/or trust entities. All forecast revenue and earnings growth rates quoted are in terms of annualised (per annum) growth rates over 1-3 years. Companies discussed in this article include AIM:JDGAIM:LGRS and LSE:GENL. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com While ABM Industries Incorporated (NYSE:ABM) might not have the largest market cap around , it saw a double-digit share price rise of over 10% in the past couple of months on the NYSE. Shareholders may appreciate the recent price jump, but the company still has a way to go before reaching its yearly highs again. With many analysts covering the mid-cap stock, we may expect any price-sensitive announcements have already been factored into the stocks share price. However, what if the stock is still a bargain? Lets take a look at ABM Industriess outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if the opportunity still exists. View our latest analysis for ABM Industries What Is ABM Industries Worth? Good news, investors! ABM Industries is still a bargain right now according to our price multiple model, which compares the company's price-to-earnings ratio to the industry average. Weve used the price-to-earnings ratio in this instance because theres not enough visibility to forecast its cash flows. The stocks ratio of 11.28x is currently well-below the industry average of 27.08x, meaning that it is trading at a cheaper price relative to its peers. Although, there may be another chance to buy again in the future. This is because ABM Industriess 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. Can we expect growth from ABM Industries? 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. Although value investors would argue that its the intrinsic value relative to the price that matter the most, a more compelling investment thesis would be high growth potential at a cheap price. However, with a negative profit growth of -18% expected over the next couple of years, near-term growth certainly doesnt appear to be a driver for a buy decision for ABM Industries. This certainty tips the risk-return scale towards higher risk. What This Means For You Are you a shareholder? Although ABM is currently trading below the industry PE ratio, the adverse prospect of negative growth brings about some degree of risk. Consider whether you want to increase your portfolio exposure to ABM, or whether diversifying into another stock may be a better move for your total risk and return. Are you a potential investor? If youve been keeping an eye on ABM for a while, but hesitant on making the leap, we recommend you research further into the stock. Given its current price multiple, now is a great time to make a decision. But keep in mind the risks that come with negative growth prospects in the future. Story continues So while earnings quality is important, it's equally important to consider the risks facing ABM Industries at this point in time. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for ABM Industries (of which 1 is potentially serious!) you should know about. If you are no longer interested in ABM Industries, 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. Key Insights Significant control over Top Glove Corporation Bhd by individual investors implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions The top 8 shareholders own 51% of the company Recent purchases by insiders If you want to know who really controls Top Glove Corporation Bhd. (KLSE:TOPGLOV), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. The group holding the most number of shares in the company, around 38% to be precise, is individual investors. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn). While individual investors were the group that reaped the most benefits after last weeks 6.1% price gain, insiders also received a 30% cut. Let's delve deeper into each type of owner of Top Glove Corporation Bhd, beginning with the chart below. View our latest analysis for Top Glove Corporation Bhd What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Top Glove Corporation Bhd? 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. As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in Top Glove Corporation Bhd. This implies the analysts working for those institutions have looked at the stock and they like it. But just like anyone else, they could be wrong. 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 Top Glove Corporation Bhd, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too. Top Glove Corporation Bhd is not owned by hedge funds. From our data, we infer that the largest shareholder is Wee Chai Lim (who also holds the title of Top Key Executive) with 28% of shares outstanding. Its usually considered a good sign when insiders own a significant number of shares in the company, and in this case, we're glad to see a company insider play the role of a key stakeholder. In comparison, the second and third largest shareholders hold about 6.9% and 5.9% of the stock. We did some more digging and found that 8 of the top shareholders account for roughly 51% of the register, implying that along with larger shareholders, there are a few smaller shareholders, thereby balancing out each others interests somewhat. Story continues 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 plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too. Insider Ownership Of Top Glove Corporation Bhd The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. 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. Insider ownership is positive when it signals leadership are thinking like the true owners of the company. However, high insider ownership can also give immense power to a small group within the company. This can be negative in some circumstances. Our information suggests that insiders maintain a significant holding in Top Glove Corporation Bhd.. It has a market capitalization of just RM7.6b, and insiders have RM2.3b worth of shares in their own names. That's quite significant. It is good to see this level of investment. You can check here to see if those insiders have been buying recently. General Public Ownership The general public-- including retail investors -- own 38% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. 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. Private Company Ownership Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 8.8%, of the company's shares. Private companies may be related parties. Sometimes insiders have an interest in a public company through a holding in a private company, rather than in their own capacity as an individual. While it's hard to draw any broad stroke conclusions, it is worth noting as an area for further research. Next Steps: While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. I always like to check for a history of revenue growth. You can too, by accessing this free chart of historic revenue and earnings in this detailed graph. But ultimately it is the future, not the past, that will determine how well the owners of this business will do. Therefore we think it advisable to take a look at this free report showing whether analysts are predicting a brighter future. 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. Investments were unveiled at the "Choose France" investment summit - Lemouton/POOL/SIPA/Shutterstock Britains two biggest pharmaceutical companies have pledged 430m of investment in France after a charm offensive by Emmanuel Macron. AstraZeneca and GSK have vowed to upgrade their facilities in the country as part of a flagship investment programme unveiled by the French president on Monday. As part of the spending, AstraZeneca will commit 365m (314m) to a factory in Dunkirk making asthma medicines, while GSK will spend an additional 140m on three production sites across the country. Investment from the FTSE giants will coincide with an additional 500m from overseas rivals Pfizer and Novartis, meaning President Macron has secured nearly 1bn of inbound pharma investment. This is in contrast to the UK where the Government in recent years has been accused of failing to back the pharma sector. Tensions peaked last year when AstraZeneca chief executive Pascal Soriot said high taxes had made Britain very unattractive for business. However, relations have since improved, with the company two months ago committing to a new 650m vaccine factory in Liverpool. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt also visited AstraZenecas site earlier this year. Mr Soriot previously criticised Tory tax policies - Zach Gibson/Bloomberg President Macrons investments were unveiled as part of the Choose France investment summit held at the Palace of Versailles yesterday. More than 180 foreign business leaders attended the event, including the heads of Wall Streets largest banks and top executives from tech giants Microsoft and Amazon. The president announced a new record 15bn of foreign investment into the country from more than 50 multinationals, up from 13bn last year. He said the countrys pro-business policies had made France the most attractive country in Europe. An EY report launched alongside the summit also revealed that France is the most attractive European destination for foreign investment, outstripping the UK. President Macron has long been hailed as a skilled dealmaker when it comes to schmoozing foreign executives. A review last year by Lord Harrington, which sought to make the UK a more appealing investment destination, highlighted the strength of Mr Macrons style. It said that a number of top chief executives regularly received texts directly from the President, inviting them to the Palace of Versailles. The Versailles event was attended by Mr Soriot and Wall Street banking elites such as Goldman Sachs chief David Solomon and JP Morgan boss Jamie Dimon. French finance minister Bruno Le Maire is also set to meet the chief executive of Bank of America, Brian Moynihan and Morgan Stanleys chief executive Ted Pick. Story continues Among other investments, Microsoft pledged to invest 4bn in France while Amazon will spend 1.2bn. The UK hosted a similar foreign investment summit last year where it unveiled around 30bn of commitments, double the French effort. President Macron also signalled his willingness to allow more banking mergers across Europe. He told Bloomberg he would be willing to let a French bank be acquired by a foreign rival to trigger more consolidation across the continent. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP) has announced that it will pay a dividend of $1.30 per share on the 28th of June. This makes the dividend yield 2.1%, which will augment investor returns quite nicely. See our latest analysis for Union Pacific Union Pacific's Payment Has Solid Earnings Coverage If the payments aren't sustainable, a high yield for a few years won't matter that much. Based on the last payment, Union Pacific was quite comfortably earning enough to cover the dividend. This means that a large portion of its earnings are being retained to grow the business. Looking forward, earnings per share is forecast to rise by 37.4% over the next year. If the dividend continues along recent trends, we estimate the payout ratio will be 40%, which is in the range that makes us comfortable with the sustainability of the dividend. Union Pacific Has A Solid Track Record The company has a sustained record of paying dividends with very little fluctuation. The dividend has gone from an annual total of $1.38 in 2014 to the most recent total annual payment of $5.20. This implies that the company grew its distributions at a yearly rate of about 14% over that duration. So, dividends have been growing pretty quickly, and even more impressively, they haven't experienced any notable falls during this period. Dividend Growth May Be Hard To Achieve Some investors will be chomping at the bit to buy some of the company's stock based on its dividend history. However, Union Pacific has only grown its earnings per share at 5.0% per annum over the past five years. Growth of 5.0% may indicate that the company has limited investment opportunity so it is returning its earnings to shareholders instead. This isn't necessarily bad, but we wouldn't expect rapid dividend growth in the future. We Really Like Union Pacific's Dividend Overall, we think that this is a great income investment, and we think that maintaining the dividend this year may have been a conservative choice. Distributions are quite easily covered by earnings, which are also being converted to cash flows. Taking this all into consideration, this looks like it could be a good dividend opportunity. It's important to note that companies having a consistent dividend policy will generate greater investor confidence than those having an erratic one. However, there are other things to consider for investors when analysing stock performance. For example, we've picked out 1 warning sign for Union Pacific that investors should know about before committing capital to this stock. Looking for more high-yielding dividend ideas? Try our collection of 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. By David Shepardson ARLINGTON, Virginia (Reuters) - Union leaders and U.S. lawmakers on Monday criticized Boeing's lockout of its unionized firefighters and urged the planemaker to reach a contract deal. Earlier this month, Boeing locked out about 130 members of the International Association of Fire Fighters Local I-66 who rejected two contract offers - a move that last week drew the concern of President Joe Biden. At a rally outside Boeing headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, IAFF President Edward Kelly, AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler and Representative Val Hoyle urged Boeing to make a deal. "We want to get a deal. We just want to be treated fairly," Kelly told Reuters, who said Boeing wants firefighters to work nearly 20 years before reaching top pay but added he is hopeful talks will soon resume. "If they can break us and set a pattern, that will then translate into the contract of the larger unions. That's where the real savings are." Hoyle, a Democrat, said she hopes Boeing will come to the table and "do the right thing. They prioritize safety and they invest in their workforce." On social media, Democratic Senator John Fetterman said Monday "Boeing should focus on keeping critical safety workers and paying dignified wages, particularly given their recent safety and quality control issues where these safety workers may be needed." Boeing, which did not immediately comment Monday, said last week its contract offer to increase firefighters' average take-home pay from $91,000 to $112,000 in the first year remains on the table. We remain committed to securing an agreement," Boeing said. "The union should allow our employees to vote (on) our offer, which was presented before the lockout. The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) is separately negotiating a new contract on behalf of over 30,000 workers who build Boeing's 737 MAX jets, at a time when the planemaker needs to ramp up production. Shuler said Boeing "is looking to establish a pattern and if we can start here with the firefighters it might trickle over to a bigger impact with another union." She added having skilled firefighters was crucial for Boeing. "What makes the company safer ultimately makes the company more trusted and more profitable," Shuler said. Boeing 737 MAX jetliner production has fallen sharply as U.S. regulators step up factory checks following a blowout on a new Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9 in January, blamed on an assembly error. (Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Stephen Coates) A coalition of major airlines is suing the Biden administration over its new rule that requires airline companies to disclose extra fees on purchases. Trade group Airlines for America filed the lawsuit Friday alongside Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, United Airlines, JetBlue Airways Corp., Hawaiian Airlines and Alaska Airlines. Airlines for America said in a statement that the new rule will greatly confuse consumers who will be inundated with information that will only serve to complicate the buying process. The group also noted that airline customers are already aware of the extra fees. Airlines go to great lengths to make their customers knowledgeable about these fees. In addition to the disclosures required by existing DOT (Department of Transportation) regulations, airlines engage in competitive advertising and emphasize ancillary fee discounts and benefits when they promote their loyalty programs, the group wrote. The group added that the rule is a bad solution in search of a problem. The lawsuit was filed in the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals against the Department of Transportation, which finalized the fee disclosure rule last month in the Biden administrations latest crackdown on so-called junk fees. The departments new rule requires airlines to disclose extra fees before customers make their final purchase. These extra fees can include fees for checked bags, carry-on bags, and changing or canceling reservations. The Transportation Department doubled down on its crackdown of junk fees in a statement to The Hill. We will vigorously defend our rule protecting people from hidden junk fees and ensuring travelers can see the full price of a flight before they purchase a ticket. Many air travelers will be disappointed to learn that the airline lobby is suing to stop these common-sense protections, according to the statement. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News. As of May 2024, Chinese markets are showing signs of robust recovery, buoyed by increased holiday spending and positive trade data that suggest a resilient economic backdrop. In this context, exploring growth companies with high insider ownership on Chinese exchanges can offer insights into firms where leadership has significant skin in the game, potentially aligning interests with minority shareholders especially during promising economic conditions. Top 10 Growth Companies With High Insider Ownership In China Name Insider Ownership Earnings Growth YanKer shop FoodLtd (SZSE:002847) 29.2% 23.9% Suzhou Sunmun Technology (SZSE:300522) 37.6% 63.4% Zhejiang Songyuan Automotive Safety SystemsLtd (SZSE:300893) 20% 24.2% Arctech Solar Holding (SHSE:688408) 38.7% 24.8% UTour Group (SZSE:002707) 24% 27.3% Sineng ElectricLtd (SZSE:300827) 36.5% 39.8% Fujian Wanchen Biotechnology Group (SZSE:300972) 15.3% 75.9% Anhui Huaheng Biotechnology (SHSE:688639) 28.3% 28.5% Jilin University Zhengyuan Information Technologies (SZSE:003029) 12.1% 69.2% Offcn Education Technology (SZSE:002607) 26.1% 72.3% Click here to see the full list of 408 stocks from our Fast Growing Chinese Companies With High Insider Ownership screener. We're going to check out a few of the best picks from our screener tool. Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: 360 Security Technology Inc. is an internet security company based in China, offering Internet and mobile security products, with a market capitalization of approximately CN62.30 billion. Operations: The company generates its revenue primarily through the provision of internet and mobile security products in China. Insider Ownership: 11.7% Earnings Growth Forecast: 101.1% p.a. 360 Security Technology is expected to see its revenue grow at 15.9% annually, outpacing the Chinese market forecast of 14.1%. The company's earnings are also projected to surge by approximately 101.12% each year, signaling robust profit growth ahead as it moves towards profitability over the next three years. Despite these positive indicators, the firm's dividend sustainability is questionable, with a low coverage by earnings and cash flows. Recent financials show a reduction in net losses and an improvement in sales performance compared to the previous year. Story continues SHSE:601360 Earnings and Revenue Growth as at May 2024 Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: Ganfeng Lithium Group Co., Ltd. is a global company based in China that manufactures and sells lithium products across Mainland China, Asia, the European Union, North America, and other international markets, with a market capitalization of approximately CN68.79 billion. Operations: The company generates its revenue by manufacturing and selling lithium products across various regions including Mainland China, other parts of Asia, the European Union, and North America. Insider Ownership: 27.8% Earnings Growth Forecast: 29.4% p.a. Ganfeng Lithium Group, despite its high insider ownership, faces challenges. Its recent quarterly report showed a significant revenue drop to CNY 5.06 billion and a shift from profit to a net loss of CNY 438.9 million. However, the company's earnings are expected to grow by 29.4% annually over the next three years, outpacing the Chinese market's forecast of 23.4%. This growth is supported by strategic alliances like the joint venture with Pilbara Minerals for a lithium chemical plant project. SZSE:002460 Ownership Breakdown as at May 2024 Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: Shenyang Xingqi Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. focuses on the research, development, production, and sale of ophthalmic medications in China, with a market capitalization of approximately CN36.07 billion. Operations: The company generates its revenue primarily through the production and sale of ophthalmic medications in China. Insider Ownership: 30.9% Earnings Growth Forecast: 35.2% p.a. Shenyang Xingqi Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. has demonstrated strong financial performance with its first-quarter sales increasing to CNY 349.88 million from CNY 286.56 million year-over-year, and net income rising to CNY 34.75 million from CNY 19.35 million. The company's earnings are expected to grow by 35.15% annually over the next three years, significantly outpacing the Chinese market forecast of 23.4%. However, its dividend coverage is weak, indicating potential challenges in sustaining shareholder payouts amidst rapid growth. SZSE:300573 Ownership Breakdown as at May 2024 Turning Ideas Into Actions Click through to start exploring the rest of the 405 Fast Growing Chinese Companies With High Insider Ownership now. Are you invested in these stocks already? Keep abreast of every twist and turn by setting up a portfolio with Simply Wall St , where we make it simple for investors like you to stay informed and proactive. Elevate your portfolio with Simply Wall St, the ultimate app for investors seeking global market coverage. Curious About Other Options? 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.The analysis only considers stock directly held by insiders. It does not include indirectly owned stock through other vehicles such as corporate and/or trust entities. All forecast revenue and earnings growth rates quoted are in terms of annualised (per annum) growth rates over 1-3 years. Companies discussed in this article include SHSE:601360 SZSE:002460 and SZSE:300573 . Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com By Nora Eckert DETROIT (Reuters) - Workers at a Mercedes-Benz plant in Alabama began voting Monday on whether to join the United Auto Workers union, a significant test of whether the labor group can maintain momentum in the historically anti-union American South. A union victory at the plant, weeks after a resounding win at a Volkswagen factory in Tennessee, would be a watershed moment for the UAW as it seeks to organize more than a dozen automakers across the nation and add to its dwindling ranks. The campaign at Mercedes has been much more contentious. The company has urged workers to vote no, according to fliers and signage viewed by Reuters. Mercedes also hired anti-union firms to speak with workers, plant employees said. Mercedes has rejected claims it prevented union organizing efforts in Alabama. A spokeswoman said the company respects employee unionizing efforts and is ensuring every worker has a chance to vote by secret ballot while having the information needed to make an informed choice. The 5,200 employees at the assembly plant and nearby battery factory will cast ballots this week, with final results expected Friday. UAW President Shawn Fain has spent more than a year strategizing his path to win over non-union auto workers, and it all began with new labor contracts in Detroit. Fain became UAW president in March 2023 and led the union through its first simultaneous strike against the Detroit Three automakers: General Motors, Ford and Jeep-maker Stellantis. The six-week walkout resulted in record agreements, including a 25% wage increase and the return of cost-of-living adjustments. Making a strong showing in the Motor City was critical for wooing workers in the South, Fain has said. In the halls of the Mercedes plant, where workers produce electric and gas-engine SUVs, the Detroit contracts became a pro-UAW talking point. "That is the biggest thing that we're using to push because we can show how much the union can win now," Mercedes worker Jacob Ryan said. He supports the union because he feels the company has not addressed worker concerns around pay, hours and benefits. Ryan, who has been a full-time worker at the plant for about five years, has been encouraging unionization since before Fain was elected. Less than two years ago, he and fellow organizers struggled to get 20% of workers to sign cards supporting the UAW. Now, the plant has a supermajority of those cards, according to the UAW, which typically files for an NLRB election once a facility has reached a threshold of 70% of workers in favor of joining. Story continues However, the factory sits deep in the American South, which has historically been more resistant to unions. In one of its last efforts there in August 2017, the UAW lost a vote at Nissan's Canton, Mississippi, plant by a 2-to-1 margin. "The challenge is very significant to win at the Mercedes plant and in states like Alabama ... where there really has been so little union activity," said Kate Andrias, a professor at Columbia Law School who specializes in labor law. Mercedes has mounted a more aggressive campaign against the union than VW did, labor professors and workers said. It has held meetings led by company executives as well as outside labor firms emphasizing the risks of joining the UAW, according to workers and meeting audio reviewed by Reuters. Signage posted around the plant, which company leaders pointed to in meetings, urged workers to "vote no," according to employees and photos reviewed by Reuters. This is also the first election at the plant, whereas the UAW had two attempts at VW before winning. "I don't know that they have spent the same amount of time and investment in Vance, Alabama, as they did over the years in Chattanooga," Art Wheaton, labor professor at Cornell University, said, comparing the Mercedes and VW efforts. The UAW just reached an agreement on a new labor contract for Daimler Truck employees at several facilities in the South. Daimler Truck was once part of the same company as Mercedes. State governments in the South have waged strong resistance to unionizing. Six governors, including Alabama's Kay Ivey, signed a letter urging workers to reject the UAW. They said unionization would stunt the auto industry's growth across the South. In meetings with workers, company leaders and outside firms have suggested that workers wait and see what happens in the VW contract talks, pointing to some negotiations at other companies that have taken 400 days. Others feel Mercedes is finally taking workers' concerns seriously. The automaker recently replaced the president of its U.S. business, and some workers said they are encouraged by the actions of the newly appointed Federico Kochlowski. Melissa Howell, an 18-year employee at the plant, fears bringing in a union could interrupt this momentum. "We as team members, without a union in there right now, we really have a great advantage," Howell said. They clearly understand that we are not happy and they are listening." (Reporting by Nora Eckert; Editing by Ben Klayman and David Gregorio) By Michael Martina and Trevor Hunnicutt WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. and China will meet in Geneva to discuss artificial intelligence on Tuesday and U.S. officials stressed that Washington's policies would not be up for negotiation as talks explore how to mitigate risks from the emerging technology. President Joe Biden's administration has sought to engage China on a range of issues to reduce miscommunication between the two rivals. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi broached the topic of AI in April in Beijing, where they agreed to hold their first formal bilateral talks on the subject. The State Department has pressed China and Russia to match U.S. declarations that only humans, and never artificial intelligence, would make decisions on deploying nuclear weapons. "This is the first meeting of its kind. So, we expect to have a discussion of the full range of risks, but wouldn't prejudge any specifics at this point," a senior administration official told reporters ahead of the meeting when asked if the U.S. would prioritize the nuclear weapons issue. China's rapid deployment of AI capabilities across civilian, military and national security sectors often undermined the security of the U.S. and its allies, the official said, adding the talks would allow Washington to directly communicate its concerns. "To be very clear, talks with Beijing are not focused on promoting any form of technical collaboration or cooperating on frontier research in any matter. And our technology protection policies are not up for negotiation," the official added. The U.S. delegation will include officials from the White House and State and Commerce Departments, the White House National Security Council (NSC) said on Monday. Reuters has reported that the Biden administration plans to put guardrails on U.S.-developed proprietary AI models that power popular chatbots like ChatGPT to safeguard the technology from countries such as China and Russia. A second U.S. official briefing reporters said Washington and Beijing were competing to shape the rules on AI, but also hoped to explore whether some rules could be "embraced by all countries." "We certainly don't see eye to eye ... on many AI topics and applications, but we believe that communication on critical AI risks can make the world safer," the second official said. NSC official Tarun Chhabra and Seth Center, the State Department's acting special envoy for critical and emerging technology, will lead the talks with officials from China's Foreign Ministry and state planner, the National Development and Reform Commission. Story continues U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer plans to issue recommendations in coming weeks to address risks from AI, which he says will then be translated into piecemeal legislation. He has cited competition with China and its divergent goals for AI, including surveillance and facial recognition applications, as reason for Washington's need to take a lead in crafting laws around the rapidly advancing technology. Chinese authorities have been emphasizing the need for the country to develop its own "controllable" AI technology. (Reporting by Michael Martina and Trevor Hunnicutt; Editing by David Gregorio) If you're not sure where to start when looking for the next multi-bagger, there are a few key trends you should keep an eye out for. In a perfect world, we'd like to see a company investing more capital into its business and ideally the returns earned from that capital are also increasing. Put simply, these types of businesses are compounding machines, meaning they are continually reinvesting their earnings at ever-higher rates of return. Although, when we looked at UWC Berhad (KLSE:UWC), it didn't seem to tick all of these boxes. 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. The formula for this calculation on UWC Berhad is: Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) (Total Assets - Current Liabilities) 0.035 = RM16m (RM498m - RM41m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to January 2024). So, UWC Berhad has an ROCE of 3.5%. In absolute terms, that's a low return and it also under-performs the Machinery industry average of 9.0%. See our latest analysis for UWC Berhad roce Above you can see how the current ROCE for UWC 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 UWC Berhad for free. What Does the ROCE Trend For UWC Berhad Tell Us? When we looked at the ROCE trend at UWC Berhad, we didn't gain much confidence. Over the last five years, returns on capital have decreased to 3.5% from 27% five years ago. Given the business is employing more capital while revenue has slipped, this is a bit concerning. If this were to continue, you might be looking at a company that is trying to reinvest for growth but is actually losing market share since sales haven't increased. On a related note, UWC Berhad has decreased its current liabilities to 8.3% of total assets. That could partly explain why the ROCE has dropped. Effectively this means their suppliers or short-term creditors are funding less of the business, which reduces some elements of risk. Since the business is basically funding more of its operations with it's own money, you could argue this has made the business less efficient at generating ROCE. What We Can Learn From UWC Berhad's ROCE We're a bit apprehensive about UWC Berhad because despite more capital being deployed in the business, returns on that capital and sales have both fallen. Long term shareholders who've owned the stock over the last three years have experienced a 43% depreciation in their investment, so it appears the market might not like these trends either. With underlying trends that aren't great in these areas, we'd consider looking elsewhere. Story continues On a separate note, we've found 1 warning sign for UWC Berhad you'll probably want to know about. While UWC Berhad may not currently earn the highest returns, we've compiled a list of companies that currently earn more than 25% return on equity. Check out this free list 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. Russell Gomes made a stop to buy chicken after work and ended up winning a $500,000 lottery prize. Photo courtesy of the Virginia Lottery May 13 (UPI) -- A Virginia man made a stop at the grocery store to buy some chicken and walked out with a scratch-off lottery ticket worth $500,000. Russell Gomes of South Boston told Virginia Lottery officials he had just finished work when he stopped at the Food Lion on Halifax Road in South Boston to buy some chicken. Gomes decided to buy a Magnificent 7s lottery ticket while in the store and he scratched it off in the parking lot, revealing the $500,000 top prize. "I really didn't believe it," Gomes told lottery officials. "It feels great!" Gomes said his winnings will pay for his upcoming vacation plans. PLOVER As orange barrels line State 54 and Portage County B, businesses on either side of the highway want people to remember they are still open, and customers can still access their shops, stores and restaurants. Barrels and detours along that stretch of highway allow for fewer direct access points to businesses along the north and south of Portage County B. Some local shop and restaurant owners told the Stevens Point Journal they have seen a decline in business since construction started last month and are concerned the drop will continue for months until the project is finished late this year. Russ Ehlinger, the owner of Mission Coffee House in the Artist & Fare complex, said business is down by almost half of its normal profits in the last month. Many drivers typically avoid areas with road work and detours altogether, but Ehlinger said it's not as difficult to navigate as some people might assume. Construction on that stretch started in April and will continue through late November. The first stage from Hoover Avenue to Interstate 39 is expected to be complete in mid-June, with eastbound traffic lanes closed entirely and one westbound lane still open. The second stage will close both westbound lanes and open one eastbound lane. The intersection of Portage County B and Hoover Avenue will be closed for 14 days from mid-June through the end of the month. From July 1 through late November, reduced lanes will be open in the construction zone. Businesses along that route are still accessible, although people have to navigate some detours to get to their destinations. Construction forces the two lane two-way main byway from Interstate 39 to the heart of Plover into a one-way single lane road on April 25, 2024. The construction project will go through multiple phases and continue through late November. How are businesses doing? On the north side of Portage County B, drivers can still access businesses off of Hoover Avenue and get from Metro Market and WoodTrust Bank all the way down to AmericInn. Mike Witte, the president and CEO of the Portage County Business Council, told the Stevens Point Journal he has heard from some Plover business owners who have been concerned about the construction, including Ehlinger. On a Facebook video series called Monday Mornings with Mike, Witte features local businesses throughout Portage County. On May 6, Witte told viewers not to worry about the construction and assured people they could still access the coffee shop using Hoover Avenue. Here is a time where we need to step up for all of our businesses in Plover, and Mission Coffee being one of them, Witte said in the video. Ehlinger said this construction project caught him by surprise, and he has had to make adjustments more reactively as the project started and will continue through its various phases. He's especially concerned about the two-week stretch where the intersection of Portage County B and Hoover Avenue will be closed. He said he wonders if he should just close the shop during that time. Story continues "We're in survival mode," he said. Ehlinger said the construction has pushed him to think more creatively and outside of the normal Mission Coffee operations. The coffee shop will be hosting more events, like a monthly car show that will run from May through October. Ehlinger is also re-launching Connections Lounge, a social gathering space that offers alcohol and food after 5 p.m. at Artist & Fare. The lounge will reopen in June, partnering with Timekeeper Distillery to offer local wine, beers and spirits, along with appetizers and other food from 5 to 9 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays. Ehlinger said Mission will emphasize hosting wedding and baby showers and other events, as well. Other businesses have helped, too. Ehlinger said Steel King Industries and Skyward have started brewing Mission Coffee for their staff. That effort and loyal customers who have made more of a point to come in have helped tremendously, Ehlinger said. "Our customers have been so dedicated and loyal," Ehlinger said. "We're so appreciative and grateful." Marc Buttera, owner of Oso Brewing in Artist & Fare, said the brewery hasnt been affected by the construction project, and if drivers can get to Metro Market, they can find Oso nearby. Of the project itself, Buttera said the highway will look great when its finished. Likewise, Hometown Pharmacy has not experienced a drop in customers so far during construction. Owner Kent Udulutch said the construction has been inconvenient for both employees and customers, but the pharmacy is more of a destination for customers. Future phases of the project might make navigation more difficult, but Udulutch said customers can always call if they have concerns about routes to access the pharmacy. In the long run, the construction project will help build a better Plover, Udulutch said. Businesses on the south side of Portage County B are also seeing drops in business because detours to access them have drivers taking longer drives and more turns to reach them. They can all be accessed off of Hoover Avenue and Maple Drive, as well. Mike Masgay, owner of Mikeys, said the restaurant has definitely seen a drop in guests coming in and expects it to worsen in June as the construction project reaches further phases. The restaurants regulars still make an effort to get there, and Masgay said he appreciates the effort customers go through to navigate the detours and dine at Mikeys. Construction forces the two lane two-way main byway from Interstate 39 to the heart of Plover into a one-way single lane road on April 25, 2024. The construction project will go through multiple phases and continue through late November. Theres additional support, too While a long construction project will take its toll on local stores, shops and restaurants, business owners have seen support from village and county leaders, as well as local organizations that have made efforts to help residents and visitors find their way through detours. Steve Kunst, the administrator for the village of Plover, said the construction project has been in the works for a few years, and Portage County leaders have held multiple meetings with local business owners leading up to the start of construction. The project team has been hosting bi-weekly meetings to update business owners on the project and answer questions along the way, he said. Kunst said he attended one of the meetings held by Portage County and the Department of Transportation last year. He said it was well-attended, and many business owners shared the sentiment that while the project is disruptive to their business operations, improvements are needed, as the road surface in that area is in rough shape. One effort to help businesses has been wayfinding signs. Kunst said wayfinding signs within the road right of way are handled through the Department of Transportation. More signs are allowed during construction, as long as they follow DOT protocols. Signs on private property are handled through the village, Kunst said. The village is flexible with businesses looking for additional signs during construction, Kunst said, and village officials are working with businesses to help them be as visible as possible throughout the project. The Plover Area Convention & Visitors Bureau is also working to help visitors and residents navigate construction to access affected businesses. Malorie Paine, the CVB's executive director, said the organization is working to encourage visitors and residents to continue visiting the businesses. The group unveiled its redesigned website Thursday, aiming to better connect visitors with all local businesses, Paine said. That website also includes information about construction and how to navigate detours to access businesses, she said. More Portage County construction news: Here's how road construction will impact your travel plans in Stevens Point, Plover and Portage County Stevens Point Streetwise: Mama Elda's is for sale, The Wooden Chair delivers and more local business news Contact Caitlin at cshuda@gannett.com or follow her on Twitter @CaitlinShuda. This article originally appeared on Stevens Point Journal: Plover businesses navigate impacts of Portage County B construction The Town of Killinglys grand list increased by more than 26 percent from 2022 to 2023. The 2023 net grand list totaled $2,169,884,639, up from the 2022 net grand list total of $1,717,065,355. Real estate increased substantially from the 2022 to 2023 grand lists. Its valuation increased from $1,335,847,519 to $1,793,794,376, or 34.28 percent. Personal property and motor vehicle values both decreased from the 2022 to the 2023 grand list. Personal property was valued at $294,333,228 in the 2022 grand list and at $293,201,568 in the 2023 grand list. This equates to a 0.38% decrease. Motor vehicle valuation fell from $176,510,690 in the 2022 grand list to $169,698,823 in the 2023 grand list. The Killingly Town Hall on Main Street in Danielson PILOT agreement expiration changes the town's valuation list The 2022 grand list figures differ from the story published last year in The Bulletin, as those numbers did not include the valuation of the Lake Road Generating Power Plant, which had a net assessed value of $280,000,000 for the 2022 grand list. In years prior to the 2022 grand list, the plant paid in accordance to a payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT) agreement. The agreement expired and the town had to negotiate with the company on a new long-term agreement. While under the PILOT the plant value was added to the grand list and then exempted off the list. "Since the PILOT has expired the exemption is no longer applicable and therefore the grand list reflects the appraised value of the plant," Killingly Town Manager Mary Calorio said in an email in March 2023. "It wouldn't be appropriate to just compare last year's grand list to this year's grand list due to this change." Here are Killinglys top 10 taxpayers. Lake Road Generating Company LLC $238,314,683 assessed value, $238,297,413 real estate, $17,270 motor vehicle. This is the power plant on Lake Road owned by Dynegy Energy, which is a subsidiary of Vistra Energy. Connecticut Light and Power Co. $59,844,950 assessed value, all personal property. While it is listed as Connecticut Light and Power, Eversource Energy owns utilities assets in the town. However, there are other Connecticut Light and Power related listings under different names. Motor vehicles are listed as Connecticut Light and Power Company, assessed at $886,360, and $3,248,940 more in personal property listed as Connecticut Light and Power Company Co Gen-L. Dynegy Resources II LLC (owner of Lake Road Generating Company LLC) $41,702,588 assessed value, all personal property. Dynegy is a subsidiary of Vistra Energy, based in Irving, Texas. This company owns the currently standing power plant in Killingly, operating since 2002. Story continues Frito Lay Inc. $40,384,620, $16,316,760 real estate and $24,067,860 personal property. The Pepsico-owned company known for numerous chip brands, from its eponymous ones, to Doritos, Cheetos, and more, has a manufacturing facility in Killingly. The company owns three properties in Killingly at 107 Atta Crossing, 1886 Upper Maple Street and 628 Wildwood Way. The Atta Crossing location is a garage with a 16,000 square foot gross living area. The buildings at Upper Maple Street include the plant itself. The nine buildings have a total gross area of 454,940 square feet. The Wildwood Way property is vacant land. Dayville Property Development LLC $34,389,620, all real estate. This company owns multiple commercial properties at or around the Killingly Commons. They include 581 and 592 Hartford Pike and 1049 and 1150 Killingly Commons Drive. The total square foot gross living area for these 10 buildings is 355,752. The company also owns land at 624 Hartford Pike and 66 Railroad Avenue. Rim Properties 1 LLC $14,031,170, all real estate. This company owns the Walgreens distribution center located at 500 Forbes Road in Dayville. The distribution center is set to close on May 17. The Connecticut Water Co. $10,999,240, all personal property. The Connecticut Water Company is a public water utility that serves more than 107,000 customers in 60 Connecticut towns, including Killingly. The company also provides wastewater services to 3,000 customers in the town of Southbury, Connecticut. Yankee Gas Services Co. $10,644,910 total, $1,052,630 real estate, $9,024,620 personal property and $567,660 motor vehicle. A natural gas company owned by Eversource. LCN STP Hagerstown (Multi) LLC $10,322,990, all real estate. The building on 155 Tracy Road was a Staples Distribution Center, with a 307,955 square foot gross living area. It also owns vacant land at 39 Tracy Road. Alexanders Lake Conservation & Rentals LLC $9,958,220, all real estate. This company owns land around Alexanders Lake, as well as several buildings there. Two companies added to top 10 Rim Properties 1 LLC and Alexander's Lake Conservation & Rentals LLC were among the top 10 taxpayers in 2023. In 2022, Alexander's Lake Conservation & Rentals LLC ranked 13th among the top taxpayers in the town. Rim Properties 1 LLC was not among the top taxpayers in Killingly prior to their purchase of the Walgreens distribution center in April 2023. Rim Properties 1 LLC purchased the distribution center from PJC Realty Co. Inc., who was the town's seventh-highest taxpayer in 2022. Target Corporation was the town's 10th-highest taxpayer in 2022 and paid $8.262 million in real estate taxes on the Target store located at 2177 Killingly Commons Drive. This article originally appeared on The Bulletin: Top taxpayers in Killingly CT: 2023 grand list increased 26% over 2022 The RPLC Pakistan project, with support from both the textile and food industries, is set to be implemented in the Jhang and Sahiwal districts of Punjab and Barkhan and Lasbela districts of Balochistan. The duo explained that this initiative offers a demonstrable approach to landscapes that has already seen success in India, Brazil, and Tanzania. RPLC has been described as an innovative jurisdictional model to foster agricultural ecosystems which conserve and enhance natural resources and build community resilience whilst enabling businesses to source responsibly. The collaboratives aim to catalyse and scale a model where: Producers grow agri-commodities using natural and regenerative farming principles that restore natural resources and reduce emissions from farming systems Smallholder farmers and communities thrive through improved economic stability, enhanced livelihoods and greater participation in decision-making Businesses can source responsibly while creating inclusive supply chain relationships Speaking at the launch event, Hammad Naqi Khan, director general at WWF-Pakistan shared that the initiative addresses the long-term challenges of unsustainable agricultural practices in Pakistan. He highlighted that agriculture faced major issues of excessive use of water, chemicals and pesticides impacting the crop and soil productivity which is further aggravated by climate change, noting that this has led to increasing vulnerabilities of local communities and smallholder farmers. "To address these challenges, this initiative will enhance collaborative actions and develop innovative strategies which help farmers to develop climate resilience and improve the agricultural yield," he added. Anita Chester, head of the fashion programme at Laudes Foundation said: "We are confident in the leadership of WWF-Pakistan in driving the collaborative forward, fostering collaborations with regional players, supporting local farmers and communities to becoming self-sufficient and financially independent and galvanising communities towards better practices enabling businesses to source responsibly. "Today the RPLC is planned to cover globally, over 1 million hectares and over 300,000 farmers. In Pakistan specifically this will cover over 100,000 hectares and benefit over 50,000 farmers in regions such as Balochistan, Punjab and Sindh. The approach has already made significant strides in many regions including India, Brazil, and Tanzania, demonstrating the scalability of this approach." Recently, denim manufacturer AGI Denim launched a new regenerative cotton farm initiative to promote sustainable agriculture and environmental responsibility in cotton farms across Pakistan. Story continues "WWF, Laudes Foundation drive regenerative agriculture practices in Pakistan" was originally created and published by Just Style, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. By Andrea Shalal and Susan Heavey FREDERICKSBURG, Virginia (Reuters) -The United States could see a significant response from China following any U.S. tariff actions, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Monday ahead of expected new tariffs targeting certain sectors this week. Yellen, speaking to reporters after a broadband event in rural Fredericksburg, Virginia, said she and other U.S. officials had made clear to China they could reconfigure tariffs first imposed under former President Donald Trump to be more strategic, but that any changes would be narrowly targeted. "We've been clear that in reviewing it we may decide that it's appropriate to reconfigure what's been done in a more strategic way," she said. She declined to give any details of expected changes in U.S. tariffs on China, but said the Biden administration would ensure Chinese officials were informed ahead of any U.S. action. "President Biden believes that anything we do should be targeted to our concerns and not broad-based and hopefully we will not see a significant Chinese response. But that's always a possibility," Yellen told Bloomberg Television earlier Monday. Yellen's comments, given ahead of an event on broadband, come as U.S. President Joe Biden is expected to announce new tariffs on Tuesday that will include a large hike on levies for electric vehicles. The tariffs will also target semiconductors, solar equipment and medical supplies, sources told Reuters last week. "I have been very clear in my engagement with the Chinese that we believe there needs to be a level playing field for competition, and that we have particular concern about clean energy, semiconductors and areas where China has, through its policies, encouraged so much investment that it's led to overcapacity," she said. Yellen said she was hopeful that China would recognize that U.S. actions were targeted, and declined to speculate on any possible retaliatory measures by Beijing. "We're going to try to keep our actions targeted, and we'll see what happens," she said. Yellen said Chinese was pursuing a conscious industrial policy that targeted investments in advanced manufacturing which were leading to global overcapacities that could wipe out competition by U.S. companies. She noted that virtually all Chinese investment that had been going into its property sector was now going into advanced manufacturing, given problems in the real estate sector. She underscored U.S. interest in continuing trade with China and stabilizing relations to ensure any disagreements could be discussed. Story continues Asked by Bloomberg if the United States wants a trade war with China, Yellen said: "We're working to stabilize our economic relationship. We do not wish to disengage from China economically, but we do think that the playing field should be fair, and China engages in unfair practices like massive subsidies." (Reporting by Susan Heavey and Andrea Shalal; Editing by Doina Chiacu, Caitlin Webber and Nick Zieminski) Considering taking a defensive driving course to lower your insurance premiums? This is one auto insurance discount thats not available to all drivers, but there are other reasons why brushing up on safe driving techniques is valuable, even if it wont save you money. Lets take a deeper dive into what driving skills these courses typically teach, whether a defensive driving course can save you money, and how to determine if youre eligible for this popular car insurance discount. What is a defensive driving course? Defensive driving courses are public safety classes offered both in person and online. Typically, they combine text, audio, and video instruction and require passing a test to earn a certificate of completion. The driving skills commonly covered in a defensive driver course include: Basic road safety and crash statistics Collision avoidance techniques Your state and nationwide traffic laws Road awareness, environmental hazards, and scanning techniques How to maintain safe following and passing distance Safety equipment Vehicle emergencies Drug and alcohol education Requirements vary by state, but defensive driver training usually lasts anywhere from four to 12 hours. Although most defensive driving courses arent free, you can expect to pay a relatively affordable fee somewhere in the range of $25-$55 for an online class. In-person defensive driving courses may be more expensive, depending on your location. How much is the defensive driving insurance discount? In a majority of states, car insurance companies are required by state law to offer a discount to motorists over a certain age who complete an approved defensive driving course. The following states do not have laws mandating defensive driving discounts. If you live in one of these states, you should still contact your insurance company for more information about potential discounts. Arizona Hawaii Indiana Iowa Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Missouri Nebraska New Hampshire North Carolina Ohio South Dakota Texas Vermont Wisconsin Some insurance companies offer defensive driving discounts to all drivers who meet the age criteria and take a defensive driving course regardless of state laws. The discount varies but usually falls in the range of 5% to 20% off your auto insurance premiums for three to five years. Its also worth noting that defensive driving discounts arent just for drivers over 50. Several insurers like State Farm and MetLife provide savings to teen drivers or young drivers under 25 who complete defensive driving courses. In fact, New York drivers of all ages are usually eligible for a defensive driving discount once theyve completed the states Point and Insurance Reduction Program (PIRP). How to earn a defensive driving discount Since defensive driving is all about avoiding an at-fault accident, most insurance companies reward drivers with a discount for taking and completing an approved course. Heres how to determine if youre eligible for a defensive driving discount and how to get it applied to your insurance premiums. 1. Check to see if you qualify Two groups of drivers are usually eligible for defensive driving discounts: drivers under 25 or drivers over 50. These age groups are statistically more likely to be involved in an at-fault accident. Many states mandate discounts for certain drivers who take safe driving courses. Defensive driver discounts may have other eligibility criteria such as not having an at-fault accident for the past several years or the absence of any serious traffic violations on your driving record. You can access the GEICO database of defensive driving discounts and courses to learn more about your states criteria. 2. Decide if you'll take an in-person or online course Many vendors offer in-person classroom courses at traffic schools or other educational settings, or online courses, which can sometimes be done at your own pace. While online courses have the advantage of being cheaper and more convenient, you should check with your insurer (and state) to verify an online class qualifies for the insurance discount before you log on. A few popular options for online safe driving courses are offered by AAA, AARP, American Safety Council, and the National Safety Council. 3. Ensure the course is eligible for a defensive driving discount In some states, traffic school is optional to remove points from your license or may be part of a mandatory sentence for traffic tickets and other violations. These classes are typically different from the approved courses youd take to earn an insurance discount. To ensure the driver education course youve selected is eligible for an insurance discount, check your state laws and then contact your insurance agent to confirm the course qualifies. 4. Complete the approved defensive driving course Once you sign up for a driver safety class, the key is to show up and do the work. You may be required to answer questions or take a test to confirm your successful completion of the course. Once youve passed, request proof of completion so that you can submit documentation to your insurer. This may be an electronic certificate or a form that gets sent directly to your auto insurance company. 5. Verify the defensive driving discount has been applied You may need to follow up with your insurance company or agent directly to get the discount applied to your insurance policy. Once its been verified, that discount should be good for anywhere from three to five years. When the discount expires, you may be eligible to take a defensive driving class again and get the discount reapplied depending on your age, state of residence, and other eligibility criteria. Other benefits of taking a defensive driving course Auto insurance discounts arent the only reason to take an accident prevention course or brush up on your driving skills. Getting a refresher on avoiding accidents and becoming a safer driver offers a kind of security behind the wheel thats hard to put a price on. Even if your safety course doesnt qualify for an insurance discount, you could ultimately save money on your car insurance rates by avoiding expensive collisions, keeping your drivers license from being suspended, and learning safe driving techniques that allow you to leverage telematics or usage-based insurance at some point down the road. Frequently asked questions 1. How do I find an approved defensive driving course? To find courses offered in your state that might qualify for a good driver discount, swing by your states Department of Motor Vehicles website. For a state-by-state look at online defensive driving classes, start with the American Safety Council and the National Safety Council for more information. 2. How long are defensive driving discounts good for? Once youve completed a safe driving skills class, the insurance discount should last anywhere from three to five years. This can vary according to state laws and each insurers rules, so continue to check your premiums and contact your insurance company with questions. 3. How much does a defensive driving course cost? The cost can vary, but online defensive driving courses are typically $50 or less. Online classes tend to cost less, while in-person, full-day courses taught by an instructor usually cost more. For instance, the online defensive driving course from the New York Safety Council, referred to as NY Online Defensive Driving (IPIRP), provides a 10% discount on insurance premiums for three years, can be taken every 18 months, and rings in at a bargain price of $24.95. Fear was the only thing running through Deer Trail Fire Chief Rich Loveless mind when he lost connection with 16 of his rescue team members, which included his own son, during a rescue mission inside an abandoned missile silo on Sunday. First responders were called to the urgent aid of an 18-year-old man who sustained serious injuries after falling 30 feet into a shaft while trespassing deep inside what rescuers describe as a dark, dangerous and prohibited missile silo in eastern Arapahoe County. It was a mission that Arapahoe County Sheriff officials, firefighters and rescuers are calling a one-of-a-kind rescue one so treacherous they hope is a once-in-a-career. In total, eight teenagers trespassed into the silo around 3:30 a.m. Sunday. It wasnt until a half mile into the silo where the 18-year-old, who remains unidentified, fell into an elevator-like shaft, Tyler Loveless, a Sable Altura Fire Department firefighter who went inside the silo tunnels, said. Ive never done anything like this before in my life, he said. You train for the unexpected. Death around every corner Upon arrival around 6:30 a.m., rescue teams were approached by five teens outside of the silo two boys and three girls. They told first responders that a boy and the 18-year-old man were trapped inside of the abandoned bunker, according to an Arapahoe County Sheriffs Office news release. After a two-hour search, Tyler Loveless said rescuers heard the screams of multiple teenagers. One of them was escorted out of the silo, while another teen stood by the side of his seriously hurt friend. They were located down under a pitch black shaft, which was inaccessible without a ladder or ropes, according to the Sable Altura firefighter. The silo complex 2B DO45 is a Cold War leftover, one of six Titan 1 missile complexes in Colorado which are no longer functional. The hall inside the silo, which starts at its entrance with graffiti reading welcome to paradise, consists of a maze of tunnels and loose metal and wires, said Tyler Loveless. Literally death around every corner down there. The path, he said, was filled with potholes, obstacles and different tunnels to where we had to essentially build a bridge to cross one of the multiple water hazards down in one of the tunnels. Thankfully, the firefighter said, there was enough scrap metal we were able to piece together a bridge to cut across. When we finally did make contact, we did finally hear them yelling, and we were yelling back for them, said Travis Daniels, the other rescuer from Altura. Daniels, who used a body board to rescue the injured man, said he followed the screams of a teen who was trying to help his injured friend, adding the injured man couldnt scream for himself. Rescuers carried the 18-year-old out of the silo, onto a helicopter and to the hospital where, as of Monday afternoon, they expect the teenager to survive but hes being treated for severe injuries, according to Arapahoe County Sheriffs Office spokesperson Ginger Delgado. She called it a dangerous and a first-of-its-kind incredible rescue. All those who went down there are very lucky to be alive, said Tyler Loveless. Not just the one who fell, but every single one of them because of one wrong turn and who knows. At one point, the rescue team inside the tunnels lost connection for 30 minutes with field commanders outside. During that time, the lead commander, Deer Trail Fire Chief Rich Loveless, waited outside in fear, he said. Fear was the only thing going through my mind. Your mind just starts racing through all of the what ifs for the 16 team members inside there. One of them being my son, the fire chief said, who added there was also a two-brother team and a husband-and-wife team inside the silo during the rescue mission. Featured Local Savings It was a total team effort, he said. Firefighters from Sable Altura, Deer Trail, Agate and Bennett-Watkins fire departments were present at the scene. The father and son firefighter duo insisted trespassers not visit the silo. The dangers are more real than most people probably understand, said Chief Rich Loveless. Theres not only the danger of the noxious gases that can kill you in there from when the military had nitrogen, kerosene but theres the dangers of all of the rusty jagged metal. The Titan silo The silo the teens entered was a shelter built in the late 1950s amid fears of the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Cold War. It was operational from 1961 through 1965. The Deer Trail Titan 1 missile silo, tucked into a rural farm and ranch area, was one of the first of its kind in the country. It was shut down almost 60 years ago because it was considered obsolete. At the time, the Colorado Department of Health and Environment assessed the site and found that inside of the silo there was contamination from polychlorinated biphenols (PCBs) in the lagoon wastes. Since then, Titan Missile Complex 2B has been a dangerous playground which, through the years, lured hundreds of spelunkers and served as a creepy hangout for curious teenagers. A small group of YouTubers videotaped a twenty-minute tour of the inside in Nov. 2015. The footage, done by Meeker Extreme, started at a thinly worn trail in a large expanse of Colorado plains south of Deer Trail which led down to a cement opening built into the earth. A hand-painted sign at the entrance read Death Awaits, the footage showed. Meeker Extremes Mark Odette said that the beams inside have been shaved off to expose sharp edges, which would slow down even the most veteran of search teams. Its pretty cool in there. But its dangerous. The scariest part is the silo looking down because you cant see the bottom. You can tell there is water and unknown debris down there, said Odette. An unfun house Once inside, Odettes video revealed a dark, walled cave which wound through tunnels through the cement bunker. A flashlight beamed on reams of metal hanging from the ceilings including huge broken shock absorbers, giant tanks, dangling wires, rusty pipes, ladders and generator wheels. Makeshift metal bridges cover deep holes in the ground. Throughout the underground silo are spray painted messages from dozens of visitors who made it out. This ladder is currently out of service, says one message scrawled in black with an arrow pointing to a hole which led to an upper level. Sorry. A message underneath read: MOM? Left on the ground was an intact Walmart receipt for spray paint and jersey gloves and snack almonds, the video showed. Colorados six former Titan 1 missile complexes, including the one in Deer Trail where the teen fell early Sunday morning, are scattered around the Front Range. Four are in the Former Lowry Bombing and Gunnery Range east of Aurora and another is located south of Elizabeth according to the Colorado Department of Health and Environment. The CDPHE worked with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to evaluate and clean up the complexes. The man accused of causing the death of Fountain police officer Julian Becerra last year was found guilty of murder and several other charges on Monday. "Officer Becerra gave his life in service to our community as he and many others worked to stop three criminals who engaged in a violent crime spree," said District Attorney Michael Allen in a press conference after the conviction. Devon Bobian, 32, was the final person awaiting the end of their case among three individuals arrested for their alleged involvement in Becerra's death. Bobian, Anthony Vallejos and Daniesha Pacheco were arrested in February 2023 after stealing a car and leading multiple law enforcement agencies on a chase throughout El Paso County leading to Becerra's death, according to previous Gazette reporting. Evidence presented earlier in the trial by the prosecution showed that Bobian attempted to flee law enforcement on foot after the car pursuit, and that the attempt to flee from Bobian led to Becerra falling off a bridge to his death. The verdict came back on Monday afternoon and the 12-person jury determined that Bobian was guilty of second-degree murder, aggravated robbery, felony menacing, vehicular eluding and motor vehicle theft. Bobian's sentence has yet to be determined as Judge Chad Miller opted to move Bobian's sentencing back to allow for time to hold a habitual criminal hearing. If Bobian is determined to be a habitual offender due to his previous felony convictions, the range of his possible prison sentence could change dramatically. Allen said on Monday that the sentence range for the conviction was from 16 to 96 years, depending on the result of the habitual offender hearing. Featured Local Savings Second degree-murder is a class two felony, carrying a normal sentence range from 16 to 48 years with five years of mandatory parole, according to Allen. Being determined a habitual offender is a sentence enhancer. "We are holding this violent offender accountable to the highest extent of the law," said Allen, asking for understanding from the law enforcement community during the legal process. Court records show Bobian in March of last year pleaded guilty to weapon possession by a previous offender in two different criminal cases in Pueblo County, each charge landing him 18 months in the Department of Corrections. Bobian's sentence in those cases remains active. The two co-defendants have already been sentenced for their involvement in the case. Last year, Vallejos was sentenced to 27 years in prison after pleading guilty to one count of aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon, a Class 3 felony, for his involvement. Earlier this year, Pacheco was sentenced to eight years in the Department of Corrections after pleading guilty to an amended count of aggravated robbery with a violent crime sentence enhancer. Bobian's habitual criminal hearing was scheduled for July 3 by Miller. Bobian's sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the results of the habitual criminal hearing. Chief Justice Brian D. Boatright detailed on Friday the "tremendous amount of damage" that still exists at the Ralph L. Carr Colorado Judicial Center and disclosed he initially thought the Jan. 2 break-in was related to the Supreme Court's decision to remove Donald Trump from the state's presidential primary ballot. Brandon Olsen caused an estimated $35 million in damage when he broke into the office portion of the Carr Center overnight, fired shots from inside and reportedly set a fire. The side of the complex housing the Supreme Court and Court of Appeals was largely unaffected. The damage came two weeks after the Supreme Court ruled Trump was constitutionally disqualified from appearing on the ballot because he engaged in insurrection for attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 election. The U.S. Supreme Court subsequently reversed that decision and reinstated Trump. "I got a phone call at two in the morning and its, 'Theres an active shooter in the building.' It was just a couple of days after the Trump decision came out so I sat there on the edge of my bed and thought, 'I wonder what theyre doing to my office right now,'" said Boatright, speaking at the 2024 appellate practice update sponsored by the Colorado Bar Association. "I assumed it had a bearing on the Trump case. If youre willing to shoot open glass, theres a pretty clear path up to our offices," continued Boatright, who was one of the three justices to dissent from the state Supreme Court's decision. He added that Olsen's conduct was unrelated to the case, as Olsen was "having some kind of an episode" at the time. Olsen stands accused of four felonies and one misdemeanor, including arson. Earlier this year, judicial leaders told the legislature the damage to the office tower would cost an estimated $35 million to repair. Boatright clarified in his recent remarks that employees would be able to return to non-damaged floors "hopefully by the end of the summer." Featured Local Savings "Its a tremendous amount of damage. Theyre having to go through and look at the steel structure in the building to make sure the fire retardant wasnt taken off," said Boatright. He ticked through the various factors that contributed to the destruction: The sprinkler system ran for about three hours and caused large amounts of water to pass down through the building. Olsen also allegedly used fire extinguishers, releasing chemicals into the air. Then there was the fire itself. "One of the things weve had difficulty around is getting an environmental report on the heating and air conditioning system. Because, again, it had smoke, chemicals and potentially water in there. We want to make sure theres not mold," said Boatright, adding that he was awaiting the results of the environmental testing. The estimate that employees of affected agencies, like the Colorado Attorney General's Office, would be able to return to non-damaged floors by the end of the summer, Boatright elaborated, was predicated on the air conditioning system being "fairly clean." "If it turns out the heating and air conditioning vents need more detailed cleaning, then it could be even longer," he said. Boatright thanked the Colorado Bar Association for permitting displaced agencies to use office space at its building across the street from the Carr Center. Editor's note: The Denver District Attorney's Office clarified it subsequently added a charge to Olsen's criminal case. He now stands accused of five counts. Justice Melissa Hart suggested on Friday that police officers interrogating suspects in custody should recognize the "very, very thin line" they walk by making misleading representations during questioning, running the risk that courts will find the suspect's confession involuntary. "Bottom line: Officers should, I think, tread carefully when they are thinking about whether to use misrepresentation to try to induce someone to confess. Because the line is so hard to draw," said Hart, speaking at the 2024 appellate practice update sponsored by the Colorado Bar Association. Her remarks centered on a June 2023 decision by the state Supreme Court in People v. Smiley. There, two Thornton detectives traveled to New Mexico to take the fingerprints of Thorvyn Bullcalf Evan Smiley, who was the only suspect in an unsolved murder. The detectives repeatedly told Smiley, "You're not in trouble" and "You are leaving here today." They also said they needed to provide Smiley a Miranda warning "just because we are from out of state and stuff like that." Smiley agreed to speak and confessed to the murder. The detectives then arrested him. By 4-3, the Supreme Court barred Adams County prosecutors from using the confession as evidence. The majority concluded the detectives were "engaging in a form of psychological coercion" to trick Smiley by promising he would leave on his own accord if he talked to them. "I wanna be clear. It was a 4-3 decision. This was not a slam dunk," said Hart, who was part of the majority. "This was three very smart people on my court three people whose judgment I trust absolutely thought that this was not coercive. That this was completely reasonable. And it was the kind of misrepresentation police officers are allowed to make." She noted police are generally allowed to make false statements while interrogating suspects, but "four of us thought this was overreach. And that overreach played a significant role in inducing the defendant to confess. So, it was not a voluntary confession." The Innocence Project has estimated that false confessions, which can be the product of coercive interrogations, were a factor in 29% of DNA-based exonerations. Last year, Colorado legislators enacted a law making statements by juvenile suspects inadmissible by default if law enforcement acted deceptively. There are exceptions, however, that would still permit prosecutors to use statements as evidence, notwithstanding the deception. Featured Local Savings Hart said the key factor in Smiley was the detectives' suggestion that the suspect would be fine even if he decided to give up his right to silence. She acknowledged the decision hinged on a "very, very thin line." "Trying to figure out what makes something involuntary is not easy. I say that humbly, in recognition that for law enforcement trying to do their job in the moment, trying to figure out whats appropriate, that is not easy," Hart said. "What hangs in the balance is a persons freedom. So, youre balancing the actions of law enforcement and the choices theyre having to make, a persons freedom and their constitutional rights. None of this is easy." The Supreme Court's ruling in Smiley occurred through a mid-case, or "interlocutory," appeal. Although the Supreme Court typically hears cases after the Court of Appeals has rendered its own decision, prosecutors are allowed to immediately appeal trial judges' decisions to suppress evidence directly to the Supreme Court. Hart said she was surprised when she initially joined the court that prosecutors were overwhelmingly winning their interlocutory appeals. Then she learned district attorneys did not seek the Supreme Court's review of every suppression decision from trial judges. "Its only really when prosecutors think that a mistake was made that they bring these interlocutory appeals," explained Hart. "The reason we end up frequently reversing district courts is because its only really when prosecutors think mistakes were made by the court." However, Hart disclosed that "different jurisdictions have different reputations," and she is more likely to presume a trial judge mistakenly excluded evidence in a jurisdiction that rarely seeks interlocutory appeals. She also lobbed gentle criticism at her dissenting colleagues, and warned lawyers not to rely on dissenting opinions generally. "Dont read dissents. Dont do it," she said. "I read the dissent in Smiley and it portrays the facts completely differently. They lost. The majority won. And if you start reading the facts in dissents, you end up feeling like, what happened?" Because majority opinions dictate what the law is, "ultimately, you need to move forward with what the majority said," Hart concluded. Texas, Oklahoma, 22 other states, excluding Colorado, and oil giant Continental Resources filed a petition in federal court in claiming that a new Environmental Protection Agency rule regulating methane standards for oil and gas operations illegally expands EPAs authority beyond what the Clean Air Act (CAA) authorizes. The final rule, published in the Federal Register March 8, is intended to mitigate climate destabilizing pollution and protect human health by reducing greenhouse gas and volatile organic compound emissions from the oil and gas industry. The petition, filed last month, calls the new rules arbitrary and capricious in part because EPA is applying the new emissions standards to existing oil and gas infrastructure something thats never been done before and in part because the rule allegedly usurps state authority to regulate oil and gas emissions. According to Denver environmental attorney Paul Seby, who represents Continental Resources, the only industry representative to join the case, the first order of business is to obtain a ruling on a motion to stay enforcement of the rule pending resolution of the case. The reason 24 states have challenged the rule is because the states are supposed to have the power to create emissions regulations within their own states that the EPA is restricted to reviewing and accepting or rejecting, Seby said. But, they argue, the EPA is now claiming federal jurisdiction to dictate how oil and gas producers must control emissions and the standards they must meet. Continentals petition says the rule also illegally delegates enforcement authority to private citizens and organizations. Environmental groups argue that having citizens monitoring oil and gas emissions is a way to force companies to reduce their emissions of methane. Methane is a greenhouse gas that traps more heat than CO2, making it 80 times more harmful than CO2, according to the UN Environment Programme. The rule requires oil and gas owners and operators to provide information necessary for the purposes of carrying out the CAA to the public and further grants private third parties the power to inspect facilities and enforce EPA regulations by reporting suspected emissions violations. Featured Local Savings It is well established that federal agencies may not delegate their statutory authorities to private parties, according to the Continental brief, citing a 1996 U.S. Supreme Court decision. EPA plainly lacks authority under the CAA to delegate its monitoring duties to private third parties. While the CAA says EPA can delegate its authorities to states, which is what it has been doing, the new Super Emitter Program established in the rule turns this delicate balance on its head, duplicating and conflicting with existing state regulations and policymaking, according to Continentals brief. The Super Emitter program sets up private individuals and organizations as detectives who can file complaints whenever they perceive something they think violates the federal standards. That, says Continental, makes the program ripe for abuse through false or mistaken reports that cost the company money to investigate and refute, and that provides no substantial penalties for false reporting. EPA is setting up a one-size-fits-all standard that illegally supplants the standards set by the individual states, Seby said. The Final Rules presumptive emission standards violate the statutory structure of the Clean Air Act because they impose mandatory nationwide one-size-fits-all presumptive emissions standards that leave the states no flexibility in regulating existing sources contrary to the cooperative federalism required by CAA Section 111(d), says Continental Resources brief. In a related matter, the Center for Biological Diversity released a statement Wednesday, saying that it intends to file a lawsuit against the EPA claiming it has not acted quickly enough to revoke oil and gas permits issued by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment for four oil and gas wells in Weld County. Colorado is effectively giving the oil and gas industry a free pass to pollute under illegal permits, said Jeremy Nichols, a senior advocate at the Center. We need the EPA to intervene to ensure public health and the environment comes first and put an end to Colorados dangerous foot-dragging. By Marisa Taylor and Steve Stecklow (Reuters) - SpaceX is building launch facilities, office buildings and even a shopping center in rural Texas, as billionaire Elon Musk's space venture rapidly expands its rocket and satellite business across the Lone Star state. But a Reuters review of Texas property records shows that SpaceX and its contractors can be far slower to pay builders and suppliers than they are to break ground. Unpaid bills and finger-pointing among contractors, Reuters found, have led many construction-industry businesses to file liens against SpaceX properties in efforts to get compensated. The result, several of those businesses told Reuters, is a reluctance to work on SpaceX-related projects again. "If they were to call me today, I'd tell them to fuck off," said Brian Rozelle, an owner of Hydroz Energy Services LLC. The excavating business was hired by SpaceX to clear storm drains at a facility near Brownsville, the south Texas city where much of the company's development has taken place. Until about two weeks after Hydroz filed a lien last June months after it had performed the work SpaceX didn't pay its $19,214 bill. "We're not some hundred-million-dollar company," Rozelle said. "It was hard on us." SpaceX didn't respond to requests from Reuters for comment on the liens and complaints from subcontractors and suppliers. Texas property records show that Hydroz is one of more than two dozen companies that have filed at least 72 liens since 2019 against sites developed by SpaceX and its contractors. Combined, Reuters found, the liens have sought payments totaling more than $2.5 million. Reuters couldn't determine for every lien whether outstanding bills were owed by SpaceX or by one of its contractors who commissioned work or materials on its behalf. Either way, the liens are a legal mechanism through which creditors can secure claims against SpaceX for work done at its properties: Under Texas law, landowners can be held responsible for any unpaid bills related to construction on their real estate. Even with such legal provisions, property and construction industry experts say collecting can be difficult, especially for small companies without the resources or legal know-how to force bigger businesses to pay up. At times, small businesses may also put up with delays in hopes they'll ultimately get more work from a larger enterprise. "SpaceX is the big bully on the playground," said Carlos Cascos, an accountant and former Texas secretary of state. Previously, as a county official in Brownsville, Cascos, a Republican, voted to approve SpaceX developments there. "They get away with this stuff because people want to do business with them." Musk, one of the world's richest people and best-known entrepreneurs, has been accused of failing to pay creditors before. After his 2022 purchase of the social media platform Twitter, now known as X, he faced a wave of lawsuits from contractors alleging unpaid bills. Many have since been settled. An X spokesperson didn't respond to a request for comment. For SpaceX, the roughly $2.5 million in liens is tiny compared with the size of its business. Since its founding over two decades ago, the company has steadily won contracts from clients including U.S. space, defense and intelligence agencies. It is now one of the most valuable privately held ventures in the United States, valued by some financial analysts at more than $180 billion. Through 2022, according to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the agency paid SpaceX at least $11.8 billion for various projects and services. In 2021, SpaceX signed a classified, $1.8 billion contract with a U.S. intelligence agency to develop a network of spy satellites. Reuters examined SpaceX and other Musk manufacturing businesses in a series of reports last year. "DIDDLY-SQUAT" SpaceX's recent expansion has benefited several rural areas in Texas particularly around Boca Chica, a community east of Brownsville, in Cameron County. With the help of a 10-year tax abatement from the county, SpaceX broke ground there in 2014. Near the mouth of the Rio Grande and next to the Gulf of Mexico, Boca Chica soon became a hub for SpaceX rocket launches. It built a launch pad for its Starship rocket system, taller than the Statue of Liberty, and new buildings related to rocket manufacturing. SpaceX has remodeled homes and plans to build others. According to filings with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, it has plans for facilities including a shopping center and a $100 million office complex nearby. Cameron County officials didn't respond to requests for comment about the developments, SpaceX's impact on the local economy or the liens. SpaceX has brought thousands of new jobs to the region and a boon for some builders. The liens, though, reflect frustration for others. To understand the extent of the claims against SpaceX by Texas construction businesses, Reuters reviewed liens filed over the past five years in Cameron, Bastrop and McLennan counties, where most of the company's recent developments have been built. The claimants range from small businesses, like excavator Hydroz, to big companies like Martin Marietta Materials Inc, a construction supply giant based in North Carolina. At least 41 of the 72 liens were filed this year. Some of the liens have succeeded. SpaceX, the records show, paid Martin Marietta the $557,611 it claimed in March 2023, about two months after the supplier filed the lien. Martin Marietta didn't respond to emails or phone calls from Reuters seeking comment. But many of the liens reviewed by Reuters remain outstanding. That may be because liens sometimes become effective only when a property goes up for sale, blocking a transaction until the claim is settled. "The liens don't mean diddly-squat to SpaceX because they're not going anywhere anytime soon," said Cascos, the former secretary of state and Cameron County official. Even some big companies are struggling to get paid. CMC Construction Services, a Texas-based materials supplier, has 26 locations and a legal department. Starting in July 2022, CMC supplied $129,592 worth of materials for a SpaceX project in Bastrop, near Austin, the state capital. Although CMC filed a lien in January 2023, it still hasn't been paid, a company official told Reuters. Osburn Contractors LLC, the contractor to whom CMC sold the supplies, itself has filed a lien citing an unpaid bill by SpaceX, lien records show. Filed last September, the lien seeks $67,289 for concrete work for a related SpaceX project in McGregor, McLennan County. Michael Correra, the Osburn representative who filed that claim, declined to comment. Sometimes the chain of suppliers and subcontractors confounds the very companies involved in the SpaceX projects. GC Steel & Accessories LLC, a family-owned company near Brownsville, has been waiting more than 18 months for payment after supplying steel bars and other materials for SpaceX rocket facilities. According to lien records and Sylvia Garza, one of GC's owners, the materials were to be used in storage sites for Raptors, a type of SpaceX engine, and a "blast wall," a barrier used to protect sensitive areas from explosions. GC supplied the materials between August and October 2022 to another subcontractor, RGV Five Star Concrete LLC. After repeated efforts to get paid, GC last December filed the first of five liens against SpaceX property, claiming a total of $99,591.25. "It's a lot of money for our company," Garza told Reuters. "We can't reach anyone to pay." RGV Five Star Concrete, for its part, told Reuters it couldn't pay GC because it, too, had gone unpaid by yet another contractor involved in the SpaceX project. "We didn't have money to pay," said Nancy Garcia, one of the concrete company's owners. Garcia declined to identify the other contractor. Reuters couldn't determine whether SpaceX had paid any company for work or goods that included the materials GC supplied. Garza said the lack of accountability has strained finances for GC, employer of a dozen workers. "I don't care who has the money," she said. "We never got paid." (Reported by Marisa Taylor in Washington and Steve Stecklow in London. Additional reporting by Mike Scarcella and Joey Roulette in Washington and Veronica Gabriela Cardenas in Brownsville, Texas. Edited by Paulo Prada.) The outsourcing of production factories to locations overseas from companies' home countries has been a hallmark practice of multinational brands since the 1990s and is lauded by some economists as advancing the well-being of people in both the home country and the production country. However, not all of the benefits attributed to this globalization practice necessarily accrue, and there are concerns about outsourcing that are not readily addressed within the formulations of economic theory. First, a home company that separates its brand and its product as completely as possible and places the brand as paramount hardly sends a message that product quality is central to its operations; more likely, all of its innovation attempts will focus on branding, and such a company will settle with a product that is merely (and maybe barely) good enough. Dismissing this point, economists may cite the law of comparative advantage: outsourcing allows both companies involved to pursue greater profit and well-being according to their capabilities. Specifically, workers in the companies of manufacture should be paid more than they would be paid otherwise, even if they are paid less than factory workers in the original country; meanwhile, workers in the home country should be pushed to increase their skills and education and move to higher-skill jobs that are less available in the country of manufacture. Whether displaced workers in the home country acquire skills and make this shift in any reasonable timeframe is hardly demonstrated, however, and while outsourcing may create value by lowering costs, it has been asserted that workers in the countries of production are making no more after outsourcing than previously and hence in effect are enjoying none of the new profit. The CEO of one outsourcing company, when pressed on this point by a reporter, explained that, as the employees of those factories were not employees of his company, he could not be responsible for them. He asked the reporter whether journalists should be expected to know, and be responsible for, the manufacturing conditions of the paper on which their articles are printed. This comment, as much as it defends corporations, highlights the broadest form of worry about outsourcing: in global supply chains with increasingly distant and opaque connections, responsibility is too easy to shirk and maybe even impossible to determine. Show Spoiler C 1. The primary purpose of the passage is to A. explain why a particular business strategy has been less successful than was once anticipated B. propose an alternative to a particular business strategy that has inadvertently caused damage C. present a concern about the possible consequences of pursuing a particular business strategy D. make a case for applying a particular business strategy on a larger scale than is currently practiced E. suggest several possible outcomes of companies' failure to understand the economic impact of a particular business strategy Show Spoiler D 2. The passage mentions which of the following as a possible consequence of companies' outsourcing of production factories? A. The companies may be able to produce a greater number of products by lowering prices. B. The companies may advance the well-being of people in both the home country and the production country. C. The companies may send a message that product quality is central to their operations. D. The companies may benefit from lower costs while workers in the country of production fail to benefit. E. The companies may exploit workers who have little legal recourse or opportunity to bargain collectively. Show Spoiler B 3. According to the passage, which of the following is most likely a motivation of a company that outsources its production factories? A. It is motivated to shirk responsibilities that are clearly its own. B. It is motivated to focus on marketing its brand and somewhat ignore the quality of its product. C. It is motivated to sell its existing product lines at lower prices. D. It is motivated to capture all of the economic benefit that accrues from switching to outsourcing, leaving none for the workers involved in the country of production. E. It is motivated to ensure that certain workers move to higher-skill jobs in a reasonable time frame. A. explain why a particular business strategy has been less successful than was once anticipatedB. propose an alternative to a particular business strategy that has inadvertently caused damageC. present a concern about the possible consequences of pursuing a particular business strategyD. make a case for applying a particular business strategy on a larger scale than is currently practicedE. suggest several possible outcomes of companies' failure to understand the economic impact of a particular business strategyA. The companies may be able to produce a greater number of products by lowering prices.B. The companies may advance the well-being of people in both the home country and the production country.C. The companies may send a message that product quality is central to their operations.D. The companies may benefit from lower costs while workers in the country of production fail to benefit.E. The companies may exploit workers who have little legal recourse or opportunity to bargain collectively.A. It is motivated to shirk responsibilities that are clearly its own.B. It is motivated to focus on marketing its brand and somewhat ignore the quality of its product.C. It is motivated to sell its existing product lines at lower prices.D. It is motivated to capture all of the economic benefit that accrues from switching to outsourcing, leaving none for the workers involved in the country of production.E. It is motivated to ensure that certain workers move to higher-skill jobs in a reasonable time frame. BOONES MILL The most visible scars from the Mountain Valley Pipeline are gone now from the pastoral property that Anne and Steve Bernard call home. But the Bernards remain troubled by what they cant see. Bottom line: Im scared to death of that pipe sitting out there, Steve Bernard said of the buried steel pipe, through which highly pressurized natural gas could soon begin flowing along a route that passes about 150 feet from the couples white frame house and adjacent art studio. Fears of a pipe failure and fiery explosion, long held by the Bernards and other residents along the controversial projects 303-mile path, have intensified with a series of recent events. On the morning of May 1, a section of the pipe on nearby Bent Mountain ruptured during hydrostatic testing, a process that entails running water at high pressure through the 42-inch diameter pipe to detect any leaks or flaws before it goes into service. Nine days earlier, Mountain Valley sought permission from federal regulators to begin operations by June 1, a request that remains pending. Mountain Valley sought final approval for the project even as it worked to complete inspections and repairs required by the U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, which last year expressed concerns about the pipes integrity. And at the beginning of this year, Mountain Valley submitted a report to PHMSA that details the first round of testing. The report contains inadequate information about what criteria the company used in deciding which sections of the pipe needed repairs, according to the Pipeline Safety Trust, a nonprofit watchdog group of the industry and its regulators. The report, obtained by The Roanoke Times through a Freedom of Information Act request, shows that tests run by Mountain Valley revealed about 70 indications, or signs of possible flaws with the pipe. The tests were conducted last October, November and December. Most of them were on sections of the pipeline in West Virginia. Of the 70-some indications, further inspection found a need for about 15 cutouts, or the removal and replacement of part of the pipe. Other repairs included reapplying a protective coating on the pipes exterior. Bill Caram, executive director of Pipeline Safety Trust, wrote in an April 11 letter to PHMSA that he hoped steps had been taken to determine how Mountain Valley decided which anomalies needed to be remediated or cut out, and which were determined to be acceptable. If not, he wrote, that raises serious questions about the effectiveness of the consent order in keeping communities along the pipeline safe from leaks and failures. PHMSA had not responded to the letter by May 10, the Pipeline Safety Trust said. It just gives me chillsFor the Bernards, theres yet another concern. In July 2018, not long after construction of Mountain Valley began, crews showed up on their property off Grassy Hill Road, a stretch of open land at the foot of Cahas Mountain. Workers dug a trench, placed a section of pipe in it, and left without covering the pipe with dirt. The next day, the Bernards saw part of the pipe floating in water that had filled the trench in a low-lying pasture. One end of the pipe remained welded to a section that had been buried. The other end emerged from the water at an angle. For about a year, the pipe remained in suspended animation, rising and falling as much as 2 feet as the water level fluctuated. Eventually, crews returned to pump water from the trench, remove the pipe, reapply a coating designed to prevent corrosion, and bury it again, the Bernards say. They wonder if that could have weakened the pipe. Opponents of Mountain Valley say such incidents were not uncommon, as work was stalled repeatedly by lawsuits that successfully challenged government permits issued for a pipeline that starts in West Virginia and passes through the Virginia counties of Giles, Craig, Montgomery, Roanoke, Franklin and Pittsylvania. The concern is that as sections of uninstalled pipe sat for years along the right-of-way or in storage yards, exposure to the elements weakened a protective coating designed to prevent corrosion of the steel once the pipe was buried. In a consent order last October, PHMSA directed Mountain Valley to test the pipe, reapply the coating and make other repairs as needed to ensure that the public, property and the environment are protected from the potential risk. At their home last week, the Benards talked about how peaceful life has become, after construction crews finally packed up and moved out. The noise, dust and distractions are gone. And grass is growing along the pipeline right-of-way, which for years had been marked by bare earth and broken ground. Theyre done and gone, Steve Bernard said. But as for the buried pipe, we know its there and its always on our minds that something might happen. And what that might be, it could be catastrophic. It would be, Anne Bernard interjected. And it just gives me chills. The pipe fails during tests At the top of Bent Mountain, where the pipeline crosses under U.S. 221 and the Blue Ridge Parkway, the unsettling event happened at about 10 a.m. May 1. A section of the pipe ruptured during pressure testing, releasing water that was being pumped through it to test for leaks or weaknesses before it begins to carry natural gas. The failure quickly became the latest rallying cry of pipeline opponents, who for the past six years have raised concerns about environmental issues such as erosion caused by digging trenches for the pipe along steep mountain slopes and the pollution to be emitted by the natural gas it will transport to markets along the East Coast. Mountain Valley says it was an isolated incident. The breach happened when water was being pumped through the pipe at pressures higher than what will be used to transport natural gas, according to Todd Normane, senior vice president of Equitrans Midstream Corp., the lead partner in a joint venture of five energy companies building the pipeline, now estimated to cost $7.85 billion. Mountain Valley assumed full accountability for the water release and any environmental disruption, Normane wrote in a letter posted Friday to the online docket of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the lead agency overseeing the project. Sediment-laden water that made its way to nearby streams dissipated within 24 hours, he said. Since the incident, hydrotesting on additional sections of the pipe including a replaced segment where the rupture occurred has been performed successfully, Mountain Valley says. The company is investigating what it says is the first such issue during pressure testing of about 269 miles of the pipelines route. No cause has been disclosed. Pipeline Safety Trust, in a recent letter to FERC, wrote that the failure is disturbing, given the explosive risk of such a large-diameter, high pressure pipeline. It is too early to tell if this is a sign of a larger problem on the pipeline or an isolated point of weakness, Erin Sutherland, a lawyer for the organization, wrote. However, Pipeline Safety Trust believes that FERC should be on notice about this failure. A FERC spokeswoman declined to say whether the incident will be considered in the agencys decision on whether to grant Mountain Valleys request to begin operations. We cannot and do not project what the Commission will say or when the Commission will act on any matter before it, Mary ODriscoll wrote in an email. The company has portrayed the incident as an example of how its inspections and tests are working to protect the environment and the public. Spokeswoman Natalie Cox wrote in an email Friday: Mountain Valley is committed to the safe and responsible construction and operation of the MVP project and is moving forward, in coordination with appropriate state and federal agencies, to complete testing and satisfy all legal and regulatory requirements necessary for the project to enter service in the coming weeks. A dearth of details Since federal safety officials first raised concerns about the integrity of Mountain Valleys pipe last summer, few details about the tests required by PHMSA have been released to the public. In November, the agency declined to share information with The Roanoke Times, suggesting the newspaper make an open records request. It took PHMSA nearly five months before it provided a 45-page report it had received from Mountain Valley. Portions of the document were redacted. Some of the withheld records had been deemed confidential by Mountain Valley. A PHMSA official wrote in an April 3 letter to the newspaper that the company had been notified of the FOIA request and been given an opportunity to comment. The companys first quarterly report, dated Jan. 3, documented the results of two types of tests: one performed by a whats called a caliper tool that runs along the inside of the buried pipe to check for dents and other weaknesses, the other a direct current voltage gradient survey that examines the pipe from ground level. Most of the information contained in the report dealt with tests run last year, almost all of them in West Virginia. Asked for details about more recent inspections and repairs in Virginia, neither PHMSA nor Mountain Valley had offered any information by Friday. The safety agency and the company also did not respond to e-mailed questions that sought reaction to Pipeline Safety Trusts concerns about the report, such as its failure to provide the criteria used for Mountain Valleys decisions. As for what has been released highly technical descriptions of about 70 indications of possible flaws with the pipe pipeline opponents expressed both concern and a desire for more explanation. Im alarmed by the number of indications, and would hope for more information in terms of public transparency about what they mean, how they were resolved and what PHMSA is doing about them, said Jessica Sims, Virginia field director of Appalachian Voices. In a letter to FERC, Pipeline Safety Trust raised concerns about the dearth of data released to date. Much distrust and apprehension about this project has arisen from the lack of transparency to the public, Sutherland wrote. FERC should not take MVPs word that it has reached full compliance with the consent agreement, and instead solicit direct and public input from PHMSA on the matter. Caram, the head of the group, said it was difficult to compare the number of indications to those found with other pipelines. Thats because the consent order required Mountain Valley to conduct more testing than what is normally required. We are grateful for those requirements, he said. I hate to think what could have happened without this remedial action. After repeated requests, PHMSA officials agreed to attend a community meeting in March with residents of the Bent Mountain community. But no details about test results were provided, according to Roberta Bondurant of Preserve Bent Mountain. We felt pretty jerked around by this agency, Bondurant said. It certainly raised concerns, and it didnt go a long way in building trust. Our whole world was blown up For the past 44 years, the Bernards have lived a tranquil life of being artists and enjoying the nature that surrounds them. We had this Eden here for decades, Anne Bernard said We had this view. No neighbors. It was quiet. Then all of a sudden, this war of the worlds type situation happened. You can see the equipment coming in, its like some kind of dinosaur or alien creature coming in here and making a lot of noise and tearing stuff up. All of a sudden our whole world was blown up. With the commotion too close to ignore, they turned to their work as a way of coping. Steve drew a series of abstract pieces of construction workers, depicted as the pipers at the gate. Anne painted a self-portrait of herself screaming in despair at what was happening around her. I tell people I feel like a whipped dog, she said. For years, she hoped that strong opposition and legal action would stop Mountain Valley from intruding into her home. Even after the company used its power of eminent domain to take the Bernards land, and after construction began, they watched closely as the project struggled with rising costs and delays. Then came a law passed by Congress last year, which found the project in the national interest and fast-tracked its completion. I feel like my hope has been exhausted, after all these years, that anything is going to stop it, Anne said. Just as the Bernards were beginning to accept that reality, news broke earlier this month of the ruptured pipeline not far from their home. That makes it even scarier, she said. The more you know, the worse it is. An Oracle employee has poked fun at Google Cloud after it emerged that the company had mistakenly deleted the private cloud environment it had supplied to Australian superannuation company UniSuper. Killian Lynch, a product manager at Oracle, published a tweet that said, "shameless plug if you're building AI and need cheap GPUs check out @OracleCloud (we won't delete your company)." Lynch's tweet was reposted by Sentinel Labs executive director Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade, a well-known and respected security practitioner, who added a GIF of Ryan Gosling covering his mouth and guffawing. The fact that Google Cloud had wiped out the private cloud environment it had built for UniSuper was admitted by Google Cloud chief executive Thomas Kurian on 8 May. However the admission, in a joint statement with his UniSuper counterpart. Peter Chun, was buried in a FAQ on the UniSuper site and there was no way for a direct link to be provided. While making another comment, Lynch referred to a tweet by cloud security historian Scott Piper that read: "Google Cloud accidentally deleted a company's entire cloud environment (UniSuper, an investment company, which manages $80 B). The company had back-ups in another region, but GCP deleted those too. Luckily, they had yet more back-ups on another provider." Piper was quoting fromin Guardian Australia. Lynch's second tweet read: "The DBA who suggested multicloud coming into a work on Monday", accompanied by a short video of an unknown man dancing in front a crowd and revving them up. News of the deletion of the UniSuper cloud environment comes at a time when Google Cloud is trying to boost its presence in the global cloud market. Oracle is a minor player in this space, with Microsoft and Amazon being the two 800-lb gorillas that dominate. Whether Kurian will pay a price for what is a major embarrassment for Google Cloud remains to be seen. Despite its claims to technological competence, Google has made errors of similar magnitude in the past. In January 2009, the company blacklisted every search result for about 40 minutes, claiming they all contained malware. The DBA who suggested multicloud coming into work Monday pic.twitter.com/Srav27avRm https://t.co/AocfgSd5Ny Killian Lynch (@Killianlynchh) May 10, 2024 Marissa Mayer, vice-president of Search Products and User Experience at the time, explained: "Google flags search results with the message 'This site may harm your computer' if the site is known to install malicious software in the background or otherwise surreptitiously. "We do this to protect our users against visiting sites that could harm their computers. We maintain a list of such sites through both manual and automated methods. "We periodically update that list and released one such update to the site this morning [31 January 2009]. Unfortunately (and here's the human error), the URL of '/' was mistakenly checked in as a value to the file and '/' expands to all URLs. "Since we push these updates in a staggered and rolling fashion, the errors began appearing between 6:27am [11.27pm AEST] and 6:40am PST and began disappearing between 7:10am and 7:25am, so the duration of the problem for any particular user was approximately 40 minutes." The organisation that builds Rocky Linux, an enterprise Linux distribution that emerged in the wake of Red Hat's decision to block availability of its source code to the public, has announced an initiative called CIQ Bridge which it describes as "a lifeline for enterprises still using CentOS Linux 7". CentOS 7 reaches its end-of-life on 30 June. This project which produced an enterprise Linux distribution, was bought by Red Hat in 2014, but then shut down in December 2020, leaving many users angry. The distribution was basically Red Hat's Enterprise Linux without the trademarks, the only copyrighted portion. In June 2023, Red Hat, which was bought by IBM in 2019, tightened its grip on RHEL source code, and said it would make source code available only to its customers. CIQ said in its pitch that businesses could "gain peace of mind with up to three years of additional life for CentOS 7 beyond the official EOL, covering critical security updates for CVSS scores of 7 and above". And it added, "When you're ready, CIQ offers expert guidance to smoothly transition your infrastructure to CIQ-supported Rocky Linux, ensuring minimal disruption to your operations." As iTWire reported last month, Yuriy Kohut, an engineer with the ELevate project at AlmaLinux, has already devised a plan for migration away from CentOS, beginning with version 6 itself. The CentOS Stream, set up in December 2020 by Red Hat and which is upstream to RHEL, is now the only way to obtain source code. This source would, however, always predate the RHEL source and thus be out of date. Red Hat's community distribution, Fedora, would be upstream to CentOS Stream which would mean it is even more outdated. Given these restrictive actions by Red Hat, the biggest open source company, it is but natural that users of CentOS would be a little edgy as the EOL date approaches. The CIQ statement said: "Rocky Linux emerged in 2021 as a formidable alternative to CentOS, built with enterprise-grade performance in mind. As the founding support and services partner of Rocky Linux, CIQ is uniquely positioned to provide enterprise-level support, making your migration as seamless as possible." Apart from AlmaLinux and Rocky Linux, SUSE, the second biggest open source company, has said it would invest more than US$10 million (A$14.97 million) to fork the publicly available RHEL source code and make it available to world+dog with no restrictions. Israel renews massive strikes on northern Gaza, thousands displaced again Xinhua) 08:09, May 13, 2024 GAZA, May 12 (Xinhua) -- Israeli warplanes bombed several areas in the northern Gaza Strip on Sunday, while fierce clashes erupted between the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) and Israeli forces carrying out fresh operations in those areas. Palestinian security sources told Xinhua that Israel carried out heavy air and artillery strikes on residential buildings and agricultural lands in Jabalia refugee camp, its nearby Jabalia city, the Beit Lahia city, and some neighborhoods in Gaza City. Gaza Civil Defense Spokesman Mahmoud Basel said in a statement that Israeli forces have intensified strikes on those residential homes where civilians remained inside. He said casualties were reported from Jabalia and nearby areas targeted by the Israeli strikes but "it is difficult for our teams to reach them due to the intensity of gunfire." Meanwhile, Israeli tanks and military vehicles went deeper from the eastern outskirts to advance a new assault on northern Gaza, according to unnamed Palestinian sources. The advancement came after fierce clashes since last night between members of the Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, and Israeli forces in the area. Since Sunday morning, the Israeli strikes have prompted a large number of Palestinian families to flee westward, carrying belongings on foot or cramped in vehicles. "The bombing is everywhere," said Hajja Zuhriya Salman, who clenched a bag and several plastic bags in the streets. Escaping from their home in a hurry, her grandchildren walked barefoot. "We are escaping from death to death, and there is no safe place in Gaza," she lamented. "It is the third time for me to leave home since the beginning of the war, and we hope to end the war as soon as possible, which has been, in more than 200 days, a nightmare for us." On Saturday, the Israeli army called on all residents and displaced persons in Jabalia and the surrounding areas to immediately head to shelters west of Gaza City, warning them against a nighttime operation targeting Hamas elements in the area. The Israeli army started the operation in Jabalia based on intelligence information regarding Hamas's attempts to reassemble its infrastructure and activists in the area. It said in a statement on Saturday that before the entry of its forces, fighter jets belonging to the Israeli Air Force and additional aircraft targeted about 30 "terrorist" targets in the area and killed many Hamas "terrorists." In a separate statement on Sunday, the army said it continued operations in the Zaitoun area in northern Gaza, and during the past day, a number of "terrorists" were killed in close combat and aerial raids while their weapons and infrastructure were dismantled. The Al-Qassam Brigades said Sunday that its elements "target the invading enemy forces east of Jabalia camp in northern Gaza with mortar shells." It said in another statement that its fighters succeeded in shooting down an anti-tank missile through a drone at a Merkava tank east of the camp, while two other tanks were targeted with "Al-Yassin 105" shells. The Israeli military said Saturday that its operations were continuing in specific areas in eastern Rafah and on the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing, having dismantled a number of tunnel openings and rocket launchers. It also identified and eliminated 10 armed Hamas members leaving an infrastructure. Israel launched a large-scale offensive against Hamas in Gaza to retaliate against a Hamas rampage through the southern Israeli border on Oct. 7, 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and more than 200 were taken hostage. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) SPRINGFIELD The U.S. Marshals Service Great Lakes Regional Fugitive Task Force has arrested a serial rapist who had been on the run since he posted bail in 2000 and failed to appear for a Moultrie County court hearing. The Great Lakes task force reported in a press release that its personnel, in conjunction with the U.S. Marshals Service Midwest Violent Fugitive Task Force, arrested Herman Carroll, 72, on Saturday in Branson, Missouri. Carroll was wanted on a 2001 failure to appear charge out of Moultrie County stemming from a 2000 warrant issued there, charging him with predatory criminal sexual assault of a child, criminal sexual assault, and aggravated criminal sexual abuse. On July 3, 2000, Carroll had been arrested on charges of sexual assaulting a 12-year-old girl. He had previous convictions of child sex offenses in 1983 and 1993. The Great Lakes task force reported that its Central District of Illinois adopted the Carroll investigation in June 2022 and began an extensive investigation into his whereabouts. This multiagency investigation gained assistance from the Moultrie County sheriff's and states attorneys offices, plus local state and federal authorities in Illinois, Missouri and other states. Information uncovered by the investigation on Wednesday indicated that Carroll was likely residing in Branson, the Great Lakes task force reported. This lead was sent to the Midwest Violent Fugitive Task Force's Western District of Missouri. The release reported that Carroll was taken safely into custody three days later and transported to the Taney County Jail in Missouri to await extradition. The multiagency Great Lakes task force has divisions in Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin. The Central District of Illinois has task force locations in Springfield, Peoria, and Urbana and is composed of personnel from several agencies, including the Decatur Police Department. Who are they? IL children reported missing as of February 25 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). Cake and Billy Idol will each make their Lincoln debuts at Pinewood Bowl this week. Cake Cake, the quirky 90s band, will bring its hits like The Distance, Never There, Sheep Go To Heaven" and Short Skirt/Long Jacket," to the Pioneers Park amphitheater Monday. Formed in 1991 in Sacramento, California, as an alternative to grunge by vocalist/lyricist John McCrea, Cake created a genre-defying sonic mixture of guitar riffs in stripped-back production along with prominent trumpet parts and McCrea's monotone vocals delivering his tongue-in-cheek lyrics. Thats led to this description from Cakes official bio: If Hank Williams Sr. and Sly Stone were having a party together and they played AC/DC records backwards ... that would be this band. Signed to Capricorn Records, Cake saw its 1996 second album Fashion Nugget go platinum on the strength of "The Distance," and its 1998 followup Prolonging the Magic also sold more than a million copies, thanks to Never There. After a pair of Columbia releases, Cake formed its own label and saw its 2011 album Showroom of Compassion," recorded at its solar-powered studio in Sacramento, debut at No. 1 on the Billboard Album chart. Cake hasnt released an album since but has continued to tour and record. The band is at work on its ninth studio album, set for release this year. A Live from Folsom album is set for release in June. Showtime is 8 p.m. Billy Idol The spiky-haired 80s British rocker with a snarl known for his hits Dancing with Myself, White Wedding and Rebel Yell" will be advancing a new album, his first since 2014s Kings & Queens of the Underground, when his tour stops at Pinewood on Thursday. We have a new album coming out in October this year, Idol told The Associated Press. Were still carrying on and enlarging what my music is about. I enjoy doing it. Me and (guitarist) Steve (Stevens) are still finding ways to excite ourselves. Were not out there going through the motions. Were actually out there taking prisoners. Thats how we feel. William Michael Albert Broad, now 68, began his musical journey in 1976 in the punk band Chelsea. When that group broke up, he joined Generation X, which hit in the United Kingdom, releasing three studio albums to great acclaim and strong sales. In 1981, he moved to New York to pursue a solo career, teaming up with guitarist and co-writer Stevens to produce in 1982 his self-titled solo album. The album yielded videos for Dancing with Myself and White Wedding that made him one of the first MTV stars and launched him on a decade of success that saw Rebel Yell his 1983 second album sell 2 million copies. Last year, Idol celebrated the 40th anniversary of that album with a five-night Las Vegas residency. "When we were starting out, I couldnt have imagined the effect of (our) music, Idol told the AP. We were living one day at a time. The songs were for that time period. They were just for that moment. You werent thinking about any long-term effects. Youre just thinking right now. But the songs have legs. Its like, 'Wow, people have really embraced this crazy idea I had years ago.' Theyre still enjoying it, and I am too. Who would have thought that 40 years later? Im still pinching myself. Struggling with drugs and alcohol, Idol saw a career decline in the second half of the 1990s but returned to recording and touring in the mid-2000s. Showtime is 7 p.m. Tickets for both shows are available at ticketmaster.com and on the Ticketmaster app. Idol tickets can also be purchased at the Pinnacle Bank Arena ticket office on Tuesday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Photos: Pinewood Bowl Concerts Photos: Pinewood Bowl Concerts Photos: Pinewood Bowl Concerts Photos: Pinewood Bowl Concerts Photos: Pinewood Bowl Concerts Photos: Pinewood Bowl Concerts Photos: Pinewood Bowl Concerts Photos: Pinewood Bowl Concerts Photos: Pinewood Bowl Concerts Photos: Pinewood Bowl Concerts Photos: Pinewood Bowl Concerts Photos: Pinewood Bowl Concerts Photos: Pinewood Bowl Concerts Photos: Pinewood Bowl Concerts Photos: Pinewood Bowl Concerts Photos: Pinewood Bowl Concerts Photos: Pinewood Bowl Concerts Federal attorneys will visit Nebraska this week to look into complaints that people with severe mental illness struggle to get the services they need to live and work in the community. The visit is part of an ongoing probe by the U.S. Department of Justice, said Dianne DeLair, legal services director for Disability Rights Nebraska, an organization that protects and advocates for the rights of people with disabilities. She said the department has been investigating whether Nebraska is complying with federal laws, such as the Americans With Disabilities Act, which require that people with disabilities be served in the most integrated setting. During this trip, DeLair said, the team of attorneys will hold town hall meetings in Lincoln, Omaha, Kearney and Scottsbluff to hear from people who have had experience with the mental health system. That experience could be as a person with mental illness, a family member, a service provider or others. Town halls * Lincoln: Tuesday, 3:30 p.m. Mental Health Association of Nebraska, 1645 N St. * Omaha: Tuesday, 3:30 p.m. Metropolitan Community College, Fort Omaha Campus, Building 10, Room 110, 32nd Street and Sorensen Parkway. * Kearney: Wednesday, 10 a.m. Kearney Public Library, South Platte Room, 2020 1st Ave. * Scottsbluff: Wednesday, 4 p.m. Bluffs Business Center, 1517 Broadway. The team is also seeking emails from people who can't make it to the meetings. "This is a fact-finding event," DeLair said. "They are trying to get a sense of gaps in services." During previous visits to Nebraska, she said, the team has gone to assisted living facilities and other places where people with severe mental illness often end up. Those places have been criticized in the past for substandard living conditions and for abuse, neglect and mismanagement. In 2018, the death of a veteran at a troubled facility in Palmer, Nebraska, prompted the creation of a legislative oversight committee. The woman died following three days of uncontrollable vomiting and diarrhea that was left untreated. That facility closed after state officials revoked its license. But several remain open, including a Lincoln facility described that year by a volunteer advocate for a man with mental illness. The advocate told of finding filthy stairs that reeked of urine, a shared bathroom with a toilet black with grime, and a room that lacked window coverings, bedsheets, blankets or pillows. DeLair described the facilities as "mini-institutions" where residents are isolated from the community and do not get the help needed to recover and live in more independent settings. "These places are a symptom," she said. "It's institutional living but on a smaller scale in the community." She said Nebraska, like many states, curtailed the use of state psychiatric hospitals for the care of people with severe mental illnesses but did not follow through with creating the services needed to help people transition to successful community living. As a result, people end up in jails, homeless shelters and other inappropriate places. People with severe mental illnesses have also had struggles with law enforcement, including Zachary Bear Heels' fatal encounter with Omaha police in 2017. Bear Heels, who was experiencing a mental health crisis, died after being shocked with a stun gun. The DOJ team did not respond to questions about the investigation, including how long it has been going on and when it may be concluded. But a similar investigation in North Carolina concluded with a report finding that the state was not in compliance with the ADA, particularly because of its reliance on "adult care homes" for the care of people with severe mental illnesses. The findings, issued in July 2011, included a warning that a lawsuit would follow if the state did not agree to comply voluntarily. North Carolina officials worked with the DOJ and reached a settlement agreement in 2012. Top Journal Star photos for May 2024 The Wisconsin Supreme Court's new liberal majority appears poised to overturn the previous conservative majority's nearly two-year-old ruling that essentially barred the use of absentee ballot drop boxes in the state. The state's high court on Monday heard oral arguments in a case backed by Democratic groups who argue the court improperly ruled in July 2022 that the freestanding, mailbox-like drop boxes which saw increased use amid the COVID-19 pandemic could not be used in the state except in clerk's offices. The court's eventual decision could have considerable impact on Wisconsin's upcoming Aug. 13 primary and Nov. 5 presidential election. Wisconsin, a state notorious for its razor-thin margins in statewide elections, is once again expected to be just a handful of state's to ultimately decide who wins the White House this fall. "What if we just got it wrong?" liberal Justice Jill Karofsky asked about the 2022 ruling during the hearing. "What if we made a mistake? Are we now supposed to just perpetuate that mistake into the future? That 4-3 ruling ultimately found that nothing in state law allows for the use of absentee ballot drop boxes. State law is silent on the use of secure ballot drop boxes. Conservative Justice Rebecca Bradley said, while state law guarantees the right to vote, absentee voting is considered a privilege that was granted by the state Legislature and no law has been passed that expressly allows, or bars, the use of drop boxes. "You are asking this court to recognize somehow in the law that municipal clerks can receive absentee ballots in any fashion that they deem acceptable," Bradley said. Liberal Justice Rebecca Dallet argued the primary issue in the case is that the state operates under the general concept that, "when the Legislature writes a statute that things are permitted unless they're forbidden." "There is no way even though statute books are quite long and there are quite a few of them that it could possibly ever encompass every tiny little thing that ever existed in any realm, especially in election law when we have a decentralized system of clerks making hundreds of decisions every single day with respect to elections," Dallet said. Misha Tseytlin, attorney for the Republican-controlled Legislature, argued that nothing has changed in the state since the 2022 ruling and the lawsuit only comes now that liberals have gained a majority on the state Supreme Court. If the ruling is overturned, Tseytlin predicted additional lawsuits on the same issue when the makeup of the state's high court changes in the future. "Were going to be arguing about drop boxes for a third time," Tseytlin said. Dallet also questioned Tseytlin on previous arguments made by the state Legislature in support of the use of absentee ballot drop boxes, including in 2020 when GOP lawmakers said the boxes were "expressly authorized and lawful." "This was not something you were obviously concerned about at all in 2020," Dallet said. Tseytlin responded that "no one had raised any legal objections to drop boxes" at that point in time. Conservative Justice Brian Hagedorn pushed back on the premise of past arguments, noting "why does it matter that the Legislature takes a different view of the statute for us to read the statute faithfully?" The use of absentee ballot drop boxes became a target of Republicans in recent years due in large part to unfounded claims by former President Donald Trump, who lost the 2020 election in Wisconsin to President Joe Biden by about 21,000 votes. Speaking at a rally held at the Capitol before the state Supreme Court's hearing Monday, voting rights advocates called on the court to overturn the 2022 ruling in order to ensure greater access to voting in the state. Were here today to add our voices to the call for the Supreme Court to move past those baseless lies and suspicions so everyone has the opportunity to participate in our democracy and cast a ballot safely," former educator and past president of the Wisconsin Education Association Council Mary Bell said. Under a conservative majority, the state Supreme Court in 2022 ruled that absentee ballots must be delivered by mail or in person to a local clerk's office or designated alternate site. The 4-3 ruling effectively barred the use of absentee ballot drop boxes, which were used in hundreds of communities across the state during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. David Fox, an attorney for national Democratic organization Priorities USA, argued the ruling is "unworkable," because it "provides too little guidance on what is not permitted for municipal clerks and voters." Fox noted that in 2022, after drop boxes had been banned, more than 1,600 absentee ballots were received by local clerks' offices after Election Day and were not counted. In 2020, when the boxes were in use, fewer than 700 ballots arrived after Election Day. Nearly three times as many people voted absentee in 2020 than in 2022, he added. The state's high court shifted to a liberal majority for the first time in more than a decade last year after Justice Janet Protasiewicz defeated conservative Dan Kelly. Less than a month before Protasiewicz was sworn in, a national Democratic law firm sued the Wisconsin Elections Commission seeking to overturn the state Supreme Court's previous ruling. Priorities USA, which is represented by Elias Law Group, had asked the court to weigh in on three matters: the Wisconsin Supreme Court's 2022 ruling that unmanned absentee ballot drop boxes are illegal; Wisconsin's requirement that returned absentee ballots must be accompanied by a valid witness signature; and state law setting an 8 p.m. Election Day deadline for when voters can "cure" or correct errors on their absentee ballots. The state's high court said in March it will decide only on the matter pertaining to the use of absentee ballot drop boxes in Wisconsin. Press Release May 13, 2024 EDCOM 2 to work closely with DSWD to address malnutrition and stunting of children The Second Congressional Committee on Education (EDCOM 2) today met with Department of Social Welfare and Development Secretary Rex Gatchalian to discuss government efforts aimed at combating malnutrition and stunting among children. Joined by PIDS President Dr. Aniceto Orbeta, Senior Research Fellow Dr Valerie Gilbert Ulep and nutrition expert Dr Maria Asuncion Silvestre, EDCOM 2 and DSWD discussed issues and challenges concerning implementation of feeding programs and other government interventions to address malnutrition, and how these translate to improved nutrition of children especially those under five years of age. "We face glaring problems in education as reflected in our Year One report, and yet, we are underinvested in the most important years. We want to explore how DSWD and EDCOM 2 can work together and streamline our efforts to improve early childhood care and development which is fundamental in any effort to combat learning poverty in our country", says EDCOM 2 Executive Director Karol Mark Yee. Inextricable link of malnutrition and education "Several studies already showed that the failure to provide adequate nutrition during the early stages of life would impact a child's learning and earning capacity in adulthood. We must introduce nutrition interventions at the earliest possible opportunity to build a child's strong foundation, and we should be able to do this with support from our local government units," said Senator Win Gatchalian, EDCOM 2 Co-Chairperson and author of the Basic Education and Early Childhood Education Alignment Act (Senate Bill No. 2575). In its Year One Report, EDCOM 2 noted that the Philippines has one of the highest prevalence of stunting under-five in the world at 26.7%, greater than the global average of 22.3%. Current prevalence rates for under-five wasting and underweight is at 16.8% and 5.5% respectively, and 1 in 5 children are born with low birth weight. Studies show that malnutrition can hinder the complete physical and development potential of children. Its effect on academic performance has long been established, and may also have lasting effects on cognitive development of learners. Evidently, the 2022 Programme for International Students Assessment (PISA) results indicate that learners in the Philippines are five to six years behind the average learners, ranking among the lowest in reading, mathematics, and science across 81 countries. Early childhood care and development in the Philippines Among the efforts of the Commission to pursue its mandate to conduct a comprehensive assessment of the Philippine education sector, EDCOM 2 has partnered with various national and international organizations, local civil organizations, universities, and research centers to undertake data-driven research studies. The law further designates the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) as the research arm of the Commission, tasked to produce data-based research and analysis for policy recommendations. In a PIDS study commissioned by EDCOM 2 that analyzed the health, nutrition, and early education outcomes of Filipino children and examined their access to essential health, nutrition, and early education services, results showed that there is a slow decline of stunting rates in the country in the last 30 years. The Philippines also has one of the highest rates of learning poverty in the region. The study also looked at the recommended energy intake (REI) of Filipino children. "Many children are stunted because they are not meeting the recommended energy intake. In our analysis, only a quarter of Filipino children meet the REI. There is also variation in the quality of food that they are taking", says PIDS Senior Research Fellow Val Ulep. Preliminary analysis using REI also shows no difference in terms of meeting total energy and protein intake between children who received supplementary feeding programs compared to those who did not. This suggests further investigation and potential adjustments to the program to ensure effectiveness in addressing nutritional needs. "Despite government efforts such as school-based feeding programs, only 23% of the children have benefited. This low percentage is also reflected in the DSWD administrative data, which is lower than estimates from national surveys", says Ulep. A higher percentage of children aged four years old receiving government feeding programs is also observed in the study, which reflects the implementation of school feeding initiatives in daycare centers and kindergarten schools. Maximize low hanging fruits, heighten call for more targeted programs Despite the interventions in place to address malnutrition, implementation remains siloed and fragmented, program coverage remains low, and targeting of interventions to maximize outcomes has been weak. "We are very far from where we need to be. We need to maximize low hanging fruits and implement strategic interventions to get us a bit better from where we are, especially for the first 0-4 years", says Yee as EDCOM 2, DSWD, and experts discuss ongoing efforts that can be maximized and strengthened to address malnutrition problem. Among the nationwide efforts of the national government to address malnutrition is the Philippine Multisectoral Nutrition Project (PMNP) supported by the World Bank, which seeks to increase the utilization of a package of nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive interventions and improve key behaviors and practices known to reduce stunting in targeted local government units. Among the components of the project also include strengthening systems and processes, and capacitating local government units to improve their capacities to understand the stunting problem in communities. "We want to empower families to be able to decide on their own, by guiding them towards behavior change on what is nutritious, delicious, and affordable," says DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian, as he expressed the potential of the PMNP and the need to strengthen its implementation. The Food Stamp Program, DSWD's flagship program, is also seen as an opportunity to advance nutrition outcomes and address nutrition needs of children 0-2 years of age. This program prioritizes pregnant and lactating women in low income families. Sec. Gatchalian also shared some of DSWD's proposed amendments to the 4Ps law, which include introducing incentives for pregnant and lactating women to encourage them to avail health services and improve their health seeking habits. "Fighting stunting is a community endeavor. The PMNP tries to understand what the community lacks and what the community needs," adds Sec Gatchalian. The PMNP, alongside other interventions to address the multifaceted nature of malnutrition, calls for a strengthened multisecoral approach. ------ The PIDS study on nutrition, "Behind the Slow Start: An Assessment of Early Childhood Care and Development in the Philippines", may be downloaded in full at https://edcom2.gov.ph/publications/. 1. Yes. They look better and require less maintenance. Most high-end housing areas have them. 2. Yes. Wood fences can weather and look unsightly, plus masonry walls help to block sound. 3. No. Residents should have a choice of what kind of barriers are put up near their homes. 4. No. Allowing a variety of materials will be better for aesthetics, and costs may be lower. 5. Unsure. Its hard to say. Masonry walls may be sturdier, but mandating them is problematic. Vote View Results CHIZ LAUDS CREATION OF SPECIAL HUMAN RIGHTS BODY Senator Chiz Escudero on Monday (May 13) lauded the issuance of Administrative Order No. 22 which establishes a special body to address human rights concerns in the country. In a statement released today, Senator Escudero expressed his support for this move, emphasizing the need for its effective implementation. "I commend the President for taking this step," Escudero stated. "However, I sincerely hope that the intent and provisions of this issuance will be faithfully executed 'down the line.' It is crucial not only for addressing human rights issues related to the previous Marcos regime but also for addressing concerns from the previous administration and the entire country." The establishment of this special body signifies a commitment to upholding human rights and ensuring accountability, said the veteran legislator, who once headed the Senate Committee on Human Rights. He added: "We must ensure that this initiative translates into meaningful action, benefiting all Filipinos." Based on AO 22, which was signed by Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin on May 8, the Special Committee on Human Rights Coordination will be tasked to sustain initiatives and accomplishments of the United Nations for the Joint Programme (UNJP) on Human Rights in the areas of law enforcement, criminal justice and policy-making. The body is chaired by Bersamin and co-chaired by Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla. Other members of the committee are Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo and Interior and Local Government Secretary Benhur Abalos. On 11 May the director general of Mexicos social security institute (IMSS),, announced that more Cuban doctors would be hired to work in Mexico, following a meeting with Cubas President End of preview - This article contains approximately 397 words. Subscribers: Log in now to read the full article Not a Subscriber? Choose from one of the following options On 10 May the office of Brazils solicitor general (AGU) hosted a meeting with representatives from social media companies to discuss measures to combat online disinformation regarding the severe floods currently afflicting Rio Grande do Sul state. End of preview - This article contains approximately 334 words. Subscribers: Log in now to read the full article Not a Subscriber? Choose from one of the following options Protests over the Israel-Hamas war across U.S. college campuses have led to nearly 2,900 arrests at more than 50 schools in recent weeks. However, most graduation ceremonies over the weekend took place as planned. They also remained largely peaceful. Duke University At Duke University in North Carolina, about 30 of the 7,000 graduating students left their seats and shouted Free Palestine at the ceremony. Some protesters waved the red, green, black and white Palestinian flag. The protesters opposed the selection of entertainer Jerry Seinfeld as this years commencement speaker and honorary degree recipient. The comedian and actor has publicly supported Israels operation in Gaza to remove Hamas. The Israeli offensive followed the Hamas attack on October 7 of last year that killed some 1,200 people in southern Israel. The war in Gaza has killed more than 35,000 people, including civilians and combatants. Those numbers come from Gazas Health Ministry and are not independently confirmed. Pomona College Pomona College in Southern California moved its Sunday commencement to the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. The move came after pro-Palestinian protesters set up an encampment on campus last week where the ceremony was supposed to take place. Some pro-Palestinian demonstrators tried to block people from entering the graduation event in Los Angeles. Anwar Mohmed is a Pomona student. He said the school repeatedly ignored calls to consider moving its investments from companies tied to Israel in the war in Gaza. Weve been time and time again ignored by the institution, Mohmed said on Sunday. So today we have to say, its not business as usual. Emerson College Student protesters at Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts, shouted during some of the speeches at the ceremony. Several speakers stopped briefly and then spoke louder. Some graduates took off and dropped their graduation gowns after receiving their degrees. Others wrote free Palestine on their special graduation hats or wore Palestinian keffiyeh head coverings. University of California, Berkeley At the University of California, Berkeley, the San Francisco Chronicle reported that a small group of pro-Palestinian demonstrators waved flags and shouted during commencement on Saturday. They were then moved to the back of the stadium. There were no major counterprotests. University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill The News & Observer reported that pro-Palestinian demonstrators poured red paint on the steps of a building at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. The incident happened just hours ahead of the schools commencement. University of Madison, Wisconsin A small group of demonstrators at the University of Wisconsin-Madison organized a silent protest during commencement at Camp Randall Stadium. A photo posted by the Wisconsin State Journal showed about six people walking through the back of the stadium. Two carried a Palestinian flag. A college spokesman said the group was kind of guided out, but they left on their own. No arrests were made. University of Texas at Austin At the University of Texas at Austin, a student held up a Palestinian flag during Saturdays commencement. The person refused to leave briefly before being taken away by security. Canceled ceremonies Columbia University, in New York City, where student protests led to other demonstrations across the country, canceled its main graduation ceremony. It has instead held small gatherings for graduates. The University of Southern California, in Los Angeles, also canceled its main graduation ceremony. It had told a pro-Palestinian student that she could not deliver her speech out of security concerns. Im Dan Friedell. The Associated Press reported this story. Hai Do adapted the story for Learning English. ________________________________________________ Words in This Story graduation - n. a ceremony in which degrees are given out commencement - n. a ceremony in which degrees are given to students who have graduated recipient - n. a person who receives something combatant - n. a person, group that fights in a war or battle From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report. Alcohol is often consumed in social gatherings from happy hours after work to birthday parties on the weekend. Drinking some alcohol is normal and believed to be good for heart health. However, new research may have put an end to that idea. Dr. Timothy Naimi directs the Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research at the University of Victoria. He said, Drinking less is a great way to be healthier. Are drinking guidelines changing? Guidelines, or advice, for drinking alcohol differ greatly from country to country. But overall, the advice has been moving toward drinking less. Britain, France, Denmark, Holland, and Australia recently reviewed new evidence and lowered the suggested amount of alcohol consumption. Ireland went further than most. It will require cancer warning descriptions on alcohol starting in 2026. Carina Ferreira-Borges is an adviser for alcohol at the World Health Organization office for Europe. She said scientists see evidence linking alcohol to over 200 health conditions, including cancers, cardiovascular diseases and injuries. Overall, people may have already been moving toward drinking less alcohol. Social calendar events called Dry January and Sober October are celebrated with non-alcoholic drinks. "Dry" means no alcohol. And a sober person is not affected by alcohol. People my age are way more accepting of it, said Tessa Weber. The 28-year-old from Austin, Texas said she stopped drinking for Dry January after seeing how alcohol increased her anxiety. She liked the results better sleep, more energy and has stuck with it. Flawed studies on alcohol The idea that alcohol can be heart-friendly came from imperfect studies comparing groups of people by how much they drink. Usually, alcohol consumption was measured at one point in time. And none of them compare drinkers and non-drinkers. As a result, these studies could not prove cause and effect. People who report drinking an average amount of alcohol usually have higher income, education, and better health care. It turns out that when you adjust for those things, the benefits tend to disappear, Dr. Naimi said. Most studies also did not include younger people. And almost half of the people who die from alcohol-related causes die before the age of 50. If youre studying people who survived into middle age, didnt quit drinking because of a problem and didnt become a heavy drinker, thats a very select group, Naimi said. It creates an appearance of a benefit for moderate drinkers. Other studies challenge the idea that alcohol has benefits. These studies compare people with a certain gene variant that makes it unpleasant to drink to people without this gene variant. People with this gene tend to drink very little or not at all. One of these studies found people with the gene variant have a lower risk of heart disease. This may supply more proof that alcohol does not protect people from heart problems. How many drinks per day is safe? So, how many alcoholic drinks can people safely have every day? That depends. Drinking alcohol raises the risk of several kinds of cancer, including colon, liver, breast, mouth, and throat. Alcohol breaks down in the body into a substance called acetaldehyde. This substance can damage your cells and stop them from repairing themselves. That creates the conditions for cancer to grow. Thousands of U.S. deaths per year could be prevented if people follow the U.S. governments guidelines. They advise men to limit themselves to two drinks or fewer per day and women to one drink or fewer per day, Naimi said. One drink is the equivalent of about one can of beer, a glass of wine, or a very small glass of hard alcohol. Naimi served on an advisory committee. That committee wanted to lower the guideline for men to one drink per day. However, that advice was rejected when the federal guideline came out in 2020. The simple message thats best supported by the evidence is that, if you drink, less is better when it comes to health, Naimi said. On its website, the National Institute of Health says some people should not consume alcohol at all. The agency says to avoid alcohol completely if you are: Taking medications that interact with alcohol Having a medical condition that can be made worse by drinking Under the age of 21, the minimum legal drinking age in the U.S. Recovering from alcohol use disorder or unable to control the amount you drink Pregnant or might become pregnant And thats the Health & Lifestyle report. Im Anna Matteo. Carla K. Johnson reported this story for The Associated Press. Anna Matteo adapted the report for Learning English. Quiz - Less or No Alcohol Is Better for Health Start the Quiz to find out Start Quiz ________________________________________________ Words in This Story consume v. to eat or drink especially in great quantity anxiety n. fear or nervousness about what might happen benefit n. something that produces good or helpful results or effects or that promotes well-being tend v. to be likely moderate adj. avoiding extremes of behavior or expression : observing reasonable limits variant n. someone or something that exhibits variation from a type or norm We want to hear from you. Our comment policy is here. Summer is just around the corner, so now is the time to look for inspiration for your summer manicure. It's a great time to experiment with nail art and designs. Brighter days and warmer weather always encourage you to step out of your comfort zone and make changes in your appearance. ADVERTISIMENT The famous manicurist Michelle Klass, whose clients include Margot Robbie, J. Lo, Bella Hadid, and Naomi Campbell, told Who What Wear about new trends. From colorful jackets to glazed shiny nails, what manicure trends will dominate in the summer of 2024 read on. Colored French manicure The colorful French remains a major trend in 2024, says Klass. "Expect bright colors such as purple, lime green, and sunny yellow to dominate summer nail design," she says, "They'll look super cute replacing your classic white French mani. ADVERTISIMENT Jelly nails This trend is a great alternative to nude. "Jelly nails will be very popular this year," says the nail technician, "The jelly effect, characterized by a translucent jelly-like coating in different colors, will add a playful and modern touch to a summer manicure. Think of a transparent texture with a tint." ADVERTISIMENT Glazed mani A few years ago, Hailey Bieber popularized chrome powder coatings, a trend that won't die down anytime soon. "Glazed nails are not going anywhere this summer they are very easy to recreate at home by adding one of the shiny finishes over any polish," explains Klass. Choose neutral pink and white shades or a bold golden one as a top coat. ADVERTISIMENT Pastel ombre According to Michelle, ombre nails are making a comeback. "Try soft pastel gradients of ombre by combining colors like blue, lavender, and peach for a dreamy and ethereal look, perfect for the summer months," she says. "You can do this by mixing two shades that complement each other or by creating your gradient, starting with the deepest shade and working your way up to the lightest. Natural "Sometimes natural shiny nails are the perfect complement to a summer look," the expert shares, "Our nails grow faster in the sun, and to avoid this, choose a natural and short mani for your vacation. Also, don't forget about the cuticle moisturize it with special products to keep your manicure looking fresh for as long as possible. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! Seven opposition parties, including Ahali, Girchi - More Freedom, Droa, United National Movement, Strategy Aghmashenebeli, Lelo, and the Republican Party of Georgia, issued a joint statement declaring that the "Russian law" is not subject to improvement. According to them, Georgian Dream should unconditionally withdraw it."The public statements made by representatives of Georgian Dream regarding cosmetic changes to the Russian law and their attempt to whitewash this anti-state, anti-constitutional, and anti-European initiative are aimed at misleading the united and strong Georgian society, as well as our international partners.As a result of Ivanishvili's Russian initiative, a significant portion of our population has fallen victim to psychological and physical terror. This includes not only criminal groups operating with state backing but also police units from the Ministry of Internal Affairs involved in terrorizing opponents of the law.Ivanishvili has made political repression a daily reality for our people. The international image of Georgia has already been seriously damaged, and our European and Euro-Atlantic future is under attack. Therefore, we, the democratic opposition, will not accept a whitewashed version of the Russian law. This law is not subject to improvement and must be unconditionally withdrawn.We, the united opposition, continue to oppose the Russian law and regime for the European future of Georgia," the statement reads.Ucha Abashidze, a military blogger and active participant in anti-Russian protests, was arrested on May 9. During the arrest, police conducted investigative activities at his house for several hours, preventing Abashidze's lawyer and family from visiting him. Supporters and protesters against the "Foreign Agents" law gathered at Abashidze's house, leading to a significant police presence.The Tbilisi City Court has sentenced Ucha Abashidze and his wife, Mariam Iashvili, to pretrial detention as a preventive measure. Shota Tutberidze, the defendants' lawyer, criticized Judge Aleksandre Iashvili's decision as unfounded.The prosecutor's office has charged Abashidze and Iashvili with invasion of privacy. Additionally, Abashidze faces charges related to the illegal purchase and possession of ammunition, which he denies.Much of the court session was held behind closed doors, and a nondisclosure agreement was signed between the prosecutor's office and the defense. Consequently, details of the case beyond the state's official indictment remain unknown at this stage.During the portion of the session open to journalists, Abashidze described feeling humiliated and subjected to a cynical attitude by the police during the search.The Ministry of Internal Affairs released a video after the arrest claiming to show weapons seized from Abashidze's house. Abashidze is a member of the Airsoft Federation, a sport involving toy guns and biodegradable plastic bullets. His family contends that all confiscated weapons, except for two officially registered firearms, were "toys". The Pope has been shot four times as he blessed the crowds in St Peters Square in Rome. Surgeons have performed a five-hour operation and say they hope he will make a full recovery. At about 1715 local time, the Pope was being driven in his Popemobile through a crowd of about 20,000 worshippers when he was hit by four bullets fired from a 9mm pistol some 15 feet away. Two struck him in the stomach, one in his right arm and the fourth hit his little finger. Police arrested a 23-year-old man who said he was a Turkish citizen and gave his name as Mehmet Ali Hagca. He kept repeating: I couldnt care less about life. The Turkish press has reported Hagca was jailed for the killing of Turkish newspaper editor Abdi Ipecki in February 1979. But he escaped from prison and left behind a letter vowing to kill the pontiff just before the Pope visited Turkey in 1979. Many of those who witnessed the shooting in the crowded square burst into tears, or screamed and fell to their knees in disbelief. The Pope collapsed and was driven at speed into the Vatican complex and from there by ambulance to hospital. Vatican Radio has appealed to the world to pray for his survival. The Queen and the Archbishop of Canterbury have expressed their shock and deep sympathy for the Pope and his followers. Pope John Paul II, formerly Cardinal Karol Wojtyla of Poland, became Pope in 1978. He is the first non-Italian pope in 455 years. He is also the most widely travelled pontiff in the Vaticans history. Vatican officials have often said in private that they feared for his safety during his frequent contacts with enthusiastic crowds wherever he goes. Courtesy BBC News In context The Pope came out of hospital two weeks later but was re-admitted on 21 June with a lung infection. He did eventually make a full recovery and went on to visit 50 countries in the first decade of his pontificate. Mehmet Ali Hagca was sentenced to life imprisonment in July 1981 for the shooting. The Pope later publicly forgave Agca and even visited him in prison. In June 2000, with the agreement of the Pope himself, Agca was pardoned by the Italian president after serving 19 years. On his return to Turkey he was re-arrested and forced to serve the rest of his sentence for the killing of a Turkish journalist in 1979. He was released in January 2006. The Pope died at 2137 (1937 GMT) on Saturday 2 April 2005 after he failed to recover from a throat operation due to breathing problems. A female prison guard, aged 33, is suspected of extorting MOP78,000 from a rehabilitated prisoner over a two-year period. The victim reported the incident to the Judiciary Police (PJ), who are currently investigating whether there are other victims involved. The suspect had been responsible for guarding the victim in jail. After the victims release from prison in January of 2022, the suspect, aware of the victims wealthy background, repeatedly demanded money from her to repay personal debts. The suspect also threatened to harm the victims family and expose her identity to the victims employer if she failed to comply. Fearing for her familys safety and the risk of losing her job, the victim transferred MOP78,000 to the suspect over two years. Recently, when the suspect demanded an additional MOP180,000, the victim sought police assistance. The police officer who received the report assigned great importance to it and investigated with the support of the Secretary for Security and the Correctional Services Bureau (DSC). The suspect, who had blackmailed the victim multiple times throughout the investigation, was apprehended by undercover police at a restaurant. The DSC expressed deep concern over the case and considered it highly serious and unacceptable, and said that it is cooperating with the judicial authorities and the police in their investigations. The bureau has emphasized that severe punishment will be administered without compromise and has initiated an internal disciplinary investigation. Relevant personnel have been placed on preventive suspension. improved disciplinary oversight The Secretary for Security, Wong Sio Chak, has vowed to improve disciplinary oversight after instances of rule violations by customs officers and prison guards surfaced. In a recent interview, Wong said relevant departments did not cover up wrongdoing and would investigate legally. Regarding alleged blackmail by a female prison guard, Wong expressed anger and shock, according to a TDM report. Upon learning of the PJ case from corrections officials, Wong ordered immediate arrests and a broader probe. The security chief also demanded the prison bureau reevaluate supervision and discipline supervisors if earlier complaints went ignored. Wong has pledged to strengthen management across security agencies. He will comprehensively review legal frameworks with the chief executive to address shortcomings and prevent future misconduct. Staff Reporter The Macau government has condemned accusations on human rights in the latest US Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) report released in the US late last week. The local government expressed a strong opposition to the unsubstantiated accusations by the United States of America, making reference to the United Nations Human Rights Councils latest periodic review of Macau and amendments introduced to the citys Law on Safeguarding National Security. The report recently released by the US adopts a selective approach of the concluding observations of the Human Rights Council, in a typical practice of quoting parts of the report out of context that does not gain popularity, it said. Refuting the accusations, the local government said that In July 2022, the MSAR (Macau Special Administrative Region) underwent a review by the United Nations Human Rights Council on the implementation of provisions related to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. In its concluding observations, the Human Rights Council raised some suggestions and welcomed the legislative and policy measures taken by the MSAR Government in relevant areas and appreciated the constructive dialogue with the MSAR Government delegation as part of the periodic report process. The local government addressed CECCs comments about recent amendments to the National Security Law that were said to be eroding the guarantees and liberties of the people. The local government said the amendments to the Law on Safeguarding National Security drew extensively from legislative experience in other jurisdictions, while fully considering Macaus legal traditions and social realities, and strictly adhering to international human rights conventions. It added, that the Work relating to the safeguarding of national security has been carried out in strict accordance with legal provisions and due process. A balance has been struck in order to safeguard the fundamental rights and freedoms of residents, while preventing and punishing acts that endanger national security. The response closed with a call for the US Congress as well as other committees to respect facts, eliminate biases and cease interfering in the internal affairs of the MSAR using human rights as an excuse . The UN committees original July 2022 report said Macau lacked legal safeguards against police surveillance abuses, threats to journalists and the repression of any public demonstrations or other public meetings. Meanwhile, the Commissioners Office of the Chinese Foreign Ministry in the Macau SAR also strongly opposed the US report. A spokesperson for the Commissioners Office said yesterday that the amendment and implementation of the SARs national security law further strengthened the institutional foundation of national security and provided stronger protection for the legitimate rights and freedoms of residents. The spokesperson pointed out that the US side should reflect on its own law enforcement and human rights violations and immediately stop interfering in Macaus affairs and Chinas internal affairs at large. The Macau Lawyers Association has confirmed it has not contacted its Portuguese counterpart to discuss reactivation of the Legal Practice Qualification Mutual Recognition Agreement, which has been suspended for a decade. According to the president of the Macau Lawyers Association, Vong Hin Fai, the association does not have a timetable for the reactivation of the agreement and has not reached out to the Portuguese Bar Association on the matter. We dont have a timetable for the Mutual Recognition Agreement, so weve never contacted our counterpart in Portugal about it, Vong said. As I said at the previous press conference, the reactivation of the agreement depends on the Macau market situation, and it is not difficult to recruit quality lawyers in Macau at the moment. A senior member of the Macau Lawyers Association, Jose Alvares, believes reactivating the agreement could provide Macau with opportunities to strengthen its capacity as an arbitration center and diversify its economic development. If were trying to use Macau as an arbitration center, use Macau as a Portuguese-speaking country, neutral ground, then we possibly could need Portuguese lawyers in the future to re-strengthen our capacity and our skills to act as this arbitration center, Alvares said. The Mutual Recognition Agreement, which was suspended in 2013, would allow lawyers registered in either Macau or Portugal to work in the other jurisdiction without taking a local exam. According to the association, 60% of lawyers currently practicing in Macau are Chinese or Macanese, while 40% come from Portuguese-speaking countries. Staff Reporter Macau has maintained a prominent position on the list of the worlds wealthiest regions, appearing on the 2024 compilation of the Richest Countries in the World by Global Finance. The financial magazine has said Macau is ranked second in terms of GDP-PPP per capita, with a value of USD134,141. However, when considering GDP per capita, Luxembourg takes the lead, with Ireland following in third place. One of the focuses of the report was how the Covid-19 pandemic affected many of the worlds richest countries, including how it resulted in economic slowdown. However, the report also praised Macau for its exceptional recovery after dropping several places down the list during the pandemic, noting Macaus per-capita purchasing power has surpassed the 2019 record of USD125,000. When the Covid pandemic emerged, international travel came to a standstill, and for a period of time, Macau even slipped out of the top 10 ranking of the richest nations, the magazine stated. However, Macau has made a remarkable recovery since then, not only returning to its previous state of business but surpassing it. In 2019, its per-capita purchasing power was approximately USD125,000, and it has further increased since then, the magazine said. Singapore secured the fourth spot on the list due to a thriving trade, manufacturing and financial hub and being the most business-friendly place in the world. Unfortunately, that did not make it immune from the pandemic-driven global economic downturn: in 2020, the economy shrank by 3.9%, knocking the nation into recession for the first time in more than a decade. In 2021, Singapores economy bounced back with 8.8% growth, but then the slowdown in China, a top trading partner, derailed the recovery, the report said. Hong Kong claimed 15th position. Taiwan is ranked 14th, while mainland China sits at the 78th spot. Despite enduring nearly three years of intermittent lockdowns and pandemic-related travel restrictions, Macau, known as Asias gambling haven, remains one of the most prosperous nations worldwide, according to the magazine. Earlier this year, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) affirmed its prediction that the local economy will grow by 13.9% this year and 9.6% next year, according to its World Economic Outlook report. As the gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to regain its pre-pandemic level in 2025, the medium-term growth trajectory hinges on the pace of the Macau SARs integration with the Greater Bay Area (GBA) and the success of economic diversification efforts. Howard Tong * On the roll Macau second among worlds richest countries or regions with per-capita purchasing power surpassing 2019 record of USD125,000 * Research | Pandemic exacerbated income gap * HKMAO | Xia Baolong on a seven-day visit to Macau * Tender for 500 new taxis concludes, new payment methods and driver training are requirements * Female prison guard arrested for extorting MOP78,000 from a prisoner * Beijing, Macau refute US Congress on human rights accusations, calling on the US to stop interfering in Macaus affairs and Chinas internal affairs at large DOWNLOAD PDF Monday, May 13, 2024 edition no. 4481 Chinese President Xi Jinping left Hungary on Friday, concluding a tour of three European nations meant to meant to reinforce Chinas growing influence on the continent. Xis plane took off from Budapest airport on Friday evening, after five days in Europe that began with a visit to France and then Serbia. Earlier on Friday, Hungarys Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on the social platform X that Xi had concluded his three-day state visit to Hungary, the last stop on his Europe visit, hailing the development of the two nations strategic partnership. During the visit, Hungary and China signed a number of new agreements on deepening their economic and cultural cooperation. During a news conference on Thursday, Orban praised the continuous, uninterrupted friendship between the two countries since his tenure began in 2010, and promised that Hungary would continue to host further Chinese investments. Xi began his visit with a meeting earlier in the week with French President Emmanuel Macron. Their talks focused on trade disputes including lifting tariff threats on Cognac exports and Ukraine-related diplomatic efforts. He next went to European Union candidate Serbia, where the two nations signed an agreement to build a shared future. BELA SZANDELSZKY, BUDAPEST, MDT/AP The Transport Bureau (DSAT) has published the results of the public tender for 10 new licenses that will allow the operation of 500 new taxis. According to the tender results reviewed by the Times, the licenses cost an average of MOP3.65 million while the highest bid received was MOP3.8 million. In total, the 10 new licenses, valid for eight years, will yield the government some MOP36.47 million. With an average price of MOP3.65 million, each license owner will incur a cost of about MOP465,000 per year , which will be shared between up to 50 cars, resulting in a cost of some MOP9,300 per vehicle, per year. Although each license allows the operation of that many vehicles it is as yet unclear how many new taxis will in reality be on the Macau roads because, as the Times has previously reported, about 300 taxi licenses are due to expire, according to DSAT. Only up to 200 new taxis should be effectively available to the public. The new licenses require license owners to accept payments via credit cards as well as the most common mobile payment applications (WeChat Pay, MPay, Alipay, etc.). The new license contract also includes a requirement for license holders to provide training to the drivers including the learning of foreign languages. This is designed to not only improve the image of a heavily criticized industry but is also related to the Macaus goal of attracting more foreign visitors. LICENSES WOULD NOT HAVE AN IMMEDIATE IMPACT According to the rules, the winning bidders have up to 10 months, after receiving the notification of the winning bid, to begin the operating of the new taxis. This will ultimately result in a slow introduction of the new taxis. It is unlikely people will notice a sudden increase in the number of vehicles available. Officials from the taxi sector have said that since there is a plan for the retirement of about 180 vehicles at the end of the year, it is likely the new licenses and new vehicles will only fill the current shortage and not expand the offer for taxi services. Official figures from DSAT have shown that at the end of 2023, the number of regular taxis (excluding the Radio Taxi service) operating in Macau was about 1,200, a number considered by many, including in the tourism industry, as insufficient. In Macau, the regulatory framework forbids the operation of ride-hailing services (such as Uber, Grab, Lyft, and Didi, among others) that exist in most countries and even the neighboring regions. UBERS SHORT EXPERIENCE In October 2015, the American multinational transportation company that provides ride-hailing services, courier services, food delivery, and freight transport Uber started operations in Macau, but only lasted for 639 days until July 2017. The service, although immediately popular, was deemed illegal by the local government and led the authorities to an unprecedented car hunt for Uber drivers. The company decided to close its doors in Macau after the accumulation of millions of patacas in fines and the prosecution of drivers. Data from the company showed that, in just 600 days, Uber had partnered with around 400 drivers who recorded a driving distance of around 5.6 million kilometers. The same stats showed passengers from 409 different cities used Uber in Macau during the period. A top Philippine security official demanded Friday the immediate expulsion of Chinese diplomats allegedly behind a reported leak of a phone conversation between one of the diplomats and a Filipino admiral about South China Sea disputes that have strained diplomatic ties. National Security Adviser Eduardo Ano said he was backing a call by the Philippine defense chief for Manilas foreign office to take actions against Chinese embassy individuals in Manila who claim to have recorded an alleged phone conversation between a Chinese diplomat and a military official in violation of Philippine laws and international diplomatic protocols. Two Manila newspapers cited a Chinese Embassy source as saying that in a recorded call with a Chinese diplomat in January, a Filipino admiral agreed to a new way of transporting supplies to a Philippine-occupied shoal in the disputed waters. It required Manila to notify Beijing for such offshore missions and promise not to bring construction materials. Those individuals in the Chinese Embassy responsible for violating Philippine laws and the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and those responsible for these malign influence and interference operations must be removed from the country immediately, Ano said in a strongly worded statement. The Chinese Embassys repeated acts of engaging in and dissemination of disinformation, misinformation, and mal-information now releasing spurious transcripts or recordings of purported conversations between officials of the host country should not be allowed to pass unsanctioned or without serious penalty, Ano said. It was not immediately clear from Anos statement if Philippine authorities had verified the news reports or if the phone conversation really took place. The Department of Foreign Affairs did not say if it was considering Anos call. The Chinese government and its embassy in Manila have not confirmed the news reports nor denied them. In Beijing, China Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said the Philippines attitude just proves that they lack confidence in the face of facts and evidence and have reached the point where they are frustrated and have no bottom line. China solemnly demands that the Philippines ensures that Chinese diplomats can perform their duties, stops infringement and provocation and does not deny the facts, act indiscreetly or hurt itself by its own actions, he said. The escalating word war and diplomatic row have been sparked by hostilities between Chinese and Philippine coast guard ships and other vessels since last year at the Second Thomas Shoal and Scarborough Shoal. The Chinese coast guard has used powerful water cannons, a military-grade laser and dangerous maneuvers that have caused minor collisions, injured several Filipino navy personnel and damaged their supply boats. The Philippine government has repeatedly summoned Chinese embassy diplomats in Manila to hand over protests. President Joe Biden and his administration have repeatedly warned that the U.S. is obligated to defend the Philippines, its longtime treaty ally, if Filipino forces, ships and aircraft come under an armed attack, including in the South China. Aside from China and the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan have had overlapping claims in the busy seaway, a key trade route where many fear a major escalation of the conflicts could draw U.S. forces on a collision course with China military. MDT/AP Xia Baolong, director of the State Councils Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, will begin a seven-day visit to Macau from today to gain a better understanding of the latest developments in Macaus society and economy. The visit, which comes a year after Xias last trip to the region, is seen as a testament to the central authorities support for Macau, according to a statement from the local government. Xia is also the director of the Hong Kong and Macau Work Office of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China. In a statement, Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng expressed gratitude to the central government and welcomed Xias upcoming visit. The SAR government has pledged to make proper arrangements to ensure the success of Xias visit. The trip is expected to provide insights into Macaus current situation, as the region continues to navigate the challenges presented by the Covid-19 pandemic and its impact on the local economy. As Xia engages with various stakeholders during his stay, his observations and findings are likely to inform future policy decisions aimed at supporting Macaus ongoing development and prosperity, the government said. The legal committee has passed the draft law on "Foreign Agents" in its third reading. The session was very brief, lasting only one minute and six seconds. There was no opposition present in the hall. They claim that they were unable to attend the session because the police had blocked the entrance.The draft law will be discussed in the final reading during the plenary session. Once it's voted on and approved in this reading, it will become law. After that, Parliament will send the approved law to the President for signature.President of Georgia Salome Zourabichvili has already stated her intention to veto the law. She has 14 days to take this action. Once the veto is returned to Parliament, lawmakers will review the President's decision and then vote again on the bill. The parliamentary majority has sufficient votes to override the veto.The Georgian Young Lawyers' Association has called for a thorough investigation into the police violence against activists during the May 13 protests against the "foreign agents" law.The organization urged Minister of Internal Affairs Vakhtang Gomelauri to promptly address the incident and take preventive measures. Otherwise, it may seem that senior officials in the Ministry of Internal Affairs are tolerating this behavior, potentially leading to more incidents in the future.GYLA has urged the head of the Special Investigation Service, Koka Katsitadze, to conduct a thorough investigation into the violence that occurred on the morning of May 13, 2024. They emphasized that an inadequate response from the agency can contribute to further rights violations by law enforcement officers.According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, on May 13, during the early morning hours when the Georgian Dream deputies swiftly passed the "Foreign Agents" law in its third reading in parliament, 20 protesters gathered outside were arrested. The impasse between Gov. Tony Evers and legislative Republicans over addressing forever chemicals in state waterways and recent hospital closures in western Wisconsin escalated further Monday, with the Democratic governor threatening to sue GOP lawmakers while Republicans said theyll seek to override Evers recent vetoes. Senate Republicans plan to vote Tuesday on the first step toward overriding Evers vetoes of three dozen bills, including a measure that would have created grants to combat PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, in Wisconsins waterways. Evers, meanwhile, said Monday he plans to sue the state Legislature for the release of nearly $200 million in state funds, including $125 million set aside in the budget to combat PFAS, as well as $15 million in funds to support health care access in western Wisconsin after the announced closure of two major hospitals in the region. While Republicans hold a supermajority two-thirds of the chambers seats in the Senate, the same cant be said for the Assembly, where Republicans are two seats short of a two-thirds majority. Senate Republicans said Tuesday they had not spoken with their colleagues in the Assembly, which doesnt plan to reconvene again this year. A two-thirds vote is needed in both chambers to override a veto. I think the override of the vetoes is the end of the line here for these bills, Sen. Howard Marklein, R-Spring Green, told reporters at the Capitol. I dont see any other pathway, unfortunately. The office of Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday. Evers has instead pressed lawmakers to release the state funds directly to state agencies. The fact that Wisconsinites and communities across our state have waited months to receive funding to respond to pressing issues because Republican lawmakers refuse to release investments they already approved is unconscionable, Evers said in a statement announcing his plans to sue the Legislature. Some of this funding has been sitting in Madison for over 300 days waiting for Republicans to take action thats ridiculous, theres no excuse for it. Legislative Republicans and the Democratic governor have for months been at odds over $125 million in funds set aside to begin to address PFAS contaminants which have been linked to health problems that include low birth weight, cancer and liver disease, and have been shown to make vaccines less effective in the state. Republicans have pressed Evers to sign Senate Bill 312, which supporters have said was crafted to begin to address PFAS contaminants in Wisconsin through grant programs, while protecting innocent landowners from paying for remediation efforts on contaminations that were out of their control. Evers vetoed the bill, citing concerns that the measure would have curbed the state Department of Natural Resources authority and hamstring Wisconsins 1978 Spills Law, which requires anyone who possesses or controls a hazardous substance which is discharged or who causes the discharge of a hazardous substance to take the necessary actions to restore the affected air, land or waters. Hospital funding also in dispute Evers and GOP lawmakers have also clashed over $15 million in grants approved by Republicans in a pair of bills to pay for emergency department capital expenses at hospitals in Chippewa and Eau Claire counties to help mitigate the impact of the impending closures in the area. The proposal essentially repurposed $15 million originally approved in the state budget for capital improvements at Sacred Heart Hospital funding that has not been used. Evers vetoed one of the bills and signed the second in late February, using his line-item veto power to expand the proposals scope to cover more broad health care needs, including urgent care, OB-GYN services, inpatient psychiatry and mental health substance use services. The governors partial veto also expanded the area covered under the proposal to include all 18 counties in the states western region. That was never the legislative intent of the bill and also we wanted that to go to emergency departments, Marklein said. Joe Oslund, spokesperson for the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, described the veto override attempts as yet another desperate attempt by Republican politicians in Madison to distract from the reality that they alone are responsible for blocking approved funding from flowing to save rural hospitals and clean pollutants from our drinking water. We dont need another round of press conferences and pointless show votes, we just need Republicans to release the money theyve already approved and get out of the way, Oslund said in a statement. Other legislation Senate Republicans also plan to hold veto override votes on more than 30 other bills, including Senate Bill 971, which passed earlier this year and clarified how the Legislatures budget committee would direct $50 million in funds set aside in the states current two-year spending plan for early literacy programs. When signing the legislation in late February, Evers made several changes to the bill through his partial veto, including striking language that the governor said would have provided ongoing per-pupil increases to private choice and independent charter schools. Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu, R-Oostburg, said in a statement the overrides will give Evers and Senate Democrats another chance to do the right thing and create the programs necessary to release these crucial funds into communities that need them. Legislative Republicans have already sued Evers over the partial veto, arguing they are improper because the measure is not an appropriations bill, but rather creates an appropriations structure for a different bill. The governor can only issue partial vetoes of appropriations bills (i.e., bills that spend money); other legislation must be either signed or vetoed in their entirety. Evers contends in a partial veto message for the legislation that the measure is a spending bill. Senate Republicans also plan to hold veto override votes on bills that would require the state to set a population goal for gray wolves, allow school districts to hire administrators who are not licensed by the state Department of Public Instruction, and allow 14- and 15-year-olds to work without getting consent from their parents or a state permit. Senator Francis Escudero yesterday expressed hope that the intent of the special body on human rights formed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will truly be implemented down the line. It will not only help erase human rights issues against the previous Marcos but against the previous administration and the country in general, Escudero said. - Advertisement - Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel III said establishing the special body on human rights body is a good idea. I support the initiative he said. Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva thanked the President for placing the protection of human rights as a top priority. Human rights are primordial, and every Filipino citizen deserves to have them upheld and protected as enshrined in our Constitution. Villanueva added that he and his colleagues have advocated for an increase in the budget of the Commission on Human Rights this year to enhance their capacity-building initiatives. President Marcos earlier ordered the creation of a Special Committee on Human Rights Coordination to carry out Administrative Order No. 22 which aims to enhance the mechanisms for the promotion and protection of human rights in the Philippines. The special committee is chaired by the Executive Secretary and co-chaired by the Department of Justice (DOJ) secretary with the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) secretaries as members. Executive Secretary Lucas P. Bersamin signed AO 22 on May 8. It will take effect immediately upon its publication in the Official Gazette, or a newspaper of general circulation. Prior to this, the President highlighted the significance of maintaining and intensifying the accomplishments of the United Nations for the Joint Program on Human Rights (UNJP) through the institutionalization of a strong and healthy multi-stakeholder process for the promotion and protection of human rights in the Philippines. The UNJP is set to expire on July 31. It is imperative to sustain and enhance the accomplishments under the UNJP, which is set to expire on the 31st of July, through institutionalization of a robust multi-stakeholder process for the promotion and protection of human rights in the Philippines, the President said in his AO. The Philippines is a State Party to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. This prompted the creation of the Presidential Human Rights Committee (PHRC) to comply with its obligations to international human rights groups. The PHRC is also tasked to formulate a National Human Rights Action Plan. Consistent with the governments efforts to strengthen mechanisms for the promotion and protection of human rights mechanisms in the country, the Philippines also partnered with the UNJP to engage in capacity-building and technical cooperation in the areas of law enforcement, criminal justice, and policy-making in the Philippines. The PHRC Secretariat will serve as the secretariat of the special committee, which is tasked to provide the necessary technical, administrative, and operational support to the committee in-charge of sustaining initiatives and accomplishments of the UNJP in the areas of law enforcement, criminal justice, and policy-making. Duties and functions of the special committee include efforts to conduct of investigation and accountability; data-gathering on alleged human rights violations by law enforcement agencies; expanding civic space and engagement with private sector; National Mechanisms for Implementation, Reporting and Follow-up; and human rights-based approach towards drug control. It is also tasked to implement human rights-based approach towards counter-terrorism. The Special Committee is also tasked to monitor and ensure effective implementation of government policies and programs aimed at upholding and protecting human rights of persons deprived of liberty, particularly in guaranteeing that no one is subjected to torture and other cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment of punishment. National government agencies and instrumentalities, including government-owned or -controlled corporations, and local government units and the private sector are directed and urged, respectively to render full support and assistance to the implementation of AO 22. A copy of the AO 22 is accessible on the Official Gazette where other functions of the special committee are indicated. On Sunday, insurgents launched an assault on a gold mining town managed by Chinese interests in the Central African Republic, resulting in the deaths of at least four individuals, as reported by local authorities. Maxime Balalu, a spokesperson for the local government, informed The Associated Press that Gaga is a village approximately 125 miles (ca. 201 km) from the capital city of Bangui. The village was targeted by the Coalition of Patriots for Change, a coalition of rebel factions aligned with former President Francois Bozize. Balalu expressed concerns that the casualty count might escalate, noting that among the victims were individuals employed at the nearby mine, with several others sustaining injuries during the attack. Since 2013, the Central African Republic has been gripped by conflict stemming from the overthrow of President Francois Bozize by predominantly Muslim rebels, met with resistance from mostly Christian militias. Despite a peace agreement brokered in 2019, which initially reduced hostilities, subsequent defections from the accord by six of the 14 armed groups and the emergence of the Coalition of Patriots for Change in 2020 have perpetuated instability. Despite its considerable mineral resources, including gold and diamonds, the country remains among the poorest. Rebel factions have operated unchecked throughout the nation over the past decade, obstructing foreign mining ventures. Chinese-run operations, in particular, have faced security challenges, exemplified by past incidents such as the killing of nine Chinese nationals at a different gold mine in the Central African Republic last year, attributed to the same rebel alliance. Additionally, in 2020, two Chinese nationals lost their lives during an uprising led by residents against a Chinese-operated mine in Sosso Nakombo. Nigers Prime Minister, Ali Mahaman Lamine Zeine, asserted on Saturday that Benins halt on Nigers oil exports, prompted by a border closure, violates trade agreements between the two nations and with Nigers Chinese partners. Zeine, addressing reporters in Niamey, clarified that Nigers inability to fully reopen its border with Benin is due to security concerns. This escalates the dispute that led Benin to impede the shipment of Nigers crude oil to its port earlier this week. This blockade undermines Nigers aspiration to commence crude exports under a $400 million deal with China National Petroleum Corp (CNPET.UL), crucial as Niger intended to utilize export revenue to cover missed bond payments during regional sanctions. Zeine highlighted that the blockade contravenes about a dozen agreements signed by Benin, Niger, and their Chinese counterparts, concerning a new pipeline linking Nigers Agadem oil field to Cotonou port, supported by PetroChina. Benin maintains it will only relent if Niger reopens its border to Beninese goods and normalizes relations. Zeine emphasized that one oil export agreement stipulates Benin cannot unilaterally modify agreements without all parties consent, deeming the blockade a serious breach. Tensions stem from a 2023 coup in Niger prompting ECOWAS to impose sanctions. The next steps remain unclear. Zeine affirmed Niger wont fully reopen the border, citing security threats. Niger faces a decade-long insurgency by groups tied to Islamic State and Al Qaeda, seeking to expand into coastal regions from the Sahel. Senegalese Souleymane Bachir Diagne, an emblematic figure of philosophy in Africa, was honored at a meeting held on Sunday in Rabat, as part of the 29th edition of the International Book and Publishing Fair (SIEL). During this tribute, which coincides with Diagnes investiture this week as an associate member of the Academy of the Kingdom of Morocco, the Senegalese philosopher highlighted the essence of his thought, while stressing the importance of translation as a common thread running through all his work. Diagne, author of several works on the history of philosophy and algebraic logic, the history of philosophy in the Muslim world and African philosophy, underlined the significance of translation as a factor in the transmission of Greek philosophy in the Muslim world, where it was enriched by a new lexicon, enabling it to spread to the Middle East, the Maghreb, and West Africa. Creating real continuity between the different regions of Africa, the transmission of knowledge through translation provided a double denial of Hegels fragmented vision of Africa, since it demonstrated the existence of important intellectual centers in West and East Africa, he noted. Diagne also highlighted his ethical perception of translation, according to which all languages are made to meet, overcoming differences to bring humanity together. Through his work, Souleymane Bachir Diagne calls for the reunification of Africa, which he seeks to remember by reconstituting its memory, praising Moroccos leadership in this field. 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: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain Harsh political rhetoric about immigrants and anti-immigrant actions can damage parent-child relationships in Latino families and in turn lead to a significant increase in mental health problems for the kids in those families, according to a study, titled "US Immigration Policy Stressors and Latinx Youth Mental Health: A 4-Year Prospective Study," published in JAMA Pediatrics. "Our research suggests that restrictive immigration policies and harsh rhetoric about immigrants can harm Latino and Latina adolescents," said Kathleen Roche, lead author of the study and professor of prevention and community health at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health. "Such harm during adolescence can lead to enduring difficulties with depression, anxiety, and unhealthy behaviors into adulthood." The findings suggest that the current political landscape which includes anti-immigrant rhetoric and actions threatens a critical segment of the US youth population. Roche points out that one out of every four kids in US high schools are of Latin American origin. Kids with increased stress, family conflict and mental health problems can do poorly in school and are less prepared to enter adulthood. Roche and her colleagues studied 547 teenagers and their parents over a four year period from 2018 to 2022. The families all lived in Suburban Atlanta and more than 90% of the children were US citizens. The researchers asked teenagers about deportations or detentions occuring in the family. They then asked mothers about impacts of anti-immigrant threats and rhetoric on their families' fears and behaviors. The researchers then examined changes in teenagers' reports of parental support and parent-child conflict and teenagers' mental health symptoms. Key findings from the study: Teenagers experienced increased conflict with parents when their mothers responded to anti-immigrant news and actions by worrying about family separations, job possibilities and educational prospects and by changing behaviors such as avoiding the police and medical care out of fears of deportation. These arguments and disagreements between teenagers and their parents were related to youth in the study developing increased problems with aggressive, impulsive, and delinquent kinds of behaviors. When family members were deported or detained, the quality of the parent-child relationship suffered and for girls that led to an increased risk of depression, anxiety and other serious mental health issues. The findings raise the concern that a large part of the US population growing up in today's political landscape may be exposed to harsh anti-immigration talk on the news or threatening actions such as the deportation of a family member. Such an environment may be damaging to parent-child relationships at a critical developmental time of life. The study points to the value of supporting Latino families, providing increased support for parents and children to reduce the risk of mental health issues later on. Roche says school and health care professionals should be aware of the risk and step in to offer support if needed. The study authors also say Congress and lawmakers have a role to play in reducing the threats to immigrants, especially for families. The overwhelming majority of children in Latino families are US citizens. More information: US Immigration Policy Stressors and Latinx Youth Mental Health: A 4-Year Prospective Study, JAMA Pediatrics (2024). doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2024.1153 , jamanetwork.com/journals/jamap /fullarticle/2818679 Journal information: JAMA Pediatrics 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: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain Revenge is often considered to be socially inappropriate and morally blameworthya type of "wild justice." Most people agree that revenge is morally wrong. On the other hand, people do enjoy stories in which the victim takes effective revenge against the perpetrator. In addition, previous findings have also confirmed that, by design, people approve of revenge. Thus, the research team of Prof. Karolina Dyduch-Hazar (Julius-Maximilians-University of Wurzburg, Germany) and Prof. Dr. Mario Gollwitzer (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitat Munchen, Germany) explored whether it is indeed the act of revenge that people morally condemn or rather the pleasure the avenger might experience. After conducting a series of four surveys: three with carefully selected groups of undergraduate students from Poland, and one with a similarly configured selection of American adults, the scientists report curious nuances between situations where perpetrators demonstrated pride about taking revenge in contrast to cases where they experienced pleasure; as well as cases where the survey participants are put in the shoes of an imaginary avenger vs. where they are mere observers. In their study, published in the open-access journal Social Psychological Bulletin, the team did confirm that even though people who are taking revenge might be endorsed, they are nonetheless morally condemned compared to people who opted to not avenge. Curiously, when the survey participants evaluated hypothetical situations where the avengers demonstrated satisfaction about their act, they assigned them traits, such as greater competence (meaning confidence, ability, efficiency) compared to imaginary people who felt bad about having taken revenge on their wrongdoers, or those who did not avenge at all. Here, the researchers explain, the revenge and the following satisfaction are seen rather as evidence of the actor being capable of achieving a goal. On the other hand, when the imaginary avengers were described as experiencing pleasure, the survey participants saw them as particularly immoral. "Feeling pleasure after taking revenge might signal that the original motivation was not to teach the offender a moral lesson, but rather to feel gooda self-oriented and morally questionable motive," comment the scientists. Intriguingly, there were notable differences between the same scenarios where the survey participants were in the shoes of the avengers and those where they played mere observers. When they imagined they were committing the revenge, the participants perceived themselves as less moral than, say, a colleague of theirs doing the same thing. Additionally, if it were someone else who took revenge, this person would appear more competent. These results, say the authors, contradict previous scientific evidence that when judging other people, one evaluates their actions from a moral perspective, while self-judgments are typically made with regard to competence. Among other interesting conclusions made during the series of surveys, the scientists observed that the impression of feeling good (vs. bad) about pursuing revenge did not influence the likelihood of taking revenge. On average, participants declared they would not have punished their transgressor. Furthermore, it turned out, fear of being condemned themselves had no effect on the likelihood of them retaliating or not. While reporting quite a few interesting findings, most of which contrasted previous knowledge and conclusions, the researchers note several limitations of their study that call for further research to confirm their observations. First, their conclusions might be culturally specific. They remind that, for example, avengers are not judged as harshly in those communities and nations where honor is particularly valued. Second, the surveys used hypothetical situations. Finally, the authors of the study note, the participants had to merely imagine taking revenge and the resulting good/bad feelings. More information: Karolina Dyduch-Hazar et al, Feeling bad about feeling good? how avengers and observers evaluate the hedonic pleasure of taking revenge, Social Psychological Bulletin (2024). DOI: 10.32872/spb.12477 Provided by Social Psychological Bulletin At the invitation of Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi, Foreign Minister II Dato Erywan Pehin Yusof of Brunei will pay an official visit to China from May 13 to 15. CCTV: On May 10, the Tenth Emergency Special Session of the UN General Assembly passed a resolution with 143 countries in favor, nine against and 25 abstaining. The resolution determines that the State of Palestine is qualified for full UN membership in line with the UN Charter, and recommends that the Security Council reconsider its application to join the UN. China voted in favor and joined the co-sponsorship of this resolution. Could you further share with us Chinas position? Wang Wenbin: Our UN representative has fully stated our position in the explanation of vote. Let me stress that independent statehood has been a long-cherished aspiration of the Palestinian people and full membership in the UN is a crucial step in this historic process. It is the strong call of the international community and the common responsibility of all parties to support and advance the process of Palestines independent statehood and provide strong support for the implementation of the two-State solution and lasting peace in the Middle East. The GA Emergency Special Session adopted by an overwhelming majority a resolution to reaffirm the right of Palestinian people to self-determination, including the right to the Independent State of Palestine, determine that the State of Palestine is qualified for full membership in the UN, and recommend that the Security Council reconsider favorably its application to join the UN. This reflects the will of the international community. China supports the Security Councils early reconsideration of the application of the State of Palestine as recommended by the GA resolution. We urge relevant countries to stop standing on the opposite side of the international community, international justice, and conscience of humanity, and stop creating hurdles for Palestine to join the UN. The resolution includes modalities for Palestines participation in UN activities and relevant meetings, granting it additional rights and privileges. These special modalities are a remedy for the historical injustice long endured by Palestine and a rectification of the US abusive use of veto. The resolution makes it clear that these modalities are adopted on an exceptional basis without setting a precedent. We hope Palestine will become a full UN Member State soon and will enjoy full and equal rights in the UN like other Member States. AFP: Im wondering if the Foreign Ministry is able to confirm that President Putin is going to visit China in the coming days? Wang Wenbin: This year marks the 75th anniversary of China-Russia diplomatic relations. China greatly values the strategic guidance of head-of-state diplomacy for our bilateral relations with Russia. The two presidents agreed to maintain close interactions to ensure the smooth and steady growth of bilateral ties. As for your specific question, I have nothing to share at the moment. China-Arab TV: The Ministerial Meeting of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum is said to be held in late May in Beijing. Can you share more details? Wang Wenbin: This year marks the 20th anniversary of the inception of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum. Over the past two decades, under the guidance of head-of-state diplomacy, the Forum has always served its purpose of enhancing dialogue and cooperation and promoting peace and development, and has become a golden brand in promoting collective dialogue and practical cooperation between China and Arab states. The Forum has made important contribution in advancing relations between China and Arab states and set up a fine example of South-South cooperation. The 10th Ministerial Conference of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum will be held in China and will be the first ministerial conference held since the inaugural China-Arab states summit. The meeting is highly important in building on past achievements and charting the future. The two sides are making intensive preparations for the meeting. We will release timely information about the meeting. Please stay tuned. Shenzhen TV: According to the US Department of State, the meeting of the China-US Working Group on Enhancing Climate Action in the 2020s was held days ago in Washington. Could you share more details with us? Whats your comment on China-US cooperation on climate change? Wang Wenbin: On May 8 and 9, the meeting of the China-US Working Group on Enhancing Climate Action in the 2020s was held in Washington, DC. It was co-chaired by Chinas Special Envoy for Climate Change Liu Zhenmin and Senior Advisor to the US President for International Climate Policy John Podesta. China released a readout which you may refer to. I can quickly go over some of the details for you. The meeting recalled the discussion between the two Presidents in San Francisco and focused on areas identified in the Sunnylands Statement on Enhancing Cooperation to Address the Climate Crisis, including energy transition, methane and other non-CO2 greenhouse gases, circular economy and resource efficiency, as well as cooperation on multilateral issues related to promoting a successful UNFCCC COP 29. The two sides shared the experiences and challenges regarding their respective climate policies and actions, and further expressed their intention to engage in related technical and policy exchange. The two sides intend to host a second Methane and Non-CO2 Greenhouse Gases Summit at COP 29 and look forward to the China-US High-Level Event on Subnational Climate Action, to be held May 29 to 30, in Berkeley, California. In that context, I need to point out that despite its professed willingness to strengthen cooperation with China on climate change, the US has been hyping up the so-called overcapacity in Chinas new energy sector and vowing to impose additional tariff hikes on Chinese electrical vehicles and solar products. This is self-defeating. It goes against the consensus reached in San Francisco on joint climate response, and more importantly, it will harm the worlds green economic transition and climate action. We urge the US to stop repairing and digging up the road at the same time, so to speak, and create enabling conditions for China-US climate cooperation and global green transition. Bloomberg: The South Korean Foreign Minister will be visiting Beijing, I think later tonight. Can you tell me what does China see as the main priority of the discussions? Will you be addressing issues of mutual concern, such as the upcoming trilateral summit with Japan, maybe North Koreas pursuit of nuclear weapons, and also whether the US is moving to place more restrictions on the export of semiconductors? Wang Wenbin: We announced ROK Foreign Ministers visit to China last week. We will release timely information on the talks between the two foreign ministers. Please check back for updates. AFP: Theres a report out today by Amnesty International that concludes that China is putting pressure on overseas Chinese students who engage in political activism in other countries. Does China have any comment on this report by Amnesty? Wang Wenbin: What you mentioned is sheer smear and vilification. Any objective media outlet will find that the vast majority of Chinese nationals overseas are proud of the development achievements of their home country. Reuters: Regarding the Philippines coast guard on what they said today, the coast guards in the Philippines said that they are committed to a presence at Sabina Shoal in the South China Sea where it also said China attempted to build an artificial island. The coast guard there said it discovered piles of dead and crushed corals dumped along the sand bars around the shoal and that it has been able to prevent China from carrying out reclamation activities there. Could we understand what happened at the shoal? Did China begin to reclaim land at the shoal? And also did the Philippines approach Chinese vessels or personnel to stop reclamation activities there? Wang Wenbin: The Philippines has repeatedly spread rumors, deliberately vilified China and tried to mislead the international community. None of those attempts will succeed. China urges the Philippines to stop making irresponsible remarks, face up to the facts and return to the right track of properly handling maritime disputes through negotiation and consultation. Ukrinform News Agency: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the Special Representative of the Chinese government Li Hui carried out the third round of shuttle diplomacy on the issue of Russian war against Ukraine. Could you share more details about the results of this round? Wang Wenbin: From May 3 to 9, Special Representative of the Chinese Government on Eurasian Affairs Li Hui carried out the third round of shuttle diplomacy on the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis. He visited Turkiye, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Before and after the visit, Special Representative Li Hui had discussions with officials from countries such as Brazil, Indonesia, South Africa and Kazakhstan. Chinas relentless effort of promoting talks for peace has been commended by various parties. During this round of shuttle diplomacy, parties expressed concerns over the potential escalation of the ongoing conflict and they shared the view that the pressing need is to push for deescalation. They applauded Chinas proposal to call for deescalation, which is as follows: First, China calls on all parties to observe three principles for deescalating the situation. Number one, no expansion of the battlefield. Fighting should not spread to a third country and no third party should be dragged into the fighting. Number two, no escalation of fighting. Weapon of mass destruction, especially nuclear weapons and biochemical weapons should not be used. Attacks on nuclear facilities should be opposed. Nuclear disaster should be prevented. Civilians should not be attacked. Number three, no fanning by any party of the flames. Any word or deed that is not conducive to ceasefire should be avoided. Second, dialogue and negotiation are the only viable solution to the Ukraine crisis. The parties to the conflict should create conditions for the resumption of direct dialogue and deescalate the situation until the realization of a comprehensive ceasefire. Third, efforts are needed to increase humanitarian assistance to relevant areas, improve humanitarian conditions and prevent a humanitarian crisis on a larger scale. Parties to the conflict should avoid attacking civilians or civilian facilities, protect women, children and other victims of the conflict, and respect the basic rights of prisoners of war (POW). China supports the exchange of POWs between the parties to the conflict. Fourth, the use of nuclear weapons and chemical and biological weapons should be opposed. Nuclear proliferation must be prevented and nuclear crisis avoided. Fifth, armed attacks against nuclear power plants or other peaceful nuclear facilities must be opposed. All parties should comply with international law including the Convention on Nuclear Safety and resolutely avoid man-made nuclear accidents. Sixth, China calls for joint support for international cooperation on energy, finance, food trade, transportation, etc. and joint efforts to uphold the security of critical infrastructure, including oil and gas pipelines, electricity and energy facilities and undersea optical cables, so as to protect the stability of global industrial and supply chains. All parties agreed to maintain communication and coordination. They welcome efforts by the international community to support and promote deescalation, and jointly play a constructive role for ceasefire and promoting talks for peace. CCTV: Registration for the 77th World Health Assembly (WHA) will close today. Taiwan has not received an invitation. The DPP authorities claim that its absence from the WHA will cause a gap in global anti-epidemic efforts. Whats the Chinese governments comment? Wang Wenbin: There is but one China in the world. The government of the Peoples Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China. Taiwan is an inalienable part of Chinas territory. Chinas position on the Taiwan regions participation in the activities of international organizations, including the WHO, is consistent and clear, that is, this must be handled under the one-China principle, which is also a fundamental principle demonstrated by the UNGA Resolution 2758 and WHA Resolution 25.1. Chinas Taiwan region, unless given approval by the Central Government, has no basis, reason or right to participate in the WHA. After coming into power in 2016, the DPP has refused to recognize the 1992 consensus and been hellbent on the separatist stance of Taiwan independence. As a result, the political foundation for the Taiwan region to participate in the WHA no longer exists. Hence, China has decided not to approve the Taiwan regions participation in this years WHA. This decision has sufficient reason and a solid legal basis. Its not just about upholding the one-China principle but also about the sanctity and authority of relevant UNGA and WHA resolutions. For quite some time, the DPP authorities and certain country have been deliberately distorting and challenging UNGA Resolution 2758, trumpeting the notion that Taiwans status is undetermined, and advocating support for Taiwans participation in the United Nations multilateral forums, including the WHA. These moves mislead international public opinion and challenge the one-China consensus among the international community. They trample on the international law and basic norms governing international relations, and seek to turn back the wheel of history. Such attempts will not succeed. The DPP authorities and some countries claim that Taiwans absence from the WHA will cause a gap in global anti-epidemic efforts and use it as an excuse to demand Taiwans meaningful participation in the WHO. Thats a politically-driven and completely false claim. The Chinese Central Government has made proper arrangement for the Taiwan regions participation in global health affairs on the condition that the one-China principle is upheld. Over the past year alone, medical and technical experts from Chinas Taiwan region applied for participation in WHO technical activities 21 times, which involved 24 participants, and all the applications were approved by the Chinese Central Government. There is an International Health Regulations Contact Point in the Taiwan region for it to promptly access and report to the WHO concerning information related to health emergencies. Facts fully reflect that the Chinese Central Government has every sincerity and has taken credible and active measures to address the health issues that our compatriots in Taiwan care about, and that their rights to health are duly protected. The one-China principle is where global opinion trends and the arc of history bends. Chinas decision of not letting the Taiwan region participate in this years WHA has received wide support and understanding from the international community. Challenging the one-China principle will end up nowhere and turning back the wheel of history will not succeed. Any attempt to play the Taiwan card and use Taiwan to contain China will only be met with firm opposition from the international community and is doomed to failure. Bloomberg: I just want to clarify the question about the reclamation. Has China sent ships or vessels to the Escoda Shoal? Can you confirm that? Wang Wenbin: As I just said, the accusation of Chinas reclamation at Xianbin Jiao is sheer rumor spread by the Philippines, which is an irresponsible claim designed to vilify China and mislead the international community. 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: While natural genetic resources -- such as those found in medicinal plants, agricultural crops and animal breeds -- cannot be directly protected as international property, inventions developed using them can be patented. The fight against biopiracyplundering genetic resources and the traditional knowledge surrounding themcould soon be based on an international treaty which is being finalized at negotiations that began on Monday. "Let me be candidnegotiations will not be easy," warned Daren Tang, head of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), as the diplomatic conference began in Geneva. After more than 20 years of talks on the subject, WIPO's more than 190 member states are meeting at the agency's Geneva headquarters until May 24 for negotiations on finalizing a treaty. The United Nations agency dealing with patenting and innovation will try to conclude an agreement by consensus. Tang said countries were on "the cusp of a truly landmark agreement". "There is no contradiction between a robust and predictable IP regimeone that incentivises innovation, attracts investments and drives game-changing researchand one that responds to the needs of all countries and their communities everywhere, including those from Indigenous peoples, as well as from local communities," he said. The draft treaty text says patent applicants would be required to disclose from which country the genetic resources in an invention came, and the indigenous people who provided the associated traditional knowledge. "It's about fighting biopiracythat's to say the use of traditional knowledge or genetic resources without the agreement of those who held them and without them being able to benefit from them," said Christophe Bigot, who is leading the French delegation. However, Kenya, speaking on behalf of African countries, said the treaty needed to be more comprehensive and include "mandatory disclosure requirements". "We are acutely aware of how our communities have often been marginalized and excluded from the benefits derived from the commercialization and use of their knowledge and resources," said Kenya. Medicines, seeds, cosmetics While natural genetic resourcessuch as those found in medicinal plants, agricultural crops and animal breedscannot be directly protected as international property, inventions developed using them can be patented. These resources are increasingly used by companies in everything from cosmetics to seeds, medicines, biotechnology and food supplements. As it is currently not mandatory to publish the origin of innovations, many developing countries are concerned that patents are being granted that either circumvent the rights of indigenous people, or are issued for existing inventions. Such cases can end up in lengthy legal battles. Opponents of the treaty fear it will hamper innovation. But proponents say an additional disclosure requirement would increase legal certainty, transparency and efficiency in the patent system. It would "help ensure that such knowledge and resources are used with the permission of the countries and/or communities from which they originate, enabling them to benefit in some way from the resulting inventions", according to Wend Wendland, the director of WIPO's traditional knowledge division. Disagreements persist, notably on setting up sanctions, and the conditions for revoking patents. "The text has been narrowed down a lot in order to arrive at some potential compromise," expert Viviana Munoz Tellez of the South Centre, an intergovernmental think-tank representing the interests of 55 developing countries, told AFP. But at least, the proposed treaty has "symbolic value", said Munoz Tellez. Overcoming North-South clashes More than 30 countries have such disclosure requirements in their national laws. Most of these are emerging and developing economies, including China, Brazil, India and South Africa, but there are also European states, such as France, Germany and Switzerland. However, these procedures vary and are not always mandatory. "It is important to get beyond clashes that are too sterile" between the global North and South, said one diplomat, on condition of anonymity. "Several countries in the North have genetic resources, like Australia or France, and several countries in the South have very large laboratories and companies that use genetic resources, like India or Brazil," the source added. Two years ago, countries unexpectedly agreed to convene a diplomatic conference in 2024 to conclude an agreement. Only the United States and Japan officially dissociated themselves from the decision, without however opposing the consensus. Neither were opposed to the idea of establishing a treaty. But US ambassador Sheba Crocker insisted that her country "will strive for an outcome that improves transparency and that does not undermine the policy goals or rationales of the patent system." Japan's mission in Geneva told AFP it hoped the outcome of the conference would be "clear, reasonable and practical to apply". 2024 AFP 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: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain Patients admitted to Houston Methodist Hospital get a monitoring device about the size of a half-dollar affixed to their chestand an unwitting role in the expanding use of artificial intelligence in health care. The slender, battery-powered gadget, called a BioButton, records vital signs including heart and breathing rates, then wirelessly sends the readings to nurses sitting in a 24-hour control room elsewhere in the hospital or in their homes. The device's software uses AI to analyze the voluminous data and detect signs a patient's condition is deteriorating. Hospital officials say the BioButton has improved care and reduced the workload of bedside nurses since its rollout last year. "Because we catch things earlier, patients are doing better, as we don't have to wait for the bedside team to notice if something is going wrong," said Sarah Pletcher, system vice president at Houston Methodist. But some nurses fear the technology could wind up replacing them rather than supporting themand harming patients. Houston Methodist, one of dozens of U.S. hospitals to employ the device, is the first to use the BioButton to monitor all patients except those in intensive care, Pletcher said. "The hype around a lot of these devices is they provide care at scale for less labor costs," said Michelle Mahon, a registered nurse and an assistant director of National Nurses United, the profession's largest U.S. union. "This is a trend that we find disturbing," she said. The rollout of BioButton is among the latest examples of hospitals deploying technology to improve efficiency and address a decades-old nursing shortage. But that transition has raised its own concerns, including about the device's use of AI; polls show the public is wary of health providers relying on it for patient care. In December 2022 the FDA cleared the BioButton for use in adult patients who are not in critical care. It is one of many AI tools now used by hospitals for tasks like reading diagnostic imaging results. In 2023, President Joe Biden directed the Department of Health and Human Services to develop a plan to regulate AI in hospitals, including by collecting reports of patients harmed by its use. The leader of BioIntelliSense, which developed the BioButton, said its device is a huge advance compared with nurses walking into a room every few hours to measure vital signs. "With AI, you now move from "I wonder why this patient crashed' to "I can see this crash coming before it happens and intervene appropriately,'" said James Mault, CEO of the Golden, a Colorado-based company. The BioButton stays on the skin with an adhesive, is waterproof, and has up to a 30-day battery life. The company says the devicewhich allows providers to quickly notice deteriorating health by recording more than 1,000 measurements a day per patienthas been used on more than 80,000 hospital patients nationwide in the past year. Hospitals pay BioIntelliSense an annual subscription fee for the devices and software. Houston Methodist officials would not reveal how much the hospital pays for the technology, though Pletcher said it equates to less than a cup of coffee a day per patient. For a hospital system that treats thousands of patients at a timeHouston Methodist has 2,653 non-ICU beds at its eight Houston-area hospitalssuch an investment could still translate to millions of dollars a year. Hospital officials say they have not made any changes in nurse staffing and have no plans to because of implementing the BioButton. Inside the hospital's control center for virtual monitoring on a recent morning, about 15 nurses and technicians dressed in scrubs sat in front of large monitors showing the health status of hundreds of patients they were assigned to monitor. A red check mark next to a patient's name signaled the AI software had found readings trending outside normal. Staff members could click into a patient's medical record, showing patients' vital signs over time and other medical history. These virtual nurses, if you will, could contact nurses on the floor by phone or email, or even dial directly into the patient's room via video call. Nutanben Gandhi, a technician who was watching 446 patients on her monitor that morning, said that when she gets an alert, she looks at the patient's health record to see if the anomaly can be easily explained by something in the patient's condition or if she needs to contact nurses on the patient's floor. Oftentimes an alert can be easily dismissed. But identifying signs of deteriorating health can be tough, said Steve Klahn, Houston Methodist's clinical director of virtual medicine. "We are looking for a needle in a haystack," he said. Donald Eustes, 65, was admitted to Houston Methodist in March for prostate cancer treatment and has since been treated for a stroke. He is happy to wear the BioButton. "You never know what can happen here, and having an extra set of eyes looking at you is a good thing," he said from his hospital bed. After being told the device uses AI, the Montgomery, Texas, man said he has no problem with its helping his clinical team. "This sounds like a good use of artificial intelligence." Patients and nurses alike benefit from remote monitoring like the BioButton, said Pletcher of Houston Methodist. The hospital has placed small cameras and microphones inside all patient rooms enabling nurses outside to communicate with patients and perform tasks such as helping with patient admissions and discharge instructions. Patients can include family members on the remote calls with nurses or a doctor, she said. Virtual technology frees up on-duty nurses to provide more hands-on help, such as starting an intravenous line, Pletcher said. With the BioButton, nurses can wait to take routine vital signs every eight hours instead of every four, she said. Pletcher said the device reduces nurses' stress in monitoring patients and allows some to work more flexible hours because virtual care can be done from home rather than coming to the hospital. Ultimately it helps retain nurses, not drive them away, she said. Sheeba Roy, a nurse manager at Houston Methodist, said some members of the nursing staff were nervous about relying on the device and not checking patients' vital signs as often themselves. But testing has shown the device provides accurate information. "After we implemented it, the staff loves it," Roy said. Serena Bumpus, chief executive officer of the Texas Nurses Association, said her concern with any technology is that it can be more burdensome on nurses and take away time with patients. "We have to be hypervigilant in ensuring that we are not leaning on this to replace the ability of nurses to critically think and assess patients and validate what this device is telling us is true," Bumpus said. Houston Methodist this year plans to send the BioButton home with patients so the hospital can better track their progress in the weeks after discharge, measuring the quality of their sleep and checking their gait. "We are not going to need less nurses in health care, but we have limited resources and we have to use those as thoughtfully as we can," Pletcher said. "Looking at projected demand and seeing the supply we have coming, we will not have enough to meet demand, so anything we can do to give time back to nurses is a good thing." 2024 Kaiser Health News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. 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: Scanning electron microscope image of Vibrio cholerae. Credit: Wikipedia The United Nations on Monday expressed fears at what it called a "rapidly worsening" outbreak of cholera in war-ravaged Yemen, with more than 40,000 suspected cases since October, mainly in areas controlled by Huthi rebels. "We are also deeply concerned about a rapidly worsening cholera outbreak. 40,000 suspected cases and over 160 deaths have so far been reporteda sharp increase since our update last month," UN humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths said. "The majority are in Huthi-controlled areas, where hundreds of new cases are reported every day," Griffiths told the Security Council. In total, 34,000 suspected cases have been reported in those areas since Octobermore than three times the figure reported a month ago, according to data from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), run by Griffiths. In comparison, 6,000 suspected cases have been reported in government-controlled areas. "Heavy rains and flooding are expected to make things worse," Griffiths told diplomats, adding that the world body and its partners were taking "urgent action to stem the spread." But he warned that the plan "will need rapid funding if we are to prevent the situation from spiraling out of control." The UN's humanitarian response plan for Yemen for 2024, estimated to cost $2.7 billion, has only been 16 percent funded so far. "The consequences of inaction are of course familiar. Let us not forget that between 2016 and 2021, some 4,000 people in Yemen, mostly children, lost their lives to cholera," Griffiths said. Yemen has been gripped by conflict since the Iran-backed Huthis overran the capital Sanaa in 2014, triggering the Saudi-led military intervention in support of the government the following year. Hundreds of thousands have died in the fighting or from indirect causes such as a lack of food, according to the United Nations. Hostilities slowed considerably in April 2022, when a six-month UN-brokered ceasefire came into effect, and they have remained at a low level since. 2024 AFP 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: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain Hennessy Sepulveda thought she was going to die. "I began dissociating as I was driving. I was 10 minutes away from my house. My vision started warping and the lights were hitting me really bright," she said. "I felt my chest pounding, I felt a wave of panic hit meI knew something was wrong." Sepulveda, a Florida International University student who was 19 at the time, was admitted to the hospital, and was surprised by the cause of her symptoms: the Monster energy drink she had just a few hours earlier. "I was drinking Monster every day for the past year," she said. "To me the energy drink wasn't even a possible reason for this happening." The energy drink market has exploded in recent years and by 2030 is expected to reach $33 billion. Much of this growth has been attributed to a shift in marketing strategies that now target young people. These drinks can contain anywhere from 200 mg to 350 mg of caffeine, and the large amounts of caffeine in these drinks can cause significant health problems, especially in teens and adolescents, health experts say. Energy drink brands often associate themselves with video games and online celebrities, and are also promoted by influencers on platforms like Twitch, where 70% of the viewers are ages 1834. Many popular creators either endorse or collaborate with these brands who want to leverage the influencers' young audience. "These are brands that often target Generation Z or younger generations," said Gustavo Mosquera, professor of marketing at FIU. "That's why energy drink brands chose influencer marketing to persuade over this generation." For example, Ghost energy drinks offer a "Faze Pop" flavor in collaboration with the popular esports organization FaZe Clan. Red Bull launched a can design featuring popular characters from the video game League of Legends. In 2022, YouTube personalities Logan Paul and KSI launched their own brand, PRIME, which sells energy drinks directly to their young audiences. Another popular strategy is to partner with established brands to create flavors appealing to adolescents. Ryze energy drinks have Ring Pop, Kool-Aid, and SunnyD flavors. Ghost has Sour Patch Kids, Warheads, and Swedish Fish flavors. C4 energy drinks come in Skittles and Starburst flavors. "Does a 15-year-old need an energy drink? Probably not," said Mosquera, "Because you don't need the product, I need other ways to persuade you." But it is young people who are most at risk from excessive caffeine intake. The FDA recommends that adults consume 400 mg or less of caffeine a day, but for those under 18 the recommended dose is 100 mg or less, often less than half of the amount in one energy drink. They do not recommend any person 12 or under to consume caffeine. "I wouldn't recommend any of my patients an energy drink, the excessive amount of caffeine at one time puts you at risk," said Dr. Willam Costa, internal medicine pediatrics resident at Tulane University, "That's something that a teenage heart should not endure." According to Dr. Cristina Font, cardiology fellow physician at University of Florida Health Jacksonville, caffeine has a number of side effects but the cardiovascular risks of excessive caffeine consumption can be significant. "That can lead to palpitations, it can lead to arrhythmia which can be dangerous," said Font. "That's where it can have really detrimental effects on the cardiovascular system, which in rare cases has led to death." Dangerous effects for kids on ADHD meds For children taking certain medication, the risk can be even greater. "A lot of children and adolescents are on psychoactive medications, for example ADHD medications, or people with asthma who are taking inhalers are also at risk; those inhalers have stimulant effects," said Font. "When you start combining stimulants, those cardiovascular effects can get more dangerous." Most energy drinks contain other stimulants, such as guarana, a plant native to the Amazon. Panera to stop selling Charged Lemonade Certain congenital conditions also can make caffeine more dangerous. In 2022, Sarah Katz, a 21-year-old University of Pennsylvania student, unknowingly drank a Charged Lemonade from Panera. Katz suffered from a heart condition called Long QT syndrome type 1 and generally avoided caffeine due to the risks. However, the drink was served in beverage dispensers side-by-side with non- caffeinated lemonade, and Katz later went into cardiac arrest and died. Charged Lemonade has 390 mg of caffeine per 30-oz large sized drink. Earlier this week, Panera said it will no longer sell its Charged Lemonade drinks, which are the focus of two wrongful-death lawsuits against the company, including one filed by the Katz family. Melissa DeVincentis, a physician assistant at Holy Cross Hospital in Fort Lauderdale who works in electrophysiology, said she sees a young person admitted to the ER after drinking large amounts of caffeine once or twice a week. Palpitations, chest pains "The most pressing symptom is palpitations," she said "And when we question them we see their caffeine intake is insane." Font said she sees a similar consumption pattern. "A lot of patients come to me with complaints of palpitation and chest pains," said Font. "You come to realize these patients are drinking multiple energy drinks a day." Efforts have been made recently to regulate energy drinks. In Connecticut, a bill in the legislature would ban the sale of energy drinks to children under 16. In 2023, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) asked the FDA to investigate PRIME energy drinks for their advertising practices. "PRIME is so new that most parents haven't a clue about it, but it is born from the reels of social media and the enigmatic world of influencers," Schumer said. "This product has one true target market: children under the age of 18, and that is why I am sounding the alarm and asking the FDA to investigate PRIME." PRIME is also currently being sued for allegedly underreporting the amount of caffeine in its drinks. In addition to marketing strategies, adolescents are also at risk for excessive caffeine consumption because it is addictive which can make it difficult to slow down or stop consumption. "It is the most widely used drug in the world," said Dr. Font. "We all drink it without thinking about how it's affecting us in terms of addiction." Even for those like Sepulveda who have suffered health consequences, it can be difficult to abstain forever. "I steered away from all caffeine products completely for a year or more," she said "But with these last semesters of college, I relapsed." 2024 Miami Herald. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. 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: Cheng et al. (Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 2024). We generally assume that when humans are walking or otherwise moving in space, their head faces towards the direction they are traveling in. Nonetheless, travel direction and head direction are distinct factors associated with the processing of different types of spatial information. Researchers at University of California, Irvine and Boston University recently unveiled a travel direction-related signal represented in the human mind that appears to be independent from head direction. Their paper, published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, could soon open new avenues for neuroscience and psychology research focusing on spatial navigation. "We were interested in finding the first building blocks of navigation," Liz Chrastil, senior author of the paper, told Medical Xpress. "Finding your way can be complicated, but in some ways keeping track of your position requires a few basic pieces of informationyour speed, how long you have been going, what direction you are going in. We were also inspired by work in animals that found particular types of cells that track things like time or distance or head direction, and so we wanted to look at these types of fundamental pieces of information as well." Head direction and travel direction have been found to provide very different information. Overall, travel direction plays a greater role than head direction in shaping the trajectory that humans or animals will follow while moving in their surrounding environment. Moreover, studies found that people's heads are not always facing the direction they are going in. As part of their study, Chrastil and her colleagues carried out a behavioral experiment aimed at searching for a travel direction signal that is entirely separate from head direction. "We were inspired by vision science, as one of our collaborators on this project works in vision and we wanted to see if we could use some of those methods," Chrastil explained. "We used a method called adaptation. You might have seen adaptation when you stare at something green for a long time, then look at a white wall and it looks red. There are also motion adaptation effects (also called motion aftereffects) like staring at something moving downward, and then looking at something that is not moving it will look like it's moving upward." In the context of this study, adaptations are essentially shifts in perception following the constant stimulation in a specific direction. In their behavioral experiment, Chrastil and her collaborators tried to produce a motion aftereffect related to the participants' perceived travel direction. Credit: Cheng et al. (Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 2024). "Participants watched motion down a long hallway," Chrastil said. "There were two ends, one end with the sun and the other with the moon. The motion kept going in one direction, for example towards the sun, but to decouple the travel direction from head direction, sometimes the facing direction would flip around, so now it would seem like you were traveling backward (i.e., still toward the sun but now facing the moon)." Throughout the team's experimental trials, the apparent direction in which participants were facing was flipped several times, all while they continued to move toward the sun. Chrastil compares the produced effect to the teacup ride at Disneyland, where one turns constantly even while moving in the same direction. "We then performed a short test where the movement would go back and forth between the sun and the moon," she explained. "At the end of 10 seconds the participant would say whether they thought they moved more toward the sun or more toward the moon in that test. The critical condition is the 50/50 situation, when they went the same amount toward the sun and moon." Essentially, if during the short test run by the researchers a participant said that they moved in a specific direction over 50% of the time, they determined that there was an adaptation. In other words, this means that their perceptions had shifted during the experiment, due to the constant movement towards the sun. Remarkably, this is precisely what the team observed. "In the 50/50 condition and in other conditions, participants shifted their responses toward the direction they had adapted, indicating that there is some signal that is sensitive to travel direction," Chrastil said. This recent study was the first to hint at the existence of a signal of travel direction in humans that is independent from head direction. The findings it gathered prompt interesting new questions about the unique contributions of travel direction to spatial navigation. "Most past work involving humans and animals focused on head direction, so we hope that our study will inspire other teams to test travel direction as a primary factor," Chrastil added. "We are also looking for similar signals in the brain and have found signatures of travel direction in the brain using fMRI. This paper is still under review, but we hope that it will be published soon." More information: You Cheng et al, (Don't) look where you are going: Evidence for a travel direction signal in humans that is independent of head direction., Journal of Experimental Psychology: General (2024). DOI: 10.1037/xge0001538. Journal information: Journal of Experimental Psychology: General 2024 Science X Network 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: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain Thirteen-year-old Salamatu Jalloh had her whole future to look forward to. But in January 2023, her lifeless body was found wrapped in a pink and blue shroud on an earthen floor in a village in north-west Sierra Leone. Salamatu and two other girls bled to death after participating in a secret Bondo society initiation into womanhood. The ceremony, which lasts for several weeks, began with a sense of excitement and anticipationa rare occasion in this rural community to celebrate girls. But at its core was a violent act: the cutting and removal of the girls' external genitalia. Their tragic deaths were highlighted in the latest Unicef report on female genital mutilation. According to the UN agency 230 million girls and women alive today have survived female genital mutilation, but live with the devastating consequences. Most procedures happen in African countries, accounting for 144 million cases. Despite campaigns to end this practice there are 30 million more women and girls globally who have undergone this form of torture than eight years ago. As an applied social anthropologist who has researched women and violence for many years I've been studying this form of abuse, and the reasons it persists, for over two decades. Some countries are making strides in reducing the practice. In others, advancements have stalled or even been reversed due to changing ideologies as well as the fallout from instability and conflict. Unicef calculates the rate of decline would need to be 27 times faster to eliminate this abuse by 2030. Understanding the trends is the starting point for ending female genital mutilation. Some of the new trends are alarming. They include a backlash by conservatives against efforts to stop female genital mutilation; increasing numbers of "secret procedures" which are difficult to keep track of; and shifts towards what are termed "less severe" forms. Increased "medicalization" of the procedure by health care professionals is another disturbing trend. Reasons given for FGM The types of cutting vary. In its most severe form, infibulation, the cut edges of the labia are sewn together to achieve a smoothness considered to be beautiful. The vagina must be reopened for sexual intercourse or childbirth. Every year, over half a million girls globally undergo this extreme form of vaginal mutilation. Most of those who support female genital mutilation believe it maintains cleanliness, increases a girl's chances of marriage, protects her virginity and discourages "female promiscuity," thus preserving the family honor. They also believe it improves fertility and prevents stillbirths. Most supporters of the practice do so for religious or cultural reasons. In fact female genital mutilation has no health benefits, and it harms girls and women in many ways. It carries the risk of immediate complications like shock, hemorrhage, tetanus, sepsis, urine retention, ulceration of the genital region and injury to adjacent genital tissue. Long-term consequences include increased risk of maternal morbidity, recurrent bladder and urinary tract infection, cysts, infertility and adverse psychological and sexual consequences. FGM in African countries Countries with the highest levels of female genital mutilation are Somalia (99%), Guinea (95%) and Djibouti (90%). In Kenya, over the last half century a remarkable transformation has occurred. Female genital mutilation was once widespread, but most of the country has now abandoned the practice. Yet among the Somali community, concentrated in the north-eastern province of Kenya, there has been little change, and the practice remains nearly universal. Somalia and Sudan face the challenge of addressing widespread female genital mutilation amid conflict and population growth. Ethiopia has consistently made progress, but climate shocks, disease and food insecurity make it harder to maintain these successes. The fragility of progress cannot be overstated. Conservative backlashes and compliant doctors There are some alarming trends that make eliminating this practice even more difficult. Backlash by conservatives: In The Gambia religious leaders have demanded that legislators revoke a 2015 law banning female genital mutilation. They reacted after three women in the northern village of Bakadagi were found guilty of mutilating eight infant girls in 2023, the first major conviction under the law. The World Health Organization has warned that a repeal in The Gambia could encourage other countries to disregard their duty to protect these rights. Secret procedures: In countries where the practice is banned it has often gone underground. Girls are also being cut at a younger age to avoid detection. This makes accurate rates of female genital mutilation harder to capture. Shifts towards "less severe" forms: One of these is sunnah, the removal of the clitoris. In countries such as Sudan and Somalia this is considered by many to be unharmful as the vagina is not sewn up. Proponents argue that this does not count as female genital mutilation. "Medicalized" procedures, performed by trained people like doctors, nurses and midwives: Some people consider these legitimate as they are thought to be safer. More of these are being performed in public or private clinics, chemists, homes, or elsewhere. Destabilization and eroded rights: Around 4 in 10 girls and women who have undergone female genital mutilation live in countries affected by conflict or fragility. Ethiopia, Nigeria and Sudan account for the largest numbers of girls and women who have undergone female genital mutilation in conflict-affected countries. Armed conflict and the devastating impact of climate change have led to a sudden deepening of poverty and mass displacement, driving people from their land and livelihoods. Families are plunged into deep poverty and studies have shown that the rights of girls slip away when families are faced with stark choices. The commodification of girls through marriage practices such as bride price means that when families are stripped of all other resources daughters become an object to be sold. Female genital mutilation, as a marker of a girl's purity, becomes essential. Progress to eliminate this horrific form of abuse needs to be a lot faster. Understanding the shifting trends is a start. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. 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: Regulation of HIV latency in MDMs could present a risk to viral dissemination. Monocyte-to-macrophage differentiation can induce HIV reactivation, potentially contributing to viral spread in tissues (Top Left). The clinical candidate, Auranofin, reduces viral DNA in the blood and promotes HIV latency in T-cells and monocytes, but induces HIV reactivation in MDMs (Bottom Left). In MDMs, we propose TrxR inhibition by Auranofin leads to ROS accumulation, which induces NF-B activity and activation of the HIV LTR promoter (Right). TrxR inhibition potentially diminishes substrate reduction, allowing Tat to remain predominantly oxidized, where it can bind to TAR and initiate HIV transcription. Credit: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2024). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2313823121 Researchers from the University of Illinois have demonstrated the importance of cell-type-specific targeting in the treatment of HIV. Their study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, is one of the first to examine the differential or cell-type specific effects of HIV latency modulation on myeloid cells, a type of immune cell made in bone marrow. A major barrier to eliminating HIV infection is how to manage latency, or the period in which an infected cell is dormant and unable to produce virus. Latent HIV cells congregate throughout the body in pockets known as reservoirs. Latent reservoirs are problematic because they can start producing virus at any time. Complete eradication of the disease would require removal of all latent cells from the body or permanent resistance to activation stimuli. But reactivation can be triggered by numerous factors, including cues that direct the differentiation of myeloid cells. For years, HIV cure research has centered around two approaches, known as "shock and kill" and "block and lock." The former works in tandem with antiretroviral therapy to activate latently infected cells and deplete them through apoptosis, or programmed cell death, while the latter forces infected cells into a deep latent state from which they cannot spontaneously reactivate. Research around these techniques has historically focused on a type of white blood cell called a T-cell, which is the main target of HIV infection. But latent reservoirs are composed of more than just T-cells; in fact, they contain dozens of diverse cell types, each with their own unique HIV gene expression patterns. "There is a huge amount of heterogeneity in cells, even within the same lineage," said Collin Kieffer, an assistant professor of microbiology and an author on the paper. "The variability of response within these reservoirs increases with each new cell type." Alexandra Blanco, a Ph.D. student in Kieffer's lab, wanted to study cell types that had been overlooked in conventional HIV research. Concentrating on myeloid cells, she created a clonal library containing 70 populations of latently infected monocytes. Blanco then analyzed the clonal populations and their responses to activation. The responses varied significantly, highlighting a large degree of heterogeneity within a single cell type. Illinois microbiology professor Collin Kieffer and PhD student Alexandra Blanco. Credit: University of Illinois This observation prompted a new question: Do different cell types exhibit different responses to HIV latency treatment? Indeed, their study results showed that certain HIV latency therapeutics can promote latency in T-cells and monocytes, while reversing latency in macrophages. "Not all cells in the body are the same," Kieffer said. "So it makes sense that not all HIV-infected cells would react to the virus in the same way." Their paper highlights the need for future HIV treatments to consider all types of cells and the ways each cell might respond to potential therapies. Their findings build upon the research of Roy Dar, a former Illinois professor of bioengineering whose lab studied heterogeneity in HIV gene expression. "He started this, and we picked it up and moved it to its current state," Kieffer said. "So collaboration really built the foundation for these results. It's evolved into a new direction for our lab, and one we're really excited about." An additional and unexpected finding from Blanco's analysis revealed changes to cell size and shape in response to infection, suggesting that HIV can alter cell morphology. Blanco's next goal is to identify the biological mechanisms behind these phenotypic changes. Kieffer and members of his lab also look forward to reproducing their resultswhich were mostly conducted on a cell linein primary cells. Replicating the results in a more human-like model would enhance the study's clinical relevancy, Kieffer explained. "We'd like to conduct larger screens in T-cells, monocytes, and macrophages to identify potential drugs that could work across all these cell types," Blanco said. "We might be able to find even more molecules that don't behave in a cell-type-specific manner." More information: Alexandra Blanco et al, Monocyte to macrophage differentiation and changes in cellular redox homeostasis promote cell type-specific HIV latency reactivation, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2024). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2313823121 Journal information: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 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: Ultrasound image of micro-histotripsy liberation of biomarkers in a tumor. Credit: Joy Wang and Pradyumna Kedarisetti. Ultrasound imaging offers a valuable and noninvasive way to find and monitor cancerous tumors. However, much of the most crucial information about a cancer, such as specific cell types and mutations, cannot be learned from imaging and requires invasive and damaging biopsies. One research group developed a way to employ ultrasound to extract this genetic information in a gentler way. At the University of Alberta, a team led by Roger Zemp explored how intense ultrasound can release biological indicators of disease, or biomarkers, from cells. These biomarkers, like miRNA, mRNA, DNA, or other genetic mutations, can help identify different types of cancer and inform the subsequent therapy. Zemp presents this work Monday, May 13, at 8:30 a.m. EDT as part of a joint meeting of the Acoustical Society of America and the Canadian Acoustical Association, running May 1317 at the Shaw Center located in downtown Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. "Ultrasound, at exposure levels higher than is used for imaging, can create tiny pores in cell membranes, which safely reseal," Zemp said. "This process is known as sonoporation. The pores formed due to sonoporation were previously used to get drugs into cells and tissues. In our case, we care about releasing the contents of cells for diagnostics." The ultrasound releases biomarkers from the cells into the bloodstream, increasing their concentration to a level high enough for detection. Using this method, oncologists can detect cancer and monitor its progression or treatment without the need for painful biopsies. Instead, they can use blood samples, which are easier to procure and less expensive. "Ultrasound can enhance the levels of these genetic and vesicle biomarkers in blood samples by over 100 times," said Zemp. "We were able to detect panels of tumor-specific mutations, and now epigenetic mutations that were not otherwise detectable in blood samples." Not only was this approach successful at detecting biomarkers, but it also boasts a lower price compared to conventional testing. "We've also found that we can conduct ultrasound-aided blood testing to look for circulating tumor cells in blood samples with single-cell sensitivity for the price of a COVID test," said Zemp. "This is significantly cheaper than the current methods, which cost about $10,000 per test." The team also demonstrated the potential for applying intense ultrasound to liquefy small volumes of tissue for biomarker detection. The liquefied tissue can be retrieved from blood samples or through fine-needle syringes, a much more comfortable option compared to the damaging core-needle alternative. More accessible techniques to identify cancer will not only allow for earlier detection and treatment but will also allow medical practitioners to be nimble in their approach. They can establish if certain therapies are working without the risks and expenses often associated with repeated biopsies. "We hope that our ultrasound technologies will benefit patients by providing clinicians a new kind of molecular readout of cells and tissues with minimal discomfort," said Zemp. More information: Main meeting website: https://acousticalsociety.org/ottawa/ Technical program: https://eppro02.ativ.me/src/EventPilot/php/express/web/planner.php?id=ASASPRING24 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: Conscious experience (CE) vs no experience (NE): spectral power. Credit: Nature Communications (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-48337-7 Researchers at the Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience have taken a first step in exploring a rather complex question: what is happening inside the brain of somebody who may be considered "stuck" between sleep and wakefulness? Most of us imagine a sleepwalker as someone who is unconsciously walking around while their eyes are closed and their arms are stretched out in front of them. In reality, sleepwalkers typically have their eyes open and may have complex interactions with their environment. Sleep scientists refer to such abnormal sleeping behavior as "parasomnia," which can include simple behaviors like sitting up in bed and seeming confused, but also more elaborated ones like getting out of bed and moving around or screaming with a fearful facial expression. While parasomnias of this type are more common among children, approximately 23% of adults still experience them regularly. Parasomnias can be distressing to both the sleeper and the bedpartner. "Affected individuals can hurt themselves or others during episodes and may later feel deeply embarrassed for what they did," Francesca Siclari, head of the dreams lab, explains. Parasomnia episodes in a lab setting Siclari and her team have conducted this study to better understand what occurs in the brain during parasomnias. "It was commonly believed that dreams only occur in one sleep stage: REM sleep. We now know that dreams can happen in other phases too. Those who experience parasomnias during non-REM sleep sometimes report having dream-like experiences and sometimes appear completely unconscious (i.e., on automatic pilot)." The study is published in the journal Nature Communications. To understand what accounts for these differences in experience, Siclari and her team investigated the experiences and brain activity patterns of patients with parasomnia in non-REM sleep. Measuring someone's brain activity during a parasomnia episode is no mean feat. The patient needs to fall asleep, experience an episode, and have their brain activity recorded while moving around. "There are currently very few studies that have managed to overcome this. But with the many electrodes we use in the lab and some specific analysis techniques, we can now get a very clean signal, even when the patients move around," Siclari explains. Siclari's team can provoke a parasomnia episode in the lab, but it requires two consecutive recordings. On the first recording, the patient sleeps normally. This is followed by a night in which the patient is kept awake is only allowed to sleep the next morning. During this recording, the patient is exposed to a loud sound upon entering the deep-sleep stage. In some cases, this results in a parasomnia episode. After the episode, the patient is asked what had been going through their mind. Infographic: "Parasomnia: What Happens Inside a Sleepwalker's Brain?" Credit: Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience The brain during a parasomnia episode In 56% of episodes, patients reported that they had been dreaming during the episode. "It was often about an impending misfortune or danger. Some reported that they thought the ceiling was going to come down. One patient thought they'd lost their baby and was searching through the bedsheets, and stood up in bed to try to save ladybugs from gliding down the wall and dying," Siclari explains. "In 19% of the cases, the patients weren't experiencing anything and simply awoke to find themselves doing things, almost like a trance." Another small portion reported that they had experienced something but couldn't remember what it was. Based on these three categories, Siclari's group compared the measured brain activities and found clear parallels. "Compared to patients who did not experience anything, patients who dreamt during the episode showed activations that were similar to brain activations previously found for dreaming, both immediately before the episode, and also during the episode," adds Siclari. "What determines whether the patient will be completely unconscious or will instead dream seems to depend on the state the patient is in at that moment. If we activate the brain while they're likely already dreaming, they appear to be able to 'make something' of the activation, while when their brain is largely 'inactivated,' simple behaviors seem to occur without experience. "Interestingly, patients almost never mention the sound that initiated the parasomnia episode, but rather some other type of impending danger. The louder we go with the sound volume, the higher the chance that we provoke an episode." The next steps Because this is only the first step, there is a lot of room for follow-up studies. "Ideally, we'd like to set up a system for more people to record their sleep at home, where they may also have much complex and more frequent episodes. We'd also like to repeat the same type to studies in people who experience parasomnias in REM-sleep. By measuring brain activity like in this study, we hope to eventually better understand which neural systems are involved in different types of parasomnias," says Siclari. While there is still a lot of research to be done, Siclari is confident that her work can provide valuable insights. "These experiences are very real to the patients and most already felt relieved to be sharing them with us. Similar to previous studies, our research clarifies what they are experiencing, which is educationally valuable. "Additionally, our work could contribute to more specific drug interventions in the future. Parasomnias are often treated with unspecific sleeping drugs, which isn't always effective and can have negative side effects. If we can deduce which neural system is working abnormally, we can eventually try to develop more specific treatments." More information: Jacinthe Cataldi et al, Shared EEG correlates between non-REM parasomnia experiences and dreams, Nature Communications (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-48337-7 Journal information: Nature Communications Provided by Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience - KNAW 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: Georgia Institute of Technology Cardiologists and surgeons could soon have a new mobile augmented reality (AR) tool to improve collaboration in surgical planning. ARCollab is an iOS AR application designed for doctors to interact with patient-specific 3D heart models in a shared environment. It is the first surgical planning tool that uses multi-user mobile AR in iOS. The application's collaborative feature overcomes limitations in traditional surgical modeling and planning methods. This offers patients better, personalized care from doctors who plan and collaborate with the tool. Georgia Tech researchers partnered with Children's Healthcare of Atlanta (CHOA) in ARCollab's development. Pratham Mehta, a computer science major, led the group's research. "We have conducted two trips to CHOA for usability evaluations with cardiologists and surgeons. The overall feedback from ARCollab users has been positive," Mehta said. "They all enjoyed experimenting with it and collaborating with other users. They also felt like it had the potential to be useful in surgical planning." ARCollab's collaborative environment is the tool's most novel feature. It allows surgical teams to study and plan together in a virtual workspace, regardless of location. ARCollab supports a toolbox of features for doctors to inspect and interact with their patients' AR heart models. With a few finger gestures, users can scale and rotate, "slice" into the model, and modify a slicing plane to view omnidirectional cross-sections of the heart. Developing ARCollab on iOS works twofold. This streamlines deployment and accessibility by making it available on the iOS App Store and Apple devices. Building ARCollab on Apple's peer-to-peer network framework ensures the functionality of the AR components. It also lessens the learning curve, especially for experienced AR users. ARCollab overcomes traditional surgical planning practices of using physical heart models. Producing physical models is time-consuming, resource-intensive, and irreversible compared to digital models. It is also difficult for surgical teams to plan together since they are limited to studying a single physical model. Digital and AR modeling is growing as an alternative to physical models. CardiacAR is one such tool the group has already created. However, digital platforms lack multi-user features essential for surgical teams to collaborate during planning. ARCollab's multi-user workspace progresses the technology's potential as a mass replacement for physical modeling. "Over the past year and a half, we have been working on incorporating collaboration into our prior work with CaridacAR," Mehta said. "This involved completely changing the codebase, rebuilding the entire app and its features from the ground up in a newer AR framework that was better suited for collaboration and future development." Its interactive and visualization features, along with its novelty and innovation, led the Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 2024) to accept ARCollab for presentation. The conference occurs May 1116 in Honolulu. M.S. student Harsha Karanth and alumnus Alex Yang (CS 2022, M.S. CS 2023) co-authored the paper with Mehta. They study under Polo Chau, an associate professor in the School of Computational Science and Engineering. The Georgia Tech group partnered with Timothy Slesnick and Fawwaz Shaw from CHOA on ARCollab's development. "Working with the doctors and having them test out versions of our application and give us feedback has been the most important part of the collaboration with CHOA," Mehta said. "These medical professionals are experts in their field. We want to make sure to have features that they want and need, and that would make their job easier." 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: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain When dermatologist Adewole "Ade" Adamson sees people spritzing sunscreen as if it's cologne at the pool where he lives in Austin, Texas, he wants to intervene. "My wife says I shouldn't," he said, "even though most people rarely use enough sunscreen." At issue is not just whether people are using enough sunscreen, but what ingredients are in it. The Food and Drug Administration's ability to approve the chemical filters in sunscreens that are sold in countries such as Japan, South Korea, and France is hamstrung by a 1938 U.S. law that requires sunscreens to be tested on animals and classified as drugs, rather than as cosmetics as they are in much of the world. So Americans are not likely to get those better sunscreenswhich block the ultraviolet rays that can cause skin cancer and lead to wrinklesin time for this summer, or even the next. Sunscreen makers say that requirement is unfair because companies including BASF Corp. and L'Oreal, which make the newer sunscreen chemicals, submitted safety data on sunscreen chemicals to the European Union authorities some 20 years ago. Steven Goldberg, a retired vice president of BASF, said companies are wary of the FDA process because of the cost and their fear that additional animal testing could ignite a consumer backlash in the European Union, which bans animal testing of cosmetics, including sunscreen. The companies are asking Congress to change the testing requirements before they take steps to enter the U.S. marketplace. In a rare example of bipartisanship last summer, Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, thanked Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) for urging the FDA to speed up approvals of new, more effective sunscreen ingredients. Now a bipartisan bill is pending in the House that would require the FDA to allow non-animal testing. "It goes back to sunscreens being classified as over-the-counter drugs," said Carl D'Ruiz, a senior manager at DSM-Firmenich, a Switzerland-based maker of sunscreen chemicals. "It's really about giving the U.S. consumer something that the rest of the world has. People aren't dying from using sunscreen. They're dying from melanoma." Every hour, at least two people die of skin cancer in the United States. Skin cancer is the most common cancer in America, and 6.1 million adults are treated each year for basal cell and squamous cell carcinomas, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The nation's second-most-common cancer, breast cancer, is diagnosed about 300,000 times annually, though it is far more deadly. Dermatologists offer tips on keeping skin safe and healthy: Stay in the shade during peak sunlight hours, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daylight time. Wear hats and sunglasses. Use UV-blocking sun umbrellas and clothing. Reapply sunscreen every two hours. You can order overseas versions of sunscreens from online pharmacies such as Cocooncenter in France. Keep in mind that the same brands may have different ingredients if sold in U.S. stores. But importing your sunscreen may not be affordable or practical. "The best sunscreen is the one that you will use over and over again," said Jane Yoo, a New York City dermatologist. Though skin cancer treatment success rates are excellent, 1 in 5 Americans will develop skin cancer by age 70. The disease costs the health care system $8.9 billion a year, according to CDC researchers. One study found that the annual cost of treating skin cancer in the United States more than doubled from 2002 to 2011, while the average annual cost for all other cancers increased by just 25%. And unlike many other cancers, most forms of skin cancer can largely be preventedby using sunscreens and taking other precautions. But a heavy dose of misinformation has permeated the sunscreen debate, and some people question the safety of sunscreens sold in the United States, which they deride as "chemical" sunscreens. These sunscreen opponents prefer "physical" or "mineral" sunscreens, such as zinc oxide, even though all sunscreen ingredients are chemicals. "It's an artificial categorization," said E. Dennis Bashaw, a retired FDA official who ran the agency's clinical pharmacology division that studies sunscreens. Still, such concerns were partly fed by the FDA itself after it published a study that said some sunscreen ingredients had been found in trace amounts in human bloodstreams. When the FDA said in 2019, and then again two years later, that older sunscreen ingredients needed to be studied more to see if they were safe, sunscreen opponents saw an opening, said Nadim Shaath, president of Alpha Research & Development, which imports chemicals used in cosmetics. "That's why we have extreme groups and people who aren't well informed thinking that something penetrating the skin is the end of the world," Shaath said. "Anything you put on your skin or eat is absorbed." Adamson, the Austin dermatologist, said some sunscreen ingredients have been used for 30 years without any population-level evidence that they have harmed anyone. "The issue for me isn't the safety of the sunscreens we have," he said. "It's that some of the chemical sunscreens aren't as broad spectrum as they could be, meaning they do not block UVA as well. This could be alleviated by the FDA allowing new ingredients." Ultraviolet radiation falls between X-rays and visible light on the electromagnetic spectrum. Most of the UV rays that people come in contact with are UVA rays that can penetrate the middle layer of the skin and that cause up to 90% of skin aging, along with a smaller amount of UVB rays that are responsible for sunburns. The sun protection factor, or SPF, rating on American sunscreen bottles denotes only a sunscreen's ability to block UVB rays. Although American sunscreens labeled "broad spectrum" should, in theory, block UVA light, some studies have shown they fail to meet the European Union's higher UVA-blocking standards. "It looks like a number of these newer chemicals have a better safety profile in addition to better UVA protection," said David Andrews, deputy director of Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit that researches the ingredients in consumer products. "We have asked the FDA to consider allowing market access." The FDA defends its review process and its call for tests of the sunscreens sold in American stores as a way to ensure the safety of products that many people use daily, rather than just a few times a year at the beach. "Many Americans today rely on sunscreens as a key part of their skin cancer prevention strategy, which makes satisfactory evidence of both safety and effectiveness of these products critical for public health," Cherie Duvall-Jones, an FDA spokesperson, wrote in an email. D'Ruiz's company, DSM-Firmenich, is the only one currently seeking to have a new over-the-counter sunscreen ingredient approved in the United States. The company has spent the past 20 years trying to gain approval for bemotrizinol, a process D'Ruiz said has cost $18 million and has advanced fitfully, despite attempts by Congress in 2014 and 2020 to speed along applications for new UV filters. Bemotrizinol is the bedrock ingredient in nearly all European and Asian sunscreens, including those by the South Korean brand Beauty of Joseon and Biore, a Japanese brand. D'Ruiz said bemotrizinol could secure FDA approval by the end of 2025. If it does, he said, bemotrizinol would be the most vetted and safest sunscreen ingredient on the market, outperforming even the safety profiles of zinc oxide and titanium dioxide. As Congress and the FDA debate, many Americans have taken to importing their own sunscreens from Asia or Europe, despite the risk of fake products. "The sunscreen issue has gotten people to see that you can be unsafe if you're too slow," said Alex Tabarrok, a professor of economics at George Mason University. "The FDA is just incredibly slow. They've been looking at this now literally for 40 years. Congress has ordered them to do it, and they still haven't done it." 2024 Kaiser Health News. Visit khn.org. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. 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: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain There were moments during the COVID-19 pandemic's early days when real life might have felt ripped out of the pages of Stephen King's The Stand, a novel about an extremely contagious and lethal influenza strain that sweeps across the U.S. While COVID didn't leave the world a post-apocalyptic landscape, it spotlighted the divide between those who would flock to a vaccine as it was rolled out and those who declined based on personal, political or religious grounds, regardless of public health messaging. So, what's the best way to communicate with a vaccine-hesitant person about a vaccine's potential benefits? It's not an easy question to answer, but new research involving Binghamton University's School of Management (SOM) Assistant Professor of Marketing Yang (Jenny) Guo found that a one-size-fits-all approach to communicating these messages isn't effective. Message framing plays a crucial role depending on the person's mindset, Guo said, so it requires communicating in different ways for different people. The research is published in the International Journal of Research in Marketing. Researchers determined that loss-based messaging is the most constructive method to communicate with vaccine-hesitant people to ensure they're completely informed about the scope of their decision. Based on the findings, researchers proposed revisiting communication strategies to encourage more people to vaccinate for various illnesses. While the COVID-19 pandemic provided the most recent context, Guo and fellow researchers generalized their study to vaccinations for different contagious viruses, particularly influenza. The researchers' findings come after collecting data from more than 2,700 online participants across the U.S., the U.K., China and India. After controlling for participants' age, gender, education, political ideology and some other factors that had been found affecting their vaccination tendency, the study showed that its findings centered on implicit mindsets toward vaccination as a form of high-cost, high-uncertainty prevention behavior. "We found those with a fixed mindset, which in this case are people most likely to refuse vaccines, respond better when the messaging is framed around how not taking a vaccine would lead to negative outcomes including financial or family costs, even their life, compared to when the messaging is framed around how taking a vaccine would lead to positive outcomes," said Guo, who co-authored the research project. "It's an interesting contrast to what you might see in a bulk of the message framing for vaccines that promotes a 'new normal' and how taking them helps people gain something," Guo added. This finding was particularly noteworthy because although prior research has indicated message framing doesn't matter for people with fixed mindsets, Guo said, those studies centered on lower-cost behaviors such as avoiding the risk of skin cancer by not applying sunscreen. By contrast, the study Guo helped conduct found message framing doesn't impact people with what researchers describe as a growth mindsetpeople who believe their characteristics can be changed through individual efforts. This is because people with a growth mindset believe that efforts lead to positive changes, according to the researchers, so they may be motivated to undertake whatever efforts are necessary, such as vaccination, to enhance their current condition regardless of message framing. "Our research suggests that if there is a next pandemic and if there's a new vaccine we need to take, the better strategy is to use loss framing when promoting that vaccine," Guo said. "While gain-framing can work for some, it's not going to persuade the people health officials really need to reach. Loss-based messaging framing is going to work much better for those who are extremely hesitant to take a vaccine." More information: Shaobo Li et al, Loss framing increases entity theorists' vaccine uptake, International Journal of Research in Marketing (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.ijresmar.2024.04.002 Journal information: International Journal of Research in Marketing This new smartwatch from TechLife is the device of choice for any hobby and lifestyle EVERYONE HAS different hobbies and lifestyles. Whether... A group of Missoula residents will try to collect 9,300 signatures to try to get an initiative to ban single-use plastics within city limits on the November ballot. The group, called Families for a Livable Climate Beyond Plastics Working Group, announced on Friday that they've submitted a ballot petition to the Missoula County Elections Office. If the petition is approved, Missoula voters would decide whether to adopt a new ordinance. It would "prevent any business or city government facility from providing single-use plastic bags and polystyrene items such as foam cups, food containers or packing peanuts." The law would also prevent food vendors from giving out plastic straws or beverage stirrers unless requested by a customer. "By taking action at the local level to reduce plastic, we're not only doing what is best for our environment, but also what is best for our communities now and in the future," said Jeremy Drake, a member of the group. This action is consistent with the city of Missoulas ZERO by FIFTY Pathway to Zero Waste Plan and will help move the city closer to its Zero Waste goal. Drake did not respond to a request from the Missoulian seeking comment on whether he had reached out to any businesses or business groups. Mark Losh, the CEO of the Missoula Area Chamber of Commerce, said he had no comment on the issue at this time. A 2019 study by the Environment Montana Research and Policy Center found widespread microplastic pollution in Montana waterways. The microplastics came from a variety of sources, including hard plastics, synthetic fabrics and plastic bags. Recently, a Lewis and Clark County District Court judge decided that a law passed by the Montana Legislature in 2021, which prevented Montana citizens from proposing ballot initiatives to regulate single-use plastics, violated Montanans' constitutional right to put forth an initiative. Plaintiffs have prevailed on a challenge to the most fundamental democratic foundation of Montanas Constitution," wrote judge Mike McMahon in his order. Drake was one of the plaintiffs who sued the state of Montana over the issue, and he was joined by the Cottonwood Environmental Law Center and several other Montana residents. Because the Legislature has failed in its duty to protect the health of Montana citizens from the harms of plastics, we must now take action as citizens," said Liz Ametsbichler, a Missoula resident and volunteer co-chair of the Families for a Livable Climate Beyond Plastics Working Group. Hawaii banned single-use plastic bags in 2014. Seattle banned single-use plastic utensils and straws in 2018, and the state of Washington banned plastic bags statewide in 2021. U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy announced on Monday that the Postal Service will pause a plan to consolidate facilities across the country, including a plan to move the Missoula Processing and Delivery Center operations to Spokane. In a letter sent to the U.S. Senate, DeJoy said the consolidation of processing facility operations would be paused until at least January of 2025. The move comes in the wake of fierce opposition to the plan from many U.S. Senators, including both Sen. Jon Tester and Sen. Steve Daines. Earlier this month, the Postal Service announced it had decided to move all of the outgoing mail processing functions from the Missoula Processing and Delivery Center to Spokane. That would have meant that lots of pieces of mail sent from Missoula and bound for Missoula would have had to travel 400 miles round-trip to Spokane and back for delivery. The Postal Service had defended the decision, saying it would save millions of dollars every year. The local union representing U.S. Postal Service workers had been strongly opposed to the move, saying it would delay mail and lead to the elimination of non-career jobs. Tester hailed Monday's announcement as a win for Montana. "Montanans sent me to the Senate to defend rural America and make sure our state doesnt get left behind, and thats exactly why I told Postmaster DeJoy that plans to move Missoulas outgoing mail processing out-of-state were a complete nonstarter, Tester said in a statement. Im proud to have put a stop to this consolidation plan that would have left Montanans with less reliable mail service and jeopardized the delivery of everything from hard-earned paychecks to life-saving medications. Ill continue to push for a permanent fix like my PARCEL Act to make sure USPS wont be able to ever strip rural America of reliable service without public approval and legitimate justification. Last week, Tester had introduced the PARCEL Act, which would have prohibited consolidation of mail processing operations nationwide. Saying in court documents that the state Office of Public Instruction has set up a way for approved charter schools to begin operations by fall and get state funding, a coalition that was suing the office agreed with OPI to dismiss a lawsuit over the matter. Last month a Helena judge temporarily blocked OPI from requiring a parental petition and approval from a county superintendent and county commission for a newly formed charter school to open. The judge allowed the office to still require the submission of the average number belonging, or ANB, which is the estimated or actual number of students at the school, provided by the county superintendent. The process OPI established to follow the judge's order means charter schools are now able to set up operations for the fiscal year that starts in July, and because of that the Montana Quality Education Coalition and OPI agreed to end the legal challenge, according to court documents filed last week. The courts preliminary injunction remains in effect until terminated pending a court order or until the Legislature in 2025 can make changes to the charter school law in regard to the roles the Board of Public Education, OPI and state superintendent have in the approval and opening process for charter schools. The lawsuit was filed by the Montana Quality Education Coalition earlier this year over the requirements OPI was demanding for 19 new charter schools approved by the Board of Public Education under a new law passed in the 2023 legislative session. The coalition said the original requirements from Superintendent Elsie Arntzen would have made it very difficult to meet a July deadline to get schools open in time for the 2024-25 school year. In a statement Monday, Arntzen said she felt it was instead the coalition that caused the holdup. Unaccountable bureaucratic organizations caused delays for our students, parents, and schools, Arntzen said in a press release. Since this delay, my staff has worked to prioritize the school opening process for our public charter schools. I look forward to the legislature clarifying this process for added parental choice and freedom in education. In January, BPE approved 19 charter school applications. By Monday, OPI had opened 15 of the 18 schools that will enroll students in the fall. The office said it is working with one school to correct some information it submitted and is waiting for applications from two other schools. One approved charter does not plan to open until the fall of 2025. Schools opening this fall include: Billings Early College Billings Multilingual Academy Billings Opportunity School Corvallis Distance Learning Center Corvallis Pathways Learning Center Frenchtown Broc Fast Track Public Charter CORE School at Morningside Elementary in Great Falls Missoula Connect Academy Missoula Teach Academy Hamilton Bitterroot Polytech Montessori Charter in Helena Mount Ascension Learning Academy in Helena Project for Alternative Learning in Helena Flathead PACE Academy Charter Rising Wolf Charter in Kalispell Nazrin Abdul Mansur Piriyev, Head of the Department of Information Assurance and Innovative Solutions at the Azerbaijan Food Safety Agency (AFSA), highlighted the significant increase in the export of several food products from the country, achieving record results in production and export, Azernews reports. "In recent years, reforms in food safety, alongside advancements in other sectors, have paved the way for expanded export opportunities, ensuring safer food products for the population," Piriyev remarked. He noted that permits have been secured for exporting caviar produced in aquaculture, various marine products, wool, and leather to the European Union. Furthermore, the export of horses to Kazakhstan has resumed, and approvals have been obtained for exporting edible eggs to Russia. Simplified procedures for exporting hazelnuts to the EU and poultry meat and products to China have also been achieved. Piriyev attributed these successes to food industry entities aligning their activities with international standards and enhancing the safety and quality of their products. The AFSA consistently provides methodological support to entrepreneurs and implements regulatory measures to ensure effective compliance within the framework of legislation. Additionally, Piriyev mentioned the agency's innovative corner at an upcoming exhibition, inviting participants to engage and inquire about food safety-related issues. Last week, the Roy J. Carver Charitable Trust gave out its annual Excellent in Education awards for the 2023-2024 school year. For over 25 years, the Roy J. Carver Charitable Trust has funded these scholarships for graduating senior and current eighth-graders to help further support education within its community as well as to honor teachers, administrators and support staff who are seen as outstanding in their field or who have made a significant impact in the lives of students. For the high school senior students who earn this award, they each receive a $3,000 scholarship to be put towards the college or higher education path of their choosing. This years senior recipients are Ami Rejoice Denyo, Jenna Lovstad, Ty Cozad, McKenzie Lemkau, Clarissa Lagunas-Juarez, Edwin Orellana, Alanah Dolan, Emma Creamer, Chevy Palmer, Molly Mercer, Keenen Lake-Emmert, Estella Bland, Brianna Yerington, Makinley Hage, Alexis Taylor, Dane Wells, Constelle Votio, Pamela Venture, Aubrey Bender and Dayton Truesdale. For the 8th grade students who win this award, they each receive a $1,000 scholarship. This years Susan Clark Jr. High recipients are Gabriella Hunter, Maggie Sajak, Tehya Davis, Fayoo Tirfe, Cynovia Hesseling, Kendra Linder, Natalie Cuellar, Coen Navarro, Alexander Gaytan and Bethelda Votio. Three Muscatine teachers and three staff members were selected as Excellence in Education winners, with each recipient receiving $500 to be put towards their classroom or towards the betterment of their role within the district. This years faculty winners were 6th grade Mulberry Elementary teacher Natalie Fillmore; Muscatine High School ELA teacher Mark Rusch; Susan Clark Jr. High Band Director Jennifer Rosin; Muscatine High School Juvenile Court Liaison Heather Duytschaeve;, Franklin Elementary paraeducator Annie Bremner; and Muskie Early Learning Center paraeducator Laurel Bender. When asked for additional comments regarding the award, both Fillmore and Duytschaever shared that they were honored and humbled to receive this award. "Just to be nominated by colleagues who I hold in high respect was more than enough, Fillmore said. I am not sure what I will use the money for but, I am sure I will think of something that will be a benefit to my classroom and future students. Duytschaever had similar sentiments and said the district is bless and fortunate to have the Roy J Carver Trust fund. I love my position at MHS, receiving the award means that I am making an impact on many awesome students which makes my heart so happy," Duytschaever said. "I have not decided what I will spend the money on, but I am hoping to use the money to spread happiness within my position. All student scholarships are turned over to the Community Foundation of Greater Muscatine. For questions on the Excellence in Education Scholarships or on how a student or staff member can be nominated for 2025, residents can contact the Community Foundation at 563-264-3863. Betty Kyallo shared some details about her private life, offering a rare insight into her relationship, which she has previously kept away from public view. The media personality, who returned to mainstream media after an almost four-year hiatus, hinted at the possibility of getting married soon. Additionally, she mentioned being content and joyful in her current relationship with her partner, who originates from Western Kenya. My man is from the western region. I am now settled. I feel happy, Kyallo said. When questioned about the possibility of marriage, the mother of one was non-committal. We will see about that. I do not want to speak much about it and then something happens. Betty also disclosed that she is a submissive partner when in love, providing a rare glimpse into her personal life. Nikikupenda nafanya kila kitu. Napika, nakupiga magoti, massage nakufanyia. lakini yote ni kama nakupenda. Kama sikupendi siwezi fanya izo vitu zote, she explained during an interview Saturday morning on Cape Media-owned Radio 47. (When I love you, I do everything. I cook, I kneel, I massage you. But its all because I love you. If I dont love you, I cant do all those things) As a prominent media personality and celebrity, Kyallo highlighted the necessity of cultivating resilience to navigate the challenges she encounters. You know I have been doing this for 13 years now. I have learned to develop a thick skin because some things which people go through privately I go through them in the public eye. It is not easy, but I find ways of getting by, remarked the media personality. Police in Bushenyi District, western Uganda, have initiated investigations into the unusual death of a Kenyan student enrolled at Kampala International University (KIU). The deceased, identified as Isaac Otieno Ochola, aged 33, was reportedly studying at KIUs western campus in Bushenyi-Ishaka Municipality. Marcial Tumusiime, spokesperson for Greater Bushenyi police, reported that Ocholas body was discovered in his Hannington hostel following complaints from neighbors about a noxious odor emanating from his room. They alerted the private security guard at this hostel and he informed the police. Our officers visited the scene, recorded statements from neighbours and then conveyed the body stated the police spokesperson. The body was transferred to KIU Teaching and Referral Hospital mortuary pending a postmortem examination. Ochola was pursuing a Masters degree in International Medicine. One of his neighbors, Alex Tumusiime, revealed that the police found various medications in Ocholas room. When we broke into this room together with the police, we found different kinds of medicines like pethidine hydrochloride injections, Clonazepam and syringes were placed on a table near the bed, the decomposing body was well-dressed, he recounted. The deceased student reportedly suffered from mental disorders and was undergoing treatment. Since morning, the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) has been conducting road safety compliance checks on highways nationwide. The objective is to bolster road safety as students return to school following last weeks delayed reopening. As part of the crackdown to ensure full compliance with road safety measures, both police and the road safety authority have seized several vehicles on various routes. Random breathalyzer tests have also been administered during the inspections. In a statement, NTSA stressed the importance of adhering to speed limits, maintaining lane discipline, and refraining from driving under the influence of alcohol. Together, lets ensure our children arrive at school safely, NTSA emphasized. Major highways such as Mombasa-Nairobi, Narok-Nairobi, Sotik-Kisii, Kimilil-Chwele, and Kisii-Migori are among those where the agency has deployed checks. The operation commenced on Friday and will extend throughout the week. Traffic police and NTSA officers are collaborating in this operation. Along the Kisii-Sotik road, authorities impounded a school bus for having a defective speed limiter, faulty seat belts, faded chevrons and reflectors, and an expired road service license (RSL). School transportation, like all public service vehicles, must adhere to traffic regulations, NTSA reiterated. For the brother-sister brewing duo Gregory Zobel and Alex Zobel, beer was their ceasefire. As siblings who grew up in separate households, Alex at their dads house in Concord and Gregory at their mother's in Napa, their relationship blossomed over a pint of brew. "Reconnecting as young adults over beer was really important to us," Alex said. Thus arose the name of their brewing company Armistice, meaning a truce or ending of a war. The brewing company opened its taproom in Richmond in 2017 and a second location in Napa last fall, but their move into wine country was a long time in the making. The road to Napa began in Los Angeles. Brother and sister spent a good amount of time living in separate places, but by the time they were in their 20s, Alex and Gregory both found themselves in Southern California. Gregory was working in the television and film industry, while Alex was getting her doctorate in 16th- and 17th-century English literature from UCLA. They went from drinking to brewing on Alexs 26th birthday, when Gregory gifted her a homebrewing kit. Naturally, it wasnt a gift only for Alex. As all little brothers do, I said, 'I want to do this too. You cant do this by yourself,' Gregory said. They started off brewing at Alexs place in Culver City, experimenting with amber ale, a beer style that the siblings agree is forgiving due to its sweetness. They also agree their first beers werent very good. We were hooked from that point on, Gregory said. Since then, the two have brewed around 400 beer recipes from India pale ales to English ales and raspberry smoothie beer the list goes on. Alex said that they try to bring a homebrewing ethos to their process, and dont like to make the same thing again and again. We have a lot of flexibility to brew a lot of different styles and to be constantly tinkering, which is a little unusual, Alex said. Most breweries have flagship or core brands. They have the flexibility to brew so many different styles of beer because of their business model. The siblings said that since they are a small brewing operation, most of their money comes from taproom sales rather than retail. But it wasnt beer that brought them back to Napa. Alex and Gregorys mother had been battling breast cancer since the 1990s. By 2013, the cancer had metastasized to her brain and she needed full-time care. Gregory quit his job and moved back north, and Alex was working on her dissertation, which allowed enough flexibility to also move back. Outside of caring for their mother, Gregory and Alex had more time to brew, and joked around about making it bigger than a hobby. It was a lot of work taking care of mom, but it was also a lot of waiting for her to wake up. So we were sitting there thinking maybe we should bang out a business plan, Gregory said. Bang out a business plan they did. During that time, the two began getting their tool kit in order. Gregory got a job working at the Windsor brewery St. Florian, gaining as much knowledge as possible before embarking on their business venture. If were going to think about opening a brewery, one of us should probably have worked in one so dont kill ourselves, Gregory said. Gregory worked his way up from keg washing to brewing, while Alex worked in the taproom briefly. Gregory also worked at PRESS in St. Helena to get a feel for the hospitality side of things. When their mother died in 2015, living long enough just to hear the business plan, the siblings got to work staking out a location. Napa had always been a priority for them because of their ties to the community, but the market was too expensive. A big chunk of their budget was tied to the life insurance money they collected after their mother's passing. Its not exactly the easiest place to open a business. Its one of the most competitive alcohol markets, Gregory said. The two eventually landed in Richmond in 2017 and saw success selling beer and Mexican food through a partnership with El Garage, a viral Richmond-based brick-and-mortar operation known for quesabirria. Gregory said that he and his sister never stopped looking in Napa, and the two were able to secure their spot at 1040 Clinton St. last fall. We never took our toe out of the market here, Gregory said. If a building is available between 2015 and 2023, weve looked at it. Their Napa space feels inviting, the blue walls adorned with images from the English broadside ballads, which were lyric sheets sold on the streets of London in the 1700s. The location has a selection of around 16 beers and seltzers that are in continuous rotation here one day and gone the next. Alex and Gregory both agree their favorite beer to drink is usually something easy and crisp like their Rich City Pils. It's a German-style pilsner and the only beer option that is always on the menu. One of their more interesting selections currently is called a Raspberry Coulis, a smoothie beer made with 51% beer and 49% fruit. The siblings said that although the fruit changes, they usually have one smoothie beer on their menu at a time. Outside of beer, Armistice also offers a smaller selection of French and Italian wines. The siblings like the idea of continuing to add something different to the Napa scene, as there are already a plethora of local tasting rooms that provide the classic Napa Valley wine experience. In terms of food, Alex and Gregory dragged El Garage up to Napa with them. The brewery and restaurant have a close relationship, as co-founder Vivianna Montano was their second hire in the Richmond Armistice taproom as a beertender. Montano took a step back from the brewery to focus on opening the brick-and-mortar location for El Garage in Richmond, and then decided to work with the siblings again by operating the kitchen space in Napa. With the location's first summer on the horizon, changes are on the way, some unfortunate. According to Alex, El Garage will not be coming into summer with the brewery in Napa and is in search of a new collaborator. Alex said that El Garage will cease operations on June 4 because it is unable to sustain an operation in both Napa and Richmond. We are super-sad. We love the family and the brand is great, Alex said. As for the brewery itself, the siblings said they have a wish list of things they're hoping to get done, which include creating a private event space and adding more social events like karaoke on top of their established game and trivia nights. These events include participating in Sip and Shop the Block, a block party in the Clinton District on Thursday. Theyll be selling brews alongside other local vendors with rotating DJ sets from 4 to 9 p.m. At the end of the month, Armistice will extend its hours until around 1 a.m. during BottleRock May 24-26 to host after-parties for locals and overnight guests. The Los Angeles-based DJ SVNSUN will be performing at the taproom that weekend. The siblings take pride in their appeal to locals, which Alex calls their bread and butter, and feel theyve found the right place in Napa after all these years. Being here in downtown is great because theres tasting rooms on one side and on the other side, its residents. So locals will come here, theyll just be walking down the street, Alex said. Armistice Brewing Company's Napa location at 1040 Clinton St. is open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, and stays open until 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Photos: Napa Valley Faces and Places, May 11, 2024 Nazrin Abdul More than 20 Azerbaijani companies are set to embark on a visit to Latvia, Estonia, and Finland from May 26 to June 2, Azernews reports, citing Caspian Energy Club International. The primary aim of this visit is to bolster economic and trade relations between Azerbaijan and the Central Baltic countries, fostering stronger business partnerships and bilateral ties. During the visit, a series of business-to-business (B2B) meetings and a Demo Day will be organised, facilitating interaction between Azerbaijani entrepreneurs and their counterparts from Latvia, Estonia, and Finland. The agenda includes plans to sign memoranda and cooperation agreements between Azerbaijani companies and those from the Central Baltic region. Gunel Guliyeva, managing director of Caspian Energy Club International, emphasised the significant interest shown by partners in Azerbaijan's economy within the framework of the LEF Network Azerbaijan project. Previous meetings provided foreign partners with insights into Azerbaijan's business environment, where they commended the country's reforms and favourable conditions for the private sector, foreseeing substantial contributions to bilateral cooperation. Caspian Energy Club International has been selected as an official partner of the LEF Network Azerbaijan project initiated by the "European Union Central Baltic" program. This 3-year project, launched last year, aims to enhance economic cooperation among Azerbaijan, Latvia, Estonia, and Finland. With a focus on "green technologies," information technologies, and education, the project seeks to facilitate contract signings within these fields among companies from Finland, Estonia, and Latvia over the next 36 months. Leading partners of the project include the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Latvia, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Estonia, and the Satakunta University of Applied Sciences in Finland. Fatime Letifova In Armenia, opposition-oriented protests have become widespread in recent days. The protesters, under the leadership of Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, still demonstrate their dissatisfaction with the recent border delimitation process between Armenia and Azerbaijan. As a result of the action, 12 people were detained by local police in Yerevan who are believed to be violent. It is interesting that these acts are incited by the church while the ruling classes avoid harsh intervention. On the other hand, this poses a question about forces that support a religious institution to create such a disturbance in the country. Political scientist Asif Narimanli, commenting on the topic for Azernews, said that the Armenian Church has always been interested in getting involved in politics. The expert said that this church laid the foundation of Armenian terrorism in the world. "Clergymen and the Armenian Church have always had a place in politics in Armenia, and they were able to interfere in the administration of the state. Even when there was no Armenian statehood, this church was the main centre where Armenian ideology spread to the world. The source of Armenian terrorism in the world is actually the Armenian Church. However, the church has never joined politics in this way," he said. The political scientist recalled that there have always been conflicts between the Armenian Church and the current government. He noted that the church keeps the Armenian people under its influence with lies. "There was a conflict between the church and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan from the beginning. It is not in the interests of the church that the prime minister does not stop the policy of waking up the Armenian people. Because throughout history, this church has controlled the Armenians in this way, that is, it has tried to create a history based on myths and deceive the Armenian people with lies. Pashinyan's current peace-oriented policy causes the Armenian Church to lose its influence, and they don't want to accept it," the expert said. Asif Narimanli said that currently the Armenian opposition is "suffering" from the lack of "leaders" in the country. "It is interesting that the church could act on political figures, standing in the background as usual. However, currently, the Armenian opposition does not have a leader who can direct Armenian public opinion and gain support. The protests held so far after the 44-day Patriotic War have shown that the Armenian public opinion does not provide enough support," he added. The expert drew attention to the distrust of the Armenian people towards the opposition groups. "Two main figures in Armenia still have the influence of the opposition. If Armenian society changes power, either Robert Kocharyan or Serzh Sargsyan will come to power. The Armenian people also saw their rule for many years and had a bitter experience. That's why they don't want them to return," the political scientist said. Asif Narimanli added that this is exactly the reason why the church interfered in politics so hard. "The church actively joined the process due to the lack of a leader in the opposition and distrust. Because the vast majority of Armenians have faith in the church. The church leadership also calculates that it will gain great support from the Armenian community," he said. The expert explained why Pashinyan does not intervene harshly in the current processes. He said that if the protests increase, punitive measures will be inevitable. "The reason why Pashinyan's government did not intervene in the process, in my opinion, is that the incident was kept under control. The prime minister's current lack of major punitive measures against the church lays the groundwork for the future. That is, in the future, Pashinyan can use these protests as a basis and say that the church is trying to destroy the government. As a result, the Armenian church may be subjected to more severe punishments. The political scientist listed the forces that can support these protests. "One of the main stakeholders in these protests is Russia. In my opinion, Robert's involvement in the process confirms this. It is true that the main goal of Robert Kocharyan is to get out of the process profitably because, as a political figure, he recedes into the background and brings his son Levon Kocharyan to the fore," the expert said. He also said that France and the Armenian lobby in France could have a hand in these protests. "Another interested party could be France in the West. Of course, although the current government in France is close to Pashinyan's government, Pashinyan's current policy is somewhat contradictory to France's aspirations in the region. For example, France does not support Armenia's negotiations with Azerbaijan in a bilateral format. France is also the main base of the Armenian diaspora in the West. Armenians here can also take this step to oppose the signing of peace," the expert concluded. China In Perspective: Robust Chinese market performance under spotlight in foreign firms' financial reports 08:12, May 13, 2024 By Zhou Qianxian ( Xinhua This photo taken on April 26, 2024 shows a BMW electric vehicle displayed at the signing ceremony for deepening strategic cooperation between BMW and Shenyang, in Shenyang, northeast China's Liaoning Province. (Xinhua/Pan Yulong) BEIJING, May 12 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese market remains a sweet spot to foreign businesses despite a challenging global environment and lackluster economic recovery worldwide, as the latest financial reports of many world-renowned brands have revealed. Global catering firms are under spotlight as they have earned big on a booming Chinese service market. Take Yum China, the operator of KFC and Pizza Hut restaurants in the country for example. Its total sales grew 6 percent year over year excluding foreign currency translation in the first quarter (Q1) of its 2024 fiscal year. The company opened 378 net new stores in the quarter, a record for the first quarter, its earnings report showed. Joey Wat, CEO of Yum China, commented that "We achieved solid sales growth in the first quarter with total revenues hitting an all-time high, and looking toward the future, we are absolutely confident in seizing China's vast opportunities." Also flourishing in the Chinese market are retail giants. By the end of last year, Sam's Club had 47 stores in 25 Chinese cities, and it vowed to open six to seven stores each year in China. At the beginning of this year, U.S. retail giant Costco Wholesale opened a new store in the city of Shenzhen, and announced it will open a membership store in Nanjing this year and venture into the gas station business there. Many multinationals are gravitating to China's super-sized market as local consumers have shown increasingly diverse demand, and new growth drivers keep arising. Brooks Running, a renowned running shoe brand, for instance, targets China as its new growth arena because of the Chinese consumers' growing passion for outdoor activities and sports. With most of its revenue currently generated from the U.S., Brooks is gearing up to open its inaugural store in Shanghai this fall, marking the beginning of what it calls a long-term commitment to the Chinese market. For auto-making heavyweights, China, despite being the world's largest auto exporter, remains a significant source of demand. According to Volkswagen's Q1 financial report, it delivered 7.7 percent more vehicles to customers in China than in the preceding year. The BMW Group in late April announced an additional investment of 20 billion yuan (about 2.82 billion U.S. dollars) in its production base in Shenyang, the capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province. "The planned investment underlines not only our confidence in China's long-term economic prospects, but also in the innovation capabilities of our Chinese partners," said Oliver Zipse, chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG. Global performance coatings giant PPG Industries said in its Q1 earnings report that it achieved year-over-year adjusted growth for the fifth consecutive quarter despite continued challenges in the macro environment worldwide. "The company benefited from well-established businesses in Mexico and China, and looking ahead, while global industrial production remains at low absolute levels, we believe that demand in China for our products will deliver solid organic growth," said its earnings report. China has managed to keep foreign investment relatively stable. The number of newly established foreign-invested firms in China hit 12,000 in Q1, up 20.7 percent year on year. The growth in the number of newly established foreign firms acted as a leading indicator to support for future capital inflow, said Ji Xiaofeng, an official in charge of the Department of Foreign Investment Administration of the Ministry of Commerce. With the continuous advancement of China's new quality productive forces and a series of policies to stabilize the economy, expand opening-up and attract foreign investment, the development conditions and environment for foreign companies in China will surely improve, Ji added. In terms of the structure of foreign direct investment (FDI), the country's high-tech manufacturing sector attracted 12.5 percent of the FDI inflow in the first quarter, up 2.2 percentage points compared to that in the same period last year. In this year's government work report, China has vowed to intensify efforts to attract foreign investment, including further shortening the negative list for foreign investment, abolishing all market access restrictions on foreign investment in manufacturing, and reducing market access restrictions in services sectors, such as telecommunications and healthcare. The country will expand the Catalog of Encouraged Industries for Foreign Investment, strengthen services for foreign investors and make China a favored destination for foreign investment. It will also make it easier for foreign nationals to work, study, and travel in China and optimize payment services for them. In a recent development of China's opening-up efforts, the country's 10 government departments jointly released a document introducing new measures to encourage overseas institutions to invest in China's domestic sci-tech enterprises. In March, China for the first time rolled out a negative list for cross-border trade in services at the national level to boost opening up. The national-level list consists of 71 items. According to a recent survey of over 600 foreign-funded companies done by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, more than 70 percent of the companies surveyed were optimistic about the development prospects of the Chinese market over the next five years, an increase of 3.8 percentage points compared with the previous quarter. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Fatime Letifova The Human Rights Commissioner (Ombudsman) Office of the Republic of Azerbaijan held an educational meeting on "My rights and responsibilities" in full secondary school No. 189-190, Baku, Azernews reports. During the event, employees of the Children's Rights Protection Sector of the Office of the Ombudsman informed participants about the protection of children from all forms of violence and discrimination, and drew attention to the activities of the Ombudsman in the protection of children's rights. Domestic violence, early marriage, children's internet safety, child labour, bullying, and other topics were also discussed at the event. At the end of the interactive training, the participants' questions were answered. 15:17 BJP leader Dilip Ghosh and cricketer-turned-politician Kirti Azad hugged each other while going to a polling booth in Bardhaman. Earlier, a clash broke out between BJP and Trinamool Congress workers in Durgapur. In Birbhum, BJP workers alleged that their stall outside a polling station was vandalised by workers of the ruling Trinamool Congress. TMC leader Ram Prasad Haldar said, "Since 6 am these (BJP) people have been coming with the central forces and trying to influence the voters. We protested against it, and voters also protested. They are trying to bring polling agents from outside. Central forces are threatening the people and influencing them. People of the area are opposing them here. They are trying to bring polling agents from outside." BJP MLA Laxman Ghorui alleged that their polling agents were thrown out of the polling booth located at TN School in Durgapur. Ghorui said, "Our polling agents were repeatedly thrown out of the polling booth located at TN School in Durgapur. Alpana Mukherjee from booth number 22, Somnath Mandal from booth number 83 and Rahul Sahni from booth number 82 were repeatedly thrown out of the polling booth by TMC goons."' He further said that he had called up and informed the SDO who he alleged responded after three telephone calls were made to him and only after the arrival of media persons. "The behaviour of the presiding officer is very bad. He came at 6 am and was not letting us inside. TMC goons since 6 am misbehaved with voters and women. The women were crying. When I reached, the presiding officer did not allow me to enter. Only when the press came and after the intervention of the SDO, we are now being allowed to enter," he said. Dilip Ghosh alleged that "goons of TMC" were preventing the polling agents from entering the booths. Ghosh said, "When I went to villages, women asked me with folded hands if they would be able to cast their votes or not. It is their (TMC) habit to threaten people who want to cast their votes. The goons of TMC are not letting the polling agents enter the booths, including the presiding officer. Yesterday night, they threatened people in certain areas not to come out to vote. I hope the situation will improve and voting will be done smoothly. I will reach the places wherever required." Amid reports of violence in several parts of West Bengal during the fourth phase of elections, a rare display of bonhomie was witnessed between BJP MP and Bardhaman-Durgapur Lok Sabha seat candidate Dilip Ghosh and Trinamool Congress candidate from the same constituency Kirti Azad on Monday. PNN Dehradun (Uttarakhand) [India], May 13: The Himalayan Institute of Technology (HIT) celebrated the finale of its management fest with a riveting guest lecture and podcast session featuring Debashish Ghosh, the esteemed Vice President and Country HR Head at Berkadia. Renowned for his exemplary credentials, including the SHRM-SCP and GTML, Ghosh brought over two decades of HR leadership to the stage. Ghosh's lecture captivated a large audience comprising students, faculty, and community members, delving into the intricate dynamics of human capital and its impact on business outcomes. His extensive experience and status as a Certified NLP Practitioner enriched the discourse, offering attendees a deep dive into effective human resource strategies. During the event, Ghosh expressed his admiration for HIT's state-of-the-art infrastructure. "I visit a lot of colleges every week, and this is one of the best infrastructures I have seen in recent times. You should be very proud of studying in a college like this," he remarked, reflecting on the institute's facilities. The session also provided a platform for Ghosh to share his personal career journey, shedding light on various roles and industries. His insights are invaluable to students at a juncture where they make pivotal decisions about their professional futures. The event wrapped up with words of gratitude from Dr Archana Jasola, Director of HIT. She thanked Ghosh for his invaluable contributions and for inspiring the students with his insights into the HR field. The management fest, marked by Ghosh's participation, has undoubtedly left a lasting impression, equipping students with knowledge and inspiration as they forge their paths in the competitive world of business. Himalayan Institute of Technology is one of the premier institutes located in Dehradun, Uttarakhand. The institute is Approved by AICTE, affiliated with HNBG Central University & Sri Dev Suman University, approved by UGC, Ministry of Education, Government of India, and recognized by the Government of Uttarakhand. HIT has been ranked among the top 70 colleges for BBA in India by the Times Group and recognized as the Best Hotel Management College in Uttarakhand by the Week Magazine. The institute has also been consistently ranked among the top institutes in India by CSR since 2018. (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by PNN. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same) NewsVoir Lonavala (Maharashtra) [India], May 13: Kaivalyadhama, a renowned institution dedicated to yoga education and research, based in Lonavala, is pleased to announce the successful continuation of its Bharat Yoga Mala initiative. This initiative, which commenced on January 16, 2024 from Lonavala, has now covered eight cities across India, including Kolkata, Chennai, Vizag, Surat, Ahmedabad, Rajgir, and Guwahati. Supported by the Ministry of Ayush and in collaboration with esteemed hosts such as Heartfulness Meditation Centre, Indian Navy, Nalanda University, Sivananda Ashram, Lakshmibai National Institute of Physical Education (LNIPE), Swami Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana Samsthana (VYASA), and Auro University the initiative has gained widespread acclaim for its dedication to promoting well-being through yoga. The Bharat Yoga Mala has seen enthusiastic participation from individuals seeking holistic wellness and spiritual growth. From the serene locales of Lonavala to the historic grounds of Nalanda University in Rajgir, the initiative has traversed diverse landscapes, touching the lives of more than 2400 attendees. The most recent event, held in Chennai on May 12, 2024, in collaboration with the Heartfulness Meditation Centre, saw an enthusiastic participation of 1000+ individuals. The event was graced by Suresh Prabhu, who highlighted the importance of incorporating yoga into daily life. Dr. R. Elangovan, Secretary, Tamil Nadu State Chapter Committee - Indian Yoga Association, delivered an insightful presentation on the role of yoga and meditation in improving mental well-being. Prakash Sheshadri, Regional Facilitator, Heartfulness Institute, Tamil Nadu, and R. S. N. Muralidharan, Assistant General Manager, Central Bank of India, Zonal Office, Chennai along with distinguished members of the Heartfulness Meditation Centre, including Dr. Veronique Nicolai and Venkat Lakshminarasimha, actively engaged in the yoga practices, showcasing the collaborative essence of the Bharat Yoga Mala initiative. Subodh Tiwai, CEO, Kaivalyadhama expressed, "We are delighted by the overwhelming response to the Bharat Yoga Mala initiative, indicating the growing awareness and value of yoga in promoting overall health and wellness. We extend our appreciation to all our partners and participants for their unwavering support." As the Bharat Yoga Mala continues its journey across India, it remains committed to fostering a culture of wellness and spiritual growth through the timeless wisdom of yoga. With each event, it seeks to touch the lives of countless individuals, empowering them to embark on a journey of self-discovery and inner harmony. Founded by Swami Kuvalayananda in 1924, Kaivalyadhama is one of the oldest pioneering yoga institutes globally. The organization follows the principles and philosophy of Patanjali's Ashtanga Yoga, taking pride in teaching traditional yoga in its purest form with a unique perspective. Kaivalyadhama is the first Yoga institute to proactively conduct scientific research demonstrating the benefits and uses of Yoga. This knowledge is applied to deliver holistic well-being and impart Yogic wisdom globally. (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same) SMPL New Delhi [India], May 13: The wait is over for lakhs of students throughout India! The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) announced the long-awaited Class 10 &12 results on May 13, 2024. If you are a student who appeared for CBSE Class10 & 12 board exams this year, you can now relax a bit and check your results online on the official CBSE websites - cbseresults.nic.in and cbse.gov.in - or through other digital platforms such as DigiLocker (digilocker.gov.in) and the UMANG App. Here is a quick guide to checking your CBSE Class 10 & 12 Result 2024: How to Check Your Results Online for CBSE Class 10 & 12 Exams? The CBSE class 10 & 12 results are available online, which makes it very simple and easy for students to access them from wherever they are. * Visit one of the following official websites: cbse.gov.in or results. cbse.nic.in. * Type in your CBSE roll number and school number in the boxes provided. * Click the "Submit" button. * Your CBSE Class 10 or 12 Result 2024 will be displayed on the screen. * Download a clear copy of your result for future use. Steps for Downloading CBSE Class 10 & 12 Result 2024 via DigiLocker DigiLocker offers another simple way to access your CBSE Class 10 & 12 results 2024 - your digital mark sheet. Students who have registered their mobile numbers with CBSE will receive an SMS containing their DigiLocker account details. Important Note: Those who have not yet registered on DigiLocker will need to do it before getting to their mark sheet online. Here's a step-by-step guide for those using DigiLocker: * Go to the official DigiLocker website - digilocker. gov.in and set up an account (if you don't have one already). * After logging in, go to the "Profile" section and make sure your Aadhaar number is updated. This might be a part of the registration process as well. * Select the "Pull Partner Documents" option from the menu. * The next screen will have two drop-down menus. Use them to choose "Central Board of Secondary Education" and "Class 10/12 Marksheet" respectively. * Security Measures: Security is an additional layer when obtaining marksheets from DigiLocker. In order to protect the privacy and security of student data, a PIN must be used. How to Get Your PIN for DigiLocker for CBSE Class 10 & 12 Results 2024? Students who want their Class 10 & 12 marksheets in Digital Locker should initiate the account confirmation process through a dedicated website cbseservices.digilocker.gov.in/activate cbse. Remember that you will need a four-digit PIN while downloading your mark sheet from the app. This pin is the main safety measure put in place to protect your academic certificates, which are very important in life. Understanding CBSE Class 10 & 12 Result 2024 Passing Criteria Below are the requirements that must be met by candidates to pass exams conducted by CBSE for class twelve: * Get at least 33% marks (or E grade) in each of five main external subjects (theory part). The latter rule applies both to regular examinations as well as compartmental ones if any. * Must score minimum 33% aggregate marks comprising of theory and practical parts separately along with at least 33% individually both internal and external components taken together in practical subjects. * This means that even if your grades fall below the passing level of 33%, provided your internal assessment exceeds a certain limit, excluding exemptions, you may still secure a pass certificate from the board for that subject. Recommended Books: CBSE Books | Class 10 | Class 12 | For 2025 Board Exams - Click Here CBSE Question Bank Class 12 | For 2025 Board Exams - Click Here CBSE Previous Years Solved Papers Class 12 | For 2025 Board Exams - Click Here CBSE Question Bank Class 10 | For 2025 Board Exams - Click Here CBSE Previous Year Solved Papers Class 10 | For 2025 Board Exams - Click Here What Information Will You Find on Your CBSE Class 10 & 12 Result 2024? The CBSE Class 10 & 12 Result 2024 will display various details about your performance, including: * Name of Examination (CBSE Class 10 or 12 Examination) * Board Name (Central Board of Secondary Education) * Class (Class 10 or 12) * Student Name * Roll Number * Mother's Name * Father's Name * Date of Birth * Subject Name * Subject Code * Theory Marks * Practical Marks (if applicable) * Total Marks * Positional Grade (within your school) * Final Result (Pass/ Not Pass) What's After Your CBSE Class 10 & 12 Results Declared In 2024? So now, what did we do? In the case of students who have done well: Take a moment to appreciate your achievements. During this time, research on higher learning institutions and courses that match your field of interest. Consequently, start looking into what you can expect in terms of the entry exams. On the other hand, for the students that failed to get their expected outcome: Do not be discouraged; it does not mean that you cannot do better. Re-evaluate your performance and identify weak areas. Possible improvements and support from teachers or mentors may be needed as well. Similarly, understand that there are many ways leading to success. Looking Ahead- Important Resources for Future CBSE students for 2025 Board Exams Each year, after the dust settles on exams in 2024, there will be a new group of incoming students preparing for the next academic year. Therefore, here are some friendly resources for CBSE Class 10 and 12 students in 2025: CBSE Sample Question Papers Class 10 and 12: Familiarizing oneself with the exam pattern as well as question structures is essential if one has to prepare effectively. The CBSE board provides sample question papers through its website. CBSE Class 10 and 12 Question Banks: We are not mentioning any particular books but Question Banks for Class 10 & 12 2025 by Oswaal Books can help in revising thoroughly. This question banks include those which cover entire syllabus, including different types of questions together with solutions that are exhaustively explained. CBSE Class 10 and 12 Books: The choice of study materials counts a lot during exam preparation. Go for CBSE Class 10 Books and CBSE Class 12 Books based on current CBSE curriculum requirements. Remember, one size doesn't fit all; try other resources until you find out what works best for you. Other tips to succeed in CBSE Class 10 & 12 Board Examinations Make a Study Plan: You can't afford to miss even one minute because consistency is what matters. Therefore, a well-organized study plan should be developed that provides enough time for each subject. Understand the concepts and not just memorizing them: Rote learning can help you pass exams but understanding the concepts will be beneficial in the long run. Practice Regularly: Work on previous years' question papers, mock tests as well as CBSE Sample Question Papers Class 10 2025 and CBSE Sample Question Papers Class 12 2025. This will polish your problem-solving skills and timing techniques. The CBSE Class 10 and 12 results are a notable accomplishment of students and proof of their commitment. Whichever way your scores go, celebrate the work you have done so far and respect the progress you have made. Take this time to think about your strengths and weaknesses, spot the areas for improvement, and set the realistic goals for the future. Keep in mind that these results mark only the first stage of your academic endeavours. With your determination and hardwork, you can make wonders happen. We would like to wish all the CBSE Class 10 and 12 students the very best for their future. (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by SMPL. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same) Actor Kareena Kapoor Khan's Mother's Day celebration was cute as it was adorable and heartwarming. Her sons Taimur and Jeh turned chefs for mommy Kareena and baked a chocolate cake for the 'Jab We Met Star'. https://www.instagram.com/p/C65XEfxSkV8/?hl=en&img_index=1 Taking to Instagram Story, Kareena dropped a string of images from Mother's Day Celebrations. The post included a picture of the cake mix and melted butter, as well as a photo of a pair of little hands, probably of Kareena's younger son Jeh, blending the cake mix. She also gave a glimpse of Taimur. His cheek was smeared by flour. The last picture in the post showed Jeh holding a candle in his hand while standing near the cake."Guess who ate all my mother's day CAKE," Kareena captioned the post, garnering netizens' attention. "Jehjaan," Kareena's sister-in-law Saba Pataudi commented. "So cute," an Instagram user wrote. Meanwhile, on the work front, Kareena was recently named UNICEF India's new National Ambassador. On being selected as UNICEF India's National Ambassador, Kareena said, "I'm very honoured and very humbled to take on this position. I've worked tirelessly and worked very hard with all my heart. And now, finally, I'm joining them as a national ambassador. But of course, with that comes a huge responsibility which I accept with all my heart to ensure that every child through the corners of India, however vulnerable, wherever he is, whoever she is...I must include when I say every single child, I do not specify gender, I do not want to, voice or no voice, abled or disabled...I specify every single child I will work towards to give them their fundamental right...," she said. "Every child deserves a fair chance to life, the first five years of their life being their foundation. Every child deserves a childhood, the first five years, once again I repeat, being the most important and formative years. They deserve a right - a right to safety, a right to gender equality, a right to education, primary education, safe environments, health and nutrition. They basically deserve a fair chance at life itself," she added. The 'Crew' star emphasised the need to develop the child's confidence so that they can innovate new ideas and dream big in life."And nurturing their confidence. Because confidence gives them the ability to dream, ability to fly, ability to have ideas, to innovate, which they need because children are, they are the future. They are the future of our nation. So to have that, we must build their confidence. So that is also a fundamental right, which we have to do," she said. "And by that, I mean engaging them in sports, drama, painting, arts, reading, things like that, which we plan to do. And that's what I want. These two things are, I think, the most important thing in the formative years of a child, which I'm quite sure we're going to do in the coming years. And of course, I would like to say that it's been an absolutely tremendous journey, a decade together with UNICEF India," she added. On the movie front, Kareena is currently basking in the success of 'Crew', in which she shared screen space with Kriti Sanon and Tabu. Helmed by Rajesh A Krishnan, 'Crew' revolves around the journey of three working women set against the backdrop of the aviation industry.The film also stars Diljit Dosanjh, Kapil Sharma, Saswata Chatterjee, Rajesh Sharma and Kulbhushan Kharbanda. In the coming months, she will be seen headlining Hansal Mehta's 'The Buckingham Murders'. She also has Rohit Shetty's 'Singham Again' in her kitty. (ANI) Star couple Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor turned hosts on Mother's Day for veteran actors Neetu Kapoor and Soni Razdan. Alia and Ranbir seemed to have organised a white-themed party at their residence for their respective mothers Soni Razdan and Neetu Kapoor. Taking to Instagram, Alia posted an adorable group picture from her intimate Mother's Day celebration. While Son Razdan lovingly hugged her daughters Alia and Shaheen as they posed for the picture, Neetu Kapoor sat beside her son Ranbir, holding a white umbrella. All of them could be seen donning white clothes. https://www.instagram.com/p/C64REEHsV61/?hl=en "Precious moments with my precious ones #happymothersday," Alia captioned the post. Soni Razdan also shared the same picture on her Instagram feed and thanked Ranbir and Alia for making her and Neetu Kapoor extremely special on Mother's Day. "My loves Thank you for a wonderful Mothers Day celebration just so warm and fuzzy We feel so pampered and blessed @aliaabhatt @shaheenb #ranbirkapoor Love you all to the moon and back," Soni Razdan wrote. https://www.instagram.com/p/C65VhipoCYU/?hl=en After celebrating Mother's Day, Alia headed to London for an upcoming Gucci Cruise Show. Before boarding the flight to London, the 'Gangubai Kathiawadi' star happily posed for the shutterbugs at the Mumbai airport at midnight on Monday. She looked simple yet stylish in a comfortably cool airport ensemble.Alia donned a pair of denim jeans and a white T-shirt. She opted for minimal make-up. The Gucci Cruise show will take place at the Tate Modern in London. London follows in the footsteps of Seoul, where Gucci presented its previous Cruise collection at Gyeongbokgung Palace last May. Alia, the first Indian Global brand ambassador for Gucci, was present at Gucci's show in South Korea last year as well. Undoubtedly, Alia has been on a roll. She has taken her career graph to a global stage with her hard work. In March 2024, Alia hosted her first charity gala in London. The actress organised the "Hope Gala" to raise funds for underprivileged adolescents in India through the Salaam Bombay Foundation. The event was attended by many renowned personalities. Musician Harshdeep Kaur, comedian Rohan Joshi and director Gurinder Chadha were also present there. On hosting her first charity gala, Alia said, "Hosting my inaugural charity gala in collaboration with the Salaam Bombay Foundation and Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group has been an incredible experience. I've long admired Padmini Sekhsaria's unwavering dedication to uplifting at-risk youth in India's slums, offering them hope and opportunity. I'm happy to have played a small part in helping these children reshape their narratives. Furthermore, holding the Hope Gala at such a prestigious venue is a genuine privilege, as I've always been a fan of Mandarin Oriental's exceptional hospitality. Today marks just the beginning of our efforts, and with the support of our generous contributors, I'm confident we'll make significant strides in empowering future generations." Recently, she was also featured on Time's 100 Most Influential list. Director of 'Heart of Stone', Tom Harper, who collaborated with Alia on her first Hollywood movie, wrote an article in the magazine praising her as a "truly international star"."There is a grace to the way she goes about her work: focused, open to ideas, and willing to take creative risks. One of my favourite moments in the film came from an improvisation at the end of a take where she took the emotional thread and ran with it," Tom wrote. And now on May 6, Alia made heads turn with her ethereal presence in Sabyasachi saree. (ANI) American actor Lucy Liu was honoured with the Gold Legend Award at the third annual Gold House Gala in Los Angeles, reported Variety. Liu gave a moving speech after receiving the award from Regina King. "What I love about Regina is that she always makes choices that are for her," Liu told the audience. "When I started over 30 years ago, there weren't a lot of choices that I could make for myself." Liu is known for 'Ally McBeal', 'Elementary', 'Kill Bill Vol. 1', 'Charlie's Angels' and Steven Soderbergh's 'Presence'. She talked about having to make casting decisions "because of limitations." She said, "I love that we are all here tonight because there is no ceiling, and I've never seen that for myself. I want us to all collectively understand how special this moment is that we are together as a community. I share this award with you because you have lifted me up, you have given me strength, you have made me so proud. I feel like it's been very lonely." Liu admitted she first refused to receive the award, citing childhood trauma. She stated that she did not believe she was deserving or had earned it. When asked about her decision to accept the honour, Liu remarked, "I'm here because of this community." The gala honoured the most influential Asians on the company's A100 list, which recognises the 100 AAPI individuals who have had a significant impact on American culture and society in the previous year. The Gold Ally Award was presented to 'Wicked' star Erivo by Jon M. Chu and Michelle Yeoh. Before Erivo took the stage, Chu and Yeoh showed spectators a never-before-seen footage from the upcoming movie musical 'Wicked'. During her acceptance speech, Erivo called on the audience to join forces and collaborate more on projects. Erivo, who plays Elphaba in "Wicked," shared her experience of connection to the audience. "As a Black woman, of African heritage, the child of an immigrant, I find that there is this innate connection to my golden siblings," she said. "Our destinies are forged in the understanding that we have to overcome and defy the odds." She added, "We are in search of the very best of ourselves, often at first for our parents, and then we learn to harness that power for ourselves. We have a kinship that is unspoken." According to Variety, "Gold House co-founder Bing Chen closed the night by updating the audience on the company's initiative to build the Gold Bridge. Now in its second year, the metaphoric Gold Bridge is designed to bridge industry from content to commerce, bridge communities and bridge continents." Chen said, "We are building the most helpful community with the smartest capital resources. We are getting there because we are cross-pollinating creative opportunities." Chen closed out the night by telling the audience, "Remember, instead of begging for a seat at someone else's table, we now have the power across the arts of business to build on talking about this," reported Variety. (ANI) Leading UAE-based real estate entities Bloom Holding and Lead Development have announced a joint venture agreement with Spains high-end residential developer, Mabel Real Estate, a division of Mabel Capital, to co-develop a luxury residential project in the city of Marbella. A high-end project - Mabel Marbella Residences - will span over 100,000 sq m of land in the coveted Golden Mile, a premier residential area in the Spanish city. Marbella enjoys a robust real estate market paired with unparalleled climate and cultural richness. The demand for prime real estate in this coastal city is driven not only by international buyers but also by Spanish nationals seeking second homes. Speaking at the launch, Bloom Holding CEO Carlos Wakim said: "This announcement marks a major milestone in our journey to fulfill our international expansion strategy, explore opportunities in high-growth real estate markets, and launch our premium projects in Europe." "By joining forces with Lead Development and Mabel Capital, we can leverage our expertise, strengths, and common approach to developing residential properties as we mark our first expansion in Europe and enter this mature market," he stated. "Spain, and Marbella in particular, remains a global destination for luxury homes that continues to attract both investors and homeowners from across the globe presenting an attractive entry point for Bloom Holding. This strategic partnership aligns with Bloom Holdings forward-looking aspirations to broaden its development horizons," he added. Manuel Campos Guallar, Chairman of Mabel Capital, echoed this sentiment, adding: "We are honoured to collaborate with such high caliber partners as Bloom Holding and Lead Development in such a prime location and project." "We plan to develop Marbellas most exclusive gated community, creating an environment of refinement, tranquility, and breathtaking sea and mountain views. Architecture will blend the Al-Andalus traditional heritage of the region with cutting-edge contemporary features, surrounded by a majestic landscape," he added. Mounir Haidar, the co-founder and Managing Partner of Lead Development, said: "We are excited to embark on our first international opportunity and pleased to collaborate with Bloom Holding and Mabel Capital, who will lead our entry into Spain, Europe, and potentially beyond." "Leveraging the expertise and experience of both Bloom Holding and Lead, we are poised to make a significant impact in one of the most sought-after real estate markets in Europe," he added.-TradeArabia News Service Actor Ram Charan and his wife Upasana Kamineni cast their votes at a polling booth in Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad. Their participation marked a significant moment during the fourth phase of the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. Several Telugu cinema luminaries, including SS Rajamouli, MM Keeravani, Chiranjeevi with wife Surekha Konidela, Jr NTR, and Allu Arjun, exercised their electoral franchise. Earlier today, 'RRR' director SS Rajamouli, accompanied by his son SS Karthikeya, was spotted at his designated polling booth. The father-son duo urged citizens to actively participate in the democratic process, emphasizing the importance of voting. "Show the country that we are responsible and we do care. Please come out and vote...," Rajamouli conveyed to the media after casting his vote, echoing the sentiment of civic duty. Similarly, Karthikeya stressed the significance of fulfilling one's voting responsibilities. "I request everyone to come and exercise your vote. It is our responsibility and we need to fulfill that...," he affirmed. Actor Allu Arjun also addressed the media post-voting, emphasizing the gravity of the electoral process. "It's a very responsible day for us as all of us, for the citizens of this country... Please cast your vote and vote responsibly," he urged, highlighting the importance of citizen participation. Arjun also clarified his political neutrality, stating, "I am not politically aligned with any party. I am neutral to all parties," as he encouraged voters to turn out in large numbers. In Telangana, polling was conducted for all 17 parliamentary constituencies in the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections, including key battlegrounds like Hyderabad, Secunderabad, Karim Nagar, and Chevella. The electoral landscape witnesses a triangular contest among the ruling Congress, opposition BRS, and BJP, with a total of 525 candidates vying for victory. This phase holds particular significance following the setback faced by the K Chandrashekar Rao-led BRS in the December 2023 assembly polls, where Congress emerged victorious. Since the formation of Telangana in 2013, the BRS has maintained its dominance in state politics. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BRS secured nine of the 17 seats, with the BJP and Congress clinching four and three seats, respectively. Today's voting marks the continuation of the democratic process, with polling taking place across 96 parliamentary seats in 10 states and Union Territories. Simultaneously, voting for all 175 seats of the Andhra Pradesh State Legislative Assembly and 28 seats of the Odisha State Legislative Assembly commenced. With the smooth conduct of polling in 283 Lok Sabha seats till phase 3, attention now shifts to the subsequent rounds scheduled for May 20, May 25, and concluding on June 1. The counting of votes is slated for June 4. (ANI) Tripura Pradesh Congress Committee President Asish Kumar Saha has alleged that "the Election Commission failed to ensure a level playing" during elections in two Lok Sabha seats of the state. Voting for the two seats in Tripura was concluded on April 19 and April 26 respectively in the first and second phases of the Lok Sabha elections. Saha is the INDIA bloc candidate against BJP heavyweight and former Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb from the West Tripura parliamentary constituency. On being asked about the concerns flagged by the opposition after the polls ended in both seats, the state Congress chief said, "We have raised our voice against the lapses that we have encountered on the day of polls. We even met the full bench of the Election Commission of India and made them aware of the ground situation. The EC gave us a patient hearing. We have categorically told them that the Election Commission failed to ensure a level playing field for the political parties contesting the polls here in Tripura." The Congress leader was speaking to media persons on the sidelines of a party's extended meeting of the Gomati District committee. The Block Committee leaders from all the assembly constituencies attended the meeting which was primarily convened to discuss the organisational issues and the party's future course of action. "The state affairs in Tripura draws a very dark picture of the future. The law and order situation is on a downslide. We have seen how conflict and rivalry between influential groups gave rise to the use of firearms and crime. Recently, we have witnessed a couple of incidents where internal differences surrounding negotiations of deals turned out to be fatal. Similarly, the crisis of petrol and other essentials has been dealing a major blow to the lives of the common masses. This must stop. The Congress has decided to raise all these issues in an organized way through democratic protests across the state," Saha told media persons. (ANI) In a scathing attack on Delhi Chief Minister after his release from Tihar Jail on interim bail, BJP national spokesperson Raju Bista said Arvind Kejriwal is "the biggest scamster politician in history." "I have never seen such a big scamster politician in history. in fact a politician who confidently lies day and night should be named 'Kejriwal'. After spending so many days in jail, he must be under mental stress and should go to a doctor and seek treatment for his mind," Bista said on Sunday, and claimed that "the BJP is winning all seven seats in Delhi." Kejriwal was released from Tihar Jail on May 10, 50 days after he was jailed on corruption charges linked to the alleged liquor policy scam and hours after the Supreme Court granted bail to him until June 1. Bista also slammed congress leaders Sam Pitroda and Mani Shankar Aiyar for their controversial statements. Former Overseas Congress Chief, Pitroda, sparked controversy when he made a statement about the diversity of India, commenting on how people in the South "look like Africans, those in the West look like Arabs and those in the East look like Chinese." After his comment sparked a furore, the Congress has removed him from the post. While, in an April 15 interview with a YouTube channel 'Chill Pill', Aiyar said that Pakistan is a respected nation that also possesses an atom bomb so India must enter into a dialogue with them. "These are all anti-India. They don't like it when the country becomes stronger. They believe that the more India remains helpless, the more benefit it brings to the Congress party and its affiliated leaders. Individuals like Sam Pitroda, who speak against India, can never truly be with India," Bista said. "And the other leader, Mani Shankar, I believe he should apply for permanent residence in Pakistan. I think Karachi and Lahore would be more suitable places for him," he added. Amidst the political heat, Bista expressed confidence in the BJP's electoral prospects under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership, projecting a victory of 400 seats. "Under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi, the BJP is poised to win 400 seats, and we have no doubt whatsoever. As the elections progress, Modi's popularity and trust in the BJP are growing. We're witnessing for the first time in 10 years that a leader is demanding votes based on performance. So far, election campaigns have been centred around big promises, but for the first time, it's about a strong leader who has delivered," Bista said. All seven parliamentary seats in Delhi will vote on May 25, the sixth of the seven-phase nationwide polling. The elections for 543 Lok Sabha seats are being held from April 19 to June 1, with the counting of votes scheduled for June 4. (ANI) After Congress claimed that Election Commission officials were 'targeting' opposition leaders following party president Mallikarjun Kharge's helicopter inspection in Bihar's Samastipur, state's Chief Electoral Officer said that the allegations were baseless as earlier Home Minister Amit Shah's helicopter was also checked. "The checking of the helicopters during elections follows the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) laid down by the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS)," Bihar CEO said in a post on X on Sunday. "The helicopters of JP Nadda, and Home Minister Amit Shah were also checked in Bihar earlier. The allegation that only the helicopter of a leader of one national party was checked is baseless," the post added. The official handle of Bihar's CEO also posted photos when the helicopters of JP Nadda and Amit Shah were checked by EC officials. After Mallikarjun Kharge's helicopter inspection in Bihar's Samastipur on Saturday, chief spokesperson of Congress Bihar unit, Rajesh Rathore alleged on Sunday that Election Commission officials were 'targeting' opposition leaders, while leaders of the BJP-led NDA were permitted to move about "freely". Taking to his social media handle, Rathore said, "It is unfortunate that the helicopter of Rahul Gandhi in Kerala and now that of INC India President Mallikarjun Kharge in Bihar was searched by the Election Commission and the administration. @ECISVEEP Release a video and tell the country which NDA leaders' helicopters were checked during the election campaign." Rathore also shared a video claiming that the Bihar CEO is herself monitoring the checking of Kharge's helicopter in Samastipur. "The Election Commission (EC) should clarify whether such checking of choppers of Congress leaders is routine and whether similar checks were also conducted on top leaders of the NDA," Rathore said in his video message. "The EC should make all such records public, otherwise, it will be construed that it is only targeting opposition leaders to 'influence and disturb' them and is letting NDA leaders go freely," he said. (ANI) Voting for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections to 8 constituencies in Madhya Pradesh got underway on Monday at 7 am. This is the last phase of elections in the state, Eight parliamentary seats- Dewas, Ujjain, Mandsaur, Ratlam, Dhar, Indore, Khargone and Khandwa- are undergoing polling in the fourth phase in the state. Chief Minister Mohan Yadav along with his wife Seema Yadav reached at his polling station, booth number 60, Narumal Gagandas Jethwani Sindhi Dharmashala, Freeganj in Ujjain and cast his vote. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has again fielded the incumbent MP from the Ujjain parliamentary seat, Anil Firojiya, while the rival congress candidate Mahesh Parmar, who is an MLA from the Tarana assembly seat, is contesting from the seat. Earlier, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav appealed to the public to exercise their franchise in the fourth phase of polling in the state stating that one vote of the public can strengthen the roots of democracy and give a bright future to the nation. "Today, the fourth phase and the final phase of voting is taking place in Madhya Pradesh for the Lok Sabha elections 2024. It is a humble request to the voters of Dewas, Ujjain, Mandsaur, Ratlam, Dhar, Indore, Khargone and Khandwa parliamentary constituencies to use their franchise so that 100 per cent voting can be ensured. Your one vote can strengthen the roots of democracy and give a bright future to the country," CM Yadav posted on X. Madhya Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Anupam Rajan also appealed to voters to cast their vote in the fourth and final phase of polling in the state. "Today, voting is being held for eight parliamentary seats in the state. I request everyone to visit their respective polling booths and exercise their franchise. Besides, I request everyone to carry an identity card along with the voter slip to the polling station, it is necessary. The identity card can be the voter ID card and in case one is unable to find their voter ID at the moment, then they can carry an Aadhar card, PAN card, driving licence, passport, bank passbook, etc," Rajan said. If anyone fails to receive the voter slip then also the person need not panic. Voters have to go to its polling booth along with an identity proof, the BLO (Booth Level Officer) outside the polling booth will help you out there and voters can exercise their franchise, he added. Lok Sabha polls in Madhya Pradesh are being conducted in four phases. The first phase of polling was held on April 19, the second phase took place on April 26 and the third phase concluded on May 7. The counting of votes will be held on June 4. With 29 Lok Sabha constituencies, Madhya Pradesh ranks sixth among all states in terms of its representation in the Lower House. Of these, 10 seats are reserved for SC and ST candidates, while the remaining 19 are unreserved. (ANI) The Delhi Government has informed the Delhi High Court that it has cleared the proposal in furtherance of the resolution dated February 9, 2022, of the Full Court of Delhi High Court regarding the enhancement of pecuniary jurisdiction of Civil Judges of Delhi Courts and Pecuniary appellate jurisdiction of District Judges of Delhi. Principal Secretary (Law) Bharat Parashar filed the Delhi government's response in a Public Interest Litigation Petition filed by Lawyer and Activist Amit Sahni the proposal for enhancement of pecuniary jurisdiction of Civil Judges of Delhi Courts. The pecuniary appellate jurisdiction of District Judges of Delhi has been approved by the Law Minister and Chief Minister of Delhi and the same has also been approved by the Lt Governor of Delhi on January 2, 2024. "To raise the pecuniary appellate jurisdiction of the District Judge to Rs Twenty lakh by amending section 39 (1) (a) of the Punjab Courts Act, 1918 by the Parliament." In Delhi Civil Judges of Delhi Courts adjudicate matters for jurisdiction upto 3 Lacs only while in neighbourhoods of Delhi, Gurgaon, Noida, Ghaziabad and Faridabad enjoy unlimited pecuniary jurisdiction. The issue was raised by Advocate Amit Sahni, a Lawyer and Activist, who had filed a Writ Petition before the Delhi High Court for rational distribution and enhancement of pecuniary jurisdiction of Civil Judges posted at District Courts in Delhi for adjudicating original suits from the present maximum pecuniary jurisdiction i.e. Rs 3 lakh. The amount was disposed of by the bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh on December 1, 2021, by saying that "Rs 3 lakhs is a very nominal amount, we will look at it from the administrative side." Advocate Amit Sahni submitted that the pecuniary jurisdiction of Civil Judges posted at various Delhi Courts has been changed from time to time starting from Rs 25,000, Rs 1 lakh and finally upto Rs 3 lakh in 2003. In this backdrop, the plea argued that there has been no change in the pecuniary jurisdiction of Civil Judged posted at various Courts of Delhi since 2003 while the pecuniary jurisdiction of District Judges and Additional District Judges has increased nearly 10 times i.e. Rs 20 lakhs (in 2003) to Rs 2 crore (in 2015). "It is pertinent to note that District Courts in neighbourhoods of Delhi, Gurgaon, Noida, Ghaziabad and Faridabad enjoy unlimited pecuniary jurisdiction. District Courts in Delhi need to be equated with District courts in adjourning areas of Delhi so far as pecuniary jurisdiction is concerned," the plea further stated. It was further the case of the petitioner that the pecuniary value of Rs 3 lakh entrusted to Civil Judges is extremely low and since no property in Delhi is worth "Rs 3 lakh", the same has led to stern stagnation as Civil Judges are adjudicating Injunction Suits and petty suits for recovery amounting upto Rs 3 lakh only. Sahni thus averred that if the pecuniary jurisdiction of the civil judges is increased upto Rs 20 to 30 lakh, it would lessen the burden upon the District as well as the Additional District Judges as some of such cases would then be heard by Civil Judges. Now finally Delhi government and the Hon'ble LG have approved the proposal for enhancing the jurisdiction of Civil Judges of Delhi from Rs 3 lakh to 20 lakh and pecuniary appellate jurisdiction of Delhi Judges upto 20 lakh. "I am hopeful that the increase in pecuniary jurisdiction would add some professional satisfaction amongst Civil Judges of Delhi, the same would resolve the pendency of cases before District Judges/Add. District Judges of Delhi," said Amit Sahni. "It would further reduce the burden of appeals before Delhi High Court as appeals upto Rs. 20 Lacs would be adjudicated by Additional District Judges, District Judges of Delhi," added Sahni. (ANI) Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Monday cast his vote in Ujjain in the fourth phase of polling of Lok Sabha election 2024 in the state and appealed to voters to exercise their franchise. CM Yadav along with his wife Seema Yadav reached at his polling station, booth number 60, Narumal Gagandas Jethwani Sindhi Dharamshala, Freeganj in Ujjain and exercised his franchise. After casting his vote for Lok Sabha Election 2024 the CM told ANI, "I am very happy that I voted and I appeal to everyone in the state to cast their votes in maximum numbers. BJP is going to win with a huge majority and we are going to get 29 seats in the state." Deputy Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh Jagdish Devda also cast his vote along with his family in at a polling booth in Mandsaur and appealed to voters to cast vote in maximum numbers. "I see a lot of enthusiasm among the people of Madhya Pradesh in the fourth phase of voting for the Lok Sabha election 2024. I appeal to people to exercise their franchise in maximum numbers," Devda said. Voting in eight parliamentary seats of Madhya Pradesh which include Dewas, Ujjain, Mandsaur, Ratlam, Dhar, Indore, Khargone and Khandwa is underway in the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha election 2024. Voting began at 7 am and will continue till 6 pm, according to the Election Commission. Earlier, Madhya Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Anupam Rajan also appealed to voters to cast their vote in the fourth and final phase of polling in the state. "Today, voting is being held for eight parliamentary seats in the state. I request everyone to visit their respective polling booths and exercise their franchise. Besides, I request everyone to carry an identity card along with the voter slip to the polling station, it is necessary. The identity card can be the voter ID card and in case one is unable to find their voter ID at the moment, then they can carry an Aadhar card, PAN card, driving licence, passport, bank passbook, etc," Rajan said. If anyone fails to receive the voter slip then also the person need not to panic. Voters have to go to its polling booth along with an identity proof, the BLO (Booth Level Officer) outside the polling booth will help you out there and voters can exercise their franchise, he added. Lok Sabha polls in Madhya Pradesh are being conducted in four phases. The first phase of polling was held on April 19, the second phase took place on April 26 and the third phase concluded on May 7. The counting of votes will be held on June 4. With 29 Lok Sabha constituencies, Madhya Pradesh ranks sixth among all states in terms of its representation in the Lower House. Of these, 10 seats are reserved for SC and ST candidates, while the remaining 19 are unreserved. (ANI) Madhya Pradesh Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya on Monday cast his vote in Indore and appealed to voters to exercise their franchise. Voting in Indore along with seven other parliamentary seats of Madhya Pradesh which include Dewas, Ujjain, Mandsaur, Ratlam, Dhar, Khargone and Khandwa is underway in the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha election 2024. Voting began at 7 am and would continue till 6 pm, according to the Election Commission. Vijayvargiya along with his family reached booth number 258, Sugni Devi College in Indore and exercised the franchise. After casting his vote, Vijayvargiya told reporters, "It is a kind of festival. The way we celebrate our festivals with family, similarly we have come with our entire family members to vote because we consider it a festival. I appeal to everyone to go and vote." When questioned about state Congress chief Jitu Patwari appealing to the public to vote for NOTA, the BJP leader said that the appeal had no impact. "There is no impact of appeal for NOTA in the constituency. The voters are voting in favour of the BJP," Vijayvargiya said. Notably, Akshay Kanti Bam, who was the Congress nominee from the Indore parliamentary seat, pulled back his nomination paper and switched his sides to the saffron party on April 29. After that, the Congress party appealed to the people of Indore parliamentary seat to vote for 'NOTA' in the Lok Sabha elections. BJP's incumbent MP from Indore, Shankar Lalwani is contesting again from the seat. When Vijayvargiya was asked about the voting in the Malwa-Nimar region, which is considered his area of influence, he said, "Voting is going quite well and everyone has one target to make Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Prime Minister of the country for the third time." Nonetheless, Indore recorded the lowest 25.01 per cent voter turnout till 11 am among the eight parliamentary seats undergoing polling in the state. Dewas is leading the voter turnout charts with 35.83 per cent voting followed by Ujjain 34.25 per cent, Mandsaur 34.12 per cent, Ratlam 34.04 per cent, Khargone 33.52 per cent, Dhar 32.62 per cent, Khandwa 31.87 per cent, and Indore 25.01 per cent till 11 am so far in the state. Lok Sabha polls in Madhya Pradesh are being conducted in four phases. The first phase of polling was held on April 19, the second phase took place on April 26 and the third phase concluded on May 7. The counting of votes will be held on June 4. With 29 Lok Sabha constituencies, Madhya Pradesh ranks sixth among all states in terms of its representation in the Lower House. Of these, 10 seats are reserved for SC and ST candidates, while the remaining 19 are unreserved. (ANI) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate from Khargone parliamentary seat Gajendra Patel on Monday casted his vote in the fourth and final phase of polling for Lok Sabha election 2024 in the state. Voting in eight parliamentary seats of Madhya Pradesh which include Dewas, Ujjain, Mandsaur, Ratlam, Dhar, Indore, Khargone and Khandwa is underway in the fourth phase of Lok Sabha election 2024. Voting began at 7 am and would continue till 6 pm, according to the Election Commission. Patel along with his wife Basanti Patel reached at a polling booth in Barwani district, under the jurisdiction of Khargone Lok Sabha seat and exercised the franchise. Patel also appealed to voters to cast their votes in maximum numbers saying that every vote was decisive. "Today, I voted with my family in the festival of democracy. I appeal to all the voters of Khargone-Barwani Lok Sabha to vote for "heritage and development", for the "security and respect" of the country, and for the concept of "self-reliant and developed India". Your every vote is decisive," Patel posted on X. Patel is a sitting MP from the Khargone parliamentary seat, and the BJP has fielded him again from the seat while the rival congress candidate Porlal Kharte is contesting from the seat. Apart from this, a large number of voters was also seen queued up outside polling station Borawan in Khargone district on Monday morning. According to the data released by the Election Commission of India, Khargone parliamentary seat recorded 15.35 per cent voter turnout in the initial trend till 9 am. Lok Sabha polls in Madhya Pradesh are being conducted in four phases. The first phase of polling was held on April 19, the second phase took place on April 26 and the third phase concluded on May 7. The counting of votes will be held on June 4. With 29 Lok Sabha constituencies, Madhya Pradesh ranks sixth among all states in terms of its representation in the Lower House. Of these, 10 seats are reserved for SC and ST candidates, while the remaining 19 are unreserved. (ANI) Over 5,000 police personnel were deployed for incident-free polling in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. Speaking on elaborate security arrangements made in Visakhapatnam, Commissioner of Police Ravi Shankar Ayyanar said, "Extensive security arrangements have been made to ensure smooth polling in the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections. More than 5,000 personnel are deployed in Visakhapatnam. All the polling activities are being monitored through CCTV. The EVMs are functioning properly and voting is underway across seven constituencies in a peaceful manner. So far, there is no problem in the city." Appealing to the voters, he said, "We have made elaborate security arrangements, so I urge all voters to go and vote for the best person, the best party and the best government.'' Visakhapatnam Lok Sabha constituency Visakhapatnam is one of the twenty-five Lok Sabha constituencies of Andhra Pradesh. The polling for the fourth phase in Visakhapatnam is underway today. The counting of votes will be held on June 4. Ruling Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP's) candidate Botsa Jhansi Lakshmi faces a tough battle in Visakhapatnam against Telugu Desam Party's Sri Bharat and Congress's P Sathyanarayana Reddy. Botsa Lakshmi is the wife of the State Education Minister and YSRCP senior leader, Botsa Satyanarayana. Sri Bharat is the son-in-law of actor Nandamuri Balakrishna. In the 2019 general elections, MVV Satyanarayana of YSRCP defeated TDP's Bharat Mathukumilli in a close contest. Satyanarayana won the seat by 4414 votes. While Jana Sena party candidate VV Lakshmi Narayana secured 288,874 votes. The YSRCP won 22 seats, while the TDP could only win three seats in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. The principal opposition party, the TDPwill take on the ruling YSRCP. TDP has an alliance with the Jana Sena Party and the BJP. As part of a seat-sharing deal among NDA partners, TDP was allocated 144 Assembly and 17 Lok Sabha constituencies, while the BJP will contest from six Lok Sabha and 10 Assembly seats. JanaSena will contest two Lok Sabha and 21 Assembly seats. In the 2019 Assembly elections, the YSRCP won with a thumping majority of 151 seats, while the TDP was confined to 23 seats. According to the data issued by the Election Commission of India (ECI), Andhra Pradesh recorded a voter turnout of 23.10 per cent till 11 am. West Bengal recorded the highest voter turnout of 32.78 per cent while Jammu and Kashmir recorded the lowest voter turnout of 14.94 per cent till 11 am. Voting for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections in 96 Parliamentary Constituencies across nine states and one Union Territory began on Monday. (ANI) Bahrain Marina Development Company has announced that steady progress is being made on its iconic Bahrain Marina project being developed at a tota investment of BD200 million ($527 million) in the capital Manama with nearly 18% of the construction work already completed. On completion, this premier destination features an array of retail stores with leading brands, high-end restaurants, and cafes recognised both locally and internationally. Additionally, the project encompasses a commercial complex, a yacht parking facility, and an expansive 3,200-sq-m marine club. Giving a project update, the Bahraini developer said the marina project was not only advancing steadily towards its developmental objectives but also surpassing anticipated progress, as indicated by recent updates. As of the beginning of January, the completion rate of construction work had surpassed the initial target of 17% set for the same period. This significant progress is paralleled by another notable achievement - completing one million working hours without any accidents, stated the developer. This milestone underscores the team's commitment to safety and professionalism, essential for maintaining a secure and stable working environment, it added. Khalid Najibi, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Bahrain Marina Development, said: "Our project is not just about constructing buildings; it's about crafting a world-class cultural landmark in Bahrain on schedule." "The success we're witnessing is a direct result of the meticulous strategic planning and relentless efforts of our teams who are dedicated to transforming our vision into a splendid reality that reflects the prestige of the kingdom and aligns with its future aspirations," noted Najibi. Najibi also highlighted the strict adherence paid to safety protocols, which played a crucial role in the project achieving one million accident-free hours. "Our commitment to the highest safety standards is a fundamental pillar of our operations, ensuring a safe and environmentally friendly workspace for all," he added. Najibi further reiterated the company's dedication to excellence and quality, integral to the construction process. "We are committed to implementing the highest quality standards in every facet of this project, ensuring timely completion as per our set schedules and fulfilling our promise to establish a landmark that embodies the Bahraini spirit and international standards," he added. The Bahrain Marina project has also been honoured with a golden licence from the government, reflecting the high level of trust and significance of this project among the strategic development initiatives aimed at diversifying the Kingdom's economic base beyond oil. "This is part of Bahrain's comprehensive development under the prosperous reign of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa," remarked Yousuf Al Thawadi, the Board Member and Managing Director of Bahrain Marina Development. "Our collective expertise and professionalism ensure that we meet our timelines while delivering a project that exemplifies efficiency and excellence, embodying the aspirations of Bahrain for a bright future," he added.-TradeArabia News Service Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy alleged that the BJP is "attempting to polarise Mulsim votes" hours after its party candidate Madhavi Latha courted controversy during her visit to a polling booth. Madhavi Latha was seen in a video clip checking the voter ID cards of Muslim women during her visit to a polling booth. "I have not seen (the video). But BJP is simply trying to polarise Muslim votes to win Asaduddin Owaisi. All these issues are going to help Owaisi. It is not going to benefit anything BJP," CM Revanth Reddy told ANI while responding to the video. "BJP's agenda is that to say that Asad has to elect. This is one type of polarisation," he alleged. Replying to a query, CM Reddy said, "I have asked everyone to support the Congress party including BJP cadres also". In the video, the BJP candidate can be seen asking Muslim women inside the booth to remove the Burkha and identify themselves along with checking their voter identity cards. Speaking about the video, the BJP leader told ANI that she had only requested the women to verify their identity and there was nothing wrong with this. "I am a candidate. As per law candidate has the right to check the ID cards without the facemasks. I am not a man, I am a woman and with a lot of humbleness, I have only requested them - can I please see and verify with the ID cards? If somebody wants to make a big issue out of it, that means they are scared," she said. Earlier in the day, Madhavi Latha had alleged discrepancies in the voter list in her constituency. "The Police personnel seem very dull, they are not active...They are not checking anything. Senior citizen voters are coming here but their names are deleted from the list. A few of them are residents of Goshamahal but their names are in the list of Rangareddy...," the BJP leader said while speaking to ANI. Madhavi Latha cast her vote at the Amrita Vidyalayam polling station in Hyderabad for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections and asserted that "Sabka Sath mai hi Sabka Vikas Hai." Madhavi Latha is pitted against a formidable opponent in the form of four-time Lok Sabha MP and AIMIM chief, Asaduddin Owaisi, from Hyderabad Lok Sabha Constituency and BRS' Gaddam Srinivas Yadav. This is the first time that the BJP has fielded a female candidate from the Hyderabad constituency. Asaduddin Owaisi has been the elected representative from Hyderabad since 2004. He was previously elected as an MLA twice in the erstwhile undivided Andhra Pradesh. Voting for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections in 96 Parliamentary Constituencies across nine states and one Union Territory got underway today at 7:00 am. (ANI) Delhi Police said on Monday that no complaint has been received in connection with the alleged assault against Aam Aadmi Party MP Swati Maliwal at the Chief Minister's residence. Speaking to ANI, Delhi North DCP Manoj Kumar Meena said that following a PCR call on Monday morning, MP Maliwal came to Civil Lines police station but left without filing a complaint. "At around 9.34 am, we received a PCR call wherein the caller said that she had been assaulted inside the CM residence. Accordingly, local police responded to the call and SHO and the local police reached the spot. After some time, MP Swati Maliwal came to the police station Civil Lines. She left the police station without giving any complaints. In this matter till now, no complaints have been received," DCP Meena said while speaking to ANI on Monday. No official statements were made on the alleged incident, neither by the ruling party, MP Maliwal, nor the CM's office. However, the BJP came down heavily on the AAP and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal following the alleged incident against his party legislator at his official residence. BJP leader Amit Malviya pointed out MP Maliwal's alleged absence at the time of Kejriwal's arrest earlier in March this year. "AAP RS MP and former DCW chief Swati Maliwal alleges that Delhi CM's PA assaulted her. A call was made from the Delhi CM's house. Remember, Swati Maliwal had maintained radio silence on Kejriwal's arrest. She was not even in India at that time and didn't return for a long time," Malviya said in a post on X. BJP leader Bansuri Swaraj condemned the alleged incident and questioned the Delhi CM about his guarantee of women's safety in the national capital. "We got shameful news today that, after getting instigated by Arvind Kejriwal, his OSD has beaten and misbehaved with one of their party MP Swati Maliwal. She also made a call to the Delhi Police and complaint regarding the same. The incident took place in the presence of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal at his residence. The BJP strongly condemns this incident," Bansuri Swaraj said while addressing a press conference in Delhi on Monday. "If it is true that after getting instigated by Arvind Kejriwal, his OSD has beaten up and misbehaved with one of their party MP Swati Maliwal, in the presence of the Delhi CM, then the BJP strongly condemns this. It is shameful and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal needs to answer that if their party MP is not safe in his presence, then how will he protect the women of Delhi?" she asked. Swaraj also demanded an answer from the Delhi CM while raising concerns about women's safety in the national capital. "We want an answer from Arvind Kejriwal that it is his responsibility that one of your party workers, who was also the DCW Chief, if she is not safe in your presence. Then how will you protect the women of Delhi?" she said. Responding to the incident, Union Minister Anurag Thakur said, "If the former DCW chief and Rajya Sabha MP (Swati Maliwal) is not safe in the CM house, then the question is if she was beaten up by the family or party, PA or someone else." "A few other people from the family seem to be joining politics in the time to come, so will this tension keep escalating when Arvind Kejriwal goes back to jail on June 2. It is clear that not everything is fine in AAP," he added. Following the alleged incident against MP Maliwal, AAP defector and BJP leader Shazia Ilmi also claimed to be a "victim of misconduct" by the CM's aide. "There is dirt within AAP and I know all about it as I was formerly with the party. I know how their inner party relations and internal dynamics work. The dynamics keep changing from time to time. This isn't the first such incident, as, in 2018, former chief secretary Anshu Prakash was similarly assaulted at the CM's residence. Kejriwal denied the claim at the time but two of his MLAs were charge-sheeted in the case," Ilmi said in a self-made video on Monday. "All that Bibhav knows is to misbehave with people or humiliate them. I was also a victim of his misconduct. He is rogue and anything is possible in this party," the BJP leader said. (ANI) After the six Congress MLAs switched sides to the BJP in Himachal Pradesh, Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu on Monday said that all the defecting MLAs will be behind bars soon. While addressing an election rally in Shimla Sukhu said that the government will run for three and a half more years, and will repeat in 2027. He said that after June 1 the people of the state will teach a lesson to the "corrupt people". The left-wing CPI(M) leaders also shared a stage with Congress in Shimla during the election rally in Shimla which was held in favour of the Congress candidate after nomination. The Congress Party candidate from the Shimla parliamentary seat Vinod Sultanpuri filed nomination papers in the presence of CM Sukhu today. After this, while addressing the public meeting at Chaura maidan, the Chief Minister launched a fierce attack on the rebel legislators who had rebelled against the Congress and joined the BJP. Addressing the public meeting, Sukhu said that six tainted leaders of the Congress Party were sold out by money power and rebelled against the party. Sukhu said that after presenting the budget 2024-25, all the tainted leaders praised the government, but when they were allured by the BJP with money, they were sold in the political market and ran away to Panchkula to get the second instalment. "Congress has the power of the people. This fight is not to save the government or the post of Chief Minister, but to teach a lesson to those corrupt people and also to save the constitution and democracy. BJP leaders had conspired to topple the government through money and this election will decide the future politics," he added. CM Sukhu said that the people of Himachal Pradesh will give a befitting reply to the politics of horse trading by defeating the BJP in these elections and setting an example for the entire country. He said that the BJP has stolen one Rajya Sabha seat, but the people of the state will give all four Lok Sabha seats to Congress. "All these corrupt people will be put behind bars. Sukhu Sarkar will run for three and a half more years. After this, part two of the government will be repeated in the year 2027," he added. Elections to four Lok Sabha seats in Himachal Pradesh along with assembly bypolls, following the disqualification of six rebel Congress MLAs, will be held on June 1 in the last phase of polling. (ANI) Congress leader Gurdeep Singh Sappal on Monday slammed the Bharatiiya Janata Party stating that the ruling party's "Titanic of Jumlas" is going to sink after four phases of voting. Addressing a press conference in Shimla, CWC member Gurdeep Singh Sappal said, "The promises made to the public have now been exposed. It is a clear indication till the fourth phase that their (BJP) Titanic of Jumlas is sinking. INDIA bloc will form government in the country. Modi government has worked to weaken the army by introducing the Agniveer Yojana. If the Congress government is formed, this scheme will be stopped and the old system will be started again. Modi has been calling Himachal his second home but during the disaster, he treated the state like a stranger and kept mum." He further said that apples are the backbone of the economy of Himachal Pradesh but "instead of fulfilling the promises made to the apple growers, the government has reduced the import duty". Sappal said that the agreement made with the WTO by Anand Sharma, a minister in the former Congress government, is cited, due to which the intention of the BJP, which has been in power for ten years, has become clear. "If the Modi government is calling itself powerful by removing Article 370, then doesn't it have the courage to change one signature?" If the BJP is saying that Anand Sharma signed the WTO agreement, when was it? It's been ten years since they were in power," he said. If the Modi government is calling itself powerful by removing Article 370, then doesn't it have the courage to change one signature? Sappal highlighted the initiatives taken by UPA governments before 2014, adding that BJP government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi has weakened the education system. "The country had made a lot of progress in nuclear, space and other sectors before 2014. No new work has been done in this area after 2014. The Modi government has also weakened the education system. Private institutions are being set up. The Modi government is creating an army of illiterate people in the country," he said. Himachal Pradesh has four Lok Sabha seats: Hamirpur, Mandi, Shimla, and Kangra. The BJP won all four seats in 2019. The elections to the four Lok Sabha seats of Himachal Pradesh and by-polls to the six assembly constituencies that fell vacant with the disqualification of six rebel Congress MLAs will be held on June 1. (ANI) According to the police, the raid took place late on Sunday night. According to the released information, the suspects, identified as Rahul Das, Gopesh Debnath, Raju Das, and Shantu Das, were intercepted while attempting to transport the contraband on an autorickshaw. Their intention was allegedly to smuggle the narcotics out of the state via the Rani Kamalabati Express train. Upon conducting a thorough search, the police successfully seized 30 kilogrammes of dry cannabis from the bags carried by the individuals. Authorities estimate the market value of the confiscated substance to be around four lakh rupees. Rajiv Debnath, Officer-in-Charge of Teliamura Police Station, stated that such operations will continue in the area to curb illegal activities. He further mentioned that similar raids and operations will be conducted in the future to maintain law and order in the region. The successful interception and seizure mark a significant victory for law enforcement agencies in their ongoing battle against drug trafficking in the region. The individuals apprehended will face legal proceedings as per the relevant laws governing drug offences. (ANI) President Droupadi Murmu, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah among others condoled the demise of the veteran BJP leader and former deputy chief minister of Bihar Sushil Kumar Modi, who passed away at age 72 after battling cancer for the last seven months. In a post on X, President Murmu said, "The sudden demise of Sushil Kumar Modi is an irreparable loss. His gentle nature, contribution as an efficient administrator and integrity in public life were reflected in his personality and work. As Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar, Member of Parliament and Member of both the Houses of the State Legislature, Sushil Kumar Modi upheld high ideals. May God grant peace to his soul and give strength to his family to bear this loss." Prime Minister Modi said he is "deeply saddened" by the untimely demise of his friend for decades. In his post on X, PM Modi said, "I am deeply saddened by the untimely demise of Sushil Modi ji, my valuable colleague in the party and my friend for decades. He has played an invaluable role in the rise and success of BJP in Bihar. Strongly opposing the Emergency, he made a name for himself in student politics. He was known as a very hardworking and sociable MLA. He had a deep understanding of the issues related to politics. He also did a lot of commendable work as an administrator. His active role in the passage of GST will always be remembered. My condolences are with his family and supporters in this hour of grief. Om Shanti!" Vice President Jagdeep Dhankar also said that Sushil Modi's demise is a huge loss to the nation's socio-political landscape. "Deeply saddened to learn about the passing away of Sushil Kumar Modi Ji. His untimely demise is a huge loss to the nation's socio-political landscape. As a Member of Parliament and former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar, Sushil Modi ji believed in political propriety and always exemplified decency and decorum. His Parliamentary contributions would ever be remembered. My heartfelt condolences to his family, friends and admirers during this difficult time," he said. Home Minister Amit Shah said with the demise of Sushil Modi, Bihar has lost a "great pioneer of politics forever." "I am saddened by the news of the demise of our senior leader Sushil Kumar Modi ji. Today Bihar has lost a great pioneer of politics forever. From ABVP to BJP, Sushil ji has adorned many important positions in the organization and government. His politics was dedicated to the interests of the poor and the backward. The void that has emerged in Bihar politics due to his demise cannot be filled for a long time. In this hour of grief, the entire BJP stands with his bereaved family. May God give a place to the departed soul in his lotus feet. Om Shanti Shanti," Shah said ain a post on X. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh also condoled the demise of the Bihar BJP leader and said that his long public life was dedicated to the service of the people and the welfare of the poor. "I am deeply saddened by the demise of former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar and senior party leader, Sushil Kumar Modi. He worked hard to make the party strong and popular in Bihar. His work for the development of Bihar will always be remembered. May God provide patience and strength to his bereaved family in this hour of grief. Om Shanti!" Rajnath said. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath also paid tribute to Sushil Kumar Modi. "The demise of former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar, senior member of the BJP family, Shri Sushil Kumar Modi ji is extremely sad. My humble tribute to him! He served the country and society throughout his life. His struggle will always serve as an inspiration for workers. I pray to Lord Shri Ram to give a place to the departed soul in his lotus feet and give strength to the bereaved family to bear this immense sorrow. BJP national president JP Nadda also posted on X and said that Sushil Modi's entire life was dedicated to Bihar. "The news of the demise of senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader and former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar Sushil Modi ji is extremely sad. From the Vidhyarthi Parishad till now, we have worked together for the organization for a long time. Sushil Modi ji's entire life was dedicated to Bihar. Sushil Modi ji's efforts have been very helpful in bringing Bihar out of jungle raj and putting it on the path of development. His absence is an irreparable loss for countless workers. May God give peace to the departed soul and strength to the family members," Nadda said. Sushil Modi held various positions in his three-decade-long political career. He served as MLA, MLC and member of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. He served as the Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar from 2005 to 2013 and again from 2017 to 2020. (ANI) Amid recent gains made by the Russian forces in the war, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy acknowledged that "fierce battles" are taking place and the situation is "extremely difficult" in some regions while affirming that the key thing is for the country to remain "resilient" and hold its ground. The Ukrainian President also warned against Russian PSYOPs (psychological operations), saying that the "occupier feeds on lies and the fear that follows the lies" and urging people not to chase the headline. https://x.com/ZelenskyyUa/status/1789705162618974696 "Today, the key issue is, of course, the frontline and our counteraction to Russian operations. Throughout the day, there have been reports from the Commander-in-Chief, intelligence, and Interior Minister," President Zelenskyy said in his video address on Sunday. He said that "special attention" is paid to the Kharkiv region, where he said Russia, which he referred to as "occupier", is trying to gain a foothold there. Zelenskyy added that the idea behind Russian attacks in the Kharkiv region is to spread the Ukrainian forces thin. "Defensive battles are ongoing, fierce battles--on a large part of our border area. There are villages that have actually turned from a gray zone into a combat zone - and the occupier is trying to gain a foothold in some of them, or simply use some of them for further advancement," the Ukrainian President said. Further thanking the Ukrainian fighters in the battlefield, Zelenskyy said that Kyiv needs to inflict as many losses as possible on the "occupier." He added that the situation is "extremely difficult" on the outskirts of Vovchansk, adding that the city is under "constant Russian fire." "Everything depends on what you are capable of in a war - whether you can withstand the attacks and hold your ground so that everyone else can do the same. The key thing is our resilience and Ukrainian results in battles," Zelenskyy said. "We are also paying constant attention to other areas of combat operations, including the Donetsk sector, where the situation is no less intense. In fact, the idea behind the attacks in the Kharkiv region is to spread our forces thin and undermine the moral and motivational basis of the Ukrainians' ability to defend themselves. The Pokrovsk direction is the most difficult, despite everything," he added. He urged his countrymen not to get led by emotions, double check every news report and "trust the Ukrainian Defense Forces." "So now it is safer not to be led by emotions, not to chase the headline, to double-check every news report, to look for information, not emotions or rumours, and to trust the Ukrainian Defense Forces. Our warriors know what to do. And we are working with our partners, including our domestic Ukrainian arms production facilities, to ensure that our warriors have what they need to act," Zelenskyy further said. Following Russia's move to capture nine villages in a fresh ground assault in a cross-border offensive, Ukraine warned the situation in the northern Kharkiv region has "significantly worsened", according to CNN. Russia on Sunday said it has captured nine villages in total over the weekend, as Ukraine said fighting was ongoing and it was repelling attacks. Moreover, hundreds of civilians have been evacuated from near the frontlines. The Russian forces began their surprise cross-border attack on Friday, making two assaults inside northern Ukraine, as reported by CNN. Following this, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for a "new wave of counteroffensive actions" by Ukraine. (ANI) Former US President Donald Trump came out heavily against Joe Biden over the massive pro-Palestine protests at American universities, and claimed that his successor is surrounded by "fascists" and has 'surrendered' the college campuses to "jihadist freaks" and "anti-American extremists." Trump further claimed that "the very same people who are funding the violent campus uprisings are also funding Joe Biden's campaign", adding that Biden is running a "radicalised" Democratic Party. Notably, the college campuses in the US have become a hotspot, with pro-Palestinian protestors calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. The students holding encampments and occupying areas on campus have also led to a strong crackdown and arrests by the police. Addressing a huge crowd in Wildwood, New Jersey, on Sunday, Trump said, "He (Biden) is surrendering our college campuses to anarchists, jihadist freaks and anti-American extremists who are trying to tear down our American flag." "They want to tear down every single place they go. They want to rip down our flag. The chaos and violence happening on our college campuses right now is all because Crooked Joe Biden doesn't know what the hell he's doing. Joe is weak," he added. Taking his attack on the incumbent president further, Trump called on Biden and the Democratic National Committee to return all the donations made by "anti-Semites, American haters and financiers of chaos." "He's (Biden) surrounded by fascists around the Oval Office. It's not him," Trump added. "He's not doing a very good at cheating on elections. He doesn't stand up to our enemies abroad. And he does not stand up to the extremists in his own party, the Democratic Party is becoming radicalised. It's becoming radical left, and they're going to lose our country." Trump, affirmed that if he returns to the White House, he won't allow "violent radicals" to take over the colleges and those spreading "anti-Americanism or anti-Semitism" on the campuses will be immediately deported. "When I'm president, we will not allow our colleges to be taken over by violent radicals," the presumptive Republican presidential nominee added. "And if you come here from another country and try to bring jihadism or anti-Americanism or anti-Semitism to our campuses, we will immediately deport you. You'll be out of that school." According to Fox News, the beachfront gathering was designed to serve as a show of force for Trump, who is facing dozens of felony charges in four separate criminal cases at a time when the elections are less than six months away. (ANI) Amid violent clashes between police and protesters in the Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will convene a high-level meeting on Monday to discuss the ongoing situation in the region, ARY News reported. Earlier, PM Sharif on Sunday also spoke to the prime minister of PoJK and directed the Pakistan Muslim League-N office bearers in the region to engage with the leaders of the action committee to find a peaceful resolution. Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said that he is "deeply concerned" about it, and added that there is also no tolerance for taking the law in one's own hands and damaging government properties. "Deeply concerned about the situation in AJK. Unfortunately, in situations of chaos and dissent there are always some who rush in to score political points," Shehbaz Sharif wrote in a post on X. At least one police officer was killed and 90 others were wounded after violent clashes erupted in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) during the ongoing protests and shutter down strike across the region, Dawn reported on Saturday. According to the report which cited Mirpur Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Kamran Ali Sub-inspector Adnan Qureshi succumbed to a gunshot wound in the chest in the town of Islamgarh where he was deployed along with other police personnel to stop a rally for Muzaffarabad via Kotli and Poonch districts under the banner of the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC). The JAAC, which has traders at the forefront in most parts of the region, has been seeking the provision of electricity as per hydropower generation cost in PoJK, subsidised wheat flour and an end to the privileges of the elite class. On Wednesday-Thursday night, around 70 JAAC activists were arrested by police during raids at their residences and those of their relatives in Muzaffarabad and Mirpur divisions, triggering serious clashes in Dadyal on Thursday. The committee had subsequently announced a shutter-down and wheel-jam strike on Friday, a day ahead of its planned long march towards Muzaffarabad. (ANI) President Joe Biden finds himself at the centre of bipartisan criticism from Capitol Hill regarding his recent ultimatum to Israel, warning of a halt in some US weapons shipments in response to a potential major Israeli offensive in Rafah, CNN reported. In a televised interview with CNN's Erin Burnett, Biden's declaration drew swift rebuke from lawmakers across the political spectrum. Republican Senator JD Vance of Ohio questioned the coherence of Biden's approach, pointing out the contradiction between expressing concern for Palestinian civilian casualties and withholding weapons designed to minimise such casualties. "On the one hand, they're saying too many Palestinian civilians have been killed. With the other hand, they're depriving us of the precision-guided weapons that actually cut down on civilian casualties," Republican Senator JD Vance of Ohio told CNN though Biden specifically mentioned withholding bombs and artillery shells deemed by the administration as indiscriminate and imprecise. "So if you're worried about Palestinian casualties, the stated policy here actually doesn't make a ton of sense," Vance said, as reported by CNN. The administration's decision extends beyond mere rhetoric, with a review underway regarding the sale or transfer of munitions like Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) kits to Israel. However, these potential transfers remain pending, according to a US official. Biden's public announcement marks a significant shift in US-Israeli relations since the conflict between Israel and Hamas erupted seven months prior. Despite the administration's assertion that Israel had been forewarned, the move has stirred controversy, particularly among Republicans. Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina condemned the ultimatum as detrimental to the US-Israel relationship, urging the administration to maintain weapons shipments and engage in dialogue with Israel. Senator Rick Scott of Florida went further, accusing Biden of aligning with the "pro-Hamas wing" of his party. Yet, dissent isn't confined to partisan lines. A group of 26 House Democrats, led by Representative Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey, penned a letter expressing deep concern over the message conveyed by withholding weapons shipments. They called for clarity from the White House on its decision and the timing of aid delivery to Israel. While some Democrats have defended Biden's stance, highlighting the administration's efforts to prevent civilian casualties, others have criticised the lack of clarity in the messaging. Representative Adam Smith of Washington state clarified that only certain types of weapons, specifically "dumb" bombs, were being withheld due to concerns over their use in densely populated areas like Rafah. Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut emphasised Biden's attempt to learn from past military campaigns, suggesting that excessive civilian casualties could strengthen Hamas and invite further attacks on Israel and the US. Secretary of State Antony Blinken echoed concerns over civilian casualties, stating that Israel must do more to minimise harm. He highlighted discrepancies in Israel's application of procedures to mitigate civilian casualties during the ongoing conflict, according to CNN. The toll of the conflict on Gaza's civilian population has been significant, with the Ministry of Health reporting a staggering number of casualties. Despite this, a State Department report fell short of officially accusing Israel of violating international humanitarian law, a decision that drew criticism from Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland. Van Hollen expressed concern that the report's findings could embolden Netanyahu to continue deadly strikes. He lamented the administration's failure to provide a comprehensive assessment of Israel's actions and their compliance with international law. Murphy acknowledged the report's limitations but stressed its accurate portrayal of the conflict's complexity. He acknowledged disastrous decisions by the Israeli military but called for a nuanced understanding of the situation. Senator Chris Coons of Delaware defended Biden's actions, applauding his decisive response despite facing backlash. Coons asserted that Biden's public statement exemplified his commitment to addressing the crisis effectively, CNN reported. (ANI) Samail Industrial City, part of Omans Public Establishment for Industrial Estates (Madayn), has signed a OMR16 million ($41.6 million) contract with Al Khayal Business and Investment Company to set up a beverages project. The project of two phases is planned to be implemented on a total area of 5,000 sq m. Meanwhile, Madayn has recently announced an investment opportunity of equipping, managing and operating the Medical Fitness Examination Centre in Samail Industrial City, which aims at delivering top-tier healthcare services to the workforce the industrial city and the surrounding population. The prime location of the centre facilitates easy access, thanks to its proximity to the entrance gate and the highway. The centre covers an area of 1,100.71 sq m and comprises various facilities, including laboratories, clinics, X-ray facilities, offices, among other facilities.--TradeArabia News Service The 7th edition of the India-France Joint Military Exercise "Shakti" is set to commence on May 13 at the Joint Training Node in Umroi, Meghalaya. The exercise aims to enhance the joint military capacity of both sides to undertake Multi-Domain Operations in a sub-conventional scenario. According to an official release from the Public Relations Officer (PRO) Defence, Guwahati, the exercise is scheduled to be conducted from 13 to 26 May. The Opening Ceremony of the joint exercise was attended by Thierry Mathou, Ambassador of France to India and Major General Prasanna Sudhakar Joshi, General Officer Commanding 51 Sub Area. Exercise SHAKTI is a biennial training event conducted alternatively in India and France. The last edition was conducted in France in November 2021. Indian contingent comprising 90 personnel is being represented primarily by a Battalion of the RAJPUT Regiment besides personnel from other arms and services. Observers from the Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force will also form part of the exercise. The French contingent comprising 90 personnel will be represented mainly by personnel from the 13th Foreign Legion Half-Brigade (13th DBLE). "The Aim of Exercise SHAKTI is to enhance the joint military capability of both sides to undertake multi-domain operations in a sub-conventional scenario under Chapter VII of the United Nations Mandate," the release added. Further, the joint exercise will focus on operations in the semi-urban and mountainous terrain. Objectives to be achieved from the joint training are a high degree of physical fitness, rehearsing and refining drills for operations at the tactical level and sharing of best practices.Tactical drills to be practised during the Exercise will include response to a terrorist action of capturing a defined territory, the establishment of a Joint Command Post, the establishment of an Intelligence & Surveillance Centre, securing of a helipad/ landing site, Small Team Insertion & Extraction, Special Heliborne Operations, Cordon & Search Operations besides employment of drones and counter-drone systems among others. Exercise SHAKTI will enable the two sides to share their best practices in Tactics, Techniques and Procedures for conducting joint operations. The joint exercise will facilitate the development of inter-operability, bonhomie and camaraderie between armed forces personnel of the two countries. This will also enhance the level of defence cooperation, further fostering bilateral relations between the two friendly nations. (ANI) The Indian government on Monday provided a budget support to Maldives in the form of a rollover of USD 50 million Treasury Bill, for an additional year at the request of Maldivian Foreign Minister Moosa Zameer. "State Bank of India has subscribed for one more year the USD 50 million Government Treasury Bill, issued by the Ministry of Finance of Maldives, upon maturity of the previous subscription. These Government Treasury Bills are subscribed by SBI under by SBI under a unique Government-to-Government arrangement at zero-cost (interest-free) to the Government of Maldives," the Indian High Commission in Maldives said in a statement. This extension of the subscription has been done at the request of the Maldivian government. "The continuation of subscription has been made at the special request of the Government of Maldives to secure budgetary support from the Government of India," the statement read. The Maldivian Foreign Ministry, in their statement, stated that the Indian government's decision to roll over the T-Bill comes after Maldivian Foreign Minister Moosa Zameer requested the External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar during his official visit to India earlier this month. The ministry further appreciated the Indian government's support to the Maldives in the form of budgetary allocation. "Large number of infrastructural developmental projects and High Impact Community Developmental projects are underway with the assistance from the Government of India, which consists of a notable part as grant assistance," the statement stated. The Maldivian government looks forward to continuing the collaborative partnership between the two countries for the mutual benefit and prosperity of their people, it added. (ANI) External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Monday that despite a challenge from China, India has counter-deployed and sent a record number of troops to the border. "I think we need to get the China issue right...Yes, there is a challenge from China, yes, it has violated agreements and sent a large number of troops to the border. But the country should take pride in the fact that, despite COVID, we counter-deployed and sent a record number of troops to the border. Those troops today are holding their own," Jaishankar said. Notably, Jaishankar's remarks came during a conference held at the National Stock Exchange Plaza in Mumbai. "The country should be supporting the military, country should not be running them down...This running down your own people, your forces is a sad thing. A lot of the country is very unhappy about it," the EAM said. Speaking further, he slammed the opposition for blaming PM Modi for Nehru's actions that were taken in the past. He said, "Indian land was taken by China between 1958-1962...When you say land taken by China, please understand that this land was lost in 1962...I see efforts made to mislead the country..." "People are saying Chinese are building villages on the border. Where is the village built? It is built in a place called Longzu, which the Chinese attacked and occupied in 1959. There is a statement of Nehru. So, we look at the google map, look at that village and triangulate it with what Nehru said in 1959" Jaishankar said, giving an example . "Then Rahul Gandhi and the Congress talk about the bridge in Pangong Pso in Ladakh. This bridge is being built at a place where the Chinese came in 1958 and then retook it in 1962. Recently, I saw a congress spokesperson say the Chinese have built a road in Shaksgam Valley, and this has great concerns for Siachin," he said. "Possibly it has concerns for Siachin," he noted, however, adding that the "Shaksgam Valley was allowed by Nehru to be part of Pakistan occupied Kashmir, and Pakistanis handed it over to China in 1963." "So Congress is holding Modi responsible for Nehru's actions in 1949 and Bhutto's actions in 1963. But apparently, they have no culpability..." Jaishankar said. Amid border tensions, in March, India and China exchanged views on ways of achieving complete disengagement and resolving the issues along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Western sector of India-China border areas. Meanwhile, India, in January this year, while reiterating its long-standing position on China, said the two countries continue to engage on the diplomatic and military sides for some sort of resolution. "India's position on China is very well known. It is a relationship, which is not normal, but we have had dialogues both on the military side and on the diplomatic side in October and November. And the idea is that we engage so that we can have some sort of resolution," Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Official Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said during weekly media briefing previously. The two countries have been in a military standoff for the last three years since May 2020, when the Chinese tried to aggressively alter the status quo on the Line of Actual Control. (ANI) In a significant milestone for the India-Iran relationship and to foster close cooperation to make Chabahar Port a regional trade transit and connectivity hub, the two countries on Monday signed a long-term contract for operating the Shahid-Beheshti Port Terminal in presence of Indian and Iranian Ministers. The Indian delegation to Iran was led by Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal, while Mehrdad Bazrpash, Minister for Roads and Urban Development, was present from the Iranian side. During his visit to Tehran, Sonowal witnessed the signing of a new 10-year Contract between India Ports Global Ltd (IPGL) and the Ports & Maritime Organisation of Iran (PMO). Under the Contract, IPGL will commit to further equipping and operating the port for the duration of the Contract. At the end of the 10-year period, both sides would further extend their cooperation in Chabahar. IPGL will invest approximately 120 million USD in equipping the port. India has also offered an IN credit window equivalent to USD 250 million, for mutually identified projects aimed at improving Chabahar-related infrastructure. The Chabahar Port is an India-Iran flagship project that serves as an important transit port for trade with Afghanistan and Central Asian countries, which are landlocked countries. India has been a key player in the development and operation of Chabahar Port. The Indian government has invested in the port's infrastructure and has been involved in upgrading its facilities to make it a viable transit route for Indian goods bound for Afghanistan and Central Asia. In August 2023, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in Johannesburg on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit. Both leaders discussed the pending long-term Contract on Chabahar, and gave a clear political direction to finalise and sign the long-term Term Contract. Speaking at the meeting, Sarbananda Sonowal called this a 'historic milestone' and stressed that it "symbolises the enduring trust and deepening partnership between India and Iran." "Today, India and Iran have reached a historic milestone in their longstanding relationship, driven by the visionary ideals of "Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam" championed by India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Under PM Modi's leadership, the momentous agreement that began on 23rd May 2016 is culminating today in a long-term contract, symbolizing the enduring trust and deepening partnership between India and Iran", Sonowal said during his meeting with the Iranian minister Mehrdad Bazrpash. "The Chabahar Port is an India-Iran flagship project. Today, as we witness the signing of the long-term contract for operating the Shahid-Beheshti Port Terminal, I am confident that a firm, sustainable, and long-term roadmap for developing the port has been established", he added. In August 2022, Sarbananda Sonowal visited Chabahar Port in Iran to review its work progress and handed over six mobile harbour cranes to Indian Ports Global Chabahar Free Trade Zone (IPGCFTZ) at the port then. During his meeting, the Indian minister further underscored India's vision of making the port an international hub of connectivity and how it has continued its outreach with regional countries to expand trade and transit through Chabahar Port. "We have continued our outreach to promote the Chabahar Port and also facilitate transit. In 2022, India organized the "Chabahar Day" in Mumbai with a focus on fostering closer cooperation between our countries and the wider region to enhance inter-regional trade and economic connectivity," he said. Sonowal went on to say how this port is serving an important transit port with Afghanistan and Central Asian countries and how India has helped landlocked Afghanistan. "Chabahar Port is serving as an important transit port for trade with Afghanistan and Central Asian countries, which are landlocked countries. Afghanistan is passing through a difficult phase. Over the past few years, we have supplied 85,000 metric tons of wheat and 200 metric tons of pulses as humanitarian food assistance. We also sent 40,000 litres of pesticide Malathion to Afghanistan through Chabahar port", said Sonowal. Terming the recent visit of a high-level delegation from Afghanistan to Chabahar port as 'positive', the Indian minister underlined the need to facilitate trade for Afghanistan and help Afghan people to stand on their own feet. In 2022, India organised "Chabahar Day" in Mumbai with a focus on fostering closer cooperation between our countries and the wider region to enhance inter-regional trade and economic connectivity. In January this year, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, during his visit to Iran met Iranian Minister of Roads and Urban Development and discussed establishing a "long-term cooperation framework" for Chabahar Port, a strategic maritime facility situated on the southereastern coast of Iran. In a post on X, Jaishankar stated, "Began my engagements in Tehran by meeting Minister of Roads and Urban Development @mehrdadbazrpash. Detailed and productive discussion on establishing a long-term cooperation framework with respect to Chabahar port," said Jaishankar in a post on X, then. Their discussions also focused on the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC). "Also exchanged views on the International North-South Transport Corridor," Jaishankar's post added. India's vision is to make Chabahar Port a transit hub under the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) to reach out to CIS countries. In August last year, PM Modi held talks with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and the two leaders reiterated their commitment to further strengthen bilateral cooperation, including to realise the full potential of Chabahar Port as a connectivity hub. "The two leaders reiterated their commitment to further strengthen bilateral cooperation, including to realize the full potential of Chabahar Port as a connectivity hub," the Prime Minister's Office said in a press release. The Chabahar port, located in Iran, is a key component of India's connectivity initiatives, holds immense significance as it provides a viable and shorter route for trade between India, Iran, Afghanistan, and Central Asia. Chabahar is a deep water port located in the Sistan-Baluchistan province of Iran. It is the closest Iranian port to India, and is located in the open sea, providing easy and secure access for large cargo ships. During the visit of Prime Minister Modi to Iran in May 2016, a trilateral agreement to establish the International Transport and Transit Corridor (Chabahar Agreement) was signed by India, Iran and Afghanistan. India is participating in the development of the first phase of the Shahid Behesti Terminal, Chabahar Port, in cooperation with Iranian government. So far, India has supplied 06 Mobile Habour Cranes (two 140 tons and four 100 tons capacity) and other equipment worth USD 25 million. The Indian company, India Ports Global Limited (IPGL), through its wholly owned subsidiary, India Ports Global Chabahar Free Zone (IPGCFZ), took over the operations of the Chabahar Port with effect from 24 December, 2018. Since then, it has handled traffic of more than 90,000 TEUs of Container traffic and more than 8.4 MMT of Bulk and General Cargo. The port has also facilitated the supply of humanitarian assistance, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Till date, a total of 2.5 million tons of wheat and two thousand tons of pulses have been trans-shipped from India to Afghanistan through Chabahar Port. In 2021, India supplied 40,000 litres of environmental friendly pesticide (Malathion) to Iran to fight locust menace. Earlier, the Indian Embassy in Iran, in a post on X stated, "Hon'ble Minister @sarbanandsonwal held a fruitful meeting with his esteemed Iranian counterpart @mehrdadbazrpash. Discussed furthering the shared vision of making Chabahar Port a regional connectivity hub connecting India to Afghanistan, Central Asia, and Eurasia." (ANI) Melinda French Gates on Monday, said that she would resign as co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, stressing that the time is "right for me" to move forward into the next chapter of my philanthropy. Melinda, who has helped the lead since 2000, said that as part of her separation agreement from her former husband Bill Gates, she will receive an additional USD 12.5 billion for her charitable work. "After careful thought and reflection, I have decided to resign from my role as co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. My last day of work at the foundation will be June 7th," Melinda French Gates said in a post shared on X. She further emphasised that she is taking this step with full confidence that the Gates Foundation is in strong shape. "I am taking this step with full confidence that the foundation is in strong shape, with its extremely capable CEO Mark Suzman, the Executive Leadership Team, and an experienced board of trustees in place to ensure all its important work continues. The time is right for me to move forward into the next chapter of my philanthropy," she added. https://x.com/melindagates/status/1790049411227086949 "Under the terms of my agreement with Bill, in leaving the foundation, I will have an additional $12.5 billion to commit to my work on behalf of women and families," Melinda said in her post. Following the announcement, Bill Gates in a separate statement on Monday, posted, "I am sorry to see Melinda leave, but I am sure she will have a huge impact in her future philanthropic work." "Looking ahead, I remain fully committed to the Foundation's work across all our strategies, and to realizing the opportunities we have to continue improving the lives of millions around the world," he wrote. However, French Gates' exit had been telegraphed for several years, reported CNN. Bill Gates and French Gates announced their divorce in May 2021, saying that they would allow themselves a kind of trial period through 2023 to determine if they could continue working with one another to oversee their massive charitable foundation. Later in July 2021, the foundation's CEO announced a contingency plan "to ensure the continuity of the foundation's work." "If after two years either decide they cannot continue to work together as co-chairs, French Gates will resign her position as co-chair and trustee," CEO Mark Suzman said, according to CNN. (ANI) TOKYO, May 13 (News On Japan) - TBS Television has announced a strategic partnership with Bloomberg Media, an American company renowned for broadcasting financial and economic information worldwide. Together, they plan to launch a new news service that will feature original articles and video content from both entities. Bloomberg is a comprehensive economic media firm that handles the distribution of the latest market information and economic news. Founded in 1981 by Michael Bloomberg, former mayor of New York City, it has been widely used in financial circles around the globe. On the 13th, TBS Television revealed its strategic partnership with Bloomberg, planning to launch a new news service within the year under the joint brand TBS NEWS DIG and Bloomberg, which will offer economic and financial content. The new service will provide daily distribution of original articles and videos from both companies. It will also offer premium content on finance and investments. Furthermore, a new brand studio will be established to produce content for advertisers aiming for a global reach. Regarding this partnership, TBS President Sasaki commented, "We aim to strengthen our economic and financial news segment and broadcast our content not just in Japan but globally." Bloomberg CEO Karen Solzer expressed excitement about the collaboration, stating, "We look forward to delivering compelling digital content from Japan, one of the world's most important financial centers." Source: TBS YAMANASHI, May 13 (News On Japan) - Mount Fujis Yoshida Trail on the Yamanashi side will implement entrance restrictions, including a daily climber limit of 4,000, starting in July this year. A reservation system has been announced to prevent confusion and enhance the climbing experience. Yamanashi Prefecture has decided to preserve Mount Fuji's environment by limiting the number of climbers to 4,000 per day during the climbing season in July and will charge a 2,000 yen toll as part of the entry regulations. To avoid issues related to these restrictions and to improve convenience for climbers, the prefecture will introduce a reservation system, with bookings starting from the 20th of this month. The reservation site allows bookings until 11:59 PM the day before the intended climbing date, with a toll fee of 2,000 yen payable via credit card or QR code payment. A representative can make a one-time payment for up to 100 people. The system will allocate 3,000 spots for advance reservations, leaving 1,000 spots available for on-the-day climbers. The reservation site will also support English and Chinese, in addition to Japanese. The introduction of this reservation system will enable climbers to start their ascent at the fifth station on the Yoshida Trail without needing to make payments there, and will allow group tour leaders to make prepayments on behalf of participants, providing various benefits and efficiencies. Governor Yukitaro Nagasaki of Yamanashi Prefecture was scheduled to announce and explain the introduction of the reservation system at a regular press conference at 11:30 AM. However, due to a scheduling conflict, the press conference was abruptly postponed. Therefore, Governor Nagasaki released a statement encouraging the active use of the reservation system, saying, "We hope climbers will utilize the reservation system actively and enjoy a safe and comfortable ascent of Mount Fuji." Source: ANN May 14 (Japan by Food) - Today, as a seasoned food content creator and influencer, Stephanie from Australia is ready to be your guide through the bustling streets of Tokyo and beyond. In this new series, with her insider knowledge and knack for uncovering hidden gems, she'll show you how to savor Japanese cuisine, even if you're still mastering the language. From street food, to omakase and then izakayas, in this first episode,Stephanie treks Tokyo armed with recommendations from locals and her own extensive research. Follow along as she enjoys some of Tokyos tastiest foods. Source: Japan by Food Khalifa Economic Zones Abu Dhabi Kezad Group and UAE-based Golden Spike and Wheat have signed a 50-year land lease agreement for the establishment of a bakery and sweets manufacturing facility in Kezad. The 26,000 sq m facility in ICAD 3 (Kezad Musaffah) will have a large production capacity to cater to the requirements of the UAE market. Mohamed Al Khadar Al Ahmed, CEO Khalifa Economic Zones Abu Dhabi Kezad Group said: We welcome Golden Spike and Wheat to Kezads growing Food ecosystem. Through Kezad Group, Abu Dhabi is playing a leading role in the UAEs drive towards achieving No 1 on the Global Food Security Index. The Golden Spike facility would be well positioned to augment these efforts and play a significant role in the countrys food security efforts. Major role Mustafa Al Husseiny, General Manager of Golden Spike and Wheat, said: The Food & Agtech sectors at Kezad play a major role in the countrys food security efforts. Abu Dhabis F&B sector is witnessing a significant transformation, propelled by strategic initiatives led by Kezad Group. With its extensive infrastructure investments and dedication to integrating advanced agricultural technologies (AgTech) that cater to the evolving needs of the industry, Kezad is crucial in repositioning the UAE, and particularly Abu Dhabi, as a leading Food and AgTech hub of the Middle East. The upcoming 3.3 sq km Abu Dhabi Food Hub in Kezad, as well as a number Kezad clients in the F&B sector, along with sustainable solutions in the AgTech industry, such as vertical farming and hydroponics, are crucial initiatives in a region with limited arable land and water resources. These efforts support the UAE's food security objectives while ensuring environmental sustainability.--TradeArabia News Service Tunisias regime, under the rule of Kais Saied, has been indulging in a xenophobic discourse blaming migrants for the countrys economic woes, as more Tunisians engage in clashes with migrants in different cities. In recent days, the government has intensified its crackdown arresting and throwing thousands of migrants in inhumane conditions on the borders with Algeria and Libya. President Saied, who warned of great replacement of Tunisians by Sub-Saharans, continues his hate speech spree saying traitors are conspiring to drown Tunisia with migrants. Mimicking him, Tunisian leaders and some media figures have been encouraging civilian Tunisians to join the witch hunt against Sub-Saharan migrants bound for Europe and most of whom qualify for refugee status. Aljazeera reported that public figures, including Member of Parliament Badreddine Gammoudi, are also calling for the establishment of citizen militias to fight the conspiracy of suspicious entities looking to settle refugees and migrants in Tunisia. Hamza Meddeb, of the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut, said: Were seeing the beginning of citizen militias and an angry public attacking the migrants. Somethings going to give its inevitable. Tunisia has basically become a trap for migrants. The omens of violence can already be seen in Sfax and other coastal cities where Tunisians have taken aim at Sub-Saharans triggering violent clashes. Tunisia is mired in an economic and financial crisis worsened by the backpedaling to autocracy as president Kais Saied intensifies his crackdown on critics, while picking migrants as scapegoats. Tindouf is gripped by an unprecedented uprising, plunging the region into chaos following a revolt against the terrorist group Polisario. Spanish media reports that the savage murder of a young Sahrawi, found in a trash bin, has sparked a devastating wave of anger. The camps in Tindouf are now the scene of an insurrection following this brutal murder, with the young mans body carelessly thrown into a trash bin. Media footage shows protesters expressing their fury towards Polisario and its leaders, decrying the lack of justice and legality under the Sahrawi administration while targeting Brahim Ghali and his close associates. The situation has become uncontrollable, reports the Spanish daily Larazon, quoting Algerian activist Oualid Kebir who comments on Polisarios inability to manage the crisis. Criticized for its authoritarian and opaque management of the Sahrawi refugee camps, Polisario, supported by Algeria, is accused of numerous human rights violations. This movement is often seen not as a representative of the Sahrawis but as a tool of Algerian politics. Under its aegis, the camps have turned into lawless zones where corruption, suppression of dissent, and diversion of international aid have become commonplace. This profound crisis exacerbates the distress of the Sahrawis, trapped in an endless conflict with no apparent solution, worsened by Algerias ongoing support for Polisario despite international calls for more fair and transparent management. King Mohammed VI has reiterated his firm determination to work with the new Chadian Head of State, General Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno, to further consolidate the exemplary relations binding the two countries in all fields. The Sovereign stressed, in a message of congratulations to the new Chadian Head of State, that Morocco and Chad are united by strong ties of brotherhood, active solidarity and fruitful cooperation, and reiterated his firm determination to work with the Chadian President to further consolidate these exemplary relations in all fields, for the greater good of our two peoples and in the service of peace, unity and sustainable development. King Mohammed VI has sent a message of congratulations to new Chadian Head of State General Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno, on the occasion of his election to the highest office of the Republic of Chad. In this message, the Sovereign expressed his warm congratulations and best wishes of success to General Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno following his election to the highest office of the Republic of Chad. By expressing their confidence in you at this essential stage of the democratic transition process, the Chadian people have shown their gratitude for your commitment to defending their supreme interests and realizing their aspirations for greater progress and prosperity, the King stated in his message. In the presidential election held on May 6, Mahamat Deby Itno, previously serving as the transitional leader, secured 61.03% of the votes, surpassing his Prime Minister, Succes Masra, who garnered 18.53%. Former Prime Minister Albert Pahimi Padacke came in third with 16.91%. Jamaal Bowman speaks during a news conference calling for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas last November. Photo: Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images Jamaal Bowman, the two-term congressman from Westchester County and the would-be future of the progressive left, is tired of the questions about George Latimer. Yeah, I mean, I think it says something about his character, his integrity, and his actual leadership for the district. But enough of him. When are we going to talk about me? Were at Salsa Picante, a Mexican restaurant in Port Chester, the heavily Latino village on the eastern reaches of the 16th congressional district. Its late April, and Bowman, munching on chicken empanadas, is in a cheery mood, despite my prodding on Latimer. The night before, Summer Lee, a fellow progressive in Congress, had survived a furious primary challenge, and Bowman senses a pattern. Salut! he calls out. Im excited, hopefully, for the whole progressive movement to zero in on NY-16. Lets get to work. The work is daunting. Bowman, less than two months from the June 25 primary, is one of the most endangered Democratic incumbents in America. This is in spite of or because of his charisma and budding celebrity, his ability to slash through the noise of 435 House members and command attention on a scale only one or two levels removed from Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. A former public-school principal and self-described hip-hop head, Bowman marries her online savvy with a deft working-class touch. Burly and boisterous, with a knack for whipping up crowds, it is not hard to imagine him as a future presidential candidate, storming through South Carolina with a pack of reporters hanging on his every word. But first he needs to win. And Latimer, the sitting Westchester County executive, has outraised him in the primary, thanks in part to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) the conservative, ardently pro-Israel political powerhouse that is seeking to crush the pro-Palestinian movement and the left itself. They do not want any critique, they do not want any accountability, and so what it looks like to people in my district and around the country is that Israel can do whatever it wants even though, to people on the outside looking in, it looks completely wrong and horrible, Bowman says of AIPAC. One, it doesnt represent all the Jews. It doesnt represent all the Jews in Israel! If Israel represents all the Jews, Bowman continues, revving up now, and if Israel is doing bad things without accountability, some idiot in the street just makes the connection that, Oh, Jews must be bad because Israel is bad. Thats fucking excuse my language thats effing scary, man, and dangerous. And as we fight antisemitism, that has to include accountability for Israel. There was a time, not very long ago, when no member of Congress would speak this way. The Israeli governments response that has starved out Gaza and killed thousands of civilians has catalyzed a new era though. Mass protests have flooded the streets and rocked college campuses, including two, Columbia and City College, that are only a short drive from Westchester. Bowman has been an AIPAC target for his support of conditioning military aid to Israel and his willingness to label the military campaign in Gaza a genocide, among other criticism lodged at the Jewish state. AIPAC is one of the most powerful lobbies in America. Well you know what we have got to say to AIPAC? Bring it on, he said at his campaign kickoff earlier this year. AIPAC, bring it on. We are not scared of none of that. Im from the streets of New York. In this deeply polarized moment, with Israel hawks reasserting themselves and the pro-Palestinian movement booming, few primaries in America offer a starker contrast between two candidates. In one corner is Bowman, 48, the first Black congressman from Westchester who, just four years ago, unseated one of the staunchest Israel defenders in Congress, Eliot Engel. He immediately joined Ocaso-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, and Rashida Tlaib as one of the nations leading progressives. Latimer, meanwhile, is a 70-year-old county executive, ex-state senator, ex-assemblyman, and ex-Rye councilman. (He also had a career, as he likes to remind voters, in marketing and sales.) After October 7, AIPAC asked Latimer to run against Bowman. I was a reluctant bride, he told me in May, less than 24 hours after the NYPD had raided Columbias campus to arrest the protesters who had occupied Hamilton Hall. I met Latimer at the Mount Vernon Metro North station, where he dutifully passed out palm cards (Good morning, Im George Latimer, Im on the ballot) to the few dreary commuters who ambled through. A couple lit up when they recognized him and one man, who was white, seemed to lament identity politics while promising his vote to Latimer. And its easy to make this race, as much as its become about Israel, about race: Latimer is the white ethnic, Irish and Italian, trying to depose a congressman who told me racism is the number-one issue facing the district and that he views himself, as the first Black man to hold this congressional seat, as a role model to Black youth throughout the area. George Latimer is by any measure a conventional and well-liked Democrat, who was recruited by AIPAC to challenge Bowman. Photo: Yuki Iwamura/Bloomberg via Getty Images The district, which also ropes in a sliver of the northern Bronx including the sprawling and Bowman-friendly Co-op City, is both diverse and plenty segregated, with towns of immense wealth like Scarsdale lying within half-hour drives from working-class Yonkers. Its about 40 percent white, 29 percent Hispanic, and 21 percent Black. Bowmans trouble is that the white, well-heeled vote has soured on him, and Jews are expected to flock to Latimer. Jerry Skurnik, a Democratic consultant and data analyst, estimates that as much as 15 percent of the Democratic electorate who turn out in the primary might be Jewish. A conservative group, Westchester Unites, undertook an effort to register Jewish independents and Republicans as Democrats to vote in the primary, in an implicit effort to boost Latimer and undercut Bowman. Both campaigns agree that Israel alone is not what motivates voters in Westchester and the Bronx, who are mostly consumed with the cost of living. Bowman, as a national figure, may be vulnerable to the very attacks that he once leveled against Engel: Hes too high-flown to care adequately about quotidian Westchester concerns. He has a different brand of politics which appeals more so to getting clicks and likes and retweets and making headlines versus someone who has delivered, said Tyrae Woodson-Samuels, the majority leader of the Westchester County Board of Legislators and a Latimer supporter. Latimer is the rare insurgent who also profiles as an incumbent and can theoretically neutralize some of the attacks hes taking from the left. If, on Israel, Latimer has held to the rightward fringe of his own party he refused, in his conversation with me, to support Chuck Schumers call for Netanyahu to step aside he is, on almost every other issue, a conventional, center-left Democrat. Until challenging Bowman, he regularly took the Working Families Party ballot line and earned plaudits from progressives for ousting Rob Astorino, his right-wing Republican predecessor as county executive. There are lots of people who really like both candidates, says Evan Roth Smith, a Democratic pollster. For many voters, the most loyal Democratic voters who do turn out in these kinds of primaries, its sort of like picking between mom and dad. Latimer, in that sense, was the dream recruit for AIPAC and Democratic Majority for Israel, another influential PAC that is spending heavily in Democratic primaries to bludgeon progressives. His knowledge of the district is encyclopedic and he shows up at every town board meeting, chicken dinner, and parade imaginable; he tells me hes at train stations five days a week and bagel shops on weekends. He has the ability to cut into Bowmans Black support, with endorsements from the Democratic committees in Yonkers and Mount Vernon. Bowman has won the backing of the influential health-care workers union 1199 SEIU, but Latimer has racked up his own support from civil-service, transit, and firefighters unions. In his Facebook musings on classic rock and the Knicks, he comes off as earnest and homespun, a Mr. Fix-It paterfamilias. The cash, though, is anything but homespun. Latimer, never a prolific fundraiser before, banked $3 million at the end of March, double Bowmans haul, and there are top donors who are either AIPAC-affiliated or cut checks to Donald Trump, including Alex Campos, Alex Dubitsky, and Stephen and Carolyn Lauro, who once hosted a Long Island fundraiser for Trump. Another donor is Daniel Loeb, the hedge-fund billionaire who accused Latimers old ally, the Black State Senate majority leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, of doing more damage to people of color than anyone who has ever donned a hood because she wasnt a supporter of charter schools, is another donor. Youre the reason why these guys are donating to me because of what you said and done, Latimer says of Bowman at the New Rochelle Diner after finishing at the Mount Vernon train stop. Im not even soliciting them. I have an event, they send checks. Its not going to change what I do in Congress, Ross, Im going to be a very progressive congressman on most policy issues. Its deeply disturbing that the Latimer campaign is being financed by many of the same people trying to elect Trump, says Jasmine Gripper, the co-director of the Working Families Partys New York chapter. Hes accepting financing from people actively working against the Democratic Party. The real threat for Bowman is the super-PAC spending. AIPAC and DMFI together can blow past $20 million, if they choose, in attack ads and mail. (AIPAC did not respond to a request for comment.) And he offers them enough fodder, like a House censure for pulling a false fire alarm when Democrats were trying to stall a vote, which Bowman told me was an accident and Latimer believes was intentional. Blog posts Bowman wrote more than a decade ago appeared to give credence to 9/11 conspiracy theories and last week his YouTube page following conspiracy accounts became news. More recently, he was forced to apologize after lavishing praise on Norman Finkelstein, the acerbic anti-Israel scholar, at a panel discussion. Bowman has been one of the most anti-Israel members of the entire United States Congress, charges Mark Mellman, the president of DMFI. If he is defeated, it will send a strong message to the rest of the country. Justice Democrats, the group that helped launch politicians like Bowman into orbit and is fighting desperately now to save him, would not disagree with that last part. Its absolutely a threat to the progressive movement and I think we have to be clear-eyed about whats at stake here, Usamah Andrabi, the groups communications director, tells me. The same people spending millions to try to elect Donald Trump and prevent Hakeem Jeffries from being speaker of the House are also spending millions to try to send George Latimer to Congress. Latimer, who once falsely accused Bowman of taking money from Hamas, argues the AIPAC cash has only arrived because he was already, long before the primary, genuinely pro-Israel. He also believes Bowman invited their wrath. If Mike Tyson was in the room and I decided to go over to Mike Tyson and say, Hey Mike Tyson, bring it on, yo, what do I think Mike Tyson might do to me? Whatever I used to be, I wouldnt be the same person after he finished with me. Latimer has a fondness for analogies. Hes sitting with me and his campaign spokeswoman, and there are three paunchy, middle-aged men at a table near us, sipping coffee. You shouldnt return hostages as part of a negotiation. You should just return them. If someone came into this room, for the sake of argument terrible analogy, Im about to make somebody came into this room and killed those three guys and me, wounded you, and kidnapped her, what right do they have to hold onto her? What right? This is not, Lets negotiate now. Four dead bodies, youre wounded, and shes kidnapped, and God only knows what they did to the people they kidnapped. Now lets ceasefire and have a negotiation? Thats ridiculous. Latimer refuses to critique the Israeli military strategy in Gaza or declare he would, as a congressman, ask the U.S. government to condition military aid to Israel, as Biden has done in opposition to a potential Israel attack on Rafah. Unlike Bowman, hes supportive of the police crackdowns on pro-Palestinian college protests and gladly associates himself with Israel hawks Ritchie Torres, John Fetterman, and Hakeem Jeffries, the AIPAC ally and House Democratic leader who has tempered his own outward pugilism since ascending to the top of his party. Jeffries has endorsed Bowman, a courtesy to an incumbent, but he has not tried to restrain AIPAC. One irony of the primary is that Bowman, in 2021, broke with the Democratic Socialists of America over his support for funding the Iron Dome, an Israeli missile-defense system, and visiting Israel with J Street, the liberal (and much smaller) counter to AIPAC. J Street, still proudly Zionist, rescinded their endorsement earlier this year after Bowman began, like many activists, to speak of the Gaza death toll in terms of genocide. Bowman tells me he is for, like almost every American politician, a two-state solution: a nation for the Jews and a nation for the Palestinians. Many of the most prominent activist groups in the nation today, like Within Our Lifetime and Jewish Voice for Peace, call for a single, multinational democratic state that wouldnt necessarily guarantee a Jewish numerical majority something that even most leftists in elected office shy away from. I ask Bowman if Israel should always have a Jewish majority. Strikingly, unlike a vast majority of American politicians, he doesnt answer immediately in the affirmative. It might have been the day after or definitely the weekend after we won against Congressman Engel whos my guy, Peter Beinart, wrote a one-state piece that I thought was brilliant, I thought it was phenomenal, he says. Some of this stuff is, like, Im not Jewish, man, you know? So I dont want to be talking out of turn about Jewish issues. Im also not Palestinian, right? Its the same kind of deal but because my values are rooted in human rights and I know my district well, I have to comment on these things. And I do. I want Palestinians to be free from occupation and apartheid and I want Jews to be safe and Palestinians to be safe, of course. How do we do that? he adds. Jews should have a safe place to exist. What that looks like, the details of that, lets figure that out. That is not Jews are safe, Palestinians are under occupation those two things cant co-exist anymore. It would be an exaggeration to say that the future of the progressive movement hinges on the outcome of this one primary. With or without Bowman, the Squad will be larger than it was four years ago, and the activists in the streets wont be deterred if Latimer is sworn into Congress. Unconditional support for Israel is no longer a guarantee within the Democratic Party look no further than Schumer applying the sort of pressure on the Netanyahu government that AIPAC loathes. But a Bowman defeat would deprive the left of one of its most prominent voices at a moment when Establishment forces have regrouped from some of their losses over the last decade. The prospect of this not only makes AIPAC giddy but thrills moderate Democrats who are weary of the media attention and influence the Squad perpetually commands. The fear, for progressives, is that this primary could offer an obvious roadmap for the future: hunt out popular or possibly venal local politicians who are willing to target leftists and promise them a bounty of campaign cash and super-PAC spending if they take the plunge. Some more just might. What's happening in Iran is so awful, I feel so sorry for its people. I definitely will watch this when it's available. Wiki summary of the film: "The story centers on Iman, an investigating judge in the Revolutionary Court in Tehran, who grapples with mistrust and paranoia as nationwide political protests intensify and his gun mysteriously disappears." This is such a good example of why art is important... repressive dictatorships consider it dangerous; this is a FICTIONAL MOVIE and even just by expressing a work of fiction that's dangerous enough to the regime to lock people up. One of Chevy's longest running vehicle models has now fallen at the hands of the company's transition to EVs. The Chevy Malibu will be no longer, according to a new report from Car and Driver. The Chevy Malibu, one of the longest-running and most successful vehicles in history, is being discontinued again. Chevrolet informed Car and Driver that production will end in November 2024 as the automaker invests $390 million in its Fairfax Assembly Plant in Kansas. Car and Driver reports that GM will also pause production of the Cadillac XT4 in January to retool for the Ultium-based Bolt EV. Production will resume in late 2025, with the XT4 and Bolt EV sharing an assembly line. Despite Chevy's shift towards crossovers and SUVs, the Malibu remained a steady presence, with over 10 million units sold across nine generations. However, its discontinuation comes as a surprise given GM's recent EV challenges, including missing the goal of selling 400,000 EVs by mid-2024 and reintroducing plug-in hybrids to North America. "We've been somewhat lukewarm toward the Malibu in recent years, but we'll certainly lament the passing of such a longstanding nameplate. Who knows? Maybe GM will revive it as an EV in another 15 years," Car and Driver wrote. Meanwhile just days ago we published an article highlighting how Ford's $120,000 loss per vehicle makes it fairly clear that California (and the nation's) EVs goals are unreachable. On April 24, Ford reported it lost $132,000 for each of its 10,000 electric vehicles sold in the first quarter of 2024, according to CNN. The sales were down 20 percent from the first quarter of 2023 and would drag down earnings for the company overall. The Epoch Times notes that the losses include hundreds of millions being spent on research and development of the next generation of EVs for Ford. Those investments are years away from paying off. Ford is the only major carmaker breaking out EV numbers by themselves. But other marques likely suffer similar losses. Californians bought 1.78 million new vehicles in 2023, reported the California New Car Dealers Association. Multiply that number by $132,000 and you get $235 billion. That would bankrupt every car manufacturer, meaning they just would pull out of selling anything in the state. The California government would have to set up socialist, government-owned companies to make the cars, like the infamous Yugo. Dubbed the worst car in history, it was sold in America in the 1980s and was made by the communist Yugoslav government just before the country itself broke up in 1991. And compared to that...the not-especially-wonderful-looking Malibu wouldn't look that bad... By Zerohedge.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Back in March, S&P Global reported that a record 24 cargoes carrying nearly 1.6 million metric tons of U.S. LNG had reached Asia via the Cape of Good Hope in the first three months of 2024, with exporters choosing the much longer route and shunning the Panama and Suez canals due to various challenges. S&P reported that only 14 cargoes had reached Asia through the Panama Canal during the timeframe, a sharp drop from 40 cargoes recorded during the corresponding period in 2022 after low water levels occasioned by severe drought forced longer wait times for LNG carriers. The situation remained dire in April, with LNG transits through the canal's Neopanamax locks amounting to less than 5% of crossings while container ships accounted for more than 60% of the transits. "We use the canal when it is economical to do so, right now it is not. Right now the market in the Far East is not supporting it, and the waiting time, with us not being a priority customer, is just not worth us using it right now," Corey Grindal, Chief Operating Officer at Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG), previously told a media briefing. Cheniere Energy is the United States largest LNG producer and exporter. Thankfully, the situation is about to change: The Panama Canal is currently in talks with U.S. LNG producers on how to meet increased demand for crossings as water levels recover, Reuters has reported. The canal authorities are working with shippers to secure more passage for LNG customers, with plans to build water reservoirs as a solution to mitigate climate change related shortages. Last year, Europe accounted for 66 percent of total U.S. LNG exports, followed by Asia at 26 percent and Latin America and the Middle East with a combined eight percent. However, Cheniere is highly optimistic about Asian LNG demand, despite some countries with large gas-reliant economies currently hampered by poor credit ratings. Related: Pembina Not Giving Trans Mountain Hard Look Due to Shipping Fee Uncertainties "They tend to rely more on state-to-state agreements. Obviously that is not something we can participate in. We see Thailand, Philippines as very attractive markets," Chief Commercial Officer Anatol Feygin told Reuters. Feygin expects China to import 100 million metric tons per year in the future, up from about 64 million metric tons in 2022. Robust LNG Growth Last year, the U.S. overtook Qatar to become the world's largest exporter of LNG for the first time ever in the industry's history. This development came hot on the heels of the country also emerging as the worlds top crude oil producer. The LNG outlook remains bright: the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) has predicted that LNG exports will increase 2% in 2024 to average 12.2 Bcf/d despite a slowdown in natural gas production due to low prices. EIA sees more robust growth with exports increasing 18%, good for an additional 2.1 Bcf/d. Meanwhile, the energy watchdog has forecast less impressive growth for U.S. natural gas exports by pipeline, expanding by 3% (0.3 Bcf/d) in 2024 and by 4% in 2025. EIA expects pipeline imports to decline by 0.4 Bcf/d in 2024 and then increase slightly (0.1 Bcf/d) in 2025. Meanwhile, Energy Intelligence has reported that theres robust interest in long-term U.S. LNG projects. The energy agency has provided estimates that around 69 million tons per year of LNG would reach Final Investment Decision (FID) in the current year, potentially the most significant year for FIDs since 2019, when more than 70 million tons/yr was sanctioned. More than 40 million tons/yr in foundation supply agreements were reached over the past two years, supporting projects that include Commonwealth, CP2 in North America, Delfin and Saguaro. The new approvals are set to increase capacity under construction by 40% and extend the next supply wave to 2028-29. Europes likely to continue being the leading consumer of U.S. LNG for years to come, with the continent poised to cut off more Russian gas. Politico has reported that the European Commission has proposed sanctions on Russia's LNG sector as part of Brussels 14th sanctions package against Russia. The proposed sanctions do not directly bar Russian LNG imports to the EU; however, they will prevent EU countries from re-exporting Russian LNG after receiving it and also ban EU involvement in upcoming LNG projects in Russia. The measures are intended to disrupt Putins ability to continue financing his war in Ukraine, with gas sales to Europe still an important source of revenue for the Kremlin. Although Russian LNG accounted for just 5% of the blocs energy consumption in 2023, it still netted the Kremlin ~$8 billion in revenues. The proposal also suggests prohibiting the use of EU ports, finance and services to re-export Russian LNG, a move that will likely force Russia to overhaul its LNG export model considering it currently supplies LNG to Asia through Europe, where Spain, Belgium and France are major hubs. If they can't transship in Europe, they might have to take their ice-class tankers on longer journeys, Laura Page, a gas expert at the Kpler data analytics firm, has told Politico, adding that Russia may not be able to get out as many loadings from Yamal because their vessels cant get back as quickly. By Alex Kimani for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Russia Opens New Front Line in Ukraine, in Kharkiv BlitzkriegRussia Targets Kharkiv in Major Offensive After Kyiv Attacks Refineries Over the weekend, Russia launched a major offensive in the Kharkiv region, taking control of an estimated nine villages and prompting thousands to flee, France 24 reported on Monday. Some 50,000 Russian troops were deployed to the region for the offensive, backed by 400 tanks, with the goal of creating a 20-kilometer buffer zone on an expanded front line, according to Euromaidan Press. Russias end game for this region appears to be to occupy the city of Kharkiv, the second-largest city in Ukraine, with Euromaidan citing Russian sources as saying that at least 300,000 ground troops would be necessary for Moscow to take the city and its population of 1.4 million. On Saturday, Fox News cited Kharkiv governor Oleh Syniehubov as stating that there was no imminent danger to Kharkhiv and no need for a mass evacuation, with Kyiv confident that Russia does not have enough deployed manpower to take the city. However, the governor conceded that while Ukrainian forces were succeeding so far in holding Russian troops back, fighting could spread into new settlements in the region. Earlier on Monday, the Ukrainian military said it had thwarted Russian forces attempt to gain more ground towards the village of Lukyantsi, calling it a partial success. The surprise nature of Moscows Kharkiv offensive has also prompted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to fire his Kharkiv military commander and install a replacement. Russias revitalized offensive comes amid a Ukrainian campaign targeting oil refineries on Russian territory. So far, Reuters has estimated that Ukrainian drone attacks have shut-in some 14% of Russias refining capacity. Most significantly, in late March, Ukraine attacked the Kuibyshev refinery owned by Rosneft, halting production due to damage. Citing a Russian news outlet that has not been independently confirmed, Newsweek reported that refinery workers have been quitting in large numbers due to safety concerns. In April, Ukrainian drones targeted Russias third-largest refinery in Tatarstan, some 800 miles from the front line and southeast of Moscow. By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: China has boosted its imports of coal and natural gas so far this year, as it looks to stockpile fuel for the power plants ahead of the summer amid international prices that were half last years levels in the first four months of 2024. Chinese imports of natural gas jumped by 21% between January and April compared to a year earlier, while imports of coal rose by 13%, according to data reported by Bloomberg on Monday. The Asian benchmark LNG prices averaged a little over $9 per million British thermal units (MMBtu) in the first quarter of 2024, compared to an average LNG price for delivery into north Asia of $18 per MMBtu in the first quarter of last year, per Bloombergs estimates. The price of coal has also slumped, to an average of $127 per ton for the Newcastle coal futures in Australia, a key exporter of coal, in the first quarter of 2024. Thats nearly half compared to the average price of $236 per ton in January-March 2023. Chinas increased coal imports so far this year are defying earlier expectations that Beijing would see flat coal purchases in 2024. In March, an executive at Chinas state-run utility Guangdong Energy Group said that Chinese coal imports this year were expected at around the record levels of 2023. However, data showed last month that Chinas seaborne coal imports jumped by 17% in the first quarter. Coal output in China has wobbled this year after authorities in the northern province of Shanxi, the top coal-producing region, ordered in February miners to reduce production and carry out safety inspections between March and May, following several fatal incidents at mines in China in recent months. Weaker coal prices and demand and mine closures due to safety checks are set to reduce coal output in the Shanxi province by 4% this year, for the first time in seven years, according to a plan announced by the provincial government. By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Eni is considering spinning off some stakes in oil and gas projects in Asia and Africa to have partners for their development while putting aside more money into lower-carbon energy projects, sources in the Italian major have told Reuters. For years, Eni has been taking a different approach to conventional and green energy development, unlike any of the other major international oil and gas firms. The Italian major is divesting or creating joint ventures to operate oil and gas assets internationally while grouping some low-carbon initiatives and projects into separate firms. Key to these spin-offs and the so-called satellite strategy are the separate balance sheets of the companies. The satellite model is an approach we have built to have additional funding sources to keep together the need to meet demand for traditional products, while also developing new, greener products, Enis chief financial officer Francesco Gattei told Reuters. For example, Eni agreed at the end of last year to sell a 9% stake in its low-carbon energy unit Plenitude which values the business at around $10.8 billion (10 billion euros). Plenitude is active in the market of power generation including renewable energy sources, the sale of energy and energy solutions, and an extensive network of EV charging points. The Italian group also reached last month an agreement with major UK oil and gas producer Ithaca Energy to combine substantially all of its upstream assets in the UK, excluding East Irish Sea assets and CCUS activities, in a strategic move to significantly strengthen its presence on the UK Continental Shelf. Commenting on the deal, Enis CEO Claudio Descalzi said This agreement represents a further example of Eni adapting to the demands of the changing energy market and in this case deploying our successful Satellite Model. According to company sources who spoke to Reuters, Eni is now eyeing spin-offs of oil and gas projects in Indonesia and Cote dIvoire. Earlier this year, Eni announced a major discovery offshore Cote d'Ivoire, the second largest in the country, following the Baleine field discovered by Eni in September 2021. Offshore Indonesia, Eni announced at the end of last year a significant gas discovery in the Kutei Basin, about 85 km (53 miles) off the coast of East Kalimantan. By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Experience Abu Dhabi has secured the Best Stand Design Award (over 150m2 category) at Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2024 that was recently held at Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), Dubai. The award recognised the stands flowing design, innovative use of greenery and excellent visibility from the show floor. In the Best Stand Design (50-150m2) category, ExploreTECH was selected by the judges for its slick, two-storey concept as well as its efforts to promote partner startups. Bangkok Metropolitan Administration won the Best Stand Design Award (under 50m2) thanks to its traditional yet colourful layout and effective use of space. Qiddiya Investment Companys stand won ATMs inaugural Best Use of Technology Award. Judges commended the interactive digital recreations developed by the organisation, which allow attendees to feel as though they are physically present at the planned megaproject in Saudi Arabia. ATM 2024s Sustainable Stand Award was presented to AlUla, which paid particular attention to materials reuse, including the carpet selected for the space. The exhibitor integrated a series of QR codes, which enable attendees to access information about the sustainability-related reasons behind its various design choices. Judges were also praised by AlUlas pledge to offset emissions from its stand, as well as its approach to visitor engagement planting a tree for everyone who engages during the show. This years Best Stand for Doing Business Award was presented to the Saudi Tourism Authority, which received praise for effectively showcasing multiple destinations with distinct meeting areas, zones dedicated to the nations culture, and an abundance of information points. The award for Best Stand Feature went to flydubai for an innovative design that plays with perspective, making visitors feel like they are flying from one angle while resembling the wings of an aeroplane from another. Emirates was highly commended in the Best Stand Design Award (over 150m2) category for a stand that created an open feel for visitors, with a layout that allows attendees to enter from any direction. The judges for the ATM 2024 Best Stand Awards included; Sarah Duignan, Director of Client Relationships, STR; Mo Elhadi, Account Manager MEA, STR; Otag Fida, Senior Project Manager, DXB Live; Kate Harden-England, Editor, Travolution; and Nehme Shehab, Operations Director, RXME. Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director ME, Arabian Travel Market, said: It proved extremely challenging to decide on the ultimate winner in many of this years Best Stand Awards categories, which just goes to show the level of quality on display at ATM 2024. I am immensely grateful to our independent judges for their time and effort, and I would like to congratulate all this years award winners and highly commended exhibitors. TradeArabia News Service The European Commission will end an investigation into Chinese solar companies after the firms withdrew from bidding for a solar power project in Romania, Thierry Breton, the European Internal Market Commissioner said on Monday. The European Commission opened in April an in-depth investigation under the Foreign Subsidies Regulation into two companies ENEVO, which includes LONGi Solar Technologie GmbH, as well as Shanghai Electric UK Co. Ltd. and Shanghai Electric Hong Kong International Engineering Co. Ltd. The investigations related to the potential market distortive role of foreign subsidies given to bidders in a public procurement procedure. The companies were bidding for the design, construction, and operation of a photovoltaic park in EU member state Romania, with an installed power of 454.97 megawatts (MW)a project partially financed by the EU Modernisation Fund. The EU opened the investigation after finding sufficient indications that both bidders had been granted foreign subsidies that distort the internal EU market. But the Chinese companies have withdrawn from bidding, and therefore the Commission will close its in-depth investigation, Commissioner Breton said today. Concurrent with the announcement that the EU would end the probe, Breton said Solar power is vital for Europes economic security. We are massively investing in the installation of solar panels to decrease our carbon emissions and energy bills but this should not come at the expense of our energy security, our industrial competitiveness and European jobs. The Foreign Subsidies Regulation is ensuring that foreign companies which participate in the European economy do so by abiding to our rules on fair competition and transparency, he added. The EU has been seeking to protect its wind and solar equipment manufacturers from Chinese competition. Many EU manufacturers have either closed plants or plan to impose such measures as a flood of solar panels imports, especially from China, and high inventory levels of panels are threatening demand for the more expensive EU-made solar equipment. By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Anglo American said on Monday it had rejected a second takeover offer from BHP which would create a major mining group. Last month, mining giant BHP made an all-share offer for fellow major Anglo American. If completed, the deal would be the biggest one in the mining world in years. On the day after announcing it had received an offer from BHP, Anglo American rejected the proposal, after the Board and its advisers concluded that it significantly undervalues Anglo American and its future prospects. Under takeover offer rules, BHP must by not later than May 22, 2024, either announce a firm intention to make an offer for Anglo American or announce that it does not intend to make an offer. Anglo American said today that its board received on May 7, 2024 a second unsolicited, non-binding, and highly conditional combination proposal from BHP. The structure of the latest proposal is unchanged from the proposal previously rejected on April 26, 2024, Anglo American said, adding that The Board has considered the Latest Proposal with its advisers and concluded that it continues to significantly undervalue Anglo American and its future prospects. Aside from significantly undervaluing Anglo American, the Latest Proposal continues to contemplate a structure which the Board believes is highly unattractive for Anglo American's shareholders, given the uncertainty and complexity inherent, and significant execution risks, said the company. BHPs chief executive officer Mike Henry commented, We are disappointed that this second proposal has been rejected. BHP and Anglo American are a strategic fit and the combination is a unique and compelling opportunity to unlock significant synergies by bringing together two highly complementary, world class businesses, Henry added. According to BHP, the combined business would have a leading portfolio of high-quality assets in copper, potash, iron ore, and metallurgical coal. The bidding saga could become even more complicated as reports emerged earlier this month that commodity giant Glencore held early internal discussions about making a potential approach for Anglo American. By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Nigeria has launched oil production from a new field in the Niger Delta region, which is expected to raise crude output at Africas top oil producer by 40,000 barrels per day (bpd) by the end of May. The upstream subsidiary of Nigerian national oil company, NNPC Exploration and Production Limited, and Natural Oilfield Services Ltd (NOSL), a subsidiary of Sterling Oil Exploration & Energy Production Company Ltd (SEEPCO), announced on Sunday the successful start of oil production at Oil Mining Lease (OML) 13 in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria. Production began on May 6 with 6,000 barrels of oil, and is expected to be ramped up to 40,000 barrels per day by May 27, 2024, NNPC said in a statement. For Nigeria, the first oil from OML 13 holds some significance as it contributes to the country's efforts to increase its oil production capacity, which is crucial for meeting domestic energy needs and driving economic growth, the company added. Nigeria is looking to boost its oil production in the coming years to generate more value for its economy, which is still very much reliant on oil exports. Last week, Nigeria launched a new oil and gas licensing round, inviting bids for as many as 12 onshore and offshore blocks and promising transparency in the bidding process. At the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) in Houston, Texas, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) announced the start of the 2024 Licensing Round. International majors have shrunk their exposure to Nigerias energy sector in recent years, with transparency in the licensing rounds one of the reasons for Big Oil to divest from their Nigerian assets, on top of oil theft and frequent pipeline damages that lead to force majeure on crude oil exports. Nigeria has been seeking in recent months to address these concerns and NUPRCs chief executive Gbenga Komolafe said in Houston that this years licensing round is expected to be a huge success for Nigeria and is a big step towards growing the nations oil and gas reserves through aggressive exploration and development efforts, boosting production, expanding opportunities for gas utilization. By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: An evacuation alert has been issued for Fort McMurray, a key hub for the oil sands industry in Alberta amid wildfires in the area. The Alberta government had four active wildfire alerts on its website as of Sunday night, all at an advisory levelthe level it describes as Prepare to take action and a step before the critical level, which is described as Take action now. Spring is wildfire season in Canadas oil country and the blazes sometimes interfere with oil sands production. Reuters recalls an evacuation of 90,000 people in Fort McMurray back in 2016 because of a wildfire, which also shut in about a million barrels daily in oil production. Weve had 11 new wildfire starts overnight across the province due to the conditions, these are the only two that remain out of control, Alberta Wildfire information officer Melissa Story told Global News on Saturday. The total number of fires in progress across the province came in at 47, of which eight were being the target of efforts to put them under control while the rest were already under control. The Albertan government says that two-thirds of all wildfires are started by people. Oil sands production in Canada has grown by 1.3 million barrels daily over the past ten years, to reach 3.3 million barrels daily, Reuters reported earlier this month. It is set for further growth, too, likely to reach 3.8 million barrels daily by 2030, according to S&P Global Commodity Insight. This would be a 15% rise from current production levels. Producers have displayed a blend of discipline and adaptability with an ongoing focus on maximizing existing assets through optimization and efficiency while maintaining stronger balance sheets from comparatively higher oil prices, S&P Global Commodity Insights director of North American Crude Oil Markets Celina Hwang said. By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: One person was taken to a hospital with serious injuries Sunday following a shooting near 22nd and O Streets in South Omaha during the annual Cinco de Mayo Festival. The person was taken to the Nebraska Medical Center by ambulance, according to an Omaha police spokesman. Officers were alerted to a report of shots fired at 4 p.m. about two blocks east of the festival grounds, the spokesman said. Multiple suspects have been taken into custody. Thousands of people descended upon South Omahas 24th Street corridor for the annual Cinco de Mayo festivities that began Friday. The festival, which included a parade and carnival rides, was scheduled to wrap up Sunday night. A parade on Saturday stretched from D to L Streets, lasting a bit less than a mile. According to event organizers, Mexican festivals have been held in Omaha as far back as 1920. Cinco de Mayos origin dates back to 1862, when Mexican forces defeated France in battle. The celebration in Omaha has morphed into a broader celebration of Hispanic and Latino culture. The festival this year was held a week after the Cinco de Mayo holiday because of the overlap with the Berkshire Hathaway shareholders meeting. Popular Nollywood actress, Oge Okoye, who was trolled for visiting controversial South African pastor, Alph Lukau, has broken her silence. The actress who has been off the movie scene explained that she visited Mr Lukau because of her aunt who is bed-ridden Her response comes barely 24 hours after a video of her receiving a prophecy from Mr Lukau went viral. Mr Lukau recently became popular after he was exposed of faking a resurrection miracle in his church. Oge revealed that her mum told her about the YouTube channel of AMI church (Mr Lukaus church) and planned to visit the church because of her aunt who she said is a cancer patient. She also said she went with her aunts photograph to Mr Lukaus church. The 37-year-old actress also revealed that she visited Mr Lukaus church in October 2018 and not recently as widely purported. She wrote, Due to my mums age, I didnt want her making that long journey from Spain to South Africa so I requested for my aunts pictures and promised her that I would visit the church so I can stand in for her as a point of contact. That was how I visited AMI on Sunday, 16th of October 2018, last year. Go on YouTube and see for yourselves. Please Nigerians, is anything wrong in seeking the face of God or standing in the gap for my sick aunt? How gullible can people be? Why fabricate stories? The leggy actress also said she is saddened by the false news being bandied about her. Good Morning, Nigeria, Welcome To Naija News Roundup Of Top Newspaper Headlines In Nigeria For Today Thursday, 16th April 2020 The factional leader of the dreaded Boko Haram sect, Abubakar Shekau has put the blame for the current coronavirus pandemic at the feet of evil action by people. He also said he and the members of his sect cant be infected by the virus. 2. Lagos State Discharges 16 Coronavirus Patients The Lagos State government has discharged 16 Coronavirus (COVID-19) patients, Naija News reports that the governor of the state, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, announced this in a series of tweets on the micro-blogging site, Twitter on Wednesday evening, April 15. The headquarters of the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) in Abuja was gutted by fire on Wednesday. Naija News recalls that this is the second federal government office that will go up in flames in recent times after the office of the Accountant-General of the Federation also caught fire. Five new cases of Coronavirus has been confirmed in Kano State by the state Government, bringing the number of confirmed cases in the state to nine cases. The development was confirmed by the media aide to Governor Abdullahi Ganduje, Salihu Tanko Yakasai, on his Twitter account on Wednesday. The Lagos State Government has confirmed the death of a COVID-19 patient in the state, The Commissioner of Health in the state, Prof. Akin Abayomi, who confirmed this via his twitter handle noted that the deceased is a 63-year-old male, Nigerian who had no history of travel or contact with any confirmed case. The Nigeria President, Muhammadu Buhari, has condemned the ethnic clash in Taraba State which led to the death of about 25 people. Recall that about 25 people lost their lives, while several others injured in a clash between Shomo and Jole ethnic groups in Lau Local Government Area of the state. The Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, has volunteered to donate his blood for experts working on vaccines against Coronavirus in Nigeria. Governor Makinde stated that the state government is looking for a local solution towards the prevention and cure of COVID-19. Popular Dugbe Market in Ibadan, Oyo State known as the hub for transport and trading was gutted by fire on Wednesday. The firefighters from the Oyo State Fire Service were mobilized to the scene of the incident to put the fire out. The ruling All Progressives Congress has revealed the Federal Governments welfare plans, and strategy against hoodlums using lockdown to attack Nigerians. The spokesperson of the party, Lanre Issa-Onilu in a statement noted that the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government will ensure the safety of lives and property. Leaders of the National Assembly have tabled a request before President Muhammadu Buhari for the reform of the National Social Investment Programme (NSIP). This is part of discussions during the meeting between the Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, on Tuesday, with President Buhari. Thats the top Nigerian newspaper headlines for today. Read more Nigerian news on Naija News. See you again tomorrow. Share this post with your Friends on CHICAGO After Octavia Mitchell lost her son in 2010, she said she couldnt celebrate Mothers Day for 10 years. Shed spend the entire day in bed, she said, unable to get up. But, four years ago, Mitchell decided she was losing out on celebrating the day with her other children. So, she dedicated the day to celebrating herself and other mothers who have lost their children to gun violence. Mitchells son was fatally wounded by Chicago police officers on the South Side during a 2010 traffic stop. Mitchells organization, Heal Your Heart, hosted its fourth annual Mothers Day event Sunday, inviting mothers with a similar experience across Chicago to find community. People came in and out of the event in Bronzeville, enjoying food, poetry and other performances throughout the afternoon and into the evening. I invite everyone here to be among their peers, Mitchell said. People just say I couldnt imagine. I prefer to be around someone who can imagine. We can cry together and embrace each other. Mitchell said she modeled the event a little differently this year she wanted to feature children affected by loss and gun violence. In a grieving family, the focus is so often on mothers that people forget to focus on the children, Mitchell said. Her granddaughter Tarriel White, the 16-year-old daughter of Mitchells son Izael Jackson, read a poem titled Diary of a Fatherless Child. She said she wrote the poem in early May about her experience of growing up. White described losing her father at a young age, and the support system she has built since. Even though hell never get to know me and Ill never get to know him, and hell never see me graduate, hell never see me get married, have kids, go to college, my home is a wonderful support system, she read, I will live with him, and he lives with me. Sharon Pughsley was one of the first people to arrive at Sundays event. She said this year was her first time attending a Mothers Day event after she lost her daughter, Tanisha Pughsley, who was 27. An Alabama police officer, Pughsley was killed by an ex-boyfriend in her home in 2020. She said she tried to teach her daughter everything she needed to know to survive, and Mothers Day always serves as a painful reminder of losing her. Pughsley wore a necklace with her daughters picture to the gathering. Its bittersweet because this is a club none of us ever wanted to join, Pughsley said. But it helps just to talk to people and know that youre not going crazy. It helps me think, OK, we can get through this. Im not going to get over it, but I know I can live through this experience. Mitchell handed out personalized gifts to mothers at the event. This year, she presented attendees with healing candles, and last year she gave out keychains with the names of lost children on them. In the past, she said shes distributed pictures and cards. Mitchell said she tries to give mothers a gift to remind them of their children and to put a smile on their faces. Sherka Tailor attended the event last year and said she returned because elements like these make the group feel like a family outside her family. Tailor lost her daughter and nephew in the same 2021 shooting. A sophomore at Jackson State University, DeAnne Bell was studying biology and hoped to become an obstetrician. She was shot at a party on homecoming weekend, Tailor said. Tailor said that Mothers Day is difficult, so she was hesitant to come to the event. But, she said, she thought about how her daughter would want her to go. To see so many people thats been through the same thing and experienced the same hurt and the same trauma come together to build a bond and a relationship with each other, like this is a family, Tailor said. You can lean on them when youre having rough moments. You can always lean on them. Opportunity International Savings and Loans Ltd. (OISL) has obtained the internationally recognized PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) Certification. In January this year, OISL also obtained the ISO27001 certification. Commenting on this achievement, Mr. Benjamin Kusi, the Board Cyber and IT Committee Chairman expressed his delight for this great milestone and indicated that this is a clear confirmation and commitment of OISL to protect and provide a safe and secure environment for its customers to undertake their card transactions. The CEO of OISL Mr. Kwame Owusu-Boateng also said these certifications (i.e., the PCI DSS and ISO27001) attainments are also in compliance with the Bank of Ghanas directive on Cyber Security and Electronic Payment channels. This emphasizes OISLs commitment to adopting global best practices and standards in ensuring the integrity of its customer information and a secure banking operating environment. According to the Chief Risk Officer and Director of Cyber Security of OISL, Dr. Francis Takyi, PCI DSS is an information security standard designed to prevent or reduce payment card fraud by increasing security controls around cardholder data. It is a comprehensive set of security standards developed by the PCI Security Standard Council to safeguard debit, credit, prepaid, and cash card transactions, and to prevent the misuse of cardholder data. Payment security is vital for every organisation that stores, processes or transmits cardholder data. According to Mr. Eric Amoako, the Chief Information Security Officer of OISL, these certifications amongst other things provide the following benefits to OISL and its stakeholders: Improves OISLs information security position, and also helps to minimize our exposure to risks as we implement the necessary controls in our procedures, processes, and systems to safeguard the privacy of customer data by protecting its confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Assures our customers that OISL has put in place best practices to control and mitigate risks. Enhance customer experience with OISLs products and services. PCI DSS compliance is required by all card brands. It is the global standard that any organization of any size must adhere to in order to accept payment cards, and to store, process, and/or transmit cardholder data. PCI DSS compliance is adherence to the set of policies and procedures developed to protect credit, debit, and cash card transactions and to prevent the misuse of cardholders personal information. OISL was presented with an Attestation of Compliance (AoC) by the global certification company, Kyte Consultants Ltd (Independent auditors) on 8th May 2024 at its head office, after a thorough audit and compliance validation were performed by the independent auditors. Kyte Consultants Ltd (with its headquarters based in Malta) is accredited by the major card brands, through the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council (PCI SSC), as a Qualified Security Assessor Company. OISL employed the services of Innovare Ghana Ltd (an award-winning Professional Services and Management Consulting Group based in Accra, Ghana) in guiding it through the certification process. Opportunity International Savings and Loans Ltd. is one of the leading Financial Institutions in the country and currently has thirty- eight (38) branches in ten (10) out of the sixteen (16) regions of Ghana serving over 660,000 clients across the country. It is a subsidiary of Opportunity International, a global organization with its Head Office in Chicago, USA. The Institution delivers services and programs to clients in thirty (30) countries across the globe, serving over twenty (20) million customers with Micro Banking, Micro Insurance, Agriculture, Education Finance, and Innovative Non-Financial Services. Source: Peacefmonline.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. Featured Video This marks the sixth time Danso Adjei has won this esteemed accolade, affirming his status as one of Ghana's leading entrepreneurs. In a night of significant achievements at the Ghana-West Africa Business Excellence Awards held on Friday 10 May 2024, Nick Danso Adjei, chief executive officer and the executive chairman of Ghana Link Network Services Ltd was honoured with the prestigious title of Ghanas Entrepreneur of the Year. This marks the sixth time Danso Adjei has won this esteemed accolade, affirming his status as one of Ghanas leading entrepreneurs. Under his leadership, Ghana Link Network Services Ltd has revolutionised trade facilitation in the region with the implementation of the Integrated Customs Management System (ICUMS). The system has been pivotal in enhancing operational efficiencies at Ghanas ports and borders, which in turn has significantly increased government revenue and improved the ease of doing business. The company itself also garnered the Trade Facilitation Company of the Year award, recognizing its robust implementation of the ICUMS and its impact on the trade ecosystem. This system connects over 8,000 daily users including freight forwarders, shippers, and numerous regulatory bodies such as the Ghana Food and Drugs Authority and the Environmental Protection Agency, streamlining processes that were previously cumbersome and time-consuming. Reflecting on the awards, Danso Adjei said, I am thrilled to receive this recognition which not only highlights hard work but also fuels our commitment to continue improving our services. These awards are a testament to the dedication of our staff who strive to provide the best services at our ports and borders. In addition to winning Entrepreneur of the Year, Danso Adjeis company has been recognized with several other awards this year, including the Trade Facilitation Technology Leadership Award, E-Solution for Trade Excellence Award, Excellence In Innovation and Technology Award, and more. Nick Danso Adjei, addressing young entrepreneurs and the youth of Ghana, emphasized the importance of focus and diligence in achieving ones goals. His repeated recognition as Entrepreneur of the Year is a compelling reminder of the impact steadfast leadership and innovation can have on a business and community. The achievements of Nick Danso Adjei and Ghana Link Network Services Ltd highlight the transformative power of technology and leadership in advancing trade facilitation and economic growth in West Africa. The astute businessman advising upcoming entrepreneurs and the Ghanaian youth noted that not only must the youth be focused in life but work hard and they can be sure that God will help them towards achieving their goals. This award to Dr Nick Danso Adjei comes after the Porto Business School, University of Porto, proudly announces the conferment of the Lifetime Achievement Award upon him a month ago. This prestigious accolade recognises Danso Adjeis exceptional leadership, dedication to excellence, and transformative contributions to the business landscape, not only in Ghana but across borders into The Gambia and other parts of West and Central African regions. Danso Adjei graciously accepted the honour with heartfelt gratitude, acknowledging the collective efforts of the outstanding teams within the Ghana Link and the Nick Group of Companies. Throughout his illustrious career, Dr. Adjei has spearheaded groundbreaking initiatives, from pioneering innovative solutions in trade facilitation with Ghana Link Network Services Ltd to venturing into the energy sector with Misyl Energy and Nick Petroleum. The Porto Business Schools Lifetime Achievement Award not only acknowledges Adjeis past accomplishments but also serves as a call to continue the mission of making a positive impact in the business landscape. This years Ghana-West Africa Business Excellence Awards which was the 7th edition was endorsed by the Ghana Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI). The awards night witnessed several business entities and individuals who were decorated for their hard work and achievements. The Ghana-West Africa Business Excellence Awards recognizes the industrys merits and sets a benchmark for excellence whilst rewarding innovative ideas that have pushed boundaries. The purpose of the awards is to bring together business players and recognize the achievements of local and international companies involved in various sectors. All individuals and organizations that were awarded have contributed immensely to moving businesses forward and have demonstrated achievement across a wide variety of domains including customer service, safety, performance, leadership, prudence, operational and product excellence, innovation, and others. About Ghana Link Network Services Ltd Ghana Link Network Services Ltd is a pioneering company committed to leveraging technology for trade facilitation. Led by Dr. Nick Danso Adjei, the executive chairman, the company has been at the forefront of introducing innovative solutions such as the Integrated Customs Management Systems (ICUMS) to enhance efficiency in the nations ports and borders. Source: Asaaseradio Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The Ministry of Health has been unable to capture all children for Measles-Rubella (MR) and other vaccines in the last six years, leading to fears of an imminent measles outbreak among children. Over the period, more than 500,000 children in the country may not have received the measles-rubella-1 vaccination. Although Measles-Rubella vaccine coverage is relatively high in the country, every year, there are pockets of children left out, especially in hard-to-reach communities and Peri-urban and urbanized areas. In 2023, 88.4 percent of children in Ghana received the first dose of the measles and rubella (MR) vaccine with 82.1 percent of the children given the second dose. The cohort of children missed and unvaccinated are more than 500,000 for the measles-rubella-1 over the past 5rys cumulatively. With a larger number yet to receive the 2nd dose. These children have become vulnerable cohorts for an outbreak hence the periodic MR vaccination campaigns to help mop up those left behind and those with low measles immunity levels. However, it has been six years since the last MR vaccination campaign was conducted. This means a bigger cohort remains unvaccinated, hence the current spate of focal outbreaks. In March last year, there was an outbreak of measles in the Northern Region with a total of 209 suspected cases reported in 11 districts. Last month, some districts in the Western Region also recorded some cases of measles. The Western Regional Surveillance Officer. Public Health Services, Dennis Jubin, said the situation is under control. As we speak now, we have been able to contain all the cases and whatever we are supposed to do for the people to remain healthy we have done that. Early treatment also forms part of preventing the disease so if you suspect the disease, you report to the health facility, we identify you and we offer treatment, he said. Stakeholders are concerned the situation could deteriorate if urgent steps are not taken to reach all children. And Health authorities are not oblivious of the impending crisis for child health. Program Manager for the Expanded Programme on Immunization, Dr. Kwame Amponsa-Achiano explained that: In-fact theres no vaccine for which we have had 100% coverage. If you have a 1000 people, you are approximately getting about 950. And therefore you leave 50 out. And for us our birth cohort is quiet huge. Its about 1.1, 1.2 million so if you leave this 5% out, over time they accumulate this are unvaccinated children and that is a recipe for outbreaks. This is not the first time and it is not going to be the last time. The only important thing is that we plan ahead to mitigate that. But as you ask, we have the routine vaccines. But I tell you the children who are getting the measles are not those due now. They are those we missed, Dr Amponsa- Achiano explained. He further said, plans are ongoing for an immediate measles outbreak response vaccination in selected areas to be followed by a nationwide measles vaccination for all eligible children by close of year. The last time we did in Ghana was 2018 and it was about time we did another one. In-fact we have been in the planning process to get another mass vaccination exercise especially for measles this year but unfortunately is likely to get to somewhere close to the year or maybe early part of last year. But we know and we recognize the fact that overtime, we turn to get outbreaks, he emphasized. Its the Child Health Promotion Week & the African Vaccination Week, mothers are encouraged to get their babies vaccinated. Source: 3news.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. Featured Video As part of activities to commemorate the World Mothers' Day, the Member of Parliament for North Dayi Constituency, Hon. Joycelyn Tetteh, has cleared all medical bills for all patients at the maternity and childrens ward of Anfoega Catholic Hospital in the Volta Region. This commendable act of generosity was her show of love towards mothers and children to mark Mothers' Day which fell on Sunday, 12th May, 2024. In her short message to mothers and staff of the hospital, Hon. Tetteh counseled the young mothers to consider family planning, ensuring proper spacing of the ages of their children to ensure the sanity of their mental and physical health, adding, frequent pregnancy and childbirth without recourse to proper spacing has consequences on a mother's health and well-being. Being a mother herself, and appreciating the merits of maternal health, she donated diapers, toiletries, soft drinks and half pieces of cloth to all the mothers who were present at the maternity and children's ward during her visit, thereby lessening their burden in taking care of these innocent children. The MP further gave each mother a token amount to ensure a safe trip back home to their various communities. Having helped the patients at the maternity and children's ward with their medical bills in the hospital, Hon. Joycelyn found it imperative to show appreciation to the staff by giving gifts to the health workers to motivate them, thereby encouraging staff of the hospital to continue rendering quality health delivery to the good people of North Dayi Constituency. The patients, nurses and other workers of Anfoega Catholic Hospital were so thankful to Hon. Joycelyn Tetteh for the kind gesture and putting a smile on the faces of mothers on this august day. They asked for God's blessings and guidance for her in all her endeavours. Source: Peacefmonline.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. Featured Video Fidelity Bank would like to clarify some aspects of a press release issued by the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) on FridayMay 10, 2024, regarding the Krofrom Market Redevelopment Project. Below are the facts: In November 2020, KMA transferred an amount of GHS 5 million as advance mobilization into the KMA-Krofrom Market Redevelopment project account held at Fidelity Bank. Readers should kindly take notethat these initial funds were from KMAs own resources. In December 2020, at the request of KMA, Fidelity Bank approved a GHS5 million short-term loan facility for the KMA-Krofrom MarketRedevelopment project which was to be disbursed in phases based on the progress of work done. In February 2021, Fidelity Bank disbursed GHS 4 million out of the GHS 5million approved short-term facility to KMA. The Assembly (KMA) then utilized the facility of GHS 4 million together with their own funds of GHS 4.6million to support payments to project contractors amounting to GHS8.6 million under the first phase of the project. In December 2021, KMA paid off the total outstanding facility of GHS 4 million to Fidelity Bank. From the foregoing records of Fidelity Bank Ghana, there is no missing or unaccounted for amount of GHS 3.6 million as indicated in KMAs release. The entire amount of GHS 8.6 million disbursed for Phase 1 of the project comprised GHS 4 million disbursed from Fidelity Banksapproved facility of GHS 5 million and the KMAs own funds of GHS 4.6 million disbursed from their contribution of GHS 5million towards the project. Fidelity Bank reiterates that it has consistently maintained open communication channels with KMA regarding the project fund, exchanging letters and emails since April 5, 2023, to address inquiries and concerns. We have provided all necessary information as of September 27, 2023, and remain open to further communication. All correspondence is on record. We would like to assure KMA and the public that we are fully committed to cooperating with any investigations or inquiries to address this matter comprehensively. Our priority remains upholding the highest standards of transparency, accountability, and integrity in all our dealings. Fidelity Bank remains steadfast in our commitment to serving the best interests of Ghanaians, our clients and the communities we operate in. Source: Fidelity Bank Ghana Ltd Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The rich culture and tradition of Asanteman was on full display on Sunday, May 12, at the Silver Jubilee anniversary durbar of Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II. The revered King ascended to the "Golden Stool" in 1999 and Sunday's colourful ceremony marked 25 years of his ascension to the throne. People from all walks of life turned up in their numbers for the occasion which also marked Akwasidaekese, a sacred festival in Ashanti tradition. The Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia was among distinguished dignitaries present as he led government delegation including Ministers of State, Members of Parliament and the National Chairman of the New Patriotic Party. Dr. Bawumia in full traditional regalia with ahenema (traditional sandals) to match his outfit was accompanied by his wife, Samira Bawumia, also clad in a beautiful Kente cloth. Dr. Bawumia and his entourage were greeted with cheers from the gathering when they arrived at the event. The Vice President and NPP presidential candidate was among dignitaries who attended a dinner at the Manhyia Palace last night in honour of Otumfuo Osei Tutu II. Traditional rulers from across the country including the Ga Mantse joined the Asantehene and Asanteman (Asante Kingdom) to commemorate his Silver Jubilee. Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Security Analyst Dr. Adam Bonaa has called on the Speaker of Parliament to institute a probe into the conduct of the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO) in the ongoing controversy regarding the stash of money found in the house of former Sanitation Minister Cecilia Dapaah. According to Dr. Bona, EOCO simply waited for the warrant covering the withholding of the money by the OSP to expire and handed the cash back to Madam Cecilia Dapaah without any effort to investigate the issue. In a video posted on social media, the security analyst said a bipartisan parliamentary probe into the matter will help to unearth the truth about EOCOs conduct in the matter and other happenings at the anti-fraud office. Im calling on the Right Hon. Speaker of Parliament to institute a probe into the Cecilia Dapaah cash saga. I have a feeling EOCO is not telling us the truth. I now can say with certainty that EOCO has also become the headquarters of corruption. "Theres the need to investigate what happened between these two institutions under the executive; EOCO and Special Prosecutor are all under the Attorney-General and so to have EOCO being handed the file to investigate this under money laundering which falls under them and to have them come back to tell us that they couldnt do anything about it is mind boggling, and so as citizen and not a spectator I will ask Parliament to institute a probe into them, he noted. He stressed the many things going wrong at EOCO that Ghanaians are yet to know about hoping a probe will help throw light on them. There are a lot of things going on at EOCO that some of us find unfortunate. The boss of EOCO is not telling Ghanaians the truth, she is telling us half truths about the money we are talking about. EOCO and the Office of the Special Prosecutor have in the last one week engaged in a public banter over their respective roles in the effort to drill down on the source of the huge amount of monies found in the home of the former Sanitation Minister. The Special Prosecutors office is on record to have accused EOCO of lacking the appetite to probe the matter. Source: King Edward Ambrose Washman Addo/peacefmonline.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. Featured Video The Electoral Commission has updated the total number of persons who have been registered so far in the ongoing limited voter registration exercise. In a letter signed by the deputy Director for Research, Monitoring and Evaluation Department of the Commission, Mr. Fred Tetteh, it stated that, though there was an error with the earlier publication of figures, the commission has corrected the anomalies. According to the letter dated May 12, 2024 and issued by the commission, there has been a consistent increasing in the number of first time voters who have come to have their names captured in the electoral commissions data system. The commission indicated in an infograph that, on the second day of registration, a total of Nineteen thousand, two hundred and sixty-seven (19,267) persons had registered across the country. This figure increased to forty-eight thousand, six hundred and sixteen (48,616) and fifty-eight thousand, six hundred and fourteen (58,614) recorded for days three and four respectively. Ashanti region has so far, recorded the highest turn up of Twenty-five thousand, five hundred and fifty-eight new registrants followed by the Greater Accra region with seventeen thousand, eight hundred and thirty-seven new entrants. The Savannah region has the lowest record as at day four (4) with a total number of Two thousand, nine hundred and eighty-nine (2,989). The commission is hopeful of recording higher figures in the coming days as they work assiduously to address the myriad of challenges that confronts the registration exercise. Source: Kobina Darlington/peacefmonline.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. Featured Video Twelve people in eastern Ethiopia who survived a lightning strike were buried up to their necks for around two hours in accordance with local customs. The incident occurred on Sunday in Melka Bello, a town around 450km (280 miles) from the capital, Addis Ababa. "It was not heavy rain as such. The lightning struck a sheep at the door while we were inside a house. All of us fell down. Many of us were shaking," survivor Nesro Abdi told the BBC. Locals who heard screaming rushed to help. "They brought milk and poured it on us. They dug up the ground and buried our bodies below our necks," Mr Nesro said. In Ethiopias central region of Oromia, it is widely believed that if someone survives a lightning strike, burying them in soil and giving them milk to drink or pouring milk on them will restore their health. Lightning is seen as an act of God - when it occurs, people celebrate so as not to offend the Almighty. Mr Nesro said: As I couldn't move my legs before, people had to carry me and put me in the soil. But when we got out of the soil, everyone is feeling better. I am moving well now." Haftu Birhane, an environmental physics researcher at Haramaya University, warns against these traditions as they are not scientifically proven. "What science advises is to take [survivors] to the nearest health facilities, he said. 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. Featured Video 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. A group of university students and other victims who had been kidnapped in northern Nigeria were rescued on Sunday, authorities said. Gunmen attacked the Confluence University of Science and Technology in Kogi state late on Thursday night, kidnapping nine students. The abductees were rescued by local hunters and security forces who tackled the kidnappers in a shootout, Kogi information commissioner Kingsley Femi Fanwo said on social media platform X. Mr Fanwo also said the rescued abductees had been taken to hospital for medical attention. "Security agents are currently combing the forests to ensure all the kidnapped students are found and brought home safely," he added. Nigeria is experiencing a resurgence of kidnapping gangs, known as bandits, which have abducted hundreds of people since the year began, mostly in the north-west of the country. Many of the abductees have been freed, some after ransom payments were made. 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. Featured Video OK, it's time to confess - I have subscribed to Elon Musk's social network X (formerly Twitter). "Why are you giving money to the world's richest man?" shouted my friend. Admittedly, she had a point, but I did it for two reasons. Firstly, because I was aware of a few fake profiles of me floating around, and subscribing offers verification of sorts. And secondly, because I wanted access to X's AI chatbot, Grok, and this was the simplest way to get it. I paid for it myself - it wasn't a BBC expense. The reputation of subscribers is so mixed on X that there is an option to hide the "blue tick" that appears by your name once you subscribe. There's a profound sense of distaste among some established users about "buying your way in" - gaining extra visibility and profile by paying for it, rather than getting it on merit by posting good content. I didn't really expect much to change in terms of my own experience of using the platform. But there are improvements. The obvious perks are being able to write longer posts and edit them - and I've appreciated the reduction in ads. On the other hand, now I'm paying for the service with cold hard cash, I get even more annoyed about the spam and the bots which blight it. If you don't pay for social media, then the providers make their money from advertising Johnny Ryan, a former advertising executive who now challenges the industry as a senior fellow at the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, says that in some ways advertisers are easier pay lords to please than subscribers. "The advertiser in general doesn't give a damn about what the content is," he says. "Every now and then there's a scandal, but in general they're not that political." There is an old adage "if you're not paying for the product, you ARE the product" - meaning, if you are using something for free, then the company which owns it is taking the data you put on it and charging firms to advertise at you instead. It's an established and lucrative business model. "Data is the new oil!" was a bold catchphrase I heard a lot in the tech industry, a few years ago. But perhaps that oil well is running a little low on reserves, because tech firms are increasingly looking at subscriptions as an alternative offer. Six months ago, Meta introduced an ad-free subscription model for Facebook and Instagram in Europe. It is 13 ($14; 11) per month on mobile devices, which is about average for an online service fee. The tech giant declined to tell me how many people have signed up so far. Now, this was ostensibly in order to conform with new EU legislation about consumer choice. However it's backfired: Meta now finds itself under investigation because the EU Commission says that the binary decision of either handing over money OR data may not be good enough. Snapchat Plus, which includes an ad-free option that's still rolling out, hit one million subscribers within just a few weeks of its launch in June 2022. And in 2023 YouTube's premium service, which offers ad-free streaming, reached 100 million users. "The hassle-free experience of simply being able to enjoy content, without the fear of 'when will the adverts come' is something that I need in my life," says James Hacking, founder of the media agency Socially Powerful, and a long-term YouTube subscriber. Netflix, on the other hand, launched a cheaper subscription deal that includes ads, and Amazon Prime introduced adverts to its video platform, and now charges users (who are already subscribers) an extra fee to remove them again. Johnny Ryan argues that this hybrid model represents the worst of both worlds. It's a "weird thing", he says, to be both seeing ads and paying a fee. Subscriptions in general are "part of the move from a market that's new and growing into a market that is saturated," says Azeem Azhar, founder of the tech-themed subscription newsletter Exponential View. "There are no new customers to get, so you need to figure out how you add revenue to your business. "There is a segment of internet users who are willing to pay, just as there's a segment of airline users who are willing to pay to board more quickly." But, he cautions, social networks in particular need to tread carefully. "If everyone is having to pay, you'll have far fewer people using it - so there will be less engagement, and it will therefore become less desirable," he adds. "There's a balance between needing free users to do the re-sharing and create the content, as well as the people who want to pay more for a slightly better experience." Perhaps this is a lesson X has already learned - within days of launching its subscription model, it gave free premium account status to all accounts with more than a million followers, and more recently it widened that out to include anyone with more than 2,500 premium followers. This comes as many news platforms have successfully navigated a move to subscription funding. There are plenty of them sitting comfortably behind paywalls. It's been particularly successful in Scandinavia - last year the Reuters Institute reported that 33% of Swedes paid for online news. Mr Azhar has around 100,000 subscribers on Substack - a platform that connects creators with an audience. It's free to publish on, and Substack takes 10% commission on paid subscriptions, plus there's an extra 3% transaction fee for the payment system Stripe. Substack claims more than three million people have subscribed to the numerous publications it hosts. Substack creators are not allowed to incorporate ads. "You have to be consistent - you have to keep showing up - creating a habit in your readers' minds is important," says SubStack founder Hamish McKenzie of the secret to a successful account. "They will develop a relationship with you, and then you have to hold their trust which means respecting their attention - the opposite of the ad game - you have to be honest, don't abuse their attention by snowballing them with a bunch of stuff that distracts them from their day." Mr McKenzie thinks that one day there will be "grand rivalry" between social networks that take one overall subscription for all the content on them, and individual creator models such as Substack. "It's a much better world when the audience is the customer rather than the product," he says. 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. Featured Video The reconvening follows a summon the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, issued in a statement on May 10, this year, for the 275 lawmakers to resume sitting. This is pursuant to article 112(3) of the Constitution and Standing Order 53 (1) and (2) of Parliament, the statement said. When the speaker adjourned the House sine die on March 20, 2024 there were three outstanding matters that the House did not consider even though they were advertised in the Order Paper for the day. They were the adoption of the 34th report of the Appointments Committees to approve some ministerial nominees, the approval of a $150 million loan to finance the ongoing Greater Accra Resilient and Integrated Development project and a request for tax exemptions for selected companies under the One-District-One-Factory policy. Majoritys petition The summon comes in the wake of the Majority Caucuss petition for the Speaker to reconvene the House within seven days to consider the government's businesses which Parliament could not deliberate over at the last meeting which ended on March 20, 2024. In the petition, the Majority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, cited Article 112(3) of the 1992 Constitution and Standing Order 53 of Parliament, which allows 15 per cent of the members of the House to request an early recall of Parliament. The order obliges the Speaker to, within seven days, after receipt of the Memo, summon Parliament to reconvene. Per the permutations, 15 per cent brings the figure to 42, which the Majority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, told a press conference on Friday, May 3, 2024 that the caucus was capable of garnering. Currently, more than 100 MPs from the Majority side have signed up to the request to compel the Speaker, Alban Bagbin, to reconvene the House. "We are fortified by law to proceed to compel the Speaker to reconvene the House, he said. Background The Speaker adjourned the House sine die on March 20, 2024 after the House stopped short of considering the Presidents ministerial nominees. He told the House that the inability to consider the nominees followed an interlocutory injunction filed by the National Democratic Congress MP for South Dayi at the Supreme Court to restrain him. The restraint, he said, was to stop him as the Speaker of Parliament from proceeding with the vetting and approval of persons submitted by the President until the provisions of the Constitution were satisfied. The House is unable to continue to consider the nominations of His Excellency the President in the spirit of upholding the rule of law until after the determination of the application for interlocutory injunction by the Supreme Court, the Speaker said. 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. Featured Video The largest opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), has called on the Electoral Commission to find lasting solutions to the challenges engulfing the ongoing limited voter registration exercise. The Electoral Commission started a limited voter registration exercise from the 6th of May, 2024 to give opportunity for persons who turned 18 and those who couldnt have their names captured during the last registration exercise. However, the ongoing exercise has been characterised by a myriad of challenges which includes non functional BVRs and network challenges that last from the morning of the registration till later in the afternoon. In an interview with Citi FM News, the Deputy General Secretary of the NDC, Mustapha Gbande, underscored the essence of finding solutions to the challenges in order for Ghanaians to repose confidence in the Electoral Commission and the general electoral system. Mustapha Gbande added that it is the prerogative of the Electoral Commission to ensure that priority is given to the proper functioning of the electoral equipment emphasising that the electoral machines ought to be available for the new voters to have their names captured in the commissions system. He said, "One would expect that an Electoral Commission which controls every aspect of registration in terms of systems and machines, should focus on improving the availability of such systems. I think that we are beginning to also record pockets of violence from NPP parliamentary candidates in some of the places, using thugs and all of that." We know that the police have been massively deployed to registration centres so we are wondering why issues of violence will occur at a registration centre. If the police have withdrawn and they want us to take our security into our own hands, they should let us know so that we can actively prepare for some of these atrocities. It is not in the right of anyone to go to a polling station and want to use thugs to beat people. There were records of pockets of violence at the various registration centres. The NDC have called the police service to be up and doing to ensure that, there is further mayhem during his exercise. Source: Kobina Darlington/peacefmonline.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. Featured Video In a dramatic U-turn on Saturday 11th May 2024, Lawyer Amofa at the Amansie Nsroma Social Center, decided to ignore his independent aspirations to join the NPP in their energetic Health Walk to promote Dr. Bawumia and Lawyer Ralph Poku-Adusei. The Bawumia Ladies Walk was one of a kind that recorded colourful display of the NPP spirited energy. The atmosphere crackled with energy amidst vibrant banners of Dr Mahamudu Bawumia and Lawyer Ralph Poku-Adusei fluttering in the air, displaying slogans and symbols of the party. The event also saw the full involvement of the outgoing MP Joseph Osei Owusu (JOE WISE). It also witnessed a sea of passionate supporters, chants, slogans and waving flags; Music amidst brass band also added colour to the fervor. According to participants at the Bawumia Ladies Walk and NPP loyalists, as we approach the 2024 elections, this move by Lawyer Akwasi Amofa is seen as crucial in prioritizing unity above anything else ahead of the December 7th elections. He unceremoniously chose to come back to the NPP after posters and fliers of his intention to contest for the 2024 Dec 7 elections as an Independent candidate came out. From hindsight, this gesture is a testament to the speculation that he would abandon his independent ambitions and rejoin the NPP to support the NPP Parliamentary Candidate, Lawyer Ralph Poku-Adusei in the general elections. A source close to Lawyer Ralph Poku-Adusei underscored internal party coherence in policy formulation and implementation. He said this coherence enhances the party's credibility and appeal to the electorate, as it demonstrates a clear and consistent vision for governance. "As members of the party, it is incumbent upon us to accommodate divergent views and solidarity in order to fulfill our collective mission and aspirations. ....This indicates the party can more effectively advance its agenda and negotiate with other political entities to achieve compromise and consensus on key issues. About Lawyer Ralph Poku-Adusei Lawyer Ralph is the Managing Partner at Trent Legal Amansie Chambers, a British trained and well-seasoned legal practitioner with over eleven (11) years experience in all facets of corporate and commercial practice, land acquisition, criminal practice and has been intimately involved in leading ground-breaking litigation. Throughout his years as a legal practitioner, he has successfully advised and represented both local and international clients working in Ghana. He is a member of the Ghana Bar, the Bar of England and Wales and the International Bar Association. Ralphs Alma maters include; The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, UK. , Manchester Metropolitan University, University of Law, UK (formerly The College of Law of England and Wales, UK) Ghana School of Law, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Ghana among others. He is currently the 2024 NPP Parliamentary Candidate for the Bekwai Constituency in the Ashanti Region. Through the Ralph Poku-Adusei Foundation (RPA) in Bekwai, he has offered his unwavering dedication to give back to the community that helped shape him in his formative years. This deep-seated desire was birthed unofficially in 2015 and officially in 2018 and has since given back to the Bekwai community in multiple ways. Through the help of God and the immense support of the people in Bekwai, the foundation has embarked on several social intervention programs within the community. Among the interventions the foundation has made are donations of food, cash donations, renovation of an office complex for the Ghana Ambulance Service, and support for the zongo and Muslim communities in Bekwai. Source: King Edward Ambrose Washman Addo/peacefmonline.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. Featured Video A Monday morning downpour in Walewale and its environs did not deter its enthusiastic residents from coming out in their mammoth numbers to welcome a son of the land, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia. The NPP flagbearer arrived in his home region, the North East Region, to commence a campaign tour of the Region as part of his nationwide tour. Upon reaching Nasia, a town before his hometown, Walewale, scores of people, both young and old, defied the rains and besieged his bus amidst cheers and chants of support for him. The enthusiastic crowd, many of whom were riding motorbikes, led Dr. Bawumia's convoy in a procession while making his way into Walewale en route to the regional capital, Nalerigu. Dr. Bawumia got the crowd in a frenzy as he got down from his bus and joined them in the rains on the Walewale to Bolga road. Dr. Bawumia is expected to call on the Nayiri, the Overlord of Mamprugu. As has been a common feature of his regional tours, Dr. Bawumia will also hold discussions with the Clergy, Imams and the North East Regional House of Chiefs. He will further engage the youth in an interactive session. Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video 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: The latest official figures showed that 127 people were still missing, while more than 600,000 had been forced to abandon their homes as rivers burst their banks. Brazil's flooded south remained paralyzed Monday, with schools and health centers shut and streets cut off as overflowing rivers showed no sign of receding after torrential rains in a disaster that has left 147 dead. More than two million people have been affected by the flooding in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, where towns and part of the regional capital have been under water for about two weeks after being battered by heavy rains. Regional capital Porto Alegre's international airport remains under water, as do agricultural fields and roads, while more than 360,000 students were not in school. The latest official figures showed that 127 people were missing, while more than 600,000 had been forced to abandon their homes as rivers burst their banks. The floods are the latest weather extreme to hit Brazil, after record-breaking forest fires, unprecedented heat waves and drought, and experts have attributed the disaster to climate change exacerbated by the El Nino phenomenon. Rains eased on Monday, but fresh downpours over the weekend in the region had led rivers to swell once again, raising fears of further flooding and damage. "It is not the moment to return to homes in risk zones," state governor Eduardo Leite told a press conference. The floods are the latest weather extreme to hit Brazil, after record-breaking forest fires, unprecedented heat waves and drought. 'Endless drama' Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva put off a state visit to Chile this week to focus on the disaster. The presidency said the trip was delayed due to the "need to monitor the situation linked to flooding in Rio Grande do Sul and coordinate aid to the affected population and reconstruction efforts." The Guaiba, an estuary bordering Porto Alegre which overflows when waters hit three meters, reached a historic high of 5.3 meters last week. Authorities have warned it could still swell to a new record of 5.6 meters after the weekend deluge. "We are experiencing the aftermath of an endless drama here in Rio Grande do Sul," the state's deputy governor Gabriel Souza told the Globo broadcaster. In Porto Alegre, a busting state capital of 1.4 million inhabitants, aid operations continued to deliver food, clean water, medicine and clothing to residents. Rains eased on Monday, but fresh downpours over the weekend in the region had led rivers to swell once again, raising fears of further flooding and damage. This is "the largest logistics operation in the history of the state," said Leite. Among those seriously affected are about 80 Indigenous communities, according to the Indigenous Missionary Council of Brazil. The government said Monday it had delivered food kits and drinking water for 240 Indigenous families in the Taquari Valley. The heavy rains in southern Brazil have also led to the flooding of the Uruguay River which flows between Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay. Argentine authorities reported some 600 people had to be evacuated in the riverside city of Concordia. Concordia mayor Francisco Azcue said waters were expected to continue to rise in the coming days. "Obviously we are going to have more evacuees," he said. 2024 AFP 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: The once-in-20-years solar storm triggered auroras that stunned the world, but the light shows have since tapered off. The spectacular auroras that danced across the sky in many parts of the world over the weekend are fading, scientists said Monday, as the massive sunspot that caused them turns its ferocious gaze away from Earth. Since Friday, the most powerful solar storm to strike our planet in more than two decades has lit up night skies with dazzling auroras in the United States, Tasmania, the Bahamas and other places far from the extreme latitudes where they are normally seen. But Eric Lagadec, an astrophysicist at France's Observatoire de la Cote d'Azur, told AFP that the "most spectacular" period of this rare event has come to an end. The first of several coronal mass ejections (CMEs)expulsions of plasma and magnetic fields from the suncame just after 1600 GMT Friday, according to the US-based National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The event was later upgraded to an "extreme" geomagnetic stormthe first since the "Halloween Storms" of October 2003 that caused blackouts in Sweden and damaged power infrastructure in South Africa. Excitement over the phenomenonand otherworldly photos of pink, green and purple night skiesbroke out across the world, from southern Europe to Australia's island state of Tasmania. The storm had been forecast to intensify again until 0600 GMT Monday, the NOAA said, adding that auroras could be viewable as far south as New York. But thousands of people who came out on Sunday night in the hope of seeing the aurora borealis over the Joshua Tree National Park in California instead only saw the glittering stars of the Milky Way. Northern lights illuminated the night sky over Russia's Novosibirsk region early on May 12, 2024. 'One fabulous night' Lagadec said that while there were further solar outbursts on Sunday, it is unlikely that more auroras will be visible to the naked eye in lower latitudes such as in France. "Only the most experienced photographers will be able to capture them" in such areas, he said. The geomagnetic storm was caused when multiple CMEs emanated from a massive sunspot cluster 17 times wider than Earth arrived at our planet at around the same time. However the sunspot has now moved to "the edge of the sun, (so) we do not expect the next coronal mass ejections to head in Earth's direction," Lagadec said. This means the solar storm is expected to "progressively decrease in the coming days," said Quentin Verspieren, the European Space Agency's space safety program coordinator. Pointing out that hopeful aurora spotters were "mostly disappointed" on Sunday night, Verspieren told AFP it was unlikely that the celestial spectacle would be repeated on Monday or Tuesday. People who had come to Joshua Tree National Park in California in hopes of seeing the Northern lights were disappointed. "There was one fabulous night, but it has passed," he said. "However, the behavior of the sun is really hard to predict." And we are only just entering a period of increased solar activity that occurs every 11 years when the sun's magnetic pole flips, which means there could be further extreme events in the next year or two, he added. When charged particles from solar winds are captured by Earth's magnetic field, they accelerate towards the planet's magnetic poles, which is why auroras are normally seen there. But during periods of heightened solar activity, the effects extend farther toward the equator. Satellites weathered storm Unlike during 2003's solar storms, no major disruptions to power or communications networks appear to have been reported this time around. Elon Musk's satellite internet operator Starlink said on X that its thousands of satellites in low Earth orbit had "weathered the geomagnetic storm and remain healthy". The Northern Lights, or Aurora Borealis, lit up the night sky north of San Francisco after the most powerful solar storm in more than two decades. People watch the Southern lights in Melbourne, Australia on May 11, 2024. Unlike solar flares, which travel at the speed of light and reach Earth in around eight minutes, CMEs travel at a more sedate pace, with officials putting the current average at 800 kilometers (500 miles) per second. Fluctuating magnetic fields associated with geomagnetic storms induce currents in long wires, including power lines, which can lead to blackouts. Long pipelines can also become electrified. Spacecraft are at risk from high doses of radiation, although the atmosphere prevents this from reaching Earth. NASA can ask astronauts on the International Space Station to move to better-shielded places within the outpost. 2024 AFP 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: Cooks work over open fires in Kivukoni fish market in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Fifty countries are meeting in France on Tuesday to discuss the lack of access to clean cooking methods worldwide which causes millions of deaths every year and fuels global warming. Some 2.3 billion people across 128 countries breathe in harmful smoke when they cook on basic stoves or over open fires, according to an International Energy Agency (IEA)-African Development Bank (ADB) report that sounded the alarm last year. It said 3.7 million people a year die prematurely from harmful cooking practices, with children and women most at risk. The IEA said the "unprecedented" Paris gathering aims to be "a moment of changing the direction", its sustainability and technology director Laura Cozzi told journalists. The problem "touches on gender, it touches on forestry, it touches on climate change, it touches on energy, it touches on health," added Cozzi. A third of the world cooks with fuels which produce harmful fumes when burned, including wood, charcoal, coal, animal dung and agricultural waste. They pollute indoor and outdoor air with fine particles that penetrate the lungs and cause multiple respiratory and cardiovascular problems, including cancer and strokes. These cooking practices are the third highest cause of premature deaths in the world and the second highest in Africa. In young children, they are a major cause of pneumonia, experts say. They also prevent women and children from accessing education or earning a wage, as they spend hours looking for fuel. The meeting at UNESCO's headquarters will primarily focus on Africa and aims to garner financial backing for a major push on the problem. Huge 'bang for its buck' Greenhouse gas emissions from using basic stoves and deforestation from collecting wood also contribute hugely to global warming. Switching to clean cooking methods, such as LPG or electric cooking, would save 1.5 billion tonnes of CO 2 a year by 2030roughly the amount emitted by ships and planes last year, according to the IEA. Subsidized LPG and free stoves in China, India and Indonesia led to a decline in people without access to clean cooking between 2010 to 2022. But the same was not true for Africa. Four out of five households in sub-Saharan Africa still rely on highly polluting cooking fuels and the situation is getting worse. "We're seeing a lot of concerted efforts that are yielding benefits in Kenya, Ghana, Tanzania," said IEA expert Dan Wetzel. "But really what we see is that population growth is outstripping the progress there." The funds needed are a fraction of global investment in energy, the IEA pointed out. The estimated $8 billion needed annually worldwide is less than one percent of government spending on energy measures in 2022. Of this sub-Saharan Africa would need $4 billion. Current worldwide investment in clean cooking is about $2.5 billion. "Dollar for dollar, it's hard to imagine a single intervention that could have more bang for its buck in terms of health emissions and development than this," Wetzel said. Such financial support is essential as many African households cannot afford a suitable cooker or fuel. But the IEA also recommends strong national leadership as well as grassroots efforts to change social norms. 2024 AFP 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: The Conversation From around 1996 to 2010, Australia was gripped by the millennium drought. As water shortages bit hard, most of Australia's capital cities built large seawater desalination plantsSydney, Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne and Perth. Remote towns have also built smaller desalination plants. Most cities didn't actually use them much. The drought broke in 2010, and desalinated water is expensive. The exception is Perth, which has been hit by declining rainfall, a drying climate and overuse of groundwater. The city will soon open its third desal plant. As climate change intensifies, other states are also looking to build more desal plants. In South Australia, for instance, there are plans to build one urgently in response to looming water shortages. The Eyre Peninsula, for instance, is expected to run out of drinking water within two years as groundwater runs dry. But beyond the expense, many of these plants bring environmental problems of their own. How does desal work? A desalination plant pipes in seawater, filters out the salt (usually using a process called "reverse osmosis"), and then flushes the salt back out to sea. This creates plumes of hyper-salty brine. If you position a desal plant near a strong current, this isn't a big issuethe salt is quickly diluted. But if you pump brine into a gulf or bay without much natural turnover of water, it can lay waste to entire ecosystems. And unfortunately, South Australia has two large gulfsand two planned desal plants that could kill off giant cuttlefish or decimate mussel farms. When BHP Billiton was looking to expand its lucrative Olympic Dam uranium and copper mine in the mid-2000s, it had a problem: not enough water. To solve it, the mining giant announced plans to build a desal plant at Point Lowly, in the upper Spencer Gulf. This was immediately controversial. Point Lowly is very close to the breeding grounds of the famous giant Australian cuttlefish (Sepia apama), a tourist drawcard. My research suggested the brine outflow from the desal plant would cause environmental harm to these spectacular breeding grounds. Despite environmental concerns, the Olympic Dam expansion was eventually approved in 2011, and the approval for the Point Lowly desal plant carried forward to the new Northern Water partnership between the state government and the private sector, which involves BHP as a key player. This, the government states, is designed to: provide a new, climate independent water source for the Far North, Upper Spencer Gulf and Eastern Eyre Peninsula regions of South Australia, to enable the growth of industries crucial to achieving net-zero goals, including the emerging green energy and hydrogen industries The government recently changed the preferred location to Cape Hardy, much further down the Spencer Gulf. From as early as 2028, it will produce up to 260 million liters (megaliters) of desalinated water a day for use in mining and green industries. A separate smaller desal plant (24 megaliters a day) is also planned for Billy Lights Point near Port Lincoln, to provide water for the lower Eyre Peninsula. If the government was hoping to avoid controversy by moving away from the cuttlefish, it did not succeed. Opposition has come from the local council, First Nations groups, and fishing and aquaculture industries. The problem with the location at Billy Lights Point is, once again, what happens to the brine. Salty outflows could damage mussel farms, fisheries and ecosystems. Super-salty brine is pollution My research suggests these concerns are well founded. While we might think brine is harmlessit's salty, like the seathis is not correct. Desalination produces brine that is twice as salty as seawater. When you pump it back into the sea, it can form a layer of heavier water that creeps along the seafloor as a so-called brine underflow. Desal brine can be dangerous, especially in waters that don't mix rapidly. Without sufficient mixing, the oxygen content of the brine underflow falls over time. Eventually, the brine underflow can turn into a dead zone where very little can survive. Desalination plants also pump out harmful chemicals with the brine, including pre-treatment chemicals, anti-fouling agents, heavy metals, nutrients, organics, chlorine and acids. This means we should think very carefully about where to build desalination plants. The Spencer Gulf is full of seagrass meadows, the nurseries of the sea, home to leafy seadragons, giant cuttlefish, king prawns and millions of larval and juvenile fish. The brine can degrade or even destroy marine ecosystems. In the Arabian Gulf, where about half the world's desal plants are located, researchers have found the pulses of brine "greatly threatens sensitive species." Given this marine pollution, any move to discharge desal brine into calm seas that have high ecological significance and do not flush rapidly is extremely risky. At present, South Australia's two planned desal projects do not seem to properly value environmental principles. For instance, while the large Northern Waters project lists Cape Hardy as the preferred site, Point Lowly is still on the list of options. This ignores previous evidence showing the Spencer Gulf flushes slowly, which means a higher risk of environmental damage. And Cape Hardy is still within valuable and vulnerable marine habitats. The smaller Port Lincoln desalination plant is expected to be operational by 2026 on Billy Lights Point, which borders Proper Bay and Boston Bay in the lower Spencer Gulf. These bays are ecologically important, as they provide safe havens to marine larvae. They're also part of the region's coastal upwelling, a vital source of nutrients for whales and tuna. The proposed intake and discharge locations of the Port Lincoln plant are within a few kilometers of valuable mussel and tuna farming operations. Looking forward While Cape Hardy is environmentally more suitable for desal discharge than Point Lowly, it is still within the sheltered waters of Spencer Gulf. Hence, some environmental degradation is likely to occur here as well. If authorities are determined to stick with brine-releasing desal, they should urgently look at sites outside Spencer Gulf, such as Ceduna or Elliston. Here, brine would be quickly diluted by the currents. But there are other options not yet considered. It is likely we will need more desalination plants as climate change intensifies. The best solution is a desal plant fully powered by renewablesand without brine discharge. How? By cleaning the brine and turning it into a valuable product: salt. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. 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: On Oct. 9, 2008, just after coming within 25 kilometers (15.6 miles) of the surface of Enceladus, NASA's Cassini captured this stunning mosaic as the spacecraft sped away from this geologically active moon of Saturn. Credit: NASA In 2018, very large organic molecules were discovered in ice particles on Saturn's moon Enceladus. It is still unclear whether they indicate the existence of life or were created in some other way. A recent study could help to answer this question. It is possible, that conditions that support or maintain life in extraterrestrial oceans could leave molecular traces in grains of ice. The research on this was conducted at the FU Berlin, and the lead scientist, Dr. Nozair Khawaja, has recently relocated to the University of Stuttgart. The work is published in the journal Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences. The cradle of life on Earth was probably located in a hot-water vent at the bottom of the ocean. "In research, we also speak of a hydrothermal field," explains Dr. Nozair Khawaja from the Institute of Space Systems (IRS) at the University of Stuttgart. "There is convincing evidence that conditions prevail in such fields that are important for the emergence or maintenance of simple life forms." It is possible that such vents also exist on a celestial body that is located not that far away from our home planet by cosmic standards: Saturn's moon Enceladus. This moon measures around 500 kilometers in diameter and its surface is covered with a 30-kilometer-thick shell of ice. In 2005, scientists discovered a huge cloud of ice particles above its South Pole. Three years later, NASA's Cassini space probe flew through this cloud. The probe's measuring instruments revealed something astonishing: The composition of the particles strongly suggests the presence of a liquid water ocean beneath Enceladus' icy crust. Enceladus' ocean contains organic molecules Khawaja worked together with planetologist Professor Frank Postberg from the Freie Universitat (FU) Berlin to analyzse the data from the Cassini mission in detail. They explain, "In 2018 and 2019, we encountered various organic molecules, including some that are typically building blocks of biological compounds." The data was recorded with a low-resolution measuring instrument from Cassini. Nevertheless, this could indicate that the ocean on Saturn's moon Enceladus is full of organic molecules. "And that means it is possible that chemical reactions are taking place there that could eventually lead to life." Researchers also suspect there are hydrothermal fields located at the bottom of Enceladus' ocean. It was previously unclear whether the organic molecules discovered were formed in these fields. Khawaja, together with his colleagues Lucia Hortal and Thomas Sullivan, has been searching for a way to answer this question. Shown is the detection of hydrothermally altered biosignatures on Enceladus. Credit: Southwest Research Institute NASA, JPL "To this end, we simulated the parameters of a possible hydrothermal field on Enceladus in the laboratory at the FU Berlin," says Khawaja, who has recently moved from the FU Berlin to the University of Stuttgart. "We then investigated what effects these conditions have on a simple chain of amino acids." Amino acids are the basic building blocks of proteins and the basis of all life as we know it. Temperatures of 80 to 150 degrees Celsius and a pressure of 80 to 100 bar prevailed in the test apparatusaround a hundred times higher than on the Earth's surface. Under these extreme conditions, the amino acid chains changed in a characteristic way over time. But is it even possible to detect these changes with the measuring instruments on space probes? In other words, do they leave behind an unmistakable marker that we should be able to find in the data from Cassini (or future space missions)? Hydrothermal fields leave distinct traces in the measurement data The measuring instrument on board the Cassini space probe, the Cosmic Dust Analyzer, analyzes dust and Enceladus ice particles in space that travel at speeds of up to 20 kilometers per second. The high-speed crashes between these particles causes the material to vaporize and the molecules in it to shatter. The fragments lose electrons and are then positively charged. They can be drawn towards a negatively charged electrode, and the lighter they are, the quicker they reach it. It is possible to obtain a so-called "mass spectrum" by measuring the transit time of all fragments. This can then be used to draw conclusions about the original molecule. However, it is difficult to apply this measurement method in the laboratory. "Instead, we employed an alternative measurement method called LILBID for the first time on ice particles containing hydrothermally altered material," Khawaja explains. "This delivers very similar mass spectra to the Cassini instrument. We used this to measure an amino acid chain before and after the experiment. In the process, we came across characteristic signals that were caused by the reactions in our simulated hydrothermal field." The researchers will now repeat this experiment with other organic molecules under extended geophysical conditions in Enceladus ocean. Their findings make it possible to search the Cassini data (or the data from future missions) for such markers. If found, this would be further evidence of the existence of a hydrothermal field on Enceladus. This also increases the probability that life can develop and survive on Enceladus. More information: Nozair Khawaja et al, Laboratory characterization of hydrothermally processed oligopeptides in ice grains emitted by Enceladus and Europa, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences (2024). DOI: 10.1098/rsta.2023.0201 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: Waterloo Climate Institute/University of Waterloo A pair of University of Waterloo flood disaster experts have published an analysis on the federal government's national flood insurance program that finds the proposed plan can do more to make insurance abundant and affordable for Canadian taxpayers. Canadians are facing more uncertain insurance options as the impacts from extreme weather events due to climate change such as floods or wildfires continue to rise. Meanwhile, Quebec-based Desjardin Group announced last month it will no longer offer new mortgages or flood insurance in high-risk zones across the province. The federal government aimed to address these challenges in its Budget 2024 last month with $15 million pledged to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation to implement a national flood insurance program (FIP) by 2025. Waterloo professors Jason Thistlethwaite and Daniel Henstra analyzed the FIP and provided several policy recommendations to address the gaps in insurance provision to Canadian homeowners living in high-risk zones while protecting the interests of taxpayers. "In recent years, Canada and the world has seen extreme weather, specifically flooding, increase in frequency and severity and is causing a crisis in the insurance industry," Thistlethwaite said. "Canadians are losing property value due to these insurance cancelations, and few have focused on potential solutions that government and industry can provide to these stranded households." The Canadian government's new property insurance market aims to improve the availability and affordability of coverage for households in high-risk flood areas. The proposed program will insure properties deemed too risky for private coverage and will subsidize premiums for low-income households. "Despite these benefits, the federal government is facing considerable political pressure to cut public spending. The imperative to contain costs, coupled with climate change and other factors that are driving up insurance costs, presents a significant challenge for the design of the FIP," said Thistlethwaite. "If taxpayers are going to shoulder the burden for the insurance industry, I want to get a good deal that includes increased investment in risk reduction, banning development in high-risk areas, and innovation that leads to cheap and abundant insurance." Some recommendations from the brief include: Using risk-adjusted premiums with a sunset clause on subsidization such as a defined time when the subsidy ends; Reducing wasteful redundancy and fragmentation across Canada's portfolio of disaster risk reduction policies; Experimenting with new insurance contracts and coverages to increase market options for Canadian consumers in low- and moderate-risk communities. "Flood risk disclosure as a whole needs to be more transparent and accessible to homeowners and potential buyers," said Henstra. "The recommendations and key findings indicate that the new FIP falls short of providing adequate protection for Canadians in high-risk zones." The policy brief, "Maximizing the public value of Canada's new flood insurance program (FIP)," was released by the Waterloo Climate Institute on May 13, 2024. More information: Maximizing the public value of Canada's new flood insurance program: uwaterloo.ca/climate-institute lethwaitehenstra.pdf 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 When we think of fossils it is usually of dinosaurs, or perhaps the beautiful spiral shape of an ammonite picked up on a beach during a summer holiday. We see fossils as ancient relics of the deep past that allow us to marvel at the history of life on Earth, of animals that walked or swam many millions of years ago, of the giant trees that became buried and crushed to form coal. Fossils are an essential record of life on Earth that demonstrate long periods of stability, punctuated by episodes of rapid or even catastrophic change. Their value is both abstract, as a window into the past, and societal, enabling us to think about what might happen to life in the future. Many textbooks describe how fossils form, but few refer to the fossils that are accumulating now, in sediments at the bottom of a local lake or river, in a peat bog, or along a beach. The remains of animals, plants and other life forms that are beginning the road to petrifaction in such places are sometimes referred to as "sub-fossils," as though they are halfway to becoming part of the geological record. However we classify them, they record profound changes already happening to all life on Earththe biosphere. Along many riverbanks in Europe, Himalayan balsam and American ragweed grows, and in the river itself there are Asian clams and zebra mussels. You may encounter giant African land snails in the Hawaiian Islands, Amur River clams in San Francisco Bay, and Mediterranean mussels along the Atlantic coast of South Africaand even hippos in Colombia. Displaced by human actions All these species, and thousands more, have been displaced by human actionssometimes deliberately, as with the hippos, but often unintentionally, as with the clams. Species have been interchanged like this across our planet for thousands of years. But the pattern became more clearly visible from the 16th century onwards, with the exchange of plants and animals between the Americas and Eurasia and Africa. A cornfield in England expresses this, as do cows in the Americas. While some of these patterns of change on land and at sea are now obvious, even at a casual glance, the fossil patterns that reveal the full scale of these changes requires painstaking analysis of recent sedimentary layers. Some organisms, a soft-bodied worm for example, leave no physical fossil trace, though their presence may still be inferred from preserved DNA molecules. Other organisms, such as a marine molluskor a hippohave a real chance of being fossilized because they have hard skeletons, and they associate with water bodies where sediment layers accumulate. A distinct step change in Earth's history Many patterns of recent ecological change can be documented in the modern fossil record. For example, in the Hawaiian Islands, sediment layers entomb native snail shellsand then the layers above show these snails being replaced by non-natives, including the giant African snails. The pattern is distinctive, because it records the beginnings of a global homogenization of fauna and flora that is often associated with striking changes in the abundance of indigenous organisms. San Francisco Bay is just one example. There, more than 200 non-native species have arrived since the American gold rush. They include the Amur River clams from East Asia and the tiny Trochammina hadaia single-celled amoeba-like organism with a shellbrought in from the seas around Japan. T. hadai and the clams, and many others, arrived in the boom in cross-Pacific trade that followed the end of the second world war. On land, bones of chickens, domestic cattle, sheep and pigs far outnumber those of wild animals in nascent geological deposits, marking a huge change in the vertebrate fossil record that has been accumulating. Such examples are part of a pattern that is playing out across the world. To a paleontologist studying the fossil record that is forming today, these patterns identify a distinct step change in Earth's history, driven by us in our ever-more interconnected and homogenized world. The new paleontology of the 20th and 21st centuries reveals that our actions are significantly disrupting the biosphere, just as massive volcanic eruptions and huge meteorite strikes did in the geological past. It's an ignominious group to joinand only humans have done this with full awareness of their actions. How our impact on the biosphere plays out in the coming decades will be reflected by this new fossil record, one that increasingly begins to resemble those ancient, planet-changing perturbations. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. 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: Assembly quality assessment. (A) Toy example visualizing how meas (left) and mico (right) assembly quality metrics are calculated. Alignment scores used for meas were calculated using Bowtie2 and have a maximum value of zero corresponding to reads aligning full-length without mismatches. (B) Distribution of meas and mico values obtained for the nidoviral sequences discovered and assembled in this study (green) and for 2,350 reference RNA virus sequences (gray). Both x-axes are in log 10 scale. Credit: PLOS Pathogens (2024). DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1012163 Suddenly they appear, and like the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, can trigger major epidemics: Viruses that nobody had on their radar. They are not really new, but they have changed genetically. In particular, the exchange of genetic material between different virus species can lead to the sudden emergence of threatening pathogens with significantly altered characteristics. This is suggested by current genetic analyses carried out by an international team of researchers. Virologists from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) were in charge of the large-scale study, published in the journal PLOS Pathogens. "Using a new computer-assisted analysis method, we discovered 40 previously unknown nidoviruses in various vertebrates from fish to rodents, including 13 coronaviruses," reports DKFZ group leader Stefan Seitz. With the help of high-performance computers, the research team, which also includes Chris Lauber's working group from the Helmholtz Center for Infection Research in Hanover, has sifted through almost 300,000 data sets. According to virologist Seitz, the fact that we can now analyze such huge amounts of data at once opens up completely new perspectives. Virus research is still in its relative infancy. Only a fraction of all viruses occurring in nature are known, especially those that cause diseases in humans, domestic animals and crops. The new method therefore promises a quantum leap in knowledge with regard to the natural virus reservoir. Stefan Seitz and his colleagues sent genetic data from vertebrates stored in scientific databases through their high-performance computers with new questions. They searched for virus-infected animals in order to obtain and study viral genetic material on a large scale. The main focus was on so-called nidoviruses, which include the coronavirus family. Nidoviruses, whose genetic material consists of RNA (ribonucleic acid), are widespread in vertebrates. This species-rich group of viruses has some common characteristics that distinguish them from all other RNA viruses and document their relationship. Otherwise, however, nidoviruses are very different from each other, i.e., in terms of the size of their genome. One discovery is particularly interesting with regard to the emergence of new viruses: In host animals that are simultaneously infected with different viruses, a recombination of viral genes can occur during virus replication. "Apparently, the nidoviruses we discovered in fish frequently exchange genetic material between different virus species, even across family boundaries," says Seitz. And when distant relatives "crossbreed," this can lead to the emergence of viruses with completely new properties. According to Seitz, such evolutionary leaps can affect the aggressiveness and dangerousness of the viruses, but also their attachment to certain host animals. "A genetic exchange, as we have found in fish viruses, will probably also occur in mammalian viruses," explains Seitz. Bats, whichlike shrewsare often infected with a large number of different viruses, are considered a true melting pot. The SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus probably also developed in bats and jumped from there to humans. After gene exchange between nidoviruses, the spike protein with which the viruses dock onto their host cells often changes. Chris Lauber, first author of the study, was able to show this by means of family tree analyses. Modifying this anchor molecule can significantly change the properties of the viruses to their advantageby increasing their infectiousness or enabling them to switch hosts. A change of host, especially from animals to humans, can greatly facilitate the spread of the virus, as the corona pandemic has emphatically demonstrated. Viral "game-changers" can suddenly appear at any time, becoming a massive threat, andif push comes to shovetriggering a pandemic. The starting point can be a single double-infected host animal. The new high-performance computer process could help to prevent the spread of new viruses. It enables a systematic search for virus variants that are potentially dangerous for humans, explains Seitz. The DKFZ researcher sees another important possible application with regard to his special field of research, virus-associated carcinogenesis: "I could imagine that we could use the new High Performance Computing (HPC) to systematically examine cancer patients or immunocompromised people for viruses. We know that cancer can be triggered by viruses, the best-known example being human papillomaviruses. But we are probably only seeing the tip of the iceberg so far. The HPC method offers the opportunity to track down viruses that, previously undetected, nestle in the human organism and increase the risk of malignant tumors." More information: Chris Lauber et al, Deep mining of the Sequence Read Archive reveals major genetic innovations in coronaviruses and other nidoviruses of aquatic vertebrates, PLOS Pathogens (2024). DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1012163 Journal information: PLoS Pathogens 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: Pixabay from Pexels (This article contains information on deaths in custody and the violence experienced by First Nations people in encounters with the Australian carceral system. It also contains references to and the names of people who are now deceased.) As the country reels from women being killed due to violence, government has responded by calling urgent meetings and roundtables to address this national crisis. This must properly include Indigenous women, who experience shocking levels of family and domestic violence, and sexual assault. It must be recognized women are not a homogenous, collective group. The issues experienced by non-Indigenous women are not always the same as those experienced by Indigenous women. As such, it is imperative the voices of Indigenous survivors, researchers and advocates in addressing violence are fully heard and respected in the current debate. According to recent research led by Kyllie Cripps, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women are 32 times more likely to be hospitalized for injury associated with violence than non-Indigenous women. They are eight times more likely to be a victim of homicide. This figure is higher in some areas, such as Western Australia, which recorded Aboriginal mothers as 17.5 times more likely to be a victim of homicide. Recently, the Domestic Family and Sexual Violence Commission convened an emergency roundtable. However, we are still concerned the outcomes of the roundtable do not respond to the serious and ongoing structural and systemic barriers Indigenous women face. There are also concerns a significant investment recently announced in Western Australia will not support Indigenous women. They're based largely on an expansion of existing services, police, child protection and corrections, and non-Indigenous service responses. These decisions were made contrary to the states own Aboriginal family violence policy and in the absence of research or evidence base. Potentially harmful reforms Indigenous women's sustained advocacy, as well as coronial inquests, and the senate inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women, have all shone a light on how Indigenous women and children experience violence at alarming rates, even after formal inquiries and royal commissions over the past two decades. However, as was identified in the Independent Commission of Inquiry into the Queensland Police Service's responses to domestic and family violence, reforms are often reactive and short lived. Key recommendations have been ignored, while governments have made services mainstream. White feminists have pursued a law and order agenda that has been proven not only to be ineffectual, but potentially even harmful to Indigenous women. For example, coercive control laws risk misidentifying Indigenous women as the perpetrators of violence for not presenting as "ideal victims." As Aboriginal women with lived experience of violence, we continue to point out the urgency of addressing the abhorrent rates of violence through the inclusion of our voices at national forums. For years, Indigenous researchers, survivors, advocates and allies have called for action. This advocacy, and expertise, is often overlooked. Failures of policing Governments promise to address the issue. Emergency services promise to do better. Yet in coronial inquests, inquiries and specialist investigations, we continue to see the services with the mandate to protect the community failing Indigenous women. Indigenous women are reluctant to call the police for many reasons, including ongoing racism and prejudice. Indigenous women know police may not take their reporting of violence seriously. This is common knowledge in Indigenous communities. Calls are often downgraded in urgency or not responded to at all, even after a victim has repeatedly calling triple zero for support. In many cases, Aboriginal women are wrongly identified as perpetrators, situations that have also resulted in their being murdered. The Northern Territory coroner is currently examining the role systemic racism played in the murders of four Aboriginal women. The Queensland Commission of Inquiry also found racism, misogyny and sexism contributed to the negative experiences of victim-survivors. Cripps further found in her study coroners have previously identified systemic racism as being significant in the deaths of Indigenous women. And while Aboriginal women are at an elevated risk of violence and homicide, culturally safe family and domestic violence services are critically underfunded or non-existent. This is neglectful. The National Family Violence Prevention and Legal Services has funding tied to federal government cycles and is unable to meet demand. It's currently awaiting the government's response to a review into the National Legal Assistance Program. This was finalized in March and called for an increase in recurrent funding to enable their services to provide crucial support to Indigenous women and children nationally. One size doesn't fit all Indigenous women have long argued for systemic reforms that address the underlying drivers of violence, support victim-survivors, ensure justice and demand accountability for offenders. This means not every support service can be for all women. They need to be tailored to meet the specific needs of Indigenous women. The presumption that one size fits all omits the unique factors in different communities across the nation. For example, some regional and remote communities face significant difficulties in accessing telecommunication services. At the same time, the connectedness of cities doesn't automatically make support easily accessible. The lives of Indigenous women are at further risk with delays due to distance and access to funds to escape unsafe situations. This was demonstrated through evidence supplied to the Queensland Commission of Inquiry. It found a high likelihood of death in some remote areas. Centralized call centers can be thousands of kilometers away, delaying access to help. Research jointly led by Marlene Longbottom found accessible services need to ensure Indigenous women are not retraumatised as they share their stories. We should also remember the first responders in these situations are ultimately families. As a result of helping a woman fleeing a violent situation, families also become targets for perpetrators and their networks. A key deterrent to reporting violence is that police are mandatory reporters of child abuse. Indigenous women know if they report violence against them, police and child protection working together can decide children are at risk and remove them into state care. There is a real risk of child removal as a consequence for Indigenous women who report violence, causing immense harm and trauma to mothers and their children. While there have been changes that include service integrations and high-risk teams, the implementation of these services can often let Indigenous women down because they are not based on their needs. As Indigenous women are rightly reluctant to seek support, systems continue violence. Not only must Indigenous women consider the safety of themselves and their children, they also have to navigate multiple services. These service systems are often challenging and overwhelming, and can also offer contradictory advice. This makes decision-making difficult. When it comes to sexual assault, there are virtually no culturally appropriate services available to Indigenous women and girls, who are at high risk of such violence. According to the World Health Organization, one in three Indigenous women globally will be a victim of rape in their lives. This is certainly true of First Nations women and girls in Australia. Increasingly, our homicide research is finding links between sexual violence perpetration and subsequent domestic and family violence deaths. It is crucial more research is done in this space to ensure we are identifying casual links and preventive opportunities. Growing the knowledge base A recent study by Hannah McGlade with the Australian National Research Organization on Women (ANROWS), highlights the violence as systemic and structural, also constituting Indigenous femicide. Research on murdered and missing Indigenous women and girls by Indigenous researchers has been neglected by the state, yet is critical to understanding and responding effectively. Greater investment is required in research by Indigenous researchers. We are part of a new research initiative that aims to address this knowledge gap. Given the lack of government action over many years, Aboriginal women, including the former Social Justice Commissioner, have led national policy change. Indigenous women's calls for a separate national action plan, also supported by United Nations treaty bodies and experts, were finally heard. This plan must be underpinned by Indigenous-led efforts in each state and territory, and including the establishment where needed of Aboriginal family and domestic violence state peak bodies. We say again "nothing about us, without us" and call for genuine engagement with the state and sector. There's a lot of work to do to save the lives of First Nations women and it must start now. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. 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: The collaboration between communities and scientists aims to restore baobab forests in Madagascar to this natural state. Credit: Stephane Corduant, Mada-Movies/ARO Baobab Project Six of the world's eight baobab species are indigenous to Madagascar, where the distinctive trees with giant trunks have historically grown in huge forests. But these forests are threatened by slash-and-burn agriculture4,000 hectares of baobab forest in Madagascar are destroyed every year. Baobab trees can live for 1,000 years and one hectare of land can support eight fully grown baobab trees. But many have been left orphanedstanding alone in barren areas with no contact with the wild animals that spread their seeds, helping the baobabs to reproduce. Tropical ecologist Seheno Andriantsaralaza has been researching the seed dispersal of baobab trees in Madagascar since 2009. She is the president of the Group of Specialists Passionate about Baobabs of Madagascar and a founder and principal investigator of the Assessment-Research-Outreach Baobab Project. She explains how the project works with women to replant baobab seedlings and harvest the fruit of existing trees sustainably. Why are baobab trees so important in Madagascar? Baobab trees are symbols of our landscape, profoundly significant to our ecosystem and cultural heritage. They are valuable to rural women who pick their fruit and sell it to companies for use in food and cosmetic products. Baobab trees can save impoverished communities in periods when they most need the money. Madagascar is also the home of the world's rarest baobab, Adansonia perrieri. Unfortunately, our baobab populations are under severe threat. The most pressing issue is deforestation, driven by slash-and-burn agriculture. Some communities live in such extreme poverty that they need to clear land with fire so that they can plant crops. They cannot be blamed for that. Another significant problem for the baobab forests is the loss of large-bodied animals such as giant lemurs or giant tortoises. These animals played a crucial role in spreading the seeds of baobab trees in their dung. But they became extinct about 500 years ago. Without these animals, baobab seeds are not spread as effectively. Climate change has made the situation worse. Increased dryness and irregular weather patterns negatively affect the growth and survival of baobab trees. As a result, it is now very rare to find a 20-year-old baobab seedling in the wild in Madagascar. It takes about 50 years for a baobab seedling to grow into a fruit-bearing tree. How does your research aim to save the baobab forests? In 2019, I co-founded the Group of Specialists Passionate about Baobabs of Madagascardedicated Malagasy baobab experts and researchers who combine scientific research with practical conservation actions. In 2020, a researcher from Berkeley University and I initiated the ARO Baobab Project, funded by the PEER USAID program. This aimed to restore and conserve baobab forests through a combination of scientific research and community engagement. To bring local communities into baobab conservation, we set up a trade contract for them with a company. We agreed on ways that communities would sustainably harvest enough fruit to sell, while leaving behind enough fruit to generate baobab tree seeds. We then spent two and a half years trying to see if any animals would disperse baobab seeds in their dung, helping seedlings to grow. Micro lemurs, Microcebus cannot break the baobab fruit open to release the seeds as their teeth are not strong enough. The larger lemurs, Eulemur rufifrons, can disperse baobab seeds but we found that they were no longer living in former baobab forest areas. Giant tortoises, Aldabrachelys gigantea, loved the fruit. We found baobab seeds in their feces about 15 days after they'd eaten the fruit, and these seeds later germinated well, growing into healthy seedlings. We also discovered that a small rodent, Eliurus myoxinus, carried fallen baobab fruit over long distances. In transporting the fruit, this rodent dispersed and scattered the seeds. However, we concluded these animals would not be able to do enough to restore the baobab forests alone. People would have to help, by growing baobab seedlings and physically planting them. In 2021, we set up two nurseries to grow seedlings to revive baobab populations and their habitats in Andranopasy, western Madagascar. About 40% of the plants we grew were baobab seedlings and 60% were indigenous trees that used to be found in the baobab habitat, which provide fruit for a number of animals. Our aim was to restore the whole habitat of baobabsall the animals and plants that make their reproduction possible. Did the replanting work well? Yes. We set up two nurseries made of low wooden greenhouses in partnership with communities. Together we transplanted more than 50,000 baobab and other seedlings in February 2023. Our data showed a seedling survival rate of 70% after replanting, which is incredibly high considering the dryness in forests. We were able to partner with EOS Data Analytics, a company that specializes in using artificial intelligence to monitor the health of forests. They used satellite footage, algorithms and remote sensing to see how the seedlings were doing. Comparing the same area with footage from 2020 revealed that since February 2023, plant and tree health has been significantly higher than in previous years. The positive effects of seedling transplantation appeared within months. What role do women play in baobab reforesting? Women play critical roles in our nurseries, the physical planting and also in leadership positions in the project. Before the project, it was sad to see that womenthe main people collecting and selling baobab fruit to feed their childrenwere sidelined and had no voice in the future of the baobab trees. We have started another project for local women to lead conservation action. We aim to start a women's association that will maintain the tree nurseries and grow indigenous plants as a way of generating an income. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. 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: The atmospheric origin of organic matter suggests that Mar surfaces may contain larger amounts of organic compounds than previously anticipated. Credit: Tokyo Tech Although Mars presents a barren, dusty landscape with no signs of life so far, its geological features such as deltas, lakebeds, and river valleys strongly suggest a past where water once flowed abundantly on its surface. To explore this possibility, scientists examine sediments preserved near these formations. The composition of these sediments holds clues about the early environmental conditions, the processes that shaped the planet over time, and even potential signs of past life. In one such analysis, sediments collected by the Curiosity rover from Gale Crater, believed to be an ancient lake formed approximately 3.8 billion years ago due to an asteroid impact, revealed organic matter. However, this organic matter had a significantly lower amount of the carbon-13 isotope (13C) relative to carbon-12 isotopes (12C) compared to what is found on Earth, suggesting different processes of organic matter formation on Mars. Now, a study published in the journal Nature Geoscience on May 9, 2024, elucidates this discrepancy. A research team, led by Professor Yuichiro Ueno from Tokyo Institute of Technology and Professor Matthew Johnson from the University of Copenhagen, found that the photodissociation of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) in the atmosphere to carbon monoxide (CO) and subsequent reduction result in organic matter with depleted 13C content. "On measuring the stable isotope ratio between 13C and 12C, the Martian organic matter has a 13C abundance of 0.92% to 0.99% of the carbon that makes it up. This is extremely low compared to Earth's sedimentary organic matter, which is about 1.04%, and atmospheric CO 2 , around 1.07%, both of which are biological remnants, and are not similar to the organic matter in meteorites, which is about 1.05%," explains Ueno. Early Mars had an atmosphere rich in CO 2 containing both 13C and 12C isotopes. The researchers simulated different conditions of the Martian atmosphere's composition and temperature in laboratory experiments. They found that when 12CO 2 is exposed to solar ultraviolet (UV) light, it preferentially absorbs UV radiation, leading to its dissociation into CO depleted in 13C, leaving behind CO 2 enriched in 13C. This isotopic fractionation (separation of isotopes) is also observed in the upper atmospheres of Mars and Earth, where UV irradiation from the sun causes CO 2 to dissociate into CO with depleted 13C content. In a reducing Martian atmosphere, CO transforms into simple organic compounds such as formaldehyde and carboxylic acids. During the early Martian era, with surface temperatures close to the freezing point of water and not exceeding 300 K (27C), these compounds may have dissolved in water and settled in sediments. Using model calculations, the researchers found that in an atmosphere with a CO 2 to CO ratio of 90:10, a 20% conversion of CO 2 to CO would lead to sedimentary organic matter with 13C VPDB values of -135. Also, the remaining CO 2 would be enriched in 13C with 13C VPDB values of +20. These values closely match those seen in sediments analyzed by the Curiosity rover and estimated from a Martian meteorite. This finding points to an atmospheric process rather than a biological one as the main source of organic matter formation on early Mars. "If the estimation in this research is correct, there may be an unexpected amount of organic material present in Martian sediments. This suggests that future explorations of Mars might uncover large quantities of organic matter," says Ueno. More information: Yuichiro Ueno et al, Synthesis of 13C-depleted organic matter from CO in a reducing early Martian atmosphere, Nature Geoscience (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41561-024-01443-z Journal information: Nature Geoscience 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: A conceptual diagram illustrating the effect of four-year N addition on soil chemical properties and leaf nutrients in a larch forest and an adjacent larch-broadleaf mixed forest. Credit: Plant and Soil (2024). DOI: 10.1007/s11104-024-06677-9 In a study published in the journal Plant and Soil, researchers from the Institute of Applied Ecology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have shown that mixed larch and deciduous forests are more resistant to soil acidificationa decrease in soil pHthan pure larch forests. This finding suggests that mixed forests, which contain a variety of tree species, may be a more effective forest management strategy to combat soil acidification. Human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels and the use of chemical fertilizers have led to high levels of nitrogen deposition, the transfer of nitrogen from the atmosphere to the Earth's surface, in many regions of the world; this process may cause soil acidification and plant nutrient imbalances. While air pollution control measures are being implemented, overall levels of nitrogen deposition remain relatively high in some parts of China. Previous research has focused primarily on nitrogen-deficient temperate forests, leaving the response of nitrogen-rich forest ecosystems and the regulatory role of tree species composition unclear. The researchers conducted the new study by setting up simulated nitrogen deposition experiments in larch (Larix Kaempferi) forests and mixed larch-deciduous forests in Qingyuan County, Liaoning. Over four years, they analyzed the effects of nitrogen addition on soil and tree leaves. The researchers found that nitrogen addition increased the nitrate nitrogen content of larch forest soil, decreased the exchangeable base cations and pH in the litter layer and mineral soil surface, and increased the exchangeable hydrogen and aluminum ions in the soil, leading to soil acidification in these layers. In addition, nitrogen addition reduced the carbon-to-nitrogen ratio of larch needles in the pure larch forests. In contrast to the larch forests, the mixed forest did not show any significant changes in soil inorganic nitrogen content, pH, or nutrient content in the leaves of the dominant tree species as a result of nitrogen addition. This study provides valuable insights into the management of forest ecosystems. The results suggest that in the northeastern regions of China, establishing mixed forests may be a better forest management practice to prevent soil acidification under conditions of increased nitrogen deposition. By understanding the traits of different forest tree species, we can better manage our forest ecosystems to address environmental challenges. More information: Meixia Gao et al, Higher resistance of larch-broadleaf mixed forests than larch forests against soil acidification under experimental nitrogen addition, Plant and Soil (2024). DOI: 10.1007/s11104-024-06677-9 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: Artists rendition of the superhighway for electrons that can occur in rhombohedral graphene, a special kind of graphite (pencil lead). Credit: Sampson Wilcox, MIT Research Laboratory of Electronics MIT physicists and colleagues have created a five-lane superhighway for electrons that could allow ultra-efficient electronics and more. The work, reported in the May 9 issue of Science, is one of several important discoveries by the same team over the last year involving a material that is essentially a unique form of pencil lead. "This discovery has direct implications for low-power electronic devices because no energy is lost during the propagation of electrons, which is not the case in regular materials where the electrons are scattered," says Long Ju, an assistant professor in the MIT Department of Physics and corresponding author of the paper. The phenomenon is akin to cars traveling down an open turnpike as opposed to those moving through neighborhoods. The neighborhood cars can be stopped or slowed by other drivers making abrupt stops or U-turns that disrupt an otherwise smooth commute. A new material The material behind this work, known as rhombohedral pentalayer graphene, was discovered two years ago by physicists led by Ju. "We found a goldmine, and every scoop is revealing something new," says Ju, who is also affiliated with MIT's Materials Research Laboratory. In a Nature Nanotechnology paper last October Ju and colleagues reported the discovery of three important properties arising from rhombohedral graphene. For example, they showed that it could be topological, or allow the unimpeded movement of electrons around the edge of the material but not through the middle. That resulted in a superhighway, but required the application of a large magnetic field some tens of thousands times stronger than the Earth's magnetic field. In the current work, the team reports creating the superhighway without any magnetic field. Tonghang Han, an MIT graduate student in physics, is a co-first author of the paper. "We are not the first to discover this general phenomenon, but we did so in a very different system. And compared to previous systems, ours is simpler and also supports more electron channels," explains Ju. "Other materials can only support one lane of traffic on the edge of the material. We suddenly bumped it up to five." Additional co-first authors of the paper who contributed equally to the work are Zhengguang Lu and Yuxuan Yao. Lu is a postdoctoral associate in the Materials Research Laboratory. Yao conducted the work as a visiting undergraduate student from Tsinghua University. Other authors are MIT Professor Liang Fu of physics; Jixiang Yang and Junseok Seo, both graduate students in MIT physics; Chiho Yoon and Fan Zhang of the University of Texas at Dallas; and Kenji Watanabe and Takashi Taniguchi of the National Institute for Materials Science in Japan. MIT physicists have created a five-lane superhighway for electrons. Here are six of the researchers in the lab. They are, L-R, graduate students Jixiang Yang, Junseok Seo, and Tonghang Han; visiting undergraduate student Yuxuan Yao; Assistant Professor Long Ju, and postdoc Zhengguang Lu. Credit: Shenyong Ye, MIT How it works Pencil lead, or graphite, is composed of graphene, a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in hexagons resembling a honeycomb structure. Rhombohedral graphene is composed of five layers of graphene stacked in a specific overlapping order. Ju and colleagues isolated rhombohedral graphene thanks to a novel microscope Ju built at MIT in 2021 that can quickly and relatively inexpensively determine a variety of important characteristics of a material at the nanoscale. Pentalayer rhombohedral stacked graphene is only a few billionths of a meter thick. In the current work, the team tinkered with the original system, adding a layer of tungsten disulfide (WS 2 ). "The interaction between the WS 2 and the pentalayer rhombohedral graphene resulted in this five-lane superhighway that operates at zero magnetic field," says Ju. Comparison to superconductivity The phenomenon that the Ju group discovered in rhombohedral graphene that allows electrons to travel with no resistance at zero magnetic field is known as the quantum anomalous Hall effect. Most people are more familiar with superconductivity, a completely different phenomenon that does the same thing but happens in very different materials. Ju notes that although superconductors were discovered in the 1910s, it took some 100 years of research to coax the system to work at the higher temperatures necessary for applications. "And the world record is still well below room temperature," he notes. Similarly, the rhombohedral graphene superhighway currently operates at about 2 Kelvin, or -456 Fahrenheit. "It will take a lot of effort to elevate the temperature, but as physicists, our job is to provide the insight; a different way for realizing this [phenomenon]," Ju says. The discoveries involving rhombohedral graphene came as a result of painstaking research that wasn't guaranteed to work. "We tried many recipes over many months," says Han, "so it was very exciting when we cooled the system to a very low temperature and [a five-lane superhighway operating at zero magnetic field] just popped out." Ju say, "It's very exciting to be the first to discover a phenomenon in a new system, especially in a material that we uncovered." More information: Tonghang Han et al, Large quantum anomalous Hall effect in spin-orbit proximitized rhombohedral graphene, Science (2024). DOI: 10.1126/science.adk9749 Journal information: Nature Nanotechnology , Science 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: Estimated compensation for China and India to meet 1.5C (orange) is not only larger in absolute terms but also would require a larger share of their GDPs. Credit: Chalmers University of Technology | Lola Nacke Coal phase-out is necessary to solve climate change, but can have negative impacts on workers and local communities dependent on coal for their livelihoods. Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden and Central European University in Austria have studied government plans for coal phase-out around the world and discovered that more than half of such plans include monetary compensation to affected parties. The study is published in the journal Nature Communications. This planned compensation globally amounts to USD 200 billion, but it excludes China and India, the two largest users of coal that currently do not have phase-out plans. The study shows that if China and India decide to phase out coal as fast as needed to reach the Paris climate targets and pay similar compensation, it would cost upwards of USD 2 trillion. To slow global warming, coal use needs to end. Many governments, mostly in Europe, have begun to phase-out coal, but these policies can harm companies, risk unemployment, and lead to economic hardship for coal-dependent regions. In response, some countries have adopted what are known as 'just transition' strategies, where governments support negatively impacted companies, workers, and regions. Germany for example, has pledged over EUR 40 billion to support those affected by coal phase-out. "Previously, coal phase out has often been blocked by the interests opposing it. Many countries have put money on the table through 'just transition' strategies which has made coal phase-out politically feasible," says Jessica Jewell, Associate Professor at Chalmers University of Technology, and one of the authors of the study. The researchers have studied all countries with coal phase-out plans around the world and found that those with the most coal power production and with plans for rapid phase-out, have compensation policies in place. In total, these 23 countries with 16% of the world's coal power plants have pledged about USD 209 billion in compensation. This may sound like a lot of money, but the researchers point out that it equates to roughly 6 gigatonnes of avoided CO 2 emissions and the cost of compensation for coal phase-out per metric ton of avoided CO 2 emissions (USD 29-46 per metric ton) is actually well below recent carbon prices in Europe (~USD 64-80 per metric ton). "So far these 'just transition' policies are consistent with, or lower than, the carbon prices within the EU, which means they make sense in terms of climate change. But more funding is likely needed if we want to reach the Paris climate target," says Jewell. This is because achieving the goals of the Paris climate agreement will not be possible without participation of the world's major coal consumers, China and India, which have more than half of the world's coal plants, but no phase-out plans currently in place. The study finds that, for China and India to adopt compensation policies similar to those already in place, the estimated compensation amount for both countries would be USD 2.4 trillion for the 2C target and USD 3.2 trillion for the 1.5C target. "The estimated compensation for China and India is not only larger in absolute terms, but would also be more expensive compared to their economic capacities," says Lola Nacke, a doctoral student at Chalmers University of Technology, and one of the authors of the study. A big question thus is where such large sums of money would come from. Today about half of all compensation is funded from international sources such as Just Energy Transition Partnerships supporting coal phase-out in Vietnam, Indonesia and South Africa. International finance might also be needed to support future coal phase-out compensation in major coal-consuming countries. However, the researchers point out that the estimated amounts of compensation for China and India alone are comparable to the entire international climate finance pledged in Paris, and larger than current international development aid to these countries. "Discussions about the cost of climate change mitigation often focus on investments in renewable energy technologiesbut we also see it's essential to address social implications of fossil fuel decline to enable rapid transitions," says Lola Nacke. More information: Lola Nacke et al, Compensating affected parties necessary for rapid coal phase-out but expensive if extended to major emitters, Nature Communications (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-47667-w Journal information: Nature Communications 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: Pro-Palestinian posts vastly outnumber and follow a different pattern than pro-Israeli posts on TikTok, Northeastern research finds. Credit: Matthew Modoono/Northeastern University With millions of users across the globe, including the Middle East, TikTok has become a popular source of information and commentary on the Israel-Hamas war. But pro-Palestinian posts to the social media app significantly outnumber pro-Israeli posts and follow a very different pattern, new research from Northeastern University reveals. The pattern of pro-Palestinian posts is consistent with a prolonged social movement, the research suggests, while the pattern of pro-Israeli posts is typical of what follows a major news event. The number of pro-Israeli content posted to TikTok has steadily declined since Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel, the research shows. "There's a lot of posting activity initially, and then there's a gradual decline over time," says Laura Edelson, an assistant professor at Northeastern's Khoury College of Computer Sciences. The opposite has happened with pro-Palestinian content. "What we see with pro-Palestine posting activityit grows organically over time, it culminates and then it has a symmetric decline," says Edelson, a computer scientist who studies large online platforms. "That's the kind of pattern that is more commonly associated with social movements." Edelson was granted access to the TikTok Research API, which allows independent and academic researchers who work for nonprofit institutions to access certain data to support their work. She collected data on more than 280,000 TikTok posts from the United States that had specific hashtags related to the Israel-Hamas war. Examples include political statements such as #IStandWithIsrael or #SavePalestine, as well as more general apolitical tags like #Gaza or #Israel. The data was gathered from 12 three-day windowsbeginning Oct. 7 to Oct. 9, 2023, and ending Jan. 26 to Jan. 29, 2024. Edelson examined the data in three major ways. First was the number of posts. There were 170,430 pro-Palestinian posts, 8,843 pro-Israeli posts and 101,706 neutral or general posts. Edelson also looked at the posts' page viewsthere were 236 million views for pro-Palestinian posts, 14 million for pro-Israeli posts and 492 million views for neutral or general posts. Finally, Edelson compared whether the number of posts and the post views were proportionatethis enabled Edelson to conclude whether TikTok was amplifying certain types of posts. "It's not enough to look at content," Edelson says. "Big differences in how people experience content come from differences in amplification too." Content was amplified on both sides, the research suggests. "There's periods of time when TikTok is disproportionately amplifying pro-Palestine content, and there's times when it's disproportionately amplifying pro-Israel content," Edelson says. "When you sum up everything over the entire study period, they amplify those two things equally, but it changes over time, initially." Edelson thus divides the data into three "phases." In the first phase, the 3 weeks following the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, neutral or general content is both most posted and most seen. Edelson says the high number of general posts and views per general post is "fairly similar" to what happens on the platform following any major news event. She notes that TikTok is unique among social media platforms. Rather than amplifying the most extreme voices, it is "majoritarian," she says. "TikTok wants to find the most popular thing and then show that most popular thing as widely as possible," Edelson says. She also notes that neutral or general content is predominantly higher in qualityin terms of production valuewhich means it is more likely to be amplified by TikTok. Pro-Israeli content follows the same pattern as general news: it is highest in this phase as well, but it steadily declines after the first week. Pro-Palestinian content, on the other hand, jumps significantly in the second week and continues to grow steadily. But things begin to change on Oct. 27 when the number page views on pro-Israel posts skyrockets2,555 views per post compared to 336 views per post previously. Edelson says she doesn't know why this occurred. But it lasts through the return of some Israeli hostages during a ceasefire that began Nov. 24 and into the first half of December. The final phase begins on Dec. 15 when views per post for all categories fall dramatically. "Interest in topics declines over time, that's very normal," Edelson says. "But the speed of the fall off is striking and not well explained by other events." This story is republished courtesy of Northeastern Global News news.northeastern.edu. 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: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain Civilized political debates may seem increasingly out of reach as democracies across the world face rising polarization, but people still want to discuss issues with people they disagree withespecially those who present themselves as balanced and willing to seek solutions that work for everyone or open to learning new information, according to two studies published by the American Psychological Association. One study, published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, examines how U.S. politicians and ordinary Americans with opposing political beliefs could share their ideas on divisive issues in a way that improved respect regardless of political party. While reviewing a video series featuring real-world politicians solving political dilemmas designed to help voters evaluate the thoughtfulness of political candidates, researchers realized that the videos made viewers from the opposing party more open to learning about the politicians' platform. They found this was because the videos made the politicians look balanced and pragmatic, two key characteristics of wise decision-makers. "It's easy for us to think about members of both parties as being completely biased in favor of their side. But what happens so much of the time is that people talk past each other or show more interest in pointing out the ridiculous things the other side is doing rather than actually finding solutions," said co-author Curtis Puryear, Ph.D., a post-doctoral researcher in the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. "Our findings suggest that if you show you care about understanding the other side's concerns, it goes a long way towards fostering respect." Puryear and co-author Kurt Gray, Ph.D., of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, conducted eight experiments with more than 3,500 participants to test the effectiveness of political messages that relied on balanced pragmatism, an approach to conflict that focuses on showing concern for both sides' interests while prioritizing practical solutions. In one experiment, 505 Americans from different political parties evaluated a series of posts on the social media platform X by members of the U.S. House of Representatives. From a sample of more than 50,000 posts made by the representatives' official accounts, the researchers selected 120 posts that discussed political issues without criticizing the opposing party and varied in how balanced and pragmatic each post was. Each participant evaluated 30 posts, rating them based on how balanced and pragmatic each post seemed, the post's overall tone, how divisive the post seemed, how much they respected the politician and how interested they would be in hearing more about the politician's point of view. The researchers found that posts that combined balance with pragmatism were the most likely to increase participants' respect for a politician and their willingness to engage with them. Posts in which a politician mainly expressed a desire to find effective solutions improved participants' respect regardless of party, but this was not as effective at garnering respect compared with politicians who also presented a balanced view of an issue. The benefits of balanced pragmatism for fostering respect were even more pronounced for posts discussing highly divisive issues, like immigration and abortion. "Logical analyses and strong arguments can make us see someone as competent, which is a trait we value in leaders and friends," said Puryear. "But people also want leaders who understand their constituents, who care about their concerns, and have the practical knowledge to find solutions. These are the qualities of balanced and pragmatic leaders." In another experiment, researchers focused on whether ordinary Americans could also use balanced pragmatism to improve their political conversations. They recruited 211 Democrats in favor of decreasing deportations of undocumented immigrants and 85 Republicans in favor of increasing deportations. The participants were shown four comments written by participants in a previous experiment who argued their position on deportation using either balanced pragmatism or logical reasoning. Overall, people were just as likely to say they wanted to have a conversation with someone who disagreed with their views on immigration when that person appeared balanced and pragmatic as they were to say they wanted to talk with someone from their own political party. While it can be difficult for people to present their views on a divisive issue in a way that respects an opposing viewpoint and looks for a common solution, it could help solve the rising political animosity that we are facing, Puryear said. "Being balanced and pragmatic takes effort," he said. "But it is like building any other habit: Changing how we approach politics takes commitment and practice. We can each take it upon ourselves to do that." Another study, published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, found that people could be willing to discuss controversial topics, such as gender-neutral language, with people who had opposing views when both express intellectual humility. Intellectual humility is the recognition that your knowledge has limits and your beliefs could be wrong. It does not mean that someone who is intellectually humble is insecure or that they don't have informed opinions, only that they are willing to acknowledge that they do not know everything. "Intellectual humility could be an important aspect when trying to understand how to help people engage in these discussions on divisive issues," said the study's lead author, Larissa Knochelmann, MSc, a research fellow and advanced Ph.D. student at Philipps-Universitat Marburg. "Political discussions are important for a democratic society. When people have conversations, they can learn about new perspectives, reduce misunderstandings and work together." The researchers conducted four experiments with more than 1,600 participants. In one experiment, they asked 451 Germans about their beliefs regarding the COVID-19 vaccine and whether it should be mandatory, a highly polarized debate in Germany when the experiment was conducted. They were then asked to imagine an online meeting with a new neighbor whose views on vaccination were either the same as or contrary to theirs. They also saw a statement from their neighbor that indicated whether controversial discussions were "boring" because the neighbor felt they knew enough about the topic already or "exciting" because it was an opportunity to learn more. The researchers found that intellectually humble participants had warmer feelings and more positive evaluations toward groups of people with different political opinions. Additionally, intellectual humility shaped whether participants were willing to interact with others or not. While non-humble participants would rather talk with someone who shared their opinion, intellectually humble participants did not discriminate between those having the same or a contrary opinion. Overall, intellectually humble conversation partners were approached more and avoided less because participants perceived them as more likable and the respective conversation as more calm, comfortable and open. "Many German citizens have the impression that open political debates and an exchange of opinions are not possible anymore. This is especially the case when it comes to emotionally charged political topics," said Knochelmann. "Our research now shows that intellectual humility can help to make people more willing to engage with others." 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: A specimen of P. squamosissimus caught in the Chavantes reservoir (Sao Paulo state). Originally from the North region, it may be competing with and contributing to a decline in the population of native species. However, it has become a key fishing resource in much of the country. Credit: Edmir Daniel Carvalho/CAUNESP The silver croaker (Plagioscion squamosissimus), a fish native to the Amazon (corvina or pescada-branca in Portuguese), is the most probable cause of a sharp fall in the diversity of native species in the Jaguari reservoir, the Jaguari River and Rio do Peixe, all of which are part of the Cantareira Water Production System and the Paraiba do Sul Basin in Sao Paulo state, Brazil. As a top predator in the food network, the invader has negatively affected local biodiversity by bringing about detrimental changes to its taxonomic, functional and phylogenetic structure, according to a study published in Biological Invasions by researchers at Sao Paulo State University (UNESP). They analyzed fish monitoring data collected by power utility CESP (Companhia Energetica de Sao Paulo), which has recorded the presence of the species in the reservoir since 2001. The data analyzed is for a period ending in 2016. In no more than ten years, P. squamosissimus has become the most abundant fish species in the reservoir. "Although this predator is widely distributed in hydroelectric dam reservoirs throughout Brazil, its potential effects on native species had never been studied before. Our analysis highlights considerable losses to fish species diversity in the region," said Aymar Orlandi Neto, first author of the article. Conducted at the Ilha Solteira School of Engineering (FEIS-UNESP), the study was part of his Ph.D. research at the Botucatu Institute of Biosciences (IBB-UNESP). Some of the results were obtained while he was doing research at the University of Valencia in Spain. CESP does this monitoring of fauna to comply with environmental licensing rules for operation of the dam and power plant enforced by IBAMA, the main federal environmental agency. Every four months its technicians install nets at predetermined locations in the reservoir (between Jacarei and Sao Jose dos Campos) and on the Peixe and Jaguari, identify the species caught, and estimate their abundance. "We analyzed 15 years of monitoring data and found the abundance of native predators, particularly the thin dogfish (Oligosarcus hepsetus), to have declined significantly as P. squamosissimus preyed on smaller fish and became more abundant," said Igor Paiva Ramos, last author of the article and a professor at FEIS-UNESP. However, it is not possible to tell from the available data whether the decline of O. hepsetus was due to indirect competition, since both this species and the invader may prey on the same fish. Another possibility is that P. squamosissimus, which can reach 80 cm, preyed on O. hepsetus, which is much smaller (30 cm as an adult). The former typically inhabits standing water bodies, such as lakes, and has thrived in the reservoir; whereas O. hepsetus, the native predator, prefers running water. Introduced species Invader species are a global problem and occur in environments of all kinds, on land and in water. In Brazil, the annual damage caused by non-native animals, plants and microorganisms has been estimated at BRL 15 billion (now about US $2.9 billion). Researchers collect specimens from a reservoir in Sao Paulo state. Credit: Igor Paiva Ramos / FEIS-UNESP The figure is from the Thematic Report on Invasive Exotic Species, Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, launched in March by the Brazilian Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (BPBES). In the article on the UNESP study, the researchers stress that other introduced species appear in the records for the Jaguari reservoir, including the peacock bass (Cichla spp.), also native to the Amazon, and Oreochromis niloticus and Coptodon rendalli, both of which are tilapias and originally from Africa, but their numbers are very small, reinforcing the conclusion that native diversity has dwindled due to P. squamosissimus. The diversity loss observed by the authors applies to all three dimensions considered when this type of impact is assessedtaxonomic, functional and phylogenetic. Species richness losses during the period analyzed were noted, alongside substitution of many rare specialist species by a few generalists, and significant differences were found in species composition and abundance in the local fish community, with entire evolutionary groups disappearing. Social problems There are no simple solutions to the problem. The species is seen as a key fishing resource for both subsistence and sport. Eradicating it could cause social problems. "The species has become very common throughout Brazil. It replaces native species and now plays a very important social role in local economies," Ramos said. Nevertheless, he proposed measures similar to those taken in other countries to deal with invader species. One such measure would be to permit hunting of this species throughout the year without size limits or a ban during the reproductive period, with the aim of eradicating it or at least reducing its abundance. However, federal and state laws restrict fishing not just of native species, which is quite right, but also of invasive species to some extent. "This ends up perpetuating the species that are harmful to local fauna," Orlandi Neto said. Ramos pointed out that eradication of invaders does not necessarily lead to a return of the natives. "We don't know whether another invader will take the place of P. squamosissimus if it's removed. The environment has been modified to such an extent that it may no longer be suitable for former inhabitants," he said. More information: Aymar Orlandi Neto et al, Long-term impact of an invasive predator on the diversity of fish assemblages in a neotropical reservoir, Biological Invasions (2024). DOI: 10.1007/s10530-023-03243-9 Journal information: Biological Invasions Provided by FAPESP 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: A local attempts to ride a bike in a flooded street at Santos Dumont neighborhood in Sao Leopoldo, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, on May 12, 2024. River levels rose again Sunday as strong rains lashed waterlogged southern Brazil, where flooding has killed 145 people and forced hundreds of thousands from their homes. Residents of the state of Rio Grande do Sul were bracing for more misery from the new rains, after two weeks of downpours saw rivers burst their banks, swallowing up towns and parts of the regional capital. More than two million people have been affected by the deluge, which experts link to climate change exacerbated by the El Nino weather phenomenon. The levels of "practically all the major rivers in the state are tending to rise," state authorities said Sunday. The probability of further flooding is "very high" in most regions of the state, according to the National Center for Monitoring and Warning for Natural Disasters (Cemaden). A total of 132 people have been reported missing and 619,000 have been forced from their homes, civil defense officials said in an update Sunday evening. The new threat comes as rescue operations are still underway, with some 130 people missing, while more than 619,000 were forced to leave their homes. In the flooded historic center of state capital Porto Alegre, sofas and other belongings could be seen floating in muddy waters. Further north in the town of Sao Leopoldo, a line of cars lay half submerged where they had parked along the road. Elsewhere, people rowed boats down flooded streets. Further north in the town of Sao Leopoldo, cars lie half submerged where they had parked along the road, as people rowed boats down flooded streets. Electrician Claudio da Silva, 36, went to check on the situation in his neighborhood, describing his house as "broken". "My brother-in-law's house next door had water halfway up the second floor. Now it's gone down a bit and you can get to the second floor, but it's a mess. There are lots of dead animals. It's very, very, sad." Metallurgist Antonio Vanzan, 50, described the situation as "critical." "If the rain doesn't stop falling, what is going to happen? The level of the river may increase and the water will return inside the neighborhoods." 'Worsening situation' The Guaiba, an estuary bordering state capital Porto Alegre, had on Saturday reached its lowest level since May 3. However, fresh rains have once again swollen the body of water, and levels are expected to again rise above five meters. Its banks overflow at three meters. The Guaiba had reached historic levels of 5.3 meters on May 5 and 6. Firefighters rescue locals in a boat, at Santos Dumont neighborhood in Sao Leopoldo, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, on May 12, 2024. Other already overflowing rivers in the region also saw water levels continue to rise. The flooding of the Taquari River has notably put the small town of Mucum on alert, where more than 40 people were killed by a devastating cyclone last September. The town of Pelotas, south of Porto Alegre, "is facing a worsening situation" which increases the probability of flooding, warned its mayor Paula Mascarenhas on Instagram, calling for the evacuation of at-risk areas. Parts of Porto Alegre, which is home to 1.4 million people, also remain underwater. According to the National Institute of Meteorology, heavy rain will continue in the coming hours, with more than 100 mm per day in some areas. In the northeast of the state, there is a "high risk of major flooding and river overflows, as well as significant landslides". In a video published on X for Mother's Day, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva expressed solidarity with those affected, more than 80,000 of whom are currently housed in shelters. "You are not alone," he said. The federal government this week promised some $10 billion for reconstruction in Rio Grande do Sul. 2024 AFP 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: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain Fake pheromones offer a way to foil the love lives of vine mealybugs and keep populations of these prolific, soft-bodied insect pests from reaching damaging levels in vineyards of wine, raisin and table grapes. Producing large amounts of the chemical insect sex attractants for release into the air to prevent lovelorn male mealybugs from finding females to mate with can be difficult and expensive. Now, however, clues to less costly synthetic pheromone alternatives are emerging from Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists' studies of the pest's olfactory system. The paper is published in the journal Current Research in Insect Science. Keeping vine mealybugs from meeting and mating is a big deal, considering they can produce multiple generations over the growing season. Unchecked, the pests suck sap from the grape plants, weakening them and reducing their fruit yields and quality. They also secrete honey dew, a waste that can drop onto grape clusters and promote the growth of black sooty moldboth of which can diminish the fruit's marketability. Adding insult to injury, and perhaps most importantly, the pests also transmit a group of viruses that cause grape leafroll diseases. The presence of these viruses can necessitate the destruction of entire vineyards when infection rates hit 25% or higher. Using a genomic map of the vine mealybug together with sophisticated analytical procedures, the scientists discovered two key olfactory receptors (from among 50 total) that alert male mealybugs that love is in the air in the form of lavandulyl senecioate, the sole chemical constituent in a female's pheromone. The receptors are so specific that no other known chemical odorant found in nature will prompt the males to take flight in search of females to mate with, noted Jacob Corcoran, an entomologist with the ARS Biological Control of Insects Research Laboratory in Columbia, Missouri. To confirm this specificity, Corcoran and colleague plant pathologist Walter Mahaffee at the ARS Horticultural Crops Disease and Pest Management Research Unit in Corvallis, Oregon, used a specialized cell line cultured in the lab to express (examine the function of) two of the vine mealybug's olfactory receptors. Next, they exposed the cells to various doses of lavandulyl senecioate. This triggered the activation of cell signaling pathways indicating the receptors' detection of the pheromone. The cells were also exposed to grapevine odors that the mealybugs normally find attractive in nature. However, no signaling pathways were activated, confirming the two receptors were highly specific to the sex pheromone compounds. With this method, the scientists have begun contemplating more diabolic ways to mess with the pest's love life. On the one front, they envision using the method to screen for molecules called antagonists that could be used to deactivate the pest's olfactory receptors in nature, preventing their detection of pheromone and dooming male vine mealybugs to a sad, lonely life of buggy bachelorhood. Or, in the reverse, proteins called agonists could be formulated to put the receptors in "overdrive," compelling males to chase phantom pheromone signals where none exist. On yet another front, the researchers are pursuing the use of the olfactory receptors in biosensorspheromone-sniffing devices that can be deployed throughout a vineyard to alert growers to where and when the pest's numbers are on the rise so countermeasures can be timed accordingly. As the scientists see it, the use of pheromone-based tactics like mating disruption is part of a multi-pronged fight against the mealybug that includes the application of insecticides, organically compatible products like natural oils and biological or cultural control methods. More information: Jacob A. Corcoran et al, Identification of a receptor for the sex pheromone of the vine mealybug, Planococcus ficus, Current Research in Insect Science (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.cris.2024.100072 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: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain In the weeks before and after the 2020 presidential election, researchers ran a number of tests to try to understand how much Facebook and its corporate cousin, Instagram, may be contributing to the nation's political divide. One of those experimentsled by Matthew Gentzkow and Hunt Allcott, economics professors at Stanford Universitycentered on more than 35,000 Facebook and Instagram users who were paid to stay off the platforms in the run-up to Election Day. There's a lot that researchers could glean from the social media hiatus, including whether people's political attitudes shifted and in what ways. If views changed dramatically, that would support the argument that Facebook and Instagram, and social media generally, are helping to drive Americans apart. The results of that deactivation exercisethe largest ever involving social media users and the first to include Instagramare in: Staying off Facebook and Instagram in the final stretch of the November vote had little or no effect on people's political views, their negative opinions of opposing parties, or beliefs around claims of election fraud. But when it comes to Facebook's impact on what people believed about current events, the researchers reached two conclusions. Those who were off Facebook were worse at answering news quiz questions, but they were also less likely to fall for widely circulated misinformation, suggesting that the platform can be an important conduit for both real and false news. These findings, published by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, are in line with the main takeaways of the other experiments into Facebook and Instagram's potential influence around the 2020 election, in which changing news feeds and limiting re-sharing of posts didn't reduce polarization or change beliefs about whether the voting process was tainted. Those tests were detailed in four papers published in July 2023 in Science and Nature. Taken together, the papers suggest that, when it comes to U.S. politics, Facebook and Instagram may not have as much ability to shape political attitudes during an election season as the popular narrative suggests. And like the previous studies, the Gentzkow and Allcott-led study doesn't absolve Meta Platforms, which owns Facebook and Instagram, from the messy state of U.S. politics. For one thing, the results support the view that Facebook may create harm by distributing misinformation. Gentzkow says it's also possible that the platforms contributed to polarization in the past, even if people's use of them in the run-up to the election had limited impact. "We are not ruling out the possibility that Facebook and Instagram contribute to polarization in other ways over time," says Gentzkow, whoalong with Alcottis a senior fellow at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research (SIEPR). He also notes another finding suggesting that using Facebook in the weeks before the 2020 presidential election may have made people somewhat more likely to vote for Donald Trump and somewhat less likely to vote for Joe Biden. This could suggest that, for Facebook users who still were on the site, Trump's campaign was savvier at building support than Biden's team was. "This effect was not quite statistically significant, so we need to take it with a grain of salt," Gentzkow says. "But if it's real, it's big enough that it could impact the outcome of a close election." The study led by Gentzkow and Allcottand the four that preceded itare part of a massive research project that has been billed as the most comprehensive, evidence-based investigation yet into the role of social media in American democracy. The project came together following critiques of Meta's role in the spread of fake news, Russian influence, and the Cambridge Analytica data breach. The collaboration between academics and Meta researchers involved a series of steps to protect the integrity of the research; Meta, for example, agreed not to prohibit any findings from being published. In all, nearly 20 external social scientists from universities across the country are part of the project, with the external academic team being co-led by Professors Talia Stroud (University of Texas-Austin) and Joshua Tucker (New York University). "Access to Meta's proprietary data has allowed us to jump over big barriers to research on extremely important issues involving social media and politics," says Gentzkow, who is also the Landau Professor of Technology and the Economy in the Stanford School of Humanities and Sciences. Gentzkow and Allcott's study involved roughly 19,900 Facebook users and 15,600 Instagram users who agreed to stop using the platforms ahead of the 2020 election. About a quarter of them agreed to deactivate their accounts for six weeks before the November vote. The rest comprised a control group that logged off for just one week. The study's analysis relies on a number of measures, among them participant surveys, state voting records, campaign donations, and Meta platform data. Some participants also allowed the researchers to track how they used other news and social media services when they were off Facebook or Instagram. On top of the findings on polarization, knowledge, and Republican support, the authors conclude that Facebook and Instagram help people engage in the political processmostly through posting about politics and signing petitions online (voter turnout didn't change). Takeaways for 2024 and beyond Gentzkow says that the study's finding that Facebook and Instagram didn't change people's political attitudes or beliefs in claims of electoral fraud in 2020 is especially interesting in light of his previous research with Allcott. In an earlier smaller-scale study of Facebook users who stayed off the platform for a month ahead of the 2018 midterms, the authors did find evidence that it contributes to polarization. The distinction, Gentzkow says, could be that people are aware enough of political issues during a presidential election, so Facebook and Instagram have little or no effect on their beliefs or attitudes. But during other elections, when information about candidates or issues are not so front and center, social media may have more influence over what people think. "Even though Facebook and Instagram did not contribute to polarization in the runup to the 2020 election, it's possible that they are helping to widen political divides in other contexts where people's views are less entrenched," Gentzkow says. And though the study was limited to the six weeks leading up to the presidential vote, it's still a critical time in U.S. politicshence the phenomenon known as the "October surprise." "Things happen in the home stretch of a presidential election that can change poll numbers," he says. "We've learned from this study that altering how much time people spend on Facebook and Instagram during that period isn't likely to make a huge difference." 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: Soil samples at the Marianna Soil Test Lab are prepared for testing in Marianna, Arkansas. Credit: University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture Farmers in a time crunch have a new, speedier option for analyzing the texture and organic matter content of the soil on their fields. Gerson Drescher, assistant professor of soil fertility for the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, has led a study to create prediction models for these key soil health indicators based on standard tests already being used to analyze soil samples. "We want to provide people with the maximal amount of information that they can get from samples they are already submitting without the additional cost and time of analysis," Drescher said. The newly developed prediction model can help add information about the soil's properties, which can guide fertilization, irrigation, and herbicide decisions, Drescher added. Standard soil testing evaluates plant-available nutrient content and soil pH. However, these properties are also affected by soil texture and organic matter in the soil, which require additional expensive and time-consuming tests. "The traditional methods used for both soil texture analysis and organic matter determination are relatively time-consuming, and generally, producers are interested in a quick turnaround when they submit a sample so they can make their nutrient management decisions and make plans for the amount of fertilizer they need to apply," Drescher said. The research article titled "Soil texture and organic matter prediction using Mehlich-3 extractable nutrients" is published in Agrosystems, Geosciences & Environment. Co-authors include Trent Roberts, professor and interim department head of crop, soil, and environmental sciences; Nathan Slaton, associate vice president for agriculture and assistant director of the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station; and Alden D. Smartt, program associate in the crop, soil, and environmental sciences department. The models are accurate for predicting the most common soils used in crop production in Arkansas. However, the models are less accurate for sandy soils and soils with very high organic matter, Drescher said. The state's common agricultural soils are fine and medium categories, which include silt loams and silty clays. The experiment station is the research arm of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture. What's in the soil? The time a soil test takes depends on the information requested, Drescher said. Each additional test on top of the routine soil analyses can add days or weeks to the total testing time. Drescher's prediction model for organic matter and soil texture cuts those additional tests and can reduce turnaround time by at least half. Soil samples sent to a lab for analysis are dried, ground and sieved for uniformity to ensure the precision and accuracy of the analysis. In Arkansas, the experiment station's Marianna Soil Test Laboratory provides routine soil testing services, which are free for Arkansas residents. Routine soil testing calls for measurement of soil pH and the Mehlich-3 soil analysis, which extracts and identifies the available nutrients in soil samples. The two properties predicted by Drescher's modelsoil organic matter and soil texturerequire more extensive tests, Drescher said. Testing for soil organic matter is determined by a method known as "loss on ignition," which requires weighing samples, subjecting them to high temperatures to combust the organic matter, and reweighing the sample to measure weight loss. Soil texture is measured using a device called a hydrometer, which determines soil particle sizes, Drescher said. Understanding soil texture is an important aspect of crop production because it dictates the ability of the soil to hold nutrients, the rates of herbicide or fertilizer application, irrigation scheduling and soil sampling protocols. These tests help producers understand the health of their soil and guide fertilizer applications and crop management decisions, Drescher said. Better than a map Maps, such as the Web Soil Survey offered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service, can be used to provide information on soil type in different areas, but the resolution of the map might not indicate changes in soil texture in a small amount of space within a field, Drescher said. The new prediction model is more precise than a map because it uses field-specific information. The Marianna Soil Test Lab already provided soil texture predictions, but this new research fine-tuned the model to make the estimation more accurate, Drescher said. The Marianna Soil Test Lab analyzes about 200,000 soil samples every year. Routine soil tests for nutrients and pH are free for Arkansas residents through the support of Fertilizer Tonnage Fees. Non-routine tests of soil texture or organic matter analysis, however, have a fee and take additional time for analysis. The prediction models Drescher used Mehlich-3 nutrient and soil pH data from soil samples submitted to the Marianna Soil Test Lab to calibrate and validate the prediction models. For the clay and sand prediction models, he used data from 409 soil samples, representing different production systems and soils throughout Arkansas. About half were from row crop fields and the other half from forage systems. When developing the model for soil organic matter, he used data from 604 samples from row crop fields and 415 samples from forage production areas. After the calibration, Drescher validated the models by using 103 different soil samples from row crop, forage, vegetable, fruit, turfgrass and ornamental production areas. Over time, the models can be evaluated for accuracy and optimized with new soil samples to improve soil texture and organic matter prediction. Drescher said the models could be used in areas outside of Arkansas if they have similar soils. Drescher said he appreciated the work performed by the Marianna Soil Test Laboratory personnel who assisted with soil analysis and provided the data for the models' calibration. More information: Gerson L. Drescher et al, Soil texture and organic matter prediction using Mehlich3 extractable nutrients, Agrosystems, Geosciences & Environment (2024). DOI: 10.1002/agg2.20461 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: SpaceX just revealed the EVA suits their Polaris commercial astronauts will use. Credit: SpaceX In February 2022, SpaceX and entrepreneur/philanthropist Jared Isaacman (commander of the Inspiration4 mission) announced they were launching a new program to "rapidly advance human spaceflight capabilities" while supporting important charitable and humanitarian causes here on Earth. It's called the Polaris Program. In a recent press release, SpaceX revealed the spacesuits its Polaris astronauts will be wearing and described the research that the crews will conduct during the program's three human spaceflight missionsthe first of which is scheduled to launch this summer. These missions will build on the company's experience with NASA's Commercial Crew Delivery (CCD) program, where NASA certified SpaceX's Crew Dragon vehicle to transport crews to the International Space Station (ISS). According to the company's press statement, the new suits are an evolution of the Intravehicular Activity (IVA) suit currently used by Dragon crews. This included the crew of the Demo-2 mission, which validated the flight system and was the first crewed mission to take off from U.S. soil since the retirement of the Space Shuttle in 2011. It was also the suit worn by the Inspiration4 crew as they became the first flight to be crewed entirely by private citizens. These latest are known as the Extravehicular Activity Space Suit, which has several new features. Per the company's press statement, "Developed with mobility in mind, SpaceX teams incorporated new materials, fabrication processes, and novel joint designs to provide greater flexibility to astronauts in pressurized scenarios while retaining comfort for unpressurized scenarios." The suit also has redundancy features, such as additional seals and pressure valves to help ensure the suit remains pressurized during EVAs. The new 3D-printed helmet incorporates a new visor that reduces glare and features a camera and a new Heads-Up Display (HUD) that monitors conditions inside the suit. These suits will make their debut during the first of three Polaris missionsPolaris Dawnscheduled to take place this summer (at the earliest). This mission will be commanded by Isaacman and will see a Crew Dragon launched from Launch Complex 39A atop a Falcon 9 rocket. The crew will spend five days in orbit and attempt to reach the highest Earth orbit ever flown. During their time in space, the Polaris Dawn crew will conduct the first commercial spacewalk (and the first EVA where four astronauts were in space simultaneously) and be the first to test the Starlink laser-based communication system in space. The crew will also conduct scientific research in collaboration with the Translational Research Institute for Space Health (TRISH), BioServe Space Technologies, Space Technologies Lab, Weill Cornell Medicine, the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (JHUAPL), the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, and the U.S. Air Force Academy. These efforts are designed to advance our understanding of human health during long-duration spaceflights, with applications for health here on Earth. According to the company website, these research activities will include: Using ultrasound to monitor, detect, and quantify venous gas emboli (VGE), contributing to studies on human prevalence to decompression sickness; Gathering data on the radiation environment to better understand how space radiation affects human biological systems; Providing biological samples towards multi-omics analyses for a long-term Biobank; and Research related to Spaceflight Associated Neuro-Ocular Syndrome (SANS), which is a key risk to human health in long-duration spaceflight. Polaris Dawn will be followed up by a second mission (Polaris II, the date of which is TBD) that will attempt to build upon these objectives. The third mission (Polaris III) will be the first human spaceflight involving the Starship and Super Heavy launch vehicle. But as is made clear in the company's statement, the suits are intended to fulfill SpaceX's long-term goals: "While Polaris Dawn will be the first time the SpaceX EVA suit is used in low-Earth orbit, the suit's ultimate destiny lies much farther from our home planet. Building a base on the moon and a city on Mars will require the development of a scalable design for the millions of spacesuits required to help make life multiplanetary."